**Come here and talk about anything!**

This post will stay stickied for (at least) the week-end. Please enjoy this space where you can talk about anything: your last game, your current project, your patreon, etc. You can even talk about video games, ask for a group, or post a survey or share a new meme you've just found. This is the place for small talk on r/rpg.

The off-topic rules may not apply here, but the other rules still do. This is less the Wild West and more the Mild West. Don't be a jerk.

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This submission is generated automatically each Saturday at 00:00 UTC.

A free bundle is currently live, through June 30th on RPG Trader in honor of Free RPG Day (June 27th), with 250 digital titles free, including some mouseritter, Mork Borg, Shadowdark (**disclaimer: including my own contribution**), liminal horror, and Mothership content, and I'm sure others that I will find once I dig through.

https://rpg-trader.com/products/1025/free-rpg-day-2026-bundle

Just thought I'd mention it since RPG Trader was a topic of discussion the other day. I like it so far, and seems like they plan to give Drivethru a run for their money. They had some technical issues earlier in the day, but seem to be on track now.

Or one you thought didn't exist, until you found it.

This week's RPG is Dungeons and Dragons 4th Edition!

Have you played it? Have you run/GM'd it? How did it go?

What's your favourite memory from the game?

What's the best thing about the game?

What's the worst? How would you improve it?

How does it compare to other editions of D&D?

Edit: So many comments! Thanks all; I'm in the forest this weekend so will get to them eventually =]

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Last week was Mage the Ascension. Join us again next week for Numenara!

Hello.

I am a Japanese TTRPG player who usually plays online.

I have played various rules systems, and recently I noticed something that I found interesting while thinking about action resolution in TTRPGs.

In my view, an action check should not be something that is rolled, or called for, casually and without much thought.

Rather, I think an action check exists because of dangerous contact, dynamic risk, or a change in the situation. In other words, an action check is meaningful because, if the action fails, some kind of change in the situation follows from that failure.

If that is not the case, then the GM can simply judge the situation in light of the PC’s context: the PC succeeds, the action is impossible, or the PC succeeds but with some cost or consequence.

However, I began to wonder whether roll-over resolution systems, especially systems with critical successes, give ordinary players the wrong incentives and implications.

I have two concerns.

The first concern is that players may come to see the random element as an amplifier of the final result.

In this mindset, a check is not something that is demanded by the situation. Rather, it becomes an opportunity to see how much the result derived from one’s skill can be increased. Because of this, players may become eager to roll action checks.

As a result, players may come to feel that checks should be rolled often, and they may feel mild dissatisfaction toward a GM who prevents them from rolling.

The second concern, although I think this is a smaller issue, is that in a roll-over system with critical successes, not allowing a roll can easily look like the GM is preventing the PC from displaying their competence.

For example, when the GM says, “No, this is clearly impossible,” or “You can succeed, but a cost is required,” the player may still feel, “But if you had let me roll, I might have scored a critical success.”

I feel that this possibility works against the mindset I currently have about action checks.

These are my current thoughts about roll-over resolution systems.

What do you think?

I would welcome any kind of response: points I may be overlooking, ideas that connect to this, methods for preventing these problems, or broader mindsets that might expand the premise of the discussion.

English is not my first language. I wrote the original in Japanese and used AI assistance to translate and polish the English version. I have tried to keep the translation close to the original, and I include the Japanese text below for transparency.

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こんにちは。

私は普段TRPGをオンラインでプレイしている日本人プレイヤーです。
さまざまなルールシステムで遊んでいるのですが、最近、CP-REDのマスタリングを模索している際に、興味深い事実に気付きました。

本来、行為判定とは「とりあえず考えもなしに振る、振らせる」というものではなく、
「危険な接触、動的リスク、状況の変転」――つまり、その行為に失敗した際、なんらかの状況の変転が付随するからこそ、行為判定は成立するものだと考えています。
そうでなければ判定を試みているPCの文脈を踏まえて、成功させるか、不可能だと言うか、成功するがコストや代償が発生するか、いずれかで処理すればいいのです。

しかし上方判定（ロールオーバー）――特に決定的成功があるルールだと、
これは一般的なプレイヤーに対して間違ったインセンティブと示唆を与えているのではないか、と疑問に思いました。

疑問点は二点あります。

まず一点目は「プレイヤーが乱数を達成値の増幅器だと捉えてしまう」点です。
判定は「迫られるもの」ではなく、むしろ自分の技能から導出された達成値が如何に上昇するかの機会であり、その為、積極的に行為判定を振りたがるようになってしまうのです。
その結果、判定は沢山振られるべきであり、それを阻止するGMに対して、マイルドな不満を抱くようになってしまいます。

