SUNDERING
To sunder a weapon or shield, a combatant must succeed on a melee attack throw with a -6 penalty. [instead of -8]
SUBDUE
Combatants can attempt to knock out rather than kill their opponents by attacking with the “flat of the blade”, pulling their blows, and so on. To make a subdual attack with a weapon, the combatant must succeed on a melee attack throw with a -4 penalty. If successful, the attack deals subdual damage. Brawling attacks (see above) are always subdual damage.
Subdual damage does not reduce the opponent’s hit points because it is not “real” damage. Instead, when the opponent has taken cumulative subdual damage equal to or greater than his current hit points, the opponent becomes unconscious. It doesn’t matter whether the subdual damage equals or exceeds the opponent’s current hit points because the subdual damage has gone up or, or because the opponent’s current hit points have gone down.
Creatures heal subdual damage at a rate of 1 hit point per hour. Spells or magical powers that cure hit point damage remove an equal amount of subdual damage.
EXAMPLE: Marcus is fighting an ogre with 26 hit points. In the first round of combat, Marcus stabs the ogre for 8 damage, reducing it to 18 current hit points. In the second round of combat, Marcus starts attacking with the flat of his blade to attempt to subdue the ogre. He inflicts 6 points of subdual damage in the second round and 9 points of subdual damage in the third round. At this point the ogre has 18 current hit points and has taken 15 subdual damage. In the fourth round, Marcus makes a normal attack that deals 7 damage. This reduces the ogre to 11 hit points. Because it has now taken subdual damage greater than its remaining hit points (15 > 11), the ogre is knocked out. It will wake up in five hours, when it heals 5 subdual damage.
The language of subdual still seems unclear as you mix the term “knock out” with subdual. Subdued does not mean knocked out. Dragon subdual in 0d&d was a variant form of morale test, your subdual seems more appropriate simply to use the language “knock out” as you do through out the paragrapgh. If you feel compelled to use the word KO to describe it’s function, again perhaps the rule you are describing is not subdual and could be clarified by calling it something else.
Re Subdual: If you’re going for realism, subdual always working (knocking out but not killing) doesn’t make a lot of sense. And the whittle down the hit points, then make the last couple blows subdual (or even worse, tap them two or three times to subdue, then when you think you have a good buffer of subdual damage, switch to lethal attacks) makes the realism problem a lot worse. There should be a risk that people will accidentally crack someone’s skull or whatever and kill them.
Since you already have a Mortal Wounds table, it seems like there’s an easy way to do this: whenever anyone is “knocked out” according to the subdual rules, they have to roll on the Mortal Wounds table. However, they get big bonuses for having taken less than their full hit points of real damage. If they live, great! If not, oops.
There’s a little development needed to fill in the appropriate bonuses, but it should be pretty easy and produce an elegant solution that allows people to use nonlethal attacks successfully but means that you can’t routinely capture people in combat at the cost of a few missed attacks.
Bargle, to avoid confusion, I have renamed the “subdue” maneuver the “incapacitate” maneuver. Ahstrongmorse, that’s a great idea. See below.
NONLETHAL DAMAGE
Some attacks may inflict nonlethal damage. Nonlethal damage is subtracted from a creature’s hit points like normal damage. A creature reduced to 0 hit points or fewer by nonlethal damage, or any combination of normal or nonlethal damage, is still unconscious and possibly dead. However, the likelihood of death and the rate of healing are different for nonlethal damage, so a running total of the amount of nonlethal damage should still be recorded.
EXAMPLE: Marcus is fighting an ogre with 26 hit points. In the first round of combat, Marcus stabs the ogre for 8 damage, reducing it to 18 current hit points. In the second round of combat, Marcus starts attacking with the flat of his blade to attempt to knock out the ogre. He inflicts 6 points of nonlethal damage in the second round and 9 points of nonlethal damage in the third round. At this point the ogre has 3 current hit points and has taken 15 nonlethal damage. In the fourth round, Marcus makes a normal attack that deals 7 damage. This reduces the ogre to -4 hit points. Because it has now taken a combination of normal and nonlethal damage reducing its hit points to 0 or fewer, the ogre is knocked out and possibly dead.
