Chapter XXVII: Rewards and Lasting Assets

Reward access, protection, authority, mobility, and responsibility rather than filling the campaign with conventional treasure.

Reward Principles

A reward should change what the characters can attempt, who will answer them, or what consequence they are equipped to survive.

Political and human rewards should remain vulnerable. A safehouse can be exposed, authority revoked, and a witness frightened away.

Source knowledge is never merely a bonus. It creates an obligation, a danger, or a dispute over custody.

Award the whole group when they preserve another person at meaningful cost, not only when they defeat an enemy.

ASSET	FICTIONAL BENEFIT	WHAT THREATENS IT	SYSTEM TRANSLATION
Letter of authority	Legal access, requisition, or the right to demand an answer.	Scandal, forged provenance, or a superior revoking it.	Advantage, permission, reduced difficulty, or a free setup action.
Protected witness network	Independent testimony and early warning when records are altered.	Intimidation, relocation, or public exposure.	Bonus information, improved effect, or an additional clue source.
Safehouse or sanctuary	Recovery, secrecy, and a place to hold people outside official custody.	Surveillance, faction heat, or divided ownership.	Downtime location, reduced heat, or recovery benefit.
Ship repair or upgrade	Improved command, lift, endurance, concealment, or extraction.	Damage, maintenance, fuel, or political seizure.	Subsystem condition, asset die, crew upgrade, or situational bonus.
Shadowed Tide route	Covert movement through docks, warehouses, and inland roads.	Betrayal, arrests, or trafficking interests reclaiming the route.	Flashback access, lower travel risk, or improved position.
Clann permission	Safe passage and access to oral knowledge, graves, or watched paths.	Disrespect, maps made public, or soldiers brought inland.	Permission to enter, trusted guide, or reduction of Source pressure.
Technical dossier	Resa’s notes, calibration patterns, and safe operating limits.	Theft, suppression, incompleteness, or deliberate falsehood.	Additional success option, hazard disable action, or reroll.
Public credibility	The ability to make a case survive courts, presses, and diplomatic denial.	Contradiction, compromised witnesses, or premature disclosure.	Position, influence, reputation, or faction status.

Letter of authority

FICTIONAL BENEFIT: Legal access, requisition, or the right to demand an answer.
WHAT THREATENS IT: Scandal, forged provenance, or a superior revoking it.
SYSTEM TRANSLATION: Advantage, permission, reduced difficulty, or a free setup action.

Protected witness network

FICTIONAL BENEFIT: Independent testimony and early warning when records are altered.
WHAT THREATENS IT: Intimidation, relocation, or public exposure.
SYSTEM TRANSLATION: Bonus information, improved effect, or an additional clue source.

Safehouse or sanctuary

FICTIONAL BENEFIT: Recovery, secrecy, and a place to hold people outside official custody.
WHAT THREATENS IT: Surveillance, faction heat, or divided ownership.
SYSTEM TRANSLATION: Downtime location, reduced heat, or recovery benefit.

Ship repair or upgrade

FICTIONAL BENEFIT: Improved command, lift, endurance, concealment, or extraction.
WHAT THREATENS IT: Damage, maintenance, fuel, or political seizure.
SYSTEM TRANSLATION: Subsystem condition, asset die, crew upgrade, or situational bonus.

Shadowed Tide route

FICTIONAL BENEFIT: Covert movement through docks, warehouses, and inland roads.
WHAT THREATENS IT: Betrayal, arrests, or trafficking interests reclaiming the route.
SYSTEM TRANSLATION: Flashback access, lower travel risk, or improved position.

Clann permission

FICTIONAL BENEFIT: Safe passage and access to oral knowledge, graves, or watched paths.
WHAT THREATENS IT: Disrespect, maps made public, or soldiers brought inland.
SYSTEM TRANSLATION: Permission to enter, trusted guide, or reduction of Source pressure.

Technical dossier

FICTIONAL BENEFIT: Resa’s notes, calibration patterns, and safe operating limits.
WHAT THREATENS IT: Theft, suppression, incompleteness, or deliberate falsehood.
SYSTEM TRANSLATION: Additional success option, hazard disable action, or reroll.

Public credibility

FICTIONAL BENEFIT: The ability to make a case survive courts, presses, and diplomatic denial.
WHAT THREATENS IT: Contradiction, compromised witnesses, or premature disclosure.
SYSTEM TRANSLATION: Position, influence, reputation, or faction status.

Conversion Notes

SYSTEM FAMILY	REPRESENT LASTING ASSETS AS
D&D Fifth Edition	Story permissions, advantage, contacts, downtime facilities, ship subsystem improvements, or inspiration tied to an obligation.
Pathfinder Second Edition	Access, circumstance bonuses, Influence advantages, item or vehicle upgrades, contacts, and lower-difficulty preparation actions.
Blades / Forged in the Dark	Claims, crew upgrades, cohorts, faction status, special abilities, reduced Heat, or improved position and effect.
Other systems	Use whatever currency changes future choices: permissions, tags, aspects, reputation, assets, clocks, resource dice, or narrative authority.

D&D Fifth Edition

REPRESENT LASTING ASSETS AS: Story permissions, advantage, contacts, downtime facilities, ship subsystem improvements, or inspiration tied to an obligation.

Pathfinder Second Edition

REPRESENT LASTING ASSETS AS: Access, circumstance bonuses, Influence advantages, item or vehicle upgrades, contacts, and lower-difficulty preparation actions.

Blades / Forged in the Dark

REPRESENT LASTING ASSETS AS: Claims, crew upgrades, cohorts, faction status, special abilities, reduced Heat, or improved position and effect.

Other systems

REPRESENT LASTING ASSETS AS: Use whatever currency changes future choices: permissions, tags, aspects, reputation, assets, clocks, resource dice, or narrative authority.