Unless otherwise specified, all fractions are rounded down.
Players choose the actions their characters take - both large and small. Character actions are most often taken through abilities.
The most basic way to determine if a character succeeds at what they are doing is through a skill roll. Skill rolls can be called by the Game Master for all sorts of activities, and skill rolls are often used when performing more complicated abilities.
See the section on character skills for details on how to "roll a skill."
Some actions take longer than others. Here's a list of time scales referenced throughout the rules:
Some actions have a maximum range or affect a maximum distance.
Abilities can target various kinds of objects:
Sometimes abilities have additional requirements to determine whether a given target is valid. While the Game Master should always use best judgment to determine whether a target is valid or not, there are some formal keywords for target validity that have specific meanings.
While many abilities have users choose targets, some abilities choose targets based on some other criteria. For example an ability might apply some effect to the "nearest 3 bodies." For these selections the Game Master should take care not to include trivial, irrelevant, or uninteresting objects, and avoid getting bogged down in legalistic or metaphysical arguments. For example, a fire spell burning the "nearest 3 bodies" would be better suited to burn the nearby tree, bandit, and tent rather than burn the nearest set of pebbles on the ground or leaves floating in the air.
For the purposes of effects, an attack occurs whenever an action targets an unwilling target, and has the opportunity to apply an effect to that unwilling target, regardless of what it actually does. Actions that target a willing target are not attacks.
For example, if an action targets an enemy and moves them if the ability user succeeds an opposed skill check, then that is considered an attack even if the opposed skill check fails. If the same action is used against an willing ally, then it is not an attack because the target was willing. If, instead, an action targets an enemy but allows the ability user to move themselves if they succeed an opposed skill check, then that is not considered an attack even if the skill check succeeds, because the unwilling target had no effect or change applied to them. Lastly, if an action is able to apply a beneficial magical condition to the target from a distance without a skill check but the target was unwilling, that still counts as an attack because the target was unwilling and could have an effect applied, even though it wasn't physical, couldn't be resisted, and was at a distance.
If abilities apply multiple effects to an unwilling target, that is considered only a single attack for the purposes of effects.
For example, if an ability allows making multiple 'attacks' using a weapon as a primary action, that terminology is used for convenience, and the target still only received one attack for the purposes of making counterattacks/etc.
Some requirements are unstated - unless otherwise specified they always apply:
Unless otherwise specified, all abilities require targets to be detected, meaning the actor must be aware of the presence of the target. Some abilities (like stealth, etc.) can cause someone to be temporarily undetected, and thus cannot be targeted.
A major exception would be abilities that target areas or locations, as they usually include all objects in those locations. As always the Game Master should use their best judgment when determining detection. For example, a character might know that an enemy is somewhere on a nearby mountain, but that doesn't mean they have actually detected the enemy's position to cast a spell on them.
Other requirement keywords only apply if they are stated:
Visible targets must be both detected and also in direct line-of-sight. Some abilities (like invisibility) can cause someone to be either temporarily undetected, and thus cannot be targeted. While the Game Master can use their best judgment, targets are in line of sight if you can draw a straight line from the actor's square to the target's that is free of line-of-sight-breaking obstructions.
The target must be both detected and also the path to the target must be reasonably free of obstacles and other physical hindrances. Things like terrain or structures (walls, etc.) could prevent someone from being reachable, even if they are otherwise in range of an action, and thus cannot be targeted. In other words, the target must be detected and able to be physically interacted with given the context of the action. Reachability doesn't necessarily imply that it is within reach of an actor's hands, but for most physical actions that don't use tools it can be a handy short-hand. For example, when shooting a bow a target is reachable if a arrow can reach the target, not the shooter, but to be reachable for an unarmed attack the target would need to be within reach of a hand or foot. Unless otherwise specified (e.g. weapon ranges) creatures can reach 1 square with their hands, feet, or with items they're holding.
