FAQ

By DarthDude, in Genesys

  • Rules Question:
    In a previous question about whether or not Ranged Defense was applicable against Magic Attacks it was stated that Magic Attacks were like Ranged attacks in that regard and that Ranged Defense does apply to the roll. Can you please explain what things effect a magic attack, is it all things that would affect ranged attacks, such as the penalties for 'Making Ranged Attacks At Engaged Targets' or 'Making Ranged Attacks While Engaged'? Does the Close Combat effect change the attack to a melee attack or just allow the ability to target an engaged opponent? How do talents affect the dice pool of a Magic Attack, such as Side Step, Defensive Stance, Dodge, etc..?

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In short, yes. A magic attack can be treated like any other ranged attack in most respects, which includes ranged defense and talents that defend against ranged attacks. As for the “close combat” upgrade, you can think of that more as the same difficulty increase you would see from using a Ranged (Light) weapon to target an engaged foe.
(Of course, if you want to narratively describe your attack as a flaming sword or ice spear, I’m sure your GM would be fine with the embellishment. They may even let you ignore Side Step or Ranged Defense as a reward for your creativity, but that’s -as always-something to resolve with your GM and up to their discretion, since it changes the rules as they are written.)
Hope this helps!
Sam Stewart
RPG Manager
Fantasy Flight Games

Edited by Silverfox13

Rules Question:
Hi guys, I was wondering how you pronounce Ynfernael?

Answer:

Hi Richard! This is a great question and we had fun asking around the office on it. We generally pronounce it just as “Infernal” here but I’ve also heard some groups using “Yin-fernal” too.

Hope this helps and thanks for playing!

Tim Huckelbery

RPG Producer

Fantasy Flight Games

Rules Question:
For the augment and curse spells, do you actually just add/remove an ability die or do you upgrade/downgrade your ability dice pool? The way it's worded makes it seem like you just add/remove a green proficiency die. But adding/subtracting ability dice aren't found anywhere else in the rulebook, and thus I assume it's supposed to be upgrade/downgrade. Thank you for your time!

Answer:
Hello Christopher,

You are supposed to increase or decrease the ability of the check, which is essentially adding or removing a die, which is covered in the adding/removing dice step. However, in the case of Cursing specifically, if you only have Proficiency dice in your pool, you should replace a Proficiency die with an Ability die (effectively downgrading the check).
Hope that helps!
Sam Stewart

Rules Question:
Hi again guys, I was looking through the list of suggested talents in the RoT supplement and noticed Toughened missed the list, I assume its a mistake but I thought I had better ask anyway.

Answer:

Hi Richard! Yes, Toughened was missing; in general, any of the “use in any setting” talents from Genesys should be ok to use in Terrinoth.

Tim Huckelbery

RPG Producer

Fantasy Flight Games

Rules Question:
Is it one maneuver to disengaged from all enemies or just one enemy? The Tumble talent (RoT page 88) specifies that you disengaged from all engaged enemies while the engaged/disengage description (CRB100) says you engage/disengage from AN opponent. I've been running it as one maneuver for all engaged enemies, but the new talent in RoT has me second guessing myself.
Hello Christopher,
You can disengage from everyone you’re currently engaged with as a maneuver. There are exceptions, of course, especially if your GM decides that you’re surrounded or hemmed in by your foes and can’t physically break free from them. But in general, disengaging gets your character away from everyone they’re currently engaged with.
The Tumble talent is useful because it allows you to disengage as an incidental.
Hope this helps!
Sam Stewart
Edited by c__beck

This question is about the Improved upgrade of the Heroic Ability, Signature Weapon. If the Improved effect is cumulative for abilities, and the weapon starts off with a craftsmanship like Elven or Dwarven, if the player chooses Ancient, does it still retain the previously chosen craftsmanship? Thus becoming an Ancient Dwarven/Elven/Steel One Handed Weapon?

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An item can only be of one type of craftsmanship, so the effects would not stack. With the Improved effect of Signature Weapon, if you choose to “reveal” the weapon’s Ancient craftsmanship, the effects of Ancient craftsmanship replace the effects of the original craftsmanship.

Hope this helps and thanks for playing!

Tim Huckelbery

Rules Question:
Hello! Just wanted to know, why Druidic Circlets and Magic Rings implements didn't make it to Realms of Terrinoth book (Table 2-8)? Thanks in advance!

