AGON, sample

7/30/2019 AGON, sample

1/29

What would the world be without the agonthe agonistics of one man against anothertoshow everyone the order of precedence among men, just as no two other things on earth arealike? How could any of us alive know quality if competition and personal combat did not

let all the world know who embodies excellence and who merely manages mediocrity?Odysseus, OLYMPOS


2/29

Agon

by Jh Harper

Edited by Philip LaRseAdditial edits ad battle example by Wilhelm Fitzpatrick

Illustratis by Tmas Hpe rm Costume o the Ancients, 1812

Cver phtraph by Matthias Kabel, used uder the CreativeCmms Attributi-ShareAlike licese, versi 2.5.

Playtesters: Brad Amaci, Sctt Dierdr, y Dwler,Wilhelm Fitzpatrick, Philip LaRse, Ed Ouellette, Cara yler.

First Editi. Auust 2006.Prited by Lulu (www.lulu.cm).

Cpyriht 2006 Jh HarperAll rihts reserved

www.a-rp.cm


3/29

table of contents

Part One: Introduction 7

Part Two: Hero Creation 19

Part Three: Contests 32

Part Four: Battle 43

Part Five: Abilities, Advancement, Fate, Oaths, Divine Favor & Interludes 63

Part Six: Running the Game 75

designers notes, inspirations, & thanks 100

RECORD sheets 102

greek names 108

index 114

reference tables 116


4/29


5/29

introduction

part one

Remember, we hold the uture o our children, our dearcountry, and our aged parents in our hands. Hellas depends

on us. We can plunge her in grie; we can bring her glory.

ARGONAUICA


6/29

8

Its nearly dusk and the heroes are as-sembled outside the cave o the gor-

gon. Te place is littered with pieces o

stonear too many shaped like armsor legs or heads. Teres blood in the air,and ies buzz all around the dark portalo the cave mouth.

Artemis has decreed that this gor-gon should die. No one spoke against thegoddess when she appeared in her g loryand handed down her commandsthough Aleta did make a ace that wouldhave gotten her skewered by a our-ootlong arrow i the immortal huntress hadnoticed it.

Te fres o a village are burning inthe distance, along the coast. Te villag-ers probably know a thing or two aboutthis monster, but who wants to go all theway there and back, and then ace thething in the dark? Te goddess will notbe happy with delays.

Te heroes look each other over,wondering i any o them will meet their

ate beore the sun rises again. Greavesare tightened. Shields are lited. Swordscome ree o scabbards. Teres no deny-ing ate. Te bloody work begins. . .

The Olympia ds are at war am themselves. Tis war is played ut upthe stae Earth, with mrtals, beasts, ad msters as the t-sldiers.Te war bea l a, ad eve the ds cat quite remember why it be-

a r what purpse it serves. It is the reat divie ame, ad they are all playi twiwhatever that may mea at the mmet.

I the ame Agon, a bad heres (ctrlled by the players) has becmeetaled i this divie war. Tey quests r the ds ad attempt t wi lryad ame. Te heres are als lst i a strae lad ar rm hme, ad are tryi twi euh avr rm the ds t be shw the way back t their lved es. TeGame Mastercalled the Ataistrepresets the eemies ad bstacles thatstad i the way the heres.

Battle & Glory

Agon, as the ame suests, is a ame battle ad cmpetiti. Te players createher characters wh cmpete with each ther t prve wh is reatest. Te A-taist creates adversity t thrw at the heres t ive them a chace t strive adprve their mettle. Tis is t a ame players vs. Ataist, thuh it may seemthat way at rst lace. Istead, the players cmpete aaist each ther, with theAtaist as equal ppsiti t allthe level playi eld up which the herescmpete.


7/29


8/29

10

Playing the Game

Quests

Te ds issue divie cmmads t the heres, wh arethe ds servats i the war the immrtals. Tese cm-mads are the q that the heres will strive r. TeAtaist will create these quests, three at a time, adtell the players what they are bere play beis. Whethe three quests are cmpleted, the ds will issue threemre, ad s .

Slay the Glde Bar I ad take its tusks.

Search the Ruis Nms r the Ste Ss.

Rescue the chse Athea rm the Uder-wrld.

ObjectivesBere the heres ca ish a quest, they must achieve aseries o. Fr example, i the heres have thequest Slay the Glde Bar I ad take its tusks,the the bjectives miht be:

Fid ut where the Glde Bar makes its lair.

G t the lair the Glde Bar.

Slay the Glde Bar ad take its tusks.

Usually, the players will deal with e immediate bjectiveat a time, but its pssible t accmplish several bjectivesat ce thruh bld ad clever play. Ulike quests, bjec-


9/29

11

tives are t spke by the ds. Oly by explri the wrld ad iteracti withthe peple ad the evirmet ca the heres lear what their bjectives are.

Every bjective represets e r mre on that the heres must ace. A

ctest is a challee excellecea agonthat pits the heres aaist me,beasts, msters, r ature itsel. Te Ataist creates the ctests, based theature the bjective ad the methds emplyed by the heres t achieve theirals.

StrifeTe Ataist creates ctests ad ppets by spedi S tkes. Temre dicult the ctest, r the tuher a eemy, the mre Strie it csts t make.I tur, whe the heres deeat a ppet r wi a ctest, they are rewardedbased hw much Strie was spet t create it. Te mre it cst t make, the bier

the reward r the heres.

The Setting

Agon takes place i a aciet Greece that ever was. Like the mythic, aciet wrldas described by Hmer i the Iliad ad Odyssey, the ds are alive ad very preset ithe lives humas, appeari te t itercede directly i mrtal afairs. Te lstislads that the heres explre are similar i sme ways t thse they kw i theirhmelads the Aeeathe peple speak prper Greek, they wrship the Olym-pia ds, ad they practice the ther custms civilizati. Hwever, the isladsare als maical places, lled with superatural msters ad atastic beasts.

Imaie brilliat blue waters ad shii white clifs. It is always warm adbriht, with a crisp breeze that makes r easy saili. Te peple dress i simplechitons, a kid tuic made rm tw rectales abric asteed tether althe shulder ad arms, the belted at the waist. A himation (clak) is wr ver thetuic. Bth me ad wme wear these armets, but mes are usually kee-leth

Agon is a Greek word meaning battle

or contest. Its the root o the English

word agony. The ancient Greeks saw

everything as a battle, even things like

carving a sculpture, bringing in the har-vest, or courting a lover. Excellence was

to be sought in all things.


10/29

12

ad wmes are l. Ftwear is simple ad pe, like amder sadal.

Sldiers (ad heres) wear liht armr ver their tuic,

usually a helmet, breastplate, ad reaves (metal shi-uards).Tey ht with a lare, rud shield, l spears, ad shrtswrds. Te bw ad javeli are als used i battle. Mstweaps ad armr are made brze. Fihti is de t, thuh sme particularly wealthy ad advaced armiesmiht have muted cavalry (withut saddles) ad charits.

Te architecture is classical, with pe ste struc-tures supprted by clums. Mst hmes are built aruda pe-air curtyard, with ther eclsed rms ( ster wd) arud it. Multi-stry buildis are ucmm.

Great palaces ad temples ted t sprawl utward rathertha up. Mst settlemets am the lst islads are simplevillaes, but there are a ew larer city-states, ruled by kisive authrity by the ds.

Faith is t a questi belie i this wrld. Ater all,the ds are preset ad active i mrtal lives ad te ap-pear ad speak directly t their llwers. Te ds existeverye kws this. Faith revlves mre arud cvictiad the idea that the ds will itercede r thse wh prve

themselves wrthy atteti. Reliius practices icludesacrice (t attract divie avr ad tur away divie wrath)ad diviati (usually the readi etrails, t discerthe will the ds whe they are t maki their wisheskw directly).

Tere are may ds, each with his r her w aeda,pririties ad alliaces. Te ds te d t et al witheach ther ad these wars i heave spill ver it the lives

mrtals.

Accuracy? Not really

I case yu cat tell, Im playi pretty ast ad lse withGreek histry ad mythly here. Teres all that busiessabut the chiton ad reaves ad stuf, but really, dt sweatthe histrical details t much. Its all abut the riht avrad eel. Its spears & sadals mythlical acti. Tik yur avrite Sibad mvie, r Clash o the Titans, r hell,

eve that crappy Troy mvie i it helps et yu i the rihtrame mid. Its a simpler wrld, where the streth yur arm ad the re yur spirit ca make a diferece.Lie ca be brutal ad shrt, ad the ly hpe r a her ist make such a statemet reatess that his r her amewill be remembered rever.

