Questions tagged [rolemaster]

Rolemaster is a fantasy RPG published by Iron Crown Enterprises, known principally for its critical tables. The combat rules are designed to be adapted to other systems. Rolemaster has gone through many editions: 1st and 2nd edition (1980-1994), the Rolemaster Standard System (1995), Rolemaster Fantasy Roleplaying (1999), and Rolemaster Classic (2007) - a republished set of the 2nd edition rules. Unified Rolemaster is currently in playtesting, as of 2019.

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In Rolemaster Unified, when in the combat round do persistent spell effects occur?

Using the lvl 4 spell from "Wind Law" Stun Cloud I as an example (Rolemaster Unified Spell Law pg 159), but this question comes up for other spells. Stun Cloud I – Creates a 5'R cloud of ...
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In Rolemaster Unified, can you use the Similar Skill rules on skills like Grace and Spell Trickery

In Rolemaster Unified spells come in lists (eg Fire Law) that you buy higher levels spells from, using skill points. In addition, there is also a category of skills called "Magical Expertise"...
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Does Rolemaster Unified Use Stat Checks?

Does Rolemaster Unified use stat checks? In other games, when something is dependent on only a statistic, there tend to be "Stat Checks". In such situations, you roll a check using the ...
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Does Rolemaster Unified promote a diverse range of humanoids and value their innate abilities?

I am just reading the latest edition of Rolemaster, called Rolemaster Unified and its really cool, copyright 2022. There are concerns however about one new inclusion, called 'Talents' overpowering a ...
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Why wasn't Rolemaster further developed and expanded?

Rolemaster is a great system and big in its day - but is now to be consigned to online pdfs, a small fan base (like me) and in particular never developed for a (very) long time. Iron Crown Enterprises ...
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How can my character earn money?

Background We're running a custom campaign in rolemaster (RM) with rather unexperienced players and an experienced GM. We did about 6 or 7 sessions, the next one will be the third for my new character ...
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Is material from Adventures of Middle-Earth adaptable for Rolemaster?

I am currently running a Rolemaster campaign set in Middle Earth, TA 1640. I have source material for Rhudaur (where the group is right now), Rivendell, and Angmar. I have come across this book ...
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non-combat role-playing skills in ICE Rolemaster [closed]

My group plays ICE exclusively and has for the past 15 years or so. Recently, a friend of the DM's joined with no RPG experience. A problem has arisen regarding the role playing skills such as "...
Rhed's user avatar
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Arrow types - when to use which

Disclaimer: I know this is a "just look into the rule-book" type of question - but I have no rule book at hand and want to come in prepared for my next session. So maybe someone has the rulebook at ...
Erik's user avatar
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Ranged combat in close quarters

This is a more specified version of this question. Short background: I am rather new to Pen&Paper, thus my tactical knowledge is rather slim. Ranged attacks in Rolemaster are modified by ...
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Ranged combat - warrior mage [closed]

Background We're a group of four players new to Pen & Paper with a seasoned game master. Up to now we haven't had any active contact with magic skills during combats. Due to a mixture of bad ...
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How long does advancing levels take?

Are there any rules about the amount of time level progression takes in Rolemaster Classic? I am trying to work out a time cost for Characters advancing levels whilst events are occurring in other ...
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Can the Rolemaster 'Lofty Bridge' list spells be cast on unwilling targets?

Rolemaster's Spell Law has a spell list called "Lofty Bridge" (Spell Law 13.2, page 79). It is part of the 'closed essence' spell lists and allows the caster to move the 'target' over short ...
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Is Rolemaster Classic Martial Arts as weak as it seems?

So I rebooted my pen&paper career after almost 20 years with Rolemaster Classic 5.0 (RMC). (20 years ago I think I played 2.0, not sure what exactly that German translation was ...) Martial Arts ...
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Mounted wizardry: how does sitting on a horse impact spell casting?

One of our Rolemaster play groups consists mainly out of spell casters of different schools/classes: we have a seer, mage, illusionist, ... For a while now one of the open questions, not answered by ...
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Is there a hitpoint limit?

Is there a cap to how many hitpoints a character can develop in MERP, or can a character keep putting development points into body development out to eternity?
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Is there a condensed treasure generation table?

The Rolemaster FRP Treasure Companion (ICE 5811) provides a pretty good treasure generation method, but I was wondering if there is an alternate condensed version with similar results. Maybe in ...
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Scaling encounter difficulties in Rolemaster

Rolemaster is by it's very nature a rather deadly rule system, up to the point where there are even some passages in the rule books mentioning this - alongside some advice for players to not neglect ...
fgysin's user avatar
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How to handle Seer spells so they don't either waste time or make playing tedious?

Some of the fantasy magic systems we are/were playing provide spell casters with access to spells that provide the player with information about future events. Now, we know from many movies and ...
fgysin's user avatar
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Are there (detailed) rules for mounted combat?

Our group lately showed increased interest in mounted combat (see also my other question). As such we read through the rolemaster source material at our disposal, but weren't really able to find much ...
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Why would a rider ever command any horse attack besides trampling?

From Rolemaster Creatures and Treasures [1] we gather that Horses (and other draft animals) have several attacks, some for stationary, some for charge attacks. According to the rules (p. 9): ...
fgysin's user avatar
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What does it mean to have only X% of your actions left?

Disclaimer: We use RM2 in the German version which came out in the 90ies through Laurin and then Queen Games. From what I read on wiki this seems to be almost the same as RMC, but my nomenclature ...
fgysin's user avatar
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What is the 'Adrenal Evasion' skill?

