Session 6 (Part 2): Wiki consolidation and single source of truth
Focus: Implementing wiki philosophy across all documents
What We Did
- Created Character Mechanics.md as canonical source for character system (stats, point-buy, resolution)
- Updated 19 files to link to Character Mechanics instead of duplicating information
- Enhanced game-focus skill to emphasize wiki philosophy (link don’t duplicate, check for duplication)
Files Updated
- All exploration documents (Phase, Mechanics, Resolution, Card System)
- All 4 card tables (Hearts, Diamonds, Spades, Clubs)
- Character files (Forager, Butcher, Host)
Specialist Changes
- Flagged Food Scientist and Pastry Chef specialties for redefinition
- Discovery/Puzzles stats removed
Impact
- Vault now follows wiki principle: each concept lives in ONE place, others link to it
- Ready to create Chef character document next session
Session 6 (Part 1): Character System - Point-buy mechanics and stat design
Focus: Establishing character creation mechanics
The Journey
- Reconsidered character system approach multiple times to balance simplicity with player agency
- Defined rolling system for group play: group discusses and decides who rolls based on narrative
- Anyone can attempt any roll, specialists get bonuses in their specialty
Key Decisions
Chef as Baseline:
- No specialty bonuses
- Required in all games
- Narrative value: it’s their restaurant
Session Structure Changed:
- From time-based to percentage-based
- 40% exploration, 30% cooking, 15% review, 15% progression
- Session length now varies (30-60 min) based on grid size and player count
Simplified to 3 Exploration Stats:
- Foraging
- Combat
- Social
- Removed: Discovery and Puzzles
Point-Buy System:
- Specialists: 2 points to distribute + automatic +2 in specialty (4 total)
- Chef: 4 points to distribute (4 total)
Resolution System:
- d20 + stat bonus
Approach
- Focus on exploration stats first
- Defer cooking stats until cooking mechanics are designed
Progress Update
- Character System now In Progress (20% - up from 5%)
- Next up: Create Chef character document, then define remaining 5 specialists