14
The flaw with Mark of the Odd games
(ttrpg.network)
you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
view the rest of the comments
this post was submitted on 23 Jun 2023
14 points (100.0% liked)
rpg
3140 readers
10 users here now
This community is for meaningful discussions of tabletop/pen & paper RPGs
Rules (wip):
- Do not distribute pirate content
- Do not incite arguments/flamewars/gatekeeping.
- Do not submit video game content unless the game is based on a tabletop RPG property and is newsworthy.
- Image and video links MUST be TTRPG related and should be shared as self posts/text with context or discussion unless they fall under our specific case rules.
- Do not submit posts looking for players, groups or games.
- Do not advertise for livestreams
- Limit Self-promotions. Active members may promote their own content once per week. Crowdfunding posts are limited to one announcement and one reminder across all users.
- Comment respectfully. Refrain from personal attacks and discriminatory (racist, homophobic, transphobic, etc.) comments. Comments deemed abusive may be removed by moderators.
- No Zak S content.
- Off-Topic: Book trade, Boardgames, wargames, video games are generally off-topic.
founded 1 year ago
MODERATORS
Although I do like applying damage to other stats where appropriate, I don't actually think you need to if what you're worried about is balancing them.
STR is the more important attribute if you're consistently getting into combat. All these games share an ethos that combat shouldn't be a hugely frequent thing at the table. In that context, the stats are a lot more "balanced". DEX is by far the most called for Save, in my experience, plus it's how you go first in combat.
WIS/CHA is a little trickier, depending on your individual campaign. Although in Mausritter specifically casting spells can cause WIL damage.
FWIW this is something I grappled with a bit for my own Odd/Cairn hack (slightly exacerbated by some other rules changes), and I eventually came to the conclusion that I didn't need rules changes to fix it. The only thing I really plan to do is make sure the included bestiary includes examples of damage to other attributes.
Thanks, you make some good points.
Upon reflection, I do tend to approach the game with more combat than it's designed for as my players love combat. And the general lack of dex and wil/cha attacks from sample foes in the various games just exacerbates the issue for me.
I like the Wil damage from casting spells in Mausritter. (If I remember correctly, Into the Dungeon: Revived does it as well.) It makes casting more high-stakes, which is something I love in a game. To me, magic should be scary, even to the one weilding it.
I guess the question is whether your goal is to make all three stats equally useful, or to make sure the attribute damage mechanic is used equally on all three stats.
If it's the former then increasing the utility of the other two stats with initiative, magic, dodging, etc. would be a good way to go.
If it's the latter then making sure enemies have a wide variety of attacks works. Psychic/psionics, poison, ensnaring, soul damage, etc. would all help.