Phases, Time and Movement

Changes and extensions to the OSE game rules
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Time
Game time is divided into the following units of measure:

Game Phases

• The game is segmented into various Phases
• Phases govern things like how movement and time is tracked, the need for rations and rest and other game mechanics
• Using Phases helps focus the play to a particular scope and ensures everyone at the table has the same expectations and understanding about current gameplay
• A given character is always in exactly one Phase at any one time and quite often, all characters will be in the same Phase
• The Phases are:
• Overland Phase
• Exploration Phase
• Tactical Phase
• Pursuit Phase
• Downtime Phase

Each of these Phases is detailed below

Overland Phase Summary

• When Used: when the party is travelling long distances or exploring a single hex
• Unit of time: 1 game Day (roughly 8 hours of travel plus additional time for food and rest breaks)
• Movement: see below
• Food and Water: one ration per traveler, 1 pack animal ration per pack animal (unless it is grazing)
• Light Sources: none needed as travel is assumed to occur during the day
• Wandering Monsters: yes as determined by the Referee
• Rest: required at the end of every day

Overland Movement

Other Considerations

• Standard Hex: Standard overland maps use 6 miles per hex. This is the distance from any one side to the side opposite
• Movement Points: Overland Movement is governed by Movement Points. Typically, it requires 6MP to traverse a Plains (Grassland) hex without a road. See the table above for the effect of other types of Terrain and how many Movement Points it takes to cross a hex. Note that it may take several days to cross a particularly rough piece of terrain (Forested Mountains for example), even when Unencumbered
• Encumbrance and Movement: Most characters begin with 24 MP when Unencumbered and half this amount when Encumbered. Thus, when Unencumbered, a typical character can travel 4 6-mile hexes (24 miles) a day. See Weight and Encumbrance for more information on Encumbrance
• Beasts of Burden or Monsters: May have a different number of MP available, depending on their biological makeup
• Roads: Well maintained roads (not cart paths) increase speed by up to 50% over the the rate typical for the terrain in which the road passes
• Exploring a Hex: Exploring a hex to determine special features takes a number of days based on terrain (see table above)
• Wandering Monsters: yes as determined by the Referee
• Weather: Weather may further affect overland movement if the Referee feels it is important
• Getting Lost: It is possible to get lost when traversing wilderness areas. See the SRD for more information

Exploration Phase Summary

• When Used: when the party is exploring a dungeon or ruins or otherwise working at a scale smaller than 1 hex (6 miles) but is not in a Tactical situation
• Unit of time: 1 game Turn (roughly 10 minutes - varies widely depending on many factors)
• Movement (normal/cautious): varies greatly depending on the situation, no defined rate - time spent is more important than distance covered. Travel is careful to reduce noise and search for traps or other important features
• Movement (fast): varies greatly depending on the situation, no defined rate but roughly 3x normal movement. Does not permit the detecting of Room Traps and may result in surprise/ambushes if attacked. Useful for traversing "safe/known" areas
• Effect of Encumbrance: an Encumbered character will typically take twice as many Turns to traverse the same area as an Encumbered character or may cause a Turn to be spent when moving when it would otherwise not do so
• Food and Water: required only at the end of full day
• Light Sources: required when underground or when exploring at night. May utilize an Overloaded Encounter Die mechanic. See below
• Wandering Monsters: yes as determined by the Referee
• Rest: Not usually required unless the Referee indicates the exploration is especially difficult or stressful

Overloaded Encounter Die (Optional Rule)
The Overloaded Encounter Die replaces the traditional "Wandering Monster Die" used in other OSR games. It gets its name from both acting as a Wandering Encounter Die and for serving other purposes as well. It is used during exploration of dangerous areas and governs the arrival of wandering monsters, random events other than monsters as well as the consumption of light sources. The die is rolled every other Exploration Turn

• Using the above table, torches last about 6 Turns (roughly 1 hour), but could last much more or much less
• Using the above table, lanterns need refueling about every 24 Turns (roughly 4 hours), but could last much more or much less
• This implies that torches and lanterns are not perfect; manufacturing differences mean that one can never be certain how much light remains

Traps
There are two types of traps:

• Room Traps: Magical or mechanical mechanisms that operate at 'room' scale. That is, they affect walls, corridors, parts (or all) of the floor, ceilings and the like. Scything blades, arrow barrages and pits are examples of this kind of trap
• Treasure Traps: Magical or mechanical mechanisms that operate at a small scale like statues, chests, altars, doors and other things found in room. Poison needles or gas are two examples of this kind of trap

Detecting and Disarming Magical Traps of Any Kind

• Detecting a magical trap of any kind by mundane means is exceptionally difficult. A detect magic spell is the best approach here but a very thorough mundane investigation may also work depending on the nature of the magical trap
• Once detected, the trap my be intentionally triggered in some safe way or disarmed magically with a dispel magic spell or some other appropriate magic

