Homebrew RWBY system [WiP]

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EpicEclipse
Posts: 2473
Joined: Mon Jun 12, 2017 8:06 pm

Homebrew RWBY system [WiP]

Post by EpicEclipse »

D6, 1-3 is fail, 4-6 is success.

If Attribute’s Active state is higher than opponent’s Active/Reactive, +1 advantage
-If lower, +1 Disadvantage
If Approach is in favorable position, +1 advantage
-If unfavorable, +1 Disadvantage
If player spends plot point, +1 advantage (Only one per action)
-Negated if opponent also spends Plot Point
If player uses Shining Moment, +1 advantage (Only one per action)
-Negated if opponent also uses Shining Moment

BODY(Physical), MIND(Mental) and SOUL(Social) are the basic Attributes measured from 1 - 10 with 1 being a little below average, 2 being average and scaling up to 10 being near superhuman. Raising an attribute costs 2XP per previous rank. All Attribute begin at 1, so raising an Attribute to 2 costs 2XP, 3 costs 4XP and so on. Each level of an Attribute grants 3AXP to spend on Traits associated with that Attribute as well as the Active and Reactive state of the attribute.

ACTIVE and REACTIVE states are values compared when making opposed actions and will be made more clear in the combat section. The Active state of an Attribute is used when a character is actively doing something such as attacking or trying to convince someone of something. The Reactive state of an Attribute is defensive, a resistance to things being done to the character. Any time a roll is made, a character uses either their Active or Reactive state, not the total Attribute value. Active and Reactive attributes may not be higher than the base Attribute but only cost 1AXP per level.

WOUNDS are determined by the character’s Reactive Attributes for Body and Mind and determine how much damage a character can take. Mind wounds are less common but dangerous since Aura does not protect against them, nor heals them. Body wounds can only be taken when Aura is depleted, except in rare circumstances where Aura is not active or can somehow be bypassed.

AURA is determined by the character’s Reactive Soul attribute and grants 2 wounds per point instead of 1. While a character has Aura, their wounds heal slowly. (See Recovery)

TRAITS are skills or training a character has such as knowledge on particular subjects, piloting skills, being intimidating, fighting ability and so on and may also include a profession which entails basic knowledge and skills such a profession would reasonably have. Each trait is associated with one of the three Attributes. If the trait could have multiple Attributes associated with it, pick one that most strongly influences the Trait as the character uses it, this may not be changed later. Traits have a level from 1 to 3 and each level allows the character a plot point related to the trait. Once used, these plot points are restored after a significant downtime period, usually between adventures. A character with duplicate Traits using different Approaches may use plot points from any of them. Traits cost 1APX per level.

SPECIAL NOTE ABOUT TRAITS: Having even a single level of a Trait is being trained in the Trait. The levels only grant additional plot points and do not necessarily mean being “better” trained. It could be a natural aptitude or even just dumb luck in regards to the Trait. This is why the rank of the Trait used is not factored for granting Advantage, only the use of a Plot Point.

Traits also have an Approach, which flavors the execution of the Trait when used. A character may have a Trait multiple times with different Approaches, but each is raised separately. The Approaches for Traits are Cautious, Powerful, Technical, Swift and Masterful. All Traits are associated with one of Powerful, Technical or Swift and cannot be changed. Cautious and Masterful can be used with any Trait regardless of its normal Approach, but function differently.
-Cautious never grants advantage, but the opponent’s Approach cannot grant them Advantage either.
-Masterful can only be used if the character has at least 1 rank in all three Approaches and is used with the highest ranked (for the purpose of available Plot Points to use. If multiple Traits are tied for highest, you may draw plot points from any of the tie Traits.), but always grants an Advantage unless the opponent is also using Masterful.

SEMBLANCE is a special Attribute that may have Traits of its own. Like the other basic Attributes, Semblance grants 3AXP per level which can be applied to Traits as normal. Semblance works differently though in that any time Semblance is used, the character must make a Soul Resistance check. If they fail, the Semblance still functions, but they take a hit to their Aura. If they succeed, the Semblance functions without cost. If the character is out of Aura, Semblance may only be used by spending a plot point which does not grant advantage, or by spending a Shining Moment which still grants advantage for the action. Improving Semblance costs 2XP per rank.

