General Rules - Character Rules

[Stildawn]

GSTK General Rules

Character Rules

In regards to your main character we have a set of rules to promote fairness to all players. - Main Characters You can create and play only one main character at any given time, these characters have financial accounts (see Income Rules below), items (see SI Rules below), house threads and can hold rank and lands. These are your main RP characters who you should RP most actively with. Each main character must be registered here, have a vault set up here along with a house thread here. - Skills In GSTK we have traits, this reflects what your characters are good at. Some might like to role play being a good swordsman, and this allows them to support that role play. Others might be tactical genii, and again this allows the dice to reflect that. Starting at the age of 20 you can select two points in the skills below. A point is defined as a single bonus. So taking +1 in assassinations would be a single point. Thus you could use both points and have +2 in assassinations or split them over several skills. Each decade (ie 30, 40, 50, etc etc) you gain another 2 points to assign. However for balancing reasons you cannot have more points in any single trait than the first digit in your age (so a max of 3 points if your 30, 4 points if your 40, etc etc) Skills duels +1 field battle rolls (away from castles) +1 siege rolls (anything involving castles or defences. Counts whether attacker or defender) +1 capture rolls (when capturing someone) +1 income +5% survival rolls (in battles + age related rolls) +1 assassinations (doing and defending) +1 escape rolls (in battles and in relation to assassinations) +1 archer (any roll using a bow, ie tournament or assassination) +1 fist fighter (weaponless rolls) +1 jouster +1 tourney knight (all rolls in a tournament) +1 birth rolls +1 pillage +5% earned from it loyalty +1, men will go a year in game without pay businessman (bonus to the merchant venture rolls, ie roll of 8 by mod would become 9 with a +1 in this) +1 smith +1 (bonus to forging rolls) Churchman (may excommunicate and denounce one rank higher) denouncer (causes extra unrest when denouncing and excommunicating) +5% Fate (50:50 chance of a +1 or a -1 to any roll) - Auxiliary Characters These are characters you can play from time to time for more in-depth and creative RP, they can hold no actual rank, money or items and are used solely for RP purposes. Major Aux characters should be registered here this is to provide background for other players who may come across your Auxes. However spur of the moment Auxes do not have to be registered. - Killing Auxes For an aux to be killed, there must be just as good a reason as if they were a main. When it comes to the actual assassination, the same roll is used as if the character was a main but the success rate of the assassination attempt is doubled. However as with all rolls 19/20 is the highest success rate. Escape rolls apply at the normal (not doubled) rate. Murder is murder regardless of who's killed. - Aging Characters age at a rate of one in-game year per real week. At the age of 50 your characters will be subject to natural death rolls done each week by the moderators, the chance of natural death being 2/20. When you character reaches the age of 60 the chance each week increases to 5/20. This is to naturally kill off any super old and therefore unrealistic characters. The character can see out the remainder of any thread in which he is RPing but must die by the end of that game year. - Heirs and Wills When your main character dies you must post a will detailing the distribution of your lands, belongings and money within 24 hours of death. Only proper “birth rolled” children and other main characters are eligible to receive anything from a deceased main character. (Note that since you can only have one main character at a time, if you main dies and you have no “birth rolled” heir, all your lands, belongings and money can only be passed to another person’s main character. NOT YOUR NEXT MAIN CHARACTER)

[Stildawn]

Ranks

In GSTK we try to emulate to the best of our ability a medieval England society and in such a society we have a hierarchy of ranks. - Ranks The Nobles The King - Supreme ruler of all of England and its domains, commands the Royal Army and dictates the direction of England. The Princes - Generally a RP rank given to Auxes of the current King though occasionally a main character in their own right (usually suggesting they are to be the next King) The Earls - Highest rung of the peerage. These men are usually hold large portions of land. The Barons - The modest land owners in the realm these men are more often than not a vassal of either an Earl. The Knights - These men are men of worth under oath to their over lords, they hold no considerable land yet are considered to be on the rise in return for excellent service to their over lords. The Freemen - These are just normal men who hold little to no real power, they could be Squires, Smiths, Merchants, Mercenaries, et cetera. Over time, Kings may introduce new ranks to represent a new style of relationship for his vassals. The Clergy The Cardinal/Archbishop - The highest clergy member in England directs the church and its funds as well as wielding considerable influence over English politics both domestic and international. The Bishops - At least as influential as Earls these middle rung clergy can have much influence in politics. The Priests - The bulk of the clergy, usually preside over a small parish. The Monks - The lowest rank if the clergy. The Offices The Lord Chancellor - He is the chief adviser to the Crown, and can, in theory, administer the Monarch's Justice in his stead (i.e. overrule the courts) but only in quite extreme circumstances if he feels that it is fair and just to do so. The Regents - These are men who have temporary King powers usually used in a transitional period between full Kings. - Promotions Promotions may be given to any character at any time by those in the position to do so. Any man who holds rank may promote another to a place below him, though if he is giving away land in vassalage he should preferably seek the acceptance of the King.

[Stildawn]

Income

In GSTK we use a simple income system based land ownership for nobles and character ranks for other characters. With the currency of florins many different things can be purchased to assist in your game playing. Income is accumulated every week (the mods post income days on Fridays) in which each player updates their personal accounts in the Vaults sub forum according to the tables below. Starting Amount/Promotions The King - 200 Florins The Cardinal - 350 Florins The Archbishop - 300 Florins The Prince - 150 Florins The Bishops - 120 Florins The Earls - 80 Florins The Barons- 60 Florins The Priests - 60 Florins The Monks - 30 Florins The Knights - 40 Florins The Freedmen - 25 Florins This is the lump sum added to your account when either starting a new character (as freemen) or when receiving a promotion from higher Lords/King/Clergy. Note, you only get these when promoted upwards. If you are demoted, you do not get this. Weekly Incomes For Non-Nobles The Cardinal - 130 Florins The Archbishop - 120 Florins The Bishops - 40 Florins The Priests - 20 Florins The Monks - 10 Florins The Baronets - 15 Florins The Knights - 15 Florins The Freedmen - 5 Florins These amounts you add each week to your accounts on payday (announced by a mod on Fridays) - Clergy Notes As per the Church Rules below, the Church gains a set income per week depending on the amount of main clergy characters in the game: The Cardinal - 90 Florins The Archbishop - 70 Florins The Bishops - 40 Florins The Priests - 20 Florins The Monks - 10 Florins Weekly Incomes for Nobles Nobles are unique in that they draw their income from their lands. Each noble is a Knight thus they receive the Knights base pay of 15 florins per week. On top of that they receive an income from each of their lands based on the wealth of the land. The income generated by the lands is indicated on the maps below. Nobles simply add all their lands incomes together combined with their Knightly base pay of 15 florins to receive their total weekly income. [Maps to come] - Posting Transactions When adding in weekly income, making payments or anything that changes your finances please post the transaction in a whole new post in your account thread. Do not edit any of your posts. This helps moderators keep track of everything to ensure no ones being sneaky.

