>>44487023
It's actually both, anon. But it seems to be more widely accepted as the latter, rather than the former.

A homebrew as a game would be the equivalent of an indie videogame, any set of rules with a setting not published by a big company in the field, but the same term can be applied to any set of modified rules/mechanics of an already completed and fleshed out system.

Posting from last thread

>>44483270
>>44483416


Also: for a separate system, how do you all feel about a compared stat system? Like "compare these stats, for every one of yours that is higher, get a +1, for ever lower a -1, roll for unmoving target number based on action"

Does it take too long for each combat/not generally worth it? Is it better to just do Your Stats -Their stats +dice to achieve similar results?

Also: how much of a difference would letting player chose to either use 3d4, 2d6 or 1d12 have for probability?

>>44487121
does that imply worldbuilding is also allowed in these types of threads?

>>44487159
Yes, generally there is a seperate thread for that kind of stuff, but it's not Unwelcomed here. Usually we focus on mechanics though, so maybe include notes on how different aspects are reflected mechanically.

>>44487159
yes and no

worldbuilding usually has its own threads, and these are used mostly for mechanics, rules and balancing, but there's always posts about worldbuilding or certain elements like races or places that actually need feedback to build upon

like >>44487168 said, it's not unwelcomed, but it's not the thread's main focus

the setting of my game revolves around a land of food and the sentient candy beings that inhabit it. do you think it'd be a neat idea for magical aptitude to be based around calorie count?

>>44487261
i remember you from the "describe your homebrew in 30 words or less" thread

sugar-based magic does sound pretty sweet

>>44487019
>What are the advantages and disadvantages of using dicepools and bell curves over flat tests in more narrative-centered systems? Do you apply them on your system? Why (not)?

Some people don't like a lot of randomness, since it can compromise their decisions in ways that have nothing to do with those decisions themselves. 'I roll badly' on an important roll leads to 'the party wipes' despite making all the right decisions per the situation and having the requisite stats that those decisions should go through.

That said how ever, I think a compromise between the two systems is serviceable, with flat tests determining degrees of success/failure, stats to determine modifiers, and NO CRITS. Because FUCK CRITS.

>>44487261
Yes. That's all I can say, because it is very original.

>trying to upload a 3mb file
>connection error
>connection error
>connection error
>Error: Captcha expired
>connection error
>connection error
>Error: Captcha expired

Goddammit Chinese Moot, you win this round. Looks like I'll be renewing my captcha pass even though you never put it up on sale LIKE REGULAR MOOT ALWAYS DID FOR BLACK FRIDAY

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>>44486391
Yeah I feel what you are saying, I updated the design to be a bit more like the demon's (which I changed back).

Do you guys pick what kind of dice or stats you want to use and work upon them to decide your mechanics, or the other way around?

Since I'm starting from scratch with the rules I'm considering a bunch of things, one of them being the use of two d8s because I like d8s and I don't know many systems that use it

I'll probably still use the d20 roll-under but hey, checking different options is always good

>>44488069
I pick dice, then work around it. May be kind of shooting myself in the foot though. The other way might be "better" but results may vary.

>>44488069
Honestly, I limit my dice to platonic solids unless I'm doing some stupid costume dice system.

>>44488069
I pick dice and stats scale before mechanics. I can change them, but I make sure I put a limit of wiggle room, to prevent mechanics bloat. Same with bonuses and penalties, I try to put a soft limit of how many of each a roll will have.

>>44487593
That looks much better and much more inline with the overall feel of the world. The only concern I have now is that the "uncomfortably seductive" lip isn't as visible.

How did you get that effect, by the way?

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>>44488733
It was a sequence.
>Took the one that didn't fit in
>Put it in Photoshop
>Overlayed a crinkled paper texture
>Added some color noise
>Upped the contrast
>Darkened the color
>Imported the result back into illustrator
>Single color live traced it with three different values so different features were visible on others but not all of them.
>Cut and pasted the live traces together until I got something I liked.
This is the Photoshop result I live traced.

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>>44487365
i've actually had a lot of trouble writing and coming up for my game because of this. to my limited knowledge of ttrpgs, there's just nothing to compare it to. while it is somewhat exciting, it's also rather stressful if it turns out i am pioneering this sort of thing, unable to note the failings of other games that may be similar. are there any other successful tabletop settings where the players play and interact with non-traditional humanoids such as this and/or very cartoonish mechanics?
an example of the candies.

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>making a dark heresy-like system with an insanity meter
>meter can be lowered by roleplaying things your character likes doing
>realize this is just providing an excuse for players to ERP

>>44489463
to clarify, i want it to match the depth and worldbuilding of more popular games and then some, not limit the gameplay's difficulty and mechanics by forcing it to match it's childish charm and style

>>44489529
da fuck. invite me in and ill make a sicko char and destroy this erp bullshit

>>44489539
Well I am not going to sugar coat this, this might take you a long time. You have big ideas for this, but big ideas can be bad starting out. You might want to be a little less ambitious going in, make a nice base and be sure everything ticks before you pretty it up to what you originally envisioned.

Hey guy's I need some ideas for quirks/traits.

Traits/Quirks are possessed by people, items, places and what not, and vary in what they actually do, but typically are magical in nature, and are typically fairly simple if weird(so for example, a character has a quirk that makes their all their abilities null fire on target).

>>44489605
oh you're definitely right, but i'm quite determined. no matter how long it may take i'm hell-bent on finishing it and sharing my ideas with the world in the hopes they love them. eventually. it's just hard for me to work and think in such a format, so i enjoy feedback on every little thing about my work as it comes along. may as well lay a stronger foundation first

>>44489913
I was much the same way one year ago. I am looking forward to seeing this progress, don't go burning out on us.

>>44489669
Initiative boost. Fear immunity. Aggro draw. Instant Counter/Damaging defense. Auto-Stealth. Auto-Fear.

>>44489669
I don't know how well this would fit but how about armor that doesn't block any damage but damages attackers instead.

I'm working on a new system, since I finished my old one, and I am stuck in the DUMBEST place.

Ability score names. xD

I have five ability scores, roughly translating to the classic STR, DEX, INT, WIS, and CHA.

Ideas?

>>44488069
Depends. Most of my games have a unique mechanical concept that they're based around. I normally come up with that first, then works on dice and stats and stuff. Also, they tend to change after play testing.

>>44489463
Engine Heart comes to mind as a RPG were the players aren't humanoids that isn't all about death and destruction.

>>44491032
this is some pretty neat stuff, thanks

>>44492093
No problem!
And my two-cents on game creation.
Mechanics should be fun. Matching the depth or difficulty of "popular games" isn't always the best idea. Some people like really complicated and hard games (DND 3.5, or Shadowrun, to name a few examples), but on the other hand, some of the most popular new games have been comparatively simple, like Dungeon World or DnD 5e.
Mechanics should match your setting. If you make your mechanics complex, and the difficulty on the hardside, you might find you game ending up more grimdark than you expect.

Can someone post the 24 hour RPG challenge generator?

Heyyyyyy the 12 am mark hit on my timezone

Happy new year, freshly branded /gdg/! I wish all y'all the best, both in terms of projects and in everyday life!

>>44493204
Bro, have you ever dumped all your setting stuff and mechanics and all that? Every time you talk about it I'm intrigued.

>>44493323
i dropped the doc some time ago but i took it down from the list because all the rules are wrong and i have to start from scratch

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1LR8e9dTdltQc9ZTgv1yGR_lDfa8DTIRXGOiWEPOiOBM/edit?usp=sharing

here it is though
there's a ton of stuff missing because most of the stuff i have written are in different docs or in notes

>>44493366
This is how I spend the New Years.

>>44493366
>>44493502
Mine are literally just written on a pad of graph paper or on my phones notes so. Points for organization

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>>44487019
>>Thread Topic:
>What are the advantages and disadvantages of using dicepools and bell curves over flat tests in more narrative-centered systems? Do you apply them on your system? Why (not)?
I like the simplicity of the d20, but I want more out of the roll and my heavily modified 3d6 roll can do that for me.

>>44487315
>Some people don't like a lot of randomness [elaborated by me] ... that the d20 (or d100) provides with its wild and crazy swings
That is so wrong the wrong way to think of it, bell curve doesnt provide 'less random numbers'. Most of these 'flat' systems dont care about by how much you beat it, only having a binary outcome, meaning the popular term, swingyness, is completely misguided. You rolled a natural 2?, well that's the same as failing just by 1, no fucking difference.
On the subject of criticals, it's the system and/or the GM that fucks it up, not the dice. Another counter points, GURPS have crit success on 3 and 4 for ~2% and for skill of 15+ on 5 as well for ~5% and for skill of 16+ on 6 too for a whooping 9.26%.

Rant continues in pictures, to elaborate on it, starting with1); This is usable, the Degree of Success/Failure, to provide a less binary outcome. With bell curve the DoS/F is concentrated around 0, eg you are more likely to have a low DoS/F than a high one. Flat can do DoS/F as well, but then each value of DoS/F is egually likely.
Regarding 2), modifiers just push around the Target Number, +2 to your roll is the same as -2 to the TN, instead you should compare the different modifiers. With flat it's easy to know by how much. +3 is 15% for d20, so lovely simple, the same no matter where you are barring moving outside the range, but that's besides the point. For 3d6 moving TN 4 to TN 7 is ~9%, from TN 7 to TN 10 is ~31% and from TN 9 to TN 12 is ~37%. Basically, moving in the extreme ranges dont mean as much as moving around in the 'bell'. This one is the tricky one to design around and use properly.

>>44487154
A drive system would be neat, Trails of Cthulhu has one where you get a mental hit if you try going against your drive, or if your belief is challenged and broken. That said, I think the drives should be purely roleplaying material and not attach any game mechanics on it, at most punishing (or some form of negative feedback) players for going against their drives, something simple and easy to get.

Sorrow might not be necessary if you did it this way, since compared to the other drives, sadness is usually a case by case thing, though I don't doubt that there's someone who for example when a complete stranger dies, he cries for them the same way he cries for a relative.