This skill is listed in the Rolemaster Office character builder software under the Martial Arts - Combat Maneuvers section, but I cannot find it ANYWHERE. Is it the same as Adrenal Defense (but ...
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How are activities determined?

I'm currently reading the RMSS to get familiar with the rules. Weapon Law and Black Ops are my new additions to Rolemaster at this moment. In RMSS p. 73, Section 18.0, it specifically talks about ...
Texan RP Gamer's user avatar
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Implement Ars Magica magic system into Rolemaster [closed]

I was wondering if someone has tried to implement the Ars Magica magic system into Rolemaster, and how. I guess you could assign some cost to the forms and techniques, maybe scaling its values to a ...
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Equation to generate Rolemaster combat tables results

Rolemaster combat tables present very different results depending on armor type and weapon, but are those results generated by some type of equation or algorithm? Maybe a different equation/algorithm ...
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How do I manage real-time progress effectively?

The next Rolemaster adventure my group will play, day and night cycle will be very important, how do I manage the day night cycle without making it unrealistic? A clock or a timer does not work. For ...
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Is There a World Creation Tool for Rolemaster [closed]

Is there a tool for world creation that follows the guidelines in Rolemaster Campaign Law, or even in general?
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Is there any way to change my realm of magic?

I am currently participating in a MERP campaign in which I play a 3rd level fighter.When I generated said Fighter I researched spellcasting. Fighters can only learn very low level spells and have to ...
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1 answer
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Looking for a power hunger God divine-magic system [closed]

I am looking for a divine magic system for a custom world I am willing to GM for my friends. Basically, in my world, the gods are present and self-centered. And won't give-up their magic for some ...
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Is Bard or Warlock closer to Rolemaster's Mentalist?

I have played Rolemaster before and I enjoyed being a Mentalist. My friends decided to start a D&D 5e game. I am very disappointed that there is no Mentalist among the available classes. I can't ...
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Do special materials augment skills other than weapon skills?

I recently got into a debate with the four other members of my RP group over the use of specialist materials in skills. The basis behind the debate was whether special materials actually benefit ...
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12 votes
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How can I revitalize an open sand box campaign?

Our group has an open sand box campaign going on for more than 2 or 3 years now, using MERP/Rolemaster. It's something we all love, have grown quite fond of and we all got attached to our characters. ...
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Does Sudden Light depend on which way the victims are facing?

I've been discussing how this level 5 spell from the Light Law list should work with my GM and we've both come up with different conclusions. I was hoping to find some sort of clarification. The ...
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Tree-like abilities system for Rolemaster

One of the things I like less from Rolemaster is that all you know from one thing can't be applied to another, and, at the same time, you can not specialize in something. You either know One-handed ...
Envite's user avatar
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8 votes
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Modifying hobby ranks

We had a debate in our RP group last night (22/12/2014) regarding the application of hobby ranks and how/why they are used. The argument was based on the fact that a thief can be a better weapons ...
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How to Balance Magical vs Non-Magical Classes

From my experience non-magical classes in Rolemaster, i.e. combat-focused warriors and the like, do the majority of their advancement in the first couple of levels - say 1 to 6. After that the combat ...
fgysin's user avatar
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How to Reconcile the MERP/RM High-Magic System with the Low-Magic Middle Earth Setting?

Our group is regularly playing in Tolkiens Middle Earth universe, and we use a combination of MERP extended with Rolemaster as our system. And from what I gathered online, this seems to be a popular ...
fgysin's user avatar
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Awarding Experience in RoleMaster

I want to smooth out some of the ways experience is earned in RM (original rules) as it seems a little unstable IMHO. Basically, you can get experience for killing, travelling, casting spells and ...
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Starting kit in RoleMaster during an unusual start

In RM players tend to start out with gear that they choose (or can afford to buy based on their wealth roll) to a limited degree and get rolls on the Special Items tables and what have you. I'm ...
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Migration from MERP to Rolemaster

I have a MERP campaign with MERP characters, ambiented in ME. In the future the characters will (I hope) grow in level approaching level 10 and thus reaching the limit of MERP. That can happen before ...
Envite's user avatar
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12 votes
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How can a Level 1 Mage be useful to the group?

In MERP, Level 1 characters can only cast Level 1 spells, which are quite limited (projecting light, making an object vibrate, and such). This in turn makes the wizard unable to gather XP as fast as ...
Envite's user avatar
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17 votes
7 answers
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Playing a loyal character without it being boring

I've been playing a character in a long running campaign (2+ years) that consists of a relatively large number of players (approx. 6 regulars and another 2-3 semi-regulars). Due to the number of ...
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How do Cancel type spells work in Rolemaster?

Can someone please give an explanation on how a Cancel Essence or Cancel Channeling spell would work in the Rolemaster system? By my reading, it seems like they are quite useless in a combat ...
link64's user avatar
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Wages and economy in Rolemaster/MERP

We have been playing MERP (Middle Earth Role Playing game) for some years. Essentially all the old Editions by ICE (Iron Crown Enterprises), that use/extend Rolemaster. There are some lists of prices ...
fgysin's user avatar
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Using Arms Law with HARP: does this affect play balance?

I've played HARP using both the rules in the core rulebook for combat, as well as those presented in Martial Law. I felt neither gave a good result but Martial Law was better. I've played Rolemaster ...
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What are the differences between the first and second editions of Rolemaster?

I've been in the mood for some old school RPG love ala Rolemaster recently and discovered that there were some differences between the first and second editions of the game (I'm familiar with 3rd and ...
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