One Piece: Dicey Waters

One Piece: Dicey Waters
(an unofficial Tabletop Adventure Game)

You hear about it every day. It's this 'Golden Age' of piracy the world over.
Every scrap in the newspapers is littered with wanted posters and the unreal exploits of the free and the terrible.
Tales of monsters and treasure sit on the tip of every schoolboy's tongue.
Cries of 'Pirate King' this and 'Heading out to sea' that echo across islands.
And every day, for the longest time...
You've thought about it.
Placed yourself in a world far away, stared out at the water as it crashed onto your beach and receded back out.
Maybe these Pirates have the right idea. Maybe they don't. Maybe it doesn't matter.
All it takes is a dream. And a boat. And a crew.
...And maybe some dice.
There's some blowhard in town going on an on about needing some shipmates. There seem to be a few takers.
How many waves have you watched roll back into those sparkling waters?
Will you ride the next one out?

CONTENTS: (use Ctrl + F to find what you need)
[Introductions]
[Terms]
[1: Character Creation]
 [1a: Species]
 [1b: Determining Stats]
 [1c: Signature Moves]
 [1d: Romance Points]
 [1e: Skills]
 [1f: Quirks]
[2. Crew Creation]

[Introductions]
Ok, so you've read/watched/heard of One Piece. Nice. And you found some people who wanna play a pretty niche Tabletop Game. Also nice.
Let's keep it brief before they back out then.
This is a Rules-Lite system designed for off-the-wall sessions of high seas adventurin'.
What that means is, in essence, to take this guide as a stepping stone to making your own game. Lazy? A little. But it takes a lot less reading.
The game consists of the person running the session (i.e. prolly you) and the players taking the roles of either Pirates, Marines, or Bounty Hunters.
Enclosed ahead will be Character Creation, Dice Rolling, Game Mechanics and the like. After that you take the wheel and design the actual story.
Sound fun?

[Terms]
Crew: The player characters. Can also be used to describe any group of seafarers, but as a gameplay term it refers to you guys specifically.
D6: A six sided die.
1D6: Rolling an extra six sided die. It's basically temporarily adding +1 to whatever stat you're rolling. By that logic. 2D6 means roll two dice, and so on.
xD6: For this guide, x is equal to your level. So if you get an xD6 boost and you're level 3, roll 3 extra dice.
sD6: For this guide, s is equal to the level of the Skill you're using. So if you need to roll sD6 and the Skill Level is 2, roll 2 dice.
Level: How awesome you are. Once you get your Bounty/Career/Record high enough, you Level Up.
Skill Level: How much you've practiced a Skill. The higher you raise this, the more dice you can roll during a Skill Roll.
Initiative: Everyone rolls their Speed stat at the start of a fight to determine turn order.
Design: This means sit down for a minute and think about how you want this to look.
Bonus: The good points about the choice you're making
Hindrance: The sacrifice that you take in exchange for the choice you're making
Status Ailment: Negative effects to your body. Poisoning, burning, seasickness, etc.
Element: Usually a catch all for whatever Element you design. If an attack has a Fire Element bonus, for example, it might do extra damage to Minks or burn something.
Aggro: Basically piss off an enemy and make them want to attack you instead of your bros.
Bounty: In this game, Bounty is essentially your EXP as a Pirate. The more hell you raise by adventuring and beating up enemies, the higher your Level will go.
Career: Bounty for Marines. It works the same way, but your goal (unless you're corrupt) is to take down Pirates and bad dudes.
Record: Bounty for Bounty Hunters. It works the same way, but your goal is to catch and turn in Pirates.
Beli: Currency. It also shows up on Wanted Posters (Bounty) to signify how much the World Government will pay for the capture of whoever's on it.
Patch: A little metal piece that can be attatched to various other Items by a Smithy. It gives an additional effect to the item (extra damage/defense, etc.)


[1: Character Creation]
Probably one of the more exciting aspects of any old-school pen and paper game is making your own wacky character.
Wacky characters are the bread-and-butter of the One Piece world. So go nuts.
Just take it step-by-step on these next few segments, and don't forget to make it your own.

