Roleplaying Games:
Lego RPG -- Brainstorm #1
All comments appreciated.
Concept
Let’s make something like a pen-and-paper roleplaying game suitable for kids 5 and up.
Basic Ideas
Kids that age aren’t going to be good at the talky, thinky bits of roleplaying but can handle some simple combat. They (sample size: 1) may already pretend to battle with toys anyway, so this is simply adding some kind of structure to it.
Miniatures
In any game I run for adults with coherent powers of imagination, use of miniatures in combat is punishable by death. (Probably mine, as it means I’m not describing the situation well enough that it sticks in players’ heads.) Young kids are blessed with over-active imaginations, meaning that they won’t be able to keep the scene in their heads for long without forgetting or embellishing bits.
Right on cue: Lord of the Rings Lego. These will provide cheap, endlessly reconfigurable characters. Assuming one can buy the characters individually at some point (or you want the scenery to fight around).
Mechanics that Kids Already Know
Mechanics Joseph already knows (‘sup Pokemon):
- Hit Points
- Characters with various techniques that do different amounts of damage
- Elemental strengths/weaknesses
- Turn-based combat
- Levelling up
- Gear costs money
- Hidden treasure chests in the bottom of dungeons
Mechanics he might not know yet:
- Attacks having min/max ranges
- Initiative (higher speed => hit first)
- XP per kill
- Money per kill
Next Time...
…there will be more beer! And then I will write rules!
Pokekids, get initiative a bit; speedy 'mons go before slow ones, quick attack mucks things up a bit.
Maybe bonus dice for speedy/strong attacks?
Strength, speed, toughness and magic/superness for stats?
I'm not sure Joseph has picked up on the Speed => Turn order thing yet, but other kids of his age and older probably have.
Strength vs Toughness almost certainly has to be the core combat mechanic, and speed is a good choice too. I'm wondering if I should try to make the game a multi-age-group affair, and do things like "mages are just fancy archers" for younger kids while introducing distinct spells (not all attacking) for older kids?