House Rules V1.0 June 2014 [email protected]Swords & Wizardry, S&W, and Mythmere Games are trademarks of Matthew J. Finch. The author of these variant rules is not affiliated with Matthew J. Finch, Mythmere Games, or Frog God Games. The author of these variant rules also gratefully acknowledges the work of Fitz (http://mojobob.com/roleplay/swordsandwizardry/sw_html_fitz/) whose work this is largely based on. CREATING A CHARACTER 2 CHOOSE A CHARACTER CLASS 5 CHOOSE A CHARACTER RACE 10 BACKGROUND 12
Swords & Wizardry, S&W, and Mythmere Games are trademarks of Matthew J. Finch. The author of these variant rules is not affiliated with Matthew J. Finch, Mythmere Games, or Frog God Games. The author of these variant rules also gratefully acknowledges the work of Fitz (http://mojobob.com/roleplay/swordsandwizardry/sw_html_fitz/) whose work this is
largely based on.
CREATING A CHARACTER 2
CHOOSE A CHARACTER CLASS 5
CHOOSE A CHARACTER RACE 10
BACKGROUND 12
ALIGNMENT 14
PROFICIENCIES 15
EQUIPMENT 21
MOVEMENT & ENCUMBRANCE 28
GAINING EXPERIENCE 29
SAVING THROWS 31
COMBAT 32
Creating a CharacterThe first step is to complete a character sheet, recording your character’s statistics and equipment; the next step is to sit down around a table with some dice and start playing! Unless, of course, you are the Referee, in which case you will have to prepare the adventure first. There is more for you later on in the book – you are important enough to have whole sections of the rulebook for your use only!
Your first step as a player is to create a character. A Referee who is just learning the rules should also become familiar with how this part of the game works.
Ability ScoresThe basic attributes of a character are numbers representing
Strength (raw muscle power)Dexterity (quickness and coordination)Constitution (general health and hardiness)Intelligence (education and IQ)Wisdom (common sense)Charisma (leadership)
The first step needed to create a character is to roll dice for these six ability scores.
Roll 3d6 twelve times (or however many times your Game Master tells you), and write the results down in a row. Choose any contiguous group of 6 results, treating the ends as if they wrap around (i.e. the first result follows on after the last).
These are the scores for each of your abilities, as listed above.
For example:
Let's say the scores you rolled were 10, 8, 11, 13, 7, 8, 7, 14, 15, 14, 11, 10.
You can choose any group of six of these, depending on what sort of character you'd like to play.
The groups shown in the accompanying image might be the ones you'd choose if you wanted to play a Fighter, or a Rogue, or a Magic-user.
The exact choice is completely up to you — if you decide you want to play particularly intelligent Rogue, and maximize brains rather than dexterity, you might choose another group entirely.
Ability ModifiersYour ability total will modify the results of certain die rolls, such as Characteristic Saves, and may also have an effect on other things such as learning languages or attracting followers.
The Universal Ability Modifiers are as shown in the table to the right; specific modifiers are detailed in the Ability Descriptions.
Ability Score ModifierLess than 1 Additional -1 per point
below 11 –42-3 –34-5 –26-8 –19-12 ±0
13-15 +116-17 +218-19 +320 +4Greater than 20
Additional +1 per point over 20
StrengthYour Strength ability modifier applies when attacking with a sword or other hand-held weapon (called a “melee weapon”), adjusting both your “to-hit” and damage rolls.
It also applies when attempting tasks where strength is the primary characteristic such as opening doors that are stuck, bending bars, lifting a portcullis, tossing a dwarf across an abyss on to a causeway crowded with savage orcs, and so on.
DexterityYour Dexterity ability modifier applies when attacking with a bow or other missile weapon (usually called a “ranged weapon”), and also to your Armour Class, making you harder to hurt if you have a high dexterity or easier to hit if you have a low one.
A high dexterity also aids in the execution of tasks requiring agility and precision, such as balancing, sleight of hand, moving stealthily and so forth.
ConstitutionYour Constitution score represents your physical toughness. When you run out of hit-points, or suffer a particularly nasty blow, you can start losing CON — and when you run out of CON, you’re dead.
Your Constitution ability modifier applies to your character hit points when they are thrown at every level. Your hit die depends on what character class you choose. Regardless of any negative Constitution modifier, you will always get at least one hit-point per level.
Your constitution score will also affect the ease with which you can shrug off (or submit to) the effects of poison or disease, or withstand physical hardships. Constitution is also, in part, a measure of the character’s endurance.
IntelligenceA high intelligence is the prime attribute for magic-user characters, and only magic-users with high intelligence are able to learn the highest-level spells. High intelligence also aids with tasks requiring good memory or analytical skills, and also represents a good general education.
Intelligence contributes to starting proficiencies.
Note: the bonus spells referred to increase the number of daily spell slots available to the magic-user or magi. They are cumulative, so a magic-user with an INT of 17, for example, would get additional daily slots for one spell each of levels 1, 2, and 3.
IntelligenceScore
Proficiencies
MaximumAdditionalLanguages
MaximumSpellLevel
BonusSpell
3 or less -3 0 Nil None4-5 -2 0 Nil None6 -1 0 Nil None7 -1 0 Nil None
WisdomWhere Intelligence reflects knowledge and deductive reasoning, Wisdom reflects a character’s common sense and perceptiveness. A character with a low Wisdom is likely to be rash and foolhardy, and might engage in acts that he or she knows intellectually to be foolish. High wisdom is useful in tasks requiring good perception such as seeking out secret doors, and also in situations where perceptiveness and common sense are advantageous — for example, in some negotiation scenarios where true motivations may be hidden. It can also help the character resist the effects of some spells, such as illusions or mental controls.
Wisdom is the measure of how sane a character is. As your character gradually cracks under the strain of using or encountering dark sorcery that ‘man was not meant to know’ you loose Wisdom. Drop below two points and your character becomes permanently insane. Wisdom is not the Prime Attribute for any class.
A character with a Wisdom of 15 or higher adds +1 to any Surprise roll. A character with a Wisdom of 6 or lower subtracts -1 from their Surprise rolls.
IntelligenceScore
InitialSkills
SurpriseBonus
4 or less 0 -15 1 -16 1 -17-9 1 010-13 2 015 or higher
3 +1
CharismaA highly charismatic character has a better chance to talk his way out of trouble, and can lead more followers than characters with a low Charisma.
A highly charismatic character has a better chance to charm his way out of trouble, and can lead more followers than characters with a low Charisma. The character’s Charm bonus is the chance that they can fast talk their way out of danger, seduce the opposite sex, or otherwise gain a favourable reaction from an Non-Player Character at the Crypt Keeper’s discretion. The use of Charm bonusis intended to support roleplaying not eliminate it.
Choose a Character ClassOnce you’ve rolled up your ability scores, the next step is to choose a character “class.” There are four base character classes: Fighter, Magus, Magic-user, and Rogue.
Base Combat Bonus (“BCB”) for each class progress according to a Good, Moderate, or Poor pace. Similarly, saving throw bonuses follow Good or Poor progressions.
Players select initial skills for their character at 1st level according to their Intelligence or Wisdom then an additional skill (or upgrade) is added at 2nd level and every other level thereafter. Each character selects a feat (or multiple feats for Fighters and Humans) at 1st level and selects additional feats at every odd level.
Lastly, an ability score is designated as the Prime Requisite for each class; at every 4th level, the prime requisite is increased by +1.
The FighterYou are a warrior, trained in battle and in the use of armour and weapons. Perhaps you are a ferocious Viking raider, a roaming samurai, or a medieval knight. Whatever type of Fighter you choose to play, you will probably end up on the front lines of your adventuring party, going toe-to-toe with dragons, goblins, and evil cultists, hacking your way through them and taking the brunt of their attacks. The Fighter character is best equipped of all the character classes to dish out damage and absorb it, too. Clerics heal, and Magic-users cast spells, but the down-and-dirty hack and slash work is up to you. You’re going to serve as the party’s sword and shield, protecting the weaker party members and taking down the enemies before you. Perhaps one day they will tell legends of your battle prowess, and followers will flock to your castle stronghold where you revel in your fame, riches, and newly earned nobility. Fail, of course, and you’ll die, just another forgotten warrior in a dangerous world.
Prime Requisite: StrengthHit Dice: 1d10Base Combat Bonus: Good progression (+3/3 levels or +1/level)Saving Throw: PoorMundane Proficiencies: A fighter has full access to all mundane proficienciesMartial Proficiencies: A fighter is the only character with full access to all weapon and armour proficienciesMagical Proficiencies: A fighter does not have access to magical proficiencies.
Level
Hit Dice Base CombatBonus
Save Attacks PerRound
1 1 +1 +0 12 2 +2 +03 3 +3 +14 4 +4 +15 5 +5 +16 6 +6/+1 +2 27 7 +7/+2 +28 8 +8/+3 +29 9 +9/+4 +310 9+3 hp +10/+5 +311 9+6 hp +11/+6/+1 +3 312 9+9 hp +12/+7/+2 +413 9+12 hp +13/+8/+3 +414 9+15 hp +14/+9/+4 +415 9+18 hp +15/+10/+5 +516 9+21 hp +16/+11/+6/+
1+5 4
17 9+24 hp +17/+12/+7/+2
+5
18 9+27 hp +18/+13/+8/+3
+6
19 9+30 hp +19/+14/+9/+4
+6
20 9+33 hp +20/+15/+10/+5
+6
Fighter Class AbilitiesMultiple Attacks: As a Fighter increase in level, they can attack more frequently than other classes.
