Characters will find and use a wide variety of equipment and gadgets salvaged from the ruins, most importantly, their weapons and armor, as well as any light sources they find. The wastes are a dangerous place, filled with Aralia and bandits and beasts, all of whom want to kill and even eat you, so it is best to be prepared.
Coins
The most widely accepted currency amongst the free villages is generally pre-Nightfall coinage of whatever country inhabited the region prior to the general collapse of civilization. For the purposes of this game and pricing for equipment the generic term "coins" will be used, however the actual term will vary by area depending on whatever the smallest common denomination of currency in that area was prior to Nightfall, such as cents in the US, EU, or Canada, or pence in Britain.
Weapons
Weapons come in two varieties: Melee, and Ranged, with a different set of statistics for each.
Melee Weapons
Melee weapons have a Damage statistic, which is the type and/or number of dice used to roll when the weapon hits, and is added to the character's Melee Damage stat to find total damage, and a STR Requirement, which is a STR value the player must have to use the weapon without penalty. If this value is not met, the character recieves a -15% penalty to hit when using the weapon. Not all melee weapons have a STR Requirement, if none is present, it is indicated by a dash ("--"). A weapon may also have a special ability, indicated by a word at the end of the statline.
The format of the statline for a melee weapon is as follows:
Name: Damage, STR Req., Value (in coins), Weight (in lbs.), Special
Knife: 1d4, --, 25, negligible, 1-Handed
Club: 1d6, STR 6, 10, 2 lbs., 1-Handed
Axe: 2d4, STR 8, 40, 3 lbs
Sword: 1d8, STR 8, 80, 4 lbs, 1-Handed
Broadsword: 2d6, STR 12, 120, 8 lbs, Cleave*
Spear: 1d8, STR 6, 30, 6 lbs, Reach**
Staff: 1d6, STR 6, 10, 6 lbs, Reach**
* A weapon with Cleave may, upon successfully killing an opponent, follow through to the target next to it, essentially making a second attack at a -20% penalty. Only one additional attack may be made after the initial attack.
** A weapon with Reach makes a character more difficult to approach in combat, providing a bonus of 5% to the character's Defense.
Weapons with Reach or Cleave must be used with both hands, and so no other item may be carried in the character's off-hand during combat, such as a flashlight.
A 1-Handed weapon can be used comfortably in one handed, allowing another item such as a flashlight or lantern to be held in the other.
Archaic Weapons
Archaic weapons are statted in the same fashion as melee weapons, with the exception that all have a special attribute, Reload, followed by a number. This is the number of rounds it takes to reload the weapon so that it may be fired again. A character with an Archaic Weapons skill of 60% or more reduces this number by one, so long as he possesses a quiver or other harness that allows quick access to ammunition.
The Value of the weapon is followed by a slash and a second number, which indicates the cost of 10 rounds of ammunition for the weapon. When not applicable this space is marked with a dash (--). Archaic weapon ammunition may be retrieved after a fight. On a successful Archaic Weapons skill check, the character is able to recover all of his ammunition. On a failure, half of the ammo fired during the fight is broken or lost.
A character's Melee Damage stat bonus applies only to those weapons whose STR Requirement is marked with a plus sign (+), and the bonus only applies if the character's STR exceeds the listed value.
Name: Damage, STR Req., Value (in coins), Weight (in lbs.), Special
Sling: 1d4, STR 6+, 20/--, negligible, Reload 1
Bow: 1d8, STR 8, 60/10, 2 lbs, Reload 1
Crossbow: 2d4, STR 6, 100/10, 3 lbs, Reload 2
Javelin: 2d4, STR 8+, 5/--, 1 lbs, Reload 1*
Throwing Knife: 1d4, STR 8+, 20/--, negligible, Reload 1*, 1-Handed
* This a single weapon that is thrown at the target. The price given is for a single weapon, most individuals will carry a number of them on them at any given time. The Reload number is how quickly another may be extracted from a pack or quiver.
Firearms
All firearms have a Damage statistic much like melee weapons, given in dice, however they do not receive a bonus to this value from STR. They also have a STR Requirement, and like melee weapons if it is not met, a -15% penalty is taken. Additionally, if the STR requirement for a weapon is not met, burst fire may not be used, effectively limiting the weapons Rate of Fire to 1.
In addition to these, firearms also have a Rate of Fire, which is the maximum number of bullets which may practically be fired in a round, a Recoil penalty, which is incurred any time more than one bullet is fired in a combat round, and a Magazine, which is the number of rounds the weapon holds and thus the number of bullets which may be fired before a reload is required.
