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Nimble Attacks Actions

“I got 15... what do I add to that?” “Can I have his bonus action? He didn’t use it.”
No More Rolling to Hit. To attack, Heroes and Mon- Saving Throw Spells. Ignore monster armor (see pg. Actions. Instead of a move, action, bonus action, & reac- Special Abilities. Any feature or ability that allow
sters simply roll the damage die ! A 1 misses and deals 10), do not miss on a 1, and cannot crit. tion in combat, heroes get 3 Actions! Heroes’ Actions actions to be made as a bonus action (e.g., Step of the
no damage. For attacks with multiple dice, the die that recharge at the END of each of their turns. Wind, Cunning Action, Flurry of Blows, Two-Weapon
lands the leftmost is called the Primary Die, it determines Example.Glow,theCleric,castssacredtameandher 1 Action can be spent to: attack, move, use a bonus Fighting) instead can be done without spending an
whether the attack is a hit, miss, or crit. goblin target fails its DEX save. Glow rolls 1d8 for the action or reaction, drink a potion, cast a cantrip, or use Action (for free) once per round each (i.e., a monk could
damageandshegetsan8!Savingthrowspellsdonot
Exploding Critical Hits. Any time the highest crit(butneitherdotheymissonaso any of the other actions (e.g., hide). Leveled spells
1) thegoblintakes use both Step of the Wind and Flurry of Blows for free,
number on a Primary Die is rolled, the Primary Die is 8 damage. cost 2 Actions (unless they are bonus action or reaction but not use Flurry of Blows twice in a round).
rolled again and added to the total. There is no limit spells, those cost only 1). Saving Throw Spells. Instead of stacking disad-
to how many times this damage can stack, except your More Attacks? Making more than your normally vantage for rushed saving throw spells, the saving throw
luck! hero critical hits also ignore monster armor. DESIGNER’S NOTE. This GREATLY speeds up combat allowed attacks each turn is allowed (provided you is rolled with advantage by the target. Damage from
while maintaining the expected difculty and game
balance across the level curve. The gameplay loop have
of enough Actions to spend), but these attacks are these attacks is unaffected by disadvantage and ignores
Examples. Grudge, the Fighter, wields a battleaxe and missingroughlyof 50% thetimeistrimmed - downsub rushed—imposing 1 instance of disadvantage for each monster armor (see pg. 10).
rolls 1d8. He rolls an 8, a critical hit! Grudge rolls again, stantially.Thereisstillenoughofachancetomiss additional
thatattack after the first. Any actions that can
and gets... ANOTHER 8! Rolling a 3rd time he gets a 1. combat remains unpredictable but not so much that it
damage,
1+8 withhisSTRmodierofbrings 3+ itto becomessloworunfun. harm an enemy counts toward Rushed Attacks (e.g., Example.Glow,theCleric,takesoutagoblinw
atotalofdamage 20 forthatattack.Welldone,Grudge! save spells, Grappling, etc.). sacred tame cantrip (1 Action). She then cast
tameagainmore (1 Action)sincethisisher2nda
Damage works out better between different weapons hernewtargetrolls2d2for 0 itsDEXsave.Glowca
Glow, the Cleric, casts guiding bolt and rolls 4d6: 6, 5, now as well, since the “best” weapon isn’t automatically Examples. Stabs, the Rogue, spends all 3 Actions to 3rd time this turn (3rd Action), her target gets to roll its
3, and 1. A critical hit! She will roll only the Primary Die whichever one has the bigger die. Small weapons critattack three times with his dagger. For the DEXsave rst taking
attack, thehighestof3d20.
again for the critical hit damage. Gettingmore a 4 onoften,
it, shelargeweaponshitmoreconsistently.
deals 19 damage altogether. On her next turn, Glow hejllrolld4 1 Since
. hecouldnjtnormallymakeanymore
casts guiding bolt again. This time, she gets a 1 on the attacksthisturn,the2ndand3rdattackswouldimpose
PrimaryDieandtheattackmissesentirely. With
Sorry,the tweakstomonsterACsee
Glow! ( pg.each
,)01 weapon disadvantage.Forthe2ndattack,hejllroll2d4andtake
typeismuchmorecompetitiveandinteresting - indiffer
thelowest.Fortherd 3 attack,hejlltaketheDESIGNER’S
lowest NOTE. 3 This
ofd4 . greatlyimproves - tactic
Stabs,theRogue,SneakAttacksanenemy.Rolling ent situations.
1d4 He ends his turn and all 3 Actions recharge. sions.Grappling,shoving,moving,andreactio
forhisdagger,hegetsaHe !4 getstorollhisSneakAttack far more interesting choices now. You cou
dice, but only the dagger’s Primary Die (d4) is rolled Grudge, a level 5 Fighter, uses 1 Action to move times
30 ft. atlevel1,buttherearediminishin
again(andpossiblyagain!)forthecriticalhitdamage. andAction
1 toattacktwice(withhisExtraonly Attack if you
ability)
forego reactions
, and movement. M
sinceheCANnormallymakebothattacksonhis attacksturn,they are rushed making it easier for
aremadewithoutadditionaldisadvantage. dodge Heor
usesresist.
his Note: Heroes still get one
nalActiontomoveanother30ft. round(e.g.drop, anitem,openanunlockeddoor