Containers can also prevent reachability. For example, a character can't reload a crossbow that is packed under the gear in his backpack without first removing it, making it reachable.
If items are being held or carried on another creature then the creature decides whether the item is reachable as a target.
Particularly in trade or crafting scenarios, various objects like tools will need to be "usable". Usable objects don't have to be equipped during the entire time an ability takes, but need to be generally reachable by traveling short distances, and accessible to use without significant delay. For example, ingredients in a locked container are not usable unless the character has a key, or a facility might only be usable with the owner's permission.
The target must have the ability to perform rich communication with the actor, such as through spoken language, through written letters, through telepathy, etc. This presumes a commonly understood language between the parties, and the GM may modify, miscommunicate, obfuscate, or disallow certain communication based on difference in fluency level and the complexity of the communication.
Abilities used as enchantment effects in artifacts must be "enchantable." An ability, including combo abilities, is enchantable if it is accessible and does not have the [non-enchantable] tag. Accessible means the ability is learned or otherwise available to use, but does not require the ability to be usable (requirements, cost, etc.) at that moment. Abilities learned by other creatures are not accessible, but detected abilities available through nearby magical objects (for example, scrolls or enchantment effects) are available.
Actions can be taken free-form (i.e. each player chooses when they take action) or on a more formal turn-by-turn basis.
During turn-by-turn situations, such as during combat, a character will only be able to take a certain number of actions per turn.
Sometimes characters receive bonus or penalty dice as part of a roll.
In their adventures, characters will likely encounter many dangers to their body, mind, and soul. Characters can quickly find themselves injured, dead, or worse- however, with preparation, cunning, and a bit of luck they can avoid this fate.
Conditions are effects a character is currently under. They may be physical or supernatural in nature, and can be helpful, hurtful, or a combination of both.
Some conditions are added to characters simply based on the location they are in. For example, a character entering a shadowy corner may have the 'low light' condition added, but have it removed when they exit. The GM determines what locations have field conditions.
Wounds are (hopefully) short-term physical effects a character suffers from.
Bleeding conditions cause damage that can spread to harm other body areas, and can easily become fatal if it is not dealt with quickly.
Afflictions are long-term or permanent disabilities a character suffers from.
Not all injuries are from lethal damage- some come from simple exhaustion. Fatigue, if not managed, will cause severe problems.
Fatigue comes from a character's wounds, but its worst effects are staved off by a character's focus or stamina.
Thankfully, fatigue wounds are relatively easy to remove.
The worries and woes of life are a burden that, left unchecked, can spiral out of control and lead to consequences both personal and social.
While many adventures call for direct (and violent) action, there are also times when discretion is the better part of valor or when violence might cause more problems than it solves. In those instances stealth can be a vital tool. Conversely, trying to detect hidden objects (traps, creatures, etc.) is a common task to avoid ambushes.
When trying to persuade or deceive people in social situations, a large factor before the persuasion even starts is the reputation of the speaker. A character may have attitude modifiers towards individuals or groups of people. For example, a serf may have negative attitude modifiers with members of the aristocracy.
The GM may use a variety of factors when determining attitude modifiers for NPCs, but there are some ways (e.g. clothing) that may give explicit attitude modifiers. These explicit attitude modifiers are cumulative, though the GM may tweak, invert, or ignore them depending on the situation. For example, consider a feathered helmet that gives +2 attitude towards "military." A GM might have the full modifier apply when persuading a fellow solider, but only apply +1 when persuading a nobleman, or apply -3 when persuading an anti-war peasant.
In many social situations the items a character wears and carries can bring consequences, though the rules are always heavily contextual, and often there are exceptions. For example, it could be considered overly militaristic or barbaric to wear weapons and armor to a king's feast, but everyone expects the old Colonel to wear his polished helmet from when he won the jousting tournament. If characters do not obey the social rules around clothing and items the GM might apply attitude modifiers or simply disallow access to certain areas.
