B E Y O N D F A N T A S Y

ANIMA

RULES AND INTRODUCTORY ADVENTURE

PREPARE TO FACE YOUR WORST NIGHTMARES...

And the man forgot. Noone is able to say why it happened, or how. It can be that some natural phenomenon that erased our memories had unleashed, it can be that we had broken some rule from some unknown power and had been punished for that. It can simply be that man had done it to himself. Like little children, reduced to just a little more than animals, we wandered for centuries as our fatuous civilization collapsed around us. Everything turned into ruins, ruins turned into dust, and dust dispersed through the winds. In that time, the world had another name.

But noone is left to remember it.

Anima: Beyond Fantasy uses a roleplaying system developed both by Japanese and European authors that tries to join the game style from both cultures in order to create a new and refreshing experience. Atmosphere in Anima takes elements from well-known oriental fantasy sagas, but it presents a whole original background. It is a world full of adventures, mysteries and intrigues that are waiting for being discovered. Here, thousands of stories can be told, stories of a land of fantasy where unsuspecting man coexists with the most amazing creatures.

The Game Anima is a roleplaying game. In

it, a group of players cooperates to tell a story. Each player takes on the role of a single character, except for the Game Director. This player essentially takes on every other role, describing the world to the other characters and determining what challenges the players’ characters face. Players roll dice to determine if their characters can overcome the challenges before them. In a typical exchange, the Game Director describes the scene in which the players’ characters find themselves (“You are resting in the stateroom of a ship, but it is impossible for you to sleep. Suddenly, you hear a loud noise, like cracking wood, and everything around you begins to shake. What do you do?”). The players then describe their characters’ actions, usually in the first person (“I pick up my sword and try to wake the others up.”). The Game Director then describes the results of the action, going back and forth until the scene is resolved. Dice are rolled when players have their characters try things that aren’t guaranteed success. Catching a falling fragile object would require a dice roll; picking the same object up from a table or a box wouldn’t.

This document contains everything you and five of your friends will need to play your first game of Anima, except for some pencils and paper (for notes) and several 10-sided dice (these specialty dice are available in most hobby shops and are sometimes called “D10”). Those of you who are going to be players should read over the character backgrounds in the last pages of this document and choose the one you want to play. The Game Director should read the rest of the document in preparation before playing.

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The RulesMany of the rules in Anima are

introduced in the scenario proper or on the character sheets (special powers and so on), but there are a few basics to go over first.

Rolling Dice: There are two kinds of possible rolls in Anima: Beyond Fantasy, skill checks and feature checks. Skill checks are the most common of all (in fact, they are the very base of the system). They are made by rolling a D100 and adding the result to the value of the skill which is being tested. The higher you roll, the better you do. The second kind of roll is the feature check, and they are made by rolling a single D10. Unlike the latter, the lower you roll, the better you do.

The Open Roll: This rule only applies when you are rolling a D100. If you obtain a 90 or higher on any of these rolls, the character has obtained an Open Roll which allows him to roll dice again and add the new result to the previous one. This new roll also allows the character to obtain another Open Roll, but each time it is one point harder to obtain. The second Open Roll is obtained with a 91 or higher, the third one with a 92, the fourth one with a 93 and so on. A result of 100 is always open.

An Open Roll can be obtained in every D100 check, except for the Resistance checks and the Botch Level and Critical Hit calculation.

A character tries an Acrobatics check and rolls the dice obtaining a 95, which results in an Open Roll. So he rolls again and adds the result to the previous one. In this occasion he obtains a 90, but as it is the second one, he needs a 91 for it to be open again. So he adds both numbers (95 and 90) and obtains a final result of 185 to be then added to his skill.

The Botch: The same way it is possible to obtain a great success through an Open Roll, it is always possible to suffer an authomatic failure through a Botch. When someone obtains on a D100 roll a result of 1, 2 or 3, we say that he has botched. A Botch authomatically represents a failure, and the character has not succeeded the check he has tried. When a character obtains a Botch on a dice roll, he must immediately calculate the Botch Level.

The higher it is, the grater his failure. In order to calculate it, a D100 must be rolled, then apply a modifier that depends on the result that produced the Botch. If he rolled a 1, he must add a +15, and if he rolled a 3, he must substract a –15. The Botch Level calculation doesn’t admit Open Rolls.

On a Hide check, Kai obtains a 1, which represents that he has botched. Right after that he rolls a D100 to calculate the Botch Level and gets a 90. Given that his original roll was a 1, he must add 15 points to this result, so he has a final Botch of 105.

Skill Checks: These are the checks that are made rolling a D100 and adding the result to the character’s skill. There are two different kinds: Difficulty checks are those in which a number previously fixed by the Game Director must be reached, while in contested checks two skills are directly compared one against the other.

Resistance Checks: Resistance checks are a character’s ability to avoid consequences harmful to him. There are five different Resistances depending on the kind of effect which attacks the character. To pass a Resistance check, the character has to roll a D100 and add the result to the Resistance he’s testing. If he surpasses the required difficulty, he has been able to avoid the effect. No matter how much the difficulty of a Resistance is, a result of 100 always represents that he has been able to successfully avoid the effect. Unlike what the general rule states, the Open Roll is not allowed in Resistance checks.

If a character has a Resistance 50 points over the difficulty he faces, he does not need to roll dice: he authomatically surpasses it.

Feature Checks: These checks are tests directly made over the features. To make them, a single D10 is rolled and a result lower than the tested attribute’s value must be obtained. The difference above or under its value is the success or failure level on the check. Naturally, the higher a feature is, the more chances you have to obtain a success.

Now we will make a check over a feature that has a value of 7. We roll a D10 and we get a result of 4, so we have achieved a success on the check by 3 points.

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These checks are usually made contesting two different feature values. A character may need to test a feature directly against other’s one. To make this, both characters make the check and the one who obtains a higher success difference, will have managed to win. The amount a character manages to surpass an opponent is his success level over him. It is possible for both characters to fail the check. In that case, the winner would still be the one who got the lower failure level.

Not always the same feature must be compared. Sometimes two different features are contested, as Strength against Dexterity or Agility.

We make a contested Dexterity check between Layla and Kai. Layla has a 9 while her brother has a 10. We roll for her and we obtain a 4, so she has passed it for 5 points. Then Kai rolls the die and gets an 8, so, even though he has passed it too, he has done only by 2. If we compare both results, we will discover that Layla manages to defeat Kai on the check by a difference of 3 points (5 minus 2).

It is very difficult for individuals with a too high unequality between their features to manage, simply by luck, to defeat the other. So, if the difference between features is greater than four, each additional point counts as two when making the check.

Layla makes a Strength contested check against Yugham-Ur. Layla has a feature of 5, while Yugham-Ur is a supernatural entity who has an 12. Given that the difference between both features is greater than 4 by three points, Yugham-Ur can double those three additional points when making the check. So, Layla would roll over her Strength of 5 while Yugham-Ur would have, for the purposes of this check, a 15.

The Rule of 10 and 1: When a character makes a feature check rolling a single D10, he has to follow the rule of 10 and 1. If a result of 10 is achieved, the character substracts three points to the difference with the feature (which would be the same as having rolled a 13). If on the contrary he gets a 1, he adds three points to the difference with the feature (as having rolled a –2).

A character makes a Dexterity - in which he has a 9 – check. He obtains a 1,

which gives him a basic difference of 8 points, but thanks to the rule of 1, he adds 3 points to its difference, obtaining a total of 11 points. If he rolls a 10, instead of having failed by 1 he would have failed by 4.

The Character Sheet

This document contains character sheets for the five characters that players will use in “Nightmares Become True”. These sheets contain all the game numbers that define a character’s capabilities. Not all and every character sheet has the same groups of skills listed, as each character has specifical abilities and in no case all of them. However, we will try to explain all game terms that appear in the character sheets, so you will probably need to have two or three of them in front of you to get a full comprehension. Let us begin.

What you first see is character’s name. No further information is needed on this matter.

Character’s Experience Level: All characters in “Nightmares Become True” start at level 1, so you don’t have to worry about this.

Character’s Life Points: They represent a measure of how much damage the character can stand before he or she falls inconscious. No rules are presented here on regaining consciousness. Assume that a player character authomatically wakes up with a single life point if he has received medical treatment or first aids for at least one hour. Non-playable characters will die unless a special effort is made to keep them alive. For the purposes of this adventure, you regain 5 life points per day if your Constitution is lower than 8, 10 points per day if your Constitution is 8 or 9, and 15 points per day if you have a Constitution of 10. These values are doubled if the character is resting.

Category: It is a generic denomination for the character’s archetype.

Character’s Features: Respectively Strength, Dexterity, Agility, Constitution, Power, Intelligence, Will and Perception. They represent the character’s inherent abilities, and are ranked from 1 to 10 (Human beings only. Other creatures and experienced

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characters can easily surpass these values).

Character’s Resistances: Respectively Physical Resistance (PhR), Magic Resistance (MR), Psychic Resistance (PsR), Poison Resistance (PoR) and Illness Resistance (IR). Events that require Resistance checks are listed in the story, as well as the associated difficulties.

Turn: They are the different initiative modifiers for the character. Unarmed combat initiative modifier is listed first, and a second modifier could be present if he or she uses a weapon. Turn and initiative are detailed in Combat section.

Attack Skill: The amount you add to your dice roll when you are attempting to hurt somebody. If the character uses different weapons, all modifiers are listed. How it works is explained in Combat section.

Defence Skill: Each character only develops one of two different kinds: Parry or Dodge. If a weapon is listed next to the modifier, it is assumed that the character uses that weapon to parry. If the key word is Dodge, then it represents that the character mainly takes advantage on his ability to avoid attacks by dodging. Defence, as well as differences between Parry and Dodge, are explained in Combat section.

Damage: The basic damage value the character deals with a 100% accurate attack. If he or she is proficient with different weapons, each weapon comes associated to its own damage value. More explanation in combat section.

Wear Armor: It is a primary combat Skill, but you don’t make Skill checks using this one. Wear Armor is a value that determines the heaviest armors you can wear suffering no penalties, or minor ones. Characters who aren’t intended to wear armor shouldn’t wear one, or they will be slow and heavily penalized.

AT: Armor Type. This line contents the armor generic denomination, and the different armor values for different kinds of attacks, respectively Slashing, Bashing, Piercing, Heat, Electricity, Cold and Energy. This will be explained in Combat section.

The following is only present in characters with enough Martial

Knowledge to use ki skills and technics (Kai Durand).

MK: Martial Knowledge. It is not a skill, but a general measure of character’s ability to manipulate inner strength. Different categories obtain a different fixed amount per level. Special advantages or martial arts also increments a character’s Martial Knowledge.

Ki Skills: The name of different capabilities the character posesses. Some of them are always active, while some others require ki points expenditure to work. Kai Durand is the only character in this scenario that has ki skills, and they are explained in the character write-up.

Accumulations: There are six different ki accumulation values, which are associated to six main features. The value of an accumulation determines how fast the character can have access to his or her inner strength. It is difficult to explain in a few lines, so read Kai Durand’s write-up for a full explanation.

Ki: There are six different kinds of ki, associated to the same features accumulations are associated with. It represents the character’s ki resources, and you will have to spend ki points in order to use some ki skills or technics. You recover one point of every kind of ki per hour, or two points per hour if you are meditating during that time.

Technics: The name of the main tree of technics, followed by the name of technics the character knows belonging to that tree. Please read Kai Durand’s write-up to know what he can do, and how to do it.

The following is only present in characters with the advantage Gift, which gives him or her access to magic (Andras Kendrick).

ACT: Magic Accumulation. It is a value that represents how many Zeon points a character can obtain access in a given round. See Andras Kendrick’s write-up.

Zeon: These are the “magic points”. You spend zeon each time you cast a spell, and you recover your ACT value in Zeon points per day.

Magic Projection: It is a measure of how accurately a character fixes his spells on the designed target. It

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is also the skill you use when trying to attack someone with spells or when you protect yourself using magic. More information in Combat section.

Magic Level: This value shows the highest level spell the character knows in a given magic path.

The following are summoning related skills. No character has summoning capabilities, but who knows what they may face in their adventure?

Summon: A skill wich is used when trying to summon an entity to your presence.

Dismissal: A skill which is used when trying to get an entity out of your presence.

Dominate: A skill which is used when trying to force an entity to obbey your orders.

Bond: A skill which is used when trying to imprison an entity’s essence in a material body.

The following is only present in characters with an advantage that gives him or her the ability to control psychic forces (Layla Durand).

Potential: It is a value that is added to your roll when attempting to use any psychic power. It determines how powerful is the effect. Every power has its own basic difficulty, and if you don’t reach at least that amount, you run the risk of becoming mentally exhausted.

WCs: Will Consumptions. It is a number of points you can spend in a variety of manners, like temporarily increasing your Psychic Potential or Psychic Projection. You recover one WC per hour. (See Layla Durand’s write-up for more details on this).

Psychic Powers: The powers you can use.

Psychic Projection: It is a measure of how accurately a character fixes his psychic powers on the designed target. It is also the skill you use when trying to attack someone with psychic powers or when you protect yourself using them. More information in Combat section.

Innates: The number of psychic powers you can maintain indefinitely.

For instance, if you have two innates, you can decide to manifest two different powers and maintain them without having to roll Psychic Potential every turn. You can choose what power will be affected by an innate every time you use it. Innates are not spent.

Again, these game terms appear on all character sheets.

Advantages and Disadvantages: Like Artifact, Gift, Martial Master, or Unfortunate. Disadvantages are italicized. Their game effects are described in characters’ write-ups.

Natural Skills: Things like weapon proficiencies, martial arts or special combat tables.

Movement Type: Equal to a character’s Agility. It is the distance in yards you can move in a round without using an action. A character can move a maximum of four times this amount.

Fatigue: Equal to a character’s Constitution. You can spend one point of Fatigue to gain a +15 to any physical skill check, or two points to gain a +30. A second use of a Fatigue point is to increase a feature for a single feature check. Only Strength, Dexterity or Agility can be raised this way. Finally, one Fatigue point increases your ACT by 15, or all your ki accumulations by 1 for a single turn.You can spend a maximum of two points per round. But, if your Fatigue points become 4 or under that amount, you begin to suffer penalties (-10 at Fatigue 4, - 20 at Fatigue 3, -40 at Fatigue 2, -80 at Fatigue 1 and –120 at Fatigue 0) .

Secondary Skills: Different abilities the character has learned or trained. If a given character doesn’t have a determinate skill, but still wishes to try anything that involves that skill, you must apply a –30 penalty to the roll. Knowledge skill checks can’t be made if you haven’t that skill.

CombatViolence is inevitable in Gaïa.

When a fight breaks out, it can be important to keep track of who is doing what, and how badly they are hurting each other. When that happens, follow these steps:

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First tell the players that their characters are entering combat. Until the combat ends, everyone acts round-by-round, with each character having a chance to act each turn. Next, have everyone roll Turn, which is the result of the roll of a D100 + the character’s appropriate Turn modifier. If the character is planning to use a concrete weapon, the player must declare it, as his initiative modifier will probably be different depending on what weapon he is going to use. If the character wants to use magic or psychic powers, the Turn will be considered as unarmed. Starting with the character with the highest Turn result and continuing on to the lowest, each character gets to take one single action per round. If he wants to do more things, each additional action that is performed will suffer a cumulative penalty of –25. For instance, if someone wants to run at maximum speed until he reaches his opponent, attack him with a sword and finally use his Search secondary skill to discover if there is any hidden enemy, the character will run with no penalties, attack with a –25 and search with a –50. There is a maximum of actions a character can attempt, though, which is determined by the result of adding that character’s Dexterity + Agility. For a result of 1 to 10, the character has only one action. If the result comes from 11 to 14, he has two actions. From 15 to 19, three actions, and for 20 to 22, four actions. Also, only one of this actions can be used to unleash an attack (or more, if the character can perform additional attacks). The maximum number of actions every character has per round is listed in characters’ descriptions for an easy reference. The player can choose to yield his character’s action until later in the Turn queue. Resolve each character’s action (s) before asking the next player what his character does.

There are two kinds of actions: active actions and passive actions. Active actions follow the rules explained above. Passive actions can always be attempted, they do not count as an action and therefore they do not apply penalties to subsequent actions. Parrying or dodging are passive actions, as well as using special powers to protect oneself. You can move ¼ of your maximum speed in a turn as a passive action (your maximum speed in yards is

four times your Agility value, so ¼ of that is your Agility value in yards). Talking is also a passive action, as well as making a contested check. Some secondary skills are also used passively, but we strongly suggest to use common sense at this point.

If a character attacks another character, there is a number of steps you must follow in order:

Step One: Calculate Final Attack. The first character able to attack will always be the one with the highest initiative in the round. Roll a D100 and add the result to the offensive skill. There are many possible modifiers due to combat situations, but this document will not deal with them –you will want things to go easy, right?. The obtained result will be our Final Attack.

Step Two: Calculate Final Defence. To defend, we use Parry and Dodge skills. It is calculated the same way the attack is calculated, but in this case the result will be added to the defensive skill we decide to use. As it is a passive action, a character will always be able to defend: at least he will be able to roll dice, expecting for the luck to be able to save him regardless of how low his skill is.

Step Three: Results Comparison. With both results, we substract the target’s Final Defence from the attacker’s Final Attack. The obtained difference will indicate us the Results of the Round.

Let us imagine that Carduss decides to attack an unknown assassin who has tried to kill him. The enormous man has now an attack skill of 90, while the assassin has only a defense of 60. Both of them roll dice. Carduss obtains a result of 86, which he adds to his skill, and he achieves a Final Attack of 176. The assassin does the same and gets a 44, so his Final Defense is 104. Given that Carduss is the attacker, the assassin’s Final Defense is substracted from his own skill (176 minus 104), then the Results of the Round would be 72.

The Combat Table (see page 7) is an essential element in Anima, as it explains the possible results of fight rounds. Each column shows the defender’s armor type (AT), whose value is rated from 0 to 10. On the other side, the lines indicate following intervals of ten points the possible value the Results

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of the Round have reached. On the upper section are the negative amounts which represent counterattacks, and on the lower level the possitive amounts that represent a successful attack. Bear in mind that, depending on the way that the aggressor uses (Slashing, Bashing, Piercing...), defender’s AT can be different. If we want to use the table, first we must see what AT we are attacking to place us in a column, and then check on it the Results of the Round. Combining both elements will derivate on three possible consequences:

The Attack Hits and Produces Damage: When we find on the square a percentual number, it means that the attack has hit and produces damage. This situation is usually earned when the Results of the Round is a high possitive number. The percentual is applied to the final damage of the attack, and the resulting amount is directly substracted from the defender’s LP (life points). You should use a calculator to calculate these percentages. If he remains alive, the victim will already have lost his capability of attempting any active action this round, even if later he obtains a counterattack.

After that, the combat phase ends and, if noone is left to act, the next round starts calculating initiatives again. Of course, both attacker and defender will still be able to perform other passive actions, like defending from new attacks during that same turn.

