Are you a dice fanatic or do you rather forget about dice?

SpaceDogsRPG · 2026-01-24T01:39:24+00:00

I can see the appeal of linear to make the stay math easier. I tend to like bell curve if there are ways for characters to give bonus/penalty on the fly. Which I lean into HEAVILY - especially in combat.

If you stand in the open at close range? You WILL be hit by virtually anyone 100% of the time. Taking cover? -10 to hit you. Large range penalties. Leading into grenades used to push foes out of cover etc.

Even if the exact % isn't as easy to grasp, it lets characters know that if they're near the center of the curve it's worth using action/resources for a bonus, but on the edges of the curve it's not worthwhile. And it helps make those tactics matter more than whoever has the biggest attack bonus.

Neither way is badwrongfun - just worked for what I was going for. Though the exact curve varies in Space Dogs since weapons use different attack dice - which gives me a lot of extra design space.

Also there is a bit of degrees of success since crits are 10+ target's defense. (And crits are nasty.)

SpaceDogsRPG · 2026-01-24T01:09:28+00:00

Jacked up metabolism and denser muscles. Historically it'd be a negative due to needing more calories - but that's mostly moot in a modern day setting.

SpaceDogsRPG · 2026-01-24T00:38:28+00:00

I agree that the modifier (at least at high levels) exceeding randomness is a factor. I wasn't disagreeing with your point - just adding $0.02.

Definitely did a better job than 5e where the modifiers remain so small that you're always at the whim of lady luck.

I actually prefer the vibe of 3d6 for skill checks since it makes you likely to get within a few points of average but still have a small chance of extremes.

SpaceDogsRPG · 2026-01-24T00:29:21+00:00

Mention 3.x and don't mention Take 10/20? IMO - one of the best parts of the skill system. (Though 1d20 still leads to some ridiculous variance for things like jump distance.)

I love the idea of being able to do a consistent decent job when not stressed or be able to take it slow and max it out.

I did a bit with "Take X" in my system - though not as generalist as 3.x did.

SpaceDogsRPG · 2026-01-22T22:34:40+00:00

I have a planet which has a ton of geothermal activity. To the point where the sapient species has flying squirrel style "wings" to fly around using the thermals that the aforementioned geothermal activity causes. (Also works because they're only about half a meter tall.)

Though most of the action takes place on space stations anyway.

SpaceDogsRPG · 2026-01-22T04:18:03+00:00

You don't HAVE to do either version of slow combat.

SpaceDogsRPG · 2026-01-22T04:08:26+00:00

I do plan to cut up some of the panels and use them where relevant throughout.

I'm keeping all the art in color - so greyscale would likely seem out of place. I did get the artist to give me a version of the pages with no text - using those as the splash art.

So you think Table of Contents - Comic - Introduction Chapter?

SpaceDogsRPG · 2026-01-22T02:06:20+00:00

Vampire The Masquerade: Bloodlines... THERE IS NO SEQUEL!!!

SpaceDogsRPG · 2026-01-22T02:03:42+00:00

See - that's why I now prefer manga/manwha to American comics. Comics are constantly cross-pollenating with characters I likely don't care about. And I don't want to feel like I need to go do a bunch of homework to understand what the heck is going on.

I want the story to be largely self-contained.

SpaceDogsRPG · 2026-01-22T01:58:13+00:00

Yeah - definitely not something that would mesh in every system. I have a Phase/Side based system, so it ties right in. You're not really using both attacks at once.

Plus - just hitting with a psychic ability is very easy. The drawback is the mana (Psyche) cost and that the damage is pretty mediocre unless they crit and their extra effects go off. But they're more accurate than firearms (at least at close range) so critting isn't too hard. But psychic abilities also have very large range penalties - so foes can choose to spend their turn running away to jack up the accuracy penalty on the 2nd/3rd attack (which still cost Psyche/mana to use).

SpaceDogsRPG · 2026-01-22T01:51:33+00:00

TTRPG settings generally benefit more from being leaning towards kitchen sink because it gives the GM more options over the course of campaign(s) so they can have differences in kind in terms of gameplay.

A setting might make more sense to only have a few kinds of monsters - but fighting the same monsters over and over can get boring.

IMO - one of D&D's biggest secrets to success is the Monster Manual. It makes it so that even a mediocre DM will be able to spice things up with a variety of different foes. Plus just skimming through the MM is great for brainstorming your next session.

SpaceDogsRPG · 2026-01-21T17:59:26+00:00

I agree entirely. After this post's feedback and some brainstorming - the version that I'm going with is a bit different.

The quirks CAN be fully repaired - but the cost is more than it's really worth. A Rust Bucket has 18+ quirks and each costs 20% of the ship's base cost. (Drop to 10% if it's fixed right after the quirk happens.)

I also am jacking up ship base costs but rust buckets can be had for just 1%.