Creatures reduced to 0hp or less by nonlethal damage are far less likely to have sustained mortal wounds. When the creature rolls on the Mortal Wounds table, modify the die roll by +1 per point of nonlethal damage dealt before the creature was knocked unconscious. (Pummeling your allies after they are incapacitated does not help them recover).
EXAMPLE: Immediately after the fight, Marcus rouses the ogre to interrogate it. The Judge rolls 1d20+1d6 for the ogre and gets a 9 and a 3. Marcus did not use any healing magic or have Healing proficiency, so the 1d20 roll is modified by +15 (because ogre took 15 nonlethal damage) and -2 (because it was treated after the fight), for a +13 modifier, yielding a total of 22. Cross-referencing 22 and 3 on the Mortal Wounds table, the Judge determines that the ogre awakens concussed, with 1hp, having lost 1d6 teeth. It will require 1 day of bed rest or magical healing.
Once a creature has resolved its condition on the Mortal Wounds table, all nonlethal damage is removed. Otherwise, nonlethal damage recovers at a rate of 1 hit point per hour. Spells or magical powers that cure hit point damage remove an equal amount of nonlethal damage.
INCAPACITATE
Combatants can attempt to knock out rather than kill their opponents by attacking with the “flat of the blade”, pulling their blows, and so on. To make an incapacitating attack with a weapon, the combatant must succeed on a melee attack throw with a -4 penalty. If successful, the attack deals nonlethal damage. Brawling attacks (see above) are always nonlethal damage.
Don’t be subdued by me too easily! With your new description, subdue seems fine to me for some reason. Also, someone is far more likely to say, “subdue them and bring them to me”, rather than “incapacitate”.
Also, what in the rules stops the ogre from just attacking again? I mean if the PC’s brought him down without him failing a morale roll, what changes? Why wouldn’t a dragon who wakes up not breathe? Is it cowed? What morale does it have? Etc… If the temper of the enemy is unchanged it’s “incapacitate” and the PC’s will need to have the ogre restrained before it awakes! If it is cowed or in a subdued temper upon conciousness, then subdued is a fine word.
CAPTURING DRAGONS
If a dragon is captured alive, it may be enslaved or sold. Adventurers may use incapacitating attacks (see Special Maneuvers in Section 6) to attempt to capture a dragon, or other methods of the adventurers’ devising. If the dragon is successfully captured, the adventurers may choose to enslave the dragon or sell it to a buyer. An enslaved dragon becomes a retainer to the character that enslaved it, but will always wish for its freedom. An enslaved dragon must make a morale roll any time it has the opportunity to escape or betray its master. Alternatively, a live dragon may be sold in Class III or larger markets for a number of gold pieces equal to 1,000 x the dragon’s total hit points.
BARGLE - in the process of answering your question about what the benefit of incapacitation is, I realized I’d left off an important rule from the HEALING mechanics.
HEALING
Some results on the Mortal Wounds or Tampering with Mortality tables will indicate that a character needs a period of bed rest to recover. During this time, the character does not regain hit points from natural or magical healing, and cannot take any action other than speaking and moving at half speed. If the character is killed again before he has had sufficient rest, he cannot be treated or restored to life by anything less than ritual magic.
In the example given, the ogre cannot fight, run, etc. for a day.
Cool, cool. It seems to me there are two ways for a Referee to impartially adjudicate a monsters subdual. Incapacitate and morale failure.
Exactly! And a favorable reaction roll, of course, means they are friendly from the get-go.
LANGUAGES
All characters begin the game knowing their native language. In most campaign worlds, the majority of humans speak a common language, often called “Common.” The demi-human races (elves and dwarves) have their own languages, and members of these races normally begin play knowing their racial language, Common (or the local human language if it isn’t called Common), and certain other languages based on the race.
