2

ENCOUNTER Copyright 2011 Michael Chumak

Written by Michael Chumak
Photography by David Bunting, Michael Chumak, Paul Friel, spaceodissey, tinyfroglet
No portion of this book can be reproduced without express written consent from the copyright
holder.
3 Contents
1. CONTENTS
1. Contents............................................3
2. Basic rules .........................................5
2.1 Dice ............................................5
2.2 Scores ..........................................5
2.3 Players ........................................5
2.4 Game master ...............................5
2.5 Characters ................................. 6
2.6 Character sheet .......................... 6
2.7 Company .................................... 6
2.8 Setting........................................ 7
2.9 Abilities ..................................... 7
2.10 Skills .......................................... 7
2.11 Tests .......................................... 7
3. Advanced rules ............................... 10
3.1 Spirit ......................................... 10
3.2 Ability damage .......................... 10
3.3 Restoring abilities ...................... 12
3.4 Attacking a character .................13
3.5 Casting a spell ........................... 14
3.6 Fear........................................... 17
3.7 Combat ..................................... 18
3.8 Weapons and armour ................ 21
3.9 Alcohol ...................................... 22
4. Skills ................................................ 23
4.1 Acrobatics ................................. 23
4.2 Animal care ............................... 23
4.3 Athletics .................................... 23
4.4 Astronomy ................................ 23
4.5 Botany ....................................... 23
4.6 Brewing .................................... 23
4.7 Climbing ...................................24
4.8 First aid ....................................24
4.9 History .....................................24
4.10 Intimidation ..............................24
4.11 Lock picking ..............................24
4.12 Magic ........................................ 25
4.13 Mathematics ............................. 25
4.14 Mechanics ................................. 25
4.15 Melee weapons .......................... 25
4.16 Music ........................................ 25
4.17 Ranged weapons ........................ 25
4.18 Rhetoric ..................................... 25
4.19 Sailing .......................................26
4.20 Sleight of hand ..........................26
4.21 Smithing.................................... 27
4.22 Spotting ..................................... 27
4.23 Stoneworking ............................ 27
4.24 Swimming ................................. 27
4.25 Tracking ................................... 27
4.26 Woodworking ........................... 27
4.27 Zoology ..................................... 27
5. Spells ...............................................28
5.1 Red chroma................................28
5.2 Green chroma ............................28
5.3 Blue chroma ..............................28
5.4 Cyan chroma .............................28
5.5 Magenta chroma ........................29
5.6 Yellow chroma ..........................29
5.7 White chroma ...........................29
6. Creating a character .......................30
7. Setting ............................................. 31
7.1 Demons ......................................31
7.2 Knights-hexer ............................ 32
7.3 Oracle ....................................... 33
8. Nations............................................34
8.1 Khammenid Sultanate ............... 34
8.2 Kingdom of Prede ...................... 36
8.3 Lydean City-states ....................38
8.4 Swaryag Hetmanate ................ 40
9. Sapient species ................................43
9.1 Bolg ........................................... 43
9.2 Flitterbrand ...............................45
9.3 Jotun ........................................ 46
10. Sample characters ......................... 48
10.1 Fighter ..................................... 48
10.2 Mage ........................................ 48
10.3 Merchant ..................................49
10.4 Rogue ........................................49
4 Contents
11. Character sheet ...............................50
5 Basic rules Game master
2. BASIC RULES
2.1 DICE
ENCOUNTER uses six-sided dice
exclusively. Any reference to a die or dice
will imply this type of dice.
A number in square brackets repre-
sents the result of a roll. The following para-
graph gives an example of this notation. Its
paragraph style will be used to represent ex-
amples in the rest of the book.
A player rolls two dice. The results
are [2] and [5].
2.2 SCORES
The rules for ENCOUNTER will
refer to three scores; they are: ability score,
skill score and target score.
An ability score is a number between
zero (0) and fve (5) that indicates the level
of a characters ability. A score of one (1)
represents the exhaustion of a characters
physical or mental capacity; a high score
represents a character who has a natural or
acquired aptitude for physical or intellectual
work.
A skill score is a number between zero
(o) and four (4) that indicates the level of a
characters skill. A score of zero represents
a character who is unfamiliar with the skill;
a high score represents a character who has,
through practice, learning or both, achieved
some degree of fnesse with the skill.
Section 1.11 will describe the meaning
of a target score.
2.3 PLAYERS
A person participating in a game of
ENCOUNTER will be referred to as a play-
er.
Normally, a player will take control
of a single character and describe her pres-
ence in the game. The game master is an ex-
ception her role is described in section 1.4.
2.4 GAME MASTER
One of the players must take on the
role of a story teller; ENCOUNTER will
refer to her as the game master.
The game master sets up the scenes
for the players and populates them with
non-player characters. It is up to her to de-
termine and describe the way the world re-
sponds to the player characters actions.
The game masters ruling is fnal; the
players should not subject it to debate. If the
game master has made a mistake when ap-
plying a rule, a player is encouraged to in-
form her of it. However, the game master
is free to change the rules to deliver a better
gaming experience.
The game master should limit the
time available to player characters to com-
plete a main goal. This will make the game
more challenging for the player characters
by discouraging frequent rest for the sake
of recuperation and rewarding planning and
action.
The order to which the player
characters belong has obtained in-
formation regarding a meeting be-
tween leaders of two feuding reli-
gious sects. The meeting will take
6 Basic rules Company
place in a week. The heads of the
order plan to assassinate one of the
leaders. They hope that the assas-
sination may be made to look as a
provocation by the sect of the sur-
viving leader and drive both sects
to further hostilities.
The player characters have seven
days to design and execute a plan
to assassinate the targeted leader.
2.5 CHARACTERS
There are two types of characters in
ENCOUNTER. They are player characters
and non-player characters.
A player character is a character who
is controlled by a player. A non-player char-
acter is a character who is controlled by the
game master.
Players should be aware of the pres-
ence of law enforcement in settlements. If
a crime is committed in a civilised commu-
nity, it will be investigated. Player charac-
ters do not act outside of the justice system.
Even a company of veterans is likely to be
overcome by a squad of the city watch. If
a player character does break the law, the
company should consider making an effort
to conceal their involvement and look for
ways of evading punishment.
2.6 CHARACTER SHEET
A character sheet consists of one or
more pages and refects the characters abili-
ties, skills, inventory and other characteris-
tics.
An example of a character sheet can
be found in section 11. Players are advised to
print a copy of their player characters char-
acter sheet and keep it updated during each
gaming session.
2.7 COMPANY
A group of player characters travel-
ling together is referred to as a company.
It is possible to play ENCOUNTER
with a company of one. In this case, it be-
comes a one on one game between the game
master and the player.
The fragile nature of characters in
ENCOUNTER may mean that a player
character will likely fail to complete a cam-
paign on her own. The game master may
introduce non-player characters to assist the
player character throughout the campaign.
Alternatively, the game master may allow
the player to control multiple player char-
acters.
If a player cannot make it to a gam-
ing session, there are a number of ways the
game master can address her absence in the
game. The most common way is to keep the
player character whose player is absent in
the background, shift attention away from
her and reduce her actions throughout the
session to a minimum. She may be left to
mind the pack animals, lag behind to protect
the company from a rear attack or simply
display complete ineffciency in her actions.
7 Basic rules Tests
2.8 SETTING
This book includes a setting for
games of ENCOUNTER. The setting will
be referred to as Edelay, the fctional planet
where the main events take place.
The players can use the rules to play
a game set in any other setting should they
wish to do so.
2.9 ABILITIES
Abilities represent a characters phys-
ical and intellectual characteristics.
There are three abilities; they are:
cunning, health and willpower.
2.9.a Cunning
Cunning represents the characters
ability to manipulate people through decep-
tion and persuasion;
2.9.b Health
Health represents the characters abil-
ity to endure physical hardship, her strength
and refexes;
2.9.c Willpower
Willpower represents the characters
ability to concentrate on a task and ignore
distractions.
2.10 SKILLS
A skill represents a characters exper-
tise in some feld.
A skill score cannot drop below zero
(0) or rise above four (4). A skill score of
one (1) can be used to describe beginner skill
level; two (2) intermediate; three (3) ad-
vanced; four (4) expert.
2.11 TESTS
If a character wishes to perform an ac-
tion that has a chance of failure, she must
pass a test to succeed. Her player will deter-
mine whether the character is successful by
rolling roll one or more dice and comparing
the results to the target score.
Each test uses at least one die; addi-
tional dice are added depending on skills and
special circumstances.
If the character has a skill that is rel-
evant to the test, her player should add the
number of dice equal to her skill score for
the relevant skill to the roll.
Gumbrell is a beginner astronomer
he has an astronomy skill score of
one (1). He attempts to determine
the direction of north by studying
the stars at night. His player will
roll two dice one that is rolled for
every test and another for Gum-
brells astronomy score of one (1).
A target score is the score of the abil-
ity relevant to the test. The game master
should indicate which ability is relevant to
the test.
The game master tells Gumbrells
player that the ability relevant
to the astronomy test is cunning.
Gumbrells cunning score is four
(4); his player must roll four (4) or
lower on either of the two dice to
succeed in fnding north by looking
at stars.
Where a skill is applicable to a test,
ENCOUNTER will state the relevant abil-
ity and skill using the following format:
ability/skill.
In the previous example, instead
of writing out the relevant ability
(cunning) and skill (astronomy)
separately, ENCOUNTER would
refer to a cunning/astronomy
test.
It should be noted that any character
may attempt any test regardless of her skill.
8 Basic rules Tests
Gumbrell attempts to identify the
runes on a sword.
The game master indicates that
to successfully identify the runes,
Gumbrell must pass a cunning/his-
tory test.
Gumbrells history score is zero
(0). His player will roll one die for
the purpose of this test.
When a player rolls one or more dice,
each die that shows a result equal to or lower
than the target score will be referred to as a
winner; each die that shows a result greater
than the target score will be referred to as a
dud.
Gumbrell wants to convince a
prince to lend him a company of the
crowns soldiers to repel a group of
bandits.
The game master indicates that
Gumbrell must pass a cunning/
rhetoric test in order to perform a
task. Gumbrells cunning score is
four (4). Gumbrells rhetoric score
is two (2).
Gumbrells player rolls three dice;
the results are [3], [4] and [6].
Two of the results are equal to or
less than, and the third is greater
than the target score Gumbrells
player is said to have rolled two
winners and one dud.
Performing a complex action may re-
quire two or more winners for a character to
succeed at it. The need for multiple winners
will prevent a character who does not have
the relevant skill from successfully perform-
ing a task.
Gumbrell tries to open a door, but
fnds it locked. He retrieves a lock
pick and a torsion wrench from his
backpack and attempts to pick the
lock.
Gumbrell will need to pass a will-
power/lock picking test to succeed.
His willpower score is two (2); his
lock picking skill score is zero (0).
His player should normally roll one
die for this test and compare the re-
sult to Gumbrells willpower score.
However, the game master rules
that successfully picking the lock
would require at least two winners.
9 Basic rules Tests
It is not possible for Gumbrell to
roll two winners using only one
die. Gumbrell attempts to pick the
lock, but soon realises that he is not
skilled enough to succeed.
2.11.a Opposed tests
The game master may allow a charac-
ter to oppose another characters action. If
an action is opposed by another character,
both players involved must roll a test. This
test will be referred to as an opposed test.
Gumbrell has succeeded in per-
suading the prince to lend him a
company of soldiers. However, he
thinks that the number of soldiers
the prince has committed is not
enough to destroy the bandits; he
attempts to persuade the prince to
send more.
The princes advisor steps in to
argue against Gumbrells request.
The game master indicates that
the advisor will oppose Gumbrells
test.
Both characters will roll a cun-
ning/rhetoric test each.
Gumbrells player will once again
roll three dice. The advisors cun-
ning score is four (4); his rhetoric
score is three (3). The game master
will roll four dice; her target score
will be four (4).