Detecting and Disarming Mechanical Room Traps

• Given the assumed very slow rate of movement when exploring, "mechanical room traps" are automatically detected
• When such a trap is spotted, the party will need to study the trap or otherwise interact with it to either set it off safely or bypass it in some way
• Secondary Skills, class features, fictional positioning and high Comprehension may be helpful in examining a trap to learn more about its nature but so is careful examination of the trapped area or the use of common sense
• There is no roll or skill to disarm a trap. Characters must engage with the trap and find a means to either bypass it, prevent it from triggering or find a means to trigger it safely

Detecting and Disarming Mechanical Treasure Traps

• Treasure traps are not automatically detected. Additionally, there is no roll or skill to detect these traps. Instead, a character must examine the object thought to be trapped (will take one or more Turns) and explain what they are looking for
• Treasure traps must be bypassed or safely discharged using the same approach as room-sized traps

Tactical Phase Summary

• When Used: when time is of the essence and lives are on the line
• Unit of time: 1 game Round (roughly 10 seconds)
• Movement: see below
• Food and Water: n/a
• Light Sources: required when underground or at night
• Wandering Monsters: yes as determined by the Referee
• Rest: n/a (in general)

Movement

Pursuit Phase Summary

• When Used: when one group wishes to chase or escape another
• Unit of time: abstract, see below
• Movement: special, see below
• Food and Water: n/a
• Light Sources: required when underground or at night
• Wandering Monsters: yes as determined by the Referee
• Rest: 3 Turns of rest are required to recover from any Pursuit, -2 to all actions until recovered

Considerations
Pursuit rules are often convoluted, do not account for basic information regarding those involved in the pursuit and are rarely applicable for all pursuits. Given this, creating a "pursuit mechanic" is counterproductive; it introduces needless complexity and is against the principle of Rulings Not Rules. The below rules (such as they are) are more of an outline concerning how pursuit will be handled in general and are not intended to be prescriptive.

Step 1: Determine if a Pursuit is Warranted
Just because a combatant seeks to flee combat or one group attempts to outrun another for any reason does not automatically imply that the other group will give chance. The Referee should examine the totality of the situation to determine if a pursuit is even necessary. In cases where the situation is unclear, the Referee should use Morale checks, COMP checks, an x-in-6 or other mechanic to determine if the fleeing group will be pursued.

Step 2: Determine if the Pursuit's Outcome is Obvious
If a Pursuit actually occurs, the Referee will examine the situation to determine if the outcome of the Pursuit is obvious. Heavily laden characters may stand no chance of escaping a swift foe, one side might have a larger/faster ship or be flying, a significant difference in movement speeds or capabilities like climbing or swimming may also make the outcome of a Pursuit a forgone conclusion. If the outcome is obvious, a Pursuit may occur, but the likely outcome will come to pass.

Note there may still be interesting events that occur or questions that might arise during a Pursuit of this nature. For example, the party may be fleeing a faster pirate ship that is gaining on them. Because of the difference in ship top speeds and capabilities, the pirates are destined to overtake the PCs' ship. However, it might be important to determine how long this takes - will the party wizard be able to complete a ritual to summon the Kraken before they are engaged by the pirates? Can the PC's escape into an onrushing storm before they are overtaken? Can PC's reach a door and cast Hold Portal on it before their faster goblins pursuers can stop them? Can the gnolls break off combat and chop the supports to the rope bridge before the (presumably) faster PC's overtake them and prevent this from happening? In each case, the Referee should strive to strip the Pursuit to it's clearest, simplest question. If the Pursuit is going to happen, and the outcome is clear, is there a way to re-phrase the Pursuit question to actually reach a state of ambiguity where the outcome is not clear? If the answer is no, the Pursuit occurs and the outcome is as expected. If the answer is yes, the Pursuit question can be rephrased such that the outcome is not clear, proceed to the final step.

Step 3: Uncertain Situations
Assume each party in a Pursuit has an equal chance of obtaining their goal of escaping, overtaking or some other goal based on the situation at hand. If the PC's are involved in the Pursuit, couch the chances in terms of what they desire as an outcome. Enumerate the things that are positive and negative about the situation. For each meaningful, positive contributor to the situation, add 1 point and for each negative, subtract one point. Large differences might cause the addition or subtraction of 2 or more points. Consider actions one party might take (like dropping treasure or food), the differences in lighting required to navigate, familiarity with the current terrain, the terrain itself, move speed advantages and all other relevant aspects, Roll a d10 and add the total of the modifiers. The PC's will obtain their goal on a modified roll of 6 or higher. If the PC's needed to take certain action to make this outcome come to pass (dropping treasure, casting a spell), account for this expenditure. Note that this expenditure occurs regardless of whether or not the PC's actually obtain their goal. Perhaps they drop treasure and food, but still fail (by chance) to escape their pursurers; the food, treasure and spells are still expended.

Post-Pursuit Situation
Movement and time are abstracted during a Pursuit. The Referee will indicate where the Pursuit ends, how long it takes and the relative position of the party's involved.

Downtime Phase Summary

• When Used: when the characters are in town or some other place of safety where far-reaching concerns like long-term projects, domain management, logistics or politics become important
• Unit of time: abstract
• Movement: abstract
• Food and Water: abstract
• Light Sources: n/a
• Wandering Monsters: n/a except in extreme circumstances
• Rest: abstract