What sort of house rules do you use for AtB?

[Mechanurgist]

Oh, I house-rule the bejesus out of it, but when I'm writing fan material I have to follow the rules as written.

I'm trying to start a PbP here on the Nexus Nine forums, if you're interested:
http://forums.nexusnine.net/ikonboard.c ... T;f=3;t=63

I also posted my house-rule skills list here:
http://forums.nexusnine.net/ikonboard.c ... ;f=5;t=297

and revised attribute chart here:
http://forums.nexusnine.net/ikonboard.c ... ;f=5;t=300

The AtB2 book was good, but falls down in a few places:
1. Illustrations not quite as good because it's missing a lot of the Laird/Eastman stuff.
2. Rules weren't transcribed properly (for example, WP bonuses not listed)
3. Backgrounds + Apprenticeships are confusing and give characters way too many skills to start.
4. Almost all of the world material and adventures are just copies of Atb1, sans illustrations.

So in several ways the new is inferior to the old, except for the much much larger variety of animals to choose from, and better animal creation options.

[Mechanurgist]

Mid-level characters (around level 7) special operators, infiltrators, nothing over-sized (like Size 30 Elephants), going into bandit territory. I'll have more details later.

[tamorrison]

Well, for the combat rules, I use the following:

Actions in combat:

1. X uses an action to attack Y. Y uses an action to dodge. Both have used one action, so it's X's turn again. (Gunfire that keeps the enemy's head down means no return fire.)

2. X uses a double action to attack Y. X does not get another action until it's time for his/her third action. (The enemy can act while you're taking your time or being fancy.)

3. X has an action, but doesn't want to do anything just yet. X can delay until later in the initiative order to act, but thereafter acts on that lower initiative. If X delays until his/her next action, X loses the delayed action. If X delays until another character acts, X's action occurs immediately after the other character's action. (Don't dither in combat.)

4. X readies an action, as in "When THAT hapens, I do THIS." If THAT happens, then X's readied action (THIS) occurs immediately before THAT takes effect. Thereafter, X acts just before THAT lower initiative. (The difference between #3 and #4 is the difference between looking for an enemy and ambushing an enemy.)

5. The effect on A.R. of multiple protective elements:

A) No overlap: X is wearing an armored vest, A.R. 12. X stands behind a waist-high stone wall, A.R. 8. What is X's effective A.R.? The protective values of the two elements are fully additive because they do not overlap - the vest covers X's upper body and the stone wall covers X's lower body. The wall's protective value is 4 (A.R. 8 minus the 1-4 miss chance), so X's effective A.R. is 16 (12+4).

B) Overlap: X is wearing an armored vest, A.R. 12. X stands inside a ferroconcrete bunker, A.R. 18. What is X's effective A.R.? The protective values of the two elements are partially additive because they do overlap - although the bunker covers parts of X's body that the vest does not, both cover part of X's upper body. Add half the value of the lesser protective element (fractions rounded down) to the full value of the greater protective element. X's armored vest's protective value is 8 (A.R. 12 minus the 1-4 miss chance), half of which is 4, so X's effective A.R. is 22 (18+4).

C) Multiple non-natural armors: Use the same principles as in 5.A and 5.B, above. So long as no overlap occurs, no penalties accrue. Overlapping armor is only possible if one of the armors is light; penalties accrue due to the increased bulk (e.g., -1 to strike, -2 to parry and dodge, -2 to speed)
- Thus, if X wore an armored vest (A.R. 12) and an open-faced, steel helmet (A.R. 6), then X's armor would not overlap, resulting in no bulk penalties and an A.R. of 14 (12 plus (6 minus the 1-4 miss chance)).
- However, if X wore spider silk armor (A.R. 12) underneath plate armor (A.R. 16), then X's armor would overlap, resulting the noted bulk penalties but an A.R. of 20 (16 plus one-half of (12 minus the 1-4 miss chance)).

D) Natural armor plus cover and/or non-natural armor: Use the principles in 5.B and 5.C, above. Natural armor overlaps with all cover and body armors, but natural armor does not count against the character when determining penalties for armor bulk.
- Thus, if X has extra-heavy natural body armor (A.R. 16) and stands behind a waist-high stone wall (A.R. 8 ), then X would have an effective A.R. of 18 (16 plus half of (8 minus the 1-4 miss chance)).
- If X has extra-heavy natural body armor (A.R. 16) and wears an armored vest (A.R. 12), then X would have no bulk penalties and an A.R. of 20 (16 plus half of (12 minus the 1-4 miss chance)).
- If X has extra-heavy natural body armor (A.R. 16) and wears an armored vest (A.R. 12) and an open-faced, steel helmet (A.R. 6), then X would have no bulk penalties and an A.R. of 21 (16 plus half of (12 minus the 1-4 miss chance plus 6 minus the 1-4 miss chance)).
- If X has extra-heavy natural body armor (A.R. 16) and wears spider silk armor (A.R. 12) underneath plate armor (A.R. 16), then X would incur armor bulk penalties, but have an A.R. of 26 (16 plus half of (16 minus the 1-4 miss chance plus 12 minus the 1-4 miss chance)).

