Two injury rolls, both worse
Frail changes how often a hero gets hurt; the wounds themselves are the ordinary ones. It touches two rolls:
| Roll | Ordinary hero | Frail hero |
|---|---|---|
| Downed in a fight: chance of a lasting injury | 25% | 40% |
| Fielded with an open wound: chance it tears | 22% | 35% |
A wound that tears adds half its original length again (at least three days). If that pushes it past one and a half times the normal maximum for that injury, it turns grave: much longer, and healed at no more than 2 days per day however good the Infirmary. Indomitable is the only trait that prevents that last step, and the game never puts it on a Frail hero.
Injuries are the one status that actually benches a hero; stress, fatigue and low condition only flag them as worn (see hero state). While an injury lasts, the attributes it touches are reduced by up to 35%. So Frail is a direct tax on how many fixtures a hero can play, and on how well they play when they come back early.
Where it hurts most
The cost follows how often the hero goes down. A front-liner who soaks hits every fight will trigger the 40% roll several times a season; a back-line caster who rarely drops may barely notice it.
It is worst in two combinations the game allows:
- Slow to Mend: more injuries, and each one takes half again as long to heal.
- Glass-Jawed: 15% more damage per hit means more knock-downs, each with the higher injury chance.
Death-Defying is the best partner it can have: the first knock-down of each delve becomes a stand at 15% health, which removes one injury roll entirely.
Jobs, the route and flavour
- Bounty jobs dislike it. Bounty postings list Frail among the traits they would rather not take (“A named beast hits hard, and they do not take a hit well”), which takes 6% off the hero’s suitability.
- Forks. As party leader, a Frail hero leans +2 toward the known path. With nothing pulling the other way, they take a side room only about 20% of the time it is offered.
- Flavour. Quest reports have Frail lines, and on pair duty the hero speaks with the “nervy” voice shared with Cowardly, Shaken, Haunted, Brittle, Claustrophobic and Fair-Weather.
The hero card links the trait to Vitality and Stamina. That link is descriptive and does not lower the attributes.
Managing a Frail hero
- Never send them out injured. Fielding a hero with an open wound is your choice, and for a Frail hero it is a 35% gamble on a longer and possibly grave injury. Wait for the counter to clear.
- Keep them out of the front line, where knock-downs are routine.
- Carry a backup. When a Frail starter goes down, plan for them to miss time.
- Invest in the Infirmary. Faster healing does not change the odds, but it shortens every absence.
Conflicts and rarity
Frail can never appear with Hardy or Indomitable. Heroes can earn new traits over a career, and earning either would remove Frail.
- Rarity: common, negative · draw weight 100 of 6,365 · about 1 recruit in 25
- Founding draft: any card, or as the negative half of the wildcard card.
- In the wiki’s archive: first present in the 2.1.8 build (absent from 2.0.7).
Recruiting
A meaningful discount on any melee recruit, and a mild one on ranged and support heroes. Frail never fades with age.