Trait Cost: 2

You have trained at a monastery, learning the basics of martial arts.

Perk

+1 to your martial arts skill. It and dodge are expertise.

Flaw

Attacks with weapons that do not use the martial arts skill are unlucky. You cannot wear metal armor.

Penance

Level 3 & 5 talents

Trait Cost: 3

You were trained in using the bow either as a militiaman or guardsman to defend your home from attackers and have become adept at their and functionality.

Perk

+1 when attacking with bows and crossbows. Gain the Archery Weapons mastery and your archery skill is expertise.

Flaw

Ranged weapons not listed in the perk of this trait and melee weapons have unlucky rolls. You cannot wear metal armor.

Bonus

+1d4 damage with bows and crossbows. The bonus is removed when the penance is paid.

Penance

Level 4 & 5 talents

Trait Cost: 3

As a child, you found the game hide and seek very entertaining and wanted to make a job out of it. Wanting to follow your dream of turning it into a job you trained to be a bounty hunter.

Perk

You gain a +1 in a statistic and you gain expertise in one combat or channeling skill or two basic skills associated with the statistic. The statistic cannot be increased above five.

Flaw

Having had to bring bounties in alive, you have gotten into a bad habit of pulling your punches, so to speak. All lethal damage is reduced by -2 and you can only chain damage up to three times instead of the standard five times.

Bounty hunters often have a bad reputation, so some places refuse to serve them out of fear. The cost of services is increased by +2 coin.

Bonus

Grapple and disarm checks are lucky.

Penance

Level 5 & 6 talents

Trait Cost: 1

You prefer to talk with your fists rather than your words.

Perk

+1 when attacking with your fists or a specific blunt weapon type of your choosing.

Flaw

You become extremely angry if you fail at talking with others. If you roll a one on a social skill, you automatically make an attack roll on the individual you are talking to.

Penance

5 talents

Trait Cost: 1

If there isn’t a bottle or tankard in your hand, you are searching for one. Alcohol is your game and fuel in life. Without it, you don’t know how to live.

Perk

+1 defense and +2 stamina when drunk. You ignore the effects of the drunk condition, but other effects of alcohol still affect you (i.e. hangovers, alcohol poisoning, etc.). The stamina bonus does not apply to stamina points when drinking.

Flaw

-1 defense and -2 stamina when sober

Bonus

Words are hard, -1 Barter and Influence. Bonus is automatically removed with the flaw if the penance is paid.

Penance

10 talents and gain a hangover if drunk when penance is paid.

Trait Cost: 1

Trained in the art of a duelist, you thrive with using single-handed bladed weapons.

Perk

+1 when attacking with blades.

Flaw

You can only gain the perk if using a single one-handed blade and your off-hand must be empty.

Bonus

+1d4 damage (that can chain) with blades if your off-hand is empty. This bonus is automatically removed with the flaw if the penance is paid.

Penance

5 talents

Trait Cost: 2

You were born with a naturally heightened sight which has allowed you to excel with ranged weapons.

Perk

Choose two ranged combat skills to be expertise and gain +1 for both of them. Your perception gains a +1 and is lucky.

Flaw

You have unlucky rolls to all other offensive combat skills and defense rolls against melee attacks.

Penance

5 talents

Trait Cost: 2

You have discovered how to materialize your essence into ammunition.

Perk

You can create ammunition out of your essence by materializing it into a solid form. Your essence can be molded into whatever ammo is needed for the ranged weapon you are currently using. One point of essence creates two bullets. If using a weapon that can only fire one ammunition at a time, the second ammunition hovers around you. Loading essence ammunition is a free action.

Flaw

Essence ammunition does not cause as much damage as it is not a completely solidified object. Essence ammunition has -3 to damage.

Bonus

The damage caused by essence ammunition cannot be chained.

Penance

5 talents

Trait Cost: 1

You have spent some time in your past as a guard to a noble or royal house.

Perk

Gain either the Light Armor or Heavy Armor skill as expertise.

Flaw

You cannot learn the Dodge mastery and the mastery you didn’t select for this trait’s perk.

Bonus

Your military life has caused you to have difficulty living a civilized life. Not only are you unable to take a joke, but if you roll a one on any social skill, you feel threatened and challenge whoever you are conversing with to a duel.

Penance

5 talents

Trait Cost: 2

You have learned the basics of guns and could save up enough for a basic version of one.

Perk

You starts you with a basic Short Barrel or Steam Barrel and twenty basic short or long bullets. Gain the Ranged Tech Weapons mastery.

Flaw

-2 to melee attacks as you have focused on ranged tech weapons instead of melee weapons.

Penance

5 talents

Trait Cost: 2

You are quick-tempered. When pissed off, you strike first and don’t bother asking questions later.

Perk

In combat, if you take damage from a melee attack, you can immediately attack back once per round.

Flaw

You have a problem controlling your temper. Rolling a one on a basic skill check (excluding barter, perception, pilot, and thieving skills) makes you want to break something.

Penance

7 talents

Trait Cost: 2

Perk

Gain the throwing weapons mastery and your throwing skill is expertise.

Flaw

When using other weapons that are not throwing, you have unlucky rolls because of your intense training, with only throwing weapons. You cannot wear heavy armor or wield shields, as they are too restrictive when throwing.