Let us remember that, in his fight against the assassin, Carduss obtained a possitive result of 72 points. As he is striking an enemy wearing leather armor with his greatsword, his opponent has an AT 1 against his Slashing attack. We check the Combat Table and realize that the damage Carduss will deal is 60%. Given that his final damage is 120, the assassin suffers 72 points of damage, that is, 60% of 120.

The Attack Fails or Hits without Dealing Damage: If the Results of the Round are possitive but the square on the Combat Table is blank, it represents that the attack, even though it has been able to surpass defender’s guard, doesn’t manage to reach his body, only cutting clothes or bouncing against his armor. The effects are exactly the same as the previous case, except for the fact that no damage

is produced. Defender finds himself forced to defend the best he can and has not the chance of counterattacking nor making other active actions this turn. Again, if noone is left to act, the round concludes.

A special situation is when the Results of the Round are exactly 0. If that is the case, the defender will not loose his capacity to make any other active actions.

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The Attack Fails and It Is Possible to Counter: When the Results of the Round are a negative cypher, that is, defender’s final skill is higher than attacker’s, the victim has obtained a counterattack. The counterattack gives the action back to the defender character, who will still be able to make any active maneuver when his initiative allows him to do so. On the Combat Table, all squares which allow the defender to counterattack are marked with a C.

If he or she wishes, when obtaining a counterattack, a character can choose to immediately attack his aggressor with no need for waiting for his action turn to arrive; that is, even if there are other individuals still inactive with a higher initiative. Somehow, the defender has managed to stop or avoid his or her antagonist’s attack and takes advantage on this opportunity to immediately return the blow back. However, this can only be done if the individual still has the capability of attacking during that round (someone who has already lost it, couldn’t return the blow back). Bear in mind that a counterattack, though it comes from a defense, is still considered an active action. Because of that, unless the character has the ability of performing additional attacks, it is only possible to counterattack once per round. If he or she has already used all of them, it will not be possible to take advantage on any other counterattacks obtained.

Naturally, the defender can only couterattack his direct aggressor. If he or she wants to attack any other opponent, he or she will have to refuse his or her counter and wait until the initiative allows him or her to act.

Other important factor is the skill with which the defender has managed to avoid the attack. If he or she manages to defend very well from his antagonist, he or she will be able to use the advantage that his favourable position or his parry grants him or her to perform a better return: the better he or she has done, the greater advantage he or she will obtain. On counterattack squares there is a bonus before the C that the defender adds to his skill when he counterattacks. It is also possible for

a character to take advantage from the counterattack to use a secondary skill, contested directly against one of his or her opponents skill. In these cases, add the counterattack bonus to the check.

As he was escaping from the assassins, Carduss has been intercepted by the assassin master, who has jumped onto his way and has joined to the combat. Our friend has a big problem, as he has to face three opponents on his own. Everybody calculates their initiative and the results are the following: Carduss obtains a 93, the assassin master gets a 73 and the other two assassins (who we will call A and B) a 53 and a 64 respectively. So Carduss is the first to act. Realizing he has no scape, he’s willing to fight and decides to attack assassin B, the one who started to chase him.

The attack Carduss performs over his antagonist deals damage to him, so assassin B loses his action for this turn. Now it’s time for the assassin master to attack, and though Carduss obtains a higher defense than his opponent final skill (which theorically would allow him to counterattack), he has no additional attacks to use, and is therefore uncapable of returning the blow back. Now, given that B can’t perform active actions (he has been forced to that thanks to Carduss’ attack), only assassin A remains to act, but his try to reach the huge warrior is useless. Given that everyone has already acted, the round ends.

But remember, why do we always have to limit ourselves saying that blows have been dodged or parried when we can see it in a more spectacular way, like saying that the fighter has foreseen the attacks? As always, it will be the Game Director who applies the cinematography appropriate to the situation, according to the events that surround the combat.

Additional DefencesIt is not as easy to defend against

one attacker than against four. Because of that, you apply a –30 when defending against the second attack thrown at you in the round, a –50 against the third one, a –70 against the fourth one and a –90 against the fifth one. If you receive more attacks, you still apply a –90.

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Defence Against Projectiles

If you try to parry a fired projectile (an arrow, a bolt, etc.), you apply a –80 to your parry skill, or a –30 if you are using a shield. If it is a thrown object (a throwing axe, a stone, etc.), you only apply a –50, or no penalties if using a shield.

If you try to dodge a fired projectile, the penalty is –30. There are no penalties when dodging thrown objects.

Supernatural shields don’t suffer these penalties at all.

Special ManeuversThe following are two special

combat maneuvers extracted from the Anima: Beyond Fantasy core rulebook. They are portraited in a very brief way, as you have plenty of time to complicate your lives when the book comes out.

Disarm: With this maneuver, a character can take a weapon from his enemy’s hands, using for that his dexterity or mere brute force. In order to attempt that, he will apply a –40 to his attack skill, but the attack will always be executed against an AT 0. If the Combat Table indicates that it deals damage, a contested feature check will have to be made between both opponents, in which each of them will be able to choose between his Strength or his Dexterity. If the difference between skills hasn’t reached a 100% damage, the attacker will apply a –3 to his feature value, while if it surpasses 200%, it will be raised by +3. If the aggressor wins the check, he will have disarmed his opponent. A Disarm maneuver deals no damage to the defender.

Grapple: The goal of a grapple is to immobilize an opponent. This maneuver applies a –40 penalty, but it is performed against an AT 0. It can only be done using unarmed attacks. If a minimum damage of 10% is achieved, both opponents will make a contested feature check. The attacker can choose between his Strength or Dexterity, and the defender can choose between his Strength or Agility. Again, if the difference between skills hasn’t reached a 100% damage, the attacker will apply a –3 to his feature value, while if it surpasses 200%, it will be raised by +3.

When a grapple is successful, both attacker and defender lose their capability of performing active actions, and will receive a –200 to any defense dice roll. There’s no need for new contested checks every turn: the victim will remain immobilized until the attacker decides otherwise. A grapple maneuver can deal damage, but it is halved and full opponent’s AT is applied when calculating it.

Critical HitsSomething gruesome can happen

when the damage dealt on an enemy is high enough. Every time you deal a damage that is equal to or greater than half the remaining life points of your opponent, you have managed to perform a critical hit. Then, you must roll dice again and add the result to the original damage: This amount is called the Critical Hit Level. If it is higher than 200, the amount over 200 is halved. The victim must then make a Physical Resistance check against a difficulty equal to your Critical Hit Level. If it is achieved, the victim will not suffer any additional consequence. Otherwise, he will suffer a penalty equal to the difference between the difficulty and his check which is applied to any action. This penalty applies to all checks, except for the initiative calculation, which suffers half this penalty, and Resistance checks, which suffer no penalties at all. Also, per each 20 points of penalty, the character loses one point in each feature when making contested checks, his movement type is reduced by 1 and his ki accumulations are all reduced by 1. Finally, the character’s ACT is reduced by half this penalty, rounded up in groups of five.

The victim recovers from the penalty at a rythm of five points per round, unless the difference between Resistance check and difficulty was higher than 50, in which case he will only recover from half the total penalty. The other half will remain until he receives medical assistance or has enough time to recover from his injuries. Only differences higher than 100 represent torn off arms, crushed legs and all that stuff, so take it easy. Also, remember that opponents can also obtain critical hits...

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Supernatural Skills in Combat

Magic: There are active and passive spells. You must be able to act in order to cast an active spell, and in no way you can counterattack using a spell. Passive spells can be cast at any time during the round, even if it is not your turn to act. To use attack or defence spells you use the skill Magic Projection. As magic is a different action than attack, you can perfectly cast an offensive spell and then attack physically. If the spell comes first, it will be cast at no penalties, while attack would suffer a –25 because it would be the second action in the round. If the attack comes first, your Magic Projection will not be penalized. Also, if a sorcerer has managed to accumulate enough Zeon to cast two spells in a single turn, he can do it with no penalties to his Magic Projection as a single action.

Psychic Skills: Despite their enormous differences with magic, psychic skills work in a very similar way. You can use a passive psychic power at any moment, you cannot counterattack using an offensive psychic skill, you can attack using a psychic power and physically in the same turn with the same restrictions than above, and you can use as many psychic powers as you wish as a single action. But, if you choose to do this, you will have to divide your Psychic Potential between the powers you want to manifest, with a minimum of +10 applied to any power. Your Psychic Projection doesn’t suffer any penalty.

Magical and Psychic Shields: If you are using a magical shield to protect yourself from an attack, you don’t use your parry or dodge skills, but your Magic Projection. If you are using a psychic shield, you use your psychic projection. A shield is not a bubble that isolates you from any source of damage: you must direct it in order to better avoid attacks. You don’t suffer penalties to your Projection, even if you are blocking multiple times in a round, and you can obtain a counterattack using a supernatural shield –which cannot be used with a supernatural attack, remember. But not everyting is good. Shields use to have a hardness measured in life points. Every time you

defend succesfully, the shield receives the full base damage of that attack. If a shield’s life points run out, the shield is broken. If there is any remaining damage when it occurs, you suffer the complete attack with no possibility of defending, but with its base damage reduced only to the remaining damage.

Let’s see an example: A shield cast by an elder dark Ebudan, capable of resisting 300 damage points. The corrupt spirit defends from Andras, who attacks him using a broad sword with a basic damage of 60. Although the specter stops the attack due a final defense higher than his opponent’s skill, Andras’ strikes noticeably reduce the resistance of the shield. The impact authomatically reduces by 60 points the barrier’s hardness, so it will have 240 resistance left.

After so many attacks, the spirit’s shield has only 40 resistance points left, and it receives a new attack from Andras. The youngman’s impact is again stopped by the magical barrier, but it manages to break the shield and Yugham-Ur suffers the attack with the swordsman’s full skill, but final damage has been reduced to 20.

Supernatural Attacks: Most supernatural attacks are unmaterial. If your character is unable to touch energy (only Kai is able to do it, thanks to his ki skill Extend Aura to Weapon), your parry skill is authomatically reduced to 0. A character who has developed parry skill can try to dodge the attack, but at a –60 penalty. There are no penalties when a character who has developed dodge defends against an attack of this nature.

If a supernatural attack affects an area, like a fireball, anyone unable to touch energy trying to parry will suffer a –120 penalty. A character who has developed parry skill can try to dodge the attack, but at a –60 penalty. Again, dodging suffers no penalties, but you must be able to exit from the affected area in a turn (your maximum speed rating determines that). If you can’t, then you must apply a –80 penalty. This is also applied when you are in small affected area and can’t exit from it.

All and every supernatural attacks are considered fired projectiles (see “Defence Against Projectiles”, on p. 8). Also, if the attack is not visible and your character hasn’t the ability to see the supernatural (Layla Durand and Andras Kendrick are the only characters who can), you will suffer a –100 penalty

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when defending, and only if you know that an attack is coming. Also, attacking an invisible enemy applies a –100 penalty to attack skill.

Last Considerations

Botching on any dice roll is not a good idea. But Botch has an additional effect on Turn, attack, parry, dodge, Magical Projection, Psychical Projection, Psychical Potential and Resistance checks. When you botch such a roll, you substract the Botch Level from the involved skill. For instance, if you have an attack skill of 80 and you obtain a botch of 72, your Final Attack will be of 8. Be prepared for the counterattack, men!

Human beings are limited creatures. Therefore, they cannot surpass a certain amount with a dice roll, simply because some results represent unthinkable deeds, or actions that certainly defy natural laws. In game terms, no physical skill check can go over 280. If you obtain a triple Open Roll and, after adding the result to your skill, the final skill goes over 280, you must limit the result to that amount. It also applies to attack rolls and defence rolls. In combat, there is a minimum final result of 0 (no matter how many penalties you have) and a maximum of

280. But, it only applies to physical attacks. Magical and psychic ones are not affected by this. There are some ways to overcome this limitation, through some ki skills or supernatural powers, and of course, some creatures are able to surpass this limit. Will the players’ characters ever be capable of such deeds?

Please note this is a translation from Spanish game terms, and it is not an official one. Therefore, when you finally have the core book in your countries, there will probably be some differences. We hope you will not get confused by that.

Rules have been summarized in order to be easier (or less complex) than original ones. Anima: Beyond Fantasy contains lots of permutations, like aimed attacks, combat situations, skill modifiers, lots of special maneuvers, more magic and psychic possibilities, and an endless list of things. Yes, Anima is dense at first. But we encourage you to become familiar to the system, and it will become easier and easier. If you don’t like a rule, don’t use it (unless you are damaging the balance of the game). If grapple seems difficult to you, then don’t grapple. The only thing that you should bear in mind is that a roleplaying game only exists to

be enjoyed by its players.

N IGHTMARES B ECOME T RUE “Nightmares become true” is an

introductory adventure for a party of five first-level characters. The events that take place in it begin setting the characters in a critical situation against

some assassins, but although they don’t know it, there are more powerful forces behind that.

“Nightmares become true” is divided in three acts. It would normally require two or three sessions to be

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concluded, but it can take more or less depending on if the players go right to the point or have problems at comprehending the rules or systems. First act is very brief, and it involves a single fight and some interacting possibilities. Second act is longer, with lots of investigation, riddle solution and use of secondary skills, but also three combats take place in it. Finally, the third act is a desperate struggle against time, and characters will have to face an almost impossible enemy. From this point, all the information is meant for the Game Director’s eyes only.

Some previous considerationsHere is some information you

may need in order to run correctly “Nightmares Become True”. First, a brief introduction to Hecate, which is the city where most of the action takes place, and second, some presentations of two organizations which are also mentioned throughout the story: The Church and Tol Rauko. It is not intended for you to simply read aloud all this stuff to all the players. Two of the characters (Kai and Layla) haven’t ever been to Hecate, for example. Only Andras Kendrick and Bryanna Denis know a little about the old citadel, and none of them have ever heard about Tol Rauko. Feel free to only give each player the information his character knows; the story will give you clues on when you could tell a little more.

HECATE, THE CITY OVER THE RUINS

Sit in the only pass of the Chains of the Winds in Galgados, Hecate is a city that leans back on the very mountains. As the legend tells, it was built over the ruins of another citadel, that collapsed due to unnatural causes during the War of God. Every clue seems to indicate that the old construction was not of human origin, but the elaborated work of the Church and Tol Rauko has managed this fact to be ignored by the majority of its inhabitants.

In truth, Hecate is an enormous gorge that connects Galgados to the rest of the continent. It is a very visited city, as anyone who wants to enter the

principate must necessarily pass through it, or risk to travel several days through the mountains.

Its inhabitants are mainly miners, since the pass is full of iron, which the country trades very much. However, for the last years the city has experienced a great economical arise, and lots of traders have started to install in there to sell their products to the travelers who visit it.

The city has a really unusual shape: it is very narrow and it extends some miles along the pass. Even though, to make maximum use of the little territory they have, its inhabitants started to build homes on both walls of the gorge. Fixed with stone or wooden beams, this new part of the city hangs almost literally from the walls. In each one of its entries there is an enormous metal gate that usually remains open until night.

Its master is Marina Daorland, who expects to obtain enough economic and politic power to persuade the Empress that she is the ideal choice to become Galgados’ next princess. She has a great amount of guards, and she is quite interested on her subjects’ safety.

In Hecate roughly 100,000 individuals cohabit, a really exaggerated number for this little territory.

The Stone Pass: By this name is known the part of the city which is directly built on the ground, between the two walls of the gorge. It is the old area where rich people live, since it is easier to live here than on the walls. It is full of taverns and shops, as well as stone towers where the noblemen live. Houses are extremely tall, usually of four or five floors, as people in Hecate has always tried to take as much profit as possible of the space. Normally, they are ostentatious and adorned to excess.

The Tower of Tarth Lömen: Fifteen floors tall, the tower of Tarth Lömen presides on the whole city. Its white marble colour stands out over the usual dark grey of the rest of the houses. Dove-shaped gargoyles adorn its salients and balconies, and its dome is decored with the beautiful statue of a woman raising her arms to the sky.

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In truth, this fabulous structure is the only construction of the old citadel that still stands, but people in Hecate doesn’t know this information. The tower is the present home of Marina, master of the city, but the young woman spends little time in it, traveling from one place to another to augment her influences.

The Hanging Houses: The hanging houses are the newest part of the city, where miners and humble people live. They are enormous wooden and stone bastions built on columns. Going up them is quite complicated, as the only way to do so is an entangled system of stairs which sometimes becomes a true labyrinth. At some points, the hanging houses connect directly to mining areas.

The Entries: The entries were openings that allowed to access the ruins over which Hecate is built. These entries were discovered by simple luck while digging in the mines, and for some time many explored them, revealing that a big part of that old city still extended beneath the mountain. Hecate’s kings prefered to keep this secret for some time, because several explorers found very valuable objects and they expected to take a good advantage on their wealth. Unfortunately, most of those men started to dissapear or went completely mad. Those events alerted the templars of Tol Rauko, who immediately presented in the city and sealed all known entries, forcing the monarchs to decree harsh laws against entering the citadel.

The Searchers: Before the entries were closed, there was an extravagant association which called itself The Searchers. They were people who dedicated to explore the citadel looking for some rewards they had heard of. Today this guild has dissapeared officialy; however, many groups still work clandestinely for some rich noble man or for themselves. Actually, the very Marina Daorland has at her service one of these groups, which she has instructed to explore the ruins expecting to find anything that helps her to secure her place as Galgados’ princess.

THE CHURCHCreated long time ago, the main

goal of this organization is to promote Christian faith throughout Gaïa.

Its hierarchy begins with the Emperor, maximum representative of Christ on earth. Immediately under him is the Sovereign Archbishop, on whom the Pontifex has delegated many prerogatives and privileges. This hierarchy goes down to the priests, that preach Christ’s word.

But some intentions of this organization are darker: They also look for erasing any threat to Christianism, like other faiths or supernatural beings of any kind. This last issue is attended by the Inquisition, a division of the Church that judges and exterminates any supernatural beings –sorcerers and psychicians included– they hear of.

TOL RAUKOTol Rauko is an organization that

was created at the same time that the Church, and its main goal is to preserve the supernatural presence in Gaïa. They know that the only way it can be achieved is by hiding it from man’s eyes, so they seal magical places, imprison supernatural beings in their fortress and keep magic alive by other similar ways. Although Tol Rauko and the Inquisition are obvious rivals, they never fight directly. Instead, the first organization that gets to any location has its rights over it.

The background of the story

Although the characters will never know everything about what is happening, you should at least have an idea as Game Director. It could prove useful to determine NPCs’ reactions, what the characters could learn if they, for example, try and read their minds, and what will remain hidden.

Beneath Hecate, a ruined citadel lays. But despite some people think, it is inhabited. Spirits of an ancient race called Ebudan wander the place, but they are a mere shadow of their former selves. Darkened and corrupted by a powerful mystic force of unknown origin, their souls are tortured and their minds scattered, and they will kill any living being who enters their domains. But

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there is something else lost among the ruins: a mighty amulet, known by few and wanted by all of them.

