I’m dying to add elements from Blades in the Dark, and specifically the Vigilante variant, to my Superheroes in Sharn campaign idea. I’ve tried writing this post a few times and realized every time I needed to streamline what I’m using so its not too much.
Stress: a PC starts with Hero points equal to 5+1/2 character level. These can be spent to add +1d6 to a d20 roll, or to do a Flashback scene during an adventure. Hero points only recharge by spending an activity on an Obligation or Vice during downtime. Dropping to 0 Hero points results in a Trauma that can only be removed by a recovery action during downtime.
Flashbacks: can be used during an adventure to represent planning that happened off-camera. A PC spends a Hero point and describes how they took action in the past to affect their current situation. An ability check may be required to determine how effective the action was.
Vices and Obligations: a PC should have an Obligation to a person, cause, or community, and a Vice, which could be an addiction, an obsession, or a personal activity a PC has to attend to regularly. The Regrets table in the Eberron book has good inspiration.
Payoff: after an adventure PCs gain Rep as a measure of renown and resources. This largely replaces tracking gold pieces, accounting for the favors and popularity that count just as much to a vigilante hero. Rep reward for an adventure range from 3-15, depending on how serious the crime being avenged or stopped is, and how powerful the target (whether an individual or organization). Rep is spent for downtime activities. Setting aside 10 points can raise a PC’s lifestyle, which starts at poor.
Heat: also after an adventure, the PCs take Heat to represent unwanted attention around themselves and their activities from the citizens of Sharn, opposing factions, and the authorities. Heat can go up 0-10, depending on how controlled an adventure was and how much attention it brought. Getting 10 Heat raises your Wanted level, which makes entanglements more serious. Heat can be lowered by taking a downtime activity to lay low.
Entanglements: after Heat is determined for an adventure, roll a d6 for each Wanted level and take the highest result. An entanglement WILL happen, its just a matter of its nature and how serious it is. 1-3 is related to a PC’s secret identity, district, or their downtime activity, 4-5 is an opposing faction, and 6 is the authorities. The current Heat determines how bad it is, 0-3 is a warning, 4-5 is a callout or investigation that needs to be dealt with, and 6+ is direct action against the PCs. Consequences of entanglements can be resolved immediately or folded into the next adventure.
Downtime: a PC can take two activities during downtime. Some require a roll, usually DC 11 for a partial success, DC 18 for a complete success, DC 23 for an exceptional success. For many activities this will be 1-4, with 1 on failure and +1 for each level of success. Rep can be spent to do more activities or improve the success by a category. Broad categories for downtime activities include:
- Acquire an asset – could be a rare item, information, a service, or any temporary resource. The quality is related to your lifestyle level, modified by your success.
- Long-term project – any goal that will take time and effort. Could be courting a new contact, creating a magic item, investigating a mystery, etc. Start a countdown clock with 4-8 ticks, mark 1-4 ticks.
- Lay low – reduce Heat 1-4 by spending time in a secret identity or covering up evidence of adventuring.
- Train – gain 1 XP (see later)
- Work – gain 1 Rep (actual coin probably, but its all used the same)
- Relieve Stress – spend time honoring your Obligation or indulging your Vice. Always roll the PC’s lowest of Con, Int, or Wis, as they’re embracing their own vulnerability or worst impulses. Regain 2 Hero points per level of success. If this would put the PC above their maximum Hero points they get an entanglement or Trauma.
- Recover: relieve an Injury, Trauma, or other long term ailment.
XP: after an adventure, the PCs mark XP for each of the following things that happened (mark 2 if one of them happened multiple times). Once the PC’s get XP equal to 7+current level, they level up.
- interfered with criminal activity, protected innocents, or antagonized the authorities
- contended with challenges above their station
- learned something important about Sharn and its mysteries
- expressed ideals, bonds, and flaws of their characters
Cinematic actions: Inspiration won’t be used, and neither will flanking. PCs can gain advantage by using their environment, clever or well-described action, or accepting a narrative complication. Ability checks may be required to successfully do one of these things.
Injury: a PC at 0 hit points isn’t unconscious or dying, and makes an Injury save in place of a Death save. On a success the PC can act normally, on a failure they are stunned and take an Injury. After three successes a PC is stabilized with 1 hit point, after three failures a PC falls unconscious. Injuries can only be removed with the Recovery activity during downtime.
Vigilante template: add-ons for a PC to fit the tone of the game. I’m planning on testing this in a one-on-one game so its geared towards that.
- Bonus proficiency in Insight, Investigation, or Perception.
- Unarmored Defense: while not wearing armor, the PC adds their proficiency bonus to their Armor Class. A PC proficient with a shield may still wield one. In addition, increase the PC’s Hit Die by one size (from a d8 to a d10, for example).
- Martial Arts: applies to unarmed strikes, short swords, and any simple melee weapons that don’t have the two-handed or heavy property. Use Str or Dex for attack and damage rolls. Use 1d4 in place of normal damage (increases die size at 5th, 11th, and 17th level). When you use the Attack action on your turn, you can make an unarmed strike as a bonus action.
That’s everything, I think! I’ll tweak these as they work in play.
Dungeon Journal 