Abilities

Abilities have been briefly introduced in Characters. Abilities are based on attributes and characters can train in them. Also there is no fixed set of abilities. Players write down the abilities of their characters as they gain training in them.

To make a dice challenge with an ability, you need to know the consistency and potential of that ability. For this, you will need the base values and the ability training. There are two types of ability training, trained consistency and trained potential. Both the consistency and the potential of an ability have a base value. The base values represents how good a character is in that ability, without the benefit of training. To get the actual consistency and potential, add ability training to the base value. So:

• Base consistency + trained consistency = consistency
• Base potential + trained potential = potential

For some dice challenges, items bonuses or situational penalties might be applied. For instance, a large shield will give a bonus when blocking, and darkness might give a consistency penalty to combat rolls.

Players will only need to write down abilities on their character sheets if their character has trained in that ability, if they have an item that requires that ability or if they are frequently used.

Consistency of abilities

The base consistency of an ability is predefined, and is the same for every character. This value may vary quite a bit from one ability to another and depends on how reliable people untrained in that ability can perform in it. The base consistency will be provided by the GM.

Base consistency should range from -2 to +3. Where -2 is an ability which people are naturally bad at, until they gain training (such as lock picking). A base consistency 0 ability is an ability that untrained characters can do well, but which requires some luck to get right (such as throwing a weapon). A base consistency 3 ability is an ability that has very little luck involved. You can either do it, or you can't. Things such as calculations and knowledge would be abilities with a base consistency of 3.

Potential of abilities

The base potential of an ability depends on what attribute(s) the ability is derived from. If the ability is based on one attribute, the base potential of that ability is the same as the attribute. For example if a character has a strength of 2, the base potential of their brawl ability will be 2. This also means that when the attribute changes, the base potential of derived abilities also changes.

If an ability is derived from multiple attributes, the base potential of that ability becomes the average of those attributes, rounded down. So with an attribute of 0 and 3, the average is 1.5, rounded down, so the base potential becomes 1.

Because ability checks are based partially on attributes, an intelligent character will find herself being better at abilities that involve reasoning through a problem, even if she has never encounter a similar problem before.

Standard abilities

There is a small set of standard abilities, one for every attribute. The standard abilities will be useful in most games. In addition to these, the GM should add extra abilities, based on the kind of campaign. The persuasion ability for example, will cover all useful bases when playing a campaign which is heavily combat centred. However for a game which will hold a lot of politics, other attributes concerning social interaction (such as intimidation, bluff and expression) might be added.

The six standard attributes are as followed:

In addition to these six standard abilities, GMs should aim to have between ten and fifteen additional abilities in their campaign. These abilities should either be taken from modules or written by the GM. The GM should strive to inform all players of the abilities they might use, so players can use them during character creation.

Because non-standard abilities might overlap, GMs should always have players roll specific abilities rather then more general abilities, when either one might be applicable. For instance if there is an intimidation ability in the game, whenever a player attempts to intimidate another character, this ability should be rolled, rather then the more general persuasion ability. Even if the character might be better at persuasion then intimidation.

Experience points

During a game, characters will play through encounters and challenges. When characters overcome these encounters, they will get the experience points (XP) equivalent to that encounter. Experience points will be divided among the characters present during the encounter, rounded down to a whole number (for example 10XP divided among four characters, means 2XP per character with 2 remaining). The remaining experience points can be carried over to the next time characters gain XP. So that the 2 XP they earned doesn't get lost.

During downtime, characters can spend XP to improve their abilities. The amount of XP you need to gain one point of ability training for either consistency or potential is the total XP spend on the previous two levels, starting at 5. So:

Attribute progress

Attributes can not be trained, they improve while you are training your abilities. Every attribute has a progress value, which works like a kind of XP. It is based on how much the abilities that are based on it have been trained. Every time you increase an ability training by one point, increase the attribute progress of the attribute associated with the ability with one. If an ability is based on multiple attributes, you can choose which attribute you want to increase the attribute progress of.

Once the attribute progress reaches a certain value, the attribute is increased by one. How much attribute progress is required depends on height of the attribute. When an attribute is increased, the attribute progress of that attribute becomes zero. Don't forget to update the base potential of your abilities when changing your attribute.

Combat basics

During combat, characters take turns to move against their opponents. The order in which characters take their turns is based on how high they roll initiative. During their turn character's can perform Combat actions, such as move, draw an arrow, make an attack, charge an enemy, etc.

Even though characters take their turns in sequence. In the game world, the turns of players occur almost simultaneously. Every turn lasts two seconds.

Initiative

At the start of every combat, participants throw initiative to determine in what order they will take their turns. The character with the highest score starts, down to the character with the lowest score, who goes last. The initiative roll uses the character's dexterity as his consistency, and the number of willpower a character has as it's potential. When players roll the same initiative, the player with the highest willpower goes first.

