Book 1: Fantasy Games

Heroes

Of

Fantasy

Book 1: Fantasy Games

An

Alternity Rules System

for

Fantasy Campaign Settings

Chapter 1: Hero CreationPage

Ability Scores1

Starting Skill Points2

Movement Rates2

Character Races2

Mutants6

Professions6

Talents9

Character Attributes10

Social Status12

Standing13

Languages16

Perks and Flaws16

Achievement Points19

Chapter 2: Careers

Creating Careers21

Open Careers22

Arcanist Careers26

Believer Careers27

Diplomat Careers33

Mindwalker Careers35

Rogue Careers36

Specialist Careers37

Warrior Careers38

Legends40

Chapter 3: Skills

Complex Skill Checks43

Purchasing Rank Benefits43

Strength Skills46

Dexterity Skills52

Constitution Skills60

Intelligence Skills62

Will Skills74

Personality Skills82

Chapter 4: Weapons and Armor87

Progress Levels 87

Weapon Basics87

Melee Weapons88

Ranged Weapons92

Heavy Weapons98

Armor104

Ammunition106

Weapon Options108

Magic Weapons & Armor111

Chapter 5: Goods & Services

COMING SOON !!!

Chapter 6: The Supporting Cast

COMING SOON !!!

Chapter 7: Campaigns

COMING SOON !!!

Chapter 8: Gamers in Action

COMING SOON !!!

Appendix 1: Tinkering

COMING SOON !!!

Appendix 2: Concoctions

COMING SOON !!!

Appendix 3: Fantasy Faiths

COMING SOON !!!

Appendix 4: Optional Heroes

COMING SOON !!!

Appendix 5: The Life Shaped

COMING SOON !!!

In attempting to combine the aspects of both the AD&D game and that of Alternity I found in my first attempt that I still locked players in a static selection of characters. What I present below is the next generation of character development after having tested my thoughts on other DMs and Game Masters on the Internet. The result of which is a change from old classes to the more pure professions of Alternity. I thought long and hard about how I should approach this situation and came to the following conclusions:

1) There are no level limits.

2) There are no multi-classed or dual-classed characters.

3) There are no limits on who can and cannot use FX abilities.

4) There are no limits as to who can and cannot use armor or weapons.

5) There are no elements in character creation focused on game balance other than the characters starting skill points.

6) and finally The most defining features of a character are determined by the skill points spent during development which supersedes race, profession, and career.

This may seem to throw the idea of a balanced game to the four winds but do keep in mind entry number 5 above. The skill points (because this is a skill-based game) are the balancing forces behind all characters, whether they are human or otherwise. No starting character can hope to have all options available to them and even if they could pull it off they would not be very proficient at any one task. Despite all of the options available to a player you will find that having a team of characters who are individually specialized in various skills and abilities will make for a stronger team.

Before an adventure can begin, the players need to create their characters. There are two things to consider when creating a new character. These are the characters race and profession, and how the character fits into a group of other characters. As far as races and professions are concerned the character should make sense. These rules allow for a tremendous amount of character options and the players imagination is the limit, but be careful to not front load a character with so many options, perks, flaws, and statistics that they become burdensome to play.

As it concerns a group of characters, the players should consult with each other and decide which members of the character group have what abilities. A balanced distribution of races, professions, and skills work best as the team is better able to handle different situations. No player should feel trapped into selecting a certain type of character. The creation of a team should be a collaborative effort supported by the Game Master. In my own terminology I base the distribution of characters by three primary roles Intelligence, Offense, and Defense. These primary roles should be spread out among the characters as evenly as possible. After this each character should determine a secondary role. In this ideology a Believer could be Defensive primarily and Offensive as a secondary role. These roles say nothing about race, profession, career, or talents. Each player should use the options given to create a meaningful character that is an asset to his team.

The creation of characters can be sporadic and everyone has a different method of doing so. Chapter 1 is divided into several sections that explain the core information required during character development. The goal of this chapter is to determine the characters Ability Scores, Race, Profession, FX talent(s), Career, Extraordinary Abilities, and Mutations. Each section that follows discusses these items in a order given that I felt would be the most likely method of character creation and reference. As a simple guide I give you the following checklist so that the information I have included does not go forgotten.

1) Select a character race. Apply any mutations if desired and allowed.

2) Select a profession, career, and talent(s). Think of the character as a whole and then decide which of the profession and career elements best describes the character.

3) Determine ability scores based on the above criteria.

4) Determine secondary statistics (durability, action score, etc.) and assign a Moral Attitude.

5) Record those broad skills gained for free by race.

6) Determine the characters starting skill points and purchase skills, perks, and assign flaws as desired.

7) Determine the characters Social Status scores.

8) Determine the characters Standing score and detail any elements required of a faith.

9) Record any signature equipment allowed by career, roll for your starting gold, and buy your gear.

10) Name the character and create a background story that describes who the character is and why he is who he is.

Ability Scores

There are three common methods for determining a characters ability scores. The player is allowed to use any one method desired or other that the Game Master provides.

1) Method 1 Roll per Profession: In this option the player rolls the ability scores for the character based on a chosen profession. These die rolls are given in the Professions section. Each roll is modified as needed by any racial modifiers. If a modifier lowers an ability score below a required minimum then that minimum becomes the score. No ability score, regardless of the die roll, can exceed a racial maximum. As with a low score the maximum becomes the score if that maximum is passed.

2) Method 2 Roll per Ability: This method grants a 2d6+2 roll per ability score, which is modified by any racial modifiers. This option is best used when the racial abilities are desired to be foremost and profession a secondary concern. At the Game Masters option the player may roll a 2d6+2 six times and then apply the rolls as desired to each ability score. This option grants more flexibility in character creation and can allow persons of a particular profession to have scores higher than they would if they used method 1 above.

3) Method 3 Assigned Points: The final option available grants a player 60 points to divide among the abilities as he or she likes. If the character has any racial modifiers then these may apply but only if the total difference between the positive and negative modifiers are a result other than zero. This means that a Dwarf character with a +1 to Constitution and a 1 to Personality gains a point and losses a point as well. In such a system the player can freely determine the allotment of ability points and the two cancel each other.

Other races like those presented in Appendix 6 of this book may have a difference in points that are higher or lower than zero. In those cases the difference directly effects the 60 points used to determine the scores so that a character with a +2 overall bonus starts with 62 points instead.

This system offers the most flexible means of determining a characters ability scores. As before, the Ability Maximums given for a race must always be a consideration.

Starting Skill Points

For starting skill points the basic rule is that a character receives their intelligence score times three plus thirty in points to spend. Also, each character has a base maximum of six broad skills to purchase at first level which is modified by adding the Resistance Modifier of the character for a high or low intelligence. The table below gives these values as appropriate.

Int. ScoreSkill PointsBroad Skills

4424

5455

6485

7516

8546

9576

10606

11637

12667

13698

14728

15759

Movement Rates

Through the use of various FX items or by the result of spells and other powers, characters may occasionally possess ability scores far above the norm. For this reason I felt that it might be good to expand the Combat Movement Rate table for characters who have a combined strength and dexterity that exceeds 31. These statistics are also relevant for very powerful beings such as avatars and the like.

Also a Game Master may feel that transformations of characters into beasts, like a dog for example, may warrant a faster movement rate depending on the type of beast. Using the dog as an example, the Game Master may say that a character polymorphed into one may multiply the sum of Strength and Dexterity by 1.5 or by 2.

Str+

DexSprintRunWalkEasy

SwimSwimGlideFly

32-3332228483264

34-3534228483468

36-373624105103672

38-393826105103876

40-414026105104080

42-434228126124284

44+4428126124488

Character Races

Elves, Dwarves, Gnomes, Halflings, and of course Half-Elves. These races, along with Humans, form the basic core of fantasy races. They do so here as well. Additional race options are given in Appendix 6 of this book.

The information concerning character races in this chapter does not give in depth role-playing details. Many AD&D tomes and other works give copious information about how to role-play these character races. This is information that I assume you either know, or have the tools to find out. The focus of this chapter, and the book at large, is the rules necessary to play the Heroes of Fantasy game.

Common Skills

Each member of any character race receives for free two Knowledge based skills. These are the characters racial language and knowledge of ones own culture and history. Both of these start at Rank 3 and can be listed as follows: Knowledge [9] - elf tongue [12], elven lore [12]. Half-Humans are special cases as they can choose either parents race for these two skills. DMs may also require that the Human parents culture be selected if the Half-Human character wants to adopt any Cultural Benefits as well. In any case both skills must for one race and/or culture.

Race Entry Data

Each entry for each race below is formatted the same and includes the following categories:

Starting Skills: This lists the free broad skills that a character of this race starts the game with. Some entries provide options, but most are specific.

