Talent Name | Category | Description | Restrictions & Requirements | Maximum Repetitions Allowed |
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Arcane Initiate | Arcane | Choose one level 2 spell from the spells list. You gain exactly 5 EP and can cast this spell by spending 2 of them, with a +2 roll. If you later learn this as an arcane focus skill, then this talent is refunded. | Requires NO arcane focus skills. | 1 |
Arcane Smite | Arcane | Immediately after you hit with a melee or brawl attack, you can choose to spend 2 energy points. If you do, your hit deals 2d6 additional magic damage of a type you can cast (for example, if you know Pyromancy, it can be fire). | Requires at least one arcane Focus Skill and either Melee or Brawl. | 1 |
Cantrips | Arcane | You can roll any of your arcane skills as a social or performance skill when you show small, harmless magical tricks and flourishes, representing your arcane skills, without needing to spend any Energy Points. | Requires at least one arcane Focus Skill. | 1 |
Cleric | Arcane | When you are casting a nonviolent spell to buff, help, heal, protect, defend, or safeguard someone, you get +1 to the roll. Additionally, once per scene, as a single action, you may roll your best arcane skill with +1 and shout to castigate enemy fiends or undead. Depending on the roll vs their defense, all of them you can see may take damage, be forced to flee, or explode. This costs no EP. | Requires at least one arcane Focus Skill. | 1 |
Elementalist | Arcane |
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Requires at least one arcane Focus Skill. | 1 |
Divided Mind | Arcane | You are now allowed to concentrate on +1 additional spell, simultaneously. If you unintentionally drop concentration, you drop it on all spells. You may take this talent up to twice for a total of 3 simultaneous concentrations. | Requires at least one arcane Focus Skill. | 1 |
Sage | Arcane | You gain +1 to all your casting rolls with your sensing spells. | Requires at least one arcane Focus Skill. | 1 |
Sorceror | Arcane |
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Requires at least one arcane Focus Skill. | 1 |
Warlock | Arcane |
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Requires at least one arcane Focus Skill. | 1 |
Witch | Arcane |
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Requires at least one arcane Focus Skill. | 1 |
CPA: Talents List
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Talents are discrete permanent features that increase a player character's power.- Two talents are received at character creation.
- At any time, a character may purchase a talent by spending 5 saved experience points (XP).
- Some talents have restrictions and requirements before they may be acquired.
- Some talents may be repeated, while most may be taken once only.
Talent Name | Category | Description | Restrictions & Requirements | |
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Assassin | Combat |
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Expert Duelist | Combat | When you are challenging someone to a duel or contest, roll your skill check with a one step larger die size, and you can use a combat skill to make that challenge. Additionally, once per combat round, you can use a reaction to make any one attack, if possible without moving, whenever an enemy misses you in melee range. You don't ever take opportunity attacks. | - | |
Elite Duelist | Combat | You can now make your counterattack even if you fail to dodge an enemy's close-quarters hit against you. Additionally, you have an increased die size on all counterattack accuracy rolls. | Requires Expert Duelist. | |
Berserker I | Combat | Your cleave and slash attacks can now hit in a 360 degree arc. Rage: At any time, you can choose to make attack rolls this round by rolling 3 accuracy dice and keeping the highest 2, in exchange for making your defense rolls with 3 dice and keeping the lowest 2 (until the start of your next turn). This is called a 'Rage'. Additionally, at any time, you can roll with one step larger die size to physically intimidate or taunt people. | Requires Melee or Brawl skill. | |
Berserker II | Combat | +1 additional global DR and +1 additional critical strike chance for close quarters attacks. When you make a critical strike with Brawl or Melee, you may continue making attacks until you miss or cannot reach enemies. Additionally, you gain Whirlwind Attack: You can choose to spend 1 action to enter a rage, and choose a path along the ground that goes by any number of enemies, moving your movement value, and roll Rage attacks with Brawl or Melee to hit all of the enemies you visit in this way, once each. You cannot use other special attacks while doing this. | Requires Berserker I. | |
Brute I | Combat | All of your Melee and Brawl attacks now deal +1d4 additional damage. | Requires Melee or Brawl skill. | |