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My current system is as follows:
>All tests are 1d20 + Attribute rating, which tend to range from -1 to 5, with 0 as human average
>Advantages from circumstance or abilities grant an additional d20 each, you roll all of them, take the highest, and add your Attribute
>Disadvantages work the opposite way, roll d20s and take the lowest
>Advantage and Disadvantage cancel out but have no maximum (i.e. having 3 Advantages would be 4d20, take the highest)
>Yep, pretty much exactly how 5E does it
>Unlike 5E there's no Proficiency bonus, skill and save training is just Advantage
>Flat modifiers to d20 rolls are very, very rare

This has resulted in the following systemic changes, according to my testing and crunching the numbers:

1) Skilled characters (that is, those with Advantage) fail at easy checks MUCH less frequently than unskilled characters. A trained acrobat will hardly ever fail a simple jump, a trained scholar will almost always know the basics of the subject they're schooled in. Easy challenges (i.e. needing to roll a 6+) are almost always successful.

2) Skilled characters can handle Hard challenges (i.e. needing to roll a 16+) more often than unskilled characters, at about the same rate (generally speaking) as they would if they merely added their Proficiency modifier using 5E. So, most attainable DCs are still attainable.

3) Skilled characters work better under adversity. Since Advantage and Disadvantage cancel out, a Skilled character is WAY more likely to succeed at the tough challenges under pressure and far less likely to screw up the easy stuff under poor circumstances. A trained acrobat jumping off of an icy ledge still has a fair shot, a trained scholar researching something when it's been intentionally buried in the library has a chance in hell.

4) Skilled characters benefit less from additional Advantages. Piling on more d20s has diminishing returns. On the other hand, it pretty much guarantees success, so it's not THAT bad.

>>44487315
My post wasnt a rant against you.

>flat tests determining degrees of success/failure,
It think it would fit very well for more heroic style games because of the likelihood of high DoS.
>NO CRITS. Because FUCK CRITS
I pretty much agree.>>44487315

>since it can compromise their decisions in ways that have nothing to do with those decisions themselves. 'I roll badly' on an important roll leads to 'the party wipes' despite making all the right decisions per the situation
Too much hinging on a single roll is This is a flaw of the system and/or the setup. Save-or-die spells are a classic blunder here along with most social encounters being settled by a single roll rather than being done like combat i.e. by having multiple rolls and/or decisions (here as what you say) to make.

DnD have so many flaws, but it's not the choice of what you roll, it's how it's used.

>>44487154
It's definitely a possibility to expand on characters, but do consider it impacts the conception of the characters - the assumption of competence particularly.
I do however like how you tie it into unity and with the importance of that it may be not be a bad thing, but instead a good thing.

Drives might not be the right word for it. I also have something called drives (and also not properly named), but they have a slightly different concept. Im also interested in alternate names and I might find mine among suggestions to yours.

>>44488069
Moulded around with some d6's until I found something I liked. >>44488588 this here is great advice, something I didnt fully complied with and it did hurt me a bit.

>>44489529
Reword it as "Doing hobbies relaxes and soothes the mind to some extend during downtimes."
Now it's limited in scope/effectiveness and what, dont need to be RP'ed as intently.
Also have them choose during character creation.

>>44488278
No d10 or perhaps a mangled d20?

>>44494104
5) Attributes matter, since they determine your maximum (and minimum) roll results. Athletic training won't let a scrawny guy pick up a horse, stealth training won't let someone with two left feet sneak past a Beholder. it improves your odds with already achievable DCs, but doesn't let you exceed the limitations of your Attributes.

6) Getting Advantage or imposing Disadvantage on enemies is powerful, and should be limited in how and when it can be done. It's also much easier to track than dozens of numbers.

7) Getting flat modifiers, such as from a magic item (like a bonus to jump checks with a Ring of Jumping) is awesome because they actually increase what your character is capable of. Skills make you jump consistently farther, but don't increase your maximum jump distance. A Ring of Jumping actually lets you jump FARTHER. That's pretty huge.

My game is designed to be NobleDark, and I feel that the mechanics suit that genre and the kind of low/pulp fantasy I'm aiming for.

Is there anything I've missed about the core resolution system or should take into account? I'd also love to hear suggestions, if you have any.

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>>44492742
You mean this one?

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>>44494446
And there's also this.

Hey, I'm writing a setting , an alternate setting for a pre-existing system. and I've got a bunch of shit written up for it. but i don't know what order to put all of it in. Like, how should I toss the chapters together, what order?

my old post in another thread.
>>44479376

>>44494547
>Two-way radio
>Other Planes
>Fire

shit, I got that one movie where the dude used the radio to communicate with his fireman father in the past to avoid his death

>>44494144
>No d10 or perhaps a mangled d20?
Nope. I'm not even going to attempt to justify it, I simply don't like doing it differently, even with virtual rolls.

>>44494104
>>44494231
Any advice would be super helpful. I think the core mechanic is solid but I'm not sure if it's robust enough for some players. It also relies on characters raising their attributes pretty consistently over time in order to achieve the truly legendary feats you expect at high levels, and I know that some players prefer keeping stats low but having some kind of competency / training bonus.

Advantage doesn't really, well, improve. It makes skill training binary, either you're trained or you're not. There's no grade of training differentiating an adept from an expert or a master, unless you take some kind of second ability that gives you an additional bonus (like how Skill Focus works in 3E D&D, or the rogue expertise for double proficiency in 5E).

Anything else I'm missing? What do you guys think of the mechanics?

>>44494104
sounds interesting got a google docs link?

>>44496220
how is combat done? are there equipment bonuses?

In a setting where witches are able to cast above their "level", if they're willing to risk permanent damage to their stats, what would be a good stat to use as what they lose?

Their magic is powered by their wisdom and constitution. So a wisdom hit, or a con hit?

With average con/wisdom being 16's.

A 1 point from each? Or 2 from one stat?

There is no way to regain points list in this manner.

>>44497281
DEPENDS ON full stat spread.

>>>>44497281
What if it depended on the types of spells cast?

>>44493366
Weren't you converting it to R&K?

>>44487019
I really dig this logo and OP pasta.
Alright, have we all landed safely in the year 2016 now? Good, because those games won't dev themselves.
>>44481955

>i really like the boons and being able to choose from a group of them since i was gonna give class passives but i was unsure of how to apply them
Glad to have been of help. >>44481100's idea is rather dope as well.
>>44488069
If you talked with my team's main mechanics guy he'd tell you I love doing the former too much, but I'm trying to change that.
>d8s
Schweet.
>>44489463
Maybe look into Ryuutama. Really hoping to see this become reality.
>>44497281
Roll 1d4. 1 - 2 is that much CON, 3 - 4 is 1-2 WIS.

>>44497281
I guess it depends on how you want to fluff the damage being. Is it that casting spells that they can't handle burns their mind or does physical damage? Examples would be like in Never Ending Story 2, whenever Bastion made a wish, he'd lose a memory, for wisdom damage. Or for constitution, it could be seen as trading life or building up toxins from the magic.

>>44489463
Try looking for TTRPG review sites and look through them regularly to expose yourself to more titles, even if you don't get to play any of them. The more mechanics you know of, the more ways you can play around with them to make them food/candy based.

I don't know if I should suggest it this early in the development process, but maybe have a lighter, easy to learn, easy to play version of the rules at the side? Since the theme would be pretty appealing to children, making it accessible to them might be a good idea.

>>44496628
Not at the moment, no. I'm working in a program that doesn't translate well to google docs so I'd lose a lot of clarity if I posted it up.

>>44496653
Pretty much like 5E, you get an action and you can move, though movement and distance is more like 13th Age's Engaged / Disengaged mechanic. Attack rolls are 1d20 + Dex stat, damage is improved by Str stat, armour improves Defence kinda like D&D but tweaked a little. Weapons come in categories and grant lateral bonuses, for example swords give flat extra damage, axes ignore physical resistance, knives let you add Dex stat to damage instead of Str stat, etc. Non-combat equipment can either give advantage if used properly (like a climbing kit when scaling a cliff face, reduce the DC if used properly (like rope ladder to climb up a cliff face) or imposed disadvantage if not used at all (like a set of thieves' tools when trying to pick a lock).

Magic items give actual flat bonuses, and they don't stack. There's also an alternative sub-system meant to be used in place of magic items for low-fantasy campaigns that gives the GM options for handing out permanent bonuses for good roleplay and accomplishing feats of heroism. Something kinda like "For defeating the chancellor in a verbal debate before the House of Lords, you gain a +2 to all Charisma (Diplomacy) checks." or "For defeating Grammarg the Orcish Warchief you now deal 2 bonus damage against Orcs."

>>44490894

use thesaurus.com to search for acronyms .

>>44498117
I've been considering a lot of systems to ensure I end up with the one I like the most, I've already considered dice pools, r&k, 2d8, 2d6, 2d10, a similar roll-under with a d12 that didn't work, etc

But simplified d100 with a d20 always ends up being the most comfortable because despite having linear progression the stats affect rolls directly by adding to the success range directly and I get easily laid out degrees of success with a single roll for checks and a single string of simple math, regardless of how I change the stats

>>44490894
There is literally no reason not to name them STR, DEX, INT, WIS and CHA unless those are somehow completely inappropriate.

If your game is not going to BE different, don't NAME stuff differently just for the sake of looking original, it's going to lower the general impression of your system and make a lot of players roll their eyes.

>What's Brawn? Like Strength right?
Yeah.
>Well call it strength then, you fucking tryhard.

>>44500768
I went with names other than the standard because I wanted to bring a different tone/emphasis. I wasn't a fan of the connotation of the "normal" stay names, and rather than teach people over again I gave them a different name to begin with.

It's a lot to do with theme and expectations. Someone who grows up on D&D is going to have set expectations for the Intellegence stat vs the Wisdom stat, or maybe the word Wit/Charm is better than charisma for a different setting.

