Topic: Historic Fantasy

[Marc R]

Anyone do much RM with no magic?

I've played a few games, and found that without magic, especially healing magic, it was a bit brutal.

As a player, I found myself being very wary of combat, and we spent a lot of time in recovery. . .things like poison and disease were a lot more menacing as well.

Been considering doing it again, but thought I'd touch base here, see if anyone else has done anything similar? Wondering if there are any tips or tricks you could share.

[Alten]

I've tried several historical settings with little or no magic and yes, combat IS deadly. At the very least the characters can be immobilized for weeks or months. While this does tend to promote subtle play and putting every possible chance on your side (like expending NPCs...) I have also felt that for playability's sake natural or chemical healing should be a little bit more efficient than would truly be realistic. At low tech levels I usually use a recovery multiplier of 1.5 (i.e., regain hits at 1.5 normal time or heal wounds in 2/3 time), using an additional half time modifier for medical/hospital/herbal care. Good skill rolls also allow the "amount of time" multiplier to be used, e.g. 0.7 for an Absolute success. When in dire need (but only for the game's sake) I let the characters have access to a particularly good healer with very effective remedies (also treated mostly as time modifiers). I usually ask at least one character in the group to take this as a Contact background option.

I tend to be more strict at higher TLs (about firearm level), unless I want a really cinematic game (remember Last Action Hero ? On one side of the screen the wound is deadly, on the other it's not even a flesh wound). After all, firearms are meant to be devastating.

For diseases and potions I roll the dice... but sometimes decide to only apply the next lower severity level (Severe instead of Extreme, etc.). And I give generous bonuses to characters who are concerned about personal hygiene!

[yammahoper]

No magic settings work IF the players can make the proper mental adjustment.

The threat of armed conflict is something to be feared, just like in real life.  This mental state is not common in your typical fantasy rpg.  A slash to the forarm that cuts to the bone takes a week to heal properly to use (say a -15 mod, light wound, 5 days to recover at a reduction of -3 to the penalty each day).  Wounds can reopen and tear which means rest has to be actual rest.  All this ignores infection, and realistically even a well tended wounds require a level one rr with higher level rr's for wounds not kept clean (and in such settings, clean is often relative).

I disagree with improving the recovery times on the RM healing table, which are already freindly.  I do agree with improving over all medical knowledge or PC's might well die from the treatments.

[Marc R]

Yes, the leaches and septic surgery model was hard on the patients.

IMO the absence of travel magic also made for a lot more taking boats and traveling from place to place than was usual at higher levels, when the PCs often start to pop around fast.

[Skaran]

You definitely need to increase healing rates especially if it will put a PC out of play while others PCs continue. Multiple characters for players is probably a good idea.

It may sound silly but some years ago when we played Outlaw we found that keeping PC and NPC levels lower also helped. Combat skill levels were low enough that incapacitating criticals were much less common.

If you are still allowing the use of some healing herbs and plants the prices need to be reduced, perhaps silver pieces instead of gold for the base prices.

[ironmaul]

Or you could have medical technology far more advanced than our own history was. Having hospitals in major cities and towns will help too. Of course this kind of healing is going to be reserved for the rich, or for those can pay the high costs such as adventurers

Clerics would now be your defult medic.

[Langthorne]

Assuming the PCs don't die quickly, they'll probably learn quickly that leaping into combat heedlessly can be deadly for all involved.

The healing rates in RMSS are very generous already, so I don't adjust them.

Without magic the PCs will pretty much have mundane healing (1st Aid, 2nd Aid, Surgery etc) and (depending on your scenario) herbs. Mastering either of these areas is not easy, but they can both be very powerful healing methods (herbs especially).

I have made my own spreadsheet detailing the possible uses of mundane healing skills, based on the rules found in various RMSS books (and expanded upon of course). With high skill levels there is much that can be done (eg a sucessful 2nd Aid roll could decrease healing times by 25% - not my rule, official..I think it is in SOHK).

The issues with herbs are that the details aren't all in one place (another little project of mine), although not as bad as for healing, the details for gathering and preparing them are sketchy (more home brew I'm afraid), and the price list is ridiculous (maybe it could be used to describe the relative values of herbs one to another, but if those numbers are applied as is then every peasant in the land would be out looking for herbs - finding just one of moderate priced herbs would be like winning the lottery).

If you have the other options mapped out, then the loss of magic doesn't have to be quite so devastating. Of course if you are playing an accurate medieval european setting then medicine will be rudimentary at best (even Richard I died of gangrene, and he was a king).

[Grinnen Baeritt]

To be fair... I've run more RM games without magic than with. 

With respect to healing, I do tend to be a little more generous with the effects of first aid and how it reduces injuries. To an extent Tech level is an important consideration.

I n certain combat heavy campaigns, where magic isn't available, then I'll use a fate point mechanic.