Assembling The Outfit: a Journal of RPG Design

    One of the things that comes up from time to time is an Article that feels at once very natural and immediate, and yet somehow wrong in the framework I've created. The Tie-Dye shirt is one of those. Its iconography is intensely countercultural, bleeding into the mainstream only through that lens, which makes it solidly Clash. On the other hand, Clash is the game stat that makes you better at violence... which seems weird for our modern stereotypes of hippies as peaceful (not a universal image during their heyday). Since The Outfit feeds off broad cultural concepts, this is a contradiction that needs address... Tie-Dye Shirt In the late 1960s advances in chemistry allowed for the cheap and easy reproduction of ancient east Asian dying techniques… just in time to sell peace and love to the West. Love & Peace: When you refuse violent ends in a dangerous situation add a 7 to the Sequence. If the Tie-Dye Shirt is damaged add two 7s instead. If you engage in violenc...

      Well, we've already established arm and leg warmers. Maybe I'm on an athleisure theme... Leotard Top Jules Léotard was a star acrobat, a trapeze artist of no mean skill, and a physical wonder of his age, the subject of song and story. All this is forgotten, even as he is immortalized in the tightfitting athletic wear he wore. We should all be so lucky. Stretchy : If you are wearing no Bottoms or only Bottoms with short, take a +1 bonus Function. Lose this ability if the Leotard is damaged. Show Off: When you perform physically in front of a crowd you may roll Function Pizazz for the Sequence. Freedom of Movement: You gain a +3 Move with Grace Grace . Lose this ability if the Leotard is damaged. Style: +1 Function Budget : 1 Breakdown     It's only natural an ubiquitous piece of athletic wear give its bonus to Function. Budget is low and things set to balance, yadda, yadda.     No Tags, which is interesting. Happens som...

      I said I needed more Clash, and who doesn't like a nice jacket? Studded Jacket Top A leather jacket covered in metallic studs or spikes. Vital for your sea urchin or pangolin cosplay. Tags: Armor [1], Outerwear Moshing Nightmare: When you enter into a melee in a Sequence in which you rolled Clash+Function you may add a 4 to the Sequence. If you do, add a 6 to the Sequence for each enemy in the melee. Shrapnel:     When the Studded Jacket is damaged you immediately add a 6 and a 5 to the Sequence. Zipper : You may unzip the jacket. While unzipped it grants no Style but gains Short.  Style: Clash Budget : 2 Breakdown     While 'Studded Jackets' refer to a wide range of clothing... some of which don't have that many studs. Obviously, we're describing something covered in studs. Or spikes, for that matter. Real exaggerated to the max version of things. Because that's what the game is, exaggeration and extremes. Even a ...

      Game needs more Clash Articles, turns out... but instead I'm doing Cargo Pants. Cargo Pants Bottoms Why carry luggage when you can wear it? Pockets, Pouches, and more Pockets: It is impossible for someone to actually search all your pockets. If you are actively hiding something in your pockets, then it can only be found in an elaborate frisking… and even then nothing is found unless a Tragedy is spent. This ability is lost if the Cargo Pants are damaged. Forgot I had that: When the Cargo Pants are damaged, something unexpected and useful falls out. Describe it and add an 8 to the Sequence. Style: +1 Trend Budget : 1 The breakdown...     Clothing is ubiquitous and passes by unseen often as not, so it gets Trend. While practical, the practicality is more in the pockets than running around. No Tags, because it's a pretty straightforward Article. Pockets, Pouches, and more Pockets     How do you make the having of pockets intere...

      And I missed last night, so this 'Article a day' thing is off to a flying start...     For some reason my brain has settled on doing arm warmers. And so long as I am, I may as well do Leg Warmers.     This is kind of interesting, because the way the locations in game works, Leg Warmers probably fall under 'Bottoms', while Arm Warmers are just 'Accessories'. Not much a difference, but 'Accessories' don't actually take up slots, so can be stacked infinitely, but also get destroyed more easily and tend to be scaled down in overall effect.     Both Articles also have some interesting cultural properties. Arm Warmers in particular show up in both athletic and countercultural contexts, usually under very different designs.     Traditionally I've also given dual items the Match/Unmatch Tag, which lets you garner a bonus to either Clash or Trend by whether you match your parts. This is possibly a very strong effect. Arm Warmers Access...

      So, for this week, I am going to try and post an Article up every day, more to get my ball rolling than anything else.     Sunday I started this off with the Baseball Cap, and put it to Blue Sky. It was, due to character limits, a godawful mess.     So, here it is again... Baseball Cap What better way to brand the eight men pitching and catching for you? Tags : Armor [1] Go, Team! : When you spend Wardrobe on this item, you may select an affiliation to link it to. If you acquire a hat through means other than the Wardrobe, your GM will tell you its affiliation. Sports teams are popular, but so are fandoms and political movements. In any Sequence in which you rolled Trend you may add a 7 when interacting with an affiliated member. In any Sequence in which you rolled Clash and interact with an affiliated member, the GM may add a 5. Lose this ability if the Baseball Cap is damaged. Sun Visor: The Baseball Cap’s armor can only be used while...