Knacks in TFT

			© 2015 by Richard W. Smith  		Version 1.0

A knack is a magical talent which allows you untold levels of awesomeness. These rules are for cinematic style campaigns.

Introduction: Some people do better in magical areas. A thief that can climb sheer glass walls. A fighter whom seem to take flesh wounds rather than killing blows. People who are amazingly lucky. Knacks explain how these strange abilities work. They are like advantages that you can buy with experience (and maybe other stuff) during play.

Knacks do not change your attribute total. They do not increase the experience needed to get attributes. It is as if those experience points simply vanished. So if you are a 34 attribute figure who saved up and spent 3 attributes worth of experience on a knack, after buying it you are STILL a 34 attribute figure.

Since the knack is magic based it does not work in no mana zones. Knacks are paid for with experience, attributes or maximum attribute losses, and may or may not require memory (usually not). Each PC is allowed to buy 1 knack per decade of attributes (but this may be changed with Blood Magic). So a 30 to 39 attribute figure can have 3 knacks, whereas someone with 50 to 59 attributes may have 5 knacks.

Humans get Knacks. Other races typically get Knack like abilities, which play to the races's strengths. So goblins might be able to pay experience and be better able to see in the dark. Players start out with 1 or 2 potential knacks and can buy them by paying the given cost.

A PC can gain a maximum of 1 knack per game year. (Exception, Blood Magic can allow you to get knacks more quickly.)

OPTIONAL RULE: A GM may rule that the only time PC's may buy a knack is on a holy day at the turning of the year. This makes the holy days more important, and avoids the paperwork of remembering when PC's bought the knack.

Very few NPC's have knacks. This is an advantage that PC's have over normal folk. However, powerful and important NPC's may have several knacks.

Sample Knack:
Silent Walk
Cost to gain: Two attributes worth of experience.
The figure can spend 1 fST and for the next 5 minutes move very quietly if moving at a walking pace or slower (3 MA or less). Characters or animals trying to hear the figure must roll 2 dice more than normal. Additionally, you can magically be stealthy even if you are in metal armor, or walking across dried leaves, or in a situation where normally they automatically hear you. (It won't be a HARD roll to hear you, but they must actually roll rather than it being automatic that you are heard.)