Born in the Mist

Born in the Mist v0.4

Smelted on Scadrial and Forged in the Dark

The Basics

The Game
Born in the Mist is a game based on Brandon Sanderson's Mistborn series of novels, and mechanically
derived from Blades in the Dark, written by John Harper and published by Evil Hat. In this game, you
play a group of daring scoundrels building a criminal enterprise and resisting an oppressive regime.
We play to Jnd out if the Kedgling crew can thrive among the teeming threats of rival crews, powerful
noble families, the obligators and Inquisitors of the Steel Ministry, and greater, more ruinous threats.

This document comes paired with a set of character and crew sheets over on Google Drive, here.
Throughout the text, items that are still a work in progress have yellow highlighting.

The Setting
(Credit to the writers of the Mistborn Adventure Game, as this is an altered version of their
introduction.)

First, picture a world much like our own European Middle Ages. Cobblestone roads and horse-drawn
carriages; nobility in their majestic manor houses and serfs working their sprawling plantations;
massive cities packed with soldiers and citizens, beggars and nobles, artisans and thieves.

Yet, it's not exactly our world. Every night, clouds of silvery mist materialise. They swirl and dance in
the streets; they Jll the sky and shroud the stars. Yet, never do they come inside a building,
dissipating before they reach inside even the smallest tent. The common people of the world, the
skaa, whisper stories that the mistwraiths will take your soul, and they huddle inside until the sun
comes and the mists disappear.

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 Now, picture that this world has gone wrong. A thousand years ago came the Lord Ruler. The state
priesthood tells of how he defeated the Deepness; how he went into the Well of Ascension and came
out of it a god, the Sliver of InJnity. Since that time, the sky has been red, and further darkened by the
thick, black clouds spewed from the great ashmounts, vast volcanoes that dot the landscape. Since
that time, all life has been hardy, with trees growing brown and tough. The people alive in the world
today — except for the Lord Ruler himself — have never seen a green tree or a vibrant Kower, except
in old legends suppressed by the orthodoxy.

And since that time, the Lord Ruler and his priesthood, the Steel Ministry, have kept a stranglehold on
society. In this Final Empire, the church and state are one. His obligators, immediately recognisable
by their shaven heads and the intricate tattoos around their eyes, move through and police all layers
of society: they keep the nobility in check and they keep the skaa underfoot. They halt the integration
of classes and stiKe the march of technology. Innovation, evolution, and ingenuity are replaced by
duty, devotion, and above all, fealty. For a thousand years, it has been a world where soldiers Jght
with swords and bows.

In this world, a power exists in a select few, to use metals to soar through the sky, to perform feats of
superhuman strength and speed, to directly push and pull the hearts of others. This power is
concentrated in the nobility... but also belongs to some few percent of the common skaa. Where these
skaa Allomancers are found, they're hunted by the Lord Ruler's Steel Inquisitors — brutal, relentless,
inhuman creatures that would stop at nothing to claim them.

Imagine living
Editinwith
suchthe
a world...
DocsandappJghting against it. You reject the backstabbing politics of the
nobility and the harsh, back-breaking oppression of the skaa. You move in the criminal underground
that pervades
Makesociety andleave
tweaks, evades the ever-watchful
comments, and shareeyes
withofothers
the obligators. It's same
to edit at the a society in itself: Jlled
time.
with dangers from within and without, always the risk of betrayal or of the Ministry's jaws coming
shut. But here, you can Jnd your crew. People with like minds, people who will help you toward your
goals because theirs are the same. Maybe you just Jght to survive, or to take from the NOundeserving
THANKS GET THE A
nobility.

Or maybe you go beyond. You Jght to break the bonds of oppression, fear, and entropy that poison the
land and divide the people. You Jght to Jnd some way to Jx the land and bring back the blue skies,
the night stars, and the vibrant Kowers. Your opponents have every edge at their disposal: they have
all the money, they have all the power, and they use it to make people like you go away. But even
su^ering under an enormous weight, you don't surrender. You Jght to change the world, because if
you can't change it, it's not worth saving.

This is the world of Mistborn.

Chapter 1: Core Systems

This chapter will provide a primer on the fundamental Forged in the Dark system. If you're already
familiar, go ahead and move on to the section on "Changing the Alloy", which notes this game's
deviations from the SRD system.

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 The Players
Each player creates and portrays a player character (or PC): a daring rogue who lives on the edge of
Scadrian society. These are the protagonists of your campaign. You'll work together with the other
players to bring these characters to life as interesting, daring scoundrels who work together to reach
boldly beyond their current means. This is the players' core responsibility: to engage with the
premise of the game, seeking out interesting opportunities for crime and rebellion in the Final
Empire — taking big risks against powerful foes and sending their characters into great danger, for
the hope of great reward.

The players work together with the Game Master to establish the tone and style of the game by
making judgement calls about themes and content, mechanics, dice, and the consequences of action.
The players take responsibility as co-authors of the game with the GM.

The Characters
The scoundrels strive to develop their crew from a ragtag group of downtrodden individuals, into a
serious organisation with the power to make an impact in Scadrial. They do this by taking illegal jobs
from clients, planning their own jobs, forging alliances and outsmarting enemies, and trying to stay a
step ahead of the Steel Ministry.
There are several character types to choose from, each representing a di^erent style of scoundrel.
These character types are called 'playbooks'.

Cutters are intimidating Jghters.

Lurks are stealthy inJltrators.

Hounds are deadly marksmen and trackers.
Slides are manipulators and spies.

Scholars are tinkerers and masterminds.

Playbooks aren't unique. You can mix and match, or even play a crew that are all the same playbooks.

The Crew
In addition to creating individual rogues, you'll also create the crew as a whole. The crew gets its own
character sheet, much like a player character; but rather than using a player character playbook, it
uses a crew book.

Assassins are killers for hire.

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 Rebels are revolutionaries bent on overthrowing the corrupt system.
Shadows are thieves and spies.

Other crew books are TBD.

The Game Master

The game master (or GM) establishes and directs the dynamic world around the characters.,
especially the controlling Steel Ministry, the corrupt and wicked noble houses, and the violent
criminal underworld. They play all the non-player characters (NPCs) by giving each one a concrete
desire and preferred method of action.
The GM helps organise the conversation of the game so it's pointed towards the interesting elements
of play. The GM is not 'in charge' of the story, and doesn't have to plan events ahead of time: just like
the players, the GM plays to =nd out. They present interesting opportunities to the players, then
follow the chain of actions and consequences wherever they lead.

Rolling the Dice

Born in the Mist uses six-sided dice. You roll several at once, called a "dice pool", and read the single
highest result.

If the highest die is a 6, it's a perfect success: things go well and you avoid consequences.
If you roll more than on 6, it's a critical success: things go well, you avoid consequences, and
you gain some additional advantage.
If the highest die is a 4 or 5, it's a mixed success: you do what you were trying to do, but
there are setbacks like harm, unexpectedly dibcult opposition, or new obstacles show
themselves.
If the highest die is a 1-3, it's a bad outcome: things go poorly, you su^er consequences
worse than on a mixed success, and you likely don't achieve your original goal.

If you ever need to roll but have zero (or fewer) dice, roll two dice and take the single lowest result.
This is called "0D", and when you roll 0D, you can't roll a critical: getting two 6s just means that it
actually counts as a 6's perfect success.

Even with sizable dice pools, the most common result will be a 4/5's mixed success. You'll tend to
succeed, but at a cost or with consequences. Your crew are the underdogs of the Final Empire, and the
dice reinforce this by mixing complications in with your success, and this continuing conKict makes
for a more interesting and dynamic story.
To create a dice pool for a roll, you'll use a trait (like your action rating in Prowl, your attribute rating
for Prowess, or your crew's Tier) and take dice equal to its rating. You'll usually end up with one to

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 four dice.
There are Jve types of roll that you'll use most often in the game.

Action roll: When a PC attempts an action with a risk of failure or complication, you make
an action roll to Jnd out how it goes. The dice pool is based on your relevant action rating (e.g.
you roll dice equal to your Prowl rating when trying to sneak past a guard). Action rolls, their
e^ects, and their consequences drive most of the game.
Resistance roll: When a PC faces consequences, the player can call for a resistance roll.
The dice pool is based on your relevant attribute rating (e.g. you roll dice equal to your
Prowess rating to resist being stabbed in combat), and the roll tells us how much stress the
PC su^ers to reduce or negate the consequence.
Fortune roll: The GM can make a fortune roll to disclaim decision-making, leave
something up to chance, and play to Jnd out. How loyal is an NPC? How much do the
obligators learn? How valuable are the contents of House Ladrian's safe?
Downtime roll: When the PCs are at their leisure between jobs, you can perform
downtime activities, and downtime rolls show how much they accomplish.
Engagement roll: The engagement roll is made at the beginning of each job. It
summarises the planning and determines what position the PCs are in when a job begins.

Optional Rule: Universal Push. Increase all dice pools based on action or attribute ratings by 1D. So
if you have one dot in Prowl, your dice pool for Prowl actions starts at 2D.
Under this rule, you cannot push yourself for +1D. You can still use the other e^ects of pushing
yourself, can still take a +1D from a Devil's Bargain, and you can still gain dice from pushing
Feruchemy.
This rule makes scoundrels who are more generally competent, and it means that the Jrst dot of an
action or attribute is particularly signiJcant, creating the possibility of a critical success.
You still use the normal "roll 0D" rules when something reduces your dice pool to or below zero,
such as acting while under level-2 harm.

The Game Structure

Born in the Mist has a play structure of three di^erent phases.
By default, the game is in free play: characters talk to each other, go places, do things, and the players
make rolls as needed.
When the group is ready, they choose a target for their next criminal operation, then choose a type of
plan to employ. This triggers the engagement roll and the game shifts into the mission phase.
During the mission, the PCs engage the target by taking actions, calling for Kashbacks, contending
with consequences, and so forth. Ultimately, they complete the operation, successfully or not.

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 When the job is Jnished (or abandoned), the game shifts into the downtime phase. During downtime,
the GM triggers the systems for payout, Heat, and entanglements to determine the direct
consequences of the job. Then the PCs each get to perform downtime activities, such as relaxing to
release stress, working on long-term projects, or acquiring assets for future use.

When everyone is done with downtime activities, the game returns to free play and the cycle starts
over again.

Stress
Player characters in Born in the Mist have a special reserve of fortitude, luck, and daring called stress.
This is what sets them apart as protagonists, enabling them to dig deep and push forward in the
daring risks they take. Player characters can use stress for a variety of beneJts.

Uses of Stress

Resistance
When your character su^ers a consequence that you don't want to accept, you can make a resistance
roll and take stress to reduce or negate it.

During a knife Jght, Ham gets stabbed in the chest. Her player rolls Ham's Prowess rating to resist,
and the highest result is 4. It costs 6 stress, minus 4 (the roll's result) to resist the consequence. The
player marks o^ 2 stress and describes how Ham survives.
The GM rules that the harm is reduced by the resistance, but not negated entirely. Ham su^ers level-1
harm ("Scratch") instead of level-3 harm ("Punctured Lung").

Push Yourself
Spending stress can represent digging deep and giving it your all to improve your performance.

Mark 2 stress to take one of the beneJts below. This can stack, taking each beneJt once for a given
action.

Add +1D to your roll. (This may be used for an action roll, downtime roll, or any other kind
of roll where extra e^ort would help you; but it does not stack with +1D from a Devil's
Bargain.)
Increase your ePect level by 1 (such as from Limited to Standard).

Take action despite being incapacitated by level-3 harm.

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 Assist
When a teammate is about to make a roll, you can narrate how you assist them and mark 1 stress to
give them +1D for the roll.

This might expose you to any consequences that occur from the roll, depending on the
circumstances. Only one character can assist a given roll. (Instead, you might perform
setup manoeuvres to "stack" helping.)
A character may assist a group action, but only if they aren't taking part in it directly. When assisting
a group action, you decide which one character gets the bonus die.

Lead a Group Action

When you lead a group action, you coordinate multiple members of the team to tackle the same
problem together. Describe how your character leads the team in the coordinated e^ort: do you bark
orders, give subtle hand signals, or provide charismatic inspiration?

Each involved PC makes an action roll, using the same action, and the team counts the single best
result. However, the group leader marks 1 stress for each PC that rolled a 1-3 result on their action
roll.
This is how you do the "we all sneak into the building" scene. Everyone who wants to sneak in
together rolls their Prowl action, and the best result counts for the whole team. The leader su^ers
stress for those who do poorly, covering for stragglers.

The group action result covers everyone who rolled. If you don't roll, your character doesn't get the
e^ects of the action.

Your character doesn't have to be especially skilled at the action at hand in order to lead a group
action. This manoeuvre is about leadership, not skill.
Since only the top result counts, a risky group action with a 6 result generates one gambit, even if
there were multiple sixes.

Protect
You can step in to face a consequence that one of your teammates would otherwise. You suPer it
instead of them, but may resist it as normal. Describe how you intervene.

Flashbacks
You can also use stress to call for Tashbacks during a mission. For more information on how those
work, refer to Flashbacks.

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 Exhaustion
When a player character marks their last stress box, they become exhausted. While exhausted, they
cannot do anything that costs stress, but su^er no further penalty.

Progress Clocks
A progress clock is a circle divided into segments, or some other way of marking a series of segments
(such as a row of boxes in a shared spreadsheet). See examples at right. Draw a progress clock to track
ongoing e^ort against an obstacle or the approach of impending trouble.

Sneaking into a noble house's manor? Make a clock to track the patrolling guards' alert level. When
the PCs su^er consequences from imperfect rolls, Jll in segments until the alarm is raised.
For more complex problems, the progress clock is made of a greater number of segments. A basic
obstacle is a 4-segment clock. A daunting obstacle is an 8-segment clock. More dibcult problems may
have as high as 12 segments, but then it may be better to use Linked Clocks.

The ePect level of an action should generally guide how segments on a clock are ticked. However,
sometimes circumstances change which radically alter the Jction. Adjust clocks so that the progress
measures the e^ect the PCs are having. A clock tracks progress; it doesn't deJne it.

Wrayn Olbeck has information that the crew needs, but she's keeping her lips tight. The GM starts an
8-segment clock to Get Information From Wrayn; this may take a while. But then the crew plies her
with an autographed trinket from her very favourite stage actor and her mind changes instantly. The
GM Jlls in the remaining clock at once to show that the problem has been solved.
Don't create clocks with fewer than four segments. If a situation is enough for one simple action to
complete, you don't need a clock. Use the e^ect level and position to determine how that action
resolves.

When you create a clock, make it about the obstacle, not the method. Clocks for an inJltration could
be "Exterior Patrols" and "Perimeter Door", not "Sneak Past the Guards" or "Break Down the Door".

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 The patrols and the door are obstacles — the PCs can overcome them in multiple ways.

Danger Clocks
The GM can use a clock to represent a progressive danger, like the growing suspicion during a
seduction or the alert level of guards on patrol. In this case, when a consequence occurs, the GM ticks
one, two, or three segments on the clock, depending on the position level. When the clock is full, the
danger comes to fruition — the guards hunt down the intruders, activate an alarm, release the
hounds, et cetera.

Racing Clocks
You can create two (or more) opposed clocks to represent a race. The PCs might have a clock called
"Escape" while the pursuing Steel Inquisitor has a clock called "Cornered". If the PCs Jnish their clock
before the Inquisitor Jnishes his, they get away. Otherwise, they're cornered and can't Kee. If both
complete at the same time, the PCs escape to their lair, but the Inquisitor is right outside!

You can also use racing clocks for an environmental hazard. Maybe the PCs are trying to complete the
"Search" clock to Jnd the lockbox in a burning building before the GM Jlls the "Burned" clock and
they go down with it.

Linked Clocks
You can make a clock that unlocks another clock once it's Jlled. In doing this, complex enemy threats
can be broken into several "layers", each with its own progress clock. For example, Keep Venture
might have a "Perimeter Security" clock, an "Interior Guards" clock, and a "Stra^'s Obce Security"
clock. The crew would have to make their way through all three layers to reach Stra^'s safe and the
valuable atium within.

Time-Sensitive Clocks
The GM can make a clock for a time-sensitive mission, to represent the window of opportunity you
have to complete it. If the countdown runs out, the mission is scrubbed or changes: the target
escapes, the household wakes up for the day, or some other change in circumstance.

Tug-of-War Clocks

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 You can make a clock that can be Jlled and cleared by events, to represent a back-and-forth situation.
You might make a "Revolution!" clock that indicates when the skaa riot over their poor treatment in
Luthadel. Some events will tick the clock up and some will tick it down. Once it Jlls, the revolution
begins; or if it completely empties, then the skaa accept their lot for now. A tug-of-war clock is also
perfect for an ongoing turf war between two crews or factions.

Looping Clocks
Some clocks occur over and over. Your character's healing clock and the crew's heat clock are two
examples. When you Jll one of these 'looping clocks', you take some e^ect (such as increasing the
crew's Heat Level), then clear the clock. Any leftover segments 'roll over' to the new clock. For
example, if you have a looping clock at 3/4 and roll an action which Jlls two segments, then you Jll the
clock, take the e^ect, clear it, and then mark it to 1/4.

Long-Term Projects
Some projects will take a long time. A basic long-term project (like crafting a new set of knives) is
eight segments. Truly long-term projects (like discovering a new Allomantic alloy) can be two, three,
or even four linked clocks, representing all the phases of development, testing, and Jnal completion.
Add or subtract clocks depending on the details of the situation and complexity of the project.

A long-term project is a good catch-all for dealing with any unusual player goal, including things that
circumvent or change elements of the mechanics or the setting. For example, by default in the game,
trauma is permanent. But maybe a player wants to work on a project where they spend time in the
professional care of Soothers, slowly wearing away or suppressing the trauma until it no longer
amicts them. It will be a long and arduous process, but almost anything can be attempted as long as
the group is interested and it seems feasible to everyone.

Faction Clocks
Each faction has a long-term goal. When the PCs have downtime, the GM ticks forward the faction
clocks they're interested in (perhaps based on fortune rolls using the faction's tier). In this way, the
world around the PCs is dynamic and things happen that they're not directly connected to, changing
the overall situation in Scadrial and creating new opportunities and challenges.
The PCs may also directly a^ect NPC faction clocks, based on the missions they pull o^. Discuss
known faction projects that they might aid or hinder, and also consider how a PC operation might
a^ect the NPC clocks whether the players intended it or not.

Actions and Attributes

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 Actions
There are twelve actions in the game that player characters use to overcome obstacles. Each action
has a rating (from zero to 4) that tells you how many dice to roll when you use it to make an action
roll. Action ratings don't just represent skill or training — you're free to describe how your character
performs that action based on the type of person they are. Maybe your character is good at Command
because they have a scary stillness to them, while another character barks orders and intimidates
people with their military bearing.
You choose which action to perform to overcome an obstacle, by describing what your character does.
You can't describe yourself sneaking up and kniJng someone in an alleyway, then roll Consort
because you have more points in it. To do it (in the mechanics), you have to do it (in the Jction).
Actions that are poorly suited to the situation may be less e^ective or may put your character in more
danger, but they can still be attempted.
The action list is below.

When you Command, you compel swift obedience.

You might intimidate or threaten to get what you want. You might lead a team in a group
action. You could try to order people around to persuade them to your point of view (but
Consorting might be better).
When you Consort, you socialise with friends and contacts.

You might make a good impression or win someone over with your charm and style. You
might make new friends or connect with your heritage or background. You could try to
manipulate your friends with social pressure (but Sway might be better).
When you Finesse, you employ dextrous manipulation or subtle misdirection.
You might pick someone's pocket. You might formally duel an opponent with graceful Jghting
arts. You could try to employ those arts in a chaotic melee (but Skirmishing might be better).
You cold try to pick a lock (but Tinkering might be better).
When you Hunt, you carefully track a target.

You might follow a target or discover their location. You might arrange an ambush. You might
attack with precision shooting from a distance. You could try to bring your coins to bear in a
melee (but Skirmishing might be better).
When you Intuit, you open your mind to intuition or supernatural truth.
You might observe a person to detect lies or true feelings. You might listen to your Seeker
senses to Jnd Allomancers. You might commune with entities of the Cognitive Realm. You
could try to guess the important points of a hidden diary (but Studying might be better).
When you Prowl, you traverse skillfully and quietly.
You might sneak past a guard or hide in the shadows. You might run and leap across the
rooftops. You might attack someone from hiding with a backstab or duelling cane. You could
try to waylay a victim in the midst of battle (but Skirmishing might be better).

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 When you Skirmish, you entangle a target in combat so they can't easily escape.

You might brawl or wrestle with them. You might hack and slack. You might seize or hold a
position in battle. You could try to break a door (but Wreck might be better).
When you Study, you scrutinise details and interpret evidence.
You might gather information from documents, newspapers, and books. You might do
research on an esoteric topic. You might closely analyse a person to detect lies or true feelings
(but Intuiting might be better). You could try to examine events to understand a pressing
situation (but Surveying might be better).
When you Survey, you observe the situation and anticipate outcomes.
You might spot telltale signs of trouble before it happens. You might uncover opportunities or
weaknesses. You could try to spot a good ambush point (but Hunting might be better).
When you Sway, you inKuence with guile, charm, or argument.

