[CONAN] GM's Closet for the Conan RPG

[Water Bob]

-- FLEA --



Flea is a beggar in the Argossean town of Raze. This poor wretch suffers from a horrible disfigurement. Sometime in the past, it looks as if someone put a torch into the center of Fea's face. He's totally blind. His nose is mostly gone, along with his upper lip. The direct center of his face is nothing but hard scar tissue, twisted into a skull-like scowl. Nobody really knows what happened to Flea. He just appeared one day in town. When he hears someone pass, he'll stick out his arm energetically, begging for whatever people will throw at him. It sounds like he's saying, "Fleas, fleas," but that's just the way he sounds with no upper lip. With that lips and the slobber streaming lines down his chin, he's trying to say, "Please, please," in order to get food or money or help. This is how he got his name--not by the number of fleas crawling over him (as well as lice)--because he can't vocalize a "p" to say please.

Flea is very skinny. If you catch a look at him not wearing a tunic, you'll see his ribs showing under his skin. Sometimes, his stomach is bloated, not from too much to eat, but from malnourishment.

It's a cruel time in which we live. Flea survives totally on the generosity of others, and that generosity is far from consistent. A citizen handing Flea a chicken leg or a couple of coppers is just as likely to be seen as the city street urchins having fun by urinating on him.

I've provided no stats for Flea. He's an NPC mean strictly for atmosphere and roleplaying. I think it will be interesting to see how the players react to this poor victim of the Hyborian Age.

Flea can be but a moment of description in a game or blown up into a recurring NPC. Wouldn't it be interesting if the PCs, while arriving at a new town, see Flea--that he's gotten there ahead of them? Let the players ponder that. Or, how will the players react to seeing Flea being rolled by a Soldier who is shaking the poor wretch for a few extra coins to use in buying another mug of ale?

I plan on using Flea as the very first encounter in my new campaign. All the PCs are 1st level, and thus, they all start with very little coin. Per the book, they're all getting 2d6 -2 silvers. Needless to say, their funds will be very, very limited. As the game starts, one the PCs will be walking down a narrow street in Raze, when he is startled a bit with this hand that jerks out of the darkness of a cubbyhole between the buildings. Groping for him, the PC will hear, almost a whisper, "Feas, fleas".

If the PC gets nearer, I'll describe Fea's face--how he has no eyes, no nose, no upper lip, and his face is a twisted mash of burned scar tissue.

Will the PC part with one or a few of the few coins he has in his pocket?

I think it will be interesting to see.

No matter how the PC treats Flea, there are two scoundrels (the NPCs Gem and Mellot) who have staked out poor Flea. If anybody gives the poor creature money, these two step from around the corner of the crossing street and shake down Fea's benefactor (before taking anything given to Flea). These two think that they're real smart--finding a way to secure income for the day.

Flea will never be involved in combat. A child could kill him. In fact, if any type of DEX check is needed for the NPC, the GM should apply a penalty for Flea's sightless eyes. I'd say, give him a standard DEX 5 (which makes him AC 7), then give him a use the standard blindness penalties on top of that. Flea will have 1d4 hit points (roll it).

When portraying Flea, I'm going to play him as if he's gone a little insane from the years he's spent (and miraculously survived). He's like someone who has been kept in a closet for years: a prisoner, abused, thrown slop for dinner, starved, beaten, except his "closet" is the world. A world of darkness. It is a miracle, indeed, that he has survived.

And, because he has beaten the odds on survival during the Hyborian Age, I suggest that the GM give him 1d6 Fate Points, with a minimum of 4.

[Water Bob]

-- EASTERN DESERT and TURAN --



A nice map of the region. It would work well for a campaign set in the area.

A campaign featuring the Zuagirs? Kozaki?

Spoiler

Show

[Water Bob]

-- THE HYBORIAN AGE --



Giant map of the Hyborian Age, for use in your game.

[Water Bob]

-- CHARACTER SHEET --



This is a fantastic fan-made character sheet for use in your game.

Clicky, clicky.

[Water Bob]

-- A quick look at Armor Class in the Conan RPG --



ARMOR CLASS AND ARMOR: Unlike D&D, your AC in the Conan RPG represents how hard it is to hit your character (in D&D, AC represents how hard it is to hit and damage your character). Armor, in the Conan RPG, can absorb damage inflicted on the character (where as, in D&D, armor makes the character harder to hit). Thus, in the Conan RPG, a character can be hit (attack higher than defender's AC) but not damaged (because Armor prevents character from being hurt). In D&D, if the attack roll is higher than AC, then the character's armor is defeated, and damage is applied to the character.



ARMOR CLASS AND DEXTERITY: Your character's DEX score will effect the chance that your character can be hit in combat. Thus, DEX modifier is applied to AC. If a character has a score of DEX 9 or less, then the attribute penalty lowers the charcter's Base Defense. AC 10 is the Base Defense for most characters, but if, for example, a character has DEX 7 (which means a -2 DEX modifier), then that character's Base Defense is AC 8 as he is not as adept at defending himself as the average person.



BASE DEFENSE: For most characters, their Base Defense is AC 10. Base Defense is lowered for characters with scores in Dexterity of DEX 9 or less. Base Defense is the standard passive defense any conscious, non-hindered character will have. If just standing around, not expecting an attack, when a character is attacked, his Base Defense is used. If a character has DEX 10 or higher, his Base Defense is AC 10. If a character has DEX 9 or lower, then his Base Defense is lowered by an amount equal to his DEX modifier.

Flat-footed - Being "flat-footed" is another use of the character's Base Defense. A character can be alert and expecting an attack but still use only his Base Defense. This happens when a character is slow to act--or caught flat-footed. At the start of combat, on the first round only, every combatant is considered flatfooted until their initiative number is played. After the character's turn in initiative comes up, the character is no longer flat-footed for the rest of the combat (but there are specific circumstances that can arise that can make the character flat-footed later in the combat).



PARRY DEFENSE: When a character is actively defending himself and not otherwise considered flat-footed or hindered, he may choose to focus on parrying blows made against him. If using this defense, the character's Parry AC is his Base Defense plus his STR modifier. A shield will increase the character's Parry Defense. Ranged attacks cannot be parried. A shield cannot be used in the Parry Defense and use in a Shield Bash in the same combat round (so, if the shield is used as a weapon, then it cannot be used to incrase the character's Parry AC that round).

DODGE DEFENSE: When a character is actively defending himself and not otherwise considered flat-footed or hindered, he may choose to focus on dodging blows made against him. If using this defense, the character's Dodge AC is his Base Defense plus his DEX modifier. Ranged attacks can be dodged. A shield will only increase a character's Dodge Defense when the character is attempting to dodge a ranged attack. A shield that is used to Shield Bash can still be used to dodge ranged attacks in the same round.

Switching Between Dodge and Parry: A character can switch between Dodge and Parry defenses at will, using his best defense for every single attack, as long as the player states which defense is being used before the attack is made. It is a Free Action to use either defense type and thus a character defending himself does not count against the character's total actions for the round.



HELPLESS DEFENDERS: Characters who are unconscious or tied up are helpless to attacks against them. Helpless characters cannot Dodge or Parry, and they have an effective DEX 0 score--which means a -5 modifier is applied to their Base Defense. Thus, this means that most helpless characters are considered AC 5. In addition, helpless characters suffer a -4 penalty to AC against melee attacks. This means that melee attacks against helpless characters are made at AC 1 (automatic hits) and ranged attacks against helpless characters are made against AC 5. The Coup de Grace rule (page 198) can also be used against helpless characters.



SUMMARY: There are four basic defense modes in this game. Most of the time, characters will be actively defending themselves using either the Parry or Dodge defense types. When not actively defending themselves (or caught flat-footed at the start of combat), a character wil use his Base Defense (his flat-footed defense posture). If a character is unconscious or constrained so that he cannot defend himself, then he is considered Helpless.

[Water Bob]

Spoiler

Show

[Water Bob]

-- DEMON MONKEY TEMPLE --


I spotted THIS adventure, written for 13th Age, and it seemed to be fairly suitable to convert to a Conan RPG game. Just strip out the magic items and populate with your own creatures (and maybe decrease the different types of creatures, eliminating the more magical ones).

I think it would work well, with some adjustment, as a template on which to build a bigger Conan adventure.

[Water Bob]

I know little about it, but it seems a new Conan RPG is on the horizon.

Clicky, Clicky.

It's got big shoes, um, sandals, to fill. We can only hope that it captures the Hyborian Age as well as the Mongoose version.

We'll see.

[Water Bob]

-- THE SUNLESS CITADEL CONVERSION --



In staring my new Conan game (using the 2E Mongoose rules), I am using parts of the old early 3E WotC adventure called The Sunless Citadel. I thought some Conan GMs following this thread might be interested in my process and choices.

