Morphing, or the Morph System, is a system in the Fable series that alters the player's character and other aspects throughout the game.

Morphing Systems

There are four general morphing systems within the series. These are:

• Character Morphing
• Dog Morphing
• World Morphing
• Weapon Morphing

Character Morphing

Character morphing determines the physical appearance of your character, and is based on your alignments and a number of physical traits.

Alignments

Main article: Alignments

Your current alignment is a combination of your morality and purity (also known as primal in Fable III), and has a major impact on the Hero's overall appearance, affecting their hair colour, eye colour and skin tone.

Young and Old

In Fable II, your hero will age at least ten years, as a result of the time in the Tattered Spire that will elapse when you rescue Garth. Your age is not numerically specified (it is in the first Fable), but the game will end with you being in your late twenties or early thirties. Your character can also undergo rapid aging by sacrificing your youth; in the process sustaining Reaver's, by holding onto the Dark Seal, making you significantly older. This, however, can be avoided by handing the seal over to the woman next to you while the Shadow Court prepares the ritual, though it is possible to restore your youth after you finish the main quest. You will, however, gain 50 evil points for doing so. It is also a reversible effect by donating gold to the Temple of Light (but the eye colour will not revert to normal until after the main quest).

There is no visible ageing in Fable III due to the short period of time the story encompasses.

Tall and Short

A character's height is increased with Accuracy in Fable II, and Stature in Fable III. With the Knothole Island expansion for Fable II, potions can be bought that increase or decrease height. Height has no effect on anything except the comments people make such as "I don't remember you being so tall", and "I wish I could be that tall...". There is also the problem of not being able to crawl through small holes if you're too tall. This can be countered using the potions mentioned above, however, doing this is considered impure since the character would be artificially changing his/herself to suit his/her own selfish desires.

Slim and Fat

Weight is gained when eating fatty foods. A fat character is usually considered unattractive to villagers. Eating celery can help a character to lose weight in Fable II, or eating almost any fruit/vegetable or drinking non-alcoholic drinks will have this effect in Fable III. Knothole Island has potions that increase and decrease weight, as well, however, using those specific potions is considered impure since the character would be artificially changing his/herself to suit his/her own selfish desires. It is also believed that running around "adventuring", while not eating the fatty foods, reduces weight in each of the games. Note that this is the only way to lose weight in Fable and its rereleases.

Strong and Weak

A character's strength is increased with Physique in Fable II, and Strength in Fable III. A strong character is more attractive than a weak character. Adding to the Physique ability in Fable II will add damage to your melee weapons by multiplying the weapon's strength by 1.25 for each level that your physique is increased by (Level 1 Physique x1, Level 2 Physique x1.25). In Fable III, muscle size and definition is affected by how often you use your melee weapon in combat.

Fable and Fable: The Lost Chapters

Morality Alignment

The Hero of Oakvale will physically change, as well as change auras, based on his morality alignment values.

• At a very low alignment, the Hero of Oakvale will have baldness on his upper scalp, large red and black devil horns, charred and cracked skin on his limbs, very pale skin, red glowing eyes, very dark hair, a cloud of insects around his body, and a red mist aura.
• At a moderately low alignment, the Hero will have baldness on his upper scalp, small flesh coloured horns, charred and cracked skin on his limbs, pale skin, brown irises, and very dark hair.
• At a slightly low alignment, the Hero will have light coloured skin, brown irises, and dark hair.
• At a neutral alignment, the Hero will have light coloured skin, brown irises, and chestnut coloured hair.
• At a slightly high alignment, the Hero will have light coloured skin, hazel irises, and light brown hair.
• At a moderately high alignment, the Hero will have light coloured skin, blue irises, and blonde hair.
• At a very high alignment, the Hero will have light coloured skin, grey irises, blonde hair, a group of light blue butterflies around his body, a halo, and a blue glowing aura.

Fat Alignment

The Hero of Oakvale will physically change based on his fat alignment values.

• The Hero starts off with the lowest alignment possible, and will grow a larger abdomen as his fat alignment raises.

Level

The Hero of Oakvale will physically change based on the skills he trains using experience at the Heroes Guild. He will also age 0.7 years per skill upgrade.

• The Hero starts off at age 18 after his graduation ceremony. As he ages, he will grow bags under his eyes, change hair colour to white, have scars and tattoos faded, and have sagging skin around his body.
• As the Hero of Oakvale upgrades in Strength Discipline skills, he will grow muscular, increasing height slightly and width largely. He will also grow more hair on his chest, legs, and arms.
• As the Hero of Oakvale upgrades in Skill Discipline skills, he will grow taller and leaner.
• As the Hero of Oakvale upgrades in Will Discipline skills, he will gain steadily more visible blue runes on his skin. After many Will Discipline skill upgrades, he will gain a glowing blue aura on each hand and white irises.

