Most old school RPGs share two design principles. The first is an abundance of charts and tables to choose entries from or to roll on. These provide inspiration for the GM when they are writing up the next adventure or give them ideas when the players stray from the obvious path. The second is a sleek, minimalist rules set. Often, the rules emulate earlier editions of D&D and other fantasy games but sometimes do their own thing, like Mork Borg.
Knave 2e, from designer Ben Milton, has plenty of both. It packs a lot of game into its slim 88 page volume. Milton recently sent along a review copy. How does it run as a lean, mean fantasy machine? Let’s play to find out.
Knave’s system will look familiar to anyone that’s played D&D over the years. There are six base characteristics, hit points, and a central d20 resolution mechanic. Milton stripped away a lot of other things you might expect from a game system aimed at fans of classic fantasy. There are no ability scores, no classes, no ancestries or big spell lists. Knave assumes every character is a bit of a multiclass and leaves the concept of niche protection up to the table. Equipment comes from the two background details rolled on a d100 chart. Yes, this means the roll could mean one player starts out with armor and a bunch of weapons and the other could start with a wine jug and some twine but this isn’t a game about careful balance. It’s about getting into the dungeon as quickly as possible.
In his design notes, Milton mentioned that the game started out as a hack for an after-school D&D program. That influence comes through as a great, easy to explain system that gets players to the table within a few minutes of busting out some dice. It fits an excellent niche for parents who want to run an RPG for their kids but one that’s not necessarily cloaked in kids stuff.
Encumberance also factors into the hit system. Hit points are ethereal indicators of luck and skill. When a character suffers direct damage, they start to lose equipment slots. As written, players must start dropping items (including armor) but I think you could also run it like I did and give players the choice of dropping the item or damaging it. My initial read amused me, thinking about players coughing up equipment and treasure in a dungeon like Sonic the Hedgehog rings. But in play it squeezed players with hard decisions on what to lose if they took direct damage. First level characters were also a bit hardier since they all can take somewhere between 12 and 19 points of damage. That seems like enough to excuse a mistake or bad roll or two but still keep things on the dangerous edge of old school play. The system also gave them a solid warning about risks lacking from other OSR games. Is it worth pushing through one more room when you run the risk of dropping important equipment or loot?
Magic runs in its own idiosyncratic methods. Knave blurs the line between magic items, clerical spells and warlock favors by connecting Wisdom based spellcasting on relics. Magic spells are cast via spellbooks which connect to my favorite set of charts in the book. The charts give the player and GM a handful of words to use to construct the spell name. What does Xendu’s Ostentatious Cleansing Root do? Sounds like some kind of healing spell to me, maybe it spouts healing fruits when cast on a nearby plant. Spells are meant to be unique, assembled together by the spellcasting player and GM together which further gives each character and the world a unique flavor.
I appreciate the fact that Milton includes a few pages of designer notes in the back. While these pages could have been space for more charts, they offer a glimpse into his choices for the game and what inspired his mechanics. They also offer the curious a chance to explore his influences and look into games outside that they might not have discovered on their own.
Knave 2e offers great resources for any OSR style game while also working as a great fast fantasy game on its own. It’s great for players who want an old school taste or as a way to introduce players who don’t have the patience to build a character and learn a heavier system who want to enjoy a dungeon crawl.
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