Typical Moral Attitudes: This entry shows the moral attitudes that most commonly attributed to members of this race. This entry is by no means a restriction; players may select any attitude they wish. The entry acts only as a guide for role-playing and for NPCs.

Typical Environments: This entry shows the terrain or environment that the race prefers and is most likely to found in.Ability Modifiers: This entry includes any modifiers the character gains to his or her ability scores. The various methods of determining a characters abilities are detailed in the previous section.

Ability Maximums: This entry details the maximum score a character of a specific race can have for abilities with maximums other than 14. Regardless of the method of ability generation, these limits must be observed. Characters created from a set number of ability points can allot points to abilities that exceed 14 if desired.

Advantages: This details any special benefits or abilities the character gains. Some of the entries refer to innate abilities commonly called Super Power FX. Refer to Chapter 7 of Book 2 for more information.

Disadvantages: This describes any outstanding drawbacks that members of this race share.

Preferred Professions: This details those professions and options that best suit this race of character. Occasionally there are limitations to certain professions (most notably Arcane Adept) but there is no standing rule that excludes a character from a profession or career based solely on race alone.

Dwarf (Hill and Mountain)Starting Skills: Athletics, Stamina, Knowledge, Awareness, Resolve, and Interaction. A Dwarf may also start the game with the Construction, Crafting, Engineering, and Tinkering broad skills. If they do so, they need only pay 3 skill points for them. After the time of character creation however, they must pay full list cost for these skills. This has no effect on any specialty skills.

Typical Moral Attitudes: Ethical, Conformist, Honorable, Just, and Worldly.

Typical Environments: Hills, mountains, caves, and subterranean.Ability Scores Modifiers: Dwarves receive a +1 to their Constitution scores but suffer a 1 to Personality.

Ability Maximums:

Constitution15

Personality13

Advantages:

Combat Bonus: Dwarves gain a +1 bonus to their Strength Resistance Modifier when combating creatures that are considered Large-sized Humanoids (Ogres, Minotaurs, Giants, etc.). They also receive a one step bonus to all attacks against Goblinoids, Orcs, and half-breeds of either race. This species enemy may be changed to benefit attacks against another race if the campaign has a differing story. For example some dwarves may have a one step bonus against Drow and Duergar due to their cultural histories.

Magic Resistance: Dwarves have a +/-1 Resistance Modifier vs. any magical FX ability (see Chapter 8: Gamers in Action for rules on Magic Resistance). this defense does not effect psionic powers.

Poison Resistance: Dwarves receive a one step bonus to Constitution feat checks against poisons of all types.

Subterranean Senses: Dwarves live in the earth and being acutely aware of the subterranean world they gain a two step bonus (-2 Situation Modifier) to all Awareness-perception, Awareness-direction sense, and Investigate-search checks that deal with underground phenomenon, tunnels, and stonework. This can include the Engineering-mining skill also. They may also use this ability to determine the depth under-ground in a way similar to human sensing which way is up. Finally this bonus may also be used to determine a gems value by use of the Business-appraising skill.

Thermal Vision: Dwarves can see into the infrared spectrum, spotting objects by the heat they produce. As long as the objects and other beings are not the same temperature as the surrounding area, a Dwarf receives a 3-step reduction to penalties related to obscured situations, including total darkness.

Disadvantages:

Magical Failure: The Resistance Modifier that Dwarves gain in defense to magic is not controllable. If a Dwarf character casts an arcane spell or uses an FX item that relies on arcane magic then the bonus applies as a penalty. This benefit also applies to spells cast by Arcane Adepts that are intended to aid the dwarf.

Magical weapons and armor are not effected but if these items have arcane powers then those powers can be effected as stated above. This penalty also applies to all arcane and shared magic spells a dwarf casts if the player chooses to be an Arcane Adept.

In the case of Shared Magic FX spells, the nature of the Adept or FX item determines whether a penalty is applied or not. This means that if an Arcanist casts Earth Magic-body of earth on a dwarf then the penalty would apply. If a Believer casts the same spell the penalty would not apply. FX items do make the distinction for Shared Magic spells referring to them as either faith or arcane in origin.

Slow Movement: Having a diminutive stature that includes short legs, Dwarves determine their movement rates by using the figures given for a combined Strength and Dexterity that is 2 rows lower.

Preferred Professions: Dwarves tend to be Warriors or Faith Adepts with Warrior as a second profession. Some also prefer to be Specialists. While a Dwarf may be an Arcane Adept, few follow this path as they do suffer their Magical Resistance when casting arcane spells.

Elf (High Elf)

Starting Skills: Athletics, Stealth, Knowledge, Awareness, and Interaction. Elven characters may also select Melee Weapons or Ranged Weapons.

Typical Moral Attitudes: Honorable, Just, Selfish, Anti-Authority, Gallant, and Apathetic.

Typical Environments: Sylvan and temperate woodlands and forests.Ability Scores Modifiers: Elves receive a +1 to their Dexterity scores but suffer a 1 to Constitution.

Ability Maximums:

Dexterity15

Constitution13

Advantages:

Archery Bonus: Elves suffer two fewer penalties due to them when making Called Shots or when firing a bow in a circumstance that causes a penalty. Examples include firing with their feet, firing a bow while hanging upside down from a tree, and so on. This two-point reduction cannot remove penalties caused by dazed-penalties, fatigue or mortal damage nor does is remove penalties for range or obscuring effects. In no way can this benefit by itself produce a step bonus for the character.

Keen Sight: Elves gain a one step bonus to all Awareness-perception and Investigate-search attempts due to their keen eyesight.

Mental Resistance: Elves are totally immune to spells that cause sleep. In addition they receive a +4 Resistance Modifier vs. any Influential FX abilities that mentally induce an accumulation of Stun or Fatigue points as well as those that would cause the elf to be rendered unconscious. This benefit does not include attacks that drain abilities or energy, or any FX powers defined as Attacks.

Night Vision: The eyes of an Elf are extremely sensitive to ambient light, which reduces obscurity penalties they would otherwise face by 2 steps. This does not help in total darkness however.

Stealth Bonus: Elves are by nature very sly. As such then they gain a one step bonus to all Stealth-hide checks.

Disadvantages:

Aloofness: Due to their extended life spans, Elves find no satisfaction in short-term gains. They generally disdain bustling marketplaces and are rarely found in entrepreneurial activities. While willing to adventure for gold and glory, a correctly role-played elf shows far more attention to good music and stories rather than material wealth.

Elves are also in no great hurry. It is no problem for an elf to spend an entire day laying in a meadow or simply watching the flowers grow. Their extended lives lend an odd patience to their habits, and time can fly by before elf even notices.

Of course in times of war or conflict they are on the present. When goals are set they meet them, when timing is close so are they. They simple cherish the ability to sometimes do nothing at all.

Preferred Professions: Elves prefer to be Arcane Adepts. Secondary professions are almost always Warrior or Rogue. Warrior and Rogue professions are also very common however Specialists and Psionic or Faith Adepts are generally rare. Diplomat elves are not uncommon but most tend to remain near their homes.

Gnome (Rock Gnome)

Starting Skills: Athletics, Stamina, Knowledge, Awareness, and Interaction. Gnome characters may also select Alchemy, Manipulation, or Tinkering.

Typical Moral Attitudes: Ethical, Just, Worldly, Unscrupulous, or Gallant.

Typical Environments: Gnomes prefer hilly woodlands and often dwell in underground communities that are located in those hills.Ability Scores Modifiers: Gnomes receive a +1 to their Intelligence scores but suffer a 1 to Will.

Ability Maximums:

Intelligence15

Will13

Advantages:

Combat Bonus: Gnomes gain a +1 bonus to their Strength Resistance Modifier when combating creatures that are considered Large-sized Humanoids (Ogres, Minotaurs, Giants, etc). They also receive a one step bonus to all attacks and actions against Goblinoids and Kobolds. While these are racial enemies, Gnomes would prefer to befuddle and humiliate them instead of engaging them in armed conflict.

Illusion Magic: Gnomes who have an 8 or better in Intelligence may cast the Illusion/Phantasm-audible glamour and illusion spells at rank 1 each. They gain 3 FX points to use these spells, which are separate from other FX points. Additional FX points can be purchased normally. Additional ranks coat the normal list cost. These spells are cast as if the Gnome were using the Sorcerer career as described in Chapter 2 of this book.

Magic Resistance: Gnomes have a +/-1 Resistance Modifier vs. any illusionary effects.

Night Vision: The eyes of a Gnome are extremely sensitive to ambient light, which reduces obscurity penalties they would otherwise face by 2 steps. This does not help in total darkness however.

Speak with Small Mammals: Gnomes begin the game with rank 1 in the language of a small burrowing mammal. This skill can be increased normally and other languages can also be purchased. Burrowing animals include Badgers, Foxes, Rabbits, Moles, Gophers, Musk Rats, Weasels, and Skunks.

