The Basic Rules:
In FanAdv, most actions are resolved using the Core Mechanic. When a
character attempts something that has a chance of failure, a
twenty-sided die is rolled. To determine if the character succeeds at
their task, do the following:
-Roll 1d20.
-Add any relevant modifiers.
-Compare to the target number.
If the result reaches or exceeds the target number, the character
succeeds; if it is lower than the target, the character fails.
Ability Scores:
The most basic stats of a character or monster are their ability
scores; 7 numbers that act as the basis for the characters abilities.
These numbers can range from negative infinity to positive infinity,
but for starting characters they tend to range between -3 and +6. The
six ability scores are as follows:
Strength (abbreviated Str): Strength measures the character's brute
strength and physical power.
Dexterity (abbreviated Dex): Dexterity measures the character's
coordination and balance.
Agility (abbreviated Agi): Agility measures the character's speed and reaction time.
Constitution (abbreviated Con): Constitution measures the character's
health and stamina.
Intelligence (abbreviated Int): Intelligence measures the character's
ability to learn and reason.
Wisdom (abbreviated Wis): Wisdom measures common sense, perception and
intuition.
Charisma (abbreviated Cha): Charisma measures persuasiveness and force
of personality.
In addition, there are three other basic rules.
Round Down:
Whenever you divide a number and produce a fraction, round the
resulting number down.
Specific beats
General:
If two sources contradict each other, the more specific of the two
sources is the one used. For example, a rule that says "Drawing a
weapon so that you can use it in combat, or putting it away so that you
have a free hand, requires a move action" is less specific than a feat
that says "You can draw or sheath a weapon as a free action instead of
as a move action" as the former applies to everyone, but the latter
applies only to characters with that feat.
Modifier Stacking:
Modifiers
normally stack. However, two modifiers with the same type do not stack;
only apply the largest modifier. Bonuses with no listed type always
stack.
Alignment:
A creature’s
general moral and personal attitudes are represented by its alignment:
lawful good, neutral good, chaotic good, lawful neutral, neutral,
chaotic neutral, lawful evil, neutral evil, or chaotic evil.
Alignment
is a tool for developing your character’s identity. It is not a
straitjacket for restricting your character. Each alignment represents
a broad range of personality types or personal philosophies, so two
characters of the same alignment can still be quite different from each
other. In addition, few people are completely consistent.
Good Vs. Evil:
Good
characters and creatures protect innocent life. Evil characters and
creatures debase or destroy innocent life, whether for fun or profit.
"Good"
implies altruism, respect for life, and a concern for the dignity of
sentient beings. Good characters make personal sacrifices to help
others.
"Evil" implies hurting, oppressing, and killing others.
Some evil creatures simply have no compassion for others and kill
without qualms if doing so is convenient. Others actively pursue evil,
killing for sport or out of duty to some evil deity or master.
People
who are neutral with respect to good and evil have compunctions against
killing the innocent but lack the commitment to make sacrifices to
protect or help others. Neutral people are committed to others by
personal relationships.
Being good or evil can be a conscious
choice. For most people, though, being good or evil is an attitude that
one recognizes but does not choose. Being neutral on the good-evil axis
usually represents a lack of commitment one way or the other, but for
some it represents a positive commitment to a balanced view. While
acknowledging that good and evil are objective states, not just
opinions, these folk maintain that a balance between the two is the
proper place for people, or at least for them.
Law Vs. Chaos:
Lawful
characters tell the truth, keep their word, respect authority, honor
tradition, and judge those who fall short of their duties.
Chaotic
characters follow their consciences, resent being told what to do,
favor new ideas over tradition, and do what they promise if they feel
like it.
"Law" implies honor, trustworthiness, obedience to
authority, and reliability. On the downside, lawfulness can include
close-mindedness, reactionary adherence to tradition, judgmentalness,
and a lack of adaptability. Those who consciously promote lawfulness
say that only lawful behavior creates a society in which people can
depend on each other and make the right decisions in full confidence
that others will act as they should.
"Chaos" implies freedom,
adaptability, and flexibility. On the downside, chaos can include
recklessness, resentment toward legitimate authority, arbitrary
actions, and irresponsibility. Those who promote chaotic behavior say
that only unfettered personal freedom allows people to express
themselves fully and lets society benefit from the potential that its
individuals have within them.
Someone who is neutral with
respect to law and chaos has a normal respect for authority and feels
neither a compulsion to obey nor a compulsion to rebel. She is honest
but can be tempted into lying or deceiving others.
Devotion to
law or chaos may be a conscious choice, but more often it is a
personality trait that is recognized rather than being chosen.
Neutrality on the lawful-chaotic axis is usually simply a middle state,
a state of not feeling compelled toward one side or the other. Some few
such neutrals, however, espouse neutrality as superior to law or chaos,
regarding each as an extreme with its own blind spots and drawbacks.
Unaligned
Creatures:
Animals
and other creatures incapable of moral action are unaligned, possessing
no alignment at all. Dogs may be obedient and cats free-spirited, but
they do not have the moral capacity to be truly lawful or chaotic. This
also applies to unintelligent undead.
The Nine
Alignments:
Nine
distinct alignments define all the possible combinations of the
lawful-chaotic axis with the good-evil axis. Each alignment description
below depicts a typical character of that alignment. Remember that
individuals vary from this norm, and that a given character may act
more or less in accord with his or her alignment from day to day. Use
these descriptions as guidelines, not as scripts.
