Boundless Game Rules (SRD)

Introduction

You will find below the complete rules reference for Boundless v1.3.

You can also download the free PDF version of the game on itch.io:

• Download the free PDF version on itch.io
• See the rules changelog for recent text updates.
• Read the Boundless FAQ chapter for common questions and probability references.
• Check out the bestiary for ready-to-use creatures and monsters.
• Translations are available in several languages:
  • Français (French)
  • 한국어 (Korean)
  • Español (Spanish) - Soon​ ​​
  • Português Brasileiro (Brazilian Portuguese)
  • Русский (Russian) - Soon​
  • 中文简体 (Chinese Simplified) - Soon​​​

Basics

This game uses six-sided dice (or D). When rolling dice, each 5 or 6 counts as a Hit; all other results are a Miss. If you ever need to roll 0D, roll 1D, counting only 6s as Hits.

Characters

Attributes

Attributes represent how capable your character is when tackling risky actions or facing consequences. These are:

• Strength: Fortitude, toughness, and melee attacks.
• Presence: Perception, instinct, sway, and ranged attacks.
• Agility: Finesse, speed, and avoiding attacks.
• Willpower: Resolve, focus, spells, and magic.

Distribute the following ratings among your character’s four Attributes, in any order you wish: 4D, 3D, 2D, and 1D.

Hit Points

Hit Points are a measure of your character’s ability to avoid life-threatening outcomes.

Start with Hit Points equal to 8 + your character’s Strength.

Slots, Items, and Conditions

Your character has 10 Slots for tracking the items they carry and the Conditions that hinder them. Most items take 1 Slot, small items take none, and bulky ones take 2.

Start by adding to your character’s Slots 1D×10 coins, some rations (P6), and a bundle of torches (P6). Then either roll or pick a kit from the table that matches your highest Attribute score, or use this loadout: sword (6 Damage), leather (1 Armor), shield, rope, bandages (P6), and a keepsake.

Slots can also be filled by Conditions like “Fatigued”, “Sick”, “Deprived”, “Poisoned”, and others. When your character gains a Condition, write it in an empty Slot. If none are free, drop an item to make room.

Conditions always hinder your character and may affect their Position in certain situations. Some Conditions can also worsen, taking additional Slots as time passes.

Conditions are only cleared through actions in the fiction that address them, such as resting, receiving care, or treating the underlying cause.

Advancements

When your character reaches a major milestone, they gain an Advancement. Increase their maximum Hit Points by 2 and raise an Attribute score by 1, to a maximum of 6.

Core Rules

Checks

When your character faces a risky challenge, make a Check by rolling a number of dice equal to the most relevant Attribute score: Strength, Presence, Agility, or Willpower. Interpret the roll as follows:

• 2+ Hits: Your character succeeds at their action. The more Hits, the better the result.
• 1 Hit: Your character partially succeeds at their action or succeeds but there is a cost. This could be a reduced effect, wasted time, taking Damage, or something else.
• 0 Hits: Your character fails their action and there is a cost.

ASSIST: An ally who could reasonably help may grant an extra 1D to the roll, but will share the risk of the Check.

PUSH: After a Check, you may reroll all Misses by having your character push themselves. As a result, they add a new “Fatigued” Condition to one of their Slots.

Damage & Critical Saves

When your character takes Damage, they lose that many Hit Points. When they reach 0 Hit Points, make a Critical Save by rolling a number of dice equal to the most relevant Attribute score. Use Strength for physical attacks or Willpower for mental ones.

• 1+ Hits: Your character is wounded but endures.
• 0 Hits: Your character is out of action. They will perish unless helped soon. If stabilized, they wake after a long rest with all missing Hit Points restored.

After the roll, reduce your character’s Attribute score by 1 for every Miss, up to a maximum of 2.

Attribute scores cannot drop below 0. Taking Damage while at 0 Hit Points triggers another Critical Save.

