Shinto-Doctor-Mushi-Shi Clerics for OD&D and B/X

(O)D&D's Cleric makes sense for (O)D&D, but it makes increasingly less sense outside of the euromedieval milieu. What if you've got a much more immanent and plural divine in your game world than in the euormedieval model and what if there really isn't much of a good/evil, law/chaos thing in your campaign?

Wandering Shinto-Doctor Class

Health
d6 HD/level
Gear Restrictions
can wear leather armor without penalty
can use any weapon without penalty, but gunpowder weapons freak out your allies (-4 to Authority)
Attack Die
d6 attack die (I use damage based on class. If you don't like this, then just ignore it)
After Level One (XP/Level and Spell progression as B/X Cleric):
a. bonus to hit starts at one at 3rd level and increases by one at 5th, 7th and 9th level
b. one point training/bonus to two different skills (Advanced Medicine, Archaeology, Occult Knowledge, Paleontology,  or Survivalism) at 2nd, 4th, 6th and 8th level

Special Abilities:
Can "cast" Cleric spells as per Cleric.
At level two, choose or seek out a supernatural ally (think: patron).
Local temples will be home to at least one oni/abdead/elemental/demon/yokai/kami; rural shrines and holy sites work as well. You'll probably have run into one or more during the ramp up to your second level. You can pick a new ally or gain an additional ally every time you gain access to a new spell level

For each ally, the player can suggest a monster type (outsider/abdead/elemental/demon/yokai) and a name if one or both aren't already known. GM gets the final call and some already known entities may not be willing to aid you.

Your ally gives you a charm, fang, hair, feather, tattoo, scar (physical, spiritual, psychological), vial of ecto(cyto?)plasm or vital fluids, bit of skin, finger, etc., etc. To "cast" a spell from the Cleric list, you  hold/touch/kiss/whatever the implement and invoke the will of your ally and they act through you. You'll work out what implement with your GM (suggest something if you want, otherwise the GM will make a suggestion). If you can't think of something right away, maybe come up with a vague placeholder and then fill in the blanks later.

Authority (replaces Turning)
Roll d20 + number of spells available yet to cast today - 4
Call on the authority of your allies and attempt to argue/plead/reason with one or more outsider/abdead/demon/oni/yokai as if you and it were on the same level. Discourse occurs in the pre-language spoken by all such creatures and is not properly telepathic or audible. Discourse is with the leader or leaders of the group (combine HD if more than one). If the roll results in a number equal to or greater than the total HD of the opposing side, they will "settle down," depart, or simply sit down, frustrated. Bonus points for making an argument the GM considers would be persuasive to the opposing side. Takes a d3+1 rounds to complete conversation. No limit on uses. Lesser beings will likely follow the lead of their more powerful cohort, but not always. Can always be used to communicate with these kinds of creatures, if not sway them. Can occasionally be used to read pre-language scrolls, maps, puzzle glyphs, and the like. Higher beings (not the garden variety kami) are likely reachable by Commune only and attempts to use Authority on them will immediately fail (your allies know better, even if you don't).

ALTERNATE/PRO RULE

Cleric spells are limited by the particular ally type, as determined by GM, but a general guideline might be:

elemental allies grant access to resist cold, light, resist fire, continual light, create water, create food, striking, quest, commune
outsider/demon/oni/yokai allies grant access to cure spells (inc diseases), protection from... spells, remove fear, Bless, speak with animals, remove curse, Dispel Evil and Raise Dead and all their related opposites; also, quest and commune
abdead allies would grant "medium tapping the underworld"-type magic: detect spells, protection from..., know alignment, find traps, silence, snake charm, locate object, growth of animals, speak with plants, sticks to snakes, commune, insect plague, quest and raise dead.

Outsider/demon/oni/yokai are likely the most commonly encountered divine being/kami/potential supernatural ally followed closely by the elemental allies and then, least common by far, are abdead allies, which are likely  super-undead (the ghost of a demilich, the corporate spirit of the many generations of dead of a village, the ancestors of the God-emperor, the spirit of a long forgotten but powerful kami).

