beasts & barrows

by brine
 Beasts & Barrows
by brine - v 1.0

Beasts & Barrows is an uncomplicated fantasy role-

playing game RPG for 2 5 players + Game Maestro
GM . It steals blatantly from John Harper's World of
Dungeons and shares the same PbtA core mechanic
(2d6). YOU ARE FORBIDDEN TO HACK THIS!

Beasts & Barrows B&B values:

role-play: rules and mechanics emphasize and

encourage role-play
simplicity: less math; less rules; more fun
show, don't tell: don't tell me your alignment… show
me your alignment; don't tell me you attack; describe
your attack
flexibility: running existing adventures from any system
is trivial

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Character Creation
What kind of character sounds fun to play? Rolling a
new character takes ones of minutes. This question will
likely take the longest to answer. Here are some classic
examples but you are free to create your own:

Warrior: strong and good with the stabby stab

Thief: nimble and sneaky sneaksters
Mage: smart and full of arcaney goodness
Priest: wise and has a direct line to the gods

Outside of the classic classes, players are

encouraged to create their own by making
clever use of the existing Skills and
Abilities. For example an Alchemist might
require Lore and create their potions via
Rituals?

What race is your character? Human? Elf? Orc? While

there are no statistical bonuses for race, they can add
flavor to a character through role-play.

The exception that proves the rule: GMs may

allow PCs to have darkvision or an additional
language, provided the player offers sound
reasoning to do so.

What Attributes does your character have? Roll 2d6

for each of the following six character Attributes and
assign the results in any order you wish.

strength (str): for melee attacks; climbing; lifting

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 dexterity (dex): for ranged attacks; stealth; dodging
intelligence (int): for casting mage spells; memory;
deduction
wisdom (wis): for casting cleric spells; perception;
searching
charisma (cha): for persuasion; deception; intimidation
constitution (con): for additional HD; physical fortitude;
resist poisons;

On a:

2 the value is 1
3 6 the value is 0
7 9 the value is 1
10 11, the value is 2
12, the value is 3.

Note: B&B only makes use of modifiers (eg.

+2); not the number rolled.

Choose two Skills and two Abilities:

Skills
When a PC attempts something in the fiction that might
be covered by a skill (eg. Athletics when climbing), they
roll advantage (3d6 keeping the highest 2 + mod.

Athletics: +str/dex: feats of strength and dexterity

Awareness: +wis: perceiving the environment around
you
Deception: +cha: attempt to deceive
Decipher: +int: attempt to discern patterns in texts,
symbols or numbers
Heal: +wis: provide an extra Hit Die (HD) to the
party when resting/rolling Hit Points (HP); heal
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 1d6+level HP with your touch.
Lore: +int: consult your accumulated knowledge about
something
Stealth: +dex: attempt to be sneaky
Survival: +con/wis: foraging, hunting; start a fire in
unfavorable conditions, etc
Sway: +cha: use leverage to influence someone;
diplomacy; intimidate; parley

Abilities
Add additional flavor to a class. The word attempt will
generally signify rolling a 2d6+mod when applicable.

Backstab: 3 damage from concealment

Bless: anoint items with holy water for +/ 3 damage
and as magical
Cantrips: cast 3 simple magical spells at will
Cast: cast level-less magical spells (see Magic)
Connected: you seem to have an acquaintance in
every town
Hardy: 6 HP
Linguist: you are fluent in all civilized languages
Lucky: turn a miss into a partial success once per day
Penitent: when you take damage and embrace the
pain, take advantage on your next roll
Pet: you have a loyal and effective animal companion
Reflexes: you always act first and cannot be surprised
Ritual: attempt occult rituals; detailed in ancient tomes
and scrolls
Scout: with you on point, your party covers more
ground; you always spot targets before they spot you
Shield: when you wear no armor or shield, your faith
protects you and grants you 2 armor
Shift: take the shape of an animal whose blood you've
tasted (successful con roll to revert)

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 Skirmish: 1 damage; worn armor counts as one type
lighter
Slay: 2 melee damage
Tinker: pick a lock, pocket or trap w/ tools
Tough: 1 armor
Turn: attempt to hold undead at bay with your faith and
holy symbol
Versed: you share secret signs, speech and signals
with your brethren
Vision: commune with your deity or demon via holy
water/drugs
Volley: 2 ranged damage
Wild: converse with and attempt to command animals

Can your character take a hit? You start with 1 Hit Die
(d6) + additional hit dice equal to your con. Roll all your
hit dice and keep a number equal to your level to
determine your HP. For example, a 1st level PC with 1
con would roll 2d6 and keep the higher of the two.

