Earned & Trained Perks (Profession-based)

AX.C.08.02 - Earned & Trained Perks (Profession-based)

Framework: Two-Layer System

08.2 operates as a two-layer system to maintain universal compatibility while supporting setting-specific depth:

Layer 1, Core Perks (this section): ~20 genre-agnostic perks that any Profession in any Genre Catalog can assign to Progression Track Stages. Fully defined and table-ready. Named generically so they function identically in a dungeon, a server room, or a space station.

Layer 2, Setting Perks (Genre Catalog): Each Genre Catalog can add setting-specific perks that reference setting systems, factions, or technology. These follow the same format as Core Perks but carry setting flavor. They exist in the Genre Catalog, not here.

The dividing line: If a perk requires setting-specific fiction to make sense, it belongs in the Genre Catalog. If it would function identically across all genres, it belongs here.

Stage Guidance

Earned Perks map directly to the Progression Track Stage structure from AX.C.08:

Stage	Action Economy	Target Scope	Recovery	Power Level
1	Free Action	Self or single adjacent/nearby target	Short Rest	Small, reliable, always useful
2	Primary Action	Nearby allies or enemies	Long Rest	Moderate, tactically significant
3	Primary Action	Area, group, or unusual effect	Full Rest	Major, encounter-shaping

A Profession assigns one perk to each Stage when its Progression Track is built. Perks may be drawn from the Core library, from the Genre Catalog's Setting Perk list, or authored as a custom perk following the format below.

Custom Perk Format:

Name | Category | Stage | Action | Scope | Recovery
Mechanical effect: [precise, table-ready description]
Limit: [usage frequency]
Genre Note: [optional cross-genre note]

TACTICAL PERKS

Combat positioning, attack enhancement, action economy.

Exploit Opening | Tactical | Stage 1 | Passive | Self | Always active When making an attack against a target that is suffering any Condition (Stunned, Prone, Blinded, Restrained, Frightened, Exhausted, or a Severity-based Attribute Condition), gain +1D on the attack roll. Genre Note: Functions identically for a sword strike, a gunshot, or a hacking intrusion, any attack against a compromised target.

Precision Strike | Tactical | Stage 1 | Free Action | Self | Short Rest Declare before rolling an attack. This attack ignores the target's armor bonus to Defense, calculate Defense as Speed ÷ 3 only. Does not ignore natural Defense from Size or other non-armor sources. Limit: Once per Short Rest.

Combat Rhythm | Tactical | Stage 2 | Passive | Self | Scene After a successful attack that deals at least 1 Health damage, your next attack this Turn gains +1D. This bonus does not carry between Turns. Genre Note: Represents building momentum, physical, computational, or social, through a successful strike.

Suppressing Fire | Tactical | Stage 2 | Primary Action | Single target, Near range | Long Rest Make a ranged or area attack (no damage roll required). Target must make a Speed Save vs Threshold 3. On failure, the target cannot voluntarily move toward you or your allies until the end of their next Turn. They may still move laterally or retreat. Limit: Once per Long Rest. Genre Note: Applies equally to firearms, thrown objects, offensive spellcasting, or a Logic-Virus suppression burst.

Signature Move | Tactical | Stage 3 | Primary Action | Single target | Full Rest Declare this before making an attack. If the attack hits and deals damage, apply one Condition of your choice appropriate to the attack type (GM approval) in addition to normal damage effects. The Condition is applied at Minor severity and the target does not receive a Save to resist. Limit: Once per Full Rest. Genre Note: The specific Condition and its fiction should match the Profession archetype, a brawler applies Stunned, a sniper applies Blinded, an infiltrator applies Frightened, a hacker applies a Wit-based Condition.

DEFENSIVE PERKS

Damage mitigation, save enhancement, endurance.

Hardened | Defensive | Stage 1 | Passive | Self | Always active Choose one damage type at the time this perk is unlocked (Physical, Energy, or Special, or a specific subtype if the Genre Catalog defines them). You have Resistance to that damage type: damage of that type is reduced by 2 before applying to Health (minimum 0). This choice is permanent unless the Genre Catalog specifies a retraining option.

