If you’re walking in on the middle of this series, there’s an index here.

This sketch is actually quite straightforward from the read-through, because a huge chunk of this chapter is individual subsystems that are fun but need to be elsewhere – in magic, proficiencies, combat, death and healing, for example. This leaves me mainly needing to write a little, but not much.

I’ll start by, divorcing ability scores from “natural ability”:

Ability Scores

Ability scores do not represent your characters congenital ability, but rather the totality of a lifetimes work, play and study. You are not born strong, but you become strong working the Fourgoth Mines. You are not born intelligent, but become intelligent competing at the College of Six Seers – or perhaps become instead charismatic.

These are the six ability scores:

Strength is power and endurance.

Dexterity is agility and reflexes.

Constitution is health and resilience.

Intelligence is guile and education.

Wisdom is discernment and intuition.

Charisma is persuasiveness and leadership.

Then, simplifying generation, to match up with the new check procedure:

Rolling Ability Scores

Roll 3d6 six times and jot down the total for each roll. Assign the scores to your characters six abilities however you want.

And then, having spent a bunch of time trying, I just can’t fit associated statistics into the ability scores neatly, because they’re so heterogeneous. Instead, I’ll pull the interesting systems out and put them into sections, and add a few skills as proficiencies, later.

• Proficiency: Bend bars, lift gates (climb walls?)
• Magic: Magical defence and immunity
• Social: Loyalty and starting attitudes
• Health: System shock, resurrection
• Equipment: Encumbrance bonuses

There we go, ability scores sorted. The only gap between these first two sketches is when you check abilities, which I can fill later. This has been a part of the Advanced Fantasy Dungeon Series! Let me know your thoughts on this approach, whether I’ve overlooked anything glaring, or anything of the sort!

Idle Cartulary

4th April 2022