====== Quirks ====== The following represent particular special aspects of your character. They cannot be purchased using advancement points, but may be gained or lost through in game actions. At character creation you start with 3 points to spend on quirks, and may gain up to a further 6 (for 9 total) by taking negative quirks. With the exception of //Rank//, which may be taken multiple times, the GM team recommend quirks are only taken once. If you have a concept which requires taking a particular quirk more than once, please email the GMs. Quirks may be acquired and lost in play; they may not be purchased with advancement points after character creation. ===== Playstyle Quirks ===== The following quirks largely effect how the GMs treat your character: ===Hit Me Harder (0)=== Taking this quirk indicates that you wish to play the game on hard mode. You wish your encounters with new dangers to be more dangerous, and possibly more dramatic; you accept that it is slightly easier for your character to have an epic death or to come away from a battle with more injuries. =====Feudalism Quirks (select exactly ONE)===== //You **must** take exactly one of the following quirks. If you do not specify, we will assume you are a serf.// === Outlaw (-2) === You have been officially proclaimed outlaw and wolfshead and there is a bounty to any person who brings you in - dead or alive. ===Serf (0)=== You are a serf, an unfree labourer. To all intents and purposes, you are owned by the liege who owns your town or village. You have to work their crops or in their trade in return for your food and lodging. You are not allowed to move from the place you live, which is most likely the place you were brought up, as if you did your liege would lose your service. Neither are your children allowed to leave. While they will not be forced to marry against their will, they are required to seek the liege's approval of any proposed marriages, and if this would involve them leaving the liege's service, they may be asked to pay compensation, or have the marriage refused. ===Clergy (0)=== You do not owe your loyalty to any mortal lord, but instead to the Church. ===Free (+2)=== You are a free labourer. While you will be required to spend some time working for the benefit of your liege, you have a strip of land of your own you can farm and the ability to sell any space produce to make money for yourself and your family. You and your children have the right to move from village to village in search of work and new opportunities, without having to pay compensation or gain approval, though you do have to gain acceptance from a new liege in order to settle in their village or town and work for them. ===Oathsworn (+2 AND -1)=== You are a skilled fighter or crafter sworn to serve a particular lord for the duration of your life. In return for your service, you may be given money, land, trade goods or other forms of payment. This is the positive aspect of your life - as long as you remain loyal and able to work, you are unlikely to go hungry. However, the negative aspect is that you owe allegiance to someone greater than yourself who may call on you to work for them, and refusal to do so makes you an oathbreaker and betrayer, who is likely to be thrown out and possibly hunted. //OOC: Due to the nature of this quirk, this costs both +2 **and** -1. Overall this is worth +1, but takes up some of your available points for quirks.// === Very Minor Noble (+3) === You are not, in fact, a peasant. Instead, you are a side-lined member of a noble family. This means that you own a very minor estate of about 8-10 peasants somewhere, sufficient to support the lifestyle of a minor noble without the need to work. With some well targeted assassinations it would not be out of the question that your branch of the family moved up in the world. ===Liege or Baron=== //Not available at game start.// ===Monarch=== //Not available at game start.// ===== Inherent Quirks ===== === Artistic Flair (+1) === You are able to add a certain artistic flair to everything you create using your the Crafting skills. May be applied to other skills at the GM's discretion. === Bastard (-1) === You were born out of wedlock, and one of your parents is mysteriously unknown. Bit of a scandal that, sort of thing that might preclude anyone from, ahem, "higher offices". Of course, you might be the by-blow of some lord, which is also known to have its upsides. //OOC// The GMs will randomly determine whether your missing parent will be positive or negative if found. === Blackouts (-2) === From time to time you wake up with no memory of how you got there. That can't be good! === Fey-touched (+2) === Somewhere along the line your lineage includes one of the fey. Whilst this makes it easier for you to learn their magics by giving you a standing in their society, it also gives you a Standing in their Society. That is to say, you will be pigeon-holed according to your breeding, and your (non-existent) knowledge of the current fairie political