Machines and Magic Rules

I will be posting the most current set of rules here, the old rule set will be available in a legacy thread. The new rule set attempted to cut out a lot of the complexity that accumulated in the old set while emphasising the core experience of the game; despair. Let me know what you guys think of the changes.

Your ability scores represent your characters raw skills. Your ability scores are used to determine the difficulty of performing task, and provides a number of bonuses. Each character has seven abilities, described below.

Physique: Representative of your physical build, your strength and hardiness as well as how fast and far you can run and the load you can bear.
Reaction: Representative of how quickly you respond to the world, your nimbleness and reflexes as well as how fast you can act.
Observation: Representative of your awareness, how much detail you can gleam from your surrounds, your accuracy particularly with ranged weapons and your ability to assess people and objects.
Knowledge: Representative of your raw mental prowess, the information you have accumulated over your life as well as your ability to retain information and your powers of logic and deduction.
Influence: Representative of your social prowess as well as your ability to get what you want, deceive, manipulate, confuse and gathering information with others.
Power: Representative of your magical strength, strength of character as well as your ability to manipulate energies, resist the powers of the world and the strength of your soul.
Focus: Representative of your mental fortitude and resolve, as well as your ability to resist the forces of the world and calm and control your mind.
Determining Abilities:

To determine your abilities, at character creation you have 14 points which are spent according to the following table:

Ability Score	Cost
4	0
5	1
6	2
7	4

After spending all your points, add any bonuses from your race and class.

Improving Abilities:
Your ability scores can be improved by spending experience, but you can never increase an ability more than 4 times (to a maximum of +4). Your abilities may also be improved by items.

Ability Points:
Each ability has associated ability points. Ability points are a resource which is spent in order to perform certain tasks, and refresh at different rates, as described below. Your maximum ability points is equal to half your ability score.

-Physique Points: During an encounter, you can spend at most one physique point per turn to take an additional move or action on your turn. Physique points refresh at the end of short rests.
-Reaction Points: During an encounter, you can spend reaction points in order to take reactions. Reaction points refresh at the beginning of your turn.
-Observation Points: During narrative time, you can spend an observation point to become alert for 1 hour. While alert, you will be entitled to Observation skill rolls, instead of using your passive observation score. Observation points refresh at the end of short rests
-Knowledge Points: During a short or long rest, you can spend knowledge points to determine the properties of items. Different items will require varying amounts of knowledge points in order to completely understand them, but points spent on items are accumulative. Knowledge points refresh at the end of a long rest.
-Influence Points: During an encounter, you can spend an influence point in order to issue a command to at most two underlings. Your influence points refresh at the start of your turn.
-Power Points: You can spend power points to activate abilities whenever you may use that ability. Different abilities will require varying amounts of power points in order to activate. Power points refresh at the end of a long rest.
-Focus Points: During a short or long rest, you can spend focus points to reduce damage points. Each focus point you spend removes 1d3 damage points. Focus points refresh at the end of a long rest.

Your damage scores track your characters progress towards there inevitable demise. Each of your abilities has a damage associated with it, as described below. As your damage score increases, your character will suffer afflictions, which make manifest their failing conditions. When any of your damage scores reaches 20, your character is removed from play.

Wounds: The degree by which you have sustained physical harm as well as representing the amount of grievous bodily harm you have sustained. Associated with physique.
Stress: The degree by which you perceive circumstances are out of your control, as well as how quickly you lose calm. Associated with reaction.
Fear: The degree by which you lose rationality, as well as how strongly your instincts of self-preservation controls your actions. Associated with observation.
Insanity: The degree by which your lucidity has degraded and your loss of mental stability. Associated with knowledge.
Depravity: The degree by which you no longer conform to the expectations of others as well as how little you care for others. Associated with influence.
Corruption: The degree by which your soul has been tainted by the malign powers of the world. Associated with power.
Fatigue: The degree by which you lack vigour, and the degradation of your mental fortitude. Associated with focus.

