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Appendix 2: Kingdoms

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 506
The PCs don't create their kingdom at the start of Kingmaker. Instead they begin this process at the start of Chapter 4, after their victory over the Stag Lord convinces the leaders of Brevoy to grant the PCs a charter to establish their own kingdom in the Stolen Lands.

Ruling a kingdom takes a lot of the PCs' time, so to ensure that your gaming group has plenty of uninterrupted time for more traditional adventuring, the rules presented in this appendix take place entirely in downtime. The mechanics treat the kingdom itself as a sort of additional character in the party, so players who know how to navigate and level up their own characters should find managing a kingdom relatively easy.

Most of the kingdom rules—specifically from the start of the Kingdom Creation section through the end of the Settlements section, apart from the quest sidebars—are written for the players as well as the GM, and should be shared with them. The quest sidebars and the Kingdom Events section that concludes the appendix are for the GM only. A spoiler-free version of these rules (along with the warfare rules from Appendix 3) are available for free download as a PDF, along with the Kingmaker Player's Guide, both available at paizo.com.

Though these rules use the word “kingdom” to refer to the nation ruled by the PCs, their government doesn't need to be a monarchy. Likewise, titles like “queen” or “king” may differ from the terms the PCs choose for their leaders (and in any case, gender has no mechanical role in the kingdom rules).

These rules are focused specifically on the Kingmaker Adventure Path and so include only elements appropriate for its setting and storyline. You won't find rules for building kingdoms in the desert or on the ocean, nor will you find events involving monsters that don't make sense in the Stolen Lands or buildings that aren't thematically appropriate for the storyline. If you wish to use these rules to run kingdoms outside of Kingmaker, you may need to adjust these rules to fit your game.

Citizen Quests

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 507
The PCs will encounter plenty of opportunities for quests throughout the Kingmaker Adventure Path. As their kingdom reaches specific milestones, citizens come forward to ask their heroic leaders for aid. These citizen quests appear as sidebars throughout this appendix, but consider introducing some of the quirky NPC citizens associated with them early in your game!

Kingdom Creation

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 507
The processes of creating and running a kingdom are similar to creating and playing a character. A kingdom has several different mechanical systems that define and describe it, including ability scores, skills, and feats. These develop throughout the campaign, so you should track them on a kingdom sheet like the one on page 632. The GM and other players should work together to determine how best to keep track of their kingdom. Should the GM keep track of everything? Should one player (perhaps the one in the Ruler leadership role) always be responsible for filling out the kingdom sheet, while other players are responsible for different settlements' Urban Grids? Should the kingdom sheet pass from one player to the next each session or each time the kingdom levels up? As long as all of the kingdom's stats are available to everyone during play, there's no one right answer, so use the solution that works best for your group.

Kingdom Ability Scores

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 507
A kingdom has four ability scores: Culture, Economy, Loyalty, and Stability. These function like the ability scores of a character, providing modifiers on die rolls and checks. As the kingdom prospers and grows, these scores can increase. And if the nation falls on hard times or goes through corruption, scandal, defeat, or disaster, Ruin will accrue that degrades these abilities (see Ruin).

Culture

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 507
Culture measures the interest and dedication of your nation and its people to the arts and sciences, to religion and reason, and to the subjects that your society chooses to learn about and to teach. Are your people well-versed in rhetoric and philosophy? Do they value learning and research, music and dance? Do they embrace society in all its diverse splendor? If they do, your kingdom likely has a robust Culture score.

Economy

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 507
Economy measures the practical day-to-day workings of your society as it comes together to do the work of making and building, buying and selling. How industrious are your citizenry? Are they devoted to building more, higher, and better, trading in goods, services, and ideas? If so, your kingdom likely has a robust Economy score.

Loyalty

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 507
Loyalty measures the collective will, spirit, and sense of camaraderie the citizens of your nation possess. How much do they trust and depend on one another? How do they respond when you sound the call to arms or enact new laws? How do they react when other nations send spies or provocateurs into your lands to make trouble? If they support the kingdom's leadership, the kingdom itself has a robust Loyalty score.

Stability

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 507
Stability measures the physical health and well-being of your nation. This includes its infrastructure and buildings, the welfare of its people, and how well things are protected and maintained under your rule. How carefully do you maintain your stores and reserves, repair things that are broken, and provide for the necessities of life? How quickly can you mobilize to shield your citizens from harm? A kingdom that can handle both prosperity and disaster efficiently and effectively has a robust Stability score.

Kingdom Ability Score Overview

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 507
Each Kingdom ability score starts at 10, representing the average, but as a player makes kingdom creation choices in the following steps, they'll adjust these scores. Apply ability boosts (which increase a score by 2) or ability flaws (which decrease a score by 2), in the same way that boosts and flaws are applied to character ability scores. Kingdom ability scores give the same ability modifiers as character ability scores, as summarized on Table 1–1 of the Pathfinder Core Rulebook.

Step 1: Kingdom Concept

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 508
Building a kingdom is a cooperative experience that is enhanced by having the entire group engaged. By the time the PCs are granted a charter to explore and settle a portion of the Stolen Lands, the players should be given the kingdom rules and should work together to decide the sort of kingdom they want to establish.

Step 2: Select a Charter

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 508
Starting a new kingdom is a daunting challenge, requiring significant amounts of funding and support to get everything started. A charter granted by an established entity gives the kingdom a much-needed enhancement right at the start, typically manifesting as boosts to two of the kingdom's ability scores and a flaw to a third score. In effect, a charter bolsters two aspects of a kingdom, but one other aspect is held back to the benefit of the charter's holder.

Most charters apply a flaw to one specific ability, a boost to another specific ability, and a “free” boost, which can be applied to any score that the charter doesn't specifically affect. For example, the conquest charter specifically gives a boost to Loyalty and a flaw to Culture, so the free boost can be applied to either Economy or Stability.

In Kingmaker, the PCs earn their charter from Jamandi Aldori as thanks for dealing with the threat posed by the Stag Lord. (Outside of Kingmaker, the method by which a kingdom secures a charter can vary, but the most organic method is for the GM to grant one in the form of a quest reward.) In any case, the PCs choose one of five forms for their charter, detailed below.

Over time the PCs' kingdom may grow more independent or they could secure additional aid and support from other nations. None of those developments will replace or adjust the important initial boosts and flaw they'll earn at the very start of their kingdom's history—once the PCs have chosen their charter, the boosts and flaw it grants are permanent.

On the kingdom sheet, record the type of charter the PCs chose. On a separate sheet, record which three kingdom abilities received boosts or a flaw in this step; refer to it when finalizing ability scores in step 5.

Conquest Charter

Your sponsors have conquered an area and its former leaders have been routed or even killed. This charter places you in charge of some portion of this conquered territory (or land abandoned by the defeated enemy) and commands you to hold and pacify it in the name of your patron. The people are particularly devoted and supportive of your rule (if partially out of fear), but the constant threat of potential war hinders the arts and makes it difficult for citizens to truly relax. If you opt for this charter, you are asked to set up your kingdom against Pitax.
Ability Boosts Loyalty, plus a free ability boost
Ability Flaw Culture

Expansion Charter

Your patron places you in charge of a domain adjacent to already settled lands with the expectation that your nation will remain a strong ally. The greater support from your patron's nation helps to bolster your own kingdom's society, but this increased reliance means that fluctuations in your ally's fortunes can impede your own kingdom's security. If you select this charter, Lady Jamandi expects you to remain strong allies with Restov.
Ability Boosts Culture, plus a free ability boost
Ability Flaw Stability

Exploration Charter

Your sponsor wants you to explore, clear, and settle a wilderness area along the border of the sponsor's own territory. Your charter helps to secure initial structures (or supplies to create them), at the cost of incurring financial debt.
Ability Boosts Stability, plus a free ability boost
Ability Flaw Economy

Grant Charter

Your patron grants a large amount of funding and other resources without restriction on the nature of your kingdom's development—but they do require you to employ many of their citizens and allies. Your nation's wealth and supplies are secure, but a portion of your kingdom's residents have split allegiances between your nation and that of your sponsor.
Ability Boosts Economy, plus a free ability boost
Ability Flaw Loyalty

Open Charter

If you would prefer to be truly free agents and trailblazers staking your own claim, you can simply choose an open charter with no restrictions—and no direct support. In this case, Lady Jamandi applauds your bravery and self-confidence, but warns that establishing a kingdom is no small task. An open charter grants a single ability boost to any ability score, and the new nation has no built-in ability flaw.
Ability Boosts one free ability boost
Ability Flaw none

Step 3: Choose a Heartland

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 509
The new kingdom consists of a single hex. The PCs can choose any hex (subject to GM approval) that they have Reconnoitered. Tell the players that it's wisest to select a hex that already has a structure, since their first settlement—their capital—will be located in this initial hex. Note that terrain features can grant other benefits to the kingdom when claimed; see Terrain Features.

The heartland grants an additional boost to one of the kingdom's ability scores based on a significant terrain feature present in that hex. If the hex has more than one terrain feature, the PCs should choose only one of them to provide the boost.

The choice of terrain made here influences how the Favored Land kingdom ability functions. On the kingdom sheet, record the heartland terrain the PCs chose. On a separate sheet, record which kingdom ability received a boost in this step; refer to it when finalizing ability scores in step 5.

Forest or Swamp Heartland

Your nation begins in woodlands or swamplands, so there are no shortages in natural resources or wonders to bolster your citizens' imagination and mood.
Ability Boost Culture

Hill or Plain Heartland

Your nation starts in an area that is easy to traverse. This is reflected in your citizens' temperament; they appreciate that your choice makes their lives a bit easier.
Ability Boost Loyalty

Lake or River Heartland

By establishing your nation on the shores of a lake or river, you ensure a built-in mechanism for trade. Even before a road is built, merchants and travelers can reach your settlement with relative ease via boat.
Ability Boost Economy

Mountain or Ruins Heartland

Your nation is founded in the mountains or includes a significant ruined location, and it uses these natural or artificial features to bolster defense. Your citizens tend to be hale and hardy, if not stubborn to a fault.
Ability Boost Stability

Step 4: Choose a Government

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 509
Though the terminology used in Kingmaker presumes the PCs establish a feudal monarchy in which a queen and/or king rules the land, feudalism isn't the only form of government to choose from. If the PCs decide upon a different type of government, adjust the names of certain leadership roles as you wish. The mechanics of these rules remain the same.

The choice of government grants three boosts to the kingdom's ability scores. Two boost specific abilities, while the third is a free boost that can be applied to any ability score other than the two that were specifically boosted. The government type also gives the kingdom the trained proficiency rank in two specific skills and grants a bonus Kingdom feat.

On the kingdom sheet, record the type of government the PCs chose, which two skills received training, and which Kingdom feat the PCs received. On a separate sheet, record which three kingdom abilities received a boost in this step; refer to it when finalizing ability scores in step 5.

Despotism

Government
Your nation's rule is centered around a single individual who seized or inherited command and whose authority is absolute. The ruler of this kingdom still retains advisors and assistants, but only when they obey the ruler's whims.
Ability Boosts Stability and Economy, plus a free ability boost
Skill Proficiencies Intrigue and Warfare
Bonus Feat Crush Dissent

Feudalism

Government
Your nation's rule is vested in a dynastic royal family, though much of the real power is distributed among their vassals and fiefdoms.
Ability Boosts Stability and Culture, plus a free ability boost
Skill Proficiencies Defense and Trade
Bonus Feat Fortified Fiefs

Oligarchy

Government
Your nation's rule is determined by a council of influential leaders who make decisions for all others.
Ability Boosts Loyalty and Economy, plus a free ability boost
Skill Proficiencies Arts and Industry
Bonus Feat Insider Trading

Republic

Government
Your nation draws its leadership from its own citizens. Elected representatives meet in parliamentary bodies to guide the nation.
Ability Boosts Stability and Loyalty, plus a free ability boost
Skill Proficiencies Engineering and Politics
Bonus Feat Pull Together

Thaumocracy

Government
Your nation is governed by those most skilled in magic, using their knowledge and power to determine the best ways to rule. While the type of magic wielded by the nation's rulers can adjust its themes (or even its name—a thaumocracy run by divine spellcasters would be a theocracy, for example), the details below remain the same whether it's arcane, divine, occult, primal, or any combination of the four.
Ability Boosts Economy and Culture, plus a free ability boost
Skill Proficiencies Folklore and Magic
Bonus Feat Practical Magic

Yeomanry

Government
Your nation is decentralized and relies on local leaders and citizens to handle government issues, sending representatives to each other as needed to deal with issues that concern more than one locality.
Ability Boosts Loyalty and Culture, plus a free ability boost
Skill Proficiencies Agriculture and Wilderness
Bonus Feat Muddle Through

Step 5: Finalize Ability Scores

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 510
Once the players have chosen their kingdom's charter, heartland, and government, finalize the kingdom's ability scores. First, choose two different kingdom abilities to receive additional boosts. Then, total the boosts and flaws the kingdom has received for each ability, and record the final ability score and its associated modifier on the kingdom sheet. Remember that ability scores start at 10, boosts add 2, and flaws subtract 2. For example, if a kingdom's Loyalty received two boosts and a flaw, its Loyalty ability score is 12 (10+4-2), so its Loyalty modifier is +1.

Step 6: Record Kingdom Details

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 510
The PCs should choose a name for their kingdom. Record it on their kingdom sheet along with the following initial statistics.
  • The kingdom's level (see Leveling Up Your Kingdom is 1, and its maximum level is equal to the party level.
  • The kingdom's Size is 1.
  • The kingdom's Resource Die is a d4, and its Resource Dice total is 5.
  • The kingdom's initial commodity stores are 0, and its maximum storage limit for each is 4.

Step 7: Choose Leaders

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 510
Every kingdom needs leaders, and in Kingmaker, the assumption is that those leaders include the PCs (though if the party has more than eight PCs, not all PCs will have leadership roles). Full rules for leadership roles are in Leadership Roles.

First, assign each PC to a different leadership role. It's best if the party works together to assign these roles. Then, assign any remaining roles to NPCs whom the PCs have allied with and who are capable and willing to serve in a leadership role.

Next, choose four leadership roles to invest. Investing a role provides a status bonus to Kingdom skill checks based on that role's key ability (see Key Ability under Leadership Roles). Invest roles assigned to PCs first (so if your party has fewer than four PCs, you'll invest only enough NPC roles to make up the difference).

These initial leadership assignments happen as part of the founding of the kingdom and do not require a kingdom activity to occur. Once the kingdom is established, adjusting leadership requires using the New Leadership kingdom activity.

Then, each of the four invested leaders chooses to apply the trained proficiency rank to a different Kingdom skill. You may not choose skills that already received training from your choice of government type. These proficiency ranks cannot be reassigned later.

On the kingdom sheet, record the leader you assigned to each role and indicate the four roles you invested. Record a +1 status bonus to the skill associated with each invested role's key ability, and record the four skills that your nation received training in.

Step 8: First Village

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 511
Somewhere in that heartland hex lies the kingdom's first village—the capital. Rules for founding settlements begin on Founding a Village, but the players can skip Step 1 and Step 2 of that process when founding this village. Since this is their first village, the PCs gain 40 kingdom XP as a milestone award; record it on the kingdom sheet, along with the capital's name. If the site the PCs have chosen has any established structures listed in the hex's resources in Chapter 2, place them in blocks of the PCs' choice on an Urban Grid . (The PCs won't add new structures to the settlement before their first Kingdom turn.)

Step 9: Calculate Skill Modifiers

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 511
With the big decisions made, it's time to calculate modifiers for each of the kingdom's skills. Each skill is associated with a specific ability (see Kingdom Skills), and the initial modifier for each skill consists of the ability modifier for the associated ability, plus a proficiency bonus, plus a status bonus for skills that receive them from invested leadership roles. (There are several other types of bonuses and penalties that can affect skill modifiers later in the campaign; leave those boxes empty for now.)

Initial modifier = modifier of the skill's key ability score + proficiency bonus + status bonus

If a kingdom is not proficient in a skill, the proficiency bonus is +0; if a kingdom is trained in a skill, the proficiency bonus is that kingdom's level plus 2. (It's not possible to attain proficiency ranks beyond trained until 3rd level.)

For example, the Agriculture skill is associated with Loyalty. If the kingdom's Loyalty modifier is +1, and it is untrained in Agriculture, then its Agriculture skill modifier is +1. If that 1st-level kingdom is trained in Agriculture, though, add to that a proficiency bonus of 3 (the kingdom's level plus 2). If a leadership role that provides a status bonus to Loyalty-based checks (Ruler or Emissary) is invested, add another 1.

Calculate the initial modifiers for all skills and record them on the kingdom sheet.

Step 10: Fame or Infamy?

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 511
Finally, the PCs should decide if they want their kingdom to aspire to fame or infamy. A famous kingdom seeks to bolster its citizens, forge alliances with neighbors, or oppose the rise of cruelty, while an infamous kingdom uses its citizens as resources, undermines and sabotages its neighbors, or actively seeks warfare. It's an oversimplification to call a famous kingdom a “good” kingdom or an infamous kingdom an “evil” one, and disruptive elements like crime or corruption will harm an infamous kingdom as surely as a famous one. As such, kingdoms do not have alignments to track. The choice here solely determines whether the kingdom uses Fame or Infamy points and the influence certain structures might have on the kingdom. Fill in the box for the type of points you won't be tracking.

Leveling Up your Kingdom

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 511
Kingdoms increase in level by gaining kingdom experience points (XP). At each new level, a kingdom improves attributes and focus areas beyond those provided by its basic background and the specific choices made at the time of its founding.

At the end of a Kingdom turn, if the kingdom has at least 1,000 XP and has not yet reached its maximum level (see below), increase the kingdom's level by 1 and deduct 1,000 from its current XP total. (The kingdom's level can't increase by more than 1 on a single Kingdom turn.) Note the kingdom's new level on the kingdom sheet. If the kingdom has any leftover XP, they are retained and count toward gaining the next level.

The kingdom's maximum level is equal to the party's level; it can never exceed the level of the PCs themselves. So, for example, if the PCs are still 1st level when the kingdom reaches 1,000 XP, the kingdom cannot level up yet; it will level up at the end of the first Kingdom turn after the PCs have reached 2nd level. (It's possible for a kingdom to accumulate a large reserve of XP, at which point the party's level effectively determines when that kingdom levels up rather than just XP accumulation. This is fine.)

When your kingdom gains a level, each army you have gains a level as well. See Appendix 3 for additional details on armies.

As the kingdom advances, it gains the abilities described on these two pages. Abilities gained at levels higher than first list the level at which they are gained next to their name.

Kingdom Advancement

LevelControl DC Kingdom features
114Charter, government, heartland, initial proficiencies, favored land, settlement construction (village)
215Kingdom feat
316Settlement construction (town), skill increase
418Expansion expert, fine living, Kingdom feat
520Ability boosts, ruin resistance, skill increase
622Kingdom feat
723Skill increase
824Experienced leadership +2, Kingdom feat, ruin resistance
926Expansion expert (Claim Hex 3 times/turn), settlement construction (city), skill increase
1027Ability boosts, Kingdom feat, life of luxury
1128Ruin resistance, skill increase
1230Civic planning, Kingdom feat
1331Skill increase
1432Kingdom feat, ruin resistance
1534Ability boosts, settlement construction (metropolis), skill increase
1635Experienced leadership +3, Kingdom feat
1736Ruin resistance, skill increase
1838Kingdom feat
1939Skill increase
2040Ability boosts, envy of the world, Kingdom feat, ruin resistance

Control DC

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 512
The more powerful a kingdom grows, the more difficult it becomes to control it. The base Control DC for your kingdom is set by the kingdom's level—fortunately, as you increase in level, your ability to successfully utilize your skills grows as well.

Charter, Government, and Heartland

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 512
Your kingdom gains the benefits of your selected charter, government, and heartland.

Initial Proficiencies

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 512
At 1st level, a kingdom receives the trained proficiency rank in two Kingdom skills gained from your initial choice of government and in up to four additional Kingdom skills determined by your invested leaders, giving you a proficiency bonus to checks using these skills equal to your kingdom level plus 2. Proficiencies cannot be changed, even if the kingdom's government or leaders later change.

Favored Land

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 512
Your heartland's terrain becomes your kingdom's favored land—the wilderness terrain that your people feel the strongest emotional ties to and to which your resource gatherers tend to flock. Once per Kingdom turn, during the Region Activities step of the Activity phase, you can attempt two Region activities simultaneously as long as both activities take place in the same hex and that hex contains the same terrain as your heartland. You take a –2 penalty to Kingdom skill checks made during these two activities.

Settlement Construction

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 512
You can establish villages in your kingdom immediately. At 3rd level, you can expand villages into towns. At 9th level, you can expand towns into cities. And at 15th level, you can expand cities into metropolises.

As villages grow into larger settlements, you not only gain more room to build, but the maximum item bonus you can gain from that settlement's structures increases as well (see Settlement Types).

Kingdom Feats 2nd

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 513
At 2nd level, and then every 2 levels thereafter, the kingdom gains a Kingdom feat.

Skill Increase (3rd)

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 513
At 3rd level and every 2 levels thereafter, your kingdom gains a skill increase. You can use this to increase your rank to trained in one skill in which your kingdom is untrained, or to increase your rank to expert in one skill in which your kingdom is trained.

Starting at 7th level, you can use your skill increases to increase your kingdom's proficiency to master in a skill in which your kingdom is already an expert. Beginning at 15th level, you can use them to increase your proficiency to legendary in a skill in which your kingdom is already a master.

Expansion Expert (4th)

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 513
Your kingdom is better at expanding its territory. You gain a +2 circumstance bonus to skill checks made to Claim Hex and can attempt to Claim Hex up to twice during a Kingdom turn.

At 9th level, you can attempt to Claim Hex up to three times during a Kingdom turn.

Fine Living (4th)

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 513
Your people celebrate your leadership by indulging you with feasts and finery. All PCs associated with the kingdom enjoy a Fine standard of living at no cost whenever they're in the kingdom. Any PCs in hostile wilderness, a monster-filled dungeon, or otherwise cut off from their citizens must provide their own sustenance as usual even if they are within the boundaries of their kingdom.

You gain a +1 circumstance bonus to all checks made to Craft or Earn Income while in your kingdom.

Ability Boosts (5th)

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 513
At 5th level and every 5 levels thereafter, you boost two different kingdom ability scores. You can use these ability boosts to increase your kingdom's ability scores above 18. Boosting an ability score increases it by 2 if it starts out below 18, or by 1 if it's already 18 or above.

Ruin Resistance (5th)

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 513
At 5th level and every 3 levels thereafter, your kingdom becomes more resistant to Ruin. Choose one of the four Ruin categories and increase its threshold by 2. When you do so, reset that Ruin's penalty to 0. See Ruin for more information.

Experienced Leadership (8th)

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 513
Invested leadership roles in your kingdom now grant a +2 status bonus to kingdom checks associated with their leadership role's key ability.

At 16th level, this increases to a +3 status bonus.

Life of Luxury (10th)

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 513
Your people lavish you with every creature comfort. This is identical to Fine Living, but all PC leaders enjoy an Extravagant standard of living at no cost whenever they're in the kingdom. You gain a +2 circumstance bonus to all checks made to Craft or Earn Income while in your kingdom.

Civic Planning (12th)

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 513
During the Civic Activities step of the Activities phase of a Kingdom turn, one settlement of the party's choice can attempt two Civic activities rather than one. The second Civic activity occurs after all other settlements have taken their individual Civic activities.

Envy of the World (20th)

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 513
Your kingdom is one of the world's prominent nations. The first time in a Kingdom turn when your kingdom would gain Unrest or Ruin, ignore that increase. You can ignore additional increases to Unrest or Ruin later in the same turn as well, but you must spend a Fame or Infamy point each time you do so. Your maximum Fame or Infamy point total increases by 1.

Leadership Roles

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 514
All kingdoms have leaders who fill roles tending to the economy, defense, and health of its citizens. Each role grants the kingdom different benefits, provided a character—be it a PC or an NPC—takes up the mantle of serving in that role. A character can only fill one leadership role at a time, but it's important to have all eight roles filled, for when a kingdom goes without a leader, problems arise.

If unexpected events (such as the death of a character) remove a leader from a leadership role, the New Leadership kingdom activity may immediately be used to assign a new leader to that role—even outside of a Kingdom turn.


Upkeep phase of the next Kingdom turn, they either incur their role's vacancy penalty (see below) or lose one of their leadership activities for that turn.

There is an advantage to assigning a leadership role to a PC rather than an NPC. Each kingdom event specifies a leader, and if that leader is a PC who is not incurring a vacancy penalty, the kingdom receives a bonus to the kingdom check that determines the event's outcome (see Kingdom Even Descriptions).

Some benefits require that a role be invested. In step 7 of Kingdom Creation, the players select 4 leadership roles to be invested; at the start of each Kingdom turn, they may reselect the roles that are invested (see Assign Leadership Roles. Note that when certain companions detailed in the Kingmaker Companion Guide hold the leadership roles listed in their entry in that book, those roles are automatically invested; this is in addition to the four roles the players choose to invest.

Statistics for leadership roles are presented in the following format.

Leadership Role Name

A description of the leader's role is provided here.
Key Ability This lists the kingdom ability score that is most impacted by the leader. When this role is invested, all Kingdom skill checks based on this ability gain a +1 status bonus. This bonus increases to +2 when the kingdom reaches 8th level, and then to +3 when the kingdom reaches 16th level.
Since status bonuses don't stack (see Attempting Kingdom Skill Checks), you may want to invest one role that benefits each of the 4 kingdom abilities—but since each leadership role offers other unique benefits to the kingdom, spreading out the roles in that way may not always be the best choice!
Vacancy Penalty At the start of each Kingdom turn, if any leader has not spent the required week of downtime in that role (see above) since the end of the last Kingdom turn, they must either give up one of the three activities they would take during the Leadership Activities step of the Activity phase, or apply this penalty until the start of the next Kingdom turn. (When the vacancy penalty ends, any Unrest generated by the vacancy remains in place and must be ameliorated in the normal fashion.) Vacancy penalties also apply to leadership roles that are unassigned.

Ruler

The Ruler performs the kingdom's most important ceremonies, is the kingdom's chief diplomatic officer, serves as the signatory for all laws affecting the entire kingdom, pardons criminals when appropriate, and is responsible for appointing characters to all other high positions in the kingdom's government.
Key Ability Loyalty
Vacancy Penalty –1 to all checks (this stacks with any other vacancy penalty); gain 1d4 Unrest at the start of the Kingdom turn; Control DC increases by 2

Counselor

The Counselor is a liaison between government and citizens. They study issues with academic analysis but also interpret the desires of the citizenry and present proclamations to the people in understandable ways. They also serve as an advisor to the other leaders, particularly to the Ruler.
Key Ability Culture
Vacancy Penalty –1 to all Culture-based checks

General

The General leads the kingdom's military, heading its armies and managing subordinate military commanders. The General is responsible for looking after the needs of the kingdom's military and directing them in times of war.
Key Ability Stability
Vacancy Penalty –4 to Warfare activities (see Appendix 3)

Emissary

The Emissary keeps state secrets, oversees clandestine intrigues, and deals with criminal elements within the kingdom. They manage foreign policy and interactions with other kingdoms, as well as the interactions of political organizations and power brokers at home. Whether or not your emissary is a public figure or someone who manipulates events behind the scenes, their role in the kingdom remains the same.
Key Ability Loyalty
Vacancy Penalty –1 to all Loyalty-based checks

Magister

The Magister is in charge of all things magical in the kingdom, attending to how the supernatural affects ordinary citizens. They promote higher learning in the arts of magic, whether arcane, divine, occult, or primal. They oversee any aspects of governmental bureaucracy in which magic can be of service to the kingdom's needs and interests.

Key Ability Culture
Vacancy Penalty –4 to Warfare activities (see Appendix 3)

Treasurer

The Treasurer monitors the kingdom's funds and the state of business and industry, as well as the citizens' confidence in the economy and the growth of the nation's manufacturing capacity. They work to ensure a fair market for all, investigate those who take advantage of the system, and handle taxation issues.
Key Ability Economy
Vacancy Penalty –1 to all Economy-based checks

Viceroy

The Viceroy plans and implements the kingdom's expansion and development, both in its territories and its settlements. They manage the infrastructure of the nation, overseeing major capital improvements and growing the networks that connect the hinterlands with the cities at the nation's heart, helping keep the kingdom moving and growing.
Key Ability Economy
Vacancy Penalty –1 to Stability-based checks

Warden

The Warden monitors the safety, security, and overall health of the kingdom, its lands, and its borders. They manage scouts and patrols in the countryside, respond to local threats and menaces as needed, and oversee the kingdom's overall defense and health.
Key Ability Stability
Vacancy Penalty –4 to Region activities

Kingdom Skills

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 515
Every nation has its own distinct areas of specialization, the things in which it invests its time, talent, and treasure, and the pursuits and features for which the nation becomes renowned for—these are tracked as a kingdom's skills. At 1st level, the maximum number of skills in which a kingdom can have trained proficiency is six: two determined by the kingdom's initial choice of government and up to four others determined by leadership roles. As a kingdom levels up, it can acquire training in additional skills and increase proficiencies to expert, master, or legendary. Choices about proficiencies cannot be changed after they have been made.

Attempting Kingdom Skill Checks

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 515
During a Kingdom turn, the PCs attempt Kingdom skill checks. Such checks determine the effects of many things that affect the kingdom, including enduring a hardship, completing a task, impressing a visiting band of dignitaries, fighting off monsters, building a structure, or expanding into a new hex.

A skill check for a kingdom works just like a skill check for a PC. One of the players—typically the one playing the PC whose key attribute or role is most appropriate—rolls 1d20 and adds the appropriate skill modifier, which consists of the kingdom's ability modifier for the ability associated with the skill plus any other applicable modifiers, including the kingdom's proficiency bonus in that skill and any other situational bonuses and penalties that might arise.

Check result = d20 roll + skill modifier Skill modifier = key ability score modifier + proficiency bonus + other bonuses – penalties

If the check result equals or exceeds the Difficulty Class (DC) of the check, it is a success. If it exceeds the DC by 10 or more, it's a critical success. If the check result is less than the DC, it is a failure. If it misses the DC by 10 or more, it's a critical failure. Critically succeeding (or failing) still counts as succeeding (or failing), but if the situation that required the check describes specific results for criticals, apply only the more specific result.

If a player rolls a natural 20, the result is improved one degree; for example, turning a failure into a success or a success into a critical success. Also, if the player rolls a natural 1, the result is worsened one degree, turning a success into a failure or a failure into a critical failure. (The result cannot be improved or worsened beyond critical.)

Whenever a Kingdom skill check results in a critical success, the kingdom gains 1 Fame/Infamy point. A kingdom cannot acquire Fame/Infamy beyond its maximum allotment.

The five different types of modifiers (bonuses or penalties) that can apply to Kingdom skill checks are described below. When different types of modifier apply to the same check, add them all. But when multiple modifiers of the same type apply, use only the highest bonus and the worst penalty of that type—in other words, modifiers of the same type (except bonuses granted by structures—see below) don't stack. For instance, if both a proficiency bonus and an item bonus could apply to a check, add both to the die result, but if two item bonuses could apply, add only the higher of the two.

Proficiency bonuses are modifiers determined by a kingdom's proficiency with a skill, using the Proficiency Bonuses table below.

Circumstance modifiers are the result of something that happens during a kingdom event, of an activity, or of an ability granted by the kingdom's level.

Item modifiers are granted by settlement structures or Ruin penalties. Item bonuses granted by structures are typically very specific in their application and only apply to events that take place within the influence area of the settlement in which they are located, although structures in a capital apply their item bonuses to the entire kingdom. Item bonuses granted by structures have special rules for stacking; see the Settlement Types table and Item Bonus. Ruin can inflict long-lasting item penalties to a kingdom.

Status modifiers come from leadership expertise in skills related to their role, from Kingdom feats, and from long-term events. Unrest is the most common status penalty for a kingdom.

Vacancy modifiers are always penalties. They occur when leadership roles are left vacant, or when leaders don't spend the necessary time attending to their duties.

Basic Skill Checks

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 517
Many activities call for a basic skill check—a skill check where the DC is your kingdom's Control DC.

Skill Descriptions

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 517
The following entries describe each Kingdom skill activity. General skill activities (activities that are associated with multiple skills) are listed first. After that, activities are grouped by the skill they use. Each skill grouping begins with the name of the skill, followed in parentheses by that skill's key ability. Then a brief description of the skill is provided. Within each skill grouping, untrained activities (activities that can be used even if the kingdom doesn't have proficiency ranks in the associated skill) are listed before trained activities (activities that cannot be used until the kingdom has at least the trained proficiency rank in the associated skill).

In each entry, the name of each activity is followed by a list of its traits, with the most notable being Civic, Commerce, Leadership, Region, and Upkeep. Activities can be undertaken only during the steps of the Activity phase that correspond with these traits. The trait list is followed by a description of the action(s) that must be completed to undertake the activity, including (but not limited to) a skill check. Each entry ends with a list of possible results for the skill check and any additional information unique to that activity.

Some of these activities require the expenditure or generation of resources, using the kingdom's Resource Dice and its resource points (RP).

General Skill Activities

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 517
Most skill activities are associated with only one skill; general skill activities are associated with more than one. Each indicates which skills may be used with it. Some skills may only be used in specific circumstances.

Kingdom Feats

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 531
A kingdom gains feats as it increases in level. Some feats are general-purpose abilities that apply all the time. Others grant benefits to specific kingdom activities or events or allow kingdoms to perform special activities. Each time a kingdom gains a feat, players can select any feat whose level does not exceed their kingdom's level and whose prerequisites their kingdom satisfies.

Kingdom feats can be found here.

Kingdom Rules

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 533
A kingdom's Size reflects the complexity of its governance, its influence on other nations, and its access to resources. A kingdom's Size also determines its Resource Die and other statistics. The actual total population of a kingdom is a function of its Size as well, but population numbers do not have a direct effect on these rules.

Size: The total number of hexes in the kingdom. When a kingdom's Size reaches 10, 25, 50, and 100, it gains kingdom XP as a milestone award.

Type of Nation: These are sample placeholder names for the level of prominence of a kingdom, but feel free to adjust.

Resource Die: The type of Resource Die a kingdom rolls.

Control DC Modifier: As a kingdom increases in Size, it grows more difficult to control. This modifier increases a kingdom's base Control DC.

Commodity Storage: This number indicates the maximum units of a specific Commodity that can be stored in a kingdom. Building specialized structures can increase this number on a per-Commodity basis.

Kingdom Size

SizeType of NationResource DieControl DC ModifierCommodity Storage
1–9Territory1d4+04
10–24Province1d6+18
25–49State1d8+212
50–99Country1d10+316
100+Dominion1d12+420

Resource Die

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 533
A kingdom's economy is based on the sum of the productive activity of its citizens, and that activity is reflected in a quantity of resources that the kingdom can tap into each month. These resources are represented by Resource Points (see below) which are determined by Resource Dice, with the number of dice being equal to the nation's level + 4. When a kingdom is first founded, each Resource Die is a d4, but as the kingdom advances in Size, its Resource Die increases to d6, d8, d10, or d12 (see the Kingdom Size table).

Resource Points

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 533
A kingdom's Resource Points (RP) represent a combination of the work of a kingdom's citizens and the time spent on jobs, talent, labor, tools, and funds to handle this toil. Resource points do not directly represent amounts of coins in a treasury, but rather an abstraction of the nation's total amount of available funds to handle tasks. Since luck and demand play a part in a kingdom's resources, the exact total of RP a kingdom will have each turn varies; a new total of RP is rolled at the start of each Kingdom turn using Resource Dice. Any RP not spent by the end of that turn convert to kingdom XP at a rate of 1 RP to 1 XP.

Whenever the kingdom is forced to spend RP that would drop it below 0, spend all the RP the kingdom has and then increase a Ruin of the PCs' choice by 1.

Ruin

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 533
As bad luck, natural disasters, unexpected shortages, or even warfare damage a kingdom, it becomes Ruined in one of four categories opposing the kingdom's four ability scores. Ruin rises and falls as Kingdom turns progress, but if it rises too high, it can cause lasting or even permanent harm to the kingdom.

Culture is opposed by Corruption, which represents citizens falling to debauchery, delving into forbidden lore, pursuing unethical research practices, or destroying their own heritage and history.

Economy is opposed by Crime, which includes theft, smuggling, and enterprises that suffocate prosperity.

Stability is opposed by Decay, representing physical harm, neglect, or degradation of the kingdom, its people, and its infrastructure.

Loyalty is opposed by Strife, which includes acts of treachery, subterfuge, bribery, violence, abuse of power, and infighting between groups.

Accruing Ruin: As Ruin accumulates, the categories gain points. These point totals are persistent, decreasing only in specific circumstances, but most often when a Ruin's point total exceeds that Ruin's threshold. Other events can reduce or increase a Ruin's point total as well—typically as the result of kingdom activities or events.

Ruin Threshold: Each Ruin has a threshold; a point at which the penalties associated with that Ruin increase. A Ruin's initial threshold is 10, but each threshold increases as the kingdom levels up and becomes more able to withstand Ruin in all its forms. Whenever a Ruin exceeds its threshold, reduce that Ruin's total points by an amount equal to its threshold, and increase the Ruin's penalty by 1.

Ruin Penalty: A Ruin penalty applies to all checks using that Ruin's associated ability score. For example, if your kingdom has a Corruption penalty of –4, it takes a –4 item penalty on all Culture checks.

Reducing Ruin Penalties: When a kingdom reaches 5th level, and then again every 3 levels thereafter, it gains Ruin resistance; each time it does so, it has the opportunity to reduce an existing Ruin penalty to 0. This is an extremely effective way to manage a Ruin penalty that's crept particularly high, but it's also an extremely limited resource, as a kingdom will only get, at most, 6 opportunities to adjust a Ruin penalty in this way over the course of a campaign. The Repair Reputation activity can reduce existing Ruin penalties, although at a much slower rate. Other activities or events can reduce Ruin penalties as well, as detailed in the text for each. Finally, if circumstances ever allow for a Ruin's points to be reduced and that particular Ruin is already at 0 points, instead of reducing Ruin to a negative value you can instead attempt a DC 16 flat check; on a success, reduce that Ruin's penalty by 1 to a minimum of 0.

Unrest

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 534
Unrest represents unhappiness among the kingdom's citizens, who show their lack of confidence in the leadership by balking at edicts, refusing to follow commands, and disrupting local economies through boycotts, walkouts, and refusal to talk to emissaries. Unrest is a persistent value that remains from turn to turn and can be adjusted during Kingdom turns as events play out.

Unrest 1: If a kingdom has at least 1 point of Unrest, take a –1 status penalty to all kingdom checks.

Unrest 5: If a kingdom has 5 or more points of Unrest, take a –2 status penalty to all kingdom checks.

Unrest 10: If a kingdom has 10 or more points of Unrest, take a –3 status penalty to all kingdom checks.

Unrest 15: If a kingdom has 15 or more points of Unrest, take a –4 status penalty to all kingdom checks.

Expanding a Kingdom

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 534
A kingdom grows one hex at a time on the Stolen Lands map, via Region activities like Claim Hex and Clear Hex. The PCs can pursue these activities during the Activity phase of each Kingdom turn.

Losing Hexes

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 534
It's possible to lose control of a hex. When this happens, the kingdom immediately loses any benefits from terrain improvements in that hex, and all settlements in that hex become Freeholds. Monsters may move into an abandoned hex, increasing the chance for random encounters, and if you wish to reclaim the hex, you may need to clear it first of hostile creatures. Each hex lost decreases a kingdom's Size by 1. This affects the kingdom's statistics, such as the type of its Resource Die.

If one or more hexes are lost in such a way that it breaks the connection between parts of a kingdom, so that all of the hexes are no longer contiguous with other hexes of the kingdom, whatever portion of the territory contains the capital becomes the primary territory and the rest of the kingdom becomes its secondary territory. All Kingdom skill checks made to resolve issues associated with secondary territories take a –4 circumstance penalty. When a kingdom starts a turn with any number of secondary territories, increase Unrest by 1. Once a secondary territory is connected to the primary territory via at least one hex, it becomes part of the primary territory.

If a kingdom is reduced to 0 hexes, whether through Unrest, a disaster, war with another kingdom, or any other effect, the PCs are at risk of having their rule end. On their next Kingdom turn, they must claim at least one new hex and establish or claim at least one settlement, or their kingdom is considered totally destroyed, and they must start over. In this case, you should have the PCs undertake a new adventure of your design to secure a new charter.

Diplomatic Relations

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 534
Diplomatic relations refers to acts of leadership that engage with other nations. In order to begin diplomatic relations with another group, PCs must first successfully Send a Diplomatic Envoy to the target group. When they establish diplomatic relations with a group, record the name of that group on the kingdom sheet. Once the PCs have established diplomatic relations with a group, they can use the Establish Trade Agreement and Request Foreign Aid Leadership activities.

Trade Agreements

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 534
The PCs can bolster their kingdom's economy by Establishing Trade Agreements with other groups with whom they have diplomatic relations. To do so, they must first successfully perform the Establish Trade Agreement activity. There is no need to record the actual physical route of the Trade Agreement on the map, nor does distance play a significant factor.

Commodities

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 535
As a kingdom grows, it stockpiles resources beyond those required for day-to-day life. These resources are known as Commodities and are used to build structures in settlements, to trade for RP using the Trade Commodities activity, or to expend during kingdom events.

The types of Commodities that are available include Food, Lumber, Luxuries, Ore, and Stone. As kingdoms accumulate or expend these Commodities, track the numbers on the kingdom sheet. Unless specialized storage improvements have been built in its settlements, a kingdom is limited to a maximum number of stored Commodities in each category as determined by its Size (see the Kingdom Size table). Commodities gathered in excess of this storage limit are lost.

Each type of Commodity can be gathered by special activities as detailed below, but Commodities can also be discovered via kingdom events or while exploring the Stolen Lands, earned as rewards for quests, purchased from allies via Purchase Commodities, or acquired via Establishing Trade Agreements.

Food stockpiles are expended to pay for Consumption during the Upkeep phase of a Kingdom turn, but also when faced with famines or other disasters, and to keep armies fed during times of war (as described in those events). Food is gathered with Harvest Crops, Go Fishing, or Gather Livestock.

Lumber is used to build structures during the Civic Activities step of the Activity phase of a Kingdom turn, and it is gathered from lumber camps built by Establish Work Site.

Luxuries are used to build specialized structures or are expended during certain encounters, generally those with high stakes or magical effects. Luxuries can be found during adventuring, created via Craft Luxuries, or earned during certain events.

Ore is used to build structures. Ore is gathered from mines built by Establish Work Site.

Stone is used to build structures and is gathered from quarries built by Establish Work Site.

Terrain Features

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 535
Many hexes have features that grant benefits once claimed. In some cases, certain Region activities must be taken before a hex's benefits can be enjoyed. These terrain features offer unique opportunities for a kingdom to add something special to its national character and may improve one or more of the kingdom's statistics. Some hexes offer one-of-a-kind benefits which are fully described within the adventure itself; more common terrain features are presented here.

A single hex can contain only one terrain feature. If you want to construct a feature in a hex that already contains a feature, you must first Clear the Hex unless otherwise specified in the text.

Bridge: A hex that contains an easy land route over a river (be it a bridge or a ford) bypasses the normal increase in RP cost to Build Roads in that hex. A Settlement can be built in a hex with a Bridge; doing so allows that Settlement to start with a Bridge structure on one water border.

Farmland: No Farmland hexes exist in the Stolen Lands at the start of Kingmaker; they must be created by the PCs via the Establish Farmland activity. Each Farmland hex reduces a kingdom's Consumption score by 1, provided the Farmland lies in the area of influence of one of its settlements. Settlements cannot be built in a Farmland hex. Some kingdom events can result in Farmland being destroyed. When that happens, the hex loses its Farmland status. To restore it, a PC must successfully use the Establish Farmland activity on the hex during a future Kingdom turn.

Freehold: A Freehold is a special kind of Settlement— one that's not part of your kingdom. It may be of any size, from a village to a city. If you can convince the locals that your leadership is worthy, they may choose to join your nation and become your citizens. Bringing a Freehold into a kingdom requires a successful Pledge of Fealty leadership action. When a new settlement joins a kingdom, immediately add that settlement and its structures to the kingdom (as detailed in the encounter text). The kingdom gains no XP for any improvements already built there. Any future improvements built there grant normal XP awards.

Landmark: A Landmark is a site of great pride, mystery, or wonder, such as an outcropping in the shape of a human face, a supernaturally ancient tree, or a lake with an unusual color. Adding Landmarks to a kingdom inspires its artists and bolsters kingdom morale. When the PCs add a Landmark hex to a kingdom, reduce Unrest by 1d4, and until the end of your next Kingdom turn, all Culture- and Economy-based skill checks gain a +2 circumstance bonus. When a kingdom claims its first Landmark hex, it gains 40 kingdom XP as a milestone award.

Refuge: A Refuge is a place where people can shelter in safety, such as a hidden valley, a cave system, an isle in the middle of a river, or similar naturally defensible location that can be used as a safe fallback point, storage location, or even a guard post or prison. At the GM's option, creature lairs may function as potential Refuges when claimed, provided the creatures that dwell there are defeated or allied with. When you claim a Refuge hex, reduce one of the kingdom's Ruins by 1, and until the end of your next Kingdom turn, all Loyalty- and Stability-based skill checks gain a +2 circumstance bonus. When a kingdom claims its first Refuge hex, it gains 40 kingdom XP as a milestone award.

Resource: Any hex indicated as being a particularly dense or lucrative source of Lumber, Ore, or Stone makes for an excellent place to Establish a Work Site. If the PCs Establish a Work Site in such a hex that focuses on the appropriate type of Commodity (as indicated in the encounter text), all Commodities produced are doubled.

Ruins: Ruins in a hex consist of a partially destroyed structure, often one that has been claimed by bandits, monsters, or other inhabitants. If you Claim and Clear a hex with Ruins in it, you can thereafter use what remains of the Ruins as the basis of an appropriate type of Settlement structure (as indicated by the encounter text), reducing the cost of that structure by half.

Settlement: A Settlement can be a village, town, city, or metropolis; see Settlements for full details.

Structure: If the PCs Clear a hex that contains a Structure, they can automatically add that structure to a settlement founded there, free of cost. Each specific hex encounter area in this Adventure Path notes any types of structure it contains, as appropriate.

Work Site: A Work Site generates commodities each Kingdom turn once you establish it via Establish Work Site. A Work Site established in a regular hex generates 1 Lumber, 1 Stone, or 1 Ore, depending on what type of site it is. Unlike most features, a Work Site can be constructed in a hex that already features a Resource, provided the Work Site is focused on harvesting that specific Resource. A Work Site established in a Resource hex doubles its Commodity production to 2. Work Site Commodities accumulate during the Upkeep phase of a Kingdom turn. Some kingdom events can result in Work Sites being destroyed. When that happens, the hex loses its Work Site status; to restore it, you must successfully perform the Establish Work Site activity on the hex during a future Kingdom turn.