PERSONAL EQUIPMENT is generally unique and customized to a character and functions as a psudo-Attribute with its own Traits, like Semblance. The difference here is equipment can be disarmed, broken or even turned against their makers and wielders. Equipment does work a little differently than regular Attributes however depending on the type of equipment it is.
-Weapons must have a Trait for each weapon mode. The Approach of each weapon mode does not need to match a combat Trait, but if, for example, a character with a Powerful combat trait used a Swift weapon mode Trait against a target using a Technical Trait, the Advantage gained by using the Powerful combat Trait would be cancelled out by the weapon’s Swift weapon mode Trait. Note that using the same Approach on the combat Trait and the weapon mode Trait does not grant double advantage or disadvantage. A weapon mode may be designated as “Cumbersome” which gives an automatic Disadvantage but does two extra points of severity.
-Armor is not very common as it hinders movement. A “light armor” may have a single defensive Trait. More than a single Trait makes the armor cumbersome and automatically gives disadvantage on Body checks except strictly non-mobility defensive checks. Shields follow the same general rule. This includes having the same Trait with different Approaches.
-Hybrid equipment that mixes armor and weapon together factors both. A single defensive Trait allows the weapon to be a “light armor” or shield without any negative effect. Any more than one defensive Trait causes the Hybrid item to be cumbersome. If any equipment has additional features outside of attacking or defending, such as a grappling hook, that may be factored in as a Trait as well.

Improving Weapons costs 2XP per rank.

NOTE: Simple weapons add a point of Severity on a successful attack. Hunter and Huntress weapons are considered advanced weapons and add two points of Severity. A weapon that is cumbersome adds a further two Severity, so cumbersome simple weapons add three Severity and cumbersome hunter and huntress weapons add four Severity to successful attacks. (Base Severity is determined by how much the attack succeeds by.)

PLOT POINTS are a resource a character has based on their Traits. Each level in a Trait gives a Plot Point for use when that Trait is being used and represents the Trait having a positive influence on the outcome of a check. You may only use a Plot Point from a Trait when the Trait is an active part of the action being taken.

DUST USAGE: Dust comes in a variety of colors and in various forms that reacts when stimulated by one’s aura. They are used in ammunition, crystals and raw powdered forms most commonly, though people have found other techniques for utilizing dust as well but they are less common or considered “old fashioned”. A great many weapons incorporate dust either as a power source or ammunition and when used this way is a Trait under the weapon. When dust is used apart from a weapon, the Trait should fall under Soul, even if used in conjunction with one’s Semblance. Dust Traits should be separated by the color of dust, as well as the Approach assigned. A character must possess Dust in order to utilize it, and it is consumed upon use.

FLAWS are an integral part of all good characters. They are personal challenges characters have to overcome, sometimes occasionally, sometimes frequently. Characters are not required to have flaws, but it is strongly recommended to have at least one or two. Whenever a character’s flaw comes into play and affects them adversely, they earn a Shining Moment they can use later.

SHINING MOMENTS are a powerful resource a character may earned by being affected by their Flaws or when they act truly heroically in the face of extreme danger. The most basic use of a Shining Moment is to get an advantage on a check, but it is also the weakest use. A Shining Moment can cause logic itself to step aside to allow a character the chance to attempt something that logic and physics would deem impossible otherwise.

Example: A character sees their friend who is near death being attacked by an enraged ursa, but they are much too far away to logically intercept. A Shining Moment later, the character has defied logic and somehow made it JUST in time to defend their ally. (In this instance, they are ignoring the distance and time it would take to traverse it)

Example: A crazed fanatic has the detonator to a bomb rigged to destroy the main communications tower in one of the kingdoms and their semblance allows them to create a swarm of insect-like motes that makes them nearly impossible to approach to attack. In a Shining Moment, a character makes a logically impossible shot through the tiniest gap in the swarm and shoots the detonator out of the fanatic’s hand. (In this instance, they are making a shot and ignoring the “barrier” that would otherwise block their shot)

Example: A character is outnumbered 5 to 1, already injured with thier friends down. In a Shining Moment, they attack in a flurry of movement in an attempt to defeat the remaining enemies. (In this instance, they are ignoring the disadvantage for fighting a group and attacking all the enemies for full damage)

Example: A character is maxed out in Wounds and would fall unconscious, but there is still fighting to be done and the kingdom is at risk. In a Shining Moment, the character remains conscious and fights on, though they may still become incapacitated and risk death if they take any more wounds.

