Playing the Game

As a Realm Master and party come together to play a game or “session” of Realms, there are a few key aspects to look for and expect:

• Social Interaction. Your player Character will frequently interact with the Characters and creatures of the world. During these interactions, you may need to barter, intimidate, charm, negotiate, and more. These exchanges can either serve as the main focus of an adventure or play a smaller role, depending on your party’s preferences.

• Skill Encounters. As you explore and experience the limitless world your Realm Master guides you through, you will often be called upon to test your abilities and use your talents to overcome difficulties. A comprehensive yet simple ruleset makes Skill Encounters an exciting part of the game. Whether you're navigating a rickety bridge, solving a tough riddle, scaling a tall building, outwitting an enemy during a chase, or crossing a vast plane, your Skills will play a critical role.

• Combat Encounters. When tensions run high between creatures or Characters and the party, or for other reasons, fighting often becomes inevitable. Specific rules make Combat an exciting part of Realms, requiring dynamic interactions that require teamwork and strategy to achieve victory. Not all battles are about simply defeating the other side; many will involve tricky solutions that the party must devise mid-fight to outwit a challenging situation or opponent.

• Downtime. Between the excitement of encounters, roleplay, social interactions, and general adventuring, characters can take downtime. Downtime need not be any less exciting, however, as there are plenty of options players can take advantage of to help their characters progress. Downtime is often taken in 5-day increments in which characters can dedicate time, resources, and skill encounter attempts to achieve feats such as bonding companions, training skills, crafting unique items, earning adventuring funds, and so on.

Flavor ‘Rules!’

Each Power, Technique, Feat, and Character choice is a blank slate, waiting for you to imagine, create, and develop into your perfect vision. The rules and mechanics of Realms are designed as scaffolding to help you build upon to create every aspect of your Character and ideas. You are not confined by the description or name of a Feat, the way a Species is portrayed, or any other predefined aspect of the game. Ultimately, you decide why a Feat works the way it does, what a Power looks like in action, or how your Character uses a Skill.

Feats. You are encouraged to rename Feats when adding them to your Character sheet and to expand their descriptions with additional flavor text that ties them to your Character's story. For example, a Feat called "Blood Frenzy" could be renamed "Panicked and Dangerous," shifting the tone from a blood-crazed advantage to a Character channeling their panic into adrenaline-fueled Action.

Powers. Each Power you possess has no essence until you define it. For example, a sphere of effect that deals fire damage could be a fireball; or perhaps a miniature sun explosion that sears the skin. A Power that deals piercing damage at a range might manifest as a clockwork bee stinging an enemy, a sharp needle of pure energy, or a quickly summoned scorpion that vanishes in a flash.

How your Character uses Powers is entirely up to you. Do they channel their abilities through a Power focus, wave their hands while speaking incantations, wind up a mechanical device, throw a potion bottle, or perhaps unleash the Power from their eyes, or even their belly button?

Techniques. Each Technique part has specific mechanics for how it functions, but like Powers, the appearance and style of each Technique are entirely up to you. For example, you might kick an enemy into the air and headbutt them on the way down, roll under a creature's legs to slash at their ankles as you pass, or leap gracefully into the air to unleash a powerful bow shot.

Unlike Powers, Techniques are more flexible in flavor during the moment of use. If a Technique allows you to slam a creature and knock it prone, you might choose to leap onto it from a cliff above or charge at it to send it crashing into a wall. Regardless of how it is described, the Technique’s mechanics remain the same, which allows you to adapt its flavor to suit your Character’s unique style and desired outcome in the moment.

Flavor’s Function. The flavor you choose for your Character and their talents has real effects on both gameplay mechanics and roleplay. For example, if your Character uses Ice magic described as emanating from their fingertips, wearing certain gloves might hinder or enhance their Powers, while restraining their hands could reduce their effectiveness. Similarly, if you describe every Technique as involving knee strikes, a broken leg could significantly impact your ability to use those Techniques.

These in-game effects are not rigidly defined, but they reflect the natural strengths and weaknesses of your Character’s abilities and style. Embrace these nuances and enjoy how they shape the story. Avoid designing a Character with impenetrable Powers or uncounterable attacks. Instead, ensure your Character has both strengths and weaknesses that contribute to the group's dynamic without overshadowing other adventurers.

