You’re not born a hero, you become one – usually by chance. Contrary to popular belief or the stories we tell ourselves around the fireside, no one chooses to become one. It’s easy to imagine that you’re a hero, until you have to do something about it. Then you either do what you can, even if it means death, or you do nothing because you’re too scared to try. The hero is the one who does something, whether he dies or survives.

Damas the Jemmaï

NOTE: the Songs of Loss role-playing character sheet is also currently being translated. This takes time, as it’s not just a translation, but a complete overhaul, as well as graphics and layout work. Be patient, it should be finished in a month.

Intro

It’s time to arm yourself with a pencil, a character sheet and your imagination to create your avatar in the world of Loss. A character created according to the following rules is nothing more than a series of facts and figures, although throughout the character creation process we’ll be giving you hints on how to bring your character to life.

But what will make this character an avatar and a hero of the Songs of Loss is entirely up to you. Imagine him as a fictional character. Think about his foibles and weaknesses, his pleasures and dislikes, his reasons for being and the ideals that drive him. And, of course, think about creating him in relation to the characters of your friends who are going to play with you, because a hero alone is not much without his comrades, acquaintances and allies.

Armed with these initial ideas, you can get started! Character creation is explained in detail, but the process is straightforward until your avatar comes to life.

Character creation

The steps involved in creating a character are as follows:

1. Decide on your motivation.
2. Choose the People.
3. Define its three Virtues.
4. Define its Traits.
5. Choose the Archetype.
6. Choose your Childhood.
7. Choose your Training.
8. Choose your Talents. These are described in the chapter of the same name.
9. Advantages and Flaws. These are described in the chapter of the same name.
10. Spending bonus points: other Advantages, Traits, Talents, Links between characters.
11. Finalising the character: derived traits, Injury and Distress Levels, Inspirations.

Throughout character creation, we’re going to follow David, who has decided to create his hero from the Songs of Loss, whose name he has already chosen: Diego Esphatès, and whose role: thief. David is a fan of cat burglar and urban adventurers, and he wants to play a burglar with a bit of acrobatic flair in the world of Loss, which he hopes will be a possible and fun type of avatar in the world of Songs of Loss. The game master was able to reassure him quickly enough, and let the adventure begin.

1 -The motivation

You want to create a character in the world of Loss. First and foremost, he must have a motivation that will drive him to become a hero and create his Legend. You can choose your motivation from the examples below, or invent it yourself. Or roll 2D10, add them up and see what happens. This motivation, summed up in a few words, will perhaps become one of the pillars of your character and his Legend.

Motivations are not restrictive. They suggest what the hero of Loss is and why the character is going to become one. There is no obligation to make Virtues and Traits, Talents, Advantages and Defects coincide with the character’s Motivation. We encourage you to draw inspiration from it, but feel free to interpret it as you wish.

Motivation is what drives, by choice, necessity, destiny or chance, a player-character in the world of Loss to be something other than a simple person living his life, whether easy or dramatic. The hero of Loss is an explorer, an adventurer and a nomad; he defies certain common conventions and traditions that require him to devote himself to his family. His honour demands it of him, for it is a great act of courage to sacrifice oneself for one’s family, and a proof of wisdom to accept it. More prosaically, the world of Loss is a dangerous one; the fauna is giant and fearsome, the flora dangerous and deadly, the world is dotted with unknown and unexplored regions, and if it isn’t Loss who kills the unwary traveller, it will be the Lossyans. Heroes are uncommon on Loss and all the more admired because their Legend defies these fears.

List of motivations :

2- The Lost One:

He doesn’t know how he did it, he’s not even sure he remembers, but he’s the Lost One; far from home, family, country and acquaintances, with just a few clothes and not sure they’re his. And plenty of trouble ahead, starting with customs, laws and languages he may not know.

3- The forcibly conscripted:

It all started like this: a volunteer was needed, and he was chosen. Or maybe someone would make an andri of money by forcing him to enlist. In any case, the Enrôlé de force ended up in a port or in front of a barracks, a long way from home, with a few pennies in his pocket and a few problems resulting from adventures he didn’t really want.

4- The Fugitive:

He has committed a crime or, as he puts it himself, is falsely accused of one. The crime may be against a person, a family or a city-state. For many families, running away from a wedding is as much a crime as refusing to commit murder to avenge their loved ones. But since then, the Fugitive has had to live looking over his shoulder, wondering when he will be caught up and by whom?