Some items have tags (e.g. military, civilian, tool, magic, etc.) to help the GM guide broad rules on restricted items. Particularly in one's home culture the characters should normally be able to know rules on restricted items before entering a social situation without a skill roll. In a foreign culture or inexperienced situation a character can attempt a community, commerce, or similar knowledge skill roll.
During adventures of derring-do it's very likely that someone will get hurt. Hopefully it's not your character, but you should be ready to both deal and receive damage.
The 4th Age uses the following basic damage types:
More rare damage types can also be found through certain abilities:
Damage can sometimes be reduced or negated through the use of armor.
Set in an era where farming and transportation are performed almost exclusively by animal and manual labor, providing daily necessities can sometimes be challenge. This is especially true when traveling in the wilderness, as the lack of refrigeration means one cannot always carry enough fresh food that will last the journey. Generally, characters in the 4th Age must have a source of daily food and water or suffer ill effects, but the level of strictness in tracking this is up to the GM and they players. The recommended level of strictness includes:
Some alternative implementations might include:
Some attacks and effects, as well as normal wear-and-tear, can cause damage to items. Weapons and armor, in particular, need to be maintained periodically or risk degrading to a near-unusable state.
When an item takes damage, the damaged item condition is added and reduces the item quality. Any quality-related values for the item are affected. For weapons, shields, and armor this usually means damage and armor ratings are lowered.
Items with the [perishable] gradually take damage. Perishable items should specify a rate at which it takes damage (e.g. every week). The GM ultimately determines when that damage is taken, but generally it should occur from when the item is finished being crafted.
Similarly, at the GM's discretion, non-perishable items that see regular use can take periodic item damage to simulate wear-and-tear. In such cases care should be taken to only affect items that are relevant, for example armor that was actually worn instead of packed in a wagon, or items that were actually out during a hail storm. A general recommendation for those wishing to simulate wear-and-tear for regularly used items (e.g. weapons, armor, i.e. non-packed goods) is one point of item damage per month. Events such as heavy combat or extreme conditions may also cause item damage, though items taking more than one point of damage from wear-and-tear should be clearly justifiable.
Money is a potentially complicated topic as the default lore of Polemos does not establish a universal currency. Locales, even within a given nation, may have wildly varying currencies based on coins, crystals, shells, or any other available precious material. These currencies may have different divisible parts or methods of making change like lesser value coins, or breaking a crystal and weighing the pieces. Currencies may be manipulated or debased, and exchanging currencies may not be straightforward, fair, or honest.
For consistency, however, the prices listed with items and other parts of the rules are given in an abstract currency called 'silver' representing some hypothetical generic silver coin. One silver coin is roughly equivalent to a week's wages for a common unskilled laborer (note: peasants or subsistence farmers would likely make far less). How one makes use of the silver prices will depend on the desires of the GM and players.
Silver prices listed for items are the global average final purchase price. Things like regional market conditions, shipping costs, local supply and demand, merchant attitude and other factors can raise or lower the purchase price so it is recommended that GMs provide specific prices to players as they shop. When selling items players will likely not act as a retailer to a final buyer, but sell to people like merchants that intend to resell the items they buy. They will likely only accept a price they can make a healthy margin from. Again a variety of factors can influence the sell price, but roughly 50% to 75% of the listed silver buying price is a typical starting point.
Few people in Polemos are itinerant adventurers, skilled only in selling their sword arm to the highest bidder. Instead, the vast majority perform a trade of some kind in a larger community, with the profits of their labor contributing to a complex economy. To reflect this, players may want to establish a non-combat profession that their character practices such as farming or smithing. This can always be done informally - a statement in a back-story or through other narrative aspects - but learn-able skills and abilities exist to allow characters to create items and ply a trade more formally during play.
