Birthright conversion for non-Cerilian games

[Silveras]

Seeing some new threads on Birthright on the main D&D boards, and having been asked a couple of times to share my own conversions, I have decided to make an attempt.

As Birthright is NOT OGL, and the folks at Birthright.net have the official rights to fan conversions, I am posting my intention first.

It is my intention to post my changes to the rules, both to convert to 3.0 and to come up with a generic rules set independent of the setting. To that end, I will not be posting things I did not change, except perhaps to refer to some spell names and other terms core to the setting. I will not be defining any old terms. I will also be perfectly happy to remove or revise any posts that the moderators feel go too far.

That being said, I am off to compose the first installment off-line. Mods, if you feel the idea is too likely to wind up having issues, let me know.

 

[Silveras]

Part 1: Bloodline changes

Birthright Conversion part 1: Bloodlines

First, I wanted to separate the mechanics from the setting; second, I needed to adapt to the 3rd Edition rules. At the core of Birthright are the bloodlines, so that is where we need to start.

Bloodlines
----------------------------------------------------
General
I disliked the random factor of Bloodlines in the original presentation. A feat-based system made much more sense to me. However, the Bloodline score is integral to the Domain management system, so I could not abandon it without finding a suitable replacement.

Another element of the original presentation which did not work for me was the assignation of powers. I needed to separate the powers from the specific gods of Cerilia, and I needed a way to easily add more powers as new deities entered the mix. My homebrew world has a great many deities, each very active in one or two regions and less so in others, so there would be occasional need to add new Derivations and Powers.

Further, it seemed to me that over the centuries of having Blooded regents in charge, people would have found a way to describe the ranks of Bloodline Strength, and to have organized ways of tracking the increase or decrease of strength within a Blooded family. Enter the Heralds, as specialists in record keeping on these topics. They know many family secrets (like which nobles kept sneaking out to tryst with commoners), and keep them in their vaults of records. The nobles are a little afraid to cross them, now, because of those records. The Heralds probably know which farmer with a surprisingly strong Bloodline is actually the lost heir (or sibling of the current heir) of a major family.

What that means is that the grades of Bloodline Strength are well-known to the people. Everyone knows that House D'Marco is a Great House, but House Alesson is of Minor status, and because Alesson's leaders took many peasant lovers, there are many Tainted families in their lands.

The gradation is based on something the people could see and measure: the number and potency of Bloodline Powers you display (not Bloodline Score). So, each of the Bloodline Feats is tied to a pattern of powers, and the overall number and potency of powers matches up pretty well to a specific Bloodline Strength. There is still some variation, but it is not all over the board like the original rules.

I also added the Bloodline to the people's vocabulary. A Bloodline, in this sense, means that members of a particular family sharing the same origin and ancestry all have the same powers. If children have a weaker Strength than their parent's, when they raise it, they will gain the same powers as their parent with the dominant Bloodline. Which brings me to some other new terms relating to Bloodlines: the Diurshegh and the Durishegh. The Diurshegh is the current "Head of the Family" for a particular Bloodline, and the Durishegh is the "next in line," the designated Heir.

Cadet (new) branches of the family are created when someone in the family other than the Diurshegh leaps past the powers defined for his/her family. If House Alesson has only been at 'Major' at its strongest, and some young adventurer pushes his/her personal powers to match the requirements to be defined as Great, that character "splits off" and becomes the root of a new Bloodline. The Bloodline may end with that character if there is no marriage and progeny; if there is a marriage and progeny, the new family is noble and considered a cadet branch of the character's original family. The question of marriage may vary from campaign world to campaign world -- some will view the marriage to legitimize the offspring as necessary; other worlds may not need that technicality.

If a character obtains more powers, or loses some powers, such that his/her Strength now matches a different category, AND that increase or decrease is passed on to the next generation, at that point the Heralds will "officially" change the Bloodline's description in their records. This in no way prevents the character from enjoying the benefits of increased Bloodline Strength or suffering the penalties of its decrease; it just keeps the positions of the Blooded families more stable.


Blood Abilities
To reflect the greater variety of source deities, and to standardize the process of creating Blood Abilities, I adopted these rules.

Minor Blood Abilities are virtual feats (like automatic proficiency in the deity's favored weapon, for example, or Track), a bonus to skill checks, or once daily use of a 0 or 1st level spell appropriate to one of the source deity's Domains.

Major Blood Abilities include once daily use of level 2 or level 3 spells, twice or thrice daily uses of level 1 spells; or at-will, permanent, or continual use of level 0 spells. Likewise, the granted power of a domain would be suitable for use as a major ability.

Great Blood Abilities include once daily use of level 3 or level 4 spells; once weekly use of level 5 spells; multiple daily use of level 2 or level 3 spells; or at will, permanent, or continual use of level 0, level 1, and /or level 2 spells.

Caster Level
Because many blood abilities are based on spells, it can be important to know the Caster Level of the effect.

Ability Rank	Normal Caster Level
Minor	         5
Major	         10
Great	         15
True	         20

An additional Feat, Improved Blood Ability, allows the caster level to rise with the Scion level, capped at the next rank.

Bloodmark, Bloodform/Bloodtrait
I came to regard these as the same ability in different degrees, and one that is to some extent present in ALL Scions. So I gave Bloodmark to the Scion class as a feature at 1st class level -- ALL noble families in my world have a characteristic marking their status.

