Let's Talk About Character Resources To Power Abilities

[A_Carrington]

NOTE: this threads is yet another in my "series" to get me thinking about a specific aspect of TTRPG design, as I try and build a conceptual foundation for my own RPG.

As it pertains to the subject, the resources I am talking about here are things like spell slots, power points, Hope (not as a metacurrency but as fuel for abilities), etc... I am not talking about torches, arrows, or hit points, but things like "stamina" that work like hit points but also power abilities might qualify.

Many TTRPGs have some resource or collection of resources that the player uses to power their characters abilities. This can be as general as END from Hero system, or as specific as the long list of class based "points" in Draw Steel!

How do you fee about the inclusion of these sort of resources in TTRPGs? Are there alternatives that you prefer (time based cooldowns, for example)? Or do you prefer systems that don't include them at all (if you can do it, you can do it -- many modern supers games work this way)? Is there a middle ground or "why not both?" system you prefer?

What RPGs do these kinds of resources well, and which ones do it poorly? What RPGs manage to let PCs have cool powers without forcing players to count beans?

As usual, thank you for your participation and insights.

My game leaves it up to the players. There are many different methods. Off the top of my head : Limited, Conditional, Unreliable, Charges, Recharge, Shutdown, Burnout, Overload, Resources, Invention, Item, Power Limits, Finite Power, Harmful, Costly. All optional, and each one provides some benefit in exchange for placing some kind of restriction on when, where, how, or how often you can use a particular power, or they apply some kind of active cost or drawback to a power's usage. Each one creates some kind of interesting decision in relation to using the power, and since no hero is ever limited to just doing a single gimmick, there is usually not a single obvious best or worst option, just different options.