>>44501036
I think that the names of stats are incredibly overrated when it comes to setting the tone, especially since you'll inevitably end up using the bog-standard names to explain them.

If you use the word intelligence or strength when describing a stat that's what people are going to remember anyway.

I mean, how different is your game, really, if the stats, in your own words, roughly translates into STR, DEX, INT, WIS and CHA?

If you want to make something different, start under the hood, don't focus on the paintjob and the rims.

>>44500768
There is a couple reasons, actually.
To begin with, naming it something different helps it look original. When I crack open an indie RPG and I see stuff named after DnD stats, I wonder how different it's going to be. It skews my perception of the game.
Also, your coming at this with the view of someone who has played other tabletops, has played DnD. If the player has never done so, they don't even have the concept of Strength as a stat, and the name could influence how they see.
(Also, in my system if you haven't noticed, there's no Constitution. Brawn is an excellent way to denote not only physical strength and toughness.)

>>44501211
Names of stats are more important thank you think.
If I call Charisma "Cool" in my system, it defines how a character with high Cool is played. If I call Intelligence "Education" instead of "Knowledge", the same. And again, you only use bog-standard names to someone who has experience in playing DND.

And just because my game uses stats that roughly translate to the classic DnD ones doesn't mean is does have a different tone and mechanics.

DnD is different from Dark Heresy which is different from Atomic Highway which is different from Hollow Earth Expedition - All of these games use the same sorts of stats though.

>>44500768
>>What's Brawn? Like Strength right?
>Yeah.
>>Well call it strength then, you fucking tryhard.
Has this ever happened? I know most encounters like that would just go
>What's Brawn? Like Strength right?
Yeah.
>Okay, cool.

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How would you improve this?

>Game is designed to emulate a 30-minute standalone kid's cartoon
>GM has either 100 Adversary Points (for a shorter game) or 200 AP (for a longer game)
>PCs have four stats (Hide, Bounce, Courage, Cleverness) rated at d6, d8, d10, & d12; these are rolled as "skill checks", etc.
>PCs have three broad Talents; when one fits your action roll 2dX instead
>PCs start with 2 Luck points; Luck is burned to crit a roll (one point per die)
>0 Luck = captured, unconscious, hypnotized, or otherwise under GM control the next time they appear
>PCs have 0-3 Flaws; PC regain Luck points by having their Flaws come into play (1-3 per Flaw)
>All PCs have one bottle Gummiberry Juice; full bottle raises Bounce to d20 for next 3 actions (next 1 action for half-bottle)
>Permanent item: increases a stat's die type by 1 step, or +2 if already a d12 when used; receive 1 Luck if lost
>Expendable item: crit a stat die when used; item consumed
>Basic game mechanic is GM presenting obstacle with a set AP value; PC roll total has to meet or exceed obstacle AP value or PC loses 1 Luck point. Once obstacle AP is overcome, it no longer threatens any of the PCs. When all of the game's AP is used up, there are no more challenges
>Villains have their own Evil stats. Three tiers of villains: Main (d10,d6,d4), Recurring (d6,d4), Minor (d10). Villain stats create extra AP. Mooks are just drawn from regular game AP pool.
>Villain stronghold has Evil stat d12; only used when inside stronghold

An "episode" starts with all the players writing down 3 possible problems for their character and rolling a d20; highest roll is the focus PC for the episode, but other players get to decide which problem occurs.

There's no initiative order; a single player has to volunteer to challenge an obstacle and either overcome it for everybody or lose 1 Luck trying.

>>44501945
who exactly is the target audience here?
i'm not saying the thing is bad but the mental image of 4 adults with bibs playing this with giant foam dice is very strong in my mind right now

>>44501945
One thing I'm gonna point out - The single player solving problems probably won't work out well. It means that players with weaker personalities are going to be shoved to the side as the people with stronger personalities are going to try and solve every problem. I would suggest a mechanic to make sure that every players is included in every scene.

>>44501966
Don't care, I just want a damn Gummi Bears game.
Thank you for the image

>>44502030
Nice. Good point about the meta. Really working on trying to make this as close to a self-driving cartoon as possible.

>>44502044
One system I read, can't remember which one, made it so that each person had an archetype, and that person got first crack at the problem if that type of problem came up.

Another game I've played (Everyone is John) forced the players to bid tokens to gain the spotlight. It eventually would equal out when aggressive players ran out of tokens.

>>44500609
It weakens/hurts them

They attempt to channel power beyond their ability to safely convert it into spell effect. The result is physically and mentally damaging.

I am not sure if manaburn is exactly right. But similar.

So if no stat or pool is "mana", I need a way to represent the overuse of power.

>>44502267
Then I'd go a point in each, since it taxes both aspects.

>>44502546
I agree really.
My issue is that it gives a huge advantage to a player that gets lucky with starting stat rolls.
The guy that has 18/18 is going to be able to overuse power much more than the guy with 12/14.
I am just trying to keep a balance of some sort so the emphasis isn't focused in start stats, and is focused more on
"should I channel too much to solve ( problem) ".

If that makes sense.

>>44502694
There are only 5 starting classes. However there is a lot of variance and flavor.

If two people chose witch as the class, they can go in vastly different directions. But the overpower casting will have the same "harmful effect". Thus I can see this leading to issues of " fuck me, I had shit rolls, so now I am way gimped compared to the other witch". Or some feeling like that.

>>44502694
I would definitely add some other penalty for using it, like being stunned for a round or two after using it. The increased stats should be a benefit for the mechanic, but other effects should influence the caster's use of the ability.

>>44500613
i'll give it lighter difficulty a thought, but maybe it isn't best to think about so early

>>44503082
>stunned for a round
Wouldn't really have much effect.
Since witches don't really into toe-toe fighting. More of a cast from the safety of their home type.

Powerful as hell with prep time, but just a normal person in combat.

So something more than a stun. I gave thought to facial scarring, or wrinkles, hair loss. Basically something that makes them look like a witch, the more they overuse power. ( and the stat drain)

If I play up the physical results; turning ugly as hell, that may balance it a bit.

nice to see the thread with so many replies in so little time

here's to hoping more people start coming by

>>44497281

This doesn't answer your question but keep in mind that mechanics like this greatly favor NPCs when weak DMs are involved. A PC witch would have to use this ability only very rarely or cripple themselves for the entire campaign while one that only exists as an obstacle will be able to spam it every round if the DM doesn't bother to flesh out their behavior as though they intended to keep existing after the PCs were gone. It's not a deal breaker but it's always something to think about when doing things like this, even it just means putting a reminder in for DMs to play them intelligently and not just powerfully.

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hey guys, just the fella with plans to make a neotokyo themed wargame chiming in

have basically figured out the combat mechanics for anyone interested in commenting

>node/room-based movement and contact schema, since this is basically a roomclearing simulator
>when two units make visual contact, both roll for initiative/recognizing the other
>roll of d6 to hit for first to react, standard unmodified roll to hit is <4 for point shooting. if unit spends an action to aim or already way, +1 to hit range IE <5 or less.
>for each negative modifier (extra square away, cover, each turn of fire suppression stackable to 3, -1 to hit
>after a successful hit, roll a d6 to factor in how many bullets are on target. 5-6 = 100%, 3-4 = 50% (rounded up), 1-2= 25%. IE a smg with rof of 10 per combat sequence could hit 10, 5, and, 3 respectively. Each negative modifier lowers potential hits by the value respectively (a -2 modifier would mean a maximum hit rate of 8, 3, 1. Minimum hit rate is always 1)

damage tba but a blend of the r6 style (wounded, critical, dead) taking into account higher body armor bullet tolerance rates

>>44488069
I was originally only trying to design a system that used 1d6, which is for the beast because I get kinda flighty about settings once I've gotten the high notes for them written down.

>>44488069
d6 is aprox 16% per side

d20 is the master dice, but I like using d6 because it's readily applicable

stats are really boring and predictable for wargames

>>44504698
Ok, let me see if I got this straight.

Roll for initiative, and then its a D6, if you roll a '4' or less, you hit. If aiming its a '5' or less. You can have a -3 total to the roll for things like terrain, range, etc. If a hit, then roll a D6 for ammo, rounding up, 5+ is 100%, 3-4 is 50%, 1-2 is 25%, and the penalty from the to hit roll lowers the number of hits.

Make sure that when you do the wounding mechanic, you stay with the roll under. Keeping a consistent "direction" with your rolls is a good idea; if you roll under to hit, roll under to wound and to save, if you include saves.

>>44504214
Very good point. Using NPCs in such a fashion would be equal to "rocks fall, u die" dming.
Since its likely only our small group will play it, it won't matter. But if others used it, well, you summed it up.
We are huge fans of making this system, because we've yet to find a good setting/game to be able to use vamps before.
However the detail work to make this not suck...is a challenge.

>>44488069
I try to make things mechanically different, and leave an inevitably pissed off future me to make it work and make sense through trial and error.

>>44505239
yeah , it is a little odd and I'm sorry for phrasing it oddly- mostly just organizing my thoughts by putting them to paper. The primary aim is to cut down on the "roll +5 dice every attack" mechanic popular to wargames

stackable to -3 is the suppression dynamic, but this can be modified even further in conjunction with distance. Minimum 1 in 6 chance of a hit, however. Maybe I'll rethink the exact limits on this

initative roll:

d6
+1 if cloaked
+1 if prepared (looking in the direction)
+1 if weapon lighter
+1 if valid visionmode
-1 if invalid visionmode
-1 if dazed

visionmodes:
1)motion
+1 if moved
-1 if motionless
2) thermal
+1 if uncloaked
-1 if cloaked
3) nvg
+1 if dark
-1 if light

if a cloaked unit wins the initative it is counted as not spotted and cannot be fire on until performing an action requiring another initative roll, or firing with an unsurpressed weapon

Rolled 22, 160, 236 = 418 (3d500)

>>44494446
Yes, thank, that's what I was looking for!

>>44506063
>fast food
>rapscallions
>terrorism

W-well.

