In The FARAD System, there is a mixture of randomness and choice used for character generation. A player can choose up to the grandparents of their character in terms of their Genetic Traits and special abilities... But the dominance of genes means that only a 10 on a 1d10 would allow them to have a recessive gene that was dominant in an ancestor pass on to them instead of a more prevalent recessive gene found in more than one of their ancestors. Then, if the GM chooses a campaign setting with areas of mutation chance via magical, psionic, radioactive or other mutative influences, the GM can roll to determine what mutations apply to the character depending on where said character was born or raised.
Next, the player rolls to see what Affinities their character has, ten in total, which affect a bit of the character's backstory, starting resources, etc, including some being rare items or unusual natural abilities. These affinities are categorized into ten suites of twenty possibilities each. A GM might opt to allow a player a roll of 2d10 on each suite, disallow certain Affinity suites in their campaign, replace them with custom Affinity suites, or allow a smaller number of suites with rolls determining which ones a particular player is allowed to gain Affinities on. Affinities are meant to be a starting point for a player to work on their character's story, but not a limitation on their capabilities or quirks.
The next step is based on the level of play which the GM has decided to start players on. For level 0, four 1d10 are rolled for the Statistics, with any result under a 5 re-rolled. These results are used in order of roll for Health Points (natural hits), Endurance Points (defense and stamina), Focus Points (concentration for abilities), Sanity Points (affecting comprehension of different species, the world, the greater universe and the realms, etc, as well as defense again strange maladies of the mind), and Movement Points (speed). The final Statistic is Luck Points, which are determined by the character's Genetic Traits, Affinities, and GM discretion initially, and gained through a myriad of ways through roleplaying. Burning positive Luck Points may give a chance to improve a situation, while negative Luck Points may be burned to try to reach equilibrium (and a chance to gain positive LP) at a risk of detriment and disaster. For higher levels, the first four statistics gain an additional point per level.
After Statistics, a player at level 0 has a pool of 24 points to slot into six of their Attributes. These are Reaction (Agility, Balance and Reflexes), Finesse (Accuracy, Charisma, and Stealth), Intelligence (Knowledge, Memory and Reason), Wisdom (Cunning, Observation and Wit), Willpower (Courage, Learning and Morale) and Strength (Carrying, Dragging/Pushing, and Lifting).
Finally, a character may take on a core starting class, or build one from scratch depending on the GMs discretion using Trained Traits. The core starting classes are divided into three archetypes: Fighter, Caster and Strategist. The Fighters are Beserker, Burdener, Huntsman and Tumbler. The Casters are Acolyte, Sorcerer, Warlock and Wizard. The Strategists are Bard, Psion, Rogue and Tinkerer. Each of these classes is set with a suggested set of initial Combat Training, General Training, and Knowledge Training, with Vocational Training having the final set of Trained Traits.
As the Trained Traits are only a starting point for a character, and the design of the system is to level up Attributes and training through roleplaying challenges in and out of combat, the tech-tree design of leveling and ability creation lends itself to customization and the option to always pick a different branch of a lower level ability or training to develop at any time, without breaking immersion. A character that has been studying electricity for some time and dabbled with metal abilities might create a magnetic ability, for example, but one who has devoted themselves solely to the study of elemental fire would not suddenly gain the ability to create a spontaneous forest sanctuary simply because they had achieved a high enough level to take on the ability. A player can always try to min-max their character for their idea of either a focused discipline of training, or a more rounded but less focused character that dabbles in a myriad of small but versatile abilities that might be used creatively...
The power to shape the roleplaying experience isn't in the hands of the system's limitations, but in the discretion of the GM and imagination of the players. Want to create an ability that causes a dragon's skeleton to try ripping out of its flesh? Sure, study how to manipulate and animate the bones of small animal skeletons, you know, when they aren't quite as large and surrounded by muscles and a will that is trying to fight off your attempts. Want to use a psionic ability to see a highly potential near-future, hoping to dodge attacks better? Well, you might get lucky enough to be born with it, but chances are you'd need to hone your innate precognition to eliminate less likely possibilities and bring the focus more toward the immediate future instead of cataclysms centuries into the future. Want to create a sword that swallows specters in order to create an edge that cuts through most obstacles and only harms your intended target? You'd probably need to find a way to capture specters and draw out enough ectoplasm to forge your blade, as well as a way to bind them to it. The possibilities are endless. The Fully Adaptable Roleplay Adventure Design System is not yet finished, but its concept is to be a bridge between the two primary schools of RPG design: Randomness and Determinism. Both have their place in other systems as the chief design goal, but balance between them is where FARAD stands.
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