All guns have Reload 1, unless otherwise indicated as a special attribute. This functions exactly as it does for Archaic Weapons, except that the required skill for reduced Reload is that of the weapon's category, be it Small Arms, Heavy Weapons, or Alien Weapons.
Similar to the archaic weapons, the Value of the weapon is listed as two numbers, the first the cost of the weapon, the second is the cost of a single magazine of ammunition.
The list of firearms follows, broken into three sections for the different firearms skills: Small Arms, Heavy Weapons, and Alien Weapons.
Small Arms
Name: Damage, STR Req., RoF, Recoil, Magazine, Value (in coins), Weight (in lbs.), Special
Revolver: 2d6, STR 4, 1, --, 6, 200/12, 2 lbs, Reload 2, 1-Handed
Auto Pistol: 2d6, STR 4, 2, -10%, 12, 400/24, 2 lbs, 1-Handed
SMG: 2d6, STR 8, 10, -10%, 30, 800/60, 3 lbs.
Shotgun (dbl. barrel): 2d10, STR 8, 2*, -10%, 2, 325/10, 4lbs Reload 2
Shotgun (pump): 2d10, STR 10, 1, --, 8, 400/40, 5 lbs, Reload 3
Shotgun (auto): 2d10, STR 12, 2, -10%, 8, 500/40, 5 lbs, Reload 3
.22 Rifle: 1d8, STR 6, 1, --, 1, 120/2, 3 lbs, Reload 2
Hunting Rifle: 2d8, STR 8, 1, --, 5, 250/15, 4 lbs, Reload 3
Auto Rifle: 2d8, STR 10, 2, -15%, 10, 500/30, 5 lbs
Assault Rifle: 3d6, STR 12, 10, -15%, 30, 850/90, 5 lbs
* The double barreled shotgun can unload both barrels in a single combat round, effectively doing double damage but expending both rounds at once.
Heavy Weapons
Name: Damage, STR Req., RoF, Recoil, Magazine, Value (in coins), Weight (in lbs.), Special
LMG: 3d8, STR 14, 20, -20%, 100, 2000/400, 10 lbs., Mounted
Rocket Launcher: 6d10, STR 10, 1, --, 1, 1200/*, 10 lbs.
Grenade Launcher: 6d10, STR 8, 1, --, 1, 900/200, 3 lbs. Reload 2
Multi-shot Grenade Launcher: 6d10, STR 12, 1, --, 6, 3000/1200, 10 lbs., Reload 4
Anti-materiel Rifle: 6d6, STR 14, 1, --, 10, 4000/500, 20 lbs., Mounted
Flamethrower: 3d6, STR 14, 1, --, 5, 3000/500, 60 lbs., Backpack, Flame
Minigun: 4d6, STR 16, 20, -20%, 500, 10,000/2000, 60 lbs, Mounted
* The rocket launcher is a single use disposable tube containing the rocket. Price given is thus for one unit, and the device is not reloadable.
A Mounted weapon is too heavy to be utilized as a personal weapon, and must be mounted on a vehicle, or fired from a stationary position mounted on a bipod or tripod.
A Backpack weapon has it's ammunition contained in a container worn on the back. As such a normal backpack cannot be worn along with it, and additional ammunition cannot be carried.
A Flame weapon ignites the target upon impact, doing it's base damage the initial round, and continuing to do damage every round thereafter unless the flames can be extinguished.
Alien Weapons
Name: Damage, STR Req., RoF, Recoil, Magazine, Value (in coins), Weight (in lbs.), Special
Zal-illar Plasma Pistol: 4d6, STR 6, 1, --, 8, 4000/500, 2 lbs, Plasma, 1-Handed
Zal-ankar Plasma Rifle: 5d6, STR 10, 1, --, 15, 6000/700. 5 lbs, Plasma
Mitum-gisema Heavy Plasma: 8d6, STR 14, 1, --, 6, 10,000/1000, 15 lbs, Plasma
Mir Coilgun: 2d6, STR 8, 6, -0%, 30, 3000/300, 3 lbs
Masatum Laser Rifle: 3d6, STR 10, 3*, -0%, 50, 5000/500, 20 lbs, Laser
Gesamaru Gatling Laser: 3d6, STR 16, 10, -0%, 200, 10,000/2000, 40 lbs, Backpack, Laser
* The Masatum laser rifle is prone to overheating. There is a cumulative 10% chance per round of burst fire after the first, that the weapon will overheat and be permanently destroyed. E.g. on the first round of burst fire there is no chance of failure, on the second there is a 10%, on the third there is a 20%, and so forth.
Plasma weapons are extremely destructive. When fired at organic matter, the plasma projectile causes a limited chain reaction on impact, boiling or melting away surrounding flesh and tissue. If a target is killed by a Plasma weapon in a single attack, the body is effectively liquified. Because of the massive tissue damage caused, even if the target survives, he will take twice as long to heal, and there's is a 40% chance that a limb was permanently destroyed.
