Houses of the Blooded: Falcon’s Fortitude

I was unhappy with it. Very unhappy. It didn’t fit. I hate passive elements. Constitution, Endurance, Fortitude. All these things are passive. The other traits are active.

Here’s how it looks on paper.

Falcon’s Fortitude
Fortitude represents your character’s physical stamina and endurance. Whenever you engage in drawn out physical tasks, your Fortitude determines how long you last before you give out.

If you choose Fortitude as one of your Traits…
… your character is a powerful workhorse. You can take long treks without a break, hold up heavy weights for minutes and stay awake for days on end.

If you do not choose Fortitude…
… your character cannot perform long, arduous tasks. You don’t have any midnight oil to burn and you can’t ride a horse for more than a few miles before you need to get your hands on some ice.

Passive. Dull. Boring. Everything the ven are not supposed to be.

I was talking about something else with

 when she tipped me on to something. She mentioned Batman Begins. The scene in the prison. “You’re practice.”

Batman–Frank Miller’s Dark Knight–has Fortitude. He won’t give up. Not ever. But just making Fortitude a passive trait isn’t enough. In that scene, Bruce Wayne digs deep into his soul and pulls out his Fortitude.

But how to invoke Fortitude without busting the other Virtues? Using Fortitude instead of Prowess, instead of Strength. Instead of Cunning. That isn’t the right direction.

Fortitude isn’t passive, but I can’t figure out a way to make it active without trumping the other Virtues. Because then, it isn’t a Virtue anymore. It’s a different mechanic.

Stuck. I’ll sleep on it.