Resolve
From Mizahar Lore
Resolve is a special character trait that represents a character’s defense against mental and spiritual attacks and damage. Such attacks may be magical, non-magical or divine in nature. When on the opposite end of attempts at interrogation, intimidation, torture, persuasion or seduction, Resolve represents the ability to resist such such attempts. Knowledge of such skills as well ability in the art of meditation and endurance can help build resolve and strengthen it.
Resolve offers defense against magic such as Hypnotism, Leeching, Possession and against some gnosis such as Chaon. It offers protection against the possession attempts of ghosts. It also helps fend off the effects of Overgiving and determines how much personal djed one is able to access for the sake of using personal magic.
Resolve is not magic resistance. It is the spiritual and mental strength of an individual and their ability to resist such damage.
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How Does Resolve Work
Resolve is treated similarly to skills as far as dicing goes. When one’s resolve is challenged such as being interrogated or tortured, they would roll 1d100 and add their resolve against the character who is interrogating or torturing them who would be rolling 1d100 plus their skill points in interrogation or torture. The highest score wins.
When being the target of magic such as Hypnotism, Leeching or Possession (ghosts), a character would first defend themselves with that same magic (in the case of Hypnotism or Leeching). One who is targeted with Hypnotism would defend with Hypnotism. 1d100 + Hypnotism skill points, highest wins; the same with Leeching. In the case of Possession by ghosts, Spiritism would be used. 1d100 + Possession skill points vs 1d100 + Spiritism; of course, Spiritism offers a few extra defensive measures based on skill level.
Alternatively, if the target is not skilled in one of these disciplines or their resolve is higher than their skill level in one of these disciplines, they may substitute their resolve skill in place of their magic skill. 1d100 + Resolve vs 1d100 + magic skill points, highest wins.
What is my Resolve Score?
Resolve is possessed by all living and non-living (undead) things. As mentioned, it acts like a skill and as such, it comes with its own points. Consider it like this:
1-25 (Weak Resolve) 26-50 (Moderate Resolve) 51-75 (Strong Resolve) 76 – 100 (Powerful Resolve)
It is determined as follows:
Mundane animals and children – 15 Starting Resolve
Player Characters and NPCs – 26 Starting Resolve
Increasing Resolve
There are three methods of increasing one’s resolve.
The First Method
Acquire skills that either build one’s resolve and/or attack the resolve of another. These skills are:
Interrogation (Knowing how to draw information from a person through mental manipulation, reading and employing body language and exerting one’s will in order to get the person to reveal information they otherwise wouldn’t, grants the character the ability to recognize how to prepare themselves against these same techniques. This results in a small boost to resolve.)
Intimidation (Using one’s physical, emotional and/or mental presence to make one feel awkward, inferior and inept, allows the person to understand how to defend against such acts when they are used against them. This in turn results in a small boost to resolve.)
Meditation (Focusing one’s thoughts, emotions and getting the body and mind on the same page, is the epitome of mental and spiritual resolve. Finding the right mental, spiritual and physical balance results in a boost to resolve.)
Leadership, Persuasion or Seduction (either/or) (Being a good leader; able to inspire, direct and manage people and situations, using one’s own physical and intellectual gifts to get others to do what they want, employing sexuality to manipulate another, these are all traits that prepares a person to recognize and resist such things if necessary. As such, they offer a boost to resolve.)
Endurance (Being able to withstand physical burdens and push one’s body beyond normal limits are skills that mean absolutely nothing without the mental fortitude to back them up. If the mind is not capable of pushing the body past its limits, then the body will fail. As a result, resolve receives a boost.)
Torture (Knowing how to cut just the right way, squeeze the right spot, break the right bone or twist the right piece, grants a person the knowledge of how best to separate themselves from such pain. In turn, they gain a boost to resolve.)
These 6 skills (Leadership, Persuasion and Seduction, for the sake of determining bonus to Resolve, are either/or) can increase one’s resolve by 1 point for each skill level (Novice, Competent, Expert, Master). They can stack for a total of 24 points. So, if a character has Novice Intimidation, Expert Persuasion and Novice Torture, they can add 5 points to their Moderate Resolve for a total of 31. Children cannot increase their Resolve to Competent through this method.
The Second Method
The link between the divine and their followers is a strong one. The deity creates a connection between them and their follower and shares a bit of their energy with that follower. While possessing a single gnosis mark is not enough to boost resolve, having two marks from a single deity is a significant enough of a connection that it increases one’s spiritual strength (Resolve).
