Friday, May 29, 2015

Twenty System Questions

This "twenty questions" list from Necropraxis is pretty good, and worth reproducing here. Most of the answers are just "we're using ACKS and follow its rules. But since not everyone is familiar with them, a summary is potentially helpful.

1) Ability scores generation method?

3d6 in order -- hardcore! You can generate up to five characters, and pick your favorite.

2) How are death and dying handled?

At 0 hp you take a mortal wound and fall unconscious. After battle you roll to figure out if you were killed or just horribly maimed.

3) What about raising the dead?

Quite possible. Expensive. Possible side effects.

4) How are replacement PCs handled?

Start at same experience as your original PC, unless you've banked gold for an heir.

5) Initiative: individual, group, or something else?

Individual, but identical monsters roll as group.

6) Are there critical hits and fumbles? How do they work?

No fumbles. Crits only if you take Weapon Focus proficiency, they do double base damage.

7) Do I get any benefits for wearing a helmet?

Not unless it's magical.

8) Can I hurt my friends if I fire into melee or do something similarly silly?

Totally not allowed, unless you have Precise Shooting, which makes it perfectly safe (but hard).

9) Will we need to run from some encounters, or will we be able to kill everything?

If you wander off the beaten path, you'll need to run from stuff. I'll try to drop hints.

10) Level-draining monsters: yes or no?

Yes. Permanent effect is aging, though, not experience loss. Temporary effect is negative levels.

11) Are there going to be cases where a failed save results in PC death?

Pretty much no, unless your hit points are really low. Some monsters (spiders, scorpions) have deadly poisons. There are suicidal choices that don't involve dice rolling.

12) How strictly are encumbrance & resources tracked?

Encumbrance calculated at start of sessions, and any time you pick up a lot of stuff. Resources tracked only if your heading far into the wilderness.

13) What’s required when my PC gains a level? Training? Do I get new spells automatically? Can it happen in the middle of an adventure, or do I have to wait for down time?

Happens automatically. Not in the middle of a session, but any time between sessions is fine. You can get a free low-level spell each level from your guild.

14) What do I get experience for?

Looting gold/gems/jewels (primary source), ideally from large hoards in lairs. Also a little from kills and exploration

15) How are traps located? Description, dice rolling, or some combination?

Either will work. I'm not out to kill you.

16) Are retainers encouraged and how does morale work?

If the group is undersized, sure. Morale checks if asked to do something stupid, or if other retainers start dying.

17) How do I identify magic items?

Use detect magic to know if it's magical. A Magical Engineering or Loremastery check, and you'll know what kind of magic. Basic items (+1 swords, potions, etc) you can experiment with ("spar with it a bit", or "take a small sip") to learn, although that risks malign effects. A sage (NPC you can hire) or 9th level mage can identify anything safely, given time and money.

18) Can I buy magic items? Oh, come on: how about just potions?

Yes, but it's absurdly expensive. Much better to find them. There are better uses for gold.

19) Can I create magic items? When and how?

Basic stuff like scrolls at 5th level, fancy stuff at 9th. Again, super-expensive, and requires collecting monster parts as reagents. I have a list of them somewhere.

20) What about splitting the party?

Go for it.

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