Asteria Rising: Update 9

Work has at last commenced on tables. For those of you confused, Asteria Rising is prototype science-fiction (sci-fi) table-top-role-playing game I'm making. It initially started as a sci-fi homemade campaign for some of my players. I decided to mark done some of our household rules, the things we do and don't do in regards to the official Dungeons and Dragons (D&D) rules.

A major theme was to better encourage exploration and fear of the wilderness, things that rarely happened with my players but were all highlights when it happened. As such, I have been meaning to create a series of tables to help randomly generate environment, non player characters (NPCs), alien creatures, et cetera.

I will admit, not very much has been accomplished with the tables. They need to begin a small prototyping phase. By that I mean, "rolling dice on them to make things." It is the only way to ensure the tables will be intuitive and comprehensive enough for my needs, and any other game master's needs. So far there are two tables.

The first focuses loosely on a 1d6 die roll to determine a general classification of the animal. This one will most likely change, possibly being expanded upon. The second table, is about the creature's disposition toward the party. Docile would be willing to come close to the party, and would not attack them. Think like livestock or pets, they will attacked if provoked but they will be comfortable around the party.

Neutral is more wary like a deer, bird, or squirrel. It will be cautious of the party, perhaps flee from it, but generally not take the first attack. Hostile can be best thought as territorial creatures, such as a wild boar or bear. This disposition means a creature will fight the party whether they intend to fight the creature or not. Predatory is a creature that tracks the party down like a pack of wolves or pride of lions. These creatures are the most dangerous as the party will have to kill or go leagues out of their way to avoid.

I'll have to add tables for size, features, attacks, and so on. Next I'll need to decide what on the tables are meant to go toward stats for the creatures [mechanical weight] and what tables only affect the narrative [Role-play experience]. There is no Challenge Rating (CR) like in D&D, but I might have to come up with a rough guidelines for building creatures and encounters that aren't too dangerous for a party of players. I know I wouldn't want to accidently kill all my players.

Tables focusing on environment will be fairly simple. There will be overarching features such as biomes (desert, mountain, et cetera), then probably more unique features (strange rock circle, magnetized, et cetera). Tables about NPCs will mirror the tables for the same thing in the Dungeon Master's Guide for D&D. That will give rolls for personality, features, skills, mannerisms, et cetera.

My hope is that the next update post will have more on the various tables, or I'll be able to give a preview of the three player classes I've been working on.

Until then, have a great day.