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I M P
the malevolent fantasy rpg
imp is a role playing game that uses a fantasy - mediaeval Britain as its' setting. this is a Britain
where strange beasts roam the hills, malign faeries inhabit the forests and imps
attempt to cause misery and strife to the people of the land.
the player characters portray the imps, struggling to survive and acquire malefic power.
imps must regularly perform malevolent deeds in order to retain their powers,
and may only become stronger if they are very successful in this regard.
the imp rpg uses standard six sided dice.
characters
imps are malevolent creatures spawned within the pits of hell.
they are short (rarely above 1.5 metres), with lithe bodies and spindly limbs.
imps have grey skin and dark hair. their faces are narrow, with hooked noses
and sly, dark eyes. imps have long fingernails and pointed, canine-like teeth.
many have short, thin tails and a few have stunted horns.
unclothed, an imp cannot pass for human. with concealing clothes, and keeping
to the shadows, an imp is sufficiently disguised to hide his true appearance.
characters are defined by their experience (X) attribute.
this represents their overall aptitude, confidence, willpower and ability.
imps also possess a malevolence (mal) attribute, which measures their malefic potency.
mal is used to fuel an imps malefic powers (known as hexes). should mal fall to zero,
the imp loses the ability to use his malefic powers.
imps aim to increase their mal until it reaches the score 666, when the imp becomes a demon.
to increase mal an imp must perform malevolent deeds, such as theft, trickery and so on.
characters also begin with a 'talent', representing a particular skill or area of
knowledge they have acquired. tests involving activity covered by a characters
talent are easier; the player rolls one extra die (see tests).
A CHARACTERS INITIAL X SCORE IS DETERMINED BY ROLLING 2D3
this generates a score of between 2 and 6, with 4 typical.
A CHARACTERS INITIAL MAL SCORE IS DETERMINED BY ROLLING 2D
this generates a value of between 2 and 12 (with a score of 7 being typical)
CHARACTERS BEGIN WITH A NUMBER OF HEXES EQUAL TO 7 MINUS X
for example, a character with X4 starts with 3 hexes.
CHARACTERS BEGIN WITH ONE TALENT
some typical talents include sneaking, hiding, tracking, trapping, blacksmithing,
evaluating goods, carpentry, literacy, weapon use (specify a weapon type, such
as 'knives', 'swords', 'bows' etc), begging, singing, lockpicking and so on.
optional X mechanics
while simple and convenient, the single X attribute does not differentiate between
the physical and mental aspects of a character. therefore, players may wish to
use the alternative mechanic of utilising two X attributes-
PX refers to physical X, a characters endurance, agility and stamina.
MX refers to mental X, a characters intellect, awareness and spirit.
when making a test, the appropriate X attribute is used (thus, PX if the
character is lifting, running, fighting etc, or MX if the character is
working out a puzzle, trying to coerce someone, trying to search etc).
generate attribute values by rolling 2D3 (as above) for each one.
modify the development rules so that the mal cost for increasing one
attribute (either PX or MX, but not both) is points equal to the current
score (so, increasing PX from 3 to 4, for example, costs 3 mal).
tests
the standard difficulty numbers are 1 or 2.
lucky 6
combat
weapons
development
hex
hex descriptions
character detail
i m p
the imps find a home...
characters
the maniacal monks
characters
i m p extra!
EXTRA HEXES
THE RELIC
THE VILLAGE OF LARKSBRIDGE
the rat & sack inn
sixsixsix
actions with an uncertain outcome are resolved using tests.
to make a test a player rolls a number of six sided dice equal to his characters X score.
each EVEN number counts as one success point. odd numbers are ignored.
the total number of success points must exceed the difficulty number chosen by the GM.
easy actions have a zero difficulty,
tough actions have a difficulty of 3 or more.
a roll of 6 in a test is worth TWO success points. thus, a player whose
character has X4 rolls four dice for tests. if he obtained the results 2, 3, 1 and 6
the result would be THREE success points. if he had rolled all 6's, the result would be
EIGHT success points!
dice limit
to limit the number of dice rolled for characters with high X scores,
players can opt to convert some of a characters X score into automatic
successes. this works by assuming that every 3 levels of X counts as 2
successes. thus, a character with X7 gets 4 successes and a roll of one die,
or 2 successes and a roll of four dice if preferred.
combat is resolved using the test procedure. rolls are made for both
combatants and the winner of the turn of combat is the one who scores most
success points. a tie indicates that neither combatant managed to hit
that turn. damage from an attack equals the success points in excess of
the opponents result, plus a bonus amount based on the weapon in use.
