Opinions on my system

[maldito]

Hi!

I had been a lurker of the Forge from some time and finally I decided to become a member.
I've created rpg's since the first time I played. In fact, the first game I directed (and played) was a game of my own.

In my games I usually use a simple system: "Role 2d6, add modifiers (from Atributes and Skills) and compare the result against a dificulty". I feel very confortable and familiar with the probabilities and stats from 2d6 rolls. But for my new game, I wanted to try something diferent.

The game it's about monsters. Characters take the role of monsters. The system will allow you to create any monster you like, not only vampires, demons, or were-creatures, you could create lovecraftian horrors, abominations and anything you could imagine. It's doesn't had a defined setting. The Game Master (Monster Master, MM) define it, be it fantasy, modern world, etc. and what kind of monster the players can create.

Characters have 8 Atributes: Strenght, Resistance (Constitution), Manipulation (How well the monster can use human artifacts), Quickness, Intelligence, Power (Willpower), Appearance (wich could be Beauty or Uglyness) and Perception.

Atributes can go from 1 to 6. Being 2 the stat for an avarage human. 4 is usually the maximum for a human.

The system: roll 1d8, add the pertinent Atribute and compare the result with a dificulty.
The dificulties are from 7 (normal, 50% chance for a Character with an Atribute of 2) to 10 (very hard, 12.5% for a avarage human). There is also the monster dificulty, 11, imposible for an avarage human and a 50% for a monster with an Atribute of 6.

There will be no

[maldito]

Ups! Sorry, I posted by mistake before finishing.

As I was writting...

There will be no criticals. You have 12.5% chances of rolling a 1 or 8, a really high chance. Only in combat, when you roll a natural 8, you inflict more damage.

That's for the system, the Powers of a monster come in three forms: natural (those given by nature, like fangs, poison and wings), arcane (magical powers) and psychic (powers from the mind).

There are other features, like Size. Again, 2 is for humans. 1 is a small creature (like a halfling) and 6 is a creature with the size of a whale.

Combat resolve very simple, The attacker roll his Strength when atacking with his hands/claws/fangs, Manipulation if using a weapon or Power, if he's using a power. The defender roll his Resistance or Quickness if he's dodging (you can't dodge fire weapons). If the attacker rolled the highest number, he do damage to the other character)

There will be no rolls for damage. The damage points a character do are modified by his Strength and Size, plus claws, fangs, etc.

There is also power points that the Character spent to activate some powers. You can also spend a power point to rise an Atribute by one point for an action and to re-roll a failed roll.
The character regain power point with rest.

I still don't know if I'm going to use Monster Points. This points can be spent to avoid a character to die. Monster points won't be regained. I also could use Monster point for experience. When you complete an adventure, you gain Monster Points, and later change them to increment an Atribute or even buying new powers.


This is all for now. Do you think it's a good idea to use a d8 for actions.

The idea is to avoid rolling dice everytime that it's possible, leaving just to the necesary. I want a big diference between a human and a monster, that's why humans could almost never rise Attributes higher than 4.

[David C]

Sounds neat! I have some things to point out and even a few ideas.

(you can't dodge fire weapons)

Why not? I'm a monster!  Maybe I stop time, or have illusionary displacement, or can see a few seconds into the future...

I still don't know if I'm going to use Monster Points. This points can be spent to avoid a character to die. Monster points won't be regained. I also could use Monster point for experience. When you complete an adventure, you gain Monster Points, and later change them to increment an Atribute or even buying new powers.

Whoa! I like this idea. I'm thinking of Godzilla and how he never really seems to die!  If your going for a high suspense game with lots of tactical choices, I like the idea of this.  Each "adventure" you could get a monster point or whatever.  You can choose to save them as spare "lives" or you can put them towards character advancement. 

This is all for now. Do you think it's a good idea to use a d8 for actions.

It really doesn't matter, truthfully.  The only real difference it makes is how large your numbers are and what kind of curve you have.  If you use a d100, you're going to have large numbers, but a d4 could yield basically the same results... There are a few big differences from your old and new stuff though.  2d6 yields a bell curve, 1d8 is linear.  What that means is, you have a much higher chance of rolling "average" on 2d6, than on 1d8, where all results are equal.  The other thing is, most everyone has d6s!  Much fewer people have d8s.  Think about how much more popular monopoly and gambling is than D&D....

Characters have 8 Atributes: Strenght, Resistance (Constitution), Manipulation (How well the monster can use human artifacts), Quickness, Intelligence, Power (Willpower), Appearance (wich could be Beauty or Uglyness) and Perception....
....natural (those given by nature, like fangs, poison and wings), arcane (magical powers) and psychic (powers from the mind).

