Sword and Backpack

Sword and Backpack is a fantasy game designed by Rothbard and Gazpus that is 100% focused on story and the characters. The only mechanic that exists is rolled a d20 and adding a +5 (if the action falls within your job/class) vs. A target number. The original game can be found here and it is four pages long. What is more is that the pages are formatted to be cut out and taped/glued into a small moleskin notebook. This transforms the notebook into your character sheet and the Chronicle of your adventures. It does not take much effort to assemble it either:

Just reading through the game and the supplemental material was immediately inspiring to me and really changed the way I viewed gaming. It also led to some great adventures and role play moments. 

I finally hit some difficulty with when introducing it to new players or players who have only played crunch heavy games as Sword and Backpack is extremely freeform. So, I went to tinkering with it and all of my early attempts over complicated it which made it lose its soul. I eventually gave up the tinkering until I came across Cecil Howe's Hack and things just clicked (he cracked the code to tinker with it) and I went to work tweaking it after getting some experience playing Cecil's hack. Cecil Howe was kind enough to let me use his work and art on my version as long as I gave him credit. 

You can find my "Breakfast Club" Edition (Hack) here and the cover here. It is already formatted in booklet form and yes, the red cover is inspired by Kung Fu Hustle.

Here is also a four panel character sheet that was put together by Mr. Gone.

The core differences in my "Breakfast Club" Edition are:

• Changed how class bonuses interact with difficulty ratings
• Structured combat
• Added a wound/effort system
• Added a set of optional "Advanced" Sword and Backpack rules that are focused for campaign play

 I would also highly recommend reading the Sword and Backpack Broadsheet Collection. They are a best of GM and Player advice for this game but can honestly be used across the board.

The most powerful thing about Sword and Backack is that it is more then a game, it is a philosophy and that philosophy can be summed up with the Dungeon Punk Manifesto:

1. BETTER LIVING THROUGH ADVENTURE

2. BE AN INTREPID ADVENTURER AND EXPLORER FIRST, A HACK AND SLASH TOURIST SECOND.

3. EXPERIENCE > EXPERIENCE POINTS

4. WARRIOR = DRUMMER, SORCERER = GUITAR PLAYER, ROGUE = BASS PLAYER. EVERYONE SINGS.

5. A GOOD ENCOUNTER SHOULD BE LIKE AN AWESOME 7" SINGLE; A GREAT ADVENTURE SHOULD BE LIKE A SECRET $5 WAREHOUSE SHOW; THE BEST CAMPAIGNS SHOULD BE LIKE AN EPIC TOUR.

6. YOU ARE YOUR CLASS, BUT YOUR CLASS IS NOT YOU.

7. THERE'S NO SUCH THING AS AN INHERENTLY EVIL ORC.

8. A SWORD AND BACKPACK ARE YOUR BEST FRIENDS.

9. D.I.Y.: DUNGEONCRAWL IT YOURSELF.

10. YOUR CHARACTER SHEET AND YOUR DICE ARE YOUR PERSONAL TOTEMS. TREAT THEM AS SUCH.

11. ADVENTURE AND STORY TRUMP THE RULES.

12. IN FACT, WHEN IN DOUBT, SCREW THE RULES!

Thief Redux

Thieves from any of the old school games such as Labyrinth Lord, B/X Essential, Basic Fantasy, Swords and Wizardry, all of the other retroclones, and original editions have all suffered from two main problems. The first one being the horrible d% progression skill system. A d% skill system isn't bad in itself but it is the starting values and progression that that really handicap the class Thief. The second main issue is the Thief's ability to survive as they tend to be rather squishy out of the box. There has been countless proposed alternates including getting rid of the class together and this option had caused many heated debates.

I think the class adds flavor and really helps the party be more efficient at certain tasks (and attract less unwanted attention). They also help parties solve certain obstacles in more creative ways.

This is all do to their specialization but what they are suppose to be good at they are not, especially at early levels.

Before I go further, this is whatever everyone has a chance of doing on a mundane level;

• Hear Noise: 1 in 6 chance, demi-humans have a 2 in 6 chance, Thieves start at 2 in 6 and improve to 5 in 6 by level 11.
• Expert Miner: Dwarves detect slanting passages, traps, shifting walls, and new construction with a 2 in 6 chance. 
• Secret Doors: Anyone has a 1 in 6 chance to find a secret door, elves have a 2 in 6 chance. 
• Hiding: Halflings have a 2 in 6 chance to remain hidden in dungeons.
• Opening Doors: Anyone has a 2 in 6 chance opening a stuck door, modified by Strength.
• Finding Traps: Anyone has a 1 in 6 chance to find a trap (non-magicial), dwarves have a 2 in 6 chance. 
• Lighting Fires: Anyone had a 2 in 6 chance lighting a torch/fire in one round with a tinderbox.
• Foraging/Huning: There is a 1 in 6 chance that anyone can find enough food (suitable animals to eat, etc.) For one day.

