Easy systems for determining the treature and loot found by your players.
Depending on the progression of the players – and the part of the world in which they’re adventuring – the kinds of loot that can be found will vary greatly.
Typically exploring pre-poc locations (like arcologies, labs, military bases, and abandoned towns) will provide a wealth of useful items and weaponry, and a great deal of scrap. The Far Wastes themselves are the opposite (except pre or post-poc locations within), yielding large amounts of beads, often in their raw form, and some scrap from the dried seabed, but little in the way of functional items. Post-poc locations (like inhabited towns and pirate bases) are the middle ground, having both beads and items; almost certainly brought here by the people or corpses from whom they’re taking it.
Loot typically comes in two forms; Planned and Random.
Planned Loot is stuff specifically chosen by the GM to appear, perhaps because it’s plot-relevant, perhaps to reward the party for great work, perhaps just because they like the item or weapon and want to see it used. Planned Loot is typically found in plain view, without requiring a Scavenging Check, or possibly in the possession or use of enemies. The Loot Tables – in particular the Weapon and Armour ones – can advise on what Loot is suitable to the location and player level, but ultimately it’s up to the GM.
Random Loot is usually decided by rolling on the Loot Tables. This kind is helpful because it enables the GM to quickly and easily determine a whole list of possible loot that fits the location, and keep things balanced for the party; there’s no need to spend ages meticulously choosing how much scrap is in a location when a table can quickly do it for you. This is usually found by scavenging, meaning players will never quite know what they’ll find. Perhaps they’ll just have a big pile of worthless scrap, but they might walk away with a new weapon or an unusual item. This uncertainty gives them a reason to scavenge as much as they can, while keeping the GM’s workload light.
Turns out, in the post-poc, there is a lot of rubbish laying around. In arcologies, streets, labs; in pirate camps, and occupied towns; even in the Far Wastes themselves. Countless people try to make their living – or at least survive – by scavenging over the ruins and remains of what came before, selling their findings or repurposing them individually.
To represent the importance and omnipresence of scavenging, it has its own mechanics. A character who wants to scavenge the local area rolls – predictably – a Scavenging Check. If more than one character wants to scavenge, they can either both roll individually and use the highest, or one of them can roll with The Glow.
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GM Note: To save time and faff rolling on Loot Tables during a session, it could be handy to keep a list of pre-rolled results. Then you just go down the list as they find stuff, ticking off the loot as they get it. If you do this, it’s a good idea to keep a couple more results than you think you’ll need; a lucky roll or unexpected boost might tip them over to getting more than you planned.
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The total result of the Scavenging Check (using the highest of the two if a second character also rolls) determines how much is looted from the environment. This total translates to a number of rolls the GM makes on the appropriate Loot Table (referred to as Loot Rolls) for that environment.
A total less than 8 gives a single Loot Roll. Bad luck, but you’re not great at finding much. 8 gives two Loot Rolls, with each additional 4 to the total adding another; a total of 12 gives 3 Loot, 16 gives 4 Loot, 20 gives 5 Loot, etc.
A natural 1 on the roll sadly provides no Loot Rolls at all. It seems you were heavy-handed, clumsy, or simply unable or unwilling to acquire literally anything at all. This overrides the total. A natural 20, on the other hand, provides an extra Loot Roll, in addition to whatever the total is.
To avoid players scavenging in every single little room they encounter, Scavenging Checks are done in larger or central rooms and affect all the little rooms connected to them. This also explains how niche or unusual items can be found; they were tucked away in the corner of a supply closet, for example. It’s also advised that players fully explore an area before beginning to loot it, as that side room might have some dormant robot or foraging creature within.
It's also suggested you put a bit of thought into the nature of what is found, ensuring it fits the area; while everywhere has most kinds of scrap, the Commercial E-Scrap found in abandoned homes will be different to that found in functional labs. Some examples of the things likely to be found in each location are listed beside the result on the location tables.
The process for using Loot Tables is quite simple, and will usually require more than one roll to determine the exact nature and quantity of the loot.
Step 1 – Roll on the area-specific Loot Table. The different tables should be fairly comprehensive, but if something fits more than one it’s up to the GM to decide which they think it fits more; e.g. if pirates are living in an otherwise abandoned periphery, use the Post-Poc Military table for their dwellings, and Pre-Poc Residential for other areas.
Step 2 – If the result has (See Table) on it, there is a separate table on which to roll. This allowed the randomisation of items, ammo, weapons, and other such things. Alternately the GM can choose something from that table if they prefer.
Step 3 – The Weapon and Armour Tables are actually three-in-one tables. This is because the power and protection of a player’s weapons and armour heavily affects their capabilities; it’s one of the main forms of progression in The Far Wastes. Simply roll the specified dice and consult the result for the level range of the players.