The D6+ System: My Star Wars Adaptation

[Endless Flight]

For about the last year or so I’ve been working on a variant of the D6 system, which I call D6+. The basics are very similar to the West End Star Wars version, but I’ve taken some bits and pieces of other Star Wars games and other systems and worked them in.

My system doesn't use bucket fulls of dice; the players will rarely roll more than five at any one time, even with Force points in play. Skills are now what I call a “fixed value”, similar to the way they are in d20. This makes my system a little less swingy than the old D6 system. Also, I use eight attributes instead of six and I also use static defenses, which is used in Mini-Six, among other games. There are no more than six skills for each attribute and 38 skills in total. Combat has been changed somewhat from standard D6. Ranged combat now uses bands, similar to the Fantasy Flight Star Wars game, and both close combat and ranged combat now used both fixed damage and variable damage. An example would be a blaster pistol, which has a fixed damage of 13 and the variable damage is a Dexterity roll, which is the skill tied to Marksmanship. An example would be a character with a Dexterity of 3D rolling an 11 and adding 13 for a total of 24 points of damage. That damage is compared to the defenders Wounds rating to see what kind of damage he takes, protection not withstanding. The wounds system is similar to base D6. There are hit locations in the game, but they can be optional.

The Force is used differently. It is an attribute with three skills tied to it: control, sense and alter. This is similar to the Metaphysics attribute in D6 Space. The Force rating of an individual is randomly generated if a character buys Force Sensitivity as a Merit, usually at a rating between 1D-3D. A character no longer will be penalized in attributes for learning the Force, but their other skills may suffer as they spend their time honing their skills. There are no longer Force powers. There are just applications one can do with the Force if they make the required Control, Sense and Alter rolls.

D6+ uses Traits, which are Merits and Flaws to help round out characters. An example would be “Iron Will”, which gives a bonus to mental defense. My system does not use pips on attributes or skills to make it less confusing In advancement and calculations. I’ve also added in aging rules for long-term play. I initially was going to use this for Star Wars but I think it might work as a general system.

Here is an example of two characters from Star Wars, Luke Skywalker and Darth Vader from The Empire Strikes Back. If anybody would like to see more or has any questions about D6+, please ask. It’s a work in progress so things can change daily.



Art by Eli Hyder (Twitter:@venamisart)

Luke Skywalker (as of The Empire Strikes Back)
Human Male Jedi Padawan
"You‘ll find I’m full of surprises."
Size: medium, Age: adult (22)

---

Agility 3D: acrobatics +4, evade +8, melee +7 (lightsaber +12), ride +6, stealth +7
Dexterity 4D: gunnery +7, marksmanship +7, piloting +11, subterfuge +5
Strength 3D:, brawl +5, climb +8, jump +7, lift +4, swim +5, throw +7
Fortitude 3D: resilience +6
Reason 2D: computers+4, cultures +5, knowledge +6 (Jedi Lore +11), languages +3, medicine +3, technology +8
Intuition 3D: insight +5, streetwise +6, survival +8, vigilance +9
Presence 2D: animal handling +7, counsel +6, manipulation +4, negotiation +5
Willpower 3D: resolve +10
The Force 4D: control +7, sense +8, alter +3

---

Wounds: 11*, Strain: 11
Advantages: Force Sensitivity, Force Vergence, Study Focus (Jedi Lore), Weapon Training (lightsaber)
Character Points: 15, Force Points: 7
Equipment: blaster pistol (damage 13), lightsaber (DN +20/damage 20), flight suit (protection: 3 except head), 500 credits

Darth Vader (as of The Empire Strikes Back)
Human Male Sith Lord
“Impressive. Most impressive.”
Size: medium, Age: middle age (45)