Gumbrells player scores two win-
ners; the game master four.
The advisor succeeds in dissuad-
ing the prince from committing any
more soldiers to Gumbrells cause.
If one of the players rolls more win-
ners than the other, her character will pass
the opposed test; her opponent will fail the
opposed test. If both players roll the same
number of winners, they disregard the draw
and immediately roll the dice again.
Gumbrell chases after a thief.
The game master lets Gumbrells
player know that the chase triggers
an opposed health/athletics test.
Gumbrells health score is four (4);
the thiefs two (2). Gumbrells
athletics score is one (1); the thiefs
three (3).
Gumbrells player rolls two dice;
her target score is four (4). The
game master rolls four dice; her
target score is two (2).
Gumbrells player scores one win-
ner; the game master three. Gum-
brell has failed the opposed test; the
thief has passed the opposed test.
The thief increases the distance be-
tween himself and Gumbrell.
2.11.b Advantage
In some situations the game master
may award a character involved in a test one
or more additional dice for the purpose of
the test.
Some of the more common examples
of this rule may occur if a character is out-
numbered in a fght, or there is a signifcant
difference in size between two characters
engaged in combat.
A relevant example is given in section
3.7.f.
10 Advanced rules Ability damage
3. ADVANCED RULES
will restore the number of player characters
spirits to equal that player characters will-
power score.
In the previous example, Mosleigh
had two spirits at her disposal. She
used one spirit to re-roll one of the
dice used in a cunning/tracking
test. She will now have only one
spirit left to use until she rests.
Mosleigh breaks camp and rests for
eight hours. When she wakes up
provided her sleep was uninter-
rupted she will have two spirits
once again.
Resting for less than eight hours or in-
terrupted sleep will yield half as many spir-
its as the player characters willpower score,
rounded up. Resting cannot increase the
number of a player characters spirits above
that player characters willpower score.
Mosleigh has previously used one
spirit. Her willpower score is two
(2). She has one (1) spirit at her
disposal.
She rests in a camp. An ambush
interrupts her sleep. Upon waking
up, Mosleighs player adds one (1)
spirit half of Mosleighs willpow-
er score to her spirits.
3.2 ABILITY DAMAGE
The game master may reduce a char-
acters ability score for failing a test. The
3.1 SPIRIT
Each day, a player character can re-
roll a number of dice equal to her willpower
score. These re-rolls are referred to as spirits
they represent the player characters dedi-
cation to a cause, her drive to succeed.
Mosleigh attempts to track down a
young prince in a forest.
Her player rolls a cunning/track-
ing test.
Mosleighs cunning score is four
(4); her tracking score is one (1).
Her willpower score is two (2),
meaning that the number of spirits
she will receive each day is also two
(2).
The dice roll results in [6] and
[6] two duds. The game mas-
ter informs Mosleighs player
that Mosleigh has lost the princes
tracks and will need to spend some
time searching for them. However,
Mosleighs player decides to use
one of Mosleighs spirits; she tells
the game master as much and re-
rolls one of the two dice that origi-
nally resulted in a dud.
The result of the new roll is [2] a
success. Mosleigh succeeds in fol-
lowing the princes tracks after all.
Once a player character has used a
spirit to re-roll a die, it cannot be reused
until she has rested. Resting for eight hours
11 Advanced rules Ability damage
reduction in an ability score is referred to
as ability damage. This reduction is not ir-
reversible; a player should not remove the
original score from the character sheet.
Mosleigh attacks an opponent and
fails the opposed test. Her health
score is reduced by one (1) point.
She later applies a medicinal salve
to the wound; the application of the
salve restores one (1) point to Mos-
leighs health score.
Cunning and willpower scores can-
not drop below one (1) point. If an event
that would reduce either one of these scores
to zero (0) occurs, the reduction will be ig-
nored.
A series of frightening events has
drained Mosleighs willpower
score; it is currently one (1).
Another frightening occurrence
triggers willpower ability damage.
However, Mosleighs willpower
score is already at its minimum
of one (1). The ability damage is
therefore ignored.
Health can drop to a score of zero (0).
Section 3.2.a) describes the effects of having
a health score of zero (0).
3.2.a Dying
If a characters health score is reduced
to one, she is said to be dying. If a dying
character must take a health test while in
this state, she will take a willpower test in-
stead.
Mosleigh has fallen into a pit-
fall trap. The fall has reduced her
health score to one (1) point; she no
longer has the strength to climb out
of the trap and seek help. Instead,
she must will her body to obey her.
Whereas normally climbing would
trigger a health test, in this case,
Mosleigh must pass a willpower
test to succeed.
If a dying character fails a willpower
test that she took instead of a health test, she
will die.
Mosleighs player has failed the
willpower test; Mosleighs arms
and legs can no longer propel her
up the wall. She falls unconscious
and dies at the bottom of the pitfall
trap.
The game master should not apply
the dying rule to all non-player characters.
A minor non-player characters health score
12 Advanced rules Restoring abilities
can be reduced to zero (0) without implicat-
ing her willpower score.
Mosleigh has reduced a thugs
health score to one (1). The thug is
not a minor non-player character
his death has little impact on the
story; he is therefore not considered
to be dying at a health score of one
(1). He will not roll a willpower
test instead of a health test should
he receive another wound. Instead
he will die outright.
3.3 RESTORING ABILITIES
3.3.a Resting
If a character has suffered ability
damage, the reduced ability may often be re-
stored by resting.
A character may rest up to eight (8)
hours per day.
If a character has suffered from ability
damage to one or more of her ability scores,
resting will have a chance of restoring one
(1) point to each of the damaged abilities. If
she rests for eight (8) hours uninterrupted,
one (1) point should be restored to each of
the characters damaged abilities.
Mosleigh has been wounded in bat-
tle. She breaks camp and decides to
rest for eight hours.
When Mosleigh wakes up, one (1)
point will be restored to her health
score.
If the characters rest is interrupted,
her player will roll the willpower test. If
she passes the test, one (1) point should be
restored to each of the characters damaged
abilities.
Mosleigh breaks camp again the
following evening. She hopes to
rest for the full eight hours to re-
store another point to her health
ability score.
A fever keeps Mosleigh awake and
restless for some time during the
night. Her player will have to roll
a willpower test and score a winner
to restore ability damage because
Mosleighs sleep was interrupted.
She rolls the die and scores a win-
ner one (1) point is restored to
Mosleighs health score.
The game master should limit the
number of times a player character may rest
during a day. A player character should not
be able to rest for the full eight (8) hours no
more than once a day, or attempt to do so no
more than twice a day.
3.3.b Triumph
Passing a test restores one (1) point to
a characters willpower score. This rule is
referred to as triumph. Triumph represents
the satisfaction a character will gain by beat-
ing a challenge.
The effect of triumph does not stack
with resting only one (1) point can be re-
stored to a characters willpower score after
resting.
Mosleigh has suffered some will-
power damage earlier on.
She breaks camp in the evening and
rests until morning. Her sleep is
interrupted during the night. Her
player rolls a willpower test trig-
gered by interrupted rest. The roll
results in one winner one (1) point
is restored to Mosleighs willpower
score due to resting.
A second point will not be restored
due to triumph, because a single
13 Advanced rules Attacking a character
test cannot trigger both resting and
triumph effects.
3.4 ATTACKING A CHARACTER
3.4.a Using a melee weapon
If the attacker uses a melee weapon,
the target can choose to oppose the attack,
triggering an opposed test. The relevant
ability and skill for both characters should
be health/melee weapons.
The fitterbrand attacks Mosleigh.
Mosleigh tries to defend herself,
triggering an opposed test.
Her health score is two (2); Mos-
leighs is four (4); her melee weap-
ons skill is two (2); Mosleighs is
one (1). The fitterbrands player
the game master, in this case rolls
three dice; Mosleighs two. The
fitterbrand scores [2], [2] and [6];
Mosleigh [3] and [5].
Two of the fitterbrands dice have
scored a result that is equal to or
lower than her health score; she has
two winners. Only one of Mos-
leighs results is equal to or lower
than his health score; she has one
winner.
The fitterbrand scores more win-
ners than Mosleigh. She passes the
opposed test; Mosleigh fails it.
3.4.b Using a ranged weapon
If the attacker uses a ranged weapon,
the target cannot oppose the test. The rel-
evant ability and skill for the attacker should
be willpower/ranged weapons.
The sound of fghting attracts an-
other fitterbrand from the cave.
She carries a blowgun and a quiver
of darts.
During her turn, the blowgunner
attacks Mosleigh. A blowgun is a
ranged weapon. The blowgunners
willpower score is three (3). Her
ranged weapons skill score is three
(3). The dungeon master rolls four
dice. The results are [1], [2], [3]
and [5]. Three of the dice show a
result that is equal to or lower than
the blowgunners willpower score.
The blowgunner passes the test
with three winners.
3.4.c Wounds
Failing an opposed test triggered by
a melee attack or being the target of a suc-
cessful ranged attack should be punished by
reducing the health score by one (1) point.
In each of the two previous exam-
ples, Mosleighs health score should
have been reduced by one (1) point.
3.4.d Piercing attacks
If a character passes a test triggered by
an attack and at least one of her dice scores
a [1], the attack will be piercing. The effect
of a piercing attack relates to armour and
weapons; it will be addressed in section ***.
Mosleigh attacks the blowgunner
and passes the opposed test. Her
dice came up with the following
results: [1] and [3]. The attack is
piercing.
3.4.e Dodging
A character may choose to oppose a
melee attack using a health/acrobatics test.
If she passes the test, she will dodge the at-
14 Advanced rules Casting a spell
tack. Neither she, nor the attacking charac-
ter, will suffer any ability damage.
Mosleigh attacks a thief using a
sword. The thief attempts to evade
the attack.
Mosleighs player rolls a health/
melee weapons test; the thiefs
player opposes the test by rolling a
health/acrobatics test.
Mosleighs player scores one (1)
winner; the thiefs two (2). The
thief passes the opposed test. He
tumbles out of the way of Mos-
leighs sword. Neither he nor Mos-
leigh suffer ability damage as a re-
sult of the test.
3.4.f Onslaught
If a character passes the health/me-
lee weapons test with three (3) more win-
ners than her opponent, she performs an
onslaught.
If a character has performed an on-
slaught, and provided her opponent is still
alive, her player should immediately roll
a second health/melee weapons roll. Her
characters opponent may choose to either
oppose it using a health/acrobatics roll or
not at all.
3.4.g Disarming blow
If a character passes the health/melee
weapons test with four (4) or more winners
than her opponent, she performs a disarm-
ing blow.
If a character performs a disarming
blow, her opponent immediately drops her
weapon to the ground. She may choose to
spend one action to pick the weapon up dur-
ing her turn.
A character who has performed a dis-
arming blow may choose to immediately
follow it up with an onslaught.
3.5 CASTING A SPELL
A magician in ENCOUNTER trans-
forms the rays of light emitted by the star
Sedna into magic spells. To do so, she frst
refracts the magical light through a prism.
Only a mana stone possesses the
properties that will allow it to act as a prism
for the magical light. The prism will reduce
the light to its primary colours. A magician
can then work with these colours to produce
a simple spell, or attempt to combine them
into one of the secondary colours or white to
produce a more complex spell.
In order to control the magic cap-
tured by the mana stone, a mage must enter
a trance. Her thought patterns will trigger
signals in her brain that interact with the
chroma. Chroma thus activated allows the
mage to use it to create spells.
Attempting to cast a spell should trig-
ger a willpower/magic test.
15 Advanced rules Casting a spell
3.5.a Chroma
The examples in this section ignore
the rules of magic zones introduced in sec-
tion 3.5.b).
A colour of magic is called a chroma.
There are seven chromas. They are: red,
green, blue, cyan, magenta, yellow and
white. Red, green and blue are known as the
primary chromas; cyan, magenta and yellow
as secondary chromas.