Rolled 172, 430, 43 = 645 (3d500)

>>44494446
hm

>>44505295
There are tons of vampire games anon.

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>>44487019
Sorry, but I remember there being talk of alternating the logos, and I realized that the transparency wouldn't work as well if the logo was extracted from the colored backgrounds I had in the original post.

>>44507090
i like it but it might be a bit too tiny to use, whereas the one in the OP pops out more because it's more compact but takes much more space

Alright so, I'm currently figuring out a combat system that uses simultaneous turns with staggered phases and distinct reaction phases. It looks like this:

Movement/Offensive options:
Strafe, Move to location, Retreat, Charge.
Blunt strike, Cutting strike, Piercing strike.

Tactical/Defensive options:
[I need ideas for tactical stuff]
Block, Evade, Deflect, Parry.

Special options:
Techniques, Spells, Items

Combat functioned in a defined three dimensional space which can change over the battle, with combatants moving all throughout the area. My current problem is that I can't figure out how to make this work on its own, let alone work this into the shit that I already have. http://pastebin.com/Nqt7xYgy

I don't want straight double actions(one each, Movement and Offensive, Tactical and Defensive) per phase of both kinds because that's boring, but I also don't want it to be so ridged as to not be dynamic with single action phases.

>>44507835
I see what you mean, I'll have an overhaul done in a jiffy!

Gentlemen, how does one fix the 40k RPG mechanics. I know CoC uses a slightly superior system.

Biggest problem with 40kRPG system:
Everything lies between 1 and 100, with 20 being average and 99 being peak of power
This means that the difference between power ratings is almost nothing.
Also means the system suffers from DnDosis where the die roll is more important than your skill rating for 90% of gameplay.
The Degrees of Success system is almost uselss because of this, since it comes to a pass or fail system first and now how well you passed.

Call of Cthulhu's system has a better way of doing this though, where 1 to 100 is human levels, with 100 being peak of human achievement. This allows monsters to have huge strength scores which accurately reflect their power. Therefore unnatural bonuses are no longer needed. This could let rolls not be pass or fail anymore.

So any advice on how to make d100 less d20 pass or fail, and more like good systems where it's degrees of success?

>>44508008
Just have significant roll modifiers from stats, or less rolls in general.

>>44508008
Try the Advantage and Disadvantage mechanics from 5E D&D. Curving your dice to represent training and circumstance can be very effective and it's easier to calculate than multiple modifiers. It's a good compromise between straight d20/d100 rolls and using a dice pool system, which can get rapidly out of hand. Just use it sparingly, it's a pretty hefty benefit/drawback.

this is my "final" 1d6 spell list (mages start with one at random)

1. Scry. You can attempt to discern things through yout divination method (choose one: tarot cards, silent meditation, watching the wind carry a handful of dust, etc). On a hit, you can ask up to three questions to your GM (he will answer truthfully). You can later spend the unasked questions to give +1 to any further roll (describe how your insights helped you on the task)
2. Link. When you create an intimacy channel with a target (by touching it, locking eyes, meditation or similar) you can attempt to implant a subtle suggestion, fascinate or learn a secret from it. This may work also on some objects like locks or candles, or in forces like fire or the sea.
3. Ward. You can attempt to lay a temporary protection over something or someone. It acts as a shield against a chosen danger (heat, unwanted attention, rain, mind control, intruders, etc) or gives +1 armor in combat. You must take time writing the symbols to achieve long-lasting effects.
4. Heal. You can attempt to restore 1d6 HP and cure ailments of both body and spirit to any target you touch.
5. Call. You know old rituals to summon supernatural and nature spirits. On a hit, you can ask them to fulfill a simple mission within their capabilities, do d6 damage, answer a question within their knowledge or bring you a small object from beyond. On a 7-9, spirits may ask you for favors themselves, claim a prize or escape from your control.
6. Bond. You get a boon from your totem animal, element or force (describe it!). Choose one between: Shapeshifting into a related form; a signature technique (+1 to armor and +1 to damage with a favored weapon, explain why!) or the ability of summoning it anytime, no ritual required.


I'm thinking on ways to improve Heal; I thought on making it also cover artifact repair. Does this trigger anyone's autism?

>>44508945
Heal seems a bit strong unless you limit how often it can be used. I assume this is for Dungeon World, given the Hit / 7-9 terminology used?

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>>44507835
As promised I have returned.

>>44509312
me likey

>>44494144
I could use Passions, like Unknown Armies does, that's partly where I got the idea. I want to make it one of those things where it can give you that boost when you need it, but also has drawbacks, and you need your friends to help keep you from going too far. Kind of a Risk-Reward system mitigated by the Unity mechanic.

It also gives another avenue in which to use Unity, rather than it just being an advanced Assist action. I want it to be something pervasive throughout the system, as Earning Unity and Investing it is the equivalent of gaining EXP and Leveling up.

Though I'm still torn between that and the Technical Level + Unity Level system, which has a lot of interesting possibilities.

The point is, I'm trying to find as many uses for Unity as possible, to keep players from hoarding/keep them wanting to earn more, thus incentivizing roleplaying.

>>44506372

I'd play a game where a crew of rebellious notpirate types crew a food truck and commit terrorist acts against snooty overpriced restaurants.

>>44509312
Would you mind linking me the .ai, man? I think I have an Idea to merge both logos because i'm really digging that wrench but I can't read shit from a distance

>>44487261
So diabetic are like archmage or something ?
Neat idea tho.

>>44510546
https://copy.com/xbl3f7bG2lcVPfBa
Sorry it took so long, I just had to do some annotating.

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>>44510835
oh well I ended up using a vector straight off the PNG, but thanks regardless

everyone okay with using this one from now on?

>>44510884
Noice.

>>44511077
>>44511002
Unknown armies method
Roll under X number, but higher is better. Gives you a straight number to work off of and you get the joys of roll under. Just don't do what I did and shoot yourself in the foot by having too small a number range.


On that note, I'm thinking of bumping up to 2d10/1d20. Not sure. Maybe 1d12

Don't you die on me!

>>44507886
I guess nobody cares. Oh well.

>>44513465
Things get lost or overlooked a lot.

Another issue is that this is a super hard issue to fix, so maybe no one has any idea what to suggest. Personally I just go with Major, Movement, Minor and then special actions like free and reactions, but that's probably no help at all to you.

where do i start

>>44514046
You got an idea you like?

>>44514076
most likely

>>44514235
Well then you have already started.

>>44514244
burn

>>44514025
I've actually thought about it since then and I've come up with a couple of solutions, but all of them involve a decent amount of calculations and book-keeping.

The one I'm entertaining right now is that, instead of phases, it'll work on an actions based system where, depending on stats and tactics, each character gets a certain number of actions, the action order determined by initiative/tactics/something else, with reactions also stemming from tactics.

I still don't actually know about Tactical options though, and would appreciate some ideas for that at least.

Rolled 377, 100, 291 = 768 (3d500)

>>44494446
>>44494547
yknow we should actually add these two to the OP pasta sometime

also rollan

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posting my magic system from the last thread.
please tell me if anything doesn't make any sense or if you find it to complicated or clunky or you don't like something about it.

i posted the mostly complete system in the current projects list in the OP pasta.

>>44507886
I'll look into it later, but for implementations of simultaneous turns look at X-Wing/Armada for ideas, though those focus a lot more on movement on the field than anything else.

>>44507886
>Tactical/Defensive options
dive, body flip, catch...that's all i cold think of. good luck

>>44514235
What's your idea, man. Welcome. Disregard haters. Acquire beneficial critique.

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I'm in the process of porting my shitty homebrew CCG into Tabletop Simulator to run playtests. I hope I can finish it this weekend.

>>44494664
I think you should try following how the original material orders them first, atleast so that you'd draw fans of the original to have a look. After you've gotten far enough, you can rely on feedback to change it around.

>>44496220
While letting a Skilled person perform better at a task than an Unskilled person is logical, do take into account so that this applies to lower leveled characters as well, and not just the higher leveled ones. Otherwise getting through those early low level tasks might be a tad hard.

>>44497281
Any or all of the available stats, depending on how bad the backlash is.

I was thinking about a system that simulates a battle of wits instead of an actual fighting, like some kind of dialogue, of a discussion. Any ideas? I'm totally new to game design btw, I play a homebrew but it's pretty simple and never really took part in the development

>>44500643
Sounds really interesting, and I don't really like d20 games. Is magic also a "skill" check?

>>44520645
Probably something like Epic Spell Wars but you have creative insults and arguments instead of spells.

>>44520645
There's a thing in a 40k rpg book called Social combat or something. Basically, the participants will stake their stat (called Infamy) and trade insults. After each 'round', the players not participating decide who won that spar. The loser temporarily loses Infamy and may break a sweat or bluster. Maybe borrow the gambling aspect?

>>44504698
>when two units make visual contact, both roll for initiative/recognizing the other
I vaguely remember an existing board game that had a pretty neat way to determine when units are within line of sight, if I remember right they had coloured spaces for units to move into, and whenever they are within spaces of the same colour, both units are within line of sight. Maybe take a look at that game ideas, I think it was Claustrophobia? Alternatively, there's the neat way how X-COM (the video game) I think programmed how the AI acted when near specific labeled areas. Try looking around for that.

Also, if you ever find dice to be too inconsistent to use with your game, don't be afraid to move onto cards or dials and what not.

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I've been wanting to run a campaign based of the planet Auriga from Endless Legend, but I'm not really sure how to do it, and what would dictate actually making a new game for it instead of adapting an existing game to fit.

>>44521542
your first step when trying to convert an existing piece of work into a fully fledged game is to try and mimic/translate the vidya's mechanics into dice and rules

i'm not entirely sure how endless legends works but from what i gather it's kinda like war macromanagement? try to take the basic idea of how turns, attacks, groups of units and damage is calculated, and try to simplify it to pen and paper until you have a base for you to work upon

after that, trim and modify anything you don't want and bring it down to a more personal experience

for combat, consider all the possible bags where you can fit weapons into and consider them all at the same time to avoid "okay swords are done how do i balance guns" and also because you can gather how they interact with hp/whatever and defense

>>44521614
So the combat kinda works like a small tabletop wargame.

