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The Pride of Brattleburg

(Or, Game called on account of Dragon?!)

GagMen RPG Podcast Episodes 5 & 6

January 2014

A Starting Fantasy Adventure

Intended for beginning Adventurers

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Written by GagMen on the GagMen Adventure Writing Podcast Edited by Mike Cherniske and Corbett Kirkley

Illustrations by Corbett Kirkley, Mike Cherniske, Seth Stephenson, and Public Domain Art Cover Colors by Tyler Davis

Contact: shutup@gagmen.net

Contents Disclaimer (or, just click ok and move along) ................................................................................................................ 3

Summary ........................................................................................................................................................................ 3

Setting/Theme ............................................................................................................................................................... 4

Brattleburg ................................................................................................................................................................ 4

Rumor Table .......................................................................................................................................................... 5

The Bazaar ................................................................................................................................................................. 6

Bazaar Random Encounters .................................................................................................................................. 6

The City Coffers ......................................................................................................................................................... 7

The Back Alleys .......................................................................................................................................................... 7

The Arena and Council Chambers ............................................................................................................................. 7

Plot ................................................................................................................................................................................. 8

Brawl in the Mall ....................................................................................................................................................... 8

Getting out of Jail, but not for free…......................................................................................................................... 8

Now What?! .............................................................................................................................................................. 9

You thought it was ridiculous before… ..................................................................................................................... 9

On to the Arena ....................................................................................................................................................... 10

Conflict ......................................................................................................................................................................... 11

Going for the Gold! ................................................................................................................................................. 11

The Super Happy Fun Ending! ................................................................................................................................. 12

Best villain practices: .......................................................................................................................................... 12

Characters .................................................................................................................................................................... 14

NPC’s ....................................................................................................................................................................... 14

Creatures ................................................................................................................................................................. 17

MacGuffin (or, Get a piece of the Rock!) ................................................................................................................ 19

Details .......................................................................................................................................................................... 20

First Rule of Brattleball, Never Talk About Brattleball! ........................................................................................... 20

Second Rule of Brattleball, Never Talk About Brattleball! ...................................................................................... 24

Rally Table (effects only last one turn) ............................................................................................................... 26

Riot Table ............................................................................................................................................................ 27

Where did this stupid game come from?! .............................................................................................................. 27

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Disclaimer (or, just click ok and move along.)

This adventure was created with the Basic Dungeons & Dragons Rules (red book or whichever

version you may have) in mind, and is designed for starting level characters. This adventure was created

on the GagMen RPG Podcast, from Episodes 5 and 6 entitled “The Pride of Brattleburg”. The GagMen

Podcast is designed to help the beleaguered DM who is looking for something to liven up a game, or just

save one night of thinking. We hope you and your players enjoy the game, and will look for us the next

time you could use some help or a laugh. As always, feel free to modify the adventure to suit your own

campaign and game mastering style, and if you do let us know at shutup@gagmen.net .

As far as we know the town of Brattleburg is fictitious, along with the game of Brattleball. The

GagMen are not responsible if you duct tape your cat into a ball and try to recreate the game of

Brattleball, or try to re-enact any of the events in this adventure. The GagMen are also unaware of any

secrets of Farmville. Do not stare directly at GagMen. After reading this adventure, the GagMen

suggest waiting for thirty minutes before swimming, role playing, sky diving, or buying stock. This

adventure will not work as a flotation device, unless you are a small mouse. If you are a small mouse

and reading this, you should look for the rats in the rosebush (50 xp to anyone that gets the reference).

Seriously, don’t put duct tape on your pets; we’re certain they won’t like it.

Summary

The heroes wander into the town of Brattleburg either looking for adventure or just lost as

usual. A fight starts in the market, and the party is accused of stealing. Moauf, the stinky dwarf, bails

them out of jail and has them join a Brattleball team. The party gets threatened by the other teams, the

town council, and a pushy halfling. In the end the heroes have to face off on the pitch against the other

teams, only to be ambushed by a mud dragon. Quick! Cast mud to stone!

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Setting/Theme

Brattleburg

Brattleburg is a large town of over a hundred

thousand Humans, Orcs, Dwarves, and Goblins. The

characters will face off against politicians, sports fans, and

criminals to determine the fate of the city. The majority of

the adventure will take place in or around the Stadium at

the center of town, which acts as a sports arena and home

for the city government. The streets should feel small in

areas and expansive in others. There is no discernible

castle, palace or city hall, aside from the arena, as the town

is run by a council of diplomats from the surrounding

nations.