Disadvantages:

Magical Failure: The Resistance Modifier that Gnomes gain is not controllable. If a Gnome character casts an arcane spell or uses an FX item that relies on arcane magic then the bonus applies as a penalty. This benefit also applies to spells cast by Arcane Adepts that are intended to aid the gnome. The sole exception to this are spells from the Illusion/Phantasm broad skill group. These spells suffer no penalty.

Magical weapons and armor are not effected but if these items have arcane powers then those powers can be effected as stated above. This penalty also applies to all arcane and shared magic spells a gnome casts if the player chooses to be an Arcane Adept.

In the case of Shared Magic FX spells the nature of the Adept or FX item determines whether a penalty is applied or not. This means that if a wizard casts Earth Magic-body of earth on a gnome then the penalty would apply. If a believer casts the same spell the penalty would not apply. FX items do make the distinction for Shared Magic spells referring to them as either faith or arcane in origin.

Small Size: Being slight in stature Gnomes use the rules for small characters as discussed in the Character Size section later in this chapter.

Preferred Professions: Gnomes prefer to be Rogues or Specialists. Arcane Adepts usually down grade their talent quality to Good or Ordinary and concentrate their learning to Illusion/Phantasm spells. Warrior and Diplomat gnomes are common near gnome lairs.

Halfling (Hairfoot)

Starting Skills: Stealth, Stamina, Knowledge, Awareness-direction sense (at rank 1), Resolve, and Interaction.

Typical Moral Attitudes: Ethical, Conformist, Just, Corrupt, Gallant, Virtuous, or Apathetic.

Typical Environments: Halflings prefer to live near human settlements and may be found in cities.Ability Scores Modifiers: Halflings receive a +1 to their Dexterity scores but suffer a 1 to Strength.

Ability Maximums:

Strength13

Dexterity15

Advantages:

Hazard Resistance: Halflings receive a +/-1 Step Bonus vs. any FX attack or Hazard.

Combat Bonus: Dwarves gain a +1to their Strength Resistance Modifier when combating creatures that are considered Large-sized Humanoids (Ogres, Trolls, Giants, Minotaurs, etc).

Nimble: Halflings receive a one step bonus to Athletics-climb and jump checks as well as Stealth-sneak checks.

Throwing Bonus: Halflings gain a one step bonus to the Athletics-throw skill.

Stealth Bonus: Halflings are by nature very sly. If a Halfling is alone then he or she gains a one step bonus to all Stealth skill checks.

Encounter Bonus: Most humans encountered usually have a Neutral or better initial reaction to Halflings. By some twist of fate, Halflings remind some people of small children. Human players are of course free to determine their own reactions.

Disadvantages:

Magical Failure: The +1 Resistance Modifier that Halflings gain is not controllable. This benefit is applied as a penalty to spells cast by Arcane Adepts even if they are intended to aid the halfling. Similarly, arcane FX items also receive this penalty during their use. Magical weapons and armor are not effected but if these items have arcane powers then those powers can be effected as stated above. This penalty also applies to all arcane and shared magic spells a halfling casts if the player chooses to be an Arcane Adept.

In the case of Shared Magic FX spells the nature of the Adept or FX item determines whether a penalty is applied or not. This means that if a wizard casts Earth-body of earth on a halfling then the penalty would apply. If a believer casts the same spell the penalty would not apply.

Small Size: Being slight in stature Halflings use the rules for small characters as discussed in the Character Size section later in this chapter.

Preferred Professions: Halflings prefer to be Rogues. Warriors and Diplomats follow in commonality. Adepts (especially Arcane Adepts) are rare. Halflings are not prone to be Specialists as in-depth learning and analytical thinking tends to be cumbersome and boring to them.

Half-Elf (Human/High-Elf)Starting Skills: Athletics, Stealth, Stamina, Knowledge, Awareness, and Interaction.

Typical Moral Attitudes: Any.

Typical Environments: Any.Ability Scores Modifiers: None.

Ability Maximums: Standard of 14.

Advantages:

Animal Companion: Being loners by nature, half-elves frequently bond with young animals they find in the wild. If the player wishes the half-elf character can start the game with an animal companion. The player may select any Beast allowed by the GM and the rules for Sidekicks apply to the companion as given in Chapter 6 of this book.

Keen Sight: Half-elves gain a -1 bonus to all Awareness-perception and Investigate-search attempts due to their keen eyesight.

Mental Resistance: Half-elves receive a +2 Resistance Modifier vs. any Influential FX abilities that mentally induce an accumulation of Stun or Fatigue points as well as those that would cause the elf to be rendered unconscious. This benefit does not include attacks like ability or energy drain or FX powers defined as Attacks.

Night Vision: The eyes of a half-elf are extremely sensitive to ambient light, which reduces obscurity penalties they would otherwise face by 2 steps. This does not help in total darkness however.

Stealth Bonus: Half-elves are by nature very sly. As such then they gain a -1 step bonus to all Stealth-hide checks.

Preferred Professions: Half-elves can be found in any profession with equal frequency. The only exception to this is Diplomat as half-elves tend not to be as socially oriented as other races.

Humans

Starting Skills: Athletics, Stamina, Knowledge, Awareness, and Interaction. Humans also gain one free broad skill of choice, which can include an FX skill. Most humans encountered in the game will have Animal Handling, Crafting, Outdoors, or Agriculture.

Typical Moral Attitudes: Any.

Typical Environments: Any.Ability Scores Modifiers: None.

Ability Maximums: Standard of 14.

Advantages:

Bonus Skill Points: Humans gain 5 bonus skill points at the time of character creation.

Bonus Broad Skill: Humans may add one to the maximum number of starting Broad skills that they can have.

Cultural Ability: Groups of humans, both large and small, can have cultural benefits that have allowed them to adapt to a way of life or to an environment. None of these abilities are similar to any Super Power FX skills or other abilities like Thermal Vision. What follows are ideas using some of the more common types of persons and cultures. Feel free to embellish this idea but mind the fact that the benefit is shared by a group of people and is not a special, personal power given to the character. The benefits should always be related to skills, perks or flaws, or to the characters basis statistics.

Suggested Benefits:

-1 bonus to a specialty skill.

An ability score maximum raised by one point.

A free perk.

A flaw that provides twice the number of bonus skill points.

A higher number of starting skill points (like 62 instead of 60).

One or two free broad or specialty skills.

A bonus Last Resort point.

A +1 Resistance Modifier against a specific form of attack.

List-1 with a broad skill.

Sample Benefits:

Religious Society: Faith perk for free.

Warlike Society: List-1 bonus to any one combat related broad skill.

Coastal Society: Ship Operation broad skill for free.

Enlightened Society: -1 to all Knowledge skill checks or list-1 to all Intelligence based skills OR +1 to Intelligence, -1 to Strength.

Peaceful Society: -1 bonus to all Culture and/or Interaction skill checks.

Rugged Society: One free Last Resort point or the Survival broad skill for free.

Lawful Society: -1 bonus to all Law and Administration skill checks.

Disadvantages:

None: Humans have no outstanding drawbacks.

Mutants

As of this edition of the book there are no changes to the rules for mutants as found in the Alternity Players Handbook.

The very idea of a mutant invokes a sense of science fiction more than that of the fantasy genre. However, with a little consideration, this distinction can be diversified enough to create characters and monsters that are fantasy versions of classic sci-fi mutants. Aside from the occasional wild magic zone, ancient curse, introduction of a new player race, this option should be used wisely or else the character party will look like the X-Men.

Mutations can have a wide variety of uses. Many demi-humans and humanoid races can be created using these rules by modifying an existing race. Good examples are the Grimlocks and the Githyanki both of who are distant cousins of man but who have adapted to special environments. Monsters and animal can also be modified. Tigers adapted to arctic conditions, lions with wings, subterranean horses, and the like can all be created using these rules.

The problem isnt so much in using these rules, the real trick is to do it with using the word Mutant with the sci-fi implication it can have. In fantasy, an actual dictionary definition mutant is rare at best if found at all. Most deviant species are the result of angry gods, evil sorcerers, or errant magic. They are rarely the products of bad genes or radioactive isotopes. In any case, be creative with the mutation rules. They can be very useful for both Game Masters and players alike.

Professions

In older, level-based, games we became use to the idea of a character being defined chiefly by his or her class. This class included everything needed for character advance-ment and all that was needed was the accumulation of points to gain the next level. Better combat scores, increased defenses, heightened knowledge were all gained at a relatively static rate of progression.

