End Times is an interesting one. The game is one I backed on Kickstarter based on its premise, and from what I can see the developer made an excellent game. But as with so many games I have not been able to run, let alone play the game. There are two versions of the game, one using an engine called Organic Rule Components which I gather to be the developer's own system that has been used in several games, the other is Powered by the Apocalypse. I think it'd be weird to only talk about one, and I for one would not be sure which I prefer anyway. So I will make a character in each one; no guarantees it'll be the same one.
But I have completely omitted the reason I backed the game - in End Times you play a Survivor, a person who is living through an Apocalypse, but who also for unknown reasons has the ability to switch their mind with the versions of themselves from exactly ten years in the future, or ten years in the past. The game comes with ideas for different kinds of apocalypses, and based on the rulebook fiction supports the idea of each version of a Survivor having its own ideas, motives, and opinions. After all, while you are in the past or future to change things, your other self from that time has switched into your place. So your self from 10 years ago might have their own ideas on what to do in your present. And the one from 10 years in the future might have their own idea on what to change in your time. As a further complication, preventing an apocalypse might ask you to do things you find unacceptable, leading to a real moral problem. Oh, and your meddling in the timelines might, of course, make things worse, or catastrophic in another, unforeseen way. It sounds really cool, but also like it might be really confusing pretty quickly.
Anyway, I will start making a character for the ORC version today, PbtA tomorrow. So I have something to go on, I will say that at some point before the PCs present time massive blights started consuming and degrading world agriculture. During the initial months, scientists found out that the different viruses seem to be man-made, but all countries seem to be equally affected. While famine struck around the world, old conflicts flared up and countries went to war, in some cases with themselves. The PCs live in WW3, with a few dozen sides, and a desperate lack of... anything, really, everywhere. Bleak enough, eh?
My PC will be a woman called Lorraine Amanda Bescoe; at the time of play present, she is 22 years old. She grew up in Kansas City. When the Blight came, she was 20, and a student at University training to follow in her parents' footsteps. Her parents were both high school teachers. They early on realized what was happening, and managed to convince Lorraine to come home, and start preparing herself.
The US has fallen apart, but so far wars are a thing on the outside. There are conflicts in-country, and local order is often a big issue, but we are not yet at the stage of civil war. That is a matter of time, though. Lorraine and her mother (dad died in food riots three weeks ago) are part of a local private organization that tries to keep a semblance of order. The government is in the process of disintegrating and accepting such organizations - at least they aren't doing any harm directly. Mom still teaches kids when there is time, and Lorraine has become a teacher and off-and-on mechanic, helping to keep machines and mechanics working as much as possible. People who meet Lorraine see the quiet desperation so many people show in these times, but also a strength of moral conviction. She is a fierce believer in community, and in getting along. She is, however, a quiet person, and not a natural leader. All of this has been prompted by questions in the rulebook, it puts the concept front and center. Nice.
Time to think about four formative experiences, each one should be one, two sentences.
1) When Lorraine was 6 she confronted a kid named John that was bullying her. A few seconds later he ran home, crying. It made her self-confident.
2) When Lorraine was 15, she came out to my friends and parents. Most of them were supportive, making her more willing to trust others.
3) When Lorraine left University to come home she had to leave behind her girlfriend; she learned that family is more important to her than she realized, and it made her calm.
4) When her father died she was 22. She stepped up to help her mother with a lot of responsibilities, and it made her confident.
Before I do the rest I am told that I will buy things with points, but also have a meta point budget of 100 PP to buy additional points in the different categories with. I will note where I did that.
First, I distribute 100 pts across ten attributes, each one with a max of 20, and 10 as human average. I do that as follows. adding another 4 pts by spending 20 PP:
Agility 12 Awareness 12 Charm 10 Endurance 8
Intelligence 15 Speed 8 Strength 10 Willpower 14
Relationship With Younger Self 10 Relationship With Older Self 5
And Lorraine has 10 Hit Points.
Next, Skills. These are simply bought with the remaining PP, though I can keep some for having more starting money. Yeah, I will spend them here. There are 12 categories of skills, and skills in each one have a different cost. I will just enumerate the ones I have, which won't be many.
History 5 (costs 15 pts) Research: Academic 3 (9 pts) Science: Chemistry 3 (9 pts)
Running 3 and Sports 3 (each costs12 pts) Pistol 2 (12 pts) Basic Repairs 3 (9 pts).
The remaining 2 points mean I have $2000 to spend on equipment. I dislike equipment lists, and will therefore skip this step. From what I can see Lorraine will be able to afford basic stuff, but not some of the more involved things like a library.
Finally, I can get and spend PP on Advantages and Disadvantages. Cool list, and I take Enemy: Rival (John, the kid Lorraine kicked in elementary school has become a local police officer; he still hates her guts, though he would be hard-pressed to say why). This gives me 10 PP. Lorraine is attached to her mom, who is an older adult (14 PP Disadvantage). I spend those on Daredevil Kid (12 PP Advantage) which gives Lorraine and her younger self Skating 1, Bicycle 1, and Climbing 1. I will also spend 12 on Status: Government, giving Lorraine level one. It usually means she is an intern or similar, but I will interpret this as referring to the not-quite-official militia Lorraine belongs to.
Now, the current Lorraine is done. Let's make ten years younger Lorraine by subtracting 40 attribute points (note: points for Relationships to self do not count). I just take 5 off of each attribute.
Agility 7 Awareness 7 Charm 5 Endurance 3
Intelligence 10 Speed 3 Strength 5 Willpower 9
Relationship With Younger Self 10 Relationship With Older Self 5
And younger Lorraine has 5 Hit Points.
I am asked to decide what they know about time travel and the coming apocalypse. The idea is that Lorraine has switched at least once before into each version of herself, so each one has been in the present. And old Lorraine would know more about what is happening anyway - I assume she has a rough idea about what happened, but since life was pretty hectic has never quite cared about the detail. Young Lorraine, however, thinks she dreamed and knows nothing so far.
Asked for what Young Lorraine is at her best and worst, I say 'Brave' and 'Whiny'. If she ever starts to actively oppose me, she will trust adults to help, and tell them about what is happening.
Now for older Lorraine. For now, she has the same attributes and skills as current Lorraine, though the book informs me that this will likely change during the game. For the moment the most crucial change would be the amount and kind of equipment she would lug around - only portable things, with a focus on survival. And then the note why she might oppose current Lorraine: For some reason future Lorraine has become pro-apocalypse, convinced the event is needed somehow. That should be fun.
Done. There is a pretty cool character sheet in the book. Alas, no form-fillable, separate one, so the text above will have to do.
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