Chapter 1: Introduction

Polyhedral is a role-playing game system with collaborative storytelling at its core, and it and shares similarities with other narrative forms including childhood games of make-believe, writing, and acting.

Polyhedral is fueled by its players’ imaginations. The scenarios that are described by storytellers to the players are backed by the structure of rules and mechanics that allow for fair arbtration of rules. To play Polyhedral, players create characters—some times these characters are heroes, some times they are villains. Polyhedral is best played in a group of four-to-five players, each playing their own characters. Together, the group might explore ancient ruins, a vampire’s castle, the outer reaches of the galaxy, and other places that are limited only by the group’s imagination. At these locations the group may talk with other characters that are part of the story’s tapestry, compete against adversaries, solve puzzles, and discover secrets long since buried.

Polyhedral presents the rules you need to run a game, and nothing you don’t. It is a system that is designed to be extended and modified to fit the needs of the game and the story being told.

Why Polyhedral?

There are innumerable games and game systems out there, so why choose Polyhedral? Polyhedral has been built to be compatible with popular games, as well as with a preference toward being an open system with no licensing. In addition, it embraces modularity.

True, open gaming. Polyhedral is free. It is open source. It has a permissive, industry-standard, license—the Creative Commons CC BY license. We want everyone to use Polyhedral, to remix it, build on top of, and to redistribute it without any barriers.

Modular by design. The core of Polyhedral is rules-light. It aims to include the absolute minimum set of game rules and details necessary to run a game of Polyhedral. Since all rules interact with the core mechanics, it is possible to add and remove systems mostly independently without impacting the other parts of the game.

Highly compatible. Polyhedral can be easily adapted for other gaming content, rules and guides for conversion can be found alongside this and other resources for Polyhedral.

Using this Book

The Polyhedral is divided into a few parts:

• Part 1 deals with character creation and character details, as well as a primer on important aspects of the game (how to make ability checks, etc.)
• Part 2 covers rules related to playing the game, combat, and magic.

Throughout this book the rules address you, the player or the storyteller. The book will occassionally refer to any character or creature taking an action with the more generic “actor”. As a player, “you” can mean either your character or a creature that you control.

Players

Everyone at the table who is playing Polyhedral is a player. One of the players takes on a special role of the storyteller.

Players take on the role of characters in the story, these characters can also be referred to as player characters (or PCs), differentiating them from non-player characters (NPCs, the characters that a storyteller controls). Sometimes a player also controls creatures or other characters.

What does the storyteller do?

The role of the storyteller is important to most games in Polyhedral because not only are they responsible for framing the world and the story that the other players are engaging with, but it is also their responsibility to act as a fair arbiter of the rules of the game.

Does every game of Polyhedral need a storyteller? More often than not, the answer is yes. There may be certain situations where a storyteller is not strictly necessary, though you may have a better experience with someone taking the role of the storyteller.

The storyteller does not need to be the same individual every time, in fact every player is encouraged to take on the role of storyteller as they gain confidence. This gives everyone a chance to play in, as well as run, games in Polyhedral and helps everyone enjoy the game equally.

Some of the things a storyteller does are:

Act as the story’s narrator. The storyteller is responsible for narrating the events of a story to the players, describing them in as best detail as he or she can so that the players can picture what their characters are seeing. As a narrator the storyteller aims to pace the story such that scenes flow seamlessly and give the players a chance to experience the world as if they were experiencing it first hand. In addition to providing descriptions, the storyteller is also in control of the individuals—both good and bad—that the characters encounter along their journey. The storyteller gives voice to the characters’ allies and their enemies alike. As the storyteller, your duty as narrator is the most important part you will play in a game.

As the story’s author. Many times a storyteller is not just the narrator, but they are the author of the story. They are responsible for the ideas and themes, along with the creation of the people and places that the characters will interact with on their journey.

Rules arbiter. During the game you will almost certainly need to resolve rules disputes. This will be easier the more familiar you are with the rules of the game and any modular content that is being used. As the storyteller it falls on you to decide how a given rule will be applied.

What the storyteller is not

The storyteller’s role often puts them in what is seemingly an adversarial position to the other players, after all they are the person who is presenting challenges and deterrents to the characters. However, the players are not trying to win against the storyteller and neither is the storyteller trying to win against the players.

How to Play

The following section is a quick overview of the elements of game play in Polyhedral. Some of this is discussed in more detail later in the book.

The D6

At its core, Polyhedral is designed to be played using only six-sided dice, also known as d6’s. Generally a player will roll three six-sided dice, or 3d6, when their character performs an action. This is sometimes referred to as the character’s dice pool. The result of this roll, along with any modifiers applied, determines outcome of the action. In order to simplify the presentation of game mechanics, the number of six-sided dice that a player should roll is denoted with the number of dice, followed by a ‘D’, e.g. 3D. The number of sides of the dice (6) is left off because all dice in Polyhedral use a six-sided die.

If a dice roll has a modifier applied to it, that will be denoted with either an addition or subtraction of the modifier after the dice representation, e.g. 3D+5 or 3D–1.

Dice Pool Modifiers

Sometimes your character might have a modifier to their dice pool. Most commonly this is when your character has advantage, disadvantage, or is unskilled. A modification to your dice pool is presented as either a −1D or +1D to the roll. Some circumstances may modify your dice pool by two or more dice, but these are less common.

Advantage. With advantage on a check, you have a +1D to that check’s dice pool. You either have advantage or you don’t. If multiple situations grant advantage, you only gain the +1D dice pool bonus from one of those situations.

Disadvantage. With disadvantage on a check, you have a −1D to that check’s dice pool. You either have disadvantage or you don’t. If multiple situations impose disadvantage, you only suffer the −1D to your dice pool from one of those situations.

Unskilled. If you are unskilled with or in a particular skill, tool, weapon, knowledge, saving throw or check that you are making you have a −1D to the check’s dice pool.

When you have both advantage and disadvantage, no matter how many circumstances grant or impose the benefit or penalty, the situations cancel each other out and you are considered to have neither advantage or disadvantage. For example, if you have advantage from two sources and disadvantage from a third, you do not have either advantage or disadvantage on the roll and there is not change due to these circumstances to your dice pool.

The above are only a few examples of common dice pool modifiers. There may be other circumstances that grant bonuses or impose reductions to your dice pool. Your dice pool for any check can not be reduced to less than 1D.

Critical Successes

A critical success occurs on any check you are performing where you roll two or more 6’s on the dice. You can only score a critical success when your dice pool is at least 3D, if your dice pool is greater than 3D (because of advantage or some other reason), you have a greater chance of scoring a critical success.

Applying Rules

If two rules seemingly contradict one another, the more specific of the two rules is applied. If it isn’t clear which rule should be applied or there are no rules for a given situation, the storyteller is responsible for adjudicating and resolving the situation. The storyteller may also decide that they are not using certain rules.

Always Round Down

Whenever a number is divided in the game, always round down if you end up with a fractional number, even if the fraction is one-half or greater. This greatly simplifies the math in the game.

Abilities

Every creature, including characters and non-player characters, has six abilities that are used to describe its general aptitude, those abilities are: Strength, Agility, Vitality, Mind, Spirit, and Presence. These abilities govern the physical, mental, and spiritual or magical aspects of a creature. The ranks of these abilities typically range in value from 3 to 20, though some creatures may have ability ranks as low as a 1 or well-above 20. The modifiers associated with these ability ranks are applied to almost every action in the game.

• Strength, a measure of raw physical prowess and power.
• Agility, a measure of speed and manual dexterity.
• Vitality, a measure of stamina.
• Mind, a measure of mental faculties including wit, reasoning, memory, and observation.
• Spirit, a measure of spiritual or magical attunement.
• Presence, a measure of social skills and personality.

A character interacts with the world by performing actions. These actions may be scaling a wall, searching for clues, or even making an attack. When you take an action, if there is a chance of failure or the outcome is uncertain you allow a roll of the dice to determine the result.

Making Ability Checks

Polyhedral is built around the idea that characters interact with the world around them as a direct result of the actions that they perform. The outcomes of those actions are resolved, primarily, through three types of rolls: ability checks, attack rolls, and saving throws.

Ability checks are made when a character or creature takes an action and there is a possibility of failure. If there is no possibility of failure, a storyteller does not (and should not) call for an ability check. Attacks, while they use your abilities, are resolved using different rules. All checks are made against a target number, the check’s difficulty. Making a check is easy:

1. Roll your dice pool and add modifiers. When you make a check roll your dice pool (typically 3D) for the check and add ability and skill modifiers to the roll.
2. Apply bonuses and penalties. Circumstantial bonuses and penalties from conditions, features, spells, equipment, and other effects are either added or subtracted from the check.
3. Compare the result with a target difficulty. Compare the total result of the check, after all modifiers, bonuses, and penalties are applied to a target difficulty. If the result equals or exceeds the target number the check is a success, otherwise it fails. The storyteller usually decides how difficult an action is, sometimes the players know the difficulty in advance other times it is unknown.

Ability Check Difficulties

When calling for an ability check, the storyteller decides which ability is relevant and the difficulty of an action being performed.

Very Easy. Tasks of this difficulty are ones that just about anyone can do. These checks should be rare and only if a failure has significant consequences to the scenario in play.

Easy. Most characters will have little trouble with these tasks, but an unskilled character may find a modicum of challenge in performing them.

Average. Even skilled characters may fail at an average difficulty task. Consistent success requires experience and training, or a character needs to be naturally talented.

Moderate. Tasks of this difficulty require higher levels of skill to be successful at. Unskilled characters may still succeed at moderate difficulty tasks but this often requires luck and advantageous circumstances.

Hard. These tasks are truly challenging, even to skilled characters. A character must either be very skilled or very lucky.

Very Hard. Tasks of this level of difficulty are those that masters of a skill or craft are capable of performing; few others will be successful.

Heroic and Nearly Impossible. Tasks of heroic and nearly impossible difficulties test even the most proficient, experienced, and skilled characters. Success often requires more than a modicum of luck or ideal circumstances.

Skilled vs. Unskilled Checks

If you are skilled in a check, also sometimes referred to as being proficient, your base dice pool for an action is 3D. When you make the check you can add your skill bonus to the roll modifiers. If you are unskilled, or not proficient, in a check your dice pool is reduced by −1D and you do not add your skill bonus when determining the result of the roll.

Passive Checks

Passive checks are special ability checks that resolve without rolling any dice. This type of check is usually used by a storyteller to determine the results of frequent or trivial tasks, especially where failure does not have a significant consquence to the current scene. For example, a storyteller may use a creature’s passive Mind (Awareness) check to determine if that creature notices something in a forest when it is otherwise not expecting any danger.

You determine the total for a passive check by:

10 + all modifiers that apply to the check

When a check would normally have a dice pool modifier, e.g. advantage or disadvantage, additional modifiers are applied to the passive check’s total:

• For every +1D that would be applied to a check’s dice pool, the passive check total has a +5 bonus.
• For every −1D that would be applied to a check’s dice pool, the passive check total has a -5 penalty.

For example, a character with a Mind of 14, is skilled in Awareness, and has a skilled modifier of +2 has a passive Mind (Awareness) of 14.

Providing Assistance

An actor can provide assistance to another creature by taking the Help action (see: Actions below). In order to assist another creature on an ability check, that actor must be proficient in the skill that you are trying to help with. By assisting another creature, that creature gains advantage on the skill check.

Group Checks

When three or more actors work together to accomplish the same action, they do so by making a group ability check. When a group ability check is made, each participant makes the check. If at least half of the group succeeds, then the group check is a success, otherwise it fails. A storyteller might ask for a group check if all of the characters are searching an environment for clues, or when a group is attempting to pass themselves off as an official delegation in order to gain access to a secure area.

