Mothership SCI-FI Horror RPG User Manual

CHARACTER CREATION

PLAYER’S SURVIVAL GUIDE

WEAPONS

WEAPON COST DMG CRIT S M L AMMUNITION SHOTS SPECIAL

Ammo 50* *Cost per magazine or box of ammunition (equal to weapon’s full shots)

Combat Shotgun

Crowbar 50 1d10 CQC Only N/A N/A +5 (Mechanical Repair)

Flame Thrower

Flare Gun 85 1d10 5m 10m 20m High-intensity are: Visible

Foam Gun

Frag Grenade

Hand Welder

Laser Cutter

Nail Gun 150 2d10 Double

Pulse

Rie

Revolver 750 3d10 Knock-

Rigging Gun

Scalpel 50 1d10 +1d10

Smart

Rie

SMG 1,200 4d10 10m 75m 150m Fully automatic. 1(5)

Stun

Baton

Tranq Pistol

Vibechete 75 2d10 Hack off

1,400

2,000

275 N/A No save <1m 5m 10m Quick-hardening foam:

250 1d10 CQC Only ∞ Ultra heat emitter: Cuts

1,200 1d% or

1,600 5d10 Double

350 2d10 Impale.

12,000

115 1d10 No save CQC Only N/A N/A Body save or be stunned for

850 N/A No save 2m 10m 20m Tranq Darts 6 Body[+] save or fall

2d10 Knock-

down

2d10 2m 10m 20m 8 Body save or get set on

1d10 20m 30m 40m Deals damage to all within

1MDMG

damage

down

Triple damage.

DMG and bleeding

1d10 x3 DMG 25m 200m 500m Armor Piercing: -10 vs.

limb

10m 20m 30m Knockback on hit. 1/2

damage at medium range. 1/4 damage at long range.

from 25km away.

Body/instinct save to avoid

or become stuck. Foam

coveres 5sqm.

a 15m radius.

25m 250m 700m Takes 1 round to re-charge

between shots.

<1m 5m 10m Heavy Duty Nails: -10 vs.

Armor Save

15m 125m 300m Phosphorus Rounds.

Fully automatic.

2m 30m 125m Kineti-slugs: -5 vs. Armor

Save.

10m 30m 100m Micro-lament: 500m.

Hard to cut.

CQC Only N/A N/A +10 (Surgery)

Armor Save

CQC Only Can hack through limbs, or

4 Audio rangender: Beeps

when non-friendlies approach within 10m.

re and take 1d10 dmg. per turn.

10 Fire retardant.

1 Can deal 1MDMG to ships (or

more if internal).

through airlocks/heavy doors. -10 vs. Armor Save

6 Takes 1 hour to re-charge

from a power source, or 6 hours in sunlight.

1(3) Smart-link system: +5

(Combat if wearing HUD). Pump-Action Grenade

Launcher: Holds 6 frag

grenades.

Retractable Harpoon: Body/

instinct save or become

entangled. Does an extra +1d10 damage when grapnel is pulled out of target.

12 Smart-link system: +10

(Combat if wearing HUD).

Spectroscope: Night/Thermal Vision

1 round.

unconscious for 1d10 rounds.

dense forestry, but not metal doors, airlocks, etc.

>> Read more about Weapons on page 8.

