Q&D (Quick and Dirty) - 2nd Edition Revised

[sparkletwist]

Reserved (if needed)

[sparkletwist]

After a good deal of thought, I've made some changes, most significantly to make merits and flaws less fiddly. Hopefully more quick and less dirty.

First post has been updated. The old version of the post is archived here.
(i.e., don't read inside this spoiler looking for the changes, they aren't here)
[spoiler=Archive of Original 2nd Edition]

Quick & Dirty - 2nd Edition

[note=Even Quicker and Dirtier!]I have made some fairly comprehensive revisions to Q&D to address some issues the first version had, as well as introduce some new concepts. It should still (hopefully) be recognizably Q&D, though.[/note]The "Quick & Dirty System" was originally something I hastily threw together for a couple of games. It has since grown, thrived, and expanded, and I am pretty pleased with the result. However, although I am mostly happy with it, there was (and probably still is) always room for improvement: The skill system was a bit simplistic and one-dimensional and I wasn't at all satisfied with how Q&D handled damage. I also believe that certain fun crunchy mechanics to allow some tactical choices could be integrated into the system a little more even though it is a lightweight system. Hence, a second edition of Q&D! I want to thank Hoers for his contributions to Q&D2's design, as well as Seraphine_Harmonium and the rest of the Cad Goleor group for providing ample opportunity to test Q&D and plenty of good ideas about how to improve it.

For those unfamiliar with Q&D, it is designed to be a fast, simple, rules-light system. Q&D's inspirations are the fast and simple approach of OD&D, adding in elements from FATE, Wushu, Apocalypse World, and other games that focus much more on creating a fun story and game together than worrying excessively much about crunchy details.

The principles behind Q&D are:
Simple and Fast
These rules do not attempt to be "simulationist" or accurately model anything. Simplicity is generally valued over ensuring absolute consistency. This is by design. Everyone is sitting around trying to tell a good story and have fun, and the main purpose for these rules is to allow for random elements (and the random whims of players) to take that story in fun and interesting directions that nobody thought of previously. As such, the "rule of cool" is very much in play, as well.

Transparent mechanics
Players and the GM should be familiar with Q&D's rules: there aren't many, so hopefully it's not too difficult. Q&D does have a decent number of tables, but, don't worry, this isn't Rolemaster, so they're pretty simple, too. The point of all this is to help keep the game "rules light" but avoid too much reliance on pure GM fiat for adjudicating outcomes.

Players act, NPCs react
What this means is, players are the ones instigating actions and throwing dice. Actions are resolved from their perspective; the complication system is rather PC-centric, and the idea is that whatever happens, the game system is designed to model what happens to them. For NPC-on-NPC encounters, the GM can try to roll and figure something out, but the best thing to do is just go with whatever is expedient for the story. For that matter, let players spend an AP to temporarily hijack an NPC, and they're then in charge of what happens.

Get to the point already. How does it work?
Task resolution in Q&D is based around the roll of a d20, plus a number of d6's and d2's. The d6's are called skill dice, and vary depending on a character's number of levels in a given skill. The d2's are called merit/flaw dice, and added when a merit or a flaw apply to a situation.

The difficulty is then subtracted from this roll. Difficulty might be a static number, or it might be an opposed roll; situational bonuses and penalties will also affect the difficulty, of course. If the roll is opposed, use the opponent's skill dice. It helps to have two different colors of dice, so the entire thing can be resolved with a single throw of a handful of dice. Throwing around handfuls of dice is fun.

[spoiler=Difficulties]Using values other than just multiples of 5 is encouraged and fun. These are just examples.

0 = Mundane. Any idiot can probably do it. Maybe not even worth rolling.
5 = Average. A decently difficult task for an average person.
10 = Tough. It takes skill or luck, and preferably both.
15 = Hard. Most people can't manage, but intrepid heroes can.
20 = Heroic. A very difficult task for even heroic heroes!
25 = Climactic. How will they ever get out of this one?
30 = Epic. Perhaps impossible?!?!