Delaying and readied actions

Players can change the order in which their characters take turns by declaring at the start of their turn, that they will delay until after or just before another character. This character is then moved in the initiative order to where they specified.

In addition to delaying your turn, players can ready one combat action. The combat action will occur as soon something the player specified to happen occurs. This is called the trigger. A trigger can for instance be: an opponent enters this square. The readied action could be; make an attack against that opponent. The action always occurs after the trigger, and can only occur if the character (as opposed to the player) becomes aware the trigger has occurred.

After the trigger has occurred, the readied action takes place. This can occur anywhere in the turn of another character. When a trigger occurs, the readied action is performed, and the initiative order is changed. The character with the readied action is moved to the turn before the character who triggered the action. If the trigger doesn't occur until the next turn of the character with the readied action, the readied action is lost.

There is a subtle difference between a trigger based on something happening, and a trigger based on a character intending for something to happen. You might trigger an attack when someone attacks you. Because your readied action is always after the trigger, you will be attacked first, and then do your attack. Or you can trigger as soon as you become aware that a character wants to attack you. In that case you need to attempt to predict your opponent's move. Your opponent must make a roll to attempt hiding the attack, which you can make a dice challenge against. Persuasion versus insight should be used for this. If you do not pass this dice challenge, you will still know by the time you are attacked, but you do not make the first attack.

Melee attacks

There are two types of attacks, melee attacks and ranged attacks. A melee attack is done using a melee weapon, such as a knife, an axe or a sword. To do these kinds of attacks, characters must be near each other. Characters can only attack each other with melee attacks when they are in the same square.

When a character attacks another character, place their character identifier together in the square. Multiple characters place together like this during combat are called a combat cluster. Characters remain in the combat cluster either until they are pushed out, move outside the square, or move outside the cluster.

Ranged attacks

With ranged attacks you can attack targets in the same square or in a different square. Range weapons have a maximum range. If the distance between the attacker and the target is greater then the range, the target can't be attacked. If a target is in a different square then the attacker, there is a situational penalty equal to half the distance to the target, rounded down.

The distance is counted by taking the shortest number of turns required to move, climb and/or jump down to the target. Movement is only possible along horizontal or vertical axes. So if the target is in a diagonally adjacent square, you need to move one horizontal and one vertical, and so the distance is two. The shot will thus have a situational penalty of one on consistency (half the distance). If the target is higher, the number of turns it would take to climb to that height is included in counting the distance. If the target is lower, there is no distance cost since jumping down is a free action.

When using a ranged attack against a target in a combat cluster, you have a situational penalty on consistency, equal to the number of characters in that cluster. If the target manages to dodge the attack, you must re-roll the attack for another character in the combat cluster, now with the situational penalty decreased by one. Keep re-rolling until all characters in the combat cluster have dodged, or until a character is hit or the attack is blocked (rather then dodged). Decreasing the situational penalty by one every roll. The order in which targets are selected, is the same as the initiative order, starting from the original target.

Effects during combat

Most of the effects last two seconds. Because a turn lasts two seconds, most effects will influence your character for one turn. Longer Effects last more then one turn. The number of turns an effect lasts is easily calculated by taking half the effect's duration, rounded down. So an effect of five seconds will last two turns.

Stumble

If your character is in a combat cluster while hit by stumble, the character is moved out of the cluster. While stumbling, you can not use ranged attacks, and you can only make melee attacks against characters that are in a combat cluster with you. Because of this, you can only make a melee attack while stumbling, if you are attacked first.

While the effect lasts, you can not move in one of the directions of the locations you are in (left, right, up or down). This is the direction from which the effect came. If multiple directions could be applicable, the player causing the effect choose which direction. This can happen if the characters are in diagonal direction to each other, or if they are in the same square.

Daze

You can not take any actions during your turn, and you can not make defensive rolls until the daze effect has passed. If the daze effect is an odd number (1, 3, 5, etc.), you can not defend until the start of the turn in which the effect ends, as opposed to after the turn you are last effected.

Defence

There are three ways to defend against attacks. Characters can either dodge, block or parry an attack. When defending against an attack you roll an ability. If the defence score is equal to or higher then the attack score the attack misses. You must roll defence before knowing the result of the attack roll.

Dodging is done by rolling an agility check. To block an oncoming attack, you need some kind of shield and roll the ability needed to use your shield. You can only parry against melee attacks. To parry an attack you must wield a weapon and roll the ability you use for that weapon.

Defending against multiple attacks

If you are attacked multiple times before your next turn, you will receive penalties to your defence rolls. The more you have to defend, the bigger the penalty will become. For dodging and blocking, there is a consistency penalty of two, every time you use that defence. So if you dodge three times between your turn and you want to dodge a fourth time, you will have a consistency penalty of six (2x3=6). Every type of defence has it's own penalty. So dodging multiple times will not get you a penalty on blocking. And blocking multiple times will not create a consistency penalty on dodging. For every melee weapon you wield, you can make only one parry roll between turns.

