FU
FU: the Free, Universal Roleplaying Game.
FU is a game of action, adventure and fun! It is a roleplaying game of grand proportions and stupefying simplicity. FU lets you create exciting stories in any setting imaginable, with a minimum of fuss, or even preparation.
Hacks
May The FU Be With You! Star Wars Hack
I Know Kung-FU The Matrix Hack
Fan Made FU
Fans of FU are welcome to create their own hacks. The license and Fan Made FU logo are below.
Fan Made FU logo (right click and “Save as…”)
about 1 year ago
Nice work – just the thing for an off-the-cuff GM.
about 1 year ago
After a quick look, it seems to be a nice and easy game. The layout is great and the title also
. I never played description-based/stats-less RPGs much, but I like the inclusion of this storytelling mechanism on checks (many games which use that are more complex ones).
The thing with even/odd numbers is IMO confusing, because there is also a quality ranking: a 4 better than a 5, hm…
about 1 year ago
Wow.
Bloody Fantastic. Vignette was good. FU is WICKED! I need to run this soooooo bad!
Much tighter and coherent for new players. Sub bars (is that what they’re called?) are a nice and easy to reference. I think Conditions really filled the area Vignette seemed to be lacking. FU points are nice and the incorporation of “Yes, but…” to the Beat The Odds resolution made me feel all tickly inside. The text is fast and easy to read which sets a nice tone to complement the style of the engine. This is all upon a cursory read and I’m reeling with excitement.
Overall much cleaner and complete in both layout and game design than Vignette. A worthy successor for sure.
Thank you so much for your hard work during NaGa DeMon!
about 1 year ago
I’m about halfway through it. Looks good so far. I’m thinking about the kinds of games I could run with this, and whether I want to write something for it. That’s a good sign for me.
about 10 months ago
I don’t remember how I found this site (was just surfing for RPG stuff I guess) and was intrigued with this FU system. I read it and I loved it VERY much on the instant. This system is very simple (but not too much) and fast to learn yet still elegant (not too shabby).
It’s the perfect system to run my Zombie Apocalypse themed game with a group of friends who love zombies but are not Roleplayers.
I found the dice mechanic very neat, it’s a simple dice roll but still have a great range of diversity with the “yes and…/no but…” results.
On a side note, I prefer the 1-3 bad, 4-6 good.
Oh, by the way, since the character sheet is really straithforward, maybe it could be made into a “small” version (something like 5.5” x 8” sheets) ?
about 10 months ago
Thanks for the feedback, Jean-Baptiste. The fans of the 1-3/bad 4-6/good are growing in number (or maybe just becoming more vocal). As I play more games with my children I am beginning to lean this way too, as it is a far more intuitive process. It would also make a couple of other things that are swirling in my head a bit easier, too. I will see if I can put a half-sized character sheet together.
about 10 months ago
Found this game mentioned on a site and decided to give it a look- fantastic, just what I was looking for:-)
I’m going to go the other way and say that I like the Even/Odd roll better than 1-3, 4-6.
about 10 months ago
Thanks for the answer!
I wanted to add few other suggestions since I have become a real fan of this RPG. I hope those could help at least spark few ideas to you
I found that the descriptors are often a bit restrictive and sometime too few (only 3 “good” descriptors : body, mind and edge). I feel that, at least for my group, the descriptors categories are more of a guideline and I won’t be forcing players to strickly follow them.
Also related is the lack character improvement. I had the idea of letting my players add a descriptor at the end of each session to simulate a kind of “leveling up” feel. It worked great but then again it couldn’t be made well with the 3 descriptors so they would mostly add every new descriptor under the broader “edge” category (this is when I decided to drop the descriptors categories). However, I noticed that some players didn’t knew what descriptor to pick up right away after the game session. I ended up letting those new “descriptor slots” empty and let the player fill it up at anytime during a game session at the cost of a FU point (I gave 1 FU point at the end of every session). This allowed them to pick up something they really needed at the very moment in the game, which felt very rewarding for them.
about 10 months ago
Cool, Jean-Baptiste. I am gathering ideas for future supplements and “leveling up” is something I will look at. I really like the “open slot” that can be filled by spending a FU point – it inspires me to do something like the Matrix, where players can spend a FU point to download a skill or equipment.
With your players adding new edges, are they broadening the things they can do, or taking new edges that enhance and build up the stuff they are already good at?
Keep the feedback coming!
about 10 months ago
I hadn’t thought about it but it is indeed very Matrixey
Most of the time, they broaden the things they can do since they usually wait until they face a challenge they don’t have any traits that help and one they absolutly don’t want to fail to fill up a “empty slot” with something that will help them right away.
