My Monstrous Mishaps quickstart now contains all the rules for playing the game, so all that remains is to write up a sample Story. But since Monstrous Mishaps works best when it’s very personalised – each character comes with specific plot hooks that are meant to be integrated into every Story – I think I’d better supply some pregenerated characters too. One each for the six Breeds that I first created (the skulking Creeps, the kleptomaniacal Hoarders, the put-upon Klutzes, the overzealous Jerkasses, the obnoxious Loudmouths and the shameless Moochers) will probably be best. I won’t be using all the stuff I generate, since the quickstart runs off a slimmed down version of the full rules, but it’ll be good to have a lot of material to choose from.
So, this week, let’s start with our Creep. First he needs to pick his Abilities, two at Basic (4), two at Limited (3), and two at Limited (2). Let’s say that he’s a conflict-averse nerd who prefers to run away from danger and give him Basic (4) Fitness and Basic (4) Hiding. He also reads a lot and has a good memory, so he’s got Limited (3) Nerdery, Limited (3) Weirdness, Limited (2) Paperpushing and Limited (2) Keenness. Being a Creep gives him +1 to Mindgames and Hiding, so adding that to what he’s already got (every Ability not chosen, of course, starts at Minimal (1)), he’s got Limited (2) Mindgames and Basic (5) Hiding.
I’m getting a pretty good image of our Creep now. I think I’m going to call him Klaus Kleinmann.
Next, we’ll consider Klaus’ lifepath. I figure that he had an older brother who used to bully him relentlessly for being so, well, Creepy, so he gets +1 to Asskicking for having had Mean Older Siblings. To add to his miseries, his parents thought he was weird and off-putting too and sent him to Military School, giving him a +1 to Grit. Perhaps they did him a favour, since I forgot my own sage advice of always starting a character with at least a few extra points in Grit. Finally, as an adult he’s become a boring file clerk, so he gets +1 to Paperpushing for being a Bureaucrat.
We quickly calculate his Derived Abilities from what we now know to be his Primary Abilities, and end up with:
Primary Abilities: Limited (2) Asskicking, Minimal (1) Camping, Minimal (1) Dramatics, Basic (4) Fitness, Limited (2) Grit, Basic (5) Hiding, Limited (2) Keenness, Limited (2) Mindgames, Limited (3) Nerdery, Limited (3) Paperpushing, Minimal (1) Schmoozing, Limited (3) Weirdness
Derived Abilities: Minimal (1) Bullshitting, Limited (2) E-Skills, Limited (2) Hocuspocus, Basic (4) Intrusion, Limited (3) Joyriding, Limited (2) Lawyering, Limited (2) Quackery, Limited (2) Rumours, Limited (3) Trickery, Limited (2) Understanding, Limited (2) Volume, Limited (3) X-Tremeness
Next up is Dooms. I think I want Klaus to have at least a little bit of skill with a Creep’s Primary Doom of Fae’s Trickery, so I’ll raise it to Limited (2). Klaus’ retiring personality is so strong that sometimes he can be oddly hard to spot. I also want him to be into making some weird art (hey, it’s something you can do all by yourself!), so I’ll also giving him Minimal (1) Devil’s Craft. That gives him a total Monstrosity Score of Limited (3), which also sets his beginning Respectability and Pretension Scores – both of them also at Limited (3). Klaus doesn’t stand out much either among Monsters or among regular people.
Given Klaus’ Abilities, he has 8 Health Points (X-Tremeness Score + 5), 7 Grit Points (Grit Score +5), 10 Stamina Points (Fitness Score + 5), 3 Budget Points (Respectability Score) and 3 Favour Points (Pretension Score).
For Values, I’m giving Klaus Harmony and Community. He really just wants to follow the rules, play it safe, and go about his day without offending anyone. Good luck with that, of course, given that Creeps have a Bane that causes them to automatically offend people just by drawing breath, but oh well.
