Ahoy!

After multiple peer reviews, we've got the manuscript for the Core Rulebook dialed in. We've got a couple more revisions to make, then it's off to the editor. Which I am stoked about. We've also got some other creators that I am a fan of, designing monsters for the Encyclopedia Monstergoria, which I am equally stoked about. I'll have more on that soon. 

Until then, please enjoy this deep dive into the rules from Geo. 

Stay safe out there, and may the dice always roll in your favor. 

-JHM

Hey everyone,

Last month, we talked about Luck Points and how they handle three jobs at once. This week, let's talk about the dice themselves.

321RPG runs entirely on ten-sided dice. No d20s, no d6s, no d12s (the oft-neglected die), no percentile dice, no fistfuls of d8s. Just d10s.

Using a single die type solves real problems at the table:

Less confusion. New players don't need to learn which die to grab for which situation. It's always a d10. No fumbling through the dice bag looking for that elusive d12.

Simpler math. Base-10 is intuitive. When your stats range from 2 to 9, rolling a d10 creates clean percentages. A stat of 7 gives you a 70% chance of success. Easy.

More versatility. One die type means we can use it for everything: skill checks, damage, ammo rolls, and random tables. The system stays consistent.

Here's the core mechanic: when you attempt an action with an uncertain outcome, you roll a d10 and try to roll equal to or under the relevant stat. The lower you roll, the better.

Your character has a Brains stat of 6? Roll a 6 or lower to succeed at that puzzle. Roll a 1? That's a critical success. Roll an 8? You fail.

This inverts the typical "high roll good" mentality, but it creates something interesting: your stats directly represent your percentage chance of success. It's transparent. Players know their odds before they roll.

Now here's where things get interesting. When coming up with our ruleset, I thought about those iconic d20 rolls that deliver the most dopamine in D&D. But one thing always bothered me: if I needed a 13 to hit a monster and I rolled a 17, I wouldn't necessarily hit the monster harder. I could roll a 19, and it would deal the same damage as a 13. The damage dice would then determine how much hurt I actually inflicted. So I could roll a killer 19 to hit and then roll 2 points of damage. It just didn't make sense to me.

What I realized is that the d20 is, for all intents and purposes, an on-off switch. You either hit or you don't.

Therefore, there's no need to roll to hit at all. Just adjust the damage dice accordingly. And then, to keep it consistent and give players agency, we made sure every character gets two attacks per turn. That way you can still do something meaningful in the round even if you “miss” one attack.

Every attack automatically hits. What matters is how much damage you deal. You roll a d10, then add or subtract your weapon's DMG rating.

A handgun has DMG -3. Roll a 10? That's 10 - 3 = 7 damage. Roll a 3? That's 3 - 3 = 0 damage. You still hit, you just didn't hurt them.

This means your high rolls matter in combat the same way they do in other RPGs. That dopamine hit when you roll a 9 or 10? You get it. But now it's tied directly to the damage you inflict, not whether you connect at all.

This system creates moments that feel like action movies. Your character is cornered, down to 8 Luck Points, facing three enemies. You roll a 2 on your Brains Check to remember the building's layout. You spend 2 Luck Points to guarantee success. Then you attack with your shotgun, roll a 10, and drop one enemy for 9 damage. Your second attack rolls a 7 for 6 damage. Another one down.

One die. Clean math. Cinematic results.

That's what the d10 gives us.

-Geo