Ad speaki his r her, this ame dest expecttraditial male/emale rles whe it cmes t the heres.Tere are wme warrirs bard the ship heres, bthrmal Greek wme as well as earsme Amazs. Am

the ihabitats the lst islads, traditial rles d dmi-ate, s emale heres will be treated as smethi uusual(thuh still hred ad respected).


11/29

13

Moment to Moment

I sme ways, Agon is like a lt RPGs: Each player ctrls e her, ad theAtaist ctrls everye else i the wrld, usually ppets t the heres.Te Ataist sets the stae r each scee, the the players say what the heres dad the Ataist says what the ppets d. Everye rlls dice t d ut theresults imprtat actis.

I Agon, e ets aythi r ree. wi a advatae r accmplish atask, the player r Ataist must rll a victry the dice. Nthi ever happessimply because it shuld r it makes sese. Every task is a agon that must be w.Te dice speak, ad their results are bidi r everye. Fr example, the Ata-ist ist allwed t just say that the heres are ambushed rm the darkess, eve ithat is what wuld happe. Istead, the Ataist must wi a victry i a ctest

aaist the heres. Ad i the heres wi, the theyre the es that d the ambush-i! Every rll represets a chace r victry r e side r the ther. Every rll isa risk.

Tat dest mea that yull rll r every sile pssible acti, hwever. Yurher ca walk dw the rad r put his armr withut rlli dice. Dice arerlled r a confict o interest betwee etities i the wrld. I a cyclps dest watyur her t walk dw this rad, the theres a cict iterest, ad yu wuldrll i a ctest aaist the cyclps. I the shade yur hers dead ather destwat yu t put yur armr , the a ctest rll wuld decide i yu r the shadewi ut.

Sice everythi imprtat i the ame is decided by ctests with dice, itsusually kay r the players t kw this that the heres dt. Fr example, ithe heres wat t travel thruh a mutai pass t et t the Lst City Wids,its kay r the Ataist t tell them that a a sldiers is waiti t ambushthem am the rcks. Te sldiers wt et t ambush the heres util (ad i ) theAtaist wis a ctest, s thi is spiled by the early revelati the sl-

AntagonistThe Game Master. The

Antagonist prepares Quests and op-

ponents or the heroes to ace. Unlike

some RPGs, this job is very aggressive.

The Antagonists job is to spend the questbudget well to make islands, monsters,

and challenges that are tough or the

heroes. In short, the Antagonist is trying

to deeat the heroes, beat them up, and

drain their resources so they will need

to call or extra interlude scenes. Eachextra interlude scene the heroes take to

rest gives the Antagonist more budget to

spend.

PlayersEach player controls one

hero at a time. The players job is to winvictories or his or her hero and accom-

plish quests given by the gods. Finishing

many quests will eventually bring about

the heros Fate, which will determine howthat hero is remembered or eternity.

Ater a hero is retired, that player makes

a new hero. I the retired hero fnished a

lot o quests, the player gets to create a

more powerul hero as a reward. So, eachplayer battles against the Antagonist but

really competes with the other players to

produce the greatest and most memo-rable hero.


12/29

14

diers. O the ther had, sme bits irmati are hidde rm the players (adthe heres) util they wi ctests t lear this. A d example this wuldbe a msters special pwer ivulerability. I the heres just chare i t ht

the creature, they wt d ut abut its pwer util the mmet that e theirweaps buces harmlessly f the msters hide. I the heres take extra time tscut the creature ad ask the lcals abut it, the ther had, they may lear its uique prpertiesprvided they wi the ctests t lear its secrets.

