Warlords Of Kruhl 3e EN:Gifts

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Gifts are exceptional abilities that a normal person can have, but that most people do not have. The details of each gift are highly dependent on a character's background, so the player should work with the GM to flesh out these details. Each gift costs one character point. We suggest spending about 5 character points on gifts.

Typical Gifts

This is a list of typical gifts found in a Warlords of Kruhl game. This list is not exhaustive. A character may well have a gift not listed here, subject to GM approval. However, any new gifts should be approximately as useful as these gifts, in order to maintain a sense of fairness with other characters.


Table: Typical gifts
Gift Type Benefit
Ambush Combat Prepare a location for an imminent encounter
Animal Companions Combat The character has one or more ordinary animals as loyal companions
Animal Empathy Skills Use Diplomacy and Manipulation skills on animals
Bardic Inspiration Combat Inspire others through exhilarating music and uplifting speeches
Blindfighting Combat The character incurs fewer penalties when unable to see or hear
Catch Arrows Combat Catch, deflect, or avoid a ranged attack
Connected Skills Get a favour from an old friend -- or an old enemy
Counterspell Combat Interrupt and prevent the casting of a spell they can see being cast
Elusive Combat May base defense on Agility rather than Brawn in hand-to-hand combat
Green Passage Skills Move between trees without crossing the intervening space
Hand-to-hand Lethality Combat Inflict additional damage in hand-to-hand combat
Hard Target Combat May base defense on Brawn rather than Agility in ranged combat
Indefatigable Combat The character does not incur a penalty when injured
Leadership Combat Spend plot points for others on the same team
Lightning Strike Combat May use Agility for Hand-to-hand Combat attack rolls
Linguist Skills Learn new languages with minimal effort
Master Plan Combat Gain a tactical benefit if there is time to prepare for an encounter
Mental Calculator Skills Solve complex mathematical operations by thinking about them
Perfect Recall Skills Remember something perfectly with a Reason roll
Ranged Disarm Combat Use a ranged weapon to perform a disarming attack
Ranged Lethality Combat Inflict additional damage in ranged combat
Reputation Skills Get favours from strangers who have heard of you
Sharpshooter Combat Adept at bypassing cover in ranged combat
Sneak Attack Combat Inflict additional damage when an opponent is at a disadvantage
Team Player Combat Gain a bonus die when working with others
Tenacious Combat May base defense on Presence rather than on Agility or Brawn
Unsettling Skills Make people nervous for no real reason

Ambush

A character with Ambush can prepare a specific location for an encounter at that location. The character must spend at least ten minutes preparing the site, and the preparations must be complete before the arrival of the expected opponents. The character and all of their allies gain a bonus die on their first attack during the encounter, even if their opponents are not surprised by the ambush. The character may only prepare one location per encounter.

Animal Companions

Prerequisite: Animal Empathy

A character with Animal Companions has one or more ordinary animals as loyal companions (see the "Animal companions" table). Animal companions operate independently of the character; making a new request of an animal companion requires a quick action. An animal companion has the normal attributes, movement, and attack types that kind of animal would have. However, animal companions are resistant to mental manipulation, having Presence equal to the character who befriended them, or their natural Presence, whichever is greater.

If one of the character's animal companions dies or is dismissed, it usually takes a week to find and befriend a replacement.


Table: Animal companions
Size Number Examples
Tiny 4 Bat, cat, hawk, rat, raven
Small 3 Baboon, chimpanzee, coyote, eagle, jackal, octopus
Medium 2 Black bear, boar, deer, hyena, mule, pony, vulture, wolf
Large 1 Brown bear, cow, dire wolf, horse, lion, tiger

Animal Empathy

The character has a bond with animals, and can use Diplomacy and Manipulation skills on them. Normal animals are more likely to be calm around the character, although a dangerous, hostile animal might require a successful Diplomacy or Manipulation roll to keep the animal from attacking.

Bardic Inspiration

Prerequisite: Bardic Lore

A character with Bardic Inspiration can inspire others through exhilarating music and uplifting speeches. The character may use a quick action to select a person or creature within medium range (100 m). That person or creature gains a bonus die, which they may use on any single roll during the current scene. A person or creature may only have one bonus die from Bardic Inspiration at a time. The number of bonus dice a character with Bardic Inspiration may grant per day is equal to their Power Level.

