Reputation Fame
Fame is a number from –100 to 100 that measures how widely known and respected a character is. Prestige Points are a separate currency — earned by completing meaningful goals — that can be spent on awards: temporary bonuses, titles, and favors. Both work best in campaigns where the party's public reputation matters: political intrigue, kingdom-level play, or long-running adventuring careers with recurring factions.
Core System
Start with character level + Charisma modifier. Range: –100 to 100 (0 = unknown).
Fame changes when characters perform deeds significant enough to affect the story. Minor victories don't move the needle — the GM sticks to story-relevant moments. See the Fame Events table for specific examples.
Fame only functions within your Sphere of Influence. The sphere starts at a 100-mile radius and expands by ~100 miles each time Fame reaches 10, 20, 30, 40, and 55. Outside the sphere, Fame is treated as 0.
To enter a new settlement outside your sphere (DC 30 Cha / Diplomacy / Intimidate): on success, treat it as in-sphere for 1d4 days at half Fame. Modifiers apply — see the table below.
| Condition | Modifier |
|---|---|
| Allies spread tales before you arrive | +5 |
| Bard spreads tales (per bard level) | +½ |
| NPC contacts in settlement | +1 |
| Enemies in settlement | +1 |
| Distance outside sphere (per 10 mi) | –1 |
| Different primary language | –5 |
Earned by completing significant in-game goals (GM's discretion) and by gaining Fame increases (+1 PP each). Target: ~4–6 PP per character level. Current PP can never exceed current Fame.
PP cannot be shared between characters. Spending PP on an award is not an action. You may only spend PP within your Sphere of Influence.
Titles are a special award category: permanent instead of temporary, and each title can only be selected once unless stated otherwise.
Prestige Awards
Spending Prestige Points earns awards — temporary bonuses or favors. Each time you use an award you must spend its PP cost again. Bonuses from different awards do not stack. You must have at least the listed Fame to select an award from that tier, even if you have the PP to spend. Awards marked as titles are permanent and can generally only be taken once.
You gain a +4 luck bonus on a single skill check. You must use this award before you attempt the check in question.
In any settlement of at least 5,000 inhabitants, you may locate a corrupt official. If imprisoned or fined for crimes in that settlement's jurisdiction, you pay no fines and escape sentencing on a Diplomacy check (DC 15 petty / 20 serious / 25 capital crimes). Usable once per game session. Select once per settlement in your Sphere of Influence.
You gain the services of an imp, mephit, quasit, or similar extraplanar creature (Improved Familiar list, alignment within 1 step). It serves for a number of encounters equal to your highest mental ability bonus, but no more than 24 hours. It is a called outsider and automatically returns to its home plane afterward.
Spend 1 PP to prepare 4 wizard cantrips or one 1st-level wizard spell; spend 2 PP to prepare both. Cast as a wizard; requires minimum Intelligence. Not available to wizards. After 24 hours, take 1d3 Intelligence damage and lose unused prepared spells.
An influential benefactor vouches for your honor, absolving you of false accusations. Usable up to three times without penalty; additional uses cost an extra 1d4 PP as benefactors grow skeptical.
Secure a dedicated sage or librarian, granting a +5 bonus on any single Knowledge check after 1 hour of research. You make the check as if trained in that skill.
Knowledge (local) becomes a class skill for you for as long as you hold this title.
Like Arcane Study I, but grants one 2nd-level wizard spell; Intelligence damage becomes 1d4. Can be used alongside Arcane Study I. Not available to wizards.
Choose a 100-square-mile region within your Sphere of Influence as favored territory; gain +2 Diplomacy there. At Fame 30 select a second territory (first bonus rises to +4). At Fame 55 select a third (first rises to +6, second to +4).
Once per game session when selling an item, do so through an NPC fence to increase the sale price by 10%. Has no effect on items normally sold at full value (gems, trade goods).
