Knockback rules from TOR 1st to d20 games

Quick post!

I’ve been running the One Ring 1^st Edition for almost 2 years now. The campaign so far is a mix of Gareth Hanrahan’s amazing Darkening of the Mirkwood campaign with (also his) Tales from the Wilderland’s six scenarios. The combination (of course) is natural and the campaign already captivated my players.

Anyway, this post is just to share the one rule from The One Ring 1st that both I and my players keep forgetting but which I believe would be a cool addition to any d20 Fantasy game -  D&D, 13^th Age, Pathfinder, OSE, B/X whatever – the Knockback rule.

Basically, when you’re hit you can choose to lose your next action and fall prone to reduce all damage just taken by half (rounding up).

Would this work smoothly on B/X, DCC RPG, OSE, and older versions of the game (even D&D 3^rd)?

Definitely yes!

What that also works on 13^th Age, Pathfinder 2E, D&D 5E? Well, despite loving those systems, I haven’t narrated them much so…

13^th Age – OK, as far as I’m aware there is no prone condition here. So, my first reaction would be that if any PC invoked the Knockback rule, the Escalation Die doesn’t go up that round (unless if stolen by the enemies).

Pathfinder 2E – Invoking the Knockback rule requires spending 1 Hero Point.

D&D 5E – Besides all the usual disadvantages (no pun intended) that you have for being Prone, AFTER you get up, you will have Disadvantage until the end of your next turn.

My daughter’s first RPG creation!

...sort of! First of all, sorry for the absolute disregard for this tower in these last months. I could mention, as a proper excuse, that I just moved with my family to another country, but I know that Dungeon Masters are heartless creatures that feed on dead character sheets, so no one would believe me. Anyway, moving on!

As any other hobbyist enthusiast, I’m probably not the first one to try to get his children playing RPG as fast as possible. I’ve two lovely and devilish goblins, ages 7 and 4. I’ve run a few “RPGs” for them from time to time (they call it “Monsterslaying Games”). Of course, they aren’t conventional tabletop RPGs because my little ones still prefer more ludic and dynamic experiences… actually only 25% of our table time is actually at the table; for the rest of the game session I’m usually creating physical activities and mini-games like “Let’s hunt the dragon hidden in the blankets” or “Sneak through the dinosaur guardian in the living room” (I also use lots of LEGOs as minis/props). In the end, I even created a small resolution system so that my kids get their first taste of rolling dice. I hope that in a year or two both are playing a complete RPG with me and my wife.

While that time doesn’t come, I like to show them my RPG books (I discovered that they love bestiaries) or to talk about game stuff. To my surprise my daughter recently suggested a few “cool powers” that she would love to have in our next RPG session. Here is the closest adaptation of her ideas.

New Spell

Anaoj's Annoying Tickles

[Swords & Wizardry/OSR]

Spell Level: 2 

Range: 30 feet 

Duration: Instantaneous

This spell affects people and living monsters, who start feeling an intense tickling over their entire bodies. If the spell succeeds (saving throw allowed), the creature lose her next action, dropping any items and falling to ground. During combat, the unfortunate victim may open her guard, offering one nearby enemy the chance for a free attack (Referee’s call).

Usually, creatures with natural armor (AC 4[15] or better) are impervious to this cantrap.

[D&D 5E]

Enchantment

Level: 2 

Casting time: 1 Action 

Range: 30 feet 

Components: S, M (harlequin doll and a feather) 

Duration: Instantaneous

A creature of your choice that you can see within range start feeling her entire body tickling. The target must succeed on a Wisdom saving throw or lose her balance. During combat, a creature that fails her save triggers an attack of opportunity.

A creature with natural armor of 12 or higher has advantage on the saving throw. Creatures of the construct, elemental, plant, ooze and undead type are immune to this spell.