Character with an Intelligence penalty will only know his native language, and cannot read more than a word or two. Characters with at least average Intelligence (9-12) will be literate in any languages they can speak. Characters with an Intelligence bonus may begin the game knowing one or more languages other than those given above; the number of additional languages that may be learned is equal to the Intelligence bonus (+1, +2, or +3). The player may also choose to leave one or more bonus language “slots” open, to be filled during play.
The languages available to characters include the demi-human languages (Elven, Dwarven, Gnomish, and Halfling) and the various beastmen dialects (e.g. Orc, Goblin). At the Judge’s discretion, player characters may also begin play knowing ancient or archaic tongues, or exotic languages such as Draconic (the language of dragons). The specific languages available will depend on the campaign setting. In the Auran Empire setting, two important archaic languages are Classical Auran (the predecessor to Common, used for ceremonial, religious, and magical purposes within the empire) and Zaharan (a predecessor to the various beastmen dialects, once used by the fallen Kingdom of Zahar and now remembered by black magicians and necromancers).
0TH LEVEL CHARACTERS AND EXPERIENCE FROM CAMPAIGNS
A 0th level character may earn experience points from campaign activities. If the 0th level character earns 100 XP from campaign activities, he may advance to become a 1st level character. 0th level characters are always considered to be followers or retainers and earn ½ XP.
Magical Research: 0th level characters who study under an arcane spellcaster of 9th level or higher may become 1st level mages. To qualify they must first possess the Alchemy, Collegiate Wizardry, Magical Engineering, or related proficiency (Judge’s discretion). They must then study for 1d6 months and make a proficiency throw of 14+, modified by their INT bonus or penalty. Success means the character advances to 1st level. Failure means the character has no gift for magic.
Domain and Mercantile Income: A 0th level character may earn XP from domain and mercantile income. They are treated as if they had a GP Threshold of 25gp. The character will advance into a type of class appropriate to the domain managed. For instance, a petty noble’s son (0th level character) who inherits his father’s manor (50gp per month) will earn 12.5 XP per month (50gp – 25gp threshold x 1/2), advancing to become a 1st level fighter after 8 months as serving as lord of the manor (if bandits don’t kill him first).
Hijinks: In most cases, the only hijink available to 0th level character is carousing (Hear Noises 18+). Successfully carousing at the will advance the 0th level character to a 1st level assassin, bard, or thief. Which class will depend on what sort of company the character is keeping. On average, it will take a 0th level character just over 6 months of hanging out with unsavory sorts in dimly-lit taverns to advance in this manner.
When a 0th level character advances to 1st level, he gains the Adventuring proficiency and his new class’s proficiency, powers, attack throws, and saving throws. The character re-rolls his hit points using his new class’s hit die, keeping either his new hp total or his prior hp total if it was higher.
The addendum on 0th level characters and experience is great.
I assume that the same thing would apply to experience gained from war (in the Domains at War doc)? So an army of 1000 troops that sacked a wealthy duke’s castle (150K gold, with the general taking 50K) and then pillaged the duke’s wealthy dominion (gaining another 150K gold, same split), would turn all of the (surviving) 0-level mercenaries into first level fighters? (Do they need to reduce that by the 25 gp threshold for 0-level characters?) That has a nice aspect in terms of representing the greatly increased effectiveness of veteran troops (well attested in historical sources). I’m not sure linking that purely to booty is historically accurate–I think that winning battles without large hauls of booty also turned green units into veteran units–but it fits the game’s norms well and it still allows that progression.
Wouldn’t applying it to war xp create a command problem, since you’d suddenly have 1000 retainers and no one for them to follow? Unless you have a corps of 200 or 300 level 2 sergeants ready and waiting…
Charlatan: Why can’t you just have 1st and 2nd level followers or mercenaries instead of 0th level followers or mercenaries? I don’t think there’s any need to convert them to “retainer” status just because they leveled up once. They could still follow the same leaders they did before, with the higher level retainers (who might be 4th level and serving as attached heroes) still serving as attached heroes, just for a better unit of troops.
ahstrongmorse: It seems strange to crank out so many first level characters that way, but- looking at the Domains at War draft- it’s seems clear you can.
