Painting Projects

I got a few things painted this weekend.

First, I finally assembled and painted a "Ramshackle Barn" I had bought and left on the shelf for a couple of years:

I also painted a set of six Valkyries that I ordered last week.  I've actually been looking at them at the Old Glory website for about 15 years, but never ordered.   At one point I thought I had ordered them and started to look for them during a game, but realized I never had actually done it.  Now, I've finally got and painted them.   They are a little more opera-singerish than I expected.

What's Lamer than an Unboxing Video?

An Unboxing Blog post, that's what.

Here are the pictures of the boxes of 2 buildings I ordered from "Miniature Building Authority"

Here's the Town House, unboxed:

Here's the Stable, unboxed

Not FInished, But Complete

Pushing my brand-new 28" snow blower through 4 feet snow drifts, I finally know what it is like to drive a mole machine. 

I may not yet be finished with my driveway,  but I am complete.

Lackey Class

I've taken the Lackey class I had made for ACKS and converted it into a level-limited NPC class useful for utility henchmen for D&D.

LACKEYS (NPC CLASS)

 

Prime Requisite: Constitution

Experience Bonus: 5% if Constitution 13+, 10% if Consititution 16+.

Hit Dice:  1d6 per level until 6^th

Maximum Level: 6

Armor:  leather, also, beginning at 4^th level: shield, scale, chain

Weapons: any axe, hammer, mattock, club, staff and dagger.  May used tools as weapons without the improvised penalty.  2 others gained at 6^th level.

Special Abilities:  Porter power,  Open Locks, Find/Remove Traps, Hear Noise. Fire Man, Detect Poison, Exchange, Shield Man, Battlefield Surgeon, Trusted Goon

 

Lackeys are skilled henchmen trained to support their principal during his adventures.  Unlike other classes, lackeys can be in almost any race from humans to halflings to goblins.

 

CLASS DETAILS

Prime Requisite:  A lackey's prime requisite is Constitution.  If the lackey has a Constitution of 13-15 he gains a +5% experience bonus.  If the lackey has Constitution of 16-18 he gains a +10% experience bonus.

Hit Dice: Roll a d6 to determine a lackey's hit points, plus Constitution bonus, if any.  He gets 1d6 extra points plus Con bonus for each experience level thereafter until 5th level, the maxmimum level for lackeys.

Armor: A lackey can wear leather armor and may not carry a shield. 

Weapons:  A lackey may use any sort of axe, hammer, mattock, club, staff or dagger and may use any tool as weapon without incurring the improvised weapon penalty.

 

SPECIAL ABILITIES

 Porter Power

If a lackey is wearing a Porter’s Pack or Back Pack, any items inside them only count half their weight toward encumbrance.

 Thief Skills

Lackeys have the ability to Open Locks, Find Traps, Remove Traps and Hear Noise, as a thief of the same experience level.

 Fire Man

Beginning at 2^nd level, a lackey with flint and steel can light a torch, candle or lantern in a single round, even if there is total darkness all about.  He can also use a lit torch as a missile weapon with a 10/20/30 foot range.

Detect Poison

Beginning at 3^rd level, a lackey can detect whether a trap, weapon, or treasure is smeared with poison, the percentage chance is the same as his Find Traps ability.  He must spend 1 round visibily examining the object.

 Exchange: 

Beginning at 3^rd level, a lackey within 5 feet of his boss can smoothly exchange any item in his hands with any item in his boss’s hands without his boss spending any of his turn’s action in doing so (assuming they act on the same initiative).

 Shield Man

Beginning at 4^th level, a lackey has learned enough about dungeon combat that he may now use a shield, scale and chain armor.  He also can use the Shield Wall, Shield Sacrifice and Shield Push maneuvers in combat.

 Battlefield Surgeon

Beginning at 5^th level, a lackey has developed sufficient skill at sewing up wounds that he can cure 1d6 hit points of damage, once per person (1 turn—10 minutes-- of work each) after each battle that is fought.  This requires needle and thread, a supply of cloth for bandages and 1 pint of wine or strong waters per patient.  The attempt is not automatic, he must roll the highest of his Intelligence, Wisdom or Dexterity or less on a d20.

