System/Mechanics Lit Roleplay with Dice?

[Marisathief]

I only started playing DND in April but I'm enamored with the risk factor dice add to roleplaying. Does anyone have any ideas on how to incorporate dice into lit roleplaying? I know it had to've been done before and I just don't know about it or something.
Two rules:

• I don't want to teach roleplaying partners an entire system for combat, magic ect, or if I do I would want something incredibly approachable. Just to let potential partners know that things aren't going to be complicated, but they will fair.
• It must stay in Lit format. I love DND but waiting a week or two between roleplaying sessions is something im just not used to.

The only thing I can think of at the moment is to use something like the system in Tails of Equestria (the MLP official Tabletop) where the character just has 3 traits (Mind, Body and Charm) and how powerful those traits are is represented by what dice they roll (ie: A unicorn can start with a d4 in body and an Earth Pony a d6)

 

[Dutch]

I would say play like you would in D&D (sans DM) and at any point where a dice roll is required you roll a digital die, place in the number at the start of where it's applicable and write your reply according to your dice roll.

 

[QuirkyAngel]

Depends on what you want to do with the dice. If the rp is more lit/story focused and you want to incorporate the group in the planning/story you can have players suggest events, assign them all a number, then roll the dice to see what happens. You can use it to determine the results of actions as well. Even success, odd failure for example. That's keeping it simple.

Stats are interesting if there's a purpose for them. Course, I can't really make a suggestion without knowing the type of rp you want to do. Battle rp? Adventure story?

 

[Marisathief]

Depends on what you want to do with the dice. If the rp is more lit/story focused and you want to incorporate the group in the planning/story you can have players suggest events, assign them all a number, then roll the dice to see what happens. You can use it to determine the results of actions as well. Even success, odd failure for example. That's keeping it simple.

Stats are interesting if there's a purpose for them. Course, I can't really make a suggestion without knowing the type of rp you want to do. Battle rp? Adventure story?

More story focused with some moments of action (character chasing eachother, throwing something at a target, fisticuffs) . I usually have trouble when roleplaying of characters preforming an action so flawlessly it's eye roll enducing and would love to add that random chance of someone majorly screwing something up (even if it's just comical).
Though personally I'd love to include stats, especially for fighting and what not. Just noting extensive to the point where someone would look at it and TLDR.

 

[QuirkyAngel]

More story focused with some moments of action (character chasing eachother, throwing something at a target, fisticuffs) . I usually have trouble when roleplaying of characters preforming an action so flawlessly it's eye roll enducing and would love to add that random chance of someone majorly screwing something up (even if it's just comical).
Though personally I'd love to include stats, especially for fighting and what not. Just noting extensive to the point where someone would look at it and TLDR.

Lol, I see. Well if you don't want to scare ppl away you can always write your post then put little gm notes at the bottom. Like open the rp and then invite them to roll dices for character stats. Mind, body, and charm seems like a good start. Give them snippets as needed rather than overloading with info.

 

[Marisathief]

Lol, I see. Well if you don't want to scare ppl away you can always write your post then put little gm notes at the bottom. Like open the rp and then invite them to roll dices for character stats. Mind, body, and charm seems like a good start. Give them snippets as needed rather than overloading with info.

Hecc yea. Thanks for the advice!

 

[Idea]

May I ask what you mean when you say "lit format"?

 

[Marisathief]

May I ask what you mean when you say "lit format"?

When a roleplay is written out like a novel betwren all participating players.

Edit:
(To clarify)
I can see a dice system working with an instant chat type format much more fluently.
For example
Player 1: dialouge dialouge *attempts x action to player 2*
[17]
Player 2: *is successfully affected and responds* dialouge chat chat dialouge *attempts to effect enviornment*
[3]
Player 2: *flavor Text in how they fail to do so*

That's not what I'm looking for. I'm looking for something that reads like a book and in between posts (or in the middle of them) as skill based actions are being taken dice should be rolled to see if those actions are successful or not.

 

[Idea]

When a roleplay is written out like a novel betwren all participating players.

Edit:
(To clarify)
I can see a dice system working with an instant chat type format much more fluently.
For example
Player 1: dialouge dialouge *attempts x action to player 2*
[17]
Player 2: *is successfully affected and responds* dialouge chat chat dialouge *attempts to effect enviornment*
[3]
Player 2: *flavor Text in how they fail to do so*

That's not what I'm looking for. I'm looking for something that reads like a book and in between posts (or in the middle of them) as skill based actions are being taken dice should be rolled to see if those actions are successful or not.

Ah. I think you should be able to get people to roleplay that way just by using "play by post" (it basically means the same as what you are saying for lit. style, except it's expression I've seen used when describing that)

 

[ApfelSeine]

The way I'd probably integrate it is to only use dice where it is particularly necessary. Such as combat scenes or where a character is making a complex action like a rallying speech it diplomatic persuasion, etc.

Or alternatively, have base scores that would automatically succeed for particular actions, and dice rolls where the base scores aren't enough.

Honestly, it depends on how often you want to use dice to determine the outcome of events.

 

[Marisathief]

The way I'd probably integrate it is to only use dice where it is particularly necessary. Such as combat scenes or where a character is making a complex action like a rallying speech it diplomatic persuasion, etc.

Or alternatively, have base scores that would automatically succeed for particular actions, and dice rolls where the base scores aren't enough.

Honestly, it depends on how often you want to use dice to determine the outcome of events.

I like the base scores idea a lot. I can probably integrate that much more easily.
Then again, I wouldn't want to create the situation of "well my character has this insane stat for this one scene for reasons I'll explain later." (Sorry, I've had some bad experiences in the past.)
Edit:
Y' know if the other person's really determined that'll probably happen no matter what I do XD

 

[ApfelSeine]

You can always make them either roll for stats, or give them a set number of points to allocate into different skill categories Base stats in rps don't usually get pulled from thin air after all.

 

[Marisathief]

You can always make them either roll for stats, it give them a set number if points to allocate into different skill categories Base stats in rps don't usually get pulled from this air after all.

Truuuueee! I like it, I'm keeping it!

 

[Crayons]

Something I like to do incorporating dice into lit RP is just to have each character roll a d20 when they make an offensive action or a defensive action. The defence roll must beat the opposing character's offence roll to block/dodge/parry. Then the player writes their post accordingly for how well they managed to attack and/or defend. 20 and 1 are critical successes/failures respectively. No stats are necessary but occasionally you might want to talk OOC about who would have the advantage in any given situation and give them a modifier for it.

Another fun way of incorporating dice is to roll for things outside the character's control at strategic moments. One that my RP buddy and I have been doing is giving my character - a new guy in town - a reputation roll from any NPCs who are around when he does something notable. This gives him a kind of reputation score that we bear in mind when thinking about what the NPCs attitudes are towards him.

Sometimes it's fun to add a dice roll if, for example, a character is exploring an area, or looking for something, to see what they find and how useful it is.

I think that using an occasional dice roll to decide what goes into your post helps keep things a bit fresh, because left to their own devices people fall into very similar patterns of what they will describe.