That seems to suggest an interesting dynamic to hirelings: If I ensure that my 0-level shieldbearer gets a 225gp share of treasure, does he vault up to level 1 Fighter?
The supporting hero issue is also interesting: If you’ve deployed 4th level retainers as supporting heroes, wouldn’t they have to hit level 5 by the time the 0-levels hit level 2 to keep that structure in place? That implies something about the split of treasure among your army.
Hi guys!
Yes, you can raise your shieldbearers and so on to 1st level and beyond. Many of the most cherished retainers (and eventual PCs) of our playtest campaign began as 0 level torchbearers.
Yes, you can raise the effectiveness of your armies by making sure the soldiers get lots of loot and level up. Its fairly easy to get 0 level troops to 1st level troops. In the context of a medieval army, one would imagine that the professional soldiers (sergeants-at-arms, knights, and so on) would be 1st level after some campaigns. The militia would be 0th level. Maintaining your force rather than losing it and raising new troops becomes important.
Yes, you should be careful not to have your troops out-level their officers. This enforces a more ancient/medieval wealth distribution, rather than an egalitarian distribution of the wealth.
EQUIPMENT AVAILABILITY
Adventures may sometimes wish to purchase equipment in greater volume than the town they are in can handle. When the adventurers decide they want to use a dragon’s hoard to equip all their followers with fur cloaks (15gp each) and purchase a dozen heavy warhorses (750gp each) with plate barding (600gp each), they may find such goods are simply unavailable in the quantities they desire.
The amount of equipment available for purchase is determined by the price of the equipment relative to the size of the market the adventurers are in. A market can be anything from a village’s humble fair to a city-state’s outdoor bazaar to the ports of a major metropolis. Markets are rated by market class from I to VI, which rate their size and importance. The vast mercantile hubs of empires, with urban populations of 100,000 or more, constitute Class I. Major ports, national capitals, and other large cities of 25,000 or more inhabitants constitute Class II. Provincial capitals and medium-sized cities of 8,000 to 25,000 inhabitants make up Class III. Small cities and large towns of 3,000 to 8,000 inhabitants make up Class IV. Small towns and large villages of 1,000 to 3,000 inhabitants are Class V. Any village smaller than 1,000 inhabitants is Class VI.
Market classes are also important for hiring retainers, as discussed in Hirelings, Retainers, Mercenaries, and Specialists in the Adventures section, and for trade and commerce, as discussed in the Mercantile Ventures rules in the Campaigns section.
The Equipment Availability by Market Class Table shows how many units of any piece of equipment are available in each type of market each month. Some values will indicate a percentage chance; this is chance of one unit being present at all in any given month.
Note that the values given are the number of each specific item, not the total number of items at that price level. For instance, a a Class IV market will have 5 swords, 5 battle axes, and 5 of each other item priced at 2-10gp. Multiple small items sold as a bundle (such as 12 spikes, 6 torches, 20 arrows, etc) count as one item for purposes of the Equipment Availability table.
Equipment Availability by Market Class Table
Price I II III IV V VI
1gp or less 1,700 585 260 65 30 10
2gp – 10gp 100 30 15 5 1 1
11 – 100gp 15 5 2 1 25% 10%
101 – 1Kgp 7 2 1 25% 10% 5%
1,001 – 10Kgp 2 1 25% 10% 5% 1%
10,001gp+ 10% 5% 2% NA NA NA
EXAMPLE: Marcus is in Arganos, a city of 20,000 (Class III market). He wants to buy a war galley (60,000gp), medium warhorse (250gp), 2 suits of plate armor (60gp each), 20 swords (10gp each), 100 bundles of 6 torches (1sp each) and 200 flasks of oil (3sp each). A Class III market has 260 units of any equipment priced 1gp or less, so he finds the 100 bundles of 6 torches and 200 flasks of oil without problem. A Class III market has only 15 units of any equipment priced 10gp or less, so only 15 swords are available. Since he needs the weapons to equip his men, he settles on 15 swords and 5 battle-axes. A Class III market has 2 units of equipment priced at 11-100gp and 1 unit at 101-1,000gp, so he is able to buy the 2 suits of plate armor and medium warhorse. There is only a 5% chance of a war galley being available, and the Judge rolls a 42; Marcus cannot find that type of ship in Arganos this month.
