The most important aspect of any Rolemaster campaign has to be the characters. Everything revolves around what they do, how they do it, and most importantly why they do it. The beller developed the characters are, (he beller the campaign will be.The Gamemaster can spend hours planning intricate plots and sub plols. but if the characters themselves are nothing better than mediocre, all the Gnmemaster's planning could be for naught.
When a character has a complete background, it gives the Gamcmasler much more to work with in Icnns of setting up an adventure. As your gaming group's Characters start to become more developed, the adventures should become equally more developed. A campaign that started outwith "You were hired by a wizard in a tavern to retrieve an item stolen by a party of orcs..." could tum into something like "Your cousin. the Grand Vizier of the Northern Marshes, is currently trying to throw your parents off or the throne. He has been consulting with men of a darker profession. seeking to enlist their aid in his bid for power. Not only that. but the bounty hunter who has been trailing you for the past two months has instigated an effective campaign against your inlegrity; townspeople who once thought you were their hero have hcen repulsed with the tales (all false) of your brazen disregard for the morals of the town. Meanwhile, in another part of the town..." It is easy to see how a detailed character aan Iead to adetailed campaign.
Talent Law will allow a player more diversity increating their character. No longer will their background he determined by a mere roll of the dice. Each background option, skill choice. and racial advantage will be selected by the player himself. The player may build an entirely new race, if desired, complete with its own culture, racial abilities and disabilities, and any particular quirks the player wishes to grant this new race.
Also included in Talent Law are guidelines for creating a believable and unique character. Parentage, culture, religion, and other facets of a charactcr's life are all discussed with suggestions to breathe life into your paper character. The character should take on a life or his own, possibly even surprising you in his completeness.
Enjoy Talent Law; death to the two-dimensional character.
Note: For purposes of readability, This book uses stamdard English grammar when referring to persons of uncertain gender: i.e. masculine pronouns. In such Cases, these pronouns are intended to convey the meaning: she/he, her/his. etc.
Talent Law provides a different way for players to create the background's of their characters. Through a point-based system, players get exactly the talents they desire. It is the job of the GM to ensure that the talents that a player chooses do not unbalance the game. If the players become too powerfull too quickly, the campaign can quickly degenerate into a "Monty Haul" type adventure with little more to challenge the characters than a more-powerful monster.
To this end. the OM must determine the power level he wishes for his campaign and alter the available lalents and flaws appropriately. In some cases, the OM may wish to prevent players from choosing cerlain types of talents, Mental Abilities for example. deeming that these talents just do not fit into the GM's world.
The point costs for each talent and flaw found in this book are merely recommendations. The GM should not feel constrained to these costs, The point cost system as it is setup in this book is designed for a high-fantasy campaign with powerful characters making great changcs in mecampaign world. Not every game world will be similar to this and thus the point costs should be allered. The fol lowi ng are a few suggestions for GMs:
Option 1: For each talent a player chooses, the GM assigns a flaw with an equivalent point cost. These flaws do not contribute to the character's total Talent Points, If a player does not wish to receive an equivalent flaw. he must pay twice the cost of the talent.
Option 2: Double the cost of the second Talent from the same category as a previously chosen talent (triple the third, etc.). Half the cost of the second Flaw from the same category as a previously chosen talent (third the third, etc.).
Option 3: The GM may double. triple, or even quadruple the point costs of all talents if he feels that the costs are too low. The flaw's costs should not be altered in order to keep balance. Note that the more a talent's cost is increased, the less impact an individual flaw will have on the character's total Talent Points.
Option 4: The GM may assign a multiplier to all talent's of a particular category. For instance. the OM may decide that Mystical Abilities are rare in his low-magic world and thus all Mystical Abilities are three times more expensive.
Option 5: The GM may create a table for each profession that states the multiplier for each category of talents. He may feel that your profession would have a profound impact on your talents (or vice-versa). For example, the OM in your campaign feels that warriors. by nature of their profession, will not be very adept with Mystical, and Special Abilities. There fore all fighter's in his world will pay twice thecost for Mysticaland Mental Abilities and three times the cost for Special Abilities. This option requires a liUle more work from the GM in generating the tables for each profession. but it can provide the most logical reasons for restricting certain talents.
Option 6: The GM may ban a particular talent or even an entire category of talents from his world. For instance. the GM may feel that the Special Abilities have no place in his world and are therefore unavailable.
These are merely suggestions. whichever option or combination ofoptions the GM wishes to use are obviously acceptable. In fact the GM may decide on an entirely different way to control the distribution or talents and flaws.
It is strongly recommended that the GM not lower the costs of any of the talents. The only exception to this rule is for points gained or received from Status. It is possible that the status and reputation of it character will have little effect on the daily life of the characters. and therefore are not worth as many points asacomparable talent. Of course, the GM may decide that Status is extremely important and will effect the character orten. If that is the case then the point costs for Status should be raised accordingly.
It is important for the player and GM to understand what talent's actually are. The purpose of talent's is not to provide a way for characters to wield super powers, but rather away to describe the natural ability or power a particular character was born with erearned. They are first and foremost background material.
Every talent, as well as flaw, should have some form of history with it. In fact. the GM may insist that a shon description of how the character acquired a particular talent or flaw be provided before the GM will approve the character.
These descriptions should be more detailed than mcrely "my character was born with this ability" or "my character was raised by a group of monks who taught him how to do this." Those statements may be true, but they do not tell the entire story. If your character was born with the talent, then why was he chose to have the talent? Was his father blessed by the gods for some good deed? Was their a curse lifted from the character's family that provided the character with this talent? Or perhaps the character's birth itself was a unique occasion that blessed the character with the talent. The answers to these questions will not only help satisfy the GM thaI the talent is critical to the character's background, it will also help solidify the character's history in the player's mind.
The same can be said for naws although there is little chance that a player would allempt to abuse the naw system. A one-legged, paranoid, overconfident. hemophiliac will most likely not survive his first encounter. Each flaw does however add another piece of history to the character. The above character's overconfidence easily explains his one leg , but why did he become overconfident in the first place? Did his overconfidence lead to his paranoia? Perhaps because he was a hemophiliac, a disease that ran in his family, the character's mother told him he was special and needed to avoid conflict. The character may have confused his mother calling him special, thinking that his mother was calling him blessed. This lead to his overconfidence and subsequently to his current leg count. Already we know a lot about this character's personality just from creating a background based on the character's flaws.
To reiterate, the talents chosen by a player do not represent super powers bestowed upon the character by the gods (necessarily). There must be a rational explanation on why the character has a particular group of talents and why they are important to a character's background.
There may come a time when a player feels that his talent choices were the perfect ones for his character and the GM disagrees. It is important for the GM to explain the overall power level of his campaign. Almost all game balance problems can be tied to characters becoming too powerful for the world they are in. The GM has a lot of control over how tough the characters become through availahility of items, creatures encountered, magic's use, enchanted items, etc. All of the ahuve items could he overcome hy a particularly talented character. If such a character is created, the GM has no choice but to veto the character's talents in order to keep the game from degenerating.
The player may not agree with the GM about the character's suitahility in the game world and should discuss why the character is deemed too powerful. Generally a quick conversation will solve any potential problems between the GM and player. lf this does not happen then the player will have to choose the character's talents again. This usually does not involve a lot of bookkeeping and calculations because most of the time it is only one or two talents that keep the character from being playable.
The first thing a player must do is determine if a particular talent is integral to the background of the character. If you find that the character could have evolved equally well without the talent, get rid of it. Replace it with something more palatable to the GM. lf, on the other hand, the player decides that the talent is too important to the character to get rid of it, then he must make a few choices. The first is to reexamine the dcscriplion of the talent to ensure that it does what the player wants it to do. Sometimes a description is misread and it changes the actual way a talent performs.
If the talent does do what the player wants it to do, then he should look to see if the talent is one of the many that can be bought at different strengths. If so, the player may opt to choose one of the lesser levels of the talent in order to keep the character's background the same and satisfy the GM.
If the talent is not one of those that may he bought in levels, the player must closely examine the reasoning for the lalent. It may be that the background or personality that the player wants for the character may be better explained with a different talent, or better yet, a naw. For example, suppose the GM decides that your choice of talents is a little too unbalancing for his campaign. After discussing it. the both of you decide that the talent that is the most unbalancing is Immovable Will. Immovable Will is not available at different power levels so you cannot purchase it at a lower level. Examining the character's personality a little closer you detennine that what you like most about Immovable Will, other than the bonuses to Sleep and Charm, was the fact that it made it difficult to change the character's mind about his decisions or his beliefs. This is what the player genuinely desires for the character. After discussing this with the GM, the GM mentions that perhaps rather than the character having an Immovable Will, the character is in reality just a little Stubborn. The player agrees with Ihis. Not only did the player get to keep the character's original conception, he is also able to spend more points on other talents.
Even if the GM vetoes a particular character's talents, it is almost always possible to make a few changes and still retain the same character that the player desires.
Finally. remember that players are not the only ones who have talents and flaws. Every NPC will have his own share of talents and naws. Each talent and flaw should also determine the NPC's personality as it does the player's. A NPC with a full background will help the GM give life to his world and a sense of history that draws Ihe players into the game.
All good role-players know that acharacter is more than just a collection of numbers on a pieee of paper. In the player's mind there is a living breathing persona in that the collection of numbers helps define. Integral to this persona is complete background and personality. Without these, the charncler is merely a means to determine success or failure of a par1icular action. A cluster of numbers and percentage chances that go blindly through a gaming session waiting for the next opportunity to roll the dice.
The character's background and personality are actually two facels of the same thing. An individual's personality is detenllined by their background. Their background shapes their perception of the world and their attitude towards adversity. If you know a person's background you can generally predict their personality.
Talent Law is an aid to players in creating the background of their character's as well as a reward system for generating the character's background. Each talent, flaw, status, or item that a player chooses is another facet of the character's personality being revealed. It is important to realize that the various talents and flaws are not merely little bonuses and penalties to certain situations the character finds himself in, they are an integral part or the character and should nut be merely chosen based on how useful a particular ability is.
If it seems that there is a lot more pressure placed on and naws that is because there is. A story without character's is mcrely a selling. A story with mundane and unexciting character's is boring. A story with a great selling and mediocre characters is interesting. A story with a mediocre selling and great characters is enjoyable. A story with a great setting and great characters is exiting. It takes both a good setting and good characters to create a memorable campaign. The setting is the GM's job, the characters are the players' job.
In the RMSR, a character's background is detennined through the use of background options. Each race has a different number of background options to balance the race'! relative bonuses with the other races. With the background options, a playcrmay roll the dice on a number of tables, or exchange options for a skill bonus. stat gain rolls or select a t.alent with a possible corresponding flaw.
In Talent Law, the concept of background options is replaced with a point based options player purchases abilities, status, and Items with his points. If the player feels he needs more points. he may choose to accept some flaws. The GM will look over the completed character's background to make sure everything will fil into the GM's world. possibly suggesting different ways to build a character background the player likes.
The number of Talent Points a character starts with is determined by their race. With these Talent Points. a player buy choose various talents, wealth, status, and items (subject to GM restriction). See Section 1 for various ways that Talent Points can be balanced.
Below is a chart summarizing the sixteen races found in the Rolemaster Standard Syslem. If your GM has made new faces for your world, or modified existing races, then he will give you the amount of Talent Points you may spend.
Option: As an option, the GM may decide that instead of using the above Talent Points, he may give a flat ten Talent Points per background option the race normally receives.
Everybody has a talent, something they are gifted in doing. Talents may be learned, inborn, or even acquired during journeys. Talent Law supports five different categories of talents: Special Training, Physical Abilities, Mental Abilities. Mystical Abilities. and Special Abilities.
As you read the talent description. you will notice each is broken into two parts. The first part is the actual game description, including the benefits and penalties each talent bestows, along with the cost of the talent. The second part is a piece ofshort prose describing how you could possihly have acquired the talent. You shauld choose how you actually acquired the talent. the prose is just to get you thinking.
As you read the descriptions of the different talents you will undoubtedly see many that seem perfect for your character. Jot down their names and costs on a piece of paper. Once you have scanned through all of the talents and noted the ones that interest you, remove talents that do not fit your character or for which you cannot justify the point cost. When you have shortened the list to a manageable length. think about how your character gained each of his abilities. These talents should be more than just bonuses to your character. They should tell the history of your chacter, what he did as a child, how others feel about him, even how he received his education. Each talent should have its own story.
Not all talents are available in all game worlds. Your GM will tell you how many, if any, of each type of talents are acceptable in his world.
These are talents that can be learned by anyone, given a particular place and set of circumstances. The training is not common, but it is not quite as mystical as some of the other talents. These talents should be made available to any character, with no limit in number.
Acrobat — You receive a special bonus of +15 to your Athletic • Gymnastics skill Category. You also receive a special bonus or +25 to a Special Attack skill that doesn't use a weapon. [7 points]
While you were learning martial arts, your teacher drilled you with the importance of agility. You spent hours jumping, leaping, and swinging around during practice. You would tumble, roll, then leap to your feet, executing a vicious strike. Your body became more flexible and nimble. You have left the school. but you still try to practice as much as possible on your acrobatics.
Arcane Discovery — You may learn one Arcane spell Iist as an Open list. [7 points]
You love to study old tomes. If you can get your hands on one, you devour it with a voracious appetite. While reading one old tome it mentioned a group of spells that belonged to no realm. These spells were called Arcane spells because they exisled before magic was split. The tome told you how they worked, how to cast them, even where to find some. Since then, you have been using Arcane spells like they were from your own realm.
Assassing Training — Your cost for the Ambush skill is reduced by half rounded up (for examplc, a Magent with an Ambush cost of 5/10 would only pay 3/5). [5 points]
There was a period in your life when you were pursuing a darker profession. You knew those who were talented in the deadlier arts. They taught you the skills of their vocation, something you learned weIl. You went through the formal training. Eventually you decided that this occupation was not quite what you wanted to do. You left that profession, but you retained their training.
Deadly Training — You receive a special bonus of +25 to your Poison Lore, Use/Remove Poison, Silent Kill, Stalk, Hide and Ambush maneuvers. [17 points]
You have been taught to kill. You learned how to administer poison. You learned how to kill withom your victim making a sound. You teamed how to move quietly. You learned how to strike decisively. You learned all these skills for the purpose of removing important people. Some call you all assassin: others, a soldier. It depends on how close they are to the one you dispatch. You have been known to slip into the most guarded areas, eliminate one person, and then slip back out without anyone knowing until the body was discovered. You were sent when nobody else could accomplish the mission.
Directed Weapons Master — One weapon skill may be classified as Occupational. All other skills in the same category are classified as Everyman. [10 points]
You are known as the kensai. You are unified wilh your weapon. Your skill with it is unsurpassed. Your weapon is an extension of you; just think where you want it to go, and it is there. You care little for other weapons; you focus on the one.
Disarm Skill — You are very skilled at intentionally disarming a foe. You receive a special bonus of +25 to all attempts todisarm a foe using either Disarm Foe (Armed) or Disarm Foe (Unarmed). [10 points]
The easiest foe to defeat is one who has no weapon. You have been praclicing the removal of your foes' weapons. It is jurt a mailer of twisting your wrists at the right time, and their weapon goes flying.
Elvish Training — You receive a special bonus of +25 to all Meditation maneuversand aspecial bonus of +10 to your Poetic Improvisation and Tale Telling skills. [7 points]
You spent some time with the elves, (or you are one), From them you Iearned many things. You learned about the harmonic balance between nature and the elves. You learned to revel in the splendor os sunset. You learned to stop and relax, surrounded by the divinity of nature.
Exceptional Skill at Arms — You receive a special bonus of +10 to all weapon categories and to your Armor categories. You may also choose two weapon categories where all skills in the category are classified as Everyman. [30 points]
When you were young. you had to help your family fight off intruding armies. Though the King had mobilized his Own army to repel the invaders, this was your land you were fighting for. You family often fought outnumbered, but they were victorious. You have lost count of the skirmishes you were in, but you remember frequently being outnumbered. Consequenly, you developed a unique fighring style. You use two completely different types of weapons equally well. You could never teach this style to anyone, but it makes you very versatile.
Fluent — You have either studied a language in depth, or lived in an area that uses lhatlanguage constantly. You are completely fluent in this language and can speak and read it like a native. In fact, you probably know how to read and write beller than most natives. This ability grants you 20 ranks to apply to both spoken and written ranks among your starting languages. [5 points]
You always had a gift for languages. You slarted speaking your native tongue at an early age, and you were soon speakillg smatterings of other languages as well. You have studied one particular language for most of your years. You have read ancient texts written in previous forms of that language, and you have talked with many people from different parts of the country to gain insight into the different accents the language has. You are one of the foremost authorities on this language, and often speak it more fluently than your nalive language.
General Weapons Master — You receive a special bonus of +10 to all of your weapon categories. [10 points]
You do not like to Iimit yourself to being able to use only one type of weapon well. You always tried to round out your training by picking up any weapon you could. After all, you never know what weapon you will be fightillg with next. You are not quite as good as someone who has spent their whole life using only one weapon, but then if you lose your weapon, you do not have to search for another one. You consider yourself a jack-of-all-trades when it comes to weapons.
Geographic Awareness — You receive a special bonus of +35 to your Mapping and Direction Sense skills. You also have an uncanny ability to memorize maps granting you a special bonus of +25 to your Navigation skill for a certain area if you have a map and have studied it for more than ten minutes. [5 points]
Some people think it is difficult to read a map. You do not see how, since everything is drawn out in your head, each hill, river and forest. lf you look at a map for just a few minutes, you can deduce where you are and how to get to where you want to go. You often lead your party, almost instinctively knowing the correct direction. You also are able to discern where north is just by concentration.
Gymnastic Training — You receive a special bonus of +25 to one chosen Athletic • Gymnastic skill. You also receivea Special bonus of +25 to one chosen Self Control skill. [7 points]
You have received extensive training in one form of gymnastics. Your parents thought you would become a great performer and so they sent you to the finest schools. You learned how to move your body gracefully. Your sense of balance increased, and your sense of control increased as well. You could even make your body accomplish normally impossible feats, given ample preparation
Herbalist — You naturally recognize herbs and poisons and may use them, You also receive a special bonus of +30 to all of your Cooking, Foraging, Use Prepared Herbs, Prepare Herbs, Poison Lore, and Herb Lore maneuvers. [13 points]
You have always been fascinated by plants, You are very knowledgeable about enchanted herbs and deadly poisons, being able to find them in their natural state and put them to the appropriate use. You also know what various plants taste like and can liven up a meal or even make a meal out of the surrounding flora.
Inner Reserve — You can withstand more pain than a normal person. When determining your available concussion hits you may add a +3 to each Body Development rank your purchase. For example, if your Body Development progression is normally 0•6•4•2•1, you will gain 9 points for the first ten ranks, seven for the second ten, etc. [10 points]
You have an inner reserve. You have user this reserve to continue on, when most other people would fall unconscious from the pain.
Internal Clock — You receive a special bonus of +15 to your Time Sense skill and Time Sense is classified as an Occupational skill for you. [3 points]
You are a very punctual person. Your internal clock is very precise, and can often time things accurately down to the second. You know how much time has elapsed since a particular event took place. You call even make yourself wake up at any desired time.
Judge of Angles — You can judge angles and changes in the slant of relatively uniform, solid surfaces. You can tell the angle of an incline almost immediately. You receive a special bonus of + 25 bonus when attempting to perceive traps or secret doors that are set in walls, floors, or ceilings. [5 points]
Who needs plumb lines? You can tell angles and slants and notice inconsistencies in walls and ceilings. If you are walking up or down a slope, you can judge its grade. You were an excellent carpenter, and it helps when you adventure.
Judge of Weaponry — You may determine the bonuses as well as the material on any non-mugical weapon or armor. [3 points]
Your father taught you to appreciate a good weapon when you were young. He taught you how to examine the blade, feel the handle, check for rust. You examined everything you came across. You learned about the different types of armor, what deteriorates leather, and how to make chain mail strong. You studied the materials that can be made into weapons and armor, you know the good ones from the bad, magical from the non-magical. You have become an excellent judge of weaponry and armor.
Lightning Strike — You receive a special bonus of +5 to your initiative rolls. You receive no penalty for Snap Actions, but only receive a +5 for Deliberate Actions. [10 points]
Your father had a special move he taught you. He was a good fighter and had used this maneuver with much success. Like an heir-loom. he passed it all to you, constantly training and retraining you. You thought the practices would never end. You remember many nights long after the sun went down, with your arms aching from exhaustion, your father would look at you with pride in his eyes. You learned his maneuver well and have used it with great success. Noone knows how you do it, but they are all amazed
Martial Arts Training — You receive aspecial bonus of +15 to your Martial Arts group, Self Control category, and to Special Defenses. In addition, one Special Defenses skill is classified as Everyman. [30 points]
When you were young, a master showed you the ways of a martial artist. You were drilled for long hours and learned quite a lot. Your moves became more fluid and you became very competent in the martial arts. Eventually, you will be called upon to give your knowledge to another young adept, thus passing on the knowledge of your master.
Natural Archer — You receive a 25% increase to all bow ranges. [5 points]
Hitting targets at long distanses was never difficult for you. You could shoot farther than anyone in archery competitions. The bow seemed like a natural extension of your hand. You would pull back the string, hold your breath, and let the arrow fly deep into its mark.
Natural Facility With Armor — You receive a special bonus of +10 to your Armor group. One Armor skill is classified as Everyman. [10 points]
Most people have a problem maneuvering while wearing armor. Not you. You sum to wear armor like a second skin; armor is only as uncomfortable as wearing a heavy jacket.
Natural Horseman — You receive a special bonus of +25 to all maneuvers involving horses. [7 points]
You learned to ride when you learned to walk. Some people said your were born in the saddle. You an a very good rider and can ride just about anything.
Natural Weapons Master — All weapon skills are classified as Everyman. [30 points]
Maces, swords, halberds; they are all the same to you. You can see how they each differ and adjust your strikes accordingly. Each weopon feels at home in your hands. You know what kind of strikes to delivera and how to properly execute them.
Outdoorman — You receive a special bonus of +50 to all Foraging, fire starting, and shelter location maneuvers while you are outdoors. You also receive a special bonus of +20 to all Tracking, Hunting, Stalk, and Hide maneuvers while you are outdoors. [15 points]
You love the outdoors. You have spent many nights outdoors and have lived off the land on more than a few occasions. You learned how to track and how to hide while outdoors. You have an eye for finding usable shelter, and can start a fire in seconds.The outdoors are truly a second home to you.
Portage Skills — All of your encumbrance penalties are halved. [3 points]
Most people cannot pack equipment well. Yet it makes traveling much easier. You know just where to put everything so it will pack nice and tight. You wonder why most people do not pack like you do.
Power — You have 50 ranks of spells. No more than 10 of these may be anyone spell list. Only open, closed, and own base spells may be chosen. [30 points]
You know what power is. Some people say money is power, they are wrong. Some say strength is power, they are wrong too. There is only one thing thot is power. Knowledge. And you have powerful knowledge.
Precision — Due to the precision of your strikes, you may make an Ambush maneuver every time you attack with a melee weapon. [20 points]
Your teacher taught you one important aspect of combat: know exactly where you are going to strike. You can take time waiting for your strike, but when you do, strike precisely where you want to. You have studied anatomy charts and learned where the vulnerable areas of mony creatures and races are. You have practiced for hours learning how to dart your weapon in and out quickly, causing the most possible damage from the strike. You like to think of your attack as the strike of a viper: patient, quick, and very deadly.
Racial Training (familiar) — Your race is known for a group of skills. You may pick up to 6 skills that are related somehow (subject to GM approval). You will receive a special bonus of +10 for those skills due to your upbringing. [15 points]
Racial Training (expert) — Your race is reknown for their expertise with a group of skills. You may pick up to 6 skills that are related somehow (subject to GM approvaJ). You will receive a special bonus of +20 for those skills due to your upbringing. [25 points]
Your people are known for excellent horseman ship. You were practically born in the saddle. You can ride almost any animal, aswell as care for it. You are also skilled in finding your way around the countryside, rarely getting lost. All of this you can thank your race and upbringing for. Your people instilled the importance of the horse to you, and you will carry that on to your children.
Shield Attack — You receive a special bonus of +20 to Shield Bash skill. [7 points]
The shield bash is one of your favorite attacs. You like little more than hitting someone wilh one hand and then smashing into them with your shield. You often throw your foe to the ground where you deliver Ihe final blow. You have spent time learning the shield bash and have perfected its use in combat.
Skilled (familiar) — You may receive a special bonus of +5 to one skill category, or receive a special bonus of +10 to one specific skill. You may only purchase this ability once for a given skill or skill category. [5 points]
Skilled (expert) — You may receive a special bonus of +10 to one skill category, or receive a special bonus of +15 to one specific skill. You may only purchase this ability once for a given skill or skill category. [15 points]
Everyone has a particular talent, yours is cooking. You have always been a good cook, and are always searching for new recipes. You are starting to become known for your excellent cooking.
Sleight-of-Hand — You receive a special bonus of +20 to your Subterfuge • Stealth skill Category . [10 points]
You learned quickly on the streets that you had to do whatever you could to survive. You never bothered joining one of those gangs that seemed to penneate the city, preferring to keep all profits for yourself rather thon splitting it up among many people. You ran afoul of the gangs occasionally. but you usually stayed one step ahead. Meanwhile you kept practicing your sleight-of-hand skills: picking pockets, stashing items quickly up our sleeve, and other tricks of your trade. You became quite good at it and even today practice those skills whenever possible.
Swift Dresser — All of the time it takes to either put on or take off your armor is reduced by 25%. [3 points]
Nobody sleeps in armor. It would be like sleeping on a bed of sharp rocks. Attacking people while they sleep is an easy way to kill all opponent. You try to have the best of both worlds: sleep and protection. You have practiced long and hard to be able to put on your armor as quickly as possible. You have become vely proficient in putting on your armor, as well as taking it off, and can now sleep more content in your safety.
Trained Regular Footman — Blocking, Tackling, Wrestling, and Boxing are classified as Everyman skills for you.
When you were in the army, they taught you how to take advantage of every opportunity. You did not only strike, you also pressed forward. often knocking your opponent off balance in the process.You left the army a long time ago, but you never lost the training.
Underground Uprising — You receive a special bonus of +10 to the Subterfuge • Mechanics and Subterfuge • Stealth skill categories. Select one Subterfuge • Stealth or Subterfuge • Mechanics skill that may be classified as Everyman. [7 points]
You were raised by a prominent member of the underground. You remember the man who raised you. He was a decent guardian, neither too harsh or too gentle. He taought you a lot about the less than legal way to do things, although he never pressured you to commit crimes yourself. You learned a few skills while you were with him, and when you told him you wanted to live a more honest lifestyle, he was happy for you and gave you his blessing. Still those skills he taught you have become valuable on more than one occasion.
Warrior Extraordinare — All melee weapons are classiried as Everyman. You also receive a special bonus of +10 to Special Attacks. [25 points]
You have mastered melee weapons. You have spent Iong hours practicing your thrusts, parries, and swings. In fights, you have been known to pick up any weapon and be able to use it, even if you never seen it before. Bar rooms are full of weapons for you. You are truly a moster warrior.
Weapon Control — All weapons in your primary weapon category (that category with the lowest development point cost) have their fumble range reduced by 2 (to a minimum of 1). All other weapon categories have their fumble range reduced by 1 (to a minimum of 1).
Know what your weapon is doing at all times. Know where it is and where it will Iand. Predict what your opponent will do and counter his move with yours. You are practiced in all these maneuvers. You control your weapon exquisitely. It is very rare for you to make a mistake. In fact, you think it is not even possible.
These abilities are of a physical nature. These abilities may be possessed by all members of a race or by an individual. Generally, a character will not possess more than two or three of these abilities.
Accelerated Mending — Your normal recovery time for injuries is halved. [7 points]
You are a quick healer. Your body almost seems like it regenerates sometimes. You seem to be up and around quicker than you should after an injury. Some say it is magical; you just know that it has prevented your death on more than one occasion.
Acute Hearing — You have a keen sense of hearing that allows you to perceive any sounds within a range of 100' in open area, or 25' when listening through solid barriers. You receive a special bonus of +10 to your Awareness categories when dealing with these sounds. [5 points]
You have always been able to hear sounds that most people cannot. You hear mutterings across rooms, listening in on the many conversatons that permeate the local tavern.
Acute Smell — You have an acute sense of smell. You can smell odors up to 100' upwind, 2000' downwind, and 500' in stiII air. You receive a special bonus of +25 to Tracking something based on its odor. You receive a spccial bonus of +10 to your Awareness categories when dealing with smells. [10 points]
You like smells. You can tell the difference between a horse and a donkey from as far away as five hundred feet. You can tell who is coming up behind you just by scent alone. You arc almost never surprised and can even discern if an object has beell handled recently by someone from their scent left on the item.
Ambidexterity — You may use either hand equally well. There is no penalty for using a weapon in your "off" hand. [5 points]
You could always use both your hands equally well. You have caught some of your foes off guard by switching your weapon to your other hand and fighting equally well with it. It is not the flashiest of abilities, but you like the flexibility it grants you.
Battle Cry — You may shout your "battle cry" before entering combat. When you do this, you receive a special bonus of +10 to your OB and DB for the remainder of the combat. You may only use this ability once per day. [7 points]
You have a way of raising your morale before entering into combat. Some people pray. Some people touch their lucky charm. Some meditale. You like to let loose a blood-curdling scream and charge headlong into your opponents. It may not seem sane, but it is effective.
Blazing Speed — Your Base Movement Rate is increased by +10. [10 points]
You are fast. You could outrun anyone in your home city. You even keep up with some animals. You know how to pace yourself so you can have that important burst of speed when you need it. You love nothing more than darting around the battlefield, charging those who thought they were too for away to be attacked.
