Previous Topics
In First Thoughts

1/24/2009 Wordman: What do you want to know about probability?
Recently, it seems like I've been spending an inordinate amount of time publishing ad hoc web articles about probability in RPGs, from some basic stuff to some not-so-basic stuff. Partially…
In First Thoughts
Participants: Wordman, JoyWriter, Castlin, Tsanuri, Adam Dray, JB, Finarvyn, pynk, Gurnard, dindenver, punkbohemian.

1/23/2009 zmobie: Survival, NPC's, Charts, and Keywords - A possible horror genre game?
I had a conversation with a good friend awhile back about a game idea, and I'd like to run it by the forge and see what you guys thought about…
In First Thoughts
Participants: zmobie, Vulpinoid, John Blaz, whiteknife.

1/23/2009 MatrixGamer: Victory conditions in story telling games
My first impression is that this is a foolish idea - I like telling stories just for the fun of engaging the challenge but... When I think "game" and I'm…
In First Thoughts
Participants: MatrixGamer, Jason M Dockins, whiteknife.

1/23/2009 walruz: Writing a game out of gimmicks!
So, I'm writing a game. When discussing games, people often mention that Game X handles Thing Y very well, but it seems like many games stop at one gimmick. I…
In First Thoughts
Participants: walruz, Abkajud, Vulpinoid.

1/22/2009 Kyle Cates: Bringing fun to RPG's in a new way (maybe).
Every RPG'er knows that the rolling of the dice is one of the most prized and cherished actions one can take while playing the game. It lets us swing our…
In First Thoughts
Participants: Kyle Cates, Noon, Marshall Burns, whiteknife, Gurnard, Patrice, David Artman, Paul Czege, Lynne H, JoyWriter, btrc, Adam Dray, davidberg.

1/20/2009 Gurnard: Thoughts On A Fencing Mechanic
I've been working on a new game for a few weeks. The core concept is low fantasy, analogous to Early-Mid Mediaeval Europe but with many of the technological advancements of…
In First Thoughts
Participants: Gurnard, Abkajud, LandonSuffered, Hereward The Wake, Vulpinoid, JoyWriter.

1/20/2009 opsneakie: [Night and Day] Dual wield, the bugger.
So, I've got Night and Day just about finished, but there are still a couple of sticking points, and one of them is dual-wielding weapons. I'll run over my item…
In First Thoughts
Participants: opsneakie, Gurnard, Noon, David C, LandonSuffered.

1/19/2009 Deohring: Making a Feat System
I am doing some additions to a game I have already done; what I am asking for on this post is a little help I need a list of every…
In First Thoughts
Participants: Deohring.

1/18/2009 thadrine: [Shab-Al-Hiri Roach] With super powers!!!!
So all throughout my day at work I could not help but think about how much I love the concept of Shab-Al-Hiri Roach, but still I can never get anyone…
In First Thoughts
Participants: thadrine, whiteknife.

1/17/2009 love: The Basics
I'm about to design my own pen and paper rpg...so, were should I start? Mechanics?
In First Thoughts
Participants: love, Abkajud, Vulpinoid, thadrine, David C, whiteknife, Patrice, Deohring, Noon.

1/16/2009 Abkajud: Psychic slaves or no psychic slaves? [my honor-based RPG]
It's been almost a year and a half since I've posted about my honor-based RPG idea. At the time, in this thread http://www.indie-rpgs.com/forum/index.php?topic=24671.0, I discussed the basic idea: certain individuals…
In First Thoughts
Participants: Abkajud, Eero Tuovinen, Vulpinoid, LandonSuffered, Amadeo.

1/15/2009 vgunn: Questions on mechanic for my system -- answers please
Okay, I think I have finally settled on a resolution that works for me. Really simple overall, but I still have a few questions and concerns. Hoping you can give…
In First Thoughts
Participants: vgunn, Vulpinoid, Monk.

1/14/2009 Saint Erebus: Interested in Thoughts on Resolution Mechanic
Hi all, I'm a brand new poster here at the Forge.  I've been reading for a few months now, and only recently worked up the nerve to actually throw some…
In First Thoughts
Participants: Saint Erebus, dindenver, Vulpinoid.

