Leveling Up

As you adventure in Tavern Tales, you will learn from your experiences and become stronger. The requirement for advancement is simple: do interesting things.

Of course, the definition of “interesting things” varies depending on the gaming group. One gaming group might prefer dungeon crawls and monster battles, while another gaming group might prefer political intrigue and sandbox-style gameplay. For that reason, Tavern Tales doesn’t rigidly define character advancement. It’s up to the gaming group to work together to determine a character advancement option that works best for them. Here are some of the most popular advancement options:

Killing monsters isn’t the only way to level up. If your gaming group adores sandbox-style gameplay, then the players might level up by purchasing and outfitting a naval ship so that they can seek adventure across the high seas. If your gaming group emphasizes roleplaying, the players might level up by helping one of the player characters mend a broken relationship with her family.

It’s important for the GM and the players to clearly communicate so that everybody knows the driving purpose of the game. Is it to kill monsters? The GM should reward players for running into battle. Is it political intrigue? The GM should reward players for attending a noble masquerade. Most gaming groups will use a combination of these factors, possibly even all of them.

Levels and Leveling Up

Your level is the number of traits and upgrades that you have. Since you start character creation with 3 traits, that means that you start the game at level 3.

It’s important to note that the GM has the option of starting characters at a much higher or lower number. For example, the GM could start the players at level 15 for a high-level game. Alternatively, the GM could start the players at level 0 (none of the players have any traits) so that the players can roleplay their first steps into the world of adventuring.

It’s generally recommended that players start at level 3 because then they will each have 1 combat, 1 exploration, and 1 interaction trait.

When the GM feels that the players have fulfilled the purpose of the game, the players get to level up. A player who levels up selects one of the following options:

Remember: when you level up, you must advance traits as evenly as possible between combat, exploration, and interaction.

Gaining New Traits

When you select a new trait, you are making your character more flexible and well-rounded. You can select any trait from any theme. However, as always, you must advance evenly between combat, exploration, and interaction.

Dabney’s character begins the game at level three with Hunter (Tracking/Combat), Gut Instinct (Savagery/Exploration), and Military Connections (Warfare/Interaction).

Since Dabney has an equal number of combat, exploration, and tracking traits, he has the option of selecting his next trait from any category when he levels up. When he reaches level four, he selects Nomad, a Savagery/Interaction trait.

At level five, Dabney must now select either a combat or an exploration trait. He picks You Dare!?, a Dragon/Combat trait.

Upgrading Existing Traits

Upgrades allow players to customize their characters by putting unique spins on their favorite traits. To do so, a player selects an upgrade from the list below and applies it to a trait that they already have. These upgrades are intentionally vague and ambiguous, because a balanced upgrade for one trait may not be balanced if it’s applied to another trait. Players and the GM should work together to agree upon a balanced, logical interpretation of the rules.

Frequency

You can use this trait more often than normal. Example changes:

Potency

The core effect of the trait is more powerful than normal. Example changes:

Precision

The trait is much more precise or subtle than normal, or the trait has less severe consequences. Example changes:

Range

This trait affects more things than normal, or it is more expansive than normal. Example changes:

Speed

You can use this trait much more quickly than normal. Example changes:

Dabney reaches level six. He has two combat traits, one exploration trait, and two interaction traits, so he must advance in exploration next. He decides to upgrade Gut Instinct (Savagery/Exploration) rather than getting a new trait. He begins a conversation with the GM:

Dabney: I really love Gut Instinct and I want to get more use out of it. Can I upgrade it?

GM: Sure, what do you have in mind?

Dabney: Well, I like the idea of my character being so attuned to his instincts that it borders on being supernatural. I was hoping that I could get extra information when I use it.

GM: Sounds like a potency upgrade.

Dabney: That’s what I was thinking. Hmm, let’s see… How about I add this line of text, “Whenever you use Gut Instinct, the GM must tell you something important about what your instincts are sensing.”

GM: That sounds good to me! Write it on your character sheet. We’ll see how that upgrade plays out during this next session. Afterward, we’ll talk again to see if we both think it’s balanced. Sound fair?

Dabney: Yep!

When you upgrade traits, keep these important rules in mind:

Restricting Upgrades

By default, Tavern Tales doesn’t place any restriction on upgrades. As long as players evenly distribute their levels between combat, exploration, and interaction, they can upgrade traits as many times as they want. However, unlimited restrictions on power can lead to incredibly strong players. The GM may want to place restrictions on upgrades to prevent players gaining access to control the game’s power level.

Here are a few examples of party-wide restrictions that the GM may want to use:

Retraining

You can change some aspects of your character by retraining. To retrain, you simply need to take a week off from the adventuring life and rest. It’s a good idea to retrain in between sessions so that it doesn’t disrupt gameplay. You can retrain the following aspects of your character: