A series of Linked Adventures is called a Campaign. Both characters and the world grow and change over the course of a Campaign, and just like everything else in Open Adventure, you choose what that looks like. We call this change advancement. To help guide the advancement of your characters and world, this chapter includes rules for two types of advancement: Character Advancement and Story Advancement.
Character Advancement
Characters gain valuable experience when they complete Adventures, and this experience leads to the improvement of their skills, powers, and abilities. This is represented in the game by the character advancement rules. At set points in the character’s career, the player is given the opportunity to improve the character’s MO Scores, add Specializations, perfect their Stunts, or even improve a Primary Attribute.
Story Advancement
Characters may also acquire story benefits, such AS a valuable contact, an indispensable piece of equipment, or a favor owed. In addition, players are encouraged to help expand the game world. For example, they might want a new business to open in the town where the characters have their base, to expand the variety of items a merchant carries, or to trigger a key event in the game. These additions to the story are handled by the rules for story advancement. The story advancement section of this chapter explains how players can spend Story Points to expand and grow the game world and build their character’s connection to that world.
Down-to-Earth Heroes, Epic Tales #
Open Adventure is designed AS a framework to play out the adventures of a group of down-to-earth heroes. This means your character will improve some of their abilities and develop a few new tricks over the course of their career, but they’ll always be down-to-earth in terms of their raw power. The character advancement rules here reflect that design ethos.
What will advance greatly during the game is your character’s story. By spending the Story Points the character earns, they could gain the favor of monarchs, acquire legendary artifacts, attract loyal followers, earn incredible fame, or build a mighty fortress. The story advancement rules give you the tools you need to expand both the story of your character and the fantastic world they inhabit.
Character Advancement #
Character advancement in Open Adventure is represented by Chapters. Each Chapter is a different stage in the character’s career AS an adventurer. Characters begin at Chapter 1: Call to Adventure, and they advance to new Chapters after participating in a certain number of adventures. With each new Chapter, the player gets to improve the character’s MO scores, add new Specializations, raise their Primary Attributes, perfect their favorite stunts, and even gain or improve Exceptional Abilities.
The Five Chapters #
These are the five Chapters of a character’s career. Each Chapter lasts for the number of Adventures indicated in the second column. For example, when the character completes their sixth Adventure, the character advances to Chapter 3: Heroic Journeys.
| CHAPTER ADVANCEMENT | |
| Chapter | Chapter Duration |
| Chapter 1: Call to Adventure | Adventures 1, 2 |
| Chapter 2: Forge of Destiny | Adventures 3, 4, 5, 6 |
| Chapter 3: Heroic Journeys | Adventures 7, 8, 9, 10, 11 |
| Chapter 4: Legendary Tales | Adventures 12, 13, 14 |
| Chapter 5: One Last Adventure | Adventure 15 |
Group Advancement #
Normally, all the characters in a game advance to the next Chapter AS a group. You may choose to play a game where different Adventurers are at different Chapters in their career, but typically, it is better if everyone moves to the next Chapter together.
Advancement Benefits #
When a character advances to a new Chapter, they gain a set of benefits. Depending on the Chapter, the potential benefits are:
- Primary Attribute Increase: Add one point to one of the character’s Primary Attributes. The maximum score for a Primary Attribute is one greater than the character’s starting maximum. (See Chapter 3: Character Creation.) The player may only increase a specific Primary Attribute once per Chapter.
- MO Score Increase: Add one point to the character’s MO score.
- New Specialization: Select a new MO Specialization.
- Stunt Specialization: Select a Stunt the character excels at. This Stunt becomes one of the character’s signature moves. When performing this Stunt, the character gets a Benefit to their Action Score.
- New Exceptional Ability: Select an additional Secondary Exceptional Ability (see Chapter 3: Character Creation). This must be a different Exceptional Ability than those the player selected for the character’s Primary and Secondary Exceptional Abilities during character creation.
- Primary Attribute Trade: Reduce one Primary Attribute Score by 1 and raise a different Primary Attribute Score by 1. If this Benefit is listed twice, the Primary Attributes used in the first trade may not be used in the second trade.
The Chapter descriptions list the benefits a character receives upon advancing to that Chapter. If a Benefit is listed more than once, the player may apply this Benefit multiple times. For example, if Primary Attribute Increase is listed twice, the player may increase two different Primary Attributes by one point.
Chapter 1: Call to Adventure #
These are the character’s first Adventures. In Chapter 1: Call to Adventure, the character chooses to leave the safety of their old life to seek out their destiny. It is their first foray into a larger, more Dangerous world, and if they survive, these adventures serve AS the springboard for their future success. When a player creates a new character, they begin at Chapter 1: Call to Adventure.