Bonus

Gain an additional +5ft. range with throwing weapons when they are thrown. This bonus is removed when the penance is paid.

Penance

5 talents

Trait Cost: 2

You have learned how to turn shields into a wall of defense.

Perk

When using shield defense to block an attack the damage is halved. This applies to damage that bypasses the shield, should the shield break. Half damage does not apply on critical strikes.

Flaw

-5ft. movement; -1 to attacks, unless attacking with a shield. Shield defense cannot be used to block critical strikes.

Bonus

It no longer requires a counter action to use shield defense.

Penance

7 talents

Trait Cost: 3

You were once enlisted in the military, a low-ranking soldier of an empire.

Perk

You gain +1 to attacks with martial or kobudo weapons and gain either the one-handed or two-handed skill as expertise. Gain either the Martial Weapons or Kobudo Weapons Mastery. The bonus to attacks applies to the weapon type based on the mastery taken.

Flaw

Attacks with weapons other than weapon mastery taken in the perk are unlucky. You cannot use dodge.

Bonus

Learning Counterattack, Multiple Engagements, and Heavy Weapon Expert cost one less talent for each rank.

Penance

Level 4 & 6 talents

Trait Cost: 1

In your past, you have learned how to be very agile to avoid damage.

Perk

Your Dodge skill is upgraded to expertise.

Flaw

You cannot wear armor or wield shields, as they feel too constricting.

Bonus

Having a fragile frame might allow you to avoid damage, but it also makes it so you cannot carry as much, -50lbs. to your carry capacity.

Penance

5 talents

Trait Cost: 2

Perk

You have studied with a master and have learned the flow of chi. Gain one instance of The Flow of Chi mastery and your martial arts is expertise. You gain ten maximum Chi.

Flaw

Your studies of Chi stances have prevented you from learning how to use weapons. You have unlucky rolls when using all weapons other than your body.

Bonus

You believe in traveling light, therefore you may not use backpacks, potion belts, and easy access area items. The largest storage container you are comfortable using is a small sack.

Penance

7 talents

Trait Cost: 4

Can only be taken at character creation

Wardens belong to the Order of Atsui. They use energy to improve their body and connection to channel without a physical conduit. However, the process reduces their life span, limits the number of spells they can channel without over channeling, and lowers their absolute essence.

Besides the energetic process, they are trained in melee combat to the point of being known as some of the best fighters in the world. See the Atsui Empire in the melting pot empires section of the cultures and empires chapter for more information about the Order of Atsui.

Perk

Armor Channeling

Channeling Spell Implants in armor does not have channeling in armor penalties.

Expertise Channeling Skill

Gain one expertise channeling skill of your choice.

Final Sacrifice

When your channeling reaches ten, you get Final Sacrifice as a special Spell Implant on top of the maximum number of Spell Implants.

Spell Implants

A Spell Implant is like a regular implant, but instead of granting unique abilities with charges, it allows you to channel a spell without using the Runic language or charges. Once tattooed, the Spell Implant cannot be removed, and if you have essence (or life force) the spell can be channeled as if the tattoo is the conduit.

Activating the spell costs the same essence it would normally cost if channeled normal. However, the spell only requires its activation word to be channeled. A Spell Implant’s activation word is the name of the spell but knowing Runic is not needed as you only need to memorize the spell’s Runic name is if activating a runic item.

You have equal to your channeling minus two in Spell Implants. Raise your channeling skill to get more Spell Implants.

Out of your Spell Implants, two of them must be elementary spells. Gain one of the elementary spells upon taking this trait and another one when the channeling skill taken with this perk reaches adept tier.

Flaw

Blocked Essence

Your absolute essence is reduced by three for every character level you gain to a maximum of -30 at level ten.

Channeling Restrictions

Channeling spells that are not your Spell Implants cause over channeling. This includes attempting Wild Energy with your expertise, channeling skill’s energy type.

Channeling spells that are not Spell Implants while in armor have the standard penalties for channeling in armor. You cannot make other channeling skills expertise (wild or educated).

One with Your Conduit

You cannot meld with any conduits as your conduit is the Spell Implants. This also means that you are affected by all over channeling effects that your conduit would normally take. For example, if your conduit was supposed to take damage for over channeling, you take the damage instead.

Spell Level Cap & Aging Effects

The maximum level spell that can be put into a Spell Implant is four. Spells higher than level four cannot be used with Spell Implants.

Every Spell Implant you receive will make you age two years permanently.

Spell Limitation

The maximum number of Spell Implants you can have is eight (six level one to four spells and two elementary spells).

Bonus

Gain one melee weapon mastery of your choice (i.e. Martial Weapons or Melee Tech Weapons). Your light armor skill is expertise.

Penance

There is no penance, as the energetic process to become a warden cannot be reversed.

Trait Cost: 2

You have uncontrollable fits of saying random words out loud and towards others. You know others look at you as if you are insane, but you know you can’t control the outbursts, so ignoring their shocked stares is something you have become good at.

Perk

Because of your frustration and anger at not having full control of yourself, you gain +1d6 to all melee damage that is non-magical. This damage can be chained.

Flaw

-1 to attacks as your attacks are wilder. -1 to all social skills.

Bonus

Knowing that people look at you as if you are insane, you have a stronger mental fortitude. You gain +5 mental health.

Penance

5 talents