Combat System
Fighting Goblins and Other Threats
Starting Combat
- Surprise Check: If someone is sneaking, they roll Sneaky vs 8
- Initiative: Everyone rolls 2 dice + Courage (highest goes first)
- Positioning: GM describes where everyone is
Your Turn in Combat
On your turn, you can MOVE and do ONE ACTION:
Attack Actions
- Melee Attack: Roll 2 dice + Courage vs enemy's Defense
- Magic Attack: Roll 2 dice + Magic vs enemy's Defense (costs 1 health)
- Ranged Attack: Roll 2 dice + Courage vs enemy's Defense (if you have a ranged weapon)
Other Actions
- Help a Friend: Give them +2 to their next roll
- Defend: Get +3 to defend against the next attack
- Use Item: Drink a potion, throw something, etc.
- Get Creative: Try something unusual! GM decides difficulty
- Use Special Power: Each Zachling has unique abilities (see character descriptions)
Special Zachling Abilities
Each Zachling has unique powers beyond their basic attacks. Notable examples:
- Spark (Yellow): Can summon a storm entity that follows her commands and harms only enemies. The storm acts as an independent ally that she can direct each turn.
- Other abilities: See individual character descriptions for each Zachling's special powers.
The Mighty Belch System
- When to Use: Once per adventure, any time during combat
- How to Use: Declare you're using your Mighty Belch
- Basic Effects:
- Automatically scares away weak enemies (1-3 health)
- Does 1d6+3 damage to strong enemies
- Ground shakes, everyone feels it
- Evil creatures are filled with fear
- No dice roll needed - it always works!
- Each Zachling has a unique additional effect on enemies
- After using: Must rest 10 minutes before using other magic
Individual Belch Effects
🔴 Red (Blaze): Burns for 1d3 extra fire damage over 2 turns
🟠Orange (Sunny): Enemies get -2 to all rolls for 3 turns (doubt/fear)
🟡 Yellow (Spark): Chain lightning jumps between up to 3 enemies
🟢 Green (Grove): Roots hold enemies in place for 2 turns
🔵 Blue (Tide): Soaked armor gives enemies -1 defense until dry
Combined Belch Power
When 2+ Zachlings belch together:
- All individual effects apply to affected enemies
- Damage doubles: 2d6+6 instead of 1d6+3
- Area increases: affects ALL enemies in the battle
- Each participant uses their once-per-adventure belch
- Coordination required: All participants must declare together
Damage and Health
Taking Damage:
- Subtract damage from current health
- At 0 health: knocked out, wake up in 1 hour with 1 health
- No one dies! This is about heroes winning in the end
Healing:
- Rest 1 hour = recover 3 health
- Sleep 8 hours = back to full health
- Magic healing = as described in special powers
- Healing potions = restore 1d6+1 health
Simple Combat Example
- Red Zachling "Blaze" attacks goblin
- Rolls 2 dice (gets 4+3=7) + Courage 3 = 10 total
- Goblin's defense is 8, so 10 beats 8 = HIT!
- Blaze does 1d6+1 damage (rolls 4+1=5 damage)
- Goblin had 6 health, now has 1 health left
Teamwork Bonuses
- Fighting Together: +1 to attack if an ally is next to the same enemy
- Helping: Use your action to give an ally +2 to their next roll
- Protecting: Jump in front of an attack meant for a friend
- Combining Powers: Work together for creative solutions!
Enemy Defenses
| Enemy Type |
Defense |
Health |
| Weak Goblin |
6 |
3 |
| Regular Goblin |
8 |
6 |
| Strong Goblin |
10 |
10 |
| Goblin Boss |
12 |
15 |
Remember: Combat should be fast and fun, not complicated!
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