Rules and Game Mechanics

## Basic Mechanics

Characters in Dig have both Stats and Skills. Stats are the Character’s basic physical abilities, such as how strong they are or how knowledgeable they are. Skills measure of the character’s experience with certain subjects or actions, like shooting a gun or speaking a language.  Rolls are based around the level of a Stat plus a bonus from a Skill if it is applicable to the situation. For instance, punching someone would be Strength + Unarmed.

The system is D20 roll under. This means that when a character rolls to do something, a single d20 is rolled and in order to succeed the number rolled needs to be UNDER the Stat + Skill being used. For example, If the person punching someone had 12 strength and 2 unarmed skill, they would need to roll UNDER 14 to succeed.  A 1 is considered an automatic success regardless of penalties, and a 20 is an automatic failure, regardless of bonuses. Additionally, advantage or disadvantage can be given depending on the situation. Both roll the d20 twice, but advantage takes the lowest number while disadvantage takes the highest.

A d6 “Fate” die can be rolled at the GM’s discretion. This roll will inject “Tone” into the binary succeed/fail of the normal test. For instance, if a player succeeds but the fate die rolls low, they might unintentionally create consequences. Their attempt to subdue a guard might succeed, but might create noise that draws attention, for example.  Similarly, Failures that roll well with fate can be far less disastrous than they could have been.

### Helping each other

When trying to help someone with an action, you need a central person to do the action (eg pulling someone up on a rope). Other people's successful rolls then give them +1's.

## Leveling Up

Players level up at the GM’s discretion, usually after major actions like completing a quest or a lengthy exploration. When leveling up, the player rolls 3d6 for each of the character’s stats. If the roll is higher than that stat, then add +1 to the stat. For example, if a player has Strength 8 and rolls 12 on 3d6, they would bump their Strength to 9.  Players also gain 1 skill point. Leveling a skill from 0 to +1 costs one skill point. Leveling from +1 to +2 costs two skill points, and from +2 to +3 costs three skill points. Skill points may be saved as long as the player wishes and applied in bulk whenever they level up.

Skills such as Weapon, Defense, and Vehicle skill automatically level up when a player gets a natural 1 on a roll using that weapon, defense, or vehicle. The first level, from 0 to +1 needs a single crit success, the second needs two, and the third needs three.

## Damage system

Weapons (natural and crafted) have attributes, like “Cutting 5”.  Armor and protective things have a similar “Protection 3” sort of attribute. These are approximations of about how good the weapon and armor are about protecting or dealing damage. They are not, however, hard and fast numerical designations that mean someone with Protection 5 armor is totally immune to damage from anything below Cutting 5, or that a knife and sword with the same Cutting attribute deal the same damage.  Instead is just means that anything below Cutting 5 will be less effective than something that is Cutting 5. Think of them as a rating, not a “Damage” or “Armor points”.  Its Chunky salsa, the numbers are there to prevent armor thickness questions.

## Stats and Skills

### Stats

* **Strength**: Raw physical strength. Used for melee with weapons, fists, wrestling, etc.
* **Dexterity**: Control of the body, hand eye coordination, balance, careful movement. Used for ranged weapons and throwing.
* **Speed**: How quick you can act, react, and move. Used to act first in combat.
* **Endurance**: Resistance to all sorts of things like illness, pain, and non-standard physical damage. Also determines what armor you can wear.
* **Awareness**: Used both to see the world around you and search for clues, and also to avoid attacks. Tested when you are attacked in order to dodge damage.
* **Cunning**: Problem solving, trickery, trap setting, convincing someone of something. Used In Crafting.
* **Knowledge**: Specific knowledge related to a topic, roll to know things. Used in Medical care
* **Nerve**: Sanity, Bravery, Staying calm and resisting panic. Used for Diving.

