General Skills

General skills are available to people from all classes.

• NB: You may only gain the benefits of the Weapon Talent and Weapon Mastery skills for one weapon each encounter.

You may purchase each Weapon Specialisation skill once.

One-Handed Weapons

• Balanced ¹⁾: Gain a RESIST. You can only use this RESIST when on 1 hit.
• Unbalanced ²⁾: Certain triggers cause you to gain a STAGGER which you must use immediately on your next melee blow with that weapon. At the start of combat: gain a STAGGER. Every time you drop an enemy to 0 hits: gain a STAGGER. Whenever you drop to 0 hits: gain a STAGGER.
• Dagger: You may call IMMUNE to any call which hits your dagger.
• Throwing Weapon: You may call WOUND with a thrown weapon.

Two-Handed Weapons

• Great Weapon ³⁾: Certain triggers cause you to gain a STUN which you must use immediately on your next melee blow with that weapon. At the start of combat: gain a STUN. Every time you drop an enemy to 0 hits: gain a STUN. Whenever you drop to 0 hits: gain a STUN.
• Spear: Gain a RESIST. You can only use this RESIST when on full hits.
• Staff: Certain triggers cause you to gain a REPEL which you must use immediately on your next melee blow with that weapon. At the start of combat: gain a REPEL. Every time you drop an enemy to 0 hits: gain a REPEL. Whenever you drop to 0 hits: gain a REPEL.

NB: These categories are partly arbitrary and designed to further fun. If you’re uncertain about what a given weapon physrep would be, come and talk to us.

Pre-req: Weapon Specialization

You may purchase each Weapon Focus skill once.
This skill grants access to a number of weapon calls per encounter, depending on the type of weapon you choose to wield.
These calls must be delivered by melee.

• Balanced: Gain 1 STAGGER and 1 WOUND per encounter.
• Unbalanced: Gain 2 STUN per encounter.
• Dagger: Gain 2 WOUND per encounter.
• Throwing Weapons: Gain 3 REPEL per encounter.

• Great Weapon: Gain 2 STAGGER and 1 STUN per encounter.
• Spear: Gain 1 STAGGER and 1 REPEL per encounter.
• Staff: Gain 1 STAGGER and 1 REPEL per encounter.

Pre-req: Weapon Focus

You may purchase each Weapon Mastery skill once.
This skill grants access to a number of weapon calls per encounter, depending on the type of weapon you choose to wield.
These calls must be delivered by melee.

• Balanced: Gain 1 WOUND and 1 RESIST per encounter.
• Unbalanced: Gain 1 STUN. Every time you drop an enemy, regain 2 hits.
• Dagger: Gain 2 WOUND. Every time you drop an enemy, gain 1 AGILITY which you must use immediately.
• Throwing Weapon: Whenever you hit somebody with a throwing weapon, gain a DODGE you can use against that physrep.

• Great Weapon: Gain 2 uses of EITHER ARC STAGGER or ARC REPEL.
• Spear: Gain 1 WOUND and 1 STAGGER.
• Staff: Gain 1 use of ARC STAGGER or ARC REPEL.

• You may only adopt one Fighting Style at a time.
• You must be using the appropriate Fighting Style to gain the benefit of any of the Fighting Style Skills within that style.

Uses a Shield

• You may use a buckler in either hand.
• You can call IMMUNE to any effect call which hits your buckler.
• You may immediately make any call you take on your buckler back against the target.

• You may use a medium shield in either hand.
• You can call IMMUNE to WOUND or STUN calls that hit your shield.

Uses two one-handed weapons

• You may wield two weapons, one in each hand.
• If you have purchased the Weapon Specialisation skill for the weapon you are using in your off hand, you may use that Weapon Specialisation.

Uses a one-handed weapon with nothing in the off-hand

• When you adopt the Single Weapon Focus fighting style, you may not hold a weapon or shield your off-hand for the rest of the encounter.
• You may swap your off hand / weapon hand freely so long as one hand remains the off-hand.
• You may still throw Ichorwerk with your off-hand.
• This hand still counts as a free hand for the purposes of spellcasting and other non-weapon abilities.

