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 28 'bonus points' at character creation.

With a successful Stamina roll, you can shake off the effects of intoxication, suffering no coordination penalties that might normally affect a drunken fighter. This Merit works against all natural intoxicants, even if processed (such as cocaine), though not against poisons or entirely man-made chemical drugs (such as meth).

You have a high degree of off-hand dexterity and can perform tasks with the “wrong” hand at no penalty. The rules for taking multiple actions still apply, but you do not suffer a difficulty penalty if you use two weapons or are forced to use your off hand. The character can use both hands at once to perform two physical tasks without splitting dice pools, but he may suffer a concentration penalty (at the Storyteller's discretion), especially if the tasks are wildly different or in different arcs of vision. In stressful situations, a penalty should always be assessed for the difficulty of performing actions with both hands at once.

All Intimidation rolls against those who have not demonstrated their physical superiority to you are at -1 die to their dice pool.

You possess uncanny suppleness, making all dice rolls that require flexibility (such as wriggling free from an opponent’s grasp) at +2 dice. You can contort yourself into odd positions or squeeze into small spaces.

Any rolls you make to attempt balance-related physical activities (e.g., Athletics for tightrope walking, maneuvering across ice, mountain climbing, or rock scaling) gain 2 dice.

Your character has an exceptionally sharp natural sense, be it vision, taste, hearing or whatever. She can manage about twice the natural sensitivity of a human, which allows you to get a two dice addition to your dice pool for all rolls with the appropriate sense. For three points, all of your character's senses are incredibly acute.

The difficulties of all rolls involving the use of the voice to persuade, charm, or command gain 2 dice.

When attempting exceptionally risky actions (such as jumping from one moving car to another, leaping across rooftops in a hail of gunfire or diving between two burning, colliding cars), characters with this Merit add an additional three dice to their rolls, and negate a single botch die that may result from such a roll. Generally, such actions require at least 3 successes and have the potential to inflict at least three or more levels of lethal damage if failed. Note that extended risky tasks get this bonus only at the end of the task, rather than on each roll.

You get hurt just as easily as everyone else, but you don’t feel it as severely. Either through naturally strong nerves or a gradual buildup, you may ignore certain wound effects-specifically, all wound penalties are reduced by one (so you function as if unhurt when you’re injured and are down only three dice when you’re Crippled). Upon reaching incapacitated, however, you collapse just like everyone else.

You are abnormally large in size, at least 6'10“ and 300 pounds in weight. Aside from making you extremely noticeable in public, this extra mass bestows an additional Bruised health level. Characters with this Merit may also gain bonuses to push objects, open barred doors, avoid being knocked down, etc. and other Might tasks.

Your character might be made of steel, or just hopped up on drugs (although you should also take the Addiction Flaw if such is the case), but whatever the cause, he doesn't hurt no matter how wounded he is. You ignore all wound penalties until your character is finally killed.

Whether from birth or due to some illness or accident, you’ve lost all sense of taste and smell. You automatically fail any roll involving these two senses. At the Storyteller’s discretion, you may be immune to the debilitating effects of environmental conditions that rely on odors.

One of your character's senses is dulled or abnormally damaged in some fashion and you suffer a two dice penalty to the difficulty of all rolls involving the flawed sense. You cannot take this Flaw in conjunction with an Acute Sense of the same type!

You cannot distinguish between colors, but see the world in varying shades of black and white and gray. This is not true color-blindness, which usually refers to the inability to distinguish between certain colors (such as red and green). Color has no meaning for you, though you can differentiate intensities of shade — dark gray, light gray, dull gray, etc.

You are well below average height — four and a half feet (1.5 meters) tall. Your diminutive size causes you problems, making it difficult to see over obstacles, reach high shelves, or manipulate things built for average individuals. Your running speed is halved, and your Storyteller may choose to levy additional penalties as appropriate in any given situation.

You have some sort of repetitive motion that you make in times of stress, and it’s a dead giveaway as to your identity. It costs one Willpower to refrain from engaging in your tic.