[Stildawn]

Feudal System

In GSTK we run a feudal system which determines the amount of forces your character controls, remember only main character can hold actual lands resulting in troops. - Lands We have divided England and Normandy into set shires and counties which are used to give land to promoted players. Each shire/county gives a certain amount of income (see income section in the above post). England Wales Scotland Ireland Normandy [/B] - Granting Of Titles Anyone who holds two or more counties can grant a title (land/county) to another player in return for fealty (vassalage) promoting them to an appropriate rank. Note that you may only promote someone to a rank below your own. Kings usually didn’t promote below Earl/Count and instead would suggest a Duke to promote a worthy person to the ranks of Knight/Baron/Earl so therefore generally land is given to Dukes and filtered down through the vassals. - Fealty When given a promotion or land by an overlord usually an oath is undertaken to the higher Lord. In effect the higher Lord still actually owns the land given to the promoted player however the troops the land has is controlled by the newly-promoted player. Thus some trust is implied between the Lord and his vassal since if the Lord is unhappy with his vassal he can revoke the titles and take back the land, however this could erupt into a war if the revoked player doesn’t agree. Civil wars in this way can erupt if the vassal receives support from another Lord altogether (note, for game purposes, troops are always considered loyal to their current lord). - Stewards In the event of a powerful or land rich nobleman passing away without a clear will and testament, or in the event that an inheritor of the estate becomes infirm, a Steward may be nominated by either the subject family’s choice, or by the choice of the King. Royal Endorsement: In order for lands to be Stewarded, the candidate must first receive the approval and blessing of the King, as well as any oaths of allegiance the King may require of the potential Steward. Caretaker: The Steward is a mere simple Caretaker to the House he is charged with. As such he is considered a simple beurocrat and administrator. A Steward does not get any bonus pay's or any extra entitlements for being a Steward, he/she receives their BASE pay. IE. If a Baron becomes the Steward of a Duchy, he is still paid as a Baron, NOT a Duke. Limited Power: A Steward can control the current recruited troops of the Stewarded provinces but only in what is deemed the Stewarded Houses interests. They cannot increase the troop count of that House, and must pay for the current troops, else desertions may begin. - Unassigned Counties/Land If the Land is unassigned it is said to be ruled by a NPC Lord, its troops when required are part of the Royal Army controlled by the King. This also means that any player can raise an army and RP a grievance between the NPC Lord and himself and invade with the goal of taking the land into his own. Whether or not the King gets involved is of course up to the King at the time. - Men-at-Arms Most ranks have a basic number of men that follow them. Freedmen always have 5 people that can fight for them, Knights always have 50 men. However, for Nobles it is a little different. Each noble always has 50 men from each county, similar to a knight. So if a noble owns three counties, then they have 150 men. These men are permanent, and require no upkeep. However, if a noble so wishes, he may increase the number of men at his command. Each 100 men cost 10 florins to recruit, and then cost 1 florin per year to maintain. Once you have spent the money on the troops it is required that you wait a period of two weeks for the training of said troops. You will not be able to use them, but you still have to maintain them. This is to ensure that rich nobles do not bulk buy cheap troops for instant attacks - for that, they would have to pay a heftier price for mercenaries. Note, that the king may require you to maintain a certain number of men. - Mercenaries Whilst on campaign anyone can hire Mercenaries to supplement their armies. A simple system of 40 Florins per 100 Mercenaries is used, which lasts until either a) They are disbanded or b) The Mercenaries are defeated in battle. Every 1000 Mercenaries that are recruited will generate an (NPC) Mercenary Captain, who gives a bonus of +1 to the battle section he is placed in. There is no cap on the amount of mercenaries that can be hired. - Kings Army The King at all times has a standing army of 2000. This is totally separate from the troop numbers listed in the above land maps. - Navy The navy at this time is made up of very few professional vessels and will require the players to put forward money in order to support a larger navy comprised of requisitioned merchant vessels. To represent this, the navy is comprised of a standing force of 30 vessels. Additional ones may be purchased at the cost of 5 florins and are limited to two vessels per territory a player owns (Note: This is a one-off payment). Example: A player with two territories may support up to four vessels (two from each territory) and will pay 5 florins for each one in service.

[Stildawn]

Special Items (SI's)

In GSTK we have a simply item system where one may purchase whatever item he wishes according to the system laid out in the opening post of Ælfgar and Son's. - Weapons Used in duels and RP, these provide a bonus to your roll in personal combat. - Armour Used in duels and RP, these provide a negative to your opponents rolls. - Assassination Weapons Used in assassination attempts (whether open or secret), these provide a bonus to your assassination attempt roll (see Assassination Rules below). - Security Goods These provide defence against Assassinations. The Guards will follow you around, unless ordered to wait. - Castle/Seige Goods TBC - Town Buildings Give advantages to whoever has them. Such as +1 in duels or battles. - Use of Ælfgar‘s To purchase an item simply choose the modifier you want to pay for (of course the higher the modifier the more expensive) then post saying you purchased the item (you may name the item as you wish) of said modifier and pay the price. You must then go and update your financial accounts accordingly.

[Barbarian Nobility]

Childbirth and Adoption

- Frequency As a rule a player may only request a childbirth/adoption roll once every 2 real weeks. Only mains or rolled auxes may request a roll. - Costs and Chances The below costs represent not only the cost of the birth, but other expenses such as the doctor travelling to your home to deliver the child etc. There are two chances, first a chance for the wife’s survival during the birth and a second for the child’s survival. A roll is also performed to determine the gender of the child. No Physician (literally on your own without medical assistance) - Free Chance of Wife's survival: 12/20 Chance of Child's survival: 10/20 Poor Physician - 15 Florins Chance of Wife's survival: 14/20 Chance of Child's survival: 12/20 Average Physician - 30 Florins Chance of Wife's survival: 16/20 Chance of Child's survival: 14/20 Renowned Physician - 50 Florins Chance of Wife's survival: 18/20 Chance of Child's survival: 16/20 King's Physician (reserved only for... Guess who?) - Free Chance of Wife's survival: 19/20 Chance of Child's survival: 17/20 - Adoption In GSTK you might sometimes wish to adopt a child. Providing that it isn't the rolled child of another player. The following rolls are made depending on your station in life. These are to represent the risk of childhood disease. Any adoption is subject to the kings whim. So if he dislikes you adopting, he is within his rights to demand that they not take your family name (and thus unable to inherit). Adoptions are subject to the two week gap rule, just as births are. Lower Class (Freedman or equivalent) - 10/20 chance of survival Middle Class (Knight or equivalent) - 13/20 chance of survival Upper Class (Baron/Earl or equivalent) - 15/20 chance of survival Nobility (Dukes, Princes and Kings) - 16/20 chance of survival

[Barbarian Nobility]

Battle Rules:

Battles in GSTK have a predominantly RP purpose as GSTK is not a strategy game, therefore in order to keep wars fluid and moving a simple battle system is in place which quickly determines the outcomes of battles providing the info required for fun RP of the battle. All battles in GSTK take place in the Battlegrounds sub forum here. - Setting Up Of A Battle Simply post a new thread in the Battlegrounds sub forum with some lead up RP as to why your armies are there and who they are fighting against. Include a count of your troop numbers and update as others if any join in on the engagement. Remember that Medieval Armies often suffered if they gathered in too large numbers for any period of time. Once yourself and your opponent is ready, request a battle roll from the mods. Such requests can be in the battle thread or alternatively posted here. - Moderator Assigned Battle Modifiers In certain cases the moderators may feel that a slight modification is required to the rolls in order to reflect certain battlefield situations, these can be anything but typically include factors like fortifications, surprise etc. These modifications are applied to an army roll to enhance the outcome providing a bonus for one army and a negative for the opposing side. In setting up of your battle thread you can request these types of modifications, but they are solely up to moderators discretion and should not be viewed as a given. - Battle Roll System A battle occurs when two opposing generals, with any other characters, choose to engage by creating a thread in the Battlegrounds sub-forum. It shall take the following steps: 1) Both generals will choose to divide their army as follows, a centre, a left flank and a right flank. The General may assign one or more player characters to each section. It is assumed, but not necissarily enforced, that they command their troops in that section. The centre must have at least a third of the men, the other sections can be as large or small as wished. 2) When battle is fought, rolls will be made for the corresponding sections of the field, bearing in mind that one army's Right Flank is the opposing army's Left Flank. a) A 20-sided die will be rolled for each army's Centre, Right and Left separately. Each number is multiplied by the number of friendly troops in that section and the results are compared. The lower total is the loser of that section and will suffer 50% casualties. The winner will suffer casualties equal to (Loser's total/Winner's total) * 0.5. b) Each Character in a section will add a bonus to their respective section's rolls: Barons & Earls - +1 Dukes, Army Leaders & Rebel Leaders - +2 Kings - +3 3) If an army wins two or more sections of the field, they are considered the winners of the battle. The losers of the battle must retreat to a friendly fortification or settlement, even if it is in a different region. Example: Duke A brings 5000 troops against Baron B who has 3000 and a second Baron. Each General allocates troops to the flanks and centre. Duke A places 1,500 on the right, 1,500 on the left, and keeps 2,000 for the centre. Duke A leads the centre. Baron B places 1,000 of his men in both flanks and the centre. His fellow Baron takes command on the right hand flank. While he leads from the left. Thus the rolls are done (The higlighted colour is the random roll, that could change as its done on a D20) Duke A Left - 10 x 1,500 = 15,000 Centre - (14 +2 as he is a Duke = 16) x 2,000 = 32,000 Right - 3 x 1,500 = 15,000 Baron B Left - (15 +2 as he leads the army = 17) x 1,000= 17,000 Centre - 6 x 1,000 = 6,000 Right - (19 + 1 as a baron leads the flank = 20) x 1,000 = 20,000 Remembering that the right flank of one army faces the left of the other you get the following result. Duke A - Baron B 15,000 vs 20,000 32,000 vs 6,000 15,000 vs 17,000 Thus you can clearly see that whilst Duke A won the centre, both his flanks were turned. Baron B therefore won the day. - Casualties Battles of the time almost never ended in total destruction of the losing side. Therefore we have the following system for casualties. To calculate the percentage of the winning side’s casualties we take the lowest battle score divided by the highest battle score giving the winners casualty percentage. To calculate the losers casualties percentage we do the opposite, taking the highest battle score divided by the lowest battle score. Usually a 50% max limit is placed on the casulties either side can take. However at a moderators discretion this may be removed. Seiges are a common example. Example: Continuing from the battle example above, Baron B won the day therefore their casualties are as follows: Left (Duke A's): Winner Baron B: (15,000/20,000)x0.5=0.375 or 37.5%. Therefore 1,000 men x 0.375=375 men were lost. Loser Duke A: (20,000/15,000)x0.5=0.66 or 66%. As it is higher than 50% and there are no special circumstances we simply use 50%. Therefore 1,500 men x 0.5=750 men losts. Centre: Winner Duke A: (6,000/32,000)x0.5=0.094 or 9.4%. Therefore 2,000 men x 0.094=188 men were losts. Loser Baron B: (32,000/6,000)x0.5=2.66 or 266%. As it is higher than 50% and there are no special circumstances we simply use 50%. Therefore 1,000 men x 0.5=500 men losts. Right (Duke A's): Winner Baron B: (15,000/17,000)x0.5=0.44 or 44%. Therefore 1,000 men x 0.44=440 men were losts. Loser Duke A: (17,000/15,000)x0.5=0.56 or 56%. As it is higher than 50% and there are no special circumstances we simply use 50%. Therefore 1,500 men x 0.5=750 men were lost. Overall: Baron B won the day by winning two sections, he lost a total of 1315 men and has 1685 remaining. Duke A was forced from the field by losing two sections, he lost a total of 1688 men and has 3312 remaining. Wounded: 1- you always, no matter what have the men supplied by your counties (which is 50 per county you own, regardless of size. Own 6 counties, that is then 300 men) 2- after a battle, or whatever that causes your men to get hurt, a roll is done. This roll determines the rate of casualties to mortalities. They will be limited to 25% either side. (so off the final casualty result a min of 25% will be injured and live to fight another day, and a maximum of 75% can survive - thus some will always live, and always die, regardless of the roll result) A moderator will assign +5, or -5 to the roll result depending on the battle results (ie, if the enemy battle score is double yours, you death roll gets higher mortalities than would otherwise be) 3- the above point may be wavered in cases where the mods deem it suitable (ie sieges, even if some do survive, there is no way they will be able to regroup somewhere with you, they'd have all been captured by the attackers) 4- casualties are always injured for a week from the point the dice was rolled. So if the dice for that battle is rolled at 7pm on a Monday, at 7pm the week later they will be available to use again. 5- those that die, obviously have to be replaced. - Characters after Battle The aftermath of battles were a confused state, therefore if your character is on the losing side you will be given a D20 roll by a mod to determine your individual outcome. However, this is only if your character is in a lossing section, thus its possible to lose a battle but be in the winning section and not need a roll, or to lose a section in a winning battle, and still need a roll. Killed In Action – 1-2/20 (if a 1 or 2 is rolled your character is killed) Captured – 3-10/20 (if your character is captured he will be at the mercy of the victors, though after a certain length of time you will be eligible for an escape roll) Escaped – 11-20/20 (you escape back to friendly forces and can live and RP freely as before) - Pillage and Loot One of the main motivations for a Noble Lord participating in war during the Middle Ages was loot and plunder - this was the grease which kept the cogs of war running. Barons and Earls just simply wouldn't embark on campaign unless there was a garuntee of loot and plunder, and if the King failed to provide such revenue it would result in him becoming incredibly unpopular indeed. In GSTK we have a very simple method for representing the sack and pillage of foreign settlements or indeed other nobles settlements during times of warfare. Castles and Cities are delegated by the moderation team as one of four different types of settlement. Village: A small village or town with no walls. No Pillage. Minor settlement: A small town surrounded by a pallisade including a small garrison (usually with a maximun of 2+ fortifications and a garrison of 1000 men). Capturing this settlement yields D20 x 10 Florins, to be distributed by the King or Campaign leader at the end of campaign. Minor City: A Large town surrounded by a stone wall, keep and moat, including a large Garrsion (usually with a minimun of 4+ fortifications and a garrison between 3000 - 5000 men) Capturing this settlement yields D20 x 50 Florins, to be distributed by the King or Campaign leader at the end of campaign. Capital City: A very large and extensively fortified city, with an equally large Garrison (8+ fortifications and a Garrison between 8000 - 15000 men) Capturing this settlement yields D20 x 100 Florins, to be distributed by the King or Campaign leader at the end of campaign. Baggage Train: All medieval armies on campaign carried baggage trains. This is where the loot from the campaign is stored. When an army loses a battle whilst on campaign, a D20 is rolled on the following table; 1-2: Loot seized - The entire baggage train and all loot is captured by the enemy 3-10: Loot raided - The enemy has pilfered the loot. 50% of the loot goes to the enemy 11-20: Baggage train escaped. Thank God they didn't get our loot. *Obviously armies invading England will also roll for their loot and be accompanied by a baggage train. If the English manage to defeat a foreign invader in battle they will also get a chance to seize the loot of the campaign Ruination: A sacked fortress of city will lose all of its defensive values to represent the absolute levelling of the city. These defensive fortifications will have to be 're-constructed' at a price of half the original value of the fortifications. In the Castle Upgrade thread in the London Vaults, the fortress/city will be classified as 'Ruined' until reconstruction is completed/and paid for. *Important Note: Besieged defenders of cities and castles may be subject to disease and starvation rolls. These rolls will be based on the RP situation and will attempt to reflect the situation realistically. Additionally, large armies (traditionally over 20k) and armies on ships will also trigger disease/starvation/desertion rolls.*