Blindfighting

Normally, a character who can't perceive their opponent has great difficulty in combat. If a character has the Blindfighting gift, they do not incur any of these penalties.

Catch Arrows

Prerequisite: Enlightened Defense

A character with Catch Arrows can use a free action to catch, deflect, or avoid a ranged attack. For example, the character could try to catch an arrow, bat aside a poisoned dart, or avoid a bolt of magical fire. To catch, deflect, or avoid a ranged attack, the character must succeed at a moderately difficult (DV 3) Athletics (Agility) roll.

Connected

"I know a guy." The character has a wide ranging network of friends, rivals, and former associates. From time to time, the character can contact one of these people, and have a reasonable chance of getting a favour from them. When the character wants to get a favour from someone, the player names the NPC and briefly describes how their character knows this contact. When the character meets their contact, they must attempt a moderately difficult (DV 3) Diplomacy (Presence) roll to see how their contact receives them. The GM may increase the difficulty or grant a bonus die on the player's roll, depending on the situation.

Counterspell

Prerequisite: Mage Sight

Once per round, a character with Counterspell can use a free action to interrupt and prevent the casting of a spell they can see being cast within medium range (100 m). Counterspell requires a successful Thaumaturgy (Power Level) roll against a Thaumaturgy or Theology (Power Level) roll of the target attempting to cast a spell. If the character's roll meets or exceeds the target's roll, the target's spell has no effect, as though they had never cast it. Additionally, if the character's Counterspell attempt is successful, one point of their Arcane Power is depleted.

Elusive

A character with the Elusive gift is fast on their feet and good at rolling with the punches. When making a Hand-to-hand Combat defense roll, the character may substitute their Agility for their Brawn. The player may choose which attribute to use on a case by case basis.

Green Passage

Prerequisite: Unhindered Stride

Green Passage allows the character to use a move action to step into a tree (or other large plant) and step out of any other tree they can see within medium range (100 m), without traversing the intervening space. A character using Green Passage may carry with them whatever they can carry, based on their Brawn. This may include equipment, or even other characters.

Hand-to-hand Lethality

A character with the Hand-to-hand Lethality gift inflicts additional damage in hand-to-hand combat. If the character makes a successful hand-to-hand attack and inflicts at least one point of Endurance damage, they inflict one additional point of Endurance damage.

Hard Target

When making a Ranged Combat defense roll, the character may substitute their Brawn for their Agility. The player may choose which attribute to use on a case by case basis.

Indefatigable

Normally, a character who has been reduced to 1 Endurance can speak and take roleplaying actions, but any other action, including combat, incurs a penalty die. A character with Indefatigable is just as close to defeat, but they do not incur a penalty die for this condition.

Leadership

A character with the Leadership gift excels at bringing out the best in others, and other people are more effective with the character than they are alone. The player of a character with Leadership can spend their own plot points on behalf of their teammates and allies. For example, this could be to help an ally do something the character with Leadership is not in a position to do, or to provide support for a teammate who is in trouble.

Lightning Strike

A character with Lightning Strike can deal devastating blows using speed and finesse rather than brute force. When making a Hand-to-hand Combat attack roll, the character may substitute their Agility for their Brawn. The player may choose which attribute to use on a case by case basis.

Linguist

A character with the Linguist gift is fluent in dozens of languages, and is capable of quickly deciphering new languages when they encounter them.

Master Plan

With sufficient time and preparation beforehand, a character with the Master Plan gift is able to gain a tactical benefit during an encounter at a time chosen by the player. The form this takes can vary, and should be negotiated between the player and the GM, but a relatively typical use of a Master Plan would be similar to the use of a plot point. The amount of time needed to formulate a Master Plan should be long enough to be believable, but not so long that it renders the gift useless. Generally speaking, a character should only be permitted to concoct one Master Plan per game session, unless the GM makes an exception.

Mental Calculator

The character can perform complex mathematical calculations in their head in the same amount of time that a skilled mathematician could perform the same calculations on a powerful computer. Also, the character has an intuitive understanding of higher mathematics, and is able to comprehend and remember intricate formulae and equations after examining them briefly.

Perfect Recall

The character may perfectly remember any event, document, recording, or picture which the character has taken the effort to study and memorize. The character does not need to understand the items to be memorized, because the information memorized is not stored as text; it is in the character's memory as a picture. As such, the information is not subject to instantaneous retrieval, but the character may mentally "scroll down" or "fast forward" looking for a specific bit of data.

