Reputation Copy link
Your Place Among Others Copy link
No Hero walks the roads of Rhuna unknown.
Long before a Hero becomes a legend, they leave impressions upon the people whose lives they touch. Some remember acts of kindness, others remember old debts, broken promises, remarkable courage, or moments of unexpected compassion. Some communities welcome a Hero by name, while others quietly warn travelers that they are approaching.
Your Reputation represents these living relationships.
Unlike Status, which reflects your standing within society as a whole, Reputation records the individual people, organizations, settlements, and communities that know your Hero personally. It measures neither popularity nor fame alone. Instead, it describes the network of trust, suspicion, admiration, rivalry, and obligation that follows your Hero wherever they travel.
Every Reputation entry becomes a potential story waiting to be revisited.
Trusted Circles Copy link
Throughout your life, certain people have chosen to place their confidence in you.
A Trusted Circle represents an individual or group who believes your Hero is worthy of their trust, respect, or support. This trust may have been earned through friendship, shared hardship, family ties, honorable conduct, or years of reliable service.
A Trusted Circle does not necessarily agree with every decision your Hero makes. Trust simply means they believe your Hero deserves to be heard and given the opportunity to act.
Trusted Circles may include:
• family members
• close friends
• mentors
• guilds
• military companies
• villages
• religious orders
• merchant houses
• noble families
• scholarly institutions
• adventuring companions
• entire communities
Each Trusted Circle should be specific enough that both the player and WorldKeeper can easily imagine how it might influence future adventures.
Distrusted Circles Copy link
Just as trust is earned, distrust is often remembered.
A Distrusted Circle represents someone who questions your Hero's motives, opposes their actions, or carries lingering resentment toward them. Distrust does not always mean hatred. Sometimes it is born from misunderstanding, political conflict, cultural prejudice, rivalry, or simply a difference in values.
A Hero may be welcomed within one city while viewed with suspicion in the next.
Likewise, a Hero may have earned the loyalty of one guild while becoming unwelcome among another.
These relationships create tension, obstacles, and opportunities for growth throughout the campaign.
Reputation Begins Before Adventure Copy link
Not every relationship begins during play.
Your Hero enters the world with a history that predates the campaign. Some people have known them since childhood. Others recognize the reputation of their family, homeland, profession, or Origin.
For this reason, several Reputation entries are determined during Hero Creation.
Your first Trusted Circle represents someone who trusted your Hero because of the life they lived before becoming an adventurer. Likewise, your first Distrusted Circle reflects an individual or community whose suspicion also predates the campaign.
These relationships help establish that your Hero already belongs within the world of Rhuna before their first adventure begins.
Growing Your Reputation Copy link
As your Influence Pathway advances, your Reputation naturally expands.
Each new Training Level represents your Hero's increasing ability to build lasting relationships, earn confidence, negotiate difficult situations, and leave meaningful impressions upon others.
Rather than simply increasing a numerical statistic, every advancement grants an opportunity to record another Trusted Circle.
Each new Circle represents a meaningful relationship developed through the Hero's growing influence within the world.
These may be:
• an influential patron
• a respected military commander
• a grateful village
• a fellow adventurer
• a powerful merchant
• a renowned scholar
• a religious leader
• an entire organization
Influence measures far more than charisma. It represents your ability to create relationships that endure.
Influence and Reputation Copy link
Influence is not simply the ability to persuade.
A silver tongue may win a single conversation.
True Influence changes how people remember you.
Heroes with high Influence become individuals whose opinions are sought, whose names open doors, and whose actions carry weight long after they leave.
Their Reputation becomes one of their greatest strengths.
Using Reputation During Play Copy link
The WorldKeeper is encouraged to treat every Reputation entry as a living part of the world.
Trusted Circles may provide information, shelter, introductions, assistance, supplies, employment, warnings, or unexpected opportunities.
Distrusted Circles may complicate negotiations, refuse aid, spread rumors, demand repayment, interfere with plans, or create entirely new adventures.
These relationships should never feel static. They grow alongside the Hero.
A trusted friend may become a bitter rival.
A long-time enemy may eventually become an ally.
Communities may forgive old mistakes, while new actions may permanently reshape how others perceive your Hero.
Building Meaningful Circles Copy link
The strongest Reputation entries describe real people rather than vague ideas.
Instead of writing:
"Merchants."
Consider writing:
"House Varell, whose caravan I rescued from the Ash Roads."
Instead of:
"The Church."
Consider:
"Keeper Arisel of the Temple of Rhun, who taught me to read."
Specific names, places, and organizations give the WorldKeeper meaningful tools for building future adventures while making your Hero feel deeply connected to the world.
A Living Reputation Copy link
Reputation is never finished.
Every promise kept, every betrayal forgiven, every favor exchanged, and every difficult decision shapes how the world remembers your Hero.
Long after battles have ended and treasures have been forgotten, people will still remember how your Hero made them feel.
That memory is your Reputation.