Wolves of the Aegean

21 Sep, 2026

A Bronze Age hack of Wolves Upon the Coast by Luke Gearing. https://lukegearing.itch.io/wolves-upon-the-coast-grand-campaign

Get the PDF and Book 1: Crete here: https://rat-bastard-games.itch.io/wolves-of-the-aegean

Wine dark waves pound the keel. Your captain, Odysseus, King of Ithaca, sinks into Poseidon's clutches, slaughtered by his disloyal crew. You thought to save yourself from the fate laid upon the son of Laertes. It didn't work. A storm has sent you into unknown waters. The signs are clear, seen in bird and cloud and sheep gut: you will not return home, and if you do, it will be after many terrible ordeals. Rise as a hero, or die in the attempt.

Characters

Characters begin play with the following. Like all things, these can be taken away.

Two silver talents worth of arms and equipment. Anything not spent is forfeit. The rest of the treasure you claimed in Troy was lost in a terrible storm.

1 Hit Dice (HD). All Hit Dice are 1d6. Roll to determine total HP.

To-hit bonus of +1.

Knowing 1d3 languages.

• A language can be "half known" - enough to conduct trade.
• All rowers should share a half-known tongue: Ithacan, the dialect of Ithaca.
• Language slots can be held in reserve and "spent" the first time a new language is encountered. Some languages cannot be known this way.
• Double-knowing a language means you can read and write it, assuming it has a written form. Ithacan does not.

Sharing a naus, a ship for eight to twenty-four rowers, equipped with oars and sails. The ship holds enough food and water for four days.

Your naus is crewed by eight non-player character rowers, capable of fighting as Skirmishers (p.xx).

Gender and Class

Characters may be men or women, slaves or free.

1d6

1-2 slave (girl, boy)

3-6 free (woman, man)

Occupation

Before the war tore you from your home, you had an occupation:

2d6 - Men 2. Bronzesmith 3. Poet 4. Sculptor 5. Farmer 6. Shepherd 7-9. Fisher 10. Painter 11. Carpenter 12. Priest

2d6 - Women 2. Bronzesmith 3. Poet 4. Mourner 5. Farmer 6. Oil Presser 7-9. Weaver 10. Healer 11. Priestess 12. Oracle

1d6 - Slave Girls (roll Women for occupation)

1. Brought from Ithaca, owned by another character.
2. Brought from Ithaca, owned by Odysseus.
3. Owned by a free Trojan, taken as plunder by another character.
4. A free Trojan, taken as plunder by another character.
5. The wife of a Trojan captain, taken as plunder by Odysseus.
6. A Trojan princess, taken as plunder by Odysseus.

1d6 - Slave Boys (roll Men for occupation)

1. Brought from Ithaca, owned by another character.
2. Brought from Ithaca, owned by Odysseus.
3. Owned by a free Trojan, taken as plunder by another character.
4. Owned by a free Trojan, stowed away as the city fell.
5. A free Trojan, taken as plunder by Odysseus.
6. House slave of Priam, taken as plunder by Odysseus.

Slaves owned by Odysseus may argue for their freedom in the absence of their master. Slaves owned by the living must do as they command or else gain their freedom.

The Trojan War

You fought for ten long years at Troy. You carry the war with you still, in memory and in flesh.

1d6

1. You are heavily scarred.
2. You slew an enemy captain and claimed fame.
3. You fell ill and missed out on glory.
4. You endured torture at the hands of the enemy.
5. You lost brothers.
6. Nightmares haunt you.

Paternal Lineage

Your Grandfather (1d6)

1. a slave
2. a merchant
3. a warrior of little fame
4. a famous warrior
5. a king among men
6. a god in disguise

Your Grandmother (1d6)

1. a slave girl
2. a priestess
3. an oracle
4. a princess taken in war
5. the wife of a hero
6. a goddess or spirit in disguise

Your Mother (1d6)

1. a slave girl
2. a priestess
3. a skilled weaver
4. a healer
5. a queen
6. a godlike beauty

Your Father (1d6)

1. a coward
2. a slave
3. a fisher
4. a famous warrior
5. a king
6. a hero worthy of legend

Stats

Roll 3d6 for each. Characters with divine parentage add +2 to a stat of their choice; those with royal or heroic parentage add +1. A character with both divine and heroic or royal parentage gains both, but must choose separate stats.

