Last post got me thinking about how Psionics could be balanced so as not to be too overpowering in comparison with other magic types.
The first limiter, of course, is that the "casting stat" for Psionics is a derived stat, so to have a comparable amount of power to draw on you need to have multiple base stats which are high enough to average to another high or moderately-high stat. With a system where there are only three base stats, admittedly, that is not necessarily as difficult as some, and yet it also means one low score can remove it as a viable option.
Something else to consider is what can affect, or is affected by, what.
Physical can affect physical things. That's... pretty much it.
Magic can affect physical things, and it can affect magical things. It can also bypass physical, depending on the spell.
Psionics can affect physical things (though this may or may not be more difficult), and it can affect mental/psionic things. It can easily (depending on the setting, nearly by default) bypass physical.
But magic does not (at least typically) affect psionics, and likewise psionics do not affect magic.
So where's the problem?
Generally, magic does physical damage. Even when it bypasses physical armor, it does physical damage or has some physical effect. Psionics do mental damage, the grand majority of the time. So a psionicist can easily bypass not only physical armor, but any form of resistance to physical damage, and is therefore even more effective against physical-based characters than a magically-trained character. In addition, since magic doesn't affect psionics, a psion can bypass magical defenses as well, and is only slightly deterred by the better mental stats of a spellcaster vs. a fighter.
On the other hand, a psion can't block a non-physical magic attack, either. Hmm.
Ok, so really, where's the problem?
Even if I permit a magic-user to affect psionics, and psions to affect magic (at an increased power cost for either) all I'm doing is making attack and defense types more accessible. Which would mean mages and psions could actually have a chance of resisting each other rather than being glass cannons.
Maybe it isn't as intrinsically overpowered as I thought.
Friday, February 21, 2014
Thursday, February 20, 2014
Free-Form Featherfall
So, I've scrapped the entirety of my magic system, including the compendium list of spells that I'd accumulated, and replaced it with a free-form system somewhat reminiscent of the casting system in Fabletop or the skill and magic system in Shadowrun. For purposes of nostalgia (and because I'm not ready to scrap my list of weaponry and make all weapons of any given size equal), I still have physical combat within the d20 set-up.
So how does this make things simpler?
I have some basic rules for how spells work, and how adding on different effects increases the cost of any given spell on casting. But by making the magic system entirely free-form I eliminate the need for resource books. No more looking up spell descriptions.
It makes it potentially more powerful, sure. High-powered mages have always been powerful. And there's still the limiter of "I'm the DM," plus the added bonus that a player can't point to the rulebook and say "but, but, but!" Plus, it gives the player an excuse to roll a whole bunch of six-siders, which is always fun.
My test subje-erm... game tester has brought up the concern that it can be easier on the player to have a list of spells to work from, the idea that you can look in your toolbox and see what you've got. And while there is some truth there, if a player wanted to they could write down spells they've used or come up with to refer from later on as well. I think the potential for versatility and accessibility outweighs that particular bonus. Plus, I've already come up with a short list of example spells that simulate well-known effects, so if someone says "well what can I do?" I can hand them that list.
Another aspect of this free-form system is that it means any caster can cast any spell. Healing, direct-damage, buffs/debuffs, whatever, is free game. Because as I've discussed here before, the idea that any given person can't figure out how to make a spell work in their own tradition is a bit weak. So I have two spellcasting traditions, Arcanist and Spiritualist. You can claim the power comes from a potato on a string around your neck, if you like - the only mechanical difference is which of the two spellcasting stats you use for your primary.
This free-form system will also work for psionics, and I have the mechanics in place to support a psionic system, but psionics have always been a bit game-breaking as far as power goes, primarily due to the general non-existence of psionic-resistant monsters. I'm thinking I may keep psionic ability as a rarity, rolled at character generation, as my mother does it.
So how does this make things simpler?
I have some basic rules for how spells work, and how adding on different effects increases the cost of any given spell on casting. But by making the magic system entirely free-form I eliminate the need for resource books. No more looking up spell descriptions.
It makes it potentially more powerful, sure. High-powered mages have always been powerful. And there's still the limiter of "I'm the DM," plus the added bonus that a player can't point to the rulebook and say "but, but, but!" Plus, it gives the player an excuse to roll a whole bunch of six-siders, which is always fun.
