Talents are special abilities, tricks, and expertise that give you advantages in specific situations. Examples include Marksman (better at ranged combat), Herbalist (understanding plants and medicines), Erudite (scholarly knowledge), and Medium (communicating with spirits). Each talent either adds dice to specific rolls or grants you special capabilities. You start with three talents based on your archetype, and can buy more with experience points.
When creating your character, you choose from ten archetypes that define your background and capabilities: Academic (researchers and scholars), Doctor (medical professionals), Hunter (wilderness experts), Occultist (supernatural practitioners), Officer (military trained), Priest (religious authority), Private Detective (investigators), Socialite (people-focused characters), Soldier (combat veterans), and Vagrant (outsiders and wanderers). Your archetype determines your main attribute, main skill, starting talents, and suggested equipment.
At the end of each mystery, you earn Experience Points (XP) by answering questions about your actions. With 5 XP, you can purchase an Advance: increase a skill by 1 point (maximum 5) or buy a new talent. As you grow more experienced, you can buy talents from any archetype, not just your own. This represents your character developing new abilities through their harrowing experiences.