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&LUFHRelease 1.9
A Fantasy Role-playing System
Copyright 1997-2000 Bryce Harr ington
INTRODUCTION ..................................... 4
New Additions................................................4
About the Game.............................................4
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ....................... 6
GLOSSARY............................................... 6
PART I: CHARACTER STATISTICS .... 7
Chapter 1: Circe Points ................................7
Chapter 2: Attributes....................................7Strength............................................................. 7
Agility ............................................................... 8
Precision ........................................................... 8
Perception ......................................................... 8
Health................................................................ 8
Willpower.......................................................... 9
Intelligence........................................................ 9
Charisma........................................................... 9Luck .................................................................. 9
Essence ............................................................. 9
Chapter 3: Traits ........................................10Reputation....................................................... 10
Piety ................................................................ 10
Social rank ...................................................... 11
Military rank ................................................... 11
Chapter 4: Damage Ratings ......................11Fatigue............................................................. 11
Pain ................................................................. 12
Consciousness................................................. 12
Sanity .............................................................. 12
Hit Points ........................................................ 13
Chapter 5: Races ........................................13Humans 0 ........................................................ 13
Hobbit -5 ......................................................... 14
Dwarves 25 ..................................................... 15
Elves 50........................................................... 15Goblins -10...................................................... 16
Orcs 0.............................................................. 17
Mantis 25 ........................................................ 18
Protoglathi 25.................................................. 18
Ogre 10 ........................................................... 18
Chapter 6: Vital Statistics .........................19Height.............................................................. 19
Weight............................................................. 19
Age.................................................................. 19
Gender............................................................. 20
Chapter 7: Professions...............................20Barber-Surgeon 0 ............................................ 22Bard 25............................................................ 23
Beggar 0 .......................................................... 25
Burglar 10 ....................................................... 26
Camp Cook 75 ................................................ 27
Cavalier 50...................................................... 29
Craftsman 0..................................................... 31
Dilettante 25.................................................... 32
Diplomat 50 .................................................... 34
Guardsman 0................................................... 35
Healer 50......................................................... 37
Hermetic Wizard 25........................................ 38
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Merchant 0 ...................................................... 40
Physician 25.................................................... 41
Penemunde Wizard 50.................................... 43
Priest of Unar 25 ............................................. 45Ranger 50........................................................ 49
Scout 0 ............................................................ 52
Slayer 50 ......................................................... 54
Soldier 0 .......................................................... 56
Sorcerer 50...................................................... 58
Tinker 0........................................................... 60
Troubadour 0 .................................................. 62
Wanderer 25.................................................... 63
Chapter 8: Skills .........................................64Skill Ratings.................................................... 64
Initial Skills ..... Error! Bookmark not defined.
Skill Scores ..................................................... 64Skill Checks .................................................... 64
Success Knowledge......................................... 64
Animal Skills (Willpower) ............................. 65
Athletic Skills (Agility).................................. 66
Communication Skills (Intelligence) ............. 67
Craft Skills (Precision)................................... 69
Labor Skills (Strength)................................... 71
Lore Skills (Intelligence)................................. 72
Melee Combat Skill (Agility)............... ......... 75
Missile Combat Skills (Precision).................. 77
Observation Skills (Perception) ..................... 78
Secrecy Skills (Agility) ................................... 80
Social Skills (Charisma).................................. 80
Chapter 9: Background History ...............81Events.............................................................. 82
Family ............................................................. 82
Friends, Peers, and Contacts........................... 82
Enemies........................................................... 83
Chapter 10: Party Establishment.............83Player Characters ............................................ 83
Hirelings.......................................................... 83
Employees....................................................... 84
Henchmen....................................................... 84
Followers......................................................... 84
Chapter 11: EquipmentError! Bookmark not defined.Starting Funds. Error! Bookmark not defined.
Equipment PurchasesError! Bookmark not defined.
Chapter 12: Character Advancement......84Training........................................................... 85
Practice ........................................................... 85
Insight ............................................................. 86
Kudos.............. Error! Bookmark not defined.
Professional Advancement ............................. 87
PART II: COMBAT SYSTEM............... 88
Chapter 1: Core Combat Rules ................88The Attack Roll............................................... 88
Actions ............................................................ 88
Combat Time .................................................. 89Initiative .......................................................... 90
Movement Rates ............................................. 91
Position ........................................................... 91
Knockdown..... Error! Bookmark not defined.
Constrainment................................................. 93
Facing.............................................................. 93
Enhanced and Weakened Effects, and Types of
Damage........................................................... 93
Chapter 2: Actions .....................................95Movement ....................................................... 95
Attacks ............................................................ 96
Defenses........................................................ 103Offhand Weapon........................................... 104
Area of Effect and Missed Shots .................. 104
Fatigue........................................................... 104
Damage......................................................... 105
Pain ............................................................... 105
Consciousness............................................... 106
Chapter 3: Units .......................................106Theory........................................................... 106
Synopsis .......... Error! Bookmark not defined.
Unit EffectivenessError! Bookmark not defined.
Command and Morale .................................. 107
Blast vs. Field Damage ................................. 108
Physical Damage to Units............................. 108
Other Kinds of Health Loss to UnitsError! Bookmark not defin
Chapter 4: Astral Combat.......................109
PART III: MAGIC................................110
PART IV: RELIGION ..........................110
Chapter 1: Ordination and The Calling 110
Chapter 2: Belief and Piety .....................110
Chapter 3: Prayers and Spellcasting .....111Mechanics..................................................... 111
PART V: PSIONICS.............................112
Psionics......................................................... 113
Psychokinetics .............................................. 113
Psychometabolics.......................................... 113
Telepathics.................................................... 113
Teleportics .................................................... 113
Temporics ..................................................... 113
Energetics...................................................... 114
PART VI: ADVENTURING.................115
Chapter 1: Travel .....................................115
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Chapter 2: Detection ................................116Eyesight......................................................... 116
Chapter 3: Feats .......................................116
Chapter 4: Equipment .............................117Armor............................................................ 117
Chapter 5: Dangers ..................................118Blindness....................................................... 118
Falling ........................................................... 118
Storm Effects ................................................ 119
Heat............................................................... 119
Cold............................................................... 119
Poison ........................................................... 119
Drowning ...................................................... 120
Fire - Engulfed .............................................. 120
Impacts.......................................................... 120Crushing........................................................ 120
Suffocation...... Error! Bookmark not defined.
Starvation...................................................... 120
Thirst............................................................. 120
Organ damage............................................... 120
Disease.......................................................... 121
Chapter 6: Healing...................................122Rest vs. Activity............................................ 122
Infection........................................................ 122
Toxicosis....................................................... 122
Nursing.......................................................... 122
Herbalism...................................................... 123
Minor Surgery............................................... 123
Major Surgery............................................... 123
Medical Aide................................................. 123
Chapter 7: Meteorology ..........................124Weather, Mana, Cosmos, and Luck .............. 124
PART VII: TRAINING &
ADVANCEMENT..................................126
How to Become More Powerful ................... 126
PART VIII: BUSINESS DEALINGS...127
Todo.............................................................. 127
Types of Enterprises ..................................... 127
Starting a Business........................................ 128
Business Operations...................................... 128
Documentation.............................................. 129
PART IX: RESEARCH ........................131
PART X: GAMES AND CONTESTS...132
APPENDIXES .......................................135
Headings ....................................................... 141
Notes ............................................................. 141
INDEX ...................................................142
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INTRODUCTION
Release 1. 3/ 31/ 00~ 4 ~
INTRODUCTION
New Additions
Chan ges since 1.8 are d riven mostly by use of
these ru les for the WorldForge online gaming
system.
Several new thief-like professions hav e been
add ed, providing interesting alternatives to the
trad itional burglar. The spy is a master of
observation and information brokerage, andskilled w orker of the shadow s. The cutpu rse is
a trad itional thief, an opp ortun istic pilferer and
pickpocket, oft descending to mugging to make
a living. The swind ler is a confid ence artist and
cardsharper who uses charm, slight-of-hand
and clever decep tion to divest a mark of his
money. A rogue is a brigand or h ighw ayman,
the counterpoint to the ranger, engaging in
band itry either for profit or guerrilla p olitics;
the rogue sees the law as flexible, letting h is
own principles guide his actions. The lawyer
profession (larval politician) has also been
added.
