Gambling

Dwarf_Paladin · Apr 20, 2004

In my current game I have a character who wants to be something of a gambler. Does anyone have any suggestions on ways to determine if he wins or loses in his drunken nights of click clack and cards? I really need some system that is fun for him without slowing the game down to much. Any help would be appreciated.

FireLance · Apr 20, 2004

Quick and dirty house rule. Allow Gambling as a Profession option. However, use the Perform table to determine how much he makes per night, and taking 10 or taking 20 is not allowed. In order to have a downside, maybe he has to pay 1 gp per night, so he needs to succeed at a DC 20 check to have a reasonable chance of breaking even (3d10 sp).

Kid Charlemagne · Apr 20, 2004

If you have the Star Wars rules, there's a pretty decent system in there.

Koewn · Apr 20, 2004

The Profession(Gambler) option is what I use.

From the size of the town (from hamlet to metropolis) I set an available 'pool' - the value of the monies the player may win on any given night. He sets his 'bet amount' to whatever he wants (I don't tell him the pool size).

I set a DC to whatever I feel the 'difficulty' of the town is (as far as bar betting, and the like) - organized 'casino' types are harder.

He rolls above that DC and wins 10% of the pool per point, or loses 10% of his 'bet' if under. Breaking even is meeting the DC.

Example:

Deacon is in Rielson, a small hamlet, and decides to involve himself in the local gaming scene. Rielson has a 'pool' of 3 gold. (big winnings for a small town!) Deacon has a Int of 15 and a Profession rank of 6, for a total modifier of 9. The DC for this hamlet is 10 - these are amatuers. Deacon rolls a 16 - that's 60% of the pool. He walks out with 18 silver.

Later on, Deacon makes it back to Dhunraven - there's a lot of trade through this town from the northern tribal groups to the southern kingdoms, and that brings money and people willing to lose it. I set the DC at 25. Deacon rolls a 13 on the night - ouch! He's lost 120% of his 'bet'. (things got a little out of hand)

As far as 'quick', yes, this system is. One roll and 'bam!'. It's fun depending on the player. He wants his character (a priest, BTW) to go hit the local scene, drink, and gamble, he does so. We combine that 'roleplaying' bit with Gather Info checks and whatnot, the usual things players do when 'downtown' during an adventure, and the Prof(Gambler) finishes the night - big losings gets him invited back for more (and perhaps some bonus on Gather Info, from one gambler to another) and big winnings may get him 'uninvited'. We've all seen the Vegas movies

He does tithe.

I'm not really sure of the validity of the system, but it doesn't really matter to me, at least - the winnings are 'small' compared to the winnings from gambling your life in a dungeon. It's just a little flavor.

Koewn

Coredump · Apr 20, 2004

In my current game I have a character who wants to be something of a gambler. Does anyone have any suggestions on ways to determine if he wins or loses

Well, if he wants to be successful, there are some things to keep in mind. The character needs to know when to hold them, and needs to know when to fold them. He certainly needs to know when to walk away, and when to just run.
He should *never* count his money while sitting at the table; remember, there will be time enough for counting, when the dealings done.

That should do it.

Other than that, I would be *sure* that the system is such that there is always inherrent risk. I have seen a number of games go bad because the 'gambler' has such modifiers that he could always make money. Unless you keep the amount of money gained/lost low, it can really unbalance the game. (and yes, one of those games has been a Star Wars game....)

.

Pyrex · Apr 20, 2004

If you're looking for a one-check-per-evening, a simple Prof(Gambling) check is the way to go.

If you want a little more crunch (one check per hand), you can use the following:

1: Games of chance
Place the bet and roll d20 against DC of 12+odds.
(ex: 2-to-1 odds is DC 14. Put 5gp on the table, win back 10, 100% profit. 5-to-1 odds is DC 17)

2: Card games against other people
Each participant ante's up the same amount.
Each participant rolls d20+SenseMotiveModifier+BluffModifier.
Winner takes all

In either case, you can allow a participant to cheat by making a Sleight of Hand check opposed by the Spot checks of any observers. Give the spotters a circumstance bonus to their check equal to twice the bonus the cheater wants to add to his Prof(Gamble) check.

dren · Apr 21, 2004

While a profession check would enable them to know about the game, and the probabilities, I would not allow it to influence their chance of winning. For most games, I would have them roll for success like a game of inbetween, high/low with dice or blackjack with cards. It's much more fun that way. As long as the PC doesn't want to do it for hours of game time, there shouldn't be a problem with this method.