My test subje-erm... game tester has brought up the concern that it can be easier on the player to have a list of spells to work from, the idea that you can look in your toolbox and see what you've got. And while there is some truth there, if a player wanted to they could write down spells they've used or come up with to refer from later on as well. I think the potential for versatility and accessibility outweighs that particular bonus. Plus, I've already come up with a short list of example spells that simulate well-known effects, so if someone says "well what can I do?" I can hand them that list.
Another aspect of this free-form system is that it means any caster can cast any spell. Healing, direct-damage, buffs/debuffs, whatever, is free game. Because as I've discussed here before, the idea that any given person can't figure out how to make a spell work in their own tradition is a bit weak. So I have two spellcasting traditions, Arcanist and Spiritualist. You can claim the power comes from a potato on a string around your neck, if you like - the only mechanical difference is which of the two spellcasting stats you use for your primary.
This free-form system will also work for psionics, and I have the mechanics in place to support a psionic system, but psionics have always been a bit game-breaking as far as power goes, primarily due to the general non-existence of psionic-resistant monsters. I'm thinking I may keep psionic ability as a rarity, rolled at character generation, as my mother does it.
Monday, April 8, 2013
Online Gaming Resources
I came across this site a couple months ago, and overall I like it: http://fabletop.com/ Simple, easy to use, great for quick pick-up games. Biggest problem is there is very little you can do to customize the system to suit your tastes. The system in place is good, not saying otherwise, but it makes playtesting my own system on the site rather difficult. Also, though there were a small number of people running games when I first joined, the site seems to be languishing right now, possibly due to a lack of GMs. If you already have a playerbase to bring to the site, not so much an issue, but it can be hard (as a player) to find a game when you're available to play.
So I also came across this site: http://roll20.net/ Not quite as simple and certainly not as quick and easy to set up a game, but the customization is much more universal. Dice are customizable, and I can actually use my own system on the site. Plus, the option of voice and video chat between players is a nice touch. I played around with it a lot tonight, and I'll probably end up using it to run games soon. It seems vastly more populated than Fabletop, though that's less of a concern for me there since I'll be playtesting my own system.
On a side note, I may need to tweak the bonuses for weapon skills. It looks as though I may have been a wee bit generous.
So I also came across this site: http://roll20.net/ Not quite as simple and certainly not as quick and easy to set up a game, but the customization is much more universal. Dice are customizable, and I can actually use my own system on the site. Plus, the option of voice and video chat between players is a nice touch. I played around with it a lot tonight, and I'll probably end up using it to run games soon. It seems vastly more populated than Fabletop, though that's less of a concern for me there since I'll be playtesting my own system.
On a side note, I may need to tweak the bonuses for weapon skills. It looks as though I may have been a wee bit generous.
Monday, March 25, 2013
Staring back at myself
Sometimes I just have to stare something in the face long enough before I can see it.
Sorcery is Arcane. Ritualism is Divine. The four schools that were under each are combined into one skill.
Is this a perfect balance? Well, no. Transmutation as a spell group has always dominated the list by the sheer number of spells it has. As it is, I'll be going through the Arcana Unearthed spells and redistributing them as I feel appropriate. Because I can do that. And I'll probably add in a few here and there that I really liked the flavor of (probably a good deal from the Arcanis system). And I'll remove the typical summoning spells, replacing them with my preferred one-shot summons, and that by itself should help balance between the two groupings.
Spellcraft as a skill would allow access to more complex magics from the other magical discipline (skill in either discipline would give access to the simple spells from any school). Exotic spells from your own discipline could be learned at ranks 3, 6, and 9, and more could be learned (from either discipline) through the use of Combat Proficiencies.
Unrelated quick thought: Base exotic weapon proficiency on a new Weaponmaster skill - each rank gives access to the exotic weapons of a different basic group (polearms, heavy blades, etc.), chosen by the player upon placing points in the skill.
Sorcery is Arcane. Ritualism is Divine. The four schools that were under each are combined into one skill.
Is this a perfect balance? Well, no. Transmutation as a spell group has always dominated the list by the sheer number of spells it has. As it is, I'll be going through the Arcana Unearthed spells and redistributing them as I feel appropriate. Because I can do that. And I'll probably add in a few here and there that I really liked the flavor of (probably a good deal from the Arcanis system). And I'll remove the typical summoning spells, replacing them with my preferred one-shot summons, and that by itself should help balance between the two groupings.