You might lie convincingly. You might persuade someone to do what you want. You might
argue a compelling case that leaves no clear rebuttal. You could try to trick people into
a^ection (but Consorting might be better) or obedience (but Commanding might be better).
When you Tinker, you Jddle with devices and mechanisms.
You might pick a lock or crack a safe. You might disable an alarm or trap. You might craft a
new tool or alter an existing item. You could try to set an explosive (but Wrecking might be
better).
When you Wreck, you unleash savage force.
You might smash down a door or wall with a sledgehammer, or use an explosive to do the
same. You might employ chaos or sabotage to create a distraction or overcome an obstacle.
You could try to overwhelm an enemy with sheer force in battle (but Skirmishing might be
better).
As you can see, many actions overlap with others. This is by design. As a player, you get to choose
which action you roll, by saying what your character does. Can you try to Wreck someone during a
Jght? Sure! The GM tells you your position and e^ect levels of your chosen action in your current
circumstance. As it says, Skirmish might be better (less risky and/or more e^ective), depending on the
situation at hand.

Attributes
There are also three attributes in the game that you use to resist bad consequences: Insight,
Prowess, and Resolve. Each attribute has a rating (from zero to 4) that tells you how many dice to roll
when you use that attribute.

The rating for each attribute is equal to the number of dots in the =rst column under that attribute
(see examples below). The more well-rounded your character is with a particular set of actions, the

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 better their attribute rating.
Each attribute resists a di^erent kind of danger. If you get stabbed, for example, you resist physical
harm with your Prowess rating.

Insight: Consequences from deception or lack of understanding.

Prowess: Consequences from physical strain or injury.
Resolve: Consequences from mental strain or faltering willpower.

Resistance rolls always succeed — you reduce or negate the bad result — but the better your roll, the
less stress it costs you to resist the danger.

Example Actions & Attribute Ratings

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 Hold
Some rules describe your character getting hold, such as "hold 2 preparation". These are temporary
points that you can spend according to the relevant special ability, often with a phrase like "spend
hold one-for-one", meaning "spend one point of hold for one e^ect as the ability describes".

Action Roll
When a PC attempts something challenging, we make an action roll to Jnd out what happens. An
action is challenging if there's an obstacle to the PC's goal that's dangerous or troublesome in some
way. We don't make an action roll unless the obstacle is signiJcant; if their action is something that
we'd expect them to simply accomplish, then we don't make an action roll.

To make an action roll, we go through six steps. They Kow together in play, but we'll break them down
here for clarity.

1. The player states their goal

Your goal is the concrete outcome your character will achieve if their action is successful. Usually the
goal is obvious in context, but it's the GM's responsibility to ask and clarify when necessary.
You're punching him in the face, right? Okay… what do you want to get out of this? Do you want to
take him out, or just rough him up so he'll do what you want him to?

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 2. The player chooses the action rating
The player chooses which action rating to use in building the dice pool, following from what the
character is doing in the Jction. If you want to roll your Scrap rating, then get in a Jght; if you want
to roll your Command rating, then order someone around.
While the player can choose whatever action they want to take in the Jction, you can't roll a given
action rating if your character is not performing that action in the Jction.

Further, not all actions will be equally appropriate. The player's choice of action is a key factor in the
GM deciding the position and e^ect (below). If you want to make a new friend by Scrapping with
them, the GM is well within their rights to say that it's a high-risk, low-e^ect action, while Consorting
would be better.

3. The GM sets the ePect level and the position

Once the player chooses their action, the GM assesses the likely ePect level of the action — how much
it can get done all at once. E^ect level asks the question, "How much can you do?" There are three
e^ect levels: great, standard, and limited.
Great: You achieve more than usual. How does the extra e^ort manifest? What additional beneJt
do you enjoy? (Tick 3 segments.)
Standard: You achieve what we'd expect as "normal" with this action. Is that enough, or is there
more left to do? (Tick 2 segments.)

Limited: You achieve a partial e^ect. What diminished your impact? What e^ort remains to
achieve your goal? (Tick 1 segment.)

The GM also sets the position for the roll. This is a measure of how risky that action is. Position asks
the question, "What's the worst that could happen?" There are three positions: controlled, risky, and
desperate.
Controlled: You're set up for success. You're exploiting a dominant advantage.
Risky: You go head-to-head. You're taking a chance.

Desperate: You're overreaching. You're in real trouble. A very dangerous manoeuvre.

By default, an action roll is risky. If there were no risk involved, you wouldn't be making an action
roll. If the situation seems more dangerous than average, make it desperate; if less, make it
controlled.

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 4. The player optionally adds bonus dice
You have a few options for adding to the dice pool you put together from your action rating, enabling
you to add up to three bonus dice.
If a teammate marks 1 stress and narrates how their character assists your action, you add 1 die to
your action pool (abbreviated as +1D).
For a second bonus die, you can either push yourself (mark 2 stress) or you can accept a Devil's
Bargain (guaranteed complication). Note that you can't get dice for both, but you can take a Devil's
Bargain for the dice and push yourself for one of its other beneJts.

For a third bonus die, you can spend a gambit. A gambit is a limited resource earned by taking risks
and shared by the whole crew, representing luck and momentum. Note that you can spend the gambit
and roll the bonus die after having rolled the dice, as a Hail Mary pass.
If your character is a Feruchemist, you may also be able to push Feruchemy to gain bonus dice and
increased e^ect.

5. The player rolls the dice and we judge the result

Once all the above is determined, the player rolls the dice, and we judge the result as in Rolling the
Dice. The PC might succeed at their action with no drawbacks (on a 6), they might succeed but
encounter consequences (4/5), or it might all go wrong (1-3).

Action Roll Summary

A player states the goal. The GM calls for an action roll when the character's goal has an
interesting risk of failure or setbacks.
The player chooses which action rating to roll. Choose the action which matches what the
character is doing in the Jction.

The GM establishes the position and ePect level of the action. This is inKuenced strongly
by the player's choice of action.
Optionally, add bonus dice from assistance, push yourself or Devil's Bargain, a gambit, or
pushing Feruchemy.
Roll the dice pool and judge the outcome. (If you didn't spend a gambit before, you can also
do so now.) The players and GM narrate the action together. The GM has Jnal say over what
happens and threatens consequences as called for by the position and the end result of the
roll.

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 Double-Duty Rolls
Note that since NPCs don't roll for their actions, an action roll does double-duty: it resolves the action
of both the PC and any NPCs that are involved. The single roll tells us how those actions interact and
which consequences result.

On a 6, the PC wins and has their e^ect (they come out on top in a duel, without the NPC landing any
blows).
On a 4/5, it's a mix: both the PC and NPC have their e^ect (in a duel, each lands some strikes on the
other).
On a 1-3, the NPC wins and has their e^ect as a consequence on the PC (in a duel, the PC is on the
back foot and takes some harm without inKicting any in return).

E^ect
In Born in the Mist, you achieve goals by taking actions and risking consequences. But how many
actions does it take to achieve a particular goal? How many hits does it take to bring down a door?
That depends on the ePect level of your actions. The GM judges the e^ect level using the proJles
below.

Great: You achieve more than usual. How does the extra e^ort manifest? What additional beneJt
do you enjoy? (Tick 3 segments.)
Standard: You achieve what we'd expect as "normal" with this action. Is that enough, or is there
more left to do? (Tick 2 segments.)
Limited: You achieve a partial e^ect. What diminished your impact? What e^ort remains to
achieve your goal? (Tick 1 segment.)

Assessing Factors
To determine e^ect level, Jrst start with your gut feeling given the situation. Then, if needed, assess
three factors that may modify the e^ect level: potency, quality, and scale. If the PC has an advantage
in a given factor, consider upgrading the e^ect level; if they have a disadvantage, consider reducing it.

Potency
The potency factor represents particular weaknesses or advantages, taking extra time or a bigger
risk, or the inKuence of invested powers. An inJltrator is more potent if all the lights are extinguished
and they move about in the dark; a socialite is more potent if she can Riot others' good impression of
her.

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 Quality
Quality represents the e^ectiveness of tools, weapons, and other resources. This is usually
summarised by Tier. Fine items count as +1 bonus in quality, while spectacular is +2, stacking with
Tier.
Spook is picking the lock to a safehouse belonging to a rival thieving crew. Spook's crew is Tier 1 and
he has spectacular lockpicks, so his quality is e^ectively 3. The rival crew is Tier 2. Spook outclasses
them in quality, so his e^ect is upgraded on the lock.

Scale
Scale represents the number of opponents, size of an area covered, scope of inKuence, and so on.
Larger scale can be an advantage or a disadvantage depending on the situation. In battle, more people
are better; when inJltrating, more people are a hindrance.

When considering factors, e^ect level might be reduced below limited, resulting in zero ePect — or
increased beyond great, resulting in extreme ePect.
If a PC's special ability gives "+1 e^ect", it comes into play after the GM has assessed the e^ect level.
For example, if you ended up with zero e^ect, the +1 e^ect bonus from your Tinscout special ability
would bump it up to limited e^ect.

Also, remember that as a PC, you can push yourself (take 2 stress) to get +1 e^ect on an action, and
Feruchemists can push Feruchemy for the same end.
Not every situation will use every factor, and you don't need to do an exact accounting every time. Use
the factors to help you make a stronger judgement call, but don't feel beholden to them.

Trading Position for E^ect

After factors are considered and the GM has announced the e^ect level, a player might want to trade
position for e^ect or vice versa. For instance, if they're starting o^ making a risky action with
standard ePect (the most common scenario), they might instead want to push their luck and make a
desperate action with great ePect.
This kind of tradeo^ isn't included in the e^ect factors because it's not an element the GM should
assess when setting the e^ect level. Once the level is set, then you can suggest the tradeo^ if it makes
sense in the situation.

For example, if you're Prowling across such a great area (scale factor) that a single action doesn't get
you all the way across (risky and limited ePect) then you could instead decide to break into a run, and
cross the entire distance but expose yourself to more danger of being noticed (desperate and
standard ePect).

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 Dominant Factors
If one e^ect factor overshadows the others, the side with that advantage dominates the situation. It
doesn't matter if you have Jne obsidian daggers and extra e^ect if you try to Jght Jfty people at once.
Their scale dominates the battle and you're left with very limited e^ect, or no e^ect at all. The same
principle applies to "impossible" actions.
Kelsier wants to tear down a stone guard tower that the Steel Ministry are using as a guardpost. He
says, "I take my sledgehammer and I Wreck the thing, smashing it down stone by stone. Ha! I rolled a
crit! Great e^ect!" Obviously, this isn't possible. A person can't smash down a stone tower with a
sledgehammer. We know it's inherently silly, like jumping over the moon. But this is also codiJed in
the e^ect factors. The tower is dominant in quality, scale, and potency. Unless those factors are
countered somehow, Kelsier's e^ect level is zero before he starts. No matter what he rolls for his
action, he'll have zero e^ect.
This concept is useful when assessing other very tough (but achievable) situations. Let's imagine
instead that Kelsier is Jghting the Final Empire's garrison at Luthadel. He wants to Skirmish with it,
by engaging it with his glass knives. This is similar to knocking down the tower with the
sledgehammer. Even on a critical, the GM says, "You cut down two or three of the soldiers, but
hundreds more are ready to take their place." In other words, zero e^ect!
But the situation isn't entirely hopeless. This is where e^ect factors can help make sense of the
situation. If the army is dominant in quality, scale, and potency, then the PCs can try to understand
the factors and take actions to address them. What scale is the army? The PCs need to raise an army
of their own to even out. What quality are their weapons? The PCs need to outJt themselves to match.
And so forth.
E^ect factors are a way to codify the situation into a few key elements so it's easier to talk about what
needs to be changed in order to have the desired e^ect.

Position, Consequences, and Harm

In Born in the Mist, every meaningful action you take comes at the risk of consequences: setbacks,
complications, harm. But how risky is any given action? If this action roll goes poorly, might you take
a scratch, or are you risking your life? That depends on the position in the action. The GM judges the
position using the proJles below.

Controlled: You're set up for success. You're exploiting a dominant advantage.

Risky: You go head-to-head. You're taking a chance.
Desperate: You're overreaching. You're in real trouble. A very dangerous manoeuvre.

Consequences

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 Enemy actions, bad circumstances, and the outcome of a roll can inKict consequences on a PC, and
these consequences come in several di^erent types. A given circumstance might result in one or
more consequences, depending on the situation. The GM determines the consequences, following
from the Jction and the style and tone established by the group.

Reduced E^ect
This consequence represents impaired performance. Your action isn't as e^ective as you'd hoped. You
hit him, but it turns out he's wearing under-armour which diminishes the impact. You're able to scale
the wall, but the slick stone means you have to slow your pace and you're only halfway up.

This consequence essentially reduces the e^ect level of the PC's action by one after all other factors
are accounted for. What had originally been standard ePect lands instead as limited ePect, for
example.
Note that this runs the risk of e^ectively negating the success of a 4/5 result: the PC would have
succeeded, but after this consequence, now they have to do the same or a similar action again. It's
recommended to reserve this consequence for a 1-3 result (as a "fail forward" mechanism) or when
overcoming obstacles which are already measured with a progress clock (where the player is already
expecting the e^ort to take multiple actions, and where getting 1 tick instead of 2 isn't so complete a
failure).

Lost Opportunity
This consequence represents shifting circumstances. You had an opportunity to achieve your goal
with this action, but it slips away. To try again, you need a new approach — usually by choosing a
di^erent action or changing the circumstances.

Maybe you tried to Skirmish with the noble to trap her on the balcony, but she evades you and leaps
out of reach. If you want to trap her now, you'll have to try another way — maybe by Swaying her
with your charm or by Prowling after her.

Obstacle
This consequence represents emerging layers of a situation: you overcome this obstacle, but Jnd
another waiting. Perhaps you pick the lock on the door and slip inside, but run almost face-to-face
into guards that you'll now have to contend with!
In many ways, this is a speciJc application of the "Complication" consequence. GMs note that this
consequence can help you to improvise obstacles that put the spotlight on PCs that have recently
been lesser-used. Maybe a rival sends goons to rough up the Soother for making him look like a fool,
and this gives the Thug a chance to step forward and steal the scene.

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 Worsen Position
This consequence represents losing control of the situation as the action carries you into a more
dangerous position. Perhaps you make the leap across to the next rooftop, only to Jnd more guards
waiting there. You succeeded at this, but you'll be in trouble for that. Whatever action you take next,
you'll have a worse position. This is a good consequence to show escalating action. A situation might
go from controlled, to risky, to desperate, as the action plays out and the PC gets deeper and deeper in
trouble.

Complication
This consequence represents sudden trouble and mounting danger. The GM might introduce an
immediate problem that results from the action: the room catches Jre, you're disarmed, the crew
takes +1 heat from witnesses, you lose status with a faction, et cetera.

The GM might tick a clock or the complication instead. Maybe there's a clock for the alert level of the
guards at the keep. Or maybe the GM creates a new clock for obligator suspicion and ticks it. Fill one
tick on a clock for a minor complication (controlled position) or two ticks for a standard
complication (risky position).
A serious complication is more severe: the room catches Jre and a falling ceiling beam blocks the
door; your weapon is broken; the crew su^ers +2 heat; et cetera. Fill three ticks on a clock for a serious
complication.

Don't inTict a complication that negates a successful roll. If a PC tries to corner an enemy and gets a
4/5, don't say that the enemy escapes. The player's roll succeeded, so the enemy is cornered; but
maybe the PC has to wrestle them into position and the enemy draws a knife during the scume.

Allomancers may su^er a speciJc kind of complication: that of being out of metals. If an Allomancer
is out of metals, then they cannot use Allomancy to adjust position and e^ect, or to trigger special
abilities, until they again gain access to metals (such as by marking a point of load to declare and
swallow a Vial of Metals).

Harm
This consequence represents a long-lasting debility, or even death. When you su^er harm, record the
speciJc injury on your character sheet equal to the level of harm you su^er. If you su^er lesser
harm (controlled position), record it in the bottom row, level-1 harm. If you su^er moderate
harm (risky position), record it in the middle row as level-2 harm. If you su^er severe harm (desperate
position), record it in the top row as level-3 harm.

Your characters su^er the penalty indicated with each row if they have harm that applies to the
situation at hand. So if you have "Tired" harm in the bottom row, you'll su^er reduced e^ect when you
try to run away from the keep guards. When you're impaired by harm in the top row (severe, level-3
harm), your character is incapacitated and can't do anything unless you have help from someone else
or you push yourself to perform the action.

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 If you need to mark a harm level but that row is already Jlled, the harm moves up to the next available
row. So if you su^ered a second instance of moderate harm, you instead have to record it as severe
harm. If you run out of spaces on the top row and need to mark harm there, your character su^ers a
catastrophic, permanent consequence (loss of a limb, sudden death, and so forth, depending on the
circumstances).

Short-Term Harm
Harm doesn't just have to be broken ribs and knife wounds. "Snubbed" harm can happen at a fancy
ball at Keep Hasting. If you cross the wrong Soother, you might get level-2 harm "Forcibly Blunted
Emotions". Like any moderate harm, it applies -1D whenever you're taking an action that your blunted
emotions might a^ect, such as trying to Consort with others.

Harm is usually removed through the Recover downtime action, but if it can vanish in the Jction, it
should also vanish from the sheet. When applying unusual harm to the crew let them know how they
can remove it. For example, if you can chase o^ the Soother, your emotions should return to normal.
This can be a way to showcase powerful opponents without killing the crew. A hazekiller might punch
you in the gut, leaving you with short-term severe harm "Can't Breathe". You're incapacitated for that
scene, but the harm clears after 10 minutes of rest.

Harm Examples
Fatal (4): Decapitated, Drowned, Backhanded By An Iron Fist

Severe (3): Broken Leg, Badly Burned, TerriJed, Paralysed

Moderate (2): Deep Arm Cut, Concussion, Panicked, Exhausted

Lesser (1): Bruised, Drained, Scared, Confused

Resistance and Armour

When your PC su^ers a consequence that you don't like, you can choose to resist it. Just tell the GM,
"No, I don't think so. I'm resisting that." Resistance is always automatically e^ective — the GM will
tell you if the consequence is reduced in severity or if you negate it entirely. Then, you'll make a
resistance roll to see how much stress your character su^ers as a result of their resistance.
You make the roll using one of your character's attributes (Insight, Prowess, or Resolve). The GM
chooses the attribute, based on the nature of the consequence:

Insight: Consequences from deception or lack of understanding.

Prowess: Consequences from physical strain or injury.

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 Resolve: Consequences from mental strain or faltering willpower.

Your character Jlls 6 stress when you resist, minus the highest die result from the resistance roll. So
if you rolled a 4, you'd Jll 2 stress. If you rolled a 6, you'd Jll zero stress. If you get a critical result, you
also clear 1 stress.

Optional Rule: Variable Resistance Cost. Instead of all consequences starting at 6 stress to resist,
the GM can declare a di^erent base cost for each consequence. A minor complication might only cost
3 stress at most.
This optional rule enables position to scale resistance cost, as well as the consequence threat, so that
a character is less likely to become exhausted because they got a bad roll preventing one tick on a
"Guards Alert" clock.
You may only make a single resistance roll against a given consequence.
Usually, a resistance roll reduces the severity of a consequence. If you would have su^ered fatal harm,
for example, the resistance roll could reduce it to moderate instead. Or if you got a complication when
you were sneaking into the manor house and the GM was going to mark three ticks on the "Alert"
clock, she'd only mark one if you resist the complication.

The GM may also rule that your character entirely negates the consequence. For example, maybe
you're in a sword Jght and the consequence is getting disarmed. When you resist, the GM says that
you avoid that consequence completely: you keep hold of your weapon.

By adjusting which consequences are reduced and which are negated, the GM establishes the overall
tone of the game. For a more daring game, most consequences will be negated; for a harsher and
grittier game, most consequences can only be reduced. We recommend that when reducing
consequences, you should reduce them by two levels. Especially desperate actions will still risk great
consequences, but risky and controlled actions can often be done without consequence if you're
willing to mark the stress.
The GM may also threaten several consequences at once, and then the player may choose which ones
to resist (and make rolls for each). Perhaps in a Jght, you get stabbed and disarmed after the same
desperate action.

Armour
If you have a type of armour that applies to the situation, you can mark an armour box to reduce or
avoid a consequence instead of rolling to resist.

Ham is taking level-2 harm, "Cut to the Ribs". The Jght isn't even over yet, so her player uses Ham's
armour to reduce the harm. She marks the armour box and the harm becomes level-1, "Bruised". If
Ham were wearing persistent armour, she could mark the second armour box and reduce the harm
again (to zero).
When an armour box is marked, it can't be used again until it's restored. All of your armour is
restored when you choose your load for the next mission.

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 Death
There are a couple of ways a PC could die.
If they su^er level 4 fatal harm and don't resist it, they die.

If they need to record harm at level-3 and it's already Jlled, they su^er a catastrophic
consequence, which might mean sudden death.

When your character dies, you can create a new scoundrel to play. Maybe you "promote" one of the
NPC allies to a PC in the crew, or create a brand new character.

Fortune Roll
The fortune roll is a tool the GM can use to disclaim decision-making and resolve something
randomly. You use a fortune roll in two di^erent ways:
When you need to make a determination about a situation the PCs aren't directly involved in and
don't want to simply decide the outcome.

