Post by nolanraines on Sept 28, 2020 20:44:39 GMT -6
Ambidextrous (1 pt. Merit)
The hemispheres of your brain are so attuned that you can
use both hands with equal dexterity. In game terms, you do not
suffer a higher difficulty if you use two weapons or perform some
task with your off-hand. The normal rules for performing multiple
actions still apply (see Mage 20, p. 388-389), but coordination
between the left and right sides of your body is no problem at all.
Cast-Iron Stomach (1 pt. Merit)
You can eat more or less anything without gagging.
Squirming bugs, synthetic goop, a freshly-gutted carcass with
the innards still hanging out… hey, it’s all food, so chow down!
Anything you can physically devour and digest is yours for
the eating. This Merit does not in any way protect you from
the effects of said substances (rotted meat can still poison
you), but you can keep down a meal that would make the
average person puke from its mere proximity… an especially
useful gift if you have the supernatural Flaw: Bizarre Hunger
(see p. 87).
Catlike Balance (1 pt. Merit)
Your sense of balance has been honed – either through practice, magick, or other means – to uncanny acuity. System-wise,
you reduce the difficulty by -2 when your character performs
some physical act (rolling with a fall, walking a tightrope, etc.)
that requires her to keep her feet.
Hyperflexible (1 pt. Merit)
You are what’s commonly but erroneously known as
“double-jointed” (as per the old Merit of that name). In reality,
your joints are exceedingly flexible, perhaps due to intense
training, magickal augmentation, or the medical condition
known as Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome (EDS – see above, as well as
the Impediment Flaw, below). Whatever the reason, you can
stretch and flex in ways most people cannot.
In game terms, this Merit allows you a -2 reduction in
difficulty for rolls that involve physical flexibility – escape
attempts, contortions, etc. Your character can also perform
uncanny acts of hyperflexibility, as seen in Cirque Du Soleil,
butoh dance, and extreme yoga postures.
Light Sleeper (1 pt. Merit)
Four hours of sleep a night works just fine for you. And
unlike most folks, you can wake up out of an apparently
dead slumber more or less ready for action. You can, of
course, enjoy longer periods of sleep too. But when deadlines, intruders, and end-of-the-world emergencies shake
you out of bed, you get by with cat-naps and the occasional
light snooze.
Noble Blood (1 pt. Merit)
Although the modern world resists the old traditions of
lineage as a mark of quality, your features link you to a powerful family; you’re a Kennedy, a Windsor, a Saud, a Rothschild
– someone whose pedigree is obvious in your physical form
and presence.
In story terms, this Merit grants you the obvious physical
features of a well-known “royal” family: the Kennedy smile, the
Windsor ears, and so forth. The family in question doesn’t
have to belong to a formal aristocracy, either; you might be
a Kardashian, a Murdoch, or a Clinton, and may the gods
have mercy on your soul. On the flipside, your distinct
features might not be especially attractive (royal families are
notoriously inbred), and will mark you out for enemies of
the clan in question.
In social situations, this Merit might be worth a -2 reduction for the difficulty of social rolls that involve people who
care about things like aristocracy, but would also increase your
difficulty by +2 if you’re dealing with folks who hate that noble
family’s guts! In all cases, this Merit reflects an actual genetic
connection, not simply a cosmetic resemblance… which could
provide all kinds of complications when magick and its secret
histories are involved.
While it might be worth some social currency, this Merit
does not in any way provide material wealth or other perks.
For such goodies, see Backgrounds like Influence, Rank, Resources, and so forth in the Mage 20 rulebook, Chapter Six.
For the social benefits of regal presence, see the Social Merit
Regal Bearing, elsewhere in this chapter.
Sterile (1 pt. Merit or Flaw)
For some physical reason, you’re unable to sire or conceive children. Whether this is a Merit or a Flaw depends
upon whether or not you want to sire or conceive children.
