The 12 Predefined Roles Available to Players…
What Role will you play in the coming conflict? Which Skills and Abilities will your Hero call their own? Choose poorly, and your party will suffer. But a wise choice, one that compliments the strengths of the other Heroes in your party, just might be what the world needs to avoid its terrible fate!
These 12 Goals have been defined with two goals in mind: allow players to easily go from open box to the table, and to create carefully thought out asymmetry in gameplay.
These roles are only available for play by selecting one of the pre-generated heroes of the six playable races. Their stats, Skills, Abilities, and even their names, are assigned so you can find yourself adventuring across the diverse world of Vrahode with no analysis paralysis.
#1: The Blade
The Blade is an aggressive warrior-type Hero. They thrive in up close and personal battles and have an excellent Body stat! In most cases, there isn’t a better ally to have between you and the things that threaten you than a Blade.
#2: The Augur
The Augur is a priest and healer focused on the welfare and health of others she travels with. A welcome member of any group planning to set out on an adventure, their servant’s heart lifts the spirits of all they associate with. They stay well away from battle when possible but should not be confused as brittle things; they can defend themselves well when the situation dictates. Augur’s choose skill cards primarily for their Spirit stat to most effectively fuel their ruhl.
#3: The Spark
The Spark is a ruhl-using mastermind. These paper tigers fling their power from a distance avoiding the blood and sweat of hand-to-hand battle. They stay well behind the front line, softening enemies quickly and in ways they will very much not appreciate!
Their Skill Cards are chosen primarily from the Mind stat. It’s always a good idea to have a Spark counted among your friends!
#4: The Shadow
Shadows are just that—stealthy, cunning, silent, and very useful. They employ their clever skills to hurt foes regardless of how well protected or armored they are! Their Skill Cards mainly come from the Focus stat, providing them a level of precision other roles cannot match. Shadows are very useful when their group find themselves in tight spaces.
Shadows can use their ability to spot and disarm traps and to open doors and chests that would otherwise require a Blade, a long runway, and 3 cans of Red Bull! It’s always best to have a Shadow’s unsavory array of skills working for, not against, your traveling party.
#5: The Syrin
Syrins are nothing more than simple singers who happen to hit their high notes with expert and devastating precision. Imagine an armored and weaponed version of Whitney Houston!
Now imagine that’s the last thing you ever hear.
A Syrin’s voice infuses the battlefield and sadly, all the enemies upon it have a difficult time remembering just why it is they got out of bed. Need crowd control? Bring a Syrin!
#6: The Warden
Wardens are exceptional archers that also like to bring their pets on the road. They soften up enemies from afar, then send their familiar in to chew on their bloodied appendages for good measure. These versatile characters snag most of their Skill Cards from the Focus stat, but spread the love, grabbing a fair number from the Presence stat in order to keep a handle on the pooch (regardless of what type of critter they may be).
#7: The Shield
Shields are warriors with a heart. They love bashing in skulls, sure, but they also want their friends to stay alive and well. They may not pack quite the punch a Blade does, but they don’t hog the nachos either!
The Shield is going to pick most of their Skill Cards for the Body stat, but also grab a few from the Spirit stat in an effort to keep their friends from bleeding out! There are few Heroes as travel-ready as a well-provisioned Shield.
#8: The Arbiter
It is a hard balance to be devout and pure as the morning dew, while still smiting thine enemies with merciless expulsion of ruhl. Yet that’s exactly what these testy priests manage to do! They spend their efforts making the group a bit tougher, the enemies a bit weaker, and still find time to fix you that harnwood tea back at camp. Arbiters grab Skill Cards for the Spirit stat, but scatter a few Mind stat Cards in for good measure. Whether you’re the praying type or not, you’ll count yourself lucky to have these priests on your side.
#9: The Dream Catcher
Dream Catchers aren’t going to win any ruhl-casting competitions against their Spark friends, but what they lack in Skill Cards, they make up for with a little backup from their ancestral spirit friends!
