Table of Contents 00. Introduction 01. Roleplay Prompts 02. In-Game 03. Additional Notes Back to Top
Three On A Match - Advancing Along Your Path

Growth & Advancement

Introduction

Advancement through the ranks in a Path is not required, but it is rewarded. Although each character can develop new powers according to their keywords without gaining a rank, advancement allows you to increase a character’s Cinder pool and gain access to more keyword slots and abilities. For this, we have the advancement prompts.

The prompts are creative challenges. There is no one correct way to complete them, you find out how it would work for your character and use the dice to play it out. In order to fulfill a prompt, a character must utilize the Strike & Cinder system. This means that although ranking up and using the dice system is entirely optional, in order to gain ranks, you must use the dice system.

Requirement and Prompt Types

There are four different types of requirements: events, ability instances, encounters, and thread prompts. The first, ability instances, are uses of the dice system in a post (Strike or Cinder, for any occasion). There can be multiples of these per thread and each one can be counted towards the requirements, but they cannot be twice for ranking up.

The events and encounters are participation in admin or player-run events, or an encounter with a mod-requested monster. Success or victory is not required, just participation and engagement.

Thread prompts, are as the name implies - they are meant to be utilized in a thread, either as a starter or open or something that happens midway through a thread.

Prompts and ability instances can be planned or spontaneous, whichever works for your storytelling. The important thing is that your character has these experiences and the players have fun exploring their characters in these scenarios.

Using Threads for Advancement

For a thread to count towards a requirement, it must be at least 10 posts, with at least 5 posts dedicated to the requirement if it is a thread prompt.

The prompts do not need to be fulfilled in the listed order, but once you use a thread for Advancement, you cannot use it again. Below is a list of when threads can or can't be used.

Event: Must be listed, but can be used again in Ability Instances and Encounters or Thread Prompts.
Ability Instance: Counts times an ability, Keyword, or particular dice roll is used in threads. The thread can be used for other Advancements (Event and Encounter or Thread Prompts), but only once.
Encounter: A single Encounter thread. If a thread is used for this, it cannot be used for a thread prompt.
Thread Prompt: A single thread fulfilling a specified prompt. If a thread is used for this, it cannot be used for an Encounter.

Mundane Skills: Similarly to Path Advancement, threads used for the various prompts to gain Mundane skills can only be used once, but they can be used if they've been used for Path Advancement, as the two are separate rankings. The Strike instances across those threads can be collated together, however.


Roleplay Prompts

Humble Beginnings - Untrained

Circlebreaker, Mischance, Dissonant, Sanguine, Reden, Ashen, Echo

Path-Specific

Origin Thread Prompts

  • Arcanist: Perform your first ritual
  • Cursed: Become Cursed
  • Possessed: Become Possessed
  • Half-Blood: Be born
  • Shifter: Be born or afflicted
  • Undying: Die and return by magical means
  • Spirit: Die

Untrained Dabbler

Conjuror, Woe, Host, Touched, Hyrd, Duskborn, Shadow

General

Events

None

Magic Ability Instances

  • Roll Cinder or Strike 20x
  • Use a cantrip, boon, charm, or rank ability x5
  • Utilize Each Keyword 2x

Encounters

  • Participate in Encounter Thread 1x

Path-Specific

Fundamental Thread Prompts

  • Arcanist
    • Perform a ritual
  • Cursed
    • Roll on Sorrows
  • Possessed
    • Communicate with the Passenger
  • Half-Blood
    • Discover or develop a new power based on your keywords
  • Shifter
    • Shift
  • Undying
    • Perform a Grounding Action
  • Spirit
    • Roll to Manifest

Overextend Thread Prompts

  • Arcanist
    • Perform a ritual without a power-source
  • Cursed
    • Experience multiple Sorrows at one time
  • Possessed
    • Experience going Unchained
  • Half-Blood
    • Experience an overwhelming Bloodrush
  • Shifter
    • Experience going Feral
  • Undying
    • Experience the threat of going Monstrous
  • Spirit
    • Experience a Fade

