Treasure Never Lasts

All hail the Almighty Dollar (aka treasure.) Hail!

Hack & Slash has a lot to say On Treasure. I found the list of "Uses for Money" to be particularly interesting.

I like the thought of treasure being valued in gold, but actually composed of silver and other items.
What are the chances that you would just find a big pile of gold in a cave/dungeon somewhere?
Why did the denizens of the dungeon amass such a hoard? If they were going to spend it, wouldn't they be, ya know, out spending it? Do you have a big pile of cash just chilling in your basement? Unlikely.
Mostly you buy things with that money rather than just carrying cash around for the sole purpose of waving it in people's faces. You exhibit your wealth by the kinds of things you acquire, wear, ride, etc.

As a consumer, a good deal of what you spend your money on doesn't last. It serves an immediate need and then it's gone. This should hold true in gaming as well.
You dole out coins for a meal and a bunk at an inn. You pay for a cleric to heal your current wound. Maybe you buy a few potions to heal future wounds. Um...buy a few more. You are an adventurer, are you not?
You bribe an NPC for information. You give the smith coins to pound the dents out of your armor, or repair your broken blade. But you know it's just going to get dented and broken again. The cycle continues.

Consider this: spending money takes time, just as it does to acquire it. It's about supply and demand.

Now try thinking like, not just like an adventurer, but another adventurer. A competitor with minimal scruples. Why would you risk your neck to clear out a dungeon and rid the townsfolk of a local threat? There's got to be an easier way to "earn" some coin. So you hang around the tavern, scouting for jobs, getting the scoop on how much treasure is in the cave and what kind of threat stands in the way. You wait for some other party of suckers to go do the dirty work, then you nonchalantly tail them and wait. Just lurk near the entrance and rob the weary adventurers as they come out.
They're tired, beaten and bruised, they've probably exhausted their healing options, and their HP is probably looking a mite lessened. Now is the time to strike, you filthy opportunist!
You're deep in the back country. You have the upper hand. Take advantage. You could steal not only the loot they just recovered, but even rob them of their boots so they can't hurry back and tell on you. Yeah. You're a dick like that.

But you can't very well go back to that same town all rich and heroic like "Look at this treasure I recovered! Yeah. Me. That suspicious guy from the tavern that you didn't hire to do the job." Nope. You better make tracks and spend your hard-earned gold elsewhere. You're gone like donuts at a Weight Watchers meeting.

So there you are, laden with loot, and the itch to spend before all that silver burns a hole in your pocket.
Where do you go? The nearest brothel? Maybe a barber and bathhouse first? Then a fancy meal and a night on the town with several gorgeous concubines? Make it rain, yo!

Or let's say your DM is a jerk. He starts the session by saying "You've just cleared out the dungeon and have all this treasure. You're exhausted and can't wait to hit town for some R & R... But as you emerge into the sunlight you hear steel being drawn and greedy chuckling. '"You look tired." a deep voice says. "Why don't you let me and my crew carry all that treasure for you?" After you have handed over your hard fought spoils, perhaps after a thorough drubbing by the rival gang, they demand your boots, weapons, and food rations as well. They don't want you going anywhere anytime fast. You're penniless, unarmed, and barefoot with a long way to hexcrawl back to civilization. Let the adventure begin!"

Mount Up or Roll Out

So you're an adventurer. By know you have rolled lots of dice to determine you gender, race, class, age, weapons and armor, height and weight, and even what you look like.

But an as of yet unanswered question is whether you are walking or riding on your many adventures.
A simple toss of a d8 can tell you.

Roll once to determine if you go on 4 legs or only 2.
An even number means you're lucky and you get to ride.
An odd number means you're stuck plodding along by yourself.

Let's say you are going mounted.
Roll again to determine if you're horse is a mare or a stallion.
Even = female
Odd = male

Now roll one last time to see what your mount looks like.
1. white
2. gray
3. black
4. tan - this would be like a buckskin
5. red - this would be like a quarterhorse
6. brown - this is a rich, chocolate color
7. paint - the most common combinations are brown and white or black and white
8. dapple - this is a spotted pattern, like an Appaloosa (usually white on gray)

I'm keeping this pretty standard with just equine mounts, but don't let that discourage you from riding a mythical beast like a pegasus, griffon, dragon, or giant eagle. 

An addition that would be very useful to a wanderer is something that will haul all of their gear and loot for them, such as a mule or a cart.
So let's add that in, shall we.

1. goat, ram, or dog - these would primarily be for a Halfling.
2. donkey
3. mule
4. pack horse - this a horse that can only be ridden bareback, and only if you're willing to dump your gear.
5. cart - it's assumed you have a beast of burden to pull it, or you could also do it yourself.
6. wagon/sled - this could be anything from a buckboard or covered wagon to a fine carriage. These you cannot move yourself, you must have a team of at least two to pull it. You could even have a large convoy of 2-3 wagons drawn by several pairs, but something like that would be slow and hard to move if not on a flat surface like a road or open plain.

Looks Like... Generating Detailed NPC Descriptions.

Tonight I was having fun messing around with the various dice-roll generators I've posted before to create the NPCs in a scene. And then I realized...I haven't crafted a generator for how people look! I guess I better remedy that.

Hair color d6
1 - bald
2 - blonde
3 - red
4 - brown
5 - black
6 - white, gray, or some exotic color if you like

Hairstyle d6
1 - cropped/shaved
2 - short
3 - medium length
4 - long
5 - braided or pulled back
6 - decorated with beads or ribbons

Eye color d4
1 - brown
2 - blue
3 - green
4 - gray or some other color like red, purple, gold, etc. 

