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Stunt Options

The following options are offered to expand the use of Stunts with Pathfinder Fate Accelerated. A group might use none, some, or all of the offered options as they see fit.

Note: a listing of categorized Stunts is also available.

General Assumptions

This section discusses some general assumptions taken by this material in the interests of full disclosure and to provide a solid foundation for those who are making up their own Stunts for use in a Pathfinder FAE game.

General: Holistic Over Stunt Parity

As a general rule of thumb, on individual characters Pathfinder Fate Accelerated allows a player to make one Stunt slightly stronger if they also opt to make one of their other Stunts slightly weaker, taking a more holistic view of the character's composite abilities. If the GM allows this, they need to be mindful of it when players swap Stunts around at milestones.

General: Combining Create Advantage and Overcome

As a general rule of thumb, Pathfinder Fate Accelerated allows the combination of create advantage and overcome for purposes of defining Stunts wherever it makes sense to do so.

General: Extra Actions

As a general rule of thumb, with any of the Stunt templates that pin an action (attack, defend, create advantage and overcome), a character can take the same Stunt effect multiple times to apply the Stunt to more actions. This can be annotated on the character sheet with the simple shorthand of parenthetically listing the total Refresh equivalency.

Thus a Stunt that applied to 2 actions could be listed as Stunt Name (-2), while a Stunt that applied to 3 actions could be listed as Stunt Name (-3).

Examples

Veteran Of Many Wars (-2): Because I have engaged in so much combat, I gain +1 when I am Combative and attack or defend.

Bundle Of Bouncy Energy (-3): Because I am so energetic and acrobatic, I gain +2 when I am Quickly Focused and attack, defend, create advantage, or overcome when I flip and bounce around.

Standard Stunt Templates

For purposes of reference and comparison, the two default Stunt templates in Fate Accelerated are provided here. These are effectively the "baseline" for Stunts in Pathfinder Fate Accelerated, and characters can freely take Stunts of this sort, while custom Stunts can be contrasted against these templates to guage balance.

Because I Am Awesome At...

Because I [describe some way that you are exceptional, have a cool bit of gear, or are otherwise awesome], I get a +2 while I am [pick one: Carefully, Cleverly, Flashily, Forcefully, Quickly, Sneakily] [pick one: Combative, Roguish, Focused, Arcane, Primal, Divine] and [pick one: attack, defend, create advantage or overcome] when [describe a circumstance].

Examples

Skulker: Because I am so good at escaping notice, I get +2 while I am Sneakily Roguish and create advantage or overcome challenges to avoid notice.

Weapon Master: Because I am so skilled at fighting with [pick a weapon], I gain +2 while I am Cleverly Combative when attacking with my weapon of choice.

Quick Strike: Because I am fast and accurate, I get +3 when I am Quickly Combative and attack an opponent that has not yet gone in this exchange.

Arcane Bolts: Because I have mastered the art of Arcane Bolts, I gain +2 when I am Flashily Arcane and attack with ranged magic.

Careful Crossbowman: Because I am skilled with a crossbow, I gain +2 when I am Carefully Roguish and attack with a crossbow.

Dungeoneer: Because I am a seasoned adventurer and dungeoneer, I gain +2 when I am Clever and create advantage or overcome when a item of common adventurer gear that I have proves to be useful.

Once Per Session I may...

Because I [describe some way that you are exceptional, have a cool bit of gear, or are otherwise awesome], once per game session I can [describe something cool you can do].

Examples

Whirlwind Attack: Because I am a potent warrior once per session when I am Flashily Combative and attack with a suitable weapon, I may affect all enemy targets in my zone without having to split my shifts between them.

Sudden Slumber: Because I have mastered a magical talent from olden times, once per session I can put any number of nameless mooks who lack consequence slots in my zone or an adjacent zone to sleep. I may affect additional contiguous zones by spending a Fate point per additional zone. To do this I must use Carefully Arcane to create the advantage Sleep Now My Pretties against an Average (+1) difficulty. Those affected will sleep artificially deeply, and resist being woken for the remainder of the scene; someone trying to wake a victim must overcome a difficulty equal to Average (+1) plus my margin of success.

Chained Lightning: Because I am able to project a bolt of lighting that jumps from target to target, once per session when I am Flashily Arcane and attack I may affect all enemy targets in my zone without having to split my shifts between them.

