Light and Vision

Changes and extensions to the OSE game rules
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Torches and Lanterns

  • Both shed bright light in a 30ft radius
  • There is no 'shadowy area' beyond the light
  • Both must be held in hand and relatively steady to illuminate an area. Torches and lanterns cannot be strapped to packs or hung from belts. Doing so is both dangerous and ineffective
  • Torches are a critical consumable and last roughly 6 Turns (1 hour) before being extinguished. Variances in manufacturing quality, humidity and the like may drastically affect torch life for better or worse
  • Lantern oil is a critical consumable that lasts roughly 24 Turns (4 hours) before being extinguished. Variances in manufacturing quality, humidity and the like may drastically affect oil life for better or worse

Magical Light

  • Magical light provides illumination at the intensity and duration listed in the spell or the item generating the light

Low Light Vision

  • Low Light Vision is a passive sense that allows its possessor to make the most out of any available light
  • Low Light Vision does not permit seeing in (pitch) darkness, nor is it Infravision
  • Low Light Vision allows those with this sense to see a "shadowy" area beyond any light source. The distance of this shadowy area is roughly half the radius of the bright portion of the light source. For example, a candle that emits (bright) light in a 5ft radius would allow a creature with Low Light Vision to see an area roughly 2.5 ft beyond the sphere of light from the candle. Such sight is inaccurate and nebulous as the area is shadowy. Combat and missle fire into such areas is always at some penalty (depending on circumstances this can be a -1 to -4 to Attack rolls) and discerning detail or targeting spells may either be impossible or likewise penalized.

Darkvision

  • Virtually all monsters and some races that live almost exclusively deep below the ground have Darkvision
  • Darkvision is a '6th sense' that provides a 'shades of gray' image of of the surrounding area even in pitch darkness
  • The Range of such vision is typically 60 feet unless otherwise noted. Beyond this distance, Darkvision is not useful
  • This image is clear when close but details can be lost at the edge of its range. Despite this lack of clarity, creatures can capably carry out their lives and hunt prey without any need for light whatsoever
  • A Blindness spell or light-based magic overwhelms any "normal" sight as well as any Darkvision as it effects both the target's normal sense of sight and its "6th sense" of Darkvision

Blindness