Potential
From Edge of Darkness Wiki
Entropy is an active force in the world, attempting to break down all aspects of reality. Left unguided and unsupported, all manner of things will deteriorate, whether they be objects falling to decay, politics tangling to disorder or ideals tarnishing into apathy. To combat this force and bring about positive change, active effort must be made. Determining where and when to bring about change is a heavy responsibility, but to ignore it is to concede the Lost existence to destruction, and that is an unacceptable fate to allow.
They are, however, considered non-affinity Contracts for any Lost who is not a part of the Dawn Court. Those with Dawn Court Goodwill can also purchase them as affinity Contracts.
Contract Levels
Light the Path (•)
Lost are as capable of duplicity and subterfuge as any other sentient beings, but an accurate understanding of an-other’s true motives can be vital when determining what path to take forward. For the Dawn Courtier whose life is at stake (along with the lives and Clarity of others), being able to sense others’ true motivations in taking a certain action can be vital.
- Prerequisite: Mantle(Dawn) • or Court Goodwill(Dawn) ••
- Cost: 1 Glamour
- Dice Pool: Wits + Wyrd versus subject’s Composure + Wyrd
- Action: Instant
- Catch: The changeling has caught the target in a lie previously.
Roll Results
- Dramatic Failure: The changeling receives an incorrect motivation about the specified action or statement, and believes it to be true.
- Failure: The character cannot discern the target’s motivation.
- Success: The changeling learns one of the subject’s motivations of the specified action or statement.
- Exceptional Success: The character learns two motivations of the specified action or statement or that only a single motivation exists for it.
Read the Web (••)
No man is an island. When decisive action must be taken, knowing the relationship between those involved can help to minimize potential unexpected backsplash from said action. Being able to sense where one’s allies or enemies exist is even more helpful. A changeling with this clause can perceive and interpret the relationships of those around him, as represented by a web of ethereal threads perceivable only to him.
- Prerequisite: Mantle(Dawn) •• or Court Goodwill(Dawn) •••
- Cost: 2 Glamour
- Dice Pool: Intelligence + Wyrd – subject’s Composure
- Action: Instant
- Catch: The changeling shares a pledge with the target.
Roll Results
- Dramatic Failure: The character misreads the relationship threads between the target and other individuals. This could manifest as if no web existed, or in a wholly inaccurate set of readings.
- Failure: The changeling is unable to perceive any relationship ties between the target and others.
- Success: The character perceives the connections between the target and those presently around him as translucent threads that run between them. This effect lasts only for a single turn, and the amount of information gleaned is equal to the number of successes achieved (see Relationship Threads sidebar for details.) Examples of information gleaned include but are not limited to: whether the target has a relationship tie with the other individual, the general length of acquaintance, the intensity of the target’s feelings for or about the other individual, the dominant emotion the target is feeling for or about the other individual at the moment, whether the target shares an oath with the other individual and how significant that oath is.
- Exceptional Success: As per a success, however the number of pieces of information gleaned is twice the number of successes.
Martyr’s Will (•••)
Sometimes doing what must be done to help bring about change demands more than the average Lost can provide. For those who steel themselves to the task, however, using Martyr’s Will can bolster their resolve and supplement their bravery even beyond what Heroic Effort normally can reach.
- Prerequisite: Mantle(Dawn) ••• or Court Goodwill(Dawn) ••••
- Cost: 3 Glamour
- Dice Pool: Resolve + Wyrd
- Action: Instant
- Catch: The changeling deliberately sheds a few drops of his own blood.
- Drawback: Using Martyr’s Will stretches the potential of even the strongest Lost’s Willpower. After successfully activating this clause, the changeling may not regain Willpower by any means for the next 24 hours.
Roll Results
- Dramatic Failure: The changeling’s will is simply not strong enough to bolster them. The Contract fails, and any attempts to spend Willpower to gain bonuses to actions or Resistance efforts garner one less die bonus than normal (ie: only 2 for Heroic Effort and 1 for Resistance efforts.)
- Failure: The Contract fails to have any effect.
- Success: For the remainder of the scene after activating Martyr’s Will, the changeling receives an additional +2 dice bonus (for a total of a +5 dice bonus) to any action where Willpower is being expended for Heroic Effort (pp. 132–133 of the World of Darkness Rulebook.) They also receive a +2 die bonus to any Resistance efforts where Willpower is expended (for a total of a +4 dice bonus.)
