TALES OF THE LATTER EARTH

The stars gutter and the skies fade and the earth grows Yet we are not content to struggle with the past and
weary with years. Ages of men and of Outsiders have its changed children. We must also war against each oth-
ascended and been forgotten, and only the bones of their er in the present, princes and lords vying over rulership
cities and the dust of their dreams remain upon this tired of some miserable spit of land or patch of blood-soaked
world. The Legacy of their laws is woven deep now, the earth. Some fight over the rich tombs of the ancients,
edicts of dead gods and fallen sorcerer-emperors made while others bloody each other out of pride, ambition,
to trace patterns of power we no longer understand. We or the simple pleasure of conquest. A strong king brings
are heirs to their unseen empires. peace to his people, but his neighbors will ever be jealous
Yet our kings are beggar-princes at best, and our sag- of that strength. Heroes are needed to fight in defense of
es but stumbling children. So deep is the past of Latter their homes and their lords.
Earth that no one truly understands what has gone be- We have heroes still. Men and women graced with
fore or can lay sure hands on the Legacy we have inher- no more than courage and resolve may yet rise to light
ited. We wield strange powers we no longer comprehend a new age with the fire of their example. Some may yet
and summon forces that were never meant for our petty even rise to become Legates, blessed with a direct link
purposes. We live in a world haunted by those who came with the Legacy and the gift of its superhuman powers.
before us, and we suffer for the sins of their dead. A Legate may be wicked or just, selfish or compassion-
Our kingdoms struggle to survive in this mismade ate, but they all bear the strength of the ancients. The
world. We toil with muscle and the work of beasts rather warriors among them strike like the fury of the storm
than the strange devices of sorcery our ancestors wielded, and Legate-sorcerers invoke marvels out of a forgotten
and our lives are ones of simple labor. Sages have pre- age. The greatest among them might cleave armies with
served inscriptions of the ancient mechanisms, but their their naked blades or call up cities from a barren waste.
subtle arts no longer work in this decayed age and the Yet one need not be a Legate to be a hero, nor wield
Legacy has changed from the days when they were still the powers of the ancients to give precious help to the
of use. Nothing is sure any longer save for the strength present. Throughout the Latter Earth there are countless
in a human arm and the sharpness of an iron blade. Our lands and people in need of help. Defense against the
armies grip spears where our ancestors wielded suns. depredations of monstrous beasts, protection from the
Humanity has not always been the master of the anger of the Outsiders, wisdom to defeat wicked lords
Latter Earth. In former ages Outsiders came from the and mend bloody quarrels… a brave heart and a strong
skies to be lords over us, changing our world to better suit arm can never be useless in this world.
their purposes. We were forced below, into the earth to Even those who care little for the troubles of others
dwell within the Deeps, and the world was made hollow will find profit in daring the black delvings of the Deeps
with our delving. Only after long ages were our sorcerers and bringing up the treasures of the past from the grip of
and heroes able to drive out the interlopers. The remnants the once-men who yet hold them. Terrible wildernesses
of their rule remain on the surface, pockets of strange of alien beasts and strange flora still shroud the ruined
plants and terrible beasts and wastes that choke a man cities of the Outsiders, and brave explorers can weight
with their noxious vapors. Sometimes these Outsider their horses with gold if they can find safe paths through
lands still hold a scattering of the old lords, bitter and these desolations. The world is wide, and strange won-
hateful against their usurping slaves, and sometimes they ders await over each new horizon.
come out to punish our lands. This is the Latter Earth but it is not the end of days.
We, too, have changed with the eons. Both the Our ancestors rose and fell ten thousand times, and we
Outsiders and ancient sorcerer-kings worked changes can rise yet again. Our lands are impoverished and our
on humanity, forming some among us into other beings people are hard-pressed by their own folly and the shad-
more suitable to their ends. Some of these changed ones ows of a bottomless past, but we have courage still. There
remain allies to their human cousins, while others nurse have been ages of darkness worse than this, and dawn
only the fury of ancient instinct or present bitterness. came again when they passed. The stars gutter and the
Some have their own kingdoms and domains in distant skies fade and the earth grows weary with years, but it
parts of the world, and some hide in nighted places where has not ended yet. There is time enough for new heroes
they can better prey on us. They are the hands of the past, to rise from the ashes we have inherited.
the living relics that often work us woe. Will you be among them?
 CHARACTER CREATION
The first step in playing Worlds Without Number is to In this world, your hero seeks adventure. Whether
roll up each player’s character, or “PC”. While it’s possible fighting against the constant peril of monstrous creatures,
to play the game with just a single player and a game defending communities from the depredations of their
master, or “GM”, it works best with a group of three to neighbors, delving into the ancient Deeps that humanity
five players and a GM. A solitary hero is hard-pressed to once occupied, or exploring the trackless wilderness of
survive the myriad perils of Latter Earth, and a number an Outsider-altered Latter Earth, there is treasure, glory,
of trustworthy companions are needed if a hero is to have and terrible death to be found by the brave.
much chance of victory. Your hero may have had a very mundane past. Per-
It’s generally best to make characters together with haps they were no more than a peasant girl who tired of
the others in your group, so as to make sure everyone’s their little village, or a young sailor who wants better pay
hero is the sort to play well together. PCs don’t always for his courage than a sea captain can offer. Yet your hero
have to like each other, but if they can’t trust each other has some sort of knack or capability that marks them
to watch their backs, their adventures are apt to end in out as being fit for adventure, whether that’s a gift for
swift and unhappy ways. violence, exceptional talent at a skill, or some modicum
The character creation below assumes your heroes of magical prowess.
will be adventuring in the world of Latter Earth, as de- Your hero must, however, have a purpose. They must
scribed in the chapter starting on page XX. Readers who have some goal or direction for their ambitions, because
have an interest in the setting’s particulars can page for- Worlds Without Number is a sandbox-style game where
ward and look it over before continuing. For those who the PCs will be the ones to decide what kind of adven-
just want to get started creating their adventurer can just tures are sought. If you don’t have a goal, you won’t be
continue on below. able to contribute to that direction.
And not least of all, your hero must be able to coop-
What Players Need To Know erate with the rest of the group. Loners and troublemak-
Your character is an adventurer in the ruins of Latter ers work well in novels but terribly at the table; be good
Earth, a world set unfathomably far in the future. Un- to the other players, and make someone who will actually
told eons of human and alien development have come participate usefully with everyone else. Adventuring is
and gone, and you and your companions are natives of dangerous, and going it alone is a recipe for swift death.
a now-savage and primitive world built on the grave of With these things said, it’s time to start making your
the past. character.
Magic exists in the form of ancient relics, enigmatic
powers that respond to the correct rituals, and creatures Legates
fashioned by inexplicable sciences. Sorcerers cultivate the
scraps of understanding that they have preserved in order The rules in this section describe the creation of
to wield these powers, and the occasional eruptions of normal PC heroes. They might be gifted swords-
ancient, twisted magic are a hazard in many places still. men, capable young wizards, or talented thieves
Most nations on Latter Earth are feudal or monar- and explorers, but they are fundamentally normal
chic, ruled over by some tyrant with the strength to main- human beings. They lack the link with the Legacy
tain order or some military elite capable of protecting that makes for the superhuman powers of a Legate.
their charges from the perils of monstrous foes and jeal- In the example campaign world of the Latter
ous neighbors. Some dynasties are ancient bloodlines of Earth, a heroic PC can hope to become a Legate
magically-blessed nobles, while others are no more than only after reaching the peak of their potential. Only
this season’s bandit king and his henchmen. The com- after exhausting the limits of normal human capac-
mon folk survive as best they can, making the bargains ity can they gain the recognition of the Legacy and
they must with their lords in exchange for protection and inherit its gifts.
some semblance of law. In other campaign settings, superhuman he-
Technology is primitive, with brute force and the roes such as Legates may not exist at all. In a sword
occasional windmill or water mill powering the little in- & sorcery pulp setting, it might be entirely inap-
dustry that exists. The natural laws of physics have been propriate for heroes to ever become so personally
so corrupted by prior eons of meddling and their ac- mighty, while a high fantasy setting might make
crued changes known as the Legacy that more advanced such divine strength more available to PCs.
technology is unreliable at best. This capriciousness has Assuming Legates exist in your campaign, the
all but extinguished scientific curiosity or technological rules for advancing in their powers appear in the
advancement among the people of Latter Earth, as what deluxe version of Worlds Without Number on
use are such studies when the subtler laws of nature are page XX.
always uncertain?
CGSPLASH
W 6.34 in
H 9.67 in
4

Summary of character

creation spread
5
6

Attributes
A hero’s native capacities are their attributes, each mea- Attribute Affects…
sured on a scale from 3 to 18. A score of 3 is as deficient Strength Lifting heavy weights, breaking things,
as it’s possible to be while still being functional as an melee combat, carrying gear
adventurer, while an 18 reflects a degree of development Dexterity Speed, evasion, manual dexterity,
that’s close to a human’s peak potential. reaction time, combat initiative
To generate a hero’s scores, roll 3d6 six times, assign-
ing them in order to the character’s Strength, Dexterity, Constitution Hardiness, enduring injury, resisting
Constitution, Intelligence, Wisdom, and Charisma. You poisons, going without food or rest
may then change one attribute of your choice to 14, be- Intelligence Memory, reasoning, intellectual skills,
cause your adventurer has to be unusually good at some- general education
thing to have made it this far in life. Wisdom Noticing things, making judgments,
Clement GMs may optionally allow players to put reading situations, intuition
their rolled scores in any attribute they wish. Other
Charisma Force of character, charming others,
groups may prefer to let the rolls stand in order, to en-
attracting attention, winning loyalty
courage players to try out unexpected character concepts.
If you dislike random generation of your hero’s
scores, you may instead put the following scores wherever
you wish: 14, 12, 11, 10, 9, and 7. If you assign scores, you
cannot replace one of them with a 14. Attribute Score Attribute Modifier
Once you’ve generated your ability scores, record 3 -2
the modifier for each of them. Thus, a score of 5 would
have a -1 modifier and a score of 18 would have a +2. If 4—7 -1
your attribute changes later in the game through rolls on 8—13 No Modifier
your background’s Growth table or development as you 14—17 +1
advance in experience, remember to change the modifier
if necessary. 18 +2

Rolling a Hero’s Attributes

 7

Skills
Your hero’s particular proficiencies are called skills. Every
hero can at least attempt to do almost anything, whether Skill Checks
or not they’re particularly expert at it, but a hero with the When a hero attempts to pull off some feat of exceptional
right skill will have a much easier time finding success expertise, they must make a skill check. The player rolls
with their efforts. Of course, some particularly esoteric 2d6 and adds their relevant skill level to it and the mod-
challenges, such as magic theory or advanced mathemat- ifier of their most pertinent attribute score. If they have
ics, might be impossible to attempt without the right skill. no relevant skill at all, they subtract 1 from their roll.
Skills are measured on a ranking from level-0 for If the total is equal or higher than the check’s diffi-
ordinary practitioners up to level-4 for the best of the culty, the attempt is a success. If less, then either they fail,
best. Novice adventurers will begin play with skills of they succeed in a way that doesn’t help them, or cruel fate
level-0 or level-1 as determined in the next section, where intervenes to spoil their effort.
you pick or roll your hero’s background. The particular attribute used with a skill check will
vary with the situation. Lifting a heavy rock might be a
Skill Levels Str/Exert skill check, while running a marathon might
be more a Con/Exert check. The GM decides when the
Level-0 An ordinary competence at the skill as
case is ambiguous. In rhe same fashion, if two different
might be had by a common practitioner
skills might be applicable to a check the player can choose
Level-1 A veteran professional at the skill, one which of the skills to use.
noticeably better than most Some skills can’t even be attempted without at least
Level-2 One of the best in the city at the skill, a level-0 skill, if they’re particularly obscure or specialized
veteran and talented master of it. undertakings. Any hero can climb a cliff or try to fashion
Level-3 One of the best in the kingdom, an a wooden spear, but only someone skilled in Craft could
inspirational master at the skill hope to forge a complex suit of armor.
Skill checks are only meant for unusual or excep-
Level-4 One of the best in the world, able to tional challenges to a hero. Tasks that are common to
push the skill to its physical limits their background never require a skill check.

Difficulty Type of Challenge

6 A relatively simple task that is still more
than the PC would usually be expected
to manage in their regular background.
Anything easier than this isn’t worth a
skill check.
8 A significant challenge to a competent
professional that they’d still succeed at
more often than not.
10 Something too difficult to be expected
of anyone but a skilled expert, and even
then they might fail.
12 Only a true master could expect to carry
this off with any degree of reliability.
14+ Only a true master has any chance of
achieving this at all, and even they will
probably fail.
8

The Skill List

Administer: Keep an organization running smoothly, Notice: Notice small details, impending ambushes, hid-
scribe things well, plan out logistics, identify in- den features, or concealed objects. Detect subtle
competent or treacherous workers, analyze records smells, sounds, or other sensory input. Notice can-
or archives, or otherwise do things that an executive not be used simply to detect a lie, but keen attention
or middle-manager would need to do. can often discern a subject’s emotional state.
Connect: Find or know people who are useful to your Perform: Sing, act, dance, orate, or otherwise perform
purposes, make friendships or social acquaintances, impressively for an audience. Compose music, plays,
know who to talk to to get favors or services, and writings, or other works of performance art. Most
call on the help or resources of organizations you performers will have a particular field they excel
belong to. Connect covers your PC’s ability to find at, though polymaths might exist if the PC’s back-
the people you need, though convincing them to ground is appropriate for such versatility.
help may require more than this. Pray: Peform the clerical rites of your religion, and be
Convince: Persuade a listener that something you are familiar with the gods, demons, and taboos of major
saying is true. Naturally, the more implausible the and minor faiths, identify iconography and persons
claim or more emotionally repugnant it is to them, of religious importance. Pray also helps you know
the more difficult it is to persuade them. Further- the state of local faiths and the important persons
more, how they act on their newfound conviction is in their hierarchies.
up to them and their motivations, and may not be Punch: Fight unarmed or with natural body weaponry.
perfectly predictable. Punch, kick, grapple, or otherwise brawl without
Craft: Craft or repair goods and technology appropri- the benefit of man-made tools. This mode of fight-
ate to the PC’s background and society. The Craft ing is inefficient at best without some special Focus
skill can be used for a wide range of artisan pursuits, to improve it, but it’s reliably non-lethal.
though a GM is within their rights to keep the PC Ride: Ride an animal, drive a cart or carriage, or other-
from building complex things that are too far away wise deal with land transportation. This skill also
from their past background and experience. includes competence at mount care and tending,
Exert: Run, swim, climb, jump, labor for long periods, basic cart or carriage repair, judging good horse-
throw things, or otherwise exert your physical flesh, and other skills appropriate to a beast-rider
strength, stamina, and coordination. Even a PC of whatever society the PC comes from.
with poor physical attributes might have a good Sail: Sail or repair a ship, build small craft, navigate by
Exert skill reflecting athletic training and expertise the stars, read sea weather, manage sailors, and oth-
in making the most of their available talents. erwise conduct the business of a professional mari-
Heal: Treat wounds, cure diseases, neutralize poi- ner. This skill may apply to more esoteric means of
sons, diagnose psychological health issues, and oth- vehicular travel in some societies.
erwise tend to the wounds of body and mind. The Shoot: Fire a bow or crossbow or throw a hurled weapon.
Heal skill cannot cure lost hit points directly, but it’s Maintain ranged weaponry and fletch arrows.
a vital skill in stabilizing Mortally Wounded allies Sneak: Move silently, hide in shadows, avoid notice, pick
or ensuring clean recovery from grievous injuries. pockets, disguise yourself, pick locks, or otherwise
Know: Know matters of history, geography, natural sci- defeat security measures.
ence, zoology, and other academic fields appropriate Stab: Fight with melee weapons or throw a hurled weap-
to a sage or scholar. While some sages might special- on. Maintain and identify weaponry.
ize in particular fields, most learned men and wom- Survive: Hunt, fish, navigate by the stars, mitigate envi-
en in this age have a broad range of understanding, ronmental hazards, identify plants and wildlife, and
and will rarely be unable to even attempt to answer craft basic survival tools and shelter. A PC’s Survive
a question relevant to this skill. skill is most pertinent to the environments in their
Lead: Inspire others to follow your lead and believe in background, but the basic principles can be applied
your plans and goals. Manage subordinates and in all but the most alien environments.
keep them focused, loyal, and motivated in the face Trade: Buy and sell at a profit, identify the worth of
of danger or failure. A successful leader will keep goods or treasures, deal with merchants and trad-
their subordinate’s faith and confidence even when ers, find black-market goods and services, and know
reason might make the leader’s plan appear ques- laws regarding smuggling and contraband.
tionable at best. Work: This skill is a catch-all for any profession that
Magic: Cast or analyze magic and know things about might not otherwise merit its own skill, such as a
famous mages or notable magical events. Classes painter, lawyer, farmer, or herdsman. The precise
that can’t cast spells obtain only intellectual and skill it represents will vary with the PC’s back-
scholarly benefits from this skill. ground.
 9

Backgrounds
Every hero comes from somewhere, and the particular
past of your PC is their background. Very few heroes Training Skills and Attributes
come immediately to their ultimate calling of sorcery or When you roll or pick a skill, you gain it at level-0, re-
swordplay, and even the most resolute hero is likely to flecting a basic, ordinary proficiency at the skill. Level-0
have had some more mundane place in life before taking is sufficient to earn a living with a skill or be counted a
up their grand ambitions. In this section, you’ll deter- normal practitioner of it, but it’s no particularly remark-
mine what this past might have been. able talent.
A background is simply a thumbnail description of If you roll or pick the same skill again, it becomes
the kind of life your hero led before becoming an adven- level-1. Such skills are well-honed and mark you out as
turer. Each entry on the table below offers a different a veteran with noticeably superior talent to the ordinary
possibility, and you can either roll or pick from the list. run of those who use the skill.
Within these categories you should feel free to decide You cannot pick a skill a third time. If you roll it
how exactly they relate to your hero. a third time or are forced to take it by some Focus or
For example, someone who rolls or picks a “Scholar” other trait, you may instead pick any other skill you wish,
background might decide that they were an unsuccessful gaining it at level-0 or improving it from level-0 to level-1
apprentice mage, frustrated with their uselessness until if you already have it.
they took up a sword. Another player might decide the No novice hero can have a skill above level-1. Only
same roll means that she was a meek scholar-scribe at a experienced adventurers can develop such mastery.
holy monastery before it was burnt down by a marauding If you roll randomly on the Growth table and get
invader. The specific details of your past background are an attribute bonus, you may use it to raise an attribute
up to you, provided the GM finds them reasonable. and potentially improve its modifier. Bonuses to Physical
The specific interpretations of your background will attributes may be applied to Strength, Dexterity, or Con-
depend on the campaign setting you’re using. If you’re stitution, and bonuses to Mental attributes can be added
playing in a desolute desert kingdom, a Sailor back- to Intelligence, Wisdom, or Charisma. No attribute can
ground might not make much sense. Talk with your GM be raised above 18, but a +2 bonus can be split between
about such details when you make up your hero’s past. two different attributes.
If you want a background not listed here, work with
your GM to choose Growth and Learning tables that fit d20 Background
your concept and use those as you would a listed back-
ground. 1 Artisan, blacksmith, tanner, carpenter
2 Barbarian, savage hermit, wild man
Backgrounds, Skills, and Growth 3 Carter, hauling goods or riding post
Once you’ve rolled or chosen your background, you get
several related benefits. 4 Courtesan, harlot, artful companion
First, you get the free skill associated with the back- 5 Criminal, thief, con man, burglar
ground at level-0 proficiency. 6 Hunter, trapper, lone hermit, or recluse
Second, you choose whether to pick two additional
7 Laborer, skilled or unskilled urban worker
skills from the Learning table, or make three random
rolls divided between the Learning and Growth table. If 8 Merchant, trader, peddler, or shopkeeper
you can’t decide on either, you can just take the two quick 9 Noble, spare son, exile, black sheep
skills listed with the background to reflect talents usually
10 Nomad, raider, tribal wanderer
possessed by an average member of the profession.
If you decide to pick your skills, you can make two 11 Peasant, farmer, rural laborer, serf
picks from the Learning table listed with each back- 12 Performer, bard, dancer, singer
ground. If it says “Any Combat”, you can pick either
13 Physician, village healer, healer-monk
Punch, Shoot, or Stab as the skill to gain. You are allowed
to pick the same skill twice, if you want to start play with 14 Priest, monk, nun, holy hermit
a greater degree of proficiency in it. 15 Sailor, bargeman, fisherman, pirate
If you decide to randomly roll for skills instead, you 16 Scholar, sage, apprentice mage
can make three rolls divided up as you wish between the
Growth and Learning tables for the background. Heroes 17 Slave, indentured laborer, runaway prentice
who allow themselves to accept the risk of an unusual 18 Soldier, bandit, mercenary, guardsman
mix of skills thus have a little extra benefit, and might 19 Thug, ruffian, gang member, village bully
be able to increase their attribute scores by rolls on the
Growth table. 20 Wanderer, exile, explorer, traveler
10

Artisan
Your hero was a crafter of some variety, whether a Free Skill d6 Growth d8 Learning
blacksmith, carpenter, shipwright, weaver, or a maker
Craft-0 1 +1 Any Stat 1 Connect
of more exotic goods. In humble villages an artisan
is most likely to make the bulk of their living by the 2 +2 Physical 2 Convince
same subsistence farming as their neighbors, but in Quick Skills 3 +2 Physical 3 Craft
towns and cities they might be full-time profession- Trade-0 4 +2 Mental 4 Craft
als, perhaps belonging to some guild or brotherhood
specific to their craft. While an artisan’s Craft skill Connect-0 5 Exert 5 Exert
is chiefly applicable to those works related to their 6 Any Skill 6 Know
background, they often know enough or can impro- 7 Notice
vise sufficiently to make competent efforts at other
types of work.
8 Trade

Barbarian
Your people or past were counted savage even in a Free Skill d6 Growth d8 Learning
world as brutal as this one. Primitive hill tribes, hard- Survive-0 1 +1 Any Stat 1 Any Combat
pressed jungle clans, or simple frontiersmen too long 2 +2 Physical 2 Connect
out of contact with a more sophisticated civilization
might all qualify for this background. You know Quick Skills 3 +2 Physical 3 Exert
how to live without the comforts a softer and more Any Combat-0 4 +2 Mental 4 Lead
pacified people might require and you have a ready Notice-0 5 Exert 5 Notice
acceptance of violence that can keep you alive where
6 Any Skill 6 Punch
others might perish. Still, the material privation of
your life does not mean you are necessarily stupid 7 Sneak
or unadaptable, nor that you lack your own forms 8 Survive
of culture.
 11

Carter
Overland transport is hard and dangerous, and it Free Skill d6 Growth d8 Learning
requires an equally hard breed of men and women
to carry it out. Carters might be caravan workers Ride-0 1 +1 Any Stat 1 Any Combat
hauling precious goods over hundreds of miles, or 2 +2 Physical 2 Connect
independent shippers running a cart between isolated Quick Skills 3 +2 Physical 3 Craft
hamlets, or they might be messenger riders risking
Connect-0 4 +2 Mental 4 Exert
grave peril to deliver small packages. A carter may
be a low-born peasant, but he might end up seeing Any Combat-0 5 Connect 5 Notice
more of the world than the gentry of his homeland. 6 Any Skill 6 Ride
These far-traveled haulers commonly learns quickly 7 Survive
how to handle themselves in perilous circumstances.
8 Trade

Courtesan
Your hero made a profession of companionship, Free Skill d6 Growth d8 Learning
whether carnal or otherwise. Common street harlots
or rented boys are by no means unknown among ad- Perform-0 1 +1 Any Stat 1 Any Combat
venturers, but there are also exquisitely polished cour- 2 +2 Mental 2 Connect
tesans and graciously platonic artists of song, dance, Quick Skills 3 +2 Mental 3 Convince
and cultured companionship. Some have wearied
of the particular strains of their work, while others Notice-0 4 +2 Physical 4 Exert
mean to take advantage of their special talents in Connect-0 5 Connect 5 Notice
smoothing the social interactions of an adventuring 6 Any Skill 6 Perform
party with an often-suspicious world.
7 Survive
8 Trade

Criminal
Some would argue that all adventurers are criminals
Free Skill d6 Growth d8 Learning
sooner or later, but your hero made it their profession
from an early age. Con men, charlatans, fraudulent Sneak-0 1 +1 Any Stat 1 Administer
merchants, pickpockets, sneak thieves, impostors, 2 +2 Mental 2 Any Combat
footpads, and ne’er-do-wells of every description
Quick Skills 3 +2 Physical 3 Connect
often filter into the adventuring lifestyle, if only to
ensure that their travels take them well away from Connect-0 4 +2 Mental 4 Convince
the sites of their former activity. Given the general un- Convince-0 5 Connect 5 Exert
scrupulousness, quick wits, and daring required of a 6 Any Skill 6 Notice
successful criminal, many make excellent adventurers.
Other, less gifted examples, make excellent corpses. 7 Sneak
8 Trade

Hunter
Both primitive tribals and bored nobles require hunts Free Skill d6 Growth d8 Learning
for their table and their pleasures, and such efforts
Shoot-0 1 +1 Any Stat 1 Any Combat
often require professional hunters to help in the work
Hunger or greed has also been known to send poor 2 +2 Physical 2 Exert
peasants into the game preserves of their lords or Quick Skills 3 +2 Physical 3 Heal
deep into dangerous wilderness. A few hunters are Survive-0 4 +2 Mental 4 Notice
actual gamekeepers employed to ward off poachers,
and a few are simply hermits who have no love for Sneak-0 5 Exert 5 Ride
any company but their own. The marksmanship and 6 Any Skill 6 Shoot
stealth of a well-practiced hunter tend to be useful 7 Sneak
skills in an adventurer’s line of work.
8 Survive
12

Laborer
In the villages and rural regions of the world, the vast Free Skill d6 Growth d8 Learning
majority of the populace are simple peasants. In the
cities, the great mass of unskilled workers are laborers Work-0 1 +1 Any Stat 1 Administer
instead, day-workers and unskilled help employed by 2 +1 Any Stat 2 Any Skill
the artisans and craftsmen of the town. Their lives are Quick Skills 3 +1 Any Stat 3 Connect
hard, precarious, and unpromising, but the chance
Connect-0 4 +1 Any Stat 4 Convince
to live in a city and the opportunities for wealth and
status it offers are enough to beguile many poor vil- Exert-0 5 Exert 5 Craft
lage lads and lasses. In the absence of a lucky break or 6 Any Skill 6 Exert
fortuitous apprenticeship, some laborers find them- 7 Ride
selves willing to risk the life of an adventurer rather
than endure their poverty meekly. 8 Work

Merchant
Merchants range from the gilded merchant-princes Free Skill d6 Growth d8 Learning
of the great trading cities to the humble peddlers
who roam between villages with packs full of sewing Trade-0 1 +1 Any Stat 1 Administer
needles, tin pans, belt knives, and other household 2 +2 Mental 2 Any Combat
needs. Trade is a dangerous thing in this world, con- Quick Skills 3 +2 Mental 3 Connect
stantly subject to the rapacious demands of lords or
the brutal exaction of bandits, and few cowards take Convince-0 4 +2 Mental 4 Convince
up the work. Merchants with a particular fund of Connect-0 5 Connect 5 Craft
courage and an exceptional appetite for gold might 6 Any Skill 6 Know
even become adventurers, the better to obtain capital
7 Notice
and contacts for their work.
8 Trade

Noble
Nobility is a quality that varies from culture to cul-
Free Skill d6 Growth d8 Learning
ture, some bestowing it for personal virtue, others to
particular bloodlines, and some to those who fulfill Lead-0 1 +1 Any Stat 1 Administer
specific roles in the culture. Whatever the particulars, 2 +2 Mental 2 Any Combat
your hero was of the noble caste of their home, one
Quick Skills 3 +2 Mental 3 Connect
of the elites who governed and ruled. Alas, some cir-
cumstance has driven you out of your former place, Connect-0 4 +2 Mental 4 Convince
forcing you to seek companions in adventure and Administer-0 5 Connect 5 Know
make your own way in the world. You may no longer 6 Any Skill 6 Lead
have the dignities and advantages of your former rank,
but you at least have the benefit of its education. 7 Notice
8 Ride

Nomad
Some peoples are forced to travel far to find their Free Skill d6 Growth d8 Learning
sustenance, whether they are beast-riders, drivers of
Ride-0 1 +1 Any Stat 1 Any Combat
great wagons, or simple masses of people walking
from one waystation to another. Their native land 2 +2 Physical 2 Connect
may not be rich enough to support them and their Quick Skills 3 +2 Physical 3 Exert
herds for long at any one place, or some shifting per- Survive-0 4 +2 Mental 4 Lead
il might require them to be constantly on the move.
Nomads are often mistrusted by settled folk, as it’s Any Combat-0 5 Exert 5 Notice
all too easy for them to commit some depredation 6 Any Skill 6 Ride
before moving out of reach of reprisal, but their skills 7 Survive
at riding and surviving harsh environments are of use
8 Trade
to any adventurer.
 13

Peasant
A peasant’s life is never easy, though in some lands it’s Free Skill d6 Growth d8 Learning
a kinder fate than others. Even in the richest states,
Exert-0 1 +1 Any Stat 1 Connect
however, a peasant’s life is often marked by hunger,
poverty, and a constant struggle to obtain the very 2 +2 Physical 2 Exert
minimal necessities for life. Most are accustomed to Quick Skills 3 +2 Physical 3 Craft
a world in which anything they can’t personally grow, Sneak-0 4 +2 Physical 4 Notice
make, scavenge, or steal is something they won’t have.
Such ruthless resourcefulness and tolerance of pain Survive-0 5 Exert 5 Sneak
and toil are useful qualities to any adventurer… and 6 Any Skill 6 Survive
there are enough of them that a few who perish in 7 Trade
some trackless waste are no grievous loss to their
lords.
8 Work

Performer
Singers, dancers, musicians, poets, orators, and all Free Skill d6 Growth d8 Learning
other entertainers and edifiers might be found in Perform-0 1 +1 Any Stat 1 Any Combat
this background. In a world such as this one, there 2 +2 Mental 2 Connect
are precious few who can earn more than the barest
living off their art, and those who prosper are inevi- Quick Skills 3 +2 Physical 3 Exert
tably the ones who can cozen and beguile some rich Convince-0 4 +2 Physical 4 Notice
patron into favoring their efforts. Even a wandering Connect-0 5 Connect 5 Perform
bard reliant on the generosity of taphouse keepers
6 Any Skill 6 Perform
and bored yeomen must have a way with people, and
this skill at managing their affections is often useful 7 Sneak
for an adventurer. 8 Convince
14

Physician
Healers are needed in any society, and your hero Free Skill d6 Growth d8 Learning
was one such physician. In a town or city, they might
have been a classically-trained professional, versed in Heal-0 1 +1 Any Stat 1 Administer
subtle arts of medical horoscopes, therapeutic gem- 2 +2 Physical 2 Connect
stones, and the imbibing of precious metals, while Quick Skills 3 +2 Mental 3 Craft
a village healer might simply know the proper use
Know-0 4 +2 Mental 4 Heal
of herbs, sutures, and splints. Adventuring bands
always prize the help of a trained healer, whatever Notice-0 5 Connect 5 Know
their background, and many consider it an essential 6 Any Skill 6 Notice
to have someone in the party capable of patching up 7 Convince
a bleeding ally or treating a fevered friend.
8 Trade

Priest
Priests range a wide gamut in this world. Some live Free Skill d6 Growth d8 Learning
as moral exemplars for their flock, teaching them of
the ethical demands of their religion and encouraging Pray-0 1 +1 Any Stat 1 Administer
them in their faith. Others are simple spiritual techni- 2 +2 Mental 2 Connect
cians, performing rituals to propitiate and coax their Quick Skills 3 +2 Physical 3 Know
god with no concern for anything but the correct ex-
ecution of the rite and the timely receipt of payment. Convince-0 4 +2 Mental 4 Lead
Adventuring priests often tend more toward the latter, Know-0 5 Connect 5 Notice
assisting their companions with their prayers and ex- 6 Any Skill 6 Convince
pertise in handling people. A few priests even have
7 Pray
magical powers, either given to them by their deity
or learned as part of their youthful training. 8 Pray

Sailor
Your hero was a sailor, a voyager on the salt tides or
Free Skill d6 Growth d8 Learning
deep rivers of their home. They might have be captain
of a ship of their own, or a bargeman on the great riv- Sail-0 1 +1 Any Stat 1 Any Combat
ers, or a simple seaman willing to take ship with any 2 +2 Physical 2 Connect
craft that would have him. Some nations might even
Quick Skills 3 +2 Physical 3 Craft
have ships of a more than nautical nature, aircraft or
stranger things in need of a trained crew. Whatever Exert-0 4 +2 Mental 4 Exert
their usual berth, sailors are accustomed to lives of Notice-0 5 Exert 5 Heal
sudden peril and hard labor, and the self-sufficien- 6 Any Skill 6 Notice
cy forced by a life on the waves is often useful to an
adventurer. 7 Perform
8 Sail

Scholar
Dedicated scholars are few and far between in this Free Skill d6 Growth d8 Learning
world, but your hero is one of those rarities. Either
Know-0 1 +1 Any Stat 1 Administer
through noble birth, a wealthy background, or ded-
ication to some institution of knowledge, your hero 2 +2 Mental 2 Connect
has had the opportunity to become immersed in a life Quick Skills 3 +2 Mental 3 Craft
of study. You may have a particular field of focus, but Connect-0 4 +2 Mental 4 Know
scholarship in this age is a broad undertaking, and
every scholar is expected to know something of the Administer-0 5 Connect 5 Notice
natural sciences and the nations surrounding their 6 Any Skill 6 Perform
home. Given this education, those scholars with the 7 Pray
daring to become adventurers can find themselves
8 Convince
called upon to perform highly perilous field research.
 15

Slave
Slavery in this world varies from the pampered life of Free Skill d6 Growth d8 Learning
some favored house slave to a short, brutal existence
in the mines and manufactories. It’s not unknown for Sneak-0 1 +1 Any Stat 1 Administer
the same slave to experience both ends of the spec- 2 +2 Physical 2 Any Combat
trum as their charm fades or financial need forces Quick Skills 3 +2 Physical 3 Any Skill
a slimming of the household staff. In some lands a
Survive-0 4 +2 Mental 4 Convince
former slave can have hope of attaining honor and
status, while in others they might expect an even Exert-0 5 Exert 5 Exert
worse state, without even the assurance of sufficient 6 Any Skill 6 Sneak
bread for their labor. Runaways, rebels, and ex-slaves 7 Survive
are all well-represented among the desperate class of
adventurers. 8 Work

Soldier
Mercenary, regular soldier, temple knight, monastic Free Skill d6 Growth d8 Learning
defender, village militiaman, or savage raider; what-
ever the specifics, your hero made their living by war. Any Combat-0 1 +1 Any Stat 1 Any Combat
You may have wearied of the endless killing, or lost 2 +2 Physical 2 Any Combat
your former employer, or simply became dissatisfied Quick Skills 3 +2 Physical 3 Exert
with the meagre rewards offered for your shed blood,
but whatever the cause you have decided to take up Exert-0 4 +2 Physical 4 Lead
an adventurer’s life instead. Every group values the Survive-0 5 Exert 5 Notice
help of a strong sword arm, even if you may have 6 Any Skill 6 Ride
developed skills far different from that in pursuit of
7 Sneak
your trade.
8 Survive

Thug
A soldier belongs to some larger organization, where-
Free Skill d6 Growth d8 Learning
as you were simply a thug. Whether a village bully,
street ruffian, assassin, bandit, outlaw, or neighbor- Any Combat-0 1 +1 Any Stat 1 Any Combat
hood enforcer, you got what you wanted through 2 +2 Mental 2 Any Combat
the strength of your right arm. Not every ruffian is a
Quick Skills 3 +2 Physical 3 Connect
simple criminal, however, and it may be you were a
protector to your family or gang, or a defender of your Convince-0 4 +2 Physical 4 Convince
neighborhood against hostile outsiders or an oppres- Connect-0 5 Connect 5 Exert
sive lord. Necessity or ambition has turned you to an 6 Any Skill 6 Notice
adventurer’s life, however, and your combination of
raw violence and calculated social expertise is likely 7 Sneak
to be useful in the trade. 8 Survive

Wanderer
Some people simply have no home, and your hero Free Skill d6 Growth d8 Learning
is one such unfortunate. You may have been driven
Survive-0 1 +1 Any Stat 1 Any Combat
into exile by hostile neighbors, or a turn of political
fortune, or a crime you may or may not have commit- 2 +2 Physical 2 Connect
ted. Your former home might have been destroyed by Quick Skills 3 +2 Physical 3 Notice
enemies, or transformed by events until it no longer Sneak-0 4 +2 Mental 4 Perform
had a place for you. Whatever the particulars, you
journey for your own reasons and seek whatever it Notice-0 5 Exert 5 Ride
is you hope to find in this world. Adventurers often 6 Any Skill 6 Sneak
have a tolerance for such vagabonds that is not to be 7 Survive
found in more settled society.
8 Work
16

Choosing a Class
While a hero’s background defines their upbringing and Warriors fight, using sword or bow or fist to over-
common profession, a class determines what special skills come their enemies and survive the violence they might
and abilities they use to succeed in their adventuring. Not inflict. Combat is a dangerous undertaking in this game,
everyone has a class; most people are just ordinary men and death comes easy to every hero. A Warrior has the
and women who might be soldiers, thieves, nobles, or tools to survive mistakes that would prove lethal to other
other ordinary professions. A PC is rare in that they have classes and to overcome foes in combat that might other-
the seeds of true greatness within them, and the potential wise prove too much for less martial heroes.
to vastly exceed the power of their ordinary peers. Adventurers are the class for those players who can’t
There are four classes available in the game. You quite decide, or who have a concept that mixes elements
should pick the one that provides the kind of tools you of more than one class. An Adventurer can choose two
want your hero to use while adventuring. of the other classes above and mix them together, gaining
Experts are masters of non-combat skills, such as some of the benefits of both at the cost of never being
stealth, medicine, diplomacy, and other practical talents. quite so capable with either sphere as a full practitioner
While any hero can become quite skilled in such under- would be.
takings, an Expert learns these skills faster and can use Each class comes with a table that indicates the
them more effectively than other classes, often succeed- class’s hit dice, attack bonus, and which Focus picks they
ing where a different hero would surely fail. gain. Your novice hero will usually begin the game at first
Mages include not only classical wizards but also level, so you’d use the first line on these tables to mark
those heroes who rely on supernatural powers for their down your hit points and attack bonus and to indicate
usefulness, such as magical healers, ascetic unarmed how many Foci you can pick. Each of these details is
combatants, and supernaturally wise sages. Each Mage explained later in the chapter, on page XX.
belongs to a specific magical tradition which defines their When picking a class, don’t feel obliged to choose
powers and indicates any special taboos they must re- one that fits naturally with your background. Instead,
spect. While their arts are powerful, mages tend to be choose one that suits how you want to play. You can al-
frailer and less combat-capable than other heroes. ways explain later how your hero came to the new trade.

