Ranma draws from the Deck of Many Things, and... what?

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Ranma draws from the Deck of Many Things, and... what?

Postby SpaceKnight of Chaos » Tue Oct 12, 2010 3:07 am

just got my hands on a copy of Dungeon #177, which hosts the 4e update of an old D&D artifact, known as the Deck of Many Things. An item of chaos and mystical power, this relic has a simple, yet dangerous, ability; a person may draw one card from the Deck, and will find themselves afflicted or blessed by a powerful magical effect, depending on which of the Deck's cards was drawn. Once the card has been drawn, the Deck vanishes and leaves you to suffer. I like D&D, Ranma 1/2 and mixing the two, so, I thought I'd come here with a fairly simple exercise: if Ranma was to somehow get his hands on the Deck of Many Things, how do you think any given card would play out in Nerima? There's no "right" answer to this, nor a "wrong" one, either. This is just curiosity seeking satiation. Of course, I've provided all of the cards here so folks know what any given one will do; I'm just curious about how, say, Ranma would be affected by drawing the Ruin card, what item might appear to Ranma if he draws the Keys card, or who he'd become targeted by if he drew the Flames or Rogue cards.

Balance: You have been judged - and found wanting. The powers of fate and luck demand you take some step to equalize the balance within yourself. For Good and Lawful Good characters, they must undergo the Walk on the Dark Side quest (find a specific Good or Lawful Good being and either kill them or otherwise bring ruin to them), while Evil and Chaotic Evil characters must undergo the Shot at Redemption quest (find a specific Good or Lawful Good being and convince it to grant you spiritual clemency in exchange for undergoing a mission for them). Unaligned characters may choose which quest to follow.

Comet: An omen of greatness in your future. In the game, this card means that your next quest rewards double the experience points. In Ranma 1/2... gain twice the benefit from a training regime? Learn a technique in half the usual time? Don't know what it'd do.

Donjon: Powerful magic imprisons you in a state of stasis and buries you deep beneath the earth (typically trapping you in a dungeon, drow fortress or similar chthonic stronghold), in which you will remain until somebody finds you and performs a ritual to release you.

Euryale: You are wracked with physical weakness, your physical fortitude sapped and drained; only magic can cure you, but only after you prove yourself in even your weakened condition. In game terms, suffer a -3 penalty to saving throws, and a Remove Affliction will only remove this once you score a natural 20 for a saving throw.

Fates: Fortune not only smiles upon you, but lovingly takes you in her arms. Just once, you may call upon luck to fall heavily in your favor. In game terms, you may use the Shelter of Fate once only after drawing the Fates card, enabling you to make an attack roll against you become a natural 1, or to make a saving throw, Athletics, Acrobatics or Endurance check of yours count as having made a natural 20.

Flames: A powerful being from another plane becomes aware of your existence - and offended by it. This creature will haunt you out of magically induced enmity, harrassing you and even trying to have you killed until you manage to find it and either kill it or make peace with it.

Fool: The Deck of Many Things blights your fortune in some new way. Discard the Fool card and draw from the top of the Deck until you draw one of the cards of Ruination (Balance, Donjon, Euryale, Flames, Idiot, Rogue, Ruin, Skull, Talons, The Void).

Gem: Riches and wealth are summoned to you by the Deck's fickle magic, giving you gold and jewels equal to 225000 gold pieces.

Idiot: You are wracked with mental weakness, your facilities leeched from you and your knowledge slipping away; only magic can cure you, but only after you prove yourself in even your diminished condition. In game terms, Intelligence based skill checks, attack rolls and pure Intelligence checks all suffer a -2 penalty that can only be removed with a Remove Affliction ritual, which will only work after you have scored a natural 20 in such a check.

Jester: The Deck decides to test your luck to the ultimate level. Discard the Jester and draw two new cards; if one of these is a Ruination card (see Fool), you are afflicted with that card's magic. If you draw two Ruination cards, you can choose which is your doom. If you draw two benevolent cards, you may choose which blessing is applied to you.