With the introduction of skill-based games we found a different set of circumstances. The defining attribute of a skill-based game is that the accumulation of points allows the player to spend points in either broad or limited categories. Old terms like Hit Points, Saving Throws, and THACO were gained by rote in level-based games, but they must now be purchased in order to improve. If a player does not spend points to make a warrior a better fighter, or a wizard more knowledgeable then it simply does not happen.

What is presented below are the Alternity professions as they were originally written. The only change that I made was to move the Mindwalker into the Adept profession. While this may seem to change the game a bit, this modification allows a more versatile psionic character while still retaining the same options and spirit of the original profession.

Adepts

The Adept is a person who is born with a strong talent in an FX ability. The Adept represents Arcanists, Believers, and Mindwalkers in this game. Super Heroes are a special consideration and are dealt with later in Chapter 2 of this book in the Legends section and in Book 2: FX.

Adepts are similar to Diplomats in that they select a Secondary Profession, which in turn determines the characters Ability Requirements, Achievements Benefits, Starting Funds, and Skill Cost Reductions. In addition to this an Adept begins the game with a list-1 cost reduction to one FX broad skill of choice and all of its associated specialty skills.

The FX ability of an Adept is stronger than that of other persons who make use of such abilities. Adepts begin the game with an Amazing talent in an FX category for free. If the player wishes the character may down-grade this talent to Good instead. Doing so grants the character 5 skills points that can spent on FX skills and perks only. The character may also reduce the talent to Ordinary. If this is done then the character gains 10 points to spend on FX skills and perks. In both cases the rules for Good and Ordinary talents apply as described in the Talents section which follows.

All Adepts have the following statistics, which are summarized from the comments above.

Action Bonus: +1

Skill Bonus: as per Secondary Profession.

Requirements: as per Secondary Profession.

Random Ability Generation: as per Secondary Profession.Amazing Talent: Adepts begin the game with an Amazing talent in one of the three FX categories to chose from: Arcane Magic, Faith Magic, or Psionic powers. Each of these groups is discussed in Book 2: FX. Talents in general are described later in this chapter. The Adept may elect to downgrade a talent to Good or Ordinary if desired. Doing so includes all rules for each level of talent but grants the Adept 5 bonus skill points for a Good talent or 10 for an Ordinary. These bonus points can only be spent on FX skills and perks. If the player wishes to improve the characters talent at a later time the normal 10 points per category must be paid however. See the Talents section below for more details.

Secondary Profession: Each Adept selects a Secondary Profession and gains a list-1 skill cost reduction with that professions skills. If an Adept selects another Adept as the second profession then he or she must specify which type (Arcane, Faith, or Psionic). Of course this secondary profession cannot be the same as the Adepts primary profession. While the character does not gain any skill cost reductions, they do begin the game with an Ordinary Talent in that FX category at no cost. For the purposes of advancing in talent grades (Ordinary to Good for example) assume the character has already spent 10 skill points to gain the talent.

The rules so far stated apply to each type of Adept. From this point forward they slowly begin to differ from each other. Each type of Adept has several distinguishing titles that apply to the exact profession chosen as well as the level of talent possessed. The tables below are provided for campaign color and should not be used if the titles do not fit your campaign. However the entries for Adept Name and Adept Type are used in this book to refer to different types of Adepts throughout the game so it is good to at least be familiar with them.

Arcane FXFaith FXPsionics

Adept Name:ArcanistBelieverMindwalker

Adept Type:Arcane AdeptFaith AdeptPsionic Adept

Ordinary Talent:DabblerFaithfulInitiate

Good Talent:MagicianAdherentMaster

Amazing Talent:WizardDevoutPsionicist

Arcanists

Arcanists are those who work with Arcane Magic. To be an Arcanist the character must start the game with Knowledge-read/write at rank 3 and either Lore-spell lore or the Metaphysics broad skill.

After the time when an Arcanist is created any new broad skills, and specialty skills that cannot be used untrained, must be learned before being purchased with skill points. Arcanists are also dependent on their spell books to advance in known skills and to facilitate the learning process as a whole. While these factors may seem a disadvantage they are often beneficial to the Arcanist as well. The role that learning spells and spell books have in the game, and Arcane Magic in general, is discussed in Chapter 2 of Book 2.

This type of Adept generally chooses the Specialist as his secondary profession, however Diplomats and Free Agents are also common. Arcanists are also the most likely Adept to choose another Adept type as a secondary profession with Psionics being favored of the two options. Warrior as a secondary profession is rare. While providing a strong and combat ready character, this combination tends to detract from ability scores needed to cast a majority of arcane spells.

Believers

Believers are those who work with Faith Magic. In order to be a Faith Adept the character must have the Faith perk. This profession represents any character that draws magical energy from a belief in a god, an elemental force, nature, spirits, or even a philosophy.

Believers tend to have more specialty skills in a broad skill that can be used untrained than other Adepts. However they pay for this distinction by having the types of broad skills they can learn determined by their faith. Some can learn many while others may only learn a few. In all cases a believer must select a career from those given in the Believer Careers section in this chapter. If a player does not like those presented then a new career must be created. Players may also opt to use faiths from Appendix 3: Fantasy Faiths from book as well.

These Adepts are usually Diplomats as a secondary profession as those cost reductions provide powerful tools in the guidance of groups and the influence of others. Warriors are also common despite the lower ability scores in needed areas. Other professions are rare but are known to exist. With that said it should be pointed out that certain believers may chose a profession that better reflects a deitys sphere of influence. A god of magic may have all priests select the Arcane Adept as their secondary profession while others (like Set or Loki) may require followers to choose Rogue. Information of Faith Magic is given in Chapter 3 of Book 2.

Mindwalkers

Mindwalkers are those who work with Psionic Powers. In order to be a Psionic Adept the character must have the Resolve or Psyche broad skill, however having both is a good idea. Of all of the professions the psionicist is the most self-contained. Unlike rogues, they need no tools, unlike warriors they need no weapons, unlike believers and arcanists they need no trappings for their FX abilities save their conscious will. Their power comes from within and they alone give it shape.

The number of specialty skills that can be used untrained is average and they need not learn FX skills before buying them. Similarly they do not have limits on the types of broad skills they may possess. However the shear number of broad skills available makes the multi-talented mindwalker a rarity. Information on psionic powers is given in Chapters 5 through 11 in Book 2.

Also unlike other Adepts, the Mindwalker gains the list-1 bonus to skill costs for all broad skills in the same Discipline. This generally grants the character this bonus for three or four broad skills.

Diplomat

In the fantasy world Diplomats represent everyone from Bards to Kings, Ambassadors to Traders, Nobles and Military Commanders. The strength of a diplomat is his or her ability to get the job done through teamwork, negotiation, bargaining, or even guile. While at an initial glance the Diplomat may seem undesirable as a lead character remember the combination of having two professions of reduced skill cost, or receiving and ordinary FX talent, makes the Diplomat extremely versatile. Diplomats make excellent leaders and, despite the name, are not always disposed to be polite.

Action Bonus: +1

Skill Bonus: -1 to the list cost of any skill with the D class code.

Requirements: Personality of 11, Will of 9.

Random Ability Generation:

Strength4+1d8

Dexterity4+1d8

Constitution4+1d8

Intelligence8+1d6

Will8+1d6

Personality10+1d4

Free Contact: Diplomats begin the game with a free Contact of choice. Contacts are described in Chapter 6 of this book.

Secondary Profession: Diplomats have a knack for learning other skills for use when negotiation fails. Each Diplomat selects a Secondary Profession and he gains a list-1 skill cost reduction with that professions skills. If a Diplomat selects the Adept as the second profession then he or she must specify which type (Arcane, Faith, or Psionic). While the character does not gain any additional cost reductions, they do begin the game with an Ordinary Talent in that FX category at no cost (see Talents later in this chapter). For the purposes of advancing in talent grades (Ordinary to Good for example) assume the character has already spent 10 skill points to gain the talent.

Rogue

Rogues are some of the more colorful characters of the game. Being less restrained by social mores and the laws of the land; Rogues live and breathe independence. To properly role-play a rogue character the player must often act independently of the group. This means acting when appropriate regardless of plans. While this doesnt necessarily make the rogue foolhardy, it does make them difficult to predict and control at times. As opposed to Warriors or Diplomat characters, the Rogue prefers to work alone or in a small group.

Action Bonus: +2

Skill Bonus: -1 to the list cost of any skill with the R class code.

Requirements: Dexterity of 11, Will of 9.

Random Ability Generation:

Strength6+1d6

Dexterity10+1d4

Constitution6+1d6

Intelligence8+1d6

Will6+1d6

Personality6+1d6

Bonus Last Resort: Rogues gain one additional Last Resort point and they may spend up to two of them to modify any one given result.

Resistance Modifier: Rogues may also increase the Resistance Modifier of Strength, Dexterity, Intelligence, or Will by +1.

