The Beast
The Beast follows their truth and their passions, which puts them in conflict with civilization and civilized norms. Unless they give up what makes them special and powerful, they cannot make themself acceptable to that civilized society.
Their central conflict is living their truth versus fitting in with a dominant social order.
Example Archetypes:
- Ranger between Worlds
- Bitten
- Raised by Beasts
Aesthetics
(circle or invent one for each)
- Wild demeanor, hungry demeanor, piercing demeanor
- Torn clothes, practical clothes, chitinous clothes, raider’s clothes
- A cold-wrought sword, a sword of teeth, a found sword
Stats
Choose one column of stats, then add 1 each to two different stats.
| Stat | Set 1 | Set 2 |
|---|---|---|
| Daring | +1 | +1 |
| Grace | +0 | +1 |
| Heart | +1 | -1 |
| Wit | -1 | +0 |
| Spirit | +0 | +0 |
Feral
You may walk in civilized circles, but sooner or later your feral truth will come to the fore.
- Feral
- 0
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
Your Feral score starts at 1. If it hits 4, you can’t hold back the beast any longer and you Transform.
If your Feral drops to 0, you lose access to all your Beast playbook moves until it increases again. On the plus side, you’re fitting in. You blend. You’ve assimilated.
Increase Feral when:
- You express yourself in a shocking way through your appearance
- You display intense emotion that society wants you to conceal
Decrease Feral when:
- You feel that your bestial nature has hurt someone you care about
- You go along with an uncomfortable interaction to fit in
Playbook Moves
(start with the move marked and choose two more)
Transform: You have a bestial form, which you can assume at will and must assume whenever your Feral hits 4. When you do, tell everyone what the beast in you looks like, increase your Feral to 4 if it’s not there already, and roll +Daring:
- 10+: Choose 2
- 7–9: Choose 1
- You are in harmony with your beast and may clear a Condition
- You are magnificent and little escapes your notice; you gain leverage or an opportunity with a monster
- Pain is nothing to you; ignore the next time you would Stagger while transformed
- You can move in ways no ordinary person could
You revert to your usual form when your Feral drops below 4. While transformed, you may mark a Condition to avoid reducing your Feral, as often as you like.
Big Dyke Energy: When you make it clear to your foes that you’re the biggest threat, then for the rest of the scene, whenever you roll a 10+, you may choose someone present to be impressed or intrigued with you. Once during the scene, when you gain a String on someone, gain an additional String on someone else who considers you an enemy.
Ferocious: When you Fight, you may mark a Condition to choose an additional option, even on a 6-.
Shameless: When you say aloud what you want from an NPC, you may give them a String on you to ask a question about them from the Figure Out a Person move.
Tenacious Purpose: When you commit yourself to a specific goal, you may ask the GM once per scene how you could advance that goal in a way that violates “civilized” norms. Take +1 forward to act on the answer. If you refrain, it counts as an uncomfortable situation that reduces your Feral by 1 and you must mark a Condition.
Tracker: When you investigate a person’s living space, camp, or trail, or an object important to them, you can roll +Heart instead of +Wit to Figure Them Out, and may do so even when they’re not present. You can also ask the question, “Where did they go?” as if it were an option on the list for that move. On a 7–9, they take a String on you instead of asking a question back. Say why. Do they just smell that good or that fearsome?
Truths of Heart and Blade
Smitten Kitten: When you become Smitten with someone, say why, give them a String, and answer this question:
- What have you done that you are sure they view as inappropriate?
The Bloody Truth: When you Figure Out a Person in physical conflict, you may additionally ask one of these questions, even on a 6-:
- What awakens the beast inside you?
- How could I get you to kiss me?
Playing the Beast
The Beast is wild and untamed, despite pressure to conform to the ways of a dominant society. Your Feral track measures how much you are assimilating versus celebrating your true self.
To get the most out of your conflict, think about what you find appealing about the civilized world and what you find abhorrent. How do they try to get you to conform? Do you resist out of instinct or principle?
This playbook is designed to celebrate those of us who are treated as less than human because we don’t fall within the narrow confines of what is acceptable to a dominant group. The pressure to assimilate is real: the pressure to become invisible and to abandon our truth, culture, and history. When you choose this playbook, you signal that you’re interested in playing with that conflict.
The Spooky Witch has a related conflict, focusing on trying to be in a community with those seen as monstrous (or not seen at all). If you’re interested in being a Beast with a pack, consider taking moves from the Spooky Witch playbook when you earn Advances with XP (page 22).
If you feel fully secure in yourself and no longer feel the pressure of the dominant society so keenly, consider living happily ever after or adopting a new playbook. Are you a Chosen, facing the demands of a new community you’ve found? Are you a Scoundrel, who has learned how to cast things off but not how to maintain them? Do you feel like such a different person that you want to explore the world anew, like a Nature Witch?
Conversely, if you bow to society and abandon your Beast nature, you might become a Devoted who conforms to a set of rigid tenets and doesn’t practice good self-care. Or you might become a Trickster, wishing for connection but afraid to show your truth. One path you probably won’t take if you abandon your bestial side, though, is living happily ever after. At least, not yet.