Symbiote
"I grow a second self inside my chest. It breathes with me. It thinks with me. It dies with me."
- Cost
- 1 Memory
- TN
- 16
- Tempo
- Ritual (30 minutes)
- Steps
- —
- Resist
- —
Effect
You grow a biological symbiotic organism within your own body. The Symbiote:
- Provides continuous healing: +1 HP per hour at all times, even during combat
- Automatically stabilizes you if you are Downed (no Medicine check needed)
- Grants +1 GRIT permanently (the Symbiote reinforces your endurance)
- Can store up to 3 doses of any toxin, stimulant, or medicinal compound you’ve previously encountered (including Purge effects) — released on your command
- Functions as a biological Erosion Sink: once per session, you may redirect 1 point of Erosion to the Symbiote instead of your own track. The Symbiote can absorb up to 3 Erosion total before dying.
Duration: Permanent. The Symbiote is alive and part of you until killed or surgically removed.
Requirement
The Bond: If the Symbiote dies (from absorbing too much Erosion, or from Reality Anchor (BS R4) or The Citadel (BS R5) sustained against it — lower-Rank Bastion Soul Talents cannot destroy it), you take 2d6 Strain and lose the +1 GRIT permanently. The loss feels like a death — because it was.
Special
The Symbiote is visible as a fist-sized mass beneath the skin of your torso. It pulses with your heartbeat. You can feel it thinking — not human thoughts, but biological responses. Warmth. Hunger. Contentment. You name it, eventually. Everyone does.