The Expert
Your hero is an expert at some useful skill. Thieves, dip- the Expert can reroll a failed non-combat skill check,
lomats, healers, scholars, explorers, artisans, and other gaining a second chance to yank victory from the jaws of
such heroes should pick the Expert class if they wish to otherwise certain failure. Their natural focus on personal
focus on developing their special skills and performing development and determined refinement of their skills
tremendous feats of mastery with them. Experts gain the bleeds through even into those talents they don’t make
widest variety of non-combat skills and are the quickest their special domain.
to learn more of them. Experts are also capable combatants, fully able to
An Expert has an uncanny knack for wielding their hold their own in the midst of a murderous fray. It’s not
skills successfully at a crucial moment, whether or not unknown for some Experts to specialize in professions
it’s a skill they’ve taken for their specialty. Once per scene, related to martial pursuits, such as an assassin who relies
heavily on their superb powers of stealth and deception
Level Hit Dice Attack Bonus Focus Picks to reach their unwary foes.
1 1d6 +0 1 Free +
1 Expert Special Ability: Masterful Expertise
2 2d6 +1 +1 Free Once per scene, the Expert may reroll any non-combat
skill check as an Instant action. This allows the Expert
3 3d6 +1
to make a roll and then immediately use this ability if
4 4d6 +2 the resulting total isn’t good enough to succeed. In cases
5 5d6 +2 +1 Free where it matters, the better of the two rolls may be used.
6 6d6 +3
Special Ability: Quick Learner
7 7d6 +3 +1 Free When you advance a character level, you gain an extra
8 8d6 +4 skill point which may only be spent on gaining or im-
9 9d6 +4 proving non-combat skills. You may save this point to
spend later if you wish.
10 10d6 +5 +1 Free
 17

The Mage
Your hero wields arcane powers and otherworldly arts in
the service of their ambitions. Some Mages are taught in
formal sorcerous schools, while others gain their educa-
tion from the careful instructions of a wizened master.
A few who practice more primal traditions might even
awaken spontaneously to their power, obtaining strange MAGECLASS
abilities without any formal education at all. 2.92 W
Every Mage belongs to a particular magical tradition, 5.04 H
one which describes the nature of their powers and the
breadth of their capabilities. The Magic chapter begin-
ning on page XX lists the various traditions described in
this book, but more doubtless exist and several might be
specific to the particular campaign world you are playing
in. If playing a Mage, consult with your GM to find out
which traditions exist in your campaign setting.
Not all magical traditions necessarily involve classi-
cal spell-flinging and conjury. Some traditions are much
more physical in nature, granting the practitioners re-
markable bodily prowess or unique magical gifts they can
exercise. Some Mage traditions involve no spellcasting at
all, restricting their focus entirely to the strange arcane
gifts their forebears have developed.
While these spells and occult powers are impressive,
they tend to come at a cost. A Mage must spend so much
time focused on their studies and training that they have
little time to master any other art. They are notably weak
combatants with little ability to survive hardships that
would merely wound or weary a Warrior.
In addition to this, many traditions have their own Special Ability: Arcane Tradition
specific limits on practitioners. Initiates of the High The Mage may pick one magical tradition to represent
Mage tradition, for example, cannot cast their spells their occult powers, as listed in the Magic chapter on
while wearing anything heavier than normal clothing, page XX. This tradition may give them a number of ad-
thus making it impossible for them to wear armor and ditional benefits and restrictions.
still wield their spells. The hindrances of some traditions
extend beyond physical limitations to social penalties or
difficulties in dealing with mundane humanity; a necro-
mancer may have impressive powers of magic, but they
are often unwelcome in civilized lands and are sometimes
subject to the panicked justice of frightened locals and
their lords.
Level Hit Dice Attack Bonus Focus Picks
1 1d6-1 +0 1 Free
2 2d6-2 +0 +1 Free
3 3d6-3 +0
4 4d6-4 +0
5 5d6-5 +1 +1 Free
6 6d6-6 +1
7 7d6-7 +1 +1 Free
8 8d6-8 +1
9 9d6-9 +1
10 10d6-10 +2 +1 Free
18

The Warrior
The Warrior is a hero born to the blade, a man or woman Level Hit Dice Attack Bonus Focus Picks
gifted with a superb capacity for physical violence. Sav-
1 1d6+2 +1 1 Free +
age barbarians, hardened mercenaries, courageous young
1 Warrior
farm boys, and ordinary laborers who just happen to
have an undiscovered capacity for massive bloodshed all 2 2d6+4 +2 +1 Free
might qualify as Warriors. 3 3d6+6 +3
Warriors have more hit points than heroes of other
4 4d6+8 +4
class, and are capable of surviving wounds and hardships
that would kill an ordinary man. They’re also gifted with 5 5d6+10 +5 +1 Free
a superior attack bonus, and a native ability to inflict 6 6d6+12 +6
more damage than other PCs. They even have the abil- 7 7d6+14 +7 +1 Free
ity to ensure a hit or force a miss by an enemy once per
scene, making them lethal foes to common combatants. 8 8d6+16 +8
9 9d6+18 +9
Special Ability: Killing Blow 10 10d6+20 +10 +1 Free
Whenever a Warrior inflicts damage with any attack,
spell, or special ability they may add half their character into a miss, also as an Instant action. Only one exercise of
level, rounded up, to the damage done. This damage is this ability is possible in a scene, either to force a miss or
also added to any Shock they may inflict. ensure a hit on a foe; both options may not be exercised
in the same fight.
Special Ability: Veteran’s Luck A Warrior may use this ability with crew-served
Once per scene, as an Instant action, the Warrior may weapons they are assisting in firing. This ability cannot
turn a missed attack they have made into a hit. Alter- be used to negate environmental damage or damage done
nately, they may turn a successful attack against them to a vehicle or mount they are riding.

WARRIORCLASS
6.34 W
5.04 H
 19

The Adventurer
Not every hero is perfectly reflectd by one of the three Partial Expert/Partial Warrior
main classes, even with the wide latitude of concepts each
one allows. For those heroes that straddle the roles, there Level Hit Dice Attack Bonus Focus Picks
remains the class of Adventurer. 1 1d6+2 +1 1 Expert +
An Adventurer picks two of the three main classes 1 Warrior +
to reflect their own particular talents. A spell-slinging 1 Free
swordsman might choose to be a Partial Mage/Partial 2 2d6+4 +2 +1 Free
Warrior, while a stealthy assassin might be a Partial Ex-
3 3d6+6 +2
pert/Partial Warrior, and a grifting mountebank-wiz-
ard might be a Partial Expert/Partial Mage. The player 4 4d6+8 +3
should pick whichever pairing serves best. 5 5d6+10 +4 +1 Free
The adjacent tables provide the hit dice, attack bo-
6 6d6+12 +5
nus, and foci picks gained by each of the three possible
pairings. Thus, a first level Partial Expert/Partial Warrior 7 7d6+14 +5 +1 Free
would roll 1d6+2 for their hit points, have a +1 attack 8 8d6+16 +6
bonus, and pick three Foci: one expert, one warrior, and 9 9d6+18 +6
one free pick.
Adventurers tend to have a wider range of abilities 10 10d6+20 +7 +1 Free
than a more focused PC, and the extra Focus pick can
make a significant difference at low levels. The absence Partial Expert/Partial Mage
of the strongest class abilities of Experts and Warriors Level Hit Dice Attack Bonus Focus Picks
make a difference in the longer run, however, and a Par-
1 1d6 +0 1 Expert +
tial Mage will never attain the same magical power in
1 Free
their tradition as a focused specialist.
2 2d6 +1 +1 Free
Partial Experts 3 3d6 +1
A Partial Expert is treated just as a full Expert, including 4 4d6 +2
gaining the benefits of the Quick Learner ability. They
do not have the Masterful Expertise ability, however, as 5 5d6 +2 +1 Free
they lack the determined focus of a specialist. 6 6d6 +3
7 7d6 +3 +1 Free
Partial Mage 8 8d6 +4
A Partial Mage is treated as a full Mage, and gains the
Arcane Tradition ability, allowing them to pick a magical 9 9d6 +4
tradition for their powers. That tradition’s abilities will 10 10d6 +5 +1 Free
be more limited for Partial Mages, however, as described
under each of the arts.
It’s even possible for a PC to pick the Partial Mage Partial Mage/Partial Warrior
class twice for two different magical traditions, gaining
portions of both arcane powers. They then use the usual Level Hit Dice Attack Bonus Focus Picks
full Mage chart for hit dice, attack bonus, and Foci, and 1 1d6+2 +1 1 Warrior +
the table on page XX for their magical powers. 1 Free
A Partial Mage must adhere to the restrictions and 2 2d6+4 +2 +1 Free
limits of their magical tradition in order to use its abili-
3 3d6+6 +2
ties, regardless of whatever other partial class they may
have. 4 4d6+8 +3
5 5d6+10 +4 +1 Free
Partial Warrior 6 6d6+12 +5
A Partial Warrior gains many of the benefits of a full
Warrior, including the improved hit die and a somewhat 7 7d6+14 +5 +1 Free
improved attack bonus. They do not have the Veteran’s 8 8d6+16 +6
Luck special ability or the Killing Blow power, however, 9 9d6+18 +6
and must trust to their own talents to land blows and
crush their enemies. 10 10d6+20 +7 +1 Free
20

Choose Foci
Once you know your hero’s class, you can choose their
Foci, special knacks or talents that your hero has devel- Armsmaster
oped. Foci generally come in two levels; the first time You have an unusual competence with thrown weapons
you pick it you get the first level of the Focus, and the and melee attacks. This focus’ benefits do not apply to
second time you choose it you gain the benefits of the unarmed attacks or projectile weapons. This Focus’ bo-
second level. nuses don’t stack with Deadeye or other Foci that add a
Once a Focus has been bought up to its maximum skill’s level to your damage.
level, it generally can’t be picked again. Sometimes the Level 1: Gain Stab as a bonus skill. You can draw or
same Focus can be taken more than once to apply to sheath a Stowed melee or thrown weapon as an
different skills, such as taking Specialist twice to apply Instant action. You may add your Stab skill level to
to both Sneak and Know skills. a melee or thrown weapon’s damage roll or Shock
Many Foci grant a bonus skill. You gain this skill damage, assuming it has any to begin with.
at level-0 if you don’t already have it, or level-1 if you Level 2: The Shock from your melee attacks always treats
already have it at level-0. If you already have it at level-1, the target as if they have AC 10. Gain a +1 bonus
pick any other skill except Magic. If you earn a Focus to hit with all thrown or melee attacks.
later in your adventuring career, you instead improve the
skill as explained on page XX. Assassin
Every PC can pick one Focus of any kind repre- You are practiced at sudden murder, and have certain
senting past experiences or native talent. This free Focus advantages in carrying out an Execution Attack as de-
doesn’t necessarily have to have anything to do with your scribed in the rules on page XX.
class; a Mage might actually be a vicious knife fighter Level 1: Gain Sneak as a bonus skill. You can conceal an
with the Close Combatant Focus, or a Warrior might object no larger than a knife from anything less in-
be exceptionally Cultured. vasive than a strip search. You can draw or produce
Aside from this free Focus, a Warrior or Partial this object as an On Turn action, and your point-
Warrior can pick one Focus related to their martial blank attacks made from surprise with it cannot
background, and an Expert or Partial Expert can pick miss the target.
one Focus related to something other than combat. In Level 2: You can take a Move action on the same round as
ambiguous cases, the GM decides if the Focus really does you make an Execution Attack, closing rapidly with
relate to their class. a target before you attack. You may split this Move
action when making an Execution Attack, taking
Alert part of it before you murder your target and part of
You are keenly aware of your surroundings and virtual- it afterwards. This movement happens too quickly
ly impossible to take unaware. You have an instinctive to alert a victim or to be hindered by bodyguards,
alacrity of response that helps you act before less wary barring an actual physical wall of meat between you
persons can think to move. and your prey.
Level 1: Gain Notice as a bonus skill. You cannot be
surprised, nor can others use the Execution Attack Authority
option on you. When you roll initiative, roll twice You have an uncanny kind of charisma about you, one
and take the best result. that makes others instinctively follow your instructions
Level 2: You always act first in a combat round unless and further your causes. At level 1, this is a knack of
someone else involved is also this Alert. charm and personal magnetism, while level 2 might sug-
gest latent magical powers. Where this focus refers to
Armored Magic followers, it means NPCs who have voluntarily chosen
Usable only by Mage heroes who would otherwise be to be in your service. PCs never count as followers.
prevented from casting spells or using arts while armored, Level 1: Gain Lead as a bonus skill. Once per day, you
this Focus reflects special training in channeling magic can make a request from an NPC who is not openly
through the obdurate and hindering materials of con- hostile to you, rolling a Cha/Lead skill check at a
ventional armor. difficulty of the NPC’s Morale score. If you succeed,
Level 1: You can cast spells or use arts while wearing they will comply with the request, provided it is not
armor that has an Encumbrance value of no more significantly harmful or extremely uncharacteristic.
than one. You can use shields while casting, provid- Level 2: Those who follow you are fired with confidence.
ed you have at least one hand free to cast with. Any NPC being directly led by you gains a Morale
Level 2: You can cast spells while wearing armor of any and hit roll bonus equal to your Lead skill and a +1
Encumbrance weight. bonus on all skill checks. Your followers and hench-
 21

men will not act against your interests unless under Die Hard
extreme pressure. You are surprisingly hard to kill. You can survive injuries
or bear up under stresses that would incapacitate a less
Close Combatant determined hero.
You’ve had all too much practice at close-in fighting and Level 1: You gain an extra 2 maximum hit points per lev-
desperate struggles with drawn blades. You’re extremely el. This bonus applies retroactively if you take this
skilled at avoiding injury in melee combat, and at level focus after first level. You automatically stabilize
2 you can dodge through a melee scrum without fear of if mortally wounded, provided you have not been
being knifed in passing. incinerated, dismembered, or otherwise torn apart.
Level 1: Gain any combat skill as a bonus skill. You can Level 2: The first time each day that you are reduced to
use knife-sized thrown weapons in melee without zero hit points by an injury, you instead survive with
suffering penalties for the proximity of melee at- one hit point remaining. This ability can’t save you
tackers. You ignore Shock damage from melee as- from large-scale, instantly-lethal trauma.
sailants, even if you’re unarmored at the time, but
invoking this benefit disrupts any spellcasting you Deadeye
might do that round due to the need for violently You have a gift with ranged weapons. While this talent
active evasion. most commonly applies to bows, it is also applicable to
Level 2: The Shock damage from your melee attacks thrown weapons or other ranged weapons that can be
treats all targets as if they were AC 10. The Fight- used with the Shoot skill. For thrown weapons, you can’t
ing Withdrawal combat action is treated as an On use the benefits of the Armsmaster focus at the same
Turn action for you and can be performed freely. time as Deadeye.
Level 1: Gain Shoot as a bonus skill. You can draw or
Connected ready a Stowed ranged weapon as an On Turn ac-
You’re remarkably gifted at making friends and forging tion. You may use a bow even when an enemy is
ties with the people around you. Wherever you go, you within melee range, albeit at a -4 hit penalty. You
always seem to know somebody useful to your ends. may add your Shoot skill level to a ranged weapon’s
Level 1: Gain Connect as a bonus skill. If you’ve spent at damage roll.
least a week in a not-entirely-hostile location, you’ll Level 2: Once per round, you can reload a crossbow or
have built a web of contacts willing to do favors for other slow-loading ranged weapon as an On Turn
you that are no more than mildly illegal. You can action if it takes no more than one round to reload.
call on one favor per game day and the GM decides Gain a +1 bonus to hit on all ranged attacks.
how far they’ll go for you.
Level 2: Once per game session, if it’s not entirely implau- Developed Attribute
sible, you meet someone you know who is willing to Your hero has a remarkable degree of development to one
do modest favors for you. You can decide when and or more of their attributes. This may be derived from an
where you want to meet this person, but the GM eldritch bloodline, native brilliance, or sheer, stubborn
decides who they are and what they can do for you. determination. This Focus cannot be taken by heroes of
the Mage or Partial Mage classes, and has only one level.
Cultured Level 1: Choose an attribute; its modifier is increased by
Through wide travel, careful observation, or extensive +1, up to a maximum of +3. The actual score does
study, you’ve obtained a wide experience of the cultures not change, but the modifier increases, and may
of your region and an ability to navigate their customs, increase again if later advancement improves the
laws, and languages. You know what to do and say to attribute enough. You can choose this Focus more
impress others with the reasonableness of your wishes. than once to improve different attributes.
Level 1: Gain Connect as a bonus skill. You can speak
all the common languages of your native region and Diplomat
convey at least basic information in the uncommon You know how to get your way in personal negotiations,
or esoteric ones. You can learn a new language with and can manipulate the attitudes of those around you.
only a week’s practice with a native speaker. Once Even so, while smooth words are versatile, they’ll only
per game day, your polished ways automatically gain work if your interlocutor is actually willing to listen to
a modest favor from an NPC that would not put you.
them to significant expense or risk, assuming the Level 1: Gain Convince as a bonus skill. You speak all
NPC isn’t hostile to you. the languages common to your region of the world
Level 2: Once per game session, reroll a failed social skill and can learn new ones to a workable level in a week,
check as you use your cultural knowledge to push becoming fluent in a month. Reroll 1s on any skill
your interlocutor toward the desired result. check dice related to negotiation or diplomacy.
22

Level 2: Once per game session, shift an intelligent Impervious Defense

NPC’s reaction roll one step closer to friendly if Whether through uncanny reflexes, remarkable luck, su-
you can talk to them for at least thirty seconds. pernatural heritage, or magical talent, you have natural
defenses equivalent to high-quality combat armor. The
Gifted Chirurgeon benefits of this Focus don’t stack with armor, though
You have an unusual gift for saving mortally-wounded Dexterity or shield modifiers apply.
allies and quickening the natural recovery of the wound- Level 1: You have an innate Armor Class of 15 plus half
ed in your care. your character level, rounded up.
Level 1: Gain Heal as a bonus skill. You may attempt Level 2: Once per day, as an Instant action, you can shrug
to stabilize one mortally-wounded adjacent person off any single weapon attack or physical trauma
per round as an On Turn action. When rolling Heal inflicted by a foe. Environmental damage, falling
skill checks, roll 3d6 and drop the lowest die. You damage, or other harm that couldn’t be forfended
heal twice as many hit points as usual when apply- by strong armor cannot be resisted this way.
ing first aid after a battle, as described on page XX.
Level 2: Your curative gifts are little short of magical. You Lucky
can heal 1d6+Heal skill in damage to an adjacent Some fund of remarkable luck has preserved your life at
wounded ally as a Main Action. Each such applica- least once in the past, and continues to give you an edge
tion of healing adds 1 System Strain to the target, in otherwise hopeless situations. This luck does not favor
and the gift cannot be used on targets already at the already-blessed; this Focus can only be taken by a PC
their maximum System Strain. with at least one attribute modifier of -1 or less.
Level 1: Once per week, a blow or effect that would oth-
Henchkeeper erwise have killed, mortally wounded, or rendered
You have an distinct knack for picking up lost souls who helpless the PC somehow fails to connect or affect
willingly do your bidding. You might induce them with them. The PC makes any rolls related to games of
promises of money, power, excitement, sex, or some other chance twice, taking the better roll.
prize that you may or may not eventually grant. A hench- Level 2: Once per session, in a situation of need or peril,
man obtained with this focus will serve in loyal fashion the PC can trust to their luck and roll 1d6. On a 2
until clearly betrayed or placed in unacceptable danger. or more, something fortunate will happen to further
Henchmen are not “important” people in their society, their goal, provide an escape from immediate peril,
and are usually marginal sorts, outcasts, the desperate, or otherwise give them an advantage they need, if
or other persons with few options. not immediate victory. On a 1, the situation will
You can use more conventional pay or inducements immediately grow much worse, as the GM sees fit.
to acquire additional henchmen, but these extra hirelings
are no more loyal or competent than your pay and treat- Nullifier
ment can purchase. Something about your hero interferes with easy use of
Level 1: Gain Lead as a bonus skill. You can acquire magic on them. It may be a strangely powerful birth
henchmen within 24 hours of arriving in a com- blessing, a particular supernatural bloodline, or simple
munity, assuming anyone is suitable hench material. occult incompatibility. This Focus cannot be taken by
These henchmen will not fight except to save their Mages or Partial Mages.
own lives, but will escort you on adventures and Level 1: You and all allies within twenty feet gain a +2
risk great danger to help you. Most henchmen will bonus to all saving throws against magical effects.
be treated as Peaceful Humans from the Bestiary You can feel the presence or use of magic within
section of the book. You can have one henchmen twenty feet of you, though you can’t discern details
at a time for every three character levels you have, about it or the specific source. The first failed saving
rounded up. You can release henchmen with no throw against a magical effect you suffer in a day is
hard feelings at any plausible time and pick them turned into a success.
back up later should you be without a current Level 2: Once per day, as an Instant action, you are sim-
henchman. ply not affected by an unwanted magical effect, even
Level 2: Your henchmen are remarkably loyal and de- if it wouldn’t normally allow a saving throw.
termined, and will fight for you against anything
but clearly overwhelming odds. Whether through Polymath
natural competence or their devotion to you, they’re You’ve done so much in the course of your life or studied
treated as Martial Humans from the Bestiary sec- so many different topics that you’re never entirely at a
tion. You can make faithful henchmen out of skilled loss when called upon to do something. Note that the
and highly-capable NPCs, but this requires that phantom skill levels granted by this Focus don’t stack
you actually have done them some favor or help that with normal skill levels, nor do they make buying a new
would reasonably earn such fierce loyalty. skill any cheaper.
 23

Level 1: You never take the -1 penalty for attempting increases. At level-0, they do 1d6 damage. At level-1,
a skill check untrained, and you can attempt even they do 1d8 damage. At level-2 they do 1d10, level-3
those skills that would be impossible for an untu- does 1d12, and level-4 does 1d12+1. At Punch-1 or
tored person to essay. You never suffer the -2 hit better, they have the Shock quality equal to your
penalty for lacking an appropriate combat skill. Punch skill against AC 15 or less. While you nor-
Level 2: Once per day, you can remember some trick mally add your Punch skill level to any unarmed
or knack relevant to the task you are attempting, damage, don’t add it twice to this Shock damage.
allowing you to roll a skill check as if you had level-2 Level 2: Even on a miss with a Punch attack, you do an
skill in the relevant ability. unmodified 1d6 damage, plus any Shock that the
blow might inflict on the target.
Shocking Assault
You’re extremely dangerous to enemies around you. The Unique Gift
ferocity of your melee attacks stresses and distracts ene- Your hero has some unusual ability or magical knack that
mies even when your blows don’t draw blood. can’t be adequately described by an existing Focus. This
Level 1: Gain Punch or Stab as a bonus skill. The Shock choice is a catch-all meant to represent a special power
damage of your weapon treats all targets as if they that’s in some way worth a Focus pick.
were AC 10, assuming your weapon is capable of The exact effect of the ability should be defined by
harming the target in the first place and the target the player and the GM together, working out some re-
is not immune to Shock. sult that seems fair and reasonable. This will vary from
Level 2: In addition, you gain a +2 bonus to the Shock table to table and from campaign to campaign; an innate
damage rating of all melee weapons and unarmed ability to breathe water is little more than a novelty in a
attacks. As usual, regular hits never do less damage desert setting, while a campaign based on piracy in an
than this Shock would do on a miss. endless archipelago might make it far more significant.
As with any power, the group should be willing to
Sniper reconsider the gift if it turns out to be exceptionally weak
You are an expert at placing a thrown knife or arrow on in play or a stronger power than was anticipated.
an unsuspecting target. These special benefits only apply
when making an Execution Attack with a bow or thrown Valiant Defender
weapon, as described on page XX. You are a bodyguard, shieldbearer, or other gifted defend-
Level 1: Gain Shoot as a bonus skill. When making a er of others, accustomed to the roil of bloody battle and
skill check for a ranged Execution Attack or target desperate struggle.
shooting, roll 3d6 and drop the lowest die. Level 1: Gain Stab or Punch as a bonus skill. Gain a +2
Level 2: A target hit by your ranged Execution Attack on all skill checks for the Screen Ally combat ac-
takes a -4 penalty on the Physical saving throw to tion. You can screen against one more attacker per
avoid immediate mortal injury. Even if the save is round than your skill would normally allow.
successful, the target takes double the normal dam- Level 2: The first Screen Ally skill check you make in
age inflicted by the attack. a round is always successful. Gain +2 AC while
screening someone. You can screen against foes as
Specialist large as ogres or oxen.
You are remarkably talented at a particular skill. Wheth-
er a marvelous cat burglar, a famed athlete, a brilliant Whirlwind Assault
scholar, or some other savant, your expertise is extreme- You are a frenzy of bloody havoc in melee combat, and
ly reliable. You may take this focus more than once for can hack down numerous lesser foes in close combat…
different skills. assuming you survive being surrounded.
Level 1: Gain any skill as a bonus, except for Magic, Stab, Level 1: Gain Stab as a bonus skill. All enemies adjacent
Shoot, or Punch. Roll 3d6 and drop the lowest die to you at the end of your turn whom you have not
for all skill checks in this skill. attacked suffer the Shock damage of your weapon
Level 2: Roll 4d6 and drop the two lowest dice for all if their Armor Class is not too high to be affected.
skill checks in this skill. You must have attacked some target that round to
gain this benefit.
Unarmed Combatant Level 2: The first time you kill someone in a round with a
Your empty hands are more dangerous than swords in normal attack, either with its rolled damage on a hit
the grip of the less gifted. Your unarmed attacks are or with the Shock damage it inflicts, instantly gain a
counted as melee weapons when it comes to binding up second attack on any target within range using any
opponents wielding bows and similar ranged long arms, Ready weapon you have.
though you need at least one hand free to do so.
Level 1: Gain Punch as a bonus skill. Your unarmed at-
tacks become more dangerous as your Punch skill
24

Final Touches
 25

Equipment Packages
26

Example Character Creation

 27

Blank Character Sheet

28

THE RULES OF THE GAME

(Intro text here.)
 29

SYSSPLASH
W 6.34 in
H 9.67 in
30

Scenes, Turns, and Durations

Most time can be tracked relatively loosely during play Sometimes it’s important to track the time of a more
but sometimes it becomes important to know how long complex operation, like exploring a Deep or navigating
it takes to accomplish a particular activity, or how long a the trackless depths of some ancient ruin. In such cases,
magical effect can be trusted to last. the turn is a common measure of time. Each turn lasts
The scene is the basic measurement for most effect ten minutes and is equivalent to one scene for those sit-
durations. A scene is simply one general event or activity. uations when it matters.
A single fight is a scene, infiltrating a smuggler’s ware- GMs use turns to track exploration usually, so as to
house is a scene, negotiating with a merchant prince is keep a firm grip on light sources running out, unplan-
a scene, and so forth. So long as the PCs are doing the nned monster encounters, movement speeds, and oth-
same general thing in the same general place, it’s usually er important elements of delving into pits of ineffable
a single scene. darkness.
Most scenes last no longer than fifteen minutes or so, Situations that don’t require this degree of careful-
though some stretch is possible at the GM’s discretion. ness with time-tracking can generally be glossed over as
Many powers and abilities are listed as lasting for one taking so many hours or however many days they might
scene; this means that when the PCs trigger them while require. GMs are advised to keep a calendar on hand,
doing something, the effect is going to last for as long as however, and mark off time accordingly when the PCs
they keep up their current activity. If it runs particularly are at their adventures. A land that seems to dwell in
long, however, a GM is justified in letting these effects ageless indeterminate summer can sometimes lack a little
run out partway through. something in verisimilitude.

Saving Throws
Adventurers tend to face horrors of innumerable varieties, when it really is nothing but sheer good luck that a hero
from the festering poison that smears some Deep-dwell- might avoid some danger. Luck saves for a PC are equal
ing degenerate’s bone spear to the shadow of falling stones to sixteen minus the hero’s level, unmodified by any at-
from above to the bite of some devil-wizard’s hideous tribute.
sorcery. In order to avoid perishing to such dooms, they Note that saving throws are meant to be last-ditch
can attempt a Saving Throw. A saving throw is a chance chances to avoid the worst of unusual perils or uncom-
a hero has to avoid some particularly grim outcome. mon dangers. You can’t make an Evasion saving throw to
To make a saving throw, the subject rolls a d20 and dodge a sword stroke; that’s what the hit roll is for. It’s up
tries to roll equal or higher than the relevant saving throw to the GM to decide whether a particular danger might
score. There are four different kinds of saving throws. allow a saving throw or not.
Evasion saves are made to dodge hurled perils, take
cover from explosions, pull back from sudden pits, and
face other challenges of nimbleness and reaction speed.
Evasion saves for PCs are equal to sixteen minus the
hero’s level and minus the best of their Intelligence or
Dexterity modifiers. Thus, a third-level hero with an In-
telligence modifier of +1 and a Dexterity modifier of -1
would have an Evasion save of 12.
Mental saves are made to resist mind-affecting
magic, disbelieve illusions, throw off intangible magical
afflictions, and other tests of willpower or force of char-
acter. Mental saves for PCs are equal to sixteen minus
the hero’s level and minus the best of their Wisdom or
Charisma attribute modifiers.
Physical saves are made to resist poisons, diseases,
exhaustion, bodily transformation, or other taxes on the
subject’s physical strength. Physical saves for PCs are
equal to sixteen minus the hero’s level and minus the
best of their Strength or Constitution modifiers.
Luck saves are for occasions of blind random for-
tune, where no quality of personal strength or cunning
can help the hero. The GM might call for a Luck save
 31

Skill Checks
Most characters are skilled, competent men and women
who are perfectly capable of carrying out the ordinary When To Call for a Check
duties of their role. Sometimes, however, they are faced Skill checks should only be called for challenges that fall
with a situation or challenge beyond the usual scope of outside the PC’s background and common experience.
their role and must make a skill check. A PC with the background of a sailor should not be
To make a skill check, roll 2d6 and add the most rolling skill checks to dock a ship or navigate to a com-
relevant skill level and attribute modifier. If the total is monly-known destination. As a general rule of thumb, if
equal or higher than the check’s difficulty, the check is a failure at a particular task would make the PC seem no-
success. On a failure, the PC either can’t accomplish the tably incompetent at their role in life, then they shouldn’t
feat at all or they achieve it at the cost of some further have to roll a skill check for it. In addition, if failure or
complication to the situation. The GM determines the success at a check really doesn’t matter in the game, if it
specific outcome of a failure. won’t produce some interesting result either way, then a
If the character doesn’t even have level-0 in the per- check shouldn’t be made.
tinent skill, they suffer a -1 penalty to the roll. In the case Even concept-related feats might require a skill
of particularly technical or esoteric skills they might not check, however, if the situation is especially bad or the
even be able to attempt the skill check at all. circumstances particularly hostile. The sailor might have
Some checks might be suitable for more than one to make a Sail skill check to dock a ship if they attempt
skill. A javelin-throwing contest might use Exert for be- it in the middle of a gale wind, and a noble might have
ing an athletic contest, or Shoot for involving a ranged to make a Connect skill check to find shelter with an
weapon, or Stab for using a muscle-powered thrown aristocratic relation if they’re currently wanted by the
weapon. In such cases the PC can use the best applicable Witch-King’s inquisitors.
skill. In other situations, a skill might seem peripherally
relevant; trying to find the damaged component in the Aiding a Skill Check
ancient magical engine before it explodes would certainly Sometimes one PC will want to lend a hand to another
be Magic, but a GM might also let Notice or Craft be ap- as they attempt a difficult feat. To do this, the player first
plied, as a skilled craftsman or sharp-eyed observer might describes what sort of action they are taking to help their
be able to recognize signs of damage. In such peripheral comrade. If the GM agrees that their effort makes sense
cases, the check difficulty usually increases by 2. and would be helpful, the player then rolls a relevant skill
check against the same difficulty as the original check. If
Skill Check Difficulties it’s a success, the other PC gets a +1 bonus on their roll.
6 A relatively simple task that is still more than Multiple PCs can try to help, but the acting PC can’t earn
the PC would usually be expected to manage more than a +1 total bonus.
in their regular background. Anything easier The helping skill doesn’t necessarily have to be the
than this isn’t worth a skill check. same skill the PC is checking. If a player can think of a
way to help a Sneak check with Convince, then so be it.
8 A significant challenge to a competent
professional that they’d still succeed at more
often than not.
Opposed Skill Checks
Sometimes a PC wants to accomplish something that
10 Something too difficult to be expected of another character wants to prevent. Sneaking past an
anyone but a skilled expert, and even they alert guard, winning an archery tournament, or besting
might fail. a squamous monster in a tentacle-wrestling competition
might all be opposed skill checks.
12 Only a true master could expect to carry this
In such cases, all participants roll their relevant skills
off with any degree of reliability.
and the highest score wins, with ties going to the PC. To
14+ Only a true master has any chance of make the NPC’s roll, check their listed skill bonus; they
achieving this at all, and even they will can add it to any skill check appropriate to their role or
probably fail. profession. If the NPC has no reason to be particular-
ly good at the challenge, they simply roll 2d6 and add
Particularly helpful or hostile circumstances might nothing.
give a bonus or penalty to the skill check. As a general In most cases, the relevant skills are obvious. A
rule, extremely bad circumstances or tools would apply character trying to skulk past a vigilant guard would be
up to a -2 penalty to the skill check, while a very good rolling their Dex/Sneak against the guard’s roll, while
situation or the perfect set of tools might give up to a +2 one trying to out-tentacle a monster would be rolling
bonus to the roll. Usually, no combination of modifiers Str/Exert. When in doubt, the GM decides which skill
should add more than +2 or -2 to any given skill check. is most applicable.
32

Combat
A hero’s trade being what it is, it’s to be expected that the Move Actions involve moving up to the participant’s
PCs might find themselves locked in bloody battle. The normal movement rate. Thus, a normal human with a
rules below explain how such frays are to be managed, movement rate of 30 feet can move up to that distance
but every hero must remember well their own mortality. with a Move action. Climbing, swimming, crossing dif-
Even a veteran hero may fall to the spears of a sufficient ficult terrain, or other challenging movement usually is
mob of foes, and novice adventurers run the risk of death only half as fast as normal combat movement. A par-
from a single sure stroke of a blade. ticipant gets one Move action per round, though they
can also choose to spend their Main Action taking an
Rounds, Initiative, and Surprise additional Move action if they wish.
Combat and other time-sensitive situations are broken A Move action must spend all its movement at once;
into rounds, each of which is roughly six seconds in it cannot split it around a Main Action. Thus, it’s not
length. During a round every participant gets to take a possible to move 10 feet, shoot a foe with a Main Action,
turn, after which a new round begins. and then dive another 20 feet behind cover.
The order of action is determined by Initiative. On Turn Actions are quick, simple acts that take
To determine initiative, each side rolls 1d8 and adds very little time and focus to perform, such as falling prone,
the highest Dexterity modifier in the group, assuming saying a few words, reloading a bow from a Readied
they have any. The side with the highest roll goes first in quiver, drawing out a Readied object, or similar things.
whatever order the members choose, and then the other A participant can only perform an On Turn action on
sides act in their respective order. The PC party wins any their own turn, but they can do as many of them as the
initiative ties. At the end of the round, it cycles back to GM thinks is reasonable.
the first group and repeats accordingly. Instant Actions are so fast and simple that the par-
Optionally, some groups prefer to use “individual ticipant can use them at any time, even when it’s not their
initiative”, with each participating rolling their own initia- turn. They can even use them after the dice have been
tive roll and going in order. This takes a little longer and rolled, delaying their use until they’re sure the action is
can complicate party plans that require each member to needed. Instant actions are generally related to special
act in a particular sequence, but it also mitigates the risk powers and abilities, like a Warrior’s Veteran’s Luck class
of the group being overwhelmed by foes before anyone ability or certain magical arts. If multiple Instant actions
can act. The choice of which version of initiative to use are triggered at the same time, they execute in whatever
is up to the GM. order the GM thinks is most reasonable. There is no lim-
In some cases a group may be ambushed or sur- it to the number of Instant actions a participant can take.
prised by a foe. The more alert the targets, the more dif- This section includes a list of common combat ac-
ficult it is to ambush them; a group of heroes prowling tivities and their respective action types. If a PC wants
through a Deep is going to be much more difficult to to do something different, the GM should simply pick
surprise than one having dinner in a tavern. Generally, an action type for it that seems to make sense.
if the group is alert for danger an ambush has to either
crash down on them suddenly or come from an angle or Attacking a Foe
location they never suspected. When a combatant wants to harm an enemy, they need
If the GM decides that surprise is possible, an op- to make a Hit Roll. An attack usually counts as a Main
posed Wis/Notice versus Dex/Sneak skill check should Action and the assailant must be close enough to actually
be rolled. If the attackers win, they surprise the targets hit the target with whatever weapon they have to hand.
and get a full round of action to themselves before ini- To make a hit roll, the attacker rolls a d20 and adds
tiative is rolled and the the combat progresses as usual. their relevant combat skill, their class attack bonus, and
An ambush might also provoke a Morale check in un- their relevant attribute modifier. If they lack even level-0
disciplined or unmilitary targets at the GM’s discretion. skill in the weapon being used, they suffer a -2 penal-
ty. Any other situational modifiers or penalties are also
Actions in Combat added to the roll.
When it’s a given participant’s turn in combat, they can If the total is equal or greater than the target’s Ar-
take their action. There are four different kinds of actions mor Class, then the attack hits and damage is rolled. If
in combat or other time-sensitive situations. less, then the attack misses. A missed melee attack may
Main Actions are actions that take up most of the still inflict Shock damage, if the weapon has a Shock
actor’s round. Attacking someone, manipulating some rating and the target’s Armor Class is low enough.
device, applying first aid to a downed ally, casting a spell, To roll damage, the attacker rolls the weapon’s listed
or other complex actions that would take several seconds damage die and adds their relevant attribute modifier
to perform are all Main Actions. A participant gets one and any bonus from a magical weapon, Focus, or other
Main Action every round. special benefit.
 33

The damage is then subtracted from the target’s hit 15 or less. More heavily-armored targets are immune to
points. If the target is reduced to zero hit points, it is the weapon’s Shock.
either dead or mortally wounded. Generic NPCs with Assailants add their weapon’s attribute modifier to
no name worth remembering are usually dead on the Shock, along with any magical bonus to the weapon and
spot. PCs and NPCs significant enough to deserve char- any damage bonuses that are explicitly noted as adding
acterization are instead Mortally Wounded and will die to Shock. Other damage bonuses do not increase Shock.
quickly without aid. An attack never does less damage on a hit than it
Some attacks may not be lethal in nature. If a non-le- would do in Shock. Thus, if an attack that would nor-
thal attack reduces a target to zero hit points, the attacker mally do 4 points of Shock to AC 15 hits a target with
can choose to simply have their victim be unconscious AC 13 and rolls a 3 for damage, 4 points are done instead.
or helpless, unable to act and reviving ten minutes later
with one hit point. Attacks that are psychic or emotional Dual-Wielding Weapons
in nature may reduce their victims to helpless shock or PCs who wish to wield two one-handed weapons at once
numbing confusion when they bring them to zero hit may do so if they have at least Stab-1 skill. Doing so
points, likewise incapacitating them for ten minutes. grants them a +2 bonus to damage rolls, albeit not to
Unarmed attacks can always be non-lethal at the Shock. They suffer a -1 penalty on hit rolls, however, due
attacker’s discretion. Attacks with blunt and relatively to extra complication. Only one weapon may be used to
forgiving weapons such as batons, staves, or clubs might attack in any given round, but either one may be used.
also qualify, though it may take a Str/Stab or Dex/Stab Unarmed combatants cannot dual-wield.
skill check against the target’s Morale score to see wheth-
er that last blow pacified them or accidentally knocked Shoving and Grappling
their brains out. In ambiguous cases, it’s the GM’s call as To shove a target or force them back, the attacker must
to whether damage is or isn’t non-lethal. first hit the target normally for no damage and then suc-
ceed in an opposed Str/Punch or Str/Exert skill check.
Hit Roll Modifiers At the GM’s discretion, Stab might be allowed as the
The table below notes some common hit roll modifiers. applicable skill if the weapon is suitable for herding or
GMs should use them as general guidelines when apply- pushing targets. If the attacker succeeds in the skill check,
ing their own adjustments to hit rolls for circumstances the target is forced back up to ten feet or knocked prone,
not listed on the chart. at the attacker’s discretion.
Circumstance Mod To grapple a foe, the attacker must first hit with an
unarmed attack, doing no damage, and then both must
Shooting at a distant prone foe -2 make opposed Str/Punch skill checks. If the attacker
Shooting or meleeing an adjacent prone foe +2 wins, the target is grappled and remains that way until
Melee attacking while prone -4 released or until they spend a Main Action to succeed in
a new opposed skill check. An attacker can grapple only
The target is at least half behind cover -2 one target at a time, though multiple attackers can cling
The target is almost completely in cover -4 to the same luckless target. In such cases, the defender’s
Thrown attack while being meleed by a foe -4 single skill check is compared against all of their attackers.
While grappling, neither attackers or defenders can
Shooting a bow while being meleed by a foe X
move from their current location, nor can they fight with
Note that no penalty is given for shooting or throw- anything but unarmed attacks or held weapons no larger
ing a weapon into a melee. It’s assumed that PCs have than a shortsword. At the end of each round in which a
worked together enough to coordinate such attacks and target remains grappled, they suffer damage from each
avoid getting in each others’ way. A PC whose combat assailant as if hit with a normal unarmed attack by each,
style is built around ranged attacks can easily end up regardless of their Armor Class.
frustrated by the rest of the party if they have to spend If the assailant wishes to move the target, they must
extra effort on special Foci or accept additional hit pen- spend a Main Action and succeed in an opposed Str/
alties simply because the rest of the group prefers to fight Punch skill check. If they win, the target is either moved
up close. ten feet along with them, or thrown five feet and knocked
prone. If they lose, the defender breaks free from the
Shock Damage assailant.
Some melee attacks inflict Shock, the inevitable harm These rules assume both targets are man-sized.
that is done when an unarmored target is assailed by Grappling or shoving significantly larger but still human-
something sharp. oid targets is done at a -2 penalty on all skill checks by
Shock for a weapon is listed in points of damage and the attacker. Doing so to creatures only barely plausible
the maximum AC affected. Thus “Shock 2/15” means for such manhandling is done at a -4 skill check penalty.
that 2 points of damage are done to any target with AC
34

Common Combat Actions Screen an Ally Move Action

The actions below include some of the more common
actions a participant might take during combat. The GM The PC physically blocks opponents from attacking a
can make individual judgements about other types of ac- chosen ally who is within ten feet. Until the PC’s next
tivities that might be attempted. turn, enemies who wish to make a melee or ranged attack
against the screened ally must succeed in a successful Str
Make a Melee Attack Main Action or Dex-based opposed skill check against the PC using
The combatant attacks an enemy within melee range, the combat skill applicable to their weapon; on a fail-
rolling a normal hit roll and inflicting damage on a suc- ure, the attack roll is automatically directed toward the
cessful hit. Most melee attacks inflict Shock damage on screening PC, who ends up adjacent to their ally.
a miss, if the target’s Armor Class is low enough, and no A PC can screen against a number of attackers in
successful hit does less damage than the weapon’s Shock one round equal to their combat skill; thus, Stab-2 lets
would have done on a miss. An attacker’s weapon must them block two attackers. PCs with level-0 or worse
be Readied in order to attack with it. combat skills can’t effectively screen. Multiple PCs can
try to screen the same ally; in such a case, the attack-
Make a Ranged Attack Main Action er’s skill check is compared against all blockers and the
The combatant fires or throws a Readied ranged weapon lowest-rolling successful blocker is attacked. PCs can
at a target. The combatant can’t Make a Ranged Attack only screen against foes and attacks they could plausibly
with a two-handed weapon such as a bow if there’s a physically block.
enemy armed with a melee weapon within melee range;
it’s too easy for the assailant to hinder the use of a bow. Total Defense Instant Action
One-handed ranged weapons and thrown weapons can As an Instant action, the combatant focuses on nothing
still be used, albeit at a -4 penalty to hit. other than avoiding knives, arrows, hurled crystalline
spears, or other perils in the vicinity. Using Total De-
Make a Snap Attack Instant Action fense costs the user their Main Action for the round, and
A combatant with a Ready weapon can rush their attack, cannot be used if they’ve already employed their Main
sacrificing accuracy for speed. The combatant must still Action. They become immune to Shock damage for the
have their Main Action impending or available. As an round from melee weapons, regardless of their Armor
Instant, they can sacrifice it to Make a Melee Attack or Class, and gain a +2 bonus to their Armor Class until
Make a Ranged Attack against a foe in range, whether their next turn.
a snap shot with a bow or a quick thrust at an adjacent
melee foe. This attack takes a -4 penalty to its hit roll. If Run Move Action
multiple combatants decide to make Snap Attacks at the The combatant moves their normal combat movement
same time, they are resolved simultaneously. rate, which is 30 feet for most humans. If they’re climbing
Snap Attacks are normally only possible for PCs a surface, swimming, or navigating extremely rough ter-
and other very well-trained or talented combatants. If rain, this movement rate is halved, and they might have
an opponent isn’t significant enough to have been given to make an Exert skill check to achieve even that. Prone
a name, they probably shouldn’t be using Snap Attacks. characters crab along at half this rate.

