Failstate System - Why?

Initial thoughts and goals

TL;DR:

I'm a longtime TTRPG fan who's played, collected, and learned from a ton of games, and now I'm crafting my own system. It's built around a simple 3d6 roll that offers not just success or failure, but detailed, narrative-rich outcomes. With modular stats in four groups—Action, Context, Force, and Drive—players can mix and match to suit any scenario. Though still in playtesting (and maybe a bit math-heavy), this flexible, state-of-the-art system even nods to the French RPG Sang Dragon.

Long time player, longer time collector

I've played my share of TTRPGs—I've dabbled in many games, collected even more, and somehow managed to become a walking encyclopedia of them all. Each game, no matter how quirky or classic, hides its own little gem. And like many of you, I've always felt that irresistible itch to create something truly mine. Not necessarily better, newer, or revolutionary—just something uniquely mine. And that, my friends, is the why.

Enters the Failstate System!

Goals

The aim here is straightforward: craft a simple, streamlined system built on a solid core mechanic. Imagine a single roll that not only decides success or failure but also offers highly nuanced results. Whether you prefer a generic framework or crave a system that's highly customizable, this design is all about being the state of the art right now.

The state of the art

At the heart of this system is a 3d6 roll under mechanic that also counts successes. What does that mean? Well, it gives you a binary result (success/failure), tells you the number of successes, and even provides the sum of all success values for extra detail. It's still in the playtesting phase—working kind of fine, though under heavy scrutiny.

Character stats come in an interesting twist: they can be combined. Currently, stats are grouped into four distinct categories:

• Action: Explore, Fight, Socialize, Travel

• Context: Borderland, Dungeon, Settlement, Wilderness

• Force: Finesse, Prowess, Stoutness, Wit

• Drive: Courage, Faith, Lore, Luck

When it comes to checks, the idea is to leverage the combinatory essence of these stats, all while drawing from the narrative. For example, if a character wants to scout ahead while the party takes a well-deserved break, you might combine Explore + Wilderness + Finesse + Luck. But if the character already knows the area, swap Luck with Lore. And if the thick foliage demands a different approach, replace Finesse with Prowess. There’s no single “exploring” skill here—just a variety of combinations to suit different situations.

Now, picture this: the dice roll yields a 2-success result on our exploration check. Not only does the character succeed, but they also gain two narrative boons—little bonuses that could be anything from a timely opportunity to a snippet of crucial information. Perhaps our scout finds some edible food and, from a high vantage point, spots more land. With rations and new intel in hand, the party's next move might just be inspired.

Possibilities

The beauty of this system lies in its flexibility. By reskinning the stats, you can easily adapt it to other genres. Moreover, every uncertain element might be modeled onto the core mechanic. I'm even tinkering with the combat side of things right now. It's not an easy task, but I have hope. One downside I can foresee is the math involved during play. With stats generally ranging from 1 to 4, and each check having its own history, the numbers might start to pile up. But I'm still optimistic this won’t become too much of a burden on players.

Trivia

A little fun fact for you: the main inspiration for this system is a very neat French RPG called Sang Dragon. Do you know Sang Dragon?