The chance of Bloodform or Bloodtrait becoming active depends upon the bloodline strength of the character. Tainted bloodlines have only a 10% chance of it being active, Minor bloodlines have a 25% chance, Major bloodlines have a 35% chance, Great bloodlines have a 45% chance, and True bloodlines have a 55% chance. This is checked again each time the character increases his/her bloodline after 1st level (so a character with a Great bloodline at 1st level has a single check at 45%, not one each at 10%, 25%, 35% and 45%; however, a character who had a Major bloodline at 1st level and who raised it to Great at 3rd level would have to make 2 checks – one at 35% {at 1st level} and the second at 45% {at 3rd level}).

Once active, the transformation must be embraced to increase bloodline strength or gain additional abilities. The DM and the player should work out just what sort of form the character is changing into, and determine the progression of changes to reach that ultimate form. The progression of form changes includes all those of a lower category.

 

[Silveras]

Birthright Homebrew Conversion part 2: Classes

Classes
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Scion
The Scion is a modified Aristocrat, representing the noble families of the world. Use the Aristocrat from the SRD, and add the following special abilities at the indicated levels:
1: Bloodline (equivalent to a free Tainted Bloodline feat); Scion Feat; Bloodmark
5: Scion Feat
10: Scion Feat
15: Scion Feat
20: Scion Feat

Scion Feat: Many of the new feats I added are of a new type called Scion Feats. The Bloodline Feats are all Scion Feats, as are a few others. At levels 1, 5, 10, 15, 20 (and every 5 levels afterward) the Scion gets to select one as a bonus feat.

Special Rule: A Scion may trade in his/her next 2 or 3 Feats to begin play with a stronger bloodline. The Scion loses 1 more Feat than s/he gets to take "early" to compensate for the advantage.


Regent
The Regent is a 5-level Prestige Class meant to be usable for any type of Domain.

Requirements: Bloodline of any Strength, a Domain to rule over

Hit Dice: d8
Skill Points per Level: 6 + Int modifier
Class Skills: Bluff, Diplomacy, Gather Information, Intimidate, Knowledge (history), Knowledge (law), Knowledge (nobility & royalty), Sense Motive

Level   BAB   Fort   Ref   Will    Special
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
  1     +1    +0     +0    +2      Regency Pool, Leadership Bonus, Regency Focus
  2     +2    +0     +0    +3      Regent Feat
  3*    +3    +1     +1    +3      Regency Focus
  4     +4    +1     +1    +4      Regent Feat
  5     +5    +1     +1    +4      Regent Feat, Regency Focus

[*Note: I was working on an additional limitation such that the Regent level was
 limited by the campaign scale. In a game played on the level that Birthright 
depicts, 4th level would be the highest allowed.]

Weapons & Armor: Regents are proficient with all Simple and Martial Weapons, all types of Armor, and all Shields.

Regency Pool (SU): Unused Regency Points may be retained indefinitely in a Regent’s Regency Pool. The maximum number of Regency Points a Regent can keep in this pool is determined by the Regent’s bloodline strength: Tainted = 15, Minor =25, Major = 50, Great = 75, and True = 100.

Leadership Bonus (Ex): A Regent adds his/her Regent level to his/her Leadership score as a bonus. This bonus does not apply until the character selects the Leadership feat.

Regency Focus (Su): A 1st level Regent chooses what types of holdings will earn Regency for him/her. At 1st level, the Regent selects 2 areas of focus, one of which must be either Urban or Rural (representing settled civilizations or nomadic tribes, respectively) and the other being one of the options for Law, Temple, Guild, or Source. Some options give 1/2 value to each; Criminal focus, for example gives 1/2 Law and 1/2 Guild. Mercantile focus gives a full 1 point to Guild Holdings. At 3rd level, the Regent selects an additional area of focus. No Holding type may ever give more than 1 1/2 RP per level to a Regent. At 5th level, the Regent selects an additional are of focus, using the same limitations as at 3rd level.

Regent Feat (Ex): At 2nd level, the Regent may choose a bonus Feat from the Regent group. Regent Feats include the Scion feats, plus add some for managing Domains.




Herald
The Heralds are an organization of non-blooded individuals whose role in society is to know and record the ancestries and deeds of the Blooded. Since Bloodlines equate to nobility, the nobles need people who are free of their rivalries to be the record keepers and genealogists. Blooded characters, therefore, are barred from the Heralds. Heralds are a Prestige Class geared toward Bards. Their spell access revolves around Bloodlines. They have rights of free passage, as they serve as messengers between the noble families. The organization is scrupulusly neutral in its dealings with the Blooded families, and punishes harshly any Herald who takes sides. The College of Heralds is funded by the noble families through a registration fee. The same fee is charged of each family, and no family is allowed to donate more than others.

Requirements:
Alignment: Non-Chaotic (Integrity and good judgement are required to be the trusted confidante of a noble)
Skills: Diplomacy 5 ranks, Knowledge (nobility & royalty) 5 ranks, Knowledge (local) 5 ranks, Perform (any horn or pipe) 3 ranks
Special: Cannot be noble

Class Skills: Appraise, Bluff, Diplomacy, Escape Artist, Gather Information, Handle Animal, Intimidate, Knowledge (all, purchased individually), Perform, Profession, Read Lips, Ride, Search, Sense Motive, Spot, Use Magic Device

Skill Points per Level: 4 + Int modifier

                                                 Spells Per Day
Level BAB    Fort   Ref   Will   Special         1st    2nd    3rd    4th
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
  1   +0     +1     +1    +0     Good Memory     0      -      -      -
  2   +1     +2     +2    +0     Bonus Feat      1      -      -      -
  3   +1     +2     +2    +1     Attn to Detail  1      0      -      -
  4   +2     +3     +3    +1     Free Passage    1      1      0      -
  5   +2     +4     +4    +2     Bonus Feat      1      1      1      -
  6   +3     +4     +4    +2                     1      1      1      -
  7   +3     +5     +5    +3     Total Recall    2      1      1      0
  8   +4     +6     +6    +3     Bonus Feat      2      1      1      1
  9   +4     +6     +6    +4                     2      2      1      1
 10   +5     +7     +7    +4                     2      2      2      1

Weapons & Armor: No additional proficiency.

