Nov 27, 2016 1:48 am
SKILL CHECKS: IMPROVED AND SIMPLIFIED
For our game we'll be using a modified dice pool check system as described below. I've playtested it thoroughly, and it has improved the enjoyment of the game for everyone in my table top game immensely.
The Rule, Plain and Simple
[b]A Triumph can cancel a Despair, or count as three Advantage, if the individual making the roll (player or GM) so chooses. If choosing to use Triumph in this way, you must declare as much via post.
Detailed Specifics
If a Triumph is used to cancel a Despair, they both fully cancel one another out in the exact same fashion as Success/Failure and Advantage/Threat. The Success component of the Triumph cancels the Fail component of the Despair, in addition to any additional effects that can result from either.
If a Triumph is converted to 3 Advantage, then it does not lose the Success component of the Triumph, which is still applied to the results of the roll. The 3 Advantage gained from the conversion can be used just like any Advantage.
In short, the above mechanics are optional every time a player makes a roll. This allows the player to let the results of the dice be applied using the Rules as Written, or they can use the new mechanics mentioned above, canceling out Despair, or converting Triumph to Advantage to use in any way Advantage may normally be used (cancel an equal amount of Threat, recover Strain, etc).
Reasons for the Change and How it Improves the Game
I’m a huge fan of player agency. I'm also a huge fan of allowing the game to flow more smoothly by not forcing any of us to always feel like every Triumph, Advantage, Despair, and Threat has to have some special meaning applied to the narrative, as this can become tedious, and even boring, over time. This modified dice mechanic expands possibilities and just generally simplifies the dice pool results, at the roller's discretion, facilitating a smoother and more enjoyable game experience overall.
And that’s actually the main reason I adopted this kind of system from a home brew dice mechanics rule I found on the internet, to help the game flow more smoothly. With starting and low level characters the dice are very simple and clear to interpret, but as characters leveled up, more and more red and yellow dice became part of the action. Consequently, we found ourselves spending more and more time interpreting dice rather than enjoying the story. More and more frequently, dice rolls contained multiple Triumphs, Despairs, and Advantage/Threat. It even began to feel stale and boring, as the Triumph and Despair effects began to feel far too common, rather than something special.
I’ve tinkered around and play tested this extensively in my own table top game for months, somewhere close to a year. It took very little time for everyone in our gaming group to fall in love with this home brew dice mechanic. In the simplest terms, the individual making the roll can have Triumph cancel out Despair (demonstrating that role play wise they simply want their Triumph to be a job well done), or they can have Triumph count as 3 Advantage to be used as normal. The great thing about this is that it comes down to player choice. The player making the roll can, for example, risk the Threat or Despair and choose to keep the Triumph as some other narrative fireworks, or they can keep things a little simpler and opt for the job well done, which can still come with a variety of effects depending on the rest of the results in the dice roll.
Also, even with this dice mechanic, interesting combinations of dice still happen, and sometimes the players have an idea of how they want to use Triumph, so they don't cancel out Despair or Threat, risking the consequences. This home brew dice rule takes nothing away from the game, and allows things to flow more smoothly, or be more exciting, depending on the players' choices. Some players like the idea of high risk/reward, whereas some prefer to be smooth operators and get the job done. With the modified system detailed here, more than ever you can play a character closer to your vision.
My interest in adopting this kind of system is supported by the RAW combat tables, wherein it shows that a Triumph can be used to create many effects that would otherwise require three Advantage, not to mention that a Triumph can also cause a critical hit, even on weapons that usually require four or more Advantage. In a similar fashion, a Despair can have the same effect as three Threat on the combat table. In sum, the combat tables themselves showed an equivalent nature that already existed.
As a side note, not every Advantage/Threat needs to be spent either. Sometimes, if the player has no Strain to recover and they can’t or don’t care to think of a way to spend their advantage, there’s nothing wrong with just tossing it. Don't let yourself become burdened by feeling like you to find some way to spend a single Advantage when you don't need to recover any Strain.
Ultimately, I really like using the home brew dice mechanics. It still allows for some of those moments of Triumph and Despair mixed in with Threat or Advantage, but it also allows, depending on player preference, enjoyment of the game by choosing to opt out of some of the bizarre effects that can come with those rolls. It increases the degree by which the players, and the GM, can shape the game.