Abyssal Darkness: Because I have fiendish lineage, once per session as an action I have the ability to add the situational Aspect Abyssal Darkness to my zone or an adjacent zone. When I activate this ability I can choose to spread it to cover additional contiguous zones at the cost of one (1) Fate point per additional zone. This effect provides active Superb (+5) defense against notice attempts and targeted abilites. This Aspect lasts for an entire scene, though it can be overcome and removed by a character with Arcane, Divine, or Primal of +3 or higher opposed by a Legendary (+8) difficulty. I am unaffected by this Aspect.

Trapsetter: Because I am skilled at setting traps, as a non-action I can spend a Fate point to create the situational Aspect Trapped! on my zone or up to three (3) zones away with two (2) invokes. The Aspect represents a trap I happened to have set up while no one was looking, or a clever exploitation of the ambient scenery. My traps can take many forms, limited only to things I can narratively justify. I can invoke the Aspect to hinder someone in the affected zone or to help myself or an ally acting against someone in the affected zone. The difficulty for others to notice my trap before the first time it is invoked or to overcome it is equal to my (Clever + Sneaky + Primal) traits if in a wildlands area, otherwise it is equal to my (Clever + Sneaky + Roguish) traits.

Resilience: Because of my impressive resilience, once per session if I would take a Consequence I may instead spend a Fate point.

Because I Am Extra Good...

This Stunt template gives a flat +1 bonus for a specific combination of an Approach or Archetype with an action.

Because I [describe some way that you are extra good at a specific Archetype or Approach], I get a +1 when I am [pick one: Carefully, Cleverly, Flashily, Forcefully, Quickly, Sneakily, Combative, Roguish, Focused, Arcane, Primal, Divine] and [pick one: attack, defend, create advantage or overcome].

Narrative Variant:

Because I [describe some way that you are extra good at a specific Archetype or Approach], I get a +1 when I am [pick one: Carefully, Cleverly, Flashily, Forcefully, Quickly, Sneakily, Combative, Roguish, Focused, Arcane, Primal, Divine] and [describe a narrative circumstance].

Examples

Combat Veteran: Because I have engaged in so much combat, I gain +1 when I am Combative and attack.

Bushwhacker: Because I am great at setting up ambushes, I gain +1 when I Sneakily set up an ambush or create a related advantage.

Staves Are Just So Useful: Because I have learned to put my staff to good use, I gain +1 when I am Careful and narratively describe how my staff helps me. This can be used to aid me in my spell casting as well as to fend off pesky attackers, or whatever fits the story.

Heavy Armor Training: Because I have extensively trained to properly use heavy armor, I gain +1 to defend against non-social attacks when I am heavily armored.

Cloak Of Elvenkind: Because I have a magical Cloak of Elvenkind, I gain +1 when Sneaky to create advantage or overcome to avoid notice while wearing it.

Archetype Switch

This Stunt template allows a character to use one of their Archetypes in place of another Archetype.

Because I [describe some way that you are able to leverage a Archetype to do something that is usually accomplished with a different Archetype], I may use [pick one: Combative, Roguish, Focused, Arcane, Primal, Divine] instead of [pick a different one: Combative, Roguish, Focused, Arcane, Primal, Divine] for [describe the function of the other Archetype that you can accomplish] when I [describe the circumstances where this Stunt applies].

Examples

Heed Me!: Because I have a magical knack that allows me to augment my spoken voice with enchanting magics I may use Arcane for social interactions if I can talk and my target can hear me. I am resisted by Arcane when I do so. This is a form of mind-affecting magic.

This stunt requires Arcane +1 or better to use.

Arcane Aegis: Because I have mastered protecting myself with magic, I may use Arcane to defend against physical attacks without needing to first create an advantage to invoke.

True Seeing: Because my patron diety grants me awareness, my powers of observation are divinely enhanced; I may use Divine instead of Focused to notice or perceive things, and I can sense things that require mystical awareness to detect.

Wilderness Warrior: Because I am so adept at stalking prey and hunting in the wilderness, I may use Primal instead of Combative to attack when I am in the wilderness.

Urban Jungle: Because I have mastered the art of fading away, blending in, and avoiding notice even in urban areas among people, I can use Primal instead of Roguish to create advantage and overcome when attempting to avoid being noticed in civilized areas (Primal is already usable for this in rural, wildland areas).

