Bolt RPG (Lock-In Copy)

The BOLT RPG Engine
Version 0.9 Full-Text Build
Written by Ajey Pandey
Creative Commons Attribution Share-Alike 4.0
The BOLT RPG Engine 1

What, and Why
The Requisites
What is a Role Playing Game?
The People Involved
The Materials Involved
Safety Tools
Content Warning
Pronunciation
Politics
Pricing
Legalese
What The Game Assumes

Characters are Dangerous People Who Like Danger
Action is Fast, Not Realistic
Taking Damage Should Be Scary
Every Skill is Useful
Breaking the Game Isn’t Bad
Inventory Management Isn’t The Focus
Opponents Play By Similar Rules
The Game Master is Comfortable in Their Role
An Honest List of Alternatives
The Core
Rounding
Difficulty Benchmarks
Perks and Complications
Advantages and Disadvantages
Contested Rolls - Two Approaches
Static Difficulties (Low-Stakes)
Contested Rolls (High-Stakes)
Resolving Ties
Spending Tenacity to Improve Rolls
Helping Allies and Hindering Opponents
<Sidebar> Luck Tokens (Optional)
Core Attributes and Skills

Core Attributes
Fortitude
Reflex
Knowledge
Acuity
Willpower
Charisma
Derived Attributes
<Sidebar> Optional Rule: Budget
Skills That Don’t Work How You’d Expect
Defensive Skills
Fortitude Skills
Reflex Skills
Knowledge Skills
Acuity Skills
Willpower Skills
Charisma Skills
Magic Skills
Building Your Character

Step 1: Character Concept
Step 2: Core Attributes
<Sidebar> Power Levels
Incentives
Step 3: Background
<Sidebar> The Cultural Significance of Soul-Bindings
Unbound
Deva
Demonsoul
Step 4a: Role
Scholar
Scoundrel
Soldier
Wanderer
Step 4b: Roles and Specializations (Optional)
Professional
Scoundrel
Mercenary

Professional Specializations
Doctor
Engineer
Lawyer
Scoundrel Specializations
Assassin
Fixer
Investigator
Mercenary Specializations
Driver
Commando
Bouncer
Writing Your Own Roles and Specializations
Leveling
Incentives, or Getting XP
Advancement or Spending XP
Feats
Level 1
Level 2
Level 3
Writing Your Own Feats
Action
Time Intervals
Encounters
Setting Objectives For Combat
Actions
Range and Zones
Initiative and the Action Economy
Setting the Order for Claiming Actions
Combat Skill Checks
Perks
Complications
Armor
Cover
Being Prone

Grappling
Calculating Damage
<Sidebar> Not All Characters Can Fight
Health and Healing

Health Tracks
<Sidebar> What is 5 Damage?
Going Down
Losing It
The Wounds Track
Healing Shot
First Aid
Recovering Tenacity After Encounters
Multiple Schemata for Healing Between Scenes
Return-to-Base (RTB) Healing
Outpost Healing
Campsite Healing
Remembering Numbers
Items
On Encumbrance
Price
<Sidebar> Carried Weapons Are Obvious and Scary
Weapon Qualities
Special Qualities for Weapons
Example Weapons
Universal Weapons
Fantasy Weapons
Modern Weapons
General Equipment
Universal Equipment
Fantasy Equipment
Modern Equipment
Running BOLT
Fish for Ideas for Perks and Complications
Balance Difficulties to Account for Tenacity
Tailor Games to Players
Run Encounters With Honesty

Have a Plan for Failure
Opponents
Goons
Faces
Heels
Writing Settings
Languages
<Sidebar> Common Language
Give Characters Something To Do
Write What You Know
Build Details Through Knock-On Effects
Magic and Hacking

Magic and Hacking Ability Trees
<Sidebar> Magic Defines Setting Defines Magic
Life Magic Tree
Music, for Inspiration

Incentives
Feats
Gear

What, and Why
This is BOLT, a built-for-hacking action-adventure role-playing game engine
designed to port across multiple settings. Yes, there are already a lot of “generic” RPG
systems, but the availability of better-funded alternatives tends not to discourage nerds.
What I—Ajey Pandey, the writer of this game—think sets BOLT apart is that it
draws influence both from the mechanically-dense, “crunchy” combat of games like
Cyberpunk 2020 or Dungeons & Dragons and the collaborative “story-game”
narrative-building that underpins Powered by the Apocalypse games like Masks: A New
Generation. Action in BOLT is designed to build tension through its core mechanics as
opposed to narrative description, with the intent of making the player feel the same
emotions as their character. From there, every aspect of the game was tuned by the
question, “What’s the fastest way this can work?”
This game is also meant to be hacked, and kit-bashed, and re-skinned. It’s your
game as much as it is mine. So in the below rule descriptions, I will be honest about
how things are built and why I built them that way. I don’t expect you to agree with me
on everything. Instead, I hope that my writing is clear enough that you can identify
where you disagree with me and re-wire the game to fit your g oals.
Additionally, this game is licensed under Creative Commons Attribution
Share-Alike (CC-BY-SA) 4.0 license. It’s a response to a broken promise from another
RPG system that I was fond of, but was unclear about the intellectual property situation
surrounding content made using its engine. Were supplements owned by the hackers
and homebrewers? Could I sell my document for money? Would lawyers come for me?
The owners of that RPG system were never clear, even as they skimmed royalties from
independent work.
But I will be clear. It’s all in the Legalese section. Make BOLT y our own. You
deserve to write a game without licensing fees and legal threats.
When I first started working on this game, I frankly expected five people to read it.
Instead, hundreds of people have read it, shared it, backed it on a Kickstarter campaign,
and played the games that have drawn influence from BOLT. It’s exhilarating and
terrifying in equal measure.
So thank you, for putting your time and your thought into this game. I hope it
inspires you.

The Requisites
What is a Role Playing Game?

Role-playing games, or RPGs, are what happens when a bunch of friends
playing pretend get tired of going “nuh-uh” at each other and decide to set some ground
rules.
n RPG is a Herculean task at best and a
Admittedly, trying to define what is a
Sisyphean task at worst. I am neither of those figures, so I’ll cheat and give you an
approximate definition that’s both too broad and too narrow.
Traditionally, RPGs involve a group of players inhabiting a world as player
characters (PCs). That world and the non-player characters (NPCs) in it are typically
managed by a Game Master (GM), who sets up scenarios and plot elements for the
players to pull into gloriously unexpected directions. Depending on the game and the
table, the Game Master may be anything from near-as-to-God (as in many older RPGs)
or completely removed in many modern RPGs. Personally, I like running RPGs by way
of leading questions, which affects how BOLT rules are written—note how I give
suggestions to roll results, not hard-and-fast rules.
The players and GM interact with the world and each other’s characters through
mechanics, which typically involve dice, but I’ve seen games run with playing cards,
tokens, wooden towers, or—with one game I’ve run—nothing but leading questions and
an encouragement to take notes. But there are always rules so that there is
understanding about what options are available for a given scenario.
BOLT is built not only on limits to what characters can do, but also on signposts
showing what options characters have open, whether through skill checks, combat
rules, equipment lists, or mechanical carrots and sticks to push roleplaying.
The People Involved

The player: That’s a person playing a character in a role-playing game. The
player rolls dice and interacts with game mechanics like Vitality, Tenacity, calling
Actions, and spending XP, and they roleplay as their character.
The Game Master: That’s a player who’s managing a world and a whole set of
players. The Game Master is a moderator of sorts.
The table: All the players playing a role-playing game together.

The character: The character that the player inhabits for a role-playing game.
The character does badass action-adventure nonsense but is completely unaware of
the game mechanics that define them.
The writer: The person writing settings, modifications, and hacks for BOLT.
The Materials Involved

Dice: Dice are clicky-clacky math rocks. They return a randomized number
based on the number of faces they have. However, they are not edible. BOLT requires
the use of the following dice:
d4: A four-sided die.
d6: A six-sided die.
d8: An eight-sided die.
d10: A ten-sided die.
d12: A twelve-sided die.
You may have heard of the d20. This is not used in the Core Rules of BOLT,
although a d20 may be useful for rolling setting or encounter tables. When using an
alternate format for advantages and disadvantages, only a d10 and d4 are required for
gameplay.
Core dice: The dice the player rolls to determine Success and Failure. Usually,
it’s a d10. This can change in special circumstances.
Auxiliary d4: The die the player rolls to determine Perks and Complications. It’s
always a d4. It’s always rolled with the core dice.
Character Sheet: A piece of paper (or an electronic file) that holds all the
information about the player’s character—at least the information relevant to interacting
with the mechanics in BOLT.
Safety Tools
Safety tools are vital to a healthy roleplaying game. Players at the table should
set boundaries about gameplay and interactions with each other and set up practices
for how to navigate those boundaries before somebody is seriously hurt.
For an introductory list of useful RPG safety tools, consult the TTRPG Safety
Toolkit, assembled by Kienna Shaw and Lauren Bryant-Monk.
Content Warning
BOLT is a violent game. Violence is built into the bones of its rules, and that
violence is designed to be fun. Not every character in BOLT needs to be a perpetrator

of violence, but a game without violence would frankly be better served by another
game system.
I don’t think violence in media is necessarily wrong. There can be great catharsis
in coalescing pain, trauma, and oppression into a being with a face—and then punching
that face.
This game text will not detail gore, but will mention blood once in the Game
Master section as an example of a lore note.
Pronunciation
The examples of characters and setting notes in BOLT are drawn mainly from
South Asian culture, and notably uses names from languages that use phonemes
unfamiliar to the English language that this document is written in.
It is understandable to struggle with pronunciation. There is too little setting
information in the Core Rules t o warrant a pronunciation guide—the occasional
unfamiliar word is not lethal, after all—but I suggest that the pronunciation of South
Asian names is often far less arcane than an outside observer may guess.
Politics
I’m sorry, but we have to talk about this...
It’s a delicate task to divine the political inclinations of a game system, but once
you build a game with a setting, with setting-specific mechanics, you come face-to-face
with the political goals (or lack of goals) that an RPG holds.
Sure, not every game is as nakedly political as #iHunt or Red Markets, but
political worldviews are baked into the bones of every role playing game in how
characters progress, fight, grow, and lose. Are characters treated as special people?
Are they pushed into specific moral quandaries? Are they killing to take people’s stuff,
or for something bigger?
Even before a writer designs costumes or adds a “Nazi Punks Fuck Off”
paragraph (like this one) or decides what skin color the characters on the cover are, the
text and structure of the game reveal the politics of the game and writers—in much the
same way you can somewhat pick up someone’s politics from hearing what words they
use.
So be mindful of your politics—even if they’re not mine—and be honest about
them when you write or run games using BOLT.
For everyone’s sake.

Pricing
BOLT is a “toolbox” game, which means that this system underpins the work of
other RPG creators. As a result, I have a responsibility to encourage anyone building off
this game to charge for their work.
As a rule of thumb, the writer should consider what they feel comfortable
charging for their work—then charge double. If the writer feels odd about charging
money for their hobby (I know I do), then they can feel free to donate any proceeds they
make, and institute community copies or financial hardship discounts.
Charging for one’s work has less to do with whether the writer needs the money
themself than with broader industry norms about what TTRPG content should cost.
Raising prices is a means of helping other writers turn RPG writing into a career, which I
think is an admirable goal for the TTRPG industry.
Anyone writing content for BOLT should feel no remorse for setting the price of
their work higher than the price of the BOLT Core Rules.
Legalese
The text of this work is offered under a CC BY SA 4.0 license. Also, the text of
this work is offered under a license having the terms of CC BY SA 4.0, except (1) if the
Adapted Material is a literary work, then the Adapter's License need only be applied to
the text and (2) you must include this and the following sentence in your licensing terms.
The CC BY SA 4.0 license is available at
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/
In plain language, feel free to print this PDF and share it with your friends, please
hack this game, and please make money off the resulting content. I won’t ask for
royalties. However, I ask that the writer also shares the text of their game under a
Creative Commons Share-Alike license or another compatible license. Honestly, I’d add
the above paragraph (written by April Kit Walsh) verbatim to your game.
The idea is to attribute the core ideas of BOLT back to me, Ajey Pandey, and
then separate what the writer wrote from what I wrote. This Creative Commons license
does not apply to the art in BOLT—a rt sharing is up to the artists, not me.
This is a different license from other open-source games like Fate, Powered by
the Apocalypse, o r Quest, which all use Creative Commons Attribution (CC-BY). This is
because if someone were to commission a BOLT game associated with a prominent
media license (one that would not be amenable to an open license), I would personally
like to know.

If you are looking for something that wouldn’t fit under a CC-BY-SA 4.0 license,
feel free to email me at bolt.rpg.engine@gmail.com.
What The Game Assumes

No game engine is truly generic. Even how you roll dice and add bonuses affect
how you approach the world and your characters, and I think those assumptions are
worth naming.
In Dungeons and Dragons, for example, characters become immensely powerful
to face immensely powerful foes. The most interesting actions characters take are often
combat actions, and half the fun of the game is in writing a particularly interesting or
optimized “build.” These assumptions carry into derivative games, like the d20 Star
Wars RPG based on D&D 3e, or the Knights of the Old Republic games that use the
same underlying mechanics. By level 18, you’re a near-god capable of slaughtering
armies, regardless of your alignment.
Contrast this to games built on the Powered by the Apocalypse (PbtA) engine. In
many such games, combat is greatly abstracted, to the point where Game Masters
barely roll for what adversaries do. Instead, the most interesting actions characters take
focus on interpersonal relationships, like the Influence mechanic in Masks or the
Entanglements mechanic in Hearts of Wulin. Much of the fun of PbtA games instead
comes from connecting players’ characters together with interesting narrative threads.
The structure of these game engines influence the games you play and the
characters you write. Complex interpersonal teen dramas can work in a D&D-based
game, but the rules don’t support it without significant modification--and at that point,
you might as well play Monsterhearts or Masks. Similarly, prolonged combat based on
strategy and resource management might w ork in a PbtA game, but there’s little
mechanical framework for map-based strategy or tactical combat. One could make it
happen, but as Flying Circus demonstrates, the result will be a radically different
experience.
The rules define the game, and the game shapes the setting in small and large
ways.
So what does the BOLT engine define? What kind of stories and settings does it
encourage?
Characters are Dangerous People Who Like Danger

BOLT is at its core an action-adventure skill-based RPG. Characters drawn up in
re adventurers of some sort—whether they’re noir detectives, cyberpunk rebels,
BOLT a

or wandering mercenaries. Combat receives detailed rules, and there are relatively few
mechanics for relationships or narrative growth.
Can characters in BOLT exchange flirtatious quips while crossing swords on a
pirate ship? Absolutely. But BOLT doesn’t have consistent, thought-out, and engaging
mechanics for flirting, so players are recommended to use (or import rules from) another
game.
Action is Fast, Not Realistic

BOLT p rioritizes fast resolution over being true-to-life: the system plays on the
same wavelength as heist films, John Wick movies, and run-and-gun video games like
Max Payne and Control. This is why in combat, characters are capped at one die roll
per Turn, why many enemies drop in one hit, and why weapons deal static Damage.
As a result, many mechanics, like weapon Qualities or certain Feats, are tied to
flat values or Perks and Complications. Even if rolling more dice would be more
accurate, using flat values or checking dice that have already been rolled is simply
faster to resolve.
This speed is most noticeable when playing BOLT in a play-by-post format
(which, incidentally, was how this game was first playtested). In play-by-post games,
rolling and reading dice is a frequent bottleneck, and BOLT’s speed helps reduce the
friction of playing an otherwise-slow format of role-playing.
The exception to this assumption is the health system because...
Taking Damage Should Be Scary

Characters in BOLT will not achieve the blown-out power curve of Dungeons &
Dragons characters, neither in dealing damage nor in taking damage. Maximum hit
points (also known as Vitality in this engine) is increased slowly and at a high XP cost.
Armor reduces incoming damage instead of making characters harder to hit, and even
basic weapons can bring down a player’s character with a good hit or two.
Additionally, healing in BOLT is deliberately limited. My idea is to make combat
quick and engaging but to make the consequences of violence bite enough that players
are encouraged to find devious strategies when they can and retreat when they must.
As a corollary, combat encounters are designed so that a mix of strategy,
surprise, and luck will allow characters to clear an Encounter without taking any
Damage.

Every Skill is Useful
A frustration I have with many RPGs is that some skills are nearly useless,
especially skills not used in combat or brazen sweet-talking. As a result, there are
scenes where players may find their character useless—the perennial example being
the mercenary staring, bored, during a social scene. For BOLT, I try to make sure that
every Skill is useful, that every character starts with a broad set of Skills (including
Knowledge Skills), and that not every class has an immediate combat focus. This isn’t a
wargame, after all.
Similarly, I didn’t want mages and hackers (in settings that allow for mages and
hackers) to skate by purely on the one ability that they use for spellcasting. As a result,
magic ability trees in BOLT all use different Skills that require separate investment, and
the example Magic Tree detailed in the Core Rules encourages investment in Skills
outside of magic.
Breaking the Game Isn’t Bad

The ruleset of BOLT doesn’t particularly care about game balance—a trained
soldier in BOLT will inevitably be more dangerous in combat than a scholar with no
martial training, and this is by design. Instead, the rules are built around giving all
characters options that allow them to be useful. As long as all characters at the table
are receiving their share of glory, the question of “game balance” is moot. As a result,
many abilities (and ability combos) are simply game-breaking, because I see breaking
the game in spectacular ways to be part of the fun.
Inventory Management Isn’t The Focus

A common theme of shoddy heartbreaker games (as reviewed by the System
Mastery podcast) is that many of them have mechanics lovingly crafted from a font of
nerdy enthusiasm next to mechanics that were hand-waved because the writer didn’t
care enough to flesh them out.
This game engine is no different. I personally am uninterested in inventory
management and money-tracking, so I have abstracted inventory and money rules and
slimmed down the diversity of items. For example, there is one stat block for a shotgun.
For 90% of cases, differentiation by description and presentation should be fine.
At some point, I may write survival rules, and they will come with rules, Skills,
and Feats for inventory, encumbrance, travel, and wilderness survival. Or maybe I will
pay someone who cares more to write them instead.

Opponents Play By Similar Rules
My major complaint with many story-based games is that adversaries do not play
by the rules of player characters, because on a personal level, I like encounters where
the opponents are A Good Bit Like the player’s characters. In particular, the core
combat of BOLT assumes humanoid characters fighting other humanoid characters, in
small groups, in relatively close quarters.
Opponents will have varying levels of durability, and I’ve added rules to simplify
opposed checks, but otherwise, opposing NPCs act Just Like You--another person with
weapons and a temper.
If the Game Master does not like rolling dice, they will probably not like BOLT.
The Game Master is Comfortable in Their Role

In my experience with tabletop role-playing games, I almost always take the role
of Game Master—I like building worlds, scenarios, encounters, and a suite of supporting
characters. At this point, I’m more comfortable as a Game Master than as a player, and
this is reflected in BOLT, which assumes that a powerful Game Master is operating a
complicated world and providing encounters that are interesting and at least somewhat
adversarial.
Additionally, the Game Master section of BOLT is extremely limited in its scope,
detailing only how Game Masters may need to adjust their game style to account for
quirks in the BOLT system. I personally rarely read Game Master sections, because I
typically know how the table (including myself) wants a game to run, and I can pick up
quirks to account for by reading the core system.
If you want to play BOLT but need more help in structuring a game, consider
pulling resources from the games Aether by Eldritch Crow and Tide Breaker by Nick
Butler. Their advice is better than anything I could offer you.
An Honest List of Alternatives

BOLT is built to my tastes and influences. This game might not be for you, and
that’s honestly fine. Luckily, there are other very good options for RPGs to play, and
game systems to build off. Since you’re reading this paragraph, you’ve already paid for
this product, so I might as well give you alternatives.
The biggest mechanical influences to BOLT are, in particular, Cyberpunk 2020
and Genesys, with a few nods to Powered by the Apocalypse games like Masks and

Pasión de las Pasiones. In terms of tone, I try to talk about BOLT in the same way Fate
talks about itself.
If you just want to play Dungeons & Dragons:
● Play D&D. I’m not your dad. I can’t stop you.
● Consider Quest by the Adventure Guild. It’s built towards the same tenor
of fantasy hijinks, but with simpler, better-considered rules and less
baggage from decades of racism, sexism, abuse, and predatory business
practices.
● For a more D&D- like experience, consider Fantasy AGE by Green Ronin
Publishing. The AGE system hews more closely to the verbs and priorities
of Dungeons & Dragons, but it replaces the d20 resolution system with a
much tighter and more engaging 3d6 + stunts system, in which characters
farm a resource called stunt points (SP) at a rather rapid clip, which they
can use to activate quick abilities in the manner of MOBA-style cooldowns
or the ATB system in many Final Fantasy games.
If you wanted a game with more mechanical crunch:
● Consider the R. Talsorian d10 games, like Cyberpunk 2020, Cyberpunk
RED, a nd The Witcher TPRG. R. Talsorian also sells a setting-agnostic
version of their d10 ruleset called Fuzion. The ethos for combat in BOLT is
adapted shamelessly from Cyberpunk 2020; I just made the rules a lot
more streamlined.
○ As an aside, I’d be very interested if someone tried to merge the
Friday Night Firefight combat engine with BOLT…
● For more vehicle-centric games, consider both Lancer by Massif Press
and Flying Circus by Erika Chappell. Both of these games have a
deliberate, well-considered approach to crunch that I admire and draw
influence from.
● I have also heard that GURPS by Steve Jackson is crunchy.
If you wanted a game with more story mechanics:
● Genesys by Fantasy Flight Games is a core influence of BOLT. The dice
system in Genesys t urns every roll into a small ritual, and if you like it, it’s
an irreplaceable mechanic.
● Fate Core and Fate Accelerated by Evil Hat Games are story-centric
setting-agnostic game systems that, like BOLT, aspire to speed in
gameplay. They also provide hacking resources at a level of detail I’m
trying to match in this document.
○ If you’re reading BOLT t o find a fast RPG experience, but are
entirely annoyed by the game itself, Fate would be my first
recommendation.

