OF GODS AND MORTALS

	This game idea is a co-operative world builder that will lead into a long term campaign with a rich history behind it. The idea is to have everyone, not only the GM, invested in the setting because they shared the experience of making it together. 

General layout
	The world is made up of different Ages. The game will take place across these ages, creating the legends and Gods that built the world the players will use. 
	The final age will be the one in which the traditional RPG campaign will be set. The idea being that by this point the world will have a rich history to draw upon, but one that has been jointly created and shared. Investing the players and GM in the world they will travel through together.

General mechanics
	This game use poker cards (without jokers) for their mechanics. The value scale is the same (A>K>Q>J>10>9…) but for numeric purposes, letter cards are considered as ‘10’. Their suit is related with different kind of aspects during the discussion of settings (God phase) or actions to be solved (Mortals phase).
•	HEARTS: Social interaction or personal influence.
•	DIAMONDS: Intellectual and perception topics.
•	CLUBS: Physical actions or elements.
•	SPADES: Conflict (including combat and abrupt changes).

Playing… as Gods
	The first step is to create the game world. This process should be organic, it should be cooperative, but it should also come with balance. The one thing we want is each time players interact to alter the trajectory of an idea, it generates a narrative. Feel free to change the aspects or ages you want to work with, add more, remove some, or agree on a list of things that need discussed before you bid. This step could serve as the first session as can be used as a game itself. 
	The recommended ages could be the following:

Basic setting
	The first step is to determine the basic constructive elements of the world of the game. Some of the following questions can be used to solve this step:
•	How is the world of the game? 
•	There’s any special geological condition?
•	Does magic exists? How is used?
•	Which level of technology is available?
In this age the suit of the played cards have no significance.
	
God age
	In this step players must talk about the Gods that create (or live first into) this world(s).  Try to solve the following questions:
•	Are they nature evil, neutral, good?
•	What are they powers or affinity with elements of the world?
•	What kind of rites require for their followers?
•	How are the relation with other gods?
•	Who and why create/summon/bring the different mortal life (including races of PC)?
	
	The best way to manage this age is that each PC assumes one of the Gods as their own, taking the responsibility of their fulfillment. The sum of the cards used in a bid for creating a new God will represent its global power and will serve to be compared with others. 
Example: A God created in a round with a single winning bid of ‘9’ will be less relevant with other created with a ‘7’, ‘5’ and ‘K’. This importance can be managed by the group with extra questions about its nature or cult.
	The suit of the winning card in each discussion must define the general nature of the narrative to be used.
Example:
•	HEARTS: Their relation with other Gods.
•	DIAMONDS: Their thinking, knowledge or powers.
•	CLUBS: Their aspect or the physical changes induced in the world. 
•	SPADES: Some conflictive or unlike event starred by the God.
	The GM could finish this age as soon as each player has created at least one God or have participated in four bids (Monotheists settings are also a possibility ).

Heroes Age
	In this step players must talk about the mortals, created (or summoned, or enslaved, or…) by Gods.
•	What are the name and exploits of the first mortals?
•	How were created the first cities or kingdoms?
•	What monuments or tradition remain from this age?
	When the GM think that it’s enough information (for example after each player played at least three cards) can bring to the table the question:
•	Which event caused a deep change in the relations between Gods and mortals? 
	The winner of this bid can explain the causes of the end of this age and the god punishment or reprisal (if any). The suit of the winning card must define the nature of this event. Example:
•	HEARTS: The (classical) love between a God and a human.
•	DIAMONDS: The discovery of a secret.
•	CLUBS: The theft of some divine object.
•	SPADES: A war between nations.
	If some player want to complete some of the aspects of the narrative can ask and open a bid in the traditional way (see mechanics).

Dark Age
	In this step players must talk about a period of danger, ignorance… a big contrast with the previous age. 
•	How change the cult of each god?
•	What evil events happened?
•	How managed people to survive?
	
	When the GM thinks that it’s enough information (for example after each player played at least two cards) can bring to the table the question:
•	Which event brought a new hope or changed the situation? 
	The winner of this bid can explain the causes of the end of this age. The suit of the winning card must define the nature of this event. Example:
•	HEARTS: A new King respected by all factions.
•	DIAMONDS: The discovery of new lands or arriving of a new race.
•	CLUBS: The appearing o a physicall phenomena that change all world configuration.
•	SPADES: The complete elimination of a dangerous enemy.

Now
	In this optional age questions about the current situation of the world must be solved.
•	What are now the main factions?
•	What are the predominant gods?
•	What things remain from the Heroes/Dark Age?
•	What are the main threats to this age?