Fame and Infamy

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 537
Fame and Infamy represent a kingdom's reputation as it's regarded by its neighbors. When the PCs create their kingdom, they must decide if their kingdom aims to become famous or infamous—the choice is largely cosmetic but does impact where and how you gain points in either. For example, some structures can grant these points when built, but only if their Fame/Infamy trait matches that of the kingdom.

Kingdoms initially have a maximum of 3 Fame/ Infamy points at any one time. These can be used in one of two ways. Neither of these is an action, but the entire party must agree to spend the point. All Fame/ Infamy points left unspent at the end of a Kingdom turn are lost.

Spend 1 Fame/Infamy Point to reroll a Kingdom skill check. You must use the second result. This is a fortune effect (which means you can't use more than 1 Fame/ Infamy point on a check).

Spend all your Fame/Infamy Points to stave off the effects of anarchy or ruination. You can do this if a kingdom's Unrest would result in anarchy (in which case your Unrest is instead set at 1 point below the value at which anarchy occurs), or if an increase to a Ruin would increase the ruin penalty (in which case the Ruin is instead set at one point below the value at which a ruin penalty would accrue).

Earning Fame or Infamy Points

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 537
You earn 1 Fame or Infamy point (as appropriate) automatically at the start of each Kingdom turn. You can earn additional points in the following ways.

Achieve a Critical Success: Whenever you roll a critical success on a Kingdom skill check, gain 1 Fame/ Infamy point.

Build a Famous/Infamous Structure: Certain settlement structures grant 1 Fame or Infamy point when they are built. If your kingdom builds a structure that opposes your Fame or Infamy, you lose 1 point.

Create a Masterpiece: Once per Kingdom turn, you can attempt to Create a Masterpiece to potentially gain points, at the risk of losing points.

Undertake a Noteworthy Act: At the GM's discretion, a noteworthy act taken by a PC during play grants an additional automatic Fame or Infamy point (as appropriate) at the start of the next Kingdom turn.

Running a Kingdom

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 537
Running a kingdom plays out as Kingdom turns that occur at the end of each in-game month. Each Kingdom turn is divided into phases, and these phases are divided into steps. The table below lists the Kingdom activities available to use during each step.

Upkeep Phase

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 537
During the Upkeep phase, you adjust your kingdom's statistics based on activities you have taken during the previous month. Remember that you earn 1 Fame or Infamy point at the start of your turn.

Step 1: Assign Leadership Roles

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 537
To assign or change characters associated with leadership roles, do so now using the New Leadership kingdom activity. You can perform this activity as often as you wish during this step. Next, determine if any vacancy penalties apply. Any unassigned roles incur their vacancy penalties. Also, if a character assigned to a leadership role hasn't spent the required week of downtime on that role since the end of the last Kingdom turn, they must either give up one of the three kingdom activities they would perform during the Leadership Activities step of the Activity phase of this Kingdom turn or apply the vacancy penalty for their role until the start of the next Kingdom turn. (NPCs cannot perform kingdom activities, so in the unusual case that they were unable to spend the required downtime—see Leadership Roles—they must apply the vacancy penalty.) If a leader was replaced between Kingdom turns due to an unexpected vacancy, as long as a character currently holds the role and any characters assigned to the role collectively spent the required downtime, the vacancy penalty does not apply.

Step 2: Adjust Unrest

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 538
On your first Kingdom turn, your kingdom's Unrest score is 0; skip to the next step.

On all other turns, adjust your Unrest score: Increase it by 1 for every settlement in your kingdom that's Overcrowded. If you are at war, increase it by 1. Other ongoing events may have ongoing Unrest adjustments as well; make them at this time.

After making all adjustments, if your kingdom's Unrest is 10 or higher, the kingdom gains 1d10 points to its Ruins. Distribute these points in any way you wish among the four Ruins. In addition, attempt a DC 11 flat check. On a failure, one hex of your kingdom is lost; the PCs choose which hex. See Losing Hexes for more information.

If your kingdom's Unrest is 20 or higher, the entire nation also falls into anarchy. While in anarchy, you can only attempt Quell Unrest activities, and the results of all kingdom checks are worsened one degree.

Step 3: Resource Collection

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 538
The exact amount of resources you have to draw upon each Kingdom turn varies, as each month there are countless unexpected boons and setbacks throughout each citizen's life that can impact how they can bolster your national plans.

First, determine the number of Resource Dice you are entitled to roll for the current Kingdom turn by adding your kingdom level + 4 to any bonus dice or penalty dice you gained from the previous turn. You cannot have fewer than 0 Resource Dice.

Resource Dice = kingdom level + 4 + bonus dice – penalty dice

Next, roll your Resource Dice to determine how many Resource Points (RP) you have available during this turn. Your RP is equal to the roll result. (RP remaining at the end of your turn can be converted into kingdom Experience Points.)

Finally, if you have any Work Sites established in your kingdom, gather Commodities. You gain 1 Commodity from each Work Site, or double that if the Work Site is in a Resource hex. Any Commodities gathered in excess of your storage capacity are lost.

Step 4: Pay Consumption

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 538
Your settlements and armies require a certain amount of provisions, supplies, and funding, as well as all the basic necessities of life.

On your first Kingdom turn, your kingdom's Consumption score is 0; skip to the next step. On all other turns, calculate your kingdom's Consumption score. This is the total of your settlements' Consumption scores plus your armies' Consumption scores minus the number of Farmland hexes you have within influence range of your settlements, plus any modifiers from kingdom events.

Kingdom Consumption = settlement Consumption total + army Consumption total – Farmland hexes influenced by settlements + modifiers from kingdom events

Spend Food Commodities equal to your kingdom's Consumption. If you can't or choose not to spend this Commodity cost, you can either spend 5 RP per point of unpaid Consumption or increase Unrest by 1d4.

Commerce Phase

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 538
The Commerce phase is when the kingdom generates revenue or makes trade agreements.

Step 1: Collect Taxes

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 538
You can Collect Taxes once per Kingdom turn to attempt to bolster your Economy-based checks for the remainder of the Kingdom turn. If you don't attempt to Collect Taxes, you can instead attempt a DC 11 flat check; on a success, reduce Unrest by 1.

Step 2: Approve Expenses

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 538
You can draw upon the kingdom's funds to enhance the standard of living for its citizens by attempting the Improve Lifestyle activity or you can attempt a withdrawal from the kingdom's funds using the Tap Treasury activity.

Step 3: Tap Commodities

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 539
If your kingdom has any stockpiles of Commodities, you can attempt the Trade Commodities activity to bolster your RP for the turn.

Step 4: Manage Trade Agreements

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 539
If you've established trade agreements, you can use the Manage Trade Agreements activity.

Activity Phase

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 539
The Activity phase is when you make proclamations on expanding your kingdom, declare holidays, and manage your territory and settlements. It's during this phase that the bulk of your kingdom's growth occurs.

Step 1: Leadership Activities

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 539
If your kingdom's capital has a Castle, Palace, or Town Hall, each PC in a leadership role may attempt up to three Leadership activities. If your capital has none of these structures, each PC can take no more than two Leadership activities during this step. Your party chooses the order you go in when taking Leadership activities. Unless an activity states otherwise, a leader cannot attempt the same Leadership activity more than once per Kingdom turn.

Step 2: Region Activities

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 539
The PC leaders may now collectively attempt up to three Region activities. The players decide who rolls any skill checks needed to resolve these activities.

Step 3: Civic Activities

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 539
Your party may now attempt one Civic activity for each of the kingdom's settlements. You determine the order in which these activities are attempted and who rolls any skill checks.

Event Phase

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 539
Events affect entire kingdom, single hexes, or a settlement. Some are harmful, while some are beneficial. Certain events continue for multiple turns, and only come to an end once they've been properly handled by the PCs or their kingdom.

Step 1: Check for Random Event

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 539
Attempt a DC 16 flat check. On success, a random kingdom event occurs (see Kingdom Events). If no random event occurs, the DC for this check in the next Kingdom turn is reduced by 5. Once an event occurs, the DC resets to 16.

Step 2: Event Resolution

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 539
Random events present opportunities to go forth in exploration or encounter mode to deal with a rampaging monster or the like; these are handled now. In some chapters of the Kingmaker Adventure Path, specific story events are introduced outside of Kingdom turns; these are resolved when they occur.

Step 3: Apply Kingdom XP

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 539
The GM now awards any kingdom XP earned during that turn. If the kingdom experienced a random event, it receives 30 XP. The first Kingdom turn that your kingdom spent 100 RP, gain 80 kingdom XP as a milestone award.

In addition, any RP that remains unspent is now converted to kingdom XP on a 1 to 1 ration, to a maximum of 120 XP per Kingdom turn.

Step 4: Increase Kingdom Level

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 539
If your kingdom's XP total is above 1,000, and your kingdom isn't at its maximum level, increase your kingdom level by 1 and subtract 1,000 from your XP total. See Leveling Up Your Kingdom for the full rules for leveling up.

Gaining Kingdom Experience

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 540
A kingdom gains experience (XP) by claiming hexes, reaching milestones that occur during the course of a campaign, enduring random kingdom events, or converting surplus RP at the end of a Kingdom turn.

Hex Claim XP Awards

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Each time a kingdom claims a hex, it earns 10 kingdom XP. If this hex is lost at a later date, the kingdom does not lose the XP earned from claiming it. Conversely, if the kingdom reclaims a lost hex, it does not gain XP from reclaiming it.

Milestone XP Awards

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 540
As the kingdom grows, the kingdom gains XP the first time it reaches a milestone. These XP awards are given only once, the first time each milestone is attained.

Kingdom Milestone XP Awards

XP AwardMilestone
40Claim your first Landmark
40Claim your first Refuge
40Establish your first village
40Reach kingdom Size 10
60Establish diplomatic relations for the first time
60Expand a village into your first town
60All eight leadership roles are assigned
60Reach kingdom Size 25
80Establish your first trade agreement
80Expand a town into your first city
80Reach kingdom Size 50
80Spend 100 RP during a Kingdom turn
120Expand a city into your first metropolis
120Reach kingdom Size 100

Event XP Awards

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 540
A kingdom earns 30 XP for experiencing a random event or more for a Story event, regardless of the event's outcome.

Surplus RP XP Awards

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 540
Any RP remaining unspent at the end of a Kingdom turn is converted into XP at a ratio of 1 to 1 (see Step 3: Apply Kingdom XP).

Settlements

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 540
A ruler's territory provides the canvas upon which they can build a kingdom, but the true art of leadership is displayed in how one establishes and develops the settlements where citizens gather and live out their lives. While individual citizens like trappers, hunters, fishers, and farmers might dwell alone or with their families in the outskirts of a settlement, the majority of a kingdom's people live within the villages, towns, cities, and metropolises built for them.

The Urban Grid

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 540
The Urban Grid presents a simple graphical representation of a settlement (see page 633 for an example). The grid divides a settlement into 9 large districts (blocks) arranged in a 3-by-3 square. Each district itself comprises 4 individual neighborhoods (lots) arranged in a 2-by-2 square. It is these neighborhood lots in which you'll build structures to improve your settlement.

While the Urban Grid diagrams your settlement as a square, this is simply an organizational abstraction—it doesn't mean that your settlements are literally square. If it helps your sense of verisimilitude, feel free to cut up the Urban Grid and arrange blocks of four lots in any shape you wish. For a city hugging the shores of a great bay, you could draw out the bay and simply paste the blocks in a long row lining the coastline, or in any other arrangement that suits your taste.

Though the Urban Grid depicts 9 blocks for each settlement, the number of blocks in which you can build is limited by the settlement's category: a village consists of only a single block (and can thus host a maximum of only 4 lots of structures), while a city can expand to all 9 blocks (and can host up to 36 lots of structures). It's even possible for your settlement to become a metropolis, expanding to more than one Urban Grid! (See Settlement Types for complete details of settlement categories.)

Urban Grid Borders

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 540
The four sides of the Urban Grid are where you record the types of borders your settlement has. Land Borders: By default, all of your settlement's borders are unremarkable transitions from urban to hinterland—these are known as Land Borders. You take a cumulative –1 item penalty on Trade checks for each settlement in your kingdom that has no Land Borders, unless it has at least one Water Border with a Bridge.

Water Borders: When you place a settlement in a hex that has lake, river, or swamp terrain, you can locate it so that it has Water Borders. Water Borders provide natural defenses to your settlement during Warfare, and some structures can only be constructed in lots adjacent to Water Borders. However, crossing Water Borders that lack Bridges takes a long time (see Navigating an Urban Grid).

If a settlement has only Water Borders, it is on an island; until you build at least one Bridge, that settlement's influence is 0.

Walled Borders: Building Walls on your borders boosts your settlement's defense in certain events and in Warfare.

Navigating an Urban Grid

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 541
You can simulate travel in a settlement using the Urban Grid to approximate distances. Since moving through a settlement requires a character to follow twisting roads, navigate crowds, or endure minor distractions along the way, it takes 15 minutes to move from one lot to an adjacent lot, or to cross a border (including exiting the settlement). If the settlement has Paved Streets, this travel time is reduced to 5 minutes. Crossing a Water Border that doesn't have a Bridge takes an hour.

Settlement Types

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 541
As your kingdom levels up and your settlements grow, a settlement's type can change, providing different benefits and costs to your kingdom (see the table and descriptions below).

Settlement Types

SettlementSizePopulationLevelConsumptionMax. Item BonusInfluence
Village (1st)1 block400 or less11+10
Town (3rd)4 blocks401–2,0002–42+11 hex
City (9th)9 blocks2,001–25,0005–94+22 hexes
Metropolis (15th)10+ blocks25,001+10+6+33 hexes

Settlement

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 541
This indicates the type of settlement, with the minimum kingdom level to support such a settlement in parenthesis. Village: Settlements start as villages, consisting of a single block of 4 lots. When you Build a Structure in a lot, you must select a lot in that block.

Town: Once your kingdom is 3rd level and you've filled all four lots in your village, as long as your settlement is not Overcrowded, the next time you Build a Structure in a lot, you may choose a lot in any block adjacent to your current block. As you do so, your village becomes a town. A town consists of 2 to 4 blocks of 4 lots each. The blocks must be contiguous, but they need not be a square—they could form a T, L, or S shape if you like. When your kingdom gains its first town, gain 60 kingdom XP as a milestone award.

City: Once your kingdom is 9th level and you've filled in at least two lots in each of your town's 4 blocks, if your settlement is not Overcrowded, you may choose a lot anywhere on the Urban Grid when you Build a Structure in a lot. The first time you do so, the town transitions into a city. When your kingdom gains its first city, gain 80 kingdom XP as a milestone award.

Metropolis: When your kingdom reaches 15th level and you have filled at least two lots on each block in your city, if your settlement is not Overcrowded, you may expand into a metropolis by adding a second Urban Grid. (You may instead continue filling in the remaining lots and remain a city.) At this point, you can place new structures into any lot you wish in the newly added Urban Grid. You can add additional Urban Grids each time you have built at least two lots of structures in every available block and are not Overcrowded, but there are no further settlement types beyond metropolis to achieve. When your kingdom gains its first metropolis, gain 120 kingdom XP as a milestone award.

Size

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 541
This indicates the maximum number of blocks the settlement can occupy in an Urban Grid.

Population

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 541
A settlement's exact population is intentionally left abstract, but if you wish to estimate the numbers, you can use the values here as guidelines. Population density increases as a Settlement grows. In a village, each completed lot has an average population of 100 people or less. A town's average population increases to 125 people per completed lot, whereas a city's average population per lot increases to around 700. A metropolis can have an average population per completed lot of 1,000 people or more.

Level

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 541
The settlement's level generally falls within the range listed here, and is always equal to the number of blocks that have at least one structure (to a maximum of 20). A settlement level is separate from the kingdom level and is primarily used to determine potential jobs in the settlement. A settlement's level also suggests what sort of magic items might be commonly available for purchase at shops or the market (subject to GM adjudication).

Consumption

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 541
Consumption is a numerical value that indicates the Food commodities the settlement requires in order to remain viable and functional. The number given here shows the settlement's base consumption; specific structures in the settlements can increase or decrease its Consumption.

Maximum Item Bonus

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 542
Many structures within a settlement grant an item bonus to specific kingdom activities. Normally, item bonuses do not stack, but if you build multiple structures of the same type in the same settlement, their item bonuses stack up to this limit. In a case where two settlements have overlapping influences from identical structures, only the higher item bonus from a single settlement's structures applies.

Influence

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 542
A settlement's influence area is the area around a settlement where meaningful economic and productive activity can occur, as well as where the settlement's beneficial effects extend. The numeric value indicates the number of hexes that the settlement's influence extends. Thus, a village only influences the hex it's located in, while a town influences all adjacent hexes. If a settlement has only Water Borders and no Bridges, that settlement's influence is 0 regardless of its settlement type.

Certain activities and the impact of some kingdom events are limited to a settlement's influence. Structures in a settlement that provide a specific item bonus do so to all of the claimed hexes influenced by their settlement. (Structures in your capital city provide that bonus to all of the kingdom's claimed hexes, regardless of the capital's influence.)

Hexes not claimed by your kingdom are never part of your settlements' influence areas, even if they are within the distance noted above. A hex can be influenced by multiple settlements.

Founding a Village

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 542
Your kingdom's first settlement is automatically founded in Step 8 of Kingdom Creation. You can found new settlements and expand on existing settlements during the Civic Activities step of the Activity phase of the Kingdom turn.

When you found a village, follow the four steps presented below to get started.

Step 1: Select a Hex

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 542
Select a Claimed Hex in your kingdom that doesn't already have a settlement as the site for your new settlement. Work with your GM to select the specific location of your settlement within the hex. If it contains lake, river, or swamp terrain, take into consideration the number of Water Borders you have in mind for your settlement.

Step 2: Establish your Village

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 542
You must first Clear the Hex to prepare it for your village. Since Clear Hex is a Region activity that can only happen during Step 2 of the activity phase of a Kingdom turn, and Establish Settlement is a Leadership activity that can only happen during Step 1, you have to wait until the Kingdom turn after you Clear the Hex to actually found the settlement. This simulates the time that it takes to prepare, such as setting up temporary quarters or tent cities, digging sanitation trenches, gathering materials, and managing all the other small tasks to get things ready to build.

If your hex contains lake, river, or swamp terrain, you may choose which of its borders are Land Borders and which are Water Borders (see Urban Grid Borders). On the Urban Grid, check the “Water” box next to as many of its borders as you like; you cannot change this decision later.

If your hex contains Ruins or a Structure, you can incorporate that building into your settlement at a reduced cost (for Ruins) or for free (for Structures). The exact type of structure is indicated in that hex's encounter text in Chapter 2—the GM has full information about these structures and ruins and how they can impact settlements.

Step 3: Name your Village

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 543
Each settlement needs a name. Some leaders name settlements after themselves or their families, but the name can be anything suitable for the campaign and agreeable to the PCs.

Step 4: Start Building!