Cast a Spell Main Action Fighting Withdrawal Main Action

An arcanely-gifted PC can cast a spell as a Main Action. The combatant disengages from any melee foes around
Distractions are ruinous to this process, however; if them. They don’t actually move away, but they can now
they’ve suffered any hit point damage this round or have get away from their assailants without giving them a free
been severely jostled or otherwise pushed around they melee attack. Usually, this means the combatant uses
cannot take this action. If hurt while casting, such as by their Move action to get clear, because if they just stand
someone who has held their action to attack at that mo- there the enemies might choose to re-engage them the
ment, the spell fizzles uselessly and the spell slot is wasted. next round.

Charge Special Use a Skill Main Action

A combatant can make a wild charge before hurling a The combatant uses a skill that could be plausibly applied
weapon or crashing into a foe, moving up to twice their in a few seconds. An Int/Heal or Dex/Heal skill check to
normal move in a straight line before making a melee or stabilize a wounded comrade is one such potential use, as
thrown attack at +2 to hit. The charging attacker must is turning a creaking engine wheel, shouting out a stirring
be able to move at least 30 feet to get the requisite mo- rallying cry to timorous NPC allies, or anything else that
mentum and suffers a -2 AC penalty for the rest of the might be done quickly.
round. Charging takes both their Move Action and Main
Action for the turn. Ready or Stow an Item Main Action
 35

The combatant draws a weapon, extracts an item from

their backpack, digs a potion out of a belt pouch, or oth-
erwise moves an object around on their person. They can
Ready an item this way or Stow it.

Reload a Weapon Main Action

The combatant reloads a weapon like a crossbow or an
ancient projectile launcher with a Readied magazine or
a quarrel from a Readied quiver. Bows can be reloaded
as an On Turn action, assuming the archer has a Readied
quiver.

Drop an Item Instant Action

The combatant drops something they’re holding. They
can do this Instantly at any time to free up their hands.

Pick up an Item Move Action

The combatant can scoop an object off the floor if they
have a free hand, leaving it Readied in their grip.

Stand Up Move Action

The combatant gets up from a prone position. Most char-
acters that have just been revived from unconsciousness
must get up before they do much else.

Go Prone On Turn Action

The combatant falls flat, forcing distant ranged attackers
to take a -2 penalty to hit them. Adjacent enemies find
them an easier target, however, gaining +2 to hit.

Hold An Action Move Action

By choosing to Hold An Action, the combatant can delay
taking the rest of their actions until later in the round,
activating them as an Instant action. Thus, a hero who
wins initiative might use their Move action to Hold An
Action. Later in the round, as an enemy rushes around
a corner, he may Instantly elect to use his Main Action
to Make A Ranged Attack with his readied crossbow.
If acting in response to someone else’s impending action,
the held action is resolved first.
36

Injury, Healing, and System Strain

Despite the aeons of meddling and corruption, the Leg-
acy has still conferred a certain degree of health and re- First Aid
cuperative ability on the humanity of the Latter Earth. The powerful vitality of the people of Latter Earth can
While this hardiness is a subtle quality, the people of this be complemented by skilled medical attention and the
land can often survive wounds and hardships that might use of numerous herbs, compounds, and other “mundane”
have killed their ancient ancestors, and recover in time techniques.
from injuries that ought more properly to have maimed By spending a few minutes tending an ally, a healer
them for life. can cure 1d6 plus their Heal skill in points of damage.
They suffer a -1 on this roll if they have no Heal skill,
Mortal Wounds and Stabilizing perhaps doing no good at all. Each such application of
A creature reduced to zero hit points is dead or dying. first aid adds 1 System Strain to the target, but it can be
Ordinary NPCs or unremarkable creatures will generally repeated for a wounded ally as often as the healer and
die on the spot. PCs and those NPCs important enough the subject’s System Strain allow.
to have deserved a name will be Mortally Wounded. A single ten-minute turn is usually sufficient to ap-
A Mortally Wounded creature is helpless, unable ply as much first aid as the party wants to apply. First aid
to do anything but scream, writhe, or lie unconscious. can restore lost hit points to a Frail PC, but it cannot get
At the end of the sixth round after they were downed, rid of the Frail quality itself.
they will die.
An ally can attempt to stabilize a Mortally Wounded System Strain
companion. Doing so is generally an Int/Heal or Dex/ Most forms of healing and certain other magical powers
Heal skill check, requiring a Main Action. add to a target’s System Strain. System Strain is a mea-
The difficulty for this skill check is 8 plus the num- sure of how much stress the target’s body is under, and
ber of full rounds since the the target was downed. If the how profoundly it has been taxed by magical energies
healer lacks any useful medical implements, the difficulty and forced healing acceleration.
for this skill check is increased by 2. Only one ally can try A character’s maximum System Strain is equal
to stabilize a target in any given round, though others can to their Constitution attribute. Thus, someone with a
attempt to aid their skill check, and a failed check can be Constitution of 13 could accumulate up to 13 points of
re-attempted the next round. System Strain. This strain is generally lost at a rate of one
Once stabilized, the target recovers with 1 hit point point for every night of good, refreshing sleep.
after ten minutes of rest, and can rise and act normally Healing often adds to a target’s System Strain,
thereafter. They count as Frail, however, and will remain whether as first aid or as the effect of some magical power.
Frail until they have had at least a week of bed rest. Frail If the target is already at its maximum System Strain, it
PCs cannot heal damage through natural healing and can’t handle the additional stress and gets no benefit from
will die immediately if brought to zero hit points again. the effect or attempting healing.

Natural Healing Poisons and Diseases

A wounded creature recovers its level or hit dice in lost hit When a character is struck by some poison, they gen-
points after every night’s rest, assuming they’re properly erally get a Physical saving throw to avoid its effect, or
fed and can get decent sleep. At this time they also lose at least mitigate its harm. Particularly powerful poisons
one point of accumulated System Strain. might apply a penalty of up to -4 on this check, while
Creatures that are Frail do not recover hit points weak toxins might grant a bonus of up to +4. The exact
this way, nor do they lose System Strain. effect of a failed save will be listed by the poison.
Diseases also generally allow a Physical saving throw,
Magical Healing but are significantly slower in onset. If the first saving
Some healers have access to abilities that automatically throw is a success, the target has avoided infection. If it’s
heal hit points, such as a Healer’s arcane arts or the vi- a failure, the disease begins to take hold. The victim can
tality-transmitting spells of a Necromancer. Other PCs make further saving throw attempts at weekly intervals,
might have elixirs of health, artifacts that cure injuries, generally, with a certain number of successes sufficient
or other sources of magical healing. to throw off the disease. Each failed save tends to make
A character healed by any amount of magical healing things worse, however. The disease listing will indicate
automatically loses any Mortally Wounded or Frail qual- the consequences of an insufficiently vigorous resistance.
ities and can immediately rise. A downed hero at zero hit Those with the Heal skill can tend the sick, granting
points who gets 3 points of healing from a magic potion, a bonus to their saving throws equal to twice their Heal
for example, can immediately get up on their next turn skill, or +1 in the case of a nurse with Heal-0 skill.
and return to the fray without any frailty.
 37

Overland Travel
Overland and sea travel rules here.
38

Character Advancement
When characters accumulate enough experience points,
they advance a character level. New PCs start out at Benefits of Gaining a Level
level one and the most experienced, capable heroes in the Once a PC has been awarded enough experience points
kingdom might reach level ten. Advancing beyond such to reach the next level, they immediately gain the bene-
prowess is the realm of the Legates, a matter discussed fits of advancement. No special training or practice is re-
more fully in the deluxe edition of this book. quired as their abilities are assumed to have been honed
by their past adventures.
Gaining Experience Points
To advance in capability, PCs need to earn experience Roll Additional Hit Points
points. Once they accumulate enough experience, they First, they become harder to overcome in combat. To
can advance to the next character level, representing the determine their new maximum hit points, they roll the
sharpening of their skills and the heroic veterancy that hit dice for their class and level as given on the chart
comes of surviving perils and dire challenges. in the character creation chapter, adding their Consti-
There are many different things that can earn a hero tution modifier to each die. If the new total is no greater
experience points, and the kind of activities and goals than the old, add one point to the old total and record
that reward them will vary with the kind of campaign it instead.
you’re playing. The GM should make clear to the whole Thus, a Warrior who reaches third level and who has
group what kind of things earn the PCs experience in a +1 attribute modifier for their Constitution would roll
their game. 3d6+9 to find their new hit point total. If they already
For some games, success might lie in plundering had 15 hit points and rolled a 12, they’d instead record
forgotten hoards or clawing wealth from the hands of 16 hit points as their new total.
desperate patrons. Other games might reward the PCs
for achieving personal goals, whether or not there was Improve Attack Bonus
any money in it. Some might even award XP only for A PC’s base attack bonus improves according to their
spending gold, requiring every PC to recklessly waste class and level, as given on the chart in the character cre-
their wealth before gaining a level. It’s up to the GM to ation chapter. Warriors rapidly gain new skill in martial
pick a method that fits the group’s tastes. undertakings, while other classes might need to advance
The table below indicates how many experience considerably before their prowess improves.
points need to be earned before a PC can advance to
that level. Once the requisite number of XP are earned, Improve Saving Throws
the hero gains their new level and all the benefits. The PC becomes more capable of evading chance harms
Note that this table makes for a relatively fast pro- and perils. Their saving throw scores decrease by one,
gression through the early levels of an adventurer’s career, making it easier to succeed on saving throws by rolling
before slowing drastically at higher levels. A group that equal or over it. As a first level character has saving throw
prefers a different pacing might alter the chart to suit scores of 15, reaching second level would lower them to
their own tastes. 14, modified by attributes.
In general, you can assume that one “successful” gam-
ing session should usually earn you about 3 XP.

Character Level Total Experience Required

1 0
2 3
3 6
4 12
5 18
6 27
7 39
8 54
9 72
10 93
11+ +24 points for each level more
 39

Gain and Spend Skill Points Purchase Improved Attributes

They become more capable with their skills. A PC gains A veteran adventurer may have trained or honed their
three skill points they can spend on improving their natural abilities well enough to improve one of their six
skills or save to spend later. Experts and Adventurers base attributes. While even the most determined devel-
with the Partial Expert class option gain an extra bonus opment isn’t enough to turn complete ineptitude into
point to spend on a non-combat skill. gifted competence, a hard-working adventurer can hone
Skills that are gained or improved immediately on their existing strengths considerably.
gaining a level are assumed to have been perfected over The first time a PC improves an attribute, it costs
the past level and require no training time or teaching. 1 skill point and adds +1 to an attribute of their choice.
If you save your skill points to spend them later then The second improvement to their attributes costs 2 skill
you’ll need to find some teacher or other explanation points, the third 3, and so forth. Each improvement adds
for developing them. It doesn’t take more than a week to +1 to the attribute, potentially improving its modifier. A
refine your new ability, but you can’t usually spend your PC can only ever make only five such improvements to-
points mid-scene to develop a heretofore-unmentioned tal; not five per attribute.
expertise with flamethrowers. PCs must be a certain level before purchasing the
The cost for improving a skill is listed below. Every third, fourth, or fifth attribute boost. No more than five
skill level must be purchased in order; to gain level-1 in attribute boosts can ever be purchased by a PC.
a skill you need to pay one point for level-0 and then two Attribute Skill Point Minimum
points for level-1. A PC must be the requisite minimum Boost Cost Character Level
level to increase a skill to certain levels. Less hardened
heroes simply don’t have the focus and real-life experi- First 1 1
ence to attain such a pitch of mastery. Second 2 1
A PC cannot “partially buy” a skill level. If they don’t Third 3 3
have enough skill points to buy a new level, they need to
save them up until they can. A PC cannot develop skills Fourth 4 6
beyond level-4. Final 5 9
New Skill Skill Point Minimum
Level Cost Character Level
Choose New Foci
Finally, the PC might be eligible to pick an additional
0 1 1 level in a Focus. At levels 2, 5, 7, and 10 a PC can add
1 2 1 a level to an existing Focus or pick up the first level in a
new Focus.
2 3 3
If this is the first level they’ve taken in the Focus,
3 4 6 they might be granted a skill as a free bonus pick, depend-
4 5 9 ing on the Focus’ benefits. During character creation, this
bonus skill pick is treated like any other skill pick. If the
Adding New Mage Spells and Arts Focus is taken as part of advancement, however, it instead
Some Mage classes automatically acquire new spells as counts as three skill points spent toward increasing the
the fruits of their recent researches. Partial Mages learn skill. This is enough to raise a nonexistent skill to level-1,
them just as full Mages do, but an Adventurer PC with or boost a level-1 skill to level-2. They may do this even
two Partial Mage classes must pick one or the other for if they aren’t high-enough level to normally qualify for a
the purposes of gaining new spells each time they ad- skill level that high.
vance a level. If the skill points aren’t quite enough to raise the
High Mages can pick any two High Magic spells skill to a new level, they remain as credit toward future
they are capable of casting, adding these spells to their advances. If applied to a skill that is already at level-4, the
spellbooks. Necromancers and Elementalists may pick PC can spend the three skill points on any other skill of
only one, but may make their choice from among High their choice.
Magic spells or those New Magics unique to their par-
ticular tradition.
In addition to this, Mages may sometimes pick a
new art, as given in the class charts for each magical tra-
dition. Adventurers with two Partial Mage classes gain
these bonus arts from both tradition, though the new
picks must be made from arts allowed to that class. Thus,
a Partial Necromancer/Partial Elementalist who reached
third level could pick one new Necromancer art and one
new Elementalist art, but they could not pick two from
the same tradition.
40

Building and Crafting

It’s not unknown for PCs to want to fabricate their own
equipment, or earn some money with mundane skills, or Jury-Rigging Equipment
make a desperate effort to jury-rig some critical piece of Adventurers have the habit of needing the most unlikely
equipment just before calamity overwhelms them. While objects at the worst possible times. It’s not uncommon for
such ambitions aren’t always practical, the guidelines here them to need to jury-rig together a piece of equipment
can help a GM sort out these goals. on short notice.
If the materials they have to work with don’t seem
Crafting New Equipment completely inadequate to the GM, the crafter can make
Assuming a PC has the tools and workspace to fabricate an Int/Craft or Dex/Craft skill check at a difficulty rang-
a piece of equipment, they can generally do so. Raw ma- ing from 7, for something that seems crude but plausible,
terials for the equipment will cost half the usual retail to 10, for a jury-rig that stretches the boundaries of plau-
price, and then some time must be spent crafting the gear. sibility. The time taken is five minutes for small, simple
No skill check is needed to simply craft the objects if objects, fifteen minutes for ones that would normally
they are of a kind appropriate to the crafter’s background require some craftsmanship, or an hour for large objects
or habitual work. If the crafter is making something un- or those that would normally need careful construction.
usual for their skills, a skill check at difficulty 7 for simple If the time is taken and the skill check is a success,
objects, 9 for demanding works, and 11 for things only a the crafter has a usable item that will last at least as long
specialist ought to be able to make might be required at as is needed for the particular purpose they jury-rigged
the GM’s discretion. it for. Its ramshackle construction will tell, however, and
Small, simple equipment such as knives, spears, it will never work for longer than a day before falling to
bundles of torches, cloaks, sacks, or the like takes about irreparable pieces.
an hour to make for each piece or bundle of six simple
objects such as torches. Building Structures
Items that requires significant craftsmanship to PCs who want to oversee the construction of buildings
make an adequate item, such as most clothing, leath- and other large structures can use the price lists given on
er armor, blunt weaponry, movable furniture, saddles, page XX to get an idea of the cost. If a PC is capable of
or other objects that require skill but not particularly personally overseeing the undertaking, these prices can
lengthy effort can be made with one day of work per item. be decreased by 10% due to saved labor and the avoid-
Objects that are particularly large or that require ance of wasteage.
very careful construction to make, such as large tempered The time to build these structures will depend on
blades, ox-carts, hourglasses, metal armor, or the like re- how much help is available. Assuming all the needed
quire one week of work to complete. resources are on-site, one skilled worker can build ten
Crafters in a hurry can make an Int/Craft or Dex/ gold pieces worth of the structure for each day of labor.
Craft check against difficulty 9 to halve the time involved. Thus, a building worth 1,000 gold could be constructed
If the crafter has an assistant with at least Craft-0 to help in ten days by a team of ten skilled laborers. Unskilled
them, the skill check is made at difficulty 7. On a failure, laborers or those with no experience in construction are
half the raw materials were ruined and no greater speed worth only two gold pieces of completed work per day.
was possible. Large, complex structures that are built with less than
20% skilled labor may be less than perfect in execution.
Crafting Masterwork Equipment
A PC with a background as a weaponsmith, armorer, or Working as a Crafter
other maker of a specific type of goods can attempt to PCs with salable professional skills can try to make
make a masterwork piece of equipment. The raw mate- some money by plying their trade, but this is a difficult
rials for such an undertaking cost ten times as much as undertaking. Few local crafters will have any interest in
the retail price of an ordinary item and the time needed dealing with a potentially unreliable adventurer, and local
to build it is twice as long. guild laws and customs may flatly forbid strangers from
At the end of that period, the crafter makes an Int/ working in a trade. Often a PC will have to make do with
Craft or Dex/Craft skill check against difficulty 10. On a piecework and under-the-table help given to employers
success, the piece is a masterwork. On a failure, the item who are in no rush to pay them.
is no better than an ordinary item. A PC with Craft or Work or some other salable
Masterwork weaponry grants a +1 bonus to hit rolls skill can generally make one silver piece per day per skill
with the item. Masterwork armor counts as 1 fewer point level, to a minimum of 1 silver piece. The longer such
of Encumbrance, down to a minimum of 1 point. Mas- work goes on, however, the more pressure they’re likely
terwork items of other kinds may grant similar minor to feel to join whatever guilds or social circles control the
benefits at the GM’s discretion. business in the area.
 41

Quick Reference Sheet

(Important rules summary goes here)
42

MAGIC
The magic of Latter Earth is born from the Legacy, the chic configurations, and ritual keys that patch together a
accumulated mass of arcane laws and thaumic energies usable effect. Whole traditions of sorcery have developed,
that have accrued over fathomless eons. From its first with mentors passing on their wisdom to new genera-
crude beginnings in the Highshine emergency recovery tions of wizards, hoping that those who come after might
nano-systems of the ancient past to the modern alter- be able to drag more from the darkness of the past.
ations laid down by the conquering Outsiders and their
vengeful usurpers, the Legacy and its magic has existed Mages on Latter Earth
as a tool to serve the purposes of Latter Earth’s masters. Sorcerers have a varied reception among the nations of
Primitive societies might try to define the Legacy Latter Earth. In some they are accepted as skilled artisans
as a “nanite cloud” or a “malleable energy field”, or some with talents that are useful to society as a whole. In others
other technical description. It is more than that. It is the they are counted as nothing more than dangerous luna-
product of sciences and enlightenments utterly unfath- tics who’ll inevitably plunge their neighbors into some
omable by the modern dwellers of Latter Earth, and it hellish nether-dimension with their crazed fumblings.
has less relation to the crudity of a 25th century nanite There are elements of truth to both opinions.
swarm than a silicon chip has to a grain of sand. Its func- Most mages are trained into specific magical tra-
tions may as well be credited as magic, for in a very real ditions. These traditions were formed at some ancient
sense that is what they are. date by like-minded wizards who shared a similar goal or
The Legacy has been influenced over the ages by perspective on the Legacy, and their teachings have been
the rulers of Latter Earth. New processes have been es- passed down to the present day through formal magical
tablished, old ones deprecated, new limits placed on old schools or a tradition of master-pupil teachings. There
powers and old powers transformed into newer, more are considerable advantages to having trained assistance
serviceable functions. The incomprehensible science of in the research and development of new magics, to say
the former ages was able to tune and adjust the Legacy, nothing of the practical benefits of a live-in servant, so
though rarely with perfect precision; just as they desired few accomplished wizards have been wholly without ap-
to change it to suit their purposes, former users had prentices. Some of these masters are just, fair-minded
placed barriers and complications against undoing their men and women who require nothing more of their pu-
own changes. Often the new masters had to make com- pils than diligent study and honest labor. Others have less
promises in their plans in order to route around some pleasant uses for their apprentices, and very final roles for
old forbiddance. those who fail to prove useful.
The end result has been chaos. The natural decay of Other traditions have established magical academies
the Legacy has combined with the confused scrawlings of for their pupils, usually with the patronage of the local
unnumbered eons to produce a power that is capricious, nobility. In exchange for this generous tolerance such
decadent, and unruly in the hands of Latter Earth’s pres- academies usually serve as training-grounds for mages
ent occupants. Ancient magics no longer function as they dedicated to the service of their patrons, or those who pay
once did, and new sorceries are tremendously difficult to a tribute of service as part of their tuition. The advantag-
devise. The power to actually amend the Legacy has been es of having a force of trained mages on hand are consid-
almost entirely lost to this world’s modern inhabitants. erable, but some nations are reluctant to establish such
This decay is a torment to present-day wizards. The a potent power center outside their own governing class.
ancient magical techniques recorded in the most venera- A few wizards are even self-taught, having come to
ble grimoires no longer work as they once did, and alter- their powers through the study of old grimoires and per-
nate methods must be salvaged from the footnotes and sonal experimentation. Such prodigies are exceedingly
digressions half-mentioned in these texts. Wizards may rare, however, as the slightest mistake in magical training
spend their whole lives simply trying to find a working can result in a hideous death. Only the truly brilliant
substitute for some process that is vital to an ancient spell, or remarkably lucky can hope to self-study their way to
conducting dangerous and difficult experimentation to occult power.
feel out the technique. Success is rewarded by powers The magics practiced by PC wizards are not the only
that may have been sleeping for an age. Failure, in the sorceries to be found in the world, however. Throughout
worst case, is punished by deaths so terrible that only a the Latter Earth there remain innumerable small sects,
wizard could die of them. isolated traditions, and mad geniuses possessed of secrets
Yet despite these hardships, mages persist on Latter and methods long since lost to wider knowledge. There
Earth. These scholars and gifted souls yet seek to unravel are sorcerers who can perform with ease such feats as
the secrets of the Legacy and learn the methods by which would dazzle a traditional mage, yet it is not uncommon
its powers can be harnessed and invoked. The process is that these feats should come at a terrible price. Not all
intensely laborious, requiring years of study and practice paths of magic are paid for with simple study, and the
to master the trigger incantations, somatic gestures, psy- cost can be more than a wholly human heart can bear.
 43

MAGICSPLASH
W 6.34 in
H 9.67 in
44

Spells and Arts related to their tradition’s special focus. Such custom-
The ancient invocations and sorceries of yore are known ized magic is useless to other practitioners outside the
conventionally as spells, each one ranked in power from tradition, as they don’t have the necessary grounding to
level one, the relatively weakest, to level five, the most po- understand it.
tent. There are hypothetical and legendary incantations
supposedly of sixth level or higher, but such remarkable Preparing and Casting Spells
magics are not discussed in this book. Each High Magic practitioner must first learn a spell be-
The common corpus of ancient spells is known as fore they can cast it. They may be taught by a mage who
High Magic, a collection of scores of different invocations already knows the spell, even if they’re from a different
that all have been inherited from the deepest past. A sep- tradition, or they must find a grimoire laying out the
arate body of sorcery known as “New Magic” exists in fine details of the incantation. New Magic spells specific
the form of jury-rigged enchantments cobbled together to a tradition cannot be learned by mages outside that
out of the very limited understanding of modern mages, tradition.
but this form of magic tends to be extremely specific to Learning a spell requires one week per spell level,
individual casters and exceedingly difficult to develop. less one week per level of the learner’s Magic skill, down
Only the most brilliant and determined mages can ever to a minimum of one day. At the end of this time the stu-
salvage a novel yet useful new spell out of the mysteries dent will either have mastered the contents of a written
of the past. copy of the spell or created such a copy from their mas-
In this book, a collection of several dozen High ter’s tutelage. They must continue to retain access to this
Magic spells are recorded. These are by no means the written document if they are to prepare the spell later, as
only spells extant but they are some of the most com- it is an actual thaumaturgically-attuned artifact in itself.
mon. Careful researchers and bibliographers suspect that Without its formulae, attunement tables, and enchanted
there may be as many as two hundred functional spells diagrams the mage will be unable to prepare the spell
surviving from former ages, though some of these pro- for later use. The full collection of these documents is
duce effects that are seemingly impossible to detect or generally known as the mage’s “spellbook”, though some
entirely useless to modern sorcerers, and others may be texts actually take the form of teaching artifacts or phys-
no more than New Magic passed off by their developers ical models.
as something more antique. The reluctance of wizards to A mage must be able to actually cast the spell in
share information on their available magics makes such order to learn it. A novice mage can cast only first level
categorizing a difficult prospect. spells, so they can learn only first level spells as well, even
High Magic is extremely powerful. While the effects if they somehow come into possession of a grimoire with
are rarely long-lasting, even the weakest rank of spells a more potent incantation. They’ll need to wait until their
is capable of killing people outright, enslaving their own enlightenment is sufficient to cast the spell before
thoughts, or conjuring perfectly convincing illusions. The they can finally master it.
most potent spells can destroy several city blocks, trans- Once the spellbook is prepared, the mage must
late the caster over hundreds of miles of distance, or halt perform the necessary attunements and propitiations
time temporarily. There are High Magic spells that create to prepare the spell for casting. The number of spells
effects modern sorcerers do not understand, but there are a mage can prepare at once varies with their experience
no High Magic spells that create only petty effects. level, from as few as two at first level to as many as twelve
It is this very power that makes High Magic so dif- when at tenth level. The mage may prepare any spell they
ficult to use. Even the most accomplished mage of the have in their spellbook; there’s no obligation to prepare a
modern day can’t channel more than five or six spells certain number of low-level spells should the mage wish
before the eldritch energies exhaust them or burn out to fill all their available “slots” with their most powerful
their vital forces for a time. A mage capable of hurling magics and run the risk of lacking some lesser, yet more
three High Magic spells in a single day is considered ex- useful spell.
ceptionally capable. Most novices or modestly-talented Preparing a new set of spells takes an hour, and can
wizards can’t manage more than one before requiring a only be done after a good night’s rest, when the mage’s
night’s rest to recover from the strain. mind is most fresh and malleable. Once spells have been
Innumerable generations of mages have struggled prepared they remain so indefinitely until replaced with
against these limitations, forming a host of unique mag- a different set of magics.
ical techniques and quasi-spells built from their knowl- Once a set of spells is prepared, the mage may then
edge of High Magic. These New Magic “arts” are unique cast them at their leisure. Casting a spell usually requires
to each tradition of magecraft, building on insights and a Main Action and at least one free hand, along with
training techniques specific to that tradition’s education. vocalizations at least as loud as clear normal conversa-
Most of these arts are much easier to use than High tion. The arcane gesticulations and vocal incantations are
Magic, and many traditions are capable of a considerable quite obviously occult to any onlookers, but it’s usually
range of magical effects without ever calling on a true impossible to tell _which spell a mage is casting merely
spell. Others have developed New Magic incantations by looking at them.
 45

Casting a spell requires focus and undisturbed con- who has exhausted his spells for the day might still have
centration. If a mage has taken hit point damage or has a considerable fund of Effort left. Effort is deployed and
been severely jostled in a round, they cannot cast magic regained much more quickly than spellcasting slots.
that round. Thus, a mage who acts late in a round runs Effort is measured in a score equal to one plus the
the risk of being hurt and having their concentration mage’s Magic skill plus the higher of their Intelligence or
spoiled, thus forcing them to do something other than Charisma modifiers. Adventurers with the Partial Mage
cast a spell when their turn comes around. class have an Effort score one point lower than full Mages,
High Magic cannot normally be cast while wearing though never less than one point.
armor or restrictive clothing. The profane materials, re- Using Effort requires that it be Committed. The
strictive fit, and unsalutary occult configurations of ar- Effort is sunk into fueling the power, but will return
mor spoil the necessary flow of energy, as does the bulk automatically once a certain time has passed. There are
and clumsiness of a shield. The same hindrances usually three durations for which Effort is Committed, and each
also spoil the use of any arts the tradition may teach, and art indicates in its description how long the Effort must
not just spellcasting itself. remain Committed to trigger it.
A mage can cast only so many spells each day before
needing a full night’s rest to recover. Novices can cast only • Commit Effort for the day to trigger powerful arts.
one spell, while masters can manage six. The spell to be The Effort is invested in the power and returns the
cast may be selected from any prepared by the mage; the next morning after the mage has had a good night’s
same power can be used to invoke a mighty fifth-level rest.
spell or a relatively modest first-level incantation. The
same spell may be cast more than once, if the mage has • Commit Effort for the scene to trigger more mod-
multiple castings left for the day. est abilities. The Effort is invested in the power, but
Adventurers who take the Partial Mage class are returns as soon as the scene is done.
more limited than more focused specialists. They are
able to cast fewer spells each day and the maximum • Commit Effort indefinitely to activate a persistent,
level of spell they can cast is also significantly lower as lasting ability that keeps active as long as you keep
compared to an equivalent full Mage. The total spells the Effort Committed. You can reclaim this Effort
they can prepare for the day are also often somewhat at any time as an Instant action, immediately turn-
fewer than that of a full Mage. When they cast the spells, ing off the art. This Effort can remain invested in-
however, any level-based effects also use their full level, definitely even while you’re asleep or unconscious
so a third-level Partial Necromancer’s invocation of The provided you have a few minutes to prepare things
Coruscating Coffin does 3d8 damage, just as a full Nec- properly before falling asleep. If you’re struck un-
romancer would. conscious or killed any such powers immediately
Adventurers who take two different Partial Mage end.
classes keep two entirely separate lists of spells prepared
and cast for the day. A third-level Partial High Mage/ Each tradition has a separate pool of Effort; there is
Partial Elementalist can prepare four spells as a High Necromancer Effort and High Mage Effort and Healer
Mage and four as an Elementalist, and cast one spell from Effort and so forth. An Adventurer who picks two differ-
each prepared collection before requiring rest. ent traditions has two different pools of Effort, neither of
which can be used to fuel arts from the other.
Arts and Effort
Arts are those special magical techniques and abilities
taught by a particular magical tradition. These are much
less powerful than actual High Magic spells, and often
produce relatively minor, even trivial effects. Even so, they
may be used with far more facility than the mighty spells
of ancient days and their practical utility is a blessing to
modern sorcerers.
Each tradition has a list of available arts, though
additional techniques might exist in far lands or isolated
sub-sects of the group. A mage can pick one or more arts
from this list as they rise in character level, while some
traditions automatically grant certain arts to all members.
Once picked, an art cannot be exchanged; the occult at-
tunements involved are final and permanent.
Arts are fueled by Effort, a representation of the
mage’s available focus and magical energy. This Effort is
separate from the power used to cast spells, and a mage
46

Dual Partial Mage Traditions Partial Mage/Partial Mage

Some Adventurer PCs are adepts of two different magi- Level Hit Dice Attack Bonus Focus Picks
cal traditions, such as a Partial High Mage/Partial Nec-
romancer, or a Partial Elementalist/Vowed. The rules 1 1d6-1 +0 1 Free
for these combinations are a little bit different, as mixing 2 2d6-2 +0 +1 Free
two spellcasting traditions creates a little more aptitude 3 3d6-3 +0
for sorcery than merely mixing in a martial Warrior’s
training or learning the non-spellcasting magical arts of 4 4d6-4 +0
a Healer or Vowed. 5 5d6-5 +1 +1 Free
A PC who chooses two Partial Mage traditions for 6 6d6-6 +1
their Adventurer uses the adjacent table for hit dice, at-
7 7d6-7 +1 +1 Free
tack bonuses, and Focus picks.
If the two Mage traditions are both spellcasters, 8 8d6-8 +1
they don’t use the Partial Mage tables listed under each 9 9d6-9 +1
tradition to determine their allowed spells per day and
10 10d6-10 +2 +1 Free
preparation limits, Instead, they use the adjacent table
to find out how many spells they can cast each day, how
many they can prepare at once, and what the maximum PCs with Dual Spellcasting Traditions
level of spell they can cast might be. Spells can be pre-
pared and cast from either of their partial traditions, so a Max Spells Spells
Partial Elementalist/Partial Necromancer could prepare Level Level Cast Prepared Arts Gained
High Magic, Elementalist, or Necromancer spells with 1 1 1 3 As per both
their allowed slots. partial classes,
Thus, a 1st level Partial High Mage/Partial Necro- 2 1 1 4
gaining each
mancer could prepare up to three first-level spells and 3 1 2 5 level’s art picks
cast one of them each day. He could pick two arts from 4 2 2 6 as usual.
the High Mage list, because that’s what a first level Partial
5 2 2 7
High Mage can pick, in addition to one Necromancer
art, because that’s the allotment a novice Partial Necro- 6 2 3 8
mancer gets. 7 3 3 9
Dual-spellcasting Adventurers have a wider range of
8 3 4 10
arts and more prepared spells than their more focused
peers, but they have slightly fewer spells usable each day, 9 3 4 11
and they never attain mastery of the most powerful spells. 10 4 5 13
47
48