example: Goate the imp (X3, armed with a dagger which grants +1 damage) gets
into a fight with a tavern thug (X4, unarmed). Goates' player rolls 3 dice and
scores 5, 1 and 6 for two success points (because a 6 counts as two points).
the GM rollsfour dice for the thug and gets 3, 4, 5 and 5 for one success point.
this means Goate has hit, and scores two points damage to the thug
(one point in excess of the thugs result, plus one for his dagger).
when facing multiple foes, make one roll for the outnumbered character
and compare the outcome to the results of all of the foes. the character may
injure only one foe, whereas each foe could injure the character.
once total damage to a character exceeds twice their X score unconsciousness may
occur. a test is required against a difficulty equal to the excess damage.
failure indicates that the character falls unconscious for a number of minutes equal
to the total damage. once unconscious, a second test is made against the same
difficulty. if this test also fails, the character has died from his wounds.
example: Goate the imp has sustained 8 points damage. this is 2 points
in excess of the total damage he can sustain (Goate has X3, so can withstand
6 damage).
a test is required against a difficulty of 2. if the test fails, Goate
is knocked out for
eight minutes (the total damage) and may die...
damage heals at the rate of one point per day. characters can bandage their
wounds, which immediately heals 1 point damage, but this can be done once only
until another wound is received.
unarmed attacks have a +0 damage bonus.
small weapons such as knives, cudgels, rocks, whips,
chains, bottles etc. have a +1 bonus
medium weapons such as swords, axes, maces, staves,
picks, sickles, bows etc. have a +2 bonus
large weapons such as polearms, spears, pitchforks,
scythes, two-handed swords etc have a +3 bonus
armour
armour reduces the damage sustained from each hit.
light armour (leather, studded etc) reduces damage by 1
point. heavy armour (chain, plate) reduces damage by
2 points. shields reduce damage by 1 point,
(in addition to worn armour).
imps increase their power through the use of mal.
by sacrificing mal points an imp can increase his X attribute score,
or acquire additional talents and hexes. the costs are as follows:-
to increase X by one level costs mal equal to the current score times 2.
to acquire an additional hex or talent costs mal equal to the current number known.
for example, a character with X4, 1 talent and 3 hexes would need to sacrifice 8 mal
to gain X5, 1 mal for an extra talent and would need to spend 3 mal to acquire
a new hex.
gaining mal
imps gain mal by performing deeds related to those acts covered by the seven
deadly sins. each time an imp performs a deed which satisfies this criteria,
one or more points of mal are acquired.
AVARICE: imps gain mal for the theft of money or valuables, or for succeeding in
a profit making scheme.
ENVY: imps gain mal if another individual displays, through deed, their enviousness
of the imps wealth or position. thus, if someone tries to steal an imps treasure
the imp may acquire mal, even if the attempt fails.
GLUTTONY: imps gain mal for excess. this includes indulgence at lavish banquets,
drinking copious amounts of wine or acquiring rare and expensive delights.
LUST: imps gain mal for satisfying their perverse, carnal desires. this includes
such activities as seduction of the landlords daughter, a visit to Sister
Lustia's
house of whips, seduction of the landlords dog and so on...
PRIDE: imps gain mal for acquiring status, displays of power and position, for
foiling the schemes of a rival and other acts of arrogance.
SLOTH: imps gain mal if they can achieve things through the manipulation of
others. thus, persuading someone to perform a nasty deed, rather than doing
it oneself, can grant mal.
WRATH: imps gain mal for allowing themselves to act with impulsiveness and anger.
if an imp must fight, they must carefully balance the benefits of a rational,
tactical
approach with one of cruelty and rage.
mal is awarded by a GM on a case by case basis; - there are no set amounts, but
mal awards of 1 - 3 points are typical, occasionally more if the deed is spectacular.
GMs may wish to grant a standard award of 1D points of mal at the end of a scenario
or major session of the game.
the malefic powers of an imp are known as 'hexes'.
each hex produces a specific effect, and it takes an imp one turn to evoke its' power.
a hex costs one point of mal per use, and will generally affect a target or area within
sight. the duration of a hex is either momentary or else minutes equal to the imps
current mal score. this is evident from the hex description.
RAT conjures a large black rat which will attack foes as directed by the imp. the rat
has X2, bite +0 damage with a 2 in 6 chance of transmitting a disease to anyone bitten.
SIGIL burns a pentagram onto a target, who suffers 1D3 points damage automatically.
BRIMSTONE fills a room/small area with noxious fumes which cause choking to all nearby
except the imp himself.
