I've talked about gambling in RPGing in previous RPGaDays, but I really do think gambling and stakes that matter are really important for creating impactful RPGs and RPG sessions. These high-stakes situations can be supported by mechanics, or be built into a character's background, coming out in the session. Here, I'll just discuss situations where I've enjoyed this in my own playing.
One RPG with a mechanic that feels like gambling that I've greatly enjoyed is the old Mayfair DC Heroes. I kinda have to describe the rules here, and I'll use a simplified brawl to describe what is really a general resolution system: The acting player rolls 2d10 to see if they strike their opponent. The number needed depends on their "Acting Value" (Dexterity) compared to the opponent's "Opposing Value" (also Dexterity in this case). This is all checked using a table, and exceptionally good results improve the damage dealt in the next step. If the strike is successful, the effect is determined by comparing the "Effect Value" (Strength) compared to the opponent's "Resistance Value" (Body). Learning how this resolution works, with the column shifts, etc. is all "Level One" of understanding DC Heroes action resolution. "Level Two" is all about Hero Points. DC Heroes is a bit like Marvel Super Heroes in that the points one can use to improve one's chances in a session are the same points that can be used for "Experience Points." Some people are not a fan of this, but I dig it. Anyways, before any rolls are made, the participants in any action can spend Hero Points to improve their chances. You can spend Hero Points on the Action side (making it more likely you hit/dodge) and/or the Effect side (making you deal more damage should you hit/or resist more damage if you are the defender spending). You can spend a number of Hero Points up to the value of attribute/skill you are using. So, someone with a 4 Strength could spend up to 4 Hero Points to have an effective 8 Strength for 1 action. What this does is make it possible for underdogs to sometimes make a large Hero Point spend to get something in on an opponent that otherwise totally outclasses them, a tense situation where heroes have to get creative and are kind of up against the clock with their limited pool of Hero Points to protect them or enable them to attempt the otherwise impossible.
So, of the things I enjoy about this system, is that at first it seems like any other "roll your dice" kind of resolution system, but the Hero Points turn it towards a "How much do you care about this?" resolution system. You can blow all of your Hero Points, which will greatly improve your chances, but you could still roll double 1s, or maybe you spend a more modest amount of Hero Points to get better than average odds, then fail anyways. Hero Points are valuable and it hurts to lose them, even sometimes when you succeed. DC Heroes even has social rules which can lead to fun situations. Do you spend the Hero Points so your character doesn't accidentally reveal an important piece of information? The fact that Hero Points are a limited resource leads to situations where you choose not to give your all in all situations, because you need something in the bank for later. Not every conflict is so important to an individual that they would give up Hero Points to secure victory. This resource management combined with dice that can roll well (dice can also "explode" in this system, resulting in rolls well above 20) leads to a nice sense of gambling and tension when the situation is dire. While I don't want all RPGs to function like DC Heroes, I'd like to see more of them get this dynamic happening somehow with their core mechanics.
Another RPG I've enjoyed this gambling feel in (and those who know me know where this is going), is White Wolf's Street Fighter: The Storytelling Game. The combat system in this game has characters with a selection of maneuvers written on cards. During play, players secretly select the card for the maneuver they plan to execute, then the execution of those maneuvers is resolved depending on their speed. Maneuvers have a Speed, they deal so much damage, and they can move so far (and sometimes they have other effects, like the ability to knock someone down, or they can shoot so far like a Fireball, etc.). Characters also have Willpower ratings, and Willpower can be spent to gain an automatic success (at least how my group plays), or it can be used to abort to other maneuvers in an emergency (such as Block, or Jump), or sometimes Willpower is required to activate certain maneuvers in the first place. Characters can also have Combos, strings of maneuvers where the follow up maneuvers have higher Speed than normal, and maybe combine to possibly dizzy/stun opponents. The system is built so that observant players can start to work out what Speed their opponents maneuvers will go off at, start to suss out their combos, and game play can be about getting your opponent to think you're doing one thing when you're actually doing another. It is a very tactically rich game. As for how it relates to gambling, well, it is possible to take great risks on occasion and have it pay off. An opponent commits themselves to a maneuver that costs Willpower, and you decide to eat it so you can hopefully survive and land your big grab. I find it hard to describe, but the tactical richness of the game makes maneuver decisions feel weighty in a way I rarely feel in other RPGs.
This has all been me talking about mechanics in a couple of my favorite RPGs. Another one I remember liking is the Marvel Universe RPG (the one with the Stones and no dice), a flawed game that nevertheless had you allocating your resources and sometimes splitting them trying to cover maybe more than your character was capable of for long. It's this painful decision-making over the allocation of resources that really gets me jazzed. Gambling and stakes also come into play in the narrative and relationships going on in the fiction of the game too, of course. While Story Games are not my favorite, I have definitely been put into situations where I'm "on stage", and my character is in a situation where I feel like it is a high-wire act, and how do I as a player produce something entertaining, and how does my character react to this situation that is emotionally intense. I enjoy those moments, in some moderation.
Maybe when I'm referring to gambling here, what I'm really saying is that I want an RPG to make me feel. Gambling is one avenue, a way to generate interest and concern and care about outcomes. For me, a bland session involves rolling some dice, mouthing some old clichés and inhabiting some tired tropes. A session that puts you through the wringer, where you can have feelings, be it competitive drive, caring, hating, fearing, admiring... those are the magic sessions. That's what I want bottled up and on demand, and it's not always easy.
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