Moldvay... and how this became something other than Moldvay.

When I set out to create Hack & Crawl Campaigner,  I wanted to combine two things: the elegance of Tom Moldvay's Basic D&D rules and the random swinginess of Joseph Goodman's Dungeon Crawl Classics RPG. The early versions of the rules started out pretty much as house-rules for the DCC play-by-post game that I was running. I added some restrictions to the DCC rules based on the B/X rules, but it was mostly DCC. When it came to creating a setting, I wanted to pay homage to my inspirations. Thus, Moldvayn. But the name (as in "mold-vein") also inspired the fungal theme. So the gazetteer in Appendix G was mostly inspired by the name. But as the game developed, I became more and more interested in the versions of the game that preceded Moldvay. In fact, the more I read and researched, the more I became interested in the earliest version of the game. The result of this is most apparent in the lack of emphasis on Ability Modifiers. I want +1 to mean something. The easy availability of +3 (or even +5!) would make it mean that much less. But on the other hand it also means that there are no hopeless characters. Given standard rolls, the worst penalty you'll receive is -1.

However, a big difference that I codified in the game is the use of raw Ability Scores as the basis for Skill checks and Saving Throws. Rolling under Ability Scores is not new in and of itself, and it's likely that Arneson and Gygax used similar mechanics for such checks (though Saving Throws seem to have been introduced fairly early on in a way that would have superseded such checks). But HCC uses Ability Scores as the prime component of checks (rather than modifiers) and thus makes characters more nuanced in terms of how able they are to handle different checks. The Judge is always encouraged to make ad hoc rulings in terms of bonuses ad penalties to rolls, but the Ability Scores themselves provide more of a base for each character to start with.

Welcome to Moldvayn

Welcome! This blog is about a game I made, tentatively called Hack & Crawl Campaigner. It's a short, rules-lite fantasy RPG system that only uses six-sided dice. It's inspired by much that came before, and I'm constantly revising it, but here's Version 0.0, for your consideration (click link for pdf):

Hack & Crawl Campaigner

In general, this will be a place where I talk about design principles, rule choices, advice on how to run the game, personal anecdotes of playtesting, and anything else that I think might be vaguely related. For now, though, enjoy the pdf.

A preview:

What’s Different About HCC? (Basic Summary)

d6

The core mechanic is CD3: 1d6;1d6 (roll 1d6 for your base roll, roll another for a modifier: 1-2 add 0, 3-4 add 6, 5-6 add 12) which gives a linear spread from 1-18, but all rolls in the game can be thrown using only d6.

Raw abilities over modifiers

As in the original (Little Brown Books) ruleset of the original fantasy RPG (D&D), Ability scores offer only minimal modifiers to rolls and only at the uppermost and lowermost score ranges. This means that your character will not receive many intrinsic bonuses, but it also means that there are no hopeless characters. Raw ability scores can be used in a general way by the Judge to make ad hoc rulings—your character has a Wisdom of 15? Here’s a piece of common sense she might consider—but they are also used for Skill Checks, Saves, and training.

High risk/High reward

Each class can function in a fairly predictable way, as in older rulesets: Fighters can perform attacks, Magic-Users and Clerics can cast and forget, and Thieves can try their skills. But each class also has a mechanic that can add bonuses—or penalties—to their success. Fighters can master and improvise special moves, Magic-Users and Clerics can roll for spell results, and Thieves can “press their luck” to gain points on any dice roll.

Live fast and die young

No attempt has been made to establish artificial “game balance” with regard to classes or encounters. At low levels, this system is fairly lethal. HP will be low, and reaching 0 usually means your character is dead for good; this naturally evens things out. For those who survive, though, progression from lowly dungeon crawler to heroic lord of a stronghold is much faster than in most of the rulesets this system was based on.

Mass combat

Returning to the original ruleset’s wargaming roots, HCC contains a mass combat system that can be used for warfare between large forces but also for the uneven sort of match-ups that result when a Legendary figure finds himself facing off against hordes of ordinary (Normal Tier) men or monsters. Rather than engage each enemy individually, man to man, the mass combat system allows for fast resolution—with real consequences—of large-scale fighting while still being able to “zoom in” on the more dramatic one-on-one match-ups between PCs and tougher opponents..

Customization

There are no preset feats or skills, no attacks of opportunity or prestige classes. HCC leaves it to the Player and the Judge to customize the individual PC. No two Fighters need be alike. They can each create their own moves and fighting styles just as Magic-Users can create their own magical items and spells.

Karma

Karma has no direct precedent in D&D old or new, though it does have precedent in the Marvel Super Heroes RPG and the Dungeon Crawl Classics RPG. Karma represents a way to reward good role-playing with points that can be used in dire situations to make a successful roll when you need it most.

Formulas over tables

Though there are plenty of tables in this system, formulas are preferred when possible. Turning the Undead is (1d6 + WIS Modifier) + Caster Level – the Monster’s number of HD ≥ 4 to Turn, with bonus Turnings for each point over 4. Hitting an opponent is attack roll + attack modifiers + defender’s AC ≥ 17 to hit. No matrices, just addition and subtraction with target numbers that never change for a given type of check.

Descending AC

Though ascending AC has become popular since 2000 or so, this ruleset uses descending AC for a variety of reasons. Given the formula above, it’s easy to calculate a hit without ever changing the target number (which can’t be said for ascending AC). But it’s also used for a variety of calculations that don’t easily translate to ascending AC, such as a character with lower AC taking less damage from backtsabs or a character with heavier armor (lower AC) having a harder time removing armor when faced with the threat of drowning.

HP

HP is rolled completely anew for every level. You only gain HP if you roll higher than what you had before.