7th Sea Errata
This an FAQ re-printed from the AEG forums to address various questions and rulings.
Errata
What is a Free Raise? A Free Raise is a bonus of +5 to the result of a roll. This is exactly enough of a bonus that it will cancel out the addition to the TN of the roll that attempting a Raise will cause. Because of this, you gain the +5 for the Free Raise if you do not attempt any Raises, and you cancel the increase to TN of one Raise by using a Free Raise to accomplish it--the +5 to TN and +5 to the result of the roll eliminate each other from the calculation.
What is meant by each of these terms, and what is the difference between them: gain/lose an Unkept die, gain/lose a rolled die, Roll an extra/one less die, Keep an extra/one less die, gain an extra/lose a Kept die, roll and Keep an extra/one less die, and roll an extra/one less Kept die? Sometimes they rules use a shorthand like (+1k0) next to them, but they aren’t always consistent. Whenever any term like this is accompanied by that kind of shorthand, just follow the instructions listed there. If there is no shorthand but an example given with the rule, follow the pattern given in that example. We like to think that we’re getting much better about this, but some of the older books are still confusing people. When no shorthand or other example is present, these should be treated as follows: Gain an Unkept die: +1k0 Lose an Unkept die: -1k0 Gain a rolled die: +1k0 Lose a rolled die: -1k0 Roll an extra die: +1k0 Roll one less die: -1k0 Keep an extra die: +0k1 Keep one less die: -0k1 Gain an extra Kept die: +1k1 Lose one Kept die: -1k1 Roll and Keep an extra die: +1k1 Roll and Keep one less die: -1k1 Roll an extra Kept die: +1k1 Roll one less Kept die: -1k1
Besides improving rolls and activating a Hero’s Hubris, what can GMs spend their Drama Dice on? They can also spend it on activating a Villain's Wile.
If I use a Drama Die, the GM gets it, right? Not necessarily. If you spend your Drama Die to get a +1k1 on a roll, then yes, the GM gets a Drama Die. In any other case (unless the rules text about that specific case says differently) the GM does not get a Drama Die.
If I use something like Tagging to get a Drama Die that goes away at the end of a fight, then spend the Drama Die to modify a roll, then the GM gets it… does he lose it at the end of the battle? Look at the text a little bit closer. It says, “you can gain 1 Drama Die yourself until the end of the battle (at which point it disappears if still unspent.)” The Drama Die has been spent — that’s how it got to be in the GM’s possession — so it does not disappear.
GMs can give players extra Drama Dice for acting dramatic. Do these come from the GM’s pool of Drama Dice? No, they do not. Mechanically speaking, they come from out of nowhere. Actually, they usually come out of a bag or box full of other dice.
If the GM can give players extra Drama Dice, can he give himself some too? No, he cannot. On the other hand, if he’s doing things right, he really shouldn’t need to give himself any others, the Heroes will be giving him plenty already.
Can I spend Drama Dice on my Initiative? No, you can’t. The initiative roll is not a normal roll, so Drama Dice do not get to apply to it. As an optional rule, the GM could allow the expenditure of a Drama Die to make an Interrupt Action when someone is out of Actions. This Drama Die should then go to the GM’s pool, just as if it had been spent to modify a roll.
Can I spend Drama Dice on my Damage roll? No, you can’t. If you want to do more damage by spending Drama Dice, call for Raises to do more damage when you make your Attack roll, and spend the Drama Dice to make sure you meet your new target number.
Can a character who knows more than one Swordsman School use the Knacks and Techniques of both at the same time? In most cases, the answer is no. A swordsman may only fight in one style at a time. If the Schools involved have Knacks that are common to all of them, then the can use that Knack without breaking his style. There are some exceptions to this rule. The most obvious of these are the Exploit Weakness Knacks, which are always available for use, but there is another category of exceptions. If one of the Techniques gives a bonus to a Trait, then this bonus will apply no matter what style he happens to be fencing in. At the start of each Round, the swordsman needs to specify which style, if any, he wishes to use. If the swordsman opts not to use any of his styles, then he may use any Swordsman Knacks he has without penalty, but he cannot use any of the Techniques, except for those that add a Rank to a Trait.
