Merits and Flaws are special options that a Storyteller may allow their players to take. They are mainly a device meant to help with backstory and to help flesh out a character, but main of them are very useful. At character creation a player may choose as many merits they can afford with 'bonus points' and may only choose a number of flaws that award additional 'bonus points' totaling seven for a total of 22 'bonus points' at character creation.

For every human ability, there are those who have a natural flair for it. Within your character's specific Aptitude, gain 2 dice. A crack driver can perform phenomenal car tricks with ease. This Aptitude functions for one Ability, but it can be taken multiple times for a character who's a natural with, say, science and engineering. Combat Abilities should never have an Ability Aptitude associated with them.

You rely on rationality and observation, separating factual reporting from emotional or hysterical coloration which allows you to see when others are allowing feelings to cloud their thinking. You may or may not be emotional yourself, but you can see clearly when others are clouding the facts with their feelings (one additional die on all related rolls).

You have your head screwed on straight, and a good degree of practical and plain day-to-day wisdom with a tendency to deduce clear courses of action in puzzling situations. Whenever you’re about to do something counter to common sense, the Storyteller may step in and advise you that you’re about to do something that your character would recognize as foolhardy. This is a very useful Merit to give to beginning players unfamiliar with the game.

You have the ability to focus your mind and shut out any distractions or annoyances to focus intently on what's important, the task at hand. Your character is never affected by adverse situational and environmental circumstances that don't actually cause damage. Characters with this Merit are unaffected by any circumstantial penalties that otherwise might affect their dice pools or difficulty ratings (e.g., nearby gunfire, loud noises, strobe lights, overpowering aromas, hanging upside down, distracted, disturbed, pushed, jostled, working in the rain or otherwise inconvenienced.).

It’s almost impossible to make you lose your sense of location and direction. You can tell which way is north, even indoors, with an Alertness or Survival roll at base difficulty; you can also retrace a path you’ve traveled only once with a +1 difficulty Alertness or a standard Survival roll.

Through this nightly exercise of examining your own motives for actions, you have a knack for seeing the underlying and ulterior motives of other's actions. Add two dice to your Perception dice pool when you must take an action against someone with the same Nature as you.

You know a language in addition to your native one. You can take this Merit multiple times, each reflecting a different language.

Your character can perform complex mathematical equations in her head instantly with little error at the speed of a computer. You have a natural affinity with numbers and mental calculations, making you a natural when working with finance, estimating at a glance, computing odds, figuring complex variable equations, and the like. You as a player can use a calculator during play at any time, even when your character is fleeing for her life. All rolls where mental math comes into play are made with at +2 dice to your pool. Another possible use for this Merit is figuring the odds of success or failure of a particular endeavor, assuming you have sufficient data upon which to base your calculations. In appropriate situations, you may ask the Storyteller for the difficulty of a task you are about to undertake before committing to the effort.

You have an innate sense of time and are able to estimate the passage of time accurately without using a watch or other mechanical device even after long periods of unconsciousness down to within a few seconds of accuracy.

The ancient Celts called this state the “Battle Fury,” and when it takes over your character, everything is tinted with a red haze as he kills. And kills. And kills some more. Your character feels no pain, and he ignores all wound penalties when berserk. Whenever your character is injured in combat, make a Willpower roll (difficulty the number of wound levels suffered so far that scene). Add two to that difficulty if you have the Short Fuse Flaw. If you fail, your character enters the battle fury, and he may ignore all wound penalties. Unfortunately, he won't know friend from foe, and he will kill until there's nothing left standing. To end the battle fury, you must make a Willpower roll at the same difficulty. Subtract one from the difficulty if the person on the receiving end is your True Love or someone similarly important. Otherwise, everyone just has to run and hide until you come down.

You have a strong personal code of ethics to which you adhere and can often be as much a help as a hindrance. The specifics of this code must be worked out with the Storyteller prior to play, and the character must follow it strictly. This code guides their actions, promotes higher standards and gives a clear ethical path. Characters with this Merit gain two additional dice to all Willpower rolls when acting in accordance, struggling to uphold their code (e. g., defending the helpless) or when attempting to avoid situations that might force them to violate their code. You may choose something already established or create and describe your own list of moral and ethical dos and don’ts to flesh out the code with your Storyteller’s approval. Note that if your character does not uphold the code and ponder its impact on his lifestyle regularly, this Merit may be revoked.

You remember, with perfect detail, things you see and hear. This includes documents, photographs, conversations, etc. Under stressful conditions involving numerous distractions (like memorizing a book during a firefight), you must make an Awareness roll to summon enough concentration to absorb what your senses detect.

You have the grit of a true survivor. In a crisis, your deep reserve of determination gets you through. Reduce the difficulty of Willpower rolls by two if struggling against overwhelming odds.

You have a flair for languages. Add three dice to any dice pool involving written or spoken language, and each purchase of the Language Merit gives you two languages instead of just one.

You can read at 4 times the normal rate with no loss in comprehension. While reading make an Intelligence roll each success adds to the reading rate multiplier. So rolling two successes results in a reading rate of 6 times normal.

You can awaken instantly at any sign of trouble, danger or disturbance and do so without any sleepiness or hesitation. While rest is still required after exertion, sleep is seldom necessary. You are not immune to sleep-causing effects, and you must still rest (no combat and no efforts requiring rolls) after exhausting actions. You are not always perky, bright-eyed, and bushy-tailed, but you suffer no penalties or ill effects from remaining awake for extended periods. For one point, your character needs less sleep than other humans: They can function quite well on four hours a night. If the Storyteller imposes penalties on other players for sleep deprivation (one- or two-die penalties are suggested), then you are exempt. Needless to say, this Merit allows your character to accomplish a lot more with his daily activities.

For two points, your character sleeps only about two hours per night. This resilience is quite unusual, and it lets your character get a lot more done. It also means that they have the luxury of sleeping while on the run.

For three points, your character is truly sleepless. You may suffer penalties from exhaustion, but you do not need shut-eye. Perhaps your character's brain's sleep center was destroyed in an accident, they have a strong constitution, or a frenetic nature. Regardless, the only time your character sleeps is if he's drugged or beaten unconscious.

You remain calm and collected even in the most trying of circumstances. You receive two extra dice when attempting to resist intimidation.

When you are determined and your mind is set, nothing can thwart you from your goals. You have a tremendous ability to resist outside attempts to take over your mind. You receive three extra dice to resist attempts to manipulate your mind, and may spend a Willpower point to shake off direct mental control. This Merit works only against direct mental control, not emotional manipulation or other powers dealing with the emotions. Characters will Willpower scores below 8 cannot take this Merit.

You have a little knowledge about a lot of things.

You are so sure of your own abilities that when you expend Willpower to gain an automatic success on an endeavor, you have a chance to gain the benefit of that expenditure without actually losing the Willpower. When you spend Willpower for an automatic success, you do not actually lose it unless the auto-success is the only one garnered in the roll. This Merit may only be used in challenging situations, that is, when the difficulty is two or higher. You may spend Willpower for an automatic success at other times, but if your difficulty is one, the Willpower will be spent regardless of what you roll.

You feel compelled to take certain actions at certain times or under specific circumstances. This psychological quirk sometimes takes a highly ritualized form (constant hand-washing or grooming) or else manifests in trigger situations (compulsive gambling, swearing, talking, stealing). This Flaw not only causes problems for you, but for your team as well. You may spend a Willpower point to avoid your compulsion temporarily. Check with your Storyteller to find out how long you can resist before you must spend another Willpower point or succumb to your compulsion.