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 Heroic Reactions
“Of course I’m not MOVING, I’ll get hit!”
You can perform EACH reaction up to 1/round (provided you have enough Actions) and you will start your turn
DESIGNER’S NOTE. Help as a reaction encourages creative thinking and teamwork, especially in dire situations.
with that many fewer Actions. Here are some new and updated reactions:
nI terop se il ek wise encoaru ges tactical om vement and enabel s alp ey sr to heroicayl take a om tr al wound to save a irf end. eB ing
orp tected alol ws a hero to al y on heavy damage since their tcA ions aren’t needed to om ve or defend; on the other hand, af iling
Defend Help to think tacticaly and getting yourself surounded can become deadly very quickly (as it should be)! You may need allies to
interpose if you’re low on HP and already used your Defend reaction for the round!
(Replaces the Dodge action) This is where Grant an ally advantage on a roll if you
With the Defend reaction, you can now have a say over when you take damage or not, at a cost. AC bonuses still matter a lot,
AC comes in. Reduce damage from any can reasonably explain to the GM how but getting a +3 shield isn’t absolutely gamebreaking. You could block some incoming damage, but then you’d have fewer
single attack by your AC modifier (AC–8). At the DM’s you could help in a given situation (limit of one help Actions to use on your next turn. Your Actions recharges at the end of your turn, so if you use too many reactions you’l end up
discretion, some damage may not be avoidable (i.e., reaction for each roll). The GM may call for a skill check with 0 Actions and skiping your turn!
psychic damage, or some areas of effect). or grant advantage automatically, depending on how Oportunity attacks being made with disadvantage make them an interesting choice. Unless an enemy is very low on HP, it
good the idea is. am y eb worth it of r a iW az dr to save their tcA ions and not waste time on a ol w-damage opop tr nu ity attac.k oM nsters not am ik ng
opportunity attacks make the battlefield more dynamic heroes no longer need to waste an entire turn disengaging. Since
Opportunity Attack movement already comes at a cost, as it spends Actions, there is no need to penalize players further.
A melee attack made with disadvantage Teamwork!HelpasaHeroicReactionisafantasticway
to bring teamwork, role-playing, and creativity into a
when an adjacent enemy willingly moves
combatencounter.Didyourbuddyfail?Maybenot,think
away. Monsters do not make opportunity attacks, only quicklyandseeifyoucanhelpthemsucceed!
heroes can.

Interpose Assess
If a creature within 10 ft. would be struck In combat, a hero can spend 1 Action to
with an attack, you can push them out of make a skill check to uncover information,
the way and become the new target of the attack. You spot a weakness, intuit enemy tactics/plans, etc.
enter their space and move them to an adjacent space
of your choice. Example:ADCInsight
8 checkcouldrevealtheenemy
is going to attack the Cleric next - turn; a DC 14 Percep
tion check could reveal where a group of enemies are
Can I Interpose and Defend at the same time? Yes! going to go or who they are going to attack; a DC 18
AslongasyouhaveenoughActionstospend.You wonjt,
Arcana check could reveal the weaknesses/mechanics
however,beabletodoeitherreactionagain untilyourmagical creature; a DC 2 Examination
of a relevant
nextturnisoversinceeachofthoseislimited check to round.
/1
might revealanenemyjssoftunderbelly,thereby
loweringtheirArmorbyonesteporgrantadvantageon
attacksforround)
1 .

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 Dying & Exhaustion Resting
“Heroes do not go gently into that good night.” “My arm fell off. Let’s take a nap in this spooky dungeon!”

