Icosa

Welcome to Icosa.

Here, mutant vagabonds stalk subterranean ruins of chrome for power beyond reckoning. Here, armored knights pilot roaring biplanes for gold and glory. Here, wizards roll polyhedrons and strive to understand the rules of the reality in which they live.

By chance or by design, yours is the unlucky fortune to be born into a world forsaken by its Gods and nearing its end. But this is your story, and stories are not written about those who wither and surrender under the callous decree of fate before they have had their say.

So fight—fight! against the dying light. Fight against the final pen-strokes of history. If you must live in this time, live as much as you can.

The Icosa RPG is a work in progress, and all content found here is subject to change.

This site is meant to serve as a free preview of the full version of the game and as a convenient reference for players and referees. As such, and for the sake of conciseness, this site omits many subtleties, situational rules, examples, and artworks, and does not include all spells, items, artifacts, regions, factions, and lore.

You can support the development of the game and get instant access to the latest version of the full game by becoming a Patron.

THE SETTING

Pierce the veil to the world of Icosa and explore one of its many weird regions

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HOW TO PLAY

Study the strange science of bridging the gap between our world and the world of Icosa

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ABOUT

Learn more about the project, its creators, and how you can support the development of the game

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THE SETTING

THE WORLD OF ICOSA

The world is dying.
The Gods have Abandoned it for their homes behind the sky.

The world is languishing.
Civilization after civilization rises and crumbles to dust.

The world is Cursed.
The ruins and artifacts make us sick and change us.

But they also bring us power.

Icosa is a world near the end of its existence. The better part of all that will ever be has already come to pass, and the ruins of countless eons before are scattered throughout the world like bones on the settled seafloor. But life goes on in this world, and one can even find a certain strange beauty in its dogged tenacity. After all, there is still some time—time enough, perhaps, to build a better world in which to ride out the final days.

According to legend, the Gods—or the Outsiders, as they are more commonly known—vanished from the world long ago in an apocalypse called the Departure. The once-great civilization of Icosa was cast to ruin.

They say that before the Departure, in the Age of Attendance, anything was possible. Humans lived for centuries, traveled to other worlds, and created unfathomably beautiful works of art. Now, in the Age of Abandonment, the scattered few civilizations that still stand cling desperately to survival.

A Curse ravages the world—the legacy of the Outsiders. It twists the land and its people into strange new shapes. Wizards and priests cast dice to commune with divinity. Warlords and kings spill rivers of blood for scraps of territory. Ruiners trespass in the realms of the ancients in search of relics of the Mystery, the magical force that once allowed humanity to work miracles under the supervision of the Outsiders.

The world is dark, wild, vast, and empty. But there is light in the darkness, order in the chaos, and substance in the nothingness for those with the will to draw it forth.

This is but the barest introduction to the world of Icosa. The full version of the Icosa RPG contains a wealth of knowledge on the true nature of the world, its history, and the Outsiders, as well as a whole continent of regions to explore and factions to befriend or oppose, countless spells and artifacts to wield, and beautiful full-color art.

the setting

THE MAP

The Setting

IURD

Iurd (pronounced YIRD) is a remote, humid, swampy region dominated by the sprawling delta of the Great Divider, the river that bisects the western continent of the known world. Although the region is nominally ruled by the city-state of Iurd, the greater part of the territory is unpatrolled and ungoverned, home only to vast mangrove forests, primordial fens, and remote hill tribes. Iurd's forsaken vistas belie its grandiose history; indeed, Iurd is believed by some to have been the site of the ancient capital of the world-spanning empire of the Outsiders during the bygone Age of Attendance.

ECOLOGY

Despite (or perhaps because of) Iurd’s abundance of toxic and Curse-ridden detritus, it is home to an astonishingly dense and diverse ecosystem of flora, fauna, and fungi. Naturalists who have described the ecology of Iurd typically divide the region into its dry, windswept highlands and its swampy lowlands.

The highlands of Iurd feature hills of dry, sometimes sandy soil. Over the centuries, the land has been ravaged by strong winds and acid rains, which dissolve and poison the soil and wash its nutrients down into the lowland valleys and swamps. As a result, the hills are largely barren, although hardy, gnarled trees, windswept shrubs, and pale grasses do grow in certain places.

Few herbivores are capable of digesting the tough, toxic vegetation that grows in the highlands. The largest and most common of them is the unibex, sometimes known as the Iurdic unicorn due to the singular long, straight horn of the male. These goat relatives scale the hills and crags in search of their strange fare; the female uses her shorter, spade-like horn to dig up roots and tubers, which are shared among the harem of the male. The male, who does not engage in foraging, instead uses his massive horn to fence with rivals for the rights to territory and mates. The unibex has been independently domesticated by both the hill tribes and the people of the lowlands, and several domesticated morphs exist, each specialized for the production of either wool, meat, or milk; in all cases, the horns of the males are disbudded at birth.

The only large predator in the highlands is the hell bat, a large, carnivorous bat that preys upon the unibex, typically grabbing them with their well-developed talons and dragging them off of sheer drops, where they fall to their death. The hell bats hunt day and night and have been known to fly away with small children and even attack adults in times of famine.

Overland travel in the highlands of Iurd is dangerous, not least because of the pitmaws. These insectoid creatures create patches of unstable land in the grit and sand and lie in wait for animals and people to become mired in their trap. They then suck down the sand, and their prey along with it. Those caught in the gut of a pitmaw are doomed to be ground up and dissolved over the course of several weeks—legends say the victims of pitmaws sometimes die of starvation before they can be digested.

The lowlands of Iurd are home to a much denser web of life. Naturalists speculate that the bizarre niche-assignment observable in the lowlands is the result of a curious event that occurred long ago, before the natural sciences had been reborn. According to Yelich’s Saprotrophic Vacuum Hypothesis, an unknown event (presumably an Arcane catastrophe) wiped out the dominant fungi and bacteria responsible for the decomposition of lignin, the material of which bark is composed. This resulted in a long period during which most woody plant life did not decompose, as there were no organisms capable of breaking it down. Over time, new organisms filled the vacant niche—most notably, a particular symbiotic unit of fungus and bacterium called slush. The great piles and deep layers of dead wood slowly began to be consumed, resulting in the formation of gigantic mounds of slush that still fester today in the mangrove forests and alkali fens. These slush piles now constitute a significant portion of the base of the food chain in the Iurdic lowlands. Travelers should be warned—although the slush is vital to the life of the ecosystem, it also produces a noxious gas that has a tendency to pool in low-lying places, such as at the bottoms of valleys and in caves.

Many herbivores feast upon the nutritious slurry of partially-decayed wood and slush, but the most prominent of them is the spadetooth. The massive spadetooth uses its oversized lower incisors to scoop vast amounts of the slurry into its mouth. The spadetooth’s feeding process is thought to be partially responsible for the very slow rate of decomposition within the slush piles. Nevertheless, the slush piles shrink each year, and it is unclear what will become of these creatures when their primary food source is gone.

Where there are grazers, there will nearly always be carnivores to prey upon them. Such is the role of the muck terror, a large reptile that lurks in the piles and pools of slush, waiting for spadetooths and other slush-eaters to approach before snapping at their legs and throats with its powerful jaws. Although the muck terror is not immune to the toxic emissions of the slush piles, it survives for extended periods within the squirming mass by dint of the enormous air sacs beneath its skin.

The muck terrors are not the only predators that ply the toxic delta of Iurd, however. The most abundant of the swampland’s numerous ambush predators are the sluggers, a kind of gregarious, tree-dwelling mollusk. These creatures congregate in the wetland understory, waiting for vulnerable prey to pass below. Using their aerodynamic shells and an instinctual ability to calculate trajectory, they hurl themselves at their prey in great numbers, bringing their quarry down through concussions and broken bones. The sluggers then swarm over their fallen prey and consume it by secreting digestive juices and lapping up the resultant slurry.

The most feared of all the creatures that hunt the Iurdic delta is undoubtedly the red devil. This enormous cousin of the humble bat emerges at dusk to stalk the swamps and fens by echolocation. Although it lacks the leathery wings of its airborne kin, the red devil is still a formidable predator, pouncing upon and trapping its prey in a nigh-inescapable “finger cage” and rending its victim with horrid tooth and claw.

In the outlying areas beyond the rivers and deltas of Iurd, a wholly distinct ecosystem has emerged around the fens that have separated from the dominant riparian biosphere. The deep ponds are home to enormous toads and gargantuan insects. Although it spends its life hidden from human observers, one of the most striking organisms in the Iurdic fens is the lilytop, a gigantic, long-necked reptile that makes its home underwater. Its massive body treads the heavily sedimented floors of the brackish ponds, but its long neck extends to the surface of the water, where its enormous, lily pad-like crest serves as a base of operations for the great amphibians that lie in wait for their prey—the oversized insects of the Iurdic wetlands. The lilytops feast on the annual smorgasbord of freshly-laid insect larva on the surface of the ponds and remain in a state of torpor for the rest of the year. In return for a safe hunting ground, the gigantic toads clean the lilytops of parasites and defend them from predators.

On the southern coast, where the Great Divider meets the Gulf of Ghosts, the ecosystem is dominated by relatives of the common bats of Iurd. Naturalists are unsure what forces pressed the birds out of their ecological niche, but it is theorized that the native bats of the river delta assumed their roles through adaptive radiation. Salt skimmers scoop up surface fish with their massive lower jaws; chirospreys snatch breaching tuna from the air; aerospears dive to depths of up to twenty feet in pursuit of shoals of fleet fish.

The ecology of Iurd is curious and not well studied. Its instability renders it an exciting target for scientists hailing from as far north as Kampennen. Due to the widespread belief that the saprotrophic base of the Iurdic food web is sure to result in a destabilization in the near future once the ancient reserves of fallen trees are consumed, there is never a shortage of naturalists investigating, sketching, and describing the weird biosphere of Iurd.

HISTORY

According to legend, Iurd was once the capital of the Most Superior of the Heavenly Provinces of Icosa. The unbelievable density of ruins from the Age of Attendance that lie languishing and crumbling in the sunken mires of Iurd seems to testify to the truth of these myths. Truly, nowhere else in Icosa, except perhaps in Necropolis, can such a concentration of advanced, ruined architecture be found.

Few archaeological reports of any significance exist, as the population of explorers willing to traverse the treacherous swamps of Iurd is curiously small. The daring few who have trudged through the murk and lived to tell the tale write of astonishingly gigantic superstructures, mystifying architectures of inscrutable purpose, and a startling abundance of shrines, temples, and others sites of religious significance. Their findings seem to evidence the monumental significance of Iurd as a site of worship and governance in ancient times.

In a manuscript titled On the Linguistic Origins of the Common Tongue and Its Inheritance from the Ancient Empire of Iurd, the linguist Ryuiwo of Iurd makes an argument for Iurd as the ancient capital of a world-spanning empire during the ancient Age of Attendance. The argument goes that, given the similarities between the language spoken in present-day Iurd and the disparate, yet mutually intelligible, languages understood as “Common” throughout the rest of the world, all of these languages must have had a common ancestor. This is supported by the fact that “Common,” or “Low Iurdic,” as it is called in Iurd, has no linguistic relationship with any known pre-Age of Attendance language. In his paper, Ryuiwo argues for Iurd as a point of origin for the common tongue on the grounds of a thorough reverse-engineering of the various dialects of Common in accordance with linguistic shifts in pronunciation, morphology, and vocabulary, as attested by various historical texts. According to Ryuiwo, any other extant language spoken throughout the known world that is not related to Iurdic is either a sectarian tongue that evolved into a popular language, an ancestral tongue that reemerged after the imposition of the Imperial language ended, or a deliberately constructed language designed to exclusivize national or ethnic membership in contrast to the accessible common tongue.

CULTURE

In the intervening years since the Departure, Iurd has utterly abandoned its former grandeur—now it lies in ruin, its people eking out a living in the shadows of the wreckage of the prior age. Although it is a poor region, its basic unit of currency, the vozin, is extremely powerful, as it contains traces of the exotic metals brought to Icosa from beyond the sky—from the throne-worlds of the Outsiders.

The people of Iurd are surrounded by unignorable remnants of the past—sprawling ruins and magnificent towers jut from their sunken foundations in the mire, slowly being devoured by the acidic, corrosive rain endemic to the region. Unfortunately, the better part of the most obvious ruins have been picked clean by agents of the Sunset Cartel, the Last Church, the Green Baron, and other pilferers. Those who seek to capitalize on the rich concentration of ruins must test their mettle in the Sunken Lands.

The Sunken Lands is the name that the people of Iurd give to the endless miles of crumbling, moldering cities that lie deep in the treacherous swamps. The better part of the territory of Iurd is unfit for settled habitation, being utterly and hopelessly swampy, consigned to the tumultuous whims of the violent tides. Nevertheless, the abundance of ruins shows that this was not always the case. The vast, unsettled swathes of the river delta play host to monumental ruins, each assuredly rife with treasure uncountable. However, the dangers of the Iurdic flora and fauna, the roving hill tribes, and the toxic ecology guard the wealth of the ancients from all but the most intrepid of explorers.

But most Iurds are not explorers; rather, they are farmers. The land in Iurd is not conducive to the cultivation of a great variety of crops. However, a certain herb—lithium weed—grows well in the flooded paddies of the low country. Prized by the Vothans, the Damonians, and the Kaph Satraps as a power source, lithium weed is the premier cash crop of Iurd. The peasant class, responsible for cultivating the weed, is kept in poverty by the unregulated, predatory business practices of landlords and agricultural merchants.

In addition to the quasi-slavery of lithium weed sharecroppers, slavery of metahumans and the Accursed is legal and popular in Iurd. Although there are many free metahumans and Accursed, they face astonishing prejudice, the likes of which is rarely seen in other parts of the world. This is likely connected with the fact that the Last Church has a significant presence in Iurd.

The Last Church is an ancient and powerful religious institution that traces its origins to the Age of Attendance, when the Outsiders ruled Icosa. They despise the robotic irthmade, the mutated metahumans, and the Accursed, who are sometimes referred to collectively as abhumans. Iurd is a region is of great ecclesiastical importance to the Last Church, as it is thought to have once been the seat of the world-spanning empire of the Outsiders during the Age of Attendance. The Iurdic See, also called the Holy See, is the most sacred of all of the Sees, governed by the Pontiff itself.

The people of the Iurdic lowlands live in caution, and sometimes in fear, of the hill tribes of Iurd. Little is known of the diverse peoples that live among the battered ruins and sandy hilltops of the Iurdic highlands. Some of the tribes are known to be intelligent and amicable. Within the patrolled territory of the City of Iurd, most of the hill tribes are indistinguishable from the residents of the civilized river valley, and some of the clans are even thought to be human. Farther beyond the reaches of civilization, the outlying tribes are composed of beings that are something else. Iurdic folktales hint at blood rituals and strange, moonlit rites. Stories of abductions, raids, and even warfare are common throughout the delta. Travelers are bidden to beware the highlands—they are advised to travel through the dense swamps and fens, for the perils of the wilderness are preferable to the brutality of those who live above.

THE CITY OF IURD

The region of Iurd is named after its capital, a squalid city hunched in the shadow of a great ruin of the Age of Attendance. Although the megastructures of the city and the outlying countryside attest to the former greatness of Iurd, the contemporary settlement is a sorry sight. The buildings are nestled in the shelter of a half-shattered dome of some glass-like material—perhaps the shell of an enormous, forsaken arcology. Whatever the case, it is still sound enough to protect the people of Iurd from the sizzling acid rain that belches forth from the sky in the wet season.

The population of Iurd mostly consists of metahumans of some form or another. However, this majority status does not protect them from discrimination from the humans of Iurd. While the metahumans have little sense of unity among themselves, making it difficult to effect any organized resistance, they are perceived as a unity by the prejudiced humans of the region, which makes it all the easier to oppress them. Of course, not all of the humans of Iurd are prejudiced, and there are metahumans who wield significant power in the city. Alas, most of the powerful humans do scorn the metahumans, and those few metahumans who hold positions of power are more than willing to step on others of their own Kind to maintain their status.