Two noble houses are at war. How does that turn out? The GM makes a fortune roll for each of them.
One gets a good result but the other gets limited e^ect. The GM decides that the Jrst house takes
over some of their rival's territory, but su^er some injuries during the skirmish.
When an outcome is uncertain, but no other roll applies to the situation at hand.
While Koel is pilfering the workshop of a metallurgist, guards begin breaking down the door to the
room. With limited time, Koel grabs a random metal vial and drinks it down. What metal does it
contain? Is it pure enough for Allomancy? Who knows? The GM makes a fortune roll to see how it
turns out.
When you make a fortune roll you may assess any trait rating to determine the dice pool.

When a faction takes an action with uncertain outcome, you might use their Tier rating to
make a fortune roll.
When a group of cohorts operates independently, use their quality rating for a fortune roll.

When a PC gathers information without exposing themself to risk, you might make a fortune
roll using their action rating.

When determining if an NPC has heard of the crew, you might use the crew's Tier.
If no trait applies, roll 1D for sheer luck, +1D for each major advantage and -1D for each major
disadvantage.

Unlike an action roll, a fortune roll isn't concerned with possible consequences, and doesn't have its
e^ect level pre-determined. Instead, e^ect level is based on the roll's ultimate result:

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 Critical: Exceptional result. Great or extreme e^ect. When Jlling a clock, mark Jve segments.

6: Good result. Standard or great e^ect. When Jlling a clock, mark four segments.
4/5: Mixed result. Limited to standard e^ect. When Jlling a clock, mark three segments.

1-3: Bad result. Zero to limited e^ect. When Jlling a clock, mark two segments.

If two parties are directly opposed, make a fortune roll for each side, then assess the outcome by
comparing their results.
The fortune roll is also a good tool to help the GM manage all the various moving parts of the world.
Sometimes a quick roll is enough to answer a question or inspire an idea for what might happen next.

Gathering Information
The Kow of information from the GM to the players about the Jctional world is very important in a
roleplaying game. By default, the GM tells the players what their characters perceive, suspect, and
intuit. But there’s just too much going on to say everything—it would take forever and be boring, too.
The players have a tool at their disposal to more fully investigate the Jctional world.

When you want to know something speciJc about the Jctional world, your character can gather
information. The GM will ask you how your character gathers the info (or how they learned it in the
past), and what speciJc question or questions you are trying to answer.

If it’s common knowledge, the GM will simply answer your questions. If there’s an obstacle to the
discovery of the answer, an action roll is called for. If it’s not common knowledge but there’s no
obstacle, a simple fortune roll determines the quality of the information you gather.

Great ePect: You get exceptional details. The information is complete and follow-up questions
may expand into related areas or reveal more than you hoped for.

Standard ePect: You get good details. Clarifying and follow-up questions are possible.
Limited ePect: You get incomplete or partial information. More information-gathering, likely
with di^erent approaches, will be needed to get all the answers.

Each attempt to gather information takes time. If the situation allows, you can try again if you don’t
initially get all the info that you want. But often, the opportunity is Keeting, and you’ll only get one
chance to roll for that particular question.

Some example questions are on the bottom of the character sheet. The GM always answers honestly,
but with a level of detail according to the level of e^ect.

The most common actions used to gather information are Surveying the situation (to reveal or
anticipate what's going on), Intuiting a person (to understand what they intend to do or what they're
really thinking), or Studying a topic (to Jnd hidden details or make unexpected connections).

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 Sometimes, you’ll have to manoeuvre yourself into position before you can gather information. For
example, you might have to Prowl to a good hiding place Jrst and then Study the guards to determine
their patrol patterns.

Investigation
Some questions are too complex to answer immediately with a single gather information roll. For
instance, you might want to learn the identity of the Mistborn assassin who killed your parents, who
had hired them, and how you might bring about your vengeance. In these cases, the GM will tell you
to start a long-term project that you work on during downtime.
You track the investigation project using a progress clock, the same as any other long-term project.
Once the clock is Jlled, you have the evidence and information you need to ask several questions
about the subject of your investigation, as if you had great e^ect.

Coin and Stash

Coin
Coin is an abstract measure of cash and liquid assets. The few copper clips the PCs use in their daily
lives are not tracked (except for the 'Bags of Coins' that Mistborn and Coinshots throw around). If a
scoundrel wants to toss a few coins around to achieve a small goal (like bribing a doorman), use the
PC's lifestyle quality for a fortune roll.

Sample Monetary Values:

1 coin: A full purse of copper clips. A week's wages.

2 coin: A Jne weapon. A weekly income for a small business. A Jne piece of art. A set of luxury
clothes.

4 coin: A satchel full of gold. A month's wages.

6 coin: An exquisite jewel. A heavy burden of boxings.

8 coin: A good monthly take for a small business. A small safe full of coins and valuables. A very
rare luxury commodity.

10 coin: Liquidating a signiJcant asset — a carriage, a team of horses, a deed to a small

property.

More than 4 coin is an impractical amount to keep lying around. There are a few things you can do
with the excess.
Spend it.

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 Spend 1 coin to get an additional activity during downtime.

Spend coin one-for-one to increase the result level of a downtime activity.

Spend coin to downgrade an entanglement roll.

Spend coin to advance your crew's Tier.

Keep it in the crew's lair. A crew can store 4 coin by default, or if they take the vault upgrades,
they can expand their stores to 8 or 16 coin.
Stash it.

Stash
Where coin represents liquid assets, your character's stash represents Jxed assets: investments that
your character has made, assets that you've acquired, or even just the things they've bought to
improve their lot.

Each full row of stash indicates the quality level of the character's lifestyle, from zero (street life) to
four (luxury).

Sayna is a Rioter and socialite who loves the luxury of a good gown, and her player often describes
Sayna as modelling the most stylish and outrageous fashion to impress her noble marks. But just how
impressive is her latest ensemble? The GM can call for a fortune roll using Sayna's lifestyle level as
the dice pool, to Jnd out how much impact the attire has.

Removing Coin From Your Stash

If you want to pull coin out of your stash, you may do so at a cost. Your character sells o^ some of
their assets or investments in order to get some quick cash. For every 2 stash removed, you get 1
usable coin.

The Faction Game

Each notable faction is ranked by Tier: a measure of wealth, inKuence, and sheer scale. At the highest
level are the Tier V and VI factions, the true powers of the Final Empire. Your crew begins at your
choice of Tier 0, I, or II.

You'll use your crew's Tier rating to roll dice when you acquire an asset, as well as for any fortune roll
driven by your crew's overall power level and inKuence. Most importantly, your Tier determines the
quality level of your items as well as the quality and scale of the cohorts your crew employs.

Gang Scale by Tier:

Tier VI: Invincible power. The Lord Ruler himself.

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 Tier V: Massive power. The Steel Ministry and the Lord Ruler's armies.

Tier IV: Huge forces. One of the Great Houses.

Tier III: Large forces. A noble family in good, but not Great standing.

Tier II: Medium forces. A lesser noble family or a stronger criminal organisation.

Tier I: Small forces. A small-time criminal crew.

Tier 0: One or two people.

Stability
Stability is a measure indicating the security of a faction's current Tier rating. W indicates weak
stability, suggesting that the faction could fall to a lower Tier; S indicates strong stability,
suggesting that the faction could weather setbacks, or perhaps even reach for higher tiers.
Your crew begins with strong stability at Tier I.

This mechanism is usually called hold in other Forged in the Dark games. Born in the Mist instead
uses 'stability' so that it can reserve hold for a meaning similar to games that are Powered by the
Apocalypse. This is described further under Hold.
You may perform an operation speciJcally to reduce the stability of another faction, if you know how
they're vulnerable. If the operation succeeds, the target faction loses 1 level of stability. If their
stability is weak and it drops, the faction drops Tier by 1 level and stays weak.
Your crew can lose stability, too, following the same rules above. If your crew is Tier 0, with weak
stability, and you lose stability for any reason, then your lair comes under threat by your enemies or
by a faction seeking to proJt from your misfortune.

Faction Status
Your crew's status with each faction indicates how well you are liked or hated. Status is rated from -3
to +3, with zero (neutral) being the default starting status. You track your status with each faction on
the faction sheet.

When you create your crew, you assign some positive and negative status ratings to reKect recent
history. The ratings will then change over time based on your actions in play.

When you execute an operation, you gain -1 or -2 status with factions that are hurt by your actions.
You may also gain +1 status with factions that your operation helps. If you keep your operation
completely quiet, then your status doesn't change. Your status may also change if you do a favour for a
faction or if you refuse one of their demands.

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 +3: Allies. This faction will help you even if it's not in their best interest to do so. They expect
you to do the same for them.

+2: Friendly. This faction will help you if it doesn't create serious problems for them. They
expect you to do the same.
+1: Helpful. This faction will help you if it causes no problems or signiJcant cost for them. They
expect the same from you.

0: Neutral.

-1: Interfering. This faction will look for opportunities to cause trouble for you (or proJt from
your misfortune) as long as it causes no problems or signiJcant cost for them. They expect the
same from you.
-2: Hostile. This faction will look for opportunities to hurt you as long as it doesn't create
serious problems for them. They expect you to do the same and take precautions against you.

-3: Odium. This faction will go out of its way to hurt you even if it's not in their best interest to
do so. They expect you to do the same and take precautions against you. Born in the Mist does not
add further penalties to being at War. Getting this much attention in the Final Empire is
dangerous enough by itself.

The Mission
Daring burglary, illicit deals and deceptions, smuggling runs, murder in the shadows — these are the
means, when your ends run against the Final Empire's stranglehold.
In Born in the Mist, we play to Jnd out if a Kedgling crew of scoundrels can prosper in the underworld
of Scadrial. That prosperity depends on their criminal endeavours, which we call missions.

A mission is a single operation with a particular goal: steal the atium safe from Keep Venture, frame
one lord for the murder of another, retrieve the last copy of a forbidden text. Usually, a score will fall
into one of three categories:

A criminal activity, often determined by your crew type. Shadows engaging in burglary,
Assassins killing for hire, or Rebels recruiting for the revolution.
Seizing a claim of your choice from the claim map. Claims help your crew grow and develop.

A special mission or goal determined by the players (like breaking into Kredik Shaw in a show
of daring).

A mission can be long and involved or short and sweet. There might be lots of rolls and trouble, or just
a few actions to resolve it. Play to Jnd out what happens! A mission doesn't always need to Jll a full
session. Let it be however long it is.
The PCs can proactively set up a new mission by choosing a target (from their claim map or the
faction list, for example) or by approaching a potential client and asking for work; or an NPC could
contact them, who needs to hire the crew for a job.

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 Planning and Engagement
Your crew spends time planning each score. They huddle around a board in their lair, looking over
maps and lists of obstacles, arguing about the best approach and craving for victory.

But you, the players, don't have to do the nitty-gritty planning. The characters take care of that o^-
screen. All you have to do is choose what type of plan the characters have already made. The
engagement roll abstractly determines how much or little trouble you're in when the plan is put into
motion.

There are Jve di^erent plan types, each with a missing detail that you need to provide. If you don't
already have an idea for the detail, you may be able to gather information to Jnd an opportunity.
Assault: Do violence to a target. Detail: The point of attack. Is it a full-frontal assault through
the front door or do you attack from behind?
Deception: Lure, trick, or manipulate. Detail: The method of deception. What is your cover
story or disguise? What are you tricking your mark into doing?
Stealth: Trespass unseen. Detail: The point of inJltration. Do you go in through the roof or the
tunnels underneath the keep?
Social: Negotiate, bargain, or persuade. Detail: The social connection. Where do you meet your
contact? Or, who makes the introductions?
Transport: Carry cargo or people through danger. Detail: The route and means. Which streets
do you take? What vehicle do you use?
Sometimes an operation seems to call for a couple of plans linked together, such as a two-pronged
approach: "You create a diversion by assaulting the tavern, and when they send thugs over there,
we'll stealth into their lair." There are two ways to handle this.
The diversion is a setup manoeuvre that a team member performs as part of the plan. A
successful setup manoeuvre can improve position or e^ect for teammates, possibly o^setting an
unlucky engagement roll.
The diversion is its own plan, with its own engagement roll and mission, and its outcome
creates the opportunity for a future plan. For example, you might Jrst need a stealth plan to steal
a valuable piece of loot, before you can engage the transport plan to get it to a contact.

Loadout
Next, each player chooses their character's loadout for the mission. You don't have to select speciJc
items ahead of time: instead, the loadout indicates how much the character is carrying. There are
three di^erent options for loadout:

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 Light (up to 3 boxes of load): You're faster and less conspicuous; you blend in with normal
people.

Medium (up to 5 boxes of load): You look like you might be up to no good.
Heavy (up to 7 boxes of load): You look like an operative on a mission; the weight might slow
you down.

During the mission, if you have not yet marked up to your maximum load, you can declare that your
character is carrying any standard or special item on your sheet. Simply mark the boxes and carry on.

Sev has successfully prowled up to a balcony, but he Jnds the doors locked. Fortunately, he still has
load boxes free. He marks his =ne lockpicks and describes how Sev starts tinkering with the lock. He
hadn't mentioned the lockpicks before… but now that he's marked the box on his sheet, he's had them
the whole time.

Engagement Roll
Once these decisions are made, the GM makes the engagement roll for the mission. This is an
abstract summation of the player characters' planning, all their tentative probing manoeuvres, and
the impact of any unanticipated unknowns, to determine what position the crew is in as the mission
begins.

The engagement roll starts with 1D for sheer luck. Modify the dice pool for any major advantages or
disadvantages that apply, per below.

Is this operation particularly bold or daring? Take +1D. Or is it overly complex or contingent
on many factors? Take -1D.
Does the plan's detail capitalise on a vulnerability? Take +1D. Or is the target especially strong
or prepared against that approach? Take -1D.

Can any of your friends or contacts help with this plan? Take +1D. Or are any enemies or rivals
interfering with the operation? Take -1D.

Are there any other elements that you want to consider? Maybe a lower-Tier target will give
you +1D, while punching up towards a higher-Tier target will give you -1D. Maybe there's a
situation in the district that makes the operation more or less tricky. If it boils down to an
advantage, take +1D; or for a disadvantage, take -1D.
Once the pool is assembled, treat it as a fortune roll.

Critical: Exceptional result. You've already overcome the Jrst obstacle and you're in a
controlled position for what's next.
6: Good result. You're in a controlled position when the action starts.
4/5: Mixed result. You're in a risky position when the action starts.

1-3: Bad result. You're in a desperate position when the action starts.

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 Informed by the engagement roll, the GM cuts to the action. Think of the engagement roll as the
point when the theme music starts playing and the action begins. The player characters aren't
approaching the target; they're already there, and already dealing with the Jrst obstacle in their path
— a locked door, the guards in the entrance hall, the sycophants surrounding the noblewoman you
need to speak with.

Flashbacks
The engagement roll abstracts away a lot of the detail in the plans the player characters have made. If
the players want to include special preparation or clever setup, they can do so with Tashbacks during
the score.
The rules don't distinguish between actions performed in the present moment and those performed
in the past. While a mission is underway, you can invoke a Tashback to perform an action in the
past that could impact your situation in the present. Maybe you convinced the district Watch
sergeant to cancel the patrol tonight, so you make a Sway roll to see how that went.

The GM sets a stress cost when you activate a Kashback action.

0 stress: An ordinary action for which you had easy opportunity. I Consorted with my friend
Thorrow to have them arrive at the dice game ahead of time, so he can spring out as a surprise
ally now.
1 stress: A complex action or an unlikely opportunity. I Finessed my knives into a hiding spot
near the card table so I could retrieve them after the pat-down at the front door.
2 stress: An elaborate action that involved special opportunities or contingencies. I already
Prowled past all their security and swapped the usual dice set with identical dice that are
weighted in my favour.
If a Kashback involves a downtime activity, pay 1 coin or 1 rep instead of stress. After the cost is paid, a
Kashback action is handled just like any other. It may involve an action roll (because there's some
danger or risk involved), or it may just be a fortune roll (when we just need to Jnd out how well it
went, or how much was covered, or how long it's e^ective). Sometimes a Kashback won't call for a roll
at all: just pay the stress cost and it's accomplished.
However, remember that a Kashback isn't time travel. It writes between the lines, Jlling in blanks of
time and events that haven't yet been established; it can't "undo" something that has been
established. If an obligator confronts you about recent thefts, you can't call for a Kashback to say that
you assassinated that obligator the night before. You already know he's there.

One of the best uses for a Kashback is when the engagement roll goes badly or an imperfect roll
brings complications and new obstacles. After the GM describes the trouble you're in, you can call for
a Kashback to a special preparation you made, "just in case" something like this happened.

This way, your "Kashback planning" focuses on the problems that do happen. Rather than debating
endlessly about what could happen, you can cut to the action — and when something 'unexpected'
happens, call for a Kashback and show that your characters absolutely did expect it. This kind of
retroactive anticipation can apply perfectly to your situation without wasted e^ort, and make your
crew come o^ as daring and competent.

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 Gambits
Gambits are a shared resource which represents luck, daring, and momentum. When you make an
engagement roll, set your gambit pool to 1 (modiJed by crew upgrades). You can spend a gambit to
add +1D to a roll, even after you've rolled the dice. If you roll a 6 or better on a risky action, without
spending gambits, then you add another gambit to the pool.

Teamwork
When the crew of player characters works together, the characters have access to special teamwork
manoeuvres. Many of these have been covered under Uses of Stress, but will be repeated here for
completeness, along with 'Setup'.

Assist
When a teammate is about to make a roll, you can narrate how you assist them and mark 1 stress to
give them +1D for the roll.
This might expose you to any consequences that occur from the roll, depending on the
circumstances. Only one character can assist a given roll. (Instead, you might perform
setup manoeuvres to "stack" helping.)

A character may assist a group action, but only if they aren't taking part in it directly. When assisting
a group action, you decide which one character gets the bonus die.

Lead a Group Action

When you lead a group action, you coordinate multiple members of the team to tackle the same
problem together. Describe how your character leads the team in the coordinated e^ort: do you bark
orders, give subtle hand signals, or provide charismatic inspiration?
Each involved PC makes an action roll, using the same action, and the team counts the single best
result. However, the group leader marks 1 stress for each PC that rolled a 1-3 result on their action
roll.

This is how you do the "we all sneak into the building" scene. Everyone who wants to sneak in
together rolls their Prowl action, and the best result counts for the whole team. The leader su^ers
stress for those who do poorly, covering for stragglers.

The group action result covers everyone who rolled. If you don't roll, your character doesn't get the
e^ects of the action.

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 This is how you do the "we all sneak into the building" scene. Everyone who wants to sneak in rolls
their Prowl, and the best result counts for the whole team.
Your character doesn't have to be especially skilled at the action at hand in order to lead a group
action. This manoeuvre is about leadership, not skill.
Since only the top result counts, a risky group action with a 6 result generates one gambit, even if
there were multiple sixes.

Protect
You can step in to face a consequence that one of your teammates would otherwise. You suPer it
instead of them, but may resist it as normal. Describe how you intervene.

This is how you do the "I'll dive in front of the coinshot" scene. You cover for a teammate, su^ering
any harm or consequences that had targeted them, though you can resist as normal. It hurts, it might
cost stress, and may leave you in a bad spot. But hey, you're a hero.

Setup
When you perform a setup action, you have an indirect e^ect on an obstacle. If your action is
successful, any member of the team who follows through on your manoeuvre gets improved position
and/or ePect for their actions.

This is how you do the "I'll create a distraction" scene. You roll Sway to keep a guard's attention with
your charms, then any teammate who tries to Prowl past him has better odds. It's less risky, or more
e^ective, since you're keeping him distracted.
Note that Born in the Mist doesn't specify that a setup action produces "+1 e^ect or +1 position,
decided at the time of setup". Instead, it should be treated more Kexibly: a setup action with great
e^ect could provide both, or multiple levels. And besides, the mechanical e^ect of a setup should Kow
from the Jctional circumstances. If your "setup action" rolls a critical and the guard ends up
unconscious at your feet, then your team probably doesn't need to roll to Prowl past him anymore.

Downtime
After the crew Jnishes a mission, whether succeed or fail, they take time to recover, regroup, and
prepare for the next operation. This phase of the game is called downtime.

Downtime serves as a break for both the players and the characters. A mission is a high-energy
sequence, driving the player characters from obstacle to obstacle, always under threat. Downtime
gives the players a reprieve so they can catch their breath, focus on exploring personal aspects of
their characters, and avoid burning out on a perpetual go mode.

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 Downtime is divided into four parts, which are resolved in order:

PayoP. The crew receives their rewards from a successfully-completed score.

Heat. As a result of their last mission, the crew accumulates suspicion and attention from the
law, the powers-that-be, and rival factions.

Downtime Activities. The player characters release their stress, work on long-term projects,
recover from injuries, and more.

Entanglements. The crew may face trouble from the authorities, rival factions, or simply the
Final Empire itself.
Once all the downtime activities are resolved, the game returns to free play and the group can move
towards their next mission.

Payo^
After a mission, the player characters take stock of what they earned from the operation. A successful
mission generates both Rep and Coin.

