Serenity and the Cortex Revisions, Part One

One thing that I always get asked is how, exactly,  the Serenity RPG differs from the later editions of the Cortex system. So I thought I'd start off my jabbering here on LJ with a more in-depth discussion of those differences than I usually give.

In this series of articles, I'll cover not just the changes implemented between Serenity and the Cortex revisions, but also some of the motivations and the design philosophy that led to those changes. I'll also be happy to take questions on such things, but...

DISCLAIMER: I'm not the owner of Serenity, the Serenity RPG, or the Cortex System. While I wrote a good portion of the later Cortex books (BSG, Demon Hunters, and the generic Core Book included), I'm just a freelancer. The opinions expressed in these articles are my own. When it comes to the design philosophy I discuss, I try to present what I understand to be the 'general consensus' of the Cortex developers and the design goals of the owners, Margaret Weis Productions.

Warning, this is a long and detailed article. Hope you enjoy it!

( Cut for length )

Now, all that said, those aren't the only changes made to the way character generation and advancement work between Serenity and the later Cortex revisions. Next time (tomorrow, hopefully), I'll go over the changes to the Trait system. After that we'll look at Plot Points and Advancement Points, and then we'll be on to other aspects of the games.

Hope this little series of articles will prove helpful to some folk. Questions? Comments? Criticisms?

Blessed be,
~Nathan

Writer's Block: Whose part would you play?

[Error: unknown template qotd]Firefly. I'd like to play a side-character, probably a contact of Mal's from his criminal life.

Or...well, actually. Better:

Babylon 5. Technomage.

Sorry, Firefly, but...sufficiently advanced technology! It calls to me!