In an epic fantasy setting like Near Keys are “heroic urges” – it’s easy to interpret Keys as expressions of the greater nature of a given protagonist character. Of course TSoY is also a quintessentially humane setting; all people are worthy of respect, and protagonists become heroes due to their circumstances and experiences, not due to fate alone. I won’t bore the reader with my patented anti-fascist fantasy lecture here, it suffices to say that I love playing stories of Near that are about human concerns big and small. If heroism should happen, it comes about due to choices made by the characters and not due to rigorous narrative whitewashing.
I’ve always created new Keys as needed for the dramatic sensibilities of the group. I would probably read the Keys in this book as important examples and likely candidates, not as a limiting constraint. There is no pressure to create your own Keys, of course – the general list alone is more than sufficient for many different characters.
I don’t usually bother with Keys for secondary characters per se in TSoY; instead, I assume that all named secondary characters have a Key concerning their foremost passion of the moment, should that become pertinent.
Secondary characters in my TSoY only really advance in experience with fictional events and time. So something has to happen in the fiction for the character’s capabilities to change, and the Story Guide judges what the change brings. Sidekicks and such are an exception; if a player runs the statistics of a given character, then the player may as well track experience points for them.
Keys in TSoY tend to be quite quirky by generic SOLAR SYSTEM standards. It’s not that hard to make a Key completely useless without hitting the Buyoff condition with some of these, especially when characters can change the world. I handle those situations by allowing the character to regain an Advance for the useless Key, provided that it has really become non-applicable and not just difficult to use.
| Adventure |
|---|
| For the people of Near, adventure means refusing social ties; most societies frown upon this, but not all. Some have approved roles for people eager for adventure. |
| 1xp: Go on or continue an adventure when you could back down. |
| 2xp: Get into danger. |
| 5xp: Do the impossible. |
| Buyoff: Settle down. |
| Bloodlust |
| The character enjoys defeating others in combat. This Key is considered a virtue in almost all cultures of Near, but only when practiced in the correct ways by the right people. |
| 1xp: Attack somebody. |
| 3xp: Win a fight. |
| Buyoff: Be defeated in battle. |
| Compassion |
| The character struggles to do right by others. Foolish sympathy is not rated very highly by most cultures of Near, but it exists in all. The emblematic scene that separates the hero from the villain comes when the former’s compassion gets abused by the latter. |
| 1xp: Help those in need. |
| 2xp: Save another’s life. |
| 5xp: Get taken advantage of. |
| Buyoff: Ignore the cries of the innocent. |
| Coward |
| The character frightens easily and can’t or won’t control it in public. The Key is the same whether prudence is accepted of the character socially or not. |
| 1xp: Show your fear to others. |
| 3xp: Back down from a confrontation. |
| Buyoff: Risk yourself voluntarily. |
| Cripple |
| The character is crippled or has some such permanent injury. Old age, blindness and lameness are fine examples. |
| 1xp: Get pitied or scorned for your condition. |
| 2xp: Suffer difficulties due to the condition. |
| 5xp: Succeed despite your condition. |
| Buyoff: Get healed of your infirmity. |
| Desperation |
| The character has given up hope. Broken souls are not at all rare in Near of today. Some of them may never heal. |
| 1xp: Try to convince others to give up. |
| 3xp: Give up on something important. |
| Buyoff: Cast aside your despair. |
| Faith (specify) |
| The character has a belief system that guides him. Not all cultures have churches, but most have religions of some sort. |
| 1xp: The faith comes up. |
| 2xp: Enact the faith in action. |
| 5xp: Suffer for your faith. |
| Buyoff: Abandon and deny your faith. |
| Fellowship |
| The character belongs in a fraternity of unlikely allies questing for a common goal. Such a bond can be the strongest of them all. |
| 1xp: Discuss the course of the fellowship with the other members. |
| 2xp: Cooperate with the fellowship to achieve your goals. |
| 5xp: Side with the fellowship against your own best interests. |
| Buyoff: Leave the fellowship. |
| Glittering Gold |
| Avarice runs in his veins. As with most character traits, a majority of societies considers a modicum in this regard a virtue, with a minority favoring extremes to either direction. |
| 1xp: Gain material wealth. |
| 3xp: Gain wealth at the expense of others. |
| Buyoff: Give away your wealth. |
| Glory |
| The character hungers for renown. This is typical for heroes who don’t want to be seen as just a face in the crowd. |
| 1xp: Make sure your name and deeds are known by bragging or seeking witnesses. |
| 3xp: Take foolish risks to increase or enjoy your fame. |
| Buyoff: Give the credit that would have increased your glory to someone else. |
| Impostor |
| The character lives in and for lies. Perhaps he is proud of his ability to introduce and control illusions into the lives of people he uses as tools. |
| 1xp: Pass yourself off as something you’re not. |
| 2xp: Lie to yourself or your friends. |
| 5xp: Your lie survives a concerned effort to debunk it. |
| Buyoff: Confess to your victims. |
| Mission (specify) |
| The character has an important mission that they must complete. Unlike the KEY OF THE VOW, this Key concerns a clear task with a finite end-point. |
| 1xp: Try to forward your mission. |
| 2xp: Succeed towards your mission. |
| 5xp: Reach an important waypoint. |
| Buyoff: Abandon the mission. |
| Outcast (specify) |
| The character has lost fellowship in a group or organization, becoming an utcast. This has not necessarily lessened the hold the organization’s values have on the character. |
| 1xp: Your status as outcast comes up. |
| 2xp: Interact with the organization. |
| 5xp: Work against the organization. |
| Buyoff: Rejoin the organization. |
| Past |
| The character has a dark, significant past. |
| 1xp: Your past comes up. |
| 3xp: Your past influences a decision. |
| Buyoff: Make a different choice this time. |
| Power |
| The character hungers for control, perhaps because he’s had so little of it. |
| 1xp: Struggle for influence. |
| 3xp: Improve your social position. |
| Buyoff: Relinquish your position. |
| Relation (specify) |
| The character has an important relationship to another. Familial relationships are the simplest, but fraternity is also universal. Sometimes other relationships develop as well. |
| 1xp: Interact with your relation. |
| 2xp: Follow the other’s advice. |
| 5xp: Defend your relation from danger. |
| Buyoff: Sever the relationship. |
| Servant (specify) |
| The character serves another due to fealty, money, force or other concerns. There are some cultures in Near that do not recognize servitude, but most do. |
| 1xp: Obey the master. |
| 2xp: Suffer in service. |
| 5xp: Save the master in some manner. |
| Buyoff: Leave service. |
| Suffering |
| The character belongs in a disenfranchised population, born (or at least adopted) to suffering. |
| 1xp: Fail in your efforts. |
| 2xp: Be abused by others. |
| 5xp: Fate casts you down. |
| Buyoff: Succeed beyond your expectations. |
| Vengeance (specify) |
| The character thirsts for vengeance against a person or group that wronged them. |
| 1xp: Express your hate and intent for vengeance. |
| 3xp: Attack your target in word or deed. |
| Buyoff: Let your enemy go when they are at your mercy. |
| Vow (specify) |
| The character has sworn an oath he intended to keep to his dying day. Unlike the KEY OF THE MISSION, this Key would concern an on-going, static commitment. |
| 1xp: The vow comes up during play. |
| 2xp: The vow causes significant difficulty for you. |
| 5xp: Another character tries and fails to make you break the vow. |
| Buyoff: Break your vow. |