If Footwork can be used at any time, and Parry (for the appropriate weapon) may be used when holding that weapon, doesn't that make Parry knacks not very important? You have to use Footwork when you've got nothing else. On the other hand, if you do have Parry, you can use that instead of Footwork. If you're leaping from a table top to a chandelier, then you have to use Leaping. If you're climbing up a rope, you have to use Climbing. There are other reasons to use Parry. In some situations, Parry is more useful than Footwork. For instance, after Parrying, you can attempt a Riposte.
The damage of a Crossbow is listed as 2k3. How can I Keep more dice than I roll? Under normal circumstances, a crossbow is effectively a 2k2 weapon, because you're only rolling 2 dice. However, if you make a Raise for damage, you increase the number of dice you're rolling to 3, which means you can Keep 3.
Using her Sorte, can a Fate Witch manipulate the Arcana she perceives, or is perceiving them the sole ability of the Arcana Knack? All that she can do is see the Arcana. However, perceiving Arcana is pretty useful, especially if you are perceiving a Villain’s Flaw.
There is a missing Flaw on the Villain Arcana Chart. What is the Flaw “Rash?" The Villain Flaw Rash (pg. 144), is missing. Use the Hero Hubris "Rash" as a substitute.
In some places, the University Advantage is said to cost 3 (1 for Castillian), and in others the cost is given as 4 (2 for Castillian). Which is it? The University Advantage costs 4 HP, (2 for Castillians).
In the character creation section full blooded sorcerer costs 40 HP, yet in the sorcery section it costs 50. Which is correct? Full Blooded Sorcery costs 40 HP, not 50.
Two out of three of the Heroes in my campaign have the Linguist Advantage. Since it is such a useful Advantage, shouldn’t it cost more than it does? Linguist is cheap because it's just too d**n frustrating to have a bunch of Heroes who can't talk to each other and it is simply too d**n unrealistic to say that language doesn't matter. If you want Linguist to be more expensive, increase the cost. It’s your campaign, after all.
How do characters learn new Languages? Languages are Advantages, and the GM can give them out as appropriate. We recommend giving the characters the Acquaintance level [ACQ] of a new Language before you let them have the normal level. We also recommend giving new languages more quickly to someone with the Linguist Advantage than to someone who doesn’t have it. If someone is hanging around someone who speaks the language fluently and uses it from time to time, then after many sessions of playing together, he can begin to understand some of what is being said when that language is spoken. The process is much quicker when the Hero is surrounded by many people speaking the language. As a rule of thumb, if the character is staying in a place where the language he is trying to learn is the native language, then he ought to be able to get the Language [ACQ] Advantage for that language in about two Stories per HP that the Language [ACQ] Advantage would have cost him during character creation.
Is there any benefit to fighting with two weapons? In other words, can you attack more than once as an action, or anything like that? No, there is not such benefit. Putting a weapon in your other hand does not double your number of attacks, or anything else like that. Historically, two-weapon fencing was replaced by one-weapon fencing as smiths started making rapiers that were strong enough not to break when they were used to parry. In 7th Sea terms, rapiers do not break when they are used to parry; so why are there still two-weapon styles? The simple answer is that they look cool and can be much more dramatic. Also, using two weapons means that you can still make an attack or try to parry if someone has used the Disarm or Bind Knacks against you.
If I don’t belong to a Swordsman School, can I use a Swordsman Knack? Yes, you can. You don’t have a Rank in that Knack, however. The normal rules for attempting to perform an unskilled Action apply. In other words, you suffer two penalties: 1) None of your normal dice explode, though any Drama Dice you spend to improve the roll still explode as usual. 2) The GM adds 5 to the TN (this does not count as a Raise). In the case of an attempt to Riposte, these penalties apply to both the Parry and the Attack attempts.
Why is the only armor in this game Dracheneisen? Because the advent of reliable firearms has rendered conventional armor obsolete, so all of the cultures have abandoned the idea of wearing it. Armor is heavy, bulky, hot, uncomfortable, and requires expensive maintenance. Why put up with the inconvenience of armor if it isn’t going to help you significantly? Armor is a thing of the past. If we decide to put out a sourcebook for the Numan Empire or the Crusades, we will be sure to include rules for armor.
How does the Double-Attack Knack work? In the Montaigne book, this Swordsman Knack is introduced but its description was inadvertently omitted. It can be found in the Vendel*Vesten book, as well as in Die Kreuzritter. It works for the weapon specified in exactly the same fashion that the Jab Knack works for someone with the Pugilism Skill. The Hero makes two attacks, using Double-Attack instead of Attack, and the TN of each attack is increased by 10. The pair of attacks works as one Action.
