Original Core Mechanic
System uses pools of six-sided dice. The numeric value of a d6 holds a different value, listed below:
1 - Miss
2 - 2 Misses
3 & 4 - Null
5 - Hit
6 - 2 Hits
Hits determine success in a die roll. The greater number of Hits, the greater the success. A player must roll a minimum of one Hit to succeed in a task.
Misses remove dice in an opposing pool, increasing the chance for success. Dice are removed on a die-for-die basis, so a 2 (2 Misses) cannot remove two single Hits (5, 5). A single Miss (1) can reduce a 2 Hit (6) to a single Hit (5).
Nulls do not contribute directly to a player's dice roll, but may activate a special ability.
Dice pools cannot exceed a total of 10.
The player is Active when
acting on their initiative turn, while all other players are considered
Reactive. The Active player can take an
action on their turn, such as using a Skill, move, and so on. When engaging in combat, the Active player
acts first against their designated opponent.
As a result they remove dice first.
The
Active player must score at least one Hit to succeed in their action. A result of Nulls or Misses does not
constitute success.
The Active and Reactive
players determine their actions and roll the appropriate number of dice. The Active player may then use a Miss die
to remove a die from the Reactive player’s pool. Only one die may be removed at a time. Once the Active player has removed dice or
passed, play passes to the Reactive player, and they may then use a Miss die to remove a die from
the Active player’s pool.
Dice
removal continues until either players pass, or no more dice are left to
remove.
Revised Core Mechanic
System uses pools of six-sided dice. The numeric value of a d6 holds a different value, listed below:1 - Hit
2 - 2 Hits
3 - 3 Hits
4 - Null
5 - Miss
Hits are utilized the same way.
Misses remove ONLY Hits in an opposing pool.
Nulls are the same.
Dice removal is handled a bit differently. Instead of the back-and-forth style gameplay, the Active player removes all dice at once. Play then goes to the Reactive player, who then uses their Misses to remove all dice at once from their opponent.
FAQ
This is a VERY basic outline of the mechanic. I haven't included special abilities, skill use, powers, and so on. Why? Well, because that would be exhaustive. I don't think a blog post could hold a book.
This is also a work in progress. Rules are subject to change (and already have!)
Why uses Misses? Misses are just like Hits, and the numbers come out to be the same.
I've heard this a good number of times. Misses are important because of the potential of Critical Success. Normally a player must score at least 1 Hit to succeed in a task. If the opposing pool is reduced to zero dice, then the player succeeds in their task, no matter the die type left.
There's also the potential for re-rolls for skills, but that's for another post.
What are you trying to accomplish with this mechanic?
I had this idea of combining the "To Hit" process with damage, so everything is done at once. There are plenty of games out there like that, but I wanted to make the dice actually mean something in the game. The number of dice in a pool expresses how skilled you are, how difficult a task is, how strong you are, and so on. Plain numbers do the same in other systems, but I wanted to express everything with dice.
How did it play test?
Playtesting went fairly well, with players picking up on the mechanic easily. Players did mention that combat could be slow, with the dice removal taking up the most time. I realized that I needed to speed things up, so I made the revision. I've tested it a couple of times, and it's made a big difference.
What type of setting will you be using?
I have a few settings in mind, which I plan on releasing (eventually!). Right now I'm focusing on a Post-post-apocalyptic science-fantasy western. Say that five times fast!
Hopefully this sheds a little more light on things, and I plan on discussing more of the system as time goes on. Feel free to fire back in the comments.
No comments:
Post a Comment