I tend to be pretty free as a GM, letting the players do whatever they want. So, when we actually play this adventure, it may come out completely different from what I have planned. As a GM, though, I like to have a plan (and have the luxury of breaking that plan later, if the need arises).

Without going into too much detail, I imagine the PCs to be on foot, running for their lives, from killers on horseback. They're in a shattered, dusty, almost desert region of Argos, near the border with Shem. It's a hilly part of the kingdom. Not much vegetation. But, lots of ravines and small valleys between the hills.

Spoiler

Show

The Terrain is considered Hills. Move is normally at 1/2. But, the PCs will find a trail--a track--through the wastes that, if used, will make movement easier and faster, boosting Move to 3/4. Whether the PCs use the trail is up to the players. Depending on how the previous encounter goes, there may be men on horseback searching for them.

If the PCs spend any time on the road, though, they will find ancient etchings in the rock, in the tongue of Argos, that says, simply, "Old Road".

The one thing that the PCs will have going for them is that darkness is upon them, though they have a few hours as evening falls. At one point, it will be so dark that movement will be very, very slow.

As the darkness comes, the PCs will see the men on horseback with torches, looking for them. This is a general push, moving the PCs up the side of one of the hills (on the trail or not). One side is a cliff that steadily rises. Behind the PCs and to their left are the torch bearing horsemen. To keep their distance, the PCs have no choice but to obtain the higher ground.

-- NOTES --

Old Road - is really a trail or track through the wastes. In some parts, it's hard to follow. Rocky. Desert. Hills. Shale and loose rock. Some scrub. The trail can be lost and then found again, especially if a marker is sited: an ancient etching with the words "Old Road" on a boulder. Sometimes, these rocks are stacked to about chest height, making a pillar that can be seen from some distance.

Once found, the Old Road generally moves to higher ground, up the side of a hill. Eventually, a cliff will drop to the character's right. As night falls, torches from searching horsemen can be seen behind the characters and down at the base of the hill to the characters' left.

Terrain = Hills

Speed during day on the road is 3/4.

Speed during day off the road is 1/2.

At night, it's almost impossible to move very far. It's so black that you can't see your own hand in front of your face without some light source.

Twig Blights

A new monster used in the adventure are the twig blights. These sorcerous creatures fit into my Hyborian Age story, so I've decided to keep them. If the PCs stop to rest or hide, they will notice that the once still air starts to kick up with a pretty strong wind. It blows their hair, and some light debris--even some dust--fog the area. Right before their eyes, brown vines will spring from the ground, twist and curl, until it looks something like--what? An animal? The vines grow so that it has appendages--like legs and arms attached to a central core body. These twig blights resemble, in shape, dogs or bigger four legged animals--or they can even fold up to stand on two "legs" with two "arms" like a human.

Once formed, they will attack. They are sorcerous, so they know exactly where the PCs are. These creatures move straight for them.

But, their movement is slow (Speed 20)

This encounter will only happen at night. And only one twig blight will be seen growing form the ground. A second or third creature will attack from the darkness beyond the sight of the PCs. There were be one twig blight per two PCs.



"LOOK! What grows there is something foul! Look, I say! SORCERY!"



These twig blights will be an easy encounter. This is more about atmosphere and setting up what is to come when the PCs go underground than it is meant to be a dangerous encounter. Still, we are dealing with Level 1 PCs, so just about anything can turn dangerous. Conan games should have slow advancement. Award 30 XP per defeated twig blight.

[Water Bob]

-- THE SUNLESS CITADEL CONVERSION --


WAR DOGS


It occurred to me today that my players are usually pretty resourceful. It would not surprise me at all if they engineered a way to take a horse or two away from their followers, using the darkness as an advantage. I'm the type of GM that likes to allow the players to do whatever they want (and they also have to live with the consequences). The horsemen are pretty tough for 1st level characters, but with the ingenuity of my players, and maybe a Fate Point spent, I could see it happening.

On the other hand, the adventure I'm preparing really begins once the PCs enter the crack in the ground to explore the dungeon. I don't like to railroad my players. No, scratch that. I don't like my players to feel railroaded (even if that's exactly what happened to them). The GM-ing trick is to get the players into the hole in the ground and have it seem like it was their idea from the start.

So, I set up a situation to encourage that circumstance. Even then, I've played games in the past where the players still did something much different than what I was expecting. In this case, if they don't go into the hole, I'll probably throw a fight at them to burn up the game sessions, then re-evaluate and re-plan before the next game session.

As it stands here, going down into the ravine (that they will find) will certainly become an obvious way to get away from the Horsemen trailing the party.

And...to encourage that set of events, I think I'll give the horsemen some dogs. Big, mean, tough, dogs. War dogs. These dogs have been cross-bred with wild wolves then taught discipline. They're tracker dogs. And, the things, at HD 2 with +2 HP per level (min 6 HP), are pretty tough for 1st level characters. If needed, I'll only throw one or two at the PCs. And, hopefully, it will turn into a situation where the PCs run and jump into the ravine to escape the war dogs that are about to pounce on the party....with the horsemen not far behind.

War Dogs are covered on page 375 of the 2E core rulebook as part of the entry on the Wolf.

I like to roll HP, so give the first dog 12 HP and the second make HP 16.

As for XP, these should be worth about 150 points each.

[Water Bob]

Spoiler

Show

[Water Bob]

-- QUICK PLAYER CHARACTER CREATION --



One of the gripes that is common about the d20 system is the time it takes to create characters. Those stat blocks hold a lot of detail. But, we all know that there are times during a game session that a character is needed as soon as possible. Maybe a PC dies and the player wants a new character. Maybe, through roleplaying, another character joints the group (and this could be caused by a new player joining the session late). Maybe the GM needs a detailed NPC quick but doesn't already have a character designed.

Here's the quick method I use when these situations arise.



1. Roll 4d6, drop lowest, and total. Do this for each stat. Allow the player to arrange to taste.

2. Pick class and race. Add racial and class benefits to the character's sheet.

3. Roll (or figure, if 1st level) the character's hit points. Assign Fate Points.

4. Quickly outfit using the equipment packages available in the core rulebook and in the Player's Guide. The GM should add or remove equipment as the story requires.

And that's it.

The whole point here is to get the bare minimum and KEEP THE GAME MOVING.



It doesn't take long to do the above. It DOES take long to figure skills and pick feats and complete the rest of the statistics on the character's sheet.

What I do is this: Figure skill points and (the GM) keeps a tally. If a skill check comes up that game session, then let the player choose, right then, how many skill points he wants to put into that skill. What the player says is binding. He cannot later reduce the number of skill points used for that skill (but, I do allow a player to increase the skill points used, if possible). Then, after the game session, before the next game session, the player should have ample time to complete his character. Many of the blanks on the character sheet (height, weight, and so on) can be chosen and scribbled in at the player's leisure. Usually this is done during that first game session, but I've had players want to "get to know" the character that they are creating over a session or two. The player will show up to a game session soon, saying something like, "I see him! He's got this long black hair, hacked off with his knife, and these piercing green eyes."

Feats and other aspects of the character can be chosen in the same way.

Now, sometimes players are lazy and show up to game session two with some excuse and an incomplete character. That's OK with me. My rule is that all skill points must be assigned before the character advances to the next level. All Feats must be chosen before the next level is obtained.

If an unresolved detail becomes important during the game session, then simply resolve that one issue quickly, record it, and keep the game moving. For example, let's say that the characters are crossing an old wood and rope bridge that spans a ravine, one at a time. The GM knows that there is a chance that the wooden slats will break, they're so rotten, after a certain amount of weight presses on them. The GM needs to know the weight of each character using the bridge so that he knows who, if anyone, breaks the slat and must make a Reflex save or fall into the ravine.

If this type of thing comes up in a game, simply ask the player to assign weight to his character. And, again, what he says then, is binding. He cannot change it later.

Yes, there is a little advantage that a player has in being able to game and then assign Skill Points or pick a Feat in the face of a problem that must be surmounted during the game session. But...so what? Let the player have that little advantage. He's a hero, after all. And, creating characters this way sure keeps the game from being bogged down.

I sometimes do this with NPCs. I create what I need--maybe just a single attribute and a skill to go with it--then forget the character after use. If I plan to use the NPC again, I may fully flesh him out. It depends on what is needed.





Requiring more work, but something I also do from time to time (when I have time) is create NPCs and keep them for special occasions. I may have an idea for a neat NPC as I drive home from work. I'll come home and create that character. Then, I just throw him in a stack at the back of my GM notebook. If ever a circumstance presents itself where I need that type of character, I pull him out. I'll also hand a pre-made character to a player who needs a character, if that player is open to playing a character he didn't create. If he's not, the player might just play the character that one game night and create his own character in between sessions--when there is more time.

