PokéRole
, currently going under the official name "PokéRole Project", is a fan-made Pokémon Table Top RPG. Unlike most tabletop games, PokéRole aims to create a fast and friendly user experience.
One of the main ways it does this is by making it work on a roll-and-keep system rather than a d20 stat system like Dungeons & Dragons. Players roll accuracy by rolling a number of d6s stated on the move in adition to the the required stat. For example, 2 dexterity + 1 alert would mean the players would roll 3d6 dice. Players would then note the number on the dice rolled. Four, five, and sixes mean it was a success while one, two, and threes mean it fails. Players need at least one success for a battle action to go through (outside of multiple actions) while non-combat-related actions require higher numbers of successes.
All this (usually) results in fast-paced combat that can be determined at a glance. Currently supports all Pokémon up to the eighth generation. There also exists a supplementary rule book designed specifically for the Pokémon Mystery Dungeon subseries.
Tropes
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Both rule books
- Rocket-Tag Gameplay: The game was largely designed to emulate the actual video games, where fast sweepers are largely dominant. This is especially true with multiple actions, with combat rarely lasting one or two rounds.
- Lethal Joke Character:
- In 1.0, the Buneary line may not sound too spectacular based on their old performance in the games and infamy in the fanbase for one reason or another but they get enough moves and attacks to make them surprisingly deadly.
- Ninjask. What is otherwise a Fragile Speedster in the main games becomes a horrific Glass Cannon in the PokéRole system, for many reasons listed under
Game-Breaker on the YMMV page.
- Mon: Obviously. Both books contain mechanics for either catching or recruiting Mon, respectively.
- Olympus Mons: Legendary Pokémon in the system are unique in that they are listed specifically as 'plot device'. They have no pre-defined stats or limits, leaving them entirely up to the GM to work out. 2.0 changes this by giving them actual stats and giving them rulings worthy of this trope; they always have their max stat totals, have access to every move they can learn and exclusively have access to the master rank, which further buffs their stats.
- The Rival: Both systems encourage this, be it a rival trainer or a rival team. 2.0 introduced the Rival System, which gives the rival a set of exclusive perks to let them have an edge over the PCs.
- Total Party Kill: Extremely rare compared to other tabletop games, thanks to the subject matter usually involving friendly competitions at most. The only times you're likely to experience this is losing to a particularly immoral team or in the Mystery Dungeon module.
Core rule book
- Achievement System: In 2.0, characters effectively level up by completing certain story achievements (such as getting their first badge) instead of from combat. This allows the GM to better balance where characters should be in relation to their opponents, with characters managing to over level easily being a common problem that plagued 1.0.
- Awesome, but Impractical: A lot of Pokémon with high disobedience stats end up being this. They usually have high stats and great moves but good luck praying to the Dice Gods to make them listen to you.
- Level Grinding: In order to encourage your trainer to actually train your Pokémon, battles against Pokémon usually give out low EXP amounts, with level 100 Pokémon only giving 10 EXP for taking them down. Naturally, Stat Grinding is much more efficient as a result. As of 2.0, this system was replaced with the Achievement System; see above.
- Training Montage: Extremely encouraged over the usual ways of gaining EXP in tabletop games. Combat and battles themselves usually give out extremely low amounts of EXP according to the core rule book so instead, the game has a training mechanic to up stats instead. 2.0 changed it to where training is mainly used to have your Pokémon learn moves instead.
PMD supplement
- Brains and Brawn: How logic and instinct work in this system. Both are gained through roleplaying. Increasing a point in logic decreases a point in instinct. As a result, it's easier to be a brainiac but possible to be a bruiser with enough roleplaying.
- Dangerous Forbidden Technique: What the primal state is designed to be. Entering this stat heals all your HP even if your knocked out and adds dice rolls to all your actions based on your instinct score. However, entering this state makes your Pokémon more wild and dangerous and decreases your logic score based on your primal score. Having your primal maxed out and/or reaching zero logic means the Pokémon becomes feral, basically meaning the same thing as death. As a result, it's usually only ever used as a last resort by most PCs.
- Easy Amnesia: Like in the main PMD games the book goes with this by having the PCs be humans turn Pokémon who have lost the memories of their previous life. Depending on how many logic points the player has, the more they are able to remember about being human. Instinct causes the amnesia to grow more, with more and more instinct allowing the player to tap into a Pokémon's heighten senses at the cost of losing their humanity.
- Empowered Badass Normal: Inverted; despite being a creature with fantastical powers, Pokémon in this system can pick up swords and shields to use in battle on top of their abilities.
- Good Morning, Crono: How the book suggests that the players enter the campaign.
- Randomly Generated Levels: The dungeon tiles work this way. The DM is supposed to pull one from the bag at random and connect it to the rest of the tiles so far while rolling an event chart to see what is in the room.
- Trapped in TV Land: The book itself assumes that every player character is a human turned Pokémon for one reason or another, with mechanics designed accordingly.