Matthew Gaul, lord of the region of Togarini, has put his eyes on this necklace. It is said that it belonged to an Efreet, a fire elemental, and it is his intention to summon and dominate it. But summoning arts are unknown to him. Because of that, he has sent a capable summoner to infiltrate Marina’s explorers and recover the artifact: Luther Strauss. Matthew has instructed a psychician to erase Luther’s mind, but he has went mad as a secondary reaction. Due to that, it will be impossible for the characters to obtain any information about Gaul by interrogating Luther, and if they read his mind, only vague and distorted images will emerge.

But it’s not over. One of Marina’s brothers, Frederic Daorland, wants to see her dead and become Galgados’ prince too. Knowing nothing about Matthew Gaul’s plan, he has sent some assassins from the Azure Alliance (a triunvirate of countries, to which Togarini belongs, that is independent from the Holy Empire of Abel). Frederic has ordered the assassins to bear Azure Alliance’s emblem, in order to make people believe that the menace comes from outside.

All this events will make the characters realize that they are not alone over the world, and that supernatural forces other than man really exist. If they are able of using their knowledge or die trying is up to them...

ACT ONE:ATTACK IN THE

TOWER OF TARTH LÖMEN

This first act begins with an unexpected assault to the master of the city, Marina Daorland. Trained assassins sent by Marina’s brother, Frederic, have broken into the tower of Tarth Lömen with an obvious goal: They must kill the young woman. Fortunately, fate has

conspired to bring together a group of heroes that will save her.

We have to say that this beginning might seem too forced to some players, but bear in mind that most of the characters don’t know each other, and an event of this kind is needed to make their meeting easier. Anyway, if any player feels this starting point is not appropriate for his character, ask him the reasons that could have brought his character there. Players tend to play better their characters if they feel comfortable with their situation and behavior.

The act finishes after Marina has been saved. She will celebrate a dinner to honor the characters and will suggest them to join her Searchers.

GAME HINTS

Along the story you will find some game hints that will help you to go forward if you or your players don’t know what to do next. There will also be full explanations of the game plot, relevant NPCs’ statistics and suggestions of sorts.

Also, you will find blocks of italicized text to read aloud to your players. They will not cover all the situations, though, so be prepared to improvise whenever you need it.

The assaultWhen the described events start,

all five characters must be near the tower of Tarth Lömen. Dedicate some minutes to describe the city and the mood, perhaps reading aloud some of the introducting paragraphs written above. Try to determine where the characters are exactly and where they are going. If the players want, they may describe what they are doing and what their plans for today are. But here are some suggestions:

Kai and Layla: They have traveled north from Abel escaping from the inquisitors, and now they are in Hecate looking for safety. They could merely be pacing around the streets to know better the city, or searching for a job. Ask Kai and Layla’s players what would be a good reason for them to be in the streets. That way, they are helping to describe a little more about their characters’ plans and objectives,

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and giving you more information about what could motivate them.

Carduss: Hecate is just next to Dalaborn frontier, and he could perfectly be there in order to make sure that everything was right. Also, he could be talking to some guard at the Tarth Lömen entry gate when everything starts to happen. You could roleplay this interaction; perhaps Carduss is asking about recent events and the guard feels nervous due to Carduss’ presence, and doesn’t know how to get rid of him.

Bryanna and Andras: Probably, this is the motivation you will have less problems to establish. Andras heard about the Searchers some days ago and wants to ask for an audience with Marina Daorland in order to ask her to join its members. Bryanna is going with him, since she sees Andras as a promise of wealth (or perhaps something more, who knows?). This is simply the day Andras has chosen to go to see Marina.

Once the starting point has been determined, you can progress further.

Read the following aloud:Hecate looks very busy today.

People shouting at their shops, miners entering and exiting the mines, noblemen walking up and down the streets... The voices and the city’s noise can be heard everywhere, and you feel momentarily animated.

You stop a moment to look at the tower of Tarth Lömen. Perhaps this is not the first time you see it, but still, the only thing you can do during this moment is to feel real admiration. Everything, from its immaculated beauty to its dove-shaped gargoyles and the impressive statue that adorns its dome is astonishing.

But, you realize, there is something wrong with the tower. A column of smoke emerges from a balcony in the last floor, and it is then when you hear a voice raising the alarm.

Stop reading aloud.

This is a good moment to ask the players how they react. Perhaps they are a bit shy and don’t feel like to enter the tower right away. Perhaps they think they need some kind of permission from a guard in order to enter. Perhaps they wish to simply turn their backs and flee

(we hope this will not be the case, for God’s sake!).

Layla could decide to fly using her psychic powers and enter directly through the balcony. Although this is possible, it is not very likely for Layla to act that way (she has been chased by the Inquisition and showing her supernatural powers to frightened people doesn’t seem a good idea). Just remind that player that this is a roleplaying game, and he should play Layla in a coherent way. However, don’t be too restrictive. After all, he should feel free to do what he wants.

Kai will be wherever his sister is, but his nature encourages him to help anyone who needs it.

Carduss has a very strong sense of honor and loyalty, and is always trying to follow the path of virtue and righteousness. Perhaps it is due to his mental derangement, but it is unlikely for him to simply ignore what is happening.

Andras and Bryanna are perhaps a bit more selfish. But Andras should consider that if something happens to Marina Daorland, he would never be allowed to enter the citadel, and Bryanna is the typical curious girl who can’t resist going where something interesting is happening.

Anyway, if any player still refuses to enter the tower without a reason, an Hecate guard approaches him and says: “Are you a friend or an enemy? I hope you will help us, our master Daorland is in danger!”

When all characters are inside the tower, give their players the chance of describing themselves. However, the description should be brief, as this is a tense moment and the characters are barely registering what is happening.

Read the following aloud: Screams and metal noise can

clearly be heard now that you are inside the tower. It seems that the attack is not only in the last floor, but in the whole building. Two dead guards lay on the stairs that lead to upper floors, their weapons still in their sheathes.

Stop reading aloud.

If anyone wants to determine the cause of the guards’ deaths, have that player make a Medicine check against a difficulty of 40 (Easy). If he successes

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the roll, tell him that the guards have been decollated from behind. Each of them has a short sword (no character is proficient with short swords, what would grant a –60 penalty to attack and defence when used) in his sheathe, and wears a leather armor that would probably take too long to take off. Except for the characters, nobody is in the first floor, and there are no evidences of fight. If any player wants to check the hall, tell him that he can see a huge square-shaped stone table and lots of chairs on an exquisite blue carpet, statues sorrounding them and magnificent tapestries on the walls. Try to subtly urge the players to walk up the stairs, as they don’t have plenty of time.

Read the following aloud: As you go up the spiral stairs,

you see Hecate guards, distinguished by the heraldry of a falcon, fighting against masked people wearing in black. The guards don’t seem to have many problems and they are managing to keep the assaultants busy. The real problem is in the upper floor...

Stop reading aloud.

If the players wish to help the guards joining the battle, one of them shouts: “Reinforcements at last! Listen, don’t care about us. The situation here is under control. But the master Daorland might be in danger! Hurry, now!”

If any or all the players insist at helping the guards, let them do so. However, it is possible for them to get hurt and spend some of their resources here, and this is not the important fight. Anyway, have them fight against two or three assassins (their traits are listed at the end of the scene), as the remaining are fighting the guards. Don’t care about the soldiers and the assassins they are not directly facing, simply assume that Hecate men win the battle at the same time the players’ characters do, with a few casualties at most. The remaining guards, except for the seriously wounded ones, will follow the characters.

When the players are ready to continue to ascend the stairs, procceed with the next paragraph.

Read the following aloud:

You keep running up the stairs, and the sounds of steel are now incredibly loud. You are probably in the eleventh floor when suddenly, a door opens wide and a warrior aims at you with his sword. He is blond and handsome, and when staring at you, he looks confused.

“You don’t look like the assassins I’m fighting against. Have you come to protect my sister? If that is the case, please hurry up! She’s upstairs.”

Then, the man turns his back to face more attackers coming from inside the room he has just come from.

“There is no time to waste. They are everywhere!”

Stop reading aloud.

If there were any guards along with the characters, they will stay there to protect their lord. In all cases, it should be clear that they must go to save Marina Daorland, and nobody is going to help them in this fight. When the characters finally arrive to the fifteenth floor, they find the door locked from the other side. To force it, a Strength Feats check must be made against a difficulty of 120 (Hard). If they attack the door, it is considered as a creature with defence skill 0. It makes no defence rolls and has 100 LP and AT 0. However, the base damage of any attack thrown against it must be at least 40 –note that we are talking about base damage, and not final damage. A third option would be allowing Bryanna to go out through a balcony, enter the room where Marina is being attacked and force the lock from inside (Difficulty 80, Medium, for both rolls; an Acrobatics check to walk through the salient and a Locks check to open the door). Some characters (Layla and Andras) are able to use some detection powers before entering the room. When any or all the characters enter the room by any way they ideate, procceed.

Read the following aloud:Now you understand the gravity

of the situation: Marina is sorrounded by five armed men, her back against the wall. Two guards lay on the floor on a puddle of blood. The only thing that separates her from her attackers is a broken wooden table. The balcony’s courtains are set in fire.

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When the young woman sees you, she cries: “Help me! They are going to kill me!” The five masked assassins turn their back to her and face you, and it is then when you see their daggers pointing at you.

Stop reading aloud.

Tell the players that they are entering combat. This is an introduction fight, and it is not intended to be too hard. If the players have serious problems to overcome it, you will always be able to make some guards enter the room and help them. The assassins will not fight to death, anyway. If three or more of them are seriously wounded or die, those who can will flee through the windows. Also, if you want things to be easier for the characters, they might escape too if they witness specially destructive supernatural demonstrations. If they see someone flying, for example, they will have to make a Coldness check against 80 (Medium) or flee. If they see someone hurting a mate with obvious powers (with a Fireball, for example), the difficulty will be 120 (Hard). If they see a supernatural attack killing a mate, or they suffer damage from one, it will be 140 (Very Hard). They have prepared their escape very well, with ropes hanging from the balconies in each floor. They will leave the first balcony and jump into the following one, in order to continue to descend from that point. They are very fast, and swap ropes very quickly, so following will be impossible. Also, the master Daorland could be injured, and the players should stay there to check it out.

ASSASSINS

Level: 1Life Points: 90Category: AssassinStr: 5 Dex: 8 Agi: 8 Con: 6 Pow: 5 Int: 7 Wil: 8 Per: 8PhR 35 MR 30 PsR 40 PoR 35 IR 35 Turn: 70 Unarmed, 70 DaggerAttack Skill: 80 DaggerDefence Skill: 60 DodgeDamage: 30 Dagger PIEWear Armor: 0AT: Leather Sla 1 Bas 0 Pie 2 Hea 1 Ele 2 Col 1 Ene 0

Movement Type: 8 Fatigue: 6

Secondary Skills: Acrobatics 20, Athletics 20, Climb 20, Swim 20, Perceive 80, Search 60, Hide 80, Stealth 80, Coldness 40.

Maximum number of active actions: 3

Any alive assassins will suicide using a poison if not stopped. Therefore, obtaining any information from them will be difficult. A possible (but unlikely) option would be interrogating the injured assassins at the same time their mates are fighting the other characters. A simpliest way for Layla is to read their minds during the fight. Rescuing crucial information from a subject’s mind would require five combat turns (she would detect first that they are doing this for money; second, that they are from Galgados and not from the Azure Alliance; and third, that they are at Frederic Daorland’s service). Obviously, if someone kills the assassin before his mind has been completely read, the power is aborted –and there is no way for a character to know what Layla is doing.

It is now when you can say that the assassins bear the Azure Alliance heraldry, if any player makes a successful History check against 80 (Medium).

Also, remember that there is a fire to be extinguished. If the characters say nothing about this, some guards will do.

Marina will be very grateful and, after showing interest on the characters’ names and stories, she will suggest them to have a dinner with her and her two brothers. She will not listen to any accusation to his brother Frederic, unless it is convincingly proved (and the characters have no material proofs to show).

Read the following aloud:Through the balcony you can see

a man riding a white horse approaching the tower. Minutes later, you can see him entering the room along with the blond man you met at the stairs... and you realize that they are identical! Only their clothes differ, as the new one wears a shining armor and a blue cloak,

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instead of the plain clothes the other wears.

“My dear brothers!”, Marina exclaims, almost crying. The man in the armor steps forward and embraces her. “Poor Marina”, he says. “I’ve come as quickly as it has been possible for me as soon as I have heard about the attack. I was afraid you could be in danger, but fortunately you had Karlson to protect you”.

“If Marina is alive, it is not thanks to me, Frederic”, says his brother. “It is thanks to these brave and honorable people that has come to help us!”

Frederic turns to face you, and smiles: “Thank you then, my friends. You have done very much for Hecate”.

“If you wish, we could speak at the table”, Marina states. “A dinner is going to be held. Brave people, be my guests”.

Stop reading aloud.

The dinnerThe characters will then be

offered to sit next to the master Daorland and her brothers. The dinner will consist on a variety of meats, fruit and excellent wine. Let this scene last for as much time as the characters enjoy it. Now it is a better chance to know each other, describing themselves more deeply and talking about their own hereabouts. Things like personal beliefs and attitudes would also be good to present the characters in a more interesting way. Marina listens to all characters, but Frederic looks even more interested if possible. He is a pleasant conversationalist, and makes lots of questions (he wants to know better the ones who have frustrated his plans of getting her sister killed). If, at any point, Layla thinks about reading Frederic’s mind, he has a PsR of 60. His intentions would be clear from that point. If the characters point at him as the responsible of the attack, he will just smile, and Marina will ask the characters not to offend her brother before her. If they privately talk Frederic this way, he will shake his head and say: “You don’t know what you are talking about. I love my sister, and I would never hurt her”. If Kai and Layla have made clear that they are brother and sister, Frederic will stare at Kai and add: “I’m sure that you, better than the rest, understand my

words”. That said, he will go to his private room, expecting not to be followed.

Once Karlson and Frederic have gone to bed, Marina approaches the characters. She has witnessed their great skills and wants them to join The Searchers (see p.12 for more information). She explains that, under the city, a huge citadel extends through many miles. It is ruined and isolated, but still contains many valuable objects she is interested to recover. She will not talk about their magical properties unless some other character (Andras is the most likely case) forces her to do so. She will also mention that she sent another group of explorers a week ago, and they have not returned yet. She is worried about what might have happened to them, and asks the characters for their help.

Let the characters find an appropriate reason to enter the citadel. Wealth is a suitable motivation for Bryanna. Andras is more likely to want to keep some of the artifacts they find, to which Marina will agree if there is no other way. Carduss would enter only to rescue the explorers (and maybe to find a dark and quiet place where he is able to speak to his lost family). Kai and Layla would also want to find the Searchers, but also know a little more about their own supernatural nature.

Once the characters have agreed and they have had enough time to recover from any wound they might have suffered, you can procceed with Act Two.

ACT TWO:DESCENT INTO

DARKNESS

This act begins whenever the characters decide to enter the citadel through an entry. Exploring the ruins will not be an easy task, though, since they are inhabited by lost souls of an ancient race. The characters will also meet a mysterious little girl, and they have a chance to undo the curse that is affecting the mad spirits.

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Preparing for the expedition

That same morning, Marina will meet the characters along with a man.

Read the following aloud:The sun is still rising when you

see Marina Daorland approaching you. She’s not alone, however. Along with her is a strange looking young man. Tall and skinny, his skin is dark and his hair white, and from the very moment you see him, you realize that he’s a bit disturbed, subtly whispering to himself and looking nervously at everything around him.

Stop reading aloud.

The man’s name is Luther Strauss, and he was part of the group of Searchers that dissapeared beneath the mountains. He was the only man who came back from there, and he’s a bit out of touch since then. But as far as Marina knows, he is the only one who is able to lead the characters through the caverns to the point where he saw his mates for the last time. Therefore, she makes clear that it is essential that Luther goes along with the characters.

Marina will lead the characters through the mountains until they arrive to a hole on the rock. She will provide them with enough torchs and water, but nothing else.

Read the following aloud:Marina looks around, apparently

to make sure that noone is watching you. Then, she speaks: “Listen carefully. Noone must see you entering or exiting this hole. Most Hecate people has hever heard about the citadel or the entries, and their location is secret for good reasons. Now go. I know you will be successful where others have failed”.

Stop reading aloud.

If any character asks Marina to elaborate about her previous words, she will only say that the citadel still holds powerful secrets, and they mustn’t fall in wrong hands. Also, descending into the citadel is dangerous, and she cares about her folk’s safety.

In fact, that is not completely true. The real fact is that Tol Rauko forced the kings of Hecate to decree

harsh laws against entering the citadel. If the templars managed to know that Marina is paying people for exploring the ruins, she would have many problems.

When the characters start to descend through the entry, procceed.

The citadelRead the following aloud:As you walk down the narrow

passage, you feel more and more cold. The only thing you hear is silence, eventually interrupted by the sound of your own steps. The light of the entrance slowly vanishes, and darkness wraps you to the point you can see nothing.

Suddenly, Luther murmurs: “Yes, this is the way. I remember, but... Do we really have to go?” After that, he remains silent again.

Stop reading aloud.

Luther is just a tool to make the characters feel nervous. He will never elaborate, and if asked, he will only say, “You’ll see... You’ll see...” Reading his mind only reveals dark and distorted shapes that seem to have come right from a nightmare. Even though they are vaguely human, there is no way they can be real... or that is what the characters think. After the characters have walked for a while, talking to each other or trying to know a little more about Luther or this place, you can keep reading.

Read the following aloud:The corridor abruptly opens to a

huge cavern, so enormous that you can’t even figure out where it finishes. Although full of cracks, the floor is now plane stone, and walking on it is a bit easier than before. When you take a look to your sorroundings, you realize that you are in some kind of avenue, with impressive metal statues defining the limits of the old causeway. They are all fifty or more feet tall, and the majority of them represent winged men and women in solemn stances. There are no readable plaques on their pedestals, though.

Stop reading aloud.

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In order to realize what these statues are representing, the characters can make a history check against 240 (Almost Impossible) or an occult check against 140 (Very Hard). If any player succeeds such a roll, tell him that his character remembers something about a legendary race called the Ebudan. They were suposed to be nearly angelical creatures, who fell from the skies after offending the ancient deities. The statues have no jewels nor any valuable detail to take, but let the characters who wish make Search checks and simply tell them that they don’t see anyting.

The characters should now decide where to go. There is no map for this part of the citadel, as it is described in a very general way, with the avenue of the statues working as the “main hall” and four more places to visit. One of them, the city hall, can only be reached from the residential area, and the library can’t be visited yet, as the entrance is blocked. If you want to lead the characters to the residential area when they are still at the statues area, ask them for a perceive check against a difficulty of 120 (Hard). Anyone who succeeds this roll can see a weak light coming from somewhere to the north.