CONTENTS

CHARACTER CREATION ........................... 1

BASIC RULES........................................... 3

Rolling the Dice .......................................3.1

Stats and Stat Checks ...............................3.2

Advantage & Disadvantage ......................3.3

Critical Hits & Failures ..............................4.1

Opposed Checks .....................................4.2

SKILLS .................................................... 5

SAVES .................................................... 7

SURVIVAL ............................................... 8

Crisis Checks ..........................................8.1

Food & Water .........................................8.2

Oxygen ..................................................8.3

Earning Credits .......................................8.4

COMBAT................................................. 9

Surprise ..................................................9.1

Who goes rst? .......................................9.2

How long is a turn? .................................9.3

What can I do on my turn? .......................9.4

How do I attack? .....................................9.5

Do I get a bonus from cover? ....................9.6

How far can I move? ................................9.7

Hit Location ..........................................10.1

Damage ...............................................10.2

How do I heal? .....................................10.3

Unconsciousness & Death .......................10.4

WEAPONS............................................ 11

Weapons ..............................................11.1

Ammunition ..........................................11.2

Range ..................................................12.1

Aiming .................................................12.2

Reloading .............................................12.3

Automatic Weapons...............................12.4

Special Weapon Abilities .......................12.5

WEAPON CHART .................................. 13

ARMOR TABLE ...................................... 15

EQUIPMENT TABLE ................................ 17

Starting Loadouts & Credits .................... .18.1

Addiction .............................................18.2

D100 TRINKETS .................................... 19

D100 PATCHES ..................................... 20

HIRING MERCENARIES .......................... 21

Mercenaries’ Stats .................................21.1

How muc h do mercenaries cost? ........... .21.2

Can mercenaries level up? ......................21.3

Mercenaries in combat ...........................21.4

Mercenary Cost Table ...............................22

Mercenary Scum Table ..............................23

Mercenary Motivation Table ......................24

STRESS ................................................. 25

How do I gain Stress? ............................25.1

How do I relieve Stress? .........................25.2

PANIC & RESOLVE ................................. 26

What is a Panic Check? .........................26.1

When should I roll Panic? .......................26.2

Resolve .................................................26.3

SPACE TRAVEL, HYPERSPACE ................. 27

How long does it take?...........................27.1

Jump Drives & Hyperspace .....................27.2

Can I captain my own ship? ...................27.3

Basic Ship Classes .................................27.4

Buying a ship ........................................27.5

Refueling ..............................................27.6

Upgrades & Repairs ...............................28.1

BASIC SHIP CLASSES TABLE ................... 28

SHIP DESIGN ........................................ 30

Ship’s Weapons ....................................30.3

SHIP-TO-SHIP COMBAT ......................... 33

What’s the same? ..................................33.1

What’s different? ...................................33.2

What can I do on my turn? .....................33.3

Ship Critical Hits....................................34.1

EXPERIENCE POINTS ............................. 35

LEVELING UP ........................................ 36

Written & Illustrated by Sean McCoy

Developed by Donn Stroud, Nick Reed, Tyler Kimball, Fiona Maeve Geist | Edited by Jarrett Crader

Special thanks to Lindsay Campbell, Alan Gerding, Donald Shults

Alternate character sheets, Warden resources, and more at mothershiprpg.com

CHARACTER CREATION

Welcome to Mothership, a sci- horror RPG where you and your crew try to survive in the most inhospitable environment in the universe: outer space! You’ll excavate dangerous derelict spacecraft, explore strange unknown worlds, exterminate hostile alien life, and examine the horrors that encroach upon your every move. Let’s get started!

You can actually design your character right from the character sheet at the back of this book. All the steps are printed on the sheet. You can see an example of a completed sheet on the next page. If you need a little bit more information, or nd the character sheet confusing, here’s what you do:

1.1 RO L L 6D10 FOR EACH OF YOUR STATS

Mothership uses d10s for everything, so grab a handful and get rolling. You’ll roll 6d10 for each Stat and then record the results in order starting with Strength, then Speed, Intellect, and nally Combat. A Stat of 30 is about average, but don’t get too hung up on your numbers right now.

>> Read more about Stats on page 4.2.

1.2 PICK A CLASS & NOTE THEIR STARTING SAVES

These are the four basic classes in Mothership:

» Teamsters are the rough and tumble crew

and workers out in space. If Ripley from Aliens is your hero, then you’ll want to play a Teamster.

» Scientists are doctors, researchers, or

anyone who wants to cut open aliens (or infected crew members) with a scalpel.

» Androids are a terrifying and exciting addition

to any crew. They tend to unnerve other players with their cold inhumanity.

» Marines are here to shoot bugs and chew

bubblegum. They’re handy in a ght, and good when grouped together, but whenever a Marine panics it may cause problems for the rest of the crew.

Put a √ in the circle above the class you picked. Each class has their own starting Save values which represent how resistant they are to different kinds of trauma, danger, or damage. You have four different saves: Sanity, Fear, Body, and Armor. The starting saves are already lled in for you in light grey in the appropriate boxes.

>> Read more about Saves on page 7.

Additionally, if you follow the arrows at the bottom of each class’ column, you’ll see that each class alters your starting Stats a little bit. (For example:

the Teamster gives +5 to both Strength and Speed). Go ahead and change your starting Stats.

1.3 MARK YOUR STARTING SKILLS & SPEND YOUR STARTING SKILL POINTS

Each class comes pre-loaded with some relevant Skills which will help them perform better at different challenges. Additionally, each class has a number of points to spend on Skills during character creation. Spend all of your Skill points now, keeping in mind:

» Trained Skills cost 1 point. » Expert Skills cost 2 points. » Master Skills cost 3 points. » To take an Expert or Master Skill you must rst

take one of its prerequisite Skills.

>> Read more about Skills on page 5.

1.4 TAKE NOTE OF HOW YOUR CLASS DEALS WITH STRESS & PANIC

Each class deals with Stress and Panic differently, which will come into play later in the game. Go ahead and mark your class’ special rules with a √ for future reference.

>> Read more about Stress & Panic on pages 25-26.