Many new warrior professions have been
add ed. The swashbu ckler is a man of style and
stealth, relying on agility and qu ick wits over
brawn y muscles and heavy armor. The thug is
the an tithesis of the cavalier, being simp ly an
unp rincipled m ercenary to w hom violence and
mu rder is as natur al as buying a pair of shoes.
The pirate is a freebooter and bu ccaneer w ho
preys off the sea lanes or assau lts small
commun ities from the sea in qu ick raids.
Sailors are knowled geable in the w ays of thesea, with a wid e variety of skills.
Necromancers are those wh o speak with the
dead. Alchemists dabble in chemistry and
mans soul. A sage is a highly knowledgeable
researcher, typically widely based in a va riety of
lore skills.
The beggar profession has been removed . The
farmer profession has been ad ded; a base
laborer, this is intend ed for p lain vanilla
peasants and land holders. The Constable of
the People is a w arden of the law charged w ith
protecting the p opu lation from criminals; it
differs from the gu ard in being m ore focused on
information collection th an combat; it also costs
more CPs.
Concrete examp le of skill calculations and
better terminology.
The character generation system ha s been
reorganized a bit to lay it out in a more
utilitarian mann er.
For combat, several new rules have been ad ded
in support of firearm u se. Some rules are added
for au tomatic gun fire. Op portu nity fire is
add ressed, and in general the m issile combat
rules are cleaned up . The sanity system is
extended to supp ort the notion of panic.
Direct fire vs. ind irect fire. Rate of fire is the
max nu mber of attacks the character can make;
his agility may also limit this. The skill is
redu ced in a similar fashion as in the regu lar
rules - the more targets, the lower the chan ce to
hit each of them .
About the Game
Circe (pronounced sir-see) is a skill based
gaming system d esigned for medieval fantasy
game worlds w here magic is pow erful but rare.
This system is inten ded to realistically model
life as an adventu rer in a med ieval world in
wh ich monsters an d magic really do exist, and
gods do look dow n from the heavens.
Circe is also the first Comp uter Aided
Roleplaying Game. This gam e need s the use of
a compu ter by players and referee to generate
characters and adventu res. The use of a
comp uter is by no means required, however.
Nearly all of the math is simp le arithmetic. The
reason so many equations are u sed is to make it
simpler to mod el all of the ru les in a comp uter
program. Because it was designed w ith
compu ters in mind , its being used in the
WorldForge online gaming system.
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INTRODUCTION About the Game
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This system is sup erior to many others becau se
it allows and encourag es players to use strategic
thinking. Combat is more than just swing,
swing, swing, for examp le. It requires asophistication of thought; the player must judge
the opp onent h e is up again st: Will he fall for
a feint again this roun d, or shou ld I go for an all
out shot right off? Perhaps I should sw itch to a
more d efensive style.
Much care has gone into seeking the prop er
balance in the weapon and arm or numbers. I
think you ll find th at p layers will find ben efits
in different features of the different weapons,
and w ill natu rally diversify their choices. One
player may pr efer the weap ons that enable
great amoun ts of damage, w hile another likesthe staff because of its du al use in attack as we ll
as defense, and a third p layer chooses to take a
dagger and w restling approach with the intent
of getting inside an opponen ts reach and thu s
preventing counter attacks. Similarly, one
player may choose an armor w ith a high
defense score, while another places more
importance on freedom of movement.
As a result, you will see your combats natu rally
become mor e colorful and more realistic-
seeming. Feints, wrestling, and maneu vering
grow in import ance. On average, battles will go
to the side with the greater nu mbers, but there
is grand room for crafty tactics that can turn the
tide of combat. And because the benefit of
defeating a foe is mu ch less than th e pena lty of
receiving d amage, players will realize that
dealing with a foe through n egotiation, bribery,
trickery, or simp ly runn ing away is sometimes
better than taking a severe beating.
The profession system used in this game is
different than the class system used in other
games. Ones profession colors the character at
the start of the game, but thereafter the
characters skill development is based on a ctual
game experiences and the training appr oach
adopted by the player character.
In writing this game, each ru le was judged on
realism, simplicity, and gam e balance. Detailed
and realistic rules that bogged d own game p lay
or couldnt be remembered off the top of oneshead were chucked. Rules that thwa rted
physics and drew ridicule were rep laced w ith
more sensible ones. Rules that were foun d to
give exceptional, unfair, or unwarranted
advantages were toned dow n or removed.
And keep in mind that, like with all roleplaying
games, the rules that follow are simply
guidelines to h elp create a more realistic, fun
game. While a great deal of thought w ent into
every ru le, if you find th at they n eedlessly
complicate things or r esult in effects you feel to
be un realistic or un d esirable, please feel free toadjust them as you see fit!
Note: Throughout this book the male pronoun
is used; the reader sh ould su bstitute he or she,
she, or it as appropriate.
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS About the Game
Release 1. 3/ 31/ 00~ 6 ~
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTSA gam e system cannot be d esigned alone, and
this system is no different. Much of the system
was developed collaboratively du ring play, and
so the p layers deserve special mention u p front
for their patience and valuable suggestions.
Most of the players have gone beyond the call
of du ty to assist in developing some areas of the
game system. Ty Parent was of immense help
in solidifying both the character generation
system and the combat system. Tom Clymer
provided m any ideas and comments on the
magic system. David Ray, Chu ck Hale, and
Dara McGloughlin p rovided inpu t on many
comp onents of the system.
Finally Id like to thank every one w ho d id not
laugh at the id ea of developing yet an other
game system and to especially thank those w ho
expressed th eir app reciation of it.
GLOSSARYAttribute One of the prim ary ratings of a
characters ph ysical, men tal, or spiritual
capabilities.
Character Any imaginary creature that carries out
actions in the game.
Delta When making a skill or ability check, the
delta is the difference between w hat was
rolled and w hat was needed. For
example, if a character has a 17 strength
and rolls a 5 strength check, he hasachieved a d elta of 12.
Method A functional category of magical pow er.
NPC Non -player Character. Sometimes
pronounced Nipick.
PC Player Character
Player Character An imaginary creature operated by a
player.
Player A real hu man being wh o is playing the
game.
Profession A collection of skills that are used in the
pu rsuit of a particular way of life.
Skill A rating of a characters know ledge or
training.
Techniqu e A sub-pow er of a method that allows for
a specific way of interaction with matter,
energy, or reality.
Tradition A system of beliefs and practices
surrounding a set of magical methods.
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PART I: CHA RACTER STATISTICS Chapter : Circe Points
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PART I: CHARACTER STATISTICSDesigning a character in Circe is pretty
straightforw ard. You first generate your set of
attributes, then p ick a race and p rofession, and
then pick the skills your character excels in.
Skilled players will recognize tha t since their
characters cannot learn every skill the party
needs, they should focus on being very good at
a few u seful skills, and rely on the other p layer
characters to fill in whatever is missing.
Below is the character d esign process:
1. Determine num ber of Circe Points available
2. Roll attr ibutes
3. Choose race
4. Determine racial abilities and skills
5. Select vital statistics
6. Select profession and determine skills and
powers
7. Get starting equipm ent
Chapter 1: Circe Points
A n ew character begins w ith 25 Circe point s
(cps). These points allow pu rchasing of
benefits above and beyond w hat is norma lly
available. Players w ith left-over Circe p oints
from their last character can use th ese points in
designing their new character. Each race and
class is given a Circe point cost; the p layer mu st
expend this num ber of points in ord er to select
that race/ profession/ option for his or hercharacter.
Its okay to ha ve negat ive Circe Points at an y
point d uring the character design process, as
long as the player ends up with zero or greater
points at the start of the game.
During play the p layer will have the
opp ortunity to earn more points through good
roleplaying, accomp lishing goa ls, doing h eroic
things, and br avely sacrificing oneself. These
points m ay be spent to increase ones attributes,
gain skills or reputa tion, and so forth.
Unlike other character traits, Circe points
remain w ith the player, not with the character.
Thus w hen a p layers character is killed, the
Circe points it earned can be carried over to th e
next character. Referees can aw ard Circe points
at will, but th ey are not allowed to take them
away from a player after theyve been awa rded.
