One of my most useful tools as a GM is my d6 labeled "Yes" on 3 sides and "No" on the other 3 sides. It's my Yes/No Die, and it solves all sorts of questions in combat. Between the rogue and the oracle, does the mindless monster attack the rogue? Is it the wounded orc that falls into the pit? Are you closest to the statue? And so on, and so on. As a recent experiment (and as a playtest of an adventure where I needed to test the story rather than the rules), I invented a whole gaming system based on the Yes/No Die: Yes/No Adventures. Here it is in its entirety, complete with characters:
YES/NO
ADVENTURES
Basic
Rules
Get one of those dice with the sides reading “Yes”
and “No.” It’s more fun than a coin, but functionally identical.
To take an action, ask a yes or no question and roll
the Yes/No die.
No asking the same question twice in a row or gaming
the system.
You’re professional adventurers, and have whatever
equipment and preparations seems reasonable for a professional adventurer. If
in doubt, ask whether you have a thing and roll.
Combat
Rules
In combat, the GM picks the most sensible person to
start (which might be the GM) and then goes around the table. Mix this up.
When you attack something, first ask “Do I hit it
with my weapon/spell/item?” If the answer is “Yes,” then ask either “Do I kill
it?” or “Do I knock it out?” as appropriate for the attack.
If you hit something and don’t kill it or knock it
out, there usually isn’t any effect (but might be, if it’s a poisonous or other
strange attack).
Fighter
When asking whether you succeed at some athletic
endeavor, you can reroll the die once.
Equipment:
Longbow, magic sword, plate armor
Magic
Sword: When asking “Do I hit it with my weapon?” you can
reroll the die once.
Plate
Armor: When asked if something kills you, you can force a
reroll of the die once.
Cleric
You can ask the question “Do I heal his/her
injuries?”
When asking whether you know about something
religious or extraplanar, you can reroll the die once.
Equipment:
Mace, plate armor, balm of resurrection
Plate
Armor: When asked if something kills you, you can force a
reroll of the die once.
Balm
of resurrection: You can ask “Do I bring him/her back
to life?”
Rogue
When asking whether you succeed at doing sneaky
stuff, you can reroll the die once.
When asked if a trap hits you, you can force a
reroll of the die once.
Equipment:
Hand crossbow, poisoned rapier, magic cloak
Poisoned
Rapier: When asking “Do I kill it?” you can reroll the die
once.
Magic
Cloak: When asked if something hits you, you can force a
reroll of the die once.
Bard
Once per ally per turn, you can ask “Do I inspire
him/her to success?” If the answer is yes, the ally can reroll the die.
When asking whether you know about something, you
can reroll the die once.
Equipment:
Hand crossbow, fancy cloak, mithral armor
Fancy
Cloak: When asking “Does he/she want to do what I say?”
you can reroll the die once.
Mithral
Armor: When asked if something kills you, you can force a
reroll of the die once.
Wizard
Once per enemy per turn, you can ask “Do I magically
confound him/her?” If the answer is Yes, the enemy must reroll the die.
When asking whether you know about something magical
or historical, you can reroll the die once.
Equipment:
Quarterstaff, wand of magic missiles,
armor spell
Wand
of Magic Missiles: When asking “Do I hit it with my magic
missiles?” you can reroll the die once.
Armor
Spell: When asked if something kills you, you can force a
reroll of the die once.
