Attributes
What makes a hero strong, in plain words.
Every hero in Dawn of Chaos is measured by five attributes. Your lineage sets where you begin, your calling decides which one matters most, and the arms, armor and blessings you gather along the road supply the rest.
The five attributes
| Attribute | What it does | Who wants it most |
|---|---|---|
| Strength | Adds force to every weapon blow and every physical art. Raises how much you can carry before your pace slows. For defenders, it is also the well their power is drawn from. | Sentry, Berserker, Shepherd, Predator |
| Agility | Together with your Defense skill, raises your chance to dodge a blow completely. Makes every hunter's art strike harder, and is the well of a hunter's power. | Ranger, Trapper; anyone who wants to dodge |
| Stamina | Raises your maximum health. Every calling needs it, and none can do without it. | Everyone |
| Intelligence | Makes signs, spells and songs strike harder, and deepens the well of power for wielders of signs and voices of the company. | Prophet, Sorcerer, Psalmist, Beguiler |
| Wisdom | Strengthens every healing and ward, deepens a healer's well of power, and adds a little resistance against all eight kinds of harm. | Intercessor, Shaman, Cleric, Warder |
Where your attributes come from
- Your lineage spreads 100 points across the five when you are born.
- Every level adds a point to each attribute, and a second point to your calling's main attribute.
- Arms and armor supply most of your strength as you grow. A great piece of armor can carry more than a lineage ever gives.
- Blessings, songs and arts from your companions add more in battle.
The soft ceiling. An attribute gives its full worth up to ten times your level, and half its worth up to fifteen times your level. Beyond that it gives nothing more, so a wise hero spreads their gains rather than piling everything into one.
Health and power
- Health is how much harm you can take before you fall. It comes from your calling, your level and your Stamina. Defenders have the deepest health, wielders of signs the shallowest.
- Power is the strength you spend on every art, sign, song and prayer. It comes from your calling, your level and your main attribute. Wielders of signs and voices of the company have the deepest wells, defenders the shallowest.
- Recovery. Health and power return slowly in battle and quickly out of it, with no need to sit and wait. Food in your food slot speeds the return of health, and drink speeds the return of power.
- Wellspring is a quality found on arms, armor and blessings that restores power in the middle of battle, when nothing else will.
The eight kinds of harm
Physical blows, whether slashing, piercing or crushing, are turned by armor. Every other kind of harm is turned by its own resistance. Each resistance reduces its kind of harm, up to three quarters of it, and every point of Wisdom you have adds a little to all eight.
| Resistance | Turns aside |
|---|---|
| Fire | Flame from signs, burning pitch, torches, forges and the breath of dragons |
| Cold | Frost, killing winds and the chill of the grave |
| Poison | Venoms, hornets and the bite of serpents |
| Disease | Plagues, rot and corruption of the flesh |
| Sorcery | The forbidden arts of the fallen |
| Mind | Lies, slander, awe, confusion and terror |
| Holy | The judgments and blessings of the faithful, which every enemy fears |
| Unholy | The power of demons and the fallen, which every hero must withstand |
Armor and avoidance
- Armor reduces every physical blow that lands. Plate turns aside the most, then chain, then leather, then cloth. The protection you see always shows what it would block against a foe of your own level; stronger foes hit harder.
- Parry: turn a blow aside with your weapon, and sometimes strike back on the instant.
- Sidestep: a gift only Shepherds and Predators know, slipping a blow that should have landed.
- Dodge: move out of the way entirely. Agility and your Defense skill decide how often.
- Block: catch the blow on your shield. Stronger foes cannot overcome a good shield the way they overcome a parry or a dodge.
- You can only avoid what you can see. Blows from behind find their mark.
Qualities of battle
The finest arms and armor carry qualities beyond the five attributes.
| Quality | What it does |
|---|---|
| Critical chance | A chance for any blow, sign or healing to land far stronger than usual |
| Swiftness | Your weapon strikes more often |
| Weapon damage bonus | Each strike of your weapon hits harder |
| Double strike | A chance to strike twice with a single swing |
| Ability damage bonus | Your arts, signs and songs strike harder |
| Healing bonus | Your healings and wards grow stronger |
| Wellspring | Restores power during battle |
Skills
Skills grow as you use them, and arms and blessings can raise them higher still. They decide whether your attacks land, whether your enemies' attacks miss, and whether your gifts take full hold. Among them: Slashing, Piercing, Crushing, Ranged and Unarmed for weapons; Defense, Parry and Sidestep for avoidance; Provoke for holding the enemy's eye; Composure for casting under blows; Assail for signs that land at full strength; Mending for healing; Influence for blessings and curses that take hold; Subdue for awe, charms and holds; and Venomcraft, the Trapper's own.