In essence, the use of a Shining Moment observes the Rule of Cool. If an action would be otherwise considered impossible by conventional means, a Shining Moment allows a character to attempt it anyways. Additionally, for a check involved with a Shining Moment, the limit of using one Shining Moment on a check for an advantage is lifted, allowing for a character with a few Shining Moments stored up to pull off a truly miraculous feat. The actual effects of a Shining Moment can vary and be left to discretion, they may still leave a chance of failure as a roll cannot be circumvented entirely, but they should give an otherwise impossible outcome a chance to happen. A Shining Moment won’t save the day just by invoking one, but it may well make all the difference.

-------------------

DOING STUFF

Most times, doing things comes down to deciding whether a check is needed at all or not. When it is a routine or mundane task that has no real chance of failure, a check is normally only needed when there is a chance of failure or if two forces are acting against one another.

If the character is attempting something where they are not being contested, they are rolling against a static challenge. The challenge MAY have an Approach associated with it that may give an Advantage if a Trait with the right Approach is used.

If the character is contesting another character or NPC, they are rolling opposed where both parties may utilize their Traits and resources for advantages, however, only one person rolls the die and it is rolled from their perspective. In the case of two players, the aggressor should roll the die, but it is ultimately not that important who rolls, only that they roll from their perspective. If it is a player versus an NPC, the player always rolls.

When rolling the die for a challenge that is unopposed, Disadvantages are generated by circumstances, such as environmental factors. Such factors are generally not considered for opposed rolls as they will affect both sides equally, and should a character have a Trait that would negate or benefit them in such conditions, they may spend a Plot Point to represent its use.

When rolling the die for an opposed check, the player generates their Advantages as normal. Any Advantages generated by the opponent are generated as Disadvantages for the player rolling the die. (Advantages are +1 to the roll, Disadvantages are -1. Success is rolling a total of 4 or higher)

If, while rolling a check, the player generates 3 Advantages that are not contested by Disadvantages, the success is automatic. The degree of success is determined where important by how much the roll succeeds by.

1-2 Normal Success
3-4 Great Success
5-6 Incredible Success

COMBAT

Combat begins when one side attacks. Turn order is not so important as all action happens simultaneously from round to round, so each round is conducted in phases.

The first phase is the FACING phase. The GM starts by indicating which player character the NPCs are facing. Players may use this information to choose who they wish to face. Once this is desided, groupings are made based on who is facing whom. All characters facing a single target are grouped together and a primary attacker is chosen.

The second phase is the ACTION phase, where players describe what they would like to do and dice are rolled.

If fighting one on one, there are no special rules. The player always rolls when it is against a GM controlled NPC. The player describes what they would like to do then rolls, applying Advantages and Disadvantages as normal. When the result is determined, the GM describes how the round plays out for them.

When fighting as a group against one enemy, a primary attacker is chosen who gains a free Advantage on the attack. All other attackers in the group are secondary attackers and have Disadvantage on their attacks. Group attacks only inflict one wound, but increase the severity of the wound using the Primary attacker’s attack as a base and increasing the severity by 1 for each successful attacker. If the primary attacker misses, but any of the secondary attackers still hits, the resulting hit still only has a severity of 1 per successful secondary attacker.

When fighting as a group, players may describe teamwork tactics since all the action is happening at the same time and coordination between characters is allowed.

When attacked by either a solo or group of enemies that you are not facing, you may act defensively at Disadvantage. In these instances, the GM typically describes what happens without input from the character’s player as they had their attention elsewhere and as effectively blindsided.

SEVERITY is the potency of an attack. If a successful attack hits a target that has Aura, the Severity is dealt directly to the Aura. If a target does not have enough Aura left to sustain the hit, the remaining severity is dropped along with their Aura. Player characters tend to be a little more resilient and may make a Soul resistance check, which if successful will leave them at 1 point of Aura. This check may be made against all attacks made against them. Once it fails, their Aura falls.