[Water Bob]

One thing I should add to the discussion above about GMs creating d20 characters on the spot is about Feats. If you can't think of an appropriate Feat, then just don't give the character any Feats. There's always a good chance that a character, picked at random, doesn't have a Feat that fits the situation.

Typically, a GM just needs to describe a character as the GM sees him in his mind's eye.

He's tall. Taller than most, but hidden, wearing long robes of pastel orange and white. None of the dyes are very vibrant, but his garments are not old. He has a short clipped beard that comes to a point at the chin. He doesn't grow a full beard. His hair is sparse. Maybe he's younger than it originally seemed. His head is wrapped in a white turban, but what you notice are the unblinking dark brown eyes. He looks at you intently, not in a threatening way, but only as if very interested in what you have to say.

"You've rode in from the wastes," he smiles and proffers a robed limb at you. "Look!" He gestures to the table laid out with various bits of used equipment, reclaimed from the dead of desert raids, no doubt. "All that I have here is retooled, cleaned, and functional. I will give you a good price."

You can probably just roleplay the encounter and never worry about stats, skills, and Feats. If you do need them later, then just add what you need.

For example, let's say that I need the character's Diplomacy skill. I'll quickly use the Average Array for stats ( 13 - 12 - 11 - 10 - 9 - 8 ) and decide, since this is a merchant, his Charisma is his best stat (probably followed by INT for the skill points and skills like Appraise), so he's got CHA 13 with a +1 modifier. I decide that he's a 3rd level Commoner--a Merchant. His max skills would be 5 ranks, so I make him, quickly, Diplomacy +6 (+5 ranks and +1 CHa mod).

This character probably has more, but I'm doing this quick. I haven't considered racial benefits that could boost Diplomacy. (Shemites don't have a Diplomacy racial bonus, but I didn't know that before looking it up just now. They do have a +2 racial bonus to Appraise, Spot, and Bluff.)

That't it. I'm done. I know the dude's got Diplomacy +6 and CHA 13. If I need to develop him further in between games, I'll keep what I've established and not pick any Feats or raise any skills that I have already created. Whatever Feats this guy has, it cannot improve his CHA or Diplomacy skill.

But, most of the time, I won't even get that far.

Run and gun. Keep the game moving. Don't be a slave to the details. And, I love detail in an rpg--but I hate bogging the game down. I always try to find the right marriage of the two.

[Water Bob]

-- CROSSBOWS AND THE DROP --



There are subtle (or, maybe, not so subtle) differences between standard d20 3.5 D&D and Pathfinder that, for me, make the Conan RPG a superior game. One of these aspects of the Conan game is the fact that armor does not make a character harder to hit, but if the character is it, the armor will absorb some or all of the damage.

Just that little fact makes weapon choice important in areas besides roleplaying. Weapon choice, in the Conan RPG, is more than just selecting the weapon that delivers the highest amount of damage. For example, a war hammer in the Conan game has an Armor Piercing value of 7 but only does 1d6 damage. Compare this to a cutlass, which does 1d10 damage but only has an Armor Piercing score of 2. The cutlass is not a good weapon to use against an armored foe as it damage will often get reduced by the full value of the armor Damage Reduction rating. The heavier armors will often result in zero damage even after a successful hit (because the weapon did not penetrate the target's armor).

The war hammer, on the other hand has a high Armor Piercing score, and, thus, will do more damage, on average, against armored foes that would the cutlass in spite of its inferior damage die. This is because the war hammer will, more often than not, break through the foe's armor. When a weapon pierces the target's armor, the Damage Reduction of the armor is halved.

What I love about this is that it gives the game a strong mechanical reason for Pirate characters to prefer the cutlass over the war hammer, as they go up against unarmored foes often. And, the war hammer you will most likely find on the large battlefield of armored knights and soldiers where the heavier armors are normally worn.





The Drop - A New Function For The Crossbow

Crossbows can be important in a game for the same reason I illustrated above. Crossbows, and their heavier brother, the arbalest, are historically designed to penetrate armor. Not surprisingly, the crossbow (and arbalest) have high Armor Piercing values in this game. Where a Hunting Bow is at Armor Piercing value 1 (and that's only good for the first 50 feet as AP drops to zero after that distance), the crossbow is rated four times as high at AP 4, and that drops by 1 every 60 feet--giving the crossbow penetration over a much longer range.

The strongest bow in the core rulebook is the Bossonian Longbow, rated at AP 5 and given a range increment of 80 feet. It's a hell of a weapon meant to simulate the effect the historical English longbow had on warfare (and make the Bossonians, in the game, the ultimate archers of the Hyborian Age). Well, compare that bow to the arbalest, the larger cousin of the crossbow, which has an Armor Piercing score of 6 (the highest in the core rulebook for a ranged weapon) and a range increment of 70 feet. Sure, the range isn't there to equal the Bossonian bow, but the Bossonian weapon is rare, considered an Exotic weapon. You won't find too many of them outside of Aquilonia. But the arbalest, you will find in all of the Hyborian nations. In addition, damage on the Bossonian bow is 1d12 where as damage on the arbalest is 2d8 (rolling two dice makes it much more likely that higher average damage is thrown, and the maximum of 16 is four points higher than that of the Bossonian bow). It is much more likely that a crossbow or an arbalest will be compared to a Hunting bow because of the Exotic nature of the regional bows with higher AP and DMG ratings.

The reason bows remain more popular with the peoples of the Hyborian Age is twofold. First, bows are easier to manufacture. It takes technological prowess to create a crossbow. And, second, the rate of fire on a bow is generally superior. The hunting bow may only do AP 1 at 50 paces, but it can be fired twice a round (when the archer gives up movement). But, if you're dealing with an armored foe, the crossbow and the arbalest are clearly the superior choices. A hunting bow may even hit twice, doing 1d8 damage, but if the target, wearing a simple leather jerkin (Armor Value 4), is at 60 feet, both shots from the bow will splinter against the target's armor doing no damage at all. A crossbow, though, will penetrate the armor, doing much more damage.

Yes, crossbows and arbalests take a long time to reload, but where armored targets are concerned, they are obviously the correct choice of ranged weapon.





Got the Drop on 'em....

The idea I'm about to discuss is one that I've considered before (and wrote about before earlier in the thread). Experience gaming with the rules many times fosters better house rules. And, here, I am focusing the Drop Rule on Crossbows alone (with maybe a few exceptions).

The original idea for the Drop Rule came with my frustration (back when playing 1E AD&D) about situations where a guard or soldier has a crossbow cocked and leveled at a target. If the prisoner has a lot of hit points, then it was never much of an issue to have guards "cover" a prisoner with their weapons. Those guarded would take their chances because there was no risk. If they were hit, then so what? They lost 1d4 hit points from a crossbow quarrel. At second level and beyond, having a crossbow leveled at you quickly became a non-event.

The Conan rules, and the 3.5 D20 rules that they are based on, took steps making a leveled crossbow scarier, as a prisoner could be considered flatfooted (and may loose some defense). In the Conan RPG, being flatfooted means that the character cannot Dodge or Parry, and thus he uses his base AC which is almost always AC 10. This made it much more likely for a crossbow to hit. And, in the Conan game, most weapons are beefed up. The crossbow does 2d6 damage, and the arbalest does 2d8 (they've come a long way from 1d4 and 1d4+1 in the AD&D game!). In addition, the Massive Damage rule kicks in at a mere 20 points of damage (it is 50 points of damage in 3.5 D&D) so that, if any weapon does 20 points of damage from a single attack, the victim must make a saving throw or die.

My idea is simple: Whenever a foe has a cocked and loaded crossbow aimed at a character, "covering" him, it is said that the foe "has the drop on him," and the Drop Rule will activate.

DROP RULE

Whenever one character has the drop on another, using a loaded and readied crossbow, the crossbowman can add his character level to the weapon's Critical Threat range, making it easier to roll extra damage (thereby making it easier to activate the Massive Damage rule).

Example:

The classic example from the Conan stories is when Arus, the watchman, leveled his crossbow at Conan in Robert E. Howard's story, The God In The Bowl. According to Mongoose's published adventure of that REH tale (available in the The Compendium hardback), Arus is a 3rd level Nemedian Soldier. When Arus has the drop on Conan, this means that the crossbow he has has a Critical Threat range of 17-20 (instead of the normal 20) for his next shot, as long as he continues to have the drop on his target. Should Conan attempt something, initiative is still thrown as usual. When Arus fires, he's got a 20% chance (naturally rolling a 17-20) to roll double damage. With the crossbow, double damage means damage of 4d6, making it much more likely that 20 points will be scored and the Massive Damage rule invoked.











Should the Drop Rule be used in other ways?

