Fate Points Rules

[dieselpunk]

In the BRP book there's an optional rule page about fate points that suggests ways to spend POW to get re-rolls or shifts in success levels. I've long been interested in mechanics like this dating back to TSR's Marvel Super Heroes' karma system because I think RPGs running on pure luck of the roll sometimes isn't satisfying.

I've been reading Fate Core lately and it's aspect system is very interesting. However, as a whole I prefer something more of a BRP mechanic rather than having GM judgement be used for everything. I'm interested if anyone has tried marrying more narrative approaches with BRP or have alternate POW point expenditure rules to modify success.

[lawrence.whitaker]

Quote

Mythras uses Luck Points, the number of which are determined by POW. These can be used for re-rolls, downgrading wounds, reversing the read of the dice, and so on.

 

[Raleel]

2 hours ago, lawrence.whitaker said:

Mythras uses Luck Points, the number of which are determined by POW. These can be used for re-rolls, downgrading wounds, reversing the read of the dice, and so on.

I've used these in my Mythras games for pieces of equipment that might be handy, alterations to the environment that are needed, coincidental contacts, etc. 

[soltakss]

HeroQuest and Legend have Hero Points and Mythras has Luck Points. Some people hate them, some people love them. When I introduced them in our RQ game, my players loved them, as we had just finished a HeroQuest campaign.

I use them for many things:

• Reroll dice, own or NPCs
• Flip the result of a D100, so 50 becomes 05
• Nudge the result of a D100, so failing by the Critical chance can be nudged to a success, so a skill of 65% has a Critical of 3, so rolling 68 can be nudged to a Success
• We use Revolution d100 at the moment, so we allow the choice of a Combat Effect if you spend a Hero Point in advance, so you get a Disarm no matter the roll, as long as you succeed
• Making something better, so you use Fast Talk to convince someone, but they are not really sure, so you spend a Hero Point to really convince them
• Move the result of a Hit Location D20 roll by one up or down
• Plot Device - You have been captured and thrown into jail, but you spend a Hero Point and the guard is an old friend from your village
• Taking time back - You went to see the Grey Wizard last season and in another scenario you need something that he could have given you, so you spend a Hero Point to have asked him for it
• Whatever - If you can justify it and it makes sense then I normally allow it

 

 

[RosenMcStern]

Revolution D100 has Fate Point rules which are more akin to MSH than to HeroWars/HeroQuest. If you wish to have an alternate mechanics for "luck adjustment", it can be an interesting read interesting.

On the other hand, if you wish to try a more narrative approach to D100 which runs similar to Fate, then the entire game mechanics for non-violent conflicts may be interesting to you.

Here is the free SRD. Both relevant sections are in Chapter 3.

[g33k]

Also worth noting (maybe?) is that "Fate" is itself a set of narrative-ish rules that sit atop the crunchy-simulationist Fudge engine.

And "Aspect-Only Fate" is a thing people have already done.

It wouldn't be much work, really, to overlay those non-Fudge bits of Fate onto another crunchy-simulationist RPG engine ... if you had one in mind...?  🤣