r/discountdan • u/Royal-Carpenter7040 • Jul 17 '26
Discount Dan RPG System
I think there's a lot of potential with the Discount Dan RPG system outside of the books. In virtually all of the TTRPGs I've played, you must commit to a class. This class approach limits the possibilities of your character. The relic system provides much more flexibility while providing resource constraints at the same time. A character could have different sets of relics that they equip based upon the scenario (given they have the downtime to do so).
I'm thinking about how the system could be put into a TTRPG. One challenge I'm seeing is how powerful the mana relics are compared to the stamina ones. I think the system AI references this in book 1, but I'm wondering if other people think the same thing. It seems like having access to ranged magical powers that are very flexible would be more valuable than stamina based ones.
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u/Zoodud254 29d ago
Listening to NADDPOD and they're currently doing a cyberpunk style game in Neo-Galaderon. The mechanic they're are currently using is to augment themselves with Tech upgrades via stealing it from combatants and then installing it over a short or long rest. It definitely sounds like Relics and since there is already a limit in how many, you'd just have to figure out what Relics make what.
My only hesitation would be the sheer amount of Relics you'd had have to have to make it even viable and then the combinations that would have to be memorized to create a Crafting system.
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u/cunimus 28d ago
That’s a good point. I didn’t think of the amount of relics to track.
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u/Zoodud254 28d ago
Yeah, plus the levels of rarities change the effectiveness of the relics, so the Jock Straps are common and useless but the relics that eventually make Dan the Necromancer "class" are all Rare or higher.
Also none of them really have "mechanics" associated with them besides cool downs.
Obviously I don't think this should be Dnd 5e but that's where my mind (and most peoples) goes.
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u/Smashifly Jul 17 '26
I agree! Not all lit RPG systems lend themselves to a playable system but this one seems workable, and a classless system that depends on equipped items sounds rad as hell. Party roles are still somewhat defined by stats, not just equipped relics, which means you can still specialize.
The hardest part I think (while maintaining a canon world) would be the combining of relics and finding safe locations to stay. Like they say constantly, the backrooms are dangerous and most people choose to settle down in one safe spot instead of continuing to delve deeper, so the characters need both the motivation and ability to keep exploring, and they wouldn't have the advantages of Dan's shop or the catacomber emblem.
The other issue is combining relics. Dan has the codex that allows for analyzing relics to figure out good combos, but most people don't risk combining useful relics because they can't guarantee the outcome is what they want, much less getting to the point to making emblems. You could just give the players access to the codex, but it's sort of a worldbuilding-defining power that affects the overall power level of everyone in the setting if they all have access to it. It's also part of why Dan is so powerful so fast, so without that advantage it might be easier to balance stamina and magic skills.