Version 1.0, September 2023
Classic Fantasy Imperative is an Open, ORC Licensed, version of the Mythras ruleset, focusing on dungeon exploration, high adventure, and tense encounters involving treasure, magic, and deadly foes. Classic Fantasy Imperative emulates the original thrill of the very first roleplaying game in the hobby but approaches it through the lens of the Mythras game system, which is 1d100 (or percentile) based, rather than using a d20.
This document offers a comprehensive, but not exhaustive, set of rules, including character creation, character races and classes, skills, rules for certain typical situations, combat, and magic – more than enough to get both players and Games Masters started, and form a solid basis for further development. Classic Fantasy Imperative is completely compatible with Classic Fantasy Imperative, the Mythras core rules, and Mythras Imperative. Plus, it is also compatible with other ORC licensed percentile gaming systems.
Classic Fantasy Imperative is published using the ORC License. The ORC License provides a way for game creators to openly share the mechanics of their game and allows for downstream users to freely use, modify, and reshare adaptations of these game mechanics.
What is openly shared under the ORC is known as Licensed Material , and includes the broad functional elements of the game, such as statblocks, game rules, character attributes, and the methods and systems inherent in playing the game, as well as anything else the licensor explicitly wants to share. The license is broad and lets you use the Licensed Materials globally in connection with printed books, video games, podcasts, AI, or any other technology that may exist or be created in the future. The vast bulk of the content found in Classic Fantasy Imperative constitutes Licensed Material.
What is not shared under the ORC is known as Reserved Material and includes trademarks, world lore, story arcs, distinctive characters, and visual art. We have listed Reserved Material in the ORC Notice, below.
Under the ORC License you can use, share, adapt, and build on the Licensed Material however you see fit, so long as you give proper attribution in the form of a notice in your published work. This notice both credits the upstream licensors and their contribution to the work, as well as providing an easy way for downstream users to credit the author of the work in which the notice appears. By using material licensed under the ORC, you automatically agree to license out your game mechanics in your published work under the same terms. If you develop your own Reserved Material, that is your exclusive property.
Classic Fantasy Imperative is licensed under the ORC License located at the Library of Congress and available online at various locations including Paizo.com and others.
All warranties are disclaimed as set forth therein.
This product is based on the following Reserved Material:
- Mythras, The Design Mechanism Copyright 2016, Written by Pete Nash and Lawrence Whitaker
- Classic Fantasy Imperative, The Design Mechanism Copyright 2016, Written by Rodney Leary, Pete Nash, and Lawrence Whitaker
If you use our Licensed Material in your own published works, please credit us as follows:
Based on Classic Fantasy Imperative, Written by Rodney Leary, Pete Nash and Lawrence Whitaker, and published by The Design Mechanism, Copyright 2023
Note that Classic Fantasy Imperative's parent games, Classic Fantasy and Mythras, published by The Design Mechanism, are designated as Reserved Material under the ORC license.
If you wish to draw upon content found in either Classic Fantasy Imperative or Mythras, please contact The Design Mechanism about the separate Mythras Gateway License, which allows for Reserved Material to be accessed, free of royalties, but with some conditions regarding approvals and attribution.
The following are also considered Reserved Material, as follows:
- Classic Fantasy and Classic Fantasy Imperative – as a name, save for when used in attribution, including its logo.
- Mythras and Mythras Imperative - as a name, save for when used in attribution, including their logos.
- All artwork found in Classic Fantasy Imperative
- Alexandra the Pious
- Barony of Ostwyn
- Barony of Volstad
- County of Thale
- Grand Duchy of Bethany
- Grand Duchy of Pelende
- Greymyr
- Inwils Isle
- Inwils the Sage
- King Korac of Norsgard
- Lilly Tanglefoot
- Lorissa of Stormholm
- Miranda Drake
- Mystamyr
- Mystamyr and the Boarderlands
- Rengarth Hightower
- Runewood Forest
- Sorack Blackwolf
- Tashana Moonshadow
- The Dunfel Inn
- Faewood Vale
- The Elven Lands of Lorendel
- The Iron Kingdom of the Dwarves
- The Island Nations of Valencia
- The Kingdom of Greymyr
- The Northern Territories of Norsgard
- The Orc Blight Mountains
- The Pharaonic Lands of Aegypt
- The Shattered Territories
- The Shenzhou Monastery
- The Spider Wald
- The Undead Realms of Ravenholm
- The War-Torn Hinterlands
- The World of Areath
- Town of Dunfel
- Valamir Drake
Classic Fantasy Imperative is a d100 or percentile system. Percentile dice, or 1d100, are used to resolve key actions – skill use, combat, magic casting, and so on. It is a roll-under system, meaning that the target number is expressed as a percentage (Athletics 65%, for instance), and both the Games Master and player are looking to roll equal to or less than this target number, using 1d100, to achieve a Success. It is quite easy to replace the 1d100 with a d20 if preferred, and all percentages can be divided by 5 (round up) to gain the target number for a d20 roll. Athletics 65% would become Athletics 13, in our example. However, 1d100 offers a great deal of flexibility and nuance that underpins the whole game, so our recommendation is to try the 1d100 approach first. While it may seem counterintuitive to have to roll less than something (in many games, higher is usually better!), having a target number expressed as a percentage range that one needs to roll within makes it easy and simple to see your chances of success, and allows for quite a few 'dice tricks,' such as Opposed Rolls, Criticals, and Fumbles, and a few other things explored later in these rules. Percentile roleplaying has been around for a long time and is a firmly established game system with a tried and tested core mechanic that is flexible, intuitive, and tends to fade into the background during play.
Long time owners of Mythras and Classic Fantasy will note that in some places the Classic Fantasy Imperative rules have been simplified. This has been done so that a Games Master may more quickly introduce the game to new players with a minimum of fuss. Another area where Classic Fantasy Imperative differs is in incorporating Imperial measurements instead of metric. Incorporating both takes up far too much room and would require multiple tables when dealing with Ranged Weapons and the like. The Imperial system was chosen simply to facilitate easier use of the countless battle mats already in existence, and to make converting adventures from other game systems that use Imperial measurements simpler. When filling out your Character Sheet, feel free to use the Conversion Tables in the Appendix, and whatever measurement system you find most useful and familiar.
On some occasions you will be required to divide numbers - typically the rating in a skill (such as for determining a Critical Success, which is 1/10th of the skill's value). Whenever a division result creates a fraction, always round up to the whole number. So, for instance, 1/10th of 64% is 6.4; this is rounded up to 7.
Classic Fantasy Imperative uses the standard polyhedral dice set: d4, d6, d8, d10 d12, d20 and d100. Additionally, the following dice are call for:
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d2: Roll any die. An odds number equals 1 and evens equals 2. Or flip a coin.
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d3: Roll a six-sided die; 1-2 = 1, 3-4 = 2, 5-6 = 3.