True to type, those who bear the Bright Mark are feared, reviled and envied throughout the Iron Empires. Most psychologists are trained in either secret cabals called “Foundations” or individually by hermits living in the wilds of sparsely populated worlds. The Church molds them into fearsome Inquisitors (but those lifepaths are in the Theocracy setting).
Circle of 10,000
Only the Karsan League has managed to form an organized
and sanctioned structure for the psychologists born into their empire.
It is called the Circle of 10,000—though no one knows its true membership. Young men and women who bear the Bright Mark are brought into the Circle, trained in the use of their talent and fostered on the precepts of the order.
Lifepath time ResouRces ciRcLes stat
Apprentice 7 yrs 1 0 +1 M
Skills: 5 pts: Meditation, Eremite-wise, Remote Location-wise, Cold-wise, Begging, Persuasion
Traits: 1 pt: Bright Mark, Unwelcome, Gift of Ahmilahk Requirements: If chosen, this must be the second lifepath.
Novitiate 8 yrs 1 0 +1 M/P
Skills: 5 pts: Circle of 10,000-wise, Close Combat, Etiquette, Oratory, Psychologist-wise
Traits: 1 pt: Bright Mark, Bastard
Requirements: Mark of Privilege. If chosen, this must be the second lifepath.
Foundation Student 8 yrs 1 1 +1 M, P
Skills: 8 pts: Psychologist-wise, Research, Rhetoric, History, Advanced Mathematics
Traits: 1 pt: Bright Mark
Requirements: If chosen, this must be the second lifepath.
Circle of 10,000 8 yrs 2 1 +1 M, P
Skills: 7 pts: Psychology, Strategy, Tactics, Command, Intimidation Traits: 2 pts: Warrior’s Code, Cool-Headed, Codebreaker, Anvil Trained Requirements: Novitiate or Inquisitor. This path may only be taken once.
1
Psychologist 6 yrs 1 1 +1 M/P
Skills: 7 pts: Psychohistory, Persuasion, Conspicuous, Inconspicuous, Psychology
Traits: 2 pts: The Psychologist’s Code, Fearless, Imperious, Vainglorious, Pharisaical, Codebreaker
Requirements: Foundation Student or Apprentice
Speaker 8 yrs 2 2 +1 M
Skills: 6 pts: Administration, Ugly Truth, Soothing Platitudes, Apprentice-wise, Student-Apprentice-wise, Foundation-wise
Traits: 2 pts: Eerily Confident
Requirements: The character must have taken Psychologist twice.
First Speaker 12 yrs 3 2 —
Skills: 4 pts: Oratory, Circle of 10,000-wise, Speaker-wise. 4 pts: General.
Traits: 2 pts: Weight of the Galaxy
Requirements: The character must have taken Speaker twice.
Eremite 10 yrs 1 0 +1 M
Skills: 6 pts: Psychology, Strategy Games, Composition, Ugly Truth.
1 pt: General.
Traits: 1 pt: Garlic Breath, Lonely, Genius
Requirements: Mule, Apprentice or First Speaker. This may not be the third lifepath.
Spacefarer
The Spacefarer Setting consists of the merchant marine, private ships, public transport and pirate vessels.
These are individuals who crew non-military hammer assets, bringing news and supplies to the scattered worlds of the Iron Empires.
Spacefarers are vital to the
survival of these worlds, yet they are universally distrusted. There’s just something suspicious about a person who spends his whole life in space. Never know what he could encounter there.