Specialist

Specialists are persons who excel in learning. They make use of tools effectively and can operate a variety of tools and equipment proficiently. The Specialist profession replaces the Tech Op in the standard Alternity game. They both perform in the same manner the name has been changed to better reflect the medieval world.

While sometimes deserving the title of geek a specialist may also be a blacksmith, an engineer, a demolitions expert (if gunpowder is allowed), and other martial careers. Of the Adept professions, the Specialist works best when combined with the Arcane Adept.

Action Bonus: +1

Skill Bonus: -1 to the list cost of any skill with the S class code.

Requirements: Intelligence of 11, Dexterity of 9

Random Ability Generation:

Strength4+1d6

Dexterity8+1d6

Constitution4+1d6

Intelligence10+1d4

Will8+1d6

Personality6+1d6

Accelerated Learning: At the levels shown on the table below a Specialist earns bonus skill points that can be spent on either mundane or FX skills as desired as well as Achievement bonuses.

LevelBonus Skill Points

2 to 51

6 to 102

11 to 153

16 to 204

21+5

Warrior

Warriors are the basic types of classic hero. Regardless of whether they are protectors of the wilderness, defenders of the meek, rulers and lords, or sailors on the high seas; Warriors are the quintessential champions of the fantasy genre. The Warrior represents the basic soldier, mercenary, or master of arms. Some are poor and some become kings but all are persons of action.

Action Bonus: +3

Skill Bonus: -1 to the list cost of any skill with the W class code.

Requirements: Strength of 11, Constitution of 9.

Random Ability Generation:

Strength10+1d4

Dexterity8+1d4

Constitution8+1d6

Intelligence4+1d8

Will6+1d6

Personality4+1d8

Combat Bonus: Warriors receive a -1 Situation Modifier to attacks when using any one combat oriented Specialty skill. This can include any Tactics specialty skill, Acrobatics-defensive martial arts, or Athletics-joust.

Talents

A Talent is a person who has a varying degree of skill in one or more FX categories, similar to the Adept profession. Unless a character is an Adept or a Diplomat with and an Adept secondary profession, all levels of Talents ability must be paid for. Having a Talent represents an additional element to the characters standard profession and is much stronger than most perks or extraordinary abilities.

As with the Adept professions a character must have the stated skills or perk in order to have the appropriate talent(s). In the case of a Faith Talent, he or she must chose a religion as described under Believer Careers below so as to define his or her allowed FX broad skills.

The table below shows the basic statistics that work the same for Adepts and Talents alike.

TypeCostBroad SkillsMax RanksFX Energy

Ordinary1011-6th, all else 3rd5

Good203All @ 6th10

Amazing30AllAll @ 12th15

The Cost column shows the number of skill points required to have any one talent. The Broad Skills column gives the maximum number of broad skills the talent may have in that FX category. For Ordinary and Good Talents the character may add his or her Intelligence Resistance Modifier to the number of Broad Skills allowed if an arcane talent, or Will for both faith and psionic talents. This means that a character with an Intelligence of 11 could learn two Broad Skills as an Ordinary Talent.

The Max Ranks column shows the maximum rank the talent may have. Ordinary talents may advance as high as rank 6 with one specialty skill per broad skill if more than one is available. All other ranks cannot be higher than third. Good talents may advance as high as rank 6 in any specialty skill while Amazing talents may advance to 12th.

The FX Energy column shows the starting points a character has based on the type of talent he is. To this base number the character may add his Intelligence Resistance Modifier if an arcane talent or Will Resistance Modifier if a faith or psionic talent. This score can be increased by 1 FX point by spending 5 skill points. The maximum number of FX points a character may have is equal to twice his original base number. This means that an ordinary psionic talent with a Will of 13 starts with 7 FX points and may have a maximum of 14.

There are three rules that are used for all Talents and Adepts. They are as follows.

Rule 1)A Talent must be selected at the time of character creation or at 1st level. Otherwise the character must learn the talent as shown below.

Rule 2)Extra FX points can be purchased at 5 skill points each. Characters with multiple talents must specify which pool of points the purchased point belongs to.

Rule 3)An Adept or talent character can gain 3 FX perks and 3 FX flaws. Extra skill points for FX flaws can only be spent on FX skills. Any skill point can be spent on FX perks. FX perks and flaws are described in Chapter 1 of Book 2.

Learning Talents after 1st Level

Learning a Talent is no small task and it is best chosen when the character is first created. If not then the character will have to learn this ability during the course of a campaign. This is only possible with a willing teacher who has the Teaching specialty appropriate to the FX desired. The learning process is a complex skill check that requires 10 successes to complete with only one check allowed per month. For Arcane Magic an Intelligence Feat is required. For either the Faith Magic or Psionic ability, a Will Feat is used instead. Of course before the teaching can even begin, the character must have the skills or perk required of any other Adept or talent.

The teacher can grant a bonus to the students check. At the start of each month, the teacher makes a Teaching skill check. An Ordinary result grants a -1 bonus, a Good result grants a -2, and an Amazing result grants a -3 while a Critical Failure imposes a +2 penalty. If the student generates three failures during the learning period the training must begin anew. If a Critical Failure is generated, then the student must seek out a new teacher or both the teacher and the student must attain a new level before the training can begin again.

Once a talent is learned the character can purchase an Ordinary talent only. At any level later this can be improved normally. Broad and specialty skills as well as perks and flaws must also be purchased normally. In the case of perks and flaws that must be bought at the time of character creation, the new talent may select them but only if that is done before or simultaneously with the purchase of his first broad skill.

Character Attributes

This section covers some details that help to flesh out a character and to provide some basic rules that govern a characters role in the game. None are optional however individual Game Masters may not always use them with the same level of importance depending on the type of game being run.

Height, Weight, and Age

As you may have noticed, the Alternity game system uses the metric system. This does change some of the mechanics used in determining a characters height and weight. The tables below show the methodology of random determination for these statistics.

Racial Statistics

RaceHeightMax. HeightWeightSize Category

Dwarf1.01.365Medium

Elf1.31.743Medium

Gnome0.91.036Small

Half-Elf1.51.954Medium

Halfling0.81.032Small

Human1.52.268Medium

Height is given as an average in meters. Weight is an average in kilograms.

As characters advance through a game it is possible for them to age many years while doing so. Below are two tables that show the average ages by race and what game effects those age categories have on the character. The DM may allow characters to be created at any age the player chooses. Players should be able to choose their characters statistics with in these guidelines if they so choose.

Age Categories

RaceAdolescentYoung

AdultMatureMid

AgeOldAncient

Dwarf1772229304349+6d12

Elf17100550850999+10d12

Gnome27150260365490+5d20

Elf173580130155+3d12

Halfling235795135180+4d12

Human1215304150+2d12

All characters are assumed to start at the Young Adult age category. If a character is created at another age than this one modify the characters ability scores for each age category passed. Therefor, if a character is created and the player starts at Old Age then the character would have a -1 to strength and constitution, a -2 to dexterity, a +2 to intelligence, will, and personality.

Age Effects

StrDexConIntWillPer

AD-1+10-1-10

YA000000

MA000+10+1

MD0-10+1+10

Old-1-1-10+1+1

AN-1-1-1000

In no way can any modifiers increase an ability score above the racial maximums for that character. The old AD&D rule about unnatural aging are still in place in this game as well. This means that a character that is aged by the touch of a Ghost does not gain any benefit to his or her ability scores, however, any negative modifiers do apply. Bonuses to ability scores come from time and experience.

Character Size

All characters have a size. As stated before, Gnomes and Halflings are small-sized while the other races are medium. The table below shows the effects a characters size has on various game mechanics should they be altered in any way. For the most part these modifiers are already considered for monsters and other beings in Book 3: Monsters and they need not be modified any further. The table below shows the relative height of the size categories.

Standard MeasureRelative Height

Tiny (1 to 1).03 to .3

Small (2 to 3).6 to .9

Medium (4 to 8)1.2 to 2.4

Large (9 to 15)2.7 to 4.5

Huge 16 to 25)4.8 to 7.6

Gargantuan (26+)8 +

The following table shows the basic format that is used for beings of all sizes, however they are standard and are subject to change on a case by case basis, serving primarily as a model for character design. Any modifications based on character size are already assumed to be built into the characters racial make-up and any changes to size render similar changes. For example, if a wizard were to cast an Alteration-adaptation or polymorph spell on his familiar (a magically bonded pet) then the familiar would gain any benefits due to its increased size. In this way a character that assumes the size of a giant gains some benefits similar to giants. In the case of monsters the Game Master will have to judge is size alterations will modify their scores and to what degree.

