House rules

This section includes house rules and clarifications (KC) for Stars Without Number (SWN).

Character Creation

 * 1) For starting hit points, roll three hit dice with Constitution modifiers.  Subsequent leveling is handled per rules-as-written, rolling your new level in hit dice with modifiers.

Character Advancement

 * 1) Experts earn 4 skill points per level.  Other classes earn 3.  (KC, if players original edition)
 * 2) New characters start at level 1, but earn a session minimum of XP per max level of party.  This makes it easy for low levels to advance quickly within a few sessions to catch up.

Combat Systems

 * 1)  Near-Death .  If a character has fallen to 0 hitpoints, a Lazarus patch and TL4 medicine may succeed only if the damage below 0 hp is less than a character's Constitution score.  If the damage is beyond twice a character's Constitution score, there is not enough of the body remaining for TL5 surgery or most psionic healing (biostasis & succor) to work with.
 * 2)  Sudden Takedown .  If a character is unaware and unguarded, make a Physical save at a penalty of the attacker's combat skill level.  If successful, then only take max damage.  If unsuccessful, then death or unconsciousness, depending on the the attack.  To-hit rolls receive +4 if ranged or +8 if melee.  (KC, Darkness)
 * 3)  Mobs .  If similar NPCs are being grouped as a mob to simplify combat, then use the table to determine how many are grouped for one damage roll.  This is in lieu of attack rolls.  The mob shares an initiative roll, and hitpoints are tracked at the mob level, reducing the number of the mob as needed.  (D&D 5e, DM, p250)

Ship Systems

 * 1)  Navigation 
 * 2) Ships may only move between hexes with star systems with sufficiently deep gravity wells.  They cannot move more hexes in one jump than their slipstream drive level.
 * 3) Ships may enter slipstream space anywhere on the edge of the system's gravity well.  Ships entering a system from slipstream space arrive at the stream focal point (or "Crohnpoint") for the system -- near one location on the south pole edge of the system.  This makes it easy to guard a system and difficult to sneak by.  Adding +3 to the Pilot difficulty allows the option to emerge away from this system entrance focal point but still at the edge of the system, increasing the difficulty to be detected such as if in a different region of the system from ships at the focal point.
 * 4) Slipdrive course plotting can only be done outside of a planet's gravity well, and usually takes 6 hr/hex.  Careful plotting adds +1 to Pilot check, but requires 1 day/hex.  Hurried plotting is -1 to the Pilot check, and only requires 1 hr/hex.  Emergency slip requires a Pilot of at least 3, and adds +2 to the difficulty.
 * 5)  Fittings 
 * 6) Ship systems may be installed as mass points and hardpoints allow.  Power limits those that can be activated at any given time -- it is possible to power down one system in order to power on another.  This requires a successful skill check, either Pilot (diff 8) or Fix (diff 7).  Failing this roll powers both down.
 * 7) Power core may be increased by ship class per fittings (+2 if frigate).  Such upgrades require more radiators, and consume a weapon hardpoint each.  Mass of 1.  Base cost of 10% of hull cost.
 * 8) Ship monthly maintenance is 1/120 of ship's total value, including current installed systems.
 * 9) Ship consumables are sized to last 4 weeks (28 days) for a full crew complement.  Extended life support doubles that.  (KC, update from original edition)

Psionics

 * 1)  Teleportation 
 * 2) Controls kinetic velocity vector.  You may increase your relative velocity by 20 m/s per jump.  You may alter your vector/direction of equal or lesser magnitude/speed.  Useful for microgravity maneuvering
 * 3) Pushes fluid and light solids out of the way on arrival.  If cannot do that safely, spend the effort but fail the jump.
 * 4) Wis/Teleport skill check sometimes used if the teleporter doesn't have clear knowledge of open places at the destination.
 * 5) Wis/Teleport can also be used to trace a recently used (<1 minute) teleport, allowing you to follow.  Diff is 6, +1 per minute.
 * 6)  Telekinesis  can self-propel in microgravity at level 2.  +20 m/s per round.

Faction Turn

 * 1) Turns:  Every faction gets one turn a week.  Faction income occurs on first week of the month, and payout is scaled by the ratio of faction hitpoints to max.
 * 2) Only TL3+ assets or TL4+ worlds may counterattack starship attacks.
 * 3) Only starship, any SpecForce of TL4+ or based from TL4+, and any TL4+ space-capable Military Unit assets can attack starship assets.
 * 4) Assets repair at +$1 cost if not at a base.  Each heal after the first, in a turn, no matter which asset, costs +$1 extra.
 * 5) Most 1-hex units now move 2-hexes.
 * 6) Planets can only buy one asset per turn.  Multiple planets may buy during a buy action.
 * 7) Any planet may only have one of any facility or logistics facility.  i.e., only one Harvester per planet.
 * 8) A faction is limited to a total count of assets equal to the sum of its two highest attributes, as there is a limit on logistics.
 * 9) A faction is limited to store FacCred equal to its monthly earning times its (wealth+1), as there is a limit on effective "savings".  This is applied at the start of the month, when FacCreds are paid out.
 * 10) Additional units have been added:  TL4: F3 Gunboat Squadron, F3 Raiding Squadron, F6 Task Force, W5 Shipyard.  TL3: F1 System Patrol.
 * 11) Some assets will have commanding officer bonuses applied to attack and defense rolls.  New assets have +0.  This bonus increases once (current bonus+1) assets are destroyed.  When the asset is destroyed, the CO makes a Tech save roll + bonus to see if she survives.  Either the CO or the asset may be destroyed by the PCs.
 * 12) There is no penalty for a faction to change its goal, if it changes at the beginning of a turn before any faction move.
 * 13) Factions may make occasional special moves, if deemed appropriate per narrative by the GM.
 * 14) Faction may not build new units if there are hostiles on planet or hostile starships without a friendly unit to cover.  Homeworlds and Tactics are an exception to this rule.
 * 15) These units always start with Stealth:  any Tactics, C1 False Front, C3 Cyberninjas, F5 Psychic Assassins
 * 16) Planetary ownership of certain key worlds will bestow additional faction tags.  For example, the Cobalt Alliance would have the "Psychic Academy" tag as it runs the Pimental Academy there.