The Nine and Thirty Kingdoms: clone

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Thursday, August 27, 2020

Behind the Scenes: Pamphlet Changes

Just a note on the status of nuts-and-bolts RPG materials for this blog: It may be obvious that I’ve switched the blog focus more towards general RPG discussion, links to blog posts or other resources, and non-RPG media reviews. This doesn’t mean I’ve stopped working on useful RPG support materials, but I did find that working on that material over a series of blog posts involved a lot of effort and ate up a lot of time. And not just personal time, but also time spent on larger RPG projects I’ve been promising for a long time. Cranking out maps every week prevented me from finishing the random wilderness generation system and the Undead Neighbors/Infernal Neighbors supplements, for example. It just seems wiser to write lighter blog posts and do the hard work offstage.

One thing I’m working on behind the scenes is a refactor of the Liber Zero player and GM reference sheets. I think the leaflets are a pretty good idea and I like a lot of things about them, but I’ve seen a lot of room for improvement. Three of the goals I set for myself were to make the materials Fiction-Focused, Dice-Neutral, and Modular. There’s probably way too many tables in the leaflets if the goal is to keep players focused on the fiction first, possibly even ignoring rules. Where rules are mentioned, they should stick to dice-neutral references which get the basic idea across for the players, while allowing the GM to substitute their preferred table for handling that. And some of the optional material included in pamphlets should be moved into their own leaflets, fitting the modular goal.

I’m still working on rearranging some of this, but I may have some replacement pamphlets next month. The old pamphlets will still be available unless their contents become obsolete.

Tuesday, March 3, 2020

Spells to Detect or Sense Evil

Tim at Gothridge Manor has started going through the D&D spells one spell at a time and has made it to Detect Evil. Rob at Bat in the Attic has also commented on this. I’ve said some things about Detect Evil before, but I figured now is a good opportunity to comment on why I’m changing the spell in Liber Zero.

Tim likes the absence of subjectivity in the GURPS spell Sense Foes more than the vagueness of the B/X version. Rob points out that the original version in Men & Magic is in a way closer to the GURPS spell:

I interpret the original spell the same way: the spell detects a plan to do harm, either within a person in the caster’s presence or within an active spell or enchantment placed by someone planning harm. I link it to the ESP spell, which detects all thoughts, not just thoughts of harming the caster. Enchanted objects are an exception to the rule that poison, traps, and other mindless things or substances have no thoughts and thus cannot be detected as “evil”. Enchantments, the way I see them, contain part of the enchanter’s thoughts and desires, as opposed to a mundane bear trap or covered pit.

So, in the LZ Hybrid Class pamphlet, I listed the spell as Sense Evil, and was tempted to rename it completely to Sense Enemy. I haven’t written spell descriptions yet (working on a huge spell database as prep for that…) but it will be something like:

Note that this would not detect beings planning harm against someone other than the caster. This is what an ESP (or Sense Thoughts) spell would do.


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Tuesday, February 11, 2020

Liber Zero Hybrid Class Reference Sheet (PDF)

This Liber Zero class reference document took longer than any of the others, but it’s finally done: the Hybrid Class reference sheet! Hybrid, in my class scheme, represent classes that mix Heroic (fighter) and Magic (magician) abilities. They are not as good at fighting as fighters, and more limited in what magic they can use, but the fact that they combine two classes is a huge advantage itself.

The quintessential hybrid class is the Priest, which is what I’ve renamed clerics. I’ve also spun off two variant classes from clerics: Chaotic priests become either Heretics or Diabolists, depending on whether they lose their turn undead ability or replace it with a command undead ability. And I briefly describe another variant, the Beastmaster, which uses the turn undead mechanic on animals instead of undead.

One thing you may notice is that there’s no discussion of alignment. There will be a separate reference sheet for alignment, but it will describe this as an optional system, because I realized while writing the Priest, Heresiarch, and Diabolist descriptions that I didn’t need to rely on alignment to make the distinction. I could make it all about how they handle reversed spells and turning undead.

Releasing this pamphlet means that I now have all the basic classes covered. I still have to do the spell lists, a couple GM reference sheets, and some variant classes, but I’m close to being done with Liber Zero’s core game.

