Funny dice

This is part of a series on 6th edition, capturing the various ideas and thoughts that come up in the discussion on this forum. I thought it would be useful to glean out the good stuff and post it somewhere different for now.

I took the time to examine the 88-page (as of this reading) General Rules discussion in the 6th edition area and found the parts I thought were the most interesting and useful. These are the things that should go into the 6th edition as well as some of the good thoughts that came up in related discussion:

Roll high: instead of rolling high or low depending on the skill, shift the rules to a consistent system for all skill and attack rolls. This would shift the attack formula from (OCV+11)-dD6 roll = DCV hit to (OCV-10)+3D6=DCV hit. Skills would be expressed as a bonus (Lockpicking +3) rather than a roll (14-) with the target being 10 or higher.

Hexes changed to 1 meter rather than 2, which would require some adjustments to area effect powers and range modifier tables, as well as leaping. My suggestion would be to leave leaping at 1 point per 1" and strip it out of strength entirely. Area Effect could stay exactly as now (1"/5 active points for radius, for example) except for AE: Any which should be 1 hex per 5 points.

Hero points should be added to the main book as an optional rule, and be awarded for any time a disadvantage triggers without the player's choice

Return bonus to package deals. Like a mini power framework, package deals gave a small reward for a tight concept and a build that fit the game well. This is something that ought to be returned to the game, I believe.

Multiple Power Attacks tend to make many GMs nervous and change the flavor of many encounters. They also can encourage players to build multiple attack powers and penalize those who do not. The rules for this should either be turned into optional rules or more appropriately folded into sweep attack rules for a more consistent system.

Negative Adders could be added into the system in some manner to represent limitations that really ought to reduce the active cost of powers as well as price.

At least some adders shouldn’t cost extra END

Change the term “stunned” to “dazed” to help people who are confused by the distinction between the characteristic Stun and the condition Stunned.

Rebuild of “class of minds” definition to be more restrictive. At present, simply calling yourself an alien like Superman makes you immune to most mental powers unless the menatlist buys the adder to work on expanded classes of minds. This needs to be more restricted, so that an alien mind is more of a specific effect and drawback - something truly alien, not just a background description.

The rules book should be split up into two tomes following the D&D pattern of a player's handbook and a GM guide. The first book would have a sidekick-style basic set of rules for players and the second a more in-depth examination of how to use those rules and the options for the game

More clearly define “half phase, zero phase, actions that take not time” etc

The rules could use more icons like the magnifying glass and stop sign, such as these:
--Skull: This construct will make combat more dangerous/deadly
--Book: This construct allows for greater realism/granularity at the cost of greater bookkeeping.
--Shield: This construct could make a character too well-protected for the adventure to pose any real risk.
--Magic Wand: This construct doesn't really make sense in realistic terms. It may work for a game that incorporates fantastic elements, but it doesn't stand up to much logical scrutiny. Consider not using it in games that are meant to be particularly realistic.

Based on ECV should be expanded to other stats, such as Based on Strength, based on Presence, and so on to offer greater flexibility for different concepts

For those of you who came up with these ideas, full credit is offered, but there was so much discussion and so many people involved I just went with the ideas and not specific names