Random Elf-friend Advancement

When you level up, you gain a random benefit based on your race or class. Here's what elf-friends get.

What are elf-friends? Well:

The master of the house was an elf-friend—one of those people whose fathers came into the strange stories before the beginning of History, the wars of the evil goblins and the elves and the first men in the North. In those days of our tale there were still some people who had both elves and heroes of the North for ancestors, and Elrond the master of the house was their chief. He was as noble and as fair in face as an elf-lord, as strong as a warrior, as wise as a wizard, as venerable as a king of dwarves, and as kind as summer.

- The Hobbit

So, you know, folk like Elrond and Aragorn.

You can either roll a d12 for your culture to get a result from a tightly-bound part of the table or roll a d50 to get anything from the entire table.

This is ostensibly for the Middle-earth Hexcrawl project but I think it can be broadly applicable to any fantasy adventure game with humans in it. 

• The Random Dwarf Advancement list is here.
• The Random Elf Advancement list is here. 

Note: When you roll an advancement option twice, you can either select the option above or below the rolled benefit. However, a few advancements can be upgraded several times or unlock a new art entirely. These are noted in the text.

Elf-Friend

Art by Goran Gligovic

North

1. Bane of Un-dead: You deal +1 damage to the un-dead. Keep a tally of how many un-dead you have killed. At 50 un-dead, this bonus increases to +2. At 200 un-dead, this bonus increases to +3.
2. Barrow Blessing: If you kiss the brow of a fallen companion, no evil will despoil their body. They will never raise as un-dead.
3. Bolster Hearts: As a fast action, say a line of poetry or boldly shout your war cry. All companions who can hear you gain +2 to their rolls until your next turn. (If you never get another turn because you fall, the bonus lasts for the rest of the combat.)
4. Far Strider: If you are unarmoured when you serve as a Scout, a successful Skill test allows you to choose two effects (instead of one).
5. Heir of the North: Can always sense the direction of true north, even if underground. If you ever fail a test as a Guide to orient, you gain a +1 bonus the following day. This bonus is cumulative with itself for each day you fail orienteering.
6. Master Herbalist: Gain Herb Lore if you don't already have it. (If you already have it, you gain another random Lore.) On a journey, when you act as an herbalist and successfully find an herb, the GM rolls twice to determine what you find; you gather both herbs.
7. Pursue Foes: On a journey, if you serve as the company's Guide, you may spend 2 movement points to deliberately seek foes to challenge. When making a wandering encounter roll for the day, the GM will roll 3d6 and drop the lowest dice (instead of rolling 1d12).
8. Resourceful Herbalism: When using an herb, a single use can be stretched to benefit two targets simultaneously.
9. Rumours of the Earth: If you act as the company's Scout, instead of following the normal procedure, you may spend 2 movement points and gather rumours by listening to the earth instead of roving afar. Make a Skill Δ10 test. On a success, the GM reveals a sound clearly detailing one entry on the local events table (if any). The GM will tell you if there is another local event in this hex. If there is, you may immediately spend 1 movement point and gain another clue about this encounter. This Art cannot be used at the same time as Far Strider.
10. Skillful Archer: You may make Maneuvers from afar using a missile weapon. To perform a ranged maneuver, test Valour against a Δ8 + your target's Valour. If successful, you deal a significant setback to your foe.
11. Student of Ruin: When you study a Numenorean artifact or visit a site important to the Men of the West, you can sing a song that tells of its history. Roleplay a few lines. If you do so, gain 1 Hope.
12. Wise of Ways: You gain a +2 bonus to Skill tests related to Scouting.

