Advancement

Ratbags! has two forms of advancement.

• Experience (or XP) accumulates over a PC's adventures, allowing them to increase their statistics.
• Growth Triggers are specific events that cause PCs to get weirder.

Experience

At the end of each session, the Referee will ask the players the following questions:

• Did your character survive a deadly situation?
• Did your character recover a valuable treasure?
• Did your character overcome a challenge using cunning or resourcefulness?

For each question a player answers affirmative, the character gains 1 Experience (XP).

When a character reaches 8 XP, reset to zero XP and level up. Any excess XP rolls over.

Levelling Up

When a character levels up, do the following:

• If their HP is 1-4, increase HP by 2. Otherwise, increase HP by 1.
• Roll a d20 for STR, DEX, and WIL. If the result is higher than the maximum for that Attribute, increase the current & maximum for that Attribute by 1.

Growth Triggers

At the end of each session, the Referee addresses the table.

Reflect on the session. Did any of the PCs do any of the following?

• Show a pattern of behaviour (possibly across sessions & culminating in a significant moment)
• Take an obvious risk (especially if the outcome was unknown)
• Interact with something unique (an item, creature, or entity)

If a PC did 2 of the above in the same event, the Referee may declare that the event was a Growth Trigger. A Trigger causes the PC to get weirder, in a way determined By the Referee but influenced by the Trigger. The change should include both new (or enhanced) abilities and physical changes.

Any character who doesn't experience a Trigger gets an extra 1 XP instead.

Expand For Examples

Aster and his comrades came upon a shrine deep hidden in a forest cave. After some research and experimentation (spearheaded by Aster), they were able to free the nearly-mad river god trapped within. The deity offered its unknowable essence to anyone willing to receive it. Aster stepped forward and was bound to the god, forgoing his old life and adopting a new religion. A few days later, gills sprouted from Aster’s neck after an impromptu dive in a raging river. (risk + unique entity)

At long last, Oxrable Kinter (or Ox) had finally defeated the serial murderer Tibor Heimshern. But instead of killing him, Ox used the Spirit Siphon to pull the prone man’s consciousness straight out of his body. Then to the surprise of everyone at the table, Ox proceeded to drink the man’s spirit. The Referee called for a WIL save to overcome Tibor’s powerful essence: a success! The Warden then asked the player to reroll Ox’s Willpower attribute, saying he could keep the results if they were higher. And they were! However, the Warden also ruled that if at any point Ox had another enemy weak and at his mercy, a WIL save would be required to overcome the murderer’s dormant tendencies within his psyche. (pattern of behaviour + risk + unique person)

Throughout her adventures, Hazel made frequent use of a Control Plants Wand she’d “borrowed” from the abbey where she grew up. On one occasion, she and her companions were exploring a jungle temple and stumbled upon a horrific creature made entirely of plant matter. Seeing an opportunity to use the creature’s strengths against it, Hazel’s allies gathered around her while as she used the wand. The Warden then asked for a WIL save, as she was trying to stretch the limits of the spell. A success! The Referee declared that the wand merges with Hazel's hand, making it an intrinsic part of Hazel going forward. (pattern of behaviour + unique item)