Advancement

As you complete Adventures, your character will inevitably grow and change. Some of this change is in how you play the character. Perhaps a bad run in with some snakes left an impression they will never forget, or maybe an encounter with a prophetic sorceress reveals an unexpected destiny that changes your character’s purpose for adventuring. There are no rules governing this sort of advancement. It is completely up to you how you grow your character’s personality.

Character Advancement #

By successfully completing a series of Adventures, players also get the opportunity to improve their characters’ MO Scores or add Specializations, learn new tricks, and maybe even improve a Primary Attribute. We call this Character Advancement, and the Character Advancement rules found in this chapter explain when and how you can make these changes.

Story Advancement #

Finally, the world in which the characters live and their relationship with that world changes over time, and characters also earn in-game story benefits, like a valuable contact or an owed favor. We call this Story Advancement, and the Story Advancement rules found in this chapter show you how to use the rules to expand and grow the world in which your adventures take place and your character’s relationship with it.

Character Advancement #

In the Cool Name RPG Core Rules, you get to add additional points to your character’s Attribute Scores and MO Scores, as well as adding Specializations, at key milestones we call Chapters. For some Chapters, you even get to add or improve Exceptional Abilities.

The five Chapters in your character’s story are:

• Chapter 1: Origin Story
• Chapter 2: Novice Adventurers
• Chapter 3: Heroic Adventurers
• Chapter 4: Veteran Adventurers
• Chapter 5: One Last Adventure

Since many players prefer to get straight into the main story, the character creation rules found in Chapter 12: Character Creation are for creating Novice Adventurers. If you decide you want to play your character’s Origin Story adventure, you will want to create your character using the reduced numbers listed for Origin Story.

Cool Name RPG intends for all the characters to advance to the next Chapter as a group, although there is no reason you could not have a group of Adventurers at different Chapters in their career. You might also choose to have some characters move to the next Chapter at a different time than others. In general, it is better if everyone moves to the next Chapter together so some poor Novice is not thrown into a Veteran Chapter Adventure filled with Veteran Chapter threats!

Training Points #

When you reach a new Chapter, you are awarded additional Training Points. You can add new MOs and Specializations, or improve existing MOs, using the same rules for spending Training Points found in Chapter 12: Character Creation. You may not raise any MO by more than 2 points in one Advancement Chapter.

Attribute Points #

In Chapters 1 through 4, you are awarded additional Attribute Points. Apply these points to your character’s Primary Attributes as you wish using the same rules described for improving your Attributes in Chapter 12: Character Creation. This includes the rules for maximum Primary Attribute Scores.

In Chapter 5, you are permitted to reduce on Primary Attribute by 1 point and raise a different Primary Attribute by 1. You get to do this up to two times, but you cannot lower or raise the same Attribute more than once. The rules regarding Primary Attribute maximums and minimums do not apply in Chapter 5.

Exceptional Abilities #

In Chapters 2 and 4, you are allowed to select a Secondary Exceptional Ability for your character. In Chapter 5, you are allowed to transform one of your Secondary Exceptional Abilities into a Primary Exceptional Ability. When you add or improve an Exceptional Ability, you gain all the benefits listed for that Ability in Chapter 12: Character Creation.

Stunt Points #

In Chapters 3, 4, and 5 you are awarded Stunt Points. For each Stunt Point you may select one Signature Stunt. These are Stunts or specific spells your character regularly performs and is known for. When performing a Signature Stunt, you gain a +1 modifier to your Action Score.

Chapter Details #

The following are details for each of the Chapters in your character’s adventuring career. Each entry includes the following information.

• Chapter Name: The name of the chapter.
• Description: A short description of what this Chapter represents in terms of the character’s life story.
• Training Points: The number of Training Points the player may spend to improve their character’s MO Scores of add new Specializations when they reach this Chapter.
• Attribute Points: The number of Attribute Points the player may spend to improve their character’s Primary Attributes.
• Exceptional Abilities: The number and type (Primary or Secondary) of Exceptional Abilities you may add to your character when you reach this Chapter.
• Stunt Points: The number of Stunt points you may spend to add Signature Stunts when you reach this Chapter.
• Length: The recommended number of Adventures in the Chapter. This is a suggestion, and it is up to you and the Gamemaster to decide how many Adventures are in each Chapter of your game. Some groups will choose to have fewer Adventures in each Chapter, accelerating the pace of their story and their characters’ advancement, while others might have more, extending the length of time you spend in a particular Chapter.

