Out of Character (OOC):
Chronicle: Mage 2: The Dethroned Queen
Venue: Mage: The Awakening 2nd Edition
Chronicle Storyteller: Jerad Sayler
Assistant Storytellers: Hannah Nyland & Alex Van Belkum
Environmental Tilts Expanded
My comments are in orange. Here are an assortment of Tilts for use in various environments for your chronicle. This expands the number of Environmental Tilts from 9 to 47!
Sources: The original source material is from the Chronicles of Darkness corebook. The additional environmental Tilts were adapted from Beast: The Primordial, from their Lair Traits.
1. BLIZZARD (CoD)
Heavy snowfall carpets the ground and just keeps falling, whipped up by howling winds into a barrage of whirling white. Effect: Blizzards make it very hard to see for any real distance. Rolls to see things close to the character’s person, out to arm’s length away, suffer a –1 penalty. Each additional 10 yards inflicts an additional –1 penalty (cumulative) on all visual Perception rolls. This penalty also applies to ranged attack rolls. Moving through snow is difficult. Every four inches of snow applies a –1 penalty to appropriate Physical rolls, including combat rolls, Athletics, and so forth. The Blizzard Tilt rarely applies by itself — the Storyteller may also inflict any or all of the Extreme Cold, Heavy Winds, or Ice Tilts (all found below).
Causing the Tilt: The weather is out of the control of most characters — but not necessarily mages. The Storyteller should telegraph an incoming natural blizzard before it hits, but some willworkers may be powerful enough to call down frozen hell from a clear blue sky.
Ending the Tilt: Without supernatural powers, characters can’t “end” a blizzard. The best they can manage is to escape the weather or wait for it to stop. Proper equipment (such as goggles and snow boots) can add +1 to +3 to a roll, offsetting some of the penalties. If someone is causing this Tilt through a supernatural power, it’s possible that the characters could disrupt his concentration.
2. EARTHQUAKE (CoD)
Everything shudders and shakes; huge rents and holes tear the ground wide open.
Effect: Earthquakes don’t last long, but they don’t have to. When the quake’s actually occurring, all Dexterity-based dice pools (and Defense) suffer a –1 to –5 penalty depending on the quake’s severity. Characters take between one and three points of lethal damage per turn of the quake’s duration, though a reflexive Stamina + Athletics roll can downgrade that damage to bashing — or cancel it entirely on an exceptional success.
Causing the Tilt: Without tremendous supernatural power, it’s almost impossible to cause an earthquake. A character who detonates a powerful explosive underground might simulate the effects over a city-block for a few seconds.
Ending the Tilt: Earthquakes are fortunately very quick events. It’s very rare for one to last more than a minute (20 turns), so waiting them out is the best course of action.
3. EXTREME COLD (CoD)
Bone-chilling winds bite through the character, or trudging through knee-deep snow takes all of the sensation from his limbs. Any time the temperature gets down below zero degrees Celsius (32 degrees Fahrenheit), a character can suffer from the cold’s effects. This Tilt can sometimes be personal, either as a result of a medical Condition such as hypothermia or a supernatural power.
Effect: When the temperature is below freezing, characters can’t heal bashing damage — the extreme temperature deals damage at the same rate normal characters heal it (a cut might turn to frostbite, for instance). Supernatural beings and characters who heal faster than normal instead halve their normal healing rate. For every hour that a character is continuously affected by this Tilt, he accrues a –1 penalty to all rolls. When that penalty hits –5 dice, he instead suffers one point of lethal damage per hour.
Causing the Tilt: A character can suffer this Tilt from being in a frozen environment — whether he’s outside in the Arctic tundra or in a walk-in freezer. Inflicting the Tilt is reasonably straightforward: Throw the victim into a freezing lake or lock him in a freezer for long enough and he’ll develop hypothermia.
