This is a WIP - TODO
This system prioritises simple rules and maximum role playing through skill checks. Characters do not have levels therefore there is no difficulty scaling involved which suits this system to shorter campaigns or scenarios. While Combat is possible, it is rudimentary, purely in place for those times it’s unavoidable.
Characters can be as detailed as the player wants but the required information about a character are their name, their skills, and a quirk. Unlike many TTRPG systems there are no base attributes, all dice modification comes from the skills the player selects during character creation.
It’s recommended to have a rough back story for your character, it’s up to you whether you share this with the other players or keep it a secret - this will largely depend on the relationship your character has with the other characters. If the characters just met they probably wouldn’t share that their childhood village was burned to the ground and they were the sole survivor.
Having a back story helps you decide on the skills your character will take, their quirk and possibly even their name.
Naming things is hard, naming people is harder - if in doubt keep it simple and familiar. Your character may officially be called “Janet”, but that doesn’t mean the other PCs or NPCs won’t create a nickname for her that she prefers to use.
As mentioned before it’s important to choose skills that fit with your characters personality and back story. It’s also wise to choose at least one skill that is relevant to the settings and campaign. For example if the game you are playing is set in a cyberpunk world, Magic probably isn’t that useful. If there are any skills that should not be picked, your GM should inform you before character creation.
When creating your character you have a pool of 7 points to assign to skills. You are free to assign these points in any way you’d like. For example you could assign 3 points to Intimidation to become an expert, 3 points to Melee to become an expert and 1 point to Performance to become trained. Alternatively you could assign 1 point to 7 skills, being trained in all 7 of those skills.
A quirk is a feature about a character that could be a positive, or negative trait depending on the situation. For example if a character has the “easily distracted” quirk they may miss vital information when someone is talking to them, this would be a negative. However during a routine exploration the same character may see something shiny twinkling out of the corner of their eye and find some hidden treasure, this would be a positive.
A characters quirk is up to the player to decide, it should be something that fits with the characters backstory or overall personality, for example the “easily distracted” quirk would not naturally fit into a character who’s main skills require high focus.
When you’ve created your character they are automatically assigned 1BT.
I have created a basic character sheet on Google Sheets here. It includes a “Roll” button that calls a Google App Script that rolls all skills at once. Feel free to clone the sheet.
When a player wants to perform an actions they will inform the Game Master (GM). The GM will decide the Difficulty of a check: Very Easy (2-), Easy (3), Average (4), Hard (5), Very Hard (6+). The player then roles 1d6 to check against the Difficulty. If the number rolled is equal to or higher than the Difficulty the check is a success, if the number rolled is lower than the Difficulty the check is a failure. The meaning of a success or failure is left to the GM to decide.
| Dice Roll | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Difficulty | E | E | e | a | h | H |
E - very easy, e = easy, a = average, h = hard, H = very hard
Bonuses and penalties can be applied to a roll, the most significant are based on a characters training in certain skills. Both PCs and NPCs should have training in skills so as to make interactions more realistic. The other available bonus is through an Bonus Token (BT). Bonus Tokens are given to PCs by the GM for exceptional roleplaying or generally improving the game in some way. Each character starts with 1BT and BTs are tied to the character, not the player. 1BT adds a +1 modifier to a roll or a -1 modifier to an opponent’s roll. BTs can be applied after both parties have rolled.
Skills are used to help or hinder a Difficulty check roll. If a character attempts a check with a skill they have no training in they receive a DM-1 (Dice Modifier -1) to their check. By default all skills are untrained, see character creation for more information.
The 4 levels of training are:
| Level | DM |
|---|---|
| Untrained | -1 |
| Trained | 0 |
| Advanced | +1 |
| Expert | +2 |
Using this system a character trained in a skill to the Expert level will never fail easy skill checks as the minimum they can achieve is a 3.
For each roll only 1 skill can be applied, for example if a character has Acrobatics Trained and Athletics Advanced they can only use one of the two skills even if both may be applicable. In this situation it would make sense for the player to choose their higher skill - Athletics.
