Zanrick’s Detailed Guide to Noise

An overbuilt GM tool for heists, shootouts, and “Oh no, they heard that?” moments.

This tool is designed for tactical TTRPG scenarios where noise matters—and not just in a vague “someone might notice” way. If your campaign involves infiltration, coordinated assaults, or any operation where the wrong footstep could ruin everything, this guide turns volume into hard consequences.

The system calculates perceived sound levels using four components:

• S – Source noise (firearms, grenades, chainsaws, etc.)

• E – Environmental noise (background ambience)

• A – Transmission loss through open air (distance-based)

• B – Transmission loss through physical barriers (walls, doors, windows)

You’ll get realistic decibel adjustments based on cover, concrete thickness, door types, and more—allowing your players (and their enemies) to hear gunfire through drywall, but not through multiple brick layers.

Is this too much for your game? Almost certainly.
But when you’re deep in a hostile compound, trying to silence that guard quietly enough not to alert the next room—this tool sings.