Brute II | Combat | Your additional damage die size increases from +1d4 to +1d8 for all melee and brawl attacks. | Requires Brute I. | |
Inquisitor | Combat |
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Speedy | Miscellaneous |
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- | 1 |
Axe Expert | Combat | You now always cleave when melee attacking with an axe, in addition to your special attack. | Requires melee skill. | |
Axe Elite | Combat | You can throw axes of any size up to 20m using Athletics, Shoot or Melee; and you can make melee or thrown axe accuracy rolls with 2d10 instead of 2d8. | Requires Axe Expert. | |
Brawl Expert | Combat |
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Requires Brawl skill. | |
Brawl Elite | Combat |
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Requires Brawl Expert | |
Bow Expert | Combat |
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Requires Shoot skill. | |
Bow Elite | Combat |
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Requires Bow Expert. | |
Crossbow Expert | Combat | You can fire a crossbow at point-blank range with no disadvantage, and all of your crossbow hits deal +1d4 damage. | Requires Shoot skill. | |
Crossbow Elite | Combat | +2 critical strike chance with crossbows; you can spend your bonus action to reload a crossbow. | Requires Crossbow Expert. | |
Dagger Expert | Combat | You get +2 critical strike chance with daggers. No penalty for dual wielding daggers, and you can throw them with Melee skill. If you hit with a melee or thrown dagger attack, then you can spend your bonus action to make another melee or thrown dagger attack. | Requires Melee skill. | |
Dagger Elite | Combat | You get a further +2 (total +4) critical strike chance with daggers, and with them your critical strike damage is 3x normal damage. | Requires Dagger Expert | |
Hammer Expert | Combat | When wielding hammers, maces and mauls in combat, you gain the option to make your special attack a Stun attack. This special effect causes the enemy to lose 1 of their next 2 actions in their next turn. It can only be applied once per enemy per round. | Requires Melee skill. | |
Hammer Elite | Combat | You can now repeatedly stun, and potentially stun-lock, enemies when attacking in melee with hammers, maces, mauls and other blunt melee and thrown weapons such as lead pipes, rebars or wrenches. | Requires Hammer Expert. | |
Pistol Expert | Combat | You can fire a pistol in melee with no disadvantage. When using pistols, you can aim while moving (aim and move actions are merged for you). | Requires Shoot skill. | |
Pistol Elite | Combat | You can dual wield pistols with no penalty, you can reload both of them with 1 action, and you can choose to move & aim as 1 action and/or move & fire as 1 action. | Requires Pistol Expert. | |
Rifle Expert | Combat |
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Requires Shoot skill. | |
Rifle Elite | Combat |
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Requires Rifle Expert. | |
Shotgun Expert | Combat | Your shotgun blasts always knockback all enemies hit by 2m. | Requires Shoot skill. | |
Shotgun Elite | Combat | When using a shotgun, you no longer need to roll to hit; it always hits enemies in the area of effect. | Requires Shotgun Expert. | |
Spear Expert | Combat | Your critical strike chance with spears is increased by +2. You may throw any spear up to 30m, and you may throw with athletics, shoot or melee skill. | Requires melee skill. | |
Spear Elite | Combat | Enemies you hit with thrown spears are always pinned to the nearest wall or floor. You gain one special opportunity attack per round, triggered when an enemy attempts to run past the tip of your spear. | Requires Spear Expert. | |
Sword Expert | Combat | Parry: While wielding a sword, you can roll to defend from enemy melee-range attacks of any weapon using your melee skill if it is higher than your dodge skill. If you parry successfully, then once per round, you can then immediately react to perform a non-direct-damage special attack on the enemy, such as trip, disarm, shove, lacerate, etc, with effect based on the magnitude of your parry roll. | Requires melee skill. | |
Sword Elite | Combat | Your attacks with swords have +2 critical strike chance. Bladed swords now always cleave enemies, while rapiers always have +1m reach and pierce, and plasma swords may be used to parry and redirect ranged attacks. Your parry reactions can now be used an unlimited number of times per round. | Requires Sword Elite | |
Heavy Weapons Expert | Combat | This talent covers heavy weapons such as miniguns, grenade launchers, rocket launchers, heavy lasers, fusion cannons, etc. You can make a melee attack using an equipped heavy weapon by rolling your shoot skill, for 2d8-based damage, with no risk of breaking the weapon. | Requires Shoot skill. | |
