Dice

Rulebook
Editing & design: Blum Game Master (GM). For me, a good GM is neutral.
Rules: Blum & Ralle They want the players to shine as heroes at the end of
Correction: Sim & Ralle the story. Maybe the story takes place in a setting that
Thank you: Clemens, Martin, Vicky & Mirko, Samir, is about sheer survival and the players have the whole
Sean & all other players in the galaxy game world against them, but even then the GM must
never use their power against them. The GM describes
In memory of Michael everything that is important to give the players an
overview. For example, the dragon has kidnapped the
You are free to copy and distribute 2Dice for your princess and the heroes have to free her. They can
private purposes. If you would like to use 2Dice as the refuse, but then the party might as well go see a movie
basis of your own rules please contact us at: since the game night is over.
[email protected] Perhaps more interesting, but more difficult to
implement, is the open world game. Here the GM
describes the setting and from now on only reacts to
the players. That means the players describe what
they're doing and the GM thinks about how their
copyright by choose your art actions affect the world. However, not everyone has
the inventiveness of a writer. Most players want to be
Regelwerk | Charakterbogen | Hausregeln | Karma entertained. In this case, it is also more difficult to keep
Psionik | Alchemie | Raumfahrt | Équilibre a playgroup together. One player plays a pirate and
then sails away with a ship. Their co-star decides to
2Dice is a set of rules for roleplaying games. It is portray a blacksmith who falls in love with a
designed to be widely used for all scenarios without governor's daughter. These two characters will either
filling up hundreds of pages. It's a quick to learn, easy never see each other again, or the GM will have to dig
to modify, universal ruleset to fit your needs. If you deep into their bag of tricks (I'll admit that this example
feel that one of these rules slows down the way you is a bit lame, and my apologies to Captain Sparrow).
play, disrupts the flow of the game, or just doesn't fit What kind of playstyle was this system designed
your idea of the game, don't hesitate to replace it with a for? As a GM, I love the open world game. A lot of
better suggestion. players I've played with don't appreciate it. Most of
2Dice generally uses two six-sided dice (hence the them tend to prefer a storyline. As so often in life, the
name) to resolve any random situations that may arise. middle path is best. Creating a campaign that gives
These may be made of glass, gold, bone or simply players a clear path to follow while still giving them
plastic, as long as you have two of them. plenty of freedom to play and grow their characters.

What exactly is a Roleplaying Game?

This question has already been dealt with in many Rules
works on the subject, but since this will probably also
be read by people who have never played any 2Dice tries to get by with as few rules as possible. If
roleplaying game, it should be discussed again. you think something is missing, it can be supplemented
In most games, players meet and play as equal at any time with house rules.
opponents, but in roleplaying games, players play
together and try to survive a story described by the

1
Fortune-rolls Chances of Success
With a fortune-roll, the dots on the dice are added The chance of succeeding in an action in the game is
together and achieve a result of two through twelve. determined by the GM.
They are used in situations that are largely dependent
on luck. The higher the result of a fortune-roll, the Easy actions: Actions required for at least 5 successes
more favorable the result should be for the person corresponde to school achievements (lifting a water
rolling. box, swimming a few meters, sticking on a band-aid.)

Example: The GM decides that the heroes who roll a 7 Medium actions: Actions required for 10 or more
or higher will not encounter any band of robbers on successes correspond to professional achievements.
their way through the forest. One of the players may (Carrying a heavy table, staying afloat, bandaging a
roll the dice. The first die shows a 2, the second a 4, wound.)
which adds up to 6. Less than twenty minutes later, a
horde of enemies block the heroes' path … (The GM Hard actions: Actions required for at least 15
decided the probability based on the environment or successes correspond to masterful achievements.
weather conditions.) (Carrying a stone table, swimming in rough seas,
performing an operation.)