Spells: Arcane, prepared like a Wizard. Heralds learn 1 new Herald spell per level, in addition to any they find. Bonus spells and DCs are based in Int. Heralds are taught Read Magic and 2 other Herald spells (player's choice) when first able to cast spells.

Good Memory (Ex): The Herald gains a Bardic Knowledge area about the nobility.

Bonus Feat: Choose from a list, mostly interpersonal or information gathering types.

Attention to Detail (Ex): +2 competence bonus to anything where small details may help: penetrating a disguise, searching for a secret door or trap, etc.

Free Passage (Ex): In their role as messengers among the nobility, Heralds may demand safe passage through any domain recognizing and employing Heralds. Most regents assume this as a matter of course, and do not force the Herald to make the demand; however, when relations are strained between the Heralds and the Regent, or the Herald’s lord and the Regent, the Herald sometimes must insist.

Total Recall (Ex): Heralds develop a phenomenal memory. They are capable of remembering minute details of events they experienced, whether or not they were paying attention at the time. In order to use this ability, however, the Herald must enter a trance-like state in which s/he is questioned by another person. This is most frequently done by a senior Herald as a form of reporting to the College of Heralds. As with all information given to the College, these reports are considered absolutely confidential, and are never shared with any noble house.

 

[Silveras]

Birthright Homebrew Conversion part 3: Skills & Feats

Skills
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I did not add any new skills; I am against adding new skills unless there is a need for some ability not represented by the existing ones. Skills should be general while Feats are pretty specific.

Diplomacy
Improve the result of a Diplomatic Matter event by 1 grade: DC 15

Gather Information
Successive checks can be used to assemble and process information related to an Intrigue.
Find partial evidence of an Intrigue: DC 20 (+2 synergy bonus for 5+ ranks of Knowledge (steetwise)).
Identify the actors in an Intrigue from partial evidence: DC varies (requires at least 5 ranks of Gather Information)
Detect an Intrigue as it unfolds: DC 25 (+2 Synergy bonus for 5+ ranks of Sense Motive)

Profession (lawyer)
The Regent can put his/her knowledge of the applicable law to use in handling a Matter of Justice. Likewise, s/he can use the Law to make it easier to Create a Holding, Decree, or Rule.
Improve a Matter of Justice result by 1: DC 12
Improve an Action Check by 1: DC 20

A character with 10 ranks in Profession (lawyer) can get a +2 bonus instead of a +1 bonus on actions.

Knowledge (local)
The Regent can put his/her knowledge of local matters to use in adjudicating a Matter of Justice.
Improve a Matter of Justice result by 1: DC 12

Knowledge (nobility and royalty)
Includes knowledge of the membership of noble families, the derivation of its bloodline
Know family membership: DC 20
Know bloodline derivation (Source deity): DC 25
Know bloodline derivation (Source Domains): DC 25
Know bloodline powers: DC 30

Knowledge (war)
The character is able to mount a siege of a fortified holding or castle. S/he may be able to anticipate the actions of opposing war leaders in army battles, and may make an opposed roll to determine whose troops move first.
Negate the defensive benefit of a fortification: 10 + (5 per level of Castle or 3 per level of Fortification) – (5 per week of siege). The character receives a +2 synergy bonus for having 5 or more ranks of Knowledge (architecture & engineering)
Gain initiative in war moves: DC = opponent’s skill check (or 5 if opponent lacks this skill).

Skills and the Intrigue Action
An Intrigue may require multiple skill checks from the participants (NOT from the Regent), depending upon the plan. For example, if the plan calls for a document to be found on the person of a certain official … a Rogue may have to succeed at a Climb check to reach the window of the target, a Move Silently check to cross the room without waking the sleeping occupant, a Pick Pockets check to put the document in among the target’s daily papers without looking out of place, another Move Silently check to get back to the window, and another Climb check to get down again.
These checks are performed as part of the action’s resolution. Unless the Regent is going to personally enact the plan, the Regent’s skills don’t matter, and do not provide any benefit.
On the other hand, when it comes to noticing that such activity is going on, the Regent is eminently suited to put the clues together (presuming that the Regent pays attention to the reports of his underlings). The Gather Information skill is used for this, with Synergy bonuses from other skills.



Feats
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These new feats are of new types, Scion and Regent. The Regent feats include the Scion feats, but not the other way around. Scion feats relate to Bloodlines, while the Regent feats are related to Domain Management.

EFFICIENT BUREAUCRACY [Regent]
Pre-Requisites: Charisma 13+, Regent Level 1, Court of Adequate or better
Bonus: The Regent reduces the cost of general Maintenance for the Domain by 2 GB per turn.

EFFICIENT MILITARY [Regent]
Pre-Requisites: 1 or more Armies
Bonus: The Regent reduces the total cost of Maintenance of the Domain’s armies by 2 GB.