Sweeping Attack: Against creatures with less than one full hit die, a Fighter makes one attack per level each round.
The MagusMagi are neither as good at fighting as a true fighter, nor as good at wizardry as a genuine magic-user, but they can both fight and cast magic spells, and can do so while armoured — no small advantage!
Prime Requisite: Strength or Intelligence (either can be designated)Hit Die Type: 1d8Base Combat Bonus: Moderate progression (+2/3 levels or +0.67/level)Saving Throw: GoodMundane Proficiencies: A magus has access to all mundane proficienciesMartial Proficiencies: A magus has full access to all weapon proficiencies, Good access to armour, and no access to shields. Magical Proficiencies: A magus has full access to all magical proficiencies but no access to Metamagic.
Magus Class AbilitiesSpell Casting: Magi cast spells in exactly the same way Magic-users do but are limited to spells of a level equal to or lower than their INT score up to a maximum of 12. Magi get one spell slot of their own level per day, and two slots for spells of each lower level. A higher-level spell slot can instead be used for a spell of the level immediately below, but no lower.
Armoured Casting: A magus can wear armour if trained and may also cast spells while armoured. The bonus provided by the armour is applied as a penalty to (increases) the spell casting check. As spell-casting requires the hands to be free, no shield or weapon may be in hand while casting.
The Magic-userThe Magic-user is a mysterious figure, a student of arcane powers and spell casting. Usually cloaked in robes woven with mystical symbols, Magic-users can be devastating opponents. However, they are usually physically weaker than other adventuring classes, and are untrained in the use of armour and weapons. Perhaps one day, though, you will rise to such heights of power that you can build a mystically protected tower for your researches, create fabulous magic items, and scribe new formulae for hitherto unknown spells.
Prime Requisite: IntelligenceHit Dice: 1d4.Base Combat Bonus: Poor progression (+1/3 levels or +0.33/level)Saving Throw: PoorMundane Proficiencies: A magic-user has access to all mundane proficienciesMartial Proficiencies: A magic-user has Good access to simple, basic, and light weapons only. Magical Proficiencies: A magic-user has full access to magical proficiencies and Metamagic.
Magic-user Class AbilitiesSaving Throw Bonus: Magic-Users gain a bonus of +2 on all saving throw rolls against spells, including spells from magic wands and staffs.
Cantrips: A magic user may always perform the small magical tricks that they learn as part of their apprenticeship. These effects are always minor in nature, including making small objects disappear, fetching objects from across a room, animating a broom to sweep a floor, etc. These effects are obviously magical and can never do damage. These cantrips do not count against the magic users normal spell casting limits.
Read Magic: A magic user is trained in the arcane art of deciphering magical texts and can read magical writing with a successful roll against their Intelligence attribute. If they fail they may try again after one week of further research and study. This ability replaces the spell by the same name.
Spell Casting: Magic-users are limited to spells of a level equal to or lower than their INT score.
Magic-users get one spell slot of their own level per day, and two slots for spells of each lower level. E.g.: a 6th level magic-user could cast one 6th level spell per day, and two spells each of levels 5, 4, 3, 2, and 1.
A higher-level spell slot can instead be used for a spell of the level immediately below, but no lower.E.g.: a 10th level spell slot could be used for a 9th level spell, but not an 8th or lower level spell.
The RogueThe rogue is the quintessential treasure seeker. Often self-serving, and almost invariably chaotic, this character prefers the sideways approach to wealth acquisition.
While stealth and a good plan (when possible) are the rogue’s favored weapons, it would be ill-advised to discount this hugger-mugger as a lesser-skilled combatant. Only a man-at-arms is likely to survive, let alone escape unscathed, a tussle with a rogue.
Rogues are often proven swordsmen, rivaling even the best of fighting men. Only their preference for light armour endangers their chance for victory against more heavily armoured foes.
Prime Requisite: DexterityHit Dice: 1d6Base Combat Bonus: Moderate progression (+2/3 levels or +0.67/level)Saving Throw: GoodMundane Proficiencies: A rogue has access to all mundane proficienciesMartial Proficiencies: A rogue has Full access to all weapons and Good access armour and shields. Magical Proficiencies: A rogue does not have access to magical proficiencies.
Level Hit Dice Base CombatBonus
Save SurpriseAttack
1 1 +0 +2 x22 2 +1 +33 3 +2 +34 4 +3 +45 5 +3 +46 6 +4 +5 x37 7 +5 +58 8 +6 +69 9 +6 +610 9+1 hp +7 +711 9+2 hp +8 +7 x412 9+3 hp +9 +813 9+4 hp +9 +814 9+5 hp +10 +915 9+6 hp +11 +916 9+7 hp +12 +10 x517 9+8 hp +12 +1018 9+9 hp +13 +1119 9+10 hp +14 +1120 9+11 hp +15 +12
Rogue Class Abilitiesartful dodging: So long as the Rogue is wearing light armour or no armour, is not using a shield, and is not wielding a ‘large’ (i.e., two-handed) weapon, he/she receives a -2 [+2] bonus to his/her armour class.
Saving Throw Bonuses: Rogues gain a +2 bonus on saving throws against devices, including traps, magical wands or staffs, and other magical devices.
Rogue Talents: At 1st level, Rogues choose 3+WIS skills to be GOOD at. These skills do not need to belong to selected already proficiences. Each level thereafter, the Rogue can choose the gain another skill or improve the rank of one existing skill.
Surprise Attack: Rogues gain a +4 attack bonus and do exceptional damage on the first, and only the first, attack on a surprised foe. At levels 1-5 a surprise attack does double
damage, at levels 6-10 triple damage, at levels 11-15 quadruple damage, and so on every five levels.
Scroll Use: Rogues may cast spells from scrolls using one half of their current level as their spell casting level. A spell check is required with a penalty equal to the level of spell being cast.
Choose a Character RaceIn a fantasy world, humans often aren’t alone. Elves may populate the great forests, dwarves may carve their halls and mines into the deepnesses of the earth, and halflings may reside in the comfortable hill-houses of their bucolic shires. By contrast, some fantasy worlds depict an isolated human race pitted against ancient pre-human evils and the grim, savage wilderness of worlds at the dawn (or dusk) of human civilization itself. Some fantasy worlds, as a third example, accentuate the bizarre, with a wide variety of fantasy races available to the players – such worlds are filled with conflict and contradictions, always with a new wonder to be found beyond the next corner. The Game Master determines what non-human races, if any, you can choose for your character. In fact, the Game Master might permit races that aren’t covered here.
HumansHumans are a hardy breed, fighting vigorously to expand and guard their civilization in a dangerous world. Many perils lurk beyond the borders of the human lands, but humanity must be ever alert to the possibility of treachery within its own territories and kingdoms: The very individuality that makes humankind so diverse and energetic as a race can also breed those who are dark of mind and willing to cooperate with the forces of evil and chaos.
Humans are the default race for Swords & Wizardry, and thus they receive no specific bonuses or penalties as do the other races.
Bonus Skill: Humans are "Good At" one additional skill at 1st level. This skill allowance must be used on an additional skill not to upgrade a skill.
Bonus Feat: Humans select one extra feat at 1st level to represent their natural curiosity and zeal, accomplishing much in such comparatively short lifespans.
Movement Rate: The base move rate for humans is 12.
DwarvesThese short and stocky defenders of mountain fortresses are often seen as stern and humorless. Known for mining the earth’s treasures and crafting magnificent items from ore and gemstones, they have an unrivaled affinity for the bounties of the deep earth. Dwarves also have a tendency toward traditionalism and isolation that sometimes manifests as xenophobia.
Dwarven characters modify their starting stats as follows:
Darkvision: Dwarves can see in the dark (darkvision) at a range of 60ft.
Stonecunning: Dwarves easily take note of certain features of stonework: sloping corridors, moving walls, and traps made of stone (in particular: falling blocks, rigged ceilings, and tiny arrow slits designed to release poison gas or darts).
Sturdy: Dwarves can carry heavy loads without tiring. They are less encumbered by heavy armour than are other races. Dwarves’ movement penalties for encumbrance are one level lower than normal.
Strong Constitution: Dwarves get a +2 bonus to any saving throw vs. poison.
Hardy: They recover hit-points and CON damage at twice the usual rate — 1 point per day regardless of exertion, 2 points per day if resting, and 4 points per day when under competent medical care. A dwarf recovers all hit points completely after three weeks of rest, regardless of how many he or she may have lost.
Movement Rate: Dwarves have a base move of 9.
ElvesTall, noble, and often haughty, elves are long-lived and subtle masters of the wilderness. Elves excel in the arcane arts. Often they use their intrinsic link to nature to forge new spells and create wondrous items that, like their creators, seem nearly impervious to the ravages of time. A private and often introverted race, elves can give the impression they are indifferent to the plights of others.
