Whats Different

THIS NEEDS UPDATING!

What whats different about Future Path? What sets it apart from d20 Future or for that matter any other Pen and Paper game? Well glad you asked!

1. d20+ System:

This is the resolution system. d20 or d10 systems are named such because they inform the person what the primary die used to resolve conflicts will be. d20+ is named because players will roll a d20 plus additional dice depending on their level and the situation. This system is based on 3 main concepts.

1. Rolling more dice that are different is fun.
2. Rolling less often improves the pace and flow of a game.
3. Removing static modifiers allows for a more fun and dynamic play.

Together these statements form the base for a lot of decision making for the game rules. Static modifiers still exist but only for Ability Scores and items. While everything else is a die roll of some sort. Die have levels. Level 1 is d2 level 2 is d4 and so on till level 6 which is d12. Here the die levels split into two different level trees. The first branch loops back around so that level 7 die is 1d12+1d2 while the second branch keeps going with doubles so that level 7 would be 2d8 and level 8 would be 2d10 with the max being level 9 at 2d12. However the first branch's max level is 12 at 2d12. Weapons and the Advantages/Disadvantage system uses the second branch of die levels while all other aspects of the game like Skills for example use the first branch. In this system most situations are resolved by rolling multiple die instead of just 1d20 + Mods. It is for example 1d20 + 1d6 + Mods.

You gain access to higher die levels as your Character levels up.

2. Wealth System:

A lot of P&P (Pen and Paper) game systems use a simplified way of handling wealth. The goal is to stream line game play and make it more about the story then about epic shopping. However this forces the GM and the Player to roll play in a certain way. What if you want to play out attempting to pay for the illegal substance or for your new Star Ship. Buying a ship can be a major commitment and achievement for a Player. So why not have Players manage there money? Well... its difficult when you get into modern finance. Things are more complicated. There needs to be a middle ground. We believe that our Wealth System is a good middle ground that helps to express a Players Wealth in a way that represents modern money without bogging down game play.

We use the Credit system. This allows players too own 'ISC' or Inter-Stellar Credits while also having a Credit Score which determines there monthly income (if that applies) as well as the ability to buy things vastly more expensive then normal. However each time a Character buys something extremely expensive they loose 1 or more Credit Score points. There is only a few difficult ways to get a Credit Score back which means Players will have to choose what expensive things to buy.

Items in the game are all rated by the Procure Difficulty which is a way to sum up how both rare and difficult an item is to acquire. And lastly all items also have an attribute associated with Tech Level. All these attributes when combined allow GMs an easy way to both control and convey the availability of items to players in an easy and quick way. Making 'epic shopping' experiences much faster.

3. Techniques :

In a lot of Sci-Fi Pen & Paper games the aspect of casting magic is missing. Well although 'magic' as defined in most Fantasy realms is no present in the Future Path setting a similar game mechanic called Techniques is. This system allows for fantastical Sci-Fi elements to take shape and for Players to enjoy creating Characters that can still preform fantastical feats of prowess that to the untrained eye may seam like magic.

4. Campaign Setting:

What originally inspired creating this game was the serious lack of a Campaign Setting to explore for d20 Future/Modern. There was no Forgotten Realms or Golarion to explore. Although not completely a bad thing it kept the d20 Modern/Future game from feeling whole. Although it did make some sense. d20 Future is simply an expansion/module for d20 Modern. And Modern didn't really need a full Campaign Setting. It could be easily based in real world today. Maybe with just a few twists in it. d20 Future never had the attention it needed. It was too tied to its base on which it was founded on. The first thing that inspired this whole project was simply to give d20 Future a galaxy to run around in. Still largely unknown with possible mysteries or dangers at every star system but at the same time a home to go back to. Large amounts of explored space with civilizations all striving to prove themselves while at the same time massive amounts unexplored space and unsolved mysterious.

