# Universalis tags: #game/rpg/universalis ![[Universalis (cover).jpg|400]] *Universalis: The Game of Unlimited Stories* is what happens when a group of tabletop players decide they despise the authority of a Game Master and replace it with a relentless, token-based economy. Players use "Coins" to purchase narrative control. You buy the genre, you buy the characters, you buy the plot twists, and you even buy the rules themselves. The game effectively weaponizes cooperative storytelling by turning every single element of the shared fiction into a commodity. As for the core resolution mechanics, forget rolling to see if you successfully stab a goblin. *Universalis* uses "Complications," which is just a sanitized term for player disputes. If one player establishes a fact and another player wants to ruin it, they initiate a Complication. Both sides gather up relevant Traits they previously paid for to build a pool of ten-sided dice. Players can also burn extra Coins to buy more dice if they feel particularly petty. You roll the dice, and the high roller takes the pot. The victor wins the argument, earns Bonus Coins, and secures the right to dictate exactly what happens next in the fiction. As RPG historian Stu Horvath notes, "*Universalis* is a game that wants to flow past mechanical hiccups as quickly as possible and it is often preferable to handwave a solution that appeases all parties rather than looking up something in the book." Ramshead Publishing dropped the original version in 2002 and later unleashed a Revised Edition in 2006. The differences between the two mostly amount to the authors attempting to untangle their own terminology, clarifying that "Tenets," "Traits," and "Events" all effectively function as the same underlying mechanical currency, just wearing different hats. ## References - [**Universalis** - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Universalis) - [**Universalis** (2006) - Vintage RPG](https://www.vintagerpg.com/2018/12/universalis-2006/) - [RPGnet Review: **Universalis**](https://www.rpg.net/reviews/archive/10/10384.phtml) - - [Universalis RPG Overview - Project Rho](https://www.projectrho.com/rpg/universalis.html) - [Buy **Universalis** at Indie Press Revolution](https://www.indiepressrevolution.com/xcart/Universalis-PDF.html)