Scarring

Every time the Hero of Oakvale is hit with an attack that decreases his Health Points, there is a random chance of scarring. Fresh scars will appear dark, but will lighten in appearance after both playtime and skill upgrades. The spell Physical Shield will prevent scarring as long as it is not broken.

Fable II

The morphing system in Fable II still affects your Hero the same way as in Fable but with additions.

The Hero

• Investing your experience in the three disciplines will affect your Hero in different ways:
  • Investing your experience in Physique will make your Hero more muscular.
  • Investing your experience in Accuracy will stimulate your Hero's growth glands, making them taller.
  • Investing your experience in Will causes blue Will lines of varying intensity to appear all over your Hero's body.
• Being good gives you blond hair, while being evil makes it black, neutral being brown.
• Being good and pure will cause a Halo to appear over the Hero's head, while being evil and corrupt (or neutral) causes Horns to form on the Hero's head. Also, a good and pure hero will have several small butterflies flutter around them but an evil and corrupt hero will have red lines across their skin, similar to Will lines.
• Being good and pure will turn the Hero's eyes blue, evil and anything but corrupt will turn them red. Corruption instead turns them yellow unless you're also evil, which makes them glow a green color. Neutral but uncorrupt gives you brown eyes. With high Will, all the Hero's eye colours will be mixed with light blue.
• Through mixing alignments your hero will have either; white, slightly tan, grey, or cracked grey skin.

Your Dog

• If you are good, then your dog's fur will become lighter, and his eyes will turn blue. If you are evil, your dog's fur will darken, and his eyes will become red. The change is always noticeable after the events of The Spire.

The World

Certain choices made in the game (or not made) will affect certain parts of Albion. Some more notable examples include Bowerstone Old Town, Westcliff, and Oakfield.

• Bowerstone Old Town can either be a picturesque neighborhood sprinkled with flower gardens and shop stalls along a main street or a slum through which you have to navigate back alleys filled with thugs, prostitutes, and the Assassination Society depending on who you give the warrants to in Childhood,
• Westcliff can become a tourist trap if you invest in the area. A bridge linking to to the main road will be built, the roads will become safer overall, and the stalls will be replaced with equivalent shops.
• Oakfield changes depending on who you side with - Temple of Shadows or Temple of Light - prospering in the Light or withering under the Shadows. If you don't defend Oakfield, the Temple of Shadows wins by default
• In Rookridge, multiple quests will morph the region. After A Bridge to far, the main road will be rebuilt, During The Spire the abandoned Inn will reopen. Doing Defender of the Light will destroy the Temple of Shadows..
• Brightwood becomes more dangerous (and a place to get assassin contracts) by siding with Ripper. Siding with Giles causes his farm to expand and makes the area safer. If you stay out of it, Ripper will win by default.
• Knothole Island's gimmick is changing drastically due to weather conditions. Each quest of the DLC will change what parts of the map are available and as you progress the island's shops begin reopening. After the DLC storyline, you're given the keys to the weather machine.
• Fairfax Garden's excavation site will progress during The Spire regardless of progress with The Archaeologist
• Bower Lake has an adjacent pond that dries up during The Spire, which reveals the Tomb of Heroes. The ruins around the Gypsy Camp will crumble during that time, allowing access to them.
• After purchasing Fairfax Castle, the previously purple banners around Bowerstone will begin to reflect the Hero's alignment. White and gold banners will hang for good alignment, with red and black banners for evil. These banners are also on display in the The Catacombs in Fable III.

Fable III

The morphing system in Fable III is extended to your weapons, dog, and world.

Morality and Primal Alignment

The Hero of Brightwall will physically change based on a combination of his or her morality (good vs evil) alignment and primal (pure vs corrupt) alignment. The Hero will start off with low primal alignment and neutral morality.

• A low primal alignment and low morality alignment gives the Hero dark eye shadow, light gray irises, dark lips, and clean wrinkled alibaster skin.
• A neutral primal alignment and low morality alignment gives the Hero crow's feet on the eyes, wrinkles around temples and eye sockets, black irises, dirty light skin, and pock marks on the cheeks.
• A high primal alignment and low morality alignment gives the Hero dark eye shadow, black irises and sclera, dark lips, dirty wrinkled alibaster skin, and heavy pock marks on the cheeks.
• A low primal alignment and neutral morality alignment gives the Hero tan skin and dark brown irises.
• A neutral primal alignment and neutral morality alignment gives the Hero light skin and steel grey irises.
• A high primal alignment and neutral morality alignment gives the Hero light skin and blue-green irises.
• A low primal alignment and high morality alignment gives the Hero pale skin tinged with blue, light grey irises, and a strong white butterfly imprint around the eyes.
• A neutral primal alignment and high morality alignment gives the Hero pale skin, light grey irises, a faded white butterfly imprint around the eyes, and a faded grey moth imprint around the eyes.
• A high primal alignment and high morality alignment gives the Hero pale skin tinged with green, light green irises, and a strong grey moth imprint around the eyes.