How many Sorcery Points does someone with Druid Sorcery start with? Technically, this magic should be called a Shamanism instead of a Sorcery. Sorcery is derived from a bargain made with ancient beings of power, while Shamanism derives from other sources. Even though the magic only costs 20 points, a character who has it gets 7 points to put into its Knacks.
What does Mastery Level mean? Mastery Level refers to the degree to which a character has progressed in along the path to becoming a Master. Category Mastery Level Apprentice 1 Adept/Journeyman 2 Master 3
I’m confused by the Disarm (Bow) Knack in the Goodfellow School. How does this work, do I use the bow like a quarterstaff or am I trying to shoot the weapon out of someone’s hand? The answer is that either works. Not only can you try to employ the bow as a blunt object to bludgeon a weapon out of someone’s hands, you can also try to shoot one out of their hands with your bow. To try this trick, roll Finesse + Disarm (Bow) as your Attack and call for 3 Raises. Success lets you enter the opposed roll that you normally would with Disarm (Fencing).
My NPC is a Pyeryem sorcerer, and he’s up against a Hero who has the Willful Virtue. Can I still use Pyeryem when fighting him, even though his Arcana prevents me from using Drama Dice in combat against him? Virtues beat anything else. They are incredibly powerful. However, Sorcery and Swordsman Schools that require Drama Dice to activate are not affected by Willful. The intention of the Virtue is that Drama Dice cannot be used to add to rolls. While we’re touching on it, let us add that while Virtues beat anything else, Wiles are not Virtues.
What is the benefit of using an Avalon Longbow? An Avalon Longbow has a range that is 100 yards longer than a normal Longbow. Yes, the text in Avalon says that it has a range of 200 feet, but since that book came out, all ranges were switched from feet to yards.
I’m trying to create a Sidhe Hero, but I’m confused as to how much Glamour I get. Am I Full or Half-Blooded? It’s a bit confusing that I cannot purchase Sorcery but I have Glamour. Sidhe characters may not purchase Sorcery, but they get Full-Blooded Glamour. The intent of the wording was that they cannot get any other Sorcery, such as Sorte, by spending Hero Points on it.
Can I select Attack (Improvised Weapon) or Parry (Improvised Weapon) as one of the Knacks that I get for free when I join the Tout Pres Swordsman School? Due to the fact that this Montaigne school utilizes the Improvised Weapon Advanced Knacks, the character should be allowed to choose either Attack (Improvised Weapon) or Parry (Improvised Weapon) as the “Swordsman Knack” that gets their free Rank. This is not the case for any other School.
What good is Dracheneisen against Brute Squads? They never roll damage, so it doesn’t reduce the damage that they do at all! This is why Villains everywhere like to use Brutes… well, OK, maybe not. Try this instead: For each -0k1 Damage Die protection which Dracheneisen would normally give you, you can ignore one “Hit” of any strength from a Brute Squad.
How much is one Cargo on a Ship? According to The Pirate Nations, 1 Cargo will keep 6 Crew fed for 1 month (which is always 30 days in Theah). Each Crew is a Threat Rating 2 Brute Squad. Therefore, 1 Cargo is enough space to store enough food to keep about 36 men fed for 30 days.
When do the Heroes get Experience Points? The Players’ Guide, page 191, says you get them every session, but page 183, the GMs’ Guide, and others say you get them every Story. Which one is right? Page 191 is in error. Experience points are given out at the end of every Story.
Stop-Thrust The description of this Swordsman Knack that appears in Vodacce is incorrect. A stop-thrust is not, as is stated there, a combination of a parry and counterattack that uses the opponent’s blade as a guide for the swordsman’s own. That is a good description of a parry-riposte combination. In actuality, a stop-thrust is a quick, jabbing attack made with the point of a fencing weapon as a reaction to an incoming attack, with no attempt to parry the attacker’s blade. It lacks the force of an ordinary attack, but the intention is to make the attacker stop his attack to avoid seriously injuring himself by impaling his body on the stop-thrust. A stop-thrust is a risky maneuver, because it does not guarantee that you will be able to avoid the damage. The mechanics for this Knack presented in Vodacce are correct.