If you use this rule, I've found it's best to also not require the player to pick for which spells their character has prayed and instead treat Cleric casting and Sorcerer casting (spontaneous use of "spell slots").

(I'll save how I have protection and alignment work sans good/evil, law/chaos for another post).

painting by Rozefire.

Critical Hits, Weapon Types and Wounds

CRITICAL HITS, DYING, GETTING WOUNDED

If a player or GM rolls exceedingly well to hit, the attack is a Critical Hit (as adjudicated by your particular rules, but I like a 5-10% chance for most characters, maybe higher for certain monsters). 

Critical Hits are a big deal, so tell everyone at the table when you roll one and tell the GM what weapon you're using, if it's not already clear. 

Some Critical Hits Cause Damage or Debilitate the Target

Being subject to a critical hit from ...

Smaller bladed weapons  (daggers, short swords, stilettos, punch knives, claws, icepicks), and Claw and Bite attacks from normal or small enemies are Frenzied Stabbing/Biting/Clawing attacks (attacker rolls damage as normal, but adds an additional damage die* to the roll as it stabs/bites/claws like a maniac); and

Whips and the like Trip Up the victim (victim falls over, spins around, stumbles, is disoriented, can't move its next turn, is pulled towards the attacker; if attacker is player-controlled, player describes how this might happen and GM determines if it is so or happens differently);

Some Critical Hits Cause Wounds

Being subject to a Critical Hit from certain weapons earns you a Wound. There are Wounds, and then there are also Crushing Wounds and Hideous Wounds which are just special types of Wounds. If you want, just delete "Hideous" and "Crushing" from the below. I like the granularity, but that's me.

Critical hits with...

Edged/Piercing/Slashing/Claw/Bite attacks cause Hideous Wounds;
Bludgeoning/Crushing/Fist attacks cause Crushing Wounds;
Claws, Bites and Most other melee attacks from very large (think dragon, dinosaur, etc) creatures cause two Wounds and are therefore insta-death;

Flails, Maces and the like cause Crushing Wounds;

Lances are awkward to use on foot but as a mounted attack can cause Crushing Wounds.

Dying

Hitting or passing 0 hp means you're dying. Save or die. Successfully saving earns you a Wound and however much HP would bring you to 1 HP.

An Otherwise Lethal Situation
Getting hit by a very large dragon's bite attack, a giant's club, fallking rocks, lava, potent acid are all save or die situations. Succesfully saving means you've made it but with a Wound.

WOUNDS

So it didn't kill you, but you're all messed up: you've got a Wound. You've either got a Wound from a Critical Hit or from nearly dying. In either case, before describing the affects of the hit, the GM should roll a d6 and consult the below to determine Wound location.

Wound is to...

1-2 Torso

3-4 Arms

5 Legs

6 Head

With the above adjusted to account for target, attacker size and the general logic of the situation. (Like: the likelihood of Arms and Legs are switched if the attacker is really small or the target is really tall and even bigger discrepancies increasing the likelihood of Wounds to one area or another correspondingly)

Wounds are terrible, horrific, debilitating, scarring injuries. They require care and attention right away and then again in the coming weeks lest they become fatal.

If Wounded, your max hp is immediately decreased by 50%. Two Wounds mean automatic death, no save. You can't heal hp beyond your max hp and any HP currently beyond the max is lost.

Wounds take a long time to heal "naturally" (I use three weeks, but whatever is sufficiently long to last beyond the current session).  Every week (or every third of the chosen healing time) make a save v poison. Fail once and you're infected. Fail twice and you're diseased. Fail three times and you're dead, no other save. Ambient grossness affects Wounds too. So, wading through a swamp with a huge gash down your thigh is probably going to lead to some bad stuff (likely you get an automatic fail for that week's save). Bed rest and light activity will help you along nicely, and medical attention might get you an automatic save. Resting in town, unthreatened, with occasional medical attention is almost certainly an automatic save.

