CHAPTER 4 | THE POWERS OF THE MARK 91Excoriate. ?PMVILZIOWVUIZSMLPMQZLMÅM[
\PMQZPW][M\PMaUIaJMK]\WٺNZWUQ\1V\PM
XI[\aW]ZUIZS_W]TLJMÆIaMLNZWUaW]ZJWLa
Although this mutilation is no longer practiced,
such exiles are still called excoriates. If you’re an
excoriate, consider what you did to deserve this
punishment. Were you a criminal? A charlatan?
Or perhaps a sage who engaged in forbidden
research?
Foundling. Your ancestors left the house
long ago. You have no ties to the house and may
not have known you were connected by blood
before you manifested your dragonmark. As an
outlander or an urchin you might know nothing
about the houses. As an acolyte or hermit, you
could have put your faith ahead of worldly
things, choosing not to pursue a connection
with the houses. Whatever you decide, this is an
opportunity to talk with your DM about the role
you’d like the house to play in a campaign. Do
you want them to be your enemy? Would you
prefer to avoid them completely? Or do you want
to work your way into a position of power in the
house, despite being an outsider?
The Powers of the Mark ............................................
Each dragonmark grants a set of abilities that
ZMÆMK\\PMQVPMZMV\XW_MZ[WN\PMUIZS.WZUW[\
marks this includes an Intuition die. This can
ZMÆMK\[]XMZVI]ZITQV[\QVK[WZO]QLIVKMNZWU
\PMUIZSWZW\PMZUQVWZUIOQKITMٺMK[5IVa
dragonmarks grant limited magical abilities.
Over the centuries the houses have developed
tools that enhance and channel the powers of a
mark, and it’s these dragonmark focus items that
give the houses much of their power.
)LZIOWVUIZSMLZIKMOQ^M[aW]I^MZa[XMKQÅK
set of traits. However, you can also explain your
class abilities as being a result of your exceptional
connection to your dragonmark:
- If you’re playing a bard with the Mark of
Shadow, you could say that your illusion
spells are drawn from your mark. If you’re
IPITÆQVOJIZL_Q\P\PM5IZSWN0MITQVO
you could describe your mark as the source
of your healing magic.- As a life cleric with the Mark of Healing,
you’re able to use your mark to channel
positive energy and perform remarkable
feats of healing. You could combine this with
religious faith or you could say that the mark
alone is the source of your divine magic. - If you’re a warlock with an aberrant
dragonmark, you could say that the mark
Q[MTNQ[aW]ZÅMVLQ[PXI\ZWVIVL\PM[W]ZKM
of your arcane powers. You don’t fully
understand the nature of your mark, but
you know that it’s growing stronger and
you’re afraid you might lose control of it.
These descriptions don’t change your
character’s abilities in any way. It’s simply a way
\WILLÆI^WZIVL[\WZa\WaW]ZKPIZIK\MZ<PW]OP
if you’re channeling divine power through your
dragonmark, you might use a crystal (normally an
arcane focus) as your holy symbol, representing a
makeshift dragonmark focus item.
- As a life cleric with the Mark of Healing,
INTUITION DICE
A dragonmark improves your ability to perform
I[XMKQÅK\aXMWN\I[S<PM5IZSWN.QVLQVO
sharpens your senses and improves your
perception, while the Mark of Making guides
your hands when you work with artisan’s tools.
Each dragonmark has a trait that allows you to
roll an Intuition die, a d4, when you perform an
ability check with a particular skill or tool. You
add the number rolled to the ability check. You
LWV¼\PI^M\WJMXZWÅKQMV\_Q\P\PM[SQTTWZ\WWT\W
OIQV\PQ[JMVMÅ\
Feats, magic items, and other features may
improve your Intuition die. This increases the
type of die you roll by one size (d6, d8, d10) to
a maximum of a d10. You can only roll one
Intuition die for a check; if you receive Intuition
dice from multiple sources, increase one die by
one type and roll that one.
For example, if a dragonmarked trait and feat
both grant intuition with Dexterity (Stealth)
checks, you roll a d6, instead of a d4. Three
instances would increase your Intuition Die to a
d8, and so on.