Design & Development

Echelon Archetypes

Archetypes help build character concepts, serving as the foundation of character development. While selection of an Archetype can make certain paths easier, it does not mean characters need to adhere to those paths. In fact, completely ignoring those paths can make for more interesting characters. Each Archetype confers bonuses to one or more Secondary Traits, access to Archetype Advantages, and provides a unique Archetype Power.

Design & Development

Secondary Traits of Echelon

Secondary Traits are not purchased with Experience like Core Traits; instead they are derived from Attributes or Species. Some Ability Stunts, Advantages, Hindrances, Species, and Templates may also affect Secondary Traits. There are four categories of Secondary Traits: Defense, Energy, Offense, and Spatial.

Design & Development

Normal Distribution Resolution

The design calls for a resolution mechanic that simulates a normal distribution, which when graphed looks like a bell curve. This means at least three dice must used. A dice pool using 3d6 is currently the chosen configuration. The 3d6 dice pool has a range of 3-18 and a mean of 10-11. A strong reason to use the 3d6 dice was for ease of determining Difficulty Ratings (working from a mean result of 10).