Bay 12 Games Forum

The woods surrounding the manor are... not as I remember them. Warped, sickly, festering... if it's this bad this far out, what does it look like near the manor itself?

Only one thing can stand against this corruption: The power of friendship!

I am not a magical girl.

I am, for a little bit more.



For now, a hardened crusader and high-class bandit will have to do.



We encounter a brigand. The warnings were true: These lands are not safe.





The thug is vicious, but no match for my companions.







Already justice is proving to be quite profitable...



More thugs, and not just opportunistic rabble this time. Getting supplies through here must be a harrowing ordeal...





Renault sends them a message.





The remainder of the trip is uneventful, by the standards of a tense hike through corrupted, enemy-infested woods.

The hamlet is... also not as I remember it.

There is much to do. Starting with our new recruits.

They're not magical girls either.

My two favorite things are healing comrades and beating skeletons.

Acid solves everything!

...

Ha! This darkness doesn't stand a chance!

There are four stats a character may possess, determining their ability to perform various actions.

Strength represents a character's strength, endurance, and raw physical prowess. It is used for heavy or menial labor and war.

Finesse represents a character's subtlety, cunning, and swiftness. It is used for foraging, treachery, skirmishing, and producing most crafts.

Wisdom represents a character's mental acuity and learning. It is used for scholarly pursuits and organizing large or complex projects.

Spirit represents a character's charisma and expression. It is used for persuasion, art, and entertainment.


Each turn, you may divide your stats among as many actions as you desire, each being performed at the magnitude of the points used on it.

A rough scale of power is listed below. Note that many characters will split themselves among several stats, so an entity powerful enough to be considered a Greater deity might only possess an Established degree of any one stat.

Total Stats	Rank	Description
2	Minor	Lowly functionaries and divine soldiers. If they are known by mortals, it is typically as a throng of assistants following the wake of a more potent god. Most receive no worship save from a modest herd of mortal descendants or underlings.
4	Lesser	Weaker or younger divinities, often serving as personal servants or trusted apprentices to higher gods. Many retain a wealthy family or powerful guild for worship, and often receive trivial amounts as the trusted servants or favored pupils of a mightier god.
8	Normal	Common but unexceptional deities, often found in service or association with more powerful gods or pantheons. They typically receive worship alongside their greater kin, and may serve as patron gods to lesser cities.
16	Established	True and exalted divines, typically well known among mortals and in control of a flourishing series of cults.
32	Greater	The greatest and grandest of the gods, pinnacles and paragons of all divinity. Every mortal knows and fears their name, and their worship is often widespread even among the holdings of their rivals.
64	Supreme	Only the sun himself approached this level of power, dictating the laws of the world and ruling justly over all others.

Stats typically come from Traits, which usually provide both stat points and a special ability of some sort. This ability can be virtually anything, and represents your unique talents in a given field.

Traits are gained or improved through great triumph and accomplishment. An artisan might produce a thousand clay pots without ever becoming more than he is... unless, of course, producing a thousand clay pots is impressive in its own right. Mighty heroes and bold artists, on the other hand, might improve their craft by leaps and bounds... at least until their ambition proves their undoing.

Two special sorts of traits exist.

Titles are traits acquired through current circumstances rather than innate merit, and so do not provide any stats. Formal rank or position, lavish accommodations, and useful tools might all grant special abilities related to their nature so long as they persist, but not improve stats.

Tenets are traits which have been "gilded" with Ambrosia- mortal worship. This improves them beyond mundane levels and into supernatural boons, as well as shaping (or creating) a body part or organ the trait is associated with into an obviously superior form, typically of a high value material. Golden horns, a ruby heart, and wings of liquid shadow are all possible forms for a Tenet.

It is physically possible to remove and transplant a Tenet from one host to another, though the exact effects of such may be unpredictable. Doing so is generally seen as blasphemous and foul except under specific circumstances (such as a descendant borrowing an ancestor's Tenet for a vital task), but unscrupulous gods have been known to harvest their fallen foes in an attempt to boost their own power.


Ambrosia is the name given to worship harnessed by the gods, and typically appears as a faintly golden mist. It powers Miracles, special actions only the gods may perform, as well as being used to enhance a god's abilities into noble Tenets. Most gods conserve Ambrosia to gain Tenets where possible, and spend it on Miracles only once they have been fully "gilded." Weaker and less popular gods typically struggle to amass enough for this purpose, while those with large followings can be far more generous with their divine expenditures.

Miracles are acts of divine power, requiring Ambrosia to function. They otherwise behave much like mundane actions in terms of scale and attributes used, but consume some quantity of Ambrosia- typically one point per stat point used. Particularly wealthy gods will often spend additional Ambrosia to boost the scale, blessing (or cursing) hundreds or thousands of mortal followers at a time, while especially stingy gods may attempt to conserve the precious substance by imbuing larger mundane works with just a spark of the divine.

The True Gods rule over all the civilized lands of the world. Though savage hordes and mutant abominations lurk in the darkened corners of the world, here justice and order reign supreme.

Gods- no matter their origins or nobility- possess blood of liquid metal. This metal dries to a solid form when spilled, and desperate or generous gods sometimes bleed themselves to produce valuable materials for themselves or their followers. Doing so routinely is often considered beneath a god's dignity, but the practice is too valuable to be rare.

Such blood is heritable, and most deities possess one of a handful of materials signifying their bloodline. Often the exact qualities vary a bit from lineage to lineage, paler here, a bit of a bluish tint there. In truly civilized lands with little outside threat, such distinctions can become all too important, but even in the highest of divine courts there is some expected variation. Some families or individuals possess an entirely different blood than expected, but are still typically grouped according to their expected bloodline.