Key: The Deck rewards your daring by bestowing upon you a powerful magical item; while this cannot be of legendary strength nor unique throughout the planes (aka, not another artifact), it can otherwise take whatever form you most desire, be it weapon, armor, or other trinket.

Knight: Fate draws to your side a person to become your boon companion, an individual who, while not quite your equal in strength, knows and accepts that the powers of chance have summoned them to be your ally and friend, your confidant and compatriot. In game terms, this character comes from "elsewhere in the world" (which could be taken as meaning that, if drawn in, say, the Astral Sea, it could summon a celestial of some sort) and is 1 level lower than you. Strictly speaking they're supposed to be of the same race and gender, but I'm personally willing to waive that restriction.

Moon: Great magical energies are called into being, raw and malleable, reacting to your very will and shaping into an effect you desire, then passing on. In game terms, immediately cast any one ritual that does not have a permanent effect (so Scrying would be okay, Enchant Magic Item wouldn't - I can list up all of the Rituals in 4e if folks want me to/think it would help).

Rogue: The Deck twists the mind of one of your closest companions, or a community/religious leader in a position to do you harm, compelling them to seek to harm you in any way they can. You do not know this curse has been laid upon them, but only by personally defeating them or otherwise reasoning with them can you lift the curse.

Ruin: The ever-greedy Deck sucks the power from any and all magical items you may have in your possession, reducing them to nothing but raw residuum.

Skull: The forces of the dead are stirred against you, with powerful undead appearing to claim your life - by killing you themselves. In 4e, this takes the form of 4 Sword Wraiths (spectral undead warriors), a Nightwalker (a powerful, demon-like undead with shadowy powers), and an Immolith (an undead fire demon).

Star: A star-mark is emblazoned upon your body, allowing you to tap into the power of the celestial bodies to temporarily bolster your physical or mental abilities to a degree. You can only draw upon their power once every eight hours of rest, but the ability to do so remains yours for the rest of your life.

Sun: A powerful magical item, of strange but effective nature (a Wonderous Item, in game terms) is bestowed upon you.

Talons: An avaricious claw grips at your very spirit, rendering you unable to tap into your truest power or the power of magical items until you make a significant gesture of generosity and receive a ritual to remove the lingering blight. In game terms, you can't use Encounter powers, Daily powers, or magic item powers until you give away a magic item of at least your level (in a Ranma setting, I'd make this sacrifice more nebulous - nobody has any magic items to give away) and receive a Remove Affliction ritual.

Throne: A symbol of leadership and power, the Throne card bestows upon you the knowledge of a castle, keep, dungeon or other appropriate lair that is rightfully yours and how to find it - as well as the vague warning that it already lies in the hands of false keepers that you must defeat. Should you already have a suitable lair, then the Throne card enhances your status by bestowing upon you one or more magical items to enhance your lair (225000gp worth).

Vizier: A seed of supernatural insight takes root in your brain. Once, and once only, you may will it to sprout and deliver unto you the knowledge to answer almost any questions that may plague you (in game terms, any info that could be delivered by a maximumly successful Consult Oracle or Voice of Fate ritual). Once its power has been called upon, it wilts and fades away.

The Void: The baleful magic of the Deck tears your soul from your body and entraps it within an item held on another plane of existence, leaving your body in a magical stasis-coma on the material plane. Only if someone can find this item, retrieve it and break it, will your soul be freed and you restored to life.
Water, water, everywhere, and all was cursed and black!
Drowned ones cast bad spell and out come pig, girl, duck, panda!
Swirl, swirl, slithery pond, and join with magic spring!
Swirl, swirl, dirty pond, and rid the cursed sting!
Here my prayer, I beg you please!
Now turn these curses BACK!

http://www.issendai.com/rpgs/japanese-boys-names.shtml
http://www.issendai.com/rpgs/japanese-girls-names.shtml
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Re: Ranma draws from the Deck of Many Things, and... what?