Result-rolls Extreme actions: Actions that require 20 or more

If a character performs an action, it must be successes correspond to superhuman achievements.
determined if it succeeds. In many situations, you won't (Carrying a stone table, swimming like a fish,
need a roll for this. When a character wants to open an performing a complicated operation.)
unlocked door, they turn the knob and the action
succeeds. However, if the door is locked and the
character tries to force it open, a result-roll is made. In
Cultural Influences
this case, three dots on a single die result in a success What does it look like if a character has never
(so a 6 counts as 2 successes). A maximum of four experienced a thing before? An ancient Roman
successes can be achieved with one roll. Successes certainly can't do anything with a computer. For this
may be added to the character's used basic values. reason, characters who do something for the first time
receive a penalty on their roll. This is removed if they
Summary: 1 & 2 dots on a die result equals no practice said action a few times.
successes, 3 to 5 dots result in a success. A 6 results in
two successes. Examples: Someone tries to drill a hole in a wall with
a drill for the first time (penalty -5). After that, they

Box Cars
drive a car for the first time, (penalty -10). Someone
tries to understand a language that is not their native
A pair of sixes results in a fortune-roll, which counts tongue (penalty -15). A legionnaire of antiquity finds a
as extra successes. computer from another world and tries to operate it
(penalty -20).
Example: After a pair of sixes, a fortune-roll results in
an 8, for a total of 12 successes.
Basic Values
Snake Eyes
Basic values (modified by specializations, bonuses &
penalties) are the basis of all result-rolls.
A pair of ones results in a fortune-roll, which must be
subtracted from the successes. Speed indicates how many squares a character can
move or run per battle round.
Example: After a pair of ones, a fortune-roll results in
an 8. All in all, minus 8 successes. Protection represents the natural resistance to damage
from attacks. It is added to the armor class and affects
all damage. A successful throw for protection decides
whether a character goes to the ground in battle or not.

Attentiveness determines which party is allowed to act

first, how good a character is in ranged combat, how

2
difficult it is to sneak up on them, and how well they
discover traps or tracks. Eagle Eye increases the range of a weapon by one
level and gives a bonus of +10. Alternatively, the
Knowledge covers all sciences and crafts. This shooter receives a bonus of +5 on all ranged throws for
includes biology, medicine and many others. one battle round.

Agility includes all aspects of physical skill such as

Note: If a character has reached two or even more
dodging, balancing, fighting techniques and indicates
of these levels, the GM should let the hero's
how many times a character can act per combat round.
environment react accordingly. Such a hero blessed
with karma is seen with completely different eyes.
Strength serves as a damage modifier for melee
People in a pub fall silent when they enter the room,
attacks. A successful throw on strength decides
the knights of their order bow their heads when they
exhaustion, and whether a character can still muster the
speak.
energy to continue working on something or whether
they simply have to give up.

Stability refers to the psyche. In bad situations, Career

characters lose some of their stability. The player notes Career represents high abilities of characters, which
a line after the value. When ten lines have been noted, may be used once per game session. Their number is
the Character loses one point of stability. Stability can decided by the GM. The age of the character plays a
be regenerated by means of therapy or downtime role here. A child will have at most one education. A
activities like a holiday in Mallorca. worker who has studied for many years will have two
professional experiences and perhaps a mastery.
Profession & Hobby Training gives +2 to a specialization of the profession
Each character can choose three specializations free or +1 to its basic value.
of charge at the beginning of the game, which receive
an additional bonus of +3 (i.e. +3 for specialization and Professional experience gives +4 to a specialization of
+3 for profession & hobby). the profession or +2 to its basic value.
In the game, profession & hobby can be changed by
letting the player exercise his character for some time Mastery gives +6 to a specialization of the profession
the future specializations and then spending one or 4 to its basic value.
experience point each.