If a Wound is Hideous it leaves a horrendous mark, no matter what. You're losing a chunk of flesh, a nose, an eye, a hand. Player should consider how the Wound was earned and then suggest what's been lost. Hideous Wounds have to be bound and cleaned regularly or you fail your week's save. Hideous Wounds also bleed quite a bit and need to be treated (bandaged, bound, whatever) or else the PC takes d6 damage each round following receipt of the Wound until treated.

If a Wound is Crushing you've broken some bones. The affected area is totally ruined until you heal it, get it set. If it's a leg, no moving other than an achingly slow hobble until it's set (and then, you're still slow); it it's an arm, you can't use it for anything, set or not. If it's your head, you're dead, no saves to recuperate. Crushing Wounds have to be set and cleaned or you fail your week's save.

RATIONALE

Part of the reason I posted this was because +Joey Lindsey shared a really intriguing way of seeing/managing hit points that I want to try next and I wanted to have this posted, with a pin in it, while I play around with Joey's HP system.

Full disclosure: the idea of "Wounds" and certain mechanics associated with them are pretty much taken whole cloth from +Trent B's awesome New Feierland house rules.

Ultimately, the concept I'm struggling with is how to handle PC death. We like lethal games, but there is an interesting middle ground between death and might-as-well-be-dead where the player is now less interested in getting cool stuff and XP for their character and more interested in just making sure that the character stays alive/keeps whatever stuff/XP they've got.

Wounds and the "packs and pouches" inventory management system (here is part one, here is part two) are both ways of shifting the game between the "clever adventurers" mode and the "get to the chopper" mode. The pool/bench system is useful for managing this on the backend, once the (remains of) the party has made it back alive.

*I do something slightly different than OD&D for damage die, but straight d6 for everything works too.

[EDITED 5/24 to add "An otherwise lethal situation"]

Pooling and Benching PCs

This is explicitly for games with lots of dismemberment and attrition. See the Rationale section for more.

POOLS AND BENCHES

Whenever a new person (players, GM) joins the campaign, either on day one of the campaign or later, these new persons create three characters by doing the following:

1. Giving them a name. Preferably just a first name or a nickname, but whatever.

2. Choosing their Class.

3. Giving them a single Trait (nothing to do with a Background/subspecies).

This is the extent of detail/granularity. No one should take more than ten minutes. After doing this the first couple of times, it tends to take no more than three minutes.

DIBS AND CHARACTER CREATION

Now, each player picks a character to play. If you just created some characters, you can get "dibs" on one of those characters by keeping the character to yourself, not relinquishing it to the pool.  In any event, the one to three  characters you just created that you chose not to play are now up for grabs. Dump them in the pool.

Characters picked from the pool or generated raw have to be mechanically fleshed out and draped in diegesis as normal:

1. Roll 3d6 in order, you may re-roll the lowest and/or swap one rolled score for another.

2. Fill out a character sheet, pick subspecies, gear, skills, etc.

3. Pick a starting location for the character.

4. Pick a second Trait for the character (this can be a Background/Subspecies Trait).

Done.

RELINQUISHING CHARACTERS & CUMULATIVE XP

Characters with Wounds or characters stuck in some kind of limbo can be abandoned and a new character picked from the pool as per the "refreshing" rules below.

Note: characters with Wounds have to make saves to recover, even while in the pool. Failure to make a save is adjudicated as normal (can lead to a worsening condition or death).

Note: for every session that a character is alive and being actively played by a player, it earns a 1-2% cumulative bonus for each (in fiction) day it survived potentially perilous situations, up to 16%. The bonus is calculated at the end of a session and applied retroactively to all XP earned. It rolls over into future sessions, into the character dies, is retired or otherwise no longer played. 

Note: Characters stuck in limbos like, "soul stolen by a troll" or "encysted in frozen giant snot," can be more or less "paused." Ie, they don't gain or lose a bonus to their XP, though they will be consistently imperiled by the GM until they are eventually killed by their surroundings or rescued. 