Strength - A measure of brawn and muscle.

• A Strength of 15+ gives +1 to hit.

Agility - Swiftness and speed.

• An Agility of 15+ gives +1 to Dodging saves.

Constitution - Endurance and bodily health.

• A Constitution of 15+ gives +1 to Physique saves.

Saves

Roll d20 and beat the save score. This roll may be modified by external factors such as magic or armour.

Dodging - 15+ - avoiding danger

Physique - 13+ - enduring poison and disease

Warding - 17+ - resisting magic

Characters forgoing armour add 4 to their Dodge Rolls. Characters wearing leather add 2 to their Dodge Rolls. Characters wearing medium armour such as linothorax make unmodified Dodge rolls. Characters wearing bronze subtract 2 from their Dodge Rolls.

For suits of mixed armour, use the Dodge modifier from the heaviest piece of armour worn.

Dodging often, but not always, causes you to fall prone. You can dodge while prone at a -2 penalty.

Equipment

Most trade is conducted through barter and reciprocity. Goods and services of near-equivalent value are exchanged between parties with the implicit understanding that the difference will be made up at some point in the future. Consider the relative value of exchanged goods, factoring in local availability and reputation. The party with power usually makes the profit in an exchange.

The most common economic unit across all of Greece is the cow. One talent of gold is a good price for a cow. A talent is enough material to make a wedding ring.

Four talents of silver to one of gold is the standard exchange rate across much of the Aegean. The following is a rough guide for common goods, given in talents of silver and gold.

An amphora holds enough unmixed wine for forty guests. Olive oil is used in cooking, rituals, personal hygiene, and as fuel for lanterns.

An ingot of metal is enough to make one of the following: one breastplate, two helmets, four shields, two greaves and two braces, ten spearpoints, eight axe heads, four labrys, six swords, 1/8th of a hollow man-sized statue.

An ingot of obsidian is enough to make twelve fine blades.

Craftsmen and labourers cost a quarter talent of silver per season. Experts cost more. No more shall be said of them, for heroes do not concern themselves with those who die unremembered.

Other valuables, such as gems and precious stones, have their approximate value listed in talents of gold. When in doubt, consider how many cows they might be worth.

Pitiless Bronze

Spear - 1/4 silver talent. Attack in formation. Keeps others at bay

Trident - 1/4 silver talent. Sticks in flesh on a 10+ to hit roll. 2d6 Strength test to pull it out next attack, dealing damage equal to to-hit bonus.

Sword - 1 silver talent. Can Parry: give up your attack to reduce incoming attack rolls by 3 + your to-hit bonus.

Khopesh - 1 silver talent. Curved Egyptian sword with a hook for disarming foes. After damage is rolled, reduce it by 3 and roll a second attack - if successful, a weapon or shield is ripped from the grip of the opponent.

Dagger - 1/2 silver talent. +1 damage during a grapple, -1 damage normally.

Sickle, Handaxe, Grain Flail - 1/4 silver talent. Non-combat uses. Sacred to many chthonic gods.

Labrys - 2 silver talents. Two-handed double-bitted axe. Holy symbol of the Minoans. If a 6 is rolled for damage, roll another 1d6 and add the result. Do not add damage bonuses more than once. This effect can be triggered multiple times. Attacks against the wielder are at +1.

Sagaris - 1 silver talent. Two-handed single-bitted battle-axe invented by the horse-loving Scythians. On a 10+ to hit, the opponent makes a Physique save or else has a shield or weapon ripped from their grasp.

Fist - Free, -1 damage.

Rock - Free, -1 damage. Can be thrown.

Club - Free, 1-in-6 chance to break.

Great Club - Free, two-handed, +1 damage. Little more than a strong branch. 1-in-6 chance to break.

Sling - A few hours of weaving. Stones are free, assuming there are rivers nearby.

Bow - 1/2 silver talent.

Ten arrows, flint - 1/8 silver talent. Standard arrows.

Ten arrows, obsidian - 1/4 silver talent. Save vs. Physique to avoid excessive bleeding.

