J.K. Stockholme
Right Opposition
Thank you Daftpanzer and Immaculate for sharing your resources, your advice, and letting me run a new iteration of this game.
Warning: pixelated nudity
NESCraft is a sandbox survival crafting game where players brave a deadly wilderness. Their in-game avatars have a limited supply of Action Points to spend each turn to avoid hunger and death. Players may be hermits, wandering nomads, come together and form villages, or they may ponder the nature of existence and take succour from the spirits. The game is free-form and never-ending, as they once called these stories.
Joining
For the time being, new players who wish to join should message me - ideally all new players will be born into an existing family.
New players can also elect to let the GM choose some or all of the above for them.
Your avatar is born a fully formed adult with instinctive knowledge of plants, animals, crafting, and cooking. Your avatar, because they are the minion of a twenty-first century human player with access to the internet, also possesses a supernatural inventiveness and capacity for conceptualization.
Players should expect their avatars to perish. Whether by predators, starvation, illness, or old age, all avatars will ultimately die and be reincarnated anew.
All orders must be posted in-thread and I will only take the first several signups.
Action Points
Avatars have one resource to spend each turn, Action Points (AP). The default is 3 AP per turn, where each turn represents a full day-night cycle. AP cannot be banked or traded.
Common actions requiring the expenditure of AP include:
Some actions do not require AP. These include:
World Map
This game features a world map. Most features on the world map are representational; e.g. a tree represents a forest. Landmasses are larger than they appear relative to creatures on the map. Sometimes features are intended to be literal – human avatars, buildings, and some animals are only as numerous as represented on the map.
Players can attempt to search for things that are not on the map, as some herbs, minerals, and even animals may be hidden.
Dice Rolling
Most actions will trigger a dice roll to determine their outcome. An avatar’s traits and the situational context will affect the roll. Players are encouraged to mention assets or advantages they have when doing something risky. Some actions may have multiple rolls (such as tracking then fighting an animal).
A number of dice are rolled and the top four are added together and compared to a target number. Target numbers go up or down based on local factors – equipment, injury, tiredness, etc. The number of dice rolled is a default of five plus one for each trait that applies to the context. You may roll fewer dice if you have suffered incredible harm, such as losing a limb, extreme sleep deprivation, etc. Degree of success or failure sometimes matters. Some advantages/assets won’t change the target number but will mitigate severity of bad outcomes.
Sometimes rolls will happen when there is no risk of failure, such as crafting, and will instead determine the quality of the successful outcome.
Acquired Traits
Avatars gain new traits after engaging in relevant actions enough times to level up in that area. At game start this list only includes the starter traits, and will expand as avatars acquire new traits from experience:
Crafting
Crafting in this game is Minecraftesque with the caveat that players are not restricted to a predesigned list of items and can devise multiple ways to craft the same thing. Crafting is also simplified for ease of play. For example, while in-reality you may need a number of obscure materials to make certain kinds of things, in this game you generally can make something as long as you have the main ingredients (adding the obscurer stuff will improve product quality though).
Items have a durability score put in parentheses that represents the number of days of active wear-and-tear before the item breaks down beyond repair. A durability score of one means that the item will break by the end of the day. Active wear-and-tear means the item was directly used or suffered noteworthy harm. You can always reinforce an item for the same material and AP cost as making a new item; in this case, instead of giving the durability score to a new separate item, you add the old item’s score plus the new item’s score together.
Below is a list of all known crafting formulae:
Mana
The world of NESCraft is one of reincarnation, unseen spirits, and a supernatural energy that permeates the world and can be channelled by avatars.
Mana can be obtained through meditation (which costs 1 AP as an action) and through elaborate rituals involving the sacrifice of something valuable. As with other activities, these involve dice rolls to determine their effect.
Players acquire Mana as non-corporeal resource – they cannot lose it and can spend it whenever they wish. These are the basic uses of Mana known to all avatars at game start:
Further advances in the arts of Mana can be attempted to discover new Mana uses.
