Determine Harshness of Protagonist’s Upbringing
Ask Game Moderator for the setting’s Harshness Descriptor – Normal(ish), Harsh, Very Harsh. Stats & Derived Attributes. See What Makes An Upbringing Harsh?
Statistics
- Roll STATISTIC scores (see STEP 1 Determine Statistics) or divide 72 points between the six stats. See Assignable Set of Statistics for suggested sets.
- Modify STR and/or CON statistic scores based on Harshness:
- Harsh add +1 t- STR or CON (player’s choice)
- Very Harsh add +1 t- STR and CON
- Calculate DERIVED ATTRIBUTES (see STEP 2 Calculate Derived Attributes).
- HP = (STR + CON) ÷ 2, rounded up.
- WP = POW.
- Recovery SAN is always POW × 5, regardless of setting harshness.
- Determine Starting SAN based on Harshness Descriptor:
- Normal(ish) SAN = POW × 5.
- Harsh or Very Harsh SAN = POW × 4.
- BP = SAN − POW.
- High and low stat scores can tell something about your Protagonist’s physical description. (see Distinguishing Features)
- If STR is below 9 or above 12, look up DAMAGE BONUS (see ^njp68p).
Archetype, Skills, Resources & Bonds
- Choose an ARCHETYPE from the lists on Detailed Description Archetypes
- Write down the ARCHETYPAL SKILLS for your Protagonist’s Archetype and record the starting RESOURCES rating associated with the Archetype.
- Your Protagonist may get Adversity Skill Points (see Detailed Description Adversity Skill Points) which can be used to increase one of the four setting-specific skills defined as adversity skills. Each pick provides +20 rating to the chosen skill.
- Harsh 1 pick
- Very Harsh 2 picks
Define your Protagonist’s BONDS
- The Protagonist’s Archetype determines how many Bonds he or she has (See Detailed Description Archetypes)
- Each Bond is either a Community Bond or an Individual Bond (player’s choice).
- Each Individual Bond refers to an individual with special significance and begins with a score equal to your Protagonist’s CHA.
- Each Community Bond refers to a community within which the Protagonist has a particular standing and begins with a value equal to half his or her RESOURCES rating (see above).
Bonus Skill Points
- On a piece of scrap paper, record the Protagonist’s number of available BONUS SKILL POINT picks. This starts at 10.
- These can be spent on Resources, Community Bonds, and Skills
Increasing Resources
- Increase rating by sacrificing one or more BONUS SKILL POINT picks; the first sacrifice gives +5 to RESOURCES rating, each subsequent sacrifice gives +2.
- Alternatively, choose to reset rating to 0 and receive one extra BONUS SKILL POINT pick.
- Once the final RESOURCES rating has been established, look up the breakdown (see Resources Breakdown & Check Boxes) of “at-hand”/stowed/stored points and number of Resource checkmarks and copy these t- Protagonist sheet
Increasing Community Bonds
- Improve the rating of any Community Bond by sacrificing BONUS SKILL picks; the first sacrifice for any given Bond gives +5 to its value, each subsequent sacrifice for the same Bond gives +2.
- Alternatively, choose to take a rating of 1 for a Community Bond (reflecting the lowest possible standing in the society) and receive one extra BONUS SKILL POINT pick.
Increasing Skills
- After resolving any optional spends of BONUS SKILL POINTS (see Detailed Description Bonus Skill Points) for non-skill benefits, use the remainder to improve ANY skills (except Unnatural). Each pick provides an increase of 20 points.
- No skill can start higher than 80%
Mental Damage from Harsh Environment
- If Setting Harshness is anything other than “Normal(ish)”, determine any MENTAL DAMAGE FROM ENVIRONMENT (see STEP 7 Determine Mental Damage from Harsh Environments). This may mean:
- Protagonist begins play with MENTAL DISORDERS.
- Protagonist loses points from Bonds due to emotional distance.
- Protagonist begins play ADAPTED to Violence or Helplessness.
Final Details
- Choose NAME, AGE, SEX, BIRTHPLACE and Current HOME.
- As you play, describe up to five MOTIVATIONS that are not Bonds.
- When your Protagonist develops a new MENTAL DISORDER, it replaces a motivation.