RAPTURE

Using Abilities: 

There are many ways to use an Ability within game. But perhaps the most common is when attempting to use a particular skill or action withing the current game session. For example, your character may need to hack into a computer system in order to draw much needed information. In which case that character would need to have "Computers" as an ability in order to proceed with such an action and attempt, before challenging to see if that character is to be successful.

The ST will be specific in how much time is needed for your character to attempt the action you have put forward, either asking you to act this out or drop out of game for this amount of time in order for your attempt to proceed.

Use of an ability may also require an additional test, some may be simple tests where others may static tests, it will be specified by your Storyteller which and what challenges are require to complete the action you desire. As with any challenge if you fail your challenge you will lose your risked trait, which will be your ability trait. This will be temporary until the end of the scene or challenge mission.

 

Retests:

In many cases a challenge can be resolved with a single challenge, sometimes a character may use a point in an appropriate ability in order to renew their efforts and retest a failed test in order to suceed in that challenge. By sacrificing an appropriate ability trait you may call for a retest on a failed challenge, while this will give the second attempt at the challenge, the traits risked and lost with the first failure remain lost even if the secondary test is sucessful. These traits are gone for the remainder of the game session or until specified by the Storyteller.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

ANIMAL KEN

This Ability represents your understanding of animal behavior. Given time, you could train an animal to peformsimple tasks (i.e., fetch, stay, attack, etc.). When you command the animal, the animal must make a Mental Challenge to understand and follow the order. Difficulty is based on the animal’s level of domestication and the complexity of the task. You may also

attempt to calm an injured, frightened or attacking animal by defeating it in a Social Challenge. You can also use this to guage what an animal will do in a given situation.

 

AWARENESS

This Ability allows you to notice things that are not of the physical world, including the presence of magic. This talent covers the spectrum of sensory perception that is outside the range of most mortals. This Ability may be used to call for a retest on any form of magical detection or evaluation. Direct or focused effects are beyond the scope of this talent, including the

deep probes of Mentalis and the rituals of Divination.

 

BRAWL

You are adept at using your body as a weapon, including unarmed combat ranging from dirty infighting to highly stylized martial arts. Brawl is used for punching or kicking, grappling and holding, thus enabling even a character who is stripped bare to present herself as a formidable foe.

 

COMPUTER

With this Ability, you can use various desktop programs, email and navigate the Internet. You can also engage in less savory activities, such as infiltrating systems, avoiding security measures and accessing privileged information. A Narrator may require a Mental Challenge to accomplish these or similar acts, based on system security accessibility, time and equipment. Failure means your activities have tripped a security measure, which may lead to investigation by mortal or supernatural agencies.

 

COSMOLOGY

The Umbra holds many unseen secrets. You know some of them. This Ability covers not only the “geography” of the spirit world, but also information about the inhabitants and conditions found in the various Realms. You may ask a Narrator for a Static Mental Test to see how much you know about a particular situation or location. At Storyteller discretion, you may also use this Ability if attempting to identify an Umbrood (speaking to it, however, is the purview of other Abilities, such as Linguistics).

 

CRAFTS

You have knowledge of master artisan techniques, such as calligraphy, gem cutting, weaving, sewing or glassblowing. This Ability may require either a Static Mental or Physical Test to determine the quality of any creation. You should select a particular craft when this Ability is purchased, and must purchase separate Traits for each craft you practice. This Ability also allows you to judge the work of others in your field or make repairs. 

 

DODGE

This talent represents your knack for getting out of the way of injury. You’ve learned to duck, weave or evade blows that would strike slower or less alert opponents. Dodge may only be used to call for aretest against any attempt to strike, grab or injure you.

 

DRIVE

The majority of adults have at least some familiarity with modem vehicles. You have put special effort into learning how to operate cars or motorcycles, making you better at avoiding collisions and using your vehicle as a weapon. This Ability also enables you to follow other vehicles and avoid tails yourself, though these actions would require a Physical or Mental

Challenge with the other driver. You can even perform stunts with your vehicle, taking it places most others would never dare. A Narrator may call for a challenge in such circumstances, with a difficulty based upon the vehicle type, road conditions and the sort of stunt you wish to perform.

