House Rules & Clarifications

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Starbeard
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House Rules & Clarifications

#1 Post by Starbeard »

The Index

Basics of the game (post)

Creating characters (post)

Dictionary of T&T terms (post)

Making rolls in the Dice Roller (post)

Rulebook & Cheat Sheet (post)

House Rules
Experience/Adventure Points (post)
Magic, Scrolls, Teaching Spells, etc. (post)
Going Berserk (post)

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Starbeard
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Re: House Rules & Clarifications

#2 Post by Starbeard »

The Basics

We'll be using the free Tunnels & Trolls 5.5 edition Quickstart rules (available here). I will be using the full 5th edition rulebook. If anything contradicts what's in the Quickstart rule (there shouldn't be), I'll let everyone know.

Pulpatoon has graciously drafted up a cheat sheet for the quickstart rules, which you can find on his website An Abominable Fancy.

The campaign ID for this game is 550.

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Starbeard
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Re: House Rules & Clarifications

#3 Post by Starbeard »

Creating Characters

1. On the Basics: Roll up a character using The Unseen Servant Dice Roller, according to the Quickstart rulebook. Post your rolls, questions and so forth in the Character Creation thread.

2. On Numbers of Characters: You may have up to 3 characters, but for now only one of them can be played at a time. The others are backups in case your primary character dies, retires temporarily to heal wounds, etc. Alternatively, you may simply roll up a new character at the moment you need another one.

3. On Types: All races in the quickstart are available. Available classes are:
  • Warrior: doubles all armour points!
  • Wizard: limited to 2-dice weapons, knows all first-level spells and may learn all others!
  • Rogue: can learn individual spells from a PC wizard!
  • Wizard-Warrior: Don't even worry about it, unless you roll 12+ in all attribute scores!
4. On Equipment: Purchase your equipment as normal. You may also fill your backpack with whatever bits and bobs you'd like that aren't covered in the equipment list, so long as they aren't overly expensive or magical in nature. If you want a small mirror and have room in your pack for it, you have it; if you want a spray can of giant repellent, sorry but nope!

5. On Professions: Rather than using the expanded rules for skills in 5.5 or 7th edition, we'll stick to the old school, free form way of doing things. Come up with a short description of your character's main profession or hobby (even one word is fine: 'cook', 'sailor', 'acrobat'), and that will inform us of what activities your character is particularly good at.

Once you have finished creating your character, use this template and post them in the Stable of Characters thread:

Name (character type, including profession/hobby descriptor: for example, 'Halfling Warrior, Cook')
Strength:
Intelligence:
Luck:
Constitution:
Dexterity:
Charisma:
Speed:

Combat Adds (melee/ranged):

Weight Possible (STRx100):
Weight Carried:
Wealth:

Weapons:
Armor:

Equipment:

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Starbeard
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Re: House Rules & Clarifications

#4 Post by Starbeard »

Common Terms and Acronyms

Adds/Subtracts: The pips you add to the end of a dice roll. "Subtracts" and "Negative Adds" are the same.

ASTRO: "Any the Same? Terrific! Roll Over"

DARO: "Doubles Add and Roll Over"

Hit Points: The combat roll total, NOT how many hits you have left!

TARO: "Triples Add and Roll Over"

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Starbeard
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Re: House Rules & Clarifications

#5 Post by Starbeard »

Making Rolls

To roll dice, you will need to use the Unseen Servant Dice Roller (click on the logo at the top right of the webpage). Follow the instructions on the images below:

Using the Dice Roller
Image
Linking Dice Roller results to a post
Image
Useful Dice Roller Macros

You may find these macros useful to save in the online Dice Roller. Copy and paste them, then alter the ## entries to the relevant number:

The Basic Saving Throw: Luck Saving Throw (#Luck score#): [1d6] [1d6]
  • note: there will occasionally be saving throws based on the other stats, and you could just as easily macro these, too.
The Basic Attack Roll: Weapon (weapon stat): [1d6] [1d6] [etc.] + #Weapon Adds#
  • For example: Broadsword (3+4): [1d6] [1d6] [1d6] +4
  • note: do not worry about putting Personal Adds into the macro. I will keep track of these in a 'status log' at the bottom of each post. I'm doing it this way because individual character Strength scores may go up and down frequently.
The Basic Shooting Roll (AKA, a DEX Saving Throw!): Shooting (#Dex score#): [1d6] [1d6] / #Weapon Damage#
  • For example: Shooting (DEX 14): [1d6] [1d6] / Med. crossbow (4+3): [1d6] [1d6] [1d6] [1d6] +3
  • note: again, do not worry about Personal Adds in the macro. These I will be tracked in a 'status log' at the bottom of each post.