---

Agility 3D: acrobatics +8, evade +10, melee +11 (lightsaber +16), ride +8, stealth +13
Dexterity 4D: gunnery +12, marksmanship +8, piloting +15, subterfuge +9
Strength 5D: brawl +8, climb +7, jump +10, lift +10, run +7, swim +5
Fortitude 4D: resilience +11
Reason 3D: computers +6, cultures +10, knowledge +8 (Jedi Lore +13, Sith Lore +13), languages +6, medicine +3, technology +12
Intuition 3D: insight +13, streetwise +12, survival +11, vigilance +15
Presence 4D: counsel +6, deception +13, manipulation +14, negotiation +11
Willpower 4D: resolve +15
The Force 5D: control +14, sense +17, alter +16

---

Wounds: 18*, Strain: 18
Character Points: 25, Force Points: 15
Merits: Force Sensitive, Force Vergence, Iron Will, Study Focus (Jedi Lore, Sith Lore), Tough, Weapon Training (lightsaber)
Flaws: Dark Side corruption, Physical Limitation
Equipment: prosthetic (A2/L2), life support suit (Mod: AGI -1D, STR +1D, Protection 15 head, torso, abdomen/10 arms, legs), Enc. 4), lightsaber (DN +20, Dam 20)

 

[TristramEvans]

Interested in hearing more about how Force Powers work - is it mostly freeform, like you can attempt anything with the concept of Alter? And can you "learn" specific knacks (Like Vader's choke hold) that you would be better at than a random power? Also, does the accumulation of Dark Side points still exist, or is that just covered by the Flaw "Dark side corruption"?

 

[Endless Flight]

Interested in hearing more about how Force Powers work - is it mostly freeform, like you can attempt anything with the concept of Alter? And can you "learn" specific knacks (Like Vader's choke hold) that you would be better at than a random power? Also, does the accumulation of Dark Side points still exist, or is that just covered by the Flaw "Dark side corruption"?

That’s one of the hardest things to do, the Force. Each skill lends itself to doing certain things. I was thinking about providing applications of the Force you see in the media but letting some of it be up to GM fiat with difficulty numbers. Maybe let the player spend a couple Force points to try something new. This would be similar to the stunt system in MSH. For example, healing another character would be an application of Control and Sense and would be a common application. Also, If your skill is higher than the difficulty number it would be automatic.

 

[Endless Flight]

Obi-Wan “Ben” Kenobi (as of A New Hope)
“The Force can have a strong influence on the weak-minded.”
Human Male Jedi Master
Size: Medium, Age: middle age (57)

---

Agility 3D: acrobatics +6, evade +10, melee +10 (lightsaber +15), ride +8, stealth +13
Dexterity 4D: gunnery +7, marksmanship +7, piloting +10, subterfuge +8
Strength 3D: brawl +7, climb +6, jump +10, lift +5, swim +7, throw +6
Fortitude 4D: resilience +12
Reason 3D: computers +8, cultures +9, knowledge +10 (Jedi Lore +15), languages +8, medicine +7, technology +7
Intuition 4D: insight +11, streetwise +13, survival +11, vigilance +15
Presence 4D: counsel +12, manipulation +8, negotiation +15
Willpower 4D: discipline +13
The Force 4D: control +16, sense +15, alter +12

---

Wounds: 18, Strain: 18
Advantages: Force Sensitive, Iron Will, Study Focus (Jedi Lore), Tough, Weapon Specialist (lightsaber)
Flaws: Deep Secret (location of Skywalker children)
Possessions: lightsaber, 2,000 credits

 

[TristramEvans]

That’s one of the hardest things to do, the Force. Each skill lends itself to doing certain things. I was thinking about providing applications of the Force you see in the media but letting some of it be up to GM fiat with difficulty numbers. Maybe let the player spend a couple Force points to try something new. This would be similar to the stunt system in MSH. For example, healing another character would be an application of Control and Sense and would be a common application. Also, If your skill is higher than the difficulty number it would be automatic.

That's funny, I thought of MSH stunts at the time I wrote that question. I think setting up limitations on that would be the hard part though, because there's obviously things Jedi can do that "feels like Star Wars" while there's innumerable stuff that probably doesn't.

