Where there were two, there is now one: Action Points.

• Value: 5 (not based on level or Dex)
• Recharge: daily/session
• Take immediate move action: 1 AP
• Take immediate swift action: 1 AP
• Take immediate standard action: 3 AP

They cannot be used for rerolls as such, although they can be used to immediately attempt some new action to recover from failure. If you really must change the past, use a Hero Point.

Same uses as before, but value is now calculated as such:

• Start at character creation (regardless of level) with 3 Hero Points
• Each level, gain 1 Hero Point
• You cannot have more than 3 Hero Points.

They aren't really new attributes, but you can now invest directly in several attributes by spending Attribute Points

• Movement: gain +1 base movement speed per Attribute Point spent
• Action Points: gain +1 AP per Attribute Point spent

Focus is now Int-based, but otherwise unchanged. Mana is no longer an automatic attribute. Instead, it is granted by the Magic power source. Similarly, Psionics grants Energy, The Force grants Force Points, etc. Coincidentally, they all work much the same way, and are Wisdom-based.

And thus, Magic, and any power source that is virtually the same:

• Uses Int to hit (via Spellcraft, Psicraft, Knowledge of the Force, etc) and set DCs (in almost all cases, except only as specified in the power)
• Uses Cha to dmg (via Willpower skill)
• Uses Wis for endurance (and combo ability)

Completing the work of 7.4.1:

• There is no "handedness" multiplier in damage rolls. Two-handed attacks don't inflict 2x, or 1.5x, they inflict 1x. Always.
• There is a concept of light, medium, and heavy weapons.
  • Light weapons inflict d4s. They are offhand and finesse weapons.
  • Medium weapons inflict d8s. They are finesse weapons.
  • Heavy weapons inflict d12s. They are two-handed weapons.
  • YMMV on exact stats; one weapon might trade die type for crit, or bonus parry, etc.
  • The number of dice is based on weapon skill: 1 die per rank of the skill (rank 3 melee = 3 dice, for example)
  • Definition of "finesse weapon": you can use Agility for damage instead of Melee.
• There is a concept of light, medium, and heavy damage for spells.
  • The spell description will note which type it inflicts.
  • There is no "nominal" damage; when in doubt, assume medium.
  • Light damage is 1d4 per skill rank.
  • Medium damage is 1d8 per skill rank.
  • Heavy damage is 1d12 per skill rank.
  • The skill in question is Willpower, naturally. (Could be per-power, but that's too nitty-gritty)
  • Implements exist, but they don't mess with base damage, only secondary stats.
  • Rules of thumb for spell design:
    • Start with heavy damage.
    • If it hits more than once, subtract one. If it hits WAY more, subtract two. (Applies to area effects, defensive retributions, duration effects, etc)
    • If it's not a standard action, subtract one.

Let's consider which skills are truly first-class:

• Agility, Concentration, Fortitude, Melee, Ranged, Spellcraft, Stealth (maybe), Willpower

And those that aren't:

• Healing, Persuasion, Perception, Security, Survival, all Knowledge skills

I rate these based primarily on how often the skills have mattered in all games for the past few years. The core combat skills will always dominate, and those which establish a DC or add to damage are yet more important than those which are fully defensive in nature (like Fortitude).

No idea what to do about the problem, just trying to break it down further.

Actually

May have an idea:

• Treat first-class skills like powers, in that you get 1/level, and they have 5 ranks.
• The actual combat number is a function primarily of level, secondarily of skill. For instance, melee hit modifier may be something like: 1d20 + 1/2 level + skill mod, where skill mod = 0 at rank 0, 5 at rank 1, 7 at rank 2, 8 at rank 3, etc.
• Being power-like, these ranked skills will grant abilities, and also enable feat selection. For example:
  • Melee 1 allows the maneuvers Slam (hvy dmg + stun, provokes AOO), Power Attack (good ol stamina combo move), and Flurry (light dmg, attack twice)
  • Feat options might include a modifier to Slam to add knockdown/pushback, a modifier to Flurry to attack more times by spending stamina, etc...