Opposed Checks

When a character’s or creature’s action is directly opposed by another actor, the storyteller might call for an opposed check. This might happen when the two actors are attempting same action, or attempting to counter the effort of one another, for instance both are pulling on a rope in opposite directions.

When making an opposed check, both participants make an ability check. Instead of comparing the result of these checks to a difficulty, however, they are compared to one another. The actor with the highest check total wins the contest. In the event of a tie neither participant makes progress and the situation remains as it was before the opposed check was made.

Character Advancement

Your character’s growth is tracked in levels. For every 1,000 experience points (typically abbreviated as XP), you gain a level.

Everytime you gain a level, you can do one of the following:

• Increase one ability rank by +2, or two ability ranks by +1.
• Gain a rank in a job, provided you meet any necessary requirements.
• Gain a talent, provided you meet any necessary requirements.

While most play occurs in your character’s first 25-30 levels, there is no limit to the number of levels a character can gain.

Chapter 2. Character Creation

Before you begin playing Polyhedral, you will first need to create a character. This chapter outlines the steps necessary for creating your character. Your character is your avatar; it is how you will interact with and experience the worlds of play in Polyhedral. A character is born from your imagination and is represented by a collection of features and qualities that, through in-game mechanics, enable fair arbitration of the actions you perform during the course of the story.

Creating a character straight forward:

1. Choose your character’s origin (lineage, cultural heritage, and background)
2. Decide on your character’s disposition
3. Assign ranks to your abilities and distribute ability rank bonuses
4. Select a starting job
5. Record starting items and equipment

1. Choosing a Character’s Origin

Every character has an origin, this origin includes their biological lineage (i.e. human, elf, dwarf, etc.), the culture that they were raised in, as well as their background. Your lineage, cultural heritage, and background define the traits that your character begins the game with.

Your character’s cultural heritage does not need to be the same as your lineage, for instance a human may be raised in a dwarven city and therefore begin play with one of the dwarven cultural heritages selected.

2. Decide on your Character’s Disposition

In addition to the aspects from your background, your character has a disposition. Your disposition reflects how your character perceives the world and carries themself. You can read up more on dispositions in Chapter: Character Options and see a list common dispositions.

3. Assign Ranks to your Abilities

Your ability ranks influence your actions in the world. When you create your character you assign starting ranks to each of your abilities.

There are three common methods for assigning ranks to your abilities: you can generate them by rolling dice, you can use a point-buy method, or you can use a predefined array of ranks.

Randomly Generating Ability Ranks

To generate the six ability ranks randomly, roll four six-sided dice (4d6) and discard the lowest die result. Add the three remaining values together and record their sum, e.g. if you rolled a 1, 3, 5, and 6, you would discard the 1 and add the 3, 5, and 6 together for a total of 14. Repeat this process seven times: once for each of the six abilities and one extra time. From the seven results, choose six of them and assign them to your abilities however you would like.

Players may roll their ability ranks individually, or the ability ranks can be rolled as a group. When generating ranks as a group, the seven ability ranks are rolled and the results are shared by all players; each player chooses and assigns their ranks as if they had rolled the results individually.

Point Buy

Instead of rolling your ability ranks, players are given a certain number of points to invest (or “buy”) into their character’s abilities at the start of the game. As an ability score increases in value and rank, it becomes more costly to increase it further. Depending on the theme of the game, a storyteller may choose to give players more or fewer points to use when creating their characters.

Using the point buy method, every character begins with a starting score of 10 in each ability and 15 points to spend on increasing their ability ranks. The storyteller can opt to give characters additional points to spend during this process if they so choose. Increasing an ability score costs 1 or more points. You can reduce an ability’s starting rank below 10 to a minimum of 8, by doing so you gain +1 point which can be used to purchase ranks.

The table below shows the total cost to purchase an ability score of a particular value. In the table below, advancing an ability score to 16 or 17 through point assignment is only possible if the storyteller allows it or the characters have been issued more points to spend.

Predefined Ability Ranks

Instead of rolling or buying into your ability ranks, all characters begin with the same array of six numbers to distribute into their character’s abilities. These ability ranks are in alignment with the point costs defined above.

The standard ability ranks array is: 15, 14, 13, 12, 10, and 8

Ability Rank Bonuses

Ability rank bonuses are applied after you’ve assigned ranks to your character’s abilities. Choose one of the two following options:

• Increase one ability of your choice by 2 and a different ability of your choice increases by 1.
• Three abilities of your choice each increase by 1.

4. Selecting a Starting Job

Once you have made decisions about your character’s origin, disposition, and you have assigned ability ranks to the character, choose a starting job for you character. Your job identifies the training that your character has undergone up until the point that they enter the story and helps you to understand part of the role they will play in the group and in the game.

5. Items and Equipment

As part of the process up until now, you were given choices for starting equipment. In addition you have a starting level of resources. You can use your resources to purchase additional gear, goods, and equipment.

Chapter 3. Character Origins

Character Origins

The first step in creating your character for Polyhedral is to come up with a concept, and that concept starts with your identity. Familiarize yourself with the setting of your game and look at the options for your character’s origins. A character’s origin is defined as the intersection between their lineage, their cultural heritage, and their background.

Your character receives certain traits and features from their choices of lineage, culture, and background. These traits may be physical characteristics: lifespan, size, the ability to see more clearly in low-light, etc. or they may be features of your upbringing or experience such as having certain knowledges, skills, or tools.

In some rare cases, a character might not get to choose their cultural heritage or the cultural heritage will look slightly different.

Mixing Lineage and Culture

While most origins present a lineage and one or more related cultures, you typically have the option to mix those lineages and cultures. Before choosing a culture from a different lineage, speak with your storyteller first to understand if there are any restrictions.

Human

Humans are, perhaps, the most diverse of all the people you will encounter in your travels. They have spread to nearly every corner of the settled world, and still they have traveled farther. Every continent, every country, is likely home to at least a few different human cultures. Each culture borrowing from others: language, art, stories, advancements, and other knowledge is shared–or seized in conquest.

Age. Humans are considered adults in their late teens and typically live less than 100 years.
Size. Your size is Medium.
Speed. Your base speed is 30 feet.
Resolute. If you do not have any resolve, when you finish a long rest you regain one point of resolve.
Cultural Heritage. Choose one cultural heritage from the available cultural heritage options.

Human Culture

If you are raised in a human culture, you have the following traits:

Disposition. Human cultures raise individuals of all walks of life. Humans do not tend toward any one disposition.
Languages. You can speak, read, and write the common tongue, and one extra language of your choice.
Cultural Knowledge. You are proficient in one knowledges of your choice.
Skill Versatility. You are proficient in two skills of your choice.
Talent. You gain one talent of your choice.

Half-Elf

Age. Half-elves reach adulthood about the same time as humans, in their late-teens or early twenties. Their lifespan is at least double that of most humans, often living well into their 150’s or longer.
Size. Your size is Medium.
Speed. Your base speed is 30 feet.
Darksight. Your eyes are accustomed to the twilight of the night sky, dimly lit halls, and faint light cast by a torch. You can see in dim light as if it were bright light.
Cultural Heritage. Choose a cultural heritage, typically human or elf.

Elf

Modern depictions of elves, especially in fantasy settings, are often more sensitive to the natural or magical world. It is not uncommon to see elves as protectors of the wilderness or woodlands, such as with druids and rangers. Commonly elves are about the same size as humans; they may be slightly smaller or bigger—depending on the flavor of the setting. Elves are almost always depicted as being leaner than a human of equivalent height.

Age. Elves reach physiucal maturity around the same age as humans, in their late-teens and early twenties, though typical elven cultures may not recognize an elf as an adult for several decades. Elves are much longer lived than humans, depending on the settingh this can be on the order of a few centuries, nearly a millenium, or they may live so long they are considered immortal.
Size. Your size is Medium.
Speed. Your base speed is 30 feet.
Darksight. Your eyes are accustomed to the twilight of the night sky, dimly lit halls, and faint light cast by a torch. You can see in dim light as if it were bright light.
Keen Senses. You have advantage on Mind (Awareness) checks to see and hear.
Cultural Heritage. Choose one cultural heritage from the available cultural heritage options.

Elven Culture

Whether you were raised in the wooded lands and forests, or you spent your life being raised in an metropolitan urban setting, you have the following traits:

Disposition. Those raised in elven cultures are often keenly aware of, and sensitive to, the natural world. Many elves value freedom and will fight for that freedom if it is infringed upon. Elves are ore more often goodly, but this is not always the case.
Languages. You can speak, read, and write the common tongue, as well as the elvish language.
Naturalist. You a proficient in Knowledge (Nature) and Mind (Survival) checks.
Traditional Weapon Training. You have proficiency with the weapons traditionally used by your people: the longsword, shortsword, shortbow, and longbow. Woodland Stride. You ignore difficult terrain in forests and other wooded environments.

Dwarf

Dwarves are a stout and stubborn people whose homes are in the hills and mountains. They pride themselves on their craft, particularly with stone and practical tools. Dwarves can be industrious, in some settings they are the inventors of firearms and like weaponry. As a dwarf you have the following traits:

Age. Dwarves mature at about the same rate as humans, but because of their long lifespan they are still considered to be children until around the age of 40. Dwarves typically live between 300 and 350 years.
Size. Your size is medium.
Speed. Your base speed is 30 feet.
Darksight. Your eyes are accustomed to the twilight of the night sky, dimly lit halls, and faint light cast by a torch. You can see in dim light as if it were bright light.
Stout Health. You have advantage on saving throws against disease and poison, as well as resistance to poison damage.
Cultural Heritage. Choose one cultural heritage from the available cultural heritage options.

Dwarven Culture

You were born in a mountain citadel and raised with all of the teachings of canonical dwarven culture. You have the following traits:

Disposition. You were raised in a society with strict laws and codes. This has influenced a structured and ordered lifestyle.
Languages. You can speak, read, and write the common tongue, as well as the dwarven language.
Traditional Combat Training. You have proficiency with the battleaxe, handaxe, hammer, warhammer, and light and medium armor.
Stonecraft. You are considered proficient and have advantage knowledge checks related to stonecraft.
Tool Proficiency. You are proficient with one of the following tools of your choice: smith’s tools, brewer’s supplies, or mason’s tools.

Backgrounds

Your character’s background sheds light on who you were before the game begins. It provides context on where you came from and in some cases who you came to be who you are today. How were you educated? Did you grow up privileged? Were you a trouble maker? Your background might answer questions like this and others. Even if it doesn’t, asking similar questions can provide insight into not only your background, but also your personality, what you value, and even your flaws.

Aspects

Every background presented here provides suggestions for aspects, e.g. personality traits, ideals, bonds, and flaws. These aspects of your character build on and support your concept. The aspects presented are only suggestions however. You can pick the aspects that suit your character, randomly choose them by rolling dice, or work with your storyteller and the other players to write your own.

Personality traits. A personality trait might be something you like, a particular attitude you have towards something, a previous accomplishment, mannerisms, upbringing. From your story think about your defining event or how your character acted when having to make an important decision.

Ideals. Your ideals are your beliefs. These are the fundamental moral and ethical principles that guide you. Consider why your character acts a certain way. What are your character’s goals and ambitions? What causes them to stand up after having been knocked down?

Bonds. Look at your relationships with other characters in your story. What connects you to a person or a place? A bond might tell you who is important to you, or identify something that you cherish deeply.

Flaws. Your flaws are your vices, or some aspect of your character that complicates matters. It might be a compulsion to act in a certain way, a fear, or a weakness. Look to the rising conflict in your character’s backstory, how did that influence you? What makes your character mad? What terrifies your character more than anything in the world?

Optional Rule: Creating Relationships

After you have decided on your background, work with the storyteller and other players in the game to create relationships between the characters. The relationships that are created are a result of collaboration between two players. Using this optional rule, each character will have a relationship with two different characters at the start of the game.

