vaelora/Rules/Character Creation.md

Creating a character in _Vaelora_ means bringing a living person into a dangerous, spirit-haunted world. This process roots your character in their heritage, culture, and experiences, giving them both narrative depth and mechanical distinction.


## **Step 1: Define Your Concept**
Before you touch any numbers, decide **who your character is**:

- Where do they come from?
- What drives them?
- What scars or secrets shape them?

Your concept will guide every decision you make.  

**Examples:**
- _A haunted Tul scout who survived the Mistpatch and now hears whispers from beyond._
- _A Myou alchemist who poisons with a smile but dreams of redemption._
    

## **Step 2: Choose a Species**
Your species defines the roots of your character’s identity. It shapes their physical nature, instincts, and innate talents.

**What You Gain**:
- **Attribute Increases:** Each species grants fixed Attribute bonuses.
- **Skill Increases:** Species reflect natural aptitudes with +1 to specific skills.
- **Tier 1 Species Ability:** Choose **one Tier 1 ability** from the **Species Ability Tree**.

> This choice is permanent and sets the tone for your character’s physiology and heritage.

| Species                 | Attribute Boosts (+1)     | Flaw (-1) | Skill Increases (+1)                           | Tier 1 Abilities (choose one)                                        |
| ----------------------- | ------------------------- | --------- | ---------------------------------------------- | -------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Tul (Mentralian)**    | Might, Presence           | —         | **Empathy**, one **Knowledge**, **Athletics**  | **Steadfast Resolve**, **Born to Lead**, **Versatile Heritage**      |
| **Tul (Anderonian)**    | Spirit, Focus             | —         | **Intimidation**, **Survival**, **Navigation** | **Warden of the Wild**, **Cunning Diplomacy**, **River Blood**       |
| **Tul (Sachran)**       | Fortitude, Cunning        | —         | **Tracking**, **Trade**, **Brawl**             | **Sand Walker**, **Nomad’s Instinct**, **Ancestral Memory**          |
| **Tul (Mountain Folk)** | Might, Fortitude          | —         | **Climbing**, **Masonry**, **Survival**        | **Stoneborn**, **Enduring Line**, **Mountain’s Call**                |
| **Myou**                | Presence, Spirit, Agility | Fortitude | **Stealth**, **Herbalism**, **Seduction**      | **Spore Kiss**, **Alluring Form**, **Fungal Resilience**             |
| **Tlaxcal**             | Might, Agility, Wits      | Focus     | **Brawl**, **Tracking**, **Intimidation**      | **Predator’s Reflex**, **Blooded Fury**, **Jaguar Spirit**           |
| **Akumei**              | Fortitude, Spirit, Focus  | Presence  | **Stealth**, **Occultism**, **Intimidation**   | **Void’s Whisper**, **Unnerving Presence**, **Witchblood Endurance** |


Re## **Step 3: Choose a Culture**
Your culture is the environment and traditions that raised you.

**What You Gain**:
- **Skill Increases:** Gain skill ranks appropriate to your culture’s traditions.   
- **Tier 1 Cultural Ability:** Choose **one Tier 1 ability** from the **Culture Ability Tree**.

> Cultures root you in the world’s geography and history. A knightly culture is very different from one shaped by frontier survival or urban intrigue.