Trade abilities use trade skills to create items by following crafting designs for those items. Designs come in several types:
Crafting, like other aspects of the rules of Polemos, is meant to be grounded in a limited sense of realism and thus requires in-game time and resources to accomplish. These requirements mean crafting professions might bog down or otherwise not fit well with certain kinds of stories. Players are encouraged to discuss their plans on spending XP for crafting professions with the GM when first creating a character. GMs should consider the time, resources, logistics, pacing, and other aspects of crafting in their planned adventures and be clear with their players about what will and will not fit with their plans. Ultimately GMs and players should work together to prevent characters spending XP on professions that could be seen as a waste. Crafting can be a source of interesting character history, social connections, growth, party income, and provide a natural point to introduce story hooks. For example, to find ore on the cheap a blacksmith might need to explore a haunted abandoned mine. But if narrative space is not available to reap these benefits, it may be better for players to save their XP and keep their character's profession limited to their back-story.
As a rule of thumb, the rules as written are balanced such that an adventurer on a quest can spend a manageable amount of XP to fill a single step of the supply chain, purchasing any ingredients from others they encounter along the way. For example, a character might buy metals and manufacture swords at a rented forge, or might refine purchased ore into finished ingots, or might extract ores in the wilderness and sell them. If a character wants to create items through the entire supply chain, for example being able to extract, refine, and manufacture all by themselves, then that will require a significant investment of time and XP. For sure, a campaign or adventure that focuses on crafting could support a character such as this, but the group should be in agreement that their adventures will have long periods of creative endeavors. Similarly, if a character tries to practice multiple trades they will likely have to sacrifice combat competency, which may be fitting but should be deliberated ahead of time.
The first step in an economy is finding raw materials to extract and produce from. While a GM might have characters 'stumble' upon resources randomly for narrative effect, in general a character must use an ability that allows them to perform a survey design to find raw materials. This ability represents learning the basics of knowing where to look and how to identify potential resources for a particular extraction method. Individual designs do not need to be learned - survey abilities allow the use of a category of designs.
The result of surveying is the possible discovery of resource sites. A resource site is a general collection of raw materials appropriate for the resource type that is available for extraction. For example, a resource site might be a vein of copper ore, or a grove of yew trees mature enough for harvesting. Each discovered resource site has a reserve size determined by the GM, which is the quantity of the resource that can be extracted before the site is effectively depleted. For example, a discovered copper ore vein might have 100 units of copper ore available for extraction. Resource sites may additionally have optional extraction modifiers. For example, if a copper ore vein is particularly rich the GM might apply an extraction modifier that extracted ore has +1 quality, or a grove of trees in a boggy area might take an extra hour per extraction attempt.
Some resources occur more frequently in certain areas or terrain types. For example, iron is usually more plentiful in mountainous areas, and many herbs are hard to find in deserts. The GM may apply difficulty modifiers based on the terrain type a survey is taken in.
Some resources can be extracted through multiple methods, and may be easier or more difficult to find using those methods. For example, some kinds of metal are plentiful enough on the surface to find through simple surface exploration, while others are only found deep under the earth and require exploratory tunnels to find. Survey abilities sometimes only give access to designs for a particular method, and some methods are more successful on certain types of terrain.
To apply a survey design for a given resource the required tools must be usable and of a sufficient quality, and the target area to be surveyed must be generally available to explore. When a survey is performed the surveyor spends the time and makes a skill roll specified by the design against the difficulty of the primary resource the surveyor is attempting to find. The GM may apply difficulty modifiers based on terrain or other factors. If the survey skill roll is less than or equal to the difficulty no resource sites of that type are discovered, even if in reality they do exist - the surveyor simply fails to find them. If the survey skill roll is greater than the difficulty the GM reveals the resource sites of that type in the area, along with their reserve sizes and any optional extraction modifiers. The GM may also choose to reveal resource sites of other resources of the same category in the area if the survey skill roll beats their survey difficulty. The survey may also fail to find any resources even if the surveyor succeeds the difficulty roll - the surveyor knows that the resources of that type simply do not exist where they searched.