Characters can be randomly shuffled and distributed among players, if sitting at a table they can be passed to the left and right, or players can decide who they want to make their relationships with. Regardless of how you decide on who the relationships are with, the process for creating a relationship remains the same:

1. Decide on a characteristic as the basis of the relationship. Whether it is the character’s personality trait, ideal, bond, or flaw choose one of these to build the relationship on top of. For example, the player of the warrior-mage Tellus may decide to create a relationship between their character and the thief Garret who has the flaw “I am slow to trust others.”
2. Write one or two sentences describing the relationship. When you write the relationship, think about in the context of a supporting role in someone else’s story. Your relationship might be based on helping the other character or your presence might have been a complication. Do not be concerned with being too detailed. Continuing with the example above, Tellus’ player may write the following relationship “After saving Garret’s life Garret and Tellus became close friends.”
3. Discuss the relationship with the other player and make adjustments. A relationship is not one-sided, afterall. For instance, Garret’s player may suggest a modification to the proposed relationship: “After saving Garret’s life, at risk of his own, Garret and Tellus became close friends.” This acknowledges that it took an extraordinary event—Tellus risking his life to save Garret’s—for them to become friends.

Ambassador

You are, or possibly once were, a diplomatic emissary to a foreign land; appointed by a nation or a governing body to oversee negotiations and practice statecraft. You may have advocated for the protection or interests of the people you represent, or used your status as a cover for clandestine operations. Some ambassadors are responsible for brokering agreements, treaties, and other covenants.

• Skills: Persuasion, Insight
• Knowledges: One of your choice, usually history or religion
• Languages: 2 of your choice
• Equipment: A set of fine clothes, a writing implement and notebook or similar, and official documents.
• Starting Resources: Modest (4)

Feature: Request Audience

While in a peaceful nation where your role as a diplomatic emissary is recognized, you may use your status as an ambassador to request an audience with powerful and influential figures. Your request for an audience is guaranteed to be considered, but there are no assurances that the meeting will occur or that you will meet with the official you requested an audience with.

Suggested Aspects

Ambassadors serve a foreign government, either because they feel that it is a noble calling or because it is a position of power. Many ambassadors are members of the upperclass, owing their position to their natural born privilege. For others though, like those in more egalitarian societies, the opportunity to become a foreign dignitary is open to all, regardless of who their parents were. Ambassadors might find themselves party to many secrets before they become public knowledge, as such it is not uncommon for spies and other intelligence agents to front as aides to an ambassador to as ambassadors themselves.

Personality Trait

Ideal

Bond

Flaw

Chapter 3. Jobs

Advanced Ranks and Limit Breaks

Certain jobs in Polyhedral have the limit break feature. Once you meet the maximum rank for these jobs, you can choose to continue advancing in them.

Fighter

The fighter is, perhaps, the purest of martial combatants and epitomizes the role of the warrior. Soldiers, mercenaries, many adventurers, and wanders all live their life from one battlefield to another. Some warriors spend their lives perfecting their martial techniques or honing their skill with a particular weapon.

Class Features

As a fighter you gain the following features.

Health

Health at Each Rank: 8 + your Vitality modifier

Proficiencies

Armor: light armor, medium armor, heavy armor, shields
Weapon: simple weapons, martial weapons
Tool: None
Saving Throws: Strength, Vitality

Fighting Style

You have trained in a particular fighting-style. Choose one of the options below. Whenever you gain a rank in this job, you can replace a fighting style you know with another fighting style available to this job. You can’t take the same fighting style more than once.

Blind Fighting. You have blindsight with a range of 10 ft. Even if you are blinded or in an area that is heavily obscured, you can effectively “see” anything that isn’t behind total cover, including a creature that is invisible unless it successfully hides from you.

Defense. While wearing armor, you gain a +2 bonus to your Defense rating.

Dueling. When wielding a melee weapon in one hand and no other weapons, when you miss with an attack you can reroll the attack. You must use the new roll. You can use this ability once per turn.

Great Weapon Fighting. You double your Strength bonus to the damage dealt when you hit with a weapon that you are wielding with two hands. The weapon must have the two-handed or versatile property for you to gain this benefit.

Marksmanship. You gain a +2 bonus to attack rolls you make with ranged weapons.

Protection. When a creature that you can see hits a target other than you with and that target is within 5 feet of you, you can use your reaction to interpose yourself between the creature and the attack taking the damage instead of the intended target. Until the start of your next turn attacks against that creature have disadvantage.

Thrown Weapons. You can draw weapons with the thrown property as part of an attack you make with them. In addition, when you hit with a ranged attack using a thrown weapon, you double the weapon’s damage dice.

Two-Weapon Fighting. When wielding two weapons, one in each hand, you can add your ability modifier to the damage of the second attack.

Unarmed Fighting. Your unarmed strikes deal bludgeoning damage equal to 1d6 + your Strength modifier on a hit. If you aren’t wielding any weapons or a shield when you make the attack roll, the d6 becomes a d8. At the start of each of your turns, you deal 5 bludgeoning damage to one creature you are grappling with.

Second Wind

As a bonus action on your turn, you regain health equal to 2D + twice your fighter rank. Once you use this feature, you must finish a short or long rest before you can use it again.

Action Surge

Starting at rank 2, you can take one additional action on your turn. Once you use this feature, you must finish a short or long rest before you can use it again.

Martial Path

When you reach rank 3, you choose a path from the available fighter paths. The path you choose grants you features at the following ranks: 6th, 8th, 10th and 13th.

Provoke

At rank 4, as a bonus action on your turn, choose one creature that you can see and that can hear you. Until the end of your next turn that creature has disadvantage on attacks against targets other than you.

Extra Attack

Beginning at rank 5, you can attack twice instead of once, when you take the Attack action on your turn. The number of attacks increases to three when you reach rank 11 and to four when you reach rank 14.

Indomitable

Starting at rank 7, when you fail a saving throw you can choose to succeed instead. You can’t use this feature again until you finish a long rest.

You can use this feature twice between long rests starting at rank rank 11.

Strike True

Beginning when you reach rank 14, you can use a bonus action on your turn to grant yourself perfect insight on the next attack you make. Before the start of your next turn, the next attack you make automatically hits its target, as if you rolled the minimum needed to hit the target.

Limit Break

Upon reaching rank 15, you can choose one limit break ability, provided that you meet the requirements for it. In addition, you can continue advancing in this job’s rank. You gain an additional limit break every 5 ranks, for example you gain an additional limit break at rank 20, another at rank 25, rank 30, etc.

Martial Paths

The following martial paths are available to fighters.

Champion

Your focus is on your raw, physical, power.

Improved Critical

Beginning when you choose this path at rank 3, your weapon attacks score a critical hit when you roll a 5 or a 6 on two or more dice when making your attack roll.

Remarkable Athlete

Starting at rank 6, your skill bonus is doubled for any Strength or Agility check that you have proficiency in. Also, you add half your skill bonus (rounded up) to any unskilled Strength, Agility, or Vitality check that you make.

In addition, when you make a long jump, you add your Strength modifier to the distance of the jump.

Additional Fighting Style

At rank 8, choose a second option from the Fighting Style job feature.

Survivor

Beginning at rank 10, you regain 5 + your Vitality modifier health at the start of each of your turns. You don’t gain this benefit if you are poisoned, diseased, dead, or if you have 0 health.

Superior Critical

At rank 13, your weapon attacks score a critical hit when you roll a 4, 5, or 6 on two or more dice when making your attack roll. In addition, you can score a critical hit when your dice pool is 2D or greater.

Chapter 4. Character Details and Options

Dispositions

Your character’s disposition indicates, among other things, the way they approach the world. Do they respect the laws of the lands that they travel through or do they value freedom above all else? Disposition can be fluid, it can change over time or dramatically in the wake of a significant or traumatic event.

Below are common dispositions in Polyhedral:

Free. You don’t like the be constrained by rules, regulations, or anything that would impede your ability to live your life the way you want to. While this disposition doesn’t force a moral framework on your view of the world, you are likely to extend your values to the people around you. If a community is being subjected to tyranny a character who values freedom will step in to help free them.

Good. You have strong morals and virtues. You believe it is right to help and protect those who are in need. This doesn’t mean that you sacrifice your or ignore your own needs, but you are more likely to put the well-being of others before your own. In many ways this is the essence of a heroic character: the village can’t defend itself, so you choose to help them. While you may respect the laws of the land, you do so with open eyes and don’t follow the law blindly. If the powers-that-be are abusing the law for their own benefit at the expense of the people, their authority has crossed a line and a good character often feels compelled to stand against it.

Greed. You value something to excess, like material wealth or power. This motivation influences your every decision: you’re happy to protect the village, provided someone is willing to pay. Your greed doesn’t make you a bad person, you simply have different values that sometimes paint you in an unfavorable light compared to others.

Indulgent. You have a tendency to cede to whatever whim catches your fancy. You often seek experiences that will gratify you, satisfying a short term desire. Indulgent characters can be very easy going, but if something doesn’t interest them they may take a different path.

Lawful. You respect laws and codes, this may mean that you respect the code of an individual or of the land that you’re currently in. In general, you are law-abiding—sometimes to a fault. You believe that the personal codes of an individual and the laws of the realm are important and are loath to violate them. Many characters with a lawful disposition firmly believe in similar values as goodly characters, however their approach is often different.

Size and Space

Every creature has a size category. Your size also indicates how much space you control in an action scene, such as combat. The amount of space you control is not a representation of your physical dimensions, but rather your reach. A creature’s space also reflects the area that it needs in order to maneuver and move comfortably. In combat this is especially important. Sometimes objects also use the same size categories as creatures.

The Size Categories table below indicates the size of a creature and the space it controls.

Languages

Every character begins play knowing at least one language. Your upbringing, background, and sometimes your talents might grant you fluency in additional languages. If you do not know a language, you might still be able to communicate with creatures by making Pressence (Performance) checks. The storyteller might allow you to learn additional languages by participating in certain Downtime Activities, described in detail in Chapter 7.

Skill Bonus

Your skill bonus is based on your total character level. It can be calculated by dividing your level by 5 and rounding up (minimum of +1). The maximum skill bonus a character can have is +10. For example a level 4 character has a +1 skill bonus, while a level 21 character has a +5 skill bonus. The table below shows you the levels when your skill bonus increases.

Skills, Tools, and Knowledges

Every skill in the game is associated with a primary ability, e.g. athletics and Strength ability, deception with Presence ability, etc. The association between a skill and ability reflect the most common uses of the skill.

When you want to use a skill, the storyteller will call for an ability check and tell you what ability to use with your skill, e.g. Strength (Athletics) for leaping from the roof of one building to the next. In some cases, a storyteller might also ask for an ability that isn’t typically used with the skill, e.g. Vitality (Athletics) to hold your breath for a long period of time.

In addition to skills, characters may also have knowledge about certain topics or proficiency with tools.

Skills

Skills are areas of training that apply to more specific tasks and are associated with a primary ability. The following list presents the skills and the abilities that they are primarily related to.

An ability check with a skill can use an ability other than its primary ability, for example if a character wishes to intimidate another creature in a show of strength the storyteller might ask for a Strength (Intimidate) check instead of the standard Presence (Intimidate) check.

• Strength: Athletics
• Agility: Acrobatics, Sleight of Hand, Stealth
• Vitality: Endurance
• Mind: Awareness, Investigation, Insight, Survival
• Spirit: Resonance
• Presence: Deception, Intimidation, Performance, Persuasion

Acrobatics

Your Agility (Acrobatics) check is a measure of your coordination and balance, such as when you are attempting to keep your footing on unsteady ground. In addition, an Agility (Acrobatics) check might be called for when you dive, roll, or perform any other acrobatic stunt.

