Attributes
Preview
Ohe
T nHOld School Job
acking
By Philippe-Antoine Ménard
This is a preview of The Old School Job section
of the Cortex Plus Hacker’s Guide. As a
preview, the text and layout is not necessarily
final, and this is only the first part of the article
covering character creation and rules to handle
treasure. The final Hacker’s Guide will have
more sections fleshing the hack out into a more
complete game.
A dungeon crawl is just a
badly planned heist.
The essence of classic fantasy RPGs is easy to
summarize: A band of heroes explores dank
dungeons for unknown riches and strange
secrets. They get in over their heads and
often overcome staggering odds with creative
guile rather than brawn (though there’s often
fighting, too). The Old School Job takes a shot
at re-imagining the fantasy adventure games
of the late 70’s in the context of Cortex Plus
Action.
Pick up your battle axe and don’t forget
your backpack. The way is dangerous and
arduous. Be ready for traps, villains, minions
and riches—lots of riches. And be sure to
keep your eyes on that Scoundrel.
Hit designed by Ezra Keddell from the Noun Project
Your characters’ attributes are the same as
those presented on page 31 of the Leverage
Roleplaying Game book. They also retain
their dual physical and social components;
you just need to transpose them to the classic
fantasy genre.
Strength is physical brawn. It’s what you
use to lift, bend or break objects. It is also
how you intimidate others through sheer
bulk and menace.
The Old School Job
Intelligence is acquired knowledge
(recalling mundane or arcane facts). It
encompasses the ability to decipher strange
tomes, magical runes or demonic script, and
impress people with your acute powers of
deduction.
Willpower helps break mind-numbing
enchantments, overcome pain, and plough
through mental and physical hardships. It
covers divine guidance, spiritual discipline,
and just plain grit.
Alertness is what spots the hidden,
hears the silent, and pierces the falseness of
disguise and illusionary magic.
Agility is dodging away from traps, hitting
targets with thrown weapons, climbing
5
Preview
whatever will hold your hero, and the mental
dexterity to find a witty retort while facing
dire threats.
Vitality is withstanding the most hor­
rendous of physical ordeals while keeping a
positive outlook about making it out of the
dungeon alive. Chipper holy warriors and
bards have way too much of it.
Roles
A classic dungeon crawling party calls for
classic Roles. Similar to Leverage, Roles are
The Old School Job
used when the character makes an Action or
reaction that is thematically related to a Role.
Each character begins with a D10, D8, D6, and
D4 to distribute among the four Roles. When
using a D10 or D8 Role, the character can split
the dice up into smaller dice, so a D10 can be
split into 2D8 or 3D6, and a D8 can be split
into 2D6.
Holy One
This covers all sorts of divinely inspired
heroes. They provide protection, succor,
divine wrath, and healing. There may be
the occasional side of preaching involved,
but that usually falls on deaf ears. But then,
there’s always hope for the unbelievers.
Warrior
There’s nothing complicated about this one.
If something can be used to trash monsters
with, they are proficient at it.
Mage
Discarding the local laws of reality while
digging up the secrets of the multiverse is
what MAGES really want. Putting up with
whining, brutish, or disloyal allies to achieve
such goals is what they must settle for. Still,
nothing warms their hearts more than an
occasional exploding ball of fire engulfing
sources of annoying delays.
Scoundrel
People keep forgetting that the life of
a SCOUNDREL is much more than picking
pockets and skimming on everyone else’s
part of the treasure. It’s also about not getting
6
caught doing it, hence all the stealth training.
If caught, well, that’s what backstabbing and
fast-talking is all about, right?
Specialties and Distinctions
Cortex Plus Action makes it dead simple to
bring your hero to life with just a few short
sentences. Specialties represent unique sets
of skills that add depth to your hero’s Roles.
Choose two Specialties under two different
Roles to add an extra D8 when taking an
Action using that Specialty.
Specialty examples: Trap Springer, Sword
and Board, Swashbuckler, Acrobat, Adept of
the Fire Fist, Undead Hunter, Dragon Slayer,
Demonologist, Necromancer, Elementalist,
Illusion Master, Shadow Walker, Diviner,
Healer, Enchanter, Holy Adept of the Seven
Swords.
Distinctions can cover your hero’s race,
culture, supernatural abilities, unique gear,
and countless other genre-specific tropes
whose duality can impact play in wildly
different ways.
Distinction examples: DWARF, WOOD
ELF, L AST HALFING OF THE PROUDFEET
TR I BE , A M A Z ON, B A R B A R I A N, NOBLE ,
GREEDY, INFRARED VISION, CURSED WITH
LYCANTHROPY, MARKED, DESTINED, BLOOD-
LUSTING, VOW OF SILENCE, SILVER-TONGUED,
HEAVILY ARMORED, LADEN WITH SCROLLS,
ATTACHED TO A CURSED SWORD, BATTLE LUST.
Talents
Nothing brings out the flavor of adventure
gaming like the unique abilities that each
major Role brings to the table. Below are
a few examples to inspire you to create
your own using the tropes and archetypes
of fantasy adventure gaming. Refer to the
guidelines presented on page 43 of the
Leverage Roleplaying Game book for more
details.
Holy One
Restorative Trance
Channeling your deity’s energy, you alleviate
weariness, heal wounds, break enchantments,
and even bring a fallen comrade back to life!
Activation: The Dungeon Fixer rolls an
Asset die related to stress, an enchantment,
or a curse against a party member you are in
visual contact with. Spend at least one Plot
Point to activate this talent.
Effect: You reduce that Asset by one die
rating per Plot Point spent. Any Asset reduced
to D4 is removed.
I Banish Thee, Foul Spawn!
You may not wield a battleaxe the size of an
ox, but with a short prayer and a disapproving
gaze, you can turn the undead to cinders
and send all types of demons back to the
netherworld from whence they came.
Activation: Whenever you take an Action
against the undead or any type of summoned
creatures (Fixer’s call).
Effect: Add an extra D8 and add three dice to
determine results. If you spend a Plot Point,
you get a D12 instead.
Scrapper
Five vs. Little Old Me? That’s Hardly
Fair for You, Now Is It?
There’s nothing like a good scuffle against
more numerous opponents to get your blood
pumping as you gleefully forgo defense for
some pure, undiluted mayhem.
Activation: You’re engaged in a Fight Action
and you are outnumbered.
Effect: You can remove dice the Dungeon
Fixer gains from outnumbering you. For each
die removed, you roll an extra D4.
Minion Slice and Dicer
In a frenzy of blades and screams, you make
quick work of those seemingly endless minions
pestering you, scattering them to the four
winds.
Preview
Activation: W henever you perform a
successful Action against Minions (See
Dungeon Fixer’s Guide).
Effect: You reduce the Minions by one die for
free. Additionally, you may spend Plot Points
to remove one additional die per point spent.
Mage
Reality Is for Those Who Can’t
Bend the Rules
There is nothing wrong with reaching your
goal faster by ripping just a tiny hole in reality.
The Old School Job
Activation: MAGE is one of the dice in your
roll.
Effect: Add an additional INTELLIGENCE dice
to your roll; however, you also must roll an
additional D4.
Arbitrary Blast of Elemental Energy
Any Mage worth her salt has studied the
classics, from missiles made of pure eldritch
energy, explosive spheres of incandescent light,
and arrows inexplicably made of acid.
Activation: Use in any Action where raw
elemental magic power could help solve the
problem at hand. You have to spend a Plot
Point to activate this talent.
Effect: You add your INTELLIGENCE die to the
Action and add three dice to determine the
result.
Scoundrel
It Fell in My Pouch, Honest!
Things you don’t own have a strange tendency
of falling into your possession, always
by complete accident or, on occasion, for
safekeeping.
Activation: The Scoundrel performs an
Action while there are Gold Points (see
below) in the Scene’s pool or in possession
of other players.
Effect: You take possession of a Gold Point
and generate a Treasure Asset you can use
in the Action; you can perform this only once
per Action.
7
Preview
Is It My Fault Your Back Makes Such
Great Target Practice?
When the Warrior gets excited and the Mage
starts blowing stuff up, things get confusing…
that’s when you sneak behind people and really
surprise them!
Activation: You are engaged in a Fight
Action and the Dungeon Fixer gives you an
Opportunity.
Effect: You add your AGILITY roll to your
Fight Action and add three dice to determine
the result.
The Old School Job
game sessions, a player can decide to spend
two Gold Points to create one Signature
Asset, as per the Signature Asset rules found
on Page 52 of the Leverage Roleplaying Game
book.
For example, you can create a special
piece of high quality and/or magical gear.
You should choose evocative names to make
items stand out like THE ELVEN LONGBOW OF
THE FRONTIER, HEIRLOOM KNIGHTLY PLATE
ARMOR, or THE STAFF OF DEATH RAYS, etc.