Some p rofessions an d races will be too
expensive to buy the first time the p layer plays.
This is to encourage the p layer to run a variety
of different kind s of characters, and to give
them something to work toward s, and to look
forward to once their current character d ies or is
retired. This also encourages p layers to role-
play and to set goals for their character other
than just hacking and slashing.
Chapter 2: Attributes
There are eight attributes tha t describe a
characters mind, spirit, and body. All of these
attributes are imp ortant. Most adventurers will
have scores in the 10-14 range, bu t its en tirely
possible to hav e scores of 1 or 21.
Roll on 4d6 and d iscard th e lowest die. Total
the dice and record for strength. Continu e for
each attribute in order. As many sets may be
generated as d esired, but each six full sets
generated cost 1 CP. This meth od generat es an
average value of 12. All brand s of hu man s,
elves, hobbits, and d warves u se the same types
and nu mbers of dice to roll attributes; some of
the odder character races have bonuses or
pen alties to the d ice rolls. These are listed in
chapter 4.
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Strength is a measu re of mu scular ability and
general endu rance. It determines the amount of
force a character can ap ply in a given situation.
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PART I: CHA RACTER STATISTICS Chapter : Attributes
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High strengths are required to w ield larger
weap ons that do larger amounts of dam age.
Characters with high strengths are also able to
get better use of their weap ons through strengthenhanced attacks, which increases the average
dam age a particular weap on does.
High strength helps for feats like bending bars
and su ch. In wrestling or hand to hand
fighting, high strength is vital for dam aging the
opp onen t. Strong characters are also able to fire
bows w ith higher string tensions, thus
increasing the maximum ran ge. Characters
with high stren gths are also less easily fatigued
and can wear heavier armor in battle and travel
for longer d istances without tiring.
Characters reduced to 0 strength mu st make a
health check each day or lose a point of health.
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A characters quickness an d d eftness is
measured by the agility attribute. This is a very
impo rtant statistic, as it controls a characters
ability to defend h imself and how fast they can
go in a dead sp rint. It is the basis of all the
melee combat skills, and is used w hen training
these skills.
Characters redu ced to 0 agility will be un able to
stand u pright or even sit without aid.
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Missile weap on skills, including man y spells,
are based up on the precision attribute. This
governs how careful and meticulous a character
is. Precision also plays into all of the craft skills
and is thus an important statistic for craftsmen,thieves, and healers. Precision is a measu re of
ones eyesight and hand -eye coordination. A
highly precise character can carry ou t very
detailed tasks, such as gem cutting or m ap
making, with a high degree of qua lity.
Characters reduced to 0 precision m ust m ake a
health check each day or lose a point of health.
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A characters genera l awareness of his
surround ings is measured by their perception
attribute. This is a vital statistic for guards ,
scouts, and thieves for obvious reasons. A
highly perceptive individual can find hidden
things easier and m ore reliably than a less
perceptive person. Having at least one person
with high p erception in a party is useful for
detecting and avoiding ambu shes. Psionicists
also benefit from havin g high percept ion
ratings.
Characters redu ced to 0 perception will lose a
level of sanity each da y unless a willpow ercheck is mad e.
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Arguably the most imp ortant attribute for an
adventu rer is health. Health is a measure of the
bodys resistance to poisons an d d iseases, but it
comes into play mos t directly in hea ling battle
wou nds. Characters with high health scores
will heal battle wou nd s quickly and will be able
to continue adventuring wh ile they recover.
Low h ealth characters have much m ore
difficulty and n eed more time recovering, and
they are forced to remain bed ridden for the
process.
A characters minimu m starting h it po ints is his
health. If the characters health score increases,
then h is total hit points will increase by that
same amoun t. The converse is not true,
however; when the health score is reduced the
hit points are notredu ced. There are plenty of
other wa ys a character can p ermanently lose hit
points!The basic amou nt of hit points recovered for a
days rest is equal to the d elta of a healing check
divided by four; if the num ber is negative it
represents lost hit points. Herbs, magic, and
healing skill all play into helping cha racters heal
faster, or to avoid taking as mu ch dam age in the
first place.
Characters redu ced to 0 health w ill die within
an hou r from natural causes.
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PART I: CHA RACTER STATISTICS Chapter : Attributes
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:LOOSRZHU
Willpower represents mental stability and
determination. Long term tasks that require
dedication and concentration are easier to
perform by characters with high w illpower
attributes.
No really imp ortant skills are based off of
willpower, and it doesnt directly affect combat,
but it is an important factor in maintaining
control of ones character. Chara cters with low
willpower are m ore likely to become insan e, be
affected b y psionic attacks, or simp ly fail to
hav e the d edication to stick to a difficult task.
Characters reduced to 0 willpow er w illacciden tally do themselves in at th e first
opportunity.
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This ability score determin es how quickly a
character can learn and is very impor tant for
gaining skills. Wizards need high intelligence
attributes to be able to quickly decide on the
prop er phr ases, symbols, and gestures to use in
casting their spells. In psionic attacks, thehighly intelligent character stan ds a better
chance of finding a w ay throu gh his opp onents
defenses.
Characters redu ced to 0 intelligence will go into
a coma and die within a d ay un less artificially
sustained.
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A characters ability to lead an d to positively
interact with other beings is measured by the
charisma attribute. The reaction of other
creatures to the character can be p ositively
reinforced with high charisma scores.
Characters reduced to 0 charisma m ust make a
health check each day or lose a point of health.
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The luck attribute is a measure of how well
things just fall into place for a character. The
referee may call for luck checks to determine th e
whims of Chance.
Luck can also be burn ed to reroll bad d ie or
dice rolls. At any po int and for any roll, the
player can red uce his characters luck attribute
by one point an d force a reroll of the most
recent die or dice combination.
Characters redu ced to 0 luck will suffer a
sudden, inexplicable, unavoidable death by the
end of the day.
For examp le, Grishnak the Giant a ttacks Bruce
the Elf with a tr ee, rolls a 3 on his attack roll
(succeeding by on ly 5 p oints) and th en rolls 3d6
for 14 points of dam age, exactly enough to
bring Bruce to 2 hit points an d p utting him in
such agonizing pain he can do nothing. Bru ces
player, realizing th at the rest of the pa rty is
doomed without Bruces pow erful sword arm,
decides to burn a luck point for an attemp t to
avoid fate. He cant force a reroll of the attack,
only the damage, so he does so. Unfortunately,
Grishnak rolls an 18 this time and knocks Bru ce
un conscious. Bru ces player could continue
burn ing luck points, if he wan ted...
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This is a measur e of a characters poten tial for
wielding su pernatur al pow ers, either m agical or
psionic. This is a measure of a characters
inner strength from w hich they may d raw
energies to fuel spells and p sionics. Many
mages will sacrifice their essence to gain m ore
magical pow er, wh ile psionicists pre fer to keeptheir essence levels as high as p ossible so that
they can use their pow ers at full strength . Some
of the non -human races have intrinsic pow ers
that require minimum essence scores, dedicated
essence, or essence sacrifices. Hu mans benefit
in that their essence is not tied u p in these
du biously usefu l racial abilities.
During initial design of a character, 3 points of
essence may be trad ed for 1 point in any other
attribute, 6 points of essence can be tr aded for 1
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PART I: CHA RACTER STATISTICS Chapter : Traits
Release 1. 3/ 31/ 00~ 10 ~
point in tw o different attributes, 9 points for 1
point in three d ifferent attributes, and so forth.
Characters with essence scores of 0 become
undead, typically zombies or ghouls.
Chapter 3: Traits
In ad dition to all of the other tr aits a character
has, there are certain intangible ratings that ar e
imp ortan t characteristics. The player should
choose a ranking for his character wh en he
designs it. Thereafter, the referee will
determine wh en the character goes up or down
in those measures.
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This is a measu re of how well known (famously
or infamously) a character is in his society. A
character w ith a high repu tation w ill have better
luck recruiting followers.
Unknown
0
Known on ly to friends and
family.
Indifferent
5
People have vaguely heard of
the character, but so w hat?
Hero / knave
10
Name and deeds are known in
a few town s and cities, and a
small group of people highly
respect or desp ise the character.
