Tell what you want/like in a Diceless game.

[Garthanos]

That's not so very different from how the same action could be described and would be resolved in a diced system, is it? Or, for that matter, how physical and mental feats function in Nobilis as miracles of Aspect.

Dice historically generate so much pure unflavored flux that any choices and styled resources feel drowned in comparison so even if you have used resource management when its stacked with the dice? The dice are like adding a bucket of water to the soup when it could have been a cup of broth.

In those cases, resource management has been substituted for the conventional randomizers, but they might still conceivably be added into the actual resolution stage without too much trouble.

Indeed the analysis that turns natural language in to mechanical language... can be the finishing touch. ... there is a habit when dice control to start with the mechanics then bend the flavor to fit. when even the random is a choice the opposite feels more viable.

Character design where the choices are very natural instead of mechanical and are mingled with story are priceless but rather independent of diceless resolution
Burning wheel is a case that springs to mind (but have only read a little of it)... Doing a real person could be a horror story but no more so than design yourself with gurps

 

[GrimGent]

Character design where the choices are very natural instead of mechanical and are mingled with story are priceless but rather independent of diceless resolution

Well, it could be argued that by calling attention to the mechanics, dice may detract from the sense of immersion. Then again, my usual stance is that diceless games aren't fundamentally unlike their diced counterparts in any way, apart from (naturally enough) doing away with random chance. This usually crops up when someone tries to claim that they "aren't really RPGs."

 

[Garthanos]

Well, it could be argued that by calling attention to the mechanics, dice may detract from the sense of immersion. Then again, my usual stance is that diceless games aren't fundamentally unlike their diced counterparts in any way, apart from (naturally enough) doing away with random chance. This usually crops up when someone tries to claim that they "aren't really RPGs."

Immersion may be one but not the only goal... vivid visualization (how is the action taking place) is perhaps the one I am emphasizing and the other is choices take on more importance(pre-eminence of choice) when they are the determiner not dice... but even when they are un informed choices they can be flavorful.

I had the idea of having a Fate Bearer... basically to help a player who finds tracking there characters luck burdensome or distracting since those rather different than exertion or focus of attention are very not the characters choice they can have another player (or maybe the GM act as luck bearer)

A game can use strategy cards placed face down and the revealing moment might be part of the fun ... yup rps style random but flavorful.

Any mechanics can detract or call attention to themselves for instance if they are too difficult (I have that issue with ones I design I am a bit heavy handed in that regard).
When I use them I just drop the heavy bits on the fly ;p

 

[GrimGent]

Any mechanics can detract or call attention to themselves for instance if they are too difficult (I have that issue with ones I design I am a bit heavy handed in that regard).

The same accusation is sometimes levelled at games based on resource management, that they are too fiddly or require too much book-keeping. Personally, with Nobilis I use glass beads for the miracle point pools: red for Aspect, blue for Domain, green for Realm, and colourless for Spirit. (Besides, slamming a fistful of red glass down on the table can have the same tactile thrill to it as throwing dice.)