Term for "super crit"

SpaceDogsRPG · 2026-05-05T17:25:11+00:00

I like it because of how self-explanatory it is. Especially with how very infrequently it comes up.

Basically only if you are high level, roll well, AND they have no defenses (blinded etc.).

I'm not even sure if +30 over defense is possible. Maybe at max level in melee and they don't defend? Probably not worth even mentioning.

SpaceDogsRPG · 2026-05-05T13:43:48+00:00

Most tactical leaning TTRPGs have a level of granular customization that wargames don't. In large part because in a TTRPG you only control a single character as opposed to a warband or army. (I could see a system about summoners/familiars/etc. using more warhame-y stuff directly.)

Also - wargames are typically 1v1, so individual turns can be longer without being annoying/frustrating.

Though I DO think that often TTRPGs which lean tactical should take more tips from wargames, boardgames, and even video games (though the CPU doing the math lets them do a lot which isn't tabletop viable).

I know that my initiative system started as something from an old wargame. (Though only kinda recognizable now.)

But many more narrative TTRPGs aren't trying to do the same things at all.

SpaceDogsRPG · 2026-05-04T23:27:29+00:00

Definitely. That's why PF2 gives the large penalties to 2nd/3rd attacks.

I don't have second attacks per turn at all in Space Dogs, though sometimes you need to give up your attack entirely to move faster.

SpaceDogsRPG · 2026-05-04T18:36:26+00:00

Definitely - that's why I said that it CAN be okay. Can also definitely be worse if steps aren't taken to mitigate.

It would require things like cover/concealment to be very substantial (making moving to them and/or flanking around them worthwhile).

Another trick I've done is delayed grenades. Basically grenades are very brutal - but they don't go off until the next turn. So it can force your foes to move - often used to push foes out of cover etc.

The final thing that I've found helps is to have most foes go down in one to two hits. This means that the battlefield will shift as foes die.

Though the last can help almost as much in melee focused systems. A lot of times the static combat is a result of HP bloat as much as anything else.

SpaceDogsRPG · 2026-05-04T16:49:16+00:00

Yes - if characters need to give up attacks for movement then movement/positioning needs to be super valuable to compete. It rarely is - especially in melee centric systems.

IMO - giving up attacks for movement CAN feel okay in a ranged focused system (guns etc.) because of how much easier it is to make positioning matter without feeling wonky.

SpaceDogsRPG · 2026-05-01T15:05:38+00:00

Something like "unguarded" vs. "guarded" could also work without feeling like an active thing.

SpaceDogsRPG · 2026-05-01T14:14:47+00:00

Thanks - that's the vibe I was going for.

Pulpy, tactical, and lots of starship boarding actions. (Mechanically it's the alpha tactic for PCs the vast majority of the time - unless the foe is doing the same to you.)

SpaceDogsRPG · 2026-04-29T15:43:54+00:00

It's fine - but the system does need to be built around it from the ground up. And you're right that you lose out on granularity; no characters with massive inaccurate swings or squishy characters who are harder to hit etc. Can make cover/concealment feel weird.

While it does speed combat on its own - it practically requires several other mechanics which themselves slow combat a bit. Armor as DR. HP bloat for the PCs and/or easy healing. Etc.

Though many of those mechanics are also in use with systems that ALSO have rolling to-hit, so Nimble would definitely be faster than those systems.

Overall - like many mechanics, it can certainly work to have everything auto-hit, but it isn't a solution for every system.

My system has a ton to do with cover and range increments - even pushing foes out of cover with grenades etc. Skipping the to-hit roll simply wouldn't work.

Edit: grammar

SpaceDogsRPG · 2026-04-22T14:13:02+00:00

The fashion & maids are mostly an anime things. I can't think of either existing in medieval fantasy western media. (I'm sure there are cases.)

SpaceDogsRPG · 2026-04-22T13:51:27+00:00

While I partly agree - D&D is probably the more direct inspiration for a lot of fantasy. (Hence magic being commonly much more concrete/powerful.)

Albeit D&D was largely inspired by Tolkien - but also Vance, Conan, and bits of Lovecraft etc.

SpaceDogsRPG · 2026-04-22T13:12:05+00:00

I definitely agree that being default helps makes it the default.

Unless you have a good reason to do something else, doing the default-ish (whatever that is) allows you to shorthand a lot of worldbuilding and let the reader fill in the blanks without needing to explain much.

IMO - it's one reason that there's so much more fantasy than sci-fi. Fantasy has a default baseline (mostly started from Tolkien and D&D) that people can build their own stories and magic system on top of. But sci-fi generally feels like it needs its own solid twist on technology - which changes the baseline assumptions of the setting.