Famous/
infamous
25
Known throughou t a small
kingdom or prin cipality. Many
peop le look to the character as
a role mod el or a symbol of all
that is wron g with the world.
Celebrity /
villain
50
Well known through out a
kingdom and to a lesser extent
in surrou nding nations. People
become obsessive about thecharacter.
Renown /
archvillain
100
Well known through out the
world. Chara cters name is a
household word. Characters
day to day activities are
discussed in idle chit-chat.
Moving up to a new repu tation level improves
ones charisma by one point. If the repu tation
rating decreases, then the charisma rating will
drop accordingly.
Higher reputation levels can benefit the
character or can lead to trouble. The king may
be more inclined to enh ance ones social ran k,
or might become wo rried and send a fewassassins. Peasan ts might seek the character out
(for better or for w orse).
Renown characters and celebrities attract
followers w hether they want them or not.
Specific Reputation
Sometimes a char acter can develop a
particularly strong reputation for a given trait.
For examp le, a character could b e part icu larly
well know n for th eir acts of charity, or of
bruta lity. Some examp les are listed below:
Figh ting skill
Justice / mercy
Military prowess
Generosity / credit
A characters repu tation in each of these areas is
expressed as a p ercentage of between 0% and
100% of their normal rep utation. This isapp lied to their reputation score for any
relevant activities.
3LHW\
This is how religious a character is. The higher
the piety rating, the m ore likely a character will
be able to call upon his god for favors.
There are several piety ranks. A characters
piety rank governs the maximum num ber of
piety points he can have at any on e time:
Piety Level Na me Rank Max PPs
Unbeliever 0 0Lay 2 4
Believer 4 16
True believer 6 36
Disciple 8 64
Devotee 10 100
Revered Father/ Mother 12 144
Saint 16 256
Demigod/ angel/ martyr 20 400
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All characters begin the gam e with a p iety score
of zero, except as n oted in th e profession
descriptions.
The character has a pool of Piety Points th at are
gained and expended th roughout the game; at
no time may th e character have m ore than their
maximum amou nt, and if their current score is
zero or below, they are not allowed to spend
more p oints. The following actions can raise or
lower a characters piety points:
Gain ded icated convert to the
religion
+5
Gain fair weather convert +2
Worship on gods day +2
Comp lete pilgrimage +5 to 15
Recover a holy relic +10 to 20
Other m inor tasks (religion
dependent)
+1
Comm itted sin -1 to -5
Comm itted major sin -5 to -20
Priests have man y uses for piety points, but lay
folk can spen d the ir piety points to gain their
god s favor. Any per son can pray to their god
to gain favor; each piety point sp ent gain a +1
on th e next die roll.
6RFLDOUDQN
Players mu st select the position in society that
their character begins the game. Chara cters
wh o know a trade at a level of 15 or higher can
begin as a tradesman. Soldiers and other ex-
military chara cters can begin the gam e at the
yeoman ran k. Clergy are considered separately
from the social ranking system as long as th ey
remain m embers of their respective church.
Slave (-15 cp) Esquire (25 cp)Pau per (-10 cp) Knight (50 cp)
Serf (-5 cp) Baron (100 cp)
Yeoman (0 cp) Earl (200 cp)
Tradesm an (5 cp) Coun t (300 cp)
Guildsman (10 cp) Duke (400 cp)
Magna te (20 cp) Archd uke (500 cp)
Plutocrat (30 cp) King (1000 cp)
Emperor (1500 cp)
Independ ent adven turers, thieves, and travelers
are considered to be pau pers. Adventu rers
with a n ominal allegiance to a lord a re
considered to be serfs. Members of well-known
and respected ad venturing fellowships and
established m ercenary companies areconsidered to be yeomen; party leaders are
treated as tradesmen.
0LOLWDU\UDQN
This is a measure of advan cement in the armed
forces.
The following is a list of army enlisted an d
officer ranks:
Private (0 cp) Lieuten ant (10 cp)Lance Corp oral (1 cp) Cap tain (20 cp)
Corp oral (2 cp) Major (30 cp)
Lance Sergea nt (4 cp) Lieut. Colonel (40 cp)
Sergeant (8 cp) Colonel (50 cp)
Sergeant Major (16
cp)
Major General (60 cp)
Lord Sergeant (32 cp) Gen eral (70 cp)
Chapter 4: Damage Ratings
There are several different kind s of damage a
character can sustain. Each is trackedseparately and is measur ed in levels. A starting
character w ill begin at fu ll un less the referee or
player wishes otherw ise.
)DWLJXH
The most common form of damage is simply
getting worn ou t. The most common w ays of
becoming fatigued a re travel, labor intensive
work, and combat in heavy armor.
Energized Benefits and pen alties of
quick and deliberate ph ases
halved . Use better of two
initiative rolls.
Rested No effect.
Light fatigue No effect.
Moderat e fatigue All skill rolls (except
fatigue checks) suffer -2.
Extreme fatigue All skill rolls (except
fatigue checks) at -4.
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Exhau stion All skill rolls (except
fatigue checks) at -8.
At any p articular time, a character will hav e amaximu m fatigue level. Normal characters
have a m aximu m fatigue level of rested. Drugs,
magic, psionics, and m ania can increase the
maximum fatigue level to energized . Illnesses,
poisons, drugs, magic, psionics, and depression
can redu ce the ma ximu m fatigue level.
3DLQ
Pain levels are typ ically unimp ortant for
fighters; they simp ly suffer on. But for mag esor peop le attempting to concentrate it can m ake
a big difference. Pain does not equate with
dam age; someone can be und er extreme p ain
but suffer little or no p ermanent d amage.
Ecstasy Highly distracting pleasant
sensation.
Pleasure Good feeling, easy to ignore.
No pain
Discomfort Minor irritant, a du ll ache. Easy
to ignore.
Hurt Pain is very noticeable but
character can do other actions
without too much difficulty.
Suffering Character has trouble
concentrating, walking, and
doing most norm al tasks.
Typically is bent over ho lding
injured part of body.
Agony Character can do little else but cry
in pain.
Shock Character una ware of pain, but
has trou ble thinking or m oving.
&RQVFLRXVQHVV
Super-
conscious
High level of aw areness. Ha lf of
characters essence score is
add ed to all perception-
depend ent skill or attribute
checks.
Conscious Character can act norm ally.
Dazed Characters actions are don e at
half strength.
Stunn ed Character can do nothing but
wan der aimlessly.
Unconscious Character cannot do anything.
6DQLW\
Used to measure a characters control of
himself. The severity of the illness is measu red
as shown in the table below.
Sane
Unbalance
d
Character is no ticeably eccentric,
weird, or loony. Prone to do
absu rd or illogical things. Maybelieve imp ossible things (such as
being the king) or hav e odd
phobias. May be paran oid,
extremely frightened , suicidal, or
fanatic.
Deranged Character is hysterical, w ild or
maniacal. Lacks full control over
his actions. Can be calm for
periods, but every so often erup ts
in un controlled fits.
Insane Character is fully off the deep
end . He acts in a mindlessmanner , in some cases becoming
catatonic, in other cases simp ly
babbling incoherently.
There are many different forms of insanity. The
forms th at norm al characters can develop are
listed below.
Melancholy Character is always in a very
poor m ood, pessimistic, tired,
and even suicidal. Most comm on
mental illness among hum ans.Lunacy Wide swings of mood from
extreme m ania to deep
dep ression. In man ic state
character is energized but has
little self-control. Common
illness amon g elves.Delirium Hears voices. Often suffers
from de lusions. Very difficult to
concentrate on any task. Can be
irrational and impu lsive, and
sometimes insan ely violent.Tormented Fears rule the chara cter. Usua lly
character is afraid of just a few
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particular things. Fear can be
irrational, misplaced, and
paralyzing. Common illness
among halfling.Crazed Add ictions are a minor form of
this illness. In severe cases
character must irrationally repeat
an action such as han d-washing
uncontrollably. Common illness
among dw arves.Berserk High-energy, manic type illness.
Character is very hyperactive and
constantly getting into trouble.
Cant focus on details.
Aggressive, drawn to fighting
and battle. Impu lsive andimpatient.
Madness Uncontrolled anger. Impulsive,
competitive, and painfully
sensitive. Must be the hero at all
costs. Com mon illness amon g
orcs.