Example: Anne is a cook. When cooking, she now Languages

receives +3 for specialization, +3 for profession & Normally, the GM will allow a language when
hobby (i.e. +6). Bon Appétit! creating a character. But in many cultures, in addition
to the native tongue, other language skills are the norm.
Shortcoming A German often understands English in addition to
their native tongue because they learned this language
Shortcomings are a specialization that a character at school. If the player attaches importance to the fact
will never be good at. Result-rolls, on something with a that their character is linguistically gifted, they may be
shortcoming, are made at a -9 to the roll. To overcome assigned further foreign languages according to their
a shortcoming, 30 experience points must be spent. background.

Karma Specializations
These are special hero abilities (see also examples of Specializations describe a character's talents. If it
karma). Each of them brings with it a small special comes to a result-roll, in which a character has a
rule. The player may use them once per game session. specialization, they may add 3 successes to their result
Only at the next game session can it be used again. (in the associated basic value).
True heroes who stand out in their deeds receive a
second or even third karma. This process cannot be
purchased in any way or by means of experience
points. Only the GM decides whether a hero deserves
another karma. Here is an example:

3
Attentiveness Specializations
Melee weapons (long) describes the use of long
weapons such as spears and greatswords.
On-board guns allow the operation of heavy artillery Riding represents how well someone can hold
and the calculation of distances. themselves on the back of an animal.
Driving describes the handling of vehicles. Sneaking hides characters from others.
Ranged weapons (near) allows the use of throwing Dancing simulates how elegantly and tactfully
knives, axes and spears. someone can move.
Ranged Weapons (Medium) refers to shortbows,
pistols, and shotguns.
Ranged weapons (far) include rifles, crossbows,
Strength Specializations
longbows, or even bazookas. Endurance allows a character to last longer in the
Sleight of hand includes pickpocketing, card tricks, event of pursuit or in cases of exhaustion.
juggling objects. Climbing simulates the ability to move on rough
Perception comes into play when a character examines terrain.
their surroundings. Wrestling represents fights in absolute physical
proximity of the opponents.

Knowledge Specializations
Jump affects the distance a character can jump. (The
GM determines how difficult it is for the character to
Anthropology deals with ethnology, politics, history, jump.)
etiquette and foreign languages. Swimming describes how quickly and safely you move
Computing deals with artificial intelligence, in the water.
computers and programming. Drinking resistance tells how many harmful
Geography deals with navigation and knowledge of substances a person can consume.
the nature of worlds.
Craftsmanship summarizes all crafts. This includes
blacksmithing, mechanics, carpentry, stonemasonry
Resources
and tailoring. Resources are used to invent carried equipment, lucky
Instrument determines how musical a character is and breaks or preparations made by the player during play!
whether they can play one or more instruments. When resources are used by a player, the GM
Cooking describes the preparation of food. determines the difficulty of obtaining them, after which
Science deals with biology, chemistry (poisons and the player decides whether they still want to use them.
explosives), physics (building traps) and logical If they decide to do so, they roll a fortune-roll, the
processes. result of which plus the resource points spent must at
Painting describes artistic ability. least equal the difficulty level. If the roll succeeds, the
Massaging describes how well someone can bring player receives the resource.
well-being to other people and also includes sexual The dice can be rolled once per situation. At least one
aspects. point must be spent. In any case, the resource should be
Medicine involves treating wounds and understanding described in a plausible way. The GM can compare the
bodily processes. following examples to a current situation to determine
Occult deals with religions and mysticism. the actual cost.
Piloting describes the handling of aircraft and
spaceships. common (1 to 20)
Singing describes the musical voice quality. A person fails to start their car. They call a friend to
Street knowledge improves knowledge of local help them.
specialties, such as knowledge of the best restaurants An agent hid a gun in the toilet tank before meeting an
or other addresses. opponent in a bar.

Agility Specializations
unusual (21 to 40)
A debtor finds a lot of money.
Evasion controls how well a character evades attacks A soldier is confronted with a tank. They draw a mini
and how well they can balance. bazooka.
Fistfighting deals with types of combat that do without
large weapons. unnatural (41 to 60)
Melee Weapons (short) describes how to use axes, A climber slips in the mountains. At the last moment
hammers, knives and swords. they discover a thin branch to cling to.
A farmer finds a silver dagger to kill a werewolf.