1.5 PICK A STARTING LOADOUT AND ROLL A RANDOM TRINKET & PATCH

There are four different starting equipment packages to choose from. These are here for convenience so that you don’t have to spend a lot of time shopping before the game begins. Also roll for a random Trinket and Patch from pages 18-19. Your trinket and patch don’t have any mechanical signicance, but might give you insight into what your character is like. Your Armor will also improve your armor save, which you should update now.

>> Read more about Armor on page 15-16.

1.6 FINISHING TOUCHES

Fill out your Stress (starts at 2), Resolve (starts at 0), Max Health (x2 Strength), starting Credits (5d10x10), and give yourself a name (and rank if you have one). You’re now ready to play your rst session of Mothership!

ordered.

Finally, she lls in her Max

Health, Stress, and Resolve and

rolls 5d10*10 for her starting

credits. She’s ready to play and

the Warden’s just got the pizza

she notes that too.

Then, she picks her starting

loadoat. Lilith imagines

excavating derelict spacecraft

and scavenging them for parts, so

she picks the Excavation loadout,

then rolls for a random Trinket

and Patch. Her Vaccsuit gives her

+7% Armor save (for 42 total), so

that’s what the Falstaff is).

writes in Mining Frigate because

Next, she picks some skills.

Next she picks a class. She

First, she rolls 6d10 for each

Example: Lilith showed up

late and her Warden was busy

ordering pizza, so he handed her

a character sheet and told her

to ask him any questions if they

came up.

Stat: Strength, Speed, Intellect,

and Combat and writes them

down in the circles.

always loved Kaylee from Firey,

so she decides to pick Teamster,

putting a checkmark in the

bubble. She lls in her starting

Saves (which are written in grey

on the sheet already) and then

adjusts her Strength and Speed

by 5 each (a bonus from being a

Teamster).

As a Teamster, Lilith already gets

Zero-G and Mechanical Repair.

She wants to know everything

about her ship, which another

player tells her is called the

Falstaff, so she picks Astrogation

(so she can Navigate if she needs)

and Vehicle Specialization (she

UNDERLINED

DICE, STAT CHECKS, ADVANTAGE & DISADVANTAGE

Mothership plays like many other RPGs. You and your friends get together, and one of you, the Warden, creates (or has prepared) a scenario for the rest of you to explore and interact with. The rules below will help outline some procedures for dealing with the most common situations that come up during the game. For everything else, the Warden will have to make a judgment call.

3.1 ROLLING THE DICE

Mothership uses standard d10s for all of its rolls, though it uses them in 3 different ways:

» xd10: Roll a certain number of d10s and add

them together. 2d10 would give you a number between 2-20.

» xd10: Note the underline. This means to

roll a certain number of d10s and add them together and multiply the result by ten. 2d10 would give you a number between 20-200. If you have a set of d10s with just the tens digits on them, they’re perfect for rolls like this.

» d%: Roll 1d10 and 1d10 and add them

together (reading the result as a percentile). This gives you a number between 0-99. You’ll need two sets of d% dice that you can tell apart easily.

There are a few things that commonly modify Stat checks, namely: situational Advantages &

Disadvantages, critical hits & failures, and your Skills.

3.3 SITUATIONAL ADVANTAGES & DISADVANTAGES

Whenever you make a Stat check and you have a situational Advantage, roll d% twice and use the best result. Some examples of Advantages are:

» Assistance from

another player

» Attacking from

surprise

» Being in cover

The Warden will decide on a case-by-case basis whether certain in game actions or effects will confer Advantage on a check.

Example: Abel is trying to open a rusted-shut airlock on

a derelict spacecraft. He’s using a crowbar and his crew

mate, Lilith, is assisting him. The Warden decides this is a

Strength check with Advantage due to Lilith’s assistance,

so Abel tries to roll under his Strength score of 36. He rolls d% (with Advantage) and rolls 23, 45. Abel takes the best of the two rolls, the 23 - success!

Disadvantage works much the same way as Advantage. You roll d% twice and use the worse result. Some examples of situational Disadvantages are:

» Taking certain drugs » Using a particularly

good tool for the job at hand

“ONES” DIGIT

D10

“TENS” DIGIT

D10

3.2 STATS AND STAT CHECKS

Whenever you want to do something and the price for failure is high, you must roll under the appropriate Stat on d%; otherwise, you fail. This is called a Stat Check Your four main Stats are:

» Strength: How able-bodied you are. Lifting,

pushing, hitting things hard.

» Speed: How quickly you can act and react

under pressure.

» Intellect: How knowledgeable and

experienced you are.

» Combat: How good you are at ghting.