[1a: Species]
No Orks or Elves to be seen on the open ocean; so maybe give these guys a look instead?
Each species comes with specific strengths and weaknesses, and playing a half-n-half role is more than doable if you have to be one of THOSE guys.
Just choose the two species you like, and take both their strengths AND weaknesses.
If you don't like what you see, consult your DM and work it out together. Maybe make a new one! It's a big blue sea out there.
(these descriptions will be super terse, feel free to look into these species further to develop your own lore!)

-HUMANS: There's a good chance that you're one of these. Unless the aliens are super bored on the ride to Earth, so they're reading this instead.
Humans make up a monumental portion of the population, and the world kinda almost caters to them in this regard.
Like almost every other game ever, Humans act as the standard by which all other races are measured.
Unlike most other games, though, your average human can probably survive a cannonball to the chest in the One Piece universe. Everyone's a badass.

Bonus: Add 2 PP to your max PP after rolling stats.
Hindrance: Speed is halved while underwater.

-GIANTS: Ok, so take some humans. Make them about five to ten times bigger on average. Make them look like Vikings most of the time. Giants.
Giants make up, and take up, a decent amount of space in the world. It takes a lot of work for the Human world to accomodate them.
Don't be surprised if you have to walk beside the boat for the first few sessions.
You should also take serious consideration into building up your Toughness. You're the crew's meat shield.

Bonus: All basic attacks by you do natural Splash Damage, dealing equal to half the base attack's damage to surrounding enemies.
Hindrance: You are unable to Dodge.

-DWARVES: Very small fairy-like creatures that can fit in the palm of your hand. Strong, fast, and beyond adorable.
Dwarves (Tontatta, Lilliputians, etc.) are a secretive species. Not too many people beyond the New World are even aware they exist!
For our purposes, this is the resident Rush-Down class. They get an extra opening attack and everything.

Bonus: On the first turn of combat, you may do a second basic attack at half damage.
Hindrance: When trying to evade a Grab, your Speed is halved.

-FISHMEN: You ever watch The Little Mermaid and think, "Wow, that Ursula is pretty hot"? Well apparently so did whoever made these things. Thanks Oda.
Fishmen are what happens when you mix a fish with a human, hence the name. And it can be any fish, too. Even the really obscure and weird ones.
The Men of Fish aren't as secluded as their Merfolk counterparts, and can occasionally be seen hanging out on dry land with the other surface dwellers.
These guys have gills on their necks, and look far FAR less human than the Merfolk, if you need help telling the difference.
Unfortunately, Fishmen and Humans don't always get along so well. To say any more might make me cry again. Just read/watch some One Piece, will ya?

Design: Choose a fish/sea creature that you really like. Your Fishman is now a '(name of fish) Fishman'.
Bonus: +3 Speed while in water. You are also unable to drown.
Hindrance: A Fishman will never eat a Devil Fruit out of pride. -1 Charm against Humans.

-MERFOLK: So you've got a species that's more fish than man. So let's have one that's more man than fish. Mermaids! With male forms too!
It's exactly how it sounds. You take a man or a woman, and give them a fishy lower half. Once they turn 30, Merfolk can split these bottoms into human legs at will.
While the Fishmen are whooping it up on the surface world, the Merfolk would prefer to fade into legend. Surface Merfolk are often sold as slaves, sadly enough.
It would have been unheard of for a Merperson to have surface adventures, but with the Straw Hats raising hell down in their home, who knows?

Design: Choose a fish/sea creature that you really like. Your Merperson is now a '(name of fish) Merman/Merwoman'.
Bonus: +3 Toughness while in water. You are also unable to drown.
Hindrance: (before age 30) Half Speed on land (after age 30) -1 Speed on land and -1 Charm against Humans.

-MINKS: dude furries lmao. Similar to the Fishmen, Minks are human/animal hybrids with less Human than animal.
Unlike the seadwellers, Minks are more based on Mammals with fur, wool, or any other type of hair. They can harness static electricity in it.
Minks have been very rarely seen in the wide world, but most live in the Dukedom on Zhou's back. They're yet another race that is often enslaved. Sad.
Culturally, Minks are a hilarious mix of guerilla warriors, wolf packs, the average human village, and house pets.