The town was built on the site of a

terrible war fought over a thousand years

before when the four nations united to face

the threat of a vicious dragon. Once the

dragon was defeated, the battle turned to how

the four nations would divide the dragon’s

horde. All sides agreed to stop fighting and

build a town to unify the separated groups.

With the implementation of Brattleball as the city pastime (which was invented on the site of the future

town), the unsteady peace has held strong.

While wandering through the town the party will overhear different stories and events. If the

DM would like to, he can use the Rumor Table to quickly increase the amount of weird and odd events

in Brattleburg. Feel free to add or change items on the table. Some are true, some may be true, and

some are just crazy (but could make for a juicy story). It is always fun to add to the paranoia of the

adventure party, and then later prove them right.

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Rumor Table

1 Ogres are the smartest people around.

2 There is a magic stone in the treasury, that keeps the town civil.

3 The arena is made from the bones of the fallen dragon.

4 Brattleball has to be rigged. Every four years the teams rotate the wins.

5 BEWARE THE DUNGEON OF THE DREADED QUOKKA!

6 Never trust an elf.

7 The key to the treasury vault is hidden in the bosom of the maiden over there.

8 It seems funny that the entire human team just broke their legs all at the same time…

Brattleburg is bordered by four different territories controlled by the Dwarves, Goblins, Humans,

and Orcs. All four races can be found in Brattleburg, as well as elves and halflings. Though they did not

take part in the slaying of the dragon or the battles after, the elves and halflings arbitrated during the

initial peace talks, and have continued the tradition of neutrality toward the town.

The town is ruled by a council of diplomats representing the surrounding territories, but the

military that controls the city is determined by a tournament every year. Brattleball was created to

allow the four sides to compete while still avoiding all-out war. This violent and dangerous sport unified

the town and even helps to settle small city council arguments from time to time. Brattleball is a brutal

sport involving teams of six players, defending goals mounted in all corners of the arena.

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The Bazaar

The story starts out in the marketplace of Brattleburg, widely

known as The Bazaar, a bustling venue filled with merchants

from every corner of the world. The Bazaar is one of the

oldest fixtures of Brattleburg, dating back to the original

foundation of the town. With four major cultures meeting

for the first time, the town became a major trading point for

the area and the Bazaar, the jewel of traders throughout the

world. A common saying in Brattleburg, “if you can’t find it

here, it doesn’t exist.”

Bazaar Random Encounters

1 A fish vendor, unloading fish, accidentally bury one of the PC’s in a pile of wet smelly fish.

2 A wild brattlehog runs up a character's pants leg.

3 A crying child approaches the PC’s, saying “I can’t find her mommy.” While two other children circle the characters to pick pockets.

4 Brattleball fans knock down PC’s trying to surround “The Hard Place”, as he walks through the Bazaar.

5 Jersan bumps into player and plants jewelry in their pockets.

6 Put “Kick Me!” sign on back of random player.

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The City Coffers With the abundant amount of trade in the city, and all the taxes the town has collected from

travelers sales and purchases, the city coffers are the largest in the land. All four surrounding territories

will defend the town to keep trade flowing, although one country is honored to host as the policing

army each year and in turn receive a larger portion of the trade taxes that the town takes in. The

hosting army acts as a town police force and militia to defend off any direct threats, though Brattleburg

has not been under attack in over five centuries.

The Back Alleys The constant flow of goods and services has been beneficial to the town, but also to the criminal

element that works in the shadier areas. Money shifts hands often in Brattleburg, and most of the town

guards will accept payoffs to ignore what is “really” happening. With the entire town culture built on a

Brattleball, gambling has been one of the major attractions of the town’s nightlife. The underground

slave trade and stolen goods exchange are just as thriving as the open trade in the Bazaar. The town

guard is often breaking up gambling dens and depraved back alley practices, but a new den of thieves

will always re-appear.

The Arena and Council Chambers The arena is a symbol of unity with the people of Brattleburg. This large box shaped arena,

surrounded in columns made of granite and marble and decorated with the bones of the dragon that

brought them together, stands as a beacon of unity through competition for all to see. There are four

towers, one positioned on each corner of the arena, each used as council chambers for each faction

ruling the town. When a game is not in play, the council members meet on the pitch to discuss town

problems. Town meetings usually end in a game of Brattleball itself; this leads most factions to elect

representatives from previous Brattleball fame.

