Each of the six abilities is used in different circumstances.
- Strength: Used for melee attacks and saves requiring physical power, like lifting gates, bending bars, etc.
- Dexterity: Used for ranged attacks and saves requiring poise, speed, and reflexes, like dodging, climbing, sneaking, balancing, etc.
- Constitution: Used for saves to resist poison, sickness, cold, etc. The Constitution bonus is added to healing rolls. A PC's number of item slots is always equal to their Constitution defence.
- Intellect: Used for saves requiring concentration and precision, such as recalling information, crafting objects, tinkering with machinery, identifying Exotica, etc.
- Psyche: Used for saves requiring perception and intuition, such as tracking, navigating, searching for secret doors, communing with psychic powers, etc. The Psyche bonus is added to the damage dealt by Mystic Gifts.
- Ego: Used for saves requiring willpower and charm, such as persuading, deceiving, intimidating, resisting mental domination, etc.
If a character attempts something where the outcome is uncertain and failure has consequences, they make a saving throw, or "save". To make a save, add the bonus of the relevant ability to a d20 roll. If the total exceeds 15, the character succeeds. If not, they fail.
If the save is opposed by another character, then instead of aiming to equal or exceed 15, the side doing the rolling must get a total greater than the opposing character's relevant defence score in order to succeed. If they fail, the opposing side succeeds. This type of save is called an opposed save. Note that it doesn't matter which side does the rolling, since the odds of success remain the same.
If there are situational factors that make a save significantly easier or harder, the referee may grant the roll advantage or disadvantage. If a roll has advantage, roll 2d20 and use the better of the two dice. If it has disadvantage, roll 2d20 and use the worse of the two dice.
PCs have a number of item slots equal to their Constitution defence. Most items, including light weapons, tools and so on take up 1 slot, but particularly heavy or bulky items like armour or medium to heavy weapons will take up more slots. Groups of small, identical items may be bundled into the same slot, at the referee's discretion. Carrying more items than your slot limit will make your character Encumbered, which imposes disadvantage on all physical saves. It is impossible to carry more than 20 slots worth of items.
Initiative in combat is decided each turn. All sides of a conflict roll d6, and whichever side rolls higher acts first. Resolve ties in favor of the players.
On their turn, a character may move and take up to one combat action. This action may be using a Gift, making a second move, making an attack, attempting a stunt, or any other action deemed reasonable by the referee.
Melee weapons can strike adjacent foes, but ranged weapons cannot be used if the shooting character is engaged in melee combat. To make an attack, roll a d20 and add the character's Strength or Dexterity bonus, depending on whether they are using a melee or ranged weapon, respectively. If the attack total is greater than the defender's armor defence value, the attack hits. If not, the attack misses.
Alternatively, an attack roll can also be resolved by the defender rolling a d20 and adding their armor bonus, hoping to roll a total greater than the defence of the ability the attacker is using. If they succeed, the attack misses. If they fail, the attack hits.
On a hit, the attacker rolls their weapon's damage die to determine how many Hit Points (HP) the defender loses. A bonus damage die of the weapon's type may be added to the roll if the ideal weapon was used against an enemy type.
When a character reaches 0 HP, every subsequent point of damage causes them to acquire wounds, which fill item slots and incur penalties (see table below). If a character fills 10 item slots with wounds they will die. If one of a character’s ability defenses reaches zero, they will die.
| DAMAGE PAST 0HP | WOUND | SLOTS | DESCRIPTION |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Just a scratch | - | You were lucky, this time. |
| 2 | Damaged Item | - | A random inventory item is destroyed or damaged. |
| 3 | Bloody Mouth | 1 | Your mouth drools blood and your speech slurs. |
| 4 | Scrambled Nerves | 1 | Disadvantage on PSY saves. |
| 5 | Teeth Knocked Out | 1 | Disadvantage on EGO saves. |
| 6 | Addling Blow | 1 | Disadvantage on INT saves. |
| 7 | Stomach Wound | 1 | Disadvantage on CON saves. |
| 8 | Weakening Wound | 1 | Disadvantage on STR saves. |
| 9 | Crippling Blow | 1 | Disadvantage on DEX saves. |
| 10 | Bloody Gash | 1 | -d8 Max HP. |
| 11 | Major Fracture | 2 | You cannot use a limb. -d6 STR and -d6 DEX. |
| 12 | Lost an Eye | 2 | Your eye is gone. -d6 DEX and -d6 EGO. |
| 13 | Cracked Skull | 2 | -d8 INT and -d8 PSY. |
| 14 | Mangled Guts | 2 | -d8 CON and -d8 max HP. |
| 15 | Severed Hand | 2 | -d8 STR and -d8 DEX. |
| 16 | Severed Arm | 3 | -10 STR and -10 DEX. You pass out. |
| 17 | Severed Leg | 3 | - 10 STR and -10 DEX. Cannot walk. You pass out. |
| 18 | Braindead | 3 | -10 INT, -10 PSY, -10 EGO. You pass out. |
| 19 | Bloody Mess | 3 | Roll 3 random wounds. You pass out. |
| 20 | FATALITY | - | You are dead. |
HP is replenished via Short and Long Rests. A Short Rest is a quick sit-down, with a ration of water or a meal. This replenishes d8 + Constitution bonus HP. A Long Rest is a ration of water and a meal, followed by a full night’s sleep in a safe place. This will either replenish all lost HP or heal one item slot’s worth of wounds. Ability scores that have been depleted by enemy attacks replenish at the rate of one point per day.