Steady Under Fire | Defensive | Stage 1 | Passive | Self | Scene Ignore the first instance of Disadvantage imposed on you each scene, from any source (conditions, environmental, opposed effects). The Disadvantage is simply not applied on that first instance. Subsequent instances in the same scene apply normally.

Absorb Impact | Defensive | Stage 2 | Reaction | Self | Long Rest Trigger: You take damage from an attack or effect. Make a Body Save vs Threshold 2. On success, reduce the damage by 3 before it is applied to Health. On failure, the damage applies normally. Limit: Once per Long Rest.

Last Stand | Defensive | Stage 3 | Passive | Self | Full Rest Trigger: You would be reduced to 0 Health. Instead, you are reduced to 1 Health and become Stunned until the end of your next Turn. After that Turn, normal 0-Health rules apply if you take further damage. Limit: Once per Full Rest. Does not trigger against Overkill damage (a single hit equal to or exceeding your maximum Health; that still kills outright).

EXPERTISE PERKS

Extended professional capabilities beyond standard Talent rolls.

Specialist | Expertise | Stage 1 | Passive | Self | Always active Choose one Talent at the time this perk is unlocked. When using that Talent in a context directly related to your Profession, treat dice showing 4, 5, or 6 as successes (rather than 5–6 only). This does not affect the Wild Die. Genre Note: "Profession context" is defined by the Genre Catalog. A Medic's Specialist in Medicine applies in field triage; it does not apply when using Medicine to identify a poison in a social setting unless the GM rules it appropriate.

Deep Knowledge | Expertise | Stage 2 | Free Action | Self | Scene Once per scene, before making a Talent roll, declare Deep Knowledge. You may ask the GM one specific, direct question about the task, target, or environment relevant to the roll. The GM must answer honestly with what your character would know given their professional expertise. You then proceed with the roll normally, informed by the answer. Limit: Once per scene.

Mastery | Expertise | Stage 3 | Free Action | Self | Full Rest Choose one Talent at the time this perk is unlocked (may be the same as Specialist or different). Once per Full Rest, after making a roll using that Talent, you may reroll any dice in the pool that showed 1, 2, or 3. Keep the new results. The Wild Die may be rerolled this way. Limit: Once per Full Rest.

Faction access, credentials, information networks, authority.

Professional Standing | Organizational | Stage 1 | Free Action | Self | Session Once per session, invoke your Profession's formal credentials or recognized standing to bypass one standard access barrier without a roll, a locked professional door, a guarded entry requiring identification, a bureaucratic checkpoint that should require paperwork. The bypass must be plausible given your Profession's actual authority in the setting. Limit: Once per session. Genre Note: A Fantasy Guild Mage bypasses a magical ward. A Modern Corporate Auditor bypasses a security checkpoint. A Sci-Fi Naval Officer bypasses an airlock. The fiction changes; the mechanic is identical.

Network Contact | Organizational | Stage 1 | Free Action | One contact | Session You have a reliable, named contact within your organization or professional sphere. Once per session, you may reach out to them for one of the following: a piece of specific information they would plausibly have access to, a low-level logistical favor (safe passage, a borrowed item, a covered entry), or confirmation of a rumor. The contact has their own interests and limits; they will not take serious personal risk. The contact is defined during character creation or at Track Stage 1 unlock, and is a persistent NPC.

Organizational Authority | Organizational | Stage 2 | Primary Action | Single NPC or small group | Long Rest Issue a directive to NPCs of lower organizational rank within your structure. Unless they have a compelling personal reason to refuse (direct danger to themselves, conflicting orders from a superior, ethical objection), they must comply. This is not mind control; it is professional authority. NPCs who comply under duress may report it, resent it, or act against you later. Limit: Once per Long Rest. Does not work against NPCs outside your organizational hierarchy or those of equal/higher rank.

Faction Pull | Organizational | Stage 3 | Primary Action | Organization-scale | Full Rest Call in a significant organizational favor, one that requires the organization to spend real resources or take real risk. Scale is proportional to your Stage 3 standing: backup personnel (2–4 NPCs), a cache of specialized equipment, an intelligence briefing on a current threat, an official intervention that changes the legal or political status of a situation. Limit: Once per Full Rest. The organization remembers this was called in. Overuse degrades your standing.

