Protagonist
Protagonists are shining beacons of hope.
None doubt the nobility and honour of these
knights and general do-gooders.
Saving the Day: Twice per Adventuring
Day, while engaging in feats of heroism,
you can re-roll one die used in a Stat Check
or Attack.
Saviour of the People: The common folk
adore Protagonists, granting the Upper
Hand on Wit Checks when convincing
friendly NPCs to aid in heroic deeds.
No Stain on My Honour: Heroes never lie.
Protagonists and are Against The Odds on
Wit Checks to deceive an NPC. If they suc-
ceed, they take a Grip Check.
I Shall Protect Thee!: Protagonists never
stand by while their friends die. When an
enemy uses a Finish Them! move on a
downed ally, they must attempt a Heroic
Rescue if possible regardless of danger.
Scholar
Scholars are invested in accumulating arcane
and esoteric knowledge.
Forbidden Knowledge: Once per Adventur-
ing Day, you can ask the Doomsayer a
question to which the Scholar might have
uncovered the answer while researching
forgotten tomes, the wisdom of elders or
obscure libraries. The Doomsayer names a
price in Grip—steeper for chthonic, archaic
or unanswerable questions—which the
Scholar can pay to receive the answer.
Pendulum Sanity: The secrets of esoteric
knowledge lead to Scholars developing
coping mechanisms. When taking an
Affliction, they reset their Grip to 11.
Mindcracked: Scholars are susceptible to a
thirst for secrets. The first time each Ad-
venturing Day they spend or lose 1 Grip,
they lose an additional point.
Veteran
Veterans are masters of the Crypt, having
spent plenty of time below the earth, digging
for exotic treasures.
Years of Experience: Veterans have seen a
fair share of unutterable terrors. Before
play, decide with your Doomsayer which
creatures you might have experience fight-
ing. When fighting these creatures, their
first Attack of each combat has the Upper
Hand. They also have the Upper Hand on
Observation Checks to notice the crea-
tures, or any omens they are present.
Danger Sense: Veterans have learned to
spot the Crypt’s many dangers, gaining the
Upper Hand on Observation Checks to de-
tect potential dangers, such as traps or am-
bushes, in the Crypt and similar environ-
ments.
Battle-Scarred: Most Veterans have previ-
ously suffered a (randomly rolled) Injury
before play begins (Zini 5). If this Injury re-
sults in death, re-roll it.
Zini 2: Character Archetypes
Published by SoulMuppet Publishing (www.soulmuppet.co.uk)
Written by Zachary Cox and Nicholas Spence | Art by Ben Brown | Layout by Lone Archivist
Editing by Vi Huntsman (MRC), Fiona Geist (MRC), and James M Hewitt
wilderness or a city’s dangerous area. An
Adventuring Day ends when characters rest
for 4+ hours. Abilities usable during ‘An
Adventuring Day’ should never be used in a
camp on the surface.
Believer Cabalist
Holy folk, guided by gods’ voices and putting Cultists or wizards’ apprentices whose un‐
their faith in some higher being. pleasant, terrifying or otherworldly past expe‐
Holy Mission: Each Believer has a Holy riences allow them to handle the underworld
Mission. Once per Adventuring Day, if en- better than most adventurers.
acting their Holy Mission the player can re- Been There Done That: Cabalists’ strange
roll one die used in a Stat Check or Attack. experiences allow them to shrug off what
This mission could be destroying heathens, terrifies others. The first time each Adven-
evangelizing or gathering funds for temple turing Day a Cabalist would spend or lose 1
construction. The Holy Mission may be Grip, they keep that point.
dictated by the religion’s tenets, a leader’s I’ve Seen Things: Experts at sacrilege,
instructions, or saintly visions. most Cabalists have seen many awful
I Am No Preacher, I Am A Prophet: Believ- things. Cabalists have the Upper Hand on
ers have the Upper Hand on Wit or Will Grip Checks.
Checks to spread their god’s word or per- Already Slightly Gone: Cabalists are a little
suade fellow practitioners. unhinged, beginning play with an Afflic-
Hand of the Holy: Believers act with surety tion, either chosen or rolled randomly (Zini
of divine guidance, beginning play with the 5).
Affliction: Guided by the Gods, or another
Affliction (Zini 5) that fits better.
Cut-Throat
Cut-Throats are criminals and unsavoury folk:
thugs, ruffians, thieves, assassins or general
lowlifes. They will lie, cheat and murder to get
whatever they want—and do even worse for
what they need.
Silver Tongue: Cut-Throats have the Upper
Hand on Wit Checks to deceive.