- Exceptional Success: As with a normal success, but the effect of Martyr’s Will lasts until the next sunrise.
Shift the Foundation (••••)
Sometimes one’s own efforts are not enough to create great change, and allies must be formed or opinions swayed. This clause allows the Dawn Court to create fundamental (although temporary) changes in others, shifting their Virtue or Vice to one which is more conducive to the targeting changeling’s goals.
- Prerequisite: Mantle(Dawn) •••• or Court Goodwill(Dawn) •••••
- Cost: 3 Glamour
- Dice Pool: Manipulation + Expression + Dusk Court versus the subject’s Composure + Subterfuge
- Action: Instant
- Catch: The changeling and target are actively involved in a conversation related to the Vice or Virtue he hopes to shift the target towards.
Roll Results
- Dramatic Failure: The targeted individual’s Virtue or Vice is unchanged. Instead, the changeling’s Virtue or Vice (whichever he was attempting to shift) changes to match that of the target.
- Failure: The clause fails to have any effect.
- Success: The target’s Virtue or Vice temporarily changes to that specified by the changeling. If the target’s Virtue or Vice is already what the changeling is attempting to shift it to (either naturally or because it has been successfully shifted previously), that Virtue or Vice is strengthened, and the target must make a successful Resolve + Composure roll (or spend a Willpower) to avoid taking action in any situation where their Virtue or Vice comes into play. Either effect lasts until the next sunrise.
- Exceptional Success: As with a normal success, but the target makes a Resolve + Composure check at the next dawn. If he fails, the effects continue until sunset. Tests are run at each dawn and sunset and the effects last until the target succeeds in his roll.
Tenacity of Hope (•••••)
Some victories are simply too important to allow any- thing to keep them from being accomplished. By using Tenacity of Hope, a changeling can supernaturally dedicate himself towards achieving a certain goal and be aided by the force of the Wyrd in their efforts.
A changeling attempting to activate this clause must focus it towards a certain specific goal that is achievable through the action of the Lost in question. The Storyteller is the final authority on what goals are acceptable to use for this clause, and whether a specific goal has been accomplished or not.
“To survive” is never an acceptable goal for the purpose of this clause. The Wyrd will not make bargains in a situation where its price (the drawback) has no chance of being fulfilled.
- Prerequisite: Mantle(Dawn) •••• or Court Goodwill(Dawn) •••••
- Cost: 3 Glamour and 1 Willpower
- Dice Pool: Resolve + Wyrd
- Action: Instant
- Catch: The target is using this Contract for a selfless purpose (ie: to benefit someone other than himself, or Lost society as a whole.)
- Drawback: Once the Contract is successfully activated, if the specified task is not fully accomplished before the Contract wears off, the character receives a penalty of –3 dice on all attempted actions and a –2 dice penalty on all Resistance efforts (not just those related to the goal) for a number of days equal to the duration of the clause. If the goal is achieved during the drawback, the drawback ends immediately.
Roll Results
- Dramatic Failure: The changeling fails to receive any benefit to attempts to accomplish the specified task, and loses the benefit of the 10-again rule on any attempts related towards that task for the next 24 hours; attempts by the changeling to activate Tenacity of Hope on that that specific task within the next 24 hours will automatically fail.
- Failure: The clause fails to have any effect.
- Success: The changeling receives the benefits of the 8-again rule towards any actions taken to accomplish the specific goal focused on while activating it. As well, any action or resistance rolls directly related to achieving that goal are made as if they were under the effects of Heroic Effort rules (p. 132, World of Darkness Rulebook). These include a +3 die bonus to any actions taken towards achieving the goal and a +2 die bonus to Resistance efforts related to attempts to deter or delay their efforts towards the goal. These bonuses end when the task is completed, or after a number of days equal to the number of successes achieved, whichever comes first.
If the goal is accomplished before the Contract wears off, no drawback is enacted. Once activated, Tenacity of Hope cannot be voluntarily “turned off” before the duration runs out or the task is accomplished, whichever comes first.
- Exceptional Success: As with a normal success, but the changeling receives the benefits for a number of days equal to twice the amount of successes rolled or until the goal is achieved, whichever comes first.
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