Attributes are the nine foundational pillars that define an Incarnation’s innate potential. They are the raw clay from which a being is molded, representing the broad, underlying capacities of their body, mind, and narrative soul. Unlike Skills, which are learned and refined through practice, Attributes are largely fixed within a single lifetime, setting the baseline for what an Incarnation is and can become.

The Dual-Layer Model: Reality vs. Perception

The Attribute system is built on a Dual-Layer model, creating a crucial distinction between an Incarnation’s true capabilities and its own fallible understanding of them.

• The Objective Layer: This is the “under the hood” mechanical reality. Every Incarnation possesses a set of nine Attribute components with quantifiable, numerical values. The simulation uses these true values to determine outcomes—modifying success chances, setting damage thresholds, or unlocking certain actions. These numbers are never directly shown to the player.
• The Subjective Layer: This is the agent’s (and therefore the player’s) perception of its own abilities. This understanding is not innate; it is a Belief formed from the Memory of past actions and their consequences. This creates the potential for agents who are overconfident, under-confident, or simply unaware of their own true potential, making for a richer and more realistic simulation of self-awareness.

The Nine Attributes

The attributes are divided into three categories, forming a triarchy of being.

Category I: Physical Attributes

These govern the Incarnation’s physical form and its interaction with the material world. They are the most easily and accurately perceived, both by the agent itself and by others.

• Strength: The measure of raw physical power.

  • Objective Function: Affects melee damage, carry capacity, and the ability to move heavy objects. Provides a bonus to heavy physical Skills (e.g., Warhammers, Heavy Armor).
  • Subjective Perception: An agent with high Strength will have memories of easily winning brawls or lifting heavy loads, leading to a confident Belief in its own power. Others can plainly see a muscular physique, forming an accurate Belief that the agent IS_STRONG.

• Agility: The measure of speed, coordination, and grace.

  • Objective Function: Affects movement speed, stealth effectiveness, and the chance to hit or dodge in combat. Provides a bonus to finesse-based Skills (e.g., BladeWeapons, Lockpicking, Acrobatics).
  • Subjective Perception: An agent with high Agility will feel quick and nimble, their memories filled with successful dodges and graceful movements.

• Constitution: The measure of health and physical resilience.

  • Objective Function: Affects maximum health, and resistance to damage, poison, and disease. It also contributes to resisting the psychological stress of narrative incoherence.
  • Subjective Perception: An agent with high Constitution will have memories of shrugging off injuries or illnesses that would have felled others, leading to a Belief in its own toughness.

Category II: Mental Attributes

These govern the Incarnation’s cognitive and social faculties. They are more difficult to perceive directly and are often inferred through behavior and accomplishment.

• Intellect: The measure of analytical reasoning and information processing.

  • Objective Function: Affects the rate of Skill gain in cognitive tasks (e.g., Science, Medicine). Determines the ability to decipher complex information and the capacity to learn and hold crafting recipes. Serves as the primary attribute for “magical” or narrative-intervention skills.
  • Subjective Perception: An agent cannot “see” its own intelligence. It can only infer it from a history of successfully solving problems, leading to a Belief like I_AM_A_QUICK_LEARNER. Misjudging one’s own or another’s intellect is common.

• Willpower: The measure of mental fortitude and resolve.

  • Objective Function: Affects resistance to psychological stress, fear, intimidation, and psionic or magical influence. Governs the “mana pool” or capacity for sustained narrative intervention.
  • Subjective Perception: High Willpower is felt as a sense of inner calm under pressure. Agents form beliefs about their own resolve through memories of resisting fear or holding fast to a conviction against opposition.

• Charisma: The measure of social grace and force of personality.

  • Objective Function: Provides a baseline modifier for all social interactions and leadership checks. Directly impacts the effectiveness of Skills like Persuasion and Intimidation. Affects an agent’s ability to influence the narrative coherence of a group.
  • Subjective Perception: Like Intellect, Charisma is inferred. An agent believes it is charming because it has memories of people reacting positively to it. An agent can easily be unaware of its own charm or lack thereof.

Category III: Narrative Attributes

These govern the Incarnation’s relationship with the underlying fabric of the Tapestry itself; fate, information, and metaphysics. They are the most abstract and mysterious of all attributes.

• Luck: The measure of an Incarnation’s inherent narrative favor.

  • Objective Function: Provides a small, global modifier to the success chance of almost any action. At its highest levels, it acts as a form of “plot armor,” subtly nudging the world to create more favorable outcomes, protecting against freak accidents, and increasing the chance of serendipitous discoveries.
  • Subjective Perception: Luck is almost impossible to perceive directly. An agent with high Luck will simply have a history of improbable successes, leading to a vague but powerful Belief that “things tend to work out for me.”

• Perception: The measure of raw awareness and the ability to notice the unnoticed.

  • Objective Function: Determines the agent’s passive ability to detect hidden details in the environment—a loose floorboard, a faint scent, a subtle tell in a liar’s expression. It governs the input of information from the world.
  • Subjective Perception: An agent doesn’t know it’s perceptive; it just notices more things. Its AgentMemoryStore will be filled with more detailed and nuanced entries than that of a less perceptive agent. The Subjective Interface of a high-Perception player will be richer, providing more interactive hooks in the environment.

• Resonance: The measure of an Incarnation’s attunement to the metaphysical currents of the Tapestry. The “oldness” of its soul.

  • Objective Function: A high Resonance score makes an agent a “narrative attractor.” It increases the likelihood of encountering ghosts, having prophetic dreams, stumbling upon mythic quests, and being noticed by the Director AI. It is the primary attribute influencing the potential for Reincarnation.
  • Subjective Perception: High Resonance is felt as a sense of déjà vu, an inexplicable familiarity with ancient places, or an innate understanding of symbols and rituals. It manifests as a feeling of being part of a story much larger than one’s own life.