EFFICIENT NAVY [Regent]
Pre-requisites: 1 or more Navies
Bonus: The Regent reduces the total cost of Maintenance of the Domain’s navies by 2 GB.

EXTRA BLOOD ABILITY [Scion]
You add another Blood Ability, or enhance one you already possess.
Prerequisite: Divine Bloodline
Benefit: You gain an extra minor power, or may increase the strength of a power you already possess by one grade.
Special: This feat may only be taken by a character once per 10 point increase in his/her bloodline score.

GREAT BLOODLINE [Scion]
You are a member of one of the most powerful families in the region, and have many powers.
Prerequisite: Tainted bloodline, Minor Bloodline, Major Bloodline
Benefit: You receive 2 major abilities, or 1 minor ability and 1 great ability, or you may receive 1 great ability and may upgrade 1 minor or major ability to its next tier.
Normal:
Special: This feat may only be selected under these conditions: the character is 1st level, or the character has increased his/her bloodline score above 48 (the maximum for the next lower strength).

IMPROVED BLOOD ABILITY [Scion]
You are able to coax your blood abilities to greater heights.
Prerequisite: At least one Blood Ability.
Benefit: The Caster Level of your blood ability rises with your Scion level until it reaches the cap for the next higher “grade” of blood ability.
Normal: Blood ability Caster Levels are fixed. Minor/5, Major/10, and Great/15
Special: This feat may be selected multiple times. Each time, it applies to a new blood ability. No blood ability may be improved beyond “True”.

IMPROVED DOMAIN INITIATIVE [Regent]
Pre-requisites: Domain
Bonus: The Domain’s Initiative receives a +4 bonus.

IMPROVED REGENCY POOL [Regent]
Bloodline Pre-requisites: Regency Pool
Benefit: A Regent may add 10 RP to the number of RP s/he is allowed to keep in the pool.
Normal: A Regent may keep a pool with a maximum number of Regency Points equal to 15, 25, 50, 75, or 100 points, depending upon bloodline strength.

LEY MASTERY [Regent]
You understand how the raw force of magic may be transferred among Provinces, and the methods of doing so.
Prerequisite: Source (1+) Holding
Benefit: You are able to work with Ley Lines. This includes the ability to create them with the Forge Ley Line action, as well as using or interfering with another character’s Ley Line(s).
Normal: You may only cast Realm spells from the Province in which the Source Holding that powers it is located. Characters without this feat are oblivious to the existence of Ley Lines.

MAJOR BLOODLINE [Scion]
You are a member of a powerful and well-established noble family, with a powerful bloodline.
Prerequisite: Tainted Bloodline, Minor Bloodline
Benefit: You receive 1 minor and 1 major power from the bloodline abilities set, or you may upgrade 1 minor power to its major version and receive a new major power as well.
Special: This feat may only be selected under these conditions: the character is 1st level, or the character has raised his/her bloodline score above 30 ( the maximum for a Minor bloodline).

MINOR BLOODLINE [Scion]
You are a member of a well-known noble family with a respectable bloodline.
Prerequisite: Tainted Bloodline
Benefit: You receive 2 minor powers, or 1 major power, from the bloodline abilities set.
Special: This feat may only be selected under these conditions: the character is 1st level, or the character has increased his/her bloodline score above 18 (the maximum for a Tainted bloodline).

POPULAR SUPPORT [Regent]
Pre-requisites: Charisma 13+, Regent level 1
Bonus: The Regent adds a +2 morale bonus to any attempts to support or oppose Domain Actions (including his/her own) in any province s/he rules where the morale is High.

REALM SPELL [General]
You learn the secret of casting a small number of Realm Spells
Prerequisite: Source or Temple Holding of level 1 or better; spellcasting ability
Benefit: Select a number of Realm spells equal to 1 + your Intelligence modifier (for Arcane) or Wisdom modifier (for Divine). You now know how to cast these spells.
Normal:
Special: This feat may be taken more than once. Each time it is selected, the Regent gains the knowledge of how to cast additional Realm Spells.

SOURCE SENTINEL [Regent]
Your sources are watched over by friendly fey.
Prerequisite: Source holding of level 0+
Benefit: Your Source holdings in a number of provinces equal to your Charisma adjustment (minimum of 1) are protected by creatures friendly to you. The type of creatures depends upon the nature of the Source.
Normal:
Special: This feat may be selected more than once; each time, its benefits are applied to a different Source(s). If this feat would protect more sources than you have unprotected, the additional protection is lost.

TAINTED BLOODLINE [Scion]
You have a trace of divine heritage.
Prerequisite:
Benefit: You have a divine bloodline, and are eligible for the Regent class. You are now considered a member of a noble family. You receive 1 minor power from the bloodline abilities list.
Special: This feat may only be selected under these conditions: the character is 1st level, or the character has just committed bloodtheft with a Tighmaevril weapon on a scion with a bloodline.

TRADE MASTERY [Regent]
Pre-requisites: Charisma 13+
Bonus: The Regent may add 1 GB to the income from a number of Trade Routes up to his/her Charisma bonus. Alternatively, the Regent may forego the benefit on Trade Routes and instead add the same bonus to the amount of Gold Bars generated by a Trade Voyage action, before the results of that action are determined.

