Social Attributes
Social Attributes come into play during War and outside of War and deal with interactions with and observations about others or the world around a character.
Perception stands out from the other Social Attributes in the way it is used and in that it is mostly dictated by your chosen Order(s) rather than being increased though the use of Points. Perception comes into play when a character wants to discern information about an elohim, human, or their environment. It is dealt with in terms of Perceiving and being Perceived. Perception is considered 0 (neutral) for all characters except Messengers. Messengers have an ability called Situational Awareness that gives them +7 to their Perception both when Perceiving and vs. being Perceived. This means they will gain 7 Adjustments to any Perception Checks involving them in addition to any other modifiers that are applied. For Multi-Order Messengers this number is reduced to 3 Adjustments.
Social Attributes are categorized by motive, or what general result your character is trying to achieve. If you want to stir up fear in an enemy, for example, your motive would be to Excite in that you intend to excite, or increase, fear within them. If instead you wanted to calm an ally down, your motive would be to Soothe in that you intend to Soothe, or decrease, the extreme emotion they are experiencing.
The three categories of Social Attributes are: Excite, Soothe/Subdue, and Affirm/Aim.
• Excite interactions excite emotions. Exciting an ally could raise their confidence or induce a passionate response of some sort. Exciting an enemy could cause anger, fear, or even cause them to flee.
• Soothe/Subdue interactions diminish emotions. Soothing an ally could restore calm, reducing fear or anger. Subduing an enemy could reduce confidence, diminish burning passions, or even cause him to surrender.
• Affirm interactions root in emotions. Aim interactions direct emotions. Affirming an ally could bolster their resistance to hostile Social Interactions. Affirming an enemy could prevent encouragement from their comrades. Aiming an ally could direct their focus. Aiming an enemy could redirect them, potentially even away from the area.
Character Creation Notes:
To determine your starting Social Attribute values, you first need to determine your character’s initial vulnerabilities, which are negative Composure values. You will then be given points to increase values.
Negative Composure values represent areas that your character is especially susceptible to the effects of.
The default way to determine vulnerabilities is to roll 3d6.
-
Each 1-2 gives a -1 to Excite Composure
-
Each 3-4 gives a -1 to Soothe/Subdue Composure
-
Each 5-6 gives a -1 to Affirm/Aim Composure
The alternate way to determine vulnerabilities is to simply choose where to assign a total of 3 negative value in Composures (e.g. all 3 in one Composure or 1 in each Composure).
As you advance to higher Ranks, you will be able to overcome weakness and bring these negative Composure values into the positive.
After you have determined your negative Composure values, you can then increase any of your Social Attributes, both Skills and Composures.