Revising Endowments [Hunter: The Vigil]

Open Development

Fans who are already familiar with Hunter: The Vigil know that Endowments are special abilities given to hunters who are part of a conspiracy. In Hunter: The Vigil 2nd Edition, we have decided to rework Endowments to mesh better with 2E rules.

Today, I am linking to our first attempt to redesign Endowments. I want to stress that this draft, which is timestamped April 27, 2017, does not represent the final ruleset or a confirmed approach. I felt that this change was perfect to share via OpenDevelopment, and your feedback will make our design stronger. You can help by testing out the instructions to create an Endowment. What’s clear? What’s confusing? What’s extraneous or needs to be better defined? You can also help by playtesting the new Endowments to help us work out the bugs.

Link to Read Proposal for Endowment Redesign

To illustrate the rule changes, we have provided examples of how Endowments are built using the new system in our proposal. I am offering one such example below, to show you the current direction we’re taking. I would encourage you to read our proposal before commenting (as opposed to judging this new direction solely on my post); that will help us better weigh and sift through feedback so we can ensure that Endowments are exciting to use in 2nd Edition.

Please note: comments will only be monitored on the Onyx Path forums and in this post. We will be reviewing comments through Monday, May 8th.

Sample Endowment for Task Force: Valkyrie

The Lockdown Grenade applies the Materialized Condition to an area equal to a small room. This places the initial Value at 4. A Loadout of 2 keeps the Endowment’s Value at 4, accounting for the -2 Limiter that comes with Loadout. Lowering that Value takes several steps. First, Task Force Valkyrie Status •• is a Prerequisite — they don’t hand these out like candy! A -2 Backlash that a skilled user can avoid (with the appropriate Permission to that effect) comes out to -1. To take care of the final point of Value, the grenade cannot be used in the immediate presence of Locus, as they are far too spiritually turbulent to fully lock down. This brings the Value to 0, and the Endowment is ready to go.

SX-11A “Lockdown Grenade” (Keywords; Indefinite, Ward)

The SX-11A is a key piece of equipment for Task Force Valkyrie teams deployed against extra-or-pandimensional threats, such as post-deceased entities or non-material xenofauna. Much like a smoke grenade or a long-acting flashbang, it “solidifies” reality in its area of effect, forcing such entities to manifest in a material fashion, leaving them vulnerable to conventional weapons. As an explosive, the SX-11A is by necessity an expendable asset: teams that run dry are often at a disadvantage, so care is advised in deployment of this particular tactical option. Inhaling the effluent of the SX-11A is not recommended, as it has been known to cause headaches.

Effects

• Loadout: 2

• Action: 1 Loadout; apply the Materialized Condition to all beings in Twilight for one Scene.

• Lock It Down: Dexterity + Athletics; to deploy the grenade remotely by throwing it.

• Area: Single room.

• Resolve: Exchange this Endowment for another Advanced Armory Endowment.

• Permission: If the character remotely deploys the grenade with three or more successes, she does not suffer the Backlash.

• Refresh: One Chapter

Limiters

• Limit: If Loadout is 0, this Endowment cannot be used.

• Limit: If the area is a Locus, this Endowment cannot be used.

Backlash

• -2 to Mental actions while the Endowment is in effect.

Prerequisites

• Task Force Valkyrie Status ••

Resolution: Return to a TFV Armory.

Beat: Deploying a lockdown grenade actually makes the situation worse.