Check with the Realm Master. Before creating your Character or starting a game, communicate with your Realm Master about the genre, lore, and other details of the setting. Make sure your Character’s flavor not only fits the world but fits well within it. If your ideas for flavor are unconventional or might conflict with the setting, discuss them with your Realm Master and even the other players to ensure they integrate smoothly and are enjoyable for everyone.

Sessions and Campaigns

Sessions. You might play a single, straightforward adventure lasting 2–4 hours, or participate in an ongoing adventure with sessions held regularly. Either way, a session is the event where players, the party, and the Realm Master come together to play the game for a few hours.

A session typically begins with the Realm Master introducing the adventure or setting, or recapping what happened in the previous session. Sessions usually conclude either at a predetermined time or at a natural stopping point, such as a cliffhanger or the completion of a story arc.

Campaigns. A campaign is a long-form story that unfolds over multiple sessions or “episodes”. Characters in the party typically remain consistent, progressing through levels and interconnected storylines. Campaigns can end at any level and often include multiple story arcs, which together build toward a larger, overarching narrative created by the Realm Master and the players.

Single-Session Adventures.

Dice

Dice are the lifeblood of the story. They introduce random chance and represent a hint of chaos in every encounter, making each roll an exciting part of the game.

Notation. Dice are represented as XdY, where X is the number of dice, and Y is the die size. For example, 3d8 implies rolling three eight-sided dice and summing the results. When rolling just one die, it is written as 1dY or sometimes simply dY or DY (e.g., d10, D20).

1d2. This die can be represented by flipping a coin or rolling any even-numbered die. Simply assign odd numbers as 1 and even numbers as 2.

Increase Die Sizes. Sometimes, a die is increased or decreased by another die size. This means combining dice to form a new die size.

Two of the same die combine into the next largest die.

• 1d6 + 1d6 = 1d12

• 1d8 + 1d2 = 1d10

If increasing a die would result in a value beyond 1d12, the total is split into two dice, usually in the most uniform way.

• 1d12 + 1d4 = 2d8 (since 12 + 4 = 16, which evenly splits into two d8s).

If the total doesn’t split evenly, mix different dice sizes.

• 1d12 + 1d2 = 1d8 & 1d6

Dice Conversion Table. This table can be referenced for combining dice of different sizes quickly.

Percentile Dice - D100. The most common method for rolling 1d100 involves using a pair of ten-sided dice numbered 0–9, often called percentile dice. Before rolling, designate one die as the tens digit and the other as the ones digit. For example, rolling a 6 on the tens die and a 2 on the ones die results in 62. A roll of two 0s (or 10s) represents 100.

Some ten-sided dice are specifically numbered in tens (00, 10, 20, etc.), which helps clearly identify the tens digit. In this case, rolling 70 and 1 produces 71, while rolling 00 and 0 results in 100, 00 and 1 results in 1 and so on.

Abilities

Every Character, creature, and monster has six Abilities that define their physical and mental strength, prowess, and capabilities, shaping how they interact with the world:

Strength. Strength governs physical actions like lifting, breaking, throwing, climbing, and stability. It determines your chance to hit and the damage dealt with some melee weapons.

Vitality. Vitality represents resilience and endurance, affecting resistance to damage, toxins, illnesses, and more. It also contributes to your Health (HP) at each level.

Agility. Agility measures speed and reflexes, affecting Evasion (EV) and Speed (SP). It determines your chance to hit and damage dealt with melee or ranged finesse weapons.

Acuity. Acuity reflects mental sharpness, influencing perception, reaction, and aim. It determines your chance to hit and the damage dealt with most ranged weapons.

Intelligence. Intelligence covers knowledge, problem-solving, memory, and knowledge in topics such as history, lore, and language.

Charisma. Charisma governs social skills, including persuasion, intimidation, and emotional intelligence. It also represents your presence, poise, resolve, and confidence.

Abilities are typically represented as values ranging from -3 to 5. In some cases, Abilities can exceed this range, but for a Character they can never drop below -5 or rise above 10.

The D20

Whenever anything is attempted that involves a degree of uncertainty or chance for success, a D20 is used. The D20 serves as a storytelling conduit, creating blunders or magnificent successes by a Character based on the variation in the numbers rolled. When you roll a D20, you are taking an active role in a situation in an attempt to Overcome something.

