Conan The Roleplaying Game Second Edition Pdf

Main article:The core rulebooks include an important volume of useful information and data dealing with the world of Conan, sourced on Howard's material and literature.System The game's is Mongoose's adaptation of the as licensed by the.Character Creation The Conan game does not feature non-human races at all.

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The is a d20 variant set of rules meant to be used for adventures set during Conan's Hyborian Age. The game was produced by Mongoose Publishing, but it is out of print now (as Mongoose no longer holds the Conan License).

Although no game is without detractors, the majority of d20 players consider the game a superior set of d20 rules. The game was produced in three editions: The first edition was simply called CONAN THE ROLEPLAYING GAME, and it was a version of the d20 3.0 rules. A second edition was published to coincided with the release of the d20 3.5 rules, and this is referred to as the Atlantean Edition. The third and last edition of the game is called the Second Edition, and it is a cleaned up, better written edition of the previous rule sets.I thought it would be neat to have a thread for Conan GM's to post various ideas, rule tweaks, NPCs, adventure ideas, and what not-a single thread that a Conan GM can peruse and maybe find ideas for his game. That's why I started this thread.Consider it a Conan RPG magazine of sorts, covering all sorts of topics in which a Conan GM would be interested.I'll start, with a few ideas of my own. Feel free to add your two silvers.

A LOW LEVEL WORLD OF HIGH ADVENTURE -Typically, with d20 games, there are two types of universes. The first is dynamic where the world scales with the level of the player characters. You can see this in some D&D adventures where, when playing a published adventure designed for characters level 1-3, all the town guards are 1st level Fighters and the Captain of the Guards is maybe 4th level.Then, as the PCs gain experience and levels, an adventure designed for 4-6 level characters will have town guards at level 2 or 3, and the Captain at level 7.The other type of universe is stagnant, where character levels remain what they are regardless of the PCs' level.

Conan The Roleplaying Game Second Edition Pdf File

Town guards are always about the same level, no matter where you go, and a Captain of the Guard of similar experience will be the same level, no matter the level of the player characters.The Conan RPG uses this second method for the setting of the Hyborian Age. Feared Pict savages are 1st level Barbarians. And, from the point of view of a Commoner classed character, even one that is level 10, that 1st level Pict truly is something to be feared.A GM that prefers the dynamic scaling method for his games can certainly game that way. But, I will note that keeping the Conan universe low-level (think of it like a E-10 game) will keep the grit and lethal flavor of the Hyborian Age that comes across so atmospherically in Howard's Conan stories.What Does A Level Mean?Half the game universe's NPCs should be in the 1st-3rd level range. For clarification, a section was added to the 2E core rulebook that provides guidelines to GMs when making decisions on character levels. 11-12 of the 2E rulebook for specifics, and look at the Human entries in the Beastiary chapter.In sum, character levels in the Conan RPG are defined as such (from the examples given in the 2E Core Rulebook).1st level - a novice fresh out of basic training.

But also note that many NPCs are 1st level. A character can be a novice for years or even most of his life.2nd or 3rd level - most seasoned NPCs. 50% of all NPCs are level 1-3.4th level - a cut above. A leader of a bandit band or the fiercest warrior of a band of pirates.8th level - legendary character. Clan chieftans. Infamous sorcerors.

Army generals. CONAN RPG resouces out in the big voidThere are a few web sites out there in the ether with some home grown Conan adventures on them. You'll have to use your Google-fu. For example, there's stuff on. Some of these are full adventures that you can download for free. Some of these are conversions of classic 1st edition AD&D adventures where you still need the original adventure, but Thulsa provides the Conan-ization.

And, some of these Thulsa charges (worth it-he writes good swords & sorcery adventures) for-they're not specifically for the Hyborian Age, but they're close enough that you can customize them for your game without too much fuss. You can buy the pdf or a hard copy through Lulu (which is what I prefer). Is a great bargain, providing you 10 adventures, from level 1-10.

If you buy it (recommended), then be sure to download Thulsa's free Conan RPG conversion document he wrote for converting that compilation of adventure to the Conan RPG.Besides Thulsa's page, keep on Googling. You'll find stuff likeScribd.com is a good place to look for homegrown Conan RPG stuff.

