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View Full Version : Original System The PbP Roleplaying System [WIP]



Lord Raziere
2018-05-13, 02:19 PM
The Goal of the system:
To keep PbP games moving. To provide mechanical incentive to keep them active. The goal is not to make a system that one can "win" but something that make sure the group stays active and together so that roleplaying happens at all. to basically make "gaming the system" and "keeping the PbP game alive" synonymous with one another.

The Roll Avoidance System:
If the players wanted to avoid a roll that will slow down the game, they spend a story token to automatically succeed. They can also choose to accept partial progress with a complication. Story tokens are earned by staying in the game. A player gains 1 story token per week they stay in the game. They also gain 1 Story Token when the GM finds a post particularly well described and in character, contributes a good idea to the plot, or helps solve a problem another player is having out of character. Players can also give each other Story Tokens if they want, allowing a particularly great player of the system to support people who aren't as good with excess Tokens.

Rolls:
Only the players have to roll for anything. Use 1d12+Playstyle for any rolls that need to happen. Any result higher than 8 is a success. A 1 is an epic failure that somehow moves things forward. 2-7 Are partial progress towards a success with a complication.

Partial progress:
This can represent anything that is only partially completed, from half done to multiple parts need to be done. It all depends on how much the GM is willing to drag it out.

Complications:
These are basically side problems that arise from play. Often it takes one successful roll to get rid of and there to keep players occupied while another player is doing something else.

Playstyle: (Rated 1-5)
You do not have character sheets. Instead you have player sheets, detailing your playstyle and how much of a bonus you get for playing to that style with your character. Players start with 13 points to put into any of these playstyles up to a cap of 5 for each playstyle:

Awesome:
Take this playstyle if your particularly good at describing your character pulling off awesome stunts and other cool tricks. Your in it for making your characters awesome and badass! Like action movies, wuxia, superhero comics and shonen.

Sensible:
Take this playstyle if you good at making your characters sensible, rational or logical. Its the playstyle for being the sanest person in the room, being the straight man, like in a science fiction or other rationality fiction, as well for being one who often points out the flaws and logical problems of the world around you and trying to make sense of it from an in-universe standpoint.

Weird:
Take this playstyle if you want to be unconventional. You have your own idiosyncratic way of doing things and it works somehow. Mind you, it still has to make sense, but the logic you use doesn't have to obey real-world or common rules. Your out of place and you make it work! This can cover a lot of things from someone who uses fire or explosions to solve everything, or someone who is incredibly genre-savvy and thus does things based upon story conventions yet somehow succeeds anyways.

Comedic:
Take this playstyle if your in it for the funnies. You want to make people laugh with your descriptions and just aren't here for seriousness. Your trying to be as lighthearted as you can whether it be in a world that shares your laughter or in being the bright light in a world that most of the time doesn't. This cover from high satire to lowbrow comedy as long as its funny and so on.

Passionate:
your good at describing your characters being passionate and emotional. In your hands their angers become vast rages, their sadness become wailing despair and their laughter lights up the sky. They become larger than life, seemingly legendary and epic by how great their emotions are and how far they go for what they believe and care about. The playstyle for shonen, mythology, the overdramatic, the determined, the Hulk, and kicking ass when the villain ticks you off one too many times.

Caring:
Your good at making your characters care about the world around them. This isn't just the playstyle for making healers or compassionate protectors of the innocent, but they do work well. No, this playstyle is for any character that has ties to the world, whether it be through, duty, obligation, culture, loved ones and so on. Its the playstyle for playing characters who fight for causes greater than themselves, for connecting with the NPCs around you and generally caring about the people within the setting your playing.

Trouble Fitting In?:
If the GM has trouble fitting a single playstyle to a particularly good post, they can assign it two playstyles and add their bonuses together, so that the game can move on.

Combat Rules:
Block Initiative:
There are only two positions in initiative, Players Turn and GMs Turn. When players Turn all players may respond in any order. The GM must respond to all players before its the Players Turn again.

The Rapid Response Rule:
A player gains a bonus to one roll per post for responding in a timely manner. if they respond within one day its +3 or gains a Story Token. If they respond within two days its +2, within three days +1, and no bonuses for four or more days. A GM does not gain these bonuses.

Attacking Something:
The player describes how their character attacks something, and the GM assigns a playstyle associated with the description. If the description and playstyle makes sense to both GM and Player, the player gains +2 to the roll or automatically succeeds or earns an additional story token

Defending Against an Attack:
The player describes how they defend against an attack on their character and the GM assigns a playstyle associated with the description. If the description and playstyle makes sense to both GM and Player, the player either gain +2 to the defense roll or automatically succeed depending on how much it makes sense. A success means the character is not damaged by the attack.

Attack Result:
The result of a character getting hurt by an attack is decided upon what both the player and GM agrees makes sense. This applies for both player characters and GM characters.


Please let me know if there is anything I need to do to improve this system. It is meant to specifically be used to optimize and help the PhP experience.