» Attempting to work

in poor terrain, bad weather conditions, or the vacuum of space

» Being injured » Not having a

required Skill

» Suffering from

withdrawal

» Trying to perform

extremely difcult tasks

» You’re drunk,

concussed, or mentally impaired

Having Disadvantage and Advantage at the same time cancels each other out. Having more Disadvantages than Advantages, however, leads to Disadvantage, and vice versa.

Example: Lilith is trying to run to an airlock before it closes, while the ship is spinning out of control. The Warden rules her Speed check has Disadvantage. Lilith rolls d% (with Disadvantage) against her Speed 42. She rolls a 55 and

62. Both are failures, but taking the highest roll here isn’t

the worst roll - taking the 55 (a Critical failure) is! Lilith

won’t make it to the airlock, and worse, it sounds like she’s

about to get hit by debris!

CRITICAL HITS, OPPOSED CHECKS

CHARACTER CREATION

ADVANTAGE & DISADVANTAGE

A FEW NOTES ON

Advantage and Disadvantage don’t have to be used on just Stat checks - they can be used on any kind of roll: Saves, damage, Stress, or anything else. This is why we say Disadvantage means picking the “worse” result and Advantage means picking the “best” result. Damage rolls with Disadvantage, for example, would take the lower number rolled (as opposed to the higher number rolled for Saves and Stat checks).

For simplicity, you can notate rolls with Advantage with the [+] sign and rolls with Disadvantage with the [-] sign. For example:

» 2d10[+] damage would mean to roll

2d10 twice and pick the highest roll.

» 1d10[-] Stress would mean to roll

1d10 twice and pick the lowest roll.

» Body[+] save would mean to roll

d% twice and pick the better (usually lower) roll.

4.1 CRITICAL HITS & FAILURES

In that last example, we showed you what a critical failure was before explaining it in order to illustrate how sometimes the highest number on a Disadvantaged roll isn’t always the worst number to roll. So, let’s back up and explain:

Anytime you roll doubles on a d% roll (e.g. 55, 22, 99), that roll is what we call a critical. If the roll was a success, we call that a critical hit. You have exceedingly succeeded at the task at hand. However, if the result was a failure, it’s called a critical failure, a catastrophe where not only do you fail at the task, but you may incur some other penalty, complication, or even damage as a result.

A roll of 00 is always a critical hit and a roll of 99 is always a critical failure.

4.2 OPPOSED CHECKS

When you are in direct competition with another character (be that an enemy or a friendly crew mate) you roll what’s called an opposed check. To make an opposed check, you and your opponent both roll a Stat check as usual. However, whoever

rolls higher than the other person without going over their own Stat, wins. A few notes:

» Critical hits beat regular successes (even if

the critical hit is a lower roll).

» If you critically fail your roll, your opponent

wins the opposed check automatically (even if

they failed their roll).

» If you both succeed and tie, re-roll. » If you both fail, the situation gets worse

and more complicated somehow for both of you.

Opposed checks do not have to involve the same Stat, or even Stats at all. They can also use Saves. A basic case would be a race to see who gets to an airlock rst - both parties make an opposed Speed check. But you could also try to trick a creature into attacking in the wrong direction by making an opposed Intellect vs. Combat check (or even Speed vs. Combat).

>> Read more about Saves on page 5.

Example: Marlowe, an astrogation android, is facing off against a deranged Void raider. Both are unarmed, but

between them lies a pulse rie. Marlowe’s Speed isn’t that

high, but his Intellect is. He decides that racing the raider

for the weapon isn’t his best option. Rather, he wants to trick the raider into thinking he’ll go after the weapon, and

instead he wants to go for the emergency release valve on the airlock, which will depressurize the cabin and suck the raider into the Void they so crave. The Warden thinks this is a pretty interesting solution and so rules that this will

be an opposed check, pitting Marlowe’s Intellect against the raider’s Instinct (Instinct is a catch-all Stat that only

Non-Player Characters and enemies use, read more about

it on page 21.1).

Marlowe’s Intellect is 52, while the

raider’s Instinct is 30. They both roll

d%. Marlowe rolls a 9, a success!

Unfortunately, the raider rolls a 20,

which is also a success, but also

a higher roll than Marlowe’s. The

raider catches on to Marlowe’s

scheme and leaves the gun where

it is, lunging instead for Marlowe’s

jugular!

SKILLS

Skills represent the accumulated knowledge, craft, techniques and training you possess. Whenever you make a Stat check and you have a relevant Skill, you add your Skill Bonus to your Stat, giving you a higher number to roll under. Every class starts with a few Skills and gains more by leveling up.

There are four different Skill ranks which determine how much you know about a given subject:

» Untrained (Skill Bonus: +0%): You have little to no experience in this eld and you get no bonus.