Secondary chromas are produced by
combining two primary chromas. Combin-
ing red and green primary chromas produces
yellow secondary chroma; red and blue pro-
duce magenta; green and blue produce cyan.
White chroma is produced by com-
bining all three primary chromas.
If a character wishes to transform a
primary chroma into a spell, her player will
need to roll one winner.
Mosleigh wishes to cast a pyroki-
nesis spell and direct it at a fitter-
brand.
A pyrokinesis spell requires the use
of a primary colour of magic (red);
Mosleighs player needs to roll at
least one winner to successfully
cast it.
The game master indicates that
Mosleighs player must roll a will-
power/magic test. Mosleighs will-
power score is two (2); her magic
skill score is also two (2).
Mosleighs player rolls three dice
and compares the results to Mos-
leighs willpower score. The results
are: [2], [2] and [4] two winners.
Mosleighs player must remove one
mana stone from Mosleighs inven-
tory it is destroyed in the process
of channelling the magical light.
Mosleigh successfully captures the
necessary amount of red colour
of magic from the light of Sedna,
transforms it into a pyrokinesis
spell and directs it at the fitter-
brand.
If a character wishes to transform a
secondary chroma into a spell, her player
will need to roll two (2) winners.
A group of bowmen assails Mos-
leigh. Mosleigh wishes to cast a
force feld spell to protect herself
from their arrows.
A force feld spell requires the use
of a secondary colour of magic (yel-
low); Mosleighs player needs to
roll at least two winners to success-
fully cast it.
If Mosleigh passes the test, two (2)
mana stones will be removed from
her inventory and destroyed.
If a character wishes to transform the
white chroma into a spell, her player will
need to roll three (3) winners.
Mosleigh seeks to escape from the
fitterbrands by casting a teleporta-
tion spell. This spell would trans-
port her to another location instan-
taneously.
The teleportation spell involves
combining all three primary col-
ours into white. Mosleighs player
would need to roll three (3) win-
ners to successfully cast this spell.
If Mosleigh passes the test, three
(3) mana stones will be removed
from her inventory and destroyed.
16 Advanced rules Casting a spell
3.5.b Magic zones
Sedna is circumpolar - an observer can
always see it above the north pole of Ede-
lay. The further away a character travels
from the north pole, the more diffcult she
will fnd it to cast a spell. Only incident rays
from the star will reach the southern hemi-
sphere.
A character in the north frigid zone
will receive direct rays of light from Sedna.
She will not need to roll any additional win-
ners to successfully cast a spell.
Mosleigh fnds herself in Yoghol,
an area of icebergs in the north
frigid zone. She stands before a
castle made of ice. A wall of ice
blocks the entrance. Mosleigh de-
cides to cast a pyrokinesis spell to
blast her way through the wall.
A pyrokinesis spell requires the use
of a primary chroma (red); Mos-
leighs player will therefore need to
roll one winner to successfully cast
the spell; no additional winners will
be required for attempting to cast
the spell in the north frigid zone.
A character in the north temperate
zone will receive mostly direct rays of light
from Sedna. She will need to roll one (1) ad-
ditional winner to successfully cast a spell.
Mosleigh serves as a rower on a
merchant ship which is currently
travelling through a sea in the
north temperate zone. A lindworm
breaks free from its chains and
bursts out of the ships hold. Mos-
leigh decides to cast a cloak of fear
spell to frighten the creatureoff.
A secondary chroma (magenta)
is required to cast a cloak of fear
spell; Mosleighs player will there-
fore need to roll three winners to
successfully cast the spell two for
the use of a secondary chroma and
one for attempting to cast the spell
in the north temperate zone.
A character in the tropical zone will
receive mostly incident rays of light from
Sedna. She will need to roll two (2) addi-
tional winners to successfully cast a spell.
Mosleigh is struggling through the
jungles of the tropical zone. She
steps on a snake in the underbrush.
The snake bites her, injecting her
with poison. Mosleigh attempts to
cast the healing spell to neutralise
the effects of the poison.
The healing spell requires the use
of a primary chroma (green); Mos-
leighs player will therefore need
to roll three winners to success-
fully cast the spell one for the use
of a primary chroma and two for
attempting to cast the spell in the
tropical zone.
A character in one of the south sub-
tropical zones will receive incident rays of
light from Sedna. She will need to roll three
(3) additional winners to successfully cast a
spell.
Mosleigh is stranded on a deserted
island in one of the southern sub-
tropical zones. She wishes to cast a
teleportation spell to transport her-
self off the island.
Casting teleportation requires
white chroma; Mosleighs player
will therefore need to roll six (6)
winners to successfully cast the
spell three (3) for the use of the
white chroma and three (3) for at-
tempting to cast the spell in a south
subtropical zone.
17 Advanced rules Fear
It is not possible to roll more than
fve winners in ENCOUNTER;
Mosleigh will not be able to cast
teleportation in the south subtropi-
cal zone.
3.5.c Mana stones
An opaque blue stone, a mana stone, is
the only object known to transform chroma
into spells. Each spell requires one or more
mana stones to be cast. Once a mana stone
has served its purpose, it crumbles into dust.
If a character succeeds in casting a
spell, one mana stone in the characters pos-
session must be destroyed for each winner
required to cast that spell.
Mosleigh attempts to cast a healing
spell while in the north temperate
zone. The spell requires the use of a
primary chroma; Mosleighs player
will therefore need to roll two (2)
winners for Mosleigh to success-
fully cast it.
Mosleighs player rolls three (3)
winners enough for Mosleigh
to cast the healing spell. Mosleigh
must now remove two mana stones
from her possession to cast the spell;
the mana stones are destroyed in
the process of transforming chroma
into the spell.
3.6 FEAR
A game master may ask the player to
roll a willpower test before the players char-
acter can perform an action that the game
master considers frightening. This test is re-
ferred to as a fear test. If the character passes
the fear test, she can attempt to perform the
frightening action. If she fails the fear test,
she will refuse to attempt the action.
18 Advanced rules Combat
Mosleigh suffers from a fear of
social interaction. She must pass a
willpower test, also referred to as a
fear test under these circumstances,
before attending a festival in the
town square.
If a character fails a fear test, she will
be able to attempt to pass it again.
Each time a character fails a fear test
her willpower score will be reduced by one
(1) point.
Mosleigh fails the fear test and re-
fuses to join in the festivities. Her
willpower score is reduced by one
(1) point. She attempts to steady
her nerves and approach the revel-
lers. Her player rolls another will-
power test and fails; Mosleighs
willpower score is again reduced
by one (1) point.
If a character whose willpower score is
currently one (1) fails a fear test, she should
panic and fee from the source of her fear.
Mosleigh stays in the common area
of the inn, sulking in solitude.
Suddenly a large group of festival
celebrants enters the room. Their
presence aggravates Mosleighs
fear of crowds; the game master in-
dicates that her player should roll a
fear test.
Mosleigh fails the fear test. How-
ever, her willpower score is already
at one (1) point; it cannot be reduced
any further. Anxiety overpowers
Mosleigh she abandons her drink
and fees for her room.
3.7 COMBAT
Combat in ENCOUNTER is split
into rounds. Each character will take a turn
during the round. Once each character has
taken a turn in the round, a new round will
begin.
The character with the most points in
the cunning ability score will normally take
her turn frst. If two or more characters are
tied, the game master should decide which
character will take her turn frst.
Mosleigh attempts to sneak up
on a fitterbrand sentry. Her foot
brushes a rock; the sound alerts
the fitterbrand of Mosleighs ap-
proach. The frst round of combat
begins.
Mosleighs cunning score is four
(4); the fitterbrands two (2).
Mosleigh will take her turn frst,
the fitterbrand second.
If a character does not see an attack
coming, she is said to be the target of a sur-
prise attack. If the combat is initiated by
a surprise attack, the frst turn should be
awarded to the attacker regardless of the
cunning score. The target of a surprise at-
tack cannot oppose the test using any abil-
ity/skill combination other than health/
acrobatics.
Mosleigh overpowers the sentry,
ties him up and hides him from
plain sight. As she approaches the
entrance to the fitterbrand cave, a
second sentry successfully sneaks
up on her and attacks.
The second fitterbrands cunning
score is three (3), which is lower
than Mosleighs. However, Mos-
leigh does not expect the attack.
The fitterbrand will take her turn
19 Advanced rules Combat
frst; Mosleigh will take hers sec-
ond.
The order of turns decided at the be-
ginning of the combat should be followed
through to the end of the combat. If a new
character enters the fray, her turn should be
the last in the round.
The following are the most common
actions that a character may perform during
her turn in a combat round:
Attacking a character;
Casting a spell;
Using a skill;
Using an object;
Moving.
If a character has performed a full
movement, she will become a moving tar-
get for the rest of the round; a character who
wishes to shoot her using a ranged weapon
later in the same round should have to roll
one (1) additional winner to succeed.
Mosleigh decides to fee from the
fitterbrands.
Mosleighs player announces that
Mosleigh will run for the woods.
Mosleigh cannot attempt any other
action this turn other than running.
The fitterbrand blowgunner takes
the next turn. She decides to at-
tempt to shoot Mosleigh using the
blowgun.
The fitterbrands player the
game master in this case will
need to roll an additional winner to
successfully hit Mosleigh, because
Mosleigh is a moving target.
3.7.a Nominal movement
Each action listed above can follow
nominal movement.
Nominal movement refers to several
steps a character may take to bring her into
contact with some nearby object. The extent
of nominal movement should not exceed
two or three metres. The game master may
prohibit a move if she feels that it exceeds
the extent of nominal movement.
3.7.b Repeating an action
A character may repeat an action
which required a test. This represents a
character who has trained in a skill enough
to become very quick and effcient in using
that skill.
If a character wishes to repeat an ac-
tion which required a test, her player must
roll one die less than she did previously.
This represents the rush with which the
character is repeating the action.
Mosleigh attacks a thief. Her play-
er rolls an opposed health/melee
weapons test passes. Mosleighs
health score is four (4); her me-
lee weapons score is one (1). The
thiefs health score is three (3); his
melee weapons score is zero (0).
Mosleighs player rolls two dice.
The results are [3] and [4] two
winners. The game master rolls
one die for the thief. The result is
[1] one winner. Mosleigh passes
the test.
Mosleighs player decides to repeat
the attack. This time, she rolls one
die because she is repeating an ac-
tion.
A character may repeat an action
which required a test more than once. Each
time she repeats the action, her player will
roll one die less. She may not repeat an ac-
tion which required a test if previously her
player rolled only one die for the purpose of
that test.
20 Advanced rules Combat
In the previous example, Mosleigh
has repeated an attack. Her player
rolled one (1) die instead of two (2)
for the purpose of the repeated test.
Mosleigh is unable to repeat the at-
tack a second time, because the frst
time that she repeated it, her player
rolled one (1) die.
If a character repeats an action which
required an opposed test, her opponents
player must likewise roll one die less for the
purpose of the repeated test. If the subtrac-
tion of one (1) die from the opponents roll
means that the opponents player will not
roll any dice at all, the opponent will roll one
(1) die regardless.
In the previous two examples, Mos-
leigh has repeated an attack on the
thief. Her player rolls one (1) die
instead of two (2) because the at-
tack is a repeated action. The game
master rolls one (1) die for the thief
again, because the rules prevent the
opponents player from not rolling
any dice at all.
If a character repeats an action which
required an opposed test, her opponent must
use the same ability/skill combination that
she used for the previous test.
In the previous examples, Mosleigh
has repeated an attack on the thief.
The thiefs player cannot choose to
oppose the repeated test with any
other ability/skill combination
than the one she chose for the ini-
tial opposed test. In this case, it is
health/melee weapons.
3.7.c Size and numbers
The game master should give an ad-
vantage to a character who, together with
her allies, outnumbers her opponent in com-
bat, or is signifcantly larger than her oppo-
nent.
Mosleigh walks through a forest
clearing at night. Three bandits
spring from the shadows and at-
tack. Two of the thugs are human,
one a jotun. Mosleigh attacks the
jotun.