(As mentioned above, vs. someone else, the difficulty is the opponent's skill dice plus whatever bonuses, though unimportant NPCs can just use static values for simplicity)
[/spoiler]

Skills
They can be whatever you want, really, but here's a good starting point:

Athletics - Physical tasks. Moving quickly, dodging ranged attacks, lifting, and so on.
Melee - Fighting physically, whether it's fists or swords, or defending against the same.
Ranged - Making attacks from a distance, whether it is guns, thrown weapons, or whatever.
Perception - Knowing what's going on. Spotting things that are amiss.
Charm - Talking to and getting to know people in a generally agreeable fashion.
Persuasion - Being a bit less agreeable. Presence, leadership or outright intimidation.
Deceit - Lying, cheating, and stealing. Also covers hiding and sneaking.
Knowledge - Science, lore, or whatever the character is good at.
Occult - Having a sense of that which is beyond. Useful to resist (and maybe cast) magic.
Willpower - Enduring and surviving, and otherwise dealing with hardship.
Vehicle - Operating a car, driving a carriage, or anything else involving a steering wheel.

Feel free to add more or less depending on what kind of game you want.

With this suggested skill list, around 20 points worth of skills makes a pretty competent character, 25 points starts getting into badass territory, and 30 points is for players who just want to be awesome at everything-- but who doesn't? You'll need to vary the points if you make big changes to the skill list.

[ic=Example!]For example, if Mr. Billingsley is attempting to punch Ugly Lucy, he would roll a d20 plus 3d6, because his Melee skill is 3. Ugly Lucy would roll 2d6 to oppose, because her Melee skill is 2. Thus, the roll would be d20 + 3d6 - 2d6. If he was instead trying to smash through a brick wall with his bare hands, no opposing skill dice would be rolled; instead, the difficulty would be... 20 or so, probably.[/ic]

Results
Results are adjudicated as follows:
- 1 or less = Epic fail. Possibly embarrassing, and other bad things might happen, too.
- 2 to 7 = A regular and mundane (yet total) failure.
- 8 to 9  = Narrow failure. An AP can make it into a success with a negative complication.
- 10 to 13 = Success with a negative complication. (See below)
- 14 to 19 = Full success.
- 20 and up = A total success, with added bonus awesomeness. (See below)

[ic=Example, continued!]So if Mr. Billingsley rolls a 10 on the d20 and an 8 on his 3d6 and Lucy's 2d6 come up 9, the total is (10 + 8 - 9 =) 9. A narrow failure! He can spend an AP or just accept that he's not very good at punching women.[/ic]

[spoiler=Chance rolls]
Sometimes it's more fun to just roll and see what happens, such as when a character is doing some tangential task really out of his element, or the stakes aren't really high but a roll would still help give the game some (random) direction. These are called Chance rolls. Chance rolls aren't connected to a skill, merit, flaw, difficulty, or anything like that. The character simply rolls a d20 and whatever happens, happens, according to the results table.
[/spoiler]

[spoiler=Simple rolls]
Sometimes this system is too complicated and you just want to know if you pass or fail.
A simple roll is... simple! Often, simple rolls are called for as part of a larger action.

Roll a d20 + skills and subtract the difficulty. Then:
- On 10 or less, you fail. Bad things happen.
- On 11 or more, you succeed. Good things happen.
[/spoiler]

So what's this AP stuff?
Awesome Points, usually known as AP, have a lot of uses.
Players can...
Spend 1 AP to "buy off" a negative complication, as long as you can narrate how.
Spend 1 AP to make a declaration about the current situation that is relevant to what your character is doing.
Spend 1 AP to get an extra action when time is of the essence.
Spend 1 AP to refuse a hard compel.
Spend 1 AP to compel an NPC. (The GM can veto anything too bizarre or out of character)
Get 1 AP for reaching a significant milestone or otherwise advancing the plot.
Get 1 AP for accepting a compel.
Get 1 AP for roleplaying in a way that is like imposing a compel on yourself.
Get 1 AP when rolling a 6 on "bonus awesomeness."

Characters start the adventure with 3 AP. They then carry over from session to session.
You can only have a maximum of 10 AP, so use them or lose them!

What is a Compel?
A compel is a situation where the character carries out an action that is not in his or her best interest, but it's quite reasonably what that character would do. A character's flaws are, of course, a great place to start, and many of a character's compels should be based on flaws. However, a character's merits may also provide inspiration, as they don't always necessarily lead to good things. Once the group is more familiar with everyone's characters, situations where they may act in ways that cause themselves trouble start becoming more and more apparent, and compels can become more freeform, as everyone gets a sense of what a certain character would do. Mechanically, a compel should have about as much impact as a negative complication, a list of which is given below.

There are two types of compels, hard and soft.
- Hard compels can be accepted for an AP, and the player must pay an AP to refuse. These are for situations where a character's own nature suggests a certain course of action, or there is a tough decision to be made.
- Soft compels can be accepted for an AP, but it costs nothing to refuse them. These are for when the GM wants to dangle a tempting option in front of a player but make it a purely optional course of action.

But what if you have 0 AP and you want to refuse a hard compel? You still can. Players in Q&D should never be forced by the GM to act in a certain way. However, you'll be at negative AP, and you can't actively spend AP until you're back above 0. The GM can (and is encouraged to) give enemies a +5 bonus at an inconvenient time in order to "pay for" this negative AP. Each time an enemy gets this bonus against a character, one of that character's negative APs disappears.

Negative Complications and Bonus Awesomeness
If the GM has a good idea for what to do (or the players suggest one!) just do that instead of rolling, otherwise consult these tables.

Negative Complications:
(1) Less than expected = It's still a success, but it's not really the success that you hoped for. It's still not a total failure, though. Half damage, lackluster success, or whatever.
(2) Unfavorable circumstances = This success messed something else up. You get a temporary 5-point flaw that disappears after it is inflicted upon you.
(3) Extra problems = You succeed, but the GM introduces some additional bad stuff.
(4) Do it again = You have to make an additional simple roll, usually with a different skill. If you fail that one, you totally fail at whatever it is.
(5) Hard bargain = You can succeed, but it's going to cost something else. Spend resources, take damage, or whatever... or you fail.
(6) Tough choice = You can either fail, or succeed but have to do something you probably didn't want to do. Treat it sort of like a compel.

Bonus Awesomeness:
(1) Critical success! = Whatever you were trying to do, you do it completely awesomely. Roll an extra damage die, benefit from resoundingly successful skill use, or whatever.
(2) Favorable circumstances! = This success also made something else easier. You get a temporary 5-point merit that disappears after you use it once, or at the end of the scene.
(3) Extra goodies! = Something else unexpectedly good happens in addition to your success.
(4) Bonus action! = You succeeded so fast you have time to spare. Immediately take another action.
(5) What happens now?! = You get to take over the narrative for a short bit, sort of like making a declaration, or you can choose any outcome on this table.
(6) Awesome Awesomeness! = You did something that adds to your character's overall awesomeness. Collect an AP.

The idea behind these tables is that all rolls should be made from the player's perspective, as the narrative (and the game) should revolve around them.
[spoiler=What kind of Extra Problems or Extra Goodies?]
These should depend on the situation, but here are some ideas:

Extra Problems:
- For an attack, the enemy adds some sort of combat maneuver for free.
- More enemies show up, or an enemy you're already fighting gets another turn right now.
- Move to the bottom of the initiative roster or lose your next turn.
- Immediately take d4 damage, or, worse, immediately suffer 1 harm.
- Maybe just give a -5 penalty to something, if you can't think of anything else.

