The basics of the game system stand on three concepts: Traits, Challenges, and Retests.
Traits
Characters in this game are made up of Traits. A Trait is a descriptive word like "Quick" or “Intelligent” that you treat as an expendable resource. You begin a game session with all the Traits on your character sheet available to be used. During the course of the game, you will spend Traits, lose Traits, and regain Traits.
A single Trait appears on your character sheet as a descriptive word, with a an open circle (a dot) nearby for you to mark whether you have used up the Trait. You may have several Traits of the same type, in which case they appear as the word followed by the number you have. Nearby are the corresponding number of dots for you to mark.
For example:
O Quick
OO Tough x2
Means you have one Quick Trait and two Tough Traits.
Sometimes Traits appear in related groups, and sometimes they stand alone. “Physical Traits” are a group of Traits that define your character’s innate physical capabilities. Rage is a standalone Trait that describes your character’s potential for supernatural anger.
Abilities in your challenges
Due to a resent vote at game players can now add their traits and abilities when doing a challenge. Your permanent ability is counted on the amount. So if you have 10 physical traits and 2 dodge, you can say you have 12 traits to avoid getting stabbed. That number stays the same even if you spent both doges for an ability retest.
- You do not add your permanent ability count to temper challenges (Rage, Gnosis, Willpower, ect...).
If Cody has 3 Physical traits and 2 dodge, then he would bid 5 traits to avoid Janet stabbing him with a sword.
Challenges
The game uses Challenges to determine what happens in chancy situations. A Challenge is a throw of Rock-Paper-Scissors to determine a win, a loss, or a tie.
You may ask for a Challenge any time you want your character’s abilities to have an effect. Others may ask for challenges from you for the same reason.
When asking for a Challenge, you must first determine what category of Traits is being used. You will make most challenges with one of these three categories of Traits:
- Use Physical Traits for physical actions like combat or acrobatics.
- Use Social Traits for social actions like intimidating an enemy or giving a speech.
- Use Mental Traits for mental actions like searching for clues or solving puzzles.
Less frequently, some challenges call for Rage, Gnosis, or Willpower Traits to be used:
- Use Rage Traits to channel your supernatural anger.
- Use Gnosis Traits to interact on a purely spiritual level with the spirit world.
- Use Willpower Traits to maintain your self-control.
Read up on some examples of common challenges for an idea of how you can use these.
Physical, Social and Mental Challenges
To make a Physical, Social, or Mental Challenge, choose one specific Trait from the category that describes your action. If you are giving a rousing speech, for example, you might call on the specific Social Trait Charismatic.
Explain the kind of effect you are trying to achieve. Without the aid of supernatural powers, these effects must be modest. You can say “my Charismatic speech makes my position seem reasonable,” but it’s too much to say “my Charismatic speech convinces you to join my cause.” Avoid making other characters’ decisions for them.
An example of a Physical Challenge is “I throw a Strong punch at your face.” An example of a Mental Challenge is “My Perceptive eyes catch sight of the spy.” Notice how you can name the specific Trait you’re using as you explain the effect.
Both you and your opponent name a Trait and describe an effect. Then (on a count of three) you throw Rock-Paper-Scissors.
If you win the Rock-Paper-Scissors throw, the effect that you described happens.
If you lose the Rock-Paper-Scissors throw, the effect that your opponent described happens instead. You also lose the Trait you named. Cross it off your character sheet. You can’t use it again during this game unless you regain it somehow.
If you tie the Rock-Paper-Scissors throw, you and your opponent compare your total number of Traits in the category. Count only Traits you haven’t lost: those you crossed off thanks to losses earlier in the game don’t count. The higher number wins, and that player gets her effect; the lower number loses, and the player marks off his Trait. If the two numbers are the same, the win goes to the player whose action is more defensive in nature or the Static value (a static is considered the defender).
For example:
Janet: My Charismatic speech makes my position seem reasonable.