WOUNDS are dealt with an attack hits an enemy without an active Aura. A wound still has Severity, but in this instance, the Severity indicates how bad the wound is, and gives an idea how how long or how hard it will be to heal. A character has a number of Physical Wounds equal to their Body Attribute plus their Reactive Body score, and Mental Wounds equal to their Mind Attribute plus their Reactive Mind. Attacks against the mind are much more rare, but are not defended against by Aura. When a character has Wounds equal to their maximum Wounds, they fall unconscious. If a character takes any more wounds than they can sustain, they become incapacitated and may die from further damage.

AURA is determined by a character’s Soul Attribute plus their Reactive Soul multiplied by 10. Aura recovers naturally with rest at a rate of 10 per hour. A character’s Aura will also heal wounds over time while active. It takes a number of points of Aura equal to the Severity of the wound to heal it, but only one point of Aura can be used for this every minute per Wound.

KNOCKED OUT is a physical condition that can be sustained by a heavy enough hit. If an attack deals more damage than your maximum Wounds minus your current Wounds in Severity, you must make a Body resistance check or be knocked unconscious. (This means the more damage you sustain through a combat, the more likely you are to be knocked unconscious which is slightly better than incapacitated.)

-------------------

SAMPLE

Gidion Clear
Total: 14XP

BODY(3), MIND(2), SOUL(2)
[Body] Active 1
[Body] Reactive 2
[Body] Combat Training (Technical) 1
[Body] Combat Training (Swift) 1
[Body] Pilot (Technical) 2
[Body] Pilot (Swift) 1
[Body] Tough (Power) 1
[Mind] Active 1
[Mind] Reactive 1
[Mind] Navigation (Swift) 1
[Mind] Grimm Lore (Technical) 1
[Mind] Weapon Design (Technical) 1
[Mind] Weapon Design (Swift) 1
[Soul] Active 2
[Soul] Reactive 1
[Soul] Dust (Red, Powerful) 1
[Soul] Dust (Red, Swift) 1
[Soul] Dust (Red, Technical) 1

SEMBLANCE(2): Solar Power
When in direct sunlight, Gidion is stronger in every physical way.
Strength (Powerful) 2
Tough (Powerful) 2
Speed (Powerful) 2

WEAPON(1): Sol Rondo
A pair of chakram rings that are held by a cross-handle in the center. They are keyed to special gloves so when thrown, they can be called back to hand, and have a chamber for dust that Gidion normally uses to use red dust and set the flame-shaped blades of the chakram on fire.
Melee Chakram (Technical) 1
Ranged Chakram (Swift) 2
Last edited by EpicEclipse on Mon Jan 29, 2018 9:12 am, edited 1 time in total.
MacynSnow
Posts: 5631
Joined: Tue Dec 20, 2016 2:56 pm

Re: Homebrew RWBY system [WiP]

Post by MacynSnow »

Can we see an example character sheet?It'll help me visualize the system better(btw:Nice D6 system. It looks like you tried for a setting neutral approach )
EpicEclipse
Posts: 2473
Joined: Mon Jun 12, 2017 8:06 pm

Re: Homebrew RWBY system [WiP]

Post by EpicEclipse »

MacynSnow wrote: Thu Jan 25, 2018 5:55 am Can we see an example character sheet?It'll help me visualize the system better(btw:Nice D6 system. It looks like you tried for a setting neutral approach )
Once I have polished up the rest of the essentials, for sure.

And yeah, despite being inspired for RWBY, the system is being set up to be easily converted for something else if I want to.
EpicEclipse
Posts: 2473
Joined: Mon Jun 12, 2017 8:06 pm

Re: Homebrew RWBY system [WiP]

Post by EpicEclipse »

Updated the first post with a more or less completed system. Dust needs some specifics filled in and the system as a whole most likely needs some tweaks here and there, but it's a foundation to work from.
Flynnarrel
Posts: 6800
Joined: Fri Nov 04, 2016 5:23 pm

Re: Homebrew RWBY system [WiP]

Post by Flynnarrel »

How many XP are you doing for characters?
"Something pithy this way comes."
EpicEclipse
Posts: 2473
Joined: Mon Jun 12, 2017 8:06 pm

Re: Homebrew RWBY system [WiP]

Post by EpicEclipse »

I built Gidion pretty bare bones with 16xp. Rounding it off to 20xp seems good. Could increase mind or could or have two ranks between weapon and semblance.
Flynnarrel
Posts: 6800
Joined: Fri Nov 04, 2016 5:23 pm

Re: Homebrew RWBY system [WiP]

Post by Flynnarrel »

OKay, let's try a match and you can tell me what I did wrong. I also generated some questions.