High Magic Spell List

suicidal ones. It can perform any action that a competent
human servant could. If the familiar is slain, it fades away,
Abdication of Temporal Presence Level 5 but can be called forth again by the spell. The familiar re-
The caster and up to one visible ally per caster level briefly tains its memories of what happens while it’s summoned,
step outside of the conventional flow of time, the rest of and can develop its own personality in time. The familiar
the world freezing around them. These subjects can take remains in existence until dawn following the spell’s cast-
1d4+1 free rounds of actions, but they cannot physically ing or until dismissed by the caster.
affect the world or move any object they were not carry-
ing at the time they cast the spell. Any spells the caster or
other allies cast can affect only their own group, and not Calculation of the Phantasmal
those entities still in the normal flow of time. Eidolon Level 4
The caster conjures up a semi-real phantasmal creature
in any shape or appearance they desire, provided it is
Adopt the Simulacular Visiage Level 3 no larger than an ox. The servitor is as intelligent as a
A brief incantation transforms one visible, willing target human and will obey the caster with fearless and suicidal
per caster level into a perfect simulacrum of any human- devotion, having 4 effective hit dice, 20 hit points, AC
oid creature the caster has seen before, whether a specific 15, a movement rate of 30’ per action, a +1 skill modifier,
individual or a general type. No special abilities are grant- saves of 13+, and a +6/1d8 damage melee attack with 2/
ed by this transformation, but the target will perfectly AC 15 Shock. As the creature is partly phantasmal, the
resemble a chosen individual, including in voice and scent. damage it inflicts cannot kill a subject, but only knock
Their non-magical clothing will transform to whatever them unconscious for an hour before they awaken with 1
clothing is appropriate to the target, and they will gain hit point. The caster may pick one special quality for the
an intuitive ability to speak and understand the target’s creature when it is summoned: the ability to fly at a rate
native tongue. The spell lasts until dawn of the day after of 30’/move, the perfect duplication of a particular per-
casting it, whereupon the targets and any transformed son they’ve seen, the ability to form a telepathic speech
clothing revert back to their original seeming. connection with the caster, or the ability to effectively
use normal weaponry and armor. The servitor lasts until
destroyed or the dawn after the spell is cast.
Apprehending the Arcane Form Level 1
The mage opens up their mind to the presence of occult
energies. For the rest of the scene, they are capable of see- Casting Forth the Inner Eye Level 2
ing active magical effects, curses, enchantments, or other A pool of water, mirror, open flame, polished crystal, or
dweomers as colored auras or patterns of light. They may other luminous or reflective surface is used to peer at a
identify magical items and get a one-sentence description distant location. The location must either be within one
of their purpose or most significant powers, and may get hundred feet per caster level or be a location the caster
more sophisticated answers with successful Wis/Magic has physically occupied before. The caster perceives the
skill checks at difficulties of 8 or more depending on the location as if he were standing at the targeted point with-
subtlety of the enchantment. Mages with prepared spells in it, seeing and hearing events there as if he were present.
are visible to the caster, though which spells the subject This spell cannot scry locations that have been magically
might have prepared is not knowable. As a side effect warded, and scrying the same location repeatedly is hin-
of this spell, the ambient thaumic currents cast enough dered by the resonance created by the spell. The spell can-
quasi-light to allow the caster to see normally even in not perceive the same area twice within the same week, or
perfect darkness. position its target point so as to overlap a prior area with
its perceptions within that time. If a target present in the
area has more hit dice than the caster has levels, they get
Calculation of the Evoked Servitor Level 2 a Mental saving throw to get an uncanny sense of being
This spell conjures up an intelligent familiar for the caster, watched, something that will alert those cognizant of
one with one hit point per caster level, an AC of 14, a this spell. This spell lasts until the caster performs some
ground movement rate of 30’ per action, saving throws action other than focusing on the scrying.
the same as the caster, and no effective attack. The fa-
miliar always adopts the same shape for the same caster,
though the initial casting can set this to any shape the
Cognitive Supersession of the
caster wishes provided it’s no larger than a small human. Inferior Orders Level 1
The familiar retains a telepathic connection with its cre- The mage targets a visible, normal, non-magical animal or
ator and will obey any command it is given, including insect, obtaining temporary control of the beast and the
 49

ability to share its senses. The animal gains a telepathic Targets with only 1 hit die will inevitably be slain regard-
bond with the caster, obeying any non-suicidal command less of the damage done. The spell cannot be blocked by
and allowing the mage to perceive everything it perceives. non-magical intervening barriers, provided the caster can
The beast will not fight for the caster, but can perform see the target with their unaided vision.
complex actions entirely out of character for it while un-
der the mage’s control. The mage must focus to share the
beast’s senses, requiring a Main Action and leaving the The Dazzling Prismatic Hemicycle Level 5
mage unable to act physically while so focused. The spell A blinding fan of impossible colors cascades over all tar-
lasts until the mage releases the beast, it is dispelled, or gets in front of the caster in an area equal to a cone a
it is cast again. hundred feet long and a hundred feet wide at the end.
Each creature within that area must make a Physical
saving throw; those who fail roll 1d6. On a 1, they are
Conjunct the Vital Viscera Level 3 unharmed, on a 2 they collapse into a handful of dust,
The caster renders the forms and life energy of up to on a 3 they fall unconscious for an hour, on a 4 they go
one willing subject per caster level into something plastic violently insane for the next hour and attack all around
and transferrable. Hit points, poisons, and diseases can them, on a 5 they turn to stone, and on a 6 they become
be transferred from one creature to another, if both are utterly enthralled to the caster’s commands for the next
willing or helplessly bound, healing up to the maximum hour, as if under the effect of an Ineluctable Shackles
allowed hit points of the target creature. Body parts can of Volition spell.
be exchanged or gifted so long as each subject retains at
least half of their original corpus. A willing target can
even be absorbed into the body of another subject of the Decree of Ligneous Dissolution Level 1
spell, disappearing into them until the spell ends or they Wood, linen, cotton, rope, and other plant-derived mat-
choose to spring back out, fully-equipped. Assimilated ter is annihilated by a wave of entropic force that washes
subjects can continue to see and hear what goes on out- through an area near the caster. The mage targets a point
side their carrier. A given subject can absorb up to five within one hundred feet per caster level and designates
other human-sized targets. The spell lasts until dispelled, a number of 10-foot cubes within that area equal to or
released, or one hour per caster level has passed, though less than their caster level. All non-magical plant matter
transferred hit points or afflictions do not return to their within that area immediately erodes away to dust. En-
original subject. If a subject is killed while “borrowing” chanted objects of plant matter cannot be affected, but
another’s body parts, those parts do not return. ordinary plant-based clothing, bows, or wooden-hafted
weapons will be destroyed. If used against plant-based
monsters, the spell does 1d10 damage per caster level,
Conjunction of the Inexorable Step Level 2 with a Physical save for half.
One visible target creature or object within a hundred
feet is immediately teleported to any visible, solid resting
point within a half-mile, provided the target point has Decree of Lithic Dissolution Level 2
enough room to accept them and it is not a position of Stone, earth, sod, sand, or other largely mineral material
imminent physical peril. Loose objects can be translo- is reduced to a faint spray of fine dust by this sorcery,
cated by the spell, but they can be no larger than a horse. though metal and enchanted objects are unaffected. The
Unwilling creatures targeted by this spell may make a caster nominates up to one 10-foot cube per caster lev-
Mental saving throw to resist; on a success, it is the caster el in a visible area within one hundred feet per caster
who is transported to the intended destination instead. level, causing all such stone or mineral material within
the cubes to disappear. Such rapid destruction may well
cause larger structures to collapse as well.
Contingent Excision of Arcana Level 4
The caster sets up a triggered resonance of dispelling
magic which may later be invoked as an Instant action. Deluge of Hell Level 5
Until the next dawn, the mage may negate magic as if The caster unleashes a consuming destruction on a visible
with an Extirpate Arcana spell as an Instant action. point within three thousand feet. A torrent of eldritch
Once this negation is triggered, the spell ends. ruin rains down on everything within up to a two hun-
dred foot radius per caster level, inflicting 1d10 damage
per caster level with a Physical save for half damage, and
The Coruscating Coffin Level 1 automatically killing all targets with 4 or fewer hit dice.
A thaumic discharge is focused on a single visible creature This damage is sufficient to destroy any wooden or light-
within one hundred feet per caster level, wreathing them ly-built stone structure and will seriously damage even
in a lethal mantle of crackling energy. The target suffers fortifications. The caster can tighten the radius down to a
1d8 damage per caster level, with a Physical save for half. minimum of 20 feet, but cannot be selective about targets
50

within that area. This spell is extremely hazardous to the Missile attacks against invisible foes are largely impos-
caster; they must make a Mental saving throw on casting sible, and melee attacks against them usually suffer a -4
it or suffer a quarter of the damage inflicted, rounded up. penalty to hit rolls. The spell lasts for up to an hour per
caster level, but it breaks if a subject performs some vio-
lent motion, such as running, attacking, or casting a spell.
Disjunctive Temporal Reversion Level 4 Once broken for one subject, it breaks for all.
The caster may invoke this spell as an Instant action on
any single creature within one hundred feet. Time is
rolled back slightly, allowing them to replay their cur- Exhalation of Congelating Cold Level 3
rent round of action as if it never occurred, though all The caster invokes a gust of deepest winter on a point
involved retain a memory of what originally happened. within one hundred feet per level, freezing everything in
This spell is only useful on targets that are currently tak- a radius up to ten feet per caster level. All liquids freeze
ing their round’s actions; once they’ve finished for the solid down to a depth of two feet and all living creatures
round and another creature has started acting, it is too not impervious to arctic cold must suffer 1d6 damage
late to benefit from this spell. If the target is unwilling per two levels of the caster, with a Physical save for half
to roll back their action, they may make a Mental saving damage. Those who fail their Physical saves are numbed
throw to resist the spell. by the cold and lose their Move action each round for
the next 1d4 rounds. The frozen area warms again at the
usual rate for the surrounding environment.
The Earth as Clay Level 5
The caster molds the soil and stone of the land around
them, raising hills, digging trenches, or forming simple Extirpate Arcana Level 2
structures out of extruded bedrock. Once cast, the mage The caster sweeps away all unwanted magical effects and
may psychically mold the terrain within three hundred enchantments within a twenty-foot radius, centered on
feet per caster level, shifting it slowly over the course of any visible point within one hundred feet per level. If
an hour to form whatever shape they desire out of it, the magical effect was cast by a creature with equal or
provided the material use can actually maintain such a fewer hit dice or levels, the effect is negated automatically.
shape. Simple buildings and walls may be created out of Otherwise, a contested Int/Magic or Cha/Magic skill
bedrock or available stone, and tunnels and caves may roll must be made, with higher-leveld caster gaining a
be shaped up to 50 feet down from the caster, while hills +2 bonus on their roll and the dispeller winning any ties.
may be raised up to 200 feet above the prevailing grade. This spell is not strong enough to permanently suppress
This spell cannot work within a thousand feet of stone standing magical effects, and requries the aforemen-
or earth that has been significantly worked by intelligent tioned contested roll to have any chance to even tempo-
creatures, though the use of this spell by the same caster rarily suppressing them. If successful, the effect is negated
doesn’t count as working the earth on further castings. for 1d6 rounds. If cast on a very large enchantment, only
the portion within the spell’s zone of effect is suppressed.
Evert the Inwardness Level 4
A single visible target is selected, whereupon whatev- Foresightful Apprehension Level 3
er contents that target may possess are extracted and The caster probes the near currents of fate to discern
placed in the caster’s hands. If used on a cabinet, back- the likely immediate outcome of an action. The caster
pack, pocket, or other such container it can be no larger describes a particular action they or a comrade intend to
than an armoire, and the caster can choose whether or presently undertake, whereupon the GM tells them what
not to receive any particular object from inside it, being is most likely to happen in consequence within the first
instantly appraised of its contents when the spell is cast. five minutes after the action, as the GM thinks it most
If used on a creature, it attempts to tear out the subject’s probable. This spell cannot be used more than once a
innards; if the subject has equal or fewer hit dice than week on the same general topic, so casting it repeatedly
the caster, it must make a Physical save or die instantly. to find out which of the hundred doors in an ancient
Whether or not it perishes, it suffers 1d10 damage per vault lead to its treasure would be a very long-delayed
caster level, with a Physical save for half. revelation.

The Excellent Transpicuous The Grinding Geas Level 4

Transformation Level 1 A single visible living creature is struck with a grim geas,
The mage chooses up to one visible willing target per forcing it to comply with a particular command or else
caster level provided they are within 100 feet, though suffer a progressively-worse affliction.The caster may lay
afterwards the targets can separate freely. The targets one single-sentence command on the target that is nei-
and all they wear or carry become perfectly transparent. ther suicidal, indefinitely imprecise, nor likely physically
 51

impossible for them to comply with. Thus, the caster liberates them, but every time this spell is cast, all exist-
could geas a man to kill his son or never seek to harm ing subjects of the enchantment get another unmodified
his lord, but he could not reasonably command a peasant Mental save to break free.
to become king or bind someone to forever after comply
with a master’s arbitrary commands. If the target then
defies that geas or unreasonably delays its execution, they The Inexorable Imputation Level 5
suffer an agonizing progressive wasting disease that will The caster makes a single one-sentence statement as part
inevitably kill them in 1d6 weeks, applying -2 to their of casting this spell, a process which is subtle enough to
hit rolls and -1 to skill checks for each week that passes appear as no more than ordinary conversation. All who
and halving their maximum hit points. If they again be- hear the caster speak within a forty-foot radius must
gin complying with the geas afterwards or if the curse is make a Mental saving throw or come to immediately
lifted, the disease halts and reverses itself at the same rate believe the statement is true unless it seems physically
it progressed. An active target can make a Mental save impossible to them or it is emotionally intolerable to be-
to resist this spell, but they cannot if they are restrained, lieve. The listeners must be able to understand the caster’s
unconscious, or otherwise subdued. The curse lasts until language, and the caster may exempt up to two targets
dispelled or the caster lifts it. per caster level from this delusion when casting the spell,
so as to avoid beguiling their companions. The spell’s
effects linger for one hour per caster level, after which
The Howl of Light Level 3 the believers will be no more persuaded of the fact than
A flattened disc of tremendous heat, sound, and shock is events or their own common sense would allow.
triggered at a visible point within fifty feet per caster level,
erupting in a twenty-foot radius eight feet in height. Ev-
erything within the area suffers 1d8 damage from flame, Invocation of the Invincible Citadel Level 5
concussion, and sonic shock per caster level, with an The caster hurls up a magical shield that is impervious
Evasion save for half. If used in a space less than 40 feet to almost all hostile powers. Unlike most sorceries, this
in width, the explosion is channeled through adjacent spell can be cast as an Instant action, and immediately
spaces and passages for an additional 1d6 x 10 feet. creates a transparent bubble of force around the cast-
er with up to a twenty-foot radius. Entities and forces
outside the bubble cannot penetrate it, and the interior
Imperceptible Cerebral Divulgence Level 1 remains a warm, breathable, safe environment regardless
The mage focuses on a visible living creature within 100 of the exterior. Those within the bubble can pass out of
feet per caster level. For the rest of the scene, they im- it, but they cannot then return within. The bubble can
mediately receive an impression of the target’s surface be dispelled by appropriate magics, but other enchant-
thoughts and interests, understanding them regardless ments and attacks cannot harm it, nor can magical effects
of any lack of a shared language. The caster may ask one or material objects pass through it from either direction.
question of the target’s memories per caster level, but The spell lasts until the caster departs from the bubble.
doing so risks breaking the spell; the target can make a
Mental save before answering each question and the spell
ends if the save is successful. These questions can only Mantle of Disjecting Dissection Level 2
query memories, not compel any exercise of judgment or A visible willing creature within thirty feet is surrounded
extrapolation. This spell is very subtle in its casting, and by a whirl of razor-sharp energy shards. Anyone who at-
can be invoked without any visible gestures or audible tempt to touch the target or make a melee attack against
incantations. them must make an Evasion saving throw or suffer 1d6
damage plus the caster’s level before resolving their attack.
The field of blades is indiscriminate and will affect even
Ineluctable Shackles of Volition Level 1 allies trying to touch the target. The blades remain as
The mage targets a visible living creature within 100 long as the target gives up a Move Action each round
feet. The subject must immediately make a Mental sav- in order to avoid disrupting them from within, up to a
ing throw at a penalty equal to the caster’s Magic skill maximum of one scene.
or become enthralled to the caster’s will, obeying any
commands they are given and obtaining an instinctive
awareness of the caster’s desires even if no common lan- Obnubilation of the Will Level 4
guage is shared. When not commanded by the caster the This spell can only be applied to a helpless or restrained
creature will remain largely inert, doing no more than is living victim, who gets a Mental saving throw to resist it
necessary to protect itself or satisfy its needs. The crea- and be ever after immune to its effects. On a failure, the
ture will refuse to obey commands that seem suicidal to target becomes hopelessly subject to the caster via a series
it, but will otherwise submit to the caster’s will. The spell of psychic fetters, obediently carrying out their will. The
lasts indefinitely until it is dispelled or the caster dies or target must be able to understand the caster’s wishes, but
52

will obey them to the best of its intelligence, capability, point and fleeing. This spell has no effect on creatures
and initiative. They must make a Mental saving throw to that feel no fear or that have a Morale of 12.
resist performing even suicidal acts. The spell lasts until it
is dispelled or the caster releases the target. A caster can
have no more creatures under this spell than twice their Pierce the Pallid Gate Level 4
level or hit dice; if this number is exceeded, the earliest The caster opens a short-ranged spatial rift between two
thrall is freed first. points within one hundred feet per level, provided they
can see or have physically occupied both points at some
prior time and provided the two points are at least twenty
Open the High Road Level 5 feet apart. The rift forms a gateway that connects the
The caster carves open a metadimensional gate between two points, one large enough to drive a cart through, and
their present location and a pre-set target point. Attun- allows subjects on either side to see through and pass
ing the target point requires an hour of effort, after which through the gate. Ambient environmental qualities such
this spell will unerringly open a portal to it from a dis- as liquids or atmospheres will not pass through the por-
tance of one hundred miles per caster level or less. The tal; only intentionally-directed creatures and objects will
portal is large enough to admit a cart and wagon and will transfer. Once the creature has passed through a portal, it
remain open for up to one minute per caster level, end- cannot pass through again until its next turn. The portal
ing when they pass through it. The gate is one-way, only remains open for up to one round per caster level, but
allowing transit from the caster’s location to the target can be shut as an Instant action by the caster. Creatures
point. Only living creatures and the vehicles they drive partially through a rift when it is closed are spat out on
and objects they carry may pass through; atmosphere the far side.
and other environmental phenomena remain on the far
side of the gate. Only one target point may be prepared
for this spell at a time. Resounding Temporal Echo Level 2
The caster imbues one visible ally per caster level with a
burst of tremendous speed as their localized time begins
Phantasmal Mimesis Level 1 to flow more rapidly. For 1d4+1 rounds, all subjects get
The mage creates a phantasmal seeming at a visible lo- an extra Main Action during their turn. This Main Ac-
cation within 100 feet per caster level. The illusion can tion may not be used to cast spells. This spell severely
occupy a number of 10-foot cubes equal to the caster’s taxes those who take advantage of it, adding 1 System
level and can include visual, audible, olfactory, and even Strain for each round in which the recipient takes the
tactile elements. If onlookers have no reason to believe bonus action.
the illusion is false, they will unconsciously move and
perceive so as to conform to its apparent physical qual-
ities, halting before walls, reeling from imagined blows, Scorn the Fetters of Earth Level 3
and seeing their clothing burnt by phantasmal flames. The caster and up to one visible ally per caster level are
The illusion will behave and act on its own in accordance briefly granted the ability to move in three dimensions,
with the caster’s intentions for it, but it cannot go more being able to walk and run upward into the air as easily as
than a hundred feet from where it was conjured. Phan- along flat ground. For the rest of the scene, those affect-
tasmal monsters fight as if they were the caster and do no ed can move in such a way, remaining suspended in the
more than 1d8 damage per hit, while phantasmal perils air after their movement for the round. When the spell
do no more than 1d8 damage to creatures affected by ends, either naturally or upon being dispelled, all affected
them. Foes brought to zero hit points fall unconscious targets float gently to the ground. Optionally, the caster
and wake up ten minutes later with 1 hit point. Creatures can instead use this spell on one visible flying creature per
convinced the illusion is false can make a Mental saving caster level, which must make a Physical save at a penalty
throw each round to reject its psychic influences, becom- equal to the caster’s Magic skill or be forced to land as
ing immune to its effects. The illusion lasts until dispelled, they had fallen half the distance they had descended. For
the caster drops it, or this spell is cast again. the rest of the scene, such creatures remain grounded
and unable to fly.
Phobic Storm Level 3
A wave of numbing terror sweeps over all enemies of the Sigil of Aeolian Auctoritas Level 4
caster within forty feet. They must immediately make a A fierce gust of wind may be conjured in a line a hundred
Morale check at a -1 penalty, with failure causing flight. feet long and thirty feet wide. All creatures of man-size
Those who succeed at the check suffer one point of dam- or smaller must make Physical saves or be bowled over
age per caster level from demoralization and despair, with and blown back thirty feet, losing their next round’s
those brought to zero hit points instead regaining one hit Main Action and suffering 1d6 damage. Light wooden
constructions or similar structures are flattened by the
 53

wind. If used outdoors, the spell can instead control the get to be warded that could be distinguished without
local weather, transforming the quarter-mile around the need for knowing their thoughts, such as “humans” or
caster into any climate found normally at that location “non-humans” or “men wearing the livery of the baron”.
at any point during the year. The spell cannot summon a The barrier extends a hundred feet upward and ten feet
tornado or other extreme weather, but it can call rain and downward and blocks any attack or magical power used
conventional storms sufficient to cause flooding in areas by those warded. If the excluded creatures are attacked
prone to it. The gust of wind is instantaneous, but the or targeted by powers from the other side of the barrier,
weather change lasts for one hour per caster level before however, the entire field shatters. The barrier lasts until
reverting to its natural state. dispelled, the caster drops it, or until one hour has passed
per caster level.
The Torment of Tumefaction Level 3
A single visible living creature is smote with a hideous Velocitous Imbuement Level 1
curse of torment. Boils erupt all over their body, blood Unlike most spells, this one may be cast as a simple On
weeps from their orifices, tumors engorge their flesh, and Turn action, targeting up to one visible willing creature
all of their hair falls out almost instantaneously. If they per caster level within one hundred feet. Enchanted crea-
perform any vigorous physical action save defending tures become incredibly fleet of foot, doubling their usual
themselves they incur two points of damage per cast- ground movement rate and becoming capable of running
er level from the effects of the curse, damage which can up walls and across ceilings without falling, provided they
be suffered no more than once per round by a target. A end their round upright on a navigable surface. They may
creature may spend its Main Action to attempt a Phys- also move away from melee opponents without needing
ical save to throw off the curse and return to a glabrous to make a Fighting Withdrawal to avoid a parting attack,
normalcy, but on a failure, the curse remains for the rest and may pass through and around armed foes who do
of the scene. If the creature has fewer hit dice than the not completely physically block their path. The spell lasts
caster has levels, a single failed save means the curse lasts for the remainder of the scene.
indefinitely, until dispelled or the caster releases them.
The Verdant Vallation Level 2
Touch of Elucidating Intangibility Level 3 A vast wall of thick, heavy vines and other plant life
The caster touches a solid non-magical barrier when cast- blooms from a visible point within one hundred feet per
ing this spell. A 10 foot cube of the barrier then becomes caster level. The wall is ten feet high and one foot thick
perfectly transparent to the caster, allowing them to see and runs for twenty feet in width per caster level. The
and hear whatever lies on the other side as if it were vine wall can be shaped as the caster wishes within the
well-lit and visible. Optionally, the caster may make the spell’s area of effect, so long as it’s contiguous, and may
barrier insubstantial for one round per caster level, al- be laid horizontally if a bridge or roof is desired. Enemies
lowing anyone to pass or shoot through it from either must inflict five hit points of damage per caster level to
side. The barrier always appears solid and opaque from cut a man-sized hole in the vines, and they must be us-
the other side, even while the caster is peering through. ing weapons or means that could actually cut through a
If someone is caught within the barrier when it becomes wooden wall to do any meaningful harm. The vines may
solid again, they’re spat out on the nearest clear side and be optionally covered in long, vicious thorns to discour-
suffer 2d10 damage. The spell ends when the caster ceas- age climbing, inflicting 2d6 damage on any creature who
es to touch the barrier or immediately after it has been tries to climb over it. If the vine wall is summoned from
made insubstantial. earth that could plausibly support plant life, it remains
until dispelled or until it dies naturally. If called from
bare stone or other infertile soils, it withers away to dust
Vallation of Specified Exclusion Level 3 at the end of the scene.
The caster must form some sort of line as part of this
spell’s invocation, either with dropped powders or a
trace drawn in the dirt or a more permanent inlay into a Visitation of the Clement Clime Level 2
floor. In extremis, the caster can make such a line as part The caster and up to three visible allies per caster level are
of a Move action, tracing it out or scattering powder as shielded from the excesses of hostile elemental energies,
they go. The line itself may be no longer than twenty becoming immune to mundane extremes of heat and
feet per caster level, and may be straight or curved as the cold and natural acids or electrical discharges. Against
caster wishes. Once it has been drawn, this spell may be magical harm of this nature, they automatically take only
cast, empowering the line with the ability to ward off a half the damage they normally would, or none if they
particular target and prevent them or their powers from make a successful Physical saving throw. This spell lasts
crossing or being made to cross the line, as if it were a for one hour per caster level.
physical wall. The caster can nominate any kind of tar-
54

The Wind of the Final Repose Level 1

The mage designates a visible point within two hundred

feet. A silent, invisible burst of soporific influence erupts
from that point, targeting all living creatures within a
twenty-foot radius. All such targets with 4 or fewer hit
dice within that area fall unconscious instantly, and can
be roused only by damage or by a Main Action used to
kick them awake. If not roused, they revive at the end
of the scene. Entities that do not sleep are immune to
this spell.
55
56

High Mages
A High Mage is the product more of a philosophical High Mage PCs may choose to have been taught by
tendency than a specific magical tradition. There are a lone practitioner of the tradition, or they may decide to
countless magical orders that embrace the principles of be part of some larger organization of mages that exists
this path, whether they are the austere master-and-pupil in the campaign world, either as a newly-released appren-
instructors of the Eightfold Lineage, the formal magical tice or a less-successful student who seeks a new path.
schools of the Sodality of Wisdom, the unstructured If the GM doesn’t have any particular magical
teachings of hermit-sorcerers to their apprentices, or a lineages in mind for their campaign setting, the player
host of other organizations named and unnamed across should feel free to make up their own and credit their PC
Latter Earth. as a newly-graduated initiate in the occult arts. Provided
High Mages are united not by an organization, but the GM thinks the player’s creation is reasonable and
by the belief that true power and enlightenment lies in appropriate for the setting, it can be added in as another
the High Magic of the ancients, and that a wizard of element to the campaign.
sense will direct their efforts towards unearthing, under-
standing, and mastering these lost arts. New Magic is a High Mage Benefits
waste of valuable time and effort, a mere fumbling with All High Mages gain Magic as a bonus skill, acquiring
ill-understood tricks when a mage ought to be spending it at level-0, or level-1 if was already level-0. Every High
their labors in better-comprehending the deeper princi- Mage is well-educated in the principles of magic as un-
ples behind the magic of old. derstood by the sorcerers of Latter Earth.
High Mages are skilled at the production of magi- High Mages can prepare and cast High Magic spells,
cal Workings and the development of arcane devices and and have a number of arts dedicated to improving their
standing enchantments, but they rarely ever attempt to use of these incantations. As usual for spellcasters, they
devise New Magic. Instead, they work to unearth lost cannot wear bulky clothing or armor while casting or
spells of High Magic and expand their own grimoires using arts, nor use shields. Mages who have trained to
with more of these potent sorceries. overcome these limits with the Armored Magic Focus
To this end they have developed numerous arts that have more latitude.
help them control and focus the powers of High Mag- High Mages conduct extensive experimentation and
ic. Experienced High Mages can mold and adjust their study as part of their daily activities. This relentless focus
spells in ways that other wizards cannot hope to achieve, helps them master High Magic spells without needing
and they are exceptionally skilled at resisting, undoing, the outside help of tutors and discovered texts. Each
and discerning the magics of others. time they advance a level, they may pick two High Magic
Because of this aptitude it is common for High spells from the list in this book to add to their repertoire.
Mages to be credited as the “orthodox” magical practi- These spells must be of a level they can cast.
tioners of many nations, with their way of doing things High Mages also gain arts specific to their tradition.
taken as the generally correct way for a wizard to conduct At first level, both full and Partial High Mages may pick
their business. Some High Mage organizations push this two from the adjacent list. As they advance in level, they
even further, using their influence to outlaw or suppress can pick more as given in the tables below. Once picked,
rival traditions in their pursuit of arcane lore. these choices are permanent and can’t be changed.

Full High Mage Partial High Mage

Max Spells Spells Max Spells Spells

Level Level Cast Prepared Arts Gained Level Level Cast Prepared Arts Gained
1 1 1 2 Any Two 1 1 1 2 Any Two
2 1 1 3 Any One 2 1 1 3
3 2 2 4 3 1 1 3 Any One
4 2 2 5 Any One 4 1 2 4
5 3 3 6 5 2 2 5
6 3 3 7 Any One 6 2 3 6 Any One
7 4 4 8 7 2 3 7
8 4 4 9 Any One 8 2 3 7
9 5 5 10 9 3 4 8 Any One
10 5 6 12 Any One 10 3 4 9
 57

Arts of the High Mages ambient magical energies in most areas allow you
High Mage Effort is calculated as usual, with each PC’s to see clearly even in conditions of perfect darkness.
maximum being equal to one plus their Magic skill level Suppress Magic: Commit Effort for the day as an On
plus the better of their Intelligence or Charisma modi- Turn action and target a visible or known magical
fiers. Partial High Mages have a score one point lower effect within one hundred feet. The effect is sup-
than this, albeit not less than one. pressed as if by the Extirpate Arcana spell for 1d6
rounds plus the caster’s character level. Spells cast
Counter Magic: Commit Effort for the day as an Instant by more powerful casters may not be successfully
action when a visible enemy mage casts a spell. Both suprpessed, as noted in the spell description. The
of you make opposed Int/Magic or Cha/Magic skill caster can attempt to suppress an effect only once.
checks; if you win, their spell fizzles and is wasted. Swift Casting: Commit Effort for the day to turn a spell
This art only works on actual spellcasters and not that normally requires a Main Action to cast into
creatures that merely activate magical powers. You an On Turn action. You can cast no other spell this
can use this art no more than once per round. round.
Empowered Sorcery: Commit Effort for the day as an Ward Allies: Commit Effort for the day as an Instant
Instant action to re-roll any variable die roll associ- action to omit up to six allies from the effects of an
ated with a spell’s effects, such as a damage roll; take area-effect spell you cast, allowing them to avoid
the roll you prefer. any damage or other negative effect that would be
Hang Sorcery: Commit Effort for the day as an Instant directly produced by the spell. This does not protect
action when casting a spell. The spell does not go off, them from indirect consequences, however, such as
but remains “hung” and waiting to be triggered as an destroying the building they are standing in.
On Turn action, with details of targeting and effect
determined at that time. Damage does not disrupt a
hung spell, but no additional spells can be cast until
the hung spell is released or allowed to dissipate.
Inexorable Effect: Commit Effort for the day as an In-
stant action to force an enemy to re-roll a successful
saving throw and take the worse result. You may use
this art only once per round.
Iron Resolution: Commit Effort for the day when in-
jured or disturbed in combat; that harm does not
count for purposes of disrupting your spellcasting
this round.
Preparatory Countermagic: Commit Effort for the
scene when you are affected by a spell you have
prepared, including when you are standing in the
area of effect of one of your own damaging spells.
You are unaffected by the spell’s direct effects.
Psychic Conversion: Once per day as an On Turn action,
expend one spell-casting slot to remove one point
of accrued System Strain and regain two lost hit
points per character level.
Restrained Casting: Commit Effort for the day as an
Instant action when casting a High Magic spell. You
may do so in perfect silence and without need for
somatic gestures, though damage will still disrupt
the casting.
Retain Sorcery: Commit Effort for the day as an On
Turn action after casting a spell; it does not count
against your casting limits for the day. You can use High Mages in Other Worlds
this art no more than once per day, and the stress
of using it prevents you from casting another spell The High Mage is a default baseline magic-user
before the end of your next turn. in most campaign settings, easily reflavored as the
Sense Magic: Commit Effort; while it remains commit- most traditional sort of wizard in a world. While
ted, you can visually perceive magical energy and they lack the specialized talents of more conceptu-
get a one-sentence description of the effect of any ally-focused wizards, they have arts that help them
standing magics or magical items you inspect. The excel at using conventional magic.
58

Elementalists
The long eons of the Legacy have ravaged the natural Some Elementalists learn at the feet of wizened
laws of Latter Earth. Simple properties such as electrical masters, while others belong to formal schools that teach
conductivity, steam pressure, chemical reactions, and oth- the art for the benefit of their patrons. A PC might be
er qualities now no longer behave as they once did and one such student, or some scientist-sage who has devel-
react in unpredictable and unreliable ways. Sages have oped their arts in pursuit of some deeper understanding
demonstrated how some physical reactions that should of the Legacy and its impact on physical laws. Outside
be necessary for basic human life no longer function out- of their formal organizations, Elementalists often find
side of living organisms, suggesting that entire swaths of much to discuss in their occult studies, though differ-
fundamental reality are being supported as special-case ences of opinion regarding the “correct” operation of
exceptions by the power of the Legacy. unaltered reality can sometimes cause bloody disputes.
The intellectual ancestors of the Elementalists at-
tempted to deal with this chaos by returning to the ba- Elementalist Benefits
sics; not the reactions of combustion or the elemental All Elementalists gain Magic as a bonus skill, acquiring it
chemicals, but the classical elements of earth, fire, wind, at level-0, or level-1 if was already level-0. A firm ground-
and water. These substances were thought to be the key ing in the arcane science of Latter Earth is necessary to
to the unfathomable changes of the Legacy, as they were master their particular arts.
simple enough to avoid the decay of complex machines Elementalists can prepare and cast High Magic
and devices, yet complex enough to behave in a logical spells in addition to the New Magic spells specific to El-
way rather than as the chaotic matter of subtler chemical ementalists. Some of the latter are given on the following
compounds. page, but others doubtless exist. As usual for spellcasters,
Elementalists thus seek to use New Magic to con- Elementalists can’t cast spells or use arts while armored
trol these elements, adapting fragments of High Magic or holding a shield.
spells and dimly-understood aspects of the Legacy to Elementalists are not as talented at general High
control their creation and manifestation. By using the Magic research as High Mages are, but their studies still
classical elements as subjects for their magic, the Elemen- bear fruit in time. Each time they advance a level, they
talists believe that they can eventually understand the can pick a new High Magic spell or a New Magic Ele-
logic of the Legacy, and perhaps even learn to control mentalist spell to add to their spellbook. They must be
it, enforcing a new, stable implementation of natural law. able to cast the spell to add it to their selection.
Of course, not all Elementalists are fired by this high Elementalists gain the Elemental Resilience and
zeal. Many simply find the practical uses of flame, stone, Elemental Sparks arts as part of their basic training, and
water, and air to be beneficial for their own ends. The may pick one additional art from the adjacent list. Fur-
fiery rebuke of a master Elementalist can scourge whole ther arts are learned as they advance in character level,
towns, and even less talented mages can work wonders as given in the tables below. Once chosen, an art cannot
in helping others deal with physical obstacles. be changed.

Full Elementalist Partial Elementalist

Max Spells Spells Max Spells Spells

Level Level Cast Prepared Arts Gained Level Level Cast Prepared Arts Gained
1 1 1 2 Elemental Resil- 1 1 1 2 Elemental Resil-
ience, Elemental ience, Elemental
Sparks, and Sparks, and
Any One Any One
2 1 1 3 Any One 2 1 1 3
3 2 2 4 3 1 1 3 Any One
4 2 2 5 Any One 4 1 2 4
5 3 3 6 5 2 2 5
6 3 3 7 Any One 6 2 3 6 Any One
7 4 4 8 7 2 3 7
8 4 4 9 Any One 8 2 3 7
9 5 5 10 9 3 4 8 Any One
10 5 6 12 Any One 10 3 4 9
 59

Arts of the Elementalists Pavis of Elements: Commit Effort as an On Turn action

Elementalist Effort is calculated as usual, with each PC’s to conjure an elemental barrier around yourself.
maximum being equal to one plus their Magic skill level The barrier improves your Armor Class by +4 and
plus the better of their Intelligence or Charisma modi- remains as long as the Effort remains Committed.
fiers. Partial Elementalists have a score one point lower Due to the close fit of the elemental shield, it cannot
than this, albeit not less than one. be used in conjunction with armor or a shield.
All Elementalists learn the Elemental Resilience Petrifying Stare: Commit Effort for the day as a Main
and Elemental Sparks arts as part of their basic training. Action and target a visible creature. The creature
Other Arts may be chosen normally afterwards. must make a Physical save or become partially pet-
rified, losing its Move action for a number of rounds
Elemental Resilience: You are unharmed by mundane equal to half your caster level, rounded up. Flying
extremes of cold or by heat less than that of a fur- creatures are forced to land by this art and swim-
nace. You suffer only half damage from magical or ming creatures will inevitably sink to the bottom.
extremely intense flame or frost attacks. Rune of Destruction: Commit Effort for the day as a
Elemental Sparks: You can conjure petty amounts of Main Action and target an adjacent solid surface. A
flame, water, ice, stone, or wind, sufficient to do glowing rune the size of a handprint forms on the
small tricks, chill drinks, light candles, or do other surface and persists for one hour per caster level.
minor things. Conjured substances last no longer Any creature who gets within two feet of the rune
than a scene, and conjured water cannot lastingly will trigger it, causing it to explode in a five-foot
quench thirst. This art cannot actually be useful in radius with an elemental force of your choice and
solving a problem or overcoming a challenge more suffering 2d6 damage plus your caster level. Crea-
than once per game session. tures already within five feet of the rune when it is
laid will not trigger it until they re-enter the area,
Other Elementalist Arts nor will the caster trigger their own runes. Runes
Beckoned Deluge: Commit Effort for the scene as a cannot overlap their area of effect.
Main Action to conjure a considerable amount of Steps of Air: Commit Effort for the scene as an On Turn
water at a visible point within fifty feet per caster action and target a visible ally; for one round per
level. This water is sufficient to drench two 10-foot caster level, the target can fly at their usual move-
cubes of matter per character level, making mun- ment rate. If the art ends while they are still in the
dane bowstrings useless, extinguishing flames, and air, they descend harmlessly to the ground. This art
inflicting 1d6 damage per caster level on fiery su- may also be used as an Instant action to negate fall-
pernatural creatures. This water persists indefinitely ing damage for any single target.
after its conjuration and is sufficient to hydrate ten Stunning Shock: Commit Effort for the day as a Main
people per caster level. Action and target a visible creature within fifty feet
Earthsight: Commit Effort for the scene as an On Turn per caster level. The target creature must be wear-
action. For the rest of the scene, you can see the ing or holding at least a pound worth of conductive
outlines of solid objects even in perfect darkness, metal or be considerably dampened. An electrical
and can peer through a number of feet of earth or bolt leaps from the caster to stun the target, causing
stone equal to your character level. them to lose their next Main Action. A Physical sav-
Elemental Blast: Commit Effort for the scene as a Main ing throw can mitigate the effect, causing the target
Action to hurl a blast of some elemental force at to lose their Move action instead of their Main. A
a visible target within fifty feet per character level. creature can be targeted only once per scene by this.
The attack is made normally with Magic as the rel- Thermal Shield: Commit Effort for the scene as an In-
evant combat skill, albeit with bonus to hit equal stant action to immediately negate one instance of
to your character level. On a hit, the attack does fire or frost damage to any single visible ally or ob-
1d6 damage plus your character level. The blast may ject. This defense lasts only long enough to nullify
have collateral effects on inanimate objects in the the single instance of damage.
case of hurled fire or a torrent of pressurized water,
but any conjured matter vanishes at the end of the Elementalists in Other Worlds
round.
Flamesight: Commit Effort as an On Turn action. While The wizard who specializes in a particular variety of
the Effort remains Committed, you can see thermal elemental magic is a familiar fantasy trope. If you
gradients sufficient to distinguish surfaces and liv- want to create such a specialist in a different cam-
ing creatures, even in perfect darkness. Optionally, paign setting, you can do so by giving the Elemen-
you may cause your own eyes to cast a light suffi- talist a few more art and spell options specifically
cient to illuminate your surroundings clearly out to flavored for that element and forbidding them from
a range of 30 feet. taking arts or spells related to other elements.
60

Elementalist New Magic

As with other specialist traditions, the Elementalists have
Wind Walking Level 3
been able to devise a number of New Magic spells in line
with their particular specialties. Only Elementalists may A visible target creature and their possesions are brief-
learn or cast these sorceries. ly transformed into a misty, insubstantial cloud. Only
sources of harm that could conceivably disrupt a cloud
of mist can harm them, and until the spell’s end they may
Flame Scrying Level 1 pass freely into any area that a vapor could reach. They
The elementalist becomes aware of the approximate loca- may move freely in all three dimensions at their normal
tions of all open flames within thirty feet per caster level. movment rate, though they cannot physically manipulate
They may choose one of those flames as a focus for the objects. The spell lasts until the end of the scene or until
scrying, allowing them to see and hear everything around the target or the caster choose to end it.
the flame as if they were present. The spell’s duration
lasts for as long as the elementalist remains motionlessly
focused on it; during this duration, they may switch their Calcifying Scourge Level 4
focus between the various flames in range as they wish. A visible target within one hundred feet must make a
Physical saving throw or be turned to stone. Any size of
living creature may be so transmuted, though inanimate
Aqueous Harmony Level 1 objects larger than a cart cannot. Objects being held or
The elementalist and up to a dozen allies are charmed worn by someone else get a Physical saving throw made
with powers of water-breathing, a tolerance for the pres- by their user. The calcification remains until dispelled
sure and cold of the deeps, and the ability to see through or the caster undoes the magic, but if the object or crea-
water as if it were well-lit air. Ensorceled beings may ture is damaged in the meanwhile, it may end up being
move freely while in the water at their usual movement harmed or killed on its restoration. If the Physical saving
rate and their attacks and projectile weapons are not hin- throw is made successfully by a creature, the target is
dered by the medium, nor are their possessions soaked temporarily slowed, losing its Move action for the next
or damaged. The spell lasts for one hour per caster level, 1d6 rounds.
but will not naturally end so long as a subject is still at
least partially submerged. Only the caster or magical dis-
pelling can stop it under those circumstances. Fury of the Elements Level 5
A combination of molten rock, searing pyroclastic winds,
and superheated steam erupts forth to ravage a chosen
Boreal Wings Level 2 target point within two hundred feet per caster level. The
The elementalist chooses a visible ally within one hun- cataclysmic ruin smites everything within thirty feet of
dred feet; the target becomes capable of swift and easy the target point for 10d10 damage, destroying all conven-
aerial travel, flying at twice their usual movement rate. If tional structures. The zone of devastation then moves 60
the spell ends or is dispelled while aloft, the target de- feet in a random direction at the start of the next round,
scends gently to the earth. This spell lasts for one scene, blasting everything in its path. The zone will continue
though casters of fifth level or more can make it last an to wander in this fashion for 1d6 rounds in total before
hour, and those of eighth level or more can make it last dying out. The molten remnants of the spell remain after
until dawn or dusk, whichever comes next. this duration, a hazard for whomever enters the area for
the rest of the day.
The Burrower Below Level 2
A passage is carved through natural stone or earth, form-
ing a tunnel up to twenty feet long per caster level and up
to ten feet wide and tall. The caster can cause the earth
to compress and pack itself so as to stabilize the tunnel
even in very sandy or burdened soil, or they can allow it
to collapse naturally if burdened by some large structure
or unstable surroundings. This spell can function against
worked stone, but the length of the tunnel is much short-
er, being only two feet per level. Magical stone or earth
cannot be altered by this spell. The caster has basic con-
trol over the direction and interior features of the tunnel,
and can form stairs or other simple structures within it.
61
62

