純美蘋果園

跑團活動區 => 月は幻想のままに => 私有分區 => 語り継ぐこと => 主题作者是: Kuranes 于 2009-12-22, 周二 16:20:23

主题: GURPS Basic Set暫存
作者: Kuranes 于 2009-12-22, 周二 16:20:23

360° Vision 3 1
25 points
You have a 360° field of vision. You
have no penalty to defend against
attacks from the sides or rear. You can
attack foes to your sides or rear without
making a Wild Swing, but you are
at -2 to hit due to the clumsy angle of
attack (note that some Karate techniques
do not suffer this penalty).
Finally, you are at +5 to detect
Shadowing attempts, and are never
surprised by a danger that comes from
behind, unless it also is concealed
from sight.
Extra eyes are merely a special
effect of this trait – you can have any
number of eyes, but the point cost
remains the same.
Special Limitations
Easy to Hit: Your eyes are on stalks,
unusually large, or otherwise more
vulnerable to attack. Others can target
your eyes from within their arc of
vision at only -6 to hit. -20%.
3D Spatial Sense
see Absolute Direction, below
Absolute Direction 2/3
5 or 10 points
You have an excellent sense of
direction. This ability comes in two
levels:
Absolute Direction: You always
know which way is north, and you can
always retrace a path you have
followed within the past month, no
matter how faint or confusing. This
ability does not work in environments
such as interstellar space or the limbo
of the astral plane, but it does work
underground, underwater, and on
other planets. This gives +3 to Body
Sense and Navigation (Air, Land, or
Sea). (Note: The navigational sense
that guides migratory creatures to
their destination is too crude to qualify;
treat it as a 0-point feature.) 5
points.
3D Spatial Sense: As above, but
works in three dimensions. This ability
is useful in deep space – although it
does not help you if you travel across
dimensions. You get the skill bonuses
given for Absolute Direction, plus +1
to Piloting and +2 to Aerobatics, Free
Fall, and Navigation (Hyperspace or
Space). 10 points.
What’s Allowed
The GM determines which exotic and supernatural traits are allowed –
and to whom – in his campaign. In a futuristic “transhuman” game world,
the GM might declare that it is possible to add specific exotic advantages
via surgery or genetic modification, but rule that supernatural advantages
simply do not exist. In a 1920s horror game, the GM might allow many
supernatural abilities, but no exotic ones. And in a supers campaign, the
GM could let the players buy anything they have points for, vetting troublesome
traits on a case-by-case basis. Players should develop the habit of
reading 1 and 5 as “requires GM permission.”
Special Limitations
Requires Signal: You rely on signals
from a navigational satellite network
(like Earth’s GPS) or similar system.
Your ability does not function in the
absence of such a system, and it can
be jammed. -20%.
Absolute Timing 2
2 or 5 points
You have an accurate mental clock.
This ability comes in two levels, both
of which are somewhat cinematic:
Absolute Timing: You always know
what time it is, with a precision equal
to the best personal timepieces widely
available in your culture (but never
better than a few seconds). You can
measure elapsed time with equal
accuracy. Neither changes of time
zone nor sleep interferes with this
ability, and you can wake up at a predetermined
time if you choose. Being
knocked unconscious, hypnotized,
etc. may prevent this advantage from
working, and time travel will confuse
you until you find out what the “new”
time is. 2 points.
Chronolocation: As above, but time
travel does not interfere – you always
know what time it is in an absolute
sense. Note that things like Daylight
Savings Time and calendar reform can
still confuse you! When you travel in
time, the GM may tell you, “You have
gone back exactly 92,876.3 days,” and
let you – or your character – deal with
questions like, “What about leap
year?” 5 points.
Acute Senses 3
2 points/level
You have superior senses. Each
Acute Sense is a separate advantage
that gives +1 per level to all Sense rolls
(p. 358) you make – or the GM makes
for you – using that one sense.
Acute Hearing gives you a bonus to
hear something, or to notice a sound
(for instance, someone taking the safety
off a gun in the dark). 2 points/level.
Acute Taste and Smell gives you a
bonus to notice a taste or smell (for
instance, poison in your drink). 2
points/level.
Acute Touch gives you a bonus to
detect something by touch (for
instance, a concealed weapon when
patting down a suspect). 2 points/level.
Acute Vision gives you a bonus to
spot things visually, and whenever you
do a visual search (for instance, looking
for traps or footprints). 2
points/level.
With the GM’s permission, you may
also buy Acute Sense advantages for
specialized senses such as Scanning
Sense and Vibration Sense.
You cannot usually buy Acute
Senses in play – raise your Perception
instead. However, if you lose a sense,
the GM may allow you to spend earned
points on other Acute Senses to
compensate. For instance, if you are
blinded, you might acquire Acute
Hearing.
Administrative Rank
see Rank, p. 29
Affliction 3 1
10 points/level
You have an attack that causes a
baneful, nondamaging effect: blindness,
paralysis, weakness, etc. This
might be an ultra-tech beam weapon,
a chemical spray, a supernatural gaze
attack, or almost anything else.
Specify the details when you buy the
advantage.
By default, Affliction is a ranged
attack with 1/2D 10, Max 100, Acc 3,
RoF 1, Shots N/A, and Recoil 1,
although you can apply modifiers to
change these statistics (see pp. 101-
116).
If you hit, your victim gets a HT+1
roll to resist. Apply a penalty equal to
the level of the Affliction (so Affliction
1 gives an unmodified HT roll). The
victim gets a bonus equal to his DR
unless the Affliction has one of the following
modifiers: Blood Agent,
Contact Agent, Cosmic, Follow-Up,
Malediction, Respiratory Agent or
Sense-Based. To reduce the effects of
DR, add the Armor Divisor enhancement.
The victim gets a further +3 if he
is beyond 1/2D range.
If the victim makes his HT roll, he
is unaffected. If he fails, he suffers the
effects of the Affliction. By default, he
is stunned (see p. 420). He may roll vs.
HT+1 once per second to recover, but
once again at a penalty equal to the
level of the Affliction (DR has no effect
on this roll).
If your Affliction causes an effect
other than stunning, this is a special
enhancement (see below). You can
inflict more than one effect by giving
your Affliction multiple special
enhancements. These effects occur
simultaneously, except where noted.
Successive Afflictions that produce
the same effects are not normally
cumulative. Use the single worst effect.
Use the special enhancements
below to create specific Afflictions.
Many Attack Enhancements and
Limitations (p. 102) are also logical.
For instance, a blinding flash is Sense-
Based (p. 109); most drugs have
Follow-Up (p. 105), Blood Agent
(p. 102), or Contact Agent (p. 103);
supernatural attacks like the “evil eye”
use Malediction (p. 106); and touch
attacks call for Melee Attack (p. 112).
If an Affliction produces two or
more effects due to the special
enhancements below, some of these
effects may be secondary. Secondary
effects occur only if the victim fails his
HT roll by 5 or more or rolls a critical
failure. A secondary effect is worth 1/5
as much; e.g., Secondary Heart Attack
is +60% rather than +300%.
Once you have chosen all the modifiers
on your Affliction, describe the
nature of the attack as detailed for
Innate Attack (p. 61).
ADVANTAGES 35
The GM determines which exotic and
supernatural traits are allowed – and to whom –
in his campaign.
Special Enhancements
Advantage: The victim immediately
experiences the effects of a specific
physical or mental advantage.
Advantages with instantaneous effects
affect the target once, as soon as he is
hit, if he fails his HT roll; e.g., Warp
immediately teleports the subject.
Advantages that can be switched on
and off (such as Insubstantiality) are
automatically “on” for one minute per
point by which the victim fails his HT
roll, and are not under the subject’s
control. This is worth +10% per point
the advantage is worth; e.g.,
Insubstantiality would be +800%! If
the advantage comes in levels, specify
the level.
Attribute Penalty: The victim suffers
temporary attribute loss. This is +5%
per -1 to ST or HT, or +10% per -1 to
DX or IQ. For instance, an attack that
caused DX-3 and IQ-2 would be +50%.
Lower all skills based on reduced
attributes by a like amount. ST penalties
also reduce BL and damage, while
IQ reductions also apply to Will and
Perception. Secondary characteristics
are not otherwise affected; for
instance, HT reduction does not affect
Basic Speed or FP. Penalties last for
one minute per point by which the victim
fails his HT roll.
Coma: The victim collapses, profoundly
unconscious, and will likely
die in days unless treated; see Mortal
Conditions (p. 429). +250%.
Cumulative: Repeated attacks are
cumulative! You must take this in conjunction
with Attribute Penalty, or
with an Advantage, Disadvantage, or
Negated Advantage Enhancement
that inflicts a “leveled” trait. +400%.
Disadvantage: The victim temporarily
gains one or more specific
physical or mental disadvantages (but
not self-imposed mental disadvantages
– see p. 121). This is worth +1%
per point the temporary disadvantages
are worth; e.g., Paranoia [-10] is
worth +10%. If a disadvantage comes
in levels, specify the level. The disadvantages
last for one minute per point
by which the victim fails his HT roll.
Heart Attack: The victim suffers an
incapacitating heart attack, and will
die in minutes unless treated; see
Mortal Conditions (p. 429). +300%.
Incapacitation: The victim is incapacitated
for a number of minutes
equal to the margin of failure on his
HT roll. After that, he is stunned until
he can make a HT roll (roll once per
second). If you combine Incapacitation
with other effects (such as
Irritant), those effects occur after the
Incapacitation wears off; they replace
the stunning and last for the same
length of time the Incapacitation did.
Incapacitation can take the form of
any of the following: Daze, +50%;
Hallucinating, +50%; Retching, +50%;
Agony, +100%; Choking, +100%;
Ecstasy, +100%; Seizure, +100%;
Paralysis, +150%; Sleep, +150%; or
Unconsciousness, +200%. See
Incapacitating Conditions (p. 428) for
the game effects.
Irritant: The victim suffers an
impairing but non-incapacitating condition
instead of being stunned. It lasts
for a number of minutes equal to the
margin of failure on his HT roll. The
possibilities are Tipsy +10%;
Coughing, +20%; Drunk, +20%;
Moderate Pain, +20%; Euphoria,
+30%; Nauseated, +30%; Severe Pain,
+40%; or Terrible Pain, +60%. For definitions,
see Irritating Conditions
(p. 428).
Negated Advantage: The victim
loses a specific advantage for one
minute per point by which he failed
his HT roll. There is no effect if the
victim lacks that advantage! This
enhancement is worth +1% per point
the advantage is worth. If the advantage
comes in levels, you must specify
the level negated.
Stunning: May only accompany
Advantage, Attribute Penalty, Disadvantage,
or Negated Advantage. If
the victim fails to resist, he is stunned
(per an unmodified Affliction) in addition
to the effects of the other
enhancement(s). +10%.
Allies 4
Variable
Many fictional heroes have partners
– loyal comrades, faithful sidekicks,
trusted retainers, or lifelong
friends – who accompany them on
adventures. These partners are
“Allies.”
The other PCs in your adventuring
party are, in a sense, “allies.” But
they can be unreliable allies indeed.
Often they are chance acquaintances,
first encountered at a roadside
tavern only hours ago. They have
their own hidden goals, ethics, and
motives, which might not coincide
with your own.
An NPC Ally, on the other hand, is
wholly reliable. Perhaps you fought
side by side in a long war, trained
under the same master, or grew up in
the same village. The two of you trust
each other implicitly. You travel
36 ADVANTAGES
Frequency of Appearance
Whether you pay points for a useful relationship with an NPC or collect
points for a troublesome one, it is unlikely that the NPC will be a constant
presence. Each friend or foe has a frequency of appearance, and will
figure into a given adventure only if the GM rolls less than or equal to that
number on 3d at the start of the adventure. How the NPC interacts with
you if the roll succeeds depends on the nature of the relationship.
Frequency of appearance multiplies the point cost for an Associated
NPC (see p. 31) after determining power level and group size (as applicable),
but before you apply any special modifiers:
Constantly (no roll required): ¥4. The NPC is always present. This level
is reserved for NPCs – usually Allies – that are implanted, worn like clothing,
or supernaturally attached.
Almost all the time (roll of 15 or less): ¥3.
Quite often (roll of 12 or less): ¥2.
Fairly often (roll of 9 or less): ¥1.
Quite rarely (roll of 6 or less): ¥1/2 (round up).
together, fight back-to-back, share
rations in hard times, and trade
watches through the night.
Your Ally is usually agreeable to
your suggestions, but he is not your
puppet. He will disagree with you
from time to time. An Ally may try to
dissuade you from a plan that seems
foolish to him – and if he can’t talk you
out of the plan, he may refuse to cooperate.
An Ally may even cause problems
for you: picking fights, landing in
jail, insulting a high noble . . . Of
course, the Ally will also try to bail you
out when you make mistakes.
The GM will not award you bonus
character points for any play session
in which you betray, attack, or unnecessarily
endanger your Ally. Blatant,
prolonged, or severe betrayal will
break the trust between you and your
Ally, and he will leave you permanently.
If you drive your Ally off in this way,
the points you spent on him are gone,
reducing your point value. Leading
your Ally into danger is all right, as
long as you face the same danger and
are a responsible leader.
The point cost for an Ally depends
on his power and frequency of appearance.
Only PCs who take NPCs as
Allies pay points for the privilege. Two
PCs can be mutual “allies” for free, as
can two NPCs – and NPCs never pay
points for PCs as Allies. An Ally is
specifically a skilled NPC associate for
one PC.
Ally’s Power
Consult the following table to
determine how many points you must
spend on your Ally. “Point Total” is the
Ally’s point total expressed as a percentage
of the PC’s starting points;
“Cost” is the cost of the Ally. If the
Ally’s point total falls between two
percentages, use the higher.
Point Total Cost
25% 1 point
50% 2 points
75% 3 points
100% 5 points
150% 10 points
Allies built on more than 150% of
the PC’s starting points are not allowed;
treat such NPCs as Patrons (see p. 72).
Exception: The progression above
extends indefinitely for nonsentient (IQ
0) Allies; each +50% of the PC’s starting
points costs a further +5 points.
Allies built on no more than 100%
of the PC’s starting points may also be
Dependents (see p. 131). Add the cost
of Ally and Dependent together, and
treat the combination as a single
trait: an advantage if the total point
cost is positive, a disadvantage if it is
negative.
Ally Groups
You may purchase as many Allies
as you can afford. Each Ally is normally
a separate advantage, but you
can treat a group of related Allies as a
single trait to save space on your character
sheet. For a group of individuals
– with their own unique abilities and
character sheets – add the costs of the
individual Allies to find the cost of the
group, adjust the total cost for frequency
of appearance, and then apply
any special modifiers.
For a group of more than five identical
and interchangeable allies that
share a single character sheet – for
instance, an army of low-grade thugs
or a swarm of robot drones – find the
point cost to have one member of the
group as an Ally, and then multiply
that cost as follows to find the cost of
the group:
Size of Group Multiplier
6-10 ¥6
11-20 ¥8
21-50 ¥10
51-100 ¥12
Add ¥6 to the multiplier per tenfold
increase in number (e.g., 100,000
Allies would be ¥30). The GM may
require an Unusual Background
(p. 96) if you wish to have hordes of
Allies, or even prohibit groups larger
than a certain size – although he
might permit an army or other large
group as a Patron. Frequency of
appearance multipliers and special
modifiers (if any) apply to the final
cost of the entire group.
Frequency of Appearance
Choose a frequency of appearance
(see p. 36). If your Ally appears at the
start of an adventure, he accompanies
you for the duration of that adventure.
Allies in Play
As with Dependents (p. 131), the
GM will adjust your Ally’s abilities in
order to keep his point total a fixed
percentage of your own as you earn
points. This will keep his value as an
advantage constant. The GM decides
how the Ally evolves, although he
might ask you for your input.
If your Ally dies through no fault of
yours, the GM will not penalize you.
You may put the points spent on the
deceased Ally toward a new Ally. The
new relationship should normally
develop gradually, but the GM might
allow an NPC to become an Ally on
the spot if you have done something
that would win him over (e.g., saving
his life). This is especially appropriate
in cultures where debts of honor are
taken seriously!
There is no penalty for amicably
parting ways with your Ally. You may
use the points spent on him to buy a
new Ally met during play. At the GM’s
discretion, you may trade in any
remaining points for money (see
p. 26), reflecting parting gifts.
ADVANTAGES 37
Familiars
Wizards, telepaths, and so on are
often supernaturally linked to special
Allies known as familiars. These are
usually animals or spirits.
Work out a familiar’s basic abilities
with the GM, starting with the racial
template of an ordinary creature of its
kind. If its racial IQ is 5 or less, raise it
to at least 6. Consider buying off
Cannot Speak, if applicable. Most
familiars have supernatural advantages:
Extra Lives for a cat (it has nine
lives, after all!), Mindlink and Telesend
for a familiar that can transmit its
thoughts, etc.
Once you have determined the
familiar’s abilities, work out its point
total and its base value as an Ally.
Select frequency of appearance as
usual. This may be how often your
familiar is available (on a failed
appearance roll, it is sleeping, reporting
to a demon lord, etc.) or how often
its powers work (on a failure, it is no
more capable than an ordinary member
of its species, and cannot use or
grant special powers) – your choice.
This kind of Ally usually has one or
more special modifiers. Minion,
Summonable, and Sympathy are common.
Unwilling is typical of demonic
or otherwise evil familiars. Take
Special Abilities only if your familiar
grants you powers; e.g., extra Fatigue
Points with which to fuel spells or
exotic or supernatural advantages that
emulate the familiar’s own abilities
(such as Flight, for a bird). You have
no access to these abilities on a failed
appearance roll; if your familiar is
stunned, unconscious, or dead; or in
areas where your special link does not
function (GM’s decision). Buy these
abilities with a -40% Accessibility
limitation: “Granted by familiar.”
You can apply the following
enhancements and limitations after
calculating group cost (if applicable)
and multiplying for frequency of
appearance:
Special Enhancements
Minion: Your Ally continues to
serve you regardless of how well you
treat him. This might be due to programming,
fear, awe, or lack of selfawareness.
Examples include robots,
zombies, and magical slaves. You are
free of the usual obligation to treat
your Ally well. Mistreatment might
result in an inconvenient breakdown
(mental or physical), but the Ally will
not leave. See Puppet (p. 78) for additional
options. +0% if the Minion has
IQ 0 or Slave Mentality (p. 154), as the
benefits of total loyalty are offset by
the need for close supervision; +50%
otherwise.
Special Abilities: Your Ally wields
power out of proportion to his point
value. Perhaps he has extensive political
clout or access to equipment from
a TL higher than your own; perhaps
he grants you exotic powers. Don’t
apply this enhancement simply
because your Ally has exotic abilities.
If his powers are very uncommon, you
will already be paying extra: your Ally
requires an Unusual Background,
which raises his point total and his
value as an Ally. +50%.
Summonable: You conjure your
Ally instead of rolling to see whether
he appears at the start of an adventure.
To do so, take a Concentrate
maneuver and roll against frequency
of appearance. On a success, your Ally
appears nearby. On a failure, you cannot
attempt to summon him again for
one full day. Dismissing your Ally is a
free action, but you may only dismiss
him if he is physically present. +100%.
Special Limitations
Sympathy: If you are stunned,
knocked out, mind-controlled, etc.,
your Ally is similarly affected. The
reverse is also true, so you should take
special care of your Ally! -25% if the
death of one party reduces the other to
0 HP; -50% if the death of one party
automatically kills the other. If your
wounds affect your Ally, but your Ally’s
wounds don’t affect you, reduce these
values to -5% and -10%.
Unwilling: You have obtained your
Ally through coercion (e.g., blackmail
or magical binding). You do not have
to treat him as well as you would a
normal Ally. However, he hates you
and is likely to act accordingly, reducing
his overall reliability level. If you
endanger such an Ally or order him to
do something unpleasant, he may
rebel (GM’s option) if the consequences
of doing so would be less
severe than those of doing your bidding.
An Ally who rebels is gone, along
with the points you spent on him.
-50%.
Altered Time Rate 2 1
100 points/level
Your rate of time perception is
faster than that of a normal human.
The first level of this advantage lets
you experience time twice as fast as a
normal – that is, you experience two
subjective seconds for each real second
that passes. Each level past the
first increases this ratio by one: three
times as fast at level 2, four times as
fast at level 3, and so on.
Each level of Altered Time Rate lets
you take one additional maneuver on
your turn in combat, allowing you to
cast spells quickly by taking multiple
Concentrate maneuvers, run very fast
by taking multiple Move maneuvers,
etc. Your turn doesn’t come any sooner,
however! This advantage affects
how fast you move when you react, but
not how quickly you react in the first
place.
Out of combat, Altered Time Rate
allows you the luxury of extensive
planning, even in crisis situations, as
everything seems to happen in slow
motion. You may always attempt a
Sense roll, or an IQ-based skill roll to
make plans or recall information
(GM’s decision), at no penalty to
additional actions.
38 ADVANTAGES
Your Ally is usually agreeable to your
suggestions, but he is not your puppet. He will
disagree with you from time to time.
In order to do anything that
depends on someone else’s reactions,
you must deliberately “slow down”
and function at his speed. This applies
both when making a Feint in combat
and when making an Influence roll
(see p. 359) out of combat. For
instance, if you choose to Feint, that is
all you can do on your turn – you cannot
take extra actions. (On the other
hand, you could make an All-Out
Attack followed by an Attack in order
to beat down his defenses through
sheer blinding speed!)
Alternate Identity 4
5 or 15 points per identity
You have multiple, seemingly legal
identities. Each time you purchase
this trait, your fingerprints (or other
biometrics used to verify identity in
your world) are registered under
another name, and you have an extra
set of identity documents (birth certificate,
licenses, passport, etc.) good
enough to pass close inspection. These
identities may also have valid credit
cards and bank accounts, but you
must supply the money – additional
wealth is not included in the package!
If an intelligence or law-enforcement
agency attempts to identify you
with no clue as to your name – for
instance, using biometrics or photoanalysis
– there is an equal chance for
each of your identities to come up.
The search will stop . . . unless they
have reason to believe you are a ringer.
If the search continues, your other
identities will eventually surface, and
you will be unmasked. Once a government
agency determines who you
really are, your Alternate Identities are
lost for good.
There are two types of Alternate
Identity:
Legal: Some spies and undercover
policemen – and even supers, in settings
where they are backed by the
government – may have a legal
Alternate Identity. This requires at
least 10 points in Legal Enforcement
Powers, Legal Immunity, Police Rank,
Security Clearance, etc.; the GM sets
the precise prerequisites. If a super
has official permission to conceal his
original name (e.g., to protect his family)
and to hold property in his “super”
name, then that is a legal Alternate
Identity combined with a Secret
Identity (see p. 153). 5 points.
Illegal: A criminal or foreign agent
may have an illegal Alternate Identity.
This has the advantage of being completely
unknown when you first start
out, and of course it cannot be
revoked by the government. On the
other hand, should it ever be discovered,
you will face a stiff fine, a jail
sentence, or execution, depending on
the time and place. 15 points.
Ambidexterity 3
5 points
You can fight or otherwise act
equally well with either hand, and
never suffer the -4 DX penalty for
using the “off” hand (see p. 14). Note
that this does not allow you to take
extra actions in combat – that’s Extra
Attack (p. 53). Should some accident
befall one of your arms or hands,
assume it is the left one.
ADVANTAGES 39
Amphibious 3 1
10 points
You are well-adapted to movement
in the water. You do not suffer skill
penalties for working underwater, and
you can swim at your full Basic Move.
You still require air (but see Doesn’t
Breathe, p. 49). Typical features
include smooth, seal-like skin and
webbed fingers and toes.
If you can move only in the water,
take the Aquatic disadvantage (p. 145)
instead.
Animal Empathy 2
5 points
You are unusually talented at reading
the motivations of animals. When
you meet an animal, the GM rolls
against your IQ and tells you what you
“feel.” This reveals the beast’s emotional
state – friendly, frightened, hostile,
hungry, etc. – and whether it is
under supernatural control. You may
also use your Influence skills (see
p. 359) on animals just as you would
on sapient beings, which usually
ensures a positive reaction.
This ability frequently accompanies
some level of Animal Friend (see
Talent, p. 89), and often Sense of Duty
(Animals) or Vow (Vegetarianism).
Animal Friend
see Talent, p. 89
Appearance
see Appearance Levels, p. 21
Above-average appearance is treated
as an advantage.
Arm DX 3 1
12 or 16 points per +1 DX
Some of your arms have extra DX
relative to the DX of your body. This
DX applies only to things done with
those arms or hands. It does not affect
Basic Speed! If a task requires two or
more hands, and they don’t have the
same DX, use the lowest DX. Combat
skills rely on bodily DX, and do not
benefit from this DX at all.
Arm DX costs 12 points per +1 DX
for one arm and 16 points per +1 DX
for two arms. To raise the DX of three
or more arms, buy up overall DX. If
you bought your DX with the No Fine
Manipulators limitation, apply this
limitation to Arm DX as well.
Arm ST 3 1
3, 5, or 8 points per +1 ST
Some of your arms have extra ST
relative to the ST of your body. This
ST applies only to efforts to lift, throw,
or attack with those arms or hands. It
does not affect HP or overall Basic
Lift! If a task requires multiple hands,
and they don’t have the same ST, use
the average ST.
Arm ST costs 3 points per +1 ST for
one arm, 5 points per +1 ST for two
arms, and 8 points per +1 ST for three
arms. To raise the ST of four or more
arms, buy up overall ST. If you bought
your ST with the No Fine
Manipulators or Size limitations,
apply the same limitation(s) to Arm
ST.
Artificer
see Talent, p. 89
Binding 3 1
2 points/level
You have an attack that can hold
your target in place. Specify how this
works when you buy the advantage:
entangling your victim in vines, tying
him up with webs, freezing him inside
a block of ice, turning the ground to
quicksand beneath his feet, etc.
Binding is a ranged attack with
1/2D –, Max 100, Acc 3, RoF 1, Shots
N/A, and Recoil 1. You can add modifiers
to change these statistics (see
pp. 101-116).
On a hit, your victim is grappled
(see p. 370) and rooted in place. He
cannot select the Move or Change
Posture maneuvers or change facing,
and is at -4 to DX. The ST of this effect
is equal to your Binding level, but you
can layer additional attacks on a successfully
bound victim. Each extra
layer gives +1 to ST.
To break free, the victim must win
a Quick Contest of ST or Escape skill
against the ST of your Binding. Each
attempt takes one second. If the victim
fails to break free, he loses 1 FP but
may try again. Alternatively, he may
try to destroy the Binding. Innate
Attacks hit automatically; other
attacks are at -4. External attacks on
the Binding take no penalty, but risk
hitting the victim on a miss (see
Striking Into a Close Combat, p. 392).
The Binding has DR equal to 1/3 your
level (rounded down). Each point of
damage reduces ST by one. At ST 0,
the Binding is destroyed and the
victim is freed.
To simulate vines, webs, and so
forth, add one or more of Area Effect
(p. 102), Persistent (p. 107), and Wall
(p. 109) – and possibly some of the
special modifiers below.
Special Enhancements
Engulfing: Your attack pins the target.
He cannot move his limbs or
speak; his only options are to use
purely mental abilities, to attack the
Binding with an Innate Attack, or to
try to break free using ST (not Escape
skill). If he tries to break free and fails,
he is only allowed a repeated attempt
every 10 seconds – and on a 17 or 18,
he becomes so entangled that he cannot
escape on his own! +60%.
Only Damaged By X: Only specific
damage types can damage your
Binding. +30% for one of burning,
corrosion, crushing, or cutting; +20%
for any two; +10% for any three.
Sticky: Your Binding is treated as
Persistent (p. 107), but only affects
those who actually touch the original
target of your attack. +20%.
Unbreakable: Your Binding cannot
be destroyed. The only way to escape
is to break free. +40%.
Special Limitations
Environmental: Your Binding
manipulates an existing condition or
object in the environment, and won’t
work in its absence. This is worth
from -20% (victim must be touching
the ground) to -40% (victim must be
standing in dense vegetation), at the
GM’s option.
One-Shot: You cannot layer your
Binding to increase its ST. -10%.
Blessed 2 5
10 or more points
You are attuned to a god, demon
lord, great spirit, cosmic power, etc.
This can take various forms, but in all
cases, you will lose this advantage if
you fail to act in accordance with your
deity’s rules and values.
Blessed: You sometimes receive
wisdom from your deity. After communing
with your god (meditating,
praying, etc.) for at least one hour, you
see visions or witness omens that have
some bearing on future events. Work
out the details with your GM; for
40 ADVANTAGES
ADVANTAGES 41
instance, the God of Fire might
require you to stare into flames for an
hour, after which you hear a voice in
the flames. The GM rolls secretly
against your IQ to determine whether
you gain any useful insight from this
experience. The ritual is fatiguing,
however; at the end of the hour, you
lose 10 FP. As a side benefit, followers
of your deity sense your special status
and react to you at +1. 10 points.
Very Blessed: As above, but your IQ
roll to interpret visions is at +5 and
the reaction bonus from your god’s
followers is +2. 20 points.