[Barbarian Nobility]

Assassination Rules:

In GSTK there are many rivalries, debates, arguments and full blown hatred between different characters at different times. This is great RP and really adds depth and believability to our GSTK world. And thus we have an assassination system where a character may try to kill a rival either covertly or openly. - The Ways to Kill The first way to assassinate someone is covertly or "Anonymous Assassination" this way is all done via PM's with mods and therefore you do not give away your identity. Anonymous Assassination Steps 1. First pick your target. 2. Be sure to have a good reason to kill him. Now this may be confusing to some people but in order to stop rampant assassinations for no other reason than based on their previous character you must have a reason. OOC reasons and reasons based on old events etc will not be approved. Your current character must have a genuine in game reason to want to kill the other player’s current character. 3. Next PM a mod stating your reason, assassination items you wish to use (more on this later), your target, and location. 4. The mod will do the rest, he will do a roll and post in the desired thread, no hint will be given to your identity. The second way to kill is Open Assassination; these are usually done in the spur of the moment and instantly reveal your identity for all to see. Open Assassination Steps 1. First you must be in the same thread as your target. 2. No approval is required for open assassinations, however we would like for you to pm a mod telling you your reason BEFORE you post you are trying to kill your target if at all possible to give the mods a heads up (most of the time though the reason is obvious if you are resorting to a open assassination... but you never know, if no mod is on you can skip this step as time may be of the essence). 3. Post that you are trying to kill so-and-so using whatever assassination items you wish to use with the roll. 4. A Mod will do the rest posting the results in the thread. The final way to kill someone is a secret open assassination; this is where you get the person alone and then in act an open assassination. The beauty of these is that although it’s an open assassination no other characters in game will actually know that you did it (this assuming that they are following the OOC knowledge rules) and you will not need an escape roll since no one will find the body until after you have left. Secret Open Assassination Steps 1. You must be in the same thread as the person. And you must post and they must acknowledge that you are alone (in a side room, forest, boat really anywhere as long as you post and they acknowledge). 2. Contact a mod with your reasons as with normal open assassinations above. 3. Post your assassination attempt in the thread as per normal open assassinations above. 4. Mod will post the results in the thread. Executions by the King 1. The King's word is law. If he deems someone to deserve an execution then he need only roll to capture his victim. 2. Once captured, the victim is entirely at the mercy of the King and cannot roll to escape unless he has spent four real days in captivity. 3. If the victim has not been caught by the King's men but instead by another and brought to the King, the King will require another capture roll in order to take the victim into his custody. This roll will be in the favour of the King, representing the difficult situation that the victim now finds himself in. - The Rolls and Chances This is based primarily on two factors, are you, or the target nobles or not, and what is the location. Nobles are defined as Baron, Baronet, Earl, Duke, Prince, King, Bishop, Archbishop, Cardinal. It also includes people with noble type positions, such as the Mayor or London. While Commoners or Yeomen are defined as Knight, Priest, Freedman. At Home Yeoman – 6/20 Nobles – 2/20 In a friendly house (ie not yours or the assassins) Yeomen - 7/20 Nobles – 3/20 In the assassins house Yeomen - 17/20 Nobles – 15/20 An indoor situation - 10/20 An outside situation - 12/20 - Group Assassinations If more than one player should attempt to kill someone, there is a further +2 bonus for each person. This is cumulative, so should three extra people join the attempt there would be a +6 bonus to the rolls. But, larger groups are easier to catch, and so a -2 is added to the escape rolls. Its your choice, do you prefer to get the job done, or remain anomalous while doing it? (note, that each person involved in the attempt, must PM the moderator, else they will not be included) - Hired help If you are a noble you may chose to attempt the murder yourself, or have one of your people to do it. Having a retainer make the attempt comes at a -2 to the attack, but keeps your own character much safer. You may give the retainer your assassination weapon, increasing their chances, however if they fail the weapon is lost. The retainer MUST come from your own men. - Assassination/Anti-Assassination Items Characters can purchase a range of assassination/anti-assassination items for the eventual use in assassination attempts. These provide either a bonus to assassination attempt rolls or a defence against assassinations. Assassination Items These are items which the assassin wishes to use in his attempt; they add onto the assassination chances to create an increased chance of success. There are two types of assassination weapons, knives and other such melee weapons, and bows and other such missile weapons. Knifes are more dangerous, and tend to be cheaper to purchase, while bows allow for a second assassination attempt (at a -5 chance), should the first fail. A knife may only be used against one target, before a fight will occur. Knives can be used everywhere, while bows on the other hand may only be used in outside situations. Example: To kill a noble the home chances are 2/20 however if the assassin has an assassination dagger with +2 to assassinations the chances are increased to 4/20 (meaning a roll anywhere under 4 results in the King being killed). Should two people join the attack then the roll would 8/20. Anti-Assassination Items Trained guards in general are the most effective aid against assassins. They are hired specially and will accompany you everywhere outside your home, unless it is established in the thread that they are not there. You may hire as many as you like, though their services are expensive, each one gives a -1 modifier to the attempt. Example: You are attempting to kill someone in an indoor thread, which has the base chance of 10/20. But they have two guards, reducing the odds to 8/20 (meaning the assassin must roll less than 8 in order to succeed). Armour If the target happens to be wearing any armour, the defence stats of that armour is taken as a anti-assassination item. Thus there is a higher chance of failure if you target someone in a battle thread. The wearing of armour unless in a battle thread must however have been previously posted. - Escapes after Assassination Attempts In regards to covert assassinations above after the assassination attempt has taken place (regardless of success or failure) the assassin must escape the area. The chances of this escape are determined by several things. An escape chance starts off at 20/20 and suffers negative modifiers for each point as listed below. •If using a melee weapon - -1 to roll •If inside an enclosed area - -1 to roll •If inside a home thread - -1 to roll •For each guard in area: -1 to roll •For each other player in area: -1 to roll •Other modifiers may be applied by the Mods if deemed necessary, up to a maximum of -3. Example The assassin is using a knife(-1) to attack someone with two bodyguards(-2) while indoors(-1). They thus need 20-1-2-1= 16/20 to successfully escape. Failed Escapes If you fail the escape roll, one of two things will happen, either you will be at the mercy of your ‘victim’ or your retainer will be. If you had attempted the attack yourself, there is little to do other than beg for you’re your life and pray they are the forgiving type. If however its your retainer that is captured, not all is lost. The retainer may be tortured for information, and the following rolls will apply. 1-5 they die during questioning. 6 - 10, they die during the torture, but revel the identity of their liege. 11-20, they survive the torture and reveal the identity of their liege. They can now be used as evidence in court, or before the king.

[Barbarian Nobility]

Duel Rules:

In medieval society honour was everything thus a loss of face or an insult at the time would often be followed by a challenge for a duel. GSTK incorporates a very simple duel system to cater for this bravado. - Both Must Agree In order for a duel to take place both parties must agree to it, if the other party does not accept the challenge of the duel and the challenger still wants to kill said character then an open assassination must take place with the full consequences of such an action. - The Duel Rolls If a challenge is accepted then the outcome is determined by a series of rounds dealing 1 damage each round. The first character to receive a total of 3 damage loses the duel and is at the others mercy (to be killed, released etc). The result of each round is determined by a simple roll off of a D20, the character with the highest roll wins the round and deals 1 damage onto his opponent. - Weapons and Armour Weapons and Armour may be purchased by characters in game and give bonus when duelling. Weapons add to the characters roll, while armour deducts for the opponents roll. Example John has a sword (+2) and armour (+2) while Bob has a Long sword (+4), John rolls a 6 + 2 (sword) = 8, Bob rolls a 5 + 4 (long sword) - 2 (Johns armour) = 7. John wins the round.