That’s it for Klaus himself! His finished stats look like this:
KLAUS KLEINMANN
Breed: Creep
Childhood: Mean Older Siblings
Adolescence: Military School
Adulthood: Bureaucrat
Values: Harmony, CommunityPrimary Abilities: Limited (2) Asskicking, Minimal (1) Camping, Minimal (1) Dramatics, Basic (4) Fitness, Limited (2) Grit, Basic (5) Hiding, Limited (2) Keenness, Limited (2) Mindgames, Limited (3) Nerdery, Limited (3) Paperpushing, Minimal (1) Schmoozing, Limited (3) Weirdness
Derived Abilities: Minimal (1) Bullshitting, Limited (2) E-Skills, Limited (2) Hocuspocus, Basic (4) Intrusion, Limited (3) Joyriding, Limited (2) Lawyering, Limited (2) Quackery, Limited (2) Rumours, Limited (3) Trickery, Limited (2) Understanding, Limited (2) Volume, Limited (3) X-Tremeness
Special Abilities: Limited (3) Maze, Limited (3) Monstrosity, Limited (3) Pretension, Limited (3) Respectability
Dooms: Minimal (1) Devil’s Craft, Limited (2) Fae’s Trickery
Pools: HP 8, GP 7, SP 9, BP 3, FP 3
But we’re not done yet! We still need to create two Friends, one Rival, and one Enemy to make Klaus’ life interesting.
For his first Friend, I’ll choose the Stereotype of Alpha, the DIscord of The Ball and Chain, and the Problem of Web of Lies. That gives us a bunch of Ability adjustments to pile together, and we end up with a character who isn’t entirely un-rugged but whose only real stand-out Ability is his Basic (4) Schmoozing. He’s also got the sole Value of Utilitarianism, so apparently he’s a person of flexible morality. I’ll name him Fridolf Chickenhawke and write him up like this:
KLAUS’ FRIEND #1: FRIDOLF CHICKENHAWKE
Fridolf and Klaus first met in military school, where good-natured Fridolf took the timid kid under his wing and resolved to “show him how it’s done” – though what he mostly showed him was how to get in trouble with the teachers by creative but inevitably failed get-out-of-working-hard schemes. He has since settled down slightly and married a woman named Selma, to whom he’s trying to present a respectable front, though his happy-go-lucky nature is hard to repress. He has taken to blaming Klaus for things like staying out drinking too late or missing work, which hasn’t exactly made Klaus popular with formidable Selma.
Stereotype: Alpha
Problem: Web of Lies
Discord: The Ball and ChainValues: Utilitarianism
Primary Abilities: Limited (3) Asskicking, Limited (3) Camping, Limited (3) Dramatics, Limited (2) Fitness, Minimal (1) Grit, Minimal (1) Hiding, Limited (3) Keenness, Limited (3) Mindgames, Minimal (1) Nerdery, Limited (2) Paperpushing, Basic (4) Schmoozing, Minimal (1) Weirdness
Derived Abilities: Limited (3) Bullshitting, Minimal (1) E-Skills, Limited (2) Hocuspocus, Minimal (1) Intrusion, Minimal (1) Joyriding, Limited (2) Lawyering, Limited (2) Quackery, Limited (2) Rumours, Limited (2) Trickery, Limited (3) Understanding, Limited (2) Volume, Limited (2) X-Tremeness
Special Abilities: Basic (5) Respectability
Pools: HP 7, GP 1, SP 3, BP 5
You’ll notice that Fridolf’s Pools are lower than Klaus’ is. That’s because he’s a GMC, and GMCs are assumed to be running around spending points from their Pools when the players aren’t looking.