5-6- The Bereaved:

A long time ago, he lost someone close to him, in a tragic way. Such a tragedy is common, but he feels responsible, guilty, a repository. It haunts them, even if they hide it. The bereaved don’t want it to happen again, they hope one day to understand why; perhaps to find the culprit or bring justice that will at least ease their heart. Or simply to wipe away their debt, to soothe their grief and mourning by one day being, for others, the saviour that the loved one they lost missed.

7- The Indebted:

Who knows how, but the Indebted One owes someone a great deal, far too much to be able to repay easily. Such a debt is not something that can be settled with a few andris and nothing is worse than debts of honour and oaths. Except perhaps debts involving fortunes vast enough to arouse the worst greed and anger. One day, the Debtor will have to pay it back, and the price could be far more than he really owes.

8- The Custodian:

The Custodian has been entrusted with a secret, be it a family secret, a clan secret or a secret society secret. The secret is an object, a name, a person, something seemingly insignificant, until the secret is discovered. Like any self-respecting secret heritage, its Custodian has never been given the full key. He knows nothing of the details or the nature of the inheritance, except that it is of immense value, that he is the last person to carry it, and that he will have to choose what to do with it or to whom he will pass it on.

9- The Betrayed

He’s been betrayed, and badly. Perhaps he deserved it and perhaps he alone believes in this betrayal. But the Betrayed now has a debt of Honour engraved on his skin and there are few ways of erasing it other than to make the person responsible pay. Which doesn’t necessarily mean killing him or making him suffer. But, however it is done, the debt must be paid and the price must be commensurate with the wounded honour.

10- The Compromise

One of the secrets of Compromise is ugly. An old crime, a serious fault, something about his origins, but also his tastes, his curiosities, his appetites or even his knowledge that must not be revealed. But someone knows, and the Compromiser knows that he knows, and that sooner or later his secret will be revealed, with dramatic consequences. For himself, of course, but also for everyone around him. He has to make a decision to ensure that this never happens… including compromising himself even further.

11-12- The Idealist

The Idealist follows a goal and a personal code, a vision of the world that is precious to him and serves as his guide. More than any other Lossyan, he knows the Three Virtues, their rules and their morals by heart and has chosen to follow one of them to the letter, never deviating from it, with a few exceptions. He has in mind a goal and an ideal of life that he hopes to achieve. And when he has to turn away from it or deviate from its rules, it is a sacrifice that, for him, is sometimes a high price to pay.

13-14- The criminal

He knows he is one and has to live with it, for better or worse; but he has committed a crime, or perhaps it’s his way of life, a habit or just frequent bad luck. He may be trying to put the past behind him or pursue his activities in an attempt to gain relative respectability. But the criminal knows that, sooner or later, justice or vengeance will catch up with him.

15- The Junkie

Good and honourable, or destroyed by their vice and devoid of all morality, the Junkie is addicted to their drug. And whether it’s alcohol, tobacco, drugs or rare spices, not only can they not do without them, they can’t resist their allure and easily fall for them if someone uses their vice to lure them in. A good way to start an adventure and a story without asking for it.

16-17 The Elder

Being an elder happens a lot: Loss families have a lot of children. But the eldest, who has problems that could send him off on an adventure, has inherited a younger sibling, a child, or even an entire family with an unfortunate knack for getting into trouble. And sooner or later, this has happened, or is going to happen, and will lead the Elder to have to face up to these problems, assume his role and without knowing where it will lead him.

18- The Orphan

The family is very important to every inhabitant of Loss. It is the solidarity of the family, sometimes extended, that enables them to survive lack of work, money, illness or retirement. The Orphan has none of these things, but he knows that he has had them and that, somewhere, he has a family or has had one. And that he has roots, which he wants to find, whether they are still alive or just a fading memory, but which he can claim as his heir.

19- The Vigilante

They do not seek revenge or serve a legal authority; nor do they seek to kill. The Vigilante simply believes that the world is not fair. By choice, necessity or habit, one day he took the decision to redress the balance, perhaps because no one wanted to do it but him. Justice means respecting the three virtues: Honour, Courage and Wisdom. Anyone who doesn’t understand, or doesn’t want to understand, that all human relationships are based on these virtues, and that betraying them has a price, deserves to be punished. The Vigilante knows that law and justice are above all a matter of power, politics and corruption. He doesn’t care about any of these things, just as much as he doesn’t care about the consequences of his sense of justice and what he does with it.