Update: I corrected a couple of spell names and added a brief table of reversed spell names and uploaded the new version. For those who don't want to download another PDF just for a couple small changes, here's what changed:

Cleanse Food became Pure Food
Heal Minor Wounds became Minor Healing
Added Putrid Food
Added Circle of Shadow
Added Minor Wounding


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Thursday, January 16, 2020

Liber Zero Reaction Rolls Reference Sheet (PDF)

Here’s the first Liber Zero PDF of 2020: the LZ Reaction Rolls reference sheet. It gives a description of how and when to use reaction rolls: encounters, negotiations, haggling, loyalty, morale, and even a short suggestion for the weather. I figured I needed to knuckle under and get this one done next because I’ve been working on the Hybrid/Priest class and realized “it would be nice to refer to the reaction rolls reference when describing the priest’s ability.”

One important feature of this pamphlet is that it’s the first one to go into any detail on the LZ dice neutral approach. There are two dice roll tables in the pamphlet: one for if you want to roll 1 or more d6s for your reaction rolls, the other for rolling d10, d20, and d100. It doesn’t matter what dice you use: the plan for all my LZ-compatible material will be to refer to many tests as “needs Good or better on a reaction roll” or something similar. There’s even a brief mention that you might want to roll monster morale checks using only 1d6 instead of whatever you usually roll because it’s quicker. The benefit of keeping things dice neutral is that it’s easier to be modular. If you know that priests make a reaction roll of Good or better to turn undead, but there’s no mention of which dice to roll or what “Good or better” means, then you can replace my approach to reaction rolls with another that uses the same terminology, but different methods: roll under, dice pool, roshambeau, whatever you desire.

Oh, also: you may notice I'm experimenting with a new, cleaner, cartoon-y style for the cover art on the pamphlet. Let me know what you think.

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Thursday, November 21, 2019

Support and Upkeep

Here’s a weekly support and upkeep system that fits with Liber Zero, OD&D, and almost any D&D compatible ruleset.

Level	Weekly Upkeep	Residence Cost	Servants
1	15 coins	N/A	0
2	45 coins	150 coins	1
3	90 coins	450 coins	1
4	180 coins	900 coins	2
5	360 coins	1800 coins	2
6	720 coins	3600 coins	3
7	1400 coins	7200 coins	4
8	2800 coins	14000 coins	5
9	5600 coins	28000 coins	6
10	11,000 coins	56000 coins	8
	+10,000/level	+50,000/level

Explanation

Weekly Upkeep is how much an adventurer has to pay for room, board, equipment repairs, and the occasional minor tax (gate tolls, market fees.)

Residence Cost is how much an adventurer has to pay for a permanent residence in town if they want to reduce the weekly upkeep costs. If a character has a level-appropriate permanent residence, shift up one row for the weekly upkeep costs (minimum 15 coins/week.) HOWEVER…

Servants is the minimum number required to maintain both the residence and one’s own social standing. If a character doesn’t have enough servants, there should be a weekly chance of some kind of minor disaster: rodent infestations, bed bugs, water or smoke damage, and so on. Roll 1d6 for every missing servant, with something bad happening if any die rolled is 5+. Multiply the total of all the dice rolled by 10 for replacement or repair costs.

If either the residence value or number of servants is below what is indicated for the character’s level, the character will be seen as being a lower level. For example, a 4th-level hero with a single-floor residence worth 150 coins is seen as a 2nd level character. Shift reaction results down one category (Good reactions become Average, etc.) Or, roll 1d6 for every level of difference to check for social catastrophes, similar to the way you would check for minor disasters at an understaffed residence.


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Thursday, October 31, 2019

Archer Class (Hero/Fighter Variant)

Per a conversation on the ODD74 forums, here’s a quick Heroic Class variant: the Archer.

Concept: Warrior specializing in bows, for example Robin Hood (assuming you don’t make Robin a thief.)

Alignment: Any.

XP/HD: As Fighter (Heroic Class.) Primary ability scores are Strength and Dexterity. Use half the lowest score to determine XP bonus.

Saves: As Fighter.

Weapons and Armor: Use any bow or crossbow, dagger, and any armor. Also trained in any weapons purchased when character is created. Shields and weapons can’t be used while using a bow or crossbow, but can be used as a backup after dropping or stowing away the bow.

Abilities: Short range distances for bows and crossbows are doubled. Archers also do bonus damage based on either their Level or half of their best ability score (Strength or Dexterity.) See the table below.