Competition

Agon is a cmpetitive ame. A d ame Agon shuld be like a d ame pker with yur rieds. Everye is tryi t beat the pats f each ther, but itsall i d u, icludi the trash talki. Te ame is desied s that everye

ca hestly try t utd each ther, withut pulli puches r eeli like theyreversteppi their authrity. Te Ataist will set up quests ad ppets thatare as tuh ad merciless as he r she ca make them. I tur, the players will beas cui ad bld as they ca be t trash the ppets ad wi all the ame adlry. Tere is privileed psiti at the table. N e pers has mre pwertha ay ther, there are just diferet types authrity distributed am the play-ers ad Ataist. Whe theres a cict iterest i the ame, the dice speak,ad the results stad. Teres a level playi eld, s t speak, ad ce the amestarts, its hlds barred.

But you were talking about games, says

Hockenberry. Ive seen you wrestle. And

win. And youve won camp ootraces as

well.

Yes, says Odysseus, more than onetime Ive carried o the cup at the running

race while Ajax has had to settle or theox. Athena has helped me theretrip-

ping up the big oa to let me cross the

fnish line frst. And Ive bested Ajax in

wrestling as well, clipping the hollow o

his knee, throwing him backward, andpinning him beore the dull-witted giant

noticed that hed been thrown.

Does that make you a better man? asks

Hockenberry.

O course it does, booms Odysseus.

OLYMPOS


13/29

15


14/29

16

Rolling the dice

Ctests i Agon are settled with dice rlls. Ctests are explaied i mre detail

pae 32, but the dice themselves (ad hw t read them) are explaied here.Tere are ve diferet kids dice i the ame: d4 (ur-sided die), d6 (six-

sided die), d8 (eiht-sided die), d10 (te-sided die), ad d12 (twelve-sided die). Tedice are pictured belw. I ure i yu buht this ame, yu already kw the dice,but I like maki little pictures them ayway.

12

Twelve-sided

die (d12)

10

Ten-sided

die (d10)

8

Eight-sided

die (d8)

6

Six-sided

die (d6)

4

Four-sided

die (d4)

Every imprtat quality the heres ad their ppets is rated i e r mredice. Tat is, yur her miht have a Wrestle ability rated at d8. Yur her mihtals have a swrd rated at 2d6. A ppet miht have a Cui ability d6 r apised stier rated at 1d10. Te larer the die-size, the better the quality (s d4is the wrst ad d12 is the best).

Whe yu rll dice i a ctest, yull pick up all yur relevat dice (usually twr three) ad rll them tether. Te sile die shwi the hihest umber is yurresult. I yur result is reater tha yur ppets, yu wi a oy. I the case a tie, the aggressorwis the victry (the aressr is the pers wh tk the actithat called r the rll).

How Many Dice Do You Need?

Youll want about six o each die type oreach player. d4s and d12s arent used as

much, though, so you could get by with

ewer o those.

The Antagonist might want to have some

extra d6s, d8s, and d10s, to represent

minions.


15/29

17

Victories

A sile victry is euh t wi a simple ctest, but sme-times yu wat t wi multiple victries. I yur result is o

hgh tha yur ppets, yu ear tw victries, istead e. I yu beat yur ppet by eiht, yu ear threevictries. I yu beat yur ppet by 12, yu ear a ttal ur victries, ad s . Every ur pits reater thayur ppets result ears yu ather victry. Multiplevictries have diferet efects depedi the task at had.I a ht, extra victries d mre damae t yur ppet.I a ctest Lre, extra victries ive yu mre kwledeabut a subject.

Modifers

Die rlls ca be mdied i tw ways: 1) buses r pealtiesad 2) impairmet r ehacemet ll.

Buses ad pealties are applied t the umber shw-i yur hihest die. S, i yu have a +2 bus ad rll a9, yur al result wuld be 11. I yu have a -4 pealty adrll a 6, yur al result is a 2. Die results cat be eative.Zer is the lwest result yu ca rll.

Impairmet r ehacemet levels are applied t thesize the die. I yu have a ehacemet level t yur d8Isiht, the it becmes e size larer: a d10. I yu havea impairmet level t yur d6 Orate, it becmes a d4. Tesmallest die size is a d0, r die. I a d4 takes a impairmetlevel, it cat be rlled at all.

563 21

Phil rolls: Scott rolls:

Phils result is 6. Scotts result is 2.

Outcome:

Phil wins with 2 victories (6 is our greater than 2).


16/29

22

Abiities

Your abilities represent your heros level o excellence in various activities. Tere are16 abilities, divided into our groups o our.