In just writing this post for you, I found,. I'm sure there's more if I kept looking (and if you do, post it here so that the rest of us can benefit!).is available from RPG Now.Conan author Vincent Darlage maintains and.You might find useful information on blogs, too, like.Please post in this thread anything that you think other Conan GM's would like to see. Matt at Mongoose said that most of the book was republished in S&P. I can only guess at which articles were originally in the Thieves book.

I'm sure of The Dagger in S&P 81 and New Armour in S&P 83. I think Gambling in S&P 85 was originally meant for the Thieves book, and maybe The Underhanded Side of Sorcery in S&P 78. I think, possibly, the Barachan Isles article, too, in S&P 81, but I'm not sure.That's my best guess, and I'm thinking that the Thieves book was not as complete as Empires at the time Mongoose stopped publishing Conan material or Matt would have released it whole like he did with Empires. The War of TarimWhat do you need when you are creating an exciting tale of the Hyborian Age for your characters to explore? You need a plot.

Exciting locales and situations. Interesting foes and NPCs.Well, if you think about it, you can get all of that in the various Conan tales. All you have to do, as GM, is pick a story you like and slap some game stats on things as needed.

You can pick your favorite Conan short story or novel, your favorite pastiche, even a story from the various Conan comics.That last is especially suited for gaming in that, with the story, characters, and situations, you also get visualizations that can inspire your game.When I read through the War of Tarim story arc in, I never stopped thinking of how that story would make for a grand, epic Hyborian Age adventure for my players.The War of Tarim story arc starts The Chronicles of Conan vol. 3 and ends in vol. It's set around the Vilayet sea. A Hyrkanian city-state, called Makkalet on the eastern shores of the Vilayet has stolen the living god (the holy object of the Tarim religion) from Aghapur. Yildz is still king of Turan, and he sends a massed army to besiege Makkalet, led by the crown prince himself, Yezdigerd. The players, of course, will become embroiled in this cluster-joined, topsy-turvey, twisty-misty story.This tale has it all-scheming sorcerers and priests, insight into the religion of Turan, opportunities to use one of the mass battle combat systems from the game, maybe even a chance to use the sea-battle system from the game, backstabbing NPCs, and even an opportunity to bring Red Sonja (you may want to replace her with another PC or NPC) into your campaign.Use each tale in this story arc as its own separate adventure. Put them together, and you've got your campaign.Thusly:Episode I: Hawks From The Sea, in which the players become embroiled in this mess.

The assault on Makkalet as begun!Episode II: The Black Hound of Vengeance, in which the players make an enemy of the crown prince of Turan!Episode III: Monster of the Monoliths, in which the players switch sides in the battle! But, only to be used by the other side!Episode IV: The Shadow of the Vulture, where the players are hunted by the most feared bounty hunter of all the surrounding territories of the Vilayet.Episode V: The Song of Red Sonja, in which the players make an ally of the red haird sword master.or, do they?Episode VI: The Mirrors of Kharam-Akkad, in which the players learn that part of this tale stretches back to the time of Kull!Episode VII: The Hour of the Griffin, in which the players learn about their part in destiny. CONSTITUTIONWhen creating characters using the default method of 4d6, drop lowest, arrange to taste, we sometimes get on a bad rolling streak and end up with some lower than average scores. For example, I just rolled up a Cimmerian for my game, and I ended up with these totals: 14, 8, 14, 13, 11, 8.

I actually ended up with a pretty interesting character (I'll post him later in the thread), but when designing him, I had some challenges.Cimmerians are one of the few races to feature attribute modifications. They gain +2 STR but suffer +2 INT. Given this, I statted my character like this:STR 14 +2 racial = 16DEX 14CON 8INT 13 -2 racial = 11WIS 11CHR 7Why'd I put the low number, with the -1 modifier, to represent the character's CON? I did this for a number of reasons. As a Barbarian, STR and DEX are quite important for his fighting and defensive skills. WIS is important to cover important skills, like Surivial. And INT is important to provide the character with skill points.That only leaves CON and CHR, both of which are quite useful to the character.