Level	Ability Score	Damage
1-5	3-11	1+1
6	12-13	1+2
7	14-15	1+3
8	16-17	2
9	18	2+1
10		2+2
11		2+3
12		3

Archers can potentially hit creatures that are immune to mundane weapons, even when using mundane bows and arrows, as long as their base archery damage is 2 dice or more. Creatures that can only be struck by +2 magic weapons can be hit if base archery damage is 3 dice.

When not in heavy armor, archers can aim and fire while moving (split move and fire, as an elf.)

Archers can aim and fire into a melee safely. Ordinary bow users have to randomize their targets when firing into a melee, either always or when they miss their attack roll. Archers, however, only randomize their targets on a critical miss (for example, a 1 on 1d20.)

High-level archers can build a stronghold and become a baron, just as fighters do.

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Thursday, October 24, 2019

Liber Zero Apothecary Variant Class (PDF)

I know I should get the Hybrid Class reference sheet for Liber Zero done, as well as the spell references and a few other things, but I’ve been working on this pamplet instead: the Apothecary variant class. It’s a variant of the Talent class, but instead of a thief, it’s … a chemist! Not an alchemist, mind you, although because this is an extraordinary version of a mundane profession, Apothecaries have the uncanny ability to identify alchemical ingredients, even if they can’t use them themselves. But they can make what are essential “mundane potions”: drugs, poisons, antidotes, the infamous “flaming oil”, and even explosives.

They may seem useless on an adventure, but they are as “combat ready” as a squishy magician or thief. An apothecary with a blowgun and some poison powders could be a handy replacement for a magician with a Sleep spell. A lower level apothecary with not much money can still be useful identifying poisons before anyone “researches” them the hard way, or might have enough cash for some night vision drugs.

You’ll probably need to refer to the Adventurer Skills reference sheet to make sense of the formula research rules, but they are pretty simple: decide how long you want to take, which sets the weekly cost, then the GM rolls a d6 (usually…) On 5+, it takes exactly one base time period (week, month, season.) On 1 to 4, add that many extra time periods. Figure out the total cost based on the number of weeks in that time.


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Friday, October 11, 2019

Decode Arcana, Scrolls, and Learning Spells

Sebastian DM had some questions in a comment on yesterday’s Liber Zero Magic Class pamphlet. The answers are related and worth some discussion, so I’m answering in a full post.

Before I get started, let me make clear, for anyone who didn’t know, that the Decode Arcana spell is meant to replace Read Magic. A lot of my previous posts on Read Magic went into the thinking behind the spell.

Originally, Read Magic seems to have been a gatekeeper for using scrolls and magic items. There weren’t a lot of predefined details about the way spellbooks and learning spells worked in early games, so its only real effect was to restrict how many scrolls found in a dungeon could be used immediately. It’s limited to the number of Read Magic spells memorized.

Decode Arcana inherits this function. The way I’m imagining the spell working: a magician finds a scroll, which is written in some ancient wizard’s uniquely personal magical code. The magician doesn’t have time to decode the symbols, so they use Decode Arcana to immediately decode it. They now know what the scroll says and can use it.

That’s pretty much identical to the way most GMs use Read Magic. It’s just a different backstory of how it works.

What I changed, though, was: magicians can automatically recognize and use scrolls for spells they already know. Decode Arcana isn’t necessary. Limiting scroll use to spells the magician already knows sounds like a limitation, but it is actually a boost to ability: instead of a 1st Level Magician only being able to use one scroll max, assuming they’ve prepared Decode Arcana, they can use any scrolls of known spells they find, plus one scroll of an unknown spell per Decode Arcana spell used. Once Decode Arcana is cast to learn an unknown spell, that spell is known and the magician never needs to cast Decode Arcana to read a scroll with that spell on it.

This is a very complicated way to explain what’s ultimately a simplification.

That basically answers the second question. But why require time and cost to learn spells, if Decode Arcana does it for free? The magician might not know Decode Arcana. Without the spell, they will need to take the slow, costly way of learning new spells. But on the other hand, they aren’t completely locked out of learning new spells or even using scrolls, just because they don’t know Decode Arcana. They always have a way around it. However, they have a strong incentive to find and learn Decode Arcana as quickly as possible.

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Thursday, October 10, 2019

Liber Zero Magic Class Reference Sheet (PDF)

It’s Liber Zero reference sheet time again! Finally, I finished the pamphlet for the Magic Class. In other words, magic-users. The hold-up, really, was that any pamphlet meant to help beginning players create a magic-using character would necessarily have to include a short list of beginning spells, but I haven’t necessarily settled on how I want spells to work. I haven’t done much for the LZ build-a-spell system.