4
divine (61 to 80) Armor & Armor Class
An elf has a genie who turns the events of the last Armor class directly affects a character's damage
quarter of an hour into a dream. received. It is calculated from the protection and all
A sorcerer possesses an amulet that generates a bolt of armor parts and shields.
lightning in the event of a fatal attack against them.
Clothing armor class +1
Weapon Stats Leather clothing
Light Armor
armor class +2
Speed -1
Action Point (AP) shows how many action points are Tabard armor class +3
needed to attack. (Equal to agility) Leather Armor Armor Class +4
Damage Modifier (DM) is how a weapon affects Medium Armor Speed -2
damage. Wood armor armor class +5
Rate of Fire (RF) indicates the possible number of Mail Armor Armor Class +6
shots fired per action. Heavy Armor Speed -3
Diameter (ø) indicates how many squares are affected Scale Armor Armor Class +7
by the weapon. Plate Armor Armor Class +8
Shield Speed -1

Short Melee Weapons

Leather Shield Armor Class +1
Wooden Shield Armor Class +2
AP 2 | DM +1 knife Heraldic Shield armor class +3
AP 2 | DM +2 dagger
AP 4 | DM +5 short sword, hand ax Note: It is possible to modify armor through
AP 4 | DM +6 hammer, club technical or magical means.
AP 5 | DM +9 katana, sword
AP 6 | DM +12 Mace

Long Melee Weapons Character creation

AP 5 | DM +10 Quarterstaff Of course, mere values are not enough to fully
AP 6 | DM +11 spear represent a character. Beyond them, the player or GM
AP 6 | DM +12 two-handed sword should work out their background. The following
AP 7 | DM +13 Lance applies here: the more loving, the better.

Close Ranged Weapons

AP 2 | DM +1 throwing knife, throwing star Core Values
AP 2 | DM +5 throwing ax Humans start at character creation with stats of 5 (other
AP 2 | DM +11 javelin species often deviate). First the player is allowed to
move one point and then allocate nine points. From the
Medium Ranged Weapons age of 30 he receives one point, from 40 two more
points (the age of other species must be converted into
AP 2 +4* | DM +11 short bow human age here). At creation, basic values can be
AP 2 +4* | DM +12 automatic pistol doubled at most.
AP 2 +8* | DM +14 shotgun
Determine Profession & Shortcoming
Long Ranged Weapons Each player chooses a job & hobby (with three
AP 2 +4* | DM +13 Longbow specializations) and a shortcoming (with one
AP 2 +9* | DM +15 Crossbow specialization) for their character. They can make a
AP 2 +4* | DM +18 sniper rifle note of this free of charge. In the case of the
AP 2 +4* | DM +30 grenade launcher shortcoming, however, it has a penalty of -9.
AP 2 +5* | DM +80 tank gun (120 mm)
* Required AP cost to load.

5
Learn Specializations
He can repeat this process until there are no more
resources left. The spent experience points are retained
Each character is entitled to one-third (round down) in case of failure. The GM decides on bonuses
of their respective base stats of specializations in the (magical writings or a teacher can be helpful).
appropriate category.
Gifts
Get Resources Every now and then there are small gifts for players
A character's starting resources are equal to their age of 2Dice. It's not realistic, but it lifts player spirits.
plus their knowledge. Human years apply here too. Only the GM awards them (a process that can only be
influenced by bribery). Players should make a note of
this gift, but delete it after it has been used.
Set Karma Alternatively the GM may make cards that the players
would have to return after use.
New karma should always be invented. Players are
encouraged to create their own special hero abilities. Debut gift is used when a player celebrates entering
Corresponding cards are quickly made. Of course, the the game round. When he plays this gift, a fortune-roll
character's karma must match the background and be or a result-roll automatically become box cars.
approved by the GM.
Birthday present or Sickness consolation can be
Development converted into Luck (a die roll may be re-rolled), a
fortune-roll, resources, or two experience points.
Players make a success roll every 30 days (within

Combat
the game). You get the result in the form of experience
points & resources (snake eyes & box cars have no
effect).