The jotuns melee weapons score is
two (2). However, the thugs out-
number Mosleigh three to one; the
game master rules that the jotun
will roll three (3) additional dice
for the purpose of the opposed test
triggered by the attack one for
each additional character engaged
in combat with Mosleigh and one
because the jotun stands twice as
tall as Mosleigh.
The size of a character contributing
to the outnumbering effect but not directly
participating in the opposed test should not
affect the number of dice rolled by either
characters involved in the opposed test.
Mosleigh attacks one of the human
thugs. The second human and the
jotun are still fanking her.
The game master decides that the
human thug will roll two additional
dice one for each additional char-
acter outnumbering his opponent.
No additional dice will be rolled
due to the jotuns superior size be-
cause the jotun does not participate
in the opposed test directly.
The advantage granted to a charac-
ter due to outnumbering should not exceed
three (3) additional dice.
21 Advanced rules Weapons and armour
3.8 WEAPONS AND ARMOUR
There are two types of weapons in
ENCOUNTER; they are: melee weapons
and ranged weapons. A character who is not
armed by either of those types of weapons is
said to be unarmed.
There are two types of armour in EN-
COUNTER; they are: mail and plate.
3.8.a Mail armour
If a character wears a mail armour, an
attack by an unarmed character or a charac-
ter who is armed with a ranged weapon will
not affect her unless it is piercing; an attack
by a character armed with a melee weapon
will affect her regardless of whether it is
piercing or not.
Mosleigh stumbles into a clearing.
A knight and his squire spot her
and prepare to attack.
The squire, wishing to impress his
sire, rushes to attack Mosleigh.
The frst round of combat begins.
The squires cunning score is one
(1); Mosleighs is four (4). Mos-
leigh will take her turn frst.
The squires health score is two
(2); his melee weapons skill score
is zero (0). Mosleighs health score
is four (4); her melee weapons skill
score is one (1).
The squire is wearing a mail hau-
berk. Mosleigh carries a sword.
The game master, who controls the
knight and his squire, will roll one
die; Mosleighs player will roll two
dice.
The game master scores a [3] one
dud; Mosleighs player scores [2]
and [3] two winners.
Neither of the Mosleighs winners
are piercing. If she was unarmed,
or used a bow to shoot the squire
from a distance, the attack would
be stopped by the squires mail ar-
mour.
However, Mosleigh is armed with
a sword; the blade cuts through the
hauberk. The squires health score
is reduced by one (1) point.
3.8.b Plate armour
If a character wears a plate armour,
any attack will not affect her unless it is
piercing.
Mosleigh has managed to rout the
squire. She will now attack the
knight.
The knights health score is three
(3). Her melee weapons score is
two (2). She wears a coat of plate
armour.
Mosleighs player rolls [3] and [4]
two winners; the game master
[1], [4] and [6] one winner.
Mosleighs attack is not piercing
the knights plate armour defects
her sword. Neither character pass-
es the opposed test.
3.8.c Swimming in armour
A character cannot swim in armour.
If an armoured character falls into
deep water, she will begin to drown unless
she discards her armour. Her player should
roll a willpower test. If successful, the char-
acter will stay calm and remove her armour.
If she fails the test, she will panic and begin
to drown.
Mosleigh attempts to cross a rope
bridge while wearing a mail hau-
22 Advanced rules Alcohol
berk. The bridge has suffered some
damage previously and collapses
under Mosleighs weight. Mosleigh
falls into the river down below and
begins to drown.
Before attempting a swimming test
to swim to the shore, Mosleighs
player must roll a willpower test.
She scores a winner Mosleigh
succeeds in removing the mail hau-
berk and may now attempt to swim
over to the shore
If a character has panicked and is
drowning, another character may help her
remove the armour underwater. The helping
character should pass a health/swimming
test to successfully remove the drowning
characters armour.
Mosleighs mail-clad companion
also lands in the water nearby. Her
player rolls the willpower test and
fails; her character panics and can-
not remove the mail she begins to
drown.
Mosleigh, who has by now dis-
carded her mail hauberk, has spot-
ted her companion and dives to help
her out. The game master indicates
that Mosleigh must pass a health/
swimming test to successfully re-
move the other characters armour.
Mosleighs player passes the test;
Mosleigh removes the armour and
both she and her companion may
now attempt to swim to the shore.
3.9 ALCOHOL
Imbibing an alcoholic beverage should
trigger a health test. Each time a character
fails the health test triggered by imbibing an
alcoholic beverage, her cunning score will be
reduced by one (1) point.
Resting will restore the cunning score
points lost in this manner.
Mosleigh wants to procure some in-
formation from a patron at an inn.
A quick conversation reveals that
the patron is alert and insightful.
Mosleigh decides that should she
attempt to use rhetoric on him, she
will likely fail. Instead she orders
them both a round of drinks, hop-
ing that the alcohol will reduce the
patrons cunning score.
23 Skills Brewing
4. SKILLS
standing of their movement across the celes-
tial sphere.
If a character wishes to identify north
by studying stars, she should roll a test using
cunning ability and astronomy skill. If the
night sky is clear, one winner should be suf-
fcient to successfully do so; if there is some
cloud cover and only some stars are visible,
the character should need two winners.
4.5 BOTANY
Botany governs the characters knowl-
edge of plants and their properties.
Identifying a plant in the characters
native environment should require one (1)
winner; identifying its properties should re-
quire two (2) winners.
Identifying a plant in an unfamiliar
environment should require two (2) win-
ners; identifying its properties should re-
quire three (3) winners.
Preparing an extract from one or
more plants should require three (3) win-
ners. It should only be possible to do once
the character has identifed the properties of
each type of plant involved in preparing the
extract.
4.6 BREWING
Brewing governs the characters un-
derstanding of the process of preparing an
alcoholic beverage.
The number of winners indicates the
volume of beverage produced by passing a
brew test.
4.1 ACROBATICS
Acrobatics governs the characters
balance and fexibility.
An attempt to sneak without alerting
any characters in the vicinity should trigger
a willpower/acrobatics test.
A health/acrobatics test can be used to
oppose a melee weapons test. If successful,
the character who used the acrobatics skill
dodges the attack and remains unharmed; no
harm is caused to either the attacking or the
defending character.
If a character succeeds in sneaking up
on another character and initiates an attack,
her target can oppose the test only with a
health/acrobatics test.
If a characters mount attempts to dis-
lodge her, she must pass a health/acrobatics
test to avoid being thrown to ground.
4.2 ANIMAL CARE
Animal care governs the act of domes-
ticating and training an animal.
If a character wishes to calm or do-
mesticate an animal, she should have to pass
a willpower/animal care test.
4.3 ATHLETICS
Athletics refects the characters run-
ning and jumping training.
Running and jumping may trigger a
health/athletics test.
4.4 ASTRONOMY
Astronomy governs the characters
familiarity with celestial objects and under-
24 Skills Lock picking
4.7 CLIMBING
Climbing refects the characters ap-
titude for climbing vertical or near-vertical
surfaces.
An attempt to climb a tree should trig-
ger a health/climbing test and require one
(1) winner; climbing a cliff should require
two (2) or more winners.
4.8 FIRST AID
First aid governs the characters skill
in providing frst aid to a wounded charac-
ter.
First aid can only be provided im-
mediately after combat. Each character can
attempt to provide frst aid to another char-
acter only once. Multiple characters can at-
tempt to provide frst aid to a single charac-
ter.
4.9 HISTORY
History refects the characters knowl-
edge of events, persons and objects that
played a role in the history of Edelay.
If a character wishes to identify the
period, maker or properties of some artefact,
she should have to pass a cunning/history
test.
4.10 INTIMIDATION
Intimidation refects the characters
ability to use her appearance and words to
intimidate another character into doing
something.
An attempt to intimidate a character
should trigger a health/intimidation test.
4.11 LOCK PICKING
Lock picking governs the characters
knowledge of a locks mechanism and abil-
25 Skills Rhetoric
health/melee weapons test. The target may
choose to oppose the test by also rolling a
health/melee weapons test, or an acrobat-
ics/health test.
Section 3.7 addresses combat in fur-
ther detail.
4.16 MUSIC
Music governs the act of reading mu-
sic and playing a musical instrument to en-
tertain an audience.
The player must pick which instru-
ment her character is skilled in and write it
in parentheses next to the music skill on her
character sheet. She should choose from the
following musical instruments:
Fiddle
Flute
Lute
Percussion
Reed
Voice
4.17 RANGED WEAPONS
Ranged weapons governs the use of a
ranged weapon to hit a distant target.
An attempt to hit a target using a
ranged weapon should trigger a willpower/
ranged weapons test.
A stationary human-sized target
standing upright up to seventy-fve metres
from the shooter should require one (1) win-
ner. A smaller target, a target that is further
away from the shooter or a moving target
would require two (2) or more winners to
hit. An archer should not be able to hit a
target that is more than two hundred metres
away.
Section 3.7 addresses combat in fur-
ther detail.
4.18 RHETORIC
Rhetoric represents the characters
knowledge of a specifc language and her
ity to spring a lock open using a set of lock
picks and a torsion wrench.
If a character wishes to pick a lock
using a lock pick and a torsion wrench, she
should have to roll a willpower/lock picking
test. The number of winners required to pick
the lock should depend on the complexity of
the lock; a crude lock should require one (1)
winner to pick; a regular lock two (2) win-
ners; a complex lock three (3) winners.
4.12 MAGIC
Magic governs the act of casting a
spell using chroma.
The number of winners required de-
pends on the characters geographical posi-
tion and the complexity of the spell she is
attempting to cast.
4.13 MATHEMATICS
Mathematics governs the characters
knowledge of algebra and geometry.
If a character wishes to fnd signs of
fraud in a set of bookkeeping records, she
should have to roll a cunning/mathemat-
ics test. The number of winners required
to detect fraud should equal the number of
winners that the character who produced
the documents rolled when perpetrating the
fraud.
4.14 MECHANICS
Mechanics governs the characters un-
derstanding of various mechanisms.
If a character wishes to set or disarm
a trap, she should have to pass a cunning/
mechanics test.
4.15 MELEE WEAPONS
Melee weapons governs the charac-
ters aptitude for the use of melee weapons.
An attempt to hit another charac-
ter using a melee weapon should trigger a
26 Skills Sleight of hand
A score of three (3) indicates a charac-
ter who wields the specifed language with
ease.
An attempt to persuade a character to
adopt a certain opinion should trigger a cun-
ning/rhetoric test. An outrageous request
may require multiple winners for the char-
acter to succeed.
4.19 SAILING
Sailing refects the characters knowl-
edge of the workings of a ship.
Steering a ship through a storm should
require a cunning/sailing test.
4.20 SLEIGHT OF HAND
Sleight of hand governs the act of
picking another characters pocket or plant-
ing an item into their possession.
Attempting to pick a characters
pocket or plant an item into their possession
should trigger a cunning/sleight of hand
test. The target character may oppose this
test by rolling a willpower/spot test.
ability to affect another character by using
that language.
A character whose rhetoric score is
zero (0) cannot read, write or speak using
the specifed language.
A character who grew up without any
exposure to others, or is deaf mute, would
likely have a rhetoric score of zero (0).
A rhetoric score of one (1) indicates
that the character can speak using the speci-
fed language. She does not know the lan-
guage suffciently to write compound or
complex sentences. She will often write
words out the way they sound unaware of
proper grammar.
A young child or a foreigner would
likely have a rhetoric score of one (1).
A score of two (2) indicates that the
character can read and write and talk using
the specifed language. She may make a mis-
take when writing a complex sentence or
word.
A native character who lives in the ru-
ral area would likely have a rhetoric score of
two (2).
27 Skills Zoology
4.21 SMITHING
Smithing governs the characters apti-
tude for working with metal.
An attempt to smith an object should
trigger a health/smithing test.
Smithing a simple tool should require
two (2) winners.
Smithing a complex tool, an item of
cutlery, a toy or a weapon should require
three (3) winners.