Elvish characters modify their starting stats as follows:
Darkvision: Elves can see in the dark (darkvision) at a range of 60 ft.
Hardy: Elves are highly resistant to disease and injury. They are immune to normal (non-magical) diseases, and recover hit-points and CON damage at twice the usual rate — 1HP/day regardless of exertion, 2HP/day if resting, and 4HP/day when under competent medical care. An elf recovers hit points completely after three weeks of rest, regardless of how many he or she may have lost.
Keen Senses: Elves can distinguish detail at much greater distances than any of the other player races and have a 2d6 chance to find secret doors when searching (unlike the other races, which get 1d6, succeeding on a 1 or 2). Elves’ keen senses make them difficult to surprise, and are surprised only on a 1 on 1d6. (An elvish Ranger or Barbarian also gets the benefits of the enhanced surprise die progression for those sub-classes).
Self-Possession: Elves are immune to the spells Charm Person and Sleep.
Immortality: Elves are immortal and are thus immune to aging effects. Unfortunately, they are also unable to be raised, reincarnated or resurrected. If raised from the dead they return as a hostile undead creature, the exact nature to be determined by the DM (usually as a Wraith or Spectre or similar).
Movement Rate: Elves, like Humans, have a base move of 12.
HalflingsMembers of this diminutive race find strength in family, community, and their own innate and seemingly inexhaustible luck. While their fierce curiosity is sometimes at odds with their intrinsic common sense, halflings are eternal optimists and cunning opportunists with an incredible knack for getting out the worst situations.
Halfling characters modify their starting stats as follows:
Hard to Hit: Halflings, being tiny, nimble and hard to hit, get a defensive bonus in combat against larger folk. (-2 [+2] AC against men-folk and -4 [+4] AC against giants.)
Deadly Accuracy with Missiles: Halflings receive +1 to hit when firing missile weapons.
Near Invisibility: When not engaged in combat, Halflings tend to blend in with the background and move with almost total silence.
Saving Throw: Since they are such hardy folk, Halflings also get +1 on saving throws against poisons.
Halflings have a base move of 6.
BackgroundYour character wasn’t always a rugged adventurer, and their pre-adventuring background will provide a lot of guidance for both the player and the GM about what he or she is likely to know about.
Examples: an ex-farm-boy will have a lot of useful knowledge about handling animals, making and mending, the passage of the seasons and so on. An ex-apothecary’s assistant would be familiar with compounding ointments and other remedies, and would likely know something about herbs and their uses. A huntsman would know how to set snares, identify animal spoor, and butcher their kills.
It’s not necessary to develop a detailed back-story for the character, but just a little thought can ease matters later on.
Character AspectsAn Aspect can be positive, negative, or, ideally, both. It should be fairly evocative and flexible. Good aspects offer a clear benefit to your character while also providing opportunities to complicate their lives or be used to their detriment. An aspect with a double-edge is going to come up in play more often than a mostly positive or negative one—list at least one way the aspect would be beneficial and one way the aspect could cause complications or difficulties for the PC.
When evaluating a Character Aspect ask these three questions.
How could the character Invoke this Aspect? How could the GM Compel this Aspect to limit the character’s actions? How could the GM Compel this Aspect to add a complication to the character’s
life?
Each question should have at least one good answer and multiple answers being preferred.
High ConceptThe first aspect should be a description of your character’s archetype; it is the character’s defining aspect. Try to make sure your character’s core competency makes it into your first aspect. Additionally, racial and alignment statements are often included in this aspect.
The second aspect (TROUBLE) should describe your character’s trouble, the main weakness or stumbling block that keeps causing trouble for the character. It can be a personality trait that causes trouble for the character, or it can be something bad that just keeps happening to him for some inexplicable reason. For the third aspect (BACKGROUND), think about what motivates your character, what shaped him to become who he is, and what pushed him to the life of an adventurer. The best aspects are ones that can be used both for or against your character.
Portrayal First, decide on your portrayal. This is a single phrase or sentence that neatly sums up who your character is, what they do, and how they will be depicted in the game. Depiction is just as important as what your character can do, as it describes not only how you’ll play the character, but how other characters will see him. Consider writing the aspect in the present tense, describing something the character does rather than did. Keep in mind the action of displaying who the character is.
Background This aspect describes the sum of where you are from and what experiences you have had. Take your portrayal and describe how you came to be that way. It should not contradict your portrayal. If you’re an experienced temple raider, for instance, then it makes little sense for your background to have you trapped in an academy studying arcane tomes.
Inciting Incident You decided to become an adventurer for a reason. Why? To keep your character interesting, strongly consider the reason they do what they do. Use your Inciting Incident aspect to describe what happened to land you in your current circumstance.
Belief Consider the aspects you’ve written up to this point. Collectively, how do they color your perceptions of the world? Or, how have they changed you? Phrase this aspect as a motivation. It’s not only how you see the world, but what you want to do to affect it.
Trouble Finally, consider all of the above and decide how they collectively cause you recurring trouble. Is there an overarching theme in the aspects that hasn’t been stated yet? Do you have another belief that drives you to trouble more often than not? Is someone after you? Your trouble should be primarily negative in how it affects you, and it should be something that will come up at least once a session.
AlignmentThere is no “official” alignment system for Swords & Wizardry. In some campaigns, the struggle between Law and Chaos is the only supernatural conflict, and Good and Evil are nothing more than personal preferences held by mortals (theSword & Sorcery model). In other campaigns, it is the struggle between Good and Evil that defines where gods and mortals stand in the grand scheme of events (the High Fantasy model).
Some campaigns might contain supernatural factions backing the whole set of Law, Chaos, Good, Evil, Neutrality, or mixtures of the various alignments. These core rules don’t try to tell the Referee how to handle alignment; the Referee is free to use any system he chooses. If you’re playing the game and you want an “unofficial” default, then the players may choose one of three alignments: Law, Chaos, or Neutrality. Most characters will be neutral. The good guys are Lawful, the bad guys are Chaotic, and anyone just trying to achieve fame and fortune is Neutral.
Good and Evil are not mere philosophical concepts in the campaign world, but are actual sentient forces battling for dominion. Also in eternal conflict, and often acting in concert with Good and Evil (though allied to neither in particular), are the forces of Law and of Chaos.
As a rough guide to the general tenets of the alignments:
Good = Selfless, affirms and cherishes life.Evil = Selfish, life is cheap.Law = Order, control, stasis, the group supercedes the individual.Chaos = Anarchy, randomness, flux, the individual supercedes the group.
Characters need not be formally aligned with any of these forces. If they are, however, they gain certain benefits and obligations from that alliance. Specifically, they are then required to act in a way which furthers the aims of their patron alignment, which may enforce certain behaviours.
Note that this has little to do with an individual's personal morals or philosophy. It would be quite conceivable for a psychotic baby-torturer to be Good aligned (assuming such an alignment served the individual's purposes). As long as he or she acted in a fashion which didn't void the alignment, all the benefits of that alignment accrue to them. Even if they daydream of ravishing and murdering virgin halfling slaves, as long as they don't act on those desires — in any way, including allowing or encouraging others to do so — then they are, for the purposes of alignment, Good.
Since this example would require an evil person to act in every way as if he or she were good, the net effect is the same as if they truly were good right to the centre of their soul. Motivation is not an issue in formal alignment.
Alignment is (initially) a conscious choice, but once the choice is made, there is no turning back. An aligned character is a soldier in the eternal conflict between Good and Evil, Law and Chaos, and they are not merciful powers when it comes to backsliders. Once aligned, always aligned, one way or another. If you once enter the game, you remain in the game until you die — and sometimes afterwards.
A character can change alignments, either as a conscious choice, by actions which persistently violate the original alignment code, or involuntarily by magical means. The residue of the old alignment will take time to fade, however, and followers of the old alignment are unlikely to be forgiving if they find out that they are dealing with a turncoat. A formerly aligned character who attempts to become Neutral will find that they now have enemies on everyside. Neutrality is seldom more than a temporary, transitional state in such cases.
True Neutrals are those who have never been aligned in any way. In terms of the Great Game, they are more or less ignored. They are merely natural hazards to be avoided or overcome, or potential tools to be used and discarded.
Note: Almost all characters, whether PC or NPC, will be formally aligned one way or another. Very few ordinary people will be. The very act of aligning declares willingness to be seen as a Player, with all the benefits and dangers that entails.
ProficienciesCharacters can try just about anything. Just because you don’t have a specific skill written down on your character sheet, it doesn’t mean that you can’t give it a go. Describe what it is that you’re doing, and the GM will make a decision as to whether you’ve succeeded or not, taking into account the circumstances. Apart from situations where it is clearly inappropriate, player knowledge is just as important as character knowledge.
At character generation, every player may choose one thing for every full 5 points of Intelligence or Wisdom that they’re Good At for their character. Additional skills may be selected, but the character must be Bad At - shift skill level down one - another skill for each addition skill selected.
There’s no particular reason why a “normal” character wouldn’t try the same thing, because the Good At doesn’t indicate a basic level of competency but rather an advanced skill. Thus a norm can stillOuse skills like Climbing, Picking Pockets, Lock Picking, Spotting Traps, etc are a natural fit, but so are things like Herbalism, Running Away, Working With Animals, Lying, Fast Talk, Horse Back Riding etc.
