Battle School [PDF]

Welcome to Ouroboros Station.

You've been selected amongst the population of your home world to enroll at Battle School, an elite military academy where the conquerors of tomorrow are forged. But no individual succeeds alone at Ouroboros. Your squad will be your family. You will eat, sleep, attend class, and, most importantly, fight alongside them in the Battle Room.

Battle School is a game for 3-5 players and 1 Game Master. built on the Entwine RPG system: a simplified rules-light approach to narrative gameplay inspired by the Cypher System by Monte Cook Games. Players will create their character, a cadet between the ages of 8-13, who has been shipped off to military school in space. 

The game's design philosophy is rooted in collaboration and teamwork, with a narrative focus on self-discovery and coming-of-age. The game puts the difficulty in the hands of the players, based on the scenario their squad is up against, and requires them to think as a team to overcome their obstacles. Combat is no longer about what you're doing on your turn but instead asks, "What can I do to help my team overcome this obstacle?"

How does that work?

Difficulty Class (DC) is calculated using the combined input of all players, whether your the GM or not. Players take turns in the Planning Phase to discuss what their characters are doing and how that impacts the challenge ahead of them. Are they pushing forward, taking risks to land big hits? Or are they pulling back, supporting their teammates through observation, cunning, and strategy? Each choice is combined with the GM's Modifier - a static value representing how difficult things are regardless of the chosen strategy - to create the DC for that round. 

Players are encouraged to consider how their individual actions will affect the whole squad when choosing them, knowing that it is only by working together that they'll overcome what Battle School has to throw at them.

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