As it turned out, there was no room for even one-line spell descriptions, so I just needed a small table of spell names. The one included are tentative and might change. The basic naming schema is that Verb+Noun names tend to be reserved for spells that improve or add abilities, while Modifier+Noun is for spells that modify other things, and Noun+Prep+Noun usually has a spell’s form in the first noun slot (Circle, for example, creates a circular effect.) I need to work this out in more detail, however.

The part most people will find interesting is the inclusion of Alchemists and Witches as variant classes. If you use another OD&D-compatible spell list while waiting for the Liber Zero version, you should be able to start playing these now.

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Friday, September 27, 2019

Liber Zero Adventurer Skills Reference Sheet (PDF)

I’m making a surprise Friday post to mention two things.

First, I made some corrections to yesterday’s General Abilities pamphlet and uploaded the new version. Not a big deal, just a problem with some wording.

Second… a surprise extra Liber Zero pamphlet this week! It’s the Adventurer Skills Player Reference Sheet. It starts out with a short and simple method of handling players who want their characters to have training in another skill or weapon, either during character creation or added later. This is a tiny add-on to OD&D and doesn’t change gameplay significantly. The only game effect is that trained characters can do things a little faster. There’s also a training time and cost table that looks new, but is really just a repurposing of existing rules. More on that in a bit.

The pamphlet has an additional optional system for handling characters with a little more detail in their background. This is a rewrite of the background system I’ve proposed before, and it is now better integrated with the traditional ability scores. Rolls are kept to a minimum. Again, the focus is on how long tasks take, or the ability to skip rolls you might have to make otherwise.

Design Notes You Can Skip

Back to the training table. The table is, believe it or not, based on the magical research rules. Previously, I’ve proposed using the cost to research a 1st level spell as a basis for training costs. Just divide the cost by 10. Researching a 1st level spell with a 100% success rate costs 10,000 gp and takes 1 week. So, the cost to pick up a new skill is 1,000 gp (called “coins” in the pamphlet, to make it compatible with the silver standard houserule.)

You can spend less to research a spell, and by analogy you could spend less to train in a skill. The chance of success goes down, though: it’s proportional to the amount spent per week. If you spend 20% of the full cost, per week, you have a 20% chance of success.

But I wanted to make things simpler than that. I assumed instead: When you have paid the maximum amount, regardless of whether you pay it all at once or broken up in installments, you succeed… Unless you interrupt your training, of course. Doing things quicker should cost more, but shouldn’t always work. So, how to figure out the odds?

I decided to go with the simple 5+ on 1d6 situation roll again. On a 5+, you succeed in the shortest amount of time. Otherwises, multiple the die roll by the base time to get the additional amount of time you spend. If you try to learn it all in a week and blow your roll, the worst that can happen is that it will take five weeks. Similarly, if you try to finish it all in a month, the worst case is it takes five months, and so on.

So: I set the maximum time in each case to full cost (1,000 coins) and then divide the time by the number of weeks to get the per-week cost.

1,000 / 5 weeks = 200 coins/week.
5 months = 20+ weeks. 1,000/20 weeks = 50 coins/week.
5 seasons = 64+ weeks. To make things easier and give players a break, I round up to 100 weeks. 1,000/100 weeks = 10 coins/week.
5 years = 260+ weeks. I gave everyone a break and assumed anyone taking years to learn a skill is learning on the job and not paying for training.

If a PC pays the full amount up front, they can either just call it “1 week” or, to see if they get some free time, roll for it the same as for the other training times. This means training takes 1 to 5 days.

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Thursday, September 26, 2019

Liber Zero General Abilities Reference Sheet (PDF)

Today’s Liber Zero offering is the General Abilities Player Reference Sheet PDF. What are “general abilities”? The six standard ability scores, basically, although I include hints that GMs can add other abilities as well. I call them “general abilities” to distinguish them from class abilities or trained abilities. They are the abilities that everyone in general has.

Features of this reference sheet are:

A brief run-down of what the various abilities mean. More detailed than the summary on the back of other reference sheets, but still short.
Tables that show ability ratings and time adjustments.
Explanation of how ability scores are used, focusing on the “high scores mean skipping dice rolls” approach, but with a mention of the optional “add ability score bonus”.

I’m torn over whether I should create individual reference pamphlets for each ability, or whether I should save that for a GM reference booklet.