Heroic Feats: Your blessing gives
you the ability to perform a particular
heroic feat. Once per game session,
you may add 1d to one of ST, DX, or
HT (other traits, such as Basic Move,
are at the GM’s discretion). You must
specify which trait is boosted when
you buy the advantage. This bonus
lasts 3d seconds, after which your abilities
revert to normal and you suffer
any penalties amassed during the
“heroic” period. (For instance, if your
blessing boosts HP and you are
reduced to -5 ¥ your normal HP but
not -5 ¥ your “blessed” HP, you will die
when the bonus HP wear off unless
you receive some sort of healing.) 10
points.
The GM may choose to allow other
blessings as well.
Brachiator 3 1
5 points
You can travel by swinging on
vines, tree branches, ropes, chandeliers,
etc. You get +2 to Climbing skill,
and can move at half your Basic Move
while brachiating.
Breath-Holding 3 1
2 points/level
You are adept at holding your
breath. Each level doubles the length
of time you can do so (see Holding
Your Breath, p. 351). Normal humans
may not take this advantage – to be a
world-record diver, learn Breath
Control (p. 182). Nonhumans and
supers can combine this advantage
with Breath Control!
Business Acumen
see Talent, p. 89
Catfall 3 1
10 points
You subtract five yards from a fall
automatically (treat this as an automatic
Acrobatics success – don’t check
again for it). In addition, a successful
DX roll halves damage from any fall.
To enjoy these benefits, your limbs
must be unbound and your body free
to twist as you fall.
Chameleon 3 1
5 points/level
You can change your surface pattern
to blend into your surroundings.
In any situation where being seen is a
factor, you get +2 per level to Stealth
skill when perfectly still, or +1 per
level if moving. Clothing reduces this
bonus to +1 per level when you are
motionless, with no bonus if you are
moving (unless the clothing is, in the
GM’s opinion, camouflaged relative to
your current environment).
Chameleon does not normally help
in the dark or against someone relying
upon senses other than sight.
However, you can specify that your
ability is effective against a particular
visual or scanning sense (e.g.,
Infravision or Radar) instead of
normal vision.
Special Enhancements
Extended: Your ability affects more
than one visual or scanning sense.
Each sense beyond the first is +20%.
Special Limitations
Always On: You cannot turn this
ability off. Strangers react at -1; the
flickering effect is irritating. -10%.
Channeling 2 5
10 points
You can become a conduit for the
spirit world, allowing spirits to speak
through you. To do so, you must enter
a trance, achieved through one minute
of concentration and a Will roll (at +2
if you have Autotrance, p. 101). You
are unaware of the world around you
while you are in this state.
Once you have entered your trance,
any spirit in the immediate vicinity
can enter your body and use it to
speak or write messages. The GM controls
what the spirit does or says. The
spirit answers questions put to it by
others, but it is not bound to tell the
truth.
This is a minor form of possession:
the spirit can use your body only to
communicate. However, if it has the
Possession ability (p. 75), it is considered
to be touching you, and can
attempt full possession while you are
in a trance. You are considered “wary,”
and thus get +5 to resist.
Charisma 2
5 points/level
You have a natural ability to
impress and lead others. Anyone can
acquire a semblance of charisma
through looks, manners, and intelligence
– but real charisma is independent
of these things. Each level gives +1
on all reaction rolls made by sapient
beings with whom you actively interact
(converse, lecture, etc.); +1 to
Influence rolls (see Influence Rolls,
p. 359); and +1 to Fortune-Telling,
Leadership, Panhandling, and Public
Speaking skills. The GM may rule that
your Charisma does not affect
members of extremely alien races.
Chronolocation
see Absolute Timing, p. 35
Claim to Hospitality 4
1 to 10 points
You belong to a social group that
encourages its members to assist one
another. When you are away from
home, you may call on other members
of this group for food, shelter, and
basic aid.
The point cost depends on the
extent and wealth of the group. A single
friend with a house in another city
is worth 1 point; a small family, 2
points; a society of merchants along
an important trade route, 5 points;
and a vast alliance of wealthy figures,
such as “every merchant in the world,”
10 points. In the appropriate situation,
members of the group should be easy
to find (14 or less after 1d-1 hours of
searching), but the chance of meeting
one at random is small (6 or less to
meet one in a small crowd in an
appropriate place).
Claim to Hospitality mainly saves
the cost and trouble of finding lodging
while “on the road” (although if
you are wealthy, you might be expected
to give gifts to your hosts), but
there are side benefits. Members of
the group are friendly to each other
(+3 reactions), and may provide
advice, introductions, and small
loans, if asked. The level of assistance
might occasionally approach that of
Contacts (p. 44). If you expect anything
more, though, buy Allies (p. 36)
or Patrons (p. 72).
This advantage cuts both ways. If
you take it, you can be asked, when at
home (at the GM’s whim), to provide
NPCs with exactly the same sort of
hospitality you claim while away. This
may become an adventure hook! If
you refuse such aid, you will eventually
get a bad name and lose this
advantage.
Clairsentience 2 5
50 points
You can displace all of your ranged
senses (for humans: sight, hearing,
and smell) to a point outside your
body. This “viewpoint” must be a specific
location within 10 yards. You can
modify this range with Increased
Range (p. 106) or Reduced Range
(p. 115). You can double your range
temporarily by spending 2 FP per
minute.
To initiate Clairsentience, pick the
desired viewpoint (which can be
inside something) and its facing, concentrate
for one minute, and then
make an IQ roll. If the viewpoint is out
of sight, you must specify distance and
direction, and the roll is at -5.
On a success, you can use your
ranged senses as if you were physically
present at the viewpoint (this means
you cannot sense the environment
around your body!). Your vision
ignores darkness penalties completely.
You cannot see through solid objects,
but if your viewpoint were inside (for
example) a closed chest, you would
see what was inside despite the lack of
light. If you are using or subjected to
range-dependent abilities (e.g., spells),
calculate all ranges from your body,
not your viewpoint. You can maintain
Clairsentience for as long as you like.
On failure by 1, your senses go to
some other viewpoint of the GM’s
choosing. On any greater failure,
nothing happens at all. Critical failure
cripples your ability for 1d hours.
To return your displaced senses,
move them elsewhere, or change their
facing (usually only important for
vision), you must concentrate for one
second and make another IQ roll.
However, a viewpoint inside a moving
object (e.g., a car) will move with that
object with no special concentration
on your part. You can only have one
viewpoint at a time – you cannot put
hearing in one location, vision in
another, etc.
Special Limitations
Clairaudience: Only your sense of
hearing is displaced. -30%.
Clairosmia: Only your sense of
smell is displaced. -60%.
Clairvoyance: Only your sense of
sight is displaced. -10%.
ESP: Your ability is part of the ESP
psi power (see p. 255). -10%.
Visible: Your senses have a visible
manifestation – for instance, a floating
face. -10%.
Claws 3 1
Variable
You have claws. This advantage
modifies all your hands and feet; there
is no discount for claws on only some
of your limbs. There are several
variations:
Blunt Claws: Very short claws, like
those of a dog. Add +1 per die to the
damage you inflict with a punch or
kick; e.g., 2d-3 becomes 2d-1. 3 points.
Hooves: Hard hooves, like those of
a horse. Add +1 per die to the damage
you inflict with a kick, and give your
feet (only) +1 DR. 3 points.
Sharp Claws: Short claws, like those
of a cat. Change the damage you inflict
with a punch or kick from crushing to
cutting. 5 points.
42 ADVANTAGES
Talons: Longer claws – up to 12”
long. Change the damage you inflict
with a punch or kick from crushing to
your choice of cutting or impaling
(choose before you roll to hit). 8 points.
Long Talons: Huge claws, like
sword blades extending from your
body! Treat these as Talons, but damage
is +1 per die. 11 points.
Clerical Investment 4
5 points
You are an ordained priest of a recognized
religion. You enjoy a number
of privileges that a layman lacks,
notably the authority to preside over
weddings, funerals, and similar ceremonies.
This gives you a +1 reaction
bonus from co-religionists and those
who respect your faith, and entitles you
to use a title – Father, Sister, Rabbi, etc.
Remember that not all clerics are
“good”! Aka’Ar, high priest of the
unholy Cult of Set, is also a vested
priest. The blessings and marriages he
performs are as meaningful to his followers
as those of a vicar are to his
parish. And – if Set so wills – Aka’Ar can
perform exorcisms as potent as those
of a Christian priest, if not more so.
After all, Aka’Ar has a better working
knowledge of demons . . .
Clerical Investment is purely social
in nature. It does not confer miraculous
powers. If you wish to wield divine
power by proxy, take Blessed (p. 40),
Power Investiture (p. 77), or True Faith
(p. 94).
Clerical Investment includes
Religious Rank 0 (see p. 30). If you
want more influence within your
church, buy up your Rank.
Clinging 3 1
20 points
You can walk or crawl on walls and
ceilings. You can stop at any point and
stick to the surface without fear of
falling. Neither feat requires a roll
against Climbing skill, provided the
surface is one you can cling to. Move
while clinging is half your Basic Move.
If you are falling and try to grab a
vertical surface to break your fall, the
GM must first decide whether there is
anything in reach. If there is, make a
DX roll to touch the surface, and then
make a ST roll at -1 per 5 yards
already fallen. If you succeed, you stop
your fall. Otherwise, you continue to
fall – but you may subtract 5 yards
from the height of the fall thanks to
the slowing effect of the failed
Clinging attempt. Variations in gravity
affect these distances; e.g., in 0.5G, the
ST roll would be at -1 per 10 yards.
Special Limitations
Specific: You can only cling to a
particular substance. Common materials,
such as brick, metal, rock, or
wood, are -40%; uncommon materials,
such as adobe, ice, or rubber, are
-60%; absurd materials, such as
chocolate, are -80%.
Combat Reflexes 2
15 points
You have extraordinary reactions,
and are rarely surprised for more than
a moment. You get +1 to all active
defense rolls (see Defending, p. 374),
+1 to Fast-Draw skill, and +2 to Fright
Checks (see Fright Checks, p. 360). You
never “freeze” in a surprise situation,
and get +6 on all IQ rolls to wake up,
or to recover from surprise or mental
“stun.” Your side gets +1 on initiative
rolls to avoid a surprise attack – +2 if
you are the leader. For details, see
Surprise Attacks and Initiative (p. 393).
Combat Reflexes is included in
Enhanced Time Sense (p. 52). If you
have ETS, you cannot also take
Combat Reflexes.
Common Sense 2
10 points
Any time you start to do something
the GM feels is STUPID, he will roll
against your IQ. A successful roll
means he must warn you: “Hadn’t you
better think about that?” This advantage
lets an impulsive player take the
part of a thoughtful character.
Compartmentalized
Mind 2 1
50 points/level
Your mental coordination gives
you, in effect, more than one mind.
Each mind – or “compartment” – functions
independently and at full capability.
Your compartments are identical,
but hypnotism, magic, psionics, and
the like affect them separately (e.g., one
compartment could be hypnotized
without affecting any of the others).
This advantage does not allow your
body to perform more than one task. A
normal character may select one
maneuver on his turn in combat. This
may be physical or mental. Each level
of Compartmentalized Mind adds
one extra mental maneuver to
this allotment. For instance, Compartmentalized
Mind 1 would let you perform
one mental maneuver and one
physical maneuver (e.g., Concentrate
on a spell and Attack) or two mental
maneuvers (e.g., Concentrate on two
spells), but never more than one physical
maneuver – for that, see Extra
Attack (p. 53).
If one compartment is under external
influence, roll a Quick Contest of
Will to see whether it gains control of
the body. The compartment currently
in control of the body rolls at +1.
Battling compartments may attempt to
use mental powers on each other. Treat
them as completely separate minds for
this purpose, each with your IQ, Will,
and mental abilities (such as Mind
Shield).
Two variations on this advantage
are available for vehicles built as
characters:
Controls: Each level buys one set of
controls. Controls let an operator perform
his own physical or mental
maneuvers using your abilities (e.g.,
Innate Attack or Radar), as per the
rules for vehicular combat (see p. 467).
The operator directs all actions of an IQ
0 vehicle with this advantage. Physical
limits still apply; for instance, a vehicle
can make no more attacks than it has
ready weapons. Resolve conflicts
between operators by rolling a Quick
Contest of vehicle operation skill. 25
points/level.
Dedicated Controls: As Controls, but
each set of controls handles a specific
task; e.g., “tail gunner.” The person
manning them can’t operate anything
else. 10 points/level.
Constriction Attack 3 1
15 points
Your musculature is optimized for
crushing your opponents – whether by
“hugging” like a bear or constricting
like a python. To use this ability, you
must first successfully grapple your
intended victim, whose Size Modifier
(p. 19) cannot exceed your own. On
your next turn, and each successive
turn, roll a Quick Contest: your ST vs.
your victim’s ST or HT, whichever is
higher. If you win, your victim takes
damage equal to your margin of victory;
otherwise, he takes no damage.
ADVANTAGES 43
Contact Group 4
Variable
You have a network of Contacts
(see Contacts, below) placed throughout
a particular organization or social
stratum. You must specify a corporation,
criminal syndicate, military unit,
police department, or similar organization,
or the underworld, merchants,
upper class, etc. of one particular
town. Broader Contact Groups are not
allowed.
You may request information from
a Contact Group exactly as you would
an individual Contact, using the same
rules for frequency of appearance,
effective skill, and reliability. The difference
is that a Contact Group’s effective
skill reflects ability at an entire category
of skills – e.g., “business skills” if
your Contact Group is a corporation,
or “military skills” if your Contact
Group is a military unit – as opposed
to one specific skill. You must define
this area of knowledge when you purchase
the Contact Group, and it must
be appropriate to the organization.
The GM rolls against the group’s
effective skill when you request any
information that it could reasonably
provide. However, this is an abstract
success roll, not a roll against a specific
skill. For instance, a police Contact
Group could provide ballistics comparisons,
criminal profiles, legal
advice, police records, and introductions
to criminals. It would not specifically
use Forensics, Criminology,
Law, Administration, or Streetwise
skills for this, but the information provided
might be appropriate to any of
these “police skills.”
To determine the point cost of a
Contact Group, select its effective skill,
frequency of appearance, and reliability
level just as you would for a simple
Contact, then multiply the resulting
cost by 5.
Contacts 4
Variable
You have an associate who provides
you with useful information, or who
does small (pick any two of “quick,”
“nonhazardous,” and “inexpensive”)
favors for you. The point value of a
Contact is based on the skill he uses to
assist you, the frequency with which
he provides information or favors, and
his reliability as a person.
Effective Skill of Contact
First, decide on the type of Contact
you have. He might be anything from
a wino in the right gutter to a head of
state, depending on your background.
What is important is that he has
access to information, knows you, and
is likely to react favorably. (Of course,
offering cash or favors is never a bad
idea; the GM will set the Contact’s
“price.”)
Next, choose the useful skill your
Contact provides. This skill must
match the Contact’s background; e.g.,
Finance for a banker or Forensics for
a lab technician. Since the GM rolls
against this skill when you request aid
from your Contact, you should select a
skill that can provide the results you
expect. If you want ballistics comparisons,
take a Contact with Forensics,
not Finance!
After that, select an effective skill
level. This reflects the Contact’s connections,
other skills, Status, etc. It
need not be his actual skill level (the
GM will set this, if it matters). For
instance, the president of a local steel
mill might have business-related skills
of 12-14, but his effective skill might
be 18 because of his position in the
company. This skill level determines
the Contact’s base cost:
Effective Skill Base Cost
12 1 point
15 2 points
18 3 points
21 4 points
Add 1 point to these costs for
Contacts who can obtain information
using supernatural talents (ESP, magical
divination, etc.). This is common
for spirits, wizards, etc.
Frequency of Appearance
Select a frequency of appearance,
as explained under Frequency of
Appearance (p. 36), and apply its multiplier
to the base cost of the Contact.
When you wish to reach your Contact,
the GM rolls against his frequency of
appearance. On a failure, the Contact
is busy or cannot be located that day.
On a 17 or 18, the Contact cannot be
reached for the entire adventure! On a
success, the GM will roll against the
Contact’s effective skill once per piece
of information or minor favor you
request.
No Contact may be reached more
than once per day, even if several PCs
share the same Contact. If you have
several questions to ask, you should
have them all in mind when you first
reach your Contact. The Contact
answers the first question at his full
effective skill. Each subsequent question
is at a cumulative -2. Don’t overuse
your Contacts!
A Contact can never supply information
outside his area of knowledge.
Use common sense. Likewise, the GM
must not allow a Contact to give information
that short-circuits an important
part of the adventure.
You must explain how you normally
get in touch with your Contact.
Regardless of frequency of appearance,
you cannot reach your Contact if
those channels are closed.
Reliability
Contacts are not guaranteed to be
truthful. Reliability multiplies the
Contact’s point cost as follows:
Completely Reliable: Even on a critical
failure on his effective skill roll,
the Contact’s worst response will be “I
don’t know.” On an ordinary failure,
he can find information in 1d days. ¥3.
Usually Reliable: On a critical failure,
the Contact lies. On any other failure,
he doesn’t know now, “. . . but
check back in (1d) days.” Roll again at
that time; a failure then means he
can’t find out at all. ¥2.
Somewhat Reliable: On a failure,
the Contact doesn’t know and can’t
find out. On a critical failure, he lies –
and on a natural 18, he lets the opposition
or authorities (as appropriate)
know who is asking questions. ¥1.
Unreliable: Reduce effective skill by
2. On any failure, he lies; on a critical
failure, he notifies the enemy. ¥1/2
(round up; minimum final cost is 1
point).
Money Talks
Bribery, whether cash or favors,
motivates a Contact and increases his
reliability level. Once reliability reaches
“usually reliable,” further levels of
increase go to effective skill; bribery
cannot make anyone completely
reliable!
A cash bribe should be about
equivalent to one day’s income for a
+1 bonus, one week’s income for +2,
one month’s for +3, and one year’s
44 ADVANTAGES
for +4. Favors should be of equivalent
worth, and should always be something
that you actually play out in the
game.
The bribe must also be appropriate
to the Contact. A diplomat would be
insulted by a cash bribe, but might
welcome an introduction into the right
social circle. A criminal might ask for
cash but settle for favors that could get
you in trouble. A police detective
or wealthy executive
might simply want
you to “owe him one”
for later . . . which
could set off a whole
new adventure, somewhere
down the
road.
Contacts in Play
You may add new Contacts in play,
provided you can come up with a good
in-game justification. The GM might
even turn an existing NPC into a
Contact for one or more PCs – possibly
in lieu of character points for the
adventure in which the PCs developed
the NPC as a Contact. For instance,
the reward for an adventure in which
the party helped solve a bank robbery
might be a knowledgeable,
reliable police Contact.
Examples of
Contacts
The list of all possible
Contacts – and their
skills – would
fill an entire
book.
Here are just a few examples:
Business. Business owners, executives,
secretaries, and even the mailroom
flunky can supply information
on business dealings. They generally
provide a business skill, such as
Accounting, Administration, or
Finance. A mail boy or typist might
have effective skill 12; the president’s
secretary has skill 15; a senior executive
or accountant has skill 18; and the
CEO, president, or chairman of the
board has skill 21.
Military. This could be anyone from
an enlisted grunt to a general. Such
Contacts might provide information
on troop movements, details on secret
weapons or tactics, or top-level strategy.
This could take the form of Savoir-
Faire (Military), Strategy, or Tactics
skill – or perhaps a technical skill,
such as Engineer. A Rank 0 soldier
would have effective skill 12, a Rank 1-
2 NCO would have skill 15, a Rank 3-
5 officer would have skill 18, and a
Rank 6 or higher officer would have
skill 21.
Police. Anyone connected with law
enforcement and criminal investigations:
beat cops, corporate security,
government agents, forensics specialists,
coroners, etc. Typical skills are
Criminology, Forensics, Intelligence
Analysis, and Law.
Beat cops and regular
private security officers
have effective skill 12;
detectives, federal agents,
and records clerks are
skill 15; administrators
(lieutenants, captains,
Special Agents in Charge, etc.) are
skill 18; and senior officers (sheriffs,
chiefs of police, District
Superintendents, Security Chiefs, etc.)
are skill 21.
Street. Thugs, fences, gang members,
mobsters, and the like can provide
information on illicit activities,
local criminal gossip, upcoming
crimes, etc. Most provide Streetwise
skill. “Unconnected” crooks (those
who are not part of the local criminal
organization) have effective skill 12;
“connected” ones are skill 15; mob
lieutenants and other powerful criminals
are skill 18; and an actual crime
lord (e.g., the Don, clan chief, or
Master of the Thieves’ Guild) has
skill 21.
ADVANTAGES 45
Courtesy Rank
see Rank, p. 29
Cultural Adaptability 2
10 or 20 points
You are familiar with a broad
spectrum of cultures. When dealing
with those cultures, you never suffer
the -3 “cultural unfamiliarity” penalty
given under Culture (p. 23). This is
definitely a cinematic ability! Point
cost depends on the scope of your
familiarity:
Cultural Adaptability: You are
familiar with all cultures of your race.
10 points.
Xeno-Adaptability: You are familiar
with all cultures in your game world,
regardless of race. 20 points.
Cultural Familiarity
see p. 23
Cybernetics 3
Variable
Treat most cybernetic implants as
equivalent advantages: Infravision for
a bionic eye, Damage Resistance for
dermal armor, etc. Some implants
may qualify for the Temporary
Disadvantage limitation (p. 115); suitable
temporary disadvantages include
Electrical (p. 134) and Maintenance
(p. 143). These apply to the implant,
not to your overall capabilities.
Damage Resistance 31
5 points/level
Your body itself has a Damage
Resistance score. Subtract this from
the damage done by any physical or
energy attack after the DR of artificial
armor (you can normally wear armor
over natural DR) but before multiplying
the injury for damage type. By
default, natural DR does not protect
your eyes (or windows, if you are a
vehicle) or help against purely mental
attacks, such as telepathy.
Normal humans cannot purchase
DR at all. Creatures with natural
armor can buy DR 1 to 5. Thick skin
or a pelt would be DR 1; pig hide,
armadillo shell, a heavy pelt, or scales
like those of a lizard would be DR 2;
rhinoceros hide or a pangolin’s armor
plates would be DR 3; alligator scales
or elephant hide would be DR 4; and a
giant tortoise would have DR 5.
Robots, supers, supernatural entities,
etc. can purchase any amount of DR,
subject to GM approval.
Many special modifiers are available
to change the basic assumptions
of this advantage.
Special Enhancements
Absorption: You can absorb damage
and use it to enhance your abilities.
Each point of DR stops one point
of damage and turns it into one character
point that you can use to
improve traits (anything but skills)
temporarily. You store these points in
a “battery” with capacity equal to DR
(e.g., DR 10 gives a 10-point battery).
Once this battery is full, each point of
DR will still stop one point of damage,
but will not convert it into a
character point. You do not have to
use stored points immediately, but
you cannot reallocate points once
used. You lose absorbed points –
unused ones first – at the rate of one
46 ADVANTAGES
When you buy Damage Resistance – or any advantage
that protects against damage (as opposed to nondamaging
effects) – you may specify that it is only
effective against certain damage types. This is a limitation
that reduces the cost of the advantage. Attacks fall
into four rarity classes for this purpose:
Very Common: An extremely broad category of damage
that you are likely to encounter in almost any setting.
Examples: ranged attacks, melee attacks, physical
attacks (from any material substance), energy attacks
(e.g., beam weapons, electricity, fire, heat and cold, and
sound), or all damage with a specified advantage origin
(chi, magic, psionics, etc.). -20%.
Common: A broad category of damage. Examples: a
standard damage type (one of burning, corrosion,
crushing, cutting, impaling, piercing, or toxic), a commonly
encountered class of substances (e.g., metal,
stone, water, wood, or flesh), a threat encountered in
nature and produced by exotic powers or technology
(e.g., acid, cold, electricity, or heat/fire), or a refinement
of a “Very Common” category (e.g., magical energy).
-40%.
Occasional: A fairly specific category of damage.
Examples: a common substance (e.g., steel or lead), any
one specific class of damage that is usually produced
only by exotic abilities or technology (e.g., particle
beams, lasers, disintegrators, or shaped charges), or a
refinement of a “Common” category (e.g., magical electricity,
piercing metal). -60%.
Rare: An extremely narrow category of damage.
Examples: charged particle beams, dragon’s fire, piercing
lead, ultraviolet lasers, or an uncommon substance
(e.g., silver or blessed weapons). -80%.
Unless specified otherwise, limited DR works only
against direct effects. If you are levitated using magic
and then dropped, the damage is from the fall; “DR vs.
magic” would not protect. If a magic sword struck you,
“DR vs. magic” would only protect against the magical
component of its damage. Similarly, “DR vs. trolls”
would not help against a boulder hurled by a troll – the
damage is from a boulder, not a troll. Be sure to work
out such details with the GM before setting the value of
the limitation. If the GM feels that a quality would
never directly influence damage, he need not allow it as
a limitation!
Limited Defenses
point per second. You lose enhanced
abilities as the points drain away.
(Exception: If you are missing HP or
FP, you can heal yourself. Restoring
one HP drains 2 stored points immediately;
restoring one FP drains 3
points. Such healing is permanent.
Only HP or FP in excess of your usual
scores drain away.) You cannot
absorb damage from your own ST or
attack abilities. +80% if absorbed
points can only enhance one trait
(determined when you create your
character) or can only heal; +100% if
you can raise any trait.
Force Field: Your DR takes the
form of a field projected a short distance
from your body. This protects
your entire body – including your
eyes – as well as anything you are carrying,
and reduces the damage from
attacks before armor DR. Effects that
rely on touch (such as many magic
spells) only affect you if carried by an
attack that does enough damage to
pierce your DR. +20%.
Hardened: Each level of Hardened
reduces the armor divisor of an
attack by one step. These steps are, in
order: “ignores DR,” 100, 10, 5, 3, 2,
and 1 (no divisor). +20% per level.
Reflection: Your DR “bounces
back” any damage it stops at your
attacker. The remaining damage
affects you normally. The attacker
doesn’t get an active defense against
the first attack you reflect back at
him, but gets his usual defenses
against subsequent reflected attacks.
Reflection only works vs. direct hits!
It cannot reflect damage from explosions,
fragments, poison gas, or anything
else that affects an entire area.
This enhancement is mutually exclusive
with Absorption. +100%.
Special Limitations
Ablative: Your DR stops damage
once. Each point of DR stops one
point of basic damage but is
destroyed in the process. Lost DR
“heals” at the same rate as lost
HP (including the effects of
Regeneration, p. 80). Use this to represent
supers who can absorb massive
punishment but who lack the
mass to justify a large HP score.
-80%.
Can’t Wear Armor: Your body is
designed in such a way that you
cannot or will not wear body armor
or clothing. -40%.
Directional: Your DR only protects
against attacks from one direction.
-20% for the front (F); -40% for the
back (B), right ®, left (L), top (T), or
underside (U). Humanoids may only
take this limitation for front and
back.
Flexible: Your DR is not rigid. This
leaves you vulnerable to blunt trauma
(see p. 379). -20%.
Limited: Your DR applies only to
certain attack forms or damage types.
See Limited Defenses (box) for details.
Partial: Your DR only protects a
specific hit location. This is worth
-10% per -1 penalty to hit that body
part (see p. 398). For instance, an animal
with butting horns and a thick
skull might have “Skull only,” for
-70%. “Torso only” is -10%, and also
protects the vital organs. When you
take this limitation for arms, legs,
hands, or feet, the DR protects all
limbs of that type. If it only protects
one limb, the limitation value doubles
(e.g., arms are -2 to hit, so a single
arm would be -40%). If you have
arms, legs, etc. with different penalties,
use the least severe penalty to
calculate limitation value.
Semi-Ablative: When an attack
strikes semi-ablative DR, every 10
points of basic damage rolled
removes one point of DR, regardless
of whether the attack penetrates DR.
Lost DR “heals” as for Ablative (and
you cannot combine the two). -20%.
Tough Skin: By default, Damage
Resistance is “hard”: armor plate,
chitin, etc. With this limitation, your
DR is merely tough skin. Any effect
that requires a scratch (e.g., poison)
or skin contact (e.g., electrical shock
or Pressure Points skill) affects you if
the attack carrying it penetrates the
DR of any armor you are wearing –
even if it does exactly 0 damage! Your
natural DR, being living tissue, provides
no protection at all against such
attacks. This limitation includes all
the effects of the Flexible limitation
(see above); you cannot take both. It
is mutually incompatible with Force
Field. -40%.
“Layered” Defenses
You may have multiple “layers” of
DR with different combinations of
modifiers. You must specify the order
of the layers – from outermost to
innermost – when you create your
character. You may not change this
order once set.
Danger Sense 2
15 points
You can’t depend on it, but sometimes
you get this prickly feeling right
at the back of your neck, and you
know something’s wrong . . . If you
have Danger Sense, the GM rolls
once against your Perception, secretly,
in any situation involving an
ambush, impending disaster, or similar
hazard. On a success, you get
enough of a warning that you can
take action. A roll of 3 or 4 means you
get a little detail as to the nature of
the danger.
Danger Sense is included in
Precognition (p. 77); if you have the
latter trait, you cannot also have
Danger Sense.
