The d100 luck system, a revolution in gaming!

[RangerWickett]

Huh. The "special" result on 69 is a little juvenile for my taste. I'm not sure it's needed.

Well, you have to realize that I got this system from the same GM who's had things like:

* A capricious demon offers to teleport us where we need to go, if we can beat him in . . . Hollywood Squares!

* We were trying to sneak into a forest full of treants, and badguys caught up to us while we were sleeping in our camp. Combat ensues, and we're having trouble, so the PC paladin cries for the help of her goddess. To see if a minor miracle is granted, the GM rolls a 100, so suddenly one of the trees nearby animates as a treant and stomps on a villainous fire mage, saying "Only you can prevent forest fires."

* Just to see what we'd do, the GM tells us at the beginning of one session, "You're walking along, and you see two belts in the road of front of you. They have 'Girdle of Sex Change' written on them."

* We got a scrying device, but it's like a slot machine. Put 5 GP in, and it shows you a random location that you might be interested in. This ranges from seeing our villains hatching schemes, to the weeping wife of a poor innocent man we accidentally killed with a fireball, to a Spaceballs-esque 'watching ourselves watching ourselves watching ourselves watching ourselves watching ourselves.'

* Our PC bard's Perform skill of choice is telling dirty jokes. This actually came in handy once, when a Perform check of 32 caused an invisible wizard to start chuckling so we could attack him.

So it's a whacky game. I think the only time a 69 was actually rolled was while the PC bard was attempting to distract a crowd with his performances.

 

[RangerWickett]

By the way, Piratecat, since you're a sleep specialist, maybe you can tell me if I'm keeping a bad sleep schedule.

Friday.
Stay up til 4am after seeing The Matrix
Wake up at 8am to go turn in applications for a summer job.
Go to friend's house to watch DVDs, and end up sleeping from 5pm to 9pm.

Saturday.
Stay up til 8am to watch Saturday morning cartoons
Wake up at 3pm

Sunday
Stay up til 4am
Wake up at 3pm

Monday
Stay up til 5am
Wake up at 9am
Nap from 7pm to 9pm

Tuesday
I haven't gone to bed yet

 

[nsruf]

I've been using a variant, the "grab the next best die luck system", for years. But the idea of giving certain numbers special meanings, whether juvenile or not, is appealing and seems to work best with d100.

 

[tennyson]

This does sound interesting, so here's a question. Do you think it would be more fun for the DM to roll the percentage (keeping it hidden), or to have the PC roll it in the open (watching the dice answer their own question)?

I like the idea of open rolling because of the suspense that looms over the roll, but I can see how it would let the PCs inadventently know the general result of the outcome before the DM explains it. Then again, if the roll is bad, what does it matter if they know immediately, or wait for the DM to tell them?

 

[Oni]

Huh. The "special" result on 69 is a little juvenile for my taste. I'm not sure it's needed.

Otherwise, it's a fine system! I prefer to make that sort of thing up on the fly, but we use something similar for divinations; since you have to make a % roll to see if your divination succeeded, the lower the roll, the more accurate the advice.

An old DM of mine used the 69 = special result on any roll of a d100 though without any sexual connotations (well beyond the number itself). It was great and would really liven things up when it happened, especially fun when we played the old marvel superheroes game which is d100 based.

 

[Trainz]

I've been using a similar system for years, but I roll a d6 instead.

For example: locate Chain mail.

1: Absolutely not.
2: No.
3: No, but might be able ot have someone make one.
4: Yes, but have to really look for it/ pay 50% more for it.
5: Yes.
6: Yes, at a discount. Or yes, plus there is also a magical (+1 or +2) chain mail available.

I use such d6 rolls often during a typical game session. I call it my best friend.

 

[wighair]

Call of Cthulhu has used a luck system for many years. One of the more frenquent rolls I call for as a Keeper. Did it not make it into the D20 version?

Also, as for rolling in front of players or not...

The trick is to have two sets of dice. place one behind the screen already set to 01 or 00 or whatever you need may be for maximum dramatic effect. Then roll the other behind the screen.
Jump up in shock shouting you lucky/unlucky swines! remove screen and reveal *amazing* result.

I wouldn't do this too often though. I've used it once in twenty years. ;-)

I used it to save a player character's bacon without the player realising. If i had just said "you survive/escape/whatever" I'm sure his interest/belief would have been lost, but as it was he survived and was elated and STILL brings up the details of his amazing escape every once in a while. I haven't the heart to shatter the illusion.

 

[tleilaxu]

Huh. The "special" result on 69 is a little juvenile for my taste. I'm not sure it's needed.

I don't get it, is there some special meaning to the number 69?

 

[alsih2o]

I don't get it, is there some special meaning to the number 69?

yes, but i cannot think of a way to explain it that would not offend erics grandma.

 

[RangerWickett]

I don't get it, is there some special meaning to the number 69?

It only offend's Eric/Morrus's grandmother if it's offensive. I'll be scientific, and hope no one minds.

'Sixty-nine,' written as '69', is a name for a set of positions partners can take while having sex. It is called that because the two people face in opposite directions, with one person's legs by the other's head. If you imagine that the round part on the 6 and 9 are the heads of simplified stick figures, you'll see that it's a crude representation of two people in such a position.