Homebrew: Exalted 3x15

[Dr Tentacles]

Hello, Exalted forums. For a little over a year, I've been working with my group on a simplified homebrew version of Exalted that still keeps mechanical depth, while standardizing and simplifying inconsistent rules. Most of the system is more influenced by 2.5e than 3e, though I've raided many, many 3e mechanics I like. However, at this point, the system is far more of it's own entity than a child of any Exalted system, though it still uses Storyteller dice and dots. I've stored it all on a Obsidian Portal wiki, linked below, and plan to keep working on it whenever I have free time.

Exalted 3x15

System Basics Google Doc:

Design goals of the system are below:

• Make character creation easier and more intuitive: This meant lowering the number of dots to throw around, including an "origin" package to help new players create a character, and merging duplicate abilities.
• Reduce Number-Crunching: This meant lowering XP costs to use "smaller numbers," merging personal and peripheral essence, changing progression to occur at the end of sessions or arcs rather than having to track training time, and flat XP costs. This also helped remove the ability of early-game min-maxing.
• Simplify Combat: Although I know many people enjoy the initiative system, I found it cumbersome in play, although I think Range Bands were an excellent change. Combat in Exalted 3x15 uses a "non-dynamic" initiative system, where people act in a set order.
• Make Combat Build to a Climax: Instead of intiative-building, I have repurposed overdrive motes so that they can be used to unlock special, powerful charms that are likely to swing the tide of a battle.
• Make every roll meaningful: Rather than having static defenses, all roll against player characters are actively contested--this means each roll moves a scene forward.
• Reduce charm bloat: Every charm should be a meaningful upgrade to a character's abilities. This means eliminating dice tricks and "number counting" charms that slow down rolls.
• Making charms have consistent pricing and effects: All charms that give a bonus to a roll add successes, reducing the time it takes to calculate rolls.
• Lowering the amount of perfect effects. Perfect effects reduce design space, and make character conflict boring, in my opinion.
• Make advancement meaningful--although still immensely powerful, Exalted start less powerful. Each Essence milestone, and each character advancement should feel meaningful.

I would love feedback on what I've created, good or bad, and I plan to continue to create additional content over time.


Thanks,

Doc

[Volver]

Help us Help you.
Please collect this together into a Google Doc with Comments turned on, and a TOC Outline setup. This will make seeing what youve done and reading the system infinitely easier. It looks interesting but the Wiki diving is cumbersome.

[Dr Tentacles]

Heh. It's funny. That's how I originally had it, but initial feedback was that the wiki was more accessible. Time to format the doc.

[The Unsung Hero]

Heh. It's funny. That's how I originally had it, but initial feedback was that the wiki was more accessible. Time to format the doc.

Wiki is nice to researching rules. Doc is nice for giving feedback.

[Volver]

Wiki is nice to researching rules. Doc is nice for giving feedback.

You are Correct!

[Leetsepeak]

Rolling defense sounds like it just adds one more dice roll that combat doesn't need.

Glad you found a way to play the game that works for your group, though.

I couldn't find a definition for what "Overflow" is, though, so it might be a good idea to define that somewhere. I'm guessing it's intended to refer to Threshold Successes or a similar mechanic?

[Dr Tentacles]

Good catch on overflow. You are correct in what it refers to. Although rolling defense initially seems to slow down combat, in practice, it speeds it up because of two things:

First, in ensures *something* happens with each roll. There is no such thing as "defensive stalemates" where people wiff attacks. This means a net of equal or fewer rolls per combat, and a better flow of action.

Second, in my experience, deciding on defensive charms and stunting defense takes more time than actually tallying a roll, especially when you simplify charm-based dice math.