Roll 1d20 ≥ (21 − Attribute score)

The check target is derived from the raw attribute score, not its modifier. +4 if a relevant Fact applies (Facts never stack, and never apply to hit or damage).

Natural 1 always fails, natural 20 always succeeds.

Only roll for feats that would still challenge a mortal and fall outside a bound Word or an applicable Fact — those are automatic successes, not checks. Penalty up to −8 for near-impossible feats; truly impossible ones need a gift or miracle instead.

Generate: 4d6 drop lowest ×6, assign freely — or the default array 16/14/13/13/10/8.

Strength

Melee hit/damage, brawn

Dexterity

Ranged/light hit & damage, AC, Evasion save

Constitution

Max HP, Hardiness save

Wisdom

Spirit save; rarely rolled directly

Intelligence

Evasion save; rarely rolled directly

Charisma

Reactions, Spirit save, some Presence attacks

Roll 1d20 ≥ (16 − level − better of two attribute mods)

At 1st level this is simply 15 − the better modifier. If both governing attributes are penalties, use the less-bad (higher) one. Saves improve by 1 each level up. Natural 1 fails, natural 20 succeeds.

Hardiness

Better of STR/CON — exhaustion, poison, disease, transformation, physical rigor

Evasion

Better of DEX/INT — explosions, falls, dodgeable hazards

Spirit

Better of WIS/CHA — mind control, curses, sendings, enchantment

A Godbound may Commit Effort for the day to turn a failed save into an automatic success. NPC saves without stats: 15 − half their Hit Dice (min 5), ±3 if thematically (un)suited.

1d20 + attack bonus + attribute mod ≥ 20 hits

Attack bonus starts at +1 and scales with level (+1/level). Weapon–attribute pairing: melee (medium/heavy) → STR; ranged → DEX; light weapons → better of STR/DEX. Natural 1 always misses, natural 20 always hits.

AC = 9 − DEX modifier bonus (never worse than 9 even with a DEX penalty), adjusted by armor:

Each die is looked up separately; the attacker’s bonus applies to only one die of their choice. Godbound lose HP; other creatures lose Hit Dice. “Rolled straight” powers skip this table and use face value.

Overflow: a PC’s excess damage beyond what kills a target can splash to another target in range of equal or worse AC (PCs only; not against area attacks).

Starting HP = 8 + CON modifier

Per level: +4, plus half the CON modifier (round up).

NPCs and monsters use Hit Dice instead of HP — a foe can take damage equal to its HD before dying. Godbound are never treated as “lesser foes,” regardless of relative level or HD.

0 HP: gravely wounded and helpless — any further damage kills. Left alone, regain 1 HP after one hour.

Divine Fury (once, until next level-up): on being reduced to 0 HP, instead gain HP equal to half max (round up) and bonus Effort equal to level; freed from and immune to new binding for the fury’s duration (rounds = level).

After: 5 rounds fully helpless (gifts inactive, no actions, auto-fail saves — any capable foe can finish them). A Godbound dropped to 0 HP during or after a fury dies instantly and cannot be revived.

A full day (or full night’s sleep) of safe rest restores all lost HP for a Godbound. Lesser creatures heal 1 HD per full day’s rest.

Magical HP healing requires the recipient to Commit Effort for the day (curing disease, poison, or curses does not).

Non-Godbound creatures at 0 HD: dead, unconscious, or subdued at the attacker’s discretion; mortally wounded ones take a few rounds to die, in which window aid can save them. An attacker can declare a plausible non-lethal defeat instead of a kill.

Most heroes have a 1d8 Fray Die, rolled each round for free (no action) against the Damage Conversion table, dealing that much damage to one lesser foe (HD ≤ the hero’s level) in sight, no modifiers.

Useless against “worthy foes” — those with more HD than the hero has levels.

Represents divine power, will, and physical energy spent to fuel gifts and miracles.

Starting

2 points

Growth

+1 max per character level

Refresh

All committed Effort returns every morning, rest not required

Committing (not spending outright) ties up a point until you reclaim it or its duration ends:

Instant

Reclaim anytime, even off-turn

Scene-long

Held until the scene ends; can’t reclaim early

Day-long

Held until the next morning; can’t reclaim early

Effort can also be Committed to turn a failed save into a success. A miracle mimicking a gift that would itself need day-long commitment costs 2 Effort instead of 1.