Extra Goodies:
- For an attack, add some sort of combat maneuver for free.
- If allies are nearby, an ally shows up at an opportune time, or an ally who can help you gets a turn right now.
- If enemies are getting the better of you, move up the initiative roster to the top.
- If a character is hurting, recovering 2 stress is probably good.
- Maybe just give an AP or a +5 bonus to something, if you can't think of anything else.
[/spoiler]

Merits
While skills represent core competencies, merits represent those little knacks for certain things that can aid a character. The exact names for merits are chosen by the player: these can represent a profession, a hobby, a talent, a strongly held belief, or any other detail that adds some color to a character and can add an edge to a given application of their skills. When a merit applies to a given roll, the merit's value is added to the roll as bonus d2's. In an opposed action, only one character is allowed to get a merit bonus, and the more specific merit always gets the bonus. A merit should have a short list of two or three skills or situations where it's applicable, with the number allowed dependent on how specific the merit is in general. Players have a lot of freedom to define their merits, but the GM gets the final say as to what is an acceptable merit.

Using a Merit can lead to nice benefits when a character acts in a way that suits his or her nature, but players must also be careful that their characters do not become overly predicable or act in situationally inappropriate ways-- both players and the GM should remember that the use of merits always colors the action somehow. It goes without saying (but will be said anyway, so there) that the GM should not let players overuse their merits, and instead encourage them to mix things up by presenting situations where different skills and approaches are useful.

Characters should get around 5 points of merits: this gives a 5-point "Profession," or some lesser merits, like a 3 and a 2, or whatever.

[spoiler=What can Merits do?]
It is sometimes obvious how the application of a merit might affect an action. If the mechanical impact is not so obvious, though, the GM can always just roll on this table:

(1) Compelling = You immediately receive a hard compel related to the merit. It can be taken to gain an AP or bought off by paying an AP, as usual.
(2) Pay It Forward = Your merit's bonus doesn't help only you. An enemy can gain benefit equal to half its value on a future roll, as well. (Alternatively, the merit only grants its minimum bonus: +1 for a 1 point merit, +2 for 2 points, and so on)
(3) Raise the Stakes = The merit's bonus applies, but, if the roll ends up failing anyway, the consequences of failure become proportionately more severe.
(4) No Pain No Gain = Suffer damage equal to the point value of the merit, or you can't use this or any other merit on the current roll.
(5) Change of Plans = The use of the merit alters circumstances slightly. This can be mostly flavorful, but might have some ramifications for the game's story.
(6) Lucky! = The merit applies especially well in this situation. You just get its bonus and don't have to change or do anything.
[/spoiler]

[ic=Meritorious Example!]Mr. Billingsley is once again attempting to punch Ugly Lucy. This time, though, he'll roll d20+3d6+3d2, because, as before, his Melee skill is 3, but this time we're also considering his Brash Man of Action merit worth 3. However, if Ugly Lucy had an Expert Pugilist or other such merit explicitly related to hand-to-hand melee combat, it would be more specific: she'd get her bonus instead, and Mr. Billingsley would not get any. In this case, the GM decides that in order to get this benefit, Mr. Billingsley will have to live up to being a "brash man of action," and compels him to charge into combat without any regard for his own safety. He can collect an AP to accept or, since is a hard compel, he must pay an AP to refuse.[/ic]

Flaws
Nobody is perfect, and characters generally also have flaws. These are essentially the opposite of merits. Much like merits, flaws are chosen by the player, only this time they reflect situations where the character has problems or may not be quite so competent. Like a merit, a flaw influences the action it affects, acting as a sort of mini-compel: the player must either modify the action in a way that plays into the flaw, or suffer a penalty to the roll of d2's equal to the flaw's value. Also like a merit, a flaw should have a short list of the skills or the situations where it's applicable.

Characters should have to suffer the consequences of whatever they choose, of course, but don't go overboard. Characters shouldn't have penalties continually heaped on them. Generally, the GM should only invoke a character's flaws once per scene, and only in scenes where that character is doing a lot. In all cases, it should add color and challenge to the game, not just seem like a way to arbitrarily punish players for being clever and/or rolling well. The single exception to this rule is the (generally rare) circumstance where an enemy has a merit of equal or greater value that directly opposes the flaw. In these cases, the enemy is assumed to have a special talent at exploiting that particular weakness, and can inflict a penalty every time it comes up. (The GM should still not be too harsh; give more slack to a player who gets the hint and tries a new approach!)

