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Alpha Slice 1.0

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September 2017

All materials contained in this packet are protected by United States copyright law and may not be reproduced,
distributed, transmitted, displayed, published or broadcast without the prior written permission of By Night Studios,
LLC.
Table of Contents
Introduction ................................................................................................................................... 5
Alpha Slice Developer Notes ...................................................................................................... 5
Key Features ............................................................................................................................... 6
What should I do with this packet? ............................................................................................. 7
Chapter Three: Kiths ................................................................................................................... 8
Kiths ............................................................................................................................................ 8
Boggans................................................................................................................................................................9
Redcaps .............................................................................................................................................................. 21
Sidhe .................................................................................................................................................................. 29
Sluagh ................................................................................................................................................................ 42
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Trolls .................................................................................................................................................................. 52

Chapter Four: Character Creation ........................................................................................... 61

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Quick-Start Character Creation Guide ...................................................................................... 61

Step One: Inspiration ................................................................................................................ 64
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Step Two: Record Initial XP ..................................................................................................... 68

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Step Three: Choose a Kith ........................................................................................................ 68

A Brief Description of the Changeling Kiths ..................................................................................................... 68

Step Four: Choose a Court ........................................................................................................ 69

A Brief Description of the Changeling Courts ................................................................................................... 69

Step Five: Assign Initial Attributes........................................................................................... 70

Step Six: Assign Initial Skills ................................................................................................... 73
Step Seven: Assign Initial Backgrounds ................................................................................... 84
Choosing Backgrounds ...................................................................................................................................... 84
Losing Backgrounds .......................................................................................................................................... 85
Shared Backgrounds .......................................................................................................................................... 85
Background Descriptions ................................................................................................................................... 86

Step Eight: Assign Initial Arts .................................................................................................. 98

Step Nine: Choose Merits and Flaws ........................................................................................ 99
Step Ten: Spend Initial XP ..................................................................................................... 100
 XP Chart........................................................................................................................................................... 100

Step Eleven: Finishing Touches.............................................................................................. 101

Step Twelve: Before the Game ............................................................................................... 102
Chapter Five: Arts and Realms .............................................................................................. 103
Learning Arts .......................................................................................................................... 103
Using Arts ............................................................................................................................... 103
Gaze and Focus ................................................................................................................................................ 104
Familiarity with the Target............................................................................................................................... 105
Focuses ............................................................................................................................................................. 105
Physical Attacks ............................................................................................................................................... 105

Realms..................................................................................................................................... 105
Actor ................................................................................................................................................................ 106
Condition.......................................................................................................................................................... 107
Fae .................................................................................................................................................................... 108
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Nature ............................................................................................................................................................... 108
Prop .................................................................................................................................................................. 109
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Scene ................................................................................................................................................................ 110

Time ................................................................................................................................................................. 111
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Arts .......................................................................................................................................... 112

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Chicanery ......................................................................................................................................................... 112

Dread ................................................................................................................................................................ 118
Inglenook ......................................................................................................................................................... 123
Oakenshield...................................................................................................................................................... 127
Metamorphosis ................................................................................................................................................. 129
Primal ............................................................................................................................................................... 135
Soothsay ........................................................................................................................................................... 139
Sovereign ......................................................................................................................................................... 144
Wayfare ............................................................................................................................................................ 150

Chapter Six: Merits and Flaws ................................................................................................ 154

Overview ................................................................................................................................. 154
Merits and Arts................................................................................................................................................. 154
Adding Merits and Flaws ................................................................................................................................. 155
Removing Merits and Flaws ............................................................................................................................ 155
Repeated Merits or Flaws................................................................................................................................. 156
 Rarity Merits .................................................................................................................................................... 156

Kith Merits .............................................................................................................................. 158

Boggan Merits .................................................................................................................................................. 158
Redcap Merits .................................................................................................................................................. 160
Sidhe Merits ..................................................................................................................................................... 160
Sluagh Merits ................................................................................................................................................... 161
Troll Merits ...................................................................................................................................................... 163

Court Merits ............................................................................................................................ 164

Seelie Court Merits .......................................................................................................................................... 164
Unseelie Court Merits ...................................................................................................................................... 165
Shadow Court Merits ....................................................................................................................................... 166

General Merits ........................................................................................................................ 166

Flaws ....................................................................................................................................... 172
Chapter Eight: Dramatic Systems ........................................................................................... 181
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Fae Mien ................................................................................................................................. 181
Parting the Veil ................................................................................................................................................ 181
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Fae Mien Benefits ............................................................................................................................................ 182