Most gods look much like their followers, albeit around twice as tall and far more beautiful. Much like said followers, half of all civilized deities are Riven- born sterile, but otherwise normal.

The four major bloodlines of civilization are listed below. Other materials are known to exist, but typically grouped into one of these categories where relevant.


Silver: The Gods of Order rule over the Jadeblood kingdoms at the center of the world and to its north and south. It was they who led the conquest of the ancient and wicked Primordials at the dawn of time, and they who ordered the world into its current state. Much like their charges, they guard the natural order of the world, form dynasties of power and alliances of blood, and war amongst themselves in moderation.

Cobalt: The Gods of the Underworld maintain the natural flows of the world from deep inside it, lording over Jadescale enclaves and stranger things found in the bowels of the earth or at the borders between life and death. Their members tend to be powerful but isolated, each ruling over a specific stronghold of importance rather than spreading as far and wide as fortune allows. Most likewise cultivate expansive bloodlines to give them ample demigod servants, well-bred for the particulars of their sacred tasks. New divines are most often raised from among the most talented and loyal of these half-god servants, replacing or augmenting their divine ancestor's sacred purpose.

Pewter: The Gods of the Desert are a conniving bunch, ruling over the shifting Whitefang kingdoms of the eastern deserts. There they play their endless games with one another and their neighbors, vying for supremacy through subtlety and deception. In theory new gods are raised up from those who triumph in heroic challenges, but in practice these games are as rigged as any other; it is rare that a new divine isn't the middling demigod spawn of a reigning deity, talented enough to succeed but not talented enough to have been anyone's first priority in sabotaging.

Green Gold: The Gods of Savagery are a varied lot, less a single lineage and more a collection of exiles, renegades, second sons, and stranger things drawn from civilization, vile wilderness, and beyond. They rule over the savage tribes and hardened cities of the borderlands between civilization and savagery, and know better than most what horrors still lurk beyond the edges of the former. Most take an active role in their followers' affairs, serving as god-kings or ancestor-spirits, and warring or allying with each other as the situation demands.

There are many races of mortal upon the world, most of them worthy only of iron and fire. Those commonly found in and around the bastions of order include the following.

Half of all civilized races- the Jadeblood, Jadescale, and Whitefang- are born Riven, sterile but otherwise normal. This quality is seen as a defining trait between the true lords of the world and its chaff, but individual Riven handle the condition differently. Some loyally serve their family, others seize control and breed their relatives to further their blood, and a rare and hated few even destroy their own lineages out of spite or hubris.


Jadeblood: Severe, ash-skinned humanoids with no hair, glowing green eyes, and slits for noses. Unyielding and cruel, Jadeblood form the bulk of most mortal civilizations, building great mausoleum-cities and maintaining the brutal order of the world. They value the dead above the living, carefully interring and appeasing their deceased ancestors. In return, the honored dead offer their wisdom and even walk among the living where necessary, making the number and quality of fallen kin a source of both prestige and power for Jadeblood dynasties.

Jadescale: Hulking, eyeless reptilian brutes covered in flexible banded plates. Jadescale are subterranean predators, hunting prey and avoiding hazards with senses beyond mortal sight. They are also renowned mystics, patrolling and maintaining the borders between the living and the dead- borders far more permeable and crumbling than those on the surface would like to believe. Their settlements range from nomadic hunting bands to horrifyingly massive temple-cities they could not possibly have built- and make no claim to having done so.

Whitefang: Short, lithe snakemen with a cobralike hood. Despite their diminutive stature, Whitefang are cunning and agile in the extreme, ruling the river-cut eastern deserts through subtlety and guile as much as wisdom or steel. They owe much of their current prosperity to toppling the far more industrious and communal Stonelings, and then keeping them too off balance and fratricidal to rise again. They are no less canny when dealing with each other, and the thriving merchant-cities of the east are constantly seething with unknown plots and hidden machinations.

Glowcoil: Pale, slightly glowing humanoids with a mantle of tentacles in place of legs and a mane of tentacles in place of hair. Most Glowcoil are slaves, their once-mighty civilization having been brought low by Jadeblood in the warm, mountainous north in ancient times. Their docile nature, high rate of reproduction, and physical attractiveness have made them a nearly ubiquitous slave race, and the paler coloration and debauched habits of the northern Jadeblood are often blamed on intermixing with their chattel. Some are pampered and kept as personal assistants, while others are worked to death in great droves in the mines. Either way, they replenish themselves quickly.

Stoneling: Hunched, knucklewalking weevilmen of diminutive stature. The Stonelings were once industrious and unified, but the Whitefang toppled their kingdoms and drove them to savagery. Even today, most Stoneling clans are kept fractious and primitive, warring more over blood feuds with each other than against their hated oppressors. A fair few end up working for more civilized races as mercenaries or slaves- their hatred of their own kin endears them more to their new masters than a race of savages otherwise could. When they can rise above this nature, they are hard working and very communal.

Ash-Husk: Hunched crablike monsters with a single cyclopean eye. It is said that at the dawn of time, there ruled a mighty Primdordial whose castoff scales would arise as Ash-Husk; such was its vile power that it sowed this new race wherever it went. Though this Primordial is long since vanquished (or so they say), its vile progeny have bred true, and now infest and ravage the wild and unguarded corners of the world. While the civilized races are essential in keeping this abhorrent tide at bay, they are not above enslaving or even hiring such brutes themselves, wielding them against each other, different horrors, or even other Ash-Husk clans.

