Decors and Demeanors

==> Choose Your Demeanor

“Okay but who are you?”

Every person has some activities that they excel in, whether it’s going for a run, keeping time with a metronome, or talking their way out of a murder investigation. In RPGStuck, we represent these talents using the Decor system.

As a first level character, you are allowed to choose a Demeanor and one Decor. Your character’s demeanor represents something special about the way they approach a problem, while a decor represents some field of activity your character excels in. Pick the Demeanor and Decor that most appeals to you and fits your character’s interests and hobbies.

A demeanor has keywords. P times per long rest, whenever a player approaches a skill check in a manner that fits a keyword, they gain special 2d8 stakes dice to that check (or all checks during an opposed gambit round).

Passion

Passion represents emotions, confrontation, and personal power. Characters try to answer a problem by meeting it head on, expectant that they can see anything through no matter what gets thrown at them. Its keywords are Confrontation, Power, Emotion, and Sacrifice.

Artifice

Artifice represents ingenuity, trickery, and control. Characters try to answer a problem by circumventing it, subverting circumstances, or otherwise meeting the challenge in an unexpected manner. Its keywords are Finesse, Control, Evasion, and Redirection.

Erudition

Erudition represents knowledge, calculation, and opportunism. Characters try to answer a problem by dissecting it, taking it apart to understand why the problem exists so they can strike straight at the heart of the issue. Its keywords are Calculation, Knowledge, Reason, and Exploitation.

Developer’s Note (3/14/20): Players can handle the majority of gambits without demeanor, either by their decors or by exceptional roleplay, and P times per long rest is a pittance for how many gambits a player might get into. When, then, does a demeanor come into play? It is the big red emergency button, for the cases where the RNG has not been kind, or the few cases where neither decor nor roleplay is enough. It is a common trope that when one is facing the guns with their backs to the wall, that one can see who they truly are.

In this way, the demeanor can be said to represent what a character is at heart, when the chips are down and no one is coming to save them. And using it lets them show off who they are and what they’re made of; a moment worth remembering.

==> Three Act Structure

“Austin caught me in the first act, that’s all backwards, what’s up with that?”

You gain an additional decor at levels 3, 7, 9, 13, and 15. When you have two, four, or six decors, you can grab an additional bonus called a Stage. These let you augment your skills even further!

Expertise: You specialize in a specific skill, becoming more proficient with it. You gain +3 to any skill checks made with this skill.
Polymath: You immediately gain 3 skill points that you can invest anywhere you wish.

==> Decors

“Everyone must have HOBBIES and INTERESTS.”

Knack

Knacks represent an aptitude for some physical activity.

Knack: Legerdemain: You have an aptitude for dextrous manual control, possessing an adroitness of the hands. Whenever you can bring this knack to bear, you add one stakes die.
Knack: Survivor: You have an aptitude for going the distance, able to weather the elements and withstand prolonged duress. Whenever you can bring this knack to bear, you add one stakes die.
Knack: Traceur: You have an aptitude for running, parkour, and outrunning others. Whenever you can bring this knack to bear, you add one stakes die.
Knack: Star: You have an aptitude for singing and dancing. Whenever you can bring this knack to bear, you add one stakes die.
Knack: Concentration: You have an aptitude with keen senses, filtering out unnecessary stimuli and sensing minute stimuli that others might miss. Whenever you can bring this knack to bear, you add one stakes die.
Knack: Everyman: You have an aptitude for blending in as another face in the crowd. Whenever you bring this knack to bear, you add one stakes die.

Expertise

Expertises represent some sort of proficiency with certain tools or items, gained the old-fashioned way through practice.