Ending the Tilt: The best way to escape the freezing cold is to find a source of warmth — either a building with working heating, or warm bundled clothing. A character who has hypothermia requires medical attention.
4. EXTREME HEAT
The character might be stumbling through the desert with the sun beating down on him, or running through the steam-tunnels surrounding an old boiler room. This Tilt can also be personal, the result of a debilitating fever that spikes his temperature far above the norm. Extreme heat is normally anything above 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit) — this includes both environmental temperature and internal body temperature due to fever.
Effect: When the temperature is far above normal, characters can’t heal bashing damage — the extreme temperature deals damage at the same rate normal characters heal it (a cut might heal, but it’s replaced by sunburn or sunstroke). Supernatural beings and characters who heal faster than normal instead halve their normal healing rate. For every hour that a character is continuously affected by this Tilt, he accrues a –1 penalty to all rolls. When that penalty hits –5 dice, he instead suffers a point of lethal damage per hour.
Causing the Tilt: This Tilt is usually caused by environmental factors — being out at noon in the desert or spending too long in a sauna or forge. Even a fever is the result of an infection, rather
than something that an opponent can force on a character. It’s possible to create this Tilt on a given character: securing someone to a chair right next to an old, inefficient boiler, or stranding them in the desert far from any shade.
Ending the Tilt: The key to ending this Tilt is simple: Get out of the heat. In a desert or similar environment, finding shade is paramount. Elsewhere, the character needs to escape whatever is causing the abnormal temperatures.
5. FLOODED (CoD)
Some liquid — brackish water, mud, gore, or raw sewage — is high enough to impede the character’s progress.
Effect: Each foot of liquid inflicts a –2 penalty to all Physical dice pools. If the water goes up over her head, a character has to swim (Dexterity + Athletics) with a penalty appropriate for the speed of flooding. Alternatively, she can try to hold her breath (Stamina + Composure) if she cannot get her head above the rising waters.
Causing the Tilt: Normally, this Tilt is the result of heavy rain, sudden snowmelt, or a broken water main. Characters can cause this Tilt by smashing up a water heater or blowing up a small dam. Some supernatural creatures may be able to call floods down onto a region.
Ending the Tilt: Characters can escape flooding by getting to high ground, which is enough to mitigate this Tilt. A longterm fix would require draining the floodwaters, but each flood requires its own solution.
6. HEAVY RAIN (CoD)
Torrential rain lashes down in knives, bouncing high off the sidewalk. The sound of rain on the ground is a constant hammering rumble that goes on without end, like dropping ball bearings on a tin roof. Thick gray curtains of water obscure vision.
Effect: Heavy rains — approaching tropical storm levels or worse — cause a Perception penalty of –3 dice to both vision and hearing. Rain’s hard to see through, but it’s also loud. If the rains carry on for an hour or more, the Flooded Tilt will soon follow. This Tilt is often accompanied by Heavy Winds; a character trapped out in Heavy Rains might come under the effects of Extreme Cold.
Causing the Tilt: Short of supernatural power or a fleet of cloud-seeding aircraft, Heavy Rain is the result of natural weather patterns.
Ending the Tilt: The best way out of the rain is to get indoors. Unless it’s the start of some sodden apocalypse, the characters can wait for the weather to ease.
7. HEAVY WINDS (CoD)
Howling winds buffet at the characters, whipping street furniture into the air, tearing the roofs from buildings. Powerful winds can toss cars around like toys. Anyone out in the winds feels like they’re taking a beating just for walking down the street.
Effect: Heavy winds are loud, so characters suffer a –3 modifier to aural Perception rolls. Also the wind inflicts a penalty to all Physical rolls when out in the winds — including Drive rolls. Grade the wind from one to five — one is tropical storm level (around 40 MPH), three is hurricane level (around 80 MPH), and five is tornado level (150+ MPH). This is the penalty applied to Physical dice rolls. Characters outside in the maelstrom take damage from flying debris, taking bashing damage each turn equal to the wind’s rating. Characters can make a reflexive Dexterity + Athletics roll to avoid damage.