Rules Answer:

Hi! Basically, we viewed these as not really part of the Terrinoth setting and we wanted to devote the space they would have taken in the book to other subjects. You’re free to adopt these into your games if desired, of course. You could even incorporate runebound shard magic into them as well to make some really unique items!

Hope this helps and thanks for playing!

Tim Huckelbery

RPG Producer

Fantasy Flight Games

Rules Question:

Can a character drink a stamina elixir during a "complex social encounter" to replenish their strain threshold and thus stave off compromise or capitulation?

Answer Received:

They certainly can! How the other characters in the scene respond is another matter. (I imagine it’s considered poor form in some company.)

Thanks!

Tim

--

Tim Cox

RPG Developer

Fantasy Flight Games

[email protected]

Question :

If a character is Grappled using the Grapple talent it would usually require them to spend two manoeuvres to disengage. If that character has the Tumble talent what options do they have?

1. Disengage as an Incidental, Tumble takes precedent.

2. Disengage as a Single Manoeuvre, the two talents nullify each other

3. It will always require two Manoeuvres, Grapple takes precedent.

Answer :

Hi, Richard –

In this case, Grapple would take priority. While both talents create an exception to the normal rules for leaving a hostile engagement, Tumble does so by making an option available to the character, while Grapple dictates what that character “must” do.

Of course, as always, a GM might handle this situation differently if that is best for their game. I’m sure a player could convince me that their nimble character was able to tumble out of the way before the enemy could grab them, particularly if they used a Story Point to influence the narrative!

Thanks!

Tim

Rules Question:
Does the Arcana skill cover general knowledge of all magic and its function, or only general knowledge of arcane magic and its function? How does this apply in Terrinoth, given the introduction of Knowledge (adventuring), Knowledge (forbidden), Knowledge (geography), and Knowledge (lore)?

Answer Received:
That really all depends on the specific setting and how the GM has decided magic works in their world, including what additional magic and knowledge skills are in use. Assuming just the three magic skills in the core rulebook, I would probably restrict Arcana to general knowledge of arcane magic, and primarily practical matters (after all, magic-using characters need ranks in Knowledge to get the most out of their spell effects!).
In the case of a game using Realms of Terrinoth, I would use Arcana primarily for the actual practice of arcane magic and the fundamentals required for it. For most checks involving knowledge about arcane magic, I would use Lore or Forbidden (depending on whether the matter in question is, well, forbidden).
Thanks!
Tim
--
Tim Cox
RPG Developer
Fantasy Flight Games
[email protected]

Rules Question:
Can the Primal skill be used for a Heal (Resurrection) spell? Page 70 of the core rulebook says that Primal cannot be used to "raise or reanimate the dead," but in page 218, Resurrection is open to Primal. Which page is correct?

Answer Received:
“Raising or reanimating the dead” in this case refers to the necromantic practice of animating dead bodies in a grotesque parody of life, not restoring one’s comrades to full health from the cold embrace of the grave.
So yes, you can use Resurrection with Primal.
Hope this helps!
Sam Stewart
RPG Manager
Fantasy Flight Games

Rules Question:
I have a follow up questions about this reply: "An item can only be of one type of craftsmanship, so the effects would not stack. With the Improved effect of Signature Weapon, if you choose to “reveal” the weapon’s Ancient craftsmanship, the effects of Ancient craftsmanship replace the effects of the original craftsmanship." What happens if there is no hard point available for the Ancient Craftsmanship when they purchase Improved?

Answer Received:

In this case, the weapon would still reduce its number of hard points by one. Since attachments must occupy hard points, this could cause the weapon to lose an attachment, if there are no longer enough hard points to support it. (This is one reason a player might want to take the alternative for this upgrade and just add the Reinforced quality.)

Then again, Heroic Abilities are meant to reflect a character’s personal abilities and story, and each signature weapon should be as unique as its wielder! As a GM, I might discuss alternatives with the player in the context of the ongoing story.

Thanks!

Tim Cox

RPG Developer

On 4/24/2018 at 8:26 AM, saethone said:

Question:

Hello, There are several beautiful maps in the Realms of Terrinoth book - however there is nothing by which to judge scale. Is there any sort of scale available so that rough distances can be determined?