● The Cortex, Cortex Plus, and Cortex Prime system by Margaret Weis
Publishing is an intriguing dice-pool game that is so modular that there is
no canonical set of statistics, approaches, or stress tracks. It has the
story-centric aspirations as Fate, but with more mechanical detail.
● Powered by the Apocalypse games are popular for a reason—there are
few better frameworks for tightly orchestrating tone and narrative structure
than the Playbook-Move format of PbtA games. If you want to replicate a
genre of movie or TV show, look for a PbtA game like Masks,
Monsterhearts, Thirsty Sword Lesbians, Pasión de las Pasiones, o r
Monster of the Week. Note, however, that there is no “generic” PbtA
engine, nor should there be. There is simply a common language of
moves, playbooks, currencies, and consequences that is tailored for each
game.
● Belonging Outside Belonging / No Dice, No Masters games take the
narrative structure of PbtA games even further, replacing dice with a token
economy and greatly shrinking the role of a GM. The framework started
with the sibling-games Dream Askew and Dream Apart b y Avery Alder
and Benjamin Rosenbaum respectively, but it’s been developed further
with games like Sleepaway, Wanderhome, and Capitalites. Note that
Belonging Outside Belonging (BoB) and No Dice, No Masters (NDNM)
refer to slightly different concepts. The NDNM framework focuses on the
mechanical structure of token passing, and the BoB framework focuses on
how each game uses narrative constraints on players’ characters to direct
gameplay towards stories about finding community among a marginalized
population.
The Core
At its core, BOLT is a skill-based d10+d4 game with a GM and 2-5 players, with
the following cadence:
1) The Game Master sets the scene, providing relevant information and only
gatekeeping information based on characters’ passive Vigilance attribute.
2) Players suggest actions that their characters can take.
3) The Game Master sets a Difficulty and suggests Skills the player
characters should use. That Difficulty should rarely be hidden from
players.
4) The player rolls Core Dice and an auxiliary d4, adding their character’s
ranks in the relevant Skill and their character’s ranks in the Core Attribute
associated with that Skill to the result of the Core Dice.

a) The Core Dice is usually a single d10.
b) The auxiliary d4 is assessed in Step 6.
5) If the result of the Core Dice+Core Attribute+Skill is equal to or greater
than the value of the Difficulty, the player’s character succeeds at their
task. Otherwise, their character fails in a narratively interesting way.
a) Ties always go to players.
6) The player then assesses the value of the auxiliary d4.
a) If the auxiliary d4 returns a 4, the player receives a Perk to spend
on that roll. If the auxiliary d4 returns a 1, the player receives a
Complication to consider on that roll.
b) A 2 or 3 on the auxiliary d4 typically does nothing. Certain abilities
and items may change that, but that will be listed with that ability or
item.
Rounding
Unless specified otherwise, any calculation involving non-integer math should
default to rounding down.
Difficulty Benchmarks
Skill checks are—in effect—a means of resolving an action when it is unclear
whether it succeeds. The Difficulty is a target number that reflects how likely Success
is, given a baseline level of ability. Skill checks should not be expected for actions
where:
● The Game Master doesn’t know what a Success would look like
● The Game Master doesn’t know what a Failure would look like
● The action is a routine task
● The action can be attempted repeatedly without repercussions
Nothing slows down gameplay like rolling to pick a trivial lock over and over
again, and little demeans a player like rolling a Failure on pouring tea. Additionally,
there is no skill for deductive reasoning. The player should not rely on dice to solve
mysteries for them; they should pay attention, take notes, and solve mysteries
organically. Don’t roll to ruminate, actually ruminate.
The below values are a reference for assessing the absolute Difficulty of a task.
GMs should be up-front about the Difficulty of tasks. A character should know if a
task is out of their scale, or if they need help from an ally.
Difficulty Scale

6-7 Notable Challenge
8-9 Significant Challenge
10-11 Major Challenge
12-13 Monumental Challenge
14+ The Kind of Challenge Songs Are Written

About
The below is recommended Difficulties for characters with the listed bonus (Core
Attribute + Skill ranks) to a Skill. These recommended Difficulties return a 50/50 chance
of Success. To represent a comparatively easy task, reduce the difficulty by 2. To
represent a comparatively difficult task, increase the difficulty by 2.
Note that ±2 is a significant change in difficulty, shifting the probability of
Success by 20% in the chosen direction.
Bonus to Roll +2 +3 +4 +5 +6 +7 +8
Recommended Difficulty 6 7 8 9 10 11 12
Some Skill checks suggest contested rolls against the Skills of an opposing
character. Those suggested Skills are guidelines, although it is recommended that the
opponents’ attributes reflect the Difficulty of incoming skill checks.
A potential approach to NPC design is to set the Difficulty of Skill checks
opposed by the NPC first, then retroactively set up attributes that reflect the chosen
Difficulty of checks.
Perks and Complications

A Perk is a welcome bonus on a Success or a “consolation prize” on a Failure.
Perhaps that Perk allows for an action to be done with an extra margin for error.
When in doubt, a Perk can be used to Pull Forward the character’s (or ally’s) next
Skill or Defensive Skill check
A Complication is a challenging consequence on a Success, or a means of
raising the stakes yet further on a Failure. A Success with a Complication suggests your
character must sacrifice speed or stealth, or only manage the action for a limited time,
or will face some other increase of tension. A Failure with a Complication suggests that
things really get bad. Typically, a character should only get really hurt if they receive a
Failure and a Complication.

When in doubt, a Complication can be used to Set Back the character's (or an
ally’s) next Skill or Defensive Skill check. Perks and Complications are typically spent
on the same roll they are received.
<sidebar>
The Perk and Complication system in BOLT draws influence from the two-axis
resolution system of Genesys by Fantasy Flight Games, as well as the earlier Star
Wars: Edge of the Empire RPG of the same core ruleset. Genesys considered
Advantages and Threats (as well as Success) in degrees, making every roll complex to
interpret and role-play. By simplifying the two-axis resolution to up-or-down results,
BOLT replicates the capacity for Genesys to provide interesting mixed results while
dramatically speeding up the core resolution.
</sidebar>
Advantages and Disadvantages

Like many RPGs, the BOLT system has a mechanic for adding advantages or
disadvantages to skill checks. Because I personally don’t like tracking temporary static
bonuses, BOLT by default has the player replace their d10 with a different die (or dice).
Character bonuses and the auxiliary d4 remain unchanged.
In testing, however, some players voiced a preference for temporary static
bonuses over changing dice—and if that’s you, I won’t stop you. An optional ruleset for
Advantages and Disadvantages based on static bonuses is provided in the below table.
This optional ruleset will slightly alter the distribution of roll results—advantages will
more consistently return high rolls, and disadvantages will allow for much lower rolls,
relative to the default rules. With these alternate rules, BOLT only uses d10s and d4s in
gameplay.
If a roll is Pulled Forward, the player uses a larger die than a d10, to represent a
temporary advantage their character receives. If the roll is Pulled Forward three or more
times, the player simply uses a Superior Roll.
Skill or Defensive Skill checks should be Pulled Forward if:
● The character is being helped in their actions
● The character receives an advantage from the environment, like fighting
from the high ground
● The character makes use of a special piece of equipment
● The player or Game Master thinks, “This should reduce the Difficulty of the
next check by 1 or 2

If a roll is Set Back, the player uses a smaller die than a d10, to represent a
temporary disadvantage their character receives. If the roll is Set Back three or more
times, the check fails automatically.
Skill or Defensive Skill checks should be Set Back if:
● The character is being hindered in their actions
● The character receives a disadvantage from the environment, like trying to
start a fire in driving rain
● The character is making do without an important piece of equipment
● The player or Game Master thinks, “This should increase the Difficulty of
the next check by 1 or 2”
Pulling Forward and Setting Back checks can cancel each other out. For
example, if a check is Pulled Forward twice and Set Back once, on net, the check will
be Pulled Forward once.
Advantage/Disadvantage Names Default roll Alternate roll
A Superior Roll Pulled Forward d8+d6 base + d4 d10 base + 2 + d4

Twice auxiliary auxiliary
An Improved Roll Pulled Forward d12 base + d4 d10 base + 1 + d4

Once auxiliary auxiliary
A Basic Roll d10 base + d4 d10 base + d4

auxiliary auxiliary
A Threatened Roll Set Back Once d8 base + d4 d10 base - 1 + d4

auxiliary auxiliary
A Hindered Roll Set Back Twice d6 base + d4 d10 base - 2 + d4

auxiliary auxiliary
Contested Rolls - Two Approaches

Some Skill checks suggest rolling against a Skill of another character. There are
two approaches to this that a GM could take for setting Difficulty, depending on how
much bookkeeping the GM wishes to apply to a given opponent character.
Static Difficulties (Low-Stakes)

The first approach is to set a static Difficulty for the opposing character using the
higher of:
● 6 + the opponent’s ranks in the Skill in question

● 6 + the opponent’s ranks Core Attribute associated with the Skill in
question
For example, if a player rolls to Coerce vs. the Resist (Mental) of a non-player
character, the difficulty of the check would be 6+WILL of the NPC, or 6+the NPC’s ranks
in Resist (Mental). This mirrors calculations for Defense and Vigilance, which is
intentional.
This method is better for low-stakes interactions and characters, like for
non-encounter checks and for Goon- or Face-level NPCs, because player characters
will interact with many NPCs, of whom many will never receive even a stat block. Telling
the players the Difficulty to Persuade is 6 + some number between 0 and 5 is easier for
bookkeeping.
Contested Rolls (High-Stakes)

Another approach is to have the opponent roll a defensive skill check. Whichever
character has the higher roll wins. However, ties should always go to the player.
This method is better for high-stakes characters and high-stakes situations.
Heel-level NPCs are functionally identical to player characters, so if a player character
would roll to defend, the Heel should, too. Similarly, in combat, it’s important that
defensive checks are rolled: If a grenade is thrown at a bunch of random thugs, they
should all roll to see who ducks out of the way and who gets caught.
If the opposing skill check is between player characters, then let ties be handled
narratively.
Resolving Ties
Ties should always go to the players because failing on a tied roll is not fun to
players. If the tie is between two player characters making opposed skill checks, it is
recommended to handle the tie narratively. If two players are making opposed skill
checks against each other, then there are already enough narrative threads to role-play
what ties look like.
Spending Tenacity to Improve Rolls

All characters have a derived attribute called Tenacity, which is a proxy for one’s
capacity to endure stress over time. If a player’s roll on a skill check is below the
Difficulty threshold for Success, then the player can spend Tenacity to improve their roll.
Every 1 Tenacity spent increases the roll by 1. This spending of Tenacity could
represent a character pushing themselves beyond their limits to make something
happen, or sacrificing all their strength for one pivotal action.

Game Masters should encourage players to use this mechanic to “fudge” rolls,
which adds a risk-reward dynamic to failed rolls, because running out of Tenacity has
severe consequences (see Losing It).
Let’s look at an example of gameplay:

Game Master: The bar goes silent when Revathi enters—somehow even the
music stops. And everyone’ s l ooking at her at this moment. What’s Revathi’s Vigilance,
again?
Player: Her Vigilance is 8.
GM: Then you can see your mark, Two-Ring Raj, way in the back, trying to hide
in plain sight and clearly failing.
Player [As Revathi Singh]: “Hey, Two-Bit Chump! I see that smug face of
yours! Come out and face me so I can break your nose again!”
GM: That sounds like you’re trying to trash-talk him into facing you. Do you want
to make a Goad/Command roll for that?
Player: You know what? Bring it!
GM: The Difficulty for that is 8.
Player: Eight?
GM: Well, he remembers the last time Revathi beat him up...
Player: That’s a tall order for her, but...screw it, let’s commit to the bit!
[d10+CHA+Goad/Command = d10+1+0]
[d10+1 = 6+1 = 7]
[d4 = 1]
GM: That looks like a Failure with a Complication. Do you want to burn 1
Tenacity to make that a Success?
Player: Burn, baby burn.
GM: So that’s a Success, then! Do you have an idea for the Complication?
Player: Well, I seriously doubt Two-Ring Raj would show up anywhere without
backup...
Helping Allies and Hindering Opponents

Adventuring is a group effort (hopefully), so players are encouraged to have
characters interact with each other—both for aid and sabotage.
A target is the recipient of some action a character takes—for good or ill. The
target can be an ally or an opponent. For the purposes of the BOLT Core Rules, both
players and characters can be targets, allies, or opponents.

The player can elect to have their character help or hinder a target without a Skill
check. This will Pull Forward or Set Back (player’s choice) the target’s next Skill check
once. However, if a target receiving help rolls a Complication, or if a target being
hindered rolls a Perk, the consequences of that Perk or Complication fall onto the
character providing help or hindering.
<Sidebar> Luck Tokens (Optional)

One thing I like about the Genesys s ystem is that it involves a mechanic
specifically for invoking deus ex machinas, both favorable and unfavorable to the player
characters. (The Cortex engine has a similar concept in Plot Points.) And because
BOLT is really just a patchwork of game design tropes I happen to like, BOLT has a
echanic for introducing story beats that would annoy Cinema Sins.
similar optional m
In BOLT, players and the GM may pass around Luck Tokens as an optional
mechanic. A player can invoke a Luck Token to induce some lucky break for their
character or party. Perhaps the unarmed player character, backed up to a wall, finds her
hand land on the pistol of a dead guard. A Game Master can invoke a Luck Token to
force difficult decisions or raise the stakes of a situation. Perhaps the pistol the player
character picked up only has one bullet left.
Potential player uses for Luck Tokens include:
● Invoking items that players conveniently had this whole time—or found in
a stroke of luck
● Invoking plans or environmental details that the party had planned for in
advance
● Invoking convenient ingress points or escape routes
● Invoking a positive relationship between a player’s character and an NPC
Potential GM uses for Luck Tokens include:
● Invoking flaws to key items, like a limitation to the number of uses for an
otherwise-dependable item
● Invoking environmental details that the party had not planned for in
advance
● Blocking expected ingress points or escape routes
● Invoking a negative relationship between a player’s character and an NPC
Luck Tokens should generally not be used to simply make rolls easier or harder.
Players can spend Tenacity to make checks “easier,” and Game Masters can simply
increase the Difficulty of checks to make checks harder.
This optional system works well for games and settings where luck as a concept
is a strong theme, or where somewhat-contrived plot points are part of the appeal. Luck
Tokens can also be used in games surrounding heists, where the Luck Tokens can be

reframed as a way to call back to a planning stage without requiring players to literally
plan out every aspect of a heist beforehand.
In games with Luck Tokens, a Scene should start with three Luck Tokens: two for
the players, one for the GM. In a game that cares more about the will of fate, like a
mythic fantasy game or a game in a faraway galaxy, a Scene could start with more Luck
Tokens to signify a world where fortunes swing more wildly than they would in a more
mundane world.
</sidebar>
Core Attributes and Skills

Characters are largely defined by four sets of values:
● Core Attribute: Static values that some role-playing games would refer to
as “statistics,” which play into a group of Skills.
○ Core Attributes typically range from -2 to 5, although core gameplay
is balanced around characters having Core Attributes between 0
and 3. Outside this range, mechanics start to break, which I
consider part of the power fantasy of BOLT.
● Skills: Values tied to the character’s proficiency at a particular action.
Characters typically do something that prompts a Skill check from the
player. Each Skill is tied to a verb or two, with perhaps a parenthetical
clarification.
○ Skills can range from 0 ranks (no experience) to 5 ranks (master
experience).
● Defensive Skills: Values tied to the character’s proficiency at particular
reactions. Unlike standard Skills, the player never elects to roll a
Defensive Skill—instead, some external circumstance forces the player to
roll a Defensive Skill in response. Each Skill is tied to a verb or two, with
perhaps a parenthetical clarification.
○ Defensive can range from 0 ranks (no experience) to 5 ranks
(master experience).
● Derived Attributes: Values derived from Core Attributes that are not
Skills. The BOLT Core Rules has four Derived Attributes: Defense,
Tenacity, Vigilance, and Vitality.
To roll for a Skill or Defensive Skill, the player rolls a Core Die (likely a d10), then
adds their character’s ranks in the relevant Skill plus their character’s value in the
related Core Attribute.
Some abilities, Feats, and mechanics call for a character’s ranks in a particular
Skill. For those abilities, do not consider your character’s value in the related Attribute.

Core Attribute Skills — Defensive Skills — Derived Attributes
Fortitude Resist (Physical)

(FORT) Vitality
Apply Force
Strike (Unarmed)
Strike (Weapon)
Throw (Weapon)
Run/Leap
Swim
Reflex (REF) Dodge

Defense
Shoot (Missile)
Shoot (Ordnance)
Balance/Tumble
Sneak/Hide
Drive/Pilot/Ride
Knowledge Utilize (Aether)

(KNOW) Utilize (Electronics)
Utilize (Mechanics)
Utilize (Medicine)
Utilize (Profession)
Recall (History)
Recall (Religion)
Recall (Politics)
Recall (Law)
Recall (Interest)
Speak/Read (Language)
Acuity (ACU) Notice

Vigilance
Navigate (Wilderness)
Navigate (Underworld)
Jury-Rig
Read Person
Cheat/Steal
Willpower Resist (Mental)

(WILL) Endure
Tenacity
Coerce
Search

Charisma Resist (Social)
(CHA) Charm
Bluff
Persuade
Goad/Command
Recall (People)
Multiple Core Wield (Magic)

Attributes
Core Attributes
Core Attributes are underlying aspects of a character that draw broad strokes
about their capacities and (relative) weaknesses. A player should never need to roll for
a Core Attribute alone, but a Core Attribute will bolster every Skill check, even for Skills
a character has no ranks in.
Fortitude
Fortitude is an approximate metric for a character’s physical conditioning and
strength. A character with high Fortitude has a high level of general physical fitness
relevant for feats of athleticism and endurance.
If a player wants to:
● Have high Vitality
● Describe heroic stunts
● Excel in melee combat
● Literally kick ass
They should invest in Fortitude and Fortitude Skills.
Reflex
Reflex is an approximate metric for a character’s agility and hand-eye
coordination. A character with high Reflex has a high level of bodily grace relevant for
feats of rapid, precise movement and evasion.
● Have high Defense
● Describe acrobatic movements
● Excel in ranged combat
● Excel in fast driving or flying
● Strike from the shadows and/or high ground
They should invest in Reflex and Reflex Skills.

Knowledge
Knowledge is an approximate metric for a character’s capacity to recall and
utilize specialized information. That Knowledge can come from any combination of
training, education, and personal effort. A character with high Knowledge has access to
a large body of information, which the player can use to draw out details of the world.
It is recommended that Knowledge skills be used as a means of creating
information about a world, as opposed to drawing information out of a Game Master.
This:
● Allows Game Masters to prepare less about the minutiae of the world
● Gives players agency in worldbuilding
● Makes Knowledge skills much useful than equivalent skills in other RPGs
BOLT aims to make Knowledge skills more useful to every character, as
opposed to other rules-heavy RPGs in which having high Knowledge or Intelligence is
only useful to medics, hackers, and mages.
● Be a healer, hacker, crafter, or tech
● Take greater agency over worldbuilding
They should invest in Knowledge and Knowledge skills.
Acuity
Acuity is an approximate metric for a character’s situational awareness, quick
thinking, and “street smarts.” A character with high Acuity has quick thinking and sharp
eyes, and they can draw a great deal of information under severe pressure.
● Have high Vigilance
● Draw as much information as possible from the Game Master
● Have a plan for everything
● Solve mysteries and execute heists
They should invest in Acuity and Acuity Skills.
Willpower
Willpower is an approximate metric for a character’s nerve, patience, and
attention to detail. A character with high Willpower has high mental strength relevant to
coercing opponents, standing up to immense pressure, and leaving no stone unturned
● Have high Tenacity
● Roll well on Endure checks

● Barrel into impossible checks and use Tenacity to soak up potential
failures
They should invest in Willpower and Willpower Skills.
Charisma
Willpower is an approximate metric for a character’s force of personality and
social grace. A character with high Charisma is at home in social situations and can use
their way with words and people to negotiate a deal, rile up a crowd, or dampen an
opponent’s spirits.
● Lay down engaging jabs and one-liners
● Excel at social Skill checks
● Talk their way through problems
● Engage in games of politics
They should invest in Charisma and Charisma Skills.
Derived Attributes
Vitality: 8+FORT. The amount of physical damage that a character can sustain
while retaining the capacity to fight. If a character’s Vitality is reduced to 0, the player
must roll to Endure. See Health and Healing. Vitality can be increased further by
spending XP. See Advancement or Spending XP.
Defense: 6+REF. A character’s capacity to evade attacks, both melee and
ranged. Admittedly, one cannot literally dodge arrows and bullets (usually), but they can
duck and dodge enough to frustrate attempts to aim. Defense can be increased further
by spending XP. See Advancement or Spending XP.
Vigilance: 6+ACU. A character’s capacity to notice threats through the prickling
of their necks. Vigilance will not necessarily tell a player what the threat is, where it’s
coming from, or what to do--simply that something is wrong or out of place. Given more
than a few seconds, a character always notices anyone or anything hidden with a rolled
result below their Vigilance. In a situation that requires a split-second reaction from a
character, players must roll to Notice instead of relying on Vigilance. If the character is
searching high and low for a particular objective, the player should roll to Search.
Vigilance can be increased further by spending XP. See Advancement or Spending XP.
Tenacity: 8+WILL. The amount of pressure, embarrassment, and suffering a
character can endure while retaining the capacity to think. Players can spend Tenacity
to improve rolls that would otherwise fail. If a character’s Tenacity is reduced to 0, they
Lose It. See Spending Tenacity to Improve Rolls, and Health and Healing. Tenacity can
be increased further by spending XP. See Advancement or Spending XP.

Wealth: Wealth is a measure of the character’s access to money, support, and
power—it’s effectively a replacement for requiring players to track currency and simplify
buying new equipment. To see how Wealth is used, see Price.
Wealth is not tied to any attribute--it’s determined by a character’s familial wealth,
social class, and their day job. Wealth is a value between 1 and 10.
● A Wealth of 1-2 or below suggests a character is destitute: even basic
necessities are a struggle.
● A Wealth of 3-4 suggests a character is working class: they can make
ends meet, and they might even have enough to buy gifts on holidays. But
they’re not rich, and an unexpected expense (or missed paycheck) is
enough to send them spiraling.
● A Wealth of 5-6 suggests a character is quite well-off: they likely were able
to afford education and nice toys growing up.
● A Wealth of 7-8 suggests a character is fabulously wealthy, on the scale of
petty nobility or economic elites.
● A Wealth of 9-10 suggests a character is game-breakingly wealthy, the
child of emperors, billionaires, or oligarchs.
The higher a character’s Wealth, the more support they will receive, in more or
less every way. The character’s Wealth can change over the game, but it should not
change much except in extreme circumstances. People with little wealth face significant
barriers in trying to accumulate wealth, and people with a great deal of wealth often
receive significant support before they truly run the risk of losing everything.
It is suggested that players set their characters to have a Wealth between 3 and
7 and that all characters have roughly equal Wealth, but extreme levels of wealth or
poverty (or class discrepancies within a party) can make for interesting storytelling. All
players at the table should discuss how much they want money and wealth to matter in
the campaign.
<Sidebar> Optional Rule: Budget

An optional alternative to Wealth is Budget, representing support from a larger
organization. It would work similarly to Wealth, except it would apply equally to the
entire party, simplifying bookkeeping. Any consequences related to insufficient Budget
would be tied to the organization as opposed to the characters themselves.
</sidebar>

Skills That Don’t Work How You’d Expect
If you’re skimming this book (no shame), here are a few Skills that you should
take a second look through because they work differently than other Skills in important
ways.
Coerce, Persuade: For these skills, characters are expected to make a threat or
a reasonable offer, respectively. Otherwise, the GM should encourage the player to
make a different Skill check.
Jury-Rig: This is not the same as Utilize (Engineering). Jury-Rig ties into special
rules for repairing equipment in tense situations.
Notice, Read Person: On a Success, the player gets to ask the GM questions,
much like a Powered by the Apocalypse m ove. Typically, it’s two questions, maybe
three with a Success and a Perk. These questions aren’t strictly defined (I don’t want
you to keep flipping to the Skill list for every Notice and Read Person roll), but there are
suggestions next to these Skills.
Recall: This set of Skills is a tool for players to do worldbuilding outside of the
GM’s purview. Extracting information out of the GM is recommended through Skills like
Read Person and Search, the Vigilance Attribute, and old-fashioned dialogue.
Search: Finding the target isn’t the point of the roll—it’s a check of search speed,
and of how much of a mess the character makes.
Shoot, Strike, Throw: These combat Skills are the only ones where, on a
Failure, the table really can say, “nothing happens.” The consequence of failing a
combat check is that whoever the character was attacking gets another chance to fight
back. For more on combat Skills, see Combat Skill Checks
Speak/Read: This set of Skills don’t require rolling and don’t strictly scale with
Knowledge; I just listed them as a Knowledge Skill.
Defensive Skills
Defensive Skills are not skills that players voluntarily roll. Instead, the Game
Master generally invokes Defensive Skill rolls in response to an outside situation—a
poisoned drink, a lobbed grenade, a gaze into the abyss.
Resist (Physical) (FORT): Resist succumbing to being pushed, buffeted,

drowned, poisoned, and so on. A Failure with a Perk suggests that the character buys
enough time to call for help before succumbing, or that they partially give in to
someone’s demands.

