v.5.3 is a modified version of Ben Milton’s v.4.3 of Maze Rats. Here it is.

I’m using this to run Hot Springs Island (see a text review here and a video review here) as an open table game, which I picked up at Gen Con this year.

Lightly Annotated:

Danger rolls and stats stay as they are.

Side-based initiative. Forever and always.

Lower armor and no shield-breaking to change a hit to 0 damage.

Attack Bonus (AB) based on weapon type (unarmed = -1, ranged = +0, light melee = +1, heavy melee = +2).

No more Critical Hits when you roll boxcars. It would always weird-out the math.

Dying rules instead of straight death at 0 Health. New Dying rules includes Scars.

Exploration rules right from HSI.

Hazard roll included in the rules.

Bartering rules instead of gold amounts. Money is abstracted (stolen liberally from PbtA’s Uncharted Worlds).

New XP questions (based on this article) to vary up the options for ways to advance.

Increased Health at level 1 so no one dies in only one hit. Lower Health increase per level to offset this early boost.

Having a goal and relationship is now a part of character creation. Get your players invested in the world!

Many (72) brief, interesting backgrounds with a lot of room for interpretation. Roll once for your father’s side and once for your mother’s. Instant family tree (or at least the start of one).

New archetypes!

Mystic, a wizard that rolls for spells. As they level, they obtain access to more spells and can further control the winds of magic.

Disciple, an adventurer devoted to a cause or deity. They have more reliable magics than the wizard, which makes them more predictable and dependable.

Vagabond, a tough-as-nails adventurer. They use their signature weapon and superior skills to loot the deep places of the world.

Each class has a unique table!

This list of spells is a modified, alphabetized form of Knave’ spells. #94 is my favorite.

Some last-minute tables to give Elements, Effects, and Forms when called for. They also help with names and extra fluff for role-acting. I highly recommend you buy Maze Rats and use its excellent tables for more inspiration for making monsters.

There it is. All in five pages. Enjoy.

Merry Christmas! 🙂