Depending on how complex the task is, you might roll with Disadvantage.

» Trained (Skill Bonus: +10%): You’ve received standard training in this area equivalent to a

bachelor’s degree or on the job training for a couple years.

» Expert (Skill Bonus: +15%): In this subject, you have the equivalent of a doctorate or many years

of experience.

» Master (Skill Bonus: +20%): You are one of the luminaries of the eld and are aware of cutting

edge techniques or highly specialized and niche information.

All Skills start out as Untrained, meaning that you don’t have the Skill. By taking a Trained Skill, you unlock Expert and Master Skills. Below is a non-comprehensive list of Skills. Work with your Warden to come up with new and interesting Skills through play and development of your own dark corner of the galaxy.

>> Read more about Leveling Up on page 22.

TRAINED SKILLS

» Archaelogy: Ancient cultures

and their artifacts

» Art: The expression or

application of a species’ creative ability and imagination

» Athletics: Physical sports and

games

» Biology: Study of life » Chemistry: The identication of

the substances of which matter is composed

» Computers: Fluent use of

computers and networks

» Driving: Operation and control of

motor vehicles

» First Aid: Emergency medical

care and treatment

» Geology: The solid features of

any terrestrial planet or natural

satellite

» Heavy Machinery: Operation

and use of large pieces of equipment (cranes, exosuits, forklifts, etc.)

» Hydroponics: Growing plants

in nutrient solutions without soil (farming in space)

» Linguistics: Study of language » Mathematics: The science of

numbers, quantity, and space.

» Mechanical Repair: Fixing

broken machines

» Military Training: Standard

basic training given to all military personnel

» Piloting: Operation and control

of air and spacecraft

» Rimwise: Outer rim colonies and

seedy parts of the galaxy

» Scavenging: Searching

discarded waste for useful items

» Theology: Study of religion » Zero-G: Working in a vaccuum,

vaccsuits, etc.

EXPERT SKILLS

» Asteroid Mining: Training in the

tools and procedures used in mining asteroids

» Astrogation: Navigation in outer

space

» Botany: The study of plant life » Close-Quarters Combat: Hand-

to-hand, melee ghting

» Engineering: design, building,

and use of engines, machines, and structures

» Explosives: Bombs and

incendiary devices

» Firearms: Guns and their use » Genetics: Heredity and

the variation of inherited characteristics

» Gunnery: Starship weaponry » Hacking: Unauthorized access

to computer systems

» Jury-Rigging: Makeshift repairs » Mysticism: Spiritual apprehension

of hidden knowledge

» Pathology: Study of the cause

and effect of disease

» Physics: Study of nature and

properties of matter and energy

» Planetology: Study of planets and

other celestial bodies

» Psychology: The study of

behavior and the human mind

» Tactics: Manuevering millitary

forces in battle

» Vehicle Specialization: Specic

vehicle class

MASTER SKILLS

» Articial Intelligence: Knowledge

of simulacrum of human consciousness

» Command: Leadership and

authority

» Cybernetics: Interface between

man and machine

» Hyperspace: Faster-than-light travel » Robotics: Design and operation of

robots, drones, and androids

» Sophontology: Alien psychology » Weapon Specialization:

Prociency with a specic weapon

» Xenobiology: Alien biology » Xenoesotericism: Obscure alien

mysticism, religion, and belief

TRAINED +10% EXPERT +15% MASTER +20%

LINGUISTICS

BIOLOGY

FIRST AID

HYDROPONICS

GEOLOGY

ZERO-G

SCAVENGING

HEAVY MACHINERY

COMPUTERS

MECHANICAL REPAIR

DRIVING

PSYCHOLOGY

GENETICS

PATHOLOGY

BOTANY

PLANETOLOGY

ASTEROID MINING

JURY RIGGING

ENGINEERING

HACKING

VEHICLE

SPECIALIZATION

SOPHONTOLOGY

XENOBIOLOGY

SURGERY

CYBERNETICS

ROBOTICS

ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE

COMMAND

PILOTING

MATHEMATICS

ART

ARCHAEOLOGY

THEOLOGY

MILITARY TRAINING

RIMWISE

ATHLETICS

CHEMISTRY

ASTROGATION

PHYSICS

MYSTICISM

TACTICS

GUNNERY

FIREARMS

CLOSE-QUARTERS COMBAT

EXPLOSIVES

HYPERSPACE

XENOESOTERICISM

WEAPON

SPECIALIZATION

CHARACTER CREATION

SAVES

Oftentimes in Mothership you won’t have control over what happens to you. Strange organisms will attack or invade your body. Terrifying horrors will surprise you from the void. You’ll nd or become aware of some ancient knowledge that is beyond your comprehension. Whenever these kinds of things happen, you roll a Save. These Saves represent how resistant you are to different kinds of danger and damage.