The residential area is going north from the avenue of statues. Further to the north is the city hall. To the east, an enormous metal gate awaits. And heading south there is a tall tower which used to be a library. To the west is the entry from which the characters have come. From this point, you shouldn’t move through the areas in the specified order. Instead, read the appropriate paragraphs when the characters visit the respective areas.

THE RESIDENTIAL AREA

Read the following aloud:When you leave the causeway

and head north, you quickly notice a change in the landscape. Here the rock appears to have moved and sunk, revealing a scheloned floor and fearsome precipices. Spread over this area there are several ruined houses built in marble, but most of them are apparently empty. However, a strange

white light emerges from a window, far beyond the cracks.

Stop reading aloud.

If the characters want to move through the irregular landscape, there is a variety of things they can do:

Supernatural Powers: Layla can safely fly wherever she wishes. Andras might use his Fall Stop spell when jumping down the hedges. However, note that Fall Stop is an active spell, and therefore can’t be used to avoid damage when the character is actually falling. It should be activated first, and then maintained if he wants.

Jump: Directly jumping would be risky. Assuming the characters are looking for the best way down, they will have to face two falls: The first one is from a distance of fifteen yards, and the second one is ten yards. If they fall (or jump down), they should make an acrobatics skill test. The difficulty would be 140 (Very Hard) for the first jump and 120 (Hard) for the second one. They could also use jump rather than acrobatics skill, but then the difficulty would be 180 (Absurd) for the first jump and 140 (Very Hard) for the second one. If they fail the roll, they will suffer damage. In order to calculate it, you must first determine the difference between the final skill result and the difficulty of the test. Then, substract the units in order to have a number multiple of ten: That number will be the percentage of damage the character suffers from the fall, considering that the basic damage is 80 for the first fall and 60 for the second one. Substract an additional 10% per each point the character has in Bashing AT.

Climb down: Probably the safest way is simply using a rope to climb down. Provided the characters use a rope, they must make a climb skill check against 80 (Medium), but they obtain a +40 bonus thanks to the rope. The maximum number of yards they can descend is their Movement Type, but they can add one yard if they get a 120, two yards if they get a 140, three yards for a 180, four yards for a 240 and five yards for a 280. If a character fails the roll, it only indicates that the character is unable to move that turn. A botch is needed for the character to fall.

Bear in mind that, when the characters return to the statues avenue

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from this point, the “Jump” option will not be available.

Once the characters enter the enlightened house, procceed.

Read the following aloud:When you enter the ruined

building, you smell the fetid odor of dead flesh. A rotten corpse is lying on the floor, its left hand still holding a book. The light comes from an Argand lamp. However, there is no flame within it. Instead, you can see a pale stone inside a pool of water, shining with a pure white light.

Stop reading aloud.

Except for the mentioned above, the house is completely empty. If a character wants to identify the shining stone, he must make a science skill test against 80 (Medium). If this is achieved, the character will recognize the stone as what it really is: Lampyridae. It is a rare mineral that has the curious property of emiting a potent light when it is under water. Often used to make permanent light sources, it has in no way magical properties, as Layla and Andras can see just by looking at it (thanks to “see the supernatural”).

Regarding to the book that the dead man is holding, it seems to be a diary. After reading it, it should be clear for the characters that the man was part of the Searchers, and that something awful happened to all of them. You can see a detailed section of the diary (the only one the characters are able to read) on the next page. Feel free to give it to the players instead of reading it: It will submerge them deeper in the story.

Finally, determining the causes of the death calls for a medicine skill check against 120 (Hard). A success reveals that the man died of inanition.

When the characters exit the house, ask the players what they will do next. They might want to search the other houses, but they are empty. If there had been anything before, it would have been stolen a long time ago.

Ask the players for a perceive check against 80 (Medium). Those who pass the check will hear a sweet voice singing in the darkness. It seems a little girl’s voice, and it is coming from a big building on the top of a rocky hill –the city hall.

THE CITY HALL

Read the following aloud:A strange wind seems to carry an

angel’s voice singing. The song is sweet and melodious, but also melancholic in some way. It comes from a big marble building that lays on the top of a rocky hill. Even from distance, you can see its adorned dome and appreciate its ancient beauty.

Stop reading aloud.

What the characters are seeing is the city hall. It is partially collapsed, but there is a section that the characters can explore. Even though it is on a hill, no more climb checks are required to reach it. As the characters are ascending, Luther will start to whisper again, “It’s coming... It’s coming, yes...” He looks more excited than ever, and he is sweating and shaking slightly. Again, he will not answer to any question and will just walk faster.

When they finally arrive to the building, procceed with the following.

Read the following aloud:A little girl sits on a stone, just a

few yards from the entrance of the building. Her skin is snow-white and her hair blond, and her blue eyes seem to be looking at nowhere. She must be younger than ten, but the song she is singing is incredibly sad for someone of her age. When she notices you, she says: “So you have come to this place too. Are you trying to help these poor souls to rest again?” She then stands and approaches you. “My name is Kaithel. Who are you?”

Stop reading aloud.

The young girl is in truth a member of the Sylvain race, known by human legends simply as “elves”. However, her long hair covers her pointed ears, and she is not going to reveal her true nature to anybody. What she will tell, if asked, is why she is here. She has been dreaming for a long time of a cursed folk that lived beneath Hecate mountains. Their desperate voices were growing louder inside her head, and she decided to travel from her little hamlet, Hannelone, in order to find a cure for their pain. Kaithel will offer to join them, and she will add,

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“Please, promise that when all is over, you will accompany me to Hannelone. Mother will be very displeased, I know”. Kaithel has been in the citadel for four days, and she only has a small bag which carries what she thinks neccessary. If the characters mention the Searchers, Kaithel will say, “Oh, you are talking about that people... I think that they offended the spirits somehow, and they paid for their offence.”

The story goes on when the characters enter the city hall with Kaithel.

Read the following aloud:When you enter the big

construction, you can see a large circular room. Several lines of broken stone benchs follow the shape of the room, which has its walls covered with

strange murals. They have lost most of their colour throughout the times, but they are quite impressive anyway. Apparently, they are telling a story, since you see pictures of winged men and women living in a splendorous white city. But there is something more in the mural: A huge black spot that seems to be swallowing everything. People around it are screaming in pain and horror. Kaithel says: “That is the curse we must undo”.

Suddenly, you hear Luther screams: “At last, here it is! I’ve got it, I’ve got it, I’ve got it...!”

Stop reading aloud.

September 28thMaster Daorland has been incredibly generous. Three

hundred gold pieces for each of us, and only for descending to the citadel and bringing her anything we find! Normally, my experience would have alerted me, but it was too much money to simply let the chance pass by. We will start working right tomorrow.

September 29thWeaklings! This is the first day, but Micaela and Luther

have already started protesting. Only Pietrus keeps his mouth shut. Both of us are miners, and we have known things worse than this. Fortunately, Luther and the girl felt a bit better when they saw the big statues... Let’s see if they contain something valuable.

September 30thNothing. After a day of searching, the statues have

given us nothing. We went east this morning, but an enormous dark metal gate blocked the passageway. We tried to beat it down, but even with our tools we didn’t make a scratch. What kind of joke is this? Well, I suppose that noone said it would be easy...

October 1st Well, it seems that we have started to be lucky today. We have found some beautiful vessels and silver plates

24

inside some of the houses in the residential area. Of course, we have had to dig for a while, and Luther has nearly fallen down the precipices in two occasions. That good for nothing! I’m thinking about helping him to fall, if he wants so...

Tomorrow we will explore the city hall.

October 4thI knew, I knew, I knew! Marina knew where she was

sending us! Oh, how foolish I’ve been. And now I am alone.They came from nowhere. Those... things. They killed

Micaela first. She should never have touched that damned necklace! And Pietrus tried to fight them in order to allow me to escape. I could hear him crying in agony from distance... And Luther has disappeared. I bet he ran away when he saw the opportunity, the rat!

And who was that strange little girl, anyway? She refused to talk to us, and didn’t even tell us her name. She looked sad for some reason...

I have no food, I have no water and I have no escape. Those infernal creatures are still there, I can hear them. Now it is too late for me. I shouldn’t have accepted this errand, and I surely would never have done if I had known all of this! Now, the only thing I can do is to wait. If Christ hasn’t forgotten me, maybe someone will come here and rescue me. I don’t want to die here...

Before the characters can even register what is happening, two horrific creatures materialize before them, coming out from a shadowy stain. They are vaguely human, but their eyes are blank and their mouths open in a gesture of pain. They bear wings as well, but they are black like a crow’s. Luther is in a corner, holding some kind of necklace. He looks very frightened, and flees while the spirits attack.

It is very important that Luther manages to escape. Probably the characters will be worried about defending against the evil spirits rather than chasing the young man. If anyone

runs after Luther or attacks him, he will be stopped by one of the dark Ebudan.

This is intended to be an intermediate fight, but it could end quickly in an unexpected way. Due to that, we present some tactics the spirits use to make things as easy as possible for you.

First of all, they can fly with a Flight Type of 12. However, they can’t attack while they are flying, because they use their wings as natural weapons. Due to this restrictions, they will behave this way:

On the first round, one of them will attack two different characters

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(namely Layla and Bryanna, due to their weaker looks, or at least one of them and another character next to her) with a +75 attack skill. As a second active action (if he hasn’t suffered any damage from a counterattack), he will use his Spectral Shape ability, becoming unmaterial and invisible (only Andras and Layla will be able to see him then, thanks to “see the supernatural”, but they still don’t know the being is untouchable) . The second spectre will activate Spectral Shape and then fly through the characters’ bodies until he reaches Carduss (he is unfortunate, remember?). He will finally attack Carduss at a –25 penalty to his attack as his second active action (but Carduss can’t see the spirit, so even if Layla or Andras warn him, he will apply a –100 penalty to his defence skill). Carduss can’t parry unmaterial attacks, though, so his basic parry skill is considered 0 (unless his weapon is currently under the effects of Andras’ Enchant spell). Only if his player states that he wishes to dodge rather than parry, he will be able to do so with a –60 penalty to his parry skill (to a total of –160). Also, his armor will be useless against this attack. But remember that the spirit will not deal normal damage, as he is unmaterial.

On the second round, the first specter will attack once, first becoming unmaterial if he wasn’t able on the first round, expecting to weaken or even kill his target (again, he is unmaterial, so he will not deal physical damage). The second specter will keep attacking Carduss until he is dead. Only if someone attacks the spirits or otherwise proves capable of seeing them they will focus on killing that character first.

The dark Ebudan will only become physical again if they are sure they can win, because when they are material they can deal much more damage, but can be seen and damaged by everybody.

A spirit does not fall unconscious when his life points fall below 0. Instead, he will be authomatically destroyed, his body vanishing into nothing. Therefore, the evil specters will not risk their existences. If they get seriously wounded, they will become unmaterial (if they aren’t currently in that shape) and flee.

Try to describe the scene from the character’s point of view. For instance, don’t say, “He becomes unmaterial”. Rather than that, tell the players that the creature suddenly disappears. Only Andras and Layla will know that the spirits are still there, but they think their mates can also see them (there is nothing that tells them that the spirits have become unmaterial), and therefore they think that they can damage the dark Ebudan with their weapons –until they actually attack and only manage to cut air.

If run correctly, this combat can be quite complicated, but there are lots of things the characters can do. Layla can affect the spirits’ minds with his Psychic Illusion, or use her Minor Telekinesis to throw her dagger at them (it will only be useful if the spirits are in material shape, or if the dagger is enchanted by Andras’ spell). A very intelligent use of Psychic Illusion would be affecting a mate in order to make him see a spirit where the real spirit is, but don’t suggest it. Andras can use Enchant on his sword or on anyone else’s in order that he is able to touch his enemies. He could also use Enchant and Fireball on the same turn to create a ball of flames that damages energy (but it could be more harmful than efficient). Kai is able to deal damage to these creatures due to “extend aura to weapon”, but he is unable to see them when they are unmaterial, applying the –100 penalty as normal. Unless affected by some spell, Carduss and Bryanna are completely useless during this fight, but they might roleplay their characters as well, perhaps trying to keep Kaithel safe.

DARK EBUDAN

Level: 4Life Points: 163Category: WarriorStr: 8 Dex: 8 Agi: 10 Con: 7 Pow: 7 Int: 5 Wil: 6 Per: 6PhR 50 MR 80 PsR 80 PoR 50 IR 50 Turn: 85 Unarmed, 85 WingAttack Skill: 100 Wing, or 75/75 Two wingsDefence Skill: 95 DodgeDamage: 70 Wings SLAWear Armor: 30AT: Studded leather Sla 2 Bas 2 Pie 2 Hea 2 Ele 2 Col 2 Ene 0

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Essential skills: Physical exemption.Powers: Spectral shape, Physical shape at will, Natural weapon: Wings, Increased damage: +20, Natural flight 12, Increased Magic Resistance: +30, Increased Psychic Resistance: +30.

Movement Type: 10, Flying 12 Fatigue: N/A

Secondary Skills: Athletics 55, Style 20, Intimidate 40, Leadership 20, Perceive 10, Search 10, Coldness 40, Strength feats 60.

Maximum number of active actions: 3

Physical exemption: As the spirits they are, dark Ebudan don’t need to breathe, eat, drink or sleep. They are also unaffected by illness or natural poisons.

Spectral shape: Dark Ebudan are spirits, and therefore are invisible and untouchable. Therefore, only attacks capable of damaging energy can affect them. If they touch (or are touched by) a living creature, he will have to make a MR or PhR check against 90 or suffer a penalty to all rolls and a life points loss equal to half the difference between the difficulty and the results of the check, rounded up. This penalty has the same effects as those produced by critical hits (see “Critical Hits, on p.9).

Physical shape at will: Whenever he wishes, a dark Ebudan can assume a physical shape as an active action. He will be able to deal physical damage when he is in this status, but the effects of spectral shape will not apply to his attacks. Also, he suffers damage from any kind of attack, since he is considered a material being for all purposes.

Wings: Dark Ebudan attack using their wings, sharp like blades. All the relative to this weapon is already noted on the statistics, but there are a few rules you must know. First, wings cannot be used while the creature is flying. Second and most important, a dark Ebudan may

choose to attack twice using a single active action, but then he applies a –25 penalty to both attacks (to a total of +75).

When the fight is over, the characters will feel a tremor in the whole area. Hopefully they will want to go and search for Luther, and there is nothing else of interest here, anyway. Tell the players that they cannot progress further this way, and they should go back to the statues area and look for another one. If for any reason they want to see again the Searcher’s corpse at the residential area, tell them that it is not there (what would alert the smartest guys).

When the characters are back to the avenue, ask them where they wish to go. If they attempt to go west and exit the citadel through the entry they used, they find it blocked by tons of rocks and stone. Going that way will be impossible for them, and they will have to search for another way of escaping.

THE LIBRARYIf the characters go south from

the causeway, they will soon find a huge tower, so tall that they can’t see where it ends. However, it will not be possible to reach it before the characters have met Kaithel and fought against the two dark Ebudan. So if they come here first, the passage that connects the statue area with the library area will be blocked by tons of rocks and stone. After the big tremor that blocks the exit, the library will be reachable.

Read the following aloud:When you walk south, you see an

enormous tower emerging from the floor. Its base is round, it has no windows and is so tall that you can’t see the top of it. Although it is slightly inclined, it seems to have been that way for centuries. Two huge stone gates are widely open, almost hanging from their hinges. When you enter the impressive construction, you see lots of shelves full of books that cover the walls. There are no other floors but the one you are in, and the shelves go up beyond the point your sight reaches.

On the floor in the center of the room there is a metal trapdoor.

Stop reading aloud.

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If the characters examine the trapdoor, they find a writing on it. It is written in various languages, but the only one they will be able to read is Latin. It says:

“Some stories are true, some others are false. The doom will come to you when death calls.

At first, the Primigenial Evil was alone. But when the Cry of Darkness arrived, his loneliness was gone.

No word was said when God’s Soul came to play, but heard were the news when the Queen of Swords went away.

Three times the Spirit of Emptiness announced her name; tough, when the Perfect God died it was not the same.

The Spirit of Freedom seemed to carry some clarity, but after the Mother Nature’s departure, everything turned into insanity.

The struggle was balanced until the Dark Warrior spread disgrace; then it was clear that it would come the End of Days.

Have you listened to this words? Have you witnessed the light? Only if you can see through darkness will you reach the real might.”

The text is actually a riddle that the characters will have to solve in order to open the trapdoor and get what is under it. The dark metal from which the trapdoor is made is unbreakable, and it can be forced by no means. Let the players think for a while. Kai and Andras can both make an occult skill check against 180 (Absurd) in order to realize that the text makes refference to Shajads and Beryls, the ancient gods of darkness and light of the past. A success on this check will provide the character these associations:

The Primigenial Evil – Abaddon (Shajad)

The Cry of Darkness – Meseguis (Shajad)

God’s Soul – Mikael (Beryl)The Queen of Swords – Azrael

(Beryl)The Spirit of Emptiness – Edamiel

(Beryl)The Perfect God – Barakiel (Beryl)The Spirit of Freedom – Uriel

(Beryl)

The Mother Nature – Rafael (Beryl)

The Dark Warrior – Noah (Shajad)The End of Days – Zemial

(Shajad)

However, it is very possible for both of them to fail the occult check. If that is the case, they will anyway find enough clues if they are intelligent.

This is only the first part of the riddle. The second part is found on the bookshelves. There are fourteen separated categories, each one in a different group of shelves. Seven of them speak about the seven Beryls, and the other seven are about the seven Shajads. If any character decides to read the books, he will notice that the name of a particular deity is repeated on many of the books of a corresponding group of shelves –but their other denominations, as “God’s Soul” or “The End of Days” don’t appear.

When the characters have approached any group of shelves and had a look at some of its books, procceed.

Read the following aloud:The first group of books is about

a deity called Mikael. A carving of a sparkling angelic woman is on the wall next to the shelves, and a lever is right under it. The lever is up.

Stop reading aloud.

Only if the players show interest on looking at the rest of shelves, you can read the whole following text. Suggest your players to make notes on what you are about to read before doing it.

Read the following aloud:The second group of books is

about a deity called Zemial. A chaotic carving of an enormous man destroying a city is on the wall next to the shelves, and a lever is right under it. The lever is up.

The third group of books is about a deity called Uriel. A carving of a young man dressed like a traveler is on the wall next to the shelves, and a lever is right under it. The lever is pulled down.

The fourth group of books is about a deity called Jedah. A carving of a gruesome puppet is on the wall next to the shelves, and a lever is right under it. The lever is pulled down.

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The fifth group of books is about a deity called Gabriel. A carving of two lovers kissing each other is on the wall next to the shelves, and a lever is right under it. The lever is up.

The sixth group of books is about a deity called Noah. A carving of a terrifying knight wearing a black armor is on the wall next to the shelves, and a lever is right under it. The lever is pulled down.