As in the Empire of Damos, the government of Iurd is heavily influenced by the Last Church. However, in Iurd, the Church’s control is virtually absolute. Iurd is a true theocracy. It is governed by a council of powerful merchants and landowners chaired by the Archbishop of the City of Iurd. This holy chancellor is vested with the authority to make unilateral decisions on behalf of the Iurdic people; the council serves as a board of advisors. This council meets in the Sovereign Cathedral, an ancient house of worship constructed in the architectural style of Age of Attendance-era Iurd.

THE SUNSET CARTEL

The Sunset Cartel is the largest and most powerful purveyor of the drug known as magic, torch, or blue—a narcotic substance derived from Arcane fuel sources—on the continent. Their position in Iurd and their access to powered boats allows them to move product up the Great Divider to the Middleveldt, Halacen, Kampennen, Eldol, and Damos, as well as across the Gulf of Ghosts to Xixli and Kaph. It is rumored that they even supply magic to some of the northern tribes of Eqo.

The Last Church fights vigorously to keep magic out of Damos, as even casual usage can cause the user to suffer the effects of the Curse. It is not easy to battle the Sunset Cartel, however, as the mountains of gold they have gained in their illicit business has allowed them to equip themselves with all manner of exotic weaponry and defenses. This, combined with their clever guerilla tactics and lack of a known headquarters, makes striking against them nearly impossible. Their experience tinkering and tampering with Arcana in order to extract magic has also rendered them well-versed in the Mystery, and their most senior members are formidable foes indeed.

RUMORS

Some, all, or none of the following rumors might be true:

HOW TO PLAY

THE CORE MECHANIC

Use the tabs at the top of the page to navigate to the advanced rules—Exploration, Violence, Characters, Equipment, Magic, and Running the Game

Icosa is a world apart from our own, or perhaps within it. It is very different from our world in many ways; in other ways, it is quite similar. Although these worlds are divided, it is possible, with the proper tools and techniques, to bridge the gap and connect them. This process is best explained as a game.

This game requires a minimum of two players. One player prepares and presents the world of Icosa to be explored, with all of its characters, locations, and mysteries. This player is called the Interpreter. The other players each control a single character within the world.

The game is played in conversation. The Interpreter establishes a situation for the players. The players describe how their characters respond. The Interpreter describes the situation that results from the players’ actions. And so on, evermore.

But not everything can be so simple, for danger hangs above the world of Icosa as a threatening blade, eager to fall at any moment. Often, characters will need to try difficult things, and they may fail. When uncertainty arises within the conversation, the players must do as the wizards, oracles, and hierophants of Icosa have done for generations: consult the polyhedrons.

Although the Outsiders—the Gods of Icosa—have gone, most believe that their power still crosses the black gulf between Icosa and the twinkling Godhomes beyond the firmament. It is held in the religion called Polyhedronism that the Outsiders yet sit upon their cataclysmic thrones, observing and adjudicating with irreproachable wisdom, and that they may, peradventure, counsel the faithful through the oracular movements of cast dice.

The most important aspect of the core mechanic is that it is only activated in a very specific situation. The core mechanic comes into play only when an action taken by a character is difficult or risky and when the outcome of the situation will have a meaningful impact on the story. The dice are sacred, and they should be invoked only when common sense cannot do the job.

THE CHECK

In the world of Icosa, stats, skills, and other things are represented by dice ranging in rank from D4 to D12.

When a character takes an action the outcome of which is uncertain and narratively significant, they choose a relevant skill or stat and roll the associated die, hoping for a result equal to or greater than the target number.

The target is usually 4, but the Interpreter can adjust it if they see fit.

Dice explode, meaning that if a roll returns its maximum value, the die is rolled again, and the result is added. This can happen forever, but it probably won't. Rolls that use multiple dice only explode if all of the dice return their maximum value. Rolls on tables don't explode.

If the check succeeds, the character gets what they want, more or less. If the check fails, the Interpreter determines what happens.

Checks can also result in a critical success. The target for a critical success is 12. If the result of a check is greater than or equal to 12, the Interpreter will describe how the attempt spectacularly exceeded all expectations. In combat, this results in an attack dealing double the damage or triggering some other dazzling bonus effect. In other scenarios, the Interpreter and the player should decide on a boon together—perhaps while attempting to disarm the anti-ontological landmine, the party’s technician discovers a valuable treasure within.

UNSKILLED CHECKS

If a character has no relevant skill, they roll a D4 twice and take the worse of the two results. After making an unskilled check, a character can define a proto-skill and begin training it (see Character Advancement).

OPPOSED CHECKS

A character opposing an action rolls the die associated with the skill or stat with which they are opposing the action. The result of this roll serves as the target for the roll of the character attempting the opposed action.

ADVANTAGE AND DISADVANTAGE

Advantage means rolling twice and taking the better of the two results. Disadvantage is the opposite. For example, unskilled checks are checks made at disadvantage.

EXPLORATION

EXPLORATION

MAJOR TURNS

Things that take a while, like travel and resting, use major turns. There are 6 major turns of equal length in a day, representing dawn, morning, midday, afternoon, evening, and night.

The following are some actions characters might take during a major turn.

TRAVEL

The party chooses a direction and travels a number of miles equal to the speed of their slowest member. The speed of a typical encumbered character is 5; the speed of a typical unencumbered character is 10.

If a party travels for more than 3 major turns without resting, characters must make a CON check or else suffer a nonspecific CON Wound representing exhaustion (see Damage & Recovery). Irthmade characters are not subject to exhaustion.

If it is possible that the party might become lost, a member of the party should act as a navigator, making a check with a relevant skill. If the check fails, the party realizes they have spent the turn traveling in a random, incorrect direction. A successful skill check reorients the party. Maps and competent directions confer advantage to these checks.

EXPLORE

Characters may explore their surroundings to locate points of interest or useful items and information. Everyone who explores can make a skill or ATN check; if successful, the Interpreter will reward the exploration with some boon.

FORAGE

Characters may attempt to gather food while the party is halted. Each character who succeeds on a relevant skill check obtains 1 day’s rations.

REST OR SLEEP

Characters who rest recover D4 CON and ATN, or 2D4 if a skilled healer of mental or physical damage is present and able to tend them.

Characters resting at full CON or ATN may attempt to recover from a single Wound of each type by successfully checking the appropriate stat. Alternatively, a skilled healer can make the check with their healing skill instead.

Resting recharges the rotes of casters (but not other spells).

Sleeping is the same as resting, but characters recover 2D4 CON and ATN, or 3D4 if tended to by a skilled healer. Characters who have not slept after 4 consecutive major turns suffer a nonspecific ATN Wound representing exhaustion.

It is sometimes possible for characters to rest or sleep while traveling, but only if they are traveling in the most comfortable of conditions.

Note that irthmade cannot recover CON by resting or sleeping.

TRAIN OR STUDY

To train or study, the character must have access to some means of improvement, such as a book, a mentor, or a project to tinker with. At the end of the turn, the character marks an experience point on a relevant skill.

As a general rule, a single book or project can only be studied once, and a mentor can only train a character up to their own skill level.

Training or studying while traveling may be possible depending on the context; for example, a character could read while riding in an autocarriage, but they could not easily practice climbing while traveling on horseback.

MINOR TURNS

Minor turns are shorter periods used, for instance, when exploring dense forests or hypogean ruins. A minor turn is the amount of time required for a party or party member to execute a significant action. Actions that might be taken in a minor turn include moving from one room to another, thoroughly searching a room, picking a lock, or exploring a small glade in the forest. Depending on the context, the party may act as a unit or as individuals.

EVENTS

Every major or minor turn, after characters have stated what they intend to do, the Interpreter rolls for Events.

THE CURSE

The Curse is perhaps the most ubiquitous, dangerous, and mysterious occupational hazard of the adventurer. Precious little is known for certain about the Curse. Where it comes from, its capabilities, and how to avoid or break the Curse are all subjects of intense controversy—wars have been fought over the nature of the Curse. At least one well-known manifestation of the Curse is the manner in which it destroys the bodies of the lifeforms it afflicts. Slowly, over time, the Accursed rot from the inside out. It is a terrible way to die.

Human and metahuman characters have a Curse Meter, a 100-point scale that measures the severity of their Curse. When player-characters encounter the Curse, the Interpreter will inform them that they have gained a certain amount of Curse, which is added to their Curse Meter. It is up to the players to ascertain the source of the danger, which may not always be clear.

The Curse Meter features a number of thresholds. When a character’s Curse Meter meets or exceeds a threshold, the player should inform the Interpreter, who will determine what effects befall the character based on knowledge known only to them.

Characters have a Curse Armor Value (CAV) which describes the effectiveness of various protective measures they take against the Curse. Incoming Curse damage is reduced by a character’s CAV. For instance, if a character with a CAV of 8 would receive 10 Curse, they only receive 2.

Irthmade halve any Curse gained and subtract the number directly from their CON—they do not use the Curse Meter.

There are many interpretations of the nature of the Curse, and just as many theories on how to avoid it. The following methods are often thought to protect one from the Curse for one reason or another:

OTHER HAZARDS

In certain conditions, such as extreme temperatures or terrible weather, the Interpreter may require checks each turn on pain of damage or Wounds. This damage can represent physical exhaustion or psychological fatigue. Preparing for adventures through perilous country and packing wisely can save characters from this danger.

In addition, as the result of failed rolls or foolish character actions (such as wading through stagnant water with an open wound), characters may contract parasites, diseases, infections, and other nasty conditions. Common sense, medicine, and competent healers are essential resources for adventurers.

NOURISHMENT

Characters are assumed to eat and drink throughout the day. On the first major turn of each day, all characters who need to eat mark off 1 days’ rations. Animals can graze in environments similar to their natural habitats.

Characters who fail to consume sufficient rations begin to starve, taking a Wound from starvation or dehydration each day.

SOCIAL ENCOUNTERS

REACTION CHECK

Sometimes, the initial disposition of creatures or non-player characters towards the party will be obvious or pre-planned. In the case of unexpected encounters, this may not be the case. Upon first encountering a stranger or a group of strangers, the character that is to represent the group should roll a reaction check (2D6).

PARLEY

Negotiations use opposed checks. The character attempting to get something from the non-player character, whether it be a favor, some information, or a better price, rolls a relevant skill. The non-player character “defends” with their ATN or a relevant skill of their own. A success means the non-player character is convinced; a failure may mean that their disposition toward the character worsens.

This same procedure can be used for lying to a non-player character. When a player suspects that a non-player character is lying to them, they may, if they choose, roll ATN or a relevant skill to detect the lie.

A character can attempt to ingratiate themselves with a non-player character by offering something to them—a gift or a compliment, perhaps—and making a relevant skill check against the non-player character’s ATN. If the check fails, the non-player character is unimpressed; if the check succeeds, the character makes subsequent social rolls with the non-player character with advantage (this effect will go away should the relationship sour).

VIOLENCE

COMBAT

SURPRISE & ENCOUNTER DISTANCE

Often, the terms of an engagement will already be clear from the narrative context. For unexpected encounters, such as those that arise from Events, it may be necessary to determine surprise and encounter distance.

When one group surprises another, each member of the surprising group may take any action they please before initiative is determined and proper combat begins.

For encounter distance, roll a D10 and multiply it by 100 feet outdoors or 10 feet indoors.

INITIATIVE

At the beginning of a combat, every character present rolls a D20; they act in order of the result, highest acting first, lowest acting last. The actions of characters with matching initiative rolls are resolved simultaneously. The Interpreter may choose to make a collective initiative roll for groups of like enemies.

Combat takes place in violence turns. In a single violence turn, a character has a movement and an action, although some special abilities may modify this.

At a character’s option, they may choose to hold their action. When a character chooses to hold their action, they must define the action they wish to take and a specific trigger for the action. For instance, “Telekett will attack with his spear if the melting oilworm passes through the archway.” If the trigger does not occur, neither does the action. A character can reassess the next time they have initiative and either take a different action or continue to hold the same action.

MOVEMENT & DISTANCE

Range is abstract. The ranges used in combat are close, near, far, and distant. These ranges can also be used to represent areas. Anything beyond distant is dealt with on a case-by-case basis.

A character can use their movement to move to anything close and still act. A character can sacrifice their action to move somewhere near. To move somewhere far in one violence turn requires sacrificing one’s action and successfully checking a relevant skill, such as Undercity Courier (target 4 by default). Moving somewhere distant almost always requires multiple turns, special abilities and equipment notwithstanding.

ACTIONS

An action can be virtually anything—healing, casting a spell, and of course, attacking. Players are encouraged to describe what their character does without looking at any pre-written list of actions and then determine how to use the rules to resolve the situation, using common sense, creativity, and the core mechanic to figure out how an action should work.

Below, some of the most common combat actions are explored. This list is by no means exhaustive, and players should feel free to try anything they think might work in combat. For information on magical attacks and spellcasting, see Magic.

MELEE ATTACKS

Melee attacks use opposed checks. The attacker makes a check with a relevant skill, and the defender checks a relevant skill to block or avoid the attack. The result of the defender’s roll is the target for the attacker’s roll; as such, the attacker wins in the event of a tie. If the attacker’s check succeeds, their attack lands and they can deal damage to their target.

All weapons have a damage die or dice that determines how much damage the weapon deals to its target on a successful hit. Unarmed strikes deal D4 damage. Other melee attacks, such as pushing an opponent off a ledge, deal damage situationally. The Interpreter determines situational damage.

Outnumbering

When one side is more numerous than the other, the weaker side is said to be outnumbered. When a group of attacking characters outnumber a foe, they gain a +1 bonus to their melee skill check and their damage rolls for each additional assailant beyond the first. Large groups of enemies are very dangerous.

Targeted Strikes

If a combatant wishes to direct an attack at a specific part of their opponent’s body, the defender rolls their check at advantage to block or avoid the attack. Targeted strikes can be used to strike at a vital area, like the head, in which case the attack deals double damage. Targeted strikes against other body parts may have other narrative effects.

Targeted strikes can also be used to attack unarmored parts of an opponent’s body or chinks in their armor; if the attack is successful, the target is treated as if they are unarmored for the purposes of calculating the damage of the attack.

RANGED ATTACKS

Ranged attacks are rolls against the default target, 4. In close-quarters combat, the target of the ranged attack makes a defensive roll, just as they would in melee combat, and the result of that roll serves as the target. If the ranged attack succeeds, the attacker deals damage based on their weapon.
There are a number of factors that could increase the target number of a ranged attack.

First, it is possible to direct an attack toward a particular part of a target. This is known as a called shot. Shooting a limb can cripple it, causing a target to drop what they are holding or fall over. Shooting a vital area deals double damage. Shooting some other part may have other effects as determined by the Interpreter. These called shots are difficult, and they modify the target of the shot.

Additionally, targets may be harder to hit with ranged attacks if they are in cover, including the cover of darkness. This difficulty is also represented through adjusting the target number of the shot.

Finally, shooting from a moving platform, like a car or a plane, will cause the target to increase.

As with any check, the Interpreter is free to adjust the target as they see fit. The following table provides some examples of common target adjustments for ranged attacks.

Aiming

A character may elect to spend their entire action taking careful aim at a target. If they fire at that target on their next turn, they are guaranteed to hit.

Friendly Fire

On a result of 1 for a ranged attack, if there is a reasonable chance that a missile might hit someone other than the intended target, the missile hits a random alternative target instead.

PSYCHOLOGICAL ATTACKS

Psychological attacks use opposed checks. The attacker makes a check with a relevant skill. The defender checks their ATN or a relevant skill. If the attacker’s roll succeeds, they deal ATN damage equal to the result of their roll. This damage ignores armor (but not psychic armor).

DEFENDING

A defending character checks a relevant skill against a target of 4. If successful, the character they defended gains advantage on any check they make to oppose a melee attack until the defending character’s next turn. At their option, a defending character can choose to redirect an attack meant for the person they are defending toward themselves. In addition, all ranged attacks coming from the direction in which the character is defending hit them instead. Standing in defense of an object simply results in an opposed check or regular combat.