This game isn’t leaned toward “specialisation” very much (though it can support it if one’s want). In fact, it’s so not “gamist” that players don’t try to munchkin on the rules to get the most out of the “stats”. They focus on the story and, to me, that is a very good sign on how this game succeeds ! Besides, chances of success with 2 dices are very high (75% I think? I suck at maths). Add a relevant item for an extra d6 and chances of failure are near zero. So it is not really important to invest more than one descriptor in a pecular domain/task.
Oh, by the way, another thing I do is that, as a GM, I sometime use FU points myself to add “negative” dices to PC’s checks. When I do that, I put a token in the center of the table. When the number of tokens in the middle of the table is equal to the number of players, each one takes a token. So it’s a kind of way to improve the difficulty but reward players for either succeed even against the odds or for finding another way to beat the challenge.
Keep up the good work mate !
about 10 months ago
I believe this is my new favorite system. It is intuitive, customizable, easy to grasp, fast playing, and gets out of the way. I hope Peril Planet expands on this rpg system.
I did find a error on page 15 Action Summary for #4. It should read -1 penalty die not +1 penalty die.
Great job and thank you.
about 10 months ago
A Kobold stole my thinking-cap. It is not an error.
about 10 months ago
Don’t you hate those kobolds! I am intending to build upon this system as the fancy strikes me. I have also set up a thread on the forum where people can suggest their own ideas for hacks. You can get to it here:http://perilplanet.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=34&t=138
I am very pleased that people are enjoying FU. Spread the word!
about 10 months ago
Hey, I think the Insta-Genre Generator should probably be credited to my buddy Gareth Wilcox. Or at very least he should be thanked for assistance for it.
about 10 months ago
Also, I like this. It’s like a lot of other really simple games, only simpler!
about 10 months ago
If Gareth is the guy with the idea, than my heart-felt thanks go to him. It is a totally awesome idea. I should also thank you, too, because the next FU hack is gonna be a Matrix one and I am going to steal mercilessly from There Is No Spoon!
about 10 months ago
Well put us in the credits then! My ego demands a written record!
about 9 months ago
Hey Nathan Russell,
FU is fantastic. Love the simple idea and execution that allows me to play in any setting or genre. I use it with “Mythic: Game Master Emulator” for solo game play. That way your system is quick to handle and quick to get out of the way and continue with the story. Grrrreeeeaaaaat Job!!!
Also, thanks for the two free Mods above. Is there anyway you could do a Shadowrun mod?
about 9 months ago
I am really glad you like the game! A few people have said they use FU with Mythic, so I will have to give it a try.
Doing a Shadowrun hack is possible, it’s just a matter of zeroing in on what the central concept, idea or gimmick is. I will ponder…
about 9 months ago
Great game, beautiful design.
I’ve really become enamored with these sorts of rules-lite games–Risus, Wushu, 3:16, Faery’s Tale, etc.. They challenge you to think about role-playing in a different sort of way. More focus on collaborating to create a ripping story, less on rules that get in the way of doing cool stuff. I especially like how they allow for impromptu play with little prep across a variety of genres. A lot of us who grew up on RPGs like D&D would love to play but don’t have the time to invest in long, frequent sessions with elaborate rules and lots of expensive books. (Though I’m finding those books can serve as nice resources to draw from for “trappings” in games like FU).
Anyway, I really enjoyed reading this rules set. I just finished reading Gregor Hutton’s Remember Tomorrow, and I thought it was interesting to see how you both use the concept of Conditions as a key mechanic to influence game play. A new trend in RPGs?
From an aesthetic perspective, FU has a wonderfully clean, sharp design. I love how each key rules component is pretty much boiled down to one page. I love how the top half presents the core rules and the bottom half helps not only explain them but offers some really nifty options and twists–a game with its own house rules already presented! Everything progresses very logically, the pages are well-written, the summaries wrap up each section nicely, and the sample one-sheet at the end serves as an excellent model.
Having read quite a few rules-lite games, I would rank this one as among the best. It takes a lot of familiar elements from similar games but manages to put a fresh twist on them in a very pleasing package. I love the genre mods, by the way–equally impressive design with very clever variations on the core rules that show how versatile this system can be. Please keep them coming! (My only quibble is that the picture presented in the Star Wars mod looks like a pirate…?)
The one area that might be tough for players–especially those who are new to games like FU or Risus–is combat. A lot of gamers (like me!) enjoy combat and trying to understand how battles between different combinations of players and NPCs play out in a system like this can be tricky. One of the things that Wushu does really well is provide examples of different kinds of conflict scenes. The FU core rules pdf is so clean and tight, I hate to suggest tampering with it, but a detailed example or two of combat and/or a chase might be helpful and get more people excited about the system. Maybe you could put something together as a supplemental download?
Anyway, FU is great. Please keep going with it–I’m eager to see where else you’ll take it.
about 9 months ago
Wow. Thanks for the kind words and positive feedback!