Fighting & Injuries
Avatars are going to fail. Failure to find food, failure to evade predators, failure to fight predators – players should play this game anticipating their avatars to fail and perish from these failures.
Predators are the chief threat in this game – whenever a predator is within an avatar’s area of vision there is an encounter roll for their behaviour. They may leave the area, draw closer to the avatar, or even attack. If they attack, an initiative roll will determine when in the day the attack takes place. Doing actions very close to predators can make things worse.
While failures will range in severity, full failures in the context of a serious danger – such as a full failure to combat a deadly predator – will always result in a major injury. Major injuries will significantly impair success on future rolls; multiple full failures where lethal threats are present will either cause death or permanent loss of body parts. As a GM I don’t want to kill avatars off without warning, so consider yourself unlikely to die when you are start a turn at full health (unlikely, but not guaranteed – multiple spectacular failures on the same turn against predators will be lethal).
Conditional Orders
I want to encourage players to write conditional orders for unexpected failure. If your actions are interlinked and assume success, make it clear what you want the GM to do if you fail. For example, if your first action is to get food, and your second action to make fire to cook the food - if you fail to get food on that first try, would you really prefer to make a fire, or would you prefer to spend a second AP on trying to get food again? Likewise, if you expect a predator could attack you, and you hope to do one or two actions before it happens, what is your backup plan if the attack happens at the break of dawn?
Karma
From time to time I will put out a call for role-playing posts. Like other IOTs of late, there will be an in-game benefit, in this case players will get a Karma point. As in NESCraft II, a point of Karma let's you reroll your next failed roll and take the better of the two outcomes.

Warning: pixelated nudity
NESCraft is a sandbox survival crafting game where players brave a deadly wilderness. Their in-game avatars have a limited supply of Action Points to spend each turn to avoid hunger and death. Players may be hermits, wandering nomads, come together and form villages, or they may ponder the nature of existence and take succour from the spirits. The game is free-form and never-ending, as they once called these stories.
Joining
For the time being, new players who wish to join should message me - ideally all new players will be born into an existing family.
Spoiler Starting Traits :
Crafty: You are better at crafting items then most and are more likely to make durable items.
Hunter: You’ve an instinct for stalking prey – chances of a successful hunt are improved. Does not apply to predators who fight back.
Forager: You are a plant expert. Less likely to eat nasty plants and more likely to gather more better ones when foraging.
Stealthy: Quiet and careful, your odds of being spotted by predators you are trying to avoid or sneak up on are better.
Waterborne: Water is your element. All rolls involving traversing or hunting in water are more likely to succeed.
Warrior: You are a born fighter. Odds of good outcomes improve in combat. Does not apply when adversary is not fighting back (e.g. hunting game or defenceless creatures).
Hunter: You’ve an instinct for stalking prey – chances of a successful hunt are improved. Does not apply to predators who fight back.
Forager: You are a plant expert. Less likely to eat nasty plants and more likely to gather more better ones when foraging.
Stealthy: Quiet and careful, your odds of being spotted by predators you are trying to avoid or sneak up on are better.
Waterborne: Water is your element. All rolls involving traversing or hunting in water are more likely to succeed.
Warrior: You are a born fighter. Odds of good outcomes improve in combat. Does not apply when adversary is not fighting back (e.g. hunting game or defenceless creatures).
Your avatar is born a fully formed adult with instinctive knowledge of plants, animals, crafting, and cooking. Your avatar, because they are the minion of a twenty-first century human player with access to the internet, also possesses a supernatural inventiveness and capacity for conceptualization.
Players should expect their avatars to perish. Whether by predators, starvation, illness, or old age, all avatars will ultimately die and be reincarnated anew.
All orders must be posted in-thread and I will only take the first several signups.
Action Points
Avatars have one resource to spend each turn, Action Points (AP). The default is 3 AP per turn, where each turn represents a full day-night cycle. AP cannot be banked or traded.