[Barbarian Nobility]

Church and Clergy Rules:

The church in medieval times was a powerful force in any Christian nation. In GSTK we reflect that in a series of perks and unique advantages available to clergy members. - Money and Lands The Church gains a set income per week depending on the amount of main clergy characters in the game: The Cardinal - 90 Florins The Archbishop - 70 Florins The Bishops - 40 Florins The Priests - 20 Florins The Monks - 10 Florins Some Bishops and Church endorsed Orders may also own land which could gain income and support troops. This great wealth accumulated by the church under the command of the Archbishop can be used in various ways, they may purchase items as per any other character, the church may give loans to other characters at terms decided at the time and they can also fund Orders. - Religious Orders The church as above can sponsor religious orders at various amounts which will determine the amount of troops a religious order can maintain. The church may increase, decrease or suspend their sponsorship at any time but these changes take a week to come into effect. The ratio of florins to troops is for every 1 florin sponsored the order can maintain 100 troops. - Legally The church can also provide protection from the Kings justice. Any man may enter a Church and claim Sanctuary. Once claiming Sanctuary they are unable to be arrested, however are subject to the conditions implied by the clergy in command. - Special Powers Of The Church Denouncement: A priest (main character only) may denounce any character under the station of Duke (so Freedmen, Barons, other priests, and Earls/Counts) for unchristian like acts, such as the murder of innocents, unjust violence etc. Only a main character who is a Bishop or higher may denounce a Duke, fellow Bishop, a prince or the King. A character who is denounced will not be able to raise their levy, although they will still retain their proffessional Corp. This represents the common God-fearing folk of the counties disobeying the commands of a man/woman who they believe to be evil and corrupt. The denouncent shall be lifted upon the reconcilliation of the denounced individual with the church, upon the death of the denounced individual, or via the purchase of an Absolution. Excommunication: A priest may excommunicate any character under the station of Duke (Freedman, Barons, other pirests, Earls/Counts) but only a Bishop or higher may excommunicate a Duke, other bishop, a prince or a King. Aside from not being able to raise their levies, an excommunicated noblemen will automatically face a minor peasant rebellion within his own lands (D20 x 100 men x the number of provinces the noble owns.) until the reconcilliation of the excommunicated individual with the church, upon the death of the excommunicated individual, or via the purchase of an Absolution. An excommunicated King, besides not being able to raise his levies will be faced with a major peasant rebellion within the Kingdom (D20 x 1000 men). An excommunication on a King can only be lifted via reconcilliation of the excommunicated King with the church, upon the death of the excommunicated King, or via the purchase of an Absolution. Furthermore, it is not considered murder to kill an excommunicated individual whether commoner, noblemen or King. In fact it will be expected that such a person shall be slain by someone pure of faith, who can then expect to be rewarded by the Catholic Church with money and prestige. EXAMPLES: A poorer Noble with ONE province is excommunicated. The moderator rolls for the minor peasant rebellion. He rolls a '6', generating a rebellion of 600 rioting peasants. A richer noble with EIGHT provinces is excommunicated. The moderator rolls for the minor peasant rebellion. He rolls a '3', generating 2, 400 rioting peasants. The King is excommunicated. The moderator rolls for a major peasant rebellion. He rolls a '19', generating 19, 000 rioting peasants. Expulsion: The effect on a clergymen being denounced is Expulsion from the church. That is to say, that the corrupt church official is expelled from the Catholic Church, is stripped of his vestments, and is considered persona non grata by the Catholic Church. Essentially the Priest or indeed Bishop becomes a nobody; and if he continues to preach or call himself a priest he may be further denounced as a Heretic, with all of the natural penalties which would apply. Absolution: Denounced or Excommunicated characters may have their denouncement/excommunication lifted through the purchase of an Absolution through the clergy. An absolution for a freedman costs 100 Florins, for a member of the Noble peerage costs 300 Florins, and for the King costs 500 Florins. This is usually coupled with a petty menial task to be completed by the contrite character, such as pilgramage on foot from London to Nottingham, or to wear a hessian sack for 12 months etc. Thou shalt not Kill: Members of the Clergy are not allowed to hire mercenaries through the Church fund, although religeous members of the nobility and commoners are able to purchase mercenaries on the church's behalf. One step at a time: A clergymen cannot just automatically excommunicate a character. A denouncement must first be carried out, with the target character given enough time to either repent and seek an absolution or continue in their 'wicked ways'. Only then may an Excommunication be handed down. *See peasant rebellions in Random Events for peasant rebellion rules. **In the event a denouncement or expulsion is deemed unjust and without the presence of another priest character to denounce the corrupt priest, the moderation team will make a judgement which will either result in the denouncement being upheld or a declaration of expulsion to the corrupt clergymen via an NPC character. - War The church with no counties and therefore no troops does not actively get involved with Wars, however it may request or demand that any religious orders do/don’t get involved. However this is ultimately decided by the Order Masters. - Pope The Pope will always be played by the moderators and any action will need to be cleared by them, however the Pope will be inclined to side with the Archbishop/Cardinal. The moderators will decided papal response based on time in office and actions of characters in question, therefore a highly religious King who has served the people and church well will find favour over a new heretical archbishop.

[Barbarian Nobility]

Order Rules:

Orders played a big part in medieval history, and thus they are evident in GSTK. Below are the few rules in regards to Orders. - Founding an Order In order to found an Order, at least two people must be founders. They do not have to be of equal rank within the order. This is to stop random Orders popping up all the time. If you wish to start an Order you must get the agreement of either Church or State, and the other must not strongly disagree. So a Church Order can be made, but ultimately the King might say it cannot be placed in his Kingdom. Or a Knightly order might be made, but the Church may say it cannot be made in Christendom. After you have your two founding members, give the proposal to the person you wish to serve, so you might post it in Parliament, The Kings home or in the Archbishops home. - Allegiance An Order must have an 'Allegiance', of some sort. Of course, it might not follow its allegiance, and become very independent. The allegiances could be to Church, Crown, Parliament, People, Country or Individual etc. In order to have each allegiance the allegiance server must agree. If it is to people then they may simply start. If it is to Country then it must be agreed by the current ruler. - Classes Some orders may be set up for Clergy, or for Knights, or for Freedmen. Some may be a simply fighting order. Some may be a simply praying order. A simply fighting order might have fighting clergy, or healing clergy. A simply praying order might have praying Knights, or protecting Knights. What classes may join must be mentioned in the Orders rules, which would be in its estate post. Some orders may ask for their members to be penniless if so their accounts will be stopped, or placed within the account of the order. The Order might also ask for a percentage of their income otherwise. It all depends on that orders rules. - Ranks Ranks must be set up in an Order. These may or may not be effected by feudal class, depending on the orders rules. These could be democratic, or inheritable, or given to the next most powerfully man. An order may even be 'communist' in a sense. - Extra Titles If you have an order it is generally accepted that neither Church nor Crown strongly disagree with it’s founding. Now, whether or not it serves Church or Crown, they may be given a title by either, or by Parliament. Such things would be like; ‘Blessed’, 'The Holy', King's guards, Parliaments retainers etc with a title it is thought that the order is also slightly loyal to the giver, but the giver does not have to be its main server. So you might have an order serving Crown that has been given the title of 'Holy' by the Church. - Estate Posts An Order may have an estate post. This may be stickied if it is active. In the estate post is where its member’s sign up,or where their meetings will be held. In the O.P their rules must be written. For now post these in the Kingdom of England part, but later we might decide to have them in London. - Money As mentioned before, you may have to give some of your money to the order, voluntarily or forced. You may have to be penniless, in which case you may lose your account or all your income would go to the order and your lands would belong to them. An Order is given a vault. The Vault does not have a standing income all its income comes from its members, and donations be it from individuals, Crown or Church. With this money it might bribe, hire assassins, hire mercs and donate. - Power over Orders The person you supposedly serve, be it Church or Crown, may force you to do something. If you disobey they then have the power to strip you of your Order. You might deny them and become an independent order. The certain thing might declare you all Outlaws or heretics, and hunt you down, though of course the people might side with you and start a civil war. - Order Troops The number of troops an order has depends on who it’s loyal to. If loyal to the Crown, or other nobles, the order's troop count is made up of lent troops. These can only come from the 'standing' part of the noble’s armies. But if no one lends troops, then the order has no troops. There is no limit to the troops lent to the order, except the standing rule. (So no levies) If loyal to the Church, the Clergy will sponsor the order; a certain amount of money will be spent by the Church to do so. This will equal the number of troops that the order has, so the more the Church spends the larger the orders army.

