Sometimes you have to run – but you leave behind those who love you…
The Runaway is fleeing something that she fears or abhors. She can often appear as a contradiction, being both self-reliant yet needing assistance. The Runaway can often appear at first sight to be The Flying Woman, or the Masterless Man, but is not gender-specific.
An adolescent who runs away from home because they hate being told what to do by their parents is following this archetype. So is a bride who leaves her fiancé at the altar because she fears commitment, though in the latter case it is often just a flirtation with the Avatar, unless she decides also to pack up/abandon her belongings and leave town, not telling anyone where she is going. A criminal on the run from the law is not following the Runaway: he is merely trying to evade the consequences of his actions (which of course may be another archetype entirely).
The one thing that distinguishes the Runaway from other potential archetypes is that somewhere, there is at least one person who remembers and loves the Runaway, probably spending time and money in searching for her. As soon as they give up, as soon as that candle is extinguished, the Runaway becomes just another statistic, a nameless homeless person, or a Jane Doe on a slab or waiting to be dug up.
Taboos: The Runaway can not own anything that cannot be packed and carried in 24 hours, or else be abandoned. She can become involved in a relationship, but unless she is prepared to leave with no word or warning she risks straying from the path of the archetype. She cannot leave for no reason however. Some fear or other motivation must drive her to go. Conversely, when she does leave, it may leave another person who loves her seeking her, thus strengthening her connection to the archetype.
Channels:
01% – 50%: The Runaway doesn’t want to be found, so people find it hard to find her. If someone is seeking the Runaway, their descriptions never seem to match witnesses memories. On a successful “Avatar: The Runaway” skill, even if the witness is shown a photograph of the Runaway, they would not recognise it as her.
51% – 70%: The Runaway always finds what she needs to survive. On a successful “Avatar: The Runaway” skill, she may flip-flop any relevant ‘Survival’, ‘Streetwise’ or otherwise appropriate skill (this may require Player justification and GM approval, depending on the situation). If she is hungry, she will find a soup-kitchen, or at the back door of a restaurant a kindly chef will let her into the kitchens and give her food. If she needs shelter she will find the last bed in a hostel, or just enough money for a night in a cheap motel room.
71% – 91%: The Runaway does not want to be restrained. On a successful “Avatar: The Runaway” skill, locks and restraints open, alarms fail, cameras are pointing the wrong way. Of course, this only applies when fleeing. Don’t ask the Runaway to try and get you into a place by using anything more than her natural abilities! (This works in much the same way as the Flying Woman)
91%+ : The Runaway has truly escaped. To all intents and purposes she is invisible to anyone who is seeking her or trying to harm her. She cannot die as long as someone who loves her remembers her and is looking for her.
This is my first attempt at an avatar. Opinions and suggestions are welcome, especially regarding Symbols and Masks. Thanks for looking
i like this avatar! symbology for this makes me think of missing person signs on milk cartons and tv… the appearance of those would surely strengthen the power of the avatar. as for masks, difficult, maybe there are some primitive gods in this area (if you have read many discworld books you may be familiar with the fictional god of prey, hermes the hunted 😀 )