The seventh group of books is about a deity called Rafael. A carving of a woman sorrounded by animals and plants is on the wall next to the shelves, and a lever is right under it. The lever is up.

The eighth group of books is about a deity called Erebus. A carving of a scaring mask is on the wall next to the shelves, and a lever is right under it. The lever is pulled down.

The ninth group of books is about a deity called Azrael. A carving of a woman bearing a sword is on the wall next to the shelves, and a lever is right under it. The lever is pulled down.

The tenth group of books is about a deity called Abbaddon. A carving of the devil is on the wall next to the shelves, and a lever is right under it. The lever is up.

The eleventh group of books is about a deity called Barakiel. A carving of a flawless human being of indeterminate gender is on the wall next to the shelves, and a lever is right under it. The lever is up.

The twelfth group of books is about a deity called Eriol. A carving of a coin standing on its edge is on the wall next to the shelves, and a lever is right under it. The lever is pulled down.

The thirteenth group of books is about a deity called Edamiel. A carving of a woman dancing inside a vortex of ashes is on the wall next to the shelves, and a lever is right under it. The lever is up.

The fourteenth group of books is about a deity called Meseguis. A carving of a crying woman is on the wall next to the shelves, and a lever is right under it. The lever is up.

Stop reading aloud.

In order to unlock the trapdoor, the characters must associate each name (or each carving, at least) with its corresponding denomination. What they

must do is to activate (by pulling down) a determinate lever when the text mentions its corresponding deity or says that he “arrives”, “comes to play” or “announces her name”, at the same time that they turn off (by pulling up) the lever of a god that “goes away”, “dies” or “departs”. But there are two sections of the riddle that have to be understood in order to be able to solve it. First, when the text says “No word was said when God’s Soul came to play”, it means that Mikael must be ignored, so the lever next to the first group of books mustn’t be activated. Second, when the text states “Three times the Spirit of Emptiness announced her name”, it means that Edamiel’s lever (the thirteenth one) must be activated three consecutive times.

Only a successful traps skill test against 80 (Medium) will tell the characters that a lever activates a mechanism when it is pulled down, and that same mechanism disconnects when the lever is up.

Four deities – Jedah, Gabriel, Erebus and Eriol – are not mentioned in the riddle. So the position of their corresponding levers doesn’t matter at all.

That said, the correct positions for the levers are:

First lever (Mikael) up.Second lever (Zemial) down.Third lever (Uriel) down.Fourth lever (Jedah) doesn’t

matter.Fifth lever (Gabriel) doesn’t

matter.Sixth lever (Noah) down.Seventh lever (Rafael) up.Eighth lever (Erebus) doesn’t

matter.Ninth lever (Azrael) up.Tenth lever (Abbadon) down.Eleventh lever (Barakiel) up.Twelfth lever (Eriol) doesn’t

matter.Thirteenth lever (Edamiel) three

times down.Fourteenth lever (Meseguis)

down.

Once the riddle is solved and all fourteen levers are in position, the

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trapdoor will be unlocked and it will reveal what it was hiding: A huge black-covered book with thousands of pages in a language unknown to all the characters, and only Kaithel can read it. It’s very heavy (about fifty pounds), but the characters will not be able to read it at this moment, even if Kaithel is with them. They will be attacked by the elder dark Ebudan and his minions, the Searchers – or what is left from them.

Read the following aloud:Just when you were planning to

leave the tower, you see that you are not alone. Three figures slowly enter through the gates. They are two men and a woman, but their bodies are rotten as if they had been dead for some days. Their gaze is empty and their movements torpid, and you realize that something is wrong with them. When the walking corpses come a little closer, you see that the dead explorer whose diary you took is among them.

Stop reading aloud.

Those with the ability to see the supernatural will instantly see one more foe: He is like the two dark Ebudan described before, but he’s taller and his wings larger and darker if possible. He will attack the characters with spells at the same time that the zombies attack them with blows and bites, and he will never become material (attacking physically is not his specialty, anyway). We are not providing any “combat strategy” like we did on the previous combat. On his write-up you will find the spells he is more likely to use during the combat (see Andras Kendrick’s description for a full explanation on spells systems and mechanics). Read them carefully and use his powerful skills as you feel appropriate. For example, Eliminate Spell allows the elder dark Ebudan to disenchant a weapon affected by Andras’ Enchant Spell. Also, bear in mind that his Dead Body and Magic Shield spells are already activated on him, so he authomatically spends 6 points of Zeon per turn in order to maintain his spells. This expenditure is authomatic, so he can still accumulate 60 Zeon points per turn. Finally, he enters the combat with 1,004 Zeon, as the costs of the spells have been also calculated.

ELDER DARK EBUDAN

Level: 6Life Points: 100Category: SorcererStr: 5 Dex: 6 Agi: 5 Con: 5 Pow: 12 Int: 10 Wil: 7 Per: 6PhR 55 MR 115 PsR 105 PoR 55 IR 55 Turn: 75 Unarmed, 75 WingAttack Skill: 5 WingDefence Skill: 0 DodgeDamage: 60 Wings SLAWear Armor: 0AT: None

ACT: 60Zeon: 1,085 (1,004 remaining)Magic Projection: 115Magic Level: 40 Necromancy (Drain Life, Necromitude, Magic Shield, Death Bolt, Dead Body, Eliminate Spell, Drain Features).

Essential skills: Gift, Superhuman animic features, Physical exemption.Powers: Spectral shape, Physical shape at will, Natural weapon: Wings, Increased damage: +20, Natural flight 12, Increased Magic Resistance: +30, Increased Psychic Resistance: +30.

Movement Type: 5, Flying 12 Fatigue: N/A

Secondary Skills: Perceive 10, Search 10, History 55, Science 55, Magic Valuation 140, Occult 110, Intimidate 40, Resist Pain 10.

Maximum number of active actions: 2

Physical exemption: Same as dark Ebudan (see p.21).

Spectral shape: Same as dark Ebudan (see p.21).

Physical shape at will: Same as dark Ebudan (see p.21).

Wings: Same as dark Ebudan (see p.21).

Drain Life: With a zeonic cost of 50, this active spell forces the target to

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make a MR against 80 or he will lose as much life as the difference between the result and the difficulty. The spellcaster gains that much life. Each added effect grants a +5 to the MR, and the maximum Zeon for this spell is Intelligence x 20 (200).

Necromitude: With a zeonic cost of 80, this active spell heals a necromantic creature from 50 health points. Each added effect adds 5 life points to the total healed damage, and the maximum Zeon for this spell is Intelligence x 10 (100).

Magic Shield: With a zeonic cost of 60, this passive spell creates a magic shield that protects the sorcerer against any damage, included that from a supernatural source. It resists 300 points of damage before it’s broken. Each added effect adds 50 life points to the shield, and the maximum Zeon for this spell is Intelligence x 20 (200).

Death Bolt: With a zeonic cost of 60, this active spell discharges a powerful necromantic energy bolt. It attacks on energy AT and has a basic damage of 80. Each added effect adds a +5 to the damage, and the maximum Zeon for this spell is Intelligence x 10 (100).

Dead Body: With a zeonic cost of 80, this active spell temporarily stops an individual’s life functions without killing him. It makes him really tolerant to damage, halving any penalty due to critical hits. The maximum presence this spell can affect is 40. Each added effect will add a +5 to maximum affected presence, and the maximum Zeon for this spell is Intelligence x 10 (100).

Eliminate Spell: With a zeonic cost of 150, this active spell destroys an active spell with a zeonic value lesser than 60. Each added effect adds +5 to the affected zeonic value, and the maximum Zeon for this spell is Intelligence x 20 (200).

Drain Features: With a zeonic cost of 80, this spell steals other individuals’ capabilities, increasing the necromancer’s ones. The spellcaster has

to determine the attribute he wants to affect before casting the spell. If the target of this spell doesn’t pass a MR agains 120, he will lose one point on the designated feature per each 10 points he hasn’t passed it. If the necromancer had a lesser value on that feature, he will raise it by one point. If he had a greater value, he will have to steal three points from that target in order to increase his own attribute by one. The target will recover his lost attributes at a rate of one point per hour since the necromancer stops maintaining the effect. The maintenance cost of this spell is 1 Zeon per turn per each 20 points the spell originally costed. Each added effect adds a +5 to the MR, and the maximum Zeon for this spell is Intelligence x 20 (200).

THE SEARCHERS

Level: 0Life Points: 345 AccumulationCategory: NoviceStr: 8 Dex: 5 Agi: 5 Con: 7 Pow: 1 Int: 2 Wil: 1 Per: 5PhR 45 MR 0 PsR 0 PoR 25 IR 25 Turn: 40 UnarmedAttack Skill: 50 Bite or BlowDefence Skill: AccumulationDamage: 20 Bite PIE or Blow BASWear Armor: 0AT: Natural Sla 3 Bas 3 Pie 3 Hea 3 Ele 3 Col 3 Ene 0

Essential skills: Physical exemption, Sharpened sense: Smell, Psychological immunity.Powers: Increased Physical Resistance: +20.

Movement Type: 5 Fatigue: N/A

Secondary Skills: Perceive 30 (Smell 60), Search 20, Stealth 20.

Maximum number of active actions: 1

Damage accumulation: Zombies have a defence skill of 0. They suffer no penalties to their defence due to additional defences, fired projectiles or area damage. Also, these creatures do not loose their ability to perform active

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actions due to a received successful attack. Fourth, when a zombi suffers a critical hit, the Critical Hit Level is halved. Fifth and last, the creature suffers double damage from area attacks that affect at least half its body.

Physical exemption: Same as dark Ebudan (see p.21).

Psychological immunity: Zombies can’t be affected by mental altered states, like fear.

Once the fight is over and the characters have the book, they will be able to open the huge gate that lays to the east.

THE TEMPLEHeading east from the avenue of

statues, the characters will find an enormous dark metal gate.

Read the following aloud: You walk east until you find a huge dark metal gate. It is about twelve feet tall, and its surface is covered with runes that you cannot decypher. It also appears to show an abstract design very similar to a disturbing face, and you have the feeling that something alive lays beyond the door.

Stop reading aloud.

The metal gate was originally constructed in order to give access to an Ebudan temple. But long time ago, an evil pressence originated there. The Ebudan sealed the door with powerful enchantments, but they were already tainted. It was the beginning of the end.

Anyone capable of seeing magic notices authomatically that the gate is enchanted. A successful magic valuation skill check against a difficulty of 120 (Hard) allows Andras to know exactly the spell used on it: It is a 40 level spell called Close Really, that prevents any entrance to be opened by natural means. The dark metal in which the gate has been made is also undestructible, so the characters will have to find other ways to enter. Of course, if they have already the book from the library, Kaithel will be able to open it. She will say that she would

probably be able to open the door if she was allowed to read the black book.

If the characters have already obtained the black book and allow Kaithel to read it, read the following aloud:

Kaithel opens the book and, after looking at its pages for a while, she starts to read aloud. Her voice sounds deep and unnatural, although you don’t understand a word of what she is saying. Suddenly, the girl closes the book and looks at you, apparently satisfied. “It is open”.

Stop reading aloud.

When the characters enter the gate, they will start to descend some stone stairs. Once they have passed two stone pillars, they will have to cross a long bridge. It has no banisters, and a huge gorge opens on both sides of the bridge. Those with the ability of seeing the supernatural will see dozens of dark spirits flying around them randomly, but fortunately, none of them seems to be willing to attack the group. The characters will walk for a while until they reach the ruins of what appears to be a temple. It is almost completely destroyed, and no details about the faith of the temple can be found: Dirty pieces of glass on the floor, a dusty stone altar and not much more. But what immediately should attract the characters’ attention is an enormous round hole that opens in the center of the temple. It’s about one hundred yards of diameter, and a narrow stair descends in spirals through the outer wall of the hole. Kaithel will then point to the hole and whisper, “There is where everything ends”.

It should be clear that the characters have to descend the stairs. When they finally decide to do so, procceed.

Read the following aloud:As you descend the stairs, the

presence you felt before gets heavier on your souls. Its pure malevolence and darkness is now obvious for you all. When you look down, you can see something down there. It is like a sphere made of dark energy become solid. It pulses as if it was asleep, but suddenly purple lightnings start to sparkle

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through its surface. Now it knows you are there, and you can feel it is hungry!

Stop reading aloud.

Have the players roll initiative, as they are going to enter combat against the dark node that is corrupting the essence of this place. Roll also for Kaithel, as she will have a very important role here. She has an initiative modifier of 65.

The node can do a variety of things. It can shoot a darkness lightning (which will do on its first turn). It can also summon a dark Ebudan each five combat rounds (the Ebudan summoned this way will not become unmaterial, in order to make this fight a little easier), but it can’t do anything else during the five turns it is convoking. Third, it can attack with two dark, oily tentacles. It can deal normal damage with them, or perform a grapple maneuver with no penalties. If the dark node manages to immobilize a character, it will shoot darkness lightnings at him until he is dead.

This combat is intended to be the hardest one in this story. But it could easily become too hard. Bear in mind that any character who uses dodge instead of parry suffers a –40 penalty to his defence due to the reduced space. Also, the creature has lots of life points and is able to summon other creatures. If the combat lasts for too long, the characters will have spent all their resources and the power of the monster will overcome them. So, don’t be too harsh on your players. Take it easy, grapple a character and let it go on the next turn without harming him (but say that the creature throws him to the floor), shoot lightnings to the rocks to create landslides (and ask for an acrobatics check against 40 or an Agility feature check to avoid falling). But never let the characters know that you are behaving mercifully.

Kaithel will ask for the book. She has been able to read that it contains a dismissal ritual that can be performed by reading it. When she gets the book, she will start to read. Each five turns, have Kaithel make a dismiss skill check against a difficulty of 220. She has a dismiss skill rating of 105, but she adds a +30 thanks to the black book. She has 205 points of Zeon. Failing a dismissal check by 10 points or less

means that she hasn’t been able to dismiss the dark node, but doesn’t have to spend Zeon. If she fails by 11-25, she has to spend the cost of the dismissal (30 points of Zeon). If she fails by 26-50, she has to spend 60 points of Zeon instead. If she fails by 51-75 she has to spend 60 points of Zeon and the creature becomes immune to her dismissal skill. If she fails by 76-100, it happens the same as above but Kaithel has to spend 120 points of Zeon. If she fails by more than 100, Kaithel loses all her Zeon.

DARK NODE

Level: 6Life Points: 3,685 AccumulationCategory: Summoner WarriorStr: 13 Dex: 6 Agi: 1 Con: 13 Pow: 10 Int: 6 Wil: 10 Per: 6PhR 80 MR 70 PsR 70 PoR 80 IR 80 Turn: -15 UnarmedAttack Skill: 100 Unarmed, 75/75 Two unarmed attacks, 100 Darkness lightningDefence Skill: AccumulationDamage: 65 Unarmed BAS, 60 Darkness lightning ENEWear Armor: 25AT: None

ACT: 20Zeon: 1,005

Summon: 170 Dominate: 200

Essential skills: Physical exemption, Superhuman physical features, Inhumanity, Psychological immunity.Powers: Grapple: Strength 12, Special attack: Darkness lightning.

Movement Type: 0 Fatigue: N/A

Secondary Skills: Occult 45.

Maximum number of active actions: 1

Summon: By fully concetrating during five turns, the dark node is able to summon a dark Ebudan. In order to do so, it must make a summon skill check against 220, but the dark node has a +20 bonus to its roll because it knows

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the dark Ebudan’s name. Failing a summon check by 10 points or less means that the dark node is unable to summon the creature, but has to spend no Zeon. If it fails by 11-25, it has to spend the summoning cost (80 Zeon). If it fails by 26-50, it has to spend 160 Zeon. If it fails by 51-75, it spends 160 Zeon and summons a more powerful creature of the contrary nature – like a true trascended Ebudan. If it fails by 76-100, it spends 320 Zeon and summons several true trascended Ebudan, who can’t be dominated. If it fails by more than 100, it loses all its Zeon and dissapears from existence.

Dominate: Once the dark node has successfully summoned a dark Ebudan, it will have to attempt a dominate skill check against a difficulty of 240 in order to have him under its control, but it has a +20 to its roll because it knows the dark Ebudan’s name. Failing a dominate check by 10 points or less means that the dark node fails and the dark Ebudan flees, but it doesn’t have to spend any Zeon. If it fails by 11-25, it has to spend the dominate cost (160). If it fails by 26-50, it spends 320 Zeon. If it fails by 51-75, it spends 320 Zeon and the convoked dark Ebudan becomes immune to the dark node’s domination. If it fails by 76-100, the dark node loses 640 Zeon and falls under the dark Ebudan’s domination, as the effect is inverted. If it fails by more than 100, it loses its will and turns into a puppet under the dark Ebudan’s control, for eternity.

Damage accumulation: Same as zombies (see p.24).

Physical exemption: Same as dark Ebudan (see p.21).

Inhumanity: The dark node is able to reach a result of 320 any physical roll.

Psychological immunity: Same as zombies (see p.24).

Grapple: The dark node suffers no penalties to its attack skill when it performs a grapple. Instead of applying

its own Strength feature, its Strength is considered 12 when grappling.

Darkness lightning: Instead of attacking physically, the dark node can shoot a purple sparkling lightning that goes through the air and impacts its target. It has a maximum range of 50 yards, a base damage of 60 and attacks Energy AT.

When the fight is over,

everything will start to tremble as an earthquake invades the whole area. If the dark node has been dismissed, nothing else happens. If it has been destroyed, it will expand and finally explodes in a burst of blackness. Any wounded character will have to be dragged by any of his mates or he will be consumed by the explosion. When everything calms down, a spirit will appear before the characters.

Read the following aloud:You feel exhausted. Now you are

starting to wonder what you can do, imprisoned here and having no escape. Just then, a winged spirit appears beside you. It is not dark and ugly, though. It is beautiful, white, shining, his eyes crying, his mouth smiling. You hear no voice, but you feel within your hearts happyness, gratefulness, and hope. Suddenly, a hole opens in the ceiling and you start to ascend to the sunlight, feeling several invisible arms gently pushing you. When you reach a safe place over the mountains of Hecate, you know you have done a great thing. A white feather lays on the floor to remind that.

Stop reading aloud.

The wounded characters will get instantly healed by Ebudan’s magic, and any lost limb will re-appear. Also, if you feel a good person and anyone has died, you could allow that character to resurrect (this is an introductory scenario, remember). But the characters shouldn’t feel as if they had nothing to do. Luther is still dissapeared with an important item, Kaithel wants the characters to accompany her to Hannelone, and Marina Daorland is waiting for news. When the characters get moving, procceed to Act Three.