Laser weapons pierce through the target, cauterizing the wound as the beam follows through, due to the extreme heat. Laser wounds take twice as long to heal as normal.
Showing posts with label system. Show all posts
Showing posts with label system. Show all posts
Saturday, June 16, 2007
Saturday, June 2, 2007
Character Creation Part 3: Skills (cont.)
What follows is a list of the skills present in A Song in the Dark. Each skill is presented as a name, followed by the base formula for calculating starting skill level, and then a short description of what it covers and any important special rules.
Unarmed Combat [(STR + AGI) x2 +10]: This skill covers a character's abilities at unarmed combat: striking people with the fists or feet, or grappling them. Characters receive a bonus to their unarmed damage of 1 for every 10% over 70% they have in the Unarmed Combat skill.
Melee Combat [(STR + AGI) x 2]: This covers skill in use of close combat weapons, from clubs to bats to swords to axes. Any handheld weapon meant to strike and kill or maim another living target.
Archaic Weapons [(STR + DEX) x 2]: Archaic weapons refers to primitive, muscle powered projectile weapons, either thrown or mechanical, such as javelins, bows, or crossbows.
Small Arms [(PER + DEX) x2]: Covers the use of small personal firearms, such as pistols, SMGs, and rifles.
Heavy Weapons [(PER + DEX)]: Covers the use of heavy weapons, such as heavy machine guns, rocket launchers, and similar high powered weaponry, both single man, and crew loaded. Such weapons are generally very rare in the wastelands, but have been known to be salvaged, particularly from abandoned military bases.
Alien Weapons [(INT + PER + DEX) /2]: Weaponry is occasionally salvaged from Aralia patrols out outposts, and this skill covers the ability of characters to puzzle out their use, as Aralia technology and weaponry often works in strange ways or utilizes unusual technologies unfamiliar to the free human settlements.
First Aid [(INT x 3)]: First Aid measures the sum total of a character's medical knowledge, and is important in stabilizing wounds taken. Medical knowledge is largely primitive amongst most survivors in the wastes, with only basic knowledge of bandaging and the importance of sterilization, though in some rare villages, primitive surgery may be performed.
Maintenance [(INT + DEX)]: This covers the ability of a character to repair various mechanical and electrical devices scavenged from ruins, as well as basic weaponry like hand guns and rifles. As professional knowledge is scarce, this skill tends to represent an experimental instinct. A character with a 70% skill or higher in Maintenance recieves a +10% bonus to all Tech Lore rolls.
Tech Lore [(INT + PER) x 2]: The ruins of civilization are littered with all manner of technological and mechanical devices, most of them useless, some of them potentially vital to the survival of one's village. Being able to spot which is which is an important skill for those who roam the wastes, and this skill is what measure's a character's ability to identify an item, what it does, and how to use it.
Stealth [(PER + AGI) x 2]: Stealth is the ability to not be noticed, walking silently, and finding places and shadows to hide in. Whenever a character wants to hide, or get through an area or into an area without being seen, he rolls on this skill with a standard penalty equal to 2 times the PER of the individual one is trying to avoid being spotted by.
Cooking [(INT + PER + DEX) ]: Cooking is the knowledge of food and food preparation. It is most vital in the wastes, as knowing how to identify edible food, and even how to make otherwise inedible food edible, is vital to survival. With this skill, a character may rummage food stores to spot preserved foods and spices that are still usable, spot animals and fungus that can be consumed, and cook food so that it is safe to consume and even tasty with enough skill.
Navigation [(INT + PER)]: Finding your way around the wastes is a combination of instinct, intuition, and learning how to spot even the subtlest of differences in terrain and surroundings, drawing mental landmarks where most simply wouldn't see anything but more dead trees. With the sky blacked out, not even the stars or the sun can offer clear indication of direction, so often a navigators route may wind up being downright convoluted, as he follows what landmarks he can recall on the way between one place and another. This skill represents that difficult talent, and is important any time a character msut find their way from one place to another in the wastes.
Tactics [(INT + CHA)]: Tactics is the skill of being able to direct warriors to maximum effect in combat. A good leader improves the fighting ability of all those who fight with him. In game terms, this manifests as a bonus applied to all combat rolls on a successful check. The character with the highest Tactics skill makes a check at the beginning of a fight, and on a successful check, him and all his compatriots receive an additional +20% bonus to all combat rolls.