| Culture                    | Skill Increases (+1)                              | Tier 1 Abilities (choose one)                                      | Description                                                                     |
| -------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------ | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Mentralian Kingdoms**    | **Melee**, **Command**, **Etiquette**             | **Knight’s Bearing**, **Relic Bearer**, **Courtly Presence**       | The heartland kingdoms of honor, law, and knightly codes.                       |
| **Annwyn**                 | **Survival**, **Attune**, **Lore (Spirits)**      | **Echo of the Green**, **Ancestral Ward**, **Myrddhin’s Mark**     | A spirit-bound island realm where ancestral oaths shape life and death.         |
| **Free Cities**            | **Persuasion**, **Streetwise**, **Trade**         | **Guild Ties**, **City Rat**, **Silver Tongue**                    | Independent city-states steeped in commerce, politics, and intrigue.            |
| **Frontier (The Reaches)** | **Survival**, **Tracking**, **Brawl**             | **Wilderness Instinct**, **Border Warden**, **Hardened Survivor**  | Harsh borderlands where only the cunning and strong endure.                     |
| **Golden Coast**           | **Trade**, **Subterfuge**, **Navigation**         | **Mercantile Ties**, **Sea Legs**, **Cunning Broker**              | Cosmopolitan port cities built on maritime trade and opportunism.               |
| **Lao Shan**               | **Discipline**, **Herbalism**, **Unarmed Combat** | **Meditative Focus**, **Spirit Harmony**, **Hidden Strike**        | Remote mountain monasteries devoted to spirits, wisdom, and martial arts.       |
| **Mountain Folk**          | **Climbing**, **Masonry**, **Survival**           | **Stone Fortitude**, **Ancestral Bastion**, **Deep Roots**         | Highland strongholds where hardy clans guard ancestral halls.                   |
| **Pharos**                 | **Lore (Occult)**, **Alchemy**, **Etiquette**     | **Initiate’s Insight**, **Obelisk Tuning**, **Esoteric Rituals**   | Ancient centers of occult study and rigid scholastic hierarchies.               |
| **Shogunate (Kyourin)**    | **Discipline**, **Melee**, **Stealth**            | **Pain Discipline**, **Clan Patronage**, **Spirit Ward**           | A void-touched realm of iron discipline, clan loyalty, and spirit-welded souls. |
| **Temerian Empire**        | **Tactics**, **Command**, **Lore (Empire)**       | **Imperial Drill**, **Legionary’s Resolve**, **Bureaucratic Pull** | A relentless imperial machine built on military precision and conquest.         |
| **Ashenvale Woods**        | **Stealth**, **Herbalism**, **Attune**            | **Forestborn**, **Camouflage**, **Fungal Sympathy**                | The deep, haunted forests where spirits and predators stalk the unwary.         |

## **Step 4: Choose a Background**
Your background tells the story of **what you did before the game began**.

**What You Gain:**
- **Skill Increases:** Gain additional skills relevant to your vocation or training.
- **Tier 1 Background Ability:** Choose **one Tier 1 ability** from either:
    - Your **Profession Ability Tree** (if it exists), or
    - A relevant **Skill Tree** you have unlocked.

> Backgrounds make you mechanically and narratively distinct: a Temple Acolyte doesn’t solve problems like a Thief, even if they share species or culture.

## **Step 5: Choose an Age Category**
Your age shapes the balance between raw potential and accumulated expertise.

|Age Category|Attribute Modifier (Marks)|Skill Modifier (Marks)|Attribute Caps|Skill Caps|
|---|---|---|---|---|
|**Child**|**+20 Attribute Marks**|**–10 Skill Marks**|Rank **3** (all attributes)|Rank **3**|
|**Young Adult**|**+10 Attribute Marks**|**–5 Skill Marks**|Rank **4** (all attributes)|Rank **3**|
|**Adult**|None|None|Rank **4** (all attributes)|Rank **4**|
|**Middle Aged**|**–10 Attribute Marks**|**+5 Skill Marks**|Physical Attributes capped at **3**Mental Attributes capped at **4**|Rank **4**|
|**Venerated**|**–20 Attribute Marks**|**+10 Skill Marks**|Physical Attributes capped at **3**Mental Attributes capped at **4**|Rank **4**|

> Attribute Modifiers and Skill Modifiers adjust your Mark Pools in Step 6.

## **Step 6: Distribute Marks**
Each character starts with a pool of **Attribute Marks (X)** and **Skill/Ability Marks (Y)** based on **Starting Level**. Then apply your **Age Category modifiers** from Step 5.

| Start Level  | Attribute Marks (X) | Skill/Ability Marks (Y) |
| ------------ | ------------------- | ----------------------- |
| **Gritty**   | **90**              | **20**                  |
| **Standard** | **110**             | **30**                  |
| **Veteran**  | **130**             | **40**                  |

### **Spending Marks**
| Type           | Formula                       |
| -------------- | ----------------------------- |
| **Attributes** | **New Rank × 10 Marks**       |
| **Skills**     | **New Rank × New Rank Marks** |
| **Abilities**  | **Tier × 3 Marks**            |
> You already have **3 free Tier 1 abilities** from Species, Culture, and Background. Use your remaining Marks to expand your strengths or shore up weaknesses.

---

## **Step 7: Choose Starting Equipment**
Equipment will be defined once the **Wealth and Equipment system** is finalized. For now:

- Choose items that logically fit your species, culture, and background  
- Coordinate with your group to ensure party balance.
    

> Examples:
> - A Myou herbalist might start with poisons and a small alchemy kit.
> - A knightly squire might start with a simple sword, shield, and dented armor.