When your character uses a skill, you make a skill check to see how well he or she does. The higher the result of the skill check, the better. Based on the circumstances, your result must match or beat a particular number (a DC or the result of an opposed skill check) for the check to be successful. The harder the task, the higher the number you need to roll.
Circumstances can affect your check. A character who is free to work without distractions can make a careful attempt and avoid simple mistakes. A character who has lots of time can try over and over again, thereby assuring the best outcome. If others help, the character may succeed where otherwise he or she would fail.
See the Rogue Talent list for additional specific skills (http://www.d20pfsrd.com/classes/core-classes/rogue/rogue-talents).
Each character begins with 10 + INT points to allocate to proficiencies. These points are used to designate what the character is good at and the rank of proficiency. The list of proficiencies is provided in Table X. The rank of each proficiency is determined by the number of points spent and increase as follows: Good, Great, Fantastic, Epic, Legendary. Increases in proficiency rank will either improve the associated skill check or unlock new capabilities.
These proficiencies are broken down according to three general categories:
Mundane proficiencies represent mastery of various daily activities and professions and are available to all characters.
Martial proficiencies demonstrate prowess in combat and are available to all classes to some extent but fighter excel.
Magical proficiencies unlock arcane mysteries for magic-users while magi have limited access.
There are a few constraints to be applied when determining proficiencies:
There must be the same number of skills or more at the next lower rank (e.g., there must be more Good skills than Great)
Proficiency ranks must be continuous; there cannot be gaps between ranks.
When XP is spent to improve proficiencies, a character gains 2 points to spend on new skills or improve current skills. At this time, two adjacent skills may exchange ranks at no cost.
Beginning with 10 proficiency points, a character will typically build a Proficiency Pyramid:
Legendary: --
Epic: --
Fantastic: *
Great: **
Good: ***
For example, as a 1st level Fighter with average INT, Aragorn would choose the following skills:
Weapon Specialization: choose a single weapon and apply the following
Good (+1 attack), Great (+1 attack and damage), Fantastic (+2 attack, +1 damage), Epic (+2 attack and damage), Legendary (+3 attack and damage)
Combat Style: choose one per rank
Berserker: +2 hit/damage, -2 [+2] AC for one combat but exhausted (-2) for one hour Swashbuckler: Use DEX instead of STR while wearing light armour, no shield and
using medium or smaller weapons Brawler: Hands and feet do 1d6 damage (instead of 1d3) Two-weapon: can use two weapons at -4 attack, -2 if offhand is light Archer: You can fire into melee without hitting allies, draw your weapon without
penalty, and +2 attack at point blank
MAGICAL PROFICIENCIES
Sorcery: choose one of the following spells per rank and cast at-will... Eldritch Blast: Convert a spell into a bolt of energy inflicting 1d3 damage per spell
level; range = 30 feet. This is considered Black magic. Healing Surge: Use one of your spells to heal everyone within a 30 ft. radius for 1d3
hit points per spell level. Spell focus: choose one spell to cast at +2per rank Empower Spell: choose a spell to cast at 1 level higher. Metamagic (1 per rank) – apply the following effects and cast using a slot for a spell 2
levels higher: o immaterial (cast without material components)o silent (cast without verbal components) o still (cast without somatic components)o quicken (reduce time by 1 unit - take another action when casting time is 1 or
one round)
MUNDANE PROFICIENCIES
Proficiency Ability
Description Skills
Acrobatics DEX You can perform an acrobatic stunt, keep your balance while walking on narrow or unstable surfaces, slip free of a grab or restraints, or take less damage from a fall.
Balance, Escape Artist, Tumble, Ride
Alchemy INT You are capable of creating alchemical items and substances.
Craft (Alchemy; Chemical; Trapmaking)
Arcana INT You can identify spells and magic effects. Knowledge (Arcana; Arcane Lore), Spellcraft, Use
Proficiency Ability
Description Skills
Magic DeviceArtistry INT This skill allows a character to create
paintings or drawings, take photographs, use a video camera, or in some other way create a work of visual art.
Culture INT deals with the nobility and those of royal blood, even those who were once noble but have fallen on hard times, or who were stripped of their titles for whatever reason. Those knowledgeable in this field can name off lineages, heraldry, family mottoes, who's related to whom and how, how to address people of a given rank, and even know a bit about individuals in the great houses.
Knowledge (Civics; History; Nobility and Royalty; Religion; Theology and Philosophy),
Diplomacy CHA You can influence others with your tact, subtlety, and social grace. Diplomacy is used to change opinions, to inspire good will, to haggle with a patron, to demonstrate proper etiquette and decorum, or to negotiate a deal in good faith.
Negotiation , Intimidate, Handle Animal,Charm
Discipline CON You must make a Concentration check whenever you might potentially be distracted (by taking damage, by harsh weather, and so on) while engaged in some action that requires your full attention.
Concentration,
Engineering
INT covers architecture (which race built a given structure, when it was built, etc.), and engineering (building siege engines, the best way to bring down a building, determining the soundness of a structure, etc.).
INT An evening's time and a few gold pieces for buying drinks and making friends get you a general idea of a city's major news items, assuming there are no obvious reasons why the information would be withheld.
DEX Your training allows you to open locks, pick pockets, draw hidden weapons, and take a variety of actions without being noticed.
Open Lock, Sleight Of Hand, Use Rope
Linguistics INT You are skilled at working with language, in both its spoken and written forms. You can speak multiple languages, and can decipher nearly any tongue given enough time. Your
Decipher Script, Read/Write Language, Speak Language
Proficiency Ability
Description Skills
skill in writing allows you to create and detect forgeries as well.
Lore WIS knows something of the terrain, the inhabitants, and the locations of points of interest; local laws, legends, customs and traditions, and groups and organizations, including tribes of humanoids or other creatures in the area (the large green dragon lairing in the nearby swamp, for example).
Knowledge (Current Events; Local; Popular Culture; Streetwise), Navigate
Medicine INT You know how to help someone recover from wounds or debilitating conditions, including disease.
Heal, Knowledge (Earth and Life Sciences), Treat Injury
Perception WIS notice clues, detect secret doors, spot imminent dangers, find traps, follow tracks, listen for sounds behind a closed door, or locate hidden objects.
Knowledge (Behavioural Sciences), Listen, Sense Motive, Spot
Perform CHA You can impress audiences with your talent and skill.
Specific instrument or mode of performance
Stealth DEX Make a Stealth check to conceal yourself from enemies, slink past guards, slip away without being noticed, and sneak up on people without being seen or heard.
Hide, Move Silently
Subterfuge CHA You can make what’s false appear to be true, what’s outrageous seem plausible, and what’s suspicious seem ordinary.
Bluff, Disguise, GambleCamouflage, Convincing Lie
Survival WIS You can keep yourself and others safe and fed in various environments.
Knowledge (Dungeoneering), Knowledge (Earth and Life Sciences)8, Knowledge (Geography), Knowledge (Nature), Navigate9, Ride, Survival,
Tactics INT covers all aspects of battle - arms and armor, fighting styles, siege warfare, and large- and small-unit combat.
Knowledge (Tactics), Martial Lore
Skill ChecksA skill check takes into account a character’s training (skill rank), natural talent (ability modifier), and luck (the die roll). It may also take into account his or her race’s knack for doing certain things (racial bonus) or what armor he or she is wearing (armor check penalty), or a certain feat the character possesses, among other things.
To make a skill check, roll 1d20 and add your character’s skill modifier for that skill. The skill modifier incorporates the character’s ranks in that skill and the ability modifier for that skill’s key ability, plus any other miscellaneous modifiers that may apply, including racial bonuses and armor check penalties. The higher the result, the better. Unlike with attack rolls and saving throws, a natural roll of 20 on the d20 is not an automatic success, and a natural roll of 1 is not an automatic failure.
Difficulty ClassSome checks are made against a Difficulty Class (DC). The DC is a number (set using the skill rules as a guideline) that you must score as a result on your skill check in order to succeed.
Skill training takes both time and money of course; the amount of both will depend on the individual skill involved.
Level Bonus
Difficulty DC Example (Skill Used)
Poor -10 Very Easy 0 Notice something large in plain sight (Awareness)Fair -5 Easy 5 Climb a knotted rope (Athletics)Average 0 Average 10 Hear an approaching guard (Awareness)Good 5 Tough 15 Rig a wagon wheel to fall off (Thievery)Great 10 Challengin
g20 Swim in stormy water (Athletics)
Fantastic 15 Formidable
25 Open an average lock (Thievery)
Heroic 20 Heroic 30 Leap across a 30-foot chasm (Athletics)Epic 25 Epic 35 Bluff your way past suspicious guards (Interaction)Legendary
30 Nigh Impossible
40 Track an eagle (Wilderness)
Outcomes or Making Success and Failure InterestingOnce the die has been rolled and all of the modifiers applied, that result is compared against the DC set by the DM. If the outcome is equal to or greater than the target DC, then the character succeeds. If the outcome is successful and a natural 20 is rolled, the player may apply a stunt to the action. A lock may have been picked in half the time, the character jumped a chasm and landed on their feet ready for action; stunts should be determined together by thebelayer and DM. Outcomes that miss the target DC by no more than 5 (i.e., -1 to -5) are successes with a cost, that cost will be determined by the DM. A lock may be successfully picked but ruin the tools in the process; the character twists their ankle after jumping a chasm. Any outcome that misses the target DC by more than 5 results in an outcome other than what the player or chapter intended and is entirely up to the DM. This may still mean that the character still succeeds, however with a serious cost, or it may mean some entirely different result occurs. For example: the lock is broken during the attempt to pick it or an ancient and undetected trap is sprung; in her attempt to jump the chasm, the character trips and skids to the edge, left dangling by their fingertips.
