A hack for threefold saving throws

I am a big proponent of the following fan of possibilities:


1- a good thing happens
2- a bad thing happens
3- both the good and the bad thing happen


Because it presents an interesting risk/reward gamble or venus fly trap kind of situation to the players.

(Of course, for this to work, the good and bad thing must not cancel each other out or be mutually exclusive, because that makes possibility #3 a "nothing happens" situation, and in a game, you never want absolutely nothing to happen.)

However, traditional Saving Throws as in DnD are binary: either something happens or it doesn't. This is very simple, but it can make for boring results. A saving throw with threefold results, however, can interact better with the above venus fly trap.

That's why I'm a fan of the Playtest saving throw mechanic from the last page of LotFP supplement Eldritch Cock, which uses pools of D6s, is super easy to learn and has threefold results:

Full Success (possibility #1: good thing)
Partial Success (possibility #3: both things)
Failure (possibility #2: bad thing)

However, old habits die hard, so here's a method for achieving the same results on a d20 roll without having to change anyone's throw numbers (which has the added benefit of easing conversion and backwards compatibility):

Roll is over the throw number: Full Success
Roll is equal to five under the throw number: Partial Success
Roll is lower than that, or totals 1: Failure

Example: Donglar, a Thief (level 1 Specialist), touches a magical painting. He must save vs Magic (target number 14). Dice rolls of 15-20 will be full successes, 9-14 partial successes and 1-8 failures.

This can also be used to interpret risky casting if using the Weird Magic System (see first page of Eldritch Cock or Vaginas are Magic), etc:

Full Success: spell goes off
Partial Success: spell goes off + miscast
Failure: miscast


Happy Magical Catastrophes!