Wounds

Wounds represent the lasting repercussions of a protagonist reaching a breaking point, or suffering a lasting injury, trauma, or indignity. Unlike Despair, which models immediate strain, Wounds track enduring consequences. Wounds come in three types: Physical, Mental, or Social.

Wounds are Temporary Negative Traits that, like other such Traits, confer -1B Circumstance to Checks made using Abilities of the same type (Physical Wounds affect Checks made using Might, Grace, or Endurance Skills, for example).

In addition to the typical features of a Trait and a type, each Wound possesses a rank of 1 or higher. Wounds confer an additional -1B Circumstance for each rank above 1. For example, a rank 3 Mental Wound confers -3B Circumstance to Checks made using Mental Skills.

Wounds remain until they are cleared.

Suffering Wounds

Wounds occur when suffering Despair while Broken or when suffering Fallout while taking an Action or Reaction with high Stakes.

Recovery

Wounds can be cleared through use of the Bolster Action. A protagonist can attempt to clear their own Wounds or the Wounds of another protagonist in this way. Clearing a Wound has a Potency equal to the Wound’s rank.

Clearing a Wound is an Extended Challenge with a number of slots equal to the Wound’s Potency.

The Skill used for clearing a Wound with an Action depends on the Wound’s type - Physical and Mental Wounds can be cleared with a successful Bolster (Therapy) Check while Social Wounds can be cleared with a successful Bolster (Networking) Action.

The result of a protagonist’s Bolster Check made to clear a Wound is as follows:

• Miss. The protagonist or their target suffers Fallout.
• Graze. The protagonist makes half of 1d10 Progress towards clearing the Wound.
• Hit. The protagonist makes 1d10 Progress towards clearing the Wound.
• Critical. The protagonist makes 2d10 Progress towards clearing the Wound.

For example, a rank 2 Physical Wound has 2 Progress slots. A protagonist that Hits on a Bolster Check made to clear this Wound using Medical Supplies (Potency 2) makes 1d10 Progress. They roll 6, which clears 2 Progress slots and clears the Wound.

Recovery Reactions

Protagonists may be able to recover from their Wounds automatically over time. At each Minor Milestone, each protagonist may attempt to clear one Wound of their choice by taking a Recovery Reaction with a Test corresponding to the Wound type:

• Physical Wounds. Recovery (Vitality) Test
• Mental Wounds. Recovery (Resolve) Test
• Social Wounds. Recovery (Charisma) or Recovery (Diplomacy) Test, chosen by the protagonist

On a success, the protagonist makes 1d10 Progress toward clearing the Wound. Failure does not confer any additional negative consequences besides missing the opportunity to clear a Wound.

A protagonist can only make progress toward clearing a Wound with a Potency they’re able to match with their Recovery Reaction, as normal.

Dealing with High Potency Wounds

To clear Wounds with high Potency, a protagonist may need to overcome an Extended Challenge. The Extended Challenge has 5 Progress slots.

A protagonist may progress this Counter with a successful Action or Reaction if that Action or Reaction has a Potency equal to at least the Potency of the Wound minus one.

For example, a protagonist with a Potency 3 Mental Wound that is able to reach Potency 2 with their Recovery (Resolve) Test must first clear 5 Progress slots to reduce the Wound’s Potency to 2. They may then attempt to clear the Wound with later Actions or Reactions, as normal.

Defeat

A protagonist that would gain more than 5 total ranks of Wounds simultaneously is Defeated. Upon Defeat, the protagonist’s player chooses one of the following outcomes

Retirement

The protagonist becomes unable to continue adventuring. They exit play and become a non-protagonist character under the referee’s control.

The story acknowledges their exit: disability, trauma, obligation, transformation, exile; whatever fits the fiction.

The player creates a new protagonist introduced at the next appropriate moment.

Vanishing

The protagonist is lost completely and is functionally removed from the story. This may represent death, institutionalization, being abducted by monsters, fleeing the city after severe bullying, or being trapped or sealed away.

A vanished protagonist does not return unless both the referee and player explicitly agree.

Lingering Wound

Instead of removal from the story, the protagonist may choose to gain a new Permanent Negative Trait related to their highest ranking Wound (the referee chooses one on a tie). This Trait may only be removed by creating an Agenda dedicated to doing so.