The Open Adventure game system is built on two key concepts: Challenges and Action Checks. This chapter contains an overview of these two concepts and a few other core mechanics and important terms. Everything you learn here is described in greater detail later in the book, but this chapter introduces you to the game and prepares you to create your first character.
Challenges #
Every problem your characters must overcome during the game is a Challenge. This might be a monster that wants to eat them, a locked door they need to get past, a dank room in a dungeon they must explore, or a troublesome royal official who will not grant them an audience with the king.
Sometimes they will face one Challenge at a time:
Our intrepid heroes must pick the lock on the door.And sometimes they will face multiple Challenges at once:
Our intrepid heroes must pick the lock on the door while fighting off a pack of ravenous wolves.Challenge Points #
Every Challenge has Challenge Points (CP). When a Challenge’s Challenge Points are reduced to zero, the characters have overcome the Challenge. Challenge Points represent the size and scope of a Challenge. Small Challenges only have a few Challenge Points, while large Challenges have many Challenge Points. The more Challenge Points, the bigger the task, and the more effort required from the characters to overcome the Challenge.
Challenge Points and NPCs #
In Open Adventure, NPCs attempting to thwart the heroes’ efforts function AS Challenges, just like a wall that blocks the characters’ path or a puzzle they need to solve. Like all Challenges, NPCs have Challenge Points. The characters defeat the NPC when they reduce the NPC’s Challenge Points to 0.
How the characters defeat the NPC is up to the players. They could hit the NPC with a sword, trick them using their wits, slip through the shadows unnoticed, or take advantage of their greed by offering a bribe. All these examples have the potential to reduce the NPC’s Challenge Points.
Keep in mind that Challenge Points represent much more than the NPC’s physical Resilience. Their Challenge Points also represent the NPC’s morale, mental stability, endurance, courage, determination, and Resistance to manipulation. AS in the real world, defeating an enemy in Open Adventure requires more than just Strength of arms.
Just ahead of our heroes looms the entrance to the Temple of Lost Souls. Unfortunately, a hungry Allosaurus stands between them and their goal. The Adventure Guide tells the heroes the dinosaur has 25 Challenge Points. Warheart, a powerful Warrior, charges forward and hits the dinosaur with his sword, reducing the dinosaur’s Challenge Points by 3 points. Laria, a bookish explorer, isn’t much of a fighter, so she uses her torch to frighten the beast, reducing the Challenge Points by 4. Ezarel, a Wizard of no small skill, casts a sleep spell on the dinosaur, causing it to become drowsy and reducing its Challenge Points by 5 more points. With only 13 Challenge Points left, it is the dinosaur’s Turn to act. They’ve got it on the ropes, but the fight’s not over yet!Challenge Point Table #
The table shown here lists examples of different sized Challenges and their typical Challenge Points.
| Challenge POINT EXAMPLES | ||
| Challenge Size | CP | Examples |
| Tiny | 0 | Hop over a ditch. Catch a falling ally. Pick a basic lock. |
| Small | 5 | Get past a goblin guarding the entrance to the dungeon. Swim across a small river.Chop through a thick, sturdy door. |
| Medium | 15 | Get the party to the top of a cliff. Pick a lock with a series of nested tumblers. Find a specific bit of information in a library. |
| Large | 25 | Avoid certain death at the claws of a hungry owlbear. Find a specific bit of information in an enormous library. Disarm a deviously clever trap. |
| Enormous | 50+ | Navigate to the far side of a large, unexplored forest. Get rid of a dragon so you can take its treasure. Construct a large barricade to block a road. |
Challenges #
Learn more about Challenges in Chapter 11: Challenges.
Action Checks #
Anything a character does in the game is called an Action. Determining if an Action succeeds requires an Action Check, and each successful Action Check reduces a Challenge’s Challenge Points. Action Checks are resolved by comparing the result of a dice roll to the Action’s Difficulty Score (DS). If the number rolled is equal to or greater than the Difficulty Score, the Action succeeds. The amount by which the roll exceeds the Difficulty Score is the Effect. The Effect is subtracted from the Challenge’s Challenge Points, and when the Challenge Points are reduced to 0, the character is victorious.
Action Score #
At the heart of an Action Check is the character’s Action Score (AS). The Action Score is the total of everything working in the character’s favor. Actions Scores are calculated AS follows:
Action Score = Primary Attribute Score + MO Score + Benefits
Primary Attribute Score: Player Characters have nine Primary Attributes: Strength, Coordination, Toughness, Intellect, Deduction, Willpower, Presence, Intuition, and Resilience. When calculating the Action Score, add the score of the Primary Attribute the character is using to perform the Action.
