Cavemaster RPG

Habilis Game System by Jeff Dee Setting & Research by Talzhemir Mrr Research Assistant Jeremy Lane Cover Painting & Illustrations by Talzhemir Mrr Additional Illustrations by James Nystul, Jeff Dee,

Joseph Arnold & Kennon James

Playtesters:

Denis Loubet, Diesel, Beth Loubet, Jason Rosenblum, Janet Swisher, Leticia Lyons, Matt Sheffield, Sean Summers

© 2012 UNIgames. All Rights Reserved. Cavemaster is a trademark of UNIgames

P.O. Box 2933 Pflugerville TX 78691 www.prismnet.com/unigames

Edition #1.0 - May 2012

Section Title

Page

Prologue: Red-Claw Ritual 1

1.0 Introduction 5

1.1 What is Cavemaster? 5

1.2 What is Stonepunk? 5

1.3 What is a Role-Playing Game? 5 1.4 An Intro to the Habilis System 6 1.5 What Else Do I Need? 6

2.0 Character Creation 6

2.1 Character Skin 6

2.2 Writing Implement 6

2.3 Core Stones 6

2.4 Select Your Character’s Breed 7 2.5 Select Your Character’s Job 7 2.6 Select Your Character’s Perk 10 2.7 Creating New Perks 12

2.8 Record Your Perk 12

2.9 Name Your Character 12 2.10 Record Your Stones 12 2.11 Choose Your Character’s Stuff 12 2.11 Record Your Stuff 26

3.0 Challenges 26 3.1 Standard Challenges 26 3.2 Competitive Challenges 28 4.0 Combat 29 4.1 Combat Scale 29 4.2 Initiative 30

4.3 The Move Phase 30

4.4 The Action Phase 30

4.5 Attacking 30

4.6 Damage & Recovery 33

5.0 Inventing 34

5.1 Simple Innovations 34

5.2 True Inventions 34

6.0 Spirit Magic (Optional) 35

6.1 Spell-Casting 35

7.0 Character Advancement 38

Section Title

Page

8.0 The Cavemaster World 39 8.1 The Esplandia Region 39 8.2 The Croatan Region 40 8.3 The Teutonis Region 40 8.4 The Orinoco Region 41

8.5 The Lost Valley 42

8.6 World Map Terrain Key 42

9.0 The People of Cavemaster 43 9.1 Maheechee: the Tree People 44 9.2 Rogók: the Cave Lords 46 9.3 Tanui: the Water Folk 48 9.4 Yorwa: the Busy Ones 50

9.5 Interbreeding 52

10.0 Creatures 52

10.1 Historical Creatures 54

10.2 Anachronisms 68

10.3 Anomalies 70

10.4 Creating New Creatures 71

11.0 Cavemaster’s Section 72

11.1 Preparation 72

11.2 Balancing Combat 74

11.3 Interpersonal Challenges 74 11.4 Introductory Adventure 75

Appendix 1: The Creation Myth 81

Appendix 2: The Tatoni Tribe 82

Appendix 3: The Gargúnn Tribe 84

Appendix 4: The Falora Tribe 87

Appendix 5: The Mozo Tribe 91

Appendix 6: Advanced Rules 94

Bibliography 95

Films 95

Visual Reference 96

Prologue: Red-Claw Ritual

A tale of the Yorwa People

It was the longest, coldest night of year.

The mouth of the cave was hidden by snow.

The moon was full, making everything bright.

Three members of the Red-claw Tribe arrived outside.

They had traveled for days to find this place.

First came Strong-bone the hunter, and his bear Oochuff.

Instead of a spear, tonight Strong-bone was carrying a stout staff.

Next was Grandma Snow-paw, wrapped in chalk-colored elk pelt.

Last was Reed-boy, Strong-bone's son.

He was very excited because tonight

he would learn a Great Secret of the clan.

"Strong-bone and Oochuff," said Grandma Snow-paw,

"Make the challenge! Reed-boy, come with me."

At Strong-bone's hand-signal, Oochuff reared on his

hind legs and roared. His breath was like smoke in the air.

At first there was no response.

There came an answering groan from another bear.

They saw her come running out of the cave.

She ran at Oochuff, her heavy breath coming out in white puffs too.

He dropped back down on all fours to meet her attack.

Reed-boy wanted to watch but Grandma Snow-paw

led him away. She said, "You must lead a cub out, now."

"But how do I do that, Grandma?" asked Reed-boy. "With my flute...?"

Grandma Snow-paw whispered, "Not now. You will soon learn

a great secret of our clan..."

At the entrance to the cave, now visible as a black

gap in the snow, she opened one of her tiny bags and dumped its

contents onto his palm: a dry dead bee. "Chew this while

The she-bear plowed into Oochuff, paws swinging. She

was bigger.

Strong-bone stayed back but kept his staff ready.

Oochuff dodged one set of black talons after another,

and slowly backed off. She stood up on her back paws

and bellowed at him.

He would have been happy to let her go back to sleep

but Strong-bone called out, "Play, Oochuff! Play!"

His bear friend loped around, and roared at the she-bear,

making it clear that he was not leaving. She would

have to stay and fight.

The bee tasted strange. It was crunchy, with tiny hairs,

and Reed-boy could feel the dry little legs breaking off.

He wondered if he was going to get a stinger stuck

in his tongue.

He could hear Grandma Snow-paw singing, and it

sounded like nonsense. Something about "finding two,

and taking one. One in darkness, meant for sun..."

There was an unpleasant taste in Reed-boy's mouth, now,

like a tiny piece of sour grease.

Suddenly he could feel his body and limbs grow thicker.

His nose stretched down and away from his eyes. He

brought his hands up to touch it and discovered he now

had clawed paws. He was covered all over in dark red fur.

He looked at Grandma Snow-paw and discovered he only came

up to her knee. Everything beyond her was hazy now. He

dropped down onto all fours. When he tried to talk, it

came out a little honking groan.

"Shhh," said Grandma. "Into the den you go. Bring out a cub."

The new bear nodded and clambered down the gap. The

passage within angled so that a breeze from outside could not go far.

The cave walls were marked with countless parallel scratches.

They were marks made by the cave bears of the past.

Reed-boy was struck by the pleasant musky odor

coming from deeper inside. It was earthy and comforting.

He followed it until there was no more light. He was

padding around in complete darkness. The air was

no longer cold here.

He blundered into a stalagmite growing from the ground,

and after that, he moved slowly. He began to hear

sounds he had not noticed before: slow breathing and

brief snoring. His ears were so sharp that

he started to get a sense of where the walls were from

the various echoes. He went over to the breathing.

A ragged gash was opened on Oochuff's chest, and

the mother bear was not the least bit tired. To keep her

engaged, Strong-bone thrust with his staff, a light thump

to her flank. This nuisance made her snap at her side.

At first she missed, but after a moment, she caught the

pole and wrested it from Strong-bone's grip.

She was going to swipe at Strong-bone himself when

Oochuff gave a roar and put himself between her and

the human hunter. Exhausted by her Spirit-Magic earlier,

Grandma Snow-paw could only stand and watch and worry.

