The three core statistics are known as Facilities. These represent the fundamental capabilities of a character’s mind and body and various other statistics are based on these. Each Facility is rated on a scale of 0 to 7 and has a semi-exponential nature to represent the degree of separation between each value.
1. Co-ordination represents the physical and sensory functions of the body and is used to determine combat, environmental awareness and similar capabilities. High Co-ordination usually indicates a significant degree of training and honing of the physical modalities.
2. Intellect represents the wisdom and higher reasoning functions of the body and is used to determine resolve, skills and similar capabilities. High Intellect usually indicates a significant degree of education and honing of the mental modalities.
3. Persuasion represents the social and charismatic functions of the body and is used to determine interpersonal relationships, bargaining and similar capabilities. High Persuasion usually indicates a significant degree of charisma and honing of the social modalities.
The next key statistic is Status which is a value from 0 to 5 that illustrates your standing in the society. The actual values depend on the prevailing nature attitudes of the society in the campaign and in a large political setting, different sets of Status may actually operate but more on that later. The ST is the final arbiter of where on the scale any given character falls.
As a general outline, the various values correspond to the following ranks/positions:
0 = Vagrant; homeless; refugee
1 = Peasant, serf; manual labourer; servant
2 = Semi-skilled worker; squire; soldier; guard
3 = Professional worker; knight; expert; middle manager; officer
4 = Aristocracy; large landowner or businessman; company director; government minister
5 = Royalty; CEO / MD; Head of State / Government
Important! Due to the general style of gameplay advocated by this system, it is not expected that PCs will start a game with Status less than 3. In fact, due to the way in which characters improve and the benefits that accrue due to Status, a PC may find themselves quite disadvantaged in a mixed-Status game – though that in itself could be the source of roleplaying challenge in trying to make one’s character more upwardly mobile.
To accompany the three Facilities, every character has three Defences which indicate how resilient they are.
1. Fortitude represents the primary physical defence and is an indicator of how well you can avoid or withstand actual bodily force from a fall or sword strike. Your basic score is calculated as Coordination + 4. Other modifiers may apply such as from a weapon (to indicate a capacity to parry a blow) or talent.
2. Resolve represents your mental defences and is an indicator of how well you can avoid or withstand attempts to persuade or sway you from an intended course. Your basic score is calculated as Intellect + Status + 3. Status is included to represent the improved degree of self-belief and importance that comes with higher status. Other modifiers may apply such as from a talent or a mystical talisman.
3. Wound Points (WP) represent the character’s actual health and capacity for taking damage. Your basic score is calculated as Status + 3 (on the basis that higher status generally means a better/healthier lifestyle and better access to healthcare). Other modifiers may apply such as from a talent or armour (but this is a special case, see later).