As a Manager, your job is to guide one or more violent prima donnas to victory and wealth despite their best efforts. To no one's surprise, it's a job that's typically much harder and stranger than it looks.


Gigs and Profits
The basic unit of action for most Idols is the Gig- a monthlong action taken for certain rewards and of variable effectiveness. Gigs may be offered publicly, sent discretely to you or your clients, or sought out by you. Gigs provide two sources of payment- a Signing Bonus and a Payout.

The Signing Bonus is an initial infusion of cash or other items in exchange for taking the job. How much of this bounty goes to the Manager or Idol is up to the Manager.

The Payout is any modification to the Idol's asset tracks (detailed below). While most Payouts are positive, it is possible to reduce an asset track in this manner if the job is especially obscure, costly, or unsavory. In addition, each relevant Specialty and shared Creed with the audience (both detailed below) gives an additional point in either the Manager's or Idol's choice of any asset track.


The Horrors of War
Responding to the omnicidal threat of gargantuan abominations is a special type of Gig with its own rules. Most defense or extermination missions are publicly offered, but defense missions are generally quite time-sensitive. Such missions still offer a Signing Bonus and a Payout, and an Idol's Creed still gives an additional point of Payout if it matches the audience being defended. However, several other important distinctions must be made.

The most notable is that combat requires giant mechs, also known as Idols, to be effective. These foes are very, very large and the power of friendship focused into a death ray will only get you so far. Needless to say, such hardware tends to be expensive- which is one reason Idols are often dependent on their Managers and you are currently dependent upon the local government.

Once combat is joined, Idols possess two major components. The first is their HP total, representing the structural stability of their mech. The second is their deck, representing their combat options. Each turn, a pilot randomly selects and uses three cards from their deck. Cards are usually not expended when used, but are discarded when multiples of a card are drawn in the same turn or when the mech takes damage and has more cards than HP.

Cards come from a variety of sources, most notably the physical armaments of the mech and the skills and traits of the pilot. Properly managing your Idol's deck is an important part of ensuring combat efficiency.

The other major concern with combat is how entertaining it is. Saving a colony from certain destruction is assuredly important. However, creating entertaining footage is equally as vital from an immediate economic perspective. Fights that are too quick or one sided tend to score lower with audiences and thus give fewer rewards, while hard-fought and flashy battles tend to rake in the cash. What you do with this information is up to you, but many Managers prefer a nuanced and multifaceted approach that takes all sides of the equation into consideration.


FAME, FORTUNE, and GLORY
All characters possess three asset tracks for acquiring permanent goodies, though it's usually only relevant in Idols. Each starts at 0 and possesses a maximum value based on the character's characteristics. Progress (and occasionally loss) is made through completing Gigs, with relevant traits boosting the amount gained. When any of these tracks hits or exceeds its maximum value, the character receives a permanent asset with a level equal to the total value of the track, including any excess.

FAME represents how well known and famous an Idol is. Rewards from the FAME track grant corporate assets- factories, controlling interest in hydroponics farms, or transportation networks. Famous Idols are important and powerful.

FORTUNE represents how wealthy and profitable an Idol is. Rewards from the FORTUNE track grant personal assets- extravagant mansions, personal space yachts, or a ball gown made of condensed starlight. Wealthy Idols are comfortable and smug.

GLORY represents how well liked and admirable an Idol is. Rewards from the GLORY track grant social assets- devoted butlers, tenacious sidekicks, or a friendship with the local governor. Glorious Idols are influential and well connected.

Assets such as these serve a number of important functions. First and foremost, Idols greatly enjoy having them; a Manager who successfully guides his clients into fabulous riches will generally be considered worth having. A Manager whose Idols are all impoverished is somewhat less appealing. Assets can also provide further opportunities for some Idols, such as hosting outrageous parties at their low orbit mansion or having their devoted sidekick arrange Gigs for them. Finally, some assets (or combinations of assets) can grant additional specialties to better perform certain Gigs or utilize certain actions in combat.


Specialties
In theory, anyone can do anything. In practice, not anyone can do everything well.

Specialties are traits that represent an Idol's particular passions, talents, and experiences. They tend to be relatively open-ended concepts, such as Lasers or Dancing, and individuals attempting an action without a relevant Specialty are limited to boring, standard versions of that thing. Those with appropriate (or sufficiently inappropriate) Specialties can get much more creative, and those with multiple matching Specialties can combine the two subject matters in wonderful and alarming ways.

Specialties are gained rarely when performing actions. The exact Specialty is random, but the broad category is based on the class of the action- materials or weapon types for engineering projects, social or media concepts for entertainment actions, and so on.

Space is full of new and exotic people to meet, and you'll most likely hate most of them.


Major Species
Six major species (or an approximately equivalent designation) are routinely found on New Serenity, and they are listed below. Numerous other species, variants, entities, and things that defy classification can be found on or around the system, but these are the only ones with a significant population.

Star [Heroic/Passionate]: Magically inclined humans. The Star were the first species on New Serenity, which they used as an isolated monastery for contemplating the world's tranquil beauty. When they fought a war against the Nemesis and lost, the Star were dumped on or fled to New Serenity, which the Nemesis declared a "wildlife preserve." The Star are known for being heroic and brave, with skilled magical warriors and a strong sense of justice. They're also known for being bitter and uptight, resentful of their system being filled with evil cowards who stood by while they were fighting for freedom.

