Merits
Contents
Merits
Where any and all information about accepted merits/HRs for them exist. Not finished!
Changeling Merits
All Changeling merits from the books are valid, except for the Fatebound merits.
- Age Reversal • (NH:GF p.84)
- Arcadian Body •••• (RoS p.87)
- Arcadian Metabolism ••• (RoS p.87)
- Brownie's Boon • (RoS p.88)
- Charmed Life •• (RoS p.88)
- Disenchanting Kiss •••• (SaD p.92)
- Dual Kith •• or ••• (RoS p.88)
- Enchanting Performance •••• (RoS p.88)
- Fae Mount •, ••, •••, or ••••• (RoS p.89)
- Faerie Favor ••• (RoS p.90)
- Faerie Healing •• (RoS p.90)
- Gentrified Bearing •••• (RoS p.92)
- Goblin Merchant • or ••• (GM p.34)
- Harvest • to ••••• (CtL p.94)
- Hedge Gate Sense • (RoS p.92)
- Hedgebeast Companion • to ••• (AN p.132)
- Hidden Life • to ••• (RoS p.92)
- Hob Kin •• (RoS p.92)
- Hobgoblin Trainer •• (RoS p.93)
- Lethal Mien •• (RoS p.94)
- Long of Days •• (RoS p.94)
- Manymask • to ••••• (ER p.14)
- Market Familiarity • or ••• (GM p.14)
- Market Sense • (RoS p.94 or GM p.33)
- Market Stall •••• (GM p.34)
- New Identity •, •• or •••• (CtL p.98 or AN p.45)
- No Seeming •• (ER p.107)
- Perfect Stillness • (RoS p.94)
- Pledgesmith • to ••• (RoS p.94)
- Prophet Circle • to ••••• (RoS p.94)
- Rigid Mask •• (RoS p.95)
- Second-Hand Skills • to ••• (GM p.26)
- Shared Sleep • (CtL p.44)
- Siren Song (RoS p.96)
- Slave • to ••••• (GM p.23)
- Soul Sense •• (RoS p.96)
- Sublime ••••• (ER p.14)
- Tokenmaster ••• (ER p.14)
- Visionary Dreams •• (RoS p.97)
- Wholesale Wares • or •• (GM p.35)
- Wisdom of Dreams ••• (RoS p.97)
- Wyrdskill ••• (ER p.15)
Fighting Style
- Dream Combat • to ••••• (RoS p.90)
- Hedge Duelist • to ••••• (RoS p.91)
Kith Restricted
- Kiss of Life •••• (SaD p.24) - Leechfinger
- Subtle Liqueur • (SaD p.29) - Brewer
Entitlement Restricted
- Outsider Fetish • to ••• (LoS p.150) - Lord Sages of the Unknown Reaches
Milestone Merits
- Bloodied Ground
- Broken Mirror
- Cuckoo's Egg
- False Heart
- Fetchbane
- Shared Guilt
CG Only
The merits below must be taken using dots during initial Character Generation. They cannot be purchased via xp.
- Enchanted Mortal •• (ER p.107) - HR: Mortal and Mortal+ characters may both take this merit.
- Seeming ••• (ER p.107) - Must be Fae-touched to take this merit.
Staff-Set via +Request
For one reason or another, the following merits require staff intervention.
- Bastion Amenities • to ••••• (SaD p.108) - See 'news bastions'
- Bastion Battlements • to ••••• (SaD p.108) - Ditto
- Bastion Size • to ••••• (SaD p.108) - Ditto
- Devotee • to ••••• (ER p.14) - Set a +note on yourself. Send a +req/fae to staff asking for approval of your +note and to have Devotee set on your sheet.
- Goblin Vow • to ••••• (RoS p.38) - Send a +req/fae to staff to get approval on your vow. Once vow is approved, set a +note on yourself. Staff will lock the note.
- Goodwill • to ••••• (CtL p.93 & AN p.45) - To get Goodwill, send in a +req/fae to staff with an explanation of why you believe your character should have the goodwill of the court you are looking into. Staff will put your text up in a +vote for that court's members to decide whether or not you get the merit.