The general formula for any D20 roll is to roll the D20, then add bonuses and penalties, and compare the total to the Score you are attempting to Overcome. If the total meets or exceeds the Score, you are successful; if it falls below, you are unsuccessful.

Bonuses. A bonus is any number you add to a roll, usually a D20 roll. Skill bonuses are examples of bonuses.

Penalties. A penalty is any number you subtract from a roll, usually a D20 roll. The Multiple Action Penalty is an example of a penalty.

Natural 20. If you roll a D20 and roll a result of “20” on the die, you have rolled a natural 20. This automatically adds a +2 bonus to the roll.

Natural 1. If you roll a D20 and roll a result of “1” on the die, you have rolled a natural 1. This automatically adds a -2 penalty to the roll.

Determination Die. At the beginning of each session, each Character starts with a Determination Die, as denoted by a small filled-in circle on your Character sheet. While you have this die, you may spend it to re-roll any roll, and all dice included, and choose which result to keep. Once used, the Determination Die is lost.

The Realm Master can award you a Determination Die when you achieve a great feat, excel in roleplay, or accomplish something impressive.

You can have up to three Determination Dice at a time, each tracked the same way, but you lose all of them at the end of the session, so there’s no point in saving them! If the Realm Master awards you a Determination Die, you may choose to give it to another party member instead.

Overcoming Scores

A Score is a numerical representation of a Skill, Ability, Defense, or another attribute used passively or reactively. It can also be a specific number to represent a level of difficulty, known as a Difficulty Score.

Any Bonus in the game that applies to a D20 roll can also be converted into a Score by simply adding 10 to it.

For example, if you have a Stealth Skill Bonus of +5 and attempt to remain unseen, you would actively roll a D20 + 5. However, after your initial attempt, you no longer need to roll, as you are now passively staying hidden using your Stealth Score. This is calculated as: Stealth Score = 10 + Stealth Skill Bonus (5) = 15.

The Bonuses used most commonly for Scores are Defenses, and Skills. Another common Score is Evasion.

Overcoming

Whenever a D20 roll is made, and it meets or exceeds the Score it is targeting, it has Overcome that score. If the Score exceeds the roll instead, then the Score has Overcome that roll.

For example, if you roll a D20 and add your Perceive Skill Bonus, attempting to locate a creature using its Stealth Score, the result is compared against the creature’s Score. If your final roll equals 15, and the creature’s Stealth Score is also 15, you Overcome the Score and successfully spot the creature. However, if the creature’s Stealth Score were 16, it would have Overcome your roll, allowing it to remain unseen.

To Roll, or Not to Roll. In general, when deciding between using a Score or a D20 roll, try to have the individual in the active position make the roll. For example, Attack rolls are active D20 rolls made against a Score, such as a Defense Score or Evasion. Other situations where a D20 roll might be used include avoiding a trap or falling rocks, attempting to charm someone, or picking a lock.

In cases where the environment is acting upon a creature, such as a weak floorboard collapsing underfoot, the creature always takes the active role and makes a D20 roll in response.

Difficulty Scores. A Difficulty Score (DS) represents the relative challenge of a task. The higher the DS, the harder it is to succeed. Generally, the difficulty of a task corresponds to its DS as follows.

Successes. Successes are determined by how a D20 roll result compares to a target Score, with exceeding or meeting the score, as well as every 5 points above representing one Success. Similarly, Failures are determined by how much a roll falls short of the target Score, with falling short, as well as every 5 points below representing one Failure.

For instance, if you were rolling Sleight of Hand against a Difficulty Score of 12 and obtained a 17, you’d have obtained 2 Successes, as you not only exceeded the Score, supplying one Success, but you did so by 5, granting an additional Success.

More Successes indicate superior performance, leading to better outcomes, while greater Failures reflect more significant shortcomings, potentially resulting in worse consequences.

Critical & Partial Success & Failure

When a D20 roll matches or falls short of a target Score by 1 point, it is considered a Partial Success or Partial Failure, respectively.

Partial Success. Meeting a Score by 1 achieves the desired outcome but includes a small negative consequence. For example, you might correctly recall information with a History roll but mix up some names or add details that weren’t originally present.