Answer:

Hi Josh! We imagine Terrinoth (page 139) around 250 leagues across at its widest point (roughly 900 miles). Travel time in days is likely more an issue, and our benchmark is 5 leagues per day on foot on average. It probably would take 7 or so weeks to cross it on foot (3-4 on horseback), and several days to travel from Tamalir to Greyhaven that way. This is something the GM can change, though, to best fit the game and the plot. One GM might have Terrinoth as big as the US, another the size of Europe, a third eh size of France. And all are perfectly fine.

We’re discussing this here and may add some guidance along these lines either in a reprint or online. It’s a great question and thanks for bringing it up Josh!

So that would mean the alternating dark and light band around the map is divided into 100 mile sections. As I count it's 9 sections across.

UPDATE: 6-21-18: 100 Miles does NOT work. Too far. I decided to use 50 miles. Much better.

Edited by Gamemasterbob

Rules Question:
Realms of Terrinoth, page 91, the Conduit talent. Am I reading this right, that it's a manoeuvre to activate the talent than another manoeuvre to cast the spell? Or is it supposed to be 'Activation: Passive' and I can just spend that Story Point to cast as a manoeuvre and still do something else with my second manoeuvre?

Answer:
Hi Christopher! It should actually be Active (Incidental); you don’t need to spend a maneuver just to utilize Conduit, just a maneuver to do the magic action.

We’ll get this corrected in the next reprint. Thanks for emailing us about it and thanks also for playing!

Rules Question:

Hi! I got three questions about RoT rules.

1. First one is concerning a Curse Doom spell effect. It is written that you cannot touch dice showing Triumph or Dispair symbols. But can you change Proficiency or Challenge dice faces to show such symbols? For example, on Proficiency die I rolled two advantage symbols. Can I change it to the Triumph?

2. Second question is about Conjure spells. I got some trouble understanding the scope of this spell action. What type of creatures my players can summon? Using this spell can they summon everything that exists in Terrinoth? Even dwarf soldiers or human mages? Or can a two-handed weapon they Conjure be magical?

3. Last but not least, this question is connected with a previous one. Summoned creatures got statistics as described in the RoT books? Or should stats depend on Mages ranks in Knowledge (Lore)? Thanks in advance!

Answer:

Hi! In order…

  1. Yes, you could change the facing on a die from an Advantage to a Triumph, or a Threat to a Despair.
  2. You can only summon minions (or rivals with the additional effect), but the GM has the final say on what would be allowed here. Iin general any NPC listed as a minion (or rival with the additional effect) would usually be ok. Weapons would be mundane types, so no magic weapons (though a weapon appearing out of thin air would certainly appear magical to others!). You and your GM can create new versions of Conjure or new additional effects to summon more powerful allies or magical items too.
  3. Summoned creatures would use their appropriate profile, yes. So a summoned Reanimate would use the profile from Realms of Terrinoth. Remember though that these aren’t the real thing—they are magically created simulacrum of that creature/item.

Hope this helps and thanks for playing!

Tim Huckelbery

Rules Question:

I wanted to create a Conjuring spell to summon a sword that the caster can wield magically (as in, the caster directs it to move about and attack but isn’t in physical contact with it - sort of a dancing sword, if you will). Control over the sword requires concentration, and instead of using Melee-Lighf and Brawn to determine the dice pool for attacks, the mage would use Arcana and Intellect. If concentration is lost, the blade simply clatters to the ground and cannot be so used again. The difficulty should be three purple dice I estimate, as it seems to fall into a Medium Summon/Sunmon Ally type area. I know Conjure gets some leeway, but wanted to make sure this wasn’t going too far.

Thanks!

16 minutes ago, tafattel said:

Rules Question:

I wanted to create a Conjuring spell to summon a sword that the caster can wield magically (as in, the caster directs it to move about and attack but isn’t in physical contact with it - sort of a dancing sword, if you will). Control over the sword requires concentration, and instead of using Melee-Lighf and Brawn to determine the dice pool for attacks, the mage would use Arcana and Intellect. If concentration is lost, the blade simply clatters to the ground and cannot be so used again. The difficulty should be three purple dice I estimate, as it seems to fall into a Medium Summon/Sunmon Ally type area. I know Conjure gets some leeway, but wanted to make sure this wasn’t going too far.

Thanks!

On 12/6/2017 at 7:02 AM, DarthDude said:

This thread is meant to collect every official clarification by FFG to questions from the community. Maybe @FFGDerek can make this one sticky?

I'll put every of your contributions into the second post, so you don't have to skim several posts for the appropriate clarification.