 Trusted Goon

At 6^th level, a lackey may pick any two weapons that his class normally does not have access to and gain proficiency with those two weapons.   He can also choose 1 combat option that is normally restricted to classes other than his own, and may now use that combat option.

 MAXIMUM EXPERIENCE LEVEL

Since Lackeys are specifically trained and function as underlings and henchmen, they cannot progress past the 6^th level of experience.

 LACKEY SAVING THROWS:

Lackeys use the same saving throw tables as thieves.

 LACKEY COMBAT:

Lackeys use the same attack tables as thieves, and do not gain combat options or maneuvers except those available to all classes and as noted under the Shield Man and Trusted Goon abilities.   They also do not gain thieves' backstab ability. 

 LACKEY EXPERIENCE TABLE

 

EXP LEVEL	EXP POINTS	HD	POWERS
1	0	1d6	Thief Skills,  Porter Power
2	1200	2d6	Fire Man
3	2400	3d6	Exchange, Detect Poison
4	4800	4d6	Shield Man
5	9600	5d6	Battlefield Surgeon
6	19.200	6d6	Trusted Goon

 RECRUITING LACKEYS:

Lackeys can be found in the regular henchman recruiting deck, but if a Normal Man (or halfling or goblin or gnome or dwarf etc) accompanies an adventuring party into a dungeon or similar dangerous quest and receives 100gp or more in treasure, the DM may allow him to become a first level lackey and be recruited as a henchman.

Rules for Breaking Things

Do we need a set of clear rules for busting up doors and chests, using acid to open locks and that sort of thing?  I know I've whipped them up in the past, and we used them a lot in Skull Mountain.   Should I include them in the Rules Update I'm going to send covering Movement and Spell Books?
I'm thinking that on the one hand, it might be useful, on the other, it might be clutter.

I so want to do this

I saw this conversion of the Airfix desert fort into a medieval monastery model, and I so want to do it too:

It's at the following link:  Paul's Monastery Conversion


Of course, mine would turn out like Homer Simpson's barbeque pit,  and I have a Barn and a Church kits that I haven't put together yet.  Oh, and  a model Walled Fortress kit and some siege engines I haven't put together either.   Oh, and I have some miniatures to paint as well.  And what I really need are some medieval townhouses for more city work like Sunday's game.


I guess I have to put my foot down and not try to get an Airfix desert fort. 


Thank the lord, it's out of production.  I'm sure I could hunt down a used one, but no, I think I'm safe now.


Come to think of it, it may essentially be the same as the Medieval Fortress kit I've had sitting in my basement for a year.  Way to go, me.

Acquiring New Arcane Spells

I've sort of left out any discussion of how Magic-Users, Bards, Elves and Gnomes get additional spells into their spell books.  Of course, they can copy them from captured spell books or scrolls if they have Read Magic (which they all do, unless they do something really stupid). 


However, I never made up my mind about the process of gaining spells in other fashions.  I believe the Old School method was you just had to find them and copy them.   ACKS allowed you to do research at library, but the mechanism is all tied up with the Repertoire system they use.  


Various Newer School versions of the game have your mentor teach you exactly 1 spell each time you go up a level, until a certain level and then stop.  ACKS I believe granted 1 spell per level through your own efforts.  


Almost every version of D&D discourages characters and NPC's from sharing spells willy-nilly with each other, but doesn't have a scheme to enforce this.


I'm really torn about the whole business.  At one level, I'd really prefer to require that all spells be captured from a spell book or scroll.  However, that might totally gimp mages if things go pear-shaped. 


Perhaps we could rule that when a magic-user goes up a level he gains a random spell at his highest spell level, or perhaps he picks 4 spells of any level he could cast and gets to draw randomly from those four.  Now, that's why I do Dr. Skull's Workshop.   Writing stuff down does help sort things out and brings some good ideas to the surface.


