The Dice

Roll d100 (percentile dice): Roll two ten-sided dice, one for tens and one for ones.

  • Compare result to your skill rating
  • Roll equal to or under your skill to succeed
  • Lower is better; rolling doubles (11, 22, 33, etc.) can be critical or fumble

Success Levels

  • Critical Success: Roll doubles under your skill (e.g., 22 when skill is 55%)
  • Success: Roll under your skill
  • Failure: Roll over your skill
  • Fumble: Roll doubles over your skill (e.g., 77 when skill is 55%)

Difficulty Grades

Difficulty modifies your skill rating:

Grade Modifier
Automatic No roll needed
Very Easy +40%
Easy +20%
Standard +0%
Hard -20%
Formidable -40%
Herculean -60%

Core Mechanic

  1. GM sets difficulty grade
  2. Apply modifier to your skill percentage
  3. Roll d100
  4. If result ≤ modified skill: Success!

Opposed Rolls

Both sides roll their skill:

  • Both succeed: Higher roll wins (unless a critical)
  • One succeeds: That side wins
  • Both fail: Stalemate or GM decides

Combat Basics

Combat Actions

Each round you may take:

  • 1 Action (attack, cast spell, etc.)
  • Up to 1 Proactive Action (movement, ready weapon)
  • Unlimited Reactive Actions (parry, evade)

Attack Roll

  1. Roll your combat skill (Close Combat, Unarmed, etc.)
  2. Opponent chooses to Parry or Evade (rolls defense)
  3. Compare success levels

Special Effects

If you win an opposed roll and rolled better (not just succeeded), you gain a Special Effect:

  • Offensive: Bypass Armor, Impale, Trip, etc.
  • Defensive: Disarm, Riposte, Pin Weapon, etc.

Choose one from your style’s available effects.

Hit Locations

Roll d20 to determine hit location:

d20 Humanoid Location
1-3 Right Leg
4-6 Left Leg
7-9 Abdomen
10-12 Chest
13-15 Right Arm
16-18 Left Arm
19-20 Head

Each location has hit points (usually SIZ+CON divided among locations) and armor.

Damage & Wounds

  • Armor Points (AP): Reduces damage
  • Hit Points per Location: When reduced to 0 or below, location is wounded
  • Serious Wound: Location at 0 HP or below
  • Major Wound: Location at negative HP equal to its starting HP

Common Skills

Standard skills all characters have (at base %):

  • Athletics — Running, jumping, climbing, swimming
  • Brawn — Raw strength feats, lifting, shoving
  • Conceal — Hiding objects on person
  • Deceit — Lying, bluffing, disguise
  • Endurance — Stamina, resisting fatigue/poison
  • Evade — Dodging attacks and dangers
  • First Aid — Basic medical treatment
  • Influence — Persuasion, intimidation, bargaining
  • Insight — Reading motives and lies
  • Locale — Knowledge of local area
  • Native Tongue — Speaking your language
  • Perception — Noticing details and dangers
  • Ride — Controlling mounts
  • Stealth — Moving unseen and unheard
  • Swim — Swimming and water movement
  • Unarmed — Fighting without weapons
  • Willpower — Mental resilience and resolve

Professional Skills (require training)

  • Art (specific form), Craft (specific trade), Commerce, Courtesy, Culture (specific), Language (specific), Lore (specific), Musicianship, Navigation, Seamanship, Survival, Track

Combat Styles (vary by character)

Each style represents training in a group of weapons (e.g., “Gladiator,” “Legionary,” “Street Fighter”)

Full Rules: Mythras Imperative PDF