[Pathfinder 1st] 

Level: Bard 1, Sorcerer/Wizard/Witch 2

School: Enchantment (Compulsion) [Mind-Affecting]

Components: S, M (harlequin doll and a feather) 

Casting Time: 1 standard action

Range: Close (25 ft. + 5 ft./2 levels)

Target: One creature; see text

Duration: 1 round

Saving Throw: Will negates; see text

Spell Resistance: Yes

The target start feeling her entire body tickling and must succeed on a Will save or become Stunned for 1 round. Creatures on difficult or dangerous terrain (like walking on a tightrope) also fall Prone. Finally, a creature that fails her save triggers an attack of opportunity.

Targets with a natural armor bonus of +2 or higher gain a +4 bonus on their saving throw. Creatures of the construct, plant, ooze, outsider (elemental), undead and vermin type are immune to this spell.

Some spellcasters know this spell as ‘Nightgaunt’s Tickling’.

New Magic Item

Anaoj's Misleading Potion of Ruin

After drinking this fiery and bubbling concoction, the target’s skins gets red and hot as a forge. One round later the target explodes, dealing damage around them as if they were the point of detonation of a 5th level fireball.

The drinker materializes in the next round, totally unaffected by his self-detonation, 30 ft. away in a random direction.

[In D&D 5E this is a very rare potion. In Pathfinder 1st this item practically works as minor artifact.]

Variant Human Traits (for d20 mostly)

A friend of mine recently asked for my opinion regarding his new Forgotten Realms campaign for D&D 5E. He had an awesome idea to "reskin" the lore of the Realms, mixing it with Tolkien's Silmarillion. My favorite part was when he created alternative racial traits for the various human ethnicities of the Realms - in particular Chondathans, Calishites, Tethyrians, Damarans and Illuskans.

While I really liked his racial traits, I suggested going for less mechanics and more flavor. Of late I'm a great fan of racial traits that give thematic or flavorful abilities instead of just more modifiers/feats (you can see my last attempt with this approach for Pathfinder here). I was inspired by an excellent thread on RPGNet which suggested that each human "race" should have a unique knack (not just a +1 to Str, but something cool like "can talk with wolves" or "has a living shadow").

Here are my suggestions (because my friend was disregarding the cannon, I was not too worried with the official description of each human nationality). I tried to create Edition Neutral traits. Major inspirations were RPGs PbtA (like Dungeon World and Blades in the Dark), but I can't forget great ideas from 13th Age Glorantha and Frostbitten & Mutilated. I must stress that all traits below were created with PCs in mind - these abilities are extraordinary stuff and shouldn't be taken as "normal" racial traits for every NPC of the same ethnicity.

Calishites

Trait: Brother to Fire
Description: Calishites claim to have the blood of Efreeti, the powerful fire genies born of Smokless Fire. Calishites have indeed a fiery temper and an uncanny affinity with elemental fire. Once each game session (or once per long rest, DM's call), a calishite can summon his elemental affinity. This may be a conscious effort or not (probably a calishite wizard would say a mystic word or two, while a calishite warrior would say "it was luck"). When summoning his elemental affinity (a free action), the calishite can change any non-magical fire in his close proximity. For example:
- make a torch go out;
- keep a torch burning for another round, even if it should have go out;
- rekindle a dying fire;
- declare that a fire source nearby won't reveal his presence (for 1 round only);
- declare that a local fire source won't damage him (for 1 round only).
The DM has the final say. This trait should be adapted to the campaign's flavor - the calishite's affinity can be made to seem like pure coincidence or something clearly supernatural.

Chondathan

Trait: The Gift of Tongues 
Description: Your people traveled the Realms. Some legends say that a god blessed Chondal, the Patriarch, thus enabling his progeny to spread through Faerûn. Once each game session (or once per long rest, DM's call), a chondathan can understand something said by another intelligent creature or they can make themselves understood by another intelligent being (usually something that can be said during 1 round). This trait can be roleplaying intuitively (for a bard or wandering warrior) or as something clearly supernatural (a priest or wizard). If the DM is following a more mythic or high-magic campaign, this trait can be used by a chondathan to understand "words" spoken by beasts, monsters or even special objects (a magical sword) or places (a holy place).

