Tuning The Tone

This week we continue our series looking at the alternate rules in the Tome of Whispers. So far, all of these rules have involved adding things to the system. Today, however, we're looking at some rules which carefully subtract. These rules are about tweaking the tone of the game to fit a wider range of setting and group expectations.

All rule systems are necessarily written with certain expectations about the setting. In the case of Realm of Runes, that's a very high fantasy setting that also has an increasingly advanced level of technology. Powerful magic coexists with advanced alchemy and firearms. These things are very fun to play with in general, but these expectations may not match those of your group or the story you're trying to tell.

That's where these rules come in. One of the benefits of starting with the highest levels of magic and technology, is that dialing the power scale downward is a lot easier than tuning it higher. The rules as written are therefore as balanced as they can be for pretty much any conceivable power level. The trick to adjusting the power scale is almost surgical in nature. Fortunately, the rarity scale in Realm of Runes makes this much easier. Rather than always completely removing higher fantasy options, simply making them rarer can often do the trick.

As long as these adjustments are applied to both players and the world alike, the game should remain properly balanced. As with any rule changes, however, it is especially important to ensure that all players understand and agree to these changes in advance. Certain classes may be less appealing to players when the rules are adjusted to curtail their most powerful options, though some players might enjoy the challenge. It's important to discuss the potential use of these rule changes and the purpose behind them up front!

Low Fantasy

Some groups prefer a setting where magic is less pervasive, while some stories are more difficult to tell when high-level magic can be accessed with ease. Low fantasy reduces the intrusiveness of magic by a moderate degree by introducing several adjustments. Nothing is completely removed from the game with low fantasy, but many of the higher-level magic becomes harder to access. This allows powerful magic to remain a possibility for specific story applications, or as rewards for undergoing great trials.

Magic Items: Magic items that were common become uncommon, and those that were already uncommon become rare instead. This forces players to rely on more mundane gear and makes even the smallest magic items more special. Even when made uncommon or rare, some lower-level items may still be sometimes available in the biggest settlements. In this way, players are not completely without access to some neat tools to play around with.

Mythless: Legendary proficiency becomes harder to access, even beyond its level prerequisite of 13. Whereas a character can normally just improve a proficiency to legendary as soon as they reach the level threshold, low fantasy now adds the requirement of a general perk. This makes legendary proficiency, and the incredible abilities that come with it, much more special. Characters must be very choosy with when and where they access these abilities.

Power Drain: Spells cast as powers no longer automatically heighten like cantrips do when cast using spell points and instead manifest at their base level by default. These spells can be heightened as normal by the expenditure of an extra spell point. This reigns in the intensity of powers without removing their ability to scale altogether.

Spell Lists: Spells of level 4 and higher that were common become uncommon, and those that were already uncommon become rare instead. This makes characters have to rely more on heightened lower-level spells rather than making the more powerful spells readily available. Most classes which offer spell slots have a way to access uncommon spells with master proficiency, so the middle tier of spells are not completely out of reach. The best spells have to be found, however.

Spell Slots: Classes with spell slots have fewer spell slots at higher level. Each spell level of 7th and higher provides one fewer slot, minimum 1. This makes these highest-level spell slots more precious, while still ensuring that they are available in some form.

Austere Fantasy

For some groups, even low fantasy might still be too much magic. Although many aspects of Realm of Runes no longer function without any magic at all, there is still room to dial it down even further with austere magic. This dramatically reduces the presence of magic in the system but still does not remove anything from the game completely. This makes even basic magic special, though the potential for more power still exists if and when the story calls for it.

Cantrips: Cantrips do not automatically heighten as normal but can still be cast endlessly without being expended. Characters with spell slots can heighten a cantrip using their spell slots. Those with spell points can heighten them as normal with the additional expenditure of a spell point. This ensures that magic users still have some tricks they can always rely on.

Everymen: Master and legendary proficiency both require the additional expenditure of a general perk to attain. This means that characters have to be very judicious about their best proficiencies. Broad competency is encouraged, while siloing remains possible where necessary.

Magic Items: All magic items are rare. The very lowest-level magic items might be available in big settlements, but not likely and not many of them. Any magic item becomes special.

