An Avatar roleplaying game.
- The GM describes a scene.
- A player or players propose an action they wish to take.
- The GM describes the risk/reward of the action.
- If the proposed action is trivial or literally impossible, the GM resolves it immediately. Otherwise a dice roll is needed.
- If the players wish, they may either roll for the current action or pick a new one.
Based on your stats, and the proposed action, you'll roll some number of six-sided dice. Roll all dice at once and read the highest results.
- Multiple 6s: critical success -- you accomplish your stated goal, and receive an additional boon.
- Single 6: full success -- you accomplish your stated goal.
- Highest dice is 4-5: partial success -- you accomplish your stated goal, but there's a consequence or a setback.
- Highest dice is 1-3: bad outcome -- you fail to achieve your goal, and suffer a consequence or setback.
Enemies generally don't roll dice, since players have the initiative to drive the story. When attacking an enemy, if you have a partial success or bad outcome, this is likely the enemy fighting back.
If you would have to roll zero dice, instead roll one, but on rolling a 6 you only partially succeed (instead of fully).
See Blades in the Dark's description here.
By default actions have medium risk and medium reward. At the GMs discretion, actions may be declared to have any combination of (low, medium, or high risk) and (low, medium, or high reward).
For example, picking a simple lock in a heist (assuming you have the tools + skills) is low risk, medium reward. On a failure, maybe trying again now counts as risky because it's taking too long, and you would mark 1 segment on the "guards alerted" progress clock.
In general, each of three categories (low, medium, high) contributes (1, 2, 3) segments respectively to a progress clock.
All rolls are made with a combination of two stats, usually:
- one of (EARTH, WATER, AIR, FIRE)
- one of (PHYSICAL, MENTAL, SPIRIT)
When you declare an action, add two stats together, and then roll that many dice.
PHYSICAL is for feats of strength and dexterity, anything requiring muscles.
MENTAL is for feats of cunning and ingenuity, anything involving brilliant thought.
SPIRIT is for feats of willpower, and includes most bending moves.
- "I want to hit ________."
- "I want to identify a vulnerable location to strike."
If your goal is to eviscerate and destroy -- use FIRE. If your goal is to distract, deflect, or disable -- use AIR.
If you're performing feats of acrobatics or archery to land a physical attack -- add PHYSICAL. If you're identifying a weakness in a plan, calculating trajectories, or sizing up an enemy -- add MENTAL.
Examples:
- Tai-Lee hitting pressure points to disable bending is "target selection, hit weak points" so AIR+PHYSICAL
- Admiral Zhao researching the secret of the moon spirit with intent to kill is "target selection, identify weakness, FIRE+MENTAL".
- Sokka triangulating Combustion man is "target selection, accuracy, AIR+MENTAL" (throwing his boomerang used PHYSICAL instead). It's air and not fire because he intended to distract or delay, rather than decapitate. The fact that Combustion man backfired and died was due to a critical hit from Sokka.
- "I am destroying ______."
- "I am apply great effort to accomplish ______."
If your goal is to affect change, use FIRE. If your goal is to keep things the same -- use EARTH. Can deal lots of damage, but your damage often misses. See Zhao destroying his own boats.
Examples:
- Toph holding up the buried library is "Brute force, big effort to keep things the same" so EARTH+PHYSICAL
- Iroh breaking down the walls of Ba-Sing Se is "Brute force, big fire blast" so FIRE+SPIRITUAL
- Katara giving a speech to inspire the earthbenders on the prison platform to revolt is "Brute Force, big effort to change people's minds" so FIRE+MENTAL
- "Resisting the effects of ______."
- "Bad thing happened, but we can outlast."
If your goal is to resist without change, use EARTH. If you're okay retreating and regrouping, use WATER.
Examples:
- Gaang resisting effects of illness (pre-frog) would be EARTH+PHYSICAL
- Reworking failed invasion plans on the fly would be WATER+MENTAL. Pushing forward despite the flaws would be EARTH+MENTAL, but probably also highly risky. Inspiring soldiers to rally would likely be done with EARTH+MENTAL ("hold fast people!").
