This post presents a prototype profession mechanic we're working on for Ingenium 2nd Edition. We're looking at giving each profession its own Profession Talent to add a little more variety to the game.

The Priest profession from first edition was pretty…. plain, and there was nothing priestly about her, other than role-playing ques. So with this new mechanic, she gets a Talent that reinforces her role as a messenger of the gods.

The priest profession from first edition was presented like this:

Priest

Starting Talent Pool: Mystic

Attributes: +1 Magical Aptitude

Speed: 3

Hit Points: 1d8

Advancement: Healing Arts

Starting Gold: 1d4 x 5

Priests are those divine focal points who channel their gods' will into physical manifestations. Their magic is not based on arcane rules and laws; rather, they are blessed as Chosen and receive gifts of power for as long as they serve their gods.

The flavor text stands in Second Edition, but there are a number of changes. Here's the new Priest block:

Starting Talent Pool: White Magic

Attribute Bonus: +1 Magical Aptitude

Hit Die: d6

Talent: Exorcism

Exorcism

The Priest has the divine gift and knowledge to pull a demon out of a possession victim. She makes a Willpower roll against the demon's Challenge Level, and if the total is higher, the demon vacates the possessed body as a cloud of roiling black smoke. The victim then returns to his original stats, and if this causes any damage he has sustained to exceed his normal maximum Hit Points, he dies instantly. If his Willpower was at least half of the demon's, he remembers everything he did while possessed. A failed exorcism increases the Challenge Level of the target demon by 1.

About Profession Talents

Every profession gets a unique Talent with this mechanic, and one that scales with the character's power. She will never out-level her profession Talent.

Also, by adding “Profession Talents,” we add another option for expansion down the road.