But, if I put the '8' in CON, I knew I could make up for the -1 HP penalty by giving the character the Toughness Feat. With that Feat, it's as if the character had no penalty at all. And CON only governs the Concentration skill, which I think this barbarian can live without.Now, CON is also important to the Fort Save, which is used when Massive Damage is applied. I didn't do it, but for the character's second Feat (bonus Feat at 1st level for favored racial class), a player might consider the Great Fortitude Feat.Later on, the character may improve CON at 4th level and again at 6th as the character's stats improve normally.The point being: If you've got a few low scores to assign when creating a character, you might consider putting one of them into CON (as low as '8') then side-stepping the CON penalty to hit points by using the Toughness Feat. NPCMorghun Clanson3rd level BarbarianSex: MaleAge: 22Height: 6'1'Weight: 183 lbs.Handedness: RightSTR: 16 (+3)DEX: 14 (+2)CON: 8 (-1)INT: 11WIS: 11CHA: 7 (-2)HP: 17Fate: 3 (if used as a player character)XP: 3,000Parry: AC 14Dodge: AC 14Initiative: +4Fort: +2Ref: +4Will: +4BAB: +3Melee: +6Finesse: +4Ranged: +4Code of Honor: BarbarianLANGUAGES: Cimmerian (native), Nordheimer, Aqualonian, Pictish, Hyperborean, Nemedian. (This character is not literate in any of these languages.)PROFECIENCY FEATS: Simple Weapon Proficiency (All), Martial Weapon Proficiency (All), Armor Proficiency (Light), Armor Proficiency (Medium), Shield Proficiency.BARBARIAN FEATS: Track, Two-Weapon Combat, Endurance.1st LEVEL FEAT: Toughness.1ST LEVEL RACIAL BONUS FEAT: Power Attack.3RD LEVEL FEAT: Two-Handed Power Stroke.This feat is found in The Barbaric Warrior supplement.

Thoughts about the Fluidity of the Charisma CheckA character's CHR check is important, no doubt. But, think about it. The avearge human CHR score is 10. A -2 is a standard modifier. Thus, a CHR 7 really isn't that low. If someone is just below average in personal power, they'd be reflected in the game with a -2 modifier.I bet you know a lot of people like this in your life-people, for whatever reason, that do not particulary draw others to them.

Look at that old John Hughes movie, The Breakfast Club. I bet at least some of those characters have a CHR 7 with the -2 modier, certainly the 'geek' and the 'wierd chick'. I could see 'the geek' as a CHR 8 character, with a -1 modifer, and the 'wierd check' with a CHR 6 or 7.a -2 modifier.Mathematically, a -2 modifier means that the character is only 10% less likely to achieve a throw than a normal, average person.When I slapped that CHR 7 on that barbarian above, it seems very appropriate, especially given the background I gave the character.Also, remember that the six stats that defines every character in the game are, by necessity, very broad based. The CHR score reflects the characters personal power in a broad sense, on average. Certainly, the character's close friends and family members might not look at him that way. In the game, this would be reflected by circumstancial modifier (maybe a +4 or more for a close family member?).Remember, too, the Reputation rules in the game. These rules create modifiers to a character CHR score.So, the -2 CHR modifier for my barbarian above is really the modifier he uses with the world at large.

His Reputation score could modify this inside Cimmeria. And, the GM should put circumstantial modifiers on CHR due to Attitudes toward the character (see the Diplomacy skill). Something like this would not be outside the spirit of the Diplomacy rules:Hostile: -4 to CHR checks.Unfriendly: -2 to CHR checks.Indifferent: +0 to CHR checks.Friendly: +2 to CHR checks.Helpful: +4 to CHR checks.So.Let's look a little closer at the CHR 8 Barbarian I created above. The 'Average' HumanToo many times I've seen a GM or a player look at a set of character stats and think the character sub-par because the character has some negative modifiers for stats below 10.Let's look into this a little bit closer.I think most gamers would agree that a score of 10-11 is average, representing the average human.

No where in the Conan RPG does it say such, but its easy to deduce by looking at the Attribute Modifier Table. Scores below the 10-11 mark have negative modifiers while scores above the 10-11 mark have positive modifiers.So, a strictly average human would have three 10's and three 11's in all six of the game's designated attributes.But, we all know, from real life experience, that people are people, and that although there is an average, we all very widely when we are measured.As far as the game goes, I think it is fair to say that average people vary as much as 10%.