You have your armies arranged out on a hex grid, the turn order is determined by who has the highest initiative then goes in order of that.
Each unit has an attack and a defense stat that are tested against each other to determine if damage is done and then how much damage is determined by the attackers damage stat. Attacks can either fail for 0% damage, hit for 100% damage, fumble for 50% or crit for 150%

Units move around the hex grid, some are ranged some are melee, some have things that make their attacks effect adjacent units, or units in a line from them.

Units have a morale stat, it increases when adjacent to friendlies, then other units have special abilities that give them extra morale per friendly or also gives them morale per adjacent enemy, ranged units lose morale for having adjacent enemies. This morale gives them a bonus to attack and defense.

The game also features Dust, which is required for magic to work, but also the currency of the game. Magic users are able to channel Dust to get different things to happen, usually with some kind of focus like a wand or staff, but some can do it with just their mental power. (Dust is actually futuristic nanotechnology made by an ancient race of precrusors, but the people of Auriga don't know that)

>>44509304
Yes, I use DW resolution. The limit on how much heal can be used is put by the bad rolls: on 7-9s or on a miss, the mage may suffer 1d6 damage, -1 to a stat or any other similar disadvantage, so one should try non.magical means b efore attempting magical heal. In fact, I considered heal to be the lowest-powered spell

I guess I can post this here. I'm on hiatus a bit since I'm ̶s̶h̶i̶r̶k̶i̶n̶g̶ ̶r̶e̶s̶p̶o̶n̶s̶i̶b̶i̶l̶i̶t̶y̶ ̶t̶o̶ ̶p̶l̶a̶y̶ ̶V̶t̶M̶:̶B̶l̶o̶o̶d̶l̶i̶n̶e̶s̶ working on running a game, but I'm trying to overhaul and in many ways remake Geist: The Sin-eaters for nWoD 2e/Chronicles of Darkness rules.
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1SMgt9996QXnCahP_B6acce9_vZuj5myu_3RC7JYygpw/edit

I've also been taking note of other game design and thinking of how to make it work well. Specifically, Degenesis' system.

In Degenesis the basic roll is d6 dice pools. 4, 5, and 6 count as success, half 1s is a botch, and 6 is a "Trigger", which provides certain bonuses (do something quicker, do additional damage). It's a workable system, but I don't exactly like it that much compared to WoD, and I feel like it loses TOO much from simplifying Shadowrun.

I'm wondering if it would work better with either exploding dice or triggers counting as double (or even just being able to "spend" triggers for special actions (add to damage, shave off time) or counting twice (which mean you're more likely to hit, or succeed). Mostly because Degenesis has "success" require multiple "successes", which coupled with botches means you need a lot of successes.

I'm musing over a system that uses d8s.
6, 7, and 8 are hits.
8s explode
More 1s than successes means there's a complication, even if the roll succeeds.
Being untrained in something means no 8-again
Special abilities can make 6s and 7s explode, or make 8s count twice.

>>44521510
Hey, thanks for the response and I'll look into that line of sight mechanic

you're talking about the older xcom games, or the newer ones? I'd eventually like to be able to add weapons and equipment to allow replication of a lot of these squad tactics sims

dials etc. I'm basing the system off d6 only because the parts are readily available. I'm not sure more complicated props would be well received for this purpose

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1aNKVAtyxks_Nmt6uOjgZswdqnZPSpjRzEz7Jm4aESBw/edit?usp=sharing

Been working on this game for a while. I've actually run a few playtests with my group and like how it runs. It's yet another fantasy heartbreaker, but I think I've done some unique stuff with it and maybe others can get ideas from it.

>Elevator Pitch: It's D&D but without levels and with much stricter math.

I chose a d12 for the core die because I like the way it divides probabilities like 1/2, 1/3, 1/4, and 1/6 easily. So classes with "good" defenses should avoid about 1/2 of hits, those with "okay" avoid 1/3, and those with "bad" defenses avoid 1/4 of hits on average. The whole combat math thing is powered by autism so there's that.

I really wanted to avoid the treadmill feeling of D&D where you gain numerical power that's essentially meaningless because your enemies always "level up" with you and even at epic levels you're still swinging and missing just as often as at level 1. If you want I can put a document up explaining how monsters are built (it's very much like 4e, you pick a role and look up the stats).

>>44523779
So Strike!, then?

>>44514742
Aggressive, Defensive, Stealth, Diplomatic?

So do people chat wargames here too?

>>44524717
Yes, but there's not many of us.

>>44520031

About how did this take you to do?

I'm working on a card/wargame hybrid and have been testing it with friends over on roll20. However, roll20 sucks dick when it comes to quickly making decks.

I picked up TS on sale a while back but never touched it beyond some initial tests.

I'm making a maybe overly-ambitious Text RPG, would d6 pools or d20 with bonuses be better?
What are the pros and cons of both for using in an RPG?

>>44523779
The mechanics for leveling up look really cool, though they seem pretty spread out/very few. Going by say, 4E logic, there are only about 10~ish "levels" worth of improvements. Not that this is a bad thing necessarily. Just something to keep in mind.

I'll keep reading

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Is there something inherently wrong about HP? A lot of people I know want me to avoid it at all costs

>>44527374
HP is a very abstract way of handling damage and some people don't like that. For instance, using D&D's HP system, you function just as well at 1 HP as you do at 100 HP - you're either DYING OH MY GOD FUCK THIS IS BAD at negative HP or you're hunky dory fine. In addition to that, you could manage to survive a massive greatsword attack with 1 HP left and then get your finger pricked and start dying, which I think many will agree is unrealistic. It also doesn't factor in damage to specific body parts either.

However, unrealistic does not mean bad. If you intend for the game to be on the simple side, having D&D style HP is acceptable.

>>44527374
tedious book-keeping and what the other guy said

>>44527374
Nah, other systems are garbage shilled by simulationists that want nothing but realism.

>>44527829
I wouldn't go that far. There's nothing wrong with being a bit simulationist or using a non-HP system.

>>44527707
The reason HP is used so often is because the bookkeeping is easier, compared to something like Dark Heresy's Wounds. Where you have HP and armour for each limb, then you get into different levels of penalized, all of which are still essentially attached to HP.

>>44527829
Are you dumb? Many narrative games have alternate systems of health. World of Darkness isn't the most rules lite, but it uses health levels instead of outright HP, and Mutants & Masterminds has Toughness Saves instead of health and it's got a lot of bookkeeping but it's far from the kind of rigid simulationism people mean when they use that phrase.
Hell, doesn't Shadowrun us straight up normal "you have X points until you die" style HP? And that's a bit of a crazy simulationy system that expects you to do square roots and complicated equations in the middle of game play to determine the damage of an explosive. (Unless I'm wrong about Shadowrun, it's been a while).

what's with the sassy replies and the hostility in this thread all of a sudden

>>44507886
One thing you could do is list all possible actions, then let them choose up to maybe 3 of any combination. That would remove the "one each" thing you didn't want, and offer freedom in choosing actions, in addition to adding an element of bluffing to combat. Some sort of 'action relation diagram' might be necessary, to make it easier to understand which action trumps which other action. Maybe make it a bit more freeform, with actions being general terms for what a player can do, then let the player's themselves decide how it plays out. "I'm going to do Evade by... Oh, I dodge behind the barrel next to me!"

>>44520031
Would this happen to be that one spaceship battles in a line game from way back?

>>44528729
yeah, but when you have high HP values or varied damage increments it can slow down what could be otherwise simple

in pen and paper rpg I think it's totally fine, in board games I think you're better off with something simple and adding depth to the game like status tokens

I love the randomization of rolled stats, but hate rolling threes. My solution to this problem is poles (similar to pendragon). What are some good stat pairings/ways to generate stat pairings? General setting is science fantasy/magitek/greasepunk, in a city on a bunch of leylines, where magic is harnessed via engineering. Wizard powered cybernetics. I'm blocked on stats currently, which is frustrating : /

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Opinion on using cardboard cutouts in this art style as stand ins for the mecha models, to get the game into peoples' hands before we do the kickstarter to make the models?

>>44533144
Yeah, of course. Make sure you have completed designs for all the mechs before you go to kickstarter though: You need a finished product to sell, with the only thing being paid for are the mass production costs basically.

>>44533648
Exactly what my plan is.

>>44524799
It took me like 2 days to figure out the rules and the cards, and then about 6 hours to draw up the first 70-card custom card deck and port it into Tabletop Simulator. The bitchy part comes from the way the game chops up the decks from one image, which is the easiest way to make decks. You could also use the deck builder tool to make individual images and assign them to cards, but that takes longer.

And I've still got to make at least 3 more decks since I've got 200 cards to put in, though only 80 are unique.

>>44531109
>Would this happen to be that one spaceship battles in a line game from way back?
I don't think so. Mine's just a combat card game where the ship order on the battlefield matters for damage calculation and that's about it.

>>44494446
>>44494547
bump
roll

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Bumping with the latest version of Hellsgate.

Rolled 432, 334, 339 = 1105 (3d500)

>>44536323
where's my roll

>>44536325
Forgot my name.

>>44536366
quick question what the fuck is grimbright

>>44536414
Its on the noble/grim/bright/dark alignment. If I remember correctly, noble-grim is the general attitude of the people involved, while dark-bright is the tone and potential of the setting. 40k is the classic grimdark example, where everyone is shitty and the universe is going to shit in a handbasket, no matter what anyone tries.

>>44510884
Just want to note that transparency will look wonky for people who use different themes, since the thumbnail generates on a solid background server-side. Probably better off using some form of solid image, though a nicer logo wouldn't go astray on it. Potentially, we could make a PDF of the links and resources, with its frontpage being black with the white logo on it? Makes it nicer to save the resources, too.