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Starbeard
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Re: House Rules & Clarifications

#6 Post by Starbeard »

Rulebook & Cheat Sheet

The 5th edition Quick-start Rules can be found at your favourite online PDF shops. (link here)

Pulpatoon has graciously provided a fantastic cheat sheet for the Quick-start rules, distilling the rules into a 2-page reference. (link here)

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Starbeard
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Re: House Rules & Clarifications

#7 Post by Starbeard »

Experience / Adventuring Points

Combat experience: Every character who participates in the combat in any meaningful way, no matter how small, will be awarded the monster's full MR in experience if successful. If the combat is a pushover and the players manage to get the monster to flee in a round or two, then half experience will be awarded; otherwise, any victorious and relatively permanent outcome will be worth full experience.

Saving Roll experience: Experience points will only be gained from saving rolls that are of the 'tricks and traps' variety, and only the first time they are attempted. Most other types of SRs, be they voluntary actions (like jumping over a chasm that doesn't have to be jumped over) or abilities from monster attacks, will usually not provide experience on their own.

Adventuring: Delving into a dungeon and returning alive will garner 1,000 points times the deepest level reached.

Using Magic: Casting a spell will garner points equal to the Strength cost to cast the spell.

Getting Beaten Up: Every hit point of damage you take will give you 1 experience point.

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Starbeard
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Re: House Rules & Clarifications

#8 Post by Starbeard »

Magic and Spell Casting

Using Scrolls
Scrolls typically are rendered useless after being used once. A used scroll cannot even be referenced when trying to learn the spell, but it can be referenced when trying to invent an identical spell (see below, "Learning New Spells").

Any character may use a scroll. Using a scroll is essentially the same as casting it from memory, with these exceptions:
  1. Obviously the caster must be able to see and read the scroll aloud.
  2. The scroll's spell is treated as though the character were exactly the same level as the spell level.
  3. Wizard and Rogues do not lose Strength when casting from scrolls, if they already know the spell.
  4. Warriors who cast from a scroll lose twice the Strength cost.

Learning New Spells (Wizards)
The Frobozz Magic Company's arcane library is a far way away, and so all spells must be acquired through adventure. Spells can also be invented after reaching 5th level, or by accident.

A wizard may copy a spell from an unused scroll or a magic tome into his "spellbook" (however that is defined by the player). He will of course need the appropriate materials, but it is assumed that the wizard has brought enough some of these along: five spells may be copied for free, and afterwards more materials must be obtained.

Copying the spell takes a number of days, during which nothing else can be done. The number of days required is equal to the spell level, squared (e.g., a third level spell takes nine days).


Learning New Spells (Rogues)
Wizards can teach one spell to a rogue per week, and a rogue can learn one spell per week. Attempting to do so takes an hour per spell level.

To teach a spell, the wizard must first pass an Intelligence Saving Roll at the level of the spell being taught. Failure means that the wizard must wait at least a week before reattempting to teach the rogue a spell.

If the wizard's SR is successful, then the GM secretly rolls an Intelligence SR for the rogue, at one level higher than the spell level. Success indicates that the spell has been learned properly, but failure can be interpreted in a number of ways: either the spell is not learned at all, or the rogue has difficulty casting it (costing extra ST points, or requiring an SR to cast successfully, etc.), or that its effects are altered randomly. The results won't be made known until the rogue actually attempts to cast the spell in practice.


Learning Higher Level Spells
Spellcasting types can learn spells that are higher than their current level, as long as any other requirements to cast the spell are be met. Each spell level higher increases the Strength cost by 1. For example, a first-level wizard who learns a third-level spell could cast it for +2 to the Strength cost.

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Starbeard
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Re: House Rules & Clarifications

#9 Post by Starbeard »

Combat House Rules & Clarifications

Going Berserk
This is an option in the full rules.

Characters who roll doubles in melee combat (or a 6 if you only have 1 die) may choose to go berserk. Having an IQ of 8 or less means you have to go berserk, and an IQ of 16+ means you cannot go berserk.

While berserk, any dice you roll that are the same get to be rolled over (that means DARO, TARO, ASTRO, or whatever else). Additionally, you are always guaranteed to roll at least doubles (matching the lowest number rolled: e.g., if you roll 4,3,2,1, then that counts as a 4,3,1,1). Having a shield to chew gives +5 to your combat rolls. You also automatically lose 2 Strength per combat round.

Berserking characters will be lost to the battle-madness until all living things are dead, they are knocked out, or a character with Charisma 15+ talks them down. Once all monsters are gone and the berserker turns on the party, any ONE character may make a saving throw to calm the berserker down/knock the berserker out from behind/etc.

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