Other san ity traits: Senility, paranoia, frenzy ,
violence, imbecility, foolishness.
The referee will require the chara cters to make
sanity checks from time to time. Each time a
check is failed, the characters sanity check is
red uced by one. These checks can be requiredwhen, for example, the character has been
und er an extreme amou nt of stress or constant
stress for a long period, when h e or she does or
is forced to experience som ething comp letely
out of synch with their personality (committing
mu rder , seeing a hor rific sight, etc.)
A character regains sanity through overcoming
obstacles, achieving goals, and cond ucting
himself produ ctively in his profession. In game
terms, the character can regain lost sanity
through expenditure of Circe points.
+LW3RLQWV
Roll 5d6 for hit po ints. If the tota l is less than
the char acters health score, reroll the lowest d ie
until it isnt.
The player may sp end 5 cp to re-roll his hit
points du ring the design process.
Chapter 5: Races
In game terms, all of the standar d r aces have thesame basic game characteristics. They all use
the same d ice for attributes, hit points, and so
forth. Some races have intrinsic ad vantages; to
be one of these races the player mu st spend the
nu mber of Circe points ind icated n ext to the
races nam e. Races with disadvantages p rovide
Circe points back to the player that can be
retained for other uses.
There are no h ard and fast rules for ability score
limits or requirements, but because of obvious
differences in p hysical stature the t ypical scores
for a given attribute may d iffer. For example,hobbits are mu ch less likely to have an 18
strength than a hum an.
Race Bonuses or Penalti es
Goblin -1d6 intelligence
-1d3 stren gth
Protoglath i +1d6 agility
-1d6 h ealth
Ogre +1d6 strength
-1d6 intelligence
-1d6 essence
Man tis +1d6 agility
-1d6 essence
Centau r Reroll one intelligence,
willpow er, or health die,
-1d6 essence
+XPDQV
Hu mans a re known for their ability to adapt to
a range of different environments. Hu mans are
a lot like ants: they are found from the poles tothe equator, both above and below ground. As
a race, they have a fast enough r eprodu ction
rate to be able to outgrow the longer lived races
such as the elves and dw arves, but their life
spans are long enough to allow am ple
individu al growth an d p assing on of
knowledge. Hu mans are more deeply religious
than an y other race; no matter w hich god they
worship, hum ans w ill die by the thousan ds to
prove some theological point or other.
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One of the most significant strengths of humans
is their grouping tend ency. This behavior has
allowed th em to form na tions of millions of
individu als. With this sort of organization thehum ans can overwh elm smaller but
individu ally more pow erful creatures. The one
draw back of this trait is that hu mans can also be
very xenop hobic, often exterminating
individu als on the basis of race alone. This trait
is so strong th at lacking som e racial foe, the
hum ans will turn on each other over some
obscure issue such as ha ir texture or religious
differences.
Hu mans take up a lmost any profession, though
they are most commonly found as farmers,
shopkeepers, and such. The moreadventu resome human s usually become
warriors or clerics.
FREE SKILLS
One Language: # p oints equal to intelligence.
Brawling or Swimming: d6 points
Fire Use: d8 points
Melee Combat: d4 points
Rope Use: d6 points
Food Preparation: d6 points
Riding, Land: d6 points
Any Survival Skill or Reading/Writing : d6
points
Voice: d4 points
Persuasion or Negotiation: d6 points.
+REELW
Many p eople think h obbits are closely related to
hu mans because of the phys ical similarities.The main d ifference is the size, and thu s they
are often referred to as halfling. But the
individu als in question vehem ently deny this
label, insisting We aren t half of anyth ing!
Were just as comp lete as anyone else, and well
bite the kneecaps off anyone wh o says
otherw ise. But the hobbits have been called
halfling for so long that m any accep t the term ;
some even prefer that to the more up pity
hobbits.
Hobbits are much more consigned to peaceful
existence than hu mans, though there are always
a few w ho seek the adventu rers life. Invariably
even these w ild ones w ill settle down andbecome innkeepers or m ayors or some such.
Hobbits are known for being very d exterous
both with missile weap ons and with d etail
work. Hobbit gemcutter s, jewelers, and
locksmiths are usu ally the best in the city,
second only (sometimes) to the dw arves.
Hob bits usua lly live in hum an cities and only
rarely form their own coun tries and cities. They
usually stay with the m ore lucrative trades such
as jewelry manufacturing and sales, and
banking, though they also are well known for
their cooking skills and can be found as bakers,innkeepers, and brewers.
Traditionally, the more sp irited an d
adventu resome hobbits take up the thieving
profession, but u nlike hum ans, not in a
malicious sort of way. All hobbit thieves follow
codes of ethics, some re fusing to rob from
fellow h obbits, others refu sing to kill; they tell
themselves that they arent really true th ieves
but of a nobler sort. Because hobbits are
generally opp ressed by the hu mans th ey live
with, the hobbit commu nity often looks with
pride and envy on their fellows w ho find ways
around the laws and lawmen.
Hobbits do not look favorably about those w ho
acquire and flaunt sheer wealth. Even the
wea lthiest hobbits are expected to live plainly.
Excess wealth is to be distributed to family and
followers; the true wealth of a man is measu red
by the prosperity of those around h im.
Hobbits tend to h ave the h ighest precision
attributes of any of the other races, and have
better perception scores than an y of the other
races except for elves. On average, hobbits havelower strength a nd health scores than an y of the
races. And in spite of their repu tation as the
hap py-go-lucky halfling, hobbits luck h as its
highs an d lows just like everyone else.
FREE SKILLS
One Language: # p oints equal to intelligence.
Missile Combat: d6 points
Rock Throw ing: d6 points
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Secrecy: 2d6 points
Reaction: d6 points
Fire Use: d3 points
Fabric Working or Woodwo rking: d6 points
Food Preparation: d8 points
'ZDUYHV
The dw arf accepts his hu man-given label of
dw arf grud gingly, often espou sing that,
Well, at least were not as short as th e
halfling. Dwa rves are short and stocky,
stubborn and serious, but always strong and
stout-hearted. They love the land and hate thesea, thou gh there are always exceptions. As a
race, they value gold an d gem s higher than an y
other creature save, perhaps, dr agons.
Hu man settlements often boast a dw arf or two,
almost alw ays filling in as a blacksmith or
weapo nsmith. Their talents for working metals
are w orld known , and their stone w orking skills
are so highly respected th at hu mans consider it
bad lu ck to begin m ajor constru ction p rojects
without one onsite. While dw arves are capable
of using magic and casting spells, they have a
severe distru st of it and rarely practice it. Whenthey d o use m agic, it is typically to create a
magic item or a particularly impor tant p iece of
jewelry. In their habitations, called holds,
dw arves w ill fill in all the other tasks requ ired
by civilization: shop keeping, farm ing, and even
politics, but their most respected profession is
mining. Few other races are capable of creating
and m aintaining the vast und erground
enterp rises needed to find the lucrative riches of
the deep. Dwarves despise thievery as being
against their very na ture, yet there are just as
many d warven thieves as of any other race,perhap s even more, due to the greed that
pervad es the race.
While dwarves h ave religions and always
worship som e god or another, they are not as
vehem ent abou t it as other races, thu s the few
dw arven clerics seen wan dering the lands are
invariably attached to one of the more militant
hum an churches. True dw arven clerics only
leave their holds on the most urgent of
business.
Dwarves are driven by two desires: wealth and
reputation. In dwarven land s, reputation is a
function of how mu ch wealth one p ossesses, so
that simp lifies the choices one has to make. Butdw arves not associated w ith a dw arf clan will
sometimes spend much effort trying to build
their nam e into something bigger, often
sacrificing vast sum s to do so.
Attributes that dw arves excel in a re strength,
willpower, and hea lth. They generally are not
as agile as the oth er races and are typ ically
pretty unlucky. Many dw arves are deaf or have
vision pr oblems du e to the various h azardous
careers they pu rsu e, and so they typically arent
terribly perceptive individuals and m ust m ake
up for this by training their observation al skills.Charisma is another trait the dw arves need to
work on, they dont just get along very w ell,
most being individualists and introverts.
FREE SKILLS
One Language: # p oints equal to intelligence.