My opinion is that the Drop Rule should be almost exclusively with crossbows. These are supposed to be extremely scary weapons, after all. But, I can see one other instance where the Drop Rule might be used. And, that is when a thief sneaks up on an unsuspecting Soldier and puts a blade to the victims throat before the Soldier can react. If a thief (or, really, any character) successfully does this, then consider the Drop Rule in effect.

Of course, the other argument is that the Drop Rule is not needed in this instance (that it should remain in the domain of the crossbow) as the GM could consider the victim a Helpless Defender. In this case,the thief could use a Coup de Grace to automatically score a critical hit AND make a Fort save against death.

My preference here is that the Drop Rule above should apply exclusively to crossbows, and this idea of a blade to the throat should be played out using the Coup De Grace and Helpless Defender rules.





Is there an in-game rule that renders the Drop Rule unnecessary?

Yes. You can use the option above, but also let me draw your attention to the Helpless Defender/Coup De Grace rules on page 198 of the core rulebook. There, it specifically states that a crossbow or bow can be used.

What I object to is that, with a crossbow, the target has no chance at all. I think there should be a chance that a critical hit is avoided, and I like how the Drop Rule handles that situation. It's easy (just add character level to the weapon's Threat Range), and there's plenty of room for the target to escape certain death after a failed mandatory save against death.

In the end, it's your game. Use what you feel is correct. I'm just presenting options here.

[Water Bob]

-- INITIATIVE and EARNED SKILL CHECKS --



I present a lot of optional rules in this thread, but I actually use very few of them in my own game. I'm a GM who likes to play the rules as written as much as possible. I always keep House Rules, in most of the RPGs that I play, to the barest minimum (and none at all, if I can manage it). The one House Rule I do like and use is the GUSTUD rule (that you will find earlier in this thread). That rule is priceless to combat, making it even livelier than it already is in the Conan RPG.

One other rule change that I wholeheartedly think should be changed (and it can be argued that the Conan RPG does not implement this rule) is the way GMs are instructed to roll Initiative in the 3.5 Core d20 rules. If you look at the 3.5 DMG, you may be surprised that Initiative is meant to be rolled whenever an enemy is sighted. This is a far cry from how I've always rolled initiative--when an aggressive action, like an attack or the casting of a spell, is made.

If you don't believe that the 3.5 rules are written like this, then go to the 3.5 DMG and read the examples. There's even an example where an enemy is sighted on the other side of a door, initiative is rolled, and the GM is instructed to count rounds off before the door is opened where both sides can get at each other.

I don't think this plays well at all. It's a factor of the 3.5 being rooted as more of a tactical wargame meant to be played out on a grid than it is a free-form roleplaying game. For me, it's always worked better in my games when the time for rolling initiative came organically, when an offensive action is made. Doing it the 3.5 way precludes a lot of roleplaying that can happen. Think of the party running into a known foe. In 3.5, you roll initiative right there. Using what I suggest, you have opportunities to avoid combat and parlay through the situation.

I don't think its necessary to default to combat each and every time a potential enemy is sighted.





On Skill Checks....

One other thing I should address here is skill checks, especially those type that are interpersonal. Back in the days of AD&D, long before there were non-weapon proficiencies (and even longer before there were skills), players would describe how they were going to handle actions. What were they going to say. How they were going to act. If they didn't act it out, they'd describe it third person. Even when a roll was involved, say, with Thief class skills, traps were looked for using a 10' pool, asking the DM how the floor looked. Where there any scratches? Searching for thin, almost invisible cat-gut stretch across a corridor, and once found, the player described how he would handle the situation. It was at that point that I, as DM, would call for a thief skill check. Once I knew how the character was going to go about searching for traps on chest or secret doors in a wall, I would allow the roll--not before.

As 3E has come along, with it's in depth skill system and wargame-like affection for tactical grid movement, many players seem to forget the roleplaying and go straight to the dice rolling. "I check for traps here!" And, then roll dice, is not near as fun, I think, as playing out the situation through roleplaying with the give-n-take between the player and GM.

No, I'm not talking about bogging the game down. Sure, there are many instances where its best to just roll dice and move on, keeping the game moving. Sometimes, it's most interesting to roleplay the bartering between character and merchant. This can be fun and take half the game sessions. Other times, its best to roll dice quickly and move on. It's up to the GM to keep his finger on the pulse of his game and decide which approach is appropriate at the moment. So, all that I'm saying here is that I think it is best to bring back the roleplaying sometimes. When its appropriate. Don't default to rolling dice all the time, seeing the outcome, and moving on. You might as well play a computer game if you do it that way. So much fun can be had by roleplaying out the different obstacles and situations that pop up in a game.

What I do to encourage this type of old school gaming is to ask my players questions when they state their character is doing something. I don't allow a roll right away. For example, let's consider the simple situation of a PC trying to enter a town past the gate guard after night has fallen and the gates are closed. Instead of going straight to Diplomacy checks, ask the player what he says. Roleplay some it out.

"Eh?" Says the gatekeep from atop the battlement. "Who moves in the night. State your purpose, and state it promptly!"

The player roleplays, "I am Arus, a Watchman myself, from Numalia. I have come at the bidding of my commander. Rodolfo. I am charged with business within!"

"Yeah....err...what kind of business."

"The kind that involves silver!" The player indicates that this character, Arus, holds up three silver pieces. "I would be happy to pay this fee to you or your agent, if, indeed, entry will be allowed."

It is here that I would probably roll dice. I'd allow Arus a Diplomacy check and give him a +2 circumstance bonus for the fun roleplaying to boot! I find this so much more fun that defaulting to something like....

-- There's a gate guard. He won't let you in.

-- OK, I'll roll Diplomacy and try to talk him out of it.

-- Sure. You bribe him. Give him three silvers and enter.

The roleplaying I find fun and interesting. The default rolling is boring to me. But, as I said above, there are times when defaulting to rolling is the clear choice. Maybe the party is tired of roleplaying having spent the first half of the game sessions with a greedy merchant. Or, maybe the action is happening elsewhere, and a character ran back to town to get a needed item. In those cases, roll dice and keep the game moving.

Always default to the most interesting thing that you can do in the game. Sometimes, that is straight dice rolling. But, don't forget how much fun you can have with impromptu roleplaying moments.

[Water Bob]

-- LANGUAGES & LITERACY --



The Conan RPG is very liberal in the way it grants characters languages. I'm generally in agreement with the rules as it suits the game world. Conan doesn't seem to have too many troubles in communicating no matter where he goes. I do have two notes on this subject, though.

First, the GM should step in and limit or monitor the number of languages a character gets if that character does not have a lot of contact with other peoples. It's hard for me to believe that a Vanir raider speaks too many languages. It would depend on where he raids and how much time he spends away from his people. And a Cimmerian? Should he be able to read and write? The Cimmerian supplement says that Cimmerians think of the written word as a form of sorcery. They're amazed at how strange markings can make a person know so much. It must be sorcery.

In these situations, a GM should step in and limit language choices, and possibly even make the character illiterate in some or all of the languages the character does know. Gaming with these characters, the language and literacy restrictions can easily be lifted as the character adventures, spends time becoming literate, and ventures to new lands to learn new languages. Just use the rule that is already in the game. See page 15 of the Core rulebook (last paragraph of the Languages section).



My second note is that the rules may be just a tad too liberal with any type of character in speaking, reading, and writing multiple languages. There's no room at all for the (much more likely) character who reads and writes his native language plus a few others but also only speaks a few more.

I suggest this: Allow characters to automatically read & write their native language. Then, for every other language that they know, roll an INT check. It's a DC 15 for any language listed as a bonus language (the languages the character is most likely to know) and a DC 20 for any known language outside of those listed under the character's race. (And, of course, the GM can step in and adjust the DCs if he sees fit for his own campaign.)

For example, I posted a 1st level Argossean Thief earlier in the thread. He's a man named Yuri. At character creation, he had INT 15, with all the automatic and bonus languages, ended up knowing 7 languages: Argossean, Aquilonian, Kothic, Ophirian, Shemitish, Stygian, and Zingaran.

Using the rule I suggest, Argossean automatically becomes a language in which Yuri is literate. As for the other six, I have to roll. With the INT 15, I have a +2 modifier, and I roll a DC 15 or better for each of the remaining six languages. I rolled pretty well and ended up with the character being able to read & write in Aquilonian, Ophirian, Shemitish, and Stygian. It is only Kothic and Zingaran where the character speaks the tongue but cannot read or write it. For those, as we game, I will use the rule on page 15 of the 2E Core rulebook whenever the player attempts to learn to read and write in those two languages.