Cold Resistance (lesser) — You are more resistant to cold and ice than normal. You get a +5 to your RRs and DB versus cold- and ice-based attacks. [5 points]
Cold Resistance (minor) — You are more resistant to cold and ice than normal. You get a +10 to your RRs and DB versus cold- and ice-based attacks, bonus for every point spent in this ability. [10 points]
Cold Resistance (major) — You are more resistant to cold and ice than normal. You get a +15 to your RRs and DB versus cold- and ice-based attacks. [15 points]
Cold Resistance (greater) — You are more resistant to cold and ice than normal. You get a +20 to your RRs and DB versus cold- and ice-based attacks. [20 points]
Ah, the crisp air of a mid-winter morning. You love the cold; it is your element. You enjoy seeing your breath in front of your face, feeling the slight sting as a bitter wind blows by. Your race is a hardy folk, often able to survive even in the strongest of blizzards. You are virtually immun e to frostbite, only encountering it on rare occasions, and often do not need to wear heavy clothes until the very coldest of winter nights. You like the cold.
Combat Reflexes — Your lightning reflexes grant you a special bonus of +5 to DB, OB, and initiative determination. [10 points]
You have always been quick to react. People had a hard time hitting you as you just slid away from their attack, after that you muneuvered up to strike them. You are quick in combat, and survive many encounters by acting first in a battle. You are gifted in the way of the warrior.
Commanding Demeanor — While in combat, all of your allies who can see you gain a special bonus of +5 to their OBs. Any foe who can see you must make a Fear RR (using your current experience Ievel as the attack level) or fight wilh a penalty of -10 [10 points]
You command respect. You have an aura about you that inspires your followers allies and frightens your enemies. Crowds part out of your way when you walk. Whenever you deal with someone, they generally concede to your demands. It is not that you are powerful, beautiful, or even strong. You just have a commanding personality.
Dead Eye — You receive a special bonus of +10 to your Missile and Thrown Weapon categories. [7 points]
You are a good shot with all missile weapons. You always enjoyed shooling when you were young. You would set up a target in a nearby tree and shoot it with projectiles unlil it got dark. You practiced shooting from various vantages, under different circumstances, even with your eyes closed. Eventually, you became a crack shot. Now those skills are being put to use.
Dense (double) — Your body is twice as dense as normal. Your total weight is double normal (generate a normal weight, then double it), but your height is unchanged. You receive a special bonus of +5 to your OB and DB, and reduce all impact criticals by 1 level (an 'A' becomes an 'A-25'). For an extra 20 points, you may turn this ability on and off whenever you desire at a cost of 2d10 exhaustion points. [10 points or 30 points]
Dense (quadruple) — Your body is four times as dense as normal. Your total weight is double normal (generate a normal weight, then multiply it by four), but your height is unchanged. You receive a special bonus of +10 to your OB and DB, and reduce all Impact criticals by 2 Ievels (an 'A' becomes an 'A-50', a 'B' becomes an 'A-25'). For an extra 20 poinls, you may turn this ability on and off whenever you desire at a cost of 4d10 exhaustion points. [20 points or 40 points]
You are conciderably denser than the norm of your world. Your whole body weighs twice what it looks like it should. Of course, this helps you withstand blows, as well as being knocked around. You are strong enough to move your body around normally, and you can pack quite a punch.
Dwarfism (half) — You are shorter than normal. You are half as tall (figure normal height, then divided by two) and weigh one-third as much (figure nonnal weight for normal height, then divide by three). You receive a special bonus of +3 to your Qu bonus. [5 points]
Dwarfism (quarter) — You are shorter than normal. You are one-quarter as tall (figure normal height, then divide by four) and weigh one-sixth as much (figure normal weight for normal height, then divide by six). You receive a special bonus of +6 to your Qu bonus. [10 points]
You are shorter than average. You are stuck in a world that is designed for people taller than you. There are, however, advantages to being small. You can fit into spaces others cannot. You are harder to hit in combat, often able to duck under furniture and other obstructions. It is also easier for you to hide from people, since there are many more available hiding places for you.
Ear for Music — You can reproduce any sound you hear. If the noise could not be reproduced by your vocal cords, you can reproduce it on an appropriate instrument. You can also play any piece of music you hear once (though not necessarily played well). You receive a special bonus of +25 to all Singing and Play Instrument maneuvers. [7 points]
You have a gift when it comes to music. Whenever you hear a song, you can picture the music written down on a music sheet. You can replicate virtually any sound you hear, given the proper instruments. You also can identify different unique sounds, like recognizing a type of bird by its song. You love music and spend your life listening to the beautiful harmonies that only nature can produce.
Extra Limbs (+1) — You have one extra limb. Having an extra limb does not grant you any special ability, you do not receive extra attacks for an extra arm, you do not receive a bonus to your base rate for having an extra leg, but you can accomplish actions that may be impossible for others to do. [5 points]
Extra Limbs (+2) — As Extra Limbs (+1), except you have two extra limbs. [10 points]
Extra Limbs (+3) — As Extra Limbs (+1), except you have three extra limbs. [15 points]
Extra Limbs (+4) — As Extra Limbs (+1), except you have four extra limbs. [20 points]
You race is either blessed or cursed, depending on whom you listen to. You have extra limbs. Although you are not sure what they are for, they do set you apart from other races. Personally, you find having two extra arms to be very helpful. You have found many uses for your extra arms, including holding people while you strike them in combal. Sadly, your unique physical characteristics separate you from most people, there are few people who do not consider you and your race freaks.
Eye of the Tiger — You have a special bonus of +25 to all of your Adrenal Strength maneuvers. [10 points]
When you need it, you can summon up a reserve of strength. You usually use this strength to help you in combat, but you can use it for other actions. It takes a little bit of time to summon this strength, but when you do, look out.
Flight — You have the natural ability to fly. You must choose what allows you to fly (wings, gravity, magic, etc.) You can fly at speeds of up to 75' per round. You may increase your base rate by making the appropriate maneuver roll. [20 points]
Some races long to be able to fly. They wish they could soar with eagles and feel the wind through their hair. You know what it feels like — you can fly. You avoid alt the cumbersome trappings of riding a horse or walking to your destination. You can skip over rivers. You do not have to deal wilh thieves and robbers. You generate a lot of attention when seen, and sometimes people like to take pot-shots at you, but they are just jealous. After all, you can fly.
Fluid Wrists — Due to your fine wrists, you receive a special bonus of +20 to all attacks with a thrown weapon and Martial Arts • Sweeps and Throws skills. [15 points]
You were always good with thrown objects. Your wrists always felt like a natural extension of whatever you were throwing. You aimed at your target and with a flick of your wrist, the weapon sailed through the air, striking right on target. When it came to unarmed combat, you could send a foe flying away from you with just a twist of your wrists.
Giantism (double) — You are larger than normal. You are twice as tall (figure normal height, then double it) and weigh three times as much (figure normal weight, then triple it). Your OB is increased by +10, but your DB is reduced by -10. You are treated as a Large creature for criticals. [10 points]
Giantism (quadruple) — You are larger than normal. You are four times as tall (figure normal height, then multiply it by four) and weigh six times as much (figure normal weight, then multiply it by six). Your OB is increased by +20, but your DB is reduced by -20. You are treated as a Large creature for criticals. [20 points]
You biggr than most people. You have some advantages to being as big as you are: you are harder to push around, you are stronger, and it is easier to get attention. But the world was made for people smaller than you, and so you must deal with small beds, weak chairs. smaller food portions, and low ceilings. You sometimes wish you were not as big as you are, but there is not much you can do about it.
Gliding — You may glide like a bird. The product of your altitude and horizontal speed cannot exceed 100' per round. For example, you can glide at a rate of 5' per round if you were 20' off the ground or you can glide at the rate of 50' per round if you were 2' off the ground. Note that the total must equal 100' (i.e., you cannot choose to have a total less than or more than 100'). [10 points]
You cannot quite fly, but you can certainly catch the air currents and glide around. You love to jump off of a high cliff and go soaring around in the atmosphere. You have used this ability to prevent you from being injured in pits, climbing down mountains, even leaping from rooftop to rooftop. You wre not sure what those extra flaps of skin underneath your arms were for, but now you cannot imagine life without them.
Golden Throat ‐ You have a soothing and calming voice. This gives you a special bonus of +15 to any maneuver where you verbally attempt to calm or persuade (Singing, Public Speaking, Duping, Trading, Acting, etc.). [10 points]
Some people call you glib, others a smooth talker. You have always been able to convince people to see it your way, or talk yourself out of situation.
Great Arm — All of your thrown weapon ranges are increased by 2S%. [7 points]
The great thing about thrown weapons is that they redy on strength. The stronger you are, the stronger your thrown weapons are. You might not look bulky, but your arms are definitely strong. You have lodged daggers up to their hilt into a wooden target board. You know how to use your strength.
Hammerhand — Your hands are much harder than normal. You may make Martial Arts • Strikes attacks with your bare hands and inflict an Impact critical of one less severity as your Martial Arts • Strikes critical (an 'A' becomes an 'A-25'). [15 points]
When your were learning martial arts, your teacher made you perform various exercises. One of these exercises was for you to thrust your hahd into a small bucket of sand. At the time you did not see much use in this. Now, much later. you have leamed the purpose. Your hands have become incredibly hard. When you strike someone, you can make bones break.
Heat Resistance (lesser) — You are more resistant to heat and fire than normal. You receive a special bonus of +5 to your RRs and DB versus heat- and fire-based attacks. [5 points]
Heat Resistance (minor) — You are more resistant to heat and fire than normal. You receive a special bonus of +10 to your RRs and DB versus heat- and fire-based attacks. [10 points]
Heat Resistance (major) — You are more resistant to heat and fire than normal. You receive a special bonus of +15 to your RRs and DB versus heat- and fire-based attacks. [15 points]
Heat Resistance (greater) — You are more resistant to heat and fire than normal. You receive a special bonus of +20 to your RRs and DB versus heat- and fire-based attacks. [20 points]
You are never too hot. You have stood as close as possible to fires and still felt nothing more thall slight warmth. Your race is known for its ability to withstand heat, and you are no exceplion. Even magical heat does not burn you as much as it should. You can usually absorb most of the damaging effects of heat and dissipate it gently. If only your clolhes had the same ability...
High Jumper — You have a great jumping ability. You receive a special bonus of +30 to your Jumping skill. [5 points]
You could always jump higher, farther, and longer than allyone else. Given enough running distance, you have been able to clear small ravines.
High Range Voice — Your voice can emit a sound higher than most. With it, you can shatter normal glass surfaces. Glass makes an RR to avoid shattering (its target level is 1 for every 1/4" of thickness. the attack level is your level), You may also create a scream attack that stuns all listeners within a 25' radius for 1 round/10% failure (target makes an RR versus your level). If you scream like that more than once per day , you will lose your voice entirely for one week. [5 points]
Everybody can scream. During adolescence. you discovered your scream packed considerably more punch. You remember a group of thugs swarming around you. They seemed about to overpower youl when you screamed. Your shriek stunned the thugs long enough to allow you to escape.
Hypercharged Adrenaline — You receive a special bonus of +15 to all Adrenal maneuvers (using skills in the Self Control category) as well as all Frenzy maneuvers. You also receive a special bonus or +5 to all or your Special Attacks skills and Special Defense skills. [15 points]
You like aclion. You hate to sit still. Even when the party is resting, you are up and about, moving around. You drum your hands against your thighs and when you sit, you unconsciously jog your legs up and down. All of this impatience pays off however. You are amazing in combat, always movillg and dodging. You can pull off moves that are charged with adrenaline. You also have been known to lose your composure completely, attacking everything you can see.
Infravision — You posses the ability of lnfravision. If it is dark. you can see the heat emanations from things from up to 100' away. You receive a special bonus of +25 to your Tracking skill if it is dark and what you are tracking has walked through the area in the last 30 minutes. [5 points]
The dark holds no surprises for you. You could always see heat sources, people, animals, even plants and rocks. You can even follow the warm footsteps of someone if they have passed recently. You love the dark.
Intense Eyes — Your powerful eyes grant you a special bonus of +10 to all skills in which you interact with other people (Duping, Bribery, lnterrogation, Diplomacy, etc.). Your eyes must be visible to whomever you are talking to for you to gain this bonus. [5 points]
You have arresting eyes. They seem able to meet anyone's gaze. You have been able to stop people in their tracks by glaring at them. You have found that your eyes convey presence when you are dealing with people. You have an instant advantage in any verbal parlay.
Light Sleeper — You may make an Observation maneuver to wake from sleep. [10 points]
You have always been a light sleeper. You sleep well at night, but you alway seem to keep your ears open. At the first sign that something is not right, you are awake and ready to take whatever action is necessary.
Natural Physique — Body Development is classificd as Everyman for you. [10 points]
Your body is in terrific shape. You work out on a regular basis, which allows you to build up muscle easier. You take much more punishment than most people, and you can get tougher with relative ease.
Natural Weapon — You have natural claws, talons, spikes, pinchers, beaks, or other weapons that you can use to attack. You may use these as a weapon, developing skill in it as if it were any other weapon (except the skill with this weapon/attack is actually under the Special Attack category). Natural weapons in your hands do not grant you any additional bonus if you are using a weapon in that hand. Your attack is rolled on the appropriate attack table with a maximum result of Medium. This skill is classified as Everyman. [10 points]
Your race has been fond of its natural weapons. You have a nice set of retractable claws. When you need them, they pop out with lethal quickness. Your whole race has developed a fighting style based on your claws, and it is a very effective and deadly form of martial art. You are very comfortable in the knowledge that wherever you go, you go armed.
Navigation Gift — You have a strange magnetic field that surrounds you. You can always discern north. You receive a special bonus +50 to your Direction Sense and Navigation skills (and compasses are always skewed if you are within 50'). Iron and steel objects seem to stick to you slightly. Your fumble ranges for iron and steel objects are reduced by 1 (minimum of 1.) However, you are more vulnerable to attacks from iron, steel, and electricity. Any attack based on iron, steel, or electricity receives a special bonus of +5 bonus to hit you. [7 points]
You are not sure how, but you instinctively know which direction north is. You can navigate a ship even during the blackest night. You seem to be some sort of living compass, with your own magnttic field. Even weapons with steel or iron in them seem to stick to you somewhat. You can wield these weapon without much fear of you dropping them. The only down side to this power is it seems that you atract electricity, steel, and iron. You must always be careful when being attacked by weapons or spells based on these things.
Neutral Odor — Your body has a particular ability thaI masks the scent of anything within five feet of you. [3 points]
As a child, you were never bothered much by animals, most of them ignored you. A stray dog once came upon you and your friends, sniffing each one in tum, except you. Since thal day, you have noticed that you seem to be odorless.
Nightvision — This allows an you to see in the presence of extremely faint light. The light from the moon or stars or even a tiny point of light is enough to allow the you to see normally (up to 25'). If there is no light at all, then Nightvision gives no benefit (see Spell Law section 7.1.19 for more information). [5 points]
Darkness. Most people fear it because it hides dangers from them. Only their imagination could conjure up what created the last noise they heard. You do not fear the night. It never held any surprises for you because you could always see perfectly at night, just as in daylight. Your eyes seem to use the natural light around and amplify it so you can see. You are always careful not to look into bright light, lest you become temporarily blind.
Nimble Skeleton — You get a special bonus of +15 to all Moving Maneuvers because of your nimble skeleton. [15 points]
You were always nimble. You could worm your way through fences and move your body in ways most people cannot. You have been able to keep your balance on even rough terrain. You can jump and run and tumble better than most people. You can even perform truly astounding acrobatics.
Pain Resistance — You receive a special bonus of +5 to your Body Development skill. [5 points]
You can tolerate pain. You just close off the part of your mind that is feeling the pain and battle on. It takes a lot of concentration, but you actually can withstand more damage than your body is normally able to uccommodate through sheerforce of will. You just have to finish this fight, you tell yourself, then you call rest.
Peripheral Vision — When you are attacked from the flank, your foe's bonus is only +5; from the rear, your foe's bonus is +15. [7 points]
You aIways keep track of everything on the battlefield. If someone starts to move around you, you keep track ot them to the best of your ability. You keep an inventory of where everyone is in your head, ready to spin around and show them the error of trying to sneak up on you. Your peripheral vision is excellent.
Poison Sack — You have the ability to generate poison. The type of poison (circulatory, reduction, etc.) is up to you and your GM to decide. The level of the poison is equal to your half your level (rounded down). Normally, the poison must be delivered by a successful attack with a critical. Exactly how you apply the poison to your foe is detemlined by you and your GM. You are not immune to the poison. [10 points]
Your race has developed a defense: whenever you are threatened, you can spit out a large glob of poison at your attacker. It will invariably slow them down and give you a chance to either escape or counter-attack. Your body can manufacture more poison as it is needed, so you never run out.
Quiet Stride — You have a quick and quiet stride. You receive a special bonus of +20 to your Stalking skill, you may ambush anyone from behind with a special bonus of +10 to your Ambush skill, and receive a special bonus of +20 bonus for all balancing maneuvers. [15 points]
You can sneak up on friends, enemites, and animals. You always knew where to step, and your body moved smoothly and quietly. Later in life, you learned how to approach enemies undetected, placing wellaimed blows. You are stealthy, and you use it to your advantage.
Regeneration (lesser) — You have the ability to regenerate damage from all but fatal wounds. Your body automatically regenerates 1 Concussion Hit each round. Your recovery rate for non-fatal injuries is halved. [5 points]
Regeneration (minor) — As Regeneration (lesser), except you recover 2 concussion hits per round. [10 points]
Regeneration (major) — As Regeneration (lesser), except you recover 3 concussion hits per round. [15 points]
Regeneration (greater) — As Regeneration (lesser), except you recover 4 concussion hits per round. [20 points]
Though you take damage as quickly as anyone else, you can heal faster than most. Your body is very adaptive to injury, often closing and healing a wound a few minutes after it is delivered. You remember your first battle, you were stabbed in the chest and fell to the ground. You lay there bleeding. Your comrades had left you for dead, but you saw your wound closing. You felt your body healing itself, much faster than you thought possible.
Resilient — Any bleeding wounds (wounds giving hits per round) that you receive have their rates reduced by half (round up). If the wound only gives a 1 per round "bleeder," it heals itself completely in d10 rounds. [15 points]
You never really bled much. Whenever you wure cut, the wound seemed to stop bleeding on its own. You do not think you have some mystical healing factor — you recover from injury no faster than anyone else — but bleeding stops quicker. You wonder why you have been blessed with this capacity, but question it little.
Reverbative Strength — Whenever you are in a melee combat and you do acritical to your foe, that foe takes an additional Unbalancing critical of two levels less severity (an A as an A-50; a B becomes an A-25). [7 points]
Follow through. That is what you remember most about fighting. You always follow through in your attacks, and you do it with a lot of strength. You have been known to push over foes when you attack them. You like the advantage you gain, so always follow through.
Shield Mastery — You may add an additional +10 to the DB provided by any shield (e.g., a Normal shield now gives 35 DB, etc.). You also receive a special bonus of +15 to your Shield Bashes skill. [10 points]
You have used a shield since you were a child. Your people have been known for their ability with the shield. Your father made you a small one when you were young, and he carved a sword out of wood to teach you the fighting ways of your people. You have been practicing with a shield ever since then. You have grown up a lot since using that wooden sword and shield. but you have continued to learn how to uste the shield to its utmost. You like having that piece of wood, leather, and sleel protecting you from damage.
Steel Grip — You may resist weapon disarming with a +25 bonus. Any fumble that results in dropping your weapon may be resisted (as Disarm Foe for RR). [5 points]
Your weapon is your life, so learned as a soldier. If you lose your weapon, you lose your life. You decided never to lose your weapon. When you are in combat, you hold onto your weapon tightly. You call still maneuver it and use it effectively. you just do not want someone to send it flying from your hand with a strong blow or a surprise jab.
Strong Lungs — Your lungs allow you to hold your breath for 10 seconds plus 1 minute per Co bonus (minimum of 10 seconds). [5 points]
You have resilient lungs. You found you could hold your breath for quite a long time. You have found it extremely useful when swimming, or if some toxic gas starts to fill your surroundings..
Sturdy Build — You reduce the level of any Crushing. Unbalancing, or Impact critical you receive by one level (an A becomes A-25). [20 points]
You were always sure-footed. You could anticipate any blow and prepare for it. Even during an earthquake, you were certain of staying upright. You are not sure how or why you have this ability, just that you can anticipate what will throw you off balance, and you can compensate for it.
Subconscious Preparation — Percentage activity needed to reload missile weapons and/or draw weapons is halved. [5 points]
You do not even notice your hand straying onto the handle of your weapon. You slide your dagger out of its shealh. lt comes in handy when you get into a fight your weapon is ready while your opponents are still fumbling for theirs.
Subtle — All your Stalk and Hide maneuvers receive a special bonus of +25. [7 points]
Quiet, stealthy, and quick. That is how you feel about yourself. You feel that you can sneak up on anyone. You know where to step, you know how much pressure to put on your feet. Your whole body seems designed to move stealthily. You have also found it necessary sometimes to stay hidden now and then. You know how to control your breathing, stay stationaey for long periods of time, even sleep in awkward positions, just to remain hidden.
Tensile — Choose one of the following types of criticals: Slash, Krush, Puncture, Unbalancing, Martial Arts Striking, Martial Arts Sweeps, and Grappling. Any time you are affected by that type of critical, its severity is reduced by one level (an A becomes an A-25). [15 points]
You hate to be cut. You have spent much of your life avoiding being hit by bladed weapons. Now, unconsciously, your body does its best to prevent serious damage from them. You twist, bend, jump back, even drop prone momentarily. You can not always avoid all of the attacks. but you can lessen their effect on you.
Tolerance — You may take 150% of your concussion hits before falling unconscious (though death occurs at the normal loss of hits). [15 points]
You have a high threshold for pain. When other people would fall unconscious, you still keep going. You have an inner reserve that seems to not know when to stop.
Tough Skin (wolf) — Your skin is naturally hardened. If you are wearing no armor at all, your Armor Type is 3. If you are wearing any sort of armor, then your Armor Type is that of the armor and is unmodified by your skin. [5 points]
Tough Skin (tiger) — Your skin is naturally hardened. If you are wearing no armor at all, your Armor Type is 4. However, you receive a -20 to your Appearance (due to the appearance of your skin). [15 points]
Tough Skin (insect) — Your skin is naturally hardened. If you are wearing no armor at all, your ArmorType is 11. However, you receive a -40 to your Appearance (due to the appearance of your skin). [30 points]
You spent most of your early life exposed to the elements and in combat. Consequently, your skin has become consiriuobly tougher then normal flesh. You are able to shrug off blows that would split the skin of a normal person.
Unnatural Stamina — You have increased stamina. You have a special bonus of +100 to your Exhaustion point total. [10 points]
You used to run around your home for fun. You later became a messager, running between towns delivering messages of importcance. You found you could exert yourself for long periods of time without feeling tired. You know how to pace yourself, and stay active much longer than any other person you know.
These abilities are difficult for most people to explain. They reflect a supernatural power that is yours to command. There should be a rational explanation on how your character received these abilities. Generally, a character will not possess more than two of these abilities.
Aggression — You receive +10 bonus to either your Base Attack Rolls or to your Elemenlal Attack Rolls (choose when purchasing the talent). [7 points]
You are driven when you cast a spell, especially if it is against someone or something. You can really let out all of your frustration when you set a spell loose.
Archetype — Power Point Development is classified as an Everyman skill for you. [15 points]
When you were leaming spells with other apprentices, they always seemed to tire before you did. Did they nut realize how to cost spells more efficiently? Your teacher noticed your ability, claiming it only happened once every ten generatiotns. You became a special pupil to him as you continued your training.
Archmage Abilities — You may develop spells as a Pure Arcane spell user. If you are not using Arcane Companion, you may develop spells as a Hybrid spell user. [15 points]
You never could understand why magic was split into the three realms. It is all fundamentally the same. The only practical difference is where the power comes from. lf you try hard enough, you can summon power from different sources as well. You may not be an Archmage, but you can control power just like the best of them.
Aura — You receive an additional power point for each rank of Power Point Development you have (for example, if your Power Point progression was 0•6•5•4•3, the first ten ranks of Power Point Development you purchase will give you 7 Power Points each, the second ten ranks give you 6 Power Points each, etc.). [7 points]
You can draw more energy to cast spells than most people. An old hag lived in a forest near your childhood home. She told you that you had an aura of power. Perhaps she was right.
Danger Sense — You may make an Alertness maneuver to detect danger (GM's discretion). You all receive a special bonus of +10 to your Awareness • Perceptions category. [15 points]
Whenever you get near some source of danger. You can feel it. You cannot always depend on it, but it has certainly saved your life on more than one occosion. You do not tell people about your sense because they would not believe you. You use it to your adventage, though.
Destiny Sense — You instinctively know the direction that will take you to a specific goal. This ability can only be used once per day. [7 points]
You view your life as a river, constantly flowing to a specific point. The river may make bends and it may even fork, but the current continue to flow in the proper direction. When you come across a situation where you have no idea what to do next, you like to relax and feel the flow of your life around you. If you concentrate hard enough, you call see which way will lead you to your goal.
Eloquence — You receive a special bonus of +25 to all of your Spell Casling Stalic Maneuvers. [15 points]
Some people are so showy. They wave their hands, chant, and dance around just to cast a spell. Would it not be more efficient to just do minimal gestures and soy a few words. It seems to work for you, but then that's why you get your spells off quicker.
Ensorcellment Cure — You may touch a target afflicted with a permanent magical disability (curse, lycanthropy, elc.). The disability must make a RR versus your level or be permanently dispelled. If the disability makes its RR, you may not try to remove it until you gain another level. [10 points]
You had a friend who was cursed by an evil wizard. You saw your friend suffering from the curse's effects and placed your hand on him to comfort him. When your friend looked up, the curse had been broken. Since then, you have realized that you possess an ability to lift enchantments from those they affect. You have traveled far and wide, helping people whenever you could. Your touch does not always work, but it gives hope to some people who would have none.
Ethereal Sight — By closing your eyes and concentrating for 2d10 rounds, you can change your vision so that you can perceive invisible things. This lasts 10d10 minutes and may only be used once per day. Using this ability does not interfere with your normal vision. [10 points]
There are invisible creatures aII around. Obviously, most cannot seem them, but you are gifted. You can see them moving around, stalking othter people. You wait for one of them to try to sneak up on you.
Ethereal Tie — You have a close spiritual relationship with an entity from another plane. Whenever you are in a combat situation that follows your beliefs, roll d100 (open-ended) and add 25. If the result is over 100, you will be possessed and bonded with this entity. While you are possessed, you receive an AT of 11 (if desired), a special bonus of +25 to your OB, and a special bonus of +10 to your DB. You cannot parry while you are possessed. After combat you must make a Channeling RR versus a 10th level attaek or the spirit will remain for an additional 2d10 hours. During this time, you will only have partial control of your actions (the GM's discretion as to what happens.) [15 points]
There seems to be an entity that look out for you. You call if your Guardian Angel. Whenever you find yourself fighting someone, if you truely believe in the righteousness of what you are doing, you feel yourself assisted internally. You fight better and resist being hit better. You do not parry, that would be showing weakness. Your guardian angel takes care of most of the fighting for you. When the battle is over though, you have to force the entity to leave your body. It seems that once it has planted itself in you, it does not want to leave. Though you sense the spirit is benevolent, it is stubborn. If you cannot force the entity to leave, it will wander off on its own after a while. You just do not feel in control while it is still in you. You are not sure why this entity has chosen you as its link to this world, but it has looked after your best interests so for.
Exceptional Magical Ability — You are exceptionally enchanted. You receive a special bonus of +50 to your RR versus one realm and a special bonus of +25 when casting spells or using items based in that realm. [30 points]
Spells come easy to you. You resist them and cast them with few problems. You were destined to be a great spellcaster. Even if you do not cast spells, you can still use magical items better than you thought possible. When you throw spells on foes, than almost always take effect. You can feel the power, and revel in using it.
Innate Magician — You receive a special bonus of +10 to all Spell Casting Static Maneuvers for spells from one SpeIl List. [7 points]
Spell casters can cast a variety of spells. You have a pretty wide selection of spells yourself, but there is that one type of spell that you really do well. Whellever you cast a spell of that type, it comes out flawlessly. You enjoy casting these spells; you have a security most spell casters would kill for.
Item Lore — You receive a special bonus or +25 to your Magical Lore skill category. [7 points]
You have come across a fair share of magic items. Rods, wands, staves, rings, boots, you name it. Some people do not even know their items are magical. You concentrate and are able to use them. You tell people, but they just cannot seem to duplicate your efforts. You have quite an affnity for enchanted items.
Look of Eagles — People who are your allies, troops, friends, or retainers receive +25 to RRs versus panic and morale while you are well and in sight. [7 points]
People look up to you. Whenever there is some sort of crisis, it is you that always calms people down. You are not quite sure why it is, but you have an aura about you that people cannot help but notice.
Magical Affinity — You have your choice of two spell lists that may be classified as Everyman and a choice of one Power Manipulation skill that is classified as Everyman. [17 points]
You often thought of becoming a spell-user. As a child you would dream of saving maidens from terrible dragons by castillg a powerful spell. You did your best to study as much magic as you could. You learned quite a lot as a child about the way magic worked. You may not even be following the path of a spell-user now, finding it much too restrictive, but those lessons you learned early on in life will always be with you.
Magical Resistance — You have a strange resistance to magic. You receive a special bonus of +30 to your RRs versus one realm of magic. [15 points]
You discovered your strange resistance to magic when you accidentally stepped between a spell-user and his spell. Since then, you halve had an increased resistance to that caster's realm. You are not immune to those spells, but they do seem to have a reduced effect upon you.
Mana Reading — You receive a special bonus of +15 to your Attunement skill. [10 points]
A merechant came to you once and offered to sell you what he claimed was magic items. When you picked it up, you knew that it was indeed magical. In fact you knew exactly what it did, even more than the merchant himself knew. You seem to have an affinity for magic items.