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 543
Your brand new village is now ready to grow! A village must fill a single block of 4 lots before it can expand, so select one block on the Urban Grid for your village's development. Each Kingdom turn, during the Civic Activities step of its Activity phase, your settlement has one Civic activity, which can be used to Build Structure.

Structures

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 543
You build structures using the Build Structure activity during the Civic Activities step of the Activity phase of the Kingdom turn.

When you build in a lot within one of your settlements, you're rarely literally constructing a single building. While an arena or cathedral might stand alone as a towering edifice, most lots represent a number of buildings whose focus is to support the type of improvement that lot supports. For example, a brewery could represent a collection of brewers and bottlers and the families who support them, while a luxury merchant would represent several specialized stores. Even sprawling, sizable improvements like dumps, cemeteries, or parks might include nearby dwellings or cottages for those who tend and manage the area or live along its margins.

Residential Lots and Overcrowding: While almost every structure presumably includes a small amount of lodging, you need to build Residential lots in order to give your citizens enough places to live. You do so by building a structure that has the Residential trait in a chosen lot. Settlements require a number of Residential lots equal to the number of blocks that have any structures built within them, although these residential lots need not be located one per block. For example, when a village expands to a town, it initially occupies 2 blocks. It needs 2 Residential lots in total among those 2 blocks, either both in one block or one in each block. A settlement without this minimum number of Residential lots is Overcrowded (mark the “Overcrowded” box on your Urban Grid) and generates 1 Unrest for the kingdom during the Upkeep phase of each Kingdom turn.

Reduced to Rubble: It's possible for structures in a settlement to be reduced to rubble by a failed attempt to Demolish a structure or a poor result from a kingdom event. When a structure is reduced to rubble, replace the lots the structure once occupied on the Urban Grid with rubble. Having rubble in a lot doesn't itself impact a kingdom's Unrest or other statistics negatively, but it does prevent you from building in those lots. You must Demolish that lot before you can build there again. When a single lot that contains part of a multi-lot structure is reduced to rubble, each of the lots that contained that structure are replaced with individual lots of rubble.

Structure Descriptions

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 543
Structures are described in the following format.

Structure Name Level

A structure's level indicates the minimum kingdom level required to build it. Each structure has traits that convey its properties. The Building trait indicates the structure is a collection of indoor sites, while the Yard trait indicates the structure is primarily an outdoor site. Infrastructure indicates that the structure benefits all lots in an Urban Grid without occupying a lot. (For a metropolis, this means you'll need to build Infrastructure separately for each Urban Grid that makes up the settlement.) The Edifice trait grants its benefits to a settlement only once; if you build that structure an additional time in the same settlement, it's purely cosmetic. A Residential structure helps house the settlement's citizens; a settlement requires at least one Residential lot per block to avoid being Overcrowded. The Famous trait increases your Fame score when the structure is built, while the Infamous trait does the same for your Infamy score. Some structures have both Famous and Infamous traits; in this case apply the one that matches your kingdom's preference (see Fame and Infamy). A short textual description rounds out the top of the structure stat block.
Lots The number of contiguous lots that the structure occupies on the Urban Grid; Cost The cost in RP and Commodities (if any) you must spend before attempting the Build Structure check.
Construction This entry lists the required skill, proficiency rank, and DC for the Build Structure check.
Upgrade From/Upgrade To Some structures can be upgraded into a more advanced form of the existing structure, such as upgrading a Shrine into a Temple. If you upgrade a structure, subtract the RP and Commodity cost used to build the original structure from the cost of the new structure. When the new structure is complete, its effects replace those of the previous structure. You can't upgrade a structure to one that occupies more lots if there isn't space in the block for the new structure's size. (You do not need to build the lesser form of a structure before you build the advanced form.)
Item Bonus This entry indicates any item bonuses the structure grants to specific activities made within the settlement's influence—or within the borders of your kingdom if the settlement is your capital. These bonuses are item bonuses, but they stack with those granted by identical structures within the same settlement, up to that settlement's maximum item bonus.
Ruin Some structures negatively impact society. If this structure does so, it will increase one or more of your kingdom's Ruins when constructed; this increase only happens once, when the structure is built. Increases to Ruin in this way aren't removed if the structure is later demolished.
Effects All additional game effects the structure grants to your kingdom are listed here. In many cases, these effects grant item bonuses to PCs while they are in the settlement, but unlike those granted by the Item Bonus above, item bonuses found in this section of the stat block do not stack with other item bonuses. Unless stated otherwise, effects in this section apply only within this settlement; they do not apply to areas influenced by this settlement.

Settlement Structures

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 544
Presented below are stat blocks for a wide range of structures that serve a variety of purposes in settlements, both to bolster kingdom statistics and PC resources. Encourage your PCs to come up with flavorful specific names for individual structures they create!

Kingdom Events

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 553
As the PCs' kingdom grows, all manner of unusual or irregular events will affect its fortunes and guide its growth. There are two categories of kingdom events: story events that occur as a result of the campaign plotline and random events.

Story events are resolved when they occur, as detailed in the earlier chapters of this Adventure Path and often include greater details for how the PCs can take part in resolving the event. These events take place during regular play even though they draw upon kingdom statistics. They're usually resolved during downtime.

Random events are resolved entirely by the kingdom itself and take place within the Event phase of a Kingdom turn. A flat check at the start of this phase determines whether a random event occurs, although you could roll this check in advance for any number of Kingdom turns or even just choose which events are going to take place for a span of time. Determining the events that will play out in advance gives you the ability to build narratives during play to foreshadow upcoming events (so that when they occur, they aren't completely unexpected) and might inspire interesting ways to combine events with the ongoing campaign's story.

Resolving Kingdom Events

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 553
All kingdom events resolve in downtime, although for some story events, there may be periods of exploration or encounter mode before or after an event's resolution. Some kingdom events grant boons or benefits, while others can harm a kingdom by costing resources, increasing Unrest or Ruin, penalizing activities, or damaging structures. In many cases, the PCs will be able to attempt Kingdom skill checks to bolster benefits or minimize disasters.

It's possible to have more than one kingdom event occur during a Kingdom turn. In this case, the players decide the order of the events.

Kingdom Event DCs

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 553
A kingdom event's DC is always the kingdom's Control DC modified by the event's level modifier.

Event DC = Control DC + event's level modifier


Kingdom Event Descriptions

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 553
Kingdom events are described in the following format.

Event Name Event Modifier

The kingdom's event modifier is the value you apply to the kingdom's level to determine the event's level, for the purposes of determining XP rewards (so if a 1st-level kingdom is experiencing a +1 event, that event's level is 2). Each kingdom event has a list of traits that convey its properties at a glance. Beneficial events provide boons and benefits to the kingdom. Dangerous events threaten the kingdom. Continuous events play out during multiple consecutive Event phases until the event has been resolved (see the event's Resolution entry). Hex events take place in a specific hex in the kingdom, while Settlement events take place in a specific settlement—skill checks to resolve these events receive item bonuses only from structures that influence that hex (in the case of a hex event) or that are part of that settlement (in the case of a settlement event). Hex and Settlement events' effects may be enhanced or diminished if the site has (or lacks) specific features.
Location This entry explains how to determine where a hex or settlement event takes place; the entry is omitted from kingdom-wide events.
Event The event's effect on the kingdom is described here, along with any skill checks that can be attempted to affect the event.
Kingdom skill This lists the Kingdom skill that's used to determine the outcome of the event, along with any situational modifiers; Leader PC leaders are particularly helpful in resolving events. If the leadership role listed here is occupied by a PC who is not incurring a vacancy penalty, the check made to determine the event's outcome gains a +1 circumstance bonus; this bonus increases to +2 once a kingdom reaches 9th level, and to +3 at 15th level. (The General leadership role never appears in this context, as the General focuses their specific influence on Warfare related activities; see Appendix 3.)
Event Outcomes The possible outcomes of the skill check made to deal with the event are presented here.
Resolution This entry explains how a continuous event can be resolved.
Special This lists any special conditions that alter the event.

Random Kingdom Events

Source Kingmaker Adventure Path pg. 554
Random kingdom events are presented on the following pages in alphabetical order by title. During the Event phase of the Kingdom turn, if you determine that a random event takes place, you can roll on the table below to randomly determine the event that occurs or choose among them to build your own schedule of events tailored to your PCs' kingdom. If a randomly determined event isn't a good choice for your campaign at the time (perhaps because it has come up too many times in a short period), choose another event. You can also use these events as guidelines for creating events of your own design to reward or vex your players!

Note that some Kingdom events require specific conditions to occur. If these conditions do not exist, the event doesn't take place and you treat that Event phase as if no event occurs.

Random Kingdom Events

d% rollEvent
1–3Archaeological Find
4–5Assassination Attempt
6–7Bandit Activity
8–10Boomtown
11–14Building Demand
15–17Crop Failure
18–19Cult Activity
20–22Diplomatic Overture
23–25Discovery
26–27Drug Den
28Economic Surge
29–31Expansion Demand
32–34Festive Invitation
35–37Feud
38–39Food Shortage
40–42Food Surplus
43–44Good Weather
45–46Inquisition
47–49Justice Prevails
50–51Land Rush
52–54Local Disaster
55–57Monster Activity
58Natural Disaster
59–61Nature's Blessing
62–64New Subjects
65–67Noblesse Oblige
68–70Outstanding Success
71–72Pilgrimage
73–74Plague
75–78Political Calm
79–81Public Scandal
82Remarkable Treasure
83Sacrifices
84–85Sensational Crime
86–90Squatters
91–92Undead Uprising
93–95Unexpected Find
96–97Vandals
98–99Visiting Celebrity
100Wealthy Immigrant