7.1 SAVES

You have four Saves: Sanity, Fear, Body, and Armor.

» Sanity is your ability to explain away logical

inconsistencies in the universe, rationalize and make sense out of chaos, detect illusions and mimicry, and think quickly under pressure.

» Fear is how well you can cope with emotional

trauma, and covers not only fear, but also loneliness, depression, or any other emotional surge.

» Body is your reexes, and how well you can

resist hunger, disease, or any other organism that might attempt to invade your insides.

» Armor is how resistant you are to damage

sustained during combat, whether that be through bullets, claws, teeth, etc.

Saves are not rolls you make willingly (like when you use your Strength to open a jammed airlock). You make saving rolls when something bad might happen to you, and you need to nd out whether you resist it.

To make a Save, roll a d% equal to or under your Save score (just like with a Stat check).

If you fail your Save, you’ll gain 1d10 (or more) Stress. Additionally, you may suffer some other consequence like taking damage (in the case of a failed Armor save), or contracting a deadly virus (in the case of a failed Body Save).

If you critically fail a save, you’ll have to make a Panic Roll. Rolling a critical hit, however, could mean a wide variety of things depending on the context. A critical hit on a Sanity save may grant some further insight into the strange alien artifact you’ve encountered, or in the case of an Armor save, give you a chance to counter-attack. All of these cases are ultimately up to the Warden.

>> Read more about Stress and Panic on pages 25-26.

Example: While investigating the cause of a recently abandoned mining colony, Lilith and Abel encounter a massive alien artifact. The artifact casts no shadow and after touching it, Lilith and Abel are surprised by two strangers in vaccsuits. The strangers are also surprised

by Lilith and Abel, and after taking off their helmets, it’s

apparent why - they are Lilith and Abel. The Warden calls for Sanity saves from both Lilith (Sanity 30) and Abel (Sanity 25). Lilith rolls 76, a failure.

The Warden rules that she’ll gain 1d10 Stress from the shock. Abel, however, doesn’t get off that easy. He rolls a 33, a critical failure. He’ll gain the 1d10 Stress and have to make a Panic check. What’s worse, Abel’s a marine, so

if he fails his Panic check Lilith will have to make a Fear save.

Things can spiral out of control quickly when someone fails a save, so be careful.

SURVIVAL

Survival is hard in Mothership, you’ll have to scrimp, save, and scavenge to make it from one rock to the next. And all this before defending yourself from the vile monstrosities out in the galaxy.

8.1 CRISIS CHECKS

When a single check seems too simple, you can use a Crisis Check. Crisis checks represent longer more arduous tasks like performing surgery or mining an asteroid.

To make a Crisis check, rst the Warden sets the Crisis Difculty between 1 and 3. This is the number of Stat checks in a row you’ll need to succeed in order to beat the Crisis. If you fail a check, you gain Stress equal to the Crisis Difculty and fail the Crisis. However, you can re-roll a failed check by immediately taking 1d10 Stress. No matter what, the third time you fail a check, the Crisis ends and you take your nal Stress damage, as well as whatever else failure entails (the repairs don’t work, the patient dies, etc.).

8.2 FOOD & WATER

Humans can survive roughly 3 weeks without food. After 24 hours without food, you’re at

Disadvantage to all rolls.

Bare minimum to survive, you’ll need 1 liter of water a day. However, at this level any

strenuous activity (like running, combat, or making mechanical repairs) will force you to make a Body save or pass out. When water is scarce and you’re tracking it this closely, you’re at Disadvantage to all rolls.

8.3 OXYGEN

In space, you can last 15 seconds without oxygen before you fall unconscious. After passing out you can survive for 3-5 minutes before dying.

If all of a ship’s Life Support modules are destroyed then divide the ship’s current hull subtract 1d10 and then divide by the number of living humans onboard (Androids don’t need oxygen to breathe). This is how many days of breathable oxygen remain per person.

>> Read more about Ship Design on pages 29-30.

Take the allotment of oxygen and assign it to every human onboard the ship. If a crew member dies, divide their remaining days amongst the rest of the crew. If a crew member engages in strenuous activity (like running, combat, mechanical repairs, etc.) then subtract a day from them and randomly from one other person on the crew.

Once per day (when dealing with Rest) take a look at the total remaining oxygen amongst the crew:

» If more less than half of the original oxygen

remains, every roll is made at Disadvantage.

All crew suffer headaches, fatigue, anxiety

and general clumsiness.

