NationMaster - Encyclopedia: D20 Modern

d20 Modern is a roleplaying game designed by Bill Slavicsek, Jeff Grubb, Rich Redman, and Charles Ryan. It was published by Wizards of the Coast in 2002, and uses the d20 System. The game provides a toolbox for staging campaigns in a range of modern settings. Book Cover Image for the D20 Modern Roleplaying Game This work is copyrighted. ... Wizards of the Coast (often referred to as WotC or simply Wizards) is a publisher of games, primarily based on fantasy and science fiction themes. ... For album titles with the same name, see 2002 (album). ... d20 redirects here. ... A roleplaying game (RPG) is a type of game in which players assume the roles of characters and collaboratively create stories. ... Bill Slavicsek is the Director of Roleplaying Design and Development at Wizards of the Coast. ... Jeff Grubb is a fantasy author of such books as The Brothers War and Libertys Crusade. ... Charles V. Ryan is the current mayor of the city Springfield, Massachusetts. ... Wizards of the Coast (often referred to as WotC or simply Wizards) is a publisher of games, primarily based on fantasy and science fiction themes. ... For album titles with the same name, see 2002 (album). ... d20 redirects here. ...

Due to their mutually shared core systems, a person who knows how to play Dungeons & Dragons or any other d20 System is likely to know the basic aspects of how to play a d20 Modern game as well. While there are rules specific to the d20 Modern roleplaying game, the similarities between this game and other d20 system games outweigh the differences. Dungeons & Dragons (abbreviated as D&D or DnD) is a fantasy role-playing game (RPG) currently published by Wizards of the Coast. ...

System

d20 Modern is based on the d20 System, with the following additions and alterations: d20 redirects here. ...

Characters

d20 Modern presents a starting character with the choice of six classes: Strong Hero, Fast Hero, Tough Hero, Smart Hero, Dedicated Hero, and Charismatic Hero. These basic classes correspond to the six ability scores used in the d20 System. The basic classes are broad, flexible, and generic, rather than the much more narrowly focused character classes from the Dungeons and Dragons rules. A character class represents a characters archetype and career in some role-playing games (RPGs). ... An ability score, in the d20 System, is a numeric description of a characters physical and mental characteristics. ...

A d20 Modern character can later, after meeting certain requirements, take levels in advanced classes. The advanced classes are much more specifically focused; examples include Soldier, Field Medic, and Techie.

There are prestige classes as well; these have stricter requirements, which are most likely arrived at through at least one advanced class, and are even more tightly focused in their roles, but these are not found in the core rules.

Also, d20 Modern includes the moreau character race(s), a group of anthropomorphic creatures with individual benefits and drawbacks. This is later expanded on in the d20 campaign setting , GeneTech. In science fiction, biological uplift is a common but by no means universal term for the act of an advanced civilization helping the development of another species by bringing a non-sapient one into sentience, or by giving a sapient one spacefaring capabilities. ...

Action Points

Each character earns a set number of points each experience level, known as 'Action Points'. These points can be spent in game to increase the effect of a single die roll, or to make use of certain abilities earned by the hero character through their experience level advancement.

Skills and Feats

Upon gaining experience levels, characters earn points which are used to purchase ranks in various skills. These skills quantify in game logic terms the character's competence in some non-combat action, such as swimming, negotiating, stunt driving, or using computers.

Feats are special abilities a character gains. Feats are less readily described because of the sheer variety of abilities they can grant the character. Unlike skills, feats do not have "skill points", but are rather a single thing you take that grants a bonus of some sort. A feat could allow a character to perform a special combat maneuver, enhance the use of one or more skills, or some other more exotic effect.

Equipment

A character can purchase or otherwise obtain any of dozens of items listed in the book, as well as any item that the game master sees fit to allow, using a mechanic which is based on the price of the item. d20 Modern uses a very abstract system for tracking wealth, intended to model modern finances more simply than tracking available funds, credit cards, loan debt, exchange rates, investments, and the myriad other sources of monetary value in a modern society.

Campaign Settings

d20 Modern presents three sample campaign settings. These settings, unlike the rest of the book, feature the supernatural.