Postby Shanami » Tue Oct 12, 2010 8:58 am

Secret hidden option-the deck gets swiped in the usual Nerima chaos by someone other than Ranma right before he was going to use it. Cue chase scene through town with various different people drawing the cards instead. I can just see Ranma about to pull a card and Azusa snagging the deck (her little Pauline, or something like that) and running off.

There was an episode somewhere on the addventure (I think in the new gods thread), where a deck of many things makes its way to the Tendo residence and severely alters people.
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Re: Ranma draws from the Deck of Many Things, and... what?

Postby Té Rowan » Tue Oct 12, 2010 1:29 pm

Nope. It's in the Elfguest thread.
I go walking. My mind goes wandering.
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Re: Ranma draws from the Deck of Many Things, and... what?

Postby SpaceKnight of Chaos » Tue Oct 12, 2010 1:49 pm

Oh, I know about the thread where it happens. That's part of the reason why I came here with this simpler version (not to mention I don't think I have the sourcebook with the 2e version). There's so many possibilities with the Deck's magic, and I wanted to get people's opinions on things like...

If Ranma drew the Donjon, where would his body be imprisoned? And would anyone care enough to try and save him?

If Ranma drew the Rogue, which of his associates would try to make his life hell? More importantly, how would he notice the difference, given they all do so already (not that he doesn't make their lives hell right back)?

If Ranma drew the Knight, what would he summon and how would he (or she) help Ranma in Nerima? After all, the Knight's magic summons a loyal friend, and that's someone Ranma doesn't really have in canon - oh, Akane does generally want what's best for Ranma, but she's a bit too tempermental and sometimes even self-centered, so she's just made more problems for him on a few occasions.

You get the idea. I want to see what suggestions people can come up for how the Deck of Many Things can make Ranma's life even more chaotic than it already is.
Water, water, everywhere, and all was cursed and black!
Drowned ones cast bad spell and out come pig, girl, duck, panda!
Swirl, swirl, slithery pond, and join with magic spring!
Swirl, swirl, dirty pond, and rid the cursed sting!
Here my prayer, I beg you please!
Now turn these curses BACK!

http://www.issendai.com/rpgs/japanese-boys-names.shtml
http://www.issendai.com/rpgs/japanese-girls-names.shtml
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Re: Ranma draws from the Deck of Many Things, and... what?

Postby frice2000 » Tue Oct 12, 2010 2:34 pm

Vizier: A seed of supernatural insight takes root in your brain. Once, and once only, you may will it to sprout and deliver unto you the knowledge to answer almost any questions that may plague you (in game terms, any info that could be delivered by a maximumly successful Consult Oracle or Voice of Fate ritual). Once its power has been called upon, it wilts and fades away.


I'd have him use that one to figure out how to clear out his problems honorably for all and to make people happy. It's been done before but a creative approach on it would be interesting.
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Re: Ranma draws from the Deck of Many Things, and... what?

Postby SpaceKnight of Chaos » Tue Oct 12, 2010 2:55 pm

It is an interesting suggestion, but would Ranma really think to ask that? More importantly, is it at all possible? As far as I know, all Ranma can really do to get out of things honorably is for everyone to agree to call things off equitably and just go home (so to speak). Still, that is the sort of thing that Ranma could very well ask after drawing the Vizier card, so it fits this topic perfectly.

He could also ask the Vizier for how he could get rid of his Jusenkyo curse, being pointed towards some magical dispelling macguffin or a magus of some kind that genuinely does have the power (though they're in no way inclined to be helpful or easy to get to), but that's off topic, yeah?
Water, water, everywhere, and all was cursed and black!
Drowned ones cast bad spell and out come pig, girl, duck, panda!
Swirl, swirl, slithery pond, and join with magic spring!
Swirl, swirl, dirty pond, and rid the cursed sting!
Here my prayer, I beg you please!
Now turn these curses BACK!

http://www.issendai.com/rpgs/japanese-boys-names.shtml
http://www.issendai.com/rpgs/japanese-girls-names.shtml
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Re: Ranma draws from the Deck of Many Things, and... what?

