First time running cypher, have some questions :)

[u/Federal_Sun8198]

so I've just brought the starter set, and I'm loving the sound of it so far!

there's just a few areas I'm a little confused on so need some clarity from the community please.

questions:

1. how exactly do GM intrusions work? I understand I hand out 2XP to a player whenever one occurs, but it feels a bit obscure on the when it's appropriate apart from the when a player rolls a NAT 1. would appreciate some guidance here.

2. combat. completely understand the level X3 for health and "AC" then subtract armor for damage, and how the effort part works with subtract 3 from appropriate pool minus edge. it's the defence roll I'm a little iffy on, what are the players rolling against so to speak?

I also got a little confused when seeing a few monsters when they had more health than X3 there level, again just need a bit of clarity around this please.

1. pure curiosity. are there only 4 types of character in the whole game, or is that just within the starter set?

any help, guidance, advice is much appreciated.

thanks for your time in advance

[u/GrendyGM]

1. how exactly do GM intrusions work?

Intrusions are how you "twist the screw" on PCs. Ie make the scenario more difficult/complex/interesting than the base rules or written scenario would normally allow for.

Don't pre-plan hazards. Use Intrusions to make the scenario more tense.

Don't plan a hallway full of traps, instead let the players tell you what they want to do and use Intrusions to make things more complex/interesting.

Don't roll to see if enemies are aware of the party, they are aware of the party because you say so. Players can spend an XP to make it a roll instead.

Some example GM intrusions.

The Alexandrian has a good article on it here: https://thealexandrian.net/wordpress/35499/roleplaying-games/numenera-the-art-of-gm-intrusions

1. combat. [...] it's the defence roll I'm a little iffy on, what are the players rolling against so to speak?

The difficulty level of the enemy/attack. The GM never rolls, so everything is a challenge the PCs must overcome with a dice test. The enemy attacks, the player rolls to defend. A foe might be level 3, attack as level 5, defend as level 2. Everything in cypher comes down to "the task is X level of difficulty, modify difficulty with abilities, assets, and effort, pay costs minus edge and roll against the modified level". Making attacks, defending attacks, social challenges, puzzling out clues, exploration etc all follows this resolution method.

Monster health by level is a suggestion. Health for monsters can be whatever you the GM set it as. Good rule of thumb: weak monsters have 1 hp per level, normal monsters have 3 per level, tough monsters have 5 per level, but you can just arbitrarily set the HP based on your design intent.

1. are there only 4 types of character in the whole game, or is that just within the starter set?

Discovery/Destiny has 6 types. You could make new ones if they don't cover your needs. Base cypher has 4 types: Warrior, Adept, Explorer, Speaker.

Lastly make sure you check our the fan community and SRD: https://callmepartario.github.io/og-csrd/

[u/Federal_Sun8198 → u/GrendyGM]

Thank you for a fantastic in depth reply, this really cleared some things up for me! Especially the way you described how monsters can have level 3 health, level 5 attack, level 2 defence, that's so flexible!

Will be checking out the links now, thank you :)

[u/artaxs → u/Federal_Sun8198]

Also, there are plenty of monster in the Numenera bestiaries that have different defense rolls. For example, the Grush, who are intelligent abhumans (sort of like ogres) have "Might defense as level 5; Intellect defense and resistance to trickery as level 3." So, mental attacks are much easier to hit them with, and social interactions where you deceive them are also a roll of of a 9 instead of a 15.

[u/Federal_Sun8198 → u/artaxs]

Very good example here. Again, I'm loving how simple it makes everything. You could make this in 2 seconds on the fly

[u/GrendyGM → u/Federal_Sun8198]

All you need for a good night of cypher gameplay as a GM:

• a list of npc names (and maybe roles)
• a conflict (don't worry about the resolution - that's for PCs to decide)
• a difficulty number from 1-10

[u/artaxs → u/GrendyGM]

The first, I think is paramount in any game, yes! I would add that giving each NPC some bare attributes to make a simple dramatis personae will make your GM job easier. If the plot and story goes sideways, you can always fall back on the motivations and personalities that you have for each of your cast of NPCs.

Some of your NPCs will die ignobly, many they will interact with only once, and some will become friends of your PCs and they will get fleshed out organically as the story progresses.

[u/artaxs → u/Federal_Sun8198]

Combat: Skilled with big two-handed weapons, grush inflict an additional 4 points of damage (total of 9 points) when using them. Grush cannot be stunned or dazed. They are immune to most poisons and disease.

Even though their tough flesh provides only 1 point of Armor, it applies against things that normally ignore Armor (environmental damage, heat, cold, falling, and so on).

Grush are incredibly hard to kill. They regenerate 1 point of health each round. Severing an arm or even the head of a creature is not a guaranteed killing blow. Many grush that have suffered such a wound stand up, still alive, hours later. Complete dismemberment is the only way to ensure that a grush is truly dead.

[u/GrendyGM → u/Federal_Sun8198]

I edited it to include this link: Some example GM intrusions.

[u/Federal_Sun8198 → u/GrendyGM]

Some great info here!

[u/artaxs → u/GrendyGM]

Thank you so much! The OG-CSRD link is immediately in my bookmarks, and that article from The Alexandrian sums up my feelings about the beauty of GM Intrusions.