Glamour .................................................................................................................................. 182

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Spending Glamour ........................................................................................................................................... 183

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Recovering Glamour ........................................................................................................................................ 184

Epiphanies ........................................................................................................................................................ 184
Dross ................................................................................................................................................................ 188
Running Out of Glamour ................................................................................................................................. 190

Banality ................................................................................................................................... 190

Gaining Banality .............................................................................................................................................. 191
Levels of Banality ............................................................................................................................................ 193
Beyond Hope: The Dauntain ............................................................................................................................ 196
Fighting Banality: Treatment and Recovery .................................................................................................... 197

Character Sheet ......................................................................................................................... 199

Introduction
“Trust in dreams, for in them is hidden the gate to eternity.”
— Khalil Gibran

Alpha Slice Developer Notes

Imagine a broken world where everything feels muted and dull. Your skin itches while you work
a passionless job just to survive, knowing that somewhere in the secret places of the universe,
there’s magic and Glamour. Even if you manage to keep yourself together, there might be
monsters, dragons, and chimerical beasts to battle.

You are a dream pressed into flesh, a changeling struggling to survive the Endless Winter. The
days of free-flowing Glamour are gone, but still you can touch the Dreaming. There is magic still
yet in the world.
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Do you seek to inspire Dreamers? Do you uphold your ancient code of duty and honor? Do you
embrace your freedom? Do you seek to rage, reminding humanity why it once dreamed of
monsters?
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Or do you surrender to a leader who promises comfort and a return to former glory? All he asks
is loyalty…and some of your Glamour.
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In an age of despair, the ultimate act of rebellion is hope. Welcome to the new Mind’s Eye
Theatre (MET): Changeling The Dreaming.

What is an Alpha Slice?

This MET: Changeling Alpha Slice contains the foundation of the game still in development.
Future releases will include new arts, new kiths, the Endless Winter storyline, and revised setting
elements.

This document represents a vertical slice of Mind’s Eye Theatre: Changeling The Dreaming.
This material is a small percentage of what might be included in the final product; it will
certainly change and evolve over many rounds of playtesting and player feedback. These rules
and setting pieces are still in development, and this document is intended to highlight features,
showcase design philosophy, and provide only a microcosm of the final product. Please note that
any cross references that direct readers to “page XX” are left in deliberately – the referred
content will be available in future releases.

To that end, we invite you to read through this preview and offer feedback. We consider this
presentation to be proof-of-concept, and your compliments and criticisms are important to the

Introduction Page 5
continued development of Changeling: The Dreaming and other By Night Studios games. At
the end of this document, you will find a brief questionnaire about the Alpha Slice packet. Please
answer these questions out and send us your responses. You can also add any notes or
commentary you like about the rules, setting, or other materials in the vertical slice.

Key Features
Some of the key features of this Beta Slice include:

• Kith: This alpha slice includes a first look at five different types of changelings that can
be portrayed by players. They include:

o Boggans: As keepers of hearth and home, Boggans are the soul of faerie culture.
They are crafters and tradespeople—and expert gossipmongers (page 9).

o Redcaps: Sprung from the primal dreads of hunger and starvation, this kith revels
in being monsters pressed into flesh (page 21).

o Sidhe: Faerie nobles, the Sidhe are leaders and rulers who hold a sacred birthright
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and responsibility for all changelings (page 29).

o Sluagh: Frighteners, assassins, spies, and collectors, the whisper-quiet Sluagh are
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primal fear given form (page 42).

o Trolls: These honorable and resilient warriors are dedicated to defending

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commoners and dreamers (page 52).

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• Seeming: The Seeming background provides guidelines for the progress of a

changeling’s development—including the benefits and drawbacks that come with
experience. Read more about the Seeming background on page 95.

• Other Backgrounds: In addition to Rank, this Alpha Slice includes several new
backgrounds specific to Changeling: The Dreaming, including Dreamers (page 89),
Chimerical Companions (page 88) and Treasures (page 97), plus several others.

• Realms: A new mechanic specific to Changeling: The Dreaming, the use of Realms
allow changelings to mold and shape their magic to the needs of a specific situation or
circumstance. Learn more about this new ability on page 105.

• Arts: Often forming the basis for fairy tales, changeling magic is powerful…and
capricious. This Alpha Slice includes preview rules for 45 different cantrips from nine
different arts, including:

o Chicanery: the art of trickery and deception (page 112).

o Dread: the art of fear and intimidation (page 118).

Introduction Page 6