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ACT THREE:THE DAY HAS COME

Now, the group has survived the horror of the supernatural. Knowing what they know, they are prepared to face the fate that awaits them. If they want to go and see Marina Daorland to inform her about what has happened, let them do so. However, the master of the city will do little more than asking the characters to find Luther and bring him back to her presence. If the characters show her the black book, she will ask them to give it to her. Only if they say that they want to keep it, she will agree, but only after she has taken a look at it and study how dangerous it can be. She will promise that she will give it back to them when they have returned to Hecate, and she will reward them with 300 gold pieces for each character. This third and final act starts when the characters travel to the hamlet of Hannelone. It is recommended for them to have plenty of supplies, as they will have to travel for more than forty days.

Hannelone

Read the following aloud:After a very long journey, you

finally arrive to Hannelone. You know that because Kaithel suddenly screams: “There’s Hannelone. At last we are here”. What you see is a picturesque hamlet. Houses are built on and inside the trees, and green is the most visible colour. People are working the ground, passing by the streets – which are covered by grass – or talking. A woman sees you, and when she notices Kaithel, she quikly enters one of the houses. A blond haired, blue eyed woman exits the house and looks at you. She is beautiful and looks young, but in her eyes you can see a wisdom that only advanced age can provide. She does not seem excited at all.

“Wellmet. I can see my daughter is with you. My name is Marionneh, and I am the master of this town”.

Stop reading aloud.

Even though the characters don’t know, Hannelone is in truth a secret community of members of Sylvain race. Chased by the Inquisition for hundreds of years, they are now the only Sylvain group in Galgados, and perhaps the largest one in Gaïa. Using very powerful illusions, they look like normal people, but still, reading anyone’s mind could reveal the truth. If the characters let them know that they are aware of their secret, Hannelone villagers will beg them not to reveal that to anybody.

After a while of casual chatting, a man will approach Marionneh and will say, “Mistress, none of them is like the man we spotted ten days ago”. If the characters ask about it, Marionneh will say that a white haired, dark skinned man was seen walking to the Yellow Valley about ten days ago. She doesn’t know, but he was Luther Strauss. If the characters comment that they want to go there and get him, she will only say, “The Yellow Valley is only one day far from here, but be careful. Due to the sulfurous gas that emerges from the floor, no life form is able to resist there more than a few days. It is also said that something lies beneath the floor, something that is dangerous. But you surely don’t believe those old tales”.

The Fire Beneath the Earth

The characters will arrive to the Yellow Valley at sunset.

Read the following aloud:When you arrive to the Yellow

Valley, you understand why it is called that way. A yellowish gas is suspended in the air, wrapping everything. No animal nor plant can be seen in miles. Only a big rock to the distance, that seems to shine in an unnatural manner.

Stop reading aloud.

The characters will sooner or later approach the rock. That is the place where Luther is using the amulet to convoke an Efreet. He has been preparing a summoning ritual during these past ten days, and he will summon and dominate the Efreet just before the characters can do anything.

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When they have approached the rock and are enough nearby to see Luther clearly, procceed.

Read the following aloud:Kneeling on the ground and

singing a strange chant, you see Luther. With his arms risen to the sky , he then shouts: “By the power of my will and the strength of my presence, hear the call and attend to it, I beg you, I ask you, I command you. Come here and be my servant, Yugham-Ur!”

Suddenly, a flash of light breaks from the ground, freeing a big creature from its imprisonment. Ten feet tall, its whole body cracks with flames. Two vile horns in its monstrous head confirm that you aren’t facing a normal enemy.

Then, slowly, Luther turns to you: “Attack, Yugham-Ur! Attack until I say otherwise!”

Stop reading aloud.

If the players are sagacious, this combat can be very easy. On the contrary, it can become almost impossible if they want to face it directly. If they have listened to what Luther has said, then forcing him to order the Efreet to stop attacking would suffice. In order to do so, he should at least be intimidated An intimidation skill check against 120 (Hard) would be the most appropriate thing here. Reduce the difficulty to 80 (Medium) if he is grappled or has been hurt first. If the characters kill Luther, they will discover two things: First, he is not a worthy challenge. Second, dead people can’t say “Stop”. It is then when spells like Control Over Fire can prove useful.

LUTHER STRAUSS

Level: 5Life Points: 95Category: SummonerStr: 5 Dex: 5 Agi: 6 Con: 5 Pow: 11 Int: 10 Wil: 10 Per: 6PhR 50 MR 80 PsR 65 PoR 50 IR 50 Turn: 70 UnarmedAttack Skill: 0 UnarmedDefence Skill: 5 DodgeDamage: 10 Unarmed BASWear Armor: 0AT: None

ACT: 50

Zeon: 685

Summon: 125 Dismissal: 125Dominate: 135 Bond: 130

Secondary Skills: Perceive 35, Search 10, Animals 40, Science 25, History 25, Medicine 25, Memorize 30, Occult 120, Magic valuation 75.

Movement type: 6 Fatigue: 5

Maximum number of active actions: 2

YUGHAM-UR

Level: 6Life Points: 210Category: WarlockStr: 12 Dex: 10 Agi: 7 Con: 11 Pow: 11 Int: 8 Wil: 11 Per: 8PhR 75 MR 75 PsR 75 PoR 75 IR 75 Turn: 75 UnarmedAttack Skill: 170 Claw of fire, or 145/145 Two claws of fireDefence Skill: 155 Claws of fireDamage: 80 Claws of fire HEAWear Armor: 20AT: None

ACT: 50 Fire spells, 20 OthersZeon: 610Magic Projection: 140 OffensiveMagic Level: 60 Fire (Fireball, Heat Discharge)

Essential skills: Physical exemption, Immunity, Inhumanity, Gift, Superhuman animic features, Superhuman physical features, Natural knowledge of a path: 60, Somatic inutility.Powers: Natural weapon: Claws (Elemental attack), Damages energy, See the supernatural.

Movement Type: 8 Fatigue: N/A

Secondary skills: Perceive 45, Strength feats 65, Magic valuation 55, Forge 80.

Fireball: With a zeonic cost of 50, this active spell shoots a fireball that explodes in a radius of 5 yards, dealing a base heat damage of 50. Each added effect grants a +5 to the damage and

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+5 yards of radius, and the maximum Zeon for this spell is Intelligence x 20 (160).

Heat Discharge: With a zeonic cost of 60, this active spell projects heat waves that can burn anything, dealing a base heat damage of 50. These waves are invisible for human eye, so the defender must have the ability of seeing the supernatural, or pass a perceive check against 180 (Absurd) in order not to apply the –100 penalty to his defence. Each added effect grants a +5 to the damage, and the maximum Zeon for this spell is Intelligence x 10 (80).

Physical exemption: Same as dark Ebudan (see p. 21)

Immunity: An efreet only suffers half damage from fire based attacks.

Inhumanity: Same as the dark node (see p.26)

Somatic inutility: Efreeti don’t have to gesticulate in order to cast spells, so their ACT is not halved if they make any active actions.

See the supernatural: An efreet can see spirits and invisible magical and psychic effects.

Once the characters have overcome this menace, they can do a variety of things, from killing Luther (if they haven’t already done so) to bringing him back to Hecate or setting him free. In any case, Luther will be delusional and talking to him will be impossible. When the group finally departs from the Yellow Valley, with or without Luther, procceed.

Read the following aloud:You’ve been traveling together

for many days, you have discovered that the world is larger and deeper than what most people will ever know, and now you know that you have a fate that you must face. Even though you feel that your journey has just begun, you are prepared for any danger, be it mundane or supernatural, you might face. But also, a cold and dark feeling

has set into your hearts: The one of the nightmares become true.

EPILOGUEThe knight knelt when his superior

stood in front of him. He knew that the news he was carrying were important. Because of that, he spoke.

-Sir, we have managed to discover their location. They have just left the Yellow Valley. If you give your permission, we will send a party in their search.

-Are you sure that they are the ones we are looking for?- the general asked his soldier.

-We don’t have a doubt about that. Sir, you know as well as I do that those fools have caused many problems. Through their imprudent actions, they have affected the balance of... everything.

-Yes, that is true. But there is no way we can know at the moment if the balance has been altered in a wrong way... or in a right way.

-Excuse me, Sir, but are you going to let them keep acting in that foolish manner? We should...

I’m the one who must judge what we should or shouldn’t do, soldier. And I say that we will keep watching for now. That’s all, soldier. Dismissed.

The soldier went out from the room. He was dissapointed, and angered. If his general was not able to see the incoming disaster, he was.

And he knew what he had to do.

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Kai DurandLevel: 1Life points: 105Category: Acrobat WarriorStr: 6 Dex: 8 Agi: 10 Con: 7 Pow: 7 Int: 5 Wil: 6 Per: 5PhR 35 MR 35 PsR 35 PoR 35 IR 35

Turn: 75 Unarmed, 60 Gentle Wave (+5 Katana)Attack skill: 80 Tae Kwon Do, 85 Gentle Wave (+5 Katana)Defence skill: 80 DodgeDamage: 25 Tae Kwon Do (Bashing), 70 Gentle Wave (+5 Katana, Slashing) Wear Armor: 5AT: Gabardine Sla 1 Bas 0 Pie 2 Hea 1 Ele 2 Col 2 Ene 0

MK: 115

Ki skills: Use of Ki, Control of Ki, Presence extrusion, Extend aura to weapon.Accumulations: Str 1 Dex 1 Agi 4 Con 1 Pow 2 Wil 1 Ki: Str 6 Dex 8 Agi 14 Con 7 Pow 8 Wil 6Technics: The Five Forbidden Forms; First Form: Sparkling Edge.

Advantages and disadvantages: Martial master (x2), Artifact.Natural skills: Tae Kwon Do, Different Weapon (Katana).

Movement Type: 10 Fatigue: 7

Secondary Skills: Acrobatics 60, Athletics 40, Jump 30, Perceive 25, Search 15, Occult 5, Style 40.

Maximum nuber of active actions: 3 Kai Durand is a nineteen years old youngman. Tall and slim, his blond hair and blue eyes make him a very attractive one. However, he’s quite a silent person, and something in his gaze tells of a hard past. He always wears a black gabardine that gives him a misterious appearance. As an orphan, Kai has been always his sister’s guardian. Having noone who cared about them, he has been more a father than an elder brother to Layla. Life in an orphanage is not an easy one. Also, due to Kai’s introverted nature, he never made friends there. One morning, when he was only fifteen, he found a sword under his pillow. In his surprise, he barely noticed the note that was next to it: “This is Gentle Wave. Take it, as today you will have need of it”. It had not any signature, but for some reason, Kai knew that he had to obbey. Right after that, two strange men entered Kai and his sister’s room. Their clothes were black, but a red cross was visible on their chests. They said that Layla had to go with them, but she refused. Then, they tried to force her out of the orphanage, and Kai wasn’t capable of controling himself. Wielding the mysterious katana that was given to him, and feeling a strange force growing within him, he suddenly attacked the two men. Surprised, they weren’t able to react and fell before him. Without having any time to even wonder what was happening, Kai took her sister and they escaped to Archangel streets. Since then, Kai has tried to hide. Working as a mercenarie, he earned enough money to allow her sister to study in an academy. But they were fool to believe that they could remain hidden for a long time. One day, he went to visit Layla at the academy, but didn’t find her. When she met him the night after, she seemed to be exhausted. She had been escaping from several strange men, who also beared a red cross on their clothes. It was then when they decided to flee. Now, Kai and Layla travel together. He has promised her he will never abandon her, and they are searching throughout the Old Continent for people they can trust. And perhaps, Kai will find an explanation to his growing power...

Notes and curiosities: Kai hasn’t learnt to use ki. Instead, his very blood flows with an inner strength that is unnatural for a human being, and he manipulates spiritual energy in a natural way. Although he does not know that, it is due to his ascendance. His father, a true martial master and a very powerful man, who has been always hiding from the Inquisition and other forces after him, entered Kai and Layla in an orphanage in order to keep them safe. Now, he’s beholding from distance. Apparently, Layla hasn’t inherited her father’s spiritual force. The reason for that is completely unknown.

Equipment: Armed gabardine, Gentle Wave, Travel rations (for 7 days), A small bag, A haversack, A wineskin, 1 Gold Piece.

The Five Forbidden Forms

Tales are told about a swordsman who lived in a forgotten age. Noone remembers his face nor knows his name. However,

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everybody seems to be able to talk about his great power. One slash from his sword could cut the very heavens and make the earth tremble. He had been seen multiple times along the history, and some think he was not a mortal being. But one day, he suddenly dissapeared, and his terrible art, known as “The Five Forbidden Forms”, fell into oblivion. However, his legacy has refused to suffer the same destiny: Somehow, a youngman named Kai is able to perform the first of The Five Forbidden Forms. He thinks that he has always been capable of such a deed, and doesn’t remember who could have taught it to him.

First Form: Sparkling Edge Kai closes his eyes and sheathes his katana, as he focuses to establish a connection between his spiritual energy and his opponents’. Then, he suddenly open his eyes and gets his sword out from its sheathe in a rapid strike. All that can be seen is a blinding flash, followed by a cloud of slashes that rushes into the enemies. This ki technic has a maximum range of 50 yards, and it affects a 5 yards radius area.

Required MK: 25 Level: 1AGI 7POW 4Effect: Ranged attack: 50 yards,

Area attack: 5 yards radius.

Gentle Wave, Katana Only a few know the story of Gentle Wave. If more people knew that it is the legendary swordsman’s sword, they would

probably be scared, or perhaps too interested, but Kai has never wondered about its nature or origin. Gentle Wave is a katana of a very elegant manufacture. Its clean surface seems to shine with a watery motion effect, and its sheathe is engraved with strange symbols noone has been able to decypher.

-EXCEPTIONAL QUALITY: Gentle Wave is considered as a +5 quality katana. It is because, if we believe what some say, it absorbed the essence of its own legend. The game effects of this are: +5 to attack skill (already calculated on character’s statistics), +10 to damage (also calculated), -1 to defender’s AT (to a minimum of 0).

-FREEZING LIKE SEA ON WINTER: Gentle Wave’s blade is incredibly cold. Whenever his wielder wishes, he can choose to apply a –10 penalty to his attack skill in order to deal Cold Damage rather than Slashing.

-PERPETUAL FLUIDITY: Some say that Gentle Wave has its origin in the seas. Regardless it is true or not, anyone who wields this katana feels the perpetual fluidity of the sea within him, and moves and flows like water. In game terms, Gentle Wave grants a +20 bonus to all Athletic secondary skills (not only Athletics, but also Acrobatics, Climb, Jump, Ride and Swim). This bonus hasn’t been added to character’s skills, as it only applies when he wields the weapon.

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Kai DurandKi Skills: Use of Ki is a very basic

ki skill (in fact, the first one you must acquire). Its only effect is that it allows you to purchase other ki skills. Control of Ki allows you to develop ki technics. Without it, you can use ki skills but in no way ki technics. Presence extrusion allows you to physically touch pure energy by concentrating your ki around yourself like an invisible aura. Therefore, when fighting with your body you can deal damage to unmaterial creatures, and parry supernatural effects with no penalties (don’t worry about this last point, as Kai dodges instead of parrying). Its effects are always active at no cost. Finally, extend aura to weapon allows you to canalize your essence through a weapon. It also allows to extend advantages of “presence extrusion” to any wielded weapon, so you will be able to damage energy with your sword. Also, it increments its basic damage by 10 points (so, in Kai’s case, he would have a basic damage of 80 when using his katana). Note that this effect also can apply to unarmed combat, so when using Tae Kwon Do you will have a basic damage of 35. Its effects are always active at no cost.

Ki Accumulations and Ki Points: You have six ki accumulations and six kinds of ki points, each one represented by a feature. We have talked about it in the rules section, so let’s skip it. A ki accumulation represents how many ki points of a given kind you can use (or concentrate) per turn. You can concentrate ki of any kinds at your ki accumulation rate. So, in order to perform the “First Form: Sparkling Edge” technic, you must accumulate 7 points of Agility ki and 4 points of Power ki. Looking at your accumulations, we see that Kai’s Agility accumulation is 4 and his Power accumulation is 2. So, after your first turn accumulating ki (a passive action), you will have 4 Agility ki points and 2 Power ki points ready to use. But it is not enough to perform your technic, so you will have to accumulate for another turn. At the second turn, you will have your 7 Agility ki points (you could have 8, but you can

choose to accumulate less points than you are able to) and 4 Power ki points, and you will be able to perform your technic at that same turn. Then, you will have to spend that same amount of ki points. The other kinds of ki you have are useless for now. As accumulating ki is a passive action, you can accumulate first and attack with no penalties, all in the same round. But, if you are doing any other active action apart from concentrating, your ki accumulations are halved (rounded up). So, if you are focusing on your technic, your accumulations will be full at the first round, but if you attack after that, your accumulations for the second round will ve halved. In Kai’s case, it is better to wait until he is able to accumulate safely, accumulate ki for the first turn and launch his Sparkling Edge at the second one. Also remember that any effect that is already affecting your attack skill or damage will be transferred to the technic. So, if you are using “extend aura to weapon” (and there is no reason to do otherwise, as it is a continual effect), your technic will also have a +10 to its basic damage and the ability to touch energy. And remember the penalties when defending against area attacks...

Advantages and Disadvantages: Martial master provides you with 40 additional MK each time you pick it up. MK is used to “buy” ki skills and technics. Artifact is obvious: Gentle Wave is not precisely a common weapon, is it?

Natural Skills: Tae Kwon Do is a combat system ideal to combine body use with weapons. It is a martial art which is mainly based on effective leg attacks, thrown with potence and skill. It allows you to perform an additional attack with your legs once your character has used all his other attacks. This attack only suffers a –20 penalty to its skill. It can be performed also after using a weapon, and attacks Bashing AT.

So, let’s explain it a bit. You can attack with your legs only once with an 80 attack skill (your basic attack skill). You

can kick twice in a round (and using a single action), with a +80 to your first kick and a +60 to the second one. You can attack with Gentle Wave with a +85 (it is a +5 katana, remember), and kick right after that with a +60. It also means that, if you have only attacked once this turn

(with your legs or your katana, it doesn’t matter) and you obtain a counterattack, you can use your additional kick attack (with a +60) to counter. Of course, if you have lost your ability to make active actions before your second attack, you won’t be able to perform it.

Carduss DemineLevel: 1Life points: 140Category: Weapon MasterStr: 10 Dex: 8 Agi: 5 Con: 9 Pow: 6 Int: 5 Wil: 6 Per: 5PhR 40 MR 35 PsR 35 PoR 40 IR 40Turn: 55 Unarmed, -25 Greatsword, 5 Long bowAttack skill: 90 Greatsword/ Long bowDefence skill: 80 GreatswordDamage: 120 Greatsword (Slashing), 55 Long bow (Piercing)Wear Armor: 70AT: Splint Sla 4 Bas 3 Pie 2 Hea 3 Ele 2 Col 2 Ene 0

Advantages and disadvantages: Disquieting, Competent on an area (Social), Indefatigable, Unfortunate.Natural skills: Different Weapon (Long bow), Disarm table.

Movement Type: 5 (3 when he’s wearing his armor) Fatigue: 12

Secondary Skills: Climb 10, Ride 25, Jump 30, Intimidate 50, Leadership 50, Strength feats 100, Perceive 5, Search 5.