>>44536414
The land is cool and good but society on it is shitty. All the threat and drama comes from people. That'd be how I'd interpret it, anyway, I think it deviates a little from the normal explanation.

>>44522721
I believe Degenesis already notes that Triggers should make the action more effective, although for combat they're specific to weapons (massive weapons need triggers to reset as part of the attack action, else you need to take an action to heft them again, and I sort of remember the Hellvetics' guns using triggers for damage?)

Making the complication be 1s greater than number of successes means that getting better at something makes you more likely to complicate simple tasks. Complications should be less likely with a larger pool, not more.

Turns out Degenesis uses "Failure and more 1s than successes" for Botches, too, meaning you can't succeed and botch.

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>>44536893
>Just want to note that transparency will look wonky for people who use different themes, since the thumbnail generates on a solid background server-side. Probably better off using some form of solid image, though a nicer logo wouldn't go astray on it. Potentially, we could make a PDF of the links and resources, with its frontpage being black with the white logo on it? Makes it nicer to save the resources, too.

the logo is supposed to be slapped on top of different images like the one in the OP, it's not meant to be used on it's own

in fact i have a bunch made already that i'll upload later to an imgur or something for quick use if people don't want to make new ones

>>44536939
Did you take that idea from my WoD General images?
Not that I don't approve.

>>44536893
Complication doesn't necessarily mean a fuck up. It's more of a narrative thing.

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Can anyone think of any marketing ideas? I'm getting ready to put it up for sale fairly soon. Would anyone be willing to make an ad poster and/or video?

>>44536980
not really, i've seen it done and i've done it a bunch of other times with things like /hotsg/ or /lol/ on /vg/ and other boards with similar generals and it's honestly the best way to have an easy to find general

the PDF idea is pretty nice though

https://imgur.com/a/7D6TT

here are a few, I'll make some more with borrowed background images I find around but everyone that wants to slap the logo on new images can and should

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Thoughts on this as a core mechanic?
>Attribute+Skill±[modifiers]-2d8 vs Target Number

I was working on this little thing a while back, and forgot about it.

>Second Draft
http://pastebin.com/DpF16FDw
>First Draft
http://pastebin.com/Urw9weFC
The first draft doesn't have the solidified "subtract the dice roll" mechanic, but it does have more of the system elements.

The idea/world of the game is basically a very knowing reference to old school "go down the dungeon" RPGs, both pen and paper and video game, and a lot of jRPG stuff. Essentially the World Dungeon is a space crash that crashed into the mountain or whatever and there's all sorts of lost technology. Including vending machines that you can buy equipment and techniques from, as well as "save" points and places to store your gear in case you die.

>>44537418
What PDF idea?

Also, I'd suggest getting background images that fit your theme. One thing I do with the /wodg/ (or now /cofd/) is to make the OP image fit with whatever topic or question I have for the thread (and I'm not the only one who makes the threads, just the one who does it most often). So if your topic is "how do you do health?" you might want an image that relates to that, like someone injured, or getting healed. I mean, the thread starter for this one doesn't have anything to do with bell curves or dicepools.

I'd also suggest--and this is just me--that pixel art like this, or people tinkering with things, like the other image, really sell the "game design" aspect of it. People associate that sort of aesthetic with game design, but that might just be me. I like to get a lot of inspiration and ideas for tabletop design from video games. And I've even seen film lessons that can be applied to writing. Either way, that sort of "down to the metal" feel of pixel art or low res video games click with game design for me.

>>44537563
yeah that's why i chose that one in particular for that purpose, and the tinkerer was one of the images that used to pop up with new editions of /hbg/ every once in a while, in fact i think it's the one i used in the first "official" /hbg/

the others though, like the one in the current OP are actually there just because i thought they looked nice

but by all means, books, people writing, people creating/fixing things, zoomed-in pixel art, they all strike just the right notes for OP images

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Gonna make some more of these. Not the guy who posted them originally, but they look fun.

>>44537677
maybe it's just me but the black border makes it look p bad senpai

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>>44537708

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>>44537841

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>>44537708
Black border shows up on anything.

>>44537677
>>44537748
>>44537766
>>44537794
>>44537958
Most of these actually look good without it, but for the outline, make it relatively thin, and use feathering.

Here's one of the ones I made (that's now out of date, since the game's title changed).

>>44537677
>>44537841
These need the borders, but thinned out. Its about the contrast with where they are placed.
>>44537766
>>44537794
>>44537958
Look good without the borders, because where the logo is placed, the contrast doesn't vary as heavily as those two.

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What was the purpose of changing the thread's name and giving it a new icon?

>>44538349
It was to diversify the topic a bit and attract people that might be interested in mechanics building, but tended to skip the homebrew name.

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>>44537563
>>Attribute+Skill±[modifiers]-2d8 vs Target Number
1) I intuitively disliked it. It feels extremely weird to subtract your die result from the sum of your skills.
2) On second thought it seems quite sound and decently fast, though I'd have to see the damage tables to make a final call. d8s are neat in terms of range.
3)I suggest making starting Focus {Willpower + Acuity + Personality - 2d6} instead and make it refresh on a per-scene basis.

By making derived pools MAD you enable more than one type of build to gain access to the ability, which avoids the dilemma of certain builds needing to go off-concept for an otherwise unobtainable mechanical bonus.

Besides, it makes sense for socially dominant individuals to be dedicated, resolute and persistent, and the other side of the "nerd" coin is "focused, intelligent, dedicated". In fact being overly focused on a single thing is pretty much the modern definition of 'nerd'.

TL;DR: Make Focus MAD, refresh it narratively, give more access to it in general and encourage players to play concept-first.
>>44525894
Text RPG? Flat bonuses to a 2d6, it'd read better since those things usually have HUGE lists. It's trickier with TTRPGs, but I'm running out of post space fast.
>>44527374
It depends on what you want. A lot of times it leads to extended slug fests if the combat system itself is somewhat boring.

Personally I prefer tiered damage the way WoD does it, or Conditions/negative modifiers a la Legends of the Wulin, but HP still has its place.

>>44502204
>>44501945
"Spotlight tokens" sounds like a decent enough idea. You'd gain them back through aiding fellow PCs (assigned by GM) and at the end of an episode (voted on by players).

>>44523779
Bookmarked, will attempt to suggest over the course of the day.

>no feedback/pdf dumping ever general

>>44538820
>1) I intuitively disliked it. It feels extremely weird to subtract your die result from the sum of your skills.
The main reason for me doing it that way is that I feel that--to someone who's never done RPGs before--subtracting the dice roll is easier to grok (and explain) than a roll-under system.
Also, I fucked up there; it shouldn't be versus a target number. It should be just if it's positive. It's essentially me trying to explain Roll Under in less words.
>Take your attribute and your skill, add them together, subtract the difficulty, and then roll 2d8 and compare the result to your rating.
Versus
>Add your attribute, skill, and the modifier, then subtract 2d8. If it's positive you succeed.
It's effectively the same, but I feel that it's "simpler" in practice.

>3)I suggest making starting Focus {Willpower + Acuity + Personality - 2d6} instead and make it refresh on a per-scene basis.
Making it MAD might make sense, although I'd initially thought it should be "you can focus on this, or this, or that", but you make a good point. Why refreshing, though, and why a -2d6? (or did you mean -2d8?) Feels a bit weird to use a different dice type.
Although Focus isn't necessarily a "nerd" thing. It's for the Expert and Warrior types as well.

Also, oh, hey, it's Smiling Shade. Ahoy. Did you spot the thread because I linked a WoD general image?

>>44539278
>Also, oh, hey, it's Smiling Shade. Ahoy. Did you spot the thread because I linked a WoD general image?
Smiling Shade's been giving advice for a while. Most is good, some is eccentric, either way it keeps threads from drying out.

>>44508945
Pretty interesting, though Ward seems pretty simple and unimpressive compared to the rest. Link is almost the same, but it does open some interesting avenues of roleplaying by letting the player Link with inanimate objects or invisible forces.


>>44515968
Ignoring obvious capitalization mistakes, the font is pretty small. Maybe make it a bit bigger?

Avoid short hand terms like PV unless you only want people familiar with the terms to use the system.

There should really be more stuff like the miscasting table in all RPGs. Always good fun.

Having trouble reading the rest. Looks relatively nice though, making magic items looks complicated, but not inappropriately so.


>>44522744
Oh, there were older ones? I think it was the new, more popular one, unless it wasn't X-COM but a different game. The developers said something about labeling areas on a map with specific commands that the AI were allowed to do. So if it was hiding behind cover, it could walk around, jump over, or fire from behind it for example, but if it were at a different area, they wouldn't be able to do those things, but instead did other things.

So, as far as dice mechanics go, I've been disliking 1d10, roll under with limiter.

Mostly because it's too tight to do much subtraction or comparing rolls without it hitting 0, and a 0 basically means a wasted turn in combat, however if there's no chance of damage reduction/mitigation, then defenses feel weak or pointless.

So, I'm considering either broadening out the dice size to 1d12 or 2d10. Alternately, I'm considering do dice-size tied to attribute and skill, and then comparing rolls/subtracting defense based on the defense type.

My other idea that's kind of out there is each "combat" is 1d10-1d10, positive numbers mean the attacker does damage, negative means the defender takes no damage. Defense would add a "cap" to the possible damage, so a defense of 3 would make it so the other side can only do 6 damage (9-3). Traits would trigger based on if you are attacking or defending, and whether or not use spend Tech Points for things like trips, hinders, counter attacks or roll changes.

>>44543221
How many different RPGs have you played in the past?

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>>44537841
when trying to make it pop up against a high-contrast backgrund that makes the letters lose a bit, try smoother methods to make it stand out but not as harshly

>>44540014
>most is good, some is eccentric
Sounds about right.

