Editing Dogs with Cards (section)

== Characters ==
 
=== Stats ===

The four Stats are Acuity, Body, Heart, and Will.

'''Acuity and Body'''

These two Stats are about your character's general abilities.
 
''Acuity (Awareness)'' describes how sharp, perceptive, alert, clever, quick, or knowledgeable you are--your mental faculties.

''Body'' determines how big, strong, athletic, healthy, muscular, fit or coordinated you are--your physical faculties.

'''Heart and Will'''

These two Stats are about your character's inner self.

''Heart'' is your warm side. It tells us how compassionate, charming, empathetic, emotionally intelligent, loving, enduring, and courageous you are--how effective your character is when he or she is being gentle, sensitive, patient, or disciplined.

''Will'' is your tough side: your conviction, whether that's ice or fire. It tells us how strong-minded, stubborn, tenacious, or unshakable you are--how effective your character is when he or she is being aggressive, brutal, or staring death in the face.

=== Traits ===

All Traits are either ''regular'', ''troublesome'', or ''strong''. A Trait may also be ''significant'' (as well as regular, troublesome, or strong). Here's how to keep track of that:
 
* Regular traits receive no special marking.
* Troublesome traits receive a "-" mark.
* Strong traits receive a "+" mark.
* Significant traits receive a "*" (asterisk/star) after their name.

Converting from regular Dogs rules: 

* Troublesome Traits are like 1d4 or 2d4 Traits.
* Regular Traits are like 1d6, 2d6, or 1d8 Traits.
* Strong Traits are like 2d8, 1d10, or 2d10 Traits.
* Significant Traits are like Traits that have 3 or 4 dice in them, and they can be of any "size", whether regular, troublesome, or strong. For example, 4d6 is significant, 3d10 is strong and significant, and 4d4 is troublesome and significant.

''For example: Let's say you draw your gun. Draw cards for it normally, but also draw cards as though you brought a troublesome trait into play (for that extra d4).''

''Another example: For an initiation conflict, you're supposed to roll 4d6 + 4d10. 4d6 is a significant trait, so draw cards for it (as you'll see, that's two cards). 4d10 is strong AND significant, so draw for that too (in this case, it's four more and you keep the best two).''

If you convert an existing character by the guidelines above, you may need to combine or remove a few one-die Traits: a Dogs character with several one-die Traits could potentially have twice as many Traits as they should under these rules. You'll have to use your best judgement in those cases.

To make a new character, choose one of the following templates:

=== Well-rounded ===

Distribute 9 points between the four Stats. Put at least one point in each.

You get:

* One troublesome trait
* One regular trait
* One strong trait

And:

* One troublesome relationship
* One regular relationship
* One strong relationship

=== Strong History ===

Distribute 7 points between the four Stats. Put at least one point in each.

You get:

* Two regular traits
* One strong trait
* One strong, significant trait

And:

* One troublesome relationship
* One regular relationship
* One strong relationship

=== Complicated History ===

Distribute 8 points between the four Stats. Put at least one point in each.

You get:

* Two troublesome traits
* One regular trait
* One significant trait

And:
 
* One regular relationship
* One strong relationship
* One significant relationship

=== Strong Community ===

Distribute 7 points between the four Stats. Put at least one point in each.

You get:

* One troublesome trait
* One regular trait
* One strong trait

And:
 
* Two regular relationships
* Two strong relationships
* One strong, significant relationship

=== Complicated Community ===

Distribute 8 points between the four Stats. Put at least one point in each.

You get:

* Two regular traits
* One significant trait

And:

* Two troublesome relationships 
* One regular relationship
* One strong relationship
* One significant relationship

=== Belongings ===

All characters can also carry belongings. By default, you may start with:
 
* One troublesome (crappy) possession.
* One regular (average) possession.

And either:
 
* One significant (big) possession, or
* One strong (quality) possession.

Or just choose whatever you want, as in Dogs. I find having a default is helpful for first-time players, though.