- Hedgespun • to ••••• - Send a +req/fae to staff for approval of your idea.
- Hollow Amenities • to ••••• - See 'news hollows'
- Hollow Doors • to ••••• - Ditto
- Hollow Size • to ••••• - Ditto
- Hollow Wards • to ••••• - Ditto
- Mantle • to ••••• (CtL p.97) - Mantle raises require at least a brief sentence of justification.
- Token • to ••••• (CtL p.98) - Send a +req/fae to staff for approval of your idea.
Psychic Merits
The following merits are a blend of Second Sight (SS) and GMC (GMC). Many psychic abilities formerly available were removed in GMC. Fate's Harvest staff thinks they are still shiny, so there will be a few House Rules to make things mesh. If a merit was created for Fate's Harvest by staff, it is marked with (HR) for House Rule.
All "Options" are available in SS merits. All "Drawbacks" are required in GMC merits.
- If you have any of these merits, you are considered a Psychic.
- If you have any of these merits, but also follow a Tradition (Hedge Witch, Shaman, Apostle, etc.) you are considered a Thaumaturge.
ESP Merits
- Astral Projection ••• (SS p.36)
- Clairvoyance ••• (GMC p.172)
- Clairvoyance • (HR) - Prerequisite: Clairvoyance ••• - This merit allows a psychic to add an alternate method of scrying to her repertoire. It may be purchased multiple times. Specify a new scrying method (crystal ball gazing, etc.) with each purchase.
- Dowsing • (SS p.38)
- Dream Travel • to ••••• (SS pp.38-9) - HR: Prerequisites: Astral Projection & Telepathy.
- Postcognition • or ••• (SS p.40)
- Precognition •••• (SS pp.40-1)
- Psychometry ••• (GMC p.174)
Mediumist Merits
- Automatic Writing •• (SS p.42)
- Channeling ••• (SS pp.43-4)
- Death Sight ••• (SS pp.44-5) - HR: Brought down to 3 dots instead of 4, to mesh with scaling of GMC Medium ability. Medium is not used in FH due to staff's preference for certain SS psychic merits which it would preclude.
- Ghost Calling ••• (SS pp.45-6)
Psychokinetic Merits
- Biokinesis • to ••••• (SS pp.46-7/GMC p.172/HR) - The GMC functionality has been retained (1 Willpower + 1 minute of concentration = shift Physical attribute dots around; only shift as many dots as you have dots in Biokinesis, and no attribute can go above 5 dots).
Of what was possible in SS, the following has been retained:
- Passive Bonus: +1 dice bonus per Biokinesis merit dot to rolls for entering a trance/beginning meditation
- Roll extended Intelligence + Composure to acquire one temporary merit-equivalent, spending successes to 'buy' them.
- The psychic must meet all prerequisites for the merit she attempts to give herself.
- The psychic must have Biokinesis dots equal to success-cost + 1. (e.g. a 1-success merit requires Biokinesis ••)
- Effects last 1 scene unless specified otherwise.
- If one of the extended rolls is an Exceptional Success, the psychic may choose a second effect to spend successes on.
- Each roll's duration represents minutes equal to the desired trait's success cost. Only one (or two with Exceptional) effect may be active at a time.
- Biokinesis Merit List:
- Eidetic Memory (WoD p.108) - 2 successes
- Fast Reflexes (WoD p.110) - 1 or 2 successes
- Fleet of Foot (WoD p.112) - 1-3 successes
- Fresh Start (WoD p.112) - 1 success
- Improved Awareness (SS p.46) - 1-3 successes
- Improved Immune System (SS pp.46-7) - 4 successes - Duration varies depending on illness/drug severity. See book.
- Iron Stamina (WoD p.113) - 1-3 successes
- Iron Stomach (WoD p.113) - 2 successes
- Natural Immunity (WoD p.113) - 1 success - Lasts 1 day per Biokinesis dot or until Biokinesis is used again, whichever comes first.
