Absalom Myers

Player Intrusions

Friendly NPC

An NPC you don’t know, someone you don’t know that well, or someone you know but who hasn’t been particularly friendly in the past chooses to help you, though doesn’t necessarily explain why. Maybe they’ll ask you for a favor in return afterward, depending on how much trouble they go to.

Perfect Suggestion

A follower or other already-friendly NPC suggests a course of action with regard to an urgent question, problem, or obstacle you’re facing.

Unexpected Gift

An NPC hands you a physical gift you were not expecting, one that helps put the situation at ease if things seem strained, or provides you with a new insight for understanding the context of the situation if there’s something you’re failing to understand or grasp.

Special Abilities

Anecdote

2 Intellect points

You can lift the spirits of a group of creatures and help them bond together by entertaining them with an uplifting or pointed anecdote. For the next hour, those who pay attention to your story are trained in a task you choose that’s related to the anecdote, as long as it’s not an attack or defense task.

Action to initiate, one minute to complete.

Demeanor of Command

2 Intellect points

You project confidence, knowledge, and charisma to all who see you for the next hour. Your demeanor is such that those who see you automatically understand that you are someone important, accomplished, and with authority. When you speak, strangers who are not already attacking give you at least a round to have your say. If speaking to a group that can understand you, you can attempt to have them produce their leader or ask that they take you to their leader. You gain a free level of Effort that can be applied to one persuasion task you attempt during this period.

Action to initiate.

Encouragement

1 Intellect point

While you maintain this ability through ongoing inspiring oration, your allies within short range ease one of the following task types (your choice): defense tasks, attack tasks, or tasks related to any skill that you are trained or specialized in.

Action.

Interaction Skills

You are trained in two skills in which you are not already trained. Choose two of the following: deceiving, persuading, public speaking, seeing through deception, or  intimidation. You can select this ability multiple times. Each time you select it, you must choose two different skills.

Enabler.

Calm Stranger

2+ Intellect points

You can cause one intelligent creature to remain calm as you speak. The creature doesn’t need to speak your language, but it must be able to see you. It remains calm as long as you focus all your attention on it and it is not attacked or otherwise threatened. In addition to the normal options for using Effort, you can choose to use Effort to calm additional creatures allied with your initial target, one additional creature per level of Effort applied.

Action

Impart Ideal

3 Intellect points

After interacting for at least one minute with a creature who can hear and understand you, you can attempt to temporarily impart an ideal to it that you could not otherwise convince it to adopt. An ideal is different than a specific suggestion or command; an ideal is an overarching value such as “All life is sacred,” “My political party is the best,” “Children should be seen, not heard,” and so on. An ideal influences a creature’s behavior but doesn’t control it. The imparted ideal lasts as long as befits the situation, but usually at least a few hours. The ideal is jeopardized if someone friendly to the creature spends a minute or more bringing it back to its senses.

Action.

Generous

Allies who have spent the last day with you add +1 to their recovery rolls.

Altruistic

If you’re standing next to a creature that takes damage, you can intercede and take 1 point of that damage yourself (reducing the damage inflicted on the creature by 1 point). If you have Armor, it does not provide a benefit when you use this ability.

Skill

You’re trained in all tasks related to pleasant social interaction, putting other people at ease, and gaining trust.

Helpful

Whenever you help another character, that character gains the benefit as if you were trained even if you are not trained or specialized in the attempted task.

Inability

While you are alone, all Intellect and Speed tasks are hindered.

Blessing of the Gods

As a servant of the gods, you can call up blessings in their name. This blessing depends on the god’s general demeanor and area of influence.

Peace

(3 Intellect points)

You prevent a foe that can hear and understand you from attacking anyone or anything for one round.

Action.

Love

(3 Intellect points)

With a touch, you restore 1d6 points to one stat Pool of any creature, including yourself. This ability is a difficulty 2 Intellect task. Each time you attempt to heal the same creature, the task is hindered by an additional step. The difficulty returns to 2 after that creature rests for ten hours.

Action.

Enhanced Intellect

You gain 3 points to your Intellect Pool.

Enabler.