Generally, this sort of condition can be easily cured with a
little Life-Sphere magick; in your case, though, it can’t be
rectified until and unless you, the player, discard the Merit
or pay off this Flaw.
Enchanting Feature (2 pt. Merit)
Blessed with magnificent eyes, sleek hair, mighty biceps,
preternatural grace, ripped abs, a dazzling smile, or some other
standout physical feature, you can enchant people with the raw
perfection of that feature. The feature in question doesn’t need
to be visually obvious, either; maybe you smell good, possess
a seductive voice, move with animalistic allure, or enjoy some
likewise wondrous physical asset. (Please be tasteful here, folks.)
This Merit takes the place of related Physical Merits such
as Enchanting Gaze, Soothing Voice, Graceful, and other
potentially similar attributes. Story-wise, this Enchanting Feature becomes a standout part of your character’s description.
System-wise, you reduce the difficulty by -2 when your character
deploys the feature in question as part of some social feat.
If your mage employs his Enchanting Feature Merit as part
of his magickal focus (see the Instruments entries for Eye Contact, Dance and Movement, Ordeals and Exertions, Sex and
Sensuality, Social Domination, and Voice and Vocalizations
in Mage 20, Chapter Ten), then you could count this Merit as
a personalized unique /specialized instrument (as detailed in
Mage 20, pp. 503 and 588). On the plus side, this allows you
to reduce certain casting difficulties by -2 when the feature in
question is specifically employed in the casting of an Effect. On
the not-so-good side, this might get your mage’s eyes gouged
out, his face marred, his vocal cords cut, or… well, you get the
picture… if a particularly ruthless enemy considers that feature
to be “the focus of his power.”
Physically Impressive (2 pt. Merit)
You are one imposing sumbitch, not so much large as
apparently dangerous no matter what mood you might be in
at the time. This could be as obvious as scarring or an intimidating build, or as intangible as the proverbial “air of menace.”
System-wise, the Merit adds two dice to all Social-Trait rolls
that involve intimidating someone; story-wise, people find
you unnerving – and quite possibly attractive in a dangerous
way – even when you’re not trying to be impressive.
Poison Resistance (2 pt. Merit)
Toxins may sicken you, but probably won’t kill you. Although
magickal poisons may be the exception to this rule, your body
shakes off the worst effects of natural and synthesized poisons.
When attacked by such substances, add two dice to your
character’s Stamina roll when resisting their effects; a successful
roll reduces the intensity of powerful toxins, and eliminates
the deadlier effects of lesser ones altogether. Sure, she might
feel a little woozy and could get seriously ill, but even if you
fail that roll your character probably won’t die.
Although it works against toxic bacteria, this Merit does not
protect against diseases spread from viruses, genetic conditions,
and so forth. For details, see Drugs, Poisons, and Disease in
Mage 20, pp. 441-444 and 456. And because intoxicants are
toxins too, this Merit helps you survive overdoses of booze or
drugs – see Alcohol /Drug Tolerance, above.
Poker Face (2 pt. Merit)
Nothing rattles you. Nothing. The emergence of a
titanic elder thing from the depths of space might warrant
a concerned twitch of your mouth, but that’s really about
it. Oh, this doesn’t mean you don’t feel anything – that’s
the Mental Flaw: Icy, below. Your deadpan expression,
blank eyes, and flat tone of voice, however, reveal nothing
about your thoughts or intentions… which, for folks on the
receiving end of you, can be quite disconcerting; reduce the
difficulty of intimidation, subterfuge, and resistance-to-intimidation rolls by -2, while adding +2 to the difficulties of
anyone who tries to rattle your cage or get under your skin,
including attempts to read, seduce, torture, or otherwise
get past that poker face.
Daredevil (3 pt. Merit)
You laugh at danger. Even when daring the Fates with
near-suicidal impulsiveness, you possess an innate knack for
not getting yourself perished. Add three dice to non-combat
and non-magickal rolls that involve some physical act of incomprehensible stupidity (leaping from roof to roof, diving into
a waterfall, jumping a motorcycle onto the back of a moving
train, etc.) that would turn the average mortal into hash.