So here's the proposal:


1--Every Time an arcane caster goes up an experience level, he lists 4 spells that he is interested in acquiring, and these spells can be of any spell level that he is able to cast.   The DM then rolls randomly among the 4 spells and the resulting spell is added to the caster's spell book (requiring one dose of magic ink).


2--.  Once a magician is beyond the apprentice stage, he can add a spell to his book either through his own discoveries when he gains a level, (see entry 1 above)  or when he does research to create a new spell, or by copying a scroll spell into his book (destroying the scroll in the process), or by copying from a captured spell book, wiping the spell from the original book.  In order for two magicians to trade spells without losing the spell from his original book, each must make a scroll and trade the scrolls. 


3--Rules for Travelling Spell Books: are changed, the spells in the Traveling Spell Book are written in them using the rules for making Scrolls, not for copying spells into a book.


I like this a lot now.   This keeps all the enemy spells books from becoming proliferating monsters.   You copy the good spells, and sell off the partially empty book.

Henchmen Experience

For treasure, it's simple.  Whatever treasure you give your henchmen, they immediately spend  1d6x10+40%  (so somewhere between half and all of it) and that is applied to experience.  They save the rest for equipment etc.


For chip experience, I never really stated what we're doing.   How about, whatever number of chips the PC cashes in, each henchman is calculated as to cashing in half that number (round up?, round down?) and gets XP as his level would indicate.  Good, bad?

Wrestling with the Mycretians

One unique feature of City State of the World Emperor are the Mycretians.   These guys are a religion and a class.   The religion is Lawful Good, and the Mycretians go around helping people and trying to be nice to everyone.   They are sort of the key opponents of the Emperor.


However, the class is quite strange.  It has all these strange powers, most to do with calming people down, seeing their auras, and so forth.  They are more or less pacifistic and don't wear armor or carry weapons beyond a staff.  However, they have one big power, an anti-magic aura of protection which has about a 50/50 chance (adjusted for level) of stopping magic attacks.


I definitely don't want PC's to be Mycretians, and I don't really see any of our PC's WANTING to be Mycretians.   What I am wondering is whether to use the Mycretian class for Mycretian NPC's or radically adapt it to be more like a cleric.   The religion definitely needs to be in game, but the class is super freaky, and I just can't seem to get my head wrapped around it yet.


I guess I'll just side-step Mycretians the first week and figure it out before week 2.  But, it is a source of puzzlement to me.

Names for Henchmen

One of my favorite things in game prep, is of course to give names to the Henchmen in the hench-deck.


So far here's my new scheme:


Clerics: have their title from City-State of the World Empire religious hierarchy, plus some outlandish personal name, e.g.  Orator Randafuniculus,  Diabole Bloodpool


Magic-User: some outlandish personal name plus the words "OF THE" and an "ADJECTIVE" and a "NOUN":   so Fabius of the Stern Visage;  Ramesses of the Black Cloak  and so forth.


Fighter;  just 2 fighterish names:  Miles Broadaxe


Thief:  always alliterate:   Waldo Wagstaff,  Olivia Orango


Mystic:  like a made-up yoga pose:   Sunrise Gopher,  Jubliant Crab, Reluctant Eel.


I haven't gotten to Dwarves, Elves, Gnomes, Halflings, Berserkers or Bards yet.  I will be paralyzed with indecision for the Dwarves and Halflings.  Since we're on a new world, I can't go with Jack and Bosco anymore.

Monster Thoughts

I never set a baseline for Monster Stats in the House Rules.   My thoughts are these:  Monsters will have any stats that the DM decides they will have.   For Example, we can use the RC HD rating for Wights one week, and the AD&D HD rating for Wights the next week, and double that the week after.   I'm just reckoning that monsters have "levels" too and we just don't know what they are,


The fact that we are using the process of cashing in Fate Chips and Treasure for XP instead of calculation monster XP, should make the variable stats more easy to manage.


I figure most of the common humanoids are pretty much the same across the versions, so a common schlub orc is going to have 1 HD, a Hobgoblin 1+1 HD etc.   But, weird monsters should be scarier and more unpredictable.