Having 2 marks from a single god or goddess immediately boosts the character’s resolve by one complete level of strength. If the character has a Moderate Resolve, it becomes Strong (51). If they had a Strong Resolve, it becomes Powerful (76). The bonuses from the beforementioned relevant skills then transfer to this next level. So, our example of a character with Moderate Resolve who has Novice Intimidation, Expert Persuasion and Novice Torture, gains 2 marks from a single god. They can now add those 5 points to their Strong Resolve for a total of 55.
This increase in resolve only applies to a single instance of 2 marks from any one deity. Multiple single marks or even multiple duel marks, do not count.
The Third Method
When a character has been around and active for an especially long time, they tend to build up quite a bit of experience, skill and knowledge. They’ve seen a lot, done a lot and have grown in many ways. This is represented by having a higher resolve. This is determined by a character’s average post count. The average post count equals the character’s total post count divided in half. It is divided in order to adjust for out-of-character posts.
An average post count of 1,500 will increase one’s resolve by one level of strength. If the character has a Moderate Resolve, it becomes Strong (51). If they had a Strong Resolve, it becomes Powerful (76). The bonuses from the beforementioned relevant skills then transfer to this next level. So, for example, a character with Strong Resolve who has Novice Intimidation, Expert Persuasion and Novice Torture, gains 2 marks from a single god and has a 1,500 average post count can now add those 5 points to their Powerful Resolve for a total of 81. If they did not have 2 marks from a single deity, they would instead increase their Moderate Resolve to Strong and add the five points for a total of 56.
This can also translate to certain especially powerful NPCs. NPCs who possess a number of Master level skills, who are uniquely gifted such as Druvin or Divine Champions, may also be considered as having the equivalent of high average post count for the sake of determining higher resolve.
Examples
A starting character has a base of 26 in Resolve. They have Novice Leadership, Expert Endurance and Novice Meditation. For the two Novice skills, they add 1 point each to their Resolve. For the Expert skill, they add 3 points. This gives a total of 5 points added to the base Resolve of 26 for a total of 31. This character would have a Resolve of 31.
If this same character had 2 Gnosis marks from a single Deity, their base Resolve would be 51. They would then add the 5 points from their relevant skills to this for a total Resolve of 56.
If this same character instead had average Post Count of 1,500 (3,000 total post count), they would have a base Resolve of 51 with the 5 points added from the relevant skills for a total Resolve of 56.
If this same character had both an average Post Count of 1,500 AND 2 marks from a single deity, their base Resolve would be 76. They would then add the 5 points from their relevant skills to get a total Resolve of 81.
Basically, when your Resolve increases by a full level through average Post Count and/or having 2 Gnosis Marks, you take on that new base Resolve score and add in any relevant skill bonuses to find your final total.
Resolve and Magic Use
Resolve represents the mental and spiritual strength of a character which means that it also governs the personal djed that all living and un-living creatures possess. While one’s skill in a certain magical discipline grants them knowledge of its use, it does not determine their personal pool of djed from which their use of personal magic draws from; this is an unquantifiable concept that varies from person to person. There is no set pool of djed for any particular character. When one draws upon their personal djed to manipulate it into magic, it is taxing. If one draws upon too much personal djed, they risk overgiving. Resolve determines how resistant one is to overgiving from excessive magical use under taxing conditions.
How much personal djed is used in a particular magical manipulation depends on the skill level that the character is using for that particular manipulation. If a character is creating effects with personal magic that would otherwise be beyond their normal magical routine; practices that go beyond their comfort level and experience, then they need to worry about overgiving.
Resolve and Overgiving
Overgiving is the disruptive consequence of casting too much personal magic, overexerting the wizard's body, mind and soul. It brings a host of negative effects that are related the disciplines the mage practices but include physical, mental and spiritual damage. While milder cases can be recovered from with rest and medical care, the more severe forms can be irreversible and affect one's form, identity, soul, and mental state in minor or major ways. In the worst scenario, the subject might not be unrecognizable afterwards. Resolve, along with its other uses, represents one’s ability to resist the effects of overgiving. Overgiving results primarily from casting personal magic while engaged in stressful activities or under stressful conditions. These can include combat, fear, anger, sadness and any number of extreme emotional states that could cause stress.