Hypersensitivity (3 pt. Merit)
Extraordinarily open to physical sensations, you possess
a depth of sensitivity most folks cannot conceive of having.
A mere sip of wine can reveal its vintage to you; a whiff of
smoke betrays the quality (or lack thereof) and origins of its
burnt tobacco; a faint touch can conjure up orgasmic ecstasies.
Story-wise, you can easily “fall into” an enjoyable sensation, relishing it to a degree far beyond typical human
sensitivity. System-wise, you reduce the difficulty by -2 if you’re
trying to use a Perception + Alertness roll to identify details
about a sensation. Assuming that you employ instruments like
Bodywork, Drugs, Energy, Eye Contact, Food and Drink,
or Sex and Sensuality (and you probably use most or all of
them), you can get more “bang for your buck” from such sensations, which allows you to employ those instruments faster,
and perhaps (Storyteller’s option) gives you a -2 reduction to
the difficulty of associated Ability rolls. The normal modifier
limits still apply.
On the flipside, however, painful sensations and overstimulation can trigger paralyzing agonies and intense panic.
Whenever you experience a painful sensation without your
consent (that is, being flogged against your will, subjected
to loud music that you didn’t wish to hear, or injured by
something you didn’t want to be hurt by), you must make a
Willpower roll to avoid being “dragged under” and stunned
by the pain for a turn or two. (See Stunning in Mage 20, p.
417.) That roll’s difficulty depends upon the intensity of the
pain – from difficulty 4 for a minor annoyance, to difficulty
10 for screaming agony. As any Cultist can tell you, ecstasy is
indeed a two-way street!
Although this Merit goes well with Acute Senses, it cannot
be taken by a character who’s also Insensate to Pain (detailed
below).
Nightsight (3 pt. Merit)
Unlike most people, you can see in near-total darkness.
Only the complete absence of visible light will negate this
ability. In even the dimmest light, your visual abilities remain
essentially unimpaired.
This Merit does not increase your character’s visual capacity – for that gift, see Acute Senses, above; it does, however,
mean that low light does not impose any sort of penalty on
her visual perception rolls. Other visual impediments, like
smoke or fog, block her sight as usual, and magickally-imposed
darkness (for instance, the sort caused by deflecting light with
the Forces Sphere) negates this Merit if and when it involves
the dispersal of light itself.
Huge Size (4 pt. Merit)
You’re far bigger than usual – possibly over seven feet
tall and /or over 400 pounds in weight. Such large people
stand out in a crowd, and have a hard time literally “fitting
in” to a world built for smaller human beings. Still, your
character’s large build gives him one additional health level,
which counts as an extra level of Bruised when it comes to
wound-based penalties. If he shapeshifts into a smaller form
through Life-based magick, that extra health level goes away.
In his normal form, however, this large character can be quite
imposing and hard to beat.
Insensate to Pain (5 pt. Merit)
Nothing hurts until it kills you. Okay, it probably does hurt,
but not enough to slow you down. Wound penalties do not
affect your character at all; until she dies, she usually functions
with her full dice pools intact. This Merit does not in any way
change the way in which she takes damage – for that Merit, see
below – but it radically changes the way said damage affects
her ability to get things done.
There is, of course, a downside to all this: Pain tells us
that we’re not functioning properly and should probably
stop while we’re ahead. And so, you’ll also do stuff like
burn yourself by accident, try to walk on broken legs, and
notice cuts only when the blood is seeping through your
shirt. Although pain won’t slow you down, shattered bones
and organs will. Injuries that inflict significant physical impairment (crushed legs, broken skull, gouged-out eyes, etc.)
supersede your usual immunity to dice-pool penalties due
to wounds, and you might inflict further lethal injury upon
yourself (Storyteller’s option) if you keep going after your
body tries to tell you to stop.