landscape will be assumed. ===Illiterate (0)=== Taking this quirk means you as a player can still use the IC email system to communicate with other players and NPCs. However, as your character can neither read nor write, we assume that the email system represents messages being sent through intermediaries, such as human messengers or a familiar. // This is primarily a roleplaying quirk, the GMs will not enforce it, but will take note of it for writeups and interactions with your character. // === Left-Handed (-1) === The Church doesn't go out of its way to persecute the sinister, but left-handedness is not usual, and it may be taken as the sign of a heretic or of membership in a weird cult by the ignorant and overly superstitious. //OOC: This need not match your out of character reality. You might wish to wear a ribbon on your left hand.// === Lingua Latina (+1) === You can speak and read Latin. Go you. //Prerequisite for being a bishop.// === Minstrel's Nous (+1) === You have the background experience to know where and when to play to earn your supper, or to spread a tale. Occasionally interesting bits of information may come your way as others wish information spread to the places you travel. === Oathbreaker (-2/-3) === Sometime in the past you made a deal with one of the fey, and subsequently reneged upon your deal. The fey has invoked its vengeance by cursing you, and marking you oathbreaker. Feel free to suggest the nature of your curse, but understand that a -3 curse should be quite crippling! You may be able to persuade the fey you betrayed to lift the curse, but it will likely require exceptional efforts to do so. \\ **NB:** If you take this quirk, the fey can tell at a glance you are marked as an oathbreaker; the vast majority of fey will treat you as scum and never deal with you. === Performer (+1) === You are confident performing in front of a large crowd, able to add drama to a play, or select the right music for the occasion. You still require something good to perform, but that is where the Composition and Rhetoric skill (or a good songbook) comes in. === Phobia (-1/-2)=== What it says on the tin. At -1, you are vaguely functional but distracted if the phobia is triggered; at -2, however, you go into the screaming abdabs and become useless in the presence of what you fear. Examples: wolves, darkness, wine, the colour yellow, blood. Please note that a phobia is an irrational fear and thus needs no explanation, though go ahead and feel free to explain it away IC. //OOC: Whatever you're afraid of is subject to GM approval. It must be likely to come up, no "Pink Elephants" please!// ===Resist Torture (+2)=== Whether through prior experience, strong mental barriers, or sheer bloody-mindedness, you are able to keep a cool head under intense pain. You may remain silent, or babble incoherent and misleading nonsense, but you won't spill important information to the enemy, no matter what they do or threaten to do to you. === Sickness (-1/-2) === You are suffering from some form of sickness that from time to time inhibits your abilities. At -1 it is not inhibiting for most things (eg prone to nasty rashes, bad eyesight). At -2 it is a serious impediment to achieving many things. Your condition may be curable through the efforts of a healer or a priest, but is likely to require extended effort. === Unicorns (-1) === For some reason you seem to attract unicorns. Those horns sure look sharp... === Vice (-1) === You have a thing. A thing most people don't approve of. This can either be public and mild (eg drinking and gambling), or private and more severe (eg cannibalism). === Weakness (-2 )=== One of your skills has a gaping weakness, which will come back and bite you. Tell us which one, and what it is. Examples: Combat (single combat) would mean your skill is much less in single combat than it would be in massed combat. Crafts (cooking) would mean despite your fantastic carving and weaving skills, you can't cook to save your life, which could mean bad things in the wilderness. //OOC: this needs to be taken on a skill of level 3 or higher// === What could possibly go wrong? (-3) === At some stage, at a time decided by the GMs, your character will make the mistake of uttering "What could possibly go wrong?". It will be dramatic... === Wilderness Lore (+2) === Wilderness lore represents your ability to safely navigate yourself and others through the wilds of Britain. It will not particularly aid you in finding hidden locations therein, only protect you from the dangers. ===== Social Quirks ===== === A Matter of Honour (-2) === You have a long term enemy or rival. Perhaps they poisoned your pig, spoiled your brew or stole your girl. Or vice versa. Regardless, it's now a matter of personal honour between you and them. === Competent Ally (+1) === You have a friend, family member, apprentice, or other person who helps you out. They won't be able to help you with everything, though. In fact they're mostly good as a travelling companion or another pair of hands - their skill set, if any, won't be any different than yours. Let us know who they are and how they usually help you. === Dark Secret (-1) === You have a dark secret that will cause you serious trouble if it is ever made public. === Demanding Liege (-1) === Whichever feudal lord you serve is particularly difficult lord. Perhaps they (or their baliff) demand exceptionally high contributions from you and your family, or he has set such an enormous merchet you can never be with your one true love? //Please specify your lord and master and in what ways they make your life difficult.