PLAYING GM CHARACTERS
A game master's labyrinth will be populated by many different beasts and men — some intelligent, some not, some friendly and some hostile. When the players encounter one of the GM's characters, the GM then takes on two roles. He is not only a referee, but also another player. The more skillful a GM is in separating his two roles, the more fun the whole group will have.
A GM, wherever possible, should determine the reactions of his men and monsters according to logic. Faced with a party of six, a wolf will flee — unless it's starved, sick, or defending pups. A party of stupid orcs will probably fight - but if they have a smart leader, they may try to dicker, negotiate, or trick the players into a bad position. The GM can then play the orc leader, talking to the party. If the players give the right answers, they may be able to walk right by! Otherwise, it's a
fight.
Although not every situation should turn into a fight, many will. In such cases, the GM moves and controls his characters, just as the players do theirs. He may choose to have them fight to the death — or to surrender or run when they are losing. If the GM's orcs and goblins are victorious, they may slaughter the party — or take prisoners. If the GM is undecided between courses of action, he can flip a coin or roll a die — but he should have a good enough idea what the motives of his char- acters are that he will know how to play them. Each player plays one or two figures — but the GM plays several.
One alternative system is to separate the role of playing the men and monsters from the referee role. The GM can have one player assist him by controlling all the ores, monsters, etc. — in fact, that player might be the one who first set up the labyrinth. This can be more interesting, because, while the GM may know a lot about the weapons and plans of the party, the monster-player won't. A GM has to be careful, when playing a dumb hobgoblin, not to act on knowledge he doesn't possess. Allowing a separate person to play the monsters allows the monsters to be fiendish, and the GM to be fair, all at the same time.
REACTION ROLLS
When the Game Master does not have a predetermined reac- tion in mind for one of his characters in a specified situation — or when he feels it is better to leave a reaction up to chance — he rolls one die. This die roll determines the reaction his characters) have to the presence of the players, or to whatever offer or suggestion they are making.
A roll of 1 is HOSTILITY. This may range from simple refusal of the request, to a command to "get out of here," to an outright attack, depending on circumstances.
A roll of 2 means UNFRIENDLINESS. A request will not be granted, or will be granted under the harshest possible conditions; a party of travellers will be ordered away, insulted, or otherwise made to feel unwelcome; and so on.
A roll of 3 or 4 means NEUTRALITY or DISINTEREST. A 4 is friendlier than a 3, but either roll means the GM's characters would prefer to go about their business and not be bothered. If this is a business situation, the characters should try again with a better offer; if this is an encounter in the wilds, the GM may allow his characters to become hostile if pressed.
A roll of 5 means FRIENDLINESS. Requests will probably be granted, information will be given, travellers will be allowed to pass unharmed, and so on.
A roll of 6 means GREAT FRIENDLINESS. Requests will be granted cheerfully, information will be volunteered and aid given, protection offered, and so on.
The GM may allow any number of factors to influence a reaction roll. If hostile races are involved, subtract 2. If the players' group is stronger than the GM's characters, add 1. If the situation is at all "civilized," add 1 if the party contains a bard, scholar, Master Physicker, or other character deserving of respect. Add 1 for a successful use of Sex Appeal; subtract 1 for a botched attempt. Add 1 for a bribe, and 2 for a large one, unless the GM characters are painfully honest — in which case SUBTRACT. (And keep in mind that brigands might try to attack, anyway, to get it all!)
SAVING ROLLS
A saving roll is a die roll made by a character to avoid some unpleasant event. A typical saving roll is made just like the "to hit" roll in combat: roll 3 dice against your DX. If you roll your DX or less, you escape. This would be exactly the saving roll needed to dodge a slime falling from the ceiling.
However, some saving rolls are made against your other attributes. For instance, a roll against IQ is required when looking for hidden traps or when trying to resist a CONTROL PERSON spell. A roll against ST would be required when a poison has been drunk.