Mana Sensing — The hairs on the back of your neck prickle whenever you go near a large power source, an enchanted location, an earthnode, a haunted area, etc. [7 points]
You get this tickling feeling in the back of your neck whenever you come near large sources of magic. You cannot explain it, but you know you can sense magic..
Planar Travel (minor) — You can travel to other planes of existence al will. You must have some knowledge of where you wish to go. It takes 10d10 minutes to accomplish the transition, during which time, you are subject to the effects on both planes. Normally, you can only move yourself and your clothes and equipment (approximately 100 extra pounds.) There is a 1% chance that you will get caught up in some planar "storm" and wind up in some unexpected plane. This ability can only be invoked once every week. [40 points]
Planar Travel (major) — As Planar Travel (minor) except allows you to carry one additional person (who must be touching you). [45 points]
Planar Travel (greater) — As Planar Travel (minor) except allows you to carry two additional persons (who must be touching you). [50 points]
You are blessed with a mysterious ability. A wizard once told you about other planes. You did not believe that there could be whole other exislences to explore. Yet he offered to show you how, and you learned. Since then, you have had the ability to travel to places only imagined by others. You have been to places very similar to your home plane, to places where you could not survive if it were not for the precautions you took before leaving. You have considered trying to find a new dimension where you can settle down and raise a family.
Resistance — You receive a spccial bonus of +10 to any RR for any two realms. [15 points]
Somethings just do not affect you much. It seems like some spells just wash right over you. You are not quite sure why, and it certainly does not alter all the spells that hit you, but that one class of spells just does not stick.
Runic Lore ‐ You receive a special bonus of +25 to your Read Runes skill. [5 points]
Storing spells on rune paper makes sense. You can cast them without expending any power, and they are ready to use at a moment's notice. You have little trouble reading them, even if you have not written them.
Scope Skills (radius) — Your spells have double the normal radius of effect (this only affects spells with an Area of Effect that includes a radius). [10 points]
Scope Skills (target) — Your spells affect twice as many targets (this only affects spells with an Area of Effect that includes "target"). [10 points]
You have studied carefully the workings of spells and how they interact with people. You unearthed an ancient tome that told of a way to double the number of people you can affect with a spell. You memorized what the tome said and then hid it very careflllly so only you would have that knowledge. Someday you may read the other sections of that tome.
Spatial Skills — The ranges of your spells are greater than those of most other mages. Your spells with a range of Self are actually a range of Touch. Those with a range of Touch are actually a range of 5'. All other spells add 50' to their ranges. However, this extension of range only affects one Type of spell (Force. Utility, Directed EIemental, etc.). This ability can be purchased once for every spell type. [10 points]
You have a unique perception of magic, especially when dealing with the range of a spell. Most spell users limil the range they can successfully use spells. You do not believe in such limitations. After all, the power comes from you. You have cast spells over hundreds off feet without problems.
Sub-conscious Discipline — Any spell which has a duration of Concentralion will last as many rounds after you stop concentrating as you originally spent concentrating on the spell. For example, if you concentrate on a spell for four rounds, it will continue to operate for another four rounds after you cease concentration. Note that this only affects spells with aduration of Concentration (not spells with both a timed durationand the requisite of concentration). [10 points]
You are very adept at keeping spells active while doing other tasks. There is a part of your mind that will continue concentrating on spells even when the conscious mind is doing other things, like preparing a new spell. You have become very proficient at this, often keeping multiple spells active at once.
Temporal Skills — The duration of all of your spells is doubled. This does not affect spells with a duration of concentration ("C") or instant ("—"). [20 points]
The duration of spells is imponant to you. After all you would not want that Shield spell to cease in the middle of combat, or a fly spell to stop when you are one hundred feet above the ground. You have taken steps to make sure that this will never happen to you. After much research, you have discovered away for your spells to last longer.
Transcendence — You receive a special bonus or +25 to your Transcend Armor skill. [15 points]
Your ability is one coveted by spell users everywhere. You have Iearned the ability to open your mind and body to the energies you control. You know that when a spell is cast by someone in armor, thaI armor inhibits the casting to varying degrees (based on the type of armor and the realm of the spell). You have a way of avoiding the constraining effects of armor on you by becoming a living stream for the effergy to flow through, thus avoiding the inhibitive effects of the armor.
Undetectable — You receive a special bonus of +30 to RRs versus all scrying, detection, and related spells. If such a spell is actually Passive. you may make an RR (wilh the +30 modifier) to resist its effects. [5 points]
You seem to be invisible to all magical attempts to locate you. You have no idea how this came to be, but you have had your share of strange adventures, so the possibility is great that something mystical has happened to you. You first noticed this when your party of comrades came to rescue you from the clutches of one of your enemies. They had paid a seer to locate you magically, but nothing of your presence would show up. In desperation, they tried to locate your kidnapper, and succeeding that, discovered you. But you have found being undetectable by magic adventageous at times.
Unnatural Aging — You age slowly for your race. All aging maneuvers (see Gamemaster Law) are made with a one category shift to the left. For elxample, if you are a 67 year old Ruralman, you would normally be Very Old. With this lalent, you would only be Old. [10 points]
You do not know for sure, but you think you will have an unnaturally long lifespan. At least that is what a gypsy told you at their camp. You are not sure whether or not you believe it, but your mother lived an awfully long time. Your father too seemed to possess longevity of life. Maybe it is true after all.
Visions — You receive spontaneous glimpses of events that are associated with a particar place, person, or item that you touch (with your bare skin). This talent is useable once per day plus one additional time per SD bonus (a negative SD bonus results in zero addilional times per day). [10 points]
The first time it happened, your village was looking for a lost girl. You came across a doll she had dropped. When you picked it up, you had a vision inside your head of her running away from a wolf. You followed the direction it looked like she ran and found her shortly thereafter. Ever since, whenever you pick up an object, touch a persoll, or even concentrate on a locarion, you get a vision in your head related to it.
The mind is a very powerful thing. You have tapped mental abilities thal most people only dream of having. Generally, a character will not possess more than two of these abilities. however if the character is a Mentalism spell user, then they could have more Mental Abilities.
Animal Empathy — You have empathy with" certain type of animal. Any maneuver wilh such an animal receives a special bonus of +25 to it. If you associate with a specific animal for a month, you can communicate empathically that animal from a range of 1' for every level you have. The GM will have to determine what qualifies as an acceptable animal. [5 points]
You have always liked animals. You have nurscd sick animals to health, put food outfor them in the wittter, and looked after their well-being. In retum, they have trusted you and helped you when they could. Bringing you food, protection, even informalion occasionally. You enjoy being with allimals, and they enjoy being with you.
Battle Reflexes — You may make an extra initiative roll and select the one you wish to use. [7 points]
You call adapt to any combat situation very quickly. You can assess the whirlwind of information that assaults you in combat. You know how to use that information to your own advantage, and you press that advantage whenever you can. Even if you are surprised, you can recover more quickly than normal. Then you can press the battle to your victory.
Calmness — Whenever you are in a pressured situation (GM's discretion), you receive a special bonus of +10 to your social interaction skills (Leadership, Diplomacy, Public-Speaking, Seduction etc.). [5 points]
You are very calm and collected. You can keep your cool in any situation. People look to you for guidance, leadership, and companionship. When things look the bleakest, you take command. You thrive on pressure. You even enjoy it.
Dominance — You receive a special bonus of +50 to RRs versus spells with a Menial sub-class ("m"). [5 points]
Some people have very strong wills. You are one of those people. You have a determination to finish what you start. Nothing will stop you from completing your goal. Not pain, and certainly not some spell user's mind control spell. You break such spells and demonstrate how effective cold steel can be.
Empathy — Whenever you are near someone (within 20') you can attempt to determine what their emotional state is at the moment. The person you are trying to "read" must make an RR versus Mentalism (using your level as the attack level). If they fail, you are informed of their current feelings. You cannot tell why they feel that way, just how they feel. This ability also gives you a special bonus of +25 to all of your Lie Perception maneuvers (if within 20' of target). [10 points]
You do not consider yourself special. You certainly cannot read minds. You can, however, perceive what a particular person is feeling by being near them. This helps you immensely in negotiations with other parties and in important discussions. You have also been able determine if someone is lying to you or not. You get a feeling inside of you, alerting you to the person's disposition. You consider it your edge.
Good Battlefield Awareness — You receive a special bonus of +25 to Situational Awareness (Combat). You also receive a special bonus of +25 bonus to your Reverse Strike skill. [7 points]
When you are in a fight, you are a master of your surroundings. You con tell at all times where everyone is, even if they have snuck off behind you. You cannot tell how you know; it is more of a feeling than actual sight of every combatant. You have even been know to strike somebody right before they attack you from behind. You know where they are and you thrust your weapon straight behind you at just the right time. It is gratifying to you when it works.
Immovable Will — You receive a special bonus of +50 to RRs versus Fear and Charm. You have a special bonus of +25 to your Will (see Treasure Companion for more information on Will). [20 points]
People have always labeled you as steadfast, unwavering, resolute, even stubborn. You never scare easily, and people find it difficult to persuade you to do anything you do not want to do. Consequently, you find adventuring to be a little easier.
Instinctive Defense — You gain a special bonus of +20 to your DB for all attacks that you are aware of. If you are unaware of an incoming attack you still receive a special bonus of +10 to your DB. [15 points]
Your body seems to have an instinctive defensive mechanism. You have parried attacks you did not even know were coming. When you were ready for an attack, it seemed that your arm moved even before you finished the thought. You are certainly glad you have this reflex, because it has saved your life on more than one occasion.
Internal Sense — You receive a special bonus of +20 to your Stunned Maneuver skill. [10 points]
You remember the first time you battled. You were hit hard, and you saw stars in your eyes. You looked up and saw your enemy grinning as he got ready to deliver the killing blow. The next thing you knew, you had driven your weapon into your foe's belly. Since then you have noticed that stun does not effect you as much as it does your foes.
Master Tactician — You receive a special bonus of +15 to your Tactics skill. [7 points]
You are intuitive with small unit tactics. Looking at the current situation, you often get insights that most people would not think of. You are a valuable asset in any fight.
Mental Control — You have the power to control the mind of other sentient beings. Each use of this power costs 4d10 exhaustion points. Your victim must make an RR versus a Mentalism attack (using your level as the attack level). The RR is modified by how alien the mental command is to the victim. For example: a command that the victim would not mind doing might be modified by a -20. If the command is something the viclim is against doing, the RR for the victim might be modified by +10. If the command is completely foreign, like suicide or blinding oneself, the RR might be modified by +50. Each time a new command is given, the victim gets a new RR. The range for Mental Control is 5' per level. [20 points]
You know how to dominate weak minds. You just force your will upon them, and they do as you command. It is a power that you sought long and hard for. It is also a power for which you paid dearly. You have dealt with the archmages, demons, and even a lich to find part of the secret to mind control. You paid a high price, but now few can withstand you. A commanding thought is all it takes to make a person change their mind.
Mental Link — You have a special form of telepathy between you and one other person (or animal), You can send and receive thoughts between each other. You must be within sight to establish a "connection." Once established, the mental link will function over an unlimited physical distance. If one of the connected persons falls unconscious, the link is broken. If only one of the two people purchases this talent, that person may send his thoughts and the other person will receive them, but the reverse is not true. [7 points]
You have a real bond with your twin sisler. It seems at times that you can communicate with her without voicing your thoughts. It's as if she can read your mind. You have been practicing this mental communication and have reached the point where you can send a thought to her, and she to you. You have found this to be a great boon during combat; you can communicate without opening your mouth.
Mental Scan — You can scan an area with your mind to find an individual. You must have some knowledge the person you are looking for, someone you have met, a picture, something they have touched, or a detailed description. The closer you are to the person you are scanning for, the greater bonus you would receive when you scan. For example, if you are searching for your child, spouse, or someone equally as close, you might receive a special bonus of +30 bonus. If you are friends with the person, you might receive a special bonus of +10. lf you have casually met the person you are scanning for, there would be no bonus . If you are scanning for someone you have never met, through an item they once possessed, the penalty might be -20. The smaller the area you search, the better your chances of success. You roll d100 (open-ended) to search for your target. If you exceed 100. you have detected the individual and know their approximate distance and bearing. You may develop the skill of Mental Scan (as a skill in your Awareness • Searching skill category). Your roll is also modified by the area you are tryinging to scan. A small area containing about a dozen people is an Easy maneuver (+20). Scanning an area around a square mile with about 100 people is a Hard maneuver (-10). Scanning a large area with many thousands of people (like a city) is an Extremely Hard maneuver (-30). Scanning an entire country is an Absurd maneuver (-90). The closer you get to the individual you are scanning for, the more precise your directions to him are. You may increase your chances of finding someone by scanning a normally large area a few people at a time. For example, you might start in a city by scanning just a tavern at a time. Each use of this power costs d10 exhaustion points. [20 points]
You are skilled at finding people. No matter how well they are hidden, you can detect their presence. If you know who you are searching for, you can use your mind to ferret them out. You have earned quite a reputation for finding people. You enjoy locating lost children or finding merchant caravans that have been captured. You feel that a great power comes with a great responsibility.
Mind over Matter — You have a special bonus of +20 to your Self Control skill category. [7 points]
You exercise complete control over you body. You can distance yourself from any pain you receive from overexertion. You can make your body move twice as fast, stronger, even give you better balance. You can cause your body to perform truly heroic feats, all with a conscious thought and a little preparation.
Photographic Memory — You have a photographic memory. Anything you study for more than 15 minutes will be placed into your memory, to be recalled whenever you need. You can remember entire books if you need to, given the proper time to study. You cannot glance at a book and then remember everything the page said; you have to read it. When you need to remember something you have studied, you roll d100 (open-ended) and add 3 times your Me bonus and add 25. If the total is greater wan 100, you fully remember what you want. If the lotal is less than I00, then that is the percentage of information you recall. This ability also grants you a special bonus of +10 to the Lore skill group. [10 points]
You can picture in your mind's eye anything you have seen before. You have always had this ability. If you have studied something for even a brief amount of time, you can remember exactly what it looks like. You have used this with much success when you were searching for some important piece of Iore, remembering everything you ever read. Your mind is a powerful repository for information, and you use it to its fullest.
Quick Calculator — You can instantly calculate virtually any mathematical formula in your head. If the formula is sufficiently complicated, like calculating when a solar eclipse will occur, it will take a little more time. You receive a special bonus of +10 to the Science/Analytic group. You also receive a special bonus of +5 to your Trading skill. [3 points]
You like numbers, you always have. You could calculate sums and products faster than people could move the beads on their abaci. You could instantly calculate the taxes due, physical calculations. even give good estimates on the value of currency in a foreign country. People always look to you when there is a calculation to be done.
Speed Reading — You can read books, maps, and other documents at a rate of ten pages per minute. [5 points]
You like to read. You enjoy curling up with a good book and losing yourself in the story. You have read voraciouly for years, ever since you were taught how. Over the years, you have noticed the increase in the speed at which you read. Pretty soon, you could read an entire book in the span of an hour. You have found this to be helpful over the years, and you keep in practice by reading as much as you can.
Stability Sense — Any time you are stunned, you reduce the total rounds of stun by one. If a strike results in only one round of stun, then it has no effect. [10 points]
You prefer being in control of yourself. When somebody dazes you in combat, you want to be able to hit him right back. You focus all of your energy into that goal. You see a tunnel with your opponent at the end of it. You rush to the end and deliver a blow before he can take advantage of the situation. That is what you like.
Survival Instinct — When you use your entire OB to parry, your DB is modified by an additional +25. [10 points]
You have a definite desire to live. You will do whatever it takes to survive. People have likened you to a turtle when you "go defensive." When you want to, you can prevent people from harming you.
Telekinesis — You may move one object, up to 50 pounds in mass, up to one foot per second (with no acceleration). Each round you use Telekinesis it costs d10 Exhaustion Points. [20 points]
Mind over matter. You have complete control over it. You have been able to move objects with your mind since you were a young child. It just takes a little concentrotion combined with a mental push, and the object moves, completely under your control. You have found many uses for this ability, including retrieving a losl weapon, opening locked chests, etc. It requires some concenration, and a little exertion, but you have total control over the object's motion.
Telepathy — You may read or send thoughts mentally. Whenever you are trying to read the thoughts of a person, they must make an RR versus a Mentalism attack (using your level as the attack level). If the RR fails, you may learn their surface thoughts. These modifiers are for scanning surface thoughts only. If you wish to scan for a particular thought then it is modified by the target's reluctance to part with that information (e.g. a deep secret would have the RR modified by +30). Each use of this power costs 2d10 exhaustion points. The range of this power is line of sight. [20 points]
You know instinctively what other people are thinking. Whenever you ask a question, you instantly know whether or not the response is a lie. You can try to probe another person's thoughts and find a particular piece of informayion. You like being able to know instanty what people are thining about you. You especially like it when you confront someone who is lying with irrefutable proof of their fallacies. You have a great power over people, one that you enjoy using.
Unbeliever — You may resist versus all magic with a +25 modifier to your RRs. You may not, however, use any spells or spelldevices (any attempts to do so will result in absolute failure). [15 points]
Magic? There is no such thing. Just a bunch of charlatans and hoaxsters. You have never felt any different when they cast their spells on you. It is just a bunch of tricks. Even magic items, they never worked for you. Just a lousy way to make some money from gullible people. Good thing you can see through their charade.
Violent Prejudice — You may choose one specific race (subject to the GM's approval) against which you receive an additional +10 to your DB. Whenever you deliver a critical, you also deliver an Impact critical of one less severity (an A becomes an A-25). [10 points]
You have an irrational hatred of a specific race. When you see them, your whole body shakes with rage. You remember seeing your family slaughtered by that race, your whole village burning. You vowed revenge, but had to flee. Ever since then, you have vented your fristration at every one of that race that you have seen, making each one pay with blood for the death of your parents, friends, and your innocence.
Some people have abilities that are difficult to believe. These abilities go far beyond what a normal person would think possible. You are truly gifted. It is recommended that a character have, at most, no more than one of these abilities.
Adherent — Your body can adhere to virtually any surface. You can literally walk on walls and ceilings if you desire. Your movement rate up a wall or over a ceiling is one-fourth of normal movement (due to an annoying thing called gravity). You receive a special bonus of +50 to all Climbing maneuvers. [25 points]
You hung around a small group of thieves when you were young. You were known as the climber of the group. It seemed like you could climb up a sheer glass wall. You never mentioned it to anyone, but you did seem to have a talent for sticking to anys urface. You have even walked and crawled along ceilings. You can turn this adhesiveness on and off at will. It is a strange but helpfill power.
Affect Environment (lesser) — You have the ability to effect the environment surrounding you. You can alter the weather, make it lighler or darker, even set up an intense magnetic field. None of these changes can affect combat (or any other intense action), but it could make it more difficult for certain actions to be performed. For example, someone will not run as fast in a magnetic field if they were wearing metal armor. You may affect an area up to 100' away, with a 5' radius. You must specify what type of effect you will have upon the environment when you purchase this ability. [20 points]
Affect Environment (greater) — As Affect Environment (lesser), except the radius is 10'. [25 points]
You always disliked rain. You remember once when you were walking home, and the rain was pouring down on you. You wished that it was not raining so hard. The next thing you noticed was that it had stopped raining. At least it stopped raining around you. It was raining everywhere but where you were. You then learned of your ability to affect the environment around you. You can make only small localized changes, but still it makes your life happier.
Amazing Leaping — You have a Base Running horizontal leap of three times normal; vertical leap of five times normal. See RMSR for rules on determining the normal jumping ability (Appendix A-1, Athletic Brawn skills description). [15 points]
Your legs seem to have much more spring in them than you think is normal. You can actfually leap from one building to alother, over any small obstacle, even up to a second story window. You have very powerful muscles in your legs, combined with very resilient tendons and cartilage. You can use your leaping ability as a means of conveyance, often leaping clear over an intruding river or pund. It is definitely all interesting way to travel.
Attribute Drain — You have the ability to drain away Exhaustion Points, Concussion Hits, or Power Points. You must touch your victim, and they must make are RR against a Channeling attack (using your level as the attack level). If the RR fails, the victim loses d10 points from their attribute. This loss regenerates itself at the normal speed of recovery. When you purchase this talent, you must specify which attribute you wish to drain: Exhaustion Points, Concussion hits, or Power Points. No attribute may be drained below zero (even if using Power Drain rules from Arcane Companion). Using this power costs 2d10 Exhaustion Points. [30 points]
You have discovered that you have a unique talent. Whenever you touch someone, you can actually drain away some of their vitality. You hove seen people grow weaker just by you touching them. You can actively control when this occurs, but you enjoy seeing strong people being made weak just by shaking your hand. Evetually, their strength comes back, but there is plenty of time for you to take adventage of their current condition. All it takes is a touch, and they know who is really more powerful.
Bane — You may select one creature type (subject to the GM's approval) against which all of your criticals do an additional "Slaying" critical. [25 points]
You are not sure if it is general intolerance or if you have been chosen to be a champion against a particular evil, but you have the ability to destroy members of a type of creature with ease. You can feel your weapon ripping into these creatures, hear them scream with agony. You have little to fear from these creatures. You only hope that someone else does not have the same intolerance for you and your kind.
Blessed by War God — You have been blessed by a god of war. You receive a special bonus of +10 to your St, Qu, Ag, and Co stats bonuses. You may cast one spell per day from the Holy Arms spell list (maximum of your current level); no Power Points are required for this casting. There is a 10% chance per month (non cumulative) that you will be "quested" to carry out some mission for your god. You may roll an RR versus a tenth level Channeling attack (if you wish to resist), but if you resist the quest, you will lose all of your special bonuses from this talent, and be at -15 to all actions for one year. In addition, you will be labeled a heretic, and probably chased down by another champion of your former god (vengeance from a god of war is not often pretty). If the concept of a war god does not fit into your background or the GM's world, the powers and source may be modified; the GM should select four stats and one spell list that would be appropriate for his world. [50 points]
You were taken to the temple of the war god at a very early age and given to him as a servant. The war god looked down at you and smiled. He decided to grant you one of the greatest blessings of all: to be one of his personal Champions! Since that day, you have been imbued with great power. You have been preaching the values and sermons of your god, and destroying those who would oppose him. Occasionally, you are commanded to fulfill some task for your god, but thaI is a small price to pay for the power that you wield.
Darkness — You may summon darkness (as a Dark I spell; see the Light Law spell list). Each time you summon darkness costs you 4d10 exhaustion points. [13 points]
You have always liked the dark. You used to go out during the evening and prowl around just to be out in the night. You like to think that you gather shadows and darkness around you, and infact spent many years training under a mysterious being. He, or it—you never were quite sure— taught you how to summon darkness at will. True black darkness. You have used this to shield your escape many times, and have even found more creative uses for it. People fear the dark. They should— you are in it.
Duplication (lesser) — You can split yourself into two exact duplicates. All of your items and clothing ate duplicated, but no magical effects Of quality abilities carry over to either duplicate. It costs d10 Ex.haustion Points to duplicate (and it takes a full round to split), and it costs d5 Exhaustion Points per minute that you, are duplicated (if you reach 0 Exhaustion Points, both duplicates immediately merge). Your two characters function as two separate individuals, you control both of their actions. The duplicate has every skill and ability that you possess (except for magical abilities). Whenever either duplicate has taken damage and the duplicates merge into one, the total damage both duplicates have received is applied back to you. Both duplicates must alway be within 50' of each other. lf one duplicate is forced beyond 50', it immediately ceases to exist (melts, dissolves, etc.). [30 points]
Duplication (greater) — As Duplication (lesser), except you may split into up to four-duplicates at a time (costing an extra 2d10 Exhaustion Points for three duplicates and 3d10 Exhaustion Points for four duplicates). In addition, it costs d10 Exhaustion Points per minute that you have three dupicales or 2d10 Exhaustion Points per minute that you have four duplicates. [50 points]
You are your own best friend. You have the unique ability to split yourself into two exact duplicates, right down to your clothes. You have found all kinds of ways to get into mischief with this ability. You often pose as identical twins, or even better, as the same person, to confuse your current mark. All t1 takes is a conscious effort and the one of you splits into two.
Elasticity — You can stretch parts of your body out further than normal folks can. You do not get any bonuses to combat, but you may attack foes at a longer range than normal (up to 10' away). You can stretch your legs to increase your stride (treat as an extra 3' to your height for determining stride modifiers). It costs 3d10 Exhaustion Points per minute you are stretched. [10 points]
Your bones and skin are very flexible. They are so flexible, infact, you can actually stretch your limbs farher than tlrey would normally reach. It looks a little strange seeing your arms grow to twice their normal size, but it allows you to keep enemies at a distance. When the time comes to flee, stretching your legs to twice their normal length allows your stridt to increase quite dramatically. Some people think you are possessed, an entity within you stretching your body out of proportion, but you realize it is just a genetic fluke. A helpful one at that..
Ensnare (lesser) — You can attempt to ensnare an opponent through some means. You may choose exactly how the ensnarement actually works (spider webs, slicky fluid, intense gravity field, etc.). When you use this attack, you may make a Medium Grapple attack (with a maximum range of 10'). You may purchase skill in this attack as either a Missile Weapon skill or as a Directed Spell skill (your choice when you purchase this power). Each use of this power costs d10 exhaustion points. [15 points]
Ensnare (greater) — As Ensnare (lesser) except the attack is a Large Grapple attack. [25 points]
You love to hunt. You love it because you excel at it. Not only can you remain hidden; you have a secret weapon. You can send out strands of a sticky substance from small spinnerets in your wrist. The fibers strike your larget, and they are soon hopelessly ensnared by them. You then move to your prey and cut it free from your webbing, hauling it back to camp. You hove occasionally used this ability on people, with much the same success.
Eye of the Hawk — You have very precise eyesight, and cansee things much farther out than normal. You can see ten times as far as a normal person of your race. You can see detail at this range, and can use this ability to reduce range penalties applied to you when using a missile weapon. You receive only 10% of the penalty applied to you for all missile weapon range penallies, including thrown weapons. [15 points]
You have razor sharp eyesight. Your eyes can discern details much farther than other people. You can read a sign hanging over a store from over 100 feet away. You can spot movement at far grealer distances than most people think possible. Your eyes seem to have developed very acute muscle control, granting you amazing eyesight.
Flare — You can emit a stunning force from your body. When you purchase this ability, you must pick how you can stun your opponent (e.g., bright light, loud sound, etc.). When you use your power, everyone in a 10' radius must make an RR versus an Essence attack (with your level as the attack level). If the RR fails, the victim is stunned and unable to parry for 1 round per 10% failure. This attack can affect comrades within the area of effect if they are not prepared for it (allies can prepare to get a special bonus of +10 to their RR). After the stun attack is used, it takes one hour to "recharge" the ability (until it is recharged, the ability cannot be re-used) [25 points]
You were once corned by an enraged mother bear. You were unaware that you were too close to her cubs, but she ensured that you knew—permanently. She raised one of her huge claws back and you closed your eyes and prepared for the worst. You felt a weird surge through your body and noticed, through closed eyes, a bright flash of light. You opened your eyes and noticed the bear looked stunned. You took advantage of this condition and ran away as fast as you could. That was the first time you discovered your talent. You can summon forth a bright flash of light, apparently powerful enough to stun an enraged grizzly bear. It takes time to recharge your flare but when it's ready, you can stop the most determined attacker.
Force Shield (minor) — You can summon a barrier to protect yourself when you are being allacked or damaged. This barrier stays up as long as you want and are conscious. The barrier adds +5 to your DB. Each round that your force shield is up costs d10 exhaustion points. [10 points]
Force Shield (major) — As Force Shield (minor), except Ihe bonus is +10. [25 points]
Force Shield (greater) — As Force Shield (minor), except the bonus is +15. [50 points]
You can create an invisible barrier around your body to help ward incoming attacks. You first heard of this ability when you were studying with monks up in a monastery. You did not believe it was possible at first, but one of the monks showed you it was real. He asked you to strike him with a rattan cane. You were doubtful, but did as he asked. As you brought the cane towards his stomach, you felt it hit something and crack in half. You saw saw the cane strike something, but it was not the monk. The cane struck about an inch from the monk's stomach. You begged him to teach you how to perform this amazing feat. After years of study, you have learned.
Invisibility — You can make yourself invisible exactly like the Magician spell Invisibility I (see Spell Law for more information). Invisibility costs 1 exhaustion point for every 5 minutes spent invisible. [30 points]
Being quiet is sometimes insufficient. You need to be unseen, invisible. You have learned the ancient art of invisibility, thought be lost for many generations. You can make yourself invisible with just a thought, easily walking the halls of a guarded prison or beside the guards protecting the royal treasure. You must still be careful not to make much noise. You must be very careful not to injure yourself or anyone else, as that would make you visible. When you do not wish to be seen, you are not.
Life Support (minor) — You have the ability to breathe water as well as air, and you operate underwater without any penalty to your maneuvers. [25 points]
Life Support (major) — You do not have to sleep, eat, or drink. [25 points]
Life Support (greater) — You do not have to breathe at all (and suffer no effects from gasses or other "breathable" maladies). [40 points]
Your race used to live under the water. You have even visited the old ruins deep beneath the sea where your ancestors built their first cities. You have listened to the stories to the stories of the grand balls, the palaces, even the great war against your old enemy. Your race has moved to land now, their former life nothing but ruins under the sea, but you still have the gills and webbed feet that enabled your race to survive under water. You have also heard of some people who do not even need to breathe, or those who need not eat.