Nemesis [Depraved/Cold]: A collection of evil alien clones assimilated from various species. The Nemesis are now the dominant power in the region, having recently gone on a conquering spree to be able to probe and experiment on aliens more readily. They declared New Serenity a wildlife preserve to store all the primitives living in their region of space, and still monitor the system for science and to make sure it doesn't blow up or something (unless that's natural). Nemesis member species aren't supposed to be on New Serenity, but loopholes and slipping through the cracks abound. The Nemesis are known for being calculating and evil, ruthlessly probing others in their quest for deranged science.

Murk [Grim/Passionate]: Not so much a species as a class, the Murk comprise all the various alien mercenaries, smugglers, pirates, and other scum that use New Serenity as a rest stop and haven from the Nemesis. While technically considered advanced enough to traverse space, many Murk are here on illicit business or have little interest in securing proper authorization. The Murk are known for being opportunistic and resourceful, gambling big and winning or losing appropriately.

Vine [Decadent/Cold]: Ancient dying squid. The Vine are an advanced civilization, enough so that they're on good terms with the Nemesis. Their fancy supposedly-immortal bodies are prone to corruption and other slow prices to be paid for all their augmentation, and they like to use New Serenity as a resort town to help recover. The Vine are known for being arrogant and wanton, considering themselves the best of the best, as well as for the deep pockets and advanced tech they use to maintain such lifestyles.

Cloy [Heroic/Decadent]: Renegade pleasure bots. The Cloy appear to be the remnants of some advanced civilization that used robotic servants to live in decadent extravagance. No one really knows what happened to them, but the Cloy remained, serving and indulging in each other for lack of organic masters to please. The Nemesis scooped them off their original world and deposited them on New Serenity without incident, where they were quick to begin aggressively propositioning the locals. The Cloy are known for being arrogantly and insistently helpful, convinced that they're the best bot for the job, whatever that job may be.

Smoke [Grim/Depraved]: Post-apocalyptic insectoids. The Smoke homeworld is now heavily irradiated and polluted, but it was still considered a prize by the Nemesis, who dumped what remained of the Smoke population on New Serenity. If they've learned anything by nearly wiping themselves out and bringing about the apocalypse, they're good at hiding it. The Smoke are known for being ruthless and inventive, always on the lookout for new ways to destroy their enemies at any and all costs.


Creed
Most characters have one or two defining philosophies, and all coherent populations have one. Creeds help define a character or population's personality and preferences in an abstract fashion, but they're most important to Idols and their relation with population centers and each other.

Heroic: Valiant and noble. Heroic characters tend to want to protect others and stand up for what they believe is right.

Depraved: Sadistic and vile. Depraved characters tend to want to hurt others for profit or fun.

Passionate: Emotional and mercurial. Passionate characters tend to go with their heart, whatever that tells them at the time.

Cold: Emotionless and clinical. Cold characters tend to value precision and calm reasoning.

Decadent: Arrogant and indulgent. Decadent characters tend to feel important and enjoy themselves appropriately.

Grim: Pessimistic and practical. Grim characters tend to feel pressured and adapt accordingly.

Each turn, every players receives two actions. They cannot use the same skills for more than one action per turn, and the actions are simultaneous.

For each point of skill used, a player may designate an additional effect. In the case of actions with mundane effects, such as gathering food, this tends to simply increase the quantity produced or processed. For more elaborate actions, this tends to apply additional qualities to the effect or product.

Supporting skills may be used where appropriate, adding their magnitude to the action. Note that too many or conflicting supporting skills may produce odd results.

In the example above, our noble wizard is attempting two actions: Raising a moss zombie and performing a flaming seduction dance.

Since he has +3 Necromancy and +1 Herbalism, he uses his Necromancy skill to raise a zombie: One point goes towards the base effect, one towards giving it a tougher hide, and one towards making it sing constantly. The one point in Herbalism is used to grant it a mossy, regenerating hide, which hopefully won't interfere with the tough hide.

He meanwhile uses his +1 Seduction to seduce a (hopefully living) target. His +2 Pyromancy further provides for warming him up, which he has heard is attractive to potential mates, and creating a flaming corona around his head in mimicry of loud birds. Since flame is not inherently seductive, it remains to be seen how directly these effects add to his attempts to seduce a target. Also, he's calling a rotting corpse up from the ground at the same time, so that might impact things.


On rolling a [1], [5], or [6], you gain a point of Passion in the skill being used. Passion may be spent to add special effects to actions, which would not normally be achievable.

Each time Passion is spent this way, you have a chance to level the skill equal to the spent passion divided by the total passion. Spending maximum Passion always levels the skill, spending 1 point has a 1/3 chance of increasing +3 Necromancy to +4 Necromancy, and so on.

Rolling a [1][5][6] on a Passion action additionally grants (and/or inflicts) a special trait on you based on the action and roll. These traits are generally unique and terrible manifestations of your obsessions with unstable arcane power, such as the ability to see emotions or plantlike flesh. Wusses using mundane skills tend to just become charismatic or better warriors or something. Or gain the ability to gain strength from feasting on the hearts of their enemies.

In any case, more Passion produces stronger traits, and existing traits will sometimes be strengthened by a trait-producing action, rather than a new trait being formed.

In our above example, our noble wizard is trying to create a flaming skeleton using +3 Necromancy, +2 Pyromancy, and one of his Passion points in Necromancy. As before, each point produces a new quality: +3 Necromancy gives us a skeleton, increases its strength and increases its speed. +2 Pyromancy makes it flaming, and then lets it belch these flames forth. The Necromancy Passion point lets it feast upon the essence of the living, increasing its own power.