Chapter 1: Origin Story #

• This is the story of how your character became an adventurer. In this Chapter, your character receives the call to adventure and chooses to leave the safety of their old life to seek out their destiny. It is their first foray into a larger, more dangerous world, and if they survive, the springboard for their future success.
• Training Points: 8
• Attribute Points: 18
• Exceptional Abilities: 1 Primary
• Length: 1 Adventure

Chapter 2: Novice Adventurers #

1. In this Chapter, your characters begin to make a name for themselves. They are starting to develop their skills, and they can take on more larger Challenges. Their adventures grow more complex and toward the end of this Chapter their quests may take them to neighboring lands. The rules in Chapter 12: Character Creation are for the creation of a Novice Adventurer.
2. Training Points: +2
3. Attribute Points: +2
4. Exceptional Abilities: +1 Secondary
5. Length: 2-5 Adventures

Chapter 3: Heroic Adventurers #

• The characters are successful, established adventurers and have performed many notable deeds. In this Chapter they build upon their legend, taking on more powerful enemies and facing Adventures where the stakes are significantly higher. These Adventures may take them to distant lands or even other planes or dimensions.
• Training Points: +6
• Attribute Points: +2
• Stunt Points: +3
• Length: 3-5 Adventures

Chapter 4: Veteran Adventurers #

• By the time the adventurers reach this Chapter they are well known and respected heroes. They have defeated many enemies and completed important quests. In this Chapter, the great powers of the land turn to the heroes in their times of greatest need. From hunting down legendary dragons to confronting powerful demons, the characters face deadly challenges that no one else in the land could hope to overcome.
• Training Points: +6
• Attribute Points: +2
• Exceptional Abilities: +1 Secondary
• Stunt Points: +3
• Length: 2-3 Adventures

Chapter 5: One Last Adventure #

1. It is the twilight of the characters’ careers. In this Chapter, the characters are called upon for one last adventure. Perhaps they are pulled out of retirement, forced to strap on their blade one last time, or maybe this is the moment all the adventures in their lives have led up to. Whatever the case, there is a very good chance they will not be coming home from this one, but no one else could possibly overcome this threat.
2. Training Points: +4
3. Attribute Points: Reduce one Primary Attribute Score by 1 and raise a different Primary Attribute Score by 1. You may do this twice but you may not change the same Primary Attribute Score more than once.
4. Exceptional Abilities: Improve one Secondary to Primary
5. Stunt Points: +4
6. Length: 1 Adventure

Story Advancement #

At the end of each Adventure the Gamemaster awards each player Story Points. You can spend these Story Points to make changes to the adventuring world, your characters place in that world, or the tools and resources available to you while you are adventuring.

Story Points per Adventure #

The number of Story Points awarded is up to the Gamemaster, but typically it depends on the length of the Adventure. The following is a guide the Gamemaster may use to help determine the right number of points.

Adventure Size	# of Encounters	Story Points
Small	2-5	5 SP
Medium	6-10	10 SP
Large	11+	20+ SP

Mid-Adventure Story Points #

At any time during the Adventure, a Gamemaster may choose to award a Story Point to a character. Reasons to award a Story Point include:

• An especially memorable, entertaining, or heroic bit of roleplaying.
• Making a major heroic sacrifice.
• Spending extra time between games to draw a map of the party’s base, using the rules to build out important NPCs, or writing a great game synopsis and sharing it with the group.
• Helping a new player learn the rules.
• Bringing snacks to share on game night!

Spending Story Points #

Story points may be spent at any time with the Gamemaster’s permission. The Story Point Rewards Table lists ways you can spend your Story Points. It is up to you and the Gamemaster to determine exactly what your selection looks like in terms of the game’s story and the exact game effect of your choice. The Gamemaster always has final say over the nature of the change. Unless stated otherwise in the description you may only select a specific reward once per Adventure.

Improving Rolls #

In addition to spending Story Points on benefits listed on the Story Points Rewards table, a character may use unspent Story Points at any time during the game to improve the total result of a roll. For each Story Point spent, increase a roll’s total by one. You may spend points on your own rolls or on the rolls of your allies.

