Devlog: Teasing Dimawari and Killing Initiative Rolls

I am back again to talk about initiative, and a little bit more.

I made a post before about my development of a tropical fantasy game initially called Tampalasan. In that post, I talked about an initiative mechanic I've developed under a d20-based system internally called GRIP. I was able to playtest it together with the initial version of the game.

That was 5 years ago. Playtesting and development of it has been on and off. That game has transformed into something more, like most things we create and cherish, into this current game I am planning to release a public playtest. I initially announced it to be January, but collating different versions and feedback to produce a public playtest was more work than I expected, so it might be February. Or just Q1 2026 to be safe.

Let me talk a bit about it.

In a land where celestial-eaters have conquered the sky, and gods have stayed in their own dominions, mortals are left to fend against a mythic overworld filled with wonders and horrors of the past. They wield ancient techniques, volatile technology, and forgotten magic to survive and thrive in the shifting isles of Dimawari.

commissioned cover artwork for Dimawari, art by rmbananas

Dimawari is largely inspired by local myths in Philippines, answering the question, "what if Bakunawa has succeeded in eating the last moon? What if the celestial eaters are all real, and they have swallowed all that dance in the sky?". It is also influenced by a mix of Southeast Asian folklore, medieval fantasy, and dark fantasy. Dimawari is precolonial Philippines in the same way that D&D is medieval fantasy - it is not.

Under the hood, Dimawari uses a d20-based system I created called GRIP. It follows certain philosophies of ttrpg design - Original, Simple, Ready-to-Hack and Crunch-Optional Design. I will talk about it more once the game and playtest are released, but let's zoom in into the initiative system I built under it.

Most of what I posted from my previous devlog post about what I want for initiative still holds true:
- allow strategy to shine while still having meaningful tactical choices
- allow intuitive teamwork between allies
- push players to making creative choices when odds are against them 

Admittedly I wasn't able to playtest a lot of that posted version of Tampalasan initiative, simply because I ended up tweaking it after a few tries. Originally, Grip Test is a mental preparation or readiness test, so I figured it would make sense to make it the initiative roll of the game. But as I developed the game further, Grip Tests worked best as a roll against events or effect that have strong mental impression, akin to Panic Check in Mothership or a Wisdom/Charisma save vs a Fear effect. So, I shifted out Grip Test as initiative check and turned it to a Grip Save.

During playtests, I also noticed something I did not like about initiative rolls that does not match with my ideal combat start: no matter how high the initiative modifier or advantage you may get, there is always a chance of rolling low. So, strategies and teamwork fall apart if you don't have a good initiative roll result, no matter how prepared you are. 

I also did not like the state of expectations shift of players from open conversation to combat mode when initiative is rolled, as if the game suddenly finds a random Pokemon encounter while walking around a bush, and now the only choice is to fight or run away. Sometimes the initiative roll is simply checking who is surprised and who gets to act first against an active opposition but may not necessarily be about combat. But dominant play culture has told us otherwise. 

So, I started the idea of killing that sacred cow. Or at least move away from it. 

- - - 

To understand the new initiative mechanics, here's a primer on GRIP system's main and involved mechanics for initiative.

Grip is physical and mental reserves of diwa, mana, stamina, and willpower. You spend it to activate Powers and reduce Threat result - the game's combat roll - to minimize Wounds you'll receive, somewhat like HP on most ttrpg systems. You start with 10.

Momentum is momentary reserves; temporary Grip usually acquired while in danger, via successful tests or certain Powers. Having Momentum also determines who acts Fast in initiative. It behaves like Temporary HP, so it does not stack (gain highest always) and you spend it first if you have to spend Grip. 

You may take a breather, a few minutes with food and company, to recover a few points of Grip. You can also take a rest, a full sleep in a safe haven, to recover Grip to max value. At both events, you lose any Momentum you have.

A dynamic between Grip and Momentum is that, when you gain Grip while in danger, you can choose to gain Momentum instead.     

Initiative Speed & Order 

When danger or opposition is apparent and turn order matters, determine initiative speed. 

Characters with Momentum act Fast. Certain Burdens and Wounds (think Condition cards in Mausritter and RAD) tell you to act Slow. Everyone else acts Average. GM will determine when opposition acts and hazards happen, usually found in their stat.

Initiative order is as follows - Fast, Average, Slow. Actions made by characters in the same initiative order happen simultaneously.

GM will call out order one at a time, asking which players will act per speed and telling the players which in opposition will act. A faster character can choose to delay and not act if they choose to.

When everyone involved has acted, redetermine initiative speed if danger is still present.

- - - 

That's it.

Here's what I like about this:

1. The order of Fast, Average, Slow is a compromise of two extremes of initiative tracking - no need to write down everyone's individual roll but still have more variance than a side initiative.
2. Calling for initiative roll is replaced by asking if they act Fast, Average, or Slow. This does not remove the play culture ritual for everyone to prepare for combat, just quickened. Think of this as initiative results already present in each character sheet, and the GM is simply asking for them.
3. Keeping momentum becomes a resource game. If you want to reliably act Fast, you want to create opportunities that allows you to gain them (via Powers or certain Tests) and keep Momentum gained after combat or danger, in case a new danger arrives after.
4. If you are a character who prefers to react or follow up to faster characters' actions or simply have Powers that require specific Speed to do (spell-like Powers will usually fall into this category), you don't have to play the Momentum game.
5. With an initiative system not reliant on the whim of a dice roll, battle strategies that requires characters stay on a game plan or complete a sequence of actions are possible. At least, on the first round.
6. At the GM side, they can intentionally create tension and challenge when setting up the scene and environment, allowing planned encounters and adventures more meaningful and not fall apart from your BBEG not acting fast enough because of a bad initiative roll.
7. Redetermining initiative speed at end of each round is a way to check which plans are working - will the players keep their speed to do their plan or was the opposition able to keep their agenda?  And if no side is emerging, chaos ensues until one side finds a lucky break 

This version has not seen play. I like the idea of it, but I also believe there are edge cases or blind spots that I am not taking account for. Putting this on a public playtest should allow to have more eyes to see and mind to experience, and I'm hoping to shape this version better.

Look forward to seeing this and the whole playtest once released. Will link it here when it happens.

Feel free to give your gut reactions and comments about this, I am happy to hear feedback.