Neo School Hack
Okay, so Neo School Hack is my hack of the very fun and clever Old School Hack by Kirin Robinson plus ideas shamelessly stolen from Andrew Shields' epic version of Old School Hack called The World Between for Fictive Hack. Many thanks to both of those fine designers. Broadly defined it is a simplified and modernized "indie" version of the original Dungeons & Dragons role playing game.
My Neo School Hack has an implied fantasy Egypt background because that's the groove I was in at the time. But that setting is not deeply baked in, so you only need to change a couple names to adapt it to your setting.
What you'll need to play:
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10-sided (d10s) and 12-sided (d12s) dice; three d10 of different colors and one d12 per player works well
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A bunch of small items (game tokens, marbles, poker chips, candies, etc.) to denote the Awesome Points gained and spent during play (more of which anon).
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Some scratch paper and something to write with (pencils are good so you can erase stuff)
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The original
Old School Hack and
The World Between for Fictive Hack
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Making A Character
The first thing players need to do is make a character. A character has two main components: a race (humanoid species) and a class (profession). Look over the races and classes below and check out the talents which each provides. Races each have three unique talents and classes each have six unique talents. At level 1 characters start with one racial talent and one class talent, and can acquire more as they gain levels. Characters also have six attributes which represent their physical, mental, and social characteristics.
Talents
Talents have characteristics which affect how often you can use them. They are marked as constant, encounter, or rested and also may be noted as requiring focus to use.
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Constant - some function passively all the time; others are usable at the character's discretion any time, but only once per round in an action scene
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Encounter - usable only once per action scene (but can be recharged in a later round during the scene by spending Awesome Points, as explained below)
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Rested - usable once, after which the character must have at least 6 hours of full rest to regain it (but can also be recharged without resting by spending Awesome Points)
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Focus - in an action scene the character declares intended use of the focus talent near the beginning of a round; the talent takes effect only at the end of the round (or after 5 to 10 seconds outside of an action scene)--and thus could be interrupted by events before it can be completed.
Attributes
Your character has six attributes:
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Awareness: alertness, perception, insight
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Brawn: size, strength, toughness
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Charm: social talents, ability to inspire or persuade
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Commitment: devotion, intensity, will, resistance to magic
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Cunning: trickery, sneakiness, lying, stealth, theft
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Daring: courage, reflexes, handling risk
Determine your character's attribute values by rolling two d10 together six times, each time adding the two d10 together to end up with six values. Check those values against the chart below to get your final attribute bonus (which might be negative!) for each. Then allocate each bonus value to one of your character's attribute as desired. As you place them, think about using them to express a personality for your character and also keep in mind the sorts of values which might complement the class you would like for you character. If your rolls end up providing no positive bonuses at all, start over.
Roll Value Attribute Bonus
up to 5
-2
6 to 8
-1
9 to 11
0
12 to 14
+1
15 to 17
+2
18 to 20
+3
[Optional: you can use the array method, where each player gets an array of six bonuses and can place them as desired. This method isn't in keeping with the spirit of old school gaming and is less fun, but is fairer because it ensures everyone starts on an equal footing. The array bonuses are: +2, +1, +1, 0, 0, and -1.]
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RACES
- There are eleven races to choose from: the classic Human, Elf, Half-elf, Dwarf, and Half-Orc, plus my setting-specific Ubasti (cat people), Hathi (cow people), Sebeki (crocodile people), Anubi (black jackal people), Sethi (cobra people), and Thouti (baboon people). As mentioned above, the animal people here are for my "Anubia" ancient Egypt setting so feel free to change names or leave some out if you so prefer. Note that each racial talent may only be taken once, unless it says otherwise, and you may never have a total of more than three.
Human
Adaptable/rested: start each morning with one free AP [this talent may be taken up to three times]
Elf
- Elvish Weapons/constant: +1 to hit with longbows or longswords
- Feykind/constant: +1 to attribute checks to influence any fey creatures
- Eldritch/encounter: +1 to saves against arcane magic
Half-Elf
- Elvish Weapons/constant: +1 to hit with longbows or longswords
- Adaptable/rested: start each morning with one free AP [may be taken twice]
- Eldritch/encounter: +1 to saves against arcane magic
Dwarf
- Dwarvish Weapons/constant: +1 to hit with axes, hammers, or crossbows
- Heft/constant: can carry two extra Heavy Things (explained below), no problem
- Hard as Iron/encounter: +1 to Brawn-based saves against poison, disease, fatigue, etc.