Checks Without RollsA skill check represents an attempt to accomplish some goal, usually while under some sort of time pressure or distraction. Sometimes, though, a character can use a skill under more favorable conditions and eliminate the luck factor.
Taking 10When your character is not being threatened or distracted, you may choose to take 10. Instead of rolling 1d20 for the skill check, calculate your result as if you had rolled a 10. For many routine tasks, taking 10 makes them automatically successful. Distractions or threats (such as combat) make it impossible for a character to take 10. In most cases, taking 10 is purely a safety measure —you know (or expect) that an average roll will succeed but fear that a poor roll might fail, so you elect to settle for the average roll (a 10). Taking 10 is especially useful in situations where a particularly high roll wouldn’t help.
Taking 20When you have plenty of time (generally 2 minutes for a skill that can normally be checked in 1 round, one full-round action, or one standard action), you are faced with no threats or distractions, and the skill being attempted carries no penalties for failure, you can take 20. In other words, eventually you will get a 20 on 1d20 if you roll enough times. Instead of rolling 1d20 for the skill check, just calculate your result as if you had rolled a 20.
Taking 20 means you are trying until you get it right, and it assumes that you fail many times before succeeding. Taking 20 takes twenty times as long as making a single check would take.
Since taking 20 assumes that the character will fail many times before succeeding, if you did attempt to take 20 on a skill that carries penalties for failure, your character would automatically incur those penalties before he or she could complete the task. Common “take 20” skills include Escape Artist, Open Lock, and Search.
Note Regarding LiteracyFighter and Rogue characters are assumed to be illiterate, Magus and Magic-users are not. An illiterate character can learn to read during their career of course, or else they can use one of their “Good Ats” (see below) to be able to read. A literate character is assumed to be able to read and write in any language he or she knows.
EquipmentEach character starts with some gold pieces at the beginning of the game, used to buy equipment. One gold piece (gp) is worth 10 silver pieces (sp) or 100 copper pieces (cp). Prices for equipment are listed on the tables below.
Starting Gold
Roll 3d6 and multiply by 10. This represents the number of gold pieces (gp) that your character gets to have at the start of the campaign.
WeaponsWeapon Cost Range Type NotesAmmunition
Arrows (x20) 1gp --Bullets, sling (x10) 1sp --
Axe, battle 10gp SAxe, great 50gp SAxe, hand 6gp SAxe, throwing 8gp 10ft SAxe, war 30gp S 10ft
reachBow, composite long 100gp 120ft P 10ft
reachBow, composite short 75gp 80ft PBow, long 75gp 100ft PBow, short 30gp 60ft PClub -- BClub, great 5gp BCrossbow, heavy 50gp 30ft PCrossbow, Light 35gp PDagger 2gp 10ft P/SDart 5sp 20ft PFlail 8gp BFlail, heavy 15gp BGauntlet 2gp BHammer 1gp 20ft BHammer, long 50gp BHammer, war 12gp BMace, heavy 12gp BMace, light 5gp BMorningstar 8gp B/PPolearm, heavy (bardiche, fauchard, glaive, halberd)
40gp S/P
Polearm, light (falchion, guisarme, ranseur) 22gp S/PQuarterstaff -- BSap 1gp BSling -- 50ft BSpear, long 5gp PSpear, short 2gp 20ft P
Sword, Bastard (1h) 35gp SSword, Bastard (2h) 35gp S 10ft
reachSword, great 50gp SSword, long 15gp SSword, Rapier 20gp P Add STRSword, scimitar 15gp SSword, short 10gp P Add STR
Ring mail 40 lbs -3 [+3] -3 -1 30 gpScale mail 40 lbs -4 [+4] -5 -2 50gpShield, heavy 10 lbs -2 [+2] -2 -1 25 gpShield, light 5 lbs -1 [+1] -1 — 15 gp* Magic armour weighs one-half the listed weight.The penalties to DEX and Initiative rolls are lessened by 1for every +1 the magical armour has —this will (almost) never actually improve the rolls past -0.
Calculate Your Armour ClassThis version of the rules assumes the use of the “Ascending AC System”.
For the Ascending AC system, an unarmoured person is armour class 10. Your armour adds to your AC, so the higher your AC, the harder it is for enemies to damage you. To calculate your armour class, look at the Armour Table to the right, in the “Armour Value” column. For whatever type of armour you bought, add the number shown to your base armour class of 10. That’s your new armour class.
If you have a very high (or low) Dexterity, your DEX Modifier will usually add to (or subtract from) this armour class. Dexterity only affects AC when you can move around freely and are aware of an attacker.
Adventuring EquipmentItem Cost Weigh
tBackpack (empty) 2 gp 2 lb.Barrel (empty) 2 gp 30 lb.Basket (empty) 4 sp 1 lb.Bedroll 1 sp 5 lb.Bell, tiny 1 gp —
Blanket, winter 5 sp 3 lb.Block and tackle 5 gp 5 lb.Bottle, wine glass 2 gp —Bucket (empty) 5 sp 2 lb.Caltrops 1 gp 2 lb.Candle 1 cp —Canvas (sq. yd.) 1 sp 1 lb.Case, map or scroll 1 gp 1/2 lb.Chain (10 ft.) 30 gp 2 lb.Chalk, 1 piece 1 cp —Chest (empty) 2 gp 25 lb.Crowbar 2 gp 5 lb.Firewood (per day) 1 cp 20 lb.Fishhook 1 sp —Fishing net, 25 sq. ft.
4 gp 5 lb.
Flask (empty) 3 cp 1½ lb.Flint and steel 1 gp —Grappling hook 1 gp 4 lb.Hammer 5 sp 2 lb.Ink (1 oz. vial) 8 gp —Inkpen 1 sp —Jug, clay 3 cp 9 lb.Ladder, 10-foot 5 cp 20 lb.Lamp, common 1 sp 1 lb.Lantern, bullseye 12 gp 3 lb.Lantern, hooded 7 gp 2 lb.LockVery simple 20 gp 1 lb.Average 40 gp 1 lb.Good 80 gp 1 lb.Amazing 150 gp 1 lb.Manacles 15 gp 2 lb.Manacles, fine 50 gp 2 lb.Mirror, small steel 10 gp ½ lb.Mug/Tankard, clay 2 cp 1 lb.Oil (1-pint flask) 1 sp 1½ lb.Paper (sheet) 4 sp —Parchment (sheet) 2 sp —Pick, miner’s 3 gp 10 lb.Pitcher, clay 2 cp 5 lb.Piton 1 sp 1/2 lb.Pole 10-foot 2 sp 8 lb.Pot, iron 5 sp 10 lb.Pouch, belt (empty) 1 gp 1/2 lb.Ram, portable 10 gp 20 lb.Rations, trail (per day)
5 sp 1 lb.
Rope, hempen (50 ft.)
1 gp 5 lb.
Rope, silk (50 ft.) 10 gp 2½ lb.Sack (empty) 1 sp ½ lb.Sealing wax 1 gp 1 lb.Sewing needle 5 sp —Signal whistle 8 sp —Signet ring 5 gp —Sled 5 gp 15 lb.Sledgehammer 1 gp 10 lb.Soap (per lb.) 5 sp 1 lb.Spade or shovel 2 gp 8 lb.Spyglass 1000 1 lb.
gpTent 10 gp 20 lb.Torch 1 cp 1 lb.Vial: ink or potion 1 gp 1/10
lb.Waterskin (2 pints, full)
1 gp 4 lb.
Whetstone 2 cp 1 lb.
Caltrops: A caltrop is a four-pronged iron spike crafted so that one prong faces up no matter how the caltrop comes to rest. You scatter caltrops on the ground in the hope that your enemies step on them or are at least forced to slow down to avoid them. One 2- pound bag of caltrops covers an area 5 feet square.
Each time a creature moves into an area covered by caltrops (or spends a round fighting while standing in such an area), it might step on one. The caltrops make an attack roll (base attack bonus +0) against the creature. For this attack, the creature’s shield, armour, and DEX bonuses do not count. If the creature is wearing shoes or other footwear, it gets a +2 armour bonus to AC. If the caltrops succeed on the attack, the creature has stepped on one. The caltrop deals 1 point of damage, and the creature’s speed is reduced by one-half because its foot is wounded. This movement penalty lasts for 24 hours, or until the creature is successfully treated by someone with some sort of first aid skill, or until it receives at least 1 point of magical curing. A charging or running creature must immediately stop if it steps on a caltrop. Any creature moving at half speed or slower can pick its way through a bed of caltrops with no trouble.
Caltrops may not be effective against unusual opponents.
Candle: A candle dimly illuminates a 10-foot radius and burns for 2 hours.