 

ELECTRONICS

You have practical knowledge concerning the function and repair of electrical and electronic devices. This expertise may have come from formal schooling or it may represent an intuitive knack for dealing with such technology. You may use this Ability to determine what a particular device is use for, as well as how to operate it. This skill also enables you to repair a broken or damaged piece of equipment or even jury-rig something on the fly. Most applications of this Ability require a Static Physical or Mental Test based upon the tools and materials at hand, as well as the amount of time you can spend working on the apparatus.

 

ENIGMAS

You have a knack for - if not a fascination with - riddles of both the physical and intellectual varieties. When posed with a conundrum of some  sort, you may request a Static Mental Test to gain insight into the solution. A Narrator will assign a difficulty depending on your relative familiarity with the problem and what information you already have.

 

FIREARMS

You are familiar most types of guns and other projectile weapons. The most common use of this Ability is in combat. However, by passing a Static Physical or Mental Test, you may be able to make minor repairs or alterations to your weapons. A character without this Ability may still use a gun, but does not benefit from the Trait bonuses the weapon provides.

 

INVESTIGATION

You possess the learned skills of a diligent researcher. This sort of attention to detail is often found in private detectives, government agents and scholars. Those who hunt the supernatural also make great use of this Ability. When dealing with certain situations, you may request a Static Mental Test with a Storyteller to see if you have overlooked any clues or to 

uncover information through formal inquiry.

 

LINGUISTICS

Due to innate curiosity or quest for knowledge, you have taken the time to learn multiple languages. These languages can be anything from ancient hieroglyphics to foreign tongues and complex dialects. For each Trait in this Ability, you may select one language in which you are fluent. This skill allows you to speak privately with someone who also knows the language, or to read and write texts written in that tongue. It also gives you achance to determine what language a person is speaking, even if you do not know it yourself. This latter use requires a Static Mental Test, with a difficulty based upon how close the target language is to one with which you are familiar. 

 

LORES AND CONSPIRACIES

Contrary to popular opinion, they do exist, ask any knowlegable theoriest. Many carry field guides about the various types of supernatural beings. It is a rare mortal indeed who knows anything about vampires or werewolves beyond what she has seen in the movies. You, however, do have specific and accurate information on these creatures. This may be the result of diligent study on your part, or perhaps a

past association with some other type of supernatural creature. Either way, you are able to separate fact from myth, rumor from misunderstanding. Each Lore Trait must be purchased separately in the specific topic you have knowledge of: vampires, Gypsies, mummies, changelings, mages, werewolves and other Changing Breeds, wraiths or spirits. The Storyteller has final say on what Lores may be purchased. These must be chosen from the Lores lists on this website.

 

MEDICINE

You are adept at treating the injuries, diseases and various ailments of living creatures. With time and attention, you can speed up a patient’s healing process, enabling a person to recover a single Health Level given a night’s rest. Such efforts often require a Static Mental Test, with a difficulty based on the severity and nature of the damage, equipment at your disposal and any assistance or distractions. Other uses of this talent include gaining forensic information, performing a diagnosis or identifying pharmaceuticals. Of course, with learning how to repair the body comes knowledge of how to

do harm as well.

 

MEDITATION

This talent allows you to calm your emotions, control your mind and relax your body. Sorcerers may spend a Trait in this Ability and meditate for a short while to make up for a night’s rest. This talent is also common among oriental and shamanic practitioners, who employ the trance state as a focus for their spiritual workings.

 

MELEE

You are skilled in the arcs of armed combat. This may have been acquired through formal training or on the streets of the local slum. You can use any weapon, from beer bottles and baseball bats to swords and quarterstaffs. A character without this Ability may not gain any benefits from using weapons in armed combat, including the associated Trait bonuses.