### Skills

* **Weapon Skill:** Unique skill connected to each weapon. Levels up automatically through use or can be leveled normally.
* **Unarmed:** For fighting with fists or with various improvised weapons.
* **Defense skill:** Used for bonuses to shields, armor and other protective things. Again connected to particular items. Functions similarly to Weapon skill.
* **Medical:** Doing anything medical.
* **Translate:** Used for translating languages, written and spoken, as well as breaking ciphers.
* **Vehicle Skill**: Like weapon skill, but for driving or controlling things.
* **Acrobatics:** For doing acrobatic things, free hand climbing, flips, etc.
* **Caving:** For traversing caves using ropes and other more traditional means.
* **Persuasion:** For making someone believe you or change their mind.
* **Machine Control:** For controlling machines and devices that are not weapons or vehicles.
* **Explosives:** For setting and using explosives.
* **Trickery:** For sleight of hand, fake magic, stuff like that.
* **Stealth:** Avoiding being seen or noticed, as well as for creating and using disguises.
* **Survival:** Basic wilderness survival skills like cleaning and gutting animals, starting fires, knowing what natural foods are poisonous, etc.
* **Animal Handling:** Controlling tame and wild animals.
* **Geology:** Knowledge about stone and the subterranean environment.
* **Archeology:** Knowledge or inferences made about ancient civilizations and creatures.
* **Electronics:** Knowledge about the building and repair of Electronics.
* **Mechanical:** Knowledge about the building and repair of mechanical devices.
* **Biological:** Knowledge about the building and repair of biological things.
* **Chemical:** Knowledge about the building and repair of chemical devices and substances.
* **Occult:** Knowledge about the building and repair of occult and weird things.
* **Weaponsmith:** Knowledge about the building and repair of weapons
* **Armorsmith:** Knowledge about building and repairing standard armor.
* **Steal:** Skill in pickpocketing and the acts of thievery.
* **Navigation:** Figuring out where you’re going or where you’ve been.
* **Diving:** Skill in correctly diving deeper and connecting with spheres without going crazy.

## Character Creation

Mechanically, to create a character you need three things: Your stats, your Skills, and your starting money and inventory. Roleplay-wise you’ll also need a name, a description of what you look like, and a Goal. Name and Description are self-explanatory, look in the lore document for a description of what each race looks like. A goal is what your character wants to achieve with their life, or at least what they want right now.

You choose your stat array by selecting one of the player races, listed below this section. You can then add 3 points to the listed stat array to customize it. Skills are chosen by the player, again from a list below. You begin with 10 points to distribute; +1 is 1 point, +2 is 3 points, +3 is 6 points.

Starting Inventory is bought from the list at the end of the text. Roll 3d20 + 20, That is how much money you have to start with.  You begin the game with one set of clothing for free. You can roll for your starting cash on the discord (type  !roll 3d20+20  to have a bot roll it for you).

### Races

* **Human:** Adaptable, expansionist apes. Largest population underground.
Str:10  Dex:10  Spe:10  End:10  Awa:10  Cun:10  Kno:10  Ner:10
* **Shang-Gei:** Flexible lizard nomads looking for love.  Can “See” in total darkness.
Str:8  Dex:12  Spe:12  End:8  Awa:12  Cun:10  Kno:8  Ner:10
* **Ethral:** Scholarly Moths prone to shyness and mask wearing.  Able to glide and ignore falls, come with mask.
Str:7  Dex:12  Spe:10  End:8  Awa:7  Cun:13 Kno:13  Ner:10
* **Honored Dead:** Righteous Undead Warriors seeking glory.  Immune to pain and sickness, never heal.
Str:14  Dex:8  Spe:10  End:14  Awa:10  Cun:8  Kno:6  Ner:10
* **Shluck:** Amphibious Merchant molluscs in mechanical exosuits.  Can breathe underwater, comes with exosuit.
* Str:8  Dex:10  Spe:8  End:10  Awa:9  Cun:13  Kno:12  Ner:10
* **Mole-men:** Secretive Mole-bipeds. Dig stone without tools and dangerous unarmed fighters.
Str:12  Dex:10  Spe:8  End:12  Awa:10  Cun:9  Kno:9  Ner:10
* **Corven:** Money obsessed Birdmen. Climb and alike actions always done at an advantage, falls done at disadvantage.
Str:8  Dex:13  Spe:13  End:6  Awa:12  Cun:10  Kno:8  Ner:10
* **Abomination:** Horrifically twisted magical mutants.  Loved by the church, hated by the population.
Str:9  Dex:8  Spe:8  End:10  Awa:12  Cun:10  Kno:10  Ner:13