// === Familiar (+2) === You have somehow managed to tame - or be tamed by - a dangerous or supernatural creature such as those listed on [[the wilds]] page. Perhaps it is a fae beast than you have entered into a contract with, or a more normal creature that has been enhanced through the will of a God. It will aid you in your quest, but others may see it as nothing more than a dangerous animal. Tell us how you came by your companion and the nature of your relationship (and if appropriate contract). //Familiars are subject to GM approval. The most powerful creatures such as Dragons are right out.// === Favour (+1) === Someone powerful in a royal court owes you a favour. This can be quite big, and is redeemable through their supporters even if they're off on campaign. However, you may call on it only once. === Followers (+2) === You have a small group of followers who will follow your directions. This could be anything from a church congregation to an outlaw band or a modest spy network. Of course, as their leader, you will also take the flak if they get caught. === Hidden Master (-2) === You have a hidden master who will from time to time issue you orders. They have some form of hold over you that you cannot resist. Perhaps they hold a family member hostage so you act as their spy. Or maybe you owe money to the Mercantile guild, and they offered to let you "work it off" rather than just killing you. You can be certain that failing to carry out your orders will have dire consequences. === Incompetent Ally or Allies (-2) === You are responsible for someone, friend or family member. They have a bad habit of getting into trouble that you need to bail them out of. Worse than that, they get you into trouble with them. === Pet (+1) === You have a normal animal as a pet. Perhaps a weasel for ratting, or a bird of prey or dog for hunting. Let us know what it is and give it a name. === Pursued (-1) === You've angered someone sufficiently that they're sending people after you. Perhaps you've not paid you dues to the local thieves guild, or sullied someone's family honour? ===== Quirks of Circumstance ===== === A Small Dragon Problem (-2) === Your home town/family/otherwise has a small dragon problem. And you've been nominated to fix it. Good luck with that. * **NB:** Dragons and Major Population centres are incompatible. * **NB:** Dragons present a real risk of character death. * **NB:** Dragons may be hard to kill. * **NB:** Dragons are an endangered species and a limited number are available to terrorise villages: first come first burnt. * **NB: Dragons may not necessarily be small.** === Amnesia (-2) === You woke up one day with no memory of your past. This state has persisted until the present day.\\ //OOC:// This quirk may be incompatible with quirks that imply a historical connection. === Ancestral Blade (+2) === You have inherited a blade, passed down in your family as long as anyone can remember. At least its previous owner must have died long ago, right? ===Basic Medicine (+2)=== You have had basic training in setting bones and herbal remedies. You can heal some injuries and illnesses, though serious ailments may require a trip to a site of spiritual healing, or even the direct intervention of a priest or magician specialised in the healing arts. === Fae Knowledge (+2/+3) === You have been taught a few minor fae spells by either a human wizard or directly by a one of the fae. You will, of course, require some points in Willpower to make use of these spells. The GMs will choose the spell(s) for you, but will try to make them appropriate for the character. Feel free to suggest the approximate nature of the spell(s), //e.g.// combat, travel, illusion. * **(+2):** You know a single willpower level 1 spell. * **(+3):** You know either two willpower level 1 spells, or a single willpower level 2 spell. === Fey Plaything (-1) === One (or more) of the fey have decided to make you their plaything. They intervene in your life from time to time, sometimes good, sometimes bad, but almost always for their own amusement. //Please feel free to suggest why the fey finds you so amusing, and what they've done in the past.