Design: Choose a mammal/fuzzy animal that you really like. Your Mink is now a '(name of mammal) Mink'.
Bonus: Basic attacks can be given the Electro quality for 1 PP. So can tanking physical hits.
Hindrance: Take an additional Quirk. -1 Toughness against Heat or Fire attacks.

-LONGARMS/LONGLEGS: Look at your arm for a second. You've got your upper arm. It connects to the lower arm. Then your wrist. Then the hand.
Now imagine that between your upper and lower arm you get an extra section of arm with an extra elbow. That's a Longarm.
Now do the same thing with your leg. Longleg. Freaky right?
Apparently this abomination of nature gives these guys the capacity for ultra rad martial arts. And music. And musical martial arts.
Longtribes seem to be pretty notoriously vain about their 'gifts'. I say they can keep 'em. Wouldn't touch that with a double-jointed ten foot pole.
Rumor has it there's a species that has both Longarms AND Longlegs. I pray that it's not true.

Design: Arms or Legs. One of these gets the extra joints. The other will keep regular human proportions.
Bonus: Choose a stat. That stat is +2 in combat.
Hindrance: That same stat is -2 out of combat.

-SHANDIANS: Native American angels. No, really. Their land was uprooted and wars have been fought over piles of dirt in the sky and whatnot.
They reside entirely in the sky islands of Skypiea, often trying to reclaim their homelands. Or at least they were.
Once Luffy and his friends showed up and took out the Eminem lookalike with thunder powers, they calmed down and befriended the Skypieans.
The Shandians fought for hundreds of years against the Skypieans, and their entire modern nature reflects it.

Bonus: +3 Will
Hindrance: -2 Intelligence out of combat

-SKYPIEANS: Early American Settler angels. The ones who did all the bad stuff to the Native American angels hundreds of years ago.
Over the years they built upon the Vearth (i.e. dirt) and made a nice little civilization. Then Thunder Eminem came in and declared himself the new ruler.
Before all that, though, there were horrible wars and lots of boring backstory that you can read if you wanna build a silly angel.
Modern Skypieans are a lot more chill, if entirely too naive. They replicate our modern conveniences with Dials, little shells that do all sorts of cool stuff.
You start with two Dials, so feel free to design your own with your DM or look up some Dials from the series.

Bonus: +1 to all Dial Rolls, start the game with two reuseable Dials
Hindrance: -2 Strength

[1b: Determining Stats]
So you like your species? Rad! Step one complete. Take a couple of minutes for yourself. Make sure you're eating. Ready?
Time for stats. Numbers that correlate to dice that correlate to game shenanigans.
This game only uses 6 sided die, D6 to the informed. You roll it a number of times equal to the stat of choice. With me so far?
Well, every time the die reads more than four, that's called a Success. If you get enough of those in your roll, then good things happen. If not, the bad thing.
How do you know if you got enough? The DM set up an imaginary number for you to try and reach. They'll let you know.
Let's start by statting you up. The stats you get are:

Will: Short for Willpower. This is the stat you roll when no other stat makes sense. It's basically forcing your Will upon the world.
Strength: Exactly what it sounds like. This is the stat you roll when it's time to exert some raw power.
Toughness: The body's natural defense. This is the stat you roll when you're taking damage, or drank some poison.
Speed: Also self explanatory. This is the stat you roll when determining Initiative, testing reflexes, or trying to outrun an explosion.
Intelligence: Brain power. This is the stat you roll when dealing with the unknown, using Ranged attacks, or doing a crossword puzzle.
Wits: Cleverness. This is the stat you roll to detect a bad situation, search an enemy for weaknesses, or turn a hard fight your way.
Charm: Likeability is very important on the high seas. This is the stat you roll to coerce, bluff, or otherwise try and get what you want from an NPC.
HP: Heart/Hit/Health Points. When this reaches zero, you die. So don't do that. Your max HP is your Will + Toughness + Level.
PP: Pirate/Power/Panache Points. You spend these to use Signature Moves. Your max PP is your Will + Wits + Level.

