What Changes

Talent Costs & Hardy Offset

Talent purchase costs are not the core rates. In-profession talents cost double the core rate (Tier 1–5 = 10 / 20 / 30 / 40 / 50 XP); out-of-profession access costs 10 XP more per tier (20 / 30 / 40 / 50 / 60 XP). Universal trees are always in-profession; magical trees use in-profession rates (the permanent Wound Point cost is the access gate, not the talent cost). Hardy exception: a character with any Magical Tier Access buys the core Hardy talent out-of-profession and one tier above their highest unlocked Magical Tier (Tier 1 access → Hardy priced as Tier 2 out-of-profession = 30 XP, scaling up by tier). At Magical Tier 5 access, Hardy cannot be purchased at all. This is the only sanctioned way to offset the permanent Wound Point loss of magical access, and it is deliberately steep; the loss itself is never recovered, only out-bought with new capacity. Full table in Chapter 06.

Applies to

Talents Ch. 4

Replaces

Talents Ch. 4

Defined in

Ch. 06

Bespoke Skill List

The Hollow uses a full bespoke skill list replacing the core default 22-skill list. This list includes universal skills available to all characters, faction profession skills cheaper for members, and hard-gated authority skills purchasable only by faction members or through specific story events. Full skill list in Chapter 05.

Applies to

Skills Ch. 4

Replaces

Skills Ch. 4

Defined in

Ch. 05

Composure Replaces Readiness

The Hollow replaces the core skill Readiness with Composure in all contexts. All rules, formulas, and text that reference Readiness — including the Initiative formula ("Willpower + Readiness") — use Composure instead. No other mechanical change. When checking for cross-universe contradictions, Readiness is not an error in The Hollow; it has been superseded by Composure.

Applies to

Skills Ch. 4, Structured Play Ch. 9

Replaces

Skills Ch. 4, Structured Play Ch. 9

Defined in

Ch. 05, 10

Damage Formula

The Hollow does not use the core's "each additional Success beyond the first adds +1 damage" rule. A successful attack deals the weapon's listed damage regardless of how many net Successes were generated: a melee weapon's Dam entry is a bonus added to the wielder's Might (Might 3 with a +1 knife deals 4); a ranged weapon's Dam entry is the full amount (Genesys-scale values: Light Pistol 5, Hunting Rifle 8). Resistance subtracts from the damage dealt. Additional damage may only be added through Boon spends (see Combat Boon Spends deviation below). Additional Successes beyond the first have no automatic damage effect; they may be spent for narrative advantage at GM discretion. Weapon tables use Genesys-style columns (Skill / Dam / Crit / Range / Encum / HP / Price / Rarity / Special) with Exodus NDS characteristics and Hollow weapon qualities only; HP are hard points for permanent physical modifications.

Applies to

Structured Play Ch. 9

Replaces

Structured Play Ch. 9

Defined in

Ch. 07, 13

Combat Boon Spend Options

The Hollow defines its own set of common combat Boon spends: +1 damage (any successful ranged attack; melee requires Balanced quality); Positional advantage (defensive benefit on next incoming attack against the spender); Reactive posture (target cannot act offensively on their next turn); Brutal quality trigger (activate the weapon's Brutal effect; requires Brutal quality); Critical Injury trigger (spend net Boons equal to the weapon's Crit rating after a successful attack to force a roll on the Ch. 17 Critical Injury table). This list is not exhaustive: Boons may also be spent on narrative effects per the core Reading Results rules, GM adjudicating. Two core options remain removed: Strain recovery via Boon and direct condition application (Prone, Disoriented) are not used in The Hollow.