As a subjective measurement of time the amount of cards bet in each age represent their duration:
•	God age: 10000 years/card bet
•	Golden age: 1000 years/card bet
•	Dark age: 100 years/card bet
•	Now: 10 years/card bet

God Mechanics
	Each player should have their own “God deck” (52 cards), they must shuffle it and start with a hand of five cards. Players must start making relevant questions about any open topic of the current age or even about the concrete topic under discussion. When more than one player wishes to answer this or alter an aspect of another player, get them to place a card from their hand face down on the table, then flip them, the winner being the highest card. If they draw then they must work together to alter the aspect. 
	After playing the card the players must replace it with another from the deck (if they have any) and discard a number of cards from their decks according the scale of the following table (if they have any). The player(s) who won the bid must discard up to two additional cards from their hands and draw extra ones to have a new hand of five cards.

Value	Basic setting	God Age	Heroes Age	Dark Age	Now	
From 2 to 4	1	1	3	0	1	
From 5 to 7	2	2	2	1	2	
From 8 to 10	3	2	2	2	3	
One letter	3	3	2	4	3	

	Each player can play any number of cards as there are cards in their hands, all cards used must be kept in a separate pool for each player. At the end of all creation rounds they will add their hands to this pool to construct their player deck. 
	The GM have also right to participate in such bids, the idea of this game is that history and background must be written by all. He can shuffle their discarded cards to build a new deck when it’s over but without including the cards used for their bids and only once for each PC who is participating.

Playing… as mortals
	The second step is to play in the created world. It should be like a classical play with a GM and PC around a table but using the background defined in the God step. For that reason this chapter is going to talk only about basic game mechanics. 

Creating the “character sheet”
	All Player deck must start with exactly 12 cards and sum less than 80 (remember that letter cards value is ‘10’). To construct it, players use the same pool as they use for their bids in their Gods step. For new characters (after a death or new players) draw 18 at random as your pool.
	If the pool have more than 12 card the player must choose and discard cards from it until requirements are fulfilled.
	If the pool have less than 12 cards and/or sum more than 80, add cards from the deck starting with those of lower values and removing the higher values.
	Players can take note of the chosen cards in their Character’s sheet. Each card should be related to a narrative element of the character that could be used by GM to create histories. Bigger number bigger significance. They are only narrative helps to the GM so players should try to choose them by their significance not only as a list of good things. 
Example: A character deck ends with three spades (related with conflicts) a 4, 9 and K. They could be explained in the character sheet as: 
	4: You always use the rusty sword from your father.
	9: In the past you have some problems with the law.
	K: You lost all your family in the last war against elves.

	Your character will also have “Determination points”, some extra luck that can be used in critical situations. Those points are determined according this table:

Sum of the cards in the player deck	Determination points	
Less than 50	4	
51-60	3	
61-70	2	
71-79	1	
80	0	

Solving actions
	To test the resolution of any uncertain action the corresponding player must take a number of cards of her character deck depending of the difficulty of this action. The more cards to be extracted the most easy the task.
From ‘1’ (The hardest but still under the capacities of the character) to ‘8’ (the easiest but still under some uncertainty) being ‘4’ the standard difficulty level.
	The high final score the best action result, with a minimum of ‘1’ to be considered as success. This value must be calculated with the following rules:
•	If the suit of the card matches with the nature of the action add one to the final score.
•	If the suit of the card doesn’t match with the nature of the action but share the color add one to the final score for each pair of such cards.
•	Determination/experience points can be used to repeat a card extraction (the whole extraction), once for each season and point.
•	As an additional effect, if any of the cards is a letter, the player can extract one extra card. The GM can allow to add this to the final score if the player introduce in a smart way, the narrative element linked with this card to the history.
	For a contested action the winner should correspond to the high final value, or the sum of the matching cards in case of tie (half valued if they match the color but not the suit).
	GM only should use decks for the most powerful or recursive NPC, for the rest the election of appropriate difficulties should be enough.

Extra considerations
Injuries are represented by replacing cards from the character deck with the high values with others with the lower number available. As long as a character loses all letters from the character’s deck is considered out of game (temporary or not depending of the situation).
After a very good interpretation or an intense game session, or simply as reward or treasure, GM can give experience points (PX) to players but always related to one of the four basic aspects (suits) depending of the situation. They can be used as Determination points (only for actions of the same nature) or to improve the character deck. This improvement consists in the replacement of a card in the deck by other with the following costs:
•	One card of the same suit but a value one unit higher (best for ties or to allow change of suits with experience): 1 PX of this suit.
•	One letter card of the same suit: 3 PX of this suit.
•	One card of different suit but same color and the same number: 2 PX of the new suit.
•	One card of different suit and color and the same number: 4 PX of the new suit.

Of course the replacement of a card in the character deck must be completed with a narrative that explains the new card.