Outline:

The goal of Riposte as an RPG is to provide a rich set of mechanics for a number of varied situations which may arise during the course of playing an RPG. A primary focus is ensuring that most every mechanic presented features at least some decision making, regardless of significance. While rules within an RPG help ensure fairness, dictate stakes, and provide variance, they also mentally engaging an rewarding to master. It is this experience which Riposte seeks to provide.

To this end, some systems to be highlighted are character creation, combat, magic, and how one may interact with the world during moments of downtime. Character creation is classless, instead allowing one to build a fully unique character from an expansive range of skills, qualities, and equipment, each featuring dozens (if not hundreds), of individual options. Combat is intended to be extremely tactical, with a focus on utilizing character resources and attrition over speed. While intended to broadly reflect a "realistic" portrayal of battle, the rules are intended firstly to function as a game, rather than a simulation. Magic, perhaps the most unique aspect of every fantasy game, is reflective of the setting, with the only abstraction between its implementation and lore being the introduction of numbers. Magic has very deep mechanics within this system, to the extent they cannot be fully depicted within the Core Rulebook (an additional expansion for the arcane is planned). Lastly, Riposte accounts for situations out of action, be they travel, rest, crafting, etc., and strives to provide mechanics one may engage with to further augment one's roleplay during such periods.

The last general note about this system is that it is not intended to provide any significant rules regarding the social elements of roleplay. The philosophy underlying Riposte is that social interaction is most immersive when lacking regulation, numbers, rolls and rules. To this end Riposte only provides elements which may suggest how one may behave within the fiction, rather than applying statistics such as charisma.