Arete: Insight, Grace, Might, SpiritBattle: Aim, Shield, Spear, SwordCraft: Lore, Music, Orate, HealSport: Athletics, Cunning, Hunt, Wrestle

Abilities are rated by die size (rom least to greatest):

d4: Noviced6: Adeptd8: Master

d10: Championd12: Legendary

Each ability starts with a rating o d6. When you create your hero, you may raise anability in a group to d8 by lowering another ability in that group to d4. You also gettwo bonus die levels to add where you like. No ability can start with a rating greaterthan d10.

Brandon creates the heroAleta, daughter of Theseus.

He distributes her ability dice like this:

Arete: Insight d6, Grace d6, Might d8, Spirit d4

Craft: Lore d6, Music d8, Orate d4, Heal d6Sport: Athletics d8, Cunning d6, Hunt d4, Wrestle d6

Battle: Aim d8, Shield d6, Spear d6, Sword d4

Finally, he adds two bonus levels: one to Aim and one to Athletics,

to make each d10.

Abilities are dened in detail on page 64.

I cannot rest from travel: I will drink life

to the lees: all times I have enjoyd greatly,

have sufferd greatly, both with those that

loved me, and alone; on shore, and when

thro scudding drifts the rainy Hyadesvext the dim sea: I am become a name. . .

Tennyson, ULYSSES


17/29

23

God

Next, youll choose the primary god rom which your herodraws his or her divine avor. A list o gods is provided on thenext two pages. Each god is associated with three key abili-ties. Write down these abilities ater you choose your god.Youll use these abilities when you make sacrices to yourgod, so its generally a good idea to choose a god associated

with one o your best abilities. Write your avored god andthe abilities in the space on your hero sheet.

You start play with 7 boxes o divine avor. Put an Xmark in the remaining boxes. During play, you may check ofboxes o divine avor in order to activate special actions in thegame. See Divine Favor, page 70.

HEROIC TRAIT NAME lINEAGE

HEROIC TRAIT BONuS

NAME DIE

INSIGHT GRACE MIGHT SPIRIT

ARETE

HEAl lORE MuSIC ORATE

CRAFT

ATHlETICS CuNNING HuNT wRESTlE

SPORT

AIM SHIElD SPEAR SwORD

BATTlE

FATE

8

10 12

DIVINE FAVOR

GOD

FAVORED ABIlITIES

GlORY

ADVANCES (uNSPENT)

OATHS

d8d6 d6 d4

Aleta daughter of TheseusFleet-Footed+2 Athletics

+2 position outside

d6

d8d6 d6 d4

d4d10 d6 d6

d6d10 d6 d4

Artemis

Athletics, Hunt, Aim

(+2)


18/29

40

Stealing the Horn of Pelios

Te heroes are sneaking into the emple o Apollo to steal a sacred relic. Tey knew it was going to be tough, so they frst had asimple contest o Lore to learn where the Horn is kept in the temple and who guards it, giving them an advantage die to their roll

to steal it. Phil and Wilhelm won d8 advantage dice (two victories), but Cara only won a d6.

62

Phil gets an 8: The Antagonist gets an 8: Outcome:

Phils hero gets the Horn. He tied the Antagonist, and hes

the aggressor here.

Phil wins 1 Glory or beating the Antagonist, and an extra 3

Glory or being the highest-rolling hero vs. a 2d8 contest.

Cara and Wilhelm lose to the Antagonist, so their heroes

each take 1 level o impairment to Cunning.Name Cunning

4

Cara gets a 6:

Name Cunning

51

Wilhelm gets a 7:

Name Cunning

What happens to the losers?

Theyre probably detected by the guards and chased away,while Phils hero slips in and steals the Horn. Or some other

sequence o events could occur. With a simple contest,

the group can elaborate on the outcome ater the roll and

decide together exactly how the scene plays out, based on

who won and lost, and by how much.

3 8

4

The Antagonist has made

this contest more difcult by

spending Strie. As a result,this contest is worth 3 Glory

to the hero who rolls the

highest.

Sample Contests

6

8

7

Advantage

Advantage

Advantage


19/29

41

The Heroes Versus the River

Te heroes have to cross a very dangerous river. Te Antagonist calls or a harmul obstacle contest o Might to saely cross theraging waters.