Tracking [(INT + PER) x 2)]: Tracking is the art of finding other creatures in the wastes, whether it's a single target, or just a general type of target. It can be used to track the whereabouts of an oncoming Aralia patrol, an escaping bandit, or to hunt for wildlife to feed the village, or even just the party.
Animal Handling [(CHA + WIL)]: With the primitive state of human society, the use of animals to serve man has become much more important, from beasts of burden used to ride or pull a load, to beasts trained to guard and kill. Animal Handling covers the ability to tame and control these animals. This can be a very dangerous skill however, especially when dealing with the changed and dangerous creatures that roam the wilds. The difficulty of taming a beast is generated by the GM during the creation of the creature, or listed with the rest of its statistics if it is a pregenerated monster.
Diplomacy [(CHA + PER + INT)]: Diplomacy is the skill of skillful conversation, being able to find out the information one desires, or convince an individual of an idea or conclusion. As a skill, this primarily takes the form of a single check at the beginning of an important conversation, modified by the opponent's CHA (or an average thereof if multiple targets need convincing). If the character succeeds, the GM may give him one clue as to what words might sway them to his way of thinking.
Bartering [(CHA + INT) x2]: Bartering is the skill of negotiating goods and services, and is the cornerstone of what passes for an economy among the free villages. If a successful Bartering check is made before a trade, the player bartering receives a 1% discount for every 5% the roll succeeds by.
Beast Lore [(INT + PER)]: Beast lore is the knowledge of the beasts and monsters that stalk the wilderness. It can be used to identify a creature, or at least the creature it evolved from, and possibly any important habits or behaviors. In combat, a successful Beast Lore check can be made to gain a knowledge of it's weak point, giving all party members an additional +5 to damage rolls against the creature if they succeed at a called shot.
Lockpicking [(PER + DEX)]: The skill of opening locked doors and containers without the appropriate key or combination, everything from safes, to door locks, to cash registers. This is an important skill for looting, as often the most valuable items, and especially guns and money, were kept behind lock and key in pre-Nightfall times.
Unarmed Combat [(STR + AGI) x2 +10]: This skill covers a character's abilities at unarmed combat: striking people with the fists or feet, or grappling them. Characters receive a bonus to their unarmed damage of 1 for every 10% over 70% they have in the Unarmed Combat skill.
Melee Combat [(STR + AGI) x 2]: This covers skill in use of close combat weapons, from clubs to bats to swords to axes. Any handheld weapon meant to strike and kill or maim another living target.
Archaic Weapons [(STR + DEX) x 2]: Archaic weapons refers to primitive, muscle powered projectile weapons, either thrown or mechanical, such as javelins, bows, or crossbows.
Small Arms [(PER + DEX) x2]: Covers the use of small personal firearms, such as pistols, SMGs, and rifles.
Heavy Weapons [(PER + DEX)]: Covers the use of heavy weapons, such as heavy machine guns, rocket launchers, and similar high powered weaponry, both single man, and crew loaded. Such weapons are generally very rare in the wastelands, but have been known to be salvaged, particularly from abandoned military bases.
Alien Weapons [(INT + PER + DEX) /2]: Weaponry is occasionally salvaged from Aralia patrols out outposts, and this skill covers the ability of characters to puzzle out their use, as Aralia technology and weaponry often works in strange ways or utilizes unusual technologies unfamiliar to the free human settlements.
First Aid [(INT x 3)]: First Aid measures the sum total of a character's medical knowledge, and is important in stabilizing wounds taken. Medical knowledge is largely primitive amongst most survivors in the wastes, with only basic knowledge of bandaging and the importance of sterilization, though in some rare villages, primitive surgery may be performed.
Maintenance [(INT + DEX)]: This covers the ability of a character to repair various mechanical and electrical devices scavenged from ruins, as well as basic weaponry like hand guns and rifles. As professional knowledge is scarce, this skill tends to represent an experimental instinct. A character with a 70% skill or higher in Maintenance recieves a +10% bonus to all Tech Lore rolls.
Tech Lore [(INT + PER) x 2]: The ruins of civilization are littered with all manner of technological and mechanical devices, most of them useless, some of them potentially vital to the survival of one's village. Being able to spot which is which is an important skill for those who roam the wastes, and this skill is what measure's a character's ability to identify an item, what it does, and how to use it.
Stealth [(PER + AGI) x 2]: Stealth is the ability to not be noticed, walking silently, and finding places and shadows to hide in. Whenever a character wants to hide, or get through an area or into an area without being seen, he rolls on this skill with a standard penalty equal to 2 times the PER of the individual one is trying to avoid being spotted by.
