Cortex Fantasy Hack

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Distinctions

Each character starts play with three distinctions that can be rolled as a d8 if the distinction would help your character or at a d4 if it would hinder your character. If you choose to roll your distinction as a d4 you get a Plot Point for doing so.

Choose one distinction from each category for your character.

Wyrd Distinction

A character's Wyrd represents their unique spiritual essence and determines what nature of energies they are able to call forth from beyond the Realm of Men.

Chose one of the Distinctions below.

Highlighted Skills: Each distinction in this category has Focus as one of it's highlighted skills. Choose two more highlighted skills that make sense to be associated with your character's Wyrd Distinction.


Bonewight: Speakers for the dead, the Bonewight always carries with them a finger bone or other small piece of a favored ancestral corpse that they may consult with for counsel. If they have access to any piece of any corpse, they may focus on it and learn things that the person or creature knew in life.

Difficulty increases based on how long ago the dead thing passed. (The Bonewight's piece of ancestral corpse is always treated as a d6 difficulty (plus any environmental difficulty or complications that might apply).

Pick Bonewight if your concept is maybe a little bit darker, and you like the idea of being a necromantic rumormonger.


Farseer: Oracles and seers, the Farseer's are able to see through the eyes of others. They cannot communicate with that other or force them to take any action or movement, but they see what the other sees. Targets beyond the Farseer's line of sight (unless in a precisely known location) resist with Scale.

Pick Farseer if you like the idea of spying on folk unseen from a distance.


Harbinger: If the Bonewight is the Speaker for the Dead, the Harbinger is the Bringer of Death. They can reach out with their invisible Wyrd and attack, hold, or otherwise interfere with any single creature or object within their line of sight.

Pick Harbinger if mind over matter telekinetic Jedi abilities appeal.


Mistweaver: The Mistweaver commands the primordial elements of fog and mist. They use their command of these elements primarily for concealment and illusion, cloaking areas in fog, altering its density and form to make it look as if things are moving within it, or opening odd channels that muffle or amplify sound - or change it altogether.

Pick Mistweaver if you fancy shadowy concealment and wielding subtle visual and audible misdirection.


Runespeaker: Runespeakers are the saboteurs of the supernatural world. They are able to trace invisible runes of fire and destruction on non-living matter. The Runespeaker must be able to physically touch whatever they are tracing the rune on to effectively do so. Runes activate on the end following turn. (At GM discretion, the player may select an activation time within 5 turns of setting the rune if they roll an extraordinary success).

Pick Runespeaker if you want to downlow sneak in/sneak out and obliterate tactical targets.


Wildwarden: Nature is red of tooth and claw, and the Wildwarden knows how to call those teeth and claws forth. Able to sense animals near to them, whether they can see them or not, the Wildwarden is able to communicate with them and get information from them. They also have the potential to convince the animal in question to act on their behalf if it would be in the animal's nature to do so. As a general rule, the Wildwarden can hold sway over a single large creature, two or three medium creatures, or a swarm of small/tiny creatures at one time.

Pick Wildwarden if you want to to pied-piper/ranger-companion your way through the world.


The Wyrdless: Some characters are born in the manner of folk throughout the wider world, with no access to their Wyrd, no way to reach beyond the Realm of Men. The Red Adepts, who hunt the Wyrded, are unable to sense the Wyrdless, and the null aura of the Wyrdless can mask other Wyrded gathered close to them from the Adepts' supernatural senses.

Pick The Wyrdless if messing with the supernatural just doesn't much appeal to you.


Profession Distinction

Because the Wyrded are hunted from childhood, they often choose professions that are low profile where they can escape the notice of the Red Adepts because what they do is unobtrusive and out of the way or otherwise unpleasant - possibilities might include charcoal burners, thieves, blacksmiths, scribes, woodsmen, trappers, dyers, potters, leatherworkers etc.

Or they might choose professions where they are not necessarily tucked away but that keeps them naturally on the move - possibilities might include soldiers, sailors, fishermen, caravaneers, etc.

It will be the rare character that chooses a profession subject to common visitation by any caste, such as hospitality/merchant professions or those that specifically rub shoulders regularly with the upper castes, such as guildmember, palace servant, advocate, etc.

Choose one Profession Distinction for your character.

Highlighted Skills: Choose three highlighted skills that make sense to be associated with your character's Profession Distinction.

Quirk Distinction

Your final distinctions should highlight something singularly unique about your character. Are they an Acrobat? Are they an Ornery Bastard? Are they Always Kind? etc. It can literally be just about anything.

Choose one Quirk Distinction for your character

Highlighted Skills: Chose three highlighted skills that make sense to be associated with your character's Quirk Distinction.


Attributes

Choose one of the following configurations:

  • Set all four attributes at d8
  • Set one at d10, two at d8, and one at d6
  • Set two at d10 and two at d6.

Your total should equal 32 regardless of which option you choose.

No character may have an attribute higher than d10 or lower than d6 to start the game.

Savagery

Indicates actions/reactions of violence and power

Reflexes

Indicates actions/reactions of finesse and care

Cunning

Indicates actions/reactions of reason and manipulation

Will

Indicates actions/reactions of presence and determination