Damaran

Trait: Born under the Scythe
Description: Damarans are said to be brothers of Death (or the Hooded Ones, given that the gods of death are many, like Myrkul or Kelemvor). Their history is a long and sad struggle against overwhelming forces of Darkness - like the Witch-King of Vaasa, the infernal legacy of Narfell, the barbarian Tuigan or the hobgoblin steel of the Red Hand. Damarans forged a civilization in inhospitable lands, living since then under the edge. Fatalists but strong-willed (some damarans are described as "cheerful maniacs"), they learned to live "under the Hooded One's Gaze".  Once each game session (or once per long rest, DM's call), a damaran can walk around a place and feel in his heart the answer to one of the following questions:
- Has someone died here since the last sunset/sunrise?
- Where is the closest place where blood has been shed?
- Has any undead or fiend passed by since the last sunrise/sunset?
Finally, if the DM is willing to play the symbolic/thematic aspects of this trait, any undead/fiend found by the damaran will always know his name or seems to be expecting him/her. The creature will still follow it's nature (probably attacking or devouring the damaran), but the affinity can be explored by the damaran PC to gain valuable information.

Illuskans

Trait: Friends to Crows
Description: the crow is one of the various symbols of the Savage North and was once the heraldry of Luskan itself. Illuskans have a legend that says that a crow can only be killed by one who have killed his kind. Illuskans respect and honor crows, seeing the birds as family. Once each game session (or once per long rest, DM's call), an illuskan can spend a few hours searching for a crow***. After meeting, feeding and befriending the bird, the illuskan can get the answer to one of the following questions (this can be a literal answer from a crow, if the DM likes a more mythical campaign, or it can mean an omen or intuitive knowledge - a gut feeling - from the illuskan):
- Are we being hunted or followed?
- Are there other humanoids closeby?
- Is there any haven nearby that we can reach before sunrise/sunset?
***If the party is any region where a crow can't be found - and the DM is willing to keep this trait thematic aspects - feel free to use other birds (vultures, ravens, falcons etc.).

Tethyrians

Trait: Oath of Truth
Description: Tethyrians live (and die) under oaths of vassalage and fellowship. Their entire kingdom is kept by those oaths and there is nothing more sacred than that. It is whispered that a god blessed tethyrian's oaths - probably Helm, Tyr, Torm or even Siamorphe.  Once each game session (or once per long rest, DM's call), a tethyrian can declare an Oath of Truth. Everything said by the tethyrian after the oath will be accepted as truth by all bystanders. The tethyrian must believe in what he/she's saying. Note that this isn't brainwashing - all parties in the scene will know, in their heart, that the tethyrian said the Truth, but they have total freedom to choose who they'll react to that Truth.

Stealing from the 13th Age - The Icon Relationship Rolls

OK, time to steal the Icon Relationship Rolls from 13^th Age (the Archmage Engine) to DCC RPG. In case you’re wandering what I’m talking about, check my 1^st post here.

Icons are basically 13^th Age’s way of dealing with factions. In that game’s standard campaign setting (The Dragon Empire), the Icons are the highest-level NPCs of the world, its movers and shakers. All PCs in 13^th Age are linked through their backgrounds to 1-3 Icons, already at 1^st level. Usually this relation is through proxies, groups and followers of an Icon, but because 13^th Age is all about high fantasy, it isn’t that rare for a 1^st level PC to actually have met and interacted with a powerful Icon (it’s already a cliché in 13^th Age community the idea of PCs that are bastard children of Icons – especially the Emperor, the Diabolist or the Archmage).

Icons are an excellent way to “ground” the PCs in the intrigues, plots and events of the setting. Instead of placing those NPCs as distant characters, forever busy with ineffable agendas, 13^th Age links the PCs directly to them. And the PCs are not random wanderers and tomb raiders, but character linked with the most powerful and influential forces in the world.

