Anduria's role-play system - Making Off

 Hello everyone!

When I started my rampage of projects related to Anduria one of the things that I had in mind was to set up some P&P role-play campaigns (or as close to it as we can during these covid times)

And my first road-block was to find the best system for it. The magic system on Anduria is not really translatable into normal d&d or pathfinder and even more exotic systems that I tried out in the past didn't have the feeling that I was aiming for.

But almost all systems that I have played in the past had something that I really enjoyed but at the same time, all of them had stuff that I really dislike.

The level up

One example of stuff that I really don't like is the level-up system on classic d&d. PC kill monster, PC gains XP, PC levels up. It always seemed really strange to me that the PCs would go for a couple of sessions exactly the same and then there would be a moment where he would get better at stuff. I prefer a lot more the level up system associated with d100 systems or video games like the elder scrolls (which I'm aware also have a normal level-up system, but a bit toned down from the classic model) where you would do a couple of stuff during the day and could get very slightly better at it. It creates a more natural and seamless level-up process where the PCs are always getting better and the progress happens across time instead of happening all at once at the same time. 

So this was my first decision, to use the level-up system associated with d100 systems. So I started from there. 

I used both the Stormbringer 4th edition (a system based on the stories of Elric of Melniboné that would, in turn, inspire the Witcher series) and Call of Cthulhu 7th edition (which is inspired by the works of H. P. Lovecraft)

The combat

The problem with those systems is that they aren't very focused on combat, which was something that I really wanted, so I used the combat system from PathFinder 2.0. I have found it to be the best combat system from among the ones that I have tested, with the 3 action's turn being really easy to explain to new players while allowing for very different combat styles for each PC.

This being said, I do have some issues with how classic D&D handles PCs stats and proficiencies. One clear example is when your PC gains more strength (be it from a level up or an item, is not really relevant for the discussion) and would suddenly be better with all weapons in the universe. Yes, your PC could not have proficiency with some weapons which would mean he is not as good, but the bonus with that weapon would increase. The D100 system of skills fixes this in the, in my opinion, best way possible.

In D100 systems how good you are with a weapon is not dependent on any stat other than how easy it is to use such a weapon and your skill with it.  If your PC has always used a sword he will get very good at using a sword, but in a pinch, if he has to use a hammer he will not be as good, which, for me, makes a lot of sense, especially because your PC will probably get better with the hammer and next time he will not be as bad. For me, this is how experience should work on a game.

You do something, you might learn something new and due to that, you get a bit better. No "DING" moments where your character suddenly gets better at a bunch of stuff even if he never used that thing since the last level up.

The Stats

Different systems have always had different stats to represent the PCs, but my experience has shown me that if two systems have the same number of stats, those stats will probably be the same ones.

You have all the d20 systems that hail from the original d&d, be its newer versions of d&d, pathfinder or modern d20, almost all d20 systems use,  6 stats, STR, DEX, CON, INT, CHA and WIS, while d100 systems normally use 7 stats, STR, CON, SIZE, DEX, APP, INT, POW (and some use an optional stat EDU for modern themed campaigns) 

I don't really like any of those options. They have a huge focus on physical stats and not enough on everything else. For example, d20 systems using this model end up having 3 stats for physical traits, 2 for mental traits, and only one stat for interacting with the people around you.

The world of darkness series fixed this for me, implementing a system with 9 stats, 3 for physical, 3 for mental, and 3 for social interactions which I really enjoyed. With 9 stats you can really configure your PC as you want and when I played that system I had the vivid impression that all PCs were very different from one another based sorely on the numeric numbers that they had for each stat as it caused diversity. If a party had 2 players going for social interaction maybe one would be more manipulative but the other would be more charismatic. 

Unfortunately, the 9 stats weren't exactly what I needed so I end up changing them a bit and I ended up with Strength, Dexterity, Constitution, Charisma, Manipulation, Appearance, Intelligence, Wits and Power/Luck 

Power and Luck being just one attribute is a concession that I made to myself that (I hope) will make sense when I get to write an entry on the magic system. But basically, the aptitude that you have for doing magic is directly related to how the universe wants you to succeed in life. 

The Combat

The combat system is what I'm working on right now and this first campaign that I'm running will serve to test it out for the first couple of sessions until we get to the most exotic mechanics. 

This being said the gist of it is that while in combat you can either dodge, parry, or block your opponent's attacks, depending on what you have equipped. Also, as the combat advances, the items that are used will start to crack, like when two swords hit each other or if your armor takes too much punishment so each combat should, in theory, have an urge to it, because when you are out os shield and armor nothing is stopping the opponent's sword from cutting you up.

This was slightly inspired by the Stormbringer 4th edition combat rules but I changed it profoundly. If those changes were good or not I can't say yet as, at the time I'm writing this, We had one single combat using this system.

The rest

I haven't finished the system, not by a long shot. I haven't even touched most of the magic-related stuff. But I will get to it.

This is it for now.

Love you all <3