Partial Failure. Falling short of a Score by 1 fails to achieve the desired outcome but includes a small positive consequence. For instance, you might fail to open a door with pure Strength but make it easier for the next person to do so.

Realm Masters should feel free to classify other rolls as Partial Successes or Failures based on context, even if the roll exceeds or falls short of the Score by more than 1.

Critical Success and Failure. A critical success occurs when a D20 roll achieves 3 or more Successes (+10) above the target Score, while a critical failure happens when the roll falls 3 or more Failures (-10) below the target Score. Critical outcomes always lead to significantly better or worse results than expected.

Each Skill in the Realms Codex includes defined positive outcomes for each Success, as well as specific effects for critical outcomes. Similarly, attack rolls provide benefits based on critical success. Beyond these written effects, Realm Masters are encouraged to create their own enhanced outcomes for Successes or Failures, including critical results.

These outcomes can be improvised or predetermined, but Realm Masters should document the outcomes they assign to each Success to ensure consistency across sessions and rulings.

Defenses

The ability to Overcome negative circumstances and consequences is called a Defense. Each Ability has a corresponding Defense used to withstand harmful effects or break free from those already affecting you.

Might (Strength). Resist being moved by force, grappled, or restrained, and helps to maintain a firm grip.

Fortitude (Vitality). Resist poisons, environmental effects, and fend off diseases.

Reflexes (Agility). Dodge hazards, avoid being toppled, and maneuver to escape danger.

Discernment (Acuity). Detect illusions, incoming attacks, trickery (e.g., sleight of hand or mimicry), and disguises.

Mental Fortitude (Intelligence). Overcome mind-altering effects, mind-reading, cognitive manipulation, and logical challenges.

Resolve (Charisma). Overcome charm, resist temptations, and avoid fear, intimidation, or possession.

Defense Bonus. To break free from an ongoing effect, you usually make a D20 roll + Defense Bonus that meets or exceeds the effect's Potency or Difficulty Score to end it. By default, a defense Bonus is equal to the related Defenses’ Ability. By using Skill Points (see Skills) and Feats, you can increase this value.

Defense Score. When an effect targets one of your defenses, the initiator usually makes a D20 roll to Overcome it, meeting or exceeding the relevant Defense Score, to succeed.

Evasion (EV). How well you can avoid being hit by attacks. This is the Score targeted by attacks unless otherwise specified. Unlike other Defenses, Evasion is always a passive Score and is never rolled with a D20. It is calculated simply as Agility + 10.

Evasion is not considered a "Defense" in the same way as other defenses, as it has no associated "Bonus" and cannot be increased with Skill Points (see "Skills"). Feats, powers, and so on that reference “Defenses” do not reference Evasion.

Proficiency

Proficiency means possessing an understanding of the details and nuances of something, such as maintaining an item, maneuvering in armor, using the appropriate tools for your skillset, or wielding a weapon effectively. Proficiency in your Archetype also grants Bonuses to some Scores, D20 rolls, and other facets of your Archetype, enabling you to fully access its potential.

Unproficient. When you lack proficiency with something, your understanding of related tasks is limited. This often results in poorer performance or an inability to perform the task entirely.

In most cases, where you can still attempt a task without proficiency, you add only half of the related Ability to D20 rolls and Scores, and no other Bonuses. If the Ability is negative, you instead double the negative Ability and add it to the D20 rolls and Scores.

Specific Proficiencies. Proficiency requirements and rulings are detailed in their respective sections: Skill proficiency is covered in Skills, Archetype Proficiency (including Martial and Power Proficiency) is explained in Chapter 2: Character Creation, and Weapon and Armor proficiency is addressed in Chapter 4: Items and Equipment.

Skills

Skills represent your Character's trained expertise and natural talents. Skills are divided into Base Skills and Sub-skills.

Each Skill ties to a specific Ability or Abilities from which you’d choose one to use for that Skill. Proficiency in a Skill allows you to use it with greater effectiveness, while a lack of proficiency limits your capabilities.

All Skills can be found in the first section of the Realms Codex, including Skill descriptions and utilities, different effects based on Successes, the Abilities tied to each Skill, and Instinctive classifications.