TRUE BLOODLINE [Scion]
You are a member of a family who served at the side of an avatar and received a tremendous amount of divine power. You have many abilities from your bloodline.
Prerequisite: Tainted Bloodline, Minor Bloodline, Major Bloodline, Great Bloodline
Benefit: You receive 2 major abilities, 1 major and 1 great, 2 minor and 1 great, or you may choose to “trade in” up to 3 abilities and improve them one step.
Special: This feat may only be selected when the character has increased his/her bloodline score over 60 (the maximum for a Great bloodline).

 

[Silveras]

Birthright Homebrew Conversion, part 4: Magic

Magic
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Magic is a section which takes a bit of explaining, as it covers a lot of ground. I will not be posting spell descriptions, which are pretty much as described in the original material. I will be talking about which classes got access to which spells, though, and a few other things.

Battle Magic
Like the bloodlines, I did not want to try to catalogue every possibility beforehand; I wanted a rules set I could apply to any spell as I needed to do so. That led me to create a new feat to allow a spellcaster to 'expand' pretty much any spell (with DM approval) into a Battle Magic version. The feat increased the casting time and material components used instead of the level of the spell, expanding a 1 action spell to 1 minute, 1 round to 10 minutes, and anything longer to 1 hour. All else was pretty much the same as in core Birthright.

Sources
This is a section I re-wrote heavily.

The theme element of development-vs.-nature from the Birthright core did not suit my homebrew world. At the same time, though, I wanted powerful Sources to be rare, so that any single one would have strategic significance beyond simply powering Realm Spells.

My version of sources:
Sources are a type of Holding (see Holdings in the Domains section) that tap the raw power of magic. Sources are only of use to an Arcane spellcaster, and even then only to one who is thoroughly trained (i.e., a Sorcerer or Wizard, but not a Bard, Assassin, or other dabbler in arcane spellcasting).

Like other holdings, Sources generate Regency Points for Regents with the appropriate focus. Sources do not, of themselves, generate gold. See the later sections on Domains and Domain Turns for details.

Source potential appears in a province in two ways: natural and artificial.

Natural Sources are spontaneously-appearing levels of Source potential. Most often, these are locations where planar boundaries are weakened, allowing raw power to bleed through. These are often associated with a particular type of effect. Elementally-attuned sources are the most common, though there are others as well.
Natural Sources may be tapped to their maximum in any province, and are completely unaffected by the developed level of the province.
Natural Sources have a maximum potential of 3 to 9 (1d8+2).

Artificial Sources are creations of Wizards and Sorcerers, tapping the power generated by substantial populations of people.
Artificial Sources require a substantial population to sustain them (i.e., can only exist in provinces of level four and above), and even then are constrained to remain well below the level of the population (they cannot exceed the developed Level of the Province –3).
Artificial Sources have a maximum potential of 6.

Both types of Sources require the establishment of some sort of physical vessel to be the focus of their power, called the manifestation. In the case of Artificial Sources, this is often done as part of the creation of the Source itself; natural sources spontaneously generate their own manifestations.
Note: This means that the creator of an artificial Source can decide where the manifestation is located, usually creating it in an established stronghold. Conversely when a Regent wishes to tap the power of a natural Source, s/he must locate the manifestation, and then usually has to construct defenses around it.

Source “Flavors”
Natural Sources often have a characteristic that Artificial ones lack. The Natural variety can have an affinity for a certain type of magic, an effect which results in that type of magic being made easier to cast at the manifestation of the Source.

Most commonly, such “flavors” are noted for certain types of effects, and not for the philosophical specialties. Sources with Elemental flavors are fairly common, probably due to the overwhelming number of elemental-based spells in use. Sources linked to Necromancy have also been documented, and some rare sources seem to affect Dimensional magics.

It should be noted that the appropriate specialists are the ones who receive this benefit; generalist Mages are not sufficiently attuned to any one type of magic to attain this benefit. There are two other restrictions on this effect: first, only the owner of the Source holding can gain the benefit; and second, “shared” sources (such as those owned by the Royal Wizards and the Guild of Fire Wizards) cannot convey this benefit.

In practice, when a wizard who can receive this benefit casts the appropriate type of spell from the location of the Source’s manifestation, roll 1d10. On a roll of 1-6, nothing unusual happens; on a roll of 7 or above, the spell is not wiped from the caster’s mind; on a roll of 10, the spell energy is not wiped away, and the spell is cast with the effective level (for range, duration, area of effect, and any effects) increased by the level of the Source (so … a high-level Wizard becomes very dangerous, even if s/he has only one Source).

Ley Lines and Networks
Aside from requiring a feat, Ley Mastery, to enable a caster to work with these, they function exactly as described in the core Birthright rules.

Realm Spells
Like the Ley Lines, I used a Feat to control access to these areas. The feat is off-limits to "part-time" spellcasters (Bards, Assassins, Rangers, Paladins, etc.). Otherwise, the selection spells and their effects are the same as in the Birthright rulebook (and the Book of Priestcraft and the Book of Magecraft).

Spells
I re-named "detect sidhelien influence" to generalize it to "detect fey influence"; it is otherwise as described in the Birthright rulebooks. I also standardized on having 2 spells for detect bloodline -- "Know Bloodline Strength" and "Know Bloodline Derivation". 3rd Edition rules tend to favor separating multiple functions, so I tried to follow that philosophy.

I also added a new spell descriptor: Bloodline. Spells with the Bloodline descriptor affect or relate to Bloodlines. By adding the descriptor, it is possible to have meta effects which target them.

