I must say,..I really enjoyed reading this "Quick and Dirty" Character Creation doc... Here are a few notes I made:

Professions: I hadn't really thought about having more than one profession,..but I honestly don't see anything wrong with it, if you're willing to pay the points...

Animal Abilities: There's another thread in this section pertaining to these,..but one thing I wanted to mention, so it's here too, is that after you buy your Animal Template, but before you spend any more points on Animal Abilities later, make sure that when you finish adding your extra Character Points on your Characteristics, you also upgrade the values on your Animal Abilities to match them according to their linked Characteristics. THEN feel free to buy them up further, if you think you need to. This, as mentioned in the rules, applies to ANYTIME in the game that you spend the points it takes to raise your Characteristics. Any raised Characteristic causes an equal adjustment in any linked Skill or Animal Ability, and also represents a new maximum for your Talent and Advantage links (though no values are raised for them).

The Toughness Talent: When purchasing this specific (or any) Talent, definitely read its description. Even though it may seem expensive, Toughness is only bought once, doesn't actually get (or need) a point value, and represents, instead, a different way to figure your Stamina (the amount of damage you can take before you die). Normally the calculation for Stamina is Vigor + Will x 2. If you have Toughness, it's Vigor + Will x 3... A big difference,..and hence the cost for that Talent.

Other than that,..this neat little sheet is right on!! Thanks for making this, Joe... I'd like to formalize this later,..and perhaps make it available to other playtesters from the Forum site directly as a download!

Scottie

Alright, Joe, you got me through Advantages ... and I think I even halfway understand how we got there!

So, come on, let's get with the rest of it!

So I have a question:

When you see the list of talents under an Animal Template, does the template cost already include the cost of the talent (like they appear to for Animal Abilities) or do you pay an additional cost for talents?
For instance, the Large Bear (Rawr! Polar Bears are coming for us all!!!!) provides Toughness in its description, when taking that Animal Template, do you pay additional ability points for Toughness or do you just get it at your final Vigor rating?

Also, it appears from the description of the profession that the profession cost includes the caste advantage cost, is that correct? Also do the profession costs assume 'full ranks' in the accompaning skills? In other words does the profession cost provide the skill at half applicable characteristic or at full?

Originally posted by mouseodoom
So I have a question:

Three questions, in fact :P,..and I'll attempt to answer them all, as well as show where the answer is by quoting areas of the book itself... This will help you see the areas where you may have missed some important detail, and simultaneously force me to look for sections that may need more clarification on my part....

Originally posted by mouseodoom
When you see the list of talents under an Animal Template, does the template cost already include the cost of the talent (like they appear to for Animal Abilities) or do you pay an additional cost for talents?
For instance, the Large Bear (Rawr! Polar Bears are coming for us all!!!!) provides Toughness in its description, when taking that Animal Template, do you pay additional ability points for Toughness or do you just get it at your final Vigor rating?

"Each template has a cost in Characteristic Points and Ability Points. That cost is what you will have to subtract from your total number of each allotment of points if you want to play that animal type. Once you have paid the cost, you get all the animal abilities and minimum characteristics that are listed in the template." Basic Compendium, pg. 49, Step #3, Character Races.

(and later where it talks about each sectional area of the Animal Templates)

"TALENTS- This section lists each of the Talents (if any) that come with the purchase of the Animal Template, along with their starting values, which represent the number of dice that may generally be added the dice pool of other ability roll to which that particular Talent might apply. Final purchased Talents, as well as the number of their current dice value, should be written down on the Character Sheet. For further questions concerning Talents, see STEP #6: Assign Your Talents." Basic Compendium, pg. 51, Step #3, Animal Template Overview.

What these two paragraphs essentially say is that (1). When you buy an Animal Template, you get everything on that template, Characteristics, Animal Abilities, Talents, Drawbacks, the works, at the starting value listed on the Template, meaning you don't have to pay ANY additional costs to get these starting values,..and (2).Talents specifically are not rolled as a dice pool by themselves, but are dice that get ADDED to some other ability/action roll. The starting value attained for any Talent you get when purchasing an Animal Template is usually always 1 (meaning you would get to add one die to any roll where that particular Talent might come into play).

