Chapter 4: The Player Character
WHEN THE PLAYER CHARACTERS INTERACT WITH THE world and try to push towards their goals, it’s inevitable that they will sooner or later come into conflict with things stopping them from getting what they want. The conflicts that can arise in a story are limitless. However, this chapter will give you rules, so called player Moves, that help you resolve the most frequently appearing conflicts in a story of KULT: Divinity Lost.
ATTRIBUTES
There are ten Attributes, each with associated Moves. The Attributes modify the die rolls of player Moves and Advantages. Attributes and their Moves are either passive (triggered automatically when conditions are met) or active (triggered by a character taking a certain action).
Passive Attributes
Passive Attributes are used to resist external and internal influences. The player Moves associated with passive Attributes are triggered when the character is threatened. When creating the PC, the player distributes adjustment values of +2, +1, and 0 across the passive Attributes: Fortitude, Willpower, and Reflexes.
- Fortitude measures the character’s physical resistance, pain threshold, and stress response when suffering physical injury.
- Willpower measures the character’s mental resilience, composure, peace of mind, and capacity for working through trauma.
- Reflexes measures the character’s quickness, responsiveness, and physical instinct when assaulted or when at risk of injury.
Active Attributes
Active Attributes are used when a PC acts proactively. When creating the PC, the player distributes adjustment values of +3, +2, +1, +1, 0, -1, and -2 across the active Attributes: Reason, Intuition, Perception, Coolness, Violence, Charisma, and Soul.
- Reason measures the character’s analytical ability.
- Intuition measures the character’s empathy and gut feeling.
- Perception measures the character’s alertness.
- Coolness measures the character’s grace under pressure.
- Violence measures the character’s raw strength, fighting expertise, and viciousness.
- Charisma measures the character’s charm, leadership, and rhetorical talent.
- Soul measures how sensitive the character is to supernatural forces.
PLAYER MOVES
Player Moves are Moves available to all PCs. When a character executes an action in the story triggering a Move, their player rolls two ten-sided dice (2d10) and references the Move’s instructions to determine what happens.
How Moves Work
- Trigger: Player Moves always begin with a phrase describing what circumstance triggers the Move (e.g., “When you investigate something…”).
- Roll: The player rolls 2d10 and adds the relevant Attribute modifier.
- Outcomes:
- Complete Success (15+): The character accomplishes their goal with no complications.
- Success with Complications (10-14): The character accomplishes their goal, but with a hard choice, cost, or subsequent trouble.
- Failure (-9): The action produces negative consequences. The GM may make a GM Move.
Move: Avoid Harm
When you dodge, parry, or block Harm, roll +Reflexes:
- (15+) You emerge completely unharmed.
- (10-14) You avoid the worst of it, but the GM decides if you end up in a had spot, lose something, or partially sustain Harm.
- (-9) You were too slow to react or you made a had judgment call. The GM makes a Move.
Move: Endure Injury
When enduring an injury, roll +Fortitude - Harm. If you are wearing armor, add its rating to the roll:
- (15+) You ride out the pain and keep going.
- (10-14) You are still standing, but the GM picks one: you are thrown off balance, you lose something, or you receive a Serious Wound.
- (-9) The injury is overwhelming. You choose if you are knocked out, receive a Critical Wound, or die.
WOUNDS
- Serious Wounds: Require care and time but won’t worsen on their own. Examples: broken ribs, concussion, profuse bleeding.
- Critical Wounds: Will not heal on their own and will worsen if untreated. Require urgent medical care. Examples: punctured lung, internal bleeding, spinal cord damage.