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Stat-based Combat mechanic - Need input?

9 replies [Last post]
Tue, 07/05/2016 - 21:06
questccg
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Since my "game idea" is built around Heroes defeating Monsters & Minions, I am seeking advice about a "Combat mechanic".

Let me explain what I have so far.

A Hero has three (3) stats out of a possible six (6). The original idea was that a Monster would have two (2) stats and the Heroes (Party of several) would need to BEAT those two (2) stats.

And the Monster could gravely injure a Hero that had below a certain stat.

So for example:

My opponent's "Black Dragon" has STR (Strength) = 8 and INT (Intelligence) = 5. This is a *tough* opponent to defeat. Since it could take a "party" to defeat this Monster. In addition any Hero with CON < 5 would be severely injured...

And he could have two (2) Minions who have one (1) stat each such as DEX = 4 and STR = 5.

While all this *sounds cool*, it poses a couple problems:

  1. You can only have five (5) Heroes at one time.
  2. If you can defeat a Monster, isn't defeating Minions TOO EASY?

Is this sort of combat mechanic - well - enough? Or does anyone have thoughts on how this can be improved upon. Or maybe another combat mechanic... I might be willing to add one die to the mechanic - although originally I wanted it to be purely stat based.

Anyhow if anyone has ideas worth sharing, I'd like to hear them.

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Tue, 07/05/2016 - 21:25
#1
questccg
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I almost forgot...

The Combat mechanic is a "secondary" mechanic. It is NOT the "primary" mechanic of the game. Oddly enough, and you would think it too simple, but just like in "Quest AC" Set Collection is the primary mechanic.

So I'm looking to keep the Combat mechanic relatively simple...

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Tue, 07/05/2016 - 23:32
#2
Squinshee
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My immediate concern is that

My immediate concern is that battles become less interesting the longer they last, which is the opposite you want to happen. If the battle starts with all of your heroes and all of the enemies, the start will be the most complex, with the most choices. You may want to think of system that increases the complexity of combat as it progresses.

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Wed, 07/06/2016 - 00:26
#3
czarcastic
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If monsters have minions,

If monsters have minions, perhaps the minions support the monster in some way, like stat bonuses. The heroes would have the option of taking out the minions first to weaken the monster, allowing it to be defeated. Taking the time to target the minions would carry some risk or penalty.
If there are minions remaining when the monster is defeated, they flee since their boss just got squashed.

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Wed, 07/06/2016 - 20:43
#4
questccg
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Some good points... but

There still is the issue of a Party being able to use their stats to obliterate a Monster and his Minions...

If your party's stats are enough to destroy the Monster, more than likely you will be able to defeat the Minions.

So let's say I have a Fighter who has:

-6 Str
-5 Con
-3 Dex

I am fighting a Goblin (Minion) who has:

-3 Str

Obviously my Fighter can overpower the Goblin. But isn't that just too simple?!?! Should I add some dice to add some probability of success or failure??? Like maybe the stats are the FIRST requirement, then you need to do a successful roll of a die (or dice)?!

It seems way too, pardon my language, stupid to just rely on stats.

I have one dice idea that goes something like this:

The Goblin is a WEAK Minion. Therefore you use the Green die. The goal of the roll is to determine if combat was successful or not.

In my case (Fighter vs. Goblin), we roll the three (3) dice: 2 Black + 1 Green.

To defeat the Goblin, you must roll a pair of MATCHING "Swords". A miss is translated by any roll without a pair. And for the enemy to win, a pair of matching "Skulls".

This would rely on Custom d6s as follows:

3x Sword, 2x Blank, 1x Skull (Black die) x2 (qty)
3x Sword, 2x Blank, 1x Skull (Green die) x1
1x Sword, 3x Blank, 2x Skull (Yellow die) x1
2x Sword, 1x Blank, 3x Skull (Red die) x1

The limitation is that you may combat one Minion at a time. But you could have something like 3 Action Points (APs) and therefore battle up to three (3) Monster/Minions on one (1) turn.

With this combat mechanic, I use BOTH stats & dice: first you must meet the stat requirement (matching or higher) and then you must have a successful roll.

Critiques/Comments/Feedback/Suggestions/Ideas are all welcomed.

Cheers.

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Thu, 07/07/2016 - 01:32
#5
X3M
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What if you roll a die to

What if you roll a die to determine which of the hero's stats is used to fight the goblin with an attack?

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Thu, 07/07/2016 - 16:32
#6
questccg
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Not sure how that would work?!

X3M wrote:
What if you roll a die to determine which of the hero's stats is used to fight the goblin with an attack?

But it would be illogical to fight with a stat that the Minion doesn't have?

For now, Minions only have 1 stat. Monsters have 2 stats because they are like the "Bosses" and require all minions to be defeated before battling the Monster of the Lair. And usually this means a party of 3 - 5 Heroes depending how *tough* the Monster is.

So the idea is that the player can READ which stats are required by all of the Minons and Monster... He then builds up a party with which he can defeat all of them... Then he must travel to the Lair using APs and then battles occur with the Minions and lastly with the Monster.

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Thu, 07/07/2016 - 17:40
#7
questccg
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Here are my Hero Classes

Hero Classes

Here is a table with the various Hero Classes in the game. As you can see each class has its very own stats. That is because to defeat certain Monsters you need a "party" instead of only one (1) Hero...

Character Class Primary Secondary Auxiliary Color
Fighter/Warrior Str Con Dex Red
Paladin Con Str Wis Purple
Cleric Wis Cha Int Blue
Mage Int Wis Con Green
Thief Dex Int Cha Yellow
Bard Cha Dex Str Orange
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Sat, 07/09/2016 - 23:34
#8
Experimental Designs
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Well minions are not meant to

Well minions are not meant to be tough, they're simply fodder for the greater monsters. You forget if enough minions overwhelm your fighter or the party then it makes facing the monsters themselves that much more tense. It necessitates a strategy and depending on the abilities of the monsters and any supportive ones their minions provide or vice versa. Also it may help to randmonize the wave of minions and monsters per round of combat just to keep you guessing.

Over simplification is just as bad as making it too complex. I say make minions weak although not too weak nor do you want them too strong.

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Sun, 07/10/2016 - 00:22
#9
questccg
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Trying to keep things as simple as possible

Experimental Designs wrote:
... I say make minions weak although not too weak nor do you want them too strong.

Well the idea is rather simple:

  • A- Heroes have 3 stats
  • B- Monsters have 2 stats.
  • C- Minions have 1 stat.

So if it takes 4 Heroes to defeat a Monster... You run the risk of 4 Heroes dying. When you battle a Minion, it is usually 1 on 1 or maybe 2 on 1. So the risk is LESS than Monsters.

The proverbial roll of two (2) Skulls - results in that party being wiped-out. So it means you could lose up to five (5) Heroes in one battle... But that's like fighting some fierce Red Dragon (for example). Very Strong and Highly Intelligent.

Your goal as Heroes is to MATCH or overpower your enemies stat(s).

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