Heavy Weapons Elite | Combat | The area effects of all your heavy weapons are increased or widened by +3m radius. | Requires Heavy Weapons Expert. |
Talent Name | Category | Description | Restrictions & Requirements | Maximum Repetitions Allowed |
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Alert | Defensive | You can never be surprised, even if asleep. +5 to Initiative. Your defense rolls are not penalized by unseen attackers. When there is one or more traps, hidden hazards, or hidden sensors within 100m, you will instinctively know of the general presence of those things (the GM will tell you). | - | |
Light Armor Expert | Combat | While wearing only light armor, your movement rate is increased by +2 and your critical success chance for Dodge is increased by +2. | - | |
Light Armor Elite | Combat | While wearing only light armor, you roll all personal Dodge checks with 2d10 instead of the usual 2d8. | Requires Light Armor Expert. | |
Heavy Armor Expert | Combat |
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Heavy Armor Elite | Combat |
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Requires Heavy Armor Expert. | |
Shield Expert | Combat |
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Shield Elite | Combat |
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Requires Shield Expert. | |
Natural Armor I | Defensive | You gain +2 damage reduction while unarmored. +3 to HP while you are unarmored. Using armor spells or gear cancels these benefits. | - | |
Natural Armor II | Defensive |
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Requires Natural Armor I. | |
Earth Affinity I | Defensive | Take this talent if you are accustomed to living underground. You gain an additional +1 Natural Damage Reduction in all contexts, representing your rocky toughness. You can gain special information from stones and crystals by carefully inspecting or listening to them; this is called 'Stone Tell' or 'Stonecunning' by some cultures. Sleeping on natural or smoothed natural stone counts as comfortable rest for you, and you heal twice as fast when resting in natural caves. You roll with a larger die size when digging, seeking valuable minerals, navigating in caves or mountains, trying to see in underground darkness, and moving or dodging rocks with mundane or magical means. | - | |
Earth Affinity II | Defensive | Take this talent if you are some sort of digging creature. You gain a 'sight' called tremorsense that allows you to vaguely 'see' movement within 15m due to vibrations through solid objects. You can dig with your digging claws through soft sand at your normal movement, soil at half movement, and solid rock at 1 meter per minute, leaving a short tunnel behind you. The tunnel may collapse if not supported. | Requires Earth Affinity I and GM permission. | |
Heat Affinity | Defensive | Roll with a larger die size when resisting heat and fire damage, when estimating the causes, effects and temperatures of extreme heat, and identifying or crafting flammable materials. Sleeping in the heat is considered comfortable for you. Once per scene, you can spend up to 6 seconds (1 turn) in an open flame without taking damage or igniting. | - | |
Evasion I | Defensive | Roll with a larger die size to dodge area of effect (AOE) attacks, such as rockets, grenades, dragon breath, shotguns, lightning bolts, falling rocks etc. You don't take damage from diving away from area effects, and you cannot take critical hits from enemies while you are conscious and unrestrained. | Requires dodge skill | |
Evasion II | Defensive | You now take 1/4 of the damage when you successfully dodge an enemy's attack or area effect, instead of the usual half. +2 to your critical success range on dodge. | Requires Evasion I | |
Robotic Body | Defensive | You have a robotic body. You do not eat, sleep, or breathe, and you can exist in vacuum without issues, but you require 1 charged power cell per day of operation, and damage you take must be repaired with spare parts and crafting skill. You can't be poisoned, but you may rust, corrode or get viruses. Customizations can be crafted on your chassis with the crafting skill and talents. You can speak with other robots in machine code. Water is hazardous to you. | Must have GM permission. | |
Robotic Armor | Defensive | You take half damage from physical attacks (blades, punches, clubs, bullets) and no poison or psychic damage. | Requires Robotic Body. | |
Tough I | Defensive | +3 Maximum HP. You gain +1 additional global Damage Reduction, and you make all Resilience rolls with a larger die size. Once per day, when a hit would drop you to 0 hp, you can choose to have your hp floored at 1 instead. | - | |
Tough II | Defensive | You recharge your "tough" ability above when you roll doubles on any successful skill roll. Additionally, you cannot be instantly killed by heavy weapons or massive force; in those cases, you go to dying status instead. | Requires Tough I. | |