Too Tough to Die (5 pt. Merit)
See Mage 20, p. 644.
The hemispheres of your brain are so attuned that you can
use both hands with equal dexterity. In game terms, you do not
suffer a higher difficulty if you use two weapons or perform some
task with your off-hand. The normal rules for performing multiple
actions still apply (see Mage 20, p. 388-389), but coordination
between the left and right sides of your body is no problem at all.
Cast-Iron Stomach (1 pt. Merit)
You can eat more or less anything without gagging.
Squirming bugs, synthetic goop, a freshly-gutted carcass with
the innards still hanging out… hey, it’s all food, so chow down!
Anything you can physically devour and digest is yours for
the eating. This Merit does not in any way protect you from
the effects of said substances (rotted meat can still poison
you), but you can keep down a meal that would make the
average person puke from its mere proximity… an especially
useful gift if you have the supernatural Flaw: Bizarre Hunger
(see p. 87).
Catlike Balance (1 pt. Merit)
Your sense of balance has been honed – either through practice, magick, or other means – to uncanny acuity. System-wise,
you reduce the difficulty by -2 when your character performs
some physical act (rolling with a fall, walking a tightrope, etc.)
that requires her to keep her feet.
Hyperflexible (1 pt. Merit)
You are what’s commonly but erroneously known as
“double-jointed” (as per the old Merit of that name). In reality,
your joints are exceedingly flexible, perhaps due to intense
training, magickal augmentation, or the medical condition
known as Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome (EDS – see above, as well as
the Impediment Flaw, below). Whatever the reason, you can
stretch and flex in ways most people cannot.
In game terms, this Merit allows you a -2 reduction in
difficulty for rolls that involve physical flexibility – escape
attempts, contortions, etc. Your character can also perform
uncanny acts of hyperflexibility, as seen in Cirque Du Soleil,
butoh dance, and extreme yoga postures.
Light Sleeper (1 pt. Merit)
Four hours of sleep a night works just fine for you. And
unlike most folks, you can wake up out of an apparently
dead slumber more or less ready for action. You can, of
course, enjoy longer periods of sleep too. But when deadlines, intruders, and end-of-the-world emergencies shake
you out of bed, you get by with cat-naps and the occasional
light snooze.
Noble Blood (1 pt. Merit)
Although the modern world resists the old traditions of
lineage as a mark of quality, your features link you to a powerful family; you’re a Kennedy, a Windsor, a Saud, a Rothschild
– someone whose pedigree is obvious in your physical form
and presence.
In story terms, this Merit grants you the obvious physical
features of a well-known “royal” family: the Kennedy smile, the
Windsor ears, and so forth. The family in question doesn’t
have to belong to a formal aristocracy, either; you might be
a Kardashian, a Murdoch, or a Clinton, and may the gods
have mercy on your soul. On the flipside, your distinct
features might not be especially attractive (royal families are
notoriously inbred), and will mark you out for enemies of
the clan in question.
In social situations, this Merit might be worth a -2 reduction for the difficulty of social rolls that involve people who
care about things like aristocracy, but would also increase your
difficulty by +2 if you’re dealing with folks who hate that noble
family’s guts! In all cases, this Merit reflects an actual genetic
connection, not simply a cosmetic resemblance… which could
provide all kinds of complications when magick and its secret
histories are involved.
While it might be worth some social currency, this Merit
does not in any way provide material wealth or other perks.
For such goodies, see Backgrounds like Influence, Rank, Resources, and so forth in the Mage 20 rulebook, Chapter Six.
For the social benefits of regal presence, see the Social Merit
Regal Bearing, elsewhere in this chapter.
Sterile (1 pt. Merit or Flaw)
For some physical reason, you’re unable to sire or conceive children. Whether this is a Merit or a Flaw depends
upon whether or not you want to sire or conceive children.
Generally, this sort of condition can be easily cured with a
little Life-Sphere magick; in your case, though, it can’t be
rectified until and unless you, the player, discard the Merit
or pay off this Flaw.