Cody: I can’t respect anyone who is less Impressive than I.
(Janet and Cody throw Rock-Paper-Scissors. Both throw Paper.)
Janet: I have a total of nine Social Traits.
Cody: Usually, I have ten, but I lost two Social Challenges earlier tonight. So I only have eight now.
Janet: I win – my speech makes my position seem reasonable!
(Losing, Cody marks off the trait Impressive from his character sheet.)
Complications
There are a number of special cases that complicate Challenges as described here. If you're a new player, you don't need to memorize all these right now -- just remember that the rules are here when you need them.
- Relenting. When someone prompts you to respond to a challenge, you may tell them you relent. You lose the Challenge automatically, but nobody loses any Traits.
- Under-declaring. When (such as in the case of a tie) you have to declare the number of Traits you have in a category, you are always free to report a lower number than your actual total. Do this when you want to conceal your true strength from an opponent. You cannot change this bid during the same challenge if you tie again.
- Bonus Traits and Trait Penalties. Sometimes a weapon or special power will give "bonus Traits" or inflict a "Trait penalty." This means that whenever you declare your total number of Traits in the category, you must adjust that number up or down by the given amount. This is also written as being "Traits up" or "Traits down."
- Running Out of Traits. If you lose all appropriate Traits in a category, you can no longer call for those Challenges: you're exhausted. If someone challenges you and you've run out of appropriate Traits to bid, you automatically lose the Challenge.
- Regaining Lost Traits. Once per night per each of these three categories (Physical, Social, and Mental) you may spend a point of Willpower to regain all Traits you have lost in that category. Erase all the marks you've made through those circles (in pencil, hopefully!) and feel free to use those Traits once again.
- Negative Traits. If you suspect that your opponent has Negative Traits, you may cite Traits from the corresponding category in order to force them to put more of their own Traits at risk. If you possess Negative Traits, someone may use them against you!
- The Five-Minute Rule. A special rule about Social and Mental challenges is this: if you attempt a Social or Mental challenge and ultimately fail, you cannot attempt the same effective challenge against the same target until five minutes have passed. (That's five minutes within the fictional flow of events, not five minutes of real time.) This protects characters from being socially or mentally bullied into swift submission.
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Rage, Gnosis, and Willpower Challenges
These are the same as Physical, Social and Mental Challenges, with two exceptions:
- When you enter a Gnosis, Willpower or Rage challenge, you do not choose a specific Trait to use (since each of these is a standalone Trait). You simply describe the effect you want to achieve.
- When you lose a Rock-Paper-Scissors throw, you do not cross off any Traits.
Remember that on ties and overbids, just as with Physical/Social/Mental Traits, you compare your current Rage/Gnosis/Willpower -- not your permanent ratings.
Trait Loss: Contested vs Static Challenges
All challenges require having a Trait to bid, but not all challenges exhaust a character if they lose the initial chop. The difference is Contested or Static type challenges.
- A contested challenge is when a force, character, or effect is able to actively resist you. When your challenge is Contested, your bid trait is at risk. If you lose the overall contested challenge, including any possible retests on the part of yourself or your opponent, immediately cross off the bid trait. Losing the initial chop on a contested challenge will not reduce traits compared during a tie on following retests. The most common example is combat when attempting to hit the enemy or dodge their blows.
- A static challenge is when nothing can actively resist you. During a Static challenge, your bid trait is not at risk. Static challenges are for certain Gifts, Rituals, or when an ST calls for it. An example is searching a murder scene for signs of the weapon used. Your character has to find hidden details but there is no active resistance to stop you from making a thorough search.
Extended Challenges
An extended challenge is a type of challenge found in several gifts and retests. The goal of an extended challenge is to win as many chops as possible in a row. Any type of challenge can be an extended challenge - continue to chop, using the appropriate traits and retests, until you lose or another condition is met according to the gift or ritual. Then count up the number of successes you have made and apply them as written.
