ugh what a pain. Can you message me via the Glaive kickstarter page? I dont see an option for private messages here on Itch (i am missing it if it exists )
Give this download key a try. I'm never sure how/why a link doesn't give Itch ownership of a file. Hopefully, this works. Leave me a comment on the Lonely Adventurer Itch page if you still have trouble. I see those messages sooner.
Fate Accelerated works amazing for Atomic Robo. I wish we'd known about it when we did the RPG.
Whatever you do, something more narrative and with a meta-currency will probably capture the feel better than a traditional D20 system. The lighter the rules the better
Glaive is a self-contained game*. It is compatible with OSE (Old School Essentials), Knave, and other old-school-inspired games. *It does require someone else's Monster Manual. I have used the original AD&D MM, the OSE Monster Book, The Monster Overhaul, and others in my home game. They are all compatible as long as they are intended for older versions of the game. 99% of the monster info in them is free online.
Many of the mechanics will be familiar to anyone who has played D&D. You have stats/ability scores, armor class, hit points, earn XP to level up, and roll a D20 against a target number to do stuff - hope you roll high.
The mechanics mainly draw inspiration from 1980's Basic D&D and 5E, combining the streamlined rules of the older game with the class features of the new game.
There are no character classes. Instead, you choose Talents (similar to those 5e class features) as you gain levels to build the adventurer that you want to play. They are grouped by theme though, so if you want a Barbarian PC just pick Barbarian Talents.
The Talents are my attempt to remove a lot of the padding in 5E, only focussing on the features that make a Fighter or Cleric cool to play.
You can think of it as multi-classing being baked into the game. You start play with 2 Talents and can gain a total of 6 Talents by level 5. After that character growth is intended to happen diegetically in the game: You forge a small domain from the wilderness, you seek out ancient magic items to increase your power, you form coalitions between various NPC groups and now you lead a warband, etc. This encouraged player investment and initiative.
A central mechanic of the game is the inventory system. It uses Item Slots. A PC gets 10+STR slots. Some talents or equipment can provide more. Most items (sword, spellbook, arrows) require 1 slot to carry them. Small things are 0 slots (your pipe, a letter) or can be bundled together (5 torches = 1 slot). Large items (armor, great axe) require 2 or more slots.
Magic Users don't have spell slots. Each spell requires its own spellbook and each spellbook (you guessed it) requires 1 item slot to be carried. Build a muscle-wizard to carry tons of spells and look like a walking library! :D Anyone can (and should) use magic. But a character built to be a real wizard or witch will probably take a bunch of Talents that make them even better at using magic than other PCs.
Spells level with the PC, so that they always stay relevant. Example: "magic missle" does 1d6 at 1st level, 2d6 at 3rd level, 3d6 and 5th level, etc. Non-combat spells last longer, affect more targets, etc.
Finally, there is no skill system. Though you could certainly tack one on if you wanted to.
If a player wants to do something you work it out at the table. Maybe the GM sets a target number and asks you to roll an ability "save" to beat that target. This is not intended to punish a player who wants a high-charisma character that can roll dice through any social situation. It's to get that player to engage with the game world. They don't need to RP in character, but they do need to come up with a plan of action, and if it seems reasonable they probably don't even need to roll dice (thus avoiding the chance of even failing).
1. Make a druid version of the Keeper of Relics or Student of The Unseen University talents. Each creature they can transform into requires a fetish or rune stone rather than a relic or spellbook. This keeps the Item Slot system working fairly for everyone.
They can take the talent multiple times if they want a wide variety of creatures to change into. AND/OR, you can link the power of the creatures they transform into to the PC's Level.
This could get complicated real fast. Xanathar's Guide to Everything had a chart that showed a rough guide to what monster CR = character level I think? I might start there. As a rough guide I might say the PC can transform into a creature of the same HD, gain a nifty ability (darkvision, flight, extra attack, etc.) and if an attack was needed maybe say they do [HL]d6 damage. It lasts a Turn or an hour - whatever feels good to you.
2. A more OSR approach -and the one I would probably use - would be to create a bunch of talents that mimic animal attributes (speed, strength, claws, climbing, etc.). I wouldn't have the druid PC actually transform into animals/monsters, instead sprouting bloody fangs, or hulking out like a bear or whatever when they used those talents. Makes me think of the Shifters from Ebberon. It would be fun for them to become more inhuman in their "normal" state the more of these talents they possess.
They could still pick up a spellbook (rune) of flight or spiderclimb to transform into an owl or a spider, but then you don't have to worry about leveling those creatures with the character as much. Though you sure could, going from a sparrow, to a hawk, to a rok or wyvren eventually.
Those are my thoughts. Obviously, it's your table so there is no wrong way to do it.
I folded most of Relic into Glaive. People who downloaded it back in the day still have access to the files, but I decided to take it out of general circulation
The Black Hack is kind of its own thing. The general principles of how monsters work are probably directly compatible with Glaive, though PCs tend to be hardier, so i might bump the damage a bit. 3 points, or 1d6 in the example you give
Monster Overhaul is a great book! And yes, directly compatible
I tend to use monsters out of Old School Essentials. There is a big tome, but you can also buy separate digest sized books. The Monster Book is very portable.
It's not you. It's Glaive. I don't randomize monster hp as D&D does - who wants to track variable hp for a dozen orcs? I use that flat 5 (though I buff/nerf hp as I feel appropriate).
I still record those little +1/+2 HD bonuses in Glaive because it affects the monster's attack bonus and the amount of XP it is worth. Using the guidance in Old School Essentials, a monster with 3HD has an attack bonus of +2. A monster with 3HD+1 (or 2 etc.) has a bonus of +3. They are also worth more xp, and if they have special abilities those also add xp - which will be a different value with or without the little HD bonus.
Your confusion is warranted. I've never explained my monster conversions to anyone before LOL
I was road tripping to my folks house last night and finally got to listen to ITM and thought “This sounds great. Buying it immediately when I get to my destination!” Haha
your XP system sounds awesome. Can’t wait to steal it for my table. Signed up for the mailing list. Looking forward to backing this game.
Eventually I would like to do a small addition - more Talents and such
I’m finally about to fulfill on this year’s Zinquest project, and once that is done I will be uploading HOME (a system for setting up a small sandbox) and YALOON (and example of said sandbox applications). Both are more or less system-agnostic, but the monster etc. in YALOON are statted for GLAIVE. Should be out soon.
