Dread Pool (dice idea)

Jester David · Nov 29, 2012

I had an idea for my Pathfinder Ravenloft campaign, inspired by the Marvel RPG's Doom Pool and the Dread RPG's tower.

There's a d20 (or two) sitting on the table. Every time a player tries to do something that doesn't really require a die roll but when something horrible could happen, such as checking a coffin or opening a door, then they roll the dice in the Dread Pool. If it comes up a "1" then something horrible does happen.
The horrible event is determined by the situation and what would be most cinematic and narratively appropriate. It's a little like a fumble mechanic, but not tied to standard rolls, as you're pretty much rolling against fate.

As the adventure advances, the Dread Pool grows. So eventually the odds increase and the chances of rolling that "1" and disaster striking becomes uncomfortably high.

I'm uncertain when the Dread Pool should increase. Monsters scoring crits or PCs failing might increase it. I was debating the merits of allowing PCs a reroll or bonus if they throw a dice into the pool.

Thoughts?

Crothian · Nov 29, 2012

My players would love if something bad happened to their character like this it would be much less frequently then now. I find it much easier to just have bad things happen when it seems good in game.

I also think that the more d20's that go on the table might prevent players from acting in fear of something bad happening to their character. I think you got the name and idea from the Dread RPG and the jenga tower and while I love that game it is a game of one shots and over a campaign I feel things need to work differently.

Jester David · Nov 29, 2012

Crothian said:
My players would love if something bad happened to their character like this it would be much less frequently then now.

Depends how often they roll.

Crothian said:
I find it much easier to just have bad things happen when it seems good in game.

The random chance and ever present reminder that bad things could happen at any time should add some suspense to the game.

Crothian said:
I also think that the more d20's that go on the table might prevent players from acting in fear of something bad happening to their character.

Which is half the point. The random chance and building tension.

Crothian said:
I think you got the name and idea from the Dread RPG and the jenga tower and while I love that game it is a game of one shots and over a campaign I feel things need to work differently.

I did mention this in my initial post. I can't claim full credit for the idea, and so I picked a name that would scream out "homage".

I agree that this might work best in one shorts, or when used sparingly. It'd be fun in a Castle Ravenloft game in other campaigns.
For my game I plan on using it in one session where I can justify fate being a little extra finicky and be a little more cruel to the players. It's a gimmick that sort of ties into the plot and emphasises the tone.

dd.stevenson · Nov 29, 2012

My first idea when reading the OP was to increase the dice pool every time something happened to curse the PCs.

For example:

The hag spits out a mouthful of blood and eyes you balefully. "May your friends desert you, as mine have deserted me," she hisses. Moments later her eyes go blank and her body goes rigid. [750 xp each; a red die is added to the dread pool]

Then whenever the red die comes up 1, I look back in my notes and deliver a bad effect that ties in with the hag's curse.

Matthias · Nov 29, 2012

This is a nice idea.

When to add another die to the pool? Probably whenever you notice any of the players beginning to take for granted their characters' current health and safety. You don't want PCs acting like Shaggy and Scooby-Doo at every turn, but only when you pick up on some excessive hubris in decisionmaking or even when you simply feel the need to turn up the "fear and terror" another notch. It may be difficult to determine intent if the player figures out what behaviors will add to the Dread pool, but an experienced GM should be able to notice when a PC starts taking what would be considered unnecessary risks (remembering, of course, that PCs always act on limited information).

You should also keep a secret the actual number of Dread Dice that are in the pool. Keep the exact number concealed at all times, and tell the players only that you have added a die or dice. The math-wiz players will attempt to keep track of the number in the pool at any one time, but the concealment prevents them from being 100% certain even if they have been accurately keeping track.

Then, when the Very Bad Thing does happen, you should shrink the Dread pool a little bit, releasing some of the tension, but it should never shrink to the same initial amount. This also keeps the players guessing as to the exact number of dice in the pool at any one time. (It would ruin the mood if players calculated the odds of any die rolling a 1 out of some number of d20's, or worse, if they actually work out a chart for it.) The worse the Bad Thing that happens, the more the Dread pool will shrink. Though you decide on the exact number of dice to take away, you should only describe the reduction as an estimated fraction, such as 1/4, 1/2, 1/3, 2/3, 3/4....being vague will work better than stating an exact number since the math wizzes will simply make the appropriate calculation. 12 dice take away 7 could be stated as a reduction "by about a half" or it could be a reduction "by about two thirds". This could mean anything from 4 to 6 (or 7) dice remaining, and a significant difference in the odds of any of the dice coming up a natural 1. (If my statistics are correct, that would be 18.5% for 4d20 vs. 30.2% for 7d20). Enough leeway remains to let the players make an estimate of the remaining size of the Dread pool (plus any later additions), but never be sure of the exact number.

Crothian · Nov 29, 2012

Jester Canuck said:
Which is half the point. The random chance and building tension.

Part of your reasoning to do this is so that players don't do something in fear that they might have something bad to them? I think we need mechanics that encourage players to act not to sit there. I'm not sure that this would build tension like the Jenga Tower it seems to random. With the tower there is skill and one can see how steady or not the tower is. With the d20's it is all about probability and luck.

Kinak · Nov 29, 2012

I think would work better turned on it's head. You want them opening caskets and going into the basement. They're playing along and getting into their own trouble.

I think you should be rolling when they try to escape, hunker down, or delay. It never quite works out right, does it?

Which is my second suggestion: Dust off your Tarokka/Tarot/Harrow deck. Whenever they stall out (due to lack of clues or terror paralysis), flip over a card and start narrating something related to it.

Maybe it's just a cat in the bushes, maybe it's the creepy old man warning them of terrible things to come, maybe it's that terrible thing. Mix it up, but each should provide some nudge to move them forward.

To escalate, choose a few cards (either beforehand or during play). Every time they come up, shuffle them back into the deck. The next time that card comes up, it's worse. As you go on, there'll be less and less "normal" cards and more reshuffled cards, ramping things up nicely.

And you can explain it, or not. By the time a card comes up the third time, though, they should have figured it out enough to get that little "oh, eff" feeling we usually depend on the music for.

Cheers!
Kinak

gamerprinter · Nov 29, 2012

Crothian said:
I think you got the name and idea from the Dread RPG and the jenga tower and while I love that game it is a game of one shots and over a campaign I feel things need to work differently.

I doubt that, Domains of Dread applied to Ravenloft 20 years before Dread RPG came into existence (good game though). So using Dread is very appropos for a new Ravenloft mechanic.

That said, I'm not a fan of the "dice pool" concept in my games, though I could see it as a working mechanic - for those that roll that way.

Jester David · Nov 29, 2012

Matthias said:
Then, when the Very Bad Thing does happen, you should shrink the Dread pool a little bit, releasing some of the tension, but it should never shrink to the same initial amount. This also keeps the players guessing as to the exact number of dice in the pool at any one time. (It would ruin the mood if players calculated the odds of any die rolling a 1 out of some number of d20's, or worse, if they actually work out a chart for it.)

Dropping the dice after a horrible event is a good idea. There's always a drop in tension after a horrible event.