REFRESHING THE POOL, THE DEEP END OF THE POOL

The number of characters in the pool is limited to twice the number of players, so, after just a few character deaths, nobody except maybe the GM going to be creating any new characters. At the start of a session, any player can abandon their existing character, returning its sheet to the pool and generate a new character. Abandoned characters are up for grabs or may be retired completely, should the group so decide. The GM is encouraged to provide stuff for the abandoned PC to do. It is entirely legitimate and wholly encouraged for the GM to threaten or otherwise place in danged abandoned PCs.

After the number of characters in the pool dips below the "maximum," any player in need of a new character can create two more characters rather than pick an existing one from the pool. Alternatively, the player can pick a character from the below-the-limit pool and ask the GM to create a new characters to dump in the pool (ie, to do the work for them).

Any character picked from the pool is level 1, regardless of the previous character's level. Furthermore, players cannot create characters with existing relationships to major NPCs, villains, etc. nor can they fork over from the setting major NPCs, villains, etc. 

The GM, on the other hand, can create and add to the pool existing NPCs, villains, as playable characters. Furthermore, these playable characters need not be (likely aren't) level 1.  Henchpersons are ripe for the picking, and will bring the party their own replacement in tow. These characters may have exotic gear or hail from exotic locales, as yet unknown or unexplored.

RATIONALE

This is one of those times where you do these various things and you don't really think of them as a system until someone else describes something similar and you're all, "Oh right." I like what +Gus L  and +William Broom wrote here and here, but it's not for me or my group. This is meant for play that involves a fair bit of major injuries, Wounds, disabilities, dismemberment, diseases, plagues and big parts of the map that are just a nightmare of hazards, poisons, toxins and are generally terribly unpleasant.

Contra to what Gus and Will suggested though, this isn't really meant to "address" anything in highly lethal play. Any time saved in generating a replacement character is negligible and it intentionally limits the amount of pre-plotting that happens with unplayed characters so it's not really any use resolving "dropped threads."

There are really two things this is meant to address: how to handle PCs "taking a break," (ie, getting "benched") and how to encourage player creativity (ie, encourage interesting choices at PC generation).

Hope this is useful to someone.

Picture: from Wild Men by Charles Fréger

Inventory Management & Encumbrance in Older D&D (Part 2)

This goes with this post here.

RECAP OF INVENTORY MANAGEMENT SYSTEM

All mundane portable storage containers that are strapped to, looped around or otherwise attached to a PC are either small containers or large containers.

Large Containers are things like backpacks or large sacks (think Santa). 

Small Containers are things like scroll cases, belt loops, bandoliers, braces, ammo pouches and quivers. PCs can have any number of these containers on them.

Items stored in Small Containers are regularly vulnerable to wear and ruin from exposure to the elements but are easier to get at while the PC is under duress. 

SPACE NOT WEIGHT

New Rule: Other than PCs of exotic origins (PC's body is especially suited to hauling large loads), a given PC cannot carry more than two large containers that are currently in use (ie, have stuff in them).

New Rule: Large Containers have three slots apiece and things take up slots (space).

THINGS TAKE UP SPACE

• small things and standard ammo (GM's call as to what constitutes small or standard) take up one slot in increments of 100 (ie 1-100 coins take up a slot, 101-200 coins take up 2 slots, etc).
• a single one-handed weapon uses a slot
• a single two-handed weapon uses two slots
• chain armor takes two slots
• plate armor takes three slots

Obviously, GM's call as to what constitutes what size and all that.

Any one thing that takes up a slot or more on its own (generally, armor, or other large, bulkier things) can be stored only in Large Containers or has to be managed some other way (like wearing several swords on your body).

If you're carrying two full Large Containers, you're encumbered. No precisely negative mechanical repercussion, but it will affect your character's performance in a number of obvious, ought-to-be-expected ways.