Ten arrows, bronze - 1/2 silver talent. Ignores leather armour.

Javelin - 1/4 silver talent. +1 damage.

Net - 1/4 silver talent. Short range. Tangles foes and deals no damage. Strength check to throw it off. Useful for fishing.

Armour

The number before the slash is how much damage each piece absorbs. The number after the slash is the adjustment made to Dodging rolls. The number in parenthesis is how much a full suit costs.

Use the Dodge adjustment provided by the heaviest armour worn (i.e. a warrior wearing a bronze chest piece, leather greaves, no braces, and a boar-tusk helm would have a Dodge modifier of -2 from the bronze).

Unarmoured - 0 / +4 Dodge
Light - 1 / +2 Dodge (1 ⅛ silver)

• Leather Greaves - 1/8 silver talent (each)
• Leather Braces - 1/8 silver talent (each)
• Leather Cuirass - 1/2 silver talent
• Leather Helmet - 1/8 silver talent

Medium - 2 / 0 Dodge (3 silver)

• Linothorax - two silver talents
• Boar-Tusk Helmet - one silver talent

Heavy - 3 / -2 Dodge (14 silver)

• Bronze Greaves - two silver talents (each)
• Bronze Braces - two silver talents (each)
• Bronze Breastplate - one gold talent
• Bronze Helmet - two silver talents

Shield - Made of wicker or leather-wrapped wood, shields provide +1 armour to all hit locations and may be sacrificed to fully negate an attack. A bronze shield, called an aspis, may be sacrificed up to three times before becoming useless.

• Wicker and leather shields - 1/4 silver talent
• Bronze shields - two silver talents

The hides of wild animals and armour carved from the shells of mighty sea-beasts provide protection as leather unless particularly rugged. Some monsters have armour tougher than even the hardest bronze.

Resolution Tools

Tests

If discussion does not lead to an obvious resolution, test an appropriate stat. Attempt to roll under the stat with a variable number of d6s. Failure always has consequences.

Easy tasks with consequences for failure use 2d6.
Challenging tasks use 3d6.
Hard tasks use 4d6.

Items or abilities which help (or hinder) should modify the number of dice rolled.

Combat

All too common among the Achaeans. A way of life and the very thing you've spent the past ten years doing.

Combat occurs in six second rounds.

To determine order, each player character rolls 2d6 ± the Dodge modifier of the heaviest piece of armour worn. Those that get 7+ act in order, highest to lowest. Then all opponents act. Then the remaining player characters act. Roll this each round. Mercenaries and companions act with their leaders.

Roll to hit

Roll 2d6 + To-Hit Bonus, then choose one die to be the hit location and one die to be the damage. Weapons break on snake eyes. The to-hit bonus is not applied to the damage dealt, nor does it modify the hit location result—it merely determines the result on the following table:

2 - 6 miss
7 - 12 hit
13+ critical (chop off or cripple body part)

Hit Location

1. Right leg
2. Left leg
3. Chest
4. Right arm
5. Left arm
6. Head

Damage is subtracted from the HP of the target, minus armour. Bonuses to damage are added after the damage die is chosen.

In melee combat against mundane foes (those with three or fewer hit dice), a player character can make one attack for each of their own HD. These attacks have a to-hit bonus of +1.

A limb suffering 4+ damage from a single blow after armour is temporarily crippled. A leg thus wounded drops a warrior to their knees, an injured arm drops whatever it is holding. A head or chest shot that deals 4+ damage after armour knocks the receiving combatant down. They must spend a round standing.

Suffering 8+ damage after armour to a Hit Location from a single blow chops it off. This also occurs on a 13+ to hit roll.

Exceptionally large or powerful foes may need to suffer more damage before dismemberment.

Phalanx Fighting

When two phalanxes meet, battles become a shoving match.

Both sides make Morale tests to determine the outcome of their engagement - the side with the greater total HD gains a +1 bonus to the roll. Morale adjustments from other sources apply.

The side with the lower Morale result reduces their effective total HD by 1d6 (representing casualties and broken shields), double if they flee or break formation.

