Knave (06-03-21)

 

I first heard of Knave when I bought Rakehell (though I have no idea what lead me to that) and did not really know what it was, though I have a feeling I may have looked it up on drivethrurpg at the time. It was after I got Mork Borg that I thought I should read some of the older OSR systems to see how it compared, having seen these references to Knave I assumed it must be old, or at least well established. Then I realized it was created by the Questing Beast guy (Ben Milton) who’s videos I'd been watching. That seems like ages ago now, more from the amount of Questing Beast I’ve watched and the number of games I've bought on his recommendation, than the actual length of time.

Knave is a 7 page, no frills pdf. Like Mork Borg it dispenses with the D&D Ability scores and uses only their bonuses, but is even more efficient - you roll 3d6 for each and keep the lowest die roll as the bonus. Savings throws are made by rolling a d20 and adding the appropriate ability bonus, with a total of 15+ granting success. To this it adds the concept of an ability Defense score - this is your bonus plus 10, the number which has to be beat (d20) in an Opposed Save, i.e. when an opponent is trying to do something to you, or you to an opponent. Hit Points (1d8) and Armour (the opposed save which must be beat to hit you) round out the character stats. Leveling up improves Armour and 3 other ability bonuses by 1, increases HP by 1d8 and happens every time you gain another 1000 xp.

There are no classes and encumbrance is a simple slot based system. Anyone can cast magic, but a spell book is a weighty item which takes up one slot and holds just one spell which can be used once per day, thus carrying a lot of spells comes at the expense of wearing armour etc.

Character Sheet

In addition to these elegant streamlined mechanics there are a number of really good d20 feature and personality tables to roll on, the combinations of which make for distinct, flavourful individuals. Having spent a considerable amount of time working on a complex procgen character system for a videogame I’m surprised by how evocative this small set is. A Background dictates what you did previous to becoming an adventurer (Alchemist, Cook, Outlaw etc) and a Misfortune explains why you've become just such a knave now (Addicted, Exiled, Robbed). Then there's a Virtue and a Vice, and adjectives for Physique, Face, Skin, Hair, Clothing & Speech.

From Random Charater Generator https://perchance.org/knave-lotfp

It also comes with notes on how to convert D&D monster stats (super easy), a list of 100 random spells, oh and like Mork Borg it has Morale and an NPC Reaction Table.

The whole thing is incredibly elegant and I’m using it as the system for this solo game I’m playing, critically my characters were all rolled using an online generator (the excellent one I used is 404 now, but this one here does the trick, albeit without the ability scores).

Knave is on Drivethru.