Some saving rolls also call for more than 3 dice. For in- stance, to dodge a cloud of sleeping gas from a broken bottle
in your megahex, you would need to roll your adjDX on FOUR dice, rather than three. Some fiendish traps would re- quire a roll on even more dice.
The saving rolls for many dangers are given in this book, and a trap (see TRAPS) is described in terms of the dice needed to see it and/or to avoid being hit. For other situations, the GM will determine what saving roll he wants to require from the characters.
In general, a saving roll should be allowed against any "automatic" occurrence, to represent the chance that you might dodge. You do NOT get a saving roll to dodge an enemy weapon or spell - his chance of hitting is determined by his DX roll.
Both player characters and the GM's figures get saving roll chances, where appropriate. When a saving roll is called for, the general rule is: roll the number of dice given, trying to get a number LESS THAN OR EQUAL TO your ST, adjDX, or IQ, as the case may be. Failure to make the saving roll indi- cates failure to avoid the hazard.
In many cases, the GM will tell a player to make a roll on X many dice — without telling him what he is trying to avoid. The GM may even be doing this for no other reason than to make the party a little bit nervous.
Remember: In any situation where the player would get an unfair advantage by knowing whether his roll was a success or a failure (i.e., trying to disbelieve an illusion, looking for a secret door, manufacturing a magic potion, etc.), the GM, and not the player, makes the roll
You will remember that the 3-die DX roll required to HIT an opponent has "automatic" results at the high and low end. The very low rolls (3, 4, and 5) produce automatic hits, and the very high ones (16, 17, and 18) produce automatic misses. 3 is very good luck. 18 is a disaster.
The same system should be applied by the GM when most other rolls are made — saving rolls, rolls to see how a job went, rolls to hit someone dodging. A low roll produces a very good result for the character. A very HIGH roll produces disaster. For instance, a thief once tried to use his Spying talent to peek through a doorway without being seen. He rolled 3 dice against DX - and got 18. This is the WORST possible result - it means disaster. In this case, he tripped and fell through the door! Since there were a dozen Green Slimes on the other side, he was immediately eaten. Tough luck. Roll better next time.
Use the following table to determine what rolls are auto- matic success and failure for any number of dice. The GM should use his imagination when determining the results of spectacularly successful (or incredibly bad) rolls:
1 die: automatic success, always, on a 1-die saving roll. 2 dice: 2 = automatic success; 12 = automatic failure. 3 dice: 5 and below = success; 16 and up = failure. 4 dice: 8 and below = success; 20 and up = failure. 5 dice: 11 and below = success; 24 and up = failure. 6 dice: 14 and below = success; 28 and up = failure. 7 dice: 17 and below = success; 32 and up = failure. 8 dice: 20 and below = success; 36 and up = failure.
These numbers refer to AUTOMATIC success and failure. For instance, if your DX is 18, you could make any 3-die roll on DX - EXCEPT that, on a roll of 16 or up, you AUTOMA- TICALLY fail. And if your adjusted DX is 6, you might not have much chance on a 5-die roll on DX — except that on a roll of 11 or less, you made your saving roll, regardless of your actual DX.
The result is that any character, no matter how dextrous, has around a 41/2% chance of missing a roll — and even a clumsy or stupid character has the same chance of making it.
NOTE: GMs do NOT have to allow repeated attempts
to perform some nearly-impossible task. If they do, the 4 1/2% chance will assert itself! This rule is intended to give players a small chance of pulling something off through LUCK - never to make it possible to do anything if you just try 15 or 20 times. A general procedure: When characters are sitting around trying the same "impossible" task over and over again (looking for a well-hidden door, trying to figure out an 8/IQ puzzle, etc.), you can add one more to their die roll each attempt after the first. This means that if they don't get lucky, fast, they'll never manage it.