- Pain Resistance (SS p.47) - 3 successes
- Quick Healer (WoD p.113) - 4 successes - Lasts 1 day per Biokinesis dot or until Biokinesis is used again, whichever comes first.
- Strong Back (WoD p.113) - 1 success
- Strong Lungs (WoD p.113) - 3 successes
- Toxin Resistance (WoD p.113) - 2 successes - Lasts 1 day per Biokinesis dot or until Biokinesis is used again, whichever comes first.
- Biokinesis Merit List:
- Plant Empathy • (SS p.49)
- Psychic Healing ••• or ••••• (SS p.49)
- Psychic Vampirism •••• or ••••• (SS pp.49-50)
- Psychokinesis ••• or ••••• (GMC pp.173-4) - HR: to keep psychokinesis in line with other psychic powers and compensate for higher GMC Defense ratings, rather than subtracting Resolve from attacks, use: half Defense (round down) for direct physical attacks (lashing out with fire), Stamina for attacks on the body (dropping someone's body temp).
Short | Yards equal to psychic's Intelligence + Wits + Psychokinesis |
Medium | Twice the above distance (-2 penalty on attack pool) |
Long | Twice medium range (-4 penalty on attack pool) |
- Psychokinetic Immunity ••• (HR) - Prerequisite: Psychokinesis ••• - Your character is completely immune to manifestations of his psychokinetic element. If a Doubting Thomas is present, a successful Stamina + Resolve roll is required to maintain complete protection. If the roll fails, the merit instead provides 1 point of armor that protects only against that element's damage.
- Psychokinetic Shaping ••• (HR) - Prerequisite: Psychokinesis ••• - Your character is more skilled than most at manipulating how an existing manifestation of his element behaves. The electricity in a fallen power line might arc out to strike a foe, a line of fire might streak across the earth to form a flaming wall, or a cup of water might be drawn up into a sculpted, tiny horse to 'spill' its way along a table's edge.
- This merit acts in concert with standard Psychokinesis rolls.
- Whenever your psychic chooses to spend successes on shaping his chosen element, gain a +3 bonus to your Intelligence + Crafts roll.
- Telekinesis • to ••••• (GMC p.174)
Telepathic Merits
- Animal Empathy •• or •••• (SS pp.55-6)
- Animal Possession •••• (SS p.56)
- Animal Rapport ••• to ••••• (SS p.57) - Dot value depends on Size of animal. See book.
- Aura Reading ••• (GMC p.172) - HR: Since the GMC writeup doesn't specifically say so, staff clarifies that the following SS functionality is retained: dematerialized ghosts/spirits/astral projectors show up as faint wispy blobs with this power, enough to show that something is there without showing what, necessarily, it is.
Staff is not going to insist upon a chart of aura colors, but if you prefer to have one, the following chart is based on http://whitewolf.wikia.com/wiki/Aura. Additions have been made.
As a general rule, the more strongly someone feels something, the more brightly that color appears.