Attractiveness
For this it seems pretty (pun intended) obvious to use a d10 for a 1-10 scale.
Or if you don't want to risk getting a really fugly uggo or a complete knockout, you could begin with an average looking 5 and roll a d4, choosing + or -.
If you're ascribing attributes to the NPCs, you could simply use their Charisma value to make them more or less attractive.

For height and weight and age I'm still just using this generator.
But since we're mainly relying on dice, I decided to roll out a height and weight generator, which can even be used to generate race.

Height d6 and d12 - which can even be used to randomly generate race.
Since the civilized races of halflings, dwarves, humans, and elves are all between 3 and 7 feet tall, roll 1d6 (excluding any results of 1 or 2) for feet and 1d12 for inches.

Weight d4, 2d10
This is assuming that halflings are usually at least 100 lbs and dwarves generally do not exceed 300 lbs.
Roll 1d4 (excluding any 4s) and roll 2d10.
Using these I rolled out a person that is 6'5" and 233 lbs, which would make for a large, but proportional human.

Get A Job!

It's been many months since my last musings here, so I better post something substantial - like say, a d6 chart of jobs.

First up is a general occupation list for NPCs, or you could use it to say "This is what my character did every mundane day before becoming an adventurer." That whole safe and stable income, regular meals, and sleeping indoors just ain't for everyone. Gimme danger, derring do, and dungeon delving.... in a safe, tabletop, escapism kind of way of course.

It's pretty simple to use. Roll 1d6 and 1d10. For example, I rolled a 6 and another 6, so the occupation would be a Lord or Lady. Then I rolled a 3 and a 5, so a Weaponsmith/Armorer. Proceed as many times as you want. If you come up with more jobs, simply add them to the list and increase the first die to a d8 or another d10. 

General NPC Occupations
11. Laborer/Farmhand
12. Miner
13. Woodsman/Forrester
14. Servant
15. Herdsman
16. Fisherman/Sailor
17. Hunter
18. Vendor/Merchant
19. Pawnbroker/Moneylender
20. Cobbler
21. Carpenter/Woodcarver
22. Tailor
23. Potter/Sculptor/Artist
24. Weaver
25. Barber
26. Butcher
27. Mason
28. Wright (cart,wayn, ship)
29. Smith (black, silver, gold)
30. Baker/Cook
31. Grocer
32. Tanner
33. Cooper
34. Locksmith
35. Weaponsmith/Armorer
36. Farrier
37. Brewer
38. Miller
39. Pageboy/Squire
40. Steward
41. Butler/Maid
42. Groom/liveryman
43. Chauffeur/Footman
44. Wetnurse/Nursemaid
45. Midwife
46. Alchemist/Botanist/Apothecary
47. Messenger
48. Clerk/Scribe
49. Soothsayer/Fortune Teller
50. Bookbinder/Librarian
51. Scholar/Tutor (various fields)
52. Physician/Dentist
53. Innkeeper
54. Entertainer/Performer
55. Landlord
56. Accountant
57. Lawyer
58. Judge
59. Gaoler (Jailer)
60. Hangman/Executioner
61. Warden
62. Ambassador
63. Diplomat
64. Advisor/Alderman
65. Clergy (priest, bishop)
66. Lord/Lady

The next table is for those with more nefarious means of employment. This one only requires 1d6.

Criminal Occupations
1. Mercenary/Assassin
2. Pickpocket/Cutpurse
3. Bandit/Thief
4. Slaver
5. Smuggler/Fence
6. Warlord

And lastly, where there is the lawlessness and chaos of city living, you're going to encounter those that try to instill some order. For these you still only need 1d6.

Lawful Occupations
1. Beggar - Ok, so this one doesn't actually contribute to the well being of society. But the law hasn't made begging illegal...yet. These ne'er do wells attempt to live off the system and charity to avoid lifting a finger. In time they may get desperate enough to turn to a life of crime if no one is dropping them coins anymore.
2. Bounty Hunter - chasing down brigands and vagabonds and bringing them to justice...for a fee.
3. Town/City guard (carries cudgel, crossbow, sword, or spear) - patrolling the streets to keep you safe.
4. Constable/Sheriff - someone has to get the orders from the mayor and pass them down to the guards.
5. Warrior/Soldier - a militiaman or regular soldier in the liege lord's army, keeping the county safe.
6. Officer/Commander - and like the sheriff giving orders to the guards, there has to be someone to command the forces in the field.

This Means W.A.R.

I've mentioned before how I initially started gaming with my group to learn how it all works. That was (kind of) accomplished. I have also stated that my gaming group decided to try to put our own something together with the goal of launching a Kickstarter. We started strong...and fizzled out.

Being that we're all adults (however childish) with jobs and spouses and houses and other various real life obligations, we just couldn't get together to keep the momentum going. A big thank you to Riley for putting forth such enthusiasm and getting our forum set up! He really was the keystone to the project.

That being said, I wish him the very best in continuing his own adventure. Look for it on Kickstarter in the future. He has decided to not let the project die, thus he is carrying the battle standard onward. Ever onward, sir!

I may still tinker with my original idea, but it will be small potatoes and likely never go more public than this here blog. In homage to Riley's genius title, I am finally giving mine a title of W.A.R. (Wicked Awesome Roleplaying).

Keeping Secrets

I just had an epiphany regarding (literally) playing your cards close to your vest. As a DM you are very much the wizard behind the curtain. The screen hides your notes, master maps, and tidbits about which NPCs are to be trusted or not. But what if there were secrets that even you didn't know?

I'm thinking, make a stack of index cards with an affliction, penalty, detrimental secret, etc. to keep the players from getting too cocky. Write what it is and how it affects attributes and skills. Then seal each card in an envelope and shuffle them several times. Now you have a stack of random bad luck. Heck, maybe even toss in a few bonuses to keep them from storming off.