Spellcraft as a skill would allow access to more complex magics from the other magical discipline (skill in either discipline would give access to the simple spells from any school). Exotic spells from your own discipline could be learned at ranks 3, 6, and 9, and more could be learned (from either discipline) through the use of Combat Proficiencies.
Unrelated quick thought: Base exotic weapon proficiency on a new Weaponmaster skill - each rank gives access to the exotic weapons of a different basic group (polearms, heavy blades, etc.), chosen by the player upon placing points in the skill.
Friday, February 22, 2013
Sorcery vs. Ritualism
In the interests of simplicity, then, I'm once again taking a look at the magic system. Dividing things up into schools of magic, while it makes sense in some ways, has also imposed some limits that were not intended. Not to mention that the sheer volume of spells I've accumulated from so many different sourcebooks in order to fill out the lists of some of the lesser endowed schools (such as Divination) makes sifting through them prohibitive. Of course, the idea of rendering all that work invalid has only been more and more distasteful the more I've added to it, but I think something needs to give.
Part of this stems from reading through another sourcebook, Monte Cook's Arcana Unearthed. In this book, magic has been separated according to complexity. Every level has simple spells, which any caster might access, complex spells which might require greater training or access, and exotic spells, spells that might become the signature ability of a character because of their rarity or difficulty. And the book has its own magic spells, already separated into these categories.
Trying to just cram it into the full list would destroy the balance. Trying to split the full list into simple, complex, and exotic is an ambitious and prohibitive project. It would be easiest, if I want to use this method, to simply use only this one spell list, but it is tiny in comparison to what I have, and there are entire schools with less than ten spells total, and none in the first few levels. Transmutation, as per the usual, has the most spells, including a few I disagree should be placed there, but others have also commented on the favoritism Cook shows for Transmuters. Obviously, this wouldn't work for a system where schools of magic are learned individually.
And so I'm considering scrapping all of this subdivision, and offering simply two choices: Sorcery, and Ritualism.
Sorcery, based on Mind stats, akin to Dragaeran sorcery, where the caster simply pulls energy (either to him or from within, I'll leave that to the player's flavor preference) and tosses it to achieve the desired effect. This would apply also to any magic system where memorization is more important than intuition, though it could be argued that the use of magical formulae is ritualistic.
Ritualism, based on Soul stats, which might be Eastern witchcraft, or religion-based, or even bardic magic - any ritual-based magic.
I'm not sure if this will be the final iteration or not. There are some discrepancies, I'm sure. Discworld wizards, for example, might well be ritualists with such a system, especially when you consider some of the high-powered magic such as the Rite of AshkEnte. But, considering how the Disc works, and what that Rite in particular does, that may not be inappropriate, especially if you go back to Pratchett's Sourcery. More concerning might be that magic used by divine beings might be categorized as Sorcery, since they're simply lobbing energy. Another explanation might be that they're imposing their will upon the cosmos, which would place their magic as being based on Willpower stats.
But all of this is simply a matter of semantics, a matter of the magic's origin, and not a matter of what you can do with it. Arcana Unearthed uses the same spell list for all caster types, leaving it to the player (and a handful of various feats and methods of altering magical effects selected by the player) to determine the flavor. This method would mean that the source of magic has no bearing on its limits - a Sorcerer might heal someone just as well or better than a Ritualist. It does away entirely with the debate of cleric vs. mage, arcane vs. divine, and says instead, "This is what is possible. How you get there is the fun part."
In some ways, though, it seems they should complement each other. Let's use the Force as an example: most of the active abilities used in combat such as a Force Push or even the Jedi Mind Trick would be based in Sorcery, in the Mind. The ability to use the Force as a means to predict the future, or to commune with deceased Masters, or to sense a great "disturbance" would be based in Ritualism, in the Soul. So how do I account for this?
Maybe I should just forego Mind and Soul entirely, and create a Magic stat, then separate spells by casting time - anything longer than a standard action is based in Ritualism.
Part of this stems from reading through another sourcebook, Monte Cook's Arcana Unearthed. In this book, magic has been separated according to complexity. Every level has simple spells, which any caster might access, complex spells which might require greater training or access, and exotic spells, spells that might become the signature ability of a character because of their rarity or difficulty. And the book has its own magic spells, already separated into these categories.