This skill covers feats of balance, coordination, and reflexes, such as tumbling, dodging, or performing stunts.
This skill covers physical activities that require strength, agility, or endurance, such as climbing, jumping, swimming, or running.
This skill represents your ability to fight in close combat using weapons such as swords, axes, daggers, spears, or fists. You can use this skill to attack, defend, or perform special manoeuvres in melee combat.
This skill represents your ability to fight in long range combat using weapons such as bows or firearms. You can use this skill to attack, defend, or perform special manoeuvres in ranged combat.
This skill covers the ability to entertain or impress others with your artistic talents, such as singing, dancing, acting, or playing an instrument.
This skill covers the ability to endure and thrive in harsh environments and situations, such as tracking prey, finding food and water, building shelters, or treating wounds.
This skill covers the ability to move silently and hide from sight, as well as avoiding detection by other senses.
This skill covers the ability to lie convincingly and conceal the truth, as well as creating false impressions or identities, such as bluffing your way past a guard, forging a document, or disguising yourself. Counter skills: Insight, Intimidation, Knowledge, Perception, Social
This skill covers the ability to read people and situations, such as detecting lies, sensing emotions, or predicting intentions. Counter skills: Deception, Intimidation, Knowledge, Perception, Social
This skill covers the ability to use threats or displays of power to coerce others into doing what you want, such as frightening an enemy into surrendering, demanding information from a prisoner, or cowing a rival into submission.
This skill covers the ability to notice and interpret sensory information, such as spotting hidden objects, hearing faint noises, or smelling unusual odors.
This skill covers the ability to influence others with words, gestures, or actions, such as convincing someone to help you, bargaining for a better deal, or charming a potential ally.
This skill covers the ability to interact with and influence other people in various ways, such as etiquette, diplomacy, leadership, or seduction. Social skills can be useful for making allies, enemies, or contacts, as well as gaining favours, information, or resources.
This skill covers the ability to interact with and train animals of various kinds and temperaments.
This skill covers the ability to create or repair objects using various tools and materials, such as weapons, armour, potions, traps, or gadgets.
This skill covers the ability to manipulate supernatural forces, such as casting spells, summoning creatures, or enchanting items. Magic skills can be useful for combat, exploration, or utility purposes, depending on the type and rules of magic in the setting.
This skill covers the ability to diagnose and treat illnesses and injuries using various methods and remedies, such as herbs, bandages, surgery, or magic.
This skill covers the ability to recall or research information about various topics, such as history, geography, religion, magic, or science.
This skill covers the ability to speak, read, and write different languages, as well as understanding accents, dialects, and idioms. Language skills can be useful for communicating with diverse people, deciphering ancient texts, or learning new information.
This skill covers the ability to use and understand various forms of advanced technology, such as computers, robots, cybernetics, or nanotechnology. Technology skills can be useful for hacking, engineering, or inventing new devices, as well as accessing or creating information.
When a player would like to perform an action they must inform the GM of their intent referencing any appropriate bonuses or penalties that may apply. The GM will then confirm the bonuses or penalties and ask the player to roll for the check. It is up to the GM whether they inform a player of the check’s Difficulty. Sometimes the GM will keep the Difficulty secret to increase tension, other times they may state the Difficulty before the player roles to increase tension.
A check is classed as a success if it is equal to or higher than the DC. In combat the defending character always has the advantage.
While damage is not the primary focus of this system, it’s an inevitable aspect of some TTRPG settings and scenarios.
Hit Points (HP) are important in the context of combat, but also for traps that cause damage. Hit Points are very simple - each character starts with 6 HP that should be tracked between sessions. If a character fails a defence check they lose 1HP, at 0HP the character is permanently dead.
If a character loses HP they can rest to restore 1HP per in-game day - resting means the character can do nothing for the day aside from rest. If another character has the Medicine skill they can, once a day per injured character, roll a 1d6 + skill modifier, the result should be halved, rounding down, this is the amount they heal the injured character.