Base Skills vs. Sub-Skills. A “Base” Skill refers to any Skill that does not build upon another Skill, such as Sleight of Hand, Medicine, and so on. Sub-Skills are Skills that derive from a base Skill but represent more specific applications; for example, Lockpicking under Sleight of Hand or Triage under Medicine. You cannot gain proficiency in a Sub-Skill until you have first gained proficiency in its corresponding base Skill.

Skill Rolls. When attempting to Overcome a situation in which a Skill can be utilized, or when prompted by the Realm Master to do so, you make a Skill Roll. The basic formula when rolling with a Proficient Skill is D20 + Skill Bonus.

Skill Bonus. The Bonus you apply to all Skill Scores and D20 Skill Rolls is called the Skill Bonus. The basic formula for Skill Bonus is the relevant Ability + Skill Value. The Skill Value is the number of Skill Points allocated to a Skill after gaining proficiency.

Sub-Skill Bonus. Sub-Skills are specialized Skills that build upon the knowledge and experience of broader Skills. For example, Lockpicking is a Sub-Skill of Sleight of Hand, and Search is a Sub-Skill of Perceive.

The bonus applied to Sub-Skill Scores and D20 Sub-Skill Rolls is called the Sub-Skill Bonus and functions similarly to a Base Skill Bonus. The basic formula for calculating a Sub-Skill Bonus is relevant Ability + Base Skill Value + Sub-Skill Value

The Sub-Skill Value equals the total number of Skill Points allocated to a Sub-Skill, including the point spent to gain proficiency in that Sub-Skill. This distinguishes Sub-Skills from Base Skills, which do not include the point spent to gain proficiency in their Skill Value.

Unproficient Skill Rolls

Characters often lack proficiency in all Skills and will therefore need to attempt tasks that are new or unfamiliar to them. These are considered unproficient Skill rolls. When determining what it means to be unproficient with a particular Skill or Sub-Skill, refer to the Skill’s description and consider what a Character could reasonably accomplish without formal knowledge or training.

For example, attempting the Cook Sub-Skill is a reasonable action for most Characters, even without proficiency, while attempting Leatherworking or History may require specialized knowledge and training to justify a roll. Realm Masters are encouraged to use context and common sense when deciding what actions are practical for an unproficient Character to attempt; and are further encouraged to find ways for Characters to try something, rather than reasons they can’t.

Unproficient Skills. The formula for the Unproficient Skill Bonus is simply the Relevant Ability divided in half. If this Ability is negative, you instead double the negative Ability. The same is true for rolling Sub-Skills without the Base Skill’s proficiency.

Unproficient Sub-Skills. When rolling with a Sub-Skill you aren’t proficient with, you simply use the base Skill Value + Relevant Sub-Skill Ability.

If you aren’t proficient with the base Skill, you simply roll the Sub-Skill the same way you’d roll an unproficient Skill as described above

Skill Points & Gaining Proficiency

At your first level and each level after, you gain Skill Points, which you can use for three things:

• Acquiring Proficiency with Skills. Spending one Skill Point on a Skill or Sub-Skill grants proficiency with that Skill. Gaining proficiency with a Sub-Skill also increases its Skill Value by 1.

• Increasing Skill Values. After acquiring proficiency with a Skill, you can spend Skill Points to increase the Skill Value in a one-to-one ratio up to 3.

• Increasing Skill Values Above 3. Skill and Sub-Skill Values can only be increased using Skill Points in a one-to-one ratio until you reach a Skill Value of 3. After this point, increasing a Skill Value for a Base Skill takes 3 Skill Points, and for a Sub Skill takes 2 Skill Points.

• Increasing Defenses: You can spend two Skill Points to increase a Defense Bonus by one, up to a maximum increased Defense Bonus equal to your Level. (Defense Bonuses can be more than your level, but cannot be increased to more than your level with Skill Points.) Evasion cannot be increased with Skill Points.

You may spend Skill Points whenever you desire, and may also save them between levels. Once a Skill Point is spent, it cannot be recovered.

Using Different Base & Sub-Skills & Abilities

You may sometimes encounter a situation where a certain Skill is called for, but it makes more sense to use a different Ability. For example, when tying a knot using Sleight of Hand, Intelligence might be more appropriate than Agility to recall how to tie the knot. In such cases, the Realm Master may allow or even require you to use the alternate Ability. The calculation change is simple: New Ability + Skill Value = Skill Bonus.

