What system has your favorite Attributes/Stats setup?

[The Shaman]

I haven't found it yet.

I like the aforementioned Top Secret attributes very much, and I like Boot Hill's as well, but I'm not wild about d% systems.

I like Traveller's 2d6 system, but not its attributes necessarily.

So, still looking.

 

[tfwoods3]

Double post

 

[tfwoods3]

HERO- nothing else is even close.

I can agree... I love how the damage, stun/body PD/ED work.

Fantasy Comic! War of the Nine Gods

 

[LostSoul]

I like Sorcerer. 4 stats - Stamina, Lore, Will, Cover/Past. The neat thing about those is that they have a descriptor that tells you when they apply (like "Big and Strong" or "Savage Raised" or "Half-Demon") and that they can all be applied to both physical and social actions.

 

[Argyle King]

It's nothing mind blowing, but I feel that the way GURPS 4E is set up is both simple and meaningful when it comes to attributes.


ST (strength)
DX (dexterity)
IQ (intelligence)
HT (health)

Those four above are your main stats. Charisma is not a stat at all; instead, it is an advantage which can be bought with character points.

You then have a set of secondary attributes which are based upon the main four; those are listed below.

HP (hit points; based on ST)
Per (perception; based on IQ)
Will* (will; based on IQ)
FP (fatigue Points; based on HT)

*I normally run my games with a house rule which makes Will a full fledged main stat of its own. (Mechanically there's nothing wrong with IQ and Will being attached at all; just a person preference.)

I suppose you could also consider Basic Speed and Move to be secondary attributes as well since they are derived from your stats. For those unfamiliar with GURPS, Speed is used in a manner similar to initiative in D&D; move is how far your can move with a move action.

I think the main thing I like about the set up is how the attributes are given more meaning within the way the game is set up. There are some games I've played in which the book claims that the stats mean something, but, in practice, turn out to mainly serve as something to base your attack powers on. In some of those games, I often feel as though all characters could simply have one stat called 'The Stat' and the game would work exactly the same.

I also like how Charisma is broken away from the attributes. Sure, smarts and looks might help someone appear charismatic, but true charisma is something which often shines through independently of your physical and mental statures.


If I had to a system which is my least favorite? hmm... I wouldn't say I've played any games which had glaring issues with stat set up. Though, if I'm forced to choose one for the purposes of this conversation, I'd say that sometimes D&D 4E bothers me simply due to the issue of stats seeming to have less and less meaning as the game evolves. There are times when I feel as though my character's stats are more akin to numbers/statistics on a Magic or Pokemon card than they are reflective of any sort of guidelines for the type of person my character is.

 

[Thasmodious]

Savage Worlds is my favorite.

5 attributes - Str, Agility, Spirit, Vigor, Smarts, each assigned a die type, d4 - d12 which is what you roll when making a check. Simple, no modifiers, uses all your dice (the d20 is the rarely used die in SW). Skills are tied to an attribute and uses the same scale. It's cheaper to buy a skill that is below the attribute it's tied to.

 

[tfwoods3]

Savage Worlds is my favorite.

5 attributes - Str, Agility, Spirit, Vigor, Smarts, each assigned a die type, d4 - d12 which is what you roll when making a check. Simple, no modifiers, uses all your dice (the d20 is the rarely used die in SW). Skills are tied to an attribute and uses the same scale. It's cheaper to buy a skill that is below the attribute it's tied to.

That sounds interesting, I never tried Savage Worlds. I think I would prefer that over the d6 system.


Fantasy Comic! War of the Nine Gods

 

[Rel]

That sounds interesting, I never tried Savage Worlds. I think I would prefer that over the d6 system.


Fantasy Comic! War of the Nine Gods

I've become a huge fan of Savage Worlds. Just to elaborate a bit on what I like about it, it doesn't have a huge number of skills. Maybe 20 or so. Often times things that might be skill checks in other systems just require a check against the base attribute (like an Agility roll in place of something like Acrobatics).

The way that Attributes are tied to Skills is that it is cheaper during character advancement to raise skills that are below their associated Attribute than ones that are at or above their associated Attribute. So just because your character has a good Agility it doesn't mean they will be good at Shooting the first time they touch a ranged weapon. But it does mean that they can quickly become adept at Shooting if that is where they focus their character advancement.

It's also worth mentioning that most dice rolled in Savage Worlds "explode". And there is something about exploding dice that brings excitement to almost every dice roll. It's meta but it's pretty great.

 

[Wormwood]

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[steenan]

I like how it's done in Dogs in the Vineyard:
4 attributes - Acuity, Heart, Body and Will. Traits you name yourself and that may range from things like "I'm big and strong" to "I can shoot a coin from fifty yards" to "I vowed never to kill a human again". Relations with PCs and NPCs. Equipment, with very simple mechanics ("typical", "awful", "really big", "very good", "very good and really big"). All is measured in dice, in varied number and sizes.

Another fun system is Xia:
3 attributes - physical, social and mental, corresponding to three types of conflict this game has. 8 i-ching trigrams that describe both your abilities and personality (eg. high Water means that you have a lot of inner peace and self control and also that you soak damage easily). You also have a number of secrets (techniques) that allow you to use your trigrams in untypical ways and perform special actions.

Finally, one cannot forget 3:16 Carnage among the stars:
2 stats. Fighting ability (used to harm others in various ways and to avoid harm) and non-fighting ability, equal to 10 - fighting ability (used for everything else).