Special Limitations
ESP: Your ability is part of the ESP
psi power (see p. 255). -10%.
Daredevil 2
15 points
Fortune seems to smile on you
when you take risks! Any time you
take an unnecessary risk (in the GM’s
opinion), you get a +1 to all skill rolls.
Furthermore, you may reroll any critical
failure that occurs during such
high-risk behavior.
Example: A gang of thugs opens
fire on you with automatic weapons.
If you crouch down behind a wall and
return fire from cover, Daredevil gives
no bonuses. If you vault over the wall
and charge the gunmen, screaming, it
provides all of its benefits!
Dark Vision 3 1
25 points
You can see in absolute darkness
using some means other than light,
radar, or sonar. You suffer no skill
penalties for darkness, no matter what
its origin. However, you cannot see
colors in the dark.
Special Enhancements
Color Vision: You can see colors in
the dark. +20%.
ADVANTAGES 47
Destiny 2 5
Variable
Your fate is preordained. This is
considered an advantage if you are
destined for great things – although
this might not always be clear, and
might even be inconvenient at times.
For a disadvantageous Destiny, see
p. 131.
When you choose this advantage,
you may only specify its point value.
The GM will secretly determine the
nature of your Destiny, according to
its point value and the dictates of the
campaign. You might discover some
clues about your Destiny via magical
divination or similar techniques, but
you are highly unlikely to learn its full
extent until it is fulfilled. Note also
that a Destiny may change as the campaign
develops.
Be aware that this advantage gives
the GM absolute license to meddle
with your life – the GM must make the
Destiny work out! Working out a good
Destiny and making sure it comes to
pass require considerable ingenuity
on the part of the GM. The GM may
wish to forbid this advantage if he
feels it would send the campaign off
the rails.
The point value of the Destiny
determines its impact:
Great Advantage: You are fated to
achieve greatness within your lifetime.
In the end, everyone will know and
praise your name! Sooner or later,
something will happen to bring this
Destiny to fruition. Note that this does
not guarantee “success.” If you choose
to jump in front of an assassin’s knife
during your first game session, the
GM might just decide the Destiny is
fulfilled . . . you died a hero! 15 points.
Major Advantage: As above, but to a
lesser extent. Alternatively, you might
be doomed to die in a particular place
or in a particular fashion: at sea, by
the hand of an emperor, underground,
or whatever. You can be grievously
wounded – even maimed – under
other circumstances, but you will not
die. If you avoid the circumstances
that would fulfill your Destiny, knowingly
or otherwise, you might find that
Fate has a few surprises. The sea
might flood your home while you
sleep, the general against whom you
march might be the future emperor, or
Mt. Vesuvius might bury you under
tons of ash. 10 points.
Minor Advantage: You are fated to
play a small part in a larger story, but
this part will reflect to your credit. In
game terms, you are guaranteed one
significant victory. 5 points.
If you fulfill your Destiny and survive,
it’s over – but you might feel its
repercussions for years to come. In
general, the GM should let you put the
character points spent on an advantageous
Destiny toward a positive
Reputation. A Destiny that goes unnoticed
once fulfilled is not much of a
Destiny!
Detect 2/3 1
Variable
You can detect a specific substance
or condition, even when it is shielded
from the five human senses. This
requires one second of concentration,
after which the GM will secretly make
a Sense roll for you (see Sense Rolls,
p. 358). The range modifiers from the
Size and Speed/Range Table (p. 550)
apply. You may buy a special Acute
Sense (p. 35) to improve the roll,
thereby increasing your effective
range.
On a success, the GM tells you the
direction to the nearest significant
source of the substance, and give you
a clue as to the quantity present. On a
failure, you sense nothing.
Detect also includes the ability to
analyze what you detect. This requires
an IQ roll; the better the roll, the more
precise the details. For instance, if you
had Detect (Metal), you could tell gold
from iron on a successful IQ roll, and
might learn details – such as whether
the gold is in the form of ore or bars,
and its precise purity – on a critical
success.
The base cost of Detect is as
follows:
Rare (sorceresses, fire magic, zombies,
gold, radar, radio): 5 points.
Occasional (spellcasters, magic,
undead, precious metal, electric fields,
magnetic fields, radar and radio): 10
points.
Common (humans, supernatural
phenomena, supernatural beings,
metal, electric and magnetic fields): 20
points.
Very Common (all life, all supernatural
phenomena and beings, all minerals,
all energy): 30 points.
Note that the ability to detect certain
phenomena can often justify
other advantages. For instance, Detect
(Magnetic Fields) could explain
Absolute Direction.
Special Enhancements
Precise: On a successful Sense roll,
you also learn the distance to whatever
you detect. +100%.
Signal Detection: You can detect an
active transmission of some sort, such
as a radio, radar, or laser; see Scanning
Sense (p. 81) and Telecommunication
(p. 91). You suffer no range penalties,
but must be within twice the signal’s
own range and (if the signal is directional)
within in its path. +0%.
Special Limitations
Vague: You can only detect the
presence or absence of the target substance.
Direction and quantity are
revealed only on a critical success, and
you cannot analyze what you detect.
This limitation is mutually exclusive
with Precise. -50%.
Digital Mind 3 1
5 points
You are a sentient computer program
– possibly an artificial intelligence
or an “upload” of a living mind.
By default, you inhabit a body that
includes a computer with Complexity
equal to at least half your IQ; see
Computers (p. 472).
You are completely immune to any
power defined as “Telepathic,” and to
magic spells that specifically affect living
minds. However, computer viruses
and abilities that affect Digital Minds
can affect you; you can be taken
offline (or even stored, unconscious,
as data); and those with Computer
Hacking or Computer Programming
skill can gain access to your data . . .
and possibly read or alter your consciousness!
You are likely to have the Machine
meta-trait (p. 263), but this is not
mandatory, as you could be a computer-
like mind inside an organic body
(e.g., a bio-computer or a brain
implant). The Reprogrammable disadvantage
(p. 150) is also common for
Digital Minds, as is the Automaton
meta-trait (p. 263), but you do not
48 ADVANTAGES
have to possess either trait. Many
advantages are also possible but not
automatic:
Computing Power: If you operate
faster than a human mind, buy
Enhanced Time Sense (p. 52). If you
can add advantages or skills temporarily
by running programs, buy
Modular Abilities (p. 71).
Copies: If you can run multiple
copies of your mind on a single computer
system, buy Compartmentalized
Mind (p. 43). If you can create loyal
copies that run on other systems, buy
Duplication (p. 50) with the Digital
limitation. If you have copies backed
up offline, buy Extra Life (p. 55).
Uploading: If you can actively
“upload” yourself into other computers,
buy Possession (p. 75) with the
Digital limitation. If you can do this
easily, buy extra bodies as Puppets
(p. 78).
Discriminatory Hearing
3 1
15 points
You have a superhuman ability to
distinguish between sounds. You can
always identify people by voice, and
can recognize individual machines by
their “sound signature.” You may
memorize a sound by listening to it for
at least one minute and making a successful
IQ roll. On a failure, you must
wait at least one full day before making
a repeated attempt.
You get +4 (in addition to any
Acute Hearing bonuses) on any task
that utilizes hearing, and receive +4 to
Shadowing skill when following a
noisy target.
To simulate the passive sonar used
by submarines, add a -30% Accessibility
limitation, “Only underwater.”
Discriminatory Smell 3
1
15 points
Your sense of smell is far beyond
the human norm, and can register distinctive
odors for practically everything
you may encounter. This allows
you to recognize people, places, and
things by scent. You may memorize a
scent by sniffing it for at least one
minute and making a successful IQ
roll. On a failure, you must wait at
least one full day before making a
repeated attempt.
You get +4 (in addition to any
Acute Taste and Smell bonuses) on
any task that utilizes the sense of
smell, and receive +4 to Tracking skill.
If you actually become ill when
exposed to the odor of a particular
substance, take the Temporary
Disadvantage limitation (p. 115). The
most common effect is Revulsion
(p. 151), but the GM may choose to
allow other temporary disadvantages.
Special Enhancements
Emotion Sense: You can detect a
person or animal’s emotional state by
odor. This functions as the Empathy
advantage (p. 51), but you must be
within 2 yards of the subject. +50%.
Discriminatory Taste
3 1
10 points
This talent functions in most ways
like Discriminatory Smell (above), but
enhances the sense of taste instead, so
tracking is not possible. You must
ingest a small quantity of the material
to be examined; for a living subject,
this means bodily fluids. This gives
you an IQ roll to recognize the taste,
identify whether a substance is safe to
eat, etc. You can perform a detailed
“analysis” with a roll against a suitable
skill (Chemistry, Cooking, Pharmacy,
Poisons . . .). You get +4 (in addition to
any Acute Taste and Smell bonuses)
on any task that utilizes the sense of
taste.
Doesn’t Breathe 3 1
20 points
You do not breathe or require oxygen.
Choking and strangulation
attempts cannot harm (or silence!)
you, and you are immune to inhaled
toxins. You are still affected by contact
poisons, pressure, and vacuum; take
Sealed (p. 82), Pressure Support
(p. 77), and Vacuum Support (p. 96),
respectively, to resist those threats.
Special Limitations
Gills: You can extract oxygen from
water, allowing you to remain submerged
indefinitely. You suffocate if
the water contains no dissolved oxygen.
You are immune to strangulation
and “the bends.” If you can only survive
underwater, and suffocate in air
as quickly as a normal human would
drown underwater, Doesn’t Breathe
(Gills) is a 0-point feature; otherwise,
-50%.
Oxygen Absorption: As Gills, but
you can absorb oxygen through the
surface of your body whether it is in
the air, a liquid, or another medium.
Your body does not absorb poisonous
gases, but you will suffocate if there is
no oxygen available. You can use
breathing equipment in space (your
lungs are capable of working normally).
You may not have the Sealed
advantage. -25%.
Oxygen Combustion: As Oxygen
Absorption, but you cannot breathe
underwater or anywhere else fire cannot
burn. -50%.
Oxygen Storage: You need to
breathe, but you can go for extended
periods of time without doing so; perhaps
you store oxygen (like a whale)
or have superior blood oxygenation.
This differs from Breath-Holding in
that you are completely immune to
“the bends” while your oxygen supply
holds out. If you can effectively “hold
your breath” for 25 times as long as
usual, this is -50%; 50 times, -40%; 100
times, -30%; 200 times, -20%; 300
times, -10%.
ADVANTAGES 49
Destiny is considered an advantage if you
are destined for great things – although this
might not always be clear, and might even
be inconvenient at times.
Doesn’t Eat
or Drink 3 1
10 points
You do not require food, water, or
fuel. Your body is powered in some
other manner: solar power, ambient
magical energy, etc. A sufficiently rare
energy source might qualify you for
Dependency (p. 130).
Doesn’t Sleep 3 1
20 points
You do not have to sleep at all. You
can ignore all ill effects from missed
nights of rest.
Dominance 2 5
20 points
You can “infect” others with a
supernatural condition – vampirism,
lycanthropy, etc. – and exert absolute
control over them. This trait is only
appropriate for supernatural beings
that spread their “curse” through
infection, and only affects members of
susceptible races (typically your original
race and very similar races). The
GM is the judge of which curses are
spread this way and who is
susceptible.
When you buy Dominance, you
must specify one natural attack –
Claws, Innate Attack, Vampiric Bite,
etc. – that delivers the infection.
Anyone you damage this way must
roll 3d vs. the HP of injury he received
(maximum one roll per day). If he
rolls under the damage amount, he
becomes infected, and will change
into the same kind of creature as you
in 2d days, or at the GM’s discretion,
without suitable supernatural intervention.
The GM is free to impose
additional conditions for infection; for
instance, the victim might have to suffer
three attacks, or share your blood,
or even die before making the roll
above.
Once the transition is complete,
the victim acquires your supernatural
racial template (Vampire, Werewolf,
etc.) plus Slave Mentality (p. 154). He
becomes your subordinate. If he goes
on to infect others, his victims will
acquire the same traits and serve you
as well.
Dominance itself costs 20 points,
but to control a new victim, you must
have sufficient unspent points to buy
him as an Ally (p. 36) with the
enhancements “Minion” (due to his
Slave Mentality) and “Special Abilities”
(because he can create new servitors
for you). You can choose any frequency
of appearance, and may improve
this later on with earned points. If you
lack the points to buy you victim as an
Ally – even at a frequency of “6 or less”
– he will still be infected but he will not
become your slave.
Dominance persists until you die
(truly die, for undead), or your slave
grows in power and you cannot (or
choose not to) spend the points to
keep him as an Ally, or the GM rules
the curse is broken via supernatural
means. If any of these things occur,
your victim will lose Slave Mentality
and become free-willed. You may use
the points spent on your former Ally to
dominate new victims.
See Infectious Attack (p. 140)
for the disadvantageous form of
Dominance.
Double-Jointed
see Flexibility, p. 56
Duplication 2/3 1
35 points/copy
You can split into two or more bodies
(“Dupes”), each possessing your full
knowledge and powers (but not copies
of your equipment, unless you buy a
special enhancement). It takes one second
and a Concentrate maneuver to
separate or merge. When your Dupes
50 ADVANTAGES
merge, your FP and HP are the average
of all your copies’ FP and HP at that
time. Your combined self remembers
everything experienced by any Dupe.
Dupes have no special ability to
coordinate with one another. For that,
buy Telesend (see Telecommunication,
p. 91). If your Telesend works only
with your Dupes, you may take the
Racial limitation. You may combine
Telesend with a Mindlink (p. 70) with
your Dupes, in which case you are in
constant telepathic contact – no die
rolls required.
If one of your Dupes dies, all the
others immediately take 2d damage
and are stunned. This is mental stun if
you define Duplication as a mental
trait, physical stun if you define it as a
physical trait. The IQ or HT roll to
recover is at -6. You also lose the
points you spent for that Dupe. The
GM may allow you to buy back a
dead Dupe with unspent points.
Alternatively, an Extra Life (p. 55) will
let you bring back any one dead Dupe.
Your point value drops by the price of
the Extra Life, but this is cheaper than
buying back a Dupe.
Special Enhancements
Duplicated Gear: Your Dupes
appear with copies of Signature Gear
(p. 85) that you are carrying or wearing.
Duplicated equipment vanishes
when you merge, even if it becomes
separated from you. Treat your equipment’s
HP, ammunition, energy supply,
etc. just like your own HP and FP
when you merge. +100%.
No Sympathetic Injury: If one of
your Dupes is killed, the others are not
stunned or hurt. +20%.
Special Limitations
Digital: Your Dupes are software
copies of your mind, not physical
copies of your body. They can possess
other computers or occupy spare
Puppets (p. 78). You may only take
this limitation if you have both Digital
Mind (p. 48) and Possession (Digital)
(p. 75). -60%.
Shared Resources: Your Dupes do
not share your full FP and HP;
instead, you must distribute your FP
and HP among them. For instance, if
you had 15 HP and one Dupe, you
could split your HP 7 and 8, 2 and 13,
or in any other combination that
totaled 15. You need not distribute FP
and HP proportionally; with 15 HP
and 15 FP, you could give one copy 3
FP and 9 HP and the other 12 FP and
6 HP. When your bodies re-combine,
add their FP and HP instead of averaging.
-40%.
Eidetic Memory 2
5 or 10 points
You have an exceptionally good
memory. Anyone may attempt an IQ
roll to recall the general sense of past
events – the better the roll, the truer
the memory, but the details are
sketchy. With this talent, you automatically
succeed at these “memory rolls,”
and you often recall precise details.
This trait comes in two levels:
Eidetic Memory: You automatically
remember the general sense of everything
you concentrate on, and can
recall specific details by making an IQ
roll. It is possible to “learn” this advantage
in play (bards and skalds often
acquire it to recall poems and songs).
5 points.
Photographic Memory: As above,
but you automatically recall specific
details, too. Any time you, the player
forget a detail your character has seen
or heard, the GM or other players must
remind you – truthfully! 10 points.
This trait affects recall, not comprehension,
and so does not benefit
skills. However, it gives a bonus whenever
the GM requires an IQ roll for
learning: +5 for Eidetic Memory, +10
for Photographic Memory.
Elastic Skin 3 1
20 points
You can alter your skin and facial
features (but not clothing or makeup)
to duplicate those of another member
of your race or a very similar race.
This takes 10 seconds, and requires a
Disguise roll if you try to duplicate a
particular individual. It takes three
seconds to return to your original
form. This ability gives +4 to all
Disguise rolls.
Empathy 2
5 or 15 points
You have a “feeling” for people.
When you first meet someone – or are
reunited after an absence – you may
ask the GM to roll against your IQ. He
will tell you what you “feel” about that
person. On a failed IQ roll, he will lie!
This talent is excellent for spotting
impostors, possession, etc., and for
determining the true loyalties of
NPCs. You can also use it to determine
whether someone is lying . . . not what
the truth is, but just whether they are
being truthful with you.
This advantage comes in two levels:
Sensitive: Your ability is not entirely
reliable; the IQ roll is at -3. You get
+1 to your Detect Lies and Fortune-
Telling skills, and to Psychology rolls
to analyze a subject you can converse
with. 5 points.
Empathy: Your ability works at full
IQ, and the bonus to Detect Lies,
Fortune-Telling, and Psychology is +3.
15 points.
This advantage works only on sapient
(IQ 6+), natural beings. The equivalent
talents for animals, plants, and
supernatural entities are Animal
Empathy (p. 40), Plant Empathy
(p. 75), and Spirit Empathy (p. 88),
respectively.
Enhanced Defenses 2
Variable
You are unusually adept at evading
attacks! This may be due to careful
observation of your foe, focusing chi,
or anything else that fits your background.
There are three versions:
Enhanced Block: You have +1 to
your Block score with either Cloak or
Shield skill. You must specialize in
one particular Block defense. 5 points.
Enhanced Dodge: You have +1 to
your Dodge score. 15 points.
Enhanced Parry: You have +1 to
your Parry score. You may take this
advantage for bare hands (5 points),
for any one Melee Weapon skill (5
points), or for all parries (10 points). 5
or 10 points.
This talent is definitely cinematic!
The GM might require Trained By A
Master (p. 93) or Weapon Master
(p. 99) as a prerequisite. He may
choose to allow warriors to buy this
trait with earned points. He might
even permit multiple levels of each
Enhanced Defense, in which case the
point cost is per +1 bonus. Note that
bonuses larger than +3 are almost certainly
unbalanced, even in “over-thetop”
games!
ADVANTAGES 51
Enhanced Move 3 1
20 points/level
You can really move! Each level of
Enhanced Move doubles your top
speed in one environment: Air,
Ground, Space, or Water. You may
also take a half-level of Enhanced
Move, either alone or with any whole
number of levels; this costs 10 points
and multiplies Move by 1.5.
Example 1: A super buys Enhanced
Move 4 (Ground), for 80 points. He
multiplies his Move by 2 ¥ 2 ¥ 2 ¥ 2 =
16. If his Basic Move were 8, he could
run at 128 yards/second (262 mph).
Example 2: An avian race has
Enhanced Move 2.5 (Air), for 50
points. All members of the race multiply
their top airspeed by 2 ¥ 2 ¥ 1.5 = 6.
Your multiplied Move is your top
speed. Record it in parentheses after
your Enhanced Move trait; for
instance, the super in the example
above would write “Enhanced Move 4
(Ground Speed 128).” You can always
choose to accept a slightly lower top
speed if you want your speed to match
that of a real-world or fictional creature
or vehicle with a known top
speed. This does not give you back any
points.
Enhanced Move does not affect
Basic Speed, Basic Move, or Dodge.
Its benefits apply only when moving
along a relatively straight, smooth
course (see Sprinting, p. 354). It does
have some defensive value, however:
those who attack you with ranged
attacks must take your speed into
account when calculating speed/range
modifiers (see p. 550).
Most forms of Enhanced Move
have prerequisites. Enhanced Move
(Water) requires Amphibious (p. 40)
or Aquatic (p. 145). Enhanced Move
(Air) requires Flight (p. 56). Enhanced
Move (Space) requires Flight with the
Space Flight or Newtonian Space
Flight enhancement, and affects
movement in space – not airspeed. To
move faster in air and in space, buy
both Enhanced Move (Air) and
Enhanced Move (Space).
Special Enhancements
Handling Bonus: You get a bonus
to DX or vehicle operation skill (e.g.,
Driving) for the sole purpose of maintaining
control at speeds above your
Basic Move. +5% per +1, to a
maximum of +5.
Special Limitations
Handling Penalty: You have a
penalty to DX or vehicle operation
skill at high speeds. -5% per -1, to a
maximum of -5.
Newtonian: This is a limitation for
Enhanced Move (Space). Your space
“top speed” is actually your “delta-v”:
the total velocity change you can manage
before running out of reaction
mass. Once you have made velocity
changes equal to your top speed, you
must refuel before you can change
velocity again. -50%.
Road-Bound: This is a limitation
for Enhanced Move (Ground). Your
Enhanced Move is effective only on a
smooth, flat surface, such as a road or
building floor. This is often taken in
conjunction with the Wheeled
disadvantage (p. 145). -50%.
Enhanced Time
Sense 2 1
45 points
You can receive and process information
dramatically faster than the
human norm. This improves your
mental speed – notably your reaction
time – but not how fast you physically
move once you react. This has several
game benefits.
First, Enhanced Time Sense (ETS)
includes Combat Reflexes (p. 43), and
provides all the benefits of that advantage.
You cannot buy Combat Reflexes
if you have ETS; the two advantages
are not cumulative.
In combat, you automatically act
before those without ETS, regardless
of Basic Speed. If more than one combatant
has ETS, they act in order of
Basic Speed, and they all get to act
before those who lack ETS.
You can perceive things that happen
too fast for most people to discern.
For example, you cannot be
fooled by a projected image, because
you can see the individual frames of
the film. If secret information is being
sent as a high-speed “burst,” you can
detect it if you’re monitoring the
transmission (you cannot necessarily
decipher it, but you know it’s there). At
the GM’s discretion, you get a Sense
roll to spot objects moving so fast that
they are effectively invisible; for
instance, bullets in flight. ETS is
extremely valuable if you possess magical
or psionic defenses that work at
the speed of thought.
If you have ETS, your rapid
thought processes always allow you to
ponder a problem thoroughly and
respond in the manner you think best.
You never suffer skill penalties for
being mentally “rushed” – although
you still need the usual amount of
time to complete a physical task, and
suffer the usual penalties for hasty
work. The GM can almost never tell
you to make up your mind right now.
(But don’t abuse this privilege by taking
half an hour to decide what to do
in each turn in combat!)
The exception is when something
happens so fast that most people can’t
perceive it at all. In that case, the GM
is justified in asking you for an immediate
response, since those without
ETS get no response.
ETS does not “slow down” the
world from your viewpoint. You can
still enjoy a movie by simply ignoring
the frames, much as a literate person
can choose whether or not to notice
the individual letters in the words he’s
reading. ETS also does not let you violate
the laws of physics. Some things
(e.g., laser beams) simply travel too
fast for you to react.
52 ADVANTAGES
Extra Attack: The “default” assumption in
GURPS is that you can make one attack per
turn, no matter how many limbs you have.
Enhanced Tracking 3 1
5 points/level
You can “track” more than one target
– whether with a built-in sensor
array or eyes that can swivel independently,
like those of a chameleon.
An Aim (p. 364) or Evaluate (p. 364)
maneuver normally applies to a single
target. Each level of Enhanced
Tracking allows your maneuver to
apply to one additional target. You can
only track targets that you can detect,
and you cannot Aim at more targets
than you have ready weapons to Aim
with.
Extended Lifespan 3 1
2 points/level
An average life cycle is defined as
maturity at age 18, with aging effects
(see p. 444) starting at age 50 and
accelerating at ages 70 and 90. Each
level of Extended Lifespan doubles all
these values. Note that if you need to
take more than seven levels of this
trait (giving maturity at age 2,304 and
the onset of aging at age 6,400), it is
more efficient to take Unaging (p. 95).
Extra Arms 3 1
Variable
In GURPS, a limb with which you
can manipulate objects is an arm,
regardless of where it grows or what it
looks like. A normal arm can strike a
blow that inflicts thrust-1 crushing
damage based on ST. The human
norm is two arms for 0 points. Extra
arms have a base cost of 10 points
apiece.
Coordination
You can use extra arms freely for
multiple noncombat tasks. For
instance, with three arms, you could
perform a one-handed task (e.g., use a
computer mouse) and a two-handed
task (e.g., type) simultaneously. You
need Enhanced Tracking (p. 53) to
perform tasks that require attention to
events in more than one place at a
time, however.
You can also use all of your arms in
concert for a single combat maneuver
where extra arms would be helpful;
e.g., grappling in close combat. And if
you have at least three arms, you can
use a shield normally with one arm
and still wield a two-handed weapon,
just as a normal human fighter can
use a shield and one-handed weapon
at the same time.
No matter how many arms you
have, though, you do not get additional
attacks (or other extra maneuvers)
in combat unless you buy Extra
Attacks (see below).
Close Combat With
Extra Arms
Extra arms give a huge advantage
in close combat. You cannot punch
with more than one arm at a time
unless you have Extra Attack, but you
may grapple with all of your arms at
once. Each extra arm of regular length
or longer, over and above the generic
set of two, gives +2 to any attempt to
grapple or break free from a grapple.
Having more arms than your opponent
also gives +3 on any attempt to
pin or resist a pin.
Special Enhancements
Extra-Flexible: Limbs with this
enhancement are more flexible than
human arms, like tentacles or an elephant’s
trunk. These limbs can always
reach and work with other limbs,
regardless of body positioning, general
layout, or “right” and “left.” +50%.
Long: Your arm is longer in proportion
to your body than a human arm
relative to the human body. This
increases your effective SM for the
purpose of calculating reach with that
arm (see Size Modifier and Reach,
p. 402). This does affect the reach of
melee weapons wielded in that hand.
Each +1 to SM also adds +1 per die to
swinging damage. +100% per +1 to
SM.
Special Limitations
Foot Manipulators: Your “arm” is
really an unusually dextrous leg. You
cannot walk while you are manipulating
objects with it (although you can
sit, float, or fly). This is a Temporary
Disadvantage limitation, the disadvantage
being Legless (p. 141). This kind
of arm is usually – but not always –
Short (see below). -30%.
No Physical Attack: The limb can
manipulate but cannot punch or wield
melee weapons, and gives no bonus in
close combat. It can still wield a
firearm or similar ranged weapon.
-50%.
Short: The arm has reach “C” (close
combat only), and lacks the leverage
to use any weapon that must be
swung. Subtract one yard from the
reach of any melee weapon wielded by
that limb. If all of your arms are short,
you are at -2 on any attempt to grapple.
-50%.
Weak: The arm has less than your
full body ST for lifting, striking, and
grappling. -25% if the arm has half
your body ST, or -50% if it has 1/4 your
body ST (round down in both cases).
Weapon Mount: Instead of an arm,
you have a “hardpoint” where you can
mount a weapon. This may be biological,
mechanical, or a hybrid of the
two, depending on whether you are a
living being, a machine, or a cyborg.
You cannot use this mount for any
purpose other than bearing a weapon.
This limitation is incompatible with
Feet Manipulator, No Physical Attack,
Short, and Weak. -80%.
Modifying Beings With
One or Two Arms
Beings with one or two arms can
use the special modifiers above. Point
cost is equal to 1/10 the percentile
modifier per affected arm. Thus,
enhancements become advantages
and limitations become disadvantages.
For instance, Short is -50%, so it
is worth -5 points per arm. Someone
with two short arms would have a -10-
point disadvantage.
Those with one arm can only apply
these modifiers once, but also get the
-20 points for One Arm (p. 147). For
instance, an elephant’s trunk would be
Extra-Flexible (+50%), Long (+100%),
and Weak (-50%). These modifiers
total +100%, for a 10-point advantage.
The -20 points for One Arm would
make the net cost -10 points.
Extra Attack 3
25 points/attack
You can attack more than once per
turn. The “default” assumption in
GURPS is that you can make one
attack per turn, no matter how many
limbs you have. Each Extra Attack
allows one additional attack per turn.
You may not have more attacks than
you have limbs (arms, legs, etc.), natural
weapons (Strikers, Teeth, etc.), and
attack powers (Afflictions, Bindings,
and Innate Attacks) with which to
attack. The GM’s word on what
constitutes an “attack” is final.
A normal human can purchase one
Extra Attack. This lets him attack with
ADVANTAGES 53
both hands at once, and represents
unusually good coordination. Supers
and nonhumans have no such limitation.
A super-powered cop could buy
two Extra Attacks, enabling him to
shoot rays from his eyes, fire his pistol,
and swing his nightstick all at
once. A dragon might take four Extra
Attacks and attack five times with any
combination of his four clawed limbs,
teeth, horns, tail, and fiery breath!
Extra Attack is exactly that: an
extra Attack maneuver on your turn in
combat. It does not eliminate the -4
penalty for an “off” hand (see
Ambidexterity, p. 39) or let you take
multiple Aim maneuvers (see
Enhanced Tracking, p. 53). You may
use some of your attacks for Feint
maneuvers, but you many not take
multiple actions of other kinds – that
requires Altered Time Rate (p. 38).
