[Raven Bloodmoon]

I've been babbling about creating a new system that uses the dreaded dodecahedrion of doom, so I thought I'd start up a thread so I can take up more of Lady's server space. Hopefully it will be worth the byts and bytes.

For starters, I am not even dealing with formulae or numbers yet. I am beginning with concepts first. Math crunch will be done later. So for starters, I would like to share some brainstorming I did initially.

What Must the System Do?
Promote Fun

* Facilitate RP
* Maintain Chance as a factor
* Provide for the use of guile
* Provide for the use of violence
* Provide for some form of reward

Represent the World

* Combat
* Magic
* Daily Hazards
* Social Situations

How Is Success Determined?
Roll 1d20 and Add Modifiers

* Compare Results to a Target Number
* Compare Results to the Result of Another Roll

Degrees of Success or Failure

* Gradient surrounds TN in _-increment steps

How Do You describe People?
Attributes

* A person's most basic characteristics
* 0 = average, positive numbers are above average, negative ones are below average. _ means you no longer possess the ability to use that attribute

Traits

* Mechanical representations of innate qualities or abilities

Skills

* Learned abilities
* +0 is average, positive numbers are above average, negative ones are below average.

I have further been thinking on this subject and coem up with the following things: This will be a level-less system. Characters will advance by collecting points that can be applied toward upgrading what htey have or buying new abilities or skills.

I also have tenatively decided on nine basic attributes wiht a tenative tenth one. These are Strength, Dexterity, Agility, Fortitude, Stamina, Intelligence, Will, Perception, Charisma, and (tenatively) Spirit. Spirit would represent intuition as well as magical ability and the ability to sense and interact with the spirit world. It's a weird Elyria-specific thing.

Next on the plate is Combat. I just know this will hurt.

[Dthclaw]

Um, a question I'm having at the moment is why the separation of Fortitude and Stamina? I've always thought of the latter being a function of the former.

[Raven Bloodmoon]

well, I'm trying not to say "Constitution." Upon looking up the definition of Fortitude, it would seem that Wizo has us both totally screwed up on what it really is:

"Strength of mind that enables a person to encounter danger or bear pain or adversity with courage" -Merrium Webster

Perhaps I should just use "Health" or even stick wtih "Constitution." A person's health or toughness doesn't really have anything to do with their stamina, I don't think. Look at strongmen. Yeah, you can punch them in the abs all day and not bother them, but make'em run three miles and see how many are standing at the end of it. So until further notice, Fortitude is replaced with "Constitution." It actaully is a good fit for what it represents.

Also here are some secondary attributes that I think should probably be based on the ten I previously listed, which follow parathetically: Lift (Strength), Carrying Capacity (Strength), Damage Modifier (Strength; melee only), Initiative (Agility), Dodge (Agility & Size), Speed (Strength & Stamina), Fatigue Points (Stamina), Hit Points (Constitution), Mana Points (Spirit). I think I'm missing one or two, but those are the secondaries I remember.

I have come up with a cuple tertiary stats, as well. They are as follows: Size, Appearance, Wealth, Social Status, and Interaction Bonus (Charisma, Appearance, Social Status, and possibly other traits; this is added as a modifier to skills used for social interactions)

I have also decided that I'd like to see combat actaully take longer. I find it rather anticlimatic when a party shows up at a dragon's layer and 6 rounds later, it's dead. Yippie! You killed a dragon in 36 seconds. The only way a fight with a dragon should end in 36 seconds is with the dragon saying, "Burp." Ranting aside, it'd be nice if there was a little more tactics invovled in fighting. It would also open up the possibility of longer cast times and make failing a spellcasting check less devastating. Personally, I like that. More violence, more heroics, more thinking, more violence.

Anyway, that's it for the time being. I'll have more soon, I'm sure. Combat is going to suck to outline, let alone flesh out.

[Dthclaw]

Okay, I can buy that argument, it just seemed initially wonky to me.

Though I have to ask why Size is a function. And why Wealth and Social Status are stats and not equipment/bio information, respectively.

Good luck on making combats take longer. Those 6 rounds typically turn into about 30+ min if the players are sufficiently rattled to think they have to be super-cautious about it.

[Raven Bloodmoon]

Dthclaw, on Aug 19 2007, 11:54 AM, said:

Though I have to ask why Size is a function. And why Wealth and Social Status are stats and not equipment/bio information, respectively.

Good luck on making combats take longer. Those 6 rounds typically turn into about 30+ min if the players are sufficiently rattled to think they have to be super-cautious about it.

I didn't mean that size is a function. Really, those are more categories than anything. Size is just a basic statistic and I needed to mention it. Social standing, wealth, and appearnce can have in-game impacts on social interactions. You can have charisma, but you can also be really ugly, too. The ugliness will impact the reaction. Similarly, a commoner trying to convince a king of something is ulnikely merely because the king looks down on the commoner. Wealth is just one of those things where I'm not sure where to stick it. When you fisrt start out, you need to figure out how rich you are and if you have any sort of familial income or stuff like that. Again, needs a spot to be shoved.

[Vaskre]

Combat concepts:

I know you were thinking of using skill checks for attack rolls, Raven. So why not have defense based on skill checks, too? 'Dodge' could easily become a skill, for example.

[Raven Bloodmoon]

I was actaully considering having a suite of defensive skills, as well. Dodge may or may not be one of them, but Parrying will certainly be some form of a skill or subskill. I actually don't think there will be a static AC and armor will take the form of damage reduction. Those are my thoguhts, at least.

[Dthclaw]

Well, just remember to try keeping the number-crunching from getting too out of hand. That's kinda where d20 starts falling apart is when lots of numbers have to get rolled and compared.

[Vaskre]

Number crunching is part of the fun in D&D I think, too. The trick we're looking for here is a balance between having enough numbers to keep character builders interested without clogging up actual in game rolling systems.

[Dthclaw]

Don't get me wrong, I don't have a problem with number crunching - I have a problem with excessive number crunching. I know that we're searching for that happy medium between efficiency and statistical avalanches

Methinks, Raven, that you need to start the writing and disgorgement process that you've egged me into doing with Multiverse

[Raven Bloodmoon]

Because you asked for it....

~disgourges~

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[Dthclaw]

Hmm. It looks okay so far.

Though I did notice that you are providing formulas for stuff based on ability scores. Does this mean that you intend to allow superb ability scores above +10 or is it just a 'this is how I arrived at this number' thing?

[Raven Bloodmoon]

Couple things. Firstly, +4 is pretty superb. It's like amazing. And the forumlae are both for an explination as well as in case I need to make something wiht an extreme ability. Those forumlae only need be stuffed in an appendix in the DMG somewhere as reference for DMs.

[Raven Bloodmoon]

UPDATE!!!!

Here's an updated Personal Statistics section. I added a little more to it. I'm still fleshing out enough of a combat system to start dropping stuff on here, but I don't want to submit myself to your fucillade of inquiries until I have first fortiifed my possition.

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[Raven Bloodmoon]

Okay. Dthclaw, you had better get crackin'. I'm one magic system from having the shell of the game finished.

I hav emodified this a bit after searching my feelings to know it be true that I do enjoy leveling up. I have also included a first stab at pricing for abilities and skills, though I may yet alter this. I'll begin on the creation of just enough to start testing the combat system soon. Here's to hoping I can find guinea pigs!

All that remains now is the magic portion. I'm still largely torn on this. I may do a seed thing or I may not. Seeds would simplify the rules, but potentially slow the game. Maybe I'll just use seedsat first to build spells for later use. Meh...we'll see.


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