Æthers
Æthers are your Jack's core strengths and weaknesses.
Æthers exist on a scale of -3 to +3 with your average Jack having 0 in all Æthers.
A positive number represents your Jack being better at tasks related to that Æther as well as being less vulnerable to conditions related to that Æther.
A Negative number represents your Jack struggling with tasks related to that Æther but more importantly, it shows a big vulnerability to conditions related to that Æther.
These same Æthers also apply to the Mark who's dream you are in and determine the strengths and weaknesses of the dream.
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The rules page gives a strong breakdown of each Æther so I'll repeat those again but if you are looking for more on what they represent and why these characteristics were chosen, you can have a look down below.
Lucidity
Lucidity represents a Jacks ability to control their own motion, bodily functions and appearance. Jacks that intend to dish out a lot of attacks in close combat or take a lot of hits value this Æther. It is also the main Æther involved in keeping a Jack in the dream.
Lucidity is important for shapeshifting as well, as it allows the Jack to easily change their own form but also be able to get the original form back again.
Decisive rolls relying on Lucidity are anything that involved the Jacks body. EG. Climbing things, Jumping things, Eating something gross, Breaking a door down with a weapon...
​Marks with a strong Lucidity have more fleshed out occupants and find them easier to control, they may even have an Aura that carries the marks consciousness throughout the dream.
Mentality
Mentality represents the Jacks ability to manipulate their surroundings. Jacks who want to change the environment of the dream have high mentality. This could be changing how time passes in the dream, modifying objects, changing the weather, changing the setting or manipulating vehicles for your purpose. Mentality can be really important for getting through puzzles to gain access to secret areas in a dream.
Decisive rolls relying on Mentality are anything that interacts with the environment or an object. EG. determining if a branch could hold your weight, lockpicking a door, solving a puzzle box, figuring out the controls to a draw bridge.
Mark’s with a high Mentality create large sweeping landscapes, intricate puzzles and elaborate buildings within their dreams. They may also have parts of their dreams that cannot be manipulated easily by the Jacks.
Empathy
Empathy represents a Jacks ability to read more deeply into the dream and gain more information from its Occupants. You also have a better chance to have positive interactions with these Occupants and are more likely to win them over in non-combat interactions.
Empathy can also give the Jack the ability to control their own Occupants such and summoning familiars to your aid or taking control of the dreams Occupants. It is also essential for avoiding the dream's influence on the Jack.
Decisive rolls relying on Empathy are anything to do with interacting with Occupant, whether that is intimidating, persuading, bargaining or tricking them.
Marks with high Empathy have more resistance to their occupants being manipulated and have a larger chance of predicting the Jacks actions. They may have densely populated dreams filled with many Occupants that quickly recognise the intruding Jacks and begin working against the Jacks much faster.