Afraid | Orange |
Aggressive | Purple |
Angry | Red |
Anxious | Aura is scrambled like static/white noise |
Bitter | Brown |
Calm | Light Blue |
Compassionate | Pink |
Confused | Mottled, shifting colors |
Conservative | Lavender |
Daydreaming | Sharp, flickering colors |
Depressed | Gray |
Desirous/Lustful | Deep Red |
Distrustful | Light Green |
Envious | Dark Green |
Excited | Violet |
Frenzied | Rapidly rippling colors |
Generous | Rose |
Happy | Vermilion |
Hateful | Black |
Idealistic | Yellow |
Innocent | White |
Lovestruck | Blue |
Obsessed | Green |
Psychotic | Hypnotically swirling colors |
Sad | Silver |
Spiritual | Gold |
Suspicious | Dark Blue |
True Faith | Halo of silver/gold, brighter if more faithful |
Changeling | Iridescent highlights in aura; brighter/more rainbowy with higher Wyrd |
Diablerist | Black veins in aura |
Ensorcelled | Single iridescent vein in aura |
Faerie | Brilliant rainbow highlights in aura |
Fae-touched | Iridescent splotches in aura |
Ghost | Weak, intermittent aura |
Ghoul | Pale blotches in aura |
Mage | Myriad sparkles in aura |
Pledge-bound | Fine threads of scarlet in the aura |
Thaumaturge | The occasional sparkle in aura |
Vampire | Aura colors are pale, washed out |
Werewolf | Very bright, vibrant aura |
Wolfblooded | Always slightly brighter than it should be |
- Mental Blast ••••• (SS p.58) - HR: Prerequisite: Telepathy •••••
- Mind Breaker ••••• (SS pp.58-9) - HR: Prerequisite: Telepathy •••••
- Mind Control ••••• (SS pp.59-60)
- Psychic Empathy •••• or ••••• (SS pp.60-1) - HR: Prerequisites: Aura Reading & Telepathy
- Psychic Illusions ••••• (SS pp.61-2) - HR: Prerequisites: Mind Control & Telepathy
- Psychic Invisibility ••••• (SS pp.62-3) - HR: Prerequisites: Mind Control & Telepathy
- Telepathic Communication •••• (SS p.63) - HR: Thought Projection is now unnecessary, as it is covered by Telepathy. Prerequisite: Telepathy •••••. In addition, activating the power does not require the expenditure of Willpower if the Telepathy merit has already been successfully activated for the scene. Roll Presence + Empathy, succeed, and you can trade thoughts for the scene at will, as long as the target is within sight.
- Telepathic Rapport ••• (SS pp.63-4) - HR: As Thought Projection no longer exists and Mind Reading IS Telepathy, a rapport may now be made after successfully communicating a message to the target with Telepathy ••••• and spending the requisite Willpower dot. Note: dot, not point. New dots may be purchased for 8xp, as usual.
- Telepathy ••• or ••••• (GMC p.175) - HR: Staff is retaining some SS functionality. With ••• you cannot read Supernaturals' thoughts. With ••••• you may, subtracting their Resolve + Supernatural Advantage (if it's a player on FH, that'll be Wyrd!) from your regular Wits + Empathy roll.
Misc. Supernatural Merits
The following are written in the GMC book as "supernatural" merits, but do not easily fit under other categories.
- Cursed •• (GMC p.172)
- Mind of a Madman (GMC p.173)
- Omen Sensitivity ••• (GMC p.173)
- Thief of Fate •• (GMC p.175)
Thaumaturgical Merits
Here will be the list of Second Sight thaumaturge merits, and any equivalencies I end up doing for GMC. Frankly, I may just keep the Second Sight versions, because GMC doesn't differentiate between Ghosts and Spirits.
- Alchemy (External) •• or •••• (SS p.102)
- Alchemy (Internal) •• or •••• (SS pp.103-4)
- Communion •• or •••• (SS p.104)
- Countermagic •• or •••• (SS pp.105-6)
- Curse of Ill-Fortune ••• (SS p.106)
- Divination ••• (SS p.106)
- Dream • to ••••• (SS pp.106-7)
- Dream Travel ••• (SS p.107) - HR: The merit itself is the same, but when purchasing via +xp/buy, to avoid conflicts with the Psychic Dream Travel merit, this merit is called 'shamanic dream travel' instead.
- Enchantment •• or •••• (SS pp.107-8)
- Evocation •• or •••• (SS pp.108-9)
- Familiar ••• or •••• (SS pp.109-110) - HR: When purchasing via +xp/buy, use 'familiar (twilight)' and 'familiar (embodied)' to differentiate between the two variations on the merit.
