Greywander
2019-08-06, 09:28 PM
So a common thing to do in TTRPGs is to have three basic attributes, usually labeled as Physical, Mental, and Social, or some variation thereof. Sometimes an RPG builds off of this, like Vampire: the Masquerade's nine attribute system, consisting of three groups of three attributes, where the groups are, you guessed it, Physical, Mental, and Social.
While this is perfectly serviceable, I've kind of wanted to expand this to a four attribute system. This actually stems from the way Dexterity/Agility is often handled in RPGs. It just doesn't make sense to me that someone who is good at backflips must also be good at lockpicking, and vice versa. I guess I could kind of understand if the idea was, "Well, if you want to be good at this one thing, you'll probably also want to be good at this other thing, and neither is strong enough to be it's own thing so we'll just lump them together." So what I kind of wanted to do was to split your physical abilities into "macro" abilities (e.g. running, jumping, swimming, climbing) and "micro" abilities (e.g. tool use, crafting, etc.).
Which brings us my idea for a four attribute system. Names, of course, aren't really so important as what the attribute actually represents, so perhaps I'll represent each with a variety of names in addition to a short description.
Strength/Physique/Fitness/Athletics
A strong arm and a fleet foot.
Your "macro" physical ability, like running, jumping, swimming, climbing, dodging, brawling, etc.
Corresponds to a Knight class archetype (i.e. if you want to play a character like this, don't neglect this stat)
Precision/?
A sharp eye and a steady hand.
A combination of "micro" physical abilities (tool use, crafting, crossbows, etc.), "cautious" abilities (stealth and sleight of hand), and some mental abilities that require focus and/or attention to detail
Corresponds to a Thief class archetype
Intelligence/Wisdom/Wit/Insight
A wise heart and a learned mind.
Any mental ability that isn't covered by Precision
Corresponds to a Sage class archetype
Charisma/Heart/Presence
A bold heart and a silver tongue.
Your social stat
Corresponds to a Bard class archetype
Now, what you'll notice is that this looks a lot like the three attribute system, but with Precision shoved in there unceremoniously. What's kind of causing me some grief is how Precision kind of muscles in and borrows from both physical and mental stats. I have a pretty good idea of what kind of physical tasks should fall under Precision rather than Strength (the only borderline skill would be Archery), but what I'm less certain of is what sorts of mental tasks should fall under Precision rather than Intelligence.
Perception/Awareness could be a mental skill, but it could also fall under Precision (attention to detail). So could something like mathematics and related skills. Or Engineering. Or basically any analytical skill. Part of the appeal of the three attribute system is that it's pretty easy to figure out which of the three attributes a task falls under (although some oddities do arise, like whether stealth should be Physical or Mental). The problem with the four attribute system is that I've defined Intelligence as "any mental skill that isn't Precision", but haven't defined very well what mental skills are Precision. Even in D&D, the difference between Intelligence and Wisdom is pretty well defined: the first is abstract and theoretical, the second is concrete and practical.
Perhaps I just need to come up with an actual skill list, and try to divide them evenly between each attribute. Left over mental skills would go to whichever of Precision or Intelligence has fewer skills. Or I can just stick to using the archetype descriptions, i.e. "Is this skill more thief-y or sage-y?"
Any thoughts or advice on this system?
While this is perfectly serviceable, I've kind of wanted to expand this to a four attribute system. This actually stems from the way Dexterity/Agility is often handled in RPGs. It just doesn't make sense to me that someone who is good at backflips must also be good at lockpicking, and vice versa. I guess I could kind of understand if the idea was, "Well, if you want to be good at this one thing, you'll probably also want to be good at this other thing, and neither is strong enough to be it's own thing so we'll just lump them together." So what I kind of wanted to do was to split your physical abilities into "macro" abilities (e.g. running, jumping, swimming, climbing) and "micro" abilities (e.g. tool use, crafting, etc.).
Which brings us my idea for a four attribute system. Names, of course, aren't really so important as what the attribute actually represents, so perhaps I'll represent each with a variety of names in addition to a short description.
Strength/Physique/Fitness/Athletics
A strong arm and a fleet foot.
Your "macro" physical ability, like running, jumping, swimming, climbing, dodging, brawling, etc.
Corresponds to a Knight class archetype (i.e. if you want to play a character like this, don't neglect this stat)
Precision/?
A sharp eye and a steady hand.
A combination of "micro" physical abilities (tool use, crafting, crossbows, etc.), "cautious" abilities (stealth and sleight of hand), and some mental abilities that require focus and/or attention to detail
Corresponds to a Thief class archetype
Intelligence/Wisdom/Wit/Insight
A wise heart and a learned mind.
Any mental ability that isn't covered by Precision
Corresponds to a Sage class archetype
Charisma/Heart/Presence
A bold heart and a silver tongue.
Your social stat
Corresponds to a Bard class archetype
Now, what you'll notice is that this looks a lot like the three attribute system, but with Precision shoved in there unceremoniously. What's kind of causing me some grief is how Precision kind of muscles in and borrows from both physical and mental stats. I have a pretty good idea of what kind of physical tasks should fall under Precision rather than Strength (the only borderline skill would be Archery), but what I'm less certain of is what sorts of mental tasks should fall under Precision rather than Intelligence.
Perception/Awareness could be a mental skill, but it could also fall under Precision (attention to detail). So could something like mathematics and related skills. Or Engineering. Or basically any analytical skill. Part of the appeal of the three attribute system is that it's pretty easy to figure out which of the three attributes a task falls under (although some oddities do arise, like whether stealth should be Physical or Mental). The problem with the four attribute system is that I've defined Intelligence as "any mental skill that isn't Precision", but haven't defined very well what mental skills are Precision. Even in D&D, the difference between Intelligence and Wisdom is pretty well defined: the first is abstract and theoretical, the second is concrete and practical.
Perhaps I just need to come up with an actual skill list, and try to divide them evenly between each attribute. Left over mental skills would go to whichever of Precision or Intelligence has fewer skills. Or I can just stick to using the archetype descriptions, i.e. "Is this skill more thief-y or sage-y?"
Any thoughts or advice on this system?