Honor
Honor is a score from 0 to 100 representing loyalty, trustworthiness, and fairness — not alignment, fame, or goodwill. A cruel-but-stalwart warrior can have 100 honor points; a kindhearted-but-flighty noble can have 0.
Honor Points
Charisma score + character level. Adjust whenever level or Charisma permanently changes.
CR × 5. Modified by the GM based on the NPC's adherence to their code. Most NPC honor scores rarely change.
Gaining and Losing Honor
Honor changes through witnessed events. If no one outside the party sees an event and no one speaks of it, it has no effect on honor. The GM may delay changes by 1d6 days to reflect the time needed for news to travel.
A single event can trigger multiple codes simultaneously. For example, a paladin using the chivalric code who defeats a CR 11 hezrou demon (APL 8) earns +1 from the General event and +2 from the Chivalric event. The tables below are guidelines; the GM adjusts values as appropriate.
Honor Code Event Tables
Applies to most honor codes, including all specific codes below.
| Event | Honor Points |
|---|---|
| Complete a CR-appropriate Adventure Path | +10 |
| Complete a noble task for an honorable NPC (50+ honor) and tell no one | +2 |
| Roll 30+ on a Craft check to create a work of art or masterwork item 1 | +2 |
| Roll 30+ on a Diplomacy or Intimidate check 1 | +2 |
| Roll 30+ on a Perform check 1 | +2 |
| Complete a CR-appropriate adventure 2 | +1 |
| Craft a powerful magic item | +1 3 |
| Destroy an evil or dangerous magic item | +1 4 |
| Party overcomes a challenging encounter (CR 3+ higher than APL) | +1 |
| Willingly break one of the tenets of your code of honor | −2 |
| Party flees an easy combat challenge (CR lower than APL) | −3 |
| Slander a person with a higher honor score | −4 |
| Party loses an easy combat challenge (CR lower than APL) | −5 |
| Commit an act of treason or betray an honorable lord | −10 |
| Be directly responsible for the death of an honorable ally or loved one under your protection | −20 |
| 1 Once per month. 2 About the length of a 32- or 48-page published adventure. 3 Per 40,000 gp of item price. 4 Per 40,000 gp of item price; artifacts with no price grant 5 points. | |
Chivalric or Arthurian knight's code.
| Event | Honor Points |
|---|---|
| Become a lord or similar rank | +50 |
| Defeat a noble lord in combat | +20 |
| Agree to protect and be responsible for the protection of an honorable ally | +10 |
| Redeem a dishonorable foe | +6 |
| Acquire vassals | +4 |
| Offer sanctuary and defend that offer | +3 |
| Swear fealty to a lord | +3 |
| Defeat a challenging monster of the opposite alignment (CR 2+ higher than APL) | +2 |
| Protect a site holy to your religion against attackers | +2 |
| Protect an innocent against significant odds (CR 2+ higher than APL) | +2 |
| Swear a major oath and uphold it | +2 |
| Win a tournament | +2 |
| Accept an enemy's parole | +1 |
| Participate in a tournament | +1 |
| Accept an enemy's parole and refuse to honor the ransom | −2 |
| Be betrayed by a "redeemed" foe | −2 |
| Be convicted of a petty crime | −2 |
| Offer sanctuary and betray it | −4 |
| Swear a major oath and break it | −4 |
| Win a tournament by cheating | −5 |
Thieves' guild, ninja clan, or other criminal organization code.
| Event | Honor Points |
|---|---|
| Become a guildmaster (city population 25,000+) 1 | +50 |
| Become a guildmaster (city population 10,000+) 1 | +25 |
| Adopt a specific criminal code 2 | +4 |
| End a long-running feud (1+ years) with a criminal more honorable than you 3 | +3 |
| Party humiliates an honorable noble 4 | +3 |
| Corrupt a high-ranking public official 5 | +2 |
| Willingly take the fall for a higher-ranking criminal | +2 |
| Minstrels willingly sing about your exploits 5 | +1 |
| Defeat a legal challenge, be acquitted, or avoid sentencing | +1 |
| Party agrees to and then commits a significant crime | +1 |
| Steal a powerful magic item or valuable treasure | +1 6 |
| Be convicted of a significant crime | +1 |
| Pay minstrels to sing about your exploits | −2 |
| Willingly work with the authorities to prevent or solve a crime | −2 |
| Party agrees to commit a crime and then reneges | −3 |
| Engage in a long-running feud (1+ years) with a criminal less honorable than you 3 | −4 |
| Refuse to punish an associate for becoming a turncoat | −4 |
| Party cooperates with authorities in dismantling a criminal enterprise | −5 |
| Violate your specific criminal code | −6 |
| Be toppled as guildmaster | −30 |
| 1 Don't stack for the same city; gain the difference if the city grows. 2 Such as "I commit only property crimes" or "I never steal, I only commit murder." 3 Scores must differ by at least 20 points. 4 Non-criminal honor score of 50+. 5 Once per month. 6 Per 40,000 gp of item price. | |
Cultures favoring political intrigue, espionage, and diplomacy.
