Risk dice for specialist abilities?
What do you guys think about replacing the daily uses of specialist abilities by risk dice? They start at dR4 uses and you can step them up with a level up option.
Maybe I'd make these uses per session instead - I'm wary of d10 or d12 daily uses...
EDIT: I forgot half of my reasoning. You could use the ability dR for its effect: you roll for usage, and use the result for things like extra damage, number of targets, effect duration, etc.
I am doing that in my hack-game-thing. Haven't played enough to know how it pans out, though.
ReplyDeleteWorks pretty well in Rad-Hack, at least from the one game I ran. Starts at d4 and goes up on alternating levels, if I recall.
ReplyDeleteMaybe cap the thing at d8 maximum.
ReplyDeleteWith abilities by dR, how do you play the roll :
ReplyDelete1 to 3 is only a dice step down or it's also a failure ?
guillaume jentey The dR is only used as the number of uses.
ReplyDeleteso it's very powerful !
ReplyDeletewith a d4 you may success one time (maybe two if you are lucky)
with a d6, you may success two times and it become a d4 and you may success one more time (so 3 times)
d8 : 3 or 4 times and d6 (2 times) and d4 (one times) : 6 times
it's an exponential progression !
The dice refresh completely each session or just step up ?
Hit points could be dR'ed also, as wounds or as abilty to soak damages.
ReplyDeleteI like it! It will become a bit more powerful in the long run, but I like that it isn't sorta one-and-done when using your Specialist powers at 1st level. It's something you might be able to do again, with luck and effort.
ReplyDeleteI'm running a long MM session this week-end, I'll try using a dR for specialist training
ReplyDeleteAaron Griffin How generous are you with the dice?
ReplyDeleteJason Tocci Oh I forgot about TRH - I'll dig up y copy. Thanks!
guillaume jentey The number of uses and the ability succeeding aren't linked. I would keep the ability rule: it's only an auto success is it is something that other people can attempt. Otherwise you have to roll for it.
The dice would refresh either every day, or every session. I have yet to decide.
Gherhartd Sildoenfein It's feasible with a little work I'm sure, but... hit points are a line I wouldn't cross. I feel it would move MM too far away from DIY D&D territory.
Tore Nielsen That's exactly my thinking. Also (and that's the part I forgot in the OP, stupid deadbrain day!) you could use the ability dR for its effect: backstab extra damage! Number of targets for bardic distraction! Effect duration for anything!
Jean-Marc CHOSEROT Cool! Do let us know how it goes.
Eric NieudanI like that very much!
ReplyDeleteI think it could work for Specialist Training. I'd consider starting at d4, and then modify the "Gain an Ability (1/day)" level up feature to either gain a new ability, or step up the Risk Die of an existing ability. I've been toying with doing something similar with Magical Training as well, instead of an HP cost, creating a pool not unlike HD for spellcasters to use to fuel their spells.
ReplyDeleteEric Nieudan I've stepped into specific abilities and even spell casting with it. Most of them increase every odd level, one of them starts at a d6 and increases at levels 5 and 8.
ReplyDeletektrey parker My gut instinct was to give a choice between new ability and step up of an existing one too. Re: magic, I'm interested in your experiments!
ReplyDeleteAaron Griffin Ditto: let us know how it works out!
My magic system is currently: roll dR for effect (even if it has no dmg, etc) then you can add dice for duration or number of targets. If any die rolls 1-3, your dR is stepped down. dR steps up on odd levels.
ReplyDeleteI'm considering adding +Level to one roll, otherwise magic can feel a little weak I think.
I've been enamored with level-less spell use lately (a la Wonder & Wickedness), and also the Magic Dice systems in Arnold K.'s GLOG and Courtney Campbell's Perdition.
ReplyDeleteBasically, these are d6 pools that are depleted on a roll of 1-3 (generally), and rolling higher let's you keep the dice.
Spell descriptions tend to use the number of dice, totals, and level of caster in their effects rather than just set parameters (more dice = more puissant effects, but more risk of die loss as Doubles and Triples produce ancillary effects like mishaps, etc).
An Example would be something built on the Classic Fireball: at 1d, it can have 1 target and does the total rolled in damage. Not that impressive, but since there's no chance of doubles/triples, it's a decent option and pretty in line with a 1st level spell. 2d means 2 targets, 2d6 total damage...more powerful, but now there's a chance for doubles, etc. You could add in level to the rolled totals for a little more oomph, I suppose.
Typically, Magical classes gain an additional die each level. When used with Macchiato, gaining a new die for this pool isn't level based, but is one of the "Level Up" Choices (like HD), and instead of depleting on a 1-3, I'd probably step down to 1d4 like the normal Risk Die (since effect is often governed by die totals, the user can still attempt to cast a 3d Fireball spell, but 3d4 has a higher Double/Triple Chance, and higher likelihood of die exhaustion).
Just played for 9 hours straight, my 3 players ending up level 3 (yes, that was fast progression ^^)
ReplyDeletedR for specialist works fine, but need to be tested carefully when reaching high values (D10 or more).
I had one specialist in "First aid" and he used his Specialist dR to know how many HP he healed, but I fear this gets broken with a dR10 or more... I'll continue testing ...
dR10 means three progressions, that's an investment and I wouldn't be too afraid of letting a character heal that much. To makes things harder, you might want to rule that each wound can only be healed once.
ReplyDeleteYou could make it so that in order you have a d10 skill, you need 3 others, 2 others for a d8 skill, and 1 other for a d4? Dunno if that works out mathematically?
ReplyDeleteEric Nieudan how would you handle duration effects? I like the idea of a duration being determined by a dR buy I'm not sure how you'd roll a dR10 to get another dR in any elegant way
Possibly healing a percentage of total hit points, instead of value? 10-100%? I used to do this with Cure Light et al to help it scale. Duration could possibly be handled the same way... Percentage of a maximum time possible? Risk die make hard coding and logic extra fun to rationalize sometimes :-)
ReplyDeletektrey parker my current thinking is "the duration dR is the smallest die that can roll the value" - do is you roll a 7, duration is dR8.
ReplyDeleteDuration can be as easy as the result in the dR when rolled for usage. In turns (decrease by one every time you act), minutes, hours, etc. depending on the effect.
ReplyDeleteAaron Griffin Not sure if it works mathematically either, but it might be too complicated for the game?
ktrey parker I like the idea of the percentage for low levels, but I think it gets too powerful when characters have more hit points. A question of taste, that said.
Have you tried this rule now? How does it fare for dR8 or more?
ReplyDeleteI tried it just once, as a player, and didn't like the bookkeeping.
ReplyDelete(╯°□°）╯︵ ┻━┻
Is this what you call a "drop table"? See where it land on the die?
ReplyDeleteEric Nieudan Bookkeeping? For each ability (which you can't have a lot) you must trace the current value (and you'll have the max one on your sheet), is it really too much?
ReplyDeleteFor me it was. Plus it's an extra roll, on top of whatever the ability does... Not worth it IMO.
ReplyDeleteGherhartd Sildoenfein YES! Exactly =)
ReplyDeleteMaybe you could let people step up the Specialist Die in place of picking a new Training? So you get to step up the die three times. That makes D10 uses a possibility, but only at quite high levels.
ReplyDelete