Extra Attacks and
All-Out Attack
When an individual with Extra
Attacks makes an All-Out Attack, he
must select one type of bonus for all
his attacks that turn. He could not, for
instance, take All-Out Attack
(Determined) with one attack and All-
Out Attack (Strong) with another. If he
chooses All-Out Attack (Double) to
increase his number of attacks, he gets
one additional attack.
Extra Attacks and
Rapid Strike
You may use one of your melee
attacks to make a Rapid Strike (see
p. 370) on your turn, at the usual
penalty. Your remaining attacks are in
addition to this Rapid Strike, and
receive no penalty. You may not use
Rapid Strike with two or more attacks
in one turn.
Extra Head 3 1
15 points/head
You have more than one head,
each with fully functional ears, eyes,
mouth, etc. Each Extra Head gives
you one Extra Mouth (p. 55) and one
level of Enhanced Tracking (p. 53) at
no extra charge. Each head also contains
an extra brain with a complete
copy of your memories, personality,
and skills. These extra brains are
“backups,” however, and do not grant
additional mental actions – for that,
take Compartmentalized Mind (p. 43).
You cannot suffer more than 2 ¥
(your HP/number of heads) points of
injury from any single attack to your
head or neck. Any head blow that
causes unconsciousness only knocks
out that one head; the others continue
to function! A critical head blow that
would normally kill you simply
destroys that head, inflicting the maximum
injury noted above and crushing,
severing, or exploding the head
(GM’s option).
Special Limitations
Extraneous: Your Extra Head
grants Extra Mouth and Enhanced
Tracking, but does not contain a
backup brain. A single blow to an
Extraneous head can do no more than
HP/(1.5 ¥ number of heads) points of
injury, but blows to your real head can
cause stun, knockout, or death even if
your other heads are unharmed. -20%.
Extra Legs 3 1
Variable
If you can walk on a limb but cannot
use it to manipulate objects, it is a
leg in GURPS (for legs that double as
arms, see Extra Arms, p. 53). A normal
leg can kick for thrust/crushing damage
at your usual reach (1 yard for a
human). The human norm is two legs,
which costs 0 points. It costs points to
have more than two legs:
Three or four legs: If you lose a leg,
you can continue to move at half
54 ADVANTAGES
Move (round down). Loss of a second
leg causes you to fall. 5 points.
Five or six legs: Each leg lost
reduces Move by 20% until only three
legs are left. At that point, your Move
is 40% normal. Loss of another leg
causes you to fall. 10 points.
Seven or more legs: Each leg lost
reduces Move by 10% until only three
legs are left. At that point, your Move
is 40% normal. Loss of another leg
causes you to fall. 15 points.
You can apply the following modifiers
to all your legs:
Special Enhancements
Long: Your legs are longer in proportion
to your body than human legs
relative to the human body. This
increases your effective SM for the
purpose of calculating reach when
kicking (see Size Modifier and Reach,
p. 402) and when clambering over
obstacles. +100% per +1 to SM.
Special Limitations
Cannot Kick: You cannot use your
legs to kick for damage. -50%.
Modifying Beings
With Two Legs
The modifiers above can be applied
to creatures with only two legs. Point
cost is equal to 1/10 the percentile
modifier. For instance, a human with
Cannot Kick (-50%) would have a -5-
point disadvantage.
Extra Life 2 1
25 points/life
You can come back from the dead!
No matter how sure your foes were
that they killed you, you didn’t really
die. Work out the details with the GM.
Every time you come back from the
dead, you use up one Extra Life –
remove it from your character sheet
and reduce your point total by 25
points. The GM may wish to let players
spend earned points to buy Extra
Lives in play.
Special Limitations
Copy: When you die, you revert to a
“backup copy.” To create this copy
takes minutes or hours, possibly at a
special facility. Details are up to the
GM. Make a copy of your character
sheet whenever you update your backup.
If you die, you revert to those
statistics, losing any traits or character
points acquired since then. Note that a
copy exists before you die. You must
tell the GM where you store it. You
will return to life at that location . . .
and if your enemies discover where
you store your copy, they may tamper
with it! -20%.
Requires Body: You come back in
disembodied state – for instance, as a
spirit or a digital copy on a computer.
All your experiences and abilities are
intact (unless you took Copy), but you
cannot interact with the physical
world at all until you acquire a new
body. This might be a clone, an
undead corpse, or even a robot “shell.”
-20%, or -40% if the required body is
illegal, rare, or expensive (GM’s
decision).
Extra Mouth 3 1
5 points/mouth
You have more than one functional
mouth, which can be anywhere on
your body. All of your mouths are
capable of breathing, eating, and
speaking. An Extra Mouth lets you
bite more than once if you have
Extra Attacks (p. 53). If you have
Compartmentalized Mind (p. 43), you
can carry on multiple conversations,
or cast two spells that require spoken
words. Other benefits include being
hard to silence or suffocate, and being
able to sing in harmony with yourself!
Fashion Sense
see p. 21
Favor 4
Variable
You saved someone’s life, kept
silent at the right time, or otherwise
did someone a good turn. Now he
owes you one.
A Favor is a one-shot Ally, Contact,
Contact Group, or Patron. Work out
the point cost of the parent advantage,
and then divide it by 5 (round up) to
get the cost of the Favor. The catch is
that the NPC(s) in question will help
you out once . . . and only once.
When you wish to “collect” on
your Favor, the GM rolls against the
frequency of appearance of the underlying
advantage. On a failure, you
couldn’t reach your “friend” in time,
or he couldn’t comply, but you still
have your Favor coming. You may try
again on a later adventure.
On a success, you get what you
want (subject to the limits of the
advantage). But this discharges the
obligation: remove the Favor from
your character sheet and reduce your
point total appropriately. However, if
the roll is a 3 or 4, your “friend” still
feels indebted to you, and you retain
the Favor . . . at least until next time.
You may buy a Favor in play, just
like any trait of this kind. The GM may
also wish to include a Favor as part of
the reward for a successful adventure.
Fearlessness 2
2 points/level
You are difficult to frighten or
intimidate! Add your level of
Fearlessness to your Will whenever
you make a Fright Check or must
resist the Intimidation skill (p. 202) or
a supernatural power that induces
fear. You also subtract your
Fearlessness level from all Intimidation
rolls made against you.
Filter Lungs 3 1
5 points
Your respiratory system can filter
out ordinary contaminants; e.g.,
dust, pollen, smoke, and even tear
gas (but not nerve gas or other contact
agents). You suffer no ill effects
from such things. This is especially
useful in polluted cities and on alien
worlds. Note that if you have Doesn’t
Breathe (p. 49), you do not need this
advantage!
Fit 3
5 or 15 points
You have better cardiovascular
health than your HT alone would indicate.
This comes in two levels:
Fit: You get +1 to all HT rolls (to
stay conscious, avoid death, resist disease
or poison, etc.). This does not
improve your HT attribute or HTbased
skills! You also recover FP at
twice the normal rate. 5 points.
Very Fit: As above, but the bonus to
HT rolls is +2. In addition, you lose FP
at only half the normal rate. 15 points.
In both cases, this advantage
applies only to FP lost to exertion,
heat, etc. It has no effect on FP spent
to power psi or magic spells.
ADVANTAGES 55
Flexibility 3
5 or 15 points
Your body is unusually flexible.
This advantage comes in two levels:
Flexibility: You get +3 on Climbing
rolls; on Escape rolls to get free of
ropes, handcuffs, and similar
restraints; on Erotic Art skill; and on
all attempts to break free in close combat
(see p. 391). You may ignore up to
-3 in penalties for working in close
quarters (including many Explosives
and Mechanic rolls). 5 points.
Double-Jointed: As above, but
more so. You cannot stretch or
squeeze yourself abnormally, but any
part of your body may bend any way.
You get +5 on Climbing, Erotic Art,
and Escape rolls, and on attempts to
break free. You may ignore up to -5 in
penalties for close quarters. 15 points.
Flight 3 1
40 points
You can fly. The “default” is fullfledged,
self-powered flight without
wings or gliding surfaces. This works
at any altitude where there is still significant
atmosphere – but in the upper
atmosphere, you’ll need a way to survive
in very thin, cold air (e.g., Doesn’t
Breathe and Temperature Tolerance).
You cannot fly in a trace atmosphere
or vacuum.
Your flight Move is Basic Speed ¥ 2
(drop all fractions). As explained in
Move in Other Environments (p. 18),
you can adjust this for ±2 points per
±1 yard/second. For very high speeds,
take Enhanced Move (Air). If you do
not have any of the Controlled
Gliding, Gliding, Lighter Than Air,
Small Wings, Space Flight Only, or
Winged Flight limitations, you can
also “fly” at half-speed underwater.
Flight includes the ability to hover at
Move 0 as well.
Flight does not confer the ability to
do complex acrobatics and tight turns;
for that, buy Aerobatics skill
(p. 174). Flight skill (p. 195) improves
endurance.
You can alter most of the above
assumptions through special modifiers.
Special Enhancements
Newtonian Space Flight: As Space
Flight (below), except that your space
Move – or your space top speed, if you
have Enhanced Move (Space) – is
actually your “delta-v”: the total velocity
change you can manage in space
before running out of reaction mass.
For instance, you could accelerate up
to your delta-v and stay there (like a
missile), or to half your delta-v and
then decelerate to a stop at the end of
your trip (like a conventional spacecraft).
Once you have made velocity
changes equal to your delta-v, you
must refuel before you can change
your velocity in space again. +25%.
Space Flight: You can fly in space or
a vacuum (such as on the moon). Your
space Move is Basic Speed ¥ 2. If you
want to be able to accelerate constantly
to reach a higher top speed, like a
rocket, buy Enhanced Move (Space)
(p. 52). This will let you accelerate or
decelerate each turn by an amount
equal to your space Move, up to your
enhanced top speed. For a “realistic”
space move that lets you accelerate
indefinitely in a vacuum (up to the
speed of light), you’ll want Enhanced
Move 25-27 (Space). This is incompatible
with all other special modifiers
except Space Flight Only. +50%.
Special Limitations
Cannot Hover: You must always
move at least 1/4 your top airspeed
(round up) when flying. This is incompatible
with Controlled Gliding and
Gliding. -15%.
Controlled Gliding: Like Gliding
(below) in most respects, but you can
gain altitude by riding updrafts or
“thermals.” A typical ascent rate is one
yard per second. You can locate thermals,
if any are present, on a successful
IQ or Meteorology roll (one
attempt per minute). -45%.
Gliding: You cannot gain altitude.
With a running leap, you can launch
yourself with an air Move equal to
Basic Move. Each turn, you can
change velocity by up to 10 yards/second
¥ local gravity in Gs (Earth’s gravity
is 1G). To accelerate, you must
descend by 1 yard for each 1 yard/second
added to velocity; top speed is
Basic Move ¥ 4 (but you can go faster
if towed). To decelerate, you must fly
level. If you do not descend at least 1
yard, you automatically decelerate by
1 yard/second that turn. When working
out turning radius, your basic air
Move is 10 ¥ local gravity in Gs. Each
level of Enhanced Move (Air) either
doubles top speed or halves deceleration
in level flight (e.g., one level
means you only lose 0.5 yard/second
in level flight); specify which when
you buy it. -50%.
Lighter Than Air: You fly by becoming
lighter than air (or gaseous). A
wind moves you 1 yard/second, in the
direction it is blowing, per 5 mph of
wind speed. If the wind happens to be
blowing in the direction you wish to
travel, this adds to your Move; otherwise,
your Move goes down as you
fight against the breeze. -10%.
Low Ceiling: You cannot fly very
high. This does not limit speed in any
way, but the GM may require
Aerobatics rolls to dodge obstacles
near the ground. A 30-foot ceiling is
-10%; a 10-foot ceiling is -20%; and a
5-foot ceiling is -25%.
Small Wings: As Winged (below),
except that your wingspan is no more
than half your height. You use your
wings to steer and to stabilize your
flight – not to lift. If your wings are
crippled in flight, roll against
Aerobatics skill (or default) to land
safely. -10%.
Space Flight Only: You can only
take this in conjunction with Space
Flight or Newtonian Space Flight. You
can fly only in space; you have air
Move 0 in atmosphere. You require a
boost to reach space from any planet
with an atmosphere, and are incapable
of atmospheric reentry. -75%.
Winged: You use large wings or skin
flaps to fly. Wingspan is at least twice
your height. In order to take off, land,
or maneuver, you must have an open
area with a radius equal to your
wingspan in all directions. If your
wings are bound, or if a wing is crippled
(more than 1/3 of your wings, if
you have more than two), you cannot
fly. Treat wings as arms for the purpose
of targeting and crippling. If you
wish to strike blows or manipulate
objects with your wings, you must pay
for them as Strikers or Extra Arms in
addition to the cost of Flight. -25%.
Gadgeteer 2
25 or 50 points
You are a natural inventor. You can
modify existing equipment and –
given sufficient time and money –
invent entirely new gadgets as
described under Gadgeteering (p. 475).
56 ADVANTAGES
This lets you design gadgets quickly,
and makes it easy to realize higher-TL
innovations. This advantage comes in
two levels:
Gadgeteer: You are a “cinematic”
gadgeteer, but your work still takes
days or months, and requires a good
deal of money and expensive equipment.
25 points.
Quick Gadgeteer: You can throw
together wondrous gadgets in minutes
or hours, and can get by with
scrounged-together spare parts that
cost a few percent of what a “realistic”
inventor would have to spend. This
level is definitely unsuitable for
realistic campaigns! 50 points.
G-Experience 2
1 to 10 points
You have experience working in
one or more gravitational fields other
than your native one, and your reflexes
adapt quickly to the way objects
move and fall in those fields. You suffer
only half the usual DX penalty for
different gravity (see Different Gravity,
p. 350). In situations where low gravity
would make a task easier, you roll at
full DX, plus the bonus for low gravity,
plus an extra +1. For instance, if a normal
person would get +2 to catch a
ball in low gravity, you would get +3.
This trait costs 1 point per gravity
field with which you have experience.
For instance, an Earth native who
works on the moon might have
G-Experience (0.16G). To enjoy the
benefits of G-Experience in all gravity
fields, buy G-Experience (All) for 10
points.
Gifted Artist
see Talent, p. 89
Gizmos 2
5 points/gizmo
You always seem to have just the
piece of gear you need. Once per game
session per level of this advantage, you
may pull out one small item of equipment
that you could have been carrying.
This “Gizmo” remains undefined
until you reveal it. It does not even
“enter play” until you take it out; thus,
it cannot be damaged, lost, stolen, or
found in a search.
A Gizmo must be small enough to
fit in an ordinary coat pocket, and
must meet one of three criteria:
1. An item you own but did not
specifically state you were carrying.
For instance, if you own a handgun,
and get ambushed while driving to
church, you could pull out your pistol
– even if the police searched your vehicle
five minutes ago and found no
weapons!
2. An item that you probably own,
and that is in keeping with your character
concept, but that is minor or
ignorable enough to leave unspecified.
For instance, a policeman might happen
to be carrying a spare handcuff
key, while a wizard might have some
eye of newt. The GM has the final say,
but should be lenient if the item you
wish to have is consistent with your
character story.
3. An inexpensive device widely
available at your tech level. For
instance, if you need to light the fuse
on some dynamite, you could pull out
a box of matches – and they would
work, even if you just took an involuntary
swim in the creek.
Each Gizmo you can use per game
session (maximum of three) costs 5
points. Note that this ability is not
realistic! The GM may wish to limit it
further, or forbid it, in a realistic
campaign.
ADVANTAGES 57
Gadgeteers and Gizmos
Those with the Gadgeteer advantage
(p. 56) have more latitude. In
addition to the usual items available, a
Gadgeteer may specify that his Gizmo
is one of his inventions (which must
still be small). Instead of pulling an
existing gadget “out of his pocket,” a
Gadgeteer can use his Gizmo to let
him build what he needs on the spot.
He must still possess or find the
appropriate materials, and know any
required skills. The GM should roll
secretly against the relevant skill, at -2
or worse. A failed roll means the
device doesn’t work (this still “uses up”
the Gizmo). A critical failure means
the device backfires spectacularly!
Green Thumb
see Talent, p. 89
Growth 3 1
10 points/level
You can grow – really grow! As your
size increases, so must your ST (or
you would collapse under your own
weight). Your equipment doesn’t
change size!
Each level of Growth lets you
increase your Size Modifier by +1.
Find your final height from the Size
Modifier Table (p. 19). Increases in SM
affect your arm and leg length when
calculating reach and determining
whether you can negotiate obstacles;
see Size Modifier and Reach (p. 402). It
takes one second to modify your SM
by +1 (or by -1 as you return to normal
size).
If you attempt to grow in a room,
vehicle, container, etc. that isn’t large
enough to hold you, your growth normally
stops. However, if maximum
thrust damage for your current ST is
greater than the wall or ceiling’s DR,
you burst through it. This takes one
second per point of DR.
You must buy the ST necessary to
support your form separately. This is 5
¥ final height in yards. If your ST
increases with height and is only available
when you grow, you may buy it
with the Size limitation (see Strength,
p. 14). Use your maximum SM to
determine the limitation value. At
intermediate SMs, find your height as
a fraction of your maximum height.
This is the fraction of your extra ST
available to you at that SM (round
down).
Example: A 6’-tall character (SM 0)
has Growth 4. He can grow to SM +4,
giving him a maximum height of 10
yards. He must buy ST 50 to support
himself. If he has ST 15 and gains +35
ST only at full height, he may buy his
+35 ST with a -40% Size limitation. At
SM +1, he will be 3 yards tall. This is
30% of his final height, so he will have
30% of +35 ST, or +10 ST, for ST 25.
Similarly, he’ll be 5 yards tall with ST
32 at SM +2, 7 yards tall with ST 39 at
SM +3, and 10 yards tall with ST 50 at
SM +4.
Special Modifiers
Maximum Size Only: You can only
assume normal or maximum size.
Instead of growing at +1 SM per second,
you grow to your maximum SM
– or revert back to your usual SM – in
one second. The limitation of no intermediate
SMs (restricting your use of
this ability in close quarters) cancels
out the enhancement of rapid growth
(a useful benefit in combat). +0%.
Gunslinger 2
25 points
You can make uncannily precise
shots without aiming. This ability
works with any weapon that uses
Beam Weapons, Gunner, Guns, or
Liquid Projector skill. It gives no
bonuses when using muscle-powered
missile weapons (but the GM is free to
introduce a low-tech version that
works with Blowpipe, Bow, Crossbow,
Sling, etc.).
When firing single shots (RoF 1-3)
from a one-handed weapon, you get
the Accuracy bonus of your weapon
without the need for an Aim maneuver.
When using a two-handed weapon
or automatic fire, you get half the
Accuracy bonus (round up) without
the need to Aim. If you do Aim, you
always get full Acc, and bracing,
scopes, and additional seconds of Aim
provide the usual benefits.
This ability is intended for cinematic
games with an “action movie”
ambience. The GM may wish to forbid
it in a completely realistic campaign.
Hard to Kill 3
2 points/level
You are incredibly difficult to kill.
Each level of Hard to Kill gives +1 to
HT rolls made for survival at -HP or
below, and on any HT roll where failure
means instant death (due to heart
failure, poison, etc.). If this bonus
makes the difference between success
and failure, you collapse, apparently
dead (or disabled), but come to in the
usual amount of time – see Recovering
from Unconsciousness (p. 423). A successful
Diagnosis roll (or a Mechanic
roll, for machines) reveals the truth.
Example: Bruno has HT 12, 15 HP,
and Hard to Kill 4. He takes 45 points
of damage, which reduces him to -30
HP. He must make two HT rolls to survive:
one at -15 HP, one at -30 HP. He
rolls an 11 for the first one, but on the
second roll, he gets a 14. This is above
his HT (12), but below his modified
58 ADVANTAGES
Gizmos: You may pull out one
small item of equipment that you
could have been carrying. This
“Gizmo” remains undefined until you
reveal it. It cannot be lost, stolen, or
found in a search.
HT (12 + 4 = 16). He passes out, and
his foes leave him for dead. Roughly a
day later, he’ll regain consciousness –
injured, but not dead!
In a realistic campaign, the GM
may wish to limit characters to Hard
to Kill 1 or 2.
Hard to Subdue 3
2 points/level
You are hard to knock out. Each
level of Hard to Subdue gives +1 to
any HT roll to avoid unconsciousness
– whether as a result of injury, drugs,
or ultra-tech weapons – and to resist
supernatural abilities that cause
unconsciousness. In a realistic campaign,
the GM may wish to limit
characters to Hard to Subdue 1 or 2.
Healer
see Talent, p. 89
Healing 2 1
30 points
You have the ability to heal others.
You must be in physical contact with
the subject. To activate your power,
concentrate for one second and make
an IQ roll. Roll at -2 if the subject is
unconscious.
You can use Healing in two ways:
Heal Injuries: On a success, you can
heal any number of HP. This costs you
1 FP per 2 HP healed (round up).
Failure costs 1d FP, but you can try
again; critical failure also causes the
recipient 1d damage. Even 1 HP of
healing will stop bleeding. By rolling
at -6, you can repair a crippled but
whole limb if you completely heal the
HP lost to the crippling injury. For
instance, to heal a hand crippled by 4
points of damage, make an IQ-6 roll
and spend 2 FP. Each healer gets only
one attempt per crippled limb.
Healing cannot restore lost limbs or
bring back the dead.
Cure Disease: This requires an IQ
roll at a modifier determined by the
GM – from +1 for the common cold to
-15 for AIDS. The FP cost is equal to
twice the penalty, minimum 1 FP. For
instance, it would cost 6 FP to cure a
disease that calls for an IQ-3 roll.
If used more than once per day on
a given subject, apply a cumulative -3
per successful healing of the same type
(injury or disease) on that subject.
This penalty accumulates until a full
day has passed since the most recent
healing.
Healing works on your own race
and on all “similar” races. In a fantasy
campaign, for instance, all warmblooded
humanoid races (elves,
dwarves, orcs, halflings, etc.) would be
“similar.”
Special Enhancements
Faith Healing: Your power works
by channeling spiritual energy. This
lets you cure anyone the spirits or gods
deem worthy of healing, regardless of
race. However, you (and possibly your
subject) must behave in a manner
consistent with the interests and
moral codes of your supernatural
allies, or this ability will not work. You
may not combine Faith Healing with
Own Race Only or Xenohealing.
+20%.
Xenohealing: You can heal beings
quite dissimilar from yourself.
Examples, assuming you are human:
All Mammals, +20%; All Earthly Life,
+40%; All Carbon-Based Life, +60%;
Anything Alive, +80%; Anything
Animate (including undead, golems,
etc.), +100%.
Special Limitations
Disease Only: You can only cure
disease. -40%.
Injuries Only: You can only heal
injuries. -20%.
Own Race Only: This is only available
in campaigns with multiple sapient
races. -20%.
Psychic Healing: Your ability is part
of the Psychic Healing psi power (see
p. 256). -10%.
Hermaphromorph 3 1
5 points
You can switch among fully functional
neuter, male, and female forms.
The process takes 10 seconds
(Preparation Required, Takes Extra
Time, and Takes Recharge are common
limitations).
High Manual Dexterity
3
5 points/level
You have remarkably fine motor
skills. Each level (to a maximum of
four) gives +1 to DX for tasks that
require a delicate touch. This includes
all DX-based rolls against Artist,
Jeweler, Knot-Tying, Leatherworking,
Lockpicking, Pickpocket, Sewing,
Sleight of Hand, and Surgery, as well
as DX-based rolls to do fine work with
Machinist or Mechanic (e.g., on clockwork).
This bonus doesn’t apply to IQbased
tasks or large-scale DX-based
tasks, nor does it apply to combatrelated
die rolls of any kind.
High Pain Threshold 3
10 points
You are as susceptible to injury as
anyone else, but you don’t feel it as
much. You never suffer a shock penalty
when you are injured. In addition,
you get +3 on all HT rolls to avoid
knockdown and stunning – and if you
are tortured physically, you get +3 to
resist. The GM may let you roll at
Will+3 to ignore pain in other situations.
High Pain Threshold is included in
Supernatural Durability (p. 89); if you
have the latter advantage, you cannot
take this one.
High TL
see p. 23
Higher Purpose 2 5
5 points
You are driven to exceed your normal
limits in one specific pursuit. You
must state this exactly as if it were a
Code of Honor disadvantage (p. 127):
“Defend all women,” “Slay all
demons,” etc. If, in the GM’s judgment,
you are unfaltering in your pursuit
of your Higher Purpose, you get
+1 to all die rolls that pertain directly
to the pursuit of your cause. If you
deviate from your Higher Purpose,
you lose this bonus . . . and the GM is
free to penalize you for bad roleplaying
just as if you had ignored a Code of
Honor.
A Higher Purpose must be specific.
Higher Purposes such as “Fight evil”
or “Oppose authority figures” are too
broad to be balanced. In addition, a
Higher Purpose must entail genuine
risk and inconvenience. The GM
should not allow pragmatic Higher
Purposes like “Faithfully serve my
superiors.” All Higher Purposes are
subject to GM approval.
ADVANTAGES 59
Hyperspectral Vision 3
1
25 points
Your vision extends across the
infrared, visible, and ultraviolet portions
of the spectrum. This integrated
picture often reveals details that are
invisible to those who merely possess
normal vision, Infravision (p. 60), or
Ultravision (p. 94).
Hyperspectral Vision grants nearperfect
night vision: you suffer no
vision or combat penalties if there is
any light at all. In total darkness, it
functions exactly like Infravision. This
trait also gives +3 on all Vision rolls;
on all rolls to spot hidden clues or
objects with Forensics, Observation,
or Search skill; and on all Tracking
rolls.
If you possess Hyperspectral
Vision, you cannot also have
Infravision or Ultravision. This trait is
essentially a higher level of both those
advantages. Its game effects replace
the specific effects of those traits.
As described, this trait emulates
realistic TL7+ sensors. The GM may
permit supers to take the two special
enhancements below. Neither is
appropriate for real-world sensors!
Special Enhancements
Extended Low-Band: You perceive
radiation below the infrared, allowing
you to “see” microwave, radar, and
radio sources. This gives no special
ability to understand radio signals!
+30%.
Extended High-Band: You sense
radiation above the ultraviolet, allowing
you to “see” X-ray and gamma ray
sources. +30%.
Illuminated 2 5
15 points
You are an “Illuminatus” in the
original sense of the word – you are
enlightened. You know what’s going
on, and you know it intuitively.
You can discern other Illuminati
on sight, with no possibility of error.
Furthermore, whenever the GM
requires a roll against a skill such as
Current Affairs, Hidden Lore, or
Intelligence Analysis to tell whether a
certain strange occurrence is truly a
coincidence or the result of a conspiracy,
you may roll against the higher of
your IQ and the specific skill in
question. Finally, you can perceive and
communicate with supernatural
beings who are tied to Illuminated
conspiracies in your game world
(GM’s decision). This gives you no special
ability to control them, but they
recognize you and treat you with a
certain respect: +3 on reaction rolls.
The only drawback is that other
Illuminati and spiritual beings are
able to perceive your Illuminated
nature, and there’s nothing you can do
about it except stay out of sight.
This advantage is best suited to
mystical or fantastic campaigns. It is
rarely appropriate in “mundane” conspiracy
campaigns. The GM is the final
judge of who may possess this trait.
Improved G-Tolerance
3
5 to 25 points
You can function under a wide
range of gravities. For a normal
human, the penalties for non-native
gravity accrue in increments of 0.2G;
see Different Gravity (p. 350). A larger
increment costs points: 5 points for
0.3G, 10 points for 0.5G, 15 points for
1G, 20 points for 5G, and 25 points for
10G. Normal humans are limited to 10
points in this trait.
Independent Income
see p. 26
Indomitable 2
15 points
You are impossible to influence
through ordinary words or actions.
Those who wish to use Influence skills
on you (see Influence Rolls, p. 359)
must possess a suitable advantage:
Empathy (p. 51) if you are a human or
similar being, Animal Empathy (p. 40)
if you’re a beast, Plant Empathy (p. 75)
if you’re a plant, or Spirit Empathy
(p. 88) if you’re a demon, ghost, etc.
Everyone else – however convincing –
fails automatically. This trait often
accompanies Unfazeable (p. 95).
Infravision 3 1
0 or 10 points
You can see into the infrared portion
of the spectrum, allowing you to
detect varying degrees of heat. This
lets you fight at no penalty even in
absolute darkness, if your target emits
heat (this includes all living beings
and most machines). It also gives you
+2 on all Vision rolls to spot such targets,
since their heat stands out from
the background. You can follow a heat
trail when tracking: add +3 to
Tracking rolls if the trail is no more
than an hour old.
Infravision does not let you distinguish
colors, and only allows you to
judge the general size and shape of
heat-emitting objects, including living
beings (for instance, you might have
trouble telling two people of the same
size apart). Roll at -4 to distinguish
objects of similar size and shape. The
GM may also require a Vision-4 roll to
read by reflected heat. Sudden flashes
of heat (e.g., a flare, fiery explosion, or
infrared laser) can blind you, just as a
flash of light can blind ordinary vision.