Imagine the fun that ensues when you distribute the cards and players end up with....what? A vain, yet balding elf that fancies himself a real Casanova. A dwarf with a nervous bladder. Maybe a dyslexic mage that only gets his spells right half of the time.

Old Age and Broad Beltlines

 I found something a bit different as I was cruising various generator's today.

Age, height, & weight generator per race. Sure it says it's geared specifically toward Pathfinder, but I don't see why you can't use it for something else. I like it because most other NPC gennies I've found spit out something like name, alignment, attributes, and motivation. Well what if I'm not needing to know all that for a crowd in a marketplace or patrons in a tavern?

This one is incredibly simple and I love it for that!

It also got me thinking about a much earlier post - The Age of Man - and what I needed to expand upon.
So I spent some time messing about with a spreadsheet that details the rate of aging for my core races.

Humans age...well, as humans do. For each year they appear 1 year older.
But what of the longer-lived races of elves, dwarves, gnomes, and those hybrid half-elves?
I'm glad you asked.

Elves live anywhere from 500-800 years, but they age almost imperceptibly over the years of a human lifespan, which is "only" 85-100 years. Elves grow and mature at the same rate as humans until the age of 15, at which time their elven-ness really kicks in and they age only 1 year for every 5 human years.
At the age of 65 they would appear to be 25. At 150 years old they look to be in their early 40s. And at barely half their lifespan of 250 years, they only then start to look "aged" at just over a century.
I may even modify it further to say that once they reach 200 years old, when they'd appear to be around 50, they're aging slows even more to only 1 year per 10 human years. This would mean that only the very oldest of elves would look it. They'd seem to be just entering their 80s when they're 500 years old.

Because of their mixed genetics, half-elves age at roughly half the rate of humans, or almost twice as much as a full-blood elf. After reaching 15, they age only 1 year per 3 human years. At age 60, they only look 30. At 120 years old, they barely look a day over 50.
While a half-elf child will outlive their human parent by a century or more, they are still considered to have very short lives compared to their elven parent. Half-elves can conceivably live to be 250 years old, but at around age 200 they start to look and feel rather rickety. Most would have an expectancy of around 185 years and cash out when they appear to be in their late 90s.

Gnomish aging doesn't slow until they're 30, at which time they age 1 year for every 3 human years.
So at 60, they'd look to be around 40. At 90, they'd look 50. Like a half-elf, they wouldn't really start to appear aged until they're almost 200 years old. And that's only about half of their lifespan.
Beyond age 175, gnomes slow to aging only 1 yer per 5 human years, so when they turn in at 400 they look to be 123 years old.

Last, but not least, dwarves in my world don't live as long as some might have it in other worlds. I don't want them dropping off too quickly, but I also consider that a life of hard work and hard drinking must catch up with them at some point. They typically don't live beyond 300, and hardly ever will one see a day past 350.
They age at the same rate as humans, and don't even get a beard coming in until they're at 50. But then they slow to aging 1 year per 4 human years. So by the time they have a "respectable" beard at 70, they only look to be in their mid 50s. When they're 90 and looking 60 is when most dwarves start to think of starting a family. When that dwarf's son's stubble starts to show in another 50 years, the father will only look to be in his early 70s. Dwarf beards don't even begin to show a little gray until they're 150 and looking not a day over 75. They're 250 years old before a century shows on their grizzled face. But most dwarves "retire" and take up the pipe and coin counting at 275-300. But that's still saying something that great-great-great-great-great-grandfather dwarf could expect to see a 6th generation of beard bloom before he grumbles his last and closes his eyes for the stone sleep.

Magic Items and Enchantments

I'm a much better sword swinger than spell slinger, so forgive me if what follows isn't earth shattering. I have never been one to ooh and aah overmuch when it comes to magic in games and stories. My characters are typically straightforward fellows preferring to use a well-crafted weapon in their own two hands. But that's not to say that magic doesn't have its uses. Flipping through my DM guide gave me a few ideas in areas that I've previously and sometimes purposefully avoided.

First off, what is the basis of magic in the world? Is it without form from another plane, or drawn from the swirling elements of the world around you? Is there good magic and bad magic? Laws, abuses, taboos?

In the game world my chums and I are developing we're thinking that magic is much more elemental - like "weaving" in Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time series. The somewhat Ptolemaic construct is this:

Beginning at the center is the focus of Light, then Air, Earth, Water, Fire, Spirit, and finally Shadow. They are arranged as such because air is between the earth and the sun. Water encircles the land. Deep beneath the earth is were rivers of fire flow. Spirit surrounds everything, separating the realms of life and death. Delving too far into the spirit world, or using the Aether/Ether for malicious purposes leads to corruption of Spirit, which is Shadow. I haven't decided if Light is actually a school of magic that can be used by mortal beings. Maybe it is a tool that only gods can use.

Keeping in line with the random roll concept, if you can't decide on which school your character or an NPC favors, just toss a d6 and see what you come up with.
1. Air
2. Earth
3. Water
4. Fire
5. Spirit
6. Shadow

Or let's say you're party knows nothing of magic until they come across magic items in a treasure hoard.
Roll a d10 to determine what they find.
1. Potion - a simple concoction that grants a bonus like healing, stamina, etc.
2. Gem or crystal - a raw or cut jewel which can be imbued with magic.
3. Amulet - a necklace (simple or complex) made of various materials and adorned with a set magical stone.
4. Ring - a smaller and/or more intricate version of an amulet. It's assumed rings take more skill to craft.
5. Rod, wand, or staff - either a simple stick topped with a crystal or a very intricate staff festooned with mysterious runes of warding. Such an item would focus powers much more than a piece of jewelry.
6. Scroll - a single page of runes and/or illustrations that teach the reader magical secrets...assuming it can be deciphered.
7. Weapon - an enchanted sword, axe, bow, arrows, etc. that give the wielder additional powers.
8. Shield - just as it sounds, it is a shield enchanted with extra protection against attacks both physical and/or magical.
9. Armor - it can be enchanted with added protection, just as a shield is, or it grants added strength, stealth, fortitude, etc.
10. Tome - an entire book of spells would be quite the valuable find!