Trying to just cram it into the full list would destroy the balance. Trying to split the full list into simple, complex, and exotic is an ambitious and prohibitive project. It would be easiest, if I want to use this method, to simply use only this one spell list, but it is tiny in comparison to what I have, and there are entire schools with less than ten spells total, and none in the first few levels. Transmutation, as per the usual, has the most spells, including a few I disagree should be placed there, but others have also commented on the favoritism Cook shows for Transmuters. Obviously, this wouldn't work for a system where schools of magic are learned individually.
And so I'm considering scrapping all of this subdivision, and offering simply two choices: Sorcery, and Ritualism.
Sorcery, based on Mind stats, akin to Dragaeran sorcery, where the caster simply pulls energy (either to him or from within, I'll leave that to the player's flavor preference) and tosses it to achieve the desired effect. This would apply also to any magic system where memorization is more important than intuition, though it could be argued that the use of magical formulae is ritualistic.
Ritualism, based on Soul stats, which might be Eastern witchcraft, or religion-based, or even bardic magic - any ritual-based magic.
I'm not sure if this will be the final iteration or not. There are some discrepancies, I'm sure. Discworld wizards, for example, might well be ritualists with such a system, especially when you consider some of the high-powered magic such as the Rite of AshkEnte. But, considering how the Disc works, and what that Rite in particular does, that may not be inappropriate, especially if you go back to Pratchett's Sourcery. More concerning might be that magic used by divine beings might be categorized as Sorcery, since they're simply lobbing energy. Another explanation might be that they're imposing their will upon the cosmos, which would place their magic as being based on Willpower stats.
But all of this is simply a matter of semantics, a matter of the magic's origin, and not a matter of what you can do with it. Arcana Unearthed uses the same spell list for all caster types, leaving it to the player (and a handful of various feats and methods of altering magical effects selected by the player) to determine the flavor. This method would mean that the source of magic has no bearing on its limits - a Sorcerer might heal someone just as well or better than a Ritualist. It does away entirely with the debate of cleric vs. mage, arcane vs. divine, and says instead, "This is what is possible. How you get there is the fun part."
In some ways, though, it seems they should complement each other. Let's use the Force as an example: most of the active abilities used in combat such as a Force Push or even the Jedi Mind Trick would be based in Sorcery, in the Mind. The ability to use the Force as a means to predict the future, or to commune with deceased Masters, or to sense a great "disturbance" would be based in Ritualism, in the Soul. So how do I account for this?
Maybe I should just forego Mind and Soul entirely, and create a Magic stat, then separate spells by casting time - anything longer than a standard action is based in Ritualism.
Sunday, November 25, 2012
System Overhaul
When last we left our intrepid game designer, he was blathering on about some dream, completely unrelated to the task of creating a gaming system. After several months of not much progress, a recent visit from a close friend and play-tester yielded an unexpected result.
"Dude, you're making things way too complicated."
Faced with the accuracy of the statement, the game designer leapt to his mental feet and declared, "I have so much work to do!" before collapsing into the fetal position at the prospect of the undertaking now at hand.
Outside the city, in a remote location, our hero worked tirelessly at his task. Though he'd broken the archetypal classes into their base components already, he still had ended up with what was essentially a class-based system, one which dizzied the mind with its complexity as he strove to make a fantasy gaming structure more realistic. Taking up the tools of his craft, he tore this structure apart and rebuilt it into something simpler, cleaner, more fluid. The basic details and abilities of a character could be seen with a single glance. He had done the unthinkable.
The System was reborn. Three stats, from which all else derived. No classes, nor class-fragments, but a comprehensive list of skills to govern the abilities of a character. And yet this simplicity maintained, at its core, a means to fit within the dynamics of 3rd Edition rules, providing the ability to use available Monster Manuals.
The game designer sat back to survey his work, making small adjustments. He found it to be shiny. But there were still questions to be answered, regarding how much of a role the character's level was to play, in contrast with skills and ability scores.
And so he sat, fondly inspecting his new creation, awaiting the chance to see it in action.
"Dude, you're making things way too complicated."
Faced with the accuracy of the statement, the game designer leapt to his mental feet and declared, "I have so much work to do!" before collapsing into the fetal position at the prospect of the undertaking now at hand.