Smithing a mail armour should re-
quire four (4) winners.
Smithing a plate armour should re-
quire fve (5) winners.
4.22 SPOTTING
Spotting governs the characters alert-
ness.
An attempt to spot a sleight of hand,
a creature in camoufage or a hidden button
or a trap should trigger a willpower/spotting
test.
4.23 STONEWORKING
Stoneworking governs the acts of en-
graving and processing stone into blocks,
cutlery, fgurines and other objects.
4.24 SWIMMING
Swimming governs the characters
ability to move through water and stay
afoat.
An attempt to swim through a body
of water should trigger a health/swimming
test.
Crossing a calm pond should require
two (2) winners; a river three (3); a river
with a fast current four (4).
4.25 TRACKING
Tracking governs the characters abil-
ity to follow tracks and to cover her own.
If a character wishes to follow a set of
tracks, she should have to pass a cunning/
tracking test.
The number of winners required de-
pends on the condition of the tracks and the
environment. Tracking another character
through thick undergrowth or during rain
may require two (2) or more winners.
4.26 WOODWORKING
Woodworking governs the act of pro-
cessing wood into arrows, cutlery, furniture
and other objects.
4.27 ZOOLOGY
Zoology governs the characters
knowledge of animals and their behaviours.
Identifying a rare animal in the char-
acters native environment should require
one (1) winner; identifying its behaviour
should require two (2) winners.
Identifying an animal in an unfamil-
iar environment should require two (2) or, if
the animal is rare, three (3) winners; identi-
fying its behaviour should require three (3)
or, if the animal is rare, four (4) winners.
Identifying an animal by its tracks
should require two (2) winners if the animal
is native to an environment familiar to the
character; three (3) if the animal is native to
an environment unfamiliar to the character.
28 Spells Cyan chroma
5. SPELLS
5.3 BLUE CHROMA
Blue chroma can be used to amplify
mental processes and affect the physical
world by thought.
5.3.a Telekinesis
By casting the telekinesis spell, the
caster will move an object using thought
alone.
A character may easily lift and move
objects via telekinesis that are light enough
for her to carry in person. If, however, the
object is too heavy for her to lift by hand,
or lies farther than ten (10) metres from her,
the game master should indicate that one or
more additional winners are required to pass
the channelling test.
5.4 CYAN CHROMA
Cyan chroma combines the properties
of blue and green chromas.
5.4.a Telepathy
By casting the telepathy spell, the
caster will subject herself to thoughts and
images that are on the targets mind.
The caster may read a characters
mind with ease if the target is unaware of
the spell. If the target is aware of the spell,
she may choose to oppose it using a will-
power/magic test. If she is unsuccessful, she
will be able to repeat the test every half an
hour.
The caster who succeeds in casting te-
lepathy may break the spell off at will.
A spell is the product of chroma. Each
type of chroma allows the magician to ma-
nipulate a different aspect of the laws of na-
ture.
5.1 RED CHROMA
Red chroma can be used to generate
heat.
5.1.a Pyrokinesis
By casting the pyrokinesis spell, the
caster will shoot a beam of scorching heat
at a target.
If the caster succeeds in casting the
spell, a target characters health score will be
reduced by one (1).
If the target character or object is
doused in water or covered in infammable
material, the caster should need an addition-
al winner for the spell to have an effect on it.
5.2 GREEN CHROMA
Green chroma can be used to improve
the functions of an organism.
5.2.a Healing
By casting the healing spell, the caster
will heal herself or another wounded char-
acter.
If the number of winners rolled in the
willpower/magic test is equal to or greater
than the health score lost as a result of abil-
ity damage, the spell will restore one (1)
point to the target characters health score.
29 Spells White chroma
5.5 MAGENTA CHROMA
Magenta chroma combines the prop-
erties of red and blue chromas.
5.5.a Cloak of fear
By casting cloak of fear, the caster will
appear frightening to all characters in the vi-
cinity.
Attacking the caster who has suc-
ceeded in casting the cloak of fear spell is a
frightening action. The spell lasts until one
or more of the following events occur:
The caster decides to cancel the spell;
The caster attacks a character;
The caster is attacked by a character
using a melee weapon.
5.6 YELLOW CHRO-
MA
Yellow chroma com-
bines the properties of red
and green chromas.
5.6.a Force feld
By casting force
feld, the caster will create
a barrier to either wall off
an area or envelop her in a
protective shell.
A caster encased in
a force feld enjoys a de-
gree of protection similar
to plate armour. Regard-
less of the type of armour
the caster is wearing, an at-
tacker will have to roll one
additional [1] to penetrate
the force feld.
The spell lasts until
one or more of the follow-
ing events occur:
The caster decides to
cancel the spell;
The caster is wound-
ed while under the protec-
tion of the force feld.
5.7 WHITE CHROMA
Whie chroma combines the properties
of all three primary chromas.
5.7.a Teleportation
By casting teleportation, the caster
will move himself and people around him to
another place in the world instantaneously.
For each additional character that the
caster wants to teleport with her, her player
must roll one (1) additional winner.
30 Creating a character White chroma
During character creation, a player
character has a score of two (2) in each one
of her three abilities. Her player has a fur-
ther four (4) points to distribute between her
ability scores; she must not raise any one of
her characters scores above four (4) points.
A player decides that her player
character, Cutty, will be a healthy
and cunning, but cowardly thief.
She puts two (2) points into Cut-
tys health and cunning scores each.
Cutty will begin the game with a
cunning score of four (4), a health
score of four (4) and a willpower
score of two (2).
The player must now distribute ten
(10) points between her characters skill
scores. She must not increase the score of
any skill above two (2) points.
Section 4. lists and describes all skills
available to characters in ENCOUNTER.
Players may not fnd some of the skills giv-
en in this section useful. They may wish
to focus their skill choices on those skills
that would be used more frequently dur-
ing a campaign. Should the company come
across a point in the campaign that calls for a
more mundane skill, like woodworking, the
player characters may seek out a non-player
character who specialises in such a skill.
Cuttys player distributes the ten
(10) points among Cuttys skills in
the following manner:
One point (1) is allocated to Cut-
tys acrobatics skill; Cutty has had
her share of rooftop chases and has
developed her balance.
One point (1) is allocated to Cut-
tys athletics skill; Cutty is a de-
cent runner.
One point (1) is allocated to Cut-
tys climbing skill; Cutty often has
to climb house walls and fences.
One point (1) is allocated to Cut-
tys lock picking skill; Cutty knows
how to pick a lock, even though it
may take her some time to succeed.
One point (1) is allocated to Cuttys
rhetoric skill; Cutty knows how to
talk herself out of some degree of
trouble.
Two points (2) are allocated to
Cuttys sleight of hand skill; Cutty
has survived through her childhood
by picking pockets on the streets.
Two points (2) are allocated to
Cuttys spotting skill; Cutty is al-
ways on the lookout for guards.
One point (1) is allocated to Cuttys
swimming skill; Cutty has learnt
how to swim in a lake as a child.
6. CREATING A CHARACTER
31 Setting Demons
If the players and the game master de-
cide to play ENCOUNTER using the set-
ting provided in this book, each player char-
acter will belong to a secret order known as
the knights-hexer. The prophetic dreams of
an oracle give the order its purpose. These
visions tell of demons who parade as gods
and goddesses.
7.1 DEMONS
The characters walk the surface of
the planet Edelay. Edelay in turn orbits one
of the suns caught up in the spiral of the
Queenslock Galaxy. Two moons orbit the
planet; the player characters will know the
closest to be Masherak, the farthest Ver-
hin. The moons drive the tides of Edelay
into a frenzy.
There are an infnite number of uni-
verses; each one exhibits different laws of
nature. Living beings adapt to the laws of
nature that govern their own world should
they somehow fnd themselves in an alien
universe, they could die under the infuence
of that universes laws of nature. The gravi-
tational pull of a terrestrial body that ac-
commodates native life in one universe may
7. SETTING
32 Setting Knights-hexer
crush a creature or an object from another
universe.
It is rare though not impossible for
a creature to leave its native universe. Sen-
tient species will use the term demon to
describe a creature that inhabits a universe
other than their own. Unless the demon can
somehow alter the natural laws of the uni-
verse, she should not attempt to travel to a
universe without frst ensuring her safety.
Having no means of travelling to
another planet within their own universe,
some demons will seek expansion into an-
other universe instead. Some have devel-
oped means of communicating with crea-
tures living in another universe. They may
attempt to manipulate the inhabitants of
another world to alter the laws of nature so
as to make the world suitable for their life,
destroying the natives in the process.
A number of demonic civilisations are
vying for the obedience of Edelays sapient
species. If one of them succeeds in changing
the environment on Edelay and invading
the planet, the others will lose their chance
to do so.
The means of communicating with
the peoples of Edelay available to demons
are limited. A demon may appear and speak
to a person in a dream. She can further alter
the physical word in Edelay, but, limited by
her ability and the resources available to her,
may only do so to a small extent.
The demons have found the perfect
application for their powers they use their
infuence to establish themselves as deities.
The churches across Edelay do the bidding
of demons, oblivious to the nature or the
agenda of their patrons. The clergy pursues
greater numbers of followers and calls for
the extermination of other religions those
spawned by demons from a rival universe.
An alteration of laws of nature is pos-
sible only through the use what the inhabit-
ants of Edelay know as magic. In order to
use magic, the clergy requires mana stones,
which capture and channel magical energy
present in the rays of light emitted by the
star Sedna. Every church therefore demands
that its followers search the planet for mana
stones. The clergy may go as far as crusad-
ing against another church to seize the ri-
vals mana stone supplies.
Mana stones originate from Verhin
one of Edelays two moons. Several cen-
turies ago, an asteroid collided with Ver-
hin. The impact sent meteors plummeting
towards Edelay. The remnant meteorites
ended up scattered across the continent of
Ossyria. As a result, the cults of various de-
mons focus on securing their dominion in
Ossyria.
A single organisation holds the
knowledge of the demonic masquerade and
opposes the invasion.
7.2 KNIGHTS-HEXER
The order of knights-hexer is a secret
organisation, a militant group of assassins,
spies and terrorists who use whatever means
necessary to prevent a demonic invasion. A
woman who calls herself the Oracle guides
the knights-hexer she is the source of the
orders insight into the nature of the worlds
religions.
The order of knights-hexer numbers
approximately three hundred members; one
hundred of them reside in the orders head-
quarters in Cyril. Of the three hundred, ap-
proximately twenty form the inner circle of
the order. All members of the inner circle re-
side in Cyril. Their responsibilities consist
of approval and induction of new members,
distribution of duties among existing mem-
bers and consideration of events that affect
the order and its goals.
Only the worlds survival justifes the
means that the knights-hexer will employ.
The orders agents have assassinated mis-
sionaries, sunk pilgrim ships, provoked sec-
tarian division and massacred cultists.
33 Setting Oracle
7.3 ORACLE
The order of knights-hexer began
with a prophetic vision. The woman who
delivered the prophecy the Oracle ap-
pears old and frail. She does not speak un-
less she is delivering a prophecy. She labours
to articulate her visions, pausing for breath
after every few words.
Ellosh, a fourteen-year-old girl, at-
tends to the Oracles needs. She stays at her
side and acts as a scribe. Ellosh has recorded
every vision the Oracle had since the in-
ception of the order. The knights store the
scrolls that she has penned in a vault. All
members of the order have unrestricted ac-
cess to the vault should they wish to exam-
ine the past prophecies.
It is believed that when the Oracle
dies, Ellosh will take her place. The teenager
has already had her frst vision.
The clergy controls the mobs; should
the Oracles visions be told in public, any
church would burn her at stake as a blas-
phemer. The order does not have enough
members to protect the Oracle in case of ex-
posure.
34 Nations Khammenid Sultanate
The order of knights-hexer operates
within four nations. They are the Kham-
menid Sultanate, the Kingdom of Prede, the
Lydean City-states and the Swaryag Hetm-
anate. Other nations of Edelay do not have
access to mana stones and therefore have lit-
tle use for demons.