Athletics

Your Strength (Athletics) check can be used to determine the result of actions such as: climbing, jumping, running, swimming, throwing and other activities tied to physical skill. You might make an Strength (Athletics) check when:

• You are trying to scale the face of a mountain, either with or without climbing equipment.
• You are making a jump across a longer-than-normal distance, such as from one rooftop to another.
• You are attempting to swim or stay afloat in turbulent waters or when your movement is otherwise hampered in the water.
• You are trying to accurately throw an object to another character, for example when passing a ball to another player in a sports game.

Awareness

Your Mind (Awareness) check is used to perceive your surroundings and is a measure of your alertness and your senses. You might use make a Mind (Awareness) check to eavesdrop on a conversation, observe a detail, or locate a hidden creature.

Deception

Your Presence (Deception) check is your ability to conceal the truth. These deceptions may be anything from mislead others by making ambiguous statements, omitting facts, or with outright lies. You might make a Presence (Deception) check when: gambling, trying to disguise yourself, make a bluff, or fast-talk your way out of a situation.

Endurance

Your Vitality (Endurance) check is a measure of your physical capacity and stamina. The storyteller might ask for a Vitality (Endurance) check after you’ve been traveling non-stop for several days or when you are in a high-intensity foot chase to see if you have the stamina to continue pursuing your quarry.

Investigation

Your Mind (Investigation) check is used to search for information and when trying to find something concealed or hidden in an area through careful examination and inspection. Your investigation skill also is used when you are trying to find clues and when analyzing clues you’ve already found. You might make a Mind (Investigation) check when you are looking for information in an ancient text, searching for a secret door, or trying to identify a strutural weakness.

Insight

Your Mind (Insight) check represents your ability to read another creature and to determine their motives and intentions often through non-verbal clues. You might do this by reading a creature’s body language, such observing a change in their mannerisms or by analyizing their speech habits. You might also have a sensistivity to another creature’s emotions, gleaning information from via a form of empathy.

Intimidation

Your Presence (Intimidation) check is a measure of your ability to influence another creature using threats, showing hostility, or through violence. Using force to extract information from a prisoner or brandishing a weapon to show you’re serious are examples of using intimidation.

Performance

Your Presence (Performance) check represents your ability to sing, dance, act, tell stories, adhere to proper etiquette, make speeches, or other forms of entertainment and presentation.

Persuasion

Your Presence (Persuasion) checks determine how effective you are at influencing one or more people through subtle measures. The storyteller might ask for a Presence (Persuasion) check when you want to coerce assistance by fostering amicable relationships, sway a decision by making an appeal, inspire a group to action, or when you are attempting to win someone’s affection.

Resonance

Your Spirit (Resonance) check is a measure of your sensistivity to magical or unnatural phenomena.

Sleight of Hand

Your Agility (Sleight of Hand) check is an act of legerdemain or manual dexterity—often relying on trickery. The storyteller might ask for an Agility (Sleight of Hand) check when you attempt to pick another person’s pocket, conceal an object you are carrying, or when you attempt to covertly plant an object or pass one to another creature.

Stealth

Your Agility (Stealth) check represents your ability to hide and otherwise conceal yourself from detection. A storyteller might ask for an Agility (Stealth) check when you attempt to hide in the shadows, sneak past a dozing guard, or remain quiet while an enemy is searching for you.

Survival

Your Mind (Survival) check determines how well you can manage in the wilderness including: finding and following tracks, hunting wild game, or navigating treacherous environments.

Knowledges

A character might have familiarity with a variety of topics: arcana, history, medicine, nature, religion, technology, etc. If you have knowledge on a particular subject you can use an ability check to recall useful information or to recognize something related to the field. The ability check will usually use your Mind ability. For example, if attempting to recall a particular historical fact the storyteller might ask you to make a Mind (Knowledge, History) check.

Depending on your origin and experience, you may have knowledge in one or more topics. Common knowledges are:

Arcana. The study and knowledge of magic, magic-related lore, and other magical phenomena. You have some knowledge of extraplanar spaces.

Dungeoneering. You have familiarity with the field of dungeoneering, including navigating complex labyrinthine structures and winding caverns, in addition you can spot hazards common to dungeons. You may also have esoteric knowledge about specific dungeons, ruins, undergroung settings, and similar locales.

History. You have knowledge related to the history of a particular region. You know about significant historical events of an area and can explain their causes. The information at your disposal might include, but is not limited to: important leaders, celebrities, customs, traditions, laws, legends, and wars (both past and present).

Medicine. You have a working knowledge of field medicine and can use this to diagnose illness, treat wounds, and to stabilize dying creatures. Your knowledge may extend to more advanced practices such as surgery, pharmaceuticals, or other medical fields.

Nature. Your ability to recall facts about terrain, plants, animals, and natural phenomena is encoded in your knowledge of the natural world.

Religion. Your theological knowledge of religion represents your familiarity with the lore of a religion, its deities, prayers, and other rituals. In addition, you have an understanding of religious doctrine, typical religious hierarchies, and religious symbology. You may even specialize in a particular religion.

Technology. Your experience with technological devices is represented by this knowledge. You know the capabilities of different technologies, mechanical or otherwise. This knowledge may represent a fluency in engineering practices, generally-applicable skills, or an understanding of lost, forgotten, or alien-to-you technologies.

Tools

Tools allow you to perform some action that, without them, would otherwise be difficult or impossible. You can use tools to build or repair something, play music, disguise yourself or another creature, or forge documents; vehicles are also classified as tools. You might gain proficiency in tools from your chosen origin, jobs, or talents. If you are skilled with a tool, you add your skill bonus to any ability check you make with that tool. The storyteller determines what ability you should use when making an ability check with the tool.

Even if you do not have proficiency with a tool, you can still use it. All normal dice pool adjustments and roll modifiers are applied for unskilled tool usage.

Saving Throws

When your character is the target of an effect that would impede them or injure them, sometimes they are given the opportunity to resist against it. The act of resisting might be involuntary—as with the body’s ability to withstand poison or disease—or active—such as evading an explosion. When a character resists something they make a special check called a saving throw.

When you choose your character’s starting job you gain proficiency in two saving throws. Making a saving throw is the same as making any ability check, if you are skilled in a saving throw you add your skill bonus to the roll. If you are unskilled your dice pool is modified by −1D.

Talents

Medic

You are an able physician who is skilled in the art of dressing wounds and healing the injured. When you use tools with the [Healing] tag, you gain the following benefits:

• When you stabilize a dying creature, that creature also regains 1 health.
• During a short rest you can treat a number of wounds equal to the number of Stamina dice that a creature spends to regain health.

Tough

Your maximum health increases by an amount equal to twice your level when you choose this talent. For every level you gain after you gain this talent, your maximum health increases by +2. In addition, your Wound threshold equals three times your Vitality rank.

Chapter 5. Equipment

Resources

To simplify accounting in Polyhedral, character wealth is tracked as resources. Resources are an abstraction over how much money a character has, no matter whether the currency is in dollars, credits, gold, platinum, gems, or something else. Polyhedral instead focuses on a character’s resources and the relative cost of goods to a character’s buying power.

Every character has a Resources rank, which indicates the class of goods that a character can buy without endangering their lifestyle.

Pooling Resources

Characters can pool their resources to purchase more expensive goods. If two or more characters in the same lifestyle class (e.g. modest or comfortable) pool their resources their pooled Resource rank is considered to be equal to the highest rank in the pool +1 for every other character contributing to the pool.

For example if three characters with Resource ranks Modest (3), Modest (3) and Modest (4) pool their resources: their pooled rank is Comfortable (6). Starting from the character with Modest (4) and increasing by +2 ranks from the two Modest (3) characters.

The storyteller has final decision on how many expensive items you may purchase with your pooled resources.

Spending Beyond Your Means

Sometimes you don’t have the luxury of pooling your resources, but you still need to make a purchase that is beyond your normal spending power. You can spend resources beyond your normal means, when you do this you gain access to goods one lifestyle level higher than your current level. After making your purchase, your Resources rank is temporarily reduced by 1 (minimum of 0). Your resources remain reduced until you complete an adventure or you take downtime activity to restore your reduced resources.

For example, a character with a Modest (3) resources wants to buy an item that is available to characters living a Comfortable-or-better lifestyle. The character overextends themselves to gain access to the item in this class of goods, after the purchase is made their Resources rank is temporarily reduced by 1 to Poor (2).

Changes to your Resources Rank

Between adventures, during downtime, you can spend time trying to improve your lifestyle. You can do this by practicing a profession or by taking risks, like gambling. Not all activities result in an increase to your Resources rank. In addition, the results of your adventures may also impact your Resources rank. The storyteller has final say on how your efforts, both during and between adventures, might change your Resources rank.

Optional Rule: Using Currencies

If you really want to use currency in your game, go for it! We anticipate that some players like amassing wealth and keeping track of a ledger for their character. To this extent, there is an appendix for the equipment listed in this chapter that supplies suggested costs by genre.

Armor and Shields

FANTASY ARMOR AND SHIELDS

Weapons

Every weapon in Polyhedral, regardless of the game’s genre, has the same characteristics: cost, damage, and properties.

The damage that a weapon does has both a damage dice (e.g. 1d6) and a damage type (e.g. slashing) component. This forms the basis for understanding how much damage a weapon can deal when it is used to attack a creature.

Weapons also have properties that attribute certain traits to a weapon, such as light, ranged, two-handed, etc. A list of properties can be found below.

Weapon Properties

Ammunition. Each time you make an attack with a weapon that uses ammunition, you expend one piece of ammunition. Drawing ammunition, loading, and making the attack with the weapon are all part of your attack if you are proficient with the weapon. Depending on the ammunition, at the end of battle, you may be able to recover some of your expended ammunition by taking 10 minutes to search the battlefield. the weapon is part of your attack action A weapon that uses ammunition

Finesse. When you make an attack with a finesse weapon you can choose to use either your Strength or your Agility modifier when determining your bonus to attack and damage rolls. You must use the same modifier for both rolls.

Firearm. A type of ranged weapon that fires projectiles using mechanical or magical principles. When a creature takes damage from a firearm, they suffer at least 1 wound. On a critical hit, the target becomes wounded.

Light. A light weapon is small and can be used at the same time as another one-handed weapon. For more details see the rules on two-weapon fighting.

Loading. Because this weapon requires time to load, you can fire only one piece of ammunition from it when you make an attack with it using an action, bonus action, or reaction, regardless of the number of attacks you can normally make.

Ranged. When you make an attack with a ranged weapon, you use your Agility modifier to determine your bonus to attack and damage rolls. A ranged weapon has two ranges: the first is the weapon’s normal range in feet, while the second is the weapon’s long range. You cannot attack a target beyond a weapon’s long range.

Reach. A reach weapon adds the number of feet indicated in the parenthesis to your reach when you attack with it. This property applies to all attacks, inluding opportunity attacks.

Special. This weapon has a special rules explained further in the weapon’s description.

Thrown. A weapon with the thrown property may be use to make a ranged attack by throwing the weapon. A thrown weapon uses your Strength modifier when determining your bonus to attack and damage rolls. A thrown weapon has two ranges: the first is the weapon’s normal range in feet, while the second is the weapon’s long range. You cannot attack a target beyond a weapon’s long range.

Two-Handed. Attacking with a two-handed weapon requires two hands, you cannot wield another weapon or wear a shield when you are wielding a two-handed weapon in combat.

Versatile. When you make an attack with a versatile weapon, you can wield the weapon either one-handed or two-handed. If wielded with two hands, the weapon deals the damage indicated in parenthesis. For example a quarterstaff deals 1d6 bludgeoning damage if wielded one-handed, but when wielded with two hands it deals 1d8 bludgeoning damage.