Extreme Morphing

Extreme morphing is unlocked at the end of the main quest, and allows the Hero to express their 'true character' in the form of a pair of wings. These wings change depending on your morality alignment. Extreme morphing occurs during certain social interactions, charged magic attacks, flourishes, and finishing animations. As such, extreme morality morphs will not show all the time, unlike previous Fable games.

• A slightly low alignment causes very transparent black and red wings.
• A moderately low alignment causes transparent black and red wings, and large red horns on the head.
• A very low alignment causes slightly transparent black and red wings, large red horns on the head, and fragments of darkness to spawn and scatter at the Hero's feet.
• A slightly high or neutral alignment causes very transparent white and blue wings.
• A moderately high alignment causes transparent white wings and an aura of floating feathers.
• A very high alignment causes slightly transparent, or, rather, sky-hued, whitish wings with a pronounced bird-like, angelical design accentuating the wings, an aura of floating feathers, and, if sufficiently extreme in goodness, an aura of glowing ambience and sparkles - the most extreme goodness morph examples also exhibit very picturesque, yet faintly discernible, features: e.g. small butterflies literally surrounding and emitting from the Hero even without performing any special action.

Weight

The Hero of Brightwall will physically change based on his weight values.

• The Hero starts off with the lowest weight possible. They will grow a larger abdomen, fatter thighs, fatter cheeks, and a fatter neck as their fat level raises.

Hero Level

The Hero of Brightwall will change physically based on the Strength, Stature, and Magical Aura levels gained. There are 6 levels of each stat.

• As the Hero gains melee experience and Strength levels, the Hero will gain a more muscular frame.

• As the Hero gains ranged experience and Stature levels, the Hero will gain height.

• As the Hero gains magic experience and Magical Aura levels, the Hero will display runes on both skin and clothing during charged flourish attacks and charged magic attacks. After 3 upgrades, tattoos will glow red with low morality alignment and blue with high morality alignment. Auroran tattoo dyes will supercede this effect.

Scarring

Every time the Hero of Brightwall is knocked out, there is a chance of gaining scars. The Hero can receive a maximum of one scar on the face, chest, and back each. There are three variations of face scars, two variations of chest scars, and two variations of back scars.

Dog Morphing

The Hero of Brightwall's dog's appearance can be changed by selecting a dog potion to change its breed in the Sanctuary. Seven breeds are currently available, depending on which DLC has been activated. The base game includes only the Collie breed. The Red Setter is available with all new retail copies of Fable III and as a stand-alone DLC. The Collector's Edition DLC adds the Boxer breed. The Dog Breed Pack DLC adds the Doberman, Poodle, and Pink Poodle breeds. The Traitor's Keep DLC adds the Clockwork breed.

The Collie and Red Setter breeds will change physically based on the Hero of Brightwall's morality alignment.

Only the Collie and Red Setter share a similar morph dynamism to the Hero themselves.

• A high alignment will cause the Collie or Red Setter to have an auburn or tan coat. The Red Setter if levelled up with a Good Hero attains authentic "incandescence".
• A neutral alignment will cause the Collie to have a black coat, and the Red Setter to have a chestnut coat.
• A low alignment will cause the Collie or the Red Setter to have a distinctly darkened coat or an uneven, patchy color pattern, dirty limbs, and a famished abdomen. Heroes who reach the extremes of the Evil alignment obtain for their dogs aggressive-looking, "wolfish" traits. Indeed, the Red Setter transformation in the Evil direction is even more dramatic than the Collie: the dog looks authentically "spooky" and exudes malevolence.

The other breeds will not morph based on alignment as much as the Collie and the Red Setter, although a subtle lightening and brightening effect can be discerned in any breed owned by a Pure and Good Hero; conversely, a darkening of sorts can be seen in Evil-aligned dogs.

World Morphing

When the Hero of Brightwall becomes the monarch of Albion, certain choices made during The Weight of the World will morph the environment and related elements.

