Having explored internal cabal connections further, go back to your own character to decide what makes them tick.
- Determine noble, rage and fear passions that stimulate your character.
- Briefly describe what stimulates each passion. These could be concrete or abstract triggers.
- Be clear about when the passion comes into play, and when the stimulus won’t apply.
- Choose and mark one shock meter that your fear passion particularly threatens.
Passions and Obsessions
Each character has three passions:
- Rage: pushes their button and triggers their anger.
- Fear: scares them, in a particular way that is tied to one of their shock meters.
- Noble: inspires them to do and be their best, and anchors their sense of self; your character would risk their life or make sacrifices to uphold their nobility.
Passions work alongside your character’s obsession to define their personality and influence their actions. They cannot contradict your character’s obsession.
Mechanical Consequences
Apart from driving character reactions, the passions afford some mechanical advantages during play, as long as your character isn’t burnt out:
- You can re-roll any checks you need to make whenever your character’s passion is brought into play. This can happen any time during a game session.
- You can also flip-flop a relevant roll once per session.
If your character’s fear is presented, it will trigger a stress check on the shock meter you have linked it to.
If your character resists their noble passion, they must face a rank 4-5 stress check on their Self shock meter.
Example Passions
Earlier versions of Unknown Armies have some good examples and character walk-throughs. They give a useful account of how passions and obsessions can interplay.
Reference: UA3 Book 2: Run p30| p29 pdf. UA3 Book 1: Play p9.