With sensitive nose, Reed-boy in bear form could

sense the heat from two round bodies. He picked the

closest one, reaching over with a paw to gently shake

its shoulder. That cub woke up and yawned. It made

a noise like, "Wahh!" Reed-boy understood this to

mean, 'I'm thirsty!'

Reed-boy whispered, "Then come with me." It came out

a little noise like 'Ooooooor," but the other bear understood.

Reed-boy padded up the passageway and his new friend

followed him.

'Who are you?' the cub asked.

'I am your brother,' Reed-boy answered. In the

lore of the Red-Claws, the songs and ritual phrases

sometimes proclaimed their brotherhood to the cave bear,

but until now, Reed-boy had never felt the truth of it.

He nudged his new bear pal with his shoulder, and

heard him answer with a little, "Wff."

At the cave's mouth, they could hear Oochuff and the

mother bear trading roars, bites, and blows.

Reed-boy knew what was happening but the bear

cub behind him did not.

They emerged from the cave and the second bear

took a mouthful of snow. Grandma Snow-paw was

waiting, and she said something, pointing and then

herding the two young bears in some direction.

When they were out of sight, Grandma Snow-paw

called happily to Strong-bone, "It is done!"

The snow was stained with blood but the mother

bear was unhurt. Strong-bone said, "Oochuff!

Back off! Back off!" They lowered their heads

and showed their profiles, a sign that they were

retreating. Huffing and tired, the mother bear let

them go, then galloped back for the den.

Strong-bone and Grandma Snow-paw followed

the tracks which romped around in random

circles and squiggles. Eventually they found two

young bears in a little heap between some rocks,

both sound asleep.

It was powerful Spirit-Magic that might even

last for days. They let the youngsters sleep for

now. Strong-bone fed Oochuff many raisins while

Grandma Snow-paw tended to his wounds.

Grandma Snow-paw remembered the story that her teacher

Bright-stone had told her. A mother bear usually bore twins, but

only one survived. Then, her mentor had made a deal

with the Cave Bear Spirit to always treat those baby

bears they took, as family. It was a good bargain.

The End

1.0 Introduction

1.1What is Cavemaster?

Cavemaster is a serious Stonepunk tabletop fantasy role-playing game of Pleistocene adventure! Cavemaster’s ‘Habilis’ game system is an archaeological re-construction of the role-playing game rules first used by our Homo Habilis ancestors approximately 2 million years ago. Cavemaster requires no written language or detailed record-keeping, and its mechanics are simple enough to have been passed down verbally from each clan’s ‘cavemaster’ to his (or her) apprentice(s). It’s not just a caveman role-playing game. It's the role playing game that cave-men played!

1.2 What is Stonepunk?

In the tradition of Cyberpunk and Steampunk, Stonepunk is an exercise in speculative fiction. Stonepunk turns the clock back to the end of the Pleistocene Epoch (approximately 10,000 years BCE), and asks what might have happened if the culture and technology of that age had developed further, or in exciting new directions!

1.3 What is a Role-Playing

Game?

A role-playing game (RPG) is a form of interactive storytelling, in which the participants act out the roles of characters in the story. It's similar to "let's pretend" or "cops and robbers," but with rules and a referee.

RPGs don’t typically have clearly defined winners and losers. Instead of competing with the other players, you are working with them as a team, to accomplish mutual goals. Individual characters may also have personal goals that they are trying to achieve, but overall, the goal of the game is to create a satisfying story.

One of the players act as the "gamemaster" (GM), or in this game, the cavemaster – (CM). The CM presents situations to the other players, describing where the player-characters (PCs) are and what they can see (and even hear, feel, smell, and taste), and playing the roles of any other non-player characters (NPCs) friendly or otherwise that the PCs interact with. The cavemaster prepares the story beforehand (either by writing it and stocking it with their own characters, or by selecting and reading from a prepared adventure). The CM describes the

scenes and events of the story as they unfold, and tells the other players the results of their actions. A player's character is usually defined by a set of statistics that describe their strengths and weaknesses. For example, a character in this game with five core stones is more effective, in general, than one with only four core stones. A character with one stone in the Strength perk is stronger than just about any character without stones in that perk. And so on.

1.4 An Intro to the Habilis

System

Character abilities are represented by groups of small stones. In a Challenge, you pick up the relevant stones and secretly divide them between your hands. Your opponent (or the CM) does the same. Each participant picks one of the other person’s hands, and the stones in that hand are revealed. If you reveal more stones, your character succeeds!

1.5 What Else Do I Need?

Cavemaster doesn’t require any components that can’t be found in nature. You certainly may use more modern components if you wish, however. In most RPGs, dice are used to generate random numbers to resolve certain events (such as whether a character can climb a slippery wall, or if an attempt to fast talk a guard will work). Because cavemen didn’t have dice, in Cavemaster a handful of small stones – about the size of a tooth, or a small bean - serves in their place.

Miniature plastic or metal figures are used in some RPGs, and can be used with Cavemaster, for visualizing where the characters are in a scene. Prehistoric cavemasters used rocks, sticks, and other small found objects, selected to the resemble characters and creatures in the game.

Cavemaster was originally played while seated cross-legged in a circle on the floor of the clan’s cave. Modern RPGs are usually played around a table in a comfortable area, so that everyone can relax while they play and have somewhere to put their game materials.

Prehistoric Cavemaster players used charred sticks and bits of animal hide for record-keeping. Nowadays, paper and pens or pencils are the norm.

2.0 Character Creation

Every Cavemaster player is allowed to create the character that they control in the game. This section of the rules explains how to create a character.

2.1 Character Skin

Find a scrap of animal hide, about as big as the area you can cover with your two open hands [Modern: use a blank standard sheet of 8 ½ ” x 11” paper, or one printed with the animal skin outline provided at the end of this rulebook]. This will be your ‘Character Skin’ – the place where you record your character’s abilities.

2.2 Writing Implement

Char the end of a thin stick in the fire [Modern: use a pencil, pen, marker, etc.]. Draw a large circle on your Character Skin, about the size of your fist. This circle will contain your character’s ‘core stones’.

2.3 Core Stones

Place 6 stones in the big circle on your Character Skin. These ‘core stones’ represent overall, general ability to do any of the sorts of things that all primitive humans know how to do.

Having 6 stones makes your character slightly more experienced than a raw beginner. The CM can start players as total beginners by giving them only 5 stones, children with 4 stones, or hardened veterans with 7 or more stones.

Example: Denis is creating a character for a

Cavemaster campaign where the cavemaster has decided to start player characters out with 6 stones. Denis begins character creation by drawing a large circle in the middle of his Character Skin, and placing 6 stones within it.

2.4 Select Your Character’s

Breed

Choose your character’s breed. The four standard Cavemaster breeds represent different evolutionary strains of genus Homo. Your CM may prohibit the selection of certain breeds, depending on the needs of their campaign. See 9.0 for descriptions of the four breeds.

After you’ve chosen your breed draw a second, smaller circle on your Character Skin. Inside it, draw the pictograph representing the breed you have chosen. Then move one of your core stones into that circle to indicate your breed’s unique racial ability. Do not move a stone into the breed circle if your character is a Yorwa or a Rogók female. Those types of character have no special racial abilities.