[Barbarian Nobility]

Arrests, Captures and Escape Rolls

In GSTK the King is the ultimate justice, what he says is law or will be passed into law. Therefore there are situations that arise when characters are arrested or captured by the King or other characters, in these situations various rules below apply. - Arrests The King at any time can issue a warrant for the arrest of any character. This is usually done by a post from the King himself in the characters home thread or any thread where the character is at currently. If this occurs the arrested character is to be given the choice to either go peacefully, or request an escape roll. If they escape roll succeeds the character can only post in The Forests thread which is the safe haven for outlaws, or enter a Church and claim Sanctury. If you wish to have an escape roll contact a moderator preferably by posting here also indicate in the thread in which the arrest is being made so that the King knows of your request (All Kings, please note that this is the players right and do not therefore post that they are in fact arrested before receiving confirmation either from the player or a mod). - Killings Ordered By the King 1. The King's word is law. If he deems someone to deserve an execution then he need only roll to capture his victim. 2. Once captured, the victim is entirely at the mercy of the King and cannot roll to escape unless he has spent four real days in captivity. 3. If the victim has not been caught by the King's men but instead by another and brought to the King, the King will require another capture roll in order to take the victim into his custody. This roll will be in the favour of the King, representing the difficult situation that the victim now finds himself in. - Captures Players in certain situations may wish to capture or kidnap other characters to serve a RP purpose, provide a gain for their character, to assist a rebellion or various other reasons. For these situations the below chances will be applied based on the rank of the character doing the capturing/kidnapping. Base Chances Freedmen or Knight – 5/20 (if the roll is 5 or below the Freedmen or Knight successfully captures his target) Baron – 8/20 Earl – 10/20 Duke – 13/20 Modifiers Capturing someone in your home thread - +3 to your chance of success Capturing someone in their home thread - -3 to your chances Capturing someone of a lower rank - +2 to your chances - Escaping Every character that is arrested or captured has the right to an escape roll before any following actions can be taken against your character. The chances of escape are based on the location you are being held as below. Secured in Outdoor Location - Free - You have tied your prisoner to a tree, or he has been hogtied and is guarded by your mastiffs - 12/20 to escape. Secured in a Castle/Palace - Free - You have locked your prisoner away in a room which is guarded by your men - 10/20 to escape. (Baron or higher) Purchasable Items from Ælfgar’s Emporium Cells - 50 Florins - This residence has been upgraded with a series of barred rooms for the most unwelcome of guests - 8/20 to escape. Dungeons - 100 Florins - The bottom of this residences Keep has been dugout to include a stone duneon including manicles with which to chain a prisoner to the wall, upside down if need be - 6/20 to escape. (Requires a +3 Castle including a Keep) Obliette - 150 Florins - This is a claustrophobic man-sized hole in the deepest most accursed subterannean vault of your residence. Those interned here are often forgotten and die of neglect, hence the name which in French translates to 'Forget me Not' - 4/20 to escape. (Requires a +6 Castle including a Keep) An escape roll can be requested once every 4 real days of imprisonment. This is to reflect that after an unsuccessful escape attempt the guards would be on high alert for some time before relaxing their guard a bit.

[Barbarian Nobility]

MISC Rules and Random Events:

There are a few extra rules below that just promote fair game play but do not belong under any specific headings. - Leaving a Thread All characters who posted in a thread are assumed to remain in that thread unless they post a leaving post or after two full days of no activity. Meaning that if you posted in a thread that you were there, and then someone an hour later assassinated you, you can’t claim that you were no longer there unless you specifically posted that you left before the assassination attempt was made. - Letting Others Respond In your posts if they involve actions of other characters it is a rule that you must allow them a chance to respond and refrain from one post wins. For example: You cannot just post "John cut of Jimmy’s finger" you however can post "John went to cut off Jimmy’s finger" as you can see the second version allows Jimmy to respond to your action before you've done it (since you can’t take back a cut off finger). - Dice Rolls. All chance rolls (i.e. a birth roll, or an assassination attempt) are based on a D20, and have been done so that regardless of modifiers a natural 1 will always succeed. While a natural 20 will always fail. Thus a roll of 15/20 will succeed on 1 - 15, and fail on a 16, 17, 18, 19 & 20. All vs rolls on the other hand (duels, battle rolls, etc) are based of the highest score wins. A + modifier always improves the roll odds, while a -Modifier always worsens the odds. - Random Events Every 5 years the moderators shall take turns rolling a D20 which if a 5 or below is rolled another D20 will be rolled to pick an event from the below chart at the beginning of the new in game year, the result of which shall be posted on Income/New year thread. Random Events Chart 1. Building Boon! The Kingdom has a surplous of Architects, Engineers and Builders. For this year there shall be a 20% discount to all Castle Upgrade Purchases. 2. Pirates! The sea trade lanes of the English Kingdom are being raided by Pirates. D20 x 1 Pirate Ships are spawned. Unless defeated by the Royal Navy the Kingdom's income is reduced by 20% for the next three years. 3. Toad Plague! There are bloody Toads everywhere. No affect. 4. Metal Working Boon! The English armouries are spoilt for a choice with an influx of fine Castilian and Italian swords and armour. For this year there shall be a 20% discount to all Weapons and Armour purchases. 5. Blizzard! England has been buried under metres upon metres of snow. There shall be no troop movement for the next year. 6. Something in the water! You've all been very busy at home. For this year players shall recieve a free roll in the Physicians House using the King's Physician. 7. Flash Floods! The D20 is rolled again. 1-5 Ireland is flooded 6-10 Wales is flooded 11-15 South England is flooded 16-20 Northern England is flooded All castles in the flood affected zones suffer -2 to their defences caused by water damage, and require 50 Florins to repair. 8. A time of Lawlessness! D20 x 50 Bandits are generated. They terrorize a randomly determined province. 9. What a lovely year! No affect. 10. King Tide in the Thames! A massive King Tide floods all provinces along the River Thames. All provinces located along the Thames including the Capital of London will not be able to levy troops for a period of two years. 11. Trade Surplus! Favourable trading conditions with other Kingdoms in Europe has led to a trade surplus. The King generates an additional D20 x 10 Florins, and all Lords of the Realm generate an additional D20 x 5 Florins. 12. Famine! The crops have withered and died, consumed by a combination of poor weather and pestilential infestation. All landowners lose D20 x 2 Florins from their income. 13. Bumper Harvest! Perfect weather conditions have led to a record Harvest of crops. All Landowners generate an additional D20 x 2 Florins for their income due to the excess grained and produce harvested. 14. Peasant Rebellion! The serfs have become disenchanted with the current King. The Rebellion generates D20 x 1000 peasant soldiers and is led by an NPC Peasant leader or is Moderator Controlled. The Peasant army is defeated when; a) It is defeated in battle b) The Current King abdicates or is Killed, or c) The Peasant Leader is assasinated or otherwise killed. 15. Nationalist Revolt! A minority group of the Realm has risen up in revolt and attempts to declare independence. The nationalist revolt generates D20 x 500 men. A further D20 is rolled to determine the origin of the revolt; 1-5 Ireland 6-10 Wales 11-15 Normandy 16-20 General Peasant Uprising. See Peasant Rebellion. 16. God Save the King! The King has wide spread popularity and the serfs worship the very ground their King walks on. For a period of 3 years, if the Realm is faced with Rebellion, Civil War or Foreign Invasion, the Crown shall generate D20 x 200 Peasant Volunteers. 17. Diplomatic Opportunity! A Foreign Diplomatic entourage has arrived in the Royal Court seeking English Aide for their Kingdom. There are the promises of land and Florins. 18. Foreign Invasion! A foreign Kingdom wishes to Usurp the Realm from its English Overlords. The Invasion Army consists of a maximun of half the available soldiers the elected Foreign Kingdom has at its disposal. The invading army shall be controlled by a Moderator. 19. Plague! Plague has reached the shores of England and infected its population. All players will be rolled on a D20. A roll of 2 - 5 will result in your main character falling gravely ill and becoming bed ridden for a period of 1 year. A roll of 1 will result in your main characters death by plague. For a period of 2 years the levy will not be available due to the significant cost of human life. 20. Population Boon! The Population of England has swelled dramatically, and the serfs vie aggressively with each other for any work that is available, even if they are merely paid in food. For a period of 2 years, Lords of the Realm will not incur ANY monetary cost for levying provinces.