734 6

Phil gets a 7: The Antagonist gets a 6: Outcome:

Phil and Caras heroes cross the river saely.

Phil wins 1 Glory or beating the Antagonist. Cara wins 1

Glory or beating the Antagonist, and an extra 2 Glory or

rolling highest among the heroes vs a 2d6 harmul contest.

Scott loses to the Antagonist. The Antagonist has 1 victory

against Scott, so his hero takes 1 level o impairment to his

Might and 1 wound.

Name Might Cunning

(creative ability)

2

Cara gets a 9:

Name Might (+2 orheroic trait)

7

41

Scott gets a 4:

Name Might

4

Does Scotts hero make it across the river?

Since this is an obstacle contest, yes. Scotts hero isntblocked at the river. All o the participants are ree to

help describe exactly what happens to Scotts hero due

to his ailure. He might be knocked against a rock and

badly bruised beore hauling himsel onto the ar shore.

Or, maybe hes swept into an underground cavern and has

to slog his way back to the surace over several hours oexhausting eort.


20/29

46

Position example

Ater the position rolls, the order

is (rom lowest to highest):

1. White Skeleton

2. Gray Hero

3. White Hero

4. Gray Skeleton

The White Skeleton is the low-

est, so it doesnt get to position

anyone and it decides not to

move itsel.

The Gray Hero goes second. He

can move any opponent that he

beat, which in this case is onlythe White Skeleton. He moves it

one range band closer.

Then the White Hero goes.

He can also move the White

Skeleton, so he moves it closer

again, to get it into spear range.


21/29

47

Finally, the Gray Skeleton gets to

position. It decides to push the

White Hero away one band, put-

ting him into bow range (5,6).

The Gray Skeleton could havemoved itsel back one range

band, to be in bow range against

both heroes, but by moving the

White Hero away instead, it

helps the White Skeleton.

That leaves us with our fnal

positions beore the action

starts or this exchange. The

Gray Hero has the WhiteSkeleton in optimal spear

range, and the Gray Skeleton

has the White Hero in optimal

bow range. The White Herodoesnt have a bow, but he

can hurl javelins at the White

Skeleton.


22/29

48

Battle Dice

Bor th xch strts, youll thr th ic you or th bttl. Youll your ic, o i, your i.

Ts ic will b ivi btw your lt h your riht h. T ici your lt h rprst your s, th ic i your riht h rprstyour ttck. I you ot wt to ctully hol your ic i your hs, thrs spcor your lt h riht h ic t th bottom o th hro sht. Just plcth ic thr or ow.

You lwys ssi your bttl ic bor you mk positio rolls.

Weapon DiceI bttl, your wpos r your li. Atr th strti r is trmi (butbor positio rolls) th combtts rm thmslvs or th ht.

o rm your hro, you put ic ito your hs. T ic rprst your hroswpos. You will hol thm s your hro hols hr wpos. S th wpo -scriptios o th xt p.

Ability DieChoos o your bttl bilitis to us uri this xch. T bility youchoos must corrspo to wpo you r wili. Plc th bility i i thsm h tht hols th ic or tht wpo.

So, i you us your Shil bility, you put your bility i i your lt h,

with th wpo i or th shil. I you us your Swor bility, h swori your riht h, you put your bility i i your riht h. I you us yourSpr bility, you coul put your bility i i ithr h, sic th spr wpoic o i both hs.

Your NameFilly, you your m i. It c o i ithr h.

Glory or Teamwork?

The position system oten g ives a playeran interesting choice: do I move the

enemy so I have optimal range or my

own attacks, or do I move the enemy soseveral o the other heroes can attack it,

too? This is by design. Part o the un in

Agon comes rom the tension between

the heroes quest or personal glory and

the need or them to work together.


23/29


24/29

54

Battle example

Aleta, daughter of Teseus (page 23) is stalking the Golden Boar of Ion (page 93)in the moonlit Ionian woods, when she suddenly comes ace to ace with the abledcreature itsel.

Aleta is armed with a shield and javelin, while the Boar has its wicked tusks,which count as two swords. Aleta wears greaves and a breastplate, giving her a d8armor die, while the Boar has a d10 armor die to represent its tough hide.

