SPECIAL NOTICE
Malicious code was found on the site, which has been removed, but would have been able to access files and the database, revealing email addresses, posts, and encoded passwords (which would need to be decoded). However, there is no direct evidence that any such activity occurred. REGARDLESS, BE SURE TO CHANGE YOUR PASSWORDS. And as is good practice, remember to never use the same password on more than one site. While performing housekeeping, we also decided to upgrade the forums.
This is a site for discussing roleplaying games. Have fun doing so, but there is one major rule: do not discuss political issues that aren't directly and uniquely related to the subject of the thread and about gaming. While this site is dedicated to free speech, the following will not be tolerated: devolving a thread into unrelated political discussion, sockpuppeting (using multiple and/or bogus accounts), disrupting topics without contributing to them, and posting images that could get someone fired in the workplace (an external link is OK, but clearly mark it as Not Safe For Work, or NSFW). If you receive a warning, please take it seriously and either move on to another topic or steer the discussion back to its original RPG-related theme.

Designing my own super hero role-playing game

Started by Ratguy, August 17, 2023, 11:46:05 AM

Previous topic - Next topic

Ratguy

How can I design my own super hero role-playing game,and which six attributes can I use?
I am sorry to be asking this question!

Eirikrautha

Quote from: Ratguy on August 17, 2023, 11:46:05 AM
How can I design my own super hero role-playing game,and which six attributes can I use?
I am sorry to be asking this question!

Dude.  You'd be better off asking, "How do I make a robot that can land on the moon, get lunar samples, and return to Earth safely.  Oh, and for under $50,000..."  You are treating a highly complex, interlocking series of challenges as if it is a single binary operation that you can do in a week.  Some of us here have been developing single RPGs for literal decades without ever getting it into a complete and publishable state.  So let's start a little smaller, eh?

If you are interested in some of the processes you might use to approach RPG design, Matt Coville (https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLTsnSjGlraRNXpks2YP-_aOqIoSMT0m8T) has started to describe how he's developing his latest game.  Just the two episodes he's got up now should give you a starting point and an idea of what you are asking.  Just off the top of my head, you'll need to decide:


  • What tone and setting you want
  • What kind of mechanics you will use for task resolution
  • Are you trying to copy/represent an existing genre of superheroes
  • Will your powers be pre-written or constructable
  • Is your game tactical or theatre of the mind
  • Can players replicate existing heroes from other IPs, or will all characters be unique to your system
  • etc...

Honestly, if you want to do something like this, you are far better off starting with an existing superhero game.  Find a game or system that you like in general, but might miss the mark here and there.  Experiment with house rules designed to address those issues.  Mess around with the setting, mechanics, rules, and powers.  Bend the game until it breaks, then pick another game and repeat.  You need to get a good idea of how other games approach the genre, what works for these games and what doesn't, and some experience in modifying rules and how that causes cascading effects on other parts of the game.

There's no quick and easy "Press button to create game" here.  You need to learn as much about RPGs in general and Superhero RPGs in particular as you can, just to have an idea of how to start.  So my suggestion is to play existing games first!  Then start tweaking them.  Then play other games, Tweak them, too.  Then, after you have a solid understanding of how things work, you'll have a chance to start creating something that might have a chance to come to fruition...

Ratguy

yeah,thank you very much for the advice.,you make very good points

GeekyBugle

Quote from: Ratguy on August 17, 2023, 11:46:05 AM
How can I design my own super hero role-playing game,and which six attributes can I use?
I am sorry to be asking this question!

I would start with the mechanics from a game I like and know inside-out. Then make the changes I feel are needed to turn it into a Super Hero game.

You DON'T need to use six attributes, you can use more or less depending on what YOU think best describes the PCs in your game.

But since you mention six attributes, maybe start with the SRD I linked to you in your threads and start cutting and pasting stuff to make it your own?
Quote from: Rhedyn

Here is why this forum tends to be so stupid. Many people here think Joe Biden is "The Left", when he is actually Far Right and every US republican is just an idiot.

"During times of universal deceit, telling the truth becomes a revolutionary act."

― George Orwell