Fighting Withdraw, Retreat, and Interrupting Spells

While the base rule for ACKS were based directly off of the RC D&D I'm starting from,  there's a big difference in a few things.   In RC there's no need to call "Defensive Movement" or "Spell" before rolling initiative.   Fighting withdraw is just a 5 foot move back, and if someone closes on you, you can hit them.  Retreat is a running move away, with the enemy getting a free back-attack against you.
There's no rule for spell-interrupting.

I think we an leave the two types of defensive moves the way they are.  But, we may want to allow spell interruption.   If you have a higher card, you can hold until enemy tries to cast a spell, and then if you make a DEX check you can try to hit him and spoil the spell if you do damage.

Henchmen Cards

I've started to put together a stack of henchmen cards.  Since I'm not using any sort of skill system or proficiency system this time, it makes the creation faster and easier.   I decided to use the "Standard Array" from D&D 3e for Ability Scores for the first batch, so I can get a large number out quickly--the Ability Score dice rolls are a quite a time-suck for the henchmen--so each one has 15,14,13,12,10,8 arranged to suit.


I've decided to just print 4 guys on a standard 81/2 x11 sheet of paper and cut them into 4, rather than printing on cards, again a huge time saver.


Here's a sample:

SHAMUS SHADEBOTTOM

Human,   thief,  level-1,  Neutral
Str 12 (+0) Int 10 (0), Wis 8(-1), Dex 15(+1), Con 14(+1), Cha 13(+1)
AC 6 (leather, +1 Dex)
Combat Movement: 8”,  Run/Explore  24” (120ft)
HD: 1d6+1        Current HP: 
Base THACO: 19
Short Sword: THACO 19, 1d6
Darts: THACO 18, 1d4, range  3”, 6”. 9”
Gear: leather, short sword, case of 10 darts, thief’s tools, back pack
Ol 20, F/RT 15, CW 92, MS 25, HS 15, PP 25  HN 30

EXP (+5%):                                        TREASURE:

I've just decided to go with THACO, and to convert move and ranges to inches


I decided that all Thieves have alliterative names.   Mystics all sound like fake yoga-positions (Sunrise Gopher, Exalted Ox, Jubilant Crab).

FATE CHIPS

Here are the first set of rules for Fate Chips.   It seems to me that when I used them before (for Castles an Crusades many years ago) that these took the place of Experience Points for Monsters, in addition to being a story mechanism.   So the more skillful play, without spending chips, you showed, the more XP you got.   Since monster XP is really secondary to Treasure XP in old-timey D&D anyway, I'm inclined to keep it that way.  It's one less thing to keep track of during the game.  But, it's a big question, so let me know thoughts.

Getting Fate Chips: each Player begins the session with 3 Fate Chips.  He will gain more through the course of the game session.  Generally speaking, each significant combat or role-playing encounter that involves some risk, or advances the action, goal or mission will result in either 1 or 2 Fate Chips being awarded to each player who participated.  The GM can award more for significant actions to specific players.  At most 1 encounter per session can be designated a “key encounter” or “super dangerous monkey-slap encounter” and be worth 3 chips.

Spending Fate Chips: a player may spend Fate Chips during the game to help any character or henchman under his control.  Chips may be spent to do the following actions:

• Re-roll a die: 1 chip allows any result to be re-rolled, but only 1 chip per roll may be spent.  The re-roll can never be worse than the original roll.
• Heal: immediately heal 1d4 hit points of damage suffered
• Maximum Damage: score maximum damage on a single die rolled for damage (so you can max out a great axe shot d10, but not a 6d6 fireball).
• Put the Hoo-Doo: cause an enemy to suffer –4 on a saving throw.  This use may be vetoes by the GM at his whim.
• Death to Wound: it is assumed that whenever a character reaches –1 hit points, he is dead.  If you spend a chip, you can transfer that into a lethal wound, reset to -1 hit points, that bleeds 1 hit point per round until treated. Character dies if he reaches -10 hit points or spends a second chip to stabilize the wound (or heals it to 1 hp or better).
• Change the World: allows the player’s character to find a piece of needed mundane equipment, or to turn a non-hostile npc into an old friend met by chance, or similar minor effect.