Example: Denis’s cavemaster tells him he may

choose any of the four standard character breeds. He decides he wants his character to be a Tanui. Denis makes a smaller circle beside the one containing his core stones, drawing the Tanui symbol within it. He moves one of his core stones into the Tanui circle, representing the Tanui racial ability (Swiftness). This leaves him with 5 core stones.

2.5 Select Your Character’s Job

The most common jobs are listed below, along with the most common tasks performed by characters who do that job. Any character may attempt any of the tasks listed for the various jobs, but characters

get a positive modifier from their job when they attempt a task that appears in their job description. If a task does not appear in a character’s job description, but the CM rules that it is appropriate for that job, then the character can get a positive modifier from their job on that task also.

Choose a job for your character. The following options are available:

Boater (Tanui Only)

Boater Skills:

Boating Navigate

Fishing (Net and Spear) Animal Knowledge (Aquatic) Butchering

This job is only available to starting characters of the Tanui breed. It can be learned after character generation by anyone, if taught by a boater. Knowledge of travel by water is surprisingly advanced at this time. There are boats made of logs, skins, and bark. They may be good for carrying just one passenger, or they may carry up to thirty. Anybody can row but effectively coordinating the rowing so that the craft goes in the required direction is a task for the boater. Fast-moving water can be dangerous; boaters are good at paddling between the rocks on a raging river, or keeping a vessel safe on a stormy ocean.

The boater's job includes knowledge of how to hunt at sea. The hunter on land knows of mammoth and bison but it takes a boater to understand the seal and the whale. Life on and near the water is not safe; the boater must learn of hazards such as bears, crocodiles, sharks, and so on.

This job also includes various chores of water-traveler survival: smearing ointment on the skin to protect it from windburn, keeping fishing lines untangled, and so forth.

Because a boater has a way to transport goods, they are the closest thing to a "merchant" at this time. A boater on the shore is more likely to have things to trade. The Tanui sometimes also attach slats of wood with curved ends to convert their boats into sleds that they drag overland. This can take a great deal of effort. Then again, from time to time, the boater is rewarded with a pleasant ride on the downhill side.

Crafter

Crafter Skills:

Leather-Craft (making and repairing leather things,

and knowledge of materials from animals)

Stone-Craft (making and repairing stone things,

and knowledge of minerals)

Weaving (making and repairing baskets, nets,

mats, textiles, and other items made of woven reeds, grass, plant fiber, and hair, and knowledge of plant materials)

Woodcraft (making and repairing wooden things,

such as a travois or a boomerang, and knowledge about wood)

Make Fire

The crafter makes goods such as clothing, tools, furniture, shelter, and so on. Their basic materials are stone, wood, animal skin, and fiber. Everyone can make these items themselves, but a crafter is an expert at it.

Unlike the other jobs, there is less tradition amongst crafters. Without an apprentice, much hard-won knowledge is lost each time an experienced crafter passes away. The Tanui are the exception, since their crafting chants can even be passed on by non-crafters.

Crafters can be valuable assistants to the clan's gatherers and hunters. They have knowledge of plants, like gatherers do, but their interest is in non-edible materials such as tree-sap for varnish, wood, certain leaf juices for decorative paints, and so on. Crafters also have an interest in animal products, like hunters, but only in the non-edible portions: sinew for binding, antler or bone to make glue, and so on. Some of a crafters' tricks involve fire and heat. Wood can be hardened by holding it in a fire. Native Americans would burn patches of meadow with controlled fires to encourage the growth of purple milkweed (prized for making cordage). Flint that has been heat-treated produces superior tools. Some of these processes are dangerous. Heat-treating flint can cause it to explode.

Because of their wide knowledge of materials and construction, crafters have an advantage when it comes to inventing new things.

Gatherer

Gatherer Skills:

The gatherer's job is to bring back plant-based foods: fruit, seeds, nuts, edible greens, starchy roots, and so on. Many foods appear only in certain seasons, and are absent the rest of the year, so the gatherer also prepares and stores them, typically without excess weight such as nut shells. With everything from mice to giant bears searching for a snack, food is generally taken along and defended, not cached and left behind.

Although the word "gatherer" only implies ‘someone who collects things’, gatherers also put effort into early forms of cultivation. A favorite mushroom's spores might be dusted over a likely-looking dead log, or cherry pits might be poked back into the ground. The gatherer knows when to return to those places to reap the benefits.

Sometimes gatherers have to tend these wild fields. For example, edible camas roots are dug up after their blue flowers are faded and dead. "Death camas", which is poisonous, looks identical except

that it has white flowers. The white camas are removed during the flowering season. A clan can then return later in the season, confident that the dangerous ones have been removed.

With so much to learn, a gatherer's education begins early, at the side of an elder. Rituals, customs, dances, and songs are passed down from generation to generation. Tasks that are monotonous, such as grinding seeds, may be lightened by the singing if traditional songs.

Healer

Healer Skills:

Make Fire

Body Modification (scarification, piercing) Cure Disease & Poison

Myths & Mythmaking

Heal Wounds & Venom (see 4.6)

Becoming a healer is no trivial thing. A child begins their study at an early age. There is so much information to pass on, through repetition and practice. A mistake could cost a patient their life; bereaved relatives may become angered at an incompetent healer.

Some healers share their knowledge freely and some keep it jealously to themselves. Each tribe has its own medical lore, its own methods and remedies. At the start of the campaign, the four tribes (Tatoni, Gargún, Falora, and Mozo) are mainly friendly to each other but have not been around one another long enough to trade technologies.

Duties of a healer vary from tribe to tribe. Some are also spiritual leaders, responsible for keeping the beliefs, philosophy and customs of tribe alive. Some take on the role of storyteller, singer, or musician. They might provide entertainment. Some healers are also responsible for remembering their people's rules.

NOTE: There is no “shaman” Job. The word "shaman" means somebody who interacts with Spirits. Some Spirits can give access to magical healing. However, not all healers are shamans, and not all shamans are healers. Some tribes believe it is the Shaman's job to ask the Spirits to send game.

Hunter

Hunter Skills:

Sneak

Combat (Missile Weapons) Track

Animal Knowledge (Land Animals) Butcher

The hunter of 10,000 years ago is a ranged weapon specialist. Although the iconic image of this time is a clash with a mammoth or other large animal, the majority of prey is smaller animals such as pigs and deer. Skill with close-range weapons is not a priority for the hunter. If a hunter wishes to become skilled in a hand-to-hand weapon, they may take it up later. Children use miniature versions of adult weapons and begin hunting tiny edible prey at a very early age. They play games to improve their ability. For instance, a hoop made out of thin flexible branches is rolled along to simulate a moving target. After learning enough lore, the hunter can train by themselves with just a target at a distance - or simply go hunting.

Being a hunter is more than a job. It is a way of life, with rituals, customs, dances, and songs. A hunter might fast for a full day, drinking only water, then bathe and rub their body with specific herbs before a hunt. A hunter might be required to apologize to appease the Animal Spirit by whispering a prayer to the carcass. A tribe or clan might hold an annual rite to honor a Spirit's generosity. There is often a tradition that hunting must be fair to the prey animal. A Rogók clan, for instance, might prohibit hunting a bear while it is hibernating. Some tribes and clans use poison while others have a taboo against it.

