What "poor" mechanics do you love?

[The Crimson Binome]

How are the ability scores awful? I've played games where the only scores are Physical score and Cognitive score, games where constitution and wisdom are nonexistent, and games with other systems, but the six D&D ability scores seem decent enough.

As far as I'm concerned, the major problem with the six D&D scores is that all of the mental scores are ambiguous. Nobody can agree on what high-Wisdom low-Intelligence, or high-Wisdom low-Charisma, are supposed to look like. Mechanics that are supposed to target mind or willpower are applied scattershot across the three scores.

 

[aramis erak]

I'm kind of fond of a number of mechanics...

Prime Directive 1E

I love the tricode system. it allows nuancing target numbers. Explaining the ins and outs of it is an essay in itself... but the 4 explicit TNs and 2 derived outcomes...
Nutshell:
best single die from the pool is compared to the TNs x/y/z (with default 4/6/8)
Best die < x/2, fumble
Best die < x fail
best die ≥ x partial success
best die ≥ y moderate success
best die ≥ z complete success
best die ≥ 2z critical success

Modifiers are sets of +x/+y/+z

typical pools range from 2d6 to 6d6, and 6 counts 5+reroll, count only best die.

There's also the "Background" roll...

which ties PC's into the ongoing story via adding previously undefined connections, and often adds a skill if the PC lacks it. (I say often, but every published does so.)

 

[Tony Vargas]

I bought my Shadowrun character a "permanent squatter lifestyle" - that's a poor mechanic, well, a mechanic for being poor, anyway.
But, I really /did/ like the mechanic of buying a permanent lifestyle.

 

[generic]

As far as I'm concerned, the major problem with the six D&D scores is that all of the mental scores are ambiguous. Nobody can agree on what high-Wisdom low-Intelligence, or high-Wisdom low-Charisma, are supposed to look like. Mechanics that are supposed to target mind or willpower are applied scattershot across the three scores.

That's why we have Will saves. Amen 3e and Pathfinder.

 

[DammitVictor]

How are the ability scores awful? I've played games where the only scores are Physical score and Cognitive score, games where constitution and wisdom are nonexistent, and games with other systems, but the six D&D ability scores seem decent enough.

Well, all Ability Scores are going to make some assumptions about clusters of qualities that don't track reality... but they make some kind of sense.

Like carrying capacity has more to do with endurance than it does with striking power... and if we're talking a normal healthy human adult, there's never going to be more than a 3-4 point difference between STR and CON, and things like that.

Strength and Constitution are actually my go-to examples for good ability scores in D&D, even though my go-to for good ability design, the wholly underrated Barbarians of Lemuria just combines them. D&D gameplay benefits from dividing them, even though it doesn't make much sense.

You know how Dexterity's the stat that does everything? Saving Throw (before 5e), Armor Class, ranged attacks, melee attacks (starting with 3e) and either #1 or #2 (behind INT) most skills? Dexterity is grossly overpowered. STR and CON separate things that are tightly linked, but DEX combines things with zero connection whatsoever. There's no correlation between reaction time and marksmanship; there's no correlation between acrobatics and stealth; and so on and so on.

Dexterity needs to be two or even three scores. Rolemaster does this well.

Intelligence is mostly good except in Third when a Fighter has to put points in it to be able to Climb, Jump, and Swim. And whenever you're trying to articulate the difference between INT/WIS skills and saves.

In addition to touching INT's spaghetti, Wisdom also covers willpower and overall perception (wut.) including getting a read on people. Which of those things explains Wisdom's connection to divine magic? Or, for that matter, the Profession skill in Third.

Charisma is also willpower and social skills. Okay, that makes sense. It's self-confidence and motivation... but Dwarves get a penalty to it because it's also appearance and likeability, and it doesn't have any effect on Will Saves because that's Wisdom. Tieflings had a CHA bonus in AD&D, a penalty in Third, and a bonus again in Fourth and Fifth because seriously, nobody knows what this does.

It's garbletrash, man. D&D has to do it because D&D has always done it, but noone else should ever do it.

HARP's got a good handle on it: STR and CON exist, DEX is split into Agility and Quickness, and INT/WIS are split into Reason, Insight, and Self-Discipline. The parts of CHA that didn't go to Self Discipline are Presence. It's a little complicated because everything adds two stats to the roll, but the delineations are clear and sensible.

 

[TarionzCousin]

I like critical fumbles--but only when I DM!

 

[doctorbadwolf]

Ability scores. I don’t care about the arguments concerning the details. It makes so sense to me that wisdom should have anything at all to do with willpower. And yet, I have rarely liked any wildly different set of abilities. The One Ring has 3 scores that work well for that game, but even there I miss having differentiation between agility and physical power.

My own game changes some of the stats, replacing Int and Wis with Wits and Will, for instance. But in my game, your abilities are a pool of points you can draw upon to fuel special abilities or to improve checks of any kind. You can draw upon your Strength to run faster, or upon your Agility, or use Wits to cut the most efficient route or manipulate your breathing to get more energy.

 

[MNblockhead]

I like critical fumbles--but only when I DM!

Yes, but your poor player of a high-level fighter probably isn't a fan.

At my table we use critical hit decks to add some flavor to crit hits, but a "1" is just a miss, regardless of modifiers.

 

[GMMichael]

This mechanic is "poor" in the sense that it's been around since D&D 1. Or BECMI, or OSR, or whatever it's called these days...

Players are limited to acting through their characters.


A notable exception to this is Dungeon World, in which you control your portion of the story more than you control a character. Another is Numenera, which lets you choose a path through a story tree by accepting or denying GM "Intrusions." But I still love players being characters and GMs being gods...as archaic as it is.

Mechanics that are supposed to target mind or willpower are applied scattershot across the three scores.

That's inevitable, because mind is an ability while willpower is a skill. Apples and oranges.