RECOVERY PERKS

Healing, rest acceleration, condition management.

Field Patch | Recovery | Stage 1 | Minor Action | Self or one ally, Touch range | Short Rest During or immediately after a Short Rest, you or one ally within Touch range recovers an additional 1D6 Health beyond the normal Short Rest recovery. No kit or equipment required; this represents professional first-aid knowledge applied rapidly. Limit: Once per Short Rest.

Rally | Recovery | Stage 3 | Primary Action | All allies, Near range | Full Rest As a Primary Action, all allies within Near range who can see or hear you recover 1D6 Health and may immediately clear one Minor Condition (their choice). This effect requires no roll; it always succeeds. Allies at 0 Health are not affected (they are unconscious and cannot respond to a Rally). Limit: Once per Full Rest.

TEAM PERKS

Ally buffs, coordination, support actions.

Cover | Team | Stage 1 | Passive | Adjacent ally | Always active While you are adjacent (Close range) to an ally, that ally gains +1 Defense against attacks that would require the attacker to move through your position or that originate from the same direction you are facing. This represents active physical coverage, positioning yourself to intercept. The bonus does not apply if you are Prone, Stunned, or otherwise unable to act.

Coordinate | Team | Stage 2 | Free Action | One ally, Near range | Scene Once per scene, before an ally within Near range makes a roll, declare Coordinate. That ally gains +2D on that roll. Must be declared before dice are rolled, cannot be applied retroactively. Limit: Once per scene.

Command | Team | Stage 3 | Free Action | All allies, Near range | Full Rest As a Free Action on your Turn, grant all allies within Near range +1D on all rolls until the start of your next Turn. This bonus applies to all roll types, attacks, saves, Talent checks, Odd Talent rolls. Duration is strictly one Turn cycle. Limit: Once per Full Rest.

CORE PERK QUICK REFERENCE

Name	Category	Stage	Action	Recovery
Exploit Opening	Tactical	1	Passive	Always
Precision Strike	Tactical	1	Free	Short Rest
Combat Rhythm	Tactical	2	Passive	Scene
Suppressing Fire	Tactical	2	Primary	Long Rest
Signature Move	Tactical	3	Primary	Full Rest
Hardened	Defensive	1	Passive	Always
Steady Under Fire	Defensive	1	Passive	Scene
Absorb Impact	Defensive	2	Reaction	Long Rest
Last Stand	Defensive	3	Passive	Full Rest
Specialist	Expertise	1	Passive	Always
Deep Knowledge	Expertise	2	Free	Scene
Mastery	Expertise	3	Free	Full Rest
Professional Standing	Organizational	1	Free	Session
Network Contact	Organizational	1	Free	Session
Organizational Authority	Organizational	2	Primary	Long Rest
Faction Pull	Organizational	3	Primary	Full Rest
Field Patch	Recovery	1	Minor	Short Rest
Second Wind	Recovery	2	Minor	Long Rest
Rally	Recovery	3	Primary	Full Rest
Cover	Team	1	Passive	Always
Coordinate	Team	2	Free	Scene
Command	Team	3	Free	Full Rest

Design Notes

Stage assignment guidance: Each Progression Track Stage receives exactly one perk. Stage 1 is always either the first Combat/Support ability (for action-oriented Professions) or a passive expertise marker (for skill-focused Professions). Stages 2 and 3 escalate scope and recovery cost. A Track should not assign two perks from the same category, variety across the three Stages is a design goal.

Stacking: Perks from the same category do not stack their effects unless explicitly stated. A character with both Exploit Opening and Combat Rhythm would apply whichever gives the larger bonus on a given roll, not both.

Odd Talents and Perks: Odd Talent access (granted by 08.3) is a Progression Track option separate from Earned Perks. A Track Stage can grant limited Odd Talent access instead of a perk.

Genre Catalog Setting Perks follow the same format as Core Perks. They are authored in the relevant Genre Catalog section and reference setting-specific mechanics (Harmonic Traditions, faction standing, environmental systems). They may be assigned to any Track Stage appropriate to their power level. See Iron Lattice AX.GIL.08 for IL Setting Perks.