20- The Chosen One

Destiny is a very complicated thing, and the Chosen knows this better than anyone. A strange event at birth or during childhood, the prophecy of an ancient sage, the vision of a shaman or simply a physical stigma, has made him someone who everyone around him believes to be marked by destiny. Since then, as if everyone wanted to believe, the hazards of life have gone out of their way to reveal as many signs that all this is indeed true. Fate makes legends. And the Chosen One never forgets that these stories often end badly. But after all, what if it were true that fate has chosen him? And if the Chosen has a predestined Legend, what is it?

Example: David quickly consults the different Motivations and quickly chooses: he will be the Criminal. He imagines a fairly simple scenario that will form the basis of his avatar. In his youth, he took part in a masterly heist that had dramatic consequences. The event ruined a merchant family to such an extent that the father committed suicide, while creditors plundered what was left of his fortune. Finally, to pay off the head of the family’s debt, they enslaved and auctioned off the merchant’s daughters. Diego regrets that what for him was just a juicy job turned into such a tragedy. He sees it as a stain on his honour. He is determined to avoid it happening again at all costs, having discovered that he has scruples and a moral code, albeit a very elastic one.

2- Choosing your people

It’s time to choose your character’s origin, from among the different peoples of Loss, including the Lost Earthlings. This choice will modify your character’s Virtues, as each people has culturally favoured one Virtue over another. It is after this stage, during which the player notes the virtue modifiers of his people, that they will be determined.

The peoples of Loss are listed here from North to South and from East to West, not in alphabetical order.

More information on the peoples can be found in these links :

The peoples of Loss, part 1

The peoples of Loss, part 2

THE DRAGENSMANNS

Massive, tall, horse and dragens riding warriors  living in cold, harsh lands not far from the Arctic Circle. They are brave, fiery and angry men with a shamanic tradition. Female warriors are common. Fiercely opposed to the Church of the Council, they are constantly at war with the Hegemony of Anqimenès.

Virtues: -1 Wisdom, +1 Courage

THE HEGEMONIANS

Disciplined, authoritarian, sexist and proud, of Nordic and Slavic origin, these are the inhabitants of the great religious and conquering Empire of which Anqimenès is the capital. They are the most important and devoted followers of the Church of the Council and consider it legitimate and just that the rest of the world should live under their yoke.

Virtues: -1 Wisdom, +1 Honour

THE SVATNAZ

Woodmen of Slavic origin, cousins of the Hegemonians, but fiercely independent. The Hegemonians persecute them and hunt them as game to supply themselves with slaves, and the Svatnaz have learned to live in hiding, as nomadic foresters of legendary courage.

Virtues: -1 Wisdom, +1 Courage

THE GENNEMONS

Of Asian and Siberian origin, these are the inhabitants of the coastal marches between Hegemony and Hemlaris, who have spent much of their history under attack from both empires. They are undisciplined horsemen with a fastidious and quick-witted sense of honour, living on large plains where they breed horses and griffons.

Virtues: -1 Wisdom, +1 Honour

THE HEMLARIS

The second largest empire in Loss, along with the Hegemony. The Hemlaris are Asians related to South-East Asia, who place honour, respect and one’s position in the scheme of things above all else. They are a traditionalist and xenophobic people with a particular distrust of the Hegemony. Their warriors are known for never surrendering.

Virtues: -1 Wisdom, +1 Honour

THE FORESTERS

Living above the Plains of Eteocle in deep and dangerous forests, they are Celts with a tribal and shamanic culture. Like the Svatnaz, they are persecuted as slave livestock by the Hegemony, but also by the Eteoclians. They are particularly distrustful and cautious, trading only with caution. They are formidable archers and, like the Dragensmanns, they place great importance on their wives, who fight with them.

Virtues: -1 Honour, +1 Wisdom

THE ETEOCLIANS

Mostly of Hellenic origin, the Eteoclians are a proud and noble people of high stature, who set great store by respect for codes and honour. Along with the Dragensmanns and Foresters, they are the people with the highest number of redhead births. Despite their superstitious loyalty to the Church, they have a great attachment to their ancient myths, beliefs and gods and a high regard for learning.

