Entitlements/Custom/Creation

Creating a Custom Entitlement

The information below is what staff asks of all players who choose to create/submit a pitch for a new, custom Entitlement.

When thinking about making one, you will need to be aware of all merits, contracts and existing entitlement privileges, to be sure yours does not duplicate them.

No custom entitlement will be approved if it is too close to an existing order.

Checklist

Every entitlement requires the following information:

Name

History / Theme / Founder(s)

Titles

Prerequisites

Joining method(s)

Appearance / Mien changes

Backgrounds members come from

Organization within the Entitlement (ranks, etc.) & outside of it

Concepts which lend themselves to being members

Privilege(s) of membership

Rumors about the Entitlement

Once you have all of the above written up, send a +req/pitch Custom Entitlement=<your stuff> to staff.

It is totally fine to write it all in, say, a Google Doc and put a link to that in the +request.

Custom Entitlements will require a lot of review on staff's part. It will take time, and depending on how much/whether it pushes lines, this could mean weeks of internal review and balancing.

Name

What is your Entitlement's name?

Remember, these are noble orders. This is not a social club. It took a LOT of work to build the order up, and to make it respected among other Changelings.

It would be massively inappropriate to try to have one named "Billy Joe-Bob's Coffee Junkies" or "The Lazy Truck Drivers of Springfield".

History & Theme

This should be a fairly detailed writeup. We're talking multiple paragraphs, at least a full page in Word. Look at the examples in the books for ideas of what is appropriate.

How old is the Entitlement? What purpose do they serve in society? Where are they common? Why do they even exist?

Is this a well-known group or are they clandestine? If they are a secret society, how do they keep themselves a secret?

Founder

Who founded the Entitlement? Was this an NPC? A player?

Titles

What are members called?

For example, members of the Lost Pantheon are called Ancients/Daemons/Totems. Members of the Bishopric of Blackbirds are called Blackbird Bishops.

Noble orders get noble titles. Instead of being called Mr. Charles Rackham, you could be Sir Charles Rackham, or Master Builder Charles Rackham, or Duke Charles Rackham, etc.

They also get less noble nicknames. ;)

Prerequisites

What stats should people have?

In most cases, there is a Wyrd limit. Check the book (or go through the pages linked to the Entitlements page here for a quick cheat sheet) for these.

If the Entitlement is a powerful one, it will have tight, restrictive prerequisites to make it more difficult to get into.

Joining

How do people become members?

Can they just walk up to a member and ask?

Do members watch people and choose them?

Et cetera, et cetera.

Appearance & Mien Changes

What do members tend to wear? Do they have a uniform or a particular style? How does a character's Mien change when they join?

Examples:

• The Barony of the Lesser Ones - The mien changes ensure that whatever they wear is decorated with knot-work patterns that resembled a stylized version of the Hedge. At higher Wyrd, some Barons start to resemble hobgoblins.
• College of Worms - Most have scholarly appearances, and may wear robes or ceremonial clothes. The mien has a suggestion of worms crawling beneath the skin. At high wyrd, worms may pop out of the skin. Eyeglasses of any sort will appear on the diviner's face, and the lenses are always cracked.
• The Legion of the Iron Wall - Even at low Wyrd they seem dangerous. Smooth edges blunt, lines sharpen. They show scars and signs of battles, and their weapons always look used rather than shiny and new. Higher wyrd gives them old blood on their mien, either on their skin or clothes.
• The Office of the Vizieral Counsel - The changes reflect the personality of the Vizier in magical ways. A lusty Vizier might have skin that shows tendrils of red smoke. An angry Vizier might have lightning or static surrounding him.

Backgrounds

Does the Entitlement tend to take people from particular walks of life? What sorts of things are expected of prospective members?

Do they target the poor and the helpless to raise them up into the order? Do they favor strong warriors who have proven themselves to be champions? Do they appreciate cleverness and education?

See the books for examples.

Organization

This covers both internal and external organization.

• Does the entitlement have ranks? If so, what are they, what do they do, and how are they handled?

(Very few have official ranking systems.)

• What does the entitlement do as part of a freehold/court? How do they relate to other changelings?