Town And Country Sneaker: Because I am so good at lurking and being stealthy, I can use Roguish instead of Primal to create advantage and overcome when attempting to avoid being noticed in rural and wildland areas (Roguish is already usable for this in civilized areas).

Duelist: Because I am skilled at the art of using weapons such as thinblades, foils, rapiers, epees, sabres, and stilettos (i.e, 'dueling' weapons), I am a surprisingly effective combatant when armed appropriately. Though my fighting style remains agile and even acrobatic at times, when armed with an appropriate weapon I can use Focused in place of Combatives in armed physical conflicts.

Dirty Infighter: Because I am skilled at dirty tricks fighting and getting inside my opponents' guard to strike at vulnerable areas, I am a surprisingly effective combatant. Though my fighting style remains unconventional and evasive, when armed with daggers, light one handed melee weapons such as short swords, garrottes, saps, makeshift weapons, and similar armaments I can use Roguish to directly engage opponents who are using Combative in armed physical conflicts.

Bonus Archetype

This Stunt template allows a character to add one of their Archetypes to a resolution when they are using a different Archetype.

Because I [describe some way that you are able to add a Archetype to do something using different Archetype], while I am being [pick one: Combative, Roguish, Focused, Arcane, Primal, Divine] I may add [pick one: Combative, Roguish, Focused, Arcane, Primal, Divine] as a bonus to [pick one: attack, defend, create advantage or overcome] when [describe a circumstance].

Examples

Divine Favor: Because I am favored by my patron deity, I may add my Divine capability as a bonus to defend against physical attacks, unless I have recently done something unworthy of my faith.

Smite: Because I have been granted the ability to smite those who stand against me by my patron deity, I gain +1 while Combative to strike down a foe within my zone whose nature is anathemic to my patron deity; further if my attack inflicts a consequence I gain an additional free invoke on it.

Wilderness Runner: Because I am so swift and able to run for hours, I may add my Primal capability bonus when I am Focused while running in wildlands.

Combative Intimidation: Because I am heavily armed and obviously skilled at inflicting harm, I may add my Combative capability to create advantage or overcome when I attempt to intimidate or assert control over a social situation if I am armed appropriately.

Upgrade A Boost

This Stunt template allows a character to upgrade a boost gained for succeeding with style into a full Aspect or some other benefit.

Because I [describe why you are able to do this], if I get a boost when I am [describe the circumstance when this Stunt applies] I may use it to create the situational Aspect [pick the name of the situational Aspect] on [pick the target (i.e. myself, the scene, the target)] with two (2) invokes.

Narrative Variant:

Because I [describe why you are able to do this], if I get a boost when I am [describe the circumstance when this Stunt applies] I may use it to [describe the effect].

Examples

Defensive Posture: Because I am trained in a defensive fighting style, if I get a boost when I am Carefully Combative while attacking I may use it to create the situational Aspect Defensive Posture on myself with two (2) invokes.

Riposte: Because even my defense is dangerous, whenever I am Flashily Focused and defend with style against a physical melee attack while wielding a dueling weapon I may use the boost to inflict a single point of stress on my attacker, immediately, as a free action.

Passing Strike: Because I have a fast-moving agile fighting style, whenever I am Quickly Combative and attack, if I choose to reduce the damage I inflict to get a boost I may use that boost to immediately move one (1) zone away, as a free action. If I also spend a Fate point I may move an additional zone further away.

Powered By Fate!

This Stunt template allows a character to have an extra-powerful effect that requires a Fate point to activate or use.

As a variant, take one of the other Stunt templates and amp up the effect at the cost of a Fate point.

Because I [describe why you are able to do this], I can spend a Fate point to [describe the effect].

Examples

Windrider: Because I have mastered the art of riding the winds, I can spend a Fate point to fly for the duration of a scene and potentially longer. While flying I may move 1 additional zone per exchange and I ignore any ground based obstacles I can fly over. However, while I am flying in this fashion I must move at least 1 zone each exchange and I can't go backwards. If I can't move forward (in approx a 120 degree arc) I must land, ending the effect.

