Although I have seen advice against it, I think the best solution to the Scale controversy is to accept the fact that Mass is a separate trait from Mass Scale. If we accept that Mass Scale is the relative size of the average member of a given species, and that the Mass Scale of objects made for use by that species is 0 relative to that species, then it holds that objects, at least, and probably beings, possess a Mass trait, too.

This Mass trait would be rated numerically on the Mass Scale chart, but its actual real world value would be the Mass trait and Mass Scale combined, just as a Strength attribute and Strength Scale are combined when an offensive damage factor is calculated.

Take, for example, a human being and his bowling ball. The average human being (according to the chart we are using) is Mass Scale 0 and therefore 68 kilograms. His favorite bowling ball is Mass Scale 0 (because it is scaled for use by a Scale 0 human being), but since it weighs only 6 kilograms, its Relative Mass must be -6. Mass Scale 0 + Relative Mass -6 = Mass -6. To find out the Mass or Relative Mass of any normal man-made object, you simply need to know its mass in real world terms.

But suppose the human bowler is challenged to a game by a huge troll? The troll is Mass Scale +4 and therefore about 333 kilograms. The bowling ball, created by a troll craftsman to be used by trolls, is the same size relative to a troll as a man-made bowling ball is to a human being. Since the man-made bowling ball is Relative Mass -6, then you just need to add the troll’s Mass Scale to arrive at the troll-made bowling ball’s Mass. Mass Scale +4 + Relative Mass -6 = -2. A troll-made bowling ball has a Mass of -2, or about 30 kilograms.

Suppose the human bowler next plays against a gnome. The gnome is Mass Scale -13, or about 350 grams. His bowling ball was made by himself of the appropriate dimensions, so it is 6 levels lighter than himself. Mass Scale -13 – Relative Mass -6 = -19. A gnome-made bowling ball has a Mass of -19, or about 30 grams.

To summarize, to find the Mass of an object made for beings of non-human Scale, add the Mass Scale of the being for whom it was made, to the Relative Mass (the Mass of the equivalent object made for human beings). It’s that easy. It requires, however, that the correct terms are in use.

Mass Scale

The mass of the average member of a species.

Relative Mass

The mass of an object relative to the mass of the being for whom it was made.

Mass

The actual mass of a being or object, calculated by adding Mass Scale to Relative Mass. (If a man-made object is 2 levels heavier than a human being, i.e. Relative Mass +2, then the same object made for a different species would be 2 levels heavier than the typical member of that species, too.)

• Strength Scale Chart (added)
• Mass Scale Chart (modified)

Scale rules are also beneficial in games where all of the characters are of a nonhuman Scale, as many Bunnies & Burrows and Watership Down fans are aware. In my own Mass Scale Chart, a typical rabbit is Scale -9. Since most of the characters in this genre are of the same Scale, there is no modification if they fight one another. Relative to one another, they are all effectively Scale 0 (and people are Scale 9). If a Scale -9 rabbit is attacked by a Scale -8 cat, the cat gains a +1 to its ODF and DDF. If the same rabbit is attacked by a Scale -4 dog, the dog adds +5 to its ODF and DDF. From the rabbit’s Scale 0 point of view, the cat is Scale 1 and the dog is Scale 5.

In many Scale charts, especially those dealing with Mass, examples are included to illustrate things that belong to each Scale level. Human beings, for instance, are almost always situated at Scale 0. Animals are often listed at other Scale levels to help one visualize the typical Scale levels that various real and imaginary creatures might occupy. All of this is well and good until man-made objects are included.

It might seem reasonable to know the Mass of a paper clip, a bowling ball, and an ore freighter, but placing those, or any, inanimate objects on the same Scale chart as living beings defeats the purpose of the chart and fundamentally misinterprets the concept of Scale in Fudge, for you see a paper clip, a bowling ball, and an ore freighter are all Scale 0.

A normal Scale 0 bowling ball used by normal Scale 0 human beings (who have an average weight of 68 kilograms) weighs about 7.25 kilograms; likewise a Scale -13 bowling ball made for Scale -13 gnomes would weigh much less than a 350 gram gnome, and a Scale 11 bowling ball made for Scale 11 giants would weigh less than its 6 ton owner. Scale rules exist to show you that things of a certain Scale are made for beings of that Scale and they don’t necessarily have the same Mass as the beings for whom they are made.

House rules are notorious perpetrators of this misunderstanding of Scale. Consider the typical combat rules that stipulate a Scale 16 main battle tank or a Scale 9 P-51 Mustang. I know they were just inserted into the Scale slot because they happened to fit the weight of that Scale. That is the problem. According to the rules, a Scale 16 tank would be operated by giants the size of tyrannosaurs, i.e. by a Scale 16 tank crew. Real main battle tanks are operated by Scale 0 human tank crews. That doesn’t mean a tank is weak or fragile. It just means it was made for normal human beings, so it doesn’t gain a Scale bonus relative to human beings. If it causes tremendous damage, the damage is figured by giving it a higher offensive factor. If its armor is effective against all rifle rounds, its protective capacity is figured by giving it a higher defensive factor. Then if the adventurers travel to another dimension where giant Scale 9 creatures sail giant ships, you can add +9 for Scale to the ODF and DDF of a normal ship in that world (and if the adventurers drink a serum that causes them to grow to the size of the giant creatures, the +9 for Scale disappears).

When I first compiled my own Mass Scale Chart, I made the mistake of including man-made objects, not because I thought they were of a different Scale, but because I was mixing up Mass Scale, Strength Scale, and the Mass of objects themselves. For my next project, I shall remove them from the Mass Scale Chart, but I will add them to a separate Strength Scale Chart that lists them as objects that can be lifted by beings of a particular Strength Scale. [Edit: This has been accomplished, although providing examples will be an ongoing process.]

• Mass Scale Chart
• Speed Scale Chart