What happens when you can’t find a system that quite fits what you need for a TTRPG? Most people homebrew a few rules to twist the system to make it fit. That’s what I started out by doing. But then there were a few changes here and there, and before long your running up against fundamental limitations of a system. Then you have two real options: Run with what you’ve got, or start from scratch. I chose the latter.
This is my chronicle of the journey to make “Project Yorktown”, a Tabletop Roleplaying System set in a fantastical version of 1770s America. What could possibly go wrong! With me on this journey is Chris. A friend I met 5 years ago as I started playing RPGs and he’s here as a co author of this project.
Before I really started, I wanted to get clear what I really wanted from the system. And it came down to this:
- A System with a high Depth to Complexity ratio
- A System that put you in the shoes of an immigrant to pre-revolutionary America
- A System flexible to allow for challenges ranging from but not limited to:
- Tactical Combat
- Mysteries
- Exploration
- Crafting
- Emotive Storytelling
- A System able to have a campaign life cycle between 18 to 24 months of weekly sessions
- A System that allows players high levels of meaningful customisation of their characters
- A System’s at table gameplay is familiar to my players
I defined Depth and Complexity as such:
Depth is the number of emergent experientially different possibilities (aka meaningful choices)
Complexity is the mental burden that a player must overcome to access the depth
This list of 6 guidelines gave us the base to what we have developed and what we will be developing. Next up, where it all started from, the Advantage/Disadvantage mechanic.
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