There are two ways to distribute your Stat Points. Use whichever you think is best.
Point Buy: You get 30 Points. Distribute them between Will, Strength, Toughness, Speed, Intelligence, Wits, and Charm. Nothing should be below 2 or above 7.
Point Roll: Roll 7D6. The results +1 are your Will, Strength, Toughness, Speed, Intelligence, Wits, and Charm. Add +1 to your weakest stat.
Point Buy is recommended for beginners, and Point Roll for the adventurous. And just for the record, 3-4 is what the average civilian would have in any stat.

[1c: Signature Moves]
So you've got your character all statted up. You know what they're strong and weak in. Maybe you've even named them and thought about how they'll fight.
But just going "Ok I'ma punch that dude" every turn would get monotonous. And monotony just isn't One Piece. Enter Signature Moves.
Signature Moves are those super flashy moves that turn the tide of any battle. They cost PP to use, but are often pretty darn worth it.
As a Rules-Lite system, you're expected to design your own Signature Moves.
A newly created character starts with two SMs. Generally, one of these will be used to do additional damage. The other is more...varied.

For example, you could have an SM that does +1 Damage from a distance, and another that heals HP.
Or an SM that targets multiple enemies, and another that draws their fire towards you and away from your crew.
Or one that does regular damage but also has a chance to Stun a foe, and another that builds up your Toughness for a turn.
Or... well you see the point. Don't forget to name your moves and make sure that they don't break your DM's game right away.
As for PP cost? Set it up with your DM! The more useful an SM is, the more PP it should cost. Makes sense, right?

[1d: Romance Points]
Wow, you're almost done! There's this cool seafarer, all full of stats and dreams and fancy moves. But there's some stuff missing...
Romance Points are here to fill that void! Every new adventurer gets 5 Romance Points. Spend them wisely to give yourself the edge!
Romance Points can be spent on the following:

-a Basic Weapon (Adds 1D6 to attack roll) (You can spend an extra RP to make it 2D6 or add an effect) (Self designed)
-a Basic Armor (blocks 1D6 more damage) (You can spend an extra RP to make it 2D6 or add an effect) (Self designed)
-a Basic Memento (a reusable item that is used between sessions to level up a specific Skill) (+1 Level per use) (Self designed)
-three Basic Items (stuff like Rope, Potions, a snack, etc.) (Self designed)
-a natural +1D6 resistance against a specific form of attack (punches, bullets, fire, flirtations, etc.) (Self designed)
-an additional Signature Move (Self designed)
-+1 Level to a Skill

Alternatively, you can spend all 5 Romance Points and start the game with a Devil Fruit.
Once consumed, these rare items grant you an amazing power in exchange for losing the ability to swim. Fishmen can't take this option.
Devil Fruits come in three different styles, and have unique advantages and disadvantages to them.

-Zoan: Eating a Zoan Devil Fruit grants you a transformation into a specific animal. Or actually, two transformations.
Zoan eaters can switch between their Normal, Beast, and Normal-Beast (half-and-half) forms at will.
Design: Choose an animal that you really like. You can now transform into that animal at will, or into a half-that animal hybrid.
Bonus: Add xD6 to a specific stat (chosen now and locked) while transformed
Hindrance: Lose the ability to boost another stat (chosen now and locked) by Armor, Weapons, Signature Moves, or Items while transformed

-Logia: Eating a Logia Devil Fruit lets you control an element entirely. This includes turning your body into the element and making more of it out of nothing.
Logia eaters are super overpowered in One Piece, and can often even phase through or nullify a lot of different attacks. We might tone that down for this game.
Design: Choose an Element that you think is pretty cool. You are now a "(Element) Person" and lord over that Element.
Bonus: Add xD6 resistance to physical and gunfire moves, attacks can be given the (Element) property for 1PP
Hindrance: Take an additional (enemy x)D6 damage from a specific opposing Element (chosen by the DM and locked)

-Paramecia: Eating a Paramecia Devil Fruit is a huge gamble. There's lots of weird stuff in these.
Paramecia eaters are the most common Devil Fruit users, and undergo a Body or Environmental change that isn't covered by the other two types.
Design: Choose a weird-ass superpower. That's your character's life now.
Bonus: +1 Signature Move
Hindrance: -1 Charm

