Rocks Fall You Die (RFYD) 1.0

Purpose: A flexible OSR-esq system for solo/co-op pulp adventure.

Content

I. Parameters: World Building 

1. Genre 
2. Setting
3. Technology Level
4. Premise 
5. World Assumptions

II. Concepts: Character Building 

1. Ability Scores
2. Concept
3. Tags
4. Aspects
5. Items
6. Purchase Power and HP

III. Tools 

1. Core Mechanic
2. Modifiers, Bonuses and Penalties
3. Fighting Stuff
4. Usage Die
5. Level Up

IV. Gameplay 

1. Scene
2. Oracle 
3. Random Tables and Other Tools
4. Tests and Interesting Failure
5. Sequel 

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I. Parameters: World Building 

• Step 1. Genre: List a few words that describe your game's genre, e.g. gonzo fantasy, grimdark, space opera, mythos.
• Step 2. Setting: List a few words that describe your game's setting, e.g. alternate 1920s Korea, The 7 Kingdoms, apocalyptic urban wasteland. 
• Step 3. Technology Level: List a few words that describe the level of technology and presence of magic in your game, e.g. medieval fantasy, dieselpunk + occult magic. 
• Step 4. Premise: The characters are X who do Y. e.g. The characters are up and coming gangsters vying for power. 
• Step 5. World Assumptions: List a few things your character thinks they know about the world. e.g. Catfolk are treated as second class citizens.  

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II. Concepts: Character Building

• Step 1. Ability Scores: Roll 3d6 for abilities in the following order Strength (STR), Dexterity (DEX), Constitution (CON), Intelligence (INT), Wisdom (Wis), Charisma (CHA).  Two stats may be swapped.
  
  Ability Score / Modifier
             3         /    -3
            4-5      /    -2
            6-8      /    -3
           9-12     /    0
          13-15    /    +1
          15-17    /    +2
             18      /    +3
• Step 2. Concept: Describe your character in a sentence = A (adjective + noun phrase) + desire, e.g. A street hustler who dreams of gold. 
• Step 3. Tags: List three tags describing what you're good at, e.g. parkour, brawler, sharpshooter, heavy metal guitarist. 
• Step 4. Aspects: List two things that makes you who you are, e.g. former Lonestar agent, Fallen night of the Black Rose, Noble of the Crabtree House.
• Step 5. Items: List two pieces of iconic equipment that define you, e.g. twin blaster guns, motorcycle, alchemy tools. 
  Note: Tags, Aspects, and Items can be developed in-game. 
• Step 6. Purchase Power and HP:  HP = Constitution. Roll 1d6 to determine Purchase Power, represented by a Usage Dice.

1. High Roller                   /      1d20
2. Well Off                        /      1d12
3. Middle Class                /       1d10
4. Working Class             /       1d8
5. Poor                             /       1d6
6.  Dirt Poor                     /       1d4

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III. Tools

• Core Mechanic: Anything you attempt that could result in interesting failure is resolved by testing attribute stats. To successfully test a stat - you must roll above the Difficulty Class (DC) on a d20.  A rolled 1 is always an Epic Failure, a rolled 20 is always a Critical Success. Apply modifiers, bonuses and penalties to DC rolls.
  
  Task Difficulty   /    DC
  Normal                /  10
  Hard                    /  15
  Heroic                 /  20
  Godlike               /  25
  Apply Advantage and Disadvantage as needed.  
• Modifiers, Bonuses and Penalties: Once you decide the appropriate stat to test, +/- any applicable attribute modifiers. You can also gain a +1 bonus by inserting a Character Category: Concept, Tag, Aspect, Item into the fiction.  You can stack a maximum insert of three categories for one test and only one thing from each category (maximum bonus +3). Use advantage, disadvantage, and penalties to scale test difficulty as required.
• Fighting Stuff: Lethal combat is fast, risky deadly, and should usually be avoided.  If one of your Items is armor related you can add Armor Points (AP) to your HP. 
  Light Armor = 2AP
  Medium Armor = 4AP
  Heavy Armor = 6AP
  Your Damage: Hand to hand 1d4, Weapon 1d8
  Monster refers to any enemy NPC. Use stats from a source book, make them up, or use the table below. 
  Monster  Level /      HP                    / Monster Damage 
  Standard:          /       1d10               /       1d4,1d6
  Hard:                /        1d20              /       2d4, 1d10
  Big Bad:          /         2d20              /       1d12, 2d8
• Usage Die: In addition to Cash, any consumable item can be tracked with a Usage Die. When you use an item, a Usage Die is rolled.  If you roll a 1-2, the usage die is downgraded: d20 > d12 > d10 > d8 > d6 > d4.  When you roll a 1-2 on a d4, the item is depleted.  
• Level Up: When you complete 9 Scenes.
  -Roll 3d6 for each ability.  If you roll higher, increase the ability score by 1.
  -Add 1 Tag, Aspect, OR Item
  -At level 5 the character has earned renown and retires. You win. 

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IV. Gameplay 

• Set the Scene.  A Scene should have a Location, Purpose, and Pieces to interact with. 
• Ask Questions to the Oracle as needed. You need two Fate/Fudge Dice for this one. Or use another oracle like Mythic. 
• (Optional) Have a healthy stack of Random Tables, word charts, and other brain shocking tools as needed for inspiration. 
• Tests and Interesting Failure: Once you have your Scene, play it out. If you try something that could result in interesting failure or death, test the appropriate attribute stat. If failure is very unlikely or uninteresting, you auto-succeed and move on. 
• Once a Scene's purpose is addressed, the Scene is completed. Wrap up any loose ends and use a brief narrative Sequel to transition to the next Scene.  Roll on the Interrupt/Scene Change Table and incorporate this into the Sequel or the next Scene.  Rinse and Repeat.
  
  Interrupt/Scene Change Table (1d12)
  Roll /    Event
  1-3   /    NPC Action
  4      /    Remote Event
  5      /    New NPC
  6-7   /    PC Negative
  8       /   PC Positive
  9-10  /   Ambiguous
  11     /    NPC Negative
  12     /    NPC Positive