» If less than a quarter of the original oxygen

amount remains, players must make a body

check once per day (and after every strenuous

activity) or fall unconscious. All crew suffer

panting, dizziness, severe headaches, and

impaired vision and tinnitus.

» If a player runs out of oxygen, they must make

a Body save. Failure means they die. Success

means they fall unconscious and leach

oxygen from a random player every day.

Crew members in cryosleep or doing nothing but resting take up 1/4 of an oxygen unit per day.

>> Read more about Rest on pages 10.3 and 25.2.

8.4 EARNING CREDITS

Everything in Mothership, from fuel, to food, to weapons and ammunition costs Credits. Owning a starship is an expensive proposition. Here are a few things you can do to earn credits:

ROLL JOB

Mine asteroids (ore, unrened fuel,

precious metal) 2 Ship cargo (trade goods, ore, supplies) 3 Courier important messages 4 Escort passengers 5 Scrap derelict spacecraft 6 Smuggle goods (contraband, drugs) 7 Raid corporate vessels 8 Map out sectors of uncharted space 9 Hunt dangerous criminals for bounty

10 Collect genetic data on unknown species

CHARACTER CREATION

COMBAT: SURPRISE, TURNS, ACTIONS, ATTACKING, COVER

Combat in Mothership is incredibly deadly, and usually best avoided altogether in favor of running and hiding. But in those dire situations when you must ght for your life, here’s what you do:

9.1 CHECK FOR SURPRISE

Sometimes the various creatures, horrors, and denizens of long forgotten spacecraft will sneak up on you before making themselves known when this happens, you roll a Fear save; failure means you become so surprised that you are unable to act for one round.

9.2 WHO GOES FIRST?

After checking for surprise, you can determine the turn order. First, you and your crew mates each

make a Speed check; those who pass can act before the enemies do, those who fail, act after. Critical success give you an extra action,

while a critical fail reduces you to one action. This repeats every round.

Characters with the Tactics Skill can add their Skill bonus to their Speed Stat (and can also give their bonus to one other player). Characters with the Command Skill, give all nearby crew members their Skill bonus on these checks.

9.3 HOW LONG IS A TURN?

Combat takes place in both rounds and turns. A turn is focused on one individual player, non-

player character, or group of enemies. A round is the time it takes for everyone to take a turn.

Each round is equal to roughly ten seconds of real time, with every character’s turn happening roughly within that time but in turn order (as opposed to all at once). Therefore, someone who is killed before their turn does not get to act on their turn.

Generally, you can take two signicant actions on your turn. Examples of signicant actions are (but not limited to):

» Attacking » Bandaging a wound » Checking someone’s

vital signs

» Firing a vehicle’s

weapons

» Maneuvering a vehicle » Opening an airlock » Operating a machine » Reloading a weapon

» Running/walking » Throwing something » Using a computer

terminal (search a directory, engage airlocks, send a distress signal, cycle through CCTV cameras, disable Life

Support, etc.)

Insignicant actions are things like talking, or taking cover (as part of a move action), looking around, etc. The Warden will ultimately decide what counts as a signicant or insignicant action given the context of each specic situation.

9.5 HOW DO I ATTACK?

Attacking is a specic kind of signicant action, performed by rolling an opposed check. In ranged combat, the attacker makes a Combat check against the defender’s Armor save. If the attacker succeeds, they roll their weapon’s damage dice.

>> Read more about Weapons on pages 11-14.

In Close-Quarters Combat, the attacker makes a Combat check as usual, but the defender can decide whether they want to oppose that roll with their Armor save (to defend against the damage), another Combat check (to counter-attack), or a Body save (to try and get out of CQC and run away). If two characters are wrestling or grappling, that would be an opposed Strength check.

>> Read more about Opposed Checks on page 4.2.

9.6 DO I GET A BONUS FROM COVER?

If you hide behind cover that conceals at least half of your body, you gain Advantage on your Armor saves against ranged attacks.

9.4 WHAT CAN I DO ON MY TURN?

When it’s your turn, tell the Warden what you’d like to do. The Warden will tell you if you can get all of that done in one turn, or if it would take multiple turns to accomplish all of what you want.

9.7 HOW FAR CAN I MOVE?

You can move half your speed in meters in one movement action (your full speed in meters for both actions). If you’re wearing heavy armor, like a Vaccsuit or Advanced Battle Dress, you’ll need to make a Strength check to move your full allotment, failure means you move half (or a quarter of your Speed in meters).

HIT LOCATION, DAMAGE, HEALING, DEATH

CHARACTER CREATION

10.1 HIT LOCATION

It’s not usually necessary, but if it becomes important, you can use the diagram below to see where a character was hit. Rolling “evens” means that their left side was hit, while rolling “odds” means the right side was hit.