Shadow Chasers

In this setting, evil monsters, usually from one or more parallel dimensions, roam free around the world. However, most people do not see these creatures for what they really are, seeing instead a vague approximation which is still plausible in that person's beliefs about reality. (See consensus reality.) For example, an ogre would appear to the average person as a very burly man. The player characters are somehow capable of seeing through this veil, and typically take on responsibility for defending humanity from the monsters. It originally appeared as a d20 mini-game in Polyhedron Magazine issue #150. It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into Social constructionism. ... The Ogre from Hop o My Thumb illustrated by Gustave DorÃ© An ogre (feminine: ogress) is a large and hideous humanoid monster. ... The Polyhedron magazine is the official publication of the RPGA, or Roleplaying Gamers Association. ...

Agents of Psi

In this campaign setting, magic (at least in the traditional sense) does not exist, but psychic capabilities called psionics do. Player characters typically work for a government agency investigating and/or using this quasi-supernatural force, but this is only a suggestion and is not strictly required by the rules. A novella taking place in this setting was published on the WotC website.-1...

Urban Arcana

In this setting, dragons rule the boardrooms and bugbears rule the streets. It is a world where monsters and magic exist, yet the human psyche just cannot fathom them and covers up all supernatural events. Some, however, break that barrier and become aware of the world around them, and help Mages, Acolytes, and other magical characters fight with monsters from another realm. This campaign setting combines aspects of the previous two settings (Shadow Chasers & Agents of Psi) and uses the conceit that all three settings coexist in the same reality (at least in Urban Arcana). Urban Arcana Campaign Setting In the world of Urban Arcana, dragons rule the boardrooms and bugbears rule the streets. ... Chinese dragon, color engraving on wood, Chinese school, 19th Century The dragon is a mythical creature typically depicted as a large and powerful serpent or other reptile with magical or spiritual qualities. ... A bugbear is a legendary creature roughly analogous with the bogeyman, bogie, bugaboo, hobgoblin and other creatures used to frighten children. ...

Other settings

Dark•Matter: Shades of Grey

Dark•Matter: Shades of Grey is a d20 Modern mini-game of conspiratorial suspense presented in Polyhedron Magazine issue #167 (also known as Dungeon Magazine issue #108) and then as a stand-alone d20 Modern book, Dark•Matter, in September of 2006. It is a remake of the Dark•Matter campaign setting for Alternity. It utilizes concepts from the core d20 Modern RPG rules and the Urban Arcana and d20 Menace Manual sourcebooks, which are also recommended for use to get the most from the setting. Image File history File linksMetadata Pol167. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Pol167. ... The Polyhedron magazine is the official publication of the RPGA, or Roleplaying Gamers Association. ... Dungeon Adventures, commonly called simply Dungeon, is a magazine targeting people who play role playing games, particularly Dungeons & Dragons. ... For the Manfred Mann album, see 2006 (album). ... Darkâ€¢Matter is a science fiction/conspiracy theory campaign setting that was published in 1999 by Wizards of the Coast for the Alternity role-playing game. ... Alternity was a science fiction role-playing game (RPG) published by TSR in 1998. ... Urban Arcana Campaign Setting In the world of Urban Arcana, dragons rule the boardrooms and bugbears rule the streets. ... The D20 Menace Manual is a listing of statistics, mainly for animals, aliens, and other potential enemies, for use in the D20 Modern role-playing game. ...

Mecha Crusade

Mecha Crusade was a d20 mini-RPG campaign setting in issue #154 of Polyhedron Magazine (Dungeon Magazine issue #95). d20 redirects here. ... This article is about games in which one plays the role of a character. ... The Polyhedron magazine is the official publication of the RPGA, or Roleplaying Gamers Association. ... Dungeon Adventures, commonly called simply Dungeon, is a magazine targeting people who play role playing games, particularly Dungeons & Dragons. ...

