TheOOB
2011-10-15, 03:57 AM
I'm working on designing a role playing system in my spare time(kind of a space age of exploration sci-fi/fantasy thing), and I thought of I dice rolling system I think is interesting that gives some interesting possibility, being a little different from any system I've played, while still having a low learning curve.
I'd appreciate any feedback on the system, I also have some setting notes I'm working on, but this is my current project.
In this system you roll of dice pool, typically of 1 to 5 dice at a time, and are trying to get successes. Under normal circumstances, the dice have a target number of 5, which means a 5 or higher is a success, while a 4 or lower is not a success, and more successes are better.
The number of dice rolled are determined by your attribute, a general rating of how capable you are in a general field. These will fairly expensive to raise during play, and increase in cost with a linear progression. Attributes will range from 1(weak), to 5(peak human), with 2 being average for a normal person, and 3 being standard for someone who is skilled in that field(such as most hero characters.) Skills will increase for a low, flat rate each rank.
The type of dice rolled, however, is determined by your skill rating. Skills represent your expertise and training in a more specific field. They ranged from 0(untrained), to 4(master).
At rank 1 in a skill you roll d6's, at rank 2 you roll d8's, and rank 3 you roll d10's, and at rank 4 you roll d12's. At an untrained rank 0 you roll a d6 still, but your target number gets increased by 1(which typically means it will be 6).
Most rolls in the system will be opposed rolls, where two(or more) players roll their dice, and the one with the most successes wins(with ties going to the person who rolled the single highest number). An example: Alex is trying to shot Bernie with a gun.
Alex has a Combat Attribute of 3, and a firearms of 2, he rolls 3d8 and gets a 2, 5, and a 7, for two successes.
Bernie has a Combat Attribute of 2, and a dodge of 3, he rolls 2d10, and gets a 5 and a 10, for two success.
Since they tied on the number of successes, we look to the values of the dice. The highest number Alex rolled is a 7, and the highest number Bernie rolled is a 10, which means Bernie wins and dodges the attack.
Situations that notably increase the difficulty of the action(Such as shooting with low visibility or at a opponent behind cover)you increase your Target Number by 1, making each die less likely to achieve a success. Conversely, situations that make an action easier(such as spending an action to take aim before a shot) decrease the target number by 1.
A further mechanic would be players would have an amount of luck dice(similar to Action Points, Hero Points, Edge, Willpower ect). You can spend these on a roll to add an extra die to the roll, and increase the size of all the dice by 1(if the dice are allready d12's, it reduces the target number by 1). This must be done before you roll the dice. You can spend a luck die after you roll the dice, and you still get to roll an extra die to hopefully get another success, but only that die will get the increased size.
Non-opposed tests will be handled with a certain difficulty, the player must get a certain number of successes. There will also be extended rolls where the player must get a certain number of successes over multiple rolls, with each roll representing a certain amount of time.
I'm also thinking of adding a glitch or critical failure system, some likely tied to rolling 1's.
Anyways, what does everything think?
I'd appreciate any feedback on the system, I also have some setting notes I'm working on, but this is my current project.
In this system you roll of dice pool, typically of 1 to 5 dice at a time, and are trying to get successes. Under normal circumstances, the dice have a target number of 5, which means a 5 or higher is a success, while a 4 or lower is not a success, and more successes are better.
The number of dice rolled are determined by your attribute, a general rating of how capable you are in a general field. These will fairly expensive to raise during play, and increase in cost with a linear progression. Attributes will range from 1(weak), to 5(peak human), with 2 being average for a normal person, and 3 being standard for someone who is skilled in that field(such as most hero characters.) Skills will increase for a low, flat rate each rank.
The type of dice rolled, however, is determined by your skill rating. Skills represent your expertise and training in a more specific field. They ranged from 0(untrained), to 4(master).
At rank 1 in a skill you roll d6's, at rank 2 you roll d8's, and rank 3 you roll d10's, and at rank 4 you roll d12's. At an untrained rank 0 you roll a d6 still, but your target number gets increased by 1(which typically means it will be 6).
Most rolls in the system will be opposed rolls, where two(or more) players roll their dice, and the one with the most successes wins(with ties going to the person who rolled the single highest number). An example: Alex is trying to shot Bernie with a gun.
Alex has a Combat Attribute of 3, and a firearms of 2, he rolls 3d8 and gets a 2, 5, and a 7, for two successes.
Bernie has a Combat Attribute of 2, and a dodge of 3, he rolls 2d10, and gets a 5 and a 10, for two success.
Since they tied on the number of successes, we look to the values of the dice. The highest number Alex rolled is a 7, and the highest number Bernie rolled is a 10, which means Bernie wins and dodges the attack.
Situations that notably increase the difficulty of the action(Such as shooting with low visibility or at a opponent behind cover)you increase your Target Number by 1, making each die less likely to achieve a success. Conversely, situations that make an action easier(such as spending an action to take aim before a shot) decrease the target number by 1.
A further mechanic would be players would have an amount of luck dice(similar to Action Points, Hero Points, Edge, Willpower ect). You can spend these on a roll to add an extra die to the roll, and increase the size of all the dice by 1(if the dice are allready d12's, it reduces the target number by 1). This must be done before you roll the dice. You can spend a luck die after you roll the dice, and you still get to roll an extra die to hopefully get another success, but only that die will get the increased size.
Non-opposed tests will be handled with a certain difficulty, the player must get a certain number of successes. There will also be extended rolls where the player must get a certain number of successes over multiple rolls, with each roll representing a certain amount of time.
I'm also thinking of adding a glitch or critical failure system, some likely tied to rolling 1's.
Anyways, what does everything think?