**Revised list for 2d6

2. Armor
3. Shield
4. Rod, Wand, or Staff
5. Cloak or Boots
6. Crystal or Gem
7. Potion
8. Amulet
9. Ring or Jewelry
10. Scroll
11. Weapon
12. Tome

As for enchantments placed on shields and armor, these are just a few I've come up with.
Enhanced Fortitude - roll 1d4 to determine the HP bonus.
Enhanced Strength - the armor weighs 1d4% as much, or your carrying capacity is boosted by 1d4%.
Increased Speed, Stealth, Agility, Dexterity - this would depend on whether the item is a cloak, boots, or gloves.
Elemental/Magical Resistance - attacks against you with magic do 1d4 less damage.
Sonic Deflection - when struck the shield or armor makes a loud noise that stuns the attacker like a flash-bang grenade. Perhaps this could also have a blinding effect with a flash of light.

Some other generators I'm fond of are:
Inkwell Ideas Magic Item/Shop Inventory
Donjon Random Magic Shop
RoleplayingTips.com Shop Inventory - this is an Excel download for mundane and magical items.

Random Equipping

As I was going over older posts today I realized that I hadn't provided an easy out for the indecisive/lazy gamer. I had posts about scars and taking wounds. I had posts about race, gender, class, and location. And I had posts about armor and weapons, but I didn't have anything about randomly equipping those items! So here it is.

Melee weapon: d10, or a d8 if you want to do away with the larger, two-handed weapons
1. Dagger
2. Short sword or Club
3. Axe
4. Longsword
5. Mace
6. Morningstar
7. Flail
8. Hammer
9. Battleaxe
10. Greatsword

Ranged weapon: d8, or a d6 if you want to do away with polearms
1. Sling
2. Crossbow
3. Shortbow
4. Bow
5. Longbow
6. Greatbow
7. Spear
8. Halberd

Shield: d6
1. Hide
2. Wood
3. Bronze
4. Iron
5. Steel
6. Large/Tall

Armor: d4
1. Leather or Hide
2. Mail - ring, scale, or chain
3. Partial plate - this would be like having only a breastplate
4. Full plate - you're covered head to toe in metal

The Prodigal Son Returns

"Sire! He's returned." the page boy panted, bursting through the engraved double doors.

"Who, lad?" the startled lord said with a jolt.

"He...him...the One!" stammered the breathless page.

"No...it cannot be." The lord beamed, leaping from his gilded seat. "Send for my scribes at once! After so long away, He must have quite the tale to tell."

Thus is this bard's return from a few months of hiatus. Minimal fanfare, please. Hold your applause until the conclusion.

Attributes Simplified

It should come as no surprise based on my previous post and very novice standing as a gamer (almost to the 1 year mark and still a floundering newb) that I love me some simplicity in games. Thus I have further modified and simplified my own earlier stats sheet.

The new version has only 5 core attributes of STR, INT, FORT, DEX, and CHARM.
STR is Strength and is added to your attack roll + weapon bonus.
INT is both Intelligence and Intuition and is used in instances like translating runes or detecting traps. It's a trap! Sorry I couldn't resist.
FORT is Fortitude which combines Constitution and Will, basically lumping your ability to withstand physical, mental, and/or magical attacks. It's either hurts you or it doesn't.
DEX is Dexterity, obviously, and is used in instances of picking locks, picking pockets, and sneaking. It is used in the place of STR for ranged/projectile attacks, be they with a bow or a spell.  
CHARM is essentially the same as Charisma. I thought of implying that good-looking characters automatically get a bonus to this stat, whereas unsightly characters suffer a penalty. But I have decided to do away with such because that would allow for a player to choose a snobby, beautiful elf that won't give the time of day to anyone and wouldn't even think of haggling with a mere shopkeeper. Or someone could be a lovable, yet ugly and disfigured dwarf. Because who doesn't have a soft spot for Tyrion Lannister?

Some outliers are Speed and Luck. At first I thought of making SPEED its own attribute that characters would roll up, or perhaps it would be assigned based on race. But that assumes that one would have to level up entirely to get any faster. Why not make speed a skill that can be increased with training? And why would a character in heavy armor have the same racial speed as a character in light armor? To me it makes better sense to have it separate and unequal for reasons of player choice. Let's say you choose to be a fleet-of-foot elf rogue with high SPEED and DEX, but low STR and FORT. You just better hope no one catches you with your hand in their pocket or you're in serious trouble. Maybe someone wants to be a fat, clumsy gnome who can really take a punch. I think the ability to modify and customize characters - if not for strategically better gaming, but just as more fun to play - is key to doing what we do.