Determining Damage
You start with 0 damage on each damage score except one of your choice which starts with 2d3 damage. You may also start with more damage from choices made during character creation.

Reducing Damage
Your damage scores can be reduced by spending experience, but you can never reduce a damage score more than 4 times (to a maximum of -4).

Damage Points:
Similarly to ability points, each ability has associated ability points. Your damage points start at 0 and are increased by taking damage. So long as your damage points do not exceed your corresponding ability score, your character continues to function normally. When you refresh damage points, you add half the number of damage points (rounding up) to the related damage score, then set the refreshed damage points to 0. Note that your damage points refresh independently, refreshing one does not cause all others to refresh. During a short rest, you can refresh any number of damage points. During a long rest you must refresh at least one damage point, noting that you can refresh damage points even if you have none of that type (which is to say, if you have a damage score with 0 damage points associated with it, you can refresh that score, and hence not increase any of your damage scores).

If your damage points exceeds your ability score though you succumb to the damage, in a manner described below. When you succumb to damage , you automatically refresh all of your damage points, but the damage score that caused you are succumbing to is added in full to your damage score (ie. without being halved).

Succumbing effects:
Irrespective of the what caused you to be succumb, while you are succumbing to damage all damage you take is added directly to your damage score, not your damage points.
-Wounds: You are incapacitated by your wounds and are knocked unconscious. You can take no actions and each turn you must roll 1d20, if you roll higher than 10 your wounds score increases by 1.
-Stress: You crack under the strain of circumstances and begin to have a panic attack. You can take no action, and whenever you are damaged in some way, or if you start your turn with an enemy at melee range, you must roll 1d20, if you roll higher than 10 your stress score increases by 1.
-Fear: Terror grips your mind and you become incapable of rational thought. On your turn you use both your move and action to flee from perceived threats. If you are incapable of moving away from the threats, and can still perceive them you must roll 1d20, if you roll higher than 10 your fear score increases by 1.
-Insanity: You suffer a bout of madness. On your turn you attack a random creature in melee range using whatever you have in your hands, this attack is made at disadvantage. Every turn you fail to hit something, you must roll 1d20, if you roll higher than 10 your insanity score increases by 1.
-Depravity: Your self-interests over power your sense of purpose. You ally yourself with whatever caused you to succumb to your depravity, serving them to the best of your ability. Each round you do so you must roll 1d20, if you roll higher than 10 your depravity score increases by 1.
-Corruption: Your essence groans under the burden you load upon it. You can take no action and each turn you must roll 1d20, if you roll higher than 10 your corruption score increases by 1 and all creatures in melee range of you take 1d3 + your corruption score points of corruption damage.
-Fatigue: Your body collapses in an exhausted heap, each round you must either expend a Focus point or you must roll 1d20, if you roll higher than 10 your fatigue score increases by 1.

Restoring Characters:
Restoring a characters the process of removing the succumbing effect. If you are removed from an encounter or the encounter ends, you are automatically restored. During the encounter, an ally in melee range can sacrifice their actions, moves and reactions in order to restore you. Finally if you roll a 10 or less three times on any of the rolls described in the effects above, you cease to experience the succumbing effect, though you cannot make actions until you are restored.

Fate is a measure of the Characters favour with the Gameaster. The Gameaster may call for a fate roll whenever they deem appropriate. Further a number of traits and talents require fate rolls to work. A characters fate is determined by rolling 2d3 and adding their racial bonus.

Fate Points:

Just like abilities and damage scores, your character has fate points associated to your fate score. Your maximum fate points is half your fate score. You can spend fate points to reroll a poor result, or you may have abilities that require a fate point to be spent. In addition to this. You can spend a fate point to replace any check with check against your luck. This check is unmodified, representing solely whether or not the Gamaester is in your favour. Fate points refresh at the Gamaester's discretion, usually at the end of quests.

