WHITEHACKHACK ENCUMBRANCE Use the Constitution attribute to determine the number of equipment slots that character has. The number of slots is equal to Constitution. When a character attempts to carry more than their number of slots’ worth, apply -1 sq to MV per slot in excess. All tasks and saves that rely on quick movement or balance are made negative double -- roll two d20, and take the worse result. Slots ○ and Dots • For items with a listed weight, divide that weight by 10 and round to obtain the number of slots needed to keep this item. For large items with no listed weight, divide the cost by 10 and round. The minimum number of slots such an item may require is one. For smaller items, just mark each instance of a given item as a dot. Five dots fill a single slot. When using most consumable items, roll a number of d6 equal to the number of dots. For every 1 rolled, erase a dot off that inventory item. Magic items are consumed as specified by the item. INITIATIVE Initiative will be done by rolling one d6 per side. Initiative bonuses from high Dexterity apply, and are totaled per side. The highest result goes first for the duration of combat. Ties are settled by highest Dexterity, then by a contest against Dexterity, taking one member from each side. XP A slight clarification as to when exactly experience is gained as a result of finding treasure... experience is not accumulated upon sight , but at the end of the session when the treasure is sold, spent, or saved. Experience from encounters is handled as written. MIRACLES I found the miracle cost system to be interesting, but punishing. To serve this concern, rather than an HP cost an alternative is presented. Wise characters accrue Fatigue (FT) whenever they cast a miracle. FT cost is determined the same way as HP cost in Hit Point Costs for Magic (p.20). If a Wise character performs a miracle that causes FT to exceed their current HP, they must make a save or fall unconscious. This test is made every turn (10 seconds) until their current HP is above FT. After a short rest, FT is halved. FT alleviated (reset to 0) after a full rest. The rules governing magic item creation and permanency are left untouched... mostly! You are still paying HP for items, and max HP for permanency. However, max HP costs paid when current XP is within (1000*LVL) of your next level carry over when they determine HP at advancement. Under this revision, Wise characters recover HP just the same as Deft and Strong characters, also regaining the option to heal from spells and potions. Miracles in Combat In combat, the role of the miracles is de-emphasized. It is claimed that most miracles simply take too long to perform in under 10 seconds (the duration of a round). How are the Wise expected to perform in combat? By relying on created items, and by using material components to reduce the cast time. If an amount of damage is left to be determined, it will be a function of the cost. In the case of “just good enough” wording, a 1-to-1 ratio should suffice, with the damage being determined by payment on the scale (p.20). If the caster must pay 1d6+2, they do 1d6+2. The results of the rolls may differ. This would be for a single target. Adding an area of effect, status effects, and so forth will increase the cost without increasing the damage. Having spot-on group/miracle wording will decrease the cost without decreasing the potential damage. THE STRONG If you like, point to combat options from other TTRPGs and I’ll add them to the list of options -- after a bit of editing, of course. 9. On a crit, you may declare an attempt to dismember an enemy whose AC is below half your level. They get a save. If they fail, the appendage of your choice is severed -- on top of damage. The window for declaration increases by 1 each time you take this option. 10. You may reduce your max HP by a number of d6 to increase SV for poison and death by that number plus one (i.e. sacrifice 2d6 to get +3). If this brings your HP below 1, you collapse and remain unconscious for the duration of a full rest. The bonus lasts until a successful save or a full rest. Your max HP is thereby recovered, regardless. 11. Attacking with blunt weapons, you may declare an attempt to knock an enemy back. If your HD is greater, they are sent a number of squares equal to the difference. If they impact a surface before the distance is covered, the enemy takes that much damage. 