How do you like your action points?

[Mustrum_Ridcully]

Action Points like in 4E work well for me. I don't like level-based action points. I liked flaw-systems that allow extra action points (instead of reducing point-buy cost and stuff like that).

Torg Possibilities are my favorite variant of Action Points.

 

[Serendipity]

I've a marginal preference for 3.5 / Eberron style action points - but then also consider that what those things called Action Points do in 3.x do different things in 4e.
Apples and Oranges says I.

 

[Psion]

Action Dice > "use or lose" (Eberron) action points > "hoardable" (UA/D20 modern) action points

All it took was one hoarder to break me of hoardable action points in D&D, so I shifted to Eberron style for my D&D game, at least for accumulation.

But I do prefer UA action dice functions (feat emulation) to Eberron's.

Action Dice (spycraft 2.0) are the best because
1) Open endedness makes for "high points" in the game
2) Rewarding for good/fun behavior = positive reinforcement
3) Requiring action dice for crits keeps you from having minions randomly wax the players
4) You can spend more than one when you really need it.

 

[Aus_Snow]

None of the above, thanks. I've tried action points and stuff, but they just didn't do it for me.

Of other d20/OGL system's offerings, I don't mind Fate+Destiny, Hero Points or Conviction. But I prefer my own 'Fate' mechanics.

 

[JRRNeiklot]

Action points blow. I let the dice fall where they may.

 

[NMcCoy]

I quite like Fate points as implemented in Spirit of the Century - I'm still working on figuring out a house rule that will let me make the action point economy more SotC-like without breaking the existing framework.

 

[StreamOfTheSky]

I'm a resource hoarder.

I picked 4E, but it was really only the closest to what I'd like, and I think the "achievement" or whatever it s they call it when you fight two battles in a row is an incredibly stupid and arbitrary concept.

To me, an action point is a metagame concept, so why not just say "one per session" or somesuch?

 

[Aus_Snow]

To me, an action point is a metagame concept, so why not just say "one per session" or somesuch?

'Luck' in Cyberpunk 20xx is like this (though you can, generally speaking, haev from 2 to 10 per session, being a stat you roll/buy like any other.)

 

[Mustrum_Ridcully]

Action points blow. I let the dice fall where they may.

Note that 4E action points per default don't grant you rerolls or an extra bonus to your roll - you get an extra standard action. The roll dice to improve result is just one possible way to handle action points - though this of course makes them harder to compare.

I picked 4E, but it was really only the closest to what I'd like, and I think the "achievement" or whatever it s they call it when you fight two battles in a row is an incredibly stupid and arbitrary concept.

The way it's implemented is to give an incentive to go on adventuring instead of spending all your resources in one or two encounters and then head back to rest. I am not sure if the action points are enough incentive, though. But they are definitely a help if you _have_ to go on and are running low on healing surges and daily powers.

 

[DeusExMachina]

The way it's implemented is to give an incentive to go on adventuring instead of spending all your resources in one or two encounters and then head back to rest. I am not sure if the action points are enough incentive, though. But they are definitely a help if you _have_ to go on and are running low on healing surges and daily powers.

It's not enough incentive actually. Also the milestone is a concept that is used only for action points and how many daily magical item uses you get. Since at very low level we have no daily magical items yet (let alone enough to get multiple uses per day), right now action points are the only reason to have the milestone concept and quite simply we (or more accurately the DM) forget about it. So we end up without action points at times even when we should have them again...

I'm thinking of just giving two action points per session or so, although that's not a perfect option either.