[Barbarian Nobility]

Freedman Professions

The Freedman professions are those things that can be done without holding lands and titles. Whether a successful merchant, or a strong blacksmith, all jobs that are available are included here. All professions earn the basic 5 florins per year salary that is open to freedmen, but have ways of topping up on that. A merchant for example can invest money and gamble on large returns. While a smith can sell the things he makes for a profit. A player in the freedmen professions may be knighted. But cannot hold a higher rank than that. If knighted, he earns a base of 15 florins per year, unless his base wage would be higher, i.e. a guild master of the merchants earns 20 florins per year, in which case the merchant who held a knighthood would not earn the 15 on top, it would just be the 20 florins from his position. The entitlement to 50 men remains. Mercenaries The Mercenary Captain. Mercenaries had a mixed reputation. Some are seen as untrustworthy, only as loyal as their coin, and completely unwilling to hold the line when things turn against them. Others however had shining reputations, once bought are elite fighters capable of getting the job done. The Captain is the one who leads them, negotiating contracts, and leading them in battle. Base Pay: 5 Florins Home Thread: A Mercenary company can be established anywhere, and have its home wherever it likes, though most tend to be based around the larger cities such as London. Building Options: Mercenaries Guild; Cost - 50 Florins. The Mercenaries Guild is where mercenaries from all over the Kingdom go to find employment. It is a meeting place in which mercenaries are able to find employment with a contractor - The Captain. Conversely, it is also a place where the noble lords of the Realm may solicit the Captain for his services, if the price is right. A Mercenaries Guild will generate an additional 2 Florins worth of income for the Captain every year. The building of a Mercenaries guild will also provide the Captain with a retinue of 50 retainers, his cadre of followers. A mercenary may upgrade his guild infinite times for a further 50 florins, providing him with an extra 50 standing men and raises his income by a further 2 florins a year. A seller of souls: The Captain can buy mercenaries at 10 florins for 100 men, 75% cheaper than normal, and indeed this is how the Captain makes his money. A member of the Noble Peerage is able to purchase mercenaries of his own accord at the prescribed price - its up to The Captain to offer the Noble Lord a better price... EXAMPLE; A noble lord can purchase 100 Mercenaries for 40 Florins. The Captain can purchase 100 Mercenaries for 10 Florins. Leader of Men: The Captain has a +2 Leadership Bonus during battles. Hired Assassination: Players are able to privately approach the Captain to perform acts of murder on their own behalf, for the correct negotiated amount of Florins. This takes all of the risks associated with assassination out of the aggressor players hands, as those risks are now the providence of the Captain. It is now the captain's responsibility to perform the assassination, and as such the Captain PM's the moderator with the assassination request. There is of coarse, always the risk that the Captain may get killed in the attempt, or could be captured and decide to spill the name of their contractor anyway... Merchants Merchant Merchants hold the rank of freedman along with the accompanying 5 florins per year income. The goal of the Merchant is to accumulate money either through a solid investment/return procedure and/or a risk/reward scheme. A Merchant may purchase the following in order to boost his or her income with a certainty in returns: Warehouse - 60f A warehouse grants an additional 5f per year. Cumulative; one purchase only. Wharf - 140f A wharf grants an additional 10f per year. Cumulative; one purchase only. [COLOR=Black] Investment; Once per year, a merchant may risk up to their permitted amount (see Merchant Guild) in an attempt to turn a profit on this venture. The venture may be Low-Risk, Medium-Risk or High-Risk. Low-Risk will gain 20% profit if successful, Medium-Risk will gain 40% and High-Risk will gain 70%. A mod will roll a d20 every income day and consult the table: 1 - Total Loss! The merchant loses the entire amount risked, and earns no income from clients or fleet either. 2-4 - Market Slump The merchant loses 75% of the amount risked; subtract 20% from next year's income. 5-8 - Weak Market Low-Risk ventures gain normal profit, all others lose 50% of risked amount. 9-12 - Average Market Low-Risk and Medium-Risk ventures gain normal profit, High-Risk loses 50% of risked amount. 13-16 - Strong Market All ventures gain normal profit. 17-19 - Growing Market Gain normal profit +20%; add an additional 10% on next year's income. 20 - Market Boom! Gain normal profit +50% All merchants will receive a separate roll. Note, that all investments are rounded to the nearest whole florin. So earning back 22.6 florins from an investment would simply become 23 florins. Climbing the ladder; Any Merchant is considered to be a 'Free Merchant' (i.e. a sole private trader) and may become part of the Merchant Guild if they agree to the terms of joining (decided by the Spokesman). Any man accepted by the Spokesman will become an Associate and may be assigned to a Mercantile House - the large rich families which dominate the merchant districts. A Delegate is appointed by the Spokesman to give input into the Guild's future, the Delegate is a representative of their Mercantile House or indeed for a group of independent Associates. The Spokesman represents the link between the Guild and the outside world, most importantly the Mayor and other Royal Officials; he also has the role as Chairman of the Guild, guiding it to profit. The income and bonuses for the ranks are as follows (bonus/income): Free Merchant (Freedman) - 25/5 Guild Associate - 50/10 Guild Delegate - 100/15 Guild Spokesman - 150/20 In addition, the maximum amount of money which can be risked each year varies depending on the rank as follows: Free Merchant (Freedman) - 20f Associate - 40f Delegate - 60f Spokesman - 100f Inheriting; Since merchants can feasibly make a lot of money, and have huge numbers of clients and fleets at hand a simple rule is used when a new merchant inherits a merchant empire, this is to show the lack of age, and the fickleness of clients going to another proven merchant rather than an inheriting novice. Since change is almost always treated cautiously by moneymen 20% of the empires clients and fleets are lost (in terms of fleets, this may mean individual ships). However for every year under the age of twenty a further 10% of them is lost. This represents the fact that older inheritors are likely to have met many of the clients, have spent some time learning the business and so forth. So someone of the age of sixteen would lose 20% (automatic loss) + 40% (20years - his sixteen equals 40%) = 60% of the business in total. Since however this can be quite harsh, if say a merchant has two hundred clients, and his thirteen year old son inherits when there