GROTESQUE adds boils, warts, scabs and a sickly pallour to a targets skin
GAUNT causes the imp to take on a horrible appearance likely to cause fear and
loathing in onlookers.
MASK causes imps to appear human-like, completely disguising their true nature.
PESTILENCE fills a room/small area with loathsome flies, wasps, maggots and so on
which writhe upon and sting all those nearby.
ASHES fills a room/small area with swirling dust and ashes, causing visibility to
become severely limited.
ROTTEN causes food (about a sack full) or liquid (about a keg full) to spoil. if
consumed, it is likely to cause illness.
PORTAL locks or unlocks a door, chest or similar mechanism, as if the imp
were using the correct key.
SPLINTER fractures a small area (a 2"/5cm) of wood, loose brick, pottery or
similar material causing it to become susceptible to breakage (a 3 in 6 chance).
WILT causes an area (about 5m radius) of plants, or a single large tree, to
wither and fade so that it is easily cut away.
CAUL creates a shadow cloak around the imp, who gains +2 dice to tests involving
sneaking and hiding
BARB adds ethereal barbs to a weapon, increasing the damage it causes by +1
WEAVE conjures an ethreal spider which spins a web over wounds, healing 1D3
points damage
ENSHROUD covers a single target with eerie black mists, causing drowsiness
so that a test is required by the subject (against dif 2) to avoid unconsciousness
HAUNT causes strange occurrences in a room/small area, such as draughts,
slamming doors, cold spots, candle flickers etc, -as if it were haunted
BAT allows the character to navigate in total darkness and gives a +1 bonus
to tests involving perception and awareness.
RAVEN conjures a large black raven which will attack foes as directed by the imp.
the raven has X2, peck +1 damage.
HOUND conjures an ethereal hound which will lead the imp to a single location known
to the character (such as the imps home) with an effective X score of 8, -for
navigation purposes.
WORM causes the imps body to become supple and malleable, allowing the character
to squeeze through small gaps and hide inside narrow nooks.
APE enhances an imps agility, adding a +2 dice bonus to climbing and balancing
activities
TARNISH makes several small objects (such as coins, trinkets etc) or a large item
(such as a chest, sword, armour etc) to appear to be worn, rusted and worthless.
MUD causes a large patch of earth (around 100m area) to become muddy, making
travel across it awkward, slippy and slow.
PLAGUE causes a single target to be affected by a disease. the target must test
each day against difficulty 2 to avoid 1 damage. the disease lasts for days equal to
the imps mal score upon using the hex. others have a 1 in 6 chance per day of catching
the disease if they spend time near the victim.
possessions
when imps are sent from the underworld by their demon overlords they
have little material goods.
typically, imps find themselves in a dank cave somewhere in the wilderness
with nothing more than clothing and a standard, hell forged black - bladed
dagger (+1 damage bonus). usually, it is the imps first task to find food,
money and some sort of shelter (typically a dilapidated cottage, forgotten
crypt or ruined tower).
imps have three sexes; male, female and unknown.
imps are created in pits as the servants of demons. they are usually despatched
to the surface world after 1-6 years of service (after the demon has become bored
with the imp, because the imp is deemed worthless or because the imp needs to be
punished). while an imp may have existed for only a few years, they usually appear
to be adults (unless the demon wanted a child-like imp).
imps have a basic understanding of the surface world. they know, for example, how
humans live, about human society, about religion and so on. subtleties, such as
etiquette with regards to nobles or how to act benevolent, may cause a new imp
some difficulty but can be learnt over time.
sample imps
GOATE, male imp aged 3.
X3, MAL 8, talent: hiding
hexes: enshroud, rat, splinter, worm
Goate was sent to the surface world for being
annoying. he's never around when needed - his
favourite sins are sloth and gluttony...
Goate dreams of becoming a scheming
mastermind, with power of lesser imps who
(he imagines) will follow his orders. this, of
course, relies on him getting out of bed in
morning.
IVY, female imp aged 4.
X4, MAL 6, talent: torture
hexes: sigil, pestilence, wilt
Ivy is so nasty the demons were relieved to
be rid of her. she enjoys being cruel, taking
gleeful pleasure from torture (she practices
on rats and mice when there's no one else she
can use). Ivy is quick to anger and has a weakness
for shiny baubles and trinkets.
scenarios
some scenario ideas for imp games...
this makes a good starting encounter for the first imp game.
the characters have managed to find a disused cottage in some woodland near
to the village of Larksbridge. the cottage was previously owned by Old Olvar,
who died several months ago leaving no surviving family.
the cottage is near the manor of Sir Oswald, an aging and poor knight.
