Chit system

This is the system for use with The Castle.

This document is very much a work in progress.

Bead Bags

The Castle system uses Bead Bags for task resolution to add a level of randomness, unpredictability and potential doom to the proceedings.

You will need two bead bags – one for task resolution and another for wounds. These can be physical bags, bowls or whatever takes your fancy. The “bags” should be filled with an appropriate number of chits – beads, coins, tokens, small sweetmeats imported from a Prague confectioner, whatever comes to hand or feels the most atmospheric. The only important thing is that you will need quantities of three different colour of your chosen product.

Bead Bag weightings.

Pick your colours and divvy up your chits as follows into two separate piles (with the traditional colours shown). These tables define the ratios of colours in each bag. There should be at least five times this number in each bowl (the more sets the better, but the statistics are only effected by a small amount).

The Wounds bag is weighted:

Result	Number	Colour
Light	5	White
Serious	2	Blue
Deadly	1	Black

The Task Resolution bag is weighted:

Result	Number	Colour
Poor	3	White
Average	4	Blue
Good	2	Black

Skill Levels

There are 3 basic skill levels. Characters are either Disadvantaged, Average or Advantaged at anything they attempt. Unless they are specifically Advantaged or Disadvantaged, as selected as a particular Advantage or Disadvantage (see the Characters section), then all tasks are considered Average.

The skill level you have at a particular task dictates how many beads you draw (or which bag you draw from)…

Disadvantaged

Draw two beads from the resolution bag and take the worst.

Normal

Draw 1 bead from the resolution bag.

Advantaged

Draw 2 beads from the resolution bag and take the best.

Combat

Can run from very narrative to very detailed, though essentially comes down to how much description is put into each draw of the beads.

Rounds

There is no such thing as initiative, though if there is a need to resolve who goes first, the person with the higher skill goes first. In the event of a draw, characters with “Quick” advantage go first.

Each “round” (combat isn’t really split into rounds) describes a single action by the character (which may take more than one “round” – such as loading a pistol), or an exchange of blows between combatants. This may be a single swing of a sword or a series of lightening fast parries and ripostes. This all depends on the descriptive style of the GM. Both combatants describe their actions draw beads according to the skill which they are using in the combat. The one with the better result scores a hit and determines damage accordingly. A draw indicates a stand off (locking of blades, series of parries, etc).

In general, we suggest that for particularly significant duels to the death with hated foes, each draw of the beads represents a small sequence or even an action, and for more “filler” combats, each draw of the beads represents an entire series of exchanges or even the entire combat. Play it by ear and see what suits your style.

Remember, the focus of The Castle isn’t dungeon crawling combat. Fights in The Castle and intended to be potentially deadly affairs which characters do not enter into lightly.

Combat Skills

A number of Advantages have bearing on combat.

Generally, all characters are Average at fighting. Mighty weapons are the exception to the “Everyone’s Average” rule. Unless you are specifically skilled, you are disadvantaged.

Non Combatant

Non combatants are Disadvantaged at combat with most weapons and don’t really understand how to even begin to lift a Mighty weapon.

NPCs

Only combat trained NPCs are Average at fighting. It might be Keep on the Borderlands, but it’s assumed that Characters are a cut above the average! In general, Named NPCs are Average at fighting, unnamed ones are Disadvantaged unless they have a specific reason not to be.

Mighty Weapon

Allows a character to use a mighty weapon at Average level.

Specialist

Allows the character to draw as Advantaged when fighting with a single weapon type. This includes, but is not necessarily limited to, Swordsman, Spearman, Knife-fighter, Pugilist, Wrestler, Archer and Crossbowman. Skills for Mighty Weapon use require having the Mighty Weapon skill first, these include, Pole-axeman, Zweihandler.

Fencing

Fencing skill represents the defensive training that a student of the martial arts receives. This grants 1 to 3 gives points of virtual armour – so, it’s possible to have fencing 2, but not Swordsman skill, thus be a very good defensive fighter, but still draw from the Average bag to attack. It’s also possible to be a Swordsman, yet have no ranks in Fencing, so be an offensive fighter, or a slasher who uses a broadsword and wears armour.

However, it is impossible to get Fencing 3 without first having Swordsman skill.

Fencing can ONLY be used with fencing weapons. You can’t fence with an Axe!

Dodge

Advantaged at a voiding being hit – draw 2 take the best when you are just trying to avoid being hurt and not do any damage back. Dodge can’t be used offensively.

Shorter weapons

Size Does Matter If you are using a weapon that is significantly shorter than your opponent, the first success you achieve lets you close – but it doesn’t wound. Once you’ve closed, the other person can still fight using their skill, just now you can do damage. If they win the next draw, then they distance themselves, meaning you’re back to square one.

This means that if you try to take on a halberd wielding guard with your rapier while trying to ransack a Lady’s bed chamber, or engage a sword wielding Cossack while escaping unarmed from a foetid, dingy jail, then you are in big trouble !