Once revealed, resource sites can be targeted by extraction abilities by anyone with knowledge of their location.
Once the locations of resource sites are known, either through surveying or other methods, resources must be extracted before they can be used in producing goods. While a GM might allow characters to extract resources informally or through simple skill checks, in general a character must use an ability that allows them to perform an extraction design. This ability represents learning the basics of how to efficiently gather resources for a particular extraction method without damaging the resources. Individual designs do not need to be learned - extraction abilities allow the use of a category of designs.
To apply an extraction design for a target resource site the required tools must be usable and of a sufficient quality, and the target site must be generally available to work on. When extraction is performed the worker spends the time and makes a (design skill + lowest tool quality) roll against the design difficulty. The GM may apply resource site extraction modifiers or other modifiers. If the extraction skill roll is less than or equal to the difficulty no resources are extracted, the ability time is still spent, and (difficulty - roll result) items are removed from the resource site reserve as waste. If the extraction skill roll is greater than the difficulty a yield of items from the resource site are taken from the reserve and added to the worker. Unless otherwise specified the yield starts at 1D6 item(s) of quality (lowest quality tool used - 1). If no tools are required for extraction the items will be of a GM determined quality.
The design extraction skill roll also allows the worker to generate crafting points (CP) to apply craftsmanship effects to the extraction action. The number of CP generated is the (extraction skill roll - design difficulty, minimum zero). For example, if a worker rolls 10 for a design with a difficulty of 7, the worker would generate 3 CP to apply craftsmanship effects with. The worker may also voluntarily apply craftsmanship setbacks to generate more CP to apply for additional craftsmanship effects. Setback effects can be applied even if the worker fails the extraction skill roll, and can possibly be used to turn a failure into a success. Craftsmanship effects do not generate additional or remove CP retroactively. Each craftsmanship effect of a given name can only be applied once per extraction attempt, but multiple craftsmanship effects of different names with similar effects can be applied together.
If the final quality of the yield is less than the minimum quality of the material the design also fails, and the yield is useless.
Extracted items inherit any tags of their material.
After raw materials have been extracted they can be used in production. This includes refining, producing intermediate goods used in further production, or producing final goods for people to use. While a GM might allow characters to produce items through improvised means, in general a character must use an ability that allows them to perform a production design. This ability represents learning the basics of how to manipulate materials and construct items for a particular field. Individual designs do not need to be learned - production abilities allow the use of a category of designs.
To apply a production design for a given item the required ingredients, tools, and facilities must be usable. When a design is performed the crafter spends the ingredients and time and makes a (design skill + lowest tool quality) roll against the design difficulty. The GM may apply facility modifiers or other modifiers. If the production skill roll is less than or equal to the difficulty the yield they produce is useless and effectively lost, but the ingredients and time are still spent. If the production skill roll is greater than the difficulty they gain the produced item(s) as yield. The quality of the yield item(s) begins at (lowest ingredient and tool quality used - 1). For example, if a crafter makes an small iron bar using a quality 6 ingot, quality 5 hammer, and quality 4 tongs, the small iron bar will start at quality 3. The primary material of the yield items is based either on the material ingredient of the design, or is otherwise specified by the design in the case of a combined material (e.g. bronze).
The design production skill roll also allows the crafter to generate crafting points (CP) to apply craftsmanship effects to the production action. The number of CP generated is the (production skill roll - design difficulty, minimum zero). For example, if a crafter rolls 10 for a design with a difficulty of 7, the crafter would generate 3 CP to apply craftsmanship effects with. The crafter may also voluntarily apply craftsmanship setbacks to generate more CP to apply for additional craftsmanship effects. Setback effects can be applied even if the crafter fails the production skill roll, and can possibly be used to turn a failure into a success. Craftsmanship effects do not generate additional or remove CP retroactively. Each craftsmanship effect of a given name can only be applied once per production attempt, but multiple craftsmanship effects of different names with similar effects can be applied together.