COMMONERS

Let's talk about Commoners for a moment, too. According to the game's rules, an Commoner classed character is illiterate, not even reading and writing his native language. The Commoner may speak several languages, but he doesn't know his letters in any of them. The rules say that it requires 2 skill points to be spent to make the character literate. If you use my rule I suggest above, then the rule for Commoners should be changed a tad so that spending the 2 skill points makes the Commoner literate in his native language and any automatic languages the character is given. Then, for any other languages the Commoner knows, use the system outlined above. Make the rolls and see where the character is literate and where he can only speak the foreign tongue.

This would work for any illiterate character, too. Sometimes, a GM will require a PC to start the game illiterate. I could see this with, say, a Ku****e character, who has spent his entire life (before the game starts) knowing nothing but the jungles of the Black Kingdoms. Since he is a PC, then maybe charging him 2 skill points is a bit harsh to become literate. Give the points to him free, but make the player make the roll. When he succeeds, in the spirit of the rules on page 15, the character will then be considered literate. Once a character can read and write one language, he is more equipped to start learning to read and write the other languages his knows.





How do I indicate literacy? I just place a mark next to the language on the character sheet. A character who can speak a language will have the square next to the language penciled in dark. If the character can also read and write that language, I put a dash to either side of the language name so that it's easy for the player to scan the language list (see the character sheet at the back of the Core rulebook) and see which languages the character can speak and which he can also read and write.

The rule I've written in my GM's notebook says the following:

Literacy

Automatic for native and any other automatic languages. Roll INT check at DC 15 for literacy in any Bonus language. Roll INT DC 20 for literacy with any language known but not listed under the character's race.

For Commoners and other illiterates, this rule applies after the 2 skill points are spent to make the character literate. (But, illiterate PCs do not have to spend the two skill points.)

Follow the language learning rules on page 15 of the Core rulebook, last paragraph.

DECIPHER SCRIPT

Illiterate characters (even those who are lettered in other languages) use the Decipher Script skill understand written language that they do not know.

[Water Bob]

-- SUNLESS CITADEL CONVERSION --

Area 0: The Dark Ravine



Continuing the Conan-ization of the 3E D&D adventure, The Sunless Citadel, for my campaign--

Since the PCs are from the general area where the Citadel is located, I want to give them a chance to recognize the area. It may become clear to the PCs once they reach the ravine exactly where they are. At the same time, this area is supposed to be somewhat off the beaten path and somewhat forgotten. The Old Road is not used as much anymore. In fact, it's disappearing. Argosseans using it seldom run into company on the road, and if they do, it is more likely to be bandits than fellow merchants. So, I decided on a DC 17.

Knowledge (Local - Raeze) DC 17.



Unlike in the adventure, I like the idea of the Old Road spanning the ravine by means of a rope bridge. The ravine averages 30 feet wide and 30 feet deep, and the narrow canyon runs for several miles in either direction. This will, of course, be a barrier for the PCs if the Horsemen and dogs are still chasing them.

The PCs who recognize the area by know of the rope bridge and suggest that they use it then cut it to escape the followers.

But, upon reaching the part of the ravine crossed by the Old Road, the PCs will find that the rope bridge has already been cut. Its sides hang down on each side of the canyon.

Remember to limit the characters' view to the limit of their light source. If it is night, visibility this night will be very, very short. Characters cannot even see 30 feet away to the other side of the ravine. This will make things scarier for the adventurers.



Pillars.

Strange, totem-like wooden pillars are driven into the ground to each side of the Old Road bridge crossing point. These heavy wood poles are thick as trees and look to have been planted here since ancient times. The pillars lean in different directions but were most likely straight when driven into the ground.

Examining a pillar will reveal strange symbols carved into the wood. These marking seem very old--probably as old as the pillars themselves. Debris from old, rotted rope can be found. Probably, men have used the pillars as anchor points, tying rope around them in order to descend the side of the ravine to reach the bottom.

Give the PCs a DC 10 Knowledge (Arcana) check to recognize the markings as sorcerous!

If anyone tries to read the markings, it's a DC 30 Decipher Script check. And, since no one among my 1st level party will have any chance at making that check, I'm not even going to spend time creating what the markings say. I'll just use the description as mystery.



Camp Fires.

This will be difficult to almost impossible to find in the dark, but a DC 13 Search check around the rope bridge will reveal several campfires. The most recent was used about a month ago. Someone has gone to a lot of effort at each of them to hide the fact that they ever existed.



Good Rope.

Tied to the pillar nearest the rope bridge is a rope in good condition. By its weathering, the rope has probably been tied to the pillar for 2-3 weeks. The rope goes down into the darkness.

The characters can't see the bottom for the dark (night or day), but the ravine does seem a bit deeper here than the average of 30' (if that has been discovered at all). The rope will lead 50' down the side of the ravine to the foyer at Area 2. No climb check is needed because it is fairly easy to grab the rope and walk against the side of the ravine.

But, the PCs may be in a hurry with Horsemen and dogs breathing down their necks. At the edge of the ravine, to both sides of the good rope, the PCs will discover pock marks that have been carved into the side of the ravine. These look to be hand and foot holds used for climbing.

If these are used, it's a single DC 10 climb check to get to the bottom. Failure is brutal, though. It means that the character fell about 25' and takes 2d6 damage (which can kill a 1st level character--or make him useless for the fights about to come).

[Water Bob]

-- COINAGE in ARGOS --



Power Structures.

My campaign begins with the characters in Argos, near the coast and the boarder with Shem. In my version of the Hyborian Age, Argos is a complicated place, politically. The kingdom is combination of powerful city-states banned together under one ruler. There are several power centers. Most of the interior is feudal, where the multitude of baronies and duchies are run by powerful nobles with almost total control over their holdings. The commoners who live here are poor, illiterate, hard working people, who work the mines and lumber yards, vineyards, farms, and ranches that dot the forests and pastoral hills. Many are serfs, owing fealty to their local lord.

On the coast are sixteen mighty cosmopolitan cities, each ruled as if it were its own city-state. Banded together as a kingdom, for mutual prosperity and defense, there is a king of Argos, who is currently Milo of Messantia.

Each power institution has its own guards and soldiers. The interior nobles maintain armies for the local protection of their fiefs, and squabbles among the fiefs do happen. The coastal cities maintain their own guard. And, King Milo maintains the kingdom's guardsmen, which is a smaller force, as that of kingdoms go, bolstered, when needed, by Assuri mercenaries.

Add to this political quagmire two more power centers--that of the various Merchants Guilds and the Church of Mitra--and it will become quite clear what a nightmare it is to maneuver politically with this Hyborian kingdom.





Coinage.

There is no national coinage in Argos. Coins are minted by the more powerful institutions. Many of the coastal cities mint their own coins as do some Merchant Guilds and even some of the larger Baronies and Duchies. A set of rules has been established, though, years ago, by order of the king, that orders specifications for each type of coin across the land. That way a drachma from the northern fiefs is accepted as well as a dinar from one of the coastal cities as legal tender of one silver piece throughout the kingdom (and even beyond).

My campaign is set in the Shar. This is the Shaipur region of Argos. It's the only true desert region in the kingdom, considered frontier wild lands by most, and home to the Shaipur Bay, the Shaipur Bay Outpost, the Shaipur Ravine (but not the Shaipur Monastery), the Plain of Bone and Marrow, the stone-spun city of Raeze, and the ancient Archeronian ruins of Khor Kalba. Here, many are illiterate, and many coins pour in from the interior fiefs and coastal cities as well as the city-states of Shem.

In the Shar, there are five types of coin in general use, and they are referred to using colloquial names. A dinar and a drachma are both called Hammers, for example.



COMMON. This is the lowest denomination of coin used in the region. It is a copper coin, round, and larger in diameter than a standard silver piece. There is a hole in its center, and it is quite common for Commoners to string these coins on a string around their neck (though this practice is detested by the upper classes--as if the upper classes would ever dirty their hands with copper coins to begin with) as a measure against thieves.

10 Commons equals 1 Hammer. 50 Commons equal 1 Master. 100 Commons equals 1 Noble.

Spoiler

Show

HORSEMAN. This coin is made of silver and shaped like a piece of pie (see the description of the Hammer). It is literally one fourth of a standard silver piece. It is called a Horseman because of the four leafed design on the back of Hammers. The design does not actually depict a man on a horse. It is more akin to seeing a man on horseback in the clouds. The design on the back of a Hammer is mean to aid in breaking the coin into equal parts. One Horseman is the smallest coin in general use (in size). Technically, a Horseman is worth 2.5 Commons.

1 Horseman does not have an equivalency among the other coins. 4 Horsemen equal 10 Commons or 1 Hammer. 20 Horsemen equals 1 Master. 40 Horsemen equals 1 Noble.

