Help with racing mechanics (sh.itjust.works)

submitted 6 days ago by Maxxus@sh.itjust.works to c/rpg@lemmy.ml

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My players have been working on a racing plot for a while now. I’ve generated a node based map that will be the course they’ll navigate with some interesting things along the way. We’ve built them a Mad Max style vehicle and I’ll be using a modified set of rules when engaging with the other racers. And they’ve even made a arch rival of another racing team.

The only part I haven’t figured out is how to run the other racers behind the scenes. I don’t really want to do a full simulation of 20 contending race teams, but I want to be to give my players updates as the race progresses so they can feel the pressure of competition.

I’m not opposed to cheating like Mario Kart and doing a little rubberbanding. But I want something quick to resolve at the table. I’ve also thought about pre-generating the race and then the players would run through it like a scripted event. I’m just worried about how to dynamically adjust if they take out some of the other racers.

Has anyone run a race at their table before?

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[-] entropicdrift@lemmy.sdf.org 4 points 5 days ago

Personally I really like how Savage Worlds Adventure Edition handles Chases, the rules for those are pretty nice and open-ended, allowing for combat or pure racing. If you need it to go quicker, you can do what it calls "staged encounters", which is basically a vingette where at each stage of the race you present a problem, ask how the players will resolve it, and determine how well they do with a single roll of the appropriate stat/skill, then you divert them along one path or another based on how well they did and/or what they did.

Anyway I find those rules are generally adaptable to basically any system

[-] Maxxus@sh.itjust.works 2 points 5 days ago

I looked at the sample on DriveThru which had just the first page of chase rules. Seems to be based on a series of events through the race. It seems like a fun way to randomize a race, but does address the problem of a large number of racers.

this post was submitted on 27 Sep 2025

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