Dodge (REF): Evade an incoming physical threat with sharp reflexes. A Failure
with a Perk suggests that the character avoids the brunt of the coming threat.
Notice (ACU): Assess an incoming situation very quickly. On a Success, the
player asks two questions about how best to address the incoming situation. On a
Success and a Perk, the player may ask three questions. With a Complication, the
character may be at a disadvantage to act on gathered information or get information
they wouldn’t want to hear.
Example questions include:
● What is the greatest threat right now?
● What’s the best escape route?
● What’s the best place to hide or take cover?
● What could I best exploit to do [x]?
● How could I best protect [x]?
On a Failure, the character may be caught unaware.
Resist (Mental) (WILL): Resist succumbing to fear, emotional shock, and so on.
A Failure with a Perk suggests the character has enough wherewithal to call for help
before succumbing, or that they only partially give in to someone’s demands.
Resist (Social) (CHA): Resist succumbing to insults, embarrassments, attacks
on one’s propriety, and so on. A Failure with a Perk suggests the character has enough
wherewithal to exit the scene before succumbing, or that they only partially give in to
someone’s demands.

GM: Draš, you get about halfway down the alleyway before the Child shouts,
“Look!” while pointing behind you.
Player: What do I see behind me?
GM: You see two bandits, who seem to have materialized out of the shadows.
And when you look forward again, two more bandits stand in front of you. Everyone’s
carrying these rusty-looking knives, and you’re surrounded.
Player: This is when I roll to Notice, right?
GM: Correct, at Difficulty 9. Keep in mind, you’re only rolling because this is a
split-second thing; otherwise, I’d be looking at your Vigilance alone.
[d10+ACU+Notice = d10+1+2]
[d10+3 = 2+3 = 5]
[d4 = 1]
Player: I’m burning 4 Tenacity, protecting the kid is worth it!
GM: You get two questions.
Player: First: How do I protect the kid? Second: How do I get out of here?

GM: How to get out? Run. Bowl over one of the bandits, get somewhere in bright
light. If you’re loud and in public, the bandits won't bother trying to follow. As for the
Child? Honestly, you should just pick them up and run, Draš’s a faster runner than
them.
Player: Okay, out of character, is the kid actually in trouble? I know I put
Violence Against Children as a Line...
GM: Out of character? The Child won’t get hurt—just Draš.
Player: Good to know. I’m still blanking on a Complication, though...
GM: I got an idea—protecting the Child is going to be made difficult because
their hood has fallen away. These bandits now know Draš is harboring a Child of
Rakshasa, and the bounty for such people is far higher than anything they could get
from mugging Draš.
Player: That could be a reason the bandits won’t hurt the kid.
GM: Yeah! The Child is wanted unharmed. Draš? Not so much.
Fortitude Skills
Apply Force: Perform a feat of strength that requires one to lift, carry, push, pull,
and so on. Failure with a Complication suggests that someone gets hurt in the process.
Strike (Unarmed): Attack with one’s body. See Combat Skill Checks.
Strike (Weapon): Attack with melee weapons. Can be split into multiple skills,
like Strike (Light) and Strike (Heavy), depending on the setting. Strike (Light/Nimble)
can be considered a Reflex skill, depending on the setting. See Combat Skill Checks.
Throw (Weapon): Attack with thrown weapons. Can be split into multiple skills,
like Throw (Light) and Throw (Heavy), depending on the setting. Throw (Light) can be
considered a Reflex skill, depending on the setting. See Combat Skill Checks.
Run/Leap: Perform an athletic feat that requires physical conditioning. Failure
with a Complication suggests that the character is totally outclassed—or falls from a
great height.
Swim: Navigate water in difficult currents. Failure with a Complication suggests
that the character is totally outclassed—or risks drowning.
Reflex Skills
Shoot (Missiles): Attack with ranged weapons. Can be split into multiple skills,
like Shoot (Light) and Shoot (Heavy), depending on the setting. See Combat Skill
Checks.
Shoot (Ordnance): Attack with mounted weapons, whether for wartime artillery

or vehicle-to-vehicle combat. See Vehicles.
Balance/Tumble: Perform an athletic feat that requires acrobatics or
coordination. A Failure with a Complication suggests that the character is totally
outclassed--or falls from a great height.
Sneak/Hide: Hide oneself or an item from detection. The player rolls against the
Vigilance of opponents. A Failure with a Perk suggests that the character is found, but
the pursuers either don't know it's the character, don't know where exactly the character
is, or don't know how to get to them.
Drive/Pilot/Ride: Drive a vehicle or mount at speed and under pressure. A
Complication may suggest that the character’s vehicle takes damage.
Knowledge Skills
Utilize (Aether): Applies to the study, implementation, and operation of magic
items.
Utilize (Electronics): Applies to the fabrication, repair, and advanced operations
of devices like phones, radios, remote detonators, and early computers.
Utilize (Mechanics): Applies to the fabrication, repair, and advanced operations
of mechanical systems like cars, guns, and industrial automata.
Utilize (Medicine): Applies to the diagnosis and management of wounds, and
the synthesis of poisons.
Utilize (Profession): Applies to a skilled profession one could get paid for.
Utilize skills work similarly, but across different disciplines. Players roll to Utilize
when their character must do something with a specialized skill set. A Failure may
suggest the character is at a temporary loss, or needs a resource they do not have. A
Failure with a Complication suggests that things get worse: patients bleed out,
machines explode, devices fail.
Depending on the nature of the Profession, this Utilize Skill can be applied to
other attributes, for example, FORT for physical labor or CHA for entertainment.
Recall (History): Applies to the history of the world, from several decades ago to
several centuries ago.
Recall (Religion): Applies to religious practice and mythology, as well as
interaction with gods.
Recall (Politics): Applies to power structures and political alignments on the
personal and factional levels.
Recall (Law): Applies to theory and practice of civil and criminal law.
Recall (Interest): Applies to a body of information that isn't common to the
general public. Depending on the nature of an Interest, the Skill can be applied to other
attributes, for example, FORT or REF for partaking in a sport or ACU for gambling.

<sidebar>
BOLT insists on niche Skills because of influence from both Cyberpunk 2020 by
Mike Pondsmith and Troika! by Daniel Sell. Both of these games deliberately call out
situational abilities as a means of differentiating characters and providing gratifying
utility at key moments.
</sidebar>
Recall skills work similarly, but across different disciplines. The player rolls the
Recall Skill to build details of the world with input from the table as t heir character
recalls or researches specialized information.
On a Success, the player, with input from the rest of the table, builds incidental
details of the world—details that would be impractical to recall from a sourcebook.
Excepting vetoes from others at the table, these details are deemed to be true
information that the player’s character knows.
On a Failure, the player might build incidental details—or invoke details the table
can twist in a manner that the player’s character would be unaware of.
Perks and Complications in Recall checks can be used to draw mechanical
effects from worldbuilding—perhaps a useful lead, or perhaps a crucial missing link.
<sidebar>
This reframing of Knowledge Skills as a means for players to worldbuild is
influenced by the “anti-canon” ethos of Mnemonic by Dee Pennyway. The lore of
Mnemonic is deliberately obscured in order to encourage players to do their own
worldbuilding atop the scaffolding provided by the game itself, and I found that a useful
way to approach worldbuilding even in less abstract settings.
</sidebar>
Speak/Read (Language): Language is a passive Skill that does not require a

roll.
At 0 ranks of a language, the character doesn't know the language.
At 1 rank, the character knows basic words and phrases, and can recognize the
language when spoken or written.
At 2 ranks, the character can speak and read at a stumbling pace, enough to
read maps or buy and sell goods.
At 3 ranks, the character can speak fluently but with a heavy accent, and they will
get overwhelmed by dense literature or a fast talker.
At 4 ranks, the character can speak and read like a native.
At 5 ranks, the character is deft enough with the language to write poetry.

Although Speak/Read is listed as a Knowledge skill, learning or using languages
is not in any way dependent on Knowledge. In practice, how many languages one
learns depends mostly on how many languages one was exposed to—especially as a
toddler.
Every character starts with +4 in at least one Native Language.

GM: Draš finds himself in a claustrophobic market in a poorer district in
Kandhana, the Child gripping his hand like their life depends on it. What do you do?
Player: Draš looks for a dhaba—the first step is finding food, I think.
GM: How many ranks does Draš have in Bharasi?
Player: Two. Should be enough to order food, right?
GM: Correct. And since the Child is fluent in Bharasi, they can help Draš order
something simple—and the place is cheap enough that even a destitute traveler c an
afford stuff.
Player: Fantastic. I order for the kid first, they need to eat more than me.
GM: The Child orders a simple mixed-dal with thin chapati, taking great pains to
keep the hood solidly over their face. Draš, however, just has a hat—and he looks
extremely not-from-here. Some ruffians find you and start, uh, hassling you. With your
knowledge of Bharasi, you pick up some of the worse words...
Player: My Vigilance is 7; do I see any weapons on them?
GM: With that Vigilance? You don’t see any weapons, but...
Player: They’ve gotta be armed. What would happen if I pull my sword on them?
GM: If you escalate like that? That’ll scare ‘em off without a Coerce check, but it’ll
also get you kicked out of the dhaba.
Player: Then I’m gonna just stay silent—what do they say?
GM: Something along the lines of “Hey, outsider, you speak Bharasi?”
Player [As Draš Kovač, in Bharasi]: “I speak the sword...better.”
Player: I have enough Bharasi for that, right?
GM: I’d say so. Trash grammar, but gets the point across.
Player: Awesome. And with that, Draš is going to shift his weight to draw
attention to his giant sword.
GM: Okay, now that’s gonna be a Coerce check…
Acuity Skills
Navigate (Wilderness): Follow tracks, find shelter, hunt for prey. A Failure
suggests a detrimental trade-off is required to achieve the character’s goal.

Navigate (Underworld): Follow leads, find hideouts, hunt for scores. A Failure
suggests a detrimental trade-off is required to achieve the character’s goal.
Jury-Rig: Fix a broken thing right now. On a Success, the character makes it
work, kind of, for now. Checks with the item are Set Back once for the rest of the
encounter, and the item breaks again after the encounter. A Success with a Perk
suggests that perhaps the item continues to work after the encounter. A Failure with a
Complication suggests that the character breaks it beyond repair.
Read Person: Catch someone’s motives and feelings. The player rolls against
the Bluff or Resist (Social) of opponents. On a Success, the player asks two questions
about the target’s emotions, body language, and motives. With a Success and a Perk,
the player can ask three questions. With a Complication, the character may receive
information they wouldn't want to hear.
● Who or what is this person most scared of right now?
● What is this person really f eeling?
● Is this person trying to get under the character’s skin?
● What does this person want from the character?
With a Failure, the player and their character will at least know if the opponent
target is about to immediately draw a weapon or run away. This skill will never
determine a statement is a direct truth or lie—that requires deduction.
Cheat/Steal: Fix a hand of poker, slip poison in a drink, snatch a wallet, pick a
lock. The player rolls against the Vigilance of opponents. On a Success, the character
gets what they want. A Failure suggests that the character’s subterfuge is found, but the
characters who notice either don't know the character, don't know what the character
did exactly, or don't know how to prove it's the character. A Failure and a Complication
suggests that the character is caught red-handed.
Willpower Skills
Coerce: Make a threat (or an allusion to a threat), and use it to make something
do or say something. The player rolls against the Resist (Mental) of opponents. On a
Success, the opponents capitulate, do the character’s bidding, or say what the
character wants to hear (not necessarily the truth). A Success with a Complication
suggests that the opponent obeys the character at a bare minimum, unless the
character follows up on their threat. A Failure suggests the character will need to follow
up on their threat to get anywhere. A Failure with a Complication suggests that the
opponent is not shaken—or just gets angry.
Alternately, on a Success, the player can elect to inflict Tenacity Damage equal
to the character’s ranks in Willpower on the target.

Players cannot roll to Coerce without at least outlining a threat, although that
threat can be made gently. If the character’s mere presence is intimidating (e.g. a sword
at a peasant’s throat), there is no need to roll to Coerce.
Endure: Remain standing through force of will. If the character Goes Down, the
player must make this check. See Going Down.
Search: Tear up a place in search of a character or item. The player names what
they are looking for and rolls Search against the Sneak/Hide of opponents. On a
Success, the character finds their target or confirms they or it is not there. A Perk
suggests the character leaves the place no worse than you found it. On a Failure, the
character runs out of time or is left with ambiguity.
Charisma Skills
Charm: Smooth-talk a powerful person or lob a particularly sharp insult. For
insults, the player rolls against the Resist (Social) of opponents. For smooth-talking, the
player rolls against the Resist (Mental) of opponents. On a Success, the character
makes friends, charms strangers, and embarrasses opponents. A Failure suggests a
frostier response or a poorly-received joke.
to the character’s ranks in Charisma on the target.
Bluff: Disregard the truth, and get away with it. The player rolls against the
Vigilance of opponents. On a Success, no one suspects the character’s subterfuge (at
least, no one voices their suspicion). On a Failure, someone gets suspicious enough to
ask some follow-up questions—or check something themselves.
Persuade: Make an argument or offer, and use it to make something do or say
something. The player rolls against the Resist (Mental) or a relevant Recall of
opponents. On a Success, the argument or offer sticks. With a Perk, the opponent may
offer their end of the bargain first. A Failure suggests the character will need to follow up
on their offer in advance to get anywhere, or provide hard proof of their argument.
If the character is playing to someone’s good side, the player should roll to
Charm. If the character is persuading a crowd or trying to goad a reaction, the player
should roll to Goad/Command. If the character’s ask is trivial (or they’re paying the
asking price), the player does not need to Persuade. If the target is beyond convincing,
the player cannot roll to change that.
Goad/Command: Incite action through force of personality. If opposed, the
player rolls against the Resist (Mental) or Resist (Social) of opponents. O n a Success,
the character may woo a crowd, light a fire among their compatriots, or get under
someone’s skin. A Success with a Complication suggests fleeting inspiration or
murmurs of dissent. On a Failure, the character’s words fall on deaf ears and bored

crowds. A Failure and a Complication suggests that the crowd turns on the character, or
the character detrimentally loses their temper.
to the character’s ranks in Charisma on the target.
Recall (People): Recall (People) is the only Recall Skill associated with
Charisma. The player picks a character whom their character isn’t familiar with to
Recall. On a Success, the player learns the character’s name, pronouns, face,
background, and the circumstances of their last interaction with the player’s character (if
applicable). On a Failure, the character recalls meeting or hearing of the targeted
character, but important details are either missing or are mere conjecture. If the
character has reason to know this person well, the player does not need to roll to
Recall.
Magic Skills
Wield (Magic): Shape types of magic (or magic implements) to the character’s
will. This Skill can be associated with any one Core Attribute. See Magic and Hacking.
Building Your Character

Ishaan trained his eyes on his target. An older man, wearing a tastelessly
swanky kurta befitting a noble. Ishaan smirked: that bastard would never think to look
out his window, across the street, and up on the roof of the neighboring parking garage.
Typical of rich assholes, thinking they’re untouchable until--
BANG!
Perfect shot, as always. Ishaan smiles wide, his teeth matching the color of his
snow-white freckles. Benachaarya would be proud.
To illustrate character creation, this book will provide an example in Ishaan Jha:
a not-very-talkative sniper in the Bloody Poets, a Svarminar gang with a revolutionary
bent. He’ll be a case study in how to put together a character in BOLT.
Step 1: Character Concept

When making a character for any RPG, it helps for players to have a vague idea
of what they want their character to be like. Players can start on a mechanical concept
(“the party needs a rogue”), on a narrative concept (“I want a character who knows half
the underworld of Svarminar”), or on some combination of both. This gives players a

scaffolding for the rest of the character creation process. Does this character decision
reflect the kind of character you’re trying to be?
After players sketch out their character concepts, they can progress to
configuring their characters’ Core Attributes, Backgrounds, Roles, and (if applicable)
Specializations. These three or four aspects of the character define where they came
from and what they do, especially within a collaborative party.
Example: Ishaan is going to be a long-range assassin, focused on (quietly)

getting to a good vantage point and taking out oligarchs from far away. We’re also going
to tie him to Benachaarya, archer of literal legend, because that just sounds rad.
Step 2: Core Attributes

Core Attributes are a good first approximation for outlining a character’s
capabilities and weaknesses. Characters have six Core Attributes:
● Fortitude (FORT)
● Reflex (REF)
● Knowledge (KNOW)
● Acuity (ACU)
● Willpower (WILL)
● Charisma (CHA),
All Core Attributes start at 1. Players receive 5 points to spend, and each point
can be used to increase any Core Attribute by 1. Players can also recover an additional
point to spend by reducing a Core Attribute by 1. The player can reduce any number of
Core Attributes to below 0 if they are interested. As an example, players can:
● Increase five attributes by 1
● Increase two attributes by 2 and a third by 1
● Increase three attributes by 1 and increase a fourth attribute by 2
● Decrease one attribute by 1 and increase three attributes by 2
There is no limit to raising Core Attributes during character creation, beyond the
recommended-but-optional cap at 5. Min-maxing is encouraged because monumental
strengths imply glaring weaknesses.
Additionally, players should select 1-3 native languages for their characters—the
language or languages each character spoke most as a child. Characters receive 4
ranks of Speak/Read in their native languages, automatically, even if the character has
low Intellect. Berserker characters should not be relegated to speaking in pidgin--unless
that’s their native language or accent, in which case players should consider why they
are speaking in a mock-pidgin language at their table.

Example: Ishaan is going to want high Reflex for shooting, high Acuity for
reading targets from a distance, and high Willpower, to give him as much Tenacity as
possible—the hope is that if Ishaan ever rolls poorly on a key shot, I can burn as much
Tenacity as I need to make that shot hit. However, Ishaan does not need to be
particularly personable. He’s the guy who shoots from far away—if he has to open his
mouth, he’s already screwed up.
So I'm going to min-max here. I’ll reduce Ishaan’s Charisma by 1, giving me 6
points to spend equally among Reflex, Acuity, and Willpower.
Therefore, Ishaan’s Core Attributes look like:
STR REF KNOW ACU WILL CHA
1 3 1 3 3 0
Let’s also give him one Native language: 4 ranks in Speak/Read (Bharasi).
Svarminar is the seat of the Bharasi Empire in 842 Third Age, and as someone who’s
culturally from the place, he’s never been expected to learn the languages of
Elsewheres.
I’ll also give Ishaan a Wealth of 4. He’s a radio repair tech by day, which pays
him pretty well, but nothing fantastic. His apartment is little more than a closet in a ratty
part of town.
<Sidebar> Power Levels

This game assumes that a Core Attribute of 1-2 is the baseline for an average
person, given that a Difficulty of 6-7 is considered “challenging if untrained.” The BOLT
RPG starts player characters at that baseline and then encourages players to make
characters that are in some way exceptional. This is partially to facilitate a power
fantasy, but also because the business of adventuring (or espionage, or special
operations, or being heroes of legend) is rather difficult. If an average person went out
of their way to slay monsters and expose corrupt cops, they would almost certainly fail
catastrophically.
If the table would like to consider how average people handle cursed dungeons,
players can budget only 3 points to spend on Core Attributes. If the table instead wants
to play a game defined by screaming for three episodes while side characters watch
from a space pod, players can budget 7-9 points to spend on Core Attributes.

Note that Core Attributes are not determined by ancestry or culture. Every culture
has its warriors, hunters, leaders, and wise ones. Even an orc can become a wizard,
because no culture is entirely spiteful of scholarship and study.
</sidebar>
Incentives
In BOLT, characters gain XP and advancement not by killing or completing
quests, but by playing to their roles through Incentives.
Incentives are yes-or-no questions that determine what the character must do to
gain XP. These will be explained further in detail in Incentives or Getting XP, but for
now, the important detail is that if the character can respond “yes” to a given Incentive,
they receive XP. (Yes, a character’s Incentives can and should change over time)
The player should pay mind to the Incentives they set for their character—the
Incentives will drive the player’s role-decisions and thus the dynamic at the table.
The XP system, notably, is balanced for characters to have three standard
Incentives and one Encounter Incentive. Increasing or decreasing the number of
Incentives a character receives will radically alter the pace at which the character
advances in their abilities.
Step 3: Background
A Background grants a character relatively minor adjustments to attributes, Skills,
and abilities, and it determines one of the character’s Incentives. A Background could
be a “race” or “species,” like elf or orc, but such practices have been quite fraught in
RPGs. Too often, fantasy races and alien species are used as proxies for different
human ethnicities and archetypes (ex. orcs as fantasy Mongolian, Black, or Indigenous
people, dwarves as fantasy Scots-Irish or Jewish people, Khajiit as fantasy Romani
people, and so on). Talking about fantasy races or sci-fi species with the same
language used to talk about human cultures can be a dangerous approach, especially if
a marginalized player has to hear all-too-familiar language used to describe a
“monstrous” or “exotic” race or species.
Thus, rather than assign mechanical implications to proxies for races and
ethnicities, the BOLT Engine suggests using a more general background to provide a
similar effect. If you want to use alien species, or cultures, or academic houses instead,
go for it, but be careful about what you imply about The Other.
As an example of Backgrounds, consider the “soul-bindings” system of my
home-game settings, Legends of Neeram and Gunfire in Svarminar, which tie
Background into a religious ritual that changes character’s appearance and demeanor,
and subtly imposes a destiny upon characters who take on the binding.

Soul-bindings are a mechanical replacement or ancestries (or “races”) in
traditional fantasy role-playing games. I personally get bored with stories about elves
and halflings and frustrated with how some ancestries (like dark elves or tieflings)
simply become person-of-color stand-ins from careless coding.
So instead of fantasy “races”, I reframed the “background” aspect of character
creation as a token of religious affiliation.
<Sidebar> The Cultural Significance of Soul-Bindings

“Soul-binding” is a religious process by which human souls are bound to a
celestial or otherwise divine entity. The term is frighteningly literal. The process of
soul-binding is permanent, and it quite literally limits a character’s free will—this is why
soul-binding is the only character option that locks an Incentive in place without the
option for a player to replace or rewrite. It is assumed that unless a character chose to
bind their soul as an act of devotion, they were subjected to this ritual as a child by their
parents as an act of their parents’ devotion.
It’s, in my estimation, very close to how a lot of Asian children (and potentially
other diaspora children) have their parents’ expectations foisted upon them as children,
only noticing the ramifications of those expectations years later, having long passed the
moment to really change who they are.
I work in climate research, and I do a lot of technical building modeling. Do I
enjoy this work because it’s who I am, or because I was encouraged to go into
engineering when I was still in elementary school?
I am a pretty prolific writer, and I have that writer’s eye for summing up thoughts
in neat, aesthetically graceful phrasing. Is that my writer’s eye, or is it my mother’s,
honed by the blog she pressured me to start in sixth grade, influenced by her own love
of writing and poetry?
The example character I provide as a demonstration, Ishaan Jha, is blessed with
incredible patience and—for all his social awkwardness—is remarkably calm even when
stressed. Is he like that because he’s Ishaan, or is he like that because his parents
bound his soul to the stars when he was five?
The reader doesn’t have to build on this specific worldbuilding for Ajey Pandey’s
home-game settings—in fact, setting writers can freely re-skin these Background
options, sidestep these admittedly fraught cultural implications, and stick to “cool, blue
skin!” But I think it’s worth explaining where I’m coming from, because character
creation (especially in the case of options like soul-bindings) are inextricably linked with
the kind of setting one writes.