 

Cashing In Fate Chips: when the session is over, each player must cash in his Fate Chips.  Each chip left over is worth 100 experience points (if characters are levels 1-3). 200 experience points (if characters are levels 4-6), or 300 experience points (if characters are levels 7-9) or 500xp (if the characters are levels 10+).  The main character under the player’s control gets the full value of the chips he holds at the end, but henchmen get ½ that value.

MAKING MAGIC ITEMS: Scrolls and Foci

Every caster will be able to make magic scrolls at any level (the Holmes Rule).  Additionally, they can all make a type of permanent object called a Magic Focus by sacrificing a spell-slot permanently.

SPELL SCROLLS:  clerics, druids, magic-users, illusionists, gnomes and elves of any level (but not bards) can scribe a scroll of any spell he can cast.  First the caster must have 1 sheet of Purest Vellum (50gp) per spell scribed.  Secondly, the caster must use 1 dose of Magic Ink (arcane) or Sacred Ink (cleric), per spell level of the spell.  Each dose costs 100gp.    The scroll takes 1 week per spell level to write. 

 

MAGICAL FOCUS:  every spell casting class has the ability to make permanent magic devices known as Magical Foci.  To do so, he must permanently sacrifice 1 spell slot from his casting power.  He then imbues the magic focus with the power to bring forth a spell that the caster knows and is able to cast with the desired spell slot three times per day, regardless of the caster’s state of rest or study.  The device takes 1 week per spell level of prayer or incantation to create, and 100gp per spell level in either Holy Incense (clerics) or Mystic Myrrh (other casters).   Primitive or impoverished casters can skip the incense or myrrh, but it multiplies the preparation time by 4.  The focus forever functions as if the spell it produces was cast by a caster at the level at which the creator was when the focus was created.  At a later date, if the caster wishes to make an additional focus, he can either add another spell to the same device or create a separate device.  Since the focus is bound to the creator’s personal energies, if the caster dies, there is a 90% chance minus 5% per experience level that each of his foci will be destroyed at the same time, and if the caster is raised from the dead, his foci do not reform.  If a focus is destroyed by some other means, on the other hand, the caster does not get his spell slot back.  A focus can be used by anyone of the same class as the creator, but for such a person it will only operate once per day.

 

            Example:  Orville of Redenbacker is a 3^rd level magic-user.  He can cast 2 level 1 and 1 level 2 spells per day.   He decides that he needs more magic power.  He decides to give up one level 1 spell slot permanently, in order to make “Orville’s Bitchin’ Headband of Magic Missiles”, a magic focus.   He will be able to use the Focus to cast Magic Missile spell three times per day, but will forever cast 1 fewer first level spell than his level allows.  At third level, his magic missile spell launches 2 missiles, but even when Orville has advanced to 10^th level and could cast 5 missiles with a normal spell, his head band will still only launch 2 missiles per casting.   One day when Orville was 8^th level, he is killed by a poison trap.   90% minus 5%x8 equals 50% chance that his head band will survive.  It does so, and his partner Steve the Elf and his Apprentice Cheesy Joe both claim it.  However, since Steve is of a different class (elf) he can’t use it and gives way and allows Joe to take it.  Joe can now use the headband to cast 1 free magic missile spell per day.

FUMBLES

I like to see the occasional fumble, broken weapon/bow string.   This solution makes it possible but uncommon (far less common than just rolling a natural 1)

 

FUMBLES:  whenever a character or monster draws the 2 of clubs (formerly known as the “I go last card” know known as the “Fumble Card”) he will suffer a Fumble or Mishap.  Archers will have a bow string break, swordsmen will drop their swords, those with a wooden-hafted (non-magic) weapon will see that weapon break, spell-casters will trip and fall.   In all cases, the character loses his action for the round.  If the fumble affects a whole group, the leader only will have a weapon break or drop, the henchmen or followers simply lose their turn.

