See also Action Tests.

Actions represent your ability to act in the world based on your past training and current aptitude. There are thirteen Actions.

Each Action has a value between 0 and 5. The value determines the number of dice you add to your Attribute when attempting something difficult or dangerous.

You may spend a number of points determined by your Age. At the start of the game you cannot have more than 2 in any Action, except for the main Action of your chosen Profession, which you may spend 3 points on.

Later you will gain Experience Points which you can use to improve your Actions.

Actions

Strike (Strength)
Shoot (Dexterity)
Force (Strength)
Endure (Strength / Intuition)
Finesse (Dexterity)
Sneak (Dexterity)
Track (Intuition / Reason)
Read (Intuition)
Study (Reason)
Persuade (Reason / Presence)
Charm (Presence)
Intimidate (Presence / Intuition)
Cast (Reason)

Strike (Strength)

When attacking an enemy close up, you Strike. You might Strike with via a slash, stab, or smash with a weapon or object you are holding.
By rolling more successes than required, you may:

• Increase your damage by 1. (This effect can be chosen multiple times.)
• Outmaneuver your enemy. You may exchange initiative.
• Stress your enemy. Your attack causes Mental Harm rather than Physical.
• Push the enemy into another zone or a specific part of the zone you are in.
• Make the enemy drop a weapon or item. (Picking up an item during combat requires a fast action.)

Shoot (Dexterity)

When attacking an enemy at range, you Shoot. You might Shoot with a bow and arrow, sling, or something you throw.
By rolling more successes than required, you may:

• Increase your damage by 1. (This effect can be chosen multiple times.)
• Outmaneuver your enemy. You exchange initiative cards.
• Stress your enemy. Your attack causes Mental Harm rather than Physical.
• Make the enemy unable to move into the next zone without taking 1 damage. (Moving into the next zone during combat requires a fast action.)

Force (Strength)

When using brute strength to lift something heavy, push or pull objects, or smash with your body, you Force. You might Force a door open, or Force a barrel to break.

While engaged in hand-to-hand combat and attempting to punch, kick, wrestle, or grapple the enemy, you can Force.
By rolling more successes than required you may:

• Increase your damage by 1. (This effect can be chosen multiple times.)
• Outmaneuver your enemy. You exchange initiative cards.
• Push the enemy into another zone or a specific part of the zone you are in.
• Make the enemy drop a weapon or item. (Picking up an item during combat requires a fast action.)
• Grapple your enemy. They must succeed with an opposed roll to break free.

Endure (Strength / Intuition)

When to act with endurance against pain or hardship, hold fast in a tense situation, or wait through mental or physical strain, you Endure.

You might Endure through swimming or climbing, or Endure poison or fear.

You can Endure to survive without food or water, or walk day and night, without suffering Harm.

You may transfer any extra successes to other player characters in the same situation.

Finesse (Dexterity)

When you dodge out of the way, use your flexibility, or act with dextrous manipulation, you Finesse.
You might Finesse to steal the gold out of someone's pocket or covertly toss an object. It requires Finesse to gracefully climb something or handle the reins of an animal.

While in combat you can Finesse to evade attacks or escape.
By rolling more successes than required you may:

• Outmaneuver your enemy. You exchange initiative cards.
• Stress your enemy. Your attack causes mental Harm rather than physical.
• Make your enemy position themselves in a certain part of a zone.
• Perform actions while evading, like performing a ritual or setting fire to something.

Additionally, a Medicine test can be made by combining Finesse with Medicine Knowledge to heal and treat Injuries.

Sneak (Dexterity)

When you move quietly, try to avoid detection, hold perfectly still, or otherwise act stealthily, you Sneak.

A person Sneaking makes an opposed roll against the person Tracking.

Extra successes mean you can move further than expected, or stay hidden for longer than expected.

Track (Intuition / Reason)

When you chase or tail a person or creature, you Track. You might Track to follow a trail that something has left behind. You might Track a conversation to carefully overhear someone without them noticing, or to stalk them without being interrupted.

A person Tracking makes an opposed roll against the person Sneaking.

Extra successes mean the trail is cleaner for longer, or you Track further than expected.

Read (Intuition)

When you interpret a person or creature's intention from their body language, understand the flow of a social group, or decipher the hidden meaning of words, you Read. You might Read to see if someone is lying, pick up on hidden intent, or tell when a crowd is about to erupt into chaos.

Furthermore, you can Read can to interpret situations you are monitoring. You might realize what is about to happen, who the leader of a group is, which people might become a threat, or how best to tackle a situation.
Failing can mean that you have misread the situation, been detected, or appear hostile to the people you are watching.