Half-Orc
- Adaptable/rested: start each morning with one free AP [may be taken twice]
- Strong Like Ox/constant: can carry one extra Heavy Thing; also get +1 to Brawn checks involving non-combat applications of muscle
- Spirit Warding/focus: ward off a ghost or spirit using innate spirituality by winning an opposed Commitment check
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Ubasti (cat people)
- Nine Lives/rested: avoid loss of one wound from physical injury by making a Commitment save
- Spirit Warding/focus: ward off a ghost or spirit using innate spirituality by winning an opposed Commitment check
- Four Play/constant: make a Daring save to land safely on all fours from tripping, falling, jumping, or being thrown
Hathi (cow people)
- Strong Like Ox/constant: can carry one extra Heavy Thing; also get +1 to Brawn checks involving non-combat applications of muscle
- Song & Dance/focus: with a short warm-up, entertain and inspire all creatures in same arena with a short moving musical performance
- Headbutt/focus: paw the ground, then bash headlong into target with +1 on a Brawn check to smash a large object or stun a creature
Sebeki (crocodile people)
- Chomp/constant: those pearly white fangs aren't just for a dazzling smile; you can chomp on your enemies with an attack which causes 1 wound
- Power Tail/constant: the broad sebeki tail makes for strong swimmers; swim and dash in the water at twice the speed of walking and running on land
- Basking/rested: you may rest in the sun, preferably on a warm surface, and become rested (to recover Rested talents) in half the normal time
Anubi (jackal people)
- Perky Ears/constant: Anubi have keen ears; +1 to Awareness checks using hearing
- Bloodhound/constant: Anubi have keen noses; +1 to Awareness checks using scent
- Friend of the Dead/rested: +1 to Charm checks when influencing any undead
Sethi (cobra people)
- Venom Fangs/rested: your small fangs do little damage, but the venom they inject can cause 1 wound (but victim gets a Brawn save to avoid the effects)
- Squamous/constant: your scaly hide is extra tough; +1 to armor class
- Speak With Forked Tongue/constant: you can communicate with any scaly creature
Thouti (baboon people)
- Mageblood/focus: you have an innate connection with the arcane; may try an Commitment check to detect the presence of magic close by
- Book Monkey/constant: the Thouti are surprisingly scholarly; you can read and write two extra starting languages
- Blue Buttocks/focus: square off and display your outrageously blue baboon buttocks; +2 to Daring checks to annoy, distract, shock, confuse, or otherwise psychologically discomfit any or all creatures watching nearby
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CLASSES
- Each class has a Classic Weapon; characters get +1 to hit when using the Classic Weapon of their class. The weapons below are selected for an Egyptian-Arabian themed setting, but ones more suited to the more traditional European/medieval themed fantasy setting are provided in brackets.
- Each class has an Inherent (unique) talent which they get for free at first level
- Some talents can be taken more than once and if so, their effects may stack together
- Some talents access a sub-set of several themed talents; in some cases you may only ever pick one of that sub-set, in others you may pick one sub-talent each time the talent is taken
- There are nine core classes to choose from: Bashi-Bazouk, Cleric, Dervish/Houri, Fighter, Paladin, Ranger, Thief, Witch, and Wizard
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Bashi-Bazouk
- The bashi-bazouk is a wild native warrior, fierce in battle and enjoying an affinity with the spirit world.
Classic Weapon: javelin [axe]
Inherent: Long Arm/constant: +1 to hit with thrown weapons
Gruesome Kill/focus: If you inflict at least 1 more Wound than you need to for defeating your foe, you can messily destroy your once-living target. Minions and toughs will flee from you unless something scarier compels them to stay; if in doubt, roll 2d10. If you roll higher than the total number of Wounds arrayed against you, they flee.
Battle Presence/focus: If you can look an attacking foe in the eye, you can take one die from the foe’s attack. (A foe with a light weapon would roll 2d10 instead of 3d10 to hit.) This works against one foe per use, maximum once per round. A minion will automatically run. Out of combat, you get +2 to your attempts to intimidate or resist intimidation.
Headlong/encounter: You're an expert at rushing in to attack. Once per encounter you can make both a Move action and an Attack action in the same round, with a +2 bonus to the attack.
Canny Prey/constant: Either a base Awareness test when none would be allowed, or +2 to a normal Awareness test, to detect traps and ambushes. You also know how to set traps, where they should be, and how they work.
Ghost Strike/encounter: Your culture is closer to the spirit world in everyday life. You know how to strike ghosts and spirits as though they were physical. You can use this with a melee weapon, a thrown weapon, or flame.