Lifetime Goal — You have a goal (subject to the GM's approval) that controls your every move. You do whatever it takes to complete this goal. lt should relate to most of your adventures, and should be a lifetime hope (e.g., the destruction of a great evil, overthrow of a cruel ruler, etc.) Whenever you are involved in an action that is directly related to this goal, you receive a bonus of +5 to + 15 to all of your actions (GM's discretion). The total amount of the bonus is directly related to how closely your current actions will affect the outcome of your goal (most of your bonuses will be at +5, the final +15 bonus should only come when you are near the completion of your goal). Realize that this is a goal that has driven you for most of your life. You have not thought about much else for years. When you have accomplished this goal, if you do, you will probably have a sense of deprivation and a loss of direction. [30 points]
For as long as you can remember, you have worked toward the downfall of an evil Emperor. Ever since he ordered the death of your parents, you have swam revenge upon him. It is not easy; you cannot just walk up and kill him. There is a lot of planning that must be done, allies to recruit. You need to find the best way to get into the Emperor's castle, avoiding the guards. You need to ensure that someone worse will not ascend to the throne. It is certainly not a goal that will be accomplished soon, but you will accomplish it,
Lucky — You are lucky. Your open-ended roll range is increased by 1% from 96-100 to 95-100. [10 points]
All your life, you have thought yourself lucky. Things seem to work your way. Even when things go badly, they never seem as bad as theyy could be. You do not rely on your Iuck, but it certaillly makes your life a little easir.
Master Warrior Friend — You may learn one additional rank per level in your primary weapon at a Development Cost that is the same as the first rank (i.e., 3/7 becomes 3/3/7, 6 becomes 6/6, etc.). [15 points]
You have a friend who is a great warrior. There are legends told about him that have spread across the Iand. You have heard bards singing songs about his greatness. He often takes time to teach you the ways of the warrior, allowing you to gain proficiency in your weapon skills. One day you hope to be as great as him, but he thinks you will be greater.
Mentor — You have a high-Ievel spell user as a friend (your GM should fill out the details of your mentor). [10 points]
You have a good friend you have known all of your life. AIthough he is much older than you, he does all he can to help you when you need it. As you grew older you discovered that your friend was actually a powerful spell caster. He has come to your aid many times since then, saving your life on more than one occation. You are never sure when he will next appear, but you look forward to it.
Microscopic Vision — You can view objects that are close (within 1') with up to 10x magnification. You can then notice details normally invisible to the naked eye. [13 points]
You always have had an eye for detail. When you examine things, you see details too small for most people to notice. You can see hairline cracks, impressions, and imprints. You just need a second to readjust your eyes' focus and the details are easily discernible.
Natural Ranged Attack (lesser) — You can generate a ranged attack by using energy stored in your body. The type of attack is up to you (subject to GM approval). Some suggestions are electricity (use the Lightning Bolt Attack Table), heat (use the Firebolt Attack Table), water (use the Waterbolt Attack Table), physical (use the Sling Attack Table), or piercing (use Light Crossbow Attack Table). You may develop a skill in this anack. The skill should be placed in either the Missile Weapon skill category or Directed Spells skill category (chosen when this talent is selected). The maximum range of your attack is 50'. Each time you use this attack it costs d10 exhaustion points. [20 points]
Natural Ranged Attack (greater) — As Natural Ranged Attack (lesser), except the range is 100'. [50 points]
You can throw a bolt of electricity out of your hand. You love the feeling that no matter where you go, you are always armed. You have practiced firing your energy blast. You were as good with it as you are with a bow. You enjoy your power.
Non-corporeal — You can become non·corporeal at will. While you are non-corporeal, you cannot interact with any physical objects at all. You may pass through walls, doors, even floors. You cannot be hit with normal weapons, although magic, mithril, holy, or slaying weapons will affect you. All of your items come with you when you become non-corporeal, and can be used on the other plane. It takes d10 minutes for you to completely phase in or out. While you are non-corporeal, you can still be seen as a hazy, transparent image of yourself. Each use of this power costs 4d10 exhaustion points and a loss of one point from your temporary Constitution stat. [30 points]
There are times when you wish that you could walk through walls. Through concentration, you can. You discovered this ability quite accidentally. You found yourself surrounded once in a blocked alley. As thugs came closer to you, you instinctively kept walking backwards. You figured you would hit the wall any second, but you could still keep walking. You looked up and suddenly you were through the wall. You just turned around amd ran away asfast as you could. You discovered that you can phase yourself out of this plane and move through solid objects.
Power Absorption (lesser) — You may pick one type of element (Fire, Electricity, Cold, etc.) that you can absorb (subject to the GM's approval). Whenever you are hit by an attack based on this element, rather than taking damage, you receive power. For every point of damage that you would receive from that attack, you instead add one point to either your current Hits or your current Power Points (chosen when this talent is selected). You do, however, still suffer the affects from any critical the attack delivers. You may not increase either your current Hits or your current Power Points above their normal level (though the GM may decide to use the Power Burnout rules if PPs are absorbed; see Arcane Companion for rules on Power Burnout). [20 points]
Power Absorption (greater) — As Power Absorption (lesser), except you can reduce the level or any critical you receive by two (e.g., an E critical becomes a C critical, a B critical becomes an A critical with a -25 modification, an A criticial becomes an A critical with a -50 modification). [35 points]
You wre running onct to take cover whtn a lightning bolt arced out of the sky and slammed directly into you. Your family expected you to die, but you got up and walked away from the blast. You found it had energized you, given you more vitality and health. Since then, whenever you encounter electricity, rather than being burned, you become energized. You have no way to explain it other than fate.
Sense — You can sense a particular type of object or substance. When you purchase this ability, you must choose what it is that you can sense (subject to GM approval). You can sense this material at a range of up to 100'. You use your sense like any of your other five senses. You may be required to make an Observation maneuver to actually locate the material you are searching for. [5 points]
You have a strange ability to sense gold. It is almost as if you could smell it. Whenever you are near a significant amount of gold, you get a feeling in your body that tells you exactly where the gold is located. You have no idea why you have this ability, but it comes in handy, especially when you are looking for more gold.
Shapechanger — You have the ability to change the shape of your body. Any equipment and clothing that you are currently wearing when you change shape changes with you. When you resume your natural shape, your equipment and clothes return. It takes d10 minutes to transform. You may change shape to one specific form (subject to the GM's approval). [30 points]
You have an unusual ability. You have been gifted with the ability to change the shape of your body. You are not sure if this ability is unique to ynu or maybe a rare blessing of your race. Either way, you have a power that aIlows you to encounter the world in different forms. How you use this is up to you.
Sonar Sense — Your body emits a sonar "ping" and analyzes the returning sound, which can compensate for blindness. Under normal circumstances, you can see outlines of anything surrounding you for a range of 25'. If you are in a denser material (e.g., like water), the range extends to 75'. You cannot distinguish fine detail of items, jusl their shape. Your sonar sense is directional; it only works in the direction you "point" it. You do not have to be blind for this power to be useful, but you could be blindfolded or in dark water, and use this ability to observe your surroundings without normal "darkness" penalties. [10 points]
You have been blind since birth, but you could always "see" even without the use of your eyes. Your body seems to emit high-frequency sound, inaudible to most people. When that sound bounces of fthings. you receive a mental picture of your surroundings. You still cannot make out fine details like facial features or writing, but you can get around in the world and operate quite competently.
Special Familiar — You have a special kind of familiar. You may pick any creature (subject to the GM's approval) but it should be a creature appropriate to your background. Your bond with this creature starts at first level. You must split your experience with your familiar (thus, you gain levels slower, but you and your familiar will always be the same level). However, your familiar gains levels, new powers and abilities will be discovered (GM's discretion as to the nature of these abilities). If the familiar dies, you will be at -25 to all actions for two weeks. [25 points]
You were walking down near a river when you watched a sack wash onto the shore. You opened the sack and saw the body of what looked like a drowned animal. You were going to give the animal a proper burial when it suddenly sprang to life. A bond was formed between you and the animal and, ever since that day, it hardly leaves your side. As you two have grown older, your bond has strengthened. At first you could share the animal's sense perceptions. You instinctively know that other powers could manifest themselves given enough time. lf anything happened to your familiar, you would make whomever or whatever responsible pay dearly.
Stat Bonus (minor) — You receive a special bonus of +3 to one stat (the GM should assign which). [10 points]
Stat Bonus (major) — As Stat Bonus (minor), except the bonus is +5. [20 points]
Stat Bonus (greater) — As Stat Bonus (minor), except the bonus is +8. [30 points]
You have always been able to remain calm, even in the most stressful situations. Your self discipline has resulted in some quite heroic deeds.
Stat Improvement — You receive one extra stat gain roll for one of your stats (your choice) at each level of development. [10 points]
You were never quite satisfied with yourself. You always thought you were not strong enough. But instead of feeling depresud, you decided to change.. Every day you worked out. After a few months, you started to see an Improvement. This made you want to work harder. Eventually you became stronger in that avenue. Your hard work has certainly paid off.
Succor (lesser) — You have a "laying on hands" ability. When you decide to aid someone, you may heal a variety of ailments. When you choose this power, you may select one ailment from the following list: lost concussion hits, bleeding, lost points of Constitution, broken bones, damaged cartilage, or nerve damage. When you choose to aid someone, you lay your hands on them (bare flesh to bare flesh), and they receive healing. You may use this power once per day foreach level of experience. When healing concussion hits or points of Constitution, the healing will restore one point per level of experience (up to the target's normal maximum). When healing bleeding, the bleeding rate will reduce by one point for every five levels of experience. When healing any other type of damage, the severity of the wound will be reduced by one for every five levels of experience (round all fractions down). See RMSR for details on healing times based upon severity of wound. Note that a Light Wound can be reduced to no wound at all. [10 points]
Succor (minor) — As Succor (lesser), except two ailments may be chosen from the list. [20 points]
Succor (major) — As Succor (lesser), except three ailments may be chosen from the list. [30 points]
Succor (greater) — As Succor (lesser), except four ailments may be chosen from the list. [40 points]
You feel pity for those in need. You try to help them whenever you can. Once, there was a child who had wandered to you from the forest, bleeding and weak from hunger. You rushed to help him and when you touched him, his bleeding stopped. Ever since, you have found that you can heal people wilh a touch. You cannot help everyone you meet, but you have eased the suffering of many people.
Summon — You may summon a creature to you at anytime. It costs 3d10 exhaustion points and d10 rounds to before the summoned creature arrives (though it only takes one round to issue the summons). You have no control over the summoned creature, but you receive a +20 to any skill that would allow you to direct the summoned creature's actions. You must determine what category of creature you may summon (e.g., woodland animals, insects, birds, fish, etc.). It is possible that no creature is available to be summoned, depending on your current location (as the creature must already exist in some nearby locale). You may use this summoning ability once per five levels of experience (round all fractions up). The summoned creature will remain nearby for at leasl an hour, or until it feels threatened (at which point it will run, back to where it was summoned from). [25 points]
You know that you would never be alone. If you needed some comrades, it was just a matter of calling them to you. You found as a child that you could actually summon creatures to do your bidding. You had many pets as a child, calling them when you felt the need. Not everything you summoned did what you asked, and you have run away from many of the cratures you summoned, but it is nice to have an army of reinforcements available to you whenever the need arises.
Teleportation — You can magically move from one place to another. You may teleport up to 10 miles away in one jump (see the Teleport I spell for more specific information on teleporting to locations). Each time you teleport, it costs 5d10 exhaustion points. [30 points]
Moving from place to place was never a problem for you. You closed your eyes, made a mental gesture, and appeared where you wanted to go. The travel was instantaneous. You could not hop from one part of the country to another, at least not all at once, but you could certainly jump many miles at a time. You never told anyone of your ability, probably because they would never believe you. You can only take one person with you. You have tried to bring more, but those attempts always failed. Still, it is your best mode of travel.
Tunnelling — You can create a tunnel through materials. You may tunnel through the earth at a rate of half of your Base Movement Rate. This assumes you are tunneling through material that has the consistency and hardness of packed dirt. If you are trying to burrow through a denser material (e.g., stone), your tunneling rate may drop to as little as one tenth of your Base Movement Rate (GM's discretion). [17 points]
You have the ability to tunnel through the earth, making a continuous tunnel of roughly your diameter. You can carve most any substance naturally, although harder ones slow you down quite a bit. You have found this an excellent way to enter places you are not meant to be in, including cities. walled off houses, and even monasteries. You do not consider this your primary form of transportation, but you recognize its usefulness
Ultrasonic Hearing — You can hear sounds that have a very high frequency. You can hear things like dog whistles, Sonar Sense, even specialized audio beacons. [8 points]
Your father brought home a whistle once. He claimed it was a whistle that only dogs could hear. Your father blew it and the dog darted its head up and looked at him. He apparently heard nothing, but you certainly did. That day you discovered lhat you can hear things few people hear.
X-ray Vision — You may see through almost any object. You can make an Observation maneuver (at -25) to look through the things you look at. When you purchase this power, you must specify one fairly common substance (subject to GM's approval) that you cannot see through (like lead, gold, leather, etc.). Using this ability costs d10 Exhaustion Points per round. [25 points]
Walls, doors, chests, clothes they are all the same to you. If you concentrate you can see right through them. There is no need to pick the lock on an empty chest, no need to stealthily listen at the guardroom door for alerted guards. You can glance at these things, and their secrets are revealed to you. There is, however, one type of metal that you cannot seem to see through.
Status, wealth, and items are various background items that are usually inherited. You will generally receive your status from your parents, although you may perform certain actions to create a status of your own. ln some cultures, status is permanent. A person who has status lowered would probably prefer death to the embarrassment of living among lower people. In other cultures, status is not quite as imponant: there are leaders and followers. The player may determine how important their status is to them. Status itself is neither good nor bad. but it may have positive or negative affects upon those you encounter.
You will also probably inherit your wealth level and feeling towards money from your parents. If your parents are rich, you will probably be brought up expecting there to always be enough money. If your family is poor, even a small amount of gold would make you rejoice. Again, the choice is the players.
Items represent family heirlooms and inheritances. You would be quite reluctant to part with these items, even if something better comes along. The items may be magical or just well crafted. Either way, it has been given to the player to aid them in upcoming journeys.
Unless the GM deems it appropriate, a character should never take more than one Special Status (even though some do not seem mutually exclusive).
Dishonored Knight — You were once a knight but have been dishonored. Your GM will create the story behind what caused you to be dishonored and whether or not you actually performed the deed or were framed for it by an enemy (though you should provide the GM with some ideas as to what you would like to play). You will immediately be noticed by another knight or noble as a dishonored knight with the appropriate reactions from those who notice you. You may eventually shed your dishonor, but it should be after many trials and only after definitely proving your innocence. The GM may decide that it is impossible for you to ever regain your knighthood. [0 points]
You were once a glorious and valiant knight. You fought many battles and were decorated and revered throughout the land. That is, until one day when all of that changed. You were framed by an enemy, accused of attacking a defenseless maiden. You were stripped of your knighthood and forced to always wear an emblem announcing you as a traitor to your vows. Many look upon you with disdain, and if you ever come across another knight, they are dutybound to drive you off, if not kill you. You vowed to find out who framed you. Then you will be returned to your former glory.
Faithful Vassal — You are a faithful vassal to a wicked Lord or Lady. The reasons why they despise you are left up to you and the GM, but you are nevertheless faithful to them. You try your best to not hurt them in any way, no matter what they put you through. You seem to be under their control, at leasl emotionally, and they will often put unreasonable demands upon you. It should be a very long and involved endeavor for you to escape their strong grip. [0 points]
You do not remember your mother well. She died when you were very young. Your father always seem to be away on government business. That left you in the care of your step-mother. You do not know why she halts you so much, but she makes you do things that most people of your status have servants do. You clean the house, rarely go outside, and wear rags for clothes. You want to leave, but you feel that would be abandoning your family, especially your father. You have occasionally Ieft, but you always seem to return, much to your step-mother's chagrin. You do not know how much longer you can tolerate her, but you continue fulfilling her demands.
Favored (lesser) — You have been befriended by a high-ranking official. This official may be a noble or may be a relative. The official is acknowledged by a small number of people (e.g., mayor of a city). If the GM deems it appropriate, the befriended official can be related to you. [10 points]
Favored (major) — As Favored (minor), except the official is acknowledged by a large group of people (e.g., the leader of a counlry). [15 points]
Favored (greater) — As Favored (minor), except the official is acknowledged by a worldwide group of people (e.g., a demi-god or angel). [25 points]
You have a friend in a very high position. It was just Iuck that it happened, but you are certainly glad it did. Your friend likes you, and does what he can to help you out now and then. Jobs seem to came your way, certain legal problems work themselves out. It certainly is nice.
Government Ties — You have a reputation for aiding "good" government figures. You will usually receive aid from the local constabulary (e.g., shelter, subsistence, protection, maybe money). You have earned a reputation in the underworld as being associated with the government. [7 points]
You do not quite remember when you started doing favors for the government. It started out as little things: protecting importtant caravans, guarding the minor nobles during an engagement. But soon you found yourself doing more favors. You did not mind, and when you left to pursue other endeavors, they fully understood. You made quite a few friends in the government, and they still will go out of their way to assist you. The only problem is that unsavory characters have targetedy you as a threat to their underworld activities because of your government ties.
Heir — You are the heir to a great hero or Lord. Few people know of your position (in fact you may not know it either). You may discover your lineage while retrieving a great item once belonging to your parents or some equally important quest. Powerful evil forces may know more about your ancestry than you do, and you may well be hunted by them because of it. [10 points]
You do not know who your parents were. You were raised by a guardian, someone who never told you to whom you were born. You do carry one small item, presumably given to you by your real parents, but so far it has not revealed your origin. You have thought little about your parents until recently. Someone mentiolled how you bore a striking resemblance to a famous Lord or hero. You dismissed it as superstition, but began to wonder about your lineage. Perhaps someday you will find out who your true parents are.
Knighted — You have been knighted for personal heroism or on the behalf of a noble or royalty. [5 points]
"I dub thee, sir, Knight". You heard these words as the sword touched your shoulders. From that moment you cold officially use the title, Sir, before your name. You receive preferential treatment from people who acknowledge your title, and have been invited to your Lord's castle many times. Women swoon over you and little boys act out your deeds. You are a hero to your people.
Law Enforcement Ability (minor) — You have been granted the right to enforce law in a general area. Depending on the area and the local laws, the effect benefits of this ability may vary (from the right of execution to simple guard duty). You are recognized as an officer of the law, unless you are undercover, and you may be called on by citizens to pceform various legal tasks. Your jurisdiction is no more than a single city, town, or county. [10 points]
Law Enforcement Ability (major) — As Law Enforcement Ability (minor), except your jurisdiction is an entire country. [15 points]
Law Enforcement Ability (greater) — As Law Enforcement Ability (major), except your jurisdiction is worldwide (or your powers are particularly liberal: at the GM's discretion). [20 points]
You will never forget the day they pinned your badge on your shirt. Criminals had better becareful — you were out to clean up the town. You can make arrests, confiscate illegal items, and interrogate criminal suspects. You are part of the city's law enforcement system, just like your father, and his farther. You are continuing in the long line of peace-keepers in your family, and you want to make your family proud.
Lost Favor — You were once close with a member of the upper echelon of society. Some event occurred that caused you to lose favor with the person and now they will have nothing to do with you. You and the GM should detennine what happened and whether or not you are innocent. Regardless, the person will no longer have anything to do with you, will provide no assistance, and may try to hinder you whenever possible. [0 points]
The Baron had no children of his own but he treated you as a son. You stayed at his house and often heped with chores. Other children were jealous of the attention you received from the Baron. They devised a plan to make you lose favor in the eyes of the Baron. They made it seem as you let an important state secret fall into the wrong hands, when it was they who passed along the information. The Baron never for gave you for that and has harbored a grudge against you ever since.
Military Rank [rank 1] — You were in the military. While you were in the military, you received a promotions in rank. The actual title of the rank should be detennined by the branch of the military you were in (the GM will have to let you know what is appropriate in his world). [5 points]
Military Rank [rank 2] — As Military Rank (rank 1). except you have received two promotions. [10 points]
Military Rank [rank 3] — As Military Rank (rank 1). except you have received three promotions. [10 points]
Military Rank [rank 4] — As Military Rank (rank 1). except you have received four promotions. [10 points]
Military Rank [rank 5] — As Military Rank (rank 1). except you have received five promotions. [10 points]
Military Rank [rank 6] — As Military Rank (rank 1). except you have received six promotions. [10 points]
Military Rank [rank 7] — As Military Rank (rank 1). except you have received seven promotions. [10 points]
You juined the army as soon as you could. You started off as a soldier, but eventually moved into the leadership. The army taught you how to handle yourself in combat, how to rally your troops, and how to take adventage of various tactical situations. You were awarded medals and promoted throughout your military career. You are a retired militaryman, but people pay you the respect your rank deserves.
Noble — You are a member of the nobility. You were either awarded nobility, or inherited it from your parents. You and your GM should determine your title and the extent of your noble powers. [15 points]
You have been titled Lord Protector of the Northern Steppes. You have built a tower overlooking hills, and you plan to defend them if need be, with your life. You are a noble now, with both title and land. You have made it to the top in social circles. It has been a long climb, but you intend to stay here for the rest of your life.
Orphan — You are an orphan. You have no family and no records of who they might be. It would be difficult for you to track down your birth parents. You may be scorned in society, depending on how important lineage is to that society. In addition, you have some emotional scars from your life in the orphanage that you are probably still learning to cope with. [0 points]
Your childhood was spent in an orphanage. You never knew who your parents were. As far as you can remember, you always lived in the orphanage. You learned to survive life at the orphanage, but it was far from ideal. The food was horrible and you were never allowed more, and you always had to defend yourself from bullies. You learned many survival skills at this orphanage. Evenlually you grew old enough to leave and strike out on your own. You now live in the ciry, but you are constantly shadowed by your past. Many people scorn you for being an orphan, and you are still trying to make amends with the feeling that your real parents did not want you.
Patron (level 1, minor) — You have a patron that provides for you. The patron is a single individual who can only provide you with bare necessities (food, clothing, shelter. elc.). [5 points]
Patron (level 1, major) — As Patron (level 1, minor), except the patrion can provide you with almost any normal items that you want. [10 points]
Patron (level 1, greater) — As Patron (level 1, minor), except that the patron can provide you with basically any type of item (GM's discretion on availability). [20 points]
Patron (level 2, minor) — You have a patron that provides for you. The patron is either an important individual within the society (e.g., the leader of a country) or a large organization (e.g., a church or guild). However, this patron can only provide you with bare necessities (food, clothing, shelter, etc.). [10 points]
Patron (level 2, major) — As Patron (level 2, minor), except the patrion can provide you with almost any normal items that you want. [20 points]
Patron (level 2, greater) — As Patron (level 2, minor), except that the patron can provide you with basically any type of item (GM's discretion on availability). [40 points]
Patron (level 3, minor) — You have a patron that provides for you. The patron is either a huge organization (e.g., a whole religion or country) or a single organization that is influential worldwide (e.g., a network of guilds). However, this patron can only provide you with bare necessities (food, clothing, shelter, etc.). [15 points]
Patron (level 3, major) — As Patron (level 3, minor), except the patrion can provide you with almost any normal items that you want. [30 points]
Patron (level 3, greater) — Patron (level 3, minor), except that the patron can provide you with basically any type of item (GM's discretion on availability). [60 points]
You have never wanted for much. Whatever you need, the guild provided. If you needed shelter, they had a warm place for you. If you needed food, there was always room at the dinner table. When you needed weapons and other equipment, they gave that to you also. All they asked in return was that you perform an occasional favor for them. They paid you well to do their jobs.
Priestly Investment — You have been granted the status of representative for your god. This does not mean that you must be a cleric or paladin, only that you are part of your god's religious leaders. This will grant you many intangible benefits. You can expect support from your church, and congregation members will often help you when you need them. A Priestly Investment is a public display of your allegiance to your god. It also makes you easier to find for anyone who is opposed to you or your god. [5 points]
You have always wanted to be a cleric. You felt you had the blessing of your god, and had studied all of the required texts. When the day of your investment finally came you were understandably excited. The high priest placed upon your shoulders the hood of your god. From that day, all those around you recognized you as a direct servant for your god. You were given gifts and sacrifices from believers, and you earned a place to stay at the temple. You truly felt the blessing from your god that day.
Wanted — You have been accused of a major crime: theft, treason, murder, assassination, etc. You may or may not have committed the crime (that is up to you and the GM). There is a significant force looking for you, and they may try unorthodox methods to bring you back for sentencing. It is up to you to either try and clear your name or evade the authorities. [0 points]
You are a fugitive. How were you to know that what you stole once belonged to the Emperor. You were paid a tidy sum to liberate it from its current owners. Now the entire palace guard, the city guard, and the national army are after you. You have fled to a neighboring country, but already you have met one bounty hunter searching for you. At least you were paid well for the job.
In RMSS, all characters begin with 2sp. When using Talent Law, this is no longer the case. A character's slarting wealth may be modified by spending Talent Points.
Before determining a character's starting wealth, you must determine a character's wealth level. All characters will begin the game with a wealth level of Very Poor, unless Talent Points are spent to increase it. Wealth level is used when determining starting wealth as well as what kind of items you might begin the game with. Use the chart below to determine a character's starling weallh level.
Slaning wealth is how much money your character starts the game with. It will be derived with the help of your wealth level (determined in Section 4.2).
All character's get a free roll on the Starting Wealth Chart. This roll has a special modificalion that is not applied to subsequent rolls. The modification is based upon wealth level and can be seen in the chart below.
In addition. a character may choose to lake addilional rolls for wealth. The cost for additional rolls is based upon the character's wealth level. Use the chan below to delermine the cost for each additional roll made on the Starting Wealth Chart.
Finally, a character can choose to modify the roll made on the Starting Wealth Chart. The roll may be modified before the dice are roll or after the dice are rolled (with a different cost based upon wealth level). Use the chart below to detennine the cost for modifying the roll.
For a more detailed description of all types of special items, see the Treasure Companion.
Bonus Item (I) — You have two exceptional items, either high quality or special purpose. Exactly what item you have is for you and your GM to decide: a special, non-magical bonus of +5 will be applied to the appropriate skills affected by those items. For example you may have a +5 lockpick kit that bestows its bonus upon your Pick Locks skill. [5 points]
Bonus Item (II) — As Bonus Item (I), except there it gives a bonus of +10. [7 points]
Bonus Item (III) — As Bonus Item (i), except there are either three items with a bonus of +5 each, or one item with a bonus of +15. [10 points]
Bonus Item (IV) — As Bonus Item (I), except there are either three items with a magical bonus of +5 each, one item with a magical bonus of +15, or one item with a non-magical bonus of +20. [15 points]
Bonus Item (V) — As Bonus Item (I), except there are two items of a magical bonus of +10 each. [17 points]
Bonus Item (VI) — As Bonus Item (I), except there it gives a magical bonus of +20. [20 points]
Bonus Item (VII) — As Bonus Item (I), except there are three items with a magical bonus of +10 each. [25 points]
Bonus Item (VIII) — As Bonus Item (I), except there are two items with a magical bonus of +20 each. [40 points]
You prize your sword more than any other possession. You watched it being crafted by the great Dwarven smith, Gurdik. You know that the weapon is not enchanted, but it was made of the finest steel you could buy. It has an edge that you could shave with and it slices through armor with ease.
Daily Item (I) — You have an item that mystically casts spells when you desire. Exactly what the item is, as well as what spell is in the item is up to you (subject to your GM's approval). It may be possible that you carry the item with you but are unaware that it is enchanted. The item is a Daily I item. [5 points]
Daily Item (II) — As Daily Item (I), except the item is a Daily II item. [7 points]
Daily Item (III) — As Daily Item (I), except the item is a Daily III item. [10 points]
Daily Item (IV) — As Daily Item (I), except the item is a Daily IV item. [15 points]
Daily Item (VI) — As Daily Item (I), except the item is either two Daily III items or a Daily VI item.[20 points]
Daily Item (VII) — As Daily Item (I), except the item is a Daily VII item. [25 points]
Daily Item (VIII) — As Daily Item (I), except the item is either two Daily IV items or a Daily VIII item. [30 points]
You were walking in the forest when you stumbled across a small chest that had recently become unearthed. You are not sure who dug it up. but they were nowhere to be found. You opened the chest and discovered a small ring. Placing the ring on your finger. You discovered that it had a power. Once per day, you could fly for a short period of time. You have kept the item's power a secret lest someone tries to take it from you.
Loyal Domesticated Animal — You have a common animal that is completely loyal to you. [5 points]
Loyal Unusual Creature — As Loyal Domesticated Animal, except the creature is not common in any way. [15 points]
You have had a pet since you were a child. Your dog has been your constant companion, and travels with you even now. He has saved your life a number of times, warning you of impending danger, and he is your closest friend. It is fortunate you have such a devoted follower.
Potion (3 doses) — You have a portion that contains three doses. The spell imbedded in the potion is 1st to 5th level. [7 points]
Potion (5 doses) — As Potion (3 doses), except it contains five doses. [10 points]
You will never forgel that witch in the woods. She gave you a small vial and said that if you ever needed to "disappear" for a while, drink away. Well, now is as good a time as any....
Rune Paper (3 sheets) — You have three sheets of Rune Paper. The spells written on the paper are 1st to 5th level. [7 points]
Rune Paper (5 sheets) — As Rune Paper (3 sheets), except you have five sheets. [10 points]
Saved your bacon it did. That old travelling merchant told you that if you were ever in any trouble, You could just read this scroll and you would be able be a 100' away. Sure enough, he was right.
Special Bread/Herb/Poison — You have some kind of magical bread, herb, or poison. The GM should determine exactly what (see GM Law for a complete listing). The cost of this item will vary from 3 to 10 points (as decided by the GM). [3-10 points]
You would never have made it over the mountains if you didn't have this great bread. The air has become so thin that you found yourself getting dizzy and unable to think clearly. However, just one slice of that bread and your head cleared right up!
Spell Adder (+1) — A spell adder allows you to cast an extra spell per day without the expenditure of PPs. You acquired your adder either in an earlier adventure or as an inheritance. [5 points]
Spell Adder (+2) — As Spell Adder (+1), except allows up to two spells per day. [10 points]
Spell Adder (+3) — As Spell Adder (+1), except allows up to three spells per day. [10 points]
The day you completed your apprenticeship, your master gave you an amulet. The last thing your master showed you was how to use the amulet to cast a spell for you. You have used the amulet when you were unable to cast any more spells, saving yourlife more than once. It is truly a wonderful gift.