Similarly, the GM may rule out automatic success in a situation where he has said (for instance) "You can try a 20-die roll against your IQ, once a week, to do this." If he allows automatic success, 20 dice are no harder than 10. Automatic success is for saving rolls, or for accomplishing some feat the first try - plus anything else a generous GM allows. But automatic failure applies on everything.
NUISANCE ENCOUNTERS
A nuisance encounter is an encounter with a creature too slow or weak to be a real threat to a healthy party — but dangerous to a lone man, or to a group of wounded characters. Most nuisance creatures are small vermin of one kind or another. Therefore, it is not unrealistic to have them appear at random intervals, instead of planning their exact locations beforehand — though, of course, a GM may plant nuisance creatures in specific locations if he likes.
In game terms, nuisance encounters can be quite useful. The possibility of a nuisance encounter will keep parties from taking safety for granted under any circumstances. Roll for a nuisance creature at intervals, depending on just how vermin- ous your labyrinth is. GMs should try to strike a balance between constant nuisance attacks and boringly empty tunnels.
A suggested formula: Roll for a nuisance encounter every 30 hexes of tunnel, or every 10 minutes of game time when the party is in a room or otherwise standing still. Roll 1 die; on a 5 or 6, a nuisance encounter takes place. Roll 2 dice to determine the type:
2 - 30 vampire bats 3 - 15 vampire bats 4 - 50 rats 5 - 3 green slime 6 - red slime 7 - green slime
8 - small (1/2-meter) scorpion 9 - 2 brown slime
10 - 20 wasps 11 - 30 spiders 12 - silver slime
The GM does not have to bring the nuisance(s) into play immediately. For instance, if the party is about to open an otherwise empty room, he can have the nuisances come out of the room (or lie in wait inside). The creatures encountered as nuisances behave according to their natures; slimes (except silver slime) attack mindlessly, scorpions sting if disturbed, vampire bats try to pick off a straggler, etc.
GMs may vary this table to suit themselves, or create an entirely new one. However, random creatures should be confined to those that would logically be found wandering aimlessly in the area. It is NOT logical to pull trolls, groups of orcs, or similar menaces out of thin air in an otherwise well-worked-out labyrinth.
TIME, SPEED, AND DISTANCE Each turn lasts 5 seconds.
Movement on the tunnel map is at one of two speeds: WALKING: 1 hex per turn. At this speed, the party can map,
and has a normal chance of spotting traps, etc. Since this is the speed at which a party travels when nothing much is happening, a GM may wish to lump turns together and take 5 or 6 hexes at a time, to speed up play. Remember: each of these hexes is really 1 MH.
RUNNING: Speed depends on armor. An unarmored figure runs at 4 hexes per turn. A figure in leather moves at 3, and a figure in chain or plate moves at 2. To get the running speed on the tunnel map for other figures, divide their MA by 3 and round up. If all figures in a party are running, they may stick together (traveling at the speed of the slowest), or string out along the tunnel. When you run, you cannot map. You see NO tunnel features except walls and doors. When you run down stairs, you must make a 3-die saving roll to avoid falling; jumping down a shaft while running requires a 5-die saving roll. Falling down stairs does 1 die damage; falling down a shaft does 2 dice damage. When you run up stairs or "run" (actually climb very fast) up a shaft, you suffer no chance of falling, but lose 1 ST from exhaus- tion. Running also makes LOTS of noise.
If you are flying inside a tunnel, treat it as running (except for the faster speed). You may not fall down stairs - but you might bang into walls. It comes out even.
REMEMBER: The hexes on the tunnel maps are each equivalent to a MEGAHEX on the Melee tunnel segments. Walking speed in the tunnel (1 hex/turn) is equivalent to MA 3.
HOW MANY TURNS?
When figures are in combat, the option system rules what they can do. When they are not in combat, the GM must judge how many five-second turns each action would take — keeping in mind that it takes longer to do something if you're running. Some examples:
Make one search for a trap, hidden door, etc. — 6 turns. Attempt to remove a trap — 12 turns.
