Subsystem overview and the three games I'm sketching out with it.

(Originally posted on Cohost: https://cohost.org/binary/post/173316-total-effect-subsys )

I realized I barely described what the rest of the system is in favor of being a Probability Weirdo. Let’s do that. I also didn’t describe, or even mention any of the three games I’m outlining while I’m writing it somehow. Let’s do that too.

The Subsystems

What’s a core system for the system? Like what parts do you need? You need the core mechanic, which can in turn be expressed through any of the subsystems listed. Basically aside from how to roll, the concept of escalation, and some concepts around level/tier advancement, there isn’t any one system that’s “core”. My big intentions for this system/toolbox/SRD/whatever are modularity and configurability, which I’m defining as:

• Modularity: Provide subsystems with intended uses that all use the same core mechanic but in different ways, and provide examples of how they interlink. The idea is that you would pick a 3-5 of the more resonant ones for your game - they’re intended to be satisfying enough that they feel like solid mechanics in and of themselves, but lightweight enough that you can easily have a few of them interact. I want this to feel less like a “draw the rest of the owl” situation around one well thought out system and more like giving you a bunch of pre-made things with several kinds of ideas how to go using them yourself.
• Configurability: Within each subsystem selected, I want it to be possible that you can use all, most, or very little of it, and be able to have a few good ideas as to how to configure the bits you are using.

Here’s a very short summary of the subsystems I’m launching it with and have mostly written stuff for (unless I decide to add any more or combine any, this has happened a few times along the way). The idea is that for your game you’d tie together a few of these that make the most sense. (More on that later when I describe my sample game ideas.)

The direct PC-related ones are:

• Combat and Conflict: There are two kinds outlined here: Tactical Combat is the traditional group-combat while Personal Duels are one-on-one combat. (They’re also built to be interoperable with minimal tweaks.) I’m a tradgamer at heart so this was obviously where I started but this module isn’t strictly necessary as long as others get leveraged instead.
• Skillsets and Equipment: This is where I get into a lot of mechanics around doing noncombat stuff and such: how characters have or gain skills, consequences and twists, rolling for success vs. progress, ideas for stunts, ideas for explicit capabilities, etc.
• Relationships and Bonds: This is where I get into ideas related to building up bonds between characters and other characters/groups/concepts and what you can do with them, and especially mechanics around leveraging an extensive relationship to influence other people/groups to act in certain ways.

The more group-related ones (which are lower in mechanical weight and more so ideas of ways to link various other subsystems together) are:

• Reputation and Perception: For games where the broad-strokes perception of characters by people at large matters, and how to use that.
• Factions and Power: For games where major powers are prominent and important. This includes how to make one and how to use them when writing your game.
• Groups and Organizations: For games where the PCs being united by an explicit, in-setting common organization is important. This includes aspects of such an organization and ideas around expansion of the idea re: advancement.

The more meta ones (things that much more broadly define arcs, plots, etc) are:

• Income and Expenditures: For games where some kind of currency, be it money or scrap or social capital, is important. This outlines some ideas re: buying, selling, and regular expenditures, as well as ideas like debt and investments.
• Escalating Threat: For games where there’s intended to be some kind of background ticking clock (or at least, a more explicit one than going broke, which is covered above). This can be short-scale in the sense of being on the run or having to be non-suspicious or long-scale in the sense of big plans and schemes by important people, groups, etc. that get advanced and revealed over time.

The Worked Examples

The problem is that it’s really hard to write dry game design concepts without feeling very disconnected from implementation. Also in my experience it’s hard to think abstractly about these ideas without some specific examples. So I came up with 3 game concepts to outline throughout the process of this with examples of how the mechanic being discussed would come up, as well as what subsystems they’d leverage:

• Valiant Horizon: Heroic protagonists perform great deeds as they make a name for themselves. (Touchpoints: The dragon game you’re almost certainly thinking of but mostly its 4th edition, JRPGs but especially Tales and Xenoblade.) This is about magitech-ish high fantasy adventure with a few framing devices: the people you befriend along the way, the creation of your legend, and large threats looming on the horizon.
  • Subsystems employed: Tactical Combat, Skillsets, Relationships with people, Reputation, long-scale Escalating Threat.
• Liminal Void: Regular people in space in the 23rd Century are thrust outside of normal society and must find a way to first survive, then thrive with their newly-acquired skills and spaceship. (Touchpoints: The Expanse, FTL, Alien/s, System Shock, Cowboy Bebop. Anything that has that kind of used-future in our solar system thing going on with a kind of survival-horror vibe to it.) This is a game that is very much about survival rather than being powerful: combat in the sense of being in a fair fight is generally a bad idea, equipment and resource management is extremely important.
  • Subsystems employed: Tactical Combat, Skillsets/Equipment, Groups, Income/Expenditures, short-scale Escalating Threat.
• Machinations of Court and Frame: Exceptional mecha pilots with mixed loyalties are thrust into proxy wars and byzantine power struggles between noble Houses. (Touchpoints: The mecha things I didn’t rip off in APOCALYPSE FRAME but especially assorted Gundam/Battletech stuff. Thinking about Tactics Ogre/Final Fantasy Tactics/similar vibes too.) This is about dramatic mecha duels, shifting loyalties, and the actions of powerful individuals and leaders.
  • Subsystems employed: Personal Duels, Relationships with people/factions/concepts, Factions, long-scale Escalating Threat. (Maybe also Tactical Combat but leaning towards no.)

Of these 3, I’ve fleshed out Liminal Void the most. (I made a very basic player-facing playtest packet and ran a one-shot with it, which went pretty well.) My goal is to release a Level 0 style quickstart/module of the scenario I came up with for it either alongside or shortly after the main SRD.

Hopefully that made any sense and sounds cool and like something people might want to play! Guess we’ll find out.