>>44543221
A fair few. I prefer crunchier systems generally though. Thinks like the 40K RPGs, Runequest, D&D and the like. I've also been on a bit of an Unknown Armies kick, though I've not actually played it with a groups. Rules-lite games just rarely grab me, and I like to play around with odd/unique dice mechanics. I also prefer games where characters grow as much out as up. That is to say they gain new capabilities as well as increasing the ones they have.

In the end I may scrap all of it and go for 1d10+modifiers vs Target number and call it a day.

>>44543995
>>44543995
Can't something be good and eccentric at the same time?

>>44544044
Okay, that answers some questions.

>>44544325
I have no idea how to take this, or what it means for my system...

Should I try and force myself to fit into a rules-lite box? Scrap the system all-together and start over? Move to simpler/common dice mechanics? Copy-paste from another system until I can sort this out?

And if it's any consolation: I skipped 3.5-PF, wasn't a fan of the design direction/balance issues. So when I say D&D I mean 4E, 5E and retroclones.

I do also read up on other systems, from GURPS to Fate to WoD to *World to Traveller to the weird rules-lite/narrative stuff that gets dropped in PDF share threads.

>>44544428
>force it into the rules like box
No. Just saying. This history explains why you make spar and defend two different mechanics. Don't. It's a fun exercise, nothing more.

>>44544479
The shitty thing is you're probably completely right. 90% of my problems come from trying to balance the option for an active defense and a passive defense. Fuck it, I'll stick with 1d10, roll under, and have Protection be damage reduction or something.

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Rolled 369, 16, 459 = 844 (3d500)

>>44494547
Rolling, I guess.

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>>44494664
Here you go.

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>>44515968
1) Cut down on the conversational tone/natural language. You're trading clarity for a false sense of familiarity.
2) Group relevant sentences together and cut down on side clauses. Say "Only living beings have auras. When targeting a willing subject the spell is not penalized by the subject's aura stat. Physical spells are resisted in the same manner as physical attacks". This makes it much easier to read. It's colder, yes, but the information is far more accessible.
3) Making a full success incapable of being resisted is a mistake. No physical attack in anything ever hands out success like this. (Hyperbole, but you get my point).
4) Seconding >>44541051, abbreviations you don't explain are RUDE.
5) The spell points being bound to their respective discipline is a REALLY. REALLY good idea and promises quite a number of interesting interpretations and plots.
6) Loving the miscasting table.
7) I see no rules for learning spells anywhere. Do they just poof out of thin air? Please address this. Loving the ritual/word/body mod classifications.
8) You might want to include a spell-specific miscasting step, i.e pipe spark manifesting somewhere else/growing too strong etc.
9) Item creation rules are really dope, though I suggest making it so Artifact creation is rarely/ever the purview of PCs. Instead, have them be capable of partially dismantling Artifacts that already exist and give them a new purpose. It makes loot precious even at high levels and in play increases the likelihood of players truly looking forward to it beyond simple numerical increases to a stat.
10) All in all a rather interesting idea, I'd be glad to see more of it in the future. I hope there was something in my post you could use, rather than just pointless whinging.
>>44540014
>>44543995
That's a... good thing, yes?
>>44539278
>It's effectively the same, but I feel that it's "simpler" in practice.
Interesting, this makes more sense to me now.
1/2

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>>44546292
>>44539278
(cont).
One would need to grab a couple newbies and find out whether it works in practice, of course.
>Making it MAD might make sense, although I'd initially thought it should be "you can focus on this, or this, or that", but you make a good point.
Thanks, I try. The thing with boost mechanics is that everyone needs a piece of that, and too low scores can really hinder a character's potential to shine.
>Why refreshing, though,
It already refreshes, just on a time basis rather than a scene basis.
>why 2d6
Eh, 2d8 felt too punishing, but maybe it could work out just fine.
>Although Focus isn't necessarily a "nerd" thing. It's for the Expert and Warrior types as well.
I know, it was just one example to explain why I felt that a high-Acuity character shouldn't be forced to drop points into Willpower just to unlock Focus for when they encounter tight spots.
>Also, oh, hey, it's Smiling Shade. Ahoy. Did you spot the thread because I linked a WoD general image?
Hello, there. No, been hanging out here for a while now. Interesting we'd run into each other here.

>>44523779
This guy back again since some people said they wanted to see a bit more. Here's some monster math and examples. I plan to flesh this out into a full Monster Manual-style document as I go.

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1TPePH_Ysb4VBD1BSEfIAmJikalw9NLbRs_H5Ecoobl4/edit?usp=sharing

Something we did on other thread, but it quickly died unfinished. Maybe here can get some love and/or inspire someone.

The idea is that there are eight defined classes, you pick one at the start: Geomancers, Cryomancers, Papermancers, Bat-riders, Stage magicians, Lion tamers, Gentlemen and Magical Girls (We need some help doing the last two)

Classes have 4 abilities each (listed ones are provisional). You divide a d4, d8, d10 and d12 between all them. A roll of 6 or more is a success, a 4 or a 5 is a success at a cost or with complications. a 3 or less is a miss, and something bad happens or the action goes wrong and has bad consequences.

when doing mundane actions you roll a d6

GEOMANCERS
-call nearby nature for help
-perceive nearby nature's soul
-summon earth core heat
-survival and endurance

CRYOMANCERS
-freeze everything around
-freeze a controlled small area or target
-speak with tundra animals
-freeze time for a short moment

STAGE MAGICIANS
-bluff
-detect other people's secrets
-prestidigitation
-reveal you had something planned for this (on a success, you did!)

BAT RIDERS

-empathy with your bat
-risky stunts
-horseback shooting
-shadow binding

>>44546966

LIONTAMERS:

-lion pet strength
-taming (includes intimidation)
-showmanship
-reckless bravery (sounds good?)

PAPERMANCERS
-one page spells, has minor effects
-long books, take time to read, with major effects
-runic mismatch, takes days to combine, epic effects
-world lore and history

>>44537563
You lose virtually nothing by making this Attribute+Skill+Modifiers+2d8 instead and bumping all the target numbers up by 18. If you want to keep your TNs to multiples of 5 or whatever, adjust them and your attributes accordingly, but it's worth it to not have to do subtraction at the table.

So partially a worldbuilding question and partially a rules one. For my Aegeos setting, I have Egyptian crocodilemen that use desert nomadic centaur tribes as allies. The question is should a switch them out for nomadic gnolls that hunt giant earth elementals in the desert to slay and mine for resources; metals, precious gems, stone, etc.?

The mechanical part comes from the centaurs were originally added to give the crocodiles cavalry models, filling a niche that the large-based heavy infantry style that composes the crocs was missing, but the centaurs are not really fleshed out. From a fluff stand-point, the gnolls are much better, but mechanically, they won't bring much to the crocs, unless I do some creative backflips.

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>>44550271
I was going to have a follow-up question about what kind of animals to have gnolls ride if I make them cavalry (which does make sense for a nomadic people that track and hunt mobile creatures), but then I saw this image, and answered it myself.

So, for a side project I'm working on, which is kind of a Time-skip version of the setting I'm working on now but that uses more Squad-Tactics mechanics, I'm curious as to how y'all handle your Firearms mechanics.

Right now I'm doing a Dice+Skill+Aim Mods vs Location Target Number, and then each attack type has a number that for every interval you get another hit, up to the max number of attacks your weapon has for each fire-rate.

So a pistol may have 1-3-6, which means it can shoot Precise for 1 shot, Aimed/Standard for 3, and Full-Out for 6. Say they used a Standard attack, it's quicker, but gives no bonus to hit, and only gives a bonus hit for every 2 points over the Target Number.

If they were shooting at the Head (TN11), and got a 13 total, they would get 2 hits, however if they had fired Precise instead, they would only every get one hit, no matter how high the number, because they only fired one round.

Thoughts? My alternative is just (Shots)d6, with the target number based on Skill, Location and Aim Modifiers.

Would that be better? Seems I have a habit of over complicating things.

>>44494104
Would be amazing if you could post it here if you're done. That sounds really interesting

I know BMJ doesn't come here, but I'm pretty sure AdEva falls under the scope of these threads. What do you guys thinking about AdEva? A friend of mine described it as the only mecha game worth playing, but only because all of the other mecha games were even worse.

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>>44541051
Ward can make you invisible, give you armor or set a trap for strangers on a door, just from the top of my head. And you don't risk messing with demons or forces that would involve a Call spell

>>44552388
I'm still not entirely sure how your starting stats work? I'm not sure at all what you're supposed to do with the roll of 2d8? Or the +1 to a random stat or any of it.

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Just an news update but Hard:Suit still lives

After a brief hiatus due to unforeseen circumstance and some very helpful advice i'm re-writing a bunch to hopefully make the combat less of a drag and bring back in elements such as a hardpoint variations with weaponry, expanding skill tables and generally improving the barebones game I had previously.

>>44547334
Subtraction or addition is basically the same. I prefer to avoid the typical "dice plus adds" system. Like I said, this is basically a roll under system phrased in a way that takes less explanation.

>>44551201
What's the goal of this combat system? Realism or fast action? If you are going for realism this sounds alright, though you probably want to ask /k/ about the probability of target locations. I understood it that in general people don't shoot at heads because torsos are much larger targets and hitting it will generally take people out of the fight just the same. You definitely want to make sure that injuring a head isn't inordinately advantageous to the difficulty of hitting it.

If you want a faster action type of game this sounds like entirely too many charts and options and you should probably focus on what actions you want people to take in combat and then build rules to support that. So, if you want people to get in cover and shoot from there your rules should be built around giving people interesting things to do while shooting from cover. The worst thing you can do to a game is end up with each character figuring out what their best attack is and simply doing that one action every round forever.

>>44551201
On a related not. I'm considering using I weird kind of movement system. Basically the "field" is drawn in 10'x10' squares, and your movement takes you from 1 square to the next. So Speed 2 would let you move into 2 different 10x10 squares that turn. The thing is that each 10x10 square has 4 5x5's in it, which is where you place your character. So 4 people could take up 1 "square". Melee combat can only effect people adjacent to your 5x5, and ranged attacks would use each 5x5 as 1 "unit"'of range.

