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scion2:rules:general

Mechanics and Rules

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The Dice Basics

  • All dice are d10s
  • All dice are rolled as a pool
  • Pools: add Attribute + Skill dots as number of dice to roll
  • Target Number: the number on the die you have to equal or exceed for it to be a success
    • Default Target Number is 8 (this can become lower for higher Tier characters)
  • Difficulty: the number of successes you need to overcome a challenge
  • Threshold Successes: extra successes above the Difficulty value
    • Enhancements add to successes if you at least equal the Difficulty
    • Spend Threshold Successes to overcome Complications
    • Spend Threshold Successes on Stunts
  • Failure: If your successes total less than or equal to the Difficulty of a roll
    • Upon Failure, you will receive a Consolation
  • Botch: A special Failure. No successes, and at least one 1 on the die
    • The only Consolation you can get from a Botch is Momentum.
    • You receive 3 Momentum on a Botch.
  • 10-Again: keep rerolling 10s for added successes until you stop getting 10s
  • All challenges require at least 1 success
    • Not all challenges require rolls though

Extra Dice Basics

  • Contested Rolls: Roll against opponent, ties go to defender
  • Complications: an unforeseen consequence to overcoming a challenge. buy them off with extra successes.
  • Enhancements: extra successes added to a rolled result from equipment or circumstances
    • If a player rolls at least one success, they receive bonus successes equal to any applicable Enhancement
    • Enhancements should not go above 3 total without good reason
    • Enhancements above 3 should absolutely come with Drawbacks
  • Drawbacks: using an Enhancement sometimes comes with a drawback.
    • Getting drunk might ingratiate you to partygoers, but your fine motor control has gone to garbage
  • Mixed Actions: calculate die pool for each action and roll smallest pool. Successes are applied to meet Difficulty and Complications of all involved challenges.
    • You can fail at one and succeed at another
    • You can apply Enhancements to Mixed Action rolls
  • Teamwork: Assisting character rolls their die pool. Successes become Enhancement bonus to main roller.
  • Scale: situational and dramatic events that call for bonus successes. Size, Force, Speed, Leadership, etc can contribute to scale bonus successes.
  • Momentum: A resource players can spend (a single pool, shared by all players) to affect the game
    • Capacity: twice the number of players
    • Uses:
      • Activate Knacks
      • Add dice (per Momentum point spent) to a pool for an important roll
      • Add Interval (additional attempts) at a Complex Action

Mundane Systems

  • Time
    • Turn: A few seconds to a minute
    • Round: The length of time it takes for all participants to have a turn
    • Scene: As in a movie scene or a book scene; one single, coherent, related sequence of events
    • Act (Session): A game session
    • Episode: A small story that gives the characters a breather when it finishes
    • Arc: A full storyline from beginning to end
    • Season: A complete and conclusive story driven by some great threat or goal that is resolved with a climax
    • Series: A entire continuity of a game's story. A campaign.
  • Distance
    • Range Bands
      • Close: Melee
      • Short: Reach
      • Medium: Handguns, Thrown
      • Long: Rifles, Bows
      • Extreme: Precision Equipment or Magic
      • Out of Range: The Horizon, +2 Difficulty

Supernatural Systems

  • Legendary Title: A descriptive title which defines the circumstance in which a Scion may invoke a Feat of Scale, “Queen of the Assassins”
    • H p192
    • Each Calling has a list of associated keywords that can be used to build a character's Legendary Title
    • When invoking the title, the player may spend one Legend to increase Scale by one for that action as a Feat of Scale
    • When attempting an action covered by a Calling keyword that is not in your Legendary Title, spend one Legend and two Momentum to increase Scale by one for that action.

Consolations

  • Receive a Consolation when you fail a challenge (roll). Here are the types:
    • Fateful Encounter: Failure reveals another approach
    • Chance Meeting: Failure introduces a new character that can help (for a price)
    • Unlooked-for Advantage: Failure results in a level 1 Enhancement to a future (different) challenge
    • Momentum: Receive 1 for a failed roll, +1 if the roll used a Specialty, +2 if the roll was a *Botch*

Stunts

  • Stunts: can be purchased with Threshold Successes after all Complications bought off.
    • Link back to the success of the character's action
    • Affect a different Skill or Attribute combo than just used
    • Should be narrated out by player as to how they alter the scene
    • Three types of Basic Stunts: complication stunt, enhancement stunt, difficulty stunt
      • Complication Stunt: create a complication for adversaries
      • Enhancement Stunt: Provide an Enhancement you can use for another related action
      • Difficulty Stunt: increases Difficulty for adversaries in a related response action
    • One Type of Special Stunt: If you've used a Path to enhance a roll and have Threshold Successes left over
      • Twist of Fate: tell the ST to change the story - The peon's gun runs out of bullets, police suddenly arrive, etc

Complex Actions

  • Complex Actions: resolving a challenge that involves lots of separate tasks
    • Intervals: Linked challenges that make up a Complex Action
    • Milestone: Gain one when you meet the Difficulty of an Interval
    • Once a minimum number of Milestones are met, your Complex Action is complete/a success
    • Milestones can be awarded w/o rolls if appropriate
    • If under no time pressure, you can fail as many Intervals as you like while slowly accruing Milestones
    • Teamwork can be used for Complex Actions
      • Can collaborate on Intervals, or
      • Can have different characters perform different Intervals simultaneously (if it makes sense)
    • Can have opposed Complex Actions
      • Whoever gets to the Target Number of Milestones first wins, or
      • Whoever has the most Milestones by the Interval limit wins
Milestones Investigation Race
2 An awkward case A short-distance course
3 A carefully hidden secret weakness A three-lap chariot race
4 A treasure hunt with four keys A rough and varied derby
5+ A multilayered conspiracy An incredible marathon

Difficulty

Difficulty Table Example - Pursuit
1 Minor You escape a pursuer
2 Notable You evaded a coordinated pursuit from trained cops
3 Significant You outran a police car on foot
4 Major You got away from a charge of the Wyld Hunt
5 Extreme You slipped from the clutches of a vengeful Fury

Complication

Complication Table Example - Negotiation
1 Minor You upset him
2 Notable He's worked out what you're really after
3 Significant You owe him one
4 Major An invisible spy overheard the discucssion
5 Extreme His seriously pissed at you; watch out

Enhancement

Enhancement Table Example - Melee Attack
1 Minor A finely balanced rapier
2 Notable An enchanted macuahuitl
3 Significant A genuine Masamune blade
4 Major A dagger made from the head of a Gungir
5 Extreme Excalibur

Drawbacks

Drawbacks Table
Add a Complication
Increase the Difficulty of another action
Antagonists get a free Enhancement bonus against you

Degree of Success

Degree of Success Example - Generic
0 Normal You succeeded; no more, no less
1 Competent You showed particular expertise or luck
2 Excellence You performed admirably; the Gods are smiling
3 Amazing Your feats leave others in awe
4+ Divine You'll be talked about for decades at least
scion2/rules/general.txt · Last modified: 2018/11/19 02:18 by tara