If he rolls a [1], [5], or [6] on this action, he will gain a new trait relevant to his current endeavor; perhaps the ability to feast upon life force himself, or a knack for creating souldrinking horrors, or particularly copious and delicious life essence that the ravening dead find just irresistable. Since he only spent one Passion on this action, it will not be an overly strong trait, but it should be impactful.

Characters may assemble to go on missions. Larger numbers of characters require more supplies and attract more attention, but have an obvious advantage in numbers. For performance reasons, only a certain number of characters may be on mission at any one time.

Missions come in many flavors. Harvesting a known resource node or pillaging interesting ruins are popular ones, as is defending the settlement against encroaching tides of nightmare-made-manifest, either in defense of the settlement's walls or by destroying nests of horrors that will otherwise grow too large to withstand.

Caring for a settlement is a big responsibility, which is why renegade mages are usually so bad at it.

Put simply, most villagers require one food per turn to not starve, but also produce resources for the settlement. Different kinds of inhabitants might have different requirements and benefits. In addition, most inhabitants greatly appreciate shelter, clothing, luxury goods, and so on, and some scholars maintain advanced peasant types, such as powerful soldiers and skilled craftsmen, require advanced housing and feed to properly develop.

Construction generally occurs in blocks, each of which is roughly a small room in size. A small peasant hovel would likely consist of a single block, while a moderately sized cottage might consist of several. Each block requires one unit of construction material and one unit of labor to actually construct it.

A particularly vital thing to keep in mind regarding a settlement's needs is the encroaching horror all around. You'd think the purple sky and echoing screams would do that, but mages like to prove otherwise. In any case, both the environment and neighbors tend to be bad for a village's health, and various charms and remedies to counteract this are often required. One of the simplest and most popular is just building underground; for unclear reasons, it seems less tainted by the current madness, and so makes for a convenient place to live if you have access to or can do without light, open space, fresh air, and so on.

Elemental Magics
Elemental magics are the manipulation of a specific material or energy. They tend to be easy to use, especially in combat, but limited in complexity.

Fire: Manipulation of heat and flame. Can create, hurl, and intensify fires. Usually considered an offensive school for setting everything on fire, with some utility for keeping warm and cooking food.
Earth: Manipulation of soil and stone. Can move, harden, or move through dirt. Can do the same with solid stone, but much less effectively. Usually considered a defensive and utility school for shaping dirt to suit one's purposes or keep safe.
Water: Manipulation of water and moisture. Usually considered a utility school for moving through and controlling water.
Air: Manipulation of air and wind. Can create, deflect, or harness wind to push objects around or levitate them. Usually considered a mobility and utility school for moving things around.
Life: Manipulation of life force and living things. Can regenerate, empower, and enhance living things. Usually considered a support and utility school for maintaining and enhancing allies, livestock, and crops.
Death: Manipulation of death energies and formerly living things. Can degenerate, weaken, and corrode living things. Usually considered an offensive school for rotting and enfeebling the living.
Ice: Manipulation of ice and cold. Can freeze, shape, or hurl ice. Usually considered an offensive and utility school for freezing and impaling enemies and shaping ice to suit one's needs.
Lightning: Manipulation of lightning and electricity. Can hurl lightning bolts and electrocute enemies. Usually considered an offensive school for shocking and stunning enemies.
Plant: Manipulation of plants and vegetation. Can shape and grow plants. Usually considered a utility school for shaping plant life to suit one's needs.
Fungus: Manipulation of mushrooms and fungus. Can spawn, grow, and shape fungi. Usually considered a utility school for growing and shaping oversized mushrooms to suit one's needs.
Flesh: Manipulation of animal tissues. Can mend, mutate, and strengthen animal flesh. Usually considered a utility and support school for healing or mutating the flesh of servants or oneself.
Bone: Manipulation of bone and horn. Can shape and harden bones or similar structures, though generally less efficiently. Usually considered a support school for strengthening and warping the bones of servants or oneself.
Blood: Manipulation of blood and similar ichors. Can shape, extract, harden, and intensify blood or similar substances, though generally less efficiently. Usually considered a utility and support school for extracting ritual components and creating blood weapons.
Stone: Manipulation of solid rock. Can control and move through solid stone much better than earth magic, but cannot manipulate loose soil. Usually considered a utility school for working with stone.
Metal: Manipulation of refined metals. Can shape, mend, and alter metals. Usually considered a utility school for crafting and maintaining metal arms and armor.

Ritual Magics
Ritual magics are the manipulation of a specific process or concept. They tend to handle complex tasks well, especially out of combat, but are sometimes difficult to use in a specific situation.

Necromancy: Harming and subverting life forces and processes. Can weaken or damage the properties of living things and reanimate the dead. Usually considered an offensive and utility school for crippling living foes and raising undead servants.
Vitamancy: Reinforcing and restoring life forces and processes. Can heal or enhance the properties of living things and disrupt the undead. Usually considered a support school for healing and empowering allies.
Destruction: Destruction and violent movement. Can hurl projectiles and break down the structure of things. Usually considered an offensive school for raining destructive force on and disintegrating obstacles or foes.
Protection: Preservation and stasis. Can create protective shields and fortify materials against change. Usually considered a defensive school for keeping things protected from harm.
Transmutation: Alteration of substance. Can replace or change the substance of things. Usually considered a utility school for weakening or strengthening materials.
Transmogrification: Alteration of form. Can change the shape of things. Usually considered a utility school for changing oneself into a giant snake.
Summoning: Bringing forth complex things from other worlds. Can mantle otherworldly beings or tools onto materials, objects, or creatures in this world. Usually considered a utility school for summoning monsters or conjuring yourself frilly dresses.
Conjuration: Bringing forth simple things from other worlds. Can mantle otherworldly materials or forces onto materials or forces from this world. Usually considered a defensive and utility school for turning the ground into obnoxious substances.
Alchemy: Refinement and expression of qualities. Can break down or condense forces and materials into purer or more concentrated forms. Usually considered a utility school for creating bizarre substances.
Enchantment: Infusing new or enhanced qualities. Can apply magical effects to objects or creatures on a long scale. Usually considered a utility and support school for creating magical weapons and enhanced allies.