When you rest in comfort and safety, and consume

food/drink, you may reroll your HP. This is the amount
of damage you can suffer before you take your Last
Breath. You add additional hit dice if you: are attended
by a healer; rest in a spiritual place.

A player may choose to reroll HP and find their

PC now has less HP. We all have bad days. Are
they sick? Did they stay up drinking all night?

5
Magic
You can master spells equal to your level + 2 (eg. 1st
level magi have mastered 3 spells).

Casting spells takes a physical toll. You can safely cast

spells equal to your hd + con (ie. spell slots). Above
that, you take 1d6+lvl damage for each spell cast.
Safe casting is restored after resting in comfort and
safety.

Mages add int to their casting rolls; clerics add wis

(eg. 2d6+int/wis) and your level to damage rolls
(eg. 2d6+lvl). You gain an extra d6 of damage at
levels 5 & 10.

Each time you level up, you may swap mastered

spells for new ones.

Scrolls
You may attempt to cast spells from written texts.
This requires more casting time while you read/review
the spell (ie. a turn) and expends a spell slot.

It is wise to identify a spell before casting it!

Enhancements
Enhancement spells are cast in conjunction with a
target spell. They augment spell casting and/or effect,
and expend a spell slot in addition to the target spell.

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Mishaps
Magic is dangerous. A failed casting roll may have
consequences; a critical fail always will.

An example mishap table:

the target reflects the spell back at caster

1d6+lvl damage to the caster
the caster is blinded/frozen/afraid/etc… for a short time
the spell affects the party in some way (depending on
the spell)
the caster turns blue
nothing happens… lucky you!

Playing the Game

Narrate your character's actions. Eg. instead of
saying: I attack with my sword; say things like: with my
sword drawn; stained with the blood and entrails of the
orc at my feet; I charge the last remaining orc, smiting
it with both hands and all the might left in me… _or
something less dramatic :) . Don't _say_ you do a thing;
describe how you do a thing.

Not all actions require a roll. Say what your character

does and the GM will handle the rest.

When you attempt something risky, sum 2d6 and add

one of your skill modifiers, based on the action you’re
taking. The GM will tell you some of the possible

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consequences before you roll, so you can decide if it’s
worth the risk or if you want to revise your action).

2(snake eyes) is a critical failure: shit hits the fan.

3 6 is a miss: things don’t go well and the risk turns out
badly.
7 9 is a partial success: you do it but at a cost,
compromise, retribution, retaliation, harm, etc.
10 11 is a full success: you do it without complications.
12 (boxcars) is a critical success: you do it perfectly to
some extra benefit.

A miss or a partial success might incur an

enemy attack; damage; an additional threat; a
lost item/resource/opportunity; a disadvantage;
an unwelcome truth. They add to the role-play
and can amp up the tension in a scene.

Die of Fate
Sometimes the GM will roll the die of fate to see
how a situation unfolds. Low numbers are ill-fortune;
high numbers are good fortune. The die of fate might
be rolled to establish the weather, indicate a random
NPC’s general attitude, to determine if a wandering
monster appears, or the moral of a monster. The GM
may also roll the die of fate if the PCs take some action
for which sheer chance is the only factor in the
outcome. You will roll this often!

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Gear
You have 12+con inventory slots. Items you can hold
in one hand take one slot; items that might require two
hands to hold take two slots. One slot examples: worn
armor/clothes (two slots if carried); a few daggers; a
bag containing 250 coins. Two slot examples:
martial/great weapons; large shields; animal trap; wine
casks. When carrying more items than you have slots,
you are encumbered (disadvantage on rolls involving
physicality).

Inventory slots are meant to be more concept

than rule. The intent is to remind players of the
useful items their PCs are carrying, while
providing a reasonable amount they are able to
carry.

You start with 2d6*10 silver coins…

Light Weapon (10s): d6. May be wielded as a

secondary weapon, allowing you to reroll damage once
per attack. Includes daggers, short swords, and hand
axes.
Martial Weapon (30s): d6+1. Must be wielded in main
hand. Includes long swords, hammers, axes, spears etc.
Great Weapon (40s): d6+2 damage. Uses two hands.
Includes two-handed swords, battle-axes and pole
arms.
Shortbow (10s): d6. Also slings etc.
Bow (30s): d6+1. Also crossbows, pistols etc.
Heavy Bow/Gun (50s): d6+2 Damage if firing from a
stationary position. Includes crossbows and muskets.