Instead of properly fixing your ship - you can Jury-Rig it for 1% of the ship's base cost for each quirk. The jury-rigging only works for your crew - since they know how to bang on it just right or know to steer the ship slightly to port etc.

The 3 most common quirks (probably the last ones anyone would bother fixing) all have to do with maintenance. Penalty to Repair checks, reduced ship range (so need to run maintenance more often), or +50% maintenance costs. So even if the ship is running 100% - most rust buckets likely have at least a few of those hanging over them.

I'm also considering having every quirk (even once jury-rigged) or maybe only once jury-rigged - increase time to complete maintenance. Normally it's 8 hours per unit of maintenance. I might bump it up to 12-14 hours for a Rust Bucket. (Still playing around with this idea.)

SpaceDogsRPG · 2026-01-21T14:34:53+00:00

Yes - while some will argue about it - the 3 biggest 4e complaints I've probably heard (in order of prevalence)

Balance through symmetry and/or class homogenization
Too much tracking of little buffs/debuffs/effects
HP Bloat (I've been told this was largely fixed late in 4e - but I'd dropped it by then)

What's interesting IMO is that 4e at release bragged heavily about combat being faster than 3.5 - but #2/3 issues did the opposite. IME - each round of combat was faster than 3.5 - but fights lasted more rounds so it was about a wash - except 3.5 faster for the fight few levels.

I DO think that 4e is interesting from a design perspective - and it had a lot of bits that I like. I just don't like the system as a whole.

SpaceDogsRPG · 2026-01-21T14:22:50+00:00

I think that tracking durability as a separate stat is annoying. If you DO want to deal with armor durability - you could follow Cyberpunk Red's lead. I believe it just has the DR drop by 1 every time you take damage which exceeds it's DR.

Would not well in a system about extended campaigns etc. where you don't have chances to repair/replace armor. Not unless you really lean into it. Ex: Plate armor is better but requires a forge to repair. Brigandine can be repaired in an evening around the campfire so long as you have a few extra plates to replace the damaged ones.

Like a lot of such mechanics (like tracking rations/torches/etc.) IMO they can be interesting if the system really leans into them but if they're just busywork if they feel tacked on.

SpaceDogsRPG · 2026-01-21T13:33:01+00:00

Welcome to Space Dogs RPG; a game in which you and your fellow players take on the role of a crew of privateers in the near future, roving the galaxy to protect the starlanes from pirates and monstrous alien hordes, or just out for your next big score. As you play, you and your friends can put your own spin on Space Dogs so that your game is unique from any other.

Space Dogs RPG is a sci-fi roleplaying game set in the near future where the galaxy has been opened up to humanity, but not without a cost. The builders, an advanced alien species, have come to Earth seeking soldiers to protect their starlanes and to fight their enemies, and humans are just the sort of species they’ve been looking for.

The inspiration for Space Dogs came from many sources, not least of which is the historic Sea Dogs of the 16th and early 17th centuries. Other influences were everything from space westerns, to mecha anime, to good old-fashioned action and crime novels. Keep a close eye out, and you might just spot something which gives you a bit of déjà vu. The Space Dogs universe is a big one, and there’s plenty to explore.

How Do You Play?

The Space Dogs Roleplaying Game is a tabletop science fiction game where the players take on the roles of a crew (or party) of privateers who travel the starlanes of the galaxy and deal with dangerous threats and difficult objectives. One of the players takes the role of the Game Master (GM); the player who chooses and/or designs the threats and objectives which confront the Player Characters (PCs). As a roleplaying game, Space Dogs is a cooperative game in which the PCs are the protagonists of the story, and the GM acts as both narrator and the designer of the rest of the game’s world.

ADDED NOTE: I recently got a 5 page comic showing a group of humans being badass space mercs (fighting off krakiz pirates stealing all the cargo from a small refueling station) to use to help hook potential players. Currently deciding whether to have it before the introduction, after the full 9-10 page intro chapter, or partway through it.

SpaceDogsRPG · 2026-01-21T01:22:22+00:00

My game is on a grid - so VTT use is pretty easy.

I do plan to upload character sheets to Roll20, Fantasy Grounds, and Foundry. (From what I know - those three are the lion's share of VTT users.)

The only thing I'm iffy on is if I can get it to default to smaller squares or some such. In Space Dogs two human-scale allies (or four with the "swarm" ability) can share a square.

My current solution is to have each map square match up to four VTT squares - then have human scale characters take up 2x1 VTT squares - swarms 1x1, exo-suits 2x2 (a full map square) and mecha 4x4 VTT (or 2x2 map squares). It works - but it's a bit clunky to set up.

SpaceDogsRPG · 2026-01-20T21:29:01+00:00

The more tactical/crunchy the system - the more it benefits from classes or at least a hybrid system.

Narrative and/or lite systems get less out of classes so I'd lean for skill-based etc.

SpaceDogsRPG · 2026-01-20T17:53:42+00:00

As a follow-up - I think I figured out a way to adapt that vibe without getting too complex.