Morale tests continue each round until one side breaks or surrenders. A phalanx reduced to 0 HD is annihilated. Player characters may roll Physique to see if they survive.

Monsters

Monsters and human foes add half their HD (rounded up) to all to-hit rolls they make.

Monsters with 1-3 HD make one attack per round. Monsters with 4-7 HD make two attacks per round. Monsters with 8+ HD make three attacks per round.

Monsters and foes with 5+ HD add their to-hit bonus to damage.

Regarding saves, ask each of these questions:

If a monster is fast, it adds +4 to its Dodging saves.

If a monster is tough, it adds +4 to its Physique saves.

If a monster is magical, it adds +6 to its Warding saves.

Combat Complications

Unaware mortals are instantly slain if the attacker has time to ensure a killing blow, can mitigate any armour, etc.

Prone characters may attempt to dodge at a -2 penalty assuming there is room for them to move. Otherwise, they are automatically hit.

Use hit locations as approximations of anatomy. A snake has no limbs to hit; these become body shots.

Mounted characters, including those in chariots, take +2 to their to-hit roll against unmounted foes and deal +1d6 damage with weapons that can be couched.

Wrestling

A vital part of any warrior's training. While wrestling, you can choose to deal non-lethal damage - still bloody, but nobody dies.

When a grapple begins, both grapplers roll to hit. The higher result starts with the upper hand. An unaware foe automatically loses the upper hand.

When a grappler gains the upper hand and every round they begin with the upper hand, they may do one of the following: deal 1d6 damage with knees and elbows, disarm their foe, or break off the grapple. Three consecutive rounds with the upper hand are required to choke someone out.

The grappler without the upper hand makes a Physique save (13+ on a d20) on their turn, adding their to-hit bonus to the roll. On a success, they gain the upper hand.

Healing

Per night's rest, characters recover 1 HP per HD. Ministration from a healer doubles this.

A full day spent doing nothing recovers 3 HP per HD.

Reaction

When attitudes are uncertain or chaos desirable, roll 2d6 and consult the table below. Reputation and open wealth may modify this roll, a strong opinion eliciting a ±4.

2d6 Reaction
2- Hostile
3-5 Negative Inclination
6-8 Disinterested
9-11 Positive Inclination
12+ Friendly

Determining what these results mean in a given situation is a matter of experience and extrapolation. It may also reveal facts about the group - especially extreme results necessitating explanation.

Morale

Friends and foes alike must test their morale in strenuous situations.

To do so, roll 2d6 for each group. On a 7+, their morale holds. This roll may be modified according to familiarity, cultural taboos, etc. A ±1 represents a minor factor and a ±2 a major factor. A ±3 obviates the need for a morale check.

Common events triggering a morale test include:

• Reduced to 50% of their fighting strength.
• Reduced to 25% of their fighting strength.
• Death or retreat of a leader.
• Ambushed.
• Presence of massive or horrific foes.
• Seeing a friendly group flee or break formation.
• Loss of limb or serious injury, for individuals.

Common circumstances and their suggested modifiers include:

• For individuals, fighting beside or in view of a lover, +1.
• Fighting under a heroic commander, +1.
• Favour or disfavour of the gods, ±1.
• Significantly outnumbered, -1.

Player characters have their own morale and choose when they run or surrender.

Mercenaries

As many mercenaries as can be paid may be hired. Men live in nests known as cities. They must be enticed. Non-combat hirelings are usually awarded 1/36th of a share of the treasure each season, whilst mercenaries charge according to their equipment.

*Must test Morale to enter and stay in close combat.

Mercenaries that go two seasons without pay are likely to leave - roll Morale, factoring in length of service, treatment, oaths, and the dangers they've faced. Mutinies occur as a result of abuse and incompetence.

Ransom

A warrior's worth is measured in the number of cattle that can be expected as payment for their safe return, calculated based on the following factors:

1 cattle per HD, +1 cattle per gold talent worn, +20 if descended from royalty, +100 if male heir, +200 if ruling monarch.

As with all exchanges, some amount of bartering is to be expected and the ransom need not be in the form of actual cattle.

Getting Stronger

There are a number of ways for heroes to grow stronger. Boasting, displaying wealth, gift giving, and participating in funeral games are the standard means by which Greek heroes attain higher status.