Enchanting Feature (2 pt. Merit)
Blessed with magnificent eyes, sleek hair, mighty biceps,
preternatural grace, ripped abs, a dazzling smile, or some other
standout physical feature, you can enchant people with the raw
perfection of that feature. The feature in question doesn’t need
to be visually obvious, either; maybe you smell good, possess
a seductive voice, move with animalistic allure, or enjoy some
likewise wondrous physical asset. (Please be tasteful here, folks.)
This Merit takes the place of related Physical Merits such
as Enchanting Gaze, Soothing Voice, Graceful, and other
potentially similar attributes. Story-wise, this Enchanting Feature becomes a standout part of your character’s description.
System-wise, you reduce the difficulty by -2 when your character
deploys the feature in question as part of some social feat.
If your mage employs his Enchanting Feature Merit as part
of his magickal focus (see the Instruments entries for Eye Contact, Dance and Movement, Ordeals and Exertions, Sex and
Sensuality, Social Domination, and Voice and Vocalizations
in Mage 20, Chapter Ten), then you could count this Merit as
a personalized unique /specialized instrument (as detailed in
Mage 20, pp. 503 and 588). On the plus side, this allows you
to reduce certain casting difficulties by -2 when the feature in
question is specifically employed in the casting of an Effect. On
the not-so-good side, this might get your mage’s eyes gouged
out, his face marred, his vocal cords cut, or… well, you get the
picture… if a particularly ruthless enemy considers that feature
to be “the focus of his power.”
Physically Impressive (2 pt. Merit)
You are one imposing sumbitch, not so much large as
apparently dangerous no matter what mood you might be in
at the time. This could be as obvious as scarring or an intimidating build, or as intangible as the proverbial “air of menace.”
System-wise, the Merit adds two dice to all Social-Trait rolls
that involve intimidating someone; story-wise, people find
you unnerving – and quite possibly attractive in a dangerous
way – even when you’re not trying to be impressive.
Poison Resistance (2 pt. Merit)
Toxins may sicken you, but probably won’t kill you. Although
magickal poisons may be the exception to this rule, your body
shakes off the worst effects of natural and synthesized poisons.
When attacked by such substances, add two dice to your
character’s Stamina roll when resisting their effects; a successful
roll reduces the intensity of powerful toxins, and eliminates
the deadlier effects of lesser ones altogether. Sure, she might
feel a little woozy and could get seriously ill, but even if you
fail that roll your character probably won’t die.
Although it works against toxic bacteria, this Merit does not
protect against diseases spread from viruses, genetic conditions,
and so forth. For details, see Drugs, Poisons, and Disease in
Mage 20, pp. 441-444 and 456. And because intoxicants are
toxins too, this Merit helps you survive overdoses of booze or
drugs – see Alcohol /Drug Tolerance, above.
Poker Face (2 pt. Merit)
Nothing rattles you. Nothing. The emergence of a
titanic elder thing from the depths of space might warrant
a concerned twitch of your mouth, but that’s really about
it. Oh, this doesn’t mean you don’t feel anything – that’s
the Mental Flaw: Icy, below. Your deadpan expression,
blank eyes, and flat tone of voice, however, reveal nothing
about your thoughts or intentions… which, for folks on the
receiving end of you, can be quite disconcerting; reduce the
difficulty of intimidation, subterfuge, and resistance-to-intimidation rolls by -2, while adding +2 to the difficulties of
anyone who tries to rattle your cage or get under your skin,
including attempts to read, seduce, torture, or otherwise
get past that poker face.
Daredevil (3 pt. Merit)
You laugh at danger. Even when daring the Fates with
near-suicidal impulsiveness, you possess an innate knack for
not getting yourself perished. Add three dice to non-combat
and non-magickal rolls that involve some physical act of incomprehensible stupidity (leaping from roof to roof, diving into
a waterfall, jumping a motorcycle onto the back of a moving
train, etc.) that would turn the average mortal into hash.
