Space Monkeys on Danger Station!

 

Space Monkeys on Danger Station, my entry for the 2021 One Page RPG Jam on itch.io, is is now available for free! Be a monkey on a space station! Do dangerous jobs for a broken A.I. boss! Eat bananas! Feel the thrill of both space stuff and monkey stuff! 

Download it for free at itch.io!

 

Cavernfolk Devlog: Character Creation

 

Cavernfolk is almost ready for playtesting!

"What's Cavernfolk?"

Here's the pitch: 

Cavernfolk is a light, OSR style fantasy game about a scrappy alliance of outcast, underground species who struggle to survive and build a subterranean community while trapped between an apocalypse on the surface and growing threats from deeper below. It mixes the desperate yet heroic struggle of downtrodden outcasts with some silly bits and moments of unexpected wholesomeness.  It's a dangerous game with fast,  classless character generation, and simple rules that remain mostly compatible with other OSR and classic fantasy RPGs. 

The book I"m writing now is a sort of tribute to the old D&D "Basic Set". Basic D&D only went up to level three, so the book was a streamlined little game that contained everything you needed for low level play. Cavernfolk doesn't use levels, but it's focused on low powered adventuring and this book will contain a little bit of everything a group needs to facilitate that. I have some more high power ideas I want to explore, but those are getting hidden away for (hopefully) a later expansion.

So, let's take a look at how character creation works.

First off, we have ability scores. It's OSR, and we aren't trying to reinvent this particular spoke of the wheel, so we have the usual six suspects: Strength, Dexterity, Constitution, Intelligence, Wisdom, and Charisma. Cavernfolk just cares about the modifiers, so when we determine abilities we roll 1d6 - 3. We do this right down the line, in order. I roll and end up with a STR +2, DEX +1, CON +2, INT 0, WIS 0, and CHA -1. I can swap any two abilities, but I think I'll keep these. Next, I roll for my hit points, 2d4 + 8 + CON. I roll and get a 7, plus 8 and my CON makes 17 HP to start with. Not too bad!

Next, it's time to pick a species. I'm making a ratfolk, so I add +1 to my DEX and write down my special abilities. Next up are talents. These are what Cavernfolk uses instead of classes, skills,  and feats, and I get three points to divide up how I like. I see this guy as a loyal warrior, so I pick Athletics, Fighting and War Chants (Guarding).

Except for equipment, I"m done. I'll give myself some light armor and a couple weapons, and I'll leave the rest of the gear selection for later when I get that part of the book a little more finished.

Here's who we ended up with:

Name: Skeve

Species: Ratfolk

STR +2    DEX +2    CON +2    INT 0    WIS 0    CHA -1    HP: 17    AC: 15

Species Powers

• Climber: You can climb walls, cliffs, and similar surfaces without the use of ropes or spikes, and you roll 1 bonus die when making climbing related checks.
• Darkvision: You can see up to 20 yards in normal darkness.
• Keen Nose: You get 1 bonus die on checks involving your sense of smell.
• Lucky: Once per day, you can re-roll one of your dice rolls and take the result that you prefer.
• Sneaky: You get 1 bonus die on checks to sneak and hide.

Talents 

• Athletics (1): Each point in Athletics gives 1 bonus die to checks involving physical activities like climbing, lifting, jumping, balancing, running, and swimming.
• Fighting (1): Each point in Fighting gives 1 bonus die to melee attack checks.
  
• War Chant (Guarding): When your turn begins, you can swap your AC with the AC of one ally within your reach. This effect lasts until the beginning of your next turn.

Equipment 

• Dagger: 1d4 damage, finesse, thrown
  
• Sword: 1d8 damage, heavy
  
• Crossbow: 1d10 damage, range L, reload, 2-handed
  
• Brigandine: AC = 13 + DEX
  

That's looking pretty good to me. Of course, I need to make dozens more to fully test everything, but this is off to a good start!