phantomdoodler
Mongoose
Heres another attempt to create some more variety in the game, using the excellent Song of Ice and Fire rpg. Each character is defined by 18 abilities
Agility (acrobatics, escapology, dodge, balance)
Animal Handling (riding, animal training, drive cart)
Athletics (strength, swimming, running, throwing, climbing)
Awareness (notice, empathy)
Cunning (memory, decipher, logic)
Deception (act, bluff, cheat, disguise)
Endurance (resist disease, poison, stamina)
Knowledge (education, streetwise, research)
Language (specific language)
Medicine (Diagnose, first aid, treat illness, surgery)
Persuasion (bargain, charm, seduction, intimidate, taunt)
Status (heraldry, etiquette, stewardship, tournaments)
Stealth (hide, sneak, shadowing)
Survival (track, hunt, orientation, forage)
Thievery (pick lock, sleight of hand, steal)
Trade (Specific trade or craft)
Warfare (Command, Strategy, Tactics)
Willpower (courage, dedication)
A character is also defined by one Ability based on the above:
Combat Skill (Athletics + Agility) / 2, round down, plus class bonus.
Each player then has 20 points to spend on their Abilities, plus 10 for each Rank that they start adventuring at (so a typical 5th rank starting hero has 70 points to spend), spending no more than 9 points on any one. As a guide, 1 should be considered extremely poor, 3 basic, 5 competent and 7 or more exceptional.
To succeed at a task, roll a die and add an Ability, plus any Bonuses from disciplines etc. You need to equal or beat the difficulty set by the Gm, which is between 6 and 15 (typically 10). Occasionally you may need to test against Combat Skill, in which case add 10 to this value. If you need to test Endurance or Willpower, add 20, and use your current value.
Kai Class Ability Bonuses:
Combat Skill +10, Endurance +20, Willpower +20
Sample Kai Lord character: Runedancer
Abilities:
Agility 6, Animal Handling 4, Athletics 4, Awareness 6, Cunning 6, Deception 3, Endurance 23, Knowledge 7, Persuasion 5, Stealth 5, Survival 6, Willpower 26, Status 1, Language (Giak) 3, Language (Dark Tongue) 1, Medicine 1
His Combat Skill is then calculated as (6+4)/2 equals 5, plus 10 from the Kai Lord, for a total of 15.
During the game, Runedancer, who is now 5th rank and with the Tracking discipline, is attempting to follow some tracks. The Gm decides, since its been raining, this is going to be a difficult Survival roll, setting the target number at 12. The player makes a roll, adding 6 for their Survival ability, plus another 2 for Tracking, for a total of 13. Despite the difficult conditions, Runedancer manages to find the tracks!
Willpower
In my game, Willpower is available to anyone, and represents your characters mental strength and state of mind. If they are subjected to mental onslaught, horrors or unpleasant effects, they will lose Willpower, just like Endurance for physical effects. It may even be used by some classes to fuel their abilities. If you are ever reduced to zero Willpower, you will collapse, utterly exhausted through mental anguish, and may not do anything until you have had time to recover, typically spending time in seclusion and introspection. You also gain Willpower when you achieve success, as it represents your self-esteem.
Experience Points
Each adventure, the Gm can award an experience point if the session was successful, and the players contributed well. You may use these points to increase your abilities - it costs 1 Experience point to increase any Ability by 1 point (you may not increase Combat Skill, Endurance or Willpower, however) - the maximum of any ability is still 9. Note that once the player has reached a new multiple of ten, then they can be awarded one rank increase.
Agility (acrobatics, escapology, dodge, balance)
Animal Handling (riding, animal training, drive cart)
Athletics (strength, swimming, running, throwing, climbing)
Awareness (notice, empathy)
Cunning (memory, decipher, logic)
Deception (act, bluff, cheat, disguise)
Endurance (resist disease, poison, stamina)
Knowledge (education, streetwise, research)
Language (specific language)
Medicine (Diagnose, first aid, treat illness, surgery)
Persuasion (bargain, charm, seduction, intimidate, taunt)
Status (heraldry, etiquette, stewardship, tournaments)
Stealth (hide, sneak, shadowing)
Survival (track, hunt, orientation, forage)
Thievery (pick lock, sleight of hand, steal)
Trade (Specific trade or craft)
Warfare (Command, Strategy, Tactics)
Willpower (courage, dedication)
A character is also defined by one Ability based on the above:
Combat Skill (Athletics + Agility) / 2, round down, plus class bonus.
Each player then has 20 points to spend on their Abilities, plus 10 for each Rank that they start adventuring at (so a typical 5th rank starting hero has 70 points to spend), spending no more than 9 points on any one. As a guide, 1 should be considered extremely poor, 3 basic, 5 competent and 7 or more exceptional.
To succeed at a task, roll a die and add an Ability, plus any Bonuses from disciplines etc. You need to equal or beat the difficulty set by the Gm, which is between 6 and 15 (typically 10). Occasionally you may need to test against Combat Skill, in which case add 10 to this value. If you need to test Endurance or Willpower, add 20, and use your current value.
Kai Class Ability Bonuses:
Combat Skill +10, Endurance +20, Willpower +20
Sample Kai Lord character: Runedancer
Abilities:
Agility 6, Animal Handling 4, Athletics 4, Awareness 6, Cunning 6, Deception 3, Endurance 23, Knowledge 7, Persuasion 5, Stealth 5, Survival 6, Willpower 26, Status 1, Language (Giak) 3, Language (Dark Tongue) 1, Medicine 1
His Combat Skill is then calculated as (6+4)/2 equals 5, plus 10 from the Kai Lord, for a total of 15.
During the game, Runedancer, who is now 5th rank and with the Tracking discipline, is attempting to follow some tracks. The Gm decides, since its been raining, this is going to be a difficult Survival roll, setting the target number at 12. The player makes a roll, adding 6 for their Survival ability, plus another 2 for Tracking, for a total of 13. Despite the difficult conditions, Runedancer manages to find the tracks!
Willpower
In my game, Willpower is available to anyone, and represents your characters mental strength and state of mind. If they are subjected to mental onslaught, horrors or unpleasant effects, they will lose Willpower, just like Endurance for physical effects. It may even be used by some classes to fuel their abilities. If you are ever reduced to zero Willpower, you will collapse, utterly exhausted through mental anguish, and may not do anything until you have had time to recover, typically spending time in seclusion and introspection. You also gain Willpower when you achieve success, as it represents your self-esteem.
Experience Points
Each adventure, the Gm can award an experience point if the session was successful, and the players contributed well. You may use these points to increase your abilities - it costs 1 Experience point to increase any Ability by 1 point (you may not increase Combat Skill, Endurance or Willpower, however) - the maximum of any ability is still 9. Note that once the player has reached a new multiple of ten, then they can be awarded one rank increase.