Health

Health is denoted by two attributes, stamina points (SP) and wound points (WP). Activities cause the loss of stamina until a character is exhausted. When exhausted the character then loses wounds until they eventually die.

Wounds

These give the amount of physical damage your body can take before giving up the ghost. The number of WP is given by :

2 x (Constitution + Height in feet)

Stamina

A character starts with a SP = WP/2. Active characters will increase this by training and adventuring.

The loss of wounds causes an equal number of stamina points to be lost. This is best kept track of by using two columns and knocking off stamina downwards on one and wounds upwards on the other. When they meet the character is exhausted.

E.g. A character with 9 SP & WP progressing through a combat.

Stamina is lost through arduous tasks such as running and fighting but are regained relatively quickly. Immediately after a bout of strenuous exercise a few points may be regained with 10 minutes rest.

Training requires 1 day and uses 1 hero point. Over 20 SP 2 hero points per SP are required; over 30 3HP ... Characters with high constitution may gain an additional point by rolling a difficulty of 12 against constitution. Hero points may not be used to affect this roll.

How to Lose Health

Health may be lost due to any number of different reasons but generally these may be divided into two basic types of activities; damage and fatigue.

Damage

Damage may be caused by being hit in combat, poison, getting caught in fireballs, falling on pointy objects.

If this is in combat it is due to the character being no longer able to deflect the sword blows or keep out of their way of the fire. Initially damage is suffered as stamina as characters dodge the blows or fireballs. Physical damage occurs when exhausted which may be identified by scars, missing limbs...

Falling

For every 10 feet fallen a spell damage level of 1 is taken as SP (e.g. 20' = level 2, 30' = level 3) with a difficulty of 9. The character is also stunned for 2 seg / SP suffered and takes 3 seg to get up.

Fatigue

Fatigue is caused by extended physical activity such as running, fighting and lifting weights. When exhausted further activity causes a wasting effect on the muscles.

Running

Normal speed is 6x height per round

Each minute roll Endurance (Con) against difficulty to halve the SP lost.

Running at x3 speed or greater always costs at least 1SP

Regaining health

Health is normally regained through rest, although certain priests can speed up the healing process. With full rest health is regained at the following rates

Stamina

Stamina = 1 per hour

2nd Wind

Once per encounter at any point when not in combat you may get a second wind and recover d4 stamina.

You may not regain more than you lost in the encounter so far

Short Rest

If a full 10 minutes rest is taken immediately after strenuous exercise, d8 SP may be regained, unless a 2nd wind was taken in which case this drops to d4

You may not regain more than you lost in the encounter.

Wounds

Health will not return if doing anything more strenuous than pottering about, travelling by foot or horse is too strenuous to regain stamina. If you have negative constitution only fully resting will recover wounds.

Fully resting

Wounds = 2 + constitution per week

Pottering around (not adventuring)

1 + per week

The trait fast healing will double these wound recovery rates

Herbalism

The herbalism skill may be used with the aplication of the correct plants to mitigate the effect of wounds. A skill check of 14 is required to reduce the effect by 1, if you suffered 3 or more in a single strike, this takes 10 minutes.

Herbalism also add 1 wound recovery per week on a successful check.

Problems of Low Health

Exhaustion

Initially all damage comes off stamina. When the stamina is reduced to zero further damage applies as wounds and the character is exhausted. When exhausted all skill checks only use 1d8 instead of two.

Wounded

At half wounds (or one point either side if you have an even number of WP) creatures are exhausted regardless of available stamina.

Below half wounds creatures are unable to fight due to the pain. They fall to the ground or stagger away clutching the wounds staunching the blood flow and gritting their teeth (or screaming in agony).

At very low wound points it is possible for characters to bleed to death or fall unconscious . The chance depends on their WP. If bleeding to death there is always a 10% chance that they will be too far gone to be helped by curative magic.

Chases

Chases frequently occur within towns on foot or in the country on horseback. In both cases similar rules are used to determine the outcome. If running in a straight line in open areas the only factor affecting the outcome is the relative speed of the two participants. If there are obstacles such as a market place or bushes the participants also have an opportunity to outmanoeuvre the other and gain ground. Each round roll a manoeuvre roll is made The difference between the two rolls is converted to a success level. Each success level adds 10% to their speed for that round. At any appropriate point the character fleeing may attempt an additional manoeuvre roll to lose the chaser.

If riding or using transport then the skill with the transport is used instead of manoeuvre.

Example

Eludom (weighed down by a purse of gold) is being pursued by an angry merchant 30 feet behind through a market square. Eludom moves at 88 feet per round (6mph, 3x normal speed) and the merchant at 103 feet per round (7mph, 2x normal speed)

Eludom's manoeuvre skill is 5 and the merchant's 3.

They generate totals for the first round for totals of 16 and 15 respectively. This gives Eludom an average success and 10% speed increase as he forced the merchant to go round a barrel he pushed over. This gives relative movements of 88 + 9 = 97 and 103 feet, The merchant gained 6 feet to come within 24 feet.

The next round totals of 17 and 15 are generated and the merchant closes another 6 feet to 18 feet. Eludom realises this is a race which will quickly lead to the dungeons so he attempts to slip away. This is a multi-action so he takes a +3 to each difficulty

The first attempt he roll 18 against 15 for manoeuvre but the -3 takes this to 15 so as he did not win the manoeuvre he cannot attempt the escape. The merchant moves to within 3 feet. As a last desperate attempt he attempts another escape but rolls a manoeuvre of 10 against 14 using a hero point he raises this to 18 which with the -3 takes it to 15. The first manoeuvre succeeded so he can attempt the escape. Rolling a 21 -3 = 18 beats the merchants 14 so Eludom dives under the wheels of a cart grabs hold of the underneath of the seat and is pulled quickly away.