Similarly, you might find that using a different Base or Sub-skill makes more sense. For instance, when searching for ingredients for a potion, using Nature as the base Skill instead of Perceive could be more appropriate. This adjustment may be at the Realm Master’s discretion or something you suggest yourself. The calculation follows the same logic: Ability + Sub-skill Value + New Base Skill Value = New Sub-skill Bonus.

Helping

When you wish to assist a creature attempting a Skill Roll, you may do so, provided it is logical for you to help in the given context and you have proficiency with the related Skill. To assist, describe how you intend to help, then, as directed by the RM, roll the related Skill's Help Die. Add the result to the assisted creature’s Skill roll Total.

Multiple creatures may assist with a single Skill Roll, each rolling their respective Help Die and contributing to the total, as long as the context allows for this type of team assistance.

Help Die. The Help Die is the die you roll when assisting a creature with a Skill roll. The type of die is determined by your Skill Bonus, rounded up to the nearest even number. For example:

• If your Skill Bonus was +1, you’d roll 1d2.

• If your Skill Bonus was +3, you’d roll 1d4.

• If your Skill Bonus is +4, you’d still roll 1d4, and so on.

The largest die type a Help Die can be is 1d12.

Vision & Obscurity

Vision. Creatures perceive the world in various ways, such as sight, smell, touch, and even taste, but the most common of these is vision. By default, all creatures possess Basic Vision, relying on light and eyes to perceive their surroundings in a 90-degree field of view in front of them. Other vision types include:

• Darkvision – Ignores obscurity caused by darkness within a certain range but only allows sight in shades of gray. It may be achieved through light-sensitive eyes, supernatural enhancements, or other means.

• Blindsense – Provides full, colorless perception of surroundings within a certain range. This often includes sonar, echolocation, or supernatural abilities that do not rely on traditional eyesight.

• Lifesense – Grants an acute awareness of living things within a certain range, often based on sensing thermal activity, biological scents, or other life-detecting methods.

• Earthsense – Provides full, colorless perception of surroundings within a certain range, but only while in contact with an earthen material, and only of surroundings also in contact with the same earthen material.

• Liquidsense – Provides full, colorless perception of surroundings within a certain range, but only through the medium and while in contact with liquid.

Obscurity

You are considered Obscured to a target creature or group of creatures when you are partially or completely out of their line of sight or otherwise visibility. Obscurity can occur at four levels: Completely Obscured, Heavily Obscured, Moderately Obscured, and Lightly Obscured.

Being Obscured can increase your chances of success with certain Skills, such as Stealth or Hide, and reduce the likelihood of being hit by an attack. For every level of Obscurity, attackers suffer a -1 penalty to their attack rolls against you. Additionally, Obscurity often implies bonuses or penalties of ±1 per level to rolls or Scores that benefit from or are hindered by being obscured. Completely obscured targets, for instance, are typically untargetable.

Levels of Obscurity.

• Completely Obscured (+4 or -4). The target is entirely out of sight, such as being behind a solid object, fully inside another object, or otherwise invisible.

• Heavily Obscured (+3 or -3). The target is almost entirely hidden, with very little visible, such as being mostly behind an obstacle or heavily shrouded by an environmental effect.

• Moderately Obscured (+2 or -2). The target is partially hidden, with about half of its body obscured by an obstacle or environmental effect.

• Lightly Obscured (+1 or -1). Less than half of the target is hidden, but there is still enough cover to provide minor concealment.

When describing the cause of Obscurity, use the same terminology to indicate its degree of Obscurity, such as light fog, moderate darkness, or heavy foliage. This language will make it easily understood by all players the level of Obscurity an area has.

Obscurity Bonuses. Obscurity should never result in redundant bonuses or penalties for multiple parties involved. For example, if a Character is in darkness and is targeted by an attack, the attack might receive a -2 penalty for moderate darkness. However, also granting the Character a +2 bonus to Evasion would be redundant, as the adjustment has already been applied to the attacker. The same applies to a Character hiding with a +2 Bonus from Obscurity, and a creature looking for them with a -2 penalty to perceive.

In most instances, apply Obscurity bonuses to the one making a D20 roll, and not the passive party.