(Hard cover and body armor are your friends for life.)

6. Enfilade fire: When engaging a point (single) target with direct fire within the weapon's grazing fire range, other targets in line with the target may be threatend by enfilade fire. (If not known, a weapon's grazing fire range is usually 60% of its maximum effective range.) Any shots that miss the target have a 70% chance of threatening any other person or thing extending in a straight line from the firer to the target and out to the grazing fire range. For every secondary target so threatened, roll an unmodified strike roll (1d20) for one round, treating the results and damage as usual. The number of secondary targets so threatened cannot exceed the number of rounds that missed the primary target. (This reflects the true power of automatic weapons, and, to a lesser extent, shotguns.) (Firefights are about flanks: protect yours and shoot theirs.)

I also have a big list of home-brew AtB weapons and related special rules, but I have no idea how to post them in proper format for the gaming public to enjoy.

[tamorrison]

the damage that natural weapons deal not only depend on how much bio-e you spend, but also on your size level

I like that idea; it makes sense. If you have a chart or something for this, please share.

[Pepsi Jedi]

I'd say get the new one. Erik did it as well (( I have a signed copy, and 3 OTHER copies of the new one, including PDF)) It updates and expands the little old one. Gives you more universal animal stuff. Adds in ALOT of animal powers and abilities that wern't in the old ones.

It doesn't go way off base and change anything you 'know and love' but it grows it up and covers alot more stuff. I highly recommend it. It's in my top 5 palladium books ever produced and is up there around number one.

Sure it has some editing problems but that's not so much an 'After the bomb' problem as much as it's a 'all palladium books have editing problems' Problem. (( Many would argue it's not just palladium but all rpg's Palladium is just a bit worse about it than some. A bit lighter than others))

Nor does the new book invalidate the old ones. If you use the new book you'll want to give some of the older animals options they didn't previously have (( because the rules for them wern't there yet)) but other than that it works great.


I generally give people +20 to +30 BIO-E points. not because I 'HAVE' to but because it lets them have hands, biped and speech with out having to sacrifice animal abilitys and cool stuff to get them. that's just a house rule of mine though.

[tamorrison]

I don't give the players any extra BIO-E. I do use a point-buy system for attributes and SDC bonuses that favor the players. Average non-player characters have average attributes (plus whatever modifiers are intrinsic to their race) and have SDC equal to their size class. This gives the players superior survivability. I also play average non-player characters as not being overly brave.

[tamorrison]

Palladium RPG Attribute Point Buy System

“As you get deeper into the dark alley, a dozen leather-clad young men leap from the shadows! Judging from their thick-lensed glasses, pocket protectors, and asthma inhalers, you realize that these thugs are from the notorious street gang known as the Heebie Dweebies. Without warning, they begin to pelt your characters with twelve-sided dice, Japanese cartoon cards, and tiny plastic replicas of spaceships, all while screaming shrill war cries in languages taken from popular fantasy and science fiction movies! What do you do?”

Do your dice specialize in heartbreak? Do you (or your players) ever roll horribly bad character attributes, leaving you (or them) to agonize in “character envy” of the one person in the group who seems to have magic dice? Have you ever been a Game Master needing to generate non-player characters in a hurry, but the dice kept giving the street thugs I.Q.s of 17 and P.S.s of 4?

Cringe no more! Palladium RPG has an alternate system to generate character attributes: the point buy system.

The attribute point buy system allows players to determine their characters’ statistics, ensuring the generation of optimally playable characters. It also allows GMs to generate non-player characters – villains, allies, victims, and passers-by – quickly and easily.

The first step is to determine the number of points a particular character has to buy attributes. Players have 40 points, which means an average attribute of 12. Game Masters determine the power level of the non-player character they are creating: each of whom has between 16 to 40 points, for an average attribute score of between 9 and 12. Note that the S.D.C. column is only used for those Palladium games that allocate S.D.C. to characters; if the character is for a Palladium game that does not allocate S.D.C. to characters, simply ignore the S.D.C. column.

Attribute Score| Point Cost | Notes
______18______|____16____| Exceptional attribute. Roll a bonus die (1D6) and add the result to the attribute. For every “6” rolled, another bonus die (1D6) is gained.
______17______|____14____| Exceptional attribute. Roll a bonus die (1D6) and add the result to the attribute. For every “6” rolled, another bonus die (1D6) is gained.
______16______|____12____| Exceptional attribute. Roll a bonus die (1D6) and add the result to the attribute. For every “6” rolled, another bonus die (1D6) is gained.
______15______|____10____| Exceptional attribute. Roll a bonus die (1D6) and add the result to the attribute. For every “6” rolled, another bonus die (1D6) is gained.
______14______|_____7____|
______13______|_____6____|
______12______|_____5____|
______11______|_____4____|
______10______|_____3____|
_______9______|_____2____|
_______8______|_____1____|
_______7______|_____0____|
____6 or less___|____N/A___| Player characters are not allowed to have an attribute this low.