Warrior

Warrior Skills:

Combat (Melee Weapons) Track

Sneak Tactics Find Path

The warrior is a hand-to-hand specialist. They are the defenders of the clan. When the enemy is hidden, when it is night, or any time a ranged weapon is at a major disadvantage, the warrior must take the fight to the enemy. A warrior's life is filled with peril but also glory.

In addition to a melee weapon, a warrior will be trained in wrestling, possibly boxing. There will be well-established rules for what is acceptable and what is 'dirty'. If a warrior wishes to become skilled with a ranged weapon, they may take it up later. Like hunting, the warrior has a traditional way of life. Rituals, customs, dances, and songs are passed down. Unlike a hunter, a young warrior needs the continued support of the clan, so they have adequate food and time to train. They need the help of a mentor, with whom they can spar. Often, young warriors are raised together so they can sharpen each other's skills.

A warrior may also be called upon to champion the clan in a non-lethal contest. Two groups that are friendly may have a dispute over territory, for example - and a custom arises in which they annually meet and hold a contest. Over the years, custody of the territory passes peacefully back and forth between them depending on which side wins these annual events. Warriors are like the ancient ancestors of the modern professional athlete, providing the clans with entertainment and a rallying point behind a hero.

Recording Your Job

After you’ve chosen your job, draw another small circle on your Character Skin. Inside it, draw the pictograph indicating which job you’ve chosen. Then move one of your core stones into that circle to represent the advantage you get from your job.

Example: Denis envisions his character as a kind of

grim, lone wolf. He chooses the Hunter profession, drawing a circle with the Hunter’s paw-print symbol on his Character Skin and moving one of his core stones into it, leaving him with four core stones.

2.6 Select Your Character’s Perk

Agile

Stones of this perk yield a positive modifier on any Challenge involving balance and full-body coordination

Alert

The character is especially sensitive to small details, subtle changes, and innocuous-seeming events. Stones of this perk yield a positive modifier to resist stealth, avoid blundering into poisonous plants, and so on.

Artistic

The character has notable artistic talent, expressing themselves artistically though whatever medium their job and their tribe’s technology will allow. Stones of this perk yield a positive modifier on any such Challenges.

Attractive

The character is physically appealing, especially to other members of the same breed. Stones of this perk yield a positive modifier on relevant Challenges related to physical appearance.

Bare-Hand Fighter

The character is skilled in unarmed melee fighting, and suffers no penalty when fighting in melee without a melee weapon.

Charismatic

Stones of this perk yield a positive modifier on any Challenge involving persuasion and making friends.

Climbing

The character is especially adept at finding and exploiting handholds in steep surfaces. Stones of this perk yield a positive modifier on climbing Challenges.

Deceptive

The character is adept at lying and trickery. Stones of this perk yield a positive modifier on such Challenges.

Dexterous

Stones of this perk give the character a positive modifier on any Challenge involving manual dexterity and hand-eye coordination.

Fast

The character can move an extra ½ hand-span in both of their movement modes (so, a fast Yorwa would move 1 ½ running and 1 swimming, while a fast Maheechee would move 1 ½ swinging and 1 running). This perk may only be taken once.

Healthy

Stones of this perk yield a positive modifier on any Challenge involving physical endurance, healing, and resistance to or recovery from illness.

Intelligent

The character is good at problem-solving, and the comprehension of complex ideas. Stones of this perk yield a positive modifier on any such Challenges.

Keen-Eared

Stones of this perk yield a positive modifier on Challenges to detect and interpret subtle characteristics of sounds.

Keen-Eyed

Stones of this perk yield a positive modifier on Challenges to perceive and visually analyze small or distant details.

Mimicry

The character is skilled at mimicking animal calls, human voices, and other sounds. Stones of this perk yield a positive modifier on any such Challenges.

Protective

Stones of this perk yield a positive modifier in any Challenge upon whose success the immediate safety of the character’s family or friends depends.

Sleight of Hand

The character is adept at moving small objects around without anyone else noticing. Stones of this perk yield a positive modifier on any such Challenges.

Spirit Lore

Stones of Spirit Lore establish a rapport between the character and the chosen Spirit, and represent the character’s understanding of that Spirit’s domain. Spirit Lore stones thus represent both practical knowledge, inventing ability, and (in campaigns where magic exists) the ability to coax the Spirits into producing magical effects.

Stones of this perk give the character a positive modifier on any Challenge involving knowledge of the Spirit’s area of influence.

Example: Gúg has 2 stones of Fire Spirit Lore. He may

add those stones to help answer questions about what will burn, how long it will burn, and so on. In Spirit Magic, Spirit Lore stones are used in place of the character’s core stones.

The breed descriptions (see 9.0) list the Spirits to which each breed is most closely attuned. Characters are free to acquire the Lore of any Spirit, however, and so here is a list of the Cavemaster world’s predominant Spirits. Pick one of the following (or you may make up a new one, if the CM approves it):

The Major Spirits

Amadou Fungus Ice Aurochs Lava Birch Tree Lion Cattail Plant Mammoth

Cave Monkey

Cave Bear Oak Tree Cedar Tree Peach Palm Chaga Fungus Purple Milkweed Crocodile Rabbit

Curare Vine River Dire Wolf Saber Tooth Disease Seal

Fire Shadow

Flint Stone Steppe Bison Giant Sloth Turnip

Goose Whale

Horse Willow Tree

Characters may learn additional types of Spirit Lore by assigning earned experience stones to different Spirits.

Stealthy

The character gets a bonus on Challenges to Move or Act without being detected.

Strong

The character gets a bonus on any task involving lifting, pushing, or other feats of physical strength. Each stone that a character has in this perk adds +1 to any damage they deal in melee combat. It doesn't add a bonus to the Combat Challenge itself, however.

Versatile

Wise

Stones of this perk yield a positive modifier on Challenges that require an understanding of odds and long-term risk.

2.7 Creating New Perks

The CM can create additional perks as needed, or by player request, following these examples. Perks must always be traits or abilities that a character might reasonably suffer a reduction in as a result of injury.

2.8 Record Your Perk

After you’ve chosen your perk, draw another small circle on your Character Skin. Inside it, draw a pictograph for the perk you’ve chosen. Just make up something that will help you remember, or write the name of the perk if you can’t think of anything. Then move one of your core stones into that circle to represent the 1-point advantage you get from your perk.

Note: Skip this step if you’ve chosen the ‘Versatile’ perk. Versatile characters do not draw a circle for that perk, or move any of their core stones into it.

Example: Denis thinks the “Alert” perk would suit his

character perfectly. So he makes yet another circle on his Character Skin, drawing a pair of eyes (for “Alert”) in that circle, and he moves another one of his core stones into it. He now has 3 core stones left.

2.9 Name Your Character

Draw a pictograph, somewhere on your Character Skin, indicating what your character is called. You may write the name out if you don’t want to draw it. See 9.0 for notes on the naming conventions of the four character breeds.

Example: Denis names his Tanui character “Maru”. It

ends in a vowel, as Tanui names are supposed to, and he likes the sound of it.

2.10 Record Your Stones

Once you’ve selected your breed, job, and perk, draw one little line radiating from each of the circles you’ve drawn on your Character Skin, for each stone you have in that circle. If your stones ever get moved, these lines will remind you how many stones you’re supposed to have in each circle.