First I paired off Nesh Ganpati
Nesh Ganpati

20 XP

Body 3 [6XP]
9
Active 3
Reactive 3
Fighting [Body] (Powerful) 1
Fighting [Body] (Technical) 1
Aim [Body], (Technical) 1

Mind 2 [2XP]
6
Active 2
Reactive 1
Scholar [Mind], (Powerful) 1
Scholar [Mind], (Technical) 1
Scholar [Mind], (Swift) 1

Soul 3 [6XP]
9
Active 2
Reactive 3
Meditative [Soul] (Powerful) 2
Trumpeting Intimidation [Soul], (Powerful) 1
Gentle affability [Soul]. (Technical) 1

Combat stats:
Physical Wounds: 3
Aura Wounds: 6
Aura: 60


Semblance 2 [4XP] Lord of Obstacles <Momentum control>
6
Place obstacles (Powerful) 1
Place Obstacles (Technical) 1
Place Obstacle (Swift) 1
Trample Obstacles (Swift) 1
Trample Obstacles (Powerful) 2

Weapon 1 [2XP] Heavy Axe-headed Flail (Pasarasu)
3
Melee (Powerful) 1
Staff-Sling (Technical), Cumbersome 1
Thrown Dust-filled Head (Swift) 1

Flaw(s)
Ponderous - Nesh's Nature tends toward reflection before action.
against another character built on the same points:
Al'Din

Body 2 [2XP]
6
Active 2
Reactive 2
Weapon (Swift) 1
Acrobatics (Technical) 1

Mind 1 [0XP]
3
Active 1
Reactive 1
Thieving (Swift) 1

Soul 4 [12XP]
12
Active 4
Reactive 4
Deception (Powerful) 1
Deception (Technial) 1
Deception (Swift) 2

Semblance 1[2XP] Summons a glowing blue manifestation in the shape of a genie.
3
Genie Attack (Powerful) 1
Genie Attack (Technical) 1
Genie Defense (Powerful) 1

Weapon 2 [4XP] Shamshir/rifle combo called 'Abu'
https://cdn3.volusion.com/fkggp.bkstz/v ... 1466465174
6
Sword (Technical) 1
Rifle (Swift) 1
Rifle (Technical) 1
Magic Carpet (Swift) 1
Magic Carpet (Powerful) 1
Magic Carpet Defense (Swift)1

Physical HP 2
Aura HP: 8
Aura: 80


One on one fight

Al'Din vs. Nesh Ganpati

They start on opposite sides of the arena. The landscape is a lush rainforest on Nesh's side and a sandy desert on Al's side. Both Hunters feel at home in their respective terrains

For initiative let's go with Active mind.
Nesh's is higher so he *would* get +1
But let's activate his Ponderous Flaw letting Al seize the initiative as Nesh is still taking in the Vacuo boy's street-rat clothing.

Al goes first.
Abu, Al's rifle/sword swings up and he Unloads at Nesh while his Carpet swings under his feet and sails him backwards over the sands.

Al will use a swift rifle attack spending the point for +1. His Active Body of 2 vs. Nesh's Reactive body of 3 does not net him an advantage, just the opposite.

Al: [2]+1point.spent -1Attribute.disadv = 2


***Did I do that right or should a roll to attack always go against a roll to defend?
***If one side doesn't have a trait they're using in the conflict there's no trait approach comparison. Should there be some mechanism to deal with this?

Nesh raises an arm and the hail of bullets ricochet off of him harmlessly.

"Huh." the desert-born hunter says seeing his shots have no effect.

Nesh roars and swings his flail, turning his whole body into a hammer toss and flicking the trigger to release the head.