Postby Grinnerz » Tue Oct 12, 2010 6:07 pm

Talons: An avaricious claw grips at your very spirit, rendering you unable to tap into your truest power or the power of magical items until you make a significant gesture of generosity and receive a ritual to remove the lingering blight. In game terms, you can't use Encounter powers, Daily powers, or magic item powers until you give away a magic item of at least your level (in a Ranma setting, I'd make this sacrifice more nebulous - nobody has any magic items to give away) and receive a Remove Affliction ritual.

Perhaps he would need to give up a curse-cure to regain his Ki abilities.
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Re: Ranma draws from the Deck of Many Things, and... what?

Postby SpaceKnight of Chaos » Tue Oct 12, 2010 6:17 pm

Hmm... that does make a lot of sense, and it squares well with the D&D rules. Nice suggestion, good idea. I'd, personally, also be willing to let Ranma lift that curse by some similarly incredible gesture of generosity on his part - deliberately conceeding defeat in a battle to let, say, Mousse or Ryoga feel good about themselves, for example.
Water, water, everywhere, and all was cursed and black!
Drowned ones cast bad spell and out come pig, girl, duck, panda!
Swirl, swirl, slithery pond, and join with magic spring!
Swirl, swirl, dirty pond, and rid the cursed sting!
Here my prayer, I beg you please!
Now turn these curses BACK!

http://www.issendai.com/rpgs/japanese-boys-names.shtml
http://www.issendai.com/rpgs/japanese-girls-names.shtml
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Re: Ranma draws from the Deck of Many Things, and... what?

Postby Wyrd » Tue Oct 12, 2010 7:45 pm

If Ranma drew the Rogue, which of his associates would try to make his life hell? More importantly, how would he notice the difference, given they all do so already (not that he doesn't make their lives hell right back)?


I like the idea of it affecting Ryouga, causing him to stop fighting with Ranma and start ignoring him. I've long liked the idea that Ryouga's and, to a lesser extent, Ranma's issues stem in large part from isolation and a lack of constants in their lives. Ranma at least had his father, as bad an example of humanity as he is written, but the only person ever a regular part of Ryouga's life was Ranma, who made an effort to walk him to and from school every day. With this interpretation, the worst thing you can do to either of them is to ignore them, as exemplified by the reversal jewel arc. Ryouga is likely the only member of the cast who would figure that out, though.

Giving up a cure for Jusenkyo might not be enough. What I suggest is that he give a cure to one of the other cursed. What would be even better is if the cure didn't work or made things somehow worse, because it is the act of generosity that matters. As long as Ranma truly believed that it was a choice between getting cured of Jusenkyo and getting back his full strength, I think he would quite willingly give up the Jusenkyo cure, and it is that willingness that would matter to the magic of the card.
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Re: Ranma draws from the Deck of Many Things, and... what?

Postby SpaceKnight of Chaos » Tue Oct 12, 2010 8:35 pm

Both of those suggestions make a lot of sense. Ranma's relationships with his so-called friends and so-called girlfriends are so warped and twisted that Ryoga becoming suddenly apathetic and indifferent to Ranma would be among the cruelest sustainable treacheries Ranma could suffer. Ranma (or Ryoga or Mousse or Genma) needing to give over a Jusenkyo cure to one of its fellow victims is a perfect display of the generosity needed, especially because they've all screwed each other over curses many times in the past. The cure not needing to be real also fits the fact that the Deck of Many Things exists to spread chaos and confusion.