Effect: Heavy winds are loud, so characters suffer a –3 modifier to aural Perception rolls. Also the wind inflicts a penalty to all Physical rolls when out in the winds — including Drive rolls. Grade the wind from one to five — one is tropical storm level (around 40 MPH), three is hurricane level (around 80 MPH), and five is tornado level (150+ MPH). This is the penalty applied to Physical dice rolls. Characters outside in the maelstrom take damage from flying debris, taking bashing damage each turn equal to the wind’s rating. Characters can make a reflexive Dexterity + Athletics roll to avoid damage.
Causing the Tilt: Heavy winds are a fact of life, from siroccos in the desert to tornadoes in the Midwest to wind shears everywhere.
Ending the Tilt: Getting out of the wind is the best way to end this Tilt. Sometimes that’s as easy as sheltering in an automobile — as long as nobody tries to drive. Buildings provide more permanent shelter.
8. ICE (CoD)
The ground’s covered in a mirror-smooth layer of ice that sends wheels spinning and people’s feet flying out from under them. The ice could be so thin as to be nearly invisible or a thick layer that’s the only thing keeping the characters from sinking into a frozen lake.
Effect: When a character can’t trust her footing, divide her Speed in half and all Physical rolls (and Defense) suffer a –2 penalty. Attempting to move at full Speed increases the Physical penalty to –4. Any dramatic failure on a Physical roll inflicts the Knocked Down Tilt.
Effect: When a character can’t trust her footing, divide her Speed in half and all Physical rolls (and Defense) suffer a –2 penalty. Attempting to move at full Speed increases the Physical penalty to –4. Any dramatic failure on a Physical roll inflicts the Knocked Down Tilt.
Causing the Tilt: This Tilt doesn’t just apply to icy conditions, but to any surface that’s slick and slippery, including a spill of industrial lubricant or just a really well-polished wooden or linoleum
floor. Characters can use a Dexterity + Crafts roll to cover an area in industrial cleaner or mix up cleaning chemicals into a lubricant. If the Extreme Cold Tilt is in effect, even covering the area with water would do the trick.
Ending the Tilt: “Get off the ice” is good advice, but that can take work. Characters can use heat or fire to melt ice, or throw down copious quantities of salt or grit to increase traction.
9. POOR LIGHT (CoD)
Dim illumination, strobes, or flickering lights make it difficult to track movement and see clearly.
Effect: Affected characters suffer a –2 penalty to visual-based Perception rolls, including ranged combat, rising to –3 at medium range and –4 at long range.
Causing the Tilt: This Tilt applies to scenes of “natural” darkness with dim ambient light, such as the outdoors at night away from urban light pollution, and to disconcerting environments like a nightclub with its effects system on.
Ending the Tilt: Bring, find, or create a light source.
10. BLAZING LIGHT (BtP)
Whether it’s from sunlight reflecting off snow, sand, or water at just the right angle, the harsh light of a too-large sun in a desert, or even incandescent terrain, the area is filled with light so bright it becomes painful to see.
Effect: Affected characters suffer a –3 penalty to any rolls that rely on vision, and the pain
Effect: Affected characters suffer a –3 penalty to any rolls that rely on vision, and the pain
and distraction causes a –1 penalty to any other rolls. Characters closing their eyes to avoid the pain suffer the Blinded Tilt in both eyes, but keeping their eyes shut in stressful situations may
require a successful Resolve + Composure roll.
11. CRAMPED (BtP)
The area features uncomfortably close quarters — narrow passageways, tight caves, crawlspaces or similar conditions. Effect: When designing an area, define a Size a character that can comfortably fit. All physical dice rolls are penalized by 6 minus the chosen Size dice. Maneuvering through tight spaces is also painfully slow. Speed is Strength + Dexterity only, with no species factor added.