[1e: Skills]
Being a sailor isn't all about roughing up your enemies and swinging swords. It's supposed to be an adventure!
Every player has a reason to be on the boat, even if it's just to get stronger so they can swing more swords.
Skills are basically little individual stats that you can cherry-pick to level up between sessions.
After you're done adventuring for the week, your crew will each pick out a Memento (if they have one) and Level up a Skill until you play again.
There are three types of Skills; Self, Craft, and Adventure. As usual, you can design these yourself or pick out some of the examples below.
Every Skill starts at Level Zero, meaning you can't even attempt it without a little Memento practice.
And just to clarify, your character's Level is not the same as a Skill Level. One is brought up by Bounty, the other by using a Memento.

SELF: These are the Skills of the introvert. Self Skills focus on bettering your character and adding to their Dice Rolls.
You may build one Self Memento when creating a character, and place two levels in the Skill it is used for.

-Bodybuilding: +sD6 to Lifting, Pulling, Manual Labor, etc.
-Fishman Karate: +sD6 to Punching and Kicking Signature Moves
-Never Stop Slicing: +sD6 to Blade Signature Moves
-Target Practice: +sD6 to Ranged Signature Moves
-Hammer it Out: +sD6 to Blunt Signature Moves
-Grooming: +sD6 to Charm rolls against friendly/neutral NPCs
-Flirting: +sD6 to Charm rolls against infatuated NPCs
-Slapstick: +sD6 to Toughness rolls when the incoming damage would be fatal
-Gaming: +sD6 to Wit rolls while not under a Status Condition
-Sprinter: +sD6 to Speed rolls while out of combat

CRAFT: The Skills of the hardworking. While using a Memento to Level a Craft Skill, the character will perform an action.
These actions usually result in a useable item or ability, or might just land you some extra Beli.
On most occasions, Leveling a Craft Skill will let you choose between two actions. Sometimes, however, you need certain Items to Craft the second option.
If the action requires an sD6 roll, the Craft Skill is Leveled up BEFORE the roll, not after.
You may build one Craft Memento when creating a character, and place one level in the Skill it is used for.

-Fishing: Catch a bundle of fish to sell for Beli (sD6 x 50 Beli)
 OR Catch a Special Fish for use in Cooking, Medicine, etc. (The type of fish caught is up to the DM, and should be dependant on Skill Level, as well as Location.)
-Cooking: Make a bit of HP restoring food (sD6 amount that heals 1HP each)
 OR use certain Items to make a dish that heals HP as well as grant other effects (the dish heals sD6 HP for the whole party)
-Apothecary: Make a bit of PP restoring medicine (sD6 amount that heals 1PP each)
 OR use certain Items to make a vapor that heals PP as well as remove a Status Ailment (the vapor heals sD6 PP for the whole party)
-Doctor: Make a bit of medicine that can remove a specific Status Ailment (sD6 amount that removes the status ailment once)
 OR use certain Items to make a Rx that removes a specific Status Ailment from multiple people (makes one Rx that can remove the status ailment from sD6 people)
-Musician: Hold a radio concert to drum up Beli (sD6 x 50 Beli)
 OR write a Song (a short ditty that you can play for any party member to heal HP or PP once per day {Heals sD6 HP or PP})
-Shipwright: Fix up the ship (Heals sD6 HP)
 OR fortify the ship (give the ship a Signature Move)
-Smithy: Improve on a Weapon or Armor for a crew member (+sD6) (each item can only be improved once)
 OR use a Patch on a Weapon or Armor (adds an additional effect)
-Artistry: Create a work of Art to sell for Beli (sD6 x 50 Beli)
 OR create an Effect Piece (a work of art that can cause a Status Ailment to a foe)
-Tinker: Build trinkets that can be sold for Beli (sD6 x 50 Beli)
 OR build a Toy (a small Item that can be used to distract a foe or bribe a child)
-Tailor: Construct garments that can be sold for Beli (sD6 x 50 Beli)
 OR fashion together a set of disguises (1 per crew member, +sD6 to rolls where you are hiding from your enemies)

ADVENTURE: The Skills of the roleplayer. Adventure Skills are designed to enhance immersion and gameplay.
Adventure Skills really is more of a catch-all term for Skills that don't quite fit into Self or Craft Skills.

