Combat

To enhance the drama and immersion of our battles, we’ve implemented a series of house rules that add depth, consequence, and narrative weight to every encounter.

This section outlines our revised combat rules, designed to make each clash more impactful and engaging. These rules encourage strategic thinking, collaborative storytelling, and a deeper connection to your character’s struggles and triumphs on the battlefield. Prepare to face the challenges ahead with courage and creativity.

Initiative

Wisdom vs Dexterity

In the Sisterhood, we recognize that both physical reflexes and mental acuity can influence initiative. To provide players with more strategic options, we allow for a roll determined by either a Dexterity check (the typical way of determining initiative) or a Wisdom check. Using a Wisdom check means that the character’s assessing the situation strategically and acting accordingly, instead of relying on speed and agility.

However, in situations where battles are started as a reaction to an event (such as accidentally disturbing a nest of Giant Weasels or being ambushed), Dexterity checks will be enforced for initiative rolls. This reflects the immediate threat of the situation.

Nat 1

If you roll a nat 1 on your initiative check, you will roll your fist action at a disadvantage. This represents a clumsy or ill-timed start to the encounter.

Nat 20

If you roll a nat 20 on your initiative check, you will roll your first action at an advantage. This represents a moment of exceptional awareness and decisive action, giving you a significant edge against your enemies.

Narrating the Killing Blow

The moment of a final strike is a moment for adding weight and cinematic flair to the encounters. When your attack reduces an enemy, ally, or any other creature to 0 hit points, you have the opportunity for narrating the killing blow. This is your opportunity to add dramatic (or comedic) flair and personalize the scene.

If you’re unsure of how to do this, the DM may offer guidance. If you’re uncomfortable with this idea, you may defer this narration to the DM or another player.

Style Points

Combat is an opportunity to show your character’s flair, creativity, and dramatic prowess. To reward players who elevate combat beyond simple dice rolls, we’ve introduced the style points system. Under this system, players are encouraged to make their combat actions as cinematic and entertaining as possible. This includes descriptive flourishes, creative maneuvers, and dramatic interactions with the environment, each other, or their opponents. These style points will equate to XP at the end of the combat.

Examples of earning style points include, but are not limited to:

Using the environment creatively
Delivering a particularly dramatic or witty one-liner
Executing a complex or otherwise impressive maneuver
Collaborating with other players to create a coordinated and cinematic attack
Adding a touch of humor or theatricality to your actions

Battle Fatigue

We recognize that battle is a grueling ordeal. To reflect the toll of near-death experiences, your character will suffer a level of exhaustion when they’re revived after being reduced to 0 HP. This exhaustion persists until your character either recovers to their maximum hit points or completes any form of rest. Be mindful of the risks and hinderances associated with exhaustion and avoid pushing your character to their breaking point.

Saving Throws

If your character’s ability score for a saving throw is an odd number, you gain a +1 bonus to the saving throw. For example, if your character’s Wisdom ability score is 15, their wisdom saving throw modifier becomes +3 instead of the typical +2.

This bonus applies to all saving throws associated with that ability score. However, it does not affect ability checks and attack rolls.

Winded Condition

The heat of battle can leave even the most seasoned adventurers struggling to catch their breath. To reflect the vulnerability of characters pushed to their limits, we’ve introduced a “Winded condition” to the game.

When a character’s hit points are reduced to ¼ of their maximum or less, they become “Winded.” While winded, a character suffers the following penalties:

They have a disadvantage on all attacks rolls and ability checks, excluding saving throws.
Their movement speed is reduced by half.

The Winded condition persists until the character is healed to above ¼ of their maximum hit points. This can happen with potions, spells, rests, or other means.

The Last Stand

In the Sisterhood, the fall of a comrade can be a powerful motivator, igniting a surge of adrenaline and determination to win. To reflect this dramatic moment, we have the “Last Stand” rule.

When a character (PC or NPC) is reduced to 0 HP, their allies who can see them gain an advantage on all attack rolls, saving throws, and ability checks. This advantage lasts until the end of the affected allies’ next turn to represent the immediate surge of adrenaline and focus earned in this moment.

Hidden Death Saving Throws

To heighten the suspense and dramatic tension of death saving throws, you have the option to keep the results of your roll secret from the other players. You can choose to either roll behind the DM’s screen or roll privately and send the results directly to the DM’s messages. This creates uncertainty and allows the players to react to your character’s condition without knowing your fate.

The DM will track your death saving throws and determine when your character stabilizes or succumbs to their injuries and will inform you privately. The DM will announce the final outcome at the end of the battle or if another player attempts to heal your character. This ensures the other players are informed at relevant times.

Consumables

In the heat of battle, every action counts. We’ve streamlined the use of consumables to allow for more tactical uses of your time in combat.

What are consumables

Consumables are items used once and then depleted. These items typically provide temporary benefits, such as healing, buffs, or other effects. Examples include:

Potions: healing potions, potions of invisibility, etc.
Poisons: Applied to weapons or ingested
Salves/Ointments: Applied to wounds or ailments
Food and drinks with magical effects

Self-administration

Using a consumable on yourself is considered a bonus action. This allows you to quickly restore hit points or gain other benefits without sacrificing your main action.

Handing off

Passing a consumable to another player is also considered a bonus action. This allows you to provide aid and still make an attack or other action.

Administering to others

Administering a consumable to another player is considered an action. This reflects the increased time and effort required to assist the other character.

Glancing Blows

Attacks that narrowly miss their mark can still inflict a degree of damage. If your attack roll exactly matches the target’s Armor Class (AC), the attack is considered a glancing blow. This attack deals half the normal damage, rounded down.

The DM retains the right to rule that certain attacks, due to their nature or the situation, cannot result in a glancing blow.

Take Five

To minimize frustration and interruptions in gameplay caused by minor distance discrepancies, we allow you to close a gap between you and your target that is 5 ft or smaller. For instance, if you wish to attack a monster that is 5 ft out of range, you can “take five” and close the distance. This eliminates a wasted turn on a Dash action or the need for you to forgo the attack entirely.

The DM retains the right to rule against the attempt to “take five” if the distance between you and the enemy is caused by terrain or other obstacles. This rule prioritizes the smooth flow of gameplay without significantly altering the game’s mechanics.

Critical Hits and Fails

In the Sisterhood, the dice hold the power to introduce an element of unpredictable excitement or cinematic flair to the battle. This is especially true when you roll a critical hit or a critical fail.

Critical Fail

When you roll a nat 1 on an attack roll, instead of simply missing, you will roll a d20 against the Critical Fail table. This table introduces a range of unfortunate or humorous consequences. These consequences can involve things such as scarring yourself, damaging your equipment, or displeasing the gods.

Critical Hit

When you roll a nat 20 on an attack roll, you will roll a d20 against a Critical Hit table. This table introduces a range of devastating (to your enemies) and cinematic effects. These effects can include things like delivering the killing blow, inspiring your allies, and gaining favor from the gods.

Sisterhood
of the
Cheese Fries