User Guide

Magical Modifiers
Some characters are naturally resistant to certain types of spells. When hit by such a
spell, the character may fully resist its effects or may take less damage than the rest of
the party. Check Appendix A: Character Races for complete information on a race's
magical resistance.
Statistical Bonuses
Depending on a character's statistics, he or she may excel in certain areas when
compared to his or her opponent.
For example, suppose your intelligent Monk is battling a dumb 'ole rat. The Monk,
because of its high intelligence, may be able to outwit the rat in its every move.
Likewise, characters who are faster or stronger than their opponents may be able to
out-move or overpower them. As in Monk's case, your character would have an
intelligence advantage, thus the upper hand. The rat, on the other hand, would have
an intelligence penalty.
Depending on your character's strength, intelligence, dexterity and speed as compared
to that of the monster you're battling, you may have improved odds, or a penalty
which somewhat hinders your character's success.
Encumbrance
It takes strength and stamina to hold up a 20 pound sword. Add to that 200 pounds of
plate mail, and it'll be a feat if the character moves at all. Encumbrance is what your
character faces if he or she carries too much. By reviewing your character, you can
see his or her total carrying capacity along with the weight he or she currently holds.
Encumbrance affects a character's ability to hit a monster and a character's armor class
in the following ways:
Percentage of Chance Increase in
Carrying Capacity To Hit Natural AC*
50% to 66% - 5% None
67% to 75% (lt. blue) - 10% + 1
76% to 90% (yellow) - 20% + 2
91% and up (red) - 25% to - 40% + 4
* Shown in parentheses by the character's armor class. "Review" the character to
see its affect.
Surprise Attacks
Your party walks into a room, and over to the side you notice a bunch of rats. Luckily,
they don't see you. Now you have a chance to knock their socks off (or whatever rats
wear) before they even know what hit them. Occasionally, you will surprise a group of
monsters just like this. When you do, the first round of combat is all yours. And
since the monsters weren't expecting a sword to smash into the middle of their cheese
party, they will be much easier to hit. Of course, monsters can surprise your party,
too.
Life Insurance
Just as a precaution, before you go waltzing into a potentially loaded monster lair, save
your game often. After you have defeated a group of monsters, you may want to save
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Bane of the Cosmic Forge