Nesh's Technical staff sling attack is Cumbersome and he'll spend the point for +1.
His Active body is higher than Al's reactive body netting him another +1

Al is trusting his carpet's Swift defense (the only option), spending the point for +1, but the approaches of the traits involved give Nesh the advantage, not Al.
Nesh: [4]+1point.spent-1opp.point.spent+1attribute.adv+1approach.adv - 1clumsiness = 5


***Does the defender still assign a defense trait if possible?
***When multiple options of traits are available the person who chooses second has an advantage over the person who declares first in the approach comparison. Is this a problem that can be corrected?

The head of flail sails and smacks into the soaring street rat!

Let's see the severity of the wound. Base is 2 [how much over 3 it was]+2hunters.wpn+2clumsy = 6 points of damage!

One hit Knocks most of Al's aura wounds away!

***Am I using Aura wounds correctly?
***Should there be an in-combat means to heal these?

Al decides to play it safe and starts turning tights turns around the sand to kick up a sandscreen in order to confuse Nesh.

Al uses a masterful Deception. His approach gives him +1, his 4 active Soul score beats Nesh's Reactive of 3 for another +1, and further Al'll spend a point from his deception trait for another +1

Nesh... is screwed. He has not good trait to defend against this.
So an automatic success but let's see by how much]

Al: [4]+1Approach.adv+1Attribute.adv+1point.spent = 7


Since it's 4 over 3, 4 will be applied as a challenge to overcome if Nesh wants to make an attack vs. the slippery Al'Din.

Nesh will try to overcome the challenge. He'll argue that a masterful scholar approach would let him spot the variance in the shifting sands to allow him to attack. It sounds reasonable to the GM. So despite the challenge no having an Approach, Nesh gets +1. There's no attributes to compare so no help there. Nesh will spend his swift scholar point for another +1.

Nesh: [2]+1Approach.adv+1point.spent = 4. Just what he needed. As a minor combat action Nesh attaches another flail head ready to launch it again.

Al knows he's in dire straits so he calls on his semblance to summon his powerful ally - the genie of the lamp.

Al has to make a soul check or his semblance costs aura.

Al: [2]
A lack of success, it costs Aura which Al gladly pays.

*** Umm.... How Much?
***Even though it's a soul check should a char with a Soul of 4 have an advantage over a char with a Soul of 1?

Presumably we have to roll now to see if the Semblance actives.

Al: [5]

***Can a Semblance traits be spent on the activation of a Semblance?
***Will attribute or Approach ever matter here?

A roll of 5 beats 3 by 2, so let's say the Genie construct has 2 actions it can take with any relevant stat being 2. Al asks Genie to protect him. "I need your help buddy!" "You got it, Al!" cam Genie's chipper reply.

Nesh is ready to send his flail head projectile in again and he's seen through the sand cover.

Nesh will launch the well aimed projectile using his Aim(Technical) trait and spending that point (since the weapon point is spent already for the staff-sling attack).
Al will spend Genie's defense trait point to cancel that out. Further the Powerful approach on the defense overcomes the Technical attack.
Nesh really only has the body comparison going for him. His Faunus form is strong enough to try to power it through. After he launches he will run for the jungle to take the fight where Al's carpet is limited. (but he won't 'dissapear' into the trees as he has no action to do so).

Nesh: [2] +1attribute.adv-1approach.disad+0points.cancel-1clumsiness=1

Genie summons a tennis racket (and skirted outfit) and swats the head away. An unseen crowd cheers.

All presses his advantage. "I'll distract him, you get him!" Carpet pulls him up and fires with his rifle, aiming the shots well [though not spendiong a point]. Genie barrels forward with a powerful slam, taking the form of a train with screaming whistle. [spending his semblance point]
Nesh is a powerful fighter though and spends his plot point there.

Okay two on one fight.

Genie(primary): [5]+1group.adv+0points.cancel+0approach.cancel-1Attrib.disadvantage = 5

Al(secondary): [3]-1group.disad-1Approach.disad-1attribute.disad = 0

Al's shots did nothing but Genie's attack still slams into the ele-Faunus.

***Should Nesh's defense plot point have counted against both of the attackers?

Base severity 2 (it was 5-3) no weapon bonus.

Genie clips him As Nesh gets to the tree line then the semblance summon dissappears. "Good luck, Al....." fades away.