- If you want to soothe your angry nephew after a grave dissapointment, WATER+MENTAL.
- Mobility and movement, ability to kite.
- Dodging telegraphed attacks.
If your goal is to avoid damage and reposition, use AIR. If you want to counterattack, use WATER.
Examples:
- In the Zuko vs Zhao fight, Zuko dodges a big punch (with WATER+PHYSICAL) into a counter-attack spinning kick that "targets a weakpoint" and break's Zhao's stance (AIR+PHYSICAL).
- If you're flying a bison and trying to avoid determined pursuit by repositioning, roll AIR+MENTAL.
Sokka: "I want to throw my boomerang around the corner to hit Combustion Man."
GM: "That would have low reward, because you have no clue where the target is."
Sokka: "Oh wait, I can triangulate him via the blasts."
GM: "Ok, regular skill check then, it'll be target selection."
GM: "You want FIRE or AIR for your subtheme?"
Sokka: "Just want to get us out of here, so AIR to distract."
GM: "Ok, roll AIR+INT to triangulate."
Sokka: "Partial success."
GM: "You've pinned down his location -- get +1 dice and regular effectivness on the attack."
GM: "However, in the time that it took, Combustion Man blows up another 2 of the pillars that are holding the temple up."
GM: *Marks pillars off of Action Clock*
GM: "The rock creaks ominously and more explosions rock you, what do you do?"
Sokka: "Throw boomerang! Using STR+AIR this time... and crit success!"
Azula: "I want to break this man's spirit so he won't challenge me for the throne again."
GM: "I believe that's damage selection, spiritual evisceration. Roll FIRE+SPIRIT"
Azula: "I look down on him and say: 'Don't flatter yourself, you were never even a player'."
In general,
- if you roll water to avoid damage, you can countertattack with an action that includes either water or air.
- if you roll water to mitigate damage, you can counterattack with an action that includes either water or earth.
Bending is untethered from its element, for example Zuko uses lots of water moves while firebending. There's a slight alignment bonus at the GMs discretion, mostly by bumping up action effectiveness / reward for success.
Sometimes there's strong ambiguity between two elements, in which case it's up to the player's discretion.
Some skills and abilities scale off stats without using them to roll. For example, using lightning bolts is FIRE+STR, but the range scales based on your air stat. Azula, who minmaxes fire, can throw shortrange ableit damaging bolts, whereas the more balanced Iroh can throw lightning several miles.
Effects with PHYSICAL effect the physical world. In almost all cases bending uses STR, one exception would be something like performing a calming light show with firebending to inspire contentment in the heart of a cute gal (which probably would use WATER+SPIRIT).
Effects with MENTAL effect the logical world. This includes things like piecing together clues, devising strategies, etc.. Sokka is a minmax high MENTAL character.
Difference between SPIRIT and MENTAL comes down to emotion. If you can record the words and logic and observations in a book without losing meaning, it's INT; if you need the passion and intuition and wordless willpower then it's SPIRIT. In the Spirit World, everyone has STR effectively set to 0 (no physical world to effect) and bending doesn't work. Dealing with spirits relies heavily on SPIRIT, as the name would imply.
0 Earth, 2 Water, 2 Air, 0 Fire 0 Physical, 3 Intellect, 0 Spirit
Boomerang -- You have a throwing boomerang. It always come back, no matter how improbable.
Always has a Plan -- When an ally wants to do something, you may concoct a cunning plan. Roll INT + relevant element. Tell your ally the plan. On a success your ally gets to roll one extra dice.
2 Earth, 1 Water, 1 Air, 0 Fire 2 Physical, 1 Intellect, 0 Spirit
Trained Warrior -- Fighting in pitched combat is no longer risky by default.
Fan Shield -- Once per round, you may roll EARTH+PHYSICAL to block an attack for an ally.
1 Earth, 3 Water, 0 Air, 2 Fire 1 Physical, 1 Intellect, 3 Spirit
Ice bending -- Can freeze and unfreeze water at will.
Octopus Form -- No penalties from fighting multiple enemies at once.
Speak from the Heart -- When convincing or arguing, you may use Spirit rather than Intellect.