Dabbler Novice

Thaumaturge, Dolor, Imposter, Aberrant, Deor, Charnel, Phantasm

General

Events

Participate in 2 Player-Run or Site Events

Magic Ability Instances

  • Roll Cinder or Strike 30x
  • Use a cantrip, boon, charm, or rank ability x10
  • Utilize Each Keyword 3x

Encounters

  • Participate in Encounter Thread 2x
  • One (1) thread involving tests of skill relevant to your Path with another PC

Path-Specific

Fundamental Thread Prompts

  • Arcanist
    • Perform a ritual with 5 Collected components
    • Perform a ritual with a Keyword outside of your chosen portfolio
  • Cursed
    • Roll on your Sorrows
    • Use your Third Eye ability
  • Possessed
    • Communicate with the Passenger
    • Willingly give control to the Passenger
  • Half-Blood
    • Develop a new power using Keywords
    • Do something typical of your non-human ancestor (f.ex. a thread where a dragon spreads their wings)
  • Shifter
    • Experience an unwilling shift
    • Experience the effects of aconite, either ingested or via touch.
  • Undying
    • Perform a Grounding Action
    • Die and come back
  • Spirit
    • Roll to Manifest
    • Have someone summon you by your true name (Namesake)

Weakness Thread Prompts

  • Arcanist
    • Perform a ritual with non-human or tainted blood
    • Perform a ritual under pressure (rushed casting, less than 3 posts)
  • Cursed
    • Experience the effects of sky iron
    • Experience the effects of a negative Sorrow
  • Possessed
    • Experience the effects of salt
    • Experience the effects of pushing past your limit (going Unchained) and use a Magic Keyword to trigger Luck drain
  • Half-Blood
    • Experience the effect of sky iron
    • Experience the effects of pushing past your limit (Bloodrush) and use a Magic Keyword to trigger Luck drain.
  • Shifter
    • Experience the effects of silver
    • Experience the effects of the new moon
  • Undying
    • Experience the effect of sunlight in an Encounter
    • Experience the effects of pushing past your limit (need to Ground) and use a Magic/Path Keyword to trigger Luck drain
  • Spirit
    • Experience the effect of salt
    • Experience the effects of pushing past your limit (starting to Fade) and use a Magic/Path Keyword to trigger Luck drain.

Novice Apprentice

Augur, Misery, Invoker, Herald, Mundian, Reaver, Spectre

General

Events

Participate in 3 Player-Run or Site Events

Magic Ability Instances

  • Roll Cinder or Strike 35x
  • Use a cantrip, boon, charm, or rank ability x10
  • Utilize Each Keyword 4x

Encounters

  • Participate in Encounter Thread 3x
  • One (1) thread involving tests of skill relevant to your Path with another PC

Path-Specific

Basic Thread Prompts

  • Arcanist
    • Perform a ritual using an unorthodox power-source
    • Scribe a spell in your spellbook
    • Create a magical item or obtain a familiar
  • Cursed
    • Roll on Sorrows
    • Use your Echo ability
    • Use your Trickster ability
  • Possessed
    • Roll Impulse
    • Utilize a Combination Keyword
    • Your Passenger attempts to pretend to be you
  • Half-Blood
    • Experience a Bloodrush
    • Use your Channel ability
    • Discover or develop a new power based on two or more Magic Keywords
  • Shifter
    • Resist a shift
    • Utilize preternatural Strength or Speed
    • Utilize Cinder with one keyword
  • Undying
    • Perform your Grounding act
    • Utilize a Path keyword
    • Lose a limb and have it reattached
  • Spirit
    • Roll to Manifest
    • Use your Possess ability
    • A thread in the Spirit or Dream Realm