Expertise: Computing: Through hands-on experience and practice, you understand how to use computers and other digital interfaces. Whenever using such devices, you add one stakes die.
Expertise: Instrument: Through hands-on experience and practice, you understand how to play an instrument of choice, and can pick up other instruments with minimal effort. Whenever playing instruments, you add one stakes die.
Expertise: Thieves’ Tools: Through hands-on experience and practice, you understand how to use lockpicks and other small tools towards that end. Whenever using such tools, you add one stakes die.
Expertise: Reagents: Through hands-on experience and practice, you understand how to use occult reagents and other tools of a mystical bent. Whenever using such materials, you add one stakes die.
Expertise: First Aid: Through hands-on experience and practice, you understand how to use a first aid kit. Whenever applying first aid with such a kit, you add one stakes die.
Expertise: Disguise: Through hands-on experience and practice, you understand how to accentuate, disguise, or otherwise alter your appearance with cosmetics, outfits, and props. Whenever putting these alterations to the test, you add one stakes die.
Expertise: Navigation Tools: Through hands-on experience and practice, you understand how to use navigational tools, such as a compass, but also vehicles. Whenever using such devices, you add one stakes die.
Expertise: DIY Kit: Through hands-on experience and practice, you understand how to use each and every tool found in the average home’s repair box. Whenever using such tools or piloting controls, you add one stakes die.

Persona

Personas represent a mask a character knows to wear, a way of interacting with others that blends into the conversation.

Persona: Martial: You have a fair understanding of the social rituals and norms followed by soldiers, warriors, and the militant members of society. You have one stakes die when dealing with them. You also possess a cursory knowledge of the field such that you can pass as one of these individuals, but not enough to claim any skill bonuses for the knowledge itself.
Persona: Enforcer: You have a fair understanding of the social rituals and norms followed by police, inspectors, overbearing mothers, and other disciplinarians of society. You have one stakes die when dealing with them. You also possess a cursory knowledge of the field such that you can pass as one of these individuals, but not enough to claim any skill bonuses for the knowledge itself.
Persona: Sciences: You have a fair understanding of the social rituals and norms followed by those who study, teach, or use the natural sciences. You have one stakes die when dealing with them. You also possess a cursory knowledge of the field such that you can pass as one of these individuals, but not enough to claim any skill bonuses for the knowledge itself.
Persona: Intelligentsia: You have a fair understanding of the social rituals and norms followed by the academics, teachers, and scholars of a society. You have one stakes die when dealing with them. You also possess a cursory knowledge of the field such that you can pass as one of these individuals, but not enough to claim any skill bonuses for the knowledge itself.
Persona: Control: You have a fair understanding of the social rituals and norms followed by nobility, the privileged, and those who sit at the apex of the social and financial hierarchies. You have one stakes die when dealing with them. You also possess a cursory knowledge of the field such that you can pass as one of these individuals, but not enough to claim any skill bonuses for the knowledge itself.
Persona: Humanities: You have a fair understanding of the social rituals and norms followed by the artists and other cultural innovators of society. You have one stakes die when dealing with them. You also possess a cursory knowledge of the field such that you can pass as one of these individuals, but not enough to claim any skill bonuses for the knowledge itself.
Persona: Spiritual: You have a fair understanding of the social rituals and norms followed by the mystic, religious, and spiritual. You have one stakes die when dealing with them. You also possess a cursory knowledge of the field such that you can pass as one of these individuals, but not enough to claim any skill bonuses for the knowledge itself.
Persona: Outcasts: You have a fair understanding of the social rituals and norms followed by the downtrodden, rebellious, and marginalized of society. You have one stakes die when dealing with them. You also possess a cursory knowledge of the field such that you can pass as one of these individuals, but not enough to claim any skill bonuses for the knowledge itself.
Persona: Mercantile: You have a fair understanding of the social rituals and norms followed by traders, administrators, and those who deal with money or bureaucracy. You have one stakes die when dealing with them. You also possess a cursory knowledge of the field such that you can pass as one of these individuals, but not enough to claim any skill bonuses for the knowledge itself.
Persona: Labor: You have a fair understanding of the social rituals and norms followed by the working class of society. You have one stakes die when dealing with them. You also possess a cursory knowledge of the field such that you can pass as one of these individuals, but not enough to claim any skill bonuses for the knowledge itself.
Persona: Renegades: You have a fair understanding of the social rituals and norms followed by the criminal underworld. You have one stakes die when dealing with them. You also possess a cursory knowledge of the field such that you can pass as one of these individuals, but not enough to claim any skill bonuses for the knowledge itself.

Direction

Direction represents some sort of untapped potential that the character can harness when acting in a specific manner.