Flaws are an excellent way to round out your character. You may choose to have only one eye; you can then develop a story of how you lost your other eye. You may have been ambushed by brigands and lost your eye in the ensuing fight. You have since sworn vengeance against the band and its leader. When you find them, you will repay the pain and hardship you endured all these years.
See Part I for more infonnation on the various ways to use Flaws.
It is strongly recommended that no player be allowed to take more than four flaws. This not only keeps the character from being hopeless, but it also insures that the character does not have an unusually high number of talents.
Remember, a flaw that does not inhibit you is not a flaw and is worth no points. Below is a summary or all of the flaws that may be found in this section.
These flaws affect you physically. They may hinder your movement or prevent you from performing certain activities.
Age — You have reached at least middle age for your race. You must roll stat deterioration rolls each year. You are older, probably wiser, and a little slower. [-10 points]
You are old for your profession. You do not move around as fast as you used to. You cannot see as clearly as you once could. Your hands shake a little, but you can still hold a sword. You still stay fit and are far from dying of old age, you have just lived longer than most people in your profession.
Albino — You were born an albino. You have pale-white hair and skin, and your eyes are pink. You can never blend into a crowd without a disguise, you are too conspicuous. You have no resistance to sunburn, and thus must take many precautions against the sun. If you are in the sun without protection, you take 5 hits of damage per hour until you find shelter. [-10 points]
Your pale skin, pink eyes, and pure white hair make you a very identifiable individual. You have been born an albino. You try to keep out of sunlight because you burn easily. Some people say you have been cursed by the gods. Others think you have had a divine revelation, causing your whiteness. Either way, you are easily noticed in a crowd.
Animal Bane — You produce an aroma that immediately drives one type of animal to attack you. You cannot this smell, no matter how you try. Your smell permeates everything that can mask it, even magic. It seems that the onIy crealures that can smell this particular odor are of one type of animal. You may pick the type of animal, subject to the GM's approval. Whenever one such animal sees you, it will immediately attack ferociously. If you are near an animal's territory, there is a50% chance that it, or a pack of them, will hunt you down. [-5 points]
You never did seem to get along with wolves. You had always been told that a wolf would not attack a human unless it had little other choice, yet you have been attacked by wolves, often without provocation, Something about you, your smell perhaps, incites wolves to charge at you. Your presence compels no other animals to violence, only wolves.
Anosmia — You have no sense of taste or smell. You cannot make any Awareness maneuvers based on these two senses. [-3 points]
Food always taste the same — bland. You have a rare affliction. You have no sense of taste or smell. It does not harm you directly, but it does make your life a little less diverse.. It also makes your life slightly more tolerable than most people's. You seem to be immune to the defensive mechanism of sknks, you do not notice the stench of the unbathed wretch beside you, and you can eat with no concern for what your food tastes like.
Blind — You cannot see. Any action you take that would require vision is at a -100 to the maneuver. You can only move at half your normal base rate unless you are in an area that is familiar to you. As a side effect, you receive a +10 to any Awareness maneuver based on sound, touch or smell. [-50 points]
You have no eyesight. You were born without vision. People thought that you would never amount to much because of your affliction, but you wanted to prove them wrong. Your other senses have improved to the point of being far superior to anyone else's. You also seemed to have developed a sense of what is around you, being able to detect when you are nearing an object. You still cannot function as well as one with sight, but you cerlainly seem to be able to cope.
Breaker — You tend to break equipment more often than would seem to be normal. You either force it too much, or stress it to the point where it snaps. All breakage numbers for any equipment or weapons you use are automatically increased by one. Additionally, all strength checks you make for equipment or weapons are modified by a -20. [-20 points]
Sometimes you wish you had paid more attention when you were learning how to fight with a sword. You are able to wield it effectively, you have slain many enemies in battle, and there can be no doubt as to your skill with your weapon. The problem is that you never learned how to properly swing and parry. Consequently, you often find your weapon shattering against a foe or his weapon. You strain the metal more than it was made to withstand. For now, you always keep a spare sword on your back.
Cold Sensitive — You are abnormaly sensitive to the cold. The colder it gets, the more you suffer from the cold's effects. When the temperature is lower than 40°F, you suffer a penalty to all of your actions. You suffer a penalty of -1 for every 1° the temperature is below 40°F. [-10 points]
You body was never warm as a child and is still not today. The slightest draft chills you. If you venture into the cold. You feel your muscles stiffen. You find it difficult to function when it is cold, especially below freezing. You despite the cold, preferring to curl up in front of a roaring fire rather than march around in the middle of winter.
Color Blind — You are completely color blind. Everything is white, black, or a shade of gray. This is more of a nuisance than a serious flaw, but it can cause problems. [-5 points]
You never could understand what people meant when they referred to color. You cannot see different colors. Everything is white, black, or a shade of gray. You seem to function without any serious problems, but there are some professions that are unavailable to you. You certainly would not want to be an alchemist, not being able to tell what color a chemical is could have potenlially explosive results. Still, you have no real problems in society — unless someone tells you to pull the red lever.
Common Allergy (minor) — You have an allergy to a common substance (like pollen) that appears seasonally. You may choose what you are allergic to (subject to the GM's approval). When you are exposed to what you are allergic to more than one minute, your eyes start to water and your nose runs. While this is happening, you are at -20 to all of your actions. This will last for d100 minutes after you have left the vicinity of the cause. [-10 points]
Common Allergy (major) — As Common Allergy (minor). except the allergy is to something that is common and is present year-round. [-15 points]
You really hate open fields. Everytime you step into a field, you immediately feel your eyes water and your nose run. It is miserable for you, dripping fluids with every step. You have learned that something native to open fields causes your allergic reaction. That is why you live in the heart of the city where no fields block your vision.
Complete Klutz — You are not coordinaled enough to effectively use the martial arts. Your Martial Arts skill group suffer a -25 penalty. [-20 points]
You were once fascinated by martial arts. You were amazed at the powers and swiftness the monks displayed when practicing. You eagerly petitioned to learn the same skills when the monks offered to teach you. You tried hard, practiced night and day. Unfortunately, you never could learn to master the necessary coordination. You would forget to move your left foot at the correct time, or try to follow through but lose your balance. In the end, the monks thought it best if you learn different skills.
Crippled (minor) — You have lost some mobility because you are crippled in one leg. Your movement is reduced by half. You receive a -10 to all melee OBs due to your impaired mobility. You suffer a penalty of -3 to your Qu bonus. [-15 points]
Crippled (major) — As Crippled (minor), except you have actually lost a leg. You can only move at 25% of your normal Base Rate. You must use some form of support (e.g., either a false leg, a crutch, etc.). Your melee OB is reduced by -25. You suffer a penalty of -5 to your Qu bonus. [-25 points]
Crippled (greater) — As Crippled (minor), except you have lost both of your legs, Your movement is 10% of your normal Base Rate. You must find some other form of mobility to move around, a wheelchair. levitation, anti-gravity chair, etc, You cannot effeclively fight in melee combat. You suffer a penalty of -7 to your Qu bonus. [-35 points]
You walk, with a stiff limp from an old injury you received in war. You were proud to protect your country, and you served bravely. The enemy broke through the front line, but you kept fighting. Even when they struck your leg, you kept fighting, Eventually the enemy was pushed back, and a medic arrived to treat your wound. He told you it would never heal properly, but you would still be able to use it. You did not mind much, you had saved the day.
Deaf — You are completely deaf. You can hear nothing at all. You operate at -100 to all actions that require hearing. All of your starting spoken languages are reduced by 2 ranks. Spoken languages are now classified as Restricted skills for you. [-20 points]
Your ears have been sealed since you were a child. When people talk, you cannot hear a thing; all you see is moving lips. If someone wishes to communicate with you, you must either have them write down what it is you want them to say, or teach them how to speak to you using sign language. It makes your life difficult, but you manage to persevere.
Deep Sleeper — You sleep very deeply, especially during the first hour of rest. You cannot be awakened during your first hour of sleep, no matter what occurs around you. In certain rare circumstances, the GM may allow a drastic action to awaken you from your deep slumber. After the first hour, you may awaken but suffer a -25 penalty to your Awareness maneuver to awaken. [-10 points]
You love a good night's sleep. You lie down on a soft bed, get comfortable, and drift into dreamland. You sleep, dream, and recharge. When you awaken, you feel refreshed and ready to approach a new day. The only problem arises when you need to wake up early. You have difficulty waking up, especially if you recently fell sleep. You were never known as a light sleeper.
Epileptic — You have a severe case of epilepsy. Whenever you are subject to a very stressful situation (GM's discretion), you must make an RR versus a Fear attack at 10th level. If you fail, you are subject to an epileptic fit. You lose your ability to think and speak clearly. Your body starts having violent shakes. Anything you are holding in your hand will fall to the ground. The seizure will last for 2d10 minutes. Once you stop convulsing, you will have spent 4d10 exhaustion points. [-30 points]
You have lived a fairly normal life, except when you have a seizure. All of your life, when you have been subject to a stressful event, you lose control of your body. You cannot think or speak clearly and your body convulses violently. The episodes are typically brief, but they occur so sporadically that it is impossible for you to predict when one might occur next. You have been mistaken for a possessed person, an experience you do not care to relive. You have tried to find a cure to your ailment, but none has surfaced.
Eunuch — You (male characters only) no longer have your manhood. This could be from an accident, or it could be a sign of status. You can neither be seduced by someone nor seduce them. You are also not quite as quick to anger. [-5 points]
There is no greater honor than to serve in her majesty's chamber. You serve her, and she bestows upon you money, clothes, and food. Your family was proud of you when you went away. You even see them occasionally. Of course there was the matter of the operation; there could be no chance that the queen was unfaithful with her servant. You were afraid at first, but now it seems like a minor concern.
Fragile Wrists — Your wrists are susceptible to sprains. When you leap, fall, climb, hang, throw an object, or attack with a melee weapon there is a 2% (non-cumulalive) chance that you will sprain your wrists. If you sprain them, you will be stunned for d10 rounds, and operate at -50 for d10 days. [-5 points]
You always felt that your wrists were weaker than the rest of your bones. You have suffered countless sprains and bruises on your wrists, sometimes from seemingly harmless activities. You always protect them now, especially whenever you are doing something strenuous with them. Whenever youfind yourself in combat, you know that you might sprain your wrist, just from hitting your opponent. It makes adventuring difficult, but you persevere. Now where did you put tham Ebur flower...?
Hard of Hearing — You have a difficult time hearing things. Awareness maneuvers based on hearing are made at -20. [-10 points]
You are not deaf. You tell people that constantly. You have a hard time hearing, but you can hear them. In an accident five years ago you lost part of your hearing. You function adequately, it just takes you longer to hear what is being said to you.
Heat Sensitive — You are abnormally sensitive to heat. The hotter it gets, the more you suffer from the heat's effects. Whenever the temperature is more than 80°F. you suffer a penalty to all of your actions. You suffer a penalty of -1 for every 1°F the temperature is above 80°. [-10 points]
You loathe the heat. Even if it only feels warm to other people, you are sweating and fanning yourself. You despise torches and lanterns, as you can feel the heat radiating on you. You much prefer winter; the cold keeps you from sweating too much.
Hemophilia — You suffer greatly from any bleeding attacks. All of your bleeding results are doubled due to your hemophilia. Any critical that states you take a number of hits per round or states that you are bleeding should have the hits per round (as indicated in the critical doubled). [-20 points]
You have a disease that prevents your blood from clotting normally. A small cut on your hand might not stop bleeding for hours. You are always conscious of objects around you that might open a wound somewhere on your body. Fighting against edged weapons can be particularly frightening. The only way to stop the bleeding is to apply compression, tourniquet, medicinal herbs, or mystical healing.
Inner Ear Problem — You suffer from a rare inner ear problem that makes you sensitive to water and pressure changes. Whenever it is raining or your head is underwater, you will be deafened. See the Deaf physical flaw for details on deafness.The deafness lasts for d10 minutes. [-5 points]
Some people are more sensitive to pressure changes than others. You happen to be one of the most sensitive people. You hate rain and cannot tolerate being underwater at all. Your ears close and your head starts pounding. You cannot hear and concentrating seems difficult. Needless to say, you are not a champion swimmer.
Lack of Range — You have a difficult time targeting from a long range. All of your spell casting and missile fire ranges are halved. [-20 points]
You always found it difficult to aim a bow at a long range. You aimed carefully, but your eyes would blur if you looked at something for too long. You pulled back your bowstring as far as you coud, but your arm would soon tire. You would try to judge the angle at which you should fire your arrow, but you would either make it too high or too low. You prefer to be very close when you are shooting your bow; it makes things much easier to hit.
Locking Wrist — Everytime you strike someone or something, there is a 5% (non-cumulative) chance that your wrists will become immobile. While they are locked you are at -100 to any action that uses or requires wrist movement. Your wrists will return to normal after d100 minutes. There is nothing you can do to resture your wrists before they unlock themselves. [-10 points]
After striking something hard, your wrist sometimes lock up. There is nothing you can do about it. They just become absolutely rigid. You have tried to seek help regarding your wrists, but everyone you consult is as baffled as you are. The only theory that has made any sense so far is the one about you being cursed. You hope not.
Loss of Vision — You may suffer temporary blindness whenever you are struck in the head. Any time you receive a blow to your head, there is a 5% chance that you will be blinded for d10 minutes, after which your vision will return to you normally. See the Blind physical flaw for more information on blindness. [-15 points]
You have been hit in the head before. In your line of work, a head shot is not that uncommon. One time when you were struck, you went blind. It only lasted a few minutes, but during that time, you were completely blild. Since then you have received a few more head blows, and one of those struck you blind again. You have learned to protect your head more, in hopes of keeping your eyesight, or at least preventing the loss from being permanent.
Mute — You cannot speak. Any communication you make with someone else must be non-verbal. You may write or use sign language for any communication you want with another person. It is strongly recommended that the player not speak to other players to simulate the character's muteness. [-25 points]
You had an accident when you when out hunting. Your throat was slashed. The cut was not deep enough to kill you, but it was deep enough to sever your vocal chords. You can no longer speak. You are not convinced that it was an accident, and you want to find out exactly what happened. If you find any evidence of foul play, you are going to make the perpetrators pay.
Nose Bleeds — You suffer from nose bleeds caused by changes in altitude. For every 1000' above sea level. you operate at a -5 to all of your actions (from pressure in your head as well as a bleeding nose). If you remain above 1000' for more than an hour, you staning taking 1 hit of damage per minute from the constant bleeding. The bleeding and pressure subside when you go lower than 1000'. [-10 points]
You do not enjoy heights. Whenever you climb too high, your nose starts bleeding. You feel a terrible pressure in your head as you try to deal with the thinner air. You will never make a good mountain climber and cannot stand to fly. You also try to keep a handkerchief available at all times to absorb any blood from your nose.
Not Graceful — You are relatively ungraceful in your movements. You receive a special penalty of -10 to all of your moving maneuvers. [-20 points]
You have seen people who are extremely agile. They jump from building to building, or deftly dodge obstructions. You have Seen monks roll, duck, and weave out of the way of incoming blows. You have seen very impressivefeats of agility. Unfortunately, you are incapable of duplicating any of those maneuvers. You try, and occasionally reach a semblance of success, but your body is not the graceful, streamlined machine needed to perform those maneuvers. Well, at least you swing a sword well.
Not Subtle — You are not very quiet or subtle. You receive a special penalty of -10 to all of your skills in the Subterfuge • Stealth category. In addition, you receive a special penalty of -15 to any Stalking or Hiding maneuvers. [-15 points]
You try to move quietly, but you are a miserable sneak. You step on twigs, trip over rugs, and kick tables. You try to control your breathillg when yau hide, but you find yourself panting and hyperventilating. The more you try to be quiet, the louder you are. Your armor jingles, your sword's scabbard strikes the wall. You have a hard time staying hidden.
Off Balance — You have a poor sense of balance. You have a special penalty of -30 to all of your Stalking maneuvers. You also receive a special penalty of -30 to all maneuvers that involve balance. [-20 points]
As a young child you developed a serious ear infection. You recovered from the sickness, but your sense of balance was forever inferior. You have lived slighlly off balance ever since. You have learned to compensate, but you still find it difficult yo maintain your balance, especially under stressful situations. When you are trying to move quietly, you often sway too far one direction or another. You redistribute your weight to compensate, but you invariably make a sound that alerts your target. Walking a balance beam is particularly difficult for you as well.
One Arm (minor) — You have only one hand. You may choose which hand you have lost subject to GM's approval. You are assumed to have developed proficiency in your one remaining hand, even if it was not your original hand preference. You cannot fight with two weapons at once, or with a shield. Climbing is very difficult, as is putting on armor. [-10 points]
One Arm (major) — As One Arm (minor), except you have lost the whole arm. The GM should rule on how this afrects you. [-20 points]
You were once in the middle of a horde of attacking orcs, swinging your sword haphazardly, slaying any who would come near. You were starting to win when another wave of orcs charged in to attack. Eventually the orcs overwhelmed you. After many battles, time in a jail, and the ultimate defeat of the orc leader, you were able 10 return home. You kept with you only one grim reminder of the battle you had just faced, you lost your arm battling those orcs.
One Eye — You have lost one of your eyes. You may cover the eye with a patch, have a glass eye, or some exotic alternalive. You fire missile weapons with a special penalty or -25 (due to your loss of depth perception). [-15 points]
You lost your eye during your adventures deep into the earth. You were lucky that the arrow bounced off your shield, otherwise you would have losl your life, not just your eye. You have a hard time firing missile weapons, having lost your depth puception, but otherwise you manage well. You have a nice patch to cover your eye socket and it adds to your charismatic appeal.
Pain Intolerant — You have a low pain threshold. Everytime you take damage, you must make an RR versus your own level, modified by triple SD bonus and by the number of concussion hits (as a negative modifier to the RR). lf the RR fails, you fall unconscious. [-15 points]
You fear pain. Sometimes the mere threat of receiving pain causes you to pass out. You are not weak willed, merely more volnerable to pain than most people. You fear pain and try avoiding it at any cost. You will often surrender at the threat of pain, and you will almost always disclose any information you possess under the threat of torture. You have little tolerance for pain.
Physical Investment — Every time you cast a spell that is 5th level or higher, you take a number of concussion hits of damage equal to twice the number of PPs spent. There is no way you can avoid this damage, but it does heal normally. Non-spell users may not select this flaw. [-7 points]
Spell casting is important to you. You have worked hard to be able to cast powerful spells. You cast spells freely, shooting off bults, flying, even disappearing. As you grew in talent, you started casting elaborate spells. You found that the more powerful spells actually injure you when you cost them. Apparently you have a problem channeling all of the power through you. The damage is not enough to make you stop casting spells, but it does make you think twice about casting the more powerful ones.
Poor Eyesight (minor) — You have poor eyesight, but you have some means of correcting it that is not permanent (e.g., glasses, etc.). You are either near-sighted or far-sighled. You may choose which you are when you purchase this flaw. If you are near-sighted, you receive a -30 penalty to all of your missiIe attacks. If you are far-sighled, you receive a -30 to all of your melee attacks. [-10 points]
Poor Eyesight (major) — As Poor Eyesight (major). except that you do not have a means of correcting it. [-20 points]
As you grow older, you seem to be having more trouble with your eyes. Things that used to be clear to you are now foggy and blurry. You are getting older than you think. You can still see at a medium distance, but anything close to you is not as distinct as it once was. Reading is more difficult, as is combat. Maybe someday you can find a way around this problem.
Power Burn — You receive damage for every spell you cast. For each Power Point you expend, you receive 1 concussion hit of damage. [-10 points]
You feel power flow through you when you cast spells. You feel power burn inside of you. You suffer pain from your spellcasting. It is difficult to cast more powerful spells, because of the pain wracking your body. You focus your self and brace for the burn when you cast a spell. It makes it difficult, but it is a constant reminder of the power you wield.
Rain Trauma — You are adversely effected by the rain. For each four hour period it rains and you are not in a complelely enclosed area (no windows, covered up, etc.) you must check to see if you lose your voice. Roll d100 and add 25. If your totaI is greater than 100, you have lost your voice for d10 hours. [-5 points]
You have an irrational fear. You especially fear thunderstorms. You do not understand them, and they terrify you. You try to stay dry whenever possible, always running to the nearest shelter if it appears it will start raining. You have no known reason for this trauma, but it frightens you so much that your vocal cords freezes, leaving you mute for many hours.
Short of Breath (minor) — You have fewer exhaustion points than your stats would dictate. Calculate your Exhaustion Points normally, then reduce them by 10%. [-5 points]
Short of Breath (major) — As Short of Breath (minor), except reduce the normal amount by 25%. [-10 points]
Short of Breath (greater) — As Short of Breath (minor), except reduce the normal amount by 50%. [-15 points]
"Come on, guys, wait up." You often yelled that as you chased after your childhood friends. You never could keep up. You have always had less endurance than other people. You found yourself gasping for breath after any activity, leading your friends to nickname you "Breathless." You try to build up your endurance, but you never seem to have enough.
Sloth — You are slow in combat. Your moves are obvious, awkward, and weak. You receive a special penalty of -5 to your OB, DB, and your initiative rolls. [-20 points]
Many of your trainers have told you that you telegraph your moves. Your opponent can see what you are about to do by the where you look with your eyes. You are not quick enough to parry incoming blows. You move your sword to block a strike, but you deflect your enemy's blow slightly. You rarely get the first blow during combat; your reflexes are not fast enough to deal with the fury of combat. You feel that with sufficient practice, you can overcome your slothfulness and become the great warrior you desire to be.
Slow — You are slower than normal. Your Base Movement Rate is reduced by 25%. [-7 points]
Your body is not built for speed. You usually finished last in foot races. You prefer to think of yourself as slow and steady, gently plodding along at a constant pace. You like to stand strong on on the battlefield, not sprinting around, darting from foe to foe. Let them come to you.
Slow Healer — You are a slow healer. All healing times for all kinds of wounds you receive are doubled. [-15 points]
You require more rest and attention after receiving wounds than do your comrades. You are not necessarily more susceptible to damage than anyone else, but when wounded you do not heal very quickly. You spend much of your recovery waiting for spells, herbs, and bandages to take effect on your body. Your recuperative system does not seem to be concerned with speed.
Spasm — You suffer from uncontrollable spasms. Whenever you roll an unmodified 66, you experience a spasm. While you are having a spasm, you take d10 concussion hits of damage and are stunned for d10 rounds. [-10 points]
There are times when you feel you have perfectly executed some maneuver. You know that you swung your sword perfectly; you saw it plunge directly into your opponent's chest. You became so excited from how well you did that you lost control of yourself. You had killed your enemy, but you dropped to the ground in a spasm. You suffer from the spasms when you get too excited. It does not happen often, but it is troublesome to those around you.
Stutter — You have a speech impediment that makes it difficult for you to speak. Any skill that requires speech will suffer a special penally of -50 (i.e., -50 to Duping, Public Speaking, Trading, etc.). [-10 points]
You have a hard time speaking, especially when you are excited. The words seem to tumble over themselves, your tongue gets in the way, and you become more flustered. You do not like to speak in public; the stress almost guarantees you will stutter. When you are calm and relaxed, you can speak fairly fluidly, but whenever your are stressed, your stulter surfaces
Tender Skin — Whenever you wear metal (including armor), your body breaks out in a rash. The rash is itchy and painful, causing a -10 penalty to all of your actions while you have the rash. The rash stays until you remove the metal and then lasts another d10 hours after you have removed the armor. There is nothing that can prevent your allergic reaction to metal armor. [-10 points]
Thue is nothing like the feeling of armor to provide you wilh a sense of security. At least that is what the armorer tells you. There is nothing like the feeling of armor, you agree, because whenever you wear metal armor, your skin breaks out in a rash. This rash makes it uncomfortable to do anything. It takes several hours after wearing metal armor for the rash to go away. You heard that thieves do not wear metal armor because of the noise it makes. Perhaps this a profession you should pursue.
Tired Legs — Your legs are significantly weaker than a typical member of your race. You cannot walk more than 5 hours without resting for at least 2 hours. If you walk for more than 5 hours, there is a 25% chance that each of your legs will develop cramps (roll once for each leg). If they cramp, they will slay cramped for 2d10 hours, and be completely useless during that time. [-7 points]
You have always walked strangely. You were apparently born with some deficiency in your legs. You can function as anyone else, but your legs always tired you quickly when you were walking. You have to sit and rest often, otherwise your legs cramp up, making further walking impossible. You have hired a sage to look into your problem, but so for there seems to be no solution other than resting every few hours to prevent cramping.
Uncommon Allergy — You have an allergy to an uncommon object (e.g., coniferous plants). You may choose what you are allergic to (subject to the GM's approval). When you are exposed to the substance for more than one minute, your eyes start to water and your nose runs. While this is happening, you are at -20 to all of your actions. This will continue for d100 minutes after you are no longer exposed to the substance. [-5 points]
You avoid pine trees. Whenever you are near them, your nose starts to run and your eyes water. You constantly wipe your eyes and nose while you try to do other things. You are not sure why pine trees causes your allergies. Other trees do not affect you much, but you are sure that pine trees provoke your allergies. You always make sure to carry a handkerchief with you.
Uncontrollable Strength — You have great strength at times, but you have a very difficult time controlling it. Whenever you are in an extreme emotional state (love, happiness, hate, etc.) there is a 10% chance that you will receive triple your normal ST bonus for one round. You use this strength whether you wish to or not. You could maul an enemy, or break the ribs of a friend while hugging him. You often crush or break things without meaning to. You cannot choose when to get this bonus. [-10 points]
You first discovered your strength when you were arm wrestling for money in a tavern. You had already defeated two other people when a large man came in and sat down across from you. He was not much to look at, and he treated you with disdain. You started arm wrestling. You pulled as hard as you could, but he did not move. He started insulting you, calling you a child. You felt yourself getting angry. You felt power in your arms. You fell a snap as you broke his hand and immediately pinned it down. That was when you discovered your strength. Although you know you are strong, you also know that you have very little conlrol over it.
Uncoordinated — Whenever you fail a maneuver, no matter what it is, you receive an 'A' Unbalancing critical. [-7 points]
Your parents always thought you were clumsy. You would fall down a lot, even in the most minor accidents. You try hard to keep your balance, but there are often times when you fall. You are usually okay when fighting, unless something goes wrong. The smallest mistake in combat often causes you to tumble to the ground vefy clumsily.
Unhealthy — You are particularly susceptible to a certain disease that causes your body to swell up and you to feel ill. Every week there is a 2% chance that you will develop symptoms of this disease. While suffering from this discuss you will be at -20 to all your actions due to the swelling, and your Appearence and Presence temporary Stats will be halved. After d10 days, the swelling and sickness go away (your slats will return to normal). [-10 points]
You were a sickly child, always getting rashes and coughs. You would randomly break out with a sickness, one that caused you to swell up and feel naseous. It lasted about a week. While you had it, people would shun you even though you knew the disease was not contagious. After a week it went away, and you could resume a normal life. But a few weeks later, your rash would come back. Life can be difficult sometimes.
Unique Looks (minor) — You have a very unique look. Something is significantly different about the way you look. This will cause people to recognize or describe you much easier. You might be disgusting to look at, or people might view you with a sense of awe. You may choose what makes you look distinctive, but it must be unique, describable, and in some way, limiting. The GM must approve any unique look. What is unique is different for each game world. Most people in a fantasy world might not be too surprised to see an orc, but one in modern day would certainly cause quite a scene. While you are unique in your appearance, your uniqueness is relatively easy to conceal. [-5 points]
Unique Looks (major) — As Unique Looks (minor), except you must must use a disguise to conceal your unique looks or it causes an immediate reaction (usually negative). When not disguised, you must subtract d10 from your Appearance. [-10 points]
Unique Looks (greater) — As Unique Looks (minor), except you cannot conceal your looks, or there is a immediate and extreme reaction to them. Subtract 2d10 from your Appearance. [-15 points]
You remember the fight well. You hands trace absently across your face, your fingertips lightly touching the large scar on your face. It looks impressive but you remember the pain from when you received that blow. You thought you were going to die, but you survived. Eventually your face healed, but the scar remained. You have gained quite a reputation since then; people recognice you just from your scar. The recognition comes in handy, but sometime you wish you could just blend into the crowd.
Unwakeable — You are extremely difficult to wake up. You cannot be awakened while you are sleeping (or meditating). In addition, you have to sleep (or medilate) at least 6 hours every night. If you are somehow (perhaps, magically) awakened before receiving a full 6 hours of sleep, you will be at -10 for every hour less than 6 you slept. [-15 points]
You are an exceptionally sound sleeper. Your comrades find it very difficult to wake you when you have fallen asleep. During one battle in the middle of the night, your comrades had to carry your sleeping body away with them when they fled the attack. You have had water thrown at you, been slapped, even had spells cast on you without waking up. In fact, you failed to notice those attempts. You really enjoy sleeping.
Visible Aura — Whenever you are in an extreme state of emotion (love, happiness, anger, fear, etc.) your body starts to glow. The more extreme your emotional state, the brighter the glow. It starts as bright as a candle, but can get as luminous as a campfire. [-10 points]
You have a glowing personality, literally. Whenever you experience an extreme emotion, your body starts to glow. No one can explain why, you glow. You can glow as bright as a campfire at times. You find it helpful when you need to see at night, but if you are trying to hide from someone, glowing certainly makes it easier for them to find you. You believe that your family was cursed years ago, and you are trying to find out how to reverse the condition.
Weak Physique — You do not have much body mass. Your progression for Body Development is reduced by 3 points at each stage. For example, if your normal progression was 0•6•5•4•3, your actual progression is -3•3•2•1•0. [-20 points]
Your barbarian friends call you weak. You are not as muscularly developed as they are. You do not have bulging biceps or endless endurance. You train physically on a regular basis. You try to stay in shape, but your body was not designed for a powerful physique.