Outside the city, in a remote location, our hero worked tirelessly at his task. Though he'd broken the archetypal classes into their base components already, he still had ended up with what was essentially a class-based system, one which dizzied the mind with its complexity as he strove to make a fantasy gaming structure more realistic. Taking up the tools of his craft, he tore this structure apart and rebuilt it into something simpler, cleaner, more fluid. The basic details and abilities of a character could be seen with a single glance. He had done the unthinkable.
The System was reborn. Three stats, from which all else derived. No classes, nor class-fragments, but a comprehensive list of skills to govern the abilities of a character. And yet this simplicity maintained, at its core, a means to fit within the dynamics of 3rd Edition rules, providing the ability to use available Monster Manuals.
The game designer sat back to survey his work, making small adjustments. He found it to be shiny. But there were still questions to be answered, regarding how much of a role the character's level was to play, in contrast with skills and ability scores.
And so he sat, fondly inspecting his new creation, awaiting the chance to see it in action.
Thursday, June 21, 2012
Last Night's Dream
As far as I can tell and remember, all of the following was one stretch of dream, though I don't remember how the first part transitioned to the rest. There was something before what I have written here that led into it, but I can't remember enough details to mention it.
====
On an alien planet with Anita, Elvendrums, and some of the Next Generation crew of the Enterprise, it's cold, and I use my cloak to keep people covered and warm, making reference to the fact that I'd used it to keep Anita and myself warm in KC at the renfaire, so it was good enough to keep everyone warm here.
In a school, not because I'm one of the students but to "register" my proficiency with blunt weaponry, such as warhammers. Either by myself, or only with Anita now. One of the students accidentally jabs me in the shoulder near the neck instead of on the upper arm when trying to do a "friendly punch" greeting. I get irritated, possibly moreso because he didn't apologize before going off into a classroom. One of the teachers nearby asks what happened, and I explain but more or less brush it off.
At a park, with swingset. There's some sort of water toy there, too. Someone I know, possibly one of the teachers at the school but a friendly figure regardless, asks if I can go get her and the person she's with (and presumably myself as well) some drinks, fruit punch. I start walking off (by myself) towards where I thought was a nearby place to purchase them, but it doesn't look right, so I turn around, head other way, still isn't right, so I stop, look around, head off in the direction it should be. Entering buildings which I thought had multiple eateries, end up having only one, they don't sell what I'm looking for (first asked for fruit soda, then pink lemonade, before remembering it was fruit punch). The restaurant has some kind of odd promotion/gimmick going where there's a $20 bill laying on the steps, and someone asks over intercom who dropped it there, but no one is claiming it - had the thought in-dream that maybe the longer it stayed there, the larger some payout would be. I went down the stairs, which are wide and rather opulent, to leave the restaurant (floating/sliding down rather than walking). I'm having trouble remembering, now, whether there were other stairs on my way in or through.
Leaving restaurant, still trying to find place with fruit punch. Looks like an old-town shopping district, but larger, maybe similar to HP Diagon Alley. I make the comment that I need to find the right alley to reach the main street. My mind makes the connection that this place is like a labyrinth when a spectral image of Jareth appears in the next "aisle," which I hadn't noticed existed (when I entered my "aisle" it had been an alleyway between two buildings). I start to address the spectral image, something which my dream-self thinks Jareth may not have expected - maybe I wasn't supposed to be able to see him. He claims that this is his dream, which I reject. As I'm walking back to round the "alley" into the next aisle, I state instead that it is our dream. "You opened your gates to me, Jareth. I call you." At which point he solidifies, stating. "I am here."
I ask him why he is preventing/impeding my progress. He makes some remark about my purpose here being to seek the Holy Grail, and starts taunting to the effect of, "You don't actually think it's a cup, do you?" I respond, "As if." (Post-dream, as I'm writing this, realize that I had actually been seeking drinks in the dream, which would have been in cups.) We start talking about what the grail actually is, and I make some clarifying remark about some early Christians knowing the truth despite modern ones believing otherwise. Jareth asks me to explain the nature of intellect and belief (not sure if "belief" was the actual word, may have been "spirituality" or something else). I quip, "That's kind of a fuzzy topic. So I imagine it's rather hairy." This earns a laugh. Then I continue with "I think that the intellect and (belief) are what (go/we lose) when we... die. I think they comprise the soul. At least, that's what I believe."
