What makes an TTRPG a "Narrative Game" (Daggerheart Discussion)

[Wolfpack48]

That makes sense.


Yes, I know what you mean. So Passions in RQ: Roleplaying in Glorantha (RQ 7e) are the same as Pendragon's. The mechanics are identical or if not extremely similar. Along with Passions, Pendragon has Traits whilst RQ 7e has a parallel mechanic in Runes.

I read somewhere that one of the Chaosium designers said that the Personality Factors on that record form were part of an arc of development that evolved into Passions in Pendragon and at some point returned fully-fledged to RQ. A quick search turns up this episode that I found interesting and shows a version of that early record form.

I don't know if Passions reached RQ in 7e or in one of the Avalon Hill or Mongoose editions.

The latest edition of the game, RuneQuest Glorantha, officially introduced Passions as well as Rune Affinities, though they've existed in Pendragon and many different unofficial forums over the years (Griffin Mountain as you mentioned). Passion "skills" - Devotion (Deity), Fear (Type or Indvidual), Hate (Group or Individual), Honor (Cult), Loyalty (Group or Individual), Love (Group or Individual) - are added as part of character creation and can be done as part of Session 0, or as backstory generation in the rules -- I always prefer session 0 or even a short HeroQuest style (100 word) description to allow players more control of their background.

Rune Affinities are tied to the character personality and cult, and work similar to Pendragon's Personal Traits. The two opposed runes (Truth and Illusion for example) must add to 100%:

To be strong with the Truth Rune is to view the truth as something objective, and outside of individual biases, interpretations, feelings, and imaginings. Such adventurers describe things as they truly are, both in matters small and large, no matter what the consequences. To be strong with the Illusion Rune is to distort truths or fabricate untruths, for one’s own ends or on behalf of others, or in some cases simply for the sake of doing so. Such adventurers view reality as something subjective, and subject to their imagination.

The percentage changes as characters push in either direction along the scale, and sometimes the runes and passions must be tested against one another if there is internal conflict. The referee can call for a test when these conflicts might come into play, but players can also test on their own if they feel conflicted about a character decision.

Rune skills are used to cast rune magic, so it's important that the character is aligned to their cult and deity. And both Passions and Runes can be used to augment skill tests if the Passion or Rune is associated in some way with the narrative or skill test.