 

[Endless Flight]

Things like enhancing physical abilities, healing and damaging life forms, altering weather effects, illusions and mental probes and space & time warps like projection are what I’m going for.

 

[Endless Flight]

The skill list that I planned out. This eliminates many of the skills that plagued the 2nd edition of the WEG Star Wars RPG. I took some inspiration from the Mutant Year Zero RPG in this regard with its broad skills.

Fortitude and Willpower are the only attributes that have only one skill each. This was done on purpose. These attributes serve to measure a characters physical and mental resistance to damage so they are already powerful attributes and having more skills attached would make them overpowered.

Skill Ranks - Proficiency Level
1-4: Novice
5-7: Adept
8-11: Proficient
12-14: Expert
15-18: Master
19-21: Prodigy

Agility Skills:
Acrobatics
Evade
Melee
Missile
Ride
Stealth
Dexterity Skills:
Craft
Drive
Gunnery
Marksmanship
Piloting
Subterfuge
Strength Skills:
Brawling
Climbing
Jumping
Lifting
Swimming
Throwing
Fortitude Skills:
Endurance
Reason Skills:
Computers
Cultures
Knowledge
Language
Mechanics
Research
Intuition Skills:
Gamble
Heal
Insight
Streetwise
Survival
Vigilance
Presence Skills:
Animal Handling
Counsel
Inspire
Manipulation
Negotiation
Performance
Willpower Skills:
Resolve

Any suggestions or comments let me know.

 

[TristramEvans]

Fortitude seems a bit lonely with one skill, why not combine it with Strength?

 

[Endless Flight]

Fortitude seems a bit lonely with one skill, why not combine it with Strength?

Fortitude and Willpower only have one skill. I did it that way on purpose.

My next post will show a simple combat example.

 

[burbles]

This thread stopped just when things were starting to get interesting.

 

[Endless Flight]

Another write-up I did a while back.


Yoda (as of Return of the Jedi)
Humanoid Male Jedi Master
“Do or do not. There is no try.”
Size: small, Age: venerable (900)

---

Agility 3D: acrobatics +6, evade +8, melee +13 (lightsaber +18), ride +6, stealth +10
Dexterity 3D: piloting +5, subterfuge +8
Strength 2D: brawl +4, climb +8, jump +4, swim +6
Fortitude 2D: resilience +8
Reason 3D: computers +7, cultures +12, , knowledge +12 (Jedi Lore +17), languages +7, medicine +7, technology +6
Intuition 4D: insight +15, streetwise +7, survival +13, vigilance +17
Presence 5D: counsel +12, manipulation +8, negotiation +12
Willpower 5D: discipline +18
Force 5D: control +18, sense +19, alter +15

---

Wounds: 9, Strain: 23
Advantages: Force Sensitive, Iron Will, Tough, Weapon Training (lightsaber)
Character Points: 25, Force Points: 20
Equipment: gimer stick, lightsaber

 

[Endless Flight]

Chewbacca (as of The Empire Strikes Back)
“GGGWARRRHHWWWW!”
Wookiee Male Mechanic
Size: medium, Age: adult (202)

---

Agility 3D: evade +7, melee +12, stealth +8
Dexterity 4D: gunnery +11, marksmanship + 10 (bowcaster +15), piloting +12
Strength 6D: brawling +12, climb +14, jumping +8, lifting +11, swimming +8, throwing +11
Fortitude 5D: resilience +13
Reason 3D: astrogation +10, computers +7, knowledge +8, technology +10
Intuition 3D: cultures +6, gambling +7, survival +11, vigilance +10
Presence 3D: manipulation +8, negotiation +7, streetwise +9
Willpower 3D: resolve +8

---

Wounds: 23, Strain: 11
Advantages: Tough, Weapon Focus (bowcaster)
Character Points: 10, Force Points: 3
Possessions: bowcaster, bandoleer, tools

 

[TristramEvans]

I'd be interested to see an example of the system in action

 

[Endless Flight]

I've been writing some Force rules the last couple of days. I'm going to do some examples of skill checks including combat. Maybe later today (Sunday)!