Story Point Reward Table #

Reward	Cost	Description
RECOGNITION
Dinner	2	A minor government official invites you to dinner as a reward for your good works.
Feast	5	A local noble lord holds a feast in your honor.
Grand Feast	10	A town or village holds a feast in your honor.
Grand Marshal	20	You are invited to serve as the Grand Marshal for an important festival.
Poem	2	A bard writes a short poem about your exploits and reads it during their performances.
Song	5	A bard writes a song about your adventures and sings it during their performances.
Play	10	A troupe of actors write and perform a play reenacting one of your adventures.
Book	10	A scholar writes a book about your adventures.
Statue	30	A sculptor carves a statue of you to display in an important location.
Commendation	5	You receive an official commendation from a local noble.
Medal	10	The local military commander awards you a medal for valor.
Honorary Title	15	An organization of importance to your MO grants you an honorary title.
Legal Title	20	The local noble leader grants you an official legal title.
Membership	25	A prestigious guild or other elite organization invites you to become a member.
Pardon	30	A noble pardons you for a past crime.
REPUTATION
Enemies	15	You gain a reputation among a particular group of enemies. This could both help you or endanger you when dealing with these enemies, depending on the circumstances.
Friends	15	You gain a positive reputation among a group of your peers. This is especially beneficial during Social Interactions with this group.
Small Area	15	You gain a positive reputation in a small geographic area such as a single village. This is a benefit in all Social Interactions in that area.
Middle-Sized Area	20	You gain a positive reputation in a middle-sized geographic area such as a town or a small district. This is a benefit in all social interactions in that area.
Large Area	25	You gain a positive reputation in a large geographic area such as a city or a duchy. This is a benefit in all social interactions in that area.
SETTING
New Business	10	A new business of your choice is established in the area where you are adventuring offering new goods and services.
Improved Business	20	An existing business of your choice within the area you are adventuring improves its offerings, facilities, or services.
Turn for the Better	20	Some negative aspect of the world (bandits, bad weather, resource shortages) where your adventures are taking place finally improves.
Opportunity	10	An opportunity for adventure of your choosing appears in the area where your adventures are taking place.
Festival	10	The settlement where you are staying hosts a grand festival with a market, entertainers, and visitors from across the region.
Wedding	5	An important couple gets married and they invite you to the celebration.
WEALTH
Distinctive Item	5	The appearance of a piece of equipment you commonly use is improved and enhanced, making it distinctively yours and unique.
Trip	10	Between adventures you journey to a nearby land to see an important shrine, natural wonder, or similar location related to your character’s interests.
ALLIES
Love interest	10	You and an NPC fall in love.
Engagement	25	You ask your love interest to marry you and they say “Yes.” You must have selected the Love Interest reward previously.
Marriage	30	You and your fiancé are married. A local noble throws you a lavish wedding. You must have selected the Engagement reward previously.
Pet	5	You acquire a loyal pet. This is a normal animal with no special abilities and is not intended to go on adventures.
Contact	5	You establish a contact with a specific set of skills. You still need to negotiate for their services, but now you “know a guy.”
Improved Contact	10	A pre-existing contact becomes more useful, either because they trust you more or their circumstances have improved.
SPECIAL ACCESS
Library	10	You gain access to a library containing useful non-magical books and scrolls.
Guildhall	20	You gain access to a guildhall and for a may make use of their discounted living quarters and storage.
Expert Craftsperson	15	You are allowed to make use of the services of an expert craftsperson. This includes individuals such as the King’s alchemist or a General’s personal blacksmith. You must still pay this individual for any work they perform on your behalf.
Expert Scholar	15	You gain access to a learned scholar with expertise in a specific area of knowledge. You may ask this person for information, but you may be required to pay them for their services.
ONE USE BENEFITS
Favor, Minor	2	A specific NPC owes you a single small favor. This favor costs the NPC little or nothing and does not create any problems for the NPC.
Favor, Medium	5	A specific NPC owes you a single medium-sized favor. This favor may cost the NPC up to a week’s wages and may create problems in the NPCs life if they fulfill it.
Favor, Large	10	A specific NPC owes you a single large favor. This favor might cost the NPC as much as a month’s wages and could cause significant problems, even endangering the NPC’s safety.
Last Minute Rescue	10	You can purchase this at any time. During an Adventure when you find yourself in a tight spot, you receive last minute assistance to avoid disaster. This assistance does not solve your problem. Rather it gives you another opportunity to extract yourself from the trouble. It might take the form of a wandering ranger, a fortunate discovery such as an additional exit, or other coincidence that gives you another chance to save yourself.