The first six
alignments, lawful good through chaotic neutral, are the standard
alignments for player characters. The three evil alignments are typically
for monsters and villains. You can naturally have evil heroes or good villains,
but they require a more skilled storyteller.
Lawful Good, "Crusader"
A lawful good
character acts as a good person is expected or required to act. She
combines a commitment to oppose evil with the discipline to fight
relentlessly. She tells the truth, keeps her word, helps those in need,
and speaks out against injustice. A lawful good character hates to see
the guilty go unpunished.
Lawful good is the best alignment you can be because it combines honor
and compassion.
Neutral Good, "Benefactor"
A
neutral good character does the best that a good person can do. He is
devoted to helping others. He works with kings and magistrates but does
not feel beholden to them..
Neutral good is the best alignment you can be because it means doing
what is good without bias for or against order.
Chaotic Good, "Rebel"
A
chaotic good character acts as his conscience directs him with little
regard for what others expect of him. He makes his own way, but he’s
kind and benevolent. He believes in goodness and right but has little
use for laws and regulations. He hates it when people try to intimidate
others and tell them what to do. He follows his own moral compass,
which, although good, may not agree with that of society.
Chaotic good is the best alignment you can be because it combines a
good heart with a free spirit.
Lawful Neutral, "Judge"
A
lawful neutral character acts as law, tradition, or a personal code
directs her. Order and organization are paramount to her. She may
believe in personal order and live by a code or standard, or she may
believe in order for all and favor a strong, organized government.
Lawful neutral is the best alignment you can be because it means you
are reliable and honorable without being a zealot.
Neutral, "Undecided"
A
neutral character does what seems to be a good idea. She doesn’t feel
strongly one way or the other when it comes to good vs. evil or law vs.
chaos. Most neutral characters exhibit a lack of conviction or bias
rather than a commitment to neutrality. Such a character thinks of good
as better than evil—after all, she would rather have good neighbors and
rulers than evil ones. Still, she’s not personally committed to
upholding good in any abstract or universal way.
Some neutral
characters, on the other hand, commit themselves philosophically to
neutrality. They see good, evil, law, and chaos as prejudices and
dangerous extremes. They advocate the middle way of neutrality as the
best, most balanced road in the long run.
Neutral is the best alignment you can be because it means you act
naturally, without prejudice or compulsion.
Chaotic Neutral, "Free Spirit"
A
chaotic neutral character follows his whims. He is an individualist
first and last. He values his own liberty but doesn’t strive to protect
others’ freedom. He avoids authority, resents restrictions, and
challenges traditions. A chaotic neutral character does not
intentionally disrupt organizations as part of a campaign of anarchy.
To do so, he would have to be motivated either by good (and a desire to
liberate others) or evil (and a desire to make those different from
himself suffer). A chaotic neutral character may be unpredictable, but
his behavior is not totally random. He is not as likely to jump off a
bridge as to cross it.
Chaotic neutral is the best alignment you
can be because it represents true freedom from both society’s
restrictions and a do-gooder’s zeal.
Lawful Evil, "Dominator"
A
lawful evil villain methodically takes what he wants within the limits
of his code of conduct without regard for whom it hurts. He cares about
tradition, loyalty, and order but not about freedom, dignity, or life.
He plays by the rules but without mercy or compassion. He is
comfortable in a hierarchy and would like to rule, but is willing to
serve. He condemns others not according to their actions but according
to race, religion, homeland, or social rank. He is loath to break laws
or promises.
This reluctance comes partly from his nature and
partly because he depends on order to protect himself from those who
oppose him on moral grounds. Some lawful evil villains have particular
taboos, such as not killing in cold blood (but having underlings do it)
or not letting children come to harm (if it can be helped). They
imagine that these compunctions put them above unprincipled villains.
Some
lawful evil people and creatures commit themselves to evil with a zeal
like that of a crusader committed to good. Beyond being willing to hurt
others for their own ends, they take pleasure in spreading evil as an
end unto itself. They may also see doing evil as part of a duty to an
evil deity or master.
Lawful evil is the most dangerous alignment because it represents
methodical, intentional, and frequently successful evil.
Neutral Evil, "Malefactor"
A
neutral evil villain does whatever she can get away with. She is out
for herself, pure and simple. She sheds no tears for those she kills,
whether for profit, sport, or convenience. She has no love of order and
holds no illusion that following laws, traditions, or codes would make
her any better or more noble. On the other hand, she doesn’t have the
restless nature or love of conflict that a chaotic evil villain has.
Some
neutral evil villains hold up evil as an ideal, committing evil for its
own sake. Most often, such villains are devoted to evil deities or
secret societies.
Neutral evil is the most dangerous alignment because it represents pure
evil without honor and without variation.
Chaotic Evil, "Destroyer"
A
chaotic evil character does whatever his greed, hatred, and lust for
destruction drive him to do. He is hot-tempered, vicious, arbitrarily
violent, and unpredictable. If he is simply out for whatever he can
get, he is ruthless and brutal. If he is committed to the spread of
evil and chaos, he is even worse. Thankfully, his plans are haphazard,
and any groups he joins or forms are poorly organized. Typically,
chaotic evil people can be made to work together only by force, and
their leader lasts only as long as he can thwart attempts to topple or
assassinate him.
Chaotic evil is the most dangerous alignment
because it represents the destruction not only of beauty and life but
also of the order on which beauty and life depend.