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Thursday, September 19, 2019

Liber Zero Heroic and Talent Class Reference Sheets (PDF)

It took a while, but I finished two more Liber Zero reference sheet pamphlets. This time, it’s character classes!

The Heroic Class reference sheet covers fighters, your basic combat class. It also includes three variant classes, which are just fighters with an extra non-combat ability: Cavaliers are masters of horse riding, Buccaneers are masters of sailing, and Barbarians are masters of the wilderness. The combat ability for all three variants is the same, so you lose nothing by picking a variant aside from a few bonus XP points. Heroes have a couple changes you won’t see in OD&D: a boost to the number of opponents they can fight when the hit dice are very low (double the usual number) and the option to use twice their Level instead of one of their physical ability scores when attempting heroic feats. Also, the Heroic class does more damage, based on either Strength or Level. In fact, high-level Heroes do more damage than the strongest low-level Heroes.

The Talent Class reference sheet covers a catch-all for non-combat, non-magical classes. The focus is on the one everyone’s familiar with: the Thief, but there are brief descriptions of two variant classes: Miners and Smiths. Unlike variant Heroes, variant Talents do not add abilities to the “main” class, in this case Thieves. Instead, they completely replace Thief abilities with roughly similar mechanics. Also worth noting: in many cases, Talent class abilities work automatically or speed actions up rather than improve a skill rating as they level up.

Since I haven’t completed a reference sheet on resolving combat or “skill checks” yet, there’s a reference that might not make much sense: some abilities are given a “High” chance of success. What this means depends on what kind of dice you roll (it’s a dice neutral system, remember?) Basically, it’s 3+ on 1d6, 6+ on 2d6, or 8+ on 1d20 (or 9+ on 4d6 drop 6s.) At least, if you are rolling target number or above. There will be other options when I get around to working out various possibilities.

If you were to use Delta’s Target 20 system instead, read “High chance” as 1d20+12 and “Low Chance” as 1d20+2.

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Friday, September 13, 2019

Speeding Up, Taking Time

So, for a couple reasons, some of which will be made clear at various points of time in the future, I’ve been tackling abilities, training, and situation rolls. Mostly, how to avoid them, as explained in the Ability Checks Are the Devil post, which turned into a series of posts (summary here) ending with:

I’ve mentioned in a couple places the idea of rolling a d6 to see if you are able to do something on time. On 5+, you do. On 1-4, the roll = how much extra time you need. You also need to roll if the situation isn’t perfect and something could go wrong, regardless of how skillful you are. Ability scores, training, and backgrounds affect the time or eliminate the need to roll.
’
Here’s the rough draft of a table I’m working on to get this all unified.

The idea: Tasks that are easy for trained professionals are Difficult for the untrained. Difficult tasks are Unlikely for the untrained. Taking extra time – moving up one or more rows in the Base Time Period columns – can eliminate the need for a roll (move down the same number of rows in the Chance column.) Speeding things up works the opposite.

Ability scores also affect the time needed:

Good scores (13-15) shift the time of Difficult tasks down one row
Very Good scores (16-17) shift the time of Unlikely tasks down one row
Bad scores (6-8) shift the time of Unlikely tasks up one row
Very Bad scores (4-5) shift the time of Difficult tasks up one row
Extremely Bad and Extremely Good scores (3 and 18) shift the time of any task up or down two rows, although no task becomes impossible unless there are other negative aspects in play, and no task becomes automatic if there are other negative aspects in play.

Characters with a relevant professional background can substitute years of training for an ability score, if desired. Classes can substitute double their Level, if it seems appropriate.
It will need more work, but I wanted to see where this was going before I worked on a certain other project.

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Thursday, September 12, 2019

Liber Zero Character Advancement GM Reference Pamphlet (PDF)

Here’s another Liber Zero reference sheet in pamphlet format: the Character Advancement GM Reference Sheet. This contains the full version of the XP modifier table and an XP/Hit Dice progression table. It also has guidelines for awarding experience points, optional XP awards for GMs that want to try something other than “kill monsters and take their stuff”, rules for going past Level 11, starting at a higher level, or switching classes, and general advice for the GM about handling experience. That doesn’t mean players can’t look at the pamphlet. though. In fact, the information is arranged so that the most relevant information for players is the first information you see when you open the pamphlet.