Some characters, as a result of their upbringing, birthright or profession, are more apt at performing particular tasks, or find it easier to learn new skills. These are a characters affinities.

Affinities effect how easily a character can perform actions. If a character makes a check which they have the appropriate affinity for, they add their affinity bonus, which is equal to their Rank. Affinities also determine the xp cost of characteristic advancements and feats. Below is a list of the different affinities.

Arcane:
The secrets of magic come easily to this character, they have an understanding of how it works and in some instances can even work it's perilous flows. An Arcane (Power) Check is used to manifest your innate magic, an Arcane (Focus) is used to focus arcane energies and an Arcane (Knowledge) Check can be used to identify a spell or magical effect.

Attunement:
Attunement represents a characters sensitivity to the ebb and flow of extra planar energies. This affinity is mostly used by the summoner class, as their primary casting skill, a Attunement (Knowledge) check can be used to recall information on the planes and elementals.

Ballistic:
A sure shot and stead aim. This character is very skilled at using ranged weapons. A Ballistic (Observation) check can be used to fire ranged weapons.

Commerce:
This character is apt at making money. Some would be considered good employees, always sure of being able to get a job, others have a good eye for value or are experts at haggling prices. When performing a work task, the success of such task is often determined by a Commerce check on a relevant skill (for example Physique for porting, Knowledge for scribing, etc.). A Commerce (Influence) check can be used to purchase goods, a Commerce (Knowledge) check can be used to appraise the value of an item.

Deception:
Such a character should not be trusted as lying is to them second nature, and falsehood often comes more naturally then truth. A Deception (Influence) check can be used to convincingly present a lie, a Deception (Physique) check can be used to feint an opponent in a melee combat, a Deception (Reaction) check could be used to perform tricks of speed and miss direction. A Deception (Knowledge) check could be used to convince others using logic of a falsehood or to convince others of a falsehood by presenting a large number of 'facts'.

Faith:
Such a character finds it natural to rely on the remaining divine powers. Those around them are either awestruck or disgusted by their ability to adhere to their religious codes and there unwavering belief. A Faith (Focus) check is required to manifest a divine power, a faith (Knowledge) check can be used to recall information about gods, religious practices and scriptures.

Finesse:
Speed and precision are tools which this character relies on. To make called shots on opponents requires a Finesse (Physique) or Finesse (Observation) checks for melee and ranged attacks respectively. A Finesse (Reaction) check can be used to attempt to perform sleight of hand tricks. Debating and arguing is also a Finesse (Influence) or Finesse (Knowledge) depending on the circumstances.

Inspection:
A character with an affinity with inspection is apt at finding things, both actual objects and information, often it is more a matter of always knowing what to look for. An Inspection (PER) check can be used to search an area for objects of interest, An Inspection (INT) check could be used to follow a line of logic, decode a cypher or find useful information from written sources, an Inspection (LDR) test needed to see through a lie or determine the motivations of someone, an Inspection (EDU) check is used to determine the meaning of ancient or incoherent text.

Intimidation:
A character with this affinity is imposing and dominating, and often forces their will on those around them. An Intimidation (Influence) check could be used to force others to do your will by strength of character or authority, where as an Intimidation (Physique) check could be used to make your opponents fearful. In general Intimidation checks are opposed by WIL saves.

Medicine:
A steady hand and calm repose, makes this character ideal for tending to the wounds of others. A medicine (Reaction) check is required to perform any kind of surgery, a medicine (Focus) check is used treat minor wounds and perform first aid, with a medicine (Knowledge) check a character can make diagnoses or identify cause of death.

Nature:
This character has a deep set connection to nature. A nature (Influence) check can be used to influence the behaviour of animals, a nature (Reaction) check can be used to wrangle or control animals, with a nature (Knowledge) check a character can identify plants and animals as well as their properties.