By default, the crew earns 2 Rep per mission. If the target of your mission is higher Tier than you, take
+1 Rep per Tier of di^erence. Or if the target is lower Tier, take -1 Rep per Tier of di^erence (minimum
zero).

If your crew is Tier I, and you pull o^ a successful mission against a Tier IV Great House, then you
earn 5 Rep (2 Rep default, +3 Rep for a target three Tiers above you. If your crew is Tier III and you
complete a mission against a Tier I street gang, you earn 0 Rep (2 Rep, -2 for the lower Tier target.)
If you keep the operation completely quiet, on the other hand, then you earn zero Rep but take zero
Heat.

The crew also earns Coin based on the nature of the operation and any loot they seized:

2 coin: A minor job; several full purses.

4 coin: A small job; a strongbox.

6 coin: A standard score; decent loot.

8 coin: A big score; serious loot.

10+ coin: A major score; impressive loot.

Either record the Coin on the crew sheet, or divide it among the crew members as you see Jt.

If there's something interesting to roleplay, you can set the scene and play out a meeting with a client
or patron who's paying the crew. If not, just goss it over and move onto the next phase of downtime.

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 GMs: DeJnitely don't screw around with the players when it comes to payo^. Don't say that the client
lied and there's no reward, or that the meeting for the payment is actually a trap, or whatever. These
types of betrayals are staples of crime Jction, but in Born in the Mist, the player characters have
enough problems already. When it comes to getting paid, just give them what they earned.

Heat
The Final Empire is full of prying eyes, informants, and the ever-present obligators. Anything you do
might be witnessed and there's always evidence left behind. To reKect this, your crew acquires Heat
as they commit crimes.

Heat is gained during a mission via Complication consequences and Devil's Bargains. After a mission
or a conKict with an opponent, your crew takes additional Heat according to the nature of the
operation:
0 Heat (and 0 Rep): Smooth and quiet; low exposure. They never knew we were there.

2 Heat: Contained; standard exposure. We had to knock out a guard or two.

4 Heat: Loud and chaotic; high exposure. The keep went on full alert.
6 Heat: Wild; devastating exposure. We barely shook that Inquisitor.

Add +1 Heat for a high-proJle or well-connected target; add +1 Heat if the situation happened in
hostile turf.

You mark Heat into the "Heat Clock" on the crew sheet, which is a 4-segment looping clock. Each time
the clock Jlls, increase "Heat Level" by 1 and reset the clock.

Your Heat Level is important when determining your Entanglements. In short: the more Heat you
have on you, the more trouble will come and Jnd you.

Note that Born in the Mist does not use the Incarceration system from Blades in the Dark. The Final
Empire doesn't mete out punishments as gentle as a few months in jail. At worst, they'll execute you
immediately; at best, you'll be sentenced to the Pits of Hathsin, and if you survived that… why, you'd
become a legend.

Downtime Activities
Between missions, your crew spends time at their liberty. They attend to personal needs, side
projects, or future planning. These are called downtime activities and the suggested list is below. You

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 may choose the same activity more than once, but you can only attempt actions that you're in a
position to accomplish. If an activity is contingent on another action, resolve that action Jrst. (For
example, you might need to Jnish a long-term project of making new black market contacts before
you can use them to acquire assets.)

Acquire Asset: Gain temporary use of special equipment or other assets.

Recover: Spend time resting or receiving medical attention to heal from physical injury.

Reduce Heat: Shift attention o^ the crew.

Release Stress: Spend time in personal relaxation to relieve stress.

Train: Spend e^ort advancing your skills.

Long-Term Project: A catch-all for however else a character might dedicate their time.

During a downtime phase, each PC has time for two downtime activities. You can make time for
more, at a cost. Each additional activity costs 1 coin or 1 rep. This reKects the time and resource drain
while you're 'o^ the clock' and not earning from missions. When you complete a new mission, you
reset and get two 'free' activities again.
When you make a downtime roll, choose an action or trait (such as an NPC's quality) as normal. A
downtime roll that Jlls or clears a clock will a^ect two segments on a 1-3, three on a 4/5, four on a 6,
and Jve on a critical.

For any downtime activity, take +1D to the roll if a friend or contact helps you. After the roll, you may
spend coin one-for-one to increase the result level. 1 coin could upgrade a 1-3 result to a 4/5 result, 2
coin could upgrade it to a 6 result, and so on.

The downtime activities are explained in detail below.

Acquire Asset
When you acquire asset, you gain temporary use of one of the following:

One special item

A set of common items (enough for a gang of your Tier scale)

A vehicle

A service. Transport from a smuggler or driver, use of a warehouse for temporary storage,
specialised research, medical attention, etc.

"Temporary use" constitutes one signiJcant period of usage that makes sense for the asset —
typically the duration of one mission. An asset may be acquired for "standby" use in the future. You
might hire a gang to guard your lair, for example, and they'll stick around until after the Jrst serious
battle.
To acquire an asset, roll the crew's Tier. The result indicates the asset's quality:

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 1-3: Tier -1

4/5: Equal to Tier

6: Tier+1

Critical: Tier+2

The GM may set a minimum quality level for a speciJc asset. For example, if you want to get a bead of
atium, you'd need to acquire a Tier IV asset. A lower result won't do.
If you acquire the same asset again, you get +1D to your roll. If you continue to re-acquire an asset
every time it's used, you can e^ectively rent it indeJnitely. If you want to gain an asset permanently,
there are a few options: you can spend a special item pick on it; you can gain it as a crew upgrade; or
you can work on it as a long-term project.

Recover
When you recover, you seek treatment and rest to heal your physical harm. You might visit a doctor
who can stitch your wounds; you might spend a week in bed while burning pewter.

Recovery is like a long-term project. If a PC on the crew has medical skills, they can roll Tinker or
Study; or an NPC can roll their quality level. If you have a contact who can provide treatment, take +1D
to the roll as normal; if not, you can assume you're able to get a doctor's attention, but only roll with
their Kat quality level (default to being equal to your Tier). The roll result Jlls the character's healing
clock. 1-3 Jlls two segments; 4/5 Jlls three segments; 6 Jlls four segments; a critical Jlls Jve
segments.

If you're able to Allomantically burn pewter, then upgrade your Recover result by one. Critical+1 Jlls
seven segments. If you're able to Feruchemically tap gold, you can tap gold one-for-one to Jll
segments of your healing clock.
Your healing clock is a looping 4-clock on your character sheet. When you Jll your healing clock,
reduce each instance of harm on your sheet by 1 level (meaning level-1 harm is erased).

After you roll to Recover, you can choose whether your character is conJned completely to bed rest, or
if they continue to perform minor tasks while recovering.

If they focus purely on rest, make a second Recover roll and add its ticks to the healing clock as well.
If they perform minor tasks, perform another downtime activity, with -1D to the downtime activity
roll.

Reduce Heat
When you reduce heat, you try to get the authorities' attention o^ your crew. Say what your
character does to divert attention from the crew and make an action roll. Maybe you Consort with

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 your obligator friend and she arranges for a few reports to disappear; or maybe you Command the
loyalty of local citizens so they don't report your activities.

According to the result, clear segments of the crew's heat clock. 1-3: two, 4/5: three, 6: four, critical:
Jve. If this would result in clearing an empty clock, then reduce your Heat Level by 1, reJll the clock
segments, and continue. Heat Level cannot fall below zero.

Release Stress
The scoundrels of Scadrial are a special lot. They defy the oppression of the Final Empire and dare to
prey on those who consider themselves their 'betters'. They push themselves farther than most people
are willing to go, but this comes at a cost. A scoundrel's life is one of constant stress. Each one must
soon look for release.

A scoundrel's release is what they do to relax, and is personal to each scoundrel. Some might read;
others might paint; others still might simply spend time with friends. Whatever it is, it allows them to
release their stress, and with that comes the ability to again face the challenges of the Final Empire's
overwhelming odds.

When you release stress, you clear some stress from your character's stress track. Describe how your
character relaxes, then roll using your lowest attribute — it is your weakest quality (Insight, Prowess,
or Resolve) which most holds onto stress. If one of your contacts or a fellow PC can help with it (such
as going on a bar crawl with you or helping you compose a new piece of music), take +1D. Clear stress
equal to the highest die result. If you roll higher than the stress you have marked, simply clear all
marked stress.
Note that Born in the Mist does not o^er the option of a player character disappearing to be "lost in
their vice", and it does not o^er the risk of "overindulgence", and there is no penalty for not releasing
stress on a given downtime.

Train
When you train, you spend time and e^ort honing your skills. Mark 1 XP on the XP track for an
attribute or playbook advancement. If your crew has the appropriate Training upgrade unlocked,
mark another XP (2 total). You can train a given XP track only once per downtime, including if you do
so while you Recover.

Long-Term Project
A long-term project can cover a wide variety of activities: investigating a mystery; establishing
someone's trust; courting a new friend or contact; testing a new Allomantic metal; and so on.
Long-term projects are managed as progress clocks. Based on the project's goal, the GM will tell you
what clocks to create, how long or how many there might be, and suggest a method by which you
might make progress.

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 When you work on a long-term project, describe what your character does to advance the project
clock, and roll one of your actions. Mark segments on the clock according to your result. 1-3: two
segments, 4/5: three segments, 6: four segments, critical: Jve segments.

NPC Downtime
While the PCs take downtime, the rest of the world doesn't sit idle. NPCs and factions also do things
over time.

GMs: Choose a handful of factions that are interesting in the narrative right now. You don't need to
worry about animating the entire world at once in every downtime. Consider what short-term
actions they might take right now. Short-term actions could be something like one of the following:

Seize a claim
Increase stability

Make a strong enemy vulnerable

Reduce the stability of a vulnerable enemy

Acquire a new asset

Call in a favour from another faction (maybe even the PCs!)

Employ political pressure or threats to force someone's hand

At the same time, advance their long-term project clocks. If you're not sure how far to progress a
faction's clock, make a fortune roll using their Tier as the base trait, modiJed up and down depending
on the opposition or circumstances.

When factions do things that are known in the criminal underworld, tell the players about it, possibly
through their friends or contacts. These rumours can lead to future missions and opportunities for
the PCs.

Later, when you turn your attention to a faction you've ignored for a while, you can go ahead and give
them several downtime phases to 'catch up' to current events.

Entanglements
There is more to your characters' lives than their next mission, and there's more to the Final Empire
than the crew's actions. Sometimes, other forces in Scadrial can catch up to you.
After the crew is Jnished with downtime activities, the GM generates an entanglement for the crew
using the prompts below. Note that this timing is di^erent from normal Blades in the Dark
entanglements, so that the crew has the chance to meaningfully use the Reduce Heat downtime
activity.

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 Roll a number of dice equal to the crew's Tier: the bigger you are, the more attention you get. After
the roll, the GM can spend Heat Levels one-for-one to upgrade the result. This means that with
enough Heat, it's possible for an Entanglement roll to land beyond Critical, and there are truly
dangerous complications that can only occur then.
It's up to GM discretion how many Heat Levels to spend on an Entanglement roll. You could make a
habit of burning o^ all of the crew's Heat after every mission; or you could only spend a little at a time
to create lesser but more consistent danger; or you could let the Heat build and build until it boils
over.

Below is the list of possible results for an Entanglement roll. Each one o^ers a generic prompt and
one or more examples.
1-3: No signiJcant trouble. At worst, crewmates embarrass you in front of another faction, or
authorities question someone in your periphery.
4/5: A minor complication. Authorities or a rival faction starts gathering information about
your crew. (Do they question your allies? Do they have you followed?) A friendly NPC Kips and
works for a rival or enemy.
6: Something risky happens. A friendly faction asks you for a dangerous favour. A PC ends up
face-to-face with someone investigating the crew. (Do thugs escort them to a meeting with a rival
crime boss? Does an obligator corner them at the next ball?)
Critical: You're put in a dangerous situation. An enemy faction threatens you or attacks your
allies. (Does a rival crime boss give you an ultimatum? Does a Great House send its soldiers to
surround a friendly thieving crew?)
Critical+1: You're put in a desperate situation. An enemy faction attacks your holdings. (Is a
rival crew trying to take over your crew's training grounds? Are the Steel Ministry cracking down
on your gambling den?)
Critical+2: Something terrible happens. Your friends su^er a terrible fate. (Are they executed as
a show of force or sent to the Pits of Hathsin?) Your lair comes under attack. (Does a Steel
Inquisitor kick down the door?)
GMs: The examples are not exhaustive! If you roll a Critical and have your own idea for a 'dangerous
situation', then don't let this list stop you. It's also up to you when the Entanglement occurs. You could
play it out as a situation in free play, an obstacle that appears during the next mission, or even a
complication that occurs during the next downtime.
With the GM's permission and when it makes sense in the Jction, the crew can spend coin to "pay o^"
the Entanglement roll, lowering the result. Lowering by one level (such as from Critical to 6) costs 1
coin; two levels costs 3 coin; three costs 5 coin; four costs 7 coin.

Once the GM has interpreted the entanglement roll — even if the entanglement is queued to happen
later, not yet — the game returns to free play. From there, the crew can choose a new target, make an
engagement roll, and start a new mission, their plans (and the gameplay loop of Born in the Mist)
continuing.

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 Magnitude
Supernatural energies have a wide variety of e^ects and power levels. To help the GM judge these
forces consistently, the magnitude scale is provided. Magnitude measure the quality level of a
supernatural being or di^erent aspects of an Invested force: its area, scale, duration, range, and force.
Whenever you need to assess an entity or power, use the magnitude scale as a guideline to judge how
it compares relative to the examples given on the table. The magnitude table is provided as a tool to
help the GM make judgement calls. It's not meant to be a rigid restriction or mathematical formula to
replace those judgement calls. Use the levels as a guideline for setting a magnitude number that
seems appropriate to you. You can also use it as a guide to quality level when a PC acquires or crafts
an object.

Like any other trait, you can use the magnitude of a power for a fortune roll to see how much e^ect it
has.

Area
0 1 2 3 4 5 6
A closet A small A large Several A small A large building A city block
room room rooms building

Scale
1 or 2 people A small gang A medium A large gang A huge gang A massive gang A colossal
(3-6) gang (12) (20) (40) (80) gang (160)

Duration
A few A few An hour A few hours A day Several days A week
moments minutes

Range
Within reach A dozen A stone's Down the Several Across the Across the
paces throw road blocks away district city

Tier / Quality
Poor Adequate Good Excellent Superior Impeccable Legendary

Force
Weak Moderate Strong Serious Powerful Overwhelming Devastating

Magnitude Quality Examples Force Examples

Hurricane wind, molten lava, tidal wave,
6 A mansion, a large ship electrical maelstrom, a Steelpush from
the Lord Ruler
Raging thunderstorm, massive Jre,

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 5 A large townhouse, small ship, custom- lightning strike, a Steelpush with
tailored clothing duralumin

A charging horse, burning forge, bomb,

4 A luxury vehicle, townhouse whirlwind, electrocution, a Steelpush
from a Steel Inquisitor

A coach, boat, fashionable clothing, A crushing blow, staggering wind,

3 small home searing Jre, electrical surge, a
reinforced Steelpush
A well-made obsidian dagger, A powerful blow, howling wind, burning
2 respectable clothing, private rented brand, a normal Steelpush
room

1 A steel knife, ordinary clothing, shared A solid punch, steady wind, torch Kame,
apartment, cheap food or drugs electrical shock, a careful Steelpush

0 A rusty knife, worn and tattered A Jrm shove, a candle Kame, breeze, tiny
clothing, a rickety shack on the street spark

Changing the Alloy

This section collects the changes from the Blades in the Dark SRD and provides some of the
reasoning behind the changes. This is to help players who are already familiar with Forged in the
Dark.

A Word on Character Rotation

In Blades in the Dark, player characters are expected to be interchangeable, even disposable.

One character might be temporarily unusable because of Harm or because they're lost in their vice, so
the player just plays a di^erent character for that time. Or a character might be taken out of the game
entirely, by retirement or incarceration. In Blades in the Dark, the cast of player characters may
rotate, and it is the crew that endures; the story is more about the crew as an entity than about any
individual character.
The stories of Mistborn and the cosmere in general are not like that. They are the stories of the
characters — of Vin and Kelsier, of Elend and Spook — not of their organisation. If one of these
characters is lost, then they are missed, not simply replaced.
Thus, Born in the Mist reduces several mechanisms which Blades in the Dark had used to encourage
taking characters out of the action. The rules for recovering Harm are more forgiving; there is no
Trauma rule which drops characters from the scene and ultimately forces them to retire; and so on.

This is to encourage you to make your Born in the Mist story be about your characters, to focus on
who they are and how their relationships build.

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 Stress
When a character marks their last box of stress, this only means that they cannot take any further
stress-costing actions. They are exhausted, not traumatised. This change is to encourage spending
of stress and to prevent burning through player characters with undue speed.

Position, Consequences, and Resistance

A few Consequences are changed.

"Obstacle" is called out as a subtype of "Complication". This consequence represents emerging layers
of a situation: you overcome this obstacle, but Jnd another waiting beyond it. Perhaps you pick the
lock on the door and slip inside, but run almost face-to-face into guards that you'll now have to deal
with.
This addition is to highlight the improvisation opportunity. GMs, note that if you improvise a new
obstacle, you can use it to put the spotlight on a PC who hasn't done much recently. If a gang of hired
toughs threatens the Soother, it's a perfect opportunity for the Thug to step forward.

Instead of "Worse Position", BitM uses "Worsen Position". This consequence represents losing control
over an escalating situation. The current action is successful, but the next action will be rolled with a
riskier position. Perhaps you make a leap across to the next rooftop, but stumble and hit the ground,
leaving you worse o^ for dealing with the guards who are waiting for you.
This change is because the default "Worse Position", in which you have to retry the same action with a
worse position, essentially maps to a failure. This is against the spirit of "failing forward", and a 4/5
being a "mixed success", not a "mostly-failure".

Harm doesn't always need to be healed using the Recover action. For example, if you can chase o^ or
knock out the Rioter responsible for your "Homicidal Rage", then your emotions should return to
normal. This kind of harm is referred to as 'short-term' harm.

This clariJcation is from Scum and Villainy. It focuses on Jction-Jrst gaming: if a kind of harm
can disappear (in the Jction), then it should disappear (from the sheet). This is important for Born in
the Mist because there are attacks, like emotional Allomancy, that last only as long as they're
maintained.

The Faction Game

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 The mechanic "hold" is renamed to stability. It's otherwise identical. This rename is so that the
system can also use the keyword "hold" in a similar way to Powered by the Apocalypse games.

-3 Faction Status is no longer "War". There are no special penalties for being at -3 status with a
faction. Instead, -3 Status is called "Odium". This change is to drive the faction game towards being
more Jction-Jrst: a faction can hate you without going to open war with you, and even if they did, not
all factions would create the penalties described. (If your crew is tier IV, and they anger a tier 0
thieving crew into declaring war, you may not even notice.) Mechanical e^ects should always lead
from the Jction.

Hold
Some rules describe your character getting hold, such as "hold 2 preparation". These are temporary
points that you can spend according to the relevant special ability, often with a phrase like "spend
hold one-for-one", meaning "spend one point of hold for one e^ect as the ability describes".

This addition is to cleanly broaden possibilities for special abilities by enabling them to collect and
spend hold.

The Mission

Gambits
Born in the Mist adopts the "Gambits" rule from Scum and Villainy.
Gambits are a shared resource which represents luck, daring, and momentum. When you make an
engagement roll, set your crew's gambit pool to 1 (modiJed by crew upgrades). You can spend a
gambit to add +1D to a roll, even after you've rolled the dice. If you roll a 6 or better on a risky action,
without spending gambits, then you add another gambit to the pool.
This addition is because Gambits are cool, and to make player characters more proactive and
competent.

Teamwork
The setup action is less speciJc in its mechanical e^ect. Instead of being "the setting-up player
chooses +1 e^ect or +1 position", the impact is determined by the Jction, and can be inKuenced by the
setup action's ePect level.
This change is to make setup actions more Kavourful, to align them better with Jction-Jrst gaming,
and to make the setup action's e^ect level meaningful.

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 Downtime

Heat
Instead of a Wanted Level with a mechanism like an advancement track, Heat is turned into a looping
4-clock which raises your Heat Level every time it's Jlled. This interacts closely with the overhauled
Entanglements system.
Note also that a mission does not incur additional heat if killing is involved. This setting detail makes
sense for Doskvol, but not for the Final Empire.
Finally, there is no option of using incarceration to reduce your heat. This is to reduce character
rotation, and also because it makes much less sense in the Final Empire setting. Federal punishments
tend to be much more Jnal, and escaping the Pits of Hathsin doesn't reduce your infamy.

Downtime Activities
The Downtime Roll is changed. When a Downtime Roll Jlls a clock, interpret the results like so: 1-
3 Jlls 2 segments, 4/5 Jlls 3 segments, 6 Jlls 4 segments, and critical Jlls 5 segments. The boost on
the lower end makes starting characters' downtime more e^ective. A 6 result means that a single
Recover action can Jll the healing clock once, for example.

The Recover action is more forgiving. After the initial roll, the player can choose to either focus
purely on rest or to perform minor tasks while healing.
If they focus purely on rest, they immediately make a second Recover roll, adding its ticks to the
healing clock.