The Icons are thus used as building blocs for the setting and also as a great tool to build adventures/campaigns. Each PC starts with 1-3 points of Icon Relationships. These relations can Positive (the PC is an ally of the Icon), Negative (the PC is an enemy of the Icon) or Conflicted (it’s complicated; for example: the PC is a hero, but from a bloodline known to serve an evil Icon). Because the PCs pick Icons at the beginning of the game, the GM knows which NPCs the players want to see in their games. At my table, for example, there is a lot of points invested in The Three – the villainous blue, black and red great wyrms of the Dragon Empire – so I knew that the party would be interacting and facing lots of draconic foes and themes.

OK, how does an Icon Relationship works? At certain times – usually at the beginning or end of a session/adventure – the PCs roll 1d6 for each Iron Relationship in their character sheets. Each ‘6’ means that the PC gets a special advantage due to his/her relationship with the Icon. Each ‘5’ means an advantage, plus with a complication (to make it clear, the PC must still get good stuff).

What is an advantage exactly? In 13^th Age that usually means a one-use magic item (potions, runes, oils etc.) or maybe a true magic item if you PC is running low on them. An advantage could also mean some NPC help in a scene or maybe an extra clue/information, or even a bonus to a specific challenge. However, the 13^th Age Core recommends that Icon advantages should be narrative in nature (a good place to pick ideas for Icon advantages is by reading D&D 5E’s Backgrounds, especially their special features… things like military rank, access to temples, secret hideouts, alternative identities… all are great examples of benefits derived from Icon rolls).

Big Emp, so metal!

 So, an example: you have 2 Dice of Positive Relationship with the Archmage (the uber-spellcaster of the Dragon Empire) and 1 Negative Relationship with the Emperor (the awesome and probably dragon-rider Melnibonean ruler of the aforementioned Empire). First, that basically means that you have connections and are in good standing the Archmage; at the same time you’re on wrong side of the fence with Greatest Human Nation of the world. Why? I don’t know, that for your PC background. At the beginning of the session you’re lucky and roll a ‘6’ for the Archmage and a ‘5’ for the Emperor. That means your PC has 1 advantage with the most powerful mage in the world and 1 advantage with complications regarding the fact that the Dragon Empire doesn’t like you. What could that mean? Well, it depends on the PC’s level, background and the adventure itself. If you’re our usual low-level dungeon-crawler adventurer, that ‘6’ with the Archmage could mean you found a chest warded by agents of the Great Wizard that only you can unlock – by opening it you find some valuable healing potions. That ‘5’ with the Emperor could mean you found an unlikely ally in the dungeon – an evil humanoid that also deeply hates the Empire! Because this is a ‘5’, you only get his help if the party can help him face a rival tribe of humanoids.

Elminster here is your drink buddy.

If you like improvisation, then you’ll roll Icon Relationships at the start of the game session or adventure; if you prefer to plan the results ahead, then it’s best to use Icon rolls at the end of the session (then you’ll have the time to write all those benefits in the next session). There’s a lot more to the Icon subsystem, especially if you hunt for material created by the 13^th Age community, but those are the basics.

As you can see, it’s ridiculously easy to change Icons to Organizations, Churches, Nations, Cults, Clans etc. (I would dearly love to use them in Planescape, to represent the Planar Factions of Sigil) Because the Icon Subsystems is so modular, it can be imported to other RPGs without any modifications (And I’d would run Planescape for AD&D 2^nd, of course)

For DCC RPG

Icon Relationships are a great way of giving more flavor and versality to the Patron Bond spell, especially for non-spellcasters. Allow those bonded to a Supernatural Patron to gain Relationship Dice with their otherworldly masters. Here’s a suggestion for the spellcasting table:

