For when the player says “I want mine to be bees and regret,” which is fair, honestly.
Custom1. Pick a Source
Decide what the Mark is attached to: item, name, blood, dream, ink, lantern, road, grave, old contract, hedge spirit, undercity faction, saint, or accident.
Custom2. Define the Favor
Say what the Mark usually helps the character do: survive, move, hide, strike, know, protect, heal, deceive, endure, or bend luck.
Custom3. Define the Splash Damage
Every package needs a room-cost: noise, light, ally inconvenience, broken objects, truth leakage, civic attention, animals reacting, names slipping, omens appearing, or future complication.
Custom4. Keep It Class-Agnostic
Effects should care about universal play states: movement, HP, cover, saves, attacks, skill checks, resource recovery, objects, light, terrain, reactions, conditions. Avoid 'when you smite' or 'when you rage' unless making a personal variant.
Custom5. Make the Player Usually Happy
The Mark should usually make the marked character better off in the immediate moment. The cost should complicate tactics, social fallout, the room, or the future.
Custom6. Avoid Full Turn Theft
Do not skip turns, stun allies for comedy, or randomly delete the player’s plan. The chaos should twist the wheel, not throw the driver out.
Custom7. Write 8 Effects
For a custom package, write 8 effects: 2 defense/survival, 2 offense, 1 movement, 1 information/omen, 1 resource/utility, 1 messy environmental effect.
Custom8. Add a Growth Track
Decide what makes the Mark escalate and calm down: using Tempt the Mark, touching its source, resolving a quest, refusing a bargain, repairing a name, confessing a truth, or feeding it rare materials.
NameExample: The Honeyed Omen
SourceExample: blessed hive charm, old orchard pact, queen-bee dream
The FavorExample: protection, messages, soft control, strange sweetness
The Room Pays By...Example: noise, swarms, sticky terrain, social truth, hungry insects
Eight Effects1. Defensive boon
2. Offensive boon
3. Movement twist
4. Information omen
5. Ally complication
6. Object/environment complication
7. Resource or utility boon
8. Big weird signature effect