Because of this, if you are attacked multiple times between your turns, it will likely be advantageous to use different types of defence. Character using a shield will have a big advantage over characters without shields while defending, since they have an extra way to defend themselves. Your defence uses are restored again at the start of your next turn.

Positions

Positions are states a character can find themselves in during combat.

• Prone Your character lays on the ground. The only way to move around is by crawling. While prone you have a consistency penalty of two for all attacks and defences. Ranged attacks against a prone target have a consistency penalty of two.

• Helpless You cannot perform any action or defend yourself in any way.

• Sleeping You are prone and helpless. You wake up if you are hit by an attack. The only action you can take is make perception checks when something happens around you. Waking up to a soft sound has a challenge requirement of nine. Waking up to a louder sound has a challenge requirement of five.

• Unconscious You are prone and helpless and can not wake up from this state without medical attention.

• Concealed Some (or all) of your opponents can not see you directly. But unless you are also hidden from them, they do know approximately where you are. Opponents from who you are concealed have a consistency penalty on attack rolls against you. How high the penalty is depends on how effective the concealment is. You can not be concealed from opponents who are in a combat cluster with you.

• Hidden Some (or all) of your opponents do not know where you are. You can not be hidden from an opponent unless you are also concealed from them. You can not be attacked, unless the attacker knows you are hidden. If your opponent knows you are hidden, you can only be attacked with a luck shot. The opponent rolls a D10 before the attack roll. Only if he or she rolls 10, can they make an attack roll. The attack has a consistency penalty of one plus the penalty from being concealed. If you are hidden from an opponent, you receive a bonus potential of two, when you charge them or make a ranged attack against them.

  Every time you make any soft sound while hidden, your hide challenge is reduced by two. Making it ever easier for your opponents to find you using perception. Soft sounds include whispering, shooting a bow or blowgun or throwing a weapon. Louder sounds such as speaking, shouting, weapons clattering, etc. give you away.

• Climbing You have a consistency penalty of two on all defences and attacks. If you are hit by an effect and climbing had a challenge requirement, you must make a new roll to see if you can hold on. Note that the position "climbing" is different from the climb action. You do not have to climb up or down every turn you are in a climbing position. You can even make an attack while in the climbing position, unless holding on requires the use of both hands. While in this position you have a consistency penalty of one to attack rolls. Because climbing requires one hand, you can not wield a shield and a sword at the same time while climbing.

Pre-rolling defence

Opponents can see how good your defensive stance is. So you should pre-roll your defence, preferably at the end of your turn, and as soon as you've used your last pre-rolled defence. You must decide which defence you use before the attack roll. The attacker chooses their target based on how someone is defending, not the defender based on how he's being attacked. The only exception is when you've parried and an opponent decides to attack you with a ranged attack. Since you can't parry a ranged attack, you must roll either dodge or block after the attack was declared, but before the attack was rolled. The parry you rolled must be used as a defence against the first melee attack. Fatigue only changes when you use the defence roll to oppose an attack.

Guarding

You can protect people, locations or objects from your opponents by guarding them. When you guard, your opponent can not reach whatever it is you are guarding without first having to get past you. By guarding you can stop one opponent from getting to their target, or you can intercept a ranged attack. When you are guarding an ally, and an opponent intends to attack them, the attack will be directed to you instead. If this is a ranged attack, the attack moves on to it's original target if you successfully dodge the attack. Blocking a ranged attack stops it.

The guard ends once you've intercepted one opponent. Once the guard ends, other characters can freely get to whatever was guarded. If multiple characters are guarding the same target, the order in which characters defend is the initiative order, starting at the character attempting to reach the target. Only the first guard can respond to the attack. Because of this, when you are defending a single target it requires one attacker more then there are guards to get to the target.

Borders can be guarded from either side. If the guard is in the same square as you, you can not cross the border, since the guard will intercept you. If the guard is in the other square, you can go across the border, but if you charge, the guard intercepts your attack. The guard ends if you move across a guarded border.

Guards can not respond to characters hidden from them. So if you are hidden from a guard, that guard can not stop you from reaching your target. You can also get past a guard by outmanoeuvre him. The guard can make an attack against you as a free action. You must dodge this attack. On this dodge roll you have a consistency penalty of one.

Forced movement and restraint

Some characters can not move by themselves, or do not want to be moved. To move or stop characters from moving, the following rules apply:

• One character can move a willing character with a leg injury
• Two characters can move a character unable to stand and resist
• Three characters can move an unwilling bound character
• Four characters can move an unwilling character