Do this make sense? It helps incentivize group movements, as each character can share a "square" with his entire group, and allows easier blocking/gating by having your CQC experts up front and your marksmen in back.

Also it allows maps to be much larger comparatively, as a table that could fit a 30x30 square map is now effectively 60x60.

There's the issue of mini sizes and stuff, but that's beside the point.

>>44554262
I want fairly fast action, as there will be a fair number of shooters on the field at a given time.

I suppose I should say a few goals I have with the system, so people can make informed suggestions.

>Combat is primarily firearms, but there is a lot of melee viability as
>ammo is fairly scarce, teams typically only have what they bring with them and what they can scavenge off of dead enemies
>Zombies are a thing, in both the Romero "only headshots kill" and the 28 Days "Human, but hopped up on adrenaline and anger."
>Monsters are a thing, big ones, Monster Hunter big
>golems/automatons are a thing
>squad tactics are important, such as pinning fire and flanking tactics.
>Combat is not RPG detailed but not warfare abstract. I refer to it as "Third-Person", you still have YOUR dude (or small group of dudes) but you aren't going to go on at length about his family or backstory (unless that's your bag).
>The game uses "phases" similar to the other game I'm working on, usually a "Mission" phase (the action), a "debriefing" phase (the equipment and exp doling out) and a "carouse" phase (in character interactions to earn Unity, which is spent to take extraordinary actions)

Those are the only key points I care about, and some may be cut if they interfere too much with others.

Thoughts?

>>44546292
>>44541051
Thanks for the feed back. Any thoughts on the die mechanic I'm using. 2D12 rolled and compared to target numbers separately?

>>44554612
Can't say anything for the maths, but I do think it's pretty neat how it's not a direct Result + Result compare to Target thing. I do hope modifiers are big enough that 6 as Easy and 7-12 as medium are justified and actually doable most of the time, but it otherwise looks alright.

>>44554585
In that case I would try to abstract out the combat almost as far as you think you can safely go. If you want to make ammo feel special perhaps you can choose to spend more ammo to make attacks more likely to succeed. I wouldn't dwell on how much damage individual bullets deal to whatever hit locations unless it's like a critical hit or something. Perhaps you can even introduce an interesting decision in that when you are "hit" you can either choose to become pinned, avoiding damage as you hunker down but being unable to retaliate. You might need a couple stages of pinning to represent this. Just an idea.

>>44555917
Well I'd want locational damage, or at least the option for a called shot, for things like head-shot zombies or giant monsters where you want to take out weak spots or slow them down or make them drop something. Maybe just a general penalty for attacking a specific location rather than whatever presents itself?

Rolled 183, 375, 469 = 1027 (3d500)

Hey hey people
posting slightly drunk from a friends' house
It's 2 am and everyone's asleep already so I might as well bump the thread with a question

How do you feel about magical resources for spell casting? Things like Mana bookkeeping rather than having a set amount of spells you can cast per day or per battle, so you can become a short-term magical gatling gun before having to stay put and breathe

I had it on my first iteration and it worked pretty well but after I changed the base system I had to let it go

seeing as I'm starting over with the rules, I might revisit them and make Mages a bit more interesting

>>44494446
>>44494547
also, rolling to keep myself busy tonight

What comes first...the gameplay or the lore? A fun mechanic idea or a creative one based around the worldbuilding?

Chicken or the egg?

do you think people would go to the trouble of buying or baking candy dice to "taste-roll" or is that too ambitious

>>44557034
depends on what you came up with first
i came up with the setting first and made a system to support it as closely as i want it to be played, therefore world came before gameplay

however, I've had different projects that started with a certain mechanic that I wanted to implement, and thought "what would fit this style of gameplay"?

depends on you desu

Is there an explanation of what dice systems work best for what situations?
I'm trying to figure out what to use to represent a more significant than usual (d20) crit/fumble rate.

>>44557623
not really, since it mostly comes down to personal preference, but if you're trying to find something more mechanically specific you could always try browsing tabletop sites that make system analysis less of a chore

your other option would be to find systems that do what you want to do, and compare their approach to your question

Rolled 408, 481, 295 = 1184 (3d500)

>>44494446

rolling for some light game design

>>44557623
Smaller dice range ex. d4, d6, d8, or larger crit range, so rolling an 18 is still a crit.

I've got stuff, critique it please.

http://pastebin.com/pQx7sE7U - Misc. notes
http://pastebin.com/EH7RYpQt - Combat notes
http://pastebin.com/6rAiU0a8 - Diplomacy notes

Rolled 440, 340, 375 = 1155 (3d500)

>>44494446
>>44494547
let's see here

According to >>44494446
>bows and arrows
>Aliens
>the 90s

And >>44494547
>cosmic proportions
>sound
>the moon

These all kind of work except the bows and arrows.

>>44558099
How do dice work?

>>44558666
2 d20 to get a number from 1 to 400, degrees of success starting at 201 base. The requisite for success changes based on context and stats.

How do people feel about the number of dice rolled representing the amount of skill involved and the type of die being the attribute or natural talent?

Examples:
A really strong guy could be rolling d8s or d10s in a fight, but with no training or skill he'd only be rolling one die.

An idiot savant would only be rolling d4s (idiot) to craft an item, but he'd be rolling a lot of them (savant).

Stats would be listed as die types, d4 through d12, while skills would be the number of die rolled. Items, gear and facilities would simply add modifiers to the roll.

Hey, what's /gdg/'s opinion on James Raggi and how he did LotFP? I've kinda been modelling my methods ( though not my system) after him. In particular, things like having a few monster examples instead of a comprehensive bestiary, keeping monsters unique to their modules, and having spells that only show up in a specific module.

>>44558099
>dumps three pastebins without context
>expects critique
There's like three people here who ever critique wall of texts. Good luck.

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Hmm, let's see...
>>44558797
Ironclaw, Cortex and Earthdawn use(d, THANKS FOR NOTHNG FASA) this system and are all quite well-regarded. Ironclaw is in fact so well-regarded it's known to overcome people's disgust with furries just so they can get a game of it.

From a purely mechanical standpoint this type of thing is rather sound and has the added benefit of cutting down on the total number of dice thrown in a pool system without re-introducing flat modifiers to the equation.

Personally I'm fond of single-die systems simply because they're easier to teach to newbies, but that's just my shitty opinion and in the long run shouldn't mater too much.

All things said and done, I believe it is a good mechanic, and if you haven't read/played the systems listed yet I strongly urge you to.

>>44558816
It's a good idea, but - unfortunately - toolbox approaches like that underestimate people's laziness. In fact I'd argue that one of D&D's strengths is simply its ability to spoonfeed people new material on a regular basis and in an easy to digest format.

It fully depends on the type of players your product targets.
>>44557623
You'll want to look at systems that are similar to what you want instead, then analyse if/how they do what they're advertising.

For example, ORE does mid-power fairly-lethal, quite-chaotic combat by introducing hit locations and an incredibly information-dense roll.

That's appropriate for things like Nemesis or Monsters and other childish things, but if you want the extended, high-flying combat of, say, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon you'll not something geared towards shooting suckers in the face one minute in.
>>44557034
We use an iterative approach.
>make premise
>build mechanics
>if mechanics match premise, move on
>otherwise go to step two
>continue until matches are achieved
We moved on from a basic energy point binary pass/fail system towards towards something far more circumstantial and fluffy, simply because the mechanics evolved that way.

>>44545369
Uploaded to mega for future use in the OP.
https://mega.nz/#!ZUMAhQ4A!IETzo0d47KrCf-AdYMrld6H6AOh0KRijx2NHpvv0qNg

>>44560602
good call, thank you

So, for actual rolls, I'm thinking of letting players choose either 1d12, 2d6 or 3d4 depending on whether they want an "All or Nothing" attack, a "balanced" attack or a "careful" attack, my logic being that 1d12 has an equal chance to hit any of it's numbers, while the others have greater and greater degrees of bell curve, so someone who doesn't have much of a Skill Level may want to take the swingy dice in hopes of getting a 12, while more skilled players are safe picking the more reliable number? The base target number would be 11-12 by the way.

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162 KB, 731x1092

Is it worse to name your classes something new without changing much of how they work (I.e. naming your warriors Swordsman, Soldier, Fighter, etc) or to use the exact generic names, even if they work differently (I.e. having a class called Bard that encompasses any god callers from classic bards to paladins) ?

>>44562985
I feel the D12 will be completely overshadowed by the dice pool options. Even at a low skill level, the 2D6 offers enough swingy-ness to do the 'risk and reward' play, while still offering safe enough odds.

>>44557229
I would just to enhance the experience, but that would probably be a bit sad for the diabetics. Maybe there's an alternative, like dice ice cubes or something.

>>44562985
read
>>44558797
>>44559516

>>44563694
My only issue with that, is, I tried something similar and the issue I had was anything that could be barely hit by 2d4 (say t#8), can be reliably hit by 2d6, and from there it becomes nearly impossible not to miss.

I did consider a dice pool system though. One that uses say, 1d6 up to 1d12, and your bonus dice from skills are d4's or something, the goal being that you want 4+ for a success on each dice, with a 6, 8, 10 and 12 counting as an additional success (so a 6 is 2, 8 is 3, 10 is 4, 12 is 5).

Not sure how the math would handle, but it was an idea.

>>44563836
*nearly impossible to miss

>>44563412
That's a fair point. Though mostly it's used for dumb monsters/beasts.

>>44558720
201 base sounds like a bad idea, why is there an equal measure of likelihood of success to failure when the character has no stats influencing the roll, and there are no contextual influences?

It should be base 401, with stats decreasing the dice check for the success. If you want players to start with base 201, give them the base stats to account for it.

>>44558720
Wait, so it's read how? D20xd20 or?

>>44563939
For how degrees of success work, I suggest stats move the DC by 20, since you're rolling two d20, and degrees of success should be on intervals of 25, so one point doesn't quite equal one degree of success increase.