Characters should get around 5 points of flaws as well. Characters can take more flaws to get more merits, but don't let anyone go overboard: 8 points of each is a good maximum. Taking both merits and flaws related to the same thing is a good way to show a double-edged ability.

[spoiler=What can Flaws do?]
As before, sometimes, the effects of "modifying the action in a way that plays into the flaw" are obvious. When it's not so obvious, there's always another table!

(1) Risk It = Make a simple roll using a relevant but different skill, applying the flaw itself to the simple roll. On success, suffer no penalty due to the flaw. On failure, you face a hard compel related to the flaw that gives no AP if you accept it, but you must pay an AP to refuse.
(2) Pass It Along = Someone else gets hit with a temporary flaw equal in value to this flaw, which will come up on their own turn. They can always pass it back, but then you're stuck with it; treat it like "Impending Doom," below.
(3) Impending Doom = The flaw doesn't do anything yet... except maybe some foreshadowing. At some point when it's inconvenient, it will suddenly show up again, even if the new situation doesn't match the flaw's normal scope.
(4) Adding Injury to Insult = Something bad happens and you suffer d2 damage for a 1-point flaw, d4 for a 2-point, and so on, up to d10 damage for a 5-point.
(5) Slip and Fall = The flaw plays out in a mostly mechanically irrelevant way, but you end up looking sort of stupid. In a more serious game, this could be some appropriate plot-based punishment.
(6) Unlucky = Trying to mitigate the flaw just made things worse. Increase the flaw's penalty by one more die before you apply it; i.e., roll 2d2 for a 1-point flaw, 3d2 for a 2-point flaw, and so on.
[/spoiler]

[ic=Flawed Example!]The GM points out Mr. Billingsley's 2-point flaw of Drunken Lout. Mr. Billingsley's player states that since he's staggeringly around drunkenly, he accidentally shoves his ally, Madison James, giving her a temporary 2-point flaw. He also could have avoided these consequences for the flaw and instead just had his drunkenness cause a -2d2 penalty to his own action, but Mr. Billingsley decided chivalry is dead. This now gives Madison her own interesting choice on her turn. As long as this chain of events is in effect, the GM won't punish Mr. Billingsley further for being a drunken lout nor cause Madison any further problems-- but other characters are still fair game, of course![/ic]

Damage, Stress and Harm
Characters in Q&D have two distinct ways of keeping track of bad things happening to them: Stress and Harm.

When characters take stress, it does not necessarily mean an attack has hit them, or at least hit them with full force. Stress damage represents fatigue, inconveniences, bumps, small pains, mental difficulty, and so on. On the other hand, when a character's stress allotment is used up, taking harm represents real physical (or serious psychological) harm. Most damage causes stress first, then inflicts harm. Characters recover all of their stress at the end of each fight or other scene, but harm heals more slowly, typically requiring medical attention or magical healing, or at least a good amount of rest. In terms of game time, harm should last an entire session of play, and contain at least one scene in which the harm negatively impacts the character: harm taken counts as a flaw and can (and should!) also be compelled, which will introduce further complications-- but also gives those characters another source of AP so that their wounds are not too crippling should they need to push onward.

In general, what exactly deals damage (and what kind) should be dependent on the tone of the adventure. Getting a pie in the face may count as a normal hit in a slapstick comedy adventure, but hardly mean anything in one based on gritty combat. Specifically nonlethal attacks may only ever deal stress damage, and inflict temporary flaws on characters who have no stress left. Anything else should just be handled with a normal roll and adjudicated appropriately.

Player characters can take (Willpower+10) stress and half as much (rounded up) harm before they are out of action. Enemies can just follow the 2:1 ratio without worrying about Willpower: moderately worthwhile enemies will have 8 stress/4 harm, while a boss enemy taking on an entire party might have 20 stress/10 harm. Other enemies need not even follow these ratios, like weak enemies with 5 stress/0 harm; these unimportant enemies could also simply be taken out by the first good hit.

