Worldbuilding: Unique Attributes - The Beast of Ildenwood

What are "Unique Attributes" in The Beast of Ildenwood? 

In my serialized GameLit/LitRPG, The Beast of Ildenwood, all characters have something called a Unique Attribute. Unique Attributes are completely exclusive; in other words, no two people alive at the same time in my fantasy world can have the same unique attribute. There may be a couple of interesting exceptions to the rule, but we'll get to that when we get there! For now, let's focus on the basics.

Unique attributes are only raw material; it is up to their wielder to understand how best to develop and hone their attribute to turn it into a skill that can be used. Let's take a look at some examples presented in Chapter 6 (released August 15, 2021) to get a better understanding of how Unique Attributes work.

Deletrear's Unique Attribute: Invisible Eye

Deletrear is the Noble Guardian of Miraya and a spellcaster that we meet in Chapter 5. (I have another post coming up that delves into what it means to be a Guardian.) His unique attribute is called Invisible Eye.

The mark of the Invisible Eye.

 

The Invisible Eye attribute allows Deletrear to look into people's minds (and, by extension, their books). This doesn't necessarily mean reading or listening to someone's thoughts, however. One of Deletrear's strongest skills is Book Intrusion, which is a common skill that can be learned by many different characters. However, because of his natural ability - the Invisible Eye attribute - Deletrear is able to develop the skill to a level that is leagues ahead of what anyone else is able to accomplish.

Laska's Unique Attribute: Sticky Skin

Sticky Skin is an attribute that provides its owner with... sticky skin! Because of this, Laska, one of the mercenaries we meet in Chapter 6, has developed a skill called Suction Grip that allows him to hold on to almost anything with his skin - which is why he can climb walls! This is a great example of how a unique attribute can be developed into a skill. 

The mark of the Sticky Skin attribute.

 It's completely up to the owner of the unique attribute to decide how they want to develop their attribute, and which skills they would like to work on based on that attribute.

Jeri's Unique Attribute: Tough Legs

Finally, we have the Tough Legs attribute, which belongs to Jeri - another mercenary we meet in Chapter 6.  

The mark of the Tough Legs attribute.

Jeri has developed this attribute as a strength-based skill, and as a result he's able to break many different items with his legs. But there are definitely other ways this unique attribute could have been developed as well - in fact, each attribute has a range of ways in which it can be developed, and characters can try different approaches whenever they want. 

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And there are so many more! I currently have a big table with all the characters and their unique attributes. I have to be honest; it's hard to create a varied list of unique attributes for characters, but the challenge is half the fun!

Which unique attribute would you want to have if you were a character in The Beast of Ildenwood? Remember: unique attributes are not skills in and of themselves. They're just raw materials that you can develop a range of skills from!