Attributes     Attributes are derived from your character's personality, background, and desires, but also provide useful benefits in a way somewhat similar to Study Abilities. While Studies are developed by experience and training, Attributes are the products of character development. When you gain an Attribute, you aren't necessarily saying that your character has developed a new personality trait or behavior. Indeed, you can play any personality you wish, even if you have yet to pick a single Attribute. Rather, obtaining an Attribute means that your character has become aware of this part of themselves, accepted it in some way, and learned to use it for their benefit. Your character obtains an Attribute at every depth tier beginning at 5th tier.

Roleplaying Requirements    Many Attributes describe your character in specific ways, and you may choose only those which accurately describe how you play your character. For example, you cannot define the Cool-Headed Attribute, then proceed to fly into a rage at every opportunity!

    This is not to say that your character cannot change - if the GM ever determines that you are no longer living up to a certain Attribute, they will simply have you switch it out for a more appropriate one, according to the rules found later. Indeed, if the change makes sense as character development, you may even earn DP from such an event.

Minimum Depth Tier & Other Requirements     Many Attributes require a certain number of depth tiers before they can be taken. They may be obtained at the tier they require (for example, one with a minimum depth tier of 8 can be the one you choose at 8th tier). You are never obligated to choose one with a higher tier requirement, and may continue taking ones with lower minimum tiers even when your tier is high. A small number of Attributes also have other requirements, such as certain Study Backgrounds.

    The Attributes which lack a minimum depth tier (and are therefore available when you first begin gaining Attributes) are: Aloof, Assertive, Attractive, Battle-Born, Compartmentalized, Coping Mechanism, Cunning, Daydreamer, Distrustful, Fixation, Flexible, Obsessive, Organized, Overconfident, Reckless, Reflective, Sickly, Supportive, Talkative, Uncompromising, and Valiant.

Incompatibilities    If an Attribute lists incompatible philosophies, you cannot have that Attribute at all if you adhere to one of those philosophies. An Attribute may also list other Attributes as incompatible. You cannot obtain that Attribute if you already have one of its incompatible Attributes.

    Each Attribute can only be taken once.

Positive & Negative Effects     Some Attributes list only a single, useful effect. Others list both a positive and negative effect. Attributes with negative effects are in no way "cheaper" than Attributes without; you may still wish to take them if the tradeoff seems worth it, or if the negative effect does not significantly hamper your character.

    All effects "update" if anything they reference changes. For example, an Attribute with an effect determined by your bINT will change whenever your bINT changes.

Attribute Favoredness     Much like Study Abilities are favored by Study Backgrounds, Attributes are favored by certain philosophies. An Attribute favored by your philosophy can be emphasized (see below), while an unfavored Attribute cannot. Unlike many Study Backgrounds, you are never restricted by favoredness regarding what Attributes you can obtain.

    Most Attributes that lack a minimum depth tier also count as favored by all philosophies. Therefore, your first Attribute choices need not be burdened by worries about later emphases.

Emphasizing Attributes     At every odd-numbered depth tier beginning at 11th tier, you may emphasize one of your Attributes, providing it is favored by your philosophy. Emphases greatly increase the effects of an Attribute, and reflect your character learning the full extent to which a certain aspect of their personality can be utilized.

    Emphasizing an Attribute does not change its requirements, including roleplaying requirements. You are not obligated to emphasize the Attribute that you think most describes your character.

    Each Attribute may only be emphasized once. Unless otherwise stated as replacing or modifying something, the emphasis effect is added to the normal effects of the Attribute. No distinction is made here between Attributes with and without negative effects, and negative effects are not altered by emphases.

    Unlike Study Abilities, obtaining an Attribute is not interchangable with emphasizing one. You cannot exchange an Attribute for an emphasis (or vice versa).

    Some Attributes lack any entry for their emphasis effects; these cannot be emphasized. Typically, these are Attributes with high depth tier requirements, at which point you will have plenty of older Attributes to emphasize instead.

Declining Attributes & Emphases     If at some point you simply cannot find any valid Attribute that you feel describes your character, you may decline the Attribute you would normally obtain. You may also decline to emphasize an Attribute (for example, if you have no more philosophy-favored Attributes which haven't already been emphasized). In lieu of the (generally superior) benefits of an Attribute or an emphasis, you may choose one of the following benefits for each one you decline:

Exchanging Attributes & Emphases     Attributes should be chosen carefully. They reflect aspects of your character's personality and history, which are not easily changed. Still, it is possible to switch out Attributes if your character's development seems to reflect the change. Whenever the GM determines that you no longer meet the roleplaying requirements of a given Attribute, you must switch it out for another Attribute. If the Attribute was emphasized, you may emphasize a different Attribute (including the one that replaces the old, if still favored). The same rule applies to the rare case of an emphasis that becomes invalid due to a philosophy change, or any other case of your character no longer meeting an Attribute's requirements.

    Since emphases do not alter any roleplaying requirements, they may be "rearranged," without a character arc to explain the change. If you wish to "move" an emphasis to another Attribute, exchange one un-emphasized Attribute for another when you are not obligated to, or make a change in the detail choices within a single Attribute, you may do so once per depth tier. In other words, you may not make a non-mandatory change to Attributes again until you gain another tier. Once the campaign is over, you may rearrange Attributes and emphases however you like immediately before your character enters the next campaign. All emphases must still be on philosophy-favored Attributes. Non-mandatory changes can be used to swap an Attribute for one with a higher tier requirement (even if you would not have qualified for the new Attribute at the time you obtained the old one), or to swap the benefit of a previously declined Attribute for an actual one.