Spring a trap intentionally — one turn. Pull out a molotail and light it - 1 turn. Take off a backpack — 2 turns.
Remove an item from someone else's pack while they have it on, or from your own while it's on the ground - 6 turns.
Light a torch - 6 turns.
Search a body for loot — 6 turns. Kill a helpless figure - 1 turn.
Ask a question and get an answer — 1 turn for a simple question, more if it's complicated.
LIGHT
A torch (or Light spell) gives clear illumination in a circle 3 MH (3 hexes on the tunnel map) in diameter. An oil lantern, large torch, etc., such as might be found in a room, would illuminate more area: a circle 6 MH or more in diameter. A torch lasts for about an hour; a lantern burns for two hours on the oil from one molotail.
Any light can be SEEN at any distance underground in a straight line. The glow from a torch can be observed around one tunnel bend; the glow from a lighted room will carry farther. Such a glow will reveal the presence of the light, silhouette figures in front of it, etc.
A figure in total darkness can sense light at greater distance than can a figure with a torch of his own. GMs will have to
use their discretion in deciding when light can and cannot be seen — these are guidelines.
LIGHT'S EFFECT ON COMBAT
Human beings need light to go bashing about in the tunnels, especially if they plan to fight. So do most other creatures. Dwarves, many orcs, and lots of other creatures live under- ground, but they light their caverns. Wolves and bears den underground, but can't see in total dark.
Dark Vision and Mage Sight will let any figure operate in darkness as though it were full light.
In most underground combat situations, assume that there is enough light to fight by if one group or the other has a torch or two. Total darkness reduces DX by 8 except for those few creatures who have natural dark vision, or for a figure with Mage Sight. If you have Acute Hearing, you fight in the dark at only -4 DX. Note that creatures which can see in total darkness are usually afraid of light.
Many GMs may wish to assume that rooms (and maybe tunnels, as well) have torches or some other light source. An alternative is phosphorescent moss growing in caves. Charac- ters can put out torches to set an ambush, but they will have trouble killing moss ...
It is assumed that torches sold for labyrinth exploring are of very good quality, and will continue to burn even when dropped. Of course, they will go out if dropped in water. TRAVEL IN THE LABYRINTH
From the time the characters enter a labyrinth to the moment when they leave it (if they do!), the GM must give them information about where they are and what they see. In general, they may see in any direction as far as light allows, or to the next bend in the tunnel. The GM should tell them about all obvious physical features of the tunnel: ("The tunnel goes north for three more hexes, and then bends northeast. There is a door in the northwest wall of the second hex.") He may also give information about less obvious features - see "Did He See It?", below.
The GM keeps track of the players' progress on his laby-
rinth map. As a GM, you may find it convenient to make
small counters to use on this map, especially for situations where the party splits up or is pursued by several groups of foes. Notations on the map are all very well for static situa- tions, but as play progresses you will want counters. Bits of clay, tiny dice, small beads or jewels, and other such para- phernalia serve well.
To see how the GM keeps track of the players' location and tells them where they are and what they see, read the "Exam- ple of Map Narration" at the end of this section.
"DID HE SEE IT?"
As the characters wander through the labyrinth, they will pass many concealed or partially-hidden things: secret doors, inscriptions on the wall, traps and triggers, human and animal tracks . . . Obviously, the GM cannot tell them about every- thing they pass, if it's hidden. Neither can the players constantly be asking, "Do we see any traps? Do we see any slimes? Do we see any hidden doors on the roof?"
To determine whether something is seen, the GM rolls once against the IQ of each character that passes. (Yes, that's a lot of die-rolling — but, if you're constantly rolling dice to keep the players confused, they won't catch on.) The roll for some things is set when the GM designs a labyrinth. If a trap takes 5 dice to detect, for instance, the GM will roll 5 dice for each