First the starting range must be set. Te woods are dense and the moon isdark (dense exterior, dark). Aleta and the Boar are placed on the range strip threebands apart. Each combatant then begins by allocating their dice to their right andlet hands (attack and deense). Aleta takes up her shield (d8) in her let hand, andchooses to put her name die (d6) there as well. In her right hand, she grasps herjavelin (d6) and chooses to use her javelin ability die (d10) as well, which must alsogo in her weapon hand. Te javelin will also provide a +1 bonus to any roll which

includes it.Te Boar gets 2d6 in its let hand as well as 2d6 in its right, one set o dice or

each tusk. Going on the attack, it places both its sword ability die (d10) and its name(d8) on the right. It will be a ormidable opponent.

Now, position rolls must be made. Aletas name (d6) plus her athletics (d6) donot look like much against the Boars name o (d8) and athletics o (d8), but Aletahas a ew advantages. Her heroic trait, Fleet-footed, gives her +2 on rolls involvingAthletics, and an additional +2 when positioning outdoors. However she must sub-tract one rom her position roll because o her greaves. So her total bonus to this

roll is +3. Aleta rolls a 2 and 5, so her positioning total is 5 + 3 = 8. Te Boar rollsdecently, a 6 and a 7, but its high die is still not enough to win out over Aletas advan-tage. Te Boar must position rst, and may not move Aleta, so it chooses to close,moving to range two. Aleta then takes her turn, and chooses to move the Boar backto range three. (She could also have moved hersel backwards, instead).

6

52

Aleta: 8

The Boar: 7

Position Rolls

7

+4 bonus romHeroic Trait,

-1 rom greaves.

Total bonus: +3

Aleta wins, and may move the Boar or

hersel one range band.


25/29

55

Ten to the clash o weapons. Te Boars tusks, classed as swords, give it therst action. It has [2d6 1d8 1d10] on the attack, and rolls 4, 1, 6, and 9. Howeverit is attacking rom two range bands out o its optimal range (1), and so sufers a -4

penalty, making its nal attack total 9 - 4 = 5. Aleta rolls her let hand dice, [d6 d8],getting a 5 and 1. Having ailed to beat the Boars attack total with her high die, sheis hit. However she still has the option to try and take the hit on her armor. She sochooses, rolling her armor die o d8 (or two pieces o armor) and getting a 5. TeBoars tusks rake across her bronze breastplate, but nd no purchase in esh. Aletarecords an impairment to her armor die. Next time she calls on her armor, she willonly roll a d6.

Finally Aleta has her chance. Range 3 is optimal or her javelin, so she neednot take a penalty on her roll. With her right hand dice [d6 d10], she rolls a 6 (onthe d6) and 7. Te Boar rolls its let hand dice [2d6] and gets a 2 and a 3. A hit! But

Aleta is not so easily satised. She could settle or the 7, but instead spends a pointo divine avor (page 70) to open the d6, which rolled its maximum value. Pickingit up, she rolls another 6, and then a 2. With the javelins bonus, her nal attack totalis 6 + 6 + 2 + 1 = 15. Against the Boars 3 or deense, this is worth our victories!

Te Boars tough hide grants it a d10 armor die. Noting this, Aleta allocates twoo her victories as a penalty to its armor roll, and leaves the other two as wounds.Te Boar rolls a 5 on its d10 armor die, an average result, but with the penalty 5 - 2= 3, and its armor does not save it (it needed a 4). Aletas javelin has ound its markbetween the beasts ribs. Te Antagonist marks the 2 box on the Boars wound track,

and notes that it will take a -1 penalty on its next roll.Te combatants are now ready to begin another round, starting with positionrolls. Aleta grins wickedly and hets another javelin.

With luck and skill, she can continue to evade the beasts glittering tusks, andbring those very objects in triumph to the emple o Apollo!

9

5

Aletas Deense Roll: 5

The Boars Attack Roll: 5

614

-4 penalty to roll or range penalty.

1Ties go to theattacker. Aleta

is hit!

Aletas ArmorRoll: 5

5

Aletas armor

defects the

blow (she rolled4 or better).

Her armor die is

now impaired.


