A living document containing the current house rules for our ongoing Dungeons & Dragons Rules Cyclopedia game.
Weapon Mastery 2.0
Depending on character class, the number of starting weapon mastery choices for level 1 characters has been increased:
- Fighter: Basic mastery with all weapons.
- Thief, Dwarf, Halfling: Basic mastery with 4 weapons.
- Cleric, Magic-User, Elf: Basic mastery with 2 weapons.
Missile Weapon Attacks
Ranged attacks made with missile weapons (bow, crossbow, sling, etc.) are modified by the character’s Wisdom.
Thrown Weapon Attacks
Ranged attacks made with thrown weapons (dagger, handaxe, etc.) are modified by the character’s Dexterity.
The damage dealt by thrown melee weapons is modified by the character’s Strength.
Critical Hits
When a PC rolls a Critical Success on an attack roll (a natural 20 on the d20), the attack deals additional bonus damage equal to the maximum possible result for the attacks damage die.
For example, a Critical Hit with a sword (1d8) deals an additional 8 bonus damage.
Player Defense Rolls
When an NPC attacks a PC, the GM doesn’t make an Attack Roll to see if the NPC's attack is a success. Instead, the PC makes a Defense Roll to see if they successfully defend against the NPC's attack and avoid taking any damage.
- DEF Bonus: Starts at +0. Modified by DEX and increased with armor.
- Attack Rating: Equal to 12 + the attacking NPC's Attack Bonus (19 - THAC0).
- Defense Roll: 1d20+DEF Bonus greater than or equal to the NPC's Attack Rating to succeed.
Armor DEF Bonus
For PCs, worn armor provides a bonus to DEF:
- Leather armor: +2 DEF.
- Scale mail: +3 DEF.
- Chain mail: +4 DEF.
- Banded mail: +5 DEF.
- Plate mail: +6 DEF.
- Suit armor: +9 DEF.
- Shield: +1 DEF.
Sunder Shield
When a character using a non-weapon shield is hit by a melee attack, they may choose to sunder their shield in place of taking any damage from the attack. The sundered shield is destroyed.
A sundered shield must be declared before the attack’s damage is rolled.
Save Modifications
Ability scores modify specific saving throws:
- Strength: Saves vs. Paralysis/Petrify.
- Dexterity: Saves vs. Wands & Breath.
- Constitution: Saves vs. poison.
- Intelligence: Saves vs. mind attacks (charm, confusion, control, feeblemind, sleep, etc.).
- Wisdom: Saves vs. Spells/Staves/Rods
- Charisma: Saves vs. fear effects.
Grit 2.0
Each PC begins each session with 1 Grit, and earns another 1 Grit each time they roll a Critical Failure on an ability check, saving throw, attack roll, or defense roll. There is no maximum amount of Grit, but all Grit is lost at the end of each session.
During the session, PCs can spend 1 Grit to re-roll any ability check, saving throw, attack roll, or defense roll that is not a Critical Failure. Multiple Grit may be spent per roll, but they all must be spent before the result is called by the GM.
PCs may spend 1 Grit to stabilize another dying PC. This requires the stabilizing PC to be within 5’ of the dying PC.
When a PC scores a Critical Hit on an attack roll, all PCs lose all of their Grit.
Taken from Frontier Scum by Karl Druid.
Natural Healing
As long as a creature has eaten a meal the previous day, they regain 1 HP each morning, plus another 1d3 HP if the previous day was spent entirely at rest. Any activity at all disturbs this rest.
Death 2.0
NPCs die when reduced to 0 HP or lower.
PCs, when reduced to 0 HP or lower, are unconscious and dying. They will die if not stabilized or healed by another character for more than 6 turns.
After each subsequent turn, and each time the character takes any damage (track negative HP values), the character must make a saving throw vs. Death Ray or Poison. If any saving throw results in a failure, the character is dead.
Stabilize the Dying
Any character may tend to a dying PC, taking one whole turn to stabilize them. As long as this process remains uninterrupted for one turn, it does not require an ability check, and the dying PC is not required to make any saving throws vs. Death for the duration.
A stabilized character is reset to 0 HP; still unconscious, but no longer dying.
Fall Damage 2.0
At the end of a fall, creatures take 1d6 points of damage per 10 feet fallen, to a maximum of 20d6.
If no damage die rolls a natural 6, the creature instead survives with 1 HP even if it would otherwise reduce them to 0 HP or lower. If three or more of the damage dice roll natural 6s, the creature is dead on impact.
Creatures falling from a height of less than 10 feet take 1 damage.
Taken from Prismatic Wasteland's Humpty Dumpty Should Die: Fixing Falling Damage and its comment section.
Revenge Scores
When a PC dies, their player may generate their next PC's ability scores by rolling 4d6 and dropping the lowest result, instead of straight 3d6.
Undead Identification
When examining the remains of corporeal undead, clerics may make a Wisdom check to determine the type of undead, if unclear.
Spell Books
Level 1 magic-user and elf characters start with a spell book containing two 1st-level spells: read magic, plus another spell of the player’s choice. Magic-users start with an additional 1st-level spell in their spell book for every +1 Intelligence they have.
Spell books are very large and unwieldly, having an encumbrance of 200 cn.
Spell Scrolls
Magical spell scrolls can be used by magic-users, elves, and thieves' of 10th level or greater, clerical spell scrolls can be used by clerics and druids, druidic spell scrolls can be used by druids only, and protection scrolls can be used by all classes.
Reading, thus identifying, a magical spell scroll requires the use of the read magic spell.
Copying Spells
A magic-user or elf may copy written spells found on scrolls or in spell books into their own spell book. To do so, they must have first used read magic on the spell, then must cast the written spell into their spell book.
A character may copy up to four spells per day this way, plus another for every +1 INT they have.
Magic Missile
The spell lasts for a duration of 1 turn (10 minutes).
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