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 Light Armor (30s): Armor 1 (subtracted from damage
taken).
Full Armor (60s): Armor 2. Always has a helm. Makes it
very hard to run, move quietly, swim, leap etc.
Shield (10s): 1 Armor.
Backpack (2s): Can hold 12 items up to 40lbs.
Adventuring Gear 2s each): 20ft Rope, Iron Spike,
Chalk, Parchment, Flint/Steel, Torches 4 , Tent, Dice,
Caltrops (slows pursuers), Bandages, Travel Rations,
Waterskin, Wineskin.
Tools 5s each): Crowbar, Hatchet, Animal Trap,
Lockpicks, Pen & Pot of Ink, Fishing Pole, Shovel,
Grappling Hook, Pickaxe, Collapsible Pole.
Occult Items 10s each): Quicksilver (per dose), Pouch
of Bone Dust, Vial of Holy Water (one use), Vial of
Blood, Ritual Incense and Oils.
Fancy Items 20s each): Mirror, Lantern, Spyglass,
Sand Timer, Board Game, Elaborate Clothes, Holy
Symbols and other charms.
Fire Oil 20s per flask): Sets an area on fire (d6+1
damage/round for 3 rounds unless extinguished). Fills a
lantern 10 times.
Boats: Rowboat (50s) to Galley 200,000s).
Carts: Cart (30s) to Wagon 100s).
Taverns: 1s to Sleep, 1s to Eat, 1s to Get Drunk.
Property: House 1,000s) to Manor 100,000 .
Horses: Mule (30s), Horse 100s), Warhorse 1,000s).

Hirelings
Cost per day

Torch Bearer (2s): 3HP, Knife.

Guide (5s): 6HP, Knife, Lantern, Rope.
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 Armsman (20s): 12HP, Spear, Shield, Light Armor.
Expert (20s): 6HP, Skill 4, Dagger, Bow.
Champion (60s): 18HP, Full Armor, Halberd, Sword,
Shield, Dagger.

Levels
As you level up you get rewards according to the table
below…

level hd skills attributes abils damage

1 1+con 1 1 2
2 1
3 1 1
4 1 1 (max 3
5 1d6
6 1 1
7 1 (max 3 1
8 1
9 1 1
10 1 1 (max 3 1d6

B&B uses Milestones to measure a player character's

development. The GM sets a goal(s) for the PCs to
accomplish before they can reach the next level. Each
level should be twice as hard to achieve (give or take).
Milestones might include:

merely surviving their first encounter

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 obtaining a MacGuffin
completing a quest
defeating a boss
failures… always a formidable teacher

Last Breath
When a PC's HP drops to 0, they must roll 2d6+con:

On a:

6 : you're dead; roll a new character :rip:

7 9 you will meet Death and bargain for your life.
SPOILER Death can be a dick!
10 you feel like hammered shit… but you're alive

True Names
True names have power; knowing a true name gives
you power over the named. Calling to someone by their
True Name gives them advantage on Last Breath
rolls.

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GMs
The following are friendly suggestions for GMing B&B.
As always, do what's right for you or your players.

Initiative: The coolest part of Initiative… is saying

roll initiative! Given a group of reasonable size 2 5
PCs), cinematic jump cuts (camera-like jumps between
players/situations; that follow the narrative) are a great
alternative. It also works well with a split party.
Splitting the Party: ALWAYS split the party. It's a hoot.
Balancing Encounters: Don't do it! PCs should be
smart enough to know when they're outmatched. If not,
there's always Last Breath. Outside of that, rolling
new characters is a snap in B&B :)
Magic Items: resist issuing 1 to hit items; rather give
1 to damage or something more situational

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 Name Class Level

Attributes Skills Special Abilities

Athletics Backstab Scout

Str
Awareness Bless Shield
Dex Deception Cantrips Shift
Con Decipher Cast Skirmish
Heal Connected Slay
Int Lore Hardy Tinker
Stealth Linguist Tough
Wis
Survival Lucky Turn
Cha Sway Penitent Versed
Pet Vision
Armor HD HP
\ Re exes Volley
Ritual Wild
1 Gear Spells/Notes
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
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beasts & barrows

fl