Melee Combat: d3 points
Mining: d6 points
Earth Lore: d6 points
Stone Working: d6 pointsObservation Skills: d6 points
Animal Skills: d6 points
Animal Lore: d6 points
Labor Skill s: d6 points
Voice: d6 points
(OYHV
Long, long ago, the lan ds of the planet A llel
were domina ted by elven civilizations. Butaround two thousan d years ago changes took
place that doom ed the elves to near extinction.
Being skilled w ith magic (some sa y better
skilled than any other r ace ever known on Allel)
the elves began m anipulating genetic structures
of living beings, culminating in severa l chan ges
to their own makeu p. Desiring for longer,
healthier lives, they discovered a w ay to remain
youth ful for centu ries. Some say it was
arrogan ce, others the w ill of the god s, but wh ile
this chan ge worked as plann ed on m en, it failed
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to affect the women in the same way. A few
female elves were born w ith this trait, but all
became infertile soon after reaching pu berty.
And a mu ch larger percentage of the femalesdied in infancy or durin g birth.
The consequences were not expected, but they
were very extreme. Fewer women meant fewer
babies, and so over a period of several hun dred
years the elven popu lation dwind led. Wars
with the mantis took heavy tolls on the elven
men, and w ars with orcs, human s, and other
uncivilized mon sters drained the culture of
resour ces. Soon the civilization was eclipsed by
new civilizations of human s and d warves an d
gradu ally the elves retreated into the dark
forests.
Elves today are m uch different than they w ere
thou sand s of years ago. They are typically very
wild at heart yet still possess the haughty
attitud e of a once suprem e race. Hated by most
of the other races of the plan et, the elves often
disgu ise themselves or remain in isolated
hiding.
All male elves have adapted to the dearth of
female elves by partn ering with other m ale
elves. While this seems to satisfy their need s
quite well, it resulted in the cur rent badconnotations of the w ord fairy, and it has only
exacerbated the pop ulation problems. Female
elves are often ostracized or d riven from their
tribes and seek mates with m ales of other
species; un fortuna tely, many of these pairings
are un prod u ctive or result in sterile offspring.
One major d ifficulty that elves face is the
num ber of creatures bearing them strong
enm ity. The ancestors of todays elves brough t
this upon them selves through their poor
treatm ent of inferior races like orcs and
hum ans, their repu tation for possessors andcreators of mag ical treasu res, and their foolish
creation of mons ters specifically designed to
seek out an d kill other elves.
All of the h u man -like creatu res shar e ill-will
tow ard elves: hu man s, orcs, goblins, giants,
dw arves, and ogres to name just a few. Of the
most voracious m onsters tha t favor elvish flesh
are manti.
ELF, HUMANIZED
One Language: # p oints equal to intelligence.
Begging: d6 pointsConcealment: d6 points
Fire Use: d6 points
Rope Use: d6 points
Scrounging: d6 points
Voice: d8 points
ELF, N ATURAL OR TRIBAL
Aelneish: # points equ al to intelligence.
Dancing: d12 points
Music: d6 points
Performing: d6 points
Sex Appeal: d8 points
Singing: d6 points
Voice: d6 points
*REOLQV
Who in their right mind w ould w ish to be a
goblin when they could be an orc? Please skip
this section and proceed on to the orc section.
Everyone know s orcs are more than severaldegrees better in every wa y than w impy
goblins. Goblins are fools. They think that by
living among hu mans they can acquire wealth,
protection, and education. Weaklings! Sure,
the hu man s don t kill off the goblins nearly as
mu ch as the orcs do, but come on, at least with
the orcs they can participa te in battles and are
usually allowed honorable positions at the head
of the army. And the orcs always pa y great
attention to th e goblins; with the hu mans,
theyre always ignored an d left to hav e to do
everything themselves.
In the good old days, goblins were mu ch truer
to form. Theyd live in the wood s and h ills
und er the benevolent guidance of orcs or the
occasional ogre, but tod ay th eyre more often
found in hum an cities doing chores for hu mans,
carting garbage, cleaning sew age, even being
barbers! Now adays most goblins have given up
the ways of the warr ior and ra rely lift their
weapon s to fight for their freedom , relying all
too navely on the hu man legal system.
Fortunately th e race is not en tirely lost, a few
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have kept to their ancestral ways a nd em ploy
themselves as protectors of the people or serve
as security troubleshooters for the hum ans,
often doing this without even being asked!More goblins have been getting involved in the
study of magic right under th e nose of the
hum ans, something that us orcs cant condone
but mu st applaud for its bravery and aud acity.
And , well, everyone knows goblin men ar e the
best hung of any of the human oid races
(cepting trolls, of course.)
FREE SKILLS
Lowspeak: # p oints equal to intelligence.
Any hand w eapon: d6 pointsAny one l abor skill : d6 points
Mini ng or Fire Us e: d6 points
Observation: d6 points
Scroungi ng or Begging : d6 points
Secrecy or Riding, Land: d6 points
+DOI*REOLQV
The offspr ing of a goblin and a h um an, the half-
goblin is a sterile mu le. Typically, half-goblinsare stronger, more agile, and of a higher
constitution than either h um ans or goblins, but
they are as ugly as sin. Ha lf-goblins only
man age to live if their mothers h app en to d ie in
childbirth because if not, the mother (goblin or
hum an, either w ay) will strangle the
abomination as soon as they can get their hands
around its neck.
Throughout life, half-goblins are shunned,
stoned, and add ressed as dambastard. Half-
goblins frequently turn to adventu ring as a
profession because, as theyve learn ed aga inand again, money does buy you love sometimes.
FREE SKILLS
One Language: # p oints equal to intelligence.
Reaction: d6 points
Any one labor skill: d8 points
Fire Use : d6 points
Observation: d6 points
Scrounging: d6 points
Secrecy: d6 points
2UFV
Amon g all of the races, orcs are, by some
counts, the most noble and p ure. They refuse to
live in the filthy cities of the hu man s, yet they
are not as afraid of show ing themselves as the
elves are. They dont hang onto the hum an race
like the pa rasitic hobbits and goblins, and wh ilethey ap preciate gold and s ilver, they don t
expend every last ou nce of their life acquiring
such transitory things. Orcs are more
concerned abou t the truly natural
Not to be outd one by the other races, orcs, too,
have thieves, yet they d o not m ake it a virtual
profession and lifelong study ou t of it like the
less advan ced h um ans, dwar ves, elves, and
halfling. When an orc is required to perform
thieving tasks, it is generally cond ucted on his
own time ou tside his trad itional calling. Orcs
do n ot have the wide var iety of practicedthieving method s and techniques of the more
experienced thieving races like hum ans, so
when they mu st do a thieving action they are
more straightforward and up front.
Orcs rarely engage in ma gic or psion ics, though
among the elders there is always someone wh o
know s the spells necessary for assisting the orcs
in the struggles of everyday life. Most orcs are
ded icated in the ir religious beliefs, and
sometimes this causes hear twrenching conflicts
with their otherwise peaceful dem eanors
towards other races.
As orcs are more interested in the outd oors and
in feats of ph ysical prow ess, they h ave, on
average, excellent attribu tes of strength and
health, though other attributes, most notably
intelligence and willpower, are often derided by
other races; the truth is that throughout orcish
history there hav e been well over seven orcs of
very above average intelligence. And th e so-
called low willpow er of orcs is a disservice to
the race; the m any activities believed to be v ices
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by other races are considered by orcs to be
highly desired and respected traits, and it takes
a good d eal of fortitude and will to und ertake
the marath on imbibing of near poisonousquantities of beverages and herbal medications,
the p hysically exhau sting activities of
procreation (often d isplaying their desire for
racial harmony by allowing participation of
other races in this behavior), and the constan t
tests of orchood through one-on-one
recreational activities that true orcs must
partake.