 

METAPHYSICS

You have a talent for utilizing esoteric information in a practical fashion. By passing a Static Mental Test, you can identify rituals you uncover or track down the inside scoop on a local cult. The difficulty of this test is determined by how obscure the subject of your inquiry is, as well as your personal scope of understanding and background in this area. Unlike the various Lore

Abilities, this skill covers more general or theoretical information applicable to a wide range of pursuits and styles. This Ability may be used to call for a retest in almost any magical working.

 

OCCULT

This Ability is a catch-all dealing with local folklore, arcane texts, ancient legends and other forms of supernatural facts and hearsay. This understanding of the more sinister side of the world includes knowledge of curses, rituals, uoudon, fortune telling, magic and mysticism, and it contains much that is only speculation and fantasy. This Ability is often used with 

retests for Sorcery, as a skilled occultist casts spells and rituals with a greater degree of success. 

 

PERFORMANCE

You are able to entertain others with your creativity and inspiration. The quality of your efforts may be determined by a Static Test: Physical, Social or  Mental depending upon the specific medium. A particularly sensitive person can even become entranced by your use of this skill, though this requires you to defeat the other character in a Social Challenge. You should declare a specialty when learning this Ability, such as singing, dancing, acting or even exotic forms such as escape artistry or contortion.

 

PSYCHOLOGY

You understand how the human mind works, both at the conscious and subconscious levels. This Ability may represent formal training in schools of Freud or Skinner, or a more intuitive understanding common to many counselors and clergy. It is useful in situations where you are trying to figure out how someone is thinking, as well as getting them to think a certain way. Unlike Subterfuge, this skill represents more of a Mental approach than Social interaction. Sorcerers who study the path of Mind Bending often call of upon this Ability to aid their efforts.

 

SCIENCE

You have a degree of factual and practical expertise in the hard sciences. With this Ability, you to can perform experiments, fabricate items or access  information that less trained individuals could not normally utilize. A Simple Mental Test is necessary for all but the most trivial uses of this skill, with the difficulty determined by the equipment and research data available, the  complexity of the task and the time you can spend. You should select a particular specialty or area of study when purchasing this Ability - for example, Engineering, Physics, Biology or Chemistry. Technowizards often utilize these Traits when working their “magic.” 

 

SCROUNGE

This Ability allows you to acquire items through your connections, wits and ingenuity; it is common among those who lack the wealth to purchase the things they want or need. Material acquired through these means isn’t always brand new and is rarely even exactly right for the desired application.  Depending upon the nature and availability of the items sought, a Narrator

may call for a Static Mental or Social Test appropriate to the means you describe in your attempt. 

 

SECURITY

You are familiar with the ways others protect places and things. Not only can you counter physical security, such as locks, alarms and guards, but you can also determine the best way to secure items and areas. Other uses of this Ability include breaking and entering, infiltrating, safecracking and hotwiring. However, this talent does not cover electronic measures, such as motion sensors and keyless entry systems. Almost all applications of this skill require a Static Physical or Mental

Test. The complexity of the task, the extent of  the defenses, your equipment and the amount of time you can invest in the attempt influence the difficultyof this test.

 

SLEIGHT OF HAND

The art of prestidigitation has made magicians famous for centuries. While most sorcerers have other means to achieve these feats, common misdirection can never be counter-spelled. Most applications of this art call for a Static Physical Test, though Narrators may allow simple amusements to succeed automatically. Those who study Conjuration often make use of this path.

 

SUBTERFUGE

Subterfuge is the art of deception and intrigue, used when participating in a social setting or conversation with a subject. With this Ability, you may  attempt to draw information out of a subject through trickery and careful probing. After a period of conversation on a related topic, you may propose your true question (out of game). For example, to determine someone’s

nationality, you engage them in a discussion on foreign culture. After conversation has been suitably engaged, you ask your true question and go to a Social Challenge. If you win the challenge, your subject must disclose this information, preferably by roleplaying. Conversely, Subterfuge may be used to conceal certain facts or to lie without detection, negating an opponent’s attempts to find things out about you. This Ability may even be used to withhold information obtained through surface scans using the Praxis of Mentalis