BYGEOFFLAMB

AllTheKing'sMen

TABLEOFCONTENTS
About.......................................................................................................................................................................ii
Introduction............................................................................................................................................................iii
Character Generation...............................................................................................................................................1
Select Specialty...................................................................................................................................................1
Choose Nationality and Role..............................................................................................................................1
Record Attributes................................................................................................................................................1
Choose Focuses...................................................................................................................................................1
Example of Character Generation.......................................................................................................................1
Game Mechanics......................................................................................................................................................2
Declaring Actions................................................................................................................................................2
Attribute Pools and Focuses................................................................................................................................2
Stress...................................................................................................................................................................2
Comparing The Roll............................................................................................................................................2
Explanation of Results........................................................................................................................................2
Bonus Dice and Empty Pools..............................................................................................................................3
Death, Madness, and Surrender..........................................................................................................................3
Setting......................................................................................................................................................................4
Game Master's Section.............................................................................................................................................5
Running The Game..................................................................................................................................................6
Setting Stress Values...........................................................................................................................................6
Setting the Mood.................................................................................................................................................6
Reacting To Players.............................................................................................................................................6
Heart of Sherwood - Sample adventure...................................................................................................................7
Appendix................................................................................................................................................................11
Specialties..........................................................................................................................................................11
Nationalities.......................................................................................................................................................11
Roles.......................................................................................................................................................................11
Sample Characters.............................................................................................................................................11
Character Sheets................................................................................................................................................13

AllTheKing'sMen

ABOUT
Createdforthe24HourRPGMovieMashupCompetitionatTheFreeRPGBlog
(www.thefreerpgblog.com)and1km1kt(www.1km1kt.net)byGeoffLamb.Thisisa
mashupofthefilmsApocalypseNowandDouglasFairbanksinRobinHood.
Version1.325Feb2011

EverythinginthisworkislicensedunderaCreativeCommonsAttributionNonCommercialShareAlike3.0
UnportedLicense.Thisbasicallymeansyoumaycopyandshareit(butnotsellit)freelywithyourfriends,and

ii

AllTheKing'sMen

INTRODUCTION

AllTheKing'sMenputsyouandyourfriendsintotheroleofsoldiersloyaltotheKingofEngland,Johnthe
Usurper.Youaretaskedwithhuntingdownandstoppingallthosewhofomentrebellionoractagainstyour
King.Chiefamongstoutlawsisthatmosthatedturncoat,theEarlofHuntingdon...RobinHood.
WhilethesettingisEnglandinthetimeofRobinHood,RichardLionheart,andJohntheUsurper,thisgame
takesasidewaysapproachbycastingtheplayersintherolesnormallyfilledbyFacelessMinions#120.
BorrowingfromApocalypseNow,AllTheKing'sMenexploresthethemesofDuty,Loyalty,andtheircostson
thosewhoadheretothem.
Toplaythegame,youwillneed:
FriendsAtleastoneother,butmorethanfivepeopleatthetablemaybogthingsdown.
SomethingtowritewithPencilsandpensaretheclassics,butfollowyourheartonthisone.
PaperYouneedoneforyourcharactersheet.FeelfreetoprinttheoneintheAppendix.
Tensideddice(d10s)Youwillneedatleastsixperpersonforyourattributedicepools.
OnepersonbecomestheGameMaster(GMforshort)andhasthetaskofcontrollingeverythinginthe
gamebuttheactionsoftheremainingplayers.WhiletheGMdoesn'tgetacharacteroftheirown,theydo
gettoplayeveryonetheotherplayersencounter(knownasnonplayercharactersorNPCs).Theremaining
playerswillbecreatingsoldiersintheKing'sarmy,whichiscoveredinthenextsection.
Youwillbegoingondangerousmissions.Youwillbefacingyourfellowcountrymen.Youmaybekilled,you
maycrackunderthestrain.YoumaydeserttheserviceoftheKing.Youmayevensurvive.Youwillnot,
however,comeoutunscathed.

iii

AllTheKing'sMen

iv

ALLTHEKING'SMEN
ExampleofCharacterGeneration
Martiniscreatinghisfirstcharacter,named
Willard,forthegame.Sincehewantsacharacter
thatwillsucceed,nomatterthecosts,heselects
Drivenashisspecialtyandrecordsitonhissheet.