2.11 Choose Your Character’s

Stuff

By default, characters are assumed to possess all of the standard equipment that goes with their job, within the limits of the technological knowledge of their breed. For example, a Maheechee Hunter may start the game with a blowgun or a sling for his missile weapon, because it’s known to his people, but not with a spear-thrower because that weapon is unknown to the Maheechee (see 9.1). You don’t have to indicate any of these things on your Character Skin; they are assumed. When in doubt about whether your character has a particular item, ask the CM.

The CM may assign characters a -1 modifier if they lack the proper equipment for a task, or even disallow characters from attempting certain actions if their lack of equipment renders the task impossible. For example, unarmed characters suffer a modifier of -1 in melee combat (unless they have the ‘Bare-Hand Fighter’ perk), and they cannot make Missile attacks at all.

Every character gets one elective item in addition to their default equipment. Choose from the following lists, or make up new types of Stuff. The CM’s approval must be obtained for any new Stuff:

2.11.1 Apparel

Adornment

This is a piece of jewelry which makes the character more appealing. This works like 1 stone of the Charismatic perk at the CM’s discretion.

Fish Skin Jacket

Light and waterproof, the skins of the toughest oldest fish (salmon is a typical choice) can be sewn with sinew into pale translucent windbreakers with hoods and comfortable trousers. If it is cold, one solution is to stuff the jacket with grass. Sleeves can be gathered to keep out rain. The finished garments do smell faintly of fish. They usually have a striped appearance, the patterns of light and dark on the fish still visible. Kept in good repair, a fish skin jacket will last ten years.

Footgear

Heavy footwear that protects the character’s feet. This provides Toughness 1 (see 10.0) against damage to the character’s feet at the CM’s discretion.

Headdress

This is a fancy garment worn on the head which makes the character more impressive. This works like 1 stone of the Charismatic perk at the CM’s discretion.

Sleeping Cloak

This garment provides protection from the cold and rain, and can also serve as bedding. This works like 1 stone of the Healthy perk at the CM’s discretion.

2.11.2 Boat

The earliest clear evidence of ocean-traveling boats are reed bundle boats sealed with bitumen in Kuwait, around 7000 BCE. Paddles were standard; the earliest known depictions of sails are from much later (around 3200 BCE). Boats travel at a rate of 1 ½ spans (1 span when fighting against a current, 2 spans when travelling with a current).

Bark Canoe

This is a very light-weight watercraft. It is made by felling a birch tree, and removing a long piece of bark. Wood splints are sewn along the edges to keep the sides rigid. Any gaps or holes are sealed with pitch or molten tar. Bark canoes can carry up to 12 people, depending on size.

Log Boat

By 10,000 years ago the dugout or log boat is already a very ancient technology. Its advantage is that it can be made with relatively little previous experience. The disadvantage is that it is heavy compared to a skin or bark boat. To make a dugout, a tree is chopped down. Wooden wedges are forced into the log. Water is poured on the wedges so they expand. More wedges are forced in, until the lot splits. A groove is cut down the middle and filled with grease, which is then set on fire. The ends of the log are kept wet to keep them from burning. The fire is halted when the middle becomes hollow enough. The inside and outside are chiseled to get the desired shape. Passenger capacity is limited by the size of the original tree, and since the last Ice Age is just now subsiding, really large trees are hard to come by. A reasonable maximum size is around 10 people.

Skin Boat

A skin boat is the hide of one large animal sewn with sinew over a frame made of wood, such as willow, and waterproofed with grease. It is shaped like a round-cornered rectangle. A small skin boat can be made from one buffalo hide. The Eskimo culture people make long skin boats out of two walrus hides that can carry 25 people and up to 5 tons of cargo. The hides weigh 500 pounds each. The boat works better if the hair is left on: it stays watertight longer,

and it helps with the water flow. After being brought onto land, a skin boat can be turned over and used as a shelter for the night.

2.11.3 Companion

Animal

The character has an animal companion. The character’s player controls the animal’s actions. The animal has 2 fewer stones than the character does, so for example in a campaign where characters start with 6 stones, their animal companions start with only 4.

Select the animal from section 10.0. You may choose any animal whose core stones plus ability stones matches the allowed number. You may add 1 stone to a weaker creature (making it an especially powerful specimen), or take 1 core stone away from a more powerful creature (making it ‘young’, ‘crippled’, etc.) to make it fit the allowed number

Helper

The character has a young, inexperienced, or otherwise weak assistant. Build the Helper the same way as the main character, but the helper starts with 2 fewer stones.

2.11.4 Materials

Amber

Amber is actually petrified tree sap. Sometimes insects and other tiny creatures may be found entombed within it. It may be found washed up on beaches. The lumps range from reddish to orange to golden, and can be transparent, milky-translucent, or opaque. Amber is prized because it is rare, pretty, and can be carved with flint. When

burned, amber gives off a sweet piney scent, so it is also used as incense. Sometimes amber is carved into ornaments or effigies.

This material has the odd property of attracting certain types of dust. It makes fine fur stand on end. After being rubbed with hair, it is “charged” and can give off a spark, visible in the dark.

Because of this, supernatural properties may be attributed to it. Amber is sometimes thought of as the "sister" of Jet. (see below).

Bast Fiber

Bast fibers are fine strands found inside stems or bark. Flax and hemp are two examples that are still used today. They are generally acquired by smashing the plant material with a long flat weight. Once separated, they can be twisted together to make cordage, or, if fine enough, spun into thread or yarn. Here are a few of the more famous plants that supply bast fiber. Interestingly, they all have other uses:

Flax is the durable fiber found within the long stems

of a plant with pretty little blue flowers. Flax seeds are edible but faintly bitter. Once called “linn”, this plant is also the source of edible nutritious linseed oil. Flax seeds produce tasty spicy sprouts. Dyed flax fibers that date to 30,000 BCE were found in a prehistoric cave in the Republic of Georgia.

Willow Tree Bark provides cordage fiber to make

fairly strong string. Willow bark is also used as an analgesic tea.

Purple Milkweed (also called heartleaf) produces

tough string and cordage. Other kinds of milkweed have bast fiber of differing strengths. Purple milkweed is used as a contraceptive and an abortifacient.

Linden. The inner bark of the tree produces durable

fiber that softens with use. In spring, the sweet sap can be tapped for use as syrup. The fragrant flowers are used in herbal teas. The young leaves are eaten in salads. Also known as basswood or European lime, linden splints are prized in basketry.

Stinging Nettle fiber is hollow, making it especially

valuable for clothing: when wetted, it does not lose all of its insulating properties. It keeps the wearer cooler in hot weather, warmer in cold. Nettle is also used as an herbal medicine. Carefully prepared young nettle shoots are edible and nutritious.

Yucca, Lechuguilla, and Agave plants in the arid

American Southwest all provide valuable nourishment, as well as tough useful fiber. The middle of lechuguilla and agave contain sugar and starch. They must be cooked for hours to be edible.

Chert & Flint

Chert is a stone found as nodules in soft chalky rock, often in river beds. Flint is a shinier variety of chert. It begins as a pile of glass-containing diatom shells settling on the floor of a lake or ocean. Over time, the pressure of material accumulated above it compresses it.