If they perform minor tasks, then they can perform a second downtime activity, with -1D to the
downtime roll.
This change is to make physical harm less punishing, which is important given that Born in the
Mist engages in less character rotation than Blades in the Dark. The Jrst option can bring a character
back up to full strength more quickly, while the second option enables downtime activities like Vin
studying the mysterious journal (a long-term project) while also recovering from her injuries.

The Indulge Vice action has been replaced with Release Stress. It's almost identical, with only three
changes from the basic mechanic.

A character cannot be "lost in their vice" to become unplayable while recovering stress.
A character cannot "overindulge". Rolling higher than your currently-marked stress has no
special e^ect.

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 There is no penalty if you do not Release Stress during a given downtime phase.
These changes are also to reduce character rotation, and because of an element of cosmere
storytelling. While certain cosmere characters deJnitely have vices, these are portrayed as Kaws that
hold them back, problems to be overcome. A character "indulging a vice" thus should not be a
mechanically helpful thing.

The heroes of the cosmere are at their best when they're healthy, releasing their stress productively,
and letting their friends help them. The "release" for a Born in the Mist character is more personal
than a hedonistic vice: some might read; others might paint; others still might simply spend time
with friends.

Entanglements
The entanglements system is fully overhauled. See the new system below.
There is more to your characters' lives than their next mission, and there's more to the Final Empire
than the crew's actions. Sometimes, other forces in Scadrial can catch up to you.

After the crew is Jnished with downtime activities, the GM generates an entanglement for the crew
using the prompts below. Note that this timing is di^erent from normal Blades in the Dark
entanglements, so that the crew has the chance to meaningfully use the Reduce Heat downtime
activity.
Roll a number of dice equal to the crew's Tier: the bigger you are, the more attention you get. After
the roll, the GM can spend Heat Levels one-for-one to upgrade the result. This means that with
enough Heat, it's possible for an Entanglement roll to land beyond Critical, and there are truly
dangerous complications that can only occur then.
It's up to GM discretion how many Heat Levels to spend on an Entanglement roll. You could make a
habit of burning o^ all of the crew's Heat after every mission; or you could only spend a little at a time
to create lesser but more consistent danger; or you could let the Heat build and build until it boils
over.

Below is the list of possible results for an Entanglement roll. Each one o^ers a generic prompt and
one or more examples.
1-3: No signiJcant trouble. At worst, crewmates embarrass you in front of another faction, or
authorities question someone in your periphery.
4/5: A minor complication. Authorities or a rival faction starts gathering information about
your crew. (Do they question your allies? Do they have you followed?) A friendly NPC Kips and
works for a rival or enemy.
6: Something risky happens. A friendly faction asks you for a dangerous favour. A PC ends up
face-to-face with someone investigating the crew. (Do thugs escort them to a meeting with a rival
crime boss? Does an obligator corner them at the next ball?)
Critical: You're put in a dangerous situation. An enemy faction threatens you or attacks your
allies. (Does a rival crime boss give you an ultimatum? Does a Great House send its soldiers to

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 surround a friendly thieving crew?)
Critical+1: You're put in a desperate situation. An enemy faction attacks your holdings. (Is a
rival crew trying to take over your crew's training grounds? Are the Steel Ministry cracking down
on your gambling den?)
Critical+2: Something terrible happens. Your friends su^er a terrible fate. (Are they executed as
a show of force or sent to the Pits of Hathsin?) Your lair comes under attack. (Does a Steel
Inquisitor kick down the door?)
GMs: The examples are not exhaustive! If you roll a Critical and have your own idea for a 'dangerous
situation', then don't let this list stop you. It's also up to you when the Entanglement occurs. You could
play it out as a situation in free play, an obstacle that appears during the next mission, or even a
complication that occurs during the next downtime.
With the GM's permission and when it makes sense in the Jction, the crew can spend coin to "pay o^"
the Entanglement roll, lowering the result. Lowering by one level (such as from Critical to 6) costs 1
coin; two levels costs 3 coin; three costs 5 coin; four costs 7 coin.

Once the GM has interpreted the entanglement roll — even if the entanglement is queued to happen
later, not yet — the game returns to free play. From there, the crew can choose a new target, make an
engagement roll, and start a new mission, their plans (and the gameplay loop of Born in the Mist)
continuing.
This change is because the old entanglement system's roll chart and list of mechanically-speciJc
entanglements were more mechanics-Jrst than Jction-Jrst. Changing the roll from a chart to a
prompt generator encourages improvisation of entanglements that suit the Jction.
The timing is also changed. Entanglements are now rolled after downtime activities are resolved,
when the players go into free play. This is to ensure that the Reduce Heat downtime activity can be
used meaningfully. If your GM burns o^ all your Heat Levels after every mission, then reducing heat
after the entanglement roll becomes pointless… but reducing heat before the entanglement roll
becomes crucial.

Character Creation
Character creation is signiJcantly changed, especially in three speciJc steps.

First: after choosing a playbook, the player then invests in the character, spending points to buy a
"package" which provides access to the magic speciJc to the Scadrial setting, making the character
into an Allomancer, Feruchemist, or Kandra. These packages provide permission to unlock various
unique special abilities: an Allomancer can take special abilities that an Uninvested character simply
can't.
Second: a default character gets only three free-choice action dots. They can make up this di^erence
by spending Invest points on mundane abilities.
Third: instead of each playbook using the same set of special items, characters start with four special
item picks, which can be used to create or upgrade special items. This system enables more
personalised special item lists, supporting the mix-and-match between playbook and Invest package.

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 Further special item picks can be earned in gameplay: when the stash track Jlls and lifestyle
upgrades, the player gains two special item picks; and when Jlling the playbook XP track, a player can
choose to take two special item picks instead of a special ability.

Optional Rules
There are also optional rules presented throughout the chapter. These are copied below.

Optional Rule: Universal Push. Increase all dice pools based on action or attribute ratings by 1D. So
if you have one dot in Prowl, your dice pool for Prowl actions starts at 2D.
Under this rule, you cannot push yourself for +1D. You can still use the other e^ects of pushing
yourself, can still take a +1D from a Devil's Bargain, and you can still gain dice from pushing
Feruchemy.
This rule makes scoundrels who are more generally competent, and it means that the Jrst dot of an
action or attribute is particularly signiJcant, creating the possibility of a critical success.
You still use the normal "roll 0D" rules when something reduces your dice pool to or below zero,
such as acting while under level-2 harm.

Optional Rule: Variable Resistance Cost. Instead of all consequences starting at 6 stress to resist,
the GM can declare a di^erent base cost for each consequence. A minor complication might only cost
3 stress at most (4 stress - resistance roll).
This optional rule enables position to scale resistance cost, as well as the consequence threat, so that
a character is less likely to become exhausted because they got a bad roll preventing one tick on a
"Guards Alert" clock.
As a further option, resistance might still only be "free" on a 6. So if the GM says a complication is
minor (4 stress - resistance roll) and your resistance roll is a 5, it still costs 1 stress. This makes the
roll's mathematics slightly more complicated, but it preserves some likely cost for minor
consequences.

Chapter 2: Character and Crew

This chapter will cover everything you need to know to create and advance the crew and the
individual PCs.

The game uses an online character sheet formatted in Google Sheets, available here. Make a copy of
the Jle, Jll in the sheets, make duplicates of individual tabs if you need.

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 Character Creation

Choose a Playbook
Your character's playbook summarises their preferred strategy for solving problems and overcoming
obstacles. If you're interested in being stealthy and evasive, consider choosing the Lurk playbook. The
list of available playbooks is below.
Cutters are intimidating Jghters.
Lurks are stealthy inJltrators.

Hounds are deadly marksmen and trackers.

Slides are manipulators and spies.
Scholars are tinkerers and masterminds.

Note that your playbook is not the full extent of your character. A playbook provides starting action
ratings (things that your character is especially good at), XP triggers (one way of earning experience,
which you use to improve your character), and a list of recommended special abilities (which give
your character ways to break the rules).
So, a Lurk has starting action ratings which make them good at stealthy inJltration; their XP triggers
mean they get bonus experience when they stealthily inJltrate; and their recommended special
abilities make them better at stealthy inJltration. But a Lurk could also be good at Jghting (like a
Cutter) or lying (like a Slide); and a Cutter or Slide could also be good at stealth. Think of your
playbook as your character's niche, but not their whole.
Each playbook also has a set of starting builds. These are suggestions so you can hit the ground
running, Jlling in your Invest package, action dots, special abilities, and special items for you.

Invest
A starting character has 4 points to spend on Investing. First, spend Invest points to buy one of the
mutually-exclusive Invested Arts packages below.

Uninvested (0 points): You are a normal human being, but you have a lot of spare points to
Invest in your mundane abilities.
Misting (1 point): You are an Allomancer capable of burning one metal. First, choose a metal
from the Misting list (other than aluminium or duralumin; see Gnat below).
Gnat (0 points): You are an Allomancer capable of burning aluminium or duralumin. Choose
which.

Ferring (1 point): You are a Feruchemist capable of Jlling and tapping one metal. First, choose
a metal from the Ferring list. Second, take a "Small Metalmind" special item.

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 Twinborn (2 points): You are both a Misting and a Ferring. Choose a metal from the Misting
list (other than aluminium or duralumin), then a di^erent metal from the Ferring list. Take a
"Small Metalmind" special item.
Twinborn Gnat (1 point): You are an Allomancer who can burn aluminium or duralumin
and a Ferring who can use a di^erent metal. Choose your Ferring metal and a matching "Small
Metalmind".

Kandra (2 points): You are a kandra. Take a "Blessing" special item.

Compounder (3 points): You are a Misting and Ferring for the same metal. This enables you to
Compound, burning a metalmind as a generous source of the Feruchemical attribute. Choose a
metal from the lists, and a "Small Metalmind" special item. You may not use your remaining
Invest point to buy an additional special ability.
Mistborn (3 points): You are an Allomancer capable of burning all metals.

Feruchemist (3 points): You are a Full Feruchemist, capable of Jlling and tapping all metals.
Take a "Small Metalmind" special item.
Mistborn+Ferring (4 points): You are a Mistborn and a Ferring. This enables you to Compound,
burning the shared metal as a generous source of its Feruchemical attribute. Choose your Ferring
metal from the list and a "Small Metalmind" special item.
Feruchemist+Misting (4 points): You are a Full Feruchemist and a Misting. This enables you to
Compound, burning the shared metal as a generous source of its Feruchemical attribute. Choose
your Misting metal from the list and take a "Small Metalmind" special item.

Being a Fullborn — both a Mistborn and a Full Feruchemist — is outside the purview of
starting player characters.
Take note of how many Invest points you have left, if any. These will be useful later.

Choose Heritage and Background

Your character's heritage describes where your family line is from: you might be Terris, or you might
be a noble from the Northern Dominance, or you might be skaa from Luthadel, for example. When you
choose a heritage, write a detail about your family life. Beck, for example, is Luthadel skaa, and his
parents were loyal, obedient sorts who raised him well… but died when a sickness swept through the
city, in Beck's youth.
Your character's background describes what they did before they joined the crew, or what their skills
and life experience are outside of criminal activity. When you choose a background, write a detail
about it that's speciJc to your character. Beck, for example, has a background in Trade, as a well-
connected merchant.
Suggested backgrounds include, but are not limited to: Academic, Labour, Law, Trade, Military, Noble,
Underworld.

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 When you express your character's Heritage or Background in roleplay, you earn additional XP. Make
sure to pick something you're interested in roleplaying!

Fill Out The Character Sheet

Now, you Jll in the rest of the mechanical elements of your character sheet.

De=ne Your XP Trigger Skills

Each character comes with an XP trigger which describes their two favourite methods of addressing
challenges and overcoming obstacles. When you use those skills — referred to as "hitting the trigger"
— you earn XP for Character Advancement.

Each playbook comes with a recommended pair of skills. A Lurk usually hits this trigger by
addressing a challenge with "stealth or evasion", for example. But if your character has di^erent
priorities, you can customise it here! A Mistborn assassin might instead use "stealth or violence", for
example.
Suggested skills include, but are not limited to: violence, coercion, knowledge, charm, audacity,
calculation, deception, trickery, stealth, evasion, technical skill, mayhem, tracking, investigation,
Allomancy.

Assign Three Action Dots

Your playbook begins with three action dots already placed. All characters get to add three more dots
(so you'll have six total). At the start of the game, no action rating may have more than two dots
(unless a special ability tells you otherwise — this is just one of the ways special abilities can break
the game rules).

These action dots deJne what your character is good at when making an action roll. Brief
descriptions of all the actions are available here.
Note that this is one action dot fewer than a baseline Blades in the Dark character would take.

Take a Special Ability

Take one special ability. You must qualify for it, per the below.

If you are a Compounder (including a Mistborn+Ferring or a Feruchemist+Misting), you must

take the compounding special ability for your compounding metal. To reiterate, you cannot use
spare Invest points to buy additional special abilities at character creation; you can only take
other special abilities through advancement in play.

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 Anyone, even Uninvested, can take a special ability from any playbook list. Note that the Jrst
ability in the list of your playbook is intended as a good default, if you have trouble deciding.
Or if you are an Allomancer, you can also choose from the Allomancy special abilities that
match your metal(s). (So if you're a Thug — a Misting who can burn pewter — you could take an
aPewter special ability. If you're a Mistborn, you could take any Allomancy ability, including
combo abilities.)

Or if you are a Feruchemist, you can also choose from the matching Feruchemy special
abilities. (So if you're a Sparker — a Ferring who can Jll and tap zinc — you could take an fZinc
special ability. A Full Feruchemist could take any single or combo Feruchemy special abilities.)
Or if you're a Twinborn, you could also take a "Resonance" special ability that matches your
metals. (So if you're a Ferring who can use iron and a Misting who can use steel, you could take
the "Weighty Allomancy" special ability which is tagged with both aSteel and fIron.)
Or if you're a kandra, you could take a Kandra special ability.

Note that these are options. If you're a Mistborn, you could still choose to take a playbook special
ability instead of anything to do with your Allomancy.

Pick Four Special Items

Special items are items that are distinctive for your character and more useful than the "standard
items" that everyone can use. Anyone could have a "non-metal weapon or two" just by marking a
point of load; but you might have a "pair of Fine obsidian daggers".
A starting character has four "special item picks" to use. You might pick four di^erent special items,
or you might pick one item and upgrade it thrice, or you might do something in between. For further
information, look at the section on Special Items.

Invest
If you have any points left from Investing, now is the time to spend them. Spare Invest points can
upgrade your character in these ways.
Spend 1 Invest point to take one special ability that you qualify for. Maximum 3 special
abilities total. If you are a Compounder, you cannot use this option.
Spend 1 Invest point to take one additional action dot, spent on any action rating. Maximum 8
action dots total, and you can't use this to raise an action rating above 2 dots.

Spend 1 Invest point to take one additional special item pick, to spend as normal. Maximum 8
special item picks in total.
Or you can negotiate with the GM for a special permission worth 1 or more Invest points. This
could include a rare special item (perhaps an aluminium weapon, or even a Shardblade) or
knowledge of a powerful secret (like rarely-known metals or applications of hemalurgy).

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 GMs: Don't be stingy about metals that are fundamental to the character. If your player
wants to make an electrum Misting, then they should be able to start the game knowing about
electrum. If they're a Mistborn who has plenty of other tricks up their sleeve, however, then a
secret metal or two might be worth that last Invest point.

The initial action dots, special abilities, and special item picks described above, the total Invest points
available, and the cost of Invest packages and mundane upgrades, were chosen for a simple reason: so
a Misting or Ferring would have exactly enough points to equal a normal Blades in the
Dark character; someone Uninvested could start slightly above that in their mundane skills or special
permissions; and those with greater Investiture have to trade o^.
Example special permissions:
Shardblade (2 points and 3 special item picks): You are bonded to a Rosharan Shardblade, a
sword made of gleaming (yet Allomantically-immune) metal that can cut Kawlessly through souls
and inert matter. At will, you can cause it to dissipate into mist; at will, you can begin summoning
it, a process that takes ten heartbeats. This is a weapon with Spectacular quality and zero Load.

Aluminium Flask (Final Empire era, 1 point and 2 special item picks): Rather than a belt of
vulnerable vials, you use a Kask of precious aluminium. The Kask can't be Pushed or Pulled, and
you can take a sip to refresh your metals. Mark one load for each three times the Kask refreshes
your metal reserves.
Hemalurgic Spike (1 point and 1 special item pick): You own a piece of metal, Invested with
supernatural power. Choose one Misting or Ferring power: when you wear your 'spike' as a
piercing (zero load), it grants you this power. If you don't already have this power, you gain it and
the potential to take related special abilities. If you do already have it, then you instead gain
increased e^ect when using it.

Choose One Close Friend and One Rival

Each playbook has a list of sample NPCs that your character may know. Choose one from the list who
is a close relationship (a good friend, a lover, a family relation, etc) and mark the "+" column beside
their name. Then choose another NPC on the list who's your rival or enemy, and mark the "-" column
beside their name.
Or if you have your own idea for the signiJcant NPCs in your character's life, describe them instead of
choosing from the list.
Your close friends can help you when making an engagement roll or performing a downtime activity.
Your rivals can interfere in your engagement roll and generally make bloody nuisances of themselves.

Describe Your Release

Every scoundrel lives a life of constant pressure, danger, and stress; and thus, every scoundrel needs
some way to let go of that stress. Describe what your character does to relax. This could be as simple

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 as "curl up with a good book", or you could make details that bring in other characters, like "go out
dancing with Sayna".

Record Your Name, Alias, and Look

Choose a name for your character. If your character uses an alias or nickname in the underworld,
make a note of it. Describe what your character looks like so the GM and your fellow players can
visualise them.

Crew Creation

Choose a Tier
First, choose how experienced and established your crew is. This is expressed as your Tier.
Tier 0: You are just starting out; you're at the bottom of the pile.

Tier I: You have a few jobs and a growing reputation behind you; you're a small-time crew.
Tier II: You have enough experience or resources to be a serious contender; you're equal to a
lesser noble family.
A crew cannot start as Tier III or higher. Start at your chosen Tier with Strong stability and 2 coin.

Choose a Crew Book

Just as there are di^erent kinds of criminal (as expressed in your character playbook), there are
di^erent kinds of crew. The crew book is your crew's specialty: it expresses the kind of criminal
enterprise that you usually perform.

Assassins are killers for hire.

Rebels are revolutionaries bent on overthrowing the corrupt system.
Shadows are thieves and spies.

Other crew books are TBD.

Note again that like your playbook is not the entirety of your character, the crew book is not the
entirety of your crew. A crew of Shadows are best at thievery and spying: they'll start with abilities
that make them better at that kind of enterprise, and they'll get more XP for pursuing it; but they can
still resist like the Rebels and kill like the Assassins, and vice versa.

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 Describe Your Reputation
How do other underworld factions see your crew? Choose one or two simple adjectives. This will be
an over-generalisation and over-simpliJcation: this question is about how other people see you, not
about who you really are.
A list of example reputations is below.
Ambitious

Brutal
Daring
Honourable

Professional
Savvy
Subtle

Strange
Your crew earns additional XP when your actions bolster your reputation, so think of this step as a
way to indicate what sorts of action you want in the game.

Describe Your Lair

Where is your lair — the place your crew comes together to make your daring plans, and the place
you escape to with your well-gotten gains?
Di^erent Tiers of crew will have di^erent qualities of lair.

A Tier 0 crew's lair might be in a stone cavern in Luthadel's slums.

A Tier I crew's lair might be in an allied carpenter's shop near the Hotel District.
A Tier II crew's lair might be a private house in the Commercial District.

By default, your crew's lair is a simple place: you can make your plans and stash a few boxings here,
but it's not a comfortable place to spend the night and it's not the most secure place in the Final
Empire. This is modiJed by taking upgrades.

Describe Your Hunting Grounds

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 Your crew's hunting grounds is the area that you know best for your favourite criminal enterprises.
Your hunting grounds don't have to be in the same area as your lair.
The area is small, but it's still an intrusion on someone. The GM will tell you which faction controls
the area, or the group will improvise one together. You then decide how to deal with them:

Pay them oP. Give them 1 coin in exchange for giving you room to work.
Pay tribute. Give them 2 coin as a show of respect and gain +1 status with the faction.
Snub them. Keep your money, but take -1 status with the faction.

Your hunting grounds are useful for a particular type of criminal operation. Each crew type has a list
of di^erent 'specialties': for instance, Shadows can specialise in Burglary, Espionage, Robbery, or
Sabotage.
When you prepare to execute your specialty inside your hunting grounds, you get +1D to any gather
information rolls and one free additional downtime activity before the mission. This can help you to
discover an opportunity, acquire an asset you might need for the mission, Jnd an appropriate client,
and so forth.
When you acquire turf (see Claims) you can also expand the size of your hunting grounds or take
additional specialties.

Choose a Crew Special Ability

Take a look at the list of special abilities for your crew book. Unlike the special abilities on your
playbook, these abilities can be used by the entire crew.

If you have trouble deciding, the ability at the top of the list is intended as a good default. You can
obtain more special abilities later by Jlling the crew book XP track.