• When you adopt this fighting style: gain one DODGE against every monster physrep.

Pre-req: Resolute Companion

• When you adopt this fighting style: you may triple any remaining weapon calls gained from Weapon Talent and Weapon Mastery skills for this weapon.
• For Unbalanced weapons, triple the STAGGERS gained by your Weapon Specialization - these must be used on your next three blows.

Uses a two-handed weapon, such as Staff, Spear or Great Weapon

• You may call IMMUNE to WOUND and STUN calls that hit your weapon.
• Gain a RESIST

• Take all WOUND calls at 1/2 duration.

• +2 hits

• Whenever being healed (by HEAL or FIGHT ON) from 0 hits,
• You may take an AGILITY.

• +2 hits

• You are particularly strong and fit.
• You may carry a single unconscious or bleeding person at full speed. This does not take any hands.
• You may staunch this person by devoting a single hand to the purpose.

• +2 hits

Pre-req: Tough & Tough & Tough

• Gain one RESIST per encounter.

• +2 psyche.
• Once per encounter, when an effect call or other trigger would cause you to lose Concentration:
• Avoid losing Concentration.
• In addition, you may continue to Concentrate through the duration of an effect call avoided in this way.
• You may call 'STRONG WILL' to indicate this has occurred.

• +2 psyche.
• Once per encounter, when an effect call or other trigger would cause you to lose Concentration:
• Avoid losing Concentration.
• In addition, you may continue to Concentrate through the duration of an effect call avoided in this way.
• You may call 'STRONG WILL' to indicate this has occurred.

• +2 psyche.
• Once per encounter, when an effect call or other trigger would cause you to lose Concentration:
• Avoid losing Concentration.
• In addition, you may continue to Concentrate through the duration of an effect call avoided in this way.
• You may call 'STRONG WILL' to indicate this has occurred.

Pre-req: Strong Willed & Strong Willed & Strong Willed

• Gain one RESIST per encounter.

• You may diagnose diseases and mundane poisons.
• You may also come up with a treatment regimen which can cure feeble potency afflictions of the body between encounters.
• As a downtime action: you can devise a treatment regimen to cure a strong affliction of the body.

• You can understand the shape and nature of spiritual maladies.
• You can devise a treatment regimen which can cure feeble potency afflictions of the mind between encounters.
• As a downtime action: you can devise a treatment regimen to cure a strong affliction of the mind.

• With 10s medical roleplay you may call HEAL 4 to someone on their death count.

• With 10s medical roleplay you may call HEAL 2 to someone.

Pre-req: Healer & Seer

• You may attempt to treat afflictions between encounters.
• You also have a greater understanding of the healing arts.
• You can perform autopsies to attempt to discern information from dead bodies or conduct a seance to commune with the ghost of the recently departed.
• Between adventures, you may cure your party of any number of feeble or strong afflictions.

• You have been trained in ciphers.
• You can recognize and understand most common ciphers and have the ability to devise your own or attempt to decrypt more esoteric ones.
• You can assume that any written communication you undertake is encrypted.
• Additionally, you understand the meanings of most esoteric symbols and any organisations with which they are associated.

• You may disguise yourself such that you do not look like yourself and are also not obviously disguised.
• You may also, with the right costume, disguise yourself as a member of a group:
  • You can generally pass as a member of this group as long as you don’t behave inappropriately or bump into a real member of the group.
• You are adept at hiding items upon your person. Only a thorough and invasive search will uncover them.

• By suppressing your life energy, you are capable of masking your presence completely. Eyes slide off you as you become insignificant.
• To enter Stealth, this takes 15 seconds of enhanced concentration.
  • This enhanced concentration is broken by taking damage, moving, making calls, and attacking.
  • You must crouch as though you were taking a STAGGER while performing this enhanced concentration.
• You may then call DISAPPEARING.
  • You may not move while under the effect of this DISAPPEARING call.
  • This DISAPPEARING call lasts indefinitely.
  • You may end this DISAPPEARING at will by dropping your fingers and spending 2 seconds without making calls, moving, or attacking.

