Hello Ronnie, Ronnie’s friends, and any other people who are going to take part in the game my brother conned me into running for him. Welcome.

Here’s the deal: I’d like to keep things simple. With new players, plus an online environment, plus the limited amount of time I currently have, simplicity in the extreme sounds like the best way to make this happen and keep it fun for everyone. If you’re curious, these rules are based largely off of Gygax and Arneson’s original D&D rules as presented in my friend Brendan’s ‘Vaults of Pahvelorn’ game, with some ACKS thrown in, and my own modifications to account for my GMing style.

GETTING STARTED

All you need to do to play is create your character. You’ll need a six sided die (referred to as a d6), a twenty sided die (referred to as a d20), as well as some lined paper to make notes, and a pencil. If you don’t have any dice available, you can use http://rolz.org/.

For this game, we’re going to stick to human characters only. The basis of your character is their six ability scores:

Strength (STR)
Dexterity (DEX)
Constitution (CON)
Intelligence (INT)
Wisdom (WIS)
Charisma (CHA)

Starting with Strength, roll 3d6, and note what the number is. Follow this by rolling 3d6 for your Dexterity, on down the line until all six ability scores have a number between 3 and 18.

Because I’m nice, you may have 1 point to spend freely after your ability scores are created. You can add it to any score you choose, but no score can ever be higher than 18.

Use this chart to identify what bonuses or penalties you get, based on what number you rolled for each ability score. Take note of what you get. (Edit: Looks like it’s too large to fit on the page. Just right click and select “View Image” to see it full size. Sorry about that.)

Once your ability scores are established, roll 4d6, and multiply the result by 10. This number represents how many gold pieces you start the game with. Gold pieces are very important in this game. Not only is gold used to purchase equipment and services, employ hirelings, make bribes, and so on; but it also determines how fast you level up. Instead of gaining experience points from killing monsters, in this version of D&D, you gain 1 experience point for each gold piece you spend. So if you spend 10 gold on a sword, you gain 10 experience points.

CLASSES

Now that you have your starting gold and your ability scores, the only thing left for you to select is your class. In keeping with the spirit of simplicity, there are only four classes available for this game: Fighter, Magic User, Cleric, and Thief. At present, only 1st level information is available. If they game continues beyond the first session, I can post information for 2nd level and beyond.

I’m sure each of you have a pretty decent idea of what each of these four classes do. So for now, just select which class you want, and write down the information for it. I will explain below what all of it means.

FIGHTER

HP: 1d6 + 1
THAC2: 15
Armor Class: ?
Equipment: May use heavy armor and shields.
Saves: Petrif & Paralysis 15; Poison & Death 14; Blast & Breath 16; Staffs & Wands 16; Spells 17
Special: When attacking, may roll 2d6, and use the better roll.
XP for level 2: 1800

MAGIC USER

HP: 1d6
THAC2: 17
Armor Class: ?
Equipment: Cannot use any armor or shield.
Saves: Petrif & Paralysis 13; Poison & Death 13; Blast & Breath 15; Staffs & Wands 11; Spells 12
Special: Begins the game with 3 spells in their spellbook. Details below.
XP for level 2: 2500

CLERIC

HP: 1d6
THAC0: 16
Armor Class: ?
Equipment: May use heavy armor and shields. May not use poison, or weapons with blades.
Saves: Petrif & Paralysis 13; Poison & Death 10; Blast & Breath 16; Staffs & Wands 16; Spells 17
Special: Turn Evil Creatures
Special: Last Rites
XP for level 2: 1500

THIEF

HP: 1d6
THAC2: 16
Armor Class: ?
Equipment: May use light armor and no shields.
Saves: Petrif & Paralysis 13; Poison & Death 13; Blast & Breath 16; Staffs & Wands 14; Spells 15
Special: Backstab deals 2d6 damage.
Special: May attempt a “Thief Trick.” Must roll 14 or higher on a D20 to succeed. Details below.
XP for level 2: 1800

DETAILS

HP, as I’m sure you all know, stands for hit points. At the start of each game session, the players will roll the indicated die for their class & level. The resulting number will represent their max HP for that day. This constantly fluctuating HP has two purposes. First, it is meant to represent the fact that a person isn’t always in peak condition. Maybe they went out drinking last night, or maybe their just feeling off their game, but whatever the reason, their HP is 1 this week. Second, re-rolling HP each session means you’re never stuck with a bad HP roll for long. In some sessions you get to be the guy with max HP; while in other sessions you need to be careful, because a goblin sneeze will kill you.