Virtues: -1 Courage, +1 Honour

THE AR’HANTHIAS

Asians mixed with Mediterraneans, although many of them are blond. They are remarkable city-dwellers and seafarers, but also, on the great plains of Allenys, nomads raising herds of ghia-thunder. Superstitious, traditionalists and very attached to the dogmas of the Church, they set great store by honour and loyalty to their people and their beliefs.

Virtues: -1 Wisdom, +1 Honour

THE TERANCHENS & THE IMARETH

Of Mediterranean and Middle Eastern origin, the Teranchens and Imareth are two cousins, known for their notorious indiscipline and cunning. Excellent sailors, often cultured and cautious men, they dominate the islands of the archipelagos with their ships and do not shy away from piracy or trade. They are often nicknamed the cousins of the Athemais: they are in fact quite close to them, sharing their progressive spirit.

Virtues: -1 Courage, +1 Wisdom

THE JEMMAÏS

A complex blend of Mediterranean and Semitic origins, the Jemmais are now home to all ethnicity. The Jemmaïs, more by their mentality than by their appearance, form a people in their own right. Humanists in the contemporary sense of the term, even if slavery does exist, fiercely atheist and resolutely scientific, they are survivors in small numbers, a people hated by the Church and the Hegemony, feared by all the others and truly known by none. The Jemmaïs are almost considered a legend, as those who travel or live around the Seas of Separation hide their origins. It is said that no-one can reach the borders of Jemmaï-he Jil, their territory at the heart of the Rift, without a guide.

Virtues: -1 Honour, +1 Courage, +1 Wisdom

Disadvantages: Dark Secret (Jemmaï): If a Jemmaï is known as such by the Church, he is invariably at risk of being hunted down and executed in public after interrogation and torture.

THE ATHEMAIS

Of Hellenic, Mediterranean and Middle Eastern origin, the Athémaïs are a melting-pot of peoples from all the Seas of Separation, even if the Middle Easterners dominate. An inquisitive, open-minded and progressive people, the Athémaïs place great importance on trade and exchange, not least because of their thirst for knowledge and learning. Armanth is the second largest and most powerful city in Loss and its leaders and inhabitants have little regard for the Church of the Council, even if the latter remains present and respected by its aristocracy.

Virtues: -1 Honour, +1 Wisdom

THE EREBS

Descended from the secretive peoples of the Middle East, the Erebs live from wood and agriculture. With a mystical and partly matriarchal culture, wisdom and observation of the natural world are very important to them, and they do not recognise the faith of the Council Church. Their isolation, mountains and forests spared them from the Ordinatorii Crusades, and they maintain a few trade links with Athaemais.

Virtues: -1 Courage, +1 Wisdom

THE SAN’ESHE

A people of uncertain origin, but resembling Asians of great size and stature, the San’eshe have a strongly tribal and shamanic culture which places great value on courage and passion and makes no distinction between the sexes. They usually haunt their deep, mysterious forests as nomads. The San’eshe are hardly tender or patient with strangers visiting their territories. But they are often the victims of raids to capture slaves.

Virtues: -1 Honour, +1 Courage

THE NOMADS OF THE FRINGES

Culturally quite close to the Athemais, they live off livestock in the deserts and arid plains of the south, close to their horses and herds of sika, in countless patriarchal clans. Often tall and massive, with black skin, they are famous for their endurance and lack of mercy, but also for their generosity and shady pride.

Virtues: -1 Wisdom, +1 Honour

THE LOST EARTHLINGS

Lost Earthlings are those who arrived on Loss, without knowing how, without any hope of returning and destined for an unenviable fate in the vast majority of cases. It is very difficult for an Earthling to stay alive on Loss: without help, there is a good chance that he will die in less than two days. As with almost all Lossyan peoples, a Lost Terran is a gift from the gods or a good omen to be appropriated and enslaved – it’s even a Dogma of the Church of the Divine Council – it’s almost impossible for an Earthling not to meet the fateful fate of slavery. And even if they do escape, they risk a lifetime of being hunted down or captured if anyone learns of their nature.

