Merit

Merits

Representing a character’s compounding advantages and responsibilities, Merits are a system for acquiring substantial character advancements with earned experience - referred to as XP - separated into Minor and Major categories.

Self-moderation is allowed for the vast majority of Minor Merits.

Major Merits require completing a story with a Storyteller or Lorekeeper.

Minor Merits

The first Minor Merit is free. They represent access to an arcana, or specific substantial advantages such as having landed titles. Further Minor Merits cost 25 XP per Minor Merit beyond the first. 0, 25, 50, and so on.

Minor Merits you have not begun play with must be acquired during roleplay, awarded upon approval of your review.

Minor Merit List

• Unlocking Arcana

• Sorceries
• Blights
• Glamour
• Dominion
• Practices

• Grandmaster Skills
• Small Businesses
• Minor Titles
• Large Races

• Young Dragons

Example: A player character who spent their first minor merit on initiation into the Arcana of Esprit (1) who then acquired a Small Business (2) would spend a total of 25 extra XP to do so, and an additional 50 XP if they chose to form a Pact (3). Their fourth Merit would cost 75 XP, and so on.

Major Merits

Each Major Merit you fulfill the criteria to acquire requires 250 XP, plus 500 XP for each Major Merit before it to pursue. 250, 750, 1250, and so on.

• None of these are available at the start of play, except for the Adult Dragon. Major Merits are only awarded during collaborative play with a Storyteller following a plot proposal and approval in the Support Forum.

Major Merit List

• The Ascended
• Major Titles
• Large Businesses
• Massive Races

• Adult Dragons

• Elder Dragons

• Ancient Dragons

Sometimes a merit is awarded through play with a Storykeeper in excess of the XP that player character possesses. This is assigned as XP debt, and from that point on any earned XP will be spent towards getting out of debt. Newly created Adult Dragons may assign their 300 starting XP elsewhere and then begin with up to 250 XP debt; beginning with debt is not recommended, as XP debt can hinder one's sense of reward and growth.

Tracking Merits

When a Merit is purchased, add a line to the experience leger on your character sheet deducting the cost of the merit, its number in succession, as well as naming what that merit is for. For example, 'Minor Merit 2: Barony of Karth | -25 XP'.

• Purchase the Merit after it is awarded, not before. It's acceptable to obtain the merit without purchase and then write stories about justifying it during play; for example you can be initiated into an arcana and write about how little you understand it, the most basic of spells failing - you can weave your first spell once the Merit is paid for. Similarly, a title might be in name only until those holdings are cleared of tax thieves and disobedient peasants.

Free Merits

Occasionally Merits which do not count toward exponential cost are awarded for free during special events orchestrated by site storytellers. These must also be tracked in the experience leger on your character sheet, linking back to their source. This is a great way for characters with many Merits to obtain things in reasonable timeframes.

• Only one major merit may be earned as a free merit from events per character. Further earned Free Major Merits are converted to 250 XP each.

Final Merits

If a player character were to somehow achieve true godhood, they have evolved beyond personal expression to represent a metaphor. Thus, they would be retired as a part of Antarok lore. This would apply to becoming a Godhead, or something potentially world-shattering like Nihilos.

• No matter how powerful you are, whether or not a city gets forcefully taken over or destroyed is always up to the storytellers of that city or region. The less consequential stories of your fellow writers are no less important than your own.
• A Final Merit story requires Head Lorekeeper approval for the outcome.