My daughter plays basketball, and at her last few games I've been pondering the possibilities of a sport with multiple balls in play at the same time. Now, I'm not a sports person at all, so it's very possible that such a thing already exists and I have no idea. But no matter. I've been pondering, and because I'm me, I've been pondering it in the form of a tabletop game.
-----------------
One of my favorite Fate-based RPGs is a sci-fi game called Bulldogs! There are a lot of cool things about that game, one of which is the really interesting alien species available to players. One of those species is the Dolomé, who are tall, tough tripods. I've always thought they were cool.
Illustration by Jaime Posadas and/or Kurt Komoda, from the Bulldogs! rulebook, ©2016 by Galileo Games
-------------------
Over the past week or so, these two unrelated thoughts have collided, and this evening I've put together a rough sketch of the rules for Dolomball. And also of the playing field/game board. It's a triangular field where three teams play in each game, with three balls in play throughout the game. To try to capture the feel of a chaotic sport, my initial idea for game mechanics is that players roll three dice at a time, set them in order, and then resolve simultaneously - everyone's first die takes effect at the same time, then everyone's second die, then everyone's third die. Score points by throwing a ball into either of the other team's goals. Use "fumble" and "intercept" cards to mess with other teams' throws.
Oh, and there are bumpers in the middle of the field, for extra meshugas.
I still need to work out the rules for throwing a ball, and for colliding with another player, but I'm happy with this as a starting point.
And I need to thank the fine folks at Gallileo Games for giving me permission to write my game around an element from their game. Hopefully they don't regret that by the time I have a finished product.
No comments:
Post a Comment