Weight Intolerant — You are very intolerant of the weight that you carry. All of your encumbrance penalties are doubled. [-15 points]
When you hike with a backpack, all you can think about is the weight of the pack. You feel the shoulder straps digging into your skin. You feel the strain on your back from carrying your load. You tire of leaning forward to keep balanced as you walk. You feel as if the pack is full of lead and it is dragging you slowly down toward the ground. You feel the sword on your side. You feel it pulling on your side and resting on your hips. If you did not need the items you carry to survive, you would throw them away. You just seem to be very sensitive to aIl of the weight you are carrying.
Wimp — You are, quite frankly, a wimp. You sufrer a special -20 penally to all or the skill categories in the Athletic group, receive a -2 to your ST bonus, and also have 25% fewer exhaustion points than normal. [-20 points]
Some boys spend their youth on the family farm. Other boys play sports or work in a blacksmith's shop. They grow up to be quite strong and burly. You are not one of those boys. You were a sickly child. When you went outside you were invariably bit or stung by some animal or insect. Your arms were not strong, likened more to cotton. You spent more of your life pursuing academic success. You were smart and excelled in your studies. You were never a dominating physical force, however.
These flaws change the way you perceive the world. Everyone is a little neurotic, you are just more so.
Absent-Minded — You have a hard time paying attention to something that is not immediately threatening. You are intensely interested in one item or idea, then you get distracted and focus on something else. You tend to ignore your surroundings when something has attracted your attention. You tend to forget things. To find an item you misplaced, or recall a conversation you recently had, you must roll 1d100 (open-ended) modified by your Me bonus. lf the result is over 100, you are successful. If you fail this roll, you cannot remember. You should role play this flaw at all times. Remember that you are neither dumb nor slow, you just have a short attention span and poor concentration. [-10 points]
You always seem to misplace your belongings. There is just so much that requires your attention, it is impossible to keep track of everything. You are constantly discovering new and better ways of doing things, who could be bothered with trivialities? Now let's see, where did you leave that note you just made?
Addiction/Simple (minor) — You are addicted to a common substance (e.g., alcohol, etc.) that has an Addiction Factor of 5 or less (see Gamemaster Law for more information on addiction and withdrawal). Your addiction starts as a Level 1 addiction to the substance. [-5 points]
Addiction/Simple (major) — As Addiction/Simple (minor), except that the substance is not common or it is illegal. [-15 points]
Addiction/Mild (minor) — As Addiction/Simple (minor), except the Addiction Factor is 10 or less. [-10 points]
Addiction/Mild (major) — As Addiction/Mild (minor), except that the substance is not common or it is illegal. [-20 points]
Addiction/Serious (minor) — As Addictiun/Simple (minor), except the Addiction Factor is 20 or less. [-20 points]
Addiction/Serious (major) — As Addiction/Serious (minor), except that the substance is not common or it is illegal. [-30 points]
Addiction/Harmful (minor) — As Addiction/Simple (minor), except the Addiction Factor is 30 or less. [-30 points]
Addiction/Harmful (major) — As Addiction/Serious (minor), except that the substance is not common or it is illegal. [-40 points]
Addiction/Fatal (minor) — As Addiction/Simple (minor), except the Addiction Factor is 50 or less. [-50 points]
Addiction/Fatal (major) — As Addiction/Serious (minor). except thai the substance is not common or it is illegal. [-60 points]
If only you had a drink in your hand, then you could calm down and think. You can almost tasle the sweet burning liquid running down your throat, the slight numbness tingling over your body. You really want a drink. You get into a lot of fights, and you spend most of your money, but you need it. It helps you cope with stressful situations, like this one. Man, you really need a drink.
Bad Temper — You have a great tendency towards violence when you are dealing with a stressrul situation. Whenever you are insulted or offended, or under stress, you may respond with a violent attack. Roll d100 (open-ended), add 40, and subtract triple your SD bonus. If the result is greater than 100, you have lost your temper. You must respond to the situation in a violent, although not necessarily fatal, action. It takes approximately d10 rounds of quiet for you to calm down and regain your composure. [-10 points]
You have a short fuse. Your friends know this, and they do their best to avoid you when you are in a bad mood. Sometimes you get so mad that you have to hit someone or something. When some punk is hurling some insult at you about your sister, there is only one way to teach him a lesson. Usually you can keep your feelings under control, but when you cannot, people get hurt. You have spent more than one night in jail, prompting you to try to control your temper.
Battle Confusion — Whenever more than one foe is fighting you at a time, you must make an Observation maneuver each round. If you fail this roll, you may take no action that round. [-15 points]
You tend to be single-minded in combat. You concentrate on one targel at a time, ascertaining that you can hit them whenever possible. You tend to get tunnel vision when you fight someone. If ever two or more foes attack you, you often become confused about whom to attack. They both distract you, which prevents you from attacking either. You have been trying to overcome this, as it could lead to your death.
Blood-Guilt — You experience guilt and become depressed anytime you cause the death or injury of a human or humanoid race. You are reluctant to enter combat with them. If you harm or kill a humanoid, you will operate at a -25 for the next d10 days while you deal with your guilt. [-10 points]
You do not usually mind killing. At least you do not mind killing animals. You could even kill a rampaging monster with little remorse. But you just cannot bear the thought of killing another being like yourself. Whenever you kill a person, all you can think of is their family, their friends, or the life they had led. You find yourself depressed for a few days before you get over it. Even if it you have no choice, you hate to kill one of your own race.
Bloodlust — Whenever you are in a fight, you want to see your foes die. You always use Iethal force, even in a bar fight. You make sure a defeated foe is dead. even if they already seem to be. You do not necessarily have a short fuse — you could be a calm individual. When you enter combat, however, you go for the throat. If there comes a time when you must accept a foe's surrender, you must roll d100 (open-ended) and add triple your SD bonus. If your total is greater than 100, you may prevent yourself from killing him. [-10 points]
Your foes deserve nothing better than quick death. When you enter a fight, any fight, you thirst to draw your foe's blood. You yearn to extinguish his life, ensure he never threatens anyone again. You use the most lethal force you can. You appoint yourself judge, juror, and executioner.
Chivalrous — You must fight in an honorable and chivalrous manner. Your whole code of ethics is based on doing what is honorable and right. You will always fight fair. This includes returning a weapon to a foe if they lose it, dismounting if your foe is not mounted, and never attacking people from behind. You always maintain a high standard of courtesy. [-10 points]
There is much honor to be gained in battle. You live for such honor. You endeavor to receive the most honor possible by ensuring a fair fight. You do not take advantage of an unarmed foe, attack people from behind, or attack on horseback if your foe is not himself mounted. You get no satisfaction from defeating people dishonorably. You realize that not everyone fights by reasonable rules, but you know that you are made of better stock than those who do not.
Code of Honor — You have set rules that govern your actions. These rules are enforced only by yourself. It is a code you try to live up to. As there are many types of codes, you may choose what kind of code you follow (subject to GM approval). For example, you may always support the underdog even if you do not agree with them. If there are any enemies of yours who know of your code, they could use it against you, forcing you into a situation that you would rather avoid. You cannot do something against your personal code. If you do, you will face a serious crisis of belief. Your code of honor must contain at least three situations, and your actions in those situations. For example, a thief might only steal from people who can afford to lose money, never betray an honorable foe, and always bestow rich gifts on a lady. [-5 points]
You have seen people oppressed by the iron grip of the ruling body. You strike out against the rulers; stealing money, attacking patrols, whatever you can do to help those oppressed. Any gain you receive above what you need is given to those less fortunate. It would be as unjust for you to keep their money as it is for the Prince to keep it. You have become quite popular among the common folk. The nobility view you with disrespect, however. You have chosen your life, and every life must have a code of honor to follow.
Compulsive Behavior — You have a behavior that you must indulge in as often as possible. You may choose your behavior, subject to the GM's approval. You like to spend a lot of time on your behavior, and a considerable amount of your income. If a time comes when you want to avoid your compulsive behavior, you must roll d100 (open-ended) and add triple your SD bonus. If the result is greater than 100, you may avoid your Compulsive Behavior. [-5 points]
You have your little quirks. You like to gamble. You gamble whenever you can, even in the middle of a war. It relaxes you and distracls your mind from current events. It also wins you a little money now and then. People joke about you, they say you were born with a deck of cards in your hand. You do not mind though, as long as they play wilh you.
Delusionary (minor) — You suffer from delusions. This delusion is mostly minor(e.g., the planet is flat).The GM must approve any delusion, and you must role play it everytime a moment becomes available. [-3 points]
Delusionary (major) — As Delusionary (minor), except the delusion is one that will affect your life quite dramalically, but does not prevent you from functioning in sociely. [-10 points]
Delusionary (greater) — As Delusionary (minor), except that the delusion has potentially fatal repercussions. [-15 points]
Why do people not believe you. You truly are a god. You travel around, preaching to people, but they all ignore you. Do they not realize that the only way for a god to gain power is through followers? How can you ever ascend back to the heavens without a throng of worshipers to give you the power you need. It is very difficult being a god. When you regain your full power, you will smite them and they will regret their insolence. Look, there are some people over there by the rock wall. Perhaps you should tell them the virtues of worshipping you.
Disavowed Weapons — You have vowed not to use weapons. You receive a -15 penalty to all of your skill calegories in the Weapons group. [-20 points]
You do not like using weapons. You consider your body the most lethal of all weapons. If you are not able to use your own body to protect itself, what chance would you have if you were using a weapon? You never trained much with weapons and you never were competent with them anyway.
Easily Charmed — You are particularly vulnerable to all mind affecting spells (spells wilh a sub-type of "m"). Whenever you are the target of those spells, your RR is modified by -50. This includes special attacks and spell devices that cause an effect similar to any spell that has a sub-type of "m". [-15 points]
You like to believe that there is good in all people. You are gullible, especially with regard to spells. You find yourself viewing enemies in a different light after a spell-caster casts one off his Charm spells On you. You fall asleep easier when you are the target of a Sleep spell, and Fear spells make you run and hide. You do not seem to be vulnerable to anything else, but you must always be wary of spell-casters.
Easy Mark — You are easy to hit when being ambushed. Whenever someone uses Ambush against you, they receive a +25 to their Ambush skill maneuver (and are treated as if they have an exira five ranks in the Ambush skill when they are adjusting the critical result). [-20 points]
You have found that it is easy for people to waylay you. You rarely hear people sneaking around you, and if ever you are ambushed, you cannot react for a few seconds while your brain decides what to do. You do not notice the tell-tale signs of an upcoming ambush, and when you are struck from behind, it is usually quite painful. You are fortunate to have friends watching your back; otherwise, you would not still be alive today.
Fanatic — You believe very strongly in one ideal or person. This could be a ruler, a loved one, a country, or a religion. This failh is more impartant to you than anything else, even to fault. You will probably not notice any failings in what you believe in, and you may even be willing to die for it. You follow the code or commands of what you believe in faithfully and fanaticaly. You can see no greater way to serve what you believe in. [-10 points]
No one is greater than the King. You would gladly sacrifice your life to save the life of the King. You strive to prevent the King frum being captured. Some people believe that you have misplaced your faith, but you realize how much the decisions this man makes influences the country's livelihood. You are proud to serve the King, and you will serve as long as he reigns.
Fear of Armor — You have a severe dislike of armor. All skills in the Armor group are now classified as Restricted skills. [-20 points]
You feel weighed down when you are in armor. You especially dislike the suffocating feeling you get when you wear some. It is heavy, noisy, and hot. You do not like the way it inhibits your movement, and you especially dislike having to don and shed armor every morning and night. You would rather avoid being hit than count on armor to absorb damage.
Fearlessness — You fear nothing. In fact, you consider planning or waiting to be cowardly. You would rather pull out your weapon and charge headlong into battle. Whenever you find yourself in a combat situation, roll d100 (open-ended), add 40 and subtract triple your SD bonus. If the result is greater than 100, you will charge into combat without regard for either your or anyone else's safety. [-10 points]
Fear is for cowards. There is nothillg to fear exeept inaction. You are not afraid of anything, especially not the dragon of legends. Sure, it is big, but you know that you will be triumphant. There is nothing to do but ready your sword. Charge!
Fear of Magic — Youfear magic. You either do not understand how it works, or you believe that it is something man was not meant to use. Consequently, you can have no base lists, and you cannot learn any spell lists except for Open spell lists of your realm. You may learn no spells higher than 5th level. [-20 points]
Magic is an evil force. You feel the evil energy in the world, and that energy is what wizards and other spell-casters tap. No good can become of dealing with this energy, and you will have little, if any, part in it. You fear any who willingly use this power, and you definitely will not seek it.
Glutton — You like to eat and drink. You will never willingly pass up a meal offered to you. lf it is necessary for you not to eat, you must roll d100 (open-ended) and add triple your SD bonus. If your result is less than 101. your will breaks and you start eating and drinking as much as possible. If there is no food available, you may change your opinion of what is edible and tasty. You are also overweight. Some social circles may look down on your avarice for food. [-3 points]
Ah, food. You love a good meal, and you tend to eat to excess. You are overweight, never missing an opportunity to eat, especially if the food is well prepared. You always clean your plate, often returning for seconds. You love food and drink. You would never consciously miss a meal.
Greedy — You lust after wealth; you can never have enough money. Anytime a chance to make more money becomes available to you, you must roll d100 (open-ended) and add triple your SD bonus. If the resultis over 100, you can pass up the opportunity. You will probably not hesitate if the money-making activity presented to you is shady. [-10 points]
You need money. You have many small hoards of coins and gems secreted about the countryside, in case something happens to your normal cash supply. Any time someone apprises you of away to accumulate money, you jump at the chance. Sometimes you walk on the wrong side of the law, but that is usually where the best profit is found.
Impulsive — You tend to act first and think later. You do not wait around for events to unfold themselves, you charge into the fray and see what happens around you. You almost never think your decisions through. You just take life as it is sent to you. You should try hard to accurately role play this flaw. If you charge into every combat, but carefully check each door or wall for traps, the GM may invalidate your impulsiveness. [-13 points]
There are people who can collectedly discuss what to do next. They look at the pros and cons of each action and weigh them against each other. Once they have compared the options, they choose what they feel is the best action. Not you. The path of least resistance rules you. You despise plodding through stodgy discussions. You grab the first option that does not seem deadly and plow ahead. Sometimes you choose incorrectly, but you manage to make it back to safety. Action, not words; that is your motto.
Indecision ‐ You are indecisive. Your indecisiveness shows most when you are forced to make a snap decision. You suffer a -50 penalty to all or your snap actions due to your indecisiveness, instead of the standard -20. [-20 points]
You hate making decisions. You have a particularly difficult time if a decision is rushed. You like to make your time, weigh all of the positive and negative aspects of the decision. You then consider a variety of options and base your decision on them. Even in the middle of a fight, you prefer to think through your alternalives, rather than just follow your gut instinct. You find yourself jumping from one idea to the next without actually using any of them. Split-second decisions are very difficult for you.
Intolerance (minor) — You have a deep irrational hatred for some type of person. The GM must approve what it is you are intolerant of. Whenever you see what you are intolerant of, you must try to show your distaste for whatever it is. You are intolerant of a small group of people (up to 100.000). [-5 points]
Intolerance (major) — As Intolerance (minor), except you are intolerant of a large group of people (over 100.000). [-10 points]
You hate elves. They act haughty and supuior because they live so long. They build their cities in the forest, singing an dancing all the time. Who do they think they are, anyway? Humans are the dominant species on the planet. Humans have built the largest cities, created the strongest societies, given the most to the rest of the world. Every time you see an elf, you feel hatred building up inside you. You would like to grab him by his pointed ears and throw him outside where you would show him the superiority of humans. That is what you would like to do.
Kleptomaniac — You have an irrational compulsion to steal when ever the opportunity presents itself. What you steal is irrelevant. It does not have to be of value, or interest to you. Whenever circumstances favor stealing, you must roll d100 (open-ended) and add triple your SD bonus. If the result is less than 101, you must steal the closest item that you can hide on your person. You can never return stolen items, nor may you discard them. You may, however, give them to another person, or even sell them. [-15 points]
You have a large assortment of collected goods. You are not sure where you got all of them. When you are around something that is not yours, you get an irresistible urge to take it. You do not even like some of the things you take, but you feel compelled to take them. You are too embarrassed to return the items you take. You sell them to whoever will by them and then leave town.
Lecherous — You havea very strong desire to interact with the opposite sex. Anytime you see an attractive member (Appearance greater than 50) of the opposite sex, you must try to allure them to you, no matter what else is happening. This could lead to a serious breech of etiqueue, but you cannot help yourself. lf you feel the need to restrain yourself from seducing someone, you must roll d100 (open-ended), substract their Appearance, add triple your SD bonus, and subtract 50. lf the result is over 100, you may stop yourself from making a pass. [-10 points]
There is nothing better in the world than those of the female persuasion. You love nothing more than the feeling of their soft skin against yours. You love to run your hands through their hair. You have no problem finding women — they are always around. You approach and talk to them, letting them know how wonderful you think they are — and how wonderful you can make them feel. Some, actually most, ignore you, but occasionally you will meet a serving wench with agreeable morals. Then you show her that you are not all talk. So many women, so little time ....
Megalomaniac — You believe strongly that you will fulfill a certain goal. You believe that it has been predestined that you complete your goal. And your goal is no trivial task. You may choose whatever goal you wish (subject to the GM's approval) but your goal must be grandiose. You will not let anything stand between you and your goal. People around you consider you to be much to concerned with yourself. After talking with you for even a few minutes, they should realize your megalomania. [-10 points]
You are destined to be the ruler. You take time to in form those around you of your destiny. There can be no denying your greatness, or your place in this world. You are destined to rule. Some people call you conceited, but not to your face. You are not conceited, you just know how important you are. You will not let anything stop you from realizing your goal: to become Emperor. You are indeed destined for greatness.
Memory Loss — You suffer from occasional memory loss. Once per month for a period of one week, you will experience a random memory loss. You will lose d10 hours of memories each day for the entire week. When the week is finished, your memories will gradually start coming back; d10 hours of memories every d10 days. Actions taken during the period of memory loss can gain no experience points. The GM should determine exactly what you forget and when in the month your memory starts to go away. [-15 points]
You live a pretty normal life. If you could only remember parts of it. For some unexplained reason, you have no memory of certain times in your life. Nothing appears to connect your lapses of memory; they seem to be fairly random. Your memories occasionally return, but it is very disheartening not to be able to remember what you talked about last night. You cannot remember things as well as you used to. Eventually, you might end up like an old crazy hermit in a secluded forest. Perhaps you can find a remedy before that happes.
Minor Fear (minor) — You have a fear of one uncommon thing (dragons, ogres, etc.) subject to the GM approbal. Whenever you encounter that which you fear, there is a 50% chance that you immediately turn and flee. If you do not flee, there is a 25% chance that you will fall unconscious for d10 hours. While you are unconscious, it is almost impossible to revive you. [-5 points]
Minor Fear (major) — As Minor Fear (minor), except the thing you fear is common (e.g., women). [-10 points]
You do not think you have a phobia, you are afraid of only one creature. You saw one harm your brother and you are deathly afraid that it will come and get you. You try to keep your cool, and sometimes you succeed. Other times, you have been known to run as quickly your legs would carry you.
Miser — You are exrremely concerned with keeping your money. You are not necessarily greedy, although you could be; you undeniably want to keep the money you have. It is very difficult for you to spend money. If you must make a large purchase (GM's discretion), roll d100 (open-ended) and add triple your SD bonus. If the result is less than 101, you cannot convince yourself the expenditure is worthwhile, and you keep your money. [-5 points]
A penny saved is a penny earned. You believe completely in this statement. You have an aversion to spending money. You keep it hidden all around your house, in case you need some in an emergency. Only when you absolutely have to will you actually spend money, and then only the minimum necessary. You consider yourself frugal.
Muddled Mind — You tend to jumble things in your mind when you are casting spells. All spell casting static maneuvers suffer a special penalty of -20. [-20 points]
You have memorized all the steps needed to cast spells. You can summon the power, move your hands in the proper motions. You can pronounce the arcane words. You feel the power rushing inside of you. The tingling sensation makes you a little giddy. And then your mind falters, everything you have memorized starts to jumble together. You panic and throw the spell too early — or too late. You just cannot seem to relax enough to guide the spell properly. Control, you need to learn control.
Oblivious — You have a hard time noticing things. You receive a -15 penalty to all skill categories in the Awareness group. [-15 points]
Did you see that? Well, not really. You are not the most observant of people. You tend to miss the obvious. Even if someone is painting something out to you, you often do not notice it. You eyes see perfectly, your ears listen fine, you just fail to notice many things. You are oblivious to a lot of what goes on around you.
Overconfident — You are very confident in your abilities. In fact, you believe that you are better than you actually are. You do not necessarily have to be loud and boastful to be overconfident. You might be quiet yet driven. If you wish to proceed cautiously into a new situation, you must roll d100 (open-ended) and add triple your SD bonus. lf the result is greater than 100, you may proceed with caution. You can rally young and/or gullible people around you. They tend to think that you are as good as you say you are. Older or experienced people might look at you as being headstrong and impatient. [-10 points]
You realie that you are not the greatest at everything, you are just the best swordsman in the country. You like to feel that you are unrivaled at your vocation. You have been bested a couple of times, but those were flukes. You like to openly challenge strangers, believing that you are better than they. Caution is for cowards.
Pacifist (minor) — You do not believe in violence. You feel that it accomplishes nothing and use it only when needed. You believe in life preservation. You may fight freely. You may even start a fight. The only thing you cannot do is kill. You can neither kill your foe nor allow them to be killed. For instance, you cannot leave a bleeding foe, lure a foe into a lethal trap, allow a comrade to administer a killing blow for you, etc. If you accidentally kill someone or something, you will suffer from severe depression (-75 to all actions) for 3d10 days. [-10 points]
Pacifist (major) — As Pacifist (minor), except this is defensive pacifism. You may only fight if you need to defend yourself or those under your care. You cannot initiate combat (which includes goading someone into attack you). You also try to keep others around you from fighting. [-15 points]
Pacifist (greater) — As Pacifist (minor), except this is total non-violence. You are completely against any sort of violence. You will not protect yourself or those under your care with any form of violence, even indirect. The only exception is that you can defend yourself from creatures with animal intelligence (as they are reacting on instinct rather than sentient thought). [-30 points]
Violence is for the unenlightened. You avoid it at all costs. There comes a time when it is necessary to protect yourself, but then you use only the minimum force needed to to escape or render the assailant harmless. Some think you try to live in an ideal world, one that is violence free. You are just trying to make life more enjoyable for everyone. It is a lofty goal, but one you try to uphold.
Paranoid — You believe that everyone wants to cause you harm. You stay constantly alert, watching those who are plolting against you. You may have one or two true friends you can trust, but you are wary of everyone else. Although, how do you know you can trust them? Maybe they are trying to lead you into a false sense of security. People tend to react negatively to paranoid people, and you could suffer from delusions as well as being paranoid. You should try your best to role play your paranoia. Trust no one. Remember, just because you are paranoid does not mean that they are not out to get you. [-10 points]
They are out there. They are everywhere. They are out to get you. You have seen them spying on you. You try to Iead a normal life, but they are everywhere. Everytime you look around, you see someone watching you. You cannot hear their conversation, but you are certain they are talking about you. Well, as long as you are aware of them, you are still one step ahead of them.
Passive — You are passive, especially concerning combat. Whenever you are involved in a fight, you receive n special penalty of -15 to your OB until you get "worked up". At the end of every round, you may roll to see if you are worked up. Roll d100 (open-ended), add 20, and add triple your SD bonus. If the result is over 100, you have succeeded in working yourse lf up. You may not use the Frenzy skill while you are passive. [-10 points]
You are difficult to aggravate. You are not aggressive or confrontational. You try to talk your way out of a fight and, failing that, let the aggressor workout his frustrations without him hitting you. However, you can motivate yourself to excitation, and when you do, you are truly a fighting machine. You do not like to let yourself lose control like that very often.
Phobia (minor) — You have a phobia, an irrational fear of something. Whenever you are confronted with your phohia, you must make an RR versus a 10th level Fear attack. If you fail, you become paralyzed with fear for one round per 10% failure. If you must internet with what ever is causing your phobia (e.g., fighting something you have a phobia of or swimming when you have a fear of water), all of your actions suffer a special penalty of -25. You may choose what you are afraid of (subject to GM approval). The thing you are afraid of will only be encountered occassionally (or will not require you to interact with it very much; e.g., fear of the number 13, or the fear of mechanical devices in a medieval setting). [-5 points]
Phobia (major) — As Phobia (minor), except the thing you fear will be encountered more often (e.g., the fear of heights or the fear of enclosed spaces). [-10 points]
Phobia (greater) — As Phobia (minor), except the thing you fear will be encountered almost daily (e.g., the fear of water, crowds, bladed objects, etc.). [-15 points]
You are deathly afraid of snakes. There is no question about it. Anything that slithers around without legs should be killed immediately. You are not a fearful individual. In fact, you have faced down some truly horrific creatures in your past, but something about snakes terrifies you. The way they move, the way they rare up to strike, the way their forked tongues flicker so quickly. It gives you the shivers just thinking about it.
Poor Concentration — Due to your short attention span, anything you must concentrate on for more than half a minute (most uses of the Lore category, some spells, loading artillery, complex rituals. etc.) is penalized by -25. [-10 points]
You have always found concentration difficult. Your attention span is shorter than most. You are easily distracted. Whenever you try to concentrate on the matter at hand, you notice all of the things around you.
Pyromaniac — You have an irrational attraction to fire. You like to watch it burn, smell the smoke, feel the heat. You will set fires whenever possible, and you will occasionally feel the urge to set a fire without reason. If you want to resist your urge for setting a fire, you must roll d100 (open-ended) and add triple your SD bonus. If the result is over 100, you may resist the urge to start a fire. You can become hypnotized by a fire, and will always stop to appreciate any fire that you come across. You receive a +50 bonus to starting a campfire. [-5 points]
You delight in how fire dances. You enjoy the smell of burning wood, the smoke climbing higher into the sky. You like to set fires whenever there is need of one, sometimes when there is no need. There is something cleansing about a fire: it burns away impurities, leaving only base elements. Fire is the one true judge.
Queasy — Any time you see blood or gore, it makes you uneasy. Each time you even glance at something gory, you must roll d100 (open-ended) and add triple your SD bonus. If the result is less than 101, you will operate at a -30 until you can get away from the scene. [-10 points]
You dream of saving damsels in distress. You hope to slay large hordes of an invading army. What you do not want to see is their blood. You do not know why, but the sight of blood or carnage makes you ill. It is slightly embarrassing to be a warrior that cannot stand the sight of blood and guts, but bloodshed makes your stomach uneasy. And it is hard to fight when you are trying to prevent yourself from throwing up.
Sadist — You enjoy causing pain, either mentally or physically. Whenever you can you must indulge your sadistic habits. You may conceal your weakness from close friends for a little while, but eventually they start to notice the pain you inflict on those around you. People react negatively to a known sadist, many will want to see you burned at the stake. Please note that this is not a "good" or "heroic" flaw for you to possess. It is more suitable for a truly evil character. The GM may prohibit characlers from choosing this option. [-15 points]
You like pain. Well, to be exact you like to cause pain. As a child you tortured many of the town's pets. Your parents never knew; you hid your obsession well. As you grew older, animals no longer held the same fascination for you. For a while you joined the army, but then the fighting stopped, you opted to leave. Now, you look around for your next plaything, hoping to make its anguish last Ionger than your previous subject.
Sense of Duty (minor) — You feel that you have a responsibility towards someone or something. This is an internal feeling, one you have placed upon yourself. You will never betray, harm, or mislead those to whom you have a Sense of Duty. Your Sense of Duty is towards a close friend or small group. [-5 points]
Sense of Duty (major) — As Sense of Duty (minor). except you have a Sense of Duty towards a large group or organization (a town or city). [-10 points]
Sense of Duty (greater) — As Sense of Duty (minor). except you have a Sense of Duty towards a country or equally large group. [-15 points]
Whenever you see a young woman in trouble, you immedialely remember your sister. She used to get into all sorts of trouble, often relying on you, her big brother, to come and rescue her. You cared a lot for her, and whenever you see someone that reminds you of her, you feel a sense of duty towards that person. Your comrades say you cannot help every young woman you come across. Some women need help and you are the only one who can give it to them.
Split Personality — You have from one to three additional personalities. Your physical attributes like height, weight, and hair color do not change. Your non-physical attributes can all be different, as well as each of their professions. The alignment, personality, and level can vary among personalities. Each of the personalities earns experience separately; you must keep track of which personality performed which actions so you can award the appropriate experience to each personality. You and the GM must decide what triggers the change in your personalities. [-20 points]
You have a slight mental problem. Whebever you encounter a stressful situation, you have a tendency to hide your personality and replace it with a completely separate identitY. You are not conscious of this, of course. You may not even know of the other personalities or you may think of them as actual people. It does not seem to hamper you in any way, other than really confusing those around you. Maybe someday, you can be convinced of your problem and then you could seek counceling.
Stubborn — You are very stubborn. You want results your way, and even if you do not get it, you will not change your mind. Your comrades may have to resort to duping you into doing what they need you to do. [-5 points]
You demand that your way be followed. If you do not agree with a group decision, you refuse to budge. Even if your friends want to pursue some course of action, if you do not wish to go, you will not. They would have to do some pretty fancy talking to get you to change your mind. If they still do not see things your way, you might decide to do what you wanted to anyway.
Superstitious — You are superstitious, often reading omens into anything you encounter. You always observe the various good luck and bad luck practices of your culture. Your mood and morale are often affected by these omens. [-5 points]
You feel forces in the world that control your destiny. You also feel that these forces are fickle and must be appeased whenever possible. You are not considered crazy, just overly concerned wilh omens and luck. You often throw soil over your shoulder if it is spilled. You are constantly knocking on wood. If a black cat crosses your path or you walk under a ladder, your whole doy feels ruined. One of your greatest fears is that you will accidentally break a mirror. You are flat sure what seven years of bad luck would do to you. On the other hand, you do have a rabbit's foot and horseshoe with you at all times, so maybe you can ward off those evil spirits.