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Plot

Brawl in the Mall The PC’s should be distracted by different booths and various street performers. One of the

players should then become the focus of anger from Jersan, a jewelry vendor that will accuse one of the

players of stealing from his booth. Jersan (see NPC list) should become very aggressive and knock the

player into a nearby cart, angering another merchant, which leads to a mob brawl.

At the end of the fight, kids should run up and ask if the party will be in the tournament, and if

they are “the replacement team.” If you are playing this as a follow up to G1312 “The Unicorn without a

Horn”, Lids and Shala should also be excited about the characters performance. Moauf should step up

and try to make a quick pitch to the party before they are escorted away. The stolen jewelry will be

found on one of the players who participated in the fight, and the group will be arrested for the charges

thievery and inciting a riot. The Orc town guards should appear quickly, in large numbers, and well

equipped enough to ensure the party does not put up a fight.

Getting out of Jail, but not for free… The players are approached by Moauf (see NPC list) who saw the

fight and wants to hire one or all of the party (probably better for

gameplay if the entire party is involved) to play on the human Brattleball

team. In return he will post bail and reward them handsomely. If asked,

Moauf will say that the team was in a wagon when it overturned, and they

all suffered broken legs as well as other serious injuries.

The PC’s will discover that Brattleburg is a town of a long standing

peace, and as such the authorities will punish this altercation quite seriously by imposing extensive

prison sentences for all party members involved. Should Moauf fail to interest them in helping out and

playing for the human team, the party should be released from jail with the help of Fenny. Fenny (see

NPC list) and his two Ogre companions, Gnawt and Happi, will threaten the party to volunteer to join the

human team and throw the game. Should the players refuse, Fenny will imply that the incident with

“the last human team that didn’t play ball,” may not have been an accident.

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Now What?! After leaving the jail, the characters are put immediately onto a cart that takes them to the

arena for training. At the arena the party will meet the other teams, who will not be happy about

having to deal with the player characters as replacements. Daurn (see NPC list) will be here and press

the party to quit, stating that they are not “worthy” to even enter the arena.

The players will spend an afternoon training,

learning the basics of the game, and perhaps even

handling a brattlehog. The other team players will

often be pushed, or ignored by the other team players,

with the exception of Missy (see NPC list). Missy is

pressured by her fellow goblin teammates, but she will

try to help out the party and explain what she can.

After the questionable end of the prior human team,

the town is keeping all the teams at the Shiny Hog Inn

under protection from the town guard.

You thought it was ridiculous before… As the day comes to a close the party is

sequestered to the Shiny Hog Inn, across the street

from the arena. During dinner the group will be

approached by Harold, the human representative on

the city council. He will explain that Brattleball is

rigged. Because of the unfair differences in species, the original town leaders decided the tournament

would be held for show, but winning team would rotate each year, with this year being the Human’s

turn. Harold will tell them that there is no real danger; town control will pass just as it always has.

Later in the night, if the players have not met Fenny, he will appear in their room. Fenny will

explain that he understands that the game is rigged, but he has a lot of money riding on the human

team losing. Fenny will remind them again of the poor, poor previous team and how they “didn’t listen

so good neitha’.” As a good measure, one of Fenny’s companions should break a leg off of one of the

character’s beds. If Harold is told about this, he will immediately confront the guards, who will deny

anyone coming in all night.

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On to the Arena The following day the characters prepare for the game, as the town swells with almost a

million people from all over the world. Brattleball is an exciting sport, but the annual BrattleBowl is by

far the most exciting event of the year. The spectacle, the banners, and the applause may be very

overwhelming for the party members. All team are placed in full uniforms and paraded around the

arena, before coming in and beginning the event.

If you want to have a little fun with the party here, add a ceremony to give them a chance to

make a speech, or plead with the crowd to change the way Brattleball works. Also, including a dance

could spark a romantic involvement for one of the players, or you may roll on the Bazaar Random

Encounter Table to give the players one an extra moment before the game starts. Don’t feel shy about

giving a locker room speech either.