- Favorable Fortune ••• (SS pp.110-11)
- Geomancy ••• (SS p.111)
- Healing •••• (SS pp.111-2)
- Invocation •• or •••• (SS p.112)
- Longevity ••••• (SS pp.113)
- Luck Magic •• or •••• (SS pp.114-5)
- Magical Nexus • to •• (SS p.115)
- Psychic Projection •••• (SS p.115)
- Sacrifice • (SS pp.115-6)
- Scrying ••• (SS p.116)
- Second Sight ••• (SS p.116)
- See Auras •• (SS pp.116-7) - Use tables listed under Psychic 'Aura Reading' above.
- See Spirits •• (SS pp.117-8)
- Soul Jar •• or •••• (SS pp.118-9)
- The Last Spell • (Errata) - http://www.conradhubbard.com/games/secondsightcut.html
- Visionary Trances •• or •••• (SS p.119)
- Warding ••• (SS p.120)
- Weather Control •••• (SS pp.120-1)
Universal Merits
These merits are available to all characters. Where merits are taken from non-standard books, the full book name is provided.
- A Little Knowledge • (Asylum Sourcebook p.50)
- Allies • to ••••• (GMC p.166)
- Alternate Identity •, •• or ••• (GMC p.166)
- Ambidextrous ••• (GMC p.164)
- Anonymity • to ••••• (GMC p.166)
- Anti-Psi ••••• (SS p.64)
- Area of Expertise • (GMC p.161)
- Atavism • (Slasher p.127)
- Barfly •• (GMC p.166)
- Beginner's Luck •• (Signs of the Moon p.29)
- Believers • to ••••• (SS pp.64-5)
- Bureaucratic Navigator •• (Asylum p.51)
- Contacts • to ••••• (GMC p.166)
- Cheap Shot •• (GMC p.176)
- Choke Hold •• (GMC p.176)
- Combat Awareness •• (Dogs of War p.109)
- Common Sense ••• (GMC p.161)
- Crack Driver •• or ••• (GMC p.164)
- Crafter's Sense ••• (Free Council Sourcebook p.131)
- Danger Sense •• (GMC p.162)
- Decorated • to ••••• (Dogs of War p.39)
- Defensive Combat • (GMC p.176)
- Demolisher • to ••• (GMC p.164)
- Difficult to Ride •••• (Book of Spirits p.108)
- Direction Sense • (GMC p.176)
- Double Jointed •• (GMC p.165)
- Doubting Thomas • (SS p.65)
- Eidetic Memory •• (GMC p.176)
- Emotional Detachment • (Asylum p.50)
- Encyclopedic Knowledge •• (GMC p.162)
- Entering Strike •• (Rel p.72)
- Entheogenic Synesthesia •• (Magical Traditions, p.137)
- EOD •••• (Arm p.208)
- Equipped Grappling •• (Rel p.89)
- Eye for the Strange •• (GMC p.162)
- Fame • to ••• (GMC p.167)
- Feral Mien ••• (Tome of the Watchtowers p.154)
- Fast Reflexes • to ••• (GMC p.162)
- Fighting Finesse •• (GMC p.176)
- Fixer •• (GMC p.167)
- Fleet of Foot • to ••• (GMC p.165)
- Ghost Ally ••• to ••••• (SS pp.65-6)
- Giant ••• (GMC p.165)
- Good Time Management • (GMC p.163)
- Hardy • to ••• (GMC p.165)
- Holistic Awareness • (GMC p.163)
- Hypnotic Voice •••• (SS p.66)
- Indomitable •• (GMC p.163)
- Inspiring ••• (GMC p.167)
- Interdisciplinary Specialty • (GMC p.163)
- Iron Skin •• or •••• (GMC p.178)
- Iron Stamina • to ••• (GMC p.165)
- Iron Will •• (GMC p.167)
- Language • (GMC p.163) - Specify a language at time of purchase.
- Library • to ••• (SS p.113)
- Lucid Dreamer • (SS p.67)
- Meditative Mind •, •• or •••• (GMC p.163)
- Mentor • to ••••• (GMC p.167)
- Multilingual • (GMC p.163) - Remember, any time you want to buy the Language merit for any of the languages you have under Multilingual, you get an automatic replacement. Send in a +request and staff will fix your +sheet for you.