</sidebar>
Unbound
An Unbound character provides no specific blessings, save for one.
Freedom.
Agency.
+1 in any Skill the player likes.
Suggested Starting Background Incentives:
Did I face a challenge with __?
Did my actions show or demonstrate __?
Did I accomplish a feat of __?
[The character can take any yes-or-no question as a Starting
Incentive.]
If the character is soul-bound, at least one of their Incentives must always be one
of the Incentives listed in their Background.
Their destiny is sealed.
Their agency is the domain of the skies.
Deva
Your character is bound to a divine entity of the sky, imbued with inner grace and
poise thanks to a connection to divine heroes from millennia ago.
Sunsoul: Soul bound to the sun. Sharp cheekbones, piercing eyes of unearthly
colors. You receive echoes of the mythic strength of Vrijasthriya, the indomitable
standard-bearer of Khajjar.
+4 Vitality
+1 in Resist (Physical)
+1 in Recall (Religion)
Background Incentives:
Did I face a threat head-on, with no hesitation?
Did I remain dauntless under extreme pressure?
Did I accomplish a great feat of strength?
Moonsoul: Soul bound to the moon. Blue-tinged skin, hair that shines like metal.
You receive echoes of the quick wits of Aprithya, the trickster-hero of Daigam.
+2 Tenacity
+2 Vitality

+1 in Resist (Social)
Did I face a threat cleverly, with an unconventional plan?
Did I remain lighthearted under extreme pressure?
Did I accomplish a great feat of wit?
Starsoul: Soul bound to the stars. Satin-like skin of black or purple, with white
freckles. You receive echoes of the steady eyes of Benachaarya, the legendary archer
of Aashera’s army.
+4 Tenacity
+1 in Resist (Mental)
Did I face a threat carefully, with delicate action?
Did I remain collected under extreme pressure?
Did I accomplish a great feat of precision?
Demonsoul
Your character is bound to a rakshasa, a mercurial spirit of Bharasi lands. Those
in power sometimes call rakshasa “demonic,” as in “that which cannot be controlled.”
Of course, your character can bind to other, foreign, demonic forms too.
Heart of a Rakshasa: Soul bound to a demon from Bharasi lands. Red-tinged
eyes, pointed canines from your lower jaw, and a face that people struggle to
remember.
Evade Memory: Your character has a strange ability to slip out of others’
memories. By default, people struggle to remember your character’s face, name, and
voice—unless you let them remember you.
Your character also gains 1 rank of Wield (Maya).
Did I resist comprehension by others?
Did I defy the predictable approach?
Did I warp the perceptions of others?
Example: Ishaan is going to be a Starsoul Deva, for that Benachaarya

connection—and also for that huge boost to Tenacity. We’ll say that Ishaan’s parents
are super r eligious, and they put Ishaan through the soulbinding ritual when he was five.

Ishaan has complicated feelings about that—on one hand, the cosmically steady nerves
make him very good at his “job,” but on the other hand, he wonders what life would be
like if he wasn’t supernaturally forced to be calm all the time.
This is a good time to calculate Ishaan’s Derived Attributes.
STR REF KNOW ACU WILL CHA
1 3 1 3 3 0
● Defense = 6+3 = 9
● Tenacity = 8+3+4 = 15
● Vigilance = 6+3 = 9
● Vitality = 8+1 = 9
Ishaan’s Vitality isn’t all that great, but he has strong Defense and Vigilance and
fantastic Tenacity. Just don’t ask him to lie on the spot.
Ishaan also gets a rank in Recall (Religion) and Resist (Mental). The Resist
(Mental) is from the soul binding, but the Recall (Religion) is just because he had
religious parents. I’m also going to pick the first of his Incentives: his Background
Incentive.
Did I face a threat carefully, with delicate action?
Because I want Ishaan to get as much XP as possible, this Incentive is going to
push Ishaan to advocate for subtlety and forethought as much as possible—as is
expected from the steady-eyed, indigo-faced star-bound.
Step 4a: Role

This character designation has been called Class, Playbook, or Career in
different RPG systems. The BOLT system sticks with “Role,” because that gets to the
heart of the character—their role in the party. Roles provide a set of starting Skills and
bonuses, and they provide Incentives that govern XP gain. After that, players are
allowed to advance their characters in whatever way makes sense for the campaign at
hand, because Roles given don’t make any limitations on characters beyond initial
character creation.
Roles provide characters with choices in Core Attribute upgrades, starting Skill
upgrades, language proficiencies, Role Incentives, and a special Encounter Incentive
that triggers after Encounters. Game Masters are also encouraged to associate starting
equipment with Roles.
All character Roles include 2 ranks to spend in Recall (Interest), where the
Interest is a niche topic the character engages with as a hobby. This Skill improvement

adds a human touch to every character, and has situational utility for the Game Master
to potentially provide practical application for.
The descriptions of Roles need not at all imply an ideal party balance. It is
absolutely not required for a party to have, say, a Scholar, a Scoundrel, a Soldier, and a
Wanderer—in fact, such a party might end up playing rather strangely. Game Masters
are expected to tailor campaigns and encounters to fit the player characters:
combat-heavy scenarios for combat-savvy characters, mysteries for parties with more
expertise in information gathering and interrogation, and so on. Additionally, these
Roles are built to encourage significant variation, even at the very beginning of the
campaign. It’s entirely possible to run a campaign with four Soldiers using the provided
Role description and have each Soldier talk, act, and fight completely differently.
As an example, Role choices for my fantasy home-game setting, Legends of
Neeram, are provided below. For example Role choices for a modern setting, see Step
4b: Roles and Specializations (Optional).
Note: In the Core Rules, only one Magic Tree—Life Magic—is detailed. If your
setting has more Magic Trees, it is encouraged that multiple Roles receive options for
magic. Not all magic, after all, is useful to scholars in particular.
Scholar
A learned one, hailing from a gilded institution of academic, theological, or
geopolitical importance. You’re a big deal, and you’ll be damned if anyone forgets that.
This Role can encompass clerics, diplomats, some druids, and wizards from
standard fantasy settings, depending on how a player builds their character’s Skills and
magic abilities.
+1 KNOW or +1 WILL
Pick 1:
+2 in Recall (Interest), OR +1 in Recall (Interest) in two interests. Pick an
interest or interests.
+5 in Speak/Read (Ancient or clerical) OR raise Speak/Read (Native) from +4 to
+5
+3 (Pick 2):
Recall (History), Recall (Politics), Recall (Religion), Utilize (Aether)
+2 (Pick 2):
Charm, Goad/Command, Utilize (Mechanics), Utilize (Medicine),
Speak/Read (Non-native)
+2 (Pick 1):

Resist (Mental), Resist (Social)
+1 (Pick 1):
Navigate (Wilderness), Search, Goad/Command
Pick 1:
Core Ability from Life Magic Tree, +1 Tenacity, +1 Vigilance
Suggested Starting Career Incentives:

Did I use my wits to gain an advantage?
Did I use my expertise to solve a problem?
Did I demonstrate my superiority?
Did I tell someone else what to do?
Did I deliberately confuse someone with jargon?
Did I adhere to an inconvenient moral code?
Suggested Starting Encounter Incentives:
Did I make a strategy beforehand?
Did I avoid direct confrontation?
Did I make someone else take the pressure for me?
Did I avoid engaging in violence?
Suggested Equipment:
● Garb that demonstrates your importance
● Identification that proves your importance
● A means of taking notes
● Reading material
● Equipment necessary for carrying out your particular branch of expertise
(inscrutable to companions)
● Bribing money
Scoundrel
A scam artist, spy, detective, smuggler, or petty thief. Regardless, you have an
eye for danger, a knack for hiding in plain sight, and a nose for finding that which people
would prefer hidden.
This Role can encompass rogues, bards, and any “shadow” subclass from
standard fantasy settings, depending on how a player builds their character’s Skills and
magic abilities.
+1 ACU or +1 CHA
Pick 1:

+2 in Speak/Read (Non-native) OR +1 in Speak/Read (Non-native) for two
languages
+3 (Pick 2):
Bluff, Charm, Cheat/Steal, Navigate (Underworld), Sneak/Hide
+2 (Pick 2):
Coerce, Persuade, Read Person, Recall (People), Speak/Read
(Non-native), Strike (Light)
+2 (Pick 1):
Dodge, Notice
+1 (Pick 1):
Balance/Tumble, Jury-Rig, Throw (Light), Utilize (Medicine)
Pick 1:
+1 Defense, +1 Tenacity, +1 Vigilance

Did I cheat to gain an advantage?
Did I use subterfuge to solve a problem?
Did I lie about who I was or what I wanted?
Did I avoid responsibility for something I did?
Did I haggle or negotiate my way into a deal?
Did I make someone owe me?
Did I catch someone by surprise?
Did I end things quickly?
Did I loot someone or something?
Did I leave no trace of my handiwork?
● Innocuous-looking garb
● Fabricated identification (multiple, preferably)
● A list of “people of interest”
● A concealed dagger
● A sidearm (hand crossbow, shortsword, or set of throwing knives) OR a
garrote and poisoning kit
● Tools for “business” (lockpicking gear, caltrops, alchemical reagents,
disguise kit, etc.)

Soldier
A horse-riding archer, a holy warrior with a flaming sword, a simple infantry
soldier, or a cruel mercenary. You’re trained for killing in a way few others really are,
and those who meet you should pray they never need to test your skill.
This Role can encompass fighters, paladins, and some warlocks from standard
fantasy settings, depending on how a player builds their character’s Skills and magic
abilities.
+1 FORT or +1 REF
Pick 1:
+1 in Speak/Read (Non-native) in three languages
+3 (Pick 2):
Ride, Shoot (Heavy), Shoot (Light), Strike (Heavy), Strike (Light), Throw
(Light)
+2 (Pick 2):
Coerce, Jury-Rig, Recall (Politics), Strike (Unarmed), Utilize (Medicine)
+2 (Pick 1):
Endure, Resist (Physical)
+1 (Pick 1):
Apply Force, Navigate (Underworld), Navigate (Wilderness), Run/Leap
Pick 1:
+1 Defense, +1 Tenacity, +1 Vitality

Did I make threats to gain an advantage?
Did I use violence to solve a problem?
Did I pull off a dangerous and flashy stunt?
Did I make someone fear me?
Did I protect an ally or VIP?
Did I face a complicated problem with simple violence?
Did I kill someone?
Did I scare someone out of fighting?
Did I rush into the middle of the action?
Did I pair violence with a snappy one-liner?

● Military garb (may include armor)
● Clear identification of whom (if anyone) you fight for
● A large weapon like a crossbow, greatsword, longbow, polearm, or shield
● A sidearm like a hand crossbow, light spear, shortbow, or shortsword
● A concealed dagger (no one expects a third weapon)
● A mount, or equipment suitable for marching for miles
Wanderer
One of the roads and the wilds, dealing in the strange and wonderful, in stories
and creatures and unseen phenomena. You are of everywhere, and you are of
nowhere.
This Role can encompass bards, rangers, and sorcerers from standard fantasy
settings, depending on how a player builds their character’s Skills and magic abilities.
+1 REF or +1 CHA
+4 in Recall (Interest): Pick an interest.
+3 in Speak/Read (non-native) OR +5 in Speak/Read (language considered
exceptionally beautiful) OR raise Speak/Read (Native) from +4 to +5
+3 (Pick 2):
Charm, Recall (History), Recall (Religion), Sneak/Hide, Read Person,
Recall (Person)
+2 (Pick 2):
Cheat/Steal, Navigate (Wilderness), Jury-Rig, Search, Shoot (Light),
Utilize (Medicine)
+2 (Pick 1):
Notice, Resist (Mental)
+1 (Pick 1)
Balance/Tumble, Navigate (Underworld), Run/Leap, Strike (Light)
Pick 1:
+1 Defense, +1 Tenacity, +1 Vigilance

Did I use misdirection to solve a problem?
Did I learn a new story?
Did I get somewhere I shouldn’t have been?
Did I witness something beautiful?
Did I meet someone interesting?

Did I demonstrate mastery of my art?
Did I see the danger coming?
Did I exploit an enemy’s weakness?
Did I induce chaos?
Did I take an unconventional tactic?
● Unconventional garb
● A reputation that precedes you—or a lack of clarity about who you are
● A musical instrument or another means of art or craft
● A subtle weapon like a shortbow, dagger, or staff
● A mental map of the roads and/or wilderness
● A distressingly large collection of knickknacks and talismans
Example: Ishaan is technically a modern character, but let’s throw him in a

fantasy alternate universe (AU), and see if we can’t make an assassin out of him
anyway. For this AU, I will actually focus more on the death-from-far-away aspect of
Ishaan instead of the stealth part—and I’m going to turn Ishaan into a horseback archer
striking from the darkness!
Ishaan will take the Soldier Role, taking abilities that improve wilderness survival
and horseback battle. Because the Roles are structured like multiple-choice surveys, we
can run through the Soldier Role rather quickly:
+1 FORT—For using cavalry spears in a pinch, and for extra Vitality

+2 Recall (Number Theory)—Ishaan likes reading books on mathematics for
some reason
+1 Speak/Read (Arayian, Acchada, Bharasi Sign)
+3 Ride, +3 Shoot (Heavy)—Note that this gives Ishaan +6 in both of these Skills
+2 Jury-Rig, +2 Utilize (Medicine)—Useful for staying alive in dense forests
+2 Endure
+1 Navigate (Wilderness)
+1 Tenacity—Never too much Tenacity for this boy
Role Incentives:
Encounter Incentive:
Did I make the enemy scatter?
Equipment:

● Bandit garb (no Armor)
● Red scarf of the Bloody Poets band
● Longbow, light spear, and hidden dagger
● Garuda, Ishaan’s beloved horse
And that’s Raider Ishaan! Note that I gave him a unique Encounter Incentive that
plays into his Background Incentive of making a plan. Players are encouraged to make
their own Incentives, and to have them correlate each other (although Incentives
shouldn’t be near-identical).
A good Incentive is one that your character can fulfill every Scene or Encounter,
if they go out of their way for it.
Step 4b: Roles and Specializations (Optional)

Combining Roles with Specializations is an optional rule a table can use to add
flavor and further choice to Roles. In the same way that classes in D&D h ave subclass
or prestige class options to allow players to fine-tune their characters, Roles in BOLT
can be designed to be augmented with Specializations. If Game Masters or writers
want, they can tie Feats to Specializations, or allow players to pick Specializations later
in play for an XP cost. Note that there is nothing stopping characters from stacking Skill
improvements if their Role and Specialization allow for improvement of the same Skill.
When using Roles and Specializations together, Roles provide characters with:
● Core Attribute upgrades
● Starting Skill upgrades
● Language proficiencies
● One Role Incentive
● A special Encounter Incentive that triggers after Encounters.
Specializations provide characters with:
● Additional Skill upgrades
● One Specialization Incentive.
If the Game Master provides starting equipment for characters, they should
consider tying it to Specializations instead of Roles.
As an example, Role and Specialization choices for my modern home-game
setting Gunfire in Svarminar are provided below. For example Role choices for a
fantasy setting, see Step 4a: Role
Note: In a given setting, it’s recommended that either all Roles have
Specializations, or none of them have Specializations. In the case of the modern setting
example given below, the Roles alone have much fewer character improvements than

the Roles given for the fantasy setting example given above. This way, a starting
modern character with a Role and Specialization is on par with a starting fantasy
character with a Role alone.
Professional
If you’re a professional, chances are you went to college. Chances are, you
learned to sweet-talk the rich and powerful as a youth. Chances are, you learned to
drive in your parents’ brand-new, silly-fast luxury cars. And clearly, money and influence
wasn’t thrilling enough for you.
+1 KNOW or +1 CHA
Pick 1:
ick an
+2 in Recall (Interest), OR +1 in Recall (Interest) in two interests.. P
+2 in Speak/Read (Non-native) OR raise Speak/Read (Native) from +4 to +5
+1 (Pick 2) OR +2 (Pick 1):
Recall (History), Recall (Politics), Recall (Religion)
+1 (Pick 1):
Utilize (Engineering), Utilize (Medicine), Recall (Law)
+1 (Pick 2):
Charm, Drive, Goad/Command, Persuade, Read Person, Utilize
(Profession)
Suggested Starting Role Incentives:

Did I use my wits to gain an advantage?
Did I use my expertise to solve a problem?
Did I tell someone else what to do?
Did I make someone owe me?
Did I make a strategy beforehand?
Did I avoid direct confrontation?
Scoundrel
In some “tabletop role-playing games”, you would be considered a “rogue.” But
the skills of liars, cheaters, and spies can be put to a lot of applications, so pick your
own p oison.
+1 ACU or +1 WILL
Pick 1:

+2 in Speak/Read (Non-native) OR +1 in Speak/Read (Non-native) for two
languages
+1 (Pick 1):
Dodge, Notice
+1 (Pick 1):
Recall (Politics), Recall (Law), Utilize (Profession)
+1 (Pick 2):
Bluff, Cheat/Steal, Shoot (Light), Sneak/Hide, Navigate (Underworld),
Recall (People)
Did I cheat to gain an advantage?
Did I use subterfuge to solve a problem?
Did I lie about who I was or what I wanted?
Did I hide my responsibility for something I did?
Suggested Encounter Incentives:
Did I catch someone by surprise?
Did I end things quickly?
Mercenary
Violence! It’s a part of life in Svarminar, but you know it better than anyone else
in the city. Bigger guns, bigger punches, bigger thrills. Be the bad motherfucker you
once saw only in action movies.
+1 FORT or +1 REF
Pick 1:
+1 in Speak/Read (Non-native) for three languages
+1 (Pick 1):
Endure, Resist (Physical)
+1 (Pick 1):
Recall (Politics), Utilize (Medicine), Jury-Rig
+1 (Pick 1):
Shoot (Light), Strike (Unarmed)
+1 (Pick 1):
Apply Force, Balance/Tumble, Coerce, Run/Leap

Did I make threats to gain an advantage?
Did I pull off a dangerous and flashy stunt?
Suggested Encounter Incentives:
Did I kill someone?
Did I scare someone out of fighting?
Professional Specializations
Doctor
You went to med school long enough to learn how to patch people up and how to
make a hit really hurt. Maybe you’re still practicing medicine, or maybe you just tell your
aunts you are. Either way, you decided to do something a bit more dangerous as a side
practice.
+2 in Utilize (Medicine)
+2 in Read Person
Suggested Specialization Incentives:
Did I save someone’s ass?
Did I use my training to make something truly hurt?
Suggested equipment:
● Garb that minimizes skin exposure, including masks and gloves
● A first-aid kit that includes equipment to disinfect, bandage, and suture
wounds
● The gear required to do some alkhemy or surgery (at home, in a lab, or in
a vehicle)
Engineer
You’re not just a nerd. You’re a dangerous nerd. You’re a scare-other-nerds
nerd. You got the brains (and guts) to infiltrate a high-security office, steal their trade
secrets, and cover your tracks with an IED.
+2 in Utilize (Engineering)
+2 in Jury-Rig
Did I fabricate or fix something in a high-stakes situation?
Did I use my training to build an ingenious solution to a problem?
● Business casual (or business all-nighter) clothing

● A set of screwdrivers and wrenches, a small pry tool, and a few arithmeter
datacards
● The gear required to fabricate and hack technology (at home, in a lab, or
in a vehicle)
Lawyer
You know how some spoiled brats are like, “My dad’s a lawyer” in the hopes
that’ll mean something? Well, you are a lawyer, and that does mean something. You
can end someone’s life with a paper trail, and if that doesn’t work, you can put a bullet in
their head.
+2 in Recall (Law)
+1 (Pick 2):
Bluff, Charm, Coerce
Did I talk my way out of serious trouble?
Did I fast-talk someone into implicating themselves or agreeing to
something tilted in my favor?
● A sharp suit
● A very nice pen
● A directory of friends (and enemies) in high places
Scoundrel Specializations
Assassin
Are you stone cold enough to kill someone before they even see you? Then
you’ll find work, because as long as there’s two people left on the planet, someone is
gonna want someone dead.
+2 (Pick 2):
Bluff, Language (Non-native), Shoot (Heavy), Utilize (Medicine)
Suggested Starting Specialization Incentives:
Did I leave no trace of my handiwork?
Did I pretend to be someone else?
● Innocuous clothing, with gloves.
● A garrotte, a poisoning kit, and silenced pistol, OR a silenced long-range
rifle
● A collection of fake names and stolen IDs

Fixer
You’re the fella who knows a fella. If the swamp of crime and corruption
permeates Svarminar, and you are the quintessential swamp creature. And if favors
don’t get you where you want, a revolver’s your Plan B.
+2 (Pick 2):
Coerce, Language (Non-native), Navigate (Underworld), Persuade
Did I haggle or negotiate my way into a deal?
Did I make someone owe me a favor?
● Clothing that singles you out to those in the know
● A flashy-looking knife or light firearm
● A list of people who owe you
Investigator
Are you a private eye? A vigilante? A journalist with the will to kill? Doesn’t
matter. You’re the One Who Knows, and the One Who Finds Out. Whether you use that
intel for justice, profit, or power...well, that’s up to you.
+2 (Pick 2):
Drive, Recall (Law), Search, Run/Leap
Did I find a clue to someone or something I’m following?
Did I collect evidence that I can use against someone else?
● Clothing that lets you hide in plain sight
● A reliable pistol
● A contact or institution who can provide you background information, with
a few days notice
Mercenary Specializations
Driver
Your job isn’t just to shoot people. It’s to shoot people out the bashed window of
a supercar while steering with your knees to dodge traffic and police spike strips. Mash
the gas pedal into the floor and never let up.
+2 in Drive
+1 (Pick 1):

Endure, Shoot (Light), Jury-Rig
Did I try something reckless and make it work?
Did I push my vehicle beyond reasonable limits?
● Clothing that shows people how cool you are
● A weapon you can shoot with one hand
● A vehicle you would kill to protect
Commando
You wanna be an action-movie badass? Of course you want to be an
action-movie badass. Drench the room in bullets, crack a skull with the butt of your rifle,
and throw out a sick one-liner. You’re unstoppable.
+2 (Pick 2):
Shoot (Heavy), Melee
+1 (Pick 1):
Apply Force, Coerce
Did I foil a smart plan with simple violence?
Did I pair violence with a sharp one-liner?
● Clothing that shows people how tough you are
● An impractically large weapon
● Another weapon (of course)
Bouncer
You’re put in between folks with power and folks who want trouble. You keep
quiet, you say “no,” and when goons reject that answer, you beat them the fuck up. You
play the fool, but underneath the poker face, you know what’s going on better than even
your boss.
+2 in Strike (Unarmed)
+1 (Pick 1):
Navigate (Underworld), Recall (People)
Did I protect an ally or VIP?
Did I pull intel while hiding in plain sight?
● Clothing that’s quiet but imposing
● An ear for gossip

● A list of who’s who in the city’s underworld
Example: Now, let’s do the actual Ishaan Jha. For the modern setting, let’s pick
Scoundrel as our Role and Assassin as our Specialization, because long-range
assassination was part of the core concept for Ishaan. The Role and Specialization are
both structured like multiple-choice surveys (this is intentional, you know…) so let’s run
through them again!
Role: Scoundrel
+1 ACU
+2 Recall (Number Theory)
+1 Speak/Read (Arayian, Bharasi Sign)
+1 Dodge
+1 Utilize (Radio Repair)—Ishaan’s day job, which may come in handy
+1 Cheat/Steal, Sneak/Hide
Role Incentive: Did I use subterfuge to solve a problem?
Encounter Incentive: Did I end things quickly?
Specialization: Assassin
+2 Speak/Read (Acchada), Shoot (Heavy)
Specialization Incentive: Did I leave no trace of my handiwork?
Equipment:
● Black tracksuit with black leather gloves and facemask
● “Inu,” his sniper rifle
● Briefcase that can hold:
○ The rifle
○ A bag of caltrops
○ A coil of rope
○ A hammer meant to shatter tempered glass
Note that I changed one of the equipment items suggested for Assassins.
Because of Ishaan’s indigo skin and total lack of social grace, fake IDs would be wasted
on him. But a briefcase of urban espionage tools would be incredibly helpful.
I don’t care about what any of this costs, because even if the rifle is way out of
Ishaan’s pay grade, he would find a way to get that weapon. And that, in and of itself,
could make a good game session!