Healers HEALERILLO
H: 4.85
Every culture has need of physicians and menders, and W: 2.93
it is no surprise that many of them would turn to magic
for this need. Healers are those adepts of curative sorcery
who focus on mending wounds, purging diseases, and
preserving the lives of living creatures. They are very rare-
ly the only medical specialists in their native society, but
their remarkable powers are in high demand wherever
they are found.
Healers do not practice High Magic or other forms
of conventional spellcasting. Instead, their training re-
volves around specific techniques for mending damaged
living tissue and the neutralization of diseases and tox-
ins. Conventional medical treatments that revolve around
the germ theory of disease and ancient commonplaces of
physiology aren’t always reliable or valid in the lands of
Latter Earth, and so magical techniques are sometimes
necessary to achieve what antibiotics or surgical interven-
tion could accomplish in a former age.
Not every aspiring physician is cut out to be a Heal-
er. Channeling the magical energies requires the right
traits, and those without these native gifts can’t hope
to be trained successfully. Those with the right magical
potential can look forward to a position of respect and
reward from most societies.
The actual training of a Healer is often left to a mas-
ter-apprentice relationship, with likely candidates serving
out a period of instruction and field practice before being
freed to make their own way. Richer or better-organized Healer Benefits
societies might establish special schools for Healer can- The Healer class exists only as a partial class, to be taken
didates, often patronized by the very nobility they will by an Adventurer along with another partial class. Thus,
later be expected to serve. a Partial Warrior/Partial Healer might be a grizzled
Religious orders are another major source of Heal- combat medic, a Partial Expert/Partial Healer might be
ers, as many monasteries and seminaries are ideally po- an erudite physician gifted in both mundane and magi-
sitioned to identify compatible candidates early in their cal healing methods, and a Partial Necromancer/Partial
careers. In some nations, the very role of a Healer is con- Healer might be an adept of life and death.
sidered a fundamentally religious one, with the powers All Healers gain Heal as a bonus skill, acquiring it at
they wield being special gifts of their patron deity. Such level-0, or level-1 if they already have it at level-0. A basic
Healers are often called upon to act as priests as well. grounding in mundane healing techniques is necessary
in order to learn their more sophisticated magical arts.
Partial Healer Healers do not learn how to cast spells. Instead,
they focus on their special arcane healing arts. Wielding
Level Arts Gained these arts usually requires nothing more than touching
1 Healing Touch and Any One the target and concentrating on the desired effect, and
2 Any One the process is direct and simple enough to perform even
when burdened by armor or carrying a shield.
3
At first level, a Healer gains the Healing Touch art
4 Any One and can pick one more of their choice. As they advance
5 Any One in levels afterwards, they can learn new arts. Once chosen,
an art is permanent and cannot be exchanged.
6 Any One
7
8 Any One
9
10 Any One
 63

Arts of the Healers hours after their restoration before awakening with
Healer Effort is calculated with Heal rather than Magic, 1 hit point.
with each PC’s maximum being equal to their Heal skill Swift Healer: Your Healing Touch ability is improved,
level plus the better of their Intelligence or Charisma and may be used as an On Turn action once per day
modifiers, to a minimum of one point. per character level, though not more than once per
All Healers are trained in the Healing Touch art, round on any given target.
but may develop other techniques with time. The Healer’s Knife: Your Healing Touch ability is al-
tered, and may be used to inflict damage to a living
Healing Touch: Commit Effort for the scene as an In- target instead of healing it. The damage done is
stant action; for the rest of the scene, you may heal equivalent to the healing that would normally be
2d6 damage plus your Heal skill to a touched ally as done, albeit you receive 1 System Strain instead
a Main Action. This healing adds 1 System Strain of the target. Using this power in melee requires a
to the target each time it is applied. successful Punch attack, with the damage added to
any done by the blow, or simply touching an unwary
Other Healer Arts target. Ranged use with Far Healer is impossible
Empowered Healer: Your Healing Touch becomes with this art.
more powerful, adding your level to any healing. Tireless Vigor: Commit Effort; while it remains Commit-
Facile Healer: Your Healing Touch ability is improved;, ted you do not need to eat, drink, breathe, or sleep.
and you no longer need to Commit Effort to acti- You may exert yourself tirelessly and regenerate 1
vate it. lost hit point per hour.
Far Healer: Your Healing Touch ability is improved, and Vital Furnace: Your tremendous life energy can be used
may be used on a visible target within ten feet per to instantly regenerate any non-mortal wound you
character level. have received. Commit Effort for the day as an In-
Healer’s Eye: Commit Effort as an On Turn action; stant action to negate the damage from an injury
while the Effort remains committed, you can use a you just received that did not reduce you to zero
Main Action to visually detect diseases and poisons, hit points. Aside from this ability, you automatically
diagnose creatures flawlessly, perceive their physi- stabilize if reduced to zero hit points and awaken
ology, and learn their current hit point totals. As a ten minutes later with 1 hit point. This ability can-
side effect, you can detect living creatures by sight not undo damage you intentionally inflict on your-
regardless of available light or obscuring mists. self via some power or magical exchange.
Limb Restoration: Only expert healers can master this
art, which cannot be learned earlier than 8th level.
You must Commit all remaining Effort for the day-
a minimum of one point- to regenerate a missing
limb or organ for a target you are touching, or efface
some dramatic scar or other physical debility. The
target’s System Strain is automatically maximized.
Purge Ailment: Commit Effort for the scene as a Main Healers in Other Worlds
Action. An ally you are touching is cured of one
poison or disease. Creatures killed by poison can be The classic “cleric” or “priest” concept could be repli-
revived by this art if it is used within one minute of cated by using Healer in conjunction with Warrior
death. Magical poisons and diseases may require a for the armored fighting-cleric or a different flavor
Wis/Heal or Cha/Heal skill check against a diffi- of Mage for the robed spellcasting priest.
culty of 8 or more. The former might pine for some of the wider
Refined Restoration: You and up to a dozen allies you variety of spells often given to such clerics in other
tend before they sleep will all lose 2 System Strain role-playing games, but a GM might be best off just
from a good night’s rest instead of 1. adding the most characteristic of those powers or
Revive the Fallen: Only expert healers are capable of deity-specific gifts as optional arts the PC can pick.
mastering this art, which cannot be learned earlier However it’s decided, a GM should be care-
than 8th level. Commit Effort for the day as a Main ful not to make magical healing the only source of
Action to revive a recently-slain living creature that quick hit point recovery in their campaign unless
you are touching. This ability must be used on a they want every party to require a Healer or the
target within one minute per caster level of their equivalent. The first aid rules on page XX should
death, and will not work on a corpse that has been allow a party without a Healer to still recover after
dismembered, incinerated, or otherwise disjected. a fight, even if it’s less efficient than a magical healer
The target’s System Strain is automatically maxi- and not practical for use mid-combat.
mized and they’ll be unconscious for twenty-four
64

Necromancers
The Legacy has changed much in the eons that have Unsurprisingly, Necromancers have a checkered
passed since humanity first obtained its power, but death reputation among people. Their life-prolonging re-
remains the common fate of all. Whether king or peasant, search is eagerly sought by the rich and powerful, but
all must find the grave in time. also often outlawed on the basis of their supposed dep-
Necromancers are those sorcerers who are not sat- redations and the worries of anxious heirs. Some more
isfied with this finality. Through study of ancient records broad-minded or amoral polities allow Necromancers
and the examination of the countless fragments of heal- to operate openly, but usually a considerable amount of
ing magic and restorative arcana that still persist in the discretion is necessary.
Latter Earth, they have concluded that at one point in A Necromancer PC was likely taught in secret by
the past, humanity was immortal. The Legacy once pre- a mentor who either posed as a High Mage or kept his
served all the children of Earth from their final dissolu- powers entirely hidden. Some nations do have actual
tion, and only through the malice of the Outsiders and open orders and schools of necromancy, however, though
some unfathomable historical change was this blessed such organizations tend to be havens for the worst im-
state ever undone. pulses of the tradition, where the most ruthless and sav-
Necromancers are determined to restore this lost age of sorcerers rise highest in the hierarchy.
immortality. Some seek it only for their own selfish pur-
poses, while others wish to make war on Death itself and Necromancer Benefits
drive it out of the world once more. The ancient powers All Necromaners gain Magic as a bonus skill, acquiring
that once granted every human a perpetual life of vigor, it at level-0, or level-1 if was already level-0. The arts of
health, and happiness must be renwed once more, and all life and death require a proper education in the occult
the corruptions and bars that banished that state must to practice correctly.
be undone. Necromancers can prepare and cast High Magic
The path to this immortality is regrettably laden spells in addition to the New Magic spells specific to
with corpses. Only by studying death itself and exam- Necromaners. Some of the latter are given on the follow-
ining the intricate relationship between the Legacy and ing page, but others doubtless exist. As usual for spell-
unliving flesh can the deeper secrets of life be unlocked. casters, Necromancers can’t cast spells or use arts while
Some zealous Necromancers are inclined to unlist un- armored or holding a shield.
willing “volunteers” for this work, while others content Necromancers are not as talented at general High
themselves with the naturally dead and the remains of Magic research as High Mages are, but their studies still
those who cannot object. bear fruit in time. Each time they advance a level, they
Skilled Necromancers are able to imbue corpses can pick a new High Magic spell or a New Magic Nec-
with a semblance of life, evoking ancient Legacy proto- romancer spell to add to their spellbook. They must be
cols to call back shadows of intellect or echoes of former able to cast the spell to add it to their selection.
identity. Actual full restoration of the long-dead is con- Necromancers can pick an art specific to their tra-
sidered the hallmark of true arch-mastery of this tradi- dition from the adjacent list. Further arts are learned as
tion, but only a Legate-Necromancer is ever apt to have they advance in character level, as given in the tables be-
that kind of power. low. Once chosen, an art cannot be changed.

Full Necromancers Partial Necromancers

Max Spells Spells Max Spells Spells

Level Level Cast Prepared Arts Gained Level Level Cast Prepared Arts Gained
1 1 1 2 Any One 1 1 1 2 Any One
2 1 1 3 Any One 2 1 1 3
3 2 2 4 3 1 1 3 Any One
4 2 2 5 Any One 4 1 2 4
5 3 3 6 5 2 2 5
6 3 3 7 Any One 6 2 3 6 Any One
7 4 4 8 7 2 3 7
8 4 4 9 Any One 8 2 3 7
9 5 5 10 9 3 4 8 Any One
10 5 6 12 Any One 10 3 4 9
 65

Arts of the Necromancers You may Commit Effort for the scene as an Instant
Necromancer Effort is calculated as usual, with each PC’s action to negate any single attack, magical power
maximum being equal to one plus their Magic skill level or spell an undead uses against you. Undead with
plus the better of their Intelligence or Charisma modi- more than twice as many hit dice as you have levels
fiers. Partial Necromancers have a score one point lower cannot be foiled this way.
than this, albeit not less than one. Red Harvest: You are empowered by death. Whenever
a living creature within fifty feet dies, you gain one
Bonetalker: You can see and communicate with any un- hit point per hit die of the slain. Creatures with less
dead creature, regardless of a shared language or the than one hit die, such as pests or petty vermin, do
creature’s natural state of invisibility. By Commit- not provide any benefit. The hit points provided by
ting Effort for the scene you can sense the surface these deaths can increase your HP above the max-
thoughts of any visible undead, including an im- imum normally allowed, but any excess hit points
pression of any commands or behavior it has been fade at the end of the scene.
ordered to carry out. Unintelligent undead will not Unaging: You no longer naturally age, and will remain
attack you or your companions unless specifically perfectly hale and vigorous up to your species’ natu-
compelled to do so by a command or a master. Even ral maximum age plus 20% per character level, after
intelligent undead will generally pause at least for which you will collapse into dust and decay. Immor-
an initial parley before attacking. tality beyond this point is possible, but generally
Cold Flesh: You no longer require sleep. You can suffer requires consistent supplies of life energy, occult
no more than 1 point of damage from any given materials, or other difficult-to-acquire or morally
instance of Shock and you have a natural Armor questionable materials. You also become immune
Class equal to 14 plus half your level, rounded down. to poisons and diseases.
Consume Life Energy: By making a Punch attack or Unliving Persistence: Commit Effort for the day as an
using a melee weapon you have spent at least an On Turn action to automatically stabilize when
hour properly consecrating, you can absorb a por- Mortally Wounded. You may use this ability to
tion of the damage you inflict on others as healing benefit others if you are able to touch them.
to yourself. For each successful attack you make
with such implements, you heal 1d6 damage, up to
a maximum of the damage done by the attack You
cannot drain more life than the target has remaining
hit points.
False Death: Commit Effort as an Instant action; while
it remains Committed you appear dead to all mun-
dane examination. You cannot move while “dead”,
but can perceive your surroundings normally and
do not need to eat, drink, breathe, or perform other
bodily functions. Poisons and diseases do not prog-
ress in you while you are “dead”. You can maintain
this state of death for up to one day per level before
needing at least an hour to recover.
Gravesight: Commit Effort as an On Turn action; while
it remains Committed, you can see the life energies
of living creatures around you as various glowing
patterns, regardless of the mundane illumination
available. You can perceive sicknesses, poisons, and
other physical qualities on sight. As a side effect of
this ability, you can see normally even in perfect
blackness. Necromancers in Other Worlds
Life Bridge: You can transfer life force between willing or Death wizards are a mainstay of fantasy literature,
helpless participants. Commit Effort for the day; for and the Necromancer can work well for adding
the rest of the scene, you can shift hit points from such flavor to different campaign worlds. They don’t
one willing or helpless living creature to another as necessarily need to be naturally malevolent casters,
a Main Action, provided you are touching both. You however; it’s quite possible to build a more moral-
can shift enough hit points to kill a donor, but you ly-neutral broker of life energy or undead-hunter
can’t give more to the recipient than would refresh with this class. You can drop the class in whenever
their maximum allowed hit points. you need some mechanics to represent such mages.
Master of Bones: Undead must roll twice to save ver-
sus your abilities or spells and take the worse roll.
66

Necromancer New Magic

As with other specialist traditions, the Necromancers becomes suicidally loyal to its creator. The corpse has no
have been able to devise a number of New Magic spells natural volition, but will obey commands with a human
in line with their particular specialties. Only Necroman- degree of intelligence. It has only vague memories of its
cers may learn or cast these sorceries. prior life, and while it may retain human tics or habits
it had in life it can answer only the simplest and most
self-evident questions. Damage to a corpse cannot be re-
Query the Skull Level 1 paired. The corpse continues to exist until it is destroyed
This spell requires a corpse with largely-intact organs of or its creator releases it. A necromancer cannot have
communication. The corpse cannot have been dead for more active subjects of this spell than their character level.
more than one day per caster level. Once sorceled, the
corpse will answer up to one question per caster level,
with the caster understanding the answers regardless of Enfeebling Wave Level 2
the creature’s natural language. Corpses are laconic, and A wash of debilitating force erupts in a 10-foot radius at a
generally answer in no more than one or two sentences; visible point within one hundred feet. All living creatures
their replies will be truthful, but tend to be literal and within the area must make a Physical saving throw or
they have no power to hypothesize or make judgments. for the rest of the scene their movement rate is halved
This spell may not be used twice on the same corpse. and they must make all attack and damage rolls twice
and take the worse result. If the save is successful, these
penalties apply only to their next turn.
Smite the Dead Level 1
The necromancer conjures a blast of dispelling force at a
point within one hundred feet per caster level, affecting Compel Flesh Level 3
an area up to 20 feet in radius. All hostile undead with- A visible living creature or fleshy-bodied undead within
in that area immediately suffer 1d10 damage per caster 100 feet is ensorceled by this spell, their flesh and bones
level. Undead with hit dice equal or less than the caster’s becoming temporarily enthralled to the caster’s will. The
level must make a Physical save or be destroyed outright. target becomes paralyzed unless commanded by the cast-
The necromancer may Commit Effort for the day imme- er as an On Turn action; once given a command, their
diately after casting this spell to restore it to their mind body will dutifully carry it out on their next turn. The
for use again. user’s mind is not affected by this spell, so they cannot be
made to cast spells, answer questions, or perform other
intellectual tasks, but they will fight, move, and perform
Command the Dead Level 1 other physical acts as normal. The target may make a
The necromancer exerts their will over a number of hit Physical saving throw at the start of each of their turns
dice worth of undead equal to twice their character level. to throw off the effect, but they will inevitably suffer one
These undead must be visible and within one hundred point of damage per caster level with each attempt as
feet of the caster. Undead get a Mental saving throw their flesh writhes and tears. If not thrown off earlier, the
to resist this binding, at a penalty equal to the caster’s spell lasts until the end of the scene.
Magic skill. Creatures only partially-bewitched by the
spell due to their excess hit dice merely stand dazed for a
round. Those fully within the hit die cap who are affected Raise Grave Knight Level 4
become suicidally loyal to the necromancer until they The corpse used for this spell must be of a relatively pow-
are released by the caster. Regardless of how often the erful creature with at least four hit dice or levels. The
caster uses this spell, they may have no more than twice result is much like that of the Raise Corpse spell, but
their level worth of hit dice bound at any one time, with this undead servitor is much stronger, with 4 HD, AC
the oldest-enchanted being released if newer victims are 15, a Move of 40’/action, a +1 skill bonus, saves of 13+,
bound. Morale of 12, and a melee attack of +6/1d10, assum-
ing it doesn’t use a normal weapon. It is fully intelligent
and self-willed, albeit utterly devoted to its creator, and
Raise Corpse Level 2 it remembers a significant amount about its prior life. A
The necromancer targets a mostly-intact skeleton or grave knight regains all lost hit points at dusk each day,
corpse, imbuing it with a semblance of life. Whatever assuming it’s not destroyed. A caster may have only one
the creature’s attributes were in life, it now has 1 HD, an grave knight active at a time.
AC of 13, a Move of 30’/round, a +0 skill bonus, saves
of 15+, a +1/1d6 unarmed melee attack, and a Morale
of 12. Its decay or dissolution immediately ceases, and it Everlasting Level 5
 67

The spell may be triggered as an Instant action by the

caster, imparting a burst of unquenchable life force to all
allied creatures within 50 feet. For the next five rounds,
no affected ally can be reduced below 1 hit point, regard-
less of the damage inflicted upon them. At the end of
the spell’s effect, the caster’s own life energy is exhausted,
leaving them with only 1 hit point. A creature can benefit
from this spell no more than once per day.
68

Vowed
Innumerable sects of bodily adepts can be found through- knocked loose from their former homes by the vagaries
out Latter Earth, each determined to master the hidden of chance, however, and must set out alone to avenge a
capabilities of their body and spirit. Some focus on a ruined monastery or slain master… or escape the censure
religious or philosophical dedication to the task, while of instructors who find them unfit to represent the order
others see only practical benefit in honing their bodies to the outside world.
to a pitch of superhuman prowess. These “Vowed” are
those men and women who have attained some measure Vowed Benefits
of success in their quest. The Vowed class exists only as a partial class, to be taken
The ancient Legacy was tuned to provide numerous by an Adventurer along with another partial class. Thus,
benefits and augmentations to human beings. Despite a Partial Warrior/Partial Vowed might be a hardened
the interference of the Outsiders and the the inevitable temple warrior-monk, a Partial Expert/Partial Vowed
corruption of eons, some threads of this ancient power might be a sage teacher of religious or philosophical
still remain, and the Vowed practice secret techniques for truths, and a Partial Elementalist/Partial Vowed might
awakening this power within them. be a mountain sage who wields the elemental forces of
Not all of these sects do so through innocent means nature in conjunction with his practices of bodily puri-
of meditation, training, and diet. Some employ terrible fication.
rituals of blood and unclean sorcery to imbue their ad- All Vowed gain a non-combat bonus skill appropri-
epts with supernatural power, while others have made ate to their order, acquiring it at level-0, or level-1 if they
certain pacts with Outsiders or stranger entities in order already have it at level-0. Orders that focus on physical
to get the help they need to awaken their strength. Savage training might grant Exert, while scholarly ones might
brawlers and bestial warriors are as often found among give Know, religious ones Pray, or occult sects grant Mag-
the Vowed as are serene ascetics and philosophers. ic. You may pick whatever non-combat skill suits your
Vowed sects are commonly found as guardians to order, assuming the GM finds it reasonable.
some powerful organization, perhaps as royal guards Vowed do not learn how to cast spells. Instead, they
or temple defenders for a faith. A few are wholly inde- refine their inner powers and physical capabilities. These
pendent orders, perhaps dedicated to some religious or arts are too precise and delicate to bear the encumbrance
philosophical quest or else a secular power that the locals of heavy clothing, armor, or shields, and cannot be used
look to for defense and lordship. Occasionally the lines when so burdened. The Armored Magic Focus can mit-
blur, with temple priests becoming mundane lords as well igate this, but Vowed are all trained in effective unar-
as spiritual leaders. mored defense techniques.
Vowed are usually trained in monasteries or retreats At first level, a Vowed gains the Unified Style, Un-
dedicated to that purpose. A strict hierarchy of masters armed Might, and Unarmored Defense arts, in addition
and disciples is common to most sects, and many mem- to one more art of their choice as given on the adjacent
bers might spend their entire lives laboring on behalf of list. Further advancement will grant additional arts,
the sect’s faith or political interests. Some Vowed are though once chosen they cannot be changed.

Partial Vowed
Vowed in Other Worlds
Punch Hit Punch Punch
Level Bonus Damage Shock Arts Gained Bare-knuckled fighting monks and
1 +0 1d6 1/15 Unified Style, Unarmed Might, prowling ninjas are commonplaces
Unarmed Defense, in some campaign worlds, and the
and Any One Vowed can be used to represent both
archetypes, as well as any other that
2 +1 1d6 2/15 Any One your specific setting might require.
3 +1 1d8 2/15 The particular flavor of a given
unarmed combatant can be adjusted
4 +2 1d8 2/15 Any One
by the other partial class they take,
5 +2 1d10 2/15 Any One such as ninjas perhaps picking up the
6 +3 1d10 3/15 Any One stealth and subterfuge skills of a Par-
tial Expert, or a grimly determined
7 +3 1d10+1 3/15
order of guardian monks taking the
8 +4 1d10+1 3/15 Any One Partial Warrior class. Monks with
9 +4 1d10+2 4/15 exceptionally strange powers may
have additional art options.
10 +5 1d10+3 4/15 Any One
 69

Arts of the Vowed Commit Effort for the scene as an Instant action to
Vowed Effort is based on the skill they chose to represent negate falling damage, no matter the distance.
their order’s main focus of study, whether Exert, Know, Master’s Vigor: Your body retains its vigor and youthful
Magic, Pray, or some more esoteric skill. vitality to the full normal span of your life. You re-
Their maximum Vowed Effort is equal to this skill gain two lost hit points per hour due to your natural
level plus their best attribute modifier, whatever it may restorative powers.
be, to a minimum of one point. Nimble Ascent: Commit Effort for the scene as an On
All Vowed automatically gain the Unified Style, Un- Turn action. For the remainder of the scene you
armed Might, and Unarmored Defense arts as part of may move up vertical and overhanging surfaces and
their basic training. across difficult terrain at your full movement rate
with no chance of slipping or falling, provided the
Unified Style: When making attacks that use the Punch surface is not glass-smooth or enchanted. You re-
skill, your class hit bonus can be no worse than that quire only one free hand to cling to a wall or ceiling.
of an Expert of your same character level, as noted Purified Body: You may Commit Effort for the day as
on the Vowed class table. an Instant action to cure any disease or poison cur-
Unarmed Might: Your unarmed attack damage increases rently affecting you, or instead to negate any need
as you gain levels, as noted on the chart. You may for sleep, food, water, or air for the next 24 hours.
add your Punch skill to the damage done by these Revivifying Breath: Commit Effort for the day as an On
attacks as usual, but Foci such as Unarmed Com- Turn action to restore hit points equal to 1d6 plus
batant that replace your usual Punch damage do your character level. This healing does not increase
not apply to you. your System Strain. This ability may be used on
Unarmored Defense: When not wearing armor or using your turn even when you are at zero hit points, but
a shield, your base AC is equal to 13 plus half your in such a case it Commits all your remaining Effort
character level, rounded down. for the day. You may use this art only once per scene.
Shattering Strike: Commit Effort for the day and take
Other Vowed Arts a full round of motionlessness to prepare. On the
Brutal Counter: Commit Effort for the scene as an In- next round, as a Main Action, your unarmed attack
stant action after resolving an enemy melee attack can shatter a wooden door, wooden wall, or other
against you, whether it hits or misses. You may similar object up to a depth of one foot per level and
make a free attack against your assailant, using ei- a width sufficient to allow a man-sized creature to
ther a normal attack or some other offensive ability pass through. At fourth level this ability improves
that takes no more than one Main Action to exe- to affect even a stone wall and at seventh it can affect
cute. You cannot use this art more than once per any even a metal wall or solid iron door. The blow is
given attack, but you may use it while performing useless against a target that can move, but against an
a Total Defense. immobilized creature the attack does 1d12 damage
Faultless Awareness: Your awareness is such that you per character level.
cannot be surprised, and will even wake from a Style Weaponry: Pick three general classes of weapons,
sound sleep in time to respond normally to some such as “swords”, “bows”, “axes”, “daggers”, or the like.
imminent peril. When using weapons of those classes, you may use
Hurling Throw: After a you make successful attack, you Punch for hit rolls instead of Stab or Shoot. Your
may Commit Effort for the scene as an Instant ac- Punch skill does not add to the damage done by
tion. The target must make a Physical saving throw these weapons, however, though the benefits of
or be thrown up to ten feet in any direction, falling Unified Style apply to their hit rolls.
prone on landing and suffering the damage rolled. Unobtrusive Step: You not only possess a considerable
If the Physical save is successful, the target simply skill for disguise and obfuscation, you can become
takes damage as normal. This art can be used only extremely hard to detect. Once per scene, you may
once per round on any given target, and the target Commit Effort for the day as an Instant action to
must be no larger than an ox. reroll a failed Sneak skill check or skill check related
The Inward Eye: Commit Effort as an On Turn action. to impersonating someone else.
For as long as it remains Committed, you are mys- Veiled Strike: Commit Effort for the scene as an On Turn
tically aware of your surroundings with a sense action before touching an unresisting or unsuspect-
equivalent to normal eyesight regardless of darkness, ing target. Inflict normal unarmed attack damage,
obscuring mists, or your actual eyes being closed but it appears to be no more than a touch or inno-
or blinded. cent gesture to onlookers. The victim is unaware
Leap of the Heavens: Commit Effort for the scene as of the harm unless they make a successful Physical
a Move action to leap up to your full Move action save to notice. Targets reduced to zero hit points
horizontally or half that vertically. You may also by this can either be killed or fall unconscious at
your discretion.
70

Developing New Spells

It’s a normal inclination for both GMs and players to Spell Research
want to add new spells to a mage’s repertoire. Spell re-
search is a normal pastime of almost all mages, and it’s Spell Lab Materials
a useful sink for the gold that the wizard might have Level Cost Cost Time Needed
earned in their adventuring. GMs should generally be 1 10,000 5,000 1 month
willing to let PC wizards come up with new spells, pro-
2 25,000 10,000 2 months
vided they fit the tone of the campaign.
High Mages very rarely create New Magic spells. 3 50,000 20,000 4 months
Their time and effort is spent unraveling the secrets of 4 100,000 40,000 8 months
the past and trying to discover lost High Magic sorceries.
5 250,000 80,000 2 years
Where an Elementalist might spend her time patching
together fragments of other sorceries to create a spell, a the spell level. If they have apprentices to assist them,
High Mage would be poring over ancient books, search- they can add +1 to their skill check. Specialist mages
ing for leads to new avenues of research and mentions of researching New Magic in their own field add an addi-
magic now lost to the world. Mechanically, it works out tional +1 to the skill check, so an Elementalist research-
the same way; the Elementalist will eventually develop a ing a New Magic spell of elemental nature would get
New Magic spell of her own, while the High Mage will the bonus, as would a Necromancer researching a spell
piece together a lost High Magic spell that fits his own about undeath. Special resources or uniquely apposite
desired effects. grimoires gathered on an adventure might add an addi-
To research a new spell, the wizard’s player first tional bonus to the roll.
writes up the spell they want to develop. The GM then If the roll is successful, the spell is perfected and
checks the spell against the guidelines given below, ad- added to the caster’s grimoire. They can teach it to other
justing it where it’s necessary. If it passes, an appropriate wizards if they wish, or keep it to themselves. Specialist
level is assigned to the spell and the PC can begin the magic can only be learned by wizards of the same tradi-
magical research process. Researching a spell requires a tion; if they took the spell research skill check bonus, it’s a
properly-equipped laboratory, raw materials, and time. specialist spell. Spells devised by High Mages are almost
The laboratory must be established in a secure, ser- inevitably rediscovered High Magic and can be learned
viceable room or building. A lab sufficient for researching by any mage capable of casting such.
a level 1 or 2 spell can fit into a room, one for a 3rd level If the roll is a failure, the wizard has a choice. They
spell can fit into a house, one for a 4th level spell can fit can abandon their research and start over from scratch,
into a wizard’s tower, and a lab suitable for devising a expending new resources and time, or they can roll on
new 5th level spell needs its own subterranean research the formula flaw table. This flaw becomes part of their
complex or similar edifice. The cost for the lab is given spell, as adjusted by the GM. Some flaws might not be
on the adjacent table; this does not include the price for problematic at all; a spell only ever designed to affect the
the building itself. The necessary materials for a lab can caster isn’t much hindered by only being usable on willing
generally be acquired in any major city, provided it’s not targets. Other flaws might make the spell worthless or
hostile to sorcerers. force the PC to start over. If the caster decides to live with
The raw materials must also be purchased in a city the flaw and continue research, they can spend half the
or gathered from ransacked lairs by adventurers. They required research time and make a new skill check at a
include occult materials, esoteric creature body parts, cumulative +1 bonus, with no need to spend additional
specialized lab equipment, and obscure monographs and resources.
grimoires. These materials are used up in the process of A determined and unlucky mage may repeat this
research. process several times, accruing new flaws each time and
The time required for researching a spell varies with increasing their bonus until they eventually come up with
its complexity, as given on the table. A wizard can halve a functioning spell. It may be so gnarled by flaws as to be
this time by spending twice as much on raw materials. scarcely recognizable as their original intent, but they can
A wizard can adventure and perform other tasks during add it to their grimoire all the same.
that time, including the development of Workings or the
construction of magical items, but they can’t simultane-
ously research two spells at once. Wizards kept entirely
away from their labs for weeks or months at a time might
suffer a halt to the work until they can get back to it.
Once the lab is established, the raw materials gath-
ered, and the necessary time taken, the mage makes an
Int/Magic skill check against a difficulty equal to 10 plus
 71

New Spell Criteria Spells should not be petty. Latter Earth does not
When planning out your new spell, you should keep have much in the way of “trivial” magic spells, and can-
the following basic principles in mind. They are not trips that perform some minor change should not be
iron laws to be followed in all situations, but a spell allowed unless you want to change the general flavor of
that breaks one of these rules should be inspected very magic as a whole. Every spell should do something big,
carefully. Don’t worry about trying to balance spells for with even the smallest damaging spell capable of killing
the abstract masses; worry about balancing them for the someone and the least magical effect having some degree
specific people and situations at your table. If you know of wonder about it.
that a particular player is a bad match for a particular Steal spells from existing games. You can usually
spell effect, then don’t approve it, even if the effect itself borrow spells from other old-school games or the classic
seems innocuous. TSR role-playing games of the eighties and nineties with
Spells should not substitute for other classes. If impunity, but halve their levels to figure out where they’d
a spell gives a mage the combat prowess of a Warrior fit in Worlds Without Number. Thus, a 9th level spell
or substitutes for an arbitrary selection of skills, it’s too in the original game might be a 5th level spell in this one.
much. For specific groups, make sure that a spell doesn’t First-level spells should be upgraded if you import them,
substitute for the main concept of another PC in the because most 1st level spells are too weak to fit well in
party; if another PC’s concept is that of a gifted musician, this world. Keep in mind the other principles on this list
don’t allow new spells that make the wizard a supernat- when importing spells, however, as other games rarely
ural singer. Keep a special eye out for summoning spells, follow all of them.
as any summoned creature that’s remotely comparable to
a same-level Warrior needs to come with serious draw-
backs in usability or duration.
Spells should not offer simple numeric bonuses. A
spell might add a bonus to hit rolls or damage rolls as a d10 Formula Flaws
minor consequence of its effect, but a spell fundamentally 1 The spell can only target the caster.
made to increase a score or add a bonus to something 2 The spell only works on willing targets.
should not be approved. Magic is meant to create im-
3 Your prior work is mistaken; the formula is not
possible effects and alter the ground rules of a situation.
changed, but you don't get the cumulative
If it simply amplifies the existing abilities of the group, it
+1 bonus on the research roll for this or prior
changes nothing in actual play.
research continuations,
Spells should not offer cheap and easy combat
damage. No mage can cast very many spells each day, 4 The spell can only target people other than
but it’s important that the combat spells they do have the caster.
be heavy, loud, clumsy things rather than easy magical 5 The spell is unusually slow, taking at least a
bolts of unavoidable damage. Area-effect spells should Main Action to cast, or two Main Actions
not normally be able to exclude friendlies from their over the course of two consecutive rounds if it
damage. If the spell’s damaging effect is clean and simple, already takes a Main Action to cast.
it should only affect one target. Think of mages as artil-
6 The spell is very draining, exhausting two
lery rather than snipers; when they hit something, they
spells worth of energy for the day instead of
tend to hit everything around it, too.
one.
Spells should not create permanent magical ef-
fects or valuable matter. Any lasting changes the spell 7 The spell inflicts a severe backlash on the
creates need to be sustainable by the existing situation. caster, adding 1d4 System Strain to them. If
Growing plants in earth is one thing, but growing them this maximizes their System Strain, they fall
on bare rock is something that should be a temporary unconscious for ten minutes and can't cast this
effect. Creating rocks isn’t much of an issue, but creating spell again until some System Strain is lost.
lumps of gold shouldn’t be a persistent change. 8 The spell is more difficult than it seems, being
Spells that buff a target shouldn’t last more than one level higher than expected. This doesn't
a scene. This rule is somewhat looser, as buff spells that increase the research costs or time, but if
are intended to make the target viable in a hostile envi- you can't cast a spell of that level, the entire
ronment, such as water-breathing or cold-climate surviv- project fails.
al, might last for a full day. Their purpose is to make an 9 The spell is simply unreliable in its effects;
adventure possible, so making them last as long as the whenever it's cast, roll 1d6. On a 1, the spell
adventure is reasonable. Buff spells that add new powers fizzles uselessly and the casting slot is wasted.
or benefits to a target shouldn’t last longer than a scene,
however, or else they tend to turn into permanent powers 10 The whole effort was a tragic mistake. All
that just happen to cost a slot. progress and research materials are lost and
everything must be done over from the start.
72

Building Magical Workings

As potent as the Legacy is, it can be no surprise that var- Magical Working Costs
ious sorcerers and artificers have channeled it into use-
ful edifices and standing magical effects. In the jargon of Difficulty Area Difficulty
wizards, a Working is any stationary, persistent magical Degree Points Affected Multiplier
effect or structure, such a magical ever-flowering spring, Trivial 1-4 Room x1
an array of heatless eternal lamps, or a persistent curse
Minor 4-8 Building x4
that blights all within its reach. Unlike a conventional
magical item, a Working cannot be moved from its set Major 8-16 Village x16
location, and unlike a spell it will normally persist until Great 16-32 City x64
damage or thaumic decay finally disperse it.
Supreme N/A Region x256
Workings come in five commonly-recognized tiers:
trivial, minor, major, great, and supreme. Trivial Work- This difficulty is then multiplied by the area the
ings might be some minor magic like an enchanted light Working will affect. If the magic spring merely pours a
source, while a supreme effort might transform a whole small stream of water into the kitchen cellar, the area
city into a flying metropolis. While lesser Workings are might only be that of a Room; if the stream was meant
still possible for skilled and erudite mages of Latter Earth, to provide a moat around a wizard’s keep, it would affect
supreme Workings are too mighty to be accomplished a Building, or perhaps even a Village-sized area. If the
by anyone short of a Legate. Examples persist from the spring was to irrigate miles of surrounding countryside,
former ages of the world, and surviving supreme Work- it would affect a whole Region, and would probably be
ings can be wonders renowned throughout whole nations, a great Working to boot, if not supreme. The difficulty
but they are beyond duplication by conventional sorcery. total is multiplied by the given multiplier of the biggest
A Working requires a skilled mage, a great deal of area affected, so if the 16-point example above affected
resources, and a considerable amount of time. Details can the whole wizard’s tower, its final difficulty would be 64
vary based on the arcane suitability of the landscape or points.
especially powerful, useful components, but even a trivial The architect must then demonstrate that they can
Working is no minor labor. actually design such a Working. A given designer multi-
To create the Working, the architect must first be a plies their character level by their Magic skill level times
spellcaster of at least 6th level, whether a full Mage or a two. Thus, a 6th level High Mage with Magic-3 skill
Partial Mage. Mage classes that do not cast spells cannot would have a total of 36. If this total is equal or greater
normally create Workings, as their magic is insufficient- than the Working’s difficulty, they can establish it alone.
ly flexible. Less-accomplished spellcasters also lack the If it’s at least half the difficulty, they can build it if they
practical experience necessary to mold the powers. can find other mages to help them and make up the miss-
The architect then decides what exactly the Working ing points. If it’s less than half the difficulty, the whole
should do. The table on the opposite page gives examples enterprise is too difficult for them to envision.
of different Workings and the effects they might produce. If the Working is designed properly and enough
The player involved discusses any custom ideas with the help is had, it can be constructed at a cost of 5,000 gp
GM, using the examples as guidelines. A single Working per point of difficulty and a time cost of one month, plus
may involve multiple effects, but they should be closely one week per five points of difficulty or fraction thereof.
aligned; enchantments that provide a magical spring, hot If the cost is doubled, the work can be done in half this
water, enchanted lamps, and a pleasant climate might all time. Note that this construction only applies to the mag-
be established as part of the same housekeeping Working, ical components of the Working; if the mage means to
but placing a ward against devils and a magical garden at enchant a wall, the wall must already be built. A mage can
the same time might not be so plausible. generally adventure and do other things while complet-
The the GM then decides the total difficulty of the ing a Working, but if they are taken away from the site
Working by adding up the difficulty point cost of each for too long, the work may halt in their absence.
element of it. The adjacent table gives common ranges for While Workings are generally very durable, inten-
each degree of difficulty, and the GM should pick a num- tional sabotage of critical points or the slow decay of ages
ber that sounds right; the pettiest of petty Trivial magics can end up corrupting or destroying them, sometimes
might be 1 point, while something that could maybe even with catastrophic results. It is for this reason that many
be Minor in strength would be 4 points. The total cost of the Workings found in ancient Deeps or forgotten
of the Working is whatever element costs most plus half ruins are dangerous or perverse, and many nations that
the rest, rounded up. Thus, if some 10-point major effect could at least theoretically afford the construction of
also had a 3-point trivial effect and 8-point minor effect Workings avoid making use of them.
bundled with it, the whole would have a difficulty of 16
points.
 73

Type Example Elements of a Working

Trivial Bar ordinary vermin from the area
Trivial Create lights, or illusions that are obviously illusions
Trivial Destroy wastes, dusts, or other nonliving matter
Trivial Heats or chills things within normal climate ranges
Trivial Preserve foodstuffs indefinitely
Trivial Provide cooking heat in specific places within the area
Trivial Provide plumbing or ventillation, assuming water and air supplies exist
Minor Communicate between points in the area
Minor Create convincing illusions that are still disproven by close interaction
Minor Create guardian entities of limited intellect equivalent to a 2 hit die combatant
Minor Create water or a common inedible material
Minor Improve natural healing within the area, doubling natural System Strain and hit point recovery
Minor Inflict minor damage on a target, 1d6 to 2d6
Minor Maintain the area magically, repairing wear and minor damage over time
Minor Provide simple motive force for an existing object with basic controls, though no intelligent response
Minor Sustain a livable temperature in the area despite any normal exterior climate variations
Minor Ward off a single type of intruder that can be described in no more than a sentence. Such targets must
make a Mental save to enter
Major Create foodstuffs that sustain the eater even if they later leave the affected area
Major Create guardian entities with some modest special abilities equivalent to a 4 hit die combatant
Major Create illusions so perfect that close interaction just grants a Mental save to realize their nature
Major Grant compatibility with an environment to all occpuants, like underseas, lava pits, or freezing heights
Major Immunize occupants from the effects of diseases
Major Induce a subtle mental influence to subjects that fail a Mental save, causing them to do or not do
something unless it is hazardous to them
Major Inflict significant damage on a target, 4d6-5d6
Major Provide motive force for an existing object in a complex way, with intelligent adherence to its purpose
Major Sustain a certain number of inhabitants without need for food or drink
Major Teleport things within the affected area according to its rules
Major Ward off several types of intruders as per the Minor effect, or make the ward so strong against a single
type that it must be suppressed if they are to enter
Great Create a powerful guardian with several impressive magical powers and 8 or more hit dice
Great Create some moderately valuable material
Great Distort internal spaces, shrinking or expanding them by up to a factor of 20
Great Induce a powerful mental influence on targets that fail a Mental save, even a complex command
Great Inflict lethal damage on a target, 8d6-10d6, or a save-or-die effect
Great Ward it so tightly that only particular subjects are allowed to enter, while others must suppress the
Working
Supreme Affect the flow of time within the area
Supreme Utterly mentally enslave subjects, perhaps even without a Mental save, forcing them to comply with a
certain intent even if it's suicidal
Supreme Generate a small army of 2 hit die guardians to defend it
Supreme Imbue a structure or area with the ability to fly freely
Supreme Implant an artificial mind in a structure to control and monitor it
74