 

B/X Essentials 

Swords and Wizardry 

The Thief skills are commonly misunderstood in theory and execution as anyone can attempt some of them and even though some skills are cross pollinated the Theif possesses a higher level of training. This training makes the Thief more effective and almost magical in execution. 

Climb Walls: This skill relates to climbing sheer surfaces and no one else can do that.

Delicate Tasks and Traps: This encompasses things like pick pocketing and disarming traps. It is a speciality skill and the run of the mill classes don't have access to it. 

Hear Sounds: A universal skill. Thieves are better at it and this skill improves in the x in 6 style.

Hide in Shadows: This gets confused with move silently or Stealth which anyone can attempt but the Thief can effective become invisible in corners and at night. 

Open Locks: A specific and trained skill and other classes don't have access to it.

Of all the alternatives I have seen in "official printed" material, five stand out far above the others:

1. The Thief from White Box: Fantastic Medieval Adventure Game by Seattle Hill Games. This using an increasing all encompassing Thievery  x in 6 die that scales with level.

2. The Specialist from Lamentations of a Flame Princess. The Specialist gets skill points to put in various skills using the x in 6 system. They are the only class that gets skill points and these points increase every level. The playtest rules actually make me like this version a lot more as it changes the skills to 1d6+x and you need to get a total of 6 more.

3. The Thief Alternate found in Black Pudding #4 by James V. West.

4. The Thief from Dungeon Crawl Classics has a scaling bonus to the skills and the add to the d20 roll vs. DC.

5. Delving Deeper is actually becoming one of my favorite printed options. The Thief succeeds on all related skills with a 3 in 6 change which means anything 3+ on a d6 is considered a success. This skill does not increase but the class starts out really good at skullduggery and then at higher levels there is still a chance of failure to keeps things dynamic.

Out of all the house ruled proposed alternatives to the skills I have seen or used there are a couple that win the Gold Medal and are extremely viable and even clever.

Option 1*: Use the Ability Check method (which is d20 roll under relative ability and I happen to love this mechanic in general) with advantage. Then at each level (even the first) you get to choose a skill and that skill gets a +1 bonus (so when that specific skill is used the ability in question is considered one point higher for the purpose of the roll). Thieves also begin play with a +4 in Climb Walls because even the original Thief was so good at this. This makes up for the fact that attributes do not increase in these games.

* This is the one I have historically used the most.

Option 2*: For a more modern take (the theory of proficiency), you roll a d20 + ability modifier + Level vs. a DC 15. This is a static DC and is not meant to be modified. Thieves receive an innate bonus of +10 to the Climb Walls checks as they are amazing at that right out of the box.

* I have not used this method yet but I think it is smooth and would really well. 

As for the squishyness of the Thief, the alternate is really simple. Just increase their hit die to d6/d8. Then you can use whatever house rules you want in regards to bonus hp and/or max HD at first level. 

Dog Days: Session 4

Quick Disclaimer: The player who played the ferret Disaster from Session 3 dropped out of the game. 

When we last left our party, the meeting with the senator was set up at his warehouse with the Captain and the Captain was in full knowledge of the situation. 

The party arrived at the warehouse with the Capt. of the Guard in addition to some of his men with him and others to arrive for an ambush if needed. During the meeting with the Senator the Capt. explained that he know that the Senator was in league with the Governor and that he does not trust the Senator to take him into custody to prove his innocence. As who loyalties are where were trying to be discovered in a very tense situation (especially with trigger happy Roger) a brown rat dressed in a blue robe with gold stars on it and carrying a staff seems to appear of out nowhere explaining that he lost is precious jerboa Bobo (there were lots of gerbiling jokes made throughout the night) and asked if anyone has seen him. 

 As many questions are asked around trying to figure out who the hell this person is and if they were betrayed Thorin and Ghost hear noises of combat outside and watch the senator escape to his trap door with his guards. Thorin and Ghost inform the rest of the party what is going on and charge out of the door to discover the Capt.'s men mortally engaged in combat with the Governors soldiers. It is wondered by everyone who the Governor knew they were there. As the party enters the fray it does not look like it is going to end well. Various crossbow bolts, spells, and sword swings miss their targets as Thorin and Ghost take some mighty blows the draws blood. The tide soon turns with the help of the Thane's banging story telling skills which helps the party slaughter most of the Governors men and a final splash of acid to the face of the Sgt. after watching his fellow soldier next to him slip and take two swords to the chest was to much. The  Sgt. throws down his spear and orders a surrounded to his remaining troops. As one of the Governors catches a nasty sword cut to his back fleeing, Roger holds his pistol the the Sgt.'s head and asks him how he knew they were here. The Sgt. replies that the Governors men have spies all over the city and it was only a matter of time before the found the Capt. and who was helping them. Roger then states that is all he needs to know and pulls the trigger...During the lull in the chaos introductions are made and the party realizes that the Rat wizards strongly dislikes the status quo and helped them during the fight...