Also, if you are still interested in that "Shampoo as magical girl" thing, Wyrd, expect a big post of details to show up there soon. I've been talking about the idea with my co-author.
Water, water, everywhere, and all was cursed and black!
Drowned ones cast bad spell and out come pig, girl, duck, panda!
Swirl, swirl, slithery pond, and join with magic spring!
Swirl, swirl, dirty pond, and rid the cursed sting!
Here my prayer, I beg you please!
Now turn these curses BACK!

http://www.issendai.com/rpgs/japanese-boys-names.shtml
http://www.issendai.com/rpgs/japanese-girls-names.shtml
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Re: Ranma draws from the Deck of Many Things, and... what?

Postby Zwzn » Fri Oct 15, 2010 8:32 am

Wyrd wrote:
I like the idea of it affecting Ryouga, causing him to stop fighting with Ranma and start ignoring him. I've long liked the idea that Ryouga's and, to a lesser extent, Ranma's issues stem in large part from isolation and a lack of constants in their lives. Ranma at least had his father, as bad an example of humanity as he is written, but the only person ever a regular part of Ryouga's life was Ranma, who made an effort to walk him to and from school every day. With this interpretation, the worst thing you can do to either of them is to ignore them, as exemplified by the reversal jewel arc. Ryouga is likely the only member of the cast who would figure that out, though.
Right, Shampoo was ignoring him. :lol: :lol: :lol:

Shampoo wasn't ignoring him. She was acting like Akane(treating him like garbage for no reason). Ranma actually seems okay with her just ignoring him. It is everyone spreading gossip that is not correct, and Shampoo hating him that bothers him. He gets very annoyed at his "friends" he was going to lunch with about it.

:?: :?: :?: Have you ever noticed in that story line that Ranma's behavior is a little odd, what with him becoming a vengeful ass until the gem is put away? Ranma's actions aren't because Shampoo is ignoring him. Ranma is actually kind of worried about Shampoo, and then gets extremely angry do to her treatment of him, and sets up a very cruel and stupid revenge plot. :?: :?: :?:

Wyrd wrote:Giving up a cure for Jusenkyo might not be enough. What I suggest is that he give a cure to one of the other cursed. What would be even better is if the cure didn't work or made things somehow worse, because it is the act of generosity that matters. As long as Ranma truly believed that it was a choice between getting cured of Jusenkyo and getting back his full strength, I think he would quite willingly give up the Jusenkyo cure, and it is that willingness that would matter to the magic of the card.

It's not like Ranma doesn't normal go out of his way to try to help people. Such a thing for Ranma is pretty much what many would call a Tuesday. Just look at what he did for Plum.
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Re: Ranma draws from the Deck of Many Things, and... what?

Postby Wyrd » Fri Oct 15, 2010 9:48 am

It's not like Ranma doesn't normal go out of his way to try to help people. Such a thing for Ranma is pretty much what many would call a Tuesday. Just look at what he did for Plum.


With this curse, it has to be more than going out of your way, it has to be an appreciable personal sacrifice, and one of the only things Ranma values enough to not be willing to give it up under normal circumstances is a cure. It is how much it matters to him that counts for this sort of thing when not being used as a part of a game where the player might not be in character enough to really care about such a sacrifice.

Shampoo said she hated him and didn't want to see him, and then stopped going after him. Akane says she doesn't want to see him on a regular basis but is still a major part of his life. Cologne realized that playing hard to get was what caught Ranma's interest, but there are multiple ways you could interpret these same events that don't make this a matter of an over-inflated ego that can't stand the thought of someone not liking him. I prefer to think of it as a matter of vulnerability and craving for any attention at all because this makes the character more sympathetic for me, though I acknowledge that there are many valid ways to interpret these events.
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Re: Ranma draws from the Deck of Many Things, and... what?

Postby Zwzn » Mon Oct 18, 2010 3:51 am

It's not like Ranma doesn't normal go out of his way to try to help people. Such a thing for Ranma is pretty much what many would call a Tuesday. Just look at what he did for Plum.