Here are the levels at which I gave the classes access to the spells:

Adept
Level 1: Blood Bond, Discern Fey Influence, Know Bloodline Derivation, Know Bloodline Strength

Assassin
(Nothing)

Bard
Level 1: Know Regional Origin, Trade Tongue
Level 2: Stellar Display, Mask Bloodline
Level 4: Identify Tighmaevril

Blackguard
Level 1: Blood Bond

Cleric
New Domain: Regency
Granted Power: Cast all spells with the Bloodline descriptor at +1 Caster Level

Level	Spell
1	Disguise Bloodline
2	Mask Bloodline
3	Enhance Blood Ability
4	Inheritance Assurance
5	Suppress Blood Ability
6	Imbue With Blood Ability
7	Blood Bank
8	Restore Bloodline
9	Destroy Bloodline

Note: All of these spells have the Bloodline descriptor, 
and benefit from the granted ability

Clerical spell list additions
Level 0: Know Bloodline Derivation, Know Bloodline Strength
Level 1: Blood Bond
Level 2: Discern Fey Influence
Level 5: Enhance Blood Ability
Level 6: Blood Bank, Watery Travel
Level 8: Imbue with Blood Ability, Inheritance Assurance

Druid
Level 0: Know Bloodline Derivation, Know Bloodline Strength
Level 1: Blood Bond, Discern Fey Influence
Level 3: Circle of Secrets, Totem Beast
Level 4: Enhance Blood Ability
Level 5: watery Travel
Level 6: Blood Bank
Level 8: Imbue with Blood Ability, Inheritance Assurance
Level 9: Restore Bloodline

Paladin
(Nothing)

Ranger
Level 1: Discern Fey Influence, Trade Tongue
Level 4: Totem Beast

Sorcerer/Wizard
Level 0, Div: Know Bloodline Strength, Know Bloodline Derivation
Level 1, Div: Know Regional Origin, Trade Tongue
Level 2, Div: Stellar Display
Level 2, Illus: Mask Bloodline
Level 3, Trans: Enhance Blood Ability, Suppress Blood Ability
Level 4, Div: Identify Tighmaevril
Level 4, Trans: Mimic Blood Ability
Level 5, Illus: Disguise Bloodline
Level 6, Trans: Suppress Bloodline
Level 9, Necro: Blood Drain, Blood Restoration

New Armor and Weapon Qualities

Weapons

Bloodline Stealing: The bloodline stealing property helps with Bloodtheft. Normally, bloodtheft requires that the killing stroke penetrate the target’s heart (+4 to the target’s Armor Class for trying to hit that precise spot); this quality ensures that any such stroke hitting the chest is guided to touch the heart. This reduces the target’s AC bonus by 2 (so +2 instead of +4).
This quality may only be placed in piercing weapons.
Equivalent bonus: +2; Requirements: Scion level 1+

Safe Bloodtheft: This quality prevents the derivation of the victim from overwhelming that of the one who commits bloodtheft. When a weapon with this quality is used to commit bloodtheft, there is no chance that the bloodline of the taker will be changed to that of the victim, no matter the difference in their strengths.
This quality may only be placed in piercing weapons.
Equivalent bonus: +2; Requirements: Scion level 1+

Armor

Bloodline Protecting: This armor makes bloodtheft more difficult by negating the effect of a Bloodline Stealing weapon (including those made of tighmaevril).
Equivalent bonus: +1; Requirements: Scion level 1+

 

[Argus Decimus Mokira]

Hey

Awesome stuff, Silveras. The Cerilia-specificness of the Birthright rules always rankled any thoughts i had of using them in the FR ... this little nip/tuck of the rules set is perfect for finally accompishing this! Thanks!

Matt

BTW: Consider this post an official yoink in addition to a rave.

 

[DanMcS]

As Birthright is NOT OGL, and the folks at Birthright.net have the official rights to fan conversions, I am posting my intention first.

It is my intention to post my changes to the rules, both to convert to 3.0 and to come up with a generic rules set independent of the setting. To that end, I will not be posting things I did not change, except perhaps to refer to some spell names and other terms core to the setting. I will not be defining any old terms. I will also be perfectly happy to remove or revise any posts that the moderators feel go too far.

That being said, I am off to compose the first installment off-line. Mods, if you feel the idea is too likely to wind up having issues, let me know.

Mmph, no one is going to have problems with a conversion of the rules to 3e, there are a half-dozen floating around anyway. And as one of the "folks at Birthright.net", the more the merrier, I say.

I'd like to read this more, but I'm short on time, and some of your preformatted text has widened the page and made it a pain to read, any chance you can edit it?

 

[Silveras]

Hey

Awesome stuff, Silveras. The Cerilia-specificness of the Birthright rules always rankled any thoughts i had of using them in the FR ... this little nip/tuck of the rules set is perfect for finally accompishing this! Thanks!

Matt

BTW: Consider this post an official yoink in addition to a rave.

Thanks. Coming up: Domains and Regency

 

[Silveras]

Mmph, no one is going to have problems with a conversion of the rules to 3e, there are a half-dozen floating around anyway. And as one of the "folks at Birthright.net", the more the merrier, I say.

I'd like to read this more, but I'm short on time, and some of your preformatted text has widened the page and made it a pain to read, any chance you can edit it?

Thanks. I was pretty sure that a non-Cerilia conversion would be pretty safe, but I like to be courteous.

Editing done; I had noticed the widening, but was too lazy to go back and pick out where it happened until you mentioned it.