CHARACTERGENERATION
CharactersinAllTheKing'sMenhavethree
attributepools:Physical,Social,andMorale.
Physical:Howwellyoufight,climb,ride,etc..
Social:Interactingwithothers.
Morale:Keepingsightofthemissionathand.

Driven:Yourefusetogiveup,nomatterthe
odds.YoureduceallMoraleStressvaluesby1.
[1Social;+1Morale]

Theseattributesstartattwodice,butwillbe
alteredbyyourselectionsbelow.Recordyour
AsMartindidnotselectaspecialtythatgrants
choicesandfinalpoolvaluesonacharactersheet otheroptions,WillardisanAngloSaxonSoldier.
(acharactersheetcanbefoundintheAppendix).
AngloSaxon:Youareacommoner.[nochange]
Soldier:YoufoughtintheCrusades.[+1Physical;
+1Morale]

SelectSpecialty
Eachcharacterhassomethingthatsetsthem
apartfromtheothers.Specialtiesareunique.If
onecharacterhaschosenaspecialty,noother
playerscanchooseit.Ifthereiscontentionovera
specialty,theGMwillbefinalarbiter.
Chooseyourspecialtyfromthelistinthe
Appendixandrecorditonyoursheet.Ifyou
cannotfindaspecialtythatyoulike,workwith
theGMtodefineone.

Totalinguptheattributepools,Willardhasfinal
valuesofPhysical3;Social1;Morale4.Willardis
quitecapableandstrongofpurpose,butdoesnot
relatewellwithpeople.
BecausehisPhysicalpoolis3,Willardgetsa
PhysicalFocus.MartinselectsStealthyand
writesitdownunderPhysicalonthecharacter
sheet.
Martinisdone,andWillardisnowreadytoserve
hisKing.

ChooseNationalityandRole
MostcharactersareAngloSaxonsoldiers.
Specialtiescangrantotheroptions.Recordyour
nationalityandroleonyourcharactersheet.A
listofnationalitiesandrolescanbefoundinthe
Appendix.
RecordAttributes
Eachofthepreviouschoicesmayaddor
subtractfromyourattributepools.Totalallofthe
changesandrecordthefinalvaluesonyour
charactersheet.
ChooseFocuses
Yougetonefocusforeachdieabovetwoin
yourPhysicalandSocialpools.Focusesrepresent
specificskillsandabilities,likeArcheryorFast
Talk.

ALLTHEKING'SMEN

GAMEMECHANICS

Stress
Becausenumbersmeannothingwithout
AllTheKing'sMenusesdicepoolstorepresent context(andpossiblybecauseyourGMisevil),
yourcharacter'sgeneralskills.Whenyoudeclare yourGMwillassignaStressRatingtoyourtask.
anaction,theGMwillletyouknowwhichpoolto Ifyouractionisbeingactivelyresisted,thiswill
rollandassignaStressRating.Occasionally,the usuallyberepresentedbydicerolledbytheGM.
GMwillrequireyoutorollapoolinreactionto
Ifyouractionnotbeingactivelyresisted,orifyou
somethingthathappensinthestory.
arereactingtotheenvironment,youwillbefaced
Onceyouhaverolled,youwillcompareyour
withasetvalue.
dicewitheithertheStressdiceortheStressvalue
Example:Sincethesentryisawakeand
todetermineifyousucceeded.
expectingtrouble,theGMrolls2d10andgets5
and8.

DeclaringActions
Asaruleofthumb,youshoulddeclareanaction
thatcanbecompletedinafewsecondsorcanbe
reasonableseenasasingularaction.Donot
declaretheresult,onlytheaction.
Good:
Iturnquickly,launchinganarrowatthesource
ofthenoise.
Callingupontheinformationwegathered,Itry
toconvincethelocalsthatI'mfromNorwich.
Bad:
Spinningaround,Ifireanarrowintohiseye.
IusemyBluff.

