Core Rules

To help represent the internal logic of a cartoon world That's All Folks! has an unusual number of mechanics for a Society Game; fortunately, however, these can be boiled down to six simple rules.

Scenes are used in That's All Folks! as the natural unit of time. A Scene covers a general narrative event and is associated with a specific Discord channel, which corresponds to one location – if you move to a different channel, you're moving to a different Scene.

All location channels will contain a message, “Scene (number)”, indicating how many Scenes have passed there¹⁾. This scene number will be pinned on the channel. It will also be available on a #scene-register channel. When the GMs feel a Scene has ended and the next one has begun, the Bot will post a new scene number, replacing the old pinned message and updating the #scene-register channel. A scene might change when a fight has come to an end, when several characters leave, or there is a significant event that happens (such as a building suddenly exploding). Crucially, Scene messages are not meant to be prescriptive. If you are having a conversation with another character when the Scene changes, it is perfectly alright to continue the conversation. The things happening in the background might have changed slightly, but that conversation can contine from one Scene to another.

The effects of most mechanics in That’s All Folks! are limited to the Scene in which they occur, unless they indicate otherwise. Some Injuries (such as being Incinerated) can remove you from a Scene, but you're allowed to go and participate in a different Scene in a different channel when this happens, and you are free to rejoin the original channel once the next Scene is happening. The #scene-register channel and the pinned scene message in each location channel are both intended to help you keep an eye on when a Scene has changed so you can rejoin the area.

Players are free to move their character from one Scene to another at will, as represented by sending messages in different channels, however they are expected to not to be meaningfully present in more than one Scene at once – i.e. jumping back and forth rapidly between two channels. The exception to this is Curtain Calls: players who have been invited to another player's Curtain Call are free to send messages in both the Curtain Call channel and one other channel. In general, it is advised that you indicate if you are leaving or arriving on a Scene, sending a message that conveys “My character is leaving/arriving”.

More information on Scenes can be found on the Uptime and Sessions page.

A Condition is a temporary effect that changes how your character normally works. Any mechanical effect associated with your character with a duration counts as a Condition for the purposes of the game's mechanics. Usually a Condition will say what it does and how long it last.

Usually a Condition only applies while you are within a Scene — i.e. if your character moves to a different channel it no longer applies, unless they return to the channel in which they gained that condition and the scene is still ongoing. Some Conditions (such as Lasting Injuries) specify that they last between Scenes.

The most common Conditions are Injuries, which are usually the consequence of a Conflict.

A Conflict is what occurs when two characters attempt two mutually exclusive actions: for example, they each try to win a fight with the other, or both try to snatch the pigeon at the same time.

When a Conflict occurs, players should:

1. Determine the stakes of the Conflict: this is what the loser will be unable to do (until the end of the current Scene, at longest) and what the winner will be able to achieve. If stakes cannot be agreed, a member of crew will set them for you.
2. Determine whether the outcome has an obvious winner. If so step 3 can be ignored.
3. Use the That's All Folks Bot to decide a winner. Do this when both opponents are evenly matched i.e. both opponents have the same count of relevant Abilities, Cartoon Logics, and Writing Conventions as each other. To use the Bot, simply enter the command “/run_conflict” in the text box of your relevant channel, specifying the two characters involved.
4. The winner describes the situation that has occurred that enforces the agreed stakes, and if it is appropriate for the loser to gain an Injury they may select the appropriate one.

Some Mechanics and Items allow a character to succeed automatically or to avoid automatic failure in certain Conflicts. If both characters have this, then the Conflict should be resolved as if these cancel out. Automatic successes and failures should be considered and cancelled first, then any sources of avoiding automatic failure cancelled out with these second.
For example, if two characters with the Beef Effect “(+) You automatically win violent Conflicts” get into a brawl, then that Effect should be ignored for the purposes of determining a winner, resulting in victory being decided by the Conflict Bot. However, if one of them also has an Item (as well as the Beef Effect) that lets them automatically win violent Conflicts, then that person is the winner. On the other hand, if the Item only prevents them from automatically losing, then the winner is determined by the Conflict Bot (since the sources of automatic victory from the Beef Effects are cancelled out before considering sources that prevent automatic loss).

If more than two characters are involved, the conflict is more complex than the above, you are having difficulty agreeing stakes and Injuries, or you would like help in general to adjudicate, use the Bot command “/get_help”, specifying succinctly what the current predicament is and what you would like help with in that. This will post a message with this information, along with the channel, your username, and current server display name to the Crew, who will be with you to help as soon as they can.

An Item is an object of significance associated with a character that is able to have mechanical effects. The most basic of these are Bucks, which can be exchanged for goods and services, and Components, which can be used by Characters to create more interesting Items.

Items typically have a limited number of charges until they become boring and cease to be significant enough to interact with the rules.

Because Items are significant, their transfer between characters should be noted. It is usually not possible for an Item to be transferred to another character without its current owner’s consent.

When you have the Components necessary to craft an Item, type “/craft_request”, to alert the GMs that you want to craft it.

More on Items can be found here.

Zip is an OC resource that reflects the extra attention the show gives to those characters with the least time left. Zip is acquired at the beginning of each session, with the amount gained proportional to how few episodes a character has left.

