"D4" - A rules-lite RPG

Core Mechanics:

• Success roll: Stat roll >= Target Number (higher=better)
• Some rolls are contested. High roll wins!
• Some stats are represented with tokens that you can spend for effects.

Character Creation

Assign a d4, a d6, and a d8 to the following stats:

• Strength (Str): physical might, athletic feats, fortitude, used to wield melee weapons
• Dexterity (Dex): sneakiness, prowess, reflexes, used to wield ranged weapons
• Wits (Wits): intelligence, knowledge, perception, charm, cunning, often used with spells

The following stats have the listed default values. You can subtract up to two points from one stat and add them to another (up to two points), as long as the total remains 20. (Note that HP, Luck, and Magic are listed with a 't' suffix to remind you to use tokens to represent those stats.)

• Hit Points (HP)=6t: health, lose HP when you take damage. If HP=0, you're dead. (use red tokens)
• Luck=3t: serendipity (detailed explanation below) (use green tokens)
• Magic=3t: spend a point of magic to cast a spell, regardless of whether the spell fails or succeeds; magic items also permanently consume magic points while equipped. (use blue tokens)
• Move=5: how many squares you can move on the battlemat; reduced by armor.
• Defense (Def)=3: How hard you are to hit: dodging, fancy footwork, swordplay, feints, etc.
• Armor=0: You probably won't start with any armor (unless you're a healer or a tank, then maybe light armor).

Luck:

Spend Luck to:

• Declare an automatic success (before rolling)
• Reroll (after rolling)
• Soak a single hit (take only 1 pt of damage instead of full damage)
• Alter the narrative (non-game breaking!)

Regain Luck (up to max) by:

• Role-playing your Personality traits (mix it up, keep it fresh)
• Coming up with a brilliant idea
• Putting yourself at risk to help a teammate
• Making the whole table crack up

Combat:

• Initiative: whoever speaks up first goes first; go around the table; enemies go between each player
• Attacks: roll STR for melee, DEX for ranged. If roll >= opponent's Def, it hits!
• Damage: attacker rolls damage die, opponent loses that many HPs (if unarmored)

• Note: STR/DEX sets a cap on the highest-damage melee/ranged weapon you can use.

• Armor: reduces damage: total dmg = dmg roll - armor bonus

• Note: your max armor bonus is determined by your Strength: d4/d6/d8/d10/d12 -> 0/1/2/3/4
• Armor also reduces your Move by an amount equal to the (total) armor bonus.

• Short rest: (1 hr) heal dSTR HPs, regain dWITS Magic.
• Long rest: (7 hrs sleep) heal all HP, regain all Magic
• Death: If HP <= 0, you'll die at the end of the encounter unless you are healed.