Chapter 2: Forge of Destiny #
In Chapter 2: Forge of Destiny, the character begins to make a name for themselves. They are starting to develop their skills, and they can take on more difficult Challenges. Their Adventures are more complex, and toward the end of this Chapter their quests may take them to neighboring lands.
Advancement Benefits
- Primary Attribute Increase
- MO Score Increase
- New Specialization
- New Specialization
- Stunt Specialization
Chapter 3: Heroic Journeys #
In Chapter 3: Heroic Journeys, the character is a successful, established adventurer who performed many notable deeds. In this Chapter, they build upon their legend, taking on more powerful enemies and facing Adventures where the stakes are significantly higher. Their Adventures may take them to distant lands or even other planes or dimensions.
Advancement Benefits
- Primary Attribute Increase
- MO Score Increase
- New Specialization
- New Specialization
- Stunt Specialization
Chapter 4: Legendary Tales #
By the time the character reaches Chapter 4: Legendary Tales, they are well known and respected heroes. They have defeated many enemies and completed a host of important quests. In this Chapter, the great powers of the land Turn to the heroes in their times of greatest need. From hunting down legendary dragons to confronting powerful demons, the characters face deadly challenges that no one else in the land could hope to overcome.
Advancement Benefits
- Primary Attribute Increase
- MO Score Increase
- New Specialization
- Stunt Specialization
- Stunt Specialization
- New Exceptional Ability
Chapter 5: One Last Adventure #
It is the twilight of the character’s career. In this Chapter 5: One Last Adventure, the character is called into service one final time. Perhaps they are pulled out of retirement, forced to strap on the blade they swore they’d never use again, or maybe this is the moment all their other Adventures have led up to. Whatever the case, there is a good chance they will not be coming home from this one, but so Long AS they succeed at their quest, nothing else matters.
Advancement Benefits
- MO Score Increase
- Primary Attribute Trade
- Primary Attribute Trade
- Stunt Specialization
- Stunt Specialization
Story Advancement #
Throughout the game, the Adventure Guide awards players Story Points. The player can spend these Story Points to make changes to the adventuring world, their character’s place in that world, or the tools and resources available to them both during and between Adventures. Aside from any treasures they pick up along the way, Story Points are the players’ primary reward for participating in the game, telling great stories, and completing Adventures.
Earning Story Points #
The three ways players earn Story Points in the game are:
- Session Awards
- Story Awards
- Adventure Awards
Session Awards #
At the start of every game session, the Adventure Guide awards each player 1 Story Point.
Story Awards #
At any time during the Adventure, the Adventure Guide may award a Story Point to a player. Reasons to award a Story Point include:
- An especially memorable, entertaining, or heroic bit of roleplaying.
- Making a major heroic sacrifice.
- Spending extra time between games to draw a map of the party’s base, using the rules to build out important NPCs, or writing a great game synopsis and sharing it with the group.
- Helping a new player learn the rules.
- Bringing snacks to share on game night!
These are ways to reward the types of behavior the Adventure Guide wants to encourage in their games. It is also a way to recognize the positive contributions the players make to the game and game night.
Adventure Awards #
When the characters finish an Adventure, the Adventure Guide awards each player Story Points based on the size of the Adventure. Suggested Story Points by Adventure size are shown on the Story Point Adventure Awards table.
| STORY POINT ADVENTURE AWARDS | ||
| Adventure Size | # of Encounters | Story Points |
| Small | 2-5 | 10 SP |
| Medium | 6-10 | 20 SP |
| Large | 11+ | 30+ SP |
Spending Story Points #
Players may spend Story Points at any time with the Adventure Guide’s permission. The Story Point Rewards Table lists some suggestions for how players might wish to spend their Story Points. It is up to the players and the Adventure Guide to determine exactly how the choices are realized in the game. The Adventure Guide always has final say over the nature of the change. Players may pool their Story Points to make purchases.
Cost of Rewards #
The expenditure of Story Points covers all costs associated with the reward. The characters are not required to spend their hard-earned silver and gold to pay for the benefits. If the reward the player describes is especially lavish, unique, or unusual, the Adventure Guide might require the character to take a more active role in bringing the reward to life.
Improving Rolls #
In addition to spending Story Points on benefits listed on the Story Points Rewards table, a player may use unspent Story Points at any time during the game to improve the total result of a roll. For each Story Point spent, increase a roll’s total by one. The player may spend points on their own rolls or on the rolls of their allies.