All characters will receive 7 Zip over the course of the game. Zip is spent on features granted by Mechanics, and all characters will have at least one Mechanic which provides a way to spend it.

More information on Zip is at the Zip page.

There are many different types of cartoon character, and what it makes sense for each of them to be able to do in the narrative differs wildly. Mechanics help players understand what a character can be expected to be able to do, and in some cases how a character can subvert those expectations.

When players create their character at the beginning of the game they can select the Mechanics that will represent them. In That's All Folks! there are three main classes of Mechanic:

• Abilities: Beefy or Bright? Fragile or Fabulous? Abilities represent the things a character is good at and those they… need improvement in. There are seven categories of Ability, and each contains Effects which help specify the unique perks or problems a character encounters in that category. The more positive, and less negative, Effects a character has in an Ability the more generally successful they can be expected to be at those tasks which benefit from it.
• Cartoon Logics: Who is able to paint a tunnel on the side of a mountain that characters can run through? While abilities set expectations, Cartoon logics subvert them. These Mechanics specify the ways in which the cartoon nature of the world may help or hinder characters.
• Writing Conventions: Some people just can't seem to catch the blasted pigeon. The world of That's All Folks! is a construct, and so the narrative is not just an out of character concept. These Mechanics describe how the Writers tend to construct Narratives to help or hinder characters.

There is one additional type of Mechanic, which serves a very different role in the game: Playstyle Quirks. These help players opt in or out of some optional elements of the game and signal to the GMs and Crew what type of game a player wants. Given this role, any system that interacts with Mechanics, in particular any which might give or remove a Mechanic, obviously does not apply to Playstyle Quirks.

More information on Mechanics is at the Mechanics page.

Suzie Sinister and The Note-Taker are facing off as Suzie tries to prove herself the number one aspiring villain by getting her hands on The Note-Taker's legendary pile of Bucks. It goes like this:

Firstly, the players agree that a Conflict is happening and what the stakes are.

Suzie: Suzie tries to pull the Diamond out of The Note-Taker's Hand.
The Note-Take: [Sounds like a conflict!]
Suzie: [Yep! If she wins she gets the Diamond, and if she loses she can't get it (this Scene)?]
The Note-Taker: [Sounds good.]

Next they say what mechanics they have that might obviate the need for a roll.

Suzie: [Presumably this is a fight so Suzie auto-wins on Beef Effect then?]
The Note-Taker: [Note-Taker is using a charge of their Gun Item, so it is a normal roll. Also Suzie gets Shot if she loses. Sorry Kid - it ain't personal]

Then they use the bot to determine who wins.

Suzie: [Oh nooooo. Alright, I'll bot]
Suzie: /run_conflict Suzie Note-taker
Bot: The Note-Taker wins the Conflict against Suzie!

Finally they resolve the consequences.

Suzie: [Alright, I guess I'll take the Shot Injury and Suzie can't get the Diamond. F.]
The Note-Taker: As Suzie tries to grab the Diamond out of Note-Taker's hand it drops back into the box and comes back out with a Gun, which it shoots a hole in her pretty pink bow with!

That dastardly Thyme Keeper has kidnapped Elderwing's treasure horde and scheduled a train to run right into it! Curses!

GM: You arrive in time to see your precious treasure horde tied to the railway tracks. In the distance you hear the ominous steam whistle of the Freight Train From Hell.
Elderwing: In a panic Elderwing will try to pull the treasure off the tracks, provided the ropes aren't actually stopping her.

Now that the player has begun interacting with the world in a way that needs adjudicating, GMs can begin to respond to their actions with OC prompts and IC descriptions of the consequences of their actions.

GM: [No, the ropes just seem to be there for aesthetic: TK usually kidnaps less inanimate victims]
GM: As you begin pulling treasure off the tracks you realize just how much you've hoarded over the years. Moving this literal mountain of gold is no easy feat.

It helps to remind GMs of advantages and disadvantages your character has!

Elderwing: [Does being big help or hurt? Elderwing also has net +1 to STEAM]
GM: [Mostly helps actually! Also a little bit hurts though…]
Elderwing: Elderwing tries to push the treasure off the tracks with her whole body.

Usually GMs will let the situation develop, adding additional complications as the Scene progresses.

GM: There is the awful cracking sound of statues and glassware, but the mountain of treasure moves off the tracks… mostly. Countless tiny coins and other objects remain scattered across the tracks.
Freight Train From Hell: The train is now close enough that the whooping and hollering of the demons aboard can be heard.
Elderwing: [Not going to have time to pick them all up, huh…?]
GM: [Probably not… you can try]
Elderwing: [I don't think she can -not- try]
Thyme Keeper: Arrives I've got one boarding pass here, name Elderwing, destination: HELL
Elderwing: Tries to flick xir away
GM: The small Thyme Keeper is easily flicked away, cackling wildly as xie disappears over the horizon.

Sometimes these challenges will build up to some kind of crisis, at which point one has to make a choice:

Freight Train From Hell: The nightmarish train covered in demons is now just down the tracks, hurtling towards Elderwing and the treasure that remains on the tracks.
Elderwing: Facing being dragged to Hell on Cow Catcher or abandoning her beloved Horde Elderwing will step back sadly from the tracks at the last possible moment, and watch sadly as the remaining treasure is swept away.