[Nevercast] - Mechanics Reference
Ar Kayon:
I've made some alterations to the proposed method in order to streamline the process. To start, the actual numerical ranges of success and failure are now uniform throughout every dice rank (so no matter what, scoring a total roll of 55 is always a minor success). Instead, dice ranks introduce a fixed modifier of +/- 10% to your roll (this is to prevent mucking about with un-rounded numbers because none of the subsystems delve into such fine granularity for that to be necessary). For example, dice rank 0 has a 50% chance of success. Dice rank 1 adds a modifier of +10% to your roll, whereas DR -1 introduces a -10 percent modifier. Therefore, it's extremely easy to determine what each dice rank means without having to consult the manual (-2 DR...aha, it means -20 percent modifier!). To reiterate: a uniform gradient of progression, no changing dice, and no changing target numbers result in a quicker rate of calculation than the original Graduated Dice Method.
Not to mention it also solves the initial problem of weapon failure independent of skill. It appears that, thanks to you, I may have created a much better core resolution system because you broke it. This is exactly the kind of end result I was hoping for, and exactly the reason why I specifically asked for an objective assessment rather than an opinion of taste.
horomancer:
That begs the questions-
1. Is it possible to have a DR rating of 10 or more to give you over 100% success? If So what does this mean for your game? Auto success with no roll? chance of super critical?
2. Is it possible to have a DR of -10 or more to give you a negative percentile? If so what would this mean for your game?
3. Will success brackets be even or will they be skewed so minor and regular success happen more often than critical?
And something that i've been meaning to ask for a while is what is a major, regular and minor success? What does it do mechanically for me? Are results just made up on the fly prior to the roll?
Ar Kayon:
Quote from: horomancer on February 28, 2011, 05:01:40 PM
1. Is it possible to have a DR rating of 10 or more to give you over 100% success? If So what does this mean for your game? Auto success with no roll? chance of super critical?
-The DR ratings go from +5 to -5 (50% / -50%). At these extreme ends, there is a 100% chance of success or failure, but rolling the die determines the gradient: minor, moderate, critical. These extreme dice rankings are especially important for armor and composure checks.
In game terms, this means that DR 5 for armor causes any normal attack to be mitigated to some degree. Rolling in the minor range could represent a square hit, or one that strikes a weak point in the armor. Likewise, if you’re at -5 DR for a composure check, your roll could be the difference between freezing up and being a lamb to the slaughter, being able to run away, or getting whipped up into a frenzy and going apeshit on whatever’s in front of you (this is actually an NPC effect when successfully using certain skilled maneuvers on them during social situations, by the way).
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3. Will success brackets be even or will they be skewed so minor and regular success happen more often than critical?
- The brackets will be uneven. Right now I’m trying to tweak the dice so that your chance of a moderate qualifier increases the more the dice rank diverges from 0. Also, to prevent balance issues, critical qualifiers need to be natural rolls, just like in D&D. The byproduct of this mechanic is the intended mechanic I’m actually going for: a qualifier curve that gradually apexes in the moderate range.
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And something that i've been meaning to ask for a while is what is a major, regular and minor success? What does it do mechanically for me? Are results just made up on the fly prior to the roll?
-I would like as little hand-waving as possible for my game, so just about every action covered under the skill tree explicitly states the effects upon rolling within each bracket. Some actions, however, require only a binary success/fail roll, so rolling within any success range is an absolute success and any failure range is an absolute failure. For example, trying to guess a password can only have two possible outcomes: you’re either right or you’re wrong.
Ar Kayon:
Skills
In Nevercast, characters are predominantly defined by their makeup of skills. Skills not only represent talents and practiced abilities, but also various aspects of physical and psychological makeup. It is for this reason that skills are organized amongst three interacting tiers.
Tier 1: Category (Discipline)
The largest tier, a skill category represents your overall ability within a broad discipline of related skill groups. Your level of Discipline measures how composed and confident you are when practicing under varying conditions. Thus, a “Discipline Roll” is used whenever a significant amount of stress is placed upon a character during a challenge of skill. Some examples of a skill category would be “Combat” and “Social Interaction”.
Tier 2: Group (Aptitude)
A skill group represents how well you can execute any of the individual abilities the group consists of. Your Aptitude level measures forcefulness, timing, and speed of application. The “Aptitude Roll” is used whenever you make a skillful action in response to any significant challenge. Some examples of a skill group would be “Firearms” and “Personal Combat” within the “Combat” discipline.
Tier 3: Type (Knowledge)
A skill type represents your knowledge and technical proficiency of a specific subject within a skill group. Developing skill in a specialized sphere of knowledge will grant your character the ability to use “skilled maneuvers/techniques/abilities” during a challenge of skill, which may provide situation-specific advantages. Furthermore, Some examples of a skill type would be the “Unarmed” and “Grappling” specializations of the “Personal Combat“ group.
Developing your Skills
The only tier you may directly influence is the Knowledge classification of skills. After a certain period of time, you will earn points to distribute amongst skill types, based largely upon your profession. Thus, skills within your field of expertise will naturally develop at a quicker rate.
In order to develop your Aptitude, you must allocate points to both the skill types within that skill group and auxiliary skill types within related groups. For example, in order to develop Personal Combat, you must allocate points to individual modes of combat, such as Grappling, as well as individual skill types within the Physical Fitness group of skills.
In order to develop a Discipline, you must role-play your skills, in which points awarded will be based on how challenging, stressful, or realistic the situation is. When you earn points in this area, you simultaneously earn points in all Aptitude groups within the discipline.
Ar Kayon:
I've done some new work on the mechanics. Combat and weapons have been fleshed out more. In the following posts, I will go over the major aspects of the combat system: battle sequence, battle grid, ranged combat, close-quarters combat, and weapons and armor. Some information may be redundant, but I still wanted to compose everything together for the sake of clarity.
The discussion remains the same: examine the integrity of the mechanics, including resolution speed, consistency of rules, logic of rules (is it necessary, or can it be done better some other way?), and clarity of language.
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