Choose Crew Upgrades

Each crew book has two suitable upgrades already selected, and you get to choose two additional
upgrades (so you'll have a total of four upgrades when you start play). For further information about
the upgrades available, refer to the crew book and to the section on crew upgrades.
Your upgrades don't exist in a vacuum. They have an impact on your relationship with other factions
in the Final Empire.
One faction helped you get an upgrade. They like you, and you get +1 status with them. At your
option, spend 1 coin to repay their kindness and raise it to +2 status.

Another faction was screwed over when you got an upgrade. You take -2 status with them, or if
you pay them o^ with 1 coin, instead take -1 status.

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 As before, the GM can tell you about these factions from the list, or your group can improvise them
together.
You can obtain more upgrades later by Jlling the crew book XP track, just like special abilities.

Choose Your Favourite Contact

Your crew book has a list of potential contacts. Choose the one who is your crew's close friend, long-
time ally, or other partner in crime. This is your favourite contact, and they have relationships with
other factions as well.

One faction is friendly with this contact, and you get +1 status with them by association.
One faction is unfriendly with your contact, and you get -1 status by association.
As normal, either the GM can tell you about the relevant factions, or the group can improvise suitable
factions.

Character Advancement
Each player keeps track of the experience points (XP) that your character earns. This XP is marked on
the "advancement tracks" that are listed with each attribute (6 boxes long) and above the special
abilities (8 boxes long).
During a game session, mark XP when you roll for an action with desperate position. This 1 XP goes
into the attribute for the action you rolled. (For example, if you roll a desperate Skirmish action, you
mark 1 XP in Prowess.)

At the end of a session, review the XP triggers on your character sheet. For each one, mark 1 XP if it
happened at all, or mark 2 XP if it happened multiple times in the session. The XP triggers are:

You addressed a tough challenge with your playbook skills. For example, the Lurk might
address a tough challenge with stealth or evasion. This XP trigger can be customised during
character creation.
You expressed your beliefs, drives, heritage, or background. Essentially, this trigger rewards
you for roleplaying your character in depth. You have Jnal say over whether you met this trigger,
and you're encouraged to tell the group the details of how you did so.
Your Taws, including harm, complicated your life. Mark XP if your character Kaws tempted you
to some bad action or if a harm condition caused you particular trouble. Essentially, this trigger
rewards you for committing to your character's Kaws. You have Jnal say over this trigger as well,
and are encouraged to tell your group the details.

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 You may mark end-of-session XP on any advancement track you wish, or keep it "banked" to choose
later. Use the "banked XP" box on your sheet for this.

When you Jll an advancement track, clear all the marks and take an advance.

When you take an advance from an attribute track, you may add an additional action dot to
one of the actions under that attribute. (For example, if you Jll the Prowess track, you may add a
dot to Finesse, Prowl, Skirmish, or Wreck.) This is subject to the normal caps: you can raise an
action to 3 dots, or 4 dots if your crew has a relevant Mastery upgrade.
When you take an advance from your playbook track, you may choose one:
Take one special ability. You can take any playbook special ability (even from playbooks
other than your own), or you can take any Invested special ability that your Invest package
qualiJes for. (If you're a Mistborn, for example, then you can take any Allomancy abilities, but
not Feruchemy or Kandra abilities.)

Take two special item picks. These can be used to create new special items or upgrade
existing ones, as in character creation.

You can also earn XP by training during downtime. When you train, mark XP in the advancement
track of your choice (1 XP by default, or 2 XP if your crew has the relevant Training upgrade). A given
advancement track can only be trained once per downtime phase, no matter how many additional
activities you buy with Coin or Rep.

Special Items
Each character sheet has a list of "standard items" which are available to everyone. Anyone can mark
a point of load and declare that they're carrying (for example) a basic "non-metal weapon". But
not everyone has a pair of expertly-made glass daggers.
Things like these are your special items: equipment which is distinctive to you and more e^ective
than the basic standard items. Each playbook has a list of suggested special items, but you're
encouraged to come up with your own, unique to your character.
Special items are unlocked by spending special item picks. A starting character has four picks to use,
with more available from Investing or from Advancement. Each pick can be spent to create a new
special item or upgrade an existing special item.
When you create a special item, it might be:

A specialised but Fine (+1 quality) version of a standard item.

The Lurk's "Fine lockpicks" are a specialised form of "burglary tools", but they improve the
Lurk's quality speciJcally when picking a lock.

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 A Fine (+1 quality) item for a task not covered by standard items.
Clothing isn't usually tracked, but the Slide's "Fine clothes and jewellery" increase their
quality for Consorting and other social actions among "higher" society.

A version of a standard item that is "light" (reduced load cost) or otherwise reduces its
drawbacks.
The Cutter's "Light armour" is a version of the "armour" item which costs only 1 load, not 2.
An "item" which is not a physical object, but rather an "enhancement".

The Scholar's "Jne cover identity" grants them some quality when using their alias to
deceive. Though it does incorporate physical items (such as paperwork), the item's focus is on
the false identity as a whole.
A unique item which enables actions that may not be possible otherwise.
The Hound's "Trained hunting pet" can cooperate in combat, track enemies, play fetch, roll
over, and various other possibilities that existing items just don't cover.

You can spend additional picks on the same item to upgrade it, increasing its beneJts. For example:
You could upgrade quality, from normal to Fine (Tier +1) to Spectacular (Tier +2). Quality
cannot go above Spectacular.
You could remove another drawback. (For example, for two picks you could make Heavy
Armour which takes up 3 load and is non-metallic.)

You could add another function. (For example, your "Fine clothes and jewellery" now
incorporates shadowy material that increases your quality for sneaking as well as socialising.)
For help coming up with items and upgrades, refer to the example special items.
Note a distinction: spending special item picks on an item means that you have it available on your
sheet, but you may still need to mark load to have it with you right now.
This is di^erent from the special item system in Blades in the Dark, where each user of a playbook has
the same set of special items. This more customisable approach works better with the mix-and-match
nature of playbooks and Invest packages (a Mistborn may want a mistcloak regardless of their
playbook), and the upgrade system creates another avenue of character advancement and
customisation.

Example Special Items

Playbook Special Items

Cutter: Fine non-metal weapon: A Jnely-crafted, one-handed melee weapon, not made of
metal (and thus, safe from Allomancers). Is it a delicate-looking duelling cane, a razor-sharp glass
dagger, or perhaps a simple but perfectly-balanced cudgel? [1 pick, 1 load]

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 Cutter: Fine heavy weapon [M?]: A well-crafted, two-handed weapon of your choice, able to
reach farther and hit harder than a standard weapon. This might give you potency in battles
where the weight or reach is a factor, as well as the quality. Maybe an Inquisitor's great obsidian
axe; maybe a koloss greatsword. Keep in mind whether it's metal or not. [1 pick, 2 load]
Cutter: Light armour: A padded tunic disguised to look like regular clothing. [1 pick, 1 load]

Cutter: Manacles and chain [M]: A set of heavy manacles and chain, suitable for restraining a
prisoner — though be aware that it's metal. [1 pick, 0 load]
Hound: Fine throwing knives [M]: Small knives, balanced for throwing; e^ective at melee or
short range, but made of metal. If a complication says you run out, mark load to declare you're
carrying more. [1 pick, 1 load per set]
Hound: Fine long-range weapon: Deadly at long range, unwieldy in close quarters. A
reinforced longbow, powerful crossbow, or perfectly-balanced sling. [1 pick, 1 load]
Hound: Trained hunting pet: An animal companion that obeys your commands and
anticipates your actions. A personal cohort, expert in hunting. A wolf hound? A predatory bird? [1
pick, 0 load]
Hound: Non-metallic ammunition: Long-range ammunition immune to Coinshots, Lurchers,
and Mistborn. Flint-tipped arrows or crossbow bolts; glass sling bullets. [1 pick, 1 load per set]
Lurk: Fine lockpicks: A set of tools to disable and circumvent locks. [1 pick, 0 load]

Lurk: Fine shadow cloak: A hooded cloak made of dark material that blends into the darkness
around you. This item improves your e^ect level when you sneak around. [1 pick, 1 load]
Lurk: Light climbing gear: A well-crafted set of crafting gear that is less bulky and heavy than
a standard set. [1 pick, 1 load] Standard climbing gear would be 2 load.
Lurk: Fine quiet weapon: A weapon primed for an ambush, but not so much a drag-out battle.
An obsidian dagger, a small cudgel. [1 pick, 1 load]
Scholar: Fine tinkering tools: A Jnely-crafted set of tools for detailed crafting and mechanical
work, including a jeweller's loupe and measuring devices. [1 pick, 1 load]

Scholar: Fine medical tools: A well-stocked medkit, useful for patching injuries — though
those drugs could be useful in other ways. [1 pick, 1 load]
Scholar: Fine cover identity: Paperwork, planted stories and rumours, and false relationships
subcient to pass well as a decent person. Adds quality to your deceptions. [1 pick, 0 load]
Scholar: Blueprints: A folio of useful architectural drawings and city plans. Feel free to specify
which plans you're carrying when you mark this item's load. [1 pick, 1 load]
Slide: Fine clothes and jewellery: An outJt that appears to be of such Jne make as to pass you
o^ as a noble or their steward. A nobleman's suit, a noblewoman's gown, a Terris steward's
"tinningdar" robes. [1 pick, 0 load]
Slide: Fine disguise kit: A theatrical makeup kit equipped with an impressive array of eye-
fooling appliances like wigs, false noses, and cosmetics. [1 pick, 1 load]

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 Slide: Disguised duelling cane: A slim cane, passable as a fashion accessory, but useful in
combat. [1 pick, 0 load]

Slide: Fine loaded dice and trick cards: Gambling accoutrements, altered to favour the
outcomes of your choice. [1 pick, 0 load]
Some suggested upgrades are below.
Cutter: Binding ropes: This removes the metallic "drawback" from the manacles and
chain item, to make it more potent against Allomancers. [2 picks, 0 load]

Cutter: Fine binding ropes: This takes the binding ropes above and also upgrades their quality
to make them harder to escape. [3 picks, 0 load]
Hound: Spectacular long-range weapon: This spends an upgrade to improve the weapon's
quality to 2 levels above your crew's Tier. [2 picks, 1 load]
Lurk: Fine, concealed, quiet weapon: This spends an upgrade to make the weapon lighter and
more concealable, so that it no longer counts against load. [2 picks, 0 load]

Scholar: Fine adaptable toolkit: This upgrade "adds a function" so that the same item can be
used as tinkering tools and medical tools. [2 picks, 1 load]
Slide: Fine clothes and jewellery with shadow cloak: This also adds a function, so that your
clothes are good for both socialising and sneaking. [2 picks, 0 load]

Allomancer Special Items

Belt of metal vials: Rather than singular metal vials, this is a package of multiple vials for
lesser load. Mark these o^ if complications or Karing leave you out of metals. [1 pick; 1 load per 3
vials]

Mistcloak: The Mistborn's 'badge', a cloak split into long tassels that blend into the night mists.
This grants potency when Prowling through the mists, or when Commanding the respect (or fear)
of those who know the powers of a Mistborn. [1 pick, 1 load]

Feruchemist Special Items

Your Jrst metalmind at character creation is discounted by 1 pick (so a Small Metalmind is free, and a
Medium Metalmind costs 1 pick).
Small Metalmind: Metals you can use to store your Feruchemy attribute(s), like a set of small
rings. Split 8 boxes of Feruchemy among your di^erent metalminds. [1 pick; 1 load]

Medium Metalmind: A larger set of metals, like a bracer. Split 16 boxes of Feruchemy. [2 picks;
1 load]

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 Kandra Special Items
Blessings: Each kandra possesses a "Blessing", a pair of Invested metal spikes. These grant the
kandra sapience and a further beneJt. Your Jrst Blessing item comes for free with the Kandra
package. Further Blessings cost picks.
The Blessing of Awareness (Tin) enhances your senses. Take +1 dot in Survey, Study, or
Intuit (maximum 2). [2 picks, 0 load]
The Blessing of Potency (Iron) enhances your physical strength. Take +1 dot in Skirmish,
Wreck, or Prowl (maximum 2). [2 picks, 0 load]
The Blessing of Presence (Copper) enhances your mental abilities. Take +1D when using
Insight to resist consequences. [2 picks, 0 load]
The Blessing of Stability (Zinc) enhances your emotional fortitude. Take +1D when using
Resolve to resist consequences. [2 picks, 0 load]
Bones: The bones of a human being. These allow you to keep a humanoid form. [0 picks, 2 load
when carried/0 load when used]
Bones and identity: The bones, studied mannerisms, and identity of a speciJc human being.
These also grant you potency in deceptions. [1 pick, 2/0 load]
Fine bones and identity: Your cover identity, or your skill at emulating it, is especially
potent. [2 picks, 2/0 load]

True Body: These are "bones" that didn't come from a person, but were made to your
speciJcation out of another material: crystal, stone, or metal, perhaps. [1 pick, 2/0 load]
Fine True Body: This True Body is especially Jnely made, and grants quality where your
bone strength matters. [2 picks, 2/0 load]

Special Abilities
Born in the Mist includes special abilities which are associated not with playbook skills, but with the
Metal Arts. These abilities are 'tagged' to show what Metal Arts you need to qualify. The tag is a
standard abbreviation: aPewter, for example, means that the ability is tagged with "Allomantic
Pewter".

Many abilities have only one tag, and thus can be taken by any Invest package that includes that tag.
An ability that is tagged only with aPewter can be taken by a Mistborn or a pewter Misting (including
a Twinborn who chose pewter as their Misting metal).
Some abilities have multiple "OR" tags, and thus can be taken by any Invest package that includes any
one of them. An ability that is tagged with aIron OR aSteel can be taken by a Mistborn, iron Misting,
or steel Misting.

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 Some abilities have multiple "AND" tags, and can only be taken by an Invest package that includes all
of them. An ability that is tagged with fIron AND aSteel can only be taken by a Twinborn,
Mistborn+Ferring, or Feruchemist+Misting that has both iron Feruchemy and steel Allomancy.

Single Allomancy Special Abilities

These special abilities require the ability to burn a single Allomantic metal. Thus, these are perfect for
Mistings.
Tinshot [aTin]: Your enhanced senses give you more ability with ranged weapons. While burning tin,
you can push yourself or Tare tin to do one of the following: make a ranged attack at extreme
distance beyond what's normal for the weapon — unleash a barrage of rapid Jre to suppress the
enemy.
Shake it OP [aTin]: The sharpness and clarity of Kared tin helps you to shrug o^ the distractions of
pain. You can Tare tin to ignore penalties from harm for a scene. If you do, then upgrade one harm by
one level after the scene.
Tinscout [aTin]: While burning tin, get +1 e^ect level when you gather info towards planning a score.
If you do, hold 2 preparation. During a score, spend preparation one-for-one in place of stress for
Kashbacks.
Pewter Might [aPewter]: While burning pewter, you can push yourself to do one of the following:
perform a feat of physical force that verges on the superhuman — engage a small gang on equal
footing in close combat.t
Preternatural Grace [aPewter]: You're skilled with using the precision that pewter gives you. While
burning pewter, if you push yourself, you can choose one of the following beneJts: perform a feat of
athletics that verges on the superhuman — manoeuvre to confuse your enemies so they mistakenly
attack each other.
Lurcher's Defence [aIron]: While burning iron, when you protect a teammate from an attack using
metal, take +1D to your resistance roll. When you gather info to anticipate possible threats in the
current situation, you get +1 ePect and the GM must tell you about any unshielded metal weapons.
Ironslide [aIron]: While burning iron and able to Pull yourself towards large or anchored metals, take
+1D to Prowl. You can move with impossible speed.

Coinshot's Assault [aSteel]: While burning steel, gain potency in combat when using metal weapons
(including simple projectiles like coins).
Steeljump [aSteel]: While burning steel and able to Push yourself o^ large or anchored metals in the
environment, take +1D to Prowl. You can make impossible leaps.
Shared Protection [aCopper]: While burning copper, allies within your coppercloud beneJt from your
personal protections. This includes your immunity to emotional allomancy and any 'personal
protections' from other aCopper abilities.

Clear Head [aCopper] (non-canon): Your habitual resistance to emotional Allomancy has expanded
into a greater resistance to all kinds of manipulation. While burning copper, gain the following

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 personal protection: take +1D to resist consequences from being deceived or manipulated, and
because you can pick your own words more carefully, take +1D to Sway or Consort to charm others.
Barely There [aCopper] (non-canon): Your concealment from Seeker senses has expanded into
concealment from all kinds of 'sixth sense', making it hard for people to notice you. While burning
copper, gain the following personal protection: take +1D to resist consequences from being detected,
and take +1D to Sway or Prowl to avoid notice.

Detailed Seeker [aBronze]: While burning bronze, take +1D to gather information about allomancers
burning within your vicinity, and you can ask the following questions: what metals are he/she/they
burning — how much metal reserve does he/she/they have — who or what is he/she/they targeting.
Cognitive Seeker [aBronze] (non-canon): While burning bronze, take +1D to Intuit the Cognitive Realm
to gather information. When you do, you can ask questions about Cognitive Realm phenomena and
also ask "What emotions are he/she/they trying to conceal?"
Feruchemist Seeker [aBronze]: While burning bronze, you can also gather information about
Feruchemists who are actively tapping metalminds.

Potential Seeker [aBronze]: While burning bronze, you can also gather information not about 'kinetic
Investiture' (powers in use, like metals being burned) but 'potential Investiture' (powers not in use,
like metals in unburned reserves or metalminds not being tapped). Position and e^ect depends on
how powerful the potential Investiture is: more powerful Investiture is easier to Seek.
Piercing Seeker [aBronze] (requires at least one other aBronze ability, or other "power boost"): While
burning bronze, you can Intuit to gather Seeker information even inside a coppercloud.
Start a Riot [aZinc]: While burning zinc, gain potency to provoke someone towards foolhardy action.

Sledgehammer Rioting [aZinc]: While burning zinc, you can push yourself or Tare zinc to riot
emotions powerful enough to cause mental harm. If you roll consequences, your target will likely
notice that their emotions are unnatural.
Soothing Words [aBrass]: While burning brass, gain potency to calm someone away from foolhardy
action.
Brass Lullabye [aBrass]: While burning brass, you can push yourself or Tare brass to make someone
drowsy and inattentive. Great e^ect may put them to sleep entirely.

Could-Have-Done My Research [aGold]: You can Tare gold to Kash back to gathering information
which an alternative self researched but you did not. In addition to Karing, this costs stress as normal.
Gold Scum [aGold]: After you roll an action, you can Tare gold to reveal that action was actually taken
by an alternative self, and choose a di^erent course of action. You can only use this ability once per
score.
Saw it Coming [aElectrum]: While burning electrum, take +1D to resist consequences of being
surprised.

Electrum Scum [aElectrum]: After you roll an action, you can Tare electrum to reveal that this was
just a possible future seen as an electrum shadow, and choose a di^erent course of action. You can
only use this ability once per score.

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 Instant Backup [aCadmium]: By raising a time-contraction bubble, you can keep an opponent
occupied while your allies prepare. While burning cadmium, take +1D to protect teammates and add
another +1D when assisting (for a total of +2D to your ally).
Fan the Bubble [aCadmium]: By Kickering your time-contraction bubble o^ and on, you can disorient
your enemies and disrupt projectiles without committing to a lot of lost time. While burning
cadmium, take +1D to resist consequences from attacks outside your bubble and take +1D to attack or
avoid enemies inside it.

One At A Time [aBendalloy]: By raising time-dilation bubbles, you can isolate opponents in a larger
group. While burning bendalloy, you are not penalised by scale while contending with a force of
superior numbers.
Bubble Setup [aBendalloy]: Using a time-dilation bubble makes it easier to improvise. By burning
bendalloy right after an Obstacle or Complication consequence is revealed, your crew can take +1D to
resist the consequence or +1D to overcome the obstacle using whatever is on hand within your
bendalloy bubble.
Subtle Leeching [aChromium]: When in hand-to-hand combat, you can leech as part of Jghting,
making your opponent think they've simply run out of metals rather than being leeched. You are not
penalised by other allomancer's potency while contending in close combat.

Feruchemical Leeching [aChromium]: You can leech from Feruchemical metalminds by touching
their user while they're tapping.
OPensive Nicroburst [aNicrosil]: You can use a nicroburst to force an enemy to use up their metal
reserves. Take +1D to do so, but you will deJnitely face a consequence related to that burst. This is
similar to taking a Devil's Bargain.
Guiding Nicrosil [aNicrosil]: You know how to guide the power you're releasing in others, helping
them use the burst. When you nicroburst a teammate, roll it as a group action, and you take +1D.

Single Feruchemy Special Abilities

These special abilities require the ability to Jll and tap a single Feruchemical metal. Thus, these are
perfect for Ferrings.

Light on Your Feet [fIron]: Being light can be useful, too. Fill 2 iron to push yourself when Prowling to
sneak, climb, or jump.
Dense Mass [fIron]: The toughness that lets you handle your own weight also makes it harder to
harm you. You may tap iron to resist consequences of physical injury; if you do, take +1D to the
resistance roll.
Faster Than The Eye Can See [fSteel]: You may tap steel to resist consequences of being detected. If
you do, take +1D to the resistance roll.

