One long standing issue I have with D&D and other rpgs I’ve played is how social situations are resolved. Most social situations I have witnessed tend to go a little bit like this:

“Roll a persuasion check Dylan”
“I got a 19”
“Cool, she tells you what you want to know.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Maybe I only let Dylan roll after he makes a good argument, but it’s still not very interactive and leaves several other players out. 

 

Ideally, the game would have a system that enables players to use several abilities and skills that showcase their character archetype an

d place  in the world. I want previous choices and deed to have a mechanical effect other than just adjusting a DC.  What we have now is pretty disappointing and I have been on a quest to fix it. 

I wanted a system that allowed everyone to interact with a social situation, had mechanics linked to pre-existing D&D ones, and allowed bards and rogues to excel and fulfill their class fantasy. After about a year into trying to DM a solo 1-20th level bard campaign for my wife, I started tinkering with this system. Now, after a few social interactions and lots of play testing, I am ready to share it with the world and hopefully get some more feedback. I present to you:

Game of Wits 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Intent and Design 

• The intent of this system is to create a combat system for social encounters that focuses heavily on existing rules and abilities
• The card system means you can easily modify one aspect of the game without breaking too much. You can remove cards you dislike, add your own, award special cards to certain characters, etc.
• An encounter can last between 30 minutes to 2 hours depending on how many characters are involved. Does not mimic in game time, which can be between 2 minutes or 2 days.

Set Up

• Put one full deck in for every 3 players
  • A full deck is 18 cards 
• Each player assigns Charisma or Intelligence to be their attack ability and the other to be their defense ability
• Each player has health equal to their Wisdom modifier + their proficiency bonus
• Enemies
  • Much like combat, you can create one powerful character for your players to fight or have them face off
    vs several weaker foes
  • If an NPC has an existing stat block, assign their abilities like the players. If an NPC doesn’t have a stat block,
    you can create one or use some of the example monsters below.
• Each player is dealt 3 cards 

Gameplay

 

• Each player rolls initiative using their attacking ability modifier and a d20. Like in combat, whoever rolls highest goes first and the order repeats
•  On their turn, a player draws a card from the deck and can then either play a card or attack.
• A player attacks by discarding a card from their hand and rolling an attack check. An attack check is a d20+their attacking ability modifier
• The defender rolls a defense check, a d20+their defending ability modifier
• If the attacker rolls higher than the defender, the defender loses 1 health. Otherwise, nothing happens. 
• Once there are no cards left in the deck, each player must roll a DC 15 constitution saving throw or lose a health and then reshuffle the deck.
• Players can cast spells like normal and they have their normal effects. You can usually assume each round of the game takes place over 2-5 minutes depending on the situation. The spell Enhance Ability for example would give a character a huge advantage and is very powerful in this minigame.

 

Exmaple Cards

 

One thing I want to note is that this game has not been thoroughly playtested by people trying to break the game. It’s been play tested in sessions with real characters and stakes by people trying to role play their characters. If you repeat this often enough, players might start optimizing and developing strategies that make the game boring. To help combat this, you can offer scenario specific challenges and character dynamics to keep things interesting. If you and your players take the system at face value, a simple social minigame that uses characters’ abilities and skills, you can turn an ordinary social situation into a full session of exciting content.