Common Causes of Obscurity. Obscurity can result from various factors, including:

• Environmental Effects. Fog, mist, darkness, smoke, or shadows.

• Cover. Walls, terrain, foliage, or objects.

• Creature Size. The size of the creature relative to the cover (e.g., a 1-meter-high wall provides moderate cover for a 2-meter-tall creature).

Distance-Based Obscurity. As an optional rule, distance may also obscure a target:

• Far Distance (65+ spaces). The target is heavily Obscured, or increases its Obscurity level by 3.

• Moderate Distance (33-64 spaces). The target is moderately Obscured, or increases its Obscurity level by 2.

• Close Distance (32 spaces). The target is lightly Obscured, or increases its Obscurity level by 1.

Complete Obscurity due to distance is typically caused by other factors, such as terrain blocking the line of sight or the target being entirely out of view.

Travel

Most of the time spent traveling will involve walking on familiar or perhaps unknown paths, with little action occurring. For this reason, travel should be broken up into specific events or milestones. Not every night will be a perfect opportunity for roleplay, nor will every day offer peak adventuring experiences; but a few of them can! It’s important to distribute social interactions, Encounters, and other engaging moments throughout the journey, focusing on the elements that make adventures truly great. You will learn more about these events in Chapter 2: Encounters.

Travel should not just be a part of an adventure; it could very well be the entire adventure! Perhaps after an especially difficult Encounter, a Character is forced off the path, only to later reunite after discovering hidden ruins that could hold clues or progression for the story.

Encounters. Skill Encounters, Combat Encounters, and social interactions should all be woven throughout travel as the events and milestones that make the journey exciting. Aim for 1 of these Encounters on a short trip, 3 for a moderate one, and 5-7 on a longer journey.

Travel Pace. The average party can travel at a pace of 8 kilometers per day. Traveling at a fast pace allows you to cover 10 kilometers per day, but at the end of each day at this pace, you must make a DS 10 Fortitude roll or gain a level of Exhaustion, which cannot be removed until after two Full Recoveries. The DS increases by 2 for each additional day spent traveling at this pace. A day of traveling implies that you spend 8 hours traveling, with the remainder of the day spent recovering and taking necessary breaks to set up camp, gather supplies, and attend to other tasks.

Vehicle Travel. Traveling with a vehicle usually incurs cost and can have varying speeds on land, water, and air. However, generally speaking, using a vehicle such as a horse-drawn carriage or boat to travel will not incur the exhaustion penalty associated with fast-paced travel.

Rest & Recovery

As your Characters navigate the world, they’ll inevitably face challenges, get hurt, and expend energy and resources. To stay at their best, Characters need at least 6–8 hours of sleep and around 2 hours of downtime each day. Without this essential rest, they risk exhaustion and may be unable to fully recover until they meet these basic needs.

The two main resources that Recovery restores are Health and Energy.

Health. This represents a creature's health and well-being, as well as their ability to endure damage and keep pushing forward, avoiding death.

Energy. This is the main resource used by all Characters to perform extraordinary acts, typically in the form of Powers and Techniques as outlined in Chapter 5: Powers & Techniques. This Energy can be represented in various ways, such as a Paladin's Faith, a Wizard's Mana, a Robot's Charge, a Fighter's Stamina, or an Alchemist's Supply. Energy represents the resource you expend to perform your Powers and/or Techniques as a Character.

Feat Uses. Some Feats have a number of uses that they regain each Partial or Full Recovery, as outlined in Chapter 3: Character Creation.

Requirements. To benefit from recoveries, a Character requires adequate nutrition and hydration for their size and species. Characters must have reasonably temperate conditions to rest, including bedding if necessary. Characters must doff armor to sleep properly.

Partial Recovery. You can choose to take two hours to rejuvenate, rest, prepare, and recover. This allows you to regain one fourth of both your maximum Energy and Health. Alternatively, you can choose to regain one-half of one of your maximum Health or Energy instead. You may choose to recover for two, four, or six hours, with each additional two-hour block providing the same benefit as the first.

Partial Recovery also causes some temporary effects on creatures to wear off. If any portion of Partial Recovery is interrupted, you do not gain the benefits of the interrupted time. For Recovery Periods longer than two hours, you only benefit from each two-hour Partial Recovery period completed before the interruption, unless you resume the Recovery within 10 minutes of the interruption.