1/14/2009 thadrine: Opinions on my Resolution Mechanic
This is the basic mechanic of a game I am thinking about. It is based heavily off of Houses of the Blooded, but more with more flexibility, and hopefully not…
In First Thoughts
Participants: thadrine, dindenver.

1/14/2009 Hasimir0: The "unknown" effect
There is something that I want to reproduce in a more efficient way than how I am used to. I'll explain. Playing Vampire the Masquerade with my friends a big…
In First Thoughts
Participants: Hasimir0, Abkajud, Erudite, Noon, Vulpinoid, Monk, JoyWriter, Luke, ShallowThoughts.

1/13/2009 Ivoire: Brainstorming - some help would be appreciated...
Hello everyone. Recently I had a vague inspiration for an rpg. I dreamed -literally, the idea came to me in a dream!- of a setting where some young chosen are…
In First Thoughts
Participants: Ivoire, dindenver, Jason M Dockins, David C, fealoro, chance.thirteen, Abkajud.

1/11/2009 Eero Tuovinen: I'm reading about David C's game
David's been starting some rather interesting threads about his fantasy adventure game here during the last several months. Those threads have provided us glimpses at a well-mechanized fantasy adventure game…
In First Thoughts
Participants: Eero Tuovinen, davidberg, David C.

1/11/2009 Noon: Mechanic: If your wrong enough times, your right
I was thinking of this mechanic for a computer game I’m writing, but its with certain roleplay goals in mind. Okay, first of all its a bit like god of…
In First Thoughts
Participants: Noon, Filip Luszczyk, Vulpinoid, otspiii.

1/11/2009 davidberg: play the full lifespan of a short-lived character
You're created fully physically mature.  You open your eyes for the first time and have a ready-for-action body, but no knowledge or context. Setting is undefined before play -- you…
In First Thoughts
Participants: davidberg, ShallowThoughts, David C, Noon.

1/9/2009 cosmos1138: Hay Lectures Suck - So Lets Game!
This is Dr CJ over in Thailand and I have a great idea of training/teaching MBA and Public Admin PhD student about wicked problems using GURPS as well as training…
In First Thoughts
Participants: cosmos1138, Creatures of Destiny, Noon, davidberg.

<< more previous topics

Subsequent Topics
In First Thoughts

1/25/2009 David C: A random thought: Critical Hits
It occurred to me that in any system that has critical hits, they are immensely popular.  Besides the obvious "Your attack is super effective" bit, I think they have a…
In First Thoughts
Participants: David C, whiteknife, Patrice.

1/26/2009 TomTitTot: [The Hammer Falls] Dystopian fiction RPG - discussion and call for playtesters
Not having posted to the First Thoughts forum for quite some time about my game The Hammer Falls, I think I've put many of my thoughts and observations about the…
In First Thoughts
Participants: TomTitTot, Joe Murphy (Broin).

1/26/2009 StrongBadMun: [The New World] Diceless
So I'm publishing an rpg via blog just for the fun of it on my www.headtripgames.com site.  The idea is what if these fantasy races discovered a new continent like…
In First Thoughts
Participants: StrongBadMun, whiteknife, Ken.

1/26/2009 Dementia Games: Psychological Profile for Horror Game
I've been working on a horror game for a while now, off and on as time permits, and I've been toying with the idea of a psychological profile.  Basically, players…
In First Thoughts
Participants: Dementia Games, Wolfen.

1/28/2009 dopefingers: a confused beginning
So I'm not real familiar with gaming. I used to fool around as a kid, but I don't know much about what is out there. Forgive me if this is…
In First Thoughts
Participants: dopefingers, Abkajud, Joe Murphy (Broin).

1/30/2009 Bercilac: Arthurian GM-less RPG: Alpha Stages
Contents of this post: I.  General concept II.  Rough structure III.  Major unanswered questions IV.  Links to referenced games V.  For the future I.  General Concept For about two years…
In First Thoughts
Participants: Bercilac, Finarvyn, greyorm, Abkajud.

2/1/2009 Nuthael: new swing on an old idea of mine
Hi. I'm technically new to these forums, a mate of mine threw me over here one day and i havent been back since. but now that im having some block,…
In First Thoughts
Participants: Nuthael, Gurnard.

