Fortune and Power is a roleplaying game. It is designed for use with various homebrewed low-to-mid fantasy settings. The game master is called The Adversary.
Characters
Game characters are described by traits, gifts, and fortune. Traits represent both inherent qualities and acquired skills. Gifts are special abilities that cannot be learned. Fortune is the x-factor that separates adventurers from ordinary people.
Players begin the game with a number of character points. These are used to build the player's in-game persona. The number is chosen by The Adversary based on how powerful He or She wishes beginning characters to be.
The Adversary may also limit the maximum level of beginning traits.
As characters adventure, The Adversary may occasionally give out experience points for their actions, usually at the end of a game session or three. Experience points may be used to increase traits in the same fashion as character points. They can also be used to obtain gifts if the player has a good explanation. This allows adventurers to grow more powerful over time.
More about character generation can be found in the following chapters. Those who wish to skip these sections can choose one of the examples in Appendix A.
Trait Checks
The trait check is the fundamental mechanic of the game. Trait checks are used whether one is building a table, picking a lock, swinging a sword, or casting a spell.
| 2d6 + Trait |
|---|
Roll a pair of six-sided dice, add them together, and add the result to the character's trait level. High rolls are always better than low rolls. A roll of 2 is an automatic failure. A roll of 12 is an automatic success.
When a task is unopposed (such as climbing a cliff face or picking a lock), The Adversary assigns a challenge level. The player's trait check must equal or surpass this number to succeed.
If two characters are in conflict, the active character makes a trait check vs a challenge level equal to the opponent's trait plus 7. If both characters are equally active (such as two diving for the same weapon), let the player roll. If both are player characters, they may split the difference - both may roll 1d6 + Trait instead of 2d6. Highest result wins.
The difference between the trait check and the challenge level is the degree of success or failure (known hereafter as "dox" for short). A dox of 1 is a moderate success or failure; a dox of 10 is an incredible success or a horrible failure. A dox of 0 could be a partial success, a partial failure, or a tie. The dox is resolved normally in the case of automatic success or failure, but the minimum is 1.
If a situation does not require a roll (because success is trivial), then the character's trait level is the dox.
Characters may have bonuses or penalties based on tools and time. More on this in Conflict.
Conflict
In-game conflict is resolved in one of two ways: talk or dice. Negotiation and conversation should be resolved through talk. Logic and reasoning should be as well, though exceptions can be made if the intellect of a character exceeds that of the player. Dice are needed when characters use traits in conflict with opposing forces.
Time and Space
Conflict is handled by dividing time and space into discrete units.
Time is measured in rounds. Each round is six seconds in duration.
Space is measured in spaces. Each space is an area two meters across.
Injury
There are two types of damage: wounds and shocks.
Wounds represent physical damage caused by fists, weapons, fire, poisons, falls from great heights, and the like. A person who has ten or more wounds is incapacitated and may die.
Shocks represent mental damage caused by psionic attacks or psychological trauma. A person who has ten or more shocks is bordering on madness and may lose his mind for good.
Recovering from Wounds or Shocks takes weeks. More information on damage and recovery is found in Pain and Suffering.
Examples
Lanky the thief wants to pick a lock on a treasure chest. The lock quality is somewhere between average and good, so The Adversary decides to assign a challenge level of 14 to the task.
Lanky has a Burglar level of eight. To make the attempt he rolls 2d6+8. If Lanky's result is greater than or equal to 14, he succeeds in picking the lock.
Juk the Barbarian wants to crush the skull of Lothar the Unlucky. Juk is a level 7 Warrior. Lothar is a level 5 Athlete.
To attack, Juk rolls 2d6+7 versus a challenge level of 12 (Lothar's Athlete + 7). If Juk rolls an 11, the attack misses with a dox of 1 (a slight failure); if he rolls a 17, the attack hits with a dox of 5 (a solid success).
Emo the Small swings frantically at Mace the Ugly. Emo's Warrior trait is 3. Mace's Warrior trait is 10, giving Emo a challenge level of 17. Emo rolls a 12 for a total of 15. This would normally result in a failure with a dox of 2, but a roll of 12 is an automatic success. He hits with a dox of 1.