A Modest Life, RPG of retired adventurers

I've been sitting on this one for weeks at this point. Might as well just publish it so I can make a character for it tomorrow.

A Modest Life

"We've done our part in saving the world. It's time for us to rest, and let the younger ones save it next."
Windless Valley, by Kui Lee

Design Notes

This project started when I realized I wouldn't have enough characters for the Character March 2025. Instead of opting for more games I merely helped with writing or reaching for games I didn't even work on at all, I decided on the foolish idea of making a game just so I could make a character for it and compare it among my other games. When I sat down to work on it though, I quickly realized... I don't have any ideas. I asked Kate for some ideas, and she told me she'd like a game about a bunch of retired adventurers, now taking care of a village, resolving simple problems there.

I figured out the boundaries of what I wanted to do and set out to work. For example, early on, I pondered whether magic has a place here, and I didn't make anything magical, nor fantasy humanoids, such as elves, orcs, or dwarves. It's all down to earth, so grounded it's medieval fantasy. The only fantastical elements are the adventurers' competence and the four mythical creatures in the events table.

Players are defined by their age, which defines the sum of their stats (ranging from 1 to 20 each). Whenever they use a stat, they roll 1d20 and try to roll less than the stat.  I went with quick and easy stats, and stat resolution, and tried to keep things minimal overall. This even reached into the combat system, which boils down to "everyone wears down the animal, and then someone tries to slay it with one fell swoop" instead of your typical "let's treat it like a pinata" situation from many other fantasy TTRPGs.

The abilities the player characters get are mostly meant to represent things they'd do as adventurers. I tried to make as many of them as I could useful in general day-to-day stuff too, though here and there I had to resort to doing less. At the moment, I feel pretty good about them.

When it comes to managing the village, there are two main things the players are to aim for: expanding the village by gaining the resource cards through work and protecting the village from animals and mythological creatures by fighting and forgoing the work. The table of events also includes natural dangers that the player might try to resolve, as well as some peaceful events.

Included is a small procedure for working, some medieval buildings, ... and it's a game I suppose. Is it in a perfect state? Not sure. Am I going to publish it on itch.io? Almost certainly, but I doubt I'll get around to that until the end of March. I have some surprises to work on before that.

I hope you enjoyed reading this, and I'd like to wish you all a lovely day!

Character March 2025: Gelt and Sand

Another short system is coming right up. I'll aim to make this one short.

My ratings will be done on four scales, each ranging from 1 to 5:

• RPG: How much does this feel like an RPG to me, as opposed to a board game?
• Soup Stone: How little content does the game expect you to add? For this scale, 0 is a complete Soup Stone since I'd like to sum the scores to see the game's total score.
• Would I Play: If I were given a chance to, would I play this game?
• Would I Write: If I were inspired enough and had time/energy for it, would I get back to working on this game?

Gelt and Sand

Voltaire Sunside is a member of the Philosopher cast within the society he lives in. Ever since his youth, he had visions of the past, the future, and even the present that he couldn't witness, so his merchant parents got him the best education they could afford. Now it's paying off, since he's one of the many advisors to the colony's ruler. His statistics go as follows:

• Strength +0
• Senses +2
• Smarts +1
• Socializing +0

He's kind of awkward when hanging out in groups, and he's far from a strong man, but his honed perception and intelligence make up for it greatly in the job he has.

Ratings

4/5 RPG. I guess it doesn't feel like a board game, so that's nice.

2/5 Soup Stone. At least it gives you a setting and some things to work off of. If I gave Rolling with It a rating of 2, this one gets a rating of 2 too.

1/5 Would I Play. I haven't watched Dune, so I'm not too invested in this style of game.

0/5 Would I Write. No real interest at the moment. For now it's a thought cabinet material, waiting for its chance to shine.

7/20 Total Rating

Character March 2025: These Bloody Cells

This system technically features a character, so why not?