Virtues: +1 Courage

Advantages: virtue of Air

Disadvantages: Earthling: if you know who they are, Earthlings are invariably hunted down by practically all Lossyans and risk enslavement. Earthlings can’t invest PCs in the Talents of Linguistics, Zoology, History, Geography or Folklore, and the Artefact Hunter and Shaman archetypes are forbidden to them.

Example: David talks to the game leader to find out if he has chosen the setting for the first adventures. He replies that he’s going to use Armanth as the setting, and David takes the opportunity to decide that Diego is a full-blooded Athémaïs! So he notes the Virtue modifier for this people: -1 Honour, +1 Wisdom.

3- Defining the Three Virtues

A Loss character is defined first and foremost by his Virtues, which you will determine and which will influence your character’s Traits. The Virtues are the measure of the character’s generic moral values: everyone on Loss recognises these Virtues, whether they are of Concilian or barbarian culture; these moral values define what Lossyans consider human nature to be. There are four Virtues, but only the first three concern all the characters: Honour, Courage and Wisdom. The last, Faith, is only available to characters with the Virtue of Air Advantage. It starts at 1 and can only be modified by Advantages.

Each of the three Virtues (Honour, Courage, Wisdom) starts at 3. The player then applies the modifiers of the people he has chosen to his character. Finally, he divides six points between his three Virtues (Honour, Courage, Wisdom) as he sees fit.

Virtue points cannot be invested in Faith.

A Virtue cannot exceed 10 when the character is created.

• Honour is the Voice (the Social), and includes all the Social Traits (Power and Empathy) and the Interaction, Art and Craft talents.
• Courage is the Body (Physical), encompassing all Physical traits (Might and Agility) and the talents of Combat, Skill and Piloting.
• Wisdom is the Spirit (Mental), encompassing all Mental traits (Spirit and Instinct) and the talents of Science, Knowledge and Perception.
• Faith is the Mystical: the talents of Forbidden Knowledge and the Song of Loss. These are presented in detail in a dedicated chapter: The Virtue of Air.

It is then possible to increase a Virtue by up to two points, or to decrease a Virtue to zero, thanks to Advantages and Defects.

On the subject of Virtues :

HONOUR, EARTH:

Earth is stability, uprightness, assurance, the source of birth and home. It is Honour: Honour is the act of acting first and foremost by virtue of one’s convictions, in accordance with the principles shared by one’s group, one’s people, the believers of one’s faith. Honour is a code of conduct that is shared by the community: it is earned through acts that are admired by the community, suffered through shame and lost through humiliations that are reprobated by one’s own people. Of the three virtues, honour is the most visible.

Without honour, a man has no word. He cannot be trusted or relied upon: he is vile. He will be ashamed, despised and rejected by his own kind, to the point of ostracism.

COURAGE, FIRE:

Fire is energy, vivacity, strength and rebirth; it is Courage. Courage is overcoming fear to act in the face of danger. That’s why it’s not audacity or recklessness, which are dictated by desire, envy, pride or a lack of survival instinct. Courage is hard to detect in an individual. It takes a situation of danger and the need to overcome fear for Courage to appear.

Courage is a highly respected virtue among Lossyans. It is honourable for them to face up to danger, even mortal danger, when necessary. Cowardice is a sign of unforgivable weakness.

WISDOM, WATER:

Water is calm, the incoercible movement that bypasses all obstacles, the mirror that reflects the self, the serenity of its trickle, the force that takes its time to bring down the strongest foundations. It is Wisdom. Wisdom is the act of conforming to an ethic, often common to one’s community. It combines awareness of oneself and others with temperance, thoughtful prudence, sincerity and discernment. The wise man becomes respected and listened to for the light he sheds on others’ problems and fears of the unknown.

A man without wisdom is impulsive, sanguine and hot-tempered. He is thoughtless and must bear the consequences of his ill-advised decisions more than anyone else. Lossyans will have no mercy in calling him a fool and not giving him credit.

FAITH, THE LOST VIRTUE: AIR

Air is immaterial, the realm of the intangible. It cannot be seen, but it can be felt. It cannot be touched, but it touches all beings. It is Faith: Faith is love, the concept of absolute confidence in that which has no verifiable existence through the senses, experience or material proof. For Lossyans, this notion is linked to Honour. It is honourable to trust and to give one’s trust. But for those who know Faith, it’s quite a different matter: Air is absolute and blind trust. It is sacrifice and devotion, and finally, it touches the very essence of spirituality and self-giving. It is unconditional love. It is a Virtue incomprehensible to most Lossyans.