Writing Your Own Roles and Specializations
Note that all the Roles and Specializations provided in these examples settings
are formatted like multiple-choice surveys, with improvements to Core Attributes,
Derived Attributes, Defensive Skills, Skills, and Feats as desired. This sort of “circle
what you want on a menu” format speeds up character creation because it puts all the
important choices directly in front of the player.
Try to write Roles and Specializations to cover a broad set of characters with one
array of choices. For example, the Wanderer Role in the fantasy example is written
specifically to include wandering poets, matted-hair rangers like Aragorn, and Weird
Monks in one set, depending on what options a player takes. This helps reduce the
feeling that a character is being typecast the moment a Role is selected for them. This
breadth of options should include suggested Incentives—they should be specific
enough to make characters go out of their way in interesting ways, but not so specific
that there’s no flexibility in how an Incentive is met.
There’s no definitive formula to making a custom Role or Specialization—instead,
the writer should approach custom Role and Specializations as a stack of “option
blocks”, including:
● +1 in (Pick 1 out of 2 Core Attributes)
● +2 in Recall (Interest)
● +4 in Recall (Interest)
● +1 in two Recall (Interest) Skills
● +1 in Speak/Read (Three non-native languages)
● +2 in Speak/Read (Non-native language)
● Increase Speak/Read (Native Language) from +4 to +5
● +1 (Pick 1 out of 2 Defensive Skills)
● +2 (Pick 1 out of 2 Defensive Skills)
● +1 (Pick 1 out of 3-6 Skills)
● +1 (Pick 1 out of 2-4 Derived Attributes or 1 Core Magic or Hacking Ability)
Pick as many or as few as desired for each Role and Specialization—the only
real requirement is that every character receive ranks in Recall (Interest).
As a general rule, each Role should receive a similar depth and breadth of
options (and similarly for Specializations), although it could be interesting to have some
Roles be drastically over- or under-powered. The other Roles should still be valuable in
an ensemble, however—even a Chosen One can’t go it alone.

Writing Roles and Specializations is also a way to set power levels for
characters—the more that characters get just from picking a Role, the more powerful
they are immediately after character creation.
It’s recommended that most character improvements come from Roles and
Specializations as opposed to Background—especially if those Backgrounds have
ethnic backing. What a character does should have far more bearing on their skillset
than where they came from.
Leveling
Incentives, or Getting XP
Characters in BOLT do not necessarily gain experience by killing people--or even
by succeeding at quests! Instead, characters gain XP by acting according to their
Incentives. At the end of each Scene (or session), every player should ask the three
Incentive questions listed on their character sheet about their character. For each
question the player answers “yes” to, they mark 1 XP. Additionally, at the end of each
Encounter, every player should ask the Combat Incentive question listed on their
character sheet about their character. If the player answers “yes” to the Combat
Incentive question, they mark 1 XP.
For more details on how BOLT handles time intervals, see Time Intervals.
If players are unsure about whether a character met an Incentive, the table may
talk it out (respectfully!), although the player controlling the character gets final say.
Players should be able to achieve all their Incentives during most Scenes (or most
Encounters, for Encounter Incentives), but Incentives should still be something a
character has to go out of their way to accomplish.
Players are encouraged to change the Incentives of their characters at
narratively interesting moments, using the change of Incentives to represent meaningful
development for their characters.
Advancement or Spending XP
Use the below exchange rate for converting XP gained through Incentives into
advancement. Note that players should be able to gain 2-4 XP per Scene (or session).
Spend 3 XP to:
● Increase a Skill or Defensive Skill to 1, 2, or 3 ranks
● Gain a Level 1 Feat
● Gain a Level 1 Magic or Hacking Ability.

Spend 5 XP to:
● Increase a Skill or Defensive Skill to 4 ranks
● Increase Defense, Tenacity, Vigilance, or Vitality by 1
● Gain a Core Magic/Hacking Ability.
● Gain a Level 2 Magic or Hacking Ability.
Spend 8 XP to:
● Increase a Skill or Defensive Skill to 5 ranks
● Increase a Core Attribute by 1
● Gain a Level 3 or Level 4 Magic or Hacking Ability
Feats
The following Feats are specialized improvements to a player’s character, which
typically allow for options outside of standard Skill checks. Note that some
combat-related feats reference special weapon qualities like Nimble or Subtle. For more
details on special weapon qualities, see Special Qualities for Weapons.
Level 1
Acolyte: Ability Improvement. Join a powerful Organization. The character joins
an organization of notable size and power in the world, receiving a mentor from that
organization and gaining access to the skill Navigate (Organization) (associated with
Acuity) for understanding and playing politics within the Organization. The player must
replace one of their character’s Incentives with:
Did I act in accordance with the principles of my Organization?
This Organization Incentive may change if the character climbs ranks in their
Organization. If the character leaves the Organization, the player must replace the
character’s Organization Incentive with a different Incentive.
Cautious: Incidental. Leave nothing to chance. T he player marks two Skills or
Defensive Skills. Before rolling for the Skill in question, the player can elect to take -2 to
their roll. In that case, a 4 or 3 on the auxiliary d4 grants a Perk. This Feat can be taken
multiple times.
Fast Strikes: Action. When the character is fighting unarmed, the player can
target two characters in Melee Range when rolling to Strike (Unarmed), or target the
same character for two strikes. The Strike (Unarmed) check is Set Back once, with the
Difficulty equal to the higher Defense of the two targets, where applicable. On a

Success, the player’s character deals damage to both targets if two targets are
selected, or double damage if a single target is selected.
I’m a Professional: Action. For Skilld the character has 1 or 2 ranks in, the
player can roll to Bluff so that their character claims that they are, in fact, a professional
at that Skill. Difficulty depends on how knowledgeable any listeners are in that Skill. On
a Success, anyone listening (who isn’t aware of the con) believes the character and will
take any advice on that Skill that the character offers. A Complication suggests that
someone asks the character a knowledgeable question about the subject.
If a character has 3 or more ranks in a Skill, they legitimately are
professional-level, so no Bluff is required.
Parry: Incidental. When the character takes a hit from a melee attack, the player
can spend 2 Tenacity to reduce incoming Damage by 5, before Armor. This can be
done out of the player’s Turn.
Quick Draw: Ability Improvement. During an Encounter, the player does not
have to spend an Action for their character to draw a weapon or designated weapon
set.
Quick Step: Ability Improvement. During an Encounter, the player does not have
to spend an Action for their character to move in or out of Melee Range once. Further
movements in the same turn will require an additional Action.
Pacification: Action. T he player can roll to Sneak/Hide against a single
opponent’s Vigilance for their character to less-lethally choke out that opponent. On a
Success, the character chokes out the opponent cleanly, requiring two Actions to do so.
On a Perk, the opponent may be completely unharmed, and on a Complication, the
opponent may be seriously wounded. A Failure suggests that the character only
partially manages to pacify their opponent, or that the opponent manages to raise an
alarm before falling unconscious, or that the opponent requires a louder or more lethal
option to be pacified.
Reckless: Incidental. Tact is for chumps! T he player marks two Skills or
Defensive Skills. Before rolling for the Skill in question, the player can elect to take +2 to
their roll. In that case, a 1 or 2 on the auxiliary d4 grants a Complication. This Feat can
be taken multiple times.
Scoping the Joint: Action. The player can roll to Notice for their character to
scope a place or person from a distance. On a Success, the player asks two questions
about what is there and how best to get at it. On a Success and a Perk, the player asks
three questions. A Complication suggests that the character may be at a disadvantage
to act on gathered information, or they get information they wouldn’t want to hear, or
they leave a trace of their presence.
● What is the best way in or out?

● What is happening at this place / What is this person doing?
● What here is worth taking?
● What is a good way to catch this person unawares?
● What is this place for?
● What’s suspicious about this person or place?
On a Failure, your character may be spotted. However, the player and their
character will always know if the place or person is guarded, regardless of result.
Sneak Attack: Action. If the character, using a Subtle weapon, attacks an
opponent that does not see the character coming, and the player rolls a Success, that
opponent Goes Down immediately and quietly. A Heel-class opponent will still require a
Finisher move.
Sharp Tongue: Incidental. You know how to make a line really hurt. If the player
achieves a Perk on a Coerce, Charm, Goad/Command, or Persuade check against a
single opponent, that opponent’s next Skill check is Set Back twice.
Shoot Dodge: Action. When the character is wielding Nimble ranged weapons,
the player can use one Action for their character to leap into the air before they Shoot.
(Shooting requires an additional Action.) When shooting in the air, the character
receives +2 Defense, and the player’s Shoot checks are Pulled Forward once. The
character lands prone, and depending on where they land, may need to Dodge or suffer
the consequences of fall damage.
Trickster’s Thinking: Ability Improvement. When rolling to Notice, the player
can ask one question on a Success, at no cost, about the best means of inducing
chaos.
● What could I do to cause the most mayhem?
● What’s the easiest way to break [x]?
Level 2
Agent: Action. Requires Acolyte. Climb the ranks of your Organization, gathering
power and responsibility. The player can now invoke favors from their Organization by
rolling Navigate (Organization). The Difficulty depends on how difficult a favor it is for
the Organization. On a Success, the player receives the favor. With a Perk, the
character receives a bonus; with a Complication, the favor may come with strings
attached. A Failure suggests the character may owe something in return for the favor, or
may jeopardize their standing in the Organization to take the favor.
Example favors include:
● The character receives a rare piece of equipment from their Organization.
● Your character consults their Organization for privileged information.

● Your character receives backup support from their Organization.
The character must also replace their character’s Organization Incentive with:
Did I fulfill my responsibilities to my Organization?
This Organization Incentive may change if the character climbs ranks in their
Organization. If the character leaves the Organization, the player must replace their
character’s Organization Incentive with a different Incentive.
Any Questions: Incidental. Once per Encounter, if the character makes a Face
or Heel Go Down, all Goon-class opponents must roll to Resist (Mental) vs. 6 + the
character's ranks in Coerce, with advantages or disadvantages depending on how
outnumbered the character is. All Goon-class adversaries who fail their Resist (Mental)
check run away from the character in fear.
Come at Me: Action. As an Action, the player can invoke this Feat so that the
character can challenge a Face or Heel to a one-on-one duel. If the target wants to
fight, they and the character can only attack each other until one of them Goes Down. If
the target does not want to fight, the player must roll to Goad/Command against the
opponent's Resist (Social), with advantages or disadvantages added depending on how
much the opponent’s reputation depends on kicking ass. On a Failure, the opponent
must engage in the duel or else lose face in a potentially dangerous way.
Deflect: Incidental. When the character takes a hit from a ranged weapon, while
wielding a shield, the player can spend 2 Tenacity to reduce incoming Damage by 5,
before Armor. This can be done out of the player’s Turn. This is impossible if the
character is wearing or carrying Bulky equipment.
Dual Wielder: Action. Better than one. The character can wield two Nimble
weapons at the same time. When equipping two weapons (which can be drawn together
in the same Action), the player designates one weapon the “primary weapon” and the
other the “secondary weapon.” When the player rolls to Shoot or Strike with their
primary weapon, they can invoke this Feat and pick two targets, with at least one target
in range of the weapon with the shorter range. On a Success, one of the chosen targets
is hit by the primary weapon. On a Perk, one of the chosen targets is hit by the
secondary weapon. On a Complication, a different target is hit by the secondary
weapon. That target may be an ally. When using suppressive fire (if both weapons are
ranged and at least one has the Suppressive Quality), the player’s Shoot roll is doubled
on a Perk.
Dual Wielder does not apply to unarmed attacks.
Evade: Incidental. When the character is targeted by a Shoot or Strike check, the
player can elect to spend 2 Tenacity out of their Turn to Set Back the incoming check
once.
Field Commander: Incidental. At the start of a Round of an Encounter, the
player can have their character give short commands to a number of allies equal to the

character’s ranks in Goad/Command. If the allies follow the character’s commands, then
on their next Skill or Defensive Skill check, a 4 or 3 on the auxiliary d4 grants a Perk.
This Feat can also be used outside of Encounters if invoked prior to an ally’s Skill or
Defensive Skill check.
I Know What I’m Talking About: Ability Improvement. Requires I’m a
Professional. When the player uses the I’m a Professional feat for a Skill their character
has 1 or 2 ranks in, the player can add their character’s number of ranks they have in
that Skill to their Bluff roll.
If a character has 3 or more ranks in a Skill, they legitimately are
professional-level, so no Bluff is required.
Improved Quick Draw: Ability Improvement. Requires Quick Draw. When the
player rolls to Notice, their character can draw their weapon or ready an attack before
rolling. On a Success with a Perk, the character may attack the first threat they see and
deal full Damage.
The character is not forced to attack anyone or anything non-threatening.
Launch: Action. Into or through, doesn’t matter. As an Action, the player can
invoke this Feat when rolling to Strike an enemy. On a Perk, the enemy is sent
stumbling backwards. On a Failure and a Perk, the enemy is stopped by obstructions
and does not leave the Zone they are in. On a Success and a Perk, the enemy is
launched through obstructions if applicable (destroying the obstructions), or else is
launched into a second enemy, dealing damage equal to the character’s FORT.
Not Without a Fight: Ability Improvement. If the character Goes Down, they do
not immediately fall prone, and the player does not mark their character’s Wounds
Track. On their next Turn, instead of rolling to Endure, the player can take Actions like
normal, and their character only falls prone after their Turn. On the Turn after that, the
player rolls to Endure and marks their character’s Wounds Track as normal.
If the character is hit before the player rolls to Endure, the check is Set Back for
each hit.
Rig to Blow: Action. Instead of fixing something that cannot be fixed, repurpose
it for better use. Given an appropriate set of equipment, junk, or otherwise, the player
can roll to Jury-Rig for their character to fashion an explosive out of the components.
Difficulty depends on how volatile the equipment is and how precise the explosion is.
On a Success, the player picks 2. With a Perk, the player picks 1 more.
● It explodes where you want it.
● It explodes when you want it.
● It explodes as much as you want it.
On a Failure, nothing happens when the character activates the detonator. On a
Failure with a Complication, something really bad happens.

Second Wind: Action. Once per Encounter, as an Action, the player can elect to
roll to Endure to recover Tenacity during the Encounter. However, after the Encounter,
the player’s Endure roll to recover Tenacity is Set Back once.
Whirlpool: Action. As an Action, the player can elect for their character to take a
defensive pose that increases their Melee Defense by their ranks in Strike (Unarmed). If
an opponent attempts to Strike the character and rolls a Failure, the character can
knock them prone immediately.
Level 3
Indomitable: Incidental. If the character Goes Down during an Encounter, and
the player rolls a Success with a Perk on their Endure roll, then their character’s
ongoing Actions are not affected by Wounds received during the Encounter until the end
of the Encounter.
The player still records Wounds, but the consequences of those Wounds only
come into effect after the Encounter ends.
Rally Behind Me: Ability Improvement. When the player rolls to Endure and
Succeeds, a number of allies equal to their character’s ranks in Goad/Command have
their next Skill check automatically Succeed without a die roll.
Note that players are allowed only one die roll per Turn—not one Skill check.
Ringleader: Ability Improvement. Requires Agent. The character is now a
high-level leader within the Organization. They have major sway in what the
Organization does, and can mobilize significant pieces of the Organization (if not the
entire Organization) to fulfill their own aims.
The player must replace their character’s Organization Incentive with:
Did I further the interests of my Organization?
If the character leaves or disbands the Organization, the player must replace
their character’s Organization Incentive with a different Incentive.
Writing Your Own Feats

The goal of Feats is to offer options for players to break the rules of the game,
whether by cheating the Action economy, adding advantages or removing penalties for
specific situations, or simply adding new options for players.
A set of possible Feats include:
● Allowing characters to do something without a roll, preferably in a manner
that scales with a Skill
● Allowing characters to add their ranks in one Skill to checks with another
Skill in specific situations

● Giving characters an alternate thing to do with an existing Skill
It is severely discouraged t o make Feats that make particular Skills obsolete.
Feats should add new options, not replace options.
If a Feat offers a slight edge in common situations or a notable edge in limited
situations, it should be a Level 1 Feat.
If a Feat offers a notable edge in common situations or a powerful advantage in
limited situations, it should be a Level 2 Feat.
If the Feat is downright game-breaking, it should be a Level 3 Feat.
Game-breaking abilities shouldn’t be anathema in an RPG, but they need to be fun not
only for the player invoking the Feat but also for the players and Game Master
witnessing this Feat unfold.
BOLT is at its heart a power fantasy—writers should let players indulge.
Action
Now that this book has detailed whom the players are role-playing as, we can get
into what characters are supposed to do, at least in the broader strokes of how
campaigns and Encounters are structured. I’ll also cover combat rules in this section,
since BOLT is fundamentally built around violence.
Time Intervals
The following time intervals define gameplay in BOLT. Note that these intervals
do not directly correspond to session length, because I do not know how long a given
table runs sessions for, or whether “per session” is even a useful interval of time (say,
for a play-by-post game).
Action: Something a character does in a very short amount of time, like running,
making a weapon attack, or pushing a button. An Action can involve rolling dice for a
Skill check or not. Defensive Skill checks do not require an Action. A bad action movie
will cut on every Action. For more information, see Combat: Actions.
Turn: A sequence of 1-3 Actions done by one character, like running, making a
weapon attack, and pushing a button. A Turn can include up to one Skill check per
character, although Defensive Skill checks are not subject to this limit. A decent action
movie will cut on every Turn.
Round: A sequence of Turns done by every character engaged in an Encounter,
in which every character takes one Turn. A Jackie Chan movie will cut on every Round.
Encounter: A sequence of Rounds during which Actions and Turns are counted.
A one-take fight scene will show an entire Encounter without cutting.

Scene: A period of time that encompasses up to a session’s worth of action,
whether it’s an extended period of intrigue, an investigation, or a dungeon crawl. A TV
show will fit a Scene or two into an episode. Characters gain XP after each Scene.
Act: A sequence of Scenes that make for a unified piece of a larger story.
Typically an Act can take place over a few tabletop sessions, depending on how long
each session is, and the conclusion of an Act will typically mark a “full reset” for the
health of all characters. A TV miniseries or an act of a movie will cover an Act.
Campaign: A sequence of Acts that trace the journey of a set of characters.
Typically, this will take a long time. A movie or two would make up a short Campaign,
and a TV show would make up a long Campaign.
Encounters
If you're an RPG designer, I got a real simple test for you, it's called the 'punch a
dude in the face' test. If a player says they punch a dude in the face, how exactly does
your system handle that?
@Orbitaldropkick
https://twitter.com/Orbitaldropkick/status/1161379789632147456?s=20
In the BOLT system, it’s a Strike (Unarmed) check vs. the target’s Defense. The
d10 determines whether the hit lands, and the d4 provides Perks and Complications as
normal. Damage is dealt directly to Vitality unless the target has armor. The check may
be Set Back or Pulled Forward depending on context. A punch will come earlier in
initiative if the attacker doesn’t have to run across the room. If the punch lands on a
Goon-class enemy, that enemy Goes Down immediately.
<sidebar>
The combat engine of BOLT steals its ethos whole-cloth from the Friday Night
Firefight system of Cyberpunk 2020. However, where Cyberpunk 2020 emphasizes
randomness in combat, BOLT prioritizes mechanical speed. That said, reading the rules
for Friday Night Firefight will provide Game Masters with all the information they need to
frame fights in BOLT. Any fight that would happen in a Cyberpunk 2020 or Witcher
TPRG module would match the tone of a fight in BOLT.
</sidebar>
Setting Objectives For Combat

Before I talk about how characters do violence in BOLT, I want to talk about why
characters might do violence in BOLT, because violence without context is boring,
actually. A common practice in role-playing games is to frame combat as fights to the

death. In this framework, combat ends either when all enemies die, or when the players
suffer a “total party kill,” or “TPK.”
This practice raises several problems for action-adventure RPGs:
● Combat is inordinately high-stakes, since in every fight, players risk losing
their characters—unless the Game Master dramatically tips the power
balance in the players’ favor, neutralizing any mechanical tension.
● In encounters where the only approach is “kill everyone,” characters who
are not competent at killing everyone have less to do.
● It is often difficult to see heroism in characters who approach every
combat encounter like a take-no-prisoners slaughter.
As a result, it’s valuable to frame Encounters—especially combat
Encounters—not by “who is the enemy” but by “what is the objective?”
Example objectives include:
○ Get to a location
○ Secure a location
○ Escape a location
○ Secure or steal an item or key intelligence
○ Make your agenda known to the Powers That Be
○ Convince someone to join forces with the party while fighting off an enemy
These objectives allow an alternate approach to combat—for example, a hacker
would not need combat chops if their primary goal is to get to the safe and crack its
encryption while their accomplice with the shotgun takes the heat.
Additionally, Game Masters should almost always make retreat an option for
everyone—including non-player opponents. A useful way to frame even straightforward
fights is:
Both sides think they can win—and one side is wrong.
Once it becomes clear that one side is winning, there should be significant
encouragement for the losing side to retreat—the enemy faction might fall back to
cover, for example.
Marking Wounds is typically a good signal for the players to look for opportunities
to retreat. Characters may not be able to die without players’ consent, but it’s more
difficult to push objectives when rolling at a disadvantage for everything. For more on
marking Wounds, see The Wounds Track.
<sidebar>
This section on setting objectives for combat was influenced by a blog post by
Basheer Ghouse called “RPGs and Bad War.” To read the full essay, see
https://feartheswarth.wordpress.com/2020/01/23/rpgs-and-bad-war/
</sidebar>

Actions
There are two kinds of Actions in BOLT: Actions that require rolling dice for a
Skill check, and Actions that don’t. Actions that require rolling for a Skill check would
include a punch in the face, a hurried lockpicking, a leap over a large chasm, a call for
everyone to just put down your weapons and chat instead—r eally, anything where
failure is a real risk. (Rolls from Defensive Skill checks are resolved independently of
Actions.) Meanwhile, Actions that don’t require rolling dice for a Skill check include (but
are not limited to):
● Moving within a Zone
● Moving from one Zone to another Zone
● Moving in or out of Melee Range with another character
● Drawing a weapon
● Sheathing a weapon (dropping a weapon does not require an Action)
● Standing from a seat or from prone
● Shooting a weapon in the air
● Entering cover
● Taking defensive Actions (combat checks against the character are Set Back
once)
● Aiming an offensive Action (the player’s next combat check is Pulled Forward
once)
● Opening a door or pushing a Big Red Button
● Helping an ally without a Skill check
Quick statements (and snappy one-liners) do not require an Action, but longer
soliloquies may require an Action and potentially a rolled Skill check.
Some moves may appear to require two Skill checks at once—for example, a
character trying to clash swords while balancing atop the mast of a pirate ship might use
either a Strike (Melee) or a Balance/Tumble check. In such cases, the Game Master
should suggest the player make a Skill check with one o f the Skills—in this case,
probably Strike (Melee)—Set Back once to represent the difficulty of having to duel atop
a narrow beam. The Game Master is then encouraged to bring aspects of the other Skill
as consequences for Failures or Complications—perhaps a Complication in this
scenario would be the character falling off the mast and tumbling towards the deck.

