View Categories

Chapter 13: Injury, Wounds, and Healing

Fantasy adventure worlds are Dangerous places, and sooner or later your character will get hurt. This chapter describes the rules for handling injury, wounds, and healing in Open Adventure.

Body, Mind, and Spirit Points #

A character’s Body Points, Mind Points, and Spirit Points represent how much physical, mental, and emotional hardship they can endure before they must stop to recover. The loss of Body Points, Mind Points, or Spirit Points in the game is sometimes referred to AS taking damage, although it’s possible to lose points from things other than injuries.

  • Body Points: Body Points represent the character’s overall physical health, their ability to resist stunning blows, and how well they withstand fatigue.
  • Mind Points: Mind Points represent the character’s force of will, their ability to stay centered in the face of chaos, and their power of concentration.
  • Spirit Points: Spirit Points represent the character’s morale, their inner Strength, and their spiritual life force.

If a character’s Body Points, Mind Points, or Spirit Points are reduced to zero, they are temporarily Incapacitated. (See Incapacitated below.)

NPCs, Adversaries, and Injury #

The rules found in this chapter are primarily for Player Characters. NPCs and Adversaries are handled in a simpler fashion to make it easier for the Adventure Guide to run the game. Unlike Player Characters, whose health is represented by Body Points, Mind Points, and Spirit Points, NPCs and Adversaries only have one pool of points: Challenge Points. Damage of any type is subtracted from their Challenge Points. When their Challenge Points Reach zero, the NPC or Adversary is Defeated. Wounds, Incapacitation, Recovery, and all the other options and advantages described in this chapter for Player Characters are not used for NPCs and Adversaries.

For more information on Defeated NPCs and Adversaries, see Chapter 11: Challenges.

The exceptions are important NPCs and major Adversaries, such AS legendary heroes, key allies, or the main villain of the Adventure. To reflect the importance of these characters, the Adventure Guide may choose to create them using the rules for creating Player Characters. NPCs or Adversaries created in this fashion, often referred to AS Epic NPCs, use the rules in this chapter for injuries, Wounds, and healing.

Losing Points #

The most common way to lose points is when an Adversary makes a successful Attack Check against your character. Just like Player Character attacks, the Attack Check’s Effect determines how many points the target loses. If the character has Armor that protects against the type Damage the Attack inflicts, reduce the Damage score by the character’s Armor score before subtracting the points.

Other Ways to Lose Points

In addition to combat, characters can lose Body, Mind, and Spirit Points from things like:

  • Fatigue
  • Poison and disease
  • Blows to the head
  • Traumatic experiences
  • High-stakes social interactions
  • Challenge Triggers

Incapacitated #

When a character’s Body Points, Mind Points, or Spirit Points are reduced to 0, the character is Incapacitated. The minimum Body Points, Mind Points, or Spirit Points is 0. They do not go into negative numbers.

Incapacitated characters are awake and aware, but they are prone and disoriented. Communicating while Incapacitated is difficult. The character can manage a few simple words each Turn, but complex sentences and thoughts are impossible. Incapacitated characters may not make Action Checks except to perform a “Catch Your Breath” style Recovery Check. (See Recovery below.) With the Adventure Guide’s permission, an Incapacitated character may perform Minor Actions, like digging a potion out of their pack, fumbling a door open, or crawling a short Distance to cover.

The exact nature of the Incapacitation depends on which of the character’s points were reduced to 0.

Body Points

At 0 Body Points, the character might be seeing stars, have the wind knocked out of them, or feel punch drunk. They are physically exhausted and everything hurts. They might be suffering from numerous minor cuts and bruises, and they are likely feeling more than a little Light-headed.

Mind Points

At 0 Mind Points, the character might be catatonic, deeply disassociated, or hopelessly confused. Making decisions is nearly impossible, and activities requiring higher thought are out of the question. The character may also suffer from temporary memory loss and debilitating confusion. Often, they lack the will to act at all.

Spirit Points

At 0 Spirit Points, the character may be emotionally broken, overcome with terror, or suffering from a soul-searing existential crisis. They are probably only vaguely aware of their surroundings, and they might even suffer from hallucinations. They struggle to make emotional connections, and they likely appear pitiful to friends and enemies alike.

Attacking Incapacitated Characters

Incapacitated characters cannot defend themselves. The base Difficulty Score for Attack Checks made against an Incapacitated character is 0. 