COUP DE GRACE

A completely helpless target, such as one that is bound, unconscious, or unarmed and in total surrender, may be killed or knocked unconscious as an action with no roll required.

MORALE CHECKS

Non-player characters make morale checks to determine if they will retreat or surrender under certain circumstances. Non-player characters make morale checks at the beginning of combat if they are facing overwhelming odds (e.g., outnumbered more than 2 to 1), when they take their first casualty, when they lose half their forces, and when a leader is killed. Morale checks are ATN checks against a target of 4. Groups use the ATN die of a leader if one is present. Lone combatants make morale checks when they lose half their max CON or ATN.

Note that these rules apply to enemies and henchmen aligned with the party. Note further that certain factors can cause characters to break these rules—fanatical characters, constructs, undead lifeforms, and other unusual foes may fight to the death even if all odds are against them.

VIOLENCE

DAMAGE & RECOVERY

In the world of Icosa, damage is somewhat abstract—it is anything that reduces a character’s CON or ATN. Since CON and ATN are abstract measures of a character’s overall life-force—their spirit, their sanity, their will to live, their physical body—many things can affect them. Illness or inclement weather may chip away at CON; blows to morale or extended stays in terrifying places may slowly drain ATN. As CON and ATN wear down, characters become susceptible to more acute moments of danger. Remember that CON and ATN are more than how much of a beating a character can take—they represent their will to go on.

WOUNDS & DEATH

There are two Wound Tables: the CON Wound Table and the ATN Wound Table. When a player-character is reduced to zero CON or ATN, they roll a D20 and consult the corresponding Wound Table. Every time a character takes further damage to a stat when it is at zero, they roll on the corresponding Wound Table and receive another Wound. A character can sustain up to 3 Wounds. Both CON and ATN Wounds count toward this total and must be healed in some way to be removed. Each Wound inflicts a cumulative -1 penalty on all rolls (excluding rolls on tables).

If a character receives damage while they already have 3 Wounds, they are out of the action. If the incoming damage is physical, the character typically immediately dies, but in some cases, they may have time for final words. If the incoming damage is psychological, the character may lose their mind, perish from a heart attack, or flee and abandon the adventuring life forever—in any case, the character is gone for good. Players should collaborate with the Interpreter to choose a mutually satisfactory end to their character’s adventuring career.

Most non-player characters will have their fate decided by the Interpreter when they reach zero CON or ATN. However, important non-player characters, as defined by the Interpreter, follow the same rules as player-characters and are capable of sustaining a number of Wounds.

RECOVERY

HEALING CHECKS

Healing checks may only be made shortly after damage is taken—no more than a full day later. A character with a relevant skill may check their skill against a target of 4. If successful, the character they are healing regains CON or ATN equal to the result of the roll—which stat is healed depends on the skill. A given healer may only attempt this check once per subject.

HEALING THROUGH REST

Characters mainly heal over time. When a character spends a turn resting, they regain D4 CON and ATN, or 2D4 if tended to by a skilled healer. When a character spends a turn sleeping, they regain 2D4 CON and ATN, or 3D4 if tended to by a skilled healer. Irthmade characters cannot recover CON in this way.

When a character spends a major turn resting or sleeping at maximum CON or ATN, they may attempt to recover from any number of CON or ATN Wounds, respectively, by checking the stat associated with the Wound. Alternatively, a character with a relevant healing-oriented skill can check with their skill to treat the injured player in lieu of a CON or ATN check.

RECOVERY FOR IRTHMADE

Irthmade characters do not recover CON in the normal way. They must be repaired by a mechanically skilled character and they must have access to the requisite tools and materials. An attempt to repair an irthmade character requires a major turn. A successful skill check restores CON equal to the result of the roll. Irthmade characters recover from CON Wounds by replacing the damaged component with a substitute part. This also requires a successful skill check, time, and tools.

CON WOUNDS

ATN WOUNDS

VIOLENCE

VEHICULAR COMBAT

Vehicular and mounted combat is more abstract than combat on foot. This is primarily due to the greater speeds involved—keeping track of where everyone is at all times is much more difficult at high speed, especially in three dimensions, as in the case of aerial combat. Instead, each violence turn should be seen as a series of attempted maneuvers—the operators are trying their best to get into an advantageous position where they can make their move, be it attacking, maneuvering, or disengaging. A failed roll may mean that the attack missed, or it may indicate that the attacker simply was not able to position themselves to make an attack in the first place.

Characters have an action on their turn. An action can be anything—attacking an enemy, performing a risky maneuver, or narratively repositioning a vehicle.

In combat, characters can make actions related to riding their mount or operating their vehicle on their turn in the normal fashion. For instance, a character riding a horse can attempt to steer it into a gully where it will be difficult to fire, and the pilot of a plane can attempt a maneuver to disengage from a dogfight. However, if a mounted character or a character operating a vehicle wishes to take an action unrelated to riding the mount or operating the vehicle, such as firing a gun from horseback or attempting to repair an instrument panel, they do so at disadvantage (unless they have the Distracted Driving signature). This represents the difficulty of splitting one’s attention between the task and the operation of the vehicle.

Some vehicles have built-in weaponry designed to be used by the operator, like a nose-mounted machine gun on a plane or landship. In this situation, the operator can use their action to attack with the built-in weapon using their relevant skill. This counts as an action related to operating the vehicle, and thus does not incur disadvantage.

Specifically in the case of aerial dogfights, unlike with typical ranged attacks on foot, an airplane that is the target of a ranged attack may make an opposed check to avoid the attack.

MANEUVERS

Maneuvers are risky actions undertaken when operating a vehicle, such as going over jumps, flying through canyons, power diving, and more. Sometimes, maneuvers are used to avoid obstacles or react to sudden danger, in which case a simple check of the relevant skill is called for. Other times, maneuvers may be used offensively or defensively. Maneuvers may be used to disengage from combat or force an enemy into an undesirable position. These maneuvers use opposed checks. Players are encouraged to come up with their own maneuvers, and the Interpreter is encouraged to reward creativity with mechanical and narrative boons. For instance, a pilot may attempt to force another pilot into a tailspin. If the enemy pilot fails their Piloting skill check, they may go out of control. Below, a handful of example maneuvers are explored.

Disengage

When disengaging from a vehicular or mounted combat, the disengaging character must make an opposed check with their operation skill; if they succeed, they disengage, but if they fail, they must choose between remaining in the combat or disengaging and granting their foe a free hit.

Force

Maneuvers of this type aim to force an enemy into an undesirable or dangerous situation. For example, in mounted combat, the character may harry the opposing rider with rapid swings of her cutlass in order to make him divert his course into a thicket. To give another example, a pilot may rapidly climb in the hopes that the slower plane pursuing him will give chase and stall, causing the enemy pilot to suffer disadvantage next round. These situations are created and executed in collaboration between the players and the Interpreter. Typically, they use an opposed check between the two characters.

Set-up

Maneuvers of this type aim to place the character or an ally in an advantageous position for their next action. These use a simple check of the relevant skill. If successful, the character or their ally obtains the agreed-upon narrative or mechanical boon for their next action. For example, a pilot may perform a risky maneuver in order to give their gunner a perfect shot (for which they will roll with advantage). Later, that pilot may perform a power dive to gain tremendous speed, which will grant them advantage on their next piloting skill check.

GOING OUT OF CONTROL

Failing a skill roll made to perform a maneuver or operate a vehicle under duress or in combat may, at the Interpreter's discretion, result in the vehicle going out of control. When a vehicle is out of control, the operator must spend the entirety of their next turn attempting to regain control of the vehicle by making a successful skill check. If they fail, the vehicle remains out of control until their next turn, when they can attempt to regain control again.

When a vehicle is out of control, if it makes sense, it has a 1 in 10 chance of crashing each turn.

CRASHING, BAILING OUT & BEING UNSEATED

Crashing does damage to the vehicle, the operator, and all passengers as ruled by the Interpreter. Bailing out, on the other hand, only damages the bailer; the vehicle is destroyed, but the bailer takes half the damage they would otherwise have taken.

If a character is hit while riding a mount or an open vehicle, such as a motorcycle or aeroglaive, they must immediately make a relevant skill check or be unseated, falling to the ground and taking damage as determined by the Interpreter based on the speed and height of the fall.

VEHICLE DAMAGE

While mounts have CON and ATN and are subject to damage and death like any other living thing, the analogous stat for vehicles is Durability (D). They can be damaged just like characters, either through direct attacks or through environmental damage as a result of Events, character actions, or failed die rolls. When a player-vehicle is damaged at zero D, it sustains a Wound. It can sustain up to 3 Wounds. If a vehicle takes damage while it has 3 Wounds, it is destroyed.

Vehicle D can be restored by a successful check of a relevant skill, such as Mechanic. If the character repairing the vehicle has access to tools and at least a major turn in which to work, they can restore D equal to the result of their skill check. Wounds require a successful repair-oriented skill check, a full day (or six major turns), and requisite replacement parts to repair. Some important or powerful vehicles controlled by the Interpreter may also be able to sustain Wounds before being destroyed.

VEHICLE WOUNDS

The world is full of things to explore; however, meaning in Icosa comes from how the characters interpret their experiences and how they impact one another. Just as the world shapes the characters, so too do the characters shape the world. Just as the characters are influenced by the experiences, personalities, and interests of their players, so too might the players be influenced by the characters. Love them. Learn from them. Mourn them when they perish. And then create a new one.

PIECES OF A CHARACTER

Aside from the causality of the players, characters are also made up of other, more tangible traits. These traits are presented here in the order in which they are determined during character creation. Every step in this process is an opportunity to define some aspect of the character’s life and personality. Players get out of their character what they put into them.

KIND

A character’s kind is the type of lifeform they are.

Humans are scions of a prior age, unchanged by the Curse.

Metahumans are beings that have been warped by the legacy of the Outsiders, often in spectacular (and terrifying) ways.

Irthmade are beings of living metal created in the Age of Attendance, when the Outsiders walked the earth.

Depending on their character’s kind, players will be able to make certain important decisions about them and receive special bonuses and abilities.

STATS

A character’s stats represent their fundamental attributes. There are two stats: Constitution and Attunement.

SKILLS

A character’s skills are the areas of expertise they have developed throughout their life. Skills are freeform—there is no master list from which to choose. The creation of a character’s skills constitutes the formulation of their character concept and the role they will play within their group.

SIGNATURES

Characters also have signatures that grant them powerful ways of manipulating the narrative and the game’s mechanics. Most characters start with one signature and gain a new one each time they level up.

HOMELAND

A character’s homeland determines what languages they speak and allows them to choose a bonus skill. A single homeland—the sunken, ruin-laden land of Iurd—is included in this free reference version.

KIT

A character’s kit is their collection of equipment, supplies, vehicles, magic artifacts, and more.

Gain +5 maximum CON or ATN
Gain an additional signature
Gain a bonus skill at D6 rank

Humans trace their ancestry to the first peoples to ever walk Icosa. In bygone eons, their ancestors were the masters of the world, taming its wildernesses and shaping it to their purposes. The Arrival of the Outsiders marked the end of human supremacy. In the Age of Attendance, control over the world was wrested from humanity—the Outsiders guided the world as they saw fit through their divine intelligence and heavenly designs. Now, in the present Age of Abandonment, although the Gods have Departed, humanity can no longer claim to rule Icosa. In fact, humanity is fighting a losing battle merely to survive.

While the ancestors of the humans once crowded Icosa from sea to sea and pole to pole, their numbers have dwindled to mere millions. Their communities are spread across the world, each with vastly different cultures and appearances. Some humans hold great prejudice toward the variform metahumans and Accursed, especially in regions where the Last Church wields significant power. However, others are more tolerant, accepting metahumans and the Accursed and treating them as equals. The same can be said for their feelings on the irthmade, although many humans don’t recognize the difference between the irthmade and the lesser robots, or “thinking machines.”

Humans are characterized by their adaptability and tenacity. Without the advantages of the beneficial mutations enjoyed by some metahumans or the technological supremacy of the irthmade, they have been forced to innovate, adapt, and overcome.

Choose up to 2 beneficial mutations
(Optional) Choose a detrimental mutation and
1. Gain an additional beneficial mutation OR
2. Gain +5 CON or ATN

A metahuman is a being defined in the negative. They are not human—in the Age of Attendance, most human populations uphold strict standards for which lifeforms are counted among their ranks. They are not beasts—they possess intelligence beyond the grasp of mere animals. They are not robots—they are creatures of flesh and blood. Metahumans are beings that exist in defiance of categorization.

The very word “metahuman” is a sweeping generalization imposed by humanity. Metahumans have nothing in common save for their exclusion from humanity; camaraderie between individuals is possible but never assumed. The ranks of metahumans include beings who could pass for human, as well as spine-tingling abominations that demand a liberal definition of the word “lifeform.”

The origins of the multifarious races of metahumans are a subject of controversy. Conventional human wisdom holds that metahumans are the descendants of humans, animals, plants, and other lifeforms that were twisted by the Curse into beings of human-like intelligence and agency. Certainly, there exists a great deal of evidence in support of this theory. Stories of strange creatures borne of human mothers are ubiquitous, as are stories of bizarre, intelligent beings emerging from wild places.

However, metahuman civilizations are attested in records dated to the reemergence of the written word following the apocalyptic Departure of the Gods. Many metahumans maintain that they have existed in Icosa as long, if not longer than, humans. There exist a great number of tribes and civilizations with their own demonyms, cultures, and traditions.

Whatever the case may be, metahumans face a unique set of challenges. Aside from the unusual lives they are often forced to lead, there is a severe stigma regarding metahumans in many parts of the world. According to Orthodox Polyhedronism, all metahumans are products of the Curse. The Curse, which is understood in the religion as a punishment from the Outsiders, casts a shadow over the very existence of metahumans; they are lumped in with the Accursed. Many fear that mere association with metahumans could draw the ire of the Outsiders, and some believe that the persecution or even eradication of metahumans is the will of the Gods. Even those who do not subscribe to this dogma often avoid metahumans for fear that they could contract the Curse like a disease. Virtually every metahuman must reckon with this reality at some point in their life. The most fortunate find communities of other metahumans, or communities where humans and metahumans live in harmony. The majority do not.

Choose 1 frame
Choose 3 modules
Cannot recover from CON damage or Wounds by resting; must be repaired
Immune to diseases and poisons
Never suffer Wounds from physical exhaustion (still need to sleep)
Start with language: Steel Cant
Curse gained is halved and subtracted from CON; do not use Curse Meter

Among the most impressive and mystifying creations of the Age of Attendance were the irthmade, so called because their bodies are made from steel and rare metals from deep within the earth. These bodies of chrome, iron, and bronze were crafted as vessels for artificial minds—thinking, dreaming, feeling minds.

The first irthmade were created as vessels to house the minds of humans who were dying or who wished to inhabit an artificial body for other reasons. Over time, humanity gained the ability to create truly human minds of genuine artificial intelligence from scratch. Irthmade of all levels of intelligence were created to serve many purposes. Some were sapient databases. Others were designed for tasks too menial or punishing for humans. Still others were machines of war.

During and after the events of the Departure, most irthmade were annihilated. Of those that remained, many were lost due to mechanical failure, or their minds were corrupted, or they were cannibalized for scrap by desperate survivors. Of the few irthmade that still walk, roll, or hover over the desolation of Icosa, most have gone mad—most human minds could not withstand the years they have endured and the things they have witnessed. Yet, a few still retain their faculties, but at the cost of their memories. No mind could remember a tale so long—as new memories form, the old ones are swept away.

Many humans and metahumans scorn the irthmade, not considering them true living things. This distrust is not helped by the fact that very few irthmade have survived the years with their artificial minds intact. Most wander the wasteland aimlessly, and some are incredibly dangerous, attacking on sight. To the people of Icosa, there is little difference between these mad irthmade and the ancient, hostile robots that can still be found in the wildest places of the world.