// === Mysterious Inheritance (+2) === One of your ancestors was involved in something... strange. In any case, she has left you an item. These range from the mundane to the bizarre, and may or may not be useful. === Mystery Quirk (+3) === This will make your life interesting. === Noble Steed (+2) === You are lucky enough to own a horse. Travel by land is quicker and slightly less tiring. You must name your horse. === Pilgrim (+1) === You have been on a great pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela. You are entitled to wear a scallop-shell obviously upon your person as a sign of accomplishment, and you will be regarded as either more virtuous or more truly penitent (your choice, subject to GM agreement) than others. This quirk can be acquired in game. Note: it takes a year (two actions across two turnsheets) to walk to Compostela from England, Scotland, or Ireland. You can lose this status, and be required by the church to regain it. === Poor Life Choices (-1/-2) === You did a deal with one of the fey, and on your side of the bargain you promised to owe them a future favour. In the -1 version this is restricted to something that doesn't put you at significant immediate risk, whilst the -2 version is unrestricted. //OOC: Please tell us what you got out of the deal (perhaps it explains one of your positive quirks?)// === Riches (+1) === You have a small stash of goods and/or coin hidden away for emergencies. It won't go terribly far, but could act as a start-up fund, or buy you passage to somewhere far, far away at short notice. ===== Religious Quirks ===== === Excommunicated / Branded (-2) === The Heavens have forsaken you for your crimes. You are cursed, and subsequently find no solace in faith and find those who are faithful to the god or saint that forsook you are increasingly repulsed by you. * You have committed a sin great enough that you can never be forgiven. Your prayers will go unanswered and the faithful will feel uneasy around you. This trait is earned only through numerous or particularly reprehensible evil deeds. * Tales tell of people who have it much worse than this... === Favour of a Saint / God (+2) === One of the Saints or Gods has taken a particular interest in your activities: let us know which one and why. === Heathen Upbringing (+1) === Your parents were pagans, and brought you up in that religion. As a result you know a lot about it, though you yourself were saved from a lifetime of sin and are now a Christian. //This quirk gives you access to the detailed background brief for the Heathen Gods, and details of common worship practices (and the ability to spot them more easily).// //**Note:** You do not need to take this quirk if you are a practicing Heathen - you will get the brief for free!// === Holy Enlightenment (+2/+3) === You have started down the path of holy enlightenment. A God or Saint has blessed you with the divine knowledge to perform their rituals. You will, of course, require some points in Faith to perform these rites. The GMs will choose the rituals(s) for you, but will try to make them appropriate to your background and choice of patron. * **(+2):** You know a single faith level 1 ritual. * **(+3):** You know either two faith level 1 ritual, or a single faith level 2 ritual. === Known Heathen! (-2) === You're widely known to be a dirty heathen. You actively practice a heathen religion. This will bring down the enmity of the Church and make your life very difficult. //If you are secretly a follower of the Old Gods, that does not require a quirk, but please flag this very clearly to the GM team, along with any God(s) that you specifically worship.// === Reliquary (+2) === You are the custodian of a reliquary containing a relic relevant to a particular Saint/God. These relics can be used in actions for specific effects relevant to the saint. //When choosing this quirk, please specify the saint (or God if you're a dirty heathen) the relics belong to, and suggestions for powers - or ask the GMs to randomly generate some for you.// === Touched by Mystery (+1) === You have always felt slightly different from other people. Something in you harks back to the ancient ways. But you have never been able to put your finger on what exactly. //This quirks signals that the GM team should direct plot linked to the ancient megaliths of England in your direction. IC this may not be a good thing, despite this quirk having a positive cost! To take best advantage of this quirk you will need points in Faith, however it should be interesting regardless.// ===== Faction-specific Quirks ===== ==== All factions ==== === Rank (faction) (+1/+2) === You have a rank higher than a rank and file member in a given faction. +2 corresponds to a mid-ranking position. See individual factions for details. //NB: For the Siblings of the Wolves or the Collegium Profanum this quirk is only available in the +2 version, reflecting their rather flat structure.