Range and Zones
Zones provide a layer of abstraction over weapon ranges and movement,
allowing for tactical movement and positioning without requiring grid maps for
everything.
The size of a Zone can vary somewhat, but it should be roughly the size of a
small-to-medium-size room. Characters should be able to have a conversation across a
Zone (through voice or sign language), or clearly discern faces across a Zone, or throw
a hatchet across a Zone.
Characters can also be within Melee Range of each other, which is the range at
which characters could lunge at each other, strafe around each other with spears
raised, or be forced to leap away from a grenade. Multiple characters can all be within
Melee Range of each other—for example, with three guards surrounding an intrepid
spy. Melee is a relational property between characters, or between characters and
points or lines in space.
Zones can exist in three dimensions, and adjacent Zones don’t necessarily need
to be connected. For example, characters in an atrium would be in an adjacent Zone
from characters on the balcony above that atrium. However, in this situation, these
adjacent Zones aren’t connected--characters would have to find a stairwell to move
from the atrium to the balcony or else make a daring leap.

An example of a map in BOLT
Ranges in BOLT are deliberately vague in order to reduce bookkeeping and map
complexity, and it is perfectly acceptable to “fudge” movement around a map, as long as
everyone on the table agrees. It is up to the Game Master to allow for exceptions, but
those exceptions should be limited and consistent.

Initiative and the Action Economy
Combat in BOLT is less of a mechanical dice contest (like with D&D or
Shadowrun) and more of a puzzle, where positioning, cover, and Action management
set the cadence of a fight.
At the beginning of the Encounter, the Game Master provides the table with a
description of:
● The layout of the Encounter area, including placement of Zones, cover,
and other interactable objects
● The location and rough equipment loadout of all opponents
The Game Master should only gate this vital information based on a character’s
Vigilance, and only if a particular set of objects or opponents are deliberately hidden—in
that case, the Game Master should consider (or even roll for) the opponents’ ability to
Sneak/Hide, either for hiding themselves or hiding key objects.
It is recommended but not required that combat Encounters start with players
rolling to Notice—generally against a very hard Difficulty. Effectively, this is a means for
players to receive hints about the combat puzzle they have to solve. To compensate,
Encounters should be balanced to account for one or more players receiving the chance
to grill the Game Master about how to win.
Initiative is not determined by die rolls but instead by the number of Actions each
character claims in a turn. Before a Round starts, the players and Game Master must
claim a number of Actions that their character or characters will take during their Turn.
What those Actions are can be decided later; what matters is the number of Actions
claimed. A character can claim up to three Actions in a Turn, though only one such
Action can involve rolling dice. Characters claiming only one Action go first, followed by
characters claiming two Actions, followed by characters claiming three Actions. Player
characters should go before non-player characters that claim the same number of
Actions, unless otherwise specified.
If a player decides mid-round that they need fewer Actions than they claimed,
they cannot move their Turn earlier into the Round. A player can elect to delay their
Turn, but every character must take their Turn during a Round.
In a surprise round, each character springing the surprise gets to make two
Actions before the regular course of combat starts.
Setting the Order for Claiming Actions

By default, the Game Master should claim Actions for non-player characters first,
so that players have a chance to plan accordingly. This approach maximizes player
empowerment.

To invoke a more desperate mood, the table can agree to let the Game Master
claim Actions after the players, which would allow the Game Master to claim Actions as
an explicit counter to whatever the players claim.
To invoke a more strategic mood, the table can agree to have all players and the
Game Master silently claim Actions all at once, potentially by writing down the number
of Actions claimed on pieces of paper. This allows claiming Actions to take on a
poker-like quality.
Let’s look at some examples of Turns, and count how many Actions are in each:
The Rogue Swordsman vaults from the mezzanine balcony, sword drawn,
somersaulting into the atrium as he drives his blade through an enemy’s neck.
The Wanderer’s Turn takes Two Actions:
1) Move between Zones, from the balcony to the atrium
2) Attack an enemy with a rolled Skill check, using Strike (Melee)
Depending on the height of the drop, the Game Master may ask the player of the
Rogue Swordsman to roll to Resist (Physical) or Dodge or else take Damage. This does
not count against the number of Actions the above Turn takes.
“Javid!” Khalid yells in shock as her compatriot falls limp behind a wall. She
dashes across the corridor, slides behind the barricade Javid is slumped next to, and
jams a syringe of adrenaline into his upper arm.
Khalid’s Turn takes three Actions:
1) Move within a Zone, down the corridor
2) Enter Partial Cover, within Melee Range of Javid
3) Administer a Healing Shot to Javid
None of these Actions require a Skill check.
“I said. You spilled. My drink!” The thug shouted in a foreign language, slower
this time.
Silence from the bounty hunter.
“He says you spilled his drink,” the bartender translated nervously, before
shuffling to pour another. “It’s fine. It’s on me.”
The thug examines the hunter’s armor. “Is that real chromidium?” he growls,
pressing a knife against the hunter’s breastplate as the bartender slides a fresh pint
glass across the counter.
Before anyone could blink, the glass is already shattered against the thug’s face,
glass and ale and blood sloshing on the grimy floor.
The bounty hunter’s Turn takes One Action:

1) Throw the glass in the thug’s face with a rolled Skill check, using Throw (Light)
The bounty hunter has the Quick Draw Feat, meaning that drawing a
weapon—including picking up a glass that could be used as a weapon—does not
require an Action.
Combat Skill Checks

For the player’s character to inflict violence upon an opponent, the player rolls to
Throw, Shoot, or Strike against the Defense of the opponent.
On a Success, the attack hits. The character deals an amount of Damage equal
to the Damage value listed for the weapon used, subtracted by the Armor value of the
target. For more detail, see Calculating Damage.
On a Failure, the attack misses.
The auxiliary d4 grants the player special Perks and Complications in combat.
Perks
● The character receives an advantage. The player’s next Skill check or Defensive
Skill check is Pulled Forward once.
● The opponent receives a disadvantage. The opponent’s next Skill check or
Defensive Skill check is Set Back once.
● On a Success and a Perk: The character lands a critical blow. The character
amage equal to half of the Damage listed for the weapon used,
deals additional D
rounded down.
Players and the Game Master can suggest other Perks, and some weapons and
Talents offer unique Perks.
Complications
● The opponent receives an advantage. The opponent’s next Skill check or
Defensive Skill check is Pulled Forward once.
● The character receives a disadvantage. The character’s next Skill check or
Defensive Skill check is Set Back once.
● The character’s ammunition supply is revealed to be running low—or completely
out.
● The character accidentally drops their weapon or other vital item.
Players and the Game Master can suggest other Complications, and some
weapons and Talents suggest specific Complications.

Armor
Armor is a character’s only hope of damage reduction in BOLT. Characters with
Armor receive a blanket damage reduction equal to the Armor value they receive. Some
weapons have an Armor Piercing (AP) quality that can nullify Armor, however. For more
on calculating the effects of Armor, see Calculating Damage.
Cover
Characters in BOLT are fragile, so cover is good for their health.
There are two kinds of cover: Partial Cover, and Total Cover. A character is
behind Partial Cover if they duck behind a low wall, stand behind a concrete pillar, brace
themselves against an open car door, and so on. A character is behind Total Cover if
they duck around a corner of a hallway, hide behind a sturdy wall, and so on.
Behind Partial Cover, Shoot and Throw checks against the character are Set
Back once, and the character gains 5 Armor.
Behind Total Cover, Shoot and Throw checks against the character are Set
Back twice (if the assailant even knows where to attack), and the character gains 10
Armor. All Shoot and Throw checks the player makes while their character is behind
Total Cover are Set Back once.
A player cannot make Strike checks while their character is behind cover, unless
their target is behind the same cover.
The Game Master may invoke a Perk or Complication to reduce Total Cover to
Partial Cover, or Partial Cover to nothing. They could also invoke a Luck Token or a
particular item to obliterate cover in a small area.
Being Prone
Shoot and Throw checks against prone characters are Set Back once, and Strike
checks against prone characters are Pulled Forward Once. Characters must spend one
Action to return to their feet, unless they have a Feat to reduce that cost.
When the character is prone, all Dodge checks the player makes are Set Back
once.
Grappling
As an Action, a player can roll a Strike (Unarmed) check for their character to
grapple an opponent instead of attacking. On a Success, the character holds their
opponent in place. Any checks that the opponent makes are Set Back once, and they

move wherever the grappling character moves. On the grappled character’s turn, they
must make an Apply Force check opposed by 6 + the grappling character’s ranks in
Strike (Unarmed) to escape.
A character can grapple a willing character as an Action without a check, in order
to, say, drag an ally out of danger.
Calculating Damage
1. Calculate Weapon Damage, including base damage and relevant feats.
2. Calculate Net Armor = Target’s Armor - Weapon’s AP Value
3. Deal Net Damage = Weapon Damage - Net Armor
Let’s look at an example of combat gameplay:

Game Master: All right, it’s Revathi’s turn now!
Player: Finally, something she’s good at!
GM: You’re ducking behind the bar, and you have two Actions, right?
Player: Well, I won’t be behind cover for long. I want to use my first Action to
vault over the bar counter, and the second Action to fire, using the Suppressive Fire
quality on my SMG to basically deny the space between me and the exit.
GM: Great. Roll to Shoot (Light)!
Player: Gladly.
[d10+REF+Shoot (Light) = d10+3+1]
[d10+4 =6+4 = 10]
[d4 = 4]
GM: Okay, so one Goon and Two-Ring Raj will both be caught in the space you
targeted. Rolling to Dodge for the Goon first…
[d10+2 = 3+2 = 5], [d4 = 2]
GM: Yeah, the Goon’s taken out, and Two-Ring…
[d10+3 = 7+2 = 9], [d4 = 1]
GM: Two-Ring gets hit. He takes 6 Damage from Revathi’s SMG, and with the
Complication...I’m going to say he’s prone after the Dodge. Now I have a pitch for what
your Perk could be.
Player: Hit me.
GM: What if your burst of shots hits a light and showers the hallway in sparks?
The next opposing check will be Set Back once.
Player: Sold. Let’s do that.

<Sidebar> Not All Characters Can Fight
Some of the most tense scenes in a movie or TV show don’t involve violence at
all, or else use violence as the flashy endpoint alone. Consider a cat-and-mouse stealth
sequence, or a conversation the bard is striking up to buy time for her heist crew, or a
final exchange between two gunslingers fated to die by each other’s hands.
For parties that are a mix of combat-focused and combat-averse characters, the
Game Master must find objectives for non-combat characters to address while their
party members do violence. Perhaps non-combat characters need to reach a telephone
to make a call, or crack a safe or encrypted message, or simply run towards the Big
Red Button once they get an opening from their more combat-oriented allies.
The same Encounter structure can be used, including Actions and Zones, and
even the conclusions of nonviolent Encounters can be used as a time to grant XP for
Encounter Incentives.
</sidebar>
Health and Healing

Health and healing is the most complicated and “crunchy” part of BOLT by a
significant margin. The idea is players should avoid dealing with these mechanics,
because it’s a sign that whatever’s happening in the fiction is going sideways.
There are four main aspects to health and healing detailed in this section:
1. Characterizing health (Health Tracks and What is 5 Damage?)
2. Running out of health (Going Down, Losing It, and The Wounds Track)
3. Recovering health during a Scene (Healing Shot, First Aid, and Recovering
Tenacity After Encounters)
4. Recovering health between Scenes (Multiple Schemata for Healing Between
Scenes)
a. There are three approaches provided in the BOLT Core Rules, ordered
from least complicated and punishing to most complicated and punishing.
The table should decide which approach to choose for their game.
At the end of this section, a quick reference guide towards Remembering
Numbers is provided. The health system is complicated (and scary) on purpose, but I
hope that once the player understands the broad shape of the system, they won’t have
to keep flipping through the rules to figure out what numbers to use.
<sidebar>

The twin health trackers in BOLT match the twin health trackers of Genesys,
which is where I got the idea from. However, the system of rolling to Endure and
marking Wounds is an attempt to replicate the Stun Save system of Cyberpunk 2020,
which (despite being incredibly clunky) sold the breathless desperation of cyberpunk
fights.
</sidebar>
Health Tracks
In the BOLT engine, all characters have two Health Tracks: Vitality and Tenacity.
Vitality represents the amount of physical damage that a character can sustain
while retaining the capacity to fight. It is calculated by 8+FORT+additional bonuses. A
player can spend XP to increase their character’s Vitality.
Tenacity represents the amount of pressure, embarrassment, and suffering a
character can endure while retaining the capacity to think. It is calculated by
8+WILL+additional bonuses. A player can spend XP to increase their character’s
Tenacity.
<Sidebar> What is 5 Damage?

In the BOLT system, 5 Damage is the equivalent of a gash in the arm from a
knife fight. For a normal person, that would be enough fear and pain to warrant running
away, calling for a doctor, and/or curling into the fetal position. But player characters are
not normal people, so they can fight through that pain without major consequence—until
they get stabbed a second time.
Within the rules of BOLT, player characters are special because they can take a
second gunshot, a second shiv, before falling. So make it count.
</sidebar>
Going Down
If a character’s Vitality is brought down to 0 or lower, they Go Down. A character
that Goes Down immediately falls prone and cannot make more Actions until the
player’s next Turn. However, players should consider tracking negative Vitality in a
fantasy setting, because some abilities in the Life Magic tree depend on negative
Vitality.
On their next Turn, the player must roll to Endure, always with a Difficulty of 8.
Rolling to Endure counts as an Action with a Skill check. If the character receives
Damage between Going Down and an attempt to Endure, the player’s Endure check is

Set Back once per hit. Damage taken while the character is down should be tracked as
negative Vitality if applicable.
On a Success, the character returns to the fight, with Vitality equal to the
difference between the player’s Endure roll and the Difficulty of the check, with a
minimum of 1.
For example, given the Difficulty to Endure is 8, if the player rolls a 12, their
character revives with 4 Vitality. If the player rolls an 8 exactly, the character revives
with 1 Vitality.
In BOLT, margin of Success is only relevant for Skill checks to recover health,
but every Skill check for recovering health involves checking the margin of Success.
On a Failure, the character stays down for the rest of the Encounter, but retains
enough wherewithal to drag themself to cover. After the Encounter resolves, the
character recuperates with 1 Vitality remaining. If a character Goes Down outside of an
Encounter, the character can recuperate over a narratively appropriate period of time.
After rolling to Endure—regardless of success—the player marks their
character’s Wounds Track once, which will provide an ongoing disadvantage to all rolls
the player makes.
The player always marks their character’s Wounds track after rolling to Endure.
Player characters are at least somewhat special, and thus cannot be killed
without their players’ consent. The consequences for getting defeated in a combat
Encounter should instead raise the stakes of the Scene, and if that consequence truly is
character death, the moment should be framed by the player themself.
If the table wants to play characters that are more susceptible to random death,
the entire table should agree on how many Wounds is considered the threshold for
death for the game, and whether dice should be involved in determining lethality.
Losing It
If a character’s Tenacity is reduced to 0 or lower, they Lose It (where “It” could
mean Cool, Nerve, Mojo, etc…) and suffer a major outburst, which should be handled
narratively and within context. Perhaps the character gives up fighting and tries to
surrender to the City Guard. Perhaps they succumb to fear and spend the rest of the
Scene hiding in a corner. Or perhaps they lose their patience with a spice runner and
just draw a blaster carbine on the runner’s mushy excuse for a face. Either way, Losing
It should raise the stakes of the Encounter or Scene.
After Losing it, the character recuperates with 5 Tenacity remaining, and the
player marks their character’s Wounds Track once.

The Wounds Track
After Going Down or Losing It, the player marks their character’s Wounds Track
once. A character can't shrug off a knife wound or panic attack immediately, so the
consequences of such severe distress make everything ongoing harder.
● At 1 mark on the Wounds Track: all ongoing rolls for Skill checks and Defensive
Skill checks are Set Back once.
● At 2 marks on the Wounds Track: all ongoing rolls for Skill checks and Defensive
Skill checks are Set Back twice.
● At 3 or more marks on the Wounds Track: all ongoing rolls for Skill checks and
Defensive Skill checks fail unless they are Pulled Forward by outside
circumstances
The Wounds Track is bad news, and if the player has to mark it, it should be their
cue to abort the mission and retreat.
Healing Shot
A Healing Shot, whether that is an adrenaline syringe or restorative smelling
salts, is the only healing item offered in the base rules for BOLT. A character can
consume a Healing Shot as an Action (with no Skill check required) to bypass the
requirement for an Endure check and immediately return to action with 5 Vitality.
Healing shots by default have no effect unless the character has Gone Down.
First Aid
The player can roll Utilize (Medicine) for their character to administer First Aid.
Attempts to administer First Aid on oneself are Set Back once. The Difficulty of
administering First Aid on a patient is always 8.
On a Success, the character heals 5 Vitality in their patient. A Perk suggests the
character ease their patient’s pain, healing 5 Tenacity. A Complication suggests the
character’s treatment is quite painful, reducing their patient’s Tenacity by 5. This may
cause a character to Lose It.
A character can receive First Aid once per Scene.
Recovering Tenacity After Encounters

Players are expected to spend Tenacity liberally during gameplay—especially
during high-stakes Encounters—so this ability allows characters to “catch their breath”
after Encounters.

After an Encounter (at the same time as assessing Encounter Incentives), the
player can roll to Endure in order to recover Tenacity, always with a Difficulty of 8.
On a Success, the character regains Tenacity up to a value equal to the margin
between the result of the player’s Endure roll and the Difficulty of that roll, at a minimum
of 1. For example, if the Difficulty to Endure was 8, and the player rolled a 11, the
character regains 3 Tenacity. In BOLT, margin of Success is only relevant for Skill
checks to recover health, but every Skill check for recovering health involves checking
the margin of Success.
On a Failure, no Tenacity is recovered. A Perk suggests an auxiliary benefit, like
Pulling Forward the player’s next Skill check. A Complication suggests the character
regains Tenacity by venting in a destructive manner, breaking something important, or
setting back the player’s next Skill check.
A player can elect to Help an ally recover Tenacity, Pulling Forward that ally’s
Endure check, but consequences of Perks or Complications from the ally’s check will be
directed at the player’s character. This reflects characters trying to comfort one another
and running the risk of being the first person to be yelled at. A player can only Help one
ally at a time when recovering Tenacity.
Multiple Schemata for Healing Between Scenes

To be honest, I have not settled on a definitive approach to healing in BOLT,
largely because the rate of healing in a game depends on what resources the
characters have, and that’s not information I, as the game writer, necessarily have.
Instead, I’m providing three potential mechanic sets for healing, depending on the style
of game the table is playing.
Regardless of schema, characters are completely healed between Acts. Perhaps
deeply wounded characters retain a lingering consequence, but that should be handled
on a case-by-case basis.
Return-to-Base (RTB) Healing

Between Scenes, characters heal all Vitality, Tenacity, and Wounds.
This healing schema assumes characters receive all the time and resources
required to heal completely between Scenes
This approach to healing will reduce consequences to taking Damage in a
Scene. If the players know they are in the last sequence before the Scene ends, they
will be more likely to play recklessly, knowing that consequences to their health will not
carry far into the future.

Outpost Healing
Between Scenes, characters recover 5 Vitality and up to one mark on their
character’s Wounds Track.
If the character has one or more marks on their Wounds Track prior to healing,
they recover half their Tenacity, rounded down. If the character has no marks on their
Wounds Track, they recover all their Tenacity.
This healing schema assumes characters receive comprehensive medical
attention, but with limits to time and/or resources.
This healing system will encourage more cautious behavior from players,
because taking even one Wound will reduce their ability to spend Tenacity in the next
Scene, and taking two Wounds will result in their characters approaching the next
Scene with a major disadvantage.
The goal of this healing system is to strongly encourage characters to run away
after taking significant Damage. The threat of starting the next Scene with every roll Set
Back once is meant to loom over players, not to actually happen very often.
However, if a character acts recklessly enough to take two or three Wounds, the
Game Master should not shy away from the consequences. The threat of lingering
Wounds ought to be followed up on, or else it’s rather toothless as a threat. However,
the affected character should have options to avoid combat in the next Scene.
Campsite Healing
Between Scenes, characters can heal from their wounds—slowly.
If the character receives no medical attention, they recover 1 Vitality between
Scenes.
If the character receives medical attention from a caretaker character who has at
least one rank in Utilize (Medicine), the character recovers additional Vitality equal to
the number of ranks the caretaker has in Utilize (Medicine). If the character has at least
5 Vitality, medical attention allows the player to clear 1 mark on their character’s
Wounds Track instead.
If the character has one or more marks on their Wounds Track prior to healing,
they recover half their Tenacity, rounded down. If the character has no marks on their
Wounds Track, they recover all their Tenacity.
If the character is providing medical attention to themself, they recover no
Tenacity. A character can provide medical attention to up to a number of patients equal
to their ranks in Utilize (Medicine), including themself.

This healing schema can be considered the “hard mode” for BOLT. Healing is
slow, and if a character is forced to make an Endure check, they likely cannot be healed
from their Wounds without receiving First Aid before the Scene ends.
Additionally, with this schema, the Utilize (Medicine) Skill becomes absolutely
vital, and it should be encouraged that at least two characters in the party invest in
Utilize (Medicine)—one to be the healer, another to tend to the healer. Alternately, a
single healer can invest greatly in the Endure Skill, and simply approach the adventure
by healing Tenacity only after Encounters.
This approach to healing will incentivize players to avoid every fight possible
unless they can cheese (use low-risk, repeatable tactics) or kite (attack from far away)
whatever enemy is in their way. If the table is seeking an OSR-style experience, this is
the recommended healing schema to adopt.
Remembering Numbers
● If a Skill check is involved, the Difficulty is 8. The amount of health recovered is
the difference between the roll and 8 (or 1, on a tie). In BOLT, margin of Success
is only relevant for Skill checks to recover health, but every Skill check for
recovering health involves checking the margin of Success.
● If the character is healing others without a Skill check by Campsite Healing,
the number is the caretaker’s rank in Utilize (Medicine), for both Vitality
recovered and number of characters treated.
● If the character is recovering with no support, the amount of health recovered
is 1.
● Otherwise, assume the number is 5.
Items
On Encumbrance
The BOLT RPG Engine doesn’t bother with detailed encumbrance rules.
Resource management matters much more in dungeon-crawling and survival situations,
and characters in BOLT are generally far too fragile to go dungeon-crawling. As for
survival, there are a lot of extra mechanics that would be required to make survival
mechanically tense, and I don’t run survival games enough to write those mechanics
properly.
As a result, item encumbrance is simple. If a weapon or armor set is unwieldy to
carry or wear, it will have the Bulky tag. If the character is carrying a sniper rifle, they

probably do not have the capacity to carry a second rifle. Beyond that, it is assumed
that items and knicknacks are stashed in pockets, bags, and vehicles; and that very
large items can be moved with the Apply Force Skill.
As a general rule, if a player wants their character to have an item or invoke an
item in a situation, the GM should simply let the character have that item unless there is
an interesting reason for that item to be unavailable.
Price
Tracking money, like tracking encumbrance, is more interesting in games where
limitations on equipment are much more pressing (like in survival), so the Core Rules of
BOLT engine doesn’t particularly prioritize tracking money. Instead, the value of items is
abstracted into a Price value from 0-10. What that Price means to the character
depends on their Wealth.
If the Price of an item is much less than the character’s Wealth, it’s trivial to get
and the character can just buy the item.
If the Price of an item is close to the character’s Wealth, the character can afford
it, but it’s something they’ll need to save up for, go into debt for, or deal in favors for.
If the value of an item is much greater than the character’s wealth, the character
can’t afford it. However, they can always steal the item, or loot it from a dead body.
Price What it Means Examples
0 Nearly free Sticks, rusted-out car transmissions, junked

moisture vaporators
1 Low Cost Newspaper, cheap food and drink, rough

clothing, cart of scrap
2 Pocketknife, beater car, night at clean inn, a

few hits of spice
3 Significant Cost Smartphone, farming equipment, quality

work boots, pop music concert, speeder bike
4 Simple automobile, fine-quality horse,

amateur hobby equipment, blaster pistol,
non-military weaponry
5 Expensive Night at a luxury resort, quality formal wear,

music festival ticket
6 Legal representation, professional

equipment, military weaponry
7 Extravagant College tuition, McMansion, luxurious

carriage, light-duty space freighter
8 Cutting-edge military equipment, hired

waitstaff, audience with a prominent world
leader
9 Limited-edition supercar, noble’s estate,

capital starship
10 Priceless Prototype military equipment, a painting that

pioneered an art movement, a queen’s
crown, the last bottle of a vintage wine
<Sidebar> Carried Weapons Are Obvious and Scary

Unless a weapon has the Concealable tag, any weapons that the character
carries will be extremely visible and thus extremely scary to bystanders. Shotguns and
longbows and polearms are giant things, and if the character walks into a random bar
armed to the teeth, everyone in the bar should assume that the character is bad news.
Of course, if the bar expects a party of well-armed mercenaries to come by, or if the
character is traveling through obviously dangerous woods, then the character is free to
open-carry a greatsword without question. However, the Game Master should subtly
condition the players to see other characters armed to the teeth as bad news as well.
In general, Game Masters should subtly discourage players from having their
characters walk around public areas with large weapons, much less use them. Instead,
the Game Master should encourage more combat encounters based on fisticuffs and
small weapons like knives. Not only are these encounters less lethal to player
characters, but they also push game balance in favor of light arms and encourage
combat-oriented characters to explore options beyond killing every hostile in front of
them.
</sidebar>
Weapon Qualities
Weapons are described with the following format:
Weapon Name: Skill. [x] Damage. [x] Range. Price [x]. Special Weapon
Qualities

Description of weapon. Additional rules for use of weapon.
Note: Weapons do a minimum of 0 Damage, meaning a character with low

Fortitude cannot by default heal with their punches.
Skill: The Skill required to use the weapon.