2/2/2009 Gurnard: [Aces] A resolution mechanic
I have an embryonic idea for a non-combat resolution mechanic, it's not particularly developed as yet (been spending most of my spare time on a combat mechanic (http://www.indie-rpgs.com/forum/index.php?topic=27476.0) I'm not…
In First Thoughts
Participants: Gurnard, Wordman, Vulpinoid, chance.thirteen, Warrior Monk.

2/2/2009 ShallowThoughts: New stab at the old Abilities/Skills split - problems? holes? contradictions?
Hi folks, I first became aware of the huge debates surrounding this topic when I discovered this thread, and the huge number of other threads it points to. Back in…
In First Thoughts
Participants: ShallowThoughts, dindenver, David C.

2/3/2009 Bert: Diceless or Dicealicious?
Hi folks. I’m working on a fantasy RPG (Free Will) where the PCs are agents of supernatural entities called Aeons. The PCs have to steer the course of history by…
In First Thoughts
Participants: Bert, greyorm, Vulpinoid, David C, chronoplasm, CKNIGHT.

2/4/2009 ShallowThoughts: Okay FINE .. I'm revealing it. Presenting the Normal Engine!
Oy, it's difficult trying to be cryptic about one's system while discussing it with a community. Okay, I'm going to be a lot more honest in this post, though the…
In First Thoughts
Participants: ShallowThoughts, dindenver, Wordman, lurkingowl.

2/4/2009 CKNIGHT: Has it been done?
Here is a brief storytelling mechanic I've been kicking around.     Attribute + Attribute + Competence + Focus + Tool The players roll dice to get success. Success are…
In First Thoughts
Participants: CKNIGHT, Bert, chance.thirteen, Creatures of Destiny, ShallowThoughts, Lord Skeletor, Chronologist.

2/5/2009 chronoplasm: Character Knowledge in a minis game?
Okay, so one idea I'm pondering for a minis game is the idea of knowledge chips which can be placed on the bottoms of the figure's bases and switched around.…
In First Thoughts
Participants: chronoplasm, preludetotheend, chance.thirteen.

2/5/2009 walruz: Building a REIGN-ish Company system on a linear scale
So, I just got REIGN by mail earlier today, and I'm totally in love. Beautiful game, beautiful book, etc, etc. I have only given in a quick read-through thus far,…
In First Thoughts
Participants: walruz, chance.thirteen, David C.

2/6/2009 Wordman: Decent disease mechanics?
Very few games have disease at their core, but many have tiny subsystems for dealing with disease in various ways. If a game has such mechanics, they tend to be…
In First Thoughts
Participants: Wordman, Vulpinoid, chronoplasm, ShallowThoughts, CKNIGHT, walruz, GregStolze, Bert, chance.thirteen.

2/7/2009 Sergon: 1st draft
I have a first draft of an old west rpg that I would like to have discussed. Should I post a copy of the entire rules, or only post a…
In First Thoughts
Participants: Sergon, Vulpinoid.

2/7/2009 Briggswriter: Ancient Secrets
How well do you think an Egyptian setting would go over for a game? I use a system with 2d6 + Skill vs. DN (difficulty number) and I need help…
In First Thoughts
Participants: Briggswriter, CKNIGHT, Bert, Ken.

2/9/2009 punkbohemian: a card game within an rpg?
So, I've been thinking about how to deal with a resolution for a gambling skill. What I thought would be interesting is if resolution could occur, rather than with a…
In First Thoughts
Participants: punkbohemian, David C, whiteknife, chronoplasm.

2/9/2009 btrc: Keeping combat from dragging
Keeping ten seconds of combat from taking an hour or more of play time has been the bane of most simulationist rpgs. I had a recent brainstorm I'd like to…
In First Thoughts
Participants: btrc, Paul Czege, Noon, Bert, jerry, Hereward The Wake, Chronologist.

2/10/2009 chronoplasm: Brainstorming a System
I had a power 19 for this game I'm working on someplace... but I seem to have misplaced it. Anyway, I'm trying to make a gamist miniatues game where players…
In First Thoughts
Participants: chronoplasm, David C.

more subsequent topics >>