Common actions requiring the expenditure of AP include:
- Move/travel outside one’s area of vision
- Hunt, fish, forage for food
- A good night’s rest
- Craft or build something
Some actions do not require AP. These include:
- Picking up small objects in small numbers (rocks, sticks, your items)
- Refuelling a fire that is already going
- Moving locally (within your area of vision)
- Cooking and eating
World Map
This game features a world map. Most features on the world map are representational; e.g. a tree represents a forest. Landmasses are larger than they appear relative to creatures on the map. Sometimes features are intended to be literal – human avatars, buildings, and some animals are only as numerous as represented on the map.
Players can attempt to search for things that are not on the map, as some herbs, minerals, and even animals may be hidden.
Dice Rolling
Most actions will trigger a dice roll to determine their outcome. An avatar’s traits and the situational context will affect the roll. Players are encouraged to mention assets or advantages they have when doing something risky. Some actions may have multiple rolls (such as tracking then fighting an animal).
A number of dice are rolled and the top four are added together and compared to a target number. Target numbers go up or down based on local factors – equipment, injury, tiredness, etc. The number of dice rolled is a default of five plus one for each trait that applies to the context. You may roll fewer dice if you have suffered incredible harm, such as losing a limb, extreme sleep deprivation, etc. Degree of success or failure sometimes matters. Some advantages/assets won’t change the target number but will mitigate severity of bad outcomes.
Sometimes rolls will happen when there is no risk of failure, such as crafting, and will instead determine the quality of the successful outcome.
Acquired Traits
Avatars gain new traits after engaging in relevant actions enough times to level up in that area. At game start this list only includes the starter traits, and will expand as avatars acquire new traits from experience:
Spoiler List of Traits :
Crafty: You are better at crafting items then most and are more likely to make durable items.
Hunter: You’ve an instinct for stalking prey – chances of a successful hunt are improved. Does not apply to predators who fight back.
Forager: You are a plant expert. Less likely to eat nasty plants and more likely to gather more better ones when foraging.
Stealthy: Quiet and careful, your odds of being spotted by predators you are trying to avoid or sneak up on are better.
Waterborne: Water is your element. All rolls involving traversing or hunting in water are more likely to succeed.
Warrior: You are a born fighter. Odds of good outcomes improve in combat. Does not apply when adversary is not fighting back (e.g. hunting game or defenceless creatures).
Hunter: You’ve an instinct for stalking prey – chances of a successful hunt are improved. Does not apply to predators who fight back.
Forager: You are a plant expert. Less likely to eat nasty plants and more likely to gather more better ones when foraging.
Stealthy: Quiet and careful, your odds of being spotted by predators you are trying to avoid or sneak up on are better.
Waterborne: Water is your element. All rolls involving traversing or hunting in water are more likely to succeed.
Warrior: You are a born fighter. Odds of good outcomes improve in combat. Does not apply when adversary is not fighting back (e.g. hunting game or defenceless creatures).
Crafting in this game is Minecraftesque with the caveat that players are not restricted to a predesigned list of items and can devise multiple ways to craft the same thing. Crafting is also simplified for ease of play. For example, while in-reality you may need a number of obscure materials to make certain kinds of things, in this game you generally can make something as long as you have the main ingredients (adding the obscurer stuff will improve product quality though).
Items have a durability score put in parentheses that represents the number of days of active wear-and-tear before the item breaks down beyond repair. A durability score of one means that the item will break by the end of the day. Active wear-and-tear means the item was directly used or suffered noteworthy harm. You can always reinforce an item for the same material and AP cost as making a new item; in this case, instead of giving the durability score to a new separate item, you add the old item’s score plus the new item’s score together.
Below is a list of all known crafting formulae:
Spoiler Crafting Formulae :
Rocks can be crafted by hand into Stone Tools (choppers, scrapers, pounders, simple knife, etc.): Improves chances of successful crafting; required for skinning animals and more complex crafting.
Sticks and Rocks can be crafted into a Stone Hammer: This tool is fit for combat but can also be used to assist in certain crafting or building.
Sticks and Rocks together can be crafted into a Stone Axe: An aggressive, swinging weapon that also serves as a tool for cutting down trees into usable Timber. For best results, swing with both hands.