FANTASY WEAPONS

Chapter 7. Playing the Game

Game Structure

A scene is the basic unit of Polyhedral’s game structure. Scenes in Polyhedral are classified as either narrative scenes or action scenes. The way time and movement is handled for each scene is different.

Narrative scenes typically advance the story, while action scenes are commonly used to handle combat. However, any scenario that would benefit from tracking the actions of actors in a more granular way can be handled as an action scene, for example a chase through a city’s back alleyways or the elaborately planned heist that requires precision and coordination between all members of the team.

During the course of a game you will switch between narrative and action scenes as the story progresses and the adventure unfolds.

Initiative Order

In an action scene it is important to understand the order in which characters and creatures will act. When the characters enter into an action scene, the storyteller will ask them to roll their Initiative. The initiative order, or initiative, is what determines the order of action in the scene. Actors with a higher initiative go sooner than those with lower initiatives.

Every participant in an action scene rolls 3D + their Agility modifier. The result of this roll determines when an actor will take their turn during the action scene. If two or more actors have the same initiative roll, the one with the higher Agility rank goes first. If there is still a tie, the tied actors can roll their Initiative again to determine who goes first among them.

Time

A large part of the game is spent in narrative scenes. In a narrative scene, time tracking will often be rough. Typically only important or noteworthy events will be described during narrative time. For example, if a character wants to go to the market to purchase some tools and equipment for an upcoming adventure the storyteller may say: “After an hour or two you acquire the equipment you were looking for without any trouble and return to the group.”

During an action scene, time is tracked more carefully. Action scenes are divided into rounds and turns. Each round is 6 seconds long, or one-tenth of a minute. During a round every actor gets a turn and acts in the Initiative order determined at the start of the action scene. Once everyone has acted the round ends and a new one begins.

Movement

Like time, movement is tracked differently in the context of a narrative scene as compared to an action scene.

Narrative movement can be summarized by the storyteller without necessarily providing precise distances or calculating the amount of time that has passed while traveling. Sometimes it is important to know how long it will take to get from one location to another or how far the characters have travelled. In these cases, the storyteller considers the speed of the creatures traveling and the terrain that they are traversing.

In action scenes movement is often more precise, sometimes measuring the distance a character can travel in 5 feet increments.

Speed

Every creature, including characters, has a speed in Polyhedral. A creature’s speed is measured in feet and represents the number of feet that the creature can walk in 1 round.

Travel Speed

Used in narrative scenes, a creature’s travel speed is a rough calculation of how much distance it can travel in 10 minutes, an hour, or over the course of a normal day. The pace at which characters move has an impact on how aware they are of their surroundings as well as what they can do while traveling.

The approximate distances that a character can travel overland on foot, based on their pace, is shown in the table below:

Riding mounts, driving vehicles, or other special modes of transportation allow characters to travel more quickly. The rules for these alternative methods of travel contain more information on the distance that they can cover in a given period of time.

Hindered Movement

The distance you can travel in both narrative and action scenes assumes that the terrain is easily navigable: flatlands, roads, open plains, unobstructed passages, etc. Unfortunately not every landscape is so friendly. Difficult terrain such as thick forests, obstacle-ridden paths, steep and hard to navigate mountains often impede a creature’s movement. Injury or disease can also slow you down. When your speed is interfered with by these or similar situations, you are hindered (see Appendix A: Conditions.

When hindered you move at half your speed. In an action scene, 1 foot of movement while hindered costs 2 feet of your speed. For narrative scenes where travel is involved, you are only able to cover half the normal distance in a given period of time.

Actions

Whether they are in or out of combat characters and other creatures can take actions to interact with the world. In a narrative scene, these actions usually take the form of ability checks using skills, in combat the most common action is the attack action. This section presents the most common actions that are taken by characters and creatures.

You can always use your turn to perform an action that uses an ability such as using one of your skills, tools, or applying your knowledge. In addition as you advance in a job, gain talents, or acquire special items you will gain additional actions that can be taken.

Free Interactions

As part of your movement or any action you take, you can freely interact with your equipment and the environment around you. For example, at the start of combat when a character moves and makes an attack with their sword they draw it from its sheath first before swinging it. The act of drawing the sword happens as part of the character’s movemnet or the Attack action they take, they do not need to declare a separate action to draw the weapon.

Generally speaking, characters can interact freely with their surroundings once each turn assuming the interaction does not require concerted effort. Opening an unlocked door as you move, severing a rope securing a chandalier, and knocking over random objects as you run through a crowded bazaar are all examples of free interactions. If you wish to interact with more than one object or the object in the environment requires more effort, you must take the Use an Object action. The storyteller has final say on whether or not you can freely interact with an object.

Attack

In combat, the most common action taken is the Attack action. When you take the Attack action you make one melee or ranged attack. See “Making an Attack” in Chapter: Combat for the rules around making an attack.

Some features allow you to make more than one attack when you take the Attack action, such as the Extra Attack feature.

Cast a Spell

You use your action to cast a spell. Every spell has a casting time associated with it, you can use your action to cast any spell with a casting time of 1 action. If a spell has a casting time of 1 bonus action you must use your bonus action to cast the spell.

On your turn you can cast two spells if one of those spells has a casting time of 1 action and the other has a casting time of 1 bonus action, if and only if, one of the spells being cast is a cantrip; these spells can be cast in any order.

For more details on using magic and casting spells, see Chapter: Magic.

Dash

When you take the Dash action you use your action to double your movement speed for the turn.

Defend

When you take the Defend action, you spend your turn focusing on blocking and evading attacks. Until the start of your next turn, any attack roll made against you has disadvantage provided that you can see the attacker. In addition, you make Agility saving throws with advantage. If you are slowed, incapacitated, or your speed is reduced to 0, you lose this benefit.

Disengage

By taking the Disengage action, until the end of your turn, your movement no longer provokes attacks of opportunity from other creatures.

Grapple

You can use your action to attempt to grapple, pin, or hold another creature preventing them from moving on their turn. When you attempt to grapple a target, make a Strength (Athletics) check opposed by a target’s Agility (Acrobatics) or Strength (Athletics) check. If you succeed, the target is grappled (see: Appendix A: Conditions).

Help

When you use your action to aid another creature, you can do one of the following:

Assist on an ability check. Choose a skill that you are proficient in and a creature who can see or hear you. That creature has advantage on the next ability check it makes with the chosen skill. To give this assistance, you must be near enough to the creature to provide verbal or physical aid when the creature makes the check. The storyteller decides whether or not it is possible for you to assist another creature.

Assist on an attack roll. By momentarily distracting a target within 5 feet of you, you grant advantage to the next creature that attacks the target before the start of your next turn.

Hide

When you take the hide action you conceal yourself from other creatures. While you are in a lightly or heavily obscured environment, behind three-quarters cover, or behind total cover you can use your action to hide. You cannot hide from a creature if you are visible to it, or its allies; if the creature you are trying to hide from is in your line of sight, then you are visible to it. To hide, make a difficulty 15 Agility (Stealth) check. On a success, you are hidden and the result of your check becomes the difficulty for a creature to find you with a Mind (Awareness) check.

You give away your position and cease being hidden if you make a sound louder than a whisper, you are discovered, you use your action to make an attack or cast a spell, when you are no longer heavily obscured, or when you are no longer behind cover.

Push, Pull, or Shove

When you take the push, pull, or shove action you are attempting to move another creature or object that is resisting that movement. The resistance may be intentional, as with an adversary trying to keep his or her balance or it may be involuntary, such as when an ally is stuck and you are attempting to pull them through a space that is too small for them. In some cases, the resistance is simply the weight of the object, as with a large statue or wagon which you are trying to use as a barricade.

Pushing, Pulling, or Shoving a Creature. If you attempt to push, pull, or shove a creature you must make a Strength (Athletics) check opposed by the creature’s Strength (Athletics) or Agility (Acrobatics). If you win the opposed check, you are successful at moving the other creature. You are able to push or pull a creature up to 10 feet when you take this action. If you used the shove action the creature falls prone (see Appendix A: Conditions).

Pushing, Pulling, or Shoving Objects. If you attempt to push, pull, or shove a particularly large or heavy object the storyteller determines the difficulty of the task and you make a Strength (Athletics) check against that difficulty. If you succeed you are able to push, pull or knock over the object with a shove. Pushing or pulling an object in this manner allows you to move it as part of your move, however when doing so your movement speed is halved just as it would be if you were navigating difficult terrain. If you took the shove action the object falls over, possibly breaking as a result.

Ready

By taking the ready action you choose not to act on your turn and instead declare what action you will take when a triggering event occurs. If the triggering event occurs, you use your reaction to respond to it.

As part of readying an action, you can also reserve any speed you have not already used to move as part of executing your readied action.

Search

If you cannot see a creature because it is hidden, invisible, or for any other reason you can spend your action attempting to search for it. When you search for a creature make a Mind (Awareness) check by against the creature’s Stealth. If you equal or exceed the creature’s Stealth you find it and it is no longer hidden.

Use an Object

When an object requires more effort to use and you can’t use your free interaction to perform the task, such as winding a heavy rope around a counterweight, you can take the Use and Object action. You can also use this action when you want to interact with more than one object in an environment on your turn.

Resolve

Resolve is your character’s mastery over themselves, their environment, and their own destiny. It is the manifestation of a character’s force of will, either through effort or sheer luck. Your character begins play at 1st level with a Resolve equal to your Spirit modifier (minimum of 1).

You gain an additional point of Resolve every 10 levels, e.g. at 10th level, 20th level, 30th level, etc.

You can use your character’s resolve to modify ability checks, attack rolls, saving throws, and any other roll of the dice. You can also use your resolve to gain an extra turn during combat or to influence the events of the story by invoking one of your character’s aspects.

Spending Resolve

You can spend resolve to affect any check you make or to use it to assert a modicum of control over the story. When you spend a resolve, you can do one of the following:

• You gain +1D an ability check, attack roll, or saving throw you make. You can roll this additional die even after you’ve made the roll and know the result.
• You can nudge the result of any check, including those made by others, by +/−2
• At any point during combat you can immediately take an extra turn.
• When you fail a death saving throw you can spend a resolve to instead turn the failure into two successes.
• Whenever you’re in a situation where one of your character’s aspects or relationships might be applicable, you can influence the story in some way by declaring a story element, such as: introducing an NPC, acquiring a clue, or defining a relationship between your character and an NPC. There are a number of ways to invoke your character’s aspects, described in more detail below (see: Declaring a Story Detail).

Whenever you choose to invoke one of your aspects you should explain or justify how it is helpful in the situation in order to get the benefit of invoking it. Usually this is self-evident, sometimes it might require creativity on your part.

You cannot invoke an aspect more than once on a single roll.

The storyteller might apply additional restrictions or allow for other creative ways of spending resolve during a scene. Sometimes it may be necessary to spend 2 or more points of resolve to achieve a desired outcome. For example a storyteller might allow you to spend two resolve to turn a normal hit into a critical hit, or to turn an enemy’s critical hit into a normal one.

Declaring a Story Detail

A character’s defined aspects can be used to add a detail to the story that works in their character’s favor. By spending resolve and selecting one of your aspects, you can alter the story by introducing an element to it. For example, you might use an aspect to declare that you previously met the tomboy princess in a crowded market while she was disguised as a commoner and that before you and your companions are sentenced to imprisonment after being falsely accused she recognizes you and intervenes on your behalf.

To do this, you inform the storyteller that you would like to invoke one of your aspects by spending your resolve. You should justify your story details with the storyteller. A storyteller can decline the proposed invocation of your aspect if it doesn’t seem to fit with your character or fit with the current circumstance in the scene. Sometimes, the storyteller might ask you to revise the story detail before accepting it. A resolve is only spent if the storyteller accepts your proposed story detail.