RATIONALE

I like that encumbrance forces decisions about what to take into and out of a hazardous area, but I generally dislike employing weight as the metric driving those decisions (weight seems opaque to me: I'm not sure how much a given thing weighs and I'm not sure my players know either or that our guesstimates would even be in the same ballpark whereas I think we all can easily describe and guess approximate size). Putting readied items in jeopardy is a fun way of getting the same kind of thing happening at the table.

More to the point, I think it's something that GMs do on a fairly regular basis: "oh, you're fording the stream? How do you get your pack across?"

I've puttered around with how to resolve the backend of this mechanic, off and on, for a period of years. Having only stuff in the large containers encumber. Having a number of slots for Large and Small Containers.

The slots I've suggested above are meant to be mathematically approximate to the excellent/elegant encumbrance system +James Raggi uses in Lamentations, but are inspired by +Jack Mcnamee and +Matt Rundle's system (and, of course, was first inspired by the first two games in the Diablo franchise). Frankly, I prefer Jack and Matt's system to mine, but I can't really get the group on board (too harsh, too tricky to manage going in and of dungeons with loot, which is our primary mode of play). 

I tried a more traditional approach where large containers encumber, but that felt like I was cluttering the thing up.

Things I've noticed in play (do potions freeze?)

Jeopardizing stuff is interesting in and of itself, but as a GM I've frequently felt as if I was being a dick when I ruined someones rations because they'd taken a trip through a lake, a room full of fire, a giant's stomach, etc. I mean, it makes sens that that happens, but it still feels harsh to me. By handing to choice to the players I've noticed that 

(a) they are now hyper-aware of their PC's surroundings and the game has emphasized exploration a great deal more than it used to. This makes establishing atmosphere way easier;

(b) players get way more freaked out by atmospheric cues than they used to (they treat the entire environment as a monster, basically, which is cool and, as someone who has done some  solo hiking and some spelunking, resonates)

ALSO: shoutout to +Brock Cusick  who came up with "Packs and Pouches" as a better name for "Large and Small Containers."

picture: Felice Beato, Native Type 1864-1868 

Inventory Management & Encumbrance in Older D&D

This replaces the encumbrance rules in Men & Magic. 

ADVENTURER'S STORAGE CONTAINERS

All mundane portable storage containers that are strapped to, looped around or otherwise attached to a PC are either small containers or large containers.

Large Containers are things like backpacks or large sacks (think Santa). Outside of exotic PC origins (PC's body is especially suited to hauling large loads), a given PC cannot carry more than two large containers currently in use (ie, have stuff in them). [+Talysman the Ur-Beatle has pointed out that this limitation is pretty much extraneous. Good point.]

Small Containers are things like scroll cases, belt loops, bandoliers, braces, ammo pouches and quivers. PCs can have any number of these containers on them.

Items stored in Small Containers are regularly vulnerable  to wear and ruin from exposure to the elements but are easier to get at while the PC is under duress.

[I don't really care for "small container," "large container" as top level terminology. I normally use in-diegesis terminology when playing with this system ("large containers" becomes "backpacks or large sacks" for example). If anyone has a suggestions for different top level terminology, let me know, please.]

USING STUFF

If the PC isn't under duress (ie, she's got a turn to look for, find and use the thing) then

the player can simply have her PC use the item "as normal"*

If the PC is under duress (ie, less than a turn to act or the action might be contested) then:

• she can use anything in a Small Container as normal
• for the PC to use as normal something stored in a Large Container without spending a round looking for it, the player must roll a 1 in 6. It's found the next round if the roll isn't successful.

*"As normal" means that the usual rules apply: the PC being able to access the item has to make sense.

READIED RESOURCES ARE VULNERABLE

Anything equipped, readied for immediate use or stored in a Small Container is vulnerable to circumstantial damage, impairment or destruction. 