Call it one standard deviation where most people fall within that range.If my assumption is true, then the average human falls within a range of stats from 6-15. This range allows for people to be 10% (+2) better in an area than the strict norm, and it allows for people to be 10% less effective in an area from their strictly normal counterparts.I say this because players see a 6 or an 8 in a stat, and they think the penalty is really worse than it is. Someone with an INT 6 is still an average character. He's within the range. He's the C-D and occasional F student. He's 10% less likely to achieve an intelligence based throw than the strictly average person with INT 10.Thus, I submit to you, that the average person in the Conan RPG can have a stat as low as 6 and as high as 15 and still be considered average.

Any score 16+ is considered superhuman, which any score 5- is considered sub-average.In other words, it's quite OK for a character to have stats as low as 6. This would not represent a deformed person or a retarded person. What's represented is the natural variance in human beings.We each have our own gifts and weaknesses.HUMAN AVERAGE ATTRIBUTE RANGE = 6 TO 15.Luckily, the default 4d6, drop lowest, arrange to taste method of generating stats skews characters away from the sub-average, 5- numbers. It's still possible to roll a score of 3, but it's highly unlikely (99%+ chance of rolling higher than a 3).The next time you end up with a 7 in a stat, don't penalize your character in your mind, thinking of him as greatly handicapped. Because, he's not. The character still falls within the average zone, and if you take all of stats together, most likely he's the higher side of average-maybe with one or two superhuman attrbutes.How far from average is your character?To answer this, take this test.

Add up the character's bonuses and penalties from his six stats. If the sum is 0, then the character is strictly average.

If a positive number results, the character is above average. If a negative number results, then the character is below average.Let's apply this test to Morghun Clanson, the NPC I posted above.Morghun ClansonSTR: 16 (+3)DEX: 14 (+1)CON: 8 (-1)INT: 11WIS: 11CHA: 7 (-2)Adding up his modifiers: +3 +1 -1 +0 +0 -2 = +3.You can say that this is an above average charater, 15% above the norm.Looking individually at Morhun's stats, we see that his STR score is superhuman while the rest of his scores fall within the average human range.Do this check the next time you end up with some low stats thinking your character is subpar. A Look At Massive DamageMuch ado has been made about the Massive Damage threshold in the Conan RPG. Set at a mere 20 points of damage, some have posited that the game is broken because of this.I beg to differ.Here's why.First off, if your character has at least one Fate Point, failing the Massive Damage save will most likely not kill your character because you will spend your point using the Left For Dead option. This makes player characters greatly resistant to instant death by Massive Damage as long as the character still has at least one Fate Point. The use of the Fate Point in this manner does not guarrantee the character survives, but it does skew the situation in the character's favor.Second, and contrary to what some have stated about the game, the Massive Damage threshold of 20+ points of damage is not easy to obtain without rolling a critical success (and, I think we all would agree that Massive Damage should be a possible outcome of a successful critical hit).

Remember, though, even Critical Hits require a successful check.How can I make the claim that Massive Damage is not easy to obtain?Let's take a closer look.Pg. 11-12 of the 2E Core Rulebook tells us that the average character is 3rd level or less. And, I've established above an average range of stats for the average human. Let's take the highest score in each category and give that character a formidable weapon, then see how easy it is for him to score Massive Damage on a foe.This means we'll have a 3rd level character with STR 15 (+2 damage). Characters need Feats for differing reasons, but let's max out this average character's damage by giving him Power Attack.So, we've got a Hyborian, he dominate race in the game world, and we'll make him a 3rd level Soldier with STR 15 and Power Attack as one of his Feats. We'll give him a weapon with the highest damage in the entire game: the greatsword (which Hyborians can treat as a Martial Weapon) which does damage of 1d10 + 1d8. That's a pretty strong 'average' character, given the guidelines set forth in the game and what I've commented upon above.But, I want to use this strong character to make the point.As a 3rd level Soldier, the character can take up to a -3 on his attack in order to gain a +3 on damage.So.Let's assume that this character's target.1.

