The Heroes

Heroes are the protagonists of the story. Players will be able to choose from the roles you provide for your setting and then make them their own by adding their own personalities, backgrounds, stats and appearance. Heroes are made up of three elements: Story, Stats and Stuff, which can be found on the character sheet in three distinct columns, unless of course you make your own character sheet.

STORY

Story elements are used to give players narrative direction for playing in character as their hero. These include their role, strengths, struggles and other options you may want to include for your setting. Players will be able to incorporate these into their actions to help reduce the challenge level, making it easier or harder for them to succeed. Each element can be renamed to better fit your setting, style and tone.

Roles

The role represents the role the hero plays in the story. It could be a profession, a style or a class. Generally this will be a few words that someone might use to describe what you do or are all about. It is recommended that you provide some examples of roles or a set list to choose from, but let the players add some descriptors to make them their own. Example: A role for your setting might be a Starfighter Pilot and the player may say they are a Hotshot rookie pilot, fresh out of the academy.

Strengths

Strengths represent unique story elements that set a hero apart from others and could help them when facing certain challenges. These can be abilities, personality traits or specific features. 

Struggles

Struggles represent unique story elements that define flaws or traits that could potentially hinder them when facing certain challenges. It is always up to the player to choose when a flaw would hinder them, though others can make suggestions.

Other Options

If there are other story elements that would be important in your setting that would help the players play as their heroes in it, feel free to add them. Some examples could be bonds or relationships, supernatural abilities or powers or even factions they may be part of. Anything that could be used to help or hinder a hero in specific actions could be considered a story element.

Game Changers

These are a narrative currency that players can use to introduce narrative elements into a scene or the story. These are things that cannot contradict facts or canon previously established by others and cannot directly affect dice rolls or challenge levels. Game changers are what they sound like, they are a tool that can be used for a player to change the game. It’s up to the Facilitator to help frame a game changer and they will also decide if one is even needed for what a player is proposing.

STATS

Stats represent a hero’s ability to overcome challenges and provides them with options for how they want to face them. There are two main kinds of stats, Aptitudes and Approaches, which we recommend you change the names to best fit the setting, style and tone of your game. 

Aptitudes

There are three aptitudes that represent a hero’s natural ability in a broad area. The three default aptitudes are Mind, Body and Will. Each aptitude governs four approaches.

Approaches

The 12 approaches are the methods that heroes can choose from to try and overcome challenges in the game. Each aptitude governs four approaches and the approaches are meant to be broad enough to cover many possibilities. Players are encouraged to think about how each approach applies to their hero. No two people face challenges the exact same way, even if using the same approach.

Surges

These are a mechanical currency that can be used in several ways to give advantages to the heroes. A player can spend a surge on their action to either lower the challenge level, making it easier to succeed, or they can reduce their Strain by one. A player can choose to spend a surge to assist another player’s hero in their action.

Strain

Strain represents the amount of mental, physical or emotional stress a hero is dealing with at the moment. Strain begins at zero and increases based on the outcome of a hero’s actions or if they choose to do something dangerous, regardless of the risk. Strain is used by a player to help inform how they will roleplay. If strain reaches the maximum level, which is six, then the hero suffers a condition.

Conditions

Conditions are lasting effects, like injuries or trauma, that negatively impact an Aptitude, making it harder to succeed on challenges when using those four approaches. A single condition to an aptitude increases the challenge level by two levels when using those approaches. Two conditions to the same aptitude mean that it is a more severe condition and the hero cannot use those four approaches to overcome challenges. If a hero receives a total of four conditions, they are overwhelmed by them and are somehow taken out of the scene, meaning they cannot actively try to overcome challenges. This lasts until the situation calms down and it makes sense narratively.

Scars

If a hero gets taken down by four conditions, they will take a scar, which is a new Struggle they will add to their character. The player and Facilitator can work together to figure out what makes the most sense.

Recovery

Strain is removed when the situation changes and is no longer stressful or risky. Conditions are removed when it makes sense narratively. This is typically up to the Facilitator but players can make suggestions. If your setting uses magic or technology that can help remove conditions, just make sure players know what those options are, but there is no mechanic that needs to govern them, if it makes sense in the story, remove the condition.

Death

A hero cannot die unless the player chooses that to be their end. Typically this is a big moment and should be given the proper time in the spotlight.

STUFF

Stuff represents the material items and gear that a hero has and can use to survive in the setting. Most stuff is handled in a strictly narrative sense, meaning that if you have something, you can do things with it. Or another way of looking at it is that if you want to swing a sword at something, you must first have the sword to swing. Think about the kinds of stuff that heroes would use in your setting and make sure that players know what that stuff is.

Gear

Standard gear is treated narratively, providing a player with choices for their hero and how they might overcome a challenge. It also helps the Facilitator in setting the challenge levels. If a hero is trying something risky and does not have the right gear for it, the challenge level would be set higher than if they had the right stuff. Players can always make a case for something being helpful, but it is ultimately up to the Facilitator.

Special Gear

If you want to include a mechanical bonus to some items in the game, you can use special gear. This means that a particular item is of the quality or design to be able to offer a bonus to the action roll total when it makes sense narratively. Item bonuses can range from 1 to 3 and the Facilitator will choose when those items are introduced. This can be at the start of the game or they can be found or earned through gameplay.

Other Options

SAMPLE HERO SHEET: Fantasy Style Game