Q&D (Quick and Dirty) - 2nd Edition Revised

[sparkletwist]

(Nothing here at the moment)

[Seraph]

This is cool stuff.  I am surprised no one has commented yet.  I am currently working up some alternative class features that I intended to have show up in the CGQ&D Playtest, which I would happily share with you.

Also, at one point you gave a listing of what each skill rank "meant" as a point of reference, like "best in the room," "best on the block," "best in the nation," etc.  That might be useful to have posted.

[sparkletwist]

Oops, sorry for not replying!
I would like to see them, of course.

[Seraph]

[ic]Feats of Athleticism: Your Fenian training taught you to regularly perform feats that would seem impossible to others.  Spend an AP to describe an incredible feat of athletic prowess.  Roll athleticism at +10 for this action. 
[ooc]This is based on the Fenian Cycle of Irish mythology, where Finn's band of warriors had to be able to leap over their height, duck under a log as low as their knee without slowing, run at full speed without snapping a twig, or without their hair becoming tussled, and any number of other feats of prowess to prove their worth.[/ooc][/ic]

[ic]Bard Song: Bards are well versed in magical songs. The Bard spends an AP and decides on a song, which is assigned a complexity by the GM: anything from 5 for a quick rhyme to 30+ for an elaborate ballad. The Bard then decides how many turns to break the Song into, rolling against a portion of the difficulty on each one. For example, a complexity 20 Song could be two turns of 10, or four turns of 5, or, if the Bard is very skilled or confident, could try to handle it all at once. The results are then adjudicated each turn of casting, except "Bonus Awesomeness" simply reduces remaining complexity by 2.  Song effects include debilitating laughter, sleep, grief, and fear.
[ooc]This is essentially just a reflavored version of "Ritual," so not a whole lot to discuss.[/ooc][/ic]

[ic]Combat Prescience: In the midst of combat, you drift into a trance that expands your perceptions, allowing you to predict the movements of your enemies.  You gain +5 to any Melee or Athletics roll used to avoid an enemy attack.  
[ooc]Celtic myth has a handful of warriors with mystical powers, including warrior-trainers with the ability to foresee future events.  This is meant to reflect the principle that such figures might have insight into what the battle had in store.[/ooc][/ic]

[sparkletwist]

Hmm. Interesting.

As a pedantic note, you seem to have swapped the purposes of your ic and ooc boxes. The ic box talks about mechanics and the ooc box has fluff in it. :D

Anyway, the big problem with "Feats of Athleticism" is that it's more or less what everyone can do anyway. One of the big points of AP is to buy off complications and even turn a narrow failure into a success. So, spending an AP to do an athletic stunt and get a better outcome is essentially core Q&D, not a special ability.

I think the other two are better. I don't have much to say about "Bard Song," because I don't know how Ritual will work in practice yet, but it seemed balanced to me when I wrote it, so Bard Song does as well. "Combat Prescience" also seems pretty good, although +5 to avoid all attacks might be a little too good if it is something of a combat-focused game. I tried to make it so that the "+5 to a thing" abilities would generally be invoked rarely enough that it seems special-- like, an opportunity for a certain character to shine. If combat is rarer, it might well be that case, too, though.

Those two would definitely be good things to throw into the "grab bag," if nothing else. :D

[sparkletwist]

With the talk of switching Cad Goleor over to Q&D, Seraphine_Harmonium and I played a short Q&D one-shot game, set in Cad Goleor.

Well, sort of. I was GMing it, and I'm far from intimately familiar with the setting, so it was more "generic Celtic setting that we're pretending is Cad Goleor." I guess I didn't abuse it too badly, though. Anyway, SH's character was named Brodan, a wandering warrior who had been disgraced. We began with him having been wandering for quite some time, and, with the day nearing its end, he was seeking shelter and especially something to eat. He was seen by a farmer (named Bigh Mac Anfrais... please don't throw things at me) who would've been happy to let Brodan wander on his way, but, oh, culturally speaking, it's just not right to not show a weary traveler some hospitality.

Brodan ate his fill (and then some, thanks to a compel on his boorish nature) and the farmer and his wife were getting quite tired of him, especially when he started frightening their young son, who always referred to Brodan as "the smelly man." In truth, Brodan was just one of their many problems lately, for it seems the fae had chosen their small village to torment.