The aisles we've been walking down, I've noticed, have shelves, like a thrift store. Jareth picks something up from one of the shelves, it looks like a couple pieces of fried chicken (one was definitely a leg) and a container for it of some sort (cone-shaped?) which may have had the Popeye's logo, and makes a comment about it being a shame (possibly that someone dropped or didn't finish it) before offering it to me. I think I politely declined, or was about to, when I woke up. Post-dream, it occurs to me that the items on the shelves may have been a correlation to the soul-items from A Dirty Job, in which case was Jareth offering me a soul or was he offering a receptacle which would hold mine? I got the feeling that the reason the chicken had been (at least mostly) untouched is because the person who had it before died, and that's why I was reluctant to take it.
====
On an alien planet with Anita, Elvendrums, and some of the Next Generation crew of the Enterprise, it's cold, and I use my cloak to keep people covered and warm, making reference to the fact that I'd used it to keep Anita and myself warm in KC at the renfaire, so it was good enough to keep everyone warm here.
In a school, not because I'm one of the students but to "register" my proficiency with blunt weaponry, such as warhammers. Either by myself, or only with Anita now. One of the students accidentally jabs me in the shoulder near the neck instead of on the upper arm when trying to do a "friendly punch" greeting. I get irritated, possibly moreso because he didn't apologize before going off into a classroom. One of the teachers nearby asks what happened, and I explain but more or less brush it off.
At a park, with swingset. There's some sort of water toy there, too. Someone I know, possibly one of the teachers at the school but a friendly figure regardless, asks if I can go get her and the person she's with (and presumably myself as well) some drinks, fruit punch. I start walking off (by myself) towards where I thought was a nearby place to purchase them, but it doesn't look right, so I turn around, head other way, still isn't right, so I stop, look around, head off in the direction it should be. Entering buildings which I thought had multiple eateries, end up having only one, they don't sell what I'm looking for (first asked for fruit soda, then pink lemonade, before remembering it was fruit punch). The restaurant has some kind of odd promotion/gimmick going where there's a $20 bill laying on the steps, and someone asks over intercom who dropped it there, but no one is claiming it - had the thought in-dream that maybe the longer it stayed there, the larger some payout would be. I went down the stairs, which are wide and rather opulent, to leave the restaurant (floating/sliding down rather than walking). I'm having trouble remembering, now, whether there were other stairs on my way in or through.
Leaving restaurant, still trying to find place with fruit punch. Looks like an old-town shopping district, but larger, maybe similar to HP Diagon Alley. I make the comment that I need to find the right alley to reach the main street. My mind makes the connection that this place is like a labyrinth when a spectral image of Jareth appears in the next "aisle," which I hadn't noticed existed (when I entered my "aisle" it had been an alleyway between two buildings). I start to address the spectral image, something which my dream-self thinks Jareth may not have expected - maybe I wasn't supposed to be able to see him. He claims that this is his dream, which I reject. As I'm walking back to round the "alley" into the next aisle, I state instead that it is our dream. "You opened your gates to me, Jareth. I call you." At which point he solidifies, stating. "I am here."
I ask him why he is preventing/impeding my progress. He makes some remark about my purpose here being to seek the Holy Grail, and starts taunting to the effect of, "You don't actually think it's a cup, do you?" I respond, "As if." (Post-dream, as I'm writing this, realize that I had actually been seeking drinks in the dream, which would have been in cups.) We start talking about what the grail actually is, and I make some clarifying remark about some early Christians knowing the truth despite modern ones believing otherwise. Jareth asks me to explain the nature of intellect and belief (not sure if "belief" was the actual word, may have been "spirituality" or something else). I quip, "That's kind of a fuzzy topic. So I imagine it's rather hairy." This earns a laugh. Then I continue with "I think that the intellect and (belief) are what (go/we lose) when we... die. I think they comprise the soul. At least, that's what I believe."
The aisles we've been walking down, I've noticed, have shelves, like a thrift store. Jareth picks something up from one of the shelves, it looks like a couple pieces of fried chicken (one was definitely a leg) and a container for it of some sort (cone-shaped?) which may have had the Popeye's logo, and makes a comment about it being a shame (possibly that someone dropped or didn't finish it) before offering it to me. I think I politely declined, or was about to, when I woke up. Post-dream, it occurs to me that the items on the shelves may have been a correlation to the soul-items from A Dirty Job, in which case was Jareth offering me a soul or was he offering a receptacle which would hold mine? I got the feeling that the reason the chicken had been (at least mostly) untouched is because the person who had it before died, and that's why I was reluctant to take it.
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