12. CROSSWINDS (BtP)
Sudden gusts of wind cut through the area. The wind isn’t strong enough to move heavy objects (see the Hurricane Trait), but it can threaten characters climbing or trying to keep their balance on high surfaces.
Effect: Physical dice rolls involving balance or movement (especially Athletics rolls) suffer a –3 penalty. Failure on the roll applies the Knocked Down Tilt.
Effect: Physical dice rolls involving balance or movement (especially Athletics rolls) suffer a –3 penalty. Failure on the roll applies the Knocked Down Tilt.
13. CURRENTS (BtP)
Flowing liquid, air thermals, moving floors or invisible forces inexorably push characters along a route.
Effect: When designing the area the ST chooses the direction and strength of the currents, giving the latter a Strength rating of 1 to 5. Characters may resist the current’s pull with a Strength + Athletics roll penalized by the current’s Strength, but any who fail, cannot, or do not try to resist are carried by the flow with a Speed of the current’s Strength x 5.
Effect: When designing the area the ST chooses the direction and strength of the currents, giving the latter a Strength rating of 1 to 5. Characters may resist the current’s pull with a Strength + Athletics roll penalized by the current’s Strength, but any who fail, cannot, or do not try to resist are carried by the flow with a Speed of the current’s Strength x 5.
14. DOWNPOUR (BtP)
Water, blood, or stranger liquids pour into the area, soaking everything and lashing at exposed characters. Although it stings, the downpour doesn’t cause injury; the force of the elements is both loud and hard to see through.
Effect: The downpour imposes a –3 dice penalty to rolls involving vision or hearing.
Effect: The downpour imposes a –3 dice penalty to rolls involving vision or hearing.
15. ECHOING (BtP)
Sounds within the area reverberate, making it virtually impossible to move silently and track others by sound.
Effect: Dice rolls relating to aural perception or attempts to be quiet suffer a –3 dice penalty.
Effect: Dice rolls relating to aural perception or attempts to be quiet suffer a –3 dice penalty.
16. FOG (BtP)
Thick mist blankets the area, making everything within slick with moisture and dramatically reducing visibility.
Effect: All visual Perception rolls and ranged attacks are penalized by 1 die per ten feet.
Effect: All visual Perception rolls and ranged attacks are penalized by 1 die per ten feet.
17. JAGGED (BtP)
Broken ground in the area poses both a trip hazard and potential injury to anyone falling. This area can manifest as anything from strewn boulders, to animal warrens catching the feet of characters in the area, to ankle-height roots and sharp rocks.
Effect: Physical dice rolls to keep a sure footing suffer a –2 dice penalty and apply the Knocked Down Tilt on failure. Characters falling suffer two points of bashing damage.
Effect: Physical dice rolls to keep a sure footing suffer a –2 dice penalty and apply the Knocked Down Tilt on failure. Characters falling suffer two points of bashing damage.
18. MAZE (BtP)
The terrain twists and turns without readily available landmarks, disorienting and confusing affected characters. The area might be a literal labyrinth, a branching cave system, or something less overtly maze-like but still effective such as a deep forest or marsh with shifting terrain.
Effect: Characters attempting to trace their steps or find a way out of the area must succeed at an Intelligence + Composure roll with a 3 dice penalty.
19. SEALED EXITS (BtP)
You can see freedom, but can’t reach it. Doors are locked, windows won’t break, alleys are gated, and bridges are broken.
Effect: As long as the effect remains in effect, no mundane means of leaving the area will work. Supernatural means of escape provokes a Clash of Wills roll.
Effect: As long as the effect remains in effect, no mundane means of leaving the area will work. Supernatural means of escape provokes a Clash of Wills roll.
20. SLICK (BtP)
Whether by ice, grease, oil or some other lubricant, the surfaces in the area are slick. Anyone trying to keep footing to cross the affected area must move slowly.