Chain: Chain has hardness 10 and 5 hit points. It can be burst with a feat of strength.
Crowbar: A crowbar it grants a +2 bonus on Strength checks made for such purposes. If used in combat, treat a crowbar as a one-handed improvised weapon that deals bludgeoning damage equal to that of a club of its size.
Flint and Steel: Lighting a torch with flint and steel is a full-round action, and lighting any other fire with them takes at least that long.
Grappling Hook: Throwing a grappling hook successfully requires a ranged attack at -2 per 10 feet of distance thrown. Characters without an appropriate background (e.g. sailing, siegecraft, burglary) will also be at -3 for using an unfamiliar weapon.
Hammer: If a hammer is used in melee combat it does 1d4 bludgeoning damage.
Ink: This is black ink. You can buy ink in other colors, but it costs twice as much.
Jug, Clay: This basic ceramic jug is fitted with a stopper and holds 1 gallon of liquid.
Lamp, Common: A lamp clearly illuminates a 15-foot radius, provides shadowy illumination out to a 30-foot radius, and burns for 6 hours on a pint of oil. You can carry a lamp in one hand.
Lantern, Bullseye: A bullseye lantern provides clear illumination in a 60-foot cone and shadowy illumination in a 120-foot cone. It burns for 6 hours on a pint of oil. You can carry a bullseye lantern in one hand.
Lantern, Hooded: A hooded lantern clearly illuminates a 30-foot radius and provides shadowy illumination in a 60-foot radius. It burns for 6 hours on a pint of oil. You can carry a hooded lantern in one hand.
Lock: The number of successes required to pick a lock depends on its quality. A simple lock requires just one, an average lock needs two, a good lock needs three, and an amazing lock requires at least two simultaneous successes.
Manacles and Manacles, Fine: Manacles can bind a human-sized creature. A manacled creature can attempt to slip free if they have been trained in escapology or similar. Breaking
the manacles requires a great feat of strength at a penalty of at least -5, and possibly as much as -15. Manacles have hardness 10 and 10 hit points.
Most manacles have locks; add the cost of the lock you want to the cost of the manacles.
For the same cost, you can buy manacles for small creatures like goblins or halflings. For a large creature like an ogre, manacles cost ten times the indicated amount, and for a huge creature like a giant, one hundred times this amount.
Oil: A pint of oil burns for 6 hours in a lantern. You can use a flask of oil as a splash weapon. It takes a full round action to prepare a flask with a fuse. Once it is thrown, there is a 50% chance (1-3 on 1d6) of the flask igniting successfully.
You can pour a pint of oil on the ground to cover an area 5 feet square, provided that the surface is smooth. If lit, the oil burns for 2 rounds and deals 1d3 points of fire damage to each creature in the area.
Ram, Portable: This iron-shod wooden beam gives you a +2 bonus on Strength checks made to break open a door and it allows a second person to help you without having to roll, increasing your bonus by 2.
Rope, Hempen: This rope has 2 hit points and can be burst with a Strength check at -3.
Rope, Silk: This rope has 4 hit points and can be burst with a Strength check at -5.
Sled: This is a simple light wooden platform about 5-6’ long on wooden runners. It is drawn by a rope loop, or can be harnessed to a dog or pony.
Spyglass: Objects viewed through a spyglass are magnified to twice their size.
Torch: A torch burns for 1 hour, clearly illuminating a 20-foot radius and providing shadowy illumination out to a 40- foot radius. If a torch is used in combat, treat it as a club that deals 1d3 bludgeoning damage, plus 1 point of fire damage.
Vial: A vial holds 1 ounce of liquid. The stoppered container usually is no more than 1 inch wide and 3 inches high.
Tools and Skill KitsItem Cost Weigh
tAlchemist’s lab 500 gp 40 lb.Artisan’s tools 5 gp 5 lb.Climber’s kit 80 gp 5 lb.Disguise kit 50 gp 8 lb.Healer’s kit 50 gp 1 lb.Holly and mistletoe — —Holy symbol, wooden 1 gp —Holy symbol, silver 25 gp 1 lb.Hourglass 25 gp 1 lb.Magnifying glass 100 gp —Musical instrument, common
5 gp 3 lb.
Musical instrument, fine 100 gp 3 lb.Scale, merchant’s 2 gp 1 lb.Spell component pouch 5 gp 2 lb.Spellbook, wizard’s (blank)
15 gp 3 lb.
Thieves’ tools 30 gp 1 lb.Thieves’ tools, fine 100 gp 2 lb.Tool, fine 50 gp 1 lb.Water clock 1000
gp200 lb.
Alchemist’s Lab: An alchemist’s lab always has the perfect tool for making alchemical items. It has no bearing on the costs related to the practise of alchemy, but it does make it a lot
easier. Without this lab, a character with alchemical skills will be at a penalty of at least -2 to any saves required for success, and probably more.
Artisan’s Tools: These special tools include the items needed to pursue any craft. Without them, you have to use improvised tools, if you can do the job at all.
Climber’s Kit: This is the perfect tool for climbing and gives you a +2 bonus on Climbing-related saves.
Disguise Kit: The kit is the perfect tool for disguise and disguise created using it will give others a -2 penalty to INT saves to penetrate the dsguise. A disguise kit is exhausted after ten uses.
Healer’s Kit: It is the perfect tool for healing and provides a +2 bonus on first aid checks. A healer’s kit is exhausted after ten uses.
Holy Symbol, Silver or Wooden: A holy symbol focuses positive energy. A priest or paladin uses it as the focus for their spells and as a tool for turning undead. Each religion has its own holy symbol.
Unholy Symbols: An unholy symbol is like a holy symbol except that it focuses negative energy and is used by evil priests (or by neutral priests who want to cast evil spells or command undead).
Magnifying Glass: This simple lens allows a closer look at small objects. It is also useful as a substitute for flint and steel when starting fires. Lighting a fire with a magnifying glass requires light as bright as sunlight to focus, tinder to ignite, and at least a full-round action. A magnifying glass the appraisal of any item that is small or highly detailed.
Musical Instrument, Common or Fine: A fine instrument grants a +2 bonus to CHA saves involved in musical performance (assuming the user actually knows how to play it).
Scale, Merchant’s: A scale enables the proper appraisal of items that are valued by weight, including anything made of precious metals. Without one, the character will have to guess at the item’s weight, and the result will inevitably be highly variable.
Spell Component Pouch: A spellcaster with a spell component pouch is assumed to have all the material components and focuses needed for spellcasting, except for those components that have a specific cost, divine focuses, and focuses that wouldn’t fit in a pouch.
Spellbook, Wizard’s (Blank): A spellbook has 100 pages of parchment, and each spell takes up one page per spell level.
Thieves’ Tools: This kit contains the tools you need to use the open locks and disarm traps. Without these tools, you must improvise tools, with the potential for catastrophe.
Thieves’ Tools, Fine: This kit contains extra tools and tools of better make. They won’t improve your chances of opening locks or disarming traps, but they’ll add to your status amongst the cognoscenti.
Tool, Fine: This well-made item is the perfect tool for the job. It grants a +2 bonus on a related skill check (if any). Bonuses provided by multiple masterwork items used toward the same skill check do not stack.
Water Clock: This large, bulky contrivance gives the time accurate to within half an hour per day since it was last set. It requires a source of water, and it must be kept still because it marks time by the regulated flow of droplets of water.
ClothingItem Cost Weigh
tArtisan’s outfit 1 gp 4 lb.Cleric’s vestments
5 gp 6 lb.
Cold weather outfit
8 gp 7 lb.
Courtier’s outfit 30 gp 6 lb.Entertainer’s outfit
3 gp 4 lb.
Explorer’s outfit 10 gp 8 lb.Monk’s outfit 5 gp 2 lb.Noble’s outfit 75 gp 10 lb.Peasant’s outfit 1 sp 2 lb.Royal outfit 200
gp15 lb.
Scholar’s outfit 5 gp 6 lb.Traveler’s outfit 1 gp 5 lb.Artisan’s Outfit: This outfit includes a shirt with buttons, a skirt or pants with a drawstring, shoes, and perhaps a cap or hat. It may also include a belt or a leather or cloth apron for carrying tools.
Cleric’s Vestments: These ecclesiastical clothes are for performing priestly functions, not for adventuring.
Cold Weather Outfit: A cold weather outfit includes a wool coat, linen shirt, wool cap, heavy cloak, thick pants or skirt, and boots.
Courtier’s Outfit: This outfit includes fancy, tailored clothes in whatever fashion happens to be the current style in the courts of the nobles. Anyone trying to influence nobles or courtiers while wearing street dress will have a hard time of it (–2 penalty on Charisma checks to influence such individuals). If you wear this outfit without jewelry (costing an additional 50 gp), you look like an out-of-place commoner.
Entertainer’s Outfit: This set of flashy, perhaps even gaudy, clothes is for entertaining. While the outfit looks whimsical, its practical design lets you tumble, dance, walk a tightrope, or just run (if the audience turns ugly).
