How the Discworld TTRPG Works

Modiphius's new Discworld TTRPG will feature a new bespoke game system that's light on rules but heavy on wordplay. The Quickstart for Discworld: Adventures in Ankh-Morpork will be released to the public later this week, giving Discworld fans a first look at Modiphius's new Narrativium game system. Modiphius opted to create a new game system for their new Discworld TTRPG instead of using their usual 2D20 system, although details about the new game system were rather light....at least until now.

The isystem utilizes a stat-less Trait system that leans heavily on the wit and cleverness of the players and the GM. When a player wants to make a Test to accomplish something that has a chance of failure, they declare an action and then attempt to justify that action using one of their Traits. After a player has provided their justification, the GM assigns them an Outcome Die, with the size of the die dependent on how well the Trait fits with the action they are attempting to accomplish. If a player has provided the perfect justification (or if an action fits within a character's wheelhouse), the GM may assign a d12 or a d10. If the justification is particularly weak, the GM may assign a d4 or d6. Once the Outcome Die is determined, the player rolls their Outcome Die while the GM rolls the Narrativium Die (a d8), with the highest result determining the outcome of the Test.

If the player's result is higher than the Narrativium Die, they succeed in their Test, but a lower result earns a Consequence...which usually means another Trait added to a player's character sheet. In the result of a tie, the player succeeds in the Test but also faces a consequence of some kind.

Players can manipulate results using Luck, the sole resource of the game that's given out for excellent roleplay or original use of Traits in Tests. A player can choose to spend Luck to either aid another player's Test or lessen the Consequence of a failed Test. If a player chooses to aid on a Test, they have to justify their action with a Trait and are assigned an Outcome Die to roll. The GM doesn't re-roll the Narrativium die, but the result of the second player's Outcome Die replaces the original roll. In the case that both players fail the test, the Consequence is one degree worse and both players suffer it.

One key to keep in mind is that Discworld doesn't feature any Hit Points, nor is their a Combat system of any kind. The Quickstart notes that the full rules includes a section on dying, although this is usually an exceptional Consequence to a failed test. In true Discworld style, players are encouraged to get creative with their Traits and how they use them to justify their actions and the GM is encouraged to give out Luck to reward players who live up to the spirit of the books.

The Quickstart will be available to the public starting on Friday, with those on Modiphius's mailing list getting access a day early. The Kickstarter for Discworld: Adventures in Ankh-Morpork launches on October 15th.

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

I think there are definitely going to be people who, at first glance, won't find wordplay-as-gameplay is something they're going to be comfortable with. Some of them will find out that they click with it, but it's not unreasonable for some people not to vibe with that, just as other people don't like miniatures skirmish games or years-long legacy games.

 

[overgeeked]

I think there are definitely going to be people who, at first glance, won't find wordplay-as-gameplay is something they're going to be comfortable with. Some of them will find out that they click with it, but it's not unreasonable for some people not to vibe with that, just as other people don't like miniatures skirmish games or years-long legacy games.

Sure. It takes all kinds. It’s just disappointing that so many people hold their noses at lighter games. Especially when it’s something like this that heavy crunchy systems just would absolutely not work for.

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

Sure. It takes all kinds. It’s just disappointing that so many people hold their noses at lighter games. Especially when it’s something like this that heavy crunchy systems just would absolutely not work for.

You cannot dissuade me from Battletech: Discworld.

 

[Anon Adderlan]

System seems fine, and should be more concerned with unexpected outcomes rather than outright failures anyway. So the secret sauce is in how the consequences will be decided.

 

[Gorgon Zee]

It’s a new bespoke system. It’s not Fate. So the whole thing is new mechanics.

Yes, I know that. I did read this thread! But I was hoping for a response describing the degree to which it is new and the degree to which I could just use an existing system.

