Existentialism

“Existentialists believe the universe is inherently Chaotic, and life has no meaning except for what one makes of it, which in their case typically involves heavy overcoats, cigars and thick French accents. Existentialists are not so much a believers in a single philosophy as they are people who agree that they disagree with every other philosophy. Because of this Existentialists tend to rub the wrong way with the dogmatic councils of Utopia and Numinous, so they tend to reside in the Domains, creating a booming wine economy.
Being the divided philosophy that it is, Existentialism is a bit of a two-in-one class, with affinities varying between Theistic Existentialist and Atheistic Existentialists. Atheistic Existentialists tend to be slightly more offensive, while Theistic Existentialists can be slightly more resilient in a pinch. Despite these differences however, both share a heavy reliance on Chance, Charisma and Continuing effects.”
- Ethos Edition of Philosopher’s Guide to Sophos, Chapter 3: Schools and Scholars

Existentialists must choose one of two qualia during character creation:
Atheistic (learns first ability options)
Theistic (learns second ability options)

Class Default Stats:
Atheistic 2 CRE, 2 CHA, 1 CON
Theistic 1 CRE, 2 CHA, 2 CON


Rank 1
Existential Dread
Standard Action
The Exsitentialist bemoans the human condition in hopes of persuading his target.
Target: One opponent
Roll: 2d6+CHA vs 11+Level/3
Effect: On a success the enemy becomes trapped in a sphere of isolation forcing them to skip their turn and causing them damage equal to the caster’s rank in Existentialism.
Man is the only animal for whom his own existence is a problem which he has to solve. -Erich Fromm

Rank 2
Atheistic Option - Apostate
Counter Action
The Existentialist accuses their opponent of abandoning the roots of their own philosophy.
Target: Self
Trigger: The Existentialist attacks
Roll: 2d6+CHA vs 10+Level/3
Effect: On a success you may add CRE damage to the attack; on a failure the enemy may subtract their CON from the damage.
We seldom lose our faith by a blowout, it usually is just a slow leak. -Anonymous

Theistic Option - Leap of Faith
Counter Action
The Existentialist takes a leap of faith, abandoning reason.
Target: One opponent
Trigger: The Existentialist is attacked
Roll: 2d6+CHA vs 10+Level/3
Effect: On a success you may subtract CON damage from your opponent’s attack; on a failure your opponent may add their CRE damage to the attack. [The existentialist may also use CON instead of CRE on skill checks]
Faith is a process of leaping into the abyss not on the basis of any certainty about where we shall land, but rather on the belief that we shall land. -Carter Heyward

Rank 3
Engender Anomie
Standard Action
The Existentialist conjures up values opposing his target’s beliefs, causing them to temporarily erode.
Target: One opponent
Effect: Target may not add their CHA to any roll for until the end of your next turn.

Rank 4
Bad Faith
Standard Action, Ongoing
The Existentialist attempts to convince an opponent they are acting in bad faith to themself by trying to be something they are not.
Target: One opponent
Duration: Until trigger
Roll: 2d6+CHA vs 9+Level/3
Effect: On a success, the target must roll 1d6 at the end of his turn until he rolls a six, each time he rolls a number other than six, he takes two damage.

Rank 5
Summon Übermensch
Standard Action, Summon
The Existentialist summons up the sum of his ideals in the form of an Übermensch, Knight of Faith, Absurd Hero, or whatever they are inclined to call it.
Target: None
Effect: The Summon lasts CHA/2 turns, it has all the abilities in existentialism that the caster has [save Summon Übermensch], and stats equal to the Summoner’s +CHA/2 [Maximum 20] and Half the Summoner’s total HP. This may be cast once per battle. Using the ability costs the half the caster’s remaining HP, and the caster's HP is doubled upon dismissing the ideal. Each turn it remains summoned, the summoner loses 1 HP.
Once this ability is unlocked, the Existentialist must open up one of their current plot element slots for the Übermensch and, after buying the ability,they will be unable to remove it from the slot.
The Übermensch is controlled by the GM, though it will usually respond to its summoner’s commands unless it feels a command is in conflict with its philosophy, in which case a CHA check is in order.

Rank 6
Atheistic Option -
No Exit
Standard Action, Ongoing
The caster attempts to entrap their opponents so that they’ll do the work of fighting each other for him.
Target: CHA opponents
Roll: 2d6+CHA vs 10+Level/3
Effects: The targets that fail the roll cannot flee the battle for CHA turns, take 3 damage during each of these turns and may not buff or support one another. The Existentialist may not take any other actions while he maintains this effect, including defending. No Exit may be cast only once per encounter.

Theistic Option -
Fear and Trembling
Standard Action, Ongoing
The caster conjures up an ability inspired by the Divine to weaken their foes.
Target: CHA opponents
Roll: 2d6+CHA vs 10+Level/3
Effect: The targets that fail the roll suffer minus 2 on all stats for CHA turns and may not defend automatically during these turns. The Existentialist may not take any other actions while he maintains this effect, including defending. Fear and Trembling may be cast only once per encounter.

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