Regaining Resolve

Between adventures, you can regain any previously spent spent resolve. A storyteller can also choose to restore your resolve depending on your actions during a session or at the end of a chapter in a story.

In addition to the above, the storyteller can compel your character to act according to their personality trait, bond, flaw, ideal, disposition or other aspects. A storyteller might do this to make the world respond to your character, complicate a situation for them, or create unexpected drama.

When one of your aspects is compelled, you must either agree to accept the compulsion, regaining a resolve for your trouble, or to spend a resolve to ignore the compulsion. If you have all of your resolve, you may prevent a compulsion from happening without spending and losing any resolve. If you have no resolve remaining, you must agree to the compulsion.

A compulsion might result in:

• An automatic failure.
• Your choices in how to respond to a situation becoming restricted.
• Unintended consequences result from whatever your character does.

You may negotiate with your storyteller about the details and result of accepting the compel, to arrive at an appropriate and dramatic moment. Ultimately, the storyteller has final say on whether or not to compel a character and how the compulsion manifests.

Players and Compelling Aspects

Normally, storytellers decide when to call for compulsions. Players might suggest a character, either theirs or another, be compelled but the decision lies with the storyteller.

As a storyteller however, you can decide to give your players slightly more influence in the game by allowing them to compel each other’s characters. This can create a fun dynamic in some groups, but it is not for everyone. Before giving this power to your players, it is recommended that you discuss it with the group first.

Explation

Vision and Light

In exploration and when characters find themselves in precarious situations, like combat, it becomes important to notice signs of danger. Many actions rely on your ability to see and darkness or other effects that obscure your vision can be a hinderance.

Most creatures can see normally in areas of bright light, such as outside during the daylight. Illumination from torches, lanterns, fires, and other sources cast bright light within a defined radius.

Shadows and other areas of dim light, create a lightly obscured area. The boundary between bright light and darkness is usually an area of dim light. The threshold of light at the dawn and twilight of the day also counts as dim light. A brightly lit night sky might also provide enough light to be considered dim light.

Darkness is the absence of any significant light sources. An area covered in darkness is heavily obscured. The dark of night typically casts an area in darkness, as do the corridors of an unlit dungeon or an underground cave. Magical and non-natural sources can also cover an area in darkness.

Visibility

A given area might be either lightly obscured or heavily obscured.

Lightly Obscured. In areas that are lightly obscured, creatures have disadvantage on Mind (Awareness) checks that involve sight. Examples of lightly obscured areas are: dimly light rooms, a light fog, or light-to-moderate foliage.

Heavily Obscured. In an area that is heavily obscured, creatures are considered blinded (see appendix A). Darkness, a thick fog, or dense foliage are examples of environments that block vision completely.

Resting

During the course of a day characters, as well as other creatures, periodically take a rest. A rest is a period of time where the character or creature limits its activity. Characters can take any number of short rests throughout the day, ending their day with a long rest.

Short Rest

When you spend at least 1 hour resting, you gain the following benefits at the end of the rest:

Recover Health. You can spend one or more Stamina Die, up to your maximum number of Stamina Dice, to recover health. For each Stamina Die spent, roll a D6 and add your Vitality modifier to it. You regain health equal to the total (minimum of 1). After each Stamina Die is rolled, you can decide whether or not to spend additional Stamina Dice.

Treat Wounds. You can dress a creature’s wounds, including your own. Choose one creature, you reduce the number of wounds on that creature by 1.

Long Rest

You end your day by taking a long rest, requiring at least 8 hours of nothing more than light activity. You can’t benefit from more than one long rest in a 24-hour period. A character that is dead or dying cannot benefit from a long rest, it must be stabilized first (i.e. it must have at least 1 health).

During a long rest, characters usually sleep for at leasy 6 hours. If the long rest is interrupted by strenuous activity such as one or more hours of walking, fighting, casting magic, or similar activities the long rest must be restarted from the beginning to gain any benefit from it. At the end of a long rest, you gain the following benefits:

Recover Health. You regain all lost health.

Regain Stamina Dice. You regain spent Stamina Dice, up to a a number of dice equal to half your character’s level (minimum 1).

Downtime

In addition to short and long rests that are taken throughout an adventure, characters can take downtime between adventures. This extended period of rest can be used to recuperate and prepare for the next adventure, but it can also be used to spend time performing other tasks such as: running a business, crafting items, performing research, training, or simply relaxing.

At the end of an adventure, the storyteller may award characters with a number of days of downtime. Alternatively a storyteller may start the next adventure by stating that a certain amount of time has passed. In either case, the storyteller should allow characters the opportunity to declare how they spent their downtime before the start of the next adventure.

Downtime Activities

Crafting

Practicing a Profession

Recovery

Researching

Training

Chapter 8. Combat and Conflict

The ring of steel-on-steel, the concussive blast from a cannon sounding above the din of battle, the clash of magical energies exploding. Combat can be brutal and bloody.

In the previous chapter, the structure of a Polyhedral game is discussed, combat almost always takes place in the context of an action scene. As with all actions, combat is resolved through a series of dice rolls, namely ability checks, attack rolls, and saving throws.

This chapter details the rules for combat in the Polyhedral game system, including:

• The sequence of combat, following the defined initiative order.
• More detailed explanation of making attacks, and using special actions
• Character injury, death, and dying as well as healing.

The Order of Combat

Combat encounters are chaotic melees between two or more groups. The clash of steel and the dance of adversaries as they feint, parry, and dodge fatal blows amid a rain of arrows and magic. The Polyhedral game organizes combat with an action scene into a cycle of rounds and turns.

Every round represents one-tenth of a minute, or 6 seconds in the course of the action scene.

A combat encounter follows these steps:

1. Determine surprise. The storyteller determines whether any combatants are surprised, if they are the combat begins with a surprise round.
2. Starting positions. The storyteller sets the stage of the battle and works with the players to detemine their characters’ positions. In addition, the storyteller figures out where the adversaries are in relation to the characters.
3. Roll initiative. Every actor involved in the combat rolls initiative to determine when they act in the combat.
4. Take turns. On each participant’s turn during the battle, they move and take actions including making attacks, defending, etc.
5. Begin the next round. After all participants have taken their turns, the current round ends and a new round begins. Repeat step 4 and 5 until the combat ends.

Surpise!

Bandits lying in wait on the side of a wooded highway to ambush merchants, and adventurers descending quietly behind enemy lines to spring an attack. These are just two examples of situations where one group might take another by surprise.

At the start of combat, the storyteller determines whether any combatants are surprised. If neither side is attempting to hide or be stealthy, both sides are aware of each other and there is no surprise round. Otherwise, the Agility (Stealth) check of the actors or the group that is hiding compared to the passive Mind (Awareness) score of other creatures. If a creature doesn’t notice the threat it is surprised. A member of a group can be surprised, even if its allies are not.

If you are surprised, you can’t move or take any action (including bonus actions and reactions) on or before your first turn in the combat.

Initiative

As discussed in the section on Game Structure, initiative is what determines the order of action in the scene, and that includes combat.

Every participant makes an Agility check to determine where in the order of initiative their turn will fall. The players roll for each of their characters and any creature they control while the storyteller makes the Agility check for the non-player characters and creatures. Usually the storyteller will roll for groups of identical creatures, such that each member of the group acts at the same time, but it is up to the storyteller to decide how they will roll initiative.

In the event that two or more creatures are tied for the same initiative, you can choose how to resolve it, here are a few approaches you might take, you can also mix approaches:

• Creatures with the highest Agility act first.
• Participants that are tied each roll another Agility check, with the highest roll going first among the tied creatures.
• Player-controlled characters have priority over storyteller-controlled creatures
• Players decide the order among one another if multiple player-controlled characters have same initiatives. Similarly, if multiple storyteller-controlled creatures have the same initiative, the storyteller decides the order for those creatures.

Taking Your Turn

On your turn you can do the following: move a distance up to your speed, take one action such as making an attack, defending, casting a spell, etc., and use one of your bonus actions.

Movement

On your turn you are able to move a distance equal to your speed.

You decide whether to move before, during, or after your action. Your movement and the position of enemies might obstruct your ability to take certain actions. See the section on Movement and Positioning below for more details.

Actions

You can take any action presented under Actions in Chapter 7, in addition to any actions you have available due to your features and talents.

The most common action that characters take in combat, however, is the attack action.

Bonus Actions

You may have an ability, from a job, spell, or another source that allows you to take a special action on your turn called a bonus action. You can take only one bonus action on your turn, in the event that you have access to more than one bonus action you must choose which you will use.

Unless a bonus action has specific requirements indicating when it can be taken, you choose when to take the bonus action. Anything that prevents you from taking actions also prevents you from using your bonus action.

Reactions

Under certain circumstances, or because of an ability that you have, you might have the opportunity to take a special action called a reaction. Unlike actions and bonus actions, reactions do not necessarily take place on your turn. A reaction is a response to a triggering event of some kind. The trigger might happen on your turn or on another actor’s turn.

Opportunity attacks, described later in this chapter, are a common reaction that all creatures can take.

When you use your reaction, you can’t take another reaction until the start of your next turn. If a reaction triggers on another creature’s turn, you can take your reaction and the creature who triggered the reaction continues their turn after the reaction is resolved.

Other Activities in Combat

In addition to the above, you can do the following on your turn:

• If you are capable of communicating, you are able to do so. You do this alongside the actions you are taking. Examples of this are speaking in short phrases, issuing single-word commands, and making gestures to your allies (or enemies!) alike.
• You can provide more detail to the actions that you are taking, embellishing them in such a way that effects neither the action you are taking or your movement.
• You can interact freely with one objetc or feature of the environment, as per the rules on Free Interactions in Chapter 7.

The storyteller may allow you to perform other activities as part of your turn, those along with the above may or may not require an action depending on the complexity or level of focus required for the action you are attempting.

Making an Attack

Attacking is one of the most common actions in combat. You can make attacks with melee weapons, ranged weapons, and spells. If you are ever unsure whether an action you are taking is considered an attack, the rules are simple: if the action calls for an attack roll the action is an attack.

When you attack another creature, whether it is with a weapon or some spells, you make an attack roll. All attacks follow the same structure:

1. Decide on the attack and choose a target. Choose what attack you are going to make and select a target within range. The target could be a creature, an object, or a location.
2. Determine situational modifiers. The storyteller will inform you whether or not you have an situational modifiers to your dice pool or your roll, including whether or not the target has cover, if you have advantage or disadvantage, etc.
3. Resolve the attack. When you hit with an attack you roll damage, unless the attack has special rules that say otherwise. Some attacks might cause special effects in addition to, or instead of, damage.

Attack Rolls

Your attack roll determines whether or not an attack you make hits or misses its target. To make an attack roll, roll 3D and add the appropriate modifiers including any dice pool modifiers such as advantage, disadvantage, etc. If the total of the roll plus modifiers is equal to or greater than the target’s armor rating, the attack hits. The armor rating of a character is dependent on their equipment and features, while the armor rating of a creature is listed in its stat block.

Melee and Ranged Attacks

Attacks fall into one of two categories: melee attacks and ranged attacks.

Melee Attacks

A melee attack occurs when you are making a close-quarters attack on another creature. There are three common types of melee attacks that you can make in the game:

Melee weapon attack. A melee weapon attack is made with weapons that are used to engage in hand-to-hand combat. Axes, swords, polearms, and whips are all examples of weapons that are used to make melee weapon attacks.

Unarmed strikes. Instead of using a weapon, you can use unarmed strikes: punches, kicks, etc. Unless otherwise noted, an unarmed strike does bludgeoning damage equal to your 1 + your Strength modifier (minimum 1).

Melee spell attack. Some spells also allow you to make melee attacks, usually specified as a melee spell attack.