In regards to “conditions”, I do think they are a new “meme” in games at the moment. FU’s conditions grew out of my own game “The Beast of Limfjord” which was in turn inspired by Fate.
I agree that combat needs more detailed examples and part of my initial motivation for re-writing the original “Vignette” rules was to fix this. But, just as you noted, the extra detail required kind of went against the grain of what I was doing with the rest of the rules. It is my intention to do a supplement that explores combat in more detail and adds a “tactical” combat option for players that want more crunch.
Finally, the image from the Star Wars hack IS a pirate! Good spotting. It is really hard to get a copyright free Star Wars image (that Lucas guy really keeps a tight hold of his IP!).
I hope you enjoy playing FU and I would love to hear more feedback.
Thanks,
Nathan
about 7 months ago
I dwell on ideas to expand a super lite game into tactical combat territory without losing its core appeal quite a bit.
I’m very interested in seeing what you come up with!
about 7 months ago
I do have plans to write up some more “tactical” combat rules, but these are quite abstract. I have pondered using FU for miniature wargames, but have not explored it much beyond those initial thoughts. Yet.
about 7 months ago
It may be a stretch here but in an attempt to make a custom character sheet for FU, I’ve tried making one in photoshop but it doesn’t look as good as the original one.
I’m wondering if the original file you used could be distributed so we could make custom sheet out of it? I guess it was made in photoshop ? If not, what program did you use.
I understand what I’m asking and I’d totally understand if you didn’t want to share it and won’t hold any grudge
about 7 months ago
Hi Jean-Baptiste,
The character sheet was created with inDesign. I will look at putting up a file in a couple of days, along with a link to the font.
about 7 months ago
That’d be great! Thanks a lot !
I’ll send you a version of my custom Zombies (FUmbies? lol) FU character sheet once done so that every body could get it. I’d make up a whole hack for it, but I didn’t changed much of the rules so it doesn’t quite require a hack per say.
about 7 months ago
On a side note, Nathan have you ever considered applying for Ennie Awards ? Have you released FU between May 1st 2010 and April 30th 2011 ? If so, there’s a category for Best Free Product, but the game can also get into other categories. You might wanna take a look !
http://www.ennie-awards.com/blog/?page_id=1214
about 7 months ago
You know, it never really crossed my mind, but now that you mention it I realise I had nothing to lose. It appears, though, I have missed my chance for FU and the 2011 ENnies, as the nominations will be announced in three days. Printed products had to be received by judges by May 8th. But this is a lesson to me! MUST PAY MORE ATTENTION!
about 7 months ago
Damn! Then there’s only an option left. Rework and polish FU a bit, re-release it with a 2011 copyright and apply for Ennie 2012
! I guess it’s legit, it’ll count as a FU 2nd Edition, something like that.
about 5 months ago
Can you please give me an example about how combat works ?
thx
about 5 months ago
Hi Locotomo,
Like the rest of the game, combat is very story-driven, as opposed to mechanically complex. It works with exactly the same system as all other actions. The key is at what “scale” the GM and players decide to hold the combat at. Here are a couple of examples:
Zorro is fighting the nefarious Captain of the local militia. He wants to cut a “Z” into the man’s cheek. Zorro’s player asks the question “Do I cut a “Z” into the Captain’s cheek?” then the dice are rolled. If an even number is rolled (a success), then the Captain will receive one or more conditions. In this case it might be “Painful wound” or “Marked by Zorro”. If the player had asked “Do I cut the Captain’s cheek and intimidate him?”‘ the resulting condition might be “Scared”.
In another, bloodier game, a warrior might battle an Orc and ask the question “Do I kill the brute?” A “Yes, and…” result might see the Orc killed and his allies scared; a “No, but…” result might just have him wounded; and a “No, and…” result could see the Warrior injured.
You could do entire battles (“Do we defeat the army of Cyborgs?”), or very small segments of a combat (“Do I wound the monster?”), depending on what you want out of the scene.
I hope this helps. I would also encourage you to join the Yahoo group and ask how others run their combats, as they have lots of great ideas. You can find it here:
http://games.groups.yahoo.com/group/fanmadefurpg/
about 2 months ago
Hi Nathan!
I’ve finally made my Zombie Apocalypse hack ! Check it out! I’m open to any comments (good, bad or the guy with the gun).
For direct link :
http://f1.grp.yahoofs.com/v1/sNbeTjkJvpUkl3KfsC5Khoc8u4YFXSq-OzlLpHvjM_rF2jAkrVZLCpc2d9MAzoKxwWZhyppKZgfesramhVc-FuZkjFUJ8QlVsZ9Eub3hOaQhiydxGLDF/Hacks/FU_Zombie_Apocalypse.pdf
about 2 months ago
Oh! BTW, if anyone find errors, let me know. English isn’t my native language!
I’ve already found one : “The Zombie Survival Guide by Max Brooks” and not “from Max Brooks”.