Wyrd wrote:With this curse, it has to be more than going out of your way, it has to be an appreciable personal sacrifice, and one of the only things Ranma values enough to not be willing to give it up under normal circumstances is a cure. It is how much it matters to him that counts for this sort of thing when not being used as a part of a game where the player might not be in character enough to really care about such a sacrifice.
It's not much of a sacrifice when you will likely just have to order more over the phone, just wait a few seconds longer to use the cure, or use it at the same time as them.

Wyrd wrote:Shampoo said she hated him and didn't want to see him, and then stopped going after him. Akane says she doesn't want to see him on a regular basis but is still a major part of his life. Cologne realized that playing hard to get was what caught Ranma's interest, but there are multiple ways you could interpret these same events that don't make this a matter of an over-inflated ego that can't stand the thought of someone not liking him. I prefer to think of it as a matter of vulnerability and craving for any attention at all because this makes the character more sympathetic for me, though I acknowledge that there are many valid ways to interpret these events.

It's a rather common thing in Ranma1/2 that a character makes assumptions that are incorrect because they think they know what is going on. One needs to remember that the characters in the series don't know everything the readers do.

Shampoo was going after Ranma so much he noticed she was acting odd, and was worrying about her. That says she was seeking him out.

Look at it this way: Ranma was worried about Shampoo, he went to investigate Shampoo's odd behavior, then just because she calls him "scum man" he becomes a vengeful ass, but none of the stuff before did anything but make him worry about her?
It looks to me like the gem that was practically on Ranma when Shampoo insulted him was at fault. Remember the gem reversed feelings, and things went back to normal when the gem was removed.
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Re: Ranma draws from the Deck of Many Things, and... what?

Postby Wyrd » Mon Oct 18, 2010 8:47 am

It's not much of a sacrifice when you will likely just have to order more over the phone, just wait a few seconds longer to use the cure, or use it at the same time as them.


In Ranma terms it is, given the sheer number of times that nobody got a cure when there was enough for everyone just because they fought over who got it first. Also, whatever cure he comes across need not be one that he could get another dose of or otherwise use on himself afterwards. In the wishing sword arc, they could have wished for 'everyone who has a curse in Tokyo who wants to be cured of it to be cured', yet Ranma and Genma fought heavily over which of them would get the only cure. The point being that if Ranma believed that he wouldn't get cured if he let the other person get cured first, that would likely be enough for the deck. It is an act of generosity that matters, which I would interpret as being based on how much of a sacrifice he believes he is making, not how much of a sacrifice he actually makes from the perspective of someone who knows more than he does.
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Re: Ranma draws from the Deck of Many Things, and... what?

Postby Zwzn » Tue Oct 19, 2010 2:16 am

It's not much of a sacrifice when you will likely just have to order more over the phone, just wait a few seconds longer to use the cure, or use it at the same time as them.

Wyrd wrote:In Ranma terms it is, given the sheer number of times that nobody got a cure when there was enough for everyone just because they fought over who got it first. Also, whatever cure he comes across need not be one that he could get another dose of or otherwise use on himself afterwards. In the wishing sword arc, they could have wished for 'everyone who has a curse in Tokyo who wants to be cured of it to be cured', yet Ranma and Genma fought heavily over which of them would get the only cure. The point being that if Ranma believed that he wouldn't get cured if he let the other person get cured first, that would likely be enough for the deck. It is an act of generosity that matters, which I would interpret as being based on how much of a sacrifice he believes he is making, not how much of a sacrifice he actually makes from the perspective of someone who knows more than he does.

In the wishing sword arc it is very likely that Ranma was under the effects of a wish by Tatewaki.

In the failed wedding arc he arrived after the fight had started.

Ranma bent over backwards to help Ryoga find and get to the Japanese spring of drowned man.

The problem is there is no known cure that would be lost if Ranma gave it to someone else. :cry:
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