THAC2 is an acronym which stands for “To Hit Armor Class 2.” In this game, the lower your armor class, the more difficult you are to hit. Armor Class 2 is the best possible armor class for characters without magical protection.

Any time an attack is made, the attacking character must make an “attack roll.” This is done by rolling the twenty sided die, and comparing the result to the attacking character’s THAC2. If the character’s THAC2 is, for example, 17, then if that player rolls a 17 on their attack roll, they say “I rolled a 17, which hits armor class 2.”

If a defending character has an AC higher than 2 (meaning their defenses are not as good) then the number which must be rolled in order to hit that character is lower. So for example, a character with a THAC2 of 17 would hit an AC of 2 if they rolled a 17, an AC of 3 if they rolled a 16, an AC of 4 if they rolled a 15, and so on.

The simplest way to keep track of THAC2 is to make a quick chart on your character sheet. Like this one, for a character with a THAC2 of 17:

Armor Class is defined by the armor you are wearing. Its function is explained in the THAC2 explanation. Below is a list of armors, and the THAC2 which they confer upon the person wearing them.

Plate Armor & Shield – AC 2
Plate Armor, No Shield – AC 3
Chain Mail & Shield – AC 4
Chain Mail. No Shield – AC 5
Leather Armor & Shield – AC 6
Leather Armor, No Shield – AC 7
Only using a Shield – AC 8
No armor or Shield – AC 9

Equipment is not a strict condition. Anyone can use anything they want, if they so choose. But a thief in full plate isn’t going to be very sneaky, and a wizard in even leather armor is going to find their movement restricted enough to impact their spellcasting. What is listed is the type of equipment the character can use without penalty to their abilities.

Saves are associated with different types of danger. Occasionally during the game, I may ask a player to make a save of a certain type, and they need to roll 1d20. If the roll is equal to or greater than that character’s save number, then the save is successful. If the roll is lower, then the save fails.

For example, if a level 1 Thief is fighting a dragon, and the dragon breathes fire on the thief, I will ask the thief to make a save versus Breath. That saving throw is 16, so the player must roll a 16 or higher. If they fail, they will be caught by the full brunt of the dragon’s breath.

If I’m doing my job correctly, then you’ll only need to roll a save after you’ve made a mistake. There should always be a way to survive a situation without needing to save–even if the only way to survive is to run away.

XP For Level 2 should be self explanatory, right? As I mentioned above, characters earn 1 experience point for each gold piece they spend. Once you’ve spent enough gold pieces to reach this number of experience points, you will advance to level 2.

SPELLS

Magic users keep all of their spells in a spell book, and each morning they must memorize the spells which they will cast that day. At first level, the magic user may only memorize a single spell each day. When that spell is cast, the magic user should make a save v. magic (as explained above). If they succeed, then they can cast the spell again later that day. If they fail, then all of their magical energy is expended, and they cannot cast anymore.
When the game begins, magic users have 3 random spells in their spell book. One from each of the following categories. Roll 1d20 to determine which spells you have. If you roll an 11 or higher, subtract 10 from your roll.
Offensive Spells: 1. Burning Hands, 2. Charm Person, 3. Enlarge, 4. Friends, 5. Light, 6. Magic Missile, 7. Push, 8. Shocking Grasp, 9. Sleep, 10. (You Choose)
Defensive Spells: 1. Affect Normal Fires, 2. Dancing Lights, 3. Feather Fall, 4. Hold Portal, 5. Jump, 6. Protection from Evil/Good, 7. Shield, 8. Spider Climb, 9. Ventriloquism, 10. (You Choose)
Misc. Spells: 1. Comprehend Languages, 2. Detect Magic, 3. Erase, 4. Find Familiar, 5. Identify, 6. Mending, 7. Message, 8. Unseen Servant, 9. Write, 10. (You Choose)
After these initial 3 spells, magic users do not get any spells for free. You will need to find other ways to fill your spellbook, and become a powerful Wizard.
Rather than wasting a bunch of time typing out descriptions for 27 spells, just let me know what spells you roll, and I will type out the descriptions for them at that time.