If the final quality of the yield is less than the minimum quality of the material the design also fails, and the yield is useless.
Produced items inherit any tags of their primary material. Produced items may have tags added from cultural, social, and other item styles.
Some production ingredients aren't strictly essential, but do reduce the performance of the item if they are omitted. For example, a sword is technically usable with a raw square metal grip, but it is much harder to handle properly than with a rounded grip of bone, wood, or leather. Omission ingredients give an effect to the yield item(s) if they are missing from a production attempt. The effect does not occur if the ingredient is included.
If a crafter wishes to add the omitted ingredient later, the GM may allow the crafter to perform a production action for the item with the missing ingredient. The old item may be used in place of ingredients it was last produced with. This production does not generate CP and the quality of the item does not increase from the new omission ingredient (but may lower if a lower quality omission ingredient is used). If the production fails the item and omission ingredients are useless and effectively lost. If the production succeeds the omission ingredient's effect is removed from the item.
Some production ingredients are purely optional but are "nice to have." These add-on ingredients do not effect the yield item(s) if they are not included in a production attempt. If they are included, however, they give an effect to the yield item(s).
Some productions require time to complete after an initial amount of effort, for example beer must ferment after brewing. Production designs with a wait time are performed as other designs, but after completion the yield items are unusable until the wait time has passed.
Items in the 4th age are handmade by skilled artisans, and are likely to be sold in highly localized markets with particular cultural expectations. While some items are purely utilitarian and do not differ much between cultures, many are opportunities for artistic and social expression. For example, a copper ingot is unlikely to differ from place to place, but the engravings and other aesthetics of a sword hilt will help identify where it was built. When worn or used the stylings of these items help mark a person as belonging to a particular culture or social standing.
An item may also be renamed based on its cultural and social styles. For example, a dress in the cultural style of Touyou could be renamed to "kimono" to make the style clear.
A tag may be added during production with the name of a culture the crafter is familiar with. This culture can be broad, like a national or ethnic identity, or specific like a local region or organization. Different cultural styles usually do not require different ingredients. For distant, isolated, or ancient cultures the GM may require a recall knowledge check to determine if the crafter knows enough details to produce the item in that cultural style. Crafters always have the knowledge to produce items in the style of their local culture.
A tag may be added during production with the name of a social rank, caste, or other social status the crafter is familiar with. The social status must exist in the item's culture. For distant, isolated, or ancient cultures the GM may require a recall knowledge check to determine if the crafter knows enough details to produce the item in that social status style. Crafters always have the knowledge to produce items in the social statuses of their local culture.
By default, production ingredients are suitable only for commoners or low social classes. Commoner social statuses may still be specific, such as a culture that expects peasants and urban laborers to wear different clothing.
Additional ingredients are necessary to produce items for middle or high social classes. Any item production can include a [decoration] add-on ingredient to be able to produce items for a higher social class. For highly specific social statuses the GM can allow custom ingredients in place of the [decoration] add-on ingredient. For example, if the priests of a particular religious order dye their clothing with wine, the GM can allow a crafter to use wine in place of other [decoration] items.
Where appropriate the GM can allow a crafter to add or replace other tags during production based on social aspects besides rank. For example, in a culture where both sexes wear robes but wear different styles of robe, a crafter could add a [male] or [female] tag based on the type produced.
Most adventures call for travel, and walking everywhere with all your gear yourself gets old fast. Thus many adventurers prefer the use of vehicles in their travels. And besides the rare (and often dangerous) magical forms of vehicles, in general the pre-industrial world of Polemos lacks automobiles. Rather, it is an age where a a good steed can be not just a loyal friend, but also a cargo hauler, road trip vehicle, or the closest thing to a tank on the battlefield.
Transportation come in various forms:
While the rules below have lots of details on how to resolve situations with vehicles, like all rules they can (and likely should) be simplified when the narrative calls for it.