Spoiler

Show

HAMMER. This is a standard silver piece, depicting a workman with a hammer. It is the most common coin in the realm, and its picture promotes the Argossean saying of a fair day's wage for a fair day's work. It is a round coin with a filigree design on the back that is popularly thought to resemble four separate men on four horses. The coin is worked so that it is easy to bisect it simply by snapping it half with hands. The filigree design on the back aids in snapping the coin in half or into fourths. It is common to find half a Hammer (in which case, the coin can still be snapped in half again to create two Horsemen), but three Horsemen (a Hammer missing but one Horseman piece) is very rare. When Hammers are snapped, it is easiest to snap them in half, and then halve them again, if need be. The Hammer sees the most use of all the coins in all the kingdom.

Once a Hammer is snapped, it is not longer called a Hammer. It is then called a Horseman, and half a Hammer that has not been snapped is called two Horsemen, but some call this a Moon.

1 Hammer equals 10 Commons and 4 Horsemen. 5 Hammers equals 1 Master. 10 Hammers equals 1 Noble.

Spoiler

Show

MASTER. The Master is an uncommon coin, typically used mainly by merchants in the course of their business-to-business transactions. It is a square silver coin, thick, equivalent to 5 silver pieces.

1 Master equals 5 Hammers, or 20 Horsemen, or 50 Commons. 2 Masters equal 1 Noble.

Spoiler

Show

NOBLE. The Noble is a round coin, primarily made of gold, and it is called such because most average people never see a gold coin in their entire lives. Gold pieces are the provenance of royalty and the nobility. A similar coin, called a Royal, is also used, and the two coins are inter-changeable. But, visually, the Royal is cut in an octagonal shape instead of being manufactured round like a Noble.

1 Noble equals 1 Royal, or 2 Masters, or 10 Hammers, or 40 Horsemen, or 100 Commons.

Spoiler

Show

Coin Weight

The Hammer (the most used coin) weighs about a third of an ounce. It's a big coin, by today's standards (about the size of a US half dollar coin). The Hammer, Noble, and Royal are all about the same size and weight, at 50 coins to a pound. The Common also weighs 1/50th of a pound, but the coin's diameter is a bit bigger than for that of the Hammer and gold coins.

The Master is a very thick square coin. It weighs in at 10 Masters to the pound.

There are 200 Horsemen to the pound, and there are 100 Moons to the pound.



1/50 lb. = gold octagonal Royal

1/50 lb. = gold round Noble

1/10 lb. = silver square Master

1/50 lb. = silver round Hammer

1/100 lb. = silver half-pie Moon

1/200 lb. = silver pie Horseman

1/50 lb. = copper round holed Common

[Water Bob]

-- SUNLESS CITADEL CONVERSION --

Area 1: Ledge



The Old Road has fallen into disuse over the last 40 years, which is probably before the PCs were born, making it likely that none of the PCs have heard of the Citadel before. The the Knowledge check I suggested in Area 0. Those that make the check will know little more than the approximate location of the Ravine and Citadel--and the novelty that, hundreds of years ago, an entire keep was swallowed by the earth and remains relatively intact at the bottom of the ravine. Those that roll exceptionally high (if a natural 20 is thrown on the check) will remember something about a sorcerer or a cult that used the citadel, and that it is rumored that the reason the Shar is desert today (when the rest of Argos is so green and forested) had something to do with this cult and its foul sorcery. Any detail is quite hazy, though.

That last bit will most likely not be learned by the PCs at this time.

The Horsemen chasing the PCs know of the ravine for they have lost refugee prey to it before this night, but the men will be hesitant to follow the PCs down onto the ledge.



On The Ledge:

Even with a light source, the PCs cannot see the opposite side of the ravine. It widens from the opening above and is 250' away. They cannot see below them, either, as the next ledge is 80' below.



Desert Rats!

On the ledge, scrounging for food, are 3 desert rats. These feral things are the size of medium dogs. The rats are about 3' long and weight about 75 lbs. Now, that's a freakin' rat! They are nesting in the slope debris (thus the small animal bones). Normally, the rats will shy away from humans (though some have been known to be quite brave, especially if cornered), and there is a small chance a PC will be able to avoid conflict with these creature.

But, that is doubtful as the humans have just dropped into their nest!

Most likely, all three will swarm to attack as soon as a PC lays foot on the ledge. (And, Mitra help the PC who falls to the ledge from above, having to deal with these things after surviving the fall.)

The rats will automatically detect any intruders unless the PCs declare, before their decent, that they are moving stealthily. In this case, roll the PC's Move Silently skill opposed by a roll of d20 + 3 (roll one time for the rats and compare that number to each of the PC's throws). If a PC is quiet, he may just be able to retreat down the stairs before engaging the rats. If he lingers too long, roll the check again and give the rats another chance to detect the intruder.

If the PCs do not move silently, give the rats a Surprise round as they attack.

Two of the rats are borrowing on the debris slope about 10' above the ledge, very close to where the rope hangs. The first PC to use the rope will find himself flanked by the two biggest of the three creature. If the PC was successful in Moving Silently, this will be a hair-raising moment as the PC decides to move along or climb back up to the surface. If the PC did not Move Silently, then both Desert Rats are close enough for a Surprise Attack. Do that, then run combat normally.

The third, small rat is about 15' away. It will join the fight on regular rounds (not the surprise round).

The ledge is roughly rectangular--a cut-out on the ravine wall where two sides are the ravine wall itself. Another side is the stairs leading down. And, the last side points to the far wall of the ravine. Anyone falling off that side will surely die taking 8d6 damage. It is possible that someone falls off to the stairs, and that distance is variable, depending on which step the character landed upon.

Unless he is sneaky, the first character down the rope is in for some dangerous action. The two bigger rats get Surprise attacks before Initiative is rolled. They flank the rope, so each of these rats get a +2 attack flanking bonus. In addition, the multiple opponent rule gives the one of the rats an additional +1 on the attack. So, one rat attacks, with surprise, at +2, and the other attacks at +3, also with surprise.

Use the stats for a Dire Rat to serve as these Desert Rats.

This means, on the Surprise round, desert rat 1 will attack at +6, and desert rat 2 will attack at +5.

Meat-grinder!

Filthy things.



DISEASE!

Don't worry about disease from a rat bite at this point. The incubation period is 1d3 days. Secretly make the checks for any bitten surviving PCs later (within a game day), and then apply the effects without telling the player where they came from. Just describe the enflamed and ***** bite marks, or maybe the dark line running up the character's vein, seen through the skin. Start having him throw up. Things like that.

It's a problem to overcome at a later time.



PITCH BLACK!

It is likely that the PCs do not have a light source. If not, the ledge is pitch black. A person cannot see his hand in front of his face, it is so dark. The PCs may drop a light source from the top before their decent, and if they do that (provided the light source doesn't go out), they will see some shapes scatter below. But, that's all, because it's 50' down there--they'll only see shadows and probably flickering from their torch.

The good news is, if a light source is dropped, then the Surprise attack by the two rats will not happen. In fact, the rats may scatter, running away from the light (maybe to fight them at a lower level...and maybe not).

If the PCs don't have a light source, then they'll have to scavenge one from whatever materials they have and can find. Use Survival skill or an appropriate Craft skill.

With no light, the character has a flat out 50% miss chance (roll before any attack), cannot Doge or Parry (is flatfooted), takes a -2 penalty to defense (making him AC 8, if no DEX penalty applies), automatically moves at half speed, and is -4 on Search and other skill checks where light is required.

It's a DC 5 Craft (Any Appropriate) check to create a torch from the debris (if the right items are found). Failure means the item not good and must search for something else. -2 to this check because no tools are available. Apply an additional -4 to this check if the character does not have light. Success means that a shoddy, makeshift torch has been created, but the GM should limit the duration of this light source after considering what materials it was made from. Normal torches burn for about an hour. Whatever is used to create the makeshift torch will burn for less.

The rats have the Scent ability, which basically allows them to "see" for 30'.





SEARCH!

Searching is going to require light. A DC 13 Search task reveals recent human footprints that lead from the rope to the stairs. Also, the large rat tracks are seen.

There's a fire pit near the ledge opposite the rope and ravine wall. This can be found with no light by a DC 13 Search check, but the check suffers a -4 penalty as the character motions about with hands and feet. He'll stumble across the pit if he makes the throw.

In the pit, under the ash, are 2 pitted iron spear tips and some crispy animal bones.

The characters may have to resort to wrapping some of their clothing around a weapon and using that as a makeshift torch until it burns out (which will be rather quickly).

[Water Bob]

Spoiler

Show

[Water Bob]

-- THE SUNLESS CITADEL CONVERSION --

Area 2. Switchback Stairs



There are old, cracked, stone stairs that lead down from the ledge (which, at one time, was the top of the tower), farther into this chasm. Make them sound unsafe. Worry the PCs a bit.