Water Affinity I | Defensive | You swim at your full movement value. You can hold your breath for at least 5 minutes. While resting near a large body of liquid, you recover and heal twice as fast from resting. You can roll to attack and dodge underwater normally (does not affect gun functionality). You roll with a larger die size to resist harmful cold and water effects. You take no damage or illness from liquid pressure up to 75m depth. | - | |
Water Affinity II | Defensive | Take this talent if you are an amphibious species of some sort. You can hold your breath for up to 4 hours, swim twice as fast as you run, and sustain no damage or illness from liquid pressure up to 200m depth. You have an innate echolocation organ that allows you to perceive via soundwaves while underwater. | Requires GM permission and Water Affinity I. | |
Wind Affinity I | Defensive | You are unusually lightweight, and don't trigger traps and hazards that would collapse or be tripped by others. When you fall, you can roll athletics, dodge, or resilience with a larger die size to control the fall and land safely. You can gain special information by listening to or smelling the wind. When resisting dangers related to air, gases or electricity, roll three defense dice and keep the highest two. | - | |
Wind Affinity II | Defensive | Take this talent if you are a winged species of some sort. You have wings and may now glide or flutter at-will to break your falls, and may also roll athletics to fly up and in other directions. Flying requires your concentration. You always need at least a 4m cube of space for flight, smaller spaces cannot be flown in. If you take hits while airborne, you must succeed on a Meditation roll or fall, taking another hit from gravity when you hit the ground. You cannot fly while wearing or carrying anything heavy. | Requires GM permission and Wind Affinity I. |
Talent Name | Category | Description | Restrictions & Requirements | Maximum Repetitions Allowed |
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New Focus | Expertise | Gain a new Focus Skill. This talent costs 20 XP instead of the usual 5. If you do not already posess the skill, then it is gained at level 1, otherwise its level remains the same. Note that gaining a first arcane focus skill requires use of the 'arcane training' spell. | Requires 20 xp. | 1 |
Alchemist | Expertise |
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- | 1 |
Authority I | Expertise | Using your leadership skill checks, you may gain up to 2 sophont npc minions. They must be simple-minded unimportant people. They will follow and help you because of belief in your cause. They have 1 hp, will flee away from combat and will die instantly at 0 hp. | Does not work on animals. | 1 |
Authority II | Expertise | Your minion limit increases to 3. The limitations are the same, however, they will fight for your cause in combat. They can be commanded with your bonus action. They have no more than 10 hp/+1 dodge and will die instantly at 0 hp. | Requires Authority I. | 1 |
Commander I | Expertise | If you have Leadership skill, then instead of the usual 1-minute speech, you can now inspire party members with just your bonus action, giving all allies a +1 bonus on a specific task. Additionally, when you roll doubles on any lead check, everyone you are inspiring gains +1 health point, over maximum if possible. +1 extra inspiration per day. | - | 1 |
Commander II | Expertise | You can use one of your inspirations to shout a warning as a reaction to give one ally either advantage on a roll to defend, or an additional reaction attack, or some similar sudden reaction. You can also re-order the party's action order at the start of a combat as long as you can communicate with them. Your inspiring heal effect on doubles increases to +2. +1 extra inspiration per day. | Requires Commander I. | 1 |
Crafty | Expertise | With Crafting, you can now add up to 2 custom modifications to each tool, vehicle, weapon, or equipment piece. They all must be distinct. Custom modifications means, something beyond the chassis or blueprint of the item itself. For example, adding weapons to a utility mech would be a modification since it wasn't designed for fighting, while adding a mining drill to a military mech would be a modification since it wasn't designed for mining, but switching out a mining drill for a loading fork is not a modification since the chassis was designed to support both. | - | 1 |
Demolitions Expert | Expertise | When you are using, hiding, crafting, transporting, or modifying grenades, explosives, or bombs of all sorts, you roll with 3 dice and keep the highest 2. You can throw a grenade, throw or set a bomb or set a trap as a bonus action in combat. | - | 1 |
Eloquence | Expertise |
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- | 1 |