The good meal was heavy in Brodan's stomach, and (thanks to a horribly botched Perception roll) he slept quite soundly. Soundly enough he didn't even notice the fae coming that night, and I'm sure the townspeople had something to do with pointing out their boorish guest. Better to take him away than some of the town's children, after all.

When he awoke, he was the guest of a sidhe woman with wild hair and even more wild eyes. She had the kind of figure that would've been appealing on a modern supermodel, but, for the time, probably looked on the skinny side. She looked like she could use a good meal-- unfortunately, she agreed, and from where she was aiming the long blades that she had instead of fingernails, Brodan was it. She was joined by a nasty little Redcap who didn't talk much, just mumbling "aghahaga" and similar noises.

A fight broke out! The evildoers had the early advantage, landing a couple of good hits that took away 7 of Brodan's 10 stress, but he landed a fierce hit on the Redcap, which, through the use of an AP and his warrior class ability, took it out of the fight in one hit. Another AP gave him an extra turn against the Sidhe, using a combat maneuver to knock her off balance, and then following up on his next turn with a mighty thrust with his spear, taking the Sidhe out.

It wasn't cold iron, so these two will probably survive, but they're no threat for now. And as for Brodan, he is lost in the middle of... well, where is he? A good place to stop, and a jumping off point for future adventures, should we decide to have them.

We got to test out both social mechanics and combat, and got to use some of Q&D's features, so I think it worked out pretty well.  :grin:

[Seraph]

I have a question about Stress: there is a mention of characters getting a full allocation of stress the next time they are "in action."  Now, this DOES follow a mention of the character being taken out, and you later mention recovering stress by resting or magic.  So my question is: Do characters always recover all stress from one encounter to the next, or just characters that get taken out?  If the latter, how quickly would could one expect to recover stress?  1 Stress/hour?  1/day?  Is there a skill roll involved that determines how quickly you recover?

[sparkletwist]

This is actually something I wrote up quickly, and probably need more consideration and playtests to actually come up with a worthwhile answer. I'm actually not quite sure what I meant!

So, let's think this through. The idea behind Q&D's stress is that you never have very much, but it recovers quickly. This makes combat quick and dangerous, but you're usually not dragging around lingering injuries, or having to wait long periods to heal up. I think that any time characters have a significant amount of downtime, like more than one in-game day of not adventuring or doing heavy labor or anything, they should get their full allocation of Stress back. Characters that have been taken out will usually need to rest up for a while, so they'll be back at full strength, too, reflecting the earlier rule but making more sense about it.

As for the exact timing otherwise, it should be up to the GM, determined by the theme of the game. In a cinematic game where the encounters are fast and furious, characters should get a full allocation every encounter. In a grittier game, where long-term attrition is more of a factor, then they should have to rest in order to get it back, and being worn down becomes more of a problem.

[Seraph]

This is actually something I wrote up quickly, and probably need more consideration and playtests to actually come up with a worthwhile answer. I'm actually not quite sure what I meant!

So, let's think this through. The idea behind Q&D's stress is that you never have very much, but it recovers quickly. This makes combat quick and dangerous, but you're usually not dragging around lingering injuries, or having to wait long periods to heal up. I think that any time characters have a significant amount of downtime, like more than one in-game day of not adventuring or doing heavy labor or anything, they should get their full allocation of Stress back. Characters that have been taken out will usually need to rest up for a while, so they'll be back at full strength, too, reflecting the earlier rule but making more sense about it.

As for the exact timing otherwise, it should be up to the GM, determined by the theme of the game. In a cinematic game where the encounters are fast and furious, characters should get a full allocation every encounter. In a grittier game, where long-term attrition is more of a factor, then they should have to rest in order to get it back, and being worn down becomes more of a problem.

Though it would need a bit more book-keeping, I think Vreeg had an idea where half of the damage taken would be lifted as soon as the encounter was over, while the other half would linger.  Maybe something along these lines would show that there are some consequences to getting hurt or worn down from one battle to the next, while showing that a lot of the stresses of combat will go away when the battle is done.

Alternatively, perhaps rest and magical healing only apply to negative consequences of getting taken out?  Or the "other bad stuff" from an Epic Fail?  My understanding is that getting "taken out" refers to any injury that removes you from that combat.  In theory you need not even lose consciousness, as long as you are unable to participate.  So something like a bad stab wound, a broken bone, a concussion, and so forth could all take someone out of combat.  And while you could stop a puncture wound from bleeding, or set a broken bone, the effects of these would in actuality not go away once the battle was done.