Spirit Friend/focus-rested: A spirit of a deceased member of your clan has somehow become attached to you. You can summon him or her with a few moments of calm meditiation, some kind words, and a small offering of fruit, wine, etc. The spirit appears as a floating light source that follows your commands, including being able to shine as brightly as a torch or as dim as a candle. It can also guide you towards safety for a short while.
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Cleric
- The cleric is a priest, priestess or other holy person devoted to a single deity.
Classic Weapon: mace
Inherent: Sign of Faith/constant: +1 to Commitment if displaying your holy symbol
Prayer of Healing/focus-rested: This spell invokes your deity to close wounds and restore health and energy. By laying your hands on someone who is down to 2 hit points or less, which could be yourself, you bring them back up to 1 hit point less than their normal full amount of wounds in a quick ritual that lights up the area around you with sacred glowing symbols appropriate to your deity.
Feel the Evil/constant: Above and beyond simple malevolence in someone's heart, some places, things and people in the world reek of true evil, whether they are touched by fell gods or by demonic taint. You can sense this kind of greater evil by merely taking a moment and focusing; if it disguised you make focus, and by taking the time to make an actual Awareness check you may be able to discern its true source or nature.
Turn Undead/focus-rested: By invoking your god and displaying your holy symbol, you acquire a holy (or unholy) aura around you and those nearby. Any non-minion undead must test their Daring against your Commitment +2 to be able to attack anyone in your party, while Minions can't attack at all. If you remain undamaged for three rounds of concentrating, you can disperse the aura outward, either destroying (holy) or controlling (unholy) any one undead or group of minions in the same arena.
Bless/focus-rested: By invoking your god you can provide a blessing to any one person who does not follow a deity opposed to yours. That person may add +2 to any one roll they make during the next hour.
Light/focus: With a short prayer the cleric creates a ball of light which floats nearby and follows the cleric around. It provides the same light as a torch or lantern and lasts an hour unless dismissed.
Shield of Faith/encounter-focus: The cleric uses the power of faith to summon an aura of holiness (or unholiness) providing protection of +1 to AC for the rest of the encounter.
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Dervish/Houri
- The Dervish (male) or Houri (female) is a dancer with aspects of a thief and a mystic.
Classic Weapon: whip
Inherent: Devastatingly Effective/constant: +1 to Charm rolls while wearing your dance outfit
Endless Darts/constant: You like to always have a cache of sharp things hidden around your
person, which you can use above and beyond your main weapon as a secondary Ranged or Light weapon. Any attempts to disarm you will always result in your having at least one small blade somewhere that was missed.
Nimble/constant: Years of training in body movements, dance, and acrobatic maneuvers makes the Dervish/Houri extremely nimble; gain an extra +1 AC when Defending and +2 to any Cunning or Daring checks involving balance, acrobatics, or other tricky physical maneuvers.
Blurring Whirl/encounter: By spinning with mystical energy, the Dervish/Houri whirls around so fast that he or she becomes a blur; -2 to any attacks on the dancer.
Awesome Trance/rested-focus: By dancing into a trance state for a couple minutes the Dervish/Houri can summon mystical energies; gain 1 AP.
Center of Attention/encounter-focus: The Dervish/Houri bursts into an amazing acrobatic-dance routine wrapped in mystical powers; all creatures nearby must make a Commitment save or just stand there watching with amazement; can be maintained for a number of rounds equal to the dancer's Commitment or Brawn bonus.
Double Trouble/focus: After dancing up some momentum, the Dervish/Houri is able to make one normal attack against each of two adjacent enemies.
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Fighter
- The fighter is just that: a master of weapons and combat.
Classic Weapon: scimitar [longsword]
Inherent: Hack & Slash/constant: +1 to hit with all melee weapons
Weapon of Choice/constant: You've become adeptly familiar with a specific weapon of your choice, and you use it as a natural extension of your body. As long as you are wielding it, all your attack dice are Face Dice (see combat rules below). If for whatever reason you take up a new weapon, a week of training will switch your Weapon of Choice to that one.
Tough Bastard/constant: Getting beat up as often as you do has its advantages. You're tougher than most, and can take more punishment because of it. You start off with seven hit points instead of the usual five. Plus you've usually got some old war stories and a don't-mess-with-me countenance that gives you a +2 on any Charm check when trying to talk someone out of violence.
Shield Bash/constant: If you are wielding a Shield, you can attempt a special attack with it that stuns an opponent, interrupting any focus action underway and preventing them from using the Attack action this round or the next.