Sticks and Rocks together can be crafted into a Stone Spear: An all-round decent weapon that allows you to keep a bit of distance from the target and can pierce the thick hides of animals. For best results, grip with both hands.
Sticks and Rocks together can be crafted into a Pickaxe: A rock-breaking tool. Not the most efficient weapon but does have particular armour-piercing qualities with a good strike.
Sticks and Rocks together can be crafted into a Hoe: For clearing and tilling soil, presumably you have something you want to plant.
Grass/Wheat/Crops/Bamboo/Sinew can be made into String or Rope: Multiple uses.
Grass/Wheat/Crops can be crafted into Linen: Works as a mattress or blanket for sleeping, and also as a stage-1 material for other things.
Grass/Wheat/Crops can be crafted into Bandages: these can accelerate the healing of an injury or (partially) mitigate the malus associated with the injury.
Sticks and String can be made into a Sling: You got yourself a ranged weapon that can use multiple ammunition types, such as Rocks. It cannot do much harm to armoured or thick-skinned targets. Requires two hands.
Sticks can be rubbed together to make a Fire: Stay warm at night. While eating, cook your food to make it tastier. You can really get a bonfire going by adding materials such as Timber. Fires can be kept going with local sticks without spending an AP as long as you remain in the vicinity to tend our fire, and there are sticks available.
With a little String, Linen or Wool or Hide can be crafted using Stone Tools into Clothes: environmental protection. Essential for life in cold climates. Wear double layers for even more protection; a combination of weatherproof Hide and warm Wool is great.
Uncured hide can be made into a Cured Hide with fire.
Uncured hide and Cured Hide can be made into Leather with fire and salt.
Trees can be worked with Stone Axe to make Timber: A furnace fuel and building material.
Rocks or rocky areas can be worked with a Pickaxe to make Stone Blocks: A building material for advanced buildings.
Rope and a Spear can be combined to make a Harpoon: superior fishing implement.
Bones, Grass, and Sticks can be crafted into Torches: useful for exploring caverns and warding off threats.
Sticks can be crafted into an Atlatl: a spear-throwing device useful only if you already have a spear.
Linen, skin, or hide can be crafted into a Satchel or Backpack: increasing your carrying capacity.
Sticks and Rocks can be crafted into a Stone Hammer: This tool is fit for combat but can also be used to assist in certain crafting or building.
Sticks and Rocks together can be crafted into a Stone Axe: An aggressive, swinging weapon that also serves as a tool for cutting down trees into usable Timber. For best results, swing with both hands.
Sticks and Rocks together can be crafted into a Stone Spear: An all-round decent weapon that allows you to keep a bit of distance from the target and can pierce the thick hides of animals. For best results, grip with both hands.
Sticks and Rocks together can be crafted into a Pickaxe: A rock-breaking tool. Not the most efficient weapon but does have particular armour-piercing qualities with a good strike.
Sticks and Rocks together can be crafted into a Hoe: For clearing and tilling soil, presumably you have something you want to plant.
Grass/Wheat/Crops/Bamboo/Sinew can be made into String or Rope: Multiple uses.
Grass/Wheat/Crops can be crafted into Linen: Works as a mattress or blanket for sleeping, and also as a stage-1 material for other things.
Grass/Wheat/Crops can be crafted into Bandages: these can accelerate the healing of an injury or (partially) mitigate the malus associated with the injury.
Sticks and String can be made into a Sling: You got yourself a ranged weapon that can use multiple ammunition types, such as Rocks. It cannot do much harm to armoured or thick-skinned targets. Requires two hands.
Sticks can be rubbed together to make a Fire: Stay warm at night. While eating, cook your food to make it tastier. You can really get a bonfire going by adding materials such as Timber. Fires can be kept going with local sticks without spending an AP as long as you remain in the vicinity to tend our fire, and there are sticks available.
With a little String, Linen or Wool or Hide can be crafted using Stone Tools into Clothes: environmental protection. Essential for life in cold climates. Wear double layers for even more protection; a combination of weatherproof Hide and warm Wool is great.
Uncured hide can be made into a Cured Hide with fire.