Explorer’s Outfit: This is a full set of clothes for someone who never knows what to expect. It includes sturdy boots, leather breeches or a skirt, a belt, a shirt (perhaps with a vest or jacket), gloves, and a cloak. Rather than a leather skirt, a leather overtunic may be worn over a cloth skirt. The clothes have plenty of pockets (especially the cloak). The outfit also includes any extra items you might need, such as a scarf or a wide-brimmed hat.
Monk’s Outfit: This simple outfit includes sandals, loose breeches, and a loose shirt, and is all bound together with sashes. The outfit is designed to give you maximum mobility, and it’s made of high-quality fabric. You can hide small weapons in pockets hidden in the folds, and the sashes are strong enough to serve as short ropes.
Noble’s Outfit: This set of clothes is designed specifically to be expensive and to show it. Precious metals and gems are worked into the clothing. To fit into the noble crowd, every would-be noble also needs a signet ring (see Adventuring Gear, above) and jewelry (worth at least 100 gp).
Peasant’s Outfit: This set of clothes consists of a loose shirt and baggy breeches, or a loose shirt and skirt or overdress. Cloth wrappings, simple leather buskins or clogs are used for shoes.
Royal Outfit: This is just the clothing, not the royal scepter, crown, ring, and other accoutrements. Royal clothes are ostentatious, with gems, gold, silk, and fur in abundance.
Scholar’s Outfit: Perfect for a scholar, this outfit includes a robe, a belt, a cap, soft shoes, and possibly a cloak.
Traveler’s Outfit: This set of clothes consists of boots, a wool skirt or breeches, a sturdy belt, a shirt (perhaps with a vest or jacket), and an ample cloak with a hood.
Bread, per loaf 2 cp ½ lb.Cheese, hunk of 1 sp ½ lb.Inn stay (per day)Good 2 gp —Common 5 sp —Poor 2 sp —Meals (per day)Good 5 sp —Common 3 sp —Poor 1 sp —Meat, chunk of 3 sp ½ lb.WineCommon (pitcher) 2 sp 6 lb.Fine (bottle) 10
gp1½ lb.
Inn:
Poor accommodations at an inn amount to a place on the floor near the hearth.
Common accommodations consist of a place on a raised, heated floor, the use of a blanket and a pillow.
Good accommodations consist of a small, private room with one bed, some amenities, and a covered chamber pot in the corner.
Meals:
Poor meals might be composed of bread, baked turnips, onions, and water.
Common meals might consist of bread, chicken stew, carrots, and watered-down ale or wine.
Good meals might be composed of bread and pastries, beef, peas, and ale or wine.
Movement & EncumbranceAll characters, depending on what sort of armour they’re wearing and what they’re carrying, have a base movement rate as follows:
Encumbrance Movement Rate
Unencumbered 12Lightly encumbered
9
Heavily encumbered
6
Severely encumbered
3
Overencumbered 0
Encumbrance Encumbrance is based on the armour worn by the character, the number of items carried, and Strength bonus. The first five items carried by a character do not substantially add weight or difficulty to movement; every five items beyond the first five add one point to the encumbrance total. For example, carrying more than 5 items adds one to the encumbrance total and carrying more than 10 items adds another point to the total.
Shields and light armour do not add to encumbrance. Medium armour adds one point to the encumbrance total. Heavy armour adds two points to the encumbrance total.
Every point of Strength bonus adds to the initial number of items carried without encumbrance.
Non-encumbering equipment includes any single items that can easily be carried in the palm of the hand.
Encumbranceo Character is wearing medium armouroo Character is wearing heavy armour
oCharacter is carrying more than 5 different items
ooCharacter is carrying more than 10 different items
oooCharacter is carrying more than 15 different items
ooooCharacter is carrying more than 20 different items
Gaining experienceCharacters are awarded experience points (XP) for defeating monsters and overcoming other challenges. Monsters have a set experience point value (in the monster descriptions).
Sub-classes all have an experience penalty attached. Whenever the GM doles out experience points, a player with a sub-class subtracts that proportion from the total before applying it to the character's XP total.
When your character has accumulated enough experience points to reach a new level, you will roll another hit die and may gain new spells if you’re a Magic-user or Magus. Your combat skills may also increase. In other words, you’ve become more powerful and can pursue greater challenges!
Experience Points (XP)XP are role playing currency that can be earned and spent by players for a variety of reasons and purpose. This system is designed to reward players not only for standard combat encounters but for story advancement and role playing. The push-pull XP economy described here is intended to increase active player participation and character agency.
Characters begin with 2 XPs assuming complete character and background generation. Players only earn XP if awarded by the DM for active and direct contribution to the successful resolution of an obstacle or other situation deemed appropriate. XP may be awarded to individual players or to the group as a whole.
The DM provides XP by compelling aspects, introducing intrusions, and providing obstacles to be overcome. Generally, the DM will award PCs with 4-6XP per session. Further, During each encounter, NPCs and monsters have access to a pool of XPs equal to the number of PCs. Certain named NPCs may have their own XP pool, subject to the same rules as the PCs.
Compel: When the DM compels an aspect, they offer a player 1XP to invoke a specific aspect in causing immediate difficulty for that character. The specifics are negotiable between DM and player. Further, the player may refuse the compel, however, this costs 1XP.
Intrusions: Intrusions are used to heighten drama in the story by creating interesting complications or increasing the difficulty of a task. Again, players may pay 1XP to refuse an intrusion.
Obstacles: Typically include standard monster encounters or traps. The XP values for each of these are determined based on the relative difficulty below.
Earning XP1 XP: for overcoming a minor obstacle (e.g., encounter more than 2 EL below the party) or good role playing
2 XP: for overcoming a moderate obstacle (e.g. Encounter equal to party EL; completing session goal/minor milestone), heroic role playing, or role playing that is appropriate but detrimental to the character.
3 XP: for overcoming a major obstacle (e.g., encounter above party EL; completing adventure/major milestone)
Spending XP1 XP: short-term benefit; add +2 to any dice roll on the table or re-roll any die on the table as allowed by an aspect; immediately stabilize; deny a compel or intrusion.
2 XP: medium-term benefit; create an advantage (e.g. Of course I have a 50ft rope! Temporary access to a feat/proficiency); short-term benefit not tied to an aspect; take another standard action.
3 XP: long-term advantage; gain an aspect.
5XP: Advancement (see below)
Players may spend no more than 1XP per round.
AdvancementCharacters may gain partial benefits of level advancement upon spending 5XP. These benefits are broken into four types: combat bonus, hit points, saving throws, and class features (e.g., spells, skills, feats, special abilities, etc.). Each of the four benefits may be gained only once before advancing to the next level but may be selected in any order.
A: Improve base attack bonus as per classB: Improve hit pointsC: Improve saving throwsD: Gain class features (e.g., spells, special abilities, etc.)
TrainingOnce the character gains one of each advancement, they must then spend an appropriate amount of time and money on training, otherwise they cannot spend further XP on advancement again. Time required to obtain new level X is Xd6 days - if training with a higher-level instructor no check is required, however, if self-training then a DC10+X check must be made each day against the prime attribute where failure adds one day. Cost of training is X*250gp with a trainer or X*100gp for self training.
Training Time and CostTraining to advance in level will always cost a minimum of 10% of the level's experience requirement, regardless of any other considerations. This is additional to any gold spent to offset xp.
Training time is dependent on the ratio of experience gained to gold spent. The base training time is one month, plus one week per 500gp used to offset xp requirements. To continue the example of the Fighter above, he or she would have to spend 1 month plus 32 weeks (16,000 ÷ 500) in training — a total of 9 months to complete training to 7th level.
TimeSometimes the Referee will rule that “an hour passes,” or even, “a month passes,” in the life of our intrepid adventurers, but two important time measurements need a quick explanation. These are the “turn,” and the “combat round.” A turn represents ten minutes, and a combat round is 1 minute.
Turns are used to measure normal movement when the adventurers are in a dangerous place; combat rounds are used to measure time when the party is in combat.
Saving ThrowsFrom time to time, a spell or some other kind of hazard requires you to make a “saving throw.” A successful saving throw means that the character (or monster) avoids the threat or lessens its effect.
Each character class has a Saving Throw target number, which gets lower and lower as the character gains levels.
To make a saving throw, roll a d20. If the result is equal to or higher than the character’s saving throw target number, the saving throw succeeds.
Monsters can also make saving throws (a monster’s saving throw target number is listed in the monster’s description).
SanityWitnessing unspeakable supernatural horrors – always a professional risk for any protagonist in a ‘swords and sorcery’ adventure – can drive a mortal man or woman mad. Deliberately delving into ancient eldritch secrets for the purposes of unleashing unnatural forces or contacting demonic intelligences radically increases this risk. Insane sorcerers and men whose minds have been broken by ancient evils are standard staples in ‘swords and sorcery’ tales.
In order to simulate this aspect of the ‘swords and sorcery’ genre, these rules treat a character’s Wisdom score as a measurement of his/her sanity. A character with a Wisdom score of 18 has a firm grasp of the nature of reality, considerable self-discipline, and remarkable strength of will. In contrast, a character with a Wisdom score of 3 is barely lucid, easily confuses reality with fantasy, and is on the border of lapsing into madness. Characters with Wisdom scores of 2 or lower are utterly insane, and must be treated as non-player characters. (If this Wisdom loss is temporary, as explained below, the character is under the control of the Game Master until he/she regains his/her sanity.)