- Patient • (GMC p.163)
- Professional Training • to ••••• (GMC pp.163-4)
Suggested Professions & Asset Skills | |
---|---|
Profession | Asset Skills |
Academic | Academics, Science |
Artist | Crafts, Expression |
Athlete | Athletics,Medicine |
Cop | Streetwise, Firearms |
Criminal | Larceny, Streetwise |
Detective | Empathy, Investigation |
Doctor | Empathy, Medicine |
Engineer | Crafts, Science |
Hacker | Computer, Science |
Hit Man | Firearms, Stealth |
Journalist | Expression, Investigation |
Laborer | Athletics, Crafts |
Occultist | Investigation, Occult |
Politician | Politics, Subterfuge |
Professional | Academics, Persuasion |
Religious Leader | Academics, Occult |
Scientist | Investigation, Science |
Socialite | Politics, Socialize |
Stuntman | Athletics, Drive |
Survivalist | Animal Ken, Survival |
Soldier | Firearms, Survival |
Technician | Crafts, Investigation |
Thug | Brawl, Intimidation |
Vagrant | Streetwise, Survival |
- Psychic Resistance • to ••• (SS p.67) - HR: Since the book was written before Changelings became A Thing, assume that they are on the list with other supernatural beasties this won't work for.
- Pusher • (GMC p.169)
- Resources • to ••••• (GMC p.168)
- Retainer • to ••••• (GMC p.170)
- Safe Place • to ••••• (GMC p.170)
- Shiv • or •• (GMC p.179)
- Sleight of Hand •• (GMC p.165)
- Small-Framed •• (GMC p.165)
- Small Unit Tactics •• (GMC p.170)
- Staff • to ••••• (GMC p.170)
- Striking Looks • or •• (GMC p.170) - HR: If you purchase this merit, please include 'SL1' or 'SL2' in your &short-desc. Mechanically you are more noticeable and memorable.
- Sympathetic •• (GMC p.171)
- Taste • (GMC p.171)
- Tolerance for Biology • (GMC p.164)
- Trained Observer • or ••• (GMC p.164)
- True Friend ••• (GMC p.172)
- Unseen Sense •• (GMC p.175)
Staff-Set via +Request
For one reason or another, these merits require staff intervention.
- Hobbyist Clique •• (GMC p.167) - Send in a group +request to staff with all prospective members to briefly explain the clique. Staff will set the merit on all members.
- Mystery Cult Initiation • to ••••• (GMC p.168) - If you are joining an existing cult, please send in a +request and CC the cult leader. Staff will not add you to a cult without a comment on your +job from the cult leader consenting that you qualify as an Initiate.
- If you are beginning a new cult, your +request must include the following information:
- Purpose - Why does your cult exist?
- Relic - An item which grounds members' faith.
- Doctrine - The rules and traditions which define your cult.
See the book for details and examples of the benefits each level of the cult's merit will provide.
Please include suggestions for your cult along those lines.
- Quick Draw • (GMC p.165) - Requires staff intervention because of its prerequisite. Code doesn't know every weapon or spelling thereof!
- Status • to ••••• (GMC p.170) - Requires staff intervention to ensure sneaky people don't cheat. ;)
Styles
- Armed Defense • to ••••• (GMC p.175)
- Close Quarters Combat • to ••••• (GMC p.176)
- Fast-Talking • to ••••• (GMC p.167)
- Firefight • to ••• (GMC pp.176-7)
- Grappling • to ••••• (GMC p.177)
- Heavy Weapons • to ••••• (GMC p.177)
- Improvised Weaponry • to ••• (GMC pp.177-8)
- Light Weapons • to ••••• (GMC p.178)
- Marksmanship • to •••• (GMC pp.178-9)
- Martial Arts • to ••••• (GMC p.179)
- Parkour • to ••••• (GMC p.165)
- Police Tactics • to ••• (GMC p.179)
- Street Fighting • to ••••• (GMC pp.179-180)
- Unarmed Defense • to ••••• (GMC p.180)