Example: In the gift Petal Fall, the Garou throws chops and bids their physical traits versus a static of 12. For each successful chop, they reduce the height of their fall by 10 feet. If they win 2 chops in a row, they reduce the height by 20 feet, ect. The challenge ends when they lose a chop.
Example: In the ritual of Fetish Creation, the target number of successes is set by the power of the desired Fetish. The ritualist chops against the spirit; whoever gets the target number of successes first is the winner.
Retests
If you lose a Rock-Paper-Scissors throw, you can try to discard the result and throw again. This is called a Retest.
Ability Retests
In order to gain a retest, you may cross off an appropriate Ability Trait from your character sheet. This gives your opponent an opportunity to cross off an opposing Ability Trait from her sheet, which is called canceling your retest . If she does not cancel your retest, then you throw Rock-Paper-Scissors a second time.
When you retest this way, no other Traits are risked, only the ability point is lost.
For example:
Janet: My Charismatic speech makes my position seem reasonable.
Cody: I can’t respect anyone who is less Impressive than I.
(Janet and Cody throw Rock-Paper-Scissors. Janet throws Rock. Cody throws Scissors.)
Janet: Rock beats Scissors. I win!
Cody: Nice try, but I would like to retest using my Leadership ability. As a leader, I can tell your position is a bad one.
(Cody crosses off the Leadership Trait from his character sheet.)
Janet: Hmm, I could stop you by crossing off this Expression ability to give a good speech. But I’d rather save that for later.
(Janet and Cody throw Rock-Paper-Scissors a second time. Janet throws Rock. Cody throws Paper.)
Cody: Paper beats Rock! I win!
(Janet crosses off the Charismatic trait she had risked at the start of the challenge.)
Each person may use an Ability Trait for a retest or cancel only once per Challenge.
Overbids
Another way to gain a retest is to risk an overbid. This is a gamble that you have twice the number of Traits that your opponent does.
Name another Trait to risk, and tell your opponent you are calling for an overbid. Then tell them how many Traits you have in that category. Your opponent reveals whether or not your number is twice the Traits they have in that category.
If you have twice their Traits, you retest, throwing Rock-Paper-Scissors again with the Trait you named at risk. If you lose, you'll mark it off as usual.
If you do not have twice their Traits, your gamble loses outright. Mark off the Trait you named. You don't get to retest.
For example:
Cody: I am Perceptive enough to see through your disguise.
Jen: My disguise is too Wily to be pierced.
(Cody and Jen throw Rock-Paper-Scissors. Cody throws Scissors. Jen throws Paper.)
Cody: Scissors beats Paper. I win!
Jen: Hmm, I think I can overbid you. I am rather Intelligent; I should be able to figure this out. I have a total of ten Mental Traits.
(Cody looks at his character sheet and sees that he has only four Mental Traits left.)
Cody: That'll do the trick. You double me.
(Cody and Jen throw Rock-Paper-Scissors a second time. Cody throws Paper. Jen throws Scissors.)
Jen: I win!
(Cody crosses off the Perceptive trait he had bid at the start of the challenge.)
You may only attempt an overbid once per Challenge.
The Defensive Willpower Retest
Defensive Retest against Control: Spend a Willpower Trait for a retest when you lose a challenge wherein someone is trying to alter, manipulate or control your will, mind or emotions.
Other Sources of Retests
Additional retest are often available from other sources – supernatural powers like Gifts, innate powers like werewolf strength, special Backgrounds and special Merits. Requirements for using these are each different. Each of these can be used by each opponent only once per Challenge.
Simple Challenges
Simple Challenges (also called a Simple Chop or a Simple Test), are used to determine if you can do something successfully when there is no real opposition. Most Simple Tests do not require you to risk or bid Traits, although some may at ST Discretion.
When a Simple Test is called, you make a rock-paper-scissors test against the ST or Narrator who called for it. In most cases, the player action succeeds on a Win or Tie. The ST should inform you prior to the chop if you need to Win Outright.
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