LUCK is a conundrum in and of itself because it introduces a very different style of play. Perhaps a rogue/thief character is attempting to pick a lock above their skill level. They could either roll for LUCK, or already have an established LUCK score of plus or minus, which would add to DEX as the skill/attribute they're using.
In the beginning I thought that a player would roll a white die against a black die and use the difference as a LUCK modifier. But what dice to use? Because I tend to think and operate as a generous DM, I thought using a higher white die and a lower black would give an advantage towards good luck for the players. As an experiment I had my wife roll the following:

White	Black	LUCK
d6	d4
1	2	-1
4	4	0
1	1	0
2	1	+1
2	2	0
d10	d6
6	4	+2
6	3	+3
3	4	-1
10	6	+4
5	4	+1
d8	d8
4	1	+3
7	4	+3
7	8	-1
8	6	+2
4	8	-4
d10	d10
7	3	+4
1	3	-2
8	4	+4
5	10	-5
2	10	-8

Obviously the dice are going to have quite the variation, but I think I'm most satisfied with the way the numbers came out on the d8 and d10 rolls. Where I remain torn is just how much of a bonus or penalty to I want to allow for players? You could end up exceedingly lucky (+9) by rolling a 10 against a 1, or you could be so unlucky (-9) as to get struck by lightning from a clear blue sky. If the system is d10 based, should I use d10s for LUCK rolls? Or should I keep it lower with a d6, or even go as low as a d4? I'll really have to think on that.

Simple Mechanic for Skill Checks

Regardless of what the skill check is for - athletics, acrobatics, persuasion, etc - the DM will roll 1d10. The player will roll the same, plus their attribute.This way it's about the random will of the dice, but also incorporates who the character was designed to be. Your lucky gnome charmer is better at bartering than your grumbling dwarf hammerer.
If you want to make it more varied, you can use negative attribute scores, aka penalties, but ultimately I think that detracts from the fun and progression of play. Would you want to be the sourpuss with a negative charisma ATT? Or how about the scrawny, weakling with a negative STR that couldn't even climb a tree to snag an apple for lunch?

Let's say you're playing with a younger/newb audience and you as the DM don't want to decimate and discourage the fun by pwning them again and again. Sure a challenge is fun to overcome, but if dice/odds aren't weighted to favor advancing gameplay, I would daresay the players' interest will wane. I know mine would. As such, the DM could roll a d8 against the player's d10, or d6 against the player's d8, giving a slight advantage to the player's odds of success.
If you want to go with d20 rolls, and to give the oft neglected d12 a chance to get in on the action, the DM could roll a d12 against the players d20. In terms of favored odds, this would grant the players the highest advantage, which equals happy players and keeps the game moving.

Going back to a d10 system and for even odds, both the DM and player roll d10. If the DM gets a lousy roll and the players agree that it's too simple given the situation, then the DM will roll again (the higher of 2 rolls remains).

Random Rolls

It's been a while since I last posted because most of my non-work time has been devoted towards the tabletop RPG some friends and I are designing. And even that has been hit or miss because real life keeps getting in the way of our fantasy/worldbuilding/gaming escapism.

But tonight I was bored and my mental gears felt the need to grind out something...anything!

Thus I give you this

For random rolling NPCs or quick, who-cares characters with a d4

	Gender		Race		Class
1	male	1	Gnome	1	Rogue
2	female	2	Elf	2	Mage
3	male	3	Human	3	Ranger
4	female	4	Dwarf	4	Warrior

You could also use a d6 if you want a higher percentage of the population to be of a particular race. Say dwarves and humans are the most common race. You could add 5 = dwarf and 6 = human, thus increasing the likelihood towards those as 2 in 6, instead of 1 in 4.

Or if you want to go with more options, use a d8. Again even = female, odd = male.

	Race		Class
1	Gnome	1	Warrior
2	Elf	2	Battlemage
3	Human	3	Mage
4	Dwarf	4	Druid
5	Half-Elf	5	Ranger
6	Half-Orc	6	Thief
7	Goblin	7	Rogue
8	Orc	8	Assassin

If you're concerned with the levels of NPCs you could roll 2d10 and add them together, but this might skew towards very high or low, which may not fit your wants. 

Then I devised these tables for random d10 geography...

	Geography
1	Tavern
2	Forest
3	Swamp
4	Mountains
5	Jungle
6	Desert
7	Plains
8	Ocean
9	Wastelands
10	Dungeon

And d8 locations.

1 Camp - population consists of <10-15 campers. It's only defenses are natural terrain formations, such as thorny bushes, a creek, or cliff wall to deter approach. Defenders are equipped with whatever they have packed for their travels.
2 Outpost/Fort/Tower - population consists of <20-30 guards. It's defenses might be spikes, trenches, and barricades to slow attackers. The weapons and armor of the guard depends on what they are being supplier by their employer. The more guards with better equipment indicates better stuff worth protecting.
3 Hamlet - population of 50-100. It has no walls or defenses other than cleared ground to prevent ambush from the surrounding area. It may have a central watchtower with a single lookout. Defenders are an ill prepared militia with improvised weapons, longbows, and farm tools.
4 Village - population of 100-500. Like the hamlet it has no defensive structures expect perhaps an encircling moat/trench. It may have a warning bell to be sounded in case of emergency. Defenders are unarmored militiamen with spears, clubs, and assorted small blades. Depending on its proximity to a larger town, the village may have a semi-permanent force of armored guards with poleaxes and swords. Typically it is 1 guard per 50-75 civilians.
5 Town - population of 500-1,000. Defense is limited to a motte and bailey, wooden palisade with an elevated walkway connecting a few watchtowers. Patrols are infrequent, typically only after dark. Defenders are lightly armored, full time guards armed with crossbows, swords, and shields. Guards number 1 per 40 residents.
6 City - population of 1,000-10,000. Defense is stone walls with evenly spaced watchtowers. Every other watchtower is equipped with a beacon and ballistae. There are limited points of ingress with iron-banded, wooden gates and perhaps a moat and drawbridge. The walls and gates are under constant watch by the city guard who patrol in regular shifts.
7 Grand City - population of 10,000+. This is a monument of civilization, boasting a fortified castle/palace, bustling marketplace, and even an academy/university. The city guard numbers in the hundreds with conscripts and thanes at the ready. Defense is made up of high, thick stone walls. A moat, portcullises, and catapults are essential to keep attackers at bay. These burgs are built to repel invaders, but most could not outlast a prolonged siege.
8 Ruins - these ragged, tumbledown relics bear the signs of battles long past. Most are now weathered stones, reclaimed by nature. These haunted husks are now inhabited by brigands, beasts, or worse. But where the risk is high, there can also be great reward.

