Astrology Signs for OD&D
The following system is in use in my Murdicog's Manse game. A couple people had asked for details, so I'm making it a separate post.
Instead of rolling the usual six ability scores, roll a d12 to generate a sun sign and a moon sign for your character, recording the associated perks.
| dZodiac | βοΈ | π |
|---|---|---|
| 1. βοΈ | +10% Fighter XP | +1 initiative |
| 2. βοΈ | +2 HP | +250 coin-weight carry capacity |
| 3. βοΈ | +1 reaction rolls | Can switch between classes (as Elf) |
| 4. βοΈ | +1 save vs. Breath Attacks | Dead at -3 HP |
| 5. βοΈ | +2 hireling morale | +1 followers |
| 6. βοΈ | ID trick construction (as Dwarf) | +1 open doors |
| 7. βοΈ | +1 turn undead | +2 saves vs. Spells |
| 8. βοΈ | +1 melee damage | +2 saves vs. Poison |
| 9. βοΈ | +1 ranged attacks | +2 saves vs. Wands |
| 10. βοΈ | +5% XP | +2 saves vs. Petrification |
| 11. βοΈ | +10% Mage XP | +10% Cleric XP |
| 12. βοΈ | +1 surprise | +1 saves vs. Petrification |
Why?
I've written about how ability scores in LBB OD&D can be read as a means of generating perks and drawbacks, rather than as a granular measurement of a character's capabilities.
My wife got me this nifty dZodiac set for Christmas, which gave me the idea to use astrology to generate random perks. I have a fairly superficial knowledge of astrological symbolism, so I did my best to pick fitting perks but most are semi-arbitrary. I only did Sun & Moon, but one could conceivably expand this to a whole horoscope.
The idea of using numbers to quantify a person's capacities is very modern, and exudes whiffs of nasty things like eugenics and Taylorist management. Astrology is more archaic, and (I think) more honest about how arbitrary it is. Ability scores portray capabilities as innate, astrology signs relate one to the cosmos.
Characters are still represented by numbers, and obviously some perks are more useful than others. But the value of a perk is more situational than a score -- it's more egalitarian insofar as you can no longer say one character is strictly more intelligent than another.
Is it right for your game? I've tested it in seven game sessions and had no issues, but consider whether the following effects align with your preferences:
- Character sheets are simpler. I have used this with first-time D&D players and find that explaining a perk is easier than explaining the score <-> perk relationship.
- Characters are less differentiated, even if little changes mechanically. Scores are no longer present as a fallback option for judging situations, which could be good or bad.
- Similarly, the number of "knobs" to interact with shrinks a bit -- if your dungeon includes a magic palladium bell that drains 1d4 points of WIS, you'll have to invent a different effect.
- Conversely, if you are well-versed in astrology, the signs are semiotically rich, perhaps even more useful for judging situations?