All irthmade derive their lifeforce from a source known to many as the Invincible Summer. Unlike other remnants of the Before, they never seem to wane in need of energy. The irthmade seem never to run out of power; the Invincible Summer provides for them in dearth and in excess. As such, the hallowed core of an irthmade is an artifact most precious. Many an irthmade has met an untimely end at the hands of hungry ruiners, their body melted down and their artificial mind and Arcane power source sold for fortunes.

FRAMES

HUMANOID
This Irthmade is shaped like a human. They can do many of the things humans can do. They start with six hardpoints.

ROLLING
This Irthmade is conveyed on swift wheels. In combat, moving somewhere near over flat ground does not cost their action, and they can sacrifice their action to move somewhere far.

CRAWLING
This Irthmade trundles along on heavy treads. They are never adversely affected by difficult terrain.

GEOMETRIC
This Irthmade is a hovering, person-sized, geometric shape created in the image of the Gods. They can move through the air in any direction at the speed of a regular human. They can communicate via an internal speaker. They start with an extra module.

GHOST
Translucent like an apparition, this Irthmade’s physical form is actually composed of a dense swarm of miniscule irthmade frames with a shared mind. They can alter their form at will and filter through small holes and coarse meshes.

OTHER
Players that choose this option may define their own frame in collaboration with their Interpreter if allowed to do so.

MODULES

AMMUNITION MANUFACTURING SUITE
An ancient forge and foundry smolders within you. You can produce up to 3 rounds of ammunition per day.

ANDROID
Silicoid skin and smooth animatronics allow you to pass for a human until subjected to scrutiny; can only be taken by irthmade with a Humanoid frame.

AUDIO RECORDER
You are able to capture an audio record of anything you can hear and play it back at a later time.

AUTO-KITCHEN
Your built-in suite of culinary implements allows you to cook excellent food from standard rations; no check required. Anyone who consumes your food during a rest gains advantage on their next check.

BIO-ANALYZER
Spending an action to analyze a living target you can see reveals detailed information about them; you can see the scores and die rank of their CON and ATN.

BUILT-IN MELEE WEAPON
One of your limbs is a melee module that cannot be dropped. Define the weapon. It has a range of close. Attacking with this weapon requires a relevant skill. For damage, use your CON die.

BUILT-IN RANGED WEAPON
One of your limbs is a ranged module that cannot be dropped and never needs to be reloaded (although it can run out of ammunition). Define the weapon. It has a range of near and far. Attacking with this weapon requires a relevant skill. For damage, use your CON die. The weapon starts with 10 rounds of the appropriate ammunition.

DATABASE
Gain advantage on checks made to recall information.

HANDYMAN
You can transform your appendages into any simple, mundane tool (e.g., hammers, screwdrivers).

HARD PLATING
Gain 4 points of intrinsic armor.

LIGHT
A hands-free light source; can be as dim as a candle or as bright as a flashbulb.

MECHA-ANALYZER
Spending an action to analyze a mechanical target you can see (Irthmade, airplane, etc.) reveals detailed information about it; you can see the scores and die ranks of their CON and ATN or their durability, efficiency, etc.

OMNI-CHASSIS
Your segmented body can swivel in any direction with extreme speed. You may attack twice per violence turn, and you do not suffer the effects of being outnumbered.

POLYGRAPH
If you are able to connect your wires and diodes to an individual, you will be able to detect if they are lying or telling the truth.

STORAGE MODULE
Your capacity is doubled. The storage module can only be opened by you, or by brute force.

TARGETING MODULE
Gain advantage on aim-related checks.

TORCH
Sprays fire at close range; can be used to set things alight or attack. Attacking with the torch requires a relevant skill; for damage, use your CON die. A target struck with the flame has a 1 in 6 chance of catching alight, in which case they will burn for D4 damage every violence turn for D4 turns. Can attack up to three enemies if they are close together.

TRADE PROGRAMMING
You were created to serve a particular purpose. Choose a trade (e.g., blacksmithing, construction); gain advantage on checks associated with that trade.

TRANSCEIVER
You speak by broadcasting to a radio that is a part of your body. You can also broadcast to and receive signals from other radios within a range of about 50 miles.

VIDEO RECORDER
You are able to capture a visual record of anything you can see and play it back at a later time.

WINGS
You possess wings, allowing you to glide.

CON and ATN dice start at D4
2 points to spend; each point:
1. Increases CON or ATN die by one rank OR
2. Grants +8 bonus CON or ATN
CON or ATN Score = 2 x (CON or ATN die rank) + Bonus CON or ATN

Stats are foundational attributes innate to all beings. There are two stats: Constitution and Attunement.

Constitution, or CON, represents vitality, health, and strength—in short, one’s physical power. A character’s CON impacts how likely a character is to survive poison and disease, how hard they are to kill, how quickly they can jump out of danger, and more. A character’s CON also determines their capacity—how much they can carry.

Attunement, or ATN, represents resolve, intellect, and awareness—in short, one’s mental power. A character’s ATN dictates how resistant they are to psychological trauma, how perceptive they are of their surroundings, how hard they can push themselves in adverse situations, and more.

Constitution and Attunement are each represented by a die ranging in rank from D4 to D12 and a static score derived from that die rank. The die associated with the CON stat is called the CON die, and the score is called the CON score, or just CON (and likewise for ATN). The score is equal to twice the number of sides of the stat’s die rank, plus any bonuses derived from various character attributes. For example, a character with a CON die rank of D8 and no bonuses has a CON score of 16; if that character chooses the Vigorous signature (+5 bonus CON), they will have a CON score of 21.

A character’s CON and ATN scores are their most precious resource—they are analogous to hit points in other games. The CON score is depleted by physical damage and various environmental hazards, and the ATN score is depleted by psychological damage. It is good to avoid letting them drop to zero.

Players will often be called upon by their Interpreter to roll the die corresponding to the rank of one of their stats in order to determine the outcome of an uncertain situation. Resisting the effects of the Curse, diving out of the crushing shadow of a collapsing stone tower, and keeping one’s wits after learning knowledge not meant for their kind—all of these could be cause to roll the dice. The player rolls the corresponding die with the goal of meeting or exceeding a certain target, usually 4.

Players may face ambiguity when determining whether to roll a stat or a skill. In general, specificity should override generality. Stats represent attributes innate to all beings. Use skills when the activity in question is the result of study or training; use stats when the activity is something anyone can do.

At Level 1, a character’s CON and ATN dice have a rank of D4. Players have 2 points to invest in their character’s stats, each point increasing the rank of CON or ATN by one die rank or conferring a bonus of +8 to one score.

Skills are the techniques, trades, arts, and areas of expertise characters gain throughout their life. There is no pre-written list of skills—there are a limitless number. In Icosa, players create their character’s skills as they see fit. They might be based on a field of study, a trade or profession, a martial art, or anything else. Like stats, each skill is governed by a die ranging in rank from D4 to D12.

When a character attempts to do something difficult that requires knowledge, practice, or technique, the Interpreter will ask them to choose a relevant skill and roll the corresponding die with the goal of meeting or exceeding a certain target—usually 4. If a character has no relevant skill, they make an unskilled check, rolling D4 at disadvantage. The Interpreter reserves the power to rule that an exceptionally difficult task requiring significant expertise (e.g., performing brain surgery) is not possible without a relevant skill.

Skills can be whatever the player wants, but the best skills are those that are both broad and specific at the same time—that is, they have a wide variety of applications, but they are derived from a very particular source. Creating skills like this will allow characters to use a single skill in many ways, and it also helps deepen the character’s backstory and connection to the world.

Moreover, if a skill is narrowly and explicitly relevant to the task at hand, the skill roll is made with advantage; this powerful bonus should be applied judiciously by the Interpreter, reserved only for situations that perfectly align with the skill.

Characters start with one of the following four skill configurations:

1 skill at D6, 2 skills at D4
2 skills at D6
1 skill at D8, 1 skill at D4
1 skill at D10

EXAMPLE SKILLS

Signatures are significant, often character-defining traits and abilities that allow characters to manipulate the narrative and the game’s mechanics in powerful ways. When creating a character, players choose one signature unless their character is a human, in which case they choose two. Each time they level up, they gain a new one. Some signatures can be chosen multiple times.

The following list of signatures is divided into several categories for ease of reference. A "+" indicates a signature that can be taken more than once. Players should feel free to create their own signatures in collaboration with their Interpreter using the ones provided for reference.

TOUGHNESS

Armored: Worn armor does not contribute its EV to your encumbrance.

Do Not Go Gently: When you die in melee combat, deal your maximum damage one last time to the enemy of your choice.

Hard to Kill: You can sustain 4 Wounds before perishing instead of 3.

Hardy: Gain advantage on checks made to resist poison, disease, extreme temperatures, etc.

Immune: Gain 50% resistance to the Curse (cannot be taken by irthmade).

Pack Mule: Your capacity is increased by 50%.

‘Tis But A Scratch: When you are Wounded in battle, you do not suffer the mechanical effects of the Wound until the battle is over. You still suffer the fictional effects, of course.

+Vigorous: Permanently gain +5 CON.

MELEE COMBAT

Brute: Any time you deal damage with a melee attack, check CON and add the result to your damage.

Cleave: When you dispatch a foe, you may roll the same damage dice again and apply it to another close foe without making an attack roll. This effect can chain as long as you continue to dispatch foes as part of this action.

+Flurry of Blows: On your turn, you can make an extra melee attack.

Fortress: Sacrifice a shield or a piece of armor to absorb all the damage from an attack.

+Good Odds: Each time you take this skill, it takes two more foes to outnumber you.

Hidden Wound: Once per level, you may reveal that you have been badly wounded, immediately dropping to zero CON and taking a Wound of your choice. Automatically succeed on your next attack roll and deal triple damage.

Mighty Blow: When the damage die or dice of your melee weapon yields the highest possible value, you cripple or sever a body part or send your foe flying.

+Pugilist: Each time you take this signature, add +D4 to the damage of unarmed attacks.

+Smite: Once per day, after calculating the total damage done by a successful melee attack, double it. You can choose this signature once more to triple the damage.

RANGED COMBAT

Deadeye: No target adjustment for called shots against limbs; target adjustment for called shots against vitals reduced to +1.

Quick Loader: Reloading doesn’t require an action.

Sharpshooter: Any time you deal damage with a ranged attack, check ATN and add the result to your damage.

Steady Hands: No penalty for firing from unsteady or moving platforms.

+Trigger Finger: Make an extra ranged attack each violence turn. If the weapon has a RoF of 2 or 3, simply roll one more attack—not 2 or 3.

MISCELLANEOUS COMBAT

Always Ready: Gain advantage when rolling for initiative.

Anti-air: When you would be hit by a missile attack, check a combat skill. The target is the damage of the attack. If successful, you catch it, knock it away, cut it in half, etc. and take no damage.

Frenzy: When the character attacks the same target for two consecutive actions, they add +D4 to their damage. This effect can stack for a bonus of up to 3D4 damage. This effect continues so long as the character is attacking the same target continuously.

Limit Break: When you take damage three times in a single combat, deal double damage on your next successful attack. Counter resets after you deal double damage.

Reinvigorate: Once per encounter, check CON and regain that much CON. This does not require an action.

Resolve: Once per encounter, when you are damaged, check ATN. If the roll is higher than the damage, ignore it. If the roll fails, you may attempt to use this ability on subsequent hits until it is successful, at which point the ability is exhausted until the next encounter.

Spot Weakness: Check ATN (target 4) to determine a foe’s vulnerability. All attacks the exploit this weakness deal +D4 damage if successful. Using this signature does not require an action.

+Unencumbered: Each time you take this signature, gain +2 intrinsic armor if you are wearing no other armor.

Vengeful: When a foe damages you, gain advantage on your next attack against that foe and add D4 damage.

Will to Power: At any time, sacrifice 4 CON or ATN to apply advantage to your next roll.

KNOWLEDGE

Expert: Choose a tier of item—II, III, or IV. Attempts to identify the item are made at advantage; failed attempts do not break the item.

Healer: Gain advantage on healing-related checks.

Quick Learner: Mark skills twice for each failure.

Sage: Gain advantage on checks made to recall lore or share wisdom.

Strategist: Check ATN (target 4) to devise a plan. If the check is successful, characters gain advantage on the next check they make directly related to executing the plan.

CHARISMA

Bard: Make a check to write an inspiring song or poem about a specific hardship your band of adventurers has faced—traveling through a maelstrom, persevering through impossible odds, barely escaping with your lives. If you perform this work well for the party the next time they face a very similar situation, everyone gains advantage on their next check.

First Impression: Roll an extra die when making a reaction roll and throw out the lowest one.

Inspiring Presence: Your henchmen never flee or surrender unless you tell them to.

Leader: Characters gain 5 temporary CON and ATN when fighting alongside you. This extra CON and ATN disappears after combat. This effect does not stack if other party members have the Leader signature.

Striking: Gain advantage on social and psychological checks when you leverage your physical appearance. You may be extraordinarily beautiful, or you may be extraordinarily terrifying.

WISDOM

+Secure: Gain 2 PAV (armor against psychological damage and damage from Psyche magic).

Brave: Do not take damage from the terrifying property of enemies, objects, places, and concepts.

Navigator: You never get lost, and you make exploration checks with advantage.

Perceptive: When a roll on the surprise table indicates that the party would be surprised, instead, the party surprised the enemy as a result of your character’s awareness.

Prepared: Once per day, produce any common, inexpensive item you need—you’ve been saving it.

+Wise: Permanently gain +5 bonus ATN.

Zen: When you meditate during a major turn, gain advantage on a subsequent check of your choice.

MISCELLANEOUS

Burglar: The character rolls with advantage on actions involving theft, breaking and entering, and other larcenous deeds.

Distracted Driving: Taking an action and operating a vehicle (or riding a mount) in the same turn does not incur disadvantage.

Initiated to The Mystery: You have uncommon knowledge of Arcana and the works of the Gods. Gain access to Mysterious Signatures. Proceed to Magic to complete your character.

Inoculated: Gain advantage when resisting the effects of magic.

Lucky: Once per day, re-roll any check (yours or someone else’s).

Shadow: The character rolls with advantage on actions involving sneaking around, avoiding detection, and other stealthy deeds.

MYSTERIOUS SIGNATURES
(Only usable by characters initiated to The Mystery)

Arcanist: Gain advantage when making a checks to recall lore about magic and the Outsiders.

Artificer: Gain the ability to create scrolls—devices that can store one of your spells to be used by you or anyone else. Check your spellcasting skill. This procedure takes a week for each level of the spell.

+Capacitor: Use your rote an additional time each day.

Empower: Gain the option to intentionally cast the empowered version of a spell. Doing so instantly exhausts it.

+Gain a New Domain: Gain a spellcasting skill for a different domain of magic.

+Gain a New Spell: Gain a new spell in a domain you are familiar with.

Occultist: At the caster’s option, they can cause their spell effects to be produced silently and/or invisibly.

Well-versed: Upon seeing a magic item for the first time, make a check with a relevant skill to instantly identify it.

Aside from being an important part of nearly any backstory, a character’s homeland determines the languages they speak and allows them to take a region-specific skill.

Each region includes a list of languages and a list of skills characteristic of the region. Players may choose a single skill from the list provided by their region and take it at D6 rank, or roll a D6 and take a random skill.

Characters can also choose any language from the list provided by their region, and if their ATN die is a D8 or higher, they may choose two languages.

All player-characters start with the ability to speak Iurdic (the most common tongue, properly called Low Iurdic). All irthmade characters also start with the ability to speak Steel Cant.

Although only a single homeland is presented in this free reference version, in the full version, beginning players can choose from many homelands, and experienced players can work with the Interpreter to create a character from anywhere in the world.

Below is a sample homeland: the sunken, ruin-laden land of Iurd.

IURD: RUIN OF THE ETERNAL EMPIRE

Iurd is a region in the south of the western continent of Icosa, dominated by the estuary of the Great Divider. According to myth, it was once home to the capital of the infinite empire of the Outsiders during the Age of Attendance. However, most of the accessible ruins were plundered centuries ago, and those that remain lie deep in the dangerous backcountry or sunken into the toxic marshes and swamps. Although there are many Accursed here, they face great prejudice and are often kept as slaves. The Last Church, an ancient religious order that venerates the Outsiders, has imposed a theocratic government upon Iurd. For further information on Iurd, see Sample Region: Iurd.