Size Alteration Table

Character Size

TSMLHG

Dur.Con

x NormalNormalCon

x 1.5Con

x 1.5Con

x 2

Punch-2-10d62d42d6

Hands+2+10-1-2-4

ToughOOOOGG

MoveBase/2Base-2--Base+2Base+4

Melee-1d---+1d+2d

Res. Mod+1----1-2

Stealth-100+1+3+5

Liftx x n/an/ax2 or 3x4 or 5

Dur. Stands for Durability and the figures for Large to Gargantuan creatures are multipliers to their constitution scores for this purpose. The standard Punch does 1d4s/1d4+1s/1d4+2s in damage. For Tiny and Small beings the modifier mentioned is subtracted from the base damage to a minimum of 1 point of damage caused. Large, Huge, and Gargantuan creatures use the same standard rules for a brawl attack except that the indicated die type replaces the d4. Of course some monsters have other means of attack and may or may not follow this guide. Hands refers to a new optional rule given in Chapter 5: Weapons and Armor where by a person using a weapon must have the indicated number of hands free in order to use a weapon. The modifiers shown indicate a change to the weapons statistics. In this way a broad sword with a hands score of 1 requires a Small sized person to use two hands instead when wielding this weapon. Tough stands for the toughness attribute. Usually only Huge and Gargantuan creatures will have a greater than ordinary toughness based on size alone.

A beings base Movement rate is equal to their strength and dexterity summed together as usual. The plus or minus in this column indicates the number of scores that are moved up or down to achieve the persona actual movement rate. For Tiny creatures, the sum of their strength and dexterity is divided by two to determine how fast they can move in a given phase. However this only concerns movement on the ground or in the water. Flying and gliding move rates remain the same. For Melee, the entry 1d means that the type of die used to determine damage is lowered by one die type. If the die type is already a d4 then use a d6 divided by two and rounded up. The +d or +2d means that an additional die of equal value of the original is added to the damage. In other words, a giant using a giant club causes 2d4+1s/1d4+3s/ 2d6w in damage to a hapless victim. It should be noted that this rule is related to the Power of the attack and if degraded by toughness this bonus die is lost first. Power is discussed in Chapter 8: Gamers in Action.

Res. Mod represents modifiers to the beings Strength and Dexterity Resistance Modifiers. The simple explanation is that larger creatures are harder to hit and tiny ones may avoid some attacks better simply due to their size. Stealth gives the modifier to all Stealth skill checks and Lift applies as a modifier to the characters lifting ability based on strength.

Moral Attitudes

Every character in the game that is not of animal intelligence has a Moral Attitude. This relates how they interact with the rest of the world and determines such classic notions as good vs. evil. These values have the same means as described on pages 121 to 122 of the Alternity Player's Handbook but are summarized below.

Anti-Authority: The character believes that his life is own and should be allowed to live as he pleases. His ethics center on things that are good for him. This individualist can be good or evil, but usually does what he pleases in order to get the most out of life.

Apathetic: This character just doesnt care. Some who hold this attitude believe that nothing really matters in the end, so theres no point in being concerned about anything. Apathetic characters wear an air of indifference. Some can be cynical. While events may rouse them to action they will eventually return to this state of mind. This hero may have had his beliefs shattered at an early age and only needs a new cause to spark the smoldering emotions in his breast.

Conformist: This guy is a follower. He doesnt stick out. In fact he works very hard to be just another face in the crowd. He values the popular opinions of the day, accepting everything and deciding on nothing. Hes adaptable, but only a way that allows him to go with the social flow. He is compliant and obeys the laws and the mores of the day.

Corrupt: This character has a strict personal code, one that promotes a twisted, even deviant moral program that usually bolsters his goals and desires. He may still be honorable as long as it doesnt inhibit his personal agenda. Hes self-disciplined and admires and expects that same traits in others after all without discipline corruption consumes itself in raging fire. The controlled flame burns the longest and that is important to this hero. However he has little tolerance for those who work against his goals.

Despicable: This person is wicked, amoral, and totally evil. He has no code of ethics. Hes unpredictable, random, and possibly even insane. If he helps someone its only to further his own gain and he gets great satisfaction from hurting the same person later on. He despises those who are good and honorable. He sneers at discipline. He hates authority. He delights in evil and enjoys causing pain and sorrow.

Ethical: This character lives by standards that are universally recognized as being right and good. He strives to nothing that is evil or morally wrong, and seeks to help everyone in need. The ethical hero has a moral code that values fair play, respects authority, and brings greatest benefit to the most people. The ethical hero is honest and hard-working, kind and wise. He can be stern and even driven by his moral attitude but he is also fair and good.

Gallant: This hero believes that the strong must protect the weak. He has a nobility of spirit and a high degree of courage. He is quick to action, daring in deed, and dashing in manner and appearance. He tries to right wrongs, but he also enjoys the fruits of his labors. He knows hes good and he likes others to see his goodness in action.

Honorable: This hero sticks to his word and holds others to the same standard. He follows a code of dignity, integrity, and pride. The honorable hero is often extremely individualistic, though his personal code means that he can be trusted and counted on to keep his word. Indeed, his word is his bond, and he strives to make his actions live up to his lofty promises even if no one else is around to witness his honor.

Just: A character with a just moral attitude doesnt care if a law is good or evil; he believes that law is the defining aspect of civilization. Everyone is equal under the law, and the just-minded character works to defend that principle. He protects everyones opinions, as long as they dont break the laws of the land. He is fair and law-abiding, without regard to the ethics of the laws he defends.

Selfish: The selfish character always wants to know whats in it for him. He has a high regard for life and freedom especially his own. He places his own interests above all else, seeking a personal angle before he commits to anything. If he agrees to something he sticks to it as long as he feels he has a personal stake in it. Self-preservation and self-aggrandizement are definitely the cornerstones of this characters behavior.

Unscrupulous: This character is self-serving and depraved. He is ruthless hell stop at nothing to achieve his goals. He has no conscience, and thus perceives no need to adhere to the principles of right and wrong. If he wants something, he takes it. If a lie will as well as the truth, he opts for the lie.

Virtuous: The virtuous hero is righteous and good, exhibiting excellence in word and deed. He always tells the truth, he demonstrates great courage especially regarding his convictions and he lives as an example to others. He cant be bribed or persuaded to work against his beliefs. This hero is unburdened by guilt unless he goes against his moral attitude. Then he is wracked by guilt and must seek a way to repair the damage he has done.

Worldly: Material gain is the goal of this character. He wants to own things, especially the best things he can find. He will compromise his other beliefs if theres something for him to gain by doing so.

The moral attitudes that players select are the Alternity versions of alignment in AD&D. Most the above attitudes can be cross-referenced to a specific alignment. In this game spells and other abilities that react to or that detect evil or good are now based more on intentions rather than a blanket characteristic. A Worldly character, while self-serving, could perform an action that is ultimately good whether they know it or not. This form of character definition, I feel, allows for more flexible role-playing while still holding true to the fantasy notions of good vs. evil.

Motivations and Traits

These two aspects of character definition remain unchanged from their descriptions in the Alternity Players Handbook. Game Masters may or may not require them based on the tone of their campaigns. However it is a good idea to base role-playing awards on the use of these traits and to withhold points for not using these tools to develop a character.

Social Status

Authority, Fame, and Wealth define the social status of a character. These attributes remain exactly as detailed in the Alternity Gamemaster's Guide. Wealth is the only trait that may need a little re-vamping. In a typical medieval world, extreme wealth is usually owned by but a few and most of this wealth is tied to the land. Investment portfolios, stocks and bonds, interest from savings accounts just do not exist in lower progress levels or fantasy games in general. A player who wishes to develop a high wealth score will eventually have to claim land to secure it. In a medieval world this of course means war.

While authority and fame remain unchanged keep in mind that in fantasy styled games news can travel very slowly. A character with a high score in either of these traits may come to find that they are valueless (or markedly decreased) when visiting another region or kingdom where the character is unknown. It may be necessary to record a characters social status based on where they are and where they have traveled. Of course on can always hire a bard or minstrel to spread the word of your heroic deeds.

In the Alternity Gamemaster's Guide there is a table detailing social status scores. For this game, wealth is based on the amount of assets that one can prove that one owns, whether it be showing an onlooker your castle or spilling a bag of gold on the table. For this reason wealth is not as fixed. When a characters wealth in factored in the effects of encounters use their current provable amount can be used as shown on the Game Effects table below.

Social Status Scores for Professions

ProfessionAuthorityWealthFame

Diplomat+4+4+4

Rogue+3+2+1

Specialist+2+3+1

Warrior+4+20

In addition to the base scores for these attributes certain perks and flaws can also grant bonuses to the social status scores.