I want to throw this idea out there. How about having 3 primary attributes and 9 secondary attributes, with 3 of each of them tied to the primary attributes?  So you'd have something like this...

Natural:  Strength, Quickness, Appearance
Arcane: Manipulation, Intelligence, Nether
Psychic: Willpower, Perception, Resistance

Then, you could tie in the number of secondary attributes and powers to the total "primary attributes."

Beyond what I have here, it's really hard to give feedback to your game. We could talk about systems and mechanics all day, and get nowhere at all!  Basically, when I look at your summary, I don't see what's compelling, what will make me decide to play it, instead of something else. Does it let me tell a really great story?  Does it have brilliant tactical combat? Does it immerse me in the monster's viewpoint? Etc.

[John Blaz]

Sounds like a neat idea, I'm just wondering how would a game session go? What would the monsters actually be doing?

[maldito]

The game going to be more narrativist. The idea is to feel how is to be a monster feared and hunted by humanity.
There could be differents moods of play:

New Freaks. The characters are newly born/created monsters. This mood it's about your first days as monster, how does it feels, how do you see humanity and how it is to use your new and amazing powers.
Survival. Maybe the most common mood. Characters try to survive in a world of men, hiding and feeding (probably of men) in the night, sewers and ab.
Legion of Monsters. The life among monsters. The characters are not the only monsters, there are many of them, maybe a world of them (think in monster inc.)
Hero hunt. You know, you usually play to be a hero entering in a dungeon and killing monsters. This time it's payback time, time to hunt down those heroes who enter in your dungeon.
King of monsters. There are bigger monsters than you and its a war out there, who will hold the tittle of King of monsters?

A chronicle could have more than one mood, characters could climb stairs from new freaks to kings of monsters. Curiously, not being human give you a good chance to analize humanity, from hunters of the things they don't understand to little creatures from whom you feed.

The die rolls are reduced to minimum. Even in combat there aren't many rolls.

[maldito]

I want to throw this idea out there. How about having 3 primary attributes and 9 secondary attributes, with 3 of each of them tied to the primary attributes?  So you'd have something like this...

Natural:  Strength, Quickness, Appearance
Arcane: Manipulation, Intelligence, Nether
Psychic: Willpower, Perception, Resistance

Then, you could tie in the number of secondary attributes and powers to the total "primary attributes."

i like the idea of Attributes being stacked in categories. But not all monsters going to have all kind of powers, not even all chronicles include them all. If the character is a "miracle of science", like the creature from Frankenstein it's very unlikely for him to have arcane powers. In a sword-and-sorcery monster game it's very unlikely to find psychic powers (psionics in D&D sounds strange for me).
But I like the idea of a family of powers being tied to some of the Attributes.

I was unsure of changing to d8's. d6's make the game accesible for all. But the main reason to change them was to maintain numbres low. If I use 2d6, I must have Attributes from 1 to 9, so you can see the effects of the "monster scale" in your actions.
I'm going to include cut-and-fold d8 dices in the manual book!

I'm going to stick with the Monster Points
Another idea about this points it's to do monster actions. When an action it's to difficult for rolling dice, even ridiculous, you can spend a Monster Point to do a monster action.
For example, if the character is cornered by several soldiers he can call for a monster action, and then narrate what happens. If he has a high value on Strenght he could say "I strike them all in a single mighty blow, leaving the crushed bodies behind me". If he has a high value on Quickness he could say "I move quickly from soldier to soldier, giving them a deadly strike before they even realise what had happen".
What dou you think about this?

Monster Points are more of a narrative device.
If you use a Monster Point to avoid being killed, you narrate what happen "the silver bullet almost reach my heart, but instead it alocate one inch lower. It took me several days to completly recover from the deadly wound". What you win spending this point is that you'll save your skin in a very unlikely, but exciting, fashion.
If you use points for improving your character, then you'll have to narrate how it happens. "Spending days in a deep cave, I meditated about my excistance and my place in the world, emerging wiser", to increment the Power attribute. What you win spending points in this way is character advacement.
With the "monster action", what you win is a very nice narration and make the story to continue, from an action trhat seems almost imposible and likely (like in the example) avoinding being killed.
Dou you think this three options are balanced and could work together?

[maldito]

I'm currrently writing the game.

Monster points were left for two uses: avoid being killed and character improvement.

Hopefuly, I'm going to start playtesting soon. The game it's going to be written in spanish.

The question I have right know it's: Any ideas for a name?
I suck at names, I thought to call the game simply Monsters, but it doesn't sound very appealing. Do you have any idea for a name?

(If everything goes right, I'm going to do a robots game with the same system, I've been waiting to do it for a very long time)