Parry/constant: If Defending or Protecting, and wielding a weapon or shield you may attempt an attack roll against one successful attack; if your attack roll exceeds the attacker's roll then you have parried the attack and it fails.
Exploit Weakness/focus: Practice in fighting means you have a trained eye for an Achilles’ Heel. Every couple of fights you can carefully observe that a monster or an opponent has a weakness, and if you are able to successfully Focus on it, attacks you make against it that round get a +1 bonus to hit and do an extra point of damage.
Disarm/constant: You can attempt a special attack which causes the target to drop one specified weapon they are carrying (attacker tries an opposed Cunning check against the defender's Daring)
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Paladin
- The paladin is a crusading holy warrior devoted to a good deity.
Classic Weapon: khopesh sword [warhammer]
Inherent: They Dare Not/constant: +1 to all saves vs. unholy or evil spells
Detect Evil/focus: concentrating, the paladin listens to the surrounding auras and will sense any evil creatures in a 90-degree area out to 30 feet.
Lay on Hands/focus-rested: pausing to pray and gather holy energy, the paladin can lay a hand on any injured person who is not evil and heal them of 1 wound.
Sacred Purity/constant: filled with holy essence, the paladin may re-roll any failed save against diseases, normal or magical.
Holy Aura/focus-encounter: the paladin's inner resolve makes fear impossible, no matter what the circumstances; and with a strong declaration of holy purpose, all companions and allies within 15 feet are emboldened, gaining +2 to any rolls against fear.
Glow/focus-encounter: pausing to pray and express inner holy essence, the paladin glows with a golden light like a divine torch; lasts for one hour but can be dispelled earlier
Devotion (may not be taken by other classes; may choose only one devotion ever)
-- Divine Avenger/focus-encounter: channeling holy energy into a held or thrown weapon, the paladin gains +1 to hit and +1 wound of damage to attacks against evil creatures for the duration of that encounter.
-- Divine Protector/focus-encounter: channeling holy energy into a held shield, the paladin gains +2 AC and +2 to saves when attacked by evil creatures for the duration of that encounter.
-- Divine Knight/focus-rested: the paladin gains a loyal, divine riding creature which is more intelligent than ordinary ones of its type. It can be called with a special prayer; once called it remains until dismissed to return to the heavens, ready to be recalled later. The mount comes saddled and armored, with AC = 14, HP = 3, with an appropriate single 2d10 attack (with Face Dice) doing 1 wound.
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Ranger
- The ranger is a scout and a hunter, at one with the outdoors and the animals which live there.
Classic Weapon: bow
Inherent: Tuli's Revenge/constant +1 to hit with bows
Deadly Shot/focus-encounter: taking careful aim at an enemy's vital point, the ranger scores +1 wound on a hit
Boon Companion/constant: the ranger gains a loyal companion creature which is more intelligent than ordinary ones of its type. The player decides on the animal type, but it may not be larger than a large wolf. The critter has statistics of AC = 10, HP = 3, with an appropriate single 2d10 attack (with Face Die) doing 1 wound.
Survival/constant: the ranger is a master of wilderness knowledge and easily finds food and shelter in normal wilderness situations, and gets +2 to Awareness rolls to survive in unusual environments
Natural Shadow/focus: with a few moments of preparation the ranger blends into nearby natural terrain, gaining +2 to Cunning rolls to avoid being noticed
Down Boy--Here Kitty/focus-encounter: using your charismatic presence and animal lore, you turn away (Daring check at +1) or lure closer (Charm check at +1) one animal-like creature; may be used on multiple animals per encounter but only once per animal.
It Went That-a-way/focus: taking a few moments to study the scene the ranger tracks quarry easily, if slowly, in favorable conditions (soft earth, etc.), and gets +2 to Cunning rolls in difficult circumstances; this talent may be used in reverse to cover tracks
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Thief
- The thief is just that: a thief. They may also be known as burglars, assassins, highwaymen, footpads, "scouts", etc. Either way they'll likely end up dangling in a noose some day.
Classic Weapon: dagger
Inherent: Lucky Bastard/rested: once per day you may re-roll any one roll in a situation where you are in danger
Busy Hands/focus: A successful Cunning check against a nearby person's Awareness allows you to remove and acquire any visible object that they are not actively holding, no matter what the situation is. During combat this is usually noticed, regardless of success.
Quick as a Flash/constant (immediate): Whenever you are surprised by something or someone, including traps going off, you get to add a +1 on the next die roll you make as long as it happens directly afterwards.