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Conflict

Going for the Gold! Moauf is a sloppy Mud Dragon who has long since lost his own treasure horde, and has since

polymorphed into the form of a famous retired Brattleball player. This allowed him access to special

areas of the town. However, when he lost his team there was a possibility that the town would

postpone the BrattleBowl, and without the game there would be no distraction to aide him in pillaging

the coffers. Moauf should disappear part way through the game, and Fenny should appear where he

was standing. The players may threaten Fenny, but he doesn’t know anything about Moauf. Fenny may

drop a clue by telling the party that when Moauf left he said he was going downstairs.

The town treasury is directly underneath the arena pitch. The vault is sealed with a massive,

heavy iron door and protected at all times by four guards. However, during the annual games only two

guards are kept on duty, giving Moauf his opportunity. Jersan will offer the guards an update on the

score of the game, and share a few drinks with them. The drinks are laced with poison; by the time

Moauf arrives it is only the door that stands in his way. Moauf will transform back to his normal size and

start clawing at the walls to break the vault door open. . Jersan, accompanied by several elf cohorts, will

run into the vault and retrieve the Harmony Stone (see MacGuffin), and should scurry off as quickly as

possible.

Without funding to support the town, the long peace that has reigned over the city may fall

away. When the characters discover that Moauf is gone, it should raise a few alarms as to what may be

going on. Meanwhile, if they leave the pitch they will forfeit the game, giving Fenny what he wants.

This moral complication should be an emphasis point for the game; However if the choice stops

the story from progressing, a fully transformed Moauf will burst through the arena and fly off with a

giant bag full of treasure. If the players choose to finish the game, allow them to win at the cost of

Moauf getting away. If they forfeit by running off to stop Moauf, they inadvertently force the town into

a new political structure. Either way, Brattleburg will be changed forever.

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The Super Happy Fun Ending! Everyone likes a happy ending, at least everyone at the GagMen Podcast, so we always like to

include the nice ending. The best way to wrap everything up right revolves around just playing the

game. If the main characters leave the pitch, then the human team forfeits and Fenny wins. If they stay

and let the humans win with no real challenge, then Fenny loses but the town doesn’t learn to get along.

Let players continue the ball game and ignore Moauf’s disappearance, letting the dragon raid the vault.

This also allows the elves to get away with the stone, giving the DM a hook for a follow up adventure

(see MacGuffin).

While Moauf is rummaging through the vault, another set of guards will sound an alarm, forcing

the dragon’s hand and pushing him up through the pitch. When the dragon bursts through the arena,

all conscious Brattleball players can pitch in and help defeat the dragon. Since all the player characters

should be outfitted in sports gear, instead of their normal adventure gear, this should force a very

interesting and unprepared dragon fight. Just to ensure that the players survive (we did say ‘Happy

Ending’) Gnawt and Happi can join in the fight and protect their beloved players.

Best villain practices:

1) Always monologue when you think you have the upper hand

2) Make sure to keep your base warm by building it over an active volcano

3) Always have an escape plan.

The mud dragon should get away, which will give the players a chance to meet him again. The

best villains always hang around and creep up on you, like old underwear. Also, he is an intelligent

creature and can guess that a stadium full of Brattleball fans on broken glass bottle night will eventually

take him down. Moauf will only hang around because he is trying to pick up his heavy bags and fly

away. Once it is obvious that he cannot take the bags, he will flee, possibly cursing the player characters

and vowing revenge.

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With the pitch damaged, the town may have to figure out a new system to determine how to

share the town treasury. While Fenny will have to shut down his Brattleball gambling, with no field to

hold games. If the players have compiled enough evidence (possibly from Gnawt or Happi) they should

simply notify the current guards of his illegal operations. And with the Harmony Stone missing, the

players should have an easy lead in to the next adventure. Not to mention that if the mud dragon gets

away, the PC’s now have a crafty villain to meet again. Then pat your players on the head, give them a

drink of water, and send them off to bed.

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Characters

NPC’s

Moauf/Vinsant, Dwarven BrattleBall

Promoter/Dragon - A few weeks before the party

arrived in town, the body of famous promoter Moauf

was found near the river by the wandering Mud

Dragon Vinsant. Vinsant had been pushed out of his

home and had nowhere to go; so using a bit of magic

he took over Moauf’s life. It was not long before he

discovered a treasure that could be his with a little

patience. Any person near Moauf will notice his

odorous breath; even from a distance of 20 feet (4 map spaces) the odor is terrible (like wet garbage on

a hot day). Moauf is oblivious to his halitosis, and will seem perplexed if offered a mint leaf to chew on.

