So several folks have brought up aspects of other miniatures games to me recently, specifically, things they didn’t like. To understand many of the choices miniatures game developers make you must first have a full understanding of the games CORE mechanics. Some game systems cannot prevent shortcomings because of the math used to generate statistics, the method used for a to-hit roll etc… While id be more than happy to spend this entire page ranting about what is wrong in the world I thought I’d put these discussions to rest with my own point of view.
As far as game mechanics that may or may not work well this requires CONTEXT in nearly every situation. When a specific rule is taken out of context and measured on its own merit it can actually sound rather silly. This, unfortunately, is the case for many games. Context for a game mechanic should always be used; even abstract games require the context of other rules used in concert with a main mechanic before their full value can be understood.
Shortfalls and limitations are another matter entirely. As is the case with nearly all complex game systems a rule can generate dependencies within the system (and most often do). Some rules can be forced into a specific system because of dice choice, measurement choice, the use of cards or the limitation of pieces. This is a matter of design and can be attributed to any number of variables. Understand that if you modify a single mechanic within a complex system then you run the risk of uncontrollable change. The entire system may become radically different from something as simple as available playing pieces or a 1 point variable.
Whew!....Now that we’ve dealt with that little mess let’s take a look at early choices for direction in my game development.
Dice: And here we are back at my old nemesis/ best friend. Dice represent an easy to understand and universally accepted method of determining random results. While this has the advantage of simplicity and ease of understanding its greatest strength, Rand, is also its greatest pitfall. What value does a random system have in a game of strategic purity? For many players this is an endless source of frustration and aguish. Dice that behave poorly may have a heavy impact on a perfectly reasonable set of tactics. Conversely a player who is “on a roll” may take the field against insurmountable odds. Tactical players rarely enjoy combat based more on luck and less on clever planning.
A happy medium: While my original wishes, during the concept stages of design, were the elimination of dice I found myself quickly running out of options. Several methods of design that crossed my mind involved cards, bidding, as well as a “resource” management approach. Due largely to my desire for fast and aggressive game-play I was forced to accept dice as a first line in my strategy. Although dice had pitfalls of the most obvious sort I believed I could overcome them with “clever planning”.
Dice Deployment: Before I could begin my exploration of dice as a driving mechanic I first had to understand the best possible method of ensuring that while there would be some level of chance, players who wished to invest in their actions could come very close to eliminating any chance of failure. This meant offering players a favorable probability for actions they deemed “worth the investment”. While this became a complex task I had a fairly complete understanding of my goal within a few weeks. The concept stage began transforming into actual writing at this point.
Of course the next task, accurate portrayal of heroic action, forced me to tie together both dice mechanics as well as other game mechanics. The ability of the Hero to act heroically without generating imbalance turned into a quest. Nearly a month (more?) passed as I ran mechanic after mechanic by my fellow gamers, I was entering a stage in which I felt like I had reached for the sun. Balance seemed animpossibility with so many self imposed restrictions on my design.