Here the official form for rules questions directed at FFG: https://www.fantasyflightgames.com/en/contact/rules/

If you want to discuss your question with the community then feel free to create a new topic to get the opinion of other players, but that link above is the only way to get any official answers from the developers, this is simply a place to post any answers you receive from them for others to read.

Edited by Richardbuxton

Not sure if this is the best location for my question, so I apologize in advance. He goes.

How would you handle the mechanics of a swarm (of insects, rats or bats, etc) without making it too complex. My first thought was to treat it a like a Minion

A swarm is composed of hundreds, thousands or even millions of tiny critters that can be divided into ''Minion Portions'' that are themselves thought of as a regular minion. Once you've done X damage (X = wound threshold per minion) then you've destroyed part of the minion group (aka the swarm). But a swarm cannot be damaged by just any method. Swords, arrows, bullets, fists, etc. have no appreciable effect on the swarm as a whole, thus they are ''immune'' to these attacks. You need a way to affect the area that the swarm is occupying, i.e. an area of effect attack such as a grenade, a flame thrower or a fireball spell for example. And if you don't have an effective way to fight it, run. Run until you find a place to hide until the danger is passed.

Also, the swarm does damage automatically to all targets it is engaged with and it does not need to roll to attack. It inflicts its base damage + its Silhouette. Armor Soak values do not help unless the suit is sealed, such as a space suit (but perhaps the suit can be damaged over time depending on the nature of the swarm, the setting etc; a swarm of nano-bots could eat thru the suits' protective value and then on to the creamy human center)

Silhouette can help players and GMs envision the size of an incoming swarm, with maybe a maximum of size 8 for truly epic sized plague of locust for example. And the Silhouette can also be used to determine the number of targets that can be attacked by the swarm every round. So a Silhouette 5 Swarm can affect 5 targets simultaneously and 1 Silhouette is composed of a minion group that has 4 ''minions'' (4 wounds per minion sounds about right on average).

For example: A large Swarm of locust with a Silhouette 3, would be composed of 12 minions (3 x 4) and have a total of 48 wounds (12 x 4). If you manage to destroy 4 minions worth of the swarm (16 damage), you reduce its silhouette by 1.

Would this work, of be perhaps too much?

@Dragonspawn please see the post immediatly before yours. This is where you post replies from the devs. If you have a question to discuss, please start a new thread on the topic.

Question:

Should vehicles have multiple Defense zones like they do in the Star Wars line? Page 229, Additional Vehicle Actions has the Boost Defense action that "… increases the defense of one defense zone by one until the beginning of the character’s next turn. " But all the sample vehicles have only Defense and not separate zones. Was this a holdover from a prior draft of the game, or should the sample vehicles have 2 (or 4, for the big ones) defense zones?

Answer:

That was a mistake, sorry about that! All vehicles have a single defense value now.

Rules Question:
Does Vicious add to vehicular critical hits? On page 231, it says that " Effects that apply to the results of Critical Injuries, such as the Vicious quality, do not apply to Critical Hit…. " However, the Vicious item quality specifies that (page 89), " [w]hen an attack with this weapon results in a Critical Injury or Hit, the character adds ten times the Vicious rating to the Critical roll. " I am assuming that the quality write up is correct, but would just like to double check. Thanks!

Answer:
The Vicious quality is correct.

Rules Question:
With the magic spell heal, can you target yourself? The heal spell is missing the verbiage that other self-targetable spells have. Wondering if that's intentional or an oversight. Thanks!

Answer:
You can target any engaged character, including yourself.

Hope that helps!

Hoping a dev can answer this...

Can a single threat, used to cancel a maneuver, be used to end a spell that has had the concentration maneuver used to sustain it? For example, if a PC has a barrier spell up can a single threat on that PC be used to end the barrier he/she cast 3 rounds prior but was sustaining via concentration maneuver?

@Captn Chunk This is where you post replies from the devs. If you have a question to discuss, please start a new thread on the topic. If you want to ask the devs, please visit the link in the initial post in this topic.

Devs do not visit the forums and will only answer questions sent directly to them.

Realms of Terrinoth Question:

Page 108 gives two different Hard Point requirements for the Spikes armor attachment. The table says 2 but the description says 1. Which is correct?

Answer:

“1” is correct.

Tim Huckelbery

RPG Producer

Fantasy Flight Games