OK, we’ve got pretty much a complete game out of Mazes and Monsters. We’ve figured out combat, skills and spells: everything we need for a generic sword-and-sorcery game.

All that’s remaining are a few Mazes-and-Monsters-specific rules hints dropped by the characters. Frankly, a lot of them don’t receive a lot of rules support in the movie at all, and some almost seem like offhand fake-jargon that’s being made up on the spot. But we know that
THAT’S
NOT
TRUE.

There is Underlying Truth to be found here: we just have to dig it up.

Get your shovels!

Mazed

One of the focuses of Mazes and Monsters is the thin line between fantasy and reality.

Equally thin is the line between players and characters. Both players and characters can become confused about what’s real and what’s not.

We’ve determined that when a character is confused, they enter the “Mazed” condition. A Mazed character’s mini is placed in a special square on the Mazes and Monsters gameboard, which I will call the “Maze Prison”.

When a character is Mazed, their perception of reality can be skewed by whoever is imposing the condition. Friends may appear enemies and vice versa; an open door may appear to be a solid wall; or the character may be totally immersed in a fantasy world that has no connection to reality (or, technically, a fantasy world that has no connection to the shared fantasy world of Mazes and Monsters: a higher level of fantasy, if you will.) All details of the fantasy are determined by the creature or effect that imposes it.

The power of a Maze is measured by the RONA check to escape it. Like other RONAs, it ranges from 3 (Easy) to 9 (Hard).

When an effect Mazes you, you may make an immediate RONA check to shake off the illusion. If you succeed, it exerts no more power over you. If you fail, you are locked into the illusion until some outside force challenges your delusion. Such an event is called a Maze Disruption, and it allows you to make a new RONA check, against the same difficulty, to break free of the illusion. If this new check fails, you incorporate the disruption within the Maze delusion, and that same effect will no longer provide you with a chance to break free.

Example Maze Disruptions:
-If you’ve been Mazed to believe an open door is a solid wall, you may make a new RONA check if someone passes through the door.
-If you’ve been Mazed to think that your friend is a fierce Gorville, you may make a new RONA check if your friend talks to you and reminds you of your shared friendship.

Caution: According to Mazes and Monsters, these are rules for real life as well!

Next week: We’ll cover more movie jargon, “fantasies and scenarios”! Will this be the sexiest Mazes and Monsters article yet??

Tags: mazesandmonsters

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