Most creatures have a 5-foot reach, allowing them to attack targets within 5 feet of them. Some creatures (typically larger creatures) have greater reach, noted in descriptions of their actions, including attacks.

Ranged Attacks

Ranged attacks are made with projectile weapons that can target creatures further away and within a certain range. When a ranged attack has a single range increment, as with most spells, you can’t target a creature beyond the indicated range. If the ranged attack has two ranges, as with bows, thrown weapons, and firearms, the smaller of the two numbers is the weapon’s normal range and the larger number is the weapon’s long range. Attacks made against targets beyond the normal range of a weapon have disadvantage. You can’t attack a target beyond the long range of a weapon.

Your ranged attacks are made with disadvantage if they are made while you are within 5 feet of a creature that is hostile toward you and that creature can see you and isn’t incapacitated. This applies to both ranged weapon attacks and ranged spell attacks.

Opportunity Attacks

When a creature exposes itself, it opens itself up to an attack called an opportunity attack. If the creature is within your reach, you can use your reaction to make an opportunity attack.

You provoke an opportunity attack if you move away from a hostile creature without taking the Disengage action.

If a creature provokes an opportunity attack from you, you can use your reaction to make a single attack against the creature. You can only make one attack when you make an opportunity attack even if you have a feature that gives you additional attacks.

Rally

You can use your action to rally yourself, drawing on an inner reserve of strength and vigor. By doing so you gain all of the benefits of a short rest. After you’ve rallied yourself, you must complete a long rest before you can use this action again.

Hidden Attackers and Obscured Targets

If a combatant is hidden, because they have concealed themselves or because they are invisible, attack rolls made against it have disadvantage. If you make an attack against a location where you suspect the hidden creature to be, and it is not there, the attack automatically misses.

When you are hidden, you have advantage on attack rolls against creatures that cannot see you. If you make an attack while hidden, you give away your location regardless of whether you hit or miss with the attack.

Movement and Positioning

During combat your movement and position can be tracked using either a battle map or something more abstract. This section presents two options for handling movement and position in combat.

Breaking up your Movement

On your turn you can break up your movement. You can use some of your speed before and after you take an action or bonus action.

When you take an action that allows you to make more than one attack, you can also break up your movement between each attack.

Different Movement Speeds

If you have more than one movement speed, such as your normal speed and a fly speed, your effective speed is equal to the greater of the two speeds. On your turn, when you move, you may describe your movement as switching between the two modes of movement.

For example, if you have a fly speed of 60 feet in addition your standard ambulatory speed of 30 feet, your effective speed is 60 feet on your turn. When you move you can describe yourself as running before leaping into the air and continuing your movement in flight.

Moving Around Other Creatures

In combat you sometimes need to move through another creatures space. Moving through another creatures space is considered hindered movement for you. The rules for moving through the area that another creature is in or that it controls is as follows:

• You can move through the space occupied by nonhostile creatures.
• You can move through the space occupied by a hostile creature only if it is at least two size categories larger or smaller than you.
• You can’t willingly end your move in the space occupied by another creature.
• If you leave a creature’s reach at any point during your move, you immediately provoke an opportunity attack from the creature.

Tight Spaces

You can squeeze into a space that is large enough for a creature one size smaller than you, for example a large creature can, with some effort, fit through a door designed for a medium creature and a medium creature can squeeze itself through a hole that a small creature would have no trouble with. When you move into and through a tight space you are hindered and you have disadvantage on attack rolls as well as Agility saving throws. Attack rolls against you are made with advantage until you clear the smaller space.

Knocked Down

If you are knocked down or you have intentionally dropped to the ground you are considered prone, as described in Appendix A: Conditions.

If you are prone it costs half of your speed in movement to stand up. For example if your speed is 30 you must spend at least 15 feet of movement to stand up. You can’t stand up if you don’t have enough speed left or your speed is 0. While prone you can only move by crawling or use magic such as teleport. Crawling hinders your movement, as per the hindered condition.

On your turn you can drop prone without using any of your speed.

Using Battle Zones

For a more abstract representation of the field of battle, you can use battle zones. Each zone represents an area that actors can move within and between. For tight-quarters combat there may only be one zone, for combat in an open field where adversaries start far away from each other it may be typical to have 3 or 4 zones. Despite being more of an abstract representation of the battle, it can be useful to have a visual aid representing the zones of combat. You can use pieces of paper, index cards, whatever to represent the zones. If you have a miniature or a token you can place it on or adjacent to the zone you begin your turn in.

As a general rule, the area of each zone is considered to be about 30 feet. The size of a zone is meant to be abstract, but thinking about it in this way makes it easier to work with character speeds.

If you have a speed of 25 or more, you can move anywhere within the zone you begin your turn in, this allows you to close the distance with another creature in the same zone and make a melee attack against it ot to withdraw and make a ranged attack against any target in range. If your speed is 50 or more, you can move within the zone you begin your turn in as well as move into one adjacent zone. Using battle zones encourages characters to take the Dash action to change zone.

• If you are currently fighting one creature and change targets to a creature that is not described as being adjacent to you, this requires that you move and you provoke an opportunity attack from any creature you were fighting.
• If you use your movement to withdraw and make a ranged attack you provide an opportunity attack from any creature that is still near enough to make melee attacks on you.
• For ranged attacks, the storyteller has final say on whether or not a ranged attack can be made against targets in any zone. If the battle zones are adjacent to one another however, most ranged attacks should be possible against any participant in the battle.

Detached Zones

In large battlefields, one or more zones may be detached from the rest of the zones. In this scenario the distance between two detached zones is determined by the storyteller and if you are attempting to move from one zone to the other it may require several turns to do so. Detached zones may also have an impact on ranged attacks.

In some rare cases, the detached zone may not be accessible. The storyteller should tell you and the other players when a zone becomes inaccessible and the reason why, if the reason is evident. For example if two ships are fighting a pitched battle on the open seas, the zones representing each ship are inaccessible to participants in either zone so they resort to firing ranged weapons and using spells. You may be able to take actions that make an inaccessible zone accessible once again, such as steering the ship into the other ship effectively linking the two previously detached zones.

Using a Battle Grid

For groups that prefer a more tactical approach to combat, including using miniatures, you can use battelmaps. A battle map is usually divided into a grid with each square reepresenting 5 feet of distance. The players and storyteller place the tokens representing the combat participants on the battle map and on their turn they move in 5-foot increments across the grid and perform their actions.

Using a battle grid gives you a very accurate visual for where creatures are and allows you to think more tactically about the actions you take.

Cover

Cover provides bonuses to your Defense. You can only benefit from cover if an attack or effect originates on the opposite side of the object providing you cover. There are three levels of cover, if multiple sources provide cover only the source which provides the most protection applies.

• If an obstacle blocks at least half of a target’s body, it has half cover. When behind half cover, a target has a +2 bonus to their Defense rating and to Agility saving throws.
• Obstacles that obscure more than half of a creature but not all of it, provide three-quarters cover. A target has a +5 bonus to their Defense rating if it is behind three-quarters cover.
• If a creature has total cover, it can’t be targeted directly by attacks or spells.

Magic

Spells

Blinded

When a creature is blinded:

• It cannot see and automatically fail any and all ability checks that require vision.
• Attack rolls against it have advantage, and the blinded creature’s attacks are made with disadvantage.

Charmed

When a creature is charmed:

• It can’t attack or target the one who charmed it with harmful actions or abilities.
• The one who charmed it has advantage on ability checks to interact with the charmed creature.

Dazed

When a creature is dazed:

• It has disadvantage on Mind saving throws.

Deafened

When a creature is deafened:

• It cannot hear and it automatically fail ability checks that require hearing.

Exhausted

When a creature is exhausted:

• It has disadvantge on attack rolls.
• It has disadvantage on ability checks and saving throws.

Frightened

When a creature is frightened:

• It has disadvantage on ability checks and attack rolls if it can see the source of its fear.
• It can’t use its movement to move closer to the source of its fear.

Grappled

When a creature is grappled:

• Its speed becomes 0 and it cannot benefit from bonuses to speed.
• The condition ends if the grappler becomes incapacitated.
• The condition ends if the grappled creature is removed from the reach of the grappler or effect causing it to be grappled, such as when a creature is pulled away by an ally.

Incapacitated

When a creature is incapacitated:

• It can’t take actions, bonus actions, reactions, or move.

Hidden

When a creature is hidden:

• It is considered to be heavily obscured and cannot be targeted by effects that require line of sight.
• It has advantage on initiative rolls.
• Attack rolls against it have disadvantage, and the creature’s attack rolls have advantage.

Hindered

When a creature is hindered:

• Every 1 foot of movement costs 2 feet of your speed.

Paralyed

When a creature is paralyzed:

• It is incapacitated and it can’t move or speak.
• It automatically fails Strength and Agility saving throws.
• Attack rolls against it have advantage.
• Attacks that hit are critical hits if the attack was made within 5 feet of the creature.

Petrified

A petrified creature and all nonmagical equipment it is wearing or carrying is transformed into stone or a stone-like substance. When a creature is petrified:

• It is incapacitated, can’t move or speak, and is unaware of its surroundings.
• It automatically fails Strength and Agility saving throws.
• Attack rolls against it have advantage.
• It ceases aging.
• It has resistance to all damage.
• It is immune to poison and disease; any poison or disease already in the petrified creature’s system remains but their effects are inactive.

Poisoned

When a creature is poisoned:

• It has disadvantage on attack rolls and ability checks.

Prone

When a creature is prone:

• It has disadvantage on attack rolls.
• Attack rolls against it have advantage if the attacker is within 5 feet of the prone creature. Otherwise, attack rolls have disadvantage.
• It can only move by crawling.
• It can use half its movement to stand up, ending the prone condition.

Restrained

When a creature is restrained:

• Its speed becomes 0 and it cannot benefit from bonuses to speed.
• It has disadvantage on Agility saving throws
• Attack rolls against it have advantage, and the restrained creature’s attack rolls are made with disadvantage.

Slowed

When a creature is slowed:

• Its speed is halved.
• It can use either an action or a bonus action on its turn, but not both.
• It can’t use reactions.
• It can’t make more than one melee or ranged attack on its turn if it takes the Attack action, regardless of its abilities.
• It has disadvantage on Agility ability checks and Agility saving throws.

Stunned

When a creature is stunned:

• It is incapacitated, can’t move, and has limited capability of speech.
• It automatically fails Strength and Agility saving throws.
• Attack rolls against it have advantage.

Unconscious

When a creature is unconscious:

• It is incapacitated, can’t move or speak, and is unaware of its surroundings.
• It drops whatever it is holding and falls prone.
• It automatically fails Strength and Agility saving throws.
• Attack rolls against it have advantage.
• Attacks that hit are critical hits if the attack was made within 5 feet of the creature.

Weakened

When a creature is weakened:

• Its melee attack rolls are made with disadvantage.
• It has disadvantage on Strength ability checks and Strength saving throws.

Wounded

When a creature is wounded:

• Healing is less effective, while wounded creature recovers half the amount of health it would normally from any source of healing.
• It takes a −1 penalty to ability checks, attack rolls, and saving throws for each wound it has suffered.
• It takes a −1 penalty to its Spell save difficulty for any spell it casts.
• It dies if it has 10 or more wounds.
• The condition ends if its number of wounds is reduced to 0.

Converting to Polyhedral

• Converting from D&D 5th Edition

Appendix: For Game Designers

Games built on Polyhedral should use the same language when presenting game mechanics, rules, etc. This allows for a coherent, and cohesive, presentation of the Polyhedral-based games. By using the same language it becomes easier for players and storytellers alike to understand the rules and makes it easier to address confusion in the rules.