Social Status Modifiers

PerksAuthorityWealthFame

Filthy Rich0+3+1

Good Luck00+1

Powerful Ally+10+1

Renown0+1+3

Reputation+20+1

Flaws

Bad Luck00-1

Dirt Poor0-2-2

Infamy-20-1

Primitive-10-1

Spineless-100

Allegiance+2+1+1

As Game Master you may also determine that a certain career choice may also modify these initial scores. A fair method is to apply a - for every +. However this is not always realistic for some circumstances and it is best that you base these considerations on the players description of the character and how well the character is developed.

Game Effects

The following table shows the base modifier that is applied to a skill check (usually an Encounter skill) if a characters Social Status is an issue in a situation. Remember that players do not always dictate when these social statuses can have effect. A player may also attempt a Social Status check if desired. To do this roll a personality feat check with the modifier presented. The bonus contacts column shows the number of possible contacts a character may gain that are free of charge so to speak. These are not fixed numbers however and are subject to change as the DM sees fit. Use of these scores, and what they imply, is as detailed on pages 106 to 108 in the Alternity Gamemaster's Guide.

Social Status Game Effects

Status ScoreAuthorityFameWealth*Contacts**

0+5+500

1+4+41gp0

2+3+32gp0

3+2+23gp0

4+1+24gp0

50+15gp0

60+16gp0

7007gp0

8-108gp0

9-109gp0

10-1010gp1

11-2012gp2

12-2-114gp4

13-2-116gp6

14-3-220gp8

15-3-230gp10

16-3-350gp12

17-4-3100gp15

18-4-4250gp18

19-4-4500gp25

20-5-52000gp50

*The Wealth column shows the average amount of gold pieces earned for one months work.

**The Contacts entry on the table is directly related to the characters Fame score. These bonus contacts are in addition to any gained by the character through role-playing or by the Diplomat profession.

Increasing the Scores

These scores can be increased during the course of the game. The Game Master will have to decide what type of action warrants such an increase and how often awards should be given. As a rule of thumb no more than one point should be gained or lost per adventure.

Players may also increase these score voluntarily through the use of Achievement Points. The cost for doing so is equal to the value of the score to be gained. Therefor to rise from an Authority of 5 to a 6 the character must spend 6 achievement points.

Game Masters may also grant a number of additional starting points to characters created above 1st level. These bonus points are equal to one-half of the characters starting level and may be distributed however they wish. Therefor a 6th level character gains three additional points when the character is created.

Standing

Standing is another form of social status with the primary exception that it deals with a characters relationship with the powers that be. This can be a specific deity, an entire pantheon, the spirits of nature, or the universe at large. Occasionally Faith Magic calls on this score, with its accompanying modifiers, and it is also used as a metaphysical yardstick in determining if the character attracts powerful attention.

Standing is very important to these powers and often times they consider it first when comparing two individuals for whatever reason. While Believers seem to be a powers most potent ally and first pick, do not leap to any conclusions. If a Warrior without a Faith talent or even the Faith perk has a higher Standing score then a Believer of the same faith, the powers may pick the Warrior over the Believer. This is because Standing is a measure of what a person has done to further a religion or faith, not so much the powers a person has been granted.

Standing is also very particular. Having a high score with one god or pantheon does not mean a character has the same score with other powers. It is quite all right to have multiple scores; each dedicated to a different power, pantheon, or type of faith. Often times a high score with one faith brings about another score with an opposing faith or god. This represents the fact that aiding one deitys goals hinders anothers and can attract unwanted attention. Having a negative score with that power or faith represents this; the effects of which will be discussed below.

Standing Game Effects

StandingModifierFollowersDivine Gifts

-50--

-4+1--

-3+2--

-2+3--

-1+5--

0---

1+50-

2 3+42Faith Bonus

4 5+34Minor Gift

6 7+28-

8 9+112Last Resort

10 11015Holy Vision

12 13-130Faith Bonus

14 15-250Last Resort

16 17-3100Major Gift

18 19-4500-

20-51000Ascension

All characters begin the game with a Standing score of 0. If the character has the Faith perk (which includes Believers and Faith Talents of course) then the starting score is 1. Standing is gained by service to the powers and aiding their cause. This score can be advanced normally as with other Social Status types as described in Increasing the Scores above.

Negative Standing Scores

A negative score represents a condition where a power that does not approve of the characters actions is keeping an eye on his activities. This condition can arise for any number of reasons but the most likely cause is the actual defeat of the powers plans in the mortal world. This can be caused by direct attacks on the powers temples and followers, foiling the powers plans in general, or the destruction of sacred items including gates into this world.

A negative Standing score does have to apply every time a character fights a Believer and his followers or has a general run-in with such persons, however it is almost certain to occur if the character engages in an extended campaign against a power. It can also occur if the character fights and defeats the powers Avatar or minions that are sent to this world on an expressed mission.

The modifier given is used to modify a Personality feat check. A check is called for whenever a character engages in activities that directly hinder the powers influence in this world. In this case a failure is desired. Ordinary to Amazing results can act as a temporary Powerful Enemy flaw as desired. The greater the quality of the result, the greater the power of the flaw. The action taken by the power may range from his followers receiving visions of the characters activities to direct intervention by the deitys avatar or extra-dimensional minions.

A negative score can be removed by certain actions as well. If the power feels that the character is no longer a threat then the score can be removed completely. It may also be reduced over time. While the power never forgets any slight against it, it may have made significant progress in its goals and the actions of the character may seem as a singular event that no longer warrants the deities direct attention.

Use a negative Standing score as a tool for the story. This feature is not intended to kill the character off every time they sack a temple but rather to add the wrath of an angry god element to a game. It also creates an element of superstition as the characters may be hesitant to take a quest for fear of bad things happening to them.

Beseeching Miracles

There are times when a character is faced with a hopeless situation. As stated in the chapter on skills (chapter 3) a character can attempt a Personality feat check to determine his or her basic luck in a situation. Miracles are Personality feat checks with an added punch. There are just some things that will not happen no matter how lucky a character is. When a situation is presented that affords no logical use of a Personality feat check, then a Miracle can be called for.

A call for a Miracle represents the role that the gods and spirits of the universe play in the fate of the character and in the situation he is in. When rolled any success generates a Miracle, which corrects a given situation as quickly and as unnoticeable as possible. If successful the character must then roll another check using the same modifier to determine if a quest or sacrifice is required of him. If a failure is generated some form of sacrifice must be made. This sacrifice, whether of material goods or the characters personal time, almost always furthers the deities ends. Any success indicates that Miracle is seen as a reward for good service. A critical failure on this roll is treated like a failure except that the sacrifice required needs to be a greater show of devotion to the rescuing power.

If a player announces a sacrifice to the gods or promises some grand, sacrificial action, the Game Master may grant a Situation Modifier to the feat check based on the nature of the sacrifice stated. Failure to provide this promise however is not a good idea; the gods will eventually be satisfied.

Frivolously calling a Miracles when they are not required or when the character has other options in dealing with a situation may lead to a loss of Standing points as the Game Master sees fit. This not an ability to abuse. As a final note; the Faith perk cannot be used to modify these results nor do any other game modifiers apply including penalties for excessive wounds.

Bestowing Curses

Any one provoked to a point of great anger can swear a curse at another being. Whether a curse presents a real danger or is just hot air is also a function of the Standing score. Curses are not as easy to exact, as are Miracles, and for most cases an Amazing result is required for a curse to have any effect at all. As with the ability to beseech miracles, bestowing curses should be used to add color to a game, not another spell.

For the most part, curses of this type do not take effect immediately. These curses can take years to fulfill or may only take if certain conditions exist. An opponent may yell I damn you to eternal unrest. If an amazing result is generated and the recipient dies before the curse is lifted he or she may return from the grave as one of the undead. A curse could doom a greedy lord to have no living heirs to pass on his lands and position. Whatever the case the curse should be creative and the Game Master is obliged to grant bonuses or penalties based on the nature of the curse desired.

Using a curse is usually a once in a lifetime event that is seldom repeated. Used only in moments of extreme duress it is often only employed when the person bestowing the curse is about to die. Abuse of this ability can be severe and if a character wantonly uses it the Game Master must apply some form of punishment. Otherwise every character in the game will be making feat checks to bestow curses. Of course there is the simpler method of never allowing characters who abuse this ability any chance of success.

The results of the check should remain secret from the players even if they were the curses initiators. Never knowing if the dying words of a shaman will come true can lead to some interesting actions on the players part. Even a fruitless curse can have effect if the target being leads his life trying to avoid it. This is what is known as a self-fulfilling prophecy. An example of this is a curse stating that the target will never succeed in business. Reacting out of fear, the target never gets involved in business for fear of failure and thus dies in poverty.

