The Interlock System is R. Talsorian Games

R. Talsorian Games

R. Talsorian Games, based in Renton, WA , is a publisher of role-playing game books and accessories. Their titles include the Cyberpunk 2020 series and for anime-related titles such as Dragonball Z. Their major product line today is the Fuzion system.The company's chairman is Mike Pondsmith,...

' proprietary role-playing system. It is one of the direct parents of the Fuzion

Fuzion

Fuzion is a generic role-playing game system created by the collaboration of R. Talsorian Games and Hero Games. Fuzion is a combination of the Interlock System, , and the HERO system...

 system (the other is the Hero System

Hero System

The Hero System is a generic role-playing game system that developed from the superhero RPG Champions. It is used as the underlying mechanics of other Hero Games role-playing games such as Dark Champions, Fantasy Hero, Star Hero, and Pulp Hero...

). The Interlock System is a "skill-based" system — characters are created by choosing skills for them, and by advancing those skills individually; rather than by choosing character class

Character class

In role-playing games, a common method of arbitrating the capabilities of different game characters is to assign each one to a character class. A character class aggregates several abilities and aptitudes, and may also sometimes detail aspects of background and social standing or impose behaviour...

 packages. The Interlock System is used primarily in the Cyberpunk 2020

Cyberpunk 2020

Cyberpunk 2020 is a cyberpunk role-playing game written by Mike Pondsmith and published by R. Talsorian Games.- Overview :This role-playing game is based on the works of William Gibson, Bruce Sterling, and other authors of the "Mirrorshades group"...

and Mekton

Mekton

Mekton is a role-playing game which centers on the conventions of mecha anime and science fiction...

role-playing games; a variant of the Interlock System is used in Teenagers from Outer Space

Teenagers from Outer Space (role-playing game)

Teenagers from Outer Space is a rules-light comedy role-playing game written by Michael A. Pondsmith and published by R. Talsorian Games. It was inspired by gag anime such as Urusei Yatsura and Ranma ½. The game was first released in 1987, when anime was still mostly an underground sensation. The...

and the Japanese Gundam Senki RPG. Stats and skill

Skill

A skill is the learned capacity to carry out pre-determined results often with the minimum outlay of time, energy, or both. Skills can often be divided into domain-general and domain-specific skills...

s are both rated on a scale of 0-10 with 0 representing no ability/no training and 10 representing the maximum ability possible for a human being. A typical skill roll will range from 12-20 for most tasks, so a skill 10 + stat 10 will succeed at virtually any task barring a critical mishap, while a skill 0 + stat 2 (minimum statistic level for a human character) will fail at any but the very simplest task, and even then will succeed only on a critical success. Interlock builds on the typical skill-based paradigm by offering "template" (Mekton) or "profession" (Cyberpunk) packages that give specialized abilities to characters that take these packages.

The Interlock System is best known for its Lifepath system, a storytelling device used to create character backgrounds without particular direct benefit or drawback to the character, avoiding min-maxing

Min-maxing

Min-maxing is the practice of playing a role-playing game, wargame or video game with the intent of creating the "best" character by means of minimizing undesired or unimportant traits and maximizing desired ones. This is usually accomplished by improving one specific trait or ability by...

.