Spellcasting Check	When Cast on Self	When Cast on Other*
12-13	As written.	Ignore the part about the Luck check. Instead of that, you gain 1 Relationship Die roll/week with your Patron.
14-17	Besides the usual benefits, you gain 1 Relationship Die roll/week.	Ignore the part about the Luck check. You now have 2 Relationship Dice rolls/week with your Patron.
18-19	Besides the usual benefits, your Patron grant to you a total of 2 Relationship Dice rolls/week.	Ignore the part about the Luck check. You now have 3 Relationship Dice rolls/week with your Patron!
20-23	If any of your Relationship Dice comes up with a ‘1’, the enemies of your Patron take note of you (you lose Luck, suffer a mishap, an extra encounter etc.). Yes, that’s a bad thing, spellcasters already have a lot of mojo with invoke patron.	As above (3 Dice and ignore the part about Luck) and you can choose to reroll 1 of your Relationship Dice. However, if the reroll is a ‘1’, the enemies of your Patron take note of you (you lose Luck, suffer a mishap, an extra encounter etc.).
24-27	Besides the usual benefits, you have 3 Relationship Dice rolls/week.	Ignore the part about the Luck check. You now have 4 Relationship Dice rolls/week with your Patron!
28-29	As written.	As above (4 Dice and ignore the part about Luck), but you gain 1d3 extra points of Luck each time a Relationship Die shows a ‘6’ (besides the usual effects of the Die).
30-31	Besides the usual benefits, you have 4 Relationship Dice rolls/week.	As above, but you can reroll any of your Relationship Dice. If any ‘1’ shows up you’re screwed.
32+	Besides the usual benefits, after rolling, chose 1 of your Relationship Die. You gain the result as extra Spellburn points.	Ignore the part about the Luck check. You now have 5 Relationship Dice rolls/week with your Patron!

*I usually interpret this as “casting this spell on a non-spellcaster”, that’s why I granted him/her more Relationship Dice. If that isn’t the case with your group, use the “When Cast on Self” part of the table, but always a step worse (if the Spellcheck Result was 28-29, use the 24-27 entry).

On the table above, where you read “per week”, you can instead use “per adventure/module”.

The basic premises are the same: if you roll a ‘6’, your Patron will help you in a small way. For example: you gain 1d3 Luck Points, you find a potion/scroll/one-use magic item, a helpful bit of information regarding the adventure (maybe about a trap, a monster or a secret passage), a friendly contact, a temporary hireling etc.

If you roll a ‘5’, you get the same thing, but your Patron is more demanding or there’re strings attached to the “gift”. For example, you find a lesser magic item, but it’s cursed/stolen; your party is healed but your Patron will revoke the effect if you don’t find that special artifact until midnight etc.

If you want a more universal approach to Relationship Rolls consider linking the Dice to major factions of your DCC RPG campaign. What factions? Well, if you don’t have any, try those implicit in the Core Rulebook. For example:

At the Cleric Class…

- The Churches of Law (the gods Shul, Klazath, Ulesh, Choranus, Daenthar, Gorhan, Justicia and Aristemis);

- The Old Gods (Ildavir and Pellagia);

- The Mysteries of Balance (Amun Tor and other philosophies);

- The Dead Gods (Cthulhu and his ilk from the Void);

- The Cults of Chaos (Ahriman, Azi Dahaka, Bobugbubilz, Cadixtat, Nimlurun and Malotoch).

At the Thief Class…

- The Mob (time to work for the Godfather of Thieves);

- The Beggar King (the disposed, the pariah and all their all-seeing spies);

- The Warren (leaders of the poorer wardens/districts and underworld of cities);

- The Twelve Spider-Assassins (a clue: there’re more than 12).

At the Warrior Class…

- The Order of the Dragon (high-born monster-slayers);

- The Order of Saint Stephen (protectors of pilgrims and the realms of Man);

- The Fraternal Company of the Black Swan (guardians of the borders, used to fight against savage humanoids and demihumans);

- The Enterprise of the Green Shield with the White Lady (a romantic and chivalrous order);

- The Order of the Golden Spur (templars!).

At the Wizard Class…

- C’mon! Look at all those cool and dark Patrons!

The Dwarf, Halfling and Elf Classes are factions into themselves in my opinion.