Combat Options, part 4

GRAPPLE

Classes: all classes

Requirement: having both hands free

Benefit: on successful hit, roll Str or less on d20, if succeeds, target saves vs. paralysis or has one of his limbs held.  May attempt save each round to break hold.

Penalty:  -2 to hit (except mystics) if enemy armed.  No damage scored by attack.

SUNDER

Classes: fighter, gnome, dwarf, elf, berserker

Requirement: using any axe or sword, or any 2-handed weapon except a staff

Benefit: May aim for the Weapon (AC 2) or Shield (AC 6) of an enemy instead of his body.  If hit is scored roll damage and then roll damage scored or less on d20 to break a shield or weapon with wooden haft.  If weapon is all metal, half the damage.

Penalty: The attack scores no damage on the target.

Combat Options part 3

SHIELD WALL

Classes: fighter, dwarf, elf, berserker

Requirement: 3 or more adjacent characters all taking this action and using shields

Benefit: all characters in the shield wall get a +3 boost to AC in the direction of the wall.

Penalty: Movement is restricted to 30 feet, all members are on the same initiative, and weaponry restricted to spears, daggers or short swords.

 

SHOOT YOUR FACE

Classes: fighter, elf, halfling,  mystic

Requirement: Using a bow or crossbow (halflings may use rock or sling as well)

Benefit: add 4 points to damage

Penalty: suffer a -4 to hit penalty

 

SMASH

Classes: fighter, dwarf, elf, halfling, gnome, mystic, berserker

Requirement: 9^th level or greater (special for Demi-humans)

Benefit: add Strength Score to total damage

Penalty: -5 to hit, goes last in initiative for round

 

SPLIT-FIRE ATTACK

Classes: elf

Requirement: using short bow or long bow

Benefit: elves can move at running speed and shoot a bow at any point during movement.

Penalty: You have to live with yourself as an elf.

 

TO THE HILT

Classes: fighter, gnome, berserker, thief

Requirement: using a dagger

Benefit: dagger does +1 damage and is stuck in the wound doing 1 point of damage per round until pulled out (uses attack action)/

Penalty: The attack is made at -4 to hit.

 

TRIP

Classes: fighter, dwarf, elf, gnome, halfling, berserker, mystic

Requirement: using a 2-handed weapon (mystics may use legs)

Benefit: If attacker hits AC 4, target must roll DEX or less (monsters 8+HD) or fall prone

Penalty: Attack scores no damage.

 

UNHORSE

Classes: fighter, dwarf, elf, mystic

Requirement: using a polearm vs. mounted enemy

Benefit:  if hit AC 5 or better, target must save vs. paralysis or fall from horse.

Penalty:  hit does no damage.

Combat Options Part 2

RAPID FIRE

Classes: elf, fighter, halfling

Requirement: using short bow or long bow

Benefit: make one extra shot per round

Penalty: may not move in round

 

REACH ATTACK

Classes: fighter, elf, mystic

Requirement: using spear or pike

Benefit:  may attack enemy that is 5 feet away from actual contact

Penalty:  -2 to hit

 

RIDE-BY ATTACK

Classes: fighter

Requirement: mounted on war horse

Benefit: human fighters on warhorses can make their attack(s) at any point of his horse’s movement, and continue to move, without facing a free attack, except by set vs charge.

Penalty: subject to “set vs. charge” attack by any target with spear or pike.

 

SET VS. CHARGE

Classes: fighter, dwarf, elf, halfling, gnome, mystic, berserker

Requirement: using spear or pike, charged by enemy

Benefit: double rolled weapon damage when charged by enemy

Penalty: may not move in round

 

SHIELD PUSH

Classes: fighter, dwarf, elf, gnome, halfling, berserker

Requirement: using a shield

Benefit: Instead of making an attack, the character pushes enemy with his shield.  If the attacker scores a hit, the defender is pushed back 5 feet, plus 5 feet per point of Strength Bonus

Penalty: The attacker scores no damage and must, of course follow along with the target.  Shield push is ineffective against targets a size code bigger than the attacker.