Followers

As a bastion of a faith, persons with a high Standing score eventually attract followers. The use of those numbers listed coincides with the characters Fame score. If the character is well known and is of a high Standing then people will flock to him seeking their deity through his actions. If the character is some form of Faith talent then these followers will likely form the basis of a new temple or even a community around the character. Other types of characters will attract the same types of followers. In this case however they will not automatically seek guidance from the character as they realize that he is not a priest. They will however see him as a champion to their cause and will refer to him as a leader. Often times the followers how up simply seeking advise and direction. The character can opt to retain them or to send them forth on some divine quest or mission.

The numbers shown are an average and each entry is cumulative with the last. These numbers can be increased or decreased based on the campaign and the actions of the character.

Divine Gifts

Divine Gifts are rewards the character receives for steadfast service to his faith. When a characters Standing score reaches the indicated number as shown on the table above, the gift become available. Each gift can be gained only once. If a character reaches a certain score, falls from grace, and then reaches the score again no divine gift (if any) is gained. Each is described below.

Faith Bonus: At Standing scores 2 and 12 the character is granted the benefit of automatically passing a Faith perk check. This bonus can only be used once. If the character is not a Believer or a Faith Adept then they gain the same ability for an automatically successful check but retain no ability to use the Faith perk later.

Minor Gift: At a Standing score of 4 the character is granted a minor gift that aids him in his quest. The gift can be a lucky clue, finding a badly needed weapon or tool, or even having a situation go his way with no specific reason based on die rolls.

Last Resort: At Standing scores 8 & 14 the character gains a free Last Resort. This point can be used normally but is lost once spent.

Holy Vision: At a Standing score of 10 the character receives a Holy Vision about something very important to the character. This powerful insight is perfect in clarity and detail. The Game Master decides when the vision occurs however a player may call on it with a successful Standing check.

Major Gift: At a Standing score of 16 the character gains a major gift. This can be a greater version of the minor gift above or it can be something else entirely. The character may be selected as the protector of a holy weapon or FX item of he himself may be protected by a powerful being sent by the gods. The purpose of the gift is to aid the character in his quests and the longevity of the gift is based on the completion of some monumental task or purpose.

Ascension: At a Standing score of 20 the character has achieved a coveted position in the after life. Instead of starting at lower ranks or being, the character immediately forms as one of the more powerful denizens in the realms of the gods. If a character achieves this level after his death he may return using the Demigod or Outside career choices as detailed under Legends in chapter 2.

Depending on the nature of the campaign a character may also be lifted into the heavens (or pulled into the fiery depths) once this level of Standing is achieved.

Languages

Languages only cost 1 point for rank 1 so a character that intends to travel should purchase a few of them. Languages add life to a campaign as well as a sense of realism. However realism is the key word. In some campaign worlds it may be normal for all beings to speak the same language while in other, more realistic ones, different countries on the same continent may host a variety of tongues. Some campaign worlds make this distinction while others do not. Game Master's will need to decide how many languages exist when designing a campaign so that player know before hand which Knowledge-language skills are appropriate.

As a general rule the following languages can be assumed to exist in any campaign regardless of the level of realism.

Common: This tongue is the common human language found in the campaign. It is also commonly used as a trade language by other races as well. If the Game Master includes specific human languages then Common can be termed purely as a trade language.

Draconic: This is the language of Dragons. Some species may have their own tongue but all of them know this one. This language is often used by Arcanists in the writing of spells as well as a required course in a place of arcane learning.

Druid Cant: This is the secret tongue used by nature priests in their prayers to nature and in communication to each other. The cant is more of a dialect or slang than an independent language and has similarities to the common tongue.

Elemental: Elemental languages include Aquan (water), Auran (air), Ignan(fire), and Terran (earth). Each is a separate language used by the denizens of those planes. None elemental beings who learn and make use of these tongues suffer a base +2 penalty to their use. This is due to the exotic nature of the tongues and the difficulty of producing many of the required sounds. This penalty does not apply to attempts at understanding an elemental however.

Giant: Giant is a common tongue used by various giant types. Occasionally certain species of giant may have their own language, however they always know this one.

Planar: Planar tongues include Abyssal, Celestial, and Infernal. Each is used independently by extra-planar beings. It is not uncommon for an Outsider to know several of them. These languages are often used by mortal Arcanists in the writing and casting of spells.

Racial Languages: Many non-human races have their languages. A brief list of the more commonly known is Dwarven, Elven, Gnoll, Gnome, Goblin, and Orc. Other races may also have their own tongues as determined by the Game Master.

Sylvan: This is the common language of the Fey and other woodland dwelling beings of a magical nature.

Undercommon: This is the trade language used by the denizens of the Underdark.

Perks and Flaws

Perks and flaws work exactly as they are described in the Alternity Player's Handbook. The two tables below show the new perks and flaws that have been added to this game and after each table are the descriptions of these new traits as well as any other perks or flaws that may have changes to them as well.

Perks

Heroes of fantasy games have many attributes that make them special. The list below includes all new perks as well as those from the Alternity Player's Handbook. New perks are underlined and are described below. Any perk in Italics must be bought at the time of character creation and cannot be purchased later in ones career.

PerkCostAbilityType

Ambidexterity4DEXActive

Animal Friend4WILConscious

Berserk Rage5CONConscious

Cavalry1 to 10PERConscious

Concentration3INTConscious

Danger Sense4WILActive

Faith5WILConscious

Filthy Rich6PERConscious

Fists of Iron2/5STRActive

Fortitude4CONActive

FX Item4/8/12N/ASpecial

Gearhead4PERActive

Good Luck3WILConscious

Great Looks3PERActive

Heightened Ability10SpecialActive

Improved Skill5/10SpecialActive

Jack of all Trades5INTConscious

Magic Awareness4INTActive

Mentor4PERConscious

Networked2PERActive

Observant3WILActive

Photo Memory3INTConscious

Powerful Ally4PERConscious

Psionic Awareness3INTActive

Reduced Mutation4CONActive

Reflexes4DEXActive

PerkCostAbilityType

Renown (Celebrity) 3PERConscious

Reputation3WILActive

Second Sight4WILConscious

Subtle2/4/6SpecialActive

Tough as Nails4STRActive

Vigor2/3/4CONActive

Well Traveled4PERConscious

Willpower4WILActive

Animal Friend

The bonuses granted by this perk are cumulative with the special abilities of the Ranger class or any Free Form character with similar abilities.

Berserk Rage (Perk)

When the berserk wishes to enter a rage they call upon their internal energies and frustrations to fuel a massive burst of psychotic frenzy. When used, the berserk rolls a constitution feat check. It costs the berserk one of his or her actions to activate this perk. The result indicates the bonus that the berserk receives to Action Checks, Unarmed Combat, Melee Weapons, Armor Optimization, Resolve, Stamina, and Athletics broad and specialty skill checks as follows: Ordinary 1, Good 2, and Amazing 3. This bonus is also treated as a Resistance Modifier against Encounter skills and Influential FX that effect the mind. If a Marginal result is indicated, then the perk has no effect but the berserk may try again. If a Critical Failure is the result then the perk is treated as the Berserk Flaw of Ordinary quality.

Once the perk is activated the effects last for 1d4+1 rounds and at the end of that time the berserk suffers Fatigue damage. The amount of fatigue damage that is suffered is dependent upon the result of a Stamina-endurance check. In this case a critical failure causes 3 points of damage, a failure causes 2, and an ordinary result causes 1. The bonus gained by this perk does not apply to the endurance skill check.

Cavalry

This perk is a bit like a combination of the Good Luck and the Powerful Ally perks. The perk can cost anywhere from 1 to 10 skill points, which grants a limited number of uses. The perk can only be used once per adventure and after every successful use one use of the perk is lost. If a player spends 3 points on the perk then he may use no more than three times through out his life.

The Cavalry perk is more of a player tool like last resort points than an actual ability that is own and acknowledged by the character. This perk simply means that the player can generate circumstance in the game to allow his character to survive.

When a Personality feat check is successfully rolled the while the character is in extreme danger he receives some form of help. The extent of the help is determined by the quality of the feat check. An ordinary result grants some form of aid but the character is stilled required to make some form of check to utilize the aid to his advantage. A good result usually implies a step bonus or Resistance Modifier that remains for the scene where it is most needed or the appearance of some event or being that distracts the situation to some degree allowing for escape. An amazing result generates some event that almost always ensures escape on the characters part with little or no direct action required in utilizing the bonus.

What appears or happens to aid the character is up to the Game Master. Anything from rock slides, a sudden and unsuspected wind, to the arrival of actual people or some monster is possible. The cavalry should never be something to unrealistic and Game Masters are encouraged to keep the results of the check as mundane as possible.

Faith

The uses for the Faith perk vary greatly in this game, as there are many different deities who represent many different spheres of reality. Followers of faiths that endorse conflict and war can use the benefits of this perk to aid them in combat. Similarly, a DM may rule that the use of the perk must fit in to the tenets of the faith and the spheres represented. For example it is acceptable for a DM to