12/02/2021

Here are some house rules that I have. Some of them I have been using for a while. Others are newer and have been added to the document waiting for my next group to try out.

Ethos (Borrowed from Professor Dungeon Master at Dungeoncraft)

Instead of just using Alignment, we will also be tracking Ethos. This is a scale that goes from +4 to -4. Doing good earns a +1 ethos point while doing evil earns a -1 ethos point. Characters start at 0 except clerics and paladins that start at +1. Healing spells add the ethos points of the caster to the amount healed.

If a character reaches +4, they are considered Good. As word spreads of their actions, the PC will attract followers that pledge their loyalty to the hero. The followers will leave if the character ever falls below +2 as they refuse to stick around as their idol slowly moves away from the ideals that drew the follower in the first place. If a character reaches -4, they are considered Evil. They become an NPC villain in the campaign. The players run the retainers in combat but they are controlled by the DM besides that.

Madness (Borrowed from Professor Dungeon Master)

The life of an adventurer is exciting, thrilling, and brief. There will be situations where the adventurer encounters extreme conditions that test the limits of their minds. A madness test is a DC 10 Wisdom Save. Failure means the hero gains a Madness point. Some situations are so extreme that the hero gains an automatic Madness point. Heroes can get rid of madness points by spending some time and money to focus and reset their mindset. Have the PC roll a D20 and D6. The D6 is the number of days the PC spends trying to get rid of the madness and it costs the PC 10gp per day. The D20 is the success of the attempt. If the D20 is a 1, the madness point becomes permanent (The PC will never be able to get back down to 0 Madness points).

Critical Hits/ Failures

There are two options for Critical Hits/ Failures

Option 1:

Critical hits are maximum weapon damage + weapon die + ability modifier. So a critical hit with a longsword would be 10 + 1d10 + STR mod. This keeps a critical hit from getting two 1s on the damage roll (that is an awful feeling).

Critical Failures are pretty boring. It is just a miss. If there is an ally adjacent to the target (ranged or melee), Roll 1d6. On a 1, you hit the ally for normal weapon damage. (The enemy moves out of the way, the ally steps in front of the attack, etc)

Option 2:

We use the Critical Hits for Players, Critical Hits for DMs, and Critical Fumbles decks from Nord Games. There are some great ideas in these decks which include Magic so Critical hits on spells have effects too. Most groups like this idea. I might do a “review” of them on here. Players really get excited when they have to draw from the deck.

Death Saves

Secret Death Saves. The DM tracks the death saves of fallen players so the party doesn’t know. More paperwork for DM but it brings tension to the game as the players struggle to get to the player.

Taking Potions as a Bonus Action

Items that are stored on a belt pouch can be retrieved as a free action instead of a bonus action. Potions that are stored on the character’s belt can be taken as a bonus action instead of full action. Whenever the character rolls a Natural 1 on a Dexterity Save, one random item on their belt pouch is lost/destroyed.

Healing Potions (Borrowed from Dungeons of Drakkenheim by The Dungeon Dudes )

All healing potions heal maximum hit points for their level. See the table below:

Type	Rarity	HP Cured
Healing	Common	10
Greater healing	Uncommon	20
Superior healing	Rare	30
Supreme healing	Very rare	60

Hirelings/Followers (Retainers from Matt Colville’s Strongholds and Followers)

There will be NPCs that the party can pay to help if they feel the need. Most are normal people looking to help by carrying things, holding torches, etc. Most will have a small daily fee plus will want a small portion of whatever is found. Mistreating hirelings will be worth -1 ethos point and word will spread so it will be more difficult and expensive to recruit.

Retainers do not track hit points, but rather health levels. A retainer has health levels equal in number to their level. Each time a retainer is hit by an attack, they make a Constitution saving throw. The DC is the average damage from the attack. If they succeed, they take no damage. If they fail, they lose one health level per die of damage from the attack.

Weapon Quality (Taken from Bob World Builder)

Quality Tier	Price	Damage Adjustment	Properties
Mastercraft	X4	X1 (Roll w/ advantage)	Reliable
Sturdy	X2	X1	Reliable
Standard	X1	X1	—
Faulty		X1 (Roll w/ disadvantage)	Defective
Ruined	X0	STR/DEX Mod	Defective

Defective – On an attack roll of a Natural 1, the wielder of the weapon takes their STR/DEX mod (whichever is used as part of the attack) in damage.

Reliable – This weapon can be used to reduce the effects of two critical hits to normal hits before downgrading its quality.

Downgrading Weapon Quality – In combat, a weapon’s quality can be downgraded when subjected to a critical hit of bludgeoning or slashing damage while wielding the weapon. In this case, the character chooses to either take the critical hit as usual or to use their reaction to sacrifice their weapon, downgrading its quality and reducing the critical hit to a normal hit.

Keep on gaming!