Impossibly Fast [fSteel]: Push steel to do one of the following: dodge impossible attacks, like bullets
or a Kurry of melee from a whole gang — run on walls or water, too fast for gravity to a^ect you —
keep up with someone outside a cadmium or inside a bendalloy bubble.

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 Doesn't Even Hurt [fTin]: You can deaden your sense of pain and push through. Fill 2 tin-touch to
ignore the penalties from your harm for the rest of the scene. If you do, upgrade one harm by one level
after the scene.
The Walls Have Ears [fTin]: You're especially skilled with hearing. Push tin-hearing to do one of the
following: listen to a whisper from across a crowded room — listen for heartbeats and breathing to
detect people who are otherwise silent — listen to heartbeats and vocal tone to read hidden
emotions, including detecting lies.
Brute Strength [fPewter]: Push pewter to do one of the following: perform a feat of physical force
that verges on the superhuman — engage a small gang on equal footing in close combat.
Small As A Mouse [fPewter]: Shrinking your muscles makes it easier to slip out of bonds and Jt in
small spaces. Fill 2 pewter to push yourself in feats of contortionism. (Note that you cannot stack this
e^ect like pushing pewter.)
Multi-Tasking [fZinc]: You can pay attention to multiple things at once. Push zinc to do one of the
following: listen to multiple conversations at once — simultaneously take two actions, if it's
physically possible to combine them.
Slow-Thinking Courage [fZinc]: Circumstances and threats can't scare you if you're too slow to
understand them. You may =ll zinc to resist consequences of intimidation and fear.
Burning Hands [fBrass]: You tap enough warmth to burn others. Push brass to do one of the
following: leave burns with your touches and punches — light Jres with your Jngertips.
Thermal Regulation [fBrass]: You can reKexively shift your warmth to resist even extreme
temperatures, like walking through Jre or being blasted with cold. You may tap brass to resist
consequences from heat and =ll brass to resist consequences from cold. If you do, take +1D to the
resistance roll.

Keeper [fCopper]: You are one of the Keepers of Terris, tasked with collecting and preserving all the
knowledge that the Lord Ruler would suppress. When you gather information, you can tap 1 copper to
ask each of the following questions: what has the Final Empire suppressed about this — what does
old science say about this. Take +1D when acting on the information (such as using "old science" to
engineer an aqueduct).
Multi-Skilled [fCopper]: You don't just study knowledge, but study the fundamentals of various skills.
You may tap 2 copper to use your highest action rating for any one action.
Sentry Bodyguard [fBronze]: When you protect a teammate, you can tap bronze to resist. When you
gather info to anticipate possible threats in the current situation, tap 1 bronze to get +1 e^ect.

Always Alert [fBronze]: You can tap bronze to Kash back to something you noticed earlier (such as a
convenient window).
Curse My Luck [fChromium]: You have a reKex for when things can't get any worse, and so you may
as well store some Fortune. Fill 2 chromium each time you take a Devil's Bargain.
I Know Where I'm Needed [fChromium]: Sometimes, Fortune is just knowing where you need to be.
At any time, you may tap 1 chromium to ask the GM where you should go, but you may not ask why
you should go there.

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 Sixth Sense CamouTage [fNicrosil] (non-canon): While you're storing, you're somehow concealed
from all kinds of 'sixth sense', making it hard for people to notice you. Fill nicrosil to resist
consequences from being detected, or =ll 2 nicrosil to push yourself to avoid being noticed. You also
take +1D, but you may not use any other Invested Arts while you do so.
Heightened Investiture [fNicrosil] (non-canon): Just carrying a lot of Investiture can have an e^ect
on your body, even if you're not using it. You can push nicrosil to do one of the following: sense living
beings around you — discern how healthy others are — discern pitches and colours in otherwise-
impossible ways. You can also tap nicrosil to resist consequences from poison and disease.
Cover Identity [fAluminium]: The identity you store and tap isn't always the same one. You may tap
aluminium to Kash back to establishing a cover identity for a score.
Just A Face In The Crowd [fAluminium]: When you're storing Identity, people have trouble picking
you out. You can =ll aluminium to resist consequences from being recognised, or =ll 2 aluminium to
push yourself while blending into a crowd.
I'm Local To Everywhere [fDuralumin]: You've discovered that if you store the Connection you have,
the universe gives you Connection to match where you are. Fill 2 duralumin to push yourself and do
one of the following: temporarily learn a language from someone else in the scene — navigate
another culture's customs without error.
You Know Me [fDuralumin]: Tapping Connection can build trust relationships very fast. You may tap
duralumin to establish a relationship. This is resolved like a Kashback, but it's actually happening
right now.
Bloodmaker's Health [fGold]: Permanently Jll in one segment of your healing clock. If you take the
Recover downtime activity, tap 1 gold to get +1D and Jll in an extra segment. If you choose to focus on
resting, you can do this again during the second Recover roll.
Pre-emptive Bloodmaking [fGold]: You start healing before you're even hurt. When you tap gold to
resist consequences from physical injury, roll +1D and Jll in one segment of your healing clock.

Do All The Things [fElectrum]: When you get going, you can get a lot done. You can tap 2 electrum to
gain an additional downtime activity.
Weaponised Brainfog [fElectrum]: It's hard to bother you while you're storing determination. You
can =ll electrum to resist consequences from mental harm.
Breathless Presence [fCadmium]: It's easier to be quiet when you're not breathing. It's also damn
creepy. Tap 1 cadmium to take +1D to move stealthily or to intimidate through sheer creep factor.

Deep Lungs [fCadmium]: You're better at conserving and using oxygen. Instead of each action, tap 1
cadmium for each scene you go without breathing. This means that you can tap cadmium to
completely ignore some consequences from oxygen deprivation without rolling resistance. (However,
note that if something damages your throat, this can do you harm beyond the loss of air, which can
present consequences you can't avoid so easily.)
Heavy Breathing [fCadmium]: (non-canon) You've learned how to condense air, rather than just the
oxygen in your blood. You can push cadmium to do one of the following: blow out a candle, or similar
breath, from across the room — shout loudly enough to be heard for a city block. If you push
cadmium at least twice, add: blow a breath heavy enough to knock a man o^ his feet.

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 Variable Build [fBendalloy]: You're thinner when Jlling and fuller when tapping. Take +1D to Sway or
Consort if you tap 1 bendalloy or =ll 1 bendalloy as part of a disguise. (This is not "pushing bendalloy"
and can't be stacked, though you might be.)
Save This Buzz For Later [fBendalloy]: You can =ll bendalloy to resist consequences from ingesting
poison and similar detriments. You can put it into a Nutrition metalmind, but tapping it later might
have consequences; or you could put it into a dedicated Intoxication metalmind.

Combo Allomancy Special Abilities

These special abilities require the ability to burn multiple Allomantic metals. Thus, these are good for
Mistborn.

Metaldance [aIron] AND [aSteel]: While burning steel and/or iron, you can manoeuvre in impossible
ways. Take +1D and gain potency when Prowling via Ironpulls and Steeljumps.
Preternaturally-Graceful Metaljump [aPewter] AND ([aIron] or [aSteel]): Your pewter grace also
helps you with your steeljumps and ironslides to make sure you don't twist your ankle. While burning
pewter and iron or steel, your position is improved for Prowl done with allomancy.

Combo Feruchemy Special Abilities

These special abilities require capacity with multiple Feruchemical metals. Thus, these are good for
Full Feruchemists.
It's Me, Your Brother [fAluminium] AND [fDuralumin]: You may tap aluminium and/or duralumin to
Kash back to establishing relationships and cover identities for the current score. You can do this for
free once per score.

Unkeyed Metalminds [fAluminium] AND other Feruchemy: You can create "unkeyed metalminds"
that are not only usable by their creator, but by any Feruchemist with a matching power. Players can
declare any metalminds among the crew to be unkeyed, but only if you'd be able to "prime" them. (For
example: if you're a Full Feruchemist, then any crew metalmind can be unkeyed. But if you can only
store in aluminium and gold, then only aluminium and gold can be unkeyed.)

Resonance Special Abilities

These special abilities require both Allomancy and Feruchemy. Thus, these are useful for Twinborn,
Mistborn+Ferring, and Feruchemist+Misting packages.
Breaking The Rules [fNicrosil] AND other powers: With enough raw power, laws of Allomancy and
Feruchemy become more like 'guidelines'. You may push nicrosil to perform a feat among or like the
following with one of your other powers: Push/Pull on metals that are inside or piercing another's
body — Seek through a copper cloud — Soothe someone into unconsciousness — Soothe or Riot

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 someone burning copper — tap one of your metalminds which you can see but not touch — tap
someone else's metalmind — burn pewter or tap gold to heal into an idealised version of yourself —
and so on. Multiple nicrosil pushes can make more exotic e^ects possible, like steelpushing on trace
minerals.
Weighty Allomancy [fIron] AND ([aIron] or [aSteel]): Manipulating your body weight allows you to
Jne-tune your Pushes and Pulls, or to just plain overpower them. You can =ll 2 iron to push yourself in
feats of metallic acrobatics, or push iron when using incredible weight to Push and Pull in destructive
ways. The Jrst such push has double e^ect.

Fast Burn [fSteel] AND any Allomancy: Increasing your physical speed also increases how quickly
you burn your metals, and thus release more power from them. You can push steel to beneJt any
actions you take with your Allomancy. If you do, also take +1D to it, but you are then out of metals.
Sparking Emotions [fZinc] AND ([aZinc] or [aBrass]): When your mind accelerates, you can hammer
others' emotions like an automatic weapon. While burning zinc or brass, you can push zinc in feats of
emotional allomancy. The Jrst such push has double e^ect.
Self-Minted Coinshot ([aSteel]) AND any Feruchemy: Instead of normal coins, you use tiny
metalminds as your ammunition. These 'self-minted coins' are immune to being Pushed or Pulled by
anyone but you.

Compounding Special Abilities

Each Compounder will have a special ability which follows a template like the below.

Iron Compounder [aIron] AND [fIron]: You can compound weight by burning iron metalminds. See
the Compounding rules for further information.

Kandra Special Abilities

These special abilities can only be taken by kandra.
Inhumanly Beautiful: You're an artist with your body, capable of truly gorgeous looks. When you're
not impersonating someone speciJc, gain potency to actions helped by your attractiveness (such as
Sway or Consort).
Master of Keratin: You've mastered how to grow and manipulate keratin. Your nails can harden and
sharpen into dangerous claws, serving as a weapon with Quality equal to your Tier. In addition, you
can grow and alter hair, at the same pace as absorbing a body (including if you have Quick Change,
below).

Quick Change: You are especially skilled at absorbing bodies and changing form quickly. You can take
on a new form in minutes instead of hours. If you push yourself, you can do so in moments (and still
get one of the normal beneJts of pushing yourself).

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 Self-Repair: You're skilled at putting your body back together. Permanently Jll in one segment of your
healing clock. Once per score, you can roll Tinker as a fortune roll to Recover during the mission.
Skin Pocket: You can make 'pockets' in yourself to carry gear. You can carry up to 2 load of items
inside yourself, perfectly concealed. While they're inside you, metal objects cannot be detected,
Pushed, or Pulled by allomancy.

A Thousand Faces: You've learned how to use cartilage to change your facial structure on the Ky. This
improves your positioning when you're trying to avoid being recognised, and may completely remove
it as a possible consequence.

Crew Advancement
There are three distinct kinds of advancement for crews, each powered by di^erent resources.
Crew XP Jlls the crew advancement track and earns upgrades and special abilities.

Rep and Coin increase the crew's Tier, moving them generally up in the world.
Targeted missions can seize claims.

Crew XP
At the end of a session, review the XP triggers on your crew book sheet. For each one, mark 1 XP if it
happened at all, or mark 2 XP if it happened multiple times in the session. The XP triggers are:
One crew book-speciJc XP trigger, e.g. Execute a successful espionage, sabotage, or theft
operation. If the crew successfully completed an operation from this trigger, mark XP.
Contend with challenges above your current station. If you tangled with rival crews of higher
Tier, noble Great Houses with more money than morals, the Final Empire itself, or other
dangerous opposition, mark XP for this.
Bolster your crew's reputation or develop a new one. Take a look at your crew's reputation. If
your crew is "Honourable", then did you do something honourable? Will other factions tell stories
about how "Strange" you were?
Express the goals, drives, inner conTict, or essential nature of the crew. This trigger is very
broad. Essentially, did anything happen in this session that highlighted the elements that make
your crew distinctive and unique?

Marked XP goes into the crew XP track. When the track Jlls, clear all marks. First, each PC gets
stash equal to the crew's Tier+2, representing the proJts generated by the advancing crew. Second,
choose: either take one special ability from this or any crew book, or take two crew upgrades.

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 Tier Development
To move up the ladder and develop your crew's Tier, you need Rep. (See PayoP to see how Rep is
generated.)
When you Jll your Rep track on the crew's sheet, do one of the following:
If your stability is weak, it becomes strong. Clear your Rep track.

If your stability is already strong, then your crew is ready to develop. If you spend Coin equal to
your next Tier x 8 (so advancing from Tier I to Tier II costs 16 Coin), then increase your Tier by 1,
clear your Rep, and reduce your stability to weak. As long as your Rep track is full, you don't earn
new Rep.
When your crew's Tier increases, everything about them gets a little bit stronger. You a^ord better
equipment and a nicer lair; you attract more people to the gang, and your gangs' skills grow. And the
forces of the Final Empire and its underworld start taking more notice of you.

Claims
Each crew book has a map of claims available to be seized. Claims are territory, associates, and other
assets that beneJt the crew who controls them. As soon as you seize a claim, you enjoy the beneJts
listed with it.
Turf: Each turf claim you hold reduces your Rep cap by 1, so that it becomes easier to Jll your
Rep track and develop your Tier. In addition, holding turf improves your Hunting Grounds: you
can increase the scale of the area, or you can apply it to more specialties, or both.
Side Business: Some claims enable the crew to make more Coin over time, aside from their
missions. When you enter downtime, for each Side Business claim you have, make a Side Business
roll (below).

Take dice equal to crew Tier. Roll them and take the highest result.
If you have 1 or more Heat Levels, subtract 4. Otherwise, subtract the number of ticks
marked in your Heat Clock.
Take the result (minimum 0) as Coin.

Some claims count as turf, making it easier to Jll your rep track (and thus, develop your Tier). Others
provide special beneJts such as bonus dice in certain circumstances, extra Coin generated for the
crew's treasury, or new opportunities for action.
Every claim is already controlled by one faction or another. To acquire one for your crew, you have to
take it from someone else. Seizing a claim is a kind of mission. Tell the GM which claim your crew
intends to capture, and they will detail the claim with a description of its location and the faction
presently in control; or the GM may o^er you a choice of a few suitable options.
The claim map displays a default road map for your crew type. If a target claim is connected on the
map to claims you already have, then you can simply state your plan and detail and make the

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 engagement roll as with any other mission.
If you choose to ignore the roadmap paths when seizing a claim, the GM may tell you that you'll need
to investigate and gather information in order to discover a claim of that type, or to discover a
vulnerability you can exploit.

Execute the operation like any other mission, and if you succeed, you seize the claim and the targeted
faction loses it. Seizing a claim is a serious attack, usually resulting in a loss of faction status with the
target (and perhaps an increase in faction status with their enemies).
On the other side, an enemy faction may try to seize a claim that your crew holds. You can Jght to
defend it, or negotiate a deal, depending on the situation. If you lose a claim, you lose all beneJts of
that claim. If your lair is lost, you lose the beneJts of all your claims until you can restore your lair or
establish a new one, by accomplishing a suitable mission.

Crew Upgrades
Crew upgrades are assets that improve the crew's performance in some way: better assets,
improvements to your lair, or even NPC gangs and experts that work for your crew.

Lair Upgrades add abilities to the crew's lair.

Boat House: You have a boat, a dock on a waterway, and a small shack to store boating supplies.
A second upgrade improves the boat with armour and more cargo capacity. This enables the crew
to make use of the River Channerel and the canal routes throughout the Final Empire.
Carriage House: You have a carriage, horses to pull it, and a stable. A second upgrade improves
the carriage with armour and larger, swifter horses (though not Ryshadium!). This can enable the
crew to move with greater speed through the city streets — or to travel in privacy and style that
beJts a noble cover identity.

Hidden Lair: Your lair has a secret location and/or a disguise to hide it from view. If your lair is
discovered, use two downtime activities and pay Coin equal to your Tier to relocate and hide
again. This is good to model the 'security through obscurity' that can come from having a hidden
location (like stone caverns under the city) or a good front (like a legitimate business, while your
lair is in the back rooms).
Quarters: Your lair includes living quarters for the crew. Without this upgrade, each PC sleeps
elsewhere, and may be vulnerable when they do.
Secure Lair: Your lair has locks, alarms, and traps to thwart intruders. You might roll your
crew's Tier as a dice pool for these security measures. For a second upgrade, the security is
considered Fine and you roll Tier+1.
Vault: Your lair includes a secure vault for coin and other spoils. One upgrade increases your
crew's storage capacity to 8 Coin; a second upgrade raises it to 16 Coin. A separate part of your
vault can be used as a holding cell.

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 Workshop: Your lair has a workshop appointed with tools for tinkering and metallurgy, as well
as a small library of books, documents, and maps. You may accomplish long-term projects with
these assets without leaving your lair. For a second upgrade, the asset is Fine and you roll +1D for
those long-term projects.

Training Upgrades improve your crew's ability to advance.

Insight, Prowess, Resolve, and Personal Training: When you take the "train" downtime
activity, and your crew has an upgrade to match, mark 2 XP instead of 1. (e.g. If you spend a
downtime activity training your Insight track, and your crew has the Insight Training upgrade,
then you gain 2 XP.)
Mastery 1 (costs 2 upgrades): When you take this upgrade, choose Insight, Prowess, or Resolve.
Your actions under that attribute can now rise to a cap of 4 dots. (e.g. If you take Mastery 1 for
Prowess, then your cap for Finesse, Prowl, Skirmish, and Wreck rises; but all other actions still
have a cap of 3 dots.)
Mastery 2 (requires Mastery 1; costs 2 upgrades): Your cap for all action ratings rises to 4 dots.

Quality Upgrades improve the starting quality for speciJc item types used by your crew. This stacks
with any quality improvements from special items: If you have a Spectacular (+2) weapon, and your
crew has upgraded Weapon Quality, then that weapon is Tier+3 quality.
These are the item types your crew can upgrade.
Documents

Gear includes both Burglary Gear and Climbing Gear.

Supplies include Subterfuge Supplies.
Tools include Tinkering Tools and Demolition Tools.

Weapons

Each crew book also has a few special upgrades which are distinct to that type of crew.
Rigging Upgrades enable you to carry some gear for "free". The Shadows' Thief
Rigging enables you to carry 2 load worth of tools or gear (as in, tinkering tools, demolition tools,
climbing gear, or burglary gear) without it counting against your loadout.

Elite Cohort Upgrades improve the quality of speciJc cohorts. An Elite Skulks upgrade is
distinct from an Elite Hitters upgrade, for example.
Steady costs 3 crew upgrades, and gives each crew member +1 stress capacity.

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 Cohorts
Cohorts are the experts and gangs that work for your crew. To recruit a new cohort, spend two
upgrades and create them using one of the processes below.
When you create an expert, record their speciJc area of expertise. They might be a Doctor, a
Metallurgist, a Soother, and so on. An expert has quality equal to your crew's Tier+1, and their
quality increases when your crew moves up in Tier.

When you create a gang, Jrst choose their type from the below. A gang has scale and
quality equal to your crew's Tier.
Adepts: Scholars, tinkerers, and chemists.
Hitters: Killers, brawlers, and roustabouts. (Note that this is the cohort type named "thugs"
in normal Blades in the Dark, but that term means something else on Scadrial.)
Rooks: Con artists, spies, and socialites.

Rovers: Sailors, carriage drivers, and other transporters.

Skulks: Scouts, inJltrators, and thieves.
Next, choose 1 or 2 edges for the cohort.

Fearsome: The cohort is terrifying in aspect and reputation.

Independent: The cohort can be trusted to make good decisions and act on their own
initiative in the absence of direct orders.
Loyal: The cohort can't be bribed or turned against you.

Tenacious: The cohort won't be deterred from a task.

Lastly, choose as many Taws as edges.
Principled: The cohort has an ethic or values it won't betray.

Savage: The cohort is excessively violent and cruel.

Unreliable: The cohort isn't always available, due to other obligations, distractions, etc.
Wild: The cohort is drunken, debauched, and loud-mouthed.

You can add an additional type to a cohort by spending two crew upgrades: maybe those Skulks learn
how to Jght and also count as Hitters, or maybe that Soother expert also learns some medical skills.
When a cohort performs actions which match its type(s), it uses its full quality rating. Otherwise, its
quality is zero. A given cohort can have up to two types.
Each crew book also has one or two Elite Cohort upgrades they may choose, such as the Shadows'
Elite Skulks. This upgrade gives the cohort +1 quality to actions which match that type.
When you send a cohort to achieve a goal, roll their quality to determine how they perform. Or, a PC
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 using the appropriate action rating if they join in the task directly.
Cohorts su^er harm similarly to PCs. A cohort can su^er four levels of harm:

1. Weakened: The cohort has reduced e^ect.

2. Impaired: The cohort takes -1D.
3. Broken: The cohort can't do anything until they recover.

4. Dead: The cohort is destroyed.

All of your surviving cohorts heal during downtime. If circumstances are amenable to recovery, each
cohort reduces harm by one level automatically; or if a PC spends a downtime activity to help them
recuperate, then the cohorts reduce harm by a second level. If a cohort is destroyed, it may be
replaced by spending Coin equal to Tier+2 and two downtime activities.

bulleted

list

Chapter 3: Born in the Mist

This chapter provides information about the unique systems for this game, including the Metal Arts
and the mimicry skills of the kandra.