For Klaus’ second Friend, I’m choosing the Stereotype of Optimist, the Problem of Pie in the Sky, and the Discord of High-Maintainance. Adding together all the modifiers from that, we get a jack of all trades who knows a little of everything but isn’t startlingly good at anything. They also have the Values of Harmony and Innovation, befitting someone who is sure that the world loves them and that good things are just one more fine adjustment away. I’ll write them up like this:
KLAUS’ FRIEND #2: SHIRLEY SHINE
Shirley works in the same office as Klaus, but is sure that that’s just a gateway to bigger and better things. She tinkers with mechanical inventions in her spare time and always has some new questionable contraption that she’s sure will sell big if she can just convince some bigwig to invest in it. She likes Klaus but considers all his interests to be insufferably boring (which, to be fair, isn’t inaccurate) and keeps trying to drag him off to do something more exciting, like helping her get rich.
Stereotype: Optimist
Problem: Pie in the Sky
Discord: High-MaintenanceValues: Harmony, Innovation
Primary Abilities: Minimal (1) Asskicking, Minimal (1) Camping, Limited (2) Dramatics, Limited (3) Fitness, Limited (3) Grit, Minimal (1) Hiding, Minimal (1) Keenness, Limited (3) Mindgames, Limited (3) Nerdery, Limited (3) Paperpushing, Limited (3) Schmoozing, Limited (3) Weirdness
Derived Abilities: Limited (3) Bullshitting, Limited (3) E-Skills, Limited (2) Hocuspocus, Limited (2) Intrusion, Limited (3) Joyriding, Limited (2) Lawyering, Limited (2) Quackery, Limited (3) Rumours, Limited (2) Trickery, Limited (2) Understanding, Limited (2) Volume, Limited (2) X-Tremeness
Special Abilities: Limited (3) Respectability
Pools: HP 7, GP 2, SP 4, BP 3
Next up is Klaus’ rival, his sitcom-style arch-nemesis who engages in pointless and belligerent feuds with him. I’ll pick the Approach of Brute, and the Redemption of Bravery, but just to shake things up (and preserver the alliteration) I’ll use the Feud of Brainy. So Klaus’ Rival is someone who wants to beat him up to prove that he’s smarter, and who clearly isn’t deterred by how little sense that makes! The points from those three choices gives me someone who is actually quite good at both Asskicking and Nerdery, and whose Values are Excellence and Innovation. Thus, I give you:
KLAUS’ RIVAL: HECTOR JIBB
Hector is an insecure overachiever who can’t stand not being the best at anything that he thinks matters, whether academic or athletic. He’s been out to get Klaus ever since he happened to score a single point more than Hector on their second grade spelling test, and is now constantly trying to show him up in front of the Court as a lesser intellect and an inferior sportsman, and never mind that Klaus has never claimed to be any sort of intellect or sportsman. Hector loves a challenge and throws himself into any chance to prove himself against impossible odds.
Approach: Brute
Feud: Brainy
Redemption: BraveryBreed: Klutz
Values: Excellence, Innovation
Primary Abilities: Basic (6) Asskicking, Minimal (1) Camping, Minimal (1) Dramatics, Basic (5) Fitness, Limited (2) Grit, Minimal (1) Hiding, Minimal (1) Keenness, Minimal (1) Mindgames, Basic (5) Nerdery, Minimal (1) Paperpushing, Minimal (1) Schmoozing, Limited (2) Weirdness
Derived Abilities: Minimal (1) Bullshitting, Limited (3) E-Skills, Minimal (1) Hocuspocus, Limited (3) Intrusion, Basic (5) Joyriding, Minimal (1) Lawyering, Limited (3) Quackery, Minimal (1) Rumours, Minimal (1) Trickery, Minimal (1) Understanding, Limited (3) Volume, Basic (5) X-Tremeness
Special Abilities: Limited (3) Maze, Limited (3) Monstrosity, Limited (3) Pretension, Limited (3) Respectability
Dooms: Minimal (1) Ancient’s Wisdom, Minimal (1) Pariah’s Isolation, Minimal (1) Titan’s Prowess
Pools: HP 10, GP 1, SP 6, BP 3, FP 3
I made Hector a Klutz, since that fits well with his “a healthy mind in a healthy body” ethos. The Rival is usually another Monster, though that isn’t an absolute rule and I may well shake things up as I get further.