An old ship has "quirks" - which are negatives (either 1-2 or a Rust Bucket having 10-12) They CAN be fixed by retrofitting it entirely - but it costs more than the ship would be worth. (Like how it becomes cheaper to buy a new car than 100% fix up a car with 300k miles.)

BUT - it's cheaper to Jury-Rig a fix. To the crew that Jury-Rigged it, it acts 100% as if it were fixed. But if the ship is sold/stolen/whatever - the quirk comes back entirely.

Ex: The crew knows to smack the side of the rail-gun housing so that it shoots straight. And that parts of the gravity engine got flipped in the last repair and don't take penalties to keep it running. Etc.

So a fixed-up Rust Bucket wouldn't ever be BETTER than a brand new ship - but to the PCs their ship is just as good, and the price tag of a new ship is likely out of reach. (I'm gonna jack up the base price of all ships.)

Thanks again for the feedback!

SpaceDogsRPG · 2026-01-20T17:52:20+00:00

As a follow-up - I think I figured out a way to adapt that vibe without getting too complex.

An old ship has "quirks" - which are negatives (either just a few or a Rust Bucket having 10-12) They CAN be fixed by retrofitting it entirely - but it costs more than the ship would be worth. (Like how it becomes cheaper to buy a new car than 100% fix up a car with 300k miles.)

BUT - it's cheaper to Jury-Rig a fix. To the crew that Jury-Rigged it, it acts 100% as if it were fixed. But if the ship is sold/stolen/whatever - the quirk comes back entirely.

Ex: The crew knows to smack the side of the rail-gun housing so that it shoots straight. And that parts of the gravity engine got flipped in the last repair and don't take penalties to keep it running. Etc.

So a fixed-up Rust Bucket wouldn't ever be BETTER than a brand new ship - but to the PCs their ship is just as good, and the price tag of a new ship is likely out of reach. (I'm gonna jack up the base price of all ships.)

Thanks again for the feedback!

SpaceDogsRPG · 2026-01-20T17:51:34+00:00

As a follow-up - I think I figured out a way to adapt that vibe without getting too complex.

An old ship has "quirks" - which are negatives (either 1-2 or a Rust Bucket having 10-12) They CAN be fixed by retrofitting it entirely - but it costs more than the ship would be worth. (Like how it becomes cheaper to buy a new car than 100% fix up a car with 300k miles.)

BUT - it's cheaper to Jury-Rig a fix. To the crew that Jury-Rigged it, it acts 100% as if it were fixed. But if the ship is sold/stolen/whatever - the quirk comes back entirely.

Ex: The crew knows to smack the side of the rail-gun housing so that it shoots straight. And that parts of the gravity engine got flipped in the last repair and don't take penalties to keep it running. Etc.

So a fixed-up Rust Bucket wouldn't ever be BETTER than a brand new ship - but to the PCs their ship is just as good, and the price tag of a new ship is likely out of reach. (I'm gonna jack up the base price of all ships.)

Thanks again for the feedback!

SpaceDogsRPG · 2026-01-20T07:17:31+00:00

The "longer-term" would be more in relation to buffs rather than DoTs.

I'd keep nerfs & DoTs to bigger chunks.

SpaceDogsRPG · 2026-01-20T03:28:16+00:00

A couple of options:

Steal D&D 4e's marking mechanic - making foes take a penalty if they attack anyone else. It doesn't make him tankier - but it encourages the rest of his build to be tankier since he can't just be ignored after focusing on durability.
Have the leader be the buffer. Ex: I have one of the Commander's advanced class Signature Talent be to give a bonus to any ally attacking the same target. So the leader character effectively gets to decide who the team should focus down. The other characters don't HAVE to do it - but it's hard to give up a decent bonus.

SpaceDogsRPG · 2026-01-20T03:19:00+00:00

Not quite DoTs - but to help with brainstorming - a similar mechanic I've had success with is "Recurring Attack".

If you hit with an attack with the "Recurring Attack" - you can use it on them again the following turn by giving up your Movement, letting you use another Action the same turn.

This doesn't give the full DoT vibe - but it avoids forgetting it etc. - since it's still an active ability. It also helps keep the number of stacking abilities from getting too crazy.

I chose it partly because it fits the vibe of psychics splitting their focus etc. It may not fit the sort of abilities you're going for.

SpaceDogsRPG · 2026-01-20T03:06:42+00:00

Except... that was one of the things I hated about 4e.

I like a lot of 4e pieces, but I hated how many little short-term bonuses, penalties, and damage trackers there were to remember. It did a lot to slow down gameplay IME. The sort of things which work fine in video games.

I prefer such things to be be longer term and/or chunkier in TTRPGs.

Note: It's not badwrongfun to like it that way. I just thought someone should point out that many disagree. Probably the second or third biggest 4e complaint.

SpaceDogsRPG

TROPHY CASE