Full Recovery. You may choose to take a Full Recovery, which lasts between eight and ten hours. This will fully restore your Energy and Health and remove most temporary effects. During this time, you may also engage in activities like investigating the area, repairing clothing, practicing Powers or Techniques, and keeping watch, as long as all Characters get at least eight hours of downtime, including sleep if needed.

If you choose to forgo a full recovery or cannot achieve an uninterrupted full recovery within a 24-hour period, your Character's maximum Energy and Health are reduced by one-fourth each. These values cannot recover above these reduced levels until a full recovery is completed. This effect accumulates for each 24-hour period without a Full Recovery, to a minimum of 1 Energy and 1 Health per Character.

Exhaustion

After entering the Dying condition and later becoming stabilized, resurrected, or revived, you gain the Exhaustion Condition. Exhaustion can also be acquired through other means, typically when pushing yourself beyond normal limits. It may be imposed upon you or voluntarily taken through various Feats, Traits, Powers, or Techniques.

For each level of Exhaustion, reduce all Bonuses and Evasion by an amount equal to that level. Additionally, for every 2 levels of Exhaustion (starting at level 2), your Speed is reduced by 1 space, to a minimum of 1. This affects all Scores calculated using Bonuses as well.

You can recover from Exhaustion incrementally; for each Full recovery, reduce your Exhaustion level by 1. If your Exhaustion level ever exceeds 10, your Character dies (see “Death and Dying” in Chapter 2: Encounters).

Hazards, Companions, & Other Mechanics

This section reviews the different hazards in Realms, how Companions work, and other mechanics.

Hazards

Suffocation. Characters usually need to breathe air, water, or another substance. When deprived of such a substance, they must hold their breath or begin suffocating.

Characters can hold their breath for a number of minutes equal to their Vitality, with a minimum of 30 seconds or 3 rounds. After which, Characters take 1d12 irreducible damage each round at the beginning of their turn until they can breathe.

Falling. When you fall, you take 1d4 bludgeoning damage for every 200 kilograms you weigh, per 2 spaces fallen (up to a maximum of 800 kilograms for 4d4 damage every 2 spaces). Creatures under 200 kg still take 1d4 fall damage as normal (weight rounds up to the nearest 200 kg). Roll Reflex (DS 10 + 1 for every 2 spaces fallen), if you succeed, you take half damage; if you fail, you take full damage and are knocked prone. If you land on another creature, it may attempt a Reflex roll (Same DS) to avoid being hit by you, splitting the damage between both you and the creature if it fails, and both you and the creature are knocked prone. Damage reduction effects do not reduce fall damage.

Your falling speed is 30 spaces, or 45 meters, per round.

Companions

Characters can have Companions; creatures with whom they share a connection and who are typically loyal to them. Companions could be summoned, tamed, trained, hired, or bought and could take many forms, such as sentient humanoids, constructs, swarms of bugs, or tamed beasts. There are no restrictions on the type of creature that can serve as a Companion, but the maximum level of a Companion is limited to half the Character’s level.

During Encounters, Companions can assist in various ways, including making attacks, using powers, performing skill rolls, and more as outlined in Chapter 2: Encounters.

Obtaining Companions. Companions can be obtained through various means, including specific feats, powers, or the downtime Bonding rules in Chapter 4: Equipment, Crafting & Downtime. Since Companions can take any form that fits the context, players are encouraged to choose creatures from the Realms Codex, or design or modify them using the Creature Creator.

Number of Companions. Characters can have as many Companions as they wish, but the effectiveness of a large group tends to diminish exponentially. To simplify mechanics, a Companion can be flavored as a "swarm" or group of creatures while still counting as a single entity.

Companion Equipment. Companions can use some equipment if their anatomy allows, but they must gain proficiency using training points or training as normal.

Companion Progression. Companions are creatures just like characters, with levels, feats, powers, weapons, and so on. A permanent Companion who consistently adventures with you gains levels by gaining ¼ of the experience your Character gains, and leveling as normal. This does not reduce the experience you gain.

You can also train Companions by spending time, resources, and Training Points as outlined in Chapter 4: Equipment, Crafting, & Downtime.

For more information on choosing or creating your own Companions, see Chapter 5: Powers & Techniques.