If a character witnesses an unspeakable horror, the Game Master may require the player to make a saving throw (versus ‘spells,’ if using a system other than S&W). The saving throw should be modified by the severity of the horror in question. If the character fails his or her saving throw, he or she loses points of temporary Wisdom. The exact amount should be determined by rolling 1d6. If a ‘6’ is rolled, the character also permanently loses one point of Wisdom (i.e., one permanent point of Wisdom and five temporary points of Wisdom). Temporarily lost points of Wisdom may be regained at a rate of one point per day of complete rest. The spell ‘Restoration’ (which I treat as a 6th level spell of ‘white magic’ in my game) will restore instantly temporarily lost Wisdom points, but will not restore any permanently lost Wisdom points.
Characters may also lose Wisdom by casting spells that are characterized as ‘black magic’ in nature.
CombatThe Attack Roll
To attack with a weapon, the player rolls a d20 and adds or subtracts any modifiers to the result. These modifiers include the Base Combat Bonus (see below), any strength modifier (for attacks with hand held weapons), any dexterity modifier (for attacks with missile weapons), and any modifiers for magic weapons. There may also be situational adjustments, to take cover into account for example.
The attack roll is then compared to the target’s Armour Class — if it is equal to or greater than the target AC, the attack succeeds.
Base Combat BonusesThe Character Class Advancement Tables include the Combat Bonus used by a character at each level.
Monsters add their hit dice as their combat bonus, up to a maximum of +15. Ignore extra hit-points — for example, a monster whose hit points are 2d8 and one whose hit-points are 2d8+4 both have a base combat bonus of +2.
The Base Combat Bonus can be used offensively (to increase the chance to hit), defensively (to add to the combatant’s AC) or a combination of the two, as long as the offensive and defensive split doesn’t exceed the total Base Combat Bonus.
For example, a 7th level fighter has a BCB of +4. He or she could choose to use it as +4 to hit, or +4 to AC, or perhaps +2 both to hit and to AC.
Order of BattleWhen the party of adventurers comes into contact with enemies, the order of events is as follows:
One roll is made for each attack.Characters or monsters with Initiative acts first (casting spells, attacking, etc), and results take effect.
4. Characters etc. that lost initiative act, and results take effect.5. Anyone who “held” initiative acts, and results take effect (both sides simultaneously).
The round is complete; begin the next round if the battle has not been resolved.
1. Determine Surprise.GM determines if one side gets a free initiative phase before the first initiative roll. This is either through common sense (adventurers or monsters are not alert), or it can be a range of probability (e.g., a particular ambush has only a 50% chance of succeeding when the victims are alert and watchful), or by a die roll (see Surprise in Specific Circumstances).
If a die roll is required, a character or monster is usually surprised if they roll a 1 or 2. High or low wisdom and/or keen or dull senses may modify the surprise roll, but a roll of 1 always means the character or creature is surprised.
Once the combat is under way, surprise is only relevant if previously undetected combatants enter the fray.
2. Declare Spells.Any player whose character is going to cast a spell must say so before the initiative roll. Spell casting begins at the beginning of the round. Thus, if an enemy wins the initiative roll and successfully attacks the spell caster, the spell’s casting may be disturbed.
3. Determine Initiative.Initiative is determined for each character by rolling d10 modified by DEX and any other relevant factors.
Initiative rolls may result in a tie. When this happens, both sides are considered to be acting simultaneously. When both sides are acting simultaneously, it is possible for two combatants to kill each other in the same round!
4. The Combat Round.The round is counted down from 10 to 1, with characters and monsters acting on the number corresponding with their initiative score(s). Actions include moving, attacking, and anything else such as climbing onto tables, swinging from ropes, pushing boulders off cliffs, etc.
A full round (one minute) of combat is normally assumed to include a whole series of feints, parries and attacks. A single d20 attack roll doesn’t necessarily mean there has been only one blow; the whole minute’s combat is abstracted into that single roll, and the damage roll reflects all of the damage inflicted in that whole minute.
Characters can move up to half their speed and attack once in the same round.
Damage, Death and HealingThe protagonists of classic ‘swords and sorcery’ tales are a remarkable lot. They are a ‘cut above’ the common stock of humanity, physically and mentally superior to most people, although perhaps sometimes less prudent. Even this occasional lack of prudence, however, is compensated with superior luck and drive. Characters such as Conan, Kull, Fafhrd, and the Gray Mouser are capable of overcoming foes and surviving challenges that would easily defeat most common men. Classic ‘swords and sorcery’ tales focus on highly exceptional and powerful individuals, not the ‘little guys’ of the world. Even as neophytes, most ‘swords and sorcery’ characters are exceptionally tough and capable.
Player characters’ hit points represent only ‘superficial’ damage (i.e., exhaustion, light bruises, minor scrapes, and so forth.). CON points, on the other hand, represent the character’s actual physical being, and damage taken from CON is much more serious, representing major wounds, broken bones and so forth. Hit-point damage is easily and quickly healed, while CON damage is much more difficult to fix.
Only player characters and important non-player characters (namely, noteworthy allies and antagonists) should use this system for determining hit points. The Game Master should roll normally for the hit points of ‘regular’ non-player characters, as well as most ‘monsters.’
Hit PointsHit point damage is a representation of a mixture of luck, defensive skill and fatigue. It is, at worst, minor scratching and bruising. To reflect this aspect of the ‘swords and sorcery’ genre, it is recommended that first-level player characters start with the maximum number of hit points possible for their class, plus five additional hit points (modified by their constitution scores, as appropriate). Hit points should be rolled normally after first level.
All lost hit points may be recovered by sleeping without interruption for eight full hours. Resting for a minimum of one hour will enable a player character to recover one-half of the current hit point damage. For examppoint fted his encounter with the Blood Orc tribe, Rath emerges alive but well-worn and at 12HP of his maximum 23HP. He decides to catch a breather and bind his wounds in the nearby woods; after an hour his current hit points are increased to 18HP (1/2 of 23-12 is 5.5 or 6HP, rounded up).
Once a player character’s hit points have been depleted, any further damage is done to the character’s constitution score.
CON PointsDamage to a character’s constitution score represents ‘serious’ damage. Every time a character takes damage to his/her constitution, he/she must make a FORT save against DC10 or fall unconscious. In addition, a character that has taken damage to his/her constitution suffers a -2 penalty to all actions (including attack rolls and saving throws). If a character’s constitution score is reduced to 0 or lower that character is dead.
Characters who have suffered damage to their constitution and have fallen unconscious regain consciousness after eight hours of rest. If that character’s constitution is still reduced, he/she continues to have 0 hit points and suffers the -2 penalty to all actions until he/she can rest and recover. Characters subsequently can recover one constitution point for every two days of complete rest (i.e., no travelling or adventuring). The care of a doctor or other non-magical healer can improve the rate of healing to one constitution point per day of rest. A character cannot recover any hit points until all constitution points have been recovered.
Game Masters should assume that most non-player characters and monsters are dead or unconscious when they reach 0 hit points or lower. Only player characters and special non-player characters – important figures in the world, whether allies or antagonists of the player characters – should use the complete rules outlined above.
Bleeding Out and StabilizingA character below 0 hit points rolls 1d6 each round for bleeding damage; a result of 1 indicates stabilization (no further loss as long as he or she doesn’t move or engage in any kind of violent action such as dodging around). A result of 2-5 means the character loses another 1 hit-point to bleeding, while a result of 6 means they lose two hit-points.
HealingIn addition to the various magical means of restoring hit points, a character recovers 1 hit point per day, or 1 CON from wounds, sickness, or poison per month, that he or she takes uninterrupted rest.
If the character has access to proper, trained medical care during this time (i.e. somebody with a Healing skill and appropriate medicine and equipment) then he or she recovers 2 hit points per day (or 2 CON per month) of rest.
Four weeks of rest will return a character to full hit points (but not necessarily CON) regardless of how many hit points they had lost.
Elves and Dwarves recover at twice the normal rate, and return to full health in only three weeks.
Healing spells such as Cure Light Wounds or Cure Serious Wounds return hit-points, but have little effect on CON loss. A Cure spell heals one point of CON lost to wounds only if a 5 or 6 is rolled on a die. The Heal spell will heal all CON and hit-point damage from wounds, sickness or poison.
Returning From the DeadThere are several spells that can revivify a corpse: Raise Dead, Reincarnation, Resurrection, and Wish. All of them, with the exception of Raise Dead, either provide a new body or reconstruct the old one as good as new.
A corpse revived by Raise Dead returns to life and any wounds are healed, but this spell will not replace any missing body parts — which can be problematic if any internal organs have been eaten, for example, or if the head is missing.
A character revived from death by Raise Dead (but not by Resurrection or a Wish) loses one level of experience, and returns with exactly enough xp to place them half way through their previous level. A character returned byReincarnation, assuming they return as a species capable of attaining levels, will be of 1d6 levels.
In any case, regardless of the spell used, a character must make a successful CON roll in order to survive the shock of reawakening, and this CON roll is made at a cumulative penalty of -1 for each successive revivication. If a character fails the roll, they die again immediately. The revivication spell can be used again, but of course the penalty to the CON roll will be greater each time.