I'm sure I'm not the only one reading those wonderful boxes after each class!

Note that theoretically there’s nothing forbidding a Warrior from having 2 Relationship Dice with the roguish Mob, for example. Especially if you consider that option of Positive/Negative/Conflicted Relationships.

Each PC that survives the Funnel starts with 1 Positive Relationship Die and 1 Negative/Conflicted Relationship Die (to make things interesting). The PCs gain a new Relationship Die at 2^nd, 4^th, 6^th, 8^th and 10^th level.

You might be wandering how to use Negative Relationships? Well, there’s that old proverb: “The enemy of my enemy is my friend”. If you roll a ‘6’ with a Negative Relationship, that could mean that you get help from a monster to defeat another monster. A ‘5’ could mean that your new “friend” wants something in return.

If you use Relationship Rolls during the sessions and run out of ideas, remember that DCC RPG already has a generic reward to use: Luck Points! When in doubt, if a PC rolled a ‘6’, grant him anything from 1d3 to 1d6 Luck Points, explaining it through his Relationships. For example, a Warrior with 1 Relationship Die with the Elves/Positive (either he’s a half-elf or was raised by them) rolls a ‘6’, but the Judge is out of ideas. Well, the Judge could describe a Tuk-Man or Sprite showing up to guide the Warrior through the next encounters. The Tuk-Man/Sprite’s effect is represented by the extra Luck Points.

If you want a third option for Icon Relationship Rolls, here it is: use them to map factions in an Adventure/Module. It’s the same thing but on a smaller scale. For example, let’s imagine a dungeon populated by an evil druid cult, goblins and kobolds (yup, I’m talking about the Sunless Citadel). The entire PC party can gain 1 Relationship Dice at the end of a session for every faction they meet. So, after meeting a few kobolds and helping them, the party gains 1 Relationship Die (Kobolds/Positive). Later, they face the goblins and, at the end of the session, gain another Relationship Die – this time it’s 1 Relationship Die (Goblin/Negative). I suggest capping this at 3-4 Relationship Dice. The result of the rolls can represent hirelings from a faction, supplies, sidequests etc.

For Pathfinder RPG

Most of the ideas above (except the Patron spell) can be used directly in either Pathfinder or D&D 5E.

In Pathfinder you already have a lot of subystems for organizations, contacts and reputations, so the GM will have to think if the Icon Relationship Rolls are necessary. They can be a good alternative as a “lighter” take on factions for Pathfinder. Maybe you can link the Relationship Die effects to Hero Points, or to bring extra NPCs from the Gamemastery Guide or the various Codices.

For D&D 5E

For D&D 5E things are simpler. You can grant each PC 1 Relationship Die, linked to their Backgrounds at 1^st level, and grant a new Die every time their Proficiency bonus goes up

Stealing from the 13th Age - The Escalation Die

Howdy folks! We’re back (sort of). Lately I’ve been considerably consumed by work, work, family, a little more of work, and the fact that both my children inherited my Innate Racial Traits of Asthma (Ex) and Allergies (Ex). So, with little time and the imperative need to sustain my (remaining) sanity, I’ve left this Tower for a while and focused on my biweekly tabletop group.

After awesome 13 sessions of DCC RPG, we ended our “First Season” (at 2^nd level yet!) witnessing and surviving (somehow) a titanic deathmatch between Bobugbubilz, Amun Thor, Y'golonac and Daoloth – the latest being the one responsible for our (considerable apocalyptic and Cthulhian-flavored) version of The One Who Watches From Below module. It was a blast and we all had great fun. That was back at February.

Since then I pitched to my table that we should try something different, before returning to DCC-style glorious crawling. At first, we were going to play the new 7^th Sea 2^nd Edition (the Quickstart), but the hype ended before we could start it, so I was determined to run the RPG that have been my bedside book for a while – 13^th Age.

13^th Age is a wonderful mix of d20 goodness with a little bit of narrative mechanics (just enough to get a very cool faction-based and improv-heavy game going). 13^th Age is written with an experience DM/player in mind and the entire line is probably one of the most enjoyable readings of my life regarding RPGs – light, funny, insightful. You just want to run the game after reading it.