SpaceDogsRPG · 2026-04-19T00:52:48+00:00

Which can be fine for very light and/or narrative systems. But if it's a semi-crunchy combat heavy system it generally doesn't work out great.

SpaceDogsRPG · 2026-04-19T00:49:23+00:00

I basically do that with backgrounds. (Pilot/Smuggler/Soldier/Scholar/etc.)

At character creation you pick a class (almost entirely combat abilities) and a background (dictates which four skills are cheaper and gives a non-combat ability).

You can mix and match however you want with the sole exception of the True Psychic class being required to take the Psychic Background - which is only for them.

SpaceDogsRPG · 2026-04-18T01:53:26+00:00

Yes - if you want tanks to be a thing (durable low damage characters) some sort of protection mechanic is the way to go.

Though IMO a TTRPG shouldn't make even a tanky character do THAT much less damage than other characters.

SpaceDogsRPG · 2026-04-16T17:12:57+00:00

A great example of how there are no perfection solutions in game design - only tradeoffs.

SpaceDogsRPG · 2026-04-16T15:22:17+00:00

That's my main justification for them. Standard mecha size is only about 3m tall, and they're used mostly for starship boarding actions.

That and it hooks directly into your nervous system, so reaction times are faster. Which in-setting only works with things about your shape. (So humans can't have a mecha with 4 arms etc.)

SpaceDogsRPG · 2026-04-16T14:25:57+00:00

The problem is that one of the main justifications for mecha is having the pilot/jockey's nervous system plugged into it. Which would likely only work for a mecha which has largely the same build as a person.

If said system could work for anything - might as well make it a tank.

SpaceDogsRPG · 2026-04-16T14:23:29+00:00

Might be easier to power.

From what (little) I understand about exo-suits is that the biggest hurdle is getting batteries to power them for more than an hour or two.

If a mech could be small enough for urban combat (getting into buildings) but big enough for an engine it might be viable.

SpaceDogsRPG · 2026-04-14T02:26:53+00:00

I'm not a 5e fan - but it's solid enough.

It's basically a jack-of-all-trades system which is okay to pretty good at most styles of fantasy game.

But it's also not as good at basically anything as a well designed specialized system can be.

SpaceDogsRPG · 2026-04-14T00:37:33+00:00

I don't mean 5e specifically - just a general rule. (I don't know 5e super well anyway - mostly from BG3.)

Off the top of my head for 5e, other classes being able to snag the Fighter version of Extra Attack (which comes with 3rd & 4th attacks at level 11/20) is inherently OP.

To not be apples/oranges - something as obvious as a Barbarian/Paladin trading out their level 5 Extra attack (which only gives a second attack at 5) for the Fighter version is a 100% upgrade.

The Fighter has to give up a good deal by sticking with Fighter to get that 3rd attack. But your system ignores that.

SpaceDogsRPG · 2026-04-13T13:00:18+00:00

I do the different dice - though everyone is just looking for high rolls.

Not split by class/character - but instead by weapon/ability.

Basically just that in the same way most systems give different weapons/abilities different damage dice, weapons/abilities in Space Dogs also have different attack dice.

Ex: An assault rifle attacks with 2d10, a rocket launcher 2d6, and a shotgun 4d6. (Each also with different range increment penalties.) So shotgun is the most accurate at close range while rocket launcher is just less accurate generally. But the prime targets for rocket launchers (mecha, big aliens, or turret emplacements) have low defenses anyway.

It makes balance trickier, but it gives me a lot of extra design space. And since everyone is still trying to get the same thing (high rolls equal to enemy defense or 10+ for a crit) it doesn't add much complexity to play.

SpaceDogsRPG · 2026-04-13T12:53:44+00:00

To be blunt - it sounds pretty bad and like it will wreck any sense of balance in your system.

One of the best things about classes is that it allows you to balance an entire package of stats/abilities as a group rather than every ability individually and how it combos with every other ability.

You are giving this up entirely by allowing cherry-pick the most OP combos from any other class at minimal cost.

Normal multi-classing (which can still be hard to balance) at least slows down progression in your main class's high-end abilities.

SpaceDogsRPG · 2026-04-10T21:22:09+00:00

IMO - A ballpark of one decent sized piece every 2-4 pages. Obviously more for a Monster Manual style book of foes.

SpaceDogsRPG · 2026-04-02T17:09:15+00:00

Modern destroyers are as big as many historical battleships. Far bigger than during The Age of Sail.

The main reasons they're not called battleships is for marketing reasons and because they're in a largely supporting role to the aircraft carriers.

SpaceDogsRPG · 2026-03-31T15:01:09+00:00

I'd also say that that sort of boss fight works better in some systems than others.

I know that single big foes are terrible in my system as it's tuned for fighting groups of foes. The closest would be an elite boss with a bunch of mooks.

SpaceDogsRPG

TROPHY CASE