Labor Skills
Labor skills are talents related to honest but simple work, usually harvesting or refining raw resources. For some reason mages prefer to get minions to do this for them.

Mining: Digging up earth and stone. Handy for harvesting gems and digging out cellars.
Woodcutting: Chopping down large plants. Handy for harvesting lumber and clearing out forests.
Herbalism: Picking small plants. Handy for foraging for food and finding alchemical reagents.
Trapping: Ensnaring small woodland creatures. Handy for capturing small game.
Hunting: Hunting down medium woodland creatures. Handy for bagging medium game.
Butchering: Breaking down corpses into useful components. Handy for harvesting the dead.
Farming: Growing crops. Handy for producing reliable food.

Crafting Skills
Crafting skills are talents related to honest but skilled work, usually converting raw materials into finished products. For some reason mages really only like these to support their magical shenanigans.

Masonry: Producing large stone objects. Handy for building stone structures and furniture.
Carpentry: Producing large wooden objects. Handy for building wood structures and furniture.
Cooking: Producing tasty food. Handy for making food tastier and more varied.
Brewing: Producing tasty drink. Handy for turning food into booze.
Stonecrafting: Producing small stone objects. Handy for crafting stone jewelry and utensils.
Woodcrafting: Producing small wooden objects. Handy for crafting wooden jewelry and utensils.
Bonecrafting: Producing small bone objects. Handy for crafting bone jewelry and utensils.
Glasscrafting: Producing small glass objects. Handy for crafting glass jewelry and utensils.
Gemcrafting: Cutting and placing gemstones. Handy for producing cut gems and inlays.

Combat Skills
Combat skills are techniques for fighting with weapons. Most mages prefer to use magic when they can, but a handful swear by reliable steel.

Swords: Long-bladed slashing weapons. Swords tend to be versatile and heroic.
Axes: Short-bladed hacking weapons. Axes tend to be brutal and savage.
Spears: Long-hafted stabbing weapons. Spears tend to be tactical and wide-reaching.
Maces: Blunt or ridged weapons. Maces tend to be heavy and staggering.
Daggers: Short-bladed stabbing weapons. Daggers tend to be quick and sneaky.
Whips: Long, flexible weapons. Whips tend to be tricky and debilitating.
Bows: Fancy ranged weapons. Bows tend to be long-distance weapons.

Custom
The above is a list of some of the most common skills and professions, but it is by no means an exhaustive catalog. If you want a skill not listed above, create one or ask about it.

Most actions are handled by rolling dice, with the number determined by relative skill or power in the chosen field. Each die has a 1/3 chance of adding +0, +1, or +2 to the final result, as well as a 1/6 chance of a Boon and a 1/6 chance of a Flaw. The numeric result of an action determines its relative success or power, such as how much of a resource is harvested or the quality of a crafted item. Boons and Flaws apply beneficial or harmful quirks to the result, such as a yield of rare materials or a cumbersome drawback to wielding an item.

By default, most beings roll one die for actions they are capable of performing but poor at, two dice for standard actions, and three dice for actions that especially suit them. Heroes and other powerful entities often have special stats or abilities they use to augment or replace this scale, and which often produce significantly higher results.

Defeat and Demise
When two powerful entities oppose each other, they generally roll their respective actions. If they are directly opposed, they will tend to interfere with each other; however, many actions are antagonistic without being mutually exclusive.

Depending on the intended actions and their results, some or all of the involved combatants might suffer a Defeat. This may signify a physical injury, social disgrace, or even just the abstract knowledge that they failed. Defeats generally impose a negative trait on their bearer and tie up a HP. Both conditions may be reversed by redeeming themselves, thus healing or overcoming whatever weakness or flaw was imposed or revealed by their Defeat. This might involved anything from questing for healing herbs to mend an inflicted wound, to forging a mighty spear to salvage a battered reputation, to hunting down and defeating the one who inflicted the defeat to recover a tarnished pride.

If an entity is reduced to 0 HP by a Defeat, they are generally defeated utterly and held completely at the mercy of their conqueror. The details of this fate may vary somewhat with those of the combatants, conflict, and Defeat- a heavily wounded warrior Defeated for a final time via incriminating speech is unlikely to die from shame, but might be goaded into retirement or forced to serve under a maligned banner.

Entities may also be afflicted by Minor Defeats. These are Defeats which are galling but far beneath the being in question, and thus do not reduce their HP. They do still impose a (generally minor) flaw on their victim which must be removed in the same manner as normal Defeats, though the petty nature of the ailment tends to make this an obnoxious chore rather than a trying quest.

Demons, like all divine entities, are creatures of Mana. As the essence of all things, Mana is produced by all things, found in all things, and used by all things. However, none are so adept at the latter as the Devourers, more commonly known as Demons to foolish mortals.