ComparingTheRoll
Nowthatyouhaveyourdiceresultsandthe
Stressvalue,compareyourhighestvaluewiththe
highestStressvalue.
Ifyournumberisgreateranditis6+,youhave
scoredaMINORSUCCESS.Ifyouhaveanotherdie
greaterthanthehighestStressvalue,youhave
scoredaSUCCESS.
Ifyournumberisgreater,butitis5orless,you
havescoredaPUSH.YoualsoscoreaPUSHifyour
numberisequaltotheStressvalue.
IfyournumberislessthantheStressvalue,but
yourolleda6+,thenyouhavescoredaFAILURE.
IfyournumberislessthantheStressvalueand
itis5orless,youhavescoredaTOTALFAILURE.

AttributePoolsandFocuses
Yourattributepoolsdeterminehowmanydice
yourollwhenattemptinganaction.Ifyouhave
Example:Willard's9beatstheStressvalueof8.
Physical3,youwillberollingthreetensideddice
INORSUCCESS.
WillardhasscoredaM
(3d10)foryouractionandlookingforthehighest
andlowestvaluerolled.
ExplanationofResults
DONOTTOTALYOURDICE
Example:Willardissneakingpastasentry.Since SUCCESS:Notonlydoyousucceed,butyougaina
bonusdie.
hehasPhysical3,Willardrolls3d10.Thedice
comeup3,5,and8.
MINORSUCCESS:Youractionsucceeds.

PUSH:Notasuccess,notafailure.Nothing
Whenanactionfallswithinanareaofyour
changes.
focus,yougettoadd+1toeverydicerolled.
FAILURE:Youslipup.Ifyouretrytheaction,the
Example:BecausehehasStealthyasafocus,
Stressincreases.
Willardadds+1totheabovediceandgets4,6, TOTALFAILURE:Notonlydoyoufail,butyoulose
and9.
onediefromtheattributepool.
2

ALLTHEKING'SMEN
BonusDiceandEmptyPools
Bonusdicegrantedbysuccessescanbeusedin
twoways:
YoucanrollasinglebonusdieaftertheStress
valuehasbeendetermined.Anymodifiersofthe
originalroll(focuses,etc)willcarryovertothis
bonusdie.
Aftertheencounterisover,youmayspend
yourbonusdicetoreplenishanyattributepool
thathaslostdice.Youmayonlyreplenishyour
ownpools,notthepoolsofothers.Youmayonly
replenishbacktostartingvalues.Anyextra
bonusdicearelost.
Whenyouwouldloseyourlastdieinyour
PhysicalorSocialpool,youmayloseadiefrom
yourMoralepoolinstead.Youmaydothisuntil
youhaveonlyonedieinyourMoralepool.
Losingyourlastdieinapoolwill,dependingon
thepool,leadtodeath,madness,orsurrender.
Death,Madness,andSurrender
Whenatotalfailurewouldremoveyourlastdie
fromthePhysicalpool,youhavedied.Feelfree
todescribeyourdeathaspoeticallyasyouwish.
LosingyourlastdieinyourSocialpoolalso
removesyourlast,tenuousgrasponsociety.
UpontheGM'sdiscretionyoumayeitherbreak
downorfinallysnap,decidingtotakeasmanyof
themwithyouasyoucan.
OnceyourlastdiehasbeenlostintheMorale
pool,youhavelostallbeliefinyourcauseand
yourmission.Dependinguponyoursituation,
youwilleitherdesertorattempttojointherebels
yourself.

ALLTHEKING'SMEN

SETTING
Theyearis1192.TheThirdCrusadeisdrawing
toaclose,manysoldiersarereturninghomeafter
yearsofwarfare.RichardLionheart,absentee
KingofEngland,hasdisappeared.
Englandhassufferedforyearsunderthe
burdenoftheThirdCrusade.Nowitsuffersagain
undertheruleofKingJohn.Taxcollectorstravel
thecountryside,huntingdowneverylastfarthing
owedtotheKing.Knightsholdtheborderlands
throughamixoffearandmercenaries.

Allofthisgreetsyouasyouaredischarged
fromtheboats,membersofanarmythatno
longerneedsyou.Unabletoreturntosociety
afterwhatyouhaveseenanddone,youwere
lookingtowardslifeasabanditormercenary.
Thankfully,yourlifeisdestinedforsomething
more.Youhavebeenapproachedbythoseloyal
totheKingandofferedacommission.Youwillgo
forthandremovethosewhoactwithtreasonin
theirhearts.
YouarenowoneoftheKing'sMen.