[sparkletwist]

If that's the kind of idea that you want, a FATE-like system of consequences would probably be the best thing. This is what Asura uses, as well: you have HP that recover very fast, then you have Consequences that you suffer when you are (nearly) out of HP, and those recover more slowly. It also makes the bookkeeping a little more transparent, rather than having to worry about "how much Stress do I get back" and so on.

I thought that even this would be too complicated for Q&D, to be honest! I was deliberately trying to stay close to the simple albeit unrealistic D&D approach to damage. However, Q&D is pretty hackable, so I encourage development in this direction!

[sparkletwist]

I've added the "Profession" system discussed in the Cad Goleor thread.

[sparkletwist]

Archiving the old version here.
[spoiler=Old Version]

Quick & Dirty

[note=Yeah, like that]Like D&D. Only Q&D.[/note]This "Quick & Dirty System" is something I've been throwing together for a little while now. It has gotten some semblance testing in a couple of impromptu games that happened on a chat recently, but, it's still quite rough. Not that it will ever be refined, but anyway! As many of you know, I'm a fan of FATE, and I have my own rather detailed FATE-like system called Asura. That is great and all-- I'm still a fan of FATE, and I'm not abandoning Asura-- but I was looking to do something a bit different. My inspirations this time around are as the name suggests, D&D, in particular, the simplistic approach taken by very old D&D games. Added to that are elements from Wushu, Apocalypse World, and other games that focus much more on creating a fun story and game together than worrying excessively much about crunchy details. I've also borrowed the idea of "point economy" from FATE, because it's just to good and allows too many juicy gameplay options to pass up.

The principles behind Q&D are:
Simple and Fast
These rules do not attempt to be "simulationist" or accurately model anything. Simplicity is generally valued over ensuring absolute consistency. This is by design. Everyone is sitting around trying to tell a good story and have fun, and the main purpose for these rules is to allow for random elements (and the random whims of players) to take that story in fun and interesting directions that nobody thought of previously. As such, the "rule of cool" is very much in play, as well.

Players act, NPCs react
What this means is, players are the ones instigating actions and throwing dice. Actions are resolved from their perspective; the complication system is rather PC-centric, and the idea is that whatever happens, the game system is designed to model what happens to them. For NPC-on-NPC encounters, the GM can try to roll and figure something out, but the best thing to do is just go with whatever is expedient for the story. For that matter, let players spend an AP to temporarily hijack an NPC, and they're then in charge of what happens.

Get to the point already. How does it work?
Task resolution is based around the roll of a d20, plus a number of d6s. The d6s are called "skill dice," and vary depending on a character's number of ranks in a given skill.
The difficulty is then subtracted from this roll. Difficulty might be a static DC, or it might be an opposed roll; situational bonuses and penalties will also affect the difficulty, of course. If the roll is opposed, use the opponent's skill dice. It helps to have two different colors of dice, so the entire thing can be resolved with a single throw of a handful of dice. Throwing around handfuls of dice is fun.

[spoiler=Difficulties]Using values other than just multiples of 5 is encouraged and fun. These are just examples.

0 = Mundane. Any idiot can probably do it. Maybe not even worth rolling.
5 = Average. A decently challenging task for an average person.
10 = Tough. Most people can't manage, but intrepid heroes can.
15 = Heroic. A very challenging task for even heroic heroes!
20 = Climactic. How will they ever get out of this one?
25 = Epic. Perhaps impossible?!?!

(As mentioned above, vs. someone else, the difficulty is the opponent's skill dice)
[/spoiler]
[ic=Example!]For example, if Mr. Billingsley is attempting to punch Ugly Lucy, he would roll a d20 plus 3d6, because his Melee skill is 3. Ugly Lucy would roll 2d6 to oppose, because her Melee skill is 2. Thus, the roll would be d20 + 3d6 - 2d6. If he was instead trying to smash through a brick wall with his bare hands, no opposing skill dice would be rolled; instead, the difficulty would be... 15 or so, probably.[/ic]

Results are adjudicated as follows:
- 0 or less = Epic fail. Probably embarrassing, and other bad things might happen, too.
- 1 to 7 = A regular and mundane (yet total) failure.
- 8 to 10  = Narrow failure. An AP can make it into a success with a negative complication, if the GM allows it.
- 11 to 15 = Success, but with a negative complication. (GM's choice, or roll a d6)
- 16 to 20 = Full success in whatever was attempted.
- 21 and up = A resounding and total success. Add some bonus awesomeness. (GM's choice, or roll a d6)

