E M E R A L D  C I T Y  C H R O N I C L E S

GAMEPLAY: PERMUTATIONS: BACKROUNDS: ALLIES

 

Allies is per V20 rules.

 

Each dot of Allies represents a single mortal individual of various power - generally tied to influence spheres or with particularly useful skills. You must define these at creation.

 

Allies may ask for favors in return for assistance.

 

Allies is the primary NPC-related method of finding teachers for your character for non-supernatural skills and abilities. When defining Allies, to learn specific skills or justify access to a particular background or area of influence please choose the following:

 

• Ally name

• A combination of:

 

1 Influence & 1 Skill

 

- OR - 

 

2 Influences (a major and a minor - see the Influence rules for more info)

 

- OR - 

 

2 Skills

 

Allies are considered to have 8 dice in their listed items, and 3 dice in anything else they might be required to roll.

 

Each level of the Ally background grants you another mortal, thus causing you to define two more items for the new person. 

 

Allies (and Retainers) do not gain the mechanical advantage of a Specialty. They are already potent enough as it is; this is the realm of PCs and other Supernatural beings.

 

Using Allies: Using an Ally doesn't cost a downtime action, and they may be tasked with more than one task a month. However, abuse of allies will cause them to leave your service, necessitating loss of the background or further story to justify continued use. Ally usage of Influence doesn't take the usual month of downtime either, as these mortals are considered to be directly connected to their Spheres of Influence rather than shadowy manipulators.

 

For supernatural allies, see the Mentor Background.