is no savings, one last full income is allowed. The Fisherman The Fisherman lives a slow paced, peaceful life, on the coast or on a river, he catches what he can to feed his family and village, anything left over being salted and taken to the local town for market day. The fisherman has the base freedmans income of 5 florins per year. The fisherman must put down which county he lives in, for reasons which will be explained later. What the fisherman can buy: Small boat - 20 florins Your basic boat with a few nets Normal boat- 30 florins +2 to fisherman roll, 1 employee required to use. A slightly bigger boat with bigger nets that can travel further. Large boat - 50 florins +4 to fisherman roll, 2 employees required to use Employee - wages of 2 florin per year A helping hand, required for some boats. Fish Smoker - 30 florins Can only buy one of these. Provides a steady extra income of 2 florins per year. Fish Salter - 50 florins Can only buy one of these. Provides a steady extra income of 4 florins per year. Basic rolls: 1 - Storm! The fisherman's boat is destroyed and nothing is caught this year. 0 extra florins income this year. 2-4 - Broken Nets The fisherman finds his nets to be riddled with holes, after the year of catching very little. 0 extra florin income this year. 5-8 - Competition Fishing boats from other places are starting to deplete the fishing grounds. 1 extra florins income this year. 9-12 - A slow year The fisherman manages to catch enough to feed his family. 2 extra florins gained this year. 13-16 - Must be doing something right The fisherman has found a good spot where the fish are biting. 3 florins extra gained this year. 17-19 - Lucky break You manage to find a massive shoal of mackerel. What doesn't get eaten is smoked and sent to market. 4 extra florins gained this year. 20 - Divine intervention The fishing fleets of nearby villages are all destroyed by storms, being the only one remaining the fisherman works extra hard and can also sell his catch for more. 5 extra florins gained this year. And there's more! Fishermen can also take part in other activities that earn more money, but are riskier and also not very legal... To do this the fisherman must state before the years roll is done what one illegal activity he wishes to do, if he wishes to do it at all, that is. Smuggling - the fisherman goes to france, buys some cheap wine and brings it back straight to his village under cover of darkness to avoid taxes. If the basic roll is an even number the fisherman is successful, if it is odd he is caught and left at the mercy of his local lord, the usual punishment being a fine. 5 extra florins if successful. Wrecking - the fisherman stands on a cliff top during a storm with a lantern and sways it in the wind. Passing boats mistake this for another boat and head towards it thinking it is a sign of safer waters. When they run aground they sink and the fisherman can steal the cargo. If the basic roll is 1-5 this is successful, if it is 6-20 it is not successful, he is caught and left at the mercy of his local lord, the usual punishment being a short spell in prison or some light maiming. 15 extra florins if successful. Smith Smith Whether a sword smith, an armourer or whatever else, the smith is someone who makes things. Lots of things, useful things. All smiths start of as apprentices, and once they have gained enough experience progress though the ranks. All smiths must pay a small cost for their iron and charcoal and other materials (shown in the table below), and can only make so many things per year. Once they have made their items, they may either sell it to Baldricks, or find a noble to sell to. If selling to Baldricks, it sells for the number of points used to make it. If something costs 12 points, it sells for 12 florins. If selling to a player character he may choose the price he charges. Making things; Each year a smith has twelve points, one per month. When he wants to make something, such as a sword he buys the materials he needs (in table below) and then spends his points - representing the time it takes to make the item. The points are spent as follows, for each 10 florins spent on materials, it takes a month to work it. Thus if the item he was making cost 20 florins he would spend 2 months making it and use 2 points. The ratio is thus 10f:1 point. (note, since some items are 5 florins, or 15 florins, a half point is used for the 5, so to make a 15 florin item it would use 1.5 points) The Ranks. Explanation. Available items that he can make. Apprentice Blacksmithing: Hes skill is. 5 and below = - 1 20 and over = + 1 A Dice roll is to be rolled when he creates a item. The Apprentice will get a -1 modifier on the item he is makeing, if the roll is 5 and below. For example if he tried to make a + 2 Weapon it would be a + 1 Weapon. If the dice roll is 20 he will get a +1 and the weapon will be a + 3 Weapon. Weapons: + 2 Weapons: Material cost: 10 Florins. Armour's: + 2 Armour's: Material cost: 5 Florins. + 2 Shields: Material cost: 10 Florins. Assassination weapons: Knife's: + 2 Knife's: Material cost: 15 Florins. Ranged weapons: + 1 Ranged weapons: Material cost: 20 Florins. Journeyman Blacksmithing: Hes skill is. 4 and below = - 1 19 and over = + 1 A Dice roll is to be rolled when he creates a item. The Journeyman will get a -1 modifier on the item he is makeing, if the roll is 4 and below. For example if he tried to make a + 4 Weapon it would be a + 3 Weapon. If the dice roll is 19 and over he will get a +1 and the weapon will be a + 5 Weapon. Weapons: + 2 Weapons: Material cost: 10 Florins. + 4 Weapons: Material cost: 20 Florins. Armour's: + 2 Armour's: Material cost: 5 Florins. + 4 Armour's: Material cost: 10 Florins. + 6 Armour's: Material cost: 15 Florins. + 2 Shields: Material cost: 10 Florins. Assassination weapons: Knife's: + 2 Knife's: Material cost: 10 Florins. + 3 Knife's: Material cost: 20 Florins. Ranged weapons: + 1 Ranged weapons: Material cost: 20 Florins. + 2 Ranged weapons: Material cost: 25 Florins. Master Blacksmithing: 1 and below = - 1 17 and over = + 1 A Dice roll is to be rolled when he creates a item. The Master will get a -1 modifier on the item he is makeing, if the roll is 1. For example if he tried to make a + 6 Weapon it would be a + 5 Weapon. If the dice roll is 17 and over he will get a +1 and the weapon will be a + 7 Weapon. Weapons: + 2 Weapons: Material cost: 10 Florins. + 4 Weapons: Material cost: 20 Florins. + 6 Weapons(Two Handed): Material cost: 30 Florins. Armour's: + 2 Armour's: Material cost: 5 Florins. + 4 Armour's: Material cost: 10 Florins. + 6 Armour's: Material cost: 15 Florins. + 8 Armour's: Material cost: 20 Florins. + 2 Shields: Material cost: 10 Florins. Assassination weapons: Knife's: + 2 Knife's: Material cost: 10 Florins. + 3 Knife's: Material cost: 20 Florins. + 3 Knife's: Material cost: 30 Florins. Ranged weapons: + 1 Ranged weapons: Material cost: 20 Florins. + 2 Ranged weapons: Material cost: 25 Florins. + 3 Ranged weapons: Material cost: 30 Florins. Progression; As the smith makes things, he gains in experience. After he has spent 36 points on making stuff he advances to the next rank.