Like almost everyone thinking about D&D these days, I have a fantasy heartbreaker that I tinker with. It's kind of a mashup between 5e and OSR stuff with copious influence from internet forums, specifically The Gaming Den. This text is cooped from a Google doc, so it often references a nonexistent book that it is part of. The only particularly interesting thing here is the Grit Dice section.
CHILDREN OF STRANGE LANDS
Children of Strange Lands (CoSL) is a fantasy heartbreaker RPG that makes use of many of the tropes of Dungeons and Dragons, especially older editions like Basic D&D. The players form a party of adventurers and seek treasure and fame by exploring dungeons and other dangerous areas while dealing with traps and monsters. As characters gain power and levels, they will begin travelling with an entourage and eventually become movers and shakers in the world of Arde. Play is facilitated by an MC who takes on the roles of the NPCs and adjudicates the rules. It should be noted that the MC is a player like any other. They have taken on more responsibility, but they should not be an authoritarian figure. In addition, they are also there to have fun, so the MC’s enjoyment is as important as that of any other player.
You will need pencils, paper, polyhedral dice, and two colors of counters or tokens.
Game terms will be italicized when they have not yet been introduced, bold when they are being explained, and Capitalized thereafter.
Creature and Character are used interchangeably, both referring to anything that is able to act on its own turn. For example, A PC, a monster and a golem are all creatures/characters; while a ballista is not.
This book concerns itself with characters from 1st to 5th level. At 1st level, characters are notably competent - a 1st level Rogue is a much better fighter than the average guard; but they are still challenged by obstacles like a rushing river or an angry bear. By 5th level, a PC should be able to deal with most personal mundane challenges using their abilities.
Mechanics
Most obstacles in Children of Strange Lands are overcome by rolling 1d20 + a character’s modifiers and comparing the result to a target number (TN.) Certain tests, like reaction and morale rolls, use 2d6. The other common polyhedrals (d4, d8, d10, etc.) also make appearances as grit dice, damage rolls or rolled on a chart.
Whenever dividing results, always round down.
Attributes
The base attributes in Children of Strange Lands are:
Might - Strength and endurance.
Agility - Physical skill and coordination.
Perception - Awareness of the character’s environment.
Cunning - Mental acuity and quick thinking.
Will - Mental toughness and heart..
Other Stats
Several stats are common to all creatures in CoSL. They are typically, but not entirely derived from the attributes and bonuses described above.
Proficiency Bonus: The bonus a character adds to ability checks that they are proficient in. Proficiencies are gained through a character’s class, talents and knowledges.
Grit Dice: Each character has a number of grit dice based on their class and level that they can add to rolls.
Speed: The walking speed of the character, measured in squares on the battle map. Creatures and characters can also have flying, burrowing, climbing and swimming speeds. A creature’s running and travel speed are influenced by their base speed.
Armor Class (AC): The measure of how difficult it is to land a solid blow on a creature with a melee or projectile attack. A creature’s Agility defense plus any bonus from the armor they are wearing. Most weapon and monster attacks target AC.
Level: An approximate measure of character power. All characters and creatures in Children of Strange Lands have a level, even if it is zero.
Hit Points: Based on class and level, the amount of damage a creature can take before becoming knocked out.
Body: The amount of wounds a character can take before dying or being incapacitated.
Mana - Magical and spiritual energy. Spellcasters use mana to power their magic, while other characters can spend them to use or attune certain magical items. Mana can be spent or tapped. Tapped mana is regained when the effect it was being used to sustain is ended. Spent mana is regained at dawn.
Rolling Dice
When a character is presented with a task or obstacle that has a chance of failure (and that will impact the story) they must make an attribute check. They roll 1d20 + their relevant Attribute Score + their proficiency bonus (if proficient.) They may also choose to spend one of their Grit Dice and add its roll to the result.
The Flaming Minotaurs are confronted by a chasm in the floor of the dungeon they are exploring. After a brief consultation they decide to jump it. The MC decides this is a difficult Agility check and informs the players. Jacinda has an Agility of 3 and is proficient in Agility checks, allowing her to add her Proficiency Bonus of +2. She rolls 1d20 + 5 and gets a 16, clearing the chasm. Turgon the Magnificent is less agile, with an Agility of 1 and no relevant proficiencies. He rolls 1d20 + 1 and gets an 11, potentially falling into the chasm.
Sometimes an ability check is called for to avoid or withstand an attack, spell or special maneuver. In those circumstances the ability check is often referred to as a saving throw.
When making your character in the next chapter, you might want to keep the following table in mind. It lists the common TNs for ability checks and saving throws. It is repeated with greater detail in Chapter 3.
Grit Dice
Characters have a number (usually 2-10) of Grit Dice they can spend in a variety of ways. The number and size of a character’s Grit Dice is primarily determined by their class and level; but talents, spells and certain consumable items can provide extra Grit Dice to use in specific circumstances.
Adding to an Attribute Check: Characters may use an instant action to spend a die, roll it and add the result to their ability check.
Turgon feels like he’s not going to make it and digs deep to cross the chasm. He takes one of his Grit Dice (a d6) and rolls it, getting a 3. This gives him a total result of 14, which sees him land safely on the other side of the crevasse, breathing hard but otherwise fine.
Regaining Hit Points: A character may use a minor action to spend and roll one of their Grit Dice, and regain a number of hit points equal to their roll + their Might score.
Characters with fighting styles also spend Grit to power their maneuvers. The maneuver description will indicate the type of action (usually a main action or as a rider on an attack) and what the Grit Die roll is added to.
Later the Flaming Minotaurs are battling some Beastfolk. A satyr lands a lucky hit on Jacinda and she uses her reaction to perform the maneuver Curtain of Iron. She rolls one of her d8 Grit dice, getting a 4 which she adds to her AC. The satyr’s blow is deflected by her parry.
Unless a character has an ability or is under an effect that says otherwise, they may only spend one Grit on any individual action.
Characters regain Grit with rest. A character reagins all their spent Grit after 8 hours uninterrupted rest in good conditions (food, high quality shelter, etc.) A guarded, wary rest, such as making camp in a dungeon or hostile wilderness allows a character to regain up to half of their total Grit. Characters who are miserable, usually from privation, do not regain Grit.
Certain status effects such as wounds or fatigue replace Grit dice in the character’s pool until they are healed. If a character is healed from the effect replacing their Grit they must still regain that point of Grit through rest before they can use it again.
Advantage and Disadvantage
Sometimes circumstance makes a task easier or harder than normal. Instead of deciding on additional modifiers, the MC can simply give the character either advantage or disadvantage on the roll. A character with advantage rolls 2d20 and picks the highest roll while a character with disadvantage rolls 2d20 and picks the lowest.
Time
When the characters act, time passes. Different areas of play in the game measure time in different units. Combat, chases and other fast-moving events measure time in six-second rounds. Site Exploration actions like searching a room are measured in ten-minute long turns. Longer-term activities like Wilderness Travel and exploration are measured in four hour watches. Actions taken in a place of safety like a town might be measured in days, weeks, months or seasons depending on the activity and level of play.
Days - Getting information or equipment for your next expedition.
Weeks - Crafting items, running a street gang.
Months - Running a business or batony.
Seasons - Agriculture, training troops, construction.