I will give this tidbit. In regular D6, Character Points give you an extra D6 (ie, a 4D would be 5D) to roll checks and Force Points double your total dice (ie, 4D to 8D).

In this system, using a Character Point doubles your skill bonus for a check (example: a +8 would become a +16) and a Force Point allows you to receive an automatic maximum roll in your dice (example: a 4D would be an automatic roll of 24). So, as an example, if you had a character with a Dexterity of 3D and a Piloting skill bonus of +10 and were trying a crazy stunt with a difficulty of 25, you could use a Force Point to get a roll of 18 and then add the +10 for a skill check total of 28. A success!

I’m trying in certain situations to remove some randomness from the original system.

 

[Endless Flight]

I’m thinking of adding something to D6 that’s not been added and that’s fatigue levels. I originally considered this as a way to spice up lightsaber combats. Instead of just getting successes and injuring your opponents, the defender can opt to take a fatigue level for each level of damage they would have taken, meaning that he/she got out of the way at the last second or managed to evade the attack in some manner. If an attacker rolls very well and the defender opts to take multiple fatigue level at once, the attacker can opt to take a special action, like pushing the defender back, making the defender fall prone or even disarming the defender.

There is a limit of how much fatigue a defender can accept, typically the dice total you have in Fortitude and Willpower added together (3D and 4D would be a fatigue limit of 7 levels, for example). If your character reaches his limit you open yourself up to things like body parts being lost in the case of lightsaber combat. I’m thinking of making this ability require the expenditure of either Character Points, so that average folks wouldn’t be able to take advantage of this. I’m also thinking that this can work both ways. If the defender rolls his block or parry high enough, he could do this to the attacker as well.

 

[Endless Flight]

I returned to this and have been feverishly working on the Force section and changing the damage system to something more similar to Mutants & Masterminds instead of the standard D6 system. I hope to have a preview of the former up very soon. In the meantime, here’s Solo!

 

[Sosthenes]

Maybe a "baseline" character, just to compare the iconic heroes to? That's where SW D6 2E really went awry pretty soon. How does a regular stormtrooper, tie pilot or even a lower-rated mook look?

 

[Endless Flight]

Maybe a "baseline" character, just to compare the iconic heroes to? That's where SW D6 2E really went awry pretty soon. How does a regular stormtrooper, tie pilot or even a lower-rated mook look?

Yep, I can post a starting character and stormtrooper real soon. I can tell you one thing right now. Attributes don’t really change much because baseline human is 3D and they are very expensive to raise and there is a high advancement roll to make.

 

[Endless Flight]

Sosthenes here is a starting character example. I’m still working on some of the skill placement but it gives you an idea of what they look like. This character is built with 150 skill points. To compare that to a major character, Luke Skywalker in The Empire Strikes Back is made with 200 skill points.

 

[valgunn]

Nice effort!!!

You mentioned aging rules—how does that work?

 

[Endless Flight]

Nice effort!!!

You mentioned aging rules—how does that work?

Originally I was going to have a reduction of the certain attribute values as a character ages, for example a 3D becomes a 2D, but I’m not totally sure about that. I might change it to an aging roll for each attribute to see what happens.

 

[Endless Flight]

Sosthenes was interested in seeing a stormtrooper. Stormtroopers are actually created using slightly less skill points than a starting character, which I think are fairly competent. At this point I’ll probably post examples of how a combat round might go and discuss how the Force works.

 

[WillPhillips]

Originally I was going to have a reduction of the certain attribute values as a character ages, for example a 3D becomes a 2D, but I’m not totally sure about that. I might change it to an aging roll for each attribute to see what happens.

Really interested in adding in aging rules for my historically-set project.

Probably something using Vaesen as a base and riffing off the Winter Phase from Pendragon.

 

[xanther]

Sosthenes was interested in seeing a stormtrooper. Stormtroopers are actually created using slightly less skill points than a starting character, which I think are fairly competent. At this point I’ll probably post examples of how a combat round might go and discuss how the Force works.