Pick Locks/focus: With a bit of time and patience you can find, disable, or re-enable devices like locks and traps. You get +2 to Cunning checks to attempt. Also gives you knowledge of how to use special small tool kits which add +1 to the roll if you have one.
Climbing/constant: You know a bunch of tricks about climbing different stuff and you've done it plenty of times. You get a +2 to Daring checks for climbing and if you're next to someone climbing without this talent you can lend them an Awesome Point to spend if they start to fall.
Backstab/focus: By attacking an opponent from behind (or above) who is currently unaware of you or distracted, you get a +2 to hit them and do an extra two wounds of damage if you succeed.
Sneak/focus: You can attempt a focus action in combat to slip past opponents without being attacked; you also get +2 to normal attempts to sneak around quietly and unseen outside of combat.
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Witch
- A witch is the student or apostle of a strange, mysterious entity who grants magical powers (and sometimes cats) in return for conversation, tea, and occasional live sacrifices.
Classic Weapon: broom
Inherent: Cackle/focus: you unleash an unnerving creepy cackle like only a witch can; your victim must make a Commitment check against your Cunning check or quiver with fear for a round.
Swept Away/rested: hopping astride a broom you fly up into the air and away; you can fly for one hour per point of Commitment bonus (but a minimun of one hour even if the bonus is 0 or less).
Bubbling Cauldron/focus-rested: from a small cauldron full of weird ingredients bubbling over a fire you can draw off one potion or handful of dust containing any spell you know; a person hit with the dust or ingesting the potion is affected by the contained spell
Hex/focus-encounter: with a creepy cackle you hex a creature with black magic; creatures are allowed a Commitment save, otherwise they will suffer -2 to all rolls for 24 hours; may be cast in reverse to remove the hex; hexes may be placed on objects so that anyone touching them is hexed.
Frog!/focus-encounter: you turn a living creature into a frog (or a newt); the victim gets a Commitment save otherwise will remain a frog for 24 hours; may be cast in reverse to un-frog a person
Black Cat Familiar/constant: you have an intelligent magical black cat as your constant, devoted companion; it can talk and with a moment of concentration you can see and hear what it sees and hears (and vice versa); AC-14, 1 HP. (Optional: instead of a cat you may choose a black rat, bat, goat, owl, raven, snake, or toad.]
Lovely Complexion, Dearie/constant: your skin becomes infused with weirding and permanently turns green; only magical spells can conceal this effect; all Charm rolls you make are at -2 but you permanently gain one of two boons (your choice): +2 to Commitment saves vs. magic cast on you OR any victims of your magic are -2 on Commitment saves vs. your spells
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Wizard
- The wizard is a worker of magics learned and cast by dint of superior intellect, weird talents, and a certain amount of luck.
Classic Weapon: staff
Inherent: Detect Magic/focus: From years of experience you can sense arcane energies by merely taking a moment and focusing, and by taking the time to make an actual Awareness check you may be able to discern the source or nature of those energies.
Zap/focus: you shoot out a ray of elemental energy (pick from fire, ice, acid, or lightning before casting) at one target within 30 feet; requires a successful ranged attack (or touch attack, if adjacent) to hit doing 1 wound.
Dispell Magic/focus-rested: The ability to summon arcane powers includes the reverse: the ability to dispell those powers. With a bit of focus the wizard can dispell any spell he knows which has been cast by someone of the same level or lower. If casting it to block a focus spell being cast by an opponent, the wizard must make a successful Commitment check against the other caster's Commitment.
Arcane Bolt/focus-encounter: This spell shoots out a magical bolt that automatically hits one target within 30 feet, doing 2 points of damage. By taking a hit point of damage yourself in order to channel extra energy into it, you can increase the damage to 3 points.
Sleep/focus-rested: Your character can make his or her voice take on a particularly somber
and restful tone. Doing so, you can make two non-minion opponents or any number of Minions within 30 feet that can hear you fall asleep by making a successful Charm test vs. their Commitment(s). They’ll sleep through any normal noise, but a good shake or swift kick is all it takes to wake them.
Book of Power/constant (item): You have acquired a magical tome, known as a grimoire, containing six spells (each being a separate talent). Pick one of the spells to acquire as a talent. This talent may be taken more than once to learn other spells from that grimoire or from a new grimoire.
Arcane Armor/focus-rested: The Wizard conjures an aura of magical force providing protection of +1 to AC for one hour.