Cost depends on your capabilities:
You can only see using Infravision,
and are subject to its limitations at all
times: 0 points.
You can switch freely between normal
vision and Infravision: 10 points.
Injury Tolerance 3 1
Variable
You have fewer physiological
weaknesses than ordinary living
beings. The cost of this advantage
depends on the precise frailties eliminated.
Note that some forms of Injury
Tolerance include others, and that
Diffuse, Homogenous, and Unliving
are mutually incompatible.
Diffuse: Your body is fluid or particulate,
composed of a swarm of
smaller entities, or perhaps made of
pure energy. This makes you immune
to crippling injuries and reduces the
damage you suffer from most physical
blows; see Injury to Unliving,
Homogenous, and Diffuse Targets
(p. 380). Most foes (GM’s decision)
cannot slam or grapple you! Diffuse
includes all the benefits of No Blood,
No Brain, and No Vitals. 100 points.
Homogenous: Your body has no
vulnerable internal organs, bones,
muscles, or other mechanisms. As a
result, you are less susceptible to
piercing and impaling attacks; see
Injury to Unliving, Homogenous, and
Diffuse Targets (p. 380). Homogenous
includes the benefits of No Brain and
No Vitals. This trait is intended for
60 ADVANTAGES
entities such as iron golems, trees, and
slimes. 40 points.
No Blood: You do not rely upon a
vital bodily fluid (like blood) for survival.
You do not bleed (see Bleeding,
p. 420), are unaffected by blood-borne
toxins, and are immune to attacks that
rely on cutting off blood to part of
your body. 5 points.
No Brain: Your brain – if you have
one – is distributed throughout your
body, or isn’t your true seat of consciousness.
Your opponents cannot
target it for extra damage. You may
have a head, but a blow to the skull or
eye is treated no differently than a
blow to the face (except that an eye
injury can still cripple that eye). 5
points.
No Eyes: You lack eyes or other vulnerable
optics, but can somehow see
despite this (unless of course you suffer
from Blindness, p. 124). As you
have no eyes, they cannot be attacked.
You are also immune to blinding
attacks. 5 points.
No Head: You have no head at all.
This includes the benefits of No Brain.
As well, you lack “skull” and “face” hit
locations, and have no need for head
armor. You can still see, speak, hear,
smell, taste, etc. unless you take the
appropriate disadvantages. Specify
how you do this (supernaturally, technologically,
via organs on your torso,
etc.). It is common – but not mandatory
– for those with No Head to have
No Neck, No Eyes, or both. 7 points.
No Neck: You have no neck. As a
result, you have no “neck” hit location,
and cannot be decapitated, choked, or
strangled. 5 points.
No Vitals: You have no vital organs
(such as a heart or engine) that attackers
can target for extra damage. Treat
hits to the “vitals” or “groin” as torso
hits. 5 points.
Unliving: Your body is not composed
of living flesh. You take reduced
damage from piercing and impaling
attacks, but are not quite as resilient
as if you were Homogenous; see Injury
to Unliving, Homogenous, and Diffuse
Targets (p. 380). This trait is intended
mainly for machines and corporeal
undead. 20 points.
Innate Attack 3 1
Variable
You have a natural or built-in
attack with which you can inflict
physical damage (for nondamaging
attacks, see Affliction, p. 35, and
Binding, p. 40). Examples include a
dragon’s fiery breath, a robot’s built-in
blaster, and a god’s ability to hurl lightning
bolts.
By default, this is a ranged attack
with 1/2D 10, Max 100, Acc 3, RoF 1,
Shots N/A, and Recoil 1, although you
can apply modifiers to change these
statistics (see pp. 101-116).
An Innate Attack inflicts 1d damage
per level. Its cost per level depends
on the type of damage it inflicts:
Burning (burn)
Your attack inflicts damage using
flame, an energy beam, or localized
electrical burns. It may ignite fires! 5
points/level.
Corrosion (cor)
Your attack involves acid, disintegration,
or something similar. For
every 5 points of basic damage you
inflict, reduce the target’s DR by 1, in
addition to regular damage. (Living
beings heal natural DR at the same
rate as HP.) 10 points/level.
Crushing (cr)
Your attack inflicts damage
through blunt impact, like a bludgeoning
weapon or an explosive blast.
It is likely to cause knockback (p. 378),
and is more effective at inflicting blunt
trauma (p. 379) than other types of
damage. 5 points/level.
Cutting (cut)
Your attack inflicts lacerations, like
those caused by an axe or broken
glass. Multiply penetrating damage by
1.5. Cutting attacks can inflict blunt
trauma and cause knockback. 7
points/level.
Fatigue (fat)
Your attack is nonlethal. It might
involve a low-amperage electric shock
or a “mind blast,” or even inflict a
weakening effect such as hypothermia
or starvation. It reduces FP, not HP,
and cannot affect machines. 10
points/level.
Impaling (imp)
Your attack inflicts stab wounds,
like a spear or an arrow. Double penetrating
damage in flesh! Impaling
attacks can target the eyes and vital
organs, can inflict blunt trauma, and
may slip through high-tech flexible
armor. 8 points/level.
Piercing
Your attack involves a fast, blunt
projectile, such as a bullet, or is sharp
but too small to qualify as impaling,
like a dart or a stinger. It may inflict
blunt trauma, and can target the eyes
and vital organs. There are four subclasses
of piercing attack:
ADVANTAGES 61
Alternative Attacks
If you have multiple Innate Attacks, you may define them as being the
same basic attack, but with different settings, ammo types, etc. Determine
the cost of these “alternative attacks” as usual, but only pay full price for
the most expensive attack. Buy additional attacks at 1/5 cost (round up).
This can save a lot of points, but there are drawbacks. First, since the
attacks represent a single ability, you cannot use them simultaneously,
even if you are capable of multiple attacks. This also prevents you from
combining them with the Link enhancement (p. 106). As well, any critical
failure or malfunction that disables one of your attacks disables all of
them. Finally, if your most expensive attack is somehow drained or neutralized,
none of the cheaper attacks will work.
You may also apply this rule to multiple Afflictions (p. 35) or Bindings
(p. 40), or any combination of these with Innate Attacks that you cannot
use simultaneously. With the GM’s permission, you can apply this rule to
multipurpose Strikers (p. 88) as well.
Small Piercing (pi-): Use this for
very low-energy projectiles (e.g., blowgun
darts), or for attacks that tend to
punch through the target and leave a
small wound channel (e.g., armorpiercing
bullets). Against flesh, halve
damage that penetrates DR. 3
points/level.
Piercing (pi): Use this for most rifle
and pistol bullets. 5 points/level.
Large Piercing (pi+): Use this for
attacks similar to large-caliber solid
bullets, or for smaller projectiles that
create large wound channels (e.g., hollow-
point bullets). Multiply penetrating
damage in flesh by 1.5. 6
points/level.
Huge Piercing (pi++): Use this for
attacks that leave an even larger
wound channel than large piercing.
Double penetrating damage in flesh! 8
points/level.
Toxic (tox)
Your attack inflicts cellular damage,
in the manner of disease, poison,
or radiation. It cannot normally affect
machines. The modifiers Cyclic
(p. 103), Onset (p. 113), and Resistible
(p. 115) are usual, but not required. 4
points/level.
Partial Dice
You do not have to buy wholenumbered
dice of damage. Each ±1 to
damage counts as ±0.3 dice. Round
the final cost up. For instance, an
Innate Attack that does 1d+2 damage
counts as 1.6 dice. If it were crushing
(5 points/die), it would cost 1.6 ¥ 5 = 8
points.
Some attacks do only 1 point of
damage. This counts as 0.25 dice.
Once again, round cost up. Such
attacks can still be deadly – especially
if they involve the Follow-Up (p. 105)
or Cyclic (p. 103) enhancement!
Special Modifiers
Many special modifiers for Innate
Attack appear under Attack
Enhancements and Limitations
(p. 102). You can use these to create
almost any attack – built-in guns,
lasers, jets of liquid fire, gale-force
winds, etc. – and to duplicate the capabilities
of weapons listed in GURPS
books.
Fatigue and toxic attacks intended
to simulate poison or disease require
modifiers. Noxious agents on Claws
(p. 42), Teeth (p. 91), darts, etc. use
Follow-Up (p. 105). Gases and sprays
use Respiratory Agent (p. 108) or
Contact Agent (p. 103), often with
Area Effect (p. 102), Cone (p. 103), or
Jet (p. 106). Attacks that depend on
touch or on skin contact use Blood
Agent (p. 102) or Contact Agent, plus
one of Aura (p. 102) or Melee Attack
(p. 112).
Regardless of other modifiers,
Innate Attacks are treated as ranged
attacks unless given the Melee Attack
limitation; then they’re considered
melee weapons.
Description
After applying all relevant modifiers,
name and describe the attack.
You can be as general as “dragon
fire” or as specific as “9mm machine
pistol cybernetically implanted in
right arm.” At the GM’s discretion,
the description can imply additional
noncombat abilities; for instance, a jet
of high-pressure water could put out
fires. The GM has the final say as to
whether your description fits the campaign
setting, and may modify the
attack if necessary.
Insubstantiality 2/3 1
80 points
You can become intangible, passing
through solid objects as though
they weren’t there. In this state, gravity
does not affect you – you can move
in any direction at full Move (and
make no noise when you move). You
can perceive the tangible world, and
speak normally to those within it, but
you cannot pick up normal objects or
affect them in any way.
Physical and energy attacks cannot
harm you, but you’re still vulnerable
62 ADVANTAGES
to psionic and (nonmaterial) magical
attacks. Likewise, your physical and
energy attacks cannot affect physical
opponents. Your psi abilities and
magic spells can affect the physical
world, but at -3 to all skill rolls.
Although you can pass through
solids, you must still breathe. When
moving through a solid object, treat
this as if you were swimming underwater
for purposes of suffocation. You
cannot materialize inside a solid
object.
Your “natural” form (physical or
insubstantial) is considered a special
effect. You must take this advantage if
you can change between a physical
and an insubstantial form.
This trait can represent any number
of abilities from folklore and fiction.
You should work out its origins
(see p. 33) and special effects with the
GM – perhaps you “vibrate” out of
synch with reality, phase into a different
dimension, or become a spirit. This
determines your appearance, which
may be transparent, misty . . . or completely
normal (but you can’t be invisible
without the Invisibility advantage).
Your physical and energy attacks affect
other beings using the same form of
Insubstantiality, and their attacks
affect you. The GM may rule that certain
materials, energy barriers, magic
spells, etc. are impenetrable to your
particular form of Insubstantiality.
Special Enhancements
Affect Substantial: If you have any
abilities that can affect the substantial
world when you are insubstantial –
including magic, psionics, or powers
with the Affects Substantial enhancement
(p. 102) – this advantage costs
more. +100%.
Can Carry Objects: Normally, you
cannot carry anything while insubstantial.
This enhancement lets you
carry objects, including clothing and
armor. They become physical if
dropped. You cannot materialize these
objects inside other objects or characters.
No encumbrance is +10%; Light,
+20%; Medium, +50%; Heavy, +100%.
Partial Change: You can turn part
of your body substantial while other
parts remain insubstantial, or vice
versa. Thus, you could reach through
a wall and tap someone on the shoulder.
If you also have Can Carry
Objects, you can materialize your
hand, pick up material objects, and
carry them while insubstantial. +20%,
or +100% if you can turn an item you
are carrying substantial without dropping
it (this requires turning your
hand substantial, too).
Special Limitations
Always On: You are always insubstantial
and cannot materialize. If you
have this limitation, there is no -3 to
use magic or psionics. -50%.
Usually On: Similar to Always On,
but you can materialize for short periods
with great effort. Materialization
costs 1 FP per second. -40%.
Intuition 2
15 points
You usually guess right. When
faced with a number of alternatives,
and no logical way to choose among
them, you can ask the GM to let you
use your Intuition. The GM makes a
secret IQ roll, with a bonus equal to
the number of “good” choices and a
penalty equal to the number of “bad”
choices. On a success, he steers you to
a good choice; on a critical success, he
tells you the best choice. On a failure,
he gives you no information; on a critical
failure, he steers you toward a bad
choice. The GM can modify this as he
sees fit for other situations where
Intuition might logically help. Only
one roll per question is allowed.
The GM should never allow
Intuition to short-circuit an adventure
– for instance, by letting the intuitive
detective walk into a room, slap the
cuffs on the guilty party, and close the
case. At the most, Intuition would
point the detective in the direction of a
good clue. GMs who don’t think they
can control Intuition should not allow
it in their games.
Intuitive Mathematician
see Lightning Calculator, p. 66
Invisibility 2/3 1
40 points
You are invisible. Unlike most
advantages, this one is “always on”
unless you take a special enhancement.
You still make noise, leave footprints,
and have a scent – and by
default, anything you carry remains
visible. If you are carrying nothing,
you get a +9 to Stealth in any situation
where being seen would matter.
Individuals using paranormal
remote viewing (crystal balls, Clairvoyance,
etc.) cannot see you if you
would be invisible to their normal
vision. Devices with these powers can
still sense you, as can paranormal abilities
that detect enemies, life, and so
on nonvisually.
Invisibility only works against one
sort of vision. Types include electromagnetic
vision (which encompasses
ordinary vision, Infravision, Ultravision,
and radar), sonar, magnetic
fields, and anything else the GM
comes up with. If you are invisible to
electromagnetic vision, you do not
cast a shadow and don’t show up in
mirrors.
Special Enhancements
Affects Machines: You are invisible
even to machines. You cannot be photographed,
and you don’t show up on
cameras or other detectors. Devices
such as pressure plates still notice you,
but you could walk past a robot sentry
undetected. Electronically targeted
weapons get no bonuses to hit you.
+50%.
Can Carry Objects: The objects you
carry, including clothing and armor,
become invisible. They regain visibility
when put down. No encumbrance is
+10%; Light, +20%; Medium, +50%;
Heavy, +100%.
Extended: You are invisible to more
than one type of vision (for instance,
electromagnetic vision and magnetic
fields). +20% per additional type of
vision.
Switchable: You are normally visible,
but can become invisible at will.
+10%.
Usually On: You are normally invisible,
but can become visible for short
periods with great effort. Turning visible
costs 1 FP per second. +5%.
Special Limitations
Machines Only: Similar to Affects
Machines, but you are only invisible to
machines. Living beings can see you
normally. -50%.
Substantial Only: Your invisibility
only hides you in the material world.
Insubstantial beings (ghosts, etc.) can
see you normally. -10%.
Visible Reflection: You can be seen
in mirrors! -10%.
Visible Shadow: You cast a shadow!
-10%.
ADVANTAGES 63
Jumper 2 5
100 points
You can travel through time or to
parallel worlds (sometimes known as
“timelines”) merely by willing the
“jump.” Decide whether you are a
time-jumper or a world-jumper. To do
both, you must buy Jumper (Time)
and Jumper (World) separately, at full
cost.
To initiate a jump, you must visualize
your destination, concentrate for
10 seconds, and make an IQ roll. You
may hurry the jump, but your roll will
be at -1 per second of concentration
omitted (-10 to jump with no preparation
at all). Regardless of IQ, a roll of
14 or more always fails. On a success,
you appear at your target destination.
On a failure, you go nowhere. On a
critical failure, you arrive at the wrong
destination, which can be any time or
world the GM wishes!
You appear at your destination at
exactly the same place you left your
previous time or world – or as close as
possible. When jumping through time,
this means the same place at a different
time. When jumping between
worlds, this means the same place at
the same time, but on a parallel world.
If there is no corresponding “safe”
location within 100 yards of your destination
– for instance, if you jump
while on an airplane to a destination
with no plane at your location, or
from a half-mile deep mine to a destination
with no corresponding mine –
the jump will fail and you will know
why it failed. This does not prevent
you from jumping into other types of
danger, such as radiation, gunfire, or
wild animals. If you have Danger
Sense, the GM should roll before you
make a hazardous jump; on a success,
you get a warning.
This ability always costs at least 1
FP to use, whether it succeeds or fails.
Particularly “distant” times or worlds
might cost more, perhaps up to 10 FP,
at the GM’s discretion. If you are a
machine, this ability does not cost you
FP – but if you have passengers, each
of them must pay the FP cost.
For an example of how Jumper
might work in a particular game
world, see World-Jumpers (p. 544).
Carrying Things
You can carry up to Basic Lift
when you travel, plus any Payload (see
p. 74). Take the Extra Carrying
Capacity enhancement (below) if you
wish to carry more weight, or bring
along other people.
However, if multiple Jumpers of the
same kind are in physical contact,
when one jumps, the others can “hitch
a ride” if they wish – even if the
Jumper who initiates the jump does
not want company. Only the person
initiating the jump makes a die roll;
wherever he ends up, the others do,
too.
If you are a world-jumper, “hitching
a ride” is the only way to visit a
new parallel world (save for a critical
failure!). However, once you reach a
world, you can memorize its “feel” by
concentrating and spending character
points to “learn” that world as an
IQ/Easy skill. This takes one hour per
point you wish to spend. Use this skill
in place of IQ when you travel to that
world in the future. You never have to
memorize a world, but if you do not,
you roll at IQ-3 to attempt to return.
Time-jumpers have no similar
restriction.
You can improve this ability with
practice, spending points to add
enhancements or remove limitations.
GMs who do not want the PCs jumping
multiple times per adventure are
free to impose mandatory limitations
(e.g., Limited Use) that cannot be
bought off.
Special Enhancements
Extra Carrying Capacity: You can
carry more than your Basic Lift. If
your carrying capacity is high enough,
you may transport one person with
you. Light encumbrance is +10%;
Medium, +20%; Heavy, +30%; Extra-
Heavy, +50%.
New Worlds: This is only available
for world-jumpers. You can deliberately
aim for worlds you haven’t visited.
The IQ roll is always at -3 or worse
(GM’s decision). Of course, it is always
possible that the desired destination
does not exist, in which case the
attempt automatically fails – although
the GM will not tell you why. All FP
costs are doubled when using this
enhancement. +50%.
Omni-Jump: This is only available
if you are both a world-jumper and a
time-jumper! You must apply it to
both Jumper advantages. This lets you
move between times and timelines on
a single IQ roll – for instance, from the
present day in our timeline to 1066
A.D. in a parallel timeline where the
Norman invasion of England failed.
+10%.
Tracking: You can travel to the
“home” time or world of any manmade
artifact you can hold or touch.
Time-jumpers will arrive shortly after
the item was created; world-jumpers
will arrive at the current date on the
item’s home timeline. Any such
attempt is at IQ-2, and each Jumper
only gets one try per artifact. +20%.
Tunnel: You always create a portal
(of about your size) when you jump.
Others may pass through it, even if
they can’t jump. The portal lingers for
3d seconds, which can be good or bad
– it means enemies can follow you!
+40%.
Warp Jump: This enhancement is
only available if you have the Warp
advantage (p. 97). You must apply it to
both Jumper and Warp. When you
jump, you can simultaneously use
Warp to appear anywhere at your destination.
Two die rolls are necessary –
one per ability – and it is possible for
one to succeed while the other fails, or
for both to fail. +10%.
Special Limitations
Cannot Escort: This is only available
for world-jumpers. Other
Jumpers cannot “hitch a ride,” even if
you want to bring them along. -10%.
Cannot Follow: This is only available
for world-jumpers. You cannot
“hitch a ride” with another Jumper.
-20%.
Drift: You do not arrive in exactly
the location you left from. You won’t
arrive in thin air or underground, but
you may show up anywhere within 10
miles of your planned destination. The
better your IQ roll when you jump, the
closer you will be to where you wanted
to arrive, but it’s the GM’s call as to
exactly where you appear. -15%.
Limited Jump: You can only travel
a certain distance through time, or a
certain number of “removes” between
parallel worlds, per jump. To go further,
you must make multiple hops.
The GM must set the value of this limitation
for his campaign; it will be
more of a handicap in some settings
than in others. A suggested value is
-10%.
64 ADVANTAGES
Maximum Range: You can only
jump a certain total distance through
time, or a certain number of
“removes” between parallel worlds, no
matter how many hops you make.
Like Limited Jump, the GM must set
the value of this limitation.
Naked: You can carry nothing
when you jump! You always arrive
naked. -30%.
Stunning: You are always mentally
stunned after a jump. -10%.
Language Talent 2
10 points
You have a knack for languages.
When you learn a language at a
comprehension level above None,
you automatically function at
the next-highest level; thus,
you can purchase a language
at Accented level for 2 points
or at Native level for 4 points.
For full language rules, see
Language (p. 23).
Legal Enforcement
Powers 4
5, 10, or 15 points
You are a law enforcer, with
the accompanying powers and
restrictions. In some times and
places, this amounts to a
license to kill. In others, it’s
little more than the right to
carry a badge and write parking
tickets.
The point cost depends on the
kinds of laws you enforce, the size of
your jurisdiction, how answerable you
are for your actions, and the degree of
respect you must show for the civil
rights of others:
• You have local jurisdiction, the
ability to arrest suspected criminals,
the power to perform searches with an
appropriate warrant, and possibly the
right to carry a concealed weapon.
Examples: a Victorian bobby or a
modern policeman. 5 points.
• As above, but you also have
national or international jurisdiction,
or are not obligated to respect the civil
rights of others, or are free to engage
in covert investigations, or may kill
with relative impunity. Examples: an
FBI agent or a medieval Royal
Guardsman. 10 points.
• You have three or more of the
above abilities. Examples: a Gestapo,
KGB, or Stasi agent. 15 points.
Legal Enforcement Powers almost
always require an appropriate Duty
(p. 133). In some cases, a Reputation
(positive, negative, or mixed) is also
appropriate. All levels of Legal
Enforcement Powers include Police
Rank 0 (see p. 30). To become a senior
law enforcer, buy more Rank.
Legal Immunity 4
5 to 20 points
You are exempt from some or all of
the laws of your society.
Should you break the law,
ordinary law enforcers do
not have the power to
charge you. Only one particular
authority – your
own church or social
class, a special court,
perhaps even your ruler –
can judge or punish you.
The point cost depends
on how sweeping the immunity
is (GM’s judgment):
• You are not subject to
ordinary laws, but the
rules that govern your
behavior are just as strict.
Examples: a medieval abbot
or a modern UN observer. 5
points.
• As above, but the laws that
apply to you are less strict than those
that apply to most people. Example: a
medieval bard (see below). 10 points.
• You can do nearly anything you
please provided you don’t injure the
nation, church, or other power that
granted you Legal Immunity in the
first place. Examples: a medieval duke
or an international diplomat (see
below). 15 points.
For an extra 5 points, you may add
“diplomatic pouch” privileges: you
can send and receive mail or objects
that the ordinary authorities cannot
legally stop or examine.
Two classes of Legal Immunity are
of special interest to adventurers:
Bardic Immunity: You have the
right to sing what you please without
fear of serious consequences. You may
even sing a grossly insulting song to
the king – you might get banished for
it, but you can’t be whipped, imprisoned,
or killed. Anyone who violates
your immunity risks damage to his
name and reputation. Other bards will
compose and distribute vicious satires
about him, giving him a bad
Reputation. They might even expose a
Secret, if he has one! This advantage
applies to the content of your
performances and nothing else. It is
only available to true bards, in fantasy/
medieval settings. To qualify for
this advantage, you must spend at
least 1 point apiece on the
Performance, Poetry, and Singing
skills. 10 points.
Diplomatic Immunity: You are an
international diplomat. You may
ignore the laws of all countries except
your own. While abroad, you cannot
be prosecuted for any crime, no matter
how grave; the local police may
arrest you, but they cannot press
charges. The only recourse for a foreign
government is to declare you persona
non grata. This means you must
leave the country at once, ending your
current assignment – and possibly
your career. Foreign powers may
request your extradition for normal
prosecution, but your government is
unlikely to comply. This trait always
comes with a Duty (p. 133) to a government
agency, and often has some
level of Administrative Rank (p. 30) as
a prerequisite. 20 points.
Less Sleep 3
2 points/level
You need less sleep than most people.
A normal human requires 8 hours
of sleep per night. Each level of this
advantage – to a maximum of four levels
– lets you get by with one hour less
than this, giving you a few extra hours
each day in which to study or work on
other projects.
Lifting ST 3 1
3 points per +1 ST
You have lifting capacity out of proportion
to your mass. This is common
for vehicles and supers. Add your
Lifting ST to your ordinary ST when
you determine Basic Lift (p. 15) for the
purposes of carrying, lifting, pushing,
and pulling. Lifting ST also adds to ST
in situations where you can apply slow,
steady pressure (grappling, choking,
ADVANTAGES 65
etc.). Lifting ST does not boost ST (or
Basic Lift) for the purpose of determining
HP, throwing distance, or damage
inflicted by melee attacks or
thrown weapons.
If you bought your ST with the Size
limitation, apply the same limitation
to Lifting ST. The No Fine
Manipulators limitation does not give
a discount, however.
Lightning Calculator 2
2 or 5 points
You have the ability to do math in
your head, instantly. This talent comes
in two levels:
Lightning Calculator: You, the player,
may use a calculator at any time, to
figure anything you want – even if
your character is fleeing for his life!
For simple math problems, the GM
may just say that your character
knows the answer. 2 points.
Intuitive Mathematician: As above,
but your ability is not limited to arithmetic.
You can perform astrogation
without a computer, do any level of
engineering design in your head, and
solve differential equations almost
instantaneously. You never need a calculator;
you yourself are far faster
than that, and even faster than many
computers. 5 points.
True mathematical geniuses will
have one of the above traits and one or
more levels of Mathematical Ability
(see Talent, p. 89).
Longevity 3
2 points
Your lifespan is naturally very long.
You fail aging rolls (see p. 444) only on
a 17 or 18 – or only on an 18, if your
modified HT is 17 or better!
Luck 2
Variable
You were born lucky! There are
three progressively more “cinematic”
levels of Luck:
Luck: Once per hour of play, you
may reroll a single bad die roll twice
and take the best of the three rolls!
You must declare that you are using
your Luck immediately after you roll
the dice. Once you or anyone else has
made another die roll, it is too late to
use Luck. If the GM is rolling in secret
(e.g., to see if you notice something),
you may tell him you are using your
Luck ahead of time, and he must roll
three times and give you the best
result. 15 points.
Extraordinary Luck: As above, but
usable every 30 minutes. 30 points.
Ridiculous Luck: As above, but
usable every 10 minutes! 60 points.
Your Luck only applies to your
own success, damage, or reaction
rolls, or on outside events that affect
you or your whole party, or when you
are being attacked (in which case you
may make the attacker roll three times
and take the worst roll!).
You cannot share Luck. If Strong
Sam is trying to kick open a door,
Lucky Lou can’t stand behind him and
transfer his Luck. He’ll have to kick
that door himself.
Once you use Luck, you must wait
an hour of real time (30 minutes for
Extraordinary Luck, 10 minutes for
Ridiculous Luck) before using it
again. You cannot use Luck at 11:58
and then again at 12:01. And you cannot
save up Luck. You cannot play for
hours without using Luck and then
use it several times in a row!
Special Limitations
Active: Your Luck is a conscious
supernatural power. You must declare
that you are using it before you roll the
dice. It cannot be used “after the fact”
to reroll a bad result. -40%.
Aspected: Your Luck applies only to
one specific class of related tasks, such
as athletics, social interactions, or
skills you use at your job. “Combat” is
a valid choice, but it only affects
weapon skill rolls, active defenses, and
ST or DX rolls for close combat – not
DX rolls to avoid tripping, HT rolls to
survive, etc. -20%.
Defensive: You can only use your
Luck to reroll failed active defense
rolls, resistance rolls, or HT rolls to
resist the effects of injury, or to make
an opponent reroll a critical hit against
you. -20%.
Magery 2 5
5 points for Magery 0, +10
points/level
You are magically adept. This
advantage comes in levels. You must
purchase Magery 0 before buying
higher levels of Magery.
Magery 0: This is basic “magical
awareness,” a prerequisite for learning
magic in most worlds. The GM
makes a Sense roll (p. 358) when you
first see a magic item, and again when
you first touch it. On a success, you
intuitively know that the item is magical.
A roll of 3 or 4 also tells you
whether the magic is helpful or
dangerous, and about how strong it
is. Those without Magery do not get
this roll! 5 points.
Magery 1+: Higher levels of Magery
make it much easier to learn and use
magic. Add your Magery to IQ when
you learn spells. For instance, if you
have IQ 14, Magery 3 lets you learn
spells as if you had IQ 17. Add your
Magery level to Perception when you
roll to sense magic items, and to IQ
when you learn Thaumatology skill
(p. 225).
Reduce the time required to learn
new spells in play (but not the point
cost) by 10% per Magery level, to a
minimum of 60% of the usual time at
Magery 4. For instance, with Magery
3, you would learn spells in 70% the
usual time.
Powerful spells require a minimum
level of Magery as a prerequisite, so be
sure to skim the Spell List (pp. 242-
253) when deciding how much
Magery you need. Note that high
Magery lets you produce powerful
results with even the most basic spells;
see Magery and Effect (p. 237). The GM
sets the maximum Magery allowed to
PCs. Magery 3 is about right for “classic
fantasy.” 10 points/level (on top of
the 5 points for Magery 0).