...

Stormtrooper Marksmanship +9, clearly we are not watching the same movies

 

[Endless Flight]

Stormtrooper Marksmanship +9, clearly we are not watching the same movies

There’s a penalty because of the helmet but it’s not listed. I know what I’m doing.

 

[Endless Flight]

I think I’ve worked out a condition track for characters. This is basically the third version I’ve come up with. When I post a short description of combat, I’ll be referring to this

Condition Track
0+ Stunned: The character suffers a penalty of -5 to all actions for the rest of the round. If a character receives a number of Stuns equal to his Fortitude dice, they are knocked unconscious unless they makes a Moderate (15) Resilience roll. If unconscious, they can check again in one minute, unless revived by another character who succeeds on a Very Easy (5) medicine check. If a character is unconscious for at least five minutes or rests for 15 minutes, they are cleared of stuns.

5+ Wounded: The character can take no actions for the rest of the round. All actions are at a -5 until healed. Wounded characters who are wounded again are considered Doubly Wounded and automatically fall prone and suffer a -10 penalty to all actions and maximum of cruising movement until healed. A character who is Wounded again is Incapacitated.

10+ Incapacitated: The character falls prone and is knocked unconscious unless they succeed on a Difficult (20) Resilience check. If unconscious, they may make a check again once every ten minutes. Another character may revive the character by succeeding on an Easy (10) Medicine check. A conscious incapacitated character can attempt actions with a -15 penalty and can only move at cautious speed. A character who is Wounded or Incapacitated again is Mortally Wounded.

15+ Mortally Wounded: The character falls prone and must make an immediate Very Difficult (25) Resilience roll or fall unconscious. If conscious, the character cannot do anything but free actions until healed. Every round after being mortally wounded, the character must make a Moderate (15) Fortitude check or they immediately die. A mortally wounded character can be stabilized by another character who succeeds on a Moderate (15) Medicine check. A character who is Incapacitated or Mortally Wounded again is Killed.

20+ Killed: The character is killed. With GM permission, they have enough time to speak a few words before they become one with the Force.

Note: A character may attempt a Resolve check in lieu of a Resilience or check at one difficulty rank higher. The character can attempt a Willpower check in lieu of a Fortitude check at one rank higher.

My other question now is: do you prefer ranges in numbers or do you like range bands?

 

[Endless Flight]

If we didn’t have to shovel the twelve inches of snow we got today and then get a late start to work, I might have posted my initial pass at the Force rules D6+ is going to use. I should be able to share something this weekend.

 

[Endless Flight]

I’ll post some Force goodies later today but here’s another character to tide you over: Saw Gerrera!

 

[Endless Flight]

Ok so here is a quick primer on how the Force works in D6+. Each Force sensitive character has an attribute called the Force which they use to make Force checks. There are three skills under this attribute: Control, Sense and Alter.

There are a couple differences that separate my variant from the original Star Wars D6. In that game, you possibly had to make several Force rolls to use one power, possibly over several rounds. For example, a power might require a Control roll and a Sense roll, which could cause multi-action penalties (MAPS). Those are gone in my version. Each Force power is listed under just one of the three skills and requires only one roll to activate.

Another thing that separates this version is that the character must spend one Force Point to attempt to use one power before they roll. This is the Jedi calling on the Force. This means the characters sometimes have to be judicious with their Force points occasionally.

Using the Force can occasionally be tiring to a Force user. Each power has an Exhaustion rating. When a Jedi keeps up the same power over a number of rounds or minutes (depending on the power) equal to their Fortitude die, they must roll a Resilience check. Failure means the take one step down on the exhaustion track. If they continue using their power the same number of rounds, another check is made at one difficulty higher and so on, until they stop using the power or totally collapse.