8.1 KHAMMENID SULTANATE
8.1.a Area
The Kingdom of Prede lays claim to
approximately 1 580 000 square kilometres of
land. Approximately 10% of the land is ar-
able; 55% desert or mountainous; 10% for-
est and woodland; and 25% meadows and
pastures.
8.1.b Population
The Khammenid Sultanate claims
approximately 12 200 000 persons as its sub-
jects.
8.1.c Settlements
Table 1 describes the settlements of
the Khammenid Sultanate.
8.1.d Fortifcations
Table 2 describes the fortifcations
present on the territory of the Khammenid
Sultanate.
8.1.e Capital
The centre of the nations power is the
city of Sarkhoum.
8.1.f Society
The Khammenid people have retained
the caste system of the Antegean Emirate.
Each citizen of the Sultanate belongs to one
of the following fve castes: the Pramessides,
the Upper Assembly, the Lower Assembly,
the baseborn and the dregs. The Prames-
sides, the Upper Assembly and the Lower
Assembly are collectively referred to as the
Assembly.
The Pramessides represent the priest-
hood of the Khammenid Sultanate. After the
migration from the Antegean Emirate, they
have managed to hold onto their status de-
spite the efforts of the Sultan. Pramessides
alone can assume the position of priests or
priestesses in the Sultanate.
Member of the Upper Assembly form
the aristocracy of the Sultanate. Khamme-
nid law permits them to drink alcohol and
forbids their enslavement.
8. NATIONS
Table 1: Settlements of the Khammenid Sultanate.
35 Nations Khammenid Sultanate
Antegean wizards have come to adapt
to the unfavourable angle of incidence of
rays emitted by Sedna in the Caliphate.
They developed the solar furnace to make
up for the low saturation of Sednas light
which had, until then, limited their magical
power.
A solar furnace consists of mirrors ar-
ranged in a square and propped up at an angle
to collect and focus light into a point in the
centre of the square. A wizard who stands
inside the solar furnace has a signifcantly
larger dose of magic light to work with.
A character who attempts to cast a
spell inside a solar furnace will require one
less winner to pass the test. Being in a solar
furnace cannot reduce the number of win-
ners required to pass a magic test below zero
(0).
8.1.g Law
The Khammenid law treats a criminal
in accordance to social class. The Assembly
holds itself largely above the law, while the
baseborn and the dregs fll the slave pens to
atone for their crimes.
8.1.h Military
Foreign mercenaries and soldiers re-
cruited among slaves usually form the Sul-
tans personal guard. Regular troops consist
of professional soldiers who can, for the
most part, trace their ancestry to the war-
riors of the Antegean Caliphate. The bulk
of the army, however, consists of volunteers
motivated by religion.
Infantry crossbowmen and mount-
ed spearmen play the dominant role in the
Khammenid army. Archers may sometimes
dip their bolts and arrows in snake poison.
People born to the Lower Assembly
can also partake of alcoholic drinks; they do
not however enjoy states protection from
enslavement. Should the courts fnd a mem-
ber of the Upper Assembly guilty of a crime,
they may prescribe enslavement by the vic-
tim of the crime as punishment.
The baseborn form the third broad
category of classes in the Khammenid Sul-
tanate. The law prohibits a baseborn from
drinking alcohol intoxication is a luxury
reserved for the upper class. A baseborn may
face slavery as punishment for breaking the
law or crossing the boundaries of permissi-
ble within the class system of the Sultanate.
Unlike the dregs, a baseborn is allowed to
touch a member of a higher caste.
The dregs scrape against the bottom
of the Khammenid caste system. A dreg is
untouchable she must not touch, let alone
address without frst being addressed, a
member of the Assembly. She cannot drink
alcohol and, in case of being found guilty in
a trial, will likely become a slave to her ac-
cuser.
The Khammenid Sultanate has
plucked the crown of a regional superpower
since its arrival at the shores. Both its mili-
tary and technological advances soar above
other nations of the continent, though so
far the Khammenids have made no effort to
conquer their neighbours.
There are relatively few cities in the
Sultanate, mostly focussed in the northeast.
The people who live in the cities look down
on the southerners. Their sense of entitle-
ment stems from the military presence in
the region the bulk of the Khammenid
army resides in the north.
Table 2: Fortifcations of the Khammenid Sultanate.
36 Nations Kingdom of Prede
The cavalry will often throw javelins at the
enemy before engaging in melee. An elite
core of cataphracts heavy cavalry holds
the respect of soldiers both with the Sultan-
ate and without.
Military wage hinges on the soldiers
ancestry. A soldier who can trace her family
tree to Antegean citizens will receive more
money for her service in the army. Only
one with such ancestry may serve as a cata-
phract.
8.1.i Religion
The people of the Khammenid Sultan-
ate worship the eight gods and goddesses of
the Antegean Caliphate. Together, the dei-
ties are referred to as the Ogdoad. Each pair
serves to represent the male and the female
aspects of one of four concepts tied to the be-
ginning of the universe. The four concepts
are void, darkness, chaos and invisibility.
Seeing the chokehold that the clergy
keeps on the state in the Antegean Emir-
ate, the Sultan of the Khammenid Sultan-
ate has committed to isolating the affairs of
the state from the infuence of religion. To
please the citizens of the Sultanate, most of
the old rituals remain in practice, including
those that permeate the world of Khamme-
nid politics; but behind the doors of the Pal-
ace, a priests word warrants the same merit
as those of any other.
The secular nature of the rule ham-
strings the demons of the Ogdoad. Their
machinations spawn prophets among the
populace, those who accuse the Sultan of
blasphemy.
8.2 KINGDOM OF PREDE
8.2.a Area
The Kingdom of Prede lays claim to
approximately 670 000 square kilometres of
land. Approximately 40% of the land is ara-
ble; 10% desert or mountainous; 30% for-
est and woodland; and 20% meadows and
pastures.
8.2.b Population
The Kingdom of Prede claims approx-
imately 20 800 000 persons as its subjects.
8.2.c Settlements
Table 3 describes the settlements of
the Kingdom of Prede.
8.2.d Fortifcations
Table 4 describes the fortifcations
present on the territory of the Kingdom of
Prede.
8.2.e Capital
The centre of the nations power is the
city of Olbre Sotten.
8.2.f Society
The kingdom of Prede has laid the
foundation of feudalism in Edelay. Its so-
ciety polarises its subjects into two social
classes the aristocratic gentry and the com-
moners.
The king governs as the head of the
state. Over time, his position has deterio-
rated from one of absolute power to that of
a fgurehead. Major decisions concerning
the state, such as changes to its legislature
and matters of diplomacy require the Kings
Table 3: Settlements of the Kingdom of Prede.
37 Nations Kingdom of Prede
consent; however, the nature of this consent
has become a formality. Real power rests in
the hands of the gentry.
The authority of the kings consort,
the queen, traditionally extends no further
than the walls of the royal castle. Her role
has changed since the birth of the kingdom
history bears witness to several queens
who have held the reins of the country in
the absence, sometimes corroborated by the
consort herself, of a king.
The three concepts of peers, vassals
and fefs form the core of the social struc-
ture in the kingdom. A peer is a noble who
owns land. She may grant the possession of
her land to a vassal. The land so transferred
is known as a fef. In exchange for the use of
the fef and protection, the vassal will pro-
vide goods or services to the peer her lord
or lady. Often the nature of the services is
militaristic the vassal pledges to fght for
the peers cause for up to six months per
year.
The relationship between a peer and
her vassal permeates Predan society. It be-
gins with the king, who divvies the kingdom
into fefs and appoints his vassals. The vas-
sals in turn demand vassalage from the citi-
zens on their land. There is a greater degree
of complexity involved in the feudal struc-
ture; many peers become vassals to other
peers and may even serve as vassals to more
than one lord or lady.
From time to time, a commoner will
save up enough money to buy out the rights
to a piece of land from her lord and become
a yeoman. Often, the yeoman will buy her
own shop premises or farm to avoid paying
dues to her lord.
8.2.g Law
The law in Prede consists of Dooms.
A Doom represents an offence codifed un-
der Predan law. It also prescribes a punish-
ment for committing the offence.
The king is responsible for issuing
Dooms.
The punishment detailed in a Doom
often involves a sum of money payable to
the royal treasury by the perpetrator. Its se-
verity depends on the perpetrators social
standing. A peasant will suffer a more se-
vere punishment than a member of the gen-
try for committing the same crime.
The most frequent punishment for a
crime is execution.
The jurisdiction of the offcial Dooms
breaks down beyond the walls of the capi-
tal. Noble barons hold enough wealth and
military power to bribe or intimidate the
courts. Assassination and abduction for gain
is commonplace among the aristocracy.
Peasants and lesser gentry can no
longer rely on the justice system for protec-
tion. They must turn to the barons instead,
pledging to wear their patrons livery and
serve in her army in times of confict. Their
patron in turn promises to protect their lands
and rights from bandits and other barons.
The law demands that all mana stones
be submitted to the Hetman. Only the high-
est-ranking members of the cult of the All-
mother abbots and cardinals have access
to the states reserve of mana stones. How-
ever, renegade barons often withhold any
mana stones in their possession for their
own beneft. A wizard may tender her alle-
giance to a baron and receive a small cache
of mana stones to fuel her magic.
Table 4: Fortifcations of the Kingdom of Prede.
38 Nations Lydean City-states
8.2.h Military
To fll the ranks of the Predan army,
the Predan king enters into a written inden-
tured contract with a captain. Under the
terms of the contract, the captain promises
to serve the kingdom as one of its many mil-
itary leaders. She must provide an agreed
number of soldiers at a place of assembly
at some date. The contract must set out the
nature and the duration of the service, the
privileges extended to soldiers under the
captains command and the payment. The
payment is made up front using a promis-
sory note.
The captain sub-contracts soldiers. It
is her responsibility to negotiate the terms
of the indentured contract with the king,
collect the money on the promissory note
and reimburse the sub-contracted soldiers.
The most powerful captains emerge
from the nobility; their wealth and status
permit them to raise large contingents. In
order to satisfy the kings requests in due
time, many such nobles retain a permanent
force. Their sub-contractors receive a life
annuity in exchange for lifelong service.
A barons army consists of a personal
bodyguard, hired mercenaries, professional
soldiers and peasants under her protection.
The bodyguard consists of knights, family
members and sometimes a wizard. Mounted
men-at-arms, including knights, normally
dismount for combat. Foot soldiers include
archers, crossbowmen and halberdiers. Mer-
cenary troops often number Lydean pike-
men and Swaryag heavy infantry among
their ranks.
8.2.i Religion
The kingdom of Prede recognises a
single deity as a true divine the goddess
Allmother. Those who worship the All-
mother brand themselves as her Children.
They make up approximately nine tenths of
Predan population.
The order knows the identity of the
Allmother. She is in fact a sexless demon,
Hurhu. Creatures of her kind call them-
selves Cthaar. The Children have come to
refer to them as angels.
There is an unsettling aspect to the
cult of the Allmother. The Cthaar have
found a way to possess the Children. The
possession is only possible as a result of a
magic spell known to some of the priests
among the Children. It allows a Cthaar to
take over the victims mind and warp the
body in its own image. The transformation
never succeeds in its entirety. If the host
survives the transformation, its body will
resemble a hybrid, half-human, half-Cthaar.
It may sprout a malformed wing or devel-
op talons. The Children have named these
possessed Chosen and revere them. The
cult of the Allmother praises as martyrs the
many that die during possession, their bod-
ies mangled and useless.
The Predan countryside teems with
magicians, often at odds with the local pop-
ulace. The cult of the Allmother supports a
regiment of inquisitors militant Children
dedicated to the capture of sorcerers. Mem-
bers of the inquisition have earned notori-
ety for their penchant for rousing a mob and
directing it against anyone they suspect of
causing trouble in the area.
