Page 101 - Chronicles of Darkness

Equipment the reverend’s wife at all. Something else took her place. As you
learn more (and wish you hadn’t), you discover that whatever
the monster is, it sends and receives radio signals. You guess
Equipment, tools, and technology help to solve problems.
Having the right tool for the job can mean the difference monsters can upgrade to the twenty-first century, too. You think
maybe you can expose it to the congregation if you overload its
between life and death, or, in the Chronicles of Darkness, receiver with interference. All you have to do is modify that old
the difference between life and a fate worse than death. This walkie talkie set your dad has in his garage. And pray.
list is not all inclusive, but features many of the tools that
Equipment is divided up by the Skills with which they typi- Equipment Types
characters in the might have at their disposal.
cally assist. Mental Equipment typically assists with Mental While many characters can gain access to equipment of
Skills, for example. Additionally, Supernatural Equipment all kinds through purchase, borrowing, blackmail, or theft,
deals with the paranormal, and may not be suitable for every some prefer (or are forced) to make it themselves. In this
chronicle. Lastly, Bygones are items that characters cannot context, the word “equipment” refers not only to physical
procure easily or recreate. They’re unique items that deal objects like weapons and tools, but also anything else that
with the otherworldly. can be created by a character to help him out with an action
See p. 268, in Appendix One, for equipment and service he wants to take. If it would offer a bonus to an action, or
listings. would make actions possible that were previously not, it can
Availability likely be considered “equipment.”
Five types of equipment can be built:
and Procurement • Physical Objects: The most common type of equip-
ment. Most of the items found in the Appendix (p.
The dot cost of a piece of equipment reflects directly on 268) are physical objects, as are weapons and armor.
the Resources cost if your character wishes to purchase it (or Creative works also fall into this category.
the cost of components, for some things). It also reflects the
level of Allies or other Social Merit required to find the item, • Organizations: A small group of people assembled to
and the Skill level required to procure it with a single dice roll. address a particular need. A small cult and a cadre of
For example, if a Party Invitation has Cost •••, a character bodyguards are good examples. Organizations built
with Larceny •• should not be able to find and steal the item as equipment usually disband after one game session
without a dice roll, but a character with Politics •••• might unless the player purchases them as Merits afterward.
be able to get one by virtue of saying the right words to the • Repositories: Any collection of research materials and
right organization. If your character wishes to obtain higher knowledge sources. A library of books, a database, and
Availability items with their Skills, it requires a deeper effort.
an assortment of security footage all count. A character
Size, Durability, doesn’t need to build a repository to benefit from an
already-existing source; this only reflects the activity
and Structure of gathering materials for repeated future use. If the
player purchases the Library Merit for a repository she
These are guidelines that represent common, standard built, the Merit stacks with the equipment bonus, to
examples of the items in question. For most items, characters a maximum bonus of five dice.
could procure better examples, at a higher Availability rating.
• Plans: Characters can “build” a plan to orchestrate
Dice Bonuses a complex encounter with a specific goal involving
multiple people, like a heist, a raid, or a rescue. If
Most equipment offers a bonus to dice rolls pertaining to successful, this piece of “equipment” grants its bonus
its use. Multiple items can influence a given roll, but a roll to everyone involved, but winks out of existence as
should not receive more than a +5 bonus. soon as the plan definitively succeeds or fails. The
Game Effect Storyteller shouldn’t force the players to come up with
every little detail of the plan —abstraction is what the
dice are for — though if the players are gung ho about
A character with the item can use these Effects. Any the particulars, that’s fine too.
restrictions, costs, or parameters are listed individually.
• Mystical Equipment: Anything that carries minor
Building Equipment supernatural potency, such as a circle of protection
using salt and bone, a protective amulet, or a werewolf
trap made of silver, counts as mystical equipment. For
The reverend’s wife isn’t what she seems. She claims to have more rules about using a spirit’s bane in wards and
been saved by a miracle, but you know better. You know she isn’t
other rituals, see p. 138.
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infernal engines -dramatic systems