Warheart is hitting the dinosaur with a sword using his Strength, so when calculating Warheart’s Action Score, the player adds Warheart’s Strength score.
Ezarel is casting a spell using their Intellect, so when calculating Ezarel’s Action Score, the player adds Ezarel’s Intellect score.
MO Score: A character’s MO (or Modus Operandi) score represents their skill and experience in their chosen profession. Examples of MOs include Wizard, Warrior, and Thief. If the Action is related to the character’s MO, add their MO Score to the Action Score.
Warheart is hitting the dinosaur with a sword. Hitting things with swords is something every Warrior is trained to do, so his Warrior MO Score is added to the Action Score.If Ezarel attempted to hit the dinosaur with a sword instead of casting a spell, their Wizard MO Score would not get added to their Action Score, since Wizard training doesn’t include armed combat.Benefits: A Benefit is anything that makes it easier for the character to succeed. Each Benefit adds +1 to the Action Score. Examples of Benefits include specialized equipment, the assistance of a friend, favorable conditions, or an appropriate character Background.
Laria is waving her torch around, trying to frighten the Allosaurus. The Adventure Guide knows this dinosaur is especially afraid of fire. In addition, Laria’s player points out that Laria was an animal trainer before she became an adventurer, so she has a knack for getting animals to do what she wants. The Adventure Guide awards a Benefit for each of these facts, adding +2 to Laria’s Action Score.Every Action Score includes one Primary Attribute Score, so when the rules call for an Action Check that requires a specific Attribute, the Action Check is indicated using the Attribute name, like this:
The character must perform a Strength Check.
The example above indicates the character should make an Action Check, adding their Strength score to the Action Score.
Action Dice #
Each Action Score corresponds to a different dice combination. The dice for each Action Score, also known AS the Action Dice, are listed on the Action Table. These are the dice the player rolls to resolve the Action Check.
Warheart has Action Score 6 for hitting the dinosaur with his sword, so his player will roll 2d6 to resolve the Action Check.| Action TABLE | |
| Action Score | Action Dice |
| 1 | — |
| 2 | d6 |
| 3 | d8 |
| 4 | d10 |
| 5 | d12 |
| 6 | 2d6 |
| 7 | d6 + d8 |
| 8 | d6 + d10 |
| 9 | d6 + d12 |
| 10 | 3d6 |
| 11 | 2d6 + d8 |
| 12 | 2d6 + d10 |
| 13 | 2d6 + d12 |
| 14 | 4d6 |
Difficulty Score #
The Difficulty Score (DS) is the total of everything working against the character. The Difficulty Score is calculated AS follows:
Difficulty Score = Starting Difficulty Score + Drawbacks
Starting Difficulty Score: The Adventure Guide decides the starting Difficulty Score for the Action. The more complex, demanding, or sophisticated the Action, the higher the starting Difficulty Score. The table below gives examples of Base Difficulty scores for Actions of various levels of difficulty.
| Action DIFFICULTY | ||
| Difficulty | DS | Who Could Do This? |
| Very Easy | 3 | Any unskilled person. |
| Easy | 6 | A novice. |
| Moderate | 9 | A professional. |
| Hard | 12 | An expert. |
| Very Hard | 15 | A master. |
| Nearly Impossible | 20+ | A legendary master. |
Drawbacks: A Drawback is anything that makes it harder for the character to succeed at their Action. Examples include temporary physical conditions that limit the character’s abilities, a lack of proper tools, or an unfavorable environment. For each Drawback, the Adventure Guide adds +1 to the Difficulty Score.
Difficulty Score vs. Challenge Points #
Challenge Points represent the overall size and scope of the Challenge, while the Difficulty Score represents the complexity and demands of a particular Action. When making Action Checks to reduce a Challenge’s Challenge Points, each character might have a different Difficulty Score depending on the Action the players chose, even though the Effect of those Actions are all applied against the same Challenge’s Challenge Points.
Exploding Dice #
Open Adventure uses a dice rolling technique called Exploding Dice. Don’t worry! It’s safer than it sounds. When rolling dice in an Open Adventure game, if you roll the highest number on a die, add the result of the first roll to your total, then roll another die of the same type and add the result of the new roll to your total AS well. If the new die rolls the highest number, repeat the process. This continues until you roll lower than the highest number on the die.
Warheart’s player rolls 2d6 to hit the Allosaurus and gets a 4 and a 6. Since 6 is the highest number he can roll on a d6, the roll explodes! Warheart’s player rolls another d6 and this time gets a 3. The total for the Action Check is 13 (4 + 6 + 3).Actions #
Learn more about Actions in Chapter 10: Actions.