Reverberation: Because I know many Words of Power, if I am currently able to speak as a non-action I may spend a Fate point to utter a Word and immediately remove from play any one situational Aspect in my zone or an adjacent zone with a difficulty of Legendary (+8) or less to overcome. Though there is no 4dF roll involved, I am considered to be acting in a Flashily Arcane manner when I do this and the reverberations of the Word are very noticeable.

Disrupt Undead: When I am Forcefully Arcane and attack I may spend a Fate point to target all Undead in my zone and all adjacent zones without having to split my shifts between them.

Companions, Constructs, and Special Items

A Fate Accelerated character can use a Stunt to "unlock" a mininion or secondary character profile. There are many different permutations of this, but the three most common scenarios are to have a persistent companion who travels with the character, or some kind of construct that can be temporarily brought into a scene, or special items that are more complicated than usual and call for a little extra grit to define.

Companions

This Stunt template allows a character to have a companion, represented by a mook or minor NPC template. The player controls the companion generally, but the character can be compelled against using the companion's Aspects. Simple mook template companions cost a single Stunt slot, but multiple distinct companions cost additional Stunt slots.

More capable and durable companions with Consequences, or minor NPCs with Approaches, Archetypes, and Stunts can also be taken, but cost 2 or more Stunt slots as determined by the GM.

A lenient GM might allow a particular companion an extra +1 in their "Good At" set matched by an extra -1 in their "Bad At" set, or an extra stress box if some other part of the companion is trailing behind the power curve a bit with an eye towards the companion's overall potency, but any improvements beyond that should be reflected by an additional Stunt slot being allocated to the companion.

If a companion gets killed or removed from play for some reason, a character can swap out the Stunt at a milestone. A character can also swap the Stunt for an effectively identical Stunt and thus get a replacement companion with similar abilities, with some narrative support to explain it away. A companion Stunt that takes multiple Stunt slots takes 1 milestone per slot to replace in this fashion.

Minion: Because [describe the reason you have a follower], I have drawn an assistant into my service.

2 Aspects

Good At: Spread +4 around 1 to 4 skill-like abilities

Bad At: Spread -4 around 1 to 4 skill-like abilities

Hits: [1][1]

Animal Companion (-3): Because [describe the reason you have an animal companion], I have attracted a powerful animal companion that chooses to aid me.

Two (2) Aspects

Good At: Spread +4 around one to four skill-like abilities

Bad At: Spread -4 around one to four skill-like abilities

Stress [1][2][3]

Mild (2)

Moderate (4)

Construct

A variant of this allows a character to create (summon, call, conjure, whatever) a magical construct or similar effect that acts independently from the character to do some specific thing.

At your option, a single Stunt equivalent construct can have 5 simple stress like an extra tough Mook, or 2 stress boxes and a Mild Consequence like a weaker minor NPC.

However, to counterbalance this extra toughness, a construct must be limited in some significant way, such as being anchored in place, or limited to a specific purpose or action. If you want to make a "construct" that is more like a normal character, just treat it as a companion instead.

Like all companions, constructs can be made better and more durable by allocating more Stunt slots to them.

Servitor: Because I have a magical ability, [describe the circumstance that allows you to do this], while I am [pick Approach + Archetype combination] I may attempt to overcome a Superb (+5) difficulty to summon a [describe the thing you summon] in my zone to serve a specific purpose. See the Servitor profile for details.

2 Aspects

Good At: Spread +4 around 1 to 4 skill-like abilities

Bad At: Spread -4 around 1 to 4 skill-like abilities

Stress [1][2]

Mild (2)

Serves for a specific narrow purpose.

Entangler: Because I have a magical ability, [describe the circumstance that allows you to do this], while I am [pick Approach + Archetype combination] I may attempt to overcome a Great (+4) difficulty to create a [describe your entangling effect] in my zone or an adjacent zone that attempts to wrap itself around and entangle all targets in the zone. See the Entangler profile for details. I am immune to this effect.

2 Aspects

Good At: Entangling (+4)

Bad At: Everything Else (-4)

Hits: [1][1][1][1][1]

Anchored to zone.

Special Item

Another variant of this allows a character to have a special item with complex traits (something that would be an Extra in Fate Core, for instance). In this variant, the "Good At" abilities of the item apply as a bonus when the character uses the special item to do that thing, and the "Bad At" abilities of the special item apply as a penalty whenever relevant.