13^th Age uses a high octane, high fantasy campaign setting called the Dragon Empire as its base standard world. The 13^th Age sourcebooks, organized play and adventures encourage a lot of player input and improvisation. Those features, mixed with game minimalist mechanics (monster have just 4 stats, besides HPs and attacks), create a unique experience at the table. People have said the 13^th Age takes the best of both 3^rd and 4^th edition (like, for example, the fact that it has a 4^th edition-like power structure, but is gridless), and sometimes I guess that the game is indeed a spiritual heir do those other games (at my table, 13^th Age is called “What D&D 4E Should Have Been”).

Another good thing about 13^th Age is that its mechanics are very modular and can be used easily in other (d20 mostly) games. For example: the Escalation Die.

The Escalation Die is a special d6 that measures the rising tension of combat. It starts at 0, at the 1^st round of combat, rising by 1 every round (until 6 at the 7^th round). The 13^th Age player characters are not your usual DCC/Warhammer Fantasy scum. They’re big f*cking heroes! So, they add the Escalation Die to their attack rolls. Now, the cool thing about that is that the game is cleverly designed to reflect that. Most monsters have AC a bit higher than usual (your base goblin has AC 16!), so its normal that at the first rounds of combat, most PC have a harder time hitting… but as you reach Escalation Die 3+ thing start to change. Combat gets fast and exciting, and the Escalation Die really reinforce 13^th Age high-action, high-fantasy vibe. In fact, some the PCs’ powers and racial/class stuff only work (or work better) at a higher Escalation Die. This reflects perfectly those media where the hero only use his stronger attack/move in middle/end of battle (from memory I can think only of one other RPG that also use this trick – the Weapons of Gods/Legend of the Wulin). Another cool bit is that certain powers (like the cleric’s Domain of War) and some (scary, scary) monsters also play with Escalation Die (rakshasas, for example, can “steal” the Escalation Die, robbing the PCs of an important bonus).

But don’t let all this 13^th Age talk dissuade you of my first and true love – DCC RPG. And because this is a weird Pathfinder/Old School blog, let’s find some uses for the Escalation Die!

ESCALATION DIE & DCC RPG

Using an Escalation Die in DCC RPG is a no-brainer. DCC already have a smaller modifier scale than Pathfinder/D&D 3^rd, so it’s easy just to add the Escalation Die as in 13^th Age (i.e. start combat at ED 0, and increase by 1 per round). You add the ED to all attack rolls.

The Escalation Die (or ED) is a good rule to increase the party’s power and get a stronger Sword & Sorcery feel to your “standard” DCC RPG, marking the PCs as heroes (at least as S&S heroes, not as do-gooders) instead of scum for the Funnel.

Of course, we can create new stuff too. How about this one: once per round, one player character can substitute any of his rolls for the ED. How useful is that? Not much at ED 1, but a ED 2 is already a “free jailbreak” against a Fumble. And how about a Warrior using a ED 3+ to automatically do a Mighty Deed of Arms? As you can see, the ED gives a considerable boost to the party, which can fit nicely with a more cinematographic/heroic take on DCC RPG.

And don’t forget to create nasty stuff for your NPCs – some of them could also can use the ED! You could create, for example, a demon with a kharmic strike-ability. Every time a PC uses a ED to substitute one of his rolls, your demon’s next hit gains a bonus damage of ED x d4 (so, if your Warrior wants an automatically Mighty Deed of Arms at ED 3, our kharmic demon’s next strike will inflict +3d4 of damage!).

ESCALATION DIE & PATHFINDER

Let’s start with the basics: PCs add the ED to attack rolls as by the 13^th Age rules (you check their SRD here – the Archmage Engine).