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Awesome Points
The gaining and spending of Awesome Points (APs) are a key part of how the rules of Neo School Hack work during play. At the start of each session two containers are placed on the table with small items (beads, candies, marbles, etc.) to hand out as Awesome Points (APs). One container is The Bowl, with 2 APs per player, and the other is is The Stack. At any time–whether during character creation, someone saying something hilarious about the current events, a particularly slick move by a player character, whatever–when someone does something awesome, anyone can reach into The Bowl and give that someone an AP. The players can spend earned APs during play as explained below; the DM can spend APs from The Stack. When the players spend APs they are put aside out of play. When the DM spends APs they go from The Stack into The Bowl.
Ways to Spend APs:
1 Point
- Add 2 to an Attribute roll
- Have something handy nearby or within reach
- Add a cool effect to an Attack or Attribute roll
- Use an Encounter talent again in an encounter
2 Points
- Do one extra wound of damage after a successful attack
- Shrug off (negate) a single point of damage that you've just taken
- Create an NPC you have a relationship with
- Recharge a Rested talent outside of combat without taking a full rest
3 Points
- Use a talent from your class that you don't have yet
Keep track on your character sheet of how many APs you've earned and used during a session so that you can level up (see next section).
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Character Progression
Characters progress by earning class levels, which is called leveling up. When all characters at the table have spent (not just earned) 12 APs each then all characters go up a level together. Leveling up can occur any time during a play session, except while a combat or action scene is on-going. When a character levels up they are allowed to gain
one of the following:
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+1 to an attribute bonus, but only to a maximum total of +3 per any one attribute.
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+1 Hit Point
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one new talent; NOTE: you may select a normal (not Inherent) talent from another class but can never have more talents from other classes than you do from your own class; and you may only take racial talents from your character's starting race
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Doing Stuff
In addition to using talents, characters can do things just using their attributes or making normal simple attacks with weapons. When you want your character to do something which will have consequences if you fail, such as picking a lock or jumping down from a balcony, you'll need to pass an attribute check. (The original Old School Hack has a great Venn diagram page with examples of which attributes are used for which sorts of activities.) Explain what you're attempting, determine with your DM which of your six attributes is the most appropriate for the check, then roll one d12 and add the bonus for that attribute. That final score is compared to a roll of one d12 by the DM, which may be modified plus or minus depending on the circumstances. If your final score equals or exceeds the DM's then you succeed; if you roll less than the DM--or roll a natural 1--you fail. If two characters are rolling against each other and they roll a tie then nothing happens, but you can usually try again.
Neo School Hack does not have a "skills system" like those in other games. The characters are assumed to be generally unsophisticated and minimally educated people from an ancient or medieval society. However, the attributes represent not only basic physical and mental characteristics but are also meant to reflect unspecified basic background skills and experiences.
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Encumbrance
Encumbrance is about how much stuff your character can carry. Things are divided into Ordinary, Heavy, and Very Heavy. A character can comfortably carry one Heavy thing per point of Brawn bonus; Very Heavy things count as two Heavy Things. A character carrying their maximum amount of Heavy things is considered "encumbered". Characters with a Brawn bonus of 0 can still carry one Heavy thing but will count as "encumbered". An encumbered creature can only move by staggering slowly along and is -4 to all rolls. Characters with a Brawn bonus of -1 or less cannot carry any Heavy things at all.
A dragged item is considered to be half its weight. And if an item can be held by two people they can combine their Brawn to carry it.
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Combat
In Neo School Hack your character will go on adventures and adventures tend to be dangerous. There will be monsters, bandits, assassins, guards, and villains of every description. At some point you'll have a fight on your hands. Combat is handled in a manner similar to Doing Stuff.
Initiative: at the start of a combat each character and each group of bad guys rolls 1d10, with higher scores acting earlier in the round. [Optional: characters may add their Daring bonus to their roll.]
At the start of each round each character must decide on which one of six general Actions they will perform this round. All Actions are performed in their phases in the sequence below, with creatures with higher Initiative scores going first in that action.
1 -
Defend or Protect: choosing either of these options means forgoing direct action in favor of taking a reactive stance which allows you to make a Counter-attack (a free attack) against anyone that tries to hit you in the attack turn of this round; choosing to Defend also means that your AC goes up by +2; choosing to Protect means choosing a friend next to you and suffering any attack this round directed at them
2 -
Shoot: if you have a Ranged weapon you may make an attack against anyone in range; you may also choose to "draw and hold" in order to shoot during the Attack Action this round
3 -
Focus or Impede: if you decide to use talent which requires Focus (like casting a spell) it's at this point you announce what you're starting to do; the effects of the talent occur in Action 7. Alternatively you may attempt to Impede someone from moving; to Impede you must be within 5 feet of them (you are allowed a free shift of up to 5 feet first) and make a successful Daring test against their Cunning; if you succeed you might also manage to Corner them (see Action 7).