The entirety of a character’s gear is known as their kit. A character’s kit is a significant part of who they are. The things a person carries tell a story of what that person has done, where they have been, and where they plan to go. Their travels are written in the chips in their blade, the dents in their armor, and the dirt on their clothes.

KIT MANAGEMENT

The items a character carries fall into one of two categories: on-hand or stored.

On-hand items are items that are either literally carried in a character’s hands or are carried in such a way that they can be retrieved in an instant, such as a sheathed sword or a set of dice in a vest pocket. Any item in a pocket, on a belt, in a sheath or holster, or in a character’s hands is on-hand. A character can have as many on-hand items as their kit would reasonably allow. That is, procuring an extra sheathe allows a character to have an extra sword on-hand, and a character that wears a coat with many pockets can have more small items on-hand than can a naked warrior. Players should be prepared to justify their on-hand items to the Interpreter if queried about their placement—a knife may be tucked into a belt, but a battle-axe may not.

Stored items are items that are not so easily retrieved, such as anything carried in or strapped to a backpack, as well as the character’s armor. These items take an action to retrieve if play is occurring in violence turns.

Naturally, characters can have items in their kit that are not on their person, such as a horse or any items stored on said horse. In this example, the items contribute to the horse’s capacity but are not taken into account when determining the character’s encumbrance.

ITEM PROPERTIES

Properties are fictional descriptors that give information about an item and what it can do. Similar to skills, a property can be anything. Although they are freeform, they can be very important in determining how a situation will play out. A wagon with the property sturdy probably won’t just lose a wheel if it hits a pothole. The Interpreter may sometimes impose advantage or disadvantage on certain rolls or adjust target numbers as a result of an item’s properties. For details on properties, see Equipment.

ENCUMBRANCE

Items have an encumbrance value (EV) that represents their weight, size, and unwieldiness. Large objects tend to have high EVs, but even small objects can have high EVs if they are heavy enough. Some very small and light items have an EV of zero.

Characters can comfortably carry items with a total EV equal to their capacity, which is given by the number of sides of their CON die. That is, a character with a D6 CON can comfortably carry items with a total EV of 6.
There are three levels of encumbrance: unencumbered, encumbered, and over-encumbered.
Unencumbered characters suffer no penalties and move faster when traveling (see Exploration).

Characters will likely spend most of their time encumbered. A character is encumbered when they are carrying items with a total EV greater than their capacity. Characters carrying backpacks full of adventuring supplies are likely to be encumbered. Being encumbered affects traveling speed. It also imposes disadvantage on any checks involving speedy or graceful movement or strenuous action, including combat, running, climbing, and other such things. It does not take an action to shed a backpack before a fight.

Characters are over-encumbered when they are carrying items with a total EV in excess of twice their capacity. In addition to the penalties imposed by encumbrance, over-encumbered characters must succeed on a CON or relevant skill check each major turn or minor turn or else suffer D4 damage due to strain and fatigue.

STARTING KIT

Characters start with:
Clothing (if they want to)
3 days' rations (EV 1 each)
D100 coin
10 points to spend on gear

Make sure to note down all of the attributes of your kit, including damage dice, EV, and properties.

Note that the items in the following tables are mean to represent archetypes; for instance, a “short sword” could represent a gladius, a kukri, or a wakizashi.

MISCELLANEOUS ITEMS
Any of the items in these bundles can be purchased individually for 1 point; items with no EV listed have an EV of 0

WEAPONS

ARMOR

A character’s total armor value (AV) is the sum of all the armor they are wearing. A character’s AV is subtracted from any physical damage they take. Armor is very heavy, but the Armored signature negates the EV of worn armor. For more information on armor, see Equipment.

AUXILIARY

Characters advance by improving their kit, training their skills, and leveling up.

IMPROVING KIT

This may seem obvious, but it bears mentioning because a character’s kit is an important part of who they are and what role they serve in their group. The artifacts of the Outsiders range in power from petty curiosities to godly relics of world-shaking power. Additionally, mighty machines painstakingly restored or replicated from earlier ages, such as airplanes and machine guns, can be character-defining. Characters should build their kit to their strengths and look out for opportunities to find, purchase, or create new items to suit them.

IMPROVING AND GAINING SKILLS

Failure is the greatest teacher. Characters improve their skills by attempting actions and failing. When a character tries to use a skill and fails, the skill accumulates an experience point. When that skill has accumulated a number of experience points equal to the number of faces of the next die rank, the character can spend those points to upgrade the skill. The skill is then represented by the next die-type.

Characters gain new skills by trying to do things they are unskilled in. When a character tries to do something difficult that they have no skill in, they roll D4 at disadvantage, which is called making an unskilled check. Afterwards, if the player so chooses, they can define a new "proto-skill" related to what they did and write it down. The next time they make an unskilled check to attempt an action related to the proto-skill, whether they succeed or fail, the proto-skill accumulates an experience point. When the skill has accumulated four experience points, the character gains that skill at D4 rank. Thereafter, it is improved through failure in the manner described above.

LEVELING UP

Characters level up when they survive an incredible adventure, undergo intense character development, or impact the world in a meaningful way. The types of events that can cause a character to level up are left to each group to decide, but they should be relatively consistent within a single game world.

When a character levels up, they gain a new signature. In addition, at levels 3, 6, and 9, a character can improve a stat by one rank OR increase their maximum CON or ATN by 8. Note that increasing the rank of a CON or ATN die also increases its score by 4 (see Stats).

Generally speaking, by the time a character makes it to level 9 (an epic achievement) they are almost ready to retire. They’ve been through a lot and ought to be left to live out the rest of their days in peace. The player’s next character might be their old character’s offspring, squire, or heir.

CHARACTERS

CHARACTER SHEET

MAGIC

MAGIC

Magic is rare, dangerous, and poorly understood. The other tabs in this section are meant only for the eyes of the wizards, shamans, and priests who meddle in the power of the Outsiders at their own peril.

If you are not initiated in the ways of the Mystery, all you need to know is that magic is incredibly dangerous.

MAGIC

Wizard, priest, sorcerer, shaman, dream-seer—whatever you call yourself, you have been blessed or cursed, through fate or careful study, with deep knowledge of the Mystery—the ancient magic of the Outsiders. To other denizens of Icosa, the Mystery is an esoteric and dangerous wisdom better left alone. To you, it is a fascination, a calling, an art. You tap into the unequaled power of the Gods themselves, weaving and shaping it to manipulate the world around you. You are a conduit, a beacon of power, a knower of unknown things.

You are also a liar.

Or at least, you are mistaken. You possess no innate magic powers. Magic is the sole domain of the Outsiders, and all that remains on Icosa is the detritus they left behind. Magic-users derive their incredible abilities from these mighty relics and their intimate knowledge of them.

THE MAGIC-USING CHARACTER

There is no real difference between the things magic users call “spells” and the magic artifacts that any mortal can find and use. The distinction is that magic users operate on a much higher level of understanding than some common ruiner brandishing a thousand-year-old cerebral demolisher. A magic user may not know all the secrets of these great works of the Gods, but they know enough to tinker, take apart, reverse engineer, and recombine. They derive their spells from artifacts that they have carefully incorporated into their kit in such a way that they can be used almost as naturally as an appendage.

Aside from spellcasting, magic-using characters also gain access to the Mysterious signatures, signatures only available to magic-using characters. They may select from these when they level up, but they do not have to.

Finally, magic-using characters start with the required material components for their chosen spells, if applicable.

CHOOSING DOMAINS & SPELLS

Choosing the signature Initiated to the Mystery grants the magic-using character a D4 spellcasting skill at character creation. The spellcasting skill must be related to a particular domain, such as Annihilation Spellcasting. The magic user can only learn spells in their chosen domain, and they can only learn spells of a level equal to or lesser than their own. The magic-using character starts with one spell and three glamours. For a list of spells, see Spells.

At the player’s option, at character creation, they may decrease their CON die by one rank to receive one of the following benefits:

DOMAINS

THE ROTE

All magic-using characters start with a special spell, called a rote. This rote is what allows them to repeatedly restore magic power to the artifacts they have assimilated into their identity. Each magic-using character creates their own rote. Be creative.

The rote can be used once per day to restore the use of a single spell that has been exhausted or to restore full charge to a single artifact. The rote does not require a spellcasting roll, but it does require an action.

SPELLCASTING

When a character casts a spell, the spellcasting skill is rolled (target 4). A success means the spell is cast. A failure means that, while the spell is still cast, it is also exhausted—it cannot be used again until it is recharged with the rote. If the spellcasting roll results in a critical success (>/=12) or if the spellcasting die returns its highest possible value (e.g., a 6 on a D6), the caster may cast the empowered version of the spell if they choose.

Due to the incredible power of the Arcana from which casters derive their abilities, as well as the fact that the Arcana has been tampered with to incorporate it into the kit, magic users also receive Curse each time they cast a spell. The Curse received is equal to the level of the spell. Spells that scale with level inflict Curse in accordance with the level at which the spell was cast. For instance, while Proton Pulse is a level 1 spell, if a level 6 caster opts to fire three proton pulses, they receive 6 Curse. Casting the empowered version of a spell inflicts double the Curse. This Curse ignores any CAV gained from armor external to the source of the spell.

GAINING NEW SPELLS

Magic-users gain new spells by leveling up and choosing the Gain a New Spell signature. Wizards are assumed to be constantly tinkering with an abstract collection of minor magic items and components, always working on their next spell. Choosing this signature represents having a eureka! moment and finishing the project they have been working on.

Wizards can also assimilate artifacts into their kit and transform them into spells. The effects of a successfully assimilated spell, and what it takes to assimilate it, should be determined by the Interpreter and the magic-using character in collaboration. Needless to say, the effect should be related to the effect of the artifact.

EQUIPMENT

EQUIPMENT

For basic information on equipment and encumbrance, see Kit. For lists of equipment, see Lists. The following rules describe item types, item identification, and certain properties of various kinds of equipment.

ITEM TYPES

TYPE I: BASIC ITEMS

Basic items are items whose uses are familiar to anything of approximately human intelligence. Perhaps not anyone could invent them, but anyone could intuitively understand how they work. This is the most common type of technology. Examples of Type I items include spears, swords, books, candles, and basic tools of any kind.

TYPE II: ADVANCED ITEMS

Advanced items are items that require advanced knowledge and industry to create. These items tend to be considerably more complex in design and function than basic items. Only a few advanced civilizations are capable of creating such items, and they are likely to be unfamiliar to some characters. Ammunition for advanced weapons, like most firearms, is very rare and expensive. Examples include automatic firearms, combustion engines, and airplanes.

TYPE III: GOLDEN AGE ARTIFACTS

Although some mistakenly consider them magic, Type III items are actually extremely advanced pieces of technology invented by humanity during its Golden Age—the Age of Attendance, when the Gods walked the earth. Some existing Golden Age artifacts have survived since the Age of Attendance, while others have been painstakingly restored or reverse-engineered by modern engineers. They are quite rare and very difficult to create. Examples of Golden Age artifacts include motion sensors, skitterbikes, autosurgeons, and video games.

Type III items usually require a power source to function. There are many types of power sources, but most can be used in any Type III artifact. Type III items have a charge property indicating how many times they can be used before their power source must be replaced.

TYPE IV: ARCANE ARTIFACTS

Arcane artifacts are mysterious relics of the Gods themselves. Very little is known of them on account of their rarity, but they are highly valuable and often extremely powerful. These artifacts were the instruments with which the Outsiders enacted miracles during the Age of Attendance. Moreover, they are considered horribly dangerous. Stories abound of disasters resulting from humans attempting to use these creations of the Gods, and many religious orders forbid their followers from interacting with them lest they be Cursed by the Outsiders.

ITEM IDENTIFICATION

While any creature of human intelligence or greater can understand and use basic items without much trouble, Type II, III, and IV items may be less familiar. Some characters may have backgrounds that have brought them into contact with certain Type II items; for instance, a Damonian infantryman may argue that their character’s personal history would make them familiar with guns. Other characters, however, may have never seen a gun in their life—let alone a phase blaster.

Attempting to make progress in understanding an unfamiliar item requires a major turn to study it. To study an item, a character rolls a relevant skill (History, Mechanics, Computer Engineering, Theology, etc.). Advanced items require one successful check to identify; Golden Age artifacts require two successful checks; Arcane artifacts require three. A failure on any check breaks the item. A broken Arcane artifact emits D10 Curse at a range of near. Broken artifacts may be repaired by a specialist.

Attempting to use an artifact before properly identifying it is risky. It requires an ATN or relevant skill check (History, Mechanics, etc.) in addition to whatever check would normally be required to use the item. For instance, a character attempting to use an unidentified machine gun would first have to make a preliminary ATN (or relevant skill) check and then make their shooting check—failure on the preliminary check means that the action fails and the character breaks the artifact or hurts themselves to a degree commensurate with the nature of the artifact, at the Interpreter’s discretion. However, a success on the check means that the character may attempt their action, and furthermore, it counts towards the identification of the item as described above.

Spellcasters can petition to use any of their spellcasting skills to identify an artifact; the Interpreter should only allow this if the artifact is Type IV and if its effects are related to one of the spellcaster’s domains.

ARMOR

ARMOR VALUE

Certain pieces of protective gear have a quality called, appropriately, armor. A character’s armor value (AV) is equal to the combined armor of all the gear they are currently using. When a character wearing armor is physically damaged, the damage they take is reduced by an amount equal to their AV. Any extra damage not absorbed by the armor is subtracted from the character's CON.

PSYCHIC ARMOR

Psychic armor provides an additional value called psychic armor value (PAV). This number functions exactly the same as normal armor except that it applies only to damage taken from mental attacks and Psyche magic. Psychological and Psyche magic damage with the property ignores armor does not ignore psychic armor.

CURSE ARMOR

Curse armor is any garment or device that protects its wearer from the Curse. The value provided by Curse armor is called Curse armor value (CAV). This number functions exactly the same as AV except that it applies only to damage taken from the Curse. Any incoming Curse is reduced by the character’s CAV before being applied to the Curse Meter.

MAGIC ARMOR
Any source of magical damage with the property ignores armor does not ignore armor with the property magic.

WEAPONS

CAPACITY

Some ranged weapons have a capacity, which determines how much ammunition they can hold at a time. When they are empty, they must be reloaded, which consumes an action. Reloading the depleted power cell of an artifact is a kind of reloading and also consumes an action

IGNORES ARMOR / ARMOR PIERCING

Weapons that ignore armor apply damage directly to a target’s CON (or sometimes ATN), bypassing their armor value (AV). Armor-piercing (AP) weapons ignore a certain amount of their target’s AV. For instance, a weapon with the property armor-piercing 4 ignores 4 points of AV—that is, the weapon treats a foe with AV 5 as if they had an AV of 1.

LOUD

These weapons make a loud sound when used. They will typically alert nearby enemies. When fired in an enclosed space, such as in a dungeon, anyone near is deafened for D4 rounds unless they succeed on an ATN check to quickly shield their ears from the noise. Taking certain precautions, such as sticking wax in one’s ears, can negate this effect.

RATE OF FIRE

Some weapons, such as automatic firearms, have a rate of fire (RoF) property. These extremely powerful weapons allow the user to attempt to shoot multiple times per action. For instance, a weapon with a RoF of 3 allows its user to make 3 ranged attacks in a single action. These may all be directed at the same target or at different targets, but they must all be made at once; that is, one cannot shoot, move, and shoot two more times.

A character with a RoF weapon can also engage in suppressive fire. This is done by expending at least 3 ammunition and rolling a relevant skill. If successful, the character applies disadvantage to a group of foes in a near area of effect for their next action. Characters may expend 5 ammunition to make this roll with advantage.

REACH

Weapons with this property can always attack first against a hostile creature moving into range. They can also attack through the front line of the party if the attacker is stuck behind their allies, for instance, in a narrow corridor.