[ic=Example, continued!]So if Mr. Billingsley rolls a 10 on the d20 and an 8 on his 3d6 and Lucy's 2d6 come up 9, the total is (10 + 8 - 9 =) 9. A narrow failure! He can spend an AP or just accept that he's not very good at punching women.[/ic]

So what's this AP stuff?
AP (Action Points, or, as I prefer to call them, Awesome Points) have a lot of uses.
Players can...
Spend 1 AP to make a declaration about the plot or temporarily take over a NPC
Spend 1 AP to get an extra action in conflicts
Spend 1 AP to "buy off" a negative complication (must narrate how)
Spend 1 AP to refuse a compel from the GM
Get 1 AP for playing out a character flaw
Get 1 AP for accepting a compel from the GM
Get 1 AP when rolling a 6 on "bonus awesomeness."

Negative Complications and Bonus Awesomeness
Some results on the above table call for... more tables! But, don't worry, this isn't Rolemaster. They're simple.
If the GM has a good idea for what to do (or the players suggest one!) just do that instead of rolling, anyway.

Negative Complications:
(1) Less than expected = It's still a success, but it's not really the success that you hoped for. It's still not a total failure, though.
(2) Unfavorable circumstances = This success messed something else up and will cause a -5 on a future roll. Probably the next one.
(3) It got worse = You succeed, but the GM introduces some additional bad stuff. More bad guys show up or whatever.
(4) Extra problems = You have to make an additional roll of some sort, different from the first one. If you fail that one, you totally fail at whatever it is.
(5) Hard bargain = You can succeed, but it's going to cost something else. Resources/getting hurt/whatever, or you fail.
(6) Tough choice = You can either fail, or succeed but have to do something you probably didn't want to do. Treat it like a compel.

Bonus Awesomeness:
(1) Critical success! = Whatever you were trying to do, you do it completely awesomely. More damage on an attack, or a resoundingly successful skill use, or whatever.
(2) Favorable circumstances! = This success also made something else easier. Get +5 on the next roll, or, at least, the next one that makes sense.
(3) Extra goodies! = Something else unexpectedly good happens in addition to your success.
(4) Bonus action! = You succeeded so fast you have time to spare. Do something else on your turn.
(5) What happens now?! = You get to take over the narrative for a short bit. Tell the GM what happens next.
(6) Awesome Awesomeness! = You did something that adds to your character's overall awesomeness. Collect an AP.

The idea behind these tables is that all rolls should be made from the player's perspective. So, if the PC is attacking an NPC, roll to attack. If the NPC is attacking, have the player roll to dodge, instead.

[spoiler=Extra Goodies]
These should depend on the situation, but here are some ideas:

Maybe an ally shows up at an opportune time, or you get to add some sort of combat maneuver for free.
If the character is hurting, recovering d2 stress is probably good.
If there's a damage roll and it's terrible, you get to maximize it instead.
Maybe a +5 bonus to something, if you can't think of anything else.
[/spoiler]

Stress
There is no specific system for tracking "hit points" or injuries or the like in Q&D. Instead, there is "Stress," which represents anything that could cause harm to the character. What exactly deals Stress should be dependent on the tone of the adventure. Getting a pie in the face may count as a normal hit in a slapstick comedy adventure, but hardly mean anything in one based on gritty combat. Anything that falls outside of the Stress system should just be handled with a normal roll and adjudicated appropriately.

Insignificant characters, like minions and other unimportant NPCs, shouldn't track Stress at all. One good hit, whatever it is, takes them out of combat. On the other hand, "important" characters start with the ability to take Stress. A weak hit in combat inflicts 1 Stress, a strong hit inflicts a weapon die, and a critical hit inflicts 2 weapon dice. When a character runs out of Stress, that character is taken out. That doesn't mean the character is dead-- indeed, the GM is encouraged to not kill off characters unless it's that kind of a game. Rather, it means the character is out of the combat and will probably suffer some added consequences as a result of being defeated.

