Resolution System
A resolution system is what seperates a TTRPG from just a collaborative storytelling exercise or an improv performance. It’s the thing that makes a TTRPG a game.
In the Black Box, when a cultist wants to achieve something, we abide by the following ceremony - shown below in flowchart form - to determine the outcome.
In the Black Box, when a cultist wants to achieve something, we abide by the following ceremony - shown below in flowchart form - to determine the outcome.
DESIGN THINKINGThere are several clear distinctions between the Black Box’s resolution system and other roleplaying games’. One of the most notable is the Bargained Suffering system (noted by phrases like “how are you willing to suffer for this”). This addition at the beginning of a traditional resolution system accomplishes a number of design goals:
- It gives players greater freedom in how the story turns out.
- It ensures the players understand the risk in the fiction before consequences are inflicted.
- It encourages the players to make difficult choices and sacrifices.
- It reduces the number of dice rolls, thus increasing tension for when rolls are made.
- It keeps players engaged even when they aren’t currently the center of attention by getting them to think about what they’re willing to sacrifice to succeed during a scenario.