26/29

68

Fate

Every hero must someday meet his or her ate. Tis may be glorious

death in battle, a happy old age surrounded by amily and riends, ora tragic end lled with horror. One thing is certain: Fate is inexorableand cannot be turned aside.

Each hero has a ate rating on the hero sheet. For mortal heroes,the track starts with no boxes checked of. For hal-divine heroes, thetrack starts with eight boxes checked of (hal the track).

Tere are three benchmarks on the ate scale, marked 8, 10, and12. When your ate rating equals the level o a benchmark, you raiseyour heros name die to the size indicated (d8, d10, or d12).

Gaining FateFate only increases. Tere is no way to reduce your heros ate rating.Tere are several ways to raise your heros ate rating:

Raise your ate by one to avoid all the damage rom one attack.

Raise your ate by one to remove our levels o impairment.

Your Fate will also increase automatically when certain conditionsare met:

+1 ate when your hero is deeated.

+1 ate when you complete a quest.

+1 ate to challenge a god. I a god gives you a divine com-mand that you dont wish to ollow, you may challenge thegod to a contest to resist the command.


27/29

69

When you run out o ate boxes, your heros tale is almost at an end. Your hero willget to nish one more quest and then will retire rom the game. Based on the level oyour heros legend, you get to narrate how your hero meets his or her ate.

Legend Total Fate

10 or less Tragic end. Death and life not remembered.

11-29 Pleasant end. You will have a pleasant end to your life,

surrounded by family. You will be remembered until your

grandchildrens generation

30-39 Heroic end. You go out with a bang. Songs will be sung

about you for ten generations.

40-49 Legendary end. Your life and death are the stuff of epics.

You inspire a hundred generations of heroes after you.

50+ Immortality. Your name and deeds are never forgot-

ten, even after the sun goes cold.

Making a New Hero

Ater you retire your hero, you get to create a new one. Follow the same process tocreate your new hero as you did to create your rst, with one exception: Te numbero ree ability levels you get to add is equal to hal the number o quests your retiredhero completed.


28/29


29/29

BOW DICE SHIELD DICE SPEAR DICE SWORD DICE

JAVELIN DICE

RANGE

RANGE RANGE RANGEARMOR DIE

HELMET(-1 MISSILE)

BREASTPLATE(-1 MELEE)

GREAVES(-1 POSITION)

WOUNDS

1 -1 TO NEXT ROLL

2 -1 TO NEXT ROLL

3 -2 TO NEXT ROLL

4 -1 TO ALL ROLLS

5 -2 TO ALL ROLLS

6 -4 TO ALL ROLLS(DEFEATED)

DIVINE FAVOR COSTS

1: OPEN-END DIE

1: +1D6 FOR 1 ROLL

2: RE-ROLL ONE DIE

2: ATTACk AGAIN

2: MOVE HERO 1 RANGE

2: NO DMG PEN FOR 1 EX

3: +1D8 FOR 1 ROLL

4: RE-ROLL ANy/ALL DICE

5: DIVINE WEAPON

HEROIC TRAIT NAME LINEAGE

HEROIC TRAIT BONUS

NAME DIE

INSIGHT GRACE MIGHT SPIRIT

ARETE

HEAL LORE MUSIC ORATE

CRAFT

ATHLETICS CUNNING HUNT WRESTLE

SPORT

AIM SHIELD SPEAR SWORDBATTLE

FATE

8

10 12

DIVINE FAVOR

GOD

FAVORED ABILITIES

GLORy

ADVANCES (UNSPENT)

OATHS

qUESTS

EARNING FATE

1: AVOID WOUNDS FROM 1 ATTACk

1: REMOVE 4 IMPAIR LEVELS

1: COMPLETED qUEST

1: DEFEATED

1: CHALLENGE A GOD

REWARDS

COMPLETED qUEST: 1 DIVINE FAVOR

WIN CONTEST: 1 GLORy

HIGHEST HERO ROLL: 1-7 GLORy

DEFEAT MINION: 1 GLORy

DEFEAT NPC: GLORy = HIGHESTWOUND DONE

SPECIAL ITEMS

AGON HERO SHEET ww w.agon-rpg.com lefthand

righthand

AGON, sample

Documents

Transcript of AGON, sample