My ratings will be done on four scales, each ranging from 1 to 5:

• RPG: How much does this feel like an RPG to me, as opposed to a board game?
• Soup Stone: How little content does the game expect you to add? For this scale, 0 is a complete Soup Stone since I'd like to sum the scores to see the game's total score.
• Would I Play: If I were given a chance to, would I play this game?
• Would I Write: If I were inspired enough and had time/energy for it, would I get back to working on this game?

These Bloody Cells

Jacque "Sixer" Anderson is a vampire who has been imprisoned for over fifty years. He used to be a crime lord thanks to his charm, but nowadays, the criminal underworld has forgotten him, only considering him an urban myth, a rumor. He's determined to escape now, with some help from the other vampire buddies he made in the prison.

Bite is one of his powers, but another one is Charm and Sneak. His wardens are aware of these, but he's causing them a lot of trouble with these, regardless. His starting Blood pool is 11, though he only contributed 2 points to the Plan pool.

Ratings

4/5 RPG. I think this one could be fun, and it doesn't follow a strict board game structure.

4/5 Soup Stone. I'd say the game gives plenty of inspiration. It's far from perfect, but it's better at this than most of my games.

2/5 Would I Play. Sounds kind of fun in retrospect. I'm not absolutely keen on it, but maybe one day I could give it a go.

2/5 Would I Write. If I have good ideas for it, I could see myself do it.

12/20 Total Rating

Character March 2025: Arena of Popularity but no Death nor Magic

I didn't publish it on my blog because it felt rather lame in retrospect, but I might as well bring it up now. It's not balanced, it's kind of strange, and it has a comically long name. But it is how I started this whole thing.

My ratings will be done on four scales, each ranging from 1 to 5:

• RPG: How much does this feel like an RPG to me, as opposed to a board game?
• Soup Stone: How little content does the game expect you to add? For this scale, 0 is a complete Soup Stone since I'd like to sum the scores to see the game's total score.
• Would I Play: If I were given a chance to, would I play this game?
• Would I Write: If I were inspired enough and had time/energy for it, would I get back to working on this game?

Arena of Popularity but no Death nor Magic

The Howler is a wolf-themed warrior. Yes, he bites. Since the rules require a silly 20-word long backstory (thanks, One Punch Man), here it is:

Raised by deer. Ate them. Raised by wolves. Bit them. Raised by humans. Scorned them. Raised himself. Achieved great success.

He starts with 0 Popularity, which is a shock with a backstory this amazing, and his stats are as follows:

• Head 5
• Main Hand 0
• Off Hand 0
• Body 4
• Legs 1

No weapons, no special equipment. Just a wolf mask and sharp teeth.

Ratings

1/5 RPG. Most of it is combat. I don't even know if there's stuff that one could do in between other than manage their popularity and roleplay with no consequence. Unless you'd soup stone it. Speaking of...

1/5 Soup Stone. Again, you get to battle, but not much else, as written.

0/5 Would I Play. No.

0/5 Would I Write. I'd rather start over.

2/20 Total Rating

Character March 2025: Final: Sole Survivor

Guess I'm killing it with these short articles, huh?

My ratings will be done on four scales, each ranging from 1 to 5:

• RPG: How much does this feel like an RPG to me, as opposed to a board game?
• Soup Stone: How little content does the game expect you to add? For this scale, 0 is a complete Soup Stone since I'd like to sum the scores to see the game's total score.
• Would I Play: If I were given a chance to, would I play this game?
• Would I Write: If I were inspired enough and had time/energy for it, would I get back to working on this game?

Final: Sole Survivor

Liam Parker is a local university student and a musclehead too, about to do whatever the group is doing on this oneshot. He's always been a pretty Strong guy, giving him 3 Health instead of 2. His three skills are Hurl, Muscle, and Run. When it comes to his four items, he brought with him his smartphone, his pocket knife that's more for showing than using, a dumbbell, and a pair of shades despite it being evening. He's out to have some fun, chillax with his friends, and show off.