Dream Catchers still grab mostly Mind Skill Cards, but also find having a few cards dedicated to the Presence stat useful while trying to keep their restless spirits in line. When they sleep, Dream Catchers wander the realm of ancestral spirits looking for aid. Though their summons only last until the Dream Catcher’s next rest, while present, these spirits can smack enemies around or protect their rather delicate masters! Good rest is the friend of the Dream Catcher. And having on in your party just might make for better rest for everyone.
#10: The Jester
Jesters aren’t just musicians; they are veritable rock stars! When they pull out their flute, lute, or figurative electric guitar, the whole world of Vrahode waves their figurative lighters in the air!
Jesters offer their friends the most powerful buffs in the game and never fail to come back for an encore after that long drum solo runs out. They might not be the best choice for solo play, but in a group, these tune slingers are just the addition to keep every Hero humming along. Enemies of the Jester dismiss their musical talents at their peril. They go for Presence Skill Cards mainly and then collect a few Mind Cards to cap the perfect outro.
#11: The Rook
Rooks are in such complete control of their bodies that they often shun weapons altogether, opting instead to use their fists and feet alone to pummel baddies. And if that doesn’t work, they have a few ruhl tricks up their sleeves as well!
They make nice support staff to back up the Blades and Shields on the front lines, and can surprise enemies with a ruhl Skill just to keep things spicy. Rooks grab mostly Focus Cards, but still make room for a few in the Mind column! These are no brainless barbarians, and you’ll think yourself smart for having one beside you.
#12: The Oracle
Oracles are powerful tree huggers and are not too shabby at healing their friends either. They are unusually versatile casters who round out a group nicely or can chop it up with the best of them running solo, just as long as they can keep enemies at a distance! Oracles concentrate mostly on Mind Skill Cards but grab a few Spirit Cards here and there as well.
…Or Journey Through Vrahode as a Custom Hero
In addition to our twelve pregenerated heroes, players are welcome to create their own Custom Heroes. Custom heroes allow you to start with a pool of points which you can allocate to each of the five stats as you see fit. There are endless possibilities for the type of hero you can create!
Custom heroes can choose skill cards freely for any stat they choose. Though custom heroes cannot use Role Specific Actions, they can tweak their hero however they want from the five stat decks. Included with your core box is a pad of Custom Hero sheets so you can record and name your hero and their unique custom role in the game!
The possibilities are endless as to the other custom roles players will come up with on their own. It will be really amazing to see those ideas come to light and be shared with our growing community of players! You may see a few of the best introduced as new heroes in the expansions.
Who Will Serve As The Calteeryn?
The most important figure in the lore of Vrahode, greater than any Hero, custom or not, is the Calteeryn. A prophesied one that is foretold to arise from one of the created races to free Vrahode and its peoples, the Calteeryn is said to be the only one with the power to wield the ruhl of all races. This savior of Vrahode will lead the people to a mighty battle, it is said, where the enemies across the land will be cast down, making way for a lasting peace.
Could you be the one the prophecies have spoken about? Could you be the deliverer Vrahode needs? Can you survive the wilds, lead your party, and learn the magic of every crafted race of Vrahode. And can you rally them to your cause?
Calteeryn is a powerful and dangerous role to assume. With your new potent abilities, you also become an object to destroy by those who fear or envy you. Be warned… Vrahode is a world where not everything is as it seems.
Our series kicks off with Vrahode – The Calteeryn Ascension which chronicles the rise of Cateeryn in their epic struggle to learn from all other crafted races of Vrahode. The unique challenges of this epic journey will test you and your party of Heroes at every turn. The threat of death is ever present! Choose your path and your friends wisely because the fate of this world is quite literally in your hands!
Only if you are successful will you find out what is over the horizon in the first expansion in the saga called Vrahode – The Enlightened and The Enslaved. The stakes will be raised, truths will be uncovered, and new and greater dangers will stand hiding in every shadow and around every corner.