Cooking [(INT + PER + DEX) ]: Cooking is the knowledge of food and food preparation. It is most vital in the wastes, as knowing how to identify edible food, and even how to make otherwise inedible food edible, is vital to survival. With this skill, a character may rummage food stores to spot preserved foods and spices that are still usable, spot animals and fungus that can be consumed, and cook food so that it is safe to consume and even tasty with enough skill.
Navigation [(INT + PER)]: Finding your way around the wastes is a combination of instinct, intuition, and learning how to spot even the subtlest of differences in terrain and surroundings, drawing mental landmarks where most simply wouldn't see anything but more dead trees. With the sky blacked out, not even the stars or the sun can offer clear indication of direction, so often a navigators route may wind up being downright convoluted, as he follows what landmarks he can recall on the way between one place and another. This skill represents that difficult talent, and is important any time a character msut find their way from one place to another in the wastes.
Tactics [(INT + CHA)]: Tactics is the skill of being able to direct warriors to maximum effect in combat. A good leader improves the fighting ability of all those who fight with him. In game terms, this manifests as a bonus applied to all combat rolls on a successful check. The character with the highest Tactics skill makes a check at the beginning of a fight, and on a successful check, him and all his compatriots receive an additional +20% bonus to all combat rolls.
Tracking [(INT + PER) x 2)]: Tracking is the art of finding other creatures in the wastes, whether it's a single target, or just a general type of target. It can be used to track the whereabouts of an oncoming Aralia patrol, an escaping bandit, or to hunt for wildlife to feed the village, or even just the party.
Animal Handling [(CHA + WIL)]: With the primitive state of human society, the use of animals to serve man has become much more important, from beasts of burden used to ride or pull a load, to beasts trained to guard and kill. Animal Handling covers the ability to tame and control these animals. This can be a very dangerous skill however, especially when dealing with the changed and dangerous creatures that roam the wilds. The difficulty of taming a beast is generated by the GM during the creation of the creature, or listed with the rest of its statistics if it is a pregenerated monster.
Diplomacy [(CHA + PER + INT)]: Diplomacy is the skill of skillful conversation, being able to find out the information one desires, or convince an individual of an idea or conclusion. As a skill, this primarily takes the form of a single check at the beginning of an important conversation, modified by the opponent's CHA (or an average thereof if multiple targets need convincing). If the character succeeds, the GM may give him one clue as to what words might sway them to his way of thinking.
Bartering [(CHA + INT) x2]: Bartering is the skill of negotiating goods and services, and is the cornerstone of what passes for an economy among the free villages. If a successful Bartering check is made before a trade, the player bartering receives a 1% discount for every 5% the roll succeeds by.
Beast Lore [(INT + PER)]: Beast lore is the knowledge of the beasts and monsters that stalk the wilderness. It can be used to identify a creature, or at least the creature it evolved from, and possibly any important habits or behaviors. In combat, a successful Beast Lore check can be made to gain a knowledge of it's weak point, giving all party members an additional +5 to damage rolls against the creature if they succeed at a called shot.
Lockpicking [(PER + DEX)]: The skill of opening locked doors and containers without the appropriate key or combination, everything from safes, to door locks, to cash registers. This is an important skill for looting, as often the most valuable items, and especially guns and money, were kept behind lock and key in pre-Nightfall times.
Sunday, May 27, 2007
Character Creation Part 2: Derived Stats
Derived stats are so named because they are directly calculated based on your character's main attribute scores. They cover such things as how much your character can lift, how much damage he can take, and other specific capabilities.
Damage
The amount of damage a character can take is measured with three stats: Stamina, Wounds, and Wound Threshold.
Stamina covers the overall amount of damage a body can sustain before it finally collapses. Damage taken is first subtracted from this value, and if it reaches 0, the character has collapsed, and will die at the end of the fight if a successful First Aid roll is not made.
A character has an amount of Stamina equal to his STR plus his CON.
Wounds measures the number of critical injuries the character can sustain before he dies. Wounds are checked off as they are taken during combat, with each wound taken incurring a cumulative -10% penalty to all skill and attribute rolls. Each time a character takes a Wound, he must make a CON attribute check, or become unconscious. Once all a character's wounds have been checked off, he is dead. A character with even a single Wound must be stabilized at the end of a fight with a First Aid check, with a penalty of -5% per Wound to the roll. A failure results in the character dropping to 0 Stamina, and the character must make a CON attribute check or die.
A character has a number of Wounds equal to his CON divided by 4, rounded up.
Wound Threshold measures the amount of Stamina damage a character must take in a single blow in order to suffer a critical Wound. For every multiple of the character's Wound Threshold he takes in damage from a single attack, he takes a Wound.
A character's Wound Threshold is equal to his CON divided by 2.
