Forge Engine monster stat blocks...

I'm still working on the Forge Engine (while juggling various updates to Hero Kids).

At the moment I'm developing the monster stat blocks so that the GM has all of the information they require at hand.   The trick has been to provide all of the monster's information in a compact and usable form.   Ideally, I want to fit two monsters per page (in an digest sized printed book), or four monsters per double-page spread for a PDF.

The important aspect is to assist the GM in managing the energy pool and attacks of multiple monsters.   This has led me to include an attack line that shows the monster or character's basic attack, which they make by just spending the energy cost of the weapon, as well as their strongest attack, where they spend the weapon's cost and then add as much energy as possible to maximize the attack.

So the elements of the stat block are:
•   Name
•   Type and Size
•   Attributes (Strength, Agility, Stamina, Influence, Intelligence, Acuity)
•   Energy Pool
•   Physical and Mental Defenses
•   Health and Move Distance
•   Skills
•   Basic Attack and Maximum Attack
•   Specialized Combat Skills
•   Traits
•   Inventory/Equipment

Simple!

Forge Engine combat turns description...

One of the unconventional elements of the Forge Engine RPG is the structure of the turns.   Traditional RPGs have a round/turn structure where each character has a discrete turn within each round.   Their actions occur within their own turn, and time passes in a strangely linear fashion which requires some mental gymnastics to unravel.   Once each character's round is over, play passes on to the next character in the initiative order, etc...

The Forge Engine's combination of an Energy action economy and a system of actions and reactions that are individually costed means that the traditional linear round structure can be replaced with a more non-linear 'do what you want as long as you have the Energy' structure.   Characters can jump in and out of the action as long as they have enough Energy to perform their action; whether it's moving, attacking, reloading, or some other costed action.

As with any system, there are several caveats.   First, characters can take reactions before their first turn in combat, but they can't take actions.   Second, if a character is surprised, they can't take actions or reactions until their first turn, which means that they can't spend Energy to dodge when they're being attacked.

(Dammit, that should be 'Character #2' up there, not Character #3...)

So, what other RPGs have non-traditional round and turn structures for combat?

Forge Engine Character Sheet

The first thing I look at whenever I check out a new RPG is the character sheet, because you can tell so much about a game just from this one element. This is the character sheet for the Forge Engine RPG I'm working on.

Feedback, questions, and discussion are always welcome.

Not Forgotten!

You would all be forgiven for thinking that I've abandoned Heroes Against Darkness and this blog, but that is not totally the case!

First, I've spent most of the year continuing to support Hero Kids, which has had success beyond my wildest hopes.   Hero Kids now has ten adventures and a bunch of expansions that add to the game.

Second, I've also been continuing to work on The Forge Engine.   I first mentioned this new system in my previous post almost a year ago, which seems crazy.   Suffice to say that the system has had a lot of testing since then, including a number of major revisions to the core mechanics to ensure they work in all of the situations and genres that the system targets (fantasy and modern, and even sci-fi).

I'm always on the lookout for playtesters, so drop me an email at justinhalliday(a)gmail[dot]com if you'd like me to include you in my list of playtesters.

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No, I'm not dead.   I've just been working on Hero Kids and its adventures, which are available at DriveThruRPG:

Hero Forge Games at DriveThruRPG