The second step is to use the character’s points to “buy” attributes as shown on the above chart. An initial attribute score of 15, 16, 17, or 18 is considered exceptional, just as if that attribute score had been rolled. An exceptional attribute gains a bonus 1D6 added to it; for every “6” rolled, another bonus die (1D6) is gained.

The third step is to continue character generation as normal.

Example of character point buy: Jenny is creating a player character in Heroes Unlimited™. As a super-heroine, she has 40 points to buy her attributes. Jenny wants to have a character who is both super-smart and super-sexy, figuring that she can build up her physical traits by choosing the appropriate skills later. She chooses an I.Q. of 16 (12 points), an M.E. of 10 (3 points), an M.A. of 12 (5 points), a P.S. of 7 (0 points), a P.P. of 10 (3 points), a P.E. of 12 (5 points), a P.B. of 16 (12 points), and a Spd of 7 (0 points). Jenny’s character’s scores of 16 in both I.Q. and P.B. gain bonus dice. Jenny rolls a “6” for her I.Q., raising it to 22 and gaining another bonus die. Jenny rolls again, getting a “4”, yielding a final I.Q. of 26! Jenny rolls the bonus die for her P.B. and gets a “1”. Her final P.B. is 17. Jenny determines her character class and writes down the base S.D.C., fully intending to improve her physique and S.D.C. total with Boxing, Gymnastics, and Wrestling.

Example of character point buy: The Game Master is creating a gang of New York street thugs in Heroes Unlimited™. He checks the Attribute Points per Character chart and decides that these thugs are Low power: each has 22 points with which to buy attributes. The GM allocates the points as follows: I.Q. 9 (2 points), M.E. 7 (0 points), M.A. 7 (0 points), P.S. 12 (5 points), P.P. 10 (3 points), P.E. 11 (4 points), P.B. 8 (1 point), and Spd 12 (5 points). Each of the thugs starts out with 5 S.D.C. Their physical attributes and S.D.C. will increase with secondary physical skills such as Athletics (General), Running, and Weightlifting/Body Building.

Attribute Points Per Character

Power Level_|_Attribute Points_|_Base S.D.C.
__Miserable__|_______16_______|_Equal to one-quarter the character’s Size Level, fractions rounded down (2 for human-sized characters)
Description: Victim/addict. Extreme poverty, absence of education, squalid living standards, and near-famine conditions prevented this person from reaching his or her full potential. Alternatively, the person grew up better off, but due to long-term adversity, has physically and mentally deteriorated to this level.Typical of Third World refugees and developed nations’ long-term drug addicts and Skid Row winos.

__Low______|________22_______|_Equal to one half the character’s Size Level, fractions rounded down (5 for human-sized characters)
Description: Disadvantaged/unmotivated. Poverty, minimal education, poor living standards, and poor nutrition prevented this person from reaching his or her full potential. Alternatively, the person grew up better off, but wandered through life without goals or responsibilities – just partying, watching T.V., and surfing the Internet. Typical of poor people and spoiled adult children worldwide. The average gang member, Third World gunman, couch potato, pot-head, slum dweller, playboy, party girl, and adult son in Mom’s basement would be in this category.

__Medium___|________28_______|_Equal to the character’s Size Level (10 for human-sized characters)
Description: Normal person. Steady and stable family income guaranteed access to primary and secondary education, decent living conditions, and adequate food, allowing this person to develop to normal human potential.
Typical of average people in developed countries, or upper-middle class people in poor countries. The average white-collar criminal, mafia thug, military member, and police officer would be in this category.

__High______|________34_______|_Equal to 1.5 times the character’s Size Level, fractions rounded up (15 for human-sized characters)
Description: Advantaged/motivated. Above-average family income or unusual parental dedication secured access to better schools, a higher standard of living, and optimal nutrition. Additionally, this person’s family and/or social environment motivated him or her to excel. Typical of highly ambitious people and those whose parents have strong family values and work ethic, especially in societies where upward social mobility is possible. Most entrepreneurs, sports stars, career members of top-notch military and police units, leading members of revolutionary movements and governments, and highly-driven career-minded people would be in this category.

__Heroic____|________40_______|_Super-hero/super-villain: As per character class. Other NPC: Equal to twice the character’s Size Level (20 for human-sized characters)
Description: Elite. A mutagenic agent, an alien ancestry, or a lifetime of unusual circumstances allowed (or perhaps drove) this person to develop, physically and mentally, far above the human norm. This represents the top 0.1% of people in modern, wealthy societies and the top 0.01% of people in developing nations. Typical of people who spent ten or more years in a highly-demanding training and education program, such as long-service members of world-class special police or military units or martial artists who were raised from infancy by Shaolin monks. Super-heroes and super-villains are in this category, as are Olympic athletes, Spartan warriors, heads of state (usually), renowned subject matter experts, Special Forces senior NCOs and field-grade officers, etc.