Performance:
This character is extraverted, and has a talent for showing their abilities to others. Performance is used when attempting to make public demonstrations of abilities, common uses of this affinity includes Performance (Influence) to perform feats of oration, singing and drama, but similarly you can use Performance (Observation) or (Physique) for marksmanship or swordcraft demonstrations.

Persuasion:
Characters with this affinity are good at getting what they want. The characteristic you roll against depends on the method of persuasion, if you try plying your charm and personal magnetism test against (Influence), if you try to intimidate an opponent with you physical power test against (Physique), whereas convincing someone using a logical argument would be and (Knowledge) check.

Stealth:
A sneaky and shift type, who prefers not to be in the spotlight. Most attempts to avoid detection will fall under a stealth (Reaction) check, though a character can also make a stealth (Physique) or stealth (Observation) check to attempt to use a weapon without being noticed. A stealth (Influence) check could be used to attempt to communicate without your meaning being easily observed, whereas a stealth (Knowledge) check could be used to encrypt a message or conceal and item.

Survival:
Often well prepared and used to roughing it, a character with this affinity is more comfortable than others in poor conditions. A survival (Physique) check can be used to endure overland trips without fatigue, resist poisonous or contaminated food stuff. Survival (Reaction) checks are required when trying to use ropes or craft primitive tools. A survival (Knowledge) check is required to navigate without getting lost and identify potential hazards.

Technology:
This character just feels at home amongst the whirring machines and hissing pipes of technology. Technology (Physique) checks are required to perform maintenance on mechanical devices or piloting a vehicle, where as a technology (Knowledge) check might be required to perform a diagnostic, or use an intricate and complex machine. Often a technology (Knowledge) check can also provide an insight into a mechanical system. Many of the more mysterious practices of the machine cult will require some kind of technology (Focus) or (Power) check, and controlling a machine spirit requires the use of a technology (Influence) check.

Weapon:
This character is at home with a weapon in their hand. A Weapon (Physique) check can be used to attack an enemy, a Weapon (Reaction) check can be used to parry an opponent.

Ability Checks: Ability checks are representative of your raw abilities, and do not take into consideration any training you may have.

Damage Checks: At any time, you may replace your ability score with your damage score for the purpose of making a check, but this is not without risk. You will take damage points to this score equal to the amount you succeeded the check by, this damage is reduced by your soak as per normal.

Affinity Checks: Affinity checks are representative of your training and talent with skills. Affinity checks will always be linked to an ability, depending on circumstances, but you also add your rank bonus to these checks.

Proficient Checks: Proficiency checks are similar to Affinity checks but are much more refined. They pertain to your ability to use particular tools, vehicles, languages, arms and armour. When making a Proficiency check you will always roll against the characteristic instructed by the device and add your rank bonus. Attempting to use a proficiency check untrained  will often result in a penalty specified in the items entry.

Rank Bonus: When making checks, if a character has the relevant affinity or proficiency they will add their rank bonus to their ability score. Your rank bonus slowly improves as your rank increases, following the progression bellow:

Rank	Rank Bonus
1-2	+2
3-4	+4
5-6	+6

Difficulty Classes: Not all action require the same amount of effort, some are simpler others are others are much harder. The following are the difficulties and the penalty/bonus they apply

Difficulty	Effect
Very Easy	+6 and Advantage
Easy	+6
Routine	+4
Ordinary	+2
Challenging	+0
Difficult	-2
Hard	-4
Very Hard	-6
Impossible	-6 and Disadvantage

Making Checks:
There are a number of situations in which you will need to make a check. A basic check is the most common type; required to activate most skills and abilities. To make a basic check identify what affinities or proficiencies apply, what characteristic you are testing against and whether there are any difficulty modifiers to consider. This should inform you as to what your target is. You then roll a d20 and compare the result to the target, if your roll is less than or equal to the target you have passed, otherwise you have only achieved a partial success (see partial success below) or have failed.