Healing
Every character has a Healing Rate, which is equal to his number of Wounds. A character's Healing Rate determines the number of Stamina points per day he may recover, provided he receives an adequate amount of rest (at least 8 hours sleep, and at least one meal). Additionally, it also determines the minimum number of days before which a character may recover from a Wound. After this period has passed, the character makes a CON attribute check. A success removes one wound, while a failure simply means the wound refuses to heal. The character continues to make CON checks as this time requirement comes up until his wounds heal completely.
Carrying Limit
A character has a Carrying Limit equal to his STR x 5. This is the maximum amount of weight in pounds that the character can carry in gear on his person and still be able to move about during combat, and travel normally while incurring a normal amount of fatigue.
A character can dead lift or move an object up to STR x 15.
Defense and Armor
A character has a base Defense stat equal to his AGI plus PER. This total acts as a penalty to all attack rolls made against the character. This amount may also be further increased by wearing armor. Armor provides a Defense Bonus which adds to the character's base Defense.
Sequence
A character's Sequence stat is equal to the average of his AGI and PER (AGI + PER / 2). Sequence determines the order in which combatants in a fight take their actions, with higher Sequence numbers acting before lower ones.
Movement Rate
A character has a Movement Rate equal to his AGI times 3. This is the number of feet he may move in a single combat turn.
Melee Damage
A character's Base Melee Damage is equal to his STR divided by 3, rounded down. This is the has amount he can inflict on an unarmed strike, and is also the bonus applied to damage from melee weapons.
Spirit
Every character starts with 3 Spirit Points. Spirit Points are essentially a representation of human determination, and are expended to allow the character to push the limits of his abilities to do great things. A player may declare before making any percentile roll that he will spend a Spirit Point on it, giving him a +30% bonus to the roll.
The GM may also at times offer characters the possibility of expending Spirit Points for other exceptional feats as may seem appropriate, such as lifting or moving an object heavier than his normal limit, or jumping farther than his normal ability.
Spirit Points are awarded by the GM whenever a character does something to aid the survival of his family or his village. The human spirit is all about survival at all costs.
Humans are the only species that gain Spirit Points. Aralia, mutant species, and animals do not.
Damage
The amount of damage a character can take is measured with three stats: Stamina, Wounds, and Wound Threshold.
Stamina covers the overall amount of damage a body can sustain before it finally collapses. Damage taken is first subtracted from this value, and if it reaches 0, the character has collapsed, and will die at the end of the fight if a successful First Aid roll is not made.
A character has an amount of Stamina equal to his STR plus his CON.
Wounds measures the number of critical injuries the character can sustain before he dies. Wounds are checked off as they are taken during combat, with each wound taken incurring a cumulative -10% penalty to all skill and attribute rolls. Each time a character takes a Wound, he must make a CON attribute check, or become unconscious. Once all a character's wounds have been checked off, he is dead. A character with even a single Wound must be stabilized at the end of a fight with a First Aid check, with a penalty of -5% per Wound to the roll. A failure results in the character dropping to 0 Stamina, and the character must make a CON attribute check or die.
A character has a number of Wounds equal to his CON divided by 4, rounded up.
Wound Threshold measures the amount of Stamina damage a character must take in a single blow in order to suffer a critical Wound. For every multiple of the character's Wound Threshold he takes in damage from a single attack, he takes a Wound.
A character's Wound Threshold is equal to his CON divided by 2.
Healing
Every character has a Healing Rate, which is equal to his number of Wounds. A character's Healing Rate determines the number of Stamina points per day he may recover, provided he receives an adequate amount of rest (at least 8 hours sleep, and at least one meal). Additionally, it also determines the minimum number of days before which a character may recover from a Wound. After this period has passed, the character makes a CON attribute check. A success removes one wound, while a failure simply means the wound refuses to heal. The character continues to make CON checks as this time requirement comes up until his wounds heal completely.
Carrying Limit
A character has a Carrying Limit equal to his STR x 5. This is the maximum amount of weight in pounds that the character can carry in gear on his person and still be able to move about during combat, and travel normally while incurring a normal amount of fatigue.
A character can dead lift or move an object up to STR x 15.
Defense and Armor
A character has a base Defense stat equal to his AGI plus PER. This total acts as a penalty to all attack rolls made against the character. This amount may also be further increased by wearing armor. Armor provides a Defense Bonus which adds to the character's base Defense.
Sequence
A character's Sequence stat is equal to the average of his AGI and PER (AGI + PER / 2). Sequence determines the order in which combatants in a fight take their actions, with higher Sequence numbers acting before lower ones.
Movement Rate
A character has a Movement Rate equal to his AGI times 3. This is the number of feet he may move in a single combat turn.