Oswald has two servants, Osric (rumoured to be the knights illegitimate son),
and Obbs (a dubious fellow, who was once a thief until he lost an eye). Oswalds'
daughter Ophelia also lives at the manor.
the cottage makes for an excellent hideout for the imps, with plenty of space,
bits of furniture and even a small cellar suitable for storage or use as a room.
the imps will soon discover that the cellar contains Old Olvars' supplies, a secret
Olvar shared with no one. the supplies include crates of unused pots, pans,
goblets, bowls, logs, kindling, sacks of grain, kegs of ale, candles and so on.
Olvar was convinced there would be a war, and made sure he was prepared.
the goods would be very useful to the imps, who could sell what they don't
need for a tidy profit.
unfortunately, Osric and Obbs pass by the place regularly on trips to the village,
or when working in the fields surrounding the manor. in addition, it is the secret
rendezvous for Ophelia and Oshkin, (the Larksbridge smiths' son).
if the imps want the hideout, or the goods from within it, they must work out
a way of avoiding or manipulating the manor residents. their options include
trying to scare them off using hexes and trickery, or perhaps blackmailing
Ophelia if they discover her secret (a noble girl should not, after all, be
cavorting about with the lowly son of a smith). violent solutions could lead
to trouble, either from Oswald or the local villagers. the imps might also
attempt to manipulate Oswald (who is desperately in need of funds) and
Obbs (who has a shady past).
SIR OSWALD
male human aged 58
X3 (PX3 MX4)
talents: noble etiquette,
gambling, broadsword.
weapon: broadsword +2
Oswald was never a successful
knight, losing his money to
gambling and his wife to disease
several years ago. he's now
reclusive, but would dearly love
to regain his wealth.
OSRIC
male human aged 20
X3 (PX4 MX2)
talents: basic carpentry,
farming.
weapon: small hatchet +1
Osric is a genial, dimwitted
sort. though gullible, he is
also cautious and avoids getting
involved in any of Obbs' schemes.
OBBS
male human aged 37
X4 (PX3 MX4)
talents: servant, theft.
weapon: dagger +1
Obbs is a former thief that
lost his eye in 'a disagreement
regarding the ownership of certain
valuables'. Obbs regularly comes up
with dubious schemes that never quite
pay off, such as his plan to breed cats
with dogs to create bigger rat-catchers.
OPHELIA
female human aged 22
X3 (PX2 MX4)
talents: literacy, seduction.
weapon: none
Ophelia is desperately bored with
her life, and dismayed that no one
will marry her because her father has
so poor a reputation and little wealth.
she spends her time reading romantic
and somewhat risque books, then putting
into practice what she has read with her
lover Oshkin.
OSHKIN
male human aged 19
X4 (PX5 MX3)
talents: smithing
weapon: knife +1
Oshkin is a lecherous lad
who enjoys liaisons with
several local women. He has
no love for Ophelia, but likes
the idea of an affair with a noble.
monks from the order of saint Masokistus the flaggelent have
arrived in Larksbridge. they plan to stay for several days at
'the rat and sack' inn, during which time they will advise the locals
on the benefits of purity through whipping.
the leader of the monks, brother Dissard, is a zealot looking for
witches and 'demons in disguise' amongst the villagers. even more
worrying for the imps, brother Dissard is planning to start a new
monastery near the village, which will bring in a host of fanatical pilgrims
from the surrounding areas. thus, the brothers will be seen wandering
the locale looking for suitable spots to build a monastery.
rumours become plentiful around the village, along with a general feeling
amongst locals that the zealous monks aren't entirely welcome.
this is an excellent opportunity for the imps to try their hand at
causing mischief amongst the holy, and if the imps have a hideout in
the area they will want to ensure that the monastery is never built.
TYPICAL MONK
male age varies.
X3 (PX3 MX4)
talents: theology, literacy
weapon: whip +1
these monks are fanatical and the
more experienced amongst them are
not easily frightened.
TYPICAL VILLAGER
sex and age varies
X3 (PX3 MX3)
talents: usually farming, a craft
or shopkeeping
weapon: typical weapons include-
knives +1, cudgels +1, axes +2
sickles +2, shovels +2, scythes +3
or pitchforks +3.
additional information and scenario ideas for imp
BLUNT temporarily blunts a weapon, causing it to do one point less damage in combat.
TRINKET allows an imp to detect a stated type valuable within the surrounding area
(to a radius equal to the imps mal times two in metres). examples include gold,
gems, coins etc.
ICHOR momentarily turns the imps saliva into poison. the poison can be applied to a
weapon or added to food, drink etc. victims of the poison suffer 1 point damage per
minute until they succeed in a test (difficulty 2), which can be attempted once
per minute.