Effect: Halve the Speed of any character on the ice. Physical actions such as combat are also impeded by the Trait, with a –2 penalty to all rolls and Defense. Attempting to move at full speed doubles the dice penalty to –4 dice.
Effect: Halve the Speed of any character on the ice. Physical actions such as combat are also impeded by the Trait, with a –2 penalty to all rolls and Defense. Attempting to move at full speed doubles the dice penalty to –4 dice.
21. STEAM (BtP)
Hot steam fills the air, scalding anyone in the area and providing the people with cover.
Effect: Steam clouds are a level 3 Extreme Environment, and anyone affected suffers a –2 penalty
Effect: Steam clouds are a level 3 Extreme Environment, and anyone affected suffers a –2 penalty
to rolls involving sight, including combat.
22. STENCH (BtP)
The area is filled with a foul smell, making victims gag and struggle to breathe.
Effect: All physical rolls involving exertion are penalized by (5 – Composure) dice. Characters may ignore the penalty for a single roll by spending a point of Willpower. Supernatural creatures that do not breathe (such as most undead) are immune to this Trait’s effect. Those with supernaturally strong senses of smell, however, suffer an increased effect; the dice penalty rises to (7 – Composure) dice.
Effect: All physical rolls involving exertion are penalized by (5 – Composure) dice. Characters may ignore the penalty for a single roll by spending a point of Willpower. Supernatural creatures that do not breathe (such as most undead) are immune to this Trait’s effect. Those with supernaturally strong senses of smell, however, suffer an increased effect; the dice penalty rises to (7 – Composure) dice.
23. STINGING (BtP)
Mild toxins in undergrowth, chemicals, dust, or ash in the air, stinging insects, and the touch of some sea creatures can all irritate the skin and eyes of victims, impeding their efforts.
Effect: The stinging or itching isn’t enough to cause injury, but imposes a –1 dice “wound penalty” on all rolls as though the affected character were in the third-to-last box of Health. If a character’s eyes are stung, the Trait imposes the Blindness Tilt for a Turn.
Effect: The stinging or itching isn’t enough to cause injury, but imposes a –1 dice “wound penalty” on all rolls as though the affected character were in the third-to-last box of Health. If a character’s eyes are stung, the Trait imposes the Blindness Tilt for a Turn.
24. SWARMS (BtP)
Clouds of insects, swarms of vermin or a carpet of bugs fills the Lair, worming into open wounds and clogging up equipment.
Effect: The swarm does no damage by itself (venomous swarms are represented by adding Stinging or Toxic) but double any wound penalties and reduce the dice bonus from complex equipment by 2.
Effect: The swarm does no damage by itself (venomous swarms are represented by adding Stinging or Toxic) but double any wound penalties and reduce the dice bonus from complex equipment by 2.
25. THIN AIR (BtP)
The air in the affected area resembles that of a mountain top rather than sea level, making those inside gasp for breath with any exertion.
Effect: All Physical rolls made for breathing characters are penalized by (Size – Stamina) dice. This Trait is a level 2 Extreme Environment.
Effect: All Physical rolls made for breathing characters are penalized by (Size – Stamina) dice. This Trait is a level 2 Extreme Environment.
26. THUNDEROUS (BtP)
Painfully loud noises in the area stun affected characters and leave them deafened. This Tilt can
represent anything from the roar of monsters, the thunderclap as lightning strikes, the bellowing noise of an industrial site, or any other source of harmful sound, as long as it’s loud enough to injure a human (even if only temporarily).
Effect: The player of a deafened character may only roll a chance die for Perception rolls based on hearing.
Effect: The player of a deafened character may only roll a chance die for Perception rolls based on hearing.
27. UNDERGROWTH (BtP)
Dense undergrowth provides cover and entangles characters moving through it. When designing the Tilt, determine the Durability rating of the Undergrowth, which does not have to made of vegetation — many monsters incorporate thick webs, strands of mucous, or even piled “man-made” items to get in their victim’s way.