Lifepath time ResouRces ciRcLes stat
Son of a Gun 12 yrs 1 0 —
Skills: 2 pts: General
Traits: 2 pts: Distortion Monkey, Cynical, Chronic Depression, Distrustful
Yeoman 3 yrs 0 0 +1 P
Skills: 5 pts: Crew, Back-Breaking Labor, Cleaning-wise, Close Combat Traits: 1 pt: Hazed, Distortion Sickness, Bulldog
1
The Iron Empires
Ship Rigger 3 yrs 0 0 +1 P
Skills: 5 pts: Repair, Damage-wise, Fire Control, Ship-wise Traits: 1 pt: Black Fingernails
Requirements: Yeoman
Cook 5 yrs 1 1 —
Skills: 4 pts: Cooking, Stone Soup-wise, Commissary-wise Traits: 1 pt: Strange
Requirements: Yeoman
Sense Rigger 3 yrs 1 0 —
Skills: 4 pts: Sensors, Glitch-wise, Profile-wise Traits: 2 pts: Light Sleeper
Requirements: Yeoman
Sig Rigger 3 yrs 1 0 +1 M
Skills: 4 pts: Signals, Jury-Rigging, Strange Signals-wise Traits: 2 pts: Good Listener
Requirements: Yeoman
Gun Rigger 2 yrs 1 0 +1 P
Skills: 3 pts: Vehicular Weapons, Vehicular Weapon-wise Traits: 2 pts: Alert
Requirements: Yeoman
Pilot 4 yrs 2 0 +1 M/P
Skills: 4 pts: Pilot, Helm, Ship-wise Traits: 2 pts: Illegal Crucis, Flyboy
Requirements: Sense Rigger, Navigator, or two Yeoman lifepaths
Cargo Master 5 yrs 2 1 —
Skills: 5 pts: Bargaining, Cargo-wise, Supply-wise, Black Market-wise Traits: 2 pts: Shrewd, Self-Satisfied, Hungry
Requirements: Navigator, or two Spacefarer lifepaths
Doctor 5 yrs 2 1 —
Skills: 5 pts: Surgery, Pharmacology, Triage-wise Traits: 1 pt: Grim, Practical
Requirements: Apprentice, Novitiate, Physician, Surgeon or any Student
Navigator 4 yrs 2 1 +1 M
Skills: 6 pts: Navigation, System-wise, Trade Route-wise, Space Anomaly-wise Traits: —
Requirements: Corvus and Crucis or Illegal Crucis trait
Ship’s Engineer 6 yrs 2 1 +1 M/P
Skills: 6 pts: Engineering, Life Support-wise, Cryonics, Fabrication, Armorer Traits: 2 pts: Practical
Requirements: Shipfitter, Ship Rigger or Machinist
1
Scientist 5 yrs 2 1 +1 M
Skills: 7 pts: Physics, Science, Technology-wise, Phenomenon-wise, Distortion-wise
Traits: 1 pt: Curious
Requirements: Ship’s Engineer, Physicist or Navigator
First Officer 5 yrs 1 1 +1 M
Skills: 8 pts: Ship Management, Intimidation, Command, Persuasion, Tactics, Crew-wise, Mercator-wise
Traits: 1 pt: Undeterred
Requirements: Lieutenant, Hammer Master, Discipline Officer, Navigator, Physicist, Scientist, Cargo Master or Ship’s Engineer
Ship’s Captain 6 yrs 2 1 —
Skills: 9 pts: Embargo-wise, Void-wise, Border-wise, Spacefarer-wise, Captain-wise, Hammer-wise, Bargaining. 1 pt: General.
Traits: 2 pts: Aloof, Privateer, Owner-Aboard, Well-Known Requirements: First Officer, Psychologist or Lord-Pilot Hammer
Owner-Aboard 4 yrs 2 1 +1 M/P
Skills: 4 pts: Exotic Locations-wise, Obscure Locations-wise, Foreign Languages. 2 pts: General.
Traits: 2 pts: My Ship, My Rules; Uneasy, Dashing
Requirements: The character must purchase a ship as part of his starting resources and must begin with an exponent 7 or higher Resources.
Freeman
The Freemen are the working class of the Iron Empires, skilled labor who support the body of nearly every power structure, whether it be a Noble Fief or a democratic Commune. Freemen are born into their class and owe no allegiance to a lord or master—save for taxes.
Lifepath time ResouRces ciRcLes stat
Born to Freeman 10 yrs 0 0 —
Skills: 3 pts: General
Traits: 1 pt: Working Class, Morose, Sullen, Troubled
Kid 4 yrs 0 0 —
Skills: 4 pts: Ugly Truth, Trouble-wise, Inconspicuous Traits: 2 pts: Good for Nothing, Bad Egg
Requirements: If chosen, this must be the second lifepath and may only be taken once.