Weapon dice are as follows:
[d2] - Vermin, improvised attacks, and other nuisances.
[d4] - NPC lackeys, and players' backup weapons.
[d6] - A "standard" weapon used by a player or featured NPC.
[d8] - A strong weapon, usually used by a big tough monster.
[d10] - An extremely dangerous attack, such as powerful magic.
A "weapon" doesn't have to be a physical weapon. A kung fu master's fists might be a d6 or even a d8 "weapon."

What about the skills?
They can be whatever you want, really, but here's a good starting point:
- Melee - Attacking with weapons or fists, and defending against attacks by same.
- Ranged - Making attacks with thrown objects, guns, or whatnot.
- Athletics - Moving around, dodging ranged attacks, carrying heavy things, and so on.
- Willpower - Enduring hardship, surviving, resisting temptation, and so on. Can defend against social skills.
- Charm - Talking nicely to someone, seducing, setting up a good relationship.
- Deceit - Lying, cheating, sneaking, gambling, and other tricky stuff.
- Persuasion - Getting someone to do what you want. It might be intimidation, but it might be a grandiose presence also.
- Perception - Knowing what's going on. Spotting things that are amiss. Useful to avoid non-social Deceit.
- Knowledge - Science, lore, or whatever the character is good at.
- Occult - Having a sense of the supernatural. Useful to resist (and maybe cast) magic.
- Vehicle - Operating a car, driving a carriage, or anything else involving a steering wheel.

Feel free to add more or less depending on what kind of game you want.

With this suggested skill list, around 20 points worth of skills makes a pretty competent character, 25 points starts getting into badass territory, and 30 points is for players who just want to be awesome at everything-- but who doesn't? You'll need to vary the points if you make big changes to the skill list.

Player characters should start with 10 Stress, but GMs who want to make skills matter more could change this to (8 + Willpower) Stress. Semi-important NPCs might have 4 or 5, and NPCs that are supposed to be roughly on par with the player characters could also have 10. Stronger NPC enemies like bosses and other important villains (and the like) should have more Stress, especially if they're going to be beaten upon by the whole party at once. Even 20 or 25 is not really unreasonable if they're going to be attacked repeatedly.

Combat Maneuvers
Instead of attacking, a character can opt to perform a combat maneuver instead. Decide what you want to do, and pick an effect from the Combat Maneuvers table (an adapted version of "Bonus Awesomeness") that seems to suit it. Alternatively, describe a fun and audacious combat stunt and roll then a d6 and let the whims of fate decide. Either way, roll an appropriate skill (Melee, Ranged, Athletics, Deceit, etc.) against an appropriate defense (Melee, Athletics, Willpower, Perception, etc.), and apply the effect on a success. Any of those bonuses can be used for yourself, or "passed" to an ally who has a turn coming up.

(1) Expose a Vulnerability = One future successful attack made on the target will do critical hit damage.
(2) Get the Advantage = One future roll made against the target will get a +5 bonus, or the target will get a -5 penalty to something.
(3) Create Confusion = If the target misses its next attack, then it hits one of its own allies instead. This is in addition to any other penalties.
(4) Stand Guard = Prevent the target from doing anything at all, or prevent all enemies from attacking a given ally or location.
(5) Dirty Trick = You do something situational that gives you an advantage in combat. It should be similar in scope to the other effects listed here.
(6) Aid Awesomeness = Do something for free that would normally require spending an AP. It still requires a turn if it otherwise would, though.

Another example!
[ic=A longer example of play]
[ooc=Dramatis Personae]
Mr. Billingsley, a drunken lout who insists upon thinking of himself as a suave British secret agent.
Madison James, the 4th President of the United States of Antarctica.
Gupta Von Gupta, Half-German, Half-Indian master engineer and Bollywood superstar.
Frau Panzerfaust, Gupta's former housekeeper, until she defected to the USA (the United States of Antarctica, that is)

Ugly Lucy, the supervillainess the heroes are hunting down.
[/ooc]

(OOC comments are in parenthesized italics)

GM: You have arrived at the lair of Ugly Lucy! She is surprised to see that you made it past her gauntlet of poorly trained mooks and overly elaborate traps, but, then again, that gives her the chance to try out her disintegration ray on you! And she's more than happy to do that!

Madison: You are in violation of the laws of the USA, Ugly Lucy! You are under arrest! Surrender peacefully and you will not be harmed! (I'm going to try to roll intimidation.)

GM: (Ok, but Lucy is formidable. She resists with 4 dice.)