Other options are titles of nobility or status

Treasures
During a scene, whenever the Dungeon Fixer
rolls an Opportunity, a Gold Point gets added
to the Scene’s Treasure Pool. Gold Points are
undefined pieces of treasure that are shared
among heroes after the successful completion
of a Scene. Gold Points can be spent in any
Scenes to create a D6 Treasure Asset. The
player defines what form this helpful piece
of treasure takes. It remains available until
the end of the session. All Assets thus created
are labeled “Treasure” to differentiate from
other Assets.
At the end of the session, all Treasure
Assets are converted back to Gold Points,
pooled with unused ones and distributed
among players. Generous Dungeon Fixers can
award extra Gold Points for successful main
or side quests to even out shares, or maybe let
the Scoundrels propose gambling for them.
that help you grease your way out of those
dark dungeons and into the no less dangerous
crusts of upper society. Feel free to give them
pompous-sounding titles like LORD OF THE
SEVEN SHADES, ARCHDUKE OF WINTERSPAWN,
or REVERED SISTER OF THE SEVEN PAINS.
In the same vein, the wealth and influence
you gain from completing Quests could allow
you to secure a domain like a FORTRESS,
TEMPLE, GAMBLING DEN, or even a TOWER
OF MAGIC. Finally, you can get a RETINUE OF
HIRELINGS, a GROUP OF FANATICAL RETAINERS,
or even a LOYAL SQUIRE to spruce up your
heroic entourage. Discuss it with your
Dungeon Fixer.

As a variant, the Dungeon Fixer can allow

players to permanently give up a Gold Point
to create a D10 Treasure Asset that lasts
only for the current scene or combat, e.g.,
a POTION, a WAND WITH A FEW REMAINING
CHARGES, a SET OF SCROLLS.

Gear, Titles and Strongholds

Gold Points can be spent to acquire new
powers, magical items and other cool symbols
of status that populates classic fantasy
adventure games. Quests can be spent like
Jobs in the Leverage Roleplaying Game;
however, instead of spending Quests between