5. Tech Level:

The Progress levels explained in d20 Future seamed over simplified yet also possibly over complicated. On one end there was not a lot of restrictions laid out on characters Progress Level. There civilizations progress level doesn't effect a Players Knowledge/Crafting and general experience with items of different levels. On the other end there was a lot of different levels. 9 to be exact. When Playing a d20 Future game rarely did we bring in Progress Levels with any relevance. But technology is so cool! Sci-Fi is surrounded by neat tech that unlocks wondrous impossibles and brings them into the palm of a Characters hand. They can bring power and awe. People of lower understanding may simply view someone with advance Technology as a god. Or at least someone of great power that should be feared. This is full of fun story telling possibilities. Technology is the fuel source of Sci-Fi story plot and can be used to empower GMs and Players alike. In Future Path Player Characters inherit the Tech Level of the civilization they grow up in. The Tech Level effects what level of items a player can repair/modify/craft. And penalties are given for the use of items with Tech Levels to high for a character to understand. More on Tech Level here

6. Attack Bonus and Extra Attacks:

This is a major part of why this system is called "d20+". Instead of a "Base Attack Bonus", or some other flat bonus an extra dice is used. The Die is determined by the player Class and level and can range from a d2 to a 2d12. This is called the "Advantage Die". It is also separate from how many attacks a Character can preform per round. Additional attacks are given as special abilities called "Extra Attack" by the core classes. Classes in the game can determine what Abilities the Character has an Affinity with. If they have an Affinity with a certain Ability such as Dexterity then then that Character can also roll there Advantage Die when doing saving throws with that ability.

7. Skills:

Our approach to handling Skills may seem at first glance to be the same old same old. However there are several major differences. There are 3 types of skills. Natural, UnNatural, and Rank Dependent. The "Rank Dependent" is a new addition to our rule set. The idea is that the rank of the skill determines the best possible outcome. Instead of it just helping to beat a DC by adding a modifier to your d20 roll it also predetermines how good your success is if you do indeed successful. The best example is with Language. Now Language is handled by having a skill rank for each Language you know. If you have a rank of just 1 in say "Common Human" then your best possible outcome is just being able to tell that what you are reading/listening too is indeed Human speech and maybe a few words here and there. Even if you succeed with a natural 20. Your Character is just learning the language. Higher the rank the better the best possible outcome will be.

We also changed how skills level up somewhat. All skills have to be Trained before you can put ranks in them. Class skills are automatically Trained at level 1. However in order to apply the Character's ability modifier to an UnNatural non-class skill it must first be trained which costs a skill point. If the skill is a Natural skill can still attempt the action but they simply do not add any bonuses too it.

To Learn more please visit the Skills Basics page.

8. Language:

As noted above in the Skill's section we treat language differently. You simply do not add a language once you level up and instantly are fluent in it. There is a Language skill. This skill determines the amount of languages a character can have. It also is added to any check that evolves comprehending a foreign language. Each language you use has its own skill and skill rank. The rank of that skill predetermines the best possible outcome. Your roll is simply to see if you succeed or fail to achieve that outcome. At rank 1 of a specific language skill a player is just learning that language. The rank is 1 through 6. 6 being that they are fluent in the language so much so they the appear to speak and write it as if it was there first language and they are able to manipulate accents. Each language skill is considered a "Trained" skill and to move up a rank in it costs 2 skill points instead of just one. That also goes for the primary Language skill itself.

For the Campaign Setting another twist is added. A lot of different pen and paper games have different philosophies on how to handle language. We want to make a system that can be flexible for both major scenarios. One is that there is a common language and all Players speak it and most NPCs and other characters in the story does as well. Language barriers are rarely brought up. The other side of the fence is a more gritty/realistic approach and has language barriers be a common problem and even used as a plot device. Our approach will be to introduce a common language but have it up to the GM and Players on just how "common" it is in the universe. The the official Campaign setting there will be two common languages. Low Common and High Common. Low being a very simple and easy to learn language that's only confusing part is its many different ways of expressing meaning in order to facilitate species biological differences. Its simple in that it is used to convey only the most basic ideas. High Common is far more complicated with far more exceptions however with complexity you also gain the ability to express much more. Of course there will be other languages but these two are the best way to communicate to the average alien. Will you use this setup? Its honestly up too the GM. But more rules on language skill can be find in the Skills section and more about Low/High common can be found in the Campaign Section.

9. Combat:

In FuturePath combat rounds are considered 3 seconds instead of the normal 6 seconds found in the d20 system. These means that players have only one standard action instead of two. This also means that Attacks of Opportunity no longer exist. Another major change is now all players deiced what there actions are together as a team and act all at once. Each team has a static Team initiative score which is determined at the start of play. This means there is not initiative roll to determine order. All of this allows quick transition into fast pace combat rounds. The goal is too increase the speed of combat as well as introduce a cooperative combat system instead of one where players act alone without consequences.