To explain at corollary to X+3 squared in a single but not unity paragraph, whether using male or female pronouns (though the game is not designed to represent females due to the chromosomal divergence of (2+y)/(2*z) where y>female and z
SilCore
Roll and keep die pool using six sided dice, with the number of dice dependent on skill level. The highest result is kept, with additional high results adding +1 to the total. Under default settings, this means every additional 6 rolled adds +1; three dice have a maximum roll of 8, four dice 9, etc. Attributes average 0, ranging from -5 to +5. Skills have an additional axis called Complexity that affects results. Rolls depend on Margin of Success, including weapon damage (weapon damages are fixed and multiplied by the Margin of Success to get final damage). There is no magic, psionics, power, etc. system; SilCore works best with modern, science fiction, low fantasy, or "gritty" settings where characters don't fall too far outside of human norm.
Quote from: AnemoneI don't have a single favourite system, but systems I enjoy tend to have certain characteristics. They vary depending on whether I'm GM or player (I'm far more tolerant as a player), but here are a few rules of thumb:
My systems are typically streamlined and easily learned; they support character coolness and player creativity; they have sparse character sheets containing only bits that are important; if they include a randomizer, it's preferably one that provides a bell-shaped probability curve rather than a flat or linear one; they usually have Do-It-Yourself metaskills devised by the players, rather than fixed lists of skills; their combat rules tend to be cinematic rather than "realistic"; and they usually include a mechanic to allow players to throw in special effort or somehow control their level of success: hero/life/possibility/luck point, haymaker, etc.
Well, very interesting. Does any system meet those requirement or come close?
I was thinking of specific systems and it does not necessarily have to be exclusive, so, if you want, just give us the skinny on a system you know well. That way, we can share our collective experience with systems and when someone says something like "SilCore rocks!" we can have an idea what they mean.
So, even if it is not your fav, do you have a system you play a lot that you can sum up in a paragraph?
Wil and James, Right on! Very much what I was hoping for.
Thanks,
Bill
Roll to hit.
Y'all know what I'm talkin' about.
Thanks to James for putting this together. A quick reference as to what the Iridium System is about.
Iridium One-Page Summary (http://www.hinterwelt.com/dload/Iridium.pdf)
Bill
Quote from: HinterWeltThanks to James for putting this together. A quick reference as to what the Iridium System is about.
Iridium One-Page Summary (http://www.hinterwelt.com/dload/Iridium.pdf)
Bill
Boy that sure looks a lot nicer than the one I sent you.
Love it.
D6
Decide on a difficulty number. Roll dice equal to your skill, including one die that's different from the others. If the special die rolls a 6, add it and re-roll it. If you get a 1, tell the GM. If you beat the difficulty, a winner is you.
Unknown Armies
You roll under with percentile dice. Matches are either spectacular success or failure. 00 is a critical failure, while 01 is a critical success. It all happens more than it feels like it rightly should, which is reinforces the mood. You only bother to keep track of a few major skills and just assume you've got the ability to at least try whatever else. Combat is dangerous and discouraged. Some people have magic powers, which are just skills with weird applications.
Quote from: HinterWeltI was thinking of specific systems and it does not necessarily have to be exclusive, so, if you want, just give us the skinny on a system you know well. That way, we can share our collective experience with systems and when someone says something like "SilCore rocks!" we can have an idea what they mean.
You guys know about John H. Kim's exhaustive Encyclopedia of Role-Playing Games (http://www.darkshire.net/~jhkim/rpg/encyclopedia/), right? He's done a lot of that work already.
Quote from: AnemoneYou guys know about John H. Kim's exhaustive Encyclopedia of Role-Playing Games (http://www.darkshire.net/~jhkim/rpg/encyclopedia/), right? He's done a lot of that work already.
Yeah, but that is not what people on this site have played. I am not looking to collect the works of Shakespeare here, just games people have played and their understanding of them.
Thanks for the link though. I was aware of it and actually was something of my motivation for this thread. The minor difference is more about the system mechanics and not so much what a game is about.
For instance, a follow up for Rotwang would be if he has played the current release or the Starwars release and is there a difference. I dig d6 and have wondered if there were changes in the new release.
Bill
Gurps:
Roll three D6, do theorhetical mathmatics to figure out how much your current load affects your Spetsnaz knife-fighting skill. Argue with your GM that Spetsnaz Knife Fighting is more than just fighting with knives and you should be able to use it for unarmed strikes as well and if you knew he wanted two different skills for unarmed strikes, he should have told you.
j/k a little bit of bile coming from the Gurps thread:)
WoD
Stat+Skill equals dicepool. Add bonus dice if it's an easy task, take away dice if it's hard. If you roll an 8 or better on 1 of the dice in your pool, you did it.
D20- GM sets target number, roll a d20 and add bonuses, if it beats the GM's target number, you succeed.
Savage Worlds:
Assign a D4 to your Attributes and Skills. Increase the number of sides to the die as you get better.
Roll the die that the GM says applies. Roll a D6 because you're a "Hero". If either of the die roll their max, roll it again and add.
Take the highest total value rolled and see if you beat a 4. If you did, you succeded. Then see if you beat it by an additional 4, if you did there may be a bonus effect.
Four is the usual target value however, the target value can be higher for melee. The GM may also add or subtract a few points to the target value or the roll total based on conditions.
Savage Worlds in a Nutshell (http://home.earthlink.net/~djackson24/SWnutshell.htm)
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HeroQuest
All rolls are opposed rolls (contests) made on d20. In principle, any ability on the chr sheet can be used in a contest. In practice this is governed by narrative considerations (eg is it a fight or a debate?). Also in principle, any ability can be used to augment the primary ability (add one-tenth of the augmenting ability). An individual roll can come up as a critical, a success, a failure or a fumble. Compare the rolls on a table to determine the result, which ranges from a complete success to a complete failure (other results are major, minor and marginal for both success and failure).
Numerically, abilities default to 6 and range upwards potentially to infinity. Each twenty points in an ability gives you a mastery, which bumps your raw die roll to the next level (eg from a success to a critical).
Dangerous Journeys
Percentile roll under, with range set by skill and stat and (possibly) modified by circumstances. Skills linked to trait. Starting vocation gives a list of skills initially available, plus a short list of common skills, and the character has additional skills, the number depending on his traits. Investigate mysteries, seek out treasure, flummox bad guys, run a business. That's your life in Dangerous Journeys. :D