Some checks represent an longer period of time to normal checks. In these cases you may be required to make an extended check. The player makes multiple checks and on each check notes by how much or they have passed or failed each roll. Note, you accumulate failure and success separately. The character passes the extended test if they accumulate a sufficient amount of success or fail if they accumulate a sufficient amount of failure, determined by the nature of the check. If any of the rolls are critical success or failures they contribute double the amount of success or failure. Each roll represents an amount of time, determined by the nature of the action, it is possible that there is a time limit involved, thus you may fail if you do not accumulate the required amount of success in time.

In some cases you will be actively competing with another entity in the game, in these cases you make an opposed check. To determine who succeeds in the opposed check make the relevant check or save and compare by how much you have succeeded or failed, with critical success or failures counting for double. The party that passed by the greatest margin, or failed by the least passes the check. In the case of a tie compare the relevant scores with the larger score succeeding and if the tie is still unresolved change fails to occur, ie. the situation doesn't change.

Partial Success:
If you failed a check, but would have succeed if you add a bonus equal to the relevant damage score you may choose to succeed, but doing so will always have a cost. You take 1d3 damage points ignoring soak, in addition to this there may be further costs.

Critical Success or Failure:
If you roll a 1 on a d20 the roll is considered a critical success. A critical success always counts as a success (even when success would otherwise be impossible) and will likely have other benefits depending on the nature of the check. On the other hand a roll of a 20 on a d20 is considered a critical failure. Similarly to critical success, a critical failure is always considered a failure, and will often have penalties depending on the nature of the check.

Advantage and Disadvantage:
Under some circumstances you may have advantage or disadvantage when performing an action. If you have advantage on a check or save, roll twice and choose the lower of the two rolls. If you have disadvantage you roll twice and choose the higher of two rolls. Advantage and disadvantage are not accumulative, further if your circumstances gives you both advantage and disadvantage on a roll, they cancel out, irrespective on how much more disadvantage or advantage you may have.

Assisted Check:
A character with the relevant affinity or proficiency can elect to assist another character in their check. This grants the target either advantage on their check or the benefits of your proficiency or affinity (being considered proficient in the check for the purposes of avoiding penalties as well as granting your proficiency bonus to the check). If you elect to assist another character you do not make a check, the outcome for both you and the assisted character is determined by their roll.

Further you may elect to join a group check, in this case the outcome of the group check is determined by a single roll. A single character is deemed the leader on the check, and it is their proficiencies, affinities and abilities that are considered. Each other character in the group contributes to determining the difficulty of the check, for each character in the group with the relevant proficiency or affinity reduces the difficulty by one, but for each character in the group without the relevant proficiency or affinity increase the difficulty by one.

As your damage score increases, your character feels the effects of the deteriorating condition. When your damage score increases consult the table below to see the effect it has. These effects are accumulative.

Damage Score Level	Effect
0	N/A
1	N/A
2	N/A
3	Reduce primary ability score by 1
4	Gain an Affliction
5	N/A
6	Increase associated damage score by 1
7	Gain an Affliction
8	Reduce secondary ability score by 1
9	N/A
10	Reduce primary ability score by 1
11	Gain an Affliction
12	Reduce secondary ability score by 1
13	Gain an Affliction
14	Reduce primary ability score by 1, and increase associated damage score by 1
15	Gain an Affliction
16	Reduce secondary ability score by 1, and increase associated damage score by 1
17	Gain an Affliction
18	Reduce primary ability score by 2, and increase associated damage score by 2
19	Gain two Affliction
20	Your character is rendered unplayable

The primary and secondary ability, as well as the associated damage is determined in the table below.

