All the discussion about fudge points got me started on some serious number crunching. Some of it is a reduplication of the fine print on the rules site. Anyway, I'm assuming that actions are resolved by: /diff/ + /det/ + /dice/ [+ /mod/], where /diff/ = difficulty of action, /det/ = relevant determinant, /dice/ = roll of four fudge dice, and /mod/ =effect of doubling or extra action. For the example case, I assume a typical 4-action turn, no extras and no doubling, so we can ignore /mod/. We can sum /diff/ & /det/, giving us a "target number" between -8 and +8. I am also assuming, for the purposes of argument, that 8 fudge points is the maximum which can be applied to an action. I'm not going to lay down the complete distribution table in this post, to save space, but I will put it on the Phoenyx site later. To summarize it: 1. If the target number is -5 or less, failure is inevitable without doubling or quadrupling the action. 2. If the target number is +5 or more, success is guaranteed for a single action. 3. In the region between +4 and -4, the minimum number of fudge points needed to avoid failure for a single action follows this table: | Target | FP | Result range | +4 | 1 | Complete success to Mythic success | +3 | 2 | Complete success to Mythic success | +2 | 3 | Complete success to Extraordinary success | +1 | 4 | Complete success to Extraordinary success | 0 | 5 | Complete success to Superior success | -1 | 6 | Complete success to Superior success | -2 | 7 | Complete success | -3 | 8 | Complete success | -4 | 8 | Mixed results 5. To have any chance to succeed at an Epic (-4) task requires that the relevant determinant be at least Good (+1); or that the action be doubled if the relevant determinant is Fair (0); or that the action be quadrupled if the relevant determinant is Mediocre (-1). Even then, it's only a 1% chance. If your relevant determinant is Legendary, your unmodified chance to succeed at an Epic task is 38.3%--your chance to avoid failure, however, is 61.3%. 6. Epic actions are thus possible, but if you undertake one, you can pretty much forget about using fudge points for anything else. Andrew ---------------------------------------------------------------- To unsubscribe, send mail to celandra-off@phoenyx.net.
