Goblin Finder: A Half-baked Insane Idea That Probably Won't Work
A more polished version of this ruleset is available here.
For posterity's sake, this post will not be edited, as a testament to the creative process.
What do I like about PF2E?
Glad you didn't ask, because then I'd ramble for a bit. I'd say things like...
Action Economy! It's so simple, everything's just an action, but you can only do three of them! No nonsense about move action, main action, bonus action, all that tripe, it's just action! We love it!
Crit Ranges! Exceed the DC by 10? You CRIT! More Crits! More Crits are good! Until the monsters crit... but regardless! CRIT!
Diseases! Tired of dying by a spear trap through your posterior? Why not die slowly and painfully over the course of weeks!? I HOPE YOU GOT YOUR TETANUS SHOT!
Introducing...
GOBLIN FINDER
A game that is only slightly different from anything you've ever played before...
CHARACTERS
Abilities: Strength, Dexterity, Intelligence, & Will. Roll them up using 3d6 in order.
Modifiers: We like big modifiers! For every 2 points above 10, gain +1 to that ability's modifier! Under 10? Well, that's a negative modifier! EMBRACE IT! -1 at 9, -2 at 7, -3 at 5, -4 at 3. It works!
Hit Dice: Everyone gets 1 Hit Dice per level! They're d6s, unless you're a Fighter, then it's a d8! At level 1 you get the max roll of your dice plus STR. At later levels you have to roll the dice and add STR.
0 HP? You're unconscious for 2d6 minutes! Gain a slot of Fatigue!
Fatigue fills 1 slot and inflicts a -1 penalty to all tests, reduce by 1 with each night of rest. If you gain Fatigue equal to your Strength Score, you die!
Negative HP? Roll a d12 + the negative damage you just took! 1-4: Knocked out for an hour! 5-8: Dying! Someone has to stabilize you as an action within 3 rounds, or you'll be dead! 9+ INSTAKILL!
Rest: If you eat a ration or use a resource like bandages, you can rest for an hour and spend any HD, regaining the amount rolled as HP. Rest overnight to regain spent HD.
Inventory: You get 10+STR Slots! Not enough? Bring along a hireling! They take a 1/2 share of treasure, won't fight anything, hate taking risks, constantly whine, and tend to die horribly, but they can carry 10 slots each!
Encumbered? You're helpless, and have 0 effective HP! Don't get Hit!
Items: Use the ones found here for now!
Skills: Have a relevant skill? You probably don't need to roll then, you're good at this! GM demands a roll anyway? Roll with +3!
Advancement: XP for gold is old news! We do XP by Quest! That's right, you've got to complete quests! NPCs hand them out like candy on Halloween! Go beg for quests! Make up a daring personal quest! A normal quest gives 3 XP, a hard quest gives 5, and a simple quest gives 1. What's a normal quest? Something a villager wouldn't do because they'd probably die! What's a hard quest? Something a knight wouldn't do because they'd probably die! What's a simple quest? Something a villager would do, but they don't have time! Fantastic! Oh, you need to spend 10 XP to advance. And fine, if you find a magical item or a really cool treasure hoard, you get 1 XP.
When you level up, gain a class [template] (up to 4, of course), 1 HD, and 2 Ability Score points distributed as you like.
Classes: It's GLoG! Play something cool! Or play one of the really basic ones at the end of the page! Or play peasants with nothing but a failed profession!
ADVENTURING
Let's get to the fun bits.
Ability Tests: Roll a d20 and add your most relevant ability modifier! Miss by 5+? That's a FUMBLE! Hit by 5+? That's a CRIT! Fumbles always add a complication! Crits mean you gain an unexpected bonus! Natural 1 is always a fumble, natural 20 is always a crit, no matter what!
Standard DCs
10: Easy, Open a stuck door, Climb a rickety fence, Hide in some shadows.
15: Hard, Shoot an arrow through a ring, Deceive a foe, Dodge falling rocks.
Less DCs! Less math! It's all based on intervals of 5! We love it!