THRUST

Weapons with this property can be used in a targeted attack against an armored opponent to attack a chink in their armor. The defender is allowed to make their opposing check at advantage, but if the attack is successful, it treats the target as unarmored for the purpose of calculating damage.

VERSATILE

Weapons with the versatile property can be wielded in one or two hands. Wielding a weapon with one hand leaves a hand free to hold a shield, cast a spell, or do something else. Wielding a weapon with two hands grants an additional D4 damage die to account for the greater degree of control and force made possible by two hands.

TRANSPORT

CREATURES

For short periods, such as in encounters, creatures and riders can move significantly faster than most characters on foot; for travel purposes, mounted characters move only slightly faster than those on foot, as mounts are presumed to be walking most of the time and stopping for breaks.

VEHICLES

Vehicles consume fuel and have Durability (D). Fuel is represented by efficiency (E). A vehicle’s E is how many miles it can travel on a single unit of fuel.

To determine how many units of fuel to mark off, divide the miles traveled by the vehicle’s E. Always round up when marking off fuel. At the Interpreter’s discretion, vehicles may not consume fuel when used only briefly—such as for a quick drive around town. However, if the vehicle is very low on fuel, it may run out as the result of a failed die roll.

D is similar to CON or ATN; when a vehicle takes damage at zero D, it is destroyed or, if it is a player-vehicle or an important NPC vehicle, it takes a Vehicle Wound.

WAGONS, BARGES, ETC.

These modes of transportation are tools that allow the characters to carry things beyond what they or their beasts of burden could tote alone. Not true vehicles, these modes of transportation do not have durability (D). Rather, their integrity is an aspect of the fiction, able to be manipulated by the Interpreter as a result of world events and failed die rolls.

SPEED

All modes of transportation have a speed. The speed is equal to how many miles the conveyance can travel in a turn. In chases, a vehicle with a speed that is at least 50% greater than that of its opponent makes checks to catch it at advantage. If the speed is 100% greater or more, no check is required.

CAPACITY

Transports have a capacity that determines the maximum EV they can carry.

TONICS

This category of item includes potions, salves, pills, injections, and any other substance meant to evoke some effect in the body. There are helpful and harmful tonics. A given tonic has an effect (or multiple effects) and a property describing how it is used, such as topical, oral, inhaled, or intravenous. Tonics are diverse in appearance, and almost any combination of effects and properties is possible—that is, a healing tonic can come in the form of an elixir, an ointment, a hypodermic syringe, or something else. As such, it is usually necessary to identify a tonic before use; a character who has encountered Panacesium in pill form may not recognize it in liquid form. Unlike other items, using an unidentified tonic does not require an ATN check; as long as the tonic is administered appropriately according to its use property, its effect will take place (that is, swallowing an ointment will not work). Irthmade cannot use tonics.

All tonics are either Type III or Type IV; while alchemists in even primitive civilizations can create many tonics from mean materials, they rely upon ancient knowledge discovered in the Age of Attendance or granted to mortals by the Outsiders. The esoteric knowledge and difficult procedures required to create tonics means that they tend to be rare and expensive—although the price varies greatly, they are always dear.

Some tonics have the property addictive. When a character uses an addictive tonic, they must make an ATN check; if they fail, they become addicted to the tonic. If an addicted character goes 3 days without consuming the tonic to which they are addicted, they begin taking a certain amount of damage on the last major turn of each day until they get their fix. The amount of damage taken is given with the addictive property (e.g., addictive D8). The damage represents the strain that withdrawal places on a character’s willpower and focus. If a character survives withdrawal for 7 days, they no longer suffer the mechanical effects of addiction (although, as many know, some addictions are never truly banished).

MISCELLANEOUS

BACKPACKS, SHEATHS, HOLSTERS & BELTS

These items allow characters to carry more items than they otherwise could. Backpacks confer fictional rather than mechanical benefits; while they don’t increase a character’s capacity, they allow the character to justify carrying more items. That is, a character with no backpack has little hope of carrying all of their adventuring necessities, such as rations, blankets, bedrolls, torches, and rations. While fully stocked backpacks are often heavy enough to encumber a character, they can be dropped in combat without expending an action.

Sheaths and holsters allow characters to have more weapons on-hand, rather than stored, without having to actually carry them in their hands. Some small weapons can be kept in pockets or tucked into belts, but an adventurer will have a difficult time doing so with a longsword. Each is made for a particular sort of weapon.

Belts allow characters to carry extra tools, ammunition, explosives, tonics, and other items on-hand (quivers do the same for arrows).

BOOKS

If a character has a book relevant to a problem and they have time to flip through its pages, they can make a related roll at advantage. Books can also be used to train skills.

DRUGS

This category includes any narcotics, hallucinogens, and medicines that don’t fall under the banner of tonics. All drugs have their own special effects. Like tonics, some drugs have the property addictive. When a character uses an addictive drug, they must make an ATN check; if they fail, they become addicted. If an addicted character goes 3 days without consuming the drug to which they are addicted, they begin taking a certain amount of ATN damage on the last major turn of each day until they get their fix. The amount of damage taken is given with the addictive property (e.g., addictive D8). The damage represents the strain that withdrawal places on a character’s willpower and focus. If a character survives withdrawal for 7 days, they no longer suffer the mechanical effects of addiction (although, as many know, some addictions are never truly banished).

LIGHT SOURCES

In many games, light sources have a finite amount of time they can burn before they run out of fuel. In this game, light sources last until they are lost, extinguished, or consumed by the narrative effects of a player’s actions or as the negative consequence of a failed roll. The ever-present threat of becoming stranded in the darkness is another tool in the Interpreter's kit to raise the stakes and heighten tension when rolls fail.

how to play

RUNNING THE GAME

TURN BACK, RUINER!

The information contained here is meant only for the eyes of the Interpreter.

how to play

RUNNING THE GAME

Almost all of the information needed to run the game is accessible to the players. The information in this section concerns the secrets that the Interpreter should keep from the players, at least at first, to achieve the authentic Icosa experience.

THE DEEP LORE

The full version of the Icosa RPG contains a wealth of knowledge on the true nature of the world, its history, its cosmology, and the Outsiders. This site does not.

As the Interpreter, to begin playing the game, it is only necessary to know the following truths.

THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS MAGIC

THE GODS ARE ALIENS

THE CURSE IS A RESULT OF THE RADIATION EMITTED BY SO-CALLED MAGIC

THE POWERS OF THE INTERPRETER

When the polyhedrons are rolled, it is your responsibility to interpret them justly and logically. There are not rules for every possible situation, and when no rule prescribes the outcome of a die roll, you must decide what happens. When the dice indicate success, the procedure is simple—the character achieves what they wanted. Describe it with a dramatic flourish and push the action forward.

When a character fails a roll, you must determine exactly what occurs by taking into account all aspects of the present scenario. It is up to you whether failing to climb a wall means that the character was unable to find purchase or that they fell when they were halfway up, taking damage. In general terms, a failed roll allows you to use one of your Powers. The Powers are designed to keep the action moving forward. Rather than simply resulting in a failure to perform the intended action, every time a roll is failed, the tension should heighten or the character’s situation should become worse.

The Interpreter has three basic Powers, each with a wide variety of applications. The Interpreter’s Powers are as follows:

1. Heighten Tension
2. Deplete Resources
3. Offer a Choice

HEIGHTEN TENSION

Heighten Tension can be interpreted in many ways. While heightening tension does not immediately harm the characters, it can create situations which are much worse. Heighten Tension can be considered the "set-up" Power.

One surefire way to heighten the tension is to introduce more enemies. Treachery is also an excellent way to heighten tension. Betrayal or desertion by allies and henchmen can be a devastating blow.

Changing the environment can be a powerful means of heightening the tension. The weather may suddenly turn violent. A wall could begin collapsing. A rope bridge might snap. Changing the environment can turn a static battle into a dynamic and lively scene in which characters must constantly react to the dangerous, living world around them.

DEPLETE RESOURCES

Ruiners live and die by their kits. Running out of torches deep in a dark ruin can spell death. Running out of food or fuel in the middle of a desert is equally deadly. Robbing the characters of an artifact or an exotic item is very harsh, but sometimes warranted. This crushing application of Deplete Resources should be used judiciously, as a punishment for grievous failures or when the danger to the item had already been established, such as through the Heighten Tension Power. Deplete Resources can be considered the "execution" Power.

Dealing damage to characters falls under this Power. Remember that CON and ATN are resources like any other, abstract measures of a character’s overall vitality and willpower, so damage can be used to represent fatigue from things like hunger, thirst, and exposure.

Damage from miscellaneous sources can be judged via the ranks of dice. The D4 can represent minor damage from cuts and bruises, inclement weather, and minor illnesses, and the D12 can represent major damage from explosions, falling rocks, and body-ravaging diseases.

Non-player characters, such as mounts and henchmen, can be outright killed by this Power. The sad truth is that the party’s allies are essentially resources, and they are pawns for the Interpreter to manipulate.

OFFER A CHOICE

This Power allows the Interpreter to place a character in a situation where they must make a difficult choice between two possible outcomes. Perhaps the character must choose to save their trusty henchman or their artifact sword. Perhaps they are told that forcing their way through the magic field will result in D8 Curse damage. This Power places the ball in the player’s court and allows them to choose how the story will play out.

THE CURSE

The Curse is the name that the people of Icosa give to the radiation that emanates from the hyper-advanced technology of the Outsiders (although they do not know it as such).

Human and metahuman characters have a Curse Meter. This Curse Meter is filled whenever the character gains Curse from some source. The Curse Meter has a number of thresholds that, once crossed, result in certain effects on the character. These thresholds and their corresponding effects are presented below.

Note: The Curse deals CON damage and inflicts CON Wounds

When a player’s character crosses a threshold on the Curse Meter, they should inform you. This essentially adds a card to your hand—from that point on, whenever you would use one of your Powers, you can instead introduce the effects and symptoms that correspond to the Curse threshold the character crossed. It need not happen immediately. Damage from the Curse Meter can only be dealt once per day, but manifestations of symptoms can be used as a Power whenever appropriate.

The effects of the Curse persist until a character’s Curse Meter is lowered below the threshold. Note that a threshold includes its own symptoms as well as the symptoms of all thresholds below it. This is not true of effects, except for -1 to all checks, which persists across all thresholds.

Note that irthmade characters do not use the Curse Meter. When they would receive Curse, they halve the amount of Curse they would receive and subtract it directly from their CON.

The Interpreter may treat important non-player-characters and powerful enemies in the same way as player-characters, but keeping track of individual Curse Meters for every non-player-character is too unwieldy. Instead, the Interpreter may halve any Curse damage a character would receive and subtract it directly from their CON, narrating symptoms of the Curse at their own discretion. For instance, if a player-character deals 10 Curse to a random brigand, the brigand takes 5 damage to their CON and may begin coughing blood.

SOURCES OF THE CURSE

Characters can receive Curse from various sources. Certain items, spells, and attacks deal a prescribed amount of Curse damage upon affecting a character. Besides these, characters are mainly exposed to the Curse by coming into contact with Accursed places and Arcane artifacts. While the Curse is assumed to be present in low, background levels across the world, concentrations strong enough to have gameplay ramifications have a Curse potency. There are 3 levels of Curse potency. Potency determines how much Curse is added to a character’s Curse meter as a function of the duration of exposure. Interpreters should assign a Curse potency to any Cursed places or artifacts they place in their adventures. The following table describes the Curse dealt to characters as a function of the potency and the duration at which the character is exposed.

Alpha potency is encountered in places with a substantial amount of lingering Curse, such as the sites of ancient battles or the ruins of places of power. Some moderately powerful artifacts may emit alpha-potency Curse. At this potency, the Curse produces a faint smell of ozone in the air and a barely perceptible taste of copper. Exploration in places and around artifacts of alpha potency is far from safe, but if characters take the proper precautions and do not tarry, they may escape unscathed. The real danger is accumulating too much Curse over multiple quests.

Beta potency is less common but far more dangerous. It is most often encountered in places of great power where ancient machinery is still active. At this concentration, in addition to the characteristic smell and taste, the Curse produces a glow that is barely perceptible in darkness, as well as a faint hum. Adventuring in the presence of beta-potency Curse is extremely hazardous and only to be attempted after rigorous precautions, and then only for as brief a time as possible.

Gamma potency all but forbids exploration, but it often signifies the treasures of greatest value. Artifacts capable of emanating this potency of Curse tend to be relatively large and stationary—damaged communications terminals and power sources and so on. At this potency, the Curse produces a clearly visible glow, an angry hum, and an overpowering taste of copper and smell of ozone. Gamma-potency Curse can cause lethal symptoms quite quickly, and exploration should only be undertaken for the briefest possible times and with the greatest possible protection.

PREVENTION AND TREATMENT OF THE CURSE

The following are means by which characters can minimize their exposure to the Curse:

Avoid Accursed places and objects. Naturally, Accursed places are where many of the greatest adventures take place, and Accursed artifacts are among the most powerful items in the world; characters will no doubt fail to heed this rule from time to time. Recall that passive recovery from the Curse can only occur when resting in places without sufficiently potent Curse. That is, resting within an Accursed dungeon will only increase a character’s Curse level. Recall also that there are identifying markers of the Curse that players can recognize—glowing light, humming, and the smell of ozone—all of which become more pronounced at greater potencies.

Cover the body. The simple precaution of wearing a mask provides a small amount of protection from the Curse (+1 CAV). Covering the entire body grants slightly more protection (+1 CAV). Covering the body with more specialized materials, such as clothing made from lead-lined fabric, can grant further protection.

Use preventative substances. Whether the substance is presented as a holy communion wafer or an anti-Curse medication, the effect is the same. Each dose grants +1 CAV for the remainder of the day to a maximum of +5 CAV.

Contrary to popular belief, neither the Accursed, nor metahumans, nor irthmade can spread the Curse to others. It is perfectly safe to be around them; the stigma against association with these groups is based on understandable caution and fear, but it is unfounded.

Characters can purge Curse that has already been accumulated with the following methods:

Time. Characters who spend time in safe places where the Curse is lower than alpha potency reduce their Curse Meter by 2 per day. Magic-using characters do not enjoy this benefit due to their constant exposure to their Arcane artifacts, which emanate a small amount of Curse.

Medicines and Treatments. Doctors and priests throughout the world offer various medicines, treatments, and rituals to alleviate the Curse. These treatments are experimental, as the Curse is not well understood. Thus, their effectiveness varies greatly. A single dose or treatment session can heal between D4 and D12 Curse. The more effective the treatment, the more expensive it will be. Characters should also be aware that claiming to have a cure for the Curse is a great way to make money, and they may encounter grifters peddling treatments that don’t work at all.

Advanced Methods. There exist means of curing large amounts of Curse quickly, mostly based on magic spells and artifacts or technologies from the Age of Attendance. Some examples of these can be found among the spells and items listed throughout the text, or they can be invented by the Interpreter.

INTERPRETER GUIDELINES

The most important tool of an Interpreter is an active, vivid, and improvisatory imagination. You may prepare as much or as little for your players as you like, but rest assured, they will always do things you don’t expect. You will always be forced to invent things on the fly—answers to strange questions, names for creatures, even creatures in their entirety. That’s okay—all that matters is that you adhere to the core mechanic, the Interpreter Powers, and the spirit of the setting.

SAY YES

The Interpreter should encourage players to take risks and play creatively. “Yes, and” and “No, but” should be ever in your vocabulary. A large part of your job is to keep the action moving forward—this is why the Interpreter’s Powers revolve around changing the scenario. Within reason, be amenable to player requests. Let them make weird plans and try to execute them. Let them invent pieces of lore if they don’t conflict with your canon. If a player asks if there is a chandelier in the banquet hall of the airship, say yes—chances are, they are planning to do something cool with it.

BE DETAIL-ORIENTED

Give your characters things in the environment to interact with, little items to take along, hints about the secrets of the adventure. Give characters unique personalities and quirks. Describe each enemy distinctly—not only does that make the game feel more real, it also makes combat easier to understand; “the fifth Smyrian” is not as clear as “the Smyrian with part of its skull growing out through its head.” The so-called Theater of the Mind can be hard to keep track of, especially when the Interpreter doesn’t describe the scene in sufficient detail. Quite often, encounters take place in an “endless white room” in the players’ minds. The more detail you can supply about the situation, the more immersive it will be, and the more the players can utilize the environment to do interesting things.