A powerful organization (knighthood, mage cabal, monastic order, etc.) accepts you into its ranks. One skill appropriate to that organization becomes a class skill. May be selected multiple times; each time joins a new organization and gains another class skill.
Gain a +2 competence bonus on checks with one chosen skill. May be taken again at Fame 30, 40, and 55, each time for a different skill.
Once per game session, gain a 10% discount when purchasing an item. Does not apply to spellcasting services, costly material components, items sold at full value (trade goods, gems), or magic item crafting.
Gain 1d3 PP. Heroic: spend 375 gp × character level on a feast, charitable act, or public gesture. Villainous: kill or sacrifice allies and minions whose total HD equals your character level. Usable once per month.
Choose one Knowledge skill. You can make untrained checks with it up to DC 20 (instead of the normal DC 10 cap). May be selected multiple times, each time for a different Knowledge skill.
Gain a cohort as if you had the Leadership feat. The cohort remains in your service for 24 hours.
Pick one rival organization as your hated enemy. Gain a +1 favored enemy bonus on attack and damage rolls against its members.
Like Arcane Study II, but grants one 3rd-level wizard spell; Intelligence damage becomes 1d6. Can be used alongside Arcane Study I and II. Not available to wizards.
Undergo a ritual with an ally whose Fame is at least 30. Once per week while in that ally's company, you may lend up to 5 PP. If the ally doesn't spend them within 24 hours, they return to you.
If reduced to 0 hp or fewer but not dead, you automatically stabilize; on your next turn you are healed 2d8+3 hp. Once per character level.
Requires Initiate. Your rank within a chosen organization rises. Gain an appropriate appellation and a +4 bonus on Bluff, Diplomacy, Intimidate, and Sense Motive checks against anyone within the organization. May be selected once per organization.
Within your Sphere of Influence, you may arrest, detain, and confiscate possessions from common citizens suspected of crimes. Does not apply to nobles, aristocrats, political figures, or those holding equivalent ranks or titles.
For the next 24 hours, use your Fame as if within your Sphere of Influence without the usual check, though Fame is effectively halved outside your sphere. May be selected even when outside the sphere.
Requires Officer. Your rank rises to a position of command. Low-ranking members of your organization perform mundane tasks at your behest (messages, announcements, logistics). Gain a +4 bonus on Intimidate checks against members of the organization's greatest rival. May be selected once per organization.
When traveling outside your Sphere of Influence, gain a +2 bonus on Diplomacy and Sense Motive checks against citizens or natives of your homeland.
Gain a private audience with a powerful individual (queen, general, high priest, guildmaster, etc.) and a +2 circumstance bonus on Diplomacy checks for the duration of that audience.
Requires Commander. You become a senior member of your organization. While serving its interests, you can call upon soldiers equal in number to your Fame, plus one 3rd-level officer per 20 soldiers and one 5th-level leader per four officers. Soldiers are typically 1st-level fighters (or class appropriate to the org) and serve for 1 day, but will not betray the organization's interests. May be selected once per organization.
Immediately increase your Sphere of Influence by 100 miles.
Disrepute and Infamy
If Fame drops below 0, the character's reputation is based on infamy rather than fame. Treat Fame as a positive number for all rules relating to Fame, Sphere of Influence, and Prestige Points (e.g., a villainous Fame of –20 is equivalent to a heroic Fame of 20 for determining available awards).
When an event would increase Fame, a character with negative Fame may choose to increase it (toward 0) or decrease it (more negative). Negative events always decrease Fame — a villain attacking innocent people doesn't improve their standing.
Shared Fame
When all PCs consistently operate as a single named entity — a knightly order, a pirate crew, a band of merry men — the group can develop its own Fame score independent of its members. The GM tracks one Fame value for the group; each character's qualifying actions contribute to or subtract from that score.
Members use the group's Fame for all Fame-related purposes. Each character still earns and spends their own Prestige Points individually.