Stick'em With the Pointy End

Arya Stark said it best. There is no simpler explanation for how to use a sword.

Weapons and shields a la www.heromachine.com

1 & 2 handed

 They are: dagger, short sword, longsword, axe, mace, morning star, flail, hammer, battleaxe, greatsword.

Polearms & Ranged

They are: spear, halberd, crossbow, sling, greatbow, longbow, (standard) bow, shortbow.
For further explanation of the bows (keeping in mind I am not an archery wizard), certain kinds of bows have a pull strength or poundage - it is the force applied to draw it and the force that is thereby transferred into the projectile. I'm fudging this a bit for simplicity's sake.
The shortbow's smaller size allows it to be carried and fired easily by a rider on horseback, but you don't want to sacrifice power for it. So most shortbows are made from horn or some kind of composite that is lighter, but as strong or stronger, than wood. Their recurve shape also delivers for oomph from a shorter bow stave. Let us say that the shortbow has the same power/pull as a standard wood bow. 40-50 lbs.

A longbow is made entirely from wood, and it's (surprise) longer, to deliver more power. It's poundage is around 75.
The greatbow is monstrous in size, recurve, and strength compared to all others. It is about as heavy as a longbow, but packs much more of a wallop, around 100 lbs!

simple shields

They are: hide, wood, bronze (with the dwarf face), iron, steel (center), large, and tall.

Hide is very light, boiled leather. Not a heck of a lot of stopping power. Same goes for wood. It's a little thicker, heavier, more solid, but it too will break after a few uses/blows. These first two would be favored by rangers that travel fast and light and don't get into a lot of direct scrapes, instead preferring hit and run guerrilla tactics.
Bronze is lighter and softer than iron, but it will stop attacks that hide and wood couldn't hope to.
Iron is getting a bit on the heavy side to lug around all the time, but offers acceptable protection when a dude is trying to mace your face.
Steel is tiring to carry for all but strong characters, but it's unmatched for it's durability.
A large shield can be made of anything metallic, perhaps even wood. But what's the point of having this huge shield that's still going to eventually break? It's just bigger to accommodate larger characters (half-orcs), so they don't feel like they're wielding some piddly buckler.
The tall shield is exactly as it sounds. It's not something your going to dance and parry with, it's something you hide behind when the enemy is throwing everything he's got at you, including gnomes, but don't worry they bounce right off. Think Roman legionnaires marching in a phalanx formation. The enemy launches a volley against them, they set their shields on the ground while the second row stacks theirs above against the rain of quarrels. They pick them up and advance. Repeat as needed. You're not going to advance quickly, but methodically "turtling up" when the need presents itself. Other than that, they're very slow, heavy, and unwieldy in a fight. No small characters can use a tall shield.

**In addition**
A recent thought/realization about tall shields: In the beginning battle in the movie Gladiator, Roman soldiers are shown performing exactly the "turtle" maneuver as described above. However, because their shields are convex rectangles, when they stack the second row over the first it leaves a rather sizable half-circle through which an arrow could plausibly find its way into your eye socket. Bad news bears for legionnaires. Thus, subconsciously I created the above tall shield with a curved bottom which ought to fill in that bothersome arrow-in-the-eye allowance. I hope it's appreciated. Also, having a curved bottom means that you can rock the shield side to side for wider coverage, rather than just standing stock still.

Ain't Got No Class

As I was struggling to develop a Skills web - made increasingly more difficult by not having complete Skill categories and subcategories - I happened to concoct these

Web

I don't know how/if this will work with tracking skill progression. My brain automatically wants to cover skills per class and I can't seem to make it not do that, try as I might.

The upper left figure breaks it down into 3 classes or life-paths of Warrior, Rogue, and Mage, which would in turn require choosing which element you're naturally talented in.

The center figure was part of my original idea for Skills radiating outward into different categories. 12 gives plenty of options, but too many choices makes for a harder decision and might lead to "level grinding" to achieve multiple perks.

Then the lower right figure is something I tried by halving the options to only 6. It might make for easier tracking, but sadly, although I created this web, I can hardly explain it to myself.

So for simplicity's sake I changed from hexes to diamonds. Apparently fewer corners = less irritation.

Again, my instinct is to classify classes first, with suited skills following. While 4 classes covers the bare bones, it seems a little too boiler plate. So in a stroke of what I would hope to call genius, I expanded from 4 to 8, with the "in between" classes encompassing features of the bookend classes.

So you tell me; does it work?

Packed with Expansions

Last night some of the guys and I got together to chat more about our homebrew RPG. Most of our time was devoted to the wonderful map provided by Sporkchop. We discussed races and lore and pantheons of gods. But the unanswered question was scale and climate. How big? What are the degrees of latitude and temperature for that matter.

From what you can see here, the far north is pushing polar latitudes of above 70. Most of the story takes place in the temperate climes of 45-55 degrees latitude. The southern ocean has always been Mediterranean in my mind.

To give an idea of scale and climate

The guys wanted to know what else I had in store as far as an expanded world. I have thought about this far ahead.