• You may start a combat in Stealth if you wish.

• You may call BACKSTAB with daggers. You must wait 10s before using this ability with the same weapon hand again, during which time you cannot unequip this weapon.

• You are a hard person to imprison.
• You can trivially slip out of mundane bonds with 60s concentration.
• You can pick any standard lock with 60 seconds concentration.
• You can understand the requirements or principles behind any complicated lock you encounter.
• In addition, once per adventure, when you find yourself in enemy hands, you may use this ability:
  • You discover a plausible method of escape for yourself and your allies.

• You are a skilled at running and climbing.
• Once per encounter, by channeling energy into your legs, you can move at incredible speeds for a short time.
• Concentrate for 2s.
• You may then call AGILITY.

• You are particularly adept at surviving in wilderness terrain.
• Whilst in the wilderness you gain a DODGE.
• You may also ask the GM before an encounter if you know anything about what you are about to encounter. If they are native to the region the GM should give you some useful information.
• Whilst in terrain for which you have the survivalist skill you may range ahead of the party and may start any encounter in which you are not surprised anywhere within the region of the encounter as long as you are at least 5m away from the nearest monster.
• You are adept at tracking within wilderness terrain.

Pre-Req: Survivalist

• You are an expert on the ways of the Forest and the creatures it contains.
• You gain the benefit of Survivalist when in the Forest of Loss.
• Once per encounter, you may call RESIST to a CURSE delivered by a Forest creature.

• You are particularly adept at surviving in urban terrain.
• Gain a DODGE while in urban terrain.
• You may also ask the GM before an encounter if you know anything about what you are about to encounter. If they are native to the region the GM should give you some useful information.
• Whilst in terrain for which you have the streetwise skill you may range ahead of the party and may start any encounter in which you are not surprised anywhere within the region of the encounter as long as you are at least 5m away from the nearest monster.
• You are adept at tracking within urban terrain.

Pre-req: Streetwise

• When you purchase this skill, pick a District of Rastaban (other than the Imperial District).
• You know this District like the back of your hand.
  • You can find shortcuts to travel quickly or unseen through your area.
  • You generally know the location of important and useful people within your area.
  • You can find somebody who is well-disposed to you within your area.
  • You understand the nuances of how law is enforced in your area, and can leverage this when under arrest.

• When you purchase this skill, choose a relatively broad subject:
• Your character is well informed on the ins and outs of it.

Pre-req: Knowledge

• You are a scholar within your area of expertise.
• Within this area your word is given more weight.
• As a Downtime action: you may publish your latest research.
  • This downtime action guarantees a good circulation of your work throughout Rastaban, especially to those who would take an interest in your findings.

• Contacts represent your ability gain information from and influence the various organisations within the world.
• These skills can only be brought with GM approval.
• These skills are typically unlocked after you have done something to impress the given organisation on an adventure.
• These skills cost favour in addition to their XP cost.
• You can purchase contacts skills multiple times with different organisations.

Cost: 5 favour

• You have basic contacts with an organisation.
• You can generally get to see someone relatively important within the organisation.
• Once per adventure the organisation will investigate a question and provide an answer for you (assuming it is something they can reasonably answer and would trust you with).
• You may also always ask your organisation if there is anything they want you to achieve on any given adventure.

Pre-Req: Affiliate
Cost: 10 favour

• You have begun to attain some degree of power and respect in your organisation.
• You can, with effort, get to see the leaders of your organisation.
• Once per adventure you may prevail upon the organisation to perform a minor task for you.

Pre-Req: Respected
Cost: 20 favour Requires GM approval

• Your opinion has great weight within the organisation.
• At this level you can influence the outcome of large decisions which the organisation makes.
• Once per adventure you may prevail upon the organisation to perform a major task for you.
• If the opportunity arises, you may have the option to retire into a position of unrivalled influence within your organisation. However, this is unlikely to be straightforward.