---
title: "Knave"
version: "0.1.0"
slug: "knave"
players: "2–5"
duration: "60–240 min"
age: "12+"
tagline: "A classless OSR rules toolkit for running old-school fantasy adventures"
type: "rpg"
status: "live"
updated: "2026-07-22"
published: true
variants: false
how_to_play: "Roll d20 + ability bonus against difficulty. Every PC is a Knave whose role comes from what they carry, not a class. Simple encumbrance, unified defense system, concrete spellcasting."
mechanics: [dice, combat, exploration, narrative, classless]
complexity: simple
related: [cairn, maze-rats, dnd-5e, dungeon-world]
theme:
  surface: light
  tint: warm
  texture: none
  cover: cosmic
  typography: modern
  accent: blue
  section-divider: "❖"
engine:
  topology:
    type: none
  content:
    source: data/
    schema:
      type: category-list
---

<div class="section">

## Knave

Knave is a rules toolkit created by Ben Milton for running old-school fantasy RPGs without classes. Every PC is a Knave: a tomb-raiding, adventure-seeking ne'er-do-well whose role in the party comes from what they carry, not a character class. It is fast to teach, highly compatible with existing OSR bestiaries and adventures, and includes designer commentary throughout explaining why each rule works the way it does, to make the game easy to hack and reskin.

Abilities are central: all six abilities (Strength, Dexterity, Constitution, Intelligence, Wisdom, Charisma) use a unified bonus/defense system that also governs armor, so combat, saves, and opposed rolls all resolve the same way. Encumbrance is tracked with simple item slots, equal to a PC's Constitution defense. Currency runs on a copper-penny standard, priced to approximate real medieval costs. Spellcasting is concrete: a PC can only cast as many spells as they can physically carry, one per spell book, and a spell book can only be used once per day.

**Licence:** Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0).
**Attribution:** Knave is created by Ben Milton and licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. Source: [archive.org/details/knave-1.0-en](https://archive.org/details/knave-1.0-en).

</div>

<div class="section">

### Rules

- [Character Creation](rules/character-creation/) — rolling abilities, item slots, hit points, starting gear, and the eleven random trait tables
- [Playing the Game](rules/playing-the-game/) — abilities in play, saving throws, reactions, combat, stunts, advantage, critical hits and item quality, morale, healing, converting OSR monsters, and advancement
- [Equipment & Prices](rules/equipment/) — the full copper-penny price list: tools, light sources, armor, weapons, clothing, food, animals, lodging, ships, transport, wages, and buildings
- [Magic](rules/magic/) — how spell books work, and the 100 classless spells
- [Character Sheet](rules/character-sheet/) — Blank character sheet (printable) with interactive generator

</div>

<div class="section">

### Structured Tables

Machine-readable JSON for the game's random tables:

- [traits.json](../../games/knave/data/traits.json) — Physique, Face, Skin, Hair, Clothing, Virtue, Vice, Speech, Background, Misfortune, Alignment
- [starting-gear.json](../../games/knave/data/starting-gear.json) — Armor, Helmets and Shields, Dungeoneering Gear, General Gear 1, General Gear 2
- [spells.json](../../games/knave/data/spells.json) — the 100 Classless Spells

See the [tables index](../../games/knave/data/index.md) for how to use them.

</div>