Chert is important as a source of sparks, for making fires (see Percussion Fire Set in 2.11.7). It can also be knapped (worked and shaped) with tools to make sharp implements, from simple flakes to sophisticated double-edged blades. Some Paleolithic people discovered “heat tempering”: the practice of baking flint nodules to improve its durability. Lumps of chert may contain pockets of gas, which can cause unpredictable explosions. Stones to be treated are placed underneath a bonfire, to reduce the risk of bystanders being hit by flying shards, and gathered out of the ashes later when they have cooled.

Flash Powder

This fine dry yellow powder is very flammable but only produces relatively cold sparks. When it is cast into flames at night, it bursts with a brilliant whitish blaze that fades harmlessly. It can be packed into a small tube, which a shaman blows through, past a twig holding a tiny flame - resulting in a great “fire-breathing” special effect. Flash powder is non-toxic, and has no appreciable taste. It can improve the performance of tinder but is no substitute for tinder fungus.

The source of this stuff is kept a closely-guarded secret by those who use it. It actually comes from club moss, ‘lycopodium’. The pods are picked and allowed to dry. Within a week, they pop open to release the dusty particles.

Incidentally, this substance was known as “Vegetable Sulfur” in the 1800's. It was used by photographers, who set off small explosions of flash powder with magnesium to produce light. Magicians still employ this effect today; it is sold as "Dragon's Breath".

Forage

Foraged food can take many forms, from edible leaves and grasses to nuts, fruit, and even grubs – pretty much anything edible excluding meat taken from hunted creatures.

A character that begins the game with foraged food as their special Stuff has enough to feed 1 person for 3 days, and it is carefully preserved so it won’t go bad. A backup supply of preserved forage can be very useful! Once the character’s starting food has been eaten, it must be replenished by foraging.

PCs who wish to forage face a Challenge representing the rarity of food in the vicinity. Under normal conditions, difficulty is 3 (2,1) In times of abundance, difficulty drops to 2 (1,1). In lean times, difficulty rises to 4 (3,1), or as high as 8 (5,3) in a desert or arctic region. Repeatedly foraging in the same area, especially by multiple foragers at the same time, can also raise the difficulty of later attempts in that area. Gatherers add their job stone(s) as a modifier. For each point of success, the forager finds enough food to keep 1 person fully fed for 1 day.

Foraged food is typically prepared back at the village or camp. The process takes a few hours per person/day of food (1 person/day can be prepared at the evening’s camp, for example, or 3/person/days per full day of work). In general, foraged food does not spoil as long as it is properly prepared (by grinding, drying, etc. - the means of preparation depends on the type of food).

Both to make them easier to transport and to keep them fresh, various fruits and vegetables are dried. Nuts are often shelled and then dried.

Roots such as prairie turnip and camas have to be cooked, smashed, and dried to a sort of "flour" that is later made into cakes with water and cooked. After the various forms of drying, the second most important way to preserve foraged food is "sours", that is, lacto-fermentation of vegetables. Bacteria produce lactic acid until they must go dormant. This acid is both a preservative and a nutrient. Although their taste for it may vary, all humans can thrive on it. Basically, a gallon-sized hole is dug and a very hot fire built within to harden its sides. Uncooked vegetable material is chopped up and buried with a little from the last batch. Water is added. This keeps the vegetables edible for months. A few of these ancient foods have survived to today,

including sauerkraut, kim chi, and non-vinegar kosher dill pickles.

Since a carnivore such as a proto-dog or a raccoon might develop a taste for these delicacies, herbs such as garlic are added to dissuade them. Larger creatures such as a curious cave bear are harder to stop. If they cannot be guarded, hunter-gatherers try hard to conceal the scent of the caches they leave behind.

Some tribes make wine: the fermented juice of sweet fruits. It may be taboo to drink this, or it might be an accepted regular event, but the stinky liquid vinegar (acetic acid) is valuable as a food preservative. Though hard on the liver like alcohol, vinegar is also nutritious.

Prehistoric methods for carrying liquids include gourds and bamboo tubes. They are usually plugged with stoppers of wood. Since these are not water-tight, the materials they contain must be used fairly soon or they will eventually dry up.

Game is not often encountered by the roving migrating clan. In general, humans are far too smelly to surprise anything. Because many of the ancient foods are pungent, hunters abstain from eating certain things for three days before a hunt.

Glue (also Varnish)

Different ingredients are used to make glue in different parts of the world. The process is usually time-consuming, and requires a fire. The two main categories are resin glues and animal glues. Both can be stored in a dry pellet or crystal-like form. They must be heated for use.

Resin glues are made from sap tapped from plants. Brewer’s pitch is the sap of the Pitch Pine (Pinus rigida), which is a water-resistant type of wood because of its resin content. When heated, it melts and can be spread around as a varnish. It was used to coat the insides of wooden mugs up until Civil War times in America.

“Animal glues” refer to preparations using various animal parts, usually connective tissues, to extract collagen and other proteins. Bone glue was made by boiling animal bones and teeth. Sinew and hide could be made into glue. Antler and horn were also sources of glue. Parts of cattle, horses, rabbits, and fish were known to be used. Sturgeon’s bladder glue was used in Asia by bowyers to make an especially strong bond.

The Rogók mix glue with pigments to make moisture-resistant paint.

Obsidian

Obsidian is natural volcanic glass. Like chert, it can be knapped into points, blades, and so on. It is generally more fragile than chert, but can also be much sharper. Unlike chert, it does not make a spark. Items made of obsidian can be very shiny and even transparent. Sometimes the material comes in a striking color. This can make it especially pretty and appealing. Sometimes obsidian is used as material for sculpture. Worked patiently with abrasives, it takes on a gleaming luster.

Ochre

This is pigment made from ground stone. In its natural form, ochre is yellow or orange. It is valued as a pigment because it is non-toxic. It can safely be taken into the mouth and spat out, or used for body-paint. When heated, ochre turns brownish red, and is referred to as “red ochre”. It can look very much like blood when mixed with water or grease. The famous Cave of Lascaux was painted by smearing grease on the wall, then blowing powdered ochre at it. In places where art is made, stone palettes and grinding stones are sometimes found along with the crumbs and as-yet-unground stones. “The Red Lady of Paviland” is a skeleton with a thick coating of ochre found in a cave in Norfolk. Actually a man, he was buried with ivory wands, bracelets, and beautiful seashells. The ritual burial took place around 29,000 years ago.

Marcasite

This is a form of pyrite used for starting fires. It is struck against another stone, either a second piece of marcasite, or a piece of chert such as flint. The chemical composition is iron sulfide. The stone tends to have a rusty color from the iron and yellowish color from the sulfur. Like chert, marcasite is often found with softer stone where there are fossils, such as limestone. The shimmer seen on its surface is sometimes called Fool’s Gold but large crystals, such as the pyrite found as a display piece for a collection at a rock shop, do not work well for starting fires.

Meat

Meat is an important source of food for the clan. A character who begins the game with meat has enough to feed 1 person for 3 days, and it is carefully preserved meat so it won’t go bad under normal circumstances. A backup supply of preserved meat can be a real life-saver!