Concepts

What are common concepts appropriate for members?

Remember, your concept is a short phrase which describes your character.

Example:

• The Hound Tribunal concepts: axe-man, clandestine hangman, clergyman, Darkling assassin, ex-cop, fairest liaison to the monarch, king’s right-hand-man, secret judge, talented abductor.

Privileges

Here's the part most people join for. What extra mechanical and social goodies to people get for being a member?

Examples

The Duchy of Truth and Loss The False Face of Truth (2-dot token) This is a badge or pin that looks like an inhuman doll face. If a drop of blood or strand of hair is touched to it, they will know instantly if it came from a fetch. Hedgespun Jacket (2-dot) A free Hedgespun jacket is also provided. HR - Due to their skills at studying potential Fetches, Dukes/Duchesses gain a +2 bonus on all Investigation rolls.	The Honorable Order of the Third Hour Upon joining, each member may take a 3-dot Hedge Automaton for free. This represents their journeyman project. They also get +4 to create, repair or understand the workings of any device which is a mix of technology and magic. Does not work for things with no moving parts or 'low tech' devices.
The Lost Pantheon (high power!) Primordial Incarnation Perception based penalties based on Clarity are reversed, instead becoming bonuses. These are also added to Wyrd for purposes of determining longevity. Glamour may also be distilled out of the worship of mortals, though this requires showing their true form to unensorcelled mortals. HR - To make the above worth doing, the Ancient has more control over his own Mask, but risks accidental revelations of his godly being by exercising it. By spending 3 Glamour and 1 Willpower, he may drop the Mask on command, but for the next 24 hours, must roll Resolve + Composure when feeling any strong passions. On failure, any unensorcelled mortals catch a brief glimpse of some part of the deity's Mien. They also receive a +2 bonus to attack, defy or engage in aggression against the Gentry, their powers or their minions.	The Office of the Vizieral Counsel (high power!) Eternal Advisor The Vizier doesn't age. Period. Dying is still possible, she just doesn't age, at least unless she leaves the Viziers. If that happens, the 'normal' years catch up. Clarity of Duty Gain +5 dice when making a roll to resist the manifestation of a current derangement. Also get +1 to any Clarity rolls made to resist gaining new derangements. Major frailties can be ignored, but Minor frailties still apply. However, if they leave the order, they automatically lose a dot of clarity. Clausemaker's Boon If a Vizier's player can explain how a clause of a Contract helps in performing her duties to the king/queen sufficiently, then it only costs as much as a merit (new dots x 2) regardless of whether it's affinity or non-affinity.
Magistrates of the Wax Mask Waxen Violet (2 dot token) This is a small purple flower and preserved in wax. This gives off a pleasing aroma that lingers around the magistrate. Those within 50 yards perceive the Magistrate as humble and trustworthy. HR - One wouldn't like to be labeled a busybody or a bully, no no; once per day, a Magistrate may apply a +3 bonus to a Persuasion roll meant to bring someone around to their point of view through humble suggestions and delicate tact.	Phantom Tong Criminal Network Upon joining, a character takes a free Specialty in Larceny or Streetwise, and any Allies or Contacts related to the criminal world cost new dots x 1.

Rumors

What do people gossip about the group?

See the books for examples. The rumors are typically exaggerated versions of what they really do. Like... the Legacy of the Black Apple is a group of ballsy diplomats who act as intermediaries between regular changelings and the True Fae themselves.

From Lords of Summer, p.146:

• They are secret loyalists. They negotiate with the Keepers not to keep the freeholds safe but to keep the Gentry safe.
• Maybe they do good work, but each must sacrifice something to a Keeper to earn a benefit. What that “something” is, nobody knows. Some say it’s a bit of herself in the form of a dot of Willpower or from a Physical Attribute. Maybe it’s a beloved memory. Worse, it could be a friend or a loved one…
• That beggar from the original story? He’s still alive, out there somewhere. Maybe in the Hedge. Maybe he goes from freehold to freehold, helping with situations that seem otherwise untenable. Some say he’s become one of the Gentry, though how this is possible remains unclear. And how that’s a good thing remains even foggier.