If, after initially purchasing your Animal Template, you are dissatisfied with ANY of the base starting values of the various statistics it provides, you are most welcome to "buy up" these individual attributes and abilities later, during the appropriate step pertaining to that attribute, or subcategory of attribute, specifically. Within each Step of Character Creation, if carefully read and performed in order, you will find the particular methods of buying up these attributes and abilities. They will not always be bought up in the same way, because they each apply to your character, or the animal you are, in a unique fashion.

But to answer you question specifically concerning the Talent of Toughness, please note on the Animal Template that after Toughness (unlike the other included Talents that have a starting numerical value) it says that it has a value of "Stamina = Vigor = Will x 3". If you take a moment to read the later description of Toughness under Talents (before going right back to the Step of Caharacter Creation you were working on), you will note that this value means you get to use a different equation than "non-Tough" characters when figuring your Stamina (the levels of damage you can take before you die).

Originally posted by mouseodoom
Also, it appears from the description of the profession that the profession cost includes the caste advantage cost, is that correct?

"The professions represented in the Character Archetypes below are directly linked to the specific Caste that the character must choose and vice-versa. This choice must be made in the form of separately purchasing an Advantage (Step #7 of Character Creation) later on, and you should make note of what Caste you must choose in order to pursue whatever profession interests you. Again, the Gamemaster should have recommendations as to the Castes that would be most appropriate for characters to choose from, for the storyline developed for the campaign." Basic Compendium, pg. 31, Step #2, Caste.

The key phrase here, which I have highlighted, is "separately purchasing an Advantage (Step #7 of Character Creation) later on". Caste is indeed an Advantage you must purchase separately, in Step #7, and is not included as part of the cost of the Profession (though the professional choice is linked to the Caste you must later purchase. Purchasing Caste (along with any other Advantage) is a separate later step. The cost of the Profession currently only covers the individual Skills that go with it. The reason for this is that it is possible to buy a Profession that relates to a Caste that you may once have had, but due to circumstances decided upon either by you or by your GM, no longer applies to you (i.e. you have been made outcaste as part of the storyline, or you have recently been elevated into the priest caste). You no longer would purchase the Caste associated with that Profession, but you would still know all of the Skills associated with it. Additionally, as Matt brought up, such a situation might lead the player to purchase more than one profession. If those relate to different Castes, you must choose only ONE Caste to be a part of at the start of the game, regardless of the professions your character is familiar with (i.e., you purchased).

Originally posted by mouseodoom
Also do the profession costs assume 'full ranks' in the accompaning skills? In other words does the profession cost provide the skill at half applicable characteristic or at full?

"Once you have chosen a Character Archetype, you should subtract the number of points indicated by the Archetype Cost from your allottedamount of Ability Points you are using to create your character (between 8 and 16), and fill your Character sheet in with all the pertinent Archetype information, such as the profession’s name (to be listed under Position on the Character Sheet), the Caste, social standing of that profession within its Caste, the duties and obligations as listed in its brief description, and the basic skills that you get at starting level (based on your Characteristic Link) because of your professional choice:" Basic Compendium, pg. 31, Step #2, Character Archetypes.

It is here, where I've shown it in bold, that you are told that you should list your Skills at their starting value based on their Characteristic Link (as opposed to half their Characteristic Link). Considering the confusion, it would probably be wise for me to change the wording to "...full starting level (based on your full Characteristic Link)....

WHEW!!!

Sorry if any of that was confusing! It's REALLY EASY to miss important details if you skim through these things too swiftly or skip around,.....but at the same time,..I'll try to pinpoint any areas that need to be highlighted or written more clearly...and ESPECIALLY any areas requiring more examples to drive the point home. These questions tell me that I need to consider adding a bit of clarification to those paragraphs in the book I quoted.

Thanks for the great questions!

Scottie

Thanks for the info Scott! I was most concerned about the profession -> skill rank matter cause it changes ability point allocation substantially.

If I can offer a suggestion here:

There are places where the numbers don't quite add up: Animal Templates generally provide more characteristic points than would normally be provided by spending points directly, Professions technically provide a 1 for 2 point benefit over purchasing skills directly, Animal Templates provide a substantial discount for Talents, etc.

It would be really nice to see a chart or even a full page explanation of the places where you make choices based on numbers and what those numbers get you, especially considering the inconsistencies.

I am pretty numbers oriented so trying to sift through a paragraph full of information is pretty difficult, but reading a quick reference type chart is easy.

