Bundling Inventory

An idea for a sort-of slot based inventory system I struck upon. Currently still in WIP phase.

A Bundling Inventory

All characters have 8 (or maybe 10) slots in their inventory. All items take up one slot. However you can 'bundle' items together if it would make sense to do so. Bundled items take time to retrieve and un-bundle. There are no fixed rules for this, use common sense and reference from your real life. For example you could use your helmet to carry a flask of holy water and some river stones. Or you could bundle three spears together to fill only one slot. A backpack might fit a good number of small items.

Assume that people do not have pockets (for most of human history people have not in fact had pockets in their clothes), so everything must be worn, carried, or held in something else.

An Example Inventory Of Some Dungeoneer --

1. Maille Hauberk

2. Skull of Saint Thomas (magic)

3. Shortsword

4. Backback; Soap; Journal; Purse; Bedroll; Torches; Stolen Gem

5. Helmet; Bag of Marbles; Flask of Holy Water

6. Knife; More Knife

7. Rope, 50ft

8. 

Thoughts on how to improve this?

(art is Kyle Ferrin) 

Egress Released!

I made a game called Egress! You can find it here on my itch.io page.

Egress makes use of an 8 tick clock as its primary (and only mechanic). The intended affect is to create a game where players will eventually be forced to leave the narrative but on their own terms. Almost giving player characters a 'lifespan' as it were. I hope that such a tool will sharpen player goals (those specific goals being dependent on milieu and style of course) and encourage players to play multiple characters but on their own terms, while allowing them a chance to properly develop those characters. Or play them like stolen cars, crashing and burning as fast as they can if so inclined. But the key being that a player can play such a character either way in the same game. I hope anyway. Playtesting is in order.

In addition to the current systems document, I am working on Dungeon Egress which will be a good deal heftier (heh, compared to Egress proper at least) and feature some character creation procedures as well as advice on using Egress in a more OSR dungeon crawling treasure hunting manner.

Exhausting Magic

Matthieu Cousin

Ruminations over on the Bastionland Discord got me thinking about a potential magic system to use with Electric Bastionland and Into the Odd. 

One of the things (in a list of many) that EB does really well is mechanically express exhaustion. The cycle of rest, full hp, lose hp, rest again. With added modifiers like becoming Deprived and not healing. 

Thusly from this formed the nucleus of an idea. Expend all your hp to do a magic, then regain the hp after a rest. Basically expending yourself to exhaustion when doing magic.

No need for spell slots, or once a day casting, it naturally balances itself out and fits neatly into the existing play cycle. It forces players to plan, makes wizards "squishy" without weird class restrictions, and is flexible enough to allow for player (and GM) creativity.

Without further ado here it is...

Core Rules

• Sacrifice all HP to cast a spell.
• Cannot (safely) cast again until HP is recovered.
• Unlimited spells per day.
• As long as you have HP to sacrifice you can cast.

Optional Rules

Casting Without HP

• Possible but dangerous and costly
• For each spell cast while not having HP do one die of damage.
• Increase the die size for each spell cast without HP; d4 -> d6 -> d8 -> etc...
• Example: Merdoc is out of HP but casts anyway, they have 12 Cha/Wil and roll a 3 on a d4. Reducing their Cha/Wil to 9. They cast again rolling 5 dmg on a d6. Now at Cha/Wil of 3.

Banking Spells

• Same as casting, sacrifice full HP to invest an object with a spell.
• Items imbued with magic must be durable or will burn up/melt when the spell is cast.
• If banking spells is done during downtime it is recommend that a limit or cost be set.
• For Example: While camping in a dungeon Emily banks several spells at the cost of getting a good nights rest. So the next morning she is at full HP but Deprived until she sleeps.

Magical Items

• Similar to banking spells, magical items can contain a single spell recharged by sacrificing HP.
• This is the most iffy mechanic to be honest. But a potentially workable one.

Layman's Magic

• Anyone can do magic if they learn or are taught the secrets.
• However people with a background/failed career/what-have-you in magic will get a 'cantrip' or permanent ability to use without spending HP.

Thats about it all really. Lots of room for modification and hacking though!

Glory To the Deprived Tag!

Electric Bastionland is a fantastik game for so many reasons. Today we're not going to talk about any of them and instead talk about the Deprived tag.

I love the Deprived tag. I love this tag more than I love existence itself. It is pure elegance in design. The pinnacle of anything Chris McDowall has written. It does not get better than this my friends!

Within this single word a myriad of circumstance and situation are open to you!

You're Deprived if you don't wear this tiny hat.

You're Deprived if you don't take this drug.

You're Deprived if you get lonely.

Somehow this tag condenses down what might have been a positive grab-bag of official and house rules that go on for paragraphs into a... single... word...

So Glory To The Deprived Tag! Finest Mechanic To Grace The Pages Of Any RPG!