When a vehicle reaches zero vitality or dies while still in motion it crashes.
Each vehicle has a number of spots for occupancy. Use the mount and dismount standard abilities to enter and leave these spots, which confer effects through the mounted and driving conditions. While occupying a spot of a vehicle the character moves along as the vehicle moves. Note that certain items marked [no mount] cannot be used while mounted.
Driver spots, when occupied, can be used to control a vehicle. If a vehicle has multiple driver spots they can be occupied simultaneously, but only a single character controls the vehicle on any given turn. This control can change seamlessly each turn - it is assumed each driver has access to reins or other control mechanisms.
Passenger spots allow occupancy but cannot be used to control a vehicle. Occupants can still take turns normally, or can simply enjoy the ride.
Unlike creatures, who can start and stop their movement at will, vehicles have enough weight that they cannot always stop suddenly without danger. Vehicles therefore keep track of a 'current speed' that will remain constant barring acceleration or deceleration of some kind. Vehicles move their full speed as much as possible, not 'up to' their speed.
A driver can attempt to control a vehicle. A vehicle is more difficult to control as it moves faster, passes over more difficult terrain, or other factors. When a driver is in control, he can choose the path the vehicle takes with its speed, though the GM may place limitations based on turning radius or vehicle agility.
If a vehicle is not in control by any driver the GM decides the path the vehicle takes, though in general it should usually follow a straight line or follow the behavioral instincts of any draft animals. Animals that are out of control can also accelerate or decelerate in addition to changing their direction.
When traveling overland, it is recommended that a single control evaluation is made for each broad terrain region, and instead of going out of control the speed of the vehicle is reduced or halted based on the terrain difficulty.
A variety of animal species and breed exist for mounted riding and draft vehicles. The rules represent the typical statistics for an individual of that animal type - the GM is encouraged to offer animals slightly above or below these values to give more uniqueness to a player's animal.
As a driver having a loyal relationship with draft animals or mounts can make controlling their behavior much easier. Upon purchase, animals have a starting loyalty modifier, which may be negative. This loyalty modifier should increase (or decrease) over time according to the character's actions at the GM's discretion. Recommended loyalty change is between 1 or 2 points per month. Loyalty can be tracked based on an individual driver, or can be tracked for groups of people instead of individuals (e.g. the entire player party), again at the GM's discretion.
Another major contributor to controlling animal-based vehicles is the ability to keep the creatures from panicking. Under normal travel circumstances this is not a likely event, but is more difficult to prevent when driving animals in dangerous situations or when an animal is spooked by some sudden event occurs. Fear modifiers are applied and persist according to the GM's judgment, and make controlling vehicles more difficult. A list of sample recommended fear modifiers:
A collision occurs when a vehicle moves through one or more spaces occupied by another vehicle, object, or creature. Both objects involved in the collision take damage in the form of collision damage dice. The number of collision damage dice taken by each colliding object is equal to 3 * (combined vehicle speed - 3, minimum zero). Each collision damage dice does 1D6 bashing damage with a rating of 2 * combined vehicle speed. For vehicles the GM determines how damage dice are applied to any draft animals, occupants, and the vehicle itself, but in general it is recommended that no part of the vehicle is assigned more than the vehicle's speed worth of damage dice, after which the damage dice are more randomly assigned.
All occupants of a vehicle involved in a collision roll a vehicle mishap.
If a vehicle is out of control it can crash, meaning it turns end-over-end, falls over, or otherwise collides with the terrain. For a crash apply all collision effects with double the current vehicle speed, and stop the vehicle completely after one final movement.
When a vehicle is out of control or during a collision, occupants are also put in danger, especially if high speeds are involved. Apply the effects from the vehicle mishap table.
In situations where a vehicle's exact size matters (e.g. doing tactical battles on a grid) the GM ultimately determines how large vehicles are and the relative positioning of draft animals and occupant spots. A list of recommended sizes for a 25x25 square grid: