The Mechanics of Rewards
Currency
For a character to grow in wealth, power, and status, acquiring and spending currency is important. Not all currency is tangible, however, and as such, they are abstracted into three different values for gameplay - Cash, Experience, and Favor.
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Cash
In the Crytures world, human civilization is sparse and scattered. Because of this, fiat money is rarely minted by governments, as it wouldn’t even be recognized once it leaves the borders of the local lord’s domain. Coins do exist, however, but their value is predicated purely on their material composition, and with the range of exotic materials that can be smelted, grown, or mixed, the coinage that travelers may come across is practically limitless. Fortunately, most people have a good sense for what these materials are worth, so currency differences are rarely an issue. As such, the amount of monetary wealth that people carry around with them in-game is abstracted as a Cash value.
For roleplaying purposes, world builders are encouraged to dole out monetary rewards in various flavors of currency and assign a Cash value to them for the sake of streamlining gameplay. Players may choose to record different currencies individually (with their Cash value included) or simply lump them all into a single entry for Cash.​​​
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Experience
A person doesn't learn new skills and abilities simply by knowing about them. In order to turn knowledge into practical application, one must spend time practicing that application - not only in a controlled environment, but out in the field as well. That field knowledge is represented by gaining Experience.
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Experience is typically gained as a reward for personal accomplishments. Defeating enemies in battle, making new discoveries, and completing quest objectives may all award Experience when achieved. Experience is spent to acquire new Abilities and raise levels in Skills, as well as Professions.
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Favor
A character's reputation can be as valuable as gold, and good will can buy things that money cannot. As conjurers embark on adventures and expeditions, word gets out about their deeds, allowing them to leverage that prestige to gain tangible benefits. This good will that characters accumulate is recorded as Favor.
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Favor is awarded for accomplishments that affect the people around them. Completing quests for patrons, showing benevolence in a community, and performing extraordinary feats are all ways to gain Favor of the people. To leverage your Favor, a character can spend it to gain Boons or Benefits.
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Acquiring Rewards
Throughout your adventures, your character's exploits may garner them many different kinds of rewards, such as great wealth, new abilities, powerful items, exotic crafting materials, and personal honor. Here are some feats you can engage in to gain those rewards, and what you can expect to get from them.
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Objectives
Many adventure you go on will reward you based on achieving certain objectives. Usually this takes the form of Favor, Cash, and Experience. Your World Builder can refer to the appropriate Adventure Template for determining those rewards.
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Combat
Defeating enemies in combat comes with consistent rewards, based on the Danger of that enemy. For each point of Danger an enemy has, defeating them rewards 10 ​​Experience and 1 roll on their loot table.
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Loot
Along your adventures, you will likely run across ancient troves of treasure, or hoards of magic items that crytures have stashed in their nests. Searching for these hoards can help you acquire material wealth and powerful items to advance your character's power. You may also find historical secrets, leading to further treasure, or advancing events in the world.
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Trade
Not all of the loot you acquire will be useful to you. When you end up with equipment, consumables, or historical artifacts that you don't intend to use, you can always sell them to a local dealer for half their Value. If you're willing to invest some time and effort, you may even be able to find a buyer for a higher price.
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Harvest
Some rewards are naturally-occurring, such as metals or subcrytures infused with cryture essence. They can often be used to enhance the crafting of enchanted equipment or consumables, allowing the crafter to create works beyond their usual skill. Harvesting these materials will require special tools, so be sure to bring some along on your adventures.
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Enchanted Items
When players encounter strange items, whether it be a weapon, armor, a potion or a scroll, their properties may not be immediately apparent, and require a Talent check to identify. The general power level of the item, however, usually is very apparent. More powerful magic tends to manifest in items as more exotic and ornate designs.
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When players find an item that may be enchanted, roll 5d10, plus any additional Die Modifiers they may have. For each 10 that's rolled, the item has 1 property. When the player records the item in their inventory, they should include the number of properties until all of them have been identified. To identify an item's properties, use the following action.​
Identify
Cost: 1 Mana
Type: Identification, Knowledge
Focused Action
Roll: Intellect + Lore vs 5 + Number of Properties
Success: You identify 1 property of an item per success.
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Once a property is identified, the World Builder will determine​ a table to roll on for properties, either randomly or according to the source of the item. Roll on that table once for each property the item has. If the same property is rolled twice, upgrade that property to the next level. If that isn't possible, roll again until an appropriate property is rolled.
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