WOW Joe, that was freakin' AWSOME! I am totally using that as a helper when i make my character for Scott's game. The finished version of that will have to go in the first issue of "Vürtach" (<-SP?) the "Dragon Magazine" of Dardünah. I'm just kidding, there is no such magazine...yet. BUT THERE SHOULD BE! The sweet thing about the 21st century is that it's just easier to have a website that everybody can access than to publish a physaical monthly periodical. I miss print though. I used to make a 'zine back in the nineties and it was fun as sh*t!! Anyway, that article is awesome, I look forward to the rest. Has anybody addressed the issue of sterting money and items? I didn't get that far incharacter creation to see what it says in the rulebook abvout it. I mean, can I just SAY I have a war-buthaan or a full suit of living suthra armor, or do I have to pay for it somehow?

Originally posted by mouseodoom
Thanks for the info Scott! I was most concerned about the profession -> skill rank matter cause it changes ability point allocation substantially.

If I can offer a suggestion here:

There are places where the numbers don't quite add up: Animal Templates generally provide more characteristic points than would normally be provided by spending points directly, Professions technically provide a 1 for 2 point benefit over purchasing skills directly, Animal Templates provide a substantial discount for Talents, etc.

It would be really nice to see a chart or even a full page explanation of the places where you make choices based on numbers and what those numbers get you, especially considering the inconsistencies.

I am pretty numbers oriented so trying to sift through a paragraph full of information is pretty difficult, but reading a quick reference type chart is easy.

Hmnn,...what to address first... let's see:

"Animal Templates generally provide more characteristic points than would normally be provided by spending points directly.."

This is true, in fact 16 points gets you 22 points of Characteristics, which is how it goes on ALL Animal Templates without exception (even those created by the player, as can be done using the rules in the Index of the Basic Compendium under 'Creating New Animal Templates'. Here's what is says there, for example: Note that they both follow the paradigm of having a value of 22, and thus both still cost 16 Characteristic points (they essentially get the value of 6 Characteristic points for “free”). This paradigm should be used for ALL Animal Templates. This is the savings you get when purchasing Animal Templates, but since ALL PLAYERS are assumed to create their Characters using one, I didn't bother explaining that, since they'll never experience any OTHER (i.e. more expensive) way of doing it.

"Professions technically provide a 1 for 2 point benefit over purchasing skills directly..."

Yes,..that is correct. The cost of the Profession is equal to half the cost of what the Skills you get with it would normally cost if you purchased them separately from the Professional Template. In other words, a Profession giving you three Skills, that will have a starting value equal to their Characteristic Link, cost you 3 Ability Points. Buying three Skills outside of the Proffesional Template (during Character Creation) costs you 6 Abilty Points to have a starting value equal to their Characteristic Link. This is indeed the savings you get when you buy a Profession, and like the Animal Templates, since ALL players are assumed to create their Characters using Professions (since it is one of the basic Steps), I didn't bother explaining my cost calculations.

"Animal Templates provide a substantial discount for Talents.."

Hmnnn! That shouldn't be correct. The ONLY break the Animal Templates should give should be on the Characteristics. If you've found one that DOES provide such a discount, that needs to be addressed! All Animal Abilities, Talents, and Drawbacks should add up to (in cost, which isn't written individually on the Templates) the number of Ability Points the Animal Template costs. With the Bear, for instance, his Animal Abilities all add up to a cost of 14 (each purchased as if they were purchased individually using the starting values of the Template's Characteristics or the listed cost on the Animal Abilitiies table as the guide), the Talents all add up to 7 points for their purchas price (again, based on their starting Characteristic Links or the actual cost noted on the Talents table. There is one Talent, immunity, whose cost is 1/2 the Vigor, but since the starting value for the Bear is 3, its cost is rounded down to 1 in the player's favor). This is a total of 21 Ability Points, before subtracting the benifit of the Drawbacks connected with the Animal Template, which is -3. 21 - 3 = 18,...which is the Ability Point Cost of the Bear Animal Template....

What I DO need to do, for sure, is add a small section under the Creating New Animal Templates area in the index containing an explanatory paragraph talking about buying the Animal Abilities, Talents, and Drawbacks to match what the player believes that Animal would possess (after researching the animal, of course). In that paragraph I would explain that the cost of the things in those three sections (as opposed to their value after they are purchased) is what you add together (subtracting the value of the Drawbacks) to achieve the Ability Cost for the Template, and the final Value of these things are written down individually after each entry, ...the Value, of course, representing either a dice pool you GET to roll (in the case of Animal Abilities), dice ADDED to rolls (in the case of Talents),..or dice SUBTRACTED from rolls (in the case of Drawbacks). Of course,..all of these things are also explained in the individual descriptions of each section of the Animal Template within the Animal Template Overview (pg. 50 of the Basic Compendium, right before the Animal Templates themselves are listed), as well as under the individual Steps concerning the purchasing of additional Animal Abilites (if allowed by the GM), Talents, and Drawbacks.

My goal, by the way,..was to actually make this system LESS numbers-intesive..,...to take the focus OFF of the numbers as much as possible, while still delivering the outcome of necessary background calculations in a manner that player's should take at face value, without having to know what exact calculations led to the numbers they are plugging in unless absolutely necessary (such as in the case of buying additional abilities and stats later). Thus is the reason behind the Animal Templates and Profession Templates, and the 'Step-by-Step' progression through Character Creation in general, so that players (generally) need only write down the values presented for the cost required, then buy those things up in later steps as directed. With that goal in mind, however, you would be right in stating that I STILL need to make sure the directives are clear to the player,....just as long as I don't need to stuff even more calculations and charts in their face in an attempt to explain "why" the Templates cost what they cost, and what the hidden calculations are that I'm attempting to keep hidden behind the scenes. I'm figuring that players don't NEED to know why Templates cost what they do, as long as they know how to buy the attributes on the Templates up when they need to (at least during initial Character Creation).

With this in mind, though I have an explanation in the Index for how to make new Animal Templates, perhaps I should ALSO have an explanation of how to create new Professional Templates. Would this help clear up the process without necessarily shoving it in players' faces during Character Creation?

Scottie

This is ALL looking REALLY great dude,..and will no doubt provide me with an EXCELLENT launching point for revising this chapter in the book.

I'm lookiing through this as I create this email,..and will let you know if I see any errors that need correcting.....

Ah,..here we go... In the section pertaining to Advantages, you mention that Caste is something that doesn't really get added to dice rolls, but that's not necessarily true. Some perks that go along with Caste can have an effect on things the character may sometimes attempt, especially if it pertains specifically with what caste you belong to. For instance, bing a noble "sunborne", when giving commands or attempting to influence someone of the lower castes, the GM might allow the player to add their Caste Advantage dice to a roll, if that player states that they are attempting to influence the situation with some reference to their social standing as compared to the janah they're dealing with. Likewise, a peasant caste servant who has actually been coerced into slipping poison into a noble's cup just might be allowed to add their Caste Advantage dice in that one special role where they are attempting to unabashedly walk right under the noses of the guards, merely because, as a member of the servants of the house, they would generally be deemed "beneath the notice" of most upper caste as barely more than subservient moving furniture. (This all depends, of course, on how the GM runs his or her game.)

In the section on purchasing Martial Arts, one thing (that perhaps I need to make more clear) to note is that if you imagine your character has been trained in martial arts (in general,..ie..at all) you must first buy (or get through your Profession) the Skill Martial Arts, which you will get at a score based on either your Strength, or your Agility. Here's what it says under the Step specifically:
"Martial Arts must be purchased initially, and does not refer to a specific Martial Style (see Book Two: Magic and Martial Arts) unless this skill is purchased again for that particular Style, which needs to be recorded elsewhere in the Martial Styles section of the Character Sheet."
What this means is that they will have the basic Martial Arts Skill, meaning they may attack using the general Location Maneuvers Table, as seen in the Combat section, and on the back of the current (and most like the future) version of the Character Sheet.
Likewise, this is reiterated uner the Martial Arts Skill description in the Skills section of the chapter as such:
"After purchasing basic Martial Arts, if the character has had the opportunity to learn a specialized Martial Style, they would purchase the Martial Arts skill again for that specific Martial Style (see Chapter II of Book Two: Magic and Martial Arts for more info on purchasing Martial Styles), after which each skill would be raised separately. The character can thus learn separate styles merely by purchasing that Style as a new Martial Skill whenever the opportunity presents itself either during character creation, or during the storyline in-game."
So,..in the case of your example Lion character,..his purchased Martial Arts skills would look like this (note that he would have had to pay 2 mor Ability points to have purchased this initial basic Martial Skill (allowing him to use the maneuvers of the general Location Maneuvers Table) BEFORE being able to purchase the more intricate Styles (which would allow him to additionally use the unique and varied manuevers and multi-maneuvers of the Martial Styles):
(Noted under Skills and in the Combat section on the Character Sheet)
Martial Arts - (Basic)- STR based 9
(Noted under Martial Styles and in the Combat section on the Character Sheet)
Martial Arts - Gajah Style - STR based 9
Martial Arts - Crystal Warrior Style - (STR+VIG)/2 based 8
Martial Arts - Undying Warrior Style - VIG based