Fencing Moves

Since it’s all about fencing, here’s a series of special Fencing skills to learn to delight and surprise your opponents…

Main Gauche

An off shoot of fencing skill. You must have Fencing 1 to take Main Gauche. By carrying a weapon in your off hand, you can make one re-draw every fight. So, if you begin duelling a Parisian fop and draw a Poor result while he rather shockingly draws a Good result, you can use your Main Gauche to swiftly try to turn the result in your favour by redrawing your result. But just once for each combat.

Disarm

If you successfully hit an opponent, you can opt not to wound them, but to disarm them instead. Requires Fencing 1.

Riposte

Once per combat, in the event of a draw, you can redraw for that action. If you draw worse or the same, nothing changes, but if you draw higher, then you riposte and wound your opponent. Riposte requires Fencing 2.

Botte di Serge

The ultimate secret of any Fencing style, the Botte di Serge allows you to deliver a Mighty Blow (draw 2 take the highest damage) once per combat. See the film Le Bosseau for details on how to deliver such a strike with appropriate finesse.

Ranged Combat

Crossbows and Bows have close range and maximum range. These ranges are not expressed in feet or yards, but are more conceptual in nature and vary according to the weapon you wield.

At Short Range an average result hits. At Long range a good result is needed.

Shields and Bucklers

A shield required the “Shield” skill to use properly, otherwise it’s just a heavy lump of wood that you keep tripping over. A shield provides one point of armour.

Armour

Armour is really useful stuff. It soaks up one hit per point, up until the point where you are injured. Once you’ve been injured, then your armour refreshes and can soak up a whole load more damage.

Damage

Weapons do the following damage…

Weapon	Draw
Knife, Fist	Disadvantaged
Sword, Axe, Bow	Normal
Zweihander, Crossbow	Advantaged

Some especially well made items, such as a rapier crafted by the master swordmaker of Toledo, may do additional damage.

Wounds

There are three levels of wound : Light, Serious and Deadly.

Characters have an overall wound level. For multiple wounds, 2 lights make a serious, 2 serious make a deadly, deadly plus serious means you’re dead on the spot, so fighting on while seriously wounded means that you could get yourself instantly killed.

Characters who are seriously wounded are one level disadvantaged at everything.

Brawn

Reduce a wound by one level, instantly.

Toughness

Toughness raises the wound threshold by one, so the character can take 3 lights before it becomes serious and 3 serious before it becomes deadly.

Optional Rule

For cinematic campaigns, un-named characters go down on whatever wound they receive. This should only be used for cinematic 3 musketeers style games, not for horror style games.

Healing

Physicians

Doctoring/Surgery draws a bead and takes the new result as the new damage level, but it takes a few minutes to half an hour of treatment.

Each wound doesn’t heal individually – you heal the wound state - so someone who has taken 2 serious wounds is just seriously wounded. Healing will reduce this to light.

Natural healing

Light wounds heal overnight, Serious wounds drop to light after a week of rest, deadly wounds drop to serious after a month of rest.

Magic

Spellcasters have 3 levels of mastery, which dictates the power bead they draw. They need to draw equal or higher to cast a spell. Failure indicates fatigue, putting them out of spellcasting action for the rest of the scene. This means that all spellcasters can blast off first level spells at will, but casting higher level ones is harder and can be taxing.

Overcasting – a caster may opt to take a wound to cast a spell – the spell works, but they draw either 2 take best, one or 2 take worst depending on the level of spell – this is VERY risky for 3rd level spells, which is good.

Casters have a “Power Level” – the maximum level of spell they can cast in each sphere, and a “Fortitude” or whatever – the rating for the draw to cast the spell (disad/average/adv)

All Spell type spells rated on Unproven/proven/renown BR scale – with different names – Cantrips/Spells/Rituals, etc.

The actual spells can be a bit more visual than in LRP, but not massively so. Things like transformation, turn to stone, create wall of thorns etc – things which fit the fairy tale vein.

Stuff not yet worked out

Progression

Some slightly harder rules for gaining advantages will probably be necessary

Fate

Possibility of some kind of Fate points – redraw beads, etc ?

Bad Luck

I always liked the good and bad luck cards – not sure if they work here?

Doom

Each character has a doom ? Not sure what to do with this one. Tie in to disadvantage ? It would be nice to make all advantages double edged, but I don’t think this will work. Could work in the way that Hubris works in Seventh Sea – where the player picks it and the GM gets to activate it at times – things like Loyalty work – these should all be double edged swords, bringing both fame/Rewards and Danger. Have to think carefully about this area. Possibly the character can opt to have a Doom – this could be Grimm’s Gift – you choose it, then choose a sub-set, like Loyalty, Honour, Love, etc, all of which are core to your Tale and drive stories ??? e.g. if you are in Love, you will be driven to great feats in your Love’s name, but will also be capable of greatness because of that love – yet will also get into trouble because of it.

Characters

Skills

Need to review the Ads/Disads list to tidy them up for tabletop.