Trauma (minor) — You suffer from flashbacks that completely immobilize you for d10 minutes. The trigger for these flashbacks is something uncommon. You may pick what triggers your flashbacks (subject to GM approval) but it should be at least loosely connected to the trauma that causes your flashbacks. If you are attacked while immobilized, any hit that delivers a critical to you will cause you to snap out of your trance. [-5 points]
Trauma (major) — As Trauma (minor). except what triggers your flashback is a common occurrence (e.g. a ringing bell). [-10 points]
Trauma (greater) — As Trauma (minor), except what triggers your flashback is a very common occurrence (every time a horse rides by). [-15 points]
You were running through a field. You did not know that on the other side of the hill you were ascending there was a group of older boys practicing archery. You crested the hill and started charging down the other side. You saw five arrows flying towards you. You dropped to the ground and rolled down the hill. You survived unscathed, but the incident has permanently scarred you. It is strange, tough, you are not terrified by being shot at, it is when someone tosses something at you that your trauma is triggered.
Truthful — You cannot lie. Either there is some physical reason why you cannot Iie, or you are so terrible at it that anyone instanlly knows when you are lying. The Duping and Falsification skills are classified as Restricted for you. You also cannot just refuse to tell the truth. If you are ever in a situation which you do not wish to speak, for fear of revealing some truth, you must roll d100 (open-ended) and add triple your SD bonus. If the result is greater than 100, you may prevent yourself from spilling out the truth. This is not a vow to always tell the truth, this is an actual inability to lie. [-5 points]
You could never lie. You lost control of yourself when you tried. Invariably, while attempting to lie, your face would break out into a giant grin. Whomever you were talking to would immediately know that you were lying and would react accordingly. You have since given up lying altogether. Better that people think you are a fool than to open your mouth and remove all doubt.
Vow (lesser) — You have taken a vow either to do or not do something. This is a vow that you believe in very slrongly and has been scaled through some formal ritual. Your vow may end after a certain task is accomplished (avenge the death of your parents) or may be life-long (vow of silence). You cannot take a Vow to accomplish some task and also take the same task as your Lifetime Goal (see the appropriate Talent). You must always follow your vow. If you do not, you will penalized by the GM. the vow you have made will not inconvenience you much in your daily activities (e.g., giving 10% tithe to the church, showing respect towards politicians, or never wearing black clothes, etc.). If you fail to fulfill a vow at any time, some calamity will fall on you. The severity of the calamity depends on the severity of the vow you took. The Gamemaster must give the final approval for any vow you wish to take. [-3 points]
Vow (minor) — As Vow (lesser), except the vow will affect you on a daily basis, but not prohibit you from functioning fairly normaly (e.g., chastity, eating no meat, never sleeping in a covered area, etc.). [-5 points]
Vow (major) — As Vow (lesser), except the vow will affect you often during a typical day. Most people will become aware of your vow after only being with you a few hours. This vow also limits you in some significant way (e.g., never using edged weapons, never keeping more money than needed to clothe yourself, never speaking, etc.). [-10 points]
Vow (greater) — As Vow (Iesser), except the vow will affect almost every one of your decisions. People will become aware of your vow quickly, and can use it to manipulate you into performing or preventing a particular task (e.g., aiding those who ask, challenge all who wrong you, fight with a lesser weapon than your foe, etc.). [-15 points]
As a member of the church, you took a vow of poverty. Anytime you come across more than enough money to feed, clothe, and shelter yourself, you always give it to others. You need no material possessions. The spiritual rewards you receive are more than adequate payment for your services. There are people who cannot see why you would just give money away, since you worked quite hard for it. They cannot see the higher power at work in your life. You set a noble example for others to follow.
Weapon Bane — All weapon skills (except skills in your primary weapon category) are now classified as restricted for you. Your primary weapon category is the one with the cheapest development point cost. [-15 points]
You like to use one type of weapon. In fact you have some sort of mental block when it comes to using any other type of weopon. You are talented with your sword. You are proficient with an axe. You are absolutely terrible with any weapon that is not wielded in one hand and bladed. You have tried to learn other weapons, even those similar to ones you know how to use, but it did not seem to come naturally. Oh well, you are good with a sword and that seems to work well for you.
Now and then, something truly bizarre occurs to a person. This has happened to you.
Cursed Shape Shifter — You are cursed to randomly change shape into an animal. You are never sure what animal you will become with each transformation. Each week, there is a 5% (non-cumulative) chance that you will change shape into an animal. The change lasts for d10 days, and the animal you change into is determined by the GM (he could choose to use the table below). You can be assured that the animal you do change into will be small and non-threatening. [-20 points]
You possess the power to change your shape. You never know what animal you will become, but they tend to be small and harmless. You also have no control over when such a change will occur. You have been cursed by a druid for hunting in his protected wood. He caught you and cursed you for your poaching. You have learned what life is like for a rabbit, a mouse, a lizard, and a sparrow; among other small animals. You try to make the most out of your animal form, as they only last a few days, but you really wish that you could be rid of the curse.
Dark Pact — You have made some kind of deal with a dark or demonic force (the deal resulted in your most powerful talent). You will be visited at random times by this force to be reminded of your deal. Thus force will never aid you in any way, and may even hinder you if an opportunity presents itself. The actual specifications of the deal are up to the GM to decide. [-10 points]
You were once frustrated with how difficult your life had been. You wanted to gain notoriety, and you did not care how. You searched widely for some way to better yourself, and you eventually found it. A mysterious entity promised to give you power. You asked what the cost was, but a smile was the only answer you received. You did not care though. you would hove sold your soul to have the abilities you desired. You accepted the entity's offer and, true to its word, it granted you power. With every bargain, there comes a price. You are certain that the time to pay is coming soon. Lest you forget about it, the entity visits you now and then to remind you of your pact. Suddenly, this did not seem like such a good idea after all.
Dark Temptation — You have learned one evil spell list up to 50th level. To receive the knowledge of this list, you had to consort with dark and evil things. You have become tainted by this evil and are forever tempted to the "Dark Side". The GM will control the details, but you are constantly in a spiritual battle between what you know is good and the evil inside of you. You begin the game with 10d10 corruption points, and all corruption points gained later are doubled. [-10 points]
You have always craved power. You will do whatever it takes to get that power. You have tried many ways to gather power, including spells. You have attempted to gain many spels through normal channels, but they just did not come fast enough for you. You finally consorted with a darker power. It gave you the power you desired. You can do things now that make men quake in their boots. There was a price to pay, and you paid it. You will forever be tainted with the evil you used to gather your power.
Dependent (minor) — You have a person in your life that you deeply care about. This dependent may be used against you in order to persuade you to do something you would normally be against. In addition, your dependent could inadvertently walk into a situation that requires you to rescue them. For instance, your child could follow you into a haunted house wanting to see what you are doing. Your dependent requires you to protect him in some way (to be a disadvantage). A family that stays at home in the country, free from harm is not a dependent. Nor is your brother who happens to be the greatest swordsman in the Northern plains. If they are able to protect themselves, they are not dependents. Your dependent is a single person of average ability. [-5 points]
Dependent (major) — As Dependent (minor), except you have more than one dependent, or you have one person who has below average capabilities. [-10 points]
Dependent (greater) — As Dependent (minor), except you have more than one dependent and they all have below average capabilities. [-15 points]
You love your family very much. You do not adventure quite as much as you used to, preferring to spend time with your wife and children instead. There are times when you must leave them to right a wrong. You try to keep those occurrences to a minimum but they do occur. Your biggest fear is that one day someone will use your family against you. If they were held hostage. You are not sure what you would do about it. If they were harmed in anyway, however, you know that you would make those who harmed your family pay. Pay for a long time and very dearly.
Duty (minor) — You have a responsibility to a particular individual or organization. Whenever they call upon you to do something, you are duty-bound to cease everything you are working on and take care of the situation. A duty is something imposed upon you from the outside, not something you feel you have to do (i.e., a Sense of Duty). You may determine exactly who or what you have an duty to, but the GM must approve it. Once per month, the GM will make a roll to determine if you are called to duty during that month. The percentage chance that you will be summoned is 25%. [-5 points]
Duty (major) — As Duty (minor), except the chance of being summoned is 50%. [-10 points]
Duty (greater) — As Duty (minor), except the chance of being summoned is 75%. [-15 points]
When you were young, you thougt it would be exciting to join the army. You enlisted and left home to fight in the great war. You foughl valiantly in many battles, received distinction and even earned two medals of valor. You have since mustered out of the military, but occasionally your former supervisors call upon you to help them with a particularly complicated situation. They recognize your expertise in cenain tasks and they know you will respond to aid them. You are paid well for the work you do, but it is inconvenient when they come knocking on your door in the middle of the night. Duty calls.
Friendslayer — Whenever you are casting an attack spell and the spell fails, you do not roll on the attack spell fumble table. Instead, the spell affects one of your allies. The GM randomly determines who it affects, and the friend may make a normal RR. If there are no friends within the range of the spell, then roll a failure normally. [-10 points]
When the fight gets furious, you can be counted on to cast spells against tile enemy. Your spells are quile effeclive and often have spectacular results. There are occasions, though, when you are in the heat of battle, that you forget one small step. Omissions are not uncommon when casting spells; there are many steps to remember with magic, but your resulting blunders are a typical of the magic community. Whenever you are casting a spell on the ellemy and you make a mistake, the spell targets one of your friends. This has not happened often, but it does cause your allies opprehension when you say "oops".
Lack of Scope — You have dirticulty controlling the scope of your spells. The area of effect for each of your spells is halved (rounded up). For example, a spell that can affect one person will still affect one person; but a spell that had a 10 foot radius would be halved to a 5 foot radius. This only affects spells with an Area of Effect with a radius or # of targets. [-20 points]
You learn spells well. You understund how to use the power around you to make a spell happen. You undestand how to best utilize your repertoire of spells. The one lesson you had a hard time grosping was the one about area of effect. You could never expand your spells to their fullest radii. You have concentrated on making you Stum Cloud expand to the radius your master demonstrated, but to no avail. You just cannot utilize your spells to their utmost.
Lack of Time — You have difficulty making your spells last as long as they should. All of the spells you cast have their duration reduced in half (rounded up to the nearest round). [-20 points]
You are great at casting spells. You can launch a firebolt and watch it strike your target's chest. You Ieap giant chasms with just a word and a motion. But problems with spells started when you tried casting spells that were to last a while. All of your spells seem to fizzle out earlier than they should. You cannot figure out why this is happening, but it is very disheartening.
Lycanthropy — You are a were-creature. You and your GM will determine what type of creature you are. Every full moon, you transform into your beastly form. This it an uncontrollable, psychotic type of lycanthropy. While you are in your animal form, you have a bestial desire to kill and destroy. Anything you were wearing while your underwent your transformation is ripped off of your body. Anyone you bite may contract lycanthropy (set CM for more details on lycanthropy). They may make a RR versus Disease (using your level as the attack level) to prevent the infection from taking hold. [-15 points]
Most everything seems normal about you, but one time every month you undergo a change. Your teeth get Ionger. Your hair gets thicker and grows remarkable amout. Your whole face grows longer. You actually change into a werewolf. While you are a werewolf you have amazing agility and can pass on your curse to people you bite. You tend to go on rampages, killing livestock, animals, even people, if they threaten you. You often wake up in some forest or on a hill wearing nothing. You have a vague memory of what happened the night before, but you are never quite certain of details.
Magic Allergy (minor) — You have a severe allergy to magic. You may choose the realm that you are allcrgic to. Whenever you try to use magic from that realm (either spells or magical items), there is a 50% chance that you will drop to the ground in a convulsion. While you are convulsing, you can perform no actions. The convulsions last for d10 rounds, after which you may act normally. If you are near someone (within 10') who uses a magic item or casts a spell from the realm you are allergic to, there is a 10% chance that you will fall into a convulsion. [-10 points]
Magic Allergy (major) — As Magic Allergy (minor), except applies to magic from two different realms. [-25 points]
Magic Allergy (greater) — As Magic Allergy (minor), except applies to magic from three realms. [-45 points]
You fear magic. Not because you are poor with it, but because magic actually disables you. You have encountered it enough to know that you are abnormally sensitive to magical energies. You have tried using magical items to cast spells but they seem to throw you into convulsions. Luckily it does not seem like every spell harms you, just certain types. You hope to find a cure someday, before this allergy kills you.
Magically Susceptible — You are particularly susceptible to magic. You may choose how vulnerable you actually are and to which realms your vulnerability extends. You may receive a -25 penalty to your Resistance Roll for spells from one particular realm (you choose), or you may receive a -15 penalty to your Resistance Rolls from all spells and spell devices. [-15 points]
You always were more vulnuable to spells than most people. You could be hypnotized quickly, magically convinced a hated enemy was a friend, ensorcelled into slumber at an important moment, all because of a spell cast on you. Your comrades soon learned of your vulnuability and have tried to help shield you from spells.
Magically Vulnerable — You are especially vulnerable to magic. Any spell cast with you as the target receives a modifier of +10 to its roll (either the BAR or EAR). [-10 points]
You and magic do not get along. You have actually seen bolt spells change course and attack you instead of an intended target next to you. You seem to attract magic to the degree that it easily affects you. You have learned to become very cautious around spell-casters, especially hostile ones.
Magic Bane — You have a difficult time learning spells. All skills in the Spell group are classified as Restricted skills. [-20 points]
You have a hard time grasping the concept of spells and spellcasling. You have spent many hours studying ancient tomes, trying to grasp the knowledge, that eludes you. After many hours of struggle, you have managed to grasp the rudimentary concepts of some spell lists. You have to try harder; conquering the problem makes you feel much more powerful.
Necromantic Urge — You have prepared yourself for your eventual death. You have studied different tomes and learned of a certain ritual that you could perform to ensure life after death. You have performed that ritual, and are ready for your own death. When your soul finally leaves your body, your body will become either a Iich or a powerful vampire, at your discretion. It will cenainly take time to adjust to your new lifestyle. You are truly an evil and horrific creature. Upon reaching negative hits, you will not heal normally and will loose one hit per minute until you have died. In addition, you have a natural resislance to all Lifegiving and Preservation spells and spell effects; they may not normally be cast upon you at all (as you are considered an "unwilling" target). What exactly happens to you after you die is subject to the GM's approval, the number of rounds for soul departure is now 1 for you. [-15 points]
Immortality. Many people have spent their whole life searching for it, only to have it elude them. You know how to live forever. You have taken care of everything so that when you die, you will come back. There are certain rituals and sacrifices you can make. You searched for a Iong time, examening tome after tome. When you die, you will come back. And you will come back more powerful than when you left.
Open Door — You are very susceplible to possession. There is a 5% chance per week that you become possessed by a demon. Every week, roll a d100 (open-ended) and add 5. If the result is over 100, you are possessed sometime during that week. The GM should randomly determine a day or the week to determine when the possession occur (you won't know when exactly, but you will know that sometime within a week you will become possessed). The possession lasts for 2d10 hours. While you are possessed, your body will be constantly trying to wreak havoc and cause suffering. Your possessed body does not care who it harms and will be under GM control for as long as the possession lasts. You are fully aware of what you are doing, you just have no conlrol over it. On rare occasions when it is absolulely necessary for you to force the demon out of your body, you may make a RR versus Channeling (using at attack level of 20+2d10). If you are successful, the demon is exorcised from your body for the week but you suffer a 'B' Impact critical. [-20 points]
You have always felt thaI you were not always in control of your actions. A strange feeling comes over you occasionally. You feel as if you are not in control of your body. You watch yourself committing horrible acts, but there is nothing you can do to stop it. You actually, feel a part of you reveling in the pain and destruction you can create. You have searched for help, but no has been able to prevent you from having these episodes. You have narrowly escaped some IYnch mobs, and have even tried tying yourself down when you feel these episodes happening. Nothing you do seems to make any difference. You continue to search for a cure, hoping that one day you will indeed find one.
Part Animal — You are part animal. The GM decides exactly what kind of animal. You were raised by normal parents and appear like any other member of your race. On different occasions, the animal in you will control your actions. When this happens and what actions you take are determined by you and the Gamemaster. For instance, if you are part dog, you might mark your territory whenever possible. [-20 points]
There is a beast within you. You know that one of your parents was an animal, and you call feel the bestial desires burning within you. You know that you are human. You look normal, act normal, even smell normal, but deep inside you know that you are part animal. Animal behavior surfaces occasionally. You lost control of your actions, giving way to the animal inside. You entire life is a constant fight to stay in control of your actions.
Poor Control — When you cast a non-attack spell that fail,. you must roll on the Attack spell Fumble table. If you cast an attack spell that fails, you must add 10 to your spell failure roll. [-7 points]
You enjoy casting spells, and you try hard to get them right. Occasionally You get excited and lose conlrol of the power you are trying to harnessing. You, taking deep breaths before casting, but sometimes it does not seem to help. You end up internalizing the power, or worse, the power escapes and goes off in the wrong direction. Hopefully, if you keep practicing you can overcome this problem.
Power Blind — You are partially blind to the power around you. You receive a -10 penalty to the Power Awareness category. [-10 points]
Magic is something you will never understand completely. You can use it, even sense it sometimes, but channeling it for reasons other than a spell can be difficult. You have a hard time viewing items and determining if they are magical. You do not attune to magical items very well, and runes are very difficult for you to read. You have tried casting divinations for people, but the readings you receive are often jumbled or contradictory. You have a very difficult time perceiving the power around you.
Power Drain — You drain power from spell adders and multipliers. Any spell adder that you use has its "plusses" (or class if you are using the Treasure Companion) reduced by one. For example, if you were in possession of a +3 adder, in your hands it would act as a +2 adder. Also, any multiplier you use will have its multiplier reduced by one, so a x2 multiplier becomes a x I multiplier. The power in the adder and multiplier will return immediately when it is given to someone without this flaw. [-20 points]
You were talking with another spell caster one evening at a local lavern. Your colleague had a ring on his hand, which he claimed increased his casting power. He said it allowed him to cast twice as many spells as he could without it. You were doubtful, but he let you try it on. You felt the power enter your body, and for a second you felt like you could cast twice as many spells as you could before. The extra power drained out of you just as quickly as it entered, though. You returned the ring, remarking on how useful that would be. You were puzzled, though; why did the power drain out of you so quickly?
Power Leakage — You cannot store power like most people. Your power point progression is lowered by two points. For example, if your normal power point progression is 0•6•5•4•3, your actual progression is -2•4•3•2•1. [-20 points]
Some people just cannot hold their liquor. They get drunk and throw up after only a few mugs of the local grog. You seem to be like that with power. You cast spells, resting during the evening to regain the power you used, like any other spell caster. You work hard on harnessing more power whenever you get the chance. The problem is that you do not feel that you are getting all of the power you think you should. You should be brimming with extra spell power, just waiting to cast another spell. Instead, you have just enough to get by. You just cannot seem to hold your power.
Repulsive Habit (minor) — You have a habit that is considered repulsive by the majority of society. You may choose the habit (subject to the GM's approval). You must make a conscious effort to perform this habit whenever possible. When people notice your habit, they will tend to regard you with disdain, possibly loathing. Your habit annoys people, but does not disgust them. This habit could range from always boasting loudly to all around you, to having bad breath, to relieving yourself in public. Again, the GM has the last say on any habit. [-5 points]
Repulsive Habit (major) — As Repulsive Habit (minor), except people are disgusted by your habit. [-10 points]
Repulsive Habit (greater) — As Repulsive Habit (minor), except your habit makes everyone in the room get up and leave. [-15 points]
You like to do what you want. You do not care if it offends someone. You refuse to bathe because you feel that water is an evil substance. Your brother drowned in a pond, and you refuse to let even a small amount of water touch you. People wrinkle up their noses when you walk by, and when you sit next to someone they invariably leave. You do not care though, you have your reasons for avoiding a bath.
Rival/NPC (minor) — You have a rival. Your relationship to this rival and what caused you to become rivals are up to you. Your rivalry could be romantic, professional, or personal. Whenever possible, your rival will do his best to outdo you, even hinder you. This rivalry is rarely, if ever, violent. Both of you respect each other too much to kill one another. You will even endanger yourself and your comrades if it gives you the chance to outdo your rival. The rival is either a personal, romantic, or professional rival. The GM must approve all rivalries. [-5 points]
Rival/NPC (major) — As Rival/NPC (minor), except the rival is some combination of personal, romantic. and/or professional. [-10 points]
Rival/NPC (greater) — As Rival/NPC (major), except the rival has an upper hand in the rivalry (either due to status or some other advantange).
Rival/NPC (minor) — As Rival/NPC (minor), except the rival is another player character. [-10 points]
Rival/NPC (major) — As Rival/NPC (major), except the rival is another player character. [-15 points]
Rival/NPC (greater) — As Rival/NPC (greater), except the rival is another player character. [-25 points]
You and Goldor were once best of friends. You would do everything together. You taught each other skills you knew and ran around the city causing havoc whenever you could. One day that all came to an end. You both found what you each thought was the perfect woman. She was the doughter of a merchant, blond hair, sparkling blue eyes. You both were immediately in love. In the end, neither of you won her favors but there was a permanent rift between you and your friend. You were now bitter rivals, your friendship deteriorated. Whenever possible, he tries to hinder you, and you are more than happy to return the favor.
Secret (minor) — You have a secret that if discovered will cause you much embarrassment, pain, or even death. You may choose the actual secret you are keeping and it can be related to another flaw you have. You also may choose what could happen to you if the secret was revealed. The GM must approve all secrets. You must do your best to keep your secret; you are terribly embarrassed about the situation and will do whatever it takes to keep it quiet. If the secret were found out, it would cause you great embarrassment. [-5 points]
Secret (major) — As Secret (lesser), except if the secret is discovered, it would cause you to be either exiled or imprisoned or it would cause you to be injured severely (but not killed). [-10 points]
Secret (greater) — As Secret (lesser), except ifthe secret is discovered, it would cause your death. [-15 points]
You killed an innocent man in a barfight. If anyone found out about that night, there would much retribution aimed towards you. It will not matter that it was not your fault, everyone would blame you and you would have to flee lawn again. It would be just like the last town. No one seems to be able to understand that it is not your fault..
Secret Identity — You have an alternate identity that you keep hidden from the general public. You actually lead a double life, one as yourself and one as your alter ego. You also have a group of people who are interested in who you really are, thus making you cautious about who you disclose your identity to. The GM must ascertain that there is really a need for a secret identity, or that there is someone or something that cares about the character's real identity. [-10 points]
Sometimes it is helpful for you to don another identity. During the day, people know you as Lokath, humble spice merchant. During the night, you assume your other persona. You are known as Shadow, the master thief. You use this identity to get you into places that you would be normally be prevented from entering. You have even become an official member of the thieves' Guild. You move among them, hearing their plans, receiving training from them, even teaching younger thieves. What the Thieves' Guild does not know is that you have a mission. You are waiting for the perfect opportunity to avenge your daughter's death. She was killed by a thief and you aim to find out which one and plunge your dagger deep into his stomach. You use your secret identity to further your investigotion. You only hope that noone discovers who you really are.
Stat Penalty (minor) — You receive a special penalty of -3 to a random stat. [-10 points]
Stat Penalty (major) — As Stat Penalty (minor), except the penalty is -5. [-20 points]
Stat Penalty (greater) — As Stat Penalty (minor), except the penalty is -8. [-30 points]
You have a hard time remembuillg things. You are not sure why, but you memory seem quite lacking compared to your brothers.
Terrible Luck — Whenever you roll an 01 the action you are attempting fails in the most complete way possible. Equipment you are using breaks (magic items get a RR); you fall and injure yourself; virtually anything the GM can conceive. The only restriction is that whatever happens cannot be instantly fatal. For example, a rope you are climbing could break, provided that there was a way, no matter how small, that you could survive the fall. [-10 points]
You have always been jinxed. At least that is what everyone around you tells you. You have had more weapons break while you are fighting than anyone else you know. You have had every sort of tool break at one time or another while usillg them. When you make a mistake casting spells, there is usually much destruct around. You feel that you have great luck — after all you are still alive.
The Slain — You have a special vulnerability to a particular race. The GM choose the race you are vulnerable to, but it cannot be your own. You may be vulnerable to the "half" race of your race (i.e. an elf may be vulnerable to half-elves. etc.). Whenever you receive a critical from someone of that race, the critical is resolved as a Slaying critical. Needless to say, you tend to avoid that race whenever possible. [-20 points]
You are powerful. But like many powerful individuals, you have a weak spot. You may be able to slay countless numbers of orcs, destroy demons with a sweep of your sword, or even slaughter a giant or two. But when it comes to Dwarves, you are vulnerable. You are not sure what it is, but Dwarves always seem to land a telling blow against you. It seems as if you have been cursed by the Dwarf god to forever be vulnerable to them. You live in fear of seeing a Dwarf in full plate armor wielding a giant axe with two hands.
Unlucky — You have bad luck. All of your fumble/failure ranges are increased by one. For example, in normal maneuvers, you will fumble on a result of 01 to 06 (instead of 01 to 05). [-10 points]
People are often born with a Iucky omen. They carry their luck with them all throughout their life. They happen across fortuitous circulllstances, meet and befriend influential people. survive from even the most harrowing of dangers. It stands to reason that there would also be people born with an unlucky omen; people who seem to be jinxed wherever they go. No matter how hard they try, bad luck follows them. They may meet an importan person and spill a drink on them. Perhaps a sturdy ledge they were standing on suddenIy gives way. There must be people like that. You feel strongly that way — you seem to be such a person.
Unmagical — You are naturally unmagical. You receive a special penalty of -10 to all spell casting static manevuers, BARs, EARs, to the Power Manipulation category and Power Awareness category. [-15 points]
You and magic seem to be like oil and water. You can exist together, but you d not mix well. You try to use magic, but it is difficult. You can cast spells or activate magic items if you need to, but you can feel resistance.
Wrath — You have earned the disfavor of a particular god, demi-god, or equally powerful entity. The reasons for this are left up to the GM to decide, but they should involve some conscious action you did to anger the god. The god will do his best to make your life as miserable as possible. A paladin may he sent on a quest to slay you, a god of weather may make it always rain on you, a forest would not be a sefe place if you enraged a goddess of nalure, etc. The exact specifics are left up to the GM. However the god would rarely, if ever, come down and physically challange the offender (after all, that is what his legions of followers are for). [-20 points]
You never liked the god of the thunder. His clerirs would come into town, preaching the end of the world unless you converted. If you did not convert, the clerics would try to force you to convert. You decided to wreak a little havoc for the priests. Late at night you broke into their temple. You subdued a priest and destro)yed the temple's altar. You escaped unharmed, but ever since you have an increasing string of bad Iuck. They all seemed to be tied with the weather, especially thunder. You think the god noticed the damage you did, and is employing his revenge as often as possible.
Your character is more than it collection of statistics. modifiers, and assigned points. In the Rolemaster system, a character is a living, breathing, sentient being with all of the same needs and desires as you. These characters may have appeared right after adolescence, ready to rescue maidens and slay dragons, but it is important not to overlook the fact that these characters had a childhood. They had parents, grew up in a culture, and were reared to believe in certain ideals. In short, they lived long before you started playing them at first level.
Your character will take on a new life before your eyes. In fact, the character should eventually grow beyond what you had originally anticipated. For this growth to take place, you must know where the character came from, what he did as a child, why he chose the profession he chose, who his parents were, and the answers to other such questions about his past.
While you are rolling up your character, you will undoubtedly picture in your mind what it is you want this character to be like. You will assign attributes, skills, and even a profession that all fit into your conception of the character. You will choose some background options, which will explain a little about the character's early life. Finally you will set off on an adventure. It only takes a littIe more effort to generate a complele background for your character. Armed with this background, you will be much better prepared to deal with unexpected encounters and other events that might bring up your past. Imagine meeting an old childhood friend only to have discovered that he has become a pawn for an evil sorcerer. You would be much more inclined to rescue him based solely on your past friendship than if he were some stranger whose father hired you to bail his son out of trouble. Your background can lead to a much more fulfilling career as an adventurer.
It may sound like you have less and less conlrol over your character. In many cases, this is true. You come up with the initial conception for the character: his profession. skills, spell lists, etc. As you are adding more information to this conception, your idea of what defines the character will change. Some of the change may be expected, but a lot of it will probably be something you never would have envisioned for the character. As you define more of the character's background, the character will take on more life of his own. You will actually see this character as a complete person rather than a collection of stats. Your character will undoubtedly become like a character from your favorite book. You cannot wait to see what happens to him next.
So where do you start? How do you live the, first 16 years (or more) of your character's life? The first place to start is where the character grew up. The early years of your character's life will undoubtedly shape his attitude and beliefs for the rest of his life.
Your character will grow from childhood into adolescence. The character will take on more responsibility for his actions as well as start making important life decisions. His early childhood defined his outlook on the world around him, his adolescence will define how he deals with an ever-expanding world.
Everybody has parents. You may not know who your parents were, or you may wish you had not known them, but everyone has parents. Some of your background options, such as Orphan or Heir, may tell you exactly what you know about your parents. However, you generally have some choices to make. First, you must decide if you lived with one, bolh, or neither of your parents. You may have lived wilh a relative or some other guardian due to some circumstance. You should decide what it was your parents did for a living. Your wealth level should help you determine what class your parents were, and therefore help you detennine their profession. If you are wealthy, then perhaps your parents were merchants, owned an inn, or were minor nobles of the land. If you are poor, your parents may have been peasants or beggars. Perhaps a guardian took you under his wing early in your childhood. He could have been a master thief and sought someone to pass his trade along to. It is your parents, or other guardians, that form your early perceptions of the world.