Was hit by our sample character, in spite of the -3 attack penalty.2. Was not Fighting Defensively or using Total Defense, which would make the target even harder to hit.3.

Was not wearing armor (or was wearing armor that was defeated by the character's blow and allowed 20+ points of damage to penetrate past the armor).Those three issues, right there (hitting in spite of penalties and armor protection), in part, keep the Massive Damage rule from being abused.but, let's say that our average human character (albeit on the high side of human 'average') has been successful with a hit.What is his damage?He averages 10 points with the greatsword, +3 points for his STR, +3 points for the Power Attack bonus. This is an average of 16 points. That's not enough to trigger Massive Damage.Let's keep looking at this, though.Let's say that the character hits, in spite the penalties to the attack throw. And, let's say that the character rolls higher than average damage, in spite of any armor worn by the target, scoring 20 points of damage.In order for Massive Damage to be triggered, the target still has to fail a DC 20 Fort Save (which, I'll grant you, is likely to be failed.but there's still a chance).Even with the Fort Save failed, it is not a guarrantee that the target dies. Player Characters have Fate Points that can be used to re-roll a failed Fort Save. So a PC with Fate Points, hit with Massive damage, can have two tries at making the Fort Save, if a Fate Point is used.Or, as I said above, the Fate Point could be used to have the character appear dead, but actually be Left For Dead.But, even if we're talking about an NPC or a PC that is out of Fate Points, the failed Massive Damage save still does not guarrantee death. A failed Fort Save is 90% likely to leave the character dying in the -1 to -9 hit point range rather than killing him outright.

Thus, given the stabilization rules, the character gains a 10% chance per point above -10 to stabilize himself. If a comrade is around to help stabilize and heal the character, his chances of survival are even greater.So, what am I saying?I'm saying that.1. Penalties on the attack throw make death from Massive Damage less likely.2.

Armor makes death from Massive Damage less likely.3. The Fort Saving throw makes death from Massive Damage less likely.4. Fate Points make death from Massive Damage less likely.5.

Many weapons in the game are not likely to produce 20+ damage points, making death from Massive Damage less likely.6. The Stabilization rules make death from Massive Damage less likely.and all a character has to do is succeed in one area. If he does, his character will not die from Massive Damage.EDIT: Many of us are influenced by the Conan RPG's parent game, but we must remember that the two are separate games with different rules in many areas.For example, in the tradition 3.5 D&D game, a character's weapons typically become more and more powerful as the character adventures and finds better, more powerful equipment. The character levels, and his BAB increases, but also the D&D plus on his weapons increase: He may start with a normal longsword, then find a +1 weapon. Later, he finds a +2, then a +3 weapon. Sometimes, the weapons have more powers than just increasing both attack probability and the amount of damage the weapon delivers on the character's foes.But, in Conan, once a weapon is chosen, the damage does not increase.

Sure, the character's BAB increases, but the weapon's damage and probability to hit stays the same. Feats, like Power Attack, are needed to obtain extra damage, but even this is limited by the character's BAB and provides a corresponding penalty to the attack throw.And, besides the use of Power Attack, there is little in the game to increase damage besides the occasional increase in stats (every two levels, starting at 4th, depending on the player's choice).Therefore, in many cases (not all), Massive Damage does not really become easier to achieve as the character levels. Special abilities are needed, like superhuman STR, exotic or hard-to-find weapons, and Feats like Power Attack, to skew a weapon's damage towards scoring Massive Damage often.Remember that as a character levels, his BAB increases, but this only increases the chance that the character will hit.

It does not increase damage. Also remember that, as characters level, their ACs for Dodge and Parry also increase, making them harder to hit.while damage remains the same.This, given all that I've said in this post, I maintain that the Massive Damage rule in Conan is fairly balanced. Primitive Dagger made from Deer AntlerNew weapons for your game: Allow your players to create weapons, especially when the characters are in a pinch, from things that they have available in their environment. A creative use of the rules would be to take the normal weaponsmithing procedure, using the Survival skill instead of the normal associated Craft skill.