ALLTHEKING'SMEN

ALLTHEKING'SMEN
canbesetatStressvalue6.Forlesschanceof
TOTALFAILURE,settheStressvalueat3.Ifyouwant
atasktobenearlyimpossible,gonohigherthan
Stressvalue8.

RUNNINGTHEGAME
There'saconflictineveryhumanheart,betweenthe
rationalandirrational,betweengoodandevil.Andgood
doesnotalwaystriumph.Sometimes,thedarkside
overcomes...thebetterangelsofournature.

SettingtheMood
Becausethisisagamewithadarkend,ifnot
darkthemes,emphasizethebleaknessof
commonerlife.Thesmallerthevillage,themore
extremethereactiontooutsiders,especiallyif
thoseoutsidersarebrandishingweaponsor
armor.
RememberthattheKing'sMenareoperating
withnooutwardlyvisiblesignsofroyaledict.It
willtaketimetopresentthecrestofKingJohn.
Soldiersandtaxcollectorswillonlytoleratethem
sofar,eveniftheybelievetheplayers'tale.
Foraddedpathos,havethegroupvisitoneof
theplayer'shometowns.Takepainstoremind
theplayerofhisorhertiestothepeoplethat
theyareinvestigating.

AllTheKing'sMenisagameaboutadystopian
pastThelegendofRobinHoodviewedthrough
thecrackedprismofCoppola'sVietnamwarepic.
Thisisagameastoldfromtheperspectiveofthe
badguys.Morethanthis,though,itisagame
toldfromtheperspectiveofpeoplebeginningto
understandtheirplaceinhistoryasbeingonthe
wrongsideofaconflict.
Inthisgame,playerswilldieandgomadatan
increasingrateasthegameprogresses.Donot
worrythatyouarebeingtoohardontheplayers
thisissupposedtohappen.
AstheGameMaster,youarenotsomuchin
oppositiontotheplayersasyouareleadingthe
playerstowardsthisrealization.Yourtwobiggest
toolsforthisaresettingtheStressvaluesand
settingthemood.
ReactingToPlayers
Whileprintedadventuresaregood,fartoo
SettingStressValues
oftenthewholeworkgoesupinsmokethe
Theeasiestruleofthumbhereistousediceif secondtheplayersareoutsideofNPCcontrol.It
theplayer'sactionisbeingresistedbysomeone
isagoodplantoadoptaYes,but...methodto
andsetaspecificvalueifit'snot.Becauseweare steerplayersbacktowardstheirinevitablegoal.
usingd10s,youcangaugearoughchanceof
Thereismorethanenoughunrestwithin
failureorsuccessprettyquickly(hoorayfor10% Englandatthistime.Iftheplayersdecideto
values).
travelfarafieldofyouroriginalplanandrefuseto
turnbacktowardstheirgoal,feelfreetochange
Usingdice,astandardtaskwithsomerisk
locationsornamessoasnottoloseyour
(combatagainstafewcommonersoratrained
preparations.Aboveall,havefun.
opponent)shouldhavetwoStressdice.Before
reducingatasktoonedie,looktowardssettinga
Stressvalueinstead.Evenasinglediecanrolla
10andturnsomethingsimpleintoanightmare.
Whenyoudonotwantthechanceofmakinga
tasktoohardoreasy,settingaStressvalueisthe
waytogo.AtaskthatshouldhavetwoStressdice
6

ALLTHEKING'SMEN
aredoing.
Youwillberidingwithothermenreturning
SampleAdventureforAllTheKing'sMen
fromtheCrusade.Yourinitialcoveristhatyou
Ontheroad,IthoughtthattheminuteIlookedathim,I'd
areinthepersonalretinueofSirGuyof
knowwhattodo,butitdidn'thappen.Iwasintherewith
Gisbourne.Youwillbegiventunicsinhislivery
himfordays,notunderguard;Iwasfree,butheknewI
andsomesimpleweapons.AllSirGuyknowsis
wasn'tgoinganywhere.HeknewmoreaboutwhatIwas
goingtodothanIdid.IfthenoblesbackinLondoncould
thatyouwillbetravelingwithhimnorthwards,
seewhatIsaw,wouldtheystillwantmetokillhim?More
thenpartingways.
thanever,probably.
Gatheryourthings,SirGuyleaveswithinthe
hour.
NotetoGMs:Thisadventureborrowheavilyfrom
LordKeetonisagruffman,usedtogiving
ApocalypseNow.Itissuggestedthatyouwatch
ordersinthefield.Hewillanswerfurther
thisfilmtogetafeelforhowthisshouldbe
questionswithcurtanswersandwillnotethatthe
portrayed.
playersshouldgetmoving.