How to interpret the virtues :

The Virtues serve as a scale for the moral traits of the player’s character; it is up to them to interpret them as they see fit, having an idea of what they mean. Once the character has been created, the Virtues evolve over the course of the game, either because the player makes his character act in the direction of his Virtues in a remarkable way, or, on the contrary, in the opposite direction. It is when the player decides to use his Virtue Inspirations that there may be an important opportunity to see a Virtue evolve.

A high or low Virtue, if it affects the character’s Traits, should be considered as a guide to behaviour, not a straitjacket: a warrior with 2 Courage can very well have high Might and Agility scores and will be just as competent as a warrior with 6 Courage and the same traits. The difference between the two characters will be felt when they have to call on their Courage Inspiration to succeed in an arduous feat. While the warrior with high Courage will be able to rely on his Virtue, the warrior with low Courage will have to manage without it.

Virtues are not set in stone: they can evolve with the advantages & disadvantages, including reaching a score of zero (which can have serious social consequences in the world of Loss) but even more so later, depending on how the player embodies his character.

Indicative table of virtue values :

Value	Indifferent		Courage		Sagesse		Foi
0	Infamous		Coward		Unconscious		Indifferent
1-2	Dishonoured		Timid		Stupid		Touched
3-4	Suitable		Hesitant		Aware		Inspired
5-6	Honest		Brave		Reasonable		Devoted
7-8	Esteemed	Valorous		Judicious		Fervent
9-10	Illustrious	Fearless		Knowledgeable		Enlightened
11 & +	Grandiose	Heroic		Wise		Saint

David is at the first critical stage of Diego’s creation, deciding on his virtues and allocating his points. First of all, he takes into account that as an Athemais Diego has -1 Honour and +1 Wisdom. David therefore notes that Diego starts with Honour 2, Courage 3 and Wisdom 4. David then has 6 points to divide between his three Virtues. Diego is going to be a very physical thief, so David adds 3 to his Courage. Not to be outdone, he decides that Diego is a man who thinks before he acts and doesn’t let himself be taken for a ride, and adds 2 to his Wisdom. And David keeps the last point to ensure a minimum of Honour for his avatar, especially because he doesn’t want him to be too socially handicapped. This gives Diego: Honour 3, Courage 6, Wisdom 6.

4- Define Traits:

This is where you define your character’s traits, based on his Virtue scores. Your character’s traits define his social, physical and mental abilities and potential. They are influenced by the choices you have made for your character’s Virtues. Honour affects social traits, Courage affects physical traits and Wisdom affects mental traits. Faith, which stands apart, has no related traits.

Here’s how the player determines his character’s traits:

• The player spends as many points on each trait linked to a Virtue as he has put into that Virtue. Each Virtue has two linked traits, so the player divides these points between them.
• Once this has been done, the player has 20 additional Trait points, which he can divide between all his Trait as he wishes, subject to three rules:
  • No Trait, once this stage has been completed, may be less than three: a Trait with two or less is a handicap.
  • No Trait may exceed its linked Virtue score +5.
  • At this stage, the player can only have one Trait of 10 for his character.

Your traits are not fixed. Creation Points will allow you to acquire Trait points in stage 10, and certain Advantages and Defects that you choose can also modify them.

DEFINING TRAITS

Honour- related traits (social)

Power:

Power is the ability to attract, charisma, natural authority and the ability to impose one’s views and wishes on others socially. It includes glibness as well as the ability to manipulate or fascinate. It is the social trait par excellence when it comes to negotiation and command.

Power is the prerogative of leaders, military officers, great politicians, diplomats and gurus.

• 1-2: the charisma of a small child or a person with a sickly shyness; it’s a real handicap.
• 3-4: the influence of someone who is self-effacing, hesitant and socially awkward.
• 5-6: the average aura of most people, capable of being convincing and capturing the attention of those around them when the conditions are right or they display the necessary talents.
• 7-8: The charisma of a self-confident and socially comfortable person, who knows how to impose himself and take precedence over others, used to knowing how to command, haggle and negotiate with art.
• 9-10: The power and aura of a born leader, a captivating and spellbinding person who knows how to capture everyone’s attention effortlessly.
• 11 and over: A living legend: it is said that such a character can change the destiny of a man or a town in a few sentences.