There seems to be a type-o in this section as well,..since you actually state that "When you purchase a particular style, all the Multi-Maneuvers within that style are included with the purchase."
This should actually say "When you purchase a particular style, NONE OF the Multi-Maneuvers within that style are included with the purchase." You then mention that the exception are any "zero adjustment" multi-manevers, which ARE included with the purchase price. This IS INDEED correct, and is followed by all the right info. (This, by the way,..is the exact same way that Magic Rituals are essentially purchased. I noticed that you didn't include a section pertaining to this in your document).

Additionally, just as a side note,..it is not necessary to purchase ALL of the multimaneuvers from a Martial Style if you don't wish to on initial purchase. If you find the Style too "pricey" then feel free to purchase only those multi-maneuvers you wish, saving other (perhaps more expensive) ones for later, using the excuse that you are still a student of this Style, and have yet to finish your training and still have "much to learn" before you become a true "master" of it,..etc,..etc....

By the way,..they're not called "Everyman Skills" they are called "Basic Starting Skills". But,..other than that persnickety detail the rest of it seems all right!!!

Way to go!! Great document!!!

Scottie

There was one other area as well that I wanted to mention has a slightly misguided set of indications. Concerning the effect of Build Type when creating your character, you have stated:

"*The only time the Characteristic max can be more 8 for this Heroic level game is if your Build Type (see page 51) Allows it to be. Example, you want a bear. You pick the bear template and you give your bear a Strength of 8. You then pick the Muscular Build Type for this bear of yours. Muscular adds 2 to your Strength (and subtracts from other characteristics). You now have a 10 Strength. This is the only way to raise a Characteristic past the Characteristic Maximum."

The little asterix at the beginning is from an earlier reference where you also mention that the Maximum Characteristic you may have when creating your Character at Heroic Power Level is 8. This is essentially correct, but the Example you state is not, and here's why:

The rule in the book actually states:

Max Character Points are the maximum number of points that can be initially assigned to each of the character’s nine Characteristics depending on the Power Level of the game (though exceptions can occur depending on the Animal Template the player chooses).

Later, during the step where you choose your Animal Template, you are told to read each of the general descriptions pertaining to the sections of the Animal Template you've chosen, and to follow the directions for each section in order to fill out the Character sheet. After paying the Point Costs for the Template (giving you all the base Attributes scores of the animal type, including the Characteristics), you read the Description, then commence with the third thing, choosing you character's Build Type from the ones allowed at startup as listed on the Template. Hese's what it says in the rules:

INITIAL BUILD RANGE- This section defines the normal range of starting body build-types that should be chosen from for a character made with that Animal Template. Reference these definitions to understand how that choice will affect your character’s starting Characteristics. Once chosen, you should follow the directions according to the Build Range by either adding or subtracting the appropriate numbers from your base characteristics before proceeding. Chosen build should be written down on the Character Sheet.

What these rules indicate is that if you start off at a Power Level that limits you to a starting Characteristic value lower than what the Animal Template indicates you start with, then follow all aspects of the Animal Template's directions as an EXCEPTION to the basic Power Level restrictions.

Here are 4 different examples (based on the four different Power Levels) for a starting Bear character.

LOW POWER LEVEL:
Purchasing a Bear gives you a starting Strength of 5 (1 above the Max starting Characteristic of 4 allowed at Low Power Level. Furthermore, if you then chose to give him a Build Type of Muscular, that would raise his Strength to 7 (also raising his Agility by one point to a 4, and forcing the player to subtract 3 points from the rest of the base Characteristics). A score of 7 is a total of 3 above the Max Characteristic allowed at this Power Level. Because this overage is caused by aspects of the Animal Template, it is allowed to be an exception to the normal Power Level restrictions. However, during the later Step #4, where you get to buy up your Characteristics, since you are already above the Maximum allowed Attribute ranking for your Strength, and EXACTLY at the Max ranking for your Agility (for Low Power Level), you may not buy up those particular Characteristics further. Likewise for any OTHER Characteristics that have achieved the limit of 4 or higher.