Mages in Nonmagical Settings
The use of Magery becomes tricky
in nonmagical backgrounds. You still
have the ability to sense magic, but
until you gain experience with magic,
the GM should not say, “That idol is
magical,” but, “That idol looks very
strange to you, very sinister. You sense
there is something special about it.”
If you are from a nonmagical culture,
you do not start with any spells,
but you can still learn magic if you
find an opportunity. When you enter a
magical world, those who can detect
your aura recognize you as a potential
magic-user. How they react depends
on the setting.
Magery 0 costs 5 points for all
mages, but you may apply one of the
66 ADVANTAGES
limitations below to the 10 points/level
for Magery 1+. Limited Magery is
sometimes known as “aspected
Magery.”
Special Limitations
Dance: You must be free to use
bodily motions in order to cast spells.
You are not freed from rituals
requiring movement as your spell level
increases (see Magic Rituals, p. 237).
However, you need not speak at all to
cast your spells. -40%.
Dark-Aspected: You can only use
your powers in darkness. Regardless
of the time of day or night, any light
greater than candlelight or starlight
deprives you of your abilities, though
your aura reveals that you are a mage.
-50%.
Day-Aspected: You can use your
powers only when the sun is in the sky
– on average, from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m.
During solar eclipses, you have no
powers! The effects of other astronomical
events are up to the GM.
When the sun is down, you have none
of your magical abilities, although a
look at your aura reveals that you are
a mage. You are not affected by being
in buildings, underground, and so on;
only the sun’s position matters. You
know automatically (if you are awake)
when it is one minute to sunrise and
one minute to sunset. -40%.
Musical: You must use a musical
instrument in order to cast spells. You
can never cast spells silently. -50%.
Night-Aspected: You can only use
your powers when the sun is not in the
sky – on average, from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m.
When the sun is up, you have none of
your magical abilities, although a look
at your aura reveals that you are a
mage. You are not affected by being in
buildings, underground, and so on;
only the sun’s position matters. You
know automatically (if you are awake)
when it is one minute to sunrise and
one minute to sunset. -40%.
One College Only: Your Magery
only benefits the spells of a single
college and the Recover Energy spell
(p. 248). You learn other spells as
though you were a nonmage, and can
only cast them in high-mana areas.
You may still count such spells as prerequisites
for spells in your own college.
You cannot detect magic items
unless they contain at least one spell
of your college, in which case you roll
normally for detection on first sight
and first touch. -40%.
Solitary: Your magical abilities are
at -3 for every sapient being within
five yards of you, and -6 for anyone
touching you. As partial compensation,
you get a roll vs. IQ to notice any
time a sapient creature enters or
leaves the five-yard area around you –
but this only works on a single person.
If there is already someone standing
next to you, you won’t notice if someone
else approaches. -40%.
Song: You must be able to sing in
order to cast your spells. You are not
freed from the ritual of speaking to
cast spells as your spell level increases
(see Magic Rituals, p. 237). -40%.
Magic Resistance 2 5
2 points/level
You are less likely to be affected by
magic. Subtract your Magic
Resistance from the skill of anyone
casting a spell on you, and add it to
your roll to resist any spell that offers
a resistance roll. For instance, if you
have Magic Resistance 3, wizards have
-3 to cast spells on you and you get +3
to resist. In addition, you may roll
against HT + Magic Resistance to
resist the effects of magical elixirs.
You cannot “turn off” this advantage
to let friendly wizards cast spells on
you (e.g., to heal you) or to benefit
from helpful elixirs!
Magic Resistance only interferes
with spells cast directly on you. It
provides no benefit against Missile
spells (which are cast on the wizard’s
hand and hurled at you), attacks by
magic weapons, or informationgathering
spells that aren’t cast
directly on you. It also has no effect
on supernatural powers other than
magic; e.g., divine miracles, psionics,
or the innate powers of spirits.
Magic Resistance, and its precise
level, can be recognized by any mage
who looks at your aura, or by anyone
who casts a spell on you.
You cannot combine Magic
Resistance with Magery. If you have
even one level of Magic Resistance,
you can’t cast spells at all (although
you can still use magic weapons).
Special Enhancements
Improved: You Magic Resistance
does not interfere with your own ability
to cast spells. This allows you to
possess both Magery and Magic
Resistance. +150%.
Mana Damper 2 5
10 points/level
You negate magical energy
(“mana”) in your vicinity, making it
difficult or impossible for others to
cast spells. You can never cast spells
yourself, nor can you have any level of
Magery.
Each level of Mana Damper (to a
maximum of three) reduces the local
mana level by one step, but only for
you and people or things that you’re
carrying. For instance, a wizard could
throw a fireball at you unhindered,
but he would find it difficult to use
magic to turn you to stone or read
your mind. For details, see Mana
(p. 235).
Special Enhancements
Area Effect: Your ability affects
everything in an area centered on you.
The first level of Area Effect gives you
a radius of one yard. Each level after
the first doubles this radius as usual;
see Area Effect (p. 102). +50%/level.
Switchable: You can switch this
power off – for instance, to let a friendly
wizard affect you or operate within
your area of effect. +100%.
ADVANTAGES 67
Magic Resistance, and its precise level, can be
recognized by any mage who looks at your aura,
or by anyone who casts a spell on you. If you
have even one level of Magic Resistance, you
can’t cast spells at all.
Mana Enhancer 2 5
50 points/level
You radiate magical energy, or
“mana.” Each level of Mana Enhancer
(to a maximum of two) increases the
local mana level by one step, but only
for you and people or things that
you’re carrying. If more than one
character with Mana Enhancer could
increase the mana level, apply only the
highest increase; do not add the effects
together.
This ability does not directly confer
the ability to cast spells; for that, take
Magery (p. 66). However, if you can
raise the mana level to “high” or better,
you can cast many spells without
Magery! For details, see Mana (p. 235).
This ability has its drawbacks: you
cannot have Magic Resistance, and
mages get an IQ + Magery roll to sense
that you possess this trait. In some
game worlds, this combination may
force you to hide from unethical wizards!
The GM should keep this trait
under strict control, as it is powerful
and easily abused in fantasy settings.
Special Enhancements
Area Effect: Your ability affects
everything in an area centered on you.
The first level of Area Effect gives you
a radius of one yard. Each level after
the first doubles this radius as usual;
see Area Effect (p. 102). +50%/level.
Switchable: You can switch this
power off in order to deprive enemy
wizards of its benefits (or simply to
hide from them!). +100%.
Mathematical Ability
see Talent, p. 89
Medium 2 5
10 points
You can perceive and communicate
with spirits – particularly spirits
of the dead. You don’t see them visually,
but you know when they’re nearby.
You can speak with any spirit in
your presence, provided you share a
language. You can also call spirits to
you; there is no guarantee that they
will answer your summons, but they
will hear it. Note that this trait does
not give you a reaction bonus with
spirits, or any power to control their
behavior.
Merchant Rank
see Rank, p. 29
Metabolism Control
3 1
5 points/level
You can control normally involuntary
biological functions such as
pulse, blood flow, digestion, and respiration.
Each level of Metabolism
Control gives +1 on any HT roll that
would benefit from such control
(GM’s decision), including bleeding
rolls (see Bleeding, p. 420) and rolls to
recover from (not resist) disease and
poison.
You can also enter a deathlike
trance. Anyone unfamiliar with your
metabolism must win a Quick Contest
of Diagnosis vs. your HT +
Metabolism Control to discover that
you aren’t dead. In this state, each
level of Metabolism Control reduces
by 10% the amount of oxygen you
need to stay alive (at level 10 or higher,
you don’t breathe at all), and doubles
the amount of time you can safely go
without food or water. You are
unaware of your surroundings while
in your trance, but awaken automatically
if injured. You may also set a
mental “alarm clock” to awaken you
after a certain amount of time has
passed.
This ability is incompatible with
the Machine meta-trait (see p. 263).
Special Limitations
Hibernation: You can only use the
trance ability, and get no bonus to HT
rolls. Furthermore, you automatically
enter a trance when exposed to certain
environmental conditions – great cold,
drought, etc. Work this out with the
GM. In such conditions, you must
make a Will roll to avoid hibernation.
You can induce hibernation voluntarily.
To do so, roll vs. Will-4 hourly until
you succeed. You cannot set a precise
“wake up” time. Set a duration, then
multiply by (2d+3)/10. -60%.
Microscopic Vision 3 1
5 points/level
You can see details that would normally
be invisible without a magnifying
glass or a microscope. Each level
increases magnification by a factor of
10: 5 points gives 10¥, 10 points gives
100¥, and so on. This magnification
only applies to objects within 1 foot.
Level 1 suffices for ordinary forensic
investigation. Level 3 (1,000¥) is
equivalent to the best optical microscopes.
Level 5 (100,000¥) is comparable
to an electron microscope, capable
of imaging viruses. Level 6
(1,000,000¥) is on par with a scanning-
tunneling or atomic force microscope,
and can study an object’s atomic
structure.
Military Rank
see Rank, p. 29
Mimicry 2 1
10 points
You can duplicate any simple
sound (alarm, gunshot, etc.) by listening
to it for one second and making a
successful IQ roll. You can also imitate
voices by spending at least 10 seconds
listening to them – live, recorded, or
remotely – and making an IQ roll.
This trait gives you no special ability
to stun or deafen others with loud
sounds, or to speak unpronounceable
magic words. Buy any such capabilities
separately.
Mind Control 2 1
50 points
You can mentally dominate those
you can see or touch. To use this ability,
concentrate for one second and
then roll a Quick Contest: your IQ vs.
your subject’s Will.
Modifiers: Range penalties to the
subject (see p. 550); -1 per slave
already under your control; +2 if you
concentrate for a full minute, or +4 if
you concentrate for a full hour.
If you win, your victim will obey
your every command until you free
him. In effect, he temporarily gains
the Reprogrammable disadvantage
(p. 150), with you as his master. Your
control persists for as long as you take
uninterrupted Concentrate maneuvers.
Once you stop, your control
lingers for one minute per point by
which you won the Quick Contest. (To
increase this, add Extended Duration,
p. 105.) If you are incapacitated
(stunned, knocked out, etc.), or
attempt to force the subject to act
against his principles (e.g., commit
suicide or harm a loved one), roll
68 ADVANTAGES
another Quick Contest. If your victim
wins, he breaks free. Roll at the
moment of truth – you can march him
to the edge of a cliff, but he doesn’t roll
until he’s about to leap.
If you lose, you cannot attempt to
control that subject again for 24
hours, and he feels a sense of mental
coercion emanating from you. On a
critical failure, you also lose control of
anyone else under the influence of this
ability!
Mind Control often has limitations:
Accessibility (Only on opposite sex),
Sense-Based (for hypnotic voices,
eyes, scents, etc.), and so on. It may
also have attack modifiers, subject to
the restrictions that apply to attacks
with Malediction (p. 106). Finally, you
may apply the Cybernetic and
Cybernetic Only modifiers from Mind
Reading (see below).
Special Enhancements
Conditioning: You can reconstruct
the subject’s psyche and implant suggestions.
In effect, you can add or
remove any mundane mental disadvantage.
Add Delusions for false memories,
or Amnesia to wipe memories.
Your victim must be under your control,
cooperative, and conscious. Roll
a second Quick Contest. You are at -1
per full -5 points of disadvantages
changed, but you may substitute
Brainwashing skill (p. 182) for IQ.
Duration in days is equal to your margin
of victory. If you win and roll a critical
success, the conditioning is permanent!
A conditioned subject who is
no longer under your direct control
imposes no penalty on the use of Mind
Control on others. Note that another
person with this ability can use it to
undo your work. +50%.
No Memory: Your victims have no
memory of anything that occurred
while under your control. +10%.
Special Limitations
Conditioning Only: You cannot
use regular Mind Control – only
Conditioning (above). Uncooperative
victims must be restrained before you
can use your ability. -50%.
Puppet: Your victims have no initiative
while under your control, and
temporarily acquire Slave Mentality
(p. 154). -40%.
Telepathic: Your ability is part of
the Telepathy psi power (see p. 257).
-10%.
Mind Probe 2 1
20 points
You can perform a deep “mind
probe.” In effect, you can force the
subject to answer any one specific
question that he can answer with a
brief sentence. To attempt a probe,
you must first either touch your subject
or successfully read his mind with
Mind Reading (below). You must also
share a language with him.
To use Mind Probe, you must concentrate
for one second and roll a
Quick Contest of your IQ (or
Interrogation skill, if higher) vs. your
subject’s Will. If you win, you rip the
answer from his mind. The answer is
what the subject believes to be true – if
he doesn’t know, he’ll tell you. If you
lose, you may try again, at a cumulative
-2 per repeated attempt to ask the
same (or very similar) question in the
past hour. Should you critically fail,
you cannot probe that person again
for 24 hours.
You may use Mind Probe to ask as
many questions as you wish, but each
question is a new use of your ability,
and requires a second of concentration
and its own Quick Contest.
Special Modifiers
The special enhancements and limitations
given for Mind Reading
(below) are also available for Mind
Probe.
Mind Reading 2 1
30 points
You can eavesdrop on others’ surface
thoughts. You must be able to see
or touch the subject to affect him.
Concentrate for one second and roll a
Quick Contest of IQ vs. the subject’s
Will. Modify the roll for range penalties
to the subject (see p. 550).
If you win, you can “hear” everything
the subject says, subvocalizes, or
actively thinks about as a voice in your
head. Received thought comes at the
speed of speech. If you do not
understand the language, or if your
subject isn’t sapient, you only pick up
feelings, images, and general intent.
You can maintain Mind Reading for
as long as you wish without further
concentration. If you switch to another
person, you must stop reading your
current subject and roll a Quick
Contest with the new subject. To read
multiple subjects at once, take
Compartmentalized Mind (p. 43).
If you lose, you may try again, at a
cumulative -2 per repeated attempt on
that subject in the past hour. Should
you critically fail, you cannot read that
person again for 24 hours.
Mind Reading is often psionic in
origin, but it is just as likely to be a
magical, divine, or even technological
ability.
The Sense-Based limitation
(p. 115) – especially Touch-Based – is
common. If you take Hearing-Based,
you can only read the thoughts of
someone whose words you can hear,
but can function as a “truthreader”
or (with Universal) a “universal
translator.”
Special Enhancements
Cybernetic: You can affect entities
with the Digital Mind trait (p. 48),
including all ordinary computers.
Your IQ roll has a penalty equal to the
system’s Complexity. A nonsentient
system does not resist; just roll vs. IQ -
Complexity to succeed. +50%.
Sensory: You can also tap into your
subject’s senses. This lets you experience
everything he experiences. If he
is tortured, knocked out, or killed, the
GM may require a Will roll to avoid
stunning – or perhaps even a Fright
Check! +20%.
Universal: You automatically
understand thoughts, even those of
nonsapient subjects and those with
whom you do not share a language.
+50%.
ADVANTAGES 69
You can “hear” everything the subject says,
subvocalizes, or actively thinks about.
Special Limitations
Cybernetic Only: As for Cybernetic,
but you can only read Digital Minds.
-50%.
Racial: Your ability only works on
those of your own race or a very similar
race (for instance, humans are similar
to elves, but not to dogs or trolls).
Combine this with the Sense-Based
limitation (Touch or Scent) to
represent a race that can share
thoughts through biochemical means.
-20%.
Sensory Only: As for Sensory, but
you can’t read thoughts at all. -20%.
Telecommunication: Your ability
only works on those with whom you
are presently in contact via
Telecommunication (p. 91). -20%.
Telepathic: Your ability is part of
the Telepathy psi power (see p. 257).
-10%.
Mind Shield 2 1
4 points/level
You have a “shield” that warns you
of and defends against mental attacks.
Add your Mind Shield level to IQ or
Will whenever you resist an advantage
with the Telepathic limitation (see
Chapter 6) and whenever you resist a
spell listed under Communication and
Empathy Spells (p. 245) or Mind
Control Spells (p. 250).
Your shield also resists attempts to
locate your mind using magic or
psionics. Such abilities must win a
Quick Contest against your Will +
Mind Shield level to find you.
You may voluntarily lower your
Mind Shield if you wish – for instance,
to let a friend read your mind.
Lowering or raising your shield is a
free action, but it must take place at
the start of your turn. Mind Shield
does protect you while you are asleep
or unconscious, unless you fell asleep
or were knocked out while your shield
was voluntarily lowered.
Special Limitations
Cybernetic: Your shield protects
against computer-related attacks –
e.g., the “Digital” form of Possession
and the “Cybernetic” form of Mind
Probe or Mind Reading – instead of
magic and psi. This limitation is only
available to those with Digital Mind
(p. 48). -50%.
Telepathic: Your ability is part of
the Telepathy psi power (see p. 257).
-10%.
Mindlink 2 5
Variable
You have a permanent telepathic
rapport with someone – often a twin,
loved one, hive member, etc. You automatically
succeed at all attempts to
contact him with Telesend (see
Telecommunication, p. 91) and Mind
Reading (p. 69), provided he chooses
not to resist or has Slave Mentality.
Mindlink does not allow automatic
contact across interstellar distances
(more than 0.1 light-year), nor can it
reach other dimensions, parallel
worlds, etc.
Mindlink costs 5 points for a single
person, 10 points for 2-9 people, 20
points for 10-99 people, 30 points for
100-999 people, and so on – add 10
points per tenfold increase in the
number of people.
70 ADVANTAGES
As a rule, the GM should only permit
PCs to buy Mindlinks with Allies,
Contacts, and Dependents; duplicates
(see Duplication, p. 50); and other PCs
(if their players permit).
Special Modifiers
You may give Mindlink the same
modifiers as your Mind Reading or
Telesend advantage. In most cases, the
GM should require this.
Modular Abilities 2/3 1
Variable
You have a pool of character points
that you can reallocate under certain
conditions. You may rearrange these
points to add a skill (spell, technique,
etc.) or mental advantage temporarily
– or to improve such a trait, if you
already have it. When you do, you lose
any abilities to which those points
were previously assigned.
This advantage comes in “slots.” A
slot can hold one skill or mental
advantage at a time. Each slot has a
fixed base cost, plus a cost per point in
the pool for that slot. Both costs
depend on the type of Modular
Abilities you have.
Computer Brain: Your abilities are
actually computer programs. The GM
decides whether a program exists for a
given ability. If you have Telecommunication
(p. 91), you may download
programs, usually from a network.
How long this takes depends on the
speed of data transfer in the setting – a
second per character point works well.
In some worlds, you must pay for such
programs; $100 per character point is
typical. Cost per slot: 6 points base + 4
points per point of abilities.
Chip Slots: As above, but the programs
come on physical chips that
you must plug into a socket – usually
in your skull. It takes three seconds to
insert or remove a chip. Chips typically
have negligible weight, but cost
$100 to $1,000 per point of abilities.
Cost per slot: 5 points base + 3 points
per point of abilities.
Super-Memorization: You gain new
abilities through rapid study. This
takes a second per character point.
You can “forget” a memorized ability
instantly. You can only memorize abilities
if you have a suitable reference
work (book, film, tape, etc.). The GM
determines the cash cost of such
works. Cost per slot: 5 points base + 3
points per point of abilities.
Cosmic Power: You simply wish
new abilities into being. This takes
one second per ability. Unlike other
Modular Abilities, you only ever have
one “slot,” and can rearrange your
points into as many or as few abilities
as you wish, to the limit of
your advantage. 10 points per point of
abilities.
Example: Alex buys two Chip Slots
at a base cost of 5 points/slot. This
costs 10 points. One slot can hold a
chip with a single ability worth up to 2
points, and costs 6 points. The other
can hold up to 5 points, and costs 15
points. Total cost is 31 points. This
appears on Alex’s character sheet as
“Chip Slots 2 (2, 5).” Alex will have to
buy, borrow, or steal the chips he uses
– but he need not pay character points
for them.
Use Preparation Required (p. 114)
to increase the time needed to
rearrange your points, and Limited
Use (p. 112) to represent an ability
that you forget immediately after
using it.
Special Enhancements
Physical: Your ability is not limited
to skills and mental advantages.
+50% for physical advantages only,
or +100% for any mental or physical
ability.
Special Limitations
Spells Only: Your ability only works
with magic spells, which must usually
be “memorized” from a grimoire. This
is mutually exclusive with Physical.
-20%.
Virtual: The abilities gained only
apply in virtual reality, astral space, or
another limited realm. -50%.
Musical Ability
see Talent, p. 89
Neutralize 2 1
50 points
You can neutralize the psi powers
of a single psionic individual. This is
an active ability with an ongoing effect
on the subject. It does not have to be
psionic – it might represent a magical
or high-tech way to drain psi abilities.
To use Neutralize, you must touch
the subject (requires an Attack maneuver)
and win a Quick Contest of Will.
If you succeed, you successfully neutralize
all your victim’s psionic powers
(see Chapter 6) for a number of minutes
equal to your margin of victory.
This has no effect on the subject’s
psionic Talents. Once you have neutralized
someone, you cannot affect
him again until his power recovers. A
critical failure with this ability cripples
it for 1d hours.
Special Enhancements
Power Theft: When you successfully
neutralize a psi, you acquire his
powers! You gain all the psionic abilities
you neutralized – including their
enhancements and limitations – for
the duration. You can’t use Neutralize
again until these powers wear off.
+200%.
Special Limitations
One Power: You can only neutralize
a specific psionic power; e.g., ESP or
Telepathy. See Chapter 6 for a list of
standard psi powers. -50%.
Nictitating Membrane
3 1
1 point/level
You have a transparent lens over
your eyes that you can open and close
like an eyelid. This lets you see normally
underwater, and protects your
eyes from sand, irritants, etc. Each
level of Nictitating Membrane provides
your eyes (only) with DR 1 and
adds +1 to all HT rolls concerned with
eye damage.
Night Vision 3
1 point/level
Your eyes adapt rapidly to darkness.
Each level of this ability (maximum
nine levels) allows you to ignore
-1 in combat or vision penalties due to
darkness, provided there is at least
some light.
Example: Night Vision 4 would
completely eliminate darkness penalties
up to -4, and would reduce a
penalty of -7 to only -3.
Regardless of level, Night Vision
only works in partial darkness. It has
no effect on the -10 for total darkness
(for that, get Dark Vision, p. 47).
ADVANTAGES 71
Obscure 3 1
2 points/level
You produce an effect that actively
“jams” one particular sense, making it
difficult to detect you and everything
in your vicinity. You must specify the
affected sense. This can be one of the
five human senses or a sensory advantage
such as Infravision, Radar, or one
particular Detect. Examples include
Obscure (Vision) for fog, Obscure
(Hearing) for white noise, and Obscure
(Radar) for electronic jamming.
Obscure affects a two-yard radius
centered on you. Add the Area Effect
enhancement (p. 102) to increase this
radius. The affected sense is at -1 per
level of Obscure to detect anything
within your radius. Ten levels will
block the sense completely. The
boundaries of the zone are easily
detected by the affected sense,
however; roll at +1 per level.
Special Enhancements
Defensive: You are unaffected by
your own Obscure ability. +50%.
Extended: Each related sense
(Infravision as well as normal vision,
Sonar as well as normal hearing, etc.)
blocked beyond the first is +20%.
Ranged: You produce your obscuring
effect at a distant point rather than
around your body. This is a ranged
attack with 1/2D –, Max 100, Acc 3,
RoF 1, Shots N/A, and Recoil 1.
Duration is 10 seconds. You can apply
other modifiers to change these statistics.
Unlike the usual Ranged
enhancement (p. 107), this modifier
lets you use your ability again before
its duration has expired (e.g., to simulate
multiple smoke grenades); thus, it
is more expensive. +50%.
Stealthy: Your ability works invisibly,
like a magical zone of silence.
There is no bonus to detect the boundaries
of your area of effect. +100%.
Special Limitations
Always On: You cannot turn this
ability off. -50%.
Oracle 2 5
15 points
You are sensitive to omens, and see
hidden significance in such things as
the way plants grow, the behavior of
animals, and even changes in the
weather and the sky. Once per day, you
may check the omens. This normally
requires at least an hour, but if the GM
has something in particular he wants
to communicate, he may arbitrarily
put it in your path. The GM rolls
twice, in secret, when you use this
ability: once to determine whether you
discover the omen, once to see if you
interpret it correctly.
Discovery: To detect an omen
requires a Sense roll. On a success,
you discover the omen; on a critical
success, you get +5 on the subsequent
interpretation roll. On a failure, you
find nothing of oracular significance.
On a critical failure, the GM lies – he
tells you that you have found an omen,
but this is, in reality, a product of your
own fears or wishes.
Interpretation: To interpret an omen
requires an IQ roll. On a success, the
omen is very general; e.g., “an enemy
approaches” or “a great power, long
dormant, is stirring.” On a critical success,
the information is more specific:
“you risk the wrath of the king,” “seek
out the mage in the tower,” etc. On a
failure, the omen is simply too vague
to be useful. On a critical failure, you
blatantly misinterpret the omen – possibly
in a dangerous manner.
This ability differs from
Precognition (p. 77), which requires
no interpretation.
Outdoorsman
see Talent, p. 89
Parabolic Hearing 3 1
4 points/level
You can “zoom in” on a particular
sound or area, and can filter out background
noise from sounds of interest
to you. Each level of Parabolic
Hearing doubles the distance at which
you can clearly hear any given sound
(see Hearing, p. 358).
Patrons 4
Variable
A “Patron” is an NPC – or even an
entire organization – that serves as
your advisor, employer, mentor, or
protector. An employer must be exceptional
to qualify as a Patron, though; a
Patron is much more than an ordinary
boss!
Power
The base point cost of a Patron
depends on its power. Use the categories
below as a guide, but note that
some Patrons won’t fit neatly into any
of them. The GM’s word is final.
A powerful individual (usually built
on at least 150% of the PC’s starting
points) or a fairly powerful organization
(assets of at least 1,000 times
starting wealth for the world). 10
points.
An extremely powerful individual
(built on at least twice the PC’s starting
points) or a powerful organization
(assets of at least 10,000 times starting
wealth). Examples: a limited manifestation
of a minor god, a billionaire, or
a big-city police department. 15
points.
An ultra-powerful individual (built
on as many points as the GM wants!)
or a very powerful organization
(assets of at least 100,000 times starting
wealth). Examples: a super, a limited
manifestation of a major god, or a
big city. 20 points.
An extremely powerful organization
(assets of at least 1 million times
starting wealth). Examples: a large
corporation or a very small nation. 25
points.
A national government or giant
multinational organization (net worth
basically incalculable), or a true god
who appears personally to intervene
on your behalf. 30 points.
72 ADVANTAGES
You can move your consciousness from body
to body. In theory, you could live forever this
way . . . however, you cannot survive outside a
living host.
Note that the base cost to have a
deity as a Patron is comparable to that
for a powerful mundane Patron, but
divine power requires the Special
Abilities enhancement (see below),
which will greatly increase the final
cost of a divine Patron!
Frequency of Appearance
Choose a frequency of appearance,
as explained under Frequency of
Appearance (p. 36). If the GM determines
that your Patron appears at the
start of an adventure, he may design
the adventure to include an assignment
or aid from the Patron. He may
also choose to leave out your Patron, if
its appearance would make no sense
or disrupt the adventure.
However, if the GM determined
that your Patron could have appeared,
and you try to contact your Patron
during the adventure (for help, advice,
etc.), then the contact is likely to be
successful and you may receive aid.
(Within reason – if you’re locked in a
dungeon without any means of communication,
you won’t be contacting
anybody.) You will not know whether
your Patron is “available” on a given
adventure until you attempt to request
aid. As a rule, you should only be able
to reach your Patron for help once per
adventure.
Remember that a powerful Patron
could be helpful without actually
intervening! A Chicago hood who can
say, “I’m from Big Eddie,” or a crimefighter
who can flash a Q-clearance
card, may carry some extra weight in
a tough spot.
Party Patrons
Often, several PCs – perhaps the
entire party – share a Patron (they are
all agents of the same government,
servants of the same cult, etc.). No
matter how many characters share a
Patron, the cost is not shared; each
character must pay full price for the
Patron. On the other hand, the GM
will make an appearance roll for each
character at the start of each adventure
– and if the Patron appears for
any of them, then it is usually available
for all of them. The GM should
scale the quality and quantity of the
aid provided in proportion to the
number of successful appearance
rolls.
Drawbacks of Patrons
If your Patron is an army, corporation,
feudal lord, etc., you may owe it a
Duty (p. 133). A god or similar Patron
may require a stringent code of behavior
in return for its aid; see Self-
Imposed Mental Disadvantages (p. 121).
A Patron might also have powerful foes
that are now your foes; this can give
you an Enemy (p. 135). Such factors
can cut the effective cost of a Patron
significantly, and turn it from a benefit
to a considerable liability!
Employers and Patrons
Not every employer is a Patron. If
you can depend on your employer to
get you out of trouble (at least sometimes),
it might really be a Patron.
Otherwise, it’s just a job. For example,
a small police department is a 10-
point Patron if, as most do, it takes
care of its own. But the U.S. Army,
though powerful, is not a likely Patron
– at least for an ordinary trooper. You
could say, “The Colonel takes care of
his men.” But you could just as easily
say, “I’m on my own if I get in trouble,”
and play a soldier who does not have a
Patron.