The XP modifier table is for my version of bonuses for high primary abilities. What I did, as you may recall, was “zero it out” and precalculate XP for a unit of treasure to eliminate subtraction and percentages to simplify the process. It’s all addition and multiplication. The version in the character card pamphlet was a “basic” version, which assumes all classes advance at the same rate. This expanded table uses a trick to boost the XP bonus for classes that advance faster:

Find the range for your primary ability score on the table.
Move down four rows if your character is Heroic class (fighter,) or down eight rows if your character is Hybrid class (cleric.)
Write the XP Mod in that row on your character card.

The pamphlets for each class will have custom tables that eliminate the need for Step 2.

The original game, of course, has a unique progression table for each class. Some people dump this approach and make all classes progress at the same rate, but this alters the balance between the classes. Boosting the XP bonus for individual classes is sort of an in-between approach: I can use one progression table, but fighters will progress faster than magic-users, and clerics will progress faster than fighters. It duplicates the effects of the original game without copying the mechanics.

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Thursday, September 5, 2019

Liber Zero Adventure Gear Card Reference Pamphlet (PDF)

Time for another Liber Zero reference sheet in pamphlet format: Liber Zero Price Lists for Adventure Gear, which I like to refer to as the LZ Adventure Gear Card. Like the LZ Character Card, the pamphlet includes an index card-sized form that you cut out
and fill in, following the simple directions in the pamphlet. But this is a gear card, representing one large sack and its contents. Carrying multiple sacks means having a stack of multiple index cards.

What this means is that players can hand over one or more index cards when they drop sacks to lighten their load and move faster. If they have time or have figured it out in advance, they get to pick which cards to hand over. The GM sets the cards aside and decides whether the sacks stay in that spot or are picked up. Either way, players can find the sacks again later.

If a thief steals gear, the GM can ask the player to shuffle their gear cards and fan them out upside down, then draw cards blindly until the thief gets caught or has had enough. Thief players can use the same procedure to steal from an NPC or another player character. This can also be used for random overloaded sacks breaking.

If a thief is stealing one or more items from a sack, the gear card has numbers from 1 to 6, for six different items. Pick a card at random, then roll a d6 for which item to take from that card.

This all combines with a simple encumbrance system based on sacks. PCs can carry up to 10 sacks worth of gear. So, 10 index cards, less if wearing armor. Each numbered line on the card represents one sixth of a sack’s capacity (one bag, instead of one sack.) As long as a character carries fewer than five sacks worth of gear, movement is unencumbered. Five or more sacks halves move, and 10 sacks halves it again.

In addition to all this, there are two systems for figuring out the cost of items: a simple one on the left inside panel and one based on materials and features of items on the middle and right panels. It’s all very compact.

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Friday, August 23, 2019

Liber Zero Character Creation Card Reference Pamphlet (PDF)

And now, the truth can be revealed: yesterday’s XP Bonus Table was a lead-up to this other thing I’ve been working on, the Liber Zero Character Creation Card, first of a series of LZ reference sheets. It’s a trifold pamphlet, but this time, not a dungeon or village map. Instead, it’s an index card-sized character sheet that you cut out and fill in, with simple directions in the pamphlet.

Experienced players can fill it in without much trouble, since all the terms are either identical to those in OD&D or fairly similar. “XP Mod”, for example, would be either the LZ XP Bonus (a short version of the table is included) or the percentage-based bonus/penalty from the LBBs, or just left blank if you don’t use those adjustments.

Players new to RPGs or to old school class-and-level RPGs specifically might have to consult other reference sheets I plan to make. For example, each class will have its own reference sheet, with class-specific tables for dice and level titles, class abilities, and XP bonuses. A general ability reference sheet will explain the six ability scores and ways to use them in more detail. An equipment reference sheet would include a price list and an equipment card to cut out and fill in to keep track of what’s in your backpack or each bag/sack carried.

This is really a draft version. I may think of better ways to phrase things later, or change things depending on what actually winds up in the other reference sheets.

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Thursday, August 22, 2019

Simplified XP Bonus Table

Who wants an experience point table for Liber Zero?

I’ve tinkered with the earned experience before, especially the bonus for primary ability scores. Because who wants to subtract percentages, really? My solution in the past has been to “zero out” the bonuses: instead of -20% for Fighters with a Strength of 6 or less, give Fighters with average Strength a bonus.