Effect: Characters attempting to move through the undergrowth must succeed at a Strength + Athletics roll penalized by the undergrowth’s Durability rating.
Effect: Characters attempting to move through the undergrowth must succeed at a Strength + Athletics roll penalized by the undergrowth’s Durability rating.
28. UNSTABLE (BtP)
What may seem like solid ground isn’t — ice cracks, ship decks list to the side, bridges ripple as supports bend, and even bare earth shakes.
Effect: Characters in the affected area must succeed at a Dexterity + Athletics roll or suffer a –3 penalty to all Dexterity-based rolls, including Defense. Failure at a penalized roll causes the Knocked Down Tilt, while Dramatic Failure may cause Immobilized.
Effect: Characters in the affected area must succeed at a Dexterity + Athletics roll or suffer a –3 penalty to all Dexterity-based rolls, including Defense. Failure at a penalized roll causes the Knocked Down Tilt, while Dramatic Failure may cause Immobilized.
The area is engulfed in flame, whether in whole or part, burning anything combustible within the Chamber. To serve as an environmental Tilt, a fire must be at least bonfire size but a whole Chamber is usually an inferno.
Effect: When designed the ST specifies the Size and Intensity of the flames.
Effect: When designed the ST specifies the Size and Intensity of the flames.
30. CORROSIVE (BtP)
Whether it’s a pool of acid, a corrosive atmosphere, or more overtly supernatural environments such as flash-rusting metal or organic matter slowly petrifying or turning to salt, something in the area eats away at flesh and degrades matter.
Effect: The ST defines what the corrosion affects based on the its description. Affected characters suffer one aggravated damage per turn of exposure, and objects lose one Durability per turn.
Effect: The ST defines what the corrosion affects based on the its description. Affected characters suffer one aggravated damage per turn of exposure, and objects lose one Durability per turn.
31. CRUSHING (BtP)
Some areas crush the life out of victims, whether by cave-in, constricting cables or vines, or the pressure of an ocean trench.
Effect: This Tilt is a level 4 Extreme Environment. Some forms of Crushing may allow Strength + Athletics rolls to break free.
Effect: This Tilt is a level 4 Extreme Environment. Some forms of Crushing may allow Strength + Athletics rolls to break free.
32. DARKNESS (BtP)
The area is pitch-dark beyond the capacity of human nightvision — the darkness of a cave or a sealed room, not simply night.
Effect: Without a source of illumination, characters within the affected area suffer a –5 penalty to any rolls involving vision and lose all Defense.
Effect: Without a source of illumination, characters within the affected area suffer a –5 penalty to any rolls involving vision and lose all Defense.
33. DECAYING (BtP)
The material structure of the Lair is decayed and crumbling, posing a hazard to those inside.
Effect: All items and structures (even the walls) within the affected area have their Durability reduced by 2 to a minimum of 0. Attacks against an item without Durability inflict all successes and weapon ratings against the item’s Structure, but weapons themselves are not exempt from the decaying environment. Apply all damage done using a weapon to the weapon itself as well as to the target.
Effect: All items and structures (even the walls) within the affected area have their Durability reduced by 2 to a minimum of 0. Attacks against an item without Durability inflict all successes and weapon ratings against the item’s Structure, but weapons themselves are not exempt from the decaying environment. Apply all damage done using a weapon to the weapon itself as well as to the target.
34. DISEASED (BtP)
Pestilence in the area sickens living beings inside.
Effect: The ST specifies whether the sickness is moderate or grave when choosing this Tilt. A moderate sickness, like a bad flu, imposes a –1 penalty to all actions in combat, increasing by another –1 every two turns of exertion, to a maximum of –5. Grave sickness inflicts the dice penalties to actions, but also 1 point of bashing damage per turn of combat.