Student 6 yrs 0 1 —
Skills: 5 pts: Institutional Hell-wise, Repair, Drugs-wise, Parent-wise Traits: 2 pts: Bruised Eyes, Rebel
Lazy Stayabout 4 yrs 0 0 —
Skills: 4 pts: Lazy-wise, Work-wise, Wife-wise Traits: 1 pt: Laconic, Pudgy
15 The Iron Empires
Peddler 5 yrs 1 0 —
Skills: 5 pts: Persuasion, Inconspicuous, Falsehood, Trinket-wise Traits: 2 pts: Odd
Courier 4 yrs 0 1 —
Skills: 4 pts: Streetwise, Inconspicuous, Client-wise Traits: 1 pt: Late
Laborer 4 yrs 1 0 —
Skills: 2 pts: Back-Breaking Labor Traits: 2 pts: Proud, Drunk, Wife-Beater
Pilgrim 2 yrs 0 1 —
Skills: 4 pts: Holy Sites-wise, City-wise, Temple-wise Traits: 1 pt: Stinky
Functionary 4 yrs 1 0 —
Skills: 4 pts: Office Politics-wise, Office Technology-wise, Accounting Traits: 1 pt: Crushing Boredom
Requirements: Student or Foundation Student
Service Worker 3 yrs 1 0 —
Skills: 4 pts: Customer-wise, Food Service, Body Service Traits: 1 pt: Abused, Hater
Parent 8 yrs 1 1 —
Skills: 3 pts: Child Rearing, Child-wise Traits: 2 pts: Raw-Nerved
Requirements: May not be the character’s second lifepath
Driver 4 yrs 1 1 —
Skills: 4 pts: Driving, Sled-wise, Highway-wise Traits: 1 pt: Sleep Disorder
Requirements: May not be the character’s second lifepath
Hosteler 6 yrs 2 1 —
Skills: 4 pts: Cooking, Soothing Platitudes, Guest-wise Traits: —
Requirements: Parent, Shopkeeper, Cargo Master, Hammer Master or Smuggler
Shopkeeper 6 yrs 2 1 —
Skills: 5 pts: Bargaining, Goods-wise, Trader-wise, Manufacturer-wise Traits: 1 pt: This Is a Store Not a Library!, Friendly Face, Mean Requirements: Smuggler, Criminal, Parent, Driver, Lazy Stayabout or
Service Worker
Fabricator 5 yrs 2 0 —
Skills: 3 pts: Fabrication, Technology-wise Traits: 1 pt: Scarred Hands, Clever Requirements: Student, Laborer
1
Apprentice Craftsman 6 yrs 0 0 —
Skills: 3 pts: Mending, Codger-wise Traits: 1 pt: Resigned
Craftsman 7 yrs 2 1 +1 M/P
Skills: 4 pts: Craft, Appraisal, Bargaining Traits: 1 pt: Professional Pride
Requirements: Apprentice Craftsman
Trader 6 yrs 2 2 +1 M
Skills: 5 pts: Bargaining, Merchant-wise, Shopkeeper-wise, Manufacturer-wise Traits: 1 pt: Open-Minded, Penny-wise, Well-Traveled
Requirements: Shopkeeper, Hosteler, Manufacturer, Craftsman or Traveler
Engineer 7 yrs 2 1 +1 M
Skills: 4 pts: Engineering, Excavation, Structure-wise Traits: 1 pt: Practical, Erudite
Requirements: Student plus Fabricator or Craftsman
Manufacturer 8 yrs 3 1 —
Skills: 4 pts: Manufacture, Administration, Accounting, Worker-wise Traits: 1 pt: Automator, Think Big
Requirements: Trader, Engineer or Craftsman
Artisan 10 yrs 3 1 +1 M/P
Skills: 8 pts: Client-wise, Shipwright, Architect, Physics, Fusion Dynamics Traits: 2 pts: Steady Hands, Genius
Requirements: Engineer