Slimequest - Making a whole RPG!

[Fouredged Sword]

Ok, so I have an idea bouncing around in my head for the past three of four months and it keeps growing. What started as a quest over in Sufficent Velocity is growing into what I feel may be a full on tabletop RPG ruleset for playing an adaptable slime monster out of the nightmares of children.

This thread is where I intend to document the rules and revise them as I go. The idea is that I get feedback and maybe run a few solo/small group games to playtest. I am going to reserve a pile of posts right at the start for the basics and go from there.

[Fouredged Sword]

The Basics

This is a game intended to be played in solo/small group format. It uses a hex grid for mapping and roll over 7 D10s to determine chance. This means that you add up your relevant attributes to determine your dice pool, subtract or add modifiers to the total pool, then roll the dice to determine the degree of success. Each die that rolls 8 or 9 are a success. If a die rolls a 10 it is also a success but you reroll that die again to potentially gain more success. If you would end up with a zero or negative pool, you still roll a single die, but increase the number you need to roll over to get a success. For a 0 die pool, you need to roll 9 or 10 to succeed. For a -1 die pool, you need to roll a 10. For anything under a -1 die pool, you cannot reroll that 10, limiting you to a single success. Actions with more than a -3 die pool are normally impossible and the DM may simply state the action fails. NPC characters should always fail, players should be allowed to roll anyway so long as the action they are preforming is cool or fun.

Pools range from 1-5 all the way up to 20+. Pools over 20 are unlikely without the addition of magic. This is a soft limit. 1 success is the barest victory condition while 3 is normally enough to count as a critical and will generally grant bonuses to following rolls or grant other bonuses. Over 10 success is epic success that should grant large bonus to following rolls or otherwise change the situation.

The game is about playing a slime. A slime is a very adaptable thing that isn't normally allowed to exist. Born to the Forgotten God, they got banished with their creator for his act of creating them and threatening to upset the balance of the multiverse.

[Fouredged Sword]

There are two kinds of attributes in the game - Base and derived.

Base attributes

Your base attributes are the ones you increase with exp. There are nine of them. They range from 1-10 with 1 being very bad and 10 being the limit of non-magical ability. Magic can enhance these attributes over 10, but non-magical bonus will not increase an attribute over 10. The human average is also given as a reference point.

Strength - Your ability to apply force. 3 is human average
Dexterity - Your ability to move quickly and with precision - 3 is human average
Toughness - Your ability to resist injury - 3 is human average

Magic - Your ability to shape magic - 0 is human average, but most spellcasters have 3
Intelligence - Your ability to think, reason, and observe - 5 is human average
Resolve - Your ability to resist mental coercion or attack - 3 is human average

Size - Your physical bulk - all humans are 3
Adaptabilty - This is how effectively you can shape yourself and form new evolutions. It is an ability unique to slimes.
Hunger - This is how dominated you are by your impulse to feed. It is an ability unique to slimes and a few specific monsters.

Base attributes and modifiers are used to calculate derived attributes. Here are the basics.

Base speed
Dex

Mana pool
Magic

Attack pool
Dex + To Hit (a modifier from your weapon.)

Defense modifier
Dex + Armor (a modifier from your armor)

Damage pool
Str + Size + Lethality (a modifier from your weapon)

Damage resist modifier
Toughness + Size

[khadgar567]

reserved for proper explanation of idea and where you get it

[Fouredged Sword]

History and classifications

In this world there are four basic categories almost all living things fall into, based on their creator god.

Animals/plants/things - These creatures have no single creator. Thus they are imbued with no special existence. Such creatures have a sharply limited existence, being limited to the Strength, Dexterity, Toughness, Intelligence, Resolve, and Size. Animals never have magic inherently, but may use magic in their environment.

Monsters/Creatures - The difference between Monsters and Creatures is an academic one. The terms are used to refer to the hostile and friendly (or at least neutral) children of Malcor, the god of existence, and his six daughters the elements. Creatures are defined by WHAT they are. This is how Malcor decided life should be and his creations reflect this. A fire dragon is a fire dragon. It will have a personality and it's own identity, but it is limited in some ways by it's existence. Monsters are born powerful. A fire dragon is born with more fire magic than most beings will ever posses. It can never learn water or earth magic though. They are limited by their fate. All manner of things are creatures: dragons, dryads, vampires, doppleganers, giants, elementals - these are all examples of Creatures. Creatures are almost universally magical and are imbued with great power. Creatures usually have Strength, Dexterity, Toughness, Intelligence, Resolve, Size, and Magic, and normally is large amounts. With exceptions Creatures are solitary and are almost universally territorial. Malcors children exist as a thing and are defined by their existence. They lack the ability to create as that is the domain of Aladar

Beings - Beings are the children of Aladar. Aladar is the god of creation. Beings, as his children, embody creation. A being is born weak, but is gifted with the ability to be defigned by what they DO rather than what they ARE. Beings solve problems by creating solutions. Beings are weak, so they create civilization to pool their strength. Beings are limited, so they create tools. Beings are not inherently magical so they create magical traditions to learn magic. Beings come in many shapes and sizes

[sengmeng]

Beings vs creatures/monsters... which are the slimes?

[khadgar567]

reserved for proper explanation of idea and where you get it

I really hate to quote my self but for asmodeus sake can you explain the f ing idea about the da*n project of yours

[Fouredged Sword]

Well, the idea is I am making a spot to fill in my work on a system as I get time to work on it.

Sorry for the lack of responses, I have been away from the forums for a bit doing horrible horrible writing over on QQ.

To answer the next question, slimes are not beings OR creatures. Slimes are the creation of the Forgotten God who, in an act of semi-betrayal to both the god of creation and existence, created slimes as a way to bring the world to a state he considered perfect. The Forgotten God is the god of Ends and his creations are intended to end reality by consuming it. He and his children got banished beyond the planes. Slimes are slippery though. They seep back into reality through the cracks. Sometimes they are summoned by those foolish enough to think they can be harnessed.

That is what the game is about. Play the eldrich abomination. Consume the world. Embrace your heritage as the end of all things or reject it and become something else.

Beings are defined by what they make of themselves. Monsters are defined by what they are. Slimes are what they eat.

So yeah, dodge everything in existence trying to kill you. Eat, evolve, grow. Survive to find a niche in the world that will accept you or become a powerful kaiju who nobody can stop and end the poor plane you end up on.