Your character suffers an addiction to some substance, such as nicotine, alcohol or some hard drug. If the substance is relatively trivial and easily obtained, this Flaw is worth one point, and it probably won't cause any game-related difficulties. If the substance is illegal, dangerous or liable to cause health or psychological problems, the Flaw is worth three points. A character who can't get his fix will go through withdrawal, with penalties assessed by the Storyteller.

A hideous disfigurement makes your appearance disturbing and memorable. The difficulties of all die rolls relating to social interaction are increased by two. You may not have an Appearance rating greater than 2.

Your character is missing an ear or eye, or else he has suffered damage or a birth defect that makes such an organ useless. The difficulties of all Awareness rolls with the appropriate sense increase by two (just like the Defective Sense Flaw). Furthermore, a character with one eye increases the difficulty of all rolls involves depth-perception by one (including ranged attacks), while a character with one functional ear suffers an increase of one difficulty on all rolls to determine the location of a given sound (due to the loss of biaural hearing).

The character has some sort of non-correctable vision problem. This problem can't be corrected with glasses or contact lenses. You always suffer a two-dice penalty to all rolls in which vision is a factor.

You are a small child (between five and 10 years old), leaving your Physical Attributes underdeveloped and making it difficult to interact with some aspects of mortal society. You may not have more than two dots in Strength or Stamina, and the difficulties of all die rolls when attempting to direct or lead mortal adults are increased by two. Characters with this Flaw must also purchase the Short Flaw.

You have a misshapen limb, a twisted spine, or some other deformity that interferes with your physical abilities and your interactions with others. A hunchback, for instance, would lower a character’s Dexterity by two dots and increase the difficulty of die rolls relating to social skills by one when appropriate. A withered arm might reduce Dexterity by 2 for all manual manipulation rolls and increase social skills’ difficulty by one. You should work out the nature of your deformity with your Storyteller, as well as the exact penalties offered. It is the responsibility of the Storyteller to determine the specific effects of the chosen deformity.

Either from birth, an unhealed injury. missing limb, or a battle scar, your legs are damaged, which prevents you from running or walking easily. You have a pronounced limp, a slow stride and need assistance from a cane or walking stick. Your walking speed is one-quarter that of a normal human, and running is impossible. This Flaw also adds to the difficulty of maneuvers that rely on the legs — jumps, swimming, martial-arts kicks — at the Storyteller's discretion.

For any action that requires preparation, there’s a good chance you didn’t properly prepare. Difficulty rolls for spontaneous Physical actions (including combat, unless it’s part of a planned offensive) increase by one.

Your Appearance rating is zero, and cannot be raised higher with experience points. You should decide what you look like. You may be the stereotypical pock-marked leper, or may have the face and body of a demon or bug-eyed monster. Otherwise, someone just beat you with the ugly stick.

You were either born with only one arm or lost your arm through an injury of some sort. You suffer no secondary-hand penalty, since you have adapted to using your one hand for most activities. When you need to use two hands, however, you lose two dice from your dice pool.

You heal all of your character's wounds twice as slowly as everyone else.

You were either born profoundly deaf or have lost your hearing entirely. You fail all rolls involving hearing automatically. This Flaw increases the difficulty of many Alertness rolls by three as well, since your character must rely on other senses for warnings and clues.

You cannot speak. You may communicate with the Storyteller and describe your actions, but cannot talk to player or Storyteller characters unless everyone concerned purchases a commonly understood sign language (via the Language Merit) or you write down what you wish to say.

This Flaw must be taken once per decade over the 40-year mark, or once for each age bracket under 15. Your character loses one dot between the ages of 11 and 14, two for being between seven and 10, and he loses three for being between four and six. If you take this Flaw to represent youth, you must also take the Child Flaw.

The character has no natural sight — the world of color and vision is lost to him. You cannot even make Perception rolls that require vision, and you suffer a difficulty penalty of three on any Alertness roll where you do have a shot, unless the matter relies exclusively on another sense. The difficulty of all Dexterity-related rolls increases by two.

Your character is confined to a wheelchair, completely unable to stand and move about without the aid of crutches, the chair itself or some other difficult and painful system. Your character generally moves a single yard per turn, and doing even that much is torturous. This Flaw makes life very difficult, and you should consider carefully before taking it!