Raising the Stakes

This week we take a look at another subset of the alternate rules included in the Tome of Whispers. Whereas last time we explored some rules which are entirely new mechanical systems, these rule sets are themed adjustments to the existing rules that are meant to alter the feel of the game. This group specifically aims to increase the challenge of the game. There are three adjustments in this category: World Trade, Hardcore, and Horror.

World Trade

The base rules of Realm of Runes do not include money, only availability. While this works very well from a mechanical standpoint, it may not be entirely appropriate from a story-telling perspective. Most players expect to earn monetary rewards for their heroism. There are few real-world analogs to economies which operate without some sort of currency. These rules offer suggestions for how best to reintroduce money into the game.

Fundamentally, Realm of Runes treats money as a property of the setting, rather than a property of the rules themselves. This puts a lot of the burden of introducing money onto the role of the GM, but it also allows for a great deal of freedom with respect to how it should be implemented. Money in a setting can be as simple or as complicated as you like, but availability is still important. The world of Rimukyr, for example, contains many different economies. Some nations use money, others don't.

Whether your setting introduces money into the game, it is important to leave the Equipment step of character creation without it. One aspect of other rules systems which can be frustrating, is that not all characters need the same quantity of gear in order to function. A weapon-focused character has many expensive needs, while a primary spellcaster might not need to spend much on starting equipment, if any. To make starting equipment more equitable across classes, provide characters with their starting money after they already have their starting gear. This lets character money actually be properly equalized but also gives the freedom to tie starting cash to character backstories without being more punishing to some classes than others.

Hardcore

There are always those players who enjoy a more survival-focused experience. Such players might find the base rules of Realm of Runes too forgiving, if not too easy. Hardcore mode aims to satisfy these cravings by reintroducing many survival aspects of the game which are normally glossed over by the base game. The hardcore rules can be taken together as a whole, or you can cherry pick whichever ones your group finds interesting. Using Injury and Impairment are strongly encouraged with hardcore mode, but there are a handful of special rules elements as well.

Advanced Hunger

Characters in Realm of Runes generally do not need to worry about whether or not they've been eating until they reach the threshold for starvation. The benefits characters can get for eating high quality meals should make characters care about eating regularly. Yet just because characters want to eat, doesn't mean that they always have the time or ingredients to cook. Advanced Hunger introduces a new condition: hungry. This condition has a value that goes up over time. It imposes penalties if the value gets high enough and provides an alternate threshold for the existing starvation rules. Managing your hungry value makes even non-special meals important.

Advanced Thirst

As with hunger, characters in Realm of Runes do not usually need to care about how often they get hydrated until they pass the threshold for dehydration. While in most games characters can just be assumed to drink regularly when they have the time, some areas of a setting may have scarce water that needs to be rationed carefully. Advanced Thirst introduces a new condition: thirsty. This condition has a value which goes up over time. It imposes penalties if the value gets high enough and provides an alternate threshold for the existing dehydration rules. Managing your thirsty value makes water feel like the precious resource it ought to be.

Slow Recovery

Characters in Realm of Runes have access to several resources which refresh regularly with Daily Preparations. This might be daily resource pools like spell, alchemy, or resonance points. It might also take the form of spell slots, stamina, or your Treat Wounds DC for recovering Hit Points from the Medicine Skill. Slow Recovery makes managing these resources more critical since, rather than completely refreshing every time you rest, the amount of refreshment you get is instead tied to the number of hours of rest your got. This makes each character resource more important, as spending all of your resources today may leave you less flexible tomorrow, especially if time is also a critical resource.

Horror

The default tone of Realm of Runes has difficulty accommodating a horror theme. There are a lot of powerful character options which can blunt the effect of experiences that are meant to feel bleak or scary. Horror rules aim to bring this common story genre back withing reach without simply taking away all of the good character options by instead adding a handful of special rules elements. The horror rules can be taken together as a whole, or you can cherry pick whichever ones your group finds interesting. For the best experience, also use Injury, Impairment, and the Hardcore rules!

Creeping Doom

Rolling a natural 1 on a check is already bad, but this rule makes it even more oppressive. When a character rolls a natural 1 on a check, they also increase their minimum scared value by 1. Scared values cannot be lower than this minimum value but can be higher. This rule slowly increases the panic level over time as things go horribly wrong. Your minimum scared value reduces over time when you rest, but that doesn't mean you'll always have time!

No Relief

Rest is a powerful tool in Realm of Runes and is a great way to recover a lot of Hit Points very quickly. Adding this rule removes Hit Point and Impairment recovery from your rest, forcing your character to rely on other sources of healing like medicine and magic that are either limited resources or have diminishing returns. This rule also prevents an Extended Rest from reducing the dizzy, feeble, and sluggish conditions. You still need to rest to make your daily preparations, but you can't just shrug off a rough encounter by taking a nap. This effect is even more potent when combined with the Slow Recovery rules from Hardcore!

Profane Magicks

There are many stories where magic itself is an oppressive force that is dangerous to use. By default, characters in Realm of Runes can throw around spells without worry. Adding this rule makes magic a double-edged sword. Spells are still quite powerful tools, but casting one deals you mental damage based on the level at which the spell manifests. It's not a lot of damage, but it can stack up quickly, especially as impairment. Cantrips are exempted from this damage so that primary spellcasters do not become completely unviable options, but you'll always have to consider whether a more powerful spell is worth the trade.

Sanity Slippage

There are many creatures which are naturally strange and repulsive. This is an especially common theme in cosmic horror stories. While some specific creatures might have special abilities that revolve around this theme, using this rule makes knowing too much about monsters dangerous for your health. Critical success when identifying monsters with the aberration, chimera, haunt, outsider, or undead trait deals you mental damage. If you share what you know about these horrific beings, your friends also take the damage. This effect does not apply to more normal creatures and also does not remove the strong mechanical benefits you can get from knowing a lot about monsters. But knowing too much can drive you mad!

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Each of these rules modifications ratchet up the difficulty expectations without taking away your character's powerful and fun options. If anything, those options become even more special! Next week we'll return to the Card Game to introduce another villain, so stay tuned!