Melee Damage
A character's Base Melee Damage is equal to his STR divided by 3, rounded down. This is the has amount he can inflict on an unarmed strike, and is also the bonus applied to damage from melee weapons.
Spirit
Every character starts with 3 Spirit Points. Spirit Points are essentially a representation of human determination, and are expended to allow the character to push the limits of his abilities to do great things. A player may declare before making any percentile roll that he will spend a Spirit Point on it, giving him a +30% bonus to the roll.
The GM may also at times offer characters the possibility of expending Spirit Points for other exceptional feats as may seem appropriate, such as lifting or moving an object heavier than his normal limit, or jumping farther than his normal ability.
Spirit Points are awarded by the GM whenever a character does something to aid the survival of his family or his village. The human spirit is all about survival at all costs.
Humans are the only species that gain Spirit Points. Aralia, mutant species, and animals do not.
Tuesday, May 22, 2007
Character Creation Part 1: Attributes
Attributes define a characters abilities in the broadest sense, measuring the raw capability and talent present in a character. They also serve as the basis for determining a number of important secondary characteristics, as well as affecting the default values of the various skills which characters may train in. They may also be rolled against by themselves in circumstances where no specific skill applies to an action.
The eight attributes and the capabilities they cover in ASID are as follows:
Strength (STR): A character's raw muscle power and build
Agility (AGI): Gross motor control and movement ability
Constitution (CON): Endurance and durability
Dexterity (DEX): Fine motor control and hand eye coordination
Perception (PER): Sensory ability and awareness
Willpower (WIL): Strength of mental will and bravery
Intellect (INT): Intelligence and reason
Charisma (CHA): Skill at interpersonal relations and general magnetism
Normal human attribute scores range from 2-20. A 1 indicates effective non-ability in that particular attribute. An animal for instance, will generally have a 1 in Intellect. 20 is the theoretical limit of human ability, but some superhuman creatures, or enhanced mechanical devices such as powered armor, may exceed 20.
Attribute checks are made by subtracting 1 from the attribute score, and multiplying the result by 5 in order to find the number the player must roll under in order to succeed. The GM may apply bonuses or negatives to modify the difficulty of a check.
Players may choose from two methods for generating their character's attributes: Point buy, or random rolling.
In point buy, the character is given 90 points to assign across all 8 attributes. No attribute may go lower than 2, nor higher than 20.
In random rolling, the player rolls 2d10 9 times, and then assigns the resulting numbers to his attributes as desired. Alternately, if a player is looking for a more unpredictable result, he can simply roll 2d10 for each attribute in turn, applying whatever result should come up on the dice.
The eight attributes and the capabilities they cover in ASID are as follows:
Strength (STR): A character's raw muscle power and build
Agility (AGI): Gross motor control and movement ability
Constitution (CON): Endurance and durability
Dexterity (DEX): Fine motor control and hand eye coordination
Perception (PER): Sensory ability and awareness
Willpower (WIL): Strength of mental will and bravery
Intellect (INT): Intelligence and reason
Charisma (CHA): Skill at interpersonal relations and general magnetism
Normal human attribute scores range from 2-20. A 1 indicates effective non-ability in that particular attribute. An animal for instance, will generally have a 1 in Intellect. 20 is the theoretical limit of human ability, but some superhuman creatures, or enhanced mechanical devices such as powered armor, may exceed 20.
Attribute checks are made by subtracting 1 from the attribute score, and multiplying the result by 5 in order to find the number the player must roll under in order to succeed. The GM may apply bonuses or negatives to modify the difficulty of a check.
Players may choose from two methods for generating their character's attributes: Point buy, or random rolling.
In point buy, the character is given 90 points to assign across all 8 attributes. No attribute may go lower than 2, nor higher than 20.
In random rolling, the player rolls 2d10 9 times, and then assigns the resulting numbers to his attributes as desired. Alternately, if a player is looking for a more unpredictable result, he can simply roll 2d10 for each attribute in turn, applying whatever result should come up on the dice.
Key mechanics: Fear
I've hit upon what I think are some of the key mechanical ideas in the system, so I thought I would begin presenting them here in a summarized form, both so that I do not forget them, as well as to give my audience here something to read.
Fear: This is a game with a feeling of horror, after all, and there are many scary things hiding out in the dark. Fear of the dark itself is one of the most basic of human fears, and the one that inspired ASID from the very beginning.
Different situations and potential horrors the players face are represented by a Fear Factor, which serves as both a modifier and a success threshold. The player makes a Willpower attribute check, attempting to roll under his base Willpower minus 1 x5, minus the Fear Factor, on a d100 roll. If the character rolls under his modified Willpower by an amount greater than the Fear Factor, he maintains control of his composure, and may act normally.