Now, if they wanted to cheat, yeah, a sleight of hand check would be called for.

drunkmoogle · Apr 21, 2004

d20 Modern has rules for gambling:

MSRD said:
Gamble (Wis)
Check: To join or start a game, a character must first pay a stake. The character sets the purchase DC of the stake if he or she starts the game, or the GM sets it if the character joins a game. Stakes run from penny-ante (purchase DC 4) to astronomical (purchase DC 24). A character cannot take 20 when purchasing a stake.
If the stake is within the character’s means (it is equal to or less than his or her Wealth bonus), the character stands no chance of winning any significant amount. The character might come out ahead, but the amount is not enough to affect his or her Wealth bonus. Since paying the stake didn’t cost any points of Wealth bonus, the character doesn’t lose anything either.
If the stake is higher than the character’s Wealth bonus (before applying any reductions from purchasing the stake), the character gets a +1 bonus on his or her Gamble check for every point the purchase DC is above the character’s Wealth bonus.
The character’s Gamble check is opposed by the Gamble checks of all other participants in the game. (If playing at a casino, assume the house has a Gamble skill modifier equal to the stake purchase DC. Regardless of the stake purchase DC, the house does not get a bonus on its Gamble check for the purchase DC.) If there are many characters participating, the GM can opt to make a single roll for all of them, using the highest Gamble skill modifier among them and adding a +2 bonus to the check.
If the character beats all other participants, he or she wins and gains an increase to his or her Wealth bonus. The amount of the increase depends on the difference between the character’s check result and the next highest result among the other participants.
Check Result Difference Wealth Bonus Increase
1–9 +1
10–19 +2
20–29 +3
30–39 +4
40 or more +5

Try Again?: No, unless the character wants to put up another stake.
Special: A character can’t take 10 or take 20 when making a Gamble check.
A character with the Confident feat gets a +2 bonus on all Gamble checks.
Time: A Gamble check requires 1 hour.

Of course, you're gonna have to figure out Wealth --> GP conversion, but it shouldn't be too difficult...

Azure Trance · Apr 21, 2004

IIRC the Tournaments book from ENWorld had rules for gambling.

CombatWombat51 · Apr 22, 2004

This is straight out of my tome of houserules. Note that IMC, Charisma represents luck.

Gambling
Game of Luck: The gambler chooses the amount to bet and the odds. The gambler rolls 1d20 plus his Charisma modifier and has to beat the DC set by the house. The DC 1d20 plus the odds.
For example, Hadius plays a game of dice and bets 5 cp, with 1 to 4 odds. The DM rolls 1d20, and gets a 13. That makes the DC 17 (13 + 4). If Hadius gets a 17 or higher on his Charisma check, he wins 20 cp (odds of 4 x his bet of 5 cp).
Game of Skill: Each player antes, then makes a Profession: Gambler check. The gambler with the highest roller takes all.
5 or more ranks in Bluff give a +2 synergy bonus to Profession: Gambler checks.
5 or more ranks in Sense Motive give a +2 synergy bonus to Profession: Gambler checks.
Cheating: A gambler can cheat by making a Sleight of Hand check opposed by the Spot checks of all observers. The cheater chooses a number and adds that amount to his Profession: Gambler check or d20 roll (for skill or luck-based, respectively), and observers get a bonus to their Spot check equal to that number.

Gambling

Dwarf_Paladin

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FireLance

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Kid Charlemagne

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Koewn

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Coredump

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Pyrex

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dren

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drunkmoogle

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Azure Trance

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CombatWombat51

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