DOWNTIME ACTIONS

Downtime actions are efforts undertaken by a character in the time between game sessions. These activities are not normally portrayed through roleplaying (though they can be), but simply talked through with the Storytelling staff to determine their results.

What kind of actions can constitute downtime actions? Quite simply, everything a character can normally do in a session except attack other characters directly. Most players prefer to use their downtime actions for less than glamorous but still vital actions.

These could be research, building or repairing equipment, doing investigative legwork, arranging certain favors through Allies or other Merits, and similar deeds. Generally speaking, a downtime activity requires an action only if it has a substantial in-game effect, especially one that impacts another character. The Storyteller has the final say on which actions have enough in-game weight to justify costing a downtime action.

Each character gets a number of downtime actions equal to her Resolve+1 dots each month due by midnight on the last day of the month. Certain Merits such as Allies and Retainers may also increase this number, as might particular supernatural powers, according to their respective descriptions. Without specific supernatural augmentation, no character should ever be able to personally take more actions in a single period of downtime than she has Resolve dots + 1. There is only so much a character can focus on getting done in one period of time.

A character may have dots in a half-dozen different kinds of Allies, but it’s unlikely that she alone will be able to call upon them all in single downtime period.

Characters’ wealth and power are represented by influential Merits such as Allies and Retainers, and by “raw” assets like Resources. Such a support base allows these characters to make full use of the options at their disposal, accomplishing various downtime actions simultaneously.

Note that downtime actions are possible even if a player is unable to attend a particular game session. One who misses two games still gets his normal downtime actions. This is so that players who cannot attend as often as they would like can still be involved in the game, at least to some degree.

Some downtime actions are usually assumed to be free. Training to acquire new traits or to raise existing ones is represented by spending experience points is usually considered a free downtime action. The main exception to this rule is if the time between sessions is severely limited, in which case the Storyteller may restrict the number of traits that you can improve at one time. A couple of months of downtime may give you all the time you need to improve your character. He could hit the dojo to improve his Brawl, hang out at the firing range to raise his Firearms, and lose himself at the library to increase his Intelligence and Occult ratings. Trying to do it all in, say, two weeks stretches the bounds of plausibility.

Likewise, in-character meetings with Narrator-controlled characters or other players’ characters held during downtime are generally considered free actions. That is, unless the players involved intend to use them as a springboard for more than just a bit of roleplaying. In such cases, the usual costs and restrictions apply. So, if you meet with fellow neophyte witch-hunters to discuss the various threats facing town, that’s fine.

Attempting to do more active things through the meeting such as conduct research, create new weapons, or other actions with more tangible in-game results probably requires you to spend a downtime action.

Barring exceptional circumstances, routine maintenance of equipment and fetching supplies is considered a free downtime action. A character without a Resources Merit may have to spend a downtime action scrounging up or even stealing supplies to replace those he’s lost. He doesn’t have any standing assets to cover his costs, so has to spend time figuring out how to get what he needs without being arrested. That extra effort is reflected in the expenditure of a downtime action.

Downtime Kills As a rule, no player’s character can ever be killed in a downtime action. If a plan involves the potential for a character to be killed, arrested or otherwise seriously harmed, the player of that character is entitled to resist the attempt.

Sample Downtime Actions Each of the following activities is considered to cost one downtime action to perform. This list is by no means exhaustive. Consider the following as a rule of thumb for determining if an action has a downtime cost.

• An action that serves to influence a plot or build up a character in a mechanical way should have a cost. If it’s simply done for a player’s entertainment without immediate relevance to the story, it’s much less likely to have a cost, though don’t let players abuse this privilege.

• Training to learn a new trait or to improve an existing one. (The first trait trained per downtime interval is free and does not cost an action. This requirement reflects how demanding it is to train so many traits at one time.)

• Researching an important piece of information

• Maintaining a semblance of normality at a regular job/school after a brief time of extreme stress. (Failure to do so may result in being fired/expelled, followed by loss of Merits such as Resources.)

• Creating a work of art — music, prose, sculpture

• Conducting serious business/professional negotiations or demands

• Performing investigative legwork such as a background check or minor surveillance

• Taking a trip to a relatively distant location with signifi cance to the plot

• Building or repairing an important piece of equipment. This does not include routine maintenance work, which is considered a free action.

• Running laboratory tests on materials with story significance

• Getting in touch with a Contact for information relevant to a current plotline

• Scavenging for the bare necessities if a character has no ready income or other means of basic support. (Characters who have to plot and fight for every meal and place to stay have much less time to devote to other activities.) Note that this does not necessarily apply to a character with no Resources Merit, as even without that trait characters are normally assumed to have a job that covers their necessary expenses. Rather, only characters who are explictly designed as homeless or reduced to a similar existence below this minimum level need to worry about this sort of action.