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<blockquote data-quote="clearstream" data-source="post: 8323183" data-attributes="member: 71699"><p>I'm assaying a mod for 5e - inspired by B/X and WWN - that offers four levels of resolution. <strong>Combat </strong>(about a minute), <strong>scenes </strong>(about ten minutes), <strong>marches </strong>(about eight hours), and <strong>workweeks </strong>(about five days).</p><ul> <li data-xf-list-type="ul"><strong>Combat </strong>is for the most granular action. </li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul"><strong>Scenes </strong>are for skill use - such as, a party of four want to clamber around a pit - that can be resolved without much granular die rolling. Even one and done, at times.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul"><strong>Marches </strong>are for rests, watches, marches (of course!) and random encounters - things that are checked or arc over a day or night.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul"><strong>Workweeks </strong>are for downtime activities - building strongholds, training, making potions, that sort of thing (we're using XGE).</li> </ul><p>This structure is looking promising so far. If there were a combat while clambering around a pit, then we can revert to granular checks and the tempot, space and action rules for combat. If not, then we can just clamber around the pit: that might be one roll, or none, depending (is it sheer, have the party any relevant gear, and so on). Connecting rests with random encounters works neatly (I use longer duration rests, explained in another thread). Workweeks I have yet to playtest in earnest - we've only had one case where it was relevant.</p><p></p><p></p><p>Exactly. I enjoy more when the mechanic for hitting things feels different from the mechanic for chatting to them, and where there is a little more room for the <em>character</em> to be more or less capable (so that they can be differently capable). I'm not dissing other approaches - the AW structure is wonderfully economic - but here I am designing to my own taste. That said, I feel I have gained a lot from better appreciating those other systems; what they are doing, and how they guide as to use.</p><p></p><p></p><p>Again, on point. I felt a strong need to expand the expressive range of the d20. In combat we have 1 auto-fails, 20 auto-hits and crits. I've expanded that 1 botches an ability check if it would fail, but that is not much more expressive. I am trying to think of ways to improve on it. The AW 2d6 neatly offers full success, success with drawback, fail and drawback, and in some cases super-success. The downside of the 2d6 is that it is sensitive to modifiers so you can only really work with +/- 5 or less. Helpfully, the first +/-1 matters more than the fifth, although the fifth could yield degenerate cases. Gain in expressive range of outcomes has come at a small cost in expressive range of inputs. I'm not fond of the count successes approach used by some other systems, because it is not at all intuitive to understand the true odds (I mean, BW goes ahead and puts in a reference table just to try and ameliorate that!) On the other hand, I kind of like L5R...</p><p></p><p>Anyway, unmodified, the AW 2d6 is offering ~16% of full success, ~42% success with drawback, and ~42% fail and drawback. Better than a coin flip of some sort of success. 5% at either end on d20 is a <em>long </em>way from that! I feel this little piece of engineering, if finessed, could be very helpful. It could have important consequences for the way the system can be played. Any thoughts?</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="clearstream, post: 8323183, member: 71699"] I'm assaying a mod for 5e - inspired by B/X and WWN - that offers four levels of resolution. [B]Combat [/B](about a minute), [B]scenes [/B](about ten minutes), [B]marches [/B](about eight hours), and [B]workweeks [/B](about five days). [LIST] [*][B]Combat [/B]is for the most granular action. [*][B]Scenes [/B]are for skill use - such as, a party of four want to clamber around a pit - that can be resolved without much granular die rolling. Even one and done, at times. [*][B]Marches [/B]are for rests, watches, marches (of course!) and random encounters - things that are checked or arc over a day or night. [*][B]Workweeks [/B]are for downtime activities - building strongholds, training, making potions, that sort of thing (we're using XGE). [/LIST] This structure is looking promising so far. If there were a combat while clambering around a pit, then we can revert to granular checks and the tempot, space and action rules for combat. If not, then we can just clamber around the pit: that might be one roll, or none, depending (is it sheer, have the party any relevant gear, and so on). Connecting rests with random encounters works neatly (I use longer duration rests, explained in another thread). Workweeks I have yet to playtest in earnest - we've only had one case where it was relevant. Exactly. I enjoy more when the mechanic for hitting things feels different from the mechanic for chatting to them, and where there is a little more room for the [I]character[/I] to be more or less capable (so that they can be differently capable). I'm not dissing other approaches - the AW structure is wonderfully economic - but here I am designing to my own taste. That said, I feel I have gained a lot from better appreciating those other systems; what they are doing, and how they guide as to use. Again, on point. I felt a strong need to expand the expressive range of the d20. In combat we have 1 auto-fails, 20 auto-hits and crits. I've expanded that 1 botches an ability check if it would fail, but that is not much more expressive. I am trying to think of ways to improve on it. The AW 2d6 neatly offers full success, success with drawback, fail and drawback, and in some cases super-success. The downside of the 2d6 is that it is sensitive to modifiers so you can only really work with +/- 5 or less. Helpfully, the first +/-1 matters more than the fifth, although the fifth could yield degenerate cases. Gain in expressive range of outcomes has come at a small cost in expressive range of inputs. I'm not fond of the count successes approach used by some other systems, because it is not at all intuitive to understand the true odds (I mean, BW goes ahead and puts in a reference table just to try and ameliorate that!) On the other hand, I kind of like L5R... Anyway, unmodified, the AW 2d6 is offering ~16% of full success, ~42% success with drawback, and ~42% fail and drawback. Better than a coin flip of some sort of success. 5% at either end on d20 is a [I]long [/I]way from that! I feel this little piece of engineering, if finessed, could be very helpful. It could have important consequences for the way the system can be played. Any thoughts? [/QUOTE]
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