I have been posting about the game I have been hard at work on, Crucible of Aether, for quite a while now. So, I think it is about time I talk about what makes it so damn cool and unique: The Character Progression System.
Forge Your Character in the Crucible of Aether
The main principle behind Crucible of Aether's Progression is that every Player Character should be a complete history of their adventures. Each challenge overcome, every faction joined, and every vocation taken on should directly influence a character's growth.
Where other games have linear progression through class systems or predetermined packages, CoA characters grow alongside the exciting and unpredictable nature of the narrative.
"How is this achieved?" I hear you ask. The answer is twofold: The Skill System & The Career System.
The Skill System
CoA boasts 40 different skills, each of which is improved with successful use.
Plain and simple: succeed at a Skill Check, get XP in that Skill. Get enough XP in a Skill and it Ranks Up. (This mechanic is deeply inspired by my billions of hours playing Morrowind.)
What Makes It So Cool: The fast-paced, improvisational nature of TTRPG stories mixed with this system results in skills both expected and unexpected being utilized to solve problems and shaping your character in exciting ways.
Meet Garnet Moors: a simple tailor who found herself in the middle of a grand conspiracy
Garnet has a Background as a clothier's assistant, which allowed her to begin her adventures with a relatively high Weaving amongst a few other talents. She started her campaign with Weaving at Rank 20.
As such, she has found every opportunity she can to utilize her skill at the sewing needle. She has made wedding suits, patched soldier's uniforms, and even sewed secret pockets in allies' clothes. She has predictably Ranked Up her Weaving all the way to 34.
However, her adventures have led her down a dangerous road. A job fitting dresses at a wedding has found her amidst a grand conspiracy to overthrow a local lord. During this time, she has had to utilize her Investigation and Perception to spot half-truths and hidden messages, ranking them up from 10 to 16 and 15, respectively.
She spent time hiding from those who wished her dead, ranking up her Stealth significantly from 5 to 22.
She has even improved her One-Handed after coming to blows with an assassin!
The best part is: She is only 2 SESSIONS INTO THE CAMPAIGN! Who knows what twists and turns will shape her character?
The Career System
CoA has a whopping 63 Careers, each an ability tree tied to a specific faction or vocation.
Each character will begin their adventures with a single Career. However, by joining factions and accomplishing certain tasks, they will open up access to many more.
After Leveling Up, achieved by earning enough total Ranks in Skills characters will get a point to spend on any of the Career Trees they have unlocked.
Plain and simple: Careers let characters specialize with unique abilities tied to specific factions or vocations.
What Makes It So Cool: Characters become a history of their allegiances and achievements. Spent some time working for a shadowy group of mercs? YOU HAVE THEIR TREE NOW! Unionized an oppressed group of factory workers? YOU HAVE A TREE FOR THAT NOW!
And you can invest in whichever ones strike your fancy!!!
Here are Two Great Examples: The Ashen Reservist & The Union Agitator
So anyway, that's CoA's progression system: a simulationist take on RPGs that actively molds your character as you interact with the world. AND IT IS COOL AS HELL
Also, we are going to be opening up for public playtests in a few months. So, stay tuned! <3