Backfire Thread Prompts

  • Arcanist
    • Experience the effects of Resonance
    • Perform a ritual with three or fewer components
    • Experience a ritual backfire
  • Cursed
    • 3x threads with magic going haywire in different ways
  • Possessed
    • Push your magic use to its very limit while Unchained
    • Have your Passenger contradict an action
    • Experience a magical backfire (with a Partial Failure or Failure)
  • Half-Blood
    • Push your magic use to its very limit during a Bloodrush
    • Give in to a negative impulse of your non-human ancestor (f.ex. a siren luring someone to their potential death)
    • Experience a magical backfire (with a Partial Failure or Failure)
  • Shifter
    • Utilize the Combination Keywords and go Feral
    • Inadvertently break something with strength or speed
    • Go Feral in human form
  • Undying
    • Push your magic use to its very limit while needing to Ground
    • Experience the negative effects of neglecting to Ground
    • Experience a magical backfire (with a Partial Failure or Failure)
  • Spirit
    • Push your magic use to its very limit while risking a Fade
    • Possess someone and lose control of them
    • Experience a magical backfire (with a Partial Failure or Failure)

Apprentice Master

Magus, Scourge, Steward, Scion, Bewarian, Revenant, Mane

Coming Soon

Master Legendary

Archmage, Calamity, Covenant, Apotheosis, Ferhweard, Cenotite, Eidolon

Coming Soon

Training Mundane Skills

Training mundane skills is fairly straightforward. Pick the Brawler, Melee Weapons, or Ballistic skills and show us your character working on the skill. The threads must make good use of the skill, so a happenstance use of a knife does not count.

You are can rank these up alongside each other, rather than focusing on one at a time. The tracks repeat for all three Mundane Skills, while the Unranked Skills can only be earned once.

Threads used from advancing along your Path can be reused for fulfilling the requirements for Mundane Skills, but you cannot repeat threads between Mundane advancements.

Ranked Skills

Untrained Rank 1

  • 1x thread training in desired skill
  • 1x thread utilizing desired skill
  • 1x thread utilizing desired skill in Encounter
  • 10x rolling Strike utilizing desired skill

Rank I Rank II

  • 2x threads training
  • 2x threads utilizing Mundane Keyword
  • 2x threads utilizing Mundane Keyword in Encounter
  • 20x rolling Strike utilizing desired skill

Rank II Rank III

  • 3x thread training
  • 3x threads utilizing Mundane Keyword
  • 3x threads utilizing Mundane Keyword in Encounter
  • 30x rolling Strike utilizing desired skill

Rank III Rank VI

  • 4x thread training
  • 4x threads utilizing Mundane Keyword
  • 4x threads utilizing Mundane Keyword in Encounter
  • 40x rolling Strike utilizing desired skill

Unranked Skills

Iron Will

  • 5x threads encountering mind-affecting magic

Exchange Training

  • Participate in Encounter Thread 5x with another member of the Exchange while being an active member of the Exchange

Framing Advancement In Game

Players are permitted and encouraged to frame ranking up in different ways since it is an OOC framework and ranks do not exist in-game. For the characters, their growth will seem gradual and not everyone will experience it the same way. So, while the default is discovering new powers as the character gains experience, some players may like to try a different approach for their character concept.

This can include the character “possessing” all the abilities they will eventually obtain, but narratively being blocked off from utilizing them. This could be a mental block, a magic block, or anything else you might want to use for your storytelling.

Mechanically, these characters function the same way as a character who is discovering new powers as they advance. If you do not have the keyword, you cannot utilize the powers.

Important Notes

These are likely to change in playtesting and even have the potential to become more difficult as we work on balance. If a character has fulfilled previous requirements and ranked up, then they can expect to be grandfathered in. If they are two or fewer requirements away from ranking up, then they can also expect to be grandfathered in via previous requirements.

As always, feedback is welcome, as we're always looking to improve the fun and intrigue of the game. Thank you!