Ratings

5/5 RPG. Checks out.

4/5 Soup Stone. Pretty good selection.

5/5 Would I Play. Absolutely!

2/5 Would I Write. Only if I see good ways to improve it. And I want to see how I could improve it.

16/20 Total Rating

The "Keep on Rolling" Engine

Recently I had an interesting conversation with Cubelith and Izzy, in which I learned about the One Roll Engine. Interesting how they were able to fit both efficiency and speed into one roll. We came up with an alternative, and while they didn't agree to this name, I had to name the article somehow. This is the Keep on Rolling Engine, or KoRE.

Keep on Rolling Engine

Start with stats that have dice assigned to them. Whenever you do something, start by being told which stat you use. Then, you get to decide how many dice you roll. After rolling them, you sum them up to see how effective you are.

If someone wants to counter your action by being faster, they must roll fewer dice than you (or equal if you rolled just one die), and roll a higher sum than yours.

If you are in an intense action sequence, such as a combat or a chase, you might be limited to only having some amount of dice per round. This could pair pretty well with the Opposed Roll Combat System.

Outside of intense action scenes, the players might be able to keep on adding the dice to their rolls until they roll over some difficulty set by the GM. If we want this to matter, there could also be some kind of time limit - the GM could be counting how many dice have been used, and that way keep track of what time it is right now.

What mechanics could we use to make it more than just a dice resolution? Picture the ones listed below being incorporated into various abilities and traits in the game itself.

• Some players could have features that set a minimum rolled value to something (2, 3, or 4, since those are on all standard dice).
• Adding different dice types into the pool.
• Replacing dice with other dice in the pool.
• Static bonuses to a roll (pretty powerful stuff at lower rolls).
• Multiplying select dice rolls? (How could you tell I played Balatro recently?)
• Forgoing a die with a set minimum roll for some specific additional effect.
• Assigning the dice values after the rest of the pool is rolled (Wiggle Dice in O.R.E.).

I'm pretty sure I could keep going, but this is just to record the idea on my blog. Thank you for reading, and have a nice day!

Character March 2025: Everyone Slays the Princess

One of my shortest games. Lightning round!

My ratings will be done on four scales, each ranging from 1 to 5:

• RPG: How much does this feel like an RPG to me, as opposed to a board game?
• Soup Stone: How little content does the game expect you to add? For this scale, 0 is a complete Soup Stone since I'd like to sum the scores to see the game's total score.
• Would I Play: If I were given a chance to, would I play this game?
• Would I Write: If I were inspired enough and had time/energy for it, would I get back to working on this game?

Everyone Slays the Princess

Magician. The archetype of someone creative and a thinker. Trying to work out what this place is, who is the Princess, and who is the Hero... What more is there to say?

Ratings

5/5 RPG. Doesn't feel like a board game at all.

2/5 Soup Stone. The premise and some guidelines are there, but largely, it is what you make of it. Not as much as some of my other games, though.

5/5 Would I Play. Short and sweet. Once I figure out more ways to end it, I'd love to play it with groups of new players.

1/5 Would I Write. I consider it finished and complete. If I see something that should be added, I might return to it.

13/20 Total Rating

Character March 2025: Runehack RPG

A day special to me for private reasons should be dedicated to making a character of my own for the Runehack RPG. Publishing it was one of my resolutions for 2024, and I did it. At times, I had my doubts, considering publishing just two pillars, then just one, but eventually, the structure came to me. And when the muse kicked me and I started writing, I barely stopped for several months.

My ratings will be done on four scales, each ranging from 1 to 5:

• RPG: How much does this feel like an RPG to me, as opposed to a board game?
• Soup Stone: How little content does the game expect you to add? For this scale, 0 is a complete Soup Stone since I'd like to sum the scores to see the game's total score.
• Would I Play: If I were given a chance to, would I play this game?
• Would I Write: If I were inspired enough and had time/energy for it, would I get back to working on this game?