Madison: (10 on the d20. I rolled a 9, and she got a 14. So that's... 5. Garden variety failure.)

GM (as Lucy): I am not impressed by your idle threats! Minions, attack!

Billingsley: Looks like we've got a fight on our hands. I guess it's time for a drink. I pull out my flask and drink! (+1 AP for playing to my character flaw)

GM: (Fair enough, but now you're so drunk you'll take -2 to rolls for the rest of this scene.)

Panzerfaust: I'm going to punch the nearest minion with my giant lady-fist of punching!

GM: (These minions aren't so tough. They only have a melee of 2)

Panzerfaust: (I roll... ooh, 15 on the d20, plus my Melee roll of 15. They only got a 6! So I have 24 in total. Give me some bonus awesomeness!)

GM: (Ok, d6 says... 5. What happens now, Frau Panzerfaust?)

Panzerfaust: I punch that minion so hard he goes flying into one of his minionly cohorts, and knocks the both of 'em out!

Gupta: While the others are fighting Lucy and her minions, I'm going to go try to sabotage her disintegration ray. (I can roll Knowledge, right?)

GM: (Sure. Use a difficulty of 15. It's some pretty fearsome technology.)

Gupta: (Ok, my d20 is 8... that's not going to help much. Knowledge came up 15. So I guess that's an 8. Can I spend an AP?)

GM: (Sure thing. So you just barely manage to sabotage the ray. The d6 says... 5. Hard bargain. Ok, so, you can sabotage the ray, but you get a nasty electric shock while you're doing it. Still want to do it?)

Gupta: (I pretty much have to. I've already spent an AP, and I don't want to fail now.) Yeeoch! I fall to the ground, smouldering a bit. I smell like burnt liverwurst mixed with curry!

GM: How... appetizing. Roll a d6 for Stress. Anyway, now it's Ugly Lucy's turn, and she doesn't look happy that you've sabotaged the ray. Unfortunately for you, she has another trick up her sleeve...

(The game goes on!)
[/ic]
[/spoiler]

[sparkletwist]

More archives.
[spoiler=Old Version of Classes]

Giving Q&D Some Class

With its reliance on player inventiveness and creativity and its rather fast and loose approach to having formalized systems for adjudicating anything, there is a certain "old school" quality to Q&D. So, what's more old school than a class-based fantasy adventure, probably with a healthy dose of dungeon crawling? Here are a few added rules to added classes rooted in a stereotypical fantasy setting using Q&D. This is a bit of a divergence from the example's weird 1960s spy movie setting, but then again, Q&D is well-suited to a lot of genres simply because it's so open.

So how does it work?
Q&D's classes come in two varieties, Standard and Custom, but they're actually pretty similar.

- To play a Standard class, simply pick one from the list below.
- To play a Custom class, choose a "Profession" and two other class features from among the class features in the Standard classes, then come up with a class name that describes what your new class is about.

You'll notice that these "class features" are more or less the same idea as Feats in d20, Stunts in FATE, or whatever. That's basically the idea, so players and GMs should be encouraged to make up their own somewhat along these lines, too. None of them should be system-breakingly-awesome, but just give a little edge to the things a character is expected to be good at.

[ooc=Warrior]Warriors overcome challenges with cold steel and force of will. They are the foot soldiers on the battlefield, but they are also quite often the chieftains and commanders.

Profession: Commander - Warriors get +5 bonus on any Charm or Intimidation roll used to recruit forces, command troops on the battlefield, negotiate military alliances, or other similar uses.

Class Features:

• Fierce Attack: Warriors are able to call up their strength and deliver crushing blows. A Warrior can spend an AP upon making a successful attack and inflict an extra d6 Stress, or, alternatively, something else the player and GM deem is suitable from the "Combat Maneuvers" or "Bonus Awesomeness" tables.
• Armor: Warriors rely on their armor to protect them. Any Warrior in armor reduces the Stress from a successful non-magical attack by one die size. Magical attacks are handled on a case-by-case basis: a fireball would probably be reduced by armor, but a psychic blast directly into the mind would not. The exact flavor of the armor is up to the player; anything from a simple shield to a full suit of plate mail is mechanically identical.

[/ooc]

[ooc=Rogue]Rogues skulk around in the shadows or manipulate the levers of power from behind the scenes. Most live only for themselves, but others find strength in a higher cause.

Profession: Scoundrel - Rogues get a +5 bonus to Perception or Deceit when sneaking around is involved. This usually applies to Initiative, as well.