Position

When the fiction places your character at an advantage or disadvantage for a Check, establish your character’s Position and adjust how the roll is interpreted as follows:

• Absolute: With success assured, no roll is made.
• Good: With an advantage, a 4, 5, or 6 counts as a Hit.
• Standard: By default, a 5 or 6 counts as a Hit.
• Bad: With a disadvantage, only a 6 counts as a Hit.
• Impossible: With no chance of success, no roll is made.

Assume a Standard Position as the default for most rolls.

Combat

Each participant rolls 1D for initiative and acts from highest to lowest. Enemies win ties, and those caught off guard act last. Initiative is rolled again each round.

Two players may swap initiative dice if neither has acted yet.

A round lasts long enough for each character to perform one action: Attack, Read a Spell, or some other maneuver usually resolved with a Check. When enemies act, they prompt characters to Defend against their attack.

• Weapons: Weapons deal a fixed amount of Damage to an individual’s Hit Points. Unarmed attacks deal 2 Damage, light weapons deal 4 Damage, medium weapons deal 6 Damage, and heavy weapons deal 8 Damage. When an attack’s Damage is unclear, assign a fair value.
• Armor: Armor reduces Damage before it affects an individual’s Hit Points. Light Armor reduces it by 1, medium Armor by 2, and heavy Armor by 3. A Shield can be sacrificed to cancel all Damage from an attack.
• Enemies: Enemies have Hit Points, attacks that deal Damage, and sometimes Armor. At 0 Hit Points, they fall. Use [2-5 HP, 6 Dmg] for frail foes, [6-12 HP, 8-10 Dmg] for standard foes, and [14+ HP, 12-14 Dmg] for deadly foes.

See the Boundless bestiary for ready-to-use creatures and conversion guidelines.

ATTACK: Make a Strength Check to attack with a melee weapon or a Presence Check for a ranged weapon.

• 2+ Hits: The attack lands and deals its full Damage.
• 1 Hit: The attack lands but deals half Damage.
• 0 Hits: The attack misses.

READ A SPELL: Make a Willpower Check to cast magic.

• 2+ Hits: The spell takes effect as intended.
• 1 Hit: The spell takes effect, but your character gains a “Strained” Condition.
• 0 Hits: The spell fails or goes awry, and your character gains a “Strained” Condition.

DEFEND: Make an Agility Check to evade an attack.

• 2+ Hits: Your character avoids the attack entirely.
• 1 Hit: Your character takes half Damage from the attack.
• 0 Hits: Your character takes full Damage from the attack.

Recovery

When your character takes a Short Rest, they recover half their maximum Hit Points, rounded up. When they take a Long Rest, they restore all missing Hit Points and recover 1 point in an Attribute score.

Tools

Pools

A Pool is a set of dice used to track an event, resource, challenge, or pressure that changes over time. Pools usually start with 2, 4, 6, or 8 dice, written as P2, P4, P6, or P8.

Whenever a Pool is rolled, reduce its size by 1 die for every Miss, up to a maximum of 2 dice per roll. When emptied, the fiction changes and the Pool is cleared.

Common Pool types include, but are not limited to:

• Gear Pool: Tracks how long an item lasts or holds together, such as a torch burning down or stressed equipment failing. Roll when the item is used, consumed, or strained during play.
• Event Pool: Tracks how long until an event comes to pass, such as a danger closing in or a faction reaching its goal. Roll whenever significant time passes.
• Challenge Pool: Tracks progress toward overcoming a complex obstacle, such as a chase, a ritual, a negotiation, a siege, or a journey. When making Checks to resolve the challenge, roll to shrink its Pool once for every Hit.
• Strain Pool: Tracks a character or NPC’s stamina, focus, nerve, morale, or some other aspect that wears down under pressure. Roll when that aspect is tested. When the Pool is emptied, the character gives out in a way that best fits the situation.

Fortune Rolls

When the outcome of an event or action is uncertain, and you want to leave it to chance, make a Fortune Roll by framing the situation as a yes-or-no question, then rolling a number of dice based on how likely the outcome feels.

• If it feels very likely, roll 4D.
• If it feels likely, roll 3D.
• If it feels even, roll 2D.
• If it feels unlikely, roll 1D.
• If it feels very unlikely, roll 0D.