The setting was a take off of anime mecha series, like Mobile Suit Gundam or Macross. The main cast of the anime Cowboy Bebop (1998) (L to R: Spike Spiegel, Jet Black, Ed Tivrusky, Faye Valentine, and Ein the dog) For the oleo-resin, see AnimÃ© (oleo-resin). ... For the fictional robot, see Mecha. ... Mobile Suit Gundam ) is a televised anime series written and directed by Yoshiyuki Tomino and made up of 43 episodes aired in 1979. ... The Super Dimension Fortress Macross (Japanese: 超時空要塞マクロス, Chou Jikuu Yousai Macross) is an anime television series. ...

Pulp Heroes

Pulp Heroes started as a d20 mini-RPG found in Polyhedron Magazine issue #149 (also known as Dungeon Magazine issue #90). Polyhedron #161 (also known as Dungeon #102) contained a d20 Modern "update" of the Pulp Heroes mini-game. Image File history File links Pol149. ... Image File history File links Pol149. ... d20 redirects here. ... A roleplaying game (RPG) is a type of game in which players assume the roles of characters and collaboratively create stories. ... The Polyhedron magazine is the official publication of the RPGA, or Roleplaying Gamers Association. ... Dungeon Adventures, commonly called simply Dungeon, is a magazine targeting people who play role playing games, particularly Dungeons & Dragons. ...

The setting allows one to play games that take place during the famous Pulp Era of literature, filled with ancient dinosaurs, power-hungry gangsters, vengeful vigilantes, amazing superheroes, evil Nazis, bizarre inventions, mystical psionics, hard-boiled detectives, trained martial artists, curious explorers, eldritch aliens, and various other fantastic people, places, and things. Flynns Detective Fiction from 1941. ... Orders & Suborders Saurischia Sauropodomorpha Theropoda Ornithischia Thyreophora Ornithopoda Marginocephalia Dinosaurs were vertebrate animals that dominated the terrestrial ecosystem for over 160 million years, first appearing approximately 230 million years ago. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Gang. ... This article or section needs copy editing for grammar, style, cohesion, tone and/or spelling. ... For the Aqua Teen Hunger Force episode, see Super Hero (Aqua Teen Hunger Force episode). ... National Socialism redirects here. ... An invention is an object, process, or technique which displays an element of novelty. ... Psionics, in the context of role-playing games, is a broad category of fantastic abilities, similar to the paranormal psionic abilities that some people claim in reality. ... â†’â™¥â™¥Ð This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Hawaiian State Grappling Championships. ... See also explorations, sea explorers, astronaut, conquistador, travelogue, the History of Science and Technology and Biography. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ...

The worlds of H. P. Lovecraft's Cthulhu Mythos and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's The Lost World, and famous individuals like Jules Verne, H. G. Wells, Doc Savage, Tarzan, and Indiana Jones serve as perfect examples of this era. Howard Phillips Lovecraft (August 20, 1890 â€“ March 15, 1937) was an American author of fantasy, horror and science fiction. ... Cthulhu and Rlyeh Cthulhu Mythos is the term coined by the writer August Derleth to describe the shared elements, characters, settings, and themes in the works of H. P. Lovecraft and associated horror fiction writers. ... Arthur Conan Doyle Sir Arthur Ignatius Conan Doyle (May 22, 1859 - July 7, 1930) is the British author most famously known for his stories about the detective Sherlock Holmes, which are generally considered a major innovation in the field of crime fiction. ... The Lost World is a 1912 novel by Arthur Conan Doyle concerning an expedition to a plateau (native name is Tepuyes) in South America (Venezuela) where prehistoric animals (dinosaurs and other extinct creatures) still survive. ... Jules Gabriel Verne (February 8, 1828â€“March 24, 1905) was a French author who pioneered the science-fiction genre. ... Herbert George Wells (September 21, 1866 â€“ August 13, 1946), better known as H. G. Wells, was an English writer best known for such science fiction novels as The Time Machine, The War of the Worlds, The Invisible Man, The First Men in the Moon and The Island of Doctor Moreau. ... Doc Savage is a fictional character, one of the most enduring pulp heroes of the 1930s and 1940s, created by Lester Dent. ... James H. Pierce and Joan Burroughs Pierce starred in the 1932-34 Tarzan radio series 1964 Edition of Tarzan of the Apes Tarzan, a fictional character created by Edgar Rice Burroughs, first appeared in the 1912 novel Tarzan of the Apes, and then in twenty-three sequels. ... Dr. Henry Indiana Jones, Jr. ...