That’s the thinking behind this latest version of the XP Bonus Table, which I had to work on … for reasons. This not only assumes that characters with scores of 3 or 4 get no bonus, it also assumes that there is a unified XP advancement table with the magic-using class as the default. All other classes get a bonus. I also included a tweak to the by-the-book bonuses to make the progression smooth.

The table assumes:

Standard unit of treasure is 1 coin pouch, or 20 coins. A small bag holds two and a half pouches (50 coins,) while a large sack holds 15 pouches or six bags (300 coins.)
Monster experience is per person for a team of four or five adventurers. A smaller team earns double XP, while a solo adventurer earns triple XP.
Adventurers who fight a monster that has fewer hit dice or levels than they do earn half XP and no XP bonus. If the adventurer has twice the hit dice or levels that the monster has, they earn no experience.

The monster XP rules are greatly simplified compared to the by-the-book formula (monster level/character level * base XP.) As a result, sometimes characters will earn a little more XP than in OD&D, but a lot of the times they will earn less.

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Friday, August 16, 2019

Shield Defense for Dice Neutral Attack Tables

Wednesday’s dice neutral combat table did not include shields, for a couple reasons. One being: There’s just too many ways shields get changed in house rules.

In standard D&D, upgrading your body armor from leather to chain, or from chain to plate, effectively adds +2 to your defense. Keeping your current body armor but adding a shield is half as effective, adding +1 to defense. If a GM prefers the standard approach and is using a d20 (or 4d6 drop 6,) they can either add +1 to the target number or (my preference) subtract 1 from the attack roll to get the same result.

But that’s not the only way GMs handle shields in D&D. Some people think shields should be more effective, giving them a +2 defense. Or they add different tiers of shield. For the flat +2 approach, the GM can just shift right one column, so that adding a shield is just as effective as upgrading your body armor. For shield tiers, just subtract 1, 2, or 3 from the attack roll based on the type of shield.

Another idea for a shield houserule. If an attack roll hits exactly (roll = target number, not roll > target number,) roll 1d6. On 4+ the shield blocks the attack. A GM can also adapt this for shield tiers, with weaker shields only blocking on 5+, better shields blocking on 2+ or 3+. Or keep the target number static (5+) but use different dice types for different shields: 1d6 for bucklers, 1d8 for standard shields, 1d10 for tower shields.

Or another option: merge the idea of a shield roll with Shields Shall Be Splintered. Roll a 1d6 to block any successful attack. If the result is higher than the damage rolled, the attack is block, but if the result is 5+, the shield is splintered, whether it blocks the attack or not.

If the GM is not using 1d20 for attack rolls, but is using 1d6 or 2d6, then upgrading body armor is only “worth” 1 point of defense. If you modify the target number or the attack roll, this means that a shield will be just as effective as upgrading to a heavier class of body armor. If that’s not what you want, you should use one of the “shield roll” house rules, or use another houserule, like reducing damage.

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Wednesday, August 14, 2019

Dice-Neutral Attack/Saving Throw Table, Adjusted

Almost immediately after I posted the Saving Throw table last Thursday, I realized I screwed up. Oh, sure, the table entries are correct and the table is usable – if you use the table a specific way. A non-intuitive way. But it can be improved.

The way I was expecting the table to be used:

Use the header to equate a saving throw category to an armor type, if necessary.
Find your dice rating or level title in the columns on the left.
Read across the row until you find the armor class you are attacking/saving against.
Move down the column to find the target number for the dice you are rolling.

This all works, but the headers are barely getting any use, and aren’t being used in the traditional way. Plus, you have to do some weird math adjustments if you are attacking a weaker armor class at higher levels. I made several attempts at explaining how to make the adjustments, but none of them sounded very clear, and I was not satisfied.

Simply reversing the entries on each row and changing the way you read the table fixes that. So, I made a new table. Here’s how to use it:

Look in the header for the column for your target armor type or saving throw category.
Move down the column to the row for your dice rating or level title.
Read the adjusted armor type (for example, Heroes attack opponents in Medium armor as if they were wearing Light armor.)
Find the adjusted armor type in the Suggested Dice Rolls section and use the listed target number.

If the adjusted armor type in Step 3 is blank, count how many columns you have to move to the right to get to an adjusted armor type of None. Subtract that from the target number for Armor Type None, if rolling 1d6 or 2d6. Double this modifier if rolling 1d20 or 4d6-4. This is easier to explain than the adjustments for the previous version of this table.

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... now with 35% more arrogance!