Another Take on a Zelda TTRPG

The brain goblin is at it again, and now I find myself revisiting the Zelda TTRPG I made and ran as a small campaign for my friends a few years back.

This time I redesigned the sheet around a horizontal character sheet mainly used to track Hearts, attributes, stamina, armor, weapons, and inventory. Instead of putting every ability on the sheet itself, characters are built by choosing a Background, a Heroic Path, and a Tribe. Each one comes with a bookmark-style card that you arrange around the character sheet, as seen in the image, with the available abilities printed directly on it.

So a Hylian Farmer who became a Soldier is a completely plausible character, which feels in line with the humble beginnings of almost every Link in the series.

Equipment and gear would work the same way. Armor, shields, weapons, and special items all have their own cards with their attributes, tags, durability, and rules, so players can track what they have visually without crowding the main sheet.

Hopefully this will satiate the brain goblin for now.

What are our thoughts towards the Dungeonmasters actual play? Yay or Ney?

i don't really know where else to post this, so i'm just dropping it here. this is a character sheet i made a few days ago for a would-be d20 Chrono Trigger ttrpg that i know i'll never actually finish. The game's been on my mind again lately, so sharing this feels like a small way to daydream about what it might've been like to play in that world.

Part II - Rebuilding the Zelda one-shot from Critical Role: Core Mechanic & Abilities

Now that the design pillars and goals are set, it's time to walk through the core mechanic and stat system that everything else builds from. This will be long, so take your time.

You can read part 1 here.

Core Resolution

The system runs on a 2d6 roll + stat modifier:

This structure is directly inspired by PbtA systems like Dungeon World, though the one-shot is not strictly a PbtA game.

Pros

Cons

Power, Wisdom, and Courage

On the surface, having just three stats, Power, Wisdom, and Courage, feels like a smart, thematic move. But for players used to traditional TTRPGs, especially those coming from D&D, this kind of stat system can get confusing fast.

Unlike typical RPGs where stats are tied to specific things (Strength for lifting and attacking in melee, Dexterity for dodging or moving stealthily, etc), these three are broad and abstract. They don't map 1 to 1 to actions or archetypes, and that opens the door to interpretation, but also to inconsistency.

So, how do these stats actually play at the table?

In PbtA games, stats are usually abstract because they reflect a character's approach to problems, not just physical traits. You're not rolling Strength to lift something, you're rolling +Hard, +Sharp, or +Cool based on how you're handling the situation. It keeps the focus on what you're doing and why, rather than the exact skill being used. This lets the fiction lead the mechanics.

How do we fix it?

One option is to add a skill system, like in Reclaim the Wild or It's Too Dangerous to Go Alone, both of which handle this stuff really well. Giving players specific skills like Crafting, Scouting, or Survival would help define when stats apply and reduce GM guesswork. But if we go that route, we run into one of the core mechanic's biggest problems: scaling. The more stacked bonuses you get, the faster the 2d6 curve breaks. Anything above +3 starts making rolls feel automatic. And worse, it shifts the spotlight away from the character’s story. Now you're good at crafting because you have a skill, not because you apprenticed with a tinkerer like Robbie or trained under Purah. That sucks the flavor out of what should be a personal choice.

The solution I'm leaning toward instead is to give each playbook (or background/class/path/calling—name pending) clear, mechanical benefits tied to fiction. So if you were that blacksmith's apprentice, you get bonuses when crafting gear from raw materials, or maybe you always succeed at basic repairs. That way the stat stays broad, but your background gives it teeth. It keeps the flavor and identity front and center, without bloating the system or breaking the math.

------------

But that's just one take. What do you think? Would adding skills make things clearer, or would it pull too far away from the simplicity and flavor? Should stats stay broad, with backgrounds doing the heavy lifting? Or is there a better way to give players mechanical clarity without losing the spirit of the original one-shot? Curious to hear how you'd handle it.

PART I - Rebuilding the Zelda one-shot from Critical Role: Goals & Pillars.

As some of you already know, I'm thinking on reverse-engineering and rebuilding the Legend of Zelda one-shot that Critical Role and Nintendo Treehouse ran back in 2023, and turning it into a fully playable, lightweight tabletop system.

Why? Mostly as a game design exercise and challenge. The one-shot itself had a great vibe; simple rules, very Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom in feel, but it was clearly built for a one-time use. The mechanics were loosely explained, half-improvised, and never officially published. So I thought: what if we took that skeleton and fleshed it out into a complete, clean TTRPG?

What you'll see in this series is a kind of dev log or design journal as I break the system into parts, refactor the clunky bits, and show how I'm trying to keep the Zelda spirit alive without getting bogged down in simulation. I'll be analyzing what worked, what didn't, how I'm solving problems, and ask for input from you guys.

Here are the notes I made of the rules while I listened to the one-shot: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1XVUgKD-ejpL66KJDbPP9S5HffRH-PdsjFlvwH7pXCLw/edit?usp=sharing

Here are the notes u/penxink took a few years back, which in hindsight are far better than mine: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1SnMnHGyHliDreihFiNc5ItLh4MYcrHlPVrZQpckKFkQ/ This first post starts with the design goals and pillars. I think having those up front makes it easier to understand (and critique) the mechanics that follow.

Design Goals

Before diving into mechanics, I want to lay out what this system is trying to do. The goal is to create a tabletop ruleset inspired by the Legend of Zelda series as a whole, not just one era or game, but something that can flex across Hyrule's many versions.

1. Capture the Zelda feel across timelines. Whether you're exploring ancient ruins, sneaking through Yiga territory, or solving a puzzle shrine, the system should evoke the spirit of adventure, mystery, and heroism that defines the series.

2. Keep things fast and easy to run. The rules should be light enough for one-shots, flexible enough for campaigns, and easy for new players to pick up with minimal prep.

3. Support creative problem solving. The mechanics are built to encourage clever play using tools in unexpected ways, combining items mid-combat, or turning the environment to your advantage.

4. Create tension that feels fair. Hearts and stamina form the core of risk and reward. Players should feel challenged, but always have room for a comeback or a smart save.

5. Stay true to the one-shot (but pull from modern ideas when needed) The Critical Role Zelda one-shot had a great foundation: stamina-driven actions, hearts as HP, simple stats, and 2d6 rolls. I’m doing my best to preserve that core. But some parts were unclear or improvised, so when the original rules hit a wall, I'm drawing inspiration from games like Dungeon World, Daggerheart, D&D, and other PbtA-adjacent systems. Most likely, this wont be a PbtA game, but it will borrow from them, especially when it comes to narrative flow, player agency, and mixed outcomes. The goal is to keep the spirit of the one-shot alive while tightening the mechanics around it.

The Four Pillars

To keep the system focused, I thinking of building everything around four core pillars:

1. Exploration and Environment Travel, discovery, puzzles, and clever movement.

2. Combat and Tactics Stamina fuels every action. Fights are quick, risky, and built around positioning, timing, and durability management.

3. Crafting and Innovation Fusion, Zonai tech, monster parts, cooking, players are encouraged to improvise and experiment with their gear.

4. Story and Interaction From NPCs to lore to emotional moments, the system should promote roleplay and connection.

Next post: how 2d6 rolls, stamina, hearts, and combat actually work. Feedback welcome.

Color or No Color?