For our game we'll be using a modified dice pool check system as described below. I've playtested it thoroughly, and it has improved the enjoyment of the game for everyone in my table top game immensely.
The Rule, Plain and Simple
[b]A Triumph can cancel a Despair, or count as three Advantage, if the individual making the roll (player or GM) so chooses. If choosing to use Triumph in this way, you must declare as much via post.
Detailed Specifics
If a Triumph is used to cancel a Despair, they both fully cancel one another out in the exact same fashion as Success/Failure and Advantage/Threat. The Success component of the Triumph cancels the Fail component of the Despair, in addition to any additional effects that can result from either.
If a Triumph is converted to 3 Advantage, then it does not lose the Success component of the Triumph, which is still applied to the results of the roll. The 3 Advantage gained from the conversion can be used just like any Advantage.
In short, the above mechanics are optional every time a player makes a roll. This allows the player to let the results of the dice be applied using the Rules as Written, or they can use the new mechanics mentioned above, canceling out Despair, or converting Triumph to Advantage to use in any way Advantage may normally be used (cancel an equal amount of Threat, recover Strain, etc).
Reasons for the Change and How it Improves the Game
I’m a huge fan of player agency. I'm also a huge fan of allowing the game to flow more smoothly by not forcing any of us to always feel like every Triumph, Advantage, Despair, and Threat has to have some special meaning applied to the narrative, as this can become tedious, and even boring, over time. This modified dice mechanic expands possibilities and just generally simplifies the dice pool results, at the roller's discretion, facilitating a smoother and more enjoyable game experience overall.
And that’s actually the main reason I adopted this kind of system from a home brew dice mechanics rule I found on the internet, to help the game flow more smoothly. With starting and low level characters the dice are very simple and clear to interpret, but as characters leveled up, more and more red and yellow dice became part of the action. Consequently, we found ourselves spending more and more time interpreting dice rather than enjoying the story. More and more frequently, dice rolls contained multiple Triumphs, Despairs, and Advantage/Threat. It even began to feel stale and boring, as the Triumph and Despair effects began to feel far too common, rather than something special.
I’ve tinkered around and play tested this extensively in my own table top game for months, somewhere close to a year. It took very little time for everyone in our gaming group to fall in love with this home brew dice mechanic. In the simplest terms, the individual making the roll can have Triumph cancel out Despair (demonstrating that role play wise they simply want their Triumph to be a job well done), or they can have Triumph count as 3 Advantage to be used as normal. The great thing about this is that it comes down to player choice. The player making the roll can, for example, risk the Threat or Despair and choose to keep the Triumph as some other narrative fireworks, or they can keep things a little simpler and opt for the job well done, which can still come with a variety of effects depending on the rest of the results in the dice roll.
Also, even with this dice mechanic, interesting combinations of dice still happen, and sometimes the players have an idea of how they want to use Triumph, so they don't cancel out Despair or Threat, risking the consequences. This home brew dice rule takes nothing away from the game, and allows things to flow more smoothly, or be more exciting, depending on the players' choices. Some players like the idea of high risk/reward, whereas some prefer to be smooth operators and get the job done. With the modified system detailed here, more than ever you can play a character closer to your vision.
My interest in adopting this kind of system is supported by the RAW combat tables, wherein it shows that a Triumph can be used to create many effects that would otherwise require three Advantage, not to mention that a Triumph can also cause a critical hit, even on weapons that usually require four or more Advantage. In a similar fashion, a Despair can have the same effect as three Threat on the combat table. In sum, the combat tables themselves showed an equivalent nature that already existed.
As a side note, not every Advantage/Threat needs to be spent either. Sometimes, if the player has no Strain to recover and they can’t or don’t care to think of a way to spend their advantage, there’s nothing wrong with just tossing it. Don't let yourself become burdened by feeling like you to find some way to spend a single Advantage when you don't need to recover any Strain.
Ultimately, I really like using the home brew dice mechanics. It still allows for some of those moments of Triumph and Despair mixed in with Threat or Advantage, but it also allows, depending on player preference, enjoyment of the game by choosing to opt out of some of the bizarre effects that can come with those rolls. It increases the degree by which the players, and the GM, can shape the game.