Mortal Categories

Mortals and monsters with 1–3 HD are categorized as "mundane"—the gods have yet to take much note of them. They have little strength compared to the heroes and demigods that roam the Aegean. Though they may be humble, they are dangerous in numbers. Supernatural beings with 1–3 HD such as shades and revenants are not held to the same restrictions as mundane foes.

Mortals and monsters with 4–7 HD are "heroic"—they stand tall in the poems and histories of Greece. These are fearsome foes and steadfast allies. Their names and deeds may be known to certain kings. The gods know them.

Mortals and monsters with 8+ HD are "legendary"—living myths of unmatched strength and cunning, known across Achaea. The gods favour them, for divine ichor comingles in their veins. Herakles, Achilles, and many of the Argonauts fall in the upper end of this category.

The deathless gods, should one be foolish enough to challenge them, possess no hit dice, for they are unconstrained by the limits of mortality. They may still be bested, tricked, and overwhelmed, but the wise know better than to defy them.

Benefits of Getting Stronger

At 4 HD, a warrior of heroic stature adds +1 to the Morale checks of all troops they lead in battle. Additionally, mundane foes of 3 HD or less will not target heroes as long as weaker foes remain.

At 5 HD, warriors and monsters add their to-hit bonus to damage.

At 7 HD, warriors suffer temporary crippled limbs and knockdowns on hits that deal 6+ damage after armour, rather than 4+ damage. Additionally, they only lose limbs on to-hit rolls made against them totaling 16+, rather than 13+.

At 8 HD, a warrior becomes a legend, unmatched in arms, peering into realms beyond mortal sight. Such a warrior is aware of invisible foes within 3". Mundane foes (1–3 HD) must make a Morale test to stand their ground when a legend charges.

Boasting

A character who makes a Boast of Heroic Proportions either gains 1 HD or +1 to-hit bonus in addition to any wager or reward offered by others.

If they are found to shirk their Boast, they lose the HD or to-hit bonus and may never again Boast.

Those failing the Boast lose the HD or to-hit bonus, but may try again or make another Boast.

A character may only have one Boast pending at a time.

A friend or rival may up the stakes of a Boast if present when it is made - for each complicating factor, another HD or to-hit bonus may be added. If this new Boast is refused, the challenger takes up the Boast instead - with the complication they specified.

Each time you gain a hit die, roll all your hit dice. If the result is higher than your current maximum HP, that becomes your new total. If you rolled lower than your total HP, gain +2 maximum HP.

The GM has no special say or veto power over what is or is not a proper Boast. Boasts are social and require group assent. As a general guideline, each Boast a character makes should be grander than their previous successful Boast.

Wearing Wealth

Each magic item or ten talents of gold worn adds +1 to the Reaction roll from people belonging to cultures that respect material wealth, up to a maximum of +3. Beasts and mindless foes care nothing for gold.

For every ten talents of gold worn openly, a character may attract and support 1 NPC Companion who requires a 1/2 share of all loot obtained. Companions begin at 1 HD and may increase their HD and to-hit bonus as player characters do.

Funerals

The cost of a funeral increases in proportion to the fame of the deceased, covering wine, mourners, elegiac poets, and offerings to the gods. This does not include the cost of elaborate tombs, if such a thing is desired.

Mundane funerals cost one silver talent or equivalent. Cairns, small pyres, and simple holes in the ground cost little to nothing, and are how peasants are remembered.

Heroic funerals cost ten gold talents or equivalent.

Legendary funerals cost thirty gold talents or equivalent, at minimum.

Building a tomb worthy of the dead costs five times as much as a funeral and takes a full season per ten talents of gold. Doing so grants the tomb-builder 1 HD. The dead expect to be buried with their earthly possessions.

Different cultures follow different burial customs which are detailed in their respective sections of the grand campaign.

Funeral Games

Funeral games are held over twelve days in honour of the deceased and are separate from the price of a funeral. Each participant in the games must offer a number of cattle to be sacrificed equal to the HD of the deceased. Regular attendees need not offer cattle.

The participants then vie for athletic glory.