Combat is divided into rounds (a few seconds). At

Note: For a human at the age of 40, there is a the beginning of each combat round, a result-roll for
penalty of -1 on the roll, at 50 it is -2, at 60 -3 etc. attentiveness (+ perception, if applicable) decides who
goes on the offensive first. In the event of a tie, the
From time to time there are also experience points character with the higher value goes first. Another tie
for particularly good ideas or heroic deeds. In order to requires a re-roll. In the case of groups, the procedure
increase a basic value, the current value in experience is per party. The players get to decide whose character
points is required. Learning a new specialization costs will serve as the base.
10 points. The increase, or learning, must be plausible. Fighters can attack as many times as their Agility
When it comes to strength, the character should go to allows. Attackers make their result-rolls. Defenders
the gym or train in their cell. The GM decides when the counter. In the event of a tie, the defenders win.
conditions are met.

Development when skipping, for example, simulates Movement & Running

a journey that it is often not advisable to play out in Speed determines how many squares a character can
minute detail. The GM determines the time required move in combat. They are free to walk part of the
and the players describe what their characters are doing fields, perform actions and move again.
in the meantime. If you let the sun shine on you, you While running, a character may move twice its
get nothing. If they train or learn, the GM distributes speed, but can only act with half values (round down)
experience points or simply determines an increase. (see also exhaustion).
Depending on the environment, the GM may require

Special powers
Climb, Jump, or Dodge rolls that result in falls if failed.

Magic and psionics fall into this category. Each Examples: Slippery or heavy gravel -1, deep sand or
special power can be learned in six stages. If a figure snow -2, rubble or rock -3.
should have one, the GM must agree. To gain an
ability, the player must roll 12 on a fortune-roll. He
may facilitate the roll with experience points (each XP
is +1). 10 resources must be spent per level of power.

6
Sneak up
If you want to sneak up, agility (+ possibly
The finish line
sneaking) comes into play. The victim counters with Characters in the target line can be hit instead of the
attentiveness (+ perception, if applicable). Any target. Their number results in a penalty for the
modifiers are taken into account. If the sneak is shooter. If it misses its target, it hits one of those
successful, the attacker can perform an attack without characters. Each affected character makes a fortune-
resistance. roll, and the one with the lowest result is hit. If a
shooter does not miss but the target dodges or parries
Examples of attacker bonuses: darkness +10, fog +5, the attack, this rule does not apply. If there are walls or
tall grass +5, from behind +5, etc. trees in the finish line, additional penalties (waist-high
wall -3) must be attributed.

Melee attacks
Drawing a weapon equals its overall AP cost. This
Wrestling
affects belt-mounted weapons. Getting weapons out of Wrestling simulates grappling, aikido or ansamic
a backpack takes much longer. There are two types of panq. In order to wrestle, a dice duel must be won in
melee attacks, depending on the type of weapon used. agility (+ possibly a fistfight). This attack does no
damage. The opponents are now on the same field, can
Short melee weapons such as knives, swords and all only move at speed one and pull the opponent with
types of unarmed combat (hand-to-hand combat) can them. Next, the attacker can roll for strength (+
only be carried out from adjacent fields. wrestling if necessary) and the defender can also
counter. If the attack succeeds, the attacker rolls the
Long melee weapons like greatswords, spears, whips damage using strength. In order to leave the wrestling
have a range of one square. mode, a duel must be won again on strength (+
wrestling if necessary).

