Wednesday, February 1, 2012

My rules for Tunnels and Trolls solos


I enjoyed writing my first Tunnels and Trolls solo very much and I would like to write another one.  However, I also want to incorporate as many of the game rules as possible into my solo.  for example, it is very hard to accommodate both wizards and warriors in a solo.  These rules below are my attempt to incorporate more options into TnT solo adventures.  Please comment on them.

Stuart Lloyd’s house rules when playing a TnT solo
Talents
Below is a list of talents that may be used in TnT solo adventures written by me.  You may add the bonus of any talent you have when making a saving throw if you see the name of the talent in parentheses after the saving throw instruction.  For example, ‘Make a L1SR on STR (Labouring, Smithing) means that you must make an SR on strength and add your bonus for labouring if you have it and smithing if you have it (so you may get the bonuses from more than one talent as they may involve overlapping skills).

The talents that will be used in my TnT solos are:

STR: Labouring, Climb, Swim, Smithing, Break bonds, Wrestling, Powerful punch, Charge!, Smash weapon.

CON: Survival, Iron stomach, Healing, Forced march, Poison resistance, Disease resistance, Ascetic, Resist cold, Resist heat, Thick skin.

DEX: Acrobatics, Pick lock, Sneak, Riding, Balance, Use rope, Escape artist, Disarm opponent, Thievery, crackshot, archery, throwing.


SPD: Dodging, Sprint, Quick draw, Unconscious defence, Arrow catch, Deflect missile, ambush.

INT:  Appraise, Strategy, Plant lore, Artifice, Alchemy, Decipher script, First Aid, Symbol lore, Religion lore, Architectural lore, Spot weakness.

WIZ: Sense magic, Intuit danger, Sense wizard, Synchronicity, Blindsense, Hypnotism, Sense changeling, Fae law, Divination, Gut feeling, combat prediction.

LK: Gambling, Just what I need, Narrow escape, Wild guesswork, Unlikely encounter, Coincidence, Just as I wanted, Impossible shot, Last minute rescue, Impossible hit.

CHA: Persuasion, Disguise, Calm animal, Con, Haggle, Intimidate, Etiquette, Amazing performance, Rousing speech, Taunt.

Combat
Before combat, you may either cast one spell that can be used before combat (see below) or use a ranged weapon.  To hit your opponent, you must perform a L2SR on DEX (crackshot, archery (if using bows), throwing (if using a thrown weapon)).







Stunts in combat
Combat isn’t just all about wearing down your opponent’s MR while trying to stop them hitting you.  In a TnT RPG, you can suggest your own stunts to the GM who can work with you to find out the result.  However, you can’t do that in a solo, so instead you will have stunts suggested to you.  If you fight a combat, you may be given the option of performing certain stunts.  These stunts are saving throws against a particular attribute (and possibly talent) which may produce an extra effect in your favour.  You may choose to perform a stunt instead of attacking your opponent.  You still roll dice for yourself and if you lose the round then you still take damage as normal.  If you win, however, you may decide to perform a stunt rather than inflict damage in the normal way.  You then make the saving roll.  If you succeed, you get the effect listed.  If you fail, nothing happens.  You may try the same stunt again on the same opponent, but each time, the saving roll level increases by 1 as they become wise to your tricks (If you fight multiple opponents, it still increases as they can all see what you are up to).

You come up with the story of what you do to pull off such an effect – a saving roll on INT that allows you to automatically inflict 1 point of spite damage per round may come from you spotting a chink in your opponent’s armour.  A saving roll on STR that makes your opponent miss two rounds of combat may be because you slammed your staff into their belly and winded them.  You come up with the action.

Also, sometimes, monsters may try stunts on you!  Watch out for that!

Spells
Below is the list of spells form the TnT 7.5 Core Rulebook and when you may use them.  There are some spells that may be used before combat, some that may only be used when named in the text, some that may be used at any time and some that may only be used on a willing target (as you are playing a solo, however, these will almost never be used).  Some spells may be used in other circumstances.  For example the call flame spell may be used in place of a tinderbox.