Story Point Reward Table #
| Reward | Cost | Description |
| RECOGNITION | ||
| Dinner | 2 | A minor government official invites you to dinner AS a reward for your good works. |
| Feast | 5 | A local noble lord holds a feast in your honor. |
| Grand Feast | 10 | A town or village holds a feast in your honor. |
| Grand Marshal | 20 | You are invited to serve AS the Grand Marshal for an important festival. |
| Poem | 2 | A bard writes a short poem about your exploits and reads it during their performances. |
| Song | 5 | A bard writes a song about your adventures and sings it during their performances. |
| Play | 10 | A troupe of actors write and perform a play reenacting one of your adventures. |
| Book | 10 | A Scholar writes a book about your adventures. |
| Statue | 30 | A sculptor carves a statue of you to display in an important location. |
| Commendation | 5 | You receive an official commendation from a local noble. |
| Medal | 10 | The local military commander awards you a medal for valor. |
| Honorary Title | 15 | An organization of importance to your MO grants you an honorary title. |
| Legal Title | 20 | The local noble leader grants you an official legal title. |
| Membership | 25 | A prestigious guild or other elite organization invites you to become a member. |
| Pardon | 30 | A noble pardons you for a past crime. |
| Reputation | ||
| Enemies | 15 | You gain a Reputation among a particular group of enemies. This could both help you or endanger you when dealing with these enemies, depending on the circumstances. The character gains a Benefit in appropriate social interactions. |
| Friends | 15 | You gain a positive Reputation among a group of your peers. The character gains a Benefit in appropriate social interactions. |
| Small Area | 15 | You gain a positive Reputation in a small geographic area such AS a single village. The character gains a Benefit in appropriate social interactions. |
| Medium-Sized Area | 20 | You gain a positive Reputation in a medium-sized geographic area such AS a town or a small district. The character gains a Benefit in appropriate social interactions. |
| Large Area | 25 | You gain a positive Reputation in a large geographic area such AS a city or a duchy. The character gains a Benefit in appropriate social interactions. |
| SETTING | ||
| New Business | 30 | A new business of your choice is established in the area where you are adventuring offering new goods and services. |
| Improved Business | 20 | An existing business of your choice within the area you are adventuring improves its offerings, facilities, or services. |
| Turn for the Better | 20 | Some negative aspect of the local setting (bandits, bad weather, resource shortages) where your adventures are taking place finally improves. |
| Opportunity | 10 | An opportunity for adventure of your choosing appears in the area where your adventures are taking place. |
| Festival | 10 | The settlement where you are staying hosts a grand festival with a market, entertainers, and visitors from across the region. |
| Wedding | 5 | An important couple gets married and they invite you to the celebration. |
| WEALTH | ||
| Distinctive Item | 15 | The appearance of a piece of equipment you commonly use is improved and enhanced, making it distinctively yours and unique. |
| Trip | 10 | Between adventures you journey to a nearby land to see an important shrine, natural wonder, or similar location related to your character’s interests. |
| ALLIES | ||
| Love interest | 10 | You and an NPC fall in love. |
| Engagement | 25 | You ask your love interest to marry you and they say “Yes.” You must have selected the Love Interest reward previously. |
| Marriage | 30 | You and your fiancé are married. A local noble throws you a lavish wedding. You must have selected the Engagement reward previously. |
| Pet | 5 | You acquire a loyal pet. This is a normal animal with no special abilities and is not intended to go on adventures. |
| Contact | 5 | You establish a contact with a specific set of skills. You still need to negotiate for their services, but now you “know a guy.” |
| Improved Contact | 10 | A pre-existing contact becomes more useful, either because they trust you more or their circumstances have improved. |
| SPECIAL ACCESS | ||
| Library | 10 | You gain access to a library containing useful non-magical books and scrolls. |
| Guildhall | 20 | You gain access to a guildhall and for a fee may make use of their discounted living quarters and storage. |
| Expert Craftsperson | 15 | You are allowed to make use of the services of an expert craftsperson. This includes individuals such AS the King’s alchemist or a General’s personal blacksmith. You must still pay this individual for any work they perform on your behalf. |
| Expert Scholar | 15 | You gain access to a learned Scholar with expertise in a specific area of knowledge. You may ask this person for information, but you might be required to pay them for their services. |
| ONE USE BENEFITS | ||
| Favor, Minor | 2 | A specific NPC owes you a single small favor. This favor costs the NPC little or nothing and does not create any problems for the NPC. |
| Favor, Medium | 5 | A specific NPC owes you a single medium-sized favor. This favor may cost the NPC up to a week’s wages and may create problems in the NPCs life if they fulfill it. |
| Favor, Large | 10 | A specific NPC owes you a single large favor. This favor might cost the NPC AS much AS a month’s wages and could cause significant problems, even endangering the NPC’s safety. |
| Last Minute Rescue | 15 | The player may purchase this at any time. When the characters find themselves in a tight spot, they receive last minute assistance to avoid disaster. This assistance does not solve the problem, but rather it gives the character another opportunity to extract themselves from the trouble. It might take the form of a wandering Ranger, a fortunate discovery such AS an additional exit, or other coincidence that gives you another chance to save your character. |