Here is an example Force power, Force Grip:

Force Grip
Alter Difficulty: The target’s Wounds or Resilience roll. If the target is Force sensitive, he may use his Control. This is modified by proximity, but the character must be in line of sight, even if not present (such as on a viewscreen).
Special: Use of this power grants an automatic Dark Side point if used against a living creature.
Required Time: One action.
Exhaustion Difficulty : Difficult (20)
Effect: The target suffers damage equal to the Alter roll. This power may be kept up.

So this power is an Alter power. It automatically grants the user a Dark Side Point if they use it. It requires one action per round to use. The exhaustion difficulty is Difficult, and the effect is listed.

So an example of this is Vader choking Admiral Ozzel at the beginning of The Empire Strikes Back. Vader has an Alter skill of 5D+17. Ozzel is on a screen informing Lord Vader the fleet is out of light speed when Vader attacks him with the Force. His is line of sight but they are on different ships nearby. The difficulty for this roll is Ozzel’s Wounds of 11 plus the penalty of 10 for the distance for a total of 21. Vader rolls a 3,5,2,5, and a 1 for a total of 33. He beats the difficulty and now Ozzel can feel his throat constricting.



A couple posts above, I posted a condition track that shows what happens when characters take damage. Vader’s roll of 33 is compared to Ozzel’s Wounds of 11. This is a result of 22. According to the chart this is an immediate kill (20+). Ozzel’s trachea is crushed and he slumps to the floor with a gurgle while Vader is conversing with Captain Piett, who will now get promoted.

If Vader had gotten a lesser result, the damage might not have been as high and it may take Vader longer to kill Ozzel. He could then keep his power up, meaning it would carry over to the next round, and so on. If you do keep a power up over several rounds, you do not need to spend another Force Point, but you do have to take notice of any exhaustion that may occur.

The user can also use decide to inflict less damage than the maximum if they only cause the victim mild suffering.

 

[Endless Flight]

Ok, I’ve been working with InDesign for a couple days trying to figure out the basics. I’m working on the Force skills so I thought I’d create a sample page. What do you think?

 

[Sosthenes]

Looks good. I'd probably increase the contrast of the red bars (both for the title and page number), and add some space after the sub-headings. And something to make the Skill/Difficulty/Effect sections be easier to scan. I think the original 1E had them indented, and some other version used color.

I'm a bit out of the loop, as printing isn't that much of an issue anymore, should we still balance columns?

 

[Endless Flight]

Thank you for the comments. I will see what WEG did with the powers section to see how they stood out. I think I’ll make the page numbers bolder to make they easier to see.

 

[Endless Flight]

Made some slight adjustments.

 

[Endless Flight]

Ok I’ve decided to go with a sans serif font for the body copy. A couple of samples…

 

[Fenris-77]

Layout looks good. I like the font change. I'm a little nutty about finding the perfect font, personally. My only comments about that last example page is that I'd probably embiggen the font size on the names a couple of points. Or something.

 

[Endless Flight]

Layout looks good. I like the font change. I'm a little nutty about finding the perfect font, personally. My only comments about that last example page is that I'd probably embiggen the font size on the names a couple of points. Or something.

Thank you for the comments. I actually am nutty about fonts too. After trying at least twenty five, I am going with the one below; it’s different than the one in my last post.

 

[Fenris-77]

Oooh, I like it. Reads like butter and the bolding and coloring both work nicely.

 

[Ben Adams]

This looks wonderful! I started using True20 vs D6 because of the West End variation in the mechanic.
But this really pulls in a ton of the randomness nicely.
Do you have any idea about a wild die, such as one of the attribute dice always being a wild die?

 

[Endless Flight]

This looks wonderful! I started using True20 vs D6 because of the West End variation in the mechanic.
But this really pulls in a ton of the randomness nicely.
Do you have any idea about a wild die, such as one of the attribute dice always being a wild die?

Thanks, Ben! Yes, getting the randomness factor under control was one of the reasons why I did it this way. It’s actually an extension of an alternate rule WEG had in one of their books.

I actually don’t have a final answer on the wild die. I know that not everyone loved it. It might be an optional rule.

 

[Ben Adams]

Will vehicle/starship combat basically scale the same?