Rewards are an important part of any rule system because they provide an incentive that encourages specific behaviours.

Bennies are a great short-term incentive because they help make sure the game session is both rich with interesting character moments, and exciting (because when you use a Benny, you get to re-experience the excitement of a failed roll). The interaction of Hindrances and Bennies is pretty cool: Hindrances put you into troubles, but also provide you with Bennies that help you get out of the troubles, and this dynamic creates a fun, action-filled adventure.

However, one should never underestimate the power of intrinsic motivations (which are, on the whole, a lot stronger than external motivations). Lily, who enjoys playing mean characters, took the Mean hindrance because it’ll be easy and natural for her, that’s the sort of enjoyment she’s looking for. She’ll get some Bennies out of it, sure, but it’s also simply the way she sees her character. Her Crystal’s Hindrance, however, is about being giddy and cheerful. If she’ll play Raffaella this way, even occasionally, she’ll get some Bennies, like Muna just did a few pages ago; but this external motivation isn’t strong enough to push Lily away from her comfort zone (unlike Guy; see next week’s page). Spoilers: You’ll never see her roleplay her Crystal’s Hindrance.

On this Thursday’s blog post I’ll write something about the world of Crystal Heart, but I haven’t decided what yet! Is there any specific subject you’d like me to expand upon? Leave a comment.

Today’s page was carefully designed to avoid having too many rules in it, check out our subreddit for details.

Related RPG article: Guidelines for Using Crystals

Related RPG article: Early Character Malleability

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