The System

Dice System

"Randomness is justice when the gods are deaf."

THE FORMULA

1d20+ATTRIBUTE≥DIFFICULTY

I · base

Fundamentals

One d20, one attribute, one difficulty.

Every action with a chance of failure follows three steps: roll 1d20, add the applicable attribute modifier, and compare the result against the action difficulty or the opposing roll in combat.

A result equal to or higher than the difficulty is a success. Lower is a failure. Natural 1 and natural 20 have their own consequences.

Critical Failure

On a natural 1, the hit roll total is halved. It does not apply to damage dice. The worst plausible outcome for the attempted action happens.

Critical Success

On a natural 20, final damage is doubled. It ignores the enemy Vitality modifier. The best plausible outcome happens.

II · scale

Action Difficulty

Suggested early-campaign DCs for 1d20 + attribute.

Trivial

Succeed unless you roll a critical failure.

Easy

12 total.

Normal

16 total.

Hard

19 total.

Very Hard

25 total.

Legendary

Only with a critical success.

III · time

Turns & Action Points

Every character starts with 3 AP, restored whenever they act.

Initiative is rolled once: 1d20 + Agility. Higher acts first, lower acts last. Surprise attacks bypass the order, but still require Perception versus Stealth when appropriate.

Combat actions such as attacking, defending, counterattacking, and dodging cost 2 AP. Items and skills usually cost 1 AP. Dialogue and movement tied to the current action are free within common sense.

IV · defense

Reactions

Three ways to answer an attack.

Defensive Reaction

Take the attack and minimize it. On tie or higher, block all damage. On failure, damage goes through but subtracts defender Vitality x 2 from final damage.

Evasive Reaction

Avoid the hit. On tie or higher, no damage and the target gains Advantage on the next roll against the attacker. On failure, reduce final damage by the target's Agility.

Counterattack

Strike back instead of defending. If higher, the attacker takes damage. On a tie, both hits cancel. If lower, the target takes damage.

V · armor

Armor Class

The passive defense that decides whether a stealth strike even reaches the target.

Formula: CA = 2d6 + (Vitality + Agility) / 2. The 2d6 is rolled only once at sheet creation and entered manually. The Vitality + Agility sum is rounded up, so Armor Class rises naturally when the character invests points into VIT or AGI.

Use 1: passive reception of hits and natural blocking. Use 2, and the main one: check whether a stealth strike actually targets the defender by comparing the attack roll against Armor Class, tying this section to Stealth and to the Armor Class mention for NPCs and Bosses in Reactions.

Use 3: restrained or immobilized targets still consider Armor Class before taking damage, though the GM may impose a penalty. Debuffs and effects can also reduce Armor Class for X actions or reactions while they last.

VI · additions

Damage Types

Extra damage begins here.

Piercing / Slashing

Spears, daggers, swords, stakes. Something penetrates the target's body. +5.

Impact

Punches, kicks, environmental collisions. Steel-free brawling. +5.

Elemental

Ether involved: magic gusts, explosions, or attacks wrapped in the user's Ether. +5.

VI · continuity

Buffs, Debuffs, and Ongoing Damage

Effects that change the sheet while they last.

Buffs and debuffs stack effects by stack, duration, or trigger. Ongoing damage uses ticks per turn or round, with intensity defined by the applied effect and the GM's adjudication.

View effects catalog

VIII · finish

Lethal, Knockout & Dismemberment

The difference between dropping a target and removing them from the world.

All damage is lethal by default. To knock someone out, declare that intent on the hit roll. If HP reaches 0 without lethal intent, the target faints. If further damage reaches -10, the target dies regardless of intent.

Dismemberment requires a hit die of at least 17, damage equal to at least 50% of the target's max HP, declared intent, and +1 extra AP. Decapitation requires 19+ on the hit die and the same max-HP threshold in a single hit.

IX · shadow

Stealth

Spend 1 AP to try. The target's Perception decides.

Outside combat, stealth can enable surprise attacks, silent approaches, and clue gathering.

In combat, a hidden character is not targeted until the state ends, can handle items that do not break stealth, and must wait 3 Actions / Reactions after ending stealth to try again.

X · systemic

Special AP Mechanics

System actions every character can perform.

Team Distraction

Spend 1 AP to redirect creature attention, protect wounded allies, or make creatures attack each other.

Create Distance

Spend 1 AP to enter a semi-escape state. Melee characters must spend 1 AP to reach you.

Take Cover

Spend 1 AP to use a thick wall, stone, or obstacle. Ranged damage is reduced by 50%, but cover can be destroyed.

Regenerate

Allocate X AP if you do not attack or counterattack. Heal Xd10 + Vitality, adding Vitality only once.

XI · practice

Putting It Together

From roll to total destruction.

The mechanics combine progressively: a simple punch, a weapon strike, pure spellcasting, a stealth attack, poison damage, burn renewal, and a stacked critical hit. The Portuguese rules page keeps the full worked examples while the English page summarizes the same flow.