Starting Words

3, bound at creation

Starting gift points

6

Lesser gift

1 point (2 if from an unbound Word, if justifiable)

Greater gift

2 points — only from a bound Word

Bind a new Word

3 points

Per level-up

+2 more gift points to spend or save

Only a hero bound to a Word can learn its Greater gifts. Lesser gifts can (with justification) be taken from any Word.

Constant

Always on, no Effort to activate

On Turn

Triggered on your turn, doesn’t use your action; any number if Effort allows

Action

Uses your action; only one per turn

Instant

Usable anytime, even off-turn or after an enemy’s roll — most defenses are this

Every bound Word also grants one free, unsuppressible intrinsic ability just for being bound (e.g. raising a governing attribute, an always-on sense or immunity).

Available from any Word, as a lesser gift

Alacrity (agility/swiftness)

Intrinsic: can’t be surprised, DEX→16/18. Lesser: Flickering Advance, Mist on Water, Swifter Than the Sun. Greater: Faster Than Thought (Smite), Untouchable.

Command (leadership/obedience)

Intrinsic: CHA→16/18, speak with any intelligent creature. Lesser: Guards! Seize Him!, Know the Inner Truth. Greater: A Thousand Loyal Troops, Thrall-Making Shout.

Artifice (building/repairing/destroying)

Intrinsic: instantly craft small mundane objects. Lesser: Faultless Repair, Hammerhand, Ten Thousand Tools. Greater: The Maker’s Eyes, Transmuter.

When a Word justifies an effect no gift covers: describe it, the GM approves plausibility, then Commit Effort (typically for the full day, even for a brief effect).

Can mimic a bound Word’s gift (lasts ≤1 scene even if normally Constant; costs 2 Effort if the mimicked gift needs day-long commitment), suppress an enemy gift, permanently dispel mortal magic or curses, or produce a scene’s dramatic effect.

Not a selectable Word — its gifts accrue automatically by level to any Godbound running a cult (opt-out “free divinities” get automatic Dominion instead, but no worshipers or Apotheosis gifts).

Influence = 1 + character level

Plus +2 per Word bound with the Influence of the Word gift. Committed, not spent, like Effort — it represents ongoing off-screen attention to a situation.

Committing Influence keeps a change stable; withdrawing it lets the situation decay back toward baseline over time (faster for simple things, slower for complex ones). Influence-driven change is temporary — it only lasts as long as it stays committed.

Starting Dominion: 0. Gained from mighty deeds, cult worship, and celestial-relic assimilation — roughly 1 per session for heroic play, +1 more for acting strongly in-Word.

Unlike Influence, Dominion changes are permanent until an opposing force spends equal-or-greater Dominion (or violence) to undo them.

Free divinities (no cult): automatically gain 1 Dominion per month from 2nd level, +1 more per 3 full levels, but get no Apotheosis gifts or worshipers.

XP & Dominion to level

Cost = Scope base × Difficulty multiplier

Impossible changes generally also require a full Mighty Deed (an adventure), not just the Dominion cost.

Mundus Wards (rated 1–20) add their rating to the base scope cost before the multiplier; most surviving city wards run 1–4, a well-defended nation’s 10+.

Multiple wards: use the highest only. Multiple resisters: worst rating +1 per additional resister.

Gained via the Apotheosis Sanctify Shrine gift (3rd level). Worshipers consecrate a temple or shrine; the Godbound can then perceive and act within its precincts, and their first gift or miracle use there each day is free.

Consecration cost: Wealth equal to the Godbound’s level (rises with level). Desecration requires full re-consecration.

Natural 1 always fails, natural 20 always succeeds, on any d20 roll (checks, attacks, saves).

Effort is committed, not consumed — it refreshes fully every morning regardless of rest.

A Godbound is never a “lesser foe” for another creature’s abilities, regardless of level or HD comparison.

Divine Fury can only be used once between level-ups, and dying during or after it is final.