Hey Game Fans, we’re back with another look at a different role-playing game than we normally cover. Today’s entry is 1879, a different take on the concepts of colonialism and exploration through the lens of Steampunk, travel to alien worlds and magic. Let’s take a look at the core mechanic for task resolution and how that shapes the rest of the game (we’ll dig into building a character later on, and we’ll see if we can’t discuss some of the underlying concepts and ideas that shape the game).
Core Mechanic
The Core Mechanic for 1879 is a tiered system that determines how many dice (and what type) you get to roll to perform an action check. Just about every ability is rated in terms of both Rank and Step. Abilities themselves have a raw value that derives into Steps, which basically represent raw talent. Skill Ranks are added to the base ability’s steps to determine the total Step Number.
After the Step Number has been determined, any modifiers are applied to determine the final Step Number. Once that calculation is done, then you consult the big chart on page 29 to see how many dice (and of what type you roll to determine success or failure).
Steps are a derived value of the raw ability (which you can calculate by dividing the ability by 3 and adding 1).
Sound Complicated? It is and it isn’t. The mechanic represents the idea that the more skilled you are (and with a higher attribute rating), the more likely you are to succeed at a task. What this does differently from other games is that instead of creating a modifier to a die roll, it creates the pool of dice you roll for that task. In this regard it’s more like the Storyteller System from Onyx Path Publishing (or White Wolf if you’re an oldster like me) or the system Shadowrun uses than Dungeons and Dragons 5th Edition. Let’s take a look at how it works in practice, and then we’ll talk about the exceptions and special situations that make the rule work.
Example:
Dave is a human explorer who’s gone through the Rabbit Hole and is exploring the other side. He’s gotten himself into a bit of a situation with the locals and there are several angry Saurids who’d like to have a discussion with him about it (or eat him, he can’t quite tell). He brings his trusty rifle to bear and takes aim at one of the Saurids.
Dave is a soldier with a Dexterity of 15 and 3 ranks in the Firearms skill. Let’s break down that math. His step value for Dexterity is 6 (15 divided by 3, then adding 1). His 3 ranks in Firearms directly upgrade his Step Number to 9. After we consult the chart on page 29, we know that Dave is rolling a D8 and a D6 (and combining the results) to determine whether or not he hits the Saurid with his rifle.
This sounds like a lot of computation and calculation, but most abilities are listed with their Step Number (and the dice used), and with some practice in the system you’re going to get very familiar with the chart on page 29. The thing that may get a little trickier are modifiers, because 1879 applies the modifiers to the Step number rather than the dice rolls themselves. It’s a different way of doing something and requires less calculation. Ultimately it’s up to you to decide if it’s a mechanic you like, but i see the appeal in it.
Changing the number/type of dice being rolled rather than applying modifiers to the dice after the dice are rolled is a neat change of pace for the way systems usually operate with a Target Number based system. It’s less math intensive than modifying the dice rolls, and that can make it a friendlier system with a little more practice. I want to tinker with it some more to see how it plays and that’s something we might try to run with in another article.
Success and Failure
Now that you’ve determined how many of what dice you need to roll, you can see if the check you’re attempting succeeds or fails. The dice rolls are called Action Tests and generally three different types of tests you make in this game. Note, dice rolls are open ended at the top end, meaning that if you roll the highest result possible on a die, you get to roll an additional die and add that to the result. Let’s take a closer look at Unopposed, Opposed, and Effect Tests.
Unopposed Tests
Some Action Tests represent a character performing a specific task. Climbing walls, navigating a map, and finding secret books in a lost library all fall under this category. These tests are fairly easy to manage, as the Game Master will set a Target Number. If the dice rolled equal or exceed this value, the Action Test succeeds. If the roll is below this value, the test fails.
Opposed Tests
These tests are a little trickier, and represent two characters working against each other. Whether they are struggling over a lever, or competing against each other in a game of skill, or even trying to outrun each other through an obstacle course, these Opposed Tests work a little differently. The two characters roll their Action Tests, and compare their results. The highest result wins the test.
Effect Tests
These tests aren’t compared against a predetermined value and are used to determine how effective something is. This usually applies to Damage and Initiative, but sometimes gets used with spellcasting and other technological effects.
Exceptions and Special Cases
There are some special case situations and exceptions that also affect the Action Test process. They are special cases or clarifications of how modifiers interact with the Steps. Let’s take a bit of a closer look and try and make a little bit of sense of these.
Bonuses and Penalties
This one’s pretty straightforward, any modifiers (positive or negative) are applied to the Step Number, before the dice are rolled. As these are either added or subtracted from the Step Number, the math is easy to keep track of.
The Rule of Three
The Rule of Three is a limit to the number of modifiers that can be applied to any given Step. This cuts down on applying every potential modifier to either completely tank a roll or to rocket it to the moon. There’s a bit of vagueness about which modifiers take priority in the situation that four or more modifiers are viable, but i suspect that’s a GM call.
Test Results
Like we explained above, Unopposed Tests have a TN set by the GM (or the ability being used) and Opposed Tests are comparisons of the dice rolled by the parties making the tests.
Extra Successes
Degrees of Success are sometimes called for in 1879, and knowing how well you performed a task can be more important than simple success. In this case, every 5 points rolled above the TN (or the opponent’s roll in an Opposed Test) counts as an additional success. These additional successes can have an effect on the results of the Test.
Effect Tests
Effect Tests effectively have no set TN, and the dice rolled determine the quality of the Test. This can determine initiative order, damage dealt or healed, or the effects of spells or technology.
The Rule of One
If all the dice rolled on a Test show 1s as their result, the test automatically fails. At the GM’s discretion, more bad things can happen beyond failing the result.
Karma
Some beings (Player Characters included, but not exclusively) can channel their energy into an ability to bend fate to their will so to speak. By spending a point of Karma, these creatures can roll extra dice as part of an Action Test. These dice behave normally, meaning they are subject to the rule of one, but they can also generate bonus dice on the Test.
Conclusions
That’s the Core Mechanic for 1879 and it’s an interesting take on other ideas for gaming systems. I need to play with it a little more to get a better feel for it, but overall i think it’s a novel way of representing the random chances that make a tabletop RPG interesting. It’s easy to calculate on the fly and doesn’t require me to calculate multiple modifiers to dice rolls in the same action. WIth practice and familiarity it seems like one of those mechanics that becomes easier and i think it makes every Action an interesting one. The actions that characters are extremely capable of accomplishing are manifested by larger dice (and combinations of dice) to roll and the riskier tests use smaller dice. It’s a neat change of pace but it feels familiar.
That’s our take on the Core Mechanic for 1879. We’ll check back in with a character creation example in the near-ish future and then we’ll talk about the setting and the underlying themes to it. We hope you’re interested in this offering from FASA games (you can find it at their webstore here) and find their setting and system interesting enough to take time out of your schedule to check out. Game On, Game Fans.
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