Renown is the measure of a character’s fame and reputation. As an optional feature the Renown rating gives the players and the Game Judge an idea of how well-known any given character is in his or her world, and can be used as a "reaction die" roll.
To add this factor to your game the following rules are suggested:
All first level characters start with a Renown rating of 1-4%. This reflects the young character’s relative inexperience and modest reputation.
Any time a character performs a truly valiant, heroic (sinister, or notable deed, his or her Renown increases by 1-5%. (Game Judge’s ruling). The more successful the character becomes, the more his or her reputation (and Renown) grows.
When a character is introduced to individuals or intelligent creatures of any sort (or whenever someone speaks his or her name), the Game Judge should roll % dice vs the character’s Renown rating, the result is less than or equal to the character’s Renown. If the individual/creature is well have heard of the character’s reputation. This reactionaries will then determine by the Game Judge’s evaluation of the character’s reputation; i.e. if the character is a renowned warrior, only a fool (or an individual seeking to gain Renown) might look to cause trouble with him or her. If the character is renowned as a holy man, only the most evil individuals might act with hostility. On the other hand, a high Renown rating can work against characters like rogues, spies, assassins, and individuals who prefer to maintain a degree of anonymity.
It is possible to lose up to half of one’s Renown total by suffering an embarrassing defeat or setback at the hands of a lesser-known individual, or by performing some action which brings about a loss of prestige, costs shame upon one’s self or one’s companions, etc. Worse still, a particularly humiliating or scandalous incident can increase an individual’s Renown, up to 100%, but in a most unfavorable way; in such cases, the unfortunate victim becomes very well-known as a coward, a by-word, a laughing stock, or whatever seems most appropriate. While such incidents can be quite damaging to an individual’s reputation, it is usually possible to restore one’s good name by undertaking noble or courageous deeds of some sort (Game Judge’s ruling as to how effective any such deeds will be in restoring lost renown).
Conversely, an individual of comparatively little reputation may double or triple his or her Renown by the successful undertaking of some feat of legendary or otherwise astounding proportion. Alas, such fame is often fleeting; 10-100% of the newly acquired Renown will be lost within a month’s time, as people gradually forget about the former hero or heroine (Game Judge’s ruling in all such cases).
Note: If a character is far from his home land, it is fair to reduce his or her Renown % by as much as 50-75%. For this reason, Renown ratings in excess of 100% are permissible, and quite possible. It should also be noted that a character’s Renown may temporarily revert to 0% if he or she is traveling through desolate or uncivilized areas.