• New stat: speed
  • Determines AP, movement speed

Initiative

• Normal AP is 3.
  • If you're surprised, you start with 1. If you surprise someone, you start with 5.
  • Clearly, if you start right off with a std action, you'll have minimal defense for the rest of the round. In a two-way no-surprise encounter, most wise combatants will immediately seek cover and/or advantage of some sort.
  • You can go into negatives with a single action (min -3, having started at 0 and spent 3). If you're in negatives, you lose all passive defenses, even if they cost 0 AP.
  • Some actions cost more than 3 AP. These require constant investment each round, but you don't have to spend all of your AP; e.g. a 6-point action might take 2 rounds of 3 AP each, but if you had 1 or 2 extra AP in the middle, you could still use them (within reason--if you have to remain stationary, then moving in the middle wouldn't work)

Might:

• Used as damage bonus with melee attacks (instead of Melee skill)
• Used to determine Block Rating
• Uses Str and Con

Spirit:

• Used as damage bonus with spells (instead of Willpower skill)
• Used to determine Magic Resistance
• Uses Wis and Cha

Focus:

• Determines critical hits (maybe)
• Determines Initiative and Action Points
• Determines Dodge Rating
• Uses Dex and Int

Passive Defenses

Whenever attacked, you may attempt to avoid the attack entirely using Block, Dodge, or Magic Resistance.

• The enemy rolls a skill check (e.g. Melee) to determine DC.
• If your chosen rating exceeds the DC, you avoid the attack.
• Otherwise, you fail to avoid it, unless you use a Limit Break (see below).

Initiative

It is no longer true that every actor rolls Initiative at the start of combat.

Instead, any actor may choose to act at any time, if they have sufficient Action Points. All actions consume Action Points (generally std 3, sw/mv 1, fr 0-ish). A given action might well be a reaction to some other actor's action. This system allows for a robust system of moves and countermoves, largely negating the need for Hero Point interrupts and actions that are inherently immediate.

When more than one action is happening at the same time (a common scenario), a Bidding War begins:

• Each actor may bid additional Action Points. At the end of bidding, actions occur in the order from most to least AP bid. The base cost of each action does not count.
• At any point, an actor may "fold", effectively yielding continued betting to other actors. AP already bet still count at the end of bidding.
• An actor may "fold" without any additional AP. This counts as bidding 0.
• If, after bidding ends, two actors have bid the same AP, roll Initiative to determine the order of actions.
• Once AP are spent on an action, they cannot be un-spent. The actor may choose only of three options:
  • Take the action, as bid, in the order determined by bidding.
  • Delay the action to any later point in bidding order.
  • Abandon the action and the AP.

Gameplay continues until all actors are out of AP, or choose to "bank" their AP. At this point, a new "round" of combat begins, and all AP totals refresh.

• "Bank" is an action which ends a player's turn, and places up to half their normal AP maximum in holding to "roll over" to the next turn. Any additional AP are wasted.
• If the "Bank" action is used, a player may not take proactive actions, but they may still spend AP to react to actions that affect them. They may spend the "wasted" AP first, then the "banked" AP. Spent AP are not carried forward into the next round, naturally.

Action Point Re-Rolls

Action Points are no longer used to re-roll failed rolls. They may still be used to repeat actions, which is similar in concept. It is still possible to use a Hero Point to automatically succeed at any check.

Each individual skill allows for one re-roll per session per rank. Thus, if you have 10 points in Agility, it is rank 2, and thus you may take 2 free re-rolls of Agility checks per session.

Limit Break

The flat damage bonuses and defensive ratings provided by Spirit, Focus, and Might are all well and good, but are sometimes insufficient. Thus, the Limit Break.

Any time you use Spirit, Focus, or Might (attacking, defending, etc), you may break your normal limits by attempting a Limit Break. This is a skill check, whose type depends on the attribute:

• Spirit: Willpower
• Focus: Concentration
• Might: Fortitude

You must decide what you are attempting, then attempt the check:

On success, you multiply the effect of the attribute by the listed multiplier. For example, a melee attack deals double damage on a 2x limit break, and a Block attempt blocks 5x your Block Rating in damage.

On failure, you still achieve a Limit Break of whatever the dice indicated (if the result was greater than or equal to 20), but you suffer a penalty to the attribute in question based on the Limit Break you were attempting, as determined by the chart above. Furthermore, there is a chance of a mishap.

When a mishap occurs, roll 1d4 to determine the effect:

• 1- the effect is normal, but the targeting is determined randomly
• 2- the effect is reduced by the multiplier instead of increased, but the penalty is halved
• 3- tbd

Could we keep the skills, and just segregate them?

Skill list:

• Definitely: Melee, Ranged, Willpower, Concentration, Fortitude, Agility
• Maybe: Stealth, Spellcraft

What aren't skills doing well:

• No way to invest directly in Mana, Focus, Stamina, HP, etc.
• Power Sources don't cover that very well. It's more about your chosen style.
• Even with multiple paths, there's not enough "oomph" in things like Melee. Need more stuff like the s6 fighter talents/maneuvers.
• Spellcraft, Concentration, and Willpower are unlikely to ever have 3 paths worth of abilities.

