O'er Windswept Golden Fields: Errata, Refined Character Creation Tables, and Patches
So I ran my first playtest of O'er Windswept Golden Fields using these rules. I noticed some weirdness in my character creation tables that I wanted to fix as well as I wanted to give the players more things to work with and to define their characters with. The following Signature Items were a way to define the character more along with them mostly being things which can also work just as regular items.
Over the Garden Wall Poster by Anthony Petrie
I also wanted to amend the main roll mechanic:
Rolling the Dice: If players have made a good plan and executed it well, there is no need to roll dice. The actions just occur. If there is some doubt as to how certain parts of the plan would go then resolve them with dice.
Whenever you try something risky, roll+an appropriate Attribute (GM's choice). On a 6 or less, things don't go well and the risk turns out badly. A 7-9 is a partial success, the GM must offer the players a hard choice. A 10+ is a full success. Nothing goes wrong and you accomplish what you set out to do.
I like this wording of the rule because offering that hard choice is a lot more interesting and fun than me just arbitrating a penalty.
1d12 Signature Items:
- Signed Catcher's Mit: You always have a baseball somewhere on your person. Once per session, you may throw a ball just right, hitting a very precise target, hitting with just as much force as you wanted, ect.
- Adventure Novel: Once per session, describe something heroic that the protagonist did in your favorite adventure book earlier that inspired you, and you gain Advantage on all checks replicating this act until the end of the scene.
- Halloween Mask: Once per session, you may jump out and surprise something, scaring them. Creatures will respond accordingly. Small and weak things will be very frightened. Stronger creatures will be taken off guard for a moment, but you will always get a reaction.
- Pocket New Testament: Once per session, say a prayer, read some scripture, ect... to give an ally back 1d6 Stamina or Advantage on their next roll.
- Reading Flashlight: You've read a lot of books under the covers at night. Once per session, you may recall something you've read that might be pertinent to the situation and the GM must provide some insight into your present difficulties.
- Grandma Knit Blankie: You are safe and warm in your Grandma's love, plus you can feel like a superhero when you wear it like a cape! Once per session, cuddle up with your blanket and think of a warm moment with the people you love to return to restore yourself to full Stamina.
- Toolbox: You like to fix and tinker with things. You start with 3 Scrap. Once per session, you may very quickly whip together a useful invention out of 1 Scrap that can fit in your hand.
- Teddy Hugsalot: Once per session, when you share something you treasure with someone else, if they are at all amenable to it, they will become your friend. Very hostile creatures may not be affected but perhaps even one of them may opt to spare you or be moved.
- The Perfect Stick: When you lift this magical stick aloft, you feel the power of long lost wizards or daring knights rush through you! Once per session, you can strike true! A blow lands exactly hard enough, you push something or fell something just right, you hit a creature just where you want to or just how you want to, ect.
- Map of you Favorite Hidey Holes: You always win at hide and go seek. Once per session, if it is at all feasible that you can hide, you disappear without a trace. So long as you don't move, you cannot be found.
- Tag King Crown: You have never been it. Once per session, you can run away without difficulty. Whatever is chasing you cannot get you for this scene.
- Shakespearean Insult Book: Once per session, engage a creature in a battle of witty repartee. So long as you keep coming up with insults, they must respond to your barbs.
1d12 Head Gear:
- Pot
- Bucket with holes for eyes
- Strainer
- Baseball Cap
- Football Helmet
- Tinfoil Crown
- Cardboard box
- Glasses
- Bandanna
- Straw Hat
- Union Cap
- Dad's Fedora
1d12 Clothing:
- Scarf
- Football Pads
- School Uniform
- Overalls
- Patch-Covered Jacket
- Pan Armor
- Cardboard Box Armor
- Barrel Armor
- Baseball Uniform
- Toy Knight Armor
- Trash Can Lid Armor
- Fence Plank Armor
1d12 Weapon:
- Baseball Bat
- Hittin' Stick
- Cane
- Makeshift Wooden Sword
- Slingshot
- Beebee Gun
- Pocket Knife
- Frying Pan
- Old Fashioned Water Gun
- Pea Shooter
- Croquet Hammer
- Ruler
1d20 Other Stuff: (Roll three times)
- Matchbox
- Sidewalk Chalk
- Scrap
- Jump Rope
- Yoyo
- A bag of army men toys
- Chalk and Slate
- Bubblegum
- Bag of bouncy balls
- Bag of marbles
- Jacks
- Ball and Cup Game
- Hoola Hoop
- Candle
- Tin Lunchbox
- Box of Crayons
- Pair of Dice
- Loyal Dog
- Grandpa's Spyglass
- Loyal Mouse
1d12 Virtue:
- Courageous
- Perseverant
- Kind
- Curious
- Cautious
- Clever
- Humble
- Tactical
- Knowledgable
- Polite
- Honest
- Loyal
1d12 Vice: (Reroll if any contradict Virtue)
- Slothful
- Prideful
- Greedy
- Likes Sweets too Much
- Cowardly
- Rebellious
- Entitled
- Mean
- Awkward
- Overly Competitive
- Unfocused
- Narrow Minded
1d20 Your Dad is A: (Note: Old-timey aesthetics would have the dad be the working parent while the mom stays at home, however, this game is already plenty anachronistic, so if you would like to roll for both or one or the other parents, feel free. Just use this table twice.)
- Farmer
- Preacher
- Engineer
- Smith
- Butcher
- Librarian
- Teacher
- Milkman
- Mailman
- Shopkeep
- Mayor
- Plumber
- Truck Driver
- Military Man
- Writer
- Sheriff
- Banker
- Lumber Jack
- Hunter
- Carpenter
1d20 Personality Traits:
- Bookish
- Introverted
- Soft Spoken
- Loud
- Popular
- Innocent
- Mischievous
- Athletic
- Shy
- Leader
- Thrill-Seeking
- Air Headed
- Skinny
- Optimistic
- Stern
- Happy-Go-Lucky
- Trusting of Authority
- Picky
- Show Off
- Artistic
1d20 Physical Traits:
- Freckled
- Red Headed
- Chubby
- Lanky
- Blond
- Brown hair
- Black Hair
- Buck-Toothed
- Often Dirty
- Always Clean
- Blue Eyes
- Brown Eyes
- Green Eyes
- Gray Eyes
- Pale Eyes
- Dark Eyes
- Always Tired
- Super Energetic
- Small
- Tall
Patches: This is how I ran my game for the playtest: I laid out some Patches and at the end, we would all get to talk about who deserved which one, everyone could only get a Patch one time and no one could get more than one per session.
Peacemaker: Make an unlikely friend
Friend: Sacrifice something of yours or risk yourself to help another
Thinker: Solve a difficult problem or come up with an ingenious plan
Braveheart: Be the first to face a dangerous situation or take immediate action while others hesitate
Explorer: Discover something cool
Helper: Be ready to help someone in need
The Patches then allow you to get Advantage once per session on a roll related to the Patch. I'm not sure exactly how to do Patches for more long term play. I'd need a lot of Patches and I think it could be good to have Patches rewarded for sandbox play: like a Patch for Braving the Lost Dreams Express, but I think that would only make sense for play where the players could choose where to go and I think there would have to be a list of bonuses different from the patch themselves for such things so that not everyone was always getting the same rewards.
Leave a comment if you have more ideas for these virtue Patches or more ideas about how I could get Patches to work in the long run.
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