Instead of skill-like ability bonuses, a special item might have flat Stunt-like abilities, with negotiation with the GM to arrive at a fair tradeoff for such abilities.

Special items usually have a Mild Consequence and take stress like a character. More powerful special items might have even more Consequences, though this extra durability should be taken into account when assessing the Refresh equivalence of the Stunt.

Characters wielding a special item can choose to push stress onto their special item rather than take it themselves if it makes narrative sense, and if the special item is taken out it is either removed from play for at least a session or is broken and needs to be repaired or replaced as makes sense to the narrative (unique special items would eventually become usable again, while more generic special items can just be "replaced").

Magical Item: Because I possess a [describe the item], I am able to use it to aid me in my adventures.

2 Aspects

Good At: Spread +4 around 1 to 4 skill-like abilities

Bad At: Spread -4 around 1 to 4 skill-like abilities

Stress [1][2]

Mild (2)

Magic Style Stunts

A number of specific Stunts are defined in the Simple Magic Options document to help model things like Prepared casting, Alchemy, Elementalism, and so on.

Custom Stunts

Players don't have to use a Stunt template to make their Stunts; they are simply provided as a convenience. Though they require more discussion and balancing, custom Stunts offer one of the very best ways to differentiate a character and should be encouraged.

Some examples are provided, but really, Custom Stunts can take any form that the GM and players are comfortable with.

Examples

Better Lucky Than Good: Because I am unusually lucky, whenever I make a 4dF resolution roll and the result is 0 0 0 0 (all blanks) I treat the outcome as if I had rolled + + + + (all pluses).

Aggressive Assault: Because I am driven to extreme aggression, when I am Forcefully Combative and attack I may add from one to four additional Fate dice to my 4dF attack roll and choose the four best dice as my result. However, until my next exchange whenever I defend I add the same number of Fate dice to my defend rolls and choose the four worst dice as my result.

Sublime Expertise (-2): Because I am extremely skilled and rarely blunder, whenever I make a 4dF roll I treat any result of less than 0 as -1.

Bottomless Satchel: Because I have a magical satchel that is much bigger on the inside than on the outside, I can carry a large amount of supplies as long as each item can fit through the opening of the bag (which is about half a meter across at full expansion). I can Carefully overcome against a Fair (+2) difficulty to retrieve anything I've explicitly put into it; failure just means I have to keep rooting around looking for the item with additional actions. With the GM's permission I can also spend a Fate point to pull out a mundane item that can fit through the opening of the satchel that I haven't explictly put in but 'happen to have'.

Globe Of Invulnerability: Because I have mastered a potent magical discipline, when I am Carefully Arcane I can spend a Fate point to allow create an advantage to add the situational Aspect Globe Of Invulnerability with two (2) invokes to myself for the remainder of the scene (and perhaps longer). I can add more invokes to this Aspect by being Carefully Arcane and creating an advantage against a difficulty of Great (+4). While this Aspect is available I can invoke it to use Carefully Arcane to defend against any kind of attack affecting me or the area immediately around me (including any allies). This Aspect can be overcome and removed by a character with Arcane, Divine, or Primal of +4 or higher opposed by a Legendary (+8) difficulty.

This stunt requires Arcane +4 or better to use.

Born Of Flame and Darkness: Because I have fiendish lineage, when I am Flashily Focused I am able to project searing flames from my body as an attack at targets within my zone or in an adjacent zone; these attacks are considered to be Arcane. Additionally I can justify create advantage, overcome, and defend actions when fire, heat, darkness, or demons are involved.

Fueled By Suffering: Because I channel my pain and suffering and become more dangerous when I am in danger, when I take stress or consequences from attacks I gain a Boost called Fueled By Suffering.

Sudden Attack: Because I am prone to sudden violence, I get +2 when I Forcefully attack an opponent who is unaware of my intent.

Damage Reduction: Because I am more durable than normal, I reduce by one (1) all stress inflicted on me by physical and magical attacks.

Primal Reduction: Because I am significantly more rugged, robust, and survivable due to my deep connection with primal forces, I reduce by one (1) all physical stress inflicted on me, and I reduce by two (2) all environmental stress inflicted on me.

Extra Damaging: Because I am [describe why you can cause more damage than normal], when I succesfully attack while [describe a specific circumstance where this Stunt applies] I inflict +2 shifts of extra damage.