4 -
Move: characters are allowed to shift position up to 5' during any of the Actions without choosing to Move, but to move more than that, including climbing, jumping, charging, etc. you must act during this Action; some moves may require an Attribute check, like Daring to swing from that tempting chandelier; if someone managed to Impede you in Action 3, you may try a Counter-attack (free attack) against them now if you wish
5 -
Attack: this action allows you to attack with non-Ranged weapons (and any Ranged weapons which took the "aim and hold" option from Action 2)
6 -
Push or Throw: You can attempt to push or throw an opponent 5~10 feet; a Push requires a successful Cunning roll against their Commitment roll; a Throw requires a successful Brawn roll against their Awareness or Commitment (their choice)
7 -
Focus Resolution: In this action all Focus actions finally occur, using initiative to determine the order if necessary--but only if the focuser did not suffer damage or being Pushed or Thrown. Also, if you successfully Impeded someone and also did not take any damage since then, the Impeded turms into Cornered and they cannot choose the Move action the following round either.
Attacking
To attack you roll two d10 (three d10 for Light weapons, see below). One will be your Face Die, which must be designated before rolling. For Light weapons you add the higher of the two non-Face dice to the Face Die; for all other weapons you add the Face Die and non-Face die together. Then compare that final score to the target's armor class (AC). [Optional rule: for ranged weapons you add your Daring bonus to the attack roll and for melee combat you add your Brawn bonus to it.] If your score is higher than the target's AC you have hit! The target will suffer one to three wounds, depending on the weapon type (see below). And if your Face Die comes up with a 10, then you have hit them "In The Face" (Ouch!) and do an additional wound of damage.
Unarmed: roll 1d10 plus the Attribute bonus of your choice; does 1 wound
- Examples: kick, punch, elbow, head butt
Light Weapons: roll 3d10; does 1 wound
- Examples: dagger, baton, dart, tomahawk, shortsword, rapier, clawed gloves
Ranged Weapons: roll 2d10; does 1 wound
- Examples: bow, longbow, crossbow, javelin, blowgun, sling
Reach Weapons: roll 2d10; does 1 wound; a combatant with a reach weapon facing an opponent without one gets +1 to AC; +1 to Impede combat checks
- Examples: quarterstaff, spear, whip, pike
Heavy Weapons: roll 2d10; does 2 wounds
- Examples: longsword, morningstar, mace, falchion, warhammer, war axe, oar
Very Heavy Weapons: roll 2d10; does 2 wounds; counts as one Heavy Thing for carrying; requires two hands to wield so cannot carry a shield at the same time; special: does 2 extra wounds on a Face Hit
- Examples: tetsubo, two-handed sword, two-handed axe, halberd, anchor
Musket [optional; per your campaign setting]: roll 2d10; does 2 wounds; counts as heavy & ranged; must be fired as a focus action because they are so slow to load
Combat Maneuver Guidelines
Bull Rush: just make a Brawn vs. Brawn check to bodily knock down or bash back an opponent
Sunder: this is an attack against an opponent's weapon, shield, or other item they are holding in order to break it; attacker makes a normal weapon attack roll, versus a Cunning check by the defender; success means the defender has their held item broken; Fighters get +1 to Sunder attacks
Feint: attacker first must win a Cunning check against the defender's Awareness check; if win that contest, then follow with an attack roll with +1 to hit; if fail then the attack is at -1 instead
Grapple/Toss/Drag/Push/Pull: just make a Brawn vs. Brawn check
Breaking an on-going Grapple/Toss/Drag/Push/Pull: make a Brawn vs. Brawn check to muscle out, or a Cunning vs. Awareness to wriggle out.
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Armor
There are five levels of armor, from no armor to special Uber armor, each with its corresponding Armor Class (AC). In addition, there are two types of shield which can be worn to improve your AC. Any suit of armor or shield can be sacrificed to absorb all the damage of one attack as it shatters with the blow.
No Armor: AC-8; fighting unprotected is daring, a character surviving a fight with no armor or shield automatically earns 2 Awesome Points.
Light Armor: AC-10; this equates to regular or studded leather, hide, a chainmail shirt, tons of buckles, etc.
