Gifts

Gifts are special abilities possessed by few. They are inborn qualities, random mutations, or divine blessings. They cannot be learned.

Below is a list of possible gifts. It is not exhaustive. Players may feel free to invent their own gifts, which The Adversary may then feel free to deny. The Adversary may add or drop gifts from the list to make it fit the game world.

Some of the listed gifts are useful for players who wish for their characters to be from other worlds. The Adversary has the final say about whether He will allow particular gifts into his game.

Gifts should not give bonuses to traits except in particular circumstances. They can help to negate penalties in their domain of function, however.

Sorcery

Sorcery is the power of gods given to mortals. More on this in Sorcery.

Empathy

This gifts allows one to heal wounds, calm shocks, and feel the emotions of other beings.

An empath may burn points of Fortune to heal wounds or shocks. She must touch the subject and concentrate, performing no other actions. The subject receives one point of healing per round.

If the empath is unable or unwilling to expend Fortune, she may still heal by sacrificing her own health or sanity. She may heal one wound for each wound inflicted on herself or one shock for each shock inflicted. This is also limited to one wound or shock per round.

An empath may feel the emotions of nearby creatures with a successful Intuition check vs the Defiance of the subject.

Senses

The following gifts allow a character's senses to operate in an unusual way. This does not add anything to the character's Perception, but may cancel penalties caused by certain situations.

Superior Hearing

This gift allows one to hear sounds whose pitch is above or below the range of normal human hearing. Ultrasonic noises include things like dog whistles and the screeches used by bats for navigation. Subsonic sounds include subtle vibrations that humans might feel, but can't hear. Some large animals, such as elephants, communicate using subsonic frequencies. More exotic creatures might also communicate this way.

Superior Olfaction

This gift allows one to detect scents with fine detail, like an animal. This can be used to tell individuals apart (which can be useful for seeing through a disguise) or to track someone like a bloodhound. The Adversary may require Perception rolls in either case.

Starvision

Starvision allows one to see clearly at night, as if it were daylight. This ability works even when the night is overcast. Starvision does not allow a character to see in pitch blackness, however. Deep caves and sealed rooms will be as dark to a character with starvision as they are to everyone else.

Immunity

This gift makes one immune to sickness, disease, and biological poisons. The character is still vulnerable to dangerous inorganic chemicals.

Longevity

A character with longevity ages at a slower rate than normal human beings. The rate at the discretion of the player and The Adversary. One could even be virtually immortal.

Alien Biology

The following gifts are meant for non-human characters from other worlds. Players should recognize that all of these come with a price beyond their cost in points - a character that looks strange and alien will often be hated or feared. It can not enter civilization without an excellent disguise, so must often rely on others to acquire simple needs like food and gear.

On the other hand, strange-looking beings are more likely to instill fear in an opponent who has never seen anything like them.

Amphibious

A character with this gift is equally at home in water or on land. The character has no penalties to movement, skill, or initiative in water.

Depending on the wishes of the player and the discretion of The Adversary, the amphibious character can either breathe water like a fish or hold its breath for hours like an aquatic mammal.

Extra Limbs

This gift gives creatures additional arms, legs, tentacles, tails, etc. Different limbs give different advantages. Extra legs or a tail provide better balance and stability, while extra arms or tentacles allow one to grasp more objects at once.

Natural Weapon

The character has claws, fangs, or some other natural attack. This gift gives the character +3 damage to unarmed attacks in melee and close combat.

Normal humans may take this gift to represent amazing kung fu.

Natural Armor

The character has armored scales or a tough hide. This gift gives +3 endurance vs physical attacks.

Phosphorescence

This gift allows a character's body to emit a soft glow like that of a firefly. This glow can be used to see only a few meters. It can be used for reading unless the writing is faint.

The player may choose whether this glow emits from the entire body or specific parts.

The glow can be turned on and off at will.