Saves? Those are just Ability Tests, but they're always Hard!
TRAVEL
You can travel 24 miles a day! WOW!
You can travel an extra 12 miles each day, but gain fatigue the following morning!
DUNGEON DELVING
Each dungeon round lasts 10 minutes, and is enough time to explore 1 room, or blindly rush through 3!
COMBAT
This is what we've been waiting for.
*Deep Breath.*
Here we go...
Initiative: Test WILL 10 to act before enemies each round!
Crit? Gain +1 Action!
Fumble? You get only 1 Action!
Actions: You usually get 2 on your turn!
Attack: Use a weapon! Roll to Hit vs. a creature's AC. Deal damage dice + MOD!
Crit? Double the damage dice, or perform a Maneuver!
Fumble? Ranged > There's an X-in-6 chance you hit an ally, where X is the number of allies adjacent to the target and between you and the target. Melee > Your target gets a free swing at you.
Maneuver: Improvise! Try something crazy! The DC is your foe's most relevant Ability Score, or just a standard DC if you're not targeting an enemy! Crit? Take another action! Fumble? Dramatic reversal! The opposite of what you were intending happens!
Move: Move your speed! (30 Feet, usually.)
Spells & Features are usually an action in combat!
Reaction: You get 1 between your turns, usually triggered by an ability, or if you held an action on your turn for a specific triggering event.
Surprise! Is someone surprised? They don't get to act in the first round of combat, and may be helpless if they're unaware of the danger and don't have any kind of passive defenses like armor.
Classes
Fighter!
Starting Gear: 3 Slots of Weapons! Medium Armor! Shield! Tragic Backstory! Loaf of Stale Bread (1/3 Slot)!
Stamina Dice: D6's, 1 per template. Add any number to any combat-related d20 roll. Spend and roll any number as an action to regain [sum] HP. Return on a 3-. On doubles, you strain yourself and can't use SD again until you rest.
War-trained: Gain +[templates] to attack rolls. You never critically fail at attack rolls or combat maneuvers.
A: Scary Face, Combat-Reflexes
B: Defender, Parry
C: Reign of Steel
D: Death Dealer
Scary Face: Creatures with [templates] HD or less tend to leave you alone, and must pass a Will save to confront you. Particularly brave or stupid creatures may not be effected.
Combat Reflexes: Gain +[templates] to initiative rolls.
Defender: When an ally within 10' would be attacked, you may use your reaction to swap places with them and become the target of the attack.
Parry: Whenever you are attacked, you may spend SD to increase your AC by [sum].
Reign of Steel: You gain +1 Action during each round of combat.
Death Dealer: Whenever you slay a creature, you may take another action. For each creature you slay on your turn past the first, gain +1 SD.
Thief!
Starting Gear: Lockpicks! 3 Daggers! 60' of Rope! Large Sack! Nefarious Plot! Reuben Sandwich!
Skills: With each template, you may improve 2 of the following skills, add +3 per improvement to any d20 rolls using that skill.
Climb Sheer Surfaces, Eavesdrop, Use Magic Item, Hide in Shadows, Find & Remove Traps, Move Silently, Pick Pockets, Pick Locks
Expert: At template D, you can never critically fail outside of combat.
Tricks: With each template, choose one of the following tricks:
Backstab: If an enemy is ever distracted, deal +1d6 damage. Enemies are usually distracted if an ally of yours is adjacent to them.
Mystery Bag: You can fill 2 slots of inventory in town with Mysterious Items. During the adventure, you may retroactively buy up to 2 slots of inventory items.
Friends in Low Places: You can always find d4 1 HD Villainous Scum willing to help out with nearly any job for a 1/2 cut of any rewards.
Fancy: While wearing a nice outfit (0 Slots, worth at least 20 GP) you gain +3 AC and advantage on attempts to charm and deceive others.
Appraisal: You can tell the rough value and historical relevance of nearly anything instantaneously.
Linguist: You may declare that you know a language up to 3 times, and you then know it. You may relate a message through pantomime fairly easily.
