Tender

Even under the worst possible circumstances, you usually feel that your life—whatever remains of it—is best lived in service to others. Depending on how you tend to others' needs, they might know you as a Sage, Doctor, Responder, or Minister. But names don't matter. You just want to help others survive, heal their hurts, and, if nothing else can be done for them, see that their ends are humane and painless.

Everyone probably welcomes your presence, or at least your skills, especially those in your group. Without your care and knowledge, their lives could come to a brutal, painful end. If conflict kicks off, you can handle a weapon, but you prefer trying to counteract the threat so you and your allies aren't hurt in the first place.

Background Options

• You watched your family succumb to radiation sickness. You now scavenge relentlessly for before-times knowledge, determined that no one else should suffer a similar fate if you can help it.
• You saved a family from a virulent sickness a few months ago, and they still regularly thank you.
• You relied on a rare medicine to tend to many of your patients; a few weeks ago you used it up.
• A medical student before the apocalypse, you were ill-prepared to care for others when the bombs fell—you had to abandon countless dying strangers. You've found that icy dispassion hard to break free of and still rarely help those you don't know or trust.
• You were part of a survivor community until it was destroyed by advancing radiation a year ago.
• According to dealers that wander through occasionally, a working hospital operates nearby.
• In the immediate aftermath of the catastrophe, you were nursed back to health by a nameless wanderer who vanished afterward. You now feel obligated to pay that kindness forward, healing others as you were helped.
• Bad luck and a bad reaction caused a friend you were treating to die a few months ago.

Tender Abilities

You gain all of the following benefits:

• Able to take two more minor wounds and one more moderate wound
• Add +1 to Might Pool
• Add +1 to Speed Pool
• Add +2 to Intellect Pool
• Add +1 Edge in Pool of your choice
• Freely use light and medium weapons
• Freely use light armor
• Gain one weapon of your choice
• At tier 3 and tier 6, choose an ability from the Science Fiction Genre Abilities list

Foil Danger (2 Intellect): If you are aware of a danger within immediate distance and succeed on an Intellect roll against its level, you negate that danger for one round. For instance, the danger could be a feature of the landscape like a mud or acid pit, a trap triggered by a wire, or a creature's natural ability (like a snake's venom or a radiation blast from a glowing roach). It could even be a foe's mundane attack or action (such as a weapon attack or their attempt to flip a switch), in which case this ability means they can't take that action on their next turn. Action.

Inspiring Suggestion (2 Intellect): By making a helpful suggestion to an ally, they have a better chance of succeeding at what they're doing. Choose an ally who can see and understand you, then suggest a specific action for them to take, such as "attack the leader" or "climb the wall." If the ally chooses to take that exact action, they gain two assets on that task. First action.

Wasteland Healer (2+ Intellect): With access to a scavenged doctor's bag (or similar equipment), you can use treatment in half the normal amount of time or treat twice as many wounds for one character in the normal time. Enabler.

Tender Equipment Bundle

Choose the following equipment bundle to quickly outfit your character, or assemble your own starting equipment.

A light handgun (with 10 bullets), appropriate clothing, a scavenged doctor's bag, a backpack, a sleeping bag, a medical "how to" book, a bottle of aspirin (depletion of 1 in 1d20), a water filter straw, a water kettle, a book of matches, three candles, and a rusted knife. Your character also starts with currency or barter equivalent to a moderately priced item.

Part of Postapocalypse