Creating Magic Items

The forging of magical artifacts is not unknown on Lat-
ter Earth, though the ease of the process varies greatly Creating the Item
from place to place. Some regions are largely desolate of To build a magic item, the player first describes what it is
the subtle thaumic currents and special environments that the item is supposed to do. The player might want
needed to set an item’s enchantments, while others are to build an item from the Treasures section of this book,
particularly friendly to the process. A GM will have to or one from another old-school game, or perhaps one
decide on their own whether their campaign is to allow completely of their own devising. It’s up to the GM to
mage PCs to create magical items. decide whether or not the item fits with their campaign
Unlike Workings, which are comfortably stationary, and is an acceptable introduction.
a portable magic item directly increases the power of the For item designs, it’s recommended that the GM
bearer when they’re out adventuring. Allowing the cre- be careful not to allow magic items that simply solve
ation of magic items lets the party convert treasure into whole categories of problems. A set of magic earplugs
direct personal power, which increases the consequences that make it impossible to hear lies may seem clever, but
should they find “too much” treasure in their ventures. If it also immediately solves any challenge revolving around
magic items can only ever be found, salvaged, or created detecting deceit. Boots that grant perpetual flight, apot-
by specialist mages who are no use at adventuring then ropaic wands that banish specific types of creatures, and
the GM has a much better grip on power inflation. Con- other items that simply remove certain problems from
versely, a lot of GMs and Mage players are very fond of the party’s concerns should probably be denied. Even if
creating their own magical devices, and may not be sat- they’re charged or limit-use items, they’ll probably be
isfied by the use of Workings alone. For most campaigns, available whenever the party really needs them, which
a middle ground is recommended. means those challenges that would otherwise be the most
All permanent magical items are difficult to make. critical become the ones they most easily bypass.
Even if the item is nothing more than a tankard that A GM should also be careful about items that sim-
keeps its contents perpetually chilled, making that tan- ply add bonuses to the PC’s rolls, whether skill checks or
kard is every bit as difficult as forging an enchanted combat rolls. Magical weapons and armor do exist, and
sword. As a consequence, very few sorcerers bother to there are some items that do simply add numbers to the
make petty items; if it’s going to be as hard to make a PC, but these should be avoided in other cases. There’s
trifling token as a significant one, why make trifles? a reason that most veteran Warriors are eager to find
Magical items are exceedingly expensive to build. a magical weapon; such a weapon simply makes them
The rare components, expensive rituals, and costly pro- better at their most important function. If other items
cesses involved eat up vast amounts of gold and great exist that simply increase critical numbers, then the other
labor on the part of the mage. These components must be players will feel obligated to hunt them down.
bought at some major city or salvaged from the Deeps or If the item’s concept passes muster, the GM should
ruins that the PCs are exploring. They form many of the compare it to the adjacent table to see what kind of price
same components that are used in building Workings or and minimum creator level should be required to make it.
researching new spells, so the same general pool of mag- Spellcasting wizards can generally make any kind of mag-
ical components can be used for any of those purposes. ic item, while non-casters such as Vowed or Healers are
Magical items are also complex and difficult to usually restricted to making items appropriate to their
create. A novice mage cannot fashion them and even an particular concepts, whether those are magical scriptures
expert might find it difficult to get an item to come out or healing elixirs. A GM should always feel free to adjust
just right. Flaws can creep into the construction process, prices and difficulties to reflect their own sense of what’s
forcing the PC to either start over or cope with an item appropriate for their campaign.
that isn’t exactly what was intended. In addition to the minimum level and money in-
volved, permanent magic items always require at least
Magic Item Creation Costs

Creation Creation
Type of Item Difficulty Cost Creation Time
A single-use item, such as a potion or a scroll 8-10 500-5,000 1 week
A multi-use item that still contains limited charges, such as a wand 9-11 10,000-50,000 1 month
A low-powered but permanent magic item, such as a Sword +1 10 25,000 1 month
A significant item that creates a situation-changing effect 12 100,000 3 months
A powerful item or one with multiple significant abilities 14 500,000 6 months
 75

one adventure to acquire the necessary components. The

wizard will have researched the item sufficiently to know d10 Magic Item Design Flaws
where they need to go and what they need to fetch, but it 1 The magic item can only be used by the first
will always be dangerous and difficult to do so. Very capa- person to touch it after creation.
ble underlings or hired adventurers might be able to fetch 2 The item's magic can only affect the bearer or
the required component, but it’s up to the GM whether user.
such efforts are successful. From a GM’s perspective, this
required adventure is to ensure that a wizard who makes 3 The item actually has the exact opposite effect
a permanent magic item provides at least one session as the one intended for it.
worth of adventure grist in exchange for the new gear, 4 The item is very slow to activate, not taking
and it also ensures that not too many permanent magic effect until the round after it's triggered or
items will be made unless the party agrees to constantly used.
be out adventuring for parts. 5 The item is very loud and visually showy when
If the creator is capable, the coin is at hand, and any deployed, and continues to be loud until it's
adventuring components have been fetched, the mage no longer used.
can attempt to make the item. They spend the time given
6 The item will only benefit or function for a
on the adjacent table and then make an Int/Magic skill
given user 1d6 times before becoming inert
check against the appropriate difficulty. If they’re making
for them thereafter.
a batch of limited-use items, such as a batch of magic
potions, they can make two doses for a +1 difficulty or 7 The item becomes non-magical if the creator
four doses for a +2 difficulty. If they have an apprentice dies.
to aid them, they can add +1 to their skill check. 8 The item drains the user's life force, adding
If the check is a success, the item is made. If it’s a one System Strain the first time it's used each
failure, they have a choice; they can start over from the day. It won't function without this drain.
beginning, spending the money and time anew, though 9 The item bonds to its users; if separated
not needing to repeat any adventure the item might have from the item, the user gains one System
required. They can then make a second attempt at creat- Strain each day until the item's destroyed or
ing the item. If they are reluctant to do this, they can roll recovered. The item forms only one bond at
on the Item Flaw table, suffering that hindrance to the a time.
item’s eventual effect as adjusted by the GM. If that flaw
isn’t intolerable, they may spend half the gold and time 10 The whole plan was flawed from the start. All
they originally took to make another skill check to make time and resources spent have been wasted,
the item at a cumulative +1 bonus. They can repeat this and everything must begin again from scratch.
process, adding a new flaw each time and paying half the
original coin and time, until they either succeed or the
flaws become intolerable.
A mage can generally keep adventuring while craft-
ing a magic item, as the work doesn’t eat up all their spare
time. Particularly massive or powerful magic items might
require the use of a dedicated laboratory, forcing the wiz-
ard to remain there while the work is underway lest the
process be spoiled. Any special tools or resources such a
laboratory requires are assumed to be part of the item’s
creation cost.
76

FACTIONS AND MAJOR PROJECTS

(Chapter intro here)

The rules in this chapter are currently written in a

very summary form, the better to get it out for public
examination. More elaborate explanations and examples
will come as the details are refined.
 77

FACTIONSPLASH
W 6.34 in
H 9.67 in
78

Faction Statistics The Faction Turn

Factions have several statistics to define their overall Every month or so, the GM should run a faction turn.
qualities. Weak or small factions will have tend to have This turn may take place more often during times of
low ratings even in their main focus, while kingdoms and intense activity, or less often if the campaign world is
major institutions may have a good rating even in their quiet. In general, a faction turn after every adventure is a
less important traits, simply because they have so many good average, assuming the PCs don’t have back-to-back
resources available to them. adventures.
Cunning is measured from 1 to 8 and indicates the At the start of every faction turn, each faction rolls
faction’s general guile, skill at subterfuge, and subtlety. 1d8 for initiative, the highest rolls going first. Ties are
Low Cunning means the faction is straightforward or un- resolved as the GM wishes, and then each faction takes
accustomed to dealing with trickery, while high Cunning the following steps in order.
is for machivellian schemers and secretive organizations.
Force is measured from 1 to 8 and reflects the overall • The faction earns Treasure equal to half their
military prowess and martial competence of the faction. Wealth plus a quarter of their Force and a quarter
A faction with low Force isn’t used to using violence to of their Cunning, rounded up.
get its way, or is particularly inept at it, while a high Force
reflects a culture of military expertise. • The faction must pay any upkeep required by their
Wealth is measured from 1 to 8 and shows the fac- individual Asset costs, or by the cost of having too
tion’s general prosperity, material resources, and facility many Assets for their attributes. If they can’t afford
with money. Low Weath means the faction is poor, disin- this upkeep, individual Assets may have their own
terested in material goods, or spendthrift with what they bad consequences, while not being able to afford
have, while high Wealth factions are rich and familiar excess Assets means that the excess are lost.
with using money and goods as tools for success.
Magic measures the amount of magical resources • The faction triggers any special abilities individual
available to the faction. “None” is for factions that have Assets may have, such as abilities that allow an As-
no meaningful access to magic. “Low” is for those factions set to move or perform some other special benefit.
that have at best a few trained mages or small stores of
magical goods. “Medium” is for a faction where there is an • The faction takes one Faction Action as listed in the
established source of magical power for the faction, either following section, resolving any Attacks or other
as a sub-group of cooperative mages, a magical academy, a consequences from their choice. When an action is
tradition of sorcery in the faction, or some other institu- taken, every Asset owned by the faction may take
tionalized aid. “High” magic is reserved for those factions it; thus, if Attack is chosen, then every valid Asset
that have a strong focus on wielding magical power, most owned by the faction can Attack. If Repair Asset
fitting for a faction that represents a magical order. is chosen, every Asset can be repaired if enough
Treasure is counted in points, and the total reflects Treasure is spent.
how much the faction owns in cash and valuable goods. A
single point of Treasure doesn’t have an established cash • The faction checks to see if it’s accomplished its
value; a sack of gold is worthless in itself to a faction that most recent goal. If so. it collects the experience
needs a dozen oxcarts, and a herd of cattle owned by a points for doing so and picks a new goal. If not, it
faction can’t necessarily be turned into a fix sum of coin. can abandon the old goal and pick a new one, but
Hit points work for factions much as they do for it will sacrifice its next turn’s Faction Action to do
characters; when a faction is reduced to zero hit points, it so and may not trigger any Asset special abilities
collapses. Its individual members and sub-groups might that round, either.
not all be dead, but they’re so hopelessly disorganized,
dispirited, or conflict-bound that the faction ceases to The next faction in order then acts until all factions
exist as a coherent whole. have acted for the turn.
Assets are important resources possessed by a fac-
tion, such as controlling a ring of Smugglers, or having a Asset Locations and Movement
unit of Infantry. Assets all have their own statistics and Every Asset has a location on the campaign map. This
hit points, and all of them require certain scores in Force, location may not be where all the elements of the Asset
Wealth, Cunning, and Magic to purchase. Assets don’t are located. It might simply be the headquarters of an
cover all the resources and institutions the faction may organization, or the spot where the most active and im-
control, but they reflect the ones that are most useful portant members of it are currently working. However
and relevant to the faction at that moment. A kingdom it’s described, it’s the center of gravity for the Asset.
may have more military than the Infantry unit they have, This location is usually in a town or other settlement,
but that Infantry unit is the one that’s doing something but it could be anything that makes sense. A reclusive
important enough to pay attention to. Prophet might dwell deep within the wilderness, and
a ring of Smugglers might currently be based out of a
 79

hidden sea cave. A location is simply wherever the GM Faction Turn Actions
thinks it should be. Attack: The faction nominates one or more Assets to
Assets can move locations, either with the Move attack the enemy in their locations. In each location,
Asset faction action or with a special ability possessed the defender chooses which of the Assets present
by the Asset itself or an allied unit. Generally, whenever will meet the Attack; thus, if a unit of Infantry at-
an Asset moves, it can move one turn’s worth of distance. tacks in a location where there is an enemy Base
As a rule of thumb, for a one-month turn, this is of Influence, Informers, and Idealistic Thugs, the
about one hundred miles. This is as far as an organization defender could decide to use Idealistic Thugs to
can shift itself in thirty days while still maintaining some defend against the attack.
degree of control and cohesion. The GM may adjust this The attacker makes an attribute check based on
distance based on the situation; if the campaign is taking the attack of the acting Asset; thus, the Infantry
place in an island archipelago with fast sea travel it’s going would roll Force versus Force. On a success, the de-
to be easier to move long distances than if the Asset has fending Asset takes damage equal to the attacking
to march through mountains to get there. Asset’s attack score, or 1d8 in the case of Infantry.
Some Assets also have special abilities that work On a failure, the attacking Asset takes damage equal
on targets within one move of the Asset. Again, the GM to the defending Asset’s counterattack score, or 1d6
decides what this means, but generally it means that the in the case of Idealistic Thugs.
Asset can affect targets within a hundred miles of its lo- If the damage done to an Asset reduces it to
cation. zero hit points, it is destroyed. The same Asset may
Sometimes it doesn’t make logical sense for an As- be used to defend against multiple attacking Assets,
set to be able to move to a particular location. A unit of provided it can survive the onslaught.
Infantry, for example, could hardly walk into an enemy Damage done to a Base of Influence is also
nation’s capital so as to later Attack the Court Patronage done directly to the faction’s hit points. Overflow
Asset there. In this case, the best the Infantry could do damage is not transmitted, however; if the Base of
would be to move to a location near the capital, assuming Influence only has 5 hit points and 7 hit points are
the GM decides that’s plausible. The Infantry couldn’t inflicted, the faction loses the Base of Influence and
actually Attack the enemy faction’s Assets until they got 5 hit points from its total.
into the city itself where those Assets were located. Move Asset: One or more Assets are moved up to one
Assets with the Subtle quality are not limited this turn’s worth of movement each. The receiving lo-
way. Subtle Assets can move to locations even where cation must not have the ability and inclination to
they would normally be prohibited by the ruling powers. forbid the Asset from operating there. Subtle and
Dislodging them requires that they be Attacked until Stealthed Assets ignore this limit.
destroyed or moved out by their owner. If an asset loses the Subtle or Stealth qualities
Assets with the Stealth quality are also not limited while in a hostile location, they must use this action
by this, and can move freely to any location within reach. to retreat to safety within one turn or they will lose
Stealthed Assets cannot be Attacked by other Assets half their maximum hit points in damage at the
until they lose the Stealth quality. This happens when start of the next turn, rounded up.
they are discovered by certain special Assets or when the Repair Asset: The faction spends 1 Treasure on each
Stealthed Asset Attacks something. Asset they wish to repair, fixing half their relevant
attribute value in lost hit points, rounded up. Thus,
Attribute Checks fixing a Force Asset would heal half the faction’s
Some actions, such as Attack, require an attribute check Force attribute, rounded up. Additional healing can
between factions, such as Force versus Cunning, or be applied to an Asset in this same turn, but the
Wealth versus Force. Other special Asset abilities some- cost increases by 1 Treasure for each subsequent fix;
times call for attribute checks as well. thus, the second costs 2 Treasure, the third costs 3
To make this check, the attacker and defender both Treasure, and so forth.
roll 1d10 and add their relevant attribute. Thus, for a This ability can at the same time also be used
Force versus Cunning check, the attacker would roll to repair damage done to the faction, spending 1
1d10+Force against the defender’s 1d10+Cunning. The Treasure to heal a total equal to the faction’s high-
attacker wins if their total is higher, and the defender est and lowest Force, Wealth, or Cunning attribute
wins if it’s a tie or their roll is higher. divided by two, rounded up. Thus, a faction with a
Some special abilities allow the attacker or defender Force of 5, Wealth of 2, and Cunning of 4 would
to roll more than one die for a check. In this case, the heal 4 points of damage. Only one such application
dice are rolled and the highest of them are used for the of healing is possible for a faction each turn.
comparison. Expand Influence: The faction seeks to establish a new
base of operations in a location. The faction must
have at least one Asset there already to make this
attempt, and must spend 1 Treasure for each hit
80

point the new Base of Influence is to have. Thus, to For a small faction, give them a 3 or 4 in their best
create a new Base of Influence with a maximum hit attribute, a 2 or 3 in their second-best, and a 1 or 2 in
point total of 10, 10 Treasure must be spent. Bases their worst quality. Set their Magic as you see fit, though
with high maximum hit point totals are harder to groups this small can often end up having a significant
dislodge, but losing them also inflicts much more amount of magical resources thanks to the lesser num-
damage on the faction’s own hit points. ber of skilled mages needed to cover their needs. They
Once the Base of Influence is created, the owner should be given a Base of Influence Asset at their primary
makes a Cunning versus Cunning attribute check headquarters with a maximum hit point total equal to
against every other faction that has at least one As- the faction’s own maximum hit points.
set in the same location. If the other faction wins Medium factions should assign 5 or 6 to their best
the check, they are allowed to make an immediate attribute, 4 or 5 to their second-best, and 2 or 3 to their
Attack against the new Base of Influence with what- worst. They should have two Assets in their primary at-
ever Assets they have present in the location. The tribute and two others among the other two. Their Magic
creating faction may attempt to block this action by rating will vary as above, and they should also be given a
defending with other Assets present. Base of Influence Asset at their main stronghold.
If the Base of Influence survives this onslaught, Large factions should assign 7 or 8 to their strongest
it operates as normal and allows the faction ot pur- attribute, 6 or 7 to their second-best attribute, and 3 or
chase new Assets there with the Create Asset action. 4 to their worst quality. They should have four Assets in
Create Asset: The faction buys one Asset at a location their primary attribute, and four others spread among
where they have a Base of Influence. They must the other two. Their Magic rating will depend on whatev-
have the minimum attribute and Magic ratings er you think is appropriate for their scale, but remember
necessary to buy the Asset and must pay the listed that it’s harder to concentrate effective magical resources
cost in Treasure to build it. A faction can create only when dealing with a whole province or nation than it is to
one Asset per turn. enchant a single city-state or magical institution. Give a
A faction can have no more Assets of a particu- strong faction a Base of Influence asset with a value equal
lar attribute than their attribute score. Thus, a fac- to their full hit points, and place it in their seat of power.
tion with a Force of 3 can have only 3 Force Assets. To determine a faction’s maximum hit points, use
If this number is exceeded, the faction must pay 1 the table below. Thus, one with a Force of 3, a Wealth of
Treasure per excess Asset at the start of each turn, 5, and a Cunning of 2 would have hit points equal to 4
or else they will lose the excess. plus 9 plus 2, or 15 total. The Base of Influence at their
Sell Asset: The faction voluntarily decommissions an primary headquarters will always have a maximum hit
Asset, salvaging it for what it’s worth. The Asset is points equal to the faction’s maximum hit points, even if
lost and the faction gains half its purchase cost in it later rises or falls due to attribute score changes.
Treasure, rounded down. If the Asset is damaged Lastly, give a faction a goal, either one from the fol-
when it is sold, however, no Treasure is gained. lowing list or one chosen by the GM. When this goal is
achieved, the faction earns experience points which it can
Creating Factions later spend to increase its attributes. The cost for such
A given campaign should generally not have more than increases is given on the table below. Earlier levels must
six active factions at any one time, and three or four are be purchased before later, so to raise Force from 5 to 7
generally more manageable. If there are more extant fac- will cost 9 XP to raise it to 6, then 12 more to raise it to 7.
tions than this in your campaign, then simply run turns
for the three or four most active or relevant ones and Attribute XP Cost Hit Point
leave the others fallow for the turn. Rating to Purchase Value
To create a faction, decide whether it is a small, me-
dium, or large faction. A small one might be a petty cult 1 - 1
or small free city or minor magical academy. A medi- 2 2 2
um one might be a local baron’s government or prov- 3 4 4
ince-wide faith. A large one would be an entire kingdom
4 6 6
or a major province of a vast empire.
It’s perfectly acceptable to break a large institution 5 9 9
down into a smaller faction. If the provincial government 6 12 12
of Ruhark is the important element in the campaign, the
7 16 16
empire that Ruhark belongs to can be ignored. If the One
Red Dawn faction of the Howling God’s clergy are the 8 20 20
ones who hate the PCs, then making them into their own
small faction is much easier and better than factionizing
the entire Howling God hierarchy.
 81

Faction Goals
The goals listed below are not the only options for a fac-
tion, but they should provide some examples for a GM to
use as inspiration. The difficulty of a goal is the number
of experience points earned on a successful completion
of it.
Military Conquest: Destroy a number of Force assets
of rival factions equal to your faction’s Force rating.
Difficulty is 1/2 number of assets destroyed.
Commercial Expansion: Destroy a number of Wealth
assets of rival factions equal to your faction’s Wealth
rating. Difficulty is 1/2 number of assets destroyed.
Intelligence Coup: Destroy a number of Cunning assets
of rival factions equal to your faction’s Cunning rat-
ing. Difficulty is 1/2 number of assets destroyed.
Root Out the Enemy: Destroy a Base of Influence of a
rival faction in a specific location. Difficulty equal to
half the average of the current ruling faction’s Force,
Cunning, and Wealth ratings.
Expand Influence: Plant a Base of Influence at a new
location. Difficulty 1, +1 if the attempt is contested
by a rival faction.
Blood the Enemy: Inflict a number of hit points of dam-
age on enemy faction assets or bases equal to your
faction’s total Force, Cunning, and Wealth ratings.
Difficulty 2.
Peaceable Kingdom: Don’t take an Attack action for
four turns. Difficulty 1.
Destroy the Foe: Destroy a rival faction. Difficulty equal
to 1 plus the average of the faction’s Force, Cunning,
and Wealth ratings.
Inside Enemy Territory: Have a number of Stealthed
assets in locations where there is a rival Base of
Influence equal to your Cunning score. Units that
are already Stealthed in locations when this goal is
adopted don’t count. Difficulty 2.
Invincible Valor: Destroy a Force asset with a minimum
purchase rating higher than your faction’s Force rat-
ing. Thus, if your Force is 3, you need to destroy
a unit that requires Force 4 or higher to purchase.
Difficulty 2.
Wealth of Kingdoms: Spend Treasure equal to four
times your faction’s Wealth rating on bribes and
influence. This money is effectively lost, but the
goal is then considered accomplished. The faction’s
Wealth rating must increase before this goal can be
selected again. Difficulty 2.

Faction Tags
(To be defined.)
82

Cunning Assets
Bewitching Charmer: When the Bewitching Charmer Just As Planned: Some sublimely cunning mastermind
succeeds in an Attack, the targeted Asset is unable ensures that the schemes of this faction are un-
to leave the same location as the Bewitching Charm- imaginably subtle and far-seeing. Whenever the
er until the latter Asset moves or is destroyed. Be- faction’s Assets make a roll involving Cunning, they
witching Charmers are immune to Counterattack. may reroll a failed check at the cost of inflicting 1d6
Blackmail: When a Blackmail asset is in a location, hos- damage on Just As Planned. This may be done re-
tile factions can’t roll more than one die during At- peatedly, though it may destroy the Asset. There is
tacks made by or against them there, even if they no range limit on this benefit.
have tags or Assets that usually grant bonus dice. Mindbenders: Once per turn as a free action, the Mind-
Court Patronage: Powerful nobles or officials are, ap- benders can force a rival faction to reroll a check,
pointing their agents to useful posts of profit. A Attack, or other die roll they just made and take
Court Patronage Asset automatically grants 1 Trea- whichever result the Mindbenders prefer. A faction
sure to its owning faction each turn. can only be affected this way once until the start of
Covert Transport: As a free action once per turn, the the Mindbender’s faction’s next turn.
faction can pay 1 Treasure and move any Cunning Occult Infiltrators: Magically-gifted spies and assassins
or Wealth Asset at the same location as the Covert are enlisted to serve the faction. Occult Infiltrator
Transport. The transported Asset gains the Stealth Assets always begin play with the Stealth quality.
quality until it performs some action or is otherwise Omniscient Seers: At the start of their turn, each hostile
utilized by the faction. Stealthed asset within one turn’s movement of the
Cryptomancers: In place of an Attack action, they can Omniscient Seers must succeed in a Cunning vs.
make a Cunning vs. Cunning attack on a specific Cunning check against the owning faction or lose
hostile Asset within one move of the Crypto- their Stealth. In addition, all Cunning rolls made
mancers. On a success, the targeted Asset is unable by the faction for units or events within one turn’s
to do anything or be used for anything on its own- movement of the seers gain an extra die.
er’s next faction turn. Organization Moles: Sleeper agents and deep-cover
Dancing Girls: Dancing Girls or other charming dis- spies burrow into hostile organizations, waiting to
tractions are immune to Attack or Counterattack disrupt them from within when ordered to do so.
damage from Force Assets, but they cannot be used Petty Seers: A cadre of skilled fortune-tellers and minor
to defend against Attacks from Force Assets. oracles have been enlisted by the faction to foresee
Expert Treachery: On a successful attack by Expert perils and allow swift counterattacks.
Treachery, the Asset is lost, 5 Treasure is gained Popular Movement: Any friendly Asset is allowed move-
by the owning faction, and the Asset that Expert ment into the same location as the Popular Move-
Treachery targeted switches sides. This conversion ment, even if it would normally be forbidden by its
happens even if their new owners lack the attributes owners and lacks the Subtle quality. If the Popular
usually necessary to maintain such an Asset. Movement later moves or is destroyed, such Assets
Hired Friends: As a free action, once per turn, the faction must also leave or suffer the usual consequences of
may spend 1 Treasure and grant a Wealth Asset a non-Subtle Asset in a hostile area.
within one turn’s movement range the Subtle quality. Prophet: Whether a religious prophet, charismatic phi-
This quality will remain, regardless of the Wealth losopher, rebel leader, or other figure of popular
Asset’s movement, until the Hired Friends are de- appeal, the Asset is firmly under the faction’s control.
stroyed or they use this ability again. Saboteurs: An Asset that is Attacked by the Saboteurs
Idealistic Thugs: Easily-manipulated hotheads are enlist- can’t use any free action abilities it may have during
ed under whatever ideological or religious principle the next turn, whether or not the Attack was suc-
best enthuses them for violence. cessful.
Informers: As a free action, once per turn, the faction Seditionists: In place of an Attack action, the Seditionist’s
can spend 1 Treasure and have the Informers look owners may spend 1d4 Treasure and attach the As-
for Stealthed Assets. To do so, the Informers pick a set to a hostile Asset in the same location. Until the
faction and make a Cunning vs. Cunning Attack on Seditionists are destroyed, infest another Asset, or
them. No counterattack damage is taken if they fail, leave the same location, the rebelling Asset cannot
but if they succeed, all Stealthed Assets of that fac- be used for anything and grants no benefits.
tion within one move of the Informers are revealed. Shapeshifters: As a free action once per turn, the faction
Interrupted Logistics: Non-Stealthed hostile units can spend 1 Treasure and grant the Shapeshifters
cannot enter the same location as the Interrupted the Stealth quality.
Logistics Asset without paying 1d4 Treasure and Smugglers: As a free action, once per faction turn, the
waiting one turn to arrive there. Smugglers can move any allied Wealth or Cunning
 83

Cunning Asset Cost HP Magic Attack Counter Qualities

Cunning 1
Informers 2 3 None C v. C/Special None Subtle, Special
Petty Seers 2 2 Medium None 1d6 damage Subtle
Smugglers 2 4 None C v. W/1d4 damage None Subtle, Action
Useful Idiots 1 2 None None None Subtle, Special
Cunning 2
Blackmail 4 4 None C v. C/1d4 damage None Subtle, Special
Dancing Girls 4 3 None C v. W/2d4 damage None Subtle, Special
Hired Friends 4 4 None C v. C/1d6 damage None Subtle, Special
Saboteurs 5 6 None C v. W/2d4 damage None Subtle, Special
Cunning 3
Bewitching Charmer 6 4 Low C v. C/Special None Subtle, Special
Covert Transport 8 4 None None None Subtle, Special
Occult Infiltrators 6 4 Medium C v. C/2d6 damage None Subtle, Special
Spymaster 8 4 None C v. C/1d6 damage 2d6 damage Subtle
Cunning 4
Court Patronage 8 8 None C v. C/1d6 damage 1d6 damage Subtle, Special
Idealistic Thugs 8 12 None C v. F/1d6 damage 1d6 damage Subtle
Seditionists 12 8 None Special None Subtle
Vigilant Agents 12 8 None None 1d4 damage Subtle, Special
Cunning 5
Cryptomancers 14 6 Low C v. C/Special None Subtle
Organization Moles 8 10 None C v. C/2d6 damage None Subtle
Shapeshifters 14 8 Medium C v. C/2d6 damage None Subtle, Special
Cunning 6
Interrupted Logistics 20 10 None None None Subtle, Special
Prophet 20 10 None C v. C/2d8 damage 1d8 damage Subtle
Underground Roads 18 15 None None None Subtle, Special
Cunning 7
Expert Treachery 10 5 None C v. C/Special None Subtle
Mindbenders 20 10 Medium None 2d8 damage Subtle
Popular Movement 25 16 None C v. C/2d6 damage 1d6 damage Subtle, Special
Cunning 8
Just As Planned 40 15 None None 1d10 damage Subtle, Special
Omniscient Seers 30 10 High None 1d8 damage Subtle, Special

Asset in their same location to a destination within this Asset. If another Asset within one turn’s move
movement range, even if the destination wouldn’t of the Useful Idiots is destroyed by an Attack, the
normally allow an un-Subtle Asset to locate there. faction can instead sacrifice the Useful Idiots to ne-
Spymaster: A veteran operative runs a counterintelli- gate the killing blow. Only one band of Useful Idiots
gence bureau in the area and fomulates offensive can be sacrificed on any one turn.
schemes for the faction. Vigilant Agents: A constant flow of observations runs
Underground Roads: A well-established network of se- back to the faction from these watchful counterin-
cret transit extends far around this Asset. As a free telligence agents. Whenever another faction moves
action, the faction may pay 1 Treasure and move any a Stealthed asset into a location within one move’s
friendly Asset from a location within one round’s distance from the Vigilant Agents, they may make
move of the Underground Roads to a destination a Cunning vs. Cunning attack against the owning
also within one round’s move of the Roads. faction. On a success, the intruding Asset loses its
Useful Idiots: Hirelings, catspaws, foolish idealists, and Stealth after it completes the move.
other disposable minions are gathered together in
84

Force Assets
Apocalypse Engine: One of a number of hideously Magical Logistics: An advanced web of magical Work-
powerful ancient super-weapons unearthed from ings, skilled sorcerers, and trained logistical experts
some lost armory, an Apocalypse Engine rains some are enlisted to streamline the faction’s maintenance
eldritch horror down on a targeted enemy Asset. and sustain damaged units. Once per faction turn,
Brilliant General: A leader for the ages is in service with as a free action, the Asset can repaire 2 hit points
the faction. Whenever the Brilliant General or any of damage to an allied Force Asset.
allied Force Asset in the same location Attacks or Military Roads: The faction has established a network
is made to defend, it can roll an extra die to do so. of roads with a logistical stockpile a this Asset’s lo-
Cavalry: Mounted troops, chariots, or other mobile sol- cation. As a consequence, once per faction turn, the
diers are in service to the faction. While weak on faction can move any one Asset from any location
defense, they can harry logistics and mount pow- within its reach to any other location within its
erful charges. reach at a cost of 1 Treasure.
Demonic Slayer: Powerful sorcerers have summoned Military Transport: A branch of skilled teamsters, trans-
or constructed an inhuman assassin-beast to hunt port ships, road-building crews, or other logistical
down and slaughter the faction’s enemies. A De- facilitators is in service to the faction. As a free ac-
monic Slayer enters play Stealthed. tion once per faction turn, it can bring an allied As-
Enchanted Elites: A carefully-selected group of skilled set to its location, provided they’re within one turn’s
warriors are given magical armaments and arcane movement range, or move an allied Asset from its
blessings to boost their effectiveness. own location to a target also within a turn’s move.
Fearful Intimidation: Judicious exercises of force have Multiple Military Transport assets can chain this
intimidated the locals, making them reluctant to movement over long distances.
cooperate with any group that stands opposed to Purity Rites: A rigorous program of regular mental in-
the faction. spection and counterintelligence measures has been
Fortification Program: A program of organized forti- undertaken by the faction. This Asset can only de-
fication and supply caching has been undertaken fend against attacks that target the faction’s Cun-
around the Asset’s location, hardening allied com- ning, but it allows the faction to roll an extra die
munities and friendly Assets. Once per turn, when to defend.
an enemy makes an Attack that targets the faction’s Reserve Corps: Retired military personnel and rear-line
Force rating, the faction can use the Fortification troops are spread through the area as workers or
Program to defend if the Asset is within a turn’s colonists, available to resist hostilities as needed.
move from the attack. Scouts: Long-range scouts and reconaissance experts
Guerilla Populace: The locals have the assistance of work for the faction, able to venture deep into hos-
trained guerilla warfare leaders who can aid them tile territory.
in sabotaging and attacking unwary hostiles. Siege Experts: These soldiers are trained in trenching,
Infantry: Common foot soldiers have been organized sapping, and razing targeted structures. When they
and armed by the faction. While rarely particularly successfully Attack an enemy Asset, the owner loses
heroic in their capabilities, they have the advantage 1d4 points of Treasure from their reserves and this
of numbers. faction gains it.
Invincible Legion: The faction has developed a truly irre- Summoned Hunter: A skilled sorcerer has summoned a
sistible military organization that can smash its way magical beast or mentally bound a usefully dispos-
through opposition without the aid of any support able assassin into the faction’s service.
units. During a Relocate Asset action, the Invin- Temple Fanatics: Fanatical servants of a cult, ideology, or
cible Legion can relocate to locations that would larger religion, these enthusiasts wreak havoc with
otherwise not permit a formal military force to re- enemies without a thought for their own lives. Ev-
locate there, as if it had the Subtle quality. It is not, ery time the Temple Fanatics defend or successfully
however, subtle. attack, they take 1d4 damage.
Knights: Elite warriors of considerable personal prowess Thugs: These gutter ruffians and common kneebreakers
have been trained or enlisted by the faction, either have been organized in service to the faction’s causes.
from noble sympathizers, veteran members, or Vanguard Unit: This unit is specially trained to build
amenable mercenaries. bridges, reduce fortifications, and facilitate a light-
Local Guard: Ordinary citizens are enlisted into night ning strike into enemy territory. When its faction
watch patrols and local guard units. They’re most takes a Relocate Asset turn, it can move the Van-
effective when defending from behind a fortified guard Unit and any allied units at the same location
position, but they have some idea of how to use to any other location within range, even if the unit
their weapons. type would normally be prohibitive from moving
 85

Force Asset Cost HP Magic Attack Counter Qualities

Force 1
Fearful Intimidation 2 4 None None 1d4 damage
Local Guard 3 4 None F v. F/1d3+1 damage 1d4+1 damage
Summoned Hunter 4 4 Medium C v. F/1d6 damage None Subtle
Thugs 2 1 None F v. C/1d6 damage None Subtle
Force 2
Guerilla Populace 6 4 None F v. F/1d4+1 damage None
Military Transport 4 6 None None None Action
Reserve Corps 4 4 None F v. F/1d6 damage 1d6 damage
Scouts 5 5 None F v. F/2d4 damage 1d4+1 damage Subtle
Force 3
Enchanted Elites 8 6 Medium F v. F/1d10 damage 1d6 damage Subtle
Infantry 6 6 None F v. F/1d8 damage 1d6 damage
Temple Fanatics 4 6 None F v. F/2d6 damage 2d6 damage Special
Witch Hunters 6 4 Low C v. C/1d4+1 damage 1d6 damage
Force 4
Cavalry 8 12 None F v. F/2d6 damage 1d4 damage
Military Roads 10 10 None None None Action
Vanguard Unit 10 10 None None 1d6 damage Action
War Fleet 12 8 None F v. F/2d6 damage 1d8 damage Action
Force 5
Demonic Slayer 12 4 High C v. C/2d6+2 damage None Subtle, Special
Magical Logistics 14 6 Medium None None Special
Siege Experts 10 8 None F v. W/1d6 damage 1d6 damage
Force 6
Fortification Program 20 18 None None None Action
Knights 18 16 None F v. F/2d8 damage 2d6 damage
War Machines 25 14 Medium F v. F/2d10+4 damage 1d10 damage
Force 7
Brilliant General 25 8 None C v. F/1d8 damage None Subtle, Special
Purity Rites 20 10 Low None 2d8+2 damage Special
Warshaped 30 16 High F v. F/2d8+2 damage 2d8 damage Subtle
Force 8
Apocalypse Engine 35 20 Medium F v. F/3d10+4 damage None
Invincible Legion 40 30 None F v. F/2d10+4 damage 2d10+4 damage Special

there. Thus, a Force asset could be moved into a for- Warshaped: The faction has the use of magical crea-
eign nation’s territory even against their wishes. The tures designed specifically for warfare, or ordinary
unit may remain at that location afterwards even if humans that have been greatly altered to serve the
the Vanguard Unit leaves. faction’s needs. Such forces are few and elusive
War Fleet: While a war fleet can only Attack assets and enough to evade easy detection.
locations within reach of the waterways, once per Witch Hunters: Certain personnel are trained in sniffing
turn it can freely relocate itself to any coastal area out traitors and spies in the organization, along with
within movement range. The Asset itself must be the presence of hostile magic or hidden spellcraft.
based out of some landward location to provide for
supply and refitting.
War Machines: Mobile war machines driven by trained
beasts or magical motive power are under the fac-
tion’s control.
86