Unfortunately, the team all his plans hinged on were unable to play (possibly because of Fenny and his

goons), enter the suckers (I mean the party).

Daurn “The Hard Place” Geornson , Orc

Brattleball Player - major player in Brattleball

and has plans to move into politics in the

future. He did not like the human team before,

but he has no respect for at all for their

replacements. Pushy and rude, he will force

his opinion onto whomever he feels needs it.

Daurn will often play up to the crowd, if

possible.

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Missy, Goblin Female Brattleball player- Missy has

played with the Goblin team for years, and is just

getting tired of the way things have been going. She

will tell the PC’s as much as she can, but all players are

sworn to secrecy about what the real game of

Brattleball is about. She keeps players supplied with

information behind the scenes about the seedy side of

Brattleball.

Fenny, Halfling Guild Leader – Fenny is gambling

heavily on the upcoming games. Wise to the way

Brattleball really works, he always knows who the

planned winner is for the year. He has been

stacking the odds and leaning hard on the human

team to get them to play the way he wants.

Gnawt and Happi are his hired Ogre body guards,

but would never purposely cause harm to another creature. Fenny is responsible for the original human

teams’ accident, and for Moauf’s death by the river. Should Fenny run into Moauf, he will be shocked to

see him, but since Moauf is actually Vinsant, he will act like nothing is wrong.

Gnawt & Happi, Ogre Monk/Philosopher/Bodyguards -

Gnawt and Happi follow Fenny around for the majority of

the adventure. They should possess all the abilities of an

Ogre as it is written in the game rules (depending on the

rules you are using), with the exception of their intelligence.

These brothers were found on the doorstep of the Turbist

Abbey and raised alongside the monks. The Turbist Monks

taught the young ogres secrets of self-defense known only to the Turbist order. They also became

students of deeper philosophy, and are even well trained in very effective medical treatments. After

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finishing their twelve book series, “Our Purpose: A Guide to Life”, they become enthralled with

Brattleball and the players. They accepted the job of bodyguards from Fenny in order to get close to

some of their favorite players, to get a moment (or at least an autograph). If they get close to the

players (presuming they are on a team) for any length of time they will try and sneak a lock of hair, a

piece of uniform, or simply steal their shoes.

Jersan, Elven Merchant - Jersan has conspired with Moauf to steal the treasury of the town and cause

frustrations with the players. He does not realize that Moauf is a dragon, and fully expects to get his

share of the haul. Jersan suspects that Moauf may betray him, and will have a hidden weapon during

the robbery.

Harold, Human Male Town Representative - Human Male Town

Representative - A kind older man, with just a little bit of fire left in

his eyes. Harold is a towering individual that has played countless

hours of Brattleball and is very comfortable with the way the

system is designed to work. Harold has lived under the rules of

Brattleburg, his whole life, and expects the PC’s to do the same.

When he tells the players that they are guaranteed to win, he

should announce it as if it were the best news ever. Harold is a big

fan of the changeover of the guard. If his morality is questioned,

Harold may flex his muscles and smash a piece of furniture about

the players not accepting his ways. He will be reasonable, but remind the players that the system works,

and works for a reason.

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Creatures

Mud Dragon

These dragons are roughly equivalent to black dragons, though they are much smaller and favor swampy

areas or rivers to live in. With a sleek body and a snouted, cat like face, these long lived creatures are

one of the few dragons without a damaging breath attack.

Their breath is a noxious cloud, save vs. breath weapon to avoid character regurgitation. This stinking

sulfurous smell is always present, even when polymorphed; as such their breath is unmistakable.

Armor Class: 3

Hit Dice: 5

Move: 70’ (210’ flying; 30’ burrowing)

Attacks: claw/claw/bite

Damage: 1-4/1-4/2-12

No. Appearing: 1-3

Save As: Fighter: 5

Morale 8

Treasure Type: H

Alignment: Neutral

XP Value: 655

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Brattlehog

These burrowing rodent-like creatures have

flourished all over Brattle Valley, with no

natural predator to keep its population down.

Presumably, whatever predator that hunted

them in the past must have been fierce in order

for such a small creature to develop such a near

impervious defense.

