I was looking for an unrelated project (Einherjar: Of Souls and Swords) when I found this. Originally intended to be a Naruto game, I'm always more interested in taking inspiration from a source and then deviating strongly from it (sort of how Einherjar is obviously inspired by Valkyrie Profile).
I was trying to play up the kids sent to war aspects, and make something interesting. I might come back to this one day.
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Intro
You are a kid. A child, really. It's just before your tenth birthday that you're sent to one of the academies. You thought it would be great, becoming a shinobi, a ninja. Learning the ninja way, and becoming a great hero.
Three years later, you graduate from the grueling courses. You're assigned to a squad, and given your first mission.
By the end of the night, you've chased the target through the cold, dark woods, been punched so hard in the side of the head that you can't see straight, been cut across the jaw to the point where you can't speak, and your leg is broken in at least three places. The kunoichi of your squad is lies motionless as the rain pours around her. You always thought she was pretty, and hoped you'd be in her squad. Now, you get to see her breasts in all their perky glory, except they're torn open, blood and viscera open to the world. You don't even have enough time to grieve, the other living member of your squad shouts for your attention. You turn, just in time to see the traitor, your mentor--his twitching right eye a black marble with a bile-yellow dot, the side of his face covered in occult markings--he brings a bear-sized arm down at you, ready to tear you to shreds like the kunoichi.
The Dice
The game uses two standard six sided dice, except for one difference. One die adds to your result, and the other subtracts from it. In the following examples, I'll be referring the the subtracting die as red, and the adding die as green. You don't have to use these colours, as long as you remember which one is which. If you've only got white dice, then feel free to take a marker and put an X along the sides of one of the die to differentiate them.
Rolling the Bones
There are six attributes that are used in Shinobido. Intellect, Wits, Strength, Agility, Tenacity, and Charisma. Each one represents a different aspect of what a character can accomplish.
Intellect and Wits represent a character's mental capabilities, while Strength and Agility are their physical ability. Tenacity and Charisma show how well a character can interact with others.
Intellect
Hirame stared at the scroll, trying to understand it's secrets. The whorls and loops of the characters were foreign. After a minute, she was about to give up, when finally it snapped. Turning the scroll sideways, she shouted “aha! I've figured out the code. Now it's time to get this information back to the village and stop the spy.”
Intellect is the force of a character's mental powers. It represents a ninja's understanding of the world around her and how she fits into it. A character with high intellect might be well versed in the occult, or lore, or perhaps a brilliant tactician.
Times when a character might make an Intellect roll: Solving a code, remembering a fact, memorizing information
Wit
“Hrm,” thought Kinosuke, “that's pretty good, but how about this one? What can the weakest lark carry that the strongest man might not?” He gave an internal smile as the Oni furrowed his brow and rubbed his chin. This was all too easy.
While Intellect is all about force, Wit relies on avoiding it. Witty characters are clever, and capable of thinking on their feet. Wit measures that ability, and represents not what characters have learned, but what they might know.
Times when a character might make a Wits roll: Avoiding an ambush, sensing someone watching them, searching a room, solving a riddle or puzzle
Strength
The three of them chased after the target. He fled through a threshold, and pressed a button on a console, and a heavy wooden door dropped from the ceiling. Arudio stepped forward, cracking his knuckles and rolling his head along his broad shoulders. He slipped his fingers beneath the door, and with one powerful motion, lifted it up above his head. Grunting, he rested the door on his shoulders, “Go, I've got this.”
Strength is pure muscle. The ability of a character to exert himself physically, from punching someone in the face, to lifting a door or rock. Strong characters are powerful, and more than capable of defending themselves.
Times when a player would roll Strength: Lifting a heavy object, breaking down a door; Strength also determines damage, and health.
Agility
Katsumaru practically soared through the treetops, barely landing on the branches. As he leaped from one to the other, not a single leaf fell. He was one with the wind. From the left of him, something rustled in the foliage. All he had to do was twitch just right and the shurikin needle harmlessly missed him, burying itself halfway into a tree trunk.
Agility is the ability to control the movement of one's body, and characters with high agility can do this with skill and grace. Every move they make is fluid, and their attacks are as artistic as they are deadly.