Heavy Armor: AC-12: this equates to a steel breastplate, scale mail, full chainmail, etc.; this counts as one Heavy Thing
Very Heavy Armor: AC-14: full steel plate armor; this counts as two Heavy Things
Uber Armor: AC-16: this is a special or unusual level of armor generally only found on the rare bad guy or very dangeous hard-to-kill monsters; generally not wearable by characters
Light Shield: gives +1 to AC; about 1 or 2 feet across
Heavy Shield: gives +2 to AC; about 3 feet across; this counts as one Heavy Thing
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Wounds and Hit Points
- All characters start with a basic 5 hit points (HP).
- Each time you take a wound, mark off one Hit Point on your character sheet; if your character drops to 0 or less hit points they are Grievously Wounded.
- When Grievously Wounded, roll 1d10:
- On a roll of 1, 2, or 3: the character is Bleeding Out; if they do not receive some sort of healing or medical attention then at the end of the action scene they must pass a Commitment or Brawn check vs. 10 or die.
- On a roll of 4 or better: the character is unconscious or barely conscious but not able to do anything; at the end of the action scene the character rallies to one HP and can stagger to their feet again
- Wounds can be recovered by magical healing or by rest:
- If the character has taken 3 wounds or less they can regain all lost wounds with an hour of full rest
- If the character has taken 4 or 5 wounds they will need a full day's bed rest to recover each lost hit point.
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Conditions
During adventures characters may be afflicted with bad things other than wounds. We'll refer to these afflictions by the term "conditions" (or as I like to say, being "zonked"). Some examples of conditions are things like becoming deafened, dazed, nauseous, drunk, or paralyzed. There are three basic conditional states for a creature:
1.
fine (no impairments)
2.
suffering a condition which partially impairs (such as blindness or nausea)
3.
suffering a condition which totally impairs (such as being paralyzed or unconscious)
Fine is fine and totally impaired is totally impaired, so here's how to handle partial impairments mechanically. When a character is suffering a condition which partially impairs and they need to roll for some action which the impairment would affect, the GM rolls a d12 against them which is the "condition die". If the condition die beats the character's roll, either the 1d12 roll for an attribute check or 2d10 for an attack roll, then the character action fails.
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Money and Equipment
When a character is created they get one free weapon and either another free weapon or one free armor--but remember that each Heavy weapon, armor, or shield counts as one Heavy Thing and each Very Heavy weapon, armor, or shield counts as two Heavy Things for encumbrance. Also remember that if a character fights with no armor, each time they survive a combat they get 2 Awesome Points.
Each character starts with a set of ordinary clothes with a belt pouch or roomy pockets.
Each character also starts with 10 x 2d12 gold pieces (gp) [Optional: all characters start with 100 gp.]
[Detailed, extensive equipment lists already exist in various editions of D&D, and other games free online, so I won't make up another gigantic one here. In addition, the original Old School Hack has a nice simple way of figuring costs on the fly without long lists.]
For flavor, you should consider naming the various bits of currency with real-world names, like penny, shilling, dinar, rupee, doubloon, peso, florin, etc. It sounds more dramatic to say "I'll give you fifteen doubloons for that fine shield."
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Hirelings and Henchmen
Your characters may want to hire some help. Roughly speaking, hirelings are minor servants and guards, but henchmen are more like the sidekicks to your hero.
Henchmen
- Henchmen have a race and class, usually selected from those available to the players for PCs; however they start with only one talent instead of the two a PC starts with.
- Henchmen attributes come from an array of one being -1, one being +1, and the rest being 0; the +1 is usually in the attribute most useful for that henchman's class.
- Henchmen advance in class level whenever their patron PC goes up one; however, unlike PCs the only increase on gaining a level is to take a talent from their original class or race; once all the class talents and race talents have been taken the henchman may no longer go up in level.
HP: 2
AC: 8, 10 or 12 depending on class and may have a shield if appropriate for their type
Attacks: 1 x 2d10 (do get a Face Die)
Weapons: cause damage normally for their type
Talent: one chosen from the basic talent list for their class
Hirelings
- Hireling have a race but not a character class. They will have one racial talent.
- Hireling attibutes will all be a 0 bonus.
- Hirelings do not advance in level, but a GM may decide certain hirelings are so integrated into the campaign story that they should be promoted to Henchmen.
HP: 1
AC: 8 or 10 (light armor) when hired, but can be equipped better at the character's expense
Attacks: 1 x 2d10 (but never a Face Die)
Weapons: only cause 1 wound no matter the actual weapon type
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