If your character is Deprived they cannot benefit from Short or Long Rests. Deprivation can be incurred through many means, but the most common are starvation or thirst.
Vaarn has a fluid economy; potable water is one of the most valuable resources in the blue wastelands. Up to three rations of water can be carried in one item slot. Biological PCs must drink one ration of water every day. Synthetic PCs must imbibe a ration of water weekly, in order to cool their general syntax boards and ego-engines. Failure to do so will result in the character becoming Deprived. If a character is Deprived due to thirst for three days in a row, they will perish.
Merchants will usually trade an item slots’ worth of goods for similar, putting a premium on rations of water and items of Exotica. There is no set list of prices for goods in Vaarn. The deals characters can strike will depend upon context, the merchant’s disposition, and how persuasive they are.
Vaarn is a world where religion, science, and magic are indistinguishable. Devout faith, mastery of arcane nano-machines, abuse of psychoactive fungus, or mental mutation can grant the mind uncanny influence over the material world. All such powers, abilities, and boons are collectively referred to as Gifts. Each Mystic Gift uses one item slot; this represents the burden these unnatural powers exert on the body of the wielder.
Note that Gifts are only lightly defined by their name, and the players and referee must collectively agree on the specific effect of a Mystic Gift. Using a Gift always costs HP; a precise cost will be determined by the referee once the player describes what they want to accomplish. The baseline cost for using a Gift is d6 HP.
Gifts always hit in combat without rolling against armour defence values, and deal damage of one dice size higher than the user paid in HP, plus the character’s PSY bonus. Therefore, paying d6 HP will result in a damage roll of d8 + PSY bonus; the same ratio applies if trying to heal an ally using a Gift. Some Gifts, such as mind control or force barriers, could be used for extended durations. In such cases the character must pay d6 HP for each ten-minute period that the Gift is active.
Mystic Gifts are not earned merely by gaining levels; they must be actively hunted for. Sources of new Gifts could include imbibing psychoactive drugs, brain surgery, training with another psychic, eating another psychic’s brain, meditating in front of a hypergeometric obelisk, and so on. It is up to the Referee how exactly new Gifts can be obtained.
Exotica are the strange relics of the many extinct civilizations that preceded your own. Exotica may take the form of weaponry, clothing, tools, or bizarre constructions that are beyond the understanding of mortal minds. It is presumed that the PCs are vault-raiders, on the hunt for such items of Exotica. When a new item of Exotica is found, the GM may ask for an INT save in order to puzzle out what the device does. If the save is failed, it is assumed that the PCs cannot understand the device. They can either have the item appraised at a settlement or use it and hope for the best.
As you adventure in Vaarn, your character will grow from a relative novice into a more seasoned explorer. This is represented by your Level. All new characters start at Level 1 and advance by trading in Exotica at settlements or oases. Trading in an item of Exotica will gain you one experience point or XP. When your XP tally equals your current Level, increase your Level by one and erase your current XP tally.
When your Level increases, you receive 3 points which you may use to increase your Abilities. Abilities may never be raised higher than 20 /+10. You must also roll a d8 and add the result to your maximum HP.
Once a character has reached Level 10, they are considered complete. Each subsequent level will grant only one extra HP, and they cannot increase their Abilities further. It is recommended that they recruit a Level 1 apprentice to accompany them on expeditions. In time, this apprentice can become the player’s new main character.
Note: Each item of Exotica traded in counts for one XP in total, not one XP per player. A group of four Level 1 PCs would need to trade in four items of Exotica in order for all characters to reach Level 2.