Examples of Patrons
• A powerful wizard as Patron to
warriors (or young wizards) whom he
sends to find magical items or slay
foes.
• A crime lord as Patron to freelance
thieves or assassins.
• A minor deity as Patron to a traveling
Righter of Wrongs.
• A local police department as
Patron to a private detective. (They
might find him annoying at times, but
he helps them out, and vice versa.)
• A local ruler (in any world) as
Patron to an adventurer.
• A large company as Patron to a
troubleshooter or spy.
• A super-crimefighter or politician
as Patron to a news reporter.
• Any intelligence organization as
occasional Patron to a freelance operative,
or full-time Patron to its own
agents. (The difference between this
and ordinary jobs is that you can’t
quit . . .)
You can apply the following modifiers
after multiplying for frequency of
appearance.
Special Enhancements
Equipment: Your Patron supplies
useful equipment that you can use for
your own purposes, and that you
would otherwise have to buy. This
enhancement only applies if the
equipment is yours once given. A soldier
with a military Patron would not
pay extra for his weapons, since when
he goes off duty, he can’t take them
along. An adventurer in the employ of
a generous noble who hands out useful
“gifts” would pay extra. +50% if the
equipment is worth no more than the
average starting wealth in the campaign,
or +100% if it is worth more
than that.
Highly Accessible: You can attempt
to contact your Patron at any time –
even when you are locked in a dungeon,
lost in the desert, etc. This is
most appropriate if your Patron is a
spirit, a god you can petition via
prayer, etc. +50%.
Special Abilities: Your Patron
wields power out of proportion to its
wealth or point value. +50% if your
Patron has extensive social or political
power (e.g., the Governor of New York
or the Pope), or +100% if your Patron
has magical powers in a nonmagical
world, possesses equipment from a TL
greater than yours, grants you special
powers, or has unusual reach in time
or space (e.g., a super, spirit, or god).
Special Limitations
Minimal Intervention: Your Patron
is less useful than its power level
would suggest. On a successful
appearance roll, the GM makes a reaction
roll for your Patron to determine
whether it actually provides aid; see
Requests for Aid (p. 562). On a Neutral
or better reaction, you receive the aid
your Patron thinks you need – which
may or may not be what you want.
This is the classic modifier for gods
who have many other minions to aid,
and frequently accompanies the Pact
limitation (see p. 113). -50%.
Secret: Your Patron works behind
the scenes. You do not know who it is
and you cannot request aid directly.
You might be able to call for help in
such a way that the Patron gets the
message (GM’s decision), but there is
no guarantee that the Patron will take
action. The only evidence of this kind
of Patron is minor incidents and
“lucky breaks.” This may take the form
of information, equipment, or even
direct aid . . . but only when it suits the
Patron, and always in an untraceable
way. A Patron like this often regards its
ADVANTAGES 73
aid as an investment on which it
expects some return; therefore, it
might not have your best interests at
heart! Only the GM knows any of these
details. You know nothing other than
the fact that you have a Patron. -50%.
Unwilling: You obtained your
Patron through coercion (e.g., blackmail).
It provides aid only because
there is no other choice, and it definitely
does not have your best interests
at heart! You will eventually make one
request too many (GM’s judgment –
perhaps if the appearance roll comes
up 18) and lose the Patron: remove the
Patron from your character sheet and
lower your point value accordingly.
Since a Patron is by definition more
powerful than you are, taking an
Unwilling Patron is risky. If the Patron
can find a way to break your “hold,” it
will, and may well become an Enemy!
-50%.
Payload 3 1
1 point/level
You can carry cargo or occupants
inside your body! This might be a
superficial feature (e.g., a surgically
implanted “flesh pocket” or a natural
pouch like that of a kangaroo) or an
actual internal compartment. The latter
is not just for machines – a zombie
might have a colony of spiders or
snakes living in its body, for example.
Each level of Payload lets you carry
up to Basic Lift/10 lbs. inside you.
Those without Injury Tolerance
(Homogenous) (p. 60) or the Machine
meta-trait (p. 263) should ask the
GM’s permission before taking more
than five levels of Payload. You must
allocate your Payload between cargo
and occupants when you buy the
advantage:
Cargo: 20 lbs. of cargo space is
roughly equal to one cubic foot of
capacity. A typical car has about 10-20
cubic feet of storage space; a semitrailer
has about 2,400 cf.
Occupants: A human-sized being
requires about 200 lbs. of capacity. For
others, take average racial weight and
increase it by 1/3. An actual cabin
requires 10 times that weight. Your
defensive advantages (DR, Sealed,
etc.) also protect your occupants. If
your occupants can control you, buy
Controls separately – see Compartmentalized
Mind (p. 43).
Treat your Payload as part of your
body, not as encumbrance or carried
weight, when calculating Move and
using advantages with limited carrying
capacity, such as Invisibility,
Jumper, and Warp.
Machines that can push or pull
large external loads – or pick them up
and carry them with arms, cranes, etc.
– have Lifting ST (p. 65), not Payload.
Ordinary cars and trucks have
Payload, but forklifts, tugboats, and
the like should buy Lifting ST to represent
their abilities.
Special Limitations
Exposed: Your Payload cannot be
concealed and is not protected by your
defensive advantages. You can apply
this to any portion of your Payload.
The main use of this limitation is to
create motorcycles and similar unenclosed
vehicles. -50%.
Penetrating Vision 3 1
10 points/level
Penetrating Vision (sometimes
called “X-ray vision”) lets you see
through solid objects. Each level of
this advantage allows you to see
through up to six inches of normal
matter. You can just barely see the outline
of the substance you are looking
through – not enough to impair vision
in any way. Penetrating Vision automatically
works in conjunction with
all your other vision advantages
(Infravision, Ultravision, etc.).
Special Limitations
Blockable: Some substance completely
blocks your vision. Common
substances, such as plastic, stone, or
wood, are -30%; less common materials,
such as brick or asphalt, are -20%;
one specific material, such as lead, is
-10%.
Specific: Your ability only works
through one particular substance.
Common materials, such as brick,
metal, or wood, are -40%; uncommon
materials, such as ice or adobe, are
-60%; absurd materials, such as
chocolate or silk, are -80%.
Perfect Balance 3
15 points
You can always keep your footing,
no matter how narrow the walking
surface, under normal conditions.
This lets you walk along a tightrope,
ledge, tree limb, or other anchored
surface without having to make a die
roll. If the surface is wet, slippery, or
unstable, you get +6 on all rolls to keep
your feet. In combat, you get +4 to DX
and DX-based skill rolls to keep your
feet or avoid being knocked down.
Finally, you get +1 to Acrobatics,
Climbing, and Piloting skills.
Peripheral Vision 3
15 points
You have an unusually wide field of
vision. You can see a 180° arc in front
of you without turning your head, and
have 30° of peripheral vision to either
side of that. This gives you a 240° “arc
of vision” for observation and ranged
74 ADVANTAGES
attacks. The figure above shows the
arc of vision for a normal character
(white) and for someone with
Peripheral Vision (gray plus white).
If you are playing with a battle
map, you can make melee attacks into
“side” (“right” and “left”) hexes as well
as “front” hexes – although a onehanded
attack to the opposite side
(e.g., attacking your left hex with your
right hand) is clumsy and considered
a Wild Swing (see p. 388). You still
cannot attack a foe directly behind
you except with a Wild Swing.
This also helps on defense! If you
are attacked from a “side” hex, you
defend at no penalty. Even against
attacks from the rear, your active
defense is only at -2.
Out of combat, you get +3 to all
rolls to detect Shadowing attempts or
ambushes from behind, and the GM
will always make a Vision roll for you
to spot dangers “behind your back.”
Special Limitations
Easy to Hit: Your eyes are on stalks,
unusually large, or otherwise more
vulnerable to attack. Others can target
your eyes from within their arc of
vision at only -6 to hit. -20%.
Permeation 3 1
Variable
You can move through a particular
solid material as if it didn’t exist. You
do not open a passage behind you;
observers just see you “melt” into the
surface and disappear. You need
Penetrating Vision (p. 74) to see where
you’re going. You must still breathe
(unless you have Doesn’t Breathe),
which limits trips to the length of time
you can hold your breath (see Holding
Your Breath, p. 351).
Permeation differs from Insubstantiality.
You are affected by gravity,
and you are limited to normal movement;
if you lack Flight or another
movement advantage, you must walk
at your Basic Move. Furthermore, you
can be affected by any attack that can
reach you within a solid object. You
also remain vulnerable to attacks with
the material you can pass through,
unless you purchase Damage
Resistance to such attacks.
Cost depends on how often you are
likely to encounter the material you
can permeate in the form of a barrier.
For instance, paper might be a
“Common” substance, but since walls
of paper are uncommon, it is treated
as “Rare” for the purpose of
Permeation.
Very Common: Earth (including
clay, mud, and sand), metal, stone
(including brick, concrete, and plaster),
wood, and other ubiquitous
structural materials. 40 points.
Common: Concrete, plastic, steel,
and other specific, common structural
materials. 20 points.
Occasional: Glass, ice (including
snow), sand, and anything else that a
normal person could eventually break
or tunnel through using muscle
power, as well as somewhat unusual
structural materials, such as aluminum
and copper. 10 points.
Rare: Bone, flesh, paper, and other
materials rarely encountered in large
quantities or as barriers. 5 points.
Special Enhancements
Can Carry Objects: Normally, you
cannot carry anything while moving
through matter. This enhancement
lets you carry objects, including clothing
and armor. If dropped, they “pop”
into open space at the point where you
entered the material. You cannot leave
things inside solid matter! No encumbrance
is +10%; Light, +20%;
Medium, +50%; Heavy, +100%.
Tunnel: You can leave a tunnel (of
about your size) behind you, if you
choose. This rearranges the object you
are moving though without inflicting
damage, and does not work at all on
living targets. For an ability that can
rip holes in objects and people, see
Innate Attack (p. 61). +40%.
Photographic Memory
see Eidetic Memory, p. 51
Pitiable
see p. 22
Plant Empathy 2
5 points
You have an unusual rapport with
growing things. On encountering a
plant, the GM will roll against your IQ.
On a success, he will give you a general
sense of its health and whether it is
natural or supernatural in origin.
Furthermore, this advantage functions
as Empathy (p. 51) with respect
to sentient plants, and allows you to
use your Influence skills (see p. 359)
on such entities, which will usually
ensure a positive reaction.
This ability frequently accompanies
some level of Green Thumb (see
Talent, p. 89) and often Sense of Duty
(Plants) or Vow (Use plant material
only if gathered without severe injury
to the plant).
Police Rank
see Rank, p. 29
Possession 2 1
100 points
You can move your consciousness
from body to body. In theory, you
could live forever this way, moving
from dying bodies to healthy ones.
However, you cannot survive outside a
living host. Should your current body
die, you will die! Thus, you must keep
your current host alive . . . at least
until you can find a replacement.
To possess a new host, you must
concentrate for one second and physically
touch him. Attempts to possess
your own Puppet (p. 78) succeed automatically.
In all other cases, roll a
Quick Contest: your IQ vs. the subject’s
Will. Your victim resists at +5 if
he is in combat with you or otherwise
wary of you, so it is best to be subtle.
If you lose or tie, you are mentally
stunned for 1d seconds. In addition,
you may never attempt to possess that
subject again – he is “immune” to you.
If you win, you take over your victim’s
body, completely suppressing his
personality. Your previous host regains
control of his body (if sentient) after 1d
seconds of mental stun, and “comes
to” with no memory of the possession.
You gain your new host’s ST, DX,
and HT (and secondary characteristics
calculated from these scores), as
well as his physical advantages and
disadvantages. You keep your own IQ,
Perception, and Will, and all of your
mental traits. Your social traits may
apply, depending on the laws and values
of your society.
Skills are a special case. Your IQ-,
Perception-, and Will-based skills are
unchanged. Other skills remain at the
same relative skill level. For instance, if
you have Acrobatics at DX+3, then
you would have Acrobatics-12 in a DX
9 body and Acrobatics-14 in a DX 11
body.
ADVANTAGES 75
If you occupy a sentient host, you
have sufficient access to his memories
for the first few hours of the takeover
to learn his name and daily routine,
but not enough to learn IQ-based
skills. To recall a specific fact from the
host’s memories, you must roll vs. IQ,
at -1 per hour since the takeover. Only
one attempt is allowed for any given
memory!
If you occupy a host for a long
time, or hop between multiple bodies,
the GM is free to adjust your point
value to reflect the most expensive
body you regularly occupy. For more
on this subject, see Chapter 9.
With suitable modifiers, Possession
can represent diverse abilities
seen in speculative fiction. Note that
the Digital, Magical, Parasitic,
Spiritual, and Telepathic limitations
are mutually exclusive.
Special Enhancements
Assimilation: When you enter a
new body, you may choose to “forget”
any of your current skills and use the
points this frees up – and any unspent
points – to learn ST-, DX-, or HT-based
skills known by the host, at up to
(host’s level)-1. For instance, if you do
not know Acrobatics, but your host
knows it at DX+3, you can pick it up at
DX+2 . . . if you have enough points.
Skills forgotten in order to learn new
skills are gone. Skills learned from
your host will move from body to
body with you. +10%.
Chronic: When you exit a host, you
can leave a “back door” that lets you
possess him again without a Quick
Contest. This lets you buy your former
host as a Puppet. You can only use this
enhancement if you have enough
unspent points to buy a Puppet at the
time you leave your host. +20%.
Mind Swap: Your host’s mind
moves into your previous body instead
of being suppressed – in effect, you
“trade places.” +10%.
Telecontrol: You remotely control
your new host as if he were a puppet,
leaving your original body in a trance.
You may choose to return to your
body at any time, and must do so if
your host falls unconscious or dies
(but not if he sleeps). As a result, you
do not die if your host dies. +50%.
Special Limitations
Digital: This limitation is only available
to Digital Minds (p. 48). You take
over computers, not living bodies. The
target system must be connected to
your current host computer via a network,
and you must have complete
access to it – voluntary or otherwise
(see Computer Hacking, p. 184). The target
computer’s hardware must be complex
enough to run your computer program;
in general, its Complexity must
be at least half your IQ (round up). You
can also take over a computer using a
copy of yourself while leaving the original
intact! However, unless you have the
Digital version of Duplication (p. 50),
any system you take over this way
becomes an independent NPC that
thinks it is you. This can be good or bad
– the duplicate could become any type
of Associated NPC (see p. 31). -40%.
Magical: Your advantage is an
innate magic talent. If the subject is
protected by a spell that repels hostile
magic, you must win a Quick Contest
of your IQ vs. that spell before you can
make a possession attempt. If your
victim has Magic Resistance, it subtracts
from your IQ and adds to his
Will during the actual possession
attempt. -10%.
Mindlink Required: You can only
possess someone with whom you have
a Mindlink. If the link is ever jammed,
out of range, etc., the possession ends.
If the Mindlink has the Telecommunication
limitation, Mindlink
Required can represent control via an
implant, telepresence, or similar technology.
-40%.
No Memory Access: You have no
access to your host’s memories. -10%.
Parasitic: You enter your host’s
body physically. You must have
Permeation (Flesh) (p. 75) to do this,
unless your host has sufficient
Payload (p. 74) to contain you – and
your victim must have a higher Size
Modifier than you. After entering your
victim’s body, you may attempt to possess
him. He resists with the higher of
HT or Will. You aren’t forced out if you
lose, but he is “immune” to you, so
you need to find another host soon.
While you are in someone else’s body,
he (if he is still uncontrolled) or his
friends might be able to use technological
means to detect you – and possibly
remove you. Attacks that penetrate
or ignore your host’s DR can
injure you, but his HP act as extra DR
for this purpose. If you are microbial,
you should purchase Injury Tolerance
(Diffuse) (p. 60), which will protect
you. The host nourishes you, and may
have to eat extra food as a result. You
can choose to leave at any time, the
same way you entered. You may also
temporarily release your host while
continuing occupation. If you do, you
will have to win a new Quick Contest
to regain control. -60%.
Puppet Only: You may possess your
own Puppets automatically, but you
cannot possess anyone else. -30%.
Spiritual: You must have the Spirit
meta-trait (p. 263) to take this limitation.
Your spirit body merges with
and occupies the body of your host. It
remains insubstantial during the possession,
traveling inside the host but
otherwise inaccessible to you and
effectively mindless. It can be injured
as detailed under Parasitic, but only
by attacks that affect insubstantial
things. A genuine exorcist can cast
you out by winning a Quick Contest
of his exorcism ability vs. your Will.
You cannot return to a body you have
been cast out of for at least 24 hours.
You may choose to release your host
at any time. If you are exorcised or
leave voluntarily, the host recovers
after 1d seconds of mental stun. -20%.
Telepathic: Your ability is part of the
Telepathy psi power (see p. 257). -10%.
76 ADVANTAGES
Precognition: You cannot control the content
of these flashes – you just know that
something interesting or important might
happen, at some unspecified future date.
Power Investiture 2 5
10 points/level
A deity – god, demon lord, great
spirit, cosmic power, etc. – has
empowered you to cast “clerical”
spells. Add your Power Investiture to
your IQ when you learn spells granted
by the deity who bestowed this advantage.
For instance, IQ 12 and Power
Investiture 2 (Thor) would let you
learn spells granted by the god Thor
(and only Thor) as if you had IQ 14.
You may only learn clerical spells
from a fixed list set by your deity, who
may even dictate which specific spells
you learn. The GM determines this list
and takes on the role of your deity when
you wish to learn new spells. However,
because you are channeling divine will
as opposed to studying magic, clerical
spells do not have prerequisites.
In general, the more Power
Investiture you have, the “holier” you
are. The maximum level of Power
Investiture depends on your deity, as
determined by the GM. Minor deities
who have a limited ability to transfer
power to their chosen, or a small
range of possible spell effects, might
grant only one level, while major
deities might be more generous.
Note that Power Investiture is a
measure of your bond with your deity,
while Clerical Investment (p. 43) and
Religious Rank (p. 30) measure social
power. These need not be related.
Power Investiture might be restricted to
high-ranking clerics . . . but a deity can
grant power to anyone it wants (possibly
to the chagrin of the church!).
In some cases, you can add or
increase Power Investiture in play.
What this entails depends on the deity.
To gain, keep, or improve Power
Investiture, you nearly always have to
take and adhere to one or more of the
traits listed under Self-Imposed Mental
Disadvantages (p. 121). If you break
these vows, you will lose some or all of
your powers – perhaps until you have
made proper penance, perhaps permanently.
In effect, Power Investiture
comes with a built-in Pact limitation
(see p. 113); do not apply this modifier
again.
You may also need to meet certain
physical requirements. Some deities
only empower men, women, eunuchs,
virgins . . . the GM should be creative.
Should you lose a special requirement
(such as virginity), your Power
Investiture may be diminished or lost,
reducing your point value accordingly.
You can have both Magery and
Power Investiture (unless your deity
forbids this), but Magery does not
improve clerical spells and Power
Investiture does not aid magical
spells. The clerical and magical versions
of a given spell are entirely different
spells, and clerical spells never
count as prerequisites for magical
spells. If you know both versions of a
spell, they do not affect one another.
Power Investiture is one possible
way to handle “holy powers.” It is
most appropriate in settings where
priests are divinely inspired wizards.
For other views of divine gifts, see
Blessed (p. 40) and True Faith (p. 94).
Precognition 2 5
25 points
You receive glimpses of future
events. You cannot control the content
of these flashes – you just know that
something interesting or important
might happen, at some unspecified
future date. You might learn this
through visions, voices, or “sudden
knowledge.” A vivid premonition of a
terrible event might even require a
Fright Check (p. 360)!
Precognition only gives information
that your “future self” could learn
and that would matter to you. For
instance, if you’re in New York, you
are unlikely to have a premonition
about a random murder in Los
Angeles. But if the victim was a friend,
or if the killing was important enough
to make national news, you might
“flash” on it.
Nothing about the future is certain,
though. Even if the GM has
made up his mind, he could reconsider
. . . although something related to
the premonition should still happen.
In most settings, predicted events will
occur unless you take specific action
to prevent them. (But the GM is free
to rule that the future is immutable in
his setting!)
Whenever the GM feels a premonition
would be appropriate, he will
secretly make an IQ roll for you – usually
during an encounter with a person
or object. For instance, meeting someone
with an important event in his
future might set off a premonition related
to that event, especially if it would
affect you in some way. Similarly, seeing
a picture of a place could set off a vision
involving that location.
A deliberate attempt to use
Precognition requires 10 minutes of
concentration, 2 FP, and an IQ roll at
-8. You can attempt to read your own
future, or that of another person. To
deliberately read the future of someone
else, you must be able to touch him.
Precognition is normally limited to
“seeing” into the near future – perhaps
a week or so. At the GM’s option, however,
a critical success or a very important
event might result in visions from
much further in the future.
Note that Precognition includes
Danger Sense (p. 47) – do not take
both.
Special Limitations
Can’t See Own Death: Your
Precognition cannot detect people or
events that the GM believes have a
high probability of causing your
death. Your ability does not include
Danger Sense. -60%.
ESP: Your ability is part of the ESP
psi power (see p. 255). -10%.
One Event: Your ability works only
for a particular type of event: events
involving you personally (if you
scanned another, you would only see a
significant event if you were involved);
disasters; events related to death;
events related to love, etc. This limitation
is mutually exclusive with Can’t
See Own Death. -40%.
Pressure Support 3 1
5 to 15 points
Every character has a “native pressure.”
For ordinary humans, this is the
pressure of Earth’s atmosphere (“1
atmosphere”). A native pressure other
than 1 atmosphere is a 0-point feature,
but if you can survive for a prolonged
period of time at a wide range of pressures,
you have an advantage. This
trait comes in three levels:
Pressure Support 1: You can survive
at pressures between your native pressure
and 10 times that. (This would
enable a human to survive on most of
Earth’s continental shelves.) 5 points.
Pressure Support 2: You can withstand
pressures between your native
pressure and 100 times that. (This
would enable a human to survive anywhere
in Earth’s oceans, save the
deepest trenches.) 10 points.
ADVANTAGES 77
Pressure Support 3: You are
immune to the effects of high pressure.
15 points.
Pressure Support lets your body
stay at a constant internal pressure
with respect to a constant and uniform
external pressure. This protects
against attacks that manipulate ambient
pressure or crush the entire body,
but provides no defense against localized
or transient pressure changes. In
particular, Pressure Support does not
reduce or prevent damage from crushing
attacks or explosions of any kind.
Those with Pressure Support often
have the Sealed advantage (p. 82), but
this is not required.
Protected Sense 3 1
5 points/sense
One of your ranged senses is protected
against overload. It rapidly
adapts to the most intense of stimuli,
allowing you to function normally
after a maximum of two seconds of
impairment. You will never suffer permanent
damage to that sense as a
result of excessive sensory input, and
you get +5 to rolls to resist temporary
damage and Sense-Based attacks targeting
that sense.
Protected Senses cost 5 points
apiece. Protected Vision resists glare
and eye damage from lasers, and lets
Dark Vision, Infravision, and Night
Vision adjust instantly from bright
light to darkness. Protected Hearing
protects against loud noises. Protected
Taste/Smell filters out strong odors
and tastes (but not toxins). The GM
may permit other Protected Senses
(Detect, Scanning Sense, etc.), with
suitable justification.
Psi Static 2 5
30 points
You are a psionic “null.” Psionic
abilities cannot directly affect you or
anything you are carrying or wearing.
For instance, a telekinetic could throw
a rock at you, but he could not levitate
you or grab a sword from your hand.
Special Enhancements
Area Effect: You emit static in an
area centered on you. The first level of
Area Effect extends your static to
everything within one yard. Each level
after the first doubles this radius as
usual; see Area Effect (p. 102).
+50%/level.
Switchable: You can switch this
advantage off in order to allow friendly
psis to affect you or operate within
your area of effect. +100%.
Special Limitations
Resistible: Your ability is not
absolute. A psi can “burn” through
your static and affect those protected
by it by winning a Quick Contest of
Will with you. If the attacking psi ability
already requires a Quick Contest,
the attacker rolls only once but the target
gets +5 to resist. -50%.
Psychometry 2 5
20 points
You can sense the history of a place
or inanimate object – its use, its user’s
personality, etc. This is usually a
supernatural gift of some sort (such as
psi), but it could also represent a technological
“time-scanning” power that
can see the past.
To use Psychometry, you must
touch the subject item or location,
concentrate for one second, and make
an IQ roll. This roll is at no penalty for
an event that occurred the same day,
-1 for one that occurred up to 10 days
ago, -2 if up to 100 days ago, -3 if up to
3 years ago, -4 if up to 30 years ago, -5
if up to 300 years ago, and so on. At
the GM’s option, you might notice very
strong “vibes” on an IQ-4 roll, even if
you aren’t concentrating.
On a success, you receive the general
sense of emotions and events tied
to the object or place . . . if it is linked
to emotionally charged events (an
uneventful history might leave no
impressions at all). This is not always
a good thing – a terrifying impression
might require a Fright Check (p. 360)!
On a critical success, you experience
an actual vision. No matter how well
you roll, you cannot detect magic,
spirits, etc. Still, a magic item, ghostly
haunt, or ritual site is likely to have an
emotionally charged history, giving
strong impressions.
On a failure, you receive no
impressions at all, and cannot attempt
to read that object or place again for
24 hours.
Special Limitations
ESP: Your ability is part of the ESP
psi power (see p. 255). -10%.
Puppet 2 1
5 or 10 points
Prerequisites: Possession and either
Ally or Dependent.
A Puppet is an Ally (p. 36) or
Dependent (p. 131) who cannot resist
your Possession advantage (p. 75).
When you use Possession on him, you
succeed automatically! This may be
due to his nature or some special
knowledge you have: a curse, his true
name, the key to his mind, etc.
A Puppet will always have IQ 0, or
owe you a Duty (p. 133), or be
Reprogrammable (p. 150). If he has a
Duty, it must be Involuntary, and its
frequency must be identical to the
Puppet’s own frequency of appearance
as an Ally or Dependent.
Each Puppet costs 5 points. You
can buy an entire group of related
Allies as Puppets for 10 points. These
costs are for the Puppet advantage
only; you must pay for your Ally or
Dependent separately. It is common
but not mandatory for such Allies to
have the Minion enhancement or the
Unwilling limitation.
Racial Memory 2 1
15 or 40 points
You have access to the memories of
your direct ancestors (or earlier software
generations, for Digital Minds).
This ability comes in two forms:
Racial Memory (Passive): Your talent
is vague and totally passive. The
GM secretly makes an IQ roll for you
in any situation that your ancestors
might have encountered. On a success,
you get a feeling of déjà vu about
the situation. It is up to you to interpret
this. A critical success gives a
vivid replay of ancient ancestral memories.
On a failure, nothing happens. A
critical failure results in a wrong
impression. 15 points.
Racial Memory (Active): You may
use this advantage actively. If you want
to know something, the GM first
determines whether or not your
ancestors knew the answer. Then he
rolls against your IQ to see if you can
gain access to the information. If your
ancestors didn’t have the answer and
the roll succeeds, you will know that.
On a critical failure, you will believe
your ancestors didn’t know, even if
78 ADVANTAGES
they really did. This requires one turn of absolute concentration (the GM
may require more elaborate preparations to recall very ancient memories).
40 points.
Radiation Tolerance 3 1
Variable
Your cells or circuits are resistant to radiation. The cost of
this advantage depends on the divisor of the effective dose of
radiation you receive – after dividing by the Protection
Factor (PF) of artificial protection such as armor.
Divisor Cost
2 5 points
5 10 points
10 15 points
20 20 points
50 25 points
100 30 points
200 35 points
500 40 points
1,000 45 points
Rank
see p. 29
Rapid Healing 3
5 or 15 points
Your wounds heal quickly. This trait comes in two levels:
Rapid Healing: Whenever you roll to recover lost HP or to see if you
can get over a crippling injury, you get +5 to your effective HT.
Prerequisite: HT 10+. 5 points.
Very Rapid Healing: As above, but when you roll to recover lost HT, a
successful HT roll means you heal two HP, not one. Prerequisite: HT 12+.
15 points.
Note that this advantage does not hasten recovery from the
short-term effects of injury, such as stunning and knockout; get
Recovery (p. 80) for that.
Rapier Wit 2
5 points
You can use witty repartee to stun your foes in combat. This does
not require a combat maneuver – talking is a free action (p. 363). Roll
a Quick Contest of Public Speaking skill vs. your opponent’s Will.
Modifiers: -2 if your target has the Clueless or No Sense of
Humor disadvantage; any modifier the GM assigns based on
your description of the verbal attack; -1 per opponent beyond
the first to affect a group (and you must know something the
entire group has in common; e.g., they’re all flunkies of the
same household or members of the same military unit).
Opponents with the Unfazeable advantage (p. 95) are
immune to Rapier Wit.
If you win, your opponent is mentally stunned (see
p. 420). A critical success causes one HP of physical damage
as well – your victim injures himself accidentally (drops
something on his foot, chokes on his own tongue, etc.). If
you lose, there is no effect. On a critical failure, you enrage
your opponent, possibly triggering such disadvantages as
Berserk and Bloodlust!