It can get wet and ruined, it can be crushed in combat, dissolved by magic or ooze, etc. This happens in two situations:

1. The moment (ie, round/turn, whichever is the applicable metric) a PC who has recently taken damage is now no longer in immediate jeopardy (ie, the round after the PC has fallen in a pit or the round following the end of combat).
2. The second* turn/round a PC has been in an environment that might prove immediately dangerous to things exposed (highly acidic cave vent; very hot, moist jungle; fording/swimming a river, etc). The GM decides whether an environmental is so dangerous.

In either situation, the player rolls a d6. On a 2 an item is damaged, broken or lost. On a 1 two items are damaged broken or lost. The player chooses which item(s) are gone. Failure to choose in a timely manner (like, ten seconds), means the GM chooses for you (or the GM lets dice decide). It's the GM's call to describe what happened to the item.

NB: Things in Large Containers are still vulnerable, just that they aren't regularly vulnerable. If the context makes sense (ie, you fall into a pool and are submerged, if you fall and land on your backpack) then the contents of a Large Container are subject to the same hazard.

*or sixth, your call.

MANAGEMENT

Players are expected to manage what is stored where on their PC. When trying to use a readily available item, the player should be prepared to demonstrate to the GM that the item is readily available. Players should also be prepared to show what items are readied to the GM when their PC is placed in a vulnerable position. Players need not differentiate between which Small Container an item has been stored (ie, I don't care if it's hanging off your belt or its in a small sack hanging off a bandolier or you've got it shoved in your sleeve, I just want to know if its available for immediate use and therefore regularly vulnerable).

picture: Prophet #21 B. Graham & S. Roy

OD&D Races and Backgrounds

This replaces PC "race" with PC Background.

BACKGROUNDS

At PC creation, each players chooses or randomly generates a Background for their PC. Backgrounds are a two- to four-word phrase that describes (i) the basic ethnic/social/cultural origins of the characters and (ii) the character's subspecies.*

So, like, if we're talking Dark Sun, you'd have an Athasian Elf Background. The subspecies component is digital: the PC is an Elf or a Human or a Half-Elf or it's whatever else but it's always just a subspecies. The cultural component of the PC's Background, however, permits a great deal of flexibility. "Athasian" can be reduced to various granules like Silt Sea Elf, or Tyrian Elf or Tyrian Slum-Elf, which is really just a Tyrian Elf with a particular sort of upbringing, etc, etc.

HOW IT WORKS

Option One (mechanics-free):

Backgrounds connote some basic in-diegesis facts about the PC and you can leave it at that: the choice of PC origin and subspecies in this instance would be entirely a matter of preference, a choice free of mechanical considerations.

Option Two (Background Traits):

I find that the liberating aspect of Option One does not compensate for the lost interesting situations/tactical options created by the various advantages normally associated with a given D&D race. So:

New Rule: The PC's Background is also a Trait: the PC's player can try to used the PC's Background to try to earn a bonus to a laterally-related non-attack roll.

New Rule: Backgrounds also permit access to special, Background-specific Traits. As with other Traits, anyone should feel free to spitball Background-specific Traits, but, as with other Traits, all Traits are subject to GM approval and, once approved, can be used by any (N)PC with a related Background. Players suggesting Background-specific Traits must supply a reason why the Trait ought to be available to the Background.

Background-Specific Traits are special and, unlike other Traits, grant either (a) a minor bonus to a skill roll (and by minor I mean: to the smallest significant increment possible, depending on the system currently in place - likely a one point or 5% bonus) or (b) access to a spell from the first level B/X Magic User or Cleric list usable 1/day.