Hypersensitivity (3 pt. Merit)
Extraordinarily open to physical sensations, you possess
a depth of sensitivity most folks cannot conceive of having.
A mere sip of wine can reveal its vintage to you; a whiff of
smoke betrays the quality (or lack thereof) and origins of its
burnt tobacco; a faint touch can conjure up orgasmic ecstasies.
Story-wise, you can easily “fall into” an enjoyable sensation, relishing it to a degree far beyond typical human
sensitivity. System-wise, you reduce the difficulty by -2 if you’re
trying to use a Perception + Alertness roll to identify details
about a sensation. Assuming that you employ instruments like
Bodywork, Drugs, Energy, Eye Contact, Food and Drink,
or Sex and Sensuality (and you probably use most or all of
them), you can get more “bang for your buck” from such sensations, which allows you to employ those instruments faster,
and perhaps (Storyteller’s option) gives you a -2 reduction to
the difficulty of associated Ability rolls. The normal modifier
limits still apply.
On the flipside, however, painful sensations and overstimulation can trigger paralyzing agonies and intense panic.
Whenever you experience a painful sensation without your
consent (that is, being flogged against your will, subjected
to loud music that you didn’t wish to hear, or injured by
something you didn’t want to be hurt by), you must make a
Willpower roll to avoid being “dragged under” and stunned
by the pain for a turn or two. (See Stunning in Mage 20, p.
417.) That roll’s difficulty depends upon the intensity of the
pain – from difficulty 4 for a minor annoyance, to difficulty
10 for screaming agony. As any Cultist can tell you, ecstasy is
indeed a two-way street!
Although this Merit goes well with Acute Senses, it cannot
be taken by a character who’s also Insensate to Pain (detailed
below).
Nightsight (3 pt. Merit)
Unlike most people, you can see in near-total darkness.
Only the complete absence of visible light will negate this
ability. In even the dimmest light, your visual abilities remain
essentially unimpaired.
This Merit does not increase your character’s visual capacity – for that gift, see Acute Senses, above; it does, however,
mean that low light does not impose any sort of penalty on
her visual perception rolls. Other visual impediments, like
smoke or fog, block her sight as usual, and magickally-imposed
darkness (for instance, the sort caused by deflecting light with
the Forces Sphere) negates this Merit if and when it involves
the dispersal of light itself.
Huge Size (4 pt. Merit)
You’re far bigger than usual – possibly over seven feet
tall and /or over 400 pounds in weight. Such large people
stand out in a crowd, and have a hard time literally “fitting
in” to a world built for smaller human beings. Still, your
character’s large build gives him one additional health level,
which counts as an extra level of Bruised when it comes to
wound-based penalties. If he shapeshifts into a smaller form
through Life-based magick, that extra health level goes away.
In his normal form, however, this large character can be quite
imposing and hard to beat.
Insensate to Pain (5 pt. Merit)
Nothing hurts until it kills you. Okay, it probably does hurt,
but not enough to slow you down. Wound penalties do not
affect your character at all; until she dies, she usually functions
with her full dice pools intact. This Merit does not in any way
change the way in which she takes damage – for that Merit, see
below – but it radically changes the way said damage affects
her ability to get things done.
There is, of course, a downside to all this: Pain tells us
that we’re not functioning properly and should probably
stop while we’re ahead. And so, you’ll also do stuff like
burn yourself by accident, try to walk on broken legs, and
notice cuts only when the blood is seeping through your
shirt. Although pain won’t slow you down, shattered bones
and organs will. Injuries that inflict significant physical impairment (crushed legs, broken skull, gouged-out eyes, etc.)
supersede your usual immunity to dice-pool penalties due
to wounds, and you might inflict further lethal injury upon
yourself (Storyteller’s option) if you keep going after your
body tries to tell you to stop.
Too Tough to Die (5 pt. Merit)
See Mage 20, p. 644.