FREE SKILLS
Lowspeak: # p oints equal to intelligence.Brawling : d6 points
Spe ar, Axe or Club: d6 points
Any thrown weapon: d4 points
Animal Skills: d6 points
Wilderness Survival: d6 points
Fire Use : d6 points
Cheating : d4 points
Mining: d6 points
0DQWLV
This is a very d ifficult race to play. Mantis get a
nu mber of benefits primarily of a combat
nature, but they mu st suffer a nu mber of
roleplaying pen alties, the most notable of which
is that they more than likely will be killed on
sight if they are ever foun d near or in a hu man
inhabited city. Besides this, they are incapab le
of making hum an vocal sounds and have
difficulty hearing the lower pitched sounds of
the male hu man voice; hum ans, in turn, are
una ble to d iscern the m any variations in pitchesand timbers that the Mantis produ ces so are
nearly incapable of und erstanding man tis
speak. There are many social differences
between mantis and hu man cultures, such as
the formers prop ensity for eating hum ans.
Mantis always eat their dead, wh ich is a p oint
of contention in an y group of travelers or
adven turers that include mantis, as hum ans
always wan t to waste their meat by burying or
burning it.
FREE SKILLS
Noisy clicking language: # points equal to
intelligence.Leg Strength: d6 points
Tightrope w alking: d6 points
Stringed Instrument: d6 points
Butchering: d6 points
Wilderness Survival: d6 points
Claw: d3 points
Bite: d3 points
3URWRJODWKL
Protoglathi? Nop e, never heard of it. You
haven t hea rd of it, either, not u ntil 1109
anyway.
2JUH
Hm m, are you sure? I guess if you really wan t
to have the big mu scles, but are you certain its
worth it? Ogres are hunted by many human s,
and while the ogres try to eat all of the hu mans
they can find, it barely den ts the tide of heroes.Some ogres give up an d just travel around w ith
the hum ans and h elp them out lifting very heavy
things, but the p oor ogres often slip u p an d eat
someone, and then th e hum ans make a big
stink, and, well, at least evolution is hard at
work with ogre-kind and one day perh aps
theyll get smarter.
In the w ild, ogres are the free children of natu re,
going wher e they wish, eating things, breaking
things, and procreating w ith anything large
enough. A few ogres have taken up living with
hum ans, often allowed to wear pr ized metal
chains and collars. Still, these ogres are
dissatisfied w ith their lives and seek to imp rove
them in any way p ossible. They may suggest
architectural changes to the bu ildings or w alls
they are assisting with that the builders never
dreamt of. Sometimes the ego clashes are so
strong tha t the ogres leave in a huff for other,
more fundamental projects like mining and
road bu ilding.
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7URRJUH
The sterile offspring of a troll and an ogre (since
trolls are big enough, and ogres are open-
minded ), the troogre is as strong an ox and
fights like one too. Smells like one, too, bu t
nevermind th at. Theyre smarter than either
trolls or ogres, but that s not sayin g mu ch, is it?
Unlike trolls or ogres, troogres are extremely
extroverted and friendly, and care a great deal
about other people. Neither ogres nor trolls
will have anything to do w ith the troogre, so
they often end up in a hu man settlement, acting
as strongmen and w orkers. This interaction
with hu mans will often d rive them to actuallybathe an d restrict their eating habits to things
that are dead and cooked. Er, non-human
things...
FREE SKILLS
Lowspeak: # p oints equal to intelligence.
Any one spoke n language: d6
Any one l abor skill : 2d4 points
Brawling : d6 points
Scrounging: d6 points
Leg Strength: d4 points
Rope Use: d6 points
Singing: d6 points
Chapter 6: Vital Statistics
+HLJKW
Characters can be any height they w ish, within
racial norms. Height has no impact on any of
the characters attributes. Tall characters tend
to be more respected in most cultures, but they
hav e trouble fitting into small tunne ls.
:HLJKW
The player should p ick a w eight that is
app ropriate to the height. The weight has no
impa ct on character attribu tes. Overly large
characters tend to be less fit than their scrawn ier
friend s, but th ey are stronger an d better able to
take blows, too, so it balances ou t.
The degree of obesity affects how peop le view
the character. Characters that are much wider
or thinner than the racial norm will be taken
less seriously, especially if theyre short.
$ JH
All characters are assum ed to begin the gam e as
young adu lts. The player may choose to make
his character older; this provid es the player
with ad ditional Circe points to sp end elsewhere
in the chara cter design. For each decad e of age
beyond the young adu lt category, the character
gains 1d10 cp.
The following table show s four of the five age
groups that characters will pass throu gh.
Race
Young
Adult M ature Old Ancient
Human 16-25 26-50 51-70 71-120
Dwarf 21-50 51-150 151-300 301-400
Elf 31-250 251-400 401-500 501-650
Hobbit 20-35 36-70 71-100 101-150
Orc14-20 21-40 41-60 61-80
Goblin 12-20 21-35 26-40 41-60
Ogre 16-25 26-40 41-55 56-70
The table below show s the effects of aging on a
characters attr ibutes.
Attribute
Young
Adult M ature Old Ancient
Int. +d3-2 +d3-1 +d3
Will. +d3-2 +d3-1 +d3
Per. +d3-d3 +d3-d3 +d3-d3
Char. +d3-2 +d3-1 +d3
Str. -d3+2 -d3+1 -d3
Agl. -d3+2 -d3+1 -d3
Health -d3+2 -d3+1 -d3
Aging through th e use of magic causes any
penalties to be app lied, but d oes not provide
any benefits. Thus, if an increase in a attribute
is ind icated, it should be ignored .
When u sing magic to restore youth, app ly the
nu mbers above, but in reverse. Magical
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restoration of youth provides both the benefits
and pen alties. For examp le, a 30 yr old ogre
drinks a p otion of youth and becomes 7 years
younger, moving him from the mature categoryto theyoung adultcategory. H is intelligence
changes by -d 3+2 points; he rolls a 3 and loses 1
point of intelligence. H is agility chan ges by d3-
2; he rolls a 3 again and gains 1 point of agility.
*HQGHU
The characters sex will not affect his or h er
attributes.
Chapter 7: Professions
Each starting character p icks one of the listed
professions as a guide for selecting skills an d
character goals. The choice of pro fession does
not restrict w hat the character can and cannot
do in the future, it merely indicates what h e or
she d id in the past. Thus it is not critical that
one select a profession optimal for combat; one
can choose a mu ndan e profession and learn
magic, combat, or other necessary skills later.
How ever, it takes a long time to build u p apar ticular sk ill, especially ones tha t are
infrequen tly used . So characters that begin the
game w ith a few u seful skills at high levels
seem to do better than characters with a w ide
variety of low skills.
It is very impor tant to realize that your
character is part of a team, so rather than being
so-so at a lot of skills, it is better to specialize in
an area not already covered, letting the others
make u p for your characters w eaknesses.
The exact makeup of the party shou ld bedesigned to mesh w ith the type of camp aign
being played, but in general a party sh ould
include one or two excellent fighters, a person
capable of healing, someon e able to detect traps
and other dan gers, someone able to carry out
reconnaissance and a p erson good at
commun ication. It helps to have coverage of
some of th e craft skills, a var iety of langu ages,
and a few survival oriented skills.
PROFESSION SKILL LISTS
In the profession descriptions on the following
pages, the first list gives a specific skill or achoice of several specific skills, and a d ie type or
dice combination. The player rolls these dice
and receives that m any p oints in the given skill.
The second list gives skill grou ps an d th e
num ber of points that can be distributed to
skills in the group s. Each paragrap h begins
with a m ultiplier and an attribute. Multiply the
attributes score by the mu ltiplier to determine
the nu mber of skill points that can be
distributed to the skill families listed in the
remainder of the paragrap h. In parenthesis is
indicated the maximum num ber of skill pointsthat can be distributed into those skills. If the
player has spent or received p oints on one of
the skills in the group previously, he m ay add
more p oints at this time. In a given skill grou p
the player m ay choose the skill matching the
given nam e or any skill der ived from it.
PROFESSION-BASED EXPERIENCE
Each p rofession has listed with it a set of actions
that p rovide benefits such as Circe points,
repu tation, or piety points. These actions areminor accomplishments that the character is
encouraged to perform . In a sense, these
activities are wh at makes th e profession wh at it
is.
In most cases, the activities are intend ed to be
extraordinary or d ifficult; things that go far
beyond every d ay events or involve dedicated
effort on the p art of the player.