Empathy:

Empathy is the ability to feel the emotions of others, to discern, understand and share them. It is the source of all true seduction. It is a very important trait for social skills in relationships, including with animals. Empathy is the social trait par excellence of people who apparently care about others, want to understand them and seek to be able to think like them and study their emotions, thoughts and secret desires.

Empathy is the prerogative of counsellors, observers, seducers, psychologists, shamans and the most devoted servants.

• 1-2: A more or less complete absence of empathy is a sign of mental derangement, a case that makes the individual particularly clumsy, brutal and indifferent to the suffering of others. It is a disability.
• 3-4: the empathy of people who are a little cold or egotistical, not very good at getting under the skin of others or realising the relational or emotional significance of their actions.
• 5-6: the average sensitivity of most people, capable of understanding and feeling others, guessing and analysing their emotions and secret thoughts, but not without experience, learning and ad hoc talents.
• 7-8: A strong aptitude for emotional exchanges and for perceiving the emotions of those around them. The character can easily get into people’s heads, put themselves in their place and anticipate their emotional reactions.
• 9-10: The character has a very keen sense of empathy, almost an instinct for lies and hidden thoughts, enabling them to gauge the emotional state and degree of sincerity of the other person’s words. For him, human nature has no real secrets.
• 11 and over: A living legend: it is said that such a character can know everything about a man at a glance, and that even the Psykes fear such lucidity.

Courage-related traits (physical)

Might:

Might is the character’s strength, stamina and build. The higher this trait is, the more vast, broad and muscular the character is. Might comes into play in most actions related to strength and endurance and in all forms of hand-to-hand combat. It’s a trait shared by all fighters and strength workers.

Might is the prerogative of warriors and legionnaires, of lumberjacks and dockworkers, of fierce desert herders and tundra nomads alike.

• 1-2: the build and strength of a child or a decrepit old man. This is a handicap.
• 3-4: the physical strength and stamina of an average 21st century city dweller. This is an individual who finds it hard to rely on his physique to dominate, and suffers easily when he has to exert himself.
• 5-6: the average build of men and women who do regular physical work requiring some prolonged effort. Most Lossyans have this Might.
• 7-8: The character has physical power and a notorious build: they are easily described as strong. Male or female, they’re well built and know they can rely on their physical strength if need be.
• 9-10: The character is a colossus, surpassing everyone around him in strength, build and stamina. He is remarkably muscular, and can even play with it easily; he impresses and makes people hesitate when confronted with him, and his feats of strength are well known.
• 11 and +: A living legend: the character is so powerful, enduring and strong that Lossyans compare him to a ghia-thunder.

Agility:

Agility combines suppleness, alertness and manual dexterity. It’s a trait that comes into play in all sports skills, dexterity and certain arts and crafts. Agility can also replace Power in hand-to-hand combat.

Agility is the prerogative of aerialists and acrobats, as well as certain fighters who rely on their flexibility and dodging skills.

• 1-2: The agility of a paralytic or an old man with rheumatism. The character is unable to run, jump or use his hands, which are too shaky or deformed. This is a disability.
• 3-4: The skill of someone who is clumsy, has coordination problems or simply has some health problems. People who do no physical exercise, are overweight or do not practise any occupation that favours dexterity or agility are at this level.
• 5-6: the average agility of most people who regularly have to act with coordination and are very active. A docker, bricklayer or blacksmith would be in this range, for example.
• 7-8: The character is remarkably agile, flexible and dexterous and has no doubt made this their art or profession. Naturally, anything involving feats of balance and coordination is accessible to them.
• 9-10: The agility of the most flexible and dexterous people, that of acrobats, aerialists, the most remarkable dancers and the most breathtaking tightrope walkers. For such a character, climbing a roof or a tree is as easy and natural as walking across a meadow.
• 11 and over: A living legend: such a character is said to be able to run on treetops.