This expanded world map shows the "New World" of the Westlands, although I'm not yet decided on how far west they will be. The red wastes of the Skarr'd Lands in the east and the crater where Nemesis, the hateful lord of destruction and chaos, was imprisoned by Lukus, the god of light and order. To the southeast is the broad desert and dunes of the Grimalkin catfolk. And in the tropical jungles of the south reside the honor-obsessed Draken and their wild lizardling cousins.

Armor Bits & Pieces

Building on the sheets previously posted, I've come up with more details to how the various bits and pieces give characters an advantage or penalty.

The 3 main pieces of armor worn are Helmet, (Body) Armor, and Leggings (tasset, fauld, cuisse). This really only comes into play if using a targeting system, like with the body part die. You of course don't have to go into that much detail. You can simply say a player takes a hit, damaging their armor, but reducing actual injury to their person.

If you want to go into further, you can add more protection to the "exposed" areas by adding individual pieces of armor: pauldron/torque, bracers, guantlets, and greaves. If a player takes a targeted hit to Arm, it is anything above the elbow. A hit to Hand is anything below the elbow. A hit to Leg strikes above the knee. A hit to Foot is anything below the knee. Doing specific hits like this means players must discard, repair, or replace damaged armor. Of course this is a lot of extra tracking and spending that can be tossed aside if you're just wanting a bare bones style of combat and armor class.

Pauldrons with heavy breastplate

Gauntlet with medium scalemail or chainmail

Bracers with light/leather armor

Greave or standard boot and upper leg armor

Greave 2 or complete leg (heavy) armor

As for the pros and cons of additional armor, allow me to explain. Let's say you're a dwarf "tank" fighter, clad head to toe in heavy armor. You carry no shield because you wield a two-handed battleaxe or warhammer. You routinely take hits because you don't have a way to block. You could say that you deflect blows with the haft of your weapon, but likely you'd still take a hit to your hands doing so. So there you are, scrapping and brawling in your tunnels against goblins, orcs, duergar, etc.

Bad news first. You're super slow because your armor and large weapon weigh you down. You take a penalty of -3 or -4 to your Speed. Good news: you get a bonus to Constitution/Fortitude/AC equal to the penalty you endure for Speed. If you're just going to stand there while your enemy whacks at you with his sword, you've got to be able to take a licking and keep on ticking. After all, you are a dwarf.

You're a human fighter in medium/normal (non-plate) armor. You use a sword and shield. You protect your hands with gauntlets, but you don't have pauldrons. On the off chance that you take an Arm hit, it deals +2 damage because you were struck directly with no armor to reduce the hit. Because you're a "standard" race with "standard" overall armor, you don't take any penalty to your speed. Let's say you get a +2 bonus to unarmed attacks if your sword is dropped or knocked away. Bashing an opponent in the teeth with a metal glove is going to hurt considerably more than being punched with a bare fist. You can shield bash opponents to stagger them backwards one square. If your shield is damaged/broken and discarded, you can switch to a hand-and-a-half grip on your sword dealing +1 damage.

A final example: you're a lightly armored ranger primarily using your bow for distance attacks. You wear leather bracers to steady your aim/draw, dealing +2 damage to projectile attacks. Speaking literally and historically, that is why archers wear a stiffened leather bracer on their forearm. Because you're lightly armored, you're fast on your feet, gaining +2 to your Speed. However, because you don't wear metal armor, if you get into close combat, hits are going to do +1 damage. Technically, in the illustration above, the ranger character is wearing leather pauldrons and a leather skirt, but that is purely for aesthetics - they don't give any protection. In my mind a ranger is going to accept minimal armor coverings because it would encumber them as they stalk the woods. The light suede covering on arms and legs is just to protect against scratches and scrapes from thorns and twigs as they move through the underbrush.

At last we come to leggings and greaves. To me, leggings are there as a "just in case" against Leg/Foot hits. I think these would primarily come into play if you're a mounted fighter. If you're sitting higher on a horse, it's likely that an enemy with an axe or sword is only going to be able to reach your lower half. To work this into gameplay, you could change any Hand/Arm targeted hits into Foot/Leg hits. The opponent certainly cannot reach your head, so any Head rolls hit your body instead. Strikes to your torso remain possible and deal normal damage to your (body) armor. However, if your enemy has a ranged weapon or pole-arm, the strikes remain as rolled. If your opponent is mounted as well, there are no hits at all to lower body - everything goes against Head, Body, Arm, and Hand.

I'll have to work out whether fully armored knights are wandering about. I rather doubt it because to do so would be slow, awkward, and exhausting. Sure, a hardy dwarf can trump around in armor that would totally tucker out a mere human. You can modify this by having a character with really high Strength or Fortitude, but they would be lessened in other attributes like Dexterity and Speed.

Character Armor Sheets

I like the idea of having a visual reference for armor, equipment, weapons, etc. For me it just really helps the immersion factor if you have a basic visual queue.

I was shooting for something like this from Grant Gould's Blade Raiders.

This is what I came up with.

These are the quick and dirty versions of armor sheets. As you can see, there are spaces for jewelry as well.

I may need to space things out a bit more so there is room for a brief description of the item. At the time I drafted these I was thinking more along the lines of a name for the item and its bonus - like a Ring of Wielding that does +2 attack damage, or a Helmet of Fortitude that adds to AC or Will checks/saves.

Because these were ridiculously easy to whip up, and they're very basic and adaptable, I don't mind in the least if people want to take and use them. Credit or a mention would be nice to increase blog traffic, but I'm not going to beg : )

Next up, I may take a stab at crafting a basic weapons sheet and possibly magic - although it's not really my realm of expertise.

Character Skill Ranks

Originally written for my main blog, Realmwright, I figured this draught would probably go down smoother on this, my gaming blog.