Miracles and Mana
Demons possess the ability to perform acts of great power called Miracles. Miracles are far more potent than even supernaturally-charged mundane actions, but require the expenditure of Mana to perform.

Mana differs wildly by type, and Demons acquire it by consuming things rich in it. While mundane earth or trees contain Mana, the amounts are far too thin to feasibly power their great works. Far more often, they must rely on potent natural phenomena, engineered disasters, or mortal sacrifice. Mortals, in addition to their ability to become tainted with Mana themselves, possess a unique ability to produce Mana associated with the manner of their deaths, providing a conveniently renewable method of extracting power. Demons are rightly viewed as hungry for sacrificial victims slain in ways appropriate to their Mana affinities for this reason.

Fetishes and Gullets
Once Mana has been harvested, it must be stored. Demons do so in largely spiritual organs known as Gullets. When mortal sorcerors perform their rituals of candles, chanting, and lines of salt, they are in fact constructing an artificial Gullet for this purpose- which must then receive its Mana from somewhere, frequently items of power or sacrificial victims.

Gullets are limited in size, and may not hold more Mana than their maximum capacity. They may also hold only Mana of their type with any grace; a Gullet may store Mana of a different type than itself, but such Mana takes up twice as much space, inhibits the Demon's supernatural talents, and is slowly digested to become more like the Gullet's type.

Gullets are technically part of a Demon's Fetish, a manifestation of their power and essence. Physically, Fetishes generally manifest as a distinctive organ or feature- flawlessly alluring skin, great horns of flaming brass, or a heart that seems to spiral eternally into itself, for instance. More importantly, a Fetish signifies and channels a Demon's supernatural abilities in that area- such as inspiring unnatural desire in mortals, unmatched strength within their domain, or the ability to travel through seemingly impassable barriers.

The physical manifestation of a Fetish may be removed from its owner, though for this to have meaning its spiritual aspect must be addressed as well- destroying or claiming a Demon's Fetish has no more innate impact than it would a king's crown. Stolen Fetishes may be crafted into artifacts of great power or even grafted into a different Demon, though many feel tainted by such an act. In truth, Demons are little more than one or more Fetishes- they possess little in the way of core essence or identity beyond this, which explains the hesitance many have to taint themselves with a rival's essence, and the eternal rage most feel at the very notion of being maimed in such a fashion.

Fetishes and their associated Gullets require Mana to grow, which provides a final reason for Demons to hunger for it. It's also one reason Demons have such a reputation for stinginess- beyond being difficult to obtain, the Mana a Demon might expend on dark blessings or other favors could just as easily be spent permanently increasing the Demon's personal strength.

A handful of creatures are so individually powerful that they can affect the world around them on a grand scale despite not being divine entities. These beings are sometimes known as Chosen, but more commonly called Heroes. Heroes may arise through enduring great hardships or to meet great challenges, through superior bloodlines or training, through the wielding of great artifacts or potent blessings, or occasionally through no method and for no reason anyone can discern.

While they cannot innately wield Mana, Heroes are often the equals of Demons and other great entities in mundane strength and talent; indeed, when such higher beings are not wielding Mana, they tend to function as Heroes. Even without the aid of Mana, Heroes may build, destroy, harvest, and otherwise shape the world around them at will.

Heroes are also well known for their motivating effects on common rabble. Without Heroic intervention, even powerful herds of mortals are prone to being soft and complacent, accomplishing nothing save their own maintenance. When led by a Hero, these simpletons may be put to better use, harvesting resources, constructing great monuments, subjugating their lessers, forging mighty arms, and otherwise being of use.

Heroes are motivated by their Creed, which is sometimes referred to as a 'Mortal Gullet'. A Hero's Creed is the ideal they draw their strength from; a Hero who loses their Creed, whether through failing or fulfilling it, will tend to fade into obscurity and contentedness (or sorrow). Creeds are also highly variable; some Heroes want nothing more than to raise a family or serve their master out of fear, while others will stop for nothing less than ascension to godhood or conquest of the known world and beyond. More ambitious Heroes tend to be more powerful and competent, but also more strong-willed and reckless. A Hero's Creed may change with time and experience, but the core of such a champion cannot be altered lightly.

Heroes are noteworthy for their ability to increase their own strength through challenge and hardship. A Hero's Creed is important to this process; achievements directly related to a Hero's Creed are more likely to strengthen the Hero, and a Hero's strengths will tend to be in pursuit of their Creed.

Demons consider most mortals to be cattle at best and an offensive odor at worst. Indeed, many Demons have difficulty even focusing on individual mortals, in the same way a mortal might find it difficult to zero in on individual grains of sand on a beach. Massed in great numbers, mortals are no less contemptible, but at least serve some potential function, be it looking beautiful or being scooped into buckets and smelted into glass.

Mortals are generally divided into Herds, arbitary clusters large and organized enough to affect the world like an unambitious Hero. Left to their own devices most Herds will work for their own maintenance and little else, but when led by a Hero or otherwise motivated can produce useable resources and constructions.

Herds generally like to dwell within structures, which have a limited amount of space. Herds in good health will multiply to fill out this space, and can spread into empty slots in other present structures. The type of structure inhabited generally dictates the Herd's current profession.

Herds are notoriously fickle and unruly, demanding various luxuries and conditions, feuding with other Herd clusters, and developing inane requests, fears, or demands. Beings desiring happy and sophisticated Herds will endeavor to keep them safe, well-supplied, and pandered to. Beings desiring a steady flow of basic resources will endeavor to brutalize anything that interferes with their reign.