Armor Class : 7 (2)*

Hit Dice: 1d+2

Move: 50’ (10’ burrowing)

Attacks: claw/claw/bite

Damage: 1-3/1-3/2-8

No. Appearing: 1-6

Save As: Fighter: 1

Morale 3

Treasure Type: Nil

Alignment: Neutral

XP Value: 15

* Brattlehogs have developed a special defense that gives them a strong outer shell and the ability to

curl up into a spherical ball. While in ball form they are treated as Armor Class 0 and are very resistant

to attack. Also, their outer shell is rubbery to the touch, making it easy to pick up and even bounce off

of objects. These creatures are believed by some of the locals to have been placed in this area by higher

forces in order to bring peace, though a small group feels that the animals are being treated cruelly, and

seek to rid the town of the horrid game of Brattleball.

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MacGuffin (or, Get a piece of the Rock!) The Harmony Stone is an artifact that is known in elven literature tah brings harmony and a

sense of community to an area, created through thousands of years of elven magic (and you thought

elven magic was only good to make cookies). A Dragon, the same that was originally slain on the site of

the Brattleball field, stole the stone from an elven village that was destroyed long ago. The stone is a

rectangular square, large enough for a person to sit on, weighing over 100 pounds (45 kilograms) and is

covered in runes matching no known language. When the vault is opened the elves quickly take the

stone and carry it away, leaving Moaf to scoff at the foolish elves while trying collect as much gold as he

can carry.

As to if the Harmony Stone has powers or not, we leave this up the DM. If the artifact really

does work, it would explain why Brattleburg was able to even function. Without the stone, arguments

will begin to increase, leading to riots, and general violence that the city has not seen in ages. This could

then lead to a follow up quest to either retrieve the stone from the elves, or find another artifact with

the same abilities. For a twist-twist, the DM could reveal that while everyone thinks the stone united

the town, it was actually just a placebo, but the town sends the party after elves anyway. The important

thing is to have fun with the story, and feel free to use any of the natural openings for follow up

adventures.

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Details

First Rule of Brattleball, Never Talk About Brattleball! What are the basic rules of Brattleball?

Playing field (Pitch)

The pitch is a perfect equal square spanning 15 meters in a perfect diamond, with H-shaped goals in

each corner to be defended by one of each of the respective teams. The pitch is divided into four

quadrants, centered on each goal.

Duration

The game should last for no more than sixty minutes, divided into four 15 minute quarters, each divided

by 2 minute breaks.

Teams

The teams are made of up six players, including one goalkeeper, one quadrant guard (or, quad-guard),

two wings, one forward, and one team captain (usually referred to as the “point forward” or the “stick

forward”).

Positions

The goal keeper’s only job is to defend the goal, using any body part or an official Brattleball catching

mitt or sling-stick. The quad-guard helps the goalkeeper, but must stay in his home quadrant and is not

allowed to use a mitt or sling-stick. The two wings may move into either two quadrants of the pitch

adjacent to the home quad, and are also not allowed to use sling-sticks or mitts. The forward is allowed

to use a mitt, is often the receiver of the ball during play, and is allowed to play in all four quads. The

stick forward is allowed to use a sling-stick in play and allowed to move through any quadrant on the

pitch.

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Legal Equipment

Player Gear

Player gear is inspected and checked for any magical

enchantments before a game. Each player is allowed to

wear regulation uniforms with any straw sewn (or

stuffed) into the cloth that will fit and still all the player

normal movement. Only the team captain, the forward,

and the goalkeeper may use any equipment for handling

the ball (other than the Referee) on the pitch.

The Brattleball

The official ball in play is a Brattlehog painted with a

green, blue, and white coloring to distinguish it from any other Brattlehog that might wander onto the

pitch (see Brattlebowl of 644 B.G.). Three Brattleballs will be in play at any one time during game play.

Fouls

Technical Fouls (result in stopping the play and sending players back to starting positions)

Failing to release the ball within the four-step limit or holding the ball for an unacceptable amount of

time, will result in the ball attacking the player.

Leaving a players assigned quadrant.

Throwing the ball into the crowd or leaving the pitch with the ball (voluntarily or otherwise).

Aggressive Fouls (yellow cloth, warning; red cloth, player removed without substitute)

Three yellow cloths on one player will result in an instant red cloth on the player and they will be

removed. Three Red flags on a team and the team instantly is disqualified from the game, however the

remaining players may continue to play.