Damage: The base Damage the weapon deals.
Range: The range of the weapon, whether it’s
● Melee (can target opponents in Melee Range
● Short (can target opponents in the character’s current Zone)
● Medium (can target opponents up to one Zone away)
● Long (can target opponents up to two Zones away)
● Extreme (can target opponents up to three Zones away)
Special Qualities for Weapons

Armor Piercing (AP) X: Fuck your armor. When calculating damage, the
attacker can ignore the target’s Armor up to the weapon’s AP value X.
Bulky: When carrying this weapon, attempts to Dodge are Set Back once,
unless the character drops the weapon first.
Concealable: When not drawn, this weapon is not noticeable by other
characters. It may be uncovered with a pat-down, however.
Defensive (Melee) X: Increases Defense against Strike attacks by the value X.
Defensive (Ranged) X: Increases Defense against Shoot attacks by the value X.
Disorient: On a Success, the player can elect to use a Perk to engage this
Quality. When engaged, the opponent struck is knocked senseless, and the opponent’s
next Skill check is Set Back twice.
Explosive: When using a weapon with this Quality, the player targets a point
instead of an opponent. The player names a point within range and rolls to Shoot or
Throw. Anyone within Melee Range of that point (including allies) must roll to Dodge
against the result of the player’s Shoot or Throw roll. If the opponent rolls a Success
against the player’s roll, they pass unscathed. If the opponent rolls a Failure, the
opponent takes damage from the weapon.
If the player attempts to ricochet the Explosive weapon, the check to Shoot or
Throw the explosive is Set Back once. On a Complication, the ricocheted weapon may
catch the character who used it.
If an ally rolls to Dodge against the player’s Shoot or Throw check and the result
is a tie, the ally escapes unscathed.
Nimble: A light weapon fitting graceful movement. Relevant for specific Feats.

Prepare X, Y: After attacking with this weapon X times, this weapon requires Y
Actions to prepare for another use.
Scoped: Aim for where it hurts. At the beginning of a Round, the player stakes
out a position and calls out a target. When the player rolls to Shoot that called target, if
they roll a Success, they deal Damage plus half (rounded down). If the player’s
character switches targets or is forced to move, they lose this bonus (although they can
still make a Skill check). Damage accrued through a Perk is also multiplied by this
Quality.
Subtle: If the character attacks with this weapon from a hidden location, their
location is not immediately revealed. However, loosed arrows, dead bodies, and bullet
holes are still noticeable.
Suppressive: When using a weapon with this Quality, the player targets a point
instead of an opponent. The player names a line of fire up to the range of their weapon
and rolls to Shoot. Anyone within Melee Range of that line (including allies) must roll to
Dodge against the result of the player’s Shoot roll. If the opponent rolls a Success
against the player’s roll, they pass unscathed. If the opponent rolls a Failure, the
opponent takes damage from the weapon.
If an ally rolls to Dodge against the player’s Shoot check and the result is a tie,
the ally escapes unscathed.
Example Weapons
Universal Weapons
Universal weapons can turn up in almost any setting.
Dagger: Strike (Light)/Throw (Light). 2+FORT Damage. Melee Range/Short

Range. Price 2. Concealed. Nimble. Subtle.
A small, hidden blade never goes out of fashion.
Flame Cocktail: Throw (Light). 3 Damage. Short Range. Price 1. Explosive.
This weapon is so classic that it would have been invented with or without the
inspiration of the Soviet official whose name graces this weapon of the people. Just fill a
bottle or urn with oil or liquor, stuff a rag in the opening, light the rag aflame, and yell
your favorite slogan. Once thrown, the resulting firestorm will ignite anything flammable
in Melee Range.
Meat Cleaver: Strike (Light). 3+FORT Damage. Melee.
What a brutal way to go, huh? On a Success and a Perk, the character may deal
an additional 3+FORT damage instead of half damage.

Unarmed Strike: Strike (Unarmed). 0+FORT Damage. Melee Range. Price 0.
Concealed. Subtle.
The best guns are the ones on your person.
Knuckle Weights: Strike (Unarmed). 1+FORT Damage. Melee Range. Price
1-3. Concealed. Disorient. Subtle.
These could be cast-metal brass knuckles, weighted gloves, or even just a metal
bar clutched in your fists. But they make every hit hurt more, which is the important part.
Fantasy Weapons
Fantasy weapons can show up in modern settings, but they’ll typically be framed
as anachronisms. On one hand, they’ll be clearly-retrograde weapons, but on the other
hand, a sword never stops being lethal.
Battle Axe: Strike (Heavy). 8+FORT Damage. Melee Range. Price 7. Bulky.
The official weapons of berserkers and marauders. If you see it coming, it’s
already too late. If the player uses an Action for their character to charge at a target, the
battle axe receives an AP equal to the wielder’s ranks in Run/Leap.
Crossbow: Shoot (Light). 6 Damage. Medium Range. Price 4. Bulky. Prepare
1,1.
This weapon is big, lumbering, and slow to fire. But unlike a proper longbow, the
wielder doesn’t need much training to be dangerous.
Dueling Shield: Strike (Light). 0+FORT Damage. Melee Range. Price 3.
Defensive (Melee) 1. Defensive (Ranged) 2. Nimble.
The point of this shield is less to block strikes and more to disarm attackers. If an
opponent rolls a Failure and Complication on a Strike check targeting the character, the
character can disarm the attacker.
Greatsword: Strike (Heavy). 7+FORT Damage. Melee Range. Price 6-7.
Defensive (Melee) 2.
Typically, a sword this large is for elite soldiers who are valuable enough to
warrant a massive blade, so simply seeing this weapon is cause to panic.
Hand Crossbow: Shoot (Light). 4 Damage. Short Range. Price 5. Prepare 1,1.
The stopping power of this weapon isn’t fantastic, but the hope is that it’s enough
for the wielder to fire one bolt and, well, bolt.
Hand Axe: Strike (Light)/Throw (Light). 4+FORT Damage. Melee Range/Short
Range. Price 2-3.
Humans are a lot like trees—except for the part where they scream when cut
down. On a Success and a Perk, the character may deal an additional 4+FORT damage
instead of half damage.

Heavy Mace: Strike (Heavy). 7+FORT Damage. Melee Range. Price 3-5. AP 2.
Bulky. Disorient.
No amount of armor will save you against a spiked block of weight flying towards
you.
Light Mace: Strike (Light). 5+FORT Damage. Melee Range. Price 2-4. Disorient.
A mace is a club with care put into manufacture.
Light Spear: Strike (Light). 4+FORT Damage. Melee Range. Price 2-3.
A pointed shaft is often enough to keep hostiles at bay.
Longbow: Shoot (Heavy). 7+FORT Damage. Extreme Range. Price 7. AP 2.
Bulky.
The epitome of ranged combat. It is difficult to wield and harder to master, but in
the right hands, it’s a weapon of legend.
Medium Shield: Strike (Heavy). 2+FORT Damage. Melee Range. Price 6. Bulky.
Defensive (Melee) 2. Defensive (Ranged) 2.
A knight’s shield best paired with a trusty sword or a medium spear.
Polearm: Strike (Heavy). 7+FORT Damage. Melee Range. Price 3-5. Bulky.
Polearms come in multiple shapes, but the core idea of a sharp object at the end
of a long stick is always sound. Spears are cheaper and faster to manufacture than
swords, and they’re often more effective when their wielders are mounted or in
formation. If the player uses an Action for their character to charge at a target while
riding a mount, the polearm receives an AP equal to the character’s ranks in Drive or
Ride.
Quarterstaff: Strike (Light). 3+FORT Damage. Melee Range. Price 0-2.
Defensive (Melee) 1. Concealed.
A quarterstaff never looks like a weapon, until the wielder knocks the ankles out
from under some hooligan who dares attack them. If an opponent makes a Melee Strike
on the character and rolls a Failure and a Complication, the character can force that
attacker to fall prone as a consequence.
Shortbow: Shoot (Heavy). 5+FORT Damage. Long Range. Price 3-5.
The weapon of choice for rangers and cavalry alike. It’s powerful enough to
match crossbows, but nimble enough to shoot while running, hiding, or riding a mount.
Shordsword: Strike (Light). 5+FORT Damage. Melee Range. Price 3-5.
Defensive (Melee) 1. Nimble.
Whether it’s a lithe rapier or a flashy scimitar, a good sword will never go out of
style.

Modern Weapons
Modern weapons can be adapted to sci-fi settings without major modifications.
Note that the Core Rules of BOLT do not care about ammunition, because tracking
ammunition tends towards tedium unless scrounging for resources is a specific part of
gameplay.
Assault Rifle: Shoot (Heavy). 9 Damage. Medium Range. Price 6. Suppressive.
If the shooter can strike someone dead from 90 meters away, it’s not a
self-defense weapon.
Collapsible Police Baton: Strike (Melee). 4+FORT Damage. Melee Range.
Price 3. Disorient.
It’s a club, but a collapsible one defined by the abuses of the law.
Grenade: Throw (Light). 13 Damage. Short Range. Price 5. Explosive.
Pull the pin, let it fly, and all the hostiles simply die.
Pistol: Shoot (Light). 5 Damage. Short Range. Price 4. Concealable. Nimble.
A simple pistol for self-defense. One shot won’t bring down someone determined
to stay standing, but even pointing one at a normal person will make them cower.
Large Machine Gun: Shoot (Heavy). 12 Damage. Long Range. Price 7. AP 2.
Bulky. Suppressive.
This giant weapon is typically only used by soldiers or action movie heroes.
Minigun: Shoot (Heavy). 15 Damage. Long Range. Price 8. AP 3. Bulky.
Suppressive.
The minigun is meant to be mounted on a turret, but realism has never stopped a
power fantasy.
Shotgun: Shoot (Heavy). 8 Damage. Short Range. Price 5. AP 3.
Shotguns in BOLT have Armor Piercing because DOOM redefined what using a
shotgun should feel like.
Sniper Rifle: Shoot (Heavy). 10 Damage. Extreme Range. Price 6. AP 2. Bulky.
Prepare 1,1. Scoped.
Because this weapon is more cliche than equipment, almost any myth about
video game sniper rifles will work in BOLT.
Submachine Gun: Shoot (Light). 6 Damage. Short Range. Price 5. Nimble.
Suppressive.
Submachine guns offer the devious power of spray-and-pray in a compact
package.

General Equipment
The following items are not weapons, but they are still useful artifacts in many
campaigns.
Universal Equipment
Alcohol: Price 1-10. Carbohydrates fermented into something that can facilitate
friendship, relaxation, or reckless behavior, depending on the context.
Armor (Heavy): Price 7. Bulky. +2 Armor. Heavy garb that covers you in bulky,
uncomfortable, and expensive material. It’s difficult to move in, but it’s a great defense
against injury and death. When equipped, Sneak/Hide checks are Set Back once.
Armor (Light): Price 5. +1 Armor. S turdy equipment that puts a little bit of weight
between internal organs and dangerous foreign objects. It looks obviously like armor,
but maybe the character wants that. Adds +1 Armor.
Basic Tools: Price 3. Wrenches, screwdrivers, lubricant, and duct tape.
Required for players to make Jury-Rig checks without penalties.
Bedroll: Price 1. Better than sleeping on the ground.
Book (General): Price 1-6. A book is how one learns things, but is also a good
reference for details the character may have forgotten. A general reference has
moderately in-depth information about a relatively broad topic. A player can use this
item to Pull Forward once a relevant Recall check.
Book (Specialized): Price 3-8. A book is how one learns things, but is also a
powerful reference for details the character may have forgotten. A specialized reference
has very in-depth information about a narrow topic. A player can use this item to Pull
Forward twice a relevant Recall check.
Caltrops: Price 1-5. A bag of spiked metal stars meant to impede movement
over an area. Can be specially made, or jury-rigged from twisted nails. The player
targets an area to deploy the caltrops. Anyone who passes through that area (including
allies) must roll to Dodge against a Difficulty of 8-12, depending on the quality of the
caltrops. If the intruder rolls a Success, they pass unscathed. If the intruder rolls a
Failure, they take 4 Damage or are forced to take another route. A vehicle or mount that
drives over caltrops immediately loses control.
Chalk: Price 1. A soft piece of stone that can leave clean white marks. Washes
away with water.
Crowbar: Price 2. Can be used as a weapon in a pinch (Strike (Light), 2+FORT
Damage, Melee Range), but its real value is in providing leverage for prying things
apart. When applicable, the player can invoke this item to Pull Forward an Apply Force
or Jury-Rig check.

Manacles: Price 4. Metal loops meant to chain an assailant’s wrist. They
typically come with a key.
Map: Price 1. It’s good to know where one is going. If the map is accurate, a
player can use it to Pull Forward checks to navigate a location.
Medical Kit: Price 4. Disinfectant, bandages, suturing needles, painkillers.
Required for players to make Utilize (Medicine) checks without penalties.
Mirror, Hand: Price 3. Vanity cares not for the road!
Musical Instrument: Price 1-10. For some, it’s a means of passing the time. For
others, it’s a tool of the trade. And in some cases, the instrument is itself the work of art.
Rope: Price 1. T he most underrated piece of equipment one can have for
dangerous operations. A rope with a hook at the end is Price 3.
Lock: Price 3. A simple lock, usable for keeping things in place. Requires a
Difficulty 8-12 Jury-Rig check to bypass. A hammer can break it easily but loudly.
Comes with a key, or with a combination to memorize.
Tarpaulin: Price 2. A heavy, water-resistant cloth for keeping the rain off users.
Telescope/Binoculars: Price 3-6. A tube of lenscrafting used for seeing things
far away. Allows the character to observe a location at Extreme Range.
rice 3-5. Keeps the rain and wind off users.
Tent: P
Thievery Set: Price 3. Pins, lockpicks, files, oil, a mirror, wire, and magnets; all
the miscellaneous tools required to pick locks, swipe keys, defuse traps, and confuse
security cameras. Required for players to make checks to make relevant Cheat/Steal
and Jury-RIg checks without penalties.
Travel Rations: Price 1-3. They never taste good...
Fantasy Equipment
Whether these items apply to your game depends on how magic is framed in
your setting. For more detail, see Magic Defines Setting Defines Magic.
vial of alkhemical glass holding a colorless,
Alkhemical Acid: Price 5. A
thin-looking liquid. When released, the acid will eat through everything it touches,
dissipating as it dissolves matter. When used on living characters, the results are truly
horrific. Players and Game Masters are encouraged to describe the consequences—or
not!
Berserker Salts: Price 5. A small box of salts that can be snorted or smoked,
granting an inhuman stamina and bloodlust to the person who consumes it. A character
who consumes these salts during an Encounter as an Action temporarily regains all
their Tenacity and then doubles their Tenacity. The player can spend the extra Tenacity
with no penalties, but only for checks intended to bring life closer to death. Upon the

end of the Encounter, the character’s Tenacity is reduced to 0, and the character Loses
It.
Cat-Eye Tincture: Price 6. A potion in a vial, which, when consumed, lets the
character see in the dark as if they were always meant to, as well as hear even the
footsteps of beetles. Consuming this in daylight or in a loud city will be absolute
hell—and if anyone sees the character after consuming this tincture, they’ll find the look
on their face terrifying. But in remote forests and caves, it’s any scout’s favorite tool.
Adds +1 Vigilance at Night. Eliminates all penalties to Notice, Search, or Vigilance at
night.
Tasting notes: oily and sour, flooding the entire palate with a revoltingly sour bite
and the burn of raw cinnamon.
Cart: Price 3. A simple livestock-pulled cart, built to carry lots of stuff, very
slowly.
Devil’s Breath: Price 4. A dangerous drug with dangerous consequences. When
consumed, the character receives the Reckless talent for every single Skill and
Defensive Skill. For every check, your player gains +2, but the auxiliary d4 will return a
Complication on a 1 or 2.
Flint and Steel: Price 2. Can be used to start fires instantly.
Healing Potion: Price 7. A pinkish-looking liquid in a vial that can be consumed
by the character as a Healing Shot. This item should be extremely limited, unless one
has access to an alkhemist, a well-funded medical practice, or a military force.
Tasting notes: cloyingly sweet, to the point where it numbs the tongue, then the
throat, and then the whole body.
Horse: Price 5. A good horse will get a character where they’re going at a
reasonable pace. They’re another mouth to feed, though.
Snap Light: Price 7. A silver ring inlaid with amber. When the character snaps
their fingers, the ring projects a warm glow, suitable for lighting dim or dark areas.
Torch: Price 0. A stick with an oily rag. When lit, the torch projects a flickering
glow, suitable for lighting dim or dark areas. It can also be used to set things on fire.
Modern Equipment
Whether these items apply to your game depends on how technology is framed
in your setting. For more detail, see Magic Defines Setting Defines Magic, because
magic and technology are narratively interchangeable.
Adrenaline Shot: Price 7. A syringe of adrenaline that can be injected (painfully)
by the character as a Healing Shot. This item should be extremely limited, unless one
has access to a chemist, a well-funded medical practice, or a military force.

Car (Armored): Price 5-7. This thing looks like bad news, but crucially, it’s bad
news for everyone else. Some armored cars are equipped with machine gun
attachments.
Car (Basic): Price 3-5. A reliable vehicle that won’t turn any heads, which is
good. But it also won’t stop bullets, which is a problem in certain cases.
Car (Derelict): Price 0-2. It’s a barely-running piece of shit, useful for driving
through walls, catching bullets for you, or setting on fire after use in crimes.
Car (Luxury): Price 6-9. For if someone wants to look like money—and therefore
a target for haters, miscreants, and hunters.
Car (Sports): Price 4-9. T his vehicle looks flashy, goes like stink, but the red
paint doesn’t stop gunfire—it just makes it an easier target.
Firearm Scope: Price 5. A magnifying tool attached to the top of a firearm. This
grants the Scoped Quality to a weapon.
Firearm Silencer: Price 5. A long tube attached to the end of a firearm muzzle.
This grants the Subtle Quality to the weapon but reduces Damage by 1.
Flashlight: Price 1. A bulky tube with a lens on one end. When the user flicks a
switch on the side, the lens projects a warm glow, suitable for lighting dim or dark areas.
A firearm flashlight attachment comes at Price 3.
Gas Mask: Price 5. A n uncomfortable-looking thing that ruins the wearer’s
visibility but protects them from inhaling bad things. This is relevant if someone starts
pumping poisons into the air. Reduces Vigilance by 1.
Gasoline: Price 2. A flammable liquid with an acrid reek. Can be used to power
vehicles, but can also be poured in open air as a flame accelerant.
Matchbox: Price 1. A box of wooden sticks that can invoke a small flame with a
flick of the wrist. Can be used to start fires.
Night-Vision Goggles: P rice 6. A bulky face attachment that uses alternate
spectra of light to provide visual information about the environment, without lighting the
area in some conspicuous way.
Portable Radio: Price 2-3. A big box of sound that can attune to an elongated
spectrum of light and converted to the hottest party music available on 102.5
Throwdown FM!
Walkie-Talkie: Price 3. A speaker and microphone with radio-frequency
connections to a number of similar units in the same area. The network only allows for
one speaker at a time, and it’s quite easy to scramble the signal.
Running BOLT
Every game needs a Game Master section, and I think that includes BOLT. I’m
not good at showing people how to run games, because I rarely read the GM section of

a game. However, I’ll at least try to give some scattered thoughts about assumptions
the BOLT s ystem makes in terms of GMing style.
Fish for Ideas for Perks and Complications

The Game Master should encourage players to come up with ideas for Perks and
Complications, and only step in if the players are stumped. Even if the mechanical result
is simply a check being Pulled Forward or Set Back, the crafting of narrative
consequences is more fun with collaboration.
Balance Difficulties to Account for Tenacity

The Game Master should encourage players to spend Tenacity on Skill and
Defensive Skill checks, and should set Difficulty values for checks with Tenacity
expenditure in mind. Even near-impossible checks are doable if players are willing to
burn the Tenacity for it, and baiting characters into running out of Tenacity can allow for
fantastic dramatic tension.
For just about every failed roll, the Game Master should ask, “Do you want to
spend Tenacity on that?”
Tailor Games to Players

The core rule set of BOLT is very flexible: it can handle intrigue, heists, bounty
hunting, and anything else that requires doing reckless, dangerous stunts. As a result,
how a given game plays—especially in terms of what Skills and Feats are
useful—depends on what kind of game the table is playing.
The Game Master should account for that. If the players primarily draw up
combat-centric characters, the Game Master should give the players combat
challenges. If the players draw up spies and diplomats, the Game Master should give
the players a web of intrigue that encourages Skills and Feats centered around trickery
and social interaction.
BOLT is not meant to be balanced. Characters built for combat will be clearly
better at combat, and that’s precisely the intent. Instead, the goal for the game (and
thus the goal the Game Master should aim for) is that every player’s character should
be useful.
If a character has proficiencies in survival Skills, that should come up. If a
character has ranks in some language from far away, that language experience should
come in handy. In fact, the Recall (Interest) Skill every character receives with respect
to some niche hobby exists primarily so that players and Game Masters see those

Recall skills as an option. Balance isn’t very important in collaborative role-playing
games, as long as every player feels like their character is contributing.
Run Encounters With Honesty

As mentioned above, Encounters in BOLT are very puzzle-like in
construction—and as part of that, the Game Master should treat the Notice skill as a
kind of hint system.
the Game Master
Note that there is no check for players to learn what is there—
should simply say what is and isn’t there, unless a particular feature is hidden (at which
point, a character’s Vigilance should be a benchmark for whether that feature is
revealed). Instead, the questions pulled out of the Notice check are more of the “How
Do I Win” variety. The Game Master should set Notice checks at a high Difficulty, and
encourage players unfamiliar with role-playing (as well as powergamers) to invest in the
Notice skill in order to draw out more hints.
Additionally, when claiming Actions at the beginning of each Round, the Game
Master is encouraged to claim Actions for opponents first, allowing the players to react
accordingly. For a more tense experience, all players and the Game Master can write
the number of Actions they plan to claim on a piece of paper, such that the players do
not know how many Actions opponents will take and vice versa.
Finally, the Game Master is encouraged to treat “one Skill check per turn” as
gospel. If a player suggests a set of Actions that might imply two Skill checks, then the
Game Master should suggest the player make a Skill check with one of the Skills, with
the roll Set Back once or twice to represent the difficulty of having to contend with the
second Skill. On a Failure, the Game Master is encouraged to draw consequences
related to both of the relevant Skills named in the Turn.
Have a Plan for Failure

This should carry throughout gameplay, from individual rolls to entire campaign
arcs. This concept is sometimes discussed in terms of “Failing Forward,” but having a
plan for failure is far broader than that.
● If the response to a failed roll would be “I just try it again,” don’t ask for a
roll; just let the character do it.
● If the consequence for failing an Encounter is “everyone dies,” don’t let
everyone die.
○ The exception is if the players explicitly want a “meat-grinder” game
where characters are expected to die.