Now introducing the rat wizard Felcher, who grew up in Dogma and studied magic at one of the most run down and scorned magic schools and has a hatred for the status quo.

Shortly after this incident the part is approached by a beggar jingling some coin in his hat and says it is not safe here, the Governor has sent in the Calvary and numerous reinforcements will be here soon. The beggar also states that the Upright Man (who is the Thief Guild Master of the entire Triumvirate) wishes to meet with us. The party quickly decides that this is really the only option they have and they could use some help. The beggar leads them down a maze of alleyways to a dead in where the rat taps a pattern on the wall and part of the wall opens into another alleyway. The party was led through another maze of alleyways and finally to a waiting carriage with another rat smoking a pipe and everyone entered the carriage. During what seemed like the never ending ride some philosophical conversation is made and it is learned that the Upright Man is a hero among the poor people and especially in the slums. He only steals from the middle class and rich and does what he can to help protect the poor because no one else will. 

The carriage ride finally stops and as the party exists they find themselves in a large room with various other members of the thieves guild around. The party is instructed that to speak to the Upright Man they must leave all weapons behind and after the party disarms they are padded down and they find the dagger Thane tried to hide. The party is then led through a few doors and into a pitch black room that as soon as the last person crosses the threshold the doors slam shut and the hear it lock. A voice then appears to be all around them and introduces himself as the Upright Man and he explains that the Capt. is under arrest - not for the crimes of the ferrets (for that is reason alone to hang him) but for the crimes against the poor of the city. The Upright Man goes on to explain that the Capt. has failed to protect his people and has even facilitated various transgressions. After some back and forth conversation the Upright Man promises a fair trail for the Capt. as he is just and decisions are not pre-decided like the mockery of the courts of the nobles. Due to the parties actions, the Upright Man finds us trustworthy and he appreciates our treatment of the beggars, and he goes on to inform us that the Governor has hired a cat by the name of Sylvester to hunt us down. The very name sends chills through the party and Sylvester is known only by legend, the most blood thirsty assassin to every walk the lands. In hunting is prey, Sylvester will not only kill is mark, but people that come into contact with his mark as well (even if it is a chance meeting). The Upright man says he will give us aid to leaves the city and as long as we are in areas of his power, we can find help. 

 The party is quickly ushered out of the room and retrieve their equipment. During this time, one of the guild members gives them 1,000 guild pieces to split among themselves and a single copper coin that one side depicts a man with a very obvious broken back and the other a very tall man walking upright. The guild member then instructs us that we must show this corn to prove our loyalty to the guild but are also warned to not overreach or overstay our welcome. The party loads back up in the carriage and we are dropped off outside of the south side of the city. 

After some discussion, the party decides that we will head south into the woods (staying off roads and paths) then turn north to head towards Ratatia and Dogma as Thorin explains that he has some friends in the slums the might help.

Days upon days of travel bring nothing of interested until one morning Thorin notices smoke rising above the trees.  Thorin then whispers to the party and points to the smoke. It is quickly decided that Thane should go and scout it out and in an amazing vanishing act (a really obscene stealth check) Thane is able to scout out the area and finds that there is a small clearing with a mud out and no one else around. Upon Thane's return it is decided that everyone will approach the hut and upon entering the hut they find an impossibly old ferret with blind eyes and before a real conversation can start Felcher does not waste anytime offending the old ferret woman in ways that even man Roger look at him with disgust (this is a true feat) as everyone else shook their heads and muttered under their breath. It took some quick wit of Thane to recover the situation and we learned in a very cryptic way that danger is following us and the old ferret went on to explain that one of us will find no friends in Dogma except a few in the slums (but even that is a gamble) as the situation has worsened since one of the party members have left. This causes some side way glaces but nothing more. The party decides to leave the old woman alone even though Felcher tries convince the rest of the party to rob her. 

Many more days of travel ensue until the woods give way to grasslands and upon entering the grasslands the party spots some deer and as they are discussing if they should kill one to eat one a group of the chickens ambush two of the deer and start tearing into it. 

The party is spotted by the lead chicken which rears up and does a few fake charges at the party to try to intimidate us. As the party backs away very slowly it is discussed that young chickens can be domesticated as mounts and Thane breaks away (with another obscene stealth roll) to try to find their tracks so the party can find their nests. Roger follows Thane's efforts but the chickens catch their scent even though they could not see Thane or Roger and after some communication between the chickens they take rip off large chunks of meat and take off as Roger and Thane barely avoid them. It is quickly decided after that that it would be unwise to fight an unknown number of chickens actively protecting their nest and the party travels on. 