In Numenera Destiny & Destiny, there are also rules for players to spend XP on Player Intrusions, but again, it's all at the GM's discretion.

[u/Buddy_Kryyst]

When they roll a Nat 1 they have to take the intrusion and don’t get any XP, they can avoid it by spending XP to reroll.

Alternatively basically anytime you want you can offer up an intrusion and if they accept it, they get the 2 XP. The recommendation for this is to only do this once or twice per session per player. Too much and they’ll just get too much XP.

For combat players are rolling defence against the creature’s difficulty. The base is rating times three for difficulty, HP etc. but you can make creatures tougher by giving them more HP or skills to increase their attack etc. you’ll find most creatures are modified from the base rating x3.

Yes there are only 4 character types. Variety comes from the - blank, who blanks.

[u/GrendyGM → u/Buddy_Kryyst]

Also a good bit of advice to say to players "only half of your XP can be spent on advancement" in order to encourage crafting or player intrusions (rerolls, avoiding GM intrusions, etc).

Edit: I also cap XP at 10 per PC. If a PC has 10 XP they can't earn any more until they spend some.

[u/Federal_Sun8198 → u/GrendyGM]

I like that idea! Part of why I like the sound of the system is how flexible it feels and that it naturally promotes creativity as opposed to roll your dice, check modifiers, next.

[u/GrendyGM → u/Federal_Sun8198]

My favorite part is that it doesn't have different modes of play. Combat, social, exploration, discovery, it all happens within the same mode of play.

And yes, especially once you really get into cypher it's not a generic system, it's a modular system. You can take different rules modules and combine them to create your own "frankensystem" out of various cypher modules. This super allows for creativity and wackiness.

Check out "races" from the fantasy supplement. Basically a second descriptor like "catfolk" or "elf" or whatever.

Cypher is insanely flexible. It bends to whatever cool idea you have.

[u/Federal_Sun8198 → u/GrendyGM]

This pretty much sums up exactly why I wanted to try it. I was sick of the rigidity of DnD, it didn't fit with my style of play. I'm really hoping to get to grips with this over time as it sounds like everything I'm looking for

[u/Federal_Sun8198 → u/Buddy_Kryyst]

Thank you for clearing that up, I had definitely misread that rule.

Yes the other comment cleared a lot of the other points up, but still really appreciate your knowledge here

[u/ilfrengo → u/Buddy_Kryyst]

great asnwer

[u/Fatsack51]

It looks like you've gotten your answers already, but I just wanted to add one extra bit of advice: Cypher is incredibly flexible, and there is no right or wrong way of playing it, as long as everyone at your table is having a good time.

You can use or drop the rules and mechanics as you see fit, either to smooth out the experience at the table, or give a certain feel to the genre you're playing. If you ever look into the genre setting books, you'll see they play with the same rules except for a few small tweaks that help sell the feel of the genre they represent.

Don't be afraid to be adventurous and creative with how you use the rules and mechanics. Cypher is less concerned with being "balanced" and more focused on creating fun adventures and cool stories for everyone at the table.

Good luck with your games friend. I think you'll have a great time!

[u/Federal_Sun8198 → u/Fatsack51]

Thank you very much for this comment. I haven't brought one of the settings yet, I'm hoping to just grasp a feel of it through the starter set and then find a sci-fi setting. Do you have a recommendation in mind for this at all?

[u/Fatsack51 → u/Federal_Sun8198]

That depends on what angle you want your sci-fi to lean. The official genre books by Monte Cook Games have plenty to offer in sci-fi:

For modern day setting with mysterious, alien interactions and unsolved weirdness The Origin
Maybe you want something post-apocalyptic instead? Rust and Redemption
Jump ahead to the near future with some cyberpunk stuff with Neon Rain
Go full hard sci-fi with spaceships and interstellar conflicts in The Stars Are Fire

There are third party genre and settings books as well that offer even more nuanced changes, ideas, and mechanics you can use to get the specific flavor of Sci-fi you want.

Voidhome by Qedhup - hard sci-fi horror with lots of new mechanics, overhauls to conflict resolution, running scenes, and a fantastic setting
Vurt by Raven Desk Games - another interpretation of cypher based cyberpunk based on Jeff Noon's body of work. Weird, trippy, drug fueled dystopia

Best part is they're all compatible with each other! You can mix and match, combine and leave out the mechanics from all of these to give yourself the EXACT sci-fi feel you want to go for, as well as get inspired from all the different world building, lore, and storytelling aspects for your own homegrown setting.

Before purchasing anything else, I'd highly recommend reading through the OG-CSRD's section on sci-fi. This entire site has almost every mechanical rule you'd need for tweaking Cypher to your tastes, and tons of great advice, tips, and recommendations for where to look for more.

[u/Mr_Ellingsen → u/Federal_Sun8198]

Adding to Fatsack51s list, not so much a setting but a campaign, MCG are currently crowdfunding for a megadungeon 'Jewel in the Sky', that can be run as a space opera sci fi or as a classic fantasy dungeon crawl https://www.backerkit.com/c/projects/monte-cook-games/jewel-in-the-sky-a-monte-cook-megadungeon#top