Applies to

Structured Play Ch. 9

Replaces

Structured Play Ch. 9

Defined in

Ch. 07, 13, 17

Characteristic Advancement & the Growth Tree

Characteristics cannot be raised with XP after creation. The Growth tree of Universal talents is the only reliable in-play route: Growth (Tier 1, once) and Greater Growth (Tier 2, ranked, each purchase a different characteristic) raise a characteristic by 1 to a maximum of 4; Apex Growth (Tier 3, once per character, ever) raises a single characteristic from 4 to 5, the only way any characteristic reaches 5. Every Growth-tree purchase costs the talent price plus the characteristic's normal advancement cost (20/30/40/50 XP to reach 2/3/4/5) and must be grounded in what the campaign has demanded of the character.

Applies to

Character Creation Ch. 2, Talents Ch. 4

Replaces

Character Creation Ch. 2, Talents Ch. 4

Defined in

Ch. 03, 06

Critical Injuries

The Hollow uses the standard Exodus NDS Critical Injury procedure (d100 roll, +10 per existing Critical Injury, compounding until treated) but replaces the core d100 table with its own bespoke table in Chapter 17, which extends the severity bands with a Mortal (101+) band running to 141–150 (Killed). A Breakthrough on a successful attack automatically inflicts a Critical Injury (roll on the Ch. 17 table), with no Boon spend required; this is the standard Breakthrough-on-hit combat effect. Net Boons equal to the weapon's Crit rating may also be spent to inflict one; The Hollow's default Crit rating is 3, modified by the Keen (Crit 2) and Crude (Crit 4) weapon qualities in Chapter 07. Elites and Nemeses can suffer Critical Injuries; standard adversaries cannot. The "No Critical Injuries" entry in earlier Bible drafts was carried over from Ink & Mayhem design and does not apply here.

Applies to

Structured Play Ch. 9, Recovery Ch. 12

Replaces

Structured Play Ch. 9, Recovery Ch. 12

Defined in

Ch. 07, 13, 17

No Melee/Ranged Defense Tracking; Legendary

The Hollow does not track Melee Defense or Ranged Defense for player characters or NPCs; those values do not appear on sheets or stat blocks (physical cover adds Bane dice; the Reactive Posture Boon spend substitutes). Resistance keeps its core meaning for every being, including supernatural entities: it reduces incoming damage and nothing else. Hard-to-destroy entities instead carry Legendary, an ability listed outside the stat block (not a numeric stat line): while Legendary is active, the entity takes no damage from any source except a confirmed weakness (iron, silver, holy means, or a researched weakness for that entity). Legendary never adds Bane dice and is never read off the Resistance line.

Applies to

Structured Play Ch. 9, Adversaries Ch. 10

Replaces

Structured Play Ch. 9, Adversaries Ch. 10

Defined in

Ch. 07, 11

Faction as Third Creation Layer

Characters choose Background, Career, and Faction. Faction is a full third identity layer granting profession skills, talent options, faction passive benefit, and up to 3 hard-gated authority skills. Independent characters skip the Faction layer and its associated benefits.

Applies to

Character Creation Ch. 2

Replaces

Character Creation Ch. 2

Defined in

Ch. 03, 04

Awakened Blood

All player characters in The Hollow possess Awakened Blood. They may perceive the supernatural without Merciful Dissonance rewriting it. This does not make them immune to fear, possession, deception, or madness. It means they can see the knife before it cuts them.

Applies to

Character Creation Ch. 2

Replaces

Character Creation Ch. 2

Defined in

Ch. 02, 03

Magical Tier Access / Wound Cost

Magic in The Hollow is organized into five tiers. A character may only use Magical talents of a tier they have unlocked. Unlocking Tier 1 costs 1 permanent Wound Point. Unlocking each subsequent tier costs 1 additional permanent Wound Point. These Wound Points are permanently lost and cannot be recovered by any means except Universe-specific story events.

Applies to

Talents Ch. 4, Wounds Ch. 2

Replaces

Talents Ch. 4, Wounds Ch. 2

Defined in

Ch. 05, 08

Corruption Track

Corruption is a third tracked condition alongside Wounds and Strain. It represents spiritual compromise, moral failure, and infernal leverage. Corruption is gained through dark choices, devil deals, forbidden magic, and certain failure consequences. It can be reduced through virtuous action, priestly absolution, acts of sacrifice, accountability, and specific rites. Mechanical thresholds and effects are defined in Chapter 08.