Commissioning Equipment
If equipment the adventurers desire to purchase is not available, they may commission it to be created. The advantage of commissioning equipment is that more equipment can be commissioned than is available as inventory; treat the equipment as if it were one price category less expensive to calculate the volume available. The disadvantage of commissioning equipment is that it is not immediately available. Buildings and vehicles, which can be built by large groups, are constructed at a rate of 1 day per 500gp value. Animals take 1 day per 1gp value to find and train. Other equipment takes 1 day per 5gp value.
EXAMPLE: Marcus is in urgent need of a war galley, so he decides he’d like to commission a shipwright to build one. Since Marcus is commissioning the war galley, the Judge checks for availability as if the war galley were one price category less expensive, putting it in the 1,001-10,00gp row. There is a 25% chance that a war galley could be commissioned in Arganos this month. The Judge rolls a 17 on 1d100, so a shipwright is available. It will take 120 days for the war galley to be finished (60,000gp / 500gp per day).
UPDATES TO PROFICIENCIES
Skulking: The character excels at moving furtively and finding concealment. He receives a +2 bonus on proficiency throws to hide in shadows and move silently.
Assassin Proficiency List: Acrobatics, Alchemy, Alertness, Arcane Dabbling, Blind Fighting, Bribery, Cat Burglary, Climbing, Combat Reflexes, Combat Trickery (disarm, incapacitate), Contortionism, Disguise, Eavesdropping, Fighting Style, Gambling, Intimidation, Mimicry, Performance (acting), Precise Shooting, Running, Seduction, Skirmishing, Skulking, Sniping, Swashbuckling, Trap Finding, Weapon Finesse, Weapon Focus
Dwarven Vaultguard Proficiency List: Alertness, Berserkergang, Blind Fighting, Caving, Combat Reflexes, Combat Trickery (force back, overrun, sunder, trip, wrestle), Command, Construction, Craft, Dungeon Bashing, Dwarven Brewing, Endurance, Engineering, Fighting Style, Gambling, Goblin-Slaying, Illusion Resistance, Intimidation, Land Surveying, Leadership, Mapping, Military Tactics, Mountaineering, Siege Engineering, Weapon Focus
Elven Nightblade Proficiency List: Alchemy, Alertness, Arcane Dabbling, Battle Magic, Beast Friendship, Black Lore of Zahar, Blind Fighting, Combat Reflexes, Combat Trickery (incapacitate), Contortionism, Elementalism, Familiar, Fighting Style, Intimidation, Lockpicking, Mystic Aura, Passing Without Trace, Precise Shooting, Prestidigitation, Quiet Magic, Running, Sensing Power, Skirmishing, Skulking, Sniping, Swashbuckling, Unflappable Casting, Trap Finding, Wakefulness, Weapon Focus, Weapon Finesse
Thief Proficiency List: Acrobatics, Alertness, Arcane Dabbling, Blind Fighting, Bribery, Cat Burglary, Combat Reflexes, Combat Trickery (disarm, incapacitate), Contortionism, Diplomacy, Fighting Style, Gambling, Intimidation, Lip Reading, Lockpicking, Mapping, Performance (acting), Precise Shooting, Riding, Running, Seafaring, Skirmishing, Skulking, Sniping, Swashbuckling, Trap Finding, Weapon Finesse, Weapon Focus