South

13. Bane of Orcs: You deal +1 damage to orcs. Keep a tally of how many orcs you have killed. At 50 orcs, this bonus increases to +2. At 200 orcs, this bonus increases to +3.
14. Brave: You are resistant to fear damage.
15. Captain of Men: During combat, you may use a fast action on your turn to shout a command to an ally who can hear you. They may make an extra action that turn.
16. Hands of Healing: In combat, you may use your action to forestall a Critical Wound that results in death—as long as you minister to them, they will not die (if the death was not instantaneous). During a journey, your job can be "Healer." Each day spent ministering to a companion reduces one of their Critical Wound in severity and speeds their recovery—the GM will determine exactly how this works.
17. Keen Eared: Gain +2 bonus to any tests related to listening. If you spend a turn listening, the GM will tell you if there is any breathing creature hiding in your immediate area. (This ability bypasses the normal roll made in exchange for time.)
18. Keen Eyed: You see as well under the stars as you do under the full moon.
19. Pursue Secrecy: On a journey, if you serve as the company's Guide, you may spend 3 movement points to attempt to avoid pursuit. When making a wandering encounter roll for the day, the GM will roll 2d12 and use the lower result.
20. Skirmisher: If wearing no armour heavier than leather armour, gain +1 to damage.
21. Student of the Enemy: If you study a character for a turn, the GM will tell you how many Endurance points they have. Once you've made your assessment, you can ask for the updated number with a glance.
22. Tall: Add +4 to your Strength score for the purposes of your carrying capacity.
23. Victory from the Jaws of Defeat: When you miss an attack roll, gain +2 to your next attack roll against the same creature. This bonus cannot be cumulative with itself.
24. Walker on the Dead Marshes: You gain a +2 bonus to Skill tests for orienteering as a Guide.

All Elf-Friends

25. Artifice: You can forge items of enchantment.
26. Bane of Wolves: You deal +1 damage to wolves and werewolves. Keep a tally of how many wolves you have killed. At 50 wolves, this bonus increases to +2. At 200 wolves, this bonus increases to +3.
27. Estë's Gift: Your healer's arts may stall or delay a death. In combat, you may use a fast action to forestall a Critical Wound that results in death. As long as you continue to minister to them, they will not die (if the death was not instantaneous). After combat, an Understanding test (with a difficulty set by the GM) might be needed to permanently stabilize the victim.
28. Evermind: This virtue is only expressed when you fall in battle. No evil creature will despoil your body. You will not rise as un-dead. Your corpse will be preserved for many weeks. Flowers will grace your grave.
29. Far Ranging: Choose a type of region that you are familiar with: forest, hills, mountains, swamps, or wastes. When you serve as the company's Guide, treat these hexes as normal terrain, not difficult terrain. The difficulty for you to orient the company in this region is Δ6.
    • You may gain this advancement up to 5 times, selecting a new type of region each time.
30. Friend to Horses: When you serve as the hostler, you may care for three steeds instead of two. All steeds in your care gain +2 bonus to Morale tests.
31. Grief of Ruined Lands: You can sense the level of Shadow in your current hex. You may ask the GM if there are servants of the Enemy on the wandering encounter table for the greater region; they will answer truthfully. If a hex has a hidden feature related to the Shadow, you can find it without needing to Explore the hex.
32. In the Lands of My Fathers: On a journey, you gain a +2 bonus to any job you do if you are within the ancestral lands of your people. For Northern Elf-friends, this is within the bounds of Arnor. For Southern Elf-friends, this is within Gondor's historical bounds.
33. Inspiring March: Reduce damage from forced marches for allies by -5 for the first day, -4 for the second day, -3 for the third day, and so on, until you can no longer reduce the strain.
34. Seer: Once per month, you may undo the consequences of a particular action that you or an ally have just taken, declaring it to be just a vision.
35. Tracker: If you spend a turn studying footprints, the GM will tell you what creatures made them, about how many there were, and about how long ago they were there. (This ability bypasses the normal roll made in exchange for time.)
36. Pathfinder: When the company Explores a region, the GM will roll 2d6 for the local event and let you see the two dice. You choose which dice roll to use. 1s tend to be ill fortune. 3s tend to be interactions with the wild. 6s tend to be encounters with the Free Peoples.
37. Royalty Revealed: While wearing the heraldry of your house, NPCs that you lead into battle gain a +2 Morale bonus. Additionally, you may use your Skill attribute instead of Beauty to determine the Morale bonus for NPCs in your service.
38. Staunching Song: Directly after combat, remove 1d4-1 damage from one companion.
39. Vanish: Gain +2 bonus to tests to hide and move silently while out of doors. Additionally, if you stay completely still, a woodland environment always provides you enough cover to conceal yourself.
40. Vigilance: While traveling, you can spend 2 movement points to serve as a Lookout in addition to a secondary job.
41. Wanderer: You take only 5 damage (not 10) if you make a forced march without resting.
42. Wingfoot: Gain +2 Movement.
    • You may gain this advancement up to 3 times.
43. Yavanna's Bounty: When applying healing from an herb, you remove +2 more damage.
44. +1 Valour
45. +1 Strength
46. +1 Beauty
47. +1 Skill
48. +1 Subtlety
49. +1 Understanding
50. +5 Endurance.
    • You may gain this advancement up to 3 times.