*BTW, I found my body part d12 under the couch today. I should have figured the cat would have something to do with its disappearance.

I get email updates from the Hack & Slash blog and this one in particular had a great idea: a class called Artifex (Latin for specialist) instead of "Thief". It got me thinking, what if instead of numeric level [+ class], you went in named ranks?

Just off the top of my head I put together this ranking:

Level 1 = Beginner - you have no particular skill (or business) doing something, you just feel like it on a hunch. You couldn't possibly sell what you've crafted because it will likely break from your own personal use.

Level 2 = Amateur/Newling - you have managed a "successful" go at it without seriously injuring yourself. You might get a hot meal and a roof over your head as payment, but it still won't put any coin in your pocket.

Level 3 = Novice - you won't get laughed at declaring yourself one, but you may not get a lot of takers either. If you can find someone to tutor you, you are an Apprentice. 

Level 4 = Moderate/Mediocre/Middling - other people recognize you for this ability, but you're still nothing special. Save enough coin and in a year's time you might be able to build a forge, shop, etc. so you don't have to work at the kitchen table.

Level 5 = Average/Ordinary - you can get it done and collect some decent coin for doing so. You spend some wages to hang out a shingle (an "open" sign) and hope that people come to do business.

Level 6 = Experienced/Craftsman - you are the guy in town that people come to when they need something done. You don't have to advertise, word-of-mouth gets you referrals. At this level you can apply to guilds/unions. Successful entry usually requires completion of a task, for which payment is acceptance and you level up to Guild Professional. This means that you can generally find work anywhere and if the town has a guild house you can stay there instead of paying for commercial lodging. It can be anywhere from significantly less (30-50%) or completely free.

Level 7 = Professional - someone somewhere else whom you've never met is aware of your handiwork and seeks you out. Maybe they send you a missive to come work for them. If you belong to a guild you are referred to as a Guild Professional. If you are not in a guild, but under the employ of a Master, you are a Journeyman. Guild Professionals and Journeymen cannot hire Apprentices, but an unaffiliated Professional can.

Level 8 = Masterful/Master - maidens swoon at your feet, kings clamor for you to be their court whateverer. It's a cushy gig where you sit back and let the money roll in so you can roll in it. You can have 2 Apprentices at this level, or 1 Professional who shares a percentage of their profit with you. If you don't yet belong to a guild, they try to get you to join to bolster each others' reputation. If you join a guild, you instantly lose any Apprentices/Professional in your employ. A Master holds a high place in their respective guild, but this leads to competition with others of the same rank. If you're brought into a guild, you have lower seniority than existing Masters - hence why they recruited you, bumping them one step closer to the leadership and wealth of being the Guildmaster.
*A note: Guilds can have no more than 3-5 Masters. Generally at the count of 4, 1 will leave to found a new chapter of the guild in another town.

Level 9 = Exceptional/Extraordinary - you get oohs and aahs and mostly name your own price. You are paid handsomely for doing what you excel at. If you belong to a guild the equivalent is Guildmaster.

Level 10 = Phenomenal - it's questioned whether or not you're a mortal because you are near divine in your abilities. Surely this power cannot be wielded by a mere human...orc, elf, whatever. A bonus and/or drawback to this is that if there is a particular god of this realm/skill - let's say smithcraft - they can either bless you as Chosen, or seek to hurt you because they're jealous of the attention you are drawing away from them, i.e. you're Cursed.

Coming on the heels of the above post, Hack & Slack followed up with another awesome addition: Prestige Classes

Doing Shots

Friday night I found that I appear to have lost my body part d12. I don't know if it's officially "lost" because I haven't scoured the mess of paper that is my drawing table, which serves as an almost daily reminder that I really need to get organized and back into doodling.

Until I find it I'll have to make do with making new. As such I have drafted a few quick tables of how to turn a plain old die into anatomical damage.

d10 or d12
1. Head - your noggin is the primary don't-get-hit-here.
2. Right arm - you'll notice the right side is all even numbers.
3. Left arm - hence the left side is all odd numbers.
4. Right hand
5. Left hand
6. Right leg
7. Left leg
8. Right foot
9. Left foot
10. Torso - your torso is the largest target, therefore the largest number.

This covers everything. Since we're thinking our game will be based on a d10 system (thereby making it easier for beginners/young'uns), I cut it down to 10 instead of 12. But if we/you want to keep it d12, 10 could be chest, 11 is stomach, and 12 is full body, as is the case on my currently unaccounted for die.
I don't exactly like the idea of full body damage because it means one bad roll could kill your character flat out. Either that or they're seriously crispified by dragon fire and unrecognizable to even their own mother. As such, figuring in a little extra danger and plain likelihood, 11 can be another head shot and 12 is another torso hit.


Along the same lines I decided to make a facial scars table. After all, what adventurer is going to live that lifestyle and get away entirely unscathed? This table can be broken down to a simple d6 or detailed up to a d10.

d6
1. Cranium - a scar anywhere else on the head other than the face.
2. Right side of face - very general: cheek, jawline, near the eye, etc.
3. Left side of face
4. Forehead - get it, fourhead?
5. Nose - maybe the barmaids like a guy with a bent beak.
6. Chin - in truth you cut yourself shaving, but the story sounds much better that an assassin was trying to cut your throat, but keen reflexes saved you.

d8
7. Missing left eye
8. Missing right eye

d10
9. Missing all or part of left ear
10. Missing all or part of right ear.

If your dude is a grizzled veteran with decades of battles under his belt, or say he's a barbarian half-orc that thinks helmets are for sissies, roll a 2d6/8/10 and see how ugly things get. S'okay. Chicks dig scars, right?