Luck
Luck is unique among the characteristics - it represents fortune, destiny, and how events tend to resolve in a character’s favor. Luck governs no skills and is never used as the base for skill tests. Characters cannot advance Luck through normal XP spending.
How Luck is used
Luck appears in the game in four ways:
- 1.3.12.0 Lucky Numbers - determine critical successes and failures
- Luck Points - spent during a session for benefits
- Luck Tests - characteristic tests against Luck itself
- Burning Luck - permanent Luck reduction for powerful effects
Luck Points
A character’s LP maximum equals their Luck Bonus. LP refill to maximum at the start of each game session.
Spending Luck Points
A character can spend LP for these effects:
| Cost | Effect |
|---|---|
| 1 LP | Reroll a failed test (once per test; cannot reroll Critical Failures) |
| 1 LP | Add 1 DoS to a successful test (stackable - multiple LP on one test) |
| 1 LP | Modify the narrative - retroactively “remember” a purchase, etc. |
LP and SP cannot stack
A character cannot use both Luck and SP to modify the result of a single test.
Once a character has spent all their LP for the session, they can resort to Burning Luck for additional effects.
Luck Tests
The GM may call for a Luck Test when a character’s fortunes depend on random circumstance - someone happening to be awake when knocking on doors at night, a patrol not passing at an inconvenient moment, and similar situations. These are resolved as standard characteristic tests using the character’s Luck score as the TN.
Burning Luck
A character may permanently reduce their Luck score in exchange for powerful effects. Burned Luck does not regenerate naturally. A character may burn Luck at any time and in any amount - if they don’t have the full cost, they burn all remaining Luck.
| Cost | Effect |
|---|---|
| Burn 1 Luck | Add 1 DoS to a successful test (stackable) |
| Burn 3 Luck | Reroll a failed test (once per test; not Critical Failures) |
| Burn 5 Luck | Negate the effects of a critical failure (must be declared immediately) |
| Burn 10 Luck | Ignore the effects of a wound (still take damage), or with GM permission, survive death (removed from play until end of encounter) |
When a character's Luck Bonus drops
If a character’s Luck Bonus decreases by 1 or more (usually through burning), they must convert an equal number of their Lucky Numbers into Unlucky Numbers - player’s choice as to which. The total number of Lucky/Unlucky numbers always remains at five.
Optional rule: Goal-Oriented Luck refreshing
Some groups find refreshing LP at the start of every session too frequent or stale. As an optional rule, characters instead start with 1 LP after character creation and gain LP only by earning them through character and party moments - adhering to bonds, flaws, or personality traits; good planning; positive interactions with deities; achieving goals; and similar moments at the GM’s discretion.
GMs new to this system should reward LP generously until they calibrate to how their group uses them. This rule adds weight to character moments and makes LP feel like a more meaningful resource rather than an automatic refresh.