This advantage is usually only appropriate in a silly campaign!
ADVANTAGES 79
Reawakened 2 5
10 points
You can “remember” skills (spells,
techniques, etc.) learned during previous
lives. You must purchase these
abilities normally; Reawakened is just
a special Unusual Background (p. 96)
that explains how you learned them
without a teacher. This trait is only
available if reincarnation is a fact in
the setting (GM’s decision).
Recovery 3 1
10 points
You recover from unconsciousness
very quickly. When determining the
length of time you remain unconscious
for any reason, divide by all
times by 60: hours become minutes,
minutes become seconds . . . even a
month-long coma becomes a mere 12-
hour sleep.
Reduced Consumption
3
2 points/level
You can go for a long time without
food and water, or fuel – although you
still require these things. (For indefinite
endurance, see Doesn’t Eat or
Drink, p. 50.) This advantage comes in
four levels:
Reduced Consumption 1: You
require 2/3 as much food and water, or
fuel, as usual (“two meals a day”). 2
points.
Reduced Consumption 2: You
require 1/3 as much food and water, or
fuel, as usual (“one meal a day”). 4
points.
Reduced Consumption 3: You
require food and water only once per
week (“one meal a week,” or about 5%
as much). 6 points.
Reduced Consumption 4: You
require food and water only once per
month (“one meal a month,” or about
1% as much). 8 points.
Note that one or even two levels of
this advantage might be appropriate
for ascetics in cinematic games!
Special Limitations
Cast-Iron Stomach: You require the
standard amount of food and water,
but the quality is irrelevant. You can
eat rotten vegetables and fuzzy bluegreen
meat, and drink dishwater and
sour milk. Instead of reducing how
often you must eat, reduce your
demands on life support (and your
food costs) by a like amount: to 2/3
normal at level 1, 1/3 normal at level 2,
5% normal at level 3, and 1% normal
at level 4. You get a bonus equal to
your level (+1 to +4) to resist the
effects of food-borne poisons or diseases
not tailored expressly for you,
but -3 on reactions from anyone
watching you eat! -50%.
Food Only: You require less food,
but the usual amount of water. -50%.
Water Only: You require less water,
but the usual amount of food. -50%.
Regeneration 3 1
Variable
Your wounds heal in mere hours,
minutes, or seconds! To regenerate
lost limbs, you will also need
Regrowth (below) – but Regeneration
will greatly accelerate that ability.
Regeneration includes Rapid Healing
(p. 79) at no extra cost.
You cannot have Regeneration if
you have Slow Healing (p. 155) or
Unhealing (p. 160). Regeneration is
compatible with Draining (p. 132), but
it does not restore the daily HP loss
due to that disadvantage.
The cost of this trait depends on
your regeneration speed:
Regeneration (Slow): You recover 1
HP every 12 hours, in addition to normal
healing. 10 points.
Regeneration (Regular): You recover
1 HP per hour. 25 points.
Regeneration (Fast): You recover 1
HP per minute. 50 points.
Regeneration (Very Fast): You
recover 1 HP per second. 100 points.
Regeneration (Extreme): You recover
10 HP per second. 150 points.
Special Enhancements
Heals Radiation: You shed accumulated
rads at 10 times the rate at which
you heal missing HP. For instance,
Regeneration (Regular) removes 10
rads per hour. This will heal “permanent”
radiation damage. +40%.
Special Limitations
Radiation Only: As Heals
Radiation, but you only shed rads –
you do not heal HP. -60%.
Regrowth 3 1
40 points
You can regrow lost limbs and
organs! A lost ear, finger, toe, claw, tentacle
tip, etc. regrows in 1d weeks; a
lost hand or foot in 1d+1 months; and
a lost eye, arm, or leg in 2d+2 months.
If you also have Regeneration (above),
Regrowth works much faster: all lost
body parts regrow in the time it takes
you to heal to full HP.
Special Limitations
Minor: You can only regrow ears,
fingers, toes, and other small bits – not
hands, feet, eyes, etc. -50%.
Religious Rank
see Rank, p. 29
Reputation
see p. 26
A positive Reputation is an advantage
and should be noted as such on
your character sheet.
Resistant 3
Variable
You are naturally resistant (or even
immune) to noxious items or substances
that are not direct, physical
attacks. This gives you a bonus on all
HT rolls to resist incapacitation or
injury from such things.
The bonus from Resistant applies
to all rolls to resist noxious effects
within a particular category – usually
some combination of disease, poison,
and environmental syndromes (altitude
sickness, the bends, space sickness,
etc.). It also applies to rolls to
resist attacks that use these effects.
This includes Afflictions with one of
Blood Agent, Contact Agent, Follow-
Up, or Respiratory Agent, and Innate
Attacks that have such modifiers and
inflict toxic or fatigue damage.
Resistant does not protect against
effects that Damage Resistance or
Protected Sense either stop or provide
a HT bonus to resist. This includes
Afflictions and Innate Attacks that do
not have any of the modifiers given
above.
The base cost for Resistant
depends on the rarity of the effects it
counteracts:
80 ADVANTAGES
Very Common: A broad category
within the noxious items described
above. Example: Metabolic Hazards
(all threats that only affect the living,
including all disease and poison, plus
such syndromes as altitude sickness,
bends, seasickness, and jet lag). 30
points.
Common: A group of related items
encountered as often in nature as in
an attack, or some other suitably
broad subset of “Very Common.”
Example: Poison (all toxins, but not
asphyxiants or corrosives) or Sickness
(all diseases and environmental syndromes).
15 points.
Occasional: A group of closely
related items more often encountered
in nature than as a deliberate attack,
or a subset of a “Common” group.
Examples: Disease (all bacteria,
viruses, fungus infections, etc.) or
Ingested Poison. 10 points.
Rare: A specific item or environmental
syndrome, or a subset of an
“Occasional” group. Examples:
Acceleration (blackouts due to
extreme G-forces), Altitude Sickness,
Bends (decompression sickness),
Seasickness, or Space Sickness;
Nanomachines. 5 points.
Multiply base cost to reflect your
degree of resistance:
You are totally immune to all noxious
effects, and never have to make
resistance rolls (write this as
“Immunity” on your character sheet):
¥1.
You have +8 to all HT rolls to resist:
¥1/2.
You have +3 to all HT rolls to resist:
¥1/3.
Drop all fractions from the final
cost.
An ordinary human could believably
have any level of resistance to a
mundane “Rare” item, such as
Seasickness. He might also have
Resistant to Disease (+3) [3], Resistant
to Disease (+8) [5], or Resistant to
Poison (+3) [5]. Anything more would
be superhuman. Golems, robots,
undead, and other beings that are not
truly “alive” must take Immunity to
Metabolic Hazards [30]; this is already
included in the Machine meta-trait
(p. 263). When in doubt, the GM’s
word is final.
Mental Resistance: It is possible to
be Resistant to a purely mental threat.
This works as described above, except
that the bonus applies to resistance
rolls against IQ and Will instead of HT.
“Psionics” is an allowed category, and
is considered Very Common.
Scanning Sense 3 1
Variable
You can emit energy, bounce it off
objects, and analyze the returned signal
to build up a “picture” of your surroundings.
This lets you discern size
and shape, but not color or fine detail
(such as writing). It has nothing to do
with the normal human sense of sight,
and requires no light. As a result, you
may ignore darkness penalties in combat.
Perception is limited to a 120° arc
in front of you.
Your sense is “active.” Anyone who
can sense the signal you emit can
detect you, out to twice your own
range. Unlike other sensory advantages,
however, you can turn this ability
off; see Turning Advantages Off and
On (p. 34).
Below are several varieties of
Scanning Sense. Each is a separate
advantage, with its own special rules.
Where these rules contradict the general
ones given above, follow the special
rules. Each sense also has a base
range. To adjust this, take Increased
Range (p. 106) or Reduced Range
(p. 115).
Radar: Your Scanning Sense uses
radio waves. Base range is 2,000 yards.
You can only detect large (humansized
or larger), dense objects. On a
Sense roll, you get a general idea of the
relative size of the object, and whether
it is moving, but nothing more precise.
You cannot get an actual “image” with
Radar, or use it to aim attacks. Radar
works best on flying targets; roll at -4
to spot anyone who is not silhouetted
against the sky. Radar does not work at
all underwater. 20 points.
Imaging Radar: Your Scanning
Sense uses millimeter-wave radar.
Base range is 200 yards. You can spot
small objects and determine their
shape, but you must make a Sense roll
to distinguish fine relief (e.g., to identify
a face). Imaging Radar can see
through thin fabric or vegetation. You
get +3 to locate objects like concealed
weapons, and may ignore penalties for
spotting objects hidden behind light
brush. Ordinary radar detectors detect
Imaging Radar at -4. Imaging Radar
does not work underwater. 20 points.
Ladar: Your Scanning Sense uses a
laser beam. Base range is 200 yards.
Ladar is very similar to Imaging
Radar, but the beam is narrower and
offers better resolution. This gives -4
on rolls to locate objects of interest,
but +4 on rolls to identify them. Only
specialized ladar detectors can detect
Ladar, and at -4 even then. Ladar cannot
penetrate dense smoke or solid
objects. It has 10-50% range in falling
rain or snow, and 1% range underwater.
20 points.
Para-Radar: Your Scanning Sense
uses energy unknown to 21st-century
science. Treat Para-Radar as Imaging
Radar, except that it functions in any
environment! Ordinary radar detectors
cannot detect Para-Radar,
although some ultra-tech sensors
might be able to do so. 40 points.
Sonar: Your Scanning Sense uses
ultrasonic sound waves. Base range is
2,000 yards underwater. You can spot
small objects and determine their
shape, but you must make a Sense roll
to distinguish fine relief (e.g., to identify
a face). Sonar does not function if
you are deafened, and can be
“jammed” or fooled by a very loud
noise (e.g., an explosion). Individuals
with Ultrahearing can detect Sonar.
Sonar is much less effective in air:
range is only 20 yards multiplied by
air pressure in atmospheres (one
atmosphere on Earth). Sonar is completely
ineffective in vacuum. 20
points.
ADVANTAGES 81
Resistant does not protect against effects that
Damage Resistance or Protected Sense either
stop or provide a bonus to resist.
Special Enhancements
Extended Arc: You can scan an arc
greater than 120°. A 240° arc (as
described for Peripheral Vision, p. 74)
is +75%; a 360° arc (as described for
360° Vision, p. 34) is +125%.
Low-Probability Intercept (LPI):
This is only available for Radar and
Sonar. You can switch this enhancement
on and off. Turning it on makes
your signal difficult to detect. This
halves range, but your Scanning Sense
can only be detected at 1.5 times the
halved range. +10%.
Multi-Mode: This is only available
for Radar. You can switch between
Radar and Imaging Radar. (This is
much cheaper than buying the two
advantages separately, because they
overlap to some extent.) +50%.
Penetrating: This is only available
for Para-Radar. You can “see” inside
any object within range. This functions
exactly as Penetrating Vision 2
(p. 74). +50%.
Targeting: By taking an Aim
maneuver, you can “lock onto” any
object within range and determine its
precise range and speed – just as if you
had a high-tech rangefinder. This gives
you +3 to hit that target with an aimed
ranged attack. +20%.
Special Limitations
Targeting Only: As Targeting, but
you can only use your sense to “lock
onto” targets already spotted with
another sense; you cannot use it to
spot things. -40%.
Sealed 3 1
15 points
You are encased in a gas- and liquid-
impermeable layer. This makes
you waterproof, and grants complete
immunity to corrosive or toxic agents
that must touch skin or exposed
machinery to work. You must still
breathe, unless you also have Doesn’t
Breathe (p. 49); however, your exterior
breathing apparatus (nose, snorkel,
etc.) is protected by this trait.
Likewise, you are not automatically
pressurized; for that, take Pressure
Support (p. 77) or Vacuum Support
(p. 96).
Security Clearance 4
Variable
A government agency or corporation
trusts you with access to sensitive
information that would otherwise be
“off limits” to someone of your Rank
or Status. For instance, a general
“cleared” for military secrets commensurate
with his Military Rank would
not have to buy Security Clearance
separately, but a civilian with exactly
the same level of access would have to
pay points for the privilege.
Point cost depends on your degree
of access:
• You have access to a relatively
narrow range of secrets on a “need to
know” basis. Example: a strategic
bomber pilot, who might know secrets
about aircraft, weapons, and targets.
5 points.
• You have either free access to a
narrow range of secrets or “need to
know” access to a broad range of
secrets. Example: a counterintelligence
officer, who would have limited
access to many secrets, as part of his
job is to protect them. 10 points.
• You have free access to a broad
range of secrets. Example: a cinematic
secret agent, who will know almost
82 ADVANTAGES
any secret the plot requires him to
know. 15 points.
Halve these values (round up) if the
organization that grants the Security
Clearance is of relatively minor importance
(e.g., a small corporation or
municipal government).
You cannot receive a security clearance
without a thorough background
check. The GM is free to forbid this
advantage to any PC who has a suspicious
past (including such traits as
Debt or Secret) or an unstable personality
(for instance, Paranoia or
Sadism).
See Invisible 3 1
15 points
You can see objects or individuals
that are normally invisible. Buy this
advantage separately for each kind of
invisibility.
Sensitive
see Empathy, p. 51
Sensitive Touch 3 1
10 points
Your fingertips or equivalent
organs are extremely sensitive, allowing
you to sense residual heat in a
chair, faint vibrations in the floor as
someone approaches, etc. You get +4
(in addition to any Acute Touch
bonuses) on any task that utilizes the
sense of touch; e.g., a Forensics roll to
note the similarities or differences
between two pieces of fabric, or a
Search roll to feel out tiny concealed
objects.
Serendipity 2
15 points/level
You have the knack of being in the
right place at the right time. Each level
of this trait entitles you to one fortuitous
but plausible coincidence per
game session. The details are up to the
GM. For instance, the GM might
declare that one of the guards you
need to talk your way past just happens
to be your cousin, or that there is
a sports car idling in front of the bank
just as you run outside in pursuit of
the fleeing bank robbers.
From time to time, the GM may
rule that a single implausible coincidence
counts as some or all of your
lucky breaks for a given session (e.g.,
the mechanic at the local garage has
all the parts you need to complete
your ultra-tech contragrav belt).
You are free to suggest serendipitous
occurrences to the GM, but he
gets the final say. Should he reject all
your suggestions but fail to work
Serendipity into the game session, you
will get your lucky breaks next game
session.
Shadow Form 3 1
50 points
You can become a two-dimensional
shadow. This lets you slip along
walls and floors – and through the
thinnest cracks (anything wide
enough to fit your shoulders through)
– at your usual ground Move. You can
also defy gravity, creeping up walls
and across ceilings at half Move.
Physical attacks do half damage to
you in this form. Energy attacks do
normal damage, except for light-based
attacks, which do 50% extra damage.
Magic, psi, and other purely mental
abilities affect you normally.
You are subject to a few major
restrictions while in this form. You
cannot walk through three-dimensional
space; you must slide along an
object. Furthermore, you cannot perform
any purely physical attacks or
actions, and you cannot carry ordinary
items or affect them in any way.
You can use magic, psi, and similar
abilities, however.
If you cannot switch out of
Shadow Form, Shadow Form is a disadvantage
worth -20 points. This will
make it difficult to interact with others!
You may still add enhancements,
but they will work like limitations,
reducing the value of the disadvantage.
For instance, a +50% enhancement
would reduce the value of the
disadvantage by 50%, to -10 points.
Special Enhancements
Can Carry Objects: You may carry
objects. They take Shadow Form
when picked up and return to normal
when put down. You still may not
affect non-shadow objects. No encumbrance
is +10%; Light, +20%;
Medium, +50%; Heavy, +100%.
Shapeshifting 3 1
Variable
You can physically change into one
or more forms different from your
native form. To shift between forms,
you must concentrate for 10 seconds.
To speed this up, add Reduced Time
(p. 108).
Fatigue, injury, crippling, and
afflictions carry over between forms –
although HP and FP losses scale in
proportion to the HP and FP of the
form. For instance, if you suffer 10 HP
of damage and a broken leg in a form
that has 20 HP, you will have 5 HP of
damage and a broken leg when you
switch to a form that has only 10 HP.
If you are knocked out or killed,
you immediately revert to your native
form (which will also be unconscious
or dead). In addition, you must specify
a single, reasonably common external
influence that can force you to
return to your native form against
your will. This should suit the advantage’s
origin: a Dispel Magic spell if
your ability is magical, exorcism if a
spirit power, strong magnetic fields if
technological, etc.
Shapeshifting comprises two different
traits: Alternate Form and
Morph.
Alternate Form
Variable
Like the werewolf of folklore, you
can assume a specific form other than
your own. This can be anything built
with points: humanoid, animal, robot,
etc. Create your alternate form as a
racial template (p. 260); however, you
can switch it “on” and “off.” This template
need not be a “stock” template.
For instance, if you wish to retain
human intelligence in beast form, you
could shift into a template that lacks
the beast’s low IQ (although this
increases the template cost and hence
the cost of Alternate Form). The GM is
the final judge of what templates are
allowed as Alternate Forms.
While it is turned on, your
Alternate Form’s racial template
replaces your native racial template.
Apply its racial traits – attribute modifiers,
racial advantages and disadvantages,
etc. – instead of those of your
native race. Personal traits (including
all attribute levels, advantages, disadvantages,
and skills bought over and
above racial norms) remain intact,
although your skill levels are affected
by changes to the controlling attribute
scores.
ADVANTAGES 83
If the Alternate Form’s racial template
has traits that conflict with your
personal traits, the traits of your
Alternate Form take precedence. For
instance, if you become a dolphin with
No Manipulators, you will temporarily
lose personal advantages that affect
your hands, such as High Manual
Dexterity, while you are in dolphin
form – and some skills (for instance,
Lockpicking) will be relatively useless,
although you do remember them.
If you have a single Alternate
Form, it costs 15 points for a racial
template worth no more than your
native racial template. A more powerful
form costs 15 points plus 90% of
the difference in cost between your
native template and that of your
Alternate Form.
If you have multiple forms, pay full
cost for the most expensive form. The
less powerful Alternate Forms cost a
flat 15 points apiece. Minimum cost
per form is still 15 points.
Example: Consider four racial templates:
a -100-point “cuddly critter,” a
0-point human, an 80-point “ravenous
beast,” and a 100-point troll. A human
who can turn into a cuddly critter pays
15 points, as the cuddly critter template
is worth less than his native template.
A cuddly critter who can turn
into a human pays 15 + (0.9 ¥ 100) =
105 points, since the human racial
template is worth 100 points more
than his own. A human who can
become a troll also pays 15 + (0.9 ¥
100) = 105 points. A human who can
assume any of the other three templates
would pay full cost for his most
expensive form, the troll: 105 points.
The ravenous beast and cuddly critter
forms would cost the minimum 15
points apiece. Total cost would be 135
points.
Were-Creatures: To create the classic
“were-creature,” start by purchasing
any trait that applies in both forms
– Infectious Attack, Vulnerability
(Silver), etc. – as a personal trait. Next,
buy an animal template as an
Alternate Form. Since most beast templates
are worth 0 or fewer points, this
will usually cost 15 points, but powerful
creatures (e.g., bears and tigers)
may cost more. If the beast form is
savage, the template should include
such traits as Berserk, Bestial, and
Bloodlust. Finally, apply limitations
such as Emergencies Only (p. 112),
Unconscious Only (p. 115), and
Uncontrollable (p. 116) to Alternate
Form, as applicable. If you can only
change during the full moon, add a
-40% Trigger limitation (p. 115) as
well.
Shapeshifting Races: When creating
an entire race that has Alternate Form,
work out the details of Alternate Form
last. Total the cost of all the race’s
traits other than Alternate Form, subtract
this total from the cost of the
template the race transforms into, and
use the difference to calculate the cost
of Alternate Form for the race. Add the
cost of Alternate Form to that of the
race’s other abilities to determine final
racial cost.
Example: Forest Dwarves can turn
into sapient bears. Excluding
Alternate Form, the racial traits of
Forest Dwarves total 25 points. The
bear template is worth 125 points. The
difference is 125 - 25 = 100 points.
Thus, the cost of Alternate Form is 15
+ (0.9 ¥ 100) = 105 points. This makes
the Forest Dwarf template worth 25 +
105 = 130 points.
Special Limitations
Cosmetic: You can assume a second,
distinct appearance with no
change in abilities or racial template.
-50%.
Morph
Variable
This ability is similar to Alternate
Form, but not limited to specific racial
templates. You can assume any racial
template, within certain limits.
First, the racial template must
already exist in your game world. The
GM might design the template himself
or take one from a GURPS worldbook,
but you cannot design totally
new templates for the purpose of
Morph (you can adjust existing ones,
though; see below).
Second, you can only turn into a
living being, or a formerly living being
such as a vampire. To change into
a machine requires a special
enhancement.
Finally, the template’s point value
must be within a limit determined by
the number of points you have in
Morph.
If you can assume any racial template
worth no more than your native
one, Morph costs 100 points. This
makes many forms available – anything
no more powerful than your
native form. For a human, this
includes cats, insects, owls, and
wolves. If you can assume more powerful
forms, add the difference
between the maximum racial template
cost and the cost of your native
template to the base 100 points. For
instance, a human who can take on
any racial template worth up to 75
points would pay 175 points for
Morph. You may improve this limit
with earned character points.
You can always take on the form of
a being you can see or touch, provided
its racial template cost does not
exceed your maximum. Once you
have assumed a form, you can opt to
memorize it by concentrating for one
minute. This allows you to shapeshift
into that form at any time. You can
memorize a number of forms equal to
your IQ. If all your “slots” are full, you
must overwrite a previously memorized
form (your choice) to add the
new form.
As with Alternate Form, the racial
template of whatever you turn into
replaces your native racial template.
You may not add traits to templates,
but you may freely omit racial mental
disadvantages (e.g., Bestial), and you
may always choose to drop the racial
IQ modifier from a template and use
your own IQ. Such changes raise the
cost of animal templates, which are
cheap due to limited mental capabilities.
If you intend to do this, you
should spend more than the minimum
100 points on Morph.
Morph includes the ability to make
cosmetic changes. This lets you impersonate
a specific member of any race
you can turn into. You can always
impersonate someone who is present
– but to assume his form later on, you
must commit a memory “slot” to that
form. With enough points in Morph,
you can use this function to improve
appearance. For instance, 115 points
in Morph would let you give yourself
any appearance from Horrific to
Handsome. Cosmetic changes still
take the usual 10 seconds.
Shapeshifting Races: Members of a
race with the Morph ability must subtract
the point cost of Morph from
racial cost when determining what
forms they can assume.
84 ADVANTAGES
Example: Blue Blobs have a racial
Morph ability worth 125 points – the
basic ability, plus 25 points of extra
capacity. This lets them assume forms
worth 25 points more than their native
one. With their other traits, their total
racial cost is 175 points. However, for
the purpose of Morph, they are considered
to have a racial cost of 175 - 125 =
50 points. With their 25 points of additional
capacity, Blue Blobs can turn
into creatures worth up to 75 points.
Special Enhancements
Unlimited: You can become anything
the GM has defined with a racial
template. This lets you turn into
robots, vehicles, etc. as well as living
beings. Most ordinary inanimate
objects – such as bricks and toasters –
are worth 0 points or less. With the
GM’s permission, you can become a
typical example of an object like this
without the need for a specific racial
template. +50%.
Special Limitations
Cosmetic: You can only change
your outward appearance. Your abilities
and racial template are unaffected.
-50%. This limitation includes Mass
Conservation, but not Retains Shape.
Mass Conservation: All your forms
have the same weight. If the weight of
your native form falls outside the normal
racial weight range for a race, you
simply cannot become a member of
that race. The GM should be merciless
when enforcing this limitation – no
150-lb. mice or elephants! -20%.
Retains Shape: You can only
assume forms with the same number
of limbs, body layout, posture, etc. as
your native form. This would limit a
human Morph to humanoids (e.g.,
elves and giants), a wolf Morph to horizontal
quadrupeds, and a bird Morph
to other birds. -20%.
Shrinking 3 1
5 points/level
You can shrink at will. Each level
of Shrinking lets you change your Size
Modifier by -1, at the rate of -1 SM per
second. You return to normal size at
the same rate. By default, you cannot
carry any equipment, not even clothing,
when you shrink. The ability to
carry objects while shrunk is an
enhancement.
When you shrink, find your new
height from the Size Modifier Table
(p. 19). Every -6 to SM reduces height
by a factor of 10. Reduce Move, reach,
damage (with unarmed attacks,
Innate Attacks, or shrunken weapons),
HP, and DR in proportion to height.
Every full -2 to SM also reduces
weight by a factor of 10; for odd-numbered
levels, treat the extra -1 as an
additional factor of 3 (e.g., -3 to SM
reduces weight by a factor of 30).
Example: A 5’10”-tall character
(SM 0) has Shrinking 12. This lets him
shrink until he has SM -12, reducing
his height by a factor of 100 (to about
0.7”). However, at that size he has only
1% his usual Move, reach, HP, and
DR, and must divide any damage he
inflicts by 100. His weight goes down
by a factor of 1,000,000!
Special Enhancements
Affects Others: You can bring your
friends with you when you shrink!
+50% per person you can affect at the
same time.
Can Carry Objects: You may carry
objects. This is limited to equipment
you are actually carrying or wearing
when you shrink. Such items regain
normal size when put down; at the
GM’s option, they might sweep you
aside as they grow, or even return to
normal size beneath you, stranding
you high above the ground! No
encumbrance is +10%; Light, +20%;
Medium, +50%; Heavy, +100%.
Full Damage: You inflict full damage
when shrunk. (GMs be warned:
this makes for an almost perfect assassin.)
+100%.
Full DR: You retain full DR when
shrunk. +30%.
Full HP: You retain full HP when
shrunk. +30%.
Full Move: You retain full Move
when shrunk. +30%.
Signature Gear 4
Variable
You have distinctive, valuable possessions
unrelated to your wealth level.
This gear is as much a part of your personal
legend as are your reputation
and skills. You must explain where it
came from: you won your starship in a
card game, inherited your magic
sword from your mentor, etc.
For equipment normally bought
with money, such as weapons and
armor, each point in Signature Gear
gives goods worth up to 50% of the
average campaign starting wealth (but
never cash). For anything built as a
character, use the rules under Allies
(p. 36) instead. It is up to the GM
whether to treat android companions,
faithful steeds, custom vehicles, etc. as
equipment (with a cash cost) or characters
(with a point cost).
If you misplace Signature Gear or
sell it unwillingly, or an NPC steals or
confiscates it, the GM must give you
an opportunity to recover it in the
course of the adventure. If it is truly
lost forever through no fault of your
own, the GM will give you back your
points (or replace the item with another
of equal value). However, should
you sell or give away your Signature
Gear of your own free will, it is gone,
along with the points spent on it!
Silence 3 1
5 points/level
You can move and breathe noiselessly.
You get +2 per level to Stealth
skill when you are perfectly motionless,
or +1 if moving (even in armor,
etc.). These bonuses help only in the
dark, or against listening devices,
blind creatures, and others who must
rely on hearing to find you.
Single-Minded 2
5 points
You can really concentrate! You get
+3 to success rolls for any lengthy
mental task you concentrate on to the
exclusion of other activities, if the GM
feels such focus would be beneficial.
You tend to ignore everything else
while obsessed (roll vs. Will to avoid
this), and have -5 to all rolls to notice
interruptions.
The GM may rule that certain complex
tasks (e.g., inventing, magic, and
social activities) require you to divide
your attention. This trait has no effect
in such situations.
Slippery 3 1
2 points/level
You are hard to hold! You might be
slimy, molecularly smooth, or surrounded
by a force field that negates
friction. Each level of this trait (maximum
five levels) gives +1 on all ST,
DX, and Escape rolls to slip restraints,
break free in close combat, or squeeze
through narrow openings.
Smooth Operator
see Talent, p. 89.
ADVANTAGES 85
Snatcher 2 5
80 points
You have the power to find almost
any small item you desire in an alternate
world and “snatch” it across the
dimensions to you. The items you
snatch do not come from your own
world, but from some nameless parallel;
therefore, you can never intentionally
take something away from a specific
other person. Note that this talent
does not allow you to visit alternate
worlds in person – only to steal from
them.
To make a snatch, you must first
concentrate for 10 seconds and clearly
visualize the item you want. The item
must be able to fit in one hand, and
cannot weigh more than 5 lbs. You
should have a hand free (if your hands
are tied, you roll at -3), and others can
see you making “reaching” motions
with that hand.
Next, make an IQ roll for the
snatch attempt. If you are trying for
information in any form, the GM
makes this roll for you (see below).
Regardless of IQ, a roll of 14 or more
always fails.
On a success, the desired item
appears in your hand – or sitting within
arm’s reach, if you prefer. On a failure,
you obtain nothing. On a critical
failure, you snatched the wrong item!
This item is not immediately dangerous
unless you were trying for something
dangerous.
Regardless of success or failure,
each snatch attempt costs 2 FP.
Items Available
In theory, you can get anything. In
practice, some things