Herds have one other vital function: They are a renewable source of Mana. Herds may display some types of Mana outright, being Knowledgeable or Warlike enough to serve as valid sources of Knowledge or War Mana, for instance. However, even Herds not aligned to any useable Mana type may be used to generate Mana based on the method of their sacrifice: A deady puzzle maze might generate Knowledge Mana, a mass drowning could produce Water Mana, and so on.

Note that mortals tend to take being eaten for Mana poorly, so wise Demons tend to do so sparingly, inisidiously warp acceptance of it into their culture, only prey on hated groups, or decide early on that they do not care what their crops think of being harvested.

Illustrious Lineage: Addoir-Tarkon of Duchy Attoine
A. Warrior-Sage: Addoit-Tarkon prides itself on its military history and erudite nature. As such, you learned the great sagas and got some practice reciting them for an audience. +10 Kingdom History, +10 Public Speaking
B. Hunter: Your Uncle Baruk dragged you along on his ridiculous hunts in spite of your severe protest. You learned to ride well enough and can technically fire a bow, though truth be told you got more experience requesting assistance from the more gentlemanly hunters. +3 Archery, +7 Swooning, +10 Riding
C. Sycophant: Cousin Almed would often take you along on his trips to the capital, where you'd get to see him flattering and wooing everyone important. You learned a good deal about dealing with those more important than yourself from those trips. +10 Flattery, +10 Seduction
D. Witch: Aunt Gur is an old lowborn who wheedled her way into an unimportant branch of your family, and it shows in the way she'll do, acquire, or dispose of anything her grandchildren's friends and family ask of her. Asking her for a pet fox was a mistake, but watching her brew medicine and "medicine" was interesting. +10 Medicine, +10 Animal Handling

Illustrious Lineage: Celestrum of Duchy Skybough
A. Unearthly Grace: Celestrum prides itself on its exotic history and elegant calm. As such, you learned to retain composure even under the most strenuous of circumstances. +10 Grace, +10 Dignity
B. Gardener: Greataunt Lelelia would sometimes pay you to manage her garden, bossing around incompetent servants and occasionally getting your own hands dirty to ensure everything was just perfect. +10 Herbalism, +10 Management
C. Guru: Duchess Cerelia herself would often invite you to listen to travelers who had come to her court seeking inspiration. You learned the finer details of guiding pilgrims to Skybough's impressive woods, ensuring they had a spiritual and therefore profitable experience. +10 Inspiration, +10 Flattery
D. Snoop: Your cousin Auria would invite you to clamber "through the woods" with her. You hated getting branches in your face and fancy dress, but you loved peering into windows and eavesdropping on people in the garden. +10 Eavesdropping, +10 Seduction

Ideal Husband
A. King Archell Daurnak of Kingdom of Dora: As with any self-respecting lady of noble birth, you spent some time pursuing the young and handsome crown prince prior to his coronation, hoping against hope that he'd pick you. While you failed about as miserably as everyone else you're aware of, you did pick up some of his hobbies hoping to connect with him better. +10 Torture, +10 Vile Sorcery
B. Vermilion Brightshield of Duchy Orwatch: Brave, young, and handsome, Duke-Heir Vermilion is the dashing prince of every girl's dreams. Unlike those lowborn harlots, his family has a close history with both sides of yours, so you had a real, if understandably slight, chance at him. You picked up some incredibly compassionate tricks trying to impress him. +10 Medicine, +10 Inspiration
C. Orgdin Valhas of House Valhas: Orgdin Valhas is a scheming lecherous lowborn ten times your age. He's also expected to replace the current Guild Patriarch just as soon as the former finally keels over. Like most Guildsmen, he's bitter and resentful about proper nobles not giving his kind undue respect, and is utterly, fantastically, obscenely wealthy. Marrying him would have been a black mark on you and your family's pride, but drown you in wealth, some of which you might then pass along to your family were they sufficiently thankful. You therefore humored his obsession with counting coins to feed his ego. +10 Finance, +10 Management
D. The Wandering Knight: As a proper noblelady, you really shouldn't be fantasizing about attractive rabble. Nonetheless, everyone knows the story of The Wandering Knight: A man who fought valiantly in the Black War, bringing down scores of vile monsters so his companions could escape, only to lose his beloved to said monsters. He is said to now wander forlornly, doing right where he can, but never knowing peace until he can be reunited with his love. Ooooooooor a suitably attractive woman makes him forget all about her, every woman in the kingdom is quick to add. As a relative of many powerful nobles, bringing the finest knight in the kingdom into your family would have been both a great boon and far more feasible than for some no-name slut, so you learned of his struggles in an attempt to woo him better. +10 Kingdom History, +10 Swooning

Proper Upbringing
A. Noblelady: Your father and mother both insisted you receive an education befitting your noble heritage, and thus focused your attentions on proper court etiquette and diplomacy. +20 Noble Conversation, +20 Ballroom Dancing
B. Flatterer: Your mother noted your relative lack of prominence with regards to inheritance, and so thought it would be wise to focus on your more complimentary skills. +20 Flattery, +20 Seduction
C. Schemer: Your father constantly complained that nobody ever got their due without fighting for it, and so insisted you learn how to avoid being cheated in life. +20 Eavesdropping, +20 Gossip
D. Uncle Arduke claimed your birthsign was just right for a... glassblower? The stars themselves got out of bed to decree your fate, and it's not a powerful witch or noble knight or something? Still, when the Duke Attoine says apprentice the girl to a filthy workman, apparently the girl gets apprenticed to a filthy workman. +20 Glassworking, +20 Astrology