Second Story Worker: You take no damage from the first 30' of a fall.
Wizard!
Starting Gear: Fancy Hat, Traveling Robe, Staff, Croissants & Cheese (1/3 Slot)
Magic! Each template grants +1 MD, it is a d6, and returns on a 3-. It is used to power spells. Whenever you cast a spell, you must roll 1 or more MD. You may memorize 3+ INT spells. Additional spells must be stored in a spellbook, and it takes 10 minutes to memorize a spell stored in your book. You may learn a spell by spending 1 hour studying it.
Mishaps & Misfires: If your MD roll doubles, you have a mishap. Usually this means you must rest 1 hour before casting again. If your MD roll triples, the spell misfires, and the GM may adjudicate how the spell goes horribly wrong.
A: Cantrip, Detect Magic, 3 Random Spells
B: Book Casting
C: Counterspell
D: Signature Spell
Cantrip: Not everything requires MD, you can do one of the following whenever you like:
- Levitate across liquid surfaces.
- Fire a d6 bolt of magical energy at a creature within 60'. INT to hit and DMG.
- Cause a piece of metal to glow brightly.
- Change the color of stone with your finger.
- Animate a piece of rope while you hold it.
- Cause natural wild creatures to understand your speech.
- Appear tall and frightening.
- Shrink yourself (but not your gear) to the size of a mouse. Growing back takes an hour.
- Translate anything by reading it aloud.
- Make something in your hand look incredibly valuable while you hold it.
Detect Magic: You can sense the presence of magic. Looking another spell-caster in the eyes reveals how many MD they have remaining.
Book Casting: You may cast any spell you have written in your book, but this requires 2 actions as you read it aloud.
Counterspell: As a reaction to seeing another magic user cast a spell, you may cast one of your own to attempt to cancel out the original spell. If your [sum]+[dice] is higher than the sum of the cast spell, their spell fails.
Signature Spells: Choose 3 spells you know. When you cast them, you may choose to do so with +1 MD, for free. If you ever lose these spells, you can recreate them from memory with an hour's work.
(Thank's Locheil!)
Priest!
Starting Gear: Holy Robes, Holy Book, Holy Haircut, Holy Symbol, Beef Sandwich with Garlic Aioli (1/3 Slot)
A: Signs of the Office, Bless & Curse
B: Wrath, Miracle (3-in-6)
C: Spare the Dying, Miracle (4-in-6)
D: Raise the Dead, Miracle (5-in-6)
Signs of the Office: You are immediately recognized as a member of a priestly order, and are given respect by those that respect such things. Notably, it is commonly believed that priests are able to grant or withhold the favor of their deity, a thing which many people seek.
Each template guarantees you gain the respect of a higher class of citizen, 1: Village Elders, 2: Knights, 3: Lords & Ladies, 4: Kings & Emperors. If you lose your holy items, you must visit a church to regain them in order to use this feature.
Bless & Curse: As an action you may bless or curse any creature you can see. This creature gains +/- d6 to any d20 rolls they make. This effect lasts until you use it again.
Wrath: You may hold forth your holy symbol and declare the wrath of the heavens upon a creature of your choice. Roll up to [templates] d6, and distribute that damage to any creatures you see. If this damage destroys a creature, they go straight to hell and their body turns to ash. This requires 2 actions. If you roll doubles, you must pray for an hour before being able to use it again.
Miracle: Once per day you may pray for a miracle, such as the removal of a disease, the rapid growth of plants, the blinding or unblinding of a creature, the full healing of a creature, etc. You cannot raise the dead. There is a 3-in-6 chance of this miracle occurring. Each additional template increases the odds of success by 1.
Spare the Dying: You may touch a creature that has died within the last minute and check for a miracle. On a success, it returns to life with 0 wounds. This does not use your daily miracle.
Raise the Dead: You may use your miracle to attempt to raise a dead individual. If this attempt ever fails, you may not attempt to raise that individual again, their soul is at rest, or perhaps destroyed.
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