Times a character might use Agility: Leaping across a cliff, climbing a wall; Agility is also used in combat to determine how well a character can hit with attacks, and avoid the attacks of others.
Tenacity
“I'll never give in!” Luliko shouted, moments before the man put a hand to her chest. A surge of electricity tore it's way through her body, boiling blood and making her legs twitch. Her lungs tightened and refused to let in any air. In a moment, it was all over. “Well?” the man asked. Luliko's chest heaved, and she muttered something. Her torturer leaned in close. She spit in his face, and gathered up her will, “Go to Hell, you bastard!”
Tenacity is, simply put, a character's ability to say “fuck you” to anything that stands in their way. Characters with high Tenacity can withstand torture, resist mind control, and exert themselves on others. It represents the character's willpower and willingness to perservere.
Times when a character would roll Tenacity: Resisting torture, giving an impassioned speech, avoiding mind control. Characters also make Tenacity rolls to use a Valiant Surge, as well as measuring a character's Focus pool.
Charisma
“Could you please help me?” the young girl asked. She was cute, with that look like a childhood sweetheart from youth. The older man smiled, “Of course,” he offered. Maybe he would get lucky tonight, “What is it you need help with?” She fidgeted, “Well, it's embarrassing,” she whimpered, looking around left and right, and motioning for him to follow her. As the man followed her around the corner, he couldn't believe his luck. As he felt the blade push through his chest, he had just enough time to mutter “Fuck...”
Charm and good looks can get you far. A character with Charisma can lead others along like puppets on a string, for good or ill. This is the ability to convince people to do what you want them to, and sometimes even to get them to think they wanted to do it.
Times when a Charisma roll might be called for: Lying, seduction, persuasion, training an animal
The Difference between Success and Failure
Whenever a character attempts an action that might be important to the story, the player rolls the dice.
Add up your Attribute (see above for the attributes, and which might be applicable) and any modifiers to the roll. Easy tasks give bonuses, and harder tasks subtract penalties.
Once that's done, roll the green and red die.
For each pip on the red, subtract 1 from the total
For each pip on the green, add 1 to the total.
If the final total is greater than 0, then the action succeeds.
If the action succeeds with more than 0, then it might be a dramatic die. This is especially good in combat, where every 3 points over 0 means that the enemy will lose another health level.
Combat is the same way.
Declare your action.
Subtract the target's current Defense from your Attribute (usually Agility)
Defense begins at Agility, and for every attack that a character suffers they lose 1 Defense. A character that has an Agility of 3 starts with 3 Defense, and after one attack, they drop to 2 Defense. A third attack means they have 1 Defense.
No matter how many attacks a character suffers, they won't ever drop below 0 Defense.
Once the character's turn comes up again, their Defense resets.
Add any modifiers from Specialties or weapons
Describe your action! This is an important step that many people forget! A good description could even be worth a bonus to your roll! Don't be afraid to rough up the scenery, or add minor details, like chandeliers to swing off of, or tapestries to slide down.
Roll the dice, and follow the above steps to determine whether or not you hit your target.
If you hit, then it's now time for the defender to roll. He makes an Tenacity roll penalized by your character's damage (generally Strength, though it might be the rank of a special power)
If the target's Tenacity roll succeeds, then they take no damage. If it fails, on the other hand, they take a wound. The type of wound depends on what type of attack you used. A punch or other relatively non-lethal attack would be Bruising, while a knife, or a special attack that uses fire breath would be Lethal.
For every three that you get over the attack roll, or every three points the target fails their roll by, then they take an additional wound.
The Flow of Ki:
Aisa has 6 Focus, Hirai has 4.
They get into a battle. Aisa launches a powerful technique that costs 3 Focus. Aisa's player pushes three beads into the center of the table. Hirai defends himself with a protective charm, and puts 2 of his Focus into the center.
Aisa uses another move, adding 2 more Focus to the pile. Hirai is hit, and decides to use this turn to charge, drawing 4 Focus from the pile.
Suichiro joins the fight, launching an ambush technique aimed at Aisa, which costs him 2 of his 5 Focus. Suichiro's Focus is placed in a separate pile, and from then on, everyone adds to the second pile, but Aisa and Hirai can also draw from the first.
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