HEARTOFSHERWOOD

London

Themenridingnorthstandmorethanforty
strong.MostofthemservedintheCrusades,not
allweresoldiers.SirGuy,theonlynobleriding
withthegroup,canbefoundattheheadofthe
Theplayersaresummonedtothechambersof
men.Whileheknowsthattheplayersareon
LordKeeton,probablybeingintroducetoeach
missionforthecrown,heisconflictedbya
otherforthefirsttime.
completedisdainforcommoners.Everythinghe
sayswillbeinFrench,onlyswitchingtoEnglishif
Youmenhavebeenbroughttogetherbyyour noneoftheplayersareNorman.
sharedloveofyourcountryandyourKing.
SirGuywilldirecttheplayerstoacartatthe
Thoughyoudonotknoweachother,knowthat
backofhisretinue(SirGuy'smenaccountfor
youallarebeyondreproach.Thismissioncan
nearlyhalfofthegroup,atleastsixofthemare
onlysucceedifyouallworktogether.
lightcavalry).Theplayersareexpectedtodrive
Yourmissionistoproceednorthbythemain
thecartthemselves.
roads.PickupLordHuntingdon'spathat
Nottingham,followitandlearnwhatyoucan
alongtheway.Whenyoufindhim,infiltratehis
bandbywhatevermeansavailableandkillhim.
He'soutthereoperatingwithoutanydecent
restraint,totallybeyondthepaleofany
acceptablehumanconduct.Andheisstillinthe
forest,commandingmentoactsoftreason.
Ashehasbecomesomethingofafolkheroto
thearea,itisimperativethatthismissionnever
betiedtoKingJohn.Youwillbegivenasmall
tokenofourKing.Usethisonlyasalastresort,
notevenourownmenshouldknowofwhatyou
Everyone gets everything he wants. I wanted a mission,
and for my sins, they gave me one. It was a real choice
mission, and when it was over, I never wanted another.

ALLTHEKING'SMEN
OnTheRoad
Ifthat'showGisbournefoughtbandits,Ibegantowonder
whattheyreallyhadagainstHuntingdon.Itwasn'tjust
insanityandmurder;therewasenoughofthattogoaround
foreveryone.

Iftheplayerswishtoconversewiththeother
travelers,letthem.Theothermenwillbeshort
withtheiranswers,thenoutwardlyhostiletothe
inquisitivestrangers.Iftheypersistwith
questionsorchatter,thiswillsetoffaSocial
checkwithaStressvalueof4toavoidminor
fisticuffs(Physicalcheck,Stressvalue1d10).
Afterwards,oriftheplayersarenottalkative,
readthefollowing:
Lessthanaday'sjourneynorthofLondon,the
rainsstart.Notrelenting,therainsmake
travelingtheroadtreacherousatbest.Untilthe
roaddries,theroadhasnarrowedtothepoint
thatthewagonisbeginningtohaveproblems
findingwaysaroundthisimpromptustream.