 

[Silveras]

Homebrew Birthright Conversion part 5: Domains and Realms

Domains and Realms
---------------------------------------------------------
This is another section that saw some significant changes. The basics of Provinces, Holdings, Domains and Realms are unchanged; however, the rules for gaining Regency from them are significantly different, as is my treatment of Tribal cultures. In addition, I have made some changes to the development limits of the different types of terrain.

Domains, Holdings, Provinces, and Realms
The basic rules defining Domains, Holdings, Realms, and Provinces are unchanged from the Birthright rulebook.

The optional rule relaxing the limits on how many Regents of each type may have holdings in a province based on its level is assumed to be standard in my campaigns.

Terrain and Development
The standard Birthright rules place a limit on how high a Province's level can be raised, based on the terrain. However, the terrain limits in the core Birthright rules strike me as applying only to humans; they don't seem to reflect the abilities of the other races to deal with that terrain type. Therefore, in my approach, all Provinces can be ruled to Level 10, however, some level "slots" are only available to creatures able to thrive in certain environments. Marshes, for example, have some "slots" that are only available to Aquatic races.

Modified Terrain Table
                 Surface Subterranean  Other
Terrain Type     Level   Level         Level
Desert           3       5             5 [Fire] or [Cold]
Glacier          1       1             8 [Cold]
Heavy Forest     6       2             6 Sylvan/Fey
Hills            9       1             5 [Air], Aerial
Light Forest     8       4             4 Sylvan/Fey
Marsh/Swamp      6       0             4 Amphibean, 
                                         Aquatic, [Water]
Low Mountains    7       4             5 [Air], Aerial
Medium Mountains 5       6             5 [Air], Aerial
High Mountains   3       8             2 [Air], Aerial
Moor/Highland    6       2             2 Amphibean, 
                                         Aquatic, [Water]
Plains           10      4             0	 
Steppes          6       2             0
Tundra           2       2             6 [Cold]
Coastal Waters   0       0             10 Amphibean, 
                                          Aquatic, [Water]
Ocean Waters     0       0             10 Aquatic, [Water]

Subterranean levels are only exploitable by Dwarves, Goblins, and other races at home in such an environment.

This also means that 2 (possibly more) races can "share" the space in a province. It is also possible that the sum of the "slots" of different types may come out to more than 10, so the two may wind up in conflict over the ability to build. Consider Plains, which humans can build up to 10. If there are Goblins living in 3 Underground levels, the Humans on the surface can only build up to 7; there will likely be trouble. The Goblins, too, may want to build their 3 up to 4.

Variant: Covert Holdings
This is a variant rule based on some PBeM games I was involved in. Several players desired the ability to create "secret" holdings. While not an unreasonable idea, I often found the implementations to be over-powered. So here is my version.

Some Holdings may be created without disclosing their ownership.

That such Holdings exist in a Province may be readily discovered by any Regent in the Province who wishes to find out. This requires a Gather Information check against DC 20 – the Level of the covert holding. The Regent owning the covert holding may affect the check by spending Regency and/or Gold Bars (at 2 RP or GB per 1 adjustment factor). The Regent seeking this information may also spend Regency and/or Gold Bars to influence this check.
The Province owner receives a +2 modifier to this check. This skill check is a Domain-Turn Free Action.

The ownership of such Holdings can be determined (DC 25 – the Holding’s level).

The location of such Holdings can also be determined (DC 30 – the Holding’s level).

The Level of such Holdings can be discovered in a number of ways, though not usually with certainty. The Regent who successfully used Gather Information to find such Holdings always knows if the Holding found is less than or equal to the number by which his/her roll succeeded. Otherwise, subtracting the known Holding Levels from the Province Level gives a bare estimate.

Note also that the existence of such Holdings, though not the number, is automatically revealed by a Rule action which fails because there are no “shares” of the appropriate influence available.

A single regent’s Covert Holding levels may not exceed one-third the level of the Province (i.e., they are not possible in a Province 0, 1, or 2; are limited to 1 level in a Province 3 or 4; are limited to 2 levels in Provinces 5, 6, and 7; and are limited to 3 levels in Provinces 8, 9, and 10). Exception: Criminal guilds; their Holdings are always considered covert, but may occupy any number of slots in a province.

Covert Holdings may be used to initiate actions. Doing so immediately reveals the existence of the Covert Holding, unless an Intrigue action is also used in the same or preceding Action Round specifically to mask the source of the action. If the Covert Actions variant is in use, Covert Holdings may be used to initiate Covert Actions without revealing the existence of the Covert Holding.

Covert Holdings may be used to influence actions within the Province, just as overt Holdings may be, except that the cost for “Additional RP and GB” is doubled. The use of the covert Holding’s level as a modifier to the success of an action always reveals the existence of a covert holding and the modifier based on the Level of the Holding is revealed to the Regents with Holdings in the Province. Using RP and GB to affect the resolution of an action does not automatically reveal the covert holding.

Covert Holdings count as 2 Holdings when determining the Maintenance costs for the Domain. If a Regent has mixed Covert and open Holdings in a Province, each is counted separately (the Covert ones still count as 2), generates income separately, and so on. Covert Holdings cost twice as much GB and RP to rule up as do normal Holdings. The inefficiencies involved here come from the enormous expense of maintaining the secrecy.


Variant: Guild Holdings - Criminal vs. Mercantile
The standard Birthright rules consider all Guilds to be a mix of some honest business and some shady dealing -- the exact balance is left to the ruler of the Guild Domain. I wanted a stronger separation of the types, so I created a variant rule where the two types were not part of the same organization. This variant also presumes the use of the "Covert Holdings" variant.