AVERAGE POWER LEVEL:
Purchasing a Bear gives you a starting Strength of 5 (1 below the Max starting Characteristic of 6 allowed at Average Power Level. Furthermore, if you then chose to give him a Build Type of Muscular, that would raise his Strength to 7 (also raising his Agility by one point to a 4, and forcing the player to subtract 3 points from the rest of the base Characteristics). A score of 7 is a total of 1 above the Max Characteristic allowed at this Power Level. Because this overage is caused by aspects of the Animal Template, it is allowed to be an exception to the normal Power Level restrictions. However, during the later Step #4, where you get to buy up your Characteristics, since you are already above the Maximum allowed Attribute ranking for your Strength, you may not buy up this particular Characteristics further. Likewise for any OTHER Characteristics that have achieved the limit of 6 or higher.

HEROIC POWER LEVEL:
Purchasing a Bear gives you a starting Strength of 5 (3 below the Max starting Characteristic of 8 allowed at Heroic Power Level. Furthermore, if you then chose to give him a Build Type of Muscular, that would raise his Strength to 7 (also raising his Agility by one point to a 4, and forcing the player to subtract 3 points from the rest of the base Characteristics). A score of 7 is a total of 1 below the Max Characteristic allowed at this Power Level. What this means is that later, during Step #4, where you get to buy up your Characteristics, you may buy up the Strength Characteristic of your Bear by 1 point (spending some of your remaining Character Points to do this), allowing you to achieve the Maximum Characteristic for this Power Level. Likewise for any OTHER Characteristics that are currently less than 8, if you wish.

LEGENDARY POWER LEVEL:
Purchasing a Bear gives you a starting Strength of 5 (5 below the Max starting Characteristic of 10 allowed at Legendary Power Level. Furthermore, if you then chose to give him a Build Type of Muscular, that would raise his Strength to 7 (also raising his Agility by one point to a 4, and forcing the player to subtract 3 points from the rest of the base Characteristics). A score of 7 is a total of 3 below the Max Characteristic allowed at this Power Level. What this means is that later, during Step #4, where you get to buy up your Characteristics, you may buy up the Strength Characteristic of your Bear by 3 points (spending some of your remaining Character Points to do this), allowing you to achieve the Maximum Characteristic for this Power Level. Likewise for any OTHER Characteristics that are currently less than 10, if you wish.

By the end of Step#4 you should have used up ALL of your allotted characteristic points. Later, after the gmae campaign is underway, and you begin collecting Story Points after each session, you can soncider buying up your characteristics unhindered by any Power Level Limitations, those were just for Character Creation. The only limitation for Characteristics later (always at the discretion of the GM) is that no value for Characteristic, Animal Ability, or Skill may be over 12.

As for you guys,..remember,..you have chosen to start as HEROIC members of your society, essentially. You are supposed to be tough badasses to any average or even above-average citizen, and will no-doubt get matched against more than merely your ordinary thuggish foe. Do not feel weird that you will be rolling quite the handfull of dice. If you are uncomfortable with having all those Character Points to throw around, then Joe, as GM, should consider starting you guys at Average Power Level.

Scottie

No,..as per the rules stated in the Magic and Martial Arts book under Purchasing a Martial Style (pg. 62):

Most Multi-Maneuvers must be purchased at varying costs depending upon their combat adjustment (Adj.), with the exception of those with an adjustment of zero (or any positive number adjustment), which are assumed to come with the initial Martial Style purchase. The more difficult the Multi-Maneuver (thus the larger adjustment), the higher the cost. Example: A Multi-Maneuver with an adjustment of -4 would cost 4 Ability / Story Points to purchase. Whereas those with an adjustment of 0 or +1 would cost nothing, coming with the Style when purchased.


Now,..all these particular rules are bullet-pointed, and should be fairly clear. Are you having difficulty finding or interpreting this info? Please read this section again (along with the similarly-formatted Magic Rituals section) and let me know where the confusion lay.

Scottie

O.K. for the sake of "cleanup" on the forum, consider this matter resolved by the recently changed Character Creation chapter, available for download on this site, as well as the Character Creation Summary and the new Character Sheet (also downloadable).

I shall now lock this Thread, so no more posting on it is possible. If there are further issues concerning this particular item, feel free to start a new Thread.

Scottie