Beast Creation

Level

Unlike player characters Beasts, Magical Creatures, and Non Player Characters (NPCs) often start at higher levels. While they must still follow the same rules for creating a player character this difference often changes the way that they are designed.

For example when designing a dragon you might first think of the abilities that a dragon needs, notably Flight and a Breath weapon 1. These two requirements alone mean that a dragon needs to be at least Level 3 to have the relevant abilities, but that would be the absolute weakest a dragon could reasonably be. It is likely that a powerful adult dragon would be a much higher Level.

In this way it is usually best first to consider the abilities a Creature should have to determine the minimum Level, and then scale them to fit the Power you think they should have. Occasionally however this will lead to odd results. For example a bird would need would most likely be Diminutive Size and be able to fly, but would be much lower Level than the Level 5 required to have those abilities. These situations are usually examples of Level 0 Creatures.

Non Combat Creatures are Tiny or smaller (as per the Feat) with one additional Beast Feat. They cannot take any Feats that grant them Attacks such as Natural Weapons or Breath weapon 1. The Level of this Creature is one Level lower than the required Level for the Beast Feat they posses. Their Attributes and statistics are calculated as normal, but if they would have a maximum HP of 0 (due to their Level) they have a maximum HP of 1 instead.

Attributes

Similar to determining the Level of the Creature it is useful to look at what abilities you want them to have when determining their Attributes. Because you will need specific scores to meet the prerequisites of the Feats the Creature needs it is best to use the Point Buy system for determining Attributes, however even with this flexibility the Creature still may need to take the "Increase Ability 1" Feat (or its successors) in order to get the desired Attributes.

Assuming you are able to Reach the required Attributes with points to spare you should also consider what abilities would be most useful for the Creature. A horse does not need a good MND or ESS score, but high STR and DEX would help in run faster and give it more HP. A dragon on the other hand might want a higher Essence for its breath Weapon or MND for it scales.

Feats and Skill Feats

Beast and Magical Creature creation is nearly identical to character creation except they must choose from the appropriate Feat lists.

Beasts must choose from the Beast and Common Feat lists. Beasts also cannot use most items like Weapons, Armor, enchanted Objects, etc., but may still have valuable things in their lair.

Magical Creatures can choose Feats from any list. Magical Creatures have access to all of the options of both Beasts and Humans, making them a greater threat.

Non Player Characters (NPCs) can choose Feats from the Human and Common lists just like player characters.

Picking Feats and Skill Feats For a Beast or Magical Creature is much the same as it would be for any other character. However knowing some of the key Feats the Creature should have allows you to work backwards. If you know a Creature is going to be Huge, you also know it will need the Large Feat as a prerequisite, and possibly a Feat to increase its Strength as well.

Once all of these key Feats are taken you will often find a patchwork of missing slots at various levels where the Creature still has room for more abilities. It is then up to you whether you expand on their key abilities and give them more interesting options, or reinforce them with Feats that will help bolster those abilities and increase it's defenses.

Alternatively you may find that with all the abilities you think a Creature should have that they are higher Level than you originally thought. You will need to decide what Feats can be cut without sacrificing the concept, or if the Creature will just need to be a higher Level.

In either case it is important that you remember that the flavor of these abilities is up to you and what fits your campaign the best. You may even decide that the flavor of an ability should limit it mechanically to better suit the concept, like a troll's Regeneration stopping when exposed to sunlight. This can lead to interesting limitations and weaknesses for your players to exploit. Using the narrative to increase the Power of a Creature's abilities is not recommended. There is no shortage of ways to create powerful Creatures and abilities in Fragments, but it may require the Creature to be a higher Level. Ignoring this can make the game much more difficult to balance, and at the extreme, harder for players to interact with in a meaningful way.

Creature Stats

The remaining stats of the Creature (HP, Physical Defense, etc) are all calculated identically to any other Creature. Taking your Attribute and Feats into account you can now calculate your other stats.

Your Max HP is equal to (10+STR)xLevel. For example a Level 1 character with 5 Strength has 15 HP.

You should aim for at least 15 HP per Level. That means if your STR is less than 5 you should consider the "Extra HP" Feat.

Your Physical Defense is equal to 10+Level+DEX.

You should aim for your Physical Defense being at least 17+Level. If you wear Armor/carry a Shield and have at least 4 DEX this is relatively easy, but if you have especially low DEX, or plan on putting yourself in harms way often you may want to consider Feats like "Armor Training", "Evasion", or "Shield Training". Since Beasts cannot use Armor or Shields they may instead want to take Feats like "Natural Armor". Magical Creatures can choose between all of these or even use both, making them potentially much more dangerous.

Your Mental Defense is equal to 10+Level+MND.

You should aim for your Mental Defense being at least 15+Level. That means that if your MND is less than 5 you should consider taking the "Improved Mental Defense" Feat, or something similar.

Your Max Energy is equal to your Level+MND.

How much Energy you need greatly depends on your build. Think about what you might spend Energy on and how much Energy it would require. The more Energy you start with, the less you'll need to Focus in combat.

Your Focus (Energy Regeneration) is equal to your (ESS+Level)/3 (always Round down, this is true across the game).

If you plan on using more Energy than you start out with (you generally start a fight with your Max Energy) then it is important to be able to regenerate it quickly. Like Max Energy, this depends heavily on your build.

Your Speed is equal to 5xDEX.

While Speed is more important for some characters than others, speeds lower than 20 ft can make maneuvering combat difficult.

Your Carrying Capacity is equal to your STR. You can carry a number of items in Bulk up to your Carrying Capacity normally. You can carry Bulk up to double your Carrying Capacity, but are Slowed when doing so.

This is mainly a concern if you want to use Heavy Armor or many different Weapons.

Your Initiative Bonus is equal to you DEX+Level.

Higher Initiative is beneficial for everyone, as it means you get to go before your Enemies.

Your Bonus on Melee Attack rolls is equal to your Level+STR, but if you are using a Light or Medium Weapon you can use your DEX instead.

If you are planning on using Melee Attacks as your primary form of Damage your Attack Bonus should be at least 8+Level. If you are using Melee Attacks as a secondary Attack then a Bonus of 6+Level is acceptable.

Your Bonus on Ranged Attack rolls is equal to your Level+DEX.

If you are planning on using Ranged Attacks as your primary form of Damage your Attack Bonus should be at least 8+Level. If you are using Ranged Attacks as a secondary Attack then a Bonus of 6+Level is acceptable.

Your Bonus on Spell Attack rolls is equal to your Level+ESS.

If you are planning on using Spell Attacks as your primary form of Damage your Attack Bonus should be at least 8+Level. If you are using Spell Attacks as a secondary Attack then a Bonus of 6+Level is acceptable.

Your Bonus on Skill rolls is equal to your Level+ the relevant Attribute (STR: Climb, Jump, Swim; DEX: Conceal, Sneak, Swipe; ESS: Intimidate, Lie, Persuade; MND: Tinker, Investigate, Medicine).

It is important to remember that these stats will improve as you character levels and some Feats even directly increase these stats.

Wealth and Gear

While NPCs and even some Magical Creatures will have Gear like a player character of the same Level, many will have little or none. This is particularly true of Beasts like wild Animals. This means it may be necessary for you as a Game Master to find other ways to keep the players wealth balanced relative to their Level.

This can mean a dragon's hoard, selling meat or materials gathered from monsters, or having NPCs pay them for dealing with these threats. If the party has plenty of money already you may not need to do this. It is important to remember that if you are playing with the "Purchasing Levels" rules for leveling players that they will need substantially more Gold to progress.