Butchering a creature for its meat takes about 1 hour per stone of the creature’s size – less if the work is done by skilled hunters with the appropriate equipment, more if the task is undertaken by amateurs with improper tools.

While the characters butcher their kill, other creatures may appear to try and take possession of it. Unpreserved meat is a beacon for deadly predators who, although hunters in their own right, also get a lot of their food by scavenging; stealing the kills of other creatures. Completing the work without attracting the attention of hostile scavengers or carnivores requires a successful Challenge against a difficulty equal to the slain creature’s size, adjusting that number upward if the characters intend to butcher more than one of the slain creatures (see below). As stated previously, a creature’s size rating is the same as its core stones, except for humans who are always size 5.

Creatures Butchered Butchering Difficulty

2-3 +1

4-7 +2

8-15 +3

etc. +1 more

Example: A hunting party of Maheechee has slain 9

armadillos (Size 2), but they decide that they only need to butcher 6 of them. The butchering difficulty, to finish the work without attracting other hostile creatures, is 2 + 2 = 4.

On a successful Challenge, the butchering is completed without attracting any nearby predators or scavengers. A failure or tie attracts some creatures. To determine the strength of these creatures, take the size of the slain creatures and then adjust this number upward if more than one of them is butchered:

Creatures Butchered Scavenger Strength

2-3 +1

4-7 +2

8-15 +3

etc. +1 more

If the butchering challenge is a tie, subtract one from the attracted creatures’ strength. If the challenge is an outright failure, add one.

Example: Continuing the previous example, our

Maheechee hunters are butchering 6 armadillos (Size 2), and the butchering challenge fails. The strength of the attracted scavenger(s) is 2 + 2 +1 = 5.

It is up to the CM to decide what type of scavenger or predator is attracted to the scene. It cannot be larger than the calculated strength. If it is smaller, the number of attracted creatures must be increased to raise their overall strength. This option is only open for scavengers and carnivores that travel in packs, of course:

Creatures Attracted Scavenger Strength

2-3 +1

4-7 +2

8-15 +3

etc. +1 more

Example: Continuing from the previous example,

the CM decides that our Maheechee have attracted the attention of some jackals (Size 3). In order to raise the strength of these hostile animals to the necessary 5, the CM decides to make 6 of them appear.

Hunters may prefer to take their kill to the side of a flowing body of water (if available) so that gore, blood, and guts can be rinsed away as fast as possible - resulting in a +1 modifier on the butchering Challenge. A character can carry one creature of their own size for short distances, or a creature below their own size for long distances. Tripling the number of carriers allows a creature 1 size larger to be carried. Any creature that is too large to carry must be butchered wherever it was killed.

Butchering a creature yields enough meat to provide N days worth of food for N people, where N represents the creature’s size. A size 7 creature provides 7 days worth of food for 7 people (a total of 49 days), for example.

A character can carry three days worth of food at a time.

In winter, meat will stay good for months (just as if it were kept in a freezer). It can be buried in snow and chiseled out later. In warmer weather, it is only good for three days.

This time can be extended by drying the meat. In winter, this can be done just by cutting it into thin pieces and hanging it. Smoking meat speeds this up and seals it with chemicals from wood resin that are anti-bacterial.

As an aid to drying meat, lactic acid, acetic acid, and sour fruit juices are used. Without these or salt, meat hung up to dry in warm weather will just rot.

With sufficient vinegar or lacto-ferment "liquor", meat can also be pickled. Incidentally, these techniques survive as the traditional German dish Eisbein (leg of pig in vinegar) and fish preserved in kim chi.

Processing meat by drying and smoking takes seven days. During this time, wood must be gathered to keep the fire going. It is a vulnerable time: other humans are well aware of what a barbecue-scented smoke plume means. Unsalted meat, especially if smoked, will keep for six months (longer if somehow frozen).

Example: A 6-man hunting party has taken down a

black bear (5 core stones). The party’s lead hunter, Lilani (Core 5, Hunter 1) takes charge of the butchering, and decides to do it on the spot - aided by some of her companions (+1 bonus). Lilani gets 4 stones (including her bonuses). The CM also gets 4. It’s a tie, so the party winds up having to fight off a minor group of scavenging creatures. If they succeed in driving off the scavengers, the party salvages 25 days worth of meat. 6 characters worth of meat can be eaten on the spot, leaving 19 to be distributed among the party. The party of six people eats 6 meals per day, so after three days only one more day’s worth of meat is left – and it is spoiled, unless it’s winter-time, or unless the party has taken steps to preserve it.

Salt

All four human breeds prize salt greatly, and know how to use it to preserve food. Salt is one of the few food items that can’t be found by foraging. There are two types of salt, and they can only be acquired in two places.

Powdery crystals of orange salt grow on the edge of the very salty Orange Lake. A disposable broom made of straw is used to gather these crystals up. A bit of harmless clay dust comes with it, and nobody seems to mind. It takes one person a day to gather up enough orange salt to field-cure one person/day worth of meat (about ½ pound of salt per person per week). This is typically an activity that the whole clan performs together.

Grey salt comes from natural evaporation ponds that form on the tidal flats along the shore of the eastern sea (itself a 3% salt solution). The Tanui scoop seawater from the lowest ponds and carry it up to the highest ones. In late fall the highest ponds dry out - allowing the salt to be gathered. One person working for a month can gather up enough grey salt to field-cure two person/weeks worth of meat (about 1 pound of salt per person per month).

To field-cure meat, the meat and salt are packed into a makeshift bag which is sewn from the animal's skin. The meat is then dried as soon as a defensible place is found. If not dried within a few hours, it will go bad.

Given sufficient water-proof containers, meat can be ‘wet-cured’, that is, soaked in brine of at least 10% salt. This process only uses half as much salt as field-curing. After about 5 weeks in this solution, the meat is hung to dry. Possible containers include shaped and salted rawhide, folded and sewn birch bark, and carved wooden bowls. Salted meat is called "junk" (the origin of the modern phrase "junk food"). Salted rawhide containers (known as "brawn") are, themselves, edible.

The people at this time do not have air-proof containers, and so preserved meat eventually becomes rancid if it still has fat in it. Part of the purpose of smoking meat is to heat it until the grease drip out.

Unless it is cooked, rehydrated meat is very chewy. It is eaten by gnawing off small bits over several hours. Eating salt interferes with how minerals and other nutrients in the body are handled, and also makes the consumer very thirsty – requiring more visits to the latrine than usual. To avoid this, salted meat is normally soaked in fresh, clean water for an hour before eating.

A hide can also be salted, to preserve it so that it can be cleaned and tanned later. This requires 14 times as much salt as is needed to field-cure one person/day of meat (about one pound) per core Stone the creature had.

NOTE: In the real world, salt was such a boon that it was often regarded as sacred. It was not acquired by mining until around 6000 years ago, when bronze tools made hacking at rock viable. The oldest known salt mine is the Araxes Valley in Azerbaijan. Modern curing uses "Prague salt", a mix of salt and sodium nitrite. Nitrite imparts the appealing pink-red color that we associate today with bacon, sausage, and ham. Prague salt was traditionally colored pink to keep it from being confused with regular salt. Curing meats with nitrates and nitrites was done as far back as 5000 years ago but the process was only precisely defined in the 1800's.