Uncured hide and Cured Hide can be made into Leather with fire and salt.
Trees can be worked with Stone Axe to make Timber: A furnace fuel and building material.
Rocks or rocky areas can be worked with a Pickaxe to make Stone Blocks: A building material for advanced buildings.
Rope and a Spear can be combined to make a Harpoon: superior fishing implement.
Bones, Grass, and Sticks can be crafted into Torches: useful for exploring caverns and warding off threats.
Sticks can be crafted into an Atlatl: a spear-throwing device useful only if you already have a spear.
Linen, skin, or hide can be crafted into a Satchel or Backpack: increasing your carrying capacity.
The world of NESCraft is one of reincarnation, unseen spirits, and a supernatural energy that permeates the world and can be channelled by avatars.
Mana can be obtained through meditation (which costs 1 AP as an action) and through elaborate rituals involving the sacrifice of something valuable. As with other activities, these involve dice rolls to determine their effect.
Players acquire Mana as non-corporeal resource – they cannot lose it and can spend it whenever they wish. These are the basic uses of Mana known to all avatars at game start:
Spoiler Mana Powers :
Blessing: 1 point of Mana can be spent to bless a particular action or bless an entire day. Doing so will reroll the blessed action if it fails, or the first action that fails in a given day (if blessing the day). If the blessed action succeeds on its natural roll, or no failures happen in the day (if blessing the day), then the Mana will not be spent and can be used the next turn.
Divine Intervention: 1 point of Mana can be spent to try changing the behaviour of one pack of animals to that which the player prefers. Dice will be rolled, and failure may cause undesired outcomes.
Divine Hunger: 1 point of Mana can be spent to try draining the life-force of an adversary in combat with the player’s avatar. Dice will be rolled, failure may have adverse effects on the player.
Wisps: 1 point of Mana can be spent to try creating a magical source of light which will persist regardless of fuel source or location for some number of days. Dice will be rolled, failure may have adverse effects on the player
Divine Intervention: 1 point of Mana can be spent to try changing the behaviour of one pack of animals to that which the player prefers. Dice will be rolled, and failure may cause undesired outcomes.
Divine Hunger: 1 point of Mana can be spent to try draining the life-force of an adversary in combat with the player’s avatar. Dice will be rolled, failure may have adverse effects on the player.
Wisps: 1 point of Mana can be spent to try creating a magical source of light which will persist regardless of fuel source or location for some number of days. Dice will be rolled, failure may have adverse effects on the player
Fighting & Injuries
Avatars are going to fail. Failure to find food, failure to evade predators, failure to fight predators – players should play this game anticipating their avatars to fail and perish from these failures.
Predators are the chief threat in this game – whenever a predator is within an avatar’s area of vision there is an encounter roll for their behaviour. They may leave the area, draw closer to the avatar, or even attack. If they attack, an initiative roll will determine when in the day the attack takes place. Doing actions very close to predators can make things worse.
While failures will range in severity, full failures in the context of a serious danger – such as a full failure to combat a deadly predator – will always result in a major injury. Major injuries will significantly impair success on future rolls; multiple full failures where lethal threats are present will either cause death or permanent loss of body parts. As a GM I don’t want to kill avatars off without warning, so consider yourself unlikely to die when you are start a turn at full health (unlikely, but not guaranteed – multiple spectacular failures on the same turn against predators will be lethal).
Conditional Orders
I want to encourage players to write conditional orders for unexpected failure. If your actions are interlinked and assume success, make it clear what you want the GM to do if you fail. For example, if your first action is to get food, and your second action to make fire to cook the food - if you fail to get food on that first try, would you really prefer to make a fire, or would you prefer to spend a second AP on trying to get food again? Likewise, if you expect a predator could attack you, and you hope to do one or two actions before it happens, what is your backup plan if the attack happens at the break of dawn?
Karma
From time to time I will put out a call for role-playing posts. Like other IOTs of late, there will be an in-game benefit, in this case players will get a Karma point. As in NESCraft II, a point of Karma let's you reroll your next failed roll and take the better of the two outcomes.
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