Tricks of the Trade: Cut-Throats excel
outside the traditional legal sphere. Once
per Adventuring Day, while engaging in il-
legal activities—such as scaling a sheer
surface, breaking a lock or performing leg-
erdemain—you can re-roll one die used in
a Wit Check.
Honour Amongst Thieves: Cut-Throats
are unlikely to stick their necks out for oth-
ers but even the worst criminals adhere to
the Code. Cut-Throats can only attempt a
Heroic Rescue when saving another Cut-
Throat.
Dastards
Dastards are charlatans, tricksters and fast-
talkers: mountebanks, bastards of a noble
house, swashbucklers or pirates—all charis‐
matic and flamboyant.
You Magnificent Dastard: Up to three
times per Adventuring Day, while employ-
ing an obnoxiously daring solution to a po-
tentially simple problem (swinging from
chandeliers, elaborate blackmail schemes,
anything involving disguise), you can re-
roll one die used in a Wit Check or Wit
based Attack.
Lovable Rogue: Dastards possess a certain
ineffable charm, granting the Upper Hand
for Wit Checks interacting with non-hos-
tile NPCs.
At Home In The City: Most Dastards lived
comfortable lives and are not hardened for
the Crypt. Dastards are Against The Odds
on Grip Checks.
Everyman
Not every Cryptdigger fits an Archetype. Not
everyone is a glorious hero, professional thief
or sinister cultist. Sometimes, you’re an Every‐
man.
Probably Good at Something: Everymen
have a niche skill from their prior life and
have the Upper Hand attempting it or
something involving it.
Probably Bad at Something Else: Every-
men have a skill, vice, drawback or negative
personality trait that makes actions involv-
ing it Against The Odds.
Examples
Poacher: Good at tracking and navigating
in woodland. Bad at interacting with Nobil-
ity and Landowners.
Town Drunk: Good at resisting the effects
of ingested Alcohol and Poisons. Bad at try-
ing to move carefully or balancing.
Travellers
Wanderers who seek adventure in Lendal util‐
ising the skills learn on the way. While some
may be Lendalians on a long journey, some
may be from foreign lands.
They Were Lucky To Get This Far: Travel-
ling halfway around the world only to die in
a Crypt is an awful shame. Up to twice per
Adventuring Day, while the character is at
less than half their Maximum Vigour, re-
roll one die used in a Stat Check or Attack.
Well Travelled: Agree on a speciality with
your Doomsayer. The character has the Up-
per Hand on Stat Checks or Observation
Checks related to it.
Sense of Wonder: Travellers are sometimes
Against The Odds on Observation Checks
and potentially some Stat Checks when
visiting a new settlement or experiencing
an unfamiliar culture for the first time.
Freeblade
Freeblades are heroes of a financial bent—
rather than saving the world or watching it
burn, they desire payment as mercenaries,
professional soldiers, assassins for hire or
spell-swords.
Soldier of Fortune: Freeblades constantly
risk all for pay. Once per Adventuring Day,
if it results in immediate financial gain (ex-
ample: quest completion, treasure acquisi-
tion or bounty capture), you can re-roll one
die used in a Stat Check or Attack.
I’m A Professional: Freeblades navigate
the job market adroitly, gaining the Upper
Hand on Wit Checks related to seeking (or
negotiating with) a potential employer.
Heart of Gold: Freeblades cannot resist the
glint of coin and are Against The Odds on
Will Checks resisting bribery.
Outcast
Outcasts adventure because they don’t fit in
anywhere else including: hedge knights, lone
wizards, brooding rangers or asocial hermits—
uniformly grim, fiercely capable survivors.
True Grit: Outcasts are grizzled folk used to
the worst the world offers. The first time
each Adventuring Day an Outcast would
spend or lose 1 Grip, they keep that point.
Home In The Wild: Outcasts are skilled
survivalists, gaining the Upper Hand on
Will Checks to forage or navigate wilder-
ness.
Not A People Person: Most Outcasts live
outside society’s boundaries and are
Against The Odds on Wit Checks when in-
teracting with NPCs.
Physiker
Physikers are medical folks who somehow en‐
listed in a Cryptdigging company: disgraced
barber-surgeons, medical researchers or mili‐
tary field doctors.
I’m A Doctor, Not A...: Once per Adventur-
ing Day, you can re-roll one die used in a
Stat Check where medical experience is
relevant.
Field Surgery: With 4 hours of uninter-
rupted work, the Physiker may make one
attempt to heal another character’s recent
Injury. If the Physiker passes a Wit Check
and the patient passes a Brawn Check, the
Injury is healed. If both fail, the Patient
rolls a second Injury. Regardless of out-
come, both characters lose 1 Grip.
Do No Harm: Physikers aren’t skilled com-
batants and their first Attack each combat
is Against The Odds.