8.3 LYDEAN CITY-STATES
8.3.a Area
The Lydean city-states lay claim to
approximately 300 000 square kilometres of
land. Approximately 35% of the land is ara-
ble; 20% desert or mountainous; 25% for-
est and woodland; and 20% meadows and
pastures.
8.3.b Population
The Lydean city-states claim approxi-
mately 11 500 000 persons as their subjects.
39 Nations Lydean City-states
plaintiff can go to the court and have the of-
fender proclaimed an outlaw.
Killing an outlaw does not constitute
an offense the killer cannot be punished by
the court.
The right to collect the fne from the
offender is transferable. If the victim cannot
collect the fne from the offender, she may
sell the right to do so to a third party an
enforcer.
The price of the right to be reimbursed
must factor in the chance of failing to collect
the fne for reasons outside of the enforcers
control.
Anyone can offer to become an en-
forcer. For a transfer of the right to be reim-
bursed to occur, the plaintiff signs a contract
with the enforcer. Only one person can hold
the right to collect the fne. The offender
can request to see the paper identifying the
plaintiff or the enforcer as the holder of
the right to be reimbursed before paying the
fne.
If a murder is committed and the
plaintiff deems the fne insuffcient, she, or
a member of her commune may kill the of-
fender or a member of the offenders coali-
tion in revenge. The fnes for the original
and the revenge killings will cancel each
other out.
If the offender cannot afford to pay
the fne, she may become the plaintiffs
thrall. A thrall is considered personal prop-
erty a slave; she will work for the plaintiff
until she pays off her debt. The court dic-
tates the interest rate that will apply to the
fne.
8.3.c Settlements
Table 5 describes the settlements of
the Lydean City-states.
8.3.d Fortifcations
Table 6 describes the fortifcations
present on the territory of the Lydean City-
states.
8.3.e Capital
The centre of the factions power is
the city of Alleyne.
8.3.f Society
The Lydean city-states consist of sev-
eral city-states, each an independent com-
munity with its own government.
The political power in a city-state no
longer belongs to nobility. The feudal land-
owners have never held much regard among
the communes; as a result of a number of
revolts orchestrated by Lydean guilds, they
had to forfeit their holdings. Their lands
paved the way for the expansion of the cit-
ies into the countryside. The nobles either
sought refuge in Lydean towns and cities,
or fed the city-states. Some attempted to
retake their lost holdings only to fnd that
they could not outbid the guilds for merce-
nary loyalties.
8.3.g Law
Under Lydean law, if a person be-
comes a victim of a crime, she can go to the
court. If the court fnds in her favour, the
plaintiff will negotiate a fne to be paid by
the offender. Once the sum is settled upon,
the offender must pay it within a fortnight.
If the fne is not paid by the due date, the
Table 5: Settlements of the Lydean City-states.
40 Nations Swaryag Hetmanate
A bank or the members of the offend-
ers coalition may offer to extend credit to
the offender to cover a fne.
8.3.h Military
The majority of Lydean military con-
sists of irregular troops; mercenary bands
from all over the continent come to work for
the city-states. Men and women from the
mountains in the north of the country come
down to peddle their services to the highest
bidder.
There is always a risk of betrayal
where mercenaries are concerned. Before
usurping the political power in Photia, Mel-
chior Veir served the city-states as a merce-
nary commander. After defeating the Pho-
tian troops on behalf of his contractor, Veir
and his regiment refused to vacate the city.
He remains in power to this day.
The guilds make sure to contract dif-
ferent companies to prevent collusion and
betrayal. The poorer citizens form a militia
to further deter raiding and looting by oppor-
tunistic hirelings. Their city-state provides
them with weapons and fnances their train-
ing. They form companies of halberdiers,
pikemen, crossbowmen and shield-bearers.
Captains in charge of militia companies are
often drawn from mercenary offcers.
8.3.i Religion
Most Lydean gods and goddesses rep-
resent a blend of several religious infuences.
Many had their roots in the old pantheon of
the Antegean Emirate; they arrived on the
shores of Lydea with traders and migrants.
Lydean religion does not embrace a
single deity or a cult; instead it is mosaic of
rituals and superstitions brought in through
its trade routes. A shrine to some god or god-
dess of luck and wealth secures the corner of
almost every block in major Lydean cities.
The demons that hide behind the Lyd-
ean pantheon are unknown to the order of
knights-hexer. The Oracle has yet to receive
a vision revealing their identity.
8.4 SWARYAG HETMANATE
8.4.a Area
The Swaryag Hetmanate lays claim
to approximately 540 000 square kilometres
of land. Approximately 60% of the land is
arable; 10% desert or mountainous; 20%
Table 6: Fortifcations of the Lydean City-states.
41 Nations Swaryag Hetmanate
forest and woodland; and 10% meadows
and pastures.
8.4.b Population
The Swaryag Hetmanate claims ap-
proximately 8 400 000 persons as its subjects.
8.4.c Settlements
Table 7 describes the settlements of
the Swaryag Hetmanate.
8.4.d Fortifcations
Table 8 describes the fortifcations
present on the territory of the Swaryag Het-
manate.
8.4.e Capital
The centre of the factions power is
the city of Cyril.
8.4.f Society
The Swaryag Hetmanate is ruled by
a Hetman. His authority rests on the shoul-
ders of the Fellowship a small but well-
armed and highly trained contingent of reg-
ular soldiers.
Most members of the Fellowship are
landed nobles. They have inherited their po-
sition in the Fellowship, but not the rank,
which relies on individual merit and power.
Some men and women who serve the
Fellowship come from Aventuras pro-
fessional soldiers employed and led by the
Fellowship. They have earned their place
among the Fellows through skill, loyalty
and luck. It is possible for a Fellow to leave
the Fellowship without forfeiting her land.
8.4.g Law
A colonel holds jurisdiction over the
Aventuras serving in her regiment as well as
the Swaryag citizens living on her territory.
A justice appointed by the colonel presides
over the regimental court which will settle
civil and most criminal cases in the territo-
ry. If the justice deems the case to be above
her jurisdiction, the colonel herself will take
over the role of the judge.
The hetman, assisted by her aides and
the clergy of the Hetmanate, pens the laws
that bind the Swaryag citizenry. The priest-
hood of the Radiant Court enjoy consider-
able infuence on the passage of new laws.
8.4.h Military
The Fellowship forms the core of the
Swaryag army. Its members serve as the
hetmans personal regiment.
The state currently supports fve regi-
ments of Aventuras. Each regiment is made
up of several companies; it is named after
the city which hosts its headquarters. Each
company consists of approximately one
hundred men and women drafted from the
population of a settlement; it is named after
the settlement.
The administrative staff of a regiment
consists of a colonel and her assistants a
quartermaster, a justice, a chancellor, two
military aides, and two banner bearers. The
quartermaster holds responsibility for the
regiments supplies and provisions; the jus-
tice performs the duties of a judge in the set-
tlements under the colonels jurisdiction; the
chancellor acts as a liaison and a secretary
for the colonel; the military aides oversee
training and supplies in the regiment; and
Table 7: Settlements of the Swaryag Hetmanate.
42 Nations Swaryag Hetmanate
the banner bearers carry the hetmans and
the regimental banners.
The colonel in charge of a regiment is
elected by a regimental council in the pres-
ence of hetmans representatives.
A captain commands a company with
the help of a lieutenant, a secretary, an aide
and a banner bearer. The lieutenant acts as
the civil authority in the companys settle-
ment; the secretary performs administra-
tive duties in the captains offce, includ-
ing calculating wages; the aide oversees the
training and the payment of wages to the
Aventuras; and the banner bearer carries the
companys banner.
The captain of a company is elected by
a company council. Her nomination must be
approved by the colonel of her region. The
position will often become hereditary, pass-
ing from one generation to the next within
the same family.
Before the war with the orc lords in
the north, the number of regiments peaked
to fourteen. The sacking of several cities
during the war and the severe losses suffered
by the Aventuras have forced the hetman to
reduce the number of regiments to fve.
Since the end of war, military ad-
vances in the Hetmanate have fallen behind
those of neighbouring nations. Swaryag
ranks consist largely of light cavalry and
archers. The light cavalry is drafted mostly
from the nomads inhabiting the Swaryag
steppes, while volunteers from urban militia
join the Aventuras as archers and infantry.
A cohort of four hundred and eighty
Taimanni heavy infantry remains on the
territory of the Swaryag Hetmanate. The
Taimanni Emperor initially provided the
Hetmanate with two cohorts to assist in the
war against the orc lords. The Hetman has
secured the services of one of the cohorts for
two more years.
A soldier of the Taimanni Empire car-
ries two javelins one light and one heavy
a short sword and a tower shield. She wears
a byrnie over a linen gambeson, chausses
and a plumed nasal helmet.
8.4.i Religion
The majority of Swaryag population
worships the deities of the Radiant Court.
The Radiant Court consists of twelve gods
and goddesses. Each one of the twelve dei-
ties serves to mask a demon. The deities
encourage cooperation between their sub-
jects, suggesting that the demons in control
of those deities belong to the same universe
and share the same agenda. Occasional con-
frontation between different cults suggests
that it is not a single demon hiding behind
the mask of all twelve deities.
The twelve gods and goddesses of the
Radiant Court can be divided into four sea-
sons. Each season, three deities are said to
hold dominion over the world. Their con-
ficts bring about extremes of weather and
fates, with one deity striving for chaos, an-
other for order and the third mediating a bal-
ance between the other two.
The deities of spring are Agonche,
Hyler and Galchen. The deities of summer
are Balust, Lotta and Zermeusca. The deities
of autumn are Aleg, Brata and Ysetap. The
deities of winter are Belesoth, Hega and Is-
mor.
Table 8: Fortifcations of the Swaryag Hetmanate.
43 Sapient species Bolg
Humanity shares planet Edelay with
three other sapient species. These species are
the bolgs, the fitterbrands and the jotun.
9.1 BOLG
A bolg is a humanoid creature with an
alien mindset, born to walk a line between
animal and plant kingdoms.
9.1.a Anatomy
The chloroplast in a bolgs blood-
stream renders its skin green from spring to
early autumn. During late autumn and win-
ter seasons, when the days grow short, the
bolg will turn a pale brown. The areas of its
skin that receive the most sunlight may stay
the same shade all year round.
Thanks to the presence of chloroplasts
in its bloodstream, a bolg does not sate her
hunger by eating. The sun fuels its body in-
stead through the process of photosynthesis.
However a bolg must drink ten to twelve li-
tres of water daily for sustenance about six
times more than a human of a similar build.
Airfow around the photosynthesis-
ing surfaces is crucial. A bolg wears mini-
mal clothing to maximise its exposure to the
suns rays.
A bolg always continues to grow. Its
growth slows after it reaches two metres in
height, but it does not stop there. Its torso
and limbs will sprout longer with each pass-
ing year.
A bolgs lifespan stretches out for
centuries. The oldest member of the species
known to humans has lived for over eight
hundred years. The only factor that affects
its health as it ages is its mental state. De-
pression disrupts its bodily functions, in-
cluding photosynthesis. A depressed bolg
will wither away over the course of two
months at most.
A bolg communicates with others of
its kind through the use of chromatophores
on the sides of its faces layers of skin that
can exhibit different pigments at will. The
top layers of chromatophores contain red
and yellow pigments; the bottom layers
blue and white. A bolgs brain can order these
layers of cells to expand or shrink, changing
the resultant colour of the skin.
A bolgs body contain fewer organs
than a humans. A four-chamber heart
pumps the chloroplast-enriched blood
through its veins to sustain its heart. A
stomach and a pair of kidneys work to keep
the body hydrated and sustain photosynthe-
sis. There are no liver, lungs or visible repro-
ductive organs.
A bolg reproduces by scattering pol-
len-like seeds to the wind in spring. Once
fertilised, it will sprout up to a dozen bulbs
on its back; each bulb then develops into a
humanoid shape, connected to its host by a
stalk. In autumn, this stalk will wither and
snap. By this time, the bolgs offspring, no
bigger than a human newborn, will be able
to sustain itself through photosynthesis.
