Dear, this whole romance that you've invented
Just proves you're too naive to be here
Why would he like you? Come on now, really!
Look at you, you think that he's impressed?
Don't be a dummy
Come with mummy.
Effect: This Merit reflects your character’s disposable in- come. She might live in an upscale condo, but if her income is tied up in the mortgage and child support payments, she might have little money to throw around. Characters are as- sumed to have basic necessities without Resources.
The dot rating determines the relative amount of dispos- able funding the character has available, depending on your particular chronicle’s setting. The same amount of money means completely different things in a game set in Silicon Valley compared to one set in the Detroit slums. One dot is a little spending money here and there. Two is a comfortable, middle class wage. Three is a nicer, upper middle class life. Four is moderately wealthy. Five is filthy rich.
Every item has an Availability rating. Once per chapter, your character can procure an item at her Resources level or lower, without issue. An item one Availability above her Resources reduces her effective Resources by one dot for a full month, since she has to rapidly liquidate funds. She can procure items two Availability below her Resources without limit (within reason). For example, a character with Resources •••• can procure as many Availability •• disposable cellphones as she needs.
Effect: Your character has standing, membership, author- ity, control over, or respect from a group or organization. This can reflect official standing, or merely informal respect. No matter the source, your character enjoys certain privileges within that structure.
Each instance of this Merit reflects standing in a differ- ent group or organization. Your character may have Status (The Luck Gang) •••, Status (Drag Racing Circuit) ••, and Status (Police) •. Each affords its own unique benefits. As you increase dot ratings, your character rises in prominence in the relevant group.
Status only allows advantages within the confines of the group reflected in the Merit. Status (Organized Crime) won’t help if your character wants an official concealed carry firearms permit, for example.
Status provides a number of advantages:
First, your character can apply her Status to any Social roll with those over which she has authority or sway.
Second, she has access to group facilities, resources, and funding. Depending on the group, this could be limited by red tape and requisitioning processes. It’s also dependent on the resources the particular group has available.
Third, she has pull. If she knows a character’s Mentor, Resources, Retainer, Contacts, or Allies, she can block their usage. Once per chapter, she can stop a single Merit from being used, if it’s of a lower dot rating than her Status, and if it makes sense for her organization to obstruct that type of person’s behavior. In our Organized Crime example, if your character knows that the chief of police has Contacts (Criminal Informant), you may opt to block usage by threat- ening the informant into silence.
Drawback: Status requires upkeep, and often regular du- ties. If these duties are not upheld, the Status may be lost. The dots will not be accessible until the character re-establishes her standing. In our Organized Crime example, your character may be expected to pay protection money, offer tribute to a higher authority, or undertake felonious activities.
| Description | Entity | Location | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Daughter | Armonia | |||