Wisdom-related traits (mental)

Spirit:

general erudition, the ability to reason and the capacity to learn and make the most of the character’s knowledge. But also their fortitude, willpower and ability to use their mental and personal resources to resist pressure, psychological trauma and physical and moral suffering. It is an indispensable trait for all talents in science and knowledge. The Spirit does not only concern intelligent people and does not necessarily reflect intellectual genius, as it also concerns willpower, determination and the ability to think calmly, meditate and concentrate.

The mind is the prerogative of scholars, sages, shamans, ascetics and erudites.

• 1-2: the mind of a fool, a small child, most animals or a mentally retarded person. It is a handicap.
• 3-4: the intellect and concentration of someone who has little use for intellectual effort to survive and the opportunity to use his mind. Rural people in remote areas, who have little means of sharpening their minds, often have this degree of Spirit. But a man born rich and within reach of everything he desires can be just as foolish and without will or wit.
• 5-6: Most people on Loss have this level of wit. The character is neither foolish nor truly brilliant, but can demonstrate intelligence and willpower if experience and education help him to do so.
• 7-8: The character has a remarkable mind, learns quickly, thinks quickly, decides quickly and can have flashes of genius. This is a fairly common quality and degree of Mind for Earthlings Lost on Loss, most of whom are city dwellers in a society which, unlike Loss, encourages and enriches Mind as a necessary quality of life.
• 9-10: Such a Spirit is brilliant, incisive, rare and powerful. The character has great strength of mind and his ability to learn and draw the right conclusions from scattered information is quite natural and sharp. They are easily perceived as geniuses, whose intellectual flights of fancy are difficult for most people to follow.
• 11 and over: A living legend: the character is seen as invincibly strong-willed and his intellectual acuity is perceived as so inhuman that no-one can understand it.

Instinct:

The sum of the character’s five senses. It is the character’s ability to perceive the whole of their environment, in a more or less conscious or animal way. It’s a very important trait for aiming talents and those involving search and perception, such as orientation, stealth, etc. Instinct is also about adapting to your environment and understanding and interpreting what you perceive.

Instinct is the prerogative of hunters, woodsmen and spinning specialists, but it is also a necessary trait for the best musicians and singers.

• 1-2: The character is blind, deaf, agueusic; in short, he can’t rely on his senses. This is a handicap.
• 3-4: The character’s instincts are not very sure. They have no well-developed senses, or simply no talent for using them. This level of instinct is often found in city dwellers, whose need to use their senses and instincts is relatively blunted.
• 5-6: The character has well-developed senses and knows he can rely on his sense of danger, but has to take into account that he is not necessarily safe. He will still be effective in using instinct-related talents, but is by no means exceptional.
• 7-8: A tracker’s level of instinct and sense analysis. The character can rely on sharp senses and can trust his instincts when they become agitated. He will be a formidable marksman and has a gift for following leads… or covering them up.
• 9-10: Wild instinct. The precision and eyes of a bird of prey, the sense of smell of a master hunter… or a dog. The character only needs a few moments in a place to get to know all its smells, hidden shapes, architectural errors and shadows.
• 11 and over: A living legend: such a character has senses so acute that he is compared to the draekyas or can even be said to have an absolute ear.

Example: David has to define Diego’s Traits, the second critical stage in the creation of his thief. Each Virtue gives him the points to allocate to the traits that depend on it, before spending 20 points freely. So David starts with the points from the traits, which gives him: Power: 2, Empathy: 1, Might: 2, Agility: 4, Spirit: 3, Instinct: 3. Of course, these trait scores are very low, most of them ranging from low to crippling, but David can now allocate 20 points as he sees fit, respecting the rules that no trait can be more than 5 higher than its linked Virtue, that none can be less than 3… and that he’s only allowed one trait at 10.

David thinks about how to characterise Diego’s attributes, taking into account the constraints of the distribution of his 20 extra trait points. He decides on the following distribution:

• Power: 2 +3 = 5
• Empathy: 1 +3 = 4
• Might: 2 +4 = 6
• Agility: 4 +4 = 8
• Spirit: 3 +2 = 5
• Instinct: 3 +4 = 7

Diego is clearly a physical lad, a nimble and precise aerialist with keen senses. In the end, his only weakness is his lack of empathy, which doesn’t make him a very sharp cunning man. Just as well, David doesn’t see him as a social hero or one of great intellectual relevance, but as an adventurer who relies on his physical skills to get himself out of trouble.