Class Features:

• Sneak Attack: Rogues are adept at striking when an enemy least expects it. Before attacking, a Rogue can make an immediate Deceit check vs. the enemy's Perception, and, if it succeeds, the attack gets a +5 bonus, bypasses armor, and deals one die size higher damage. However, if it completely fails, the Rogue does not get to attack at all.
• Disarm Traps: Rogues are used to sneaking into places and dealing with potential dangers. They can roll Deceit to disarm all traps.

[/ooc]

[ooc=Cleric]Clerics are the true believers, bolstering their strength with the power of their faith. Whether they serve a virtuous or wicked deity, they do so with passion.

Profession: Holy Man - Clerics get a +5 bonus on Willpower rolls in any situation where their faith can help them.

Class Features:

• Holy/Unholy Power: Creatures of darkness cower in terror when faced with a good Cleric's holy power, or are mesmerized with awe by an evil Cleric's unholy power. Creatures of light feel the reverse. Whenever making a roll opposing any sort of strongly aligned creature, such as undead, angels or demons, spirits, or the like, a Cleric gets a +2 bonus. This applies to negotiations, threats, combat, and any other situation. By spending an AP, the Cleric can take on aspects of the holy or unholy power, such as glowing eyes, wisps of energy, and such. This increases the bonus to +5 for the rest of that scene.
• Prayer: Clerics may directly petition their patron deity for aid. By saying a brief prayer for a turn and spending an AP, they may make a plea that will usually be answered, as long as it is in line with their god's agenda. Typical effects would be a one-die bonus for the rest of the scene on a certain skill, an increase in the damage of the Cleric's weapon for the rest of the scene, the fortuitous appearance of an ally, or other such things. The "Bonus Awesomeness" table would be a good reference, as well, but the effects should generally be a little bit stronger than those. However, most gods help those who help themselves; GMs are encouraged to temporarily forbid this power if players use it too much!

[/ooc]

[ooc=Wizard]Wizards research esoteric secrets and weave spells using forbidden knowledge. No one has the mastery of pure magic that they do.

Profession: Arcanist - Wizards get a +5 bonus on Knowledge rolls dealing with their arcane areas of expertise.

Class Features:

• Cantrips: Wizards know lots of small, utilitarian spells. By concentrating on the spell for a turn and spending an AP, the Wizard is able to cast a minor spell to solve a problem. It should be something that can in theory be accomplished by mundane equipment, such as creating light, opening a door, lifting something, and so on. Sometimes a skill roll may be necessary; the Wizard can choose whether to roll the relevant skill, or Occult.
• Rituals: Wizards can also carry out longer incantations, such as conjuration, summoning, divination, attack, and defense. The Wizard spends an AP and decides on a ritual, which is assigned a complexity by the GM: anything from 5 for a quick magical attack to 30 or more for an elaborate summoning ritual. The Wizard then decides how many turns to break the ritual into, rolling against a portion of the difficulty on each one. For example, a complexity 20 ritual could be two turns of 10, or four turns of 5, or, if the Wizard is very skilled or confident, could try to handle it all at once. The results are then adjudicated each turn of casting, except "Bonus Awesomeness" simply reduces remaining complexity by 2.

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[ooc=Barbarian]Barbarians are rough and rugged, from uncivilized lands. They lead simple lives, but opponents underestimate their cunning at their own peril.

Profession: Survivalist - Barbarians get a +5 bonus on Knowledge or Willpower rolls related to surviving in the natural world.

Class Features:

• Rage: A Barbarian that has entered battle and either scored a hit or been injured can unleash a furious rage. The Barbarian gets +2 to Melee, Intimidation, and any other skill that would be relevant to battle, for the rest of the scene. In addition, if a raging Barbarian has just scored a hit and spends an AP to get another turn, the bonus is increased to +5 for that extra turn. However, Raging Barbarians also suffer a -5 penalty to Knowledge, Charm, Deceit, and other such skills. The Rage cannot be "turned off" at will; the Barbarian must wait until the scene ends to be able to calm down.
• Simple Soul: Barbarians have simple and rugged souls as well as bodies, and are not nearly as affected by the esoteric, subtle effects of magic. Attempts to resist enemy magic get a +5 bonus.

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[sparkletwist]

Reserved for future archives or whatever.

[sparkletwist]

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