Effect: The ST specifies whether the sickness is moderate or grave when choosing this Tilt. A moderate sickness, like a bad flu, imposes a –1 penalty to all actions in combat, increasing by another –1 every two turns of exertion, to a maximum of –5. Grave sickness inflicts the dice penalties to actions, but also 1 point of bashing damage per turn of combat.
35. ELECTRIC DISRUPTION (BtP)
The area denies affected characters the use of human tools — some versions of this Tilt affect only electrical devices, while others prevent all complex machines from functioning; a rare few even snuff out fire.
Effect: Affected equipment does not function as long as the Trait remains in effect.
Effect: Affected equipment does not function as long as the Trait remains in effect.
36. ENGULFING (BtP)
Quicksand, thick mud, or more overtly supernatural environments such as human-sized carnivorous plants or grasping tendrils threaten to swallow and immobilize characters in the area.
Effect: Affected characters are incapable of moving, cannot apply Defense and may not make combat-related actions, but may attempt to pull free with a Strength + Athletics roll with a dice penalty equal to their own Size.
37. ELECTRIFIED (BtP)
The are features electrical hazards — bio-electrical stings, live rails, electrified fences, or simply lightning.
Effect: When this Tilt is designed the ST defines whether the Trait represents Major, Severe, or Fatal levels of electricity as per the rules.
Effect: When this Tilt is designed the ST defines whether the Trait represents Major, Severe, or Fatal levels of electricity as per the rules.
38. EXPOSED (BtP)
Victims in this area find no safety in hiding, and attacks pass through any barrier you try to put between combatants.
Effect: No affected character receives the benefits of Cover in combat — assume that the Cover’s Durability is 0 as long as the Tilt remains in effect.
Effect: No affected character receives the benefits of Cover in combat — assume that the Cover’s Durability is 0 as long as the Tilt remains in effect.
39. HEAVY (BtP)
Gravity in the area exerts a stronger than usual pull, increasing the weight of characters and their equipment.
Effect: Physical exertion becomes extremely tiring — players must succeed at a Strength + Stamina roll, penalized by one die per dot of Size above 5, or their characters suffer a –3 penalty to all Physical dice pools. Success prevents the penalty for the character’s Stamina in turns, or for the scene in an exceptional success.
Effect: Physical exertion becomes extremely tiring — players must succeed at a Strength + Stamina roll, penalized by one die per dot of Size above 5, or their characters suffer a –3 penalty to all Physical dice pools. Success prevents the penalty for the character’s Stamina in turns, or for the scene in an exceptional success.
40. HURRICANE (BtP)
Terrible winds rip through the area, tearing loose objects up and pummeling anyone exposed.
Effect: The winds are a level 3 Extreme Environment, representing the injuries caused by small airborne objects, but they also impose a –3 dice penalty to aural Perception rolls and all Physical dice pools. Characters within the affected area may also be at risk from larger pieces of debris. If so, the player must make a reflexive Stamina + Athletics roll per turn without protective shelter. Success means the character suffers two points of bashing damage or avoids harm altogether on an exceptional success. Failure inflicts two points of lethal damage instead.
Effect: The winds are a level 3 Extreme Environment, representing the injuries caused by small airborne objects, but they also impose a –3 dice penalty to aural Perception rolls and all Physical dice pools. Characters within the affected area may also be at risk from larger pieces of debris. If so, the player must make a reflexive Stamina + Athletics roll per turn without protective shelter. Success means the character suffers two points of bashing damage or avoids harm altogether on an exceptional success. Failure inflicts two points of lethal damage instead.
41. MIRAGES (BtP)
Ranging from heat-shimmer to openly supernatural illusions, visual distortions and hallucinatory images distract and confuse characters within the affected area.
Effect: Characters affected suffer a –3 dice penalty to visual Perception rolls including the roll to avoid Surprise in combat. Successfully telling illusion from reality and avoiding the effects of the Tilt requires a Wits + Composure roll at a –3 penalty, but removes the visual dice penalty for as many turns as successes, or for the scene on an exceptional success.