Another string of uneventful traveling (to the DM's dismay I am sure) leads to the discovery of small village and after a quick scouting mission it is determined that everyone will enter the village, resupply, gather intelligence, and hopefully a nights rest. After learning that an actual town is only 4 days travel away the party is charged for rations at a ridiculous mark up because winter is coming and offered a place to sleep at their supplies of rations house for the night but they have to sleep on the floor. During the dinner that their hosts provided they learn that the people hear rarely get any information regarding anywhere else unless someone comes through to trade or one of the villagers has no other choice then to make a long trip to one of cities or towns. The party also learns that recently a Warden of the Spine has came down from the mountains to trade and shared tales of strange magics and stranger beasts roaming the lands. 

After dinner the party goes to bed and sets up a watch. During Felcher's watch, he suffers a vision in the fire of a group of cats in the daylight traveling to the village and killing one of the outlaying farmers after the farmer gives the cats information regarding the party. Then Felcher wakes up the rest of the party and explains the situation. It is decided that is not safe for anyone to stay in the village and the party convinces the villagers to leave single file and head to the Warden's outpost in the Spine and the party will head in a different direction. 

This is where the session ended...

Rules as a Player

RULES AS A PLAYER

1) I do not hoard my wow-bangs. If I die with a sheet full of magical items or spells, then I played in vain. I am not here to advance a character, I am here to make fun memories with people I enjoy spending time with. Regular battles of attrition are slightly more interesting uses of my time than a 3rd grade math pop quiz.

2) Getting somewhere depends on rudimentary time management. Pixel-bitching for 45 minutes on something that isn't going to change the curve is wasting not only your time but everyone else's. I know there are one-way doors in the game, but most of the time you can come back with better information if it seems like you're missing something, rather than OCD on not-immediately obvious Q or A.

3) I surprise the DM - I do not find the margins and color inside of them. I find the weak points not considered and blow up the best-laid plans of my adversaries like the dudes walking away with their backs to the explosion. I am not concerned about dramatic tension; I am looking to dominate, bypass, confound, and neutralize. Moments of sheer panic will happen regardless but my goal is to have none.

4) Help other players have big moments - I know I'm a strong personality who will end up in a caller-like role whether consciously or unconsciously. So if leading a party, be a leader-servant. When other players are all looking at each other unsure of what to do, break the silence. When other players have an idea, help them make it happen. When you see a way for them to shine that they don't - put them in that position and try your damnedest to make everyone the party's X factor from time to time. When you all get together over beers afterwards, no one wants to hear stories about one person's character.

5) Spend your damn money - buy information, rumors, contacts, hidey-holes, strongholds (name-level or not), small armies of mercs, church support, adoration from the masses, and anything and everything else that gives your DM a lever to move your world. Whenever I look at a player's character sheet - presuming they have all of the basic game necessities met (training, maintenance, whatever) - and there's some ridiculous amount of gold scratched on there I feel like I'm sitting with a middle-manager only capable of following someone else's plan. Help them see the possibilities.

6) Have a short, medium, and long term goals that have zero to do with whatever the DM is cooking up - tying in with the above, adventure seeds are great - I'm always hunting for this stuff. But surely you know something you want to do that's intrinsic to yourself. Are you a fighter that wants a magic sword? Don't pine for it, drop out-of-game hints, or anything else. Start hunting for it; make it known within the world what you seek (at least to those who might point you in that direction). If you're a thief - make contacts way before you're thinking of setting up a guild in a few levels. Look for one ripe for takeover. Cleric? Where doth the church need extending its reach? Etc.

7) Contribute to the game world - make custom spells, items, and prayers. If you're a fighter, don't just found a stronghold - find a good natural harbor and start a new city.

8) Pay attention - be ready to roll. Don't be the guy saying "huh" every time. Speak up. Move things along. Write down stuff.

9) Be versatile - every time I see a player whine because they had a specific idea for a character in mind and must have that or their time isn't fun, I get flashbacks to every high-maintenance girl I've ever stupidly dated anyway. The warning signs are always there early, and they always come true.

10) There is no arc - embrace setbacks. This is not a novel. At this point there's nothing more boring than saving the world except a nice steady progress from week to week where my character consistently waxes in power. I don't invest in the bond market, and I'm not looking to play D&D to meter my progress through the level names. You're not really winning at D&D if you never lose. Gamble. Take big risks with the equivalent of monopoly money. If you're a character-driven roleplayer, seek the admiration that comes from a populace that sees your character rise from the ashes to become even better than before the tumble. Laughing off real adversity is the role most D&D characters should be playing, not the guy who always hits their scratch off ticket for $1 more than it cost.

This is reposted from EOTB's blog (with permission) regarding his personal rules as a player. I felt like these were pure genius and I wish more players would adopt these rules.