One of the upcoming games we have in the works is After Ragnarok, in which players use and manipulate dice pools. From the upcoming quickstart rules:
Ragnarok uses a dice-pool system where you will be assembling a set of dice based on the task you are attempting and checking the total against a target number. The default dice pool is made up of the following 4 dice:
Attribute:
This die is derived from the Attribute associated with the attempted task.
Skill:
This die is derived from the skill being employed.
Preparedness/Initiative:
Out of combat, this die is awarded by the Storyteller based on how well your character has prepared ahead of time for the task at hand.
In combat, this die is set by your character’s initiative.
Situational:
This die represents whatever you can convince the Storyteller to give you. Common situational dice include things such as equipment, the assistance of another character, environmental effects or a secondary skill being used.
The dice that you use are d4s through d12s, so if you are quite skilled at a task, using an appropriate attribute, and are late in the initiative, followed a situation pitch that the Storyteller really likes, you could be rolling a d12, a d8, a d10 and another d12.
In the alternative, if you’re the opposite of each of those things, you could easily be rolling a handful of d4s with maybe a d6 thrown in.
These die pools are assembled and the total is compared to a target that the Storyteller knows. These might be ranges, such as a miss versus a glancing hit versus a direct hit each being different bands.
To give players even more granularity, they are able to spend an in game resource, called Spirit at the time of writing, to break or combine their dice to divide or add their dice together. This can be used to make big, risky swings with big dice, or to ensure that you’re able to do more consistent effects with your attacks.
There’s been a lot of work put into this system already, and we can’t wait to show you what happens next.