TURNING

If the party is attacked by creatures of pure evil, such as undead, demons, or devils, then clerics may attempt to send these creatures running with the power of their god. The cleric must raise their holy symbol high, and present it confidently to the beasts, and roll 2d6.

I will then divide the number by half, rounding down, and the player can send the that many “hit dice” of creatures fleeing. If you roll high enough that 1/2 of your roll is still twice the number of hit dice that the available creatures have, then those creatures will be destroyed outright.

Evil clerics may use the same mechanic to attempt to control undead, demons, or devils. But beware: if you fail, these monsters will not appreciate your attempt.

Once a turning attempt has been failed, it cannot be attempted again until the next day.

THIEF SKILLS

Thieves are skillful characters, and they’re able to accomplish a number of tasks which are much more difficult for characters of other classes. At first level, a thief can succeed at any of the followings tasks by rolling a 14 or higher on a D20:

Pick pockets, open locks, find & remove small traps, move silently, hide in shadows, hear noises, climb sheer walls.

Note that any character can attempt most of these tasks, but they must roll an 18 or higher to do so, and failure may be more severe for those characters than it would be for a thief.

Equipment

Gold Piece values are in parenthesis. All weapons deal 1d6 damage.

• One-handed melee weapons: dagger (3), hand axe (3), mace (5), sword (10), battle axe (7), morning star (6), flail (8)
• Two-handed melee weapons: spear (1), pole arm (7), halberd (7), two-handed sword (15), lance (4), pike (5)
• Missile weapons: short bow (25), long bow (40), composite bow (50), light crossbow (15), heavy crossbow (25), quiver 20 arrows (10), case 30 quarrels (10), 20 arrows/30 quarrels (5)
• Animals & accessories: mule (20), draft horse (30), light horse (40), medium warhorse (100), heavy warhorse (200), saddle (25), saddle bags (10), barding (150)
• Armor: leather (15), chain (30), plate (50), helmet (10), shield (10)
• Exploration gear: rope (1), 10 foot pole (1), iron spikes (1)
• Containers: small sack (1), large sack (2), backpack (5), water/wine skin (1)
• Light sources: 6 torches (1), lantern (10), flask of oil (2)
• Bug spray: 3 stakes & mallet (3), steel mirror (5), silver mirror (15), wooden cross (2), silver cross (25), vial of holy water (25), wolvesbane (10), belladona (10), garlic (5)
• Rations: quart of wine (1), week iron rations (15), week standard rations (5)

Miscellaneous Rules

Encumbrance will function largely on the honor system. It’s not easy for me to keep track of everything you’re carrying, so just remember this: you can carry a number of heavy items equal to your strength score. If you rolled a strength of 10, you can carry 10 heavy items. A heavy item would be a sword, a suit of armor, a painting, something like that.

Also, 50 light items counts as 1 heavy item. So 50 gold coins? That’s 1 heavy item.

Please keep track of your encumbrance, and let me know if you become over burdened with stuff.

HP loss and Death If your character is reduced to 0 HP, then they fall unconscious. They can be revived normally (it will take sometime between 10 minutes and an hour to do so). Once revived, the character is left limping. They can only shuffle around at a snail’s pace, and any strenuous activity (such as lifting, running, or combat) may deal damage to the player from blood loss, reducing them to -1 hp.

If a character is ever reduced to -1 hp or lower, I will ask you to make a save versus death. On success, your character stops at 0hp. Time will be required to revive them, as per normal, and they will probably have a permanent disfigurement or penalty as a reminder of their brush with death. If you fail your save versus death, then get out your six sided dice and start rolling up a new character. The old one is dead.
(Note: if you are reduced to -10 hit points or lower, you will not be entitled to a save at all. You’ll just be dead.)

Closing

I’ll be happy to answer any questions you may have. You can reach me by email at linkskywalker14@gmail.com. Though I’d like to move discussions about the game onto Google+ once we have everyone available to play.

In conclusion, I would like to add something. I do not know what you may have heard about Dungeons and Dragons, or what experience you may have with role playing games. But in this game, the players live in a world of great dangers. They will explore dark places deep beneath the earth where mortal men and women are not people, they are meat. Every foolish decision a character makes may result in their death; and since many of you are new to this game, you should expect that your characters will die. The good news is that it should only take a minute to create a new character, so smile, roll your new character, and make sure that you’ve learned how to avoid that kind of death the next time.

Let’s roll.