Merit

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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.

Tracking Merits

When a Merit is purchased after being awarded, 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.

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 Personal Arcana

• Galdr
• Glamour
• Welkin
• Blights
• Poetics

• Grandmaster Skills
• Duties

Example: A player character who spent their first minor merit on initiation into the Arcana of Exodus (1) who then acquired a 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.

Racial Merit

Every player race begins play with a specific Racial Merit in a Duty, Skill, or Arcana. This is detailed towards the beginning of their article. A Racial Merit does not increase the cost of further Minor Merits and is considered a Free Minor Merit.

• NPCs including CNPCs do not receive Racial Merits or Racial XP.

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. Arcane Potential may be assigned a Major Merit with a request explaining why you should have it.

Major Merit List

• Arcane Potential
• The Ascended
• Major Companion Merits
• Massive Races

• Adult Dragons

• Elder Dragons

• Ancient Dragons

Sometimes a Major Merit is awarded through play with a Storyteller in excess of the XP that player character possesses. Unlike 'Limbo Merits' these are assigned as XP debt, and from that point on any earned XP must be spent towards getting out of debt.

Merit Debt

Adult Dragons may assign their starting XP elsewhere and let their Major Merit go 250 XP in the negative as debt they must pay off to increase their other skills; beginning with debt is not recommended, as XP debt can hinder one's sense of reward and growth. You may also allocate any Rebirth XP as you wish before assigning this debt.

Limbo Merits

If you acquire a Minor Merit during review without purchase, you may still write stories about justifying it - a 'Limbo Merit' - 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, and then 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. Sometimes you just want to be a freeloading disaster, and that's what this is here for.

Limbo Merits do not count towards Minor Merit progression until they are purchased, but they must be added to your Skill Ledger, e.g. 'Limbo Merit: Barony of Karth | 0 XP'

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 Free Major Merit may be earned 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.

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