Many elements of Pulp Heroes were adapted into the later d20 Past sourcebook. d20 Past is a supplement to the d20 Modern role-playing game, providing a rule framework for campaigns set in a variety of historic settings from the Renaissance to World War II. The material shown in d20 Past covers five centuries of technology, spanning from 1450 through 1950. ...

Thunderball Rally

Thunderball Rally was the second mini-game in a brief series of previews for d20 Modern that appeared in the early issues of the third and last edition of Polyhedron Magazine, which was on the flipside of Dungeon Magazine. Image File history File links Pol152. ... Image File history File links Pol152. ... The Polyhedron magazine is the official publication of the RPGA, or Roleplaying Gamers Association. ... Dungeon Adventures, commonly called simply Dungeon, is a magazine targeting people who play role playing games, particularly Dungeons & Dragons. ...

Thunderball Rally, released as a preview for the d20 MODERN RPG in Polyhedron #152, is a d20 System mini-game about racing across the United States of America in 1976. The game creates an imaginary cross-country car race, and uses d20 System modern vehicle rules. The vehicle rules that were described in the game were also recommended for use with the previous d20 Modern mini-game preview Shadow Chasers (Polyhedron #150). Year 1976 (MCMLXXVI) was a leap year starting on Thursday (link will display full calendar) of the 1976 Gregorian calendar. ...

In Thunderball Rally, the player characters portray one of the crews in the largest, most lucrative, most illegal crosscountry road race in America. Examples of the genre include The Gumball Rally, Cannonball (film) (and its later follow up/remake Cannonball Run), The Blues Brothers, Death Race 2000, and Smokey and the Bandit, and iconic characters include the General Lee and Boss Hogg. Rules for Orangutan player characters subsequently appeared in Polyhedron #153 as a homage to the 1978 film Every Which Way But Loose. The Gumball Rally is a 1976 film about a coast-to-coast road race. ... Cannonball was a 1976 movie starring David Carradine. ... Cannonball Run can refer to the following: Cannonball Baker Sea-To-Shining-Sea Memorial Trophy Dash, an outlaw automobile race of the 1970s or its many copycat successors Cannonball Run and Cannonball Run II, movies inspired by the races Cannonball Run 2001, a USA Network reality television show inspired by... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Death Race 2000 is a cult action film directed by Paul Bartel in 1975. ... Smokey and the Bandit is a 1977 movie starring Burt Reynolds, Sally Field, Jackie Gleason, Jerry Reed, Pat McCormick, Paul Williams, and Mike Henry. ... General Lee can refer to: Confederate general Robert E. Lee the car used by The Dukes of Hazzard in the television program of the same name. ... Sorrell Booke, portraying the character that made him famous, Boss Hogg. Spoiler warning: J.D. (Jefferson Davis) Hogg (better known as Boss Hogg) is a fictional character featured in the United States television series, The Dukes of Hazzard. ... Type species Simia pygmaeus Linnaeus, 1760 Orangutan distribution Species Pongo pygmaeus Pongo abelii The orangutans are two species of great apes known for their intelligence and their long arms and reddish-brown hair. ... Every Which Way But Loose is a 1978 U.S. motion picture, released by Warner Brothers, produced by Robert Daley and directed by James Fargo. ...

Contents

System

Characters

Action Points

Skills and Feats

Equipment

Campaign Settings

Shadow Chasers

Agents of Psi

Urban Arcana

Other settings

Dark•Matter: Shades of Grey

Mecha Crusade

Pulp Heroes

Thunderball Rally

See also

External links

Contents

System var ACE_AR = {Site: '756743', Size: '300250'};

Characters

Action Points

Skills and Feats

Equipment

Campaign Settings

Shadow Chasers

Agents of Psi

Urban Arcana

Other settings

Dark•Matter: Shades of Grey

Mecha Crusade

Pulp Heroes

Thunderball Rally

See also

External links

System