12. Treat a held shield as a weapon. Divide its weight by 10 and round to get its damage. The shield may also stun whomever it hits, if they fail a save. MORE SPECIAL COMBAT OPTIONS Some extra options, the rest are on p.18. Riposte : As an attack action, make a task roll against your Dexterity. If successful, until your next turn you may respond to any melee attack with a free attack -- normal restrictions on free attacks apply. If your attack hits, your opponent’s attack is interrupted in addition to damage. Sunder : Make an attack at combat disadvantage. Any damage dealt becomes a damage/AC penalty to the target equipment until it is replaced or repaired. Penalties do not stack, but may be increased by dealing more damage than current best. Swap : Two willing parties may spend one free action each to trade positions, as long as they are adjacent. Aim : As an attack action, you may carefully prepare your next strike, gaining combat advantage until you either move or attack, whichever comes first. DUNGEON TURNS When an adventure calls for it, dungeon turns will be used to represent the passage of time, tracked in 10 minute increments. For example, attempting to - search a 4-by-4 sq area - disarm a trap - pick a lock - climb a wall - bust down a door - break a wall - partake in combat and so forth are considered to take 1 dungeon turn. After 1 hour, torches burn out. After 3 hours, humans will become hungry. After 9 hours (not including hours spent resting) humans will become tired. STARTING ABOVE LEVEL ONE In the case that a character starts above level 1, determine stats in the normal way. Additionally, start with an extra amount of money equal to a quarter of your total XP. So, a level 5 Wise would have 5,000 gold (or whichever unit of wealth is used by the standard in play) in addition to the starting 3d6. EXTRA ITEMS If the item is mundane, the Grain Into Gold (Board Enterprises) supplement has almost everything one could need. Aside from this, items out of other books (and their cost/weight) are worth considering. But otherwise, three general methods are considered. Admittedly, they are quick and dirty. I hope they will suffice for short campaigns. Decide the number of equipment slots as appropriate. Permanent magic item : 500*(spell lvl) + (mundane components) If no spell level is given, rate the overall power of the magic effect from 1 to 9. Consumable magic item : 50*(spell lvl) . Same as above for no spell level. The effect is assumed to wear off in 1d4+1 minutes, or have that many d6 of charges. Items of exceptional quality : (plain item cost)+100*(rating) . Rating is a value from 1 to 9 representing the overall benefit the exceptional quality confers to the item. As for where to find magic effects, Single Volume D&D WM, Knave, Magus Divlantia, Old-School Essentials spellbooks, OSR Magic Compendiums, Theorems and Thaumaturgy, Wonder and Wickedness, all have heaps to browse or select randomly. THOUGHTS on SLOTS One thing I noticed, and would like to be sure to work out, is that the Deft’s Attunements and Wise’s Miracles seem very similar. They’re both slot mechanics that give players a means to negotiate for some feat, with the only restriction being a word or short phrase. Could a Deft character use a slot for magical effects? The only text I’ve found to supply any sort of help is that the Deft may only use Attunements for teachers, objects, or animals to succeed at ‘nigh impossible’ tasks. What counts as impossible in an abstract sense is up for argument. Likewise, why wouldn’t the Wise use their slots for Stealth, Crossbows, Larceny, etc? I’m unable to restrict these kinds of decisions in good faith, so the main distinction I would make is in frequency of use, and the costs paid for such utility. The Deft have far fewer slot uses per day than the Wise. While this allows the Wise a wide breadth to negotiate, they do so at the cost of survivability. Moreover, Deft characters have vocational damage abilities that Wise just don’t get. To conclude, perhaps it’s better to think of the Classes as impacting the use of a character’s abilities, and not the abilities themselves. Just bear in mind the GM always retains the right to say ‘no.’ THOUGHTS on WORDING The cases I am interested in (each called a benefit ) are those in which you are trying either to claim your character can attempt some feat, or to improve one you can already attempt. Justifying a benefit with a group will require that all members of that group benefit alike. If only some members could conceivably benefit, the benefit will be reduced or denied. When justifying a benefit with a slot, the Deft are only required to have relevant wording; the Wise must also pay a cost. Base cost will be determined by comparison to AD&D spells, observing their level (divide by 3, the quotient is the number of d6, the remainder is an addend). Then, wording will be considered. In either class, Wise or Deft, a literal match between the declared effect and wording will provide full benefit. A general match (wording is a category of things, which arguably includes the declared effect) will reduce the benefit by the generality of the wording.