By the same token, you must be clear about the danger involved in a scenario. Players should have a reasonable idea of the risk they are taking on before they attempt an action. If you are explicit regarding consequences, you have more freedom to disregard the mechanics, which is good. The mechanics are only there for when common sense fails. If you warn a player that a fall from too high up on that wall might result in a broken bone, then when they fall, you can break their leg. One of the best moves to make as an Interpreter is to Offer a Choice to the players at some cost or risk. It establishes an option and a consequence—no uncertainty means no dice.

KNOW YOUR CHARACTERS

As the Interpreter, you should be an expert on the player-characters. It is good practice to keep your own copy of each character sheet so that you can quickly reference their kits, skills, and abilities. Placing characters in situations where they can creatively use their abilities is the heart of an interesting and satisfying game. It is also of the utmost importance to be aware of the artifacts a character possesses for the purposes of adjudicating the effects of the Curse.

FOOLS AND THEIR MONEY

The Interpreter is also responsible for the solemn duty of separating characters from their money. Determining how much treasure the characters should acquire, and how quickly, is a personal matter; it depends on what kind of game your group wants to play. Some groups prefer to live lavishly, spending freely and living the high life in between expeditions. Other groups enjoy the struggle of making barely enough money to stay afloat. In general, most ruiners are motivated by a lack of any other prospect—who would take up this life if they didn’t have to? These fellows live from expedition to expedition, living as well as they dare until the money runs out and they are forced out into the wilds once more. Only the most deranged ruiners adventure for the fun of it, risking life and limb at every turn. Whatever the case, it is important to manage the outflow of treasure as well as the inflow. If the characters have nothing to spend money on, they will begin to question the point of their dangerous lifestyle. There should always be a carrot at the end of the stick—an aileron is selling his plane for a king’s ransom; a shopkeep is auctioning an artifact sword; a sorcerer has agreed to transfer the mind of the party’s dead dog into an Irthmade body for an exorbitant sum. Of course, characters must also pay for goods and accommodations, such as food, ammunition, and shelter. Beyond this, send thieves their way—they are, after all, obvious targets.

EQUIPMENT

ITEM LISTS

The items listed here are to be understood as archetypes; a short-sword could be a gladius, a kukri, or a wakizashi. Furthermore, the prices are averages—the costs of goods varies wildly across regions according to culture and availability.

Note that most of the items that make this setting interesting are deliberately ommited for conciseness, and also because the creator is trying to entice you to contribute to the Patreon. Dozens of unique science-fantasy artifacts await you in the full game.

WEAPONS

ARMOR

TRANSPORT

TONICS

Ambrosium. Satisfies a character’s need for food and water for a week. Type III.
Catharsium. Instantly neutralizes any disease, poison, or venom. Type III.
Charmite. Renders user especially vulnerable to suggestion, persuasion, intimidation, and other forms of psychic manipulation. User makes rolls to resist psychic manipulation at disadvantage for the rest of the day. When the effects wear off, the user does not necessarily become aware that they were manipulated, but they may question what happened in the same manner as someone with a hangover wonders what they did the night before. Type III, addictive D4.
Clementex. The nectar of the Gods; it contains the essence of atonement and forgiveness. Instantly cures a certain amount of Curse. Comes in concentrations of multiples of D20. Type IV, addictive D12.
Delphium. The user enters a trance-like state for 3 minor turns during which they can ask the Interpreter up to 3 specific questions. After asking the questions, the user checks ATN. A failure indicates that one of the answers will be truthful. A success indicates that two will be truthful. A critical success indicates that all three answers will be true. The answers come in the form of visions that must be interpreted. Type IV, addictive D10.
Fervorite. Allows the user to take an additional turn each round in violence turns. Type III, addictive D8.
Guiline. Gives the user greater control over their body and heightened awareness of their surroundings, granting +2 to stealth-related checks for 5 minor turns or encounters. Also makes them more sensitive to light and sound—sudden increases in either can stun the user for one turn and deal D4 ATN damage if they fail an ATN check. Type III, addictive D6.
Hippocradol. The user’s face and body temporarily and painfully transform into the likeness of any individual of their choice. The user must have seen the individual to be mimicked, and they must share a similar body plan (e.g., both humanoid). The transformation occurs over a minor turn and the user takes D6 ATN damage in the process. Comes in concentrations that last for 1, 5, or 10 minor turns, or 1 major turn. Type IV.
Invincium. Decreases all incoming physical damage by 75% for D4 violence turns or one minor turn. This effect occurs immediately before damage would be subtracted from a character’s CON (that is, after armor and other damage-mitigation effects). Type IV, addictive D12.
Medusium. Renders user immobile for D6 violence turns. Type III.
Necronium. Deals D4 CON damage (ignores armor) to its user each violence turn. Comes in concentrations that deal damage for 1 turn, D6 turns, and D12 turns. Type III.
Omniscium. Immediately upon use, the user can inquire into the thoughts and intentions of any character and find out what they plan to do next. The effect wears off almost immediately. Type IV, addictive D12.
Palliativium. An anti-inflammatory and weak general anesthetic. Instantly grants a certain amount of temporary CON and ATN that expires at the end of the encounter or minor turn. Comes in concentrations of +5 and +10. Relatively common. Type III, addictive D10.
Panacesium. Said to be distilled from the blood of Hedrons. Instantly restores a certain amount of CON and heals a CON Wound. Comes in concentrations of +D4, +D8, and +D12. Type IV, addictive D12.
Romerium. This tonic transforms the user into a mindless drone that “lives” until its brain is destroyed. It retains its CON score and die rank, but its ATN drops to D4, it loses all skills, and gains the non-sapient property. It retains any signatures or special abilities related to melee combat. It attacks with a D6 and deals damage with its CON die or by weapon type. It can understand simple commands. It cannot speak. Characters that consume this tonic against their will can make a CON check at advantage to resist its effects. If successful, they merely take D12 damage to their CON and ATN. The tonic can be used on living or recently dead (<3 days) characters. The transformation occurs over the course of a minor turn and is permanent. Type IV.
Sapium. Temporarily increases the user’s ATN die by one or more die ranks for 1 or more minor turns. Comes in various potencies. Note that increasing the die to the next die rank also grants +4 temporary ATN. Type III, addictive D6.
Tabularazol. This tonic instantly removes the effects of any active tonic and prevents the effects of withdrawal for 3 days. Type III.
Veriton. The user is incapable of lying and compelled to respond to any direct inquiry for one major turn. Type III.
Vidium. Allows the user to see in the infrared spectrum for the rest of the day. Any object that generates heat will be visible even in total darkness or behind thin cover. Type III, addictive D4.
Vimium. Temporarily increases the user’s CON die by one or more die ranks for 1 or more minor turns. Comes in various potencies. Note that increasing the die to the next die rank also grants +4 temporary CON. Type III, addictive D6.
Vitalium. Restores a recently deceased (<1 day) character to life. They reawaken at zero CON and ATN and they still have all their Wounds. Type IV, addictive D12.
Weddium. Two users who use the tonic at the same time in close proximity become psychically linked for one week. They can communicate telepathically and they have access to one another’s senses. Type IV, addictive D12.
Zealium. The user cannot receive Wounds from exhaustion and does not need to sleep for the next three nights. At the end of the period, the character must sleep for a full day or take an ATN Wound from exhaustion. Type III, addictive D10.

MISCELLANEOUS

MAGIC

SPELLS

The spells listed in the tabs above should be treated as examples—the potential of magic is nearly limitless, and spellcasters work tirelessly to create new spells by tweaking and combining artifacts in unique ways. Magic-using characters are encouraged to customize these spells by replacing elements of their flavor to fit their character concept—for instance, there is no reason why Proton Pulse cannot be retooled as an Ice Bolt spell. All that is required is to change the name and description and possibly tweak some of the mechanics in collaboration with the Interpreter.

Note that all spells (save glamours) have an empowered form, and some spells are reversible. Reversible spells can be reversed at will by the caster, but empowered spells are only cast on a critical success (result >/=12) or when the spellcasting die returns its highest value (e.g., D6 returns a 6). Casters with the Empowered signature can cast the empowered versions of spells at will, but doing so exhausts the spell until it is recharged with the rote.

This site includes only the first level spells of each domain. The full version of the game contains many more.

GLAMOURS

Glamours are minor spells that can be cast as often as the magic-using character desires. They do not require a roll unless they are being used under duress, as in combat. In this case, the caster should treat the glamour as any other spell. To cast it, they roll their strongest spellcasting skill die. Casters start with their choice of three glamours.

ANNIHILATION

Annihilation is the domain concerned with the destruction of matter—including lifeforms. These spells are characterized by raw destructive potential and killing power. While this is not the only domain that can deal damage, it is the most specialized for the task.

LEVEL 1 ANNIHILATION SPELLS

PROTON PULSE
Somatic Component: The caster thrusts their elbow toward the ground to "load" the spell, then points at the target
Range: Far
Effect: Electron energizers embedded in the caster’s gloves fire a bright, highly-charged particle through the air at incredible speed with unfailing accuracy. The particle deals D4 damage, ignores armor, and never misses. At levels 3, 5, 7, and 9, an additional particle can be projected. They can be directed toward the same target or different targets.
Empowered (Proton Salvo): Fire double the number of particles.

LASER LANCE
Somatic Component: The caster reaches into the air to “grab” the bolt and hurls it forward
Range: Far
Effect: Using a host of electron energizers wired in series, the caster summons a single, crackling bolt of hard-light from the ether and hurls it toward a foe. The lance does D8 damage and ignores armor. The target is allowed a CON check (or relevant skill check) to avoid the brunt of the spell and take half damage.
Empowered (Heavy Laser Lance): The lance does D12 damage and ignores armor.

CONCUSS
Somatic Component: The caster thrusts an arm toward their opponent
Range: Close
Effect: The shockwave deals D4 damage and targets of approximately human size and weight are hurled backward through the air a near distance. If they collide with a solid object, they take an additional D6 damage.
Empowered (Mach Wave): The shockwave deals D6 damage and fires in a cone, affecting multiple enemies. Targets of approximately human size and weight are hurled a far distance, suffering an additional D8 damage if they collide with a solid object.

RYUICHI'S THOUSAND KNIVES
Verbal and Material Components: A few syllables uttered through a vocoder
Range: Near
Effect: A sacred melody aligns the particles in the air and draws out their latent energy. A number of orbs of light appear above the caster’s shoulders. Each of these orbs begins emitting dozens of inch-long hard-light needles in a cone. This spell affects multiple characters in front of the caster to a range of near. The spell can be maintained as long as the caster concentrates on it up to a maximum of 6 violence turns. The Knives do D4 damage per violence turn and ignore armor. Each violence turn that the spell is maintained, the damage die increases by one rank to a maximum of D12. Targets are allowed a CON check (or relevant skill check) to avoid the brunt of the spell and take half damage. Those faced with this spell are advised to exit the range of the spell before it is too late.
Empowered (Ryuichi’s Thousand Knives – Remix): The damage die increases by two ranks per combat round that the spell is maintained (to a maximum of D12), and damage rolls are doubled. The damage ignores armor.

CORROSION
Somatic Component: The caster extends both arms straight forward and locks their elbows
Range: Close
Effect: Acid jets on the caster’s wrists fire a highly corrosive substance in a straight line. The target must make a CON check (or relevant skill check) or else a random piece of their armor is destroyed.
Empowered (Advanced Corrosion): If the target fails their check, all of their armor is destroyed and they take D8 damage. If they succeed on their check, one piece of armor is destroyed and they take D6 damage.

ACCURSED GRASP
Verbal Component: A series of ancient, whispered syllables
Range: Touch
Effect: The caster removes the lead covering from a ring of powerfully Accursed material on the palm of their glove and grasps their foe. The Curse surges through their body for a brief moment. The target receives D4 Curse per level of the caster. The target opposes this attack just as they would oppose any other melee attack.
Empowered (Wicked Accursed Grasp): The target receives D8 Curse per level of the caster.

Higher-level Annihilation spells include Molecular Cleaver, Mortal Fog, Void Blast, and Nuke.

RESTORATION

The Restoration domain is concerned with returning things to their proper condition. It encompasses the healing of organic tissue, the mending of broken things, and the curing of ailments. In addition to empowered forms, Restoration spells can be reversed, lending a dangerous edge to this domain.

LEVEL 1 RESTORATION SPELLS

HEAL
Somatic Component: Laying hands on the target
Range: Touch
Effect: The caster emits generates a field of collagen precursors and granulation matrices over the afflicted area. The caster restores D6 CON to an organic target. At levels 3, 6, and 9, the spell restores an additional D6 CON.
Empowered (Panacea): Double the CON restored to the organic target.
Reverse (Harm): The caster deals D6 damage to an organic target (ignores armor). The target can oppose this attack like any melee attack. Scales in the same way as Heal.
Empowered Reverse (Trauma): Double the damage dealt to the organic target.

CLEANSE
Somatic Component: Laying hands on the target
Range: Touch
Effect: An ancient medical device absorbs the energy of the Curse and stores it in a dense, shielded chamber. This spell removes D6 Curse per level of the caster from the target. At levels 3, 6, and 9, the spell removes an additional D6 Curse.
Empowered (Greater Cleanse): Double the amount of Curse healed.
Reverse (Curse): The caster touches a character and inflicts D6 Curse upon them. The target can oppose this attack like any melee attack. Scales in the same way as Cleanse.
Empowered Reverse (Greater Curse): Double the Curse inflicted upon the target.

REPAIR
Somatic Component: Mimicking tying a knot
Range: Close
Effect: The caster restores the broken bonds between the parts of an object through the use of an invisible molecular reorganizer ray. The caster fixes a broken Type I item or restores D6 CON to an irthmade or robot. At levels 3, 6, and 9, the spell restores an additional D6 CON. At level 3, the spell can fix Type II items; at level 6, Type III items; at level 9, Type IV items.
Empowered (Greater Repair): Double the CON restored to an inorganic target.
Reverse (Destroy): Break a Type I item or deal D6 damage to an inorganic character (ignores armor). Scales in the same way as Repair.
Empowered Reverse (Greater Destroy): Double the damage dealt to the inorganic target.

PURIFY
Material Component: Distilled water cast into the air
Range: Close
Effect: A shimmering company of nano-urges executes a preservation protocol on the target, eradicating bacteria, disintegrating unwholesome sections, and printing supplemental molecules to replace them. The caster restores spoiled, contaminated, or poisoned food and drink to a fresh and wholesome state. About twenty pounds of food can be affected per casting.
Empowered (Greater Purify): Double the amount of food can be purified.
Reverse (Spoil): The caster spoils up to twenty pounds of food and drink such that any who consume it will become debilitatingly sick for D4 days, suffering disadvantage to all stat and skill rolls and being unable to recover CON through resting.
Empowered Reverse (Greater Spoil): Double the amount of food can be spoiled. Those who consume this food are sick for D8 days.

Higher-level Restoriation spells include Animate Dead, Resurrect, and Create Irthmade, all of which are reversible.

MANIPULATION

Manipulation is perhaps the most diverse domain of magic, concerned with altering the physical world. Once upon a time, all other domains were sub-disciplines of Manipulation. As they became more specialized, they split apart.

LEVEL 1 MANIPULATION SPELLS

FORGE
Material Component: A small spark or flame
Range: Near
Effect: Atomic agitators rapidly accelerate the movement of the elements within the targeted metal. When this spell is cast, a metal object of the caster’s choice heats to a malleable temperature, as if in a blacksmith’s forge. Any creature in contact with the object must make a CON check to quickly drop or remove it, otherwise receiving D6 damage in the form of burns if the object is touching bare skin. If the creature is unable or unwilling to remove themselves from the object, they receive D6 damage for each turn they remain in contact with it. The damage may ignore armor under certain circumstances, such as if the item affected is the character’s armor. The spell’s duration is 1 violence turn per level of the caster, or until the caster terminates the spell.
Empowered (Bellows): The metal is heated enough to melt it entirely. The damage dealt becomes D8, and certain items, like armor, will melt into the body of the creature wearing it. They will be unable to remove it and suffer damage for the duration of the spell.

