The Witcher at a Glance
Four ideas carry most of the game. Each part of the guide builds on them.
Beat the Number
Roll a d10, add a stat and a skill, and beat the Difficulty Check, or your opponent's roll. A tie is not enough.
Exploding Dice
Roll a 10 and you roll again and add it; roll a 1 and you roll again and take it away. Fortunes swing fast.
Lethal Combat
Armour wears down, Stamina runs out, and beating a defence by enough causes critical wounds. Preparation beats bravado.
Lesser Evils
Contracts, politics and prejudice rarely offer a clean choice. The stories are about what your character chooses anyway.
The 10 Parts
Rules first, then the tools of the trade, then running the game and playing solo. Read in order or jump to what you need.
The Rules
The Basics
What the game is, the d10 roll with exploding 10s and fumbling 1s, and life on the Continent.
Character Creation
Races, professions, the nine stats, skills and the lifepath that makes your past matter.
Sample Characters
Ninety-three ready-to-play characters on 70 stat points, from lone witchers to mercenary companies of six.
Combat
Initiative, attacks and defences, hit locations, armour, Stamina and critical wounds.
Magic
Vigor, Stamina costs, spells, signs, invocations, rituals and hexes, and the price of overreaching.
Tools of the Trade
Alchemy & Crafting
Formulae, substances, potions, oils and bombs, Toxicity, and making gear by hand.
Monster Hunting
Contracts, research, preparation and the hunt: doing the work witchers are paid for.
Run the Game
Campaign & World Building
Moral grey, factions, the Northern Kingdoms and Nilfgaard, and stories that branch.
Game Mastery
Running the table: pacing, improvisation, consequences and the lesser evil.
Playing Solo
Tools
Use these at the table.