Consequences

Stress is a transitory thing, but sometimes conflicts will have lasting effects on a character— serious injuries, embarrassments, phobias, and the like. These effects are collectively called consequences, and they are a special kind of aspect.

 Any time a character takes stress, he may opt to take a consequence to reduce the amount of stress received from the attack. The exact nature of the consequence depends upon the conflict— an injury might be appropriate for a physical struggle, but an emotional state might be apt for a social one. Whatever the consequence, it is written down under the stress track.

 Normally, the player taking the consequence gets to describe what it is, so long as it’s compatible with the nature of the attack that inflicted the harm. The GM arbitrates the appropriateness of a consequence and there may be some back and forth conversation before settling on one. The GM is the final authority on whether a player’s suggested consequence is reasonable for the circumstances and severity.

 There are four levels of consequence severity, each of which cancels out a greater amount of stress from an attack. Consequences may not be taken after the fact to cancel stress already recorded on a character’s stress track. Consequences linger for varying lengths of time after appropriate justification is established to begin recovery (see **Recovering from Conflict**):

* **Mild** consequences cancel out **2 stress**. They last for one scene after recovery starts. Think of things that are bad enough to make you say “Walk it off/ rub some dirt in it!” (Examples: Bruised Hand, Nasty Shiner, Winded, Flustered, Distracted.)
* **Moderate** consequences cancel out **4 stress**. They last until the end of the currenent session, or 2 days whichever is *shorter*, after recovery starts. Think of things that are bad enough to make you say, “Man, you really should go take care of that/get some rest.” (Examples: Belly Slash, Bad First Degree Burn, Twisted Ankle, Exhausted, Drunk.)
* **Severe** consequences cancel out **6 stress**. They last for the Chapter (or three to four months [In Game], whichever is *longer*) after recovery starts. Think of things that are bad enough to make you say, “Man, you really need to go to the ER/get serious help.” (Examples: Broken Leg, Bad Second-Degree Burn, Crippling Shame, Trauma-Induced Phobia.)

   Each character may take one of each severity (though some stunts and very high skills may increase the number of consequences that can be taken at a certain severity); once the consequence slot is used, it cannot be used again until the current consequence is removed. Multiple consequences can be “stacked” at a time, combining their rating for the purposes of absorbing an attack. So instead of taking a severe consequence to cancel 6 stress, a player might take a mild (2 stress) and a moderate (4 stress) which would add up to cancel 6 stress.

 When your character takes a consequence, remove the appropriate amount of stress from the attack. If that reduces the stress to zero or below, you absorb the hit completely. If there is any stress left over, you need to mark it on your stress track. So, if your character gets hit for 5 stress and you decide to take a moderate consequence, you’re left with a 1 stress hit. Keep in mind that the normal rules for taking stress apply for this—empty boxes get filled in, filled boxes “roll up” to the right. That means that, even if you take a consequence, the leftover stress might take you out anyway…be careful about this!

  Also keep in mind that, because a consequence is an aspect, it can be tagged, invoked, and compelled like any other aspect. Opponents with fate points will take advantage of this, because invoking a consequence to help win a fight is very easy to justify. Further, the attacker that inflicted the consequence gets one tag on it (which he may give to an ally), just like aspects placed by a maneuver.

 Some skills (like Science) and some supernatural powers (like Inhuman Recovery) can provide easy justification to start the recovery process (for skills) or reduce recovery times for consequences (for powers). See the appropriate skill or power descriptions for details.

### '*Extreme Consequences: '***The Last Resort**

If your character is in extremely dire straits, and it’s really, really important to stay in the fight, there is one last-ditch option you have available. This is called an extreme consequence, but it’s set apart from the others because it operates as more of a plot device than a normal consequence and isn’t affected by any of the normal rules for recovery. You can only have one extreme consequence at a time, and the slot will only ever clear with a major milestone or every three chapters (see **Advancement**).

 When you use this option, you can cancel out *8 stress* from any attack. In exchange, you must delete one of the seven aspects from your character sheet and *replace it* with an aspect that reflects the outcome of the attack. That’s right— taking this level of consequence *changes who your character is* on a fundamental level. Because of this, you should reserve it for the greatest of sacrifices or the most heinous of traumas—for those times when you absolutely must push to the bitter end and have no other choice.

 There are a few other limitations to extreme consequences:

* '*'***Your high concept cannot be changed** as a result of an extreme consequence, unless the attack in question is deliberately targeting that aspect. In other words, you can’t change Wizard of the White Council unless the attack is specifically trying to permanently strip you of magical ability.
* '*'***You cannot change your trouble aspect** as a result of an extreme consequence.
* '*'***No amount of supernatural healing or other abilities can speed up the recovery** of an extreme consequence, and you cannot take another extreme consequence until after the next major milestone in the game, regardless of your powers.
* '*'***The new aspect is effectively treated as one of your permanent aspects**. Even when your extreme consequence slot resets, the consequence aspect remains on your sheet—it doesn’t just go away or reset your old one. You might rename the aspect during a subsequent minor milestone (see *Advancement*), but you’d have to justify the renaming as something that reflects how the experience changed your character. You can’t just say, “Well, it’s been three scenarios, so I want my old aspect back.”