Other game rules

Critical State, Terminal State, Dying

When a character has zero hit points remaining, the character enters a Critical state.

While in a Critical state a person must get in a prone position (get on the ground) and may not move unaided, make weapon or focus attacks, nor may they cast any rites or use any other skills or mechanical effects that do not specifically state they can be used while in the Critical state. They remain conscious and may cry out for help, or make any noise.

If someone asks you if your character has lost any hit points and if the character is in a Terminal or Critical state, you should answer them truthfully out of character.

Bleed Count

All characters "bleed out" in a critical state for 120 seconds (2 minutes) before entering a Terminal State.

This can only be extended by certain boons, and the Warming Hearth fire rite.

Only a Referee or other Game Team member may ask what your current bleed count is, and you must answer truthfully.

Terminal State & Character Death

Once a character's bleed count has elapsed, they are in a Terminal State and cannot be healed.

This follows the same rules as being in a critical state, and the character may choose to die whenever they decide (within the day), or when a referee tells them. Upon a character's death they cannot be resurrected, although their ghost may be returned to interact with. They are dead, and that character cannot return barring exceptional circumstances (which will be communicated by the Game Team).

If your character does die for any reason you may stay in character as your dead character's body as long as you want on the main field, or until the end of the encounter if not retrieved from an excursion. Please find a Referee at the earliest opportunity, and give them your Account ID (PID) or Character Name to register the death.

Once your character is dead, please hold your hand in the air to signify you are Out of Character, and go to OC Customer Service to create your new character.

Mobility and Critical States

Even if you are a non-combatant, you could still end up in a critical state due to a variety of effects such as magic or curses from the gods. If your mobility prevents you from lowering yourself to the ground, you are not obligated to do so. However you must still roleplay that your character is in a critical state in whatever way is safe and sensible for you. Please be understanding if your roleplay is very convincing and someone assumes you have suffered an OC injury!

Execute

Any character may spend 5 seconds roleplaying a huge swing or specific attack in a safe and controlled manner on a character that is in a Critical or Terminal state, and call Execute loudly. This will immediately kill the target. This cannot be done subtly. Please avoid:

• Head hits
• Hitting vulnerable areas
• Throat slitting
• Using non-LARP-safe weapons, e.g. arrows
• Stabbing with a weapon that is not thrust-safe, e.g. a sword

Moving characters

If a character is willing or critical/terminal, they can be moved either by 1 person using 2 empty hands or by 2 people using 1 empty hand each. Please note: if you wish to forcibly take ANY character inside a tent etc then a Referee must be present.

When moving a character do not attempt to carry them out of character for safety reasons. Allow them to stand up of their own volition and then continue roleplaying carrying them.

A hand is "empty" when it is not carrying a weapon - you may sheath a sword or stow a bow/shield in a sling if able, but most 2-handed weapons can't be stowed away to move a character. You may also not give your weapon to a critical character in order to carry them by yourself.

Apothecary and consumable potions

A character may only have one ongoing effect from a Consumable at one time (except Poison, which you can have in addition to anything else). If a character has a gained a skill from a Consumable and then uses another Consumable, the previous effect will be immediately cancelled and replaced with the new effect.

In-Character theft

A character may steal game items only, during time in. To do so they must inform a referee at the time of doing so or immediately after. Then they must go to the Treasure Hunters Guild to register the stolen item. 

Items that can be stolen are:

• Special items, handsels, apothecary consumables or enchanted objects - designated by a ribbon or card - take the physrep back to lost property at OC Customer Service immediately and keep only the ribbon or card.
• In game coins
• In game resource cards (such as Flicker and Essence)

A player may not steal other players physreps unless they fit in the above categories, so they may not steal things such as mundane weapons and armour. A player may only steal items that they know to be IC.

Example: Jess Bobbins finds a bag of coins, they may only take the coins. The bag must be left behind as it is not a game item.

The rules around IC theft should keep OC medication safe because only specific items can be stolen. However, not all players may remember this, so you might want to keep your medications with only other OC items and/or put a tag on the bag or pouch that says there are OC medications in there.

Please also remember that deliberately putting IC resources in a container that is marked as containing OC medication in order to discourage the IC resources being looked at or found is a breach of the rules around distinguishing between IC and OC interactions, as set out in the Behavioural Guidelines Policy.

How many Magic items and how many effects can a person have?

People in the world of Menhirs Fate can only have a few magical effects upon them at once. When a person hits the limit of magical effects upon them, an additional effect may replace the existing one or not at the player's choice. A character may have: 

One ongoing effect provided by a Rite

One ongoing effect empowering a Focus through a rite

One magical effect originating from a Weaving

Three Enchanted objects they are actively using. An item generated through a weaving item does not count towards your three enchanted items. This is for items generated through the enchantment skill.

One Apothecary consumable with a duration (other than Poison) - consumable with instantaneous effects like Heal Wounds can be used as often as you want

One Poison - use the shortest duration if you are hit by a shorter duration poison

As many Boons, Curses, Hexes, and other divine or malign effects they take - there are no limits on these.

Dealing with Rules Changes

Any character can re-spend their XP if your build isn't working for you - either between events or at the Customer Service desk.

If you need to refer to things that have changed in the rules to explain previous IC events, you can use the catchphrase "The winds of magic have changed". If someone uses this phrase or similar wording, you should assume that any discrepancies are due to an OC rules change and not pursue them IC.