Wealth Assets
Ancient Mechanisms: Some useful magical mechanism Healers: Whenever an Asset within one move of the
from ages past has been refitted to be useful in local Healers is destroyed by an Attack that used Force
industry. Whenever an Asset in the same location against the target, the owner of the Healers may
must roll to make a profit, such as Farmers or Man- pay half its purchase price in Treasure to instantly
ufactory, the faction may roll the die twice and take restore it with 1 hit point. This cannot be used to
the better result. repair Bases of Influence.
Ancient Workshop: A workshop has been refitted with Hired Legion: As a free action once per turn, the Hired
ancient magical tools, allowing prodigies of produc- Legion can move. This faction must be paid 2 Trea-
tion, albeit not always safely. As a free action, once sure at the start of each turn as upkeep, or else they
per turn, the Ancient Workshop takes 1d6 damage go rogue as the Free Company Asset does. This As-
and the owning faction gains 1d6 Treasure. set cannot be voluntarily sold or disbanded.
Arcane Laboratory: The faction’s overall Magic is count- Lead or Silver: If Lead or Silver’s Attack reduces an ene-
ed as one step higher for the puposes of creating my Asset to zero hit points, this Asset’s owner may
Assets in the same location as the laboratory. Mul- immediately pay half the target’s purchase cost to
tiple Arcane Laboratories in the same location can claim it as their own, reviving it with 1 hit point.
increase the Magic boost by multiple steps. Mad Genius: As a free action, once per turn, the Mad
Armed Guards: Hired caravan guards, bodyguards, or Genius may move. As a free action, once per turn,
other armed minions serve the faction. the Mad Genius may be sacrificed to treat the Mag-
Caravan: As a free action, once per turn, the Caravan ic rating in their location as High for the purpose
can spend 1 Treasure and move itself and one other of buying Assets that require such resources. This
Asset in the same place to a new location within boost lasts only until the next Asset is purchased
one move. in that location.
Cooperative Businesses: . If any other faction attempts Manufactory: . Once per turn, as a free action. the Asset’s
to create an Asset in the same location as a Coop- owner may roll 1d6; on a 1, one point of Treasure
erative Business, the cost of doing so increases by 1 is lost, on a 2-5, one point is gained, and on a 6,
Treasure. This penalty stacks. two points are gained. If Treasure is lost and none
Dragomans: Interpreters, cultural specialists, and is available to pay it by the end of the turn, this
go-betweens simplify the expansion of a faction’s Asset is lost.
influence in an area. A faction that takes an Expand Merchant Prince: A canny master of trade, the Merchant
Influence action in the same location as this Asset Prince may be triggered as a free action once per
can roll an extra die. As a free action once per turn, turn before buying a new Asset in the same loca-
this Asset can move to a new location. tion; the Merchant Prince takes 1d4 damage and
Economic Disruption: As a free action once per turn, this the purchased Asset costs 1d8 Treasure less, down
Asset can move itself without cost. to a minimum of half its normal price.
Farmers: Farmers, hunters, and simple rural artisans are Monopoly: Once per turn, as a free action, the Monopoly
in service to the faction here. Once per turn, as a Asset can target an Asset in the same location; that
free action, the Asset’s owner can roll 1d6; on a 5+, Asset’s owning faction must either pay the Monop-
they gain 1 Treasure from the Farmers. oly’s owner 1 Treasure or lose the targeted Asset.
Free Company: Hired mercenaries and professional Occult Countermeasures: This asset can only Attack or
soldiers, this Asset can, as a free action once per inflict Counterattack damage on Assets that require
turn, move itself. At the start of each of its owner’s at least a Low Magic rating to purchase.
turn, it takes 1 Treasure in upkeep costs; if this is Pleaders: Whether lawyers, skalds, lawspeakers, sage
not paid, roll 1d6. On a 1-3 the Asset is lost, on a elders, or other legal specialists, Pleaders can turn
4-6 it goes rogue and will move to Attack the most the local society’s laws against the enemies of the
profitable-looking target. This roll is repeated each faction. However, Pleaders can neither Attack nor
turn until back pay is paid or the Asset is lost. inflict Counterattack damage on Force Assets.
Front Merchant: Whenever the Front Merchant suc- Smuggling Fleet: Once per turn, as a free action, they
cessfully Attacks an enemy Asset, the target faction may move themselves and any one Asset at their
loses 1 Treasure, if they have any, and the Front current location to any other water-accessible loca-
Merchant’s owner gains it. Such a loss can occur tion within one move. Any Asset they move with
only once per turn. them gains the Subtle quality until they take some
Golden Prosperity: Each turn, as a free action, the fac- action at the destination.
tion gains 1d6 Treasure that can be used to fix dam- Supply Interruption: As a free action, once per turn, the
aged Assets as if by the Repair Assets action. Any Asset can make a Cunning vs. Wealth check against
of this Treasure not spent on such purposes is lost. an Asset in the same location. On a success, the
 87

Wealth Asset Cost HP Magic Attack Counter Qualities

Wealth 1
Armed Guards 1 3 None W v. F/1d3 damage 1d4 damage
Cooperative Businesses 1 2 None W v. W/1d4-1 damage None Subtle, Special
Farmers 2 4 None None 1d4 damage Action
Front Merchant 2 3 None W v. W/1d4 damage 1d4-1 damage Subtle
Wealth 2
Caravan 5 4 None W v. W/1d4 damage None Action
Dragomans 4 4 None None 1d4 damage Subtle, Special
Pleaders 6 4 None C v. W/2d4 damage 1d6 damage Special
Worker Mob 4 6 None W v. F/1d4+1 damage 1d4 damage
Wealth 3
Ancient Mechanisms 8 4 Medium None None Special
Arcane Laboratory 6 4 None None None Special
Free Company 8 6 None W v. F/2d4+2 damage 1d6 damage Action, Special
Manufactory 8 4 None None 1d4 damage Action
Wealth 4
Healers 12 8 None None None Action
Monopoly 8 12 None W v. W/1d6 damage 1d6 damage Action
Occult Countermeasures 10 8 Low W v. C/2d10 damage 1d10 damage Special
Usurers 12 8 None W v. W/1d10 damage None Action
Wealth 5
Mad Genius 6 2 None W v. C/1d6 damage None Action
Smuggling Fleet 12 6 None W v. F/2d6 damage None Subtle, Action
Supply Interruption 10 8 None C v. W/1d6 damage None Subtle, Action
Wealth 6
Economic Disruption 25 10 None W v. W/2d6 damage None Subtle, Action
Merchant Prince 20 10 None W v. W/2d8 damage 1d8 damage Action
Trade Company 15 10 None W v. W/2d6 damage 1d6 damage Action
Wealth 7
Ancient Workshop 25 16 Medium None None
Lead or Silver 20 10 None W v. W/2d10 damage 2d8 damage
Transport Network 15 5 None W v. W/1d12 damage None Action
Wealth 8
Golden Prosperity 40 30 Medium None 2d10 damage
Hired Legion 30 20 None W v F/2d10+4 damage 2d10 damage Action

owning faction must sacrifice Treasure equal to half Usurers: Moneylenders and other proto-bankers ply
the target Asset’s purchase cost, or else it is disabled their trade for the faction. For each unit of Usurers
and useless until this price is paid. owned by a faction, the Treasure cost of buying As-
Trade Company: Bold traders undertake potentially sets may be decreased by 2 Treasure, to a minimum
lucrative- or catastrophic- new business opportu- of half its cost. Each time the Usurers are used for
nities. As a free action, once per turn, the owner of this benefit, they suffer 1d4 damage from popular
the Asset may roll accept 1d4 damage done to the displeasure.
Asset in exchange for earning 1d6-1 Treasure points. Worker Mob: The roughest, most brutal laborers in ser-
Transport Network: A vast array of carters, ships, smug- vice with the faction have been quietly organized to
glers, and official caravans are under the faction’s sternly discipline the enemies of the group.
control. As a free action the Transport Network can
spend 1 Treasure to move any friendly Asset within
two moves to any location within one move of either
the target or the Transport Network.
88

Major Projects and Party Goals

In any campaign, there will likely arise some occasion
when the PCs take it into their heads to accomplish some Determining Project Difficulty
great change in the world. Perhaps they want to abolish To find out how much Renown is needed to achieve a
slavery in a country, or institute a new government in a project, the GM must determine its difficulty. This total
howling wilderness, or crush the economic power of a difficulty is a product of the intensity of the change, the
hateful merchant cartel. The party wants to accomplish scope it affects, and the powers that are opposed to it.
something grand or large-scale where there is no obvious First, decide whether the change is plausible, im-
direct path to success. No single killing or specific act of probable, or impossible. If the change is something that
heroism will get them their aim, though the goal itself is predictable or unsurprising, it’s a plausible change. A
isn’t so wild as to be obviously futile. town with good transport links and a couple of wealthy
Such ambitions are major projects, and this section neighbors might quite plausibly become a trade hub. A
will cover a simple system to help the GM adjudicate duke with an abandoned frontier keep and a raider prob-
their progress and success. This system is meant to han- lem might plausibly decide to give it to a famed warrior
dle sprawling, ambiguous ambitions that aren’t clearly PC with the agreement that the PC would pledge fealty
susceptible to a simple solution. If the party wants a dead to him. A plausible change in the campaign is simply one
town burgomaster, then they can simply kill him. If they that no one would find particularly surprising or unlikely.
want to turn his town into a major new trading nexus, An improbable change is one that’s not physically
something more complicated may be required. or socially impossible, but is highly unlikely. Transform-
ing a random patch of steppe grasslands into a trading
Renown hub might be an improbable change, as would convinc-
The basic currency of major projects is called Renown, ing a duke to simply hand over the frontier fort with no
and it’s measured in points much like experience points. particular claim of allegiance. Some things that are not
PCs gain Renown for succeeding at adventures, building particularly physically difficult might be improbable due
ties with the world, and generally behaving in a way to to the social or emotional implications; a society with a
attract interest and respect from those around them. PCs relative handful of trophy slaves might find it improbable
then spend Renown to accomplish the changes they want to give them up even if they serve only as status symbols
to make in the world, reflecting their own background ac- for their owners.
tivities and the work of cooperative allies and associates. An impossible change is just that; something that is
Each individual PC has their own Renown score. physically or socially impossible to contemplate. Turning
They can spend it together with the rest of the party if a desolate glacier on the edge of the world into a trading
they agree on the mutual focus of their interests, but hub might be such, or convincing the duke to simply give
a PC might also spend it on other ambitions or inter- the PCs his duchy. Accomplishing a feat like this might
mediate goals that come to mind. It’s ultimately up to require substantial magical Workings, the involvement
the player as to what they want to put their effort into; of ancient artifacts, or a degree of social upheaval on par
spending Renown reflects the kind of background work with a war of conquest. Some changes might be so dras-
and off-screen support that the hero can bring to bear. tic that they require their own heroic labors simply to
A GM doesn’t have to track Renown unless they prepare the groundwork for the real effort, and entire
intend to use the this system. If the GM prefers to do separate projects must be undertaken before the real goal
things their own way, they can completely ignore Re- even becomes possible.
nown awards. If the GM changes their mind later and
wants to introduce the system, they can simply give each Determining the Scope
PC a Renown score equal to their current accumulated Once the change’s probability is decided, the GM must
experience points and then track things accordingly from identify how wide the scope of the change may be. The
there. more land and the more people the change affects, the
Generally, a PC will receive Renown equal to the harder it will be to bring it about.
experience points they earn. Some other activities or un- A village-sized change is the smallest scale, affect-
dertakings might win them additional bonus Renown, ing only a single hamlet or a village’s worth of people. A
usually those works that increase the PC’s influence and city-sized change affects the population of a single city or
involvement with the campaign world, and some adven- several villages, while a regional one might affect a single
tures might not give them much Renown at all if they left barony or small province. A kingdom-sized one affects a
no impression on the people around the party. Specific whole kingdom or a collection of feudal lordships, and a
guidelines on Renown awards are given in the GM sec- global change affects the entire Latter Earth, or at least
tion of the book. those parts known to the PCs.
When deciding the scope of the change, focus on
how many people are going to be immediately affected
 89

Probability Base Scope Difficulty Greatest Active Difficulty

of the Goal Difficulty Affected Multiplier Opposition Multiplier
Probable 1 Village x2 Minor figures x2
Improbable 2 City x4 Local leaders x4
Impossible 4 Region x8 Major noble or beast x8
Kingdom x16 King or famed monster x16
Known World x32
Multiply opposition by x2 if the local population
is emotionally or socially against it.

by the project. Turning a town into a trading hub might Optionally, PCs who want to create such a magical
incidentally affect a significant part of a kingdom, but the working can fix it indefinitely, causing it to be heritable
immediate consequences are felt only by the residents or transmissible for the indefinite future. Such laborious
of that town, and perhaps their closest trading partners. workings are much more difficult than simply tying the
The scope in that case would be simply that of a city, rath- effect to the natural flow of the Legacy, however, and so
er than a region. Banishing slavery throughout a kingdom it costs four times more than it would otherwise. Thus,
would require a kingdom-sized change, while getting it imbuing a village of people with some magical quality
banned within some smaller feudal region would require that they will forever after transmit down to a similar
a proportionately lesser scope. number of heirs would count as a x8 multiplier instead
If the PCs are trying to establish an educational in- of a x2 multiplier.
stitution, or a religious order, or some other sub-group
meant to serve a chosen cause, the scope should be the Determining the Opposition
largest general area the order can have influence in at any Once you have decided on the difficulty and the scope,
one time. A very small order of warrior-monks might you now need to identify the most significant people or
only have enough devotees to affect a village-sized com- power bases that would be opposed to this change. In
munity or problem. An order with multiple monasteries some cases, there may be no one opposed to the alter-
and bases of operations throughout a kingdom might ation; turning a steppe oasis into a trading post might
have enough muscle to affect events on a nation-wide not have anyone to object if there are no nomads who
scale. In the same vein, a small academy might be enough control the land, nor terrible beasts to threaten settlers.
to bring enlightened learning to a city, improving the In most cases, however, there’s going to be at least one
lives of men and women there, but not have the reach to person, creature, or other power in the area who would
influence the greater region around it. Individual war- prefer things not change.
rior-monks or specific scholars might play major roles If the opposition comes in the form of ordinary
elsewhere in the setting, but the institution itself can’t peasants or citizens, or minor bandit rabble, or normal
rely on the certainty of being able to step into such roles. dangerous animals, or other disorganized and low-level
In some cases, a PC might attempt to forge a Work- threats, then the difficulty is multiplied by x2.
ing or develop a specific bloodline of magical or cursed If the opposition is organized under competent
beings. Assuming that they have the necessary tools leadership, such as a local baron, rich merchant, or per-
and opportunities to achieve such a great feat, the scope suasive priest, or if the opposition is some dangerous but
should apply to the total number of people affected by not especially remarkable monster, then the difficulty is
the magic over its entire course of existence. Thus, a vil- multiplied by x4.
lage-sized change like this might apply to ten generations If the opposition is entrenched and powerful, such
of a very small bloodline, the enchantment lasting for as a group of nobles, an influential bandit king, a crime
a very long time but applying only to a few people at boss, a major city’s mayor, or a monster impressive
any one time. It might be reproduced by special training, enough to have developed its own legendry, then the dif-
magical consecration, or a natural inherited bloodline. ficulty is multiplied by x8.
Once the scope limit is reached, the magic can no longer If the opposition involves facing down a king, a leg-
be transmitted, as it has either been exhausted or the endary monster, the primate of a major religion, or some
subtle shiftings of the Legacy have damaged it beyond re- similar monarchic power, then the difficulty is multiplied
pair. Conversely, a very large scope for such a work might by x16.
mean that many people are so affected, though a very When measuring opposition, only the greatest op-
large change like that would only last for a few genera- ponent counts. Thus, if the king, the nobility, and the
tions before reaching the maximum affected population. local village chief all hate an idea, the difficulty modifier
Because of such limits, many such empowered bloodlines is x16. If the king is then persuaded to relent, the diffi-
or augmented magical traditions are very selective about culty modifier becomes x8, until the barons are pacified,
adding new members.
90

after which the village chieftain is the only opposition chase it with their own money. They can hire the masons,
left, for a x2 modifier. recruit the monks, and find a trustworthy abbot to act as
On top of this, if the change inspires widespread regent for the heroes. Such steps may not be enough to
popular disapproval or unease among the populace af- completely attain the purpose, as they’ll still have to deal
fected by the change, multiply the modifier by an addi- with quelling any local opposition to the new monastery
tional x2. Such changes usually touch on delicate ques- and any innate implausibility of establishing a monastery
tions of group identity, cultural traditions, or basic values, wherever they want to put it, but it’ll get them a long way
and the people in the change’s scope are likely to resist toward success.
such measures on multiple levels. The GM decides a reasonable cost for the institution
As an example, assume an idealistic band of ad- they want to build and the assorted recruits they’ll need
venturers dreamed of extirpating slavery from an entire to operate it, using the guidelines in this section. Prices
kingdom. The natives use slaves for work and status, but will vary drastically based on the situation; building a
their labor isn’t crucial to the economy’s survival, so the splendid stone castle in a desert with no good source of
GM decides it is merely improbable to give up slavery, stone will cost far more than listed, while hiring skilled
for a base difficulty of 2. The scope is kingdom-wide, so artisans in a major metropolis won’t be nearly as difficult
2 is multiplied by 16, for a difficulty of 32. As the sit- as finding them in an empty tundra.
uation stands now, the king has no desire to infuriate Once the cost is paid, the GM assigns a suitable
the wealthy magnates of his kingdom by taking away amount of Renown toward attaining the goal. For ex-
their free labor, so he would oppose it for an additional ample, if the overall goal is securing the trade route be-
x16 multiplier, for a total difficulty of 512. Oh, and the tween two distant cities, building a fortified caravansary
natives find the idea of accepting slaves as equals to be with patrolling road guards might give enough Renown
emotionally abhorrent, so that’s an additional x2 multi- to solve half the problem. The rest of it might require
plier, for a final difficulty of 1,024. dealing with the opposition that’s making the hazard in
It is very unlikely for the heroes to manage to the first place, such as the depredations of a bandit chief
scrape up the 1,024 points of Renown needed to make or the perils of the savage monsters that haunt the road.
this change out of hand. They’re going to have to alter They can nullify opposition. Either through gold,
the situation to quell the opposition and make specific persuasion, or sharp steel, the PCs can end the opposi-
strides toward making the ideal more plausible before tion of those powers who stand against their ambition.
they can finally bring about their dream. Opponents who can be bought off might be managed
with nothing more than a lengthy discussion and an ex-
Decreasing Difficulty change of valuables, but other opponents might need full-
Adventurers who have a dream bigger than their available fledged adventures to deal with. Some might demand
Renown have several options for bringing it about more favors in exchange for withdrawing their opposition, or
rapidly. The party can use some or all of these techniques quests accomplished on their behalf, or enemies snuffed
for making their ambition more feasible, and the GM out by the swords of the heroes. Others could be so un-
might well insist on at least some of them before the alterably opposed to the idea that they must either be
PCs can succeed. killed or endured.
They can spend money. Sometimes a problem can If the opposition is nullified, the difficulty decreases
be solved by throwing enough money at it, either by pay- accordingly. If several sources of opposition exist, then
ing off troublesome opponents, constructing useful facil- only the biggest opponent counts for the multiplier; if
ities or installations, or hiring enough help to push the they’re eliminated, then the next largest counts.
cause through. Money is often useful, but it eventually
begets diminishing returns; once everything useful has Renown Cost in Gold
been bought, additional coinage brings little useful result. Bought per Point
The adjacent table shows how much a point of Re- First 1-4 points 1,000 gold per point
nown dedicated to the project costs. The first few points
come relatively cheaply, but after that the price increases Next 4 points 2,000 gold per point
rapidly. Eventually, there comes a point where only the Next 8 points 4,000 gold per point
wealth of empires can shove a massive project through Next 16 points 8,000 gold per point
with sheer monetary force. Small projects and modest
Next 32 points 16,000 gold per point
ambitions are generally easy to accomplish with cash, but
society-wide alterations and massive undertakings can Next 64 points 32,000 gold per point
defeat the richest vault. Further points Prohibitively expensive
They can build institutions. If the PCs want a
fortified monastery loyal to them, they can either throw Thus, purchasing 14 points of Renown would cost
enough Renown at their goal until allied NPCs and lo- 4,000 for the first four, 8,000 for the next four, and
cal potentates think it’s a good idea to buy them off by 24,000 for the next six, for 36,000 total.
building it for them, or they can actually go out and pur-
 91

They can adventure in pursuit of their goal. This with consequences of that unquelled opposition. The
adventure might be something as simple as finding the kingdom might outlaw slavery, but if not all the opposi-
den of a troublesome pack of monsters, or it could be tion was defeated there may remain small pockets where
something as involved as delving into an ancient Deep the law doesn’t reach or the populace refuses to accept
to recover the lost regalia that will give them the mor- the freed slaves as fellow citizens. Solving these remnant
al authority to make demands of a troublesome prelate. problems might require their own projects or adventures.
Such adventures will give the PCs their usual award of For magical, impossible, or truly epic changes, the
Renown, but they can also give a bonus award toward GM might oblige the PCs to face some culminating ad-
their specific goal if their efforts are particularly relevant. venture or challenge before their ambition becomes real.
This bonus is determined by the GM. The easiest They might’ve marshaled enough force and enough allies
way for the GM to pick the proper amount for the award to depose the wicked king, but now the day of reckon-
is to privately estimate how many such adventures their ing has come and they must face the tyrant and his elite
goal is worth and then award Renown accordingly. Thus, guard in a pitched battle within the capital city. Some
if the GM thinks that three adventures like this one is as heroic changes might require several such adventures,
much focus and effort as the group should have to spend with failure meaning that their efforts somehow fall short
toward accomplishing their aim, then each adventure will of complete success. If the tyrant is not slain, he might
decrease the goals difficulty by one-third. escape into exile to foment further trouble, or he might
Adventuring is by far the most efficient way to ac- flee to a province he still can control.
complish a group’s goals, assuming they can come up with Once the change is successfully achieved, the GM
adventures that are relevant. This is intentional; a goal should take a little while to consider the larger ramifica-
that gives the GM an easy supply of adventuring grist is tions of the event. Who in the surrounding area is going
a genuine contribution to the game. The more adventures to take notice of the events, and what are they likely to
that a GM gets out of PC ambitions, the easier their time do about it? What allies of the PCs might be strength-
is in preparing for the game and ensuring the players are ened by the change and able to push their own agendas
involved in the campaign. further? What are the longer-term consequences of their
actions, and how might these show up during future ad-
Achieving the Goal ventures?
Once the PCs have piled up enough Renown and low- The ultimate point of changes like these is not sim-
ered the difficulty enough to actually make it feasible to ply to make marks on the campaign map, but to create
achieve the goal, they need to take the final steps neces- the seeds of future adventures and future events. The
sary to complete the work. For a minor goal, this might actions of the characters create reactions, and the deeper
be a simple matter of describing how they take care of the they involve themselves in the campaign setting, the more
details, while a vast campaign of effort might culminate that setting is going to involve itself with them. This is
in several brutal, perilous adventures. ultimately a virtuous circle for the GM and the group,
The time this change takes will rest with the GM’s as it helps to generate adventures and events that matter
judgment. It might take half a year to build a large stone to the players and spares the GM from confusion or un-
monastery, while a week could be time enough to throw certainty over what kind of adventuring grist to generate.
up a palisade and other simple fortifications around a
village. Persuading a kingdom to alter its laws about slav- Major Changes and Factions
ery might be done in a theoretical instant if the autocrat Players are likely to end up with goals or ambitions that
decrees but take years to truly percolate into the public directly involve them with local factions or potentially
consciousness. If the PCs have been working on the proj- touch on Assets or other resources significant to faction
ect for some time already this effort should be taken into powers. This is normal, and it’s not difficult to integrate
account and lessen the time required. the two systems when they happen to touch.
For mundane changes or changes the GM doesn’t As a general rule, major projects should be treated
really want to focus on, the PCs simply declare that just as adventures would be. When a project would plau-
they’re spending their Renown and using their own good sibly damage a faction’s Assets, then the Assets will be
name, personal prowess, and accumulated friendships damaged or destroyed. When they would create an Asset
and contacts to pull off their ambition. They might give useful for a faction, whether one belonging to the players
examples of some of the ways they’re working to achieve or to another group, then the Asset is created. If a faction
the goal and specify what allies or resources they’re de- doesn’t care for a project, it might turn into a source of
ploying. The GM then describes the outcome of their opposition that must be quelled or overcome, while an
efforts. They may not be completely successful and events allied faction might supply some portion of the Renown
may not work out exactly as they planned, but they’ll get itself by taking an action to aid the PCs.
the substance of what they wanted. The help of a faction should be scaled by the GM; if
For changes that push through opposition instead an empire decides to give the PCs a castle, then it might
of subverting it, those that just pay the price for the op- be such a minor part of the faction’s holding that no Trea-
position multiplier, the GM might oblige the PCs to deal sure expense or other effort is required to do so. A small
92

religious cult that wants to help build a monastery for the infrastructure, even in the rare cases when the state could
PCs might not be able to give nearly as much help, and afford such efforts.
might simply be good for a quarter of the Renown need-
ed if they spend an action assisting the PCs. Conversely, <Insert tables of example building, servant, and hire-
when a faction is opposed to some measure, the PCs ling costs here>
will probably have to undertake an adventure to change
its mind or pull the fangs that it’s using to interfere with
their efforts.

Magical Projects
Some projects are flatly impossible in nature, such as
changing humans into some new humanoid species or
creating a magical effect that covers an entire region.
These efforts are a step beyond ordinary impossibility, as
they often require measures entirely beyond the physical
capabilities of normal civilizations.
While exceedingly difficult, such projects are not out
of the question for powerful mages who have the help of
skilled adventurers. They do require a few more steps
than an ordinary project would require, however.
The heroes must create one or more Workings ded-
icated to enabling the change, using the guidelines given
in the Magic chapter. The scope of these Workings must
be large enough to affect the scope of the change itself;
if the alteration is to be done to an entire region, then a
region-sized Working must be built. Workings so large
as to affect an entire kingdom are beyond the scope of
modern magic, and only some special quest into the fath-
omless past could discover the keys to grand, world-span-
ning alterations.
The degree of the Working will depend on the de-
gree of the change. The devising of a race of humanoid
creatures similar to humans but cosmetically different
might be a Minor Working, while more substantial al-
terations will require great degrees of power. The sum-
moning of a river from the depths of the earth might be
a Major change for a small stream, while something the
size of the Amazon might be of Supreme difficulty.
If the magical change is impossible but relatively
modest in scope, then one great Working will be neces-
sary to empower it. If the change is significant and will
have major repercussions on the future area, it will take
two, while a change that seems barely within the limits
of possibility will need three Workings to support it, all
of the appropriate degree and scope. The construction
of these Workings often require adventures in their own
right to find the critical components or esoteric substanc-
es needed to erect them, to say nothing of the material
cost of the work.
If these Workings are later destroyed or corrupted
the change itself may be damaged as well. Sometimes
the effect is so graven on the world that it continues un-
supported, but other times the change fades away into
something more mundane. In the worst cases, the magic
goes rampant and terrible consequences are born from
its uncontrolled fury. As a consequence, most nations are
highly averse to the construction of large-scale magical
93
94

CREATURES OF THE LATTER EARTH

(Chapter intro here)

This section will include tools for creating monsters

and other inhabitants of the GM’s campaign.
 95

BESTIARYSPLASH
W 8.5 in
H 11 in
96

Humans and Demihumans

The definition of “humanity” is somewhat broader in the compensation. Their fertility is usually significantly less
Latter Earth than it would be in some other ages. Count- than that of ordinary humanity, and so their numbers are
less eons of sorcerous and genetic manipulation have left correspondingly fewer.
their mark on the modern population, and qualities that Those wretched demihumans known as the “Blight-
would be freakish or remarkable in other times now ed” are a special case in most lands. The debilities they
scarcely bear comment in most nations. suffer are so obvious and so severe that they often cannot
In the current age, the standard baseline human live among humans without some kind of oversight. In
form is not unlike that of modern-day humanity. The many lands this oversight is little more than slavery, and
same general build, body configuration, and range of col- those Blighted cursed with a violent nature are often
oration can be found in the humanity of the Latter Earth, hunted down and killed on principle.
and while other ages had somewhat different ideas about
what constituted a “normal human”, those that live in the Creating a Demihuman Character
current era would not look out of place on a contempo- A player who wishes to make a demihuman PC can
rary city street. spend their initial free Focus pick on an origin Focus ap-
Yet within this definition of humanity there remain propriate to their kind. If a GM is feeling charitable and
some considerable variances. Odd coloration of skin, hair, there are several demihumans in the party, the GM might
and eyes is one of the smallest such quirks, a remnant allow them to simply give up their usual second-level bo-
of some recessive aesthetic alteration, while slight dif- nus Focus instead, so that they can start play with a little
ferences in body configuration are also unusual but not more mechanical distinctiveness among them.
unknown. Remnants of some customized genders exist The demihumans unique to Latter Earth are de-
in some lands, while the humanity of other nations might scribed more fully in the Atlas of the Latter Earth. The
have been subtly altered to better accommodate local en- transhuman elves, the living Legacy interfaces that are
vironmental conditions. the dwarves, and the monstrous Blighted are all detailed
Despite these small differences, such people are with their appropriate origin Foci. For GMs who want
still generally considered “humans” by their neighbors. to run their game in a more traditional world, however,
Some cultural adjustments may be needed to integrate the adjacent page offers origin Foci for more “classic” in-
the more exotic examples, but few would consider such terpretations of the various near-human lineages.
uncommon quirks to be disqualifying for humanity. PCs with particular novelties of shape or detail
that have no meaningful game mechanical effect do not
Demihumanity need to take an origin Focus to represent such cosmetic
This is not the case with those known as “demihumans”. differences. Only demihuman species that have real me-
The alterations they have received have been so profound chanical consequences require a Focus pick.
and so reliably heritable that they are not considered to
be quite the same as their baseline brethren. They may
have radically different mentalities, significantly different
physical requirements, or have mental or physical quali-
ties that make it very difficult for them to integrate easily
into baseline human societies.
At its edges, demihumanity is as much a social
decision as a physiological one. Some variant lineages
are considered demihuman in one land and mere exotic
humanity in another. Such a difference is most signifi-
cant when a society has separate rules for its human and
demihuman members.
As a consequence, most demihuman lineages prefer
to live in their own communities, either wholly indepen-
dent or in a relationship of loose suzerainty with the local
lord. There, they may live according to their own inclina-
tions and be ruled by their own kind.
Most demihuman lineages were originally designed
for a particular purpose, adjusted and augmented to
serve the ends of some long-dead empire, god-king, or
soulless Outsider scientist. They are often considerably
more capable than baseline humanity in their special
fields, but generally suffer some weakness or debility as
 97

Demihuman Origin Foci Gnomes

These Foci can be used to create PCs from variant demi- Gnomish interpretations vary significantly, from mad
human races that may exist in a particular GM’s cam- tinkers to forest sprites. The origin below suits a sub-
paign. GMs who are using Worlds Without Number terranean forest-dweller; for tinkers, replace Sneak as a
for their own campaign settings might also use them to bonus skill with Craft.
replicate more “traditional” elves, dwarves, halflings, and Level 1: Gain Sneak as a bonus skill. Your Dexterity
other common fantasy races. modifier increases by +1 and your Strength or Wis-
Some Foci grant bonuses or penalties to attribute dom modifier decreases by -1. You can see clearly in
modifiers. None of these modifiers can exceed +2 or the dark up to thirty feet.
fall below -2. Some Foci also allow the player to choose
which attribute is to be increased or penalized, depend- Goblins, Tinker
ing on their particular interpretation of the species. This variety of goblin is for those campaign settings
where they are inveterate builders.
Dwarves Level 1: Gain Craft as a bonus skill. Your Dexterity or In-
This origin serves for the classical dwarf; short, sturdy, telligence modifier increases by +1, and your Wis-
and given to craftsmanship and drinking. dom modifier decreases by -1. You have the weapon
Level 1: Gain Craft as a bonus skill. Your Constitution restrictions of halflings. You can see clearly in the
modifier increases by +1 and either your Dexterity dark out to thirty feet.
or Charisma modifier decreases by -1. You can see
in the dark up to thirty feet. Goblins, Savage
Feral tribe-dwelling marauders of swamp, forest, and
Elves, Civilized wasteland, this style of goblin can also fill in for other
This style of elf represents the city-dwelling, magic-lov- small, vicious humanoids.
ing, sophisticated interpretation of elvishness favored in Level 1: Gain Sneak and Survive as bonus skills. Your
some worlds. Dexterity modifier increases by +1, but your Intel-
Level 1: Gain Stab and Know as bonus skills. Your Dex- ligence modifier decreases by -1. You have the weap-
terity or Intelligence modifier increases by +1 and on restrictions of halflings. You can see clearly in
your Constitution modifier decreases by -1. the dark out to thirty feet.

Elves, Half-Elves Lizardmen

Where there are both elves and humans, half-elves tend Whether dressed up as dragon-folk or left as common
to be inevitable additions to a campaign world. This swamp lizardmen, this focus can fill in the details.
focus follows the “between two worlds” flavor of most Level 1: Gain Stab and Survive as bonus skills. Your
half-elf interpretations. Strength or Charisma modifier increases by +1, but
Level 1: Gain Connect and any one skill as bonus skills. your Dexterity or Charisma modifier decreases by
You can see out to thirty feet in any light condition -1. Your unarmored Armor Class is 13, and if you
short of perfect darkness. At your discretion, if you wear better armor you get a +1 bonus to AC.
take after your elven parent, you may increase your Level 2: You’re some sort of dragon-man and can breathe
Dexterity modifier by +1 but then also take a -1 to fire, frost, or some other noxious substance. The
your Constitution modifier. breath can be done once per scene and affects a cone
up to 15 feet long and wide at its end. All within
Elves, Forest must make an appropriate save or take 1d6 damage
This interpretation of elvishness is for those kinds given plus your character level. You gain immunity to the
to nature-reverence, archery, and nimbleness. substance you exhale.
Level 1: Gain Shoot and Survive as bonus skills. Your
Dexterity modifier increases by +1 and your Con- Orcs
stitution modifier decreases by -1. You can see clear- Large, strong, brutish, and comparatively stupid; such is
ly in any light level above complete darkness. the standard orc of fantasy campaigns. Players who want
to play such a PC can use this Focus.
Halflings Level 1: Gain Survive and Stab or Punch as bonus skills.
This origin serves for a breed of bucolic and diminutive Your Strength or Constitution modifier increases
demihumans with exceptional reserves of toughness. by +1, but your Intelligence modifier decreases by
Level 1: Gain Sneak as a bonus skill. Your Constitution -1. You can see clearly in the dark out to thirty feet.
or Dexterity modifier increases by +1. You are too
small to effectively use two-handed melee weapons
and any bows you use must be made for your size.
98

Creating Monsters and Foes

The first step in creating a hideous beast or assigning armor they wear. Some creatures have an “a” annotation
statistics to some human foe is identifying the particular with their AC; this just means that the creature wears ar-
role they need to fill in your world. What exactly do you mor and the AC given is what their usual armor is worth.
need this creature to be? Is this supposed to be some Atk is the creature’s usual total attack bonus for its
horrifying hell-beast that’s devoured a legion of would-be hit rolls in combat. For most creatures, this is equal to
hunters, or do you just need a stat line for an ordinary its hit dice, possibly with a bonus if it’s well-trained, ex-
village guardsman? ceptionally vicious, or supernaturally powerful. Some
In a sandbox campaign, monsters and enemies are creatures have more than one attack, indicated by an “x2”
not measured in the context of the party. Just because or “x3” notation. This means the creature can attack two
the heroes are green novices at their trade doesn’t mean or three times with a single Main Action, directing them
that a monster is going to be any less ferocious, and by all at a single creature or splitting them up among nearby
the same token a band of hardened veterans won’t find foes within reach.
their enemies suddenly gaining expertise to keep up with Dmg is the damage done by a successful hit by the
them. The creatures of a sandbox campaign don’t care creature. If the listing says “Wpn”, then it does whatever
what your party’s level is. damage is usual for the weapon that it’s wielding. A crea-
Instead, foes in a sandbox campaign are scaled to the ture will never do less damage on a hit than it would do
world they live in. They have the hit dice, attack bonus, with its Shock score, if Shock would apply to the target.
special powers, and general ferocity that makes sense for Shock is the Shock damage inflicted by the creature
their place in the world. A village guardsman is rarely and the maximum AC it affects. Thus, “3/13” means that
ever going to have more than one hit die and a monstrous the creature inflicts a minimum of 3 points of Shock
hell-beast will rarely ever have fewer than eight or nine. damage on a miss to any foe with an AC of 13 or less.
The opposite page includes a list of example stat “Wpn” means the usual Shock damage of the weapon
lines for various kinds of people and creatures. These are being used is applied. Exceptionally powerful or savage
not universal truths for every being in the campaign set- creatures might automatically apply Shock regardless of
ting, but they’re good baselines for what to expect from the AC of the foe; such creatures have a dash listed for
a given creature. As a first step in building a creature a the maximum AC, such as “3/-”. Such damage is always
GM should pick the stat line that fits best the type of foe applied unless the foe is entirely immune to Shock.
they need, and then modify it to suit their own purposes. Move is the distance the creature can move with a
Note that there’s nothing stopping you from putting single Move action. Some creatures may fly, others swim,
a guaranteed party-slaughterer in your campaign. If the or still stranger means of locomotion may apply depend-
situation logically requires that such a creature be present, ing on the beast’s nature.
then it ought to be there. If logic requires its existence, ML is the creature’s Morale score. Whenever a Mo-
however, you should take pains to ensure that the PCs rale check is forced by a situation, the creature must roll
are not forced to actually fight the thing. They need to be 2d6. If the total is greater than its Morale score, it loses its
able to get forewarnings of its presence, or opportunities taste for the fight and will retreat, surrender, or otherwise
to flee it, or some means to negotiate with it or hide from take whatever actions seem best to get it safely away.
it. It’s not unfair to populate your world with the crea- Inst is the creature’s Instinct score. When confused,
tures that ought to live in it, but it’s decidedly unfun to infuriated, or reckless in combat, it runs the risk of be-
shove hapless PCs face-first into certain death. having according to its instincts rather than martial pru-
The table of example stat lines has several columns, dence. The details of Instinct checks are explained on
each one listing a particular statistic for the creature. page XX.
Hit dice are a measure of the creature’s general pow- Skill is the creature’s total Skill bonus for any skill
er, not unlike a level rating for PCs. For each hit die a checks it makes that are in line with its talents and abil-
creature has, it rolls 1d8 for its hit points. Most ordinary ities. If the creature ought to be good at something, it
humans have only one hit die, while veterans of bloody can add its Skill bonus to the base 2d6 skill check. If not,
struggle or ruthless court intrigue might have two, or it adds +0, or might even take a penalty if it seems like
three, or even more for the most heroic among them. something it would be exceptionally bad at doing.
AC is for the creature’s Armor Class. The higher this Save is the saving throw target used by the creature
number, the harder it is to meaningfully hurt the thing. whenever it’s called upon to make a Physical, Mental,
Monsters and wild beasts have an Armor Class appropri- Evasion, or Luck saving throw. Unlike PCs, creatures
ate to their agility and the toughness of their hide; 12 or only have a single save target, usually equal to 15 mi-
13 for quick things with leathery skins, up to 15 for very nus half its hit dice, rounded down. Thus, a foe with 3
well-armored beasts, or even up to 20 for things with hit dice usually rolls 14+ to succeed at any saving throw.
supernatural hardihood. Humans and other sentients This score can’t be less than 2+, as a 1 on a saving throw
usually have whatever Armor Class is granted by the always fails.
 99

Normal Humans HD AC Atk. Dmg. Shock Move ML Inst. Skill Save

Peaceful Human 1 10 +0 Wpn Wpn 30' 7 5 +1 15+
Thug or Militia 1 13a +1 Wpn Wpn 30' 8 4 +1 15+
Barbarian Fighter 1 13a +2 Wpn Wpn 30' 8 5 +1 15+
Veteran Soldier 1 13a +2 Wpn Wpn 30' 8 3 +1 15+
Skilled Veteran 2 15a +3 Wpn Wpn 30' 9 2 +1 14+
Elites or Special Guards 3 18a +4 Wpn+1 Wpn+1 30' 10 2 +2 14+
Knight or Minor Hero 4 18a +6 Wpn+1 Wpn+1 30' 10 1 +2 13+
Warrior Baron 6 18a +8 Wpn+2 Wpn+2 30' 9 1 +2 12+
Barbarian Warlord 8 16a +10 x2 Wpn+3 Wpn+3/- 30' 10 3 +2 11+
Mighty General 8 18a +10 Wpn+3 Wpn+3/- 30' 10 1 +3 11+
Major Hero 10 18a +12 x2 Wpn+3 Wpn+3/- 30' 10 2 +3 10+
Great Warrior King 12 18a +14 x2 Wpn+4 Wpn+4/- 30' 10 1 +3 9+

Spellcasters
Petty Mage 2 10a +1 Wpn Wpn 30' 8 4 +1 14+
Tribal Shaman 4 10a +3 Wpn+1 Wpn+1 30' 9 4 +1 13+
Skilled Sorcerer 5 10a +1 Wpn Wpn 30' 9 4 +2 13+
Master Wizard 8 13 +1 Wpn Wpn 30' 9 3 +2 11+
Famous Arch-Mage 10 13 +2 Wpn Wpn 30' 9 2 +3 10+
Mages generally have the spellcasting abilities and Arts of an appropriate mage tradition equal to their hit dice

Normal Animals
Small Pack Predator 1 12 +2 1d4 1/13 40' 7 6 +1 15+
Large Solitary Predator 5 13 +6 1d8 2/13 30' 8 6 +1 13+
Apex Predator 6 13 +6 x2 1d8 2/13 40' 8 6 +2 12+
Herd Beast 2 11 +2 1d4 None 40' 7 6 +1 14+
Vicious Large Herbivore 4 13 +5 1d10 1/13 40' 9 6 +1 13+
Elephantine Grazer 6 13 +5 2d8 None 40' 7 6 +1 12+