There's a large crack that runs runs right through about three steps. You can easily step over it, but any pressure on the far side might send off a piece of the staircase.

In fact, the stairs are fairly safe, but that shouldn't stop you from playing up the tension. Have a small piece fall off.

The real danger to the PCs on these stairs is all the crumbled debris. It's slippery--easy to slide. The steps are about 5' wide, and they're cut long, so that one can step down, take a small step, then step down again. Or a person can talk long, loping steps to cross each one with each step.

The danger happens if a person runs down the steps (Moves at double speed or faster), or if the character engages in melee on the steps. See below. A person can make it down the steps with no light if he moves very slow and hugs the side of the tower, constantly touching it with his hands. Otherwise, having no light may call for a Balance check as detailed below.



Running Down The Steps or Melee on the Steps

DC 13 Balance check, which must be made at each switchback level (total of 3 checks to make it down all of the steps).

In melee, if a character takes 5 HP or more from a single blow, this triggers a DC 10 Balance check.

A failed check means the character falls off the side of the steps. Don't forget Blindness penalties if there is no light.

Falling from switchback level 1 means 6d6 damage. Falling from switchback level 2 means 4d6 damage. Falling from switchback level 3 means 2d6 damage.



Seeing Courtyard (Area 3)

If the PCs have a light source, then they can see the courtyard from stair switchback level 2 or 3.

[Water Bob]

-- SUNLESS CITADEL CONVERSION --

Area 3. Crumbling Courtyard



It's as if the earth opened and swallowed a keep. There is a Citadel that is extremely ruined that has seemed to fall into a sink hole, retained much of its original design. But, the PC's light will reveal enough destruction, fallen walls, and sideways towers that it is obvious that the place didn't resist the fall whole.

How could this have happened? Describe it with wonder. Maybe it sunk slowly? It's a real miracle. Was...um....sssa..sa...sorcery involved??

Outside the small "courtyard" (used to be a roof level--remains of battlements can be made out) is easy to get to, but the cavern is filled with large and smaller boulders. Traveling across this area is precarious at best. Even the rats, who nest here, move at 25% speed across this debris field.

If a PC leaves the courtyard and attempts to move across the debris field, then he moves a 10' per round, and each round he must make a DC 15 Balance check or fall in between the larger pieces of rock and masonry pieces.

This may be hard for the PCs to visualize. Describe an empty cardboard box, which represents the cavern. Then fill it with Styrofoam peanuts (packing stuff)--except imagine the peanuts to be of different sizes instead of all uniform in size, and you get the idea. When you can slip down between some of the peanuts, you can imagine how hard it would be to get across this stuff. You're not going anywhere quickly.

PCs take no damage from a fall, but they do have to make a DC 15 Climb check (attempt takes a round) in order to get back into a position atop the debris to keep on moving. For a character that can't climb (Armor check penalty but possibly Blindness penalty), this could take some while. And, there is a 10% chance, ever time a PC falls, that a desert rat will be attracted to the sound from the nest. If a rat is indicated, it will arrive 3 rounds later, possibly gaining surprise on the character.




Pit Trap!

At one time, there was a wooden door in the "floor" of the battlement that led to the floor below via a wooden ladder. Of course, that door and ladder have been gone for a long, long time. Someone, though, has taken the time to clean out the debris from the hole so that it now forms a hole that is about 7' square and 10' wide. Then, someone has thrown light piece of wood and sticks and other long pieces of debris over the top of the hole, disguising it. Anybody who walks across it will fall into the pit. The only way not to fall into the pit is to go around it and slip in behind it.

But, why go there anyway?

Because rising on the far side of the "courtyard" is a tower that raises up into the darkness--at least 40' high, maybe more. Scaling the outside of the tower can be done but will get the climber no where. The only entrance from this place into the Citadel interior is through the door. So, any character in the courtyard will walk right over the pit unless it is detected first.

You are walking to the door, but you hear a crack, like a twig snapping. In an instant, you're falling! The floor has given way beneath you.

This trap will mostly likely only catch the first person to cross to the door, unless two or more PCs are walking close together (and they could be, holding each other, if there is no light).

Detect the trap? DC 21 Search. Must have light. Success means that the PC noticed how "clean" it was around the area (from dragging debris to lay on top). Someone did a great job doctoring this to look like the rest of the courtyard (which is why it's a DC 21). Further investigation will catch partial footprints going around the trap (showing how to get to the door without stepping on the pit).

In the adventure, the trap resets itself. But, as I've described it here, that doesn't happen. "Resetting" the trap is done manually, by a person doctoring the site.

Anyone who falls into the trap gets one saving throw: Reflex DC 16. Success means that the person instinctively jumped to the side of pit (or backwards) just as that person was starting to fall. If this happens, the trap top layer may not fall through completely. But, the gig is up. Parts of the topping will fall, and it will be obvious that the "floor" is a false covering for the pit.

Falling into the pit means 1d6 damage.

At the bottom of the pit are 2 desiccated bodies. They've been there so long that they don't even stink anymore. On top of these is a third body. This is one of a young boy, about 15 years of age. He probably died yesterday.

Inspecting him will reveal him to be a Jaren. These are local people--a gypsy like race who have both Argossean and Shemite blood. The Shar (this region of Argos) has been conquered by Shem in the past, and being so close to the border, has a large Shemite population to this day. The Jaren are the result of the mixing of races, the Hyborian Agrossean and the Sons of Shem. One racial feature of the Jaren is that they have high foreheads. See the picture below of the warlord Khalar Zym and his Witch daughter Marique. They are Jaren.

Spoiler

Show

If the boy had anything of value on him, it's gone now (probably taken by whomever reset this pit trap yesterday). Two things of value can be gained, though. First, if the PCs have had a hard time keeping their makeshift torches lit, then they now have better materials for making torches. The boy's clothes can be tightly wound around a length of debris.

The second item isn't much, but it can be very useful if the party has no way of making fire. On a rope belt (the boy was probably a peasant--the Jaren are typically very poor people), the boy has a horse-hair belt pouch. The pouch is empty except for a piece of flint and a piece of steel. Whomever reset the trap probably thought little of leaving it, and it was obviously of no value to him. There's plenty of tinder around to get a fire started, and the boy has a long, brained pony tail that can be used (but probably the dryer, brittle hair from the desiccated corpses will work better).





Attack of the Rat!

In the adventure, the rat is in the bottom of the pit. But, that doesn't fit with the way I've described the pit. So, what happens is that a desert rat is attracted the noise made with the pit and all the rumbling around. It'll move in to investigate, but, remember, there are plenty of ways for the party to shoo the rat away. They don't have to fight everything they come across. Reward good play and good thinking by giving the party XP for defeating the rat even if they just shooed it away. Either way, they avoided or conquered the obstacle.

[Water Bob]

-- Stripped Bark --


I love little touches like this in a game. This is just a little thing but worth mentioning. If the PCs come across a campsite, one thing that you can do in describing it is have them discover an old log that has its bark stripped away. Woodsmen will do this on fallen trees to clean away the bugs and vegetation that infest the bark. Then, the woodman will leave to go hunting, coming back to the camp in several hours. If he's lucky, the sun and heat will have dried out the trunk of the tree a bit. And, the woodman can use the cleaned area as a table--to clean fish or game, to eat on, to put his cup on because he doesn't want it on the ground where things can crawl in his drink.

Maybe, in a game, the players will be introduced to this by camping with a Cimmerian or a borderer classed character.

[Water Bob]

-- SUNLESS CITADEL CONVERSION --

Area 4. Tower Shell



The wooden door, upon closer inspection, has been patched! It obviously leads to the interior of the tower, but the door won't budge. It sways just a bit when pressed hard, but does not give unless a DC 18 STR check is made. Up to two people can press on the door, and if that happens, use give the stronger of the two the check but first allow the other to attempt to give that check a +2 bonus using the Aid Another rule.

Only one check can be made except if a stronger character hasn't yet tried (the players will mostly likely use their strongest character the first time, so there probably will not be a second check).

If the door cannot be pushed in, then the PCs can attempt to beat it down. The door is AC 5, Hardness 5. with 10 HP.

Once they break in, the PCs will be assaulted with a horrendous smell--the smell of decaying bodies. The smell of death.

The door opens to a circular room with a stone floor. Two other wooden doors exit the room. The room is about 30-40' in diameter. Except what I describe here, the room has nothing in it--just debris, gravel, fallen masonry, and dust. Looking up, one can see that the floor above fell through long ago. That floor looked to be wooden, and there is no staircase going up, so it was probably reached by a wooden ladder that is long gone. Without the above floor, the "ceiling" is 30' above the characters' heads.

There is old, dried blood on the stone--lots of it, with bloody footbrings and swaths that show the bodies being dragged to their current position. Which is off to the left, in a pile, slumped up against the wall.

