Getting Started

Quick Start

As with everything, always start with the story.

Character Concept

"Her name is Kessa - she's a smart-mouthed thief! She grew up in the merchant quarter and knows every alley and rooftop, and looks out for the neighborhood kids. She can pick pockets and locks, right?"

In some systems a 'thief class' defines whatever abilities the designers thought thieves should have, but there's no thief class in Level One. There are no "classes" at all. You build the character concept you want from thematically simple Roles combined however makes sense for your story.

Roles and Maneuvers

GM: "Great concept! You'll want Sneak for stealth. Picking pockets isn't a whole Role, it would be a Sleight of Hand Maneuver on Sneak or Performer. Knowing the streets could be Loremaster, or maybe a specialized Sneak Maneuver if it only applies to being stealthy. Locks would need Tinker."

"I don't really care about locks so much, but Performer sounds like fun! I can have both? She could juggle and busk for extra coins while scoping out targets!"

GM: "Mixing Roles is the whole idea!"

"What do I get at level 2?"

GM: "Levelling up makes you a little better at everything and a little tougher, but never gives you any new skills. It just means you've seen more and have more grit. Skills come from Roles. Getting better at a Role means increasing its rank instead of your Level. More abilities means advancing a Role and picking up new Maneuvers, or spending Karma to add other Roles."

Roles are thematic. You customize with the Maneuvers you choose at each rank. Characters always start at Level 1 for free, but Level increases always cost the new value in Karma, the unit of experience. A Role can never be higher than your Level.

The first rank of any Role is always one Karma, and each increase costs the current value. Groups can start with any amount of initial Karma, but we suggest 0-5. With zero, you are Level 1, period - you have no Karma to buy even one role.

"OH! I really like her being super sneaky anywhere in the city, but also knowing people and little hidey-holes. Maybe not so great out in the woods though?"

GM: "Sounds like Sneak, Performer, and Loremaster. Making a minstrel?"

"Nope! Just a charismatic grifter! Is that ok?"

GM: "Absolutely. Roles are what you say they are, as long as you use them to do what they do. Let's start out with 5 Karma to build."

Negotiating Details

"I like being better at the basics more than just ok at more stuff. She grew up in this school of hard knocks! I'll take Level 2. I can afford one more Role - Loremaster isn't just dusty old books? She really knows her way around!"

GM: "Ok. Performer for social engineering, with Sleight of Hand for picking pockets, street magic, juggling and such. Loremaster for a detailed mental map, with Street Network for shortcuts, hiding places, gang turfs and patrol beat schedules. Sneak for Stealth, urban-focused - let's call it a Child of the City Shadows Maneuver. All we need is a Hook."

Character Drives

It may seem like an afterthought, but this is really the core of good character creation. What's important to them? What motivates them?

"Well, how about 'She watches out for the neighborhood kids.' Could that be it?"

GM: "That's almost perfect. Let's make it a little more dramatic and flexible. How about 'We Take Care Of Our Own'? It doesn't have to be kids, but certainly applies. Sound good?"

"Yeah! She also watches out for the blind beggar who sits by the market gate, and the old woman who takes in laundry to earn a few coins. This is getting good!"

This should create dilemmas. She is driven to care for and protect the folk of her downtrodden underworld, but feeding them often means stealing. Getting caught means a head-first dash through the bazaar to get away, or being thrown in the city's dungeon. Crime hurts people, and the Market Street Urchins she feeds sometimes don't approve… but she'll still throw herself into a fight she can't win if one is in trouble.

It also means protecting them from other criminals in the area - petty crooks who would rob the beggar and extort the washerwoman. Kessa's not a fighter, so she'll have to figure out how to deal with these threats. Hooks cause problems which should happen at least once every session; this is how she earns more Karma!

Putting It Together

Meet Kessa. With 5 starting Karma to spend she buys Level 2 (2 Karma).

She buys the first rank of three Roles, each of which comes with a free Maneuver:

Sneak 1 (1 Karma) - for moving unseen and unheard

Performer 1 (1 Karma) - for fast-talk and social manipulation

Loremaster 1 (1 Karma) - she really does know those streets

Her Hook: We Take Care Of Our Own 1 (free, starts at rank 1)

We've built a "thief" character who can steal, lie, hide, and navigate the urban underworld, and she has a reason to do these things, to take risks and get in trouble. Notice she still can't pick locks or climb very well. Level One doesn't give you abilities you didn't choose, and that's intentional. Those skills can come later as the story demands, after she's earned some more Karma…or not, if she decides she doesn't want them.

She doesn't fight very well, but she can always just use her base Level of 2, and she can use the skills she does have - she can taunt with Performer, give herself social advantages that apply in a fight, and possibly cut someone so deep with a biting comment that they decide to retire from the conflict! In Level One you have options…

At only Level 2 she's pretty green and weak, but she has more spine than some. She can take a small hit or setback and press on, but she's still fragile. She'll need to be careful, and get some Karma under her belt, but that's easy, as we'll see.