Unnatural Entities
Automaton, Humanlike 2 13 +2 Wpn Wpn 30' 12 3 +1 14+
Automaton, Laborer 2 15 +2 1d6 1/13 30' 12 3 +1 14+
Automaton, Military 4 18 +5 1d10 2/15 30' 12 3 +1 13+
Automaton, Warbot 10 20 +12 x3 1d12 4/- 40' 12 2 +2 10+
Slime or ooze 6 10 +6 x2 1d8 1/- 20' 12 5 +1 12+
Predator, Small Vicious 1 14 +1 1d4 1/13 30' 7 5 +1 15+
Predator, Large Vicious 6 13 +7 x2 2d6 2/15 40' 9 5 +2 13+
Predator, Hulking 10 15 +12 x2 2d6 6/15 30' 10 4 +1 10+
Predator, Hellbeast 10 18 +12 x4 1d10 4/- 60' 11 4 +3 10+
Unnatural Swarm 4 10 +6 x3 1d6 1/- 30' 10 5 +1 13+
Outsider Warbeast 8 15 +10 x2 2d6 3/15 40' 9 4 +2 11+
Legendary God-Titan 20 22 +20 x4 2d10 5/- 40' 10 3 +3 2+
100

The Blight and Its Consequences

In the age of the Latter Earth, manipulation of the men- d8 What Was the Creator’s Intent?
tal and biological substance of living creatures has been
a commonplace for all recorded history. From the most 1 Decay: The changes were not Blighted at
distant day of the Terran Mandate through the rule of first, but time and decay of the Legacy has
the Outsiders and the rise of the sorcerer-kings thereaf- fouled them and made them a burden.
ter, there have always been artificial and arcane ways to 2 Error: The creator never intended for things
mold the offspring of living creatures and imbue them to work out as they have, but was either blind
with qualities chosen by the artificer. As with any mortal to the consequences or mistaken in them.
power, this ability has been richly abused. 3 Hedonism: The creature provided some
The Blight is not a single process or a specific curse. aesthetic or sensory pleasure in its new form,
It is the term used to refer to the afflictions resting on despite the cruel burdens of its shape.
those scarred by the malice of ancient god-mages, brutal
4 Mischance: There was no single creator, as
tyrants, Outsider scientists, or sheer magical mischance.
the Blight was a consequence of a magical
It wears many faces and is expressed in many ways, all
accident or unexpected environment.
turned toward the purposes of the creator and all indif-
ferent to the suffering of those who bear it. 5 Punishment: Its ancestors offended a god-
Many monsters and implacably hostile sentient spe- like entity that laid a scourge on them and all
cies are the direct result of the Blight. Many creatures that their heirs.
make no evolutionary sense are products of the Blight, 6 Sadism: The creator simply found it funny or
created in order to serve purposes that no longer obtain enjoyable to condemn the creature’s lineage
in the Latter Earth. Others are penal beasts shaped from to everlasting suffering.
the losers of wars, fallen noble houses, criminal families, 7 Spite: The creature was a weapon against
disfavored polities, or those prey to the whims of some the creator’s enemies, and its own survival or
long-lost Imperator. happiness was of no importance.
Intelligent Blighted usually have minds severely
influenced by their curse. Martial species might have a 8 Utility: The creature’s lineage was meant to
psychopathic indifference to the suffering of others, while perform a kind of labor, and molded to that
slave-species might find it emotionally traumatic to re- end with no concern for its own well-being.
fuse orders. Spite-born monsters might feel visceral plea-
sure at torment and killing, while implement-races might d12 Example Blighted Qualities
be unable to feel joy at anything but their task. Blighted
1 It can’t control a violent or destructive impulse.
societies are always marked by such mental burdens.
The Blight is not perfectly consistent in its effects. 2 It sickens normal creatures or has some other
While the Anak are a species of savagely violent human- negative effect on them when in proximity.
oids, not every Anak is driven by the same inexorable im- 3 It’s unnaturally repugnant or ugly.
pulse of rage and hatred for humanity, nor is every hulk-
ing Drudge equally given to stupid docility. The fate of 4 It’s stupid, feeble, clumsy, or otherwise
such sports is rarely a kind one in a world little-equipped physically or mentally debilitated.
to distinguish them from their brethren. 5 It has a loathsome craving or impulse that
Given the nature of players, it may be that some of drives its actions.
them will want to cure a creature’s Blight or reverse the 6 It’s helplessly obedient or submissive in a
effects of some particularly heinous curse. Such work is way that causes it misery.
always difficult, demanding, and dangerous; to undo the
Blight in a creature is to rebuild its mind and body from 7 It’s shape has been altered to be useful for its
the ground up, altering it in a way just as profound as the purpose, though burdensome to it.
original inherited change. Still, particularly heroic adven- 8 It suffers constant pain or discomfort of some
turers might be willing to go to the extremes necessary sort, whether intense or minor.
to find the keys needed to unlock these ancient shackles.
9 It can reproduce only under difficult to obtain
As the GM, you can use the Blight to explain the ex-
circumstances.
istence of monsters that otherwise would be very difficult
to justify. Creatures of sheer inhuman hatred, monsters 10 It xenoforms its surroundings to suit some
that feed on terrible things, and beasts that have pur- long-dead creator’s native world.
poses utterly inimical to humanity could all be Blight- 11 It has an intrinsic mental illness.
ed creatures born of some ancient curse or a forgotten
god-emperor’s dream. 12 It must pursue a goal that is now impossible.
 101

Monster Shapes and Appearances

If you don’t already have a clear idea of what your monster d12 What Kind of Animal Is It Most Like?
should look like, these tables can offer some suggestions.
First, find out what animal it most resembles. If you 1 Apish: Distorted humanoid outlines
need to fill in details of the creature’s appearance, use this 2 Arachnid: Webs, many limbs, many eyes
as a baseline default. 3 Avian: Feathers, beak, talons, light weight
Next, roll or choose its basic body plan. Intelligent
4 Beetle-like: Rounded body and armor
creatures usually have some manipulatory appendages,
but they don’t necessarily have to be bipedal. 5 Canine: Muzzle, tail, paws
Then figure out how the creature hunts in its natural 6 Equine: Hooves, speed, manes
habitat, if it’s not intelligent and thus capable of farming 7 Feline: Fangs, claws, litheness
or herding its prey. For monstrous creatures, you might
also roll or pick to find out why it hasn’t denuded its 8 Piscene: Goggly eyes, scales, fins
surroundings of food and starved to death yet, or why it 9 Reptilian: Frills, side-slung limbs, scales
hasn’t destroyed the local ecology with its depredations. 10 Serpentine: Limbless, venomous, slim
Lastly, you can spice this basic plan up with rolls or
picks from the characteristic body part table below. Feel 11 Ursine: Broad body, thick hide, claws
free to mix in insectile parts on a basically serpentine 12 Wasp-like: Wings, narrow thorax, sting
creature, or blend in exotic elements into a conventional
mammal. Between Outsider interference and the caprice
d8 What Is Its Basic Body Plan?
of sorcerer-kings, all manner of forms are possible.
1 Limbless, amorphous, or a tentacular mass
d10 How Does It Usually Hunt? 2-3 Bipedal, generally upright
1 Stealthy stalking and ambush of its prey 4-7 Quadrupedal, perhaps able to rear up
2 It steals the kills of other creatures 8 Sexapedal, perhaps with wings and legs
3 It hunts in packs or family groups
4 It uses some unnatural power to catch prey d6 Why Isn’t It Dead Yet?
5 A partnership with another kind of beast 1 It requires very little food for survival
6 It feeds on carrion and the very weak 2 It’s poisonous and repels its predators
7 It chases down its prey in open pursuit 3 It eats something other creatures can’t
8 It disguises itself as something harmless 4 It’s newly introduced in the area
9 It blindly eats whatever it encounters 5 It doesn’t need food in a normal sense
10 It lures in its prey with some kind of bait 6 It exists in symbiosis with something else

Characteristic Body Parts or Creature Elements

d12 Mammalian Insectile Reptilian Avian Piscene Exotic
1 Thick fur Compound eyes Poisons Feathers Scales Tentacles
2 Tail Stings Slitted eyes Beak Bulging eyes Sacs
3 Paws Mandibles Fangs Talons Fins Wheels
4 Hooves Spinnerets Scaled skin Light body Suckers Balloons
5 Hands Swarms Silence Songs Tentacles Tendrils
6 Fangs Membrane wings Draconic wings Bright colors Pincers Launchers
7 Claws Egg sacs Thick hide Sharp eyes Rubbery hide Treads
8 Visible ears Blood-sucking Crawling Eggs Huge maws Jets
9 Stenches Parasitizing Cold-blooded Diving Water jets Secretions
10 Leathery hide Larval forms Camouflage Flocks Slime Translucence
11 Bat wings Leaping Crushing jaws Regurgitation Spines Alien smells
12 Horns Numerous legs Wall-climbing Guano Mineral deposit Unliving matter
102

Monstrous Drives
What makes a creature monstrous is not necessarily what When choosing a drive, it’s important to tie it back
it is, but what it does. Something about the creature’s be- to the creature’s origins and nature. Beasts formed or
havior or wants is anathema to human interests, and its warped by the Outsiders might have any kind of malev-
activities bring misery, suffering, and death to the people olent purpose, having had it impressed upon their psyche
around it. by their embittered alien creators. Entities forged by oth-
It may be that your “monster” isn’t particularly dan- er groups or by the whim of nature will likely have drives
gerous to humanity. It may just be an odd creature that related to that group’s purposes or the circumstances of
exists in a particular environment, of no special danger the natural accident that created its kind.
to humans who don’t get in its way. There’s a great deal A GM may want a monster to be somewhat am-
of fun in creating strange beasts for a campaign world, biguous in its moral status; maybe terrible in some ways,
and there’s nothing wrong with making the occasional but the kind of creature that the party could negotiate
creature like this. with or at least tolerate that it live. The awfulness of the
Even so, the usual point of making monsters for drive can be toned down in such cases to a nastiness that
a game is to make problems for the players. Ravaging is bearable by the players. A good deal of judgment is
beasts, hideous raiders, sinister and insidious threats necessary in hitting this golden mean, however. The GM
from within… these sort of creatures spark the conflicts, will have to keep in mind that some kinds of activities
problems, and complications that make for usable ad- may be utterly intolerable to the party, and they might
venture grist. not find that out until after the adventure is underway.
The table on the facing page gives twelve different A monster’s drive should likely be horrible, but it’s
kinds of malevolent drive that might motivate the crea- important to be careful when selecting the details of that
ture. Bestial entities might not be capable of pursuing the horror. A GM should likely stay away from overtly sexual
more intellectual forms of evil listed there, but intelligent forms of monstrousness unless their group is explicitly
monsters will carry out their purpose with every ounce on board with those elements in their games. Very few
of wit they have. Monsters usually have some magical or players are interested in participating in that kind of mag-
unnatural power useful in fulfilling their drive, such as ical realm without clear advance sign-on, and there are
those discussed on page XX. plenty of other ways for a being to be awful.
 103

d12 Monstrous Drives

1 Conquest: it needs to destroy all rivals and interlopers within its territory, which must expand with the creature's
increasing might. This may be a very literal form of conquest, with the beast seeking to kill any intruder within its
realm and probing outward constantly to seek new land. It may also be social or metaphorical, with the creature
seeking to become the exclusive power within a social sphere, profession, guild, or skein of relationships.
2 Construction: it has to build something that can cause problems for humans. It might be driven to create
elaborate nests, forced to foment treacherous schemes against humanity, made to build large civil structures in
awkward places, manufacture a particular sort of good beyond all need, generate a toxin or miasma, xenoform
terrain to fit its alien creator's home world, or some other act of troublesome creation.
3 Consumption: it needs to eat something that is either difficult to acquire, greatly troublesome to humanity, or
magical or metaphorical in nature. It might consume loving relationships, eat youth, dine exclusively on traitors,
be impossibly gluttonous, devour magical items, or need special alchemical mixes.
4 Deception: it must feign some harmless or innocent guise, fitting in perfectly as its adopted role. Animals may
seem to be some different, more docile creature, while intelligent beings may masquerade as humans or adopt
some specific social role. It must kill whatever it would replace, and destroy anything or anyone that might
threaten to reveal the truth about it, showing the reality of its nature only when it feeds or enjoys the benefits of
the role it has adopted.
5 Defilement: it must degrade and destroy those things that give hope or meaning to humanity. Corrupting
religions, poisoning food crops, curdling familial love, inducing leaders to become tyrants, and withering bonds
of loyalty might all be tools for such creatures. Most of them will have a particular type of good thing that their
powers and nature enable them to debauch.
6 Destruction: it must destroy something that is useful or necessary to humans. It might blindly slaughter livestock
beyond all hunting need, instinctively seek the destruction of man-made edifices, have an inherent compulsion to
destroy loving relationships, eat metal tools and weapons, consume the health and luck of its prey, or otherwise
take away something that humans need.
7 Domination: it needs to win the slavish submission of its chosen prey. Rather than killing them, they must be
reduced to helpless obedience to the creature's needs and wishes. Animals may terrorize sentients until worship or
tribute is offered, while intelligent beings might use social tools or threats to force compliance. Weaker creatures
of its own kind might be treated with similar brutality.
8 Parasitization: it has to subvert and suborn humanity or something humans rely upon. This may be a physical
act of parasitization on a human host, or it may be a more metaphorical leech, taking advantage of some quality
of human society to feed and shelter it. Parasitized hosts may be hollowed-out skinsuits, helplessly enslaved
victims, willing but foolish co-conspirators, unwitting cattle, or humans who can provide some special service
or quality the creature craves.
9 Predation: there's something that it absolutely must hunt or kill, and pursuing them is a need at an instinctive
level. This is usually something problematic for humans, such as a compulsion to hunt humans, specific types
of people, livestock, particular demihumans, people who have committed a particular type of act, those who
trespass on its territory, or some other type of victim.
10 Reproduction: it has some unique or difficult condition for reproduction that it must satisfy, such as needing
large amounts of a particular substance, a properly-built nest, a difficult-to-win mate, a helpless parasitized
host, the brutal conquest of its rivals, or even some magical or esoterically metaphorical condition. This condition
causes problems for humanity around it.
11 Sadism: it was created not necessarily to kill its prey, but to torment it. Terrifying taunts, senseless cruelty, and
abominably awful methods of harm are employed instinctively by this creature, and it will always prefer to leave
its prey alive until every ounce of resistance has been wrung from it. It receives great delight from the suffering
of others.
12 Theft: it has a compulsion to steal something that humans need in order to hoard or use it itself. It may compulsively
steal and collect gold and other shiny objects, plunder food, carry off large amounts of some socially-necesary
good, or have magical means to take away intangible qualities or social relationships. It should often be possible
to recover the lost traits if the creature is subdued.
104

Uncanny Powers and Supernatural Abilities

A basic stat line for a creature can make it a challenge in Second, pick another power that fits the creature’s
combat, but foes who can do nothing but stab, bite, claw, idiom or purpose. If the initial power you chose was a
or shoot can become a little stale in play. More signifi- combat power, pick a situational one, or vice-versa. The
cantly, the unusual powers a creature possesses can often goal at this point is to give the creature something re-
be the very things that make it an interesting element markable it can do both in and out of combat.
of a situation, allowing it to change the environment or Third, decide whether or not you need this creature
shift the circumstances in ways that the PCs may not be to be a major combat foe. If you foresee a fight with this
equipped to handle. thing being a major event in an evening’s play, you may
Even perfectly normal humans might have “pow- wish to add one or two more combat powers to its selec-
ers”, in the sense that they may have specialized forms of tion, each preferably of a different kind or flavor. More
magic, unique martial techniques, or other focused abil- than three powers is rarely useful because most fights
ities that can be represented by powers. Arch-arcanists will be resolved before a whole host of abilities can be
and veteran heroes might all have their own selection of trotted out. Even so, if you foresee the creature lasting a
special tricks to bring out, ones that the PCs may never long time in a fight, you might add a further power or two.
have seen before. These abilities are usually unique to The tables that follow offer some suggestions for var-
the NPCs, as they might require sacrifices or special cir- ious kinds of combat and situational powers. Combat
cumstances in order to acquire them that the PCs aren’t powers are given a point cost to reflect their general puis-
equipped to make or find. The abilities a PC gains as sance; this is by no means a scientific measurement, but
they develop their powers are simply one set of arts and it can help give you a rough idea whether you’re giving
talents in the Latter Earth, and not all NPCs will share a weak or potent ability to a creature. For combat pow-
the same rules for their own powers. ers, you can use the adjacent guidelines for determining
For a GM, there are two classes of powers to keep how many total points of abilities you might add to a
in mind when building a creature. Combat powers are creature. You can ignore these guidelines whenever you
those abilities that are likely to come out in a fight, the have a specific need.
special abilities and unique martial talents that might For situational powers, no point totals are given.
make the creature an unusual handful during a clash. Sit- These abilities are as strong as they need to be to let the
uational powers are less combat-specific abilities that are creature fulfill its purpose. The specific details of how
still likely to play a role in how the creature acts or how far they stretch should be chosen based on the creature’s
it carries out its ambitions.The same power might have overall power; a minor being’s mind-bending powers
both combat and situational uses; the ability to implant might extend to only one person at a time, or last only a
overwhelming psychic urges could be handy both in a day and a night, while some arch-abomination might be
fight and when manipulating hapless NPCs in a noble’s able to beguile half a city for the rest of their lives.
court.
When building a creature, start with its monstrous
drive or the basic role it’s meant to play in the world. In
some cases, the creature’s native abilities will be sufficient
to allow it to pursue its drive; if it’s a creature born to
tear humans asunder, a high attack bonus and multiple
attacks may be all it needs to do its job. If it’s a psychic Point
assassin programmed to fight a war that ended aeons Total The Creature’s Degree of Power
ago, however, it may need some more esoteric powers
to carry out its purpose. In the same vein an ordinary 0 Perfectly ordinary beast or person
village guardsman or common sorcerer might not need 2 Minor hero or significant mage
any special tricks, while some martial virtuoso or alien 3 Minor magical beast or construct
wizard might need some unique abilities to exhibit their
4 Species of magically-potent sentient
specialness.
First, pick a power that will let them pursue their 5 Significant magical beast or being
drive or demonstrate their nature. This power should 6 Major hero or famous mage
be very characteristic to the creature or NPC; it should
8 Hero of a magically-potent species
be something that really makes clear what the entity is
about. This may be a situational power, if the creature’s 8 Regionally-significant magical beast
drive is more abstract or non-martial in nature, or it 10 Legendary magical beast
might be a combat power if you want to emphasize the 10 Legate or famous major hero
creature’s ferocity or the peril it presents.
15 Imperator or other demi-divine being
 105

Damage Infliction Powers

The creature hurls bolts of energy, wields eldritch forces, Points Damage Infliction
or has a remarkably unpleasant bite. As a Main Action, it
can target one or more foes with some power that inflicts 1 A power does damage equal to a normal
direct damage. In the case of venomous bites or blighting weapon blow
bolts of cursed energy some additional penalty might be 2 A power does damage of about 3d6
applied, taken from the example debilitating effects later 3 A power does damage of about 6d6
in this section. In such cases, whatever hit or save require-
5 A power does damage of 10d6 or more
ments that are applied to the damaging power should be
applied to the debilitating power as well.
Most creatures should not have special powers that -1 The power only works in melee range
do more dice of damage than the creature has hit dice.
-1 The power's damage allows a save for half
Thus, a beast with 5 HD probably shouldn’t be doing
more than 5d6 damage with its flaming breath, unless x1/2 The power's damage allows a save for none
you have an especially good reason to make it so. x2 The power's damage is done to multiple
Most damaging powers require the creature’s Main targets
Action to trigger them. If they can use it automatically x2 The power's damage is ongoing, repeating
in addition to its normal activities, the power is worth for several rounds
an additional 2 points.
A creature usually needs no more than one damage -1 The power's damage requires a hit roll
infliction power, though exceptionally powerful creatures 2 The power can be used once per round as
might have one ability that works to hit a single target an On Turn action
and another, weaker attack that affects an area. Whatever
energies or forces the creature uses to hurt targets should
be in line with its own nature. A martial hero might deal
a crushing overhand blow, while a psychic mind-devourer
might inflict lethal emotional trauma on a victim.

Movement Powers
The creature has a special movement ability uncommon Points Movement Powers
to its nature. Any ordinary animal might have a move-
ment rate of 40’ per Move, or even 60’, but this creature 2 Flight ability at its movement rate, including
has a degree of speed or supernatural agility that is re- the ability to fight on the wing
markable for something of its kind. 2 Passes through any solid object
These movement powers aren’t meant to assign costs 1 Ignores a type of solid barrier substance
to a creature’s natural mode of movement. Birds don’t
2 Extra Move action each round
need to allocate points to flying, nor do fish pay to swim.
Some traditions of lightly-armored warrior NPCs 1 Movement increased by 50%
might have picked up tricks from this list, or mounted 1 It makes Fighting Withdrawals as On Turn
knights and heroes might have some power here so long actions
as they remain safely on horseback. Sorcerers and ar-
1 Can leap its full movement rate
canists might have mastered some of the more esoteric
means of locomotion. 1 Can swim, climb, or navigate some other
usually-troublesome medium at full speed
2 It can teleport at its movement rate
2 Can teleport long distances through shadows,
flame, or other characteristic substances
1 Gets a free Instant Move action when some
characteristic event or circumstance obtains
1 It can split its Move action’s movement
around its Main Action
106

Debilitating and Weakening Powers

Self-Augmenting Powers
 107

Situational Powers
108

Contextualizing Your Monsters

The Latter Earth is a world at the end of countless aeons, order to protect their lands from a now-long-dead enemy.
a realm crushed beneath the burden of innumerable lost The truth might have been forgotten since then, only for
empires and forgotten civilizations. More conventional the PCs to discover scraps of lore that hint not only at
fantasy campaign settings often have a similar weight of the truth, but at the mechanisms by which control over
age behind their present days, with glorious past king- the creature can be regained.
doms providing much of their current magic or present The adjacent tables offer some suggestions of ways
problems. A GM often wishes to contextualize their to contextualize a creature, with details and connections
monsters, making them feel part of this ageless past. that can be applied to tie a beast more tightly to your
The key to connecting a creature to the world is to world. The tables are generally written to apply to par-
give it context. A creature cannot borrow any sense of ticular places and situations; the locals in a different place
external meaning or significance without some kind of might have a completely different reaction or relationship
externality to connect to it. By itself, a dog-beast with an to the creature. Even so, a GM might take the hints from
insatiable craving to betray and devour its owner is no these tables and spin them out further in their campaign,
more than a whimsical inversion of the loyal hound trope. creating traditional responses or socially-entrenched re-
If it bears the milky jade eyes of the agents of the Eternal actions that are common throughout a domain.
Revolutionaries, that mere oddity now makes sense; of
course a creature fashioned by a throne-breaking rebel
uprising would behave in such a way.
The players may know nothing of the Eternal Revo-
lutionaries. They may not ever learn anything about them,
or they may not connect the similarities between the jade
eyes of the dog-beasts and the perfect jade spheres they
discover in the defiled resin sarcophagi of the emper-
or-wasp hive they’re exploring. This is perfectly accept-
able, so long as you know about the connection. If the
players end up caring about it, they can investigate the
matter and you can develop the connection as deeply and
in as much detail as your adventuring sessions require.
If they never bother, you don’t need to waste your time
elaborating on the link.
Whenever you create a new creature, give it some
kind of link to its context. Identify the civilization or
group that created it, or tie it to a particular ancient site,
or weave it into the society or development of the lo-
cal human communities. Connect it to something the
players do or could theoretically care about. If you give
your creatures some kind of coherent context within your
world your players are going to notice it, even if they
never probe the details of those connections.
Monsters have consequences, and those conse-
quences should show in the world. It’s all too easy to
plant some hero-butchering abomination half a day’s
stroll from a border village and never think about how
it might interact with the locals. A simple “It eats them.”
may be perfectly true, but how do the local humans deal
with that? Do they try to placate the thing, or hunt it, or
avoid its territory? Is this some inherited curse, an an-
cient problem that’s existed for so long that the commu-
nity’s society has healed up around it and formed some
kind of mechanism for dealing with it?
It may be that the way humans deal with a type of
creature is deeply connected with some past situation.
The villagers might shun the monster’s territory and have
a taboo against trying to hunt it because in ages past, it
was actually a slave-abomination raised by a wizard in
 109

One-Roll Monstrous Context

d4 How Did the Monster Arise?
1 It’s a relict of the malice of the Outsiders
2 It’s the product of human sorcerer-kings
3 It’s an accident of magic or nature
4 It’s a decayed form of something once noble

d12 What Is Its Connection With the Past?

1 It’s a servant of a long-dead religion
2 It’s obedient to a long-gone political group
3 It’s meant to target a perhaps-vanished foe
4 It needs an environment that is now rare
5 It’s accepted by certain ancient defenses
d6 How Much Local Contact Does It Have? 6 It serves an alien or vanished aesthetic end
1 The locals have no idea it exists 7 Its home was a place that is now gone
2 The locals make wild guesses and myths of it 8 It seeks something that has since been lost
3 They’ve had a few significant encounters 9 It seeks victory in a struggle that is now over
4 They know it’s there and a little of its wants 10 It’s only part of something, the rest now gone
5 It’s a regular threat they need to deal with 11 It serves an urge that no longer makes sense
6 They know its nature and needs very well 12 It was sacred to some group that is now lost

d8 How Do the Locals React To Its Drive? d20 A Twist To Its Activities
1 They try to placate or appease its hungers 1 Its activities are very useful to some group
2 They try to kill it, actively hunting it down 2 It’s currently hurting an unsympathetic group
3 They avoid its territory out of spiritual fear 3 It responds to certain ancient codes
4 They accept a certain amount of loss from it 4 It targets a group the PCs count as friends
5 They build countermeasures against it 5 It’s friendly to those sharing its tie to the past
6 They try to contain it within a certain area 6 A byproduct of its activities is very valuable
7 They try to use it against their enemies 7 It has some devotees or cowed minions
8 They worship it or take it as a leader 8 It hates something the PCs have or relate to
9 It was formerly benevolent or useful
d10 What Scars Has It Left Here? 10 A victim plots a desperate act of revenge
1 Many widows and orphans of its hunters 11 People think its victims somehow deserved it
2 A grand structure ruined by its acts 12 Killing it would cause some dire consequence
3 Land has been made worthless by its threat 13 It’s being hunted by something even worse
4 A local hero has been slain by it 14 It has regular cycles of activity and torpor
5 Local clergy have been shown as helpless 15 It has some defensible reason for its acts
6 A local lord has lost much wealth from it 16 It protects or spares its willing subjects
7 The poorest have suffered most from it 17 Someone is profiting by its depredations
8 A great plan for the future was ruined by it 18 The locals believe something very false of it
9 A venerated tradition was defiled by it 19 Its damage is insidious and slow to be seen
10 A vital good or resource was spoiled by it 20 Hunters quarrel over who is to claim it
110

Adjusting Monster Statistics

The basic stat line for a creature is just a starting point, ML should be adjusted for the creature’s stupidity
one meant to give a GM a general idea of where the crea- and determination. Normal animals always have relative-
ture stands in relation to the other entities in the world. ly low Morale because a serious injury is almost inevitably
While simply using the basic stat line is often enough ultimately fatal to them; they’ll fight only when they’re
for a GM, sometimes you want to fine-tune a creature confident of easy victory or forced by hunger. Humans
to its particular place in the world. You can follow the might add 1 or 2 points if they’re fanatical or desper-
guidelines below to tweak things accordingly. ate, while they might lose the same if they’re particularly
Hit dice can usually vary by 50% greater or lesser, disorganized. Mindless robots or insects might have a
depending on how impressive the creature is compared to Morale of 12, being too stupid or single-minded to avoid
its peers. If you remove hit dice, decrease its attack bonus self-destruction.
by an equal amount and re-calculate its saving throw. If Inst is based not only on a creature’s primal instincts
you add hit dice, do the same, except adding the new but also their tendency to let their passions run away
score to its attack bonus. with their good sense. A mighty warlord might have
AC might shift by one or two points if the creature is an Instinct score one or two points higher than usual
very fast, unusually slow, particularly large and easy to hit, if he has a great fondness for toying with his foes or an
or abnormally thick-skinned. Intelligent creatures might impulse to make grandious declamations in the middle
well fashion or steal armor, giving a substantial boost to of a battlefield. Conversely, a coldly rational, ruthlessly
their AC. Even a peasant militiaman can be stuffed into disciplined fighter might have a score 1 or 2 points less.
a suit of heavy plate armor if one can be found for him. Skill should generally range between +1 for most
Atk is usually equal to the creature’s hit dice, or per- creatures that are good at something, up to +3 for mas-
haps its hit dice+1 if it’s got combat training. The more ters of their particular trade. Skill-focused PCs will
martially-inclined the creature is, the higher this bonus generally be better than NPCs at skill checks; this is in-
will be, but it probably won’t exceed 2 or 3 points at most. tended, as it gets frustrating if their PC’s main focus is
You can give extra attacks to expert human warriors or regularly outshone by those around them.
dangerous beasts if you want to significantly amplify Save rarely changes much unless you change the
their danger. One extra attack isn’t unusual, but two or creature’s hit dice. You might give exceptionally hardy
even three extra strikes should be reserved for truly he- creatures a one or two-point bonus, or give those with
roic foes or extremely dangerous monsters. weak constitutions or fragile forms a similar penalty. Ex-
Dmg is based on the weapon an intelligent creature tremely powerful creatures might be able to automatically
uses or the body weaponry possessed by a beast. Expert make the first saving throw they’re called on to make
warriors might add +1 to the weapon’s damage, or as during a fight.
much as +4 for martial heroes. This bonus should also be
added to the creature’s Shock. For beasts, 1d4 represents
small fangs and claws, 1d6 to 1d8 for larger ones, and
multi-die 2d6 or more for supernaturally savage maws
and huge inhuman claws. If you need a benchmark, re-
member that the average peasant has about 5 hit points;
if the creature should expect to kill a peasant a round
make sure its average damage is at least 5 points.
Shock is based on the weapon for humanoid com-
batants. Heroic warriors may have unavoidable Shock,
having powers equivalent to PC Foci that allow them
to ignore AC when applying the damage. Of course,
creatures or PCs who are immune to Shock will still be
immune to such damage. For beasts, 1/13 is the usual
rating, or 2/15 for very savage animals. Higher ratings
are the preserve of supernatural bestial foes, up to 5/- for
the worst of them.
Move has 30 feet per action as the human baseline.
A lot of animals will be able to move faster than that, with
40 feet being normal for them. Creatures of exceptional
swiftness might get as far as 60 feet per Move action.
You might give some creatures multiple movement modes,
such as a winged abomination that can crawl at 20’ per
move or fly at 40’.
 111

Judging Combat Challenges

It’s important that the creatures and foes that inhabit a number of foes. Conversely, if the enemies have magical
sandbox world should be logically appropriate for the powers or special abilities of their own, it might be an
setting. If encounters and enemies are scaled to the PC even worse curb-stomping for the heroes.
party, it becomes impossible to deal with the world log- If the enemy total is twice as large, the PCs are
ically; the players know that whatever they face will be probably going to have at least one PC downed and run
something they could at least theoretically stab to death. a good chance of a complete party wipe, assuming they
Yet this policy doesn’t necessarily help the GM guess engage their foes in the open with no complications.
whether a particular encounter is likely to kill the PCs If the enemy total is larger than the party total,
or not. A GM may want to know whether they’ll need the PCs might have an ally go down, but they have a
to drop warning hints or spend prep time on alternatives decent chance of winning the fight due to their general-
to combat, or they might decide that this particular en- ly-superior abilities and powers.
counter ought to be matched to the PCs for some reason. If the enemy total is equal to or smaller than the
It’s impossible to give a simple rubric for the compar- party total, they’re likely to win without anyone becom-
ison that will hold in every situation. Monsters often have ing mortally wounded.
bizarre powers that can skew an encounter and PCs usu- If the enemy total is less than half the party total,
ally make full use of any Foci or magic they have. Even so, it will probably be a walkover for the PCs.
a GM can make a rough estimate using a simple measure. These general rules don’t apply to very inexperienced
Take the total hit dice of the opponents and multi- parties. A group of first level PCs can be taken out by
ply it by their total number of attacks. Thus, a mob of almost anything if their dice are unkind, and a single er-
10 Anak warriors with one hit die and one attack each rant blow can wipe out any one of them. They also don’t
would tally to 100. For the PCs, take the party’s total fit so well if the enemies have unusually strong attacks,
levels and multiply it by the number of PCs, so a party exceptionally high Armor Classes, or have powers that
of four third-level PCs would total up to 48. can directly inflict damage. In the same vein, an unusu-
If the enemy total is more than four times larg- ally capable or well-equipped party can sometimes pull
er, it will probably be a rout. The PCs are going to get through even the grimmest situation. These guidelines
crushed unless they have excellent tactics, a superb po- can be an initial help and hint to you, but as the GM,
sition that only allows a few of the enemies to engage at you will eventually have to rely on your own judgment
once, or some magical resource that can nullify a large to guess the likely outcome of a given fray.
112

Instinct Checks
Very few creatures are capable of engaging in desperate,
life-or-death struggles without losing some amount of When to Make an Instinct Check
their rationality. Terror, fury, excruciating pain, and sit- As a general guide, a GM might make an Instinct check
uational blindness can sometimes make a combatant do for a creature whenever any of the situations below are
something genuinely stupid, even if they would never applicable, or any time the GM thinks the creature might
have made such a mistake in calmer circumstances. In the be confused or indecisive.
same way, wild beasts and non-sentient monsters may be
driven by instinct and habit rather than logical prudence • The second round of combat for mobs and undis-
and so behave in ways that are not always tactically sound. ciplined fighters. The creature could think clearly
The Instinct check is the game’s way of helping a before starting the fray, but the terror and exhilara-
GM take this situational chaos into account. Whenev- tion of mortal combat might confuse it.
er an Instinct check is triggered, the GM rolls a 1d10.
If the number rolled is equal or less than a combatant’s • The creature has just had to make a Morale check
Instinct score, measured from 1 to 10, they do some- for any reason. Terror might cloud its thoughts.
thing impulsive, short-sighted, instinctual, or otherwise
less-than-tactically-sound. Instinct checks are rolled • The enemy just did something confusing or disori-
separately for individual combatants, though the GM enting. When the situation is strange, the creature
can simply decide that an appropriate percentage of large might fall back on instinct.
groups automatically fail the check. If the creatures have
an Instinct of 3, for example, the GM might just decide • The enemy did something to enrage or directly in-
that 30% of them fail the check rather than dicing for timidate it. Fury or terror might force bad decisions.
every one.
PCs never make Instinct checks. Even in the grip of • The creature is presented with something it desires,
terror or traumatic injury they remain in control of their such as dropped food, hurled money, or other in-
own choices. Heroically well-trained or tactically-expert ducements. It might go after the bait instead of the
enemies with an Instinct score of zero might likewise be battle if it seems safe to do so.
immune to Instinct checks. Even martial paragons might
be susceptible to Instinct, however, if they’re so proud. Other situations might force Instinct checks as well
blase, or contemptuous of their foes that they fail to fight at the GM’s discretion. Indeed, some situations might be
them with their utmost cunning. so compelling as to cause automatic check failure. De-
When an Instinct check is failed, a creature will do pending on the situation, the GM might decide a partic-
something thoughtless or sub-optimal that is in line with ular response is the only reasonable one, and not bother
their natural instincts. The adjacent tables offer example to randomly pick it from a table.
suggestions for various types of creatures, but a GM can
simply decide the most reasonable reaction based on the Assigning Instinct Scores
situation and the combatants. A GM should use these For non-sentient beasts, a creature’s Instinct score should
instances as opportunities to show off the nature of an usually be about 5. Whenever such monsters are con-
enemy or the instincts of a bestial foe, or to set up some fused or frightened, they’re very likely to fall back on their
battlefield situation that isn’t necessarily tactically-opti- natural instincts. Those instincts tend to be violent in
mal for the enemy but is still troublesome for the heroes. predators, however, and a failed Instinct check might just
Actions taken as a result of a failed Instinct check will mean it bites the nearest target.
usually only occupy one round worth of the creature’s For non-combatant sentients and those unfamiliar
efforts. with battle, Instinct should be 5 to 7. They are extremely
Actions forced by an Instinct check failure won’t nec- likely to become confused and useless in a fight.
essarily be entirely useless, but they won’t be the wisest Ordinary intelligent veterans should have an In-
or most effective use of the creature’s abilities. Blindly stinct of 3 or 4. They might get caught up in the con-
attacking sub-optimal targets, recklessly using unarmed fusion of battle and make some poor calls, but they’re
attacks rather than the weapon in hand, or aiming spells unlikely to lose their head entirely.
or shots at targets of lesser importance might all be ac- Hardened, battle-tested fighters might have an In-
tions taken as a result of a failed Instinct check. stinct of only 1 or 2, being very unlikely to forget them-
Instinct checks are always optional and at the dis- selves in the chaos of battle.
cretion of the GM. Some GMs might choose not to use The coldest, calmest killers would have an Instinct
them at all, judging actions strictly on what seems rea- of 1, and may not have to make Instinct checks at all
sonable to them. In all cases it’s the GM’s final call as to outside of the most disorienting situations. They’ll fight
whether or not to roll one. according to the plan and won’t lose track of the battle.
 113

Example Instinctive Actions d6 Trained Servitor Beasts

The tables here offer some suggestions for different types 1 Seek its trainer or handler on the field
of actions that different kinds of foes could take. While
2 Repeat the last action it took, sensible or not
the actions may be sub-optimal, assume that every crea-
ture will carry them out as intelligently as they are able to. 3 Attack the enemy closest to its handler
A GM should also feel perfectly free to simply decide on 4 Whine in confusion and disorientation
a creature’s action, picking whatever course seems most
5 Perform an inappropriate but trained action
likely for something of its motives and mentality.
6 Panic, attacking the nearest friend or foe

d6 Non-Combatant Humans d6 Automaton

1 Stand immobile in confusion and fear 1 Do its intended purpose, even if inappropriate
2 Punch or kick a foe instead of using a weapon 2 Spend the round analyzing the situation
3 Cringe, taking the Total Defense action 3 Repeat the last thing it did with blind intent
4 Panic and make a Morale check 4 Attack the last target, even if it’s now downed
5 Shout threats or pleas, but don’t attack 5 Utter a warning or imperative to the foes
6 Reposition to get close to the nearest ally 6 Select a new target for some reason

d6 Combat-Trained Humans d6 Automatons and Golems

1 Freeze in confusion, doing nothing this round 1 Take a round to try to understand the situation
2 Reposition to get a better place to fight from 2 Smash something irrelevant but near the foe
3 Duck, taking the Total Defense action 3 Try to carry out its original purpose for a round
4 Spend a round looking around the battlefield 4 Attack a downed foe or corpse
5 Blindly attack the nearest enemy 5 Move to a random new enemy target
6 Attack an object, barrier, or downed foe 6 Do the same thing as last round, useful or not

d6 Sorcerers or Other Spellcasters d6 Beings of Arrogant Might

1 Freeze a round trying to pick which spell to use 1 Sneer at the pitiful weaklings that oppose you
2 Get further away from the nearest enemy 2 Boast of its inevitable victory
3 Use magic, but misjudge the aiming somehow 3 Gratuitous use of a power in an unhelpful way
4 Try to hide behind something or get cover 4 Attack the last enemy to offend it somehow
5 Attack with punches or physical weapons 5 Urge on servitors, or demand surrender
6 Ignore everyone but the nearest threat to them 6 Taunt the foe as it takes a Total Defense

d6 Ordinary Predatory Beasts d6 Hateful and Sadistic Sentients

1 Snarl and growl, but don’t attack anyone 1 Spend a round looking for a good victim
2 Pull back and get away from nearby threats 2 Attack to hurt or humiliate, doing half damage
3 Attack the last enemy to have hurt it 3 Attack the weakest-looking foe present
4 Attack the last enemy it managed to hurt 4 Assault the enemy that most offends it
5 Take a bite out of a downed enemy 5 Slaughter a downed foe or tear a corpse
6 Panic and make a Morale check 6 Spend a round making threats and vows

d6 Viciously Violent Beasts d6 Undead Creatures

1 Roar savagely at the foe, but don’t attack 1 Moan at the torment of their condition
2 Attack the last foe it hit in blind fury 2 Savagely attack the most vital, lively enemy
3 Charge the last enemy to get its attention 3 Blindly assault a downed foe or corpse
4 Gnaw on a downed enemy 4 Seek to terrify a foe rather than directly attack
5 Charge the biggest cluster of targets 5 Target the foe with the weakest life force
6 Attack the largest enemy on the field 6 Do nothing, instinctively craving an end