Nesh takes one of the heads from his bandoleer and chucks it the distance. spending the point for the swiftyly thrown head.
Al, already having used the point from his carpet's defense chooses instead to acrobatically avoid the incoming projection, his form a technical perfection. [spending the point].

Nesh: [2]+1attribute advantage-1approach.disadv+0point.cancel = 2

No good.

Nesh does disappear into the trees. (Which makes ranged attacks incredibly hard. and maybe a disad on movement and sight too.)

Al spends a combat turn guiding carpet over the jungle rainforest but can't see through the canopy.

Nesh replaces the flail head again and then goes into a meditative trance in order to still his body and make no sound.

Since this is trying to have an effect on Al, GM rules it an opposed action.

Nesh's sould can't compare to Al's, but he spends the point for powerful meditation.
There's no trait for Al to throw against this.

***so is the Approach comparison not done or would Nesh get an automativ +1?

Nesh: [6] +1point.spent-1attribute.disad+?approach = 6

Nesh set up a static difficulty 3 to hear him.

Al urges carpet to descend into the trees. He has no good traits to try to spot Nesh. So let's just see what a roll does

Al: [4]-1scene.disadv = 3

A success, Al can see the eerily silent giant faunus!

Nesh springs into action.

His wraps himself in his Semblance and charges a path through the trees and forest and trampling Al in it's wake. [point spent]

Soul check: [3] Semblance activation is free.

Semblance check: [3]+1point.spent = 4
This could let him bypass the environmental challenges against movement.

Nesh uses his technical fighting, [spending a point], swinging his flail hard. Al is out of unused defensive traits with points and has no defensive traits with a triumphant powerful so he'll defense with the technical acrobatics to deny anyone an approach bonus.

Nesh [2]+1attribute.adv+0approach.cancel+1point.spent = 4

severity base 1+2hunter.weapon = 3

This stomps Al bown past his Aura wounds and into his physical wounds.

He's conscious but with bruised ribs from the blow. The match is stopped as it is getting into dangerous territory but Al'Din from the Deserts of Vacuo will recover.



My questions are preceded by ***.
"Something pithy this way comes."
EpicEclipse
Posts: 2473
Joined: Mon Jun 12, 2017 8:06 pm

Re: Homebrew RWBY system [WiP]

Post by EpicEclipse »

Oh jeeze text walls...not my forte, but let's slog through this, since it'll be helpful in the longrun to address questions.
***Did I do that right or should a roll to attack always go against a roll to defend?
Well.... first off, there is no real initiative. Combat kicks off by whoever instigates it. Since combat rolls are done by the PLAYER by preference, but if it's PvP, then who rolls the die would be decided by who the aggressor is and if that's not clear, the GM decides. Nothing fancy or complicated. BOTH players can attack and/or defend.

Combat in this game is meant to be more active and dynamic. Each roll is not a single action, but a flurry of actions, BOTH characters are attacking AND defending. I think traits are throwing people off a little bit as things to be activated because of the plot points, and to an extent, that is true. The plot point represents that particular trait being prevalent in the exchange.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N5D0NDAR8sU Jaune vs Cardon right at the start.

It's not one of the better fights, but it provides an excellent example of what I mean by an exchange. The whole 30 second sequence was two brief exchanges.

1) Jaune lunges and misses only to get knocked back and disarmed of his shield.
2) Jaune lunges again, the two lock weapons, Cardon distracts Jaune with taunting and proceeds to knee him in the gut.

The first exchange is super basic and not very interesting. It CAN be an example of an action in combat, but the second one is the one we're interested in here. I'm sure it's safe to say Cardon has some manner of Bully trait under his Soul, which would have been a highlight of that exchange on his side, thus he would would used a plot point to reflect that should his action be successful, that taunting played a strong part of it.

That being said, you don't not HAVE to use a plot point in order to have a trait be "active" in an exchange. Then it would require a plot point every time a weapon is used, which is obviously ridiculous in this kind of set up. If you want to use your semblance as part of the descriptive action, GO FOR IT. Plot points are ONLY for emphasis of a particular trait in an exchange. The "knock out punch", or what sets up for the knock out punch, such as it were.
***If one side doesn't have a trait they're using in the conflict there's no trait approach comparison. Should there be some mechanism to deal with this?
Looking back over the system, I overlooked something important, how to choose a trait, and what exactly that means. Traits are what a character can do, and reasonably, they can use lots of them in very rapid succession if not simultaneously (Like using a weapon designed to work with a semblance). When you choose a Trait for the exchange, you are in essence choosing a goal. If you win the exchange, this is what you want to happen.