When talking to or spending time in the presence of a person or creature, you can Read them to understand what they are thinking, feeling, or planning. If you pass the Action test, the Director describes the impression you get from them. For example, the Director may tell you that they are lying or reveal whether they mean you harm.
Failing can means that you give yourself away to the opposite party and must disclose your player character’s thoughts, feelings, and intentions.

If you roll more successes than required, each extra success adds a +1 bonus to a skill test where the information is helpful to you.

(Read is about reading people or creatures, not about literacy or speed of sentence comprehension.)

Study (Reason)

When you take time to learn or figure out something complex or difficult, you Study. You might Study to increase your education or skills, as well as your ability to establish connections through logic and knowledge.

You might Study to translate foreign languages, figure out how best to behave in a certain situation (especially culturally), or understand the workings of a mechanical device, an occult ritual, or a magic item. You can Study to obtain basic information if the Director deems it appropriate.

By rolling more successes than required you can sometimes gain access to more information.

Sometimes when you attempt to Study, the Director might say that you are required to gather books or other sources of information. In some situations, it is impossible to Study due to lack of resources or time.

Persuade (Reason / Presence)

When you address a crowd, encourage and guide your friends, or otherwise try to influence the thoughts or actions of a creature, person, or group of people, you Persuade. You might Persuade to convince an enemy from persisting in a fight, win over a conceited Noble, or coax a reluctant mercenary to take a job.

When a player character has sustained a mental critical injury, they will sometimes require someone to Persuade them in order not to become chronically Broken. If you pass the test they are no longer Broken.
Each extra success heals one Mental Harm. If you fail and wish to try again, you must first find another way to get through to them. You may need to take them to a new place, seek help from someone else, or find another way to emotionally connect with them.

You can Persuade yourself and others to heal Mental Harm. Your friends must be somewhere safe, have access to food and drink, and be willing to engage in close contact or dialogue with you. You make a Persuade test each day you spend together without doing anything else. A successful test heals 3 levels of Mental Harm, distributed between you and your friends as you see fit. Each extra success heals another 3 levels of Mental Harm.
A failed test could mean that a day has been wasted (though the Director may allow an enemy to act).

While in combat you can Persuade the enemy to act contrary to how they are currently acting.
By rolling more successes than required you may:

• Outmaneuver your enemy. You exchange initiative cards.
• Make your enemy position themselves in a certain part of a zone.
• Make the enemy drop a weapon or item, or flee (determined by the Director). (Picking up an item during combat requires a fast action.)
  If you roll more successes than required and are attempting to Persuade the enemy to stop fighting, the Director may or may not have the enemy cease attacking.

The Director may set a number of successes for your Persuade test, or make an opposed Read test to determine if the enemy is Persuaded.

There are limits to what you can convince people to do or believe, and a Persuaded creature or person should still act in a way that makes sense based on their disposition.

Charm (Presence)

When you attempt to influence how other people think or feel, you Charm. You might Charm by lying, flirting, bribing, or haggling, or by using guile, cleverness, or flattery.

When you Charm someone you describe what you hope to achieve and what you are doing. You can also Charm to trade or purchase items and services.

On a success you get what you want.
Failure means that you take a Mental Harm, that the other person or creature distrusts or dislikes you, or that they are reinforced in their original convictions.

People and creatures can make a Read or Endure test to resist attempts to Charm.

There are limits to what you can convince people to do or believe, and a Charmed creature or person should still act in a way that makes sense based on their disposition.

If you roll more successes than required, you can impose a Mental Harm on the Charmed creature or person, 1 for each extra success.

Intimidate (Presence / Intuition)

When you attempt to frighten, discourage, or harass someone, you Intimidate. You might Intimidate by threatening some physical or mental consequence, or by manipulating and swaying them into a course of action they might not take otherwise.

When you Intimidate someone you describe what you hope to achieve and what you are doing.

On a success you get what you want, and the person or creature you are Intimidating folds.

Failure means that you take a Mental Harm, that the other person or creature distrusts or dislikes you, or that they are reinforced in their original convictions.

People and creatures can make an Endure test to resist attempts to Intimidate.

There are limits to what you can convince people to do or believe, and a Charmed creature or person should still act in a way that makes sense based on their disposition.

If you roll more successes than required, you can impose a Mental Harm on the Charmed creature or person, 1 for each extra success.

Cast (Reason)

When you attempt to wield Thaumaturgy with your mind and body, you Cast. You Cast by using Arcane Words that you know.

See Thaumaturgy rules for Casting for details.

You can always use Thaumaturgy Knowledge when you Cast.

Multiple successes reduced the Thaumic cost by 1 for each extra success.