Only slightly less imporlant than your parentage would be your siblings. You should decide how many, if any, brothers and sisters you have. You should also choose the birth order and where you fit in it. This could have a large effect on you; often the first born child receives preferential trealment as well as a lion's share of the inheritance. Perhaps you have a younger brother who is jealous of your standing in the family. He might try to undennine you whenever possible, eventually turning into an outright enemy of yours. Or perchance you have an older sister who was wed to a cruel husband, but only you know of his cruelty. You will have to find a way to rescue your sister, if she needs rescuing at all, and protect her from her husband's vengeance. Or you may have a twin with whom you have a special rapport, often adventuring together. You would easily do whatever you could to help him when needed. Choose them well. You will spend your whole life with your siblings.
What kind of culture did you grow up in? Were you raised in the middle of a bustling metropolis or in the quiet fields outside of town. Perhaps you lived in an elven village, deep in the forest; or even miles underground in a great dwarven city. Perhaps you lived with a barbarian tribe high in the mountains and spent many a summer raiding the nearby villages. Your culture will help determine your beliefstructure. lt will define the role of religion in your life and will also define your status, both in your culture and as viewed by other cultures.
Try to visualize what the day-ta-day life in your culture is. Is it an almost daily fight for survival, or is your culture one in which even the poorest people are wealthier than the rest of the world? Are your people viewed as a progressive culture by the rest of the world or are they viewed as a backwards barbaric tribe? What weapons and skills would they normally obtain, and why? What is valued by the culture and what is despised? You need to understand what is imponant in your culture.
The culture the character was raised in will easily shape his beliefs and desires for the rest of his life. It is possible that sometime in your character's life, a major change transfigured his culture. Perhaps his city was captured by an enemy country, or his family moved from the plains to the city. If this is the case, there may be a crisis in the character's belief system, one that may still not be resolved. This could make an interesting subplot in the character's overall life,
Just by creating that panial history, you already know why your character became a monk, and more importanlly, what he plans to do with his chosen profession. It is possible that your character's primary goal may be met in the course of the campaign. Once that has happened, you will have to decide what your character will do next. There is a story behind the motivation — you should do your best to find out what that story is.
Armed with the knowledge he gained in adolescence, your character strikes off into the world, ready to make a name for himself. He will have many varied and exciting encounters in his adventuring career. Each will gently mold him and his beliefs. Your character will subtly begin to change from his younger ways and adolescent desires. Each new experience will have some effect on his life.
What is your characler's outlook on life? Is he cynical about how life will treat him or are is he optimistic about the opportunities he may face? His disposition will determine how he reacts to unforeseen circumstances and how he interacts with other people. He might be very quiet, or a loud braggart. He might be fearless and charge headlong into battle, or be a borderline coward. For a more complete list you should investigate Table T-1.7 in the Rolemaster Standard Rules. The important thing about your character's personality is to role-play it. This helps you break the habit of saying things like "My character tells the bartender to give him a tankard of ale." Instead, you might say "Ale Barkeep! And hurry. Colmak the Conqueror is thirsty!"
Playing a character who has a personality similar to yours is often fun. Somewhat more challenging — and potentially more rewarding — is playing a character with a personality significantly different than yours. If you are a naturally cautious person, it could be fun to play a barbarian fighter who wears nothing but a fur loin cloth and carries a two-handed sword. At the first sign of conflict he bellows "Ya har!" and charges directly towards his foe, whatever it may be, without thought of personal safety. It can be difficult, every instinct telling you to wait and see what the enemy can do, but it can really make for an enjoyable character (just make sure you purchase lots of Body Development). Your personality is definitely the most important factor in the way your character reacts to the situations he finds himself in,
Every person has a religion, which may range from a cleric or paladin directly serving his god or goddess to someone who completely disbelieves the very existence of gods and deities. A religion, in the broadest sense, is merely a way for a character to deal with his own mortality and explain phenomena that cannot normally be explained. It is important that you understand your character's religion. Not only is what he believes important, but also how strongly he believes in it. He may be a devout follower of a particular deity, observing all of the holy days and each and every custom, or he might just go to the temple on the important days and ignore his religious life the rest of the year.
Certain professions (i.e., Cleric, Animist, and Paladin) will dictate your religious strength, but other professions vary widely. Imagine a fighter who is a devoted follower of the god of war and battles. He would be fanatic about fighting in as many conflicts as possible. He probably would feel that he grew closer to his god with every enemy he defeated (not necessarily slew). He may work to become a great general, leading scores of soldiers into battle, hoping for greater glory. Imagine a thief who paid tribute to the god of thieves but did not really pay attention to any of the other religious activities. The temple of another god or goddess would probably not disturb him too much, especially if there were religious artifacts he could "acquire." Religion is a very important part of your character's life. It dictates how he deals with the unknown. You should take time deciding what your character believes.
There is a reason why your character joined the profession he did. Determining why your character chose the path he did can give you great insight into the decision making process of the character. If the character is a cleric or paladin did he have some deep religious experience that called him to the ministry? Did your thief grow up stealing to survive or was he a rich kid with too much time on his hands? Was the magician fascinated with magic or interested in acquiring as much power as possible? What made the monk join the monastery? You must detennine the reason why your character chose to learn his profession.
The various training packages your character purchases will help shape his profession choice, and should help you decide why your character is what he is. It can help if you picture your character during the learning stages of his profession. Who taught him? How did his master feel about his accomplishments? What was his relationship with his master? These questions will help better determine what it was like learning the profession, as well as creating some interesting people in the character's past.
Here is the crux of your character's adventuring life. Why does he do what he does? What is in it for him? Your character's motivations will tell you what he wants to do and to what lengths he is willing to go to do it. There are many different motivation's for your character; some humanitarian, others self-serving. The Rolemaster Standard Rules has a list of some motivations for your character. There must be a reason why your characler has the motivation he does. If your character is adventuring to gain wealth, why is money so important to him? If your character feels a need to right wrongs, what made him feel this way? A motivation is more than a reason to adventure. Take the example of a warrior monk whose primary motivation is revenge.
You decide that Gaelellor's parents were slain by a particular sect of monks. He saw them murdered, but escaped. You then decided that Gaelenor must avenge the deth of his parents. He went to the monastery of a sect diametrically opposed to that of his parent's slayer. He pleaded his case to the head monk of the monastery, who decided to admit Gaelenor into the order. Gaelenor spent many years honing martial arts skills. When you Gaelenor passed the final test of his order, the head monk told him that Gaelenor had learned all the master could teach. Gaelenor now felt ready to strike vengeance on the slayer of his parents. Gaelenor was unsure how to go about doing it. He could not, after all, attack the enemy monastary and hope to survive. lt may take many years, but Gaelenor has the image of his parents being slain to keep the anger burning inside of him.
Similar to your motivation, your goals are what you want to accomplish in a set period of time. These goals are usually more specific than your character's motivatian, but they can be the same. An example of a short-term goal would be ridding the countryside of a particularly troublesome band of highwaymen. A long-term goal might be to establish your own city by building a castle in an important area of countryside. These goals have a definite resolution, unlike the motivation of "I wish to bring the knowledge of my god to all the people."
You should be certain that your character's goals are something the character would want to accomplish. A fighter who lives for battle would quickly get bored if he met his goal of opening his own tavern. You character's motivation should help you decide what your goals will be.
You should first decide on your character's long-term goal. Once that is decided, break the long-term goal into several short-term goals. Each accomplished short-term goal will presumably bring your character closer to completing his long-term goal. During the course or your character's adventures, he may develop several additional short-term goals unrelated to his overall personal goal. This is only natural, since it is impossible to predict what will next happen to your character.
A tag is something that you do repetitively and unconsciously that eventually identifies you. Everybody has a character tag, including you. There are an infinite number of different character tags your character could possess. For example, your character may constantly rub his lucky charm, or he might allways sit with his back to the wall, or he might always wear red. Anyone thing or a group of things that can uniquely identify your character is a tag. You should pick about five difrerent character tags.
As you role-play your character, each of these tags should eventually become evident. This helps to identify your character and bring a feeling of actually knowing the character from some of the other players in the game. These tags can be humorous, serious, annoying, helpful, even embarrassing. The important thing is to make sure that they appear whenever appropriate. After a few times of your character sauntering up to the bar and ordering a glass of Insap Green (which the bartender has never heard of), the other players in the game will begin to expect that (and the ensuing conflict that would invariably follow). When other players start to predict your charncter's actions. Then you know you have succeeded in creating believable character tags.
You should determine, based mostly on what you have discovered about your charncter, how your character feels about many different aspects of his world. For example, how does he feel about the gods? How does he feel about using herbs for healing? How does he feel about Dwarves, Elves, Orcs, or other races? These represent his gut feelings towards these things. He may change his mind over time about how he feels about specific cases. As an example, look at Sir Nomus a knight of some renown.
Nomus never cared much for wizards. Summoning energies for spells seemed unnatural and even somewhat evil. He had slain a few wizards in his time, those that were terrifying the surrounding lands. This only increased his dislike of wizards. He never would have joined forces with one if his Lord had not insisted. He looked the mage over. He looked like a typical mage: robe, staff, and book. The rest of his party were more thrustworthy types: a monk, a rogue, and an archer. As the small party adventured together, Nomus was forced to reevaluate his position about magic, and more noticeably, about the wizard in the party. There were at least two occasions when Nomus saw certain death awaiting them, only to be saved at the last minute by a well-timed speII from the wizard. Yes, perhaps magic has its uses after all.
It will not happen immediately, but a character can reexamine his feelings about a group or object and find them to be unfounded. You may still have strong reelings about whatever it is, but the feeling now will be much different than those you had before.
Below is an example of how to use Talent Law to create a full character background. Starting with the race and profession, as well as a solid character conception, a fully rounded character soon emerges.
| Name | Galen Forsythe | |
|---|---|---|
| Race | Mixed Man | |
| Culture | Woodman (50 Talent Points) | |
| Profession | Ranger | |
| Talents | +4 to Ag | 10 points |
| +4 to Qu | 10 points | |
| +2 to St | 5 points | |
| Geographic Awareness | 5 points | |
| Herbalist | 13 points | |
| Acute Hearing | 5 points | |
| Natural Archer | 5 points | |
| Wealth | Very Poor | 0 points |
| Flaws | Lesser Vow | -3 points |
| Total Talent Points | 50 points | |
Galen's Story: Galen was raised on the outskirts of the great Muerte Forest. There were always rumors that the forest was haunted, especially deep in its center, but Galen never paid much attention to that. His father, Kalmar, was a hunter and trapper, selling furs and meals to provide for his family. Kalmar taught Galen how to shoot a bow, a skill that Galen took to immediately. Galen became known as the best shot in the village where they lived, a reputation he substantiated on numerous successful hunting expeditions with his father.
His mother taught him how to use herbs to heal wounds and remove illness. Galen spent many hours in Muerte Forest searching for a particular root, leaf, or berry that his molher required fora brew or poultice. While he was exploring the forest, he honed his fine sense of direction. He could always find his way back to home, no matter how many twists and turns he took.
Galen continued to grow up around the forest. He grew stronger and more agile throughout his adolescence, able to pull even the great bow his father used on special hunting expeditions. He also tuned his fine sense of hearing. He could hear a deer panting from 50 feel away if he concentrated enough. Galen would go out with hunting parties, often acting as a scout.
During the village's festivals, the whole family celebrated with the rest of the townsfolk. On the full moon, he and his parents would offer their sacrifice of seed, nuts, and leaves to the spirit of the forest to ensure a bountiful month.
Whenever he had free time, Galen would go deep into Muerte Forest. He explored new areas of the forest, searched for herbs, and tracked animals going through the foresl. It was during one of these explorations that Galen first came across a band of Wood Elves living in the forest. They told Galen of an evil deep in the middle of the forest, and how their band was trying to prevent the evil from spreading. They asked Galen if he would aid them in their goal. In return, the elves would teach Galen the secret of spell-casting. Galen could hardly refuse an offer like that, and so his traing began. For months, the elves taught Galen the ways of the ranger. Galen honed his forest skills while he learned the mysleries of harnessing energy for his spells. Finally, the time came when the Wood Elves told Galen he had reached the end of his training.
The small band entered deeper into the forest than Galen had ever gone. There they encountered a horror Galen had only heard about: an animated corpse. There were around a dozen of the zombies against only seven in the band. They fought hard; Galen burying arrow after arrow into the zombies' bodies. Eventually, Galen and the elves destroyed enough of each of the zombies' bodies that they could not rise to continue fighting. Galen and his group had won this first skirmish, but Galen knew they would require more help.
Galen vowed to protect anyone he could from the evil in the forest, and eventually purge the forest of the evil entirely. To meet that goal, Galen would need to find a band of adventures to aid him in his quest.
Gelan's adventure begins...
A fantasy world can be populated by an infinite variety of races. It would be impossible for any one to catalog every conceivable race that a player might wish to choose for his character. Rather than limit the available choices in Rolemaster, Talent Law allows you to design any race that you can conceive of. You may spend points on the various racial categories and purchase unique features for your race.
The most important part of creating a new race is to have a firm idea of what the race is like before you start purchasing characteristics. If you can see how members the race interact with each other, with other races, even to nature, then you will have a firmer grasp on what talents and flaws to purchase.
Once the race is created, you should compare it to the other races in your world. Make certain that the new race balances well with the other races. Finally, write as detailed a description about your new race as you can. This will help to clarify the race in the minds of your players.
Example: You decide that you would like to play a character that can fly. You picture in your mind an eagle headed humanoid race with wings. You see them as being very intelligent and educated, always willing to learn a new skill. They treat each other with a mutual respect, but treal those that they feel are less intelligent as children. They tend to live in high cliffs, due to their avian ancestry, and can use their beaks as a weapon. You tell your Gamemaster your idea for the race and he is very interested in what you come up with. You decide to call the race the Egalian.
The following are the steps necessary to create your own race.
The following statistical modifiers apply all of the game mechanics to your developed race. Most of the modifiers have a median value that costs zero points. If you want your race to be stronger than the norm in a category, it will cost you points. If you want your race to be weaker than the norm, this will give you points.
Some races are hardier than others. This is reflected by the number of hits each rank of Body Development gives you. You may choose the skill progression level for your particular race.
Example: Because Egalian are slightly stronger than the average race, you decide to purchase a Body Development skill progression at 0•3•2•1 for a cost of 5 points.
No race receives power more efficiently through worship than any other; all races have the same Channeling Power Point skill progression: 0•6•5•4•3.
Option: Some GMs may want to allow certain races to vary their channeling PP Development. If so, use the following costs.
Some races are naturally more in tune with the surrounding Essence than others. You may choose what your Essence Power Point progression is.
Example: Essence comes slightly easier to the Egalian than some of the other races. You choose the 0•6•4•3•2 Power Point progression for a cost of 5 points.
More open-minded races have stronger control of Mentalism. You may choose what your Mentalism Power Point progression is.
Example: Since the Egalian are proud of their intelligence, it is only natural that they are better Mentalists than most. You pick a Power Point progression of 0•7•6•5•4 for a cost of 15 points.
Some races are known for their longevity, others are known for their brevity of life. You may choose how long your natural lifespan is.
Example:The Egalian's live a typical lifetime, between 95 and 100 years on average. This costs no points.
Certain races are more resistant or susceptible to the various hazards they encounter. You may choose a bonus or penalty to apply to your Resistance Rolls. You may choose one per resistance roll category. Available categories are Channeling, Essence, Mentalism, Disease, Poison, and Fear.
Example: The Egalian are slightly more susceptible to magic than normal. They receive a -5 modifier to their Resistance Roll for Essence, Channeling, and Mentalism. This costs you a total of -15 points.
When a person receives enough damage to kill them, their sould does not depart their body for a certain amount of time. Different races' souls leave the body at different times. You may choose the amount of time the soul remains in the body after receiving a mortal blow.
Example: It takes around 2 minotes for the soul of an Egalian to leave its body. You have chosen 12 rounds for the soul to depart. There is no cost for this.
Contact with other races and cultures often results in exposure to languages other than your native one. Some races interact with many different races and cultures and consequently they speak many languages. You may choose how many initial languages you speak.
You start with 8 spoken ranks and 4 written ranks in your native language. Any additional languages you speak will begin at five spoken and zero written. You may increase your spoken or written ranks by paying 1 point for each additional rank. You may receive 1 point for each rank you reduce spoken or written.
Example: The Egalian speak many languages, an ofshoot of their scholastic nature. They start with 4 languages, This will cost 7 points. You must also choose which languages the Egalian speak and at what level. You decide that they speak their native language (Egalian) at a rank of S8/W7, which costs 3 points. They also speak Common at S8/W5, which costs 8 points (for the 3 ranks over 5 and the five written ranks), Elvish at S5/W5, which costs 5 points, and High Elvish at S5/W5, again for 5 points. Total cost for your starting languages is 28 points.
A bonus may be applied to any of your stats. These bonuses represent a race's adventages or disadventages compared to other races. You may also select a stat bonus to represent an individual who is stronger, smarter, or more agile for his race. A character can have no more than two stat bonuses applied to a single stat (one for the race and one for the character).
Every point bonus above ten costs and additional ten points. Every negative penalty below then grants an additional ten points.
Example: Egalian are quick and agile, stemming from their avian ancestry. To fly, they must be strong. They are good thinkers and can figure out problems quickly. They are not very imposing creatures and they are fairly undisciplined. You decide their stat bonuses will look like this:The total cost of the stats is 15 points.
Ag +4 10 points Re +2 5 points SD -4 -10 points In +2 5 points Pr -2 -5 points Qu +2 5 points St +2 5 points
This determines the number of hours you must sleep to be fully rested. This also determines the amount of time it takes to recover any Power Points. You may choose to either sleep or go into a deep meditation for the specified number of hours to become refreshed.
Example: The Egalian require an average of 6 hours sleep each night to be fully rested in the morning (and they sleep with their head under their wing), which costs nothing.
There are races that can drive themselves on longer than others. They may have more Exhaustion Points, or they may not need to sleep quite as often. You may choose if your race receives additional Exhaustion Points or if they may go more than one day without sleeping.
Example: Flying is difficult work. It can really tire you out. Since that would be the Egalian's primary mode of transportation, they need some extra Exhaustion Points. You feel that 20 extra Exhausiton Points is the right amount. This costs you 7 points. You feel they need to sleep every night, though.
The various races of the world come in many different sizes. When creating a race, it is assumed that the average male of the race will fall between 3'6" and 7'6". If you wish your race to either be larger or smaller than this, you must purchase either Giantism (see page 24) or Dwarfism (see page 22).
Example: The Egalian are tall. The average male of the race stands 7 feet tall from talon to crest. Since this is between 3'6" and 7'6", this imposes no cost.
Different races heal at different rates. Hardier races will recover from a wound faster than a weaker race. The recovery multiplier is a measure of how much faster or slower wounds take to heal (i.e., a multiplier on Recovery Times).
Example: Part of the reason that Egalian's can fly is that their body is light. Consequently, it takes them longer to heal from their wounds due to the lack of as many recuperative systems as other races have. It takes 1.5 times longer for an Egalian to heal a wound than it would for someone of a race with a normal wound recovery rate. This stat multiplier has a cost of -10 points.
Your race type determines how quickly your mental stat deteriorate after death. A race with a lower race type will typically retain more of its mental faculties if that memmber is some how resurected. For a complete description of the different race types, see table T-5.6 Stat Loss Table in the Rolemaster Standard Rules.
Example: There is nothing atypical about the Egalian after death so your choose a race type of 3, which costs no points.
What is work to one race may be a hobby to another. There may be skills everyone from one race as they grow up, but another race would find the smae skills totally useless. Racially common skills are represented by adolescent skill ranks. You may choose how many totla skill ranks your race receives during the adolescence part of character creation. You must then break down the total number of skill ranks into the applicable skill categories, depending on what your race values the most. You will also wish to reserve some ranks to be used as hobbies. The Gamemaster may change your distribution of adolescence ranks if he feels they do not reflect the desires and needs of your race. The point cost is based on the number or ranks you need.
You feel that the Egalian have developed a widely diverse culture one that embraces many skills. To truly feel like you have grown up in this culture, you would have developed many different skills. You feel that a total of 80 ranks is necessary for youor Egalian's adolescence. The total cost for those 80 ranks would be 45 points. This is broken down like this: the first 55 ranks costs 5 points total. Ranks 56 - 65 cost 1 point each for a total of 10 points. Ranks 66 - 80 costs 2 points each for a total of 30, resulting in a grand total of 5 + 10 + 30 = 45 points. You then look through the various skills and skill categories in the Adolescence Rank Table (table T-1.6 in the Rolemaster Standard Rules) and spread your 80 skill ranks among the different skills and skill categories. You decide to leave 15 of the 80 ranks as Hobby ranks to reflect the Egalian's diverse hobbies.
These are skills that are common to your race or culture, but might be uncommon to other races and cultures. Virtually every member of your society would be skilled in these areas. You start off with no Everyman skills, but you may purchase up to thirty skills that count as Everyman skills for your race. You may choose no more than OB skill as Everyman and you may choose no more than one DB skill as Everyman.
Example: Virtually every Egalian knows Acrobatics, Sense Awareness (Sight), and of course Flying. These three Everyman skills costs one point each, for a total of 3 points.
There are some skills that a particular race or culture would not need and therefore not normally develop. These skills are considered Restricted skills. Very few of your race or culture would know how to perform this skill. You start out with no Restricted skills.
Example: Egalian are poor swimmers. They may skim across the top of water, but rarely venture under the surface. Their bodies were made for flying, not swimming. Swimming is a Restricted skill for a cost of -2 points.
Your race or culture would view many different skills as hobbies. These are skills that are not necessary to the survival of your society, but make life more enjoyable and dynamic. You can choose what your race considers to be a hobby. There is a suggested range of between 25 and 40 hobby skills. It is strongly recomended that a race has no more than one OB skill, one DB skill, or one Spell list as a hobby. The GM may add or remove some of your skill choices as he sees fit. There is no cost for selecting skills as hobby skills.
Example: You look through the various skill lists and select 30 different skills that the Egalian can choose as their hobby skills, of course, at no cost.
The last step is to determine any racial talents or flaws that are common to all members of the race. These may be physical talents, such as Natural Weapon, or mental ones such as Delusion. Remember this is a talent or flaw that the entire race possesses.
Example: Next, you look over all of the talents and flaws to pick out any of them fit particularly well with your conception of the Egalian. Flight (20 points) is an obvious one, so is Natural Weapon (beak) (10 points). In the flaws you find Intolerance (Anyone perceived less intelligent than they) (-10 points) as a suitable disadventage to give your Egalians.
The final step in creating a race is totaling all of the points that have been spent. This total will determine how many talent points a race has to spend on the various talents and flaws.
Example: Finally, you total up all of the point costs. This determines how many talent points you hove to purchase stat modifiers, talents, flaws, status, items, and wealth for your Egalian Character.This would provide 45 points to spend on talents.
Body Development: 0•7•3•2•1 5 points Essence PPs: 0•6•4•3•2 5 points Mentalism PPs: 0•7•6•5•4 15 points Life span: 100 years 0 points Resistance Rolls: Essence: -5 -5 points Channeling: -5 -5 points Mentalism: -5 -5 points Sould Departure: 12 rounds 0 points Starting Languages: 4 7 points Egalian: S8/W7 3 points Common: S8/W5 8 points Elvish: S5/W5 5 points High Elvish: S5/W5 5 points Stat bonuses Ag: +4 10 points Re: +2 5 points SD: -4 -10 points In: +2 5 points Pr: -2 -5 points Qu: +2 5 points St: +2 5 points Endurance: +20 Exhaustion 7 points Recovery multiplier: 1.5 times normal 10 points Race type: 3 0 points Adolescent skills: 80 ranks 45 points Everyman skills: 3 skills
Acrobatics, Sense Awareness (sight), and Flying3 points Restricted skills: 1 skill
Swimming-2 points Flight 20 points Natural Weapon: Beak 10 points Intolerance: Those not as smart -10 points Total Cost for the Egalian: 116 points
There may come a time when your players would wish to aquire another talent or possibly rid themselves of a flaw. As the GM, you may decide that this is impossible or you may allow your players to earn points in lieu of earning experience.
It is recommended that your players have a legitimate and logical reason why they wish to remove a flaw. This should come as the culmination of some event of a period of many game sessions. You do not want your players to buy off one of their flaws simply because it is too inconvenient for them. The whole purpose in having a flaw is that it limits you in some way. It should not be something that you get rid of after it has served its purpose.
Suppose one of your players has a fear of spiders (arachnophobia). The character has been adventuring for some time and is now fourth level. At this point, the player decides that a fear of spiders is not something he wants his character to have anymore. He asks the GM if there is any way he can buy off this Flaw. The GM asks the player why he thinks his character would no longer be afraid of spiders. The player thinks for a while and mentions a time when the adventuring party fought many giant spiders. His character made all of his maneuvers doring the fight and performed quite bravely. The player says that perhaps being faced with the character's worst fear and surviving it made the character less afraid of spiders. The GM feels that this example is legitimate and allows the player to buy off his phobia.
Similarly, you do not want your players buying any talent that they feel they need. There should be a reason why their character suddenly acquires a certain Talent. Some of the talents would be easier to receive than others, especially the Special Training category of talents. For example, if a character spent many months adventuring in a party that contained an elf, he could conceivably learn the elvish way of doing things which is reflected in the Elvish Training Talent. The other talents would be more difficult to acquire without some kind of outside influence on the character. The GM will have to decide what is and what is not possible for the character to receive.
If you have decided that the characters may purchase new talents or remove old flaws, you must decide how the characters will receive the Talent Points necessary to do this. There are three options for providing characters with points to spend.
Option 1: Allow characters to earn Talent Points equal to an average of their Prime Requisite bonuses each time they increase a level. This has a tendency to grant a significant amount of points over time.Example: Bosco, a Fighter, has an average Prime Requisite bonus of +5. Every time Bosco goes up a level, he gains an additional 5 points with which to spend on a new talent or remove an old flaw.
Option 2: Allow characters to purchase additional Talent Points with their awarded Experience Points. The recommended purchase amount is 1 Talent Point for every 1000 Experience Points. This forces the character to choose between advancing a level, gaining a talent, or losing a flaw.Example: The party has just returned from an adventure and the Gamemaster has istributed all of the appropriate experience points. Khufir, a Thief, has been wanting to purchase Weapon Control so he will fumble less often with his saber. The normal cost of that talent is 10 Talent Points, so it would cost Khufir 10000 Experience Points. Now Khufir must decide if he would rather gain this Talent or gain a level.
Option 3: Allow characters to take additional talents or remove flaws byt they must purchase an equivalent point value in flaws. This will make the character become additionally burdened with new flaws to offset his new found abilities.Example: Nohj the Bard really wants to pick up Ear for Music (7 Talent Points). In exchange for that he accepts the flaw of Uncoordinated (-7 Talent Points). He now is a superb, if somewhat clumsy, musician.
Whichever option the GM chooses, he may judge that a player cannot acquire a particular talent or flaw regardless of the number of Talent Points the player has saved up.
If during the course of the game a player acquires something that is equivalent to a talent, he is not required to pay for it.
Example: Irwin the Fletcher, during an encounter with a hostile band of brigands, saves the life of a young noble woman. As a reward for his bravery, the young noble knights Irwin and bestows on him a small plot of land. Normally, this is Knighted Status, but since it occurred while role-playing and not during character's creation, it does not cost Irwin any Talent Points.
Likewise, if something terrible happens to the character that could result in a condition similar to a specific flaw, the character does not receive any Talent Points for it.
Example: Khufir, our thiefly friend from a previous example, is engaged in a desperate battle with a group of kobolds. During the fight one of the kobolds scores a critical hit with his sword on poor Khufir's arm. The Gamemaster rools the critical strike and the description states that the blow cuts off the arm. Miraculously, Khufor manages to escape with his life, but not his arm. Normally, this is considered the One Arm flaw, but again since it did not happen when Khufir was created, he does not receive any points for it.
The GM should not feel obligated to provide extra Talent Points at all. If players know that they will have those flaws for the rest of their natural life (barring unusal circumstances) then they will probably make certain they are willing to role-play them correctly.
The list of talents and flaws is an extensive one. It is not however, all-inclusive one. There is an almost infinite number of different talents and flaws that can be created. The GM may need to create a new talent for a particular NPC he has created. Likewise, a player may have a particular flaw in mind when he created his character and finds that it is not listed. If this happens, the GM may create new talents or flaws to be added to his game world.
To add a new talent or flaw without unbalancing the game is a difficult task. The most important factor is getting the Talent Point cost appropriate to the level of the talent or severity of the flaw. The following are a list of suggestions to adjust the point cost for the newly created flaw or talent.
Decide on the exact game mechanism of the new talent or flaw. Figure out what bonuses and penalties it will impart on the character. Write down the mechanics as explicitly as possible.
Compare the game mechanics of your new talent or flaw with existing talents or flaws. This should give you a gauge for the point cost of the talent or flaw. For example, if your talent bestows a bonus to a certain skill, try to find an existing talent that bestows the same bonus to a similar skill. This will give you a starting point for the Talent Point cost.
Determine how often talent or flaw will come into play. The more often a talent is used, the more points it should cost. Likewise, the more often a flaw inhibits the player, the more points it should be worth. Certain skills will be used almost constantly (i.e., Combat Skills, Body Development, Power Point Development, etc.) while other skills call for a more specialized set of circumstances to use (i.e., Diplomacy, Cookery, Sleight-of-Hand, etc.). The more a skill is used, the more costly or beneficial a talent or flow, respectively, should be.
Establis a Talent Point cost for the talent or flaw. The GM should determine a final cost for the talent or flaw. If the GM feels the talent is too powerful, or the flaw is too limiting, he may decide to not allow the talent or flaw to be made. The GM is the final authority for any talent or flaw creation.
The following is a summary list of the Rolemaster Standard races and their appropriate point costs, followed by a detailed listing of each race. They are broken down to show each attribute and its appropriate Talent Point cost. These races also should serve as an example of how to create a new race. Note that the Talent Points for the races presented in the Rolemaster Standard System is higher than if the race were created using the system presented in Talent Law. This is to encourage GMs to use the "official" races and also prevents abuse by some players.