Therainsletupbeforethevillageisreached.
Gisbourneordersthebanditsbroughttothe
centeroftown.Acrycomefromthegathering
crowdoneofthebanditshailfromhere.
Uponrealizingthis,Gisbourneordersthe
bandit'sfamilyforward.Withastatementof
'C'estlarcompensepourlesrogues,'Gisbourne
Aroundabendlayseveralbanditshopingto
intendstokillthefamilyalongwiththebandits.
robawealthymerchant.Intherain,theymistake
theplayers'caravanforone.
Thereareseveralwaysfortheplayersto
CombatstartswithaPhysicalcheckagainst
handlethissituation:
Stressvalue6toavoidtheinitialvolleyofarrows.
Physicalchecks(savingthebanditsorfamilyby
Afterthreeroundsofcombat(Physicalcheck,
Stressvalue2d10),thebanditsflee.Incensedby force)areatStressvalue4d10.Oncestarted,
thesewillnotstopuntilGisbourneandhiseight
theattack,SirGuypursuesthebandits.
Unlesstheplayersunhitchtheirhorsefromthe loyalfollowersareslainortheplayersfleeinto
thecountryside.
cart,theymustremainontheroaduntilSirGuy
returns.Ifaplayergiveschaseontheirhorse,it Socialchecks(convincingGisbournetosparethe
isashortrunoverunevenground(Physicalcheck, family)areatStressvalue8.
Stressvalue4)tocatchupwithGisbourneandhis Moralechecks(watchingtheexecutions)areat
Stressvalue2d10(4d10iftheplayersfailedatthe
cavalry.
Socialcheck;3ifonlythebanditsareexecuted).
SirGuyandhismenwillhavecapturedthree
men.Themenareboundandthrownontothe
WhiletheplayersmayconvinceGisbourneto
players'cart.Gisbournewishestomakean
exampleofthematthenextsettlement.During sparethefamilymembers,thereisnosparingthe
theride,thecaptivespleadfortheirlives(Morale bandits.Gisbournewillcursetherainformaking
thevillageimpossibletoburn.
check,Stressvalue3).

ALLTHEKING'SMEN
Nottingham

causeaMoralecheckwithStressvalue4.

Inthisunrest,thingsgetconfused.Power,ideals,theold
morality,andpracticalnecessity.Butouttherewiththe
serfs,itmustbeatemptationtobeGod.

Wickham
Asforthechargesagainstme,Iamunconcerned.Iam
beyondtheirtimidlyingmorality,andsoIambeyond
caring.

Iftheplayersattempttothwarthisjustice,
Gisbourneleavestheminthevillagewithoutthe
cart.Unlesstheplayersweresuccessfulatsaving
thefamily,however,theywillnotaidtheplayers
intheirpilgrimagetoNottingham.
IftheplayerssatbackandwatchedGisbourne,
theystillmustpartwaysatNorthampton.Sir
Guyiswellknownhereanyonestillwearinghis
liveryhaveincreasedStressforanySocialchecks
theymaketothelocals.

OncetheplayersreachWickham,thereisa
commotion.TheSheriff'smen(atleasttwofor
everyplayer)arecollectingtaxesandtaking
thosewhocannotpayforatourofthedungeons
ofNottingham.Again,thereareafewwaysto
confrontthesituation:

Physical:Avoidingthemenviastealthhasa
Stressvalueof6.Failuremeansthattheplayeris
WhentheplayersreachNottingham,the
spotted.
legendofRobinHoodhastakenover.Thereisa Fightingthemenwillrequireatleastthreechecks
priceonhisheadof40crowns(5crownsforeach (Stressvalue3d10)untilRobinHoodarrives.
ofhismen).Peoplespeakinhushedtonesof
Social:Playerscannotconvincethementhatthey
Robin'sderringdo.
havealreadypaidordon'tliveinWickham.
GatheringinformationonRobinHoodwillbe
ShowingtheKing'sfavorwillstillrequireaStress
5check.
trickyforagroupofoutsiders.Atleastfour
successful(orminorsuccess)Socialchecks(Stress Morale:WatchingtheSheriff'smenwithout
rating2d10)mustbemadebeforesomeonewill actionwillrequireacheckatStressvalue3d10,as
trusttheplayersenoughtoletslipthefollowing it'sobviousthatthemenarerobbingthevillagers
tidbit:
ofeverythingtheyhave.
RobinHoodandhismenarehiddenaway
deepinSherwood,intheoldpartsoftheforest.
OnlythetannerinWickhamknowshowto
contacthim.

RobinHoodandhismenareannouncedbya
volleyofarrowstowardstheSheriff'smen.
Observantplayerswillseeafewvillagersfallto
thevolleyaswell.Iftheplayersarestillfighting
theSheriff'smenafterthreePhysicalchecks,
theywillneedtomakeaPhysicalcheckwitha
Stressvalueof6toavoidgettinghitbyanarrow.