Its limbs have developed enough to hold
its frame upward. Its parent must help the
young bolg in getting water to sustain its or-
ganism until its capable of doing so on its
own normally a month or so into its life.
9.1.b Culture
A bolg rarely trusts foreigners to trav-
el down the rivers in its territory, afraid of
9. SAPIENT SPECIES
44 Sapient species Bolg
water contamination. Some river shores are
lined with shipwrecks, a warning for pirates
who sail close to the bolg settlements. The
timber from these ships is often arranged
so as to create an obvious barrier and deter
trespassers.
Clothing is mostly reserved for meet-
ings with members of other sapient spe-
cies. A bolg will only wear sheer fabrics like
gauze, often embroidered and decorated with
pillow lace. The gauze may be woven either
from silk or cotton. This light, translucent
material leaves the bolgs skin exposed to
sunlight and air circulation.
A bolg may take up to two weeks to
fnish a single item of clothing. The handi-
work invested in the creation of its garment
will impress most observers.
In the morning, a bolg will often wrap
its legs in cloth and walk through a feld of
grass. The cloth will accumulate morning
dew which the bolg will then consume as
breakfast.
While the bolg tolerate woodland
creatures in the forest, humans do not enjoy
the same solidarity. Most travellers will pass
through Oggyilogg unmolested, as long as
they do not wander near bolg settlements.
Should a company of soldiers or loggers set
boot in the shade of its canopies, Oggyilogg
will eat them; its denizens will fashion
shields out of the trespassers hides, bow-
strings out of blood vessels. Human blood
will feed their young.
Most estimates made by human
scholars place the bolg population of the
45 Sapient species Flitterbrand
Oggyilogg forest at over one hundred mil-
lion.
9.1.c Military
As a result of the bolgs inability to
wear armour, their military relies heavily
on ranged weapons. It consists primarily of
archers and javelin throwers. Infantry forms
a minor part of the bolg army.
A bolg archer carries its reputation
with ease. Its steady aim will bring down
the best of human archers under any condi-
tions. The poison prepared from decompos-
ing snake carcasses and applied to the arrow-
head will vouch for the targets death.
The bolg infantry arms each of its
members with a quiver of javelins and a long
heavy knife. The troops rely on their natural
camoufage to ambush their enemy.
Cavalry is held in high regard in the
bolg society. A bolg can serve in the cavalry
for a limited time eventually it will grow
too large and heavy for its mount.
A bolg must see another bolgs face in
order to communicate with it. This inhib-
its the reach of the bolg commanders, who
must rely on banner bearers and form de-
tailed contingency plans to coordinate their
troops. A banner bearer will carry several
banners to relay the commanders orders. It
must position itself in sight of its designated
company to have any effect in battle. Sev-
eral messengers will run between the com-
mander and the banner bearers.
9.2 FLITTERBRAND
A fitterbrand is a humanoid troglo-
dyte that relies on its hearing to survive in
the darkness of Edelays underworld.
9.2.a Anatomy
A lack of sun exposure has drained
the fitterbrands body of colour. Her skin
appears translucent; the blue rivers of blood
vessels spring beneath the milky veneer.
Her eyes are smaller than a humans,
always brown. They have grown accus-
tomed to darkness. A moment in the sun-
light would dazzle them. Even at night, or
underground, a fitterbrands eyes act as a
backup to her other senses, mainly her sense
of echolocation.
A fitterbrand emits a high-frequen-
cy sound to observe her surroundings. The
sound wave will bounce off objects that it
encounters, producing an echo. The fitter-
brands ears detect these echoes; her brain
then interprets them in a manner that will
allow her to picture her surroundings. A fit-
terbrand can produce this signal once per
second.
Natural selection has sharpened the
fitterbrands refexes. Her speed compen-
sates for the lag between each sensory input;
the sense of sight further flls the gaps in
echolocation.
A fitterbrands nocturnal existence
has eroded her resistance to disease. She re-
lies on a diet of fsh to maintain a level of
vitamins necessary to fght diseases.
9.2.b Culture
The frequency of sound waves pro-
duced by a fitterbrands speech varies from
approximately sixty to one hundred and
ffty hertz. None of the sapient species that
come into contact with the fitterbrands can
detect these sound frequencies. The need to
trade with other sapient species has led the
fitterbrands to develop a sign language.
A voyage into the caverns that shel-
ter the fitterbrand civilisation reveals ma-
sonry without parallels elsewhere. It begins
in a karst region; a layer of volcanic rock
impregnates a stream with acidic properties.
The water bores through the limestone sur-
face and disappears into an abyss. It scurries
through a cavernous expanse a futter in
the dark and re-emerges into daylight as
a spring. The caves formed in its path come
to harbour a variety of plants and animals,
such as olms, cave fsh, bats and towercaps.
46 Sapient species Jotun
The fitterbrand has evolved in this
environment. She has taken on the role of
the elements and poured her artistic sensi-
bility into shaping her habitat. Behind the
curtain of stone, her kind has carved much
more than a burrow; an entire civilisation
sprawls through a web of tunnels and halls.
The splendour of its architecture will haunt
the mind of any outsider. The natural shape
of the caverns appears to yield to the will of
the fitterbrand masons, who expand and re-
fne it.
A fitterbrand cannot read most texts
written by other sapient species because of
her poor eyesight. If she wishes to express
an idea in writing, she will carve hieroglyphs
into a tablet made of clay instead. Her echo-
location will then allow her and her kin to
interpret the carvings at close proximity.
A fitterbrand may carry a seal stamp
cylinder which she will use to autograph
texts written in clay. The cylinder is carved
from precious or semiprecious stone using a
couple of chisels frst, a larger one to out-
line the general shapes, then a smaller one
to add detail. The image so carved will nor-
mally portray some event from the intended
owners life.
A fitterbrands clothing consists of
simple cut and sturdy material, often un-
dyed; the dust and moisture of her dominion
will beggar delicate fabrics. There is an ex-
ception a fitterbrand who braves the den
of a giant cave spider will be rewarded with
the monsters silk. She may weave the giant
cave spider silk into cloth, which will stop
an arrow and, provided enough padding,
prevent the fitterbrand from sustaining a
degree of damage. The fexibility of giant
spider silk cloth suits the fitterbrands envi-
ronment, where the encumbrance of metal-
lic armour would hamper movement.
9.2.c Military
Most fitterbrands will carry a long
knife made of bronze with them; the caverns
teem with dangers, but often leave no room
for a larger weapon than a knife. It is often
the clothing that will set a warrior apart.
A fitterbrand warrior takes pride in
wearing a suit made of giant cave spider
silk. Giant cave spiders will often nest in
the caverns in the vicinity of fitterbrand
settlements. They clog the tunnels up with
webs and feed on any creature they catch. A
fitterbrand may attempt to harvest some of
the silk; should she escape the spiders den,
she will take the silk to a weaver and order
a suit.
9.3 JOTUN
9.3.a Anatomy
A jotun stands in the shadow of Ede-
lays history. Four meters tall, she towers
over humans, a lithe form, balancing over
the maw of malnutrition.
Thousands of years ago, her ancestors
would mistake her for a child. They would
kneel to look her in the eyes.
Thousands of years ago, the air would
fll her lungs. Her breath is laboured now
nature has robbed the air of oxygen faster
than her kin could adapt.
Thousands of years ago, she would
not consider any prey she may catch now
worth hunting. She is no longer a hunter,
but a shepherd. She must weigh the fate of
her herd against her hunger a full stomach
one day will invite unsated hunger the next .
A jotun will avoid high altitudes,
afraid that the thin air may rob her of con-
science.
9.3.b Culture
A jotun often views other sapient spe-
cies as inferior to her own. Most civilisa-
tions in their infancy accepted the jotuns as
gods and goddesses. With time, the reign of
the jotuns fell before the cultural and tech-
nological progress of their servants. Hu-
manity rebelled and drove the jotuns out of
their settlements.
47 Sapient species Jotun
A typical jotun settlement rests over a
lowland lake. It towers over a palisade, per-
haps a moat token defences, for few raid-
ers would consider attacking a jotun com-
munity.
9.3.c Military
A jotun soldier relies on her strength
and size to overcome her opponent. Rocks
thrown by her can compete in power, if not
range, with those launched by a catapult.
Most jotun weapons are too large for a hu-
man to lift. Spears and clubs are the most
common.
A sword symbolizes prestige and re-
spect paid to the veterans of the tribe. Only
the chieftain and the oldest jotuns of a vil-
lage will carry one. The sword serves a deco-
rative purpose and will rarely leave its scab-
bard; its owner will often continue to rely
on a spear or a club as her weapon of choice.
The jotuns size opens up many tac-
tical opportunities that may surprise their
enemies. She can topple buildings to block
off streets, dam and redirect rivers in mere
hours and demolish palisades with ease.
48 Sample characters Mage
10.1 FIGHTER
10.1.a Archer
Cunning: 2
Health: 3
Willpower: 2
Skills: Acrobatics (1), athletics (1), in-
timidation (1), rhetoric (1), ranged weapons
(1)
Inventory: Ranged weapon
10.1.b Archer, veteran
Cunning: 2
Health: 3
Willpower: 2
Skills: Acrobatics (1), athletics (1), in-
timidation (1), rhetoric (1), ranged weapons
(2)
Inventory: Ranged weapon
10.1.c Knight, squire
Cunning: 2
Health: 3
Willpower: 2
Skills: Acrobatics (1), athletics (1), in-
timidation (1), rhetoric (1), melee weapons
(2)
Inventory: Mail armour, melee weap-
on
10.1.d Knight
Cunning: 2
Health: 3
Willpower: 3
Skills: Acrobatics (1), athletics (1), in-
timidation (1), rhetoric (1), melee weapons
(3)
Inventory: Melee weapon, plate ar-
mour
10.1.e Man-at-arms
Cunning: 2
Health: 3
Willpower: 2
Skills: Acrobatics (1), athletics (1), in-
timidation (1), rhetoric (1), melee weapons
(1)
Inventory: Melee weapon
10.1.f Man-at-arms, veteran
Cunning: 2
Health: 3
Willpower: 2
Skills: Acrobatics (1), athletics (1), in-
timidation (1), rhetoric (1), melee weapons
(2)
Inventory: Melee weapon
10.2 MAGE
10.2.a Mage, apprentice
Cunning: 2
Health: 2
Willpower: 3
Skills: magic (1), rhetoric (2)
Inventory: Melee weapon
10.2.b Mage, adept
Cunning: 3
Health: 2
Willpower: 3
Skills: Intimidation (2), magic (2),
rhetoric (3)
Inventory: Melee weapon
10. SAMPLE CHARACTERS
49 Sample characters Rogue
10.3 MERCHANT
10.3.a Merchant
Cunning: 2
Health: 2
Willpower: 3
Skills: Rhetoric (2)
Inventory:
10.3.b Merchant, master
Cunning: 3
Health: 2
Willpower: 3
Skills: Rhetoric (3)
Inventory:
10.4 ROGUE
10.4.a Thief
Cunning: 3
Health: 2
Willpower: 2
Skills: Acrobatics (1), lock picking (1),
rhetoric (1), sleight of hand (1)
Inventory: Melee weapon
10.4.b Thief, master
Cunning: 3
Health: 3
Willpower: 2
Skills: Acrobatics (2), athletics (1),
lock picking (2), rhetoric (1), sleight of hand
(2), spotting (1)
Inventory: Melee weapon
50 Character sheet Rogue
11. CHARACTER SHEET
The following page presents a tem-
plate character sheet. A copy should be
printed for each player character and major
non-player character for reference.
NAME
MINDSET APPEARANCE
ABILITY SCORES
ABILITY SCORE
Cunning
Health
Willpower
SKILL SCORES
SKILL SCORE SKILL SCORE
INVENTORY
PLAYER