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Yellow cloth (violation examples)

● Purposely injuring a player.

● Using Brattlehog as weapon on opposing players, or placing Brattlehog inside

teammate’s uniforms as a laugh (we mean you Geornson).

● Throwing player equipment (yours or other's) into the stands.

● Fail to comply with Referee ruling.

Red cloth (violation examples)

● Purposely injuring a Referee.

● Attacking a goalkeeper inside the goalkeepers’ area on the pitch.

● Leaving the field without permission or refusing to continue play.

Scoring and Winning

If the ball goes over the top of the goal between the goal posts, the scoring team is awarded one point

and the defending team is deducted one point. Should the ball go through the lower section, past the

goalkeeper and into net, the scoring team will receive three points and the defending team will deduct

one point. No team will go below zero points; upon reaching zero points are no longer deducted.

At the end of the four quarters (game periods) the team with the most points is proclaimed the winner.

If no other team is able to compete, then the last team standing will be declared the winner.

Sudden Death

Should a tie occur, the tied teams will select one representative player to go into a 3x3 meter (10x10

foot) box arena. Each representative will have one small goal cut into the wall, large enough to accept a

Brattleball. Each successful shot counts as one point for the team. The arena is then filled with eleven

Brattleballs, and the game continues until all balls are gone or one player is left standing. The team with

the most points at the end is declared the winner.

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Tackling and Blocking

Striking opponents is allowed, however intentional injuries to remove a player from a game are fouls

(see Fouls). For the purpose of game rules, this involves causing actual damage (i.e. loss of hit points) to

the player. Pushing, Sliding tackles, Tripping, Kneeing, Wrestling, and Head-butting are completely legal

for play. No player may enter the goalkeeper area, a 1.5 meter box surrounding the front of the goal on

the pitch.

Start of Play

The captains for each team will meet in the center of the pitch, each standing inside their own section.

All players will begin within their designated quadrant before the balls are hurled onto the pitch. All

three Brattleballs will be launched via small catapults aimed directly at the center of the pitch. All

captains will use their sling-sticks to knock one or all of the balls into a desired direction. Once play has

begun, all players can move to respective positions.

Referees and Rules Enforcement

Two Referees are on the pitch at all times, with two more on the sidelines, and two more observers in

the upper decks of the arena. Along the sidelines, four Hill Ogres (for stats use Ogre) are paid to help

enforce the ruling of the referees. The Hill Ogres are taught to enter the pitch the moment a red cloth is

thrown, and will not leave until ordered by a referee.

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Second Rule of Brattleball, Never Talk About Brattleball! Now that we’ve established the basic idea of how Brattleball work as a game, how does this work with

the role-playing game rules?

The Game Pitch Map

As dungeon master you will need to make a battle

map that shows a ten by ten grid, with each square

equivalent to a 5x5 foot square. Each corner should

have a square marked as the goal, with the square

in front of it as the goalkeeper square. A heavy line

should mark the quadrants through the center lines

on the pitch.

Throwing

The distance a ball can be thrown is equal to the players strength stat added with the dexterity

bonus. So if a player has a strength of 9 and a dexterity bonus of +1, the maximum range they can

throw accurately is 10 spaces (or 50 feet). For an alternate rule, you could extend the range by taking a

penalty of the spaces thrown over the maximum as a negative to the throwing check. So, in our

example of the player with a max thrown distance of 10 spaces, to hit a player at 12 spaces, they would

have a -2 to their pass to make it accurately to the player.

Walking, Running, and Jumping in Place!

Characters will use the stat bonuses to determine which effects a player may excel at in

Brattleball. At the beginning of the game each team should roll initiative, based on the team captain’s

initiative roll. Characters within a team can determine an acceptable initiative order for each turn. All

characters can move up to six spaces (30 ft. on the map), which can be modified by the character

dexterity adjustment.

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Tackling

Attacking another character (by the non-combat rules of Brattleball) a character will roll a 1d6

(adding strength adjustment) against an adjacent combatant. The player attacked will roll a 1d6 (adding

endurance adjustment) to resist the attack. The player with the higher number knock the opposing

player over, a character that has been knocked down will have to stay down until all characters finish

moving and again the following turn.