 

SHIELD SACRIFICE

Classes: fighter, dwarf, elf, gnome, halfling, berserker

Requirement: using a shield

Benefit: 1 enemy attack that would have hit is completely blocked.

Penalty: The shield being used is completely destroyed by the attack

Combat Options Part 1

I've pirated various combat options from older campaigns and come up with a preliminary list.  Here's section 1

CHARGE:

Classes: fighter, dwarf, elf, halfling, gnome, mystic, berserker

Requirement:  move at least 10 feet in straight line directly into contact

Benefit:  +2 to hit, allows running speed movement and an attack

Penalty: liable to Set vs, Charge effect, -2 AC for rest of round

 

DISARM

Classes: fighter, dwarf, elf, gnome, halfling, berserker, mystic, thief

Requirement: using a sword, whip or 2-handed weapon (Mystics may use hands)

Benefit: If attacker hits AC 2, target must roll DEX or less (monsters 8+HD) or drop weapon

Penalty: Attack scores no damage.

 

MIGHTY SWEEP

Classes: fighter, dwarf, elf, mystic, berserker

Requirement: begin in melee contact, using a 2-handed weapon (except spear/pike)

Benefit:  Each adjacent target must either move back 5ft (free) or be attacked.  Attacker therefore might be able to attack a large number of enemies.

Penalty: if all enemies step back, attacker loses his attack, but may be clear to move.

 

RAMPAGE (replaces multiple attack rules in RC)

Classes: fighter, dwarf, elf, halfling, gnome, mystic, berserker

Requirement: proper class

Benefit: make an additional number of attacks during a round, depending on level

Penalty: suffering hit points of damage scaling with the number of attacks

	Minimum Level	Additional Attacks	Damage
Rampage A	1	1	1
Rampage B	4	2	3
Rampage C	7	3	6
Rampage D	10	4	10
Rampage E	13	5	15
Rampage F	16	6	21

So, if a 4^th level fighter decides to rampage during a round, he could either get 1 additional attack, suffering 1 point of damage in the process, or 2 additional attacks, suffering 3 points of damage in the process.

Initiative and Surprise

A—SURPRISE: 

When two parties blunder into one another, a check for surprise must be made.  Each side rolls 1d6, adding modifiers listed below.  If one side rolls 3 points or more higher than the other, the lower rolling side is said to be surprised, the winning side may take 1 round’s actions before initiative is checked.   The non-surprised side is also considered unspotted by the others and may take reasonable measures to avoid the encounter instead of taking action.  

 

Surprise Modifiers:

Party has a Mystic or Halfling             +1

Party is Stealthy                                  +1  (no metal armor, moving carefully)

Party is Silent   +3  (move silently, or silence spell, or  elves/halflings no metal armor)

Party is Invisible                                  +3 (hide in shadows or invisibility magic)

Party is waiting in ambush                  +2

Camp protected by guard dogs          +3

Party has horses/mounts                    -2

Party is 10+                                         -2

Party is 20+                                         -4

If alone                                    +Dex Bonus

If on watch/on point                             + Wisdom Bonus

Stalking Predator Animal                    +2

Monster with surprise bonus               +2

 

B—Initiative

Each player and group of similar monsters will be dealt a Playing Card at the start of the round.  Play will cycle through from highest card to lowest card.   Active unit may hold action to a later point in the same round if desired, but if he tries to interrupt an enemy action in mid-move there will be an opposed level roll (each unit rolls 1d12+level, if interrupter scores higher, he interrupts enemy).  

If a character has 16-17 Dexterity he may draw 2 cards and use the better card.  If a character has 18 Dexterity he may draw 3 cards and use the best of the three.   

When someone draws a Joker, he gains +2 to hit, damage, and saving throws for the round and may act at any point in the round he wishes. 

BIG QUESTION:  is 3 points difference enough for Surprise, or should it be 4?