Power Outage: Like low fantasy, powers do not automatically heighten as normal. With austere fantasy, however, additional spell points heighten a power by one spell level per point. More intense powers are available when you need them most, but become extremely costly and will probably be saved for emergencies.

Spell Lists: All spells are uncommon, and those that were uncommon become rare instead. This change does not apply to common spells during character creation and advancement to ensure that spellcasters are still able to learn new spells as they level up. Finding new spells to learn during play becomes an auspicious event.

Spell Slots: Classes with spell slots have fewer spell slots at medium and higher levels. Each spell level of 4th and higher provides one fewer slot, minimum 1. This makes even medium-level spell slots more precious, while still ensuring that they are available in some form.

Low Tech

Some groups prefer a setting where technology is less pervasive, while some stories are more difficult to tell when advanced technology can be accessed with ease. Low tech reduces the intrusiveness of technology by a moderate degree by introducing several adjustments. Nothing is removed from the game with these rules, but many higher-level items and materials become harder to access. This allows for powerful technology to remain available for story-specific uses, or as rewards for undergoing great trials.

Alchemical Items: Alchemical items of level 4 and higher are uncommon, and those that were already uncommon become rare instead. Many of these items were already unlikely to be readily available in even the biggest settlements, but this makes learning their formulas much harder as well. Alchemists, Mechanists, Quartermasters, and other characters that dabble in crafting have to rely on getting the most out of lower-level items. Fortunately, these items can be improved by making them at higher levels than their base level, so these characters should still be viable.

Batteries: Items that require batteries to function, like some snares, are always rare. Since batteries tend to be secondary uses of some alchemical items with the electricity trait, these do not become inherently rarer. Using them as batteries instead of as bombs becomes a lot less likely, though.

Firearms: All firearms and cannons are rare. Characters may have heard of such things but are not likely to get their hands on them. Large nations may still have access to these for their militaries, but anyone else likely needs to invent them from scratch. Gnomes still have access to a few of them, though!

Infused Items: Infused items no longer automatically increase their item level based on a character's level and are instead made at their base level by default. Such items can still be made higher level through the expenditure of additional alchemy points. One extra point causes the level to maximize as normal. This reduces the power of alchemy points, though they're still useful for speed and quantity.

Materials: Advanced and superb materials are always rare, and modern materials become uncommon. Because many items use a modern material as the default, like steel, those items become uncommon as well if using those materials. This means that many such items will have to have their material swapped out for a less advanced option, like wrought iron or bronze.

Primitive Tech

For some groups, even low tech might be too much technology, and sometimes you just want to tell a story from the dawn of time or shortly after an apocalypse. Primitive tech dramatically reduces the technology level with its adjustments. Even still, nothing is completely removed from the game. With such little technology available, characters will likely need to rely more on magic.

Adventuring Gear: Weapons, armor, shields, and gear of level 2 or higher are uncommon. Those that were already uncommon become rare instead. This applies even if using a different material than the default. This means that the best item options are something to be worked toward and found, or else a precious heirloom.

Alchemical Items: All alchemical items become uncommon, and those that were already uncommon become rare instead. This does not apply to common items during character creation and advancement. This still allows characters to learn new formulas by leveling up but makes learning new formulas during play less likely. Characters will need to choose the formulas they know carefully!

Batteries and Firearms: Both of these are handled the same as with low tech.

Infused Items: As with low tech, infused items do not automatically improve based on a character's level. Additional alchemy points can still improve item levels, but only by one item level per point. This dramatically reduces the power of these points, but the ability to ignore other parts costs still makes these points quite valuable.

Materials: Modern, advanced, and superb materials are rare, and archaic materials become uncommon. Because Realm of Runes has robust item crafting rules, this still leaves a great deal of interesting and useful materials that might otherwise not see much use, like bone and obsidian.

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These rules allow for a great degree of control over the feel of the setting, without completely upsetting the game's internal balance. They can be used separately if either magic or technology are proving problematic for your story or group but can also be used together for a wildly different set of gameplay expectations. Many of these changes are the sorts of things that are frequent subjects of house rules, so it's helpful to have many of the consequences already thought out. Next time we return to the card game to introduce a new villain, so stay tuned!