Characters taking stress are not really affected by it in any game-relevant way, though players may occasionally roleplay a close call or a minor injury. It is ephemeral enough they are able to just shrug it off. On the other hand, any time a character takes harm, that character also suffers the equivalent of a negative complication for each two points of harm done. This is to reflect how the injuries suffered will negatively impact the character's performance. As mentioned above, harm also counts as a flaw, equivalent to a number of points proportional to the severity of the damage, from 1 to 5.

Characters that have taken all of their stress and harm are out of action and no longer participating in the scene. In the case of enemies, they are likely dead, or at least incapacitated. Most of the time, their fate isn't even important. As for player characters, they'll usually need some help getting back up. Should the group wish to involve the death of player characters, it is a good idea to talk things out beforehand and decide under what circumstances that will take place. (Don't wait until someone is on the ground before deciding what to do about character death in your game!)

Damage is dealt as follows:
d2 damage = Vermin and other nuisances.
d4 damage = NPC lackeys, improvised attacks, and other weak weapons.
d6 damage = A "standard" weapon used by a player or featured NPC.
d8 damage = A tough weapon, usually used by martially focused player or big monster.
d10 damage = A really strong weapon used by a boss enemy or huge monster.
d12 damage = An extremely dangerous attack, such as powerful magic or explosives or something like that.
(If there is need to increase a die above a d12, start adding dice: d12+d2, d12+d4, d12+d6, and so on.)

A "weapon" doesn't have to be a physical weapon. A kung fu master's fists are a perfectly acceptable "weapon," for example.

Characters also get bonuses for skill and luck. All of these bonuses stack.
- If the skill used in the attack is 3 dice or above, the attack does +1 damage.
- An attack that used a merit and/or targeted an enemy's flaw adds +1 damage.
- An attack that benefits from a previous combat maneuver adds +1 damage.
- In addition, an attack that hits at 17 or 18 does +1 damage. At 19 or higher, this increases to +2.
(Against player characters, that's a missed dodge 3 or 4 for +1 damage, and at 2 or less for +2 damage)

[ic=Stressful and Harmful Example!]Mr. Billingsley fails to dodge a shark attack, rolling low enough to suffer +1 extra damage. Worse yet, his enemy took advantage of one of his flaws and has a Melee skill of 4, adding two more damage. This means he'll be taking d4+3 damage, and, as his luck would have it, he rolls a 7 total. He's already been taking a beating in this fight, so he's down to only 3/12 stress. He loses that, and he'll also have to take 4 harm. He suffers two negative complications for this hit, as well being considered to have a 4-point flaw for being reduced to 2/6 harm. He's in pretty bad shape, but this reflects him getting bit by a shark or something, so he ought to be in bad shape.[/ic]

Combat Maneuvers
Instead of attacking, a character can opt to perform a combat maneuver instead. Decide what you want to do, and pick an effect from the Combat Maneuvers table (an adapted version of "Bonus Awesomeness") that seems to suit it. Alternatively, describe a fun and audacious combat stunt and roll then a d6 and let the whims of fate decide. Either way, roll an appropriate skill (Melee, Ranged, Athletics, Deceit, etc.) against an appropriate defense (Melee, Athletics, Willpower, Perception, etc.), and apply the effect on a success. Any of those bonuses can be used for yourself, or "passed" to an ally who has a turn coming up.

(1) Expose a Vulnerability = One future successful attack made on the target will be considered a critical hit and roll an additional damage die. It does not have to be next attack, but should be soon.
(2) Get the Advantage = One future roll made against the target will get a +2d6 bonus, or the target will get a -2d6 penalty. It does not have to be next attack, but should be soon.
(3) Create Confusion = The player that created confusion specifies what the target does, as a sort of limited compel it must accept. The GM can veto anything too ridiculous.
(4) Stand Guard = Prevent the target from doing anything at all, or prevent all enemies from attacking a given ally or location. This lasts until the guarding player's next turn.
(5) Dirty Trick = Do something situational that gives you an advantage in combat. It should be similar in scope to the other effects listed here.
(6) Aid Awesomeness = Do something for free that would normally require spending an AP, or help an ally do the same. It still requires a turn if it otherwise would, though.