What more? Unlikely DCC RPG, Pathfinder (and D&D 3^rd) has a higher modifier range, so I don’t think substituting a result for the ED would be useful. If your idea is to increase drama, you could instead rule that the ED is added to all the PC’s threats during attacks rolls. This means that at ED 1, the PCs can score a threat (and thus roll for a critical hit) at natural 19 or 20 result (or just increase a weapon’s threat range by +1). This will result in a LOT of critical hits and can boost a lot your party, but maybe you want a high-powered (and gorier) game, so go for it.

Another option is that the ED generates a pool of communal d6s to be spent during battle. So, at ED 1, the entire party gains 1d6 that can be rolled and added to any one dice roll by the PCs (for example the Fighter uses the d6 and add it to a damage roll, or the Wizard adds it to a Concentration check). To guarantee maximum chaos, I’d make those d6 rolls open-ended (Savage Worlds call them ‘explosive’ I guess) – so, if you roll a ‘6’ at the ED, roll it again and add it. Yup, this increases the PCs’ power considerably, but we’re trying here to simulate 13^th Age high-octane heroics. Besides, with more power you don’t gain more responsibility… but your DM have the perfect excuse to add lots of tougher monsters and challenged, which I really love. If you use this option, maybe can use ED as a variant Hero Points rule.

Note that I didn’t say anything about the ED progression. Instead of automatically going by 1 every round (starting at 0), you could rule that to go up the ED needs a special trigger – maybe something simple like hitting an enemy and dealing damage. You could create specific triggers for each adventure. Just remember that the ED was created to avoid long and boring combats, so even if you come up with a “negative ED” (i.e. if the party doesn’t deal damage the ED go down) that benefit monsters, use it rarely for the most unique or climatic encounters.

ESCALATION DIE & D&D 5E

I haven’t still refereed D&D 5E since the Open Playtests, in part because games like DCC RPG and 13^th Age are a lot funnier for me (and more attuned to my designs tastes). I guess that D&D 5E is indeed my eternal “second best option” for d20 fantasy gaming. Anyway, there’re a few adventures for 5E that I either really want to run (Ghosts of Dragonspear Castle) or try (possible Out of the Abyss or Storm King’s Thunder).

Using the ED in D&D 5E seems easy, but I maybe be missing something, as I’m not that familiar with the system. For starts, I’d use it as in 13^th Age – PCs get to add the ED to their attack rolls. Because 5E has a limited range of modifiers, the ED really boost a party’s power and makes a great difference.

I could stop there, but then we got Inspirations which (together with Hit Dice) are some of the most missed opportunities of 5E in my opinion (I also love the variant rule where your Proficiency Bonus is replaced by dice).

In this take, once per round, one of the PCs can use the ED (starting at 1) to gain an Inspiration. Simple. If you do this, maybe you should consider removing the automatic bonus to attack rolls.

Another option: instead of using Inspiration, you could rule that – again, 1 PC, once per round –could add a bonus die to any one roll. This bonus dice would start at ED 1 at d4, then go up (ED 2 = d6, ED 3 = d8) until a bonus d20 at ED 6. Again, this is just a suggestion as I didn’t think this through. If you go for this option, remove the automatic bonus to attack rolls.

A weird third option: use the Advantage rule. Here the goal is to increase tension. Basically, the ED grants a number of “free” Advantages (ED 1 = 1 Advantage, ED 3 = 3 Advantages). What’s the catch? The other side also gains a free Advantage each time a PC uses one. For example, at ED 4 the party would have 4 Advantages (to use only on that round, they don’t carry over), but each time a PC used one of those Advantages, their enemies would gain a free use (Personally, I would let enemies accumulate Advantages during combat).

And that’s wall. I believe I could go on (and the people who have been playing 13^th probably have tons of house rules for ED already). I’m of a mind to mix ED with Momentum (from the awesome 2d20 system), or maybe granting tactical benefits through the ED (in Pathfinder, for example, you would get a pool of tactic points equal to the ED and use these points on a roundly basis to do things like negate attacks of opportunity or maybe even importing the great Reaction rules from Trailblazer).

See ya!