But, this does present to me a hole in the system that needs a patch. If both characters attack, the loser takes damage, simple enough, but if a player uses a decided defensive trait, what benefit is there if they win the exchange? If they won attack vs attack, they would still not take damage, so, that will be something I need to look into, but I do have an idea already.
***Does the defender still assign a defense trait if possible?
Answer requires patch from previous question, but ultimately, as I explained, characters on opposite sides of a battle don't "take turns" attacking each other. Every single roll is both characters actively striving for a goal. If the goal is defending, then they choose a defensive trait, if the goal is attacking, then they chose an active trait. If both sides choose to attack, based on the current idea I have for the patch, then they are going to smack each other in the face.
***When multiple options of traits are available the person who chooses second has an advantage over the person who declares first in the approach comparison. Is this a problem that can be corrected?
The system is more meant for players to fight NPC enemies, not each other. This is a good point though. Minions ALWAYS choose first, so players always get the advantage here. But in the event of PvP or players fighting a more powerful foe, actions should be chosen from lowest Active mind to highest I would think. Sharper mind, faster reflexes, letting them see what enemies are doing and more accurately predict, giving an edge in choosing their own action.
***Am I using Aura wounds correctly?
I made a mistake. Soul does not give "wounds". Aura is closer to "hit points", but you get a whole lot more Aura than you do do Body or Mind wounds ((Soul + Reactive Soul)*10. I forgot to update the section on Wounds for that. Since Aura heals wounds, but is reduced in order to do so, characters needed much more Aura than I was initially going to give, so I increased it, but also changed how it functions compared to Wounds so that combat wouldn't drag on forever.
***Should there be an in-combat means to heal these?
Healing Aura in combat? No. Not unless a character has a particular aura regenerating semblance I suppose, or is able to restore someone else's aura with their own as their semblance. Body wounds can be healed by semblance as well, but in general, healing is not a great option in combat simply due to how it can drag things out or trivialize combat entirely (Look at M&M), so healing, both Body wounds and Aura by means of semblance is an EXTREMELY rare gift.
*** Umm.... How Much?
Treat it like an attack, it would be the amount he failed by.
***Even though it's a soul check should a char with a Soul of 4 have an advantage over a char with a Soul of 1?
It is not a compared check, so there is no advantage there to be concerned about. You can still spend an appropriate plot point to get an advantage on the roll that way.
***Can a Semblance traits be spent on the activation of a Semblance?
I don't really understand this question.
***Will attribute or Approach ever matter here?
If the semblance is being used as part of an exchange with another character, absolutely. However, you didn't really use the genie correctly here. The result of the Soul resistance check was only to determine if he lost aura by using his semblance. The genie's abilities are the traits that are put into the semblance itself in this case. Those traits are effectively the genie's traits for the purposes of whatever it does. Because it is a temporary summoned minon, it does NOT need fully fleshed out traits, just, whatever it does, based on approach like this is fine. No need to make it complicated. It simply works in concert with Al, so becomes part of his own personal combat tactics.
***Should Nesh's defense plot point have counted against both of the attackers?
I think I may need to simplify group combat a bit based on this question. Looking at it in action, it looks terrible. Remembering, each roll is meant to be a full exchange, not back and forth "My turn, your turn". I'll think on it, but I think multiple characters acting as a group will make a single roll, just to simplify things. Obviously there will be benefits for ganging up on a single target.
***so is the Approach comparison not done or would Nesh get an automativ +1?
No, you did this right. Again, a plot point does not need to be spent to "activate" a trait. In this instance, Al tried to use his agility.





Overall, the combat wasn't really done correctly since you were stuck in the mindset of characters taking turns to attack rather than each round being a single exchange where both characters are attacking and defending represented in a single roll.

But, it is also clear there are some bugs I need to work out in the general mechanics.
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