// ==== Inquisition ==== === Cold Iron Armoury (+2) === Cold Iron, formed from fallen stars and arcane alchemy, is valuable beyond measure in the fight against the fey. To have such weapons is to be amongst the greatest of the Inquisitions warriors, or to have a patron or relative who fit such a description. You may choose one such tool from the following list. * A cold iron blade (axe, sword, etc.). * A crossbow complete with cold iron quarrels. * A length of cold iron chain and manacles. * A set of small glass flasks whose interior is filled with cold iron filings. * A shield with a spiked cold iron boss. * A set of cold iron throwing knives. === Tainted by Heresy (-1/-2) === There is nothing the Inquisition despises more than a traitor amongst its own ranks, a once pure man tainted by heresy or false worship. At some point in your past you have engaged in such practises, either with the Old Gods or the Fey. At level one this heresy is yet unsuspected. At level two one of your superiors suspects your purity and watches you closely for any hint of transgression or proof. OOC: This quirk can be earned during play by those Inquisitors who dabble in forbidden arts. ==== Knights of St George ==== ===Hunted (-2)=== Maybe it follows you by day, a dark shape on the moors; maybe you've seen it at night, eyes shining in the dark; or maybe you've never seen it at all. Whatever it is, it is coming, and sooner or later, it will find you. ===Your Reputation Precedes You (-1/+1)=== For one reason or another people have probably heard about you, and will often know your name if not your face. Only you know if the things they have heard are actually true. **(+1)**: You are known for your valiance, skill, or acts of courage. Better treatment is not uncommon after giving your name at an inn, for example. **(-1)**: Your reputation precedes you. It is not a good reputation. ==== Collegium Profanum ==== === Marked (-2) === One morning, after a late evening of discussion with the Profanum, you awoke with a shocking black mark on your body. It is very obviously not naturally occurring, and is certain to arouse suspicion: if the wrong people see it... well let's not dwell on that. It's best to just hide it, and try to work out how and why it's there in the first place. //OOC: Please tell the GMs what the black mark on your character looks like (nothing too complex) and where it is. It should be in a location that could be relatively easy spotted if you weren't taking efforts to conceal it. e.g. back of the hand, forearms, neck// ==== The Worshipful Company of Free Masons ==== === Stone Shaper's Knowledge (+2) === This is a specialised version of the quirk Fae Knowledge. It grants you the following spells at game start: == Stone-shaper's Concentration == By touching a block of stone up to the size of a large dog and concentrating, you are able to slowly, over the course of several minutes, shape it as you will. Many masons swear that they get a better finish if they also use their hands to mould it. The quality of the final product is related to your powers of concentration (Willpower). However if you wish to use the result as part of a larger project you will require an appropriate skill (normally Crafting) to get the right shape.\\ **Willpower:** 1 == Medusa's Glare == By glaring at an organic object no bigger than your head (for example a cut flower or piece of rope) you may turn it to stone over the course of a few minutes. The spell does not work on living creatures. It will bond to whatever surface it is in contact with at the time. This spell is often used by masons to create fine detail without the need to carve it by hand, however the resulting stonework has a reputation for being more fragile than equivalent forms carved by the hand of a master mason.\\ **Willpower:** 2 ==== Mercantile Guild ==== === You broke it, you bought it (-1/-2)=== You broke something in the past, and you've kept it. It's going to make things worse at some point. Tell us more, or we'll make it up === Needs a closer look (-2)=== At some point in the past, something you sold wasn't quite up to the standard it should have been. Word got out, and now everyone wants to double check your merchandise. === Hey, big spender (-1) === People assume you have cash. Some may see it as an opportunity to get a better deal for themselves. === Fence (+1) === You know a person, who knows a person, who will buy things from you. No questions asked (until you get them in too much trouble). ==== The Catholic Church of England ==== === Fell asleep in Seminary (-1) === Sure, you know the important parts, but some of the finer details sometimes slip by. At some point, you’re going to say something that’s not quite in line with the Church, and all of a sudden, your local ordinary’s knocking at your door. === Sheltered (-1) === You’ve lived in the cloisters of an abbey for so long you’ve forgotten how the real world works. === Bell, book, and what was that again? (-1) === It’s the thought that counts in your devotion, right? 3 lots of 2 swings, or 2 lots of three swings of incense? It’s all the same really, right? Your rituals may not go according to plan. === Librarian (+1) === You are in charge of looking after your abbey’s books. You make sure they are chained to the desks and stay in perfect condition. This gives you first class access should you need it.