Why classes/combat styles?

• It's a lot easier to take a level in Rogue than to pick the right amount of Stealth, Agility, Melee, Ranged, etc.
• They can encompass manuevers and talents a lot better than skills. Each class provides a complete combat style.

Why not classes?

• Multiclassing. There's the old "falling behind" problem of 3e, and there's also the "stacking combos" problem of s6.
• Too limiting. Simplicity is nice, but what if you want to customize further?

How about attributes?

• Keep the six base attributes; these are for combat only.
• Quick list:
  • Fighting: base attack/damage bonus for melee/ranged.
  • Reflex: how many points you have to react each round.
  • Initiative: how many points you have to take proactive actions each round.
  • Will: mana, effectiveness of auras, taunts, etc.
  • Focus: focus.
  • Stamina: stamina.
• Pro:
  • This can handle the number aspect of baseline combat skills.
  • It's a little less weird than using Mana for leadership abilities, etc.
  • I like Reflex/Initiative.
• Con:
  • Doesn't handle maneuvers and talents.

Is there a way to fix classes?

• Falling Behind
  • This should be less of a big deal. Classes shouldn't gate anything directly. You shouldn't -need- anything from Fighter 20 if you're a Fighter 10 Wizard 10.
• Stacking Combos
  • Everything is based on Mana, Focus, Stamina, or something a Power Source grants. Classes never add combo points.
  • Maneuvers are mutually exclusive; you can't do two at a time.
  • Talents should apply only to things that class grants. If they are universal, be very, very careful.
• Limitations
  • Generic skills like Stealth, Agility, etc, should be generically useful. You shouldn't necessarily need a class to get key abilities like this. (Rethinking Sneak Attack?)
  • Classes need to cover the gamut of possibility. If they do, and if multiclassing is seamless, then every possibility is covered by some sort of multiclassing.

Starting Over

Okay, fuck it.

What exists, and what should exist?

• Die rolls. What do I add to the d20 to determine the DC I hit?
• Other numbers. How much Mana do I have?
• Maneuvers.
• Talents. (new? or an outgrowth of feats)

The most System 7ey way:

• Keep the combat skills, but offload their paths and cool abilities. They're just skills.
• Restore other general skills, like Survival.
• Add the ability to invest directly in secondary attributes like Mana using attribute points. Divorce them from primary attributes.
• Use feats to handle talents.
• Maneuvers, like Powers, are no longer direct outgrowths of skills.
  • Instead, like Powers, they're just "out there" to be learned in one way or another.
  • Maneuvers are organized into Combat Styles, much like Powers are organized into Schools.
• Learning powers and maneuvers:
  • Each power/maneuver you gain should be meaningful. They shouldn't be too plentiful, and too easy to acquire.
  • Therefore, each new power or maneuver costs 1 feat.
  • The amount of power and versatility this grants should equal the best ranks of 7.3 powers and skills.
  • Each power/maneuver has 5 ranks. It costs 1 feat to learn rank 1, 1 feat to advance from rank 1 to rank 2, etc.
  • It is probably valid for powers, maneuvers, and their individual ranks to impose prerequisites, like skill ranks.
• Race should grant a bonus feat each level.
  • Humans get a straight-up feat. That's huge.
  • Others get something as nice as a feat (aka power or maneuver). Should be chosen from a tree.

Examples:

Okay, let's just call 'em Talents if they're not Powers.

The attributes:

• Mana is no longer based on Cha, Focus on Wis, etc.
  • That helps Cha, but makes Wis even shittier. Hmm.
• Maybe it's worth considering exchanging simple combo points for something else? For example:
  • Spirit determines many things, like how large your area spells are, how much damage your spells do, etc.
  • You can attempt to add +100%, +200%, etc to a spell with a Willpower check. If you fail, you get some fraction of the desired effect, and take a hit to Spirit.
    • This ensures that you're taking a hit to something that you care about, not to some "dump stat", i.e. the "glass cannon" approach.
• Might is similar: it determines your Block Rating, melee damage, etc. Straining to gain a combo bonus might decrease Might for a while.
• the others are harder to figure, since they may be changing...

Initiative and Reflex:

• Initiative: the higher you bid, the earlier you go, but the fewer AP you have?
• Reflex: spend to use Dodge Rating, Block Rating, etc?