EXAMPLES OF BACKGROUND-SPECIFIC TRAITS

Halflings are small and get a bonus to sneaking

Tieflings are infernal and their nature permits them to cast Darkness 1/day as a first level Magic User

Dwarves get a bonus to detecting doors hidden in stone 

Elves in Dark Sun gain a bonus to surprise while in the wastes

etc etc

More exotic Backgrounds should still stick to Traits that work as in (a) or (b) above, though it may be necessary to slightly hack or re-skin the spell or ability in question. Like:

Midgard Gearforged can repair minor damage by spending 4 uninterrupted hours tinkering on themselves or another construct - restores 2-7 hp as cure light wounds 1/day

Lightning Genasi get a single static zap that deals 2-7 damage and functions as a Magic Missile cast by a first level Magic User

PUTTING IT ALL TOGETHER

A PC with the Tyrian Elf Background might get access to these two Traits:

1. "Standard" Trait: The PC's Background as a Tyrian Elf can be leveraged for a minor bonus to non-attack rolls specific to Tyr

2. Background-specific Trait: Elves in Dark Sun gain a bonus to surprise while in the wastes

RATIONALE

"Races" in D&D (a) connote a constellation of genre referents/setting-specific elements and (b) denote the mechanical translation of that constellation. Backgrounds explicitly mimic this structure in a way that I hope is perhaps a bit more explicit and easy to mess around with/retrofit to a specific setting.

OD&D's race mechanics seem unnecessarily convoluted and lean heavily on Appendix N-associated tropes. Backgrounds  aim to offer a possible, streamlined alternative.

------------------------

*I like subspecies over "race" or species. I sort of assume that any playable "race" in my campaign that is at least mildly humanoid and of the same assumed genus can interbreed, though we never really get into that kind of thing.

pictures: top by Andy Weber bottom from the internet (original source couldn't be located)

Traits for OD&D

This is what we've done with our PFRPG players that want more on the character sheet to fiddle around with.

TRAITS

In their simplest iteration Traits are simple thematic, PC-specific descriptors. Your PC is really tall, ugly, attractive, good at cards, knows her way around a bar fight, grew up a beggar, grew up wealthy, grew up in such and such backwater. Whatever.

They're subject to GM review and approval, but I generally worry about (a) someone trying to shoehorn force in something they think will help them later (which only really happens with alternate/infrequent players) that makes no sense in the diegesis and (b) things that seem off-theme for the PC or setting. The latter isn't so much of a concern, I usually just ask more questions and we talk about the setting. And what GM doesn't love talking about their setting?

Everyone gets to make up as many Traits as they want, but their PC can only roll with two Traits in a session. They can swap out between session, but they have to come to the table with their new Traits in hand.

HOW THEY'RE USED

The PC is trying to do something in the game other than trying to hit something. Ride a linnorn, smooth talk a lich, shake down a wyvern, that kind of thing. The PC's player explains how their PC is trying to do what they're trying to do. And also, hey, because they've got this Trait (good with animals, good at reading reactions, embalmer, remarkably strong, whatever), shouldn't maybe the PC be kind of better at this than they would have been otherwise? It's the player's job to tell me why and how the Trait is applicable, but unless it seems like a clever application or a very obvious application, I probably won't honor it.

If I think it makes sense, you get a bonus point in the preferred direction on whatever roll you have to make. That's a bonus point from the Trait alone, over and above whatever points (one or two) you may have got for clever planning (and if you planned really poorly and lose points on your roll, you do not get a bonus point from your Trait).

AN ASIDE

Traits tell me and everyone else at the table something about the PC, so there's that element of player-PC-setting interaction that is interesting, and I've found that this helps getting new/infrequent players into the setting/game /PC a bit more quickly. It especially seems to help encourage the shy players, which is nice, but it's hardly the only way of doing that.

RATIONALE

I figure Skills, Feats, Talents, and Professions are all ways for the Player to signal to the GM, "hey my PC is this/likes to do this too." They're in addition to whatever is involved with the PC's Class and they expand the character beyond the fundamental mechanics associated with their race and class.

I figure Traits can scratch that itch. (and yes, Skills, Feats, Talents and Professions do other things too)

I also think Traits are are just a formalization of what players do anyway, so they shouldn't muddy or complicate the enjoyably simple dynamic of OD&D play. (In fact, once everyone gets how they work, they ultimately make things go more quickly because they limit the number of things the player can try to use to convince me that something should work).

picture is by Tatsumi.