Rapiers of the Renaissance A Role-Playing game set in Renaissance Europe 1450-1550 by Sheldon Stevens Contents Introduction: why role-play in the Renaissance? 1 Character Generation: Attributes, Luck Roll, Idea Roll, Background Skills 2 Professional Skills 3 Miscellaneous Skills, Virtues & Flaws 4 Money & Equipment, Renaissance Fashion 6 Character Templates 7 Designing Characters and Campaigns, Women as Player Characters in the Renaissance 21 Skills: Skill Tests, Standard Tests, Use of Attributes, Attribute Modifiers 22 Opposed Skills, Stealth, Read/Write, Attribute Tests, Opposed Attributes 23 Skills List 24 Combat Skills 29 Advancement 30 Combat: Timing & Movement, Initiative, Missiles 31 Missile Weapons 32 Shooting at Groups, Hand-to-Hand: Brawl, Grappling, Melee 33 Melee vs Brawl, Hand Weapons, Tactical Modifiers 34 Damage, Phs Bonuses for Combat and Stealth, Horses in Melee 35 Falls 36 Damage to Locations, Hit Locations, Hit Points per Location, Head Injuries 37 Fumble Table, Wound Infection, Wound Recovery 38 Duelling 39 Armour and Hit Locations 40 Poisons: 41 Disease: Exposure, Resistance Test, Incubation Period, Duration 43 Survival Test, Recuperation Period, Ailments 44 Afflictions 45 Plagues 46 Magic: Magic in general, Alchemy 48 Demonology, Necromancy, Witchcraft 49 Starting Spells, Magic Points, Spells 50 Demons 64 Elementals, Arcane Artefacts 67 The Renaissance World: Religion 69 Technology 70 Daily Life 71 The Renaissance in Italy 72 Italy: Map 73 Bologna, Ferrara 74 Florence & the Medicis 76 Genoa, Mantua 77 Milan 78 Naples, Rome & the Papal States 79 Savoy 80 Siena, Venice, The Holy Roman Empire 81 The Ottoman Empire 83 The Fall of Constantinople 84 The Ottoman-Venetian Wars 85 The Siege of Rhodes, The Conquest of Hungary, The Siege of Vienna, The Italian Wars 86 The Peasants’ War 88 Monastic Orders 90 Military Orders 92 Secret Societies 93 Renaissance Personalities: Popes 100 Emperors, Other Monarchs, Doges of Venice 108 The Borgias 109 The Medici 114 Other Merchant Princes 118 Generals 119 Artists 127 Women of the Renaissance 136 Philosophers 141 Witches & Wizards 144 Clergy 148 Physicians 150 Supernatural Characters 151 A Renaissance Timeline 152 Scenario: The Book of Fugger: Augsburg May 1517 157 Renaissance Price List 169 Bibliography 175 Introduction: why role-play in the Renaissance? We happy band of brothers – and sisters – can role-play in almost any milieu. I have played, or know people who have done so, games set in the Stone Age, Bronze Age Greece, Ancient Egypt, the Roman Empire, the Dark Ages, High Medieval Europe, the English Civil War (a friend’s home- made game), Victorian steampunk, Victorian Cthulhu, Call of Cthulhu in its classic 1920s period, various modern games, including Call of Cthulhu, Vampire, and Sci-Fi games ranging from immediate post-apocalypse such as Twilight 2000 or Morrow Project via Traveller 2300 to the far future of classic Traveller, Star Wars and Space Opera, as well as a vast range of entirely imaginary realms: D&D, Gloranthan Runequest, Jorune, Warhammer (Renaissance technology in a fantasy world) and, of course, Middle Earth. My apologies if I’ve overlooked your personal favourite. Perhaps there’s a game I’ve not heard of but it seems the one ethos missing that begs to be explored as a role-playing milieu is Renaissance Europe. The more I think on it the more I find the omission distinctly odd. Look at it: this era transforms medieval thought in to modern. The Catholic Church, having held the guttering candle of learning aloft throughout the Dark and Middle Ages finally sees its children leave, proudly bearing flaming torches of their own. Sailors from Spain, Portugal, France, England and the Netherlands sail west and east to create empires in the New World and the Far East. Renaissance thought leads directly to the Enlightenment of the late 17th and 18th Centuries. Neither art nor science (and in the Renaissance the two are still indistinguishable) would ever be the same again. This is the era of Michealangelo and Leonardo da Vinci (the archetypal ‘Renaissance Man’ and arguably the most talented mind ever produced by our species). Men of learning rediscover the knowledge of the Ancient Greeks (and Islam and Persia) and so begin to question Truth, as given by the Church in Rome. Speaking of Rome: this is also the time when a series of Popes show a degree of dissolution that would shame any age, even ancient Rome at its most decadent – this is the era of the Borgias – and the Pope heads a church that is largely (but not entirely) as corrupt as its popes. As men of learning question Papal authority, church corruption fosters the Reformation, provoking Luther’s 1517 proclamation and a wave of religious wars after: Reformation provoking Counter-Reformation. This is when gunpowder comes of age: cannon render castles obsolete and muskets will soon do the same for armoured knights but those knights are still around and, though no longer the lone arbiters of battle, for another century they remain a crucial battlefield necessity – an army’s strength is still counted in terms of its lance-armed men-at-arms. Knights, their armour and heraldry provide a wonderful spectacle: anyone for a joust? And off the battlefield, duelling probably reaches its apogee with a wonderful variety of forms. In the Holy Roman Empire the nobility still duel with heavy knightly weapons while in Italy and Spain the appearance of the espada ropera (rapier) and similar lighter weapons transform the art of fencing in to the graceful battle of lunge, riposte and counter beloved of those of us who live to buckle the swash – and soon the wheellock pistol creates a new kind of duel. But for those who prefer to play practitioners of the ‘subtle’ arts, remember that this is an era that believes in magic. Many men and women are condemned to burn as necromancers, demonists and witches; can all of them be innocent? But apart from all this, surely what must really sell the Renaissance to any role-player is the chance to cross swords or words with some of the most wonderful personalities in history. Would you like to discuss politics with Machiavelli? Or art with Leonardo da Vinci? Or business with Jacob Fugger? Or poisons with Lucrezia Borgia? One drop or two? 1 Character Generation There are 6 attributes defining the character in game terms: Physique [Phs]: a measure of size and strength. It effects hand-to-hand combat heavily; both prowess with most weapons and severity of inflicted wounds. Resilience to damage is also a partial function of physique. Some characters may be stronger or weaker than they look due to virtues and flaws. Athleticism may also be indicated by skills and virtues. Large size can impair stealth. Male Phs is typically 8-16, average 11, that for women is 5-12, average 8, as a rule-of-thumb. Constitution [Con]: a measure of toughness, disease resistance and endurance. Hit points are equal to Con modified by Phs. Maximum normal lifespan is Con x 5 years + 2d3-4. Quickness [Qck]: is a measure of manual dexterity and speed of reaction, physical and mental. Grace [Grc]: is a measure of sureness and poise, covering the physical and social graces. Thus dancers, diplomats and debutants will all need this in abundance. Intuition [Int]: is a measure of the character’s awareness of his surroundings: visual acuity, acuteness of hearing, etc, but also of his perceptions by other than his physical senses. It also affects guesswork and forms the basis for the Idea test. Psyche [Psy]: is a measure of the power of the character’s mind, most important for using or resisting magic, especially offensive spells that target another individual. It also governs the character’s ability to maintain coolness in stressful situations, such as combat. There are 72 points to place in attributes on a scale of 1-20. Human average is 10-11 so PCs are notably above the mean with an average of 12. More points may be gained through virtues and flaws (see below). Luck Test = is rolled individually as and when needed. PCs can buy good luck as a virtue or have bad luck as a flaw. Idea Test = Int test, the difficulty depending on the obviousness of the idea. Background Skills: all characters get one of the 6pt skill packages below. At the GM’s discretion, one or two of the skills may be exchanged for others suitable to the background. Selections labelled M or F are only available for men or women, respectively (except for a good role-playing reason). Noble and Rich backgrounds are only available to characters with the virtues of Noble or Wealth. Nobleman (M) Dance 1, Etiquette 1, Heraldry 1, Melee 1, Read/Write 1, Ride 1 Noblewoman (F) Dance 1, Disguise 1, Embroidery 1, Etiquette 1, Read/Write 1, Sing 1 Florentine Patrician † (M) Bargain 1, Etiquette 1, Oratory 1, Politics 1, Read/Write 1, Ride 1 Rich Townsman (M) Bargain 1, Brawl 1, Carouse 1, Etiquette 1, Gossip 1, Read/Write 1 Rich Townswoman (F) Disguise 1, Etiquette 1, Gossip 1, Listen 1, Read/Write 1, Sing 1 Average Townsman (M) Bargain 1, Brawl 1, Carouse 1, Fast Talk 1, Gossip 1, Read/Write 1 Average Townswoman (F) Appraise 1, Bargain 1, Brewing 1, Cooking 1, Gossip 1, Listen 1 Poor Townsman (M) Brawl 1, Carouse 1, Hide 1, Listen 1, Sneak 1, Spot Hidden 1 Poor Townswoman (F) Brawl 1, Carouse 1, Cooking 1, Gossip 1, Listen 1, Spot Hidden 1 Countryman (M) Animal Care 1, Brawl 1, Carouse 1, Carpentry 1, Drive Cart 1, Gossip 1 Countrywoman (F) Animal Care 1, Brewing 1, Cooking 1, Gossip 2, Listen 1 Seminary * (M) Latin 1, Listen 2, Liturgy 1, Read/Write 1, Sing 1 Convent * (F) Etiquette 1, Listen 1, Liturgy 1, Read/Write 1, Sing 1, Sneak 1 Jew Accounting 1, Bargain 1, Brawl 1, Listen 1, Read/Write 2 Stradiot Animal Care 1, Brawl 1, Carouse 1, Jump 1, Melee 1, Ride 1 Turkish Noble Etiquette 1, Liturgy (Muslim) 1, Melee 1, Read/Write 2, Ride 1 * a seminary is a route to higher education for the poor.