Taking a deer's antler, cutting off a piece easily held, and sharpening the point would qualify as an Improvised Dagger (see pg. 144 of the 2E Rulebook, under Improvised Weapons). As such, the character would be considered non-proficient in its use (-4 attack and -1 to Parry Defense).

In addition, the weapon would be considered primitive and subject to the rules on pg. 152 and 154 of the 2E core rulebook.

Weapon & Equipment AvailabilityPay heed to the Weapon and Armor availablity notes provided in the 2E Core Rulebook and Tito's Trading Post. Use common sense. Give different areas of your game world a flavor by the types of weapons that are available in that region. And remember that, while in standard 3.5 D&D, a player looks forward to finding new equipment (with bigger attack and damage modifiers), a similar reward system can be simulated in the Conan RPG by keeping some weapons unavailable to the PCs until they reach a certain point in the game.You can simulate this in your game by not allowing every weapon in the game to be available at the game's outset. If there is something a player desires for his character, consider letting that character find the weapon later once the party has moved to the appropriate region-or maybe as a rare reward at the conclusion of an adventure.

Remember, in the '82 Conan movie, how awed Conan was when he found the Atlantean sword?For example, the crossbow should be a weapon found in the Hyborian kingdoms. This weapon would be too 'fussy' for the Cimmerian smiths, thus, the weapon should be quite rare in Cimmeria. Likewise, the Cimmerian attitude towards bows is that the weapon is used for hunting, not for war.

Thus, the vast majority of bows found in Cimmeria should be of the hunting bow type which do not provide a STR bonus.On the other hand, the Hyrkanians are known for their bowmanship, and in certain regions of Hyrkania, the Hyrkanian Horn Bow should be readily available. In the deep regions of the Pictish Wilderness, away from Aquilonian influence, primitive weapons should be the norm. A western region of Stygia has not yet found the secret of steel, and, thus, arms its warriors with bronze and copper weapons (see the Primitive Weapon Quality rule).Note the cost increase mentioned in Tito's Trading Post for rare items (where it says the cost can be 5, 10, or many more times the price given in the equipment lists). Also remember that coin is not used in all parts of the world.

In some areas, that bearskin hunter's cloak may be more valuable than all the silver you carry in your pouch. In those places, barter is king.Tito's Trading Post provides qualities for clothing and equipment.

Consider that description and have the clothes and gear your PCs use wear out from time to time. An impromptu adventure could spring from the simple need to hunt a deer (using the Hunting Rules from the Fiercest book) and make new clothing from its skin (using the Crafting rules). The condition of a PC's gear can impact roleplaying situations and certain social checks. Don't nag and bore your players with this kind of stuff, though.

Just throw it in when the reminder of the mundane would actually add some spice to the game, giving the players a different look at how their characters spend their lives in the game world.Also, once a character gets a prized item, don't be afraid to take it away from him at some point. Items sometimes get lost while swimming. Weapons and armor can be subject to Sunder attacks, and without a smith or the proper equipment, may never get repaired. Use the weapon and armor repair rules (see the appropriate Feats, Skills, Equipment Chapter, and pg. 179 of the 2E rulebook). The quest to replace or repair a prized item can be a great push needed for a GM's adventure.Various supplements bring new types of equipment to the game.

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The Warrior's Companion provides new items like Hyperborean Hide Armor and the Aquilonian Shieldknife. That book also provides rules for improving the stats of your weapons and armor. The Barbaric supplements provides excellent entries, such as piecemeal armor rules and fantastic section on mundane goods.One of my favorite d20 (non-Conan) books is a hardback focusing (mostly) on real world equipment, called From Stone To Steel. That book is full of useful information that you could use in your Conan game. I highly recommend it, if you can still find a copy of this out of print book.

Conan The Roleplaying Game Second Edition Pdf Full

In Sum, with the right approach, the GM can make equipment an important and interesting part of the game, providing in-game rewards and making his game world seem more real, all at the same time.In other words: Don't always reply, when one of your players says that he needs a new shield, 'You went to the merchant and got a new one for 3 silvers. Let's move on.' Sometimes, you'll want to do that, to keep the game moving, not allowing it to get sidetracked with the uninteresting. But, also, sometimes buying that shield can lead to the most fun encounter of the night.