Combat between characters is not the only cause of damage, the scenario or GM may opt to include traps or environmental hazards in the game world. Players can always choose either their characters Acrobatics or Athletics check for their check. The GM can decide to pre-define the DC of the trap with only the players rolling defence, or they may decide to roll a die to establish the DC. Traps are not characters, therefore have no skills meaning the DC is always what appears on the die.
Depending on the trap the GM may decide the trap effects more than 1 character, if this is the case the same DC is used for each character.
Combat in the 1d6 System is simple, first the attacker rolls 1d6 to establish the accuracy of their attack, including any relevant skills (Melee, Ranged). The defender then roles their die and add the modifier for their level in the same skill. For example if the attacking character has Advanced Training in the Melee skill and they roll a 3 they would use the total of 4 as their attack roll (3 + 1 = 4). If the defending character is Untrained in the Melee skill and they roll a 1 they would use the total of 0 (1 - 1 = 0). In this situation the attacking character would succeed and the defending character would fail, taking -1HP damage.
Characters take it in turns to perform actions in an attempt to resolve the combat. The GM will announce when a players turn is over (after taking an action), and which characters turn is next.
When a combat between characters starts the GM will ask all players to make an Order Roll (they may use other names such as initiative), the GM will, secretly, do the same for the NPCs involved in the combat. The order of turns is in descending order and should be tracked by the GM. In the case of a tie all involved must roll again until their is a clear order, the highest of this roll goes first.
For example:
| Order | Character | Roll 1 | Roll 2 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Carol | 5 | - |
| 2 | Betty | 4 | 6 |
| 3 | Dave | 4 | 1 |
| 4 | Aaron | 3 | - |
On each characters turn they may take 1 action. The player should describe what their character will attempt to do before they roll their die, making reference to any skill training they have, for example “Janet uses her Expert training in Athletics to climb a tree.” or “Janet uses her training in Melee to stab the robber.” or “Janet uses her Expert Persuasion to calm the assailant down.”. The player would then roll their die adding their skill modifier. The defending player, or GM, would then roll their defence using the same skill used by the attacker. If the total of the attacking player is higher than that of the defending player, the action is successful. If the action is a failure the player must describe and/or roleplay what happened and how the action failed.
Having a character shout or say something does not count as an action, allowing the characters to pass on valuable information to allies within range.
Within the system equipment and items are purely for flavour, they do not provide a bonus or penalty to a check, again this keeps the system lightweight and simple. That isn’t to say a GM can’t decide that equipment and items play a more significant role in their setting, however they should keep in mind that, as the system relies on 1d6, there is next to no progression scale outside of the bonus and penalties described above. As such, equipment and items should be treated as additional training in skills, while being worn/used.
This system aims to create a simple framework for great collaborative story-telling. A GM should always err on the side of fun. Generally this is achieved by allowing players use their imaginations and not being too strict with Difficulty Checks. The role of a GM is to keep the story moving, throwing in fun twists and options for the players to explore.
Keep in mind that NPCs should have a minimal character sheet containing a Quirk and Skills. The NPCs can then use these skills when interacting with PCs and should be used to set the DC of certain checks. For example a PC could question an NPCs knowledge about an event, if the NPC has the Deception skill this can be used to provide false information.
Be aware that asking a player to roll a deception check can give away the fact the NPC is trying to deceive the PC. Instead choose an appropriate alternative for the player to use from the list within the same skill category (Physical, Mental, Physical manipulation, or Understanding)
If you want a clear and concise set of rules this isn’t the system for you. There are, without a doubt, many holes or scenarios that this system does not account for but it should give a backbone for which a story can be built from.
| Date | Notes |
|---|---|
| 2023-10-19 | - Moved from blog post here - Added healing section - Added a GM note for NPCs |
| 2023-10-10 | Original blog post published |