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 Post subject: Variant: Players (almost) Always Roll
PostPosted: Tue Apr 12, 2016 7:24 pm 

Joined: Sun Nov 24, 2013 9:12 pm
Posts: 609
This variant is based off a game design that I've grown found of lately. The players do all the rolling, GM does no rolling for success. The biggest alteration is changing defenses to skills.

Benefit 1: More action for the players! The players are rolling more and this puts more action in the players' hands and this variant works well with Arcanis' skill system. This has an added perk of giving the Game Chronicler more time to think, to adjudicate, and to manage the adventure.

Benefit 2: Even easier NPC/Monster generation. This works on multiple levels. Need to create an assassin on the fly. Well that's easy, you literally just pick a target number for that bad guy's trained skills, attacks, and defenses and a maneuver or two and BAM! You are all set to go. This target number represents the foe's passive in trained skills. You can even go more in detail. Need target numbers for raging barbarians, we can do that. Set a higher number for the attacking passives and a lower number for defending passives. The players are trying to talk to a noble you hadn't planned on them speaking to. You set the TN for his or her social skills a little higher than the other skills. Maybe even penalize their combat skills. This kind of NPC generations can be done in advance as well for writing encounters that you just don't need to go in depth for in a mod. You create complex stat blocks with different TN's for social, rogue, weapon, arcanum, defense, lore, etc. You have an idea for a Templar of Cadic. You set a challenging TN to his passive Performs and Rogue-likes. You set an average TN for his passive Combat and Social. You below average for Arcanum and Lore. And everything else untrained.

Benefit 3: NPC vs NPC combat is simplified. The Game Chronicler just picks the winner. That's it. If 2 NPC's are going at it, you choose the winner, based on where the story needs to go. Do the player's need help? Look, Bob just crit the harvester thrall. The players are doing a little too well? Look, Bob just got black bagged by the harvesters, you need to help him! Of course there may be times where you have to roll one of the NPC's dice become the moment is just too critical for the players or the drama just demands it.

Benefit 4: Tracking PC power level. No weird math between a player's defenses and their attack. If you need a TN for an average table tier, just reference this chart. https://docs.google.com/document/d/1A1H ... sp=sharing
But this number is arbitrary. If you know your table's numbers, use those to pick the passive/TN numbers for your encounters.

Rolling for effects are still necessary because of the exploding dice in the ARPG and the way armor reduces damage in this game. You can also use averages for damage occasionally just to save time or GM fudge the dice and pick the number. These were options a GM always had under their disposal. The GM will have to roll for effects such as damage or number of ticks for an effect. Alternative, although not recommended, player's can roll their own pain and suffering! This tends to be less fun for the players and requires time to tell players what dice to gather up for each attack.

Defenses become skill. If a player is attacked, then they roll a defense verses the NPC's passive attack. You can also start looking at more things in this light. Social interactions become attack and defense now. Rolling Empathy verse a foe's passive Deceit. Defending yourself against assassins with your Perception vs. their Stealth. Defensing yourself against the TN to disarm a trap. This will also require changes to character options such as paths, backgrounds, skill advancement, etc. Some talents, maneuver, and spells may need to be created to adjust for defense as skills.

This variant can be used in any home campaign, thoughts?


Last edited by Deviknyte on Fri Oct 28, 2016 11:11 am, edited 6 times in total.

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 Post subject: Re: Variant: Players (almost) Always Roll
PostPosted: Tue Apr 12, 2016 7:25 pm 

Joined: Sun Nov 24, 2013 9:12 pm
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Place holder: More than just 3 defenses


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 Post subject: Re: Variant: Players (almost) Always Roll
PostPosted: Tue Apr 12, 2016 7:26 pm 

Joined: Sun Nov 24, 2013 9:12 pm
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Place holder: More in depth changes


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 Post subject: Re: Variant: Players (almost) Always Roll
PostPosted: Tue Apr 12, 2016 7:27 pm 

Joined: Sun Nov 24, 2013 9:12 pm
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Place holder: More about NPC/Monster generation.


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 Post subject: Re: Variant: Players (almost) Always Roll
PostPosted: Tue Apr 26, 2016 6:55 pm 

Joined: Sat Sep 28, 2013 6:45 pm
Posts: 639
I started doing this in BI's back in the 3.5 era of Arcanis. It speeds up a DnD game dramatically. Also stopped complaints about the dice as I had players attack themselves with the same dice the attacked the monsters.

All I did was point and say "You are attacked at a +5 for 8 damage", (I used average damage.) I went around the table as the players rolled against their own AC. In after three rounds we were actually doing a full round of combat in just over 60 seconds. As a judge I never touched a die that BI, and my players were happy.

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 Post subject: Re: Variant: Players (almost) Always Roll
PostPosted: Thu May 12, 2016 8:13 am 
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Location: Central Alberta
I do like this idea (hey, it saves me some trouble!), though I still don't see how this is FASTER than me just doing it myself. I'm sure there are lots of reasons why it is, but I'm having trouble picturing it in my head.

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 Post subject: Re: Variant: Players (almost) Always Roll
PostPosted: Fri Jun 10, 2016 7:26 pm 
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Location: Tampa, Florida (temp.)
Nierite wrote:
I do like this idea (hey, it saves me some trouble!), though I still don't see how this is FASTER than me just doing it myself. I'm sure there are lots of reasons why it is, but I'm having trouble picturing it in my head.


It's faster if nothing is conditional. For example, "Anne, you're attacked at +5 for 8 damage. Tim, you're attacked at +3 for 5 damage. Tracy, you're attacked at +4 for 7 damage twice." GM declares those as fast as it takes to say it, and players role at the same time and game moves fast. Players declare if they fall.

But if it's conditional actions, this system is probably no faster. For example, if we have to wait to see the result on Anne to decide whom the next attack is against or whether the bad guy moves, then I doubt it speeds it up. In d20 with iterative attacks, it especially might not be a big advantage.

That's all my educated guess, but Eric can speak from his experience.

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 Post subject: Re: Variant: Players (almost) Always Roll
PostPosted: Sat Jun 11, 2016 4:46 pm 

Joined: Sat Sep 28, 2013 6:45 pm
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Ah yes forgot the old player indecision solution... a Five finger count, or the player in question automatically goes full defense and delays. Once players get the idea that sitting on their hands will result in their PC sitting on their hands then indecision is rarely a problem. Even for those players not familier with the mechanics, they at least decide to do something.

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There once was a gnome called Oozy,
Who kissed a Yaricite floozy.
But rather than wed,
She drowned him instead,
Now he is a Yaricite toosey!


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 Post subject: Re: Variant: Players (almost) Always Roll
PostPosted: Sat Jun 11, 2016 5:55 pm 
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Yeah especially in timed events like BIs if you waffle I move the clock forward. Use the time waiting your turn to figure out what you want to do. That's what I do as a player. Given how fast my clock spins I have plenty of time to decide. :(

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 Post subject: Re: Variant: Players (almost) Always Roll
PostPosted: Thu Oct 27, 2016 10:44 pm 

Joined: Sun Nov 24, 2013 9:12 pm
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Hey all. Sorry I never got around to finishing this write up. I've been quite busy as of the last few months.


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