When you read on the Internet that one pound of salt is enough for one hundred pounds of meat, they are talking about a "cure" of Prague salt.

Sinew

These whitish strands are found alongside bone in an animal carcass. Sinew can be carefully split to make thinner strands. It is very light-weight for its strength. Hunters attach arrow and dart points to their weapons using sinew and glue. Crafters use it to sew seams. When thin flat pieces of sinew are attached to a bow using bone or antler glue, the bow is made significantly stronger.

Tinder Fungus

Sparks made by striking stones and/or iron are unlikely to ignite what they land on because they are relatively cold. Unlike other materials, tinder fungus catches fire extremely easily, turning the spark into an ember (also called a "coal" or "cherry") which can be grown by blowing on it. The ember is very hot yet the fungus burns very slowly. It is used to ignite fine scraps of grass and wood shavings. Without tinder fungus, fire-starting takes much longer.

Not only is tinder fungus a key fire-starting component of the stone age fire kit, it also has medicinal uses. It is used to treat wounds. It stops bleeding (is a styptic), and has strong antiviral and antifungal properties. It can be made into a tea and ingested.

Tinder fungi are bracket or "shelf" fungi. They are called "polypores" because of the little holes in their underside. There are two kinds found in the lands of Cavemaster: amadou and chaga. Other sorts of bracket fungi can make hot slow-burning fuel for a fire but will not catch and change a spark to an ember. They do, however, make good wicks when used with fat to make a lamp (a classic Rogók use). Amadou is a gray soft dry felt or bark-like material. It is acquired from a layer of a bracket fungus known as horse’s hoof (Fomes fomentarius) which grows on the sides of trees, particularly birch, willow, and alder. It can also be used to make a felt-like fabric. (In Romania they still make hats out of it.)

Chaga (Inonotus obliquus) is a rare fungus found on living birches. It grows in a blackened knot, called a "conk". Like amadou, it is pounded into fibrous chunks or powder. Tea made from chaga is pleasant-tasting and used as medicine. Like the more common amadou, it can also be applied directly to wounds.

Jet

Thought of as a stone, jet is actually fossilized wood (specifically lignite, a form of coal). Jet can be carved and polished into bracelets, pendants, and so forth. These are appealing but fairly fragile. Unlike flint and other stones, it tends to be warm to the touch. If rubbed, jet can give off a spark, like amber. Because of this, supernatural properties may be attributed to it. Jet is sometimes thought of as the "sister" of the material amber (see the entry on amber, above).

2.11.5 Secret Place

The character knows of a special location that yields some advantage. Examples: fruit grove, secret cave, watery grotto, etc. The CM’s approval must be obtained for any Secret Place.

2.11.6 Status

The character is related to an influential member of their clan or their tribe, or holds a privileged position within their clan or tribe for whatever reason. The CM may award a +1 modifier on any tasks involving NPCs (non-player characters) whose reaction might be swayed by the character’s status. Not all possible permutations of Status are appropriate for all tribes. The CM’s approval must be obtained for any Status.

2.11.7 Tool

Billet

This is a stone or piece of antler that is required for flint knapping.

Bone Needle & Sinew

This item is required for leather crafting and repair.

Bow Drill

This tool consists of a small bow, a stick, and a cap rock (or piece of wood). The bow is moved with a sawing motion, which spins the stick. If used with a board (the hearth) it can be used to make an

ember for starting a fire. If used with a flint-tipped stick, it can function as a drill to make holes in wood, shell, bone, and other materials.

Bowl

This item, or something like it, is useful for all tasks involving storage or transportation of liquids or lots of little items. Made of bone, gourd, stone, or wicker (though wicker ones are not too good at storing liquids).

Cutter

This common everyday tool is required for cutting leather, wood, plant fibers, and so on.

Fire-Sticks

This is a specialized tool used in fire-making. It grants a +1 modifier on attempts to light a fire, but only when used by characters who have ‘Make Fire’ as part of their job (and it’s not something they get for free from their job).

Fish Trap

This is a basket used to catch fish. Wicker is woven into a cylinder with one open end. A wicker funnel with a slightly flexible spout is tied on with a strip of hide. The funnel’s point goes inwards, not outwards. The trap is weighted with stones to keep it in place, possibly with some sort of bait inside. To get the fish out, the hide strip is untied and the funnel removed.

Hand Drill Fire Set

This tool consists of a long thin straight stick with a point (the "drill") and a small flat piece of wood (the "hearth") with divots. The point of the thin stick is set in the divot. The fire-maker rubs the stick between two hands, maintaining pressure downwards by rubbing towards the hearth. The long stick is held, briefly, either with mouth or feet as the fire-maker rapidly repositions their hands at the top and does it again. A small notch near the edge makes it more convenient to dump the ember from the hearth board onto some tinder. This tool takes longer to start a fire than the Percussion Fire Set, but it has the advantage of not using up any tinder fungus, a rare material with other important uses.

Grinder

This sort of rock is required for mashing roots for food, leaves for medicine, or for grinding various materials to make pigments. Grinders are relatively easy to find.

Mattock

This is a chunk of antler about as long as your hand. One end is blunt, and the other has a chisel-like flat tip. Around the center is a hole through which a handle can be inserted, either permanently or temporarily. It has many uses. It can dig up edible roots. It can shell nuts. Used with a sliver of bone, it is a hammer for leatherworking. It can be used for light woodworking. The hole is useful for the chore of heat-straightening wood for arrows or darts.

Medicine Bag

This is a small pouch containing medicinal herbs, primarily tinder fungus. Medical attention cannot be administered without these herbs. The contents are good for three applications, and then they must be replenished by a successful gathering Challenge (difficulty 6).

Neck Bag

This is a little pouch on a neck cord. A bead, of carven bone perhaps, can hold it closed. It is used to hold small items such as tinder and flint, a fishhook, a favorite rock, and so on.

Percussion Fire Set

This tool usually consists of a piece of marcasite, a piece of flint, and some tinder fungus. The fungus is smashed to a flat little felt-like pad and held beneath the marcasite in the off hand, atop the thumb. The flint is struck against the marcasite so that a spark lands on the tinder fungus. This is generally done in dim light; sparks can be difficult to see by day. On their own, marcasite sparks are not that hot, so trying to start a fire without tinder fungus is more difficult.

Pigments

Pre-made powders wrapped in leaves. Grease or sap must be added to ready them for use. Pigments are required for painting on cave walls, for dying garments, or for personal or ritual adornment. With a successful artistic Challenge (difficulty 6), a paint-adorned character gains a temporary +1 modifier on attempts to impress others, or a camouflaged character gains a temporary +1 modifier on attempts to sneak. The contents are good for three projects, and then must be replenished by a successful gathering Challenge (difficulty 5).

Pot Stone

This is a large nodule of flint that formed around a lump of chalk which has since worn away. The result is a natural stone bowl (perhaps 20 inches across). It is far too large to carry around casually. Pot stones are used for cooking by putting heated rocks in with the ingredients. The winter camp of the Tanui includes several big pot stones in the great hall. Pot Stones were found mainly in parts of north-west