Primary Ability Secondary Ability Associated Damage
Wounds Physique Power Fatigue
Stress Reaction Focus Fear
Fear Observation Reaction Depravity
Insanity Knowledge Influence Corruption
Corruption Power Knowledge Wounds
Depravity Influence Observation Insanity
Fatigue Focus Physique Stress

Gaining Afflictions
When you gain an affliction, you have two options. You can always choose to roll a d6 to determine at random what affliction you take. When you determine your affliction in this way, if you roll an affliction you already have that affliction increases one level and you must roll again. Otherwise you can choose to increase one of your current afflictions. This is chosen at random. If at any point a severe affliction should be increased, this causes you to roll again twice. You never effect more than two afflictions at a time (ie. no matter how many increases or rerolls you might have caused, only the first two occur).

Dissociation
Selective Amnesia (Mild).
You lose memories of times when you took damage of any type. If you desire to recall such events you must pass a +4 Knowledge check and take 1d3 Stress points and 1 Sanity point without soak, double this damage on a partial success.
Dissociative Identity (Moderate).
You have a distinct secondary personality who experiences the memories lost by your selective amnesia. The personality is uncooperative, disliking you for all the suffering you impose on it. The difficulty of the knowledge check increased to +2, and when you fail such a check your secondary personality takes control for a time period up to the discretion of the Gamaester.
Hostile Persona (Severe).
Your secondary personality becomes hostile, and seeks to take control more regularly. Whenever you take damage of any type you must pass a +4 Focus check to retain control. The difficulty of the knowledge check is increased to +0.

Safety
Fixation (Mild). You grow attached to either a physical item or person. So long as that object is with you this affliction has no effect. If you are ever away from this object though you take double stress damage.
Ritual (Moderate). You develop a ritual to avoid harm. Whenever you take damage of any type you must spend a reaction or take 2 stress points without soak.
Compulsion (Severe). Your ritual becomes more than responsive, it becomes preventative. You must perform your ritual once per turn in addition whenever you take damage.

Avoidant
Shyness (Mild). Whenever you are exposed to new people you must pass a +4 focus check. If you fail, all influence checks involving those people are made at disadvantage. If you ever succeed at any influence checks involving that person this effect is removed for them.
Anxiety (Moderate). Whenever your shyness effects triggers and you fail the focus check take one point of stress damage without soak. The difficulty of the focus check is increased to +2.
Withdrawal (Severe). Whenever you fail the focus check you cannot initiate interactions with that person. The difficulty of the focus check is increased to +0, and whenever you fail an influence check with that person you take 2d3 stress damage.

Depersonalisation
Separation (Mild). You experience on of the following effects. You do not accept your past actions as your own, you do not acknowledge your own reflection as your own, you have thoughts that are not your own. Your influence score is reduced by 2.
Out of Body (Moderate). Whenever you take stress damage, you must make a +6 focus check. On a failed check you lose control of your character for 1d3 rounds. This experience is very stressful and when you regain control you immediately gain 3d3 stress points.
Self Non-recognition (Severe). You do not acknowledge your body as your own. You are willing to risk bodily harm to avoid stressful situations. If the Gamaester presents such a solution you must pass a -2 focus check to not take that option.

Flashback
Trigger Fear (Mild). Objects related to past trauma gains the Fear (2) trait for you.
Recurring Nightmare (Moderate). Whenever you take a long rest you must pass a focus check. If you fail you only regain half your used knowledge, power and focus points.
Severe Flashbacks (Severe). On any critical failure, you immediately succumb to stress (see succumbing to damage).

Sensitisation
Over-reactive (Mild). Whenever you make an observation check, you can gain advantage with the cost gaining 1d3 stress points without soak. Critical success on any observation check causes 2d6 stress damage and succeeding with cost causes damage to both fear and stress.
Anticipative (Moderate). You become over-sensitised to sources of stress damage. Whenever you take stress damage you must make a +0 Focus check, failure causes you to take double damage.
Simulation (Severe). The effects of your anticipation is increased to triple damage on a failed check and the difficulty of focus check is increased to -2. This effect can be removed if after taking a long rest you simulate the stress source, 1d3 points of stress damage without soak.