So I just went ahead and downloaded the quickplay doc, and can indeed confirm what I had suspected - the system is aspect-based and can easily be played with any existing such system. Looking at the character sheets, you don't even need to modify them to play Fate:

From the doc, here's a description of the character sheet and my notes on how you can immediately use it to play using Fate:

• Your character's Name(s) and Pronouns - common across all systems.
• The group they belong to - Fate Aspect
• Their species and background - Fate Aspect
• Niche traits: their experiences and where they fit in their group - Fate Aspects
• Their core: their outlook, and how they react to the world - Fate Aspects
• Quirk traits, the odd little idioscyncrasies and eccentricities that make their character who they are - Fate Aspects or just notes, whatever you prefer as a GM
• A brief character description - usual stuff
• A place to note down any consequences you gain during play - use exactly as is as Fate Consequences
• Notes, where you write notes - usual stuff
• Luck, a measure of what your character can get away with - use exactly as is as Fate Points

This is really nice and makes me much more likely to buy the system. I can run with minimal Fate rules, using the book's very good suggestions on what to do when player's roles tie the needed number, and on how to set the nastiness of consequences, but if we feel the system is a little too light, we could add approaches or skills from FAE or Fate Core, and even stunts or whatever if we really want some more serious crunch.

 

[overgeeked]

Yes, I know that. I did read this thread! But give

It looks like you clipped part of your post.

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

This is really nice and makes me much more likely to buy the system. I can run with minimal Fate rules, using the book's very good suggestions on what to do when player's roles tie the needed number, and on how to set the nastiness of consequences, but if we feel the system is a little too light, we could add approaches or skills from FAE or Fate Core, and even stunts or whatever if we really want some more serious crunch.

This is one of the things I love about systems that sometimes get knocked for "yes, but isn't this largely system X?" Yeah, and that means you've got tons of optional, thoroughly playtested material to slot in as you wish.

 

[overgeeked]

The trailer for Discworld already has 82k views. That’s nuts.

 

[Anon Adderlan]

Ironically I actually think the system is more convoluted than it needs to be, as comparing two results creates an odd gap in probabilities, an additional out of narrative transaction, and undermines the whole 'nat20 experience' one gets when they immediately know how well they did. So I propose including the d8 and interpreting the results in the following manner:

• 1 = Oh no!
• 2,3 = Uh oh.
• 4+ = Ohh yeah.

That way I can just state a die and the player gets immediate feedback on how well they did. Sorta like #FreeLeague's step die system, only one die is rolled, the odds are better, and it includes the d4. And the great thing about this game is there's nothing stopping me from doing that.

 

[aramis erak]

I think there are definitely going to be people who, at first glance, won't find wordplay-as-gameplay is something they're going to be comfortable with. Some of them will find out that they click with it, but it's not unreasonable for some people not to vibe with that, just as other people don't like miniatures skirmish games or years-long legacy games.

I have a group that would find it unbearably light. And another that might love it.

But I don't know the setting well enough (hardly at all, in fact), and for how I approach rules, this might be too light.

I can see several reasons to not use Fate, Fudge, Cortex Plus/Prime...
The most obvious is that using the marks for those requires licensing. Even tho' Fate and Fudge are cheap, they're still a cost in time, and a fee for Fate or Cortex. Staff time costs money.
Secondarily, Fate and Cortex are designed to be used fairly robustly - that is, fairly common rolls, with mechanical state contributing heavily to the narrative state.
Thirdly, each has significant connotations for how it plays due to prior works.

Sure. It takes all kinds. It’s just disappointing that so many people hold their noses at lighter games. Especially when it’s something like this that heavy crunchy systems just would absolutely not work for.

There are different expectations of what a ruleset is for...
for me, it's evoking setting truths via mechanics, so I don't have to enforce them in other ways as a GM, and providing a means of determining more fairly than my natural inclinations are what is and isn't reasonable.

For some, they just want a decision maker for edge cases. Most of those folks do well with rules lights. I'm not one of those. Cortex Plus/Prime is as light as I've enjoyed — it's simple, conceptually, but crunchy, as the rules apply often...

What I'm curious to know is if it will have a decent "new to Diskworld" text, and rules that do genre enforcement. But I suspect that won't be knowable until well into the fulfillment process.