• The decision to end child labour will convert the child labour factory's front end to a classroom. A unique schoolteacher character exists to potentially befriend.
• The Battle for Albion will result in the destruction of the Bowerstone Old Quarter. In the destroyed state, roaming the area is allowed but there is literally next to nothing to do for the player amid the ruins. The decision to rebuild the Bowerstone Old Quarter will revert it back to its pre-revolution state, raise the spirits of the population, encouraging commercial action, and temporarily increase the economic stability of the Old Quarter.
• The decision on castle décor and decorum will swap the purple rugs and banners to either a blue or red colour scheme, imitating directly the alignment aspect of the game.
  • Castle employees and vistors will comment on the decorum, expressing opinions on the "enlightened" or "imperialistic" feel.
  • The number of "imperialistic"-minded or despotism-acquiescent castle staff is very small. The price range of the Bowerstone Castle itself can be significantly (though indirectly) influenced downward or upward if certain choices, and related smaller decisions, are made.
• The decision to rebuild Aurora as a free state will truly regenerate Aurora with the addition of new, more valuble houses, an authentically Auroran-style port, new Royal banners, and new Reaver Industries banners. Population morale and interwoven economic strength is raised signifcantly. The artistic details of the Reaver banners and similar objects make clear that Reaver is in the servile position to the regent, even if an empowered industrial tycoon.
• The decision to assimilate Aurora into Albion as a mining colony will restore Aurora as a gloomy, late industrialist-Victorian settlement, similar to the Reaver-dominated sectors of Albion, and the same downtrodden, misery-choked feeling shall permeate the enserfed population. The Albion-style port, new Royal banners, and new Reaver Industries banners only serve to re-emphasizing the severe alteration.
  • Most noteworthy is the addition of a mining complex containing a highly special rare Legendary Weapon of predictably Evil nature.
• The decision to renovate the Bowerstone Orphanage will add new hedges to the Orphanage, give the orphanage new furniture and wallpaper, and add Reaver Industries banners.
• The decision to open a Bowerstone Brothel will add new hedges to the Brothel, give the brothel new furniture and NPCs, and add Reaver Industries banners.
• The decision to build a sewage treatment facility will convert some of the docks in Bowerstone Industrial to a sewage treatment facility. The air quality will improve in Bowerstone Industrial, resulting in a "lightened" and "cheery" atmosphere both in-game and on the map table.
• The decision to dump the sewage in Mourningwood will flood the Mourningwood Village with sewage, causing a green mist and clouds of insects.
• The decision to drain Bower Lake will alter the roadways of Millfields, as well as creating a mine underneath the gazebo. The air quality will decrease. The local nobility voice their discontent emphatically and the price ranges of mansions generally drop.
• The decision to build a military outpost in Aurora will cause a small fortification armed with Albion soldiers to be constructed in the Shifting Sands region. The stationed soldiers only offer token resistance to "enemy-Auroran" attacks, the player offensively attacking if inclined so, out of necessity, and shall often comically complain about the King or Queen not responsibly using guns, right as the regent is savagely attacked by foes the stationed soldiery ignore. A few otherwise-unobtainable chests and similar things exist in the rooms of the barracks.
• The decision to log Mistpeak will build several logging cabins in Mistpeak Valley, as well as replacing the trees with stumps.

Houses in Albion will morph based on the economy level of the region, as well as from direct interaction by the Hero. Personal direct behaviour is the most important part in economic matters, due to an invisible "morale" rating of the population (keeping in mind, even Alibionites in different regions are aware of the Hero's behaviour if extreme in either direction.) Extreme Evil or Corrupt actions absolutely gut and devastate indefinitely the hamlets and towns of Albion. This behaviourally-generated local civilian morale rating is the most dynamically operative element in the equation of economics more than any other factor by far.

• The Hero can modify owned houses by repairing them, replacing furniture, replacing wallpaper, and evicting tenants.
• Houses will upgrade and downgrade furniture based on the economy level of the region. Again, beyond the surface, the manner in which the Hero treats the population exists in the background as the determinating factor. Empathetic landlordship is evident to every class and citizen in Albion.
• Houses will repair and fall into disrepair based on the economy level of the region, beyond the natural, unavoidable degradation of time itself.
• Stating the obvious: economic sense does not advise berserk vandalization and terroristic harming of infrastructure.

Living Weapons

The Hero's living weapons, or Hero weapons, will morph after weapon upgrade chests are opened in the Road to Rule. See Hero Weapons.

Trivia

• According to Managing Director, Peter Molyneux: In the original Fable, your character was meant to get a tan just by being outside a lot. For some reason, this was later changed so that your character would become more tan when they have a high alignment instead.
• Early Trailers for the original Fable before its release, show that it was possible for the Hero to get white eyes. How this would be achieved is unknown.

See Also

• Alignments