10: HEAD

3: R. ARM

1: R. LEG

4: L. ARM

5-9: TORSO

2: L. LEG

10.2 DAMAGE

Whenever you lose an opposed Combat check you take damage which is subtracted from your Health. Additionally, if the hit was a Critical hit, or if you take more damage than half your Max Health in one hit, you’ll need to make a Panic roll.

>> Read more about Stress and Panic on pages 25-26.

10.3 HOW DO I HEAL?

Whenever you have a chance to rest for at least six hours, your body will attempt to heal your wounds naturally. To represent this, when resting, you should make a Body save and if successful, you heal Health equal to the amount you succeeded by. On a failure, you are unable to heal your wounds naturally. On a Critical failure, your wounds actually worsen and you lose 1d10 health. A Critical hit, however, doubles the amount of Health healed. Various drugs can also heal you and some ships are equipped with Medbays that

can grant Advantage to your Body save while resting. The Warden, however, can rule that trying to rest under adverse circumstances (like hiding from predators) confers Disadvantage on the healing roll. You can only heal from rest once

per day.

Example: After a grisly encounter with some ancient

malfunctioning androids, Lilith’s current health is 42. She isn’t able to make it back to her ship and has to hole up in

an abandoned airlock. After jamming the airlock shut with a crowbar, she spends the night trying to rest (in spite of the insane gibbering androids outside her door).

The Warden rules that under these circumstances she

has Disadvantage on her Body save to heal for the night.

Lilith’s Body is only 30, so it’ll be a tough roll. Luckily, Lilith

rolls a 22 and a 12, both successful rolls. This is a tricky one though, because which of the rolls is worse?

The Critical hit of 22 would heal her 16 (30-22=8, 8x2=16), whereas the regular 12 would heal her 18 (30-12=18). So technically “Rules as Written” the 22 is

the worse roll. That’s a whole lot of math to deal with one night’s sleep for one player, and you’ll often have multiple players rolling for rest each night, so it’s best just to pick a

lane (like “Crits always count as better rolls”) and stick with it.

10.4 UNCONSCIOUSNESS & DEATH

Whenever you reach 0 Health, make a Body save: Failure means you die. Success means

you fall unconscious and the Warden will make a secret roll on the table below to nd out when you regain consciousness. Usually a crew member with a medscanner can determine your condition. Additionally, scientists and androids who pass an Intellect check can usually tell, as can anyone else with a relevant Skill, like First Aid or Biology.

ROLL YOU REGAIN CONSCIOUSNESS...

You are comatose and brain-dead. Only

extraordinary measures will return you to the waking world.

In 1d10 days, with 1 Health. -5 Strength,

-5 Speed, -5 Intellect (permanent loss).

2-3

Disadvantage on all rolls for 1d10 days. +1d10 Stress.

In 1d10 hours. 1 health. -5 Strength, and -5

4-6

Speed (permanent loss). Disadvantage on all rolls for 1d10 hours. +3 Stress.

In 1d10 minutes. 1 health. -5 Strength

7-9

(permanent loss). Disadvantage on all rolls for 3d10 minutes. +2 Stress.

Immediately. 1 health. Disadvantage on all

rolls for 1d10 minutes. +1 Stress.

CHARACTER CREATION

WEAPONS: AMMUNITION

In Mothership, the weapons you use, and how you choose to use them are very important. Ammunition is often in short supply, and a powerful weapon, in the hands of an untrained, panicked character, can quickly turn a bad situation into a disaster.

11.1 WEAPONS

In Mothership you use your Combat Stat when ghting. Having a relevant Skill, like Firearms, or Close-Quarters Combat, will often increase your Combat Stat temporarily, giving you a higher number to roll under. Additionally, weapons often have special abilities of their own which can further increase your chances of survival.

11.2 AMMUNITION

Each weapon holds a certain amount of shots, which represents how many times you can re the weapon before you must reload. Whenever you re your weapon, mark down how many shots you have left before you reload. Whenever you take a reload action, take the time to mark down how many shells, bullets, or magazines you have left as well.

Note on Bookkeeping: Most people hate

tracking ammunition. Ultimately, it’s up

to the Warden whether you track ammo or not, but for survival-oriented games,

we recommend it. It’s not so much about

being “realistic” as it is that running out of ammo leads to all sorts of interesting play, where players have seek out new weapons and ammo, or to improvise weapons from found objects, or even tinker with their weapons to use the

ammo they do nd. Using “bullet” tokens

or poker chips to represent 1, 5, and 10 shots can make this bookkeeping really easy at the table, since players only have to write down how much ammo they start or end a session with. You can also just use a polyhedral die and wind

them down as you re each shot.

+ 30 hidden pages