Structure of the Game #
A group of related Challenges presented in an interesting way is called an Encounter, and a series of Encounters that tell an exciting story is an Adventure. Think of it this way: an Adventure is the equivalent of a book or a movie, while an Encounter is like a single scene in a movie or a chapter in a book.
Playing Encounters #
When you begin a new Encounter, the Adventure Guide sets the scene. They describe where the characters are, what NPCs are present, and the current situation. They also let the players know the goal of the Encounter, the likely outcomes for success or failure, and what Challenges the characters must overcome.
The Adventure Guide turns to the players and describes the Encounter:
“The doors are thrown open and you are ushered into the throne room of King Eldenar. The King is seated upon a golden throne atop a small dais. At his left stands the aged major domo you met in the courtyard earlier, while at his right stands the heavily armored knight, Sir Halbar, who serves AS the King’s personal bodyguard. A wide red carpet leads from the door to the throne, and the galleries on either side of the carpet are filled with a murmuring crowd of nobles. This is your chance to convince the King that the army of monsters in the south is a threat to the kingdom. The King is a haughty, proud man who is difficult to sway, and you are already aware that his major domo is opposed to any military Action. Whether Sir Halbar is with you or against you remains to be seen. If you succeed, the King will mobilize his forces and send them south to defend the southern pass, perhaps with you AS envoys to organize the defense. If you fail, and you have no other plans, you may be forced to ask the greedy bandit lord for Aid, and there is no telling what his price will be. The King awaits. What do your characters do?”Theater of the Mind #
Open Adventure Encounters take place in the Theater of the Mind. This means that rather than using maps and miniatures to simulate where the characters are in comparison to one another, how far they may move, and what objects and obstacles are around them, Encounters are played out entirely in the players’ imaginations. The Adventure Guide describes the scene, the players describe the heroic Actions their characters perform, dice are rolled, and an exciting adventure story unfolds out of this creative collaboration. The players may even help to define the setting by offering ideas for what the world around them looks like and what is happening during the Encounter.
Movement and Range #
To support the Theater of the Mind style of play, Open Adventure uses an abstract system for describing distances in the game. This includes how the Range for weapons and spells is described and the Distance a character may move during the Round. The Distance increments are:
Detailed rules for handling movement and Range in the game are found in Chapter 12: Encounters.
Rounds #
Encounters are played in a series of Rounds. Depending on the nature of the Encounter, a Round might represent a few seconds of time in the game or a few hours, depending on what the Guide feels is appropriate.
Each Round, every Player Character and NPC gets one Turn to perform Actions. The order that the Player Characters and NPCs take their Turns is determined by their Reaction scores. On their Turn, the Player Characters and NPCs are each allowed to take one Major Action and one Minor Action. The Adventure Guide selects the Actions for the NPCs, and the players select the Actions for their characters. Any Action requiring an Action Check, like striking an enemy with a weapon, is a Major Action. Simpler, less consequential Actions, like walking Across the Room, are Minor Actions.
Ending the Encounter #
The Encounter continues until one of the following occurs:
- The characters overcome all the Challenges.
- The characters withdraw from the Encounter.
- The characters are defeated by the Challenges.
- The Adventure Guide and the Players agree that the Encounter has reached a satisfying conclusion.
How the Encounter concludes dictates the rewards the characters receive or the consequences they suffer, AS well AS what happens next in the story.
Unable to convince the stubborn King to mobilize his troops, the players decide their only hope is to travel to the lair of the bandit lord to enlist his Aid in the coming fight. This means their next Encounter is a travel Encounter, where the characters must overcome a series of natural challenges including bad weather, Dangerous beasts, and the treacherous crossing of a river swollen by heavy rain. Had they succeeded in convincing the King, their next Encounter might have involved them acting AS an advance guard for the army to avoid ambushes by enemy scouts.Encounters #
Learn more about Actions on in Chapter 12: Encounters.
The Rule of Common Sense #
The rules in this book assume that the Rule of Common Sense is always in Effect. The Rule of Common Sense dictates that when you are reading and interpreting the rules, if something isn’t explicitly spelled out or if the rules don’t fit with the situation you are facing, you will use common sense to decide how to proceed.
For instance, when describing how to use an Attack Action, the rules do not say, “You must be able to Reach your enemy to hit it with your sword.” Common Sense dictates that of course you need to be able to Reach someone to hit them with a sword. We trust you and the people you play with to make these calls on your own. In the case of a disagreement, the Adventure Guide makes the final call.