Ranged attacks Sweeping blow

The base stat for ranged attacks is Attentiveness. The Fighters can attack three opponents on adjacent
distance between the shooter and the target is reflected squares at the same time. You take a –1 penalty per
as a penalty. The following applies here: penalty = target on the result-roll. If one of those affected parries,
fields /5 (round down). If the archer moves, they take a the attack is interrupted.
–3 penalty that round of combat. Some weapons, such

Overwatch
as knives or arrows, may be parried or caught with the
hands (the GM decides).
The damage of a ranged attack is determined by the This mode lasts as long as a character (which has
weapon's damage modifier. initiative) is not performing any actions. In return, they
may perform an action on the defensive.
Close ranged weapons such as knives, rocks and
throwing axes are effective at 15 squares.
Defense
Medium ranged weapons such as short bows, pistols
or spears are effective at a distance of 30 squares. Defense costs no action points. A parry is based on
agility (+ specialization). The GM decides whether a
Long ranged weapons such as crossbows, rifles or ranged attack can be parried. Dodge is also based on
longbows are effective at a distance of 60 squares. agility (+ dodge). Dodging ranged attacks requires one
square of movement!
If the defense fails, the armor class is subtracted
from the damage.
Note: Modern weapons often have longer ranges.
Then aim assists are needed. A telescopic sight Example: A fighter thrusts with strength 7 and a
could set a weapon's penalty to /30 or even /50, an dagger DM +2. The hit subtracts their armor class
targeting computer with phased laser optics even from 6 and takes 3 damage.
to /100.

7
Critical Hits
Endurance. Player achieves 12 achievements after
penalties are deducted. The fighter falters, but can
Whenever a double six falls on an attack roll, a critical fight on.
hit occurs. In such a case, a fortune-roll gives a bonus
that is added directly to the damage.
It is possible to target a critical hit. The desired damage
Exhaustion & Sickness
bonus counts as a penalty on the hit roll. Someone who wanders through a desert for three
days automatically takes damage. In addition to
Example: Aimed hit with a rifle on the victim's artery. injuries, states of exhaustion are also important. They
The bonus should be +10, the shooter receives a are also represented with the help of success rolls,
penalty of -10 on the shot. damage class and power. In this way it can also be
determined how characters perform in the case of a run

Fall Damage
or a pursuit (possibly the speed of the opponents can
also be compared).
A successful Agility roll divided by three is the meters
you can fall without taking damage. Every meter above
this value deals five damage. Armor class doesn't
Healing of Injuries
matter. Injured People can be treated up to three times (once
every 30 hours). The healer rolls a result-roll for

Damage class
knowledge (+ medicine, if applicable), divides the
result by five (round down) and subtracts the result
Healthy figures have no damage class (DC). from the current damage class of the wounded person.
Technical or even magical equipment can be used here.
from DC 1 wounded In any case, these processes take a certain amount of
Penalty for unconsciousness -1 time. If it is not possible to get below the level of lethal
from DC 10 serious wounds wounds, the injured person dies after the rolled time,
Death occurs in 1FR x3 hours despite all efforts.
Penalty for unconsciousness -2
from DC 14 lethal wounds
Death occurs in 1FR x3 minutes
Penalty for unconsciousness -3
DC 18 mortal wounds
Death occurs in the following
combat turn on.

Unconsciousness
Every time a character suffers damage, it can
become unconscious. Based on the situation and its
type, the GM decides whether a success roll for
strength (+ endurance) is necessary. As with all success
rolls, he determines how many successes are required.
The damage class (DC) serves as a guide for penalties
on this roll. Further penalties (or even bonuses) can be
added depending on the situation.
If unconsciousness occurs, the GM determines the
severity of the condition based on the character's type.
A prizefighter may only see black for a moment, while
a librarian falls unconscious on the ground.

Example: A fighter is hit in the side with a blade. His

DC increases from 0 to 11. The GM decides that the
situation calls for an inquiry as to whether the hit
person falls unconscious. He sets a difficulty of 10 and
applies the additional DC penalty of -2 to the roll (see
damage classes). The character has Strength 9 and