Dying Exhaustion Long Rests

Dropping to 0 HP does not cause unconsciousness or Replacing the archaic exhaustion rules in 5e, each level Long Rests require at least 8 hours of sleep in a safe place DESIGNER’S NOTE. Resting in the wilderness or in a
death saves. Instead, you gain 1 level of Exhaustion. now only causes a cumulative –1 to all d20 rolls when designated by your DM, typically lodging at an inn; but dungeon after every battle is the - bane o
You also gain the Dying condition until you regain HP. outsideofcombat . A hero dies when they receive their could also be at a secret oasis, a well-stocked cabin in where.Itbreaksencounterbalanceandst
of the interesting choices that resour
While Dying, actions are is limited to 1, Concentration 6th level of exhaustion. 1 level of exhaustion is recov- the woods, near a sacred shrine, or the like. Camping brings. Additionally, it forces the DM to u
is broken, and you are at risk of further serious harm: ered per Long Rest. in the open wilderness or in a dungeon is not sufficient encounters as a cudgel to keep the party f
•Attacking/casting spells causes 1 level of Exhaustion for gaining the benefits of a Long Rest. slowing down the game needlessly (and possibly turning
DESIGNER’S NOTE.The tension of dying is a big part theDMintoanadversary,ratherthanafaci
unless you make a DC 10 STR save. ofwhatmakesttrpgssoexciting,butthetensioncomes After a Long Rest, heroes recover all of their HP, Hit
•Taking damage while Dying causes 2 levels of Exhaus- fromtheriskofpermanentlylosingacharacterhNOTfrom mana (and other class specific resources), and
Dice, IfcombinedwiththenewExhaustion/Dyingmec
losing your turn. People come to play, not to watch their (seepgs.9g10),afterthePCsreturnfromanadven
tion, a crit causes 3 instead. heal 1 level of Exhaustion. they may need to rest up for a week or so to f
friendsplay.Itjustisnjtfuntodonothingonyourturn
formultiplerounds,norisitfunforplayerstogamethe (recovering 1 level of exhaustion/long rest
mechanics mitigatethecommonfeelingoflevelingupt
toand “yo-yo” up and down because that’s an
Example.Glow,theCleric,takesdamageanddrops
HP.
0 ShejsnowDying!Shegainslevel 1 optimal play pattern.
ofexhaustion
Short Rests in some campaigns as well.
anddropsto1Action.Whenherturnbegins,she canjt
SEEING deathcomingiswhatmakesforexcitingtension;
Short Rests require at least 15 minutes to catch your Restingprovidesagreatopportunity- ford
castcurewoundssincethatwouldcost2Actions, but a
being unable to do anything about it is NOT. Players are breath and tend to your wounds, but could also be a full ities.Heroescandevelopstrongerconnec
bonusactionspelllikehealingwordonlycosts Action.
1 localvillageorcityanditspeople,allowin
Casting it, she heals 5 HP. Since she cast a spell, she rolls
nothelpless spectatorsanylonger.However,atthe night
same spent camping under the stars. Upon completing DMtoadvancetheplotandcaremoreabout
time,acharacterthathasstartedtorackupafewlevelsof
aSTRsave,failingitwithanshe 1, gainsasecond level
exhaustion
a
willbeplayedinanoticeablydifferentway,
Short Rest, you may expend any number of Hit Dice However,ifyourgroupwantstofastforwardpa
of exhaustion. No longer at 0 HP, the Dying condition and even their party members will start instinctively (rolling them and adding your STR modifier to each), it can be narratively skipped once the l
ends.Whensheendsherturn,shegetsallActions 3 back. is spent!
protecting them. and regain that many HP. If you rest at least 8 hours with
Wejve moved away from the convoluted exhaustion food and sleep, take the maximum instead of rolling.
mechanics of 5e, making it easier to - track and under
DESIGNER’S NOTE. Going unconscious and being in stand.Exhaustionshouldserveasalong-termmeasureof
ltime outm is not fun. Instead, now, you canhow stillclose play
someoneistodeath.Removingtheadditional
yourturnandhavechoicestomake.Doyoudefend, run effects of exhaustion is needed to avoid the
negative
away, drink the last potion, or attack and risk injuring
ldeath spiralmofthemoreyoufail,THEMOREYOUFAIL.
yourself further? There is still a real risk of permanent
Exhaustion shouldnotimpactthecombatabilityofthe
death, but heroes can see it coming sooner and actually heroes;theadrenalineofbeingincombatallowsthem
dosomethingaboutit.Theyhaveachancetoto contribute,
shrugoffitseffects.temporarily!
.
orifalltrulyishopeless,theycanatleastrole-playtheir
dying words! ThinkofHPasaquicklydiminishingand - quicklyrecharg
ingshield,andexhaustionasalong-termgaugeofhow
Also,DMsnolongerhavetofeelbadif- amonster closecontin
a hero truly is to death.
uestoattackaherothatisatHP. 0 Asfarasthemonsteris
concerned,theyjrestillstanding.Attackaway!

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 Try the full Take it to the next level...
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Learn More
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