## **Character Creation Summary**

1. Define Concept
2. Choose Species (**Attribute/Skill increases + Species Ability**)
3. Choose Culture (**Skill increases + Culture Ability**)
4. Choose Background (**Skill increases + Background Ability**)
5. Choose Age (**modify Mark pools and attribute/skill caps**)
6. Distribute Marks (**Attributes, Skills, and Additional Abilities**)
7. Choose Starting Equipment

## **Example: Creating Ser Berrick, Knight of the Ashen Crown**

To show how the process works, here’s how we create **Ser Berrick**, a middle-aged Shayakar knight sworn to defend travelers in the wild lands of the Mentralian Kingdoms.
### **Step 1 – Concept**

We decide that Ser Berrick is a **middle-aged knight** who patrols dangerous roads to protect the innocent. He is loyal to the **Ashen Crown order**, one of the knightly branches of the Shayakar.

### **Step 2 – Species (Mentralian Tul)**

Berrick is a human from the Mentralian Kingdoms.

- **Attribute Increases:** +1 **Might**, +1 **Fortitude**
- **Skill Increases:** +1 **Athletics**, +1 **Command**
- **Tier 1 Species Ability:** We choose **Born to Lead**, giving him +1 die to **Command** or **Persuasion** rolls when rallying allies.

### **Step 3 – Culture (Mentralian Kingdoms)**
Berrick was raised in the traditions of the Kingdoms’ knightly codes.

- **Skill Increases:** +1 **Melee**, +1 **Ride**
- **Tier 1 Cultural Ability:** We choose **Knight’s Bearing**, giving +1 die to **Command** or **Persuasion** when upholding the knightly code.    

### **Step 4 – Background (Squire / Shayakar)**
Berrick trained from youth as a squire and was eventually sworn into the **Shayakar** order.

- **Skill Increases:** +1 **Melee**, +1 **Etiquette**
- **Background Ability:** We choose **Spirit-Bonded** from the **Shayakar Core Tree**, giving him a bonded spirit and a Vowblade that can be summoned or banished at will.    

### **Step 5 – Age (Middle Aged)**
As a seasoned knight, Berrick is **middle aged**:

- **Base Pool (Standard Start):** 100 Attribute Marks / 30 Skill Marks
- **Age Modifiers:** –10 Attribute Marks, +5 Skill Marks
- **Final Pools:** 90 Attribute Marks and 35 Skill Marks
- **Caps:** Physical Attributes capped at Rank 3, Mental Attributes capped at Rank 4

### **Step 6 – Distribute Marks**
**Attributes (90 Marks):**  
We assign Attributes using the cost (New Rank × 10 Marks).
- **Might 3** (cap reached)
- **Agility 2**
- **Fortitude 2**
- **Wits 1**
- **Focus 1**
- **Presence 2**
- **Spirit 2**
- **Cunning 1**

**Skills (35 Marks):**  
We raise skills using the cost (New Rank × New Rank Marks).

- **Melee 3**    
- **Athletics 2**
- **Command 2**
- **Shields 2**
- **Intimidation 2**
- **Medicine 2**
- **Ride 1**
- **Etiquette 1**
- **Climbing 1**
- **Tracking 1**
- **Philosophy 1**

### **Step 7 – Starting Equipment**
As a Shayakar knight, Berrick begins play with his **Vowblade** (a longsword) and a **shield**, plus rugged knight-patrol gear.    

### Character Summary

> **Ser Berrick – Ashen Crown Shayakar Knight**
>![[Pasted image 20250731183401.png|hsmall center]]
>Ser Berrick is a stalwart frontline defender and inspiring leader who uses his Shayakar vows and knightly training to keep allies safe.
> **Attributes:** Might 3, Agility 2, Fortitude 2, Wits 1, Focus 1, Presence 2, Spirit 2, Cunning 1
> **Skills:** Melee 3, Athletics 2, Command 2, Shields 2, Intimidation 2, Medicine 2, Ride 1, Etiquette 1, Climbing 1, Tracking 1, Philosophy 1
> **Abilities:**
> - **Born to Lead** (Species) – +1 die to Command or Persuasion when rallying allies    
> - **Knight’s Bearing** (Culture) – +1 die to Command or Persuasion when upholding the knightly code       
>  - **Spirit-Bonded** (Background/Shayakar) – bonded spirit and Vowblade