Direction: Rapport: You find you excel when you have shared interests to leverage. If you can appeal to a common interest or goal, you add one stakes die.
Direction: Command: You find you excel when working from a position of authority or power, perceived or authentic. If you can leverage this uneven power dynamic, you add one stakes die.
Direction: Conceal: You find you excel when working to cover your tracks. If you can work towards obfuscating the truth, you add one stakes die.
Direction: Antagonize: You find you excel when playing devil’s advocate. If you can undermine the argument of another, you add one stakes die.
Direction: Create: You find you excel at building. If you can leverage something you have created, you add one stakes die.
Direction: Survey: You find you excel when applying the knowledge you have found. If you can leverage hidden knowledge you have found, you add one stakes die.
Direction: Dismantle: You find you excel when taking something apart. If you can act to destroy something, you add one stakes die.
Direction: Restore: You find you excel when restoring something. If you can act to return something to a previous condition, you add one stakes die.
Direction: Timing: You find you excel when leveraging your sense of rhythm. If you can apply a sense of timing, you add one stakes die.
Direction: Precision: You find you excel when acting in precise, controlled manners. If you can apply physical precision, you add one stakes die.
Direction: Surprise: You find you excel when unexpected. If you can catch someone off-guard and exploit it, you add one stakes die.
Direction: Force: You find you excel by letting loose. If you can act to push yourself to your physical limits, you add one stakes die.

Vision

Vision represents an eye for particular sorts of details when making sense of a scene, understanding it more vividly through that lens.

Vision: Wallflower: You’re used to sizing up the social hierarchy as soon as you walk into a room. Who’s in charge, who’s the loser, who’s at whose throats, where are the cliques in this gathering? When searching for such things, you add one stakes die.
Vision: Augur: You’re used to sizing up supernatural influences at play. How a ghost died by the influence it holds on the waking world, the training a psion has by the structure of their psionic wards, if that uneasy feeling in your gut is really just last night’s dinner or something more malignant. When searching for such things, you add one stakes die.
Vision: Curtain: You’re used to sizing up where something might be hidden, by someone or by itself. Lost socks, wallets, papers, themselves, others, buttons, secret corridors, if it might escape notice it might not escape yours. When searching for such things, you add one stakes die.
Vision: Gumshoe: You’re used to sizing up crime scenes. Recreate a murder as if you were there, look for details that might be relevant. It could be as innocent as taking the last cookie, you’ll still look for errant crumbs and fingerprints. When searching for such things, you add one stakes die.
Vision: Auditor: You’re used to sizing up dense reams of information for inconsistencies and oddities. You have a talent for picking out fine details from a bloat of data. You may or may not have used it to find Waldo every time. When searching for such things, you add one stakes die.
Vision: Ruin: You’re used to sizing up the weakest link in the room, whether it be a person or a thing or even the room itself. Easily intimidated bottom tier softies, the crack in that tank’s armor, which one fuse switch will black out as much of the building as possible. When searching for such things, you add one stakes die.
Vision: Logos: You’re used to sizing up people when they speak. What do they really mean when they say this, or that? And what aren’t they saying? When searching for such things, you add one stakes die.

Panoply

Panoply represents past experience a character possesses that helps them mitigate failure in some sort of challenge.

Panoply: Fatigue: You have experience dealing with being physically outdone. If you suffer any flaws dice when participating in physical activities, remove one flaws die (min 0). If you find yourself in a situation where you physically compete against another, inflict one flaws die on your opponent as well.
Panoply: Exposed: You have experience against the vigilant. If you suffer any flaws dice when leveraging your ability to remain physically hidden, remove one flaws die (min 0). If you find yourself in a situation where another party attempts to search for you, inflict one flaws die on your opponent.
Panoply: Outdone: You have experience in compensating for mental deficiency. If you suffer any flaws dice when using your intuition or knowledge, remove one flaws die (min 0). If you find yourself in a situation where another attempts to use their intuition or knowledge against you, inflict one flaws die on your opponent.
Panoply: Suspicion: You have experience in maintaining social control. If you suffer any flaws dice in a social setting, remove one flaws die (min 0). If you find yourself opposed in a social setting, inflict one flaws die on your opponent.
Panoply: Arcana: You have experience with the supernatural. If you suffer any flaws dice when consorting with psionic or other supernatural forces, remove one flaws die (min 0). If you find that the supernatural pushes back against you or an enemy attempts to influence it against you, inflict one flaws die on your opponent.

<== Zweihander
Housebuilding ==>