If the character achieves a marginal success, beating the roll by less than the Fear Factor, he is now in Fight Response. In Fight Response, a character will immediately attempt to attack whatever the nearest threat is to his safety. However, he is not in a fully composed state of mind, and as such receives modifiers to his combat actions based on what form of weapon he is using. If a ranged weapon, he begins firing wildly, giving him -10% to hit a target unless he is using an automatic weapon, but a +10% to his Defense, as the wall of bullets repels potential attackers. If a melee weapon, he charges into the fray with no concern for his own safety, giving him a +10% to all his attack rolls but a -10% to his Defense. If the object of the character's fear is not an actual physical threat, he will instead try to destroy it or disable it some how. A radio producing ominous sounds might be smashed or yanked from it's power source, for example.
If the character fails the roll, but not by more than the Fear Factor, the character is in Freeze Response. His mind is uncertain how to respond to the potential threat, and so he is unable to act. The character will remain frozen in place, unless the character succeeds at a Willpower attribute check to have his character hide behind the nearest cover.
If the character fails the roll by more than the Fear Factor, the character enters Flight Response. He will immediately attempt to flee the object of his terror as quickly as possible. The character must move away from the source of his fear by as direct a route as possible, and will evade any attacks against him with heightened reflexes, giving him +10% to his Defense.
A character only makes a Fear check once, when first encountering whatever horror is present. The effects of a Fear effect remain in place for at least as many rounds as the Fear Factor divided by 5, rounding up, with a minimum of 1. After this requirement has been met, characters may make a Willpower attribute check to attempt to break the effects of the Fear.
The character may also expend a Spirit Point, to waive any Fear check and continue as normal.
Fear Factors may come from a variety of sources. The freakish mutated beasts that the characters encounter in the wastes, the PCs personal fear chosen at character creation, or simply unusual circumstances. The GM is encouraged to apply Fear checks only when he feels it is something terrifying enough to produce a Fight, Freeze, or Flight response. Simple creepy surroundings are simply part of the atmosphere, for example. The Fear check is a dramatic tool, and loses it's usefulness when over applied.
Fear: This is a game with a feeling of horror, after all, and there are many scary things hiding out in the dark. Fear of the dark itself is one of the most basic of human fears, and the one that inspired ASID from the very beginning.
Different situations and potential horrors the players face are represented by a Fear Factor, which serves as both a modifier and a success threshold. The player makes a Willpower attribute check, attempting to roll under his base Willpower minus 1 x5, minus the Fear Factor, on a d100 roll. If the character rolls under his modified Willpower by an amount greater than the Fear Factor, he maintains control of his composure, and may act normally.
If the character achieves a marginal success, beating the roll by less than the Fear Factor, he is now in Fight Response. In Fight Response, a character will immediately attempt to attack whatever the nearest threat is to his safety. However, he is not in a fully composed state of mind, and as such receives modifiers to his combat actions based on what form of weapon he is using. If a ranged weapon, he begins firing wildly, giving him -10% to hit a target unless he is using an automatic weapon, but a +10% to his Defense, as the wall of bullets repels potential attackers. If a melee weapon, he charges into the fray with no concern for his own safety, giving him a +10% to all his attack rolls but a -10% to his Defense. If the object of the character's fear is not an actual physical threat, he will instead try to destroy it or disable it some how. A radio producing ominous sounds might be smashed or yanked from it's power source, for example.
If the character fails the roll, but not by more than the Fear Factor, the character is in Freeze Response. His mind is uncertain how to respond to the potential threat, and so he is unable to act. The character will remain frozen in place, unless the character succeeds at a Willpower attribute check to have his character hide behind the nearest cover.
If the character fails the roll by more than the Fear Factor, the character enters Flight Response. He will immediately attempt to flee the object of his terror as quickly as possible. The character must move away from the source of his fear by as direct a route as possible, and will evade any attacks against him with heightened reflexes, giving him +10% to his Defense.
A character only makes a Fear check once, when first encountering whatever horror is present. The effects of a Fear effect remain in place for at least as many rounds as the Fear Factor divided by 5, rounding up, with a minimum of 1. After this requirement has been met, characters may make a Willpower attribute check to attempt to break the effects of the Fear.
The character may also expend a Spirit Point, to waive any Fear check and continue as normal.
Fear Factors may come from a variety of sources. The freakish mutated beasts that the characters encounter in the wastes, the PCs personal fear chosen at character creation, or simply unusual circumstances. The GM is encouraged to apply Fear checks only when he feels it is something terrifying enough to produce a Fight, Freeze, or Flight response. Simple creepy surroundings are simply part of the atmosphere, for example. The Fear check is a dramatic tool, and loses it's usefulness when over applied.
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