Ability Progression

This is another mechanic that an old game of mine had that I eventually scrapped. It didn't work with what the game eventually became, but I really want to incorporate it into something eventually. It came from the same game as my Ability Refresh article, but this one could work for tabletop or video game. I'm actually going to reference that article a few times, so you should probably read it first.

So the idea is that abilities themselves level up and get better, and you can pick different upgrades as it progresses. Probably the best way to explain it would be to just jump into an example. Let's take the classic Magic Missile from the Dungeons and Dragons games. As your wizard levels up, the spell gets better. Magic Missile will increase in damage and the number of targets you can attack.

So instead, let's say that you pick how Magic Missile will improve as it levels up. You can pick from more damage or more targets. At max level, you can end up with a big shotgun blast of tiny projectiles, or a bazooka of a spell that just does one powerful shot, or anything in between.

The way I had it set up was that some upgrades could be chosen at any level, some could be chosen every even level, some every fifth, and some only at the max of ten. You only had one chance to get the lvl ten upgrade, but two chances to get the lvl five... but what if there are two level five choices, or you're able to get it twice? With the way it's set up, at levels 1/3/7/9 you can only pick from the choices that are available at any level. At level 10, you can chose any upgrade at all. (Alternatively, you could make max level 12, and have upgrades every 1/2/3/4/6/12 levels or something)

So let's go back to Magic Missile, and throw in my Ability Refresh system with it. I want this skill to be something that, with practice, you can use over and over. So let's put an extra refresh die for every level. I don't want people to have that many damage/target upgrades, so we'll put that on 2. I want something to conflict with the refresh choice, so let's add in an option to increase the accuracy (or reduce saving throw or whatever). So at this point we have:

Every Level: (1/2/3/4/5/6/7/8/9/10)

• +1 Refresh Number
• +1 Accuracy

Evey Even Level: (2/4/6/8/10)

• +1 Targets
• Extra Damage

Well we don't have any 5 or 10 upgrade, but those aren't always needed. At this point, we have a skill that feels a lot like Magic Missile, but is customizable. Still, you could throw in some debuffs for the 5 and 10 upgrades. The 5 upgrades could easily just be the same as the 2s, so you have six chances to get them instead of five.

The problem I had with this system was that it was a bit too engaging. It's too much for one-shot games, unless you're playing a skirmish game or something. In the tabletop world, it pretty much only lends itself to RPGs, which would most likely limit the availability of the game (way too many options for new players). This might be more doable in a video game of sorts....

Spoiled Princess

So the idea for this game came to me in a dream. Yes, I dream about video games...

Anyway, the idea is that you're a knight escorting the princess's caravan, when it's suddenly attacked by a dragon. You escape with the princess, and you two are the only survivors. Now you have to escort her back to the castle... but the problem is that she's so damn spoiled.

So it plays a bit like an action Roguelike, but your character can't die. You lose if the princess dies. You have to escort her around while fighting off various baddies like wolves, spiders, bandits, monsters, etc. If she dies, it's game over. New princess.

In my dream, you had to feed her between levels, and give her gifts to make her happy. This is where the spoiled part comes in. She doesn't like certain (most) foods, but will starve if she doesn't eat. If you force her to eat it, she'll be unhappy, but at least she'll be fed. You might find a nice trinket or something along the way, and you can give it to her to make her happy... maybe. I also dreamt about other females coming in and out of the adventure, which would make the princess jealous. Not sure how that would work...

So during the game, the princess would follow you at a distance determined by her happiness. If she's really grumpy at you, she's not going to want to stay close, which is going to make her more difficult to defend. Some monsters (like spiders) are particularly scary to princesses, and might make her run away in fright.

Your shield can block just about anything. I'm thinking a dragon's breath, and you have to stand between the princess and the dragon, blocking the flames with your shield. Maybe block a charging boar? If you get hit, you're momentarily stunned, which (again) makes the princess harder to protect, so blocking isn't just used for her. Holding your shield up makes you walk slower.

I was thinking your main attack would be your sword (of course) which attacks in a small arc in front of you. If you block an enemy's attack, they're stunned for a moment and are open to attack. Was also thinking of a charge attack where you run in place for a second, and then move really fast in a straight line with your sword out. This can be used to damage enemies, or to just catch up with the brat...

And there can be various mechanics that can make her happiness go up and down. Maybe you can sling her over your shoulder and run, but you'll be unable to attack effectively, you'll move a lot slower, and she won't be too happy about it. Maybe she'll point out the occasional and obviously dangerous path (skull and crossbones sign perhaps?), and you can make her happy by stupidly taking her advice. She also might like a certain type of food that just happens to be hard to obtain...