二点目――これはあまり大きな問題ではありませんが――「決定的成功がある上方判定ルールでは、振らせない事がPCの有能さを妨げている」ように見えやすいという点です。
つまりGMが判定させずに「いや、これはどう考えても無理だよ」あるいは「成功するが、代償が必要だ」とPLに告げる場合、しかし「判定をさせてくれれば決定的成功があるのに……」とプレイヤーが思う余地を生んでしまっており、それが私が認識する行為判定のマインドセットに対して逆効果をもたらしてしまっている。

以上の二点が、上方判定に関する私の「気付き」ですが、皆さんはどう思われますか？
私の考えが見落としている点や、あるいはここに接続できるアイデア、これらを阻止できる方法、そもそも前提を拡張するマインドセットなど、どのような返事でも歓迎します。

※私は非英語ネイティブなのでAI翻訳を利用しています。原文はこちらに併記しておきます。

I am from one of EU's poorer countries and I often save up quite a bit by buying pdfs (especially because the cost of shipping kinda' annoys me), but lately I have been having a lot of regrets about not having purchased the physical books. I'm big on tactile feel and reading a book is just somehow more fun and I find it easier to focus.

But I'm also kinda' addicted to reading and playing ttrpgs and I cannot afford all of that stuff. Still, it does make me wonder if I should slow down and more mindfully shop than buy way too many bundles and too many books and fund too many kickstarters (with the pdf tier only).

Hi everyone.
I am a long time dnd 3.5 DM, tested 5e, Pathfinder, Worlds without number, starting Cthulhu next...
but I always wanted to run something in the Conan setting.

I heard different things about the Conan 2d6 RPGs over the years and by now I am wondering if other games do that particular "sword and sorcery" style better than the actual Conan RPG?
I was thinking about Shadow of the demon lord as that seems to be rather gritty and brutal too.

Dark, rare magic+ dangerous at best, I would expect a good combat system, deadly, but also good sneaking options. Not really sure what else toexpect. ^^

But what do you think? If you were tasked to run a Conan themed game, would you actually play the conan RPG for that or pick something else?

From what I remember, the Conan game has a hit table, for where you hit an opponent and what that does to you, you roll a defense against the attack. You also lose your loot after an adventure - pretty much drinking and celebrating it all away. Maybe I am wrong on these though.

I've been slowly working on a long-term campaign setting for my players that builds off of the setting of 'Dread Delusion', the wonderfully unique narrative-RPG. I don't necessarily want to one again have to rely on 5e for my homebrewing needs, and have been looking into alternatives that fit Dread Delusion's 'Sci-Glamtasy' vibes, or more generally its wonderful blend of sci-fi, fantasy, and psychedelic visuals!

Some alternatives that I've been going into more depth into have been Into the Odd & The Electrum Archive, but if anyone has any suggestions that fit the themes and aesthetics of Dread Delusion, I would love to hear any recommendations!

I am wondering if any DM's or GM's have ran a game where you did not roll dice, but your players did. If so, what did you think of the game mechanic.

I have been reading the Codex Alera series by Jim Butcher. For those unaware: it’s a fantasy series which combines the Lost Roman Legion and Pokémon. The world has a very Roman inspired culture, but the magic system of the world is elemental spirits of fire, water, earth, air, wood, and metal called Furies. Furies can be summoned to do tasks directly, such as a stone dog shaped Fury biting down on someone’s leg, but they can also use other powers such as earth boosting physical strength, fire riling emotions, water healing, or metal boosting the strength of weapons.

I have some ideas of systems to use but I’d love to hear other ideas. My thoughts:

FATE narrative focused. For those familiar with it I’d probably take inspiration from the “Five Storms” magic system in the Toolkit, but also allow players to create Stunts that’s their Fury boosting their own abilities

Basic Roleplaying Universal Game Engine. BRP has rules for all the needed skills (sword fighting, social, etc) and I could easily take inspiration for RuneQuest’s rune system to allow players to augment skills using “Furycraft” skills.

I am fascinated with Angel’s Heart, so I need horror RPGs that focus on the Devil himself, preferably set in modern~ish day.

I want to run a game of Timewatch, but don't love the Stitches mechanic. This is one of those things where the GM or other players are supposed to reward players that "do something awesome", "make the table laugh", etc. I find that these commodify the natural interaction and creativity, and would prefer a system where Stitches are earned automatically. (I feel similar about D&D's inspiration mechanic).

I thought about granting one every failed roll, or every other failed roll, but am not sure if they might happen too frequently. Any other ideas?