Encumbrance

The 5e encumbrance system is either math-intensive, fails to match to any kind of reality or both. To address this issue, we are moving to a Slot-Based Encumbrance system used in many other RPGs. Here is the basis of the system:

• The system uses an arbitrary unit of measure called a 'slot' rather than a unit of weight (e.g. pound)
• Each item you carry will occupy a certain number of slots. An item's slot consumption will depend on how hard it is to safely carry/stow as well as its weight
• Your character has two types of slots: Readied Slots and Storage Slots
• Available Slots of each type are based on your character's Strength attribute
• Your character is assumed to be carrying a backpack, belt with pouches, cloak with pockets or other simple, lightweight storage items. These items are never purchased or tracked on your character sheet and they occupy no slots themselves

Readied Slots

• An item in a Readied slot is ready for immediate use. This can be a sheathed sword or dagger, a bow or shield slung over the shoulder, a potion or scroll or whatever you are holding in your hands
• Note that where or how the item is stored (in a scabbard, in a belt pouch, even in a pack side pouch) does not matter. Wherever it is, it is assumed to be easy to access
• A character has as many Readied Slots as half their Strength attribute (rounded down). Thus a character with a Strength of 11 has 5 Readied Slots
• A character can make use of an item in a Readied slot as a free action - the item is always considered to be 'at hand and ready to use'
• Any item carried in-hand or worn is assumed to be Readied and occupies Readied slots

Storage Slots

• An item in a Storage Slot is not ready for immediate use. It can be in a backpack or secured in a pouch, tucked into a cloak or just tightly packed to allow ease of transport
• A character has as many Storage Slots as their Strength attribute. Thus a character with a Strength of 11 has 11 Storage slots
• It is a full-round action to remove an item from a Storage Slot. Once the action is complete, the item is in hand
• Once an item is drawn from Storage and the item is in hand, it will likely put the character beyond their normal Readied Item capacity. This is acceptable if the item is consumed or otherwise disposed of in the round immediately following when it is retrieved. If it is not consumed/used in the first round it can be, the newly retrieved item must be dropped or alternately, some other Readied item must be dropped (or Stored) to ensure that the Readied Slots are not exceeded.

Carrying Very Heavy Items
In certain situations, characters may attempt to carry a chest of coins, a wounded comrade, a statue or other heavy item. This is possible in a limited sort of way:

• The carried item needs to be dead weight, not a struggling foe
• Any item carried in this way is considered a Readied Item not a Storage Item. This is because Stored Items are packed away to distribute weight evenly and are bundled securely to make carrying easier
• It is not possible to carry an item that exceeds your Readied Items slots in hand for any more than a round or two. The items may be lifted, dragged etc during this time at half (or lower) of the character's normal movement rate
• This means that if you really want to carry a chest full of coins in hand (for example), you will need to ensure that you have sufficient Readied Item slots to do so (by shedding armor and dropping weapons typically)
• Chests, barrels and other heavy storage items occupy slots in their own right. Thus if you wanted to carry as a Stored Item a chest with 1000 coins (maybe strapped on your back?) you would need 10 slots for the coins and another 2 slots for the chest itself

Carrying Capacity of Mounts and Vehicles
Mounts and vehicles use the slot system as well. Rather than create an extensive list, this will be handled on a case-by-cases basis depending on the cargo and how it is being stored and carried.

Slots Required for Common Items
The below is not an all-inclusive list but is set out here to give you an idea of how the slot system works. If something isn't on this list, we will use this list for guidance to determine the slots needed for the new item.

Some items do not occupy a full slot (re.g. 3 torches occupy 1 slot). If you are carrying less than the number of items needed to fill a full slot (e.g. carrying only 1 torch), this slot is still consumed. There are no 'partial slots' and 'partial slots' (theoretically representing unused space/weight) cannot be combined to form net-new empty slots.