Alter Egos, Aliases, and Secret Identities
A character whose public persona and true personality have diverged can change their name and adopt an alias, shedding their prior reputation entirely. Fame and PP remain with the former name; the new identity starts fresh.
An alter ego goes further: the character creates an artificial persona maintained through costume or mask. Deeds performed as the alter ego build its Fame separately. Only while presenting as the alter ego can the character draw on its Fame and PP.
If the two identities are exposed as the same person, reactions shift accordingly — allies of the secret identity react based on the alter ego's Fame, and vice versa. A ruthless bandit turned healer who is unmasked loses the goodwill of the village but also the respect of fellow criminals.
Fame Events
| Event | Fame Modifier |
|---|---|
| Positive Events | |
| Acquire a noteworthy treasure from a worthy foe1 | +1 |
| Confirm two successive critical hits in a CR-appropriate encounter | +1 |
| Consecrate a temple to your deity | +1 |
| Craft a powerful magic item2 | +1 |
| Gain a level in a PC class | +1 |
| Locate and disarm three or more CR-appropriate traps in a row | +1 |
| Make a noteworthy historical, scientific, or magical discovery3 | +1 |
| Own a legendary item or artifact4 | +1 |
| Receive a medal or similar honor from a public figure | +1 |
| Return a significant magic item or relic to its owner | +1 |
| Sack the stronghold of a powerful noble | +1 |
| Single-handedly defeat an opponent with a CR higher than your level5 | +1 |
| Win a combat encounter with a CR of your APL + 3 or more | +1 |
| Defeat in combat a person who publicly defamed you | +2 |
| Succeed at a DC 30+ Craft check to create a work of art or masterwork item6 | +2 |
| Succeed at a DC 30+ public Diplomacy or Intimidate check6 | +2 |
| Succeed at a DC 30+ public Perform check6 | +2 |
| Complete an adventure with a CR appropriate for your APL7 | +3 |
| Earn a formal title (lady, lord, knight, etc.) | +3 |
| Defeat a key rival in combat | +5 |
| Negative Events | |
| Be convicted of a petty crime | –1 |
| Keep company with someone of disreputable character8 | –1 |
| Be convicted of a serious nonviolent crime | –2 |
| Publicly flee an encounter of a CR lower than your APL | –3 |
| Attack innocent people | –5 |
| Be convicted of a serious violent crime | –5 |
| Publicly lose an encounter of a CR equal to or lower than your APL | –5 |
| Be convicted of murder | –8 |
| Be convicted of treason | –10 |
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1 Includes claiming treasure from a defeated monster or rival; villains may include stolen items. 2 Per 40,000 gp of item price. 3 Such as discovering lost ruins, recovering forgotten lore, or creating a useful new spell. 4 Per 40,000 gp of item price; artifacts with no price count as 200,000 gp. 5 Per CR the opponent is above your level. 6 No more than once per month. 7 Approximately the length of one Pathfinder Module or Adventure Path adventure. 8 Per week of close association. |
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Negative Fame Reactions
| Fame | Reaction |
|---|---|
| –5 | Merchants, hirelings, and innkeepers overcharge you by 10% to discourage business. |
| –8 | Merchants, hirelings, and innkeepers refuse your business. If you enter a shop you are immediately asked to leave; refusal brings the authorities or locals. |
| –10 | Businesses bar their doors as you approach. Most citizens refuse to speak with you. If you stay longer than 24 hours or act against citizens, Fame decreases by 5 and a mob forms to run you out. |
| –15 | An angry mob gathers shortly after you enter a settlement. If you do not leave within minutes, they pelt you with fruit, sticks, and rocks. |
| –20 | A mob forms and, unwilling to wait for trial, attempts to capture and execute you for your crimes. |
| –25 | An authority figure has issued a warrant for your arrest with a reward for your capture. This is well known and many are eager to collect. |
| –30 | An authority figure has issued a bounty for your head. This is well known and many are eager to collect. |