#RPGaDay2018 22. Which non-dice system appeals to you?

in tabletop-rpg •  6 years ago 

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There's a poker-mechanic I began developing for a Japanese/Western game I stopped work on after Far West began being developed. Maybe I shouldn't have stopped, given that game is still nowhere to be seen.

The players worked together to create a hand of cards to try and beat the GM's hand, with special abilities helping to modify and switch cards, rather than having to stick with what they drew. High Noon battles were run using blackjack and simple skill-checks were done with the draw of a card.

The poker mechanic worked, but got a bit complicated in larger conflicts. I think what would need to be done if I revisited it, would be that everyone would have to get a hand and all would be compared against the GM's hand.

Players bid from their pools, initially using their skill and experience (low risk) before – if they sought it out – risking their health in the same way to try and win the conflict. When the GM ran out of chips, they won, when the players ran out of chips, they were defeated.

When it comes to existing, diceless systems, the 'rock paper scissors' of Mind's Eye Theatre had a certain elegance and meant you could play anywhere, the deeper and more complex finger-show mechanic in the L5R LARP book was underused, but had some appeal if you wanted more complex rules dynamics in a similar fashion. Card-based play has its own appeal to and games where you build a 'character deck' have been moving around in my brain as much as other ideas lately.

We'll see if anything makes it to reality from there!

Hey, thanks for stopping by. I'm an independent RPG (and other games) designer and author. You can check out my stuff via the links at the side of postmortemstudios.wordpress.com. If you feel so inclined, after a look around, you can support me at patreon.com/grimachu, Minds.com/grimachu or steemit.com/@grimjim. Questions and queries are welcome, remember, 'Nullius in verba'!

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