Hacker | Expertise | You no longer need to spend time to understand a foreign computer language, you can work with them all equally. When you roll doubles on any computers check, you can choose to either
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Requires Computers skill. | |
Expert Healer | Expertise |
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Requires Medicine skill. | |
Hunter | Expertise |
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Deep Thoughts | Expertise | Gain +3 maximum energy points. | Requires Meditation Skill. | 1 |
Sharp Eye | Expertise |
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Sneaker | Expertise |
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Talent Name | Category | Description | Restrictions & Requirements | Maximum Repetitions Allowed |
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Aura of Emotion | Miscellaneous | At all times, people who are within 5 meters of you have their current emotions amplified. The standard effect is a moderate but noticeable increase in extremity. You attempt to try increase or reduce the effect, but must describe how. Other Player characters may choose whether or not to be affected by it. | Requires GM agreement on the theme. | 1 |
True Grit | Miscellaneous | When you attempt difficult, dirty, unpleasant manual labor, you always have +1 to the skill check. | - | 1 |
Heroic Destiny | Miscellaneous | When you take this talent, declare your character's conceptual theme and theme song. When a challenging scene involving that theme occurs, you can activate this talent. Your character must speak to that theme, and then, for this scene only, is unable to fail and may apply 1 free critical success to any of their rolls. Note they can still die. You can play the theme song during that time. Other characters cannot activate this talent while you have it active. You then must choose to either refund the talent for another, or keep it and discharge it for 1 in-game week until recharged. | Requires GM agreement on the theme. | 1 |
Collector | Miscellaneous | You never find less than 1 useful item when you search for items in a given scene. | - | 1 |
Companion I | Miscellaneous | You immediately acquire a sophont npc companion of some sort. If taken after character creation, there must be in-game context for it. They are willing to die for you. They have their own skills, 2 in one skill and 1 in two skills. They can be commanded as a free action, but only by you. Command of them may be delegated, but they will not blindly follow others as they do you. They are controlled by the GM but will do whatever you want, even if hurts them permanently. Note that this talent is not the only way to gain such a companion. If they die, this talent is refunded. | GM has companion's details and controls them according to your orders. | 1 |
Companion II | Miscellaneous | The companion gains 2 talents. If they die, this talent is refunded. | Requires companion 1. Companions cannot take the companion or authority talent. | 1 |
Fat Cat | Miscellaneous | When you are interacting socially with wealthy people, bluffing about your own wealth, recalling details about the rich and famous or working with extravagantly expensive luxuries, roll an extra die on your check and keep the highest 2. | - | 1 |
Prophet | Miscellaneous | Each time you sleep or nap, you can choose to receive a mysterious vision, message, or warning related to your mission. The GM will deliver it. This requires no roll, resource cost, or arcane ability. If you like, you may combine this with prayers or ceremonies focusing on specific topics or spiritual entities. | - | 1 |
Quick Sleeper | Miscellaneous | You require only 3 hours of sleep per day. Your health regeneration works differently from others; if you sleep 3 hours, you regenerate an amount of health equal to 1 + Resilience; if you sleep 9 hours, you regenerate 3x that, although that is the maximum you can regenerate per day. Your rate of healing exhaustion is the same as others. | - | 1 |
Fearless | Miscellaneous | Any time you heedlessly charge in to a dangerous situation, you get +1 to your next roll. | - | 1 |
Spirit Guide | Miscellaneous | A mysterious spiritual entity becomes your guide and protector. No one else can perceive this being or its words except you, but you can always talk to it and it will always give you good advice. While theoretically powerful, it chooses not to tell you everything, wanting you to be challenged, but also wanting you to grow and succeed. You can ask for it to perform a miracle, but if it agrees, it will disappear for a long time, perhaps forever. If it does, then this talent is refunded and you cannot choose it again. | - | 1 |
Lucky | Miscellaneous | Once per scene, after you make your roll for a skill check, you can choose to reroll 1 of the dice. | - | 1 |
Well-Studied | Miscellaneous | Gain an additional +5 extra experience points. | - | Unlimited |