Applies to

Recovery / Strain Ch. 12

Replaces

Recovery / Strain Ch. 12

Defined in

Ch. 08

Wound Escalation / Shard-Wound Clocks

Active supernatural sites have a Wound escalation track: Cold Shard / Waking Shard / Open Wound / Weeping Wound / Breach. Occult activity, failed rituals, and certain Calamity results can advance this track. Successful intervention (sealing, binding, containing, consecrating) can reduce it. Event-triggered escalation and de-escalation procedures are defined in Chapter 10 and GM handling appears in Chapter 12.

Applies to

Structured Play Ch. 9

Replaces

Structured Play Ch. 9

Defined in

Ch. 02, 10, 12

Faction Passive Benefit

Each faction has a passive mechanical advantage in its primary specialty lane. The canonical passives are Rite of Office, Passion, Deniable Operation, Impossible Evidence, Do Not Touch That, Kill It Right, The Older Version, Ugly Solution, and Free Association for Independents.

Defined in

Canonical wording in Chapter 04.

Watchfires Passion Mechanic

Passion is a singular, specific, first-person declaration — a personal compulsion, not a category. When acting in direct service of their Passion, after the dice are rolled and the result is visible, the character may suffer Strain to add successes. The first added success costs 3 Strain; each further success on the same roll costs 1 more than the last (3, then 4, then 5, and so on). A character may keep buying as long as they can pay the next success's full cost without reaching their Strain Points; Passion can never incapacitate them. (The Righteous Passion talent flattens this to 3 Strain per success.) Ignoring a trigger adds a Bane die to all holy authority checks plus an immediate Strain hit at GM judgment, both persisting until the situation is made right and genuine repentance is made. Acting against the Passion carries tiered consequences (all add a Bane die to holy authority checks until penance): Tier 1 (For the Greater Good) = 2–3 Strain, maximum Strain −1, no Corruption if the claimed greater good actually materializes (1 Corruption if it does not); Tier 2 (Under Coercion) = 4–5 Strain or one quarter of maximum Strain, maximum Strain −2, minimum 1 Corruption; Tier 3 (Willful) = half maximum Strain (rounded down), maximum Strain −3, minimum 1 Corruption (GM may increase). Penance (Willpower + Theology: Hard / Severe / Extreme by tier, once per day) restores the maximum Strain reduction and removes the Bane penalty; one act clears both. The earlier Bible drafts described this as a difficulty reduction and later as flat 1/2/3 Strain tiers — both were wrong. The manuscript (Ch. 04) is the source of truth.

Defined in

Canonical wording in Chapter 04; quick reference in Chapter 17.

Exorcism Subsystem

Exorcism is a multi-step procedure involving diagnosis, preparation, binding, confrontation, expulsion, leverage, spiritual authority, and risk. It is not a single check. Catholics (Order of Mercy) are best resourced for it; Watchfires characters can disrupt and support it through Deliverance and Righteous Fire but do not replace the full rite.

Defined in

Canonical procedure in Chapter 08.

Spirit Banishment

Distinct from Exorcism. Ghosts, spirits, dybbuks, and ibburim require different handling. Banishment uses research, communication, and release/removal; human-soul possession adds Tzror capture and Reconciliation options. The Order of Mercy may not be best at Spirit Banishment; mediums, Soul Work specialists, the Lamed Vav, scholars, and other specialists have space here.

Defined in

Canonical procedure in Chapter 08; talent support expanded in Ch. 06.

Holy Power Mechanics

Holy items, blessed weapons, consecrated ground, relics, blessings, rites, prayers, and exorcistic authority provide mechanical leverage: add Boon dice, bypass supernatural defenses, reveal possession, disrupt glamour, permit otherwise-impossible rolls, protect areas, weaken entities, or provide leverage in exorcism. Does not auto-win.