There are three men clumped together. Shemites. Black curly hair, dark skin, and hooked noses. They're bloated--they've been here about a month. They've been stripped of anything valuable. Someone even took their armor and boots. And, pieces of them are missing--they've been gnawed on by some large animal (the feral desert rats probably got to them before the door was closed). One of them has been dragged away from the stack (a rat, jerking on the body).

One conical helm is found, tossed in among them. The help is useless as it has been rented by some mighty blow. If inspected closely, A DC 15 Heal check will reveal battle wounds from edged/piercing weapons.

DC 10 Knowledge Geography check to know the conical helms are common among the mercenaries across the border in Shem.



There is a fourth body literally stapled to the wall. A long war spear juts out from his chest. He is pinned with his feet 2' off the ground. This one wears a scale hauberk (that is ruined from the piercing), but nothing below the waste. He's completely naked with his male unmentionables hanging (not circumcised). And, there is a pile beneath him where he relieved himself mostly likely when he was pinned. Dried evidence trails on both legs.

(Yeah, I know, that's a bit sick, but this is CONAN! It's a universe that can be very dark. I just read a Conan book where a man bathed in a tub of blood from young children who were tied at the feet, upside down, with their throats cut to drain into the man's bath. Conan The Liberator, by L. Sprague de Camp and Lin Carter. I try not to over do it, but I do have scenes like this in my game to serve the universe and remind the players that this isn't just another "D&D" world. It's dark swords & sorcery. Very adult and definitely not for everybody.)

This man has a shaved head but sports a thick, curly black beard.

DC 10 Knowledge Geography check to recognize the armor as that used by Shemite mercenaries.





Where the man is pinned is a cracked, square inset in the wall of dark marble and granite. Should anyone remove the spear and lower the dead man to the ground, they will see the outline of a tree with many branches carved into the marble behind some lettering.

Anybody that speaks Shemite will recognize the lettering as that of one of the Shemite dialects and get a DC 20 Decipher Script throw to read the lettering. It says one word: Ashardalon.

Anybody that is literate in Shemite can easily read the word.

Anybody that has read the word (or someone that the word is spoken to) gets a Knowledge Religion DC 20 (or Knowledge Arcana/Knowledge Local Raeze DC 30) to remember something very vague about the name. They've heard it before. Was it that Ashardalon was a prophet priest in worship to the god Votantha--a patron deity of the western Shemite city-state of Sark. Or, was it that Ashardalon was an Acheronian god in service to Votantha? Or, maybe it was that Ashardalon was a Acheronian Priest/Prophet of Votantha.

Whatever the case, it's from the time before time--before the Bori tribes took this land from the ancient Acheronians.

Inspecting the war spear takes a DC 10 Knowledge Geography roll. Success means that the design of the spear tip is recognized as that used in Shem. This war spear is still in fairly good shape. There's a crack in the wall where the spear was shoved to pin the man. The only guess as to why the spear wasn't taken with every other valuable from the bodies is that, whomever did this, wanted to make a point--to send a message.

But, what kind of a message is it? Is the Ashardalon name being blasphemed?

[Water Bob]

-- SUNLESS CITADEL CONVERSION --

Area 5. Secret Pocket



I can see no story reason for this secret room, and the skeletons that spring to life if PC discover the secret door do not make sense in the context of the Hyborian Age. I'm not against having skeletons come to life--I just don't see a reason for this room or encounter from a Conan perspective.

As far as this conversion goes, Area 5 does not exist.

There's nothing to see here. Move along. Move along.

[Water Bob]

-- WHAT'S IN S&P? --



Signs & Portents is the gaming magazine published by Mongoose. It supports their house games. Originally, it was print only, but eventually it switched to a free digital download. You can find tons of articles devoted to the Conan RPG by downloading these mags (it's free on the Mongoose site). The original print stuff is not available for free, but fret not, as just about all of that material has found its way into official Conan supplements.

So...what kind of stuff can you get out of S&P?

I'll tell you...



CHARACTER RACES

-- Sample Aquilonian names.

-- New Race: Iranistani

-- New Race: Acheronians.

-- Hyrkanian race explored over several articles.

-- New Race: Saami

-- Pygmies of the Hyborian Age





CHARACTER CLASSES

-- New Thief Sneak Attack Styles

-- New Borderer Combat Styles

-- New Class: Healer

-- New Class: Gladiator

-- New Class: Martial Disciple

-- Discussion on Noble Followers





EQUIPMENT

-- Daggers from specific regions of the world

-- Thief Equipment





COMBAT

-- Chariot Combat Rules





SORCERY

-- Several articles bringing new Spells to the game





LOCATIONS

-- Barachan Isles (mentioned in Robert E. Howard's The Hour of the Dragon, and starting location for the Age of Conan online game)

-- Typical Stygian Temples

-- Aghrapur (Turanian capital mentioned in several Conan stories)

-- Mount Yimsha (from Robert E. Howard's The People of the Black Circle)

-- The Palace of Cetriss (from Conan And The Emerald Lotus by John C. Hocking)

-- Xuthal (from Robert E. Howard story The Slithering Shadow, also known as Xuthal of the Dusk)





BEASTIARY

-- Several articles on animals, creatures, monsters and demons. Some of these are quite in depth, "ecology" type articles.





ADVENTURE

-- Multiple adventures, for various character levels, set all over the world. Some of these are just adventure ideas. Many are fully fleshed out adventures. Included is Eric Rodriquez's expansive (runs about 30 pages) low-level adventure that was originally slated to be published as an official adventure before Mongoose stopped producing Conan RPG products, To Save A Kingdom. Some are set in locations from the Conan stories. The adventures are the largest portion of the S&P articles.





OTHER TOPICS

-- Gambling Rules

-- The Ark of Delight, a floating bordello.

[Water Bob]

-- Map of the Thurian Continent --



This is an exceptional map of the Hyborian Age, by Vagner Silva, based on the maps by Robert E. Howard and the research by Dale Rippke.

The Hyborian Age

[Water Bob]

-- Shooting at a Target in Melee --



When shooting into melee with a missile or thrown weapon, there is no chance that your comrade or another target is hit if you miss your intended target under the Conan rules. This little rule variant is for those who want to add that aspect of combat to their games.

It's a simple rule. When shooting into melee, the attacker takes a -4 penalty to hit. If the attacker misses his target because of that penalty (misses by 1-4 points), then there is a chance that another target in the melee was attacked ("attacked", not "hit"). In this instance, simply compare the attack total thrown to the alternate target's defense to determine if the other target was hit.





Example: Bartha the bowman is using his hunting bow to fire into a melee where his companion, Rodolfo, is engaged in melee with a town guardsman. Bartha's attack is at -4 since he is firing into melee, trying to avoid hitting Rodolfo. Bartha's attack roll is 12. The guardman is using his Dodge AC of 13 to defend himself, and thus, Bartha's attack misses. But, since Bartha's attack missed, he may have struck Rodolfo.

To figure is Rodolfo is struck, simply compare Bartha's attack of 12 to Rodolfo's defense. Rodolfo is also using his Dodge AC 16 defense, and since Bartha cannot hit an AC 16 with his attack of 12, Rodolfo was not struck either.

If you want, you can carry this run on if there are multiple opponents engaged in the melee (or, consider that up to 1 other target can be attacked and be done with it--your choice). Bartha missed Rodolfo by 4 points, so the next target is considered, and so on. Stop checking if the missile attack throw is 5+ points less than its target. And, the first target selected is the one closest to the line of sight between Bartha and his original target (roll randomly if there is more than one eligible target).

Do not use this rule when melee fighters are 10' or more distant, as with reach combat (the rule is not used anything the -4 penalty is not applied). Also, characters who have the Precise Shot Feat are also not subject to this rule (those characters with that feat are so good that they never hit unintended targets if they miss their primary target that is in melee).

[Water Bob]

-- Non-Lethal Weapon For Guards --



Here's an idea I had that I think would serve to play against the stereotypical town guard in Conan stories. I picture a place where the local lord actually cares about his people. The guardsmen where swords that fit into scabbards that have two leather hoops attached. These leather hoops slide over the short guard piece on the sword--a type of safety--locking it in place. The scabbard fits into a metal ring that hangs from the guardsman's weapon belt. So, what the guardsman has is a club. The soldier can swing the sword, with the scabbard attached, as a non-lethal weapon. The scabbards must be made of metal, or of hard, lacquered wood, to serve this purpose. If the soldier needs a blade, he has it, but for most occasions, he swings his club-sword when he needs to bang heads.

I'm thinking of some temple guard in Ophir, but, hey, this idea can really be used anywhere you think it fits.

[Water Bob]

Spoiler

Show