DESIGNING NEW PROFESSIONS
In designing th e pr ofessions, given skills andchosen skills were balan ced against other
benefits and d raw backs. The following ru les
were followed to app roximate the cost in Circe
points for each profession:
For given skills, the cost for a given die
combination were calculated from the followin g
table:
d3 3 2d3 7 3d3 11
d4 4 2d4 9 3d4 16
d5 5 2d5 13 3d5 19
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d6 6 2d6 15 3d6 22
d8 8 2d8 19
d10 12
d12 14
For chosen skills, each 1 pt attribute m ultiplier
cost 25 cp.
For starting funds an d equipment, up to 100
core requ ires 5 cp, u p to 200 requ ires 10 cp.
Each profession w as allowed to hav e 200 Circe
points worth of given and distributed skill
points and of money, starting equipment, and
special abilities.
Referees may wish to u se these rules of thumbwh en designing new p rofessions, but players
should n ot be perm itted to create professions
this way because of the d angers of over-
optimization.
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%DUEHU6XUJHRQ
Cost Breakdown:
Given skills 40
Distribu ted skills 150
Starting fund s 10
The barber-surgeon is a common an d imp ortant
mem ber of the comm un ity, for he has the skills
to repair the human bod y. Learned doctors and
physicians look dow n on the barber-surgeon as
only a step above the butchers and horse
groomers, but all call upon h im to knit the
wou nds of the injured.
Medical Aid ................................................. d6
Surgery ........................................................ d6
Grooming .................................................... d6
Knife/ Dagger ............................................. d6
Nurs ing ........................................................ d6
Herbalism ..................................................... d6
Physiology ................................................... d4
1 x Agility in any Melee Combat skills (5 pts
max), any Missile Com bat skills (3 pts m ax),
an y Secrecy skills (3 p ts max), or an yAthletic skills (5 pts max)
2 x Precisi on on an y Craft skills (5 pts m ax)
1 x Intelligence on any Communications skills
(8 pts m ax) or Lore skills (5 pts m ax)
1 x Charisma on any Social skills (5 pts max) or
Observa tion skills (5 pts m ax)
1 x Willpower on an y Labor skills (3 pts max)
or An imal skills (5 pts max)
STARTING EQUIPMENT AND FUNDS
Barber-surgeons begin with a comp lete set of
operating tools. They tend to have a few
valuab le herbs or poisons (of the players
choice).
Barber-surgeons that tu rn to ad venturing
generally do so either because they wish to
garn er the riches of the lifestyle, or to escap e
retribution from prior mistakes. Thus
adventu ring barber-surgeons begin the game
with only 30-180 (3d6*10) core.
ADVANCEMENT
Barber-surgeons follow the standard craftsman
promotion path:
Apprentice: To be called a barber-surgeon a
character mu st have th e following skills at the
levels ind icated:
Medical Aide-6 Grooming -6
Nu rsing-4 or Physiology-4 Surgery-6
Add itionally, the character mu st be sp onsored
by a journeym an barber-surgeon and
recommend ed by a master.
Journeyman: To be a journ eyman Barber-
surgeon, a character must have the following
skills:
Med ical Aide-8 Sur gery-12
Grooming-12 Nursing-6
Physiology-6
The character must also perform a nu mber of
successful su rgeries of different sorts - setting
broken bones, stitching u p various kinds of
wou nds, removing d iseased organs, etc.
Additionally, the journeyman barber-surgeon
must p ass an accredited board of review
consisting of not less than five ma sters of theart.
Master: At a minimu m, a master barber
surgeon mu st qualify to be a journeyman , must
pass apeer review, and m ust have a total of 50
points in t he following skills:
Diagnosis
Medical Aide
Physiology
Surgery
It is also expected th at the barber-surgeon make
a d iscovery or invent a p rocedu re w hich w ill
advance the art.
EXPERIENCE
Like all craftsmen, barber-sur geons ga in Circe
points for extraordinary achievements:
Extraord inary shave an d a haircut ........ 1 cp
Cond uct su ccessful major surgery ........ 1 cp
Extraord inary su rgery ............................. 5 cp
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%DUG
Cost Breakdown:
Given skills 36
Distribu ted skills 150
Starting fund s 19
Spell abilities 20
The bard is a practitioner of music and m agic.
While not as pow erful as raw ma ges, bards
hav e a variety of comm un ication skills that give
them an edge in political matters. Because of
this, bards are universally respected even inregions tha t dislike or disallow spell casting.
Lyrism ........................................................... d6
Mu sic ............................................................ d6
Oratory ......................................................... d6
Voice ............................................................. d6
Singing .......................................................... d8
Ancient or Modern History ....................... d 4
1 x Agility in any Melee Combat skills (3 pts
max), any Secrecy skills (5 pts max), or any
Athletic skills (8 pts max)
1 x Perception on an y Observat ion skills (5 pts
max)
2 x Intelligence on any Communications skills
(8 pts max), Lore sk ills (5 pts max), Lyrism
meth ods (5 pts m ax), or formulated sp ells (8
pts max).
1 x Charisma on any Social skills (8 pts max)
1 x Willpower on an y Labor skills (5 pts max),
Animal skills (3 pt s max), or Craft skills (5
pts max)
STARTING EQUIPMENT AND FUNDS
A bard alw ays begins the game w ith any one
instru men t of his or her choice and 10-200
(10xd20) core. Ad dition ally, becau se of the
nature of the profession the bard will start the
game w ith a gift, chosen rand omly from the
following list:
1. Trained horse: know s a few entertaining
tricks. Smarter than average.
2. H igh quality mu sical instrum ent: +2 on
playing skill.
3. Follower: Youn g boy or girl who idolizes
the character.
4. Extra fine dress or suit: Worth about 500
core, but custom -tailored to PC.
5. Patron : Person who will grant mon ey to
fund end eavors and wh o is enamored with
the character and / or the characters talent.
6. Magical mu sical item with some odd minor
pow er chosen ran domly by referee.
7. Famed mentor: Chara cters trainer is/ was a
very well respected, pop ular bard, and
characters association p rovides instan t
credibility and tru st.8. Fleeting fame: By hap pen stance, one of
characters songs, stories, or skits is the h it-
of-the-mom ent. Itll be forgotten soon, but
for the next few mo nths , the characters
work is in high demand .
SPELL ABILITIES
ADVANCEMENT
Apprentice: To become an apprentice bard, a
character must be m entored by a journeyman or
master bard, and must h ave a score of 8 in any
mu sical instrum ent or a score of 10 in singing.
Journeyman: To become a journeym an bard , it
is necessary to achieve a rep uta tion score of 15
or higher, wr ite at least one original ballad , and
achieve a total score of 100 in the following
skills:
Singing Percussion Instru men t
Modern History String InstrumentAncient History Whistling
Oratory Chanting
Heraldry Wind Instrument
Master: A master bard mu st be recognized by
his fellow bard s as such. There is no official
procedure for d eclaring a bard as such, but after
achieving all of the followin g requirements the
bard will most likely have entered master
status.
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The bard mu st achieve a total of 100 points,
comp rised of the sum of the following skill and
trait scores:
Reputat ion String Instrum ent
Singing Percussion Instrum ent
Oratory Wind Instrument
EXPERIENCE
Bard s gain experience through th e art of song.
Sing 5 round song in combat, resulting in
victory: 1 cp.
Teach another in the u se of song or in playing
an instrum ent (i.e. increase their skill in an y
mu sic-related skill by one p oint): 1 cp.
Change som eones m ind, or convince someone
to do something against their nature through
the use of song: 2 cp.
Invent a n ew song (player must w rite lyrics or
demon strate melody): 5 cp.
Overcome a powerful foe exclusively through
use of song (e.g. bypass dragon by singing a
son g of its glory): 10 cp.
Influence a sufficient nu mber of peop le to
dr astically chan ge the course of a cultu re: 20 cp.
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%HJJDU
Cost Breakdown:
Given skills 50
Distribu ted skills 150
Starting fund s 0
Spell abilities 0
Scrounging ................................................... d8
Sneak or Con ceal ......................................... d6
Shadowing ................................................... d6
Social Skill .................................................... d6Performing ................................................... d6
Begging ......................................................... d6
Streetw ise ..................................................... d6
Detection ...................................................... d6
1 x Strength on any Labor Skills (8 pts max) or
Ath letic Skills (5 pts m ax)
1 x Agility on Melee Combat Skills (3 pts m ax),
or Secrecy Skill