Percentile Systems? Just Say No!

[Mike Eagling]

Are there any d% systems that also have levels?

I've just realised Rolemaster/MeRP has both levels and d%-based mechanics and is arguably the biggest advert for the OP's point!

 

[JoshDemers]

MERP uses d% and has both classes and levels. I assume Rolemaster does, too since that is what MERP is based on.

 

[JoshDemers]

And I just realized I shouldn't read these posts on my phone because sometimes I miss what people are saying and repeat them. HOURS LATER.

 

[pogre]

One game I found that had an inventive use for d% was Chronicles of Ramlar. All skills were in %, but in combat, the "1"s die also determined the hit location.

I always liked how it works in WFRP 1e & 2e. Reverse the % to determine hit location.

 

[jonesy]

I like the percentile system in Top Secret, but the stuff you can do in that is fairly realistic (in a James Bond kind of way) so there's never really that big of a difference between the skill levels of characters. In Top Secret some character attributes are based on combinations of other character attributes and turning the system d20 could be kinda difficult (because then you'd have to deal with fractions which sounds like math you don't want to deal with in RPG combat or otherwise).

Edit:
To elaborate, in Top Secret real power doesn't come from how high your stats are (though that does help), but rather from how versatile your skill set is. And characters who survive to have a long careers will have a skill list as long as something really long. The percentage system works well, because you need all the help you can to be able to figure out quickly what you can or can't do (which gets harder and harder the more experienced the character is).

I remember a conversion someone did of James Bond into the game (I don't recall if it was official, or what) and he was a slightly above avarage guy with a gigantic list of skills.

 

[Votan]

I've just realised Rolemaster/MeRP has both levels and d%-based mechanics and is arguably the biggest advert for the OP's point!

Yes, that was my instinct as well. Heck, the open-ended nature of the attack roles is pretty mimicked with a d20 system.

I do think the critical system (which is based on a small chance of dreadful outcomes) would need to be completely rethought in a d20 version. But GURPS manages very realistic combat without the charts, so it should be at least possible to do.

 

[TMRose]

Actually, in Stormbringer, you could have a skill of over 100%.

It didn't mean you hit every time: there were still penalties due to this or that, and it would affect your criticals. If your sword skill was 126%, and you were fighting a skilled combatant, your actual chance to hit him might be more like 73%, and your chance to crit him would be 12%.

I do know that. In most systems based on Basic role playing , you could have a skill over a hundred. But after you added in all the modifiers, you seldom had a %100 chance to hit, and even if you did the other side could still dodge or parry.

 

[TMRose]

I've always wanted to see some kind of system that uses percentile in its literal terms: 100% equals 100%, you've completely accomplished your goal. I don't know if it's possible, but if someone said they had put something like that together, I would want to check it out.

In Basic role playing system a100% means you will suceded most of the time( a die roll of 96-100 always means you fail) But there are Mods you add in.
For example you have Read write english at 100% means you can read al the books in the local library, But there might be-15 to understand some one speaking pidgin English from Hawaii, a -20 to understand a 12 century manuscript in English and a -50 to understand some one from Scotland.

 

[JoshDemers]

In Basic role playing system a100% means you will suceded most of the time( a die roll of 96-100 always means you fail) But there are Mods you add in.

Thanks, I'll give Basic a look. I was actually going even more literal than that: you roll 50 on d%, and you've accomplished 50% of your task; you roll 68% and you've accomplished 100% of your task. Problem is, that would be such a random system, I can't think of how you would do it with any dramatic tension. You could kill a dragon in one hit by rolling a 100, then take forever to kill a kobold by rolling under 10 every time. The power of the task or obstacle is totally negated.

I guess I like the idea of the more literal representation, but I can't see how to do it.

 

[Argyle King]

I've come to prefer multiple dice and a bell curve over a flat roll. I'm undecided on % systems; usually, I'm perfectly happy to use 3d6 or something similar.