3. Roll system

Every player roll in Open Tale is based on an attribute, for which the final score is the sum of 2d6 and the respective attribute level. This rule of thumb is only broken by Heroism and roll modifiers.

3.1. Heroism

The GM can reward characters with Heroic Badges, which can be spent during combat in the character’s turn. If the player chooses so, every upcoming roll on that turn happens with an extra d4.

Characters cannot carry more than one Heroic Badge at a time.

3.2. Roll modifiers

Roll modifiers are ingredients that can be used to spice up the story in certain moments. There are two mutually exclusive roll modifiers in Open Tale: Disadvantage and Advantage.

  • Disadvantage: roll again and stay with the lowest score
  • Advantage: roll again and stay with the highest score

Some circumstances tell you exactly which modifier to apply, but the GM is free to say which modifier should be used throughout the game.

3.3. Comparing bonuses

In terms of expected roll scores, from the lowest to the highest, the order is as follows:

  1. Disadvantage
  2. Pure (no modifier)
  3. Disadvantage + Heroism (slightly better than pure)
  4. Advantage
  5. Advantage + Heroism