Interpret the result of the roll as follows:

• 2+ Hits: The answer is yes; extra Hits amplify the effect.
• 1 Hit: The answer is yes, but with a complication or cost.
• 0 Hits: The answer is no.

You may also use an Attribute score as a basis for the roll if a character’s abilities can influence the outcome.

Belongings

Start with 1D×10 coins, rations (P6), and torches (P6). Match your character’s highest Attribute to a kit table to get your additional belongings.

Kits

Strength Kits

1. Greatsword (8 Damage), chain (2 Armor), rope, whetstone.
2. Warhammer (8 Damage), plate (3 Armor), healing kit (P6), crowbar.
3. Spear (6 Damage), scale (2 Armor), traps (P6), hook.
4. Battleaxe (6 Damage), shield, rope, bandages (P6).
5. Sword (6 Damage), leather (1 Armor), shield, whetstone.
6. Mace (6 Damage), shield, healing kit (P6), iron chains.

Presence Kits

1. Bow (6 Damage), leather (1 Armor), quiver (P6), rope.
2. Crossbow (6 Damage), leather (1 Armor), bolts (P6), lantern.
3. Throwing knives (4 Damage), shield, disguise kit, poison (P6).
4. Longbow (8 Damage), leather (1 Armor), quiver (P6), spyglass.
5. Sling (4 Damage), shield, instrument, stones (P6).
6. Hand crossbow (4 Damage), shield, bolts (P6), smoke powder (P6).

Agility Kits

1. Daggers (4 Damage), leather (1 Armor), lockpicks (P6), rope.
2. Shortsword (4 Damage), shield, hook, caltrops.
3. Axes (4 Damage), leather (1 Armor), caltrops, bandages (P6).
4. Daggers (4 Damage), shield, shortbow (6 Damage), quiver (P6).
5. Shortsword (4 Damage), leather (1 Armor), crowbar, lockpicks (P6).
6. Daggers (4 Damage), shield, poison (P6), smoke powder (P6).

Willpower Kits

1. Quarterstaff (6 Damage), shield, spellbook, quill.
2. Dagger (4 Damage), leather (1 Armor), spellbook, herbs (P6).
3. Quarterstaff (6 Damage), shield, spellbook, holy symbol.
4. Dagger (4 Damage), leather (1 Armor), spellbook, reagents (P6).
5. Shortsword (4 Damage), shield, spellbook, candles (P6).
6. Quarterstaff (6 Damage), leather (1 Armor), spellbook, antidote (P6).

Details

Use these tables to help flesh out characters or spellbooks.

Physique

1. Lean
2. Broad
3. Tall
4. Short
5. Muscular
6. Scarred

Age

1. Very young
2. Young
3. Adult
4. Middle-aged
5. Older
6. Ancient

Look

1. Calm
2. Sharp
3. Tired
4. Focused
5. Cold
6. Gentle

Speech

1. Quiet
2. Rough
3. Clear
4. Warm
5. Fast
6. Slow

Physical Spell

1. Flame
2. Frost
3. Stone
4. Storm
5. Blood
6. Bone

Effects

1. Burn
2. Freeze
3. Shatter
4. Push
5. Bind
6. Shape

Ethereal Spell

1. Shadow
2. Spirit
3. Dream
4. Mind
5. Light
6. Fate

Effects cont.

1. Reveal
2. Curse
3. Charm
4. Drain
5. Silence
6. Veil

Community

Find other Boundless players and creators in the Fari RPGs’ Discord server! Come organize games, share ideas, and ask questions.

Join our community at farirpgs.com/discord.

This Game is Boundless

This game is available under an open license, as outlined below, enabling you to distribute and modify the text within the bounds of the license. To make your own Boundless game, please credit us as:

This product is based on Boundless, published by Fari RPGs (https://farirpgs.com/), developed and authored by René-Pier Deshaies-Gélinas, and is licensed for use under the Open RPG Creative License. This product is licensed under the ORC License held in the Library of Congress at TX 9-307-067 and available online at various locations including www.azoralaw.com/orclicense and others. All warranties are disclaimed as set forth therein.

Logos

Download official Boundless logos below.