● If the failure of a campaign is simply “Game Over,” reframe the
consequences of the failure.
Tabletop RPGs don’t typically have an option for characters to “respawn” on
failure, so a “Game Over” screen at a table is likely to be interpreted as a cue to re-roll
characters and start from the bottom. As a result, some Game Masters (including
myself) develop a habit of “holding back” in tense situations, for fear of the players
actually losing an Encounter.
Instead, the Game Master is encouraged to make failure more flavorful than
“Game Over.”
● If a Skill check fails, consider interpreting failure as:
○ “You can turn back, or succeed at terrible cost.”
○ “You do it, but with significant collateral damage.”
○ “You do it, but you tripped an alarm.”
● If an Encounter fails, consider:
○ Invoking a deus ex machina and forcing players to reckon with the
ensuing complications
○ Having characters be captured instead of killed
○ Letting characters live but taking something important from them
The idea is to have failure be a reason to escalate tension instead of letting that
tension collapse in disappointment. A heist gone poorly can turn into a bombastic
escape sequence. The stakes of a vehicle chase can be whether the driver loses her
precious getaway car, as opposed to whether the party simply gets away.
If failure is narratively interesting, then the Game Master will be less scared of
risking failure. And subsequently, if the players feel like failure is a real possibility, then
every moment of tension becomes that much more powerful.
Opponents
Opponents in BOLT come in three tiers, differentiated by how durable they are in
Encounters, as well as by where they would be listed in the credits of a movie or TV
show.
Goons
Goons in BOLT are the randos, extras, and cannon fodder. In some other RPGs,
the players’ party would mow through hundreds of them without challenge. In the BOLT
engine, they can be just as lethal as the player characters, but they’re much more
fragile. Maybe they’re unprotected by plot armor, or maybe they’re not paid enough to
take bullet after bullet to stop the protagonists. Either way, they’re people.
Just like the character.

Goon characters Go Down if they take 1 Damage, they cannot burn
Tenacity to aid rolls, and they cannot roll to Endure.
A Goon does not necessarily need any attributes at all. Perhaps a bonus to
attack (likely between +1 and +4) and a Difficulty threshold for an opposed Skill check
(likely between 7 and 10) is enough.
If a Goon requires more detail, give that character values for their six Core
Attributes (FORT, REF, KNOW, ACU, WILL, CHA), their Defense (DEF) and Vigilance
(VIG), and bonuses to one or two Skills.
DEF and VIG can be calculated by 6+REF and 6+ACU, respectively, and can be
adjusted as desired. The Goon won’t require Vitality or Tenacity values, because they
Go Down in one hit.
For most contested rolls against a Goon, use the Static Difficulty rules.
For a hardier Goon, the Game Master can set a Minimum Damage threshold.
Any attack that deals Damage less than the Goon’s Minimum Damage will do no harm
to the Goon.
Faces
Faces are legitimately tough foes and important characters. In a movie, they’d be
named characters who have more than a few seconds of screen time. In a video game,
they’d be your “mini-bosses,” here to fuck you up and take a bit of punishment. But
either way, they aren’t protagonists. They’re meant to Go Down, or else be allies that
mechanically are a little bit simpler to play than a full player character.
Face characters cannot burn Tenacity to aid checks, and they cannot roll to
Endure.
To write up a Face character, give them values for their six Core Attributes,
(FORT, REF, KNOW, ACU, WILL, CHA), as well as Vitality (VIT), Tenacity (TEN),
Defense (DEF) and Vigilance (VIG).
VIT, DEF, and VIG can be calculated by 8+FORT, 6+REF and 6+ACU,
respectively, and adjusted as desired.
TEN can be calculated by 2+WILL. Because Faces cannot spend Tenacity to
improve Skill checks, Tenacity is primarily a reflection of their capacity to take mental
and emotional pressure.
Faces can also receive bonuses (between +1 to +4) to a broad set of Skills
(perhaps 4-8) and relevant Feats.
For most contested rolls against a Face, use the Static Difficulty rules.

Heels
The Heel is the Big Bad, the Mastermind, or the Final Boss. The actor playing the
Heel might just get the highest paycheck of the cast of a hypothetical TV show. And that
means Heels should be overpowered, even breaking the rules of the game a bit.
Players can’t simply defeat a Heel, because Heels deserve a Finisher: a one-liner, a
close-up shot, a dramatic showdown, or a Last Laugh. A Finisher is spectacle, sufficient
to roll credits to.
A Finisher should be a cinematic scene that prioritizes roleplaying over die rolls.
Heel characters can roll to Endure, and they require a dramatic Finisher to
defeat. They’re basically a player character the Game Master controls.
To write up a Heel character, follow the same process as writing a player
character—they should more or less play by the same set of rules.
Writing Settings
As little guidance as I can give about being a Game Master, I can give even less
information about how to write a good setting. At the very least, I’ll give scattered
thoughts about the setting implications built into the rules of BOLT.
Keep in mind that a table can always run BOLT in an existing setting they already
like, which will save some of the trouble of writing a setting whole-cloth.
Languages
The language rules of BOLT imply multiple cultures in contact with each
other—in fact, it is recommended that a given setting have at least six languages in
active use, if not more. Note that every character has proficiency in up to six languages
and fluency in as many as four languages, which implies diverse places of origin for
most characters.
When adding a list of languages, consider each language as corresponding to a
culture in the area—each culture (independent of nations) would have their own
language with poetry, insults, technical language, and lewd jokes. Those cultures may
also have ancient variants of their languages used in religious texts, as well as sign
languages, which are often grammatically unique from spoken languages from the
same culture.
Almost all languages have some means of being written or recorded on physical
artifacts, and if a character is unfamiliar with that written language, that should be noted.

Every character has at least one language they know natively, and every
language is complicated and varied enough for a character to take 5 ranks in.
No culture is too primitive for poetry and song.
<Sidebar> Common Language

It is highly recommended that all characters in a party have at least 3 ranks in
one language they all have in common, so that all characters are able to communicate
effectively with each other.
However, a setting writer should be mindful about having a setting-wide common
language. Such common languages exist in our world (for example, English), but
common languages have a specific culture of origin, and it’s important to consider how
a language from there ended up in charge here. Maybe it’s because of a diaspora, or
maybe it’s because of cultural exchange. However, a “common” language often
becomes common because an empire made it so.
</sidebar>
Give Characters Something To Do

A pure utopia doesn’t have enough conflict for a game system with detailed rules
for killing people. A setting that works in BOLT w ill require some kind of looming danger
or villain, like:
● An empire rising or falling
● A war raging or threatening to break out
● A new technology changing the world order
● An extraterrestrial invasion
As a starting point, a setting writer should consider what scares them the most
about the world, and draw influence from that when writing their own setting.
Write What You Know

I sincerely encourage setting writers to write settings from their own experiences.
I, Ajey Pandey, am a Desi American who went to engineering school, and that affects
how I write settings for my games.
I write about dying empires, technological advancement causing unforeseen
consequences, military industrial complexes, and the parental and societal pressures to
work for evil because that’s where the money is. I think about what engineering PhDs
do in a setting, because I almost became one.
Notably, I don’t write settings based on Hindu legend. I don’t know enough about
it, and honestly I can’t be bothered to research too much. And if I don’t feel comfortable

drawing from Hindu legend despite my parents growing up Hindu, setting writers should
question whether they should be comfortable writing a setting inspired by an “exotic”
culture they’re not intimately familiar with.
Write what speaks to you. I promise it will be interesting.
Build Details Through Knock-On Effects

Setting writers don’t have to write every detail of their world, and often, they can
pull depth out of taking “general” aspects of their setting and “yes-and-ing” their way
through knock-on effects, which can result in setting artifacts that imply further depth in
the rest of the setting. Consider the below example:
Blood mages—ichormancers—in New Braemar can use their dark magic to
loosely predicting the future, and presently, New Braemar is reckoning with capitalist
industrialization washing on its shore. Notably, ichormancers can use their blood magic
foretelling to divine the future of stock prices, trade values, and insurance risks. To fit
the new era of capitalism, ichormancers now eschew ominous robes for suits with
sleeves that can be unbuttoned at the shoulder or elbow to allow for drawing blood.
Additionally, many ichormancers study probability and statistics, and integrate those
concepts into their practices.
In that example, I took two pitches:
● Blood mages tell the future
● Capitalism is rising in the setting
And I simply rode the knock-on effects until we got to blood mages using
statistics to augment models powered by blood runes to set a quote for insurance rates.
Magic and Hacking

Magic and hacking in many RPG systems are means of breaking the rules,
through a combination of specialized rules and deliberately vague language about what
a spell can do. Typical systems allow characters specializing in magic or hacking to
focus on one or two attributes and one or two Skills and let everything else fall away. As
a result, many games allow players to make spellcasters and hackers good at breaking
conventional rules and useless everywhere else. I personally think of spellcasters in
D&D, w ho are near-helpless without their spell slots, and netrunners in Cyberpunk
2020, who quite literally “jack in” and play an entirely separate game while everyone
else goes and shoots people.
Magic and hacking rules in BOLT are an attempt to push against that
phenomenon, by requiring many magic or hacking abilities to rely on non-magical Skills
and by making such moves less restricted to spellcasters (at least in the base rules).

Magic in BOLT can manifest as Skill checks, situational bonuses to Skills, and side
options that can have language written to facilitate creativity in players. Nothing in the
base rule set discourages a brutish soldier from imbuing their sword with fire, because
it’s better a soldier use that ability than a scrawny scholar.
Note that I’m talking about magic and hacking in the same section, because
transistor technology is functionally a means of magic. Transistor technologies like
computers and digital signal transmissions allow humans to accomplish feats that
otherwise would defy reason, and the ways technology works are complicated (and
messy) enough that even specialists don’t fully understand them.
Engineers and hackers are our world’s iteration of spellcasters, for all the good
and ill that implies.
Magic and Hacking Ability Trees

Magic and hacking abilities in BOLT rely upon Ability Trees, which require
progression link-by-link to signify the character building their skills in a particular field
over time. Each Ability Tree requires its own Wield skill, and individual abilities may rely
on other Skills. For example, the Life Magic Tree has several abilities dependent on the
Wield (Life) skill, but specific abilities may be strengthened if the player invests XP in
the Endure Skill.
Note that magic is not meant to replace non-magical strategies. Instead, they are
designed to allow for more o ptions. Looking at the Life Magic Tree again, checks relying
on the Wield (Life) Skill literally play by a different set of rules and tradeoffs than Utilize
(Medicine) checks, which incentivizes a player building a healer to invest XP both in Life
Magic and in non-magical medicine.
<Sidebar> Magic Defines Setting Defines Magic

If technology is equivalent to magic, then it follows that magic is equivalent to
technology: magic is a means of finding a better way to achieve human goals, where
“better” is defined by the people making the magic happen.
And in the same way that mechanical, chemical, biological, electromagnetic
magic continually reshapes our world, magic of all forms should be inextricably linked to
the fabric of a setting. Setting designers and Game Masters should design worlds and
scenarios with magic in mind, so that characters and locations that expect threats from
powerful magic users prepare accordingly.
</sidebar>

Life Magic Tree
The Life Magic Tree is an example of how magic can work in BOLT. Because
magic is inextricably linked to worldbuilding, I find it irresponsible to write a full magic
system for a ruleset meant to be setting-agnostic.
The theme of the Life Magic Tree is sacrifice. The core abilities of this Ability
Tree often require some kind of sacrifice, like the character's own Vitality or their
capacity to resist their own Wounds. In return for that sacrifice, the character receives
certainty of healing that a Utilize (Medicine) check cannot offer: a check invoked by the
Stay ability may have a far lower Difficulty than a comparable Endure check, and the
Transfusion ability is the only way for a character to heal Vitality during a Scene without
any Skill check at all. As a result, it is recommended that a character not rely on magic
alone to heal their allies.
Skill: Wield (Life) (WILL)
Still: Core, Incidental. Dissipate suffering by taking some into yourself. If a target Loses
It within Medium Range of the character, the player can spend 3 Tenacity as incidental
for their character to avert the consequences of the target Losing It. The target regains
3 Tenacity and marks on their Wound Track as normal.
The character also gains 1 rank in Wield (Life) with Still.
Stay: Level 1, Action. Requires Still. Lend someone else your endurance. As an Action,
the character touches a target, and the player rolls Wield (Life) against a difficulty of 8 +
the target's Vitality. (If the target's Vitality is 0 or less, the difficulty of the player’s roll

could be 8 or less.) On a Success, the target instantly succeeds on the next Endure roll
they make to recover Vitality after Going Down. They regain Vitality equal to the
difference between the player’s Wield (Life) roll and the difficulty of the check, or 1 if the
values are equal. The target remains prone and still marks their Wounds Track once.
However, the next Endure check the player makes to recover Vitality after Going Down
in the Scene is Set Back once. The effects of Stay dissipate at the end of the Scene.
<sidebar>
The Stay ability is the reason players are encouraged to track negative Vitality. This
way, using Stay on an ally that has already Gone Down from a significant hit is the
easiest way to revive that ally, by far.
</sidebar>
Transfusion: Level 1, Action. Requires Still. Transfer your life to someone else. As an
Action, the character touches a target to heal them. For every 1 Vitality the player
spends, the target recovers 1 Vitality.
Ranged Stay: Level 2, Action. Requires Stay. Lend endurance at range. Any instance
of Stay or Greater Stay can be granted at up to Short Range, without touch.
Greater Stay: Level 2, Action. Requires Stay. Lend someone else a great deal of your
endurance. As an Action, the character touches a target, and the player rolls Wield
(Life) against a difficulty of 8 + the target's Vitality. (The target must have at least 1
Vitality.) On a success, if the target is later brought to 0 Vitality or lower, they do not fall
prone, do not roll to Endure, and do not mark their Wounds Track. They regain Vitality
equal to the difference between the player’s Wield (Life) roll and the Difficulty of the
check, or 1 if the values are equal. However, the next Endure check the player makes to
recover Vitality after Going Down in the Scene is Set Back twice.The effects of Greater
Stay dissipate at the end of the Scene.
Healing Brew: Level 2, Alchemy. Requires Stay. Concoct bottled determination.

Between Scenes, the character can concoct a number of Healing Brews equal to the
character's ranks in Utilize (Medicine). The Brews function as Healing Shots, except that
characters who consume them regain Vitality equal to the character's ranks in Wield
(Life).
Amplified Transfusion: Level 2, Ability Improvement. Requires Transfusion. Transfer

s an Action, the character touches a
your life to someone else with greater strength. A

target to heal them. For every 1 Vitality the player spends, the target recovers Vitality
equal to the character’s ranks in Wield (Life).
Retroactive Transfusion: Level 2, Action. Requires Transfusion. Transfer your life to

the dead. The character touches a corpse to grant life to it, and the player spends 1
Vitality to do so. The corpse becomes an Undead, a Goon NPC with the following
attributes:
2 Fortitude, 0 Reflex, 0 Intellect, 0 Acuity, 0 Willpower, 0 Charisma
6 Defense, 6 Vigilance
No skills.
The Undead follows the character's will, to the best of its ability. The Undead cannot
read or speak, and it does not comprehend instructions from anyone besides the
character who raised it. The Undead shambles about and looks obviously dead, but it
can make attacks. The character can maintain a number of Undead or Automata equal
to their ranks in Wield (Life).
Distant Stay: Level 3, Ability Improvement. Requires Ranged Stay. Lend endurance at
great distance. Any instance of Stay or Greater Stay can be granted at up to Medium
Range, without touch.
Restore: Level 3, Action. Requires Greater Stay. Place yourself in danger to save
another. As an Action, the character touches a target to heal them. The target clears 1
mark on their Wounds Track and recovers Vitality equal to the character's ranks in
Wield (Life). The next Endure check the player makes to recover Vitality after Going
Down in the Scene immediately fails.
Automaton: Level 3, Ability Improvement. Requires Retroactive Transfusion. The

character’s Undead become much more useful Automata. For each Automaton the
character raises, the player increases two of the Automaton’s core attributes by their
character's ranks in Wield (Life). The character's Automata all receive 2 ranks of
Speak/Read in any language the character has at least 2 Ranks of Speak/Read in, and
can thus follow simple commands from those the character allows. The Automata look
obviously dead and speak in a raspy voice, but retain as much composure of movement
as a drunk person.
Mass Necromancy: Level 3, Ability Improvement. Requires Retroactive Transfusion.

Transfer your life to the dead, at a discount! The character touches a corpse to grant life
to it and other corpses within Short Range, and the player spends 1 Vitality to raise a
number of Undead or Automata equal to the character's ranks in Wield (Life). The

character can maintain a number of Undead equal to the square of their ranks in Wield
(Life).
Resurrect: Level 4, Action. Requires Restore. Return someone from the dead, whether
they like it or not. The character touches a target that has met an untimely death in this
Scene, returning them to life—barely. The target returns with 1 Vitality and—if the target
is a PC or a Heel—with their Wounds Track marked twice. The casting character's
Vitality immediately falls to 0, the character falls prone, and the player marks their
character’s Wounds Track once. The player must then roll to Endure on their next Turn.
Refined Automaton: Level 4, Ability Improvement. Your Automata become images of

he character's Automata receive 1 rank in every skill the character has at least 1
you. T
rank in, as well as the exact same ranks of language comprehension as the character.
The Automata look deathly ill if not dead and speak in a raspy voice, but they can move
with the grace of a butler or the precision of a soldier.
Fortified Automaton: Level 4, Ability Improvement. Your Automata become much

hardier. For each Automaton the character raises, the player increases four of the
Automaton’s core attributes by their character's ranks in Wield (Life). Additionally, the
character's Automata become Face NPCs with 6 +FORT Vitality and 4+WILL Tenacity.

Music, for Inspiration
“Goonda Gold” by Cartel Madras
“Tipsee Shayka” by Moody Good
“Noise Floor” by Moody Good
“Apna Time Aayega” by Ranveer Singh, Dub Sharma, and DIVINE
“Mogambo” by Riz Ahmed
“FLESH WORLD (UK)” by HEALTH
“NEW COKE” by HEALTH
“Crimewave” by HEALTH
“Bad Girls” by M.I.A.
“I Do Coke” by Kill the Noise
“HUMBLE. (SKRILLEX REMIX)” by Kendrick Lamar
“Nobody Speak” by DJ Shadow and Run the Jewels
“Power” by Kanye West
“Monster” by Kanye West, Jay-Z, Rick Ross, Nicki Minaj, and Bon Iver
“I am a God (feat. God)” by Kanye West
“Night City Aliens” by The Armed and Homeschool Dropouts
“Chippin’ In” by SAMURAI and Refused
“Friday Night Fire Fight” by Aligns and Rubicones

Character Name. (Pronouns)
Background. Career. Specialization
FORTITUDE REFLEX KNOWLEDGE ACUITY WILLPOWER CHARISMA
+0 +0 +0 +0 +0 +0
VIT: 8+FORT DEF: ARMR: 0 VIG: TEN: 8+WILL WLTH: 0

6+REF 6+ACU
Resist Dodge 0 Wounds: __ Notice 0 Resist Resist

(Physical) 0 __ (Mental) 0 (Social) 0
Incentives
Background Incentive
Career Incentive
Specialization Incentive
Encounter Incentive
Skills
FORT REF KNOW
Apply Force 0 Shoot (Light) 0 Utilize:

Strike (Unarmed) 0 Shoot (Heavy) 0
Strike (Melee) 0 Balance/Tumble 0 Engineering 0
Run/Leap 0 Sneak/Hide 0 Medicine 0
Drive 0 Professions:
-
-
Recall:
History 0
Religion 0
Politics 0
Law 0
Trade 0
Interests:
-
-

Speak/Read
Languages:
-
-
-
-
-
ACU WILL CHA
Navigate (Wilderness) 0 Coerce 0 Charm 0

Navigate (Underworld) 0 Endure 0 Bluff 0
Jury-Rig 0 Search 0 Persuade 0
Read Person 0 Goad/Command 0
Cheat/Steal 0 Recall (People) 0
Feats
Add Feats Here
Gear
Add Gear Here

Bolt RPG (Lock-In Copy)

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Bolt RPG (Lock-In Copy)

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The BOLT RPG Engine

Version 0.9 Full-Text Build

Written by Ajey Pandey

Creative Commons Attribution Share-Alike 4.0

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What The Game Assumes

Core Attributes and Skills

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Building Your Character

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Health and Healing

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Magic and Hacking

Music, for Inspiration

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What is a Role Playing Game?

The People Involved

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The Materials Involved

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What The Game Assumes

Characters are Dangerous People Who Like Danger

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Action is Fast, Not Realistic

Taking Damage Should Be Scary

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Breaking the Game Isn’t Bad

Inventory Management Isn’t The Focus

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The Game Master is Comfortable in Their Role

An Honest List of Alternatives

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8-9 Significant Challenge

10-11 Major Challenge

12-13 Monumental Challenge

14+ The Kind of Challenge Songs Are Written

Perks and Complications

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Advantages and Disadvantages

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Advantage/Disadvantage Names Default roll Alternate roll

A Superior Roll Pulled Forward d8+d6 base + d4 d10 base + 2 + d4

An Improved Roll Pulled Forward d12 base + d4 d10 base + 1 + d4

A Basic Roll d10 base + d4 d10 base + d4

A Threatened Roll Set Back Once d8 base + d4 d10 base - 1 + d4

A Hindered Roll Set Back Twice d6 base + d4 d10 base - 2 + d4

Contested Rolls - Two Approaches

Static Difficulties (Low-Stakes)

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Contested Rolls (High-Stakes)

Spending Tenacity to Improve Rolls

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Let’s look at an example of gameplay:

Helping Allies and Hindering Opponents

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<Sidebar> Luck Tokens (Optional)

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Resist (Physical) (FORT): Resist succumbing to being pushed, buffeted,

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Speak/Read (Language): Language is a passive Skill that does not require a

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Example: Ishaan is going to be a long-range assassin, focused on (quietly)

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Example: Ishaan is going to be a Starsoul Deva, for that Benachaarya

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Example: Ishaan is technically a modern character, but let’s throw him in a

+1 FORT—For using cavalry spears in a pinch, and for extra Vitality

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