Failedcheckswillnotpreventpressingfor
moreinformation,butaTotalFailurewillstarta
minorfight(Physicalcheck;Stressvalue1d10).
Makesurethattheplayersseesomeofthe
beneficialinfluencesofRobinHood.Everyone
hasastoryabouthowRobinHoodsavedthem
withmoneyfortaxesordefeatedthugsouttorob
avillage.Eachsuchtale(nomorethanfour)will

ALLTHEKING'SMEN
Iftheplayersmanagetoconcealthisfactfrom
RobinHood,theyareinvitedtoafeastwithinthe
foreststrongholdofSherwood.IfRobinfigures
outtheplayers'intent,heandhismenfleeinto
Sherwood.

RobinHood
Everybodywantedmetodoit,himmostofall.Ifeltlikehe
wasupthere,waitingformetotakethepainaway.Hejust
wantedtogooutlikeasoldier,standingup,notlikesome
poor,wastedrenegade.Eventheforestwantedhimdead,
andthat'swhohereallytookhisordersfromanyway.

Theyearsofroughlivinghasnotbeenkindto
LordHuntingdon.ItisclearthatRobinHoodand
hismenaresufferingfrominfectionsand
malnourishment.Aftertheinitialvolley,they
chargefromthebrush,sendingtheremainingtax
menfleeing.
Robinandhismenignorethefleeingmenand,
toapoint,thevillagers.Theyarefocusedon
retrievingarrowsandpickingoverthefallenfor
betterfittingbootsornicerweapons.
Iftheplayersattackrightnow,theymustmake
PhysicalchecksatStressvalue8fortworounds
untilRobinandmostofhismen(thosenotkilled
bytheplayers)retreatintothesafetyof
Sherwood.
AttemptingtotalktoRobinHoodorignoring
himhasthesameeffect.LordHuntingdon
noticestheplayersafterdonninganewpairof
bootsandapproaches.Whateverhisphysical
state,Huntingdon'smindisstillsharp.ASocial
checkwithStressvalue4d10isrequiredtohide
thefactthattheplayersareworkingforKing
John.

HuntingdownRobinHoodwithinSherwood
forestisanarduoustask.AtleastfivePhysical
checks(Stress2d10)isrequiredtoavoidthetraps
andambushes.Oncewithinthecamp,apitched
battlewillensuebetweentheplayers,Robin
Hood,andhisremainingMerryMen(twoper
player).ThisbattlerequiresPhysicalchecksat
Stressvalue3d10untilenoughsuccesses(or
minorsuccesses)aregainedtokilltheMerryMen
andRobinhimself(oneperMerryMan,threefor
RobinHood).
Acceptinghisinvitationfordinnermakesthe
journeyintoRobin'scampuneventful.Oncethe
mealstarts,RobinHoodwillengagetheplayers
inconversationabouttheCrusades,King
Richard,London,andothernewsoftheday.
AnotherStress4d10Socialcheckisrequiredto
concealtheirmotives.
Oncetherusehasbeendiscoveredorthe
playersfinallyattack,thecombatplaysoutmuch
asabove.Iftheplayersmanagedtoconcealtheir
intentions,however,theStressvalueis2d10.
Aftermath
Thehorror...thehorror...

Survivorswillbeallowedsafepassageto
Nottingham.Fromthere,theSheriffwilltreat
themlikeconqueringheroes,tryingtogainfavor
withKingJohn.OncebackinLondon,theplayers
recoverallPhysicalandSocialpooldiceasthey
awaittheirnextmission.

10

ALLTHEKING'SMEN

SampleCharacters

Appendix

Willard

Specialties
Behemoth:Youcouldprobablypunchouta
horse.Rollanextradiewithallfeatsofstrength
orbrawlingchecks.[+1Physical;1Social]
BestintheWorld:PickaFocus.Dicebelow6are
countedas6,butyoudropyourhighestdie.[+1
toyourfocus'pool]
Driven:Yourefusetogiveup,nomattertheodds.
YoureduceallMoraleStressvaluesby1.[1
Social;+1Morale]
Grizzled:Themeninyoursquadfiguredthatyou
wereunkillable.Rerollyourlowestdieona
PhysicalTotalFailure.[+1Physical]
Heathen:YoufollowtheKing...andtheOld
Ways.RollanextraSocialdiewheninteracting
withvillagers.[+1Social;1Morale]
Loyalist:YouservetheCrown,whoeverwearsit.
RerollyourlowestMoralecheckdie.[+1Morale]
Norman:Whilenotanobleman,youhaveit
betterthanmost.YourNationalitybecomes
Norman.[+1Morale]
SilverTongued:Youcantalkyourwayoutof
anything.RerollyourlowestSocialcheckdie.[+1
Social]
WarriorPriest:YouservedtheChurchduringthe
war.YourrolebecomesPriest.[1Physical;+1
Social;+1Morale]