-Romance Dawn: +sD6 to your first roll on a new island
-Archaeologist: +sD6 to discovery rolls
-Thievery: +sD6 to stealing rolls
-Salesman: +(sD6 x 25 Beli) to everything you sell with a Craft Skill
-A Little Me Time: (This Skill does not Level) obtain a Basic (+1 Level per use) Memento for a Skill other than A Little Me Time
-That Looks Like Fun!: (This Skill does not Level) a crewmate recieves +1 Skill Level to a Skill that they are currently Leveling
-Culture Shocker: +sD6 to rolls against the first NPC you meet in a new location
-Aye Captain!: +sD6 to rolls for something that the Captain has asked you to do.
-Captain of Who?: +sD6 to rolls against an enemy Pirate Captain
-Got Me Doing It: (This Skill does not Level) An enemy that attacks you while you are at full HP is stuck with one of your Quirks.

[1f: Quirks]
One Piece, in case you can't already tell, is pretty darn weird. The characters alone are absolutely nuts.
So far, just about everything you've chosen for YOUR character has been beneficial. Time to put an end to that.
Quirks are that last little sprinkling of crazy that are forced upon your characters to make them less perfect.
This is the last step before your adventurer is playable. Choose one (two for Minks) Quirk to force upon them.
As usual, feel free to design your own beyond the list below. You can buy an extra Romance Point by starting with an extra Quirk if you wish.

-Aggressive: -3 to diplomatic rolls
-Bigoted: -4 Charm against NPCs that are a different species than your own
-Boring: -1 Charm
-Captain Lost: -2 Wits during exploration
-Chivalrous: Unable to attack female foes directly (Non-Damaging or Ailment-Inducing Signature Moves are just fine)
-Cowardly: -2 Toughness against Scary (Skeletons, Ghouls, Zombies, etc) foes
-Fat: -1 Speed
-Flighty: Failed rolls make you lose your next turn
-Glutton: -1 HP restoration from food
-Greedy: Unable to avoid going after a Treasure (even if its an obvious trap)
-Grounded: -1 Toughness against Unbelievable (Ghosts, Fairies, Aliens, etc) foes
-Gullible: Wits are halved (rounded up) against NPCs with a higher Intelligence stat than you
-Humble: Unable to eat a Devil Fruit (Can't choose this if you buy a Devil Fruit with Romance Points)
-Ill-Fated: Auto-Draw Aggro in the first turn of battle
-Introverted: -2 to all distraction rolls
-Irritable: More likely to cause fights with rowdy NPCs
-Lazy: -1 to any roll after the Captain has asked you to do something
-Lonely: -2 to any roll where you work alongside an NPC
-Loud: -1 to all stealth rolls
-Monstrous: -3 to any roll against children
-Nocturnal: -1 Speed during the day
-Obsessed: -1 to non-combat rolls that don't involve a Skill that you have at least one level in
-Patient: Always be the last of your crew to move in battle, regardless of Initiative
-Peaceful: Unable to attack on your first turn (Items and Non-Damaging or Ailment-Inducing Signature Moves are just fine)
-Perverted: Charm is halved (rounded up) against NPCs with a higher Will stat than you
-Pessimist: -1 Will
-Proud: Unable to Guard against enemies with less HP than you
-Self-Conscious: -2 Charm in social situations
-Sickly: -1 PP restoration from medicine
-Silly: -2 to any non-combat roll in a tense situation
-Squeamish: -2 Strength against Gross (Slimes, Drippy Noses, Perverts, etc) foes
-Stringy: -1 Toughness
-Subordinate: -2 to any roll against your Captain
-Surmounted: -1 to any roll against a Devil Fruit user (Can't choose this if you buy a Devil Fruit with Romance Points)
-Tasty: Auto-Draw Aggro from wild beasts
-Thick: -1 Intelligence
-Tone-Deaf: Halves the effectiveness (rounded up) of HP and PP healed from Songs
-Ugly: Charm is halved (rounded up) against superficial NPCs
-Unlucky: Auto-Draw damaging effects (traps, bad encounters, etc) out of combat
-Wild: -1 Wits against foes with less HP than you