If abstraction is desired, the games can be represented as three stat tests: Strength, Agility, and Constitution. Each athlete rolls 4d6, attempting to get as close to their stat as possible without going over and rolling as many times as is needed to determine the winner. Ties are resolved by another test or a wrestling match.

Each winner is awarded a sacred olive wreath, first pick of the deceased's loot, and their choice of +1 HD or +1 to-hit. Additional Boasts and wagers may be made, but Boasters should take heed to respect the dead.

Strength - tug-o-war, wrestling, boxing, feats of strength
Agility - foot race, archery, swimming, ball games, jumping, chariot
Constitution - long distance running, drinking contests, dancing

Travel

Hexes are assumed to be 6 miles across.

Across the Wide-Backed Sea

The Aegean roils between the islands, and beyond the land, the river known as Ocean holds the dark earth above the endless sea of Chasm. Poseidon's eager hand stirs up breakers to destroy black keeled ships as Amphitrite's children swarm the trackless deep. Smaller ships glide the river-homes of nymphs, seeking cities. Others must be dragged ashore before their occupants lay siege.

Vessels have a default movement which is modified by wind. All ships are able to drop sails and move by oar alone, ignoring modifications caused by wind speed.

Ships marked with * are light enough to portage overland at half speed.

The number in parentheses is for river travel.

The crew number before the slash is the number of Marines. The number after the slash is the non-combat crew necessary to maintain the ship.

Value is the ransom paid for the return of a captured ship - triple this if purchased new. This is in addition to the value of carried goods.

Embolons and pentekonters have bronze-reinforced prows designed for ramming.
Phaeacian ships require no rudder or navigation, capable of sailing automatically to any port known to their crew. They only get lost during storms on a 1-in-6. They're shrouded in a mist that conceals their movement.

Wind

Wind conditions persist for 1d6 days. Characters know of a storm 1 day before it arrives - roll Wind ahead of time.

Determine initial direction randomly. Then, each day, roll 1d6.

If the Wind is behind the Vessel, increase the number of hexes travelled a day by the first value listed in the Wind Strength chart. If it is ‘adjacent’ - 1 direction distant - add the second value. Otherwise, ignore the wind. (e.g. NE and NW both speed a vessel travelling North.)

Storms

Vessels in a storm have a 30% chance of capsizing per day. Capsized vessels lose any loose cargo, and have a 40% chance of sinking before being righted by the crew. All encounters with other ships are ignored.

Becoming Lost

Characters may see into adjacent hexes. Mountains are visible from 4 hexes away. Weather conditions may hamper visibility. When no landmark (e.g. coast, mountain, lighthouse) can be seen, characters have a 2-in-6 chance of becoming Lost if they have no Navigator. Hide any map and continue play without reference to it, until they are able to re-establish their location. Movement is in a random direction.

There is a 4-in-6 chance of becoming Lost during a Storm.

Naval Encounters

Unless conditions are poor or there is a submarine element, encounters on Coasts and the Sea are spotted at a distance of a hex. Reaction should be used for unknown groups.

If the curvature of the river is unknown, River encounters are spotted at 3d6 x 10’.

The tables below can be used where no regional encounter table has been prepared, although results will need modification.

By default, there is a 1-in-6 chance of an encounter each day.

Merchants, Patrols and Pirates in Rivers use Boats and local equivalents of Naus. Upon the Sea, any vessel could be found.

Raiders use Boats, Naus, Ploions, and Embolons.

On rivers, only single vessels are encountered. On the coast, groups of 1d6 vessels are encountered. Vessels are usually crewed by 1d6 fewer people than the ship’s maximum crew count. On the coast, 2d10 Merfolk appear. Upon the sea, they number 2d20.

Naval Combat

Naval combat is conducted in naval Turns of 1 minute each.

Artillery and sea-monsters may attack ships directly. Mortals must instead rely upon fire or boarding.

Melee attacks against vessels automatically hit. Ranged attacks are made at -2, to account for firing from a moving platform. Hand weapons deal no damage - artillery and the strength of monsters is sufficient to deal damage normally. If a 6+ is rolled, the boat may begin Sinking.