Incapacitated Characters and Damage

If a character who is already at 0 Body Points, Mind Points, or Spirit Points loses more points of the same type, instead of losing points, they suffer an additional Wound of that type. 

Amicus is at 0 Body Points. She is also suffering from a Poison Linked Challenge which causes her to lose 1 Body Point at the end of every Round. At the end of the current Round, when the additional point of damage occurs, Amicus is still at 0 Body Points. Instead of losing another Body Point, Amicus suffers an additional Body Wound and must make Death Checks AS per the standard rules for Wounds.

Recovering Points #

Body Points, Mind Points, and Spirit Points are relatively easy to recover. An hour of Uninterrupted rest restores all a character’s points to their maximums. Characters may also regain points with a successful Recovery Check.

Recovery Checks #

If a character is Incapacitated, an ally can get them back on their feet by making a Recovery Check. A successful Recovery Check restores a number of Body Points, Mind Points, or Spirit Points equal to the Effect, up to the character’s maximum. The player must declare the type of points their character is attempting to recover before making the Recovery Check.

The Primary Attribute for Recovery Checks is based on the player’s description of the Action. For instance, if the character is providing emergency medical care to restore Body Points, the Adventure Guide may rule the Action is based on Intellect. If, on the other hand, the character is giving their ally a pep-talk to help them recover Spirit Points, the Adventure Guide may rule that the Action is based on Persuasion.

At a minimum, the character rendering Aid needs basic tools, such AS a healing kit, and a clean, quiet place to work. If these basic needs are not met, the Adventure Guide should add one or more Drawbacks to the Difficulty Score. Superior healing kits, smelling salts, incense, and similar tools may add Benefits to the Action Score for Recovery Checks. The player may add the character’s MO if the Adventure Guide rules the MO is trained to help others recover. Appropriate Specializations, such AS First Aid, Comfort, or Inspire, may add Benefits to the Action Score.

The base Difficulty Score is the number of Wounds of the character has of the type of points the character is trying to recover. Ignore Wounds of other types.

Amicus is at 0 Body Points so Ezarel is attempting a Recovery Check to get their ally back on their feet. Amicus has 2 Body Wounds, so the base Difficulty Score for Ezarel’s Recovery Check is 2. The player rolls the Recovery Check and gets Effect 3. Amicus gets 3 Body Points back.

Self-Recovery #

If the injured character is not Incapacitated, they may attempt a Recovery Check on themselves using the rules described above for standard Recovery Checks. Apply a Drawback to the Difficulty Score for this Recovery Check, since it is easier to bandage your friend’s arm than it is to bandage your own.

Catch Your Breath #

An Incapacitated character may attempt to Self-recover by performing a “Catch Your Breath” Recovery Check. This type of Recovery Check may only be attempted by an Incapacitated character. It represents blocking out the pain, steeling their resolve to overcome fear, or just taking a quick rest to get their head straight. No tools or special conditions are required.

The Primary Attribute is based on the type of points the character is attempting to recover.

The base Difficulty Score is the number of Wounds the character has of the type of points they are attempting to recover. Ignore Wounds of other types. The player may add the character’s MO Score to the Recovery Check Action Score if the type is the MO’s Favored Recovery. Specializations, equipment, and special circumstances do not provide Benefits to the Action Score.

Wounds #

Every time a character’s Body Points, Mind Points, or Spirit Points are reduced to 0, the character suffers a Wound of that type. Wounds are serious, lingering injuries that are difficult to heal and can lead to death. A Wound might represent broken bones, serious lacerations, post-traumatic responses, phobias, and similar mental, physical, or emotional traumas. There is no limit to the number of Wounds a character can have. 

Each time a character suffers a Wound, they must make a Death Check. See Death Checks and Dying below for more about Death Checks.

Treat Wounds #

Wounds are healed with a Treat Wounds Check. On a successful Treat Wounds Check, the character heals one Wound of a specific type. The character must declare what type of Wound (Body, Mind, or Spirit) they are attempting to heal before they make the Treat Wounds Check.

The base Difficulty Score for a Treat Wounds Check is 6 plus the target’s total number of Wounds. 

Treat Wounds Base Difficulty = 6 + Body Wounds + Mind Wounds + Spirit Wounds

Treating Wounds is a complex and specialized process. The Adventure Guide should consider the following when determining if Drawbacks are appropriate:

  • Environment: Is the environment appropriate for healing? For example, Body Wound healing requires a clean, dry, safe place. Access to clean water is a must, and the patient must be kept warm.
  • Tools: Wound healing requires a proper set of tools. For Body Wounds, this means Healer’s Tools or a Surgeon’s Kit. A simple first Aid kit is not enough.
  • Self-Care: If the character is healing their own Wounds, add a Drawback to the Difficulty Score.
  • Time: Each move down the time chart from 1 hour (for example, 1 hour down to 15 minutes) adds a Drawback to the Difficulty Score.