Below are examples of how the rules are written in Polyhedral’s core and it is recommended that you follow a similar style. With that being said, you may find it necessary to present a rule or a mechanic using different language. In this event prefer simplicity and ease of understanding over complexity.

Ability Checks using Skills

When presenting an ability check that uses a skill, such as the Athletics skill and Strength, use the format: Ability Name (Skill Name), e.g. Strength (Athletics).

When to use “Ranks”

A character’s advancement, overall, is their “level”. However advancement in a particular area: job, abilities, skills, etc. should be denoted as “ranks”. Examples of the usage of ranks in the game:

• Ability ranks
• Skill ranks
• Job ranks

X. Indicating Advantage and Disadvantage

Uncoditional Advantage/Disadvantage

You have [advantage|disadvantage] on [CHECK_NAME] checks.

You have advantage on [checks] against [...]

When you make a [MELEE|RANGED] [WEAPON] attack, you gain

Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International Public License

By exercising the Licensed Rights (defined below), You accept and agree to be bound by the terms and conditions of this Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International Public License (“Public License”). To the extent this Public License may be interpreted as a contract, You are granted the Licensed Rights in consideration of Your acceptance of these terms and conditions, and the Licensor grants You such rights in consideration of benefits the Licensor receives from making the Licensed Material available under these terms and conditions.

Section 1 – Definitions.

1. Adapted Material means material subject to Copyright and Similar Rights that is derived from or based upon the Licensed Material and in which the Licensed Material is translated, altered, arranged, transformed, or otherwise modified in a manner requiring permission under the Copyright and Similar Rights held by the Licensor. For purposes of this Public License, where the Licensed Material is a musical work, performance, or sound recording, Adapted Material is always produced where the Licensed Material is synched in timed relation with a moving image.
2. Adapter's License means the license You apply to Your Copyright and Similar Rights in Your contributions to Adapted Material in accordance with the terms and conditions of this Public License.
3. Copyright and Similar Rights means copyright and/or similar rights closely related to copyright including, without limitation, performance, broadcast, sound recording, and Sui Generis Database Rights, without regard to how the rights are labeled or categorized. For purposes of this Public License, the rights specified in Section 2(b)(1)-(2) are not Copyright and Similar Rights.
4. Effective Technological Measures means those measures that, in the absence of proper authority, may not be circumvented under laws fulfilling obligations under Article 11 of the WIPO Copyright Treaty adopted on December 20, 1996, and/or similar international agreements.
5. Exceptions and Limitations means fair use, fair dealing, and/or any other exception or limitation to Copyright and Similar Rights that applies to Your use of the Licensed Material.
6. Licensed Material means the artistic or literary work, database, or other material to which the Licensor applied this Public License.
7. Licensed Rights means the rights granted to You subject to the terms and conditions of this Public License, which are limited to all Copyright and Similar Rights that apply to Your use of the Licensed Material and that the Licensor has authority to license.
8. Licensor means the individual(s) or entity(ies) granting rights under this Public License.
9. Share means to provide material to the public by any means or process that requires permission under the Licensed Rights, such as reproduction, public display, public performance, distribution, dissemination, communication, or importation, and to make material available to the public including in ways that members of the public may access the material from a place and at a time individually chosen by them.
10. Sui Generis Database Rights means rights other than copyright resulting from Directive 96/9/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 March 1996 on the legal protection of databases, as amended and/or succeeded, as well as other essentially equivalent rights anywhere in the world.
11. You means the individual or entity exercising the Licensed Rights under this Public License. Your has a corresponding meaning.

Section 2 – Scope.

a. License grant.

1. Subject to the terms and conditions of this Public License, the Licensor hereby grants You a worldwide, royalty-free, non-sublicensable, non-exclusive, irrevocable license to exercise the Licensed Rights in the Licensed Material to:

   a. reproduce and Share the Licensed Material, in whole or in part; and

   b. produce, reproduce, and Share Adapted Material.

2. Exceptions and Limitations. For the avoidance of doubt, where Exceptions and Limitations apply to Your use, this Public License does not apply, and You do not need to comply with its terms and conditions.

3. Term. The term of this Public License is specified in Section 6(a).

4. Media and formats; technical modifications allowed. The Licensor authorizes You to exercise the Licensed Rights in all media and formats whether now known or hereafter created, and to make technical modifications necessary to do so. The Licensor waives and/or agrees not to assert any right or authority to forbid You from making technical modifications necessary to exercise the Licensed Rights, including technical modifications necessary to circumvent Effective Technological Measures. For purposes of this Public License, simply making modifications authorized by this Section 2(a) (4) never produces Adapted Material.

5. Downstream recipients.

   a. Offer from the Licensor – Licensed Material. Every recipient of the Licensed Material automatically receives an offer from the Licensor to exercise the Licensed Rights under the terms and conditions of this Public License.

   b. No downstream restrictions. You may not offer or impose any additional or different terms or conditions on, or apply any Effective Technological Measures to, the Licensed Material if doing so restricts exercise of the Licensed Rights by any recipient of the Licensed Material.

6. No endorsement. Nothing in this Public License constitutes or may be construed as permission to assert or imply that You are, or that Your use of the Licensed Material is, connected with, or sponsored, endorsed, or granted official status by, the Licensor or others designated to receive attribution as provided in Section 3(a)(1)(A)(i).

b. Other rights.

1. Moral rights, such as the right of integrity, are not licensed under this Public License, nor are publicity, privacy, and/or other similar personality rights; however, to the extent possible, the Licensor waives and/or agrees not to assert any such rights held by the Licensor to the limited extent necessary to allow You to exercise the Licensed Rights, but not otherwise.

2. Patent and trademark rights are not licensed under this Public License.

3. To the extent possible, the Licensor waives any right to collect royalties from You for the exercise of the Licensed Rights, whether directly or through a collecting society under any voluntary or waivable statutory or compulsory licensing scheme. In all other cases the Licensor expressly reserves any right to collect such royalties.

Section 3 – License Conditions.

Your exercise of the Licensed Rights is expressly made subject to the following conditions.

a. Attribution.

1. If You Share the Licensed Material (including in modified form), You must:

   a. retain the following if it is supplied by the Licensor with the Licensed Material:

        i. identification of the creator(s) of the Licensed
        Material and any others designated to receive
        attribution, in any reasonable manner requested by
        the Licensor (including by pseudonym if
        designated);
   
    ii. a copyright notice;
   
    iii. a notice that refers to this Public License;
   
    iv. a notice that refers to the disclaimer of
        warranties;
   
        v. a URI or hyperlink to the Licensed Material to the
        extent reasonably practicable;
   

   b. indicate if You modified the Licensed Material and retain an indication of any previous modifications; and

   c. indicate the Licensed Material is licensed under this Public License, and include the text of, or the URI or hyperlink to, this Public License.

2. You may satisfy the conditions in Section 3(a)(1) in any reasonable manner based on the medium, means, and context in which You Share the Licensed Material. For example, it may be reasonable to satisfy the conditions by providing a URI or hyperlink to a resource that includes the required information.

3. If requested by the Licensor, You must remove any of the information required by Section 3(a)(1)(A) to the extent reasonably practicable.

4. If You Share Adapted Material You produce, the Adapter’s License You apply must not prevent recipients of the Adapted Material from complying with this Public License.

Section 4 – Sui Generis Database Rights.

Where the Licensed Rights include Sui Generis Database Rights that apply to Your use of the Licensed Material:

a. for the avoidance of doubt, Section 2(a)(1) grants You the right to extract, reuse, reproduce, and Share all or a substantial portion of the contents of the database;

b. if You include all or a substantial portion of the database contents in a database in which You have Sui Generis Database Rights, then the database in which You have Sui Generis Database Rights (but not its individual contents) is Adapted Material; and

c. You must comply with the conditions in Section 3(a) if You Share all or a substantial portion of the contents of the database.

For the avoidance of doubt, this Section 4 supplements and does not replace Your obligations under this Public License where the Licensed Rights include other Copyright and Similar Rights.

Section 5 – Disclaimer of Warranties and Limitation of Liability.

a. UNLESS OTHERWISE SEPARATELY UNDERTAKEN BY THE LICENSOR, TO THE EXTENT POSSIBLE, THE LICENSOR OFFERS THE LICENSED MATERIAL AS-IS AND AS-AVAILABLE, AND MAKES NO REPRESENTATIONS OR WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND CONCERNING THE LICENSED MATERIAL, WHETHER EXPRESS, IMPLIED, STATUTORY, OR OTHER. THIS INCLUDES, WITHOUT LIMITATION, WARRANTIES OF TITLE, MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, NON-INFRINGEMENT, ABSENCE OF LATENT OR OTHER DEFECTS, ACCURACY, OR THE PRESENCE OR ABSENCE OF ERRORS, WHETHER OR NOT KNOWN OR DISCOVERABLE. WHERE DISCLAIMERS OF WARRANTIES ARE NOT ALLOWED IN FULL OR IN PART, THIS DISCLAIMER MAY NOT APPLY TO YOU.

b. TO THE EXTENT POSSIBLE, IN NO EVENT WILL THE LICENSOR BE LIABLE TO YOU ON ANY LEGAL THEORY (INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, NEGLIGENCE) OR OTHERWISE FOR ANY DIRECT, SPECIAL, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, PUNITIVE, EXEMPLARY, OR OTHER LOSSES, COSTS, EXPENSES, OR DAMAGES ARISING OUT OF THIS PUBLIC LICENSE OR USE OF THE LICENSED MATERIAL, EVEN IF THE LICENSOR HAS BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH LOSSES, COSTS, EXPENSES, OR DAMAGES. WHERE A LIMITATION OF LIABILITY IS NOT ALLOWED IN FULL OR IN PART, THIS LIMITATION MAY NOT APPLY TO YOU.

c. The disclaimer of warranties and limitation of liability provided above shall be interpreted in a manner that, to the extent possible, most closely approximates an absolute disclaimer and waiver of all liability.

Section 6 – Term and Termination.

a. This Public License applies for the term of the Copyright and Similar Rights licensed here. However, if You fail to comply with this Public License, then Your rights under this Public License terminate automatically.

b. Where Your right to use the Licensed Material has terminated under Section 6(a), it reinstates:

   1. automatically as of the date the violation is cured, provided
      it is cured within 30 days of Your discovery of the
      violation; or

   2. upon express reinstatement by the Licensor.

 For the avoidance of doubt, this Section 6(b) does not affect any
 right the Licensor may have to seek remedies for Your violations
 of this Public License.

c. For the avoidance of doubt, the Licensor may also offer the Licensed Material under separate terms or conditions or stop distributing the Licensed Material at any time; however, doing so will not terminate this Public License.

d. Sections 1, 5, 6, 7, and 8 survive termination of this Public License.

Section 7 – Other Terms and Conditions.

a. The Licensor shall not be bound by any additional or different terms or conditions communicated by You unless expressly agreed.

b. Any arrangements, understandings, or agreements regarding the Licensed Material not stated herein are separate from and independent of the terms and conditions of this Public License.

Section 8 – Interpretation.

a. For the avoidance of doubt, this Public License does not, and shall not be interpreted to, reduce, limit, restrict, or impose conditions on any use of the Licensed Material that could lawfully be made without permission under this Public License.

b. To the extent possible, if any provision of this Public License is deemed unenforceable, it shall be automatically reformed to the minimum extent necessary to make it enforceable. If the provision cannot be reformed, it shall be severed from this Public License without affecting the enforceability of the remaining terms and conditions.

c. No term or condition of this Public License will be waived and no failure to comply consented to unless expressly agreed to by the Licensor.

d. Nothing in this Public License constitutes or may be interpreted as a limitation upon, or waiver of, any privileges and immunities that apply to the Licensor or You, including from the legal processes of any jurisdiction or authority.

CREDITS

Lead Designer, Author: Sean Quinn (@seanwquinn)