| Event | Honor Points |
|---|---|
| Become leader of a country | +50 |
| Become a duke (or equivalent rank) | +20 |
| Ascend the ranks of nobility | +15 |
| Receive an important appointment | +10 |
| Successfully negotiate a peace for a national dispute | +5 |
| Prevent a war | +5 |
| Successfully negotiate a peace for a familial dispute | +3 |
| Act as an ambassador | +2 |
| Gain the favor of an honorable NPC 1 | +2 |
| Remove an enemy without bloodshed or death | +2 |
| Start a popular war | +2 |
| Write and deliver a treaty | +2 |
| Aid a political ally of lower status 2 | +1 |
| Embarrass a rival | +1 |
| Make allies in the bureaucracy | +1 |
| Successfully negotiate a peace for a personal dispute | +1 |
| Make well-placed enemies in the bureaucracy | −1 |
| Refuse to use violence when negotiation fails | −2 |
| Fail as an ambassador to a neutral country | −3 |
| Refuse to aid someone who did you a favor | −3 |
| Receive an embarrassing appointment | −4 |
| Use violence to solve a problem when negotiation was an option | −5 |
| Start an unpopular war | −8 |
| Fail to keep a popular war popular | −10 |
| 1 Once per NPC; NPC must have 10+ more honor than you. 2 Once per month; NPC must have 10+ fewer honor than you. | |
Samurai code of bushido and duty.
| Event | Honor Points |
|---|---|
| Become a daimyo or temple master | +80 |
| Defeat an honorable daimyo or temple master in combat | +20 |
| Commit seppuku | +10 |
| Adopt a strict code of honor | +8 |
| Help a disgraced ally perform seppuku | +4 |
| Challenge and defeat in single combat someone who has publicly dishonored you | +3 |
| Party defeats a challenging oni (CR higher than APL) | +3 |
| Destroy a shrine dedicated to an opposing power | +2 |
| Protect a shrine from marauders | +2 |
| Roll 30+ on a Craft check to create a work of art or masterwork item 1 | +2 |
| Roll 30+ on a Perform check 1 | +2 |
| Perform an action against your alignment because of a sworn oath 2 | +1 |
| Trick a kami in a battle of wits | +1 |
| Excessively brag of your accomplishments 3 | −1 |
| Be convicted of a petty crime | −2 |
| Be drunk in public | −2 |
| Slay an honorable opponent who has surrendered | −5 |
| 1 Once per month. 2 Oath must be to someone with more honor than you. 3 Unless required by a class ability. | |
Nomadic or tribal societies.
| Event | Honor Points |
|---|---|
| Become the leader of the clan | +50 |
| Defeat the leader of your tribe in single combat and become leader | +20 |
| Gain justice for a large slight to your family, tribe, or clan | +3 |
| Defend your village or camp from a raid | +2 |
| Develop a recognizable and feared persona | +2 |
| Go far beyond the basics of hospitality | +2 |
| Represent your tribe at a clan gathering | +2 |
| Stand against 10 opponents (physical, social, or artistic) | +2 |
| Challenge the leader of your tribe to single combat for leadership | +1 |
| Develop a new tribal tradition | +1 |
| Enact tribal justice for a serious transgression | +1 |
| Gain justice for a small insult to your family, tribe, or clan | +1 |
| Party enforces the code of hospitality | +1 |
| Break tribal behavioral code | −1 |
| Speak ill of your clan outside your clan | −1 |
| Speak ill of your tribe outside your tribe | −2 |
| Back down from a one-on-one fight | −3 |
| Ignore tribal command structure | −3 |
| Party refuses hospitality to other travelers | −3 |
| Speak out against a member of your family | −3 |
| Party takes advantage of hospitality, then betrays the hosts | −5 |
Spending Honor
Once per game session you may spend honor points for a temporary advantage. The GM sets the cost. If you try to spend more than your current score, your honor drops to 0 and you gain nothing — reaching too high loses honor without benefit.
Call upon an allied NPC — access to a wizard's library, a letter of passage, an audience with a high priest.
Cost: 1d6 to 5d6 honor points depending on difficulty and the NPC's attitude. Using the Contacts rules: 1d6 per risk level.
Ask an NPC ally to give or lend you wealth or a single item they can actually provide. A loan lasts only the session; if not returned, you pay the cost each session until it is.
Cost: 1d6 honor per 2,000 gp value (halved for a loan). While the item is outstanding, you cannot spend honor on anything else.
Gain a +5 circumstance bonus on Bluff, Diplomacy, or Intimidate checks for the rest of the session.
Cost: 1d6 honor points.
Consequences of Losing Honor
You may renounce your code at any time. You lose all honor points and benefits, but avoid the 0-honor penalty (having no code is not the same as flouting one). Those who believed in your code will refuse to deal with you; NPC allies become distant; your institution declares you an enemy.