Special Abilities
In addition to their skills, merits, and flaws, characters in Q&D can get certain special abilities. These abilities are essentially Q&D's version of class features, feats, advantages, or whatever. A list of some possible choices is provided, but groups are encouraged to vary the available special abilities depending on the theme of the game, and players and GMs might even want to try making up their own once they have a feel for the approximate power level given by a special ability.

Starting Q&D characters normally get two special abilities, but special abilities depend heavily on the game, so this may vary.

[spoiler=List of Special Abilities]
Athleticism (Requires Athletics 3) - You get a +2 bonus to all Athletics rolls. You can increase this bonus to +2d6 for your next roll by spending an AP.
Berserker (Requires Melee 3) - You can go into a combat frenzy, during which time all of your melee attacks and maneuvers get a +2 bonus, as well as intimidation attempts using Persuasion, Willpower rolls to shrug off adverse effects, and other such things that would be aided by being in a berserk frenzy. In addition, no matter how badly you miss, you can always spend an AP to hit with a negative complication, which should be related to your frenzy. However, the frenzy ends when the combat does; it cannot be turned off at-will, and skills like Knowledge, Charm, and Deceit have a -5 penalty while it is active.
Center of Attention - You really shine when you are the star of the show. As long as you're the center of attention, you get +d6 on all your rolls.
Divine Favor - Someone somewhere smiles upon you. If you spend an AP and pray (or perform some other suitable ritual) for a short time, you can roll an extra d6 on the skill of your choice for the rest of the scene.
Extra Awesome - You gain 1 AP at the beginning of every play session, in addition to whatever other AP you might gain.
Fierce Attack - You attack powerfully and without hesitation. Your weapon damage die is one size larger. In addition, on a successful hit, you can spend an AP to add +5 damage or add an automatic combat maneuver.
Hexes (Requires Occult 3) - You can make combat maneuvers using your Occult skill, usually opposed by Willpower, but sometimes by the enemy's own Occult.
Jack of All Trades - You have a wide range of abilities, but are master of none. You get a +2 bonus on any skill roll made with 1 die, and a +1 bonus on those made with 2 or 3 dice.
Maneuver Master - All combat maneuvers you attempt get a +2 bonus, and a successful maneuver can, at your option, also deal d4 damage.
Meritorious - You get an extra 5 points worth of merits.
Natural Charisma (Requires Charm 3) - You get a +2 bonus to all Charm rolls. You can increase this bonus to +2d6 for your next roll by spending an AP.
Simple Soul (Requires Willpower 3) - You are not affected by the esoteric, subtle effects of magic. Attempts to resist enemy magic get a +5 bonus, and you can use Willpower even if you'd normally have to use Occult.
Sleight of Hand (Requires Deceit 3) - You can make combat maneuvers using your Deceit skill, usually opposed by Perception, but sometimes by the enemy's own Deceit.
Sneak Attack (Requires Sleight of Hand) - As long as it is plausible you could go unnoticed, before your attack, you can make a simple roll with Deceit vs. an enemy's Perception. If you succeed, you can immediately roll your attack with +2d6 and use one die size larger than normal for damage. However, failing the initial simple roll instead gives the enemy a +2d6 bonus to defense, or a -7 penalty against a static target number.
Toughness (Requires Willpower 3) - You are tough. Enemy hits have their damage reduced by one die size, and enemies can never score critical hits or get a damage bonus for your bad dodge roll. Pests rolling a d2 simply cannot damage you at all.
Vision (Requires Perception 3) - You get a +2 bonus to all Perception rolls. You can increase this bonus to +2d6 for your next roll by spending an AP.
[/spoiler][/spoiler]