TOUGHEN causes the imps skin to become resistant to damage, acting like 1 point armour.
MANDRAKE creates a small humanoid creature from nearby plant material. the mandrake
exists for minutes equal to the imps mal or until destroyed. it will obey
the imps commands, and has an X value of 3 and the talent 'hiding'.
CADAVER similar to mandrake, above, but animates a corpse. the corpse has X4.
GOLEM similar to mandrake, above, but creates a creature from earth. the golem
has X3 and the equivalent of 1 point armour.
SPARK creates a small fire on a flammable item (such as cloth, paper etc). if a foe
is affected, he will take 1 point of damage per turn until a test versus a difficulty
of 1 succeeds (try once per turn).
SOAK causes dampness in a room/small area, which will extinguish small fires and
diminish larger fires, in addition to ruining scrolls, books and similar items.
CURSE causes the affected victim to fail any test in which a 1 is rolled on any
of the test dice.
there's more going on with the maniacal monks in Larksbridge..
it will be observed by the imps, or else will be related to them
through rumour, that the monks are seen carrying a small but elaborately
decorated chest into the church. this contains the relic of saint Makistus,
a silver incense brazier known as the 'purifier'.
also in the chest is a sizeable (and valuable) amount of frankincense.
this is guarded day and night by a monk, either brother Cedric
(a tall, viscious looking man) or brother Aquilus (a large, fat monk).
news of the transportation of the relic has attracted two disreputable
faerie folk, Pipthorn (a wiry elf) and Grimbit (a goblin).
this pair will enter the village at night and search for the relic.
it wll take them a night or two to locate it, and once they do so they
will steal it. to achieve this, they will create a diversion
(such as using their hexes to cause panic amongst the locals).
if they succeed, the pair will run off and hide in a cave under the bridge
on the outskirts of Larksbridge.
they will remain there until things quiet down, when they will disappear
into the woods.
is the relic a threat to the imps, and what do the monks plan to do with it?
if the thieves acquire it, what will they do with it?
BROTHER CEDRIC
male aged 40
X4 (PX4 MX4)
talents: theology, dagger
weapon: dagger +1
BROTHER AQUILUS
male aged 35
X4 (PX5 MX3)
talents: cudgel
weapon: cudgel +1
PIPTHORN
male elf aged 20
X3 (PX3 MX3) MAL5
talents: sneaking, foraging, bow
weapon: bow +2, wooden dagger +1
hexes: wood warp (twists wood, making items useless,
bending planks etc)
GRIMBIT
male goblin aged 19
X4 (PX4 MX3) MAL7
talents: hiding, lockpicking
weapon: mace +2
hexes: hailstone (causes stones to rain down,
1D3-1 damage to all in area),
wormtongue (fills a targets mouth with worms,
one turn to spit them out to avoid choking)
Larksbridge is a small village situated in
a damp valley near the river Lark.
in addition to a few farms, the village
contains the following locations:
owned by Matthius Gall, a large man with a small head and
messy black beard. Matthius is a little slow-witted, and quite
forgetful. he is helped out by his wife Viola, a tall, moody and
suspicious woman, and their short sighted daughter May.
mill
owned by Wolmar and Bettea Vole. they are both quite old,
and constantly bicker. they have a hired labourer, a midget
known simply as Stubb (who spends a lot of time at the inn).
blacksmith
Gorath Tope is the local smith. he is a quiet man with a bad temper
that he has to keep in check, for fear of killing someone.
his sons Oshkin and Grigg help out.
carpenter
Filcher Wittle is the carpenter. he is a sneaky, lecherous man
who lives alone. Wittle occasionally employs Trundal,
the village deaf beggar/madman, to deliver kindling.
potter/herbalist
Kate Birch is the local potter. she inherited the business from her
father, who died several years ago. Kate is an independant woman
who has resisted the attentions of several local men.
she lives with her sister Rosa, who grows herbs and flowers
which she sells from outside the shop.
merchant/collector
Baldemar Crane has a barn near his cottage full of a wide variety of
items which he obtains from regular visits to the surrounding towns.
he stocks candles, cloth, rope, barrels, chests, tools and
an array of hard to find trinkets.
Baldemar also has collections of unusual weapons, art objects
and jewellery. he is a shrewd merchant, and loves to haggle.
his assistants are Yarick (a weasel of a man) and Bull
(a huge, shaven headed brute).
church
the local priest is father Hobson, a nervous man with a
slight stutter. he supplements his income working as a
scribe for the locals.
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