Finally, we need to create an Enemy. Those are more serious than Rivals – they might not be trying to kill you, per se, but they certainly want to ruin you and won’t be satisfied with less. They are also defined by their PC in a whole different way – their Abilities are generated by switching the Scores of certain of the PC’s Abilities that are in some way “opposites.”
Thus, to create Klaus’ Enemy, we switch his Limited (2) Asskicking and his Minimal (1) Schmoozing, giving the Enemy Minimal (1) Asskicking and Limited (2) Schmoozing. They’re neither one very impressive at either talking or fighting, but where Klaus is a little better at defending himself, the Enemy is a little better at talking his way out of trouble. We likewise exchange Klaus’ Minimal (1) Camping and his Limited (3) Paperpushing to give the Enemy Limited (3) Camping and Minimal (1) Paperpushing – Klaus is more at home in civilisation, and the Enemy is more at home in the wilderness, though again it’s neither’s defining feature.
A more serious difference is Dramatics and Hiding; Klaus’ Basic (5) Hiding and Minimal (1) Dramatics becomes a Basic (4) Dramatics and Minimal (1) Hiding for the Enemy – Klaus is very quiet, and the Enemy is very loud. Note that one point disappeared from that Basic (5). That’s because it came from Klaus’ Breed bonus, meaning it doesn’t “count” for these purposes.
And so on. The Enemy’s Values, meanwhile, are the polar opposites of Klaus’ Harmony and Community, meaning that they are Stoicism and Individualism.
We’ll have the Enemy be a Slayer, though figuring out their Legend took some thought. In the end, though, I decided that the Enemy was a brash, direct person who was secretly afraid (and envious) of anyone subtler and more circumspect than himself, and made him a Wimp, the Legend who aspires to be tricksters and rogues. I ended up writing him up like this:
KLAUS’ ENEMY: BARRY HUSSEL
Barry is a go-getter of the first order and has gotten a decent amount of financial success by working hard, running his own race, and shouting very loudly at people. However, no matter what he does, it never seems to be enough – really making it into the big time always seems to elude him. After being Called as a Slayer, he’s realised that the reason for that is that sinister beings like Klaus keep scurrying around in the shadows and ruining everything for him with their clever schemes. Well, Barry is going to show that he can out-scheme the lot of them, and then he’ll finally get the unrivalled fame and fortune that he deserves!
Legend: Wimp
Values: Stoicism, Individualism
Primary Abilities: Minimal (1) Asskicking, Limited (3) Camping, Basic (4) Dramatics, Limited (2) Fitness, Miniaml (1) Grit, Minimal (1) Hiding, Basic (4) Keenness, Minimal (1) Mindgames, Limited (3) Nerdery, Minimal (1) Paperpushing, Limited (2) Schmoozing, Limited (3) Weirdness
Derived Abilities: Minimal (1) Bullshitting, Limited (2) E-Skills, Limited (3) Hocuspocus, Limited (2) Intrusion, Limited (2) Joyriding, Limited (2) Lawyering, Limited (3) Quackery, Minimal (1) Rumours, Limited (2) Trickery, Limited (2) Understanding, Limited (3) Volume, Minimal (1) X-Tremeness
Special Abilities: Minimal (1) Calling, Advanced (8) Respectability
Pools: HP 6, GP 1, SP 3, BP 8
There you go! One PC with a supporting cast of four GMCs ready to go! Klaus will have his work cut out for him trying to beaten up by Hector, pulled into one of Barry’s inept schemes, press-ganged into trying to promote Shlley’s latest invention or getting blamed for whatever Selma is mad at Fridolf over this week.
Next up the Hoarder, our resident would-be marauding Dragon. Stay tuned.
Mister Monster's Workshop 
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