Treat Wounds is an Intellect Check and has a base time of 1 hour. Each move up the time chart (for example, 1 hour to 12 hours) adds a Benefit to the Action Score for the Treat Wounds Check.

Wounds are healed by type (Body, Mind, or Spirit), and you may only heal one type of Wound with each Action Check. A successful Action Check, regardless of Effect, heals 1 Wound of the chosen type.

On a Critical Failure, the target suffers an additional Wound of the type the character is trying to treat. Like any new Wound, this triggers a normal Death Check AS described in Death Checks and Dying.

Natural Healing #

A character that spends a week resting in a safe clean place with shelter, food, and water, may automatically check to see if any of their Wounds heal. At the end of the week, the character makes one Action Check for each of the types of Wounds they are suffering from.

The Primary Attribute for the Action Check depends on the type of Wound the character is healing:

The base Difficulty Score for all the checks is equal to the character’s total number of Wounds. On a success, the character reduces the number of Wounds of that type by 1.

Negative conditions, such AS filth, cold, or lack of food and water, prevent the character from healing naturally. Participating in more than Light activity at any point during the week restarts the clock, requiring the character to wait another week before they may make Natural Healing Action Checks.

Don’t Fear the Reaper #

In Open Adventure, you are encouraged to dive into the adventure with the same reckless abandon AS your favorite heroes in books and movies. Over the course of a single game night, a character’s Body Points, Mind Points, and Spirit Points will go up and down many times over. They’ll pick up Wounds—sometimes quite a few—and might carry those Wounds with them for much of the game. They might even find themselves Dying and in need of rescue. The game is designed, however, to allow these ups and downs of fortune without bringing the game to a sudden, fatal end. So don’t hold back on doing something fun out of fear for your character’s safety.

That said, characters can die in Open Adventure, and some of your characters will, but the system is forgiving enough that if your cool, heroic Action goes horribly wrong, your character will probably be okay in the end.

And if they aren’t? Well, just make sure they go out in style and make it a death to remember!

Death Checks and Dying #

A character cannot die from losing Body Points, Mind Points, or Spirit Points, but each time the character takes a Wound from any source, they must immediately make a Death Check. The Primary Attribute used to make the Action Check depends on the type of Wound the character just received.

The Death Check has a Difficulty Score equal to the character’s total number Wounds. 

Death Check Difficulty Score = Body Wounds + Mind Wounds + Spirit Wounds

No Benefits or Drawbacks are added to the Action Score or the Difficulty Score for the Death Check, and the character may not add their MO to the Action Score.

On a successful Death Check, the character survives, but remains Incapacitated. On a failed Death Check, the character falls unconscious and is Dying.

Dying #

A Dying character is unconscious with their life slowly ebbing away. The character will continue Dying for a number of Rounds equal to the Primary Attribute score used to naturally heal Wounds of the type that triggered the Death Check. At the end of the last Round, the character dies.

Stabilization #

A character may stabilize a Dying character by making an Intellect Check against a Difficulty Score equal to the character’s total number of Wounds. The character may add an MO Score if appropriate, and they gain Benefits to their Action Score for tools, Specializations, and other positive influences.

On a success, the treated character stops Dying, but remains unconscious for the remainder of the current Encounter. At the end of the Encounter, they regain consciousness and may continue their adventure.

Failing the Intellect Check to stabilize the character does not make things any worse, but the character is still Dying. If the character is still alive in the next Round, the character may try to stabilize them again on their next Turn.

On a Critical Failure, the Dying character suffers an additional Wound of a type determined by the Adventure Guide.

Non-Lethal Attacks and Wounds #

Damage from some sources is listed AS Non-Lethal. For instance, attacks made with a blunt part of the body (fist, feet, head, tail, knee, etc.), or damage from the Harm Action are both Non-Lethal. If a character’s Body Points, Mind Points, or Spirit Points are reduced to 0 by a Non-Lethal Attack, or if the character is hit with a successful Non-Lethal Attack when their Body Points are already 0, the character takes a Wound AS per the rules, but they do not make a Death Check.

Scroll to Top