Defined in

Full mechanics in Chapter 08.

Relic Rules

Relics and cursed objects have conditions, behaviors, risks, and protocols. Safe handling, provenance, identification, breach response, and item-specific rules matter.

Defined in

Full rules in Chapter 09.

Merciful Dissonance Mechanics

Witnesses, bystanders, and untrained individuals automatically reinterpret supernatural events into mundane explanations. Awakened characters are immune by default. MD cracks under contradiction, not mere perception, and GM handling is defined in Chapter 12.

Defined in

Core explanation in Chapter 02; investigation use in Chapter 10; GM procedure in Chapter 12.

Investigation Framework

Cases use a clue structure with evidence tracks, false explanations, supernatural tells, and faction-expertise gates.

Defined in

Full investigation mechanics in Chapter 10.

Monster Weakness Rules

Monsters require research and field knowledge. Confirmed weaknesses grant +1 Boon die, reduce the target's Resistance to 0 for that action, and bypass one Supernatural Defense when exploited. The Black Road is the primary specialist faction for this.

Defined in

Full rules in Chapter 11.

Forbidden Workings

Antagonist occult rites are built as ad hoc talents/procedures rather than full player-facing trees. Every Forbidden Working requires meaningful sacrifice (bloodletting that causes Wounds, animal sacrifice, human sacrifice, surrendered names, destroyed relics, or equivalent real cost), leaves evidence, risks Wound escalation, and turns failure back on the user at a scale appropriate to the effect.

Defined in

Canonical procedure in Ch. 12. Player characters may learn or attempt them only with GM permission and full Corruption/failure consequences.

Operational Relics and Focus Objects

Relics can be usable field tools, not only containment problems. A usable relic may add Boon dice, remove Bane dice, upgrade a die, permit an otherwise-impossible check, or reduce difficulty, but stronger effects require visible costs: Strain, Wounds, Corruption, attachment, or supernatural attention.

Defined in

Canonical procedure and catalog in Chapter 09; quick reference in Chapter 17.

Occult Attachments

Body-part relics and grafted occult objects are handled as Forbidden Workings. They require real sacrifice, cause Corruption, grant strong body-linked effects, and impose visible medical, social, and spiritual consequences. Most are adversarial or contraband, not normal player gear.

Defined in

Canonical procedure in Chapter 12; item catalog in Chapter 09.

Corrupt Body Manifestations

Corruption can manifest physically or sensorially. Manifestations range from trace tells to natural weapons and major compromised abilities. Benefits are paired with costs, and stronger manifestations create obvious drawbacks, holy reactions, medical anomalies, or infernal attention.

Defined in

Full scale and table in Chapter 08; quick reference in Chapter 17.

Initiative

The Hollow uses the core rolled Initiative system unchanged: each character rolls an Initiative check at the start of structured play, ranked by net Successes. Roll Savvy + Perception when prepared, on watch, or expecting trouble; roll Willpower + Composure when surprised or reacting under sudden pressure. The only Hollow change is the Readiness→Composure rename (see row above). Composure Initiative (CI = Willpower + Composure) is not a fixed turn-order stat; it is simply the surprised-initiative pool and the characteristic/skill tiebreaker value carried on the sheet. The earlier draft's single-fixed-CI-stat approach is retired.

Applies to

Structured Play Ch. 9

Replaces

Structured Play Ch. 9

Defined in

Ch. 03, 13, 17

Range Bands

The Hollow uses the core five range bands unchanged: Engaged, Short, Medium, Long, Extreme. Moving one band costs one Maneuver; attacks beyond a weapon's listed maximum range add difficulty per the core rules. An earlier draft proposed four bespoke bands (Close/Near/Far/Extreme); that is retired, and the core bands are standard in every chapter.

Applies to

Structured Play Ch. 9

Replaces

Structured Play Ch. 9

Defined in

Ch. 07, 13