Allomancy
Allomancy is the Metal Art of ingesting metals and then "burning" them inside your body to release
the power. You can also extinguish the metal at will: it's like turning a battery-powered device on and
o^, rather than starting a rocket. The resulting e^ect is unique based on the metal used.
Only certain metals are "allomantically viable": eight di^erent elements and one alloy of each. Some
allomancers, called Mistings, are capable of burning only one metal. Others, called Mistborn, are
capable of burning all sixteen.

Allomancy System
In Born in the Mist, you don't track individual metals' burn duration. Instead, it's assumed that a
trained allomancer has their metals with them.

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 If you burn as part of an action, then it changes your Jctional positioning. This can alter your position
and e^ect, or enable actions that would be impossible otherwise. ("I need to get over this really high
wall" is a lot easier if you can drop a coin and steeljump over it, for example.) It also permits you to use
whatever special abilities you have that include triggers like "while burning pewter".
However, if you roll consequences on that action, then you might be out of metal reserves. You can
Resist that consequence as normal, or you can mark a point of load to use a Vial Of Metals item to
replenish.

If you Tare as part of an action, then upgrade your e^ect by one further level; but unless you roll a
Critical, you are then out of metal reserves (though you can resist as normal).

Misting List
Below is the list of sixteen allomantic metals and their e^ects, along with the nickname for Mistings
of that metal and the attribute to resist being out of metal reserves.
Physical
Iron (External Physical Pull, Prowess): Physically Pull on metals around you using your
allomantic power and body weight. So you might Pull on an arrow to bring it o^ course, or Pull
on metal in a third-story window frame to launch into the air. Iron Mistings are called
Lurchers.

Steel (External Physical Push, Prowess): Physically Push on metals around you. The opposite
e^ect of iron, able to turn a small metal coin into a deadly projectile. Steel Mistings are called
Coinshots.
Tin (Internal Physical Pull, Insight): Enhance all your senses, and even see perfectly through
the mists which gather at night. Tin Mistings are called Tineyes.
Pewter (Internal Physical Push, Prowess): Enhance your physical abilities — your strength,
speed, grace, and even your stamina and healing abilities. Pewter Mistings are called
Pewterarms or Thugs.

Mental
Zinc (External Mental Pull, Resolve): "Riot" others' emotions, heightening them. For
example, you could make someone more angry to the point they start a riot. Zinc Mistings are
called Rioters.
Brass (External Mental Push, Resolve): "Soothe" others' emotions, diminishing them. For
example, you could make someone less angry to the point they set down their weapons. Brass
Mistings are called Soothers.

Copper (Internal Mental Pull, Insight): Generate a "copper cloud". Copper clouds mask active
allomancy from bronze senses (below). Also, while burning copper, you are immune to Rioting
and Soothing. Copper Mistings are called Smokers or Copperclouds.

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 Bronze (Internal Mental Push, Insight): Sense the use of allomancy, perceiving it as
"allomantic pulses", drum beats with unique rhythms per metal. Bronze Mistings are called
Seekers.
Temporal: Outside of Gold, these metals are almost unknown in the Final Empire.

Cadmium (External Temporal Pull, Prowess): Create a bubble of contracted time around
you: a few minutes inside could be hours outside. Cadmium Mistings are called Pulsers.
Bendalloy (External Temporal Push, Prowess): Create a bubble of dilated time around you: a
few minutes inside could be only seconds outside. Bendalloy Mistings are called Sliders.
Gold (Internal Temporal Pull, Insight): Commune with shadows of alternate timeline selves,
people you could have been. Gold Mistings are called Augurs.

Electrum (Internal Temporal Push, Insight): See shadows of yourself, a few seconds into the
future. Electrum Mistings are called Oracles.
Enhancement: These metals are almost unknown in the Final Empire.
Chromium (External Enhancement Pull, Resolve): Burn while touching another allomancer
and you instantly erase their metal reserves. Chromium Mistings are called Leechers.

Nicrosil (External Enhancement Push, Resolve): Burn while touching another allomancer
and they use up their currently-burning metals in one incredible burst. For example, a
nicrobursted ironpull could bring an entire building down. Nicrosil Mistings are called
Nicrobursts.
Aluminium (Internal Enhancement Pull, n/a): Instantly wipe out your own metal reserves,
including the aluminium. Aluminium Mistings are called Aluminum Gnats.
Duralumin (Internal Enhancement Push, Insight): Burn with another metal to use up the
latter metal in an incredible burst. For example, a duralumin steelpush could send an entire
metal ship Kying. Duralumin Mistings are called Duralumin Gnats.

Atium
Atium is the most precious and powerful of Allomantic metals. It's a silvery metal that naturally
forms into small, solid beads. In the heart of a noble house's keep, there may be a safe containing a
small pouch of atium beads, and that pouch would be the most valuable thing the house owns — even
counting the keep itself.

When burning atium, the Allomancer sees "atium shadows" that predict a few seconds of the future
— and their mind is enhanced to keep up with all that information and use it to relentlessly demolish
their opposition.
The only way to survive Jghting someone like that is to counter it. If you burn atium or electrum of
your own, then your predictions and theirs clash with each other, so that they see all the
possibilities of what you can do, instead of seeing what you will do.

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 A single bead of atium is a special item with a minimum quality level of 4. Unlike standard metals,
you do track exactly how many beads you have. Acquiring it as an asset is prohibitively expensive, and
it's guarded preciously enough that any mission to steal it would be dibcult: you'd have to target at
least the Great Houses (Tier III) to have a chance at getting atium.

There are four possibilities when using atium in a Jght.

If your opponent burns atium and you can't counter with atium or electrum, then their potency
overwhelms yours. Actions taken against them have zero e^ect and desperate position. You will likely
die.
If you burn atium and your opponent can't counter, then you win the Jght in the way you describe,
without rolling any dice. Afterwards, the bead is used up.

If both you and your opponent burn atium, then the advantages cancel out and you determine
position and e^ect as normal. However, you each start a 4-clock, "Out of Atium". When the clock Jlls,
you need to either swallow another bead or change to one of the above rules (depending on who ran
out). Your clock ticks forward from complications on your action rolls, while the opponent's ticks
forward based on the e^ect level of your successes.
If one of you burns atium and the other burns electrum to counter, then the advantages don't exactly
cancel out. The atium-burner still has an advantage because of the mental enhancement (so you have
controlled position if you're the one burning atium, or desperate if it's your opponent, but your e^ect
level is unchanged).
You can track electrum either with an 8-clock, or abstract it using the normal rules for being "out of
metal reserves" as a complication on a 1-5 result. Either way, electrum is a standard metal and can be
replenished just by marking load as normal.

Who Can Burn Atium?

If you can get it and use it, atium is an incredibly powerful resource. Wars are fought for it and won
with it. Getting it is dibcult, but who can burn atium? There are two possibilities, equally canon.
GMs and players, make sure everyone understands which rule you're using.
In restricted atium, only Mistborn and Oracles (electrum Mistings) can burn atium.
In universal atium, all Allomancers can burn atium and become avatars of raw destruction — even a
humble Soother, Seeker, or Gnat.

Feruchemy
Feruchemy is the metal art of Jlling a piece of metal (called a metalmind) with an attribute so that
you can tap it later.

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 While you =ll a metalmind, the attribute is diminished. You could spend an hour with only 50% your
natural strength because you're storing the other half in your metalmind. Conversely, when you tap a
metalmind, you enhance that attribute, and can use it up at any speed. You could spend an hour with
150% your natural strength, thirty minutes with 200%, or one minute with 3100%.

The attribute which you can store depends on the metal you can use. Only certain metals can be used
for feruchemy — the exact same metals that can be used for allomancy, as it so happens. A
Feruchemist who can store in only one metal is called a Ferring, while one who can store in all is
called a Full Feruchemist.

Feruchemy System

Metalminds
Each Feruchemist has one or more metalminds. These are the metal objects in which they store their
attributes, and they often take the form of jewellery like rings or bracers. Each metalmind has a
Feruchemy track with an even number of boxes. A starting Feruchemist has eight Feruchemy boxes
to distribute among their metalminds, plus eight more for each special item pick dedicated to
metalminds.
If you are a Ferring, then all your metalminds are for the same metal (and thus attribute). If you are a
Full Feruchemist, then you must choose which metal each metalmind is made of.
If you take tin metalminds, then you must declare which sense each metalmind stores. One might be
a "sight tinmind", while another is a "hearing tinmind". Rules which refer to "tap tin-sight" mean
"clear boxes from a sight tinmind", for example.

(Example 1: Wayne is a Bloodmaker, a Ferring who can store health in gold. He keeps it simple, putting
all eight boxes into a single gold bracer which he wears.)
(Example 2: Wax is a Skimmer, a Ferring who can store weight in iron. He splits it evenly, with one
iron bracer that has a four-box track, and a second, backup bracer of the same length.)
(Example 3: Sazed is a Full Feruchemist, able to use all metals. He spends two special item picks to
have a total of 24 boxes to allocate. 8 of these are his copper bracers which store memory, but he also
takes a 6-box pewtermind, a 4-box steelmind, a 2-box tinmind dedicated to sight, and a 4-box
ironmind for weight.)
For a starting Feruchemist, half the Feruchemy boxes in each metalmind are already Jlled in, unless
you are a compounder.

Tapping
A Feruchemist can tap a metalmind to use the stored attribute for various purposes. To "tap X", you
must clear an equal number of already-Jlled Feruchemy boxes. If you "tap 2 strength", for example,

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 then you have to clear 2 boxes from the Feruchemy track of a strength metalmind. If all of a
metalmind's Feruchemy boxes are empty, then you can't tap.

Most functions of Feruchemy allow you to tap metalminds instead of, or combined with, spending
stress. You could tap 2 pewter to push yourself in a feat of strength; or if your resistance roll has left
you facing 3 stress, you could tap 1 steel and spend 2 stress, or any other combination.
Using Feruchemy to push yourself is called "pushing Feruchemy" (for example, "tap 2 steel to push
yourself" is abbreviated as "push steel"). Unlike pushing yourself with stress, you can stack the same
e^ect multiple times when pushing Feruchemy. You could spend six steel to push steel three times,
taking +2D and raising e^ect level by 1. Using up months or years of Feruchemy in one blazing
moment can create incredible results. When a special ability calls you to push Feruchemy for an
e^ect, you get that e^ect in addition to at least one normal e^ect of pushing yourself.

Some special abilities trigger by tapping or =lling a metalmind by a stated amount.

Storing
Outside of some special abilities (like Compounding), storing in metalminds is done in downtime.
For metals other than copper, choose one of the following for each downtime activity.

Don't store. You're at your best. Your dice pool is una^ected but you Jll no Feruchemy boxes.

Skim oP the top. Take -1D to the downtime activity's roll, but roll 1D and Jll an equal number of
Feruchemy boxes.
Give it your all. You can't do anything but store, whether because it's debilitating or because
it's a focused activity. This takes up the whole downtime activity, but you roll 3D and Jll an equal
number of Feruchemy boxes.

To Jll a copper metalmind, instead take the following downtime activity.

Copper Study. You dedicate your time to refreshing the subjects in your copperminds or
reading and adding new material. Roll Study and Jll an equal number of Memory boxes.
If all boxes in a metalmind's Feruchemy track are full, then you cannot store further, and abilities
which are triggered by storing cannot be used with that metalmind. However, neither can that
metalmind be manipulated by iron or steel allomancy.

Alternative Rules
If you don't like the bookkeeping of the above, you can use one or more of these simpliJed alternative
rules.

Simpli=ed Metalminds: Instead of deJning metalminds, you have a single Feruchemy track
which starts at eight boxes, modiJed by special item picks. When you tap Feruchemy, declare
which of your available Feruchemical attributes each tapped box uses.

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 If you are a compounder (below), you still need to allocate boxes between your compounding
attribute and "general Feruchemy".

Simpli=ed Storing: Instead of using the storing rules, when declaring load for a score, Jll half
of your Feruchemy boxes.

Compounding
If you are able to store Feruchemical charge in and Allomantically burn the same metal, you are able
to burn your metalminds. This releases an incredible burst of the Feruchemical attribute, as it draws
the power from the source of Allomancy instead of from you. You can store this burst, then burn
that metalmind for an even greater burst, and so on. This is called compounding.
Each Compounding ability uses a speciJc metal and thus a speciJc attribute. This is your
compounding attribute, and your metalminds which use the same metal/attribute are your
compounding metalminds. When declaring load for a score, completely Jll the Feruchemy tracks for
all your compounding metalminds.
During a score, you can mark 1 load to reJll one of your compounding metalminds by swallowing and
burning a vial of your compounding metal.

Ferring List
Below is the list of sixteen feruchemical metals and the attributes they can hold, along with the
nicknames for Ferrings who use that metal.

Physical Attributes

Iron stores physical weight. Iron Ferrings are called Skimmers. The Feruchemist is lighter
while storing and heavier while tapping. Tap iron to push yourself in feats of weight (landing a
heavy punch, holding a door against assault, iron and steel Allomancy).
Steel stores physical speed. Steel Ferrings are called Steelrunners. Tap steel to push
yourself in feats of speed or to resist consequences that could be physically dodged.

Tin stores individual physical senses. One tinmind might store your visual acuity while
another stores your sense of pain, for example. Tin Ferrings are called Windwhisperers. Tap
tin to push yourself in feats of perceptiveness (especially Study and Survey), resist
consequences from deceit, or Kash back to Jnding earlier details.

Pewter stores physical strength. Pewter Ferrings are called Brutes. When tapping strength,
a Feruchemist's muscles grow visibly larger. Tap pewter to push yourself in feats of strength.
Cognitive Attributes

Zinc stores mental speed. Zinc Ferrings are called Sparkers. Tap zinc to push yourself in
feats of perceptiveness, reaction speed, or improvisation, or to Kash back.

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 Brass stores warmth. Brass Ferrings are called Firesouls. The Feruchemist is cooler while
storing and warmer while tapping. Tap brass to resist consequences of intense cold; Jll brass
to resist consequences of intense heat.

Copper stores memories. Copper Ferrings are called Archivists. Rather than manipulating
a general attribute, copper stores speciJc memories, such as the text of a book. Tap copper to
push yourself in feats of knowledge or memory or to Kash back.
Bronze stores wakefulness. Bronze Ferrings are called Sentries. Tap bronze to push yourself
on feats of alertness (especially Survey) or to resist consequences of inattention or sleepiness.

Spiritual Attributes: Note that understanding of the Spiritual attributes of Feruchemy is

limited. Even most Feruchemists don't fully understand what they're doing or how it works. Thus,
basic uses of the Spiritual attributes are limited, and learning speciJc applications of them is done
by taking Feruchemy special abilities or sometimes by long-term projects.

Chromium stores Fortune. Chromium Ferrings are called Spinners. Tap chromium to push
yourself, resist consequences, or Kash back in any way which can be supported by random luck.
Nicrosil stores Investiture. Nicrosil Ferrings are called Soulbearers. Tap nicrosil to push
yourself in feats using any of your other Metal Arts.

Aluminium stores Identity. Identity Ferrings are called Trueselves. Tap aluminium to resist
consequences from persuasion or manipulation.

Duralumin stores Connection. Duralumin Ferrings are called Connectors. Tap duralumin
to push yourself in feats of social charm.
Hybrid Attributes

Gold stores health. Gold Ferrings are called Bloodmakers. Tapping enough health enables
otherwise impossible healing, like regenerating lost limbs. Tap gold to resist consequences of
physical harm, push yourself to act despite being incapacitated by injury, or 1-to-1 to directly
Jll your Healing clock.

Electrum stores determination. Electrum Ferrings are called Pinnacles. Tapping electrum
can put you into a manic phase. Tap electrum to push yourself in feats of motivation or focus
and resist consequences from despair.
Cadmium stores oxygen. Cadmium Ferrings are called Gaspers. Tap cadmium to push
yourself in feats of endurance or resist consequences from su^ocation. Tap 1 cadmium for each
action you take while holding your breath.

Bendalloy stores sustenance. Bendalloy Ferrings are called Subsumers. You need separate
metalminds for nutrition and hydration. Tap bendalloy to push yourself in feats of endurance
or resist consequences from deprivation. Tap 1 bendalloy to go for a day without food with no
detriment.

Kandra

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 To put it simply: kandra are shapeshifting goo-people. A kandra's natural shape is translucent and
boneless, but they can alter and transform themselves at will. With the right sca^olding, they could
make any face, become any person. Within the underworld and among the noble houses, kandra are
considered the ultimate spies and impersonators. Under their Contracts, paid for with precious
atium, they will do anything but kill.

Kandra shapeshifting is mostly a matter of Jctional positioning. If someone comes up to you with
Aleth's face, Aleth's voice, Aleth's stature — his very bones — and says "I am Aleth," then that Sway
will be much more e^ective. Kandra can do things that humans just can't.
There are some thing to keep in mind about what kandra can and can't do.

Fundamentally, kandra cannot make bones. To take any shape other than "boneless lump", they need
some kind of sca^olding.

Most often, their Contract-holder will provide a cadaver. In a process that usually takes at least an
hour, the kandra will absorb the Kesh, memorising its structure, and arrange the bones and hair
perfectly. The end result is visibly indistinguishable from the original.
For a kandra, bones are thus an important part of gear. Generic bones are a special item that costs no
picks, but bones with a purpose — enabling the impersonation of a speciJc individual, for example —
must be taken with picks.

Kandra also cannot make their own hair or fur, though they can make cartilage and nails. They need
props, often keeping the hair from the original body as well, but these are not tracked as closely as
bones.

However, kandra are not psychic. To perfectly impersonate a subject, they Jrst need to spend time
Studying and observing them to learn their mannerisms, behaviours, and history. They are, however,
very very skilled at doing this.

Kandra biology is very di^erent from human. They're extremely long-lived: some kandra are still alive
since the beginning of the Final Empire, a thousand years ago. Stabbing, shooting, and smashing
them causes pain and may break precious bones (which kandra cannot organically repair), but the
only ways to actually kill them are acid, Jre, and starvation.

Because of debilitation from pain, organ damage, and especially bone damage, kandra still use most of
the same Harm rules as human characters. The main di^erence is lethal harm: a kandra should only
be faced with the risk of death if the harm comes from one of the above sources.

However, kandra are also totally dependent on their Blessings. Every kandra has a pair of hemalurgic
spikes which grants them sapience, as well as enhancing one of their attributes (such as physical
prowess). If one spike is removed, their mind grows unstable; if both are removed, they will revert to
their natural state: a mindless, shambling mistwraith.

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 Meta

Changelog
v0.1: Initial document with systems for Investing during character creation, Feruchemy, and
Allomancy. Initial set of Single Allomancy Special Abilities.

V0.1.1: Added the Jrst set of Single Feruchemy Special Abilities for all metals.

V0.2.0: Transcribed the full set of original Blades in the Dark SRD rules, plus a section showing
the speciJc tweaks for Born in the Mist. Added the link for the Google Sheet with the character
playbooks and crew books.
V0.2.1: Amended character creation.

All characters take a Special Ability, though which they qualify for depends on their Invest
package.

Special Item picks now cost 1 invest point each, rather than 1 point for 2 picks.
V0.3: Added the section on Kandra and the Jrst six special kandra abilities; added the rules for
atium.

V0.4: Added sample Special Permissions, including hemalurgic spikes. Added Self-Minted
Coinshot special ability. SimpliJed the cost of the Jrst metalmind.

To Do
Basic playbooks (for now, just use the ones from Blades in the Dark)
One or two Single Feruchemy Special Abilities for each metal

System for Kandra, including special abilities

Crew books
Transcribe/edit the original rules so the document can be a one-stop shop

Note: "Faction development" and "Claims" haven't been copied over from The Faction Game.
This will instead go directly into the Crew chapter.

"Advancement" has also not been copied from The Basics. That will go into the Character
section of chapter 2.
Special Items section

Character Advancement section

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 Crew creation section
Crew Advancement section

Player best practices section

GM advice section
Advice for designing special abilities. The current list is not intended to be exhaustive.

Setting information?

Hemalurgy system

Acknowledgements
Brandon Sanderson created the world of Mistborn, which this game uses as a setting.
This work is based on Blades in the Dark (found at http://www.bladesinthedark.com/), product of One
Seven Design, developed and authored by John Harper, and licensed for our use under the Creative
Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/).

Crafty Games created the original Mistborn Adventure Game. Names from this game have been used
for various system examples. It and the Coppermind website have been used as references for
di^erent e^ects from the magic system.

John LeBouef-Little and Stras Acimovic created Scum and Villainy, which originated the "Gambits"
system.

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