Level 1 (INT + DEX 10)
Spells you may use before combat:  Call flame, Call water, Dem Bones Gonna Rise, Hold that Pose (target loses 1st combat round), Oh Go Away (counts as winning against a single foe.  Otherwise, one foe does not take part in combat for 2 rounds – one to flee, one to get back), TTYF, Vorpal Blade,
Spells you may use on another, willing target (not too useful):  Cremme de la Kremm, Teacher, Suppress Kremm,
Spells you may use on any paragraph you are not fighting or performing a saving roll:  Hocus Focus,
Spells you may only use when the text demands:  Detect Magic, Know your foe, Lock Tight, Oh There it is, That’s a Natty Beard, Who’s There?, Will o Wisp,
Other notes:
Call flame:  Can be used in place of a tinderbox or when lighting a fire.
Call water:  Can be used in place of a waterskin or when putting out a fire.
Knock Knock:  Can be used when there is a L1SR to pick a lock.

Level 2 (INT + DEX 12)
Spells you may use before combat: Glue You, Hidey Hole, Little Feets, Spirit Mastery (can then use the enslaved monster to fight another monster.  If the hero’s characteristics go below the MR of the monster, they must fight the monster then), Unerring Blade, Unlucky Bees, Whammy.
Spells you may use on another, willing target (not too useful):
Spells you may use on any paragraph you are not fighting or performing a saving roll: Dura Spell Battery,
Spells you may only use when the text demands:  Cateyes, Ding a Ling, Find Object, Mirage, Omnipotent Eye,
Other notes:
Hidey Hole:  Doubles an attribute for the purposes of hiding or sneaking SRs.
Little Feets:  Doubles an attribute for the purposes of running SRs.
Poor Baby:  Can be cast on any paragraph the hero is not fighting or performing another SR.

Level 3 (INT + DEX 15)
Spells you may use before combat:  Befuddle (If multiple opponents, target fights another one for 3 turns, otherwise no action for 3 turns), Blasting Power, Fire at Will, Firestorm of Protest (only used on multiple opponents – you may flee while they argue), Freeze Please, Rock a bye (puts 1 target out of action, may flee), Shield Me,
Spells you may use on another, willing target (not too useful)
Spells you may use on any paragraph you are not fighting or performing a saving roll:
Spells you may only use when the text demands: Devoted Rain Cloud, Dis-Spell, Find Person, Firestorm of Protest, Fly me, Hard Stuff, Slash-Yuck.
Other notes:
For What it’s worth:  Caster can use this whenever there is an SR that the appraise skill could be used for.  They will automatically pass it.
Healing Feeling:  Can be used on any paragraph that does not involve combat or another SR.

Level 4 (INT + DEX 19)
Spells you may use before combat: Double Double, Protective Pentegram (may cast two more spells on self or flee unharmed), Smog,
Spells you may use on another, willing target (not too useful)
Spells you may use on any paragraph you are not fighting or performing a saving roll:
Spells you may only use when the text demands:  Dum Dum, Upsidaisy
Other notes:
Double Double:  Can be used for any SR.  The halving only lasts on the next paragraph.
Too Bad Toxin:  Can be used on any paragraph that does not involve combat or another SR.

Level 5 (INT + DEX 24)
Spells you may use before combat:  Breaker Breaker, Mind Pox, Trollgod’s Blessing, Zingum (escape combat),
Spells you may use on another, willing target (not too useful)
Spells you may use on any paragraph you are not fighting or performing a saving roll: Resist Magic (lasts the whole gamebook or until you get a spell cast upon you, may not restore WIZ while in operation), 
Spells you may only use when the text demands:  Dear Lord, ESP, Second Sight, Zingum,

Other notes:

Level 6 (INT + DEX 30)
Spells you may use before combat:  Blue Shirt of Life, Reversal of Fortune,
Spells you may use on another, willing target (not too useful)
Spells you may use on any paragraph you are not fighting or performing a saving roll:
Spells you may only use when the text demands:  Mystic Visions, Porta Vision,
Other notes:

Level 7 (INT + DEX 37)
Spells you may use before combat:  Zappathingum
Spells you may use on another, willing target (not too useful)
Spells you may use on any paragraph you are not fighting or performing a saving roll:
Spells you may only use when the text demands:  Invisible Wall
Other notes:
Level 8 (INT + DEX 45)
Spells you may use before combat:  Zapparmour
Spells you may use on another, willing target (not too useful)
Spells you may use on any paragraph you are not fighting or performing a saving roll:  Patterns of Cosmic Fate
Spells you may only use when the text demands:  Imafrawg
Other notes:
Imafrawg – can be used to automatically succeed at any disguise SR.
Zombie Zonk – can be used on the body of an opponent after combat.

Level 9 (INT + DEX 54)
Spells you may use before combat:  Death Spell #9, Medusa, Yerafrawg (auto win against 1 opponent)
Spells you may use on another, willing target (not too useful)
Spells you may use on any paragraph you are not fighting or performing a saving roll: Mortal Source
Spells you may only use when the text demands: Pygmalion
Other notes:

Level 10 (INT + DEX 64)
Spells you may use before combat:  Hellbomb Burst, Smaller is Smarter,
Spells you may use on another, willing target (not too useful)
Spells you may use on any paragraph you are not fighting or performing a saving roll:
Spells you may only use when the text demands:  Blow Me To..., Wizard Speech
Other notes:

Level 11 (INT + DEX 75)
Spells you may use before combat:  Bigger is Better, Blow You To (auto win, no treasure)
Spells you may use on another, willing target (not too useful)
Spells you may use on any paragraph you are not fighting or performing a saving roll:
Spells you may only use when the text demands:  Cut the Cord, Ghostly Going
Other notes:


Level 12 (INT + DEX 87)
Spells you may use before combat:  Banishing (only against demons), Invisible Fiend, Summon,
Spells you may use on another, willing target (not too useful)
Spells you may use on any paragraph you are not fighting or performing a saving roll:
Spells you may only use when the text demands:  Nefarious Necromancy, Omniflex,
Other notes:

Level 13 (INT + DEX 97)
Spells you may use before combat: 
Spells you may use on another, willing target (not too useful)
Spells you may use on any paragraph you are not fighting or performing a saving roll:  Born again
Spells you may only use when the text demands: 
Other notes:

Recovering WIZ
You may recover 1 point of WIZ on any paragraph that does not involve a combat or a saving roll.  If there is an * by the paragraph number, you may restore your WIZ to its initial level (this will be due to a long period of time passing over that paragraph).

Adventure points in a solo
The number of adventure points you are awarded in a solo depends on the following factors.
Monsters defeated = MR
Saving rolls = Dice roll x SR level
Casting magic = WIZ points expended.
Completion of adventure = number allocated.

Does anyone have any comments?



3 comments:

  1. A lot of the rules you have listed here have been used in solos for years, such as missile attack before the first round of melee combat, a spell before combat. So...don't really know if it's appropriate for them to be called them "Stuart Lloyd's House Rules." That insinuates you were the first to think of them :)

    Also, note that Call Water and Call Flame are touch attack spells. Don't know if they should be or could be cast BEFORE the first round of combat. Nonetheless, the standing use of Talents is a good idea. I'd like to see a clear list of defined Talents for the game myself, but that's probably just me.

    I'm not giving you a hard time, just making observations. Nice job.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hooray! Deluxe Tunnels and Trolls has a list of talents!

      Delete
  2. Thanks for the feedback, Soren. I have not read all of the solos, so any rules that I made that turned up in them is purely coincidental. I'll take my name off it, however. I do want to share the rules.

    Thanks for noticing that Call Flame and Call Water are touch spells. I'll remove them from the before combat spells.

    Thanks for the talents comment. If you know of any more I should add, please say.

    ReplyDelete