Nationalities
AngloSaxon:Youareacommoner.[nochange]
Norman:Youinteracteasierwithnobles,sharing
acommonlanguage.ReduceallSocialStress
valuesby1vsNormans,butadd+1vsSaxons.
[nochange]

Specialty:
Driven:Yourefusetogiveup,nomattertheodds.
YoureduceallMoraleStressvaluesby1.[1
Social;+1Morale]
Nationality:
AngloSaxon:Youareacommoner.[nochange]
Role:
Soldier:YoufoughtintheCrusades.[+1Physical;
+1Morale]
Physical:3(Stealthy)
Social:1
Morale:4

Jayson
Specialty:
SilverTongued:Youcantalkyourwayoutof
anything.RerollyourlowestSocialcheckdie.[+1
Social]
Nationality:
AngloSaxon:Youareacommoner.[nochange]
Role:
Soldier:YoufoughtintheCrusades.[+1Physical;
+1Morale]
Physical:3(Archery)
Social:3(Gossip)
Morale:3

Roles
Soldier:YoufoughtintheCrusades.[+1Physical;
+1Morale]
Priest:Youfoughtformen'ssouls.[+1Social]
11

ALLTHEKING'SMEN

JohntheLance

Phillip

Specialty:
BestintheWorld:PickaFocus.Dicebelow6are
countedas6,butyoudropyourhighestdie.[+1
toyourfocus'pool]

Specialty:
Norman:Whilenotanobleman,youhaveit
betterthanmost.YourNationalitybecomes
Norman.[+1Morale]

Nationality:
AngloSaxon:Youareacommoner.[nochange]

Nationality:
Norman:Youinteracteasierwithnobles,sharing
acommonlanguage.ReduceallSocialStress
valuesby1vsNormans,butadd+1vsSaxons.
[nochange]

Role:
Soldier:YoufoughtintheCrusades.[+1Physical;
+1Morale]
Physical:3(Athletics)
Social:2
Morale:3

BrotherRonald

Role:
Soldier:YoufoughtintheCrusades.[+1Physical;
+1Morale]
Physical:3(Melee)
Social:2
Morale:4

Specialty:
WarriorPriest:YouservedtheChurchduringthe
war.YourrolebecomesPriest.[1Physical;+1
Social;+1Morale]
Nationality:
AngloSaxon:Youareacommoner.[nochange]
Role:
Priest:Youfoughtformen'ssouls.[+1Social]
Physical:1
Social:4(Persuasion;Oratory)
Morale:3

12

ALLTHEKING'SMEN

Specialty:

Specialty:

Nationality:

Nationality:

Role:

Role:

Physical:

Physical:

Social:

Social:

Morale:

Morale:

Specialty:

Specialty:

Nationality:

Nationality:

Role:

Role:

Physical:

Physical:

Social:

Social:

Morale:

Morale:

13

LONDON...
I'MSTILLONLYINLONDON...
EverytimeIthinkI'mgonnawakeupbackin
theCrusades.WhenIwashomeaftermyfirst
tour,itwasworse.I'dwakeupandthere'dbe
nothing.WhenIwashere,Iwantedtobethere;
whenIwasthere,allIcouldthinkofwasgetting
backhere.

AllTheKing'sMenisaroleplayinggame
thatsendstheplayersintotheemployof
KingJohn.BackfromtheCrusades,your
bandmustferretoutthosewhowouldraise
armsagainstyourKing.
Youaresentundercoverintothelion'sden,
freetominglewiththoseyouoncecalled
brotherbutwhonowplottreason.Youmust
seekoutalltraitortothecrown,including
theLordHuntingdon...RobinHood.