The room shuddered. The stewpot shook loose from its hook over the small fire, spilling beans across the empty space.
Salis brushed some loose hair behind her pointed ears. An errant bean drifted in front of her. She ignored it as she carefully wound a long woolen rope around the crystal in front of her.
Each loop, she checked it as she had seen Pilots practice. A closed fist beneath the most recent loop, her free hand tugging at the winds to ensure it remained equally loose. With each light tug, the room shuddered as if it was reacting to the touch.
It was reacting. The sailstone was the primary engine of the ship. At this point, it would be the only engine if it was active.
She kept looping the rope around the crystal, minding how much slack she had left.
Finally, she was left with two or three feet of loose rope, just enough to clutch the knot at the end to her chest when she braced her feet against the crystal, knees bent sharply.
She took a deep breath.
Her legs shot out from under her, leaping out from the crystal with as much force as she could muster, pulling the rope as hard as she could. With no gravity, she could only rely on the force of her “jump” to rip the rope from the crystal like a string from a toy top.
She could hear sparks between the wool and the smooth, crystalline surface of the sailstone. As her body slammed into the wall of the engine room, she began pulling the rope frantically, climbing back toward the crystal with all her might, pulling more and more of the rope across the crystal surface.
Finally, with just a few loops left, a large static arc from the rope seemed to ignite the crystal to life. It began to glow. Salis watched with horror as it began pulsing in rhythm with her heartbeats, glowing more brightly with each beat.
She was still adrift in zero-gravity when the sailstone regained power, launching into Voidspace. All she could do was hope she had resumed the Jump and not taken herself to a corner of the universe she would be unable to escape.
The Vagabond
The Vagabond is a seasoned and skilled traveler. They are adept at finding opportunity at every turn. Although, this luck may be driven in part by their relatively low place in society, as any good turn seems like a significant life improvement.
Vagabonds lack the precision of a Scholar or Pilot, but they have broad knowledge of many subjects and mechanical crafts. They do not possess the permanent retinue of contacts and allies of a Socialite, but they can draw upon the shared bond of the dregs of society. They are not trained fighters or or wielders of magic, but they can mimic skills they’ve observed closely.
By necessity, Vagabonds are a jack-of-all-trades. They can fill many roles in a pinch, and they are very capable survivors. Vagabonds are rarely the first ones sought out for a contract or adventure, but they are always appreciated when the stress gets high.
Role in Society
Vagabonds have no acknowledged role in society. They drift from city to city, world to world, space station to space station. They pick up skills and knowledge as part of their travels, and they are one of the primary vectors for getting knowledge (not just information) from one place to another.
Role in Gameplay
Common Attitudes and Archetypes
The { ARCHETYPE }
fluff
Description
Preferred Skills:
Preferred Gear:
Typical Motivations:
Making a {Class}
Description
Skills
Skills: Appraise, Bluff, Jump, Tumble
Hit Dice
Hit Die: d8. The {class} gets 8 hitpoints plus their Constitution modifier when this class is taken at first level, and the character gains 1d8 plus their Constitution modifier at each level otherwise.
Rugged: Classes with d8 hit dice are used to a rough or unpredictable life. They are travelers and survivalists. They are also typically wise enough to avoid truly dangerous or difficult situations, unless they give themselves the opportunity to prepare first.
Starting Equipment
Advancement
| Abilities | Base Attack | Fortitude | Reflex | Will | Power | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Test ability | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2 | Test ability | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 3 | The Tale Never Ends | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 4 | Test ability | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 5 | Test ability | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 6 | Grift | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 7 | Test ability | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| 8 | Test ability | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| 9 | Out of the Frying Pan | 4 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| 10 | Into the Fire | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 |
| 11 | Test ability | 5 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 |
| 12 | Advanced Grift | 5 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 |
| 13 | Test ability | 6 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 |
| 14 | Test Ability | 6 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 |
| 15 | Test ability | 7 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 |
| 16 | Test ability | 7 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 |
| 17 | Test ability | 8 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 |
| 18 | Master Grift | 8 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 |
| 19 | Test ability | 9 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 |
| 20 | Test ability | 9 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 |
Ability Descriptions
The Tale Never Ends
In any situation that might result in a Vagabond’s death, long-term imprisonment, or other removal from the game, the character can make a single Luck roll, DC 20. On a success, the player and Game Master roleplay an escape from their fate. The character will lose all but three individual items from their inventory, and they suffer a permanent loss of 1d4 to a single attribute (GM decision or randomly selected).
On a failure, the character may still survive.
- Fail by 8 or less: The character escapes with a single item and suffers a permanent loss of 1d6 from a single attribute (GM decision or randomly selected).
- Fail by 12 or less: The character escapes with no inventory except for items that are absolutely necessary to justify their survival. They suffer a permanent loss of 1d4 to each of two attributes (GM decision or randomly selected).
- Fail by 13 or more: The character does not escape their fate in this game. In the case of imprisonment or marooning, the character may survive to become an NPC or player character in another game narrative.