Maximum nuber of active actions: 2

Carduss Demine is literally a giant. Seven feet tall and amazingly muscular, it’s easy to feel panic when seen for the first time. Twenty eight years old, his shadowy glance and his beard makes him to look much more mature than he actually is. His fate seemed predestined from the very moment he was born. Son of a noble family in the military city of Eron, capital of Dalaborn, soon it was clear that Carduss would enter the army. His own father, Rudrick, who was a tenant, was the one that instructed him. Seeing Carduss more as a soldier than as a son, Rudrick was very hard on him, subjecting him to a daily torture expecting to turn Carduss into a true warrior. The inhuman training he followed and the absolute lack of love he suffered made a combat master of him. But when a war between Dalaborn and its neighbour Goldar broke out, Carduss was happy to leave his father and his awful training and enrolled without thinking. The battle was short, but also bloody. When Carduss looked at his greatsword, covered in blood, he realized that nothing from the Demine family was left in him. His feats granted him the rank of captain, but in his heart, he only felt emptyness. Because in spite of all the glory and honor, there was a thing that the great warrior never had: Love. He wandered for years without knowing what to do to feel alive, until he met Alisa. She was the perfect woman, sensitive, beautiful and amorous, as well as very intelligent. They married the year after, thinking that their love would last forever and nothing nor noone could impede it. But they were wrong. News of Alisa’s pregnancy were happily received, and Carduss promised to himself that he would be a good father, a better father than the one he had. Sadly, he never had a chance to keep his promise, as his daughter was born dead. As if fortune was confabulating against his poor soul, Alisa also died during the parturition. Carduss felt like he was dying, and his mind finally snapped. Three years after that, Carduss can still be seen at the frontier between Dalaborn and Galgados, riding a black horse (to which some say he talks) and wielding his greatsword. Noone can say why he behaves that way, not even Carduss. With his family dead and his sanity lost, protecting the land is the only thing that still keeps him alive.

Notes and curiosities: Carduss is not totally insane, but certainly he is unhinged, even if in a slight way. That means that he doesn’t suffer hallucinations and thinks right –at least, most of the time. But he prefers whispering sadly to his horse (which has no name) rather

than talking to any person. Also, he looks sad, when not directly perturbed, almost ever. That said, try not to portrait it in a funny way. Carduss tragedy should be depicted as something between depressing and frightening. Anyway, you shouldn’t allow Carduss’ depression to be too limitating. He will not forget his safety in order to talk to his horse, and might well behave normally if it is required.

Equipment: Splint armor, Greatsword, Long bow, 15 arrows, Travel rations (for 7 days), A rope (15 yards), Two gold rings, A war horse, 75 Gold Pieces.

War HorseLevel: 2Life points: 620Category: NoviceStr: 11 Dex: 3 Agi: 10 Con: 9 Pow: 5 Int: 3 Wil: 4 Per: 5PhR 45 MR 35 PsR 30 PoR 45 IR 45Turn: 50 UnarmedAttack skill: 70 KickDefence skill: 0Damage: 60 Kick (Bashing)Wear Armor: 20AT: Natural Sla 3 Bas 3 Pie 3 Hea 3 Ele 3 Col 3 Ene 0

Advantages and disadvantages: Damage accumulation, Superhuman physical features Natural skills: Natural weapon; Kick

Movement Type: 10 Fatigue: 9

Secondary skills: Athletics 130, Jump 50, Swim 25, Strength feats 120, Perceive 40.

Carduss DemineGreatsword: A greatsword can,

if you wish, deal Bashing damage instead of Slashing damage. Whenever you want to do that, simply apply a –10 penalty to your attack skill.

Long Bow: The effective range of a long bow is 60 yards, but due to Carduss’ strength, it increases to a total of 90 yards. It can reach twice this distance, but you must apply a –30 to your attack skill, and the basic damage is halved (rounded up). You can attack once per turn when using a long bow.

Advantages and Disadvantages: Disquieting has only roleplaying effects. It does not have game mechanics, and the range of its effects must be determined by the Game Director. Basically, your character can be perturbing, menacing or intimidatory whenever you decide to “activate” it. Competent on an area (Social) affects to social skills prices, and has been considered when creating the character. Indefatigable grants your character 3 additional Fatigue points (which have been also added to the character’s sheet). Finally, Unfortunate has also roleplaying effects only. It represents your character is –as the name suggests- unfortunate. He will always be the first to be attacked by a

group (“Hey! He seems to be the dangerous one. Kill him!”), he will always be the one who activates the random trap, and so on. Also, the misfortune seems to follow him wherever he goes.

Natural Skills: Disarm table means that your character has specialized on disarming opponents. It halves the Disarm maneuver penalty, so the character only suffers a –20 to his skill when executing it.

War Horse: The only game term we need to explain is damage accumulation, but it is not that difficult to understand. It represents the better capability of some creatures to stand damage rather than trying to avoid it. Big creatures, as well as slow ones, use to have damage accumulation. Its game effects are the following. First, the creature has a defence skill of 0. Second, the creature suffers no penalties to his defence due to additional defences, fired projectiles or area damage. Third, the creature does not loose its ability to perform active actions due to a received successful attack. Fourth, when the creature suffers a critical hit, the Critical Hit Level is halved. Fifth and last, the creature suffers double damage from area attacks that affect at least half its body.

Bryanna DenisLevel: 1Life points: 75Category: ThiefStr: 5 Dex: 10 Agi: 9 Con: 5 Pow: 5 Int: 8 Wil: 4 Per: 8PhR 30 MR 30 PsR 25 PoR 30 IR 30Turn: 75 UnarmedAttack skill: 65 AikidoDefence skill: 110 DodgeDamage: 10 Aikido (Bashing)Wear Armor: 0AT: None

Advantages and disadvantages: Charming, Skilful, Seducing.Natural skills: Aikido

Movement Type: 9 Fatigue: 5

Secondary Skills: Acrobatics 20, Athletics 20, Climb 20, Swim 20, Persuade 30, Disguise 25, Hide 40, Larceny 80, Locks 40, Stealth 40, Traps 40, Perceive 20, Search 20, Hand Tricks 70.

Maximum number of active actions: 3

Bryanna Denis is an incredibly beautiful girl. Eighteen years old, her shining green eyes and her soft, long brown hair give her an astonishing appearance. She’s funny and childish, but also very bad tempered when she’s angry. Her mother died of a disease when she was a baby, and her father was an army soldier who had always to be out, so she was left to a couple who were friends of Bryanna’s mother. They were very sad about the woman’s demise, and promised to take care of Bryanna the best they could. But some years after, they had their own son. They started to pay less and less attention to the girl, to the point that she was almost ignored all the time. When news of Bryanna’s father death in a war reached them, they decided it was the moment to break their promise. The day after, she was abandoned to her own fortune, and being only eight years old, she had to learn to survive in Hecate streets. At first she only begged for some copper pieces, but as she grew in age and experience, she started to steal from people’s bags and pockets. After that, she walked a further step and learnt how to break into houses and take money from them. And when something went wrong and she was caught by city’s guards, her beauty and grace helped her to escape harmlessly from the situation. Until that night. She was attempting to enter a private property. She silently jumped over the garden’s walls and approached the house. Everything was quiet, and she had no reason to suspect she was being watched. When she saw the man, armed with a big sword, it was too late. She asked him not to call the guards, and after discussing about the girl’s fate, he agreed with a condition: She would help him to “obtain” something by using her skills. He was a noble man, called Andras Kendrick, and offered to pay her for her services. What other thing could she do but agree? And he was going to pay her, anyway. But one thing was clear: From that experience, Bryanna learnt that she had to know how to defend herself, or otherwise she would soon get killed. So she focused in training herself in unarmed combat. She wasn’t too strong, so the best would be to learn self-defence, and so she did. Now, she and Andras Kendrick work together. She believes he is starting to feel something for her, but something in his behavior seemed suspicious to Bryanna: He has not told anything about her errand yet, and spends most of his time recluded in a small room in his house. But at least, she has a place to stay.

Equipment: A cramb of bread, A handkerchief, Make-up, 3 Copper Pieces.

Bryanna Denis

Advantages and Disadvantages: Charming has only a roleplaying effect, and has no mechanics. It is the Game Director who has to determine the range of this advantage. It means that your character has a certain charisma and always causes a good first impression. Skilful grants a +3 bonus to your Dexterity feature on feature checks, and a +30 to your hand tricks secondary skill. Finally, Seducing grants you a +60 bonus to your persuade secondary skill when trying to seduce people of the appropriate preferences.

Natural Skills: Aikido is a martial art that allows to defend against attacks by using antagonists’ strength against them. Their practitioners easily grapple or break their enemies’ arms and legs with a few movements. As its philosopy states, it is opponents’ own violence the only thing that can finish them. When performing a counterattack, it adds twice the opponent’s Strength

bonus to damage (with a minimum bonus of +5). If opponent’s Strength is 6 or 7, then he has a +5 bonus. If it is 8-9, he has a +10, and if his Strength is 10, his Strength bonus is +15 (This applies to all features, but has no further effects in this scenario). It attacks Bashing AT and allows to grab opponents easily, so no penalties are applied when performing a Grapple maneuver during a counterattack.

So take a look to your combat strategies. Instead of running toward an opponent and attacking him with a +65 attack skill and a damage of 10, just wait until you are attacked. With your impressive dodge of 110, it is more than likely for you to obtain a counterattack. And if you decide to perform a Grapple maneuver –at no penalties-, remember that you add a +3 bonus to your contested feature check (it is assumed you will choose Dexterity) thanks to skilful advantage.

Andras KendrickLevel: 1Life points: 95Category: WarlockStr: 6 Dex: 8 Agi: 5 Con: 6 Pow: 9 Int: 10 Wil: 5 Per: 5PhR 35 MR 50 PsR 30 PoR 35 IR 35Turn: 55 Unarmed, 30 Broad sword, 5 Broad sword and medium shieldAttack skill: 75 BroadswordDefence skill: 65 Broad sword, 85 Broad sword and medium shieldDamage: 60 Broad sword (Slashing)Wear Armor: 5AT: Leather Sla 1 Bas 0 Pie 2 Hea 1 Ele 2 Col 1 Ene 0

ACT: 30Zeon: 565Magic projection: 70 OffensiveMagic level: 20 Fire

Advantages and disadvantages: Gift, Somatic inutility, See the supernatural, Magical extenuation.Natural skills: Magic projection as attack.

Movement Type: 5 (4 when he’s wearing his armor) Fatigue: 6

Secondary Skills: Perceive 5, Search 5, Animals 25, History 25, Occult 30, Magic valuation 50.

Maximum number of active actions: 2

Andras Kendrick is twenty four years old. He’s slim, but not very tall. However, his grey eyes and altive manners grant him a natural elegance, if a bit distant. Sarcastic and phlegmatic, it is better not to be near him when angered. Born in an aristocratic family in Hecate, capital of Galgados, he always was introverted to their parents, to the point he sometimes seemed strange. He started talking when he was four years old, and his family thought it was because he was mentally retarded. The truth was that, before that age, he had already understood there were some things his parents would never understand, and trying to explain them wasn’t worth the effort. Finally, he said “mum” with a mixture of pity and boredom. His childhood and early youth didn’t suppose any change in his attitude. Something within him was crying to be heard, and he knew there were unnatural forces that would grant him infinite power if he was able to dominate them. That was the reason for his growing interest on the occult. Many times Andras refused to study more mundane matters, and his parents finally lost their patience. They sent him to the army, where surprisingly he managed to impress his superiors with his martial talent. But Andras knew military life was not for him, so he left when the sooner he could. He had no intention of returning with his family, to which he kept no love feelings, and bought a residence where he would be able to study arcane arts. He also bought an eagle, which he called Daine, and trained it to watch his house’s sorroundings. As he grew in power and knowledge, Andras learnt of a powerful artifact that, according to some ancient documents and legends, was laying beneath the city of Hecate. Only wishing to earn more and more power, he decided he would try to get it. One night, Daine caught a girl trying to break into Andras’ property. Andras went to her encounter, sword in hand, but when he saw her, he was unable to call the guards: She was simply beautiful, and in her eyes he could see the desperation of a girl who had nothing but her own skills to survive. Then, he realized that she could help him to obtain the artifact. He knew almost nothing about it, but one thing was sure. With the girl, whose name was Bryanna, finding it would be easier. Now, Andras has ideated a plan. He has heard that Marina Daorland, one of the governors of the city, is sending expeditions to The Citadel, as the caverns and

ruins complex beneath Hecate is known, in order to rescue magical artifacts. Perhaps Andra’s luck is smiling at him.

Equipment: Leather armor, Broadsword, Medium shield, Travel rations (for 10 days), A rope (15 yards), A small bag, A haversack, A wineskin, Three changes of clothes, An imperial eagle, 70 gold pieces

Daine, Imperial EagleLevel: 1Life points: 75Category: NoviceStr: 7 Dex: 4 Agi: 6 Con: 5 Pow: 5 Int: 3 Wil: 5 Per: 11PhR 30 MR 30 PsR 30 PoR 30 IR 30Turn: 50 UnarmedAttack skill: 60 TalonsDefence skill: 40 DodgeDamage: 40 Talons (Piercing)Wear Armor: 5AT: Natural Sla 4 Bas 4 Pie 4 Hea 4 Ele 4 Col 4 Ene 0

Advantages and disadvantages: Superhuman animic features, Sharpened senses (Sight). Natural skills: Natural flight 12, Natural weapon; Talons

Movement Type: 6, Flying 12 Fatigue: 5

Secondary skills: Strength feats 80, Perceive 120, Search 80.

Book of FireCreate FireLevel: 2 Action: ActiveCost: 30Effect: Creates one fire intensity. As long as the spell is maintained, the flame will continue burning even with nothing to consume. If it is set on anything flammable, it will burn naturally after spell’s end.Added Effect: +1 fire intensity.Maximum Zeon: Intelligence x 10Maintenance: 1 per each 10 DailyKind of spell: Effect

Move ObjectsLevel: 4 Action: ActiveCost: 30Effect: This spell moves inorganic artifacts with no need for physical contact with them, giving them a Flight type 10. Maximum weight it can affect is 44 pounds. Added Effect: +22 pounds.Maximum Zeon: Intelligence x 10Maintenance: 1 per each 10Kind of spell: Effect

Mitigate FireLevel: 6 Action: ActiveCost: 30Effect: Decreases one fire or heat intensity. Bear in mind that some fire sources, as volcanes and big fires authomatically reproduce if they are not managed to mitigate completely. When cast on a fire based being, it will receive 5 point of damage per diminished intensity, if it doesn’t pass a MR against 100. Beings with damage accumulation receive 25 points of damage per intensity.Added Effect: +1 fire intensity and +5 MR.Maximum Zeon: Intelligence x 10Maintenance: NoneKind of spell: Effect, Animic

Fall StopLevel: 8 Action: PassiveCost: 40Effect: Anulates effects of falling from long distance. In play, it supresses completely the suffered impact when falling from 50 yards, or reduces it equivalently in a longer distance. It can affect several targets, whenever their presences adding is not higher than 60.Added Effect: +10 additional yards of falling and +10 to affected presence.Maximum Zeon: Intelligence x 20Maintenance: 1 per each 10Kind of spell: Effect

Immunity Against FireLevel: 10 Action: ActiveCost: 50Effect: This spell allows the sorcerer, or people he designates, to be immune to 5 heat intensities. In case an attack based on this element is received, each intensity immunity decreases the attack’s basic damage by 5 points, granting a +5 to Resistances against their effects.Added Effect: +1 intensity immunity.Maximum Zeon: Intelligence x 20Maintenance: 1 per each 20Kind of spell: Effect

Feel the HeatLevel: 12 Action: ActiveCost: 60Effect: Detects the location of any heat source in a 25 yards radius. The spell will not give information about what produces it, but it will be able to feel intensities and sizes. It is even possible to perceive the heat that a human body emits, but not that of unanimed or unmaterial beings, as golems or undead creatures. If wished to resist, a MR against 120 will have to be passed.Added Effect: +10 MR and +10 yards radius.Maximum Zeon: Intelligence x 10Maintenance: 1 per each 10Kind of spell: Detection

EnchantLevel: 14 Action: ActiveCost: 50Effect: It grants an item or place, with a pressence lesser than 50, the feature of unmaterial body. Affected substance will be material to untouchable beings and spells. If, for instance, it is cast on a weapon, it will be able to damage unmaterial beings, and an enchanted wall couldn’t be trespassed by ethereal beings or mistic effects.Added Effect: +10 to maximum affected presence.Maximum Zeon: Intelligence x 10Maintenance: 1 per each 20 DailyKind of spell: Effect

FireballLevel: 16 Action: ActiveCost: 50Effect: Projects an igneous attack with a damage base of 50 points, which explodes in a 5 yards radius area. It isn’t possible to select targets within the explosion. It attacks Heat TA.Added Effect: +5 to damage and +5 yards radius.Maximum Zeon: Intelligence x 20Maintenance: NoneKind of spell: Attack

InhumanityLevel: 18 Action: ActiveCost: 50Effect: Anyone affected by this spell will be able to reach a 320 final skill on any area or matter. Bear in mind that it doesn’t mean that actions performed by those subjects are authomatically set at a result of 320, but that they will be able to get it if their skill rolls ot attributes allow them. It can affect several individuals, whenever their presences added do not surpass 60.Added Effect: +10 to maximum affected presence.Maximum Zeon: Intelligence x 10Maintenance: 1 per each 10 DailyKind of spell: Effect

Control Over FireLevel: 20 Action: ActiveCost: 50Effect: Allows to control shape and growth of a fire if it doesn’t surpass 5 intensities. In the same way, different aspects of flames will be able to be modified, as their

colour, appearance and even the smoke they produce. If it is a being naturally based on this element, the magician will be able to control it if the creature doesn’t pass a MR against 100.Added Effect: +1 intensity of controlled fire and +5 MR.Maximum Zeon: Intelligence x 10Maintenance: 1 per each 10 DailyKind of spell: Effect, Animic

Andras Kendrick

ACT and Zeon: ACT is your magic accumulation. It is a number that represents the maximum Zeon points you can use per turn. So, for instance, if you wish to cast a spell with a Zeonic value of 50, you should accumulate (as a passive action) 30 Zeon points at the first round, and then 20 at the second one, then cast the spell at that same second round. It is then when Zeon points are spent. If you want, you can keep your accumulated Zeon points and start accumulating for a second spell. When you reach enough Zeon points to cast that two spells, you could perfectly cast both of them at the same turn with no penalties to your magic projection (magic projection use has already been explained on combat section) and using just an action. Also, you don’t have to limit to the basic Zeonic value of a determined spell. For example, you can cast a fireball, whose basic Zeonic value is 50, after three turns of fully accumulating, and cast it as a spell of a Zeonic value of 90 (and spend 90 Zeon points). We say that, each additional 10 Zeon points you spend over the basic Zeonic cost, you make an Added Effect. But, you are limited to a maximum Zeon expenditure, which is the result of multiplying your Intelligence a determined number times. This limit is listed in the Magic Grimoire. Each spell benefits differently from added effects, and it is also explained in the Grimoire.