Ranged Disarm

Prerequisite: Sharpshooter

The character may use a ranged weapon to perform a disarming attack. A disarm is a special attack that does not inflict damage, but instead deprives the target of a piece of held equipment. A ranged disarm attack requires a successful Ranged Combat (Agility) roll against the Hand-to-hand Combat (Brawn) roll of the target. The attacker suffers a penalty die on the roll.

If the attacker's roll is equal to or greater than the defender's roll, the attacker may choose one piece of equipment held by the target and knock it from the target's grasp.

Ranged Lethality

A character with the Ranged Lethality gift inflicts additional damage in ranged combat. If the character makes a successful ranged attack and inflicts at least one point of Endurance damage, they inflict one additional point of Endurance damage.

Reputation

A character with Reputation is widely known, perhaps due to their exploits or achievements, or possibly because they are from a noble or notorious family. People who are impressed by this reputation may be more likely to cooperate with the character, and the character can sometimes gain favors from strangers. The character gains a bonus die on relevant Diplomacy rolls.

Sharpshooter

A character with the Sharpshooter gift adept at bypassing cover in ranged combat. When a defender has cover, or is prone, they gain a bonus die on their defense roll. A character with the Sharpshooter gift gains a bonus die on their Ranged Combat attack roll when targeting a defender who is prone or has cover.

Sneak Attack

A character with the Sneak Attack gift can make devastating attacks when an opponent is at a disadvantage. When the character is attacking a target who has a defense penalty die, the character will inflict one extra point of Endurance damage if their attack is successful and inflicts at least one point of Endurance damage.

Team Player

A character with the Team Player gift excels at working with others, and is more effective with others than they are alone. A Team Player gains a bonus die when combining their effort with others as part of a task or in combat.

Tenacious

The character refuses to admit defeat when others would fall by the wayside. When making a Hand-to-hand Combat or Ranged Combat defense roll, the character may substitute their Presence for their Agility or Brawn. The player may choose which attribute to use on a case by case basis.

Unsettling

The character is able to put off a disturbing vibe that makes people nervous for no discernible reason. Strangers will find themselves disliking the character without knowing why, and normal animals will avoid the character unless forced to approach by a trainer or some other circumstance. On the other hand, the character may find it easier to intimidate others, providing a bonus die to relevant Presence rolls.

Custom Gifts

You aren't limited to these gifts, of course. Feel free to make up your own. They should be approximately as useful and powerful as the ones listed here. Abilities that are more powerful are the domain of actual magic, while abilities that are less powerful are likely just roleplaying, or perhaps a creative use of a plot point. Here is an example of a custom gift.

Sense Auras

The character can see the invisible emanations around people and things. The character may use a standard action to attempt a moderately difficult (DV 3) Perception (Reason) roll to determine the color of the aura of a person or object (see the "Typical aura colors" table). The character may attempt a remarkably difficult (DV 6) Perception (Reason) roll to sense whether the person or object has actively been in league with entities from beyond the mortal world, and whether the aura is "warm" (positive, life affirming) or "cold" (negative, life negating). A typical person's aura is slightly "warm", but even a person with a "cold" aura is not necessarily wicked: they could just be having a bad day.

The aura of a character with Mental Resistance is not able to be read. Their aura isn't missing: from the aura-sensing character's point of view, it has the same impression as a failed Perception (Reason) roll.


Table: Typical aura colors
Color Temperament
Red In a positive light, red indicates a healthy ego: someone powerful, sensual, passionate, and energetic. In a negative light, red indicates anger, an unforgiving nature, or anxiety.
Orange In a positive light, orange indicates productivity and creativity: someone sociable, detail oriented, and courageous. In a negative light, it can indicate stress and addictions.
Yellow Indicates optimism, and easy-going nature, inspiration, and intelligence.
Green Indicates balance, growth, and a willingness to change. It is a strong indication of a love of people, animals, and nature.
Turquoise Indicates a sensitive, compassionate nature, that of a healer or a counselor.
Blue Indicates calm and focus. It is a strong indication of clarity, truthfulness, and an intuitive nature.
Indigo Indicates deep feeling: someone of profound intuition and sensitivity.
Violet Indicates a sensitive nature and greater than average psychic potential. May also indicate an artistic temperament.
Lavender Indicates great vision and imagination.