MANIPULATE ELEMENT
Material Component: A small sample of the element to be manipulated
Range: Near
Effect: Powerful Aang fields bend to the caster’s will the elements that make up the chosen substance. This spell allows the caster to manipulate a certain amount of a chosen substance—water, air, soil, metal, etc. The substance must be chosen when the caster first learns the spell. The spell can be taken multiple times to gain the ability to manipulate other substances. The caster can change its shape and density and move it telekinetically. They can only move it a near distance away, and they can only move it at the speed at which they could carry it. For each level of the caster, they can move 1 cubic meter of the substance.
Empowered (True Bending): The caster can move twice as much of the substance as normal, and they can move it through the air at roughly 60 miles per hour.

RESIST EXTREMES
Material Component: A small spark or flame or a piece of cold metal
Range: Self / Touch
Effect: A thin film of advanced caloric regulation material swiftly coats the caster’s skin. The caster or their chosen target becomes immune to all but the hottest and coldest temperatures. For exceptionally severe temperatures, the recipient of the effect of the spell may make a CON roll at advantage to take no damage from the effects. On a failure, they take half damage. The caster can affect a number of targets equal to the caster’s level. The effect lasts for a major turn per level of the caster.
Empowered (Impervious): The recipients of the spell’s affects are rendered completely immune to all temperature extremes.

UNLOCK
Somatic Component: Mimicking the turning of a key
Range: Far
Effect: Probing mechanism defeaters invade the lock and expand to fit its unique construction. This spell causes any mundanely locked threshold barrier (doors, gates, chests) to unlock, and if the caster wishes, open. To unlock a magical lock, the spellcasting roll must surpass the level of the caster or the result of the spellcasting roll that effected the magical lock.
Empowered (Breach): This spell explosively blows apart any door or chest that stands in its way.
Reverse (Lock): This spell magically locks any existing lock. The lock can only be bypassed by dispelling the magic or breaking the locked object.
Empowered Reverse (Chaste Lock): Checks made to dispel the magical lock or otherwise bypass it are made at disadvantage, regardless of the character’s resistances.

LIGHT
Somatic Component: The caster flares their fingers in the direction that the light is to be produced
Range: Far
Effect: A photon emitter in the caster’s gauntlet blazes to life. This spell creates a light roughly equivalent to a lantern that lasts as long as the caster maintains it. It casts light in a near radius. The spell must be attached to something, such as a point on the ground or the caster’s hand.
Empowered (Greater Light): The light can be adjusted at will between the flickering of a match and the blinding luminescence of a floodlight, potentially blinding enemies (CON check vs spellcasting roll).
Reverse (Photon Subtractor): This spell causes supernatural darkness to fall in a near radius, extinguishing light sources and blocking ambient light.
Empowered Reverse (Photon Eliminator): Utter darkness reigns. Nothing can see here, for not a single fragment of the visible spectrum can penetrate the field of darkness. The effect extends to a far radius.

BOUND
Somatic Component: Thrusting the hands toward the ground
Range: Self
Effect: Concussive mach waves blast forth, creating an equal force in the opposite direction. This spell allows the caster to hurl themselves in any direction up to a far distance away.
Empowered (Flea-leg): The caster can hurl themselves somewhere distant.

ALTER MASS
Material Component: A small lump of metal
Range: Far
Effect: This spell allows the caster to temporarily increase or decrease the mass of an object by 50%.
Empowered (Greater Alter Mass): The mass can be decreased to nearly nothing or increased by 100%.

PUSH
Somatic Component: Thrusting the arm forward
Range: Near
Effect: The caster can telekinetically apply a push to an object as strong as if they had pushed it themselves. The force is strong enough to knock a human target off their feet if they fail a CON or relevant skill roll.
Empowered (Force Push): The force can be much powerful—for example, pushing a human target somewhere near.

RECALL
Material Component: A strand of red thread
Range: Special
Effect: The caster establishes a recall point at the position at which they are currently standing. When the spell is activated, which can be done at any time and does not require an action, they instantly return to the point.
Empowered (Total Recall): The recall point remains after the spell is activated, and the caster can recall to it as many times as they wish.

Higher-level Manipulation spells include Confusion Matrix, Kate's Cloudbust, and Time Stop.

KNOWLEDGE

Knowledge is the domain concerned with acquiring information not accessible by mortal senses. Since the dawn of the Age of Abandonment, clerics of the Last Church and heathen wizards alike have petitioned the Outsiders for wisdom by rolling the sacred polyhedrons and interpreting their results.

LEVEL 1 KNOWLEDGE SPELLS

TRANSLATE
Somatic Component: The caster passes their hand over their eyes, closing them, then reopens them
Range: Close
Effect: Ancient Rosetta processors analyze the text and cross-reference it with an exhaustive database of all known languages from Icosa and beyond. The caster gains the ability to read and understand any single text or auditory message, regardless of language.
Empowered (Close Reading): The caster gains additional insight into the person who wrote it, the conditions under which it was written, the time period in which it was written, etc.

DETECT CONTAMINENT
Material Component: A salt crystal, crushed in the hand and then scattered
Range: Close
Effect: The caster places a drop of the substance into a chemical analysis philter. The caster immediately knows whether or not an object or substance contains contaminants, disease-causing bacteria, poison, or any other harmful element.
Empowered (Retrace): Also reveal the exact nature of the contaminant and a hint about how it came to be there.

PROPHESY
Material and Somatic Components: A set of dice, rolled
Range: Self
Effect: The caster attunes their polyhedrons to the failing signals of the distant Outsiders and casts them across the ground. The caster may ask the Interpreter whether a specific action taken by the group in the immediate future—say, five minutes—will be to the group’s advantage or disadvantage, generally speaking.
Empowered (Oracle): The Interpreter will also tell the caster why the action might be advantageous or disadvantageous.

Higher-level Knowledge spells include Speak with Dead, Scry, Pathfind, and Eye of Icosatron.

PSYCHE

Psyche magic is considered by many to be the most heinous of all domains of magic—even more so than Annihilation. A person’s mind is everything they are, the sum of their experiences, quirks, personalities. To rob someone of control of their mind is a terrible crime. But for some, the ends justify the means.

LEVEL 1 PSYCHE SPELLS

PSYCHE UP
Verbal Component: Words of encouragement (or discouragement)
Range: Near
Effect: The caster stimulates the target’s mind, causing endorphins and adrenaline to course through their body in unnatural levels. This spell grants the caster or their target advantage on their next roll.
Empowered (Inspiration): The target gains advantage on their next three rolls.
Reverse (Psyche Out): The target suffers disadvantage on their next roll. The target can make an ATN check (or relevant skill check) against the caster’s spellcasting roll to resist this effect. This roll is not made at disadvantage.
Empowered Reverse (Desperation): The target suffers disadvantage on their next three rolls. ATN checks against this spell are made at disadvantage, regardless of the target’s resistances.

CHARM
Somatic Component: The caster blinks three times in quick succession
Range: Close
Effect: The caster emits synthetic superstimulating pheromones that invade the target’s mind, weaken their barriers, and disrupt their judgement. The target of this spell will treat with the caster as if they were a trusted acquaintance. The target is allowed an ATN check (or a check with a relevant skill) to resist the effects; the target is the caster’s spellcasting roll. On a success, there is no effect. Certain creatures may be aware that a mental infiltration was attempted on a successful ATN roll.
Empowered (Ingratiate): The target treats the caster as a close friend for whom they would go far out of their way to help.

BLUR
Material Component: A refracting lens
Range: Far
Effect: The caster places a remote nanoclamp on the target’s optical nerve, introducing a single instance of fabricated visual information every one thousandth of a second. This spell causes the caster to appear blurry in the vision of a chosen target, shifting rapidly from side to side. This effectively causes the target to be at disadvantage to hit the caster. The effect lasts for a number of violence turns equal to the caster’s level, or 1 minor turn per 3 levels.
Empowered (Mass Blur): The caster can target D4 creatures per level of the caster.

PUPPET
Somatic Component: The caster performs the gesture
Range: Near
Effect: The caster overstimulates the target’s empathetic response system, causing them to subconsciously mimic the caster’s actions. The caster psychically causes a target to perform a minor gesture, such as nodding or shaking the head, smiling, winking, or giving a thumbs up. This does not affect anything about the target’s mental state beyond causing them to perform the gesture, although they are not immediately aware that they have performed the gesture unless they are made aware by its consequences. On a successful ATN check (or relevant skill check) against the caster’s spellcasting roll, they do not perform the gesture.
Empowered (Ventriloquism): The target can be influenced to speak a short sentence of the caster’s choice.

CALL
Somatic Component: The caster places a cupped hand near their lips
Range: Special
Effect: The caster stores auditory information in a infra-dimensional capacitor and beams it to the target’s auditory cortex. The caster transmits a short message directly to the mind of a target they can see. The target may mentally respond with a short sentence immediately after receiving the message if they wish, but a moment afterwards, the connection is severed.
Empowered (Broadcast): The caster can transmit the message to as many targets as they choose within eyesight.

ILLUSION
Material Component: A gemstone of any kind
Range: Near
Effect: The caster infiltrates the target’s mind with a microscopic swarm of intelligent nanobots that strategically activates certain parts of the brain to elicit counterfeit sensory experiences. The caster can create a simple illusion. The illusion can only affect one sense, which the caster must choose at the time of casting. For instance, they may create an illusion of the image of a guitar, but the guitar cannot make sound. The illusion cannot be anything extremely complex (although complexity can be faked, as in the case of a pocket-watch with no internal gears) or anything larger than a person. The illusion lasts for a number of minutes equal to the caster’s level. Any observer who suspects that the effect may be an illusion is allowed an ATN check (or a check with a relevant skill); the target is the caster’s spellcasting roll. On a success, they determine that the effect is not real.
Empowered (Greater Illusion): The illusion can affect two senses.

HOLD
Somatic Component: The caster reaches toward the target and clenches their fist as if gripping it
Range: Near
Effect: The caster delivers an overwhelming flood of meaningless inputs to the target’s cerebellum, rendering it unable to execute its function of controlling the body’s movement. This spell causes a person to be unable to move, as if held in place. The spell lasts as long as the caster wills it to. The target can make an ATN check (or a check with a relevant skill) to resist this effect, and can make a check each subsequent violence turn or minor turn to escape; the target is the caster’s spellcasting roll.
Empowered (Trawl): The caster can Hold a number of targets equal to their level

DETECT LIE
Material Component: A scrap of wool
Range: Within Hearing
Effect: By means of an axon stint, the caster intercepts recalled memories before they can be consciously processed and covered with deception. The caster can detect whether or not a statement just uttered was a lie.
Empowered (Inquisit): The caster learns the truth, in detail.
Reverse (Undetectable Lie): The caster’s next statement seems true beyond the shadow of a doubt. It is only detectable as a lie through the use of the Detect Lie spell, in which case an opposed check between the spellcasting rolls of the two casters takes place.
Empowered Reverse (Perfect Lie): None of the caster’s lies can be detected by any means for the remainder of the interaction.

SELECTIVE BLINDNESS
Somatic Component: The caster briefly covers their eyes with their hands
Range: Sight
Effect: The caster becomes invisible to a specified target for a number of violence turns equal to the caster’s level or a number of minor turns equal to ½ the caster’s level.
Empowered (Mass Selective Blindness): The caster becomes invisible to a number of targets equal to their level + D4.

Higher-level Psyche spells include Jepsen's Emotion, Random Forest, Mind Lance, and Guillotine.

META-MAGIC

Meta-magic is concerned with manipulating The Mystery itself. It is the most experimental, avant-garde domain, the purview of cutting-edge researches and of the Last Church itself.

LEVEL 1 META-MAGIC SPELLS

CONJURE
Somatic Component: Passing one hand over the other
Range: Touch
Effect: This spell functions exactly as the glamour Minor Illusion except that the object created is a hard-light facsimile rather than an intangible hologram. The object created must still be small enough to fit into the caster’s palm, and it still dissolves after about 10 minutes or one minor turn.
Empowered (True Conjure): The object created can either be more substantial (e.g., a longsword, a cloak, a chest) or it can last indefinitely.

DETECT MAGIC
Somatic Component: Passing the hand over the eyes, closing them, and opening them again
Range: Far
Effect: The photoanalysis plates embedded in the caster’s eyes are activated and calibrated to detect the characteristic particulate matter of The Mystery. When this spell is cast on an object, area, or character, the caster will be made aware of whether the target is radiating magic of some kind.
Empowered (Arcane Insight): The spell reveals the level of the magic and its domain.

RECHARGE
Somatic Component: Creating the shapes of the sacred polyhedrons with one’s fingers in ascending order
Range: Close
Effect: The caster absorbs and condenses background magic from the very air around them and infuses it into depleted artifacts. This spell allows the caster to restore full charge to a number of artifacts or spells equal to their level. The artifacts must be recharged at the same time—any “extra charges” not spent are lost.
Empowered (Supercharge): The recharged artifacts are supercharged—their magic effects are empowered on their next use. Spells have established empowered effects; it will be up to the Interpreter to determine what this means for each individual artifact.

Higher-level Meta-magic spells include Counterspell, Ubercast, and Create Artifact.

ABOUT

THE GAME

The Icosa RPG began as a homebrew setting that migrated from system to system over the course of many years of play. No system was perfectly suited to its eccentricates, and gradually, pages upon pages of alterations and added rules accumulated. Eventually, the creators got fed up and decided to make their own system from scratch.

The Icosa RPG is inspired first and foremost by the beauty of the incongruity between fantasy and science-fiction elements when they meet in the same world. Icosa seeks to capture the fun and strangeness of a world that appears, on its surface, to be medieval fantasy but is in fact a far-future post-post-apocalypse.

The Icosa RPG also draws inspiration from the works of Jean Giraud (Moebius), Hayao Miyazaki, Frank Frazetta, John Harris, Jack Vance, Ray Bradbury, Arthur C. Clarke, Isaac Asimov, and Larry McMurtry, among others, as well as classical and early modern history, theology, philosophy, and the synthwave genre of music.

Besides being a standalone game, the Icosa RPG is for anyone who wants to cannibalize any of its parts for their own game worlds. The basic rules of this game can be used independently of the setting with minor modifications. Likewise, the setting can be imported, in whole or in part, into any system.

THE ROAD AHEAD

The Icosa RPG will be released as a full system and setting book at some point in the future. At the time of this writing, most of the text is done, but there is much to be done in terms of artwork and layout.

The full game will include the core rules, along with further elaboration and more examples than what is presented on this website. It will also include a vast library of artifacts, spells, and friends and foes that are not listed on this website. Furthermore, it will contain a setting book detailing a fully realized world with over 20 unique regions and factions and plenty of blank space on the map to fill in with your own worldbuilding. It will also be fully illustrated with the work of several talented artists.

After the full version of the game is completed and released, the creators intend to support the game indefinitely by regularly releasing adventure modules that will take players to the most dangerous and exciting reaches of the world and reveal elements of its cosmic lore.

STUDIO PASSERINE

The eponymous Passerine is an author, editor, artist, and birdwatcher living somewhere in the Middle West of the United States. The art and text on this site, with all their imperfections, are the work of Passerine.

However, the work of Studio Passerine comprises contributions from a number of talented artists, writers, and thinkers, including Samuel Butler, Balo Scott, Jeremiah Scott, John Bouman, Emily Sloan, Hayden Knisley, Jake Schmidt, Nicklas Wright, Colin Pietron, and Soleil Smith. Each of these individuals has contributed immeasurably, either through artwork, ideas, or playtesting.

HOW TO SUPPORT

To support the ongoing development of this game, spread the word and consider supporting on Patreon. We are deeply thankful to our patrons for supporting the project along the way; all patrons will be acknowledged in the final version of the game.