Runehack RPG

Fitzen Rainstone is a confident goblin who is a professional hoverboarder, participating in competitions to see whose tricks are the best. What might surprise most is that he enjoys writing and storytelling just as much as hoverboarding. What he lacks in strength and smarts, he makes up for with his handiness. He's 30 years old, so he's well aware that his career might be over soon. That's why he's raising a student of his to be just as good at skating as he is, an orc who's got a lot of potential. He hates his human manager since both of them are quite stubborn, and he's got a goblin love interest who's present every time he competes. Things changed when some influential yet hidden people contacted him, asking whether he'd want to join the Acumen. For a personal reason that's a secret to most, he agreed.

Since he's a goblin, his body has adaptive physiology that allows him to shift slightly and become just what he needs in roughly one week, provided he'll adjust his diet for it. Usually, he's an oak goblin, but if it's necessary, he's willing to switch things up. His attributes are as follows:

• Muscle 0
• Agility 2
• Training 3
• Cognition 0
• Hunch 2

His starting Burden is 1, allowing him to carry a single item without being slowed down. He could carry two items concealed on his body in such a way that others couldn't find them. His Masteries are hoverboards, rubber, and wood. He has 2 Guesses that he could spend to find out what's true without evidence. His Max. Energy starts at 10, his default targeting senses are Smell (while he's an oak goblin) and Sight (which is normal to all player characters), he starts with 300 credits and some basic possessions as listed in the rules, as well as a Penthouse. His feature choices for the pillars are as follows:

• Social: Fame is a feature that would give him a starting relationship of +2 with his fans and -2 with his haters, plus they'd know some basic facts about the famous skater. Furthermore, he'd take the Healing Factor feature unique to the goblins that allows him to heal from Wounds faster, literally within a matter of a day. His final feature of choice is a Secret, which increases one of his attributes by 1 (Hunch), but now there's a dark truth about him that very few know: he owes someone awful a great debt. And they are keeping an eye on him, waiting for the prime opportunity.
• Spy: In the Acumen, he found himself at home in the role of a Tinker. With his runecard's apps, he can use some telekinesis to create obstacles in unobstructed routes, and the ability to fall without getting injured (also through telekinesis). The obstacles he's mastered so far are Around and Over, since those felt to him as a hoverboarder quite natural. Being in the Acumen also gives him a Mask that he can wear to cover up his identity, and his runecard informs him whether there's any runetech present in his area, save for the runecard itself. (Note to self: that last part is what I realized just now I should fix in the rules.)
• Tech: When it comes to the more technical side of his secret life, his runecard can't be identified unless he allows it, and he can activate or deactivate runetech devices that are within his line of sight, provided he succeeds on a roll for them. His role is Modder, which allows him to jury rig devices, attaching and detaching components even outside of the Assembly Activity. As a modder, he can also purchase a special component called Hotswap Slot, allowing anyone to attach components to it outside of the Assembly Activity safely.
• Job: Seeker is the perfect job for a public performer such as a pro hoverboarder. His features of choice would be a Costly Talent (which doubles credits earned and lost during a Performance and from the Flourishes), and One More Try (allowing him to take a Perform action once freely if he succeeded on less than two rolls made as part of a Perform or Flourish action in a round).

Ratings

5/5 RPG. The procedures might seem board game-y, but I think overall it feels like a roleplaying game.

4/5 Soup Stone. There's still stuff to improve about it, like adding more Conspiracies and adding more and more options to the game, but I think it's already in a solid place.

5/5 Would I Play. Yes. I'd love to have a local group to play it with, but until then, I'll have to play with an online friend or two.

5/5 Would I Write. I want to add so much more to this game. I just keep getting sidetracked with other projects. I think that's actually a good thing, though! It gives me more space to relax from thinking about writing this game and also more time to try it out myself so I know if there's anything that needs to be changed.

19/20 Total Rating