Ball Handling

Any player that has the ball will have to bounce, kick, or throw the ball for every space they

move. Every time the ball is “bounced” a roll of 1d6 (3 or less drops the ball ball) determines if the

character handles or loses the ball. Characters with a wisdom adjustment can be added or subtracted

from ball handling. If the ball is thrown, a similar 1d6 roll (3 or less will miss the target) will tell if the

character connected with the target. Intelligence adjustments are added, or subtracted, from the

thrown ball roll.

To retrieve a ball, in the same turn it was dropped, a character needs to only move into the square the

ball is in to pick it up. If the ball drops and no one picks it up for a complete turn, a character will have

to make an attack against the now active Brattlehog. A free Brattlehog will start moving away from any

players at six map squares a turn. The stone floor prohibits the animal from burrowing.

Interceptions

Any time the ball is thrown or kicked and passes through opposing players’ (who have not had

an action in the current turn) map square, that player may attempt to intercept by rolling a 1d6 (plus

wisdom adjustment) versus the throwing player’s throw number. The highest roll will succeed and the

new player will have the ball or it will continue on its path. Word of warning: The player that

intercepted the ball has completed an action and may not move until the next turn; however they may

hand off the ball freely to neighboring teammates.

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The one god, the sun god, RA! RA! RA! (Or, Fans and pumping up the crowd.)

Another action available is to players is to try and rally the crowd. At any point on your team’s

turn, a player may spend their action yelling to the crowd for support by rolling 1d6 and adding the

character’s charisma modifier. If the roll is 4 or better, the crowd rallies in support, and the team may

roll on the Rally Table for a special effect or event. If the roll is 3 or less the crowd acts aggressively and

the team is compelled to roll on the Riot Table.

1D8 Rally Table (effects only last one turn)

1 Flower Shower - Crowd Throws Flowers blind opponents (+1 tackle roll for team)

2 Getting the Finger - Crowd points the way to the nearest goal (+1 throw/kick for team)

3 Lost their Marbles - Crowd throws handful of smooth pebble on pitch (randomly select team and player affected, that player instantly falls down as tackled)

4 The Wave - Crowd begins standing wave distracting teams (+1 interception rolls)

5 Power of the Stick - Crowd throws player a sling-stick.

6 Painted Plump Partisans - Large Fans in the crowd start screaming their support, you feel the love (team suffers no ball handling rolls this turn)

7 Streaker - Naked fan rushes the pitch, confuses all other teams. (team gets an extra turn)

8 Beach ball Switcheroo - Crowd batting around an inflated pig bladder, knock it onto the pitch. (Opposing team ball carrier drops brattleball in last known position and now holds an inflated pig bladder.)

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1D8 Riot Table

1 NOT SO QUIET RIOT! - An angry crowd rushes the pitch. (all players save vs. death or lose half total hit points and gain a permanent scar) Game ends.

2 Boot to the Head! - Crowd throws boot at random teammate (random player suffers tackle effect)

3 All out of Bubblegum! - Crowd bombards team with used chewing gum. (team at -2 movement and unable to release ball for one turn)

4 Snooze You Lose - Fans are so bored with your performance they take a nap. (team loses their next turn)

5 Sugar Rush! - After slamming gallons of sugar drinks all game, fans scream for ball handler to shoot, NOW! (closest ball holder kicks ball through your goal, if it is your own ball handler you still lose a point)

6 FANATICS! - Your fans start blaring horns and making so much noise that your team is distracted. (opposing teams get +1 to all rolls against your team for one turn)

7 Orcs Gone Wild - Female Orc fans sensually distract your goalkeeper. YUCK! (goalkeeper distracted, may not stop ball for one turn)

8 That not a Knife, this is a Knife! - Insane fan throws knife to a player and they are immediately given a red cloth. (random player on team is removed from the game)

Where did this stupid game come from?! Thousands of years ago, a horrible dragon terrorized the countryside that bordered four

territories. The humans, orcs, dwarves, and goblins rallied together to destroy the dragon of Brattle

Valley. When the battle was over, the four sides struggled to find a way to split the dragon's horde

fairly.

While generals and diplomats argued in tents over who should get what, the guards waiting

outside began to grow bored. The four armies began swatting at the little brattlehogs (a local and

particularly odd creature) that were picking at the carcass of the defeated dragon. Soon the swatting

became batting, running, and catching. The arguing diplomats left their conferences to see the

commotion outside. Not long after, the idea that would become Brattleball was born. The town would

be founded on that very site, and it would be ruled equally by all four factions.