Effect: Characters affected suffer a –3 dice penalty to visual Perception rolls including the roll to avoid Surprise in combat. Successfully telling illusion from reality and avoiding the effects of the Tilt requires a Wits + Composure roll at a –3 penalty, but removes the visual dice penalty for as many turns as successes, or for the scene on an exceptional success.
42. NOXIOUS GASSES (BtP)
The air in the affected area is filled with dangerous gases. Some forms of this Tilt combine with the Fog Tilt representing visible clouds, while others are invisible. Either may also combine with Stench.
Effect: Unless characters in the area have breathing equipment or a supernatural nature that means they don’t have to breathe (for example, a vampire), they must hold their breath or suffer one lethal wound per turn in which they breathe the gas.
Effect: Unless characters in the area have breathing equipment or a supernatural nature that means they don’t have to breathe (for example, a vampire), they must hold their breath or suffer one lethal wound per turn in which they breathe the gas.
43. RAZORED (BtP)
Beyond the broken terrain in Jagged areas, a Razored area turns surfaces into deadly weapons — blades, broken glass, razorwire, barbs, thorns, or other sharp protrusions pose a hazard to characters within the affected area.
Effect: Pushing through the sharp surfaces or falling against them inflicts 3 points of lethal damage. Players of characters attempting to safely navigate through the barbs must succeed at a Dexterity + Composure roll; failure means the character suffers the damage.
Effect: Pushing through the sharp surfaces or falling against them inflicts 3 points of lethal damage. Players of characters attempting to safely navigate through the barbs must succeed at a Dexterity + Composure roll; failure means the character suffers the damage.
44. ROTTING (BtP)
Food spoils rapidly in the area, with mold blooming and liquid souring. Untreated wounds quickly fester, and the atmosphere seems to sap the energy out of characters.
Effect: Healing times are tripled while under a Rotting Tilt's influence, and the first point of Willpower regained by a character within the affected area is lost.
Effect: Healing times are tripled while under a Rotting Tilt's influence, and the first point of Willpower regained by a character within the affected area is lost.
45. SOFFOCATING (BtP)
Rather than a harmful atmosphere as in Noxious Gases, a Suffocating area simply lacks oxygen altogether. It may represent the impossible heights of a mountain, the depths of a sealed cave, or simply be underwater.
Effect: No matter how the trait manifests itself, characters staying within the affected area beyond their ability to hold their breath begin suffocating or drowning.
Effect: No matter how the trait manifests itself, characters staying within the affected area beyond their ability to hold their breath begin suffocating or drowning.
46. TOXIC (BtP)
Something in the area — food, water, the bites and scratches of wildlife, even a sickly sheen to metallic surfaces — is highly poisonous and threatens characters coming into contact with its method of transmission.
Effect: When designing this Tilt the ST defines a Toxicity Rating and Time Interval for the poison. The poison inflicts damage as described on in the CoD rules. In the exertion of combat, the toxin inflicts the Poisoned Tilt.
Effect: When designing this Tilt the ST defines a Toxicity Rating and Time Interval for the poison. The poison inflicts damage as described on in the CoD rules. In the exertion of combat, the toxin inflicts the Poisoned Tilt.
47. VISCOUS (BtP)
Swamp, mud, deep snow, or some kind of adhesive coats the area and makes movement extremely difficult.
Effect: While this Tilt is in effect, no character or creature adds her species factor to Speed. The player of a character struggling to move faster may make a reflexive Stamina + Strength roll and add its successes to Speed for a turn (to a maximum of the character’s Speed species factor, i.e. 5 for a human.)
Effect: While this Tilt is in effect, no character or creature adds her species factor to Speed. The player of a character struggling to move faster may make a reflexive Stamina + Strength roll and add its successes to Speed for a turn (to a maximum of the character’s Speed species factor, i.e. 5 for a human.)
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