Magic Projection: There is something you must know, and it is that the value given is only applied to Offensive spells. That is because Andras has focused on offensive magic (he can defend using his shield, after all). So, bear in mind that when casting a non-offensive spell, your Magic Projection is only 10. Non-offensive (Effect and Detection) spells don’t work like attacking. Instead, you must reach a difficulty with your Magic Projection based on the distance between you and your target. If you are affecting yourself, or an item or

person in contact with you, you only need to reach a 20. If yor target is at a maximum distance of 5 yards, you must get a 40. You need an 80 to reach a range of 25 yards, a 120 for a 100 yards range, a 140 for a 250 yards range, and a 180 for a 500 yards range. With a result of 240 you can even affect targets beyond your sensorial rangeif you have located them somehow, to a maximum of 1,000 yards. And with a 280, you can affect almost everything within a range of 5,000 yards, whenever you have a certain idea of where it is. Offensive (Animic and Attack) spells use your Offensive Magic Projection (70), and you don’t need to care about distances. Instead, you must roll on Combat Table and reach a minimum result of 10% damage (a succesful attack). Then, if the effect is Animic, your enemy is affected and will have to pass a MR to avoid the effect. Theorically, he would be able to dodge, parry (if he is able to touch energy) or otherwise defend against your spell. But animic spells are both invisible and considered as fired projectiles, with both penalties applied. Attack spells function as a normal attack, and they are perfectly visible if other thing isn’t said.

Advantages and Disadvantages: Gift grants you access to magic, as well as adds +10 to your MR. It has already been calculated on character sheet. Somatic inutility means that you can make active actions with no penalties to your ACT. Normally, performing active actions would half your ACT, but it is not Andras’ case (he’s also a warrior, and you probably will want to accumulate Zeon while attacking your enemies). See the supernatural allows you to perceive mistical energies, as well as unmaterial creatures. That means you authomatically recognize when magic or psychic powers are being used, and you can see approaching invisible effects. Therefore, you don’t apply the –100 penalty when defending from them. Also, you don’t apply the normal –100 penalty to your attacks

when attacking invisible creatures, as you actually see them. Magical extenuation is a disadvantage that means Andras has problems to manipulate too powerful spells, and gets exhausted more easily than normal. If you cast a spell with a final Zeonic value of 100 or more, you must spend a point of Fatigue. If it is higher than 200, you must spend 2 points of Fatigue, and if it is higher than 300, then you must spend 3 points of Fatigue.

Natural Skills: Magic projection as attack allows a character not to spend development points to increase his magic projection. Instead, you can use your basic attack skill when using offensive spells. Note that Andras has an offensive Magic Projection of 70, and not 75, because Warlock category applies a bonus to attack skill, but applies no bonuses to Magic Projection.

Grimoire: Each spell has the following stats: Spell’s name, Spell’s level, Kind of action that casting the spell requires (active or passive), Cost (in Zeon points), Effect (the Spell’s description), Added effect (what you obtain for each 10 additional Zeon points you invert on that spell), Maximum Zeon (the maximum number of Zeon points

you can spend), Maintenance (If the spell’s effects can be maintained, here you will find how many Zeon points you must pay per round or day. You must pay attention to the final Zeonic value of the spell when you cast it, not the basic one), Kind of Spell (Effect, Animic, Detection or Attack. Your Magic Projection is 70 only when you cast Attack spells, and 10 for the rest).

There are some terms you need to know in order to understand some spells: The first one is fire intensity, and the second one is presence. One fire intensity equals to a candle’s flame; 3 intensities are a torch’s fire; 5 intensities represent a small campfire; 7 intensities represent a big one; 20 intensities is a burning house; 30 intensities, a blast furnace; 40 intensities is a burning castle, and 50 intensities a volcane.

Presence is a trait that depends on character level. All first level characters have a presence of 30, and each level it increases by 5 points. Each weapon has a presence that depends on its size, from 15 for a dagger to 30 for a greatsword (except for Kai Durand’s Gentle Wave, that has a presence of 90). Light armors have a presence of 25 and heavy ones, 30. Presence of various items is listed throughout the story when it could be reasonable to use spells on them.

Layla DurandLevel: 1Life points: 75Category: MentalistStr: 4 Dex: 8 Agi: 5 Con: 5 Pow: 6 Int: 8 Wil: 10 Per: 8PhR 30 MR 35 PsR 45 PoR 30 IR 30Turn: 55 UnarmedAttack skill: 10 UnarmedDefence skill: 10 UnarmedDamage: 5 Unarmed (Bashing)Wear Armor: -5AT: None

Potential: 80Free WCs: 5Psychic Powers: Affinity to a discipline; Telepathy (Mental communication, Psychic illusion, Mental analysis, Memories modification, Astral shape), Affinity to a discipline; Telekinesis (Minor telekinesis, Telekinetic shield, Telekinetic armor, Telekinetic flight).Psychic projection: 80 Innates: 2

Advantages and disadvantages: Acces to any psychic discipline, See the supernatural.Natural skills: None.

Movement Type: 5 Fatigue: 5

Secondary Skills: Perceive 20, Search 20, Herbs 30, History 25, Medicine 40, Memorize 40, Science 25.

Maximum number of active actions: 2

Layla Durand is a sixteen years old girl with blond hair and deep blue eyes. Her angelical features and sweet voice give her a childish appearance, but in contrast, her sensibility and introspective nature tells of a great maturity within her young body. Layla and her brother Kai grew up in an orphanage in Archangel, capital of Abel. Having not even known her parents, Layla had always been wondering how they might be, or what was the reason of their deaths. His brother, however, didn’t seem to pay attention at this at all. In fact, Layla always thought that Kai was too unconcerned, and saw herself as the rational one of both of them. But also, she knew that in Kai, she would always have someone who took care of her. That was important for her as she, like her brother, had no friends. Everybody looked at Layla as if she was strange, and she gradually began to feel different from the rest. One day, when she was twelve, she discovered that she was able to “hear” her mates’ thoughts. The following day, she broke a plate without even touching it. People started to whisper as strange things continue to happen, and Layla started to feel scared. When two strange men in black entered her room and wanted her to go with them, she immediately knew that she couldn’t trust them. Reading their minds, she learnt they were from some kind of organization called Inquisition, and wanted to interrogate her in order to know if she was a witch. Also, a red cross on their chests caught her attention. Before she could register what was happening, Kai cut them down with a sword she never had seen before, and brother and sister escaped from the orphanage among the screams of children. Acting as Layla’s protector, Kai started working as a mercenary to pay an academy and enter his sister there. He visited her very often, but Layla didn’t feel safe. Her mates never talked to her, and the only few moments she felt happy were when her brother came to see her. But the most important day, he was missing. Through a window, she could see four men dressed in the same clothes than the ones who tried to kidnap her. Frightened, she ran out from the classroom and jumped from a window on the rear wall of the building. She strongly wished not to get killed, and somehow she started to fly. When she met Kai and told him what occurred, he took the determination of fleeing. He gave her sister a knife to

defend herself, but to this moment she hasn’t had to use it. At the present, Layla and Kai are wandering throughout the old continent, in their search for trustworthy people. Their travel has just began...

Notes and curiosities: Layla isn’t profficient with the stylet Kai gave her. If she tries to attack using it, she suffers a –60 penalty to her attack skill. Turn remains unchanged, and damage base is 25 (Piercing). It can also be effectively thrown within a range of 20 yards. The maximum range is 40 yards, but then you must apply a –30 modifier (-90 in total) and its basic damage is halved. However, defenders would have to apply the penalty for defending against thrown projectiles. Also, she can throw it with telekinesis, and then things change...

Equipment: Stylet, Travel rations (for 7 days), A small bag, A haversack, A wineskin, 1 Gold Piece.

TELEPATHY Telepathy is one of the most fascinating disciplines that psychicians have at their disposal: to sincronize the energies of two psychic matrixes, allowing that who uses it to penetrate in minds of other individuals. Some examples of telepathic powers would be reading thoughts of other individuals, altering their perceptions or even dominating their minds. It has no use over beings that don’t have mind, like golems or similar. Modifier: Whenever a psychician uses one of his telepathic powers over a target in contact with him, he can add a +20 bonus to his potential.

MENTAL COMMUNICATION Level: 1 Action: Active Description: The psichician can establish a mental conversation with a person who has localized at some distance. “Localized” means that he knows his location, at least approximately. Unlike other powers, it doesn’t require Psychic Projection to make target. Maximum distance within you can speak comes determined by the powers effect. Maintenance: Yes Effects: 20 – Fatigue 2 40 – Fatigue 1 80 – 100 yards 120 –500 yards 140 –1,000 yards 180 –10,000 yards 240 –100,000 yards 280 –1,000,000 yards 320 –5,000,000 yards 440 – Any distance

PSYCHIC ILLUSION Level: 1 Action: Active Description: Alters perceptions of an individual, introducing illusory images or sounds in his head. With this power, a psychician can turn invisible to an enemy, throw a rock at him or making him face a dragon. In case that creatures are formed, they will attack and defend using the character’s Psychic Projection, as other illusory attacks (arrows, spells, explosions...). To resist this effect, a PsR must be passed against the cypher that the reached difficultyindicates . Of course, damage is not real, and if the opponent receives an impact, he will be able to make a new PhR. If he gets convinced that it is only an illusion, he will be able to make a check every round. Maintenance: Yes Effects: 20 – Fatigue 2 40 – Fatigue 1 80 – PsR 80 120 – PsR 100 140 – PsR 120 180 – PsR 140 240 – PsR 160 280 – PsR 180 320 – PsR 200 440 – PsR 220

MENTAL ANALYSIS Level: 2 Action: Active Description: Allows the psychician to investigate the thoughts and memories of an individual, being able to search specific situations or thoughts. The Game Director will decide how many rounds are required to obtain the wished information, depending on how much hidden it is in the victim’s memories. The psychician will only have access to knowledges the affected person has, but he will be able to penetrate in memories altered by supernatural ways. The affected can resist passing a PsR against the cypher that the reached difficulty indicates, and he will be able to make a new Resistance every 5 rounds. Maintenance: Yes Effects: 20 – Fatigue 6 40 – Fatigue 4 80 – Fatigue 2 120 – PsR 100 140 – PsR 120 180 – PsR 140 240 – PsR 160 280 – PsR 180 320 – PsR 200 440 – PsR 240

MEMORIES MODIFICATION Level: 2 Action: Active Description: Allows to modify memories from an individual’s mind, completely eliminating them or creating new ones. It is necessary to determine exactly what is intended to be created or erased. An hour of memories can be modified per each point the affected individual doesn’t pass the required PsR. Even though it has no maintenance, the character will be able to make a new Resistance against the power’s original PsR, if he sees or does anything rooted enough to his original memories to make him remember. Maintenance: No Effects: 20 – Fatigue 8 40 – Fatigue 6 80 – Fatigue 4 120 – Fatigue 2 140 – PsR 100 180 – PsR 120 240 – PsR 140 280 – PsR 160 320 – PsR 180 440 – PsR 200

ASTRAL SHAPE Level: 2 Action: Active Description: The psychician can leave his physical shape and move his mind over distance. As he is in this condition, he will be absolutely untouchable by any body not based on energy, and invisible to those uncapable of seeing psychic matrixes. He can only be attacked by spells and skills able to damage unmaterial beings or affect his Resistances. If any kind of damage is dealt to him, his physical body also suffers it, and the astral shape disappears. The astral body can move with a Flight type equal to psychician’s Will. In this status, the character will only be able to use mental skills. If his real body dies, the psychician remains trapped in his astral shape until it is destroyed, moment in which he also perishes completely. Maintenance: Yes Effects: 20 – Fatigue 8 40 – Fatigue 6 80 – Fatigue 4 120 – Fatigue 2 140 – Up to 10,000 yards radius 180 – Up to 100,000 yards radius 240 – Up to 500,000 yards radius 280 – Up to 1,000,000 yards radius 320 – Up to 5,000,000 yards radius 440 – Any distance

TELEKINESIS Telekinesis is psychic ability to move objects with an individual’s mental force. At higher levels, a character is even capable of destroying things from distance, or modifying its atomic structure. This discipline has no modifiers.

MINOR TELEKINESIS Level: 1 Action: Active Description: The psychician moves an inorganic mass from distance. Weight and speed with wich he does, depend on the difficulty reached by the power. If it is used to attack from distance, by throwing objects, the character must reduce by half his Psychic Projection, because the contro offered by this power is not specifically prepared for that. Maintenance: Yes Effects: 20 – Fatigue 1 40 – 2 lbs. Flight type 4 80 – 4.5 lbs. Flight type 6 120 – 11 lbs. Flight type 8 140 – 22 lbs. Flight type 10 180 – 44 lbs. Flight type 12 240 – 88 lbs. Flight type 14 280 – 220.5 lbs. Flight type 16 320 – 441 lbs. Flight type 18 440 – 1,102 lbs. Flight type 20

TELEKINETIC SHIELD Level: 1 Action: Passive Description: Creates a telekinetic shield that defends its user against any non-unmaterial attack. Therefore, although it is able to stop the hit from a magical sword that damages energy, it doesn’t stop a luminic magic bolt. Only in case that the barrier is created with a power level superior to 280, it will be able to stop ethereal effects and attacks. At certain level, the shield also obtains the skill of damage barrier. Unlike other powers, the mantained telekinetic shield remains with the same amount of life points with which it was originally created. However, every subsequent turn it loses 5 life points, until the amount the psychician can mantain naturally. Maintenance: Yes Effects: 20 – Fatigue 2 40 – Fatigue 1 80 – 300 LP

120 – 500 LP 140 – 700 LP 180 – 1,000 LP 240 – 1,500 LP/ Damage barrier 60 280 – 2,000 LP/ Damage barrier 80/ Stops energy 320 – 3,000 LP/ Damage barrier 120/ Stops energy 440 – 5,000 LP/ Damage barrier 160/ Stops energy

TELEKINETIC ARMOR Level: 1 Action: Passive Description: Creates a force armor on the psychician or the individual he designates. AT of the cuirass protects its user against any kind of attack, except for energy. It can be combined with any other protection as an additional coat, adding to the highest AT the lowes AT halved and rounded up. Maintenance: Yes Effects: 20 – Fatigue 2 40 – Fatigue 1 80 – AT 1 120 – AT 2 140 – AT 4 180 – AT 6 240 – AT 8 280 – AT 10 320 – AT 12 440 – AT 14

TELEKINETIC FLIGHT Level: 2 Action: Active Description: The psychician can move freely through the air, with the Flight type that the reached power indicates. Maintenance: Yes Effects: 20 – Fatigue 4 40 – Fatigue 2 80 – Fatigue 1 120 – Flight type 6 140 – Flight type 8 180 – Flight type 10 240 – Flight type 12 280 – Flight type 14 320 – Flight type 16 440 – Flight type 18

Layla DurandPotential: When you want to use a psychic power, you must first make a Psychic Potential check in order to determine the power of the effect. If you don’t reach at least the minimum difficulty, then you lose the indicated WCs. Once you run out of WCs, you start losing Fatige points instead. If your Fatigue goes down to 0 or less due to a psychic failure, you must pass a PhR against 100 or you will fall in coma for as many days as your level of failure (the difference between your result and the required difficulty). Each negative Fatigue point increases the difficulty by +10. If you fail your check by more than 80 points, your mind is authomatically destroyed, dying hopelessly.

If you concentrate as an active action and you don’t do any other active actions, you obtain a bonus to your Potential: One round concentration grants you a +10 bonus, three rounds a +20, five rounds a +30, one minute a +40 and one hour a +50.

You can manifest as many powers as you wish as a single action, but you will have to divide your Psychic Potential between them, with a minimum of +10 to each power.

Your potential is also the level with which your psychic powers are maintained. If your Potential is 80, you can manifest a Mental Communication and roll a 147, so you would be able to communicate from 1,000 yards the first round. But if you want to maintain it, the effect would immediately fall to 80 at the second turn: 100 yards. Anyway, a

power can always be mantained at its minimum effect. For example, you could maintain a Mental Analysis at a level of 120, even if your Potential is 80.

WCs: You can spend any number of WCs per turn. By spending a WC, you can obtain one of the following effects: +10 to your Psychic Projection; +20 to your Psychic Potential; Eliminating any chance of WCs or Fatigue points loss by declaring the expenditure before rolling your Potential; Increasing your Potential by +20 to determine the basic effects of one of your maintained powers (you don’t recover this spent WC until you quit using it).

Psychic Powers: The only term you must know is Damage Barrier, from Telekinetic Shield power. Damage barrier is the minimum basic damage (not the dealt damage) an attack must have in order to be able to damage your barrier and decrease your shield’s LPs.

Psychic Projection: Non-offensive psychic powers (those that don’t damage your target or forces him to make a Resistance check) don’t work like attacking. Instead, you must reach a difficulty with your Psychic Projection based on the distance between you and your target. If you are affecting yourself, or an item or person in contact with you, you only need to reach a 20. If yor target is at a maximum distance of 5 yards, you must get a 40. You need an 80 to reach a range of 25 yards, a 120

for a 100 yards range, a 140 for a 250 yards range, and a 180 for a 500 yards range. With a result of 240 you can even affect targets beyond your sensorial rangeif you have located them somehow, to a maximum of 1,000 yards. And with a 280, you can affect almost everything within a range of 5,000 yards, whenever you have a certain idea of where it is. You don’t need to care about distances when using offensive powers. Instead, you must roll on Combat Table and reach a minimum result of 10% damage (a succesful attack). Then, if the effect is Animic, your enemy is affected and will have to pass a PsR to avoid the effect. Theorically, he would be able to dodge, parry (if he is able to touch energy) or otherwise defend against your power. But Animic powers are both invisible and considered as fired projectiles, with both penalties applied. Attack powers function as a normal attack, and they are perfectly visible if other thing isn’t said.

Innates: Using an innate, you can maintain a psychic power and don’t

have to make a Psychic Potential check every turn. Innates are not spent. Instead, think of them as slots where you put a certain power to maintain it. If all of your slots (Innates) are filled and you want to maintain other power, you will have to stop maintaining one of the powers you are maintaining at that moment in order to “fill the empty slot (s)”with the new power (s). Maintained powers remain active even if you are unconscious, but not if you fall in coma due to a psychical failure.

Advantages and Disadvantages: Access to any psychic discipline allows you to use psychic powers. See the supernatural allows you to perceive mistical energies, as well as unmaterial creatures. That means you authomatically recognize when magic or psychic powers are being used, and you can see approaching invisible effects. Therefore, you don’t apply the –100 penalty when defending from them. Also, you don’t apply the normal –100 penalty to your attacks when attacking invisible creatures, as you actually see them.