Criminal guilds have minimal legitimate business interests. Their holdings are always considered covert (if that variant is in use). Criminal Guild holdings cannot be attacked without first being “found” (through Espionage or the Gather Information skill check mentioned under Covert Holdings, above). Criminal Guilds cannot benefit from Trade Routes or Caravan actions. These organizations focus on illegal activities, both “soft crime” (Burglary, Prostitution, Fixed Gambling, Smuggling) and “hard crime” (Assassination, Highway Robbery, Kidnapping, Slavery, Drug running). When performing an Espionage action to commit these activities, the Criminal Guild receives a +4 competence bonus to the result check.

Mercantile guilds have minimal illegal operations. These guilds primarily operate legitimate businesses and only engage in criminal activities as a sideline or a necessary workaround. Their criminal activities are limited to “soft” crimes. These Guilds can use their extensive legitimate business contacts to operate Trade Routes or take Caravan actions. When performing either of these actions, this type of Guild receives a +4 competence bonus to the result check.


Tribes, Nations, and Hordes

Tribes are a special case of Holding. A tribe is a nomadic or semi-nomadic band of loosely-related extended families. These tribes can grow in size to number several hundred members. As such, they are essentially mobile provinces. Tribes often have some Temple-like spiritual organization, as well as some amount of Law-type influences. Some advanced tribes may have Guild-type activities as well, but these are rare. Typically, Tribal societies leave magic to the divine spellcasters, and refuse to associate with arcane spellcasters – so they have no Source type influences. What this means is that, like a Province, a Tribe can support Law, Temple, and/or Guild Holdings of up to the Tribe’s Level. Usually, the Tribal chief owns the Law, but not the Temple, “shares”.

Tribes do not pay Maintenance on the Domain or on their troops.

Tribes, based on their population, vary between Level 0 (population 500 – 999) and Level 2 (population 5,000).

Tribal leaders are often vassals to the leaders of the Nation they belong to (if any). They are sometimes vassals to the Regents of Realms in which their nomadic lifestyles take them.

A Nation is a related group of tribes under a single chieftain. Nations are semi-permanent, but usually come together once every year or two, remaining dispersed between those ceremonial occasions.

One tribal leader holds the vassalage of the others, and is the overall chieftain. This position is usually open to challenge from the other tribal leaders, and so the dominant tribe may change frequently.

A Horde is a group of Nations united under a single leader. Very rare, Hordes are a menace to the populations of non-nomadic lands because they usually subsist by raiding those settlements, and sometimes conquer and enslave the populations.


Assets
Assets are mostly as described in the Birthright rulebook. Armies, Navies, Roads, Bridges, Ley Lines, Trade Routes, Castles, and Fortifications are all assets.

Armies and Navies would have gotten their own treatments, but I ran out of steam on that, so they can remain exactly as described in the Birthright rulebook.

Ley Lines are unchanged.

For Trade Routes, I clarified what I thought was a vague point in the Birthright rules (which led to some debates in the PBeM games). A Trade Route requires a Guild holding to anchor it at each end. The same regent does not need to own both, but in that case, the two rulers share the income. A Diplomacy action may be required to negoiate anything other than a simple 50/50 split. The exception is Sea Trade Routes to "parts unknown", which operate exactly as described in the rulebook.

I converted the Castle and Fortification building rules a bit. The main idea was to tie the cost to a number of "Stronghold Spaces", from the Stronghold Builder's Guidebook. As that volume is not Open Content, I suggest sticking with the core Birthright rules for now.

Roads and Bridges are a bit modified. I re-defined roads as composed of "road segments", which connect population centers (still taking as complex a path as the builder likes). The reason for this is to make it easier for electronic tools to represent that "Province A is connected by road to Province B". For the most part, the fact that the provinces are connected is much more important than is the fact that six villages in Province A are also connected to each other.

Road segments are expected to be wide enough for 2 carts or wagons to pass each other, paved with stone, and solid enough to last for about a decade.

With Bridges, I got a good deal more elaborate. You may not want this much detail, but I had fun thinking it out, so here it is:

Bridges begin at 1d4 GB to build a simple wooden bridge. The price for a bridge depends upon many factors. The basic cost is (1d4 + Material + Ornamentation) x Size Multiplier x Durability Modifier in Gold Bars.

Material
Wood: +0
Stone: +1
Iron: +4
Steel: +6
Adamantite: +10
Mithral: +12

Ornamentation
None: +0
Understated: +1
Ornate: +2
Baroque: +3

Size
Gargantuan (24 men or 8 carts wide): x4
Colossal ( 12 men or 4 carts wide): x2
Huge ( 6 men or 2 cart wide): x1
Large ( 3 men or 1 cart wide): r x.75
Medium (1 person at a time over a stream): x.0.5

Durability
Eternity: x10
Century: x5
Decade: x1
Year: x.5
Domain Turn: x.1
Action Round: x.01

Bridge surcharges
stream: .5 lengths
minor river: 1 length
gorge: +.5 lengths
major river: 3 lengths

For example, a plain wooden bridge wide enough for 6 men or 2 carts to cross across a minor river meant to last a decade would cost (1d4 + 0 + 0) x1 x1, or 1d4 GB. An ornate stone bridge of the same size and durability would cost (1d4 + 1 +2) x1 x1 or 1d4+3 GB. A bridge with the same qualities crossing a major river would cost three times as much (3d4+9 GB).