Fire deals 1d6 damage. If a 1 is rolled, the fire reduces in size - roll one dice less next round. If a 6 is rolled, the fire has increased in size - now roll 2d6 for damage.

Ramming

A ship other than an embolon or pentekonter performing a ram takes 1d6 damage. It deals 1d6 for each remaining HD to the target. If a 6 is rolled on a damage dice, that ship may begin Sinking.

Boarding

Characters may leap from one vessel to the next as part of boarding. This requires a 2d6 Agility test. Marines automatically succeed. Combat is then had on the vessel. Note this means 10 ‘normal’ Rounds of combat happen per naval Turn.

Sinking

When a vessel takes on significant water, roll 1d6. On a 1-3, it is fine. On a 4-6, it begins sinking. This process takes 3d6 Turns. If half the crew works to save the vessel, it might (70% chance) avoid this fate. This takes 1d6 Turns, and cannot be done if under attack.

Any further Sinking result halves the time left before the vessel sinks.

Drowning

Those in the water for a full naval Turn, or flung into the water, risk drowning. Characters must roll a Dodge save to avoid drowning, modified by their armour.

Over the Dark Earth

The gods agree—none shall claim the surface for their own; let Zeus own sky, Poseidon water, and Hades the underworld, and let the land belong to mortal kings who till the earth and slaughter cattle. Warriors march over hill and mountain to face boys from the next town over, and merchants carry amber inland from shores no Greek has ever seen. Goods from sunny Hyperborea arrive on carts laden with Aethopian treasures and Hittite lapis, a thousand languages spoken in between. Fires kindle in the ruins of fallen cities that crowd the countryside.

Travel

Horses Ridden to Death have a 2-in-6 chance of dying each day, and are useless by the end of the journey.

Inclement terrain (thick woods, bogs, and mountains) lacking a road halves movement - round fractions down.

Becoming Lost

From a good vantage point, characters may see into adjacent hexes. Mountains are visible from 4 hexes away. Weather conditions may hamper visibility. When no landmark (e.g. mountain, hill, road, town) can be seen, characters have a 2-in-6 chance of becoming Lost. Deserts and Swamps increase this to a 3-in-6 chance. Hide any map and continue play without reference to it, until they are able to re-establish their location.

Movement is in a random direction.

Encounters

Every 12 hours, an Encounter roll should be made on a chart prepared for the area.

In the case of an Encounter, consider if either party is aware of the other - factors such as light and sound being major determinants. Unaware parties are surprised 2-in-6 of the time.

If a group is surprised, encounters begin with parties 1d6

Among the Dead

Quiet spreads like plague below the hills. Tunnels writhe like maggots through the bones of earth, caves and secret chambers, abandoned fortresses and temples. Down into Hades the subterranean paths extend, roots reaching the abyss of Tartarus where things imprisoned crawl. All that grows below drinks the waters of Phlegethon and Styx, uncounted monsters born of heinous unions and shrieking darkness. There, bereft of light, life is the exception rather than the rule.

Timekeeping

Time is measured in 10 minute intervals - Turns.
Each turn, there is a 1-in-6 chance of an Encounter, using a prepared Encounter table for the location.

Most major activities take 10 minutes - searching for traps, unlocking doors, clearing obstacles etc.

After combat or an hour’s exploration, most parties require a Turn of rest - those pushing beyond this take a penalty of -2 to any saves and to-hit rolls made until they rest for two Turns.

Food

Meat is the food of warriors and kings. Grains and fruit are the food of peasants and slaves.

A warrior eats 1/40th of a cow per day. This is the equivalent of a whole chicken, 1/20th of a pig, or 1/10th of a goat, sheep, or deer. Double this if feasting.

A portion of all butchered animals are offered to the gods: the thighbones, wrapped in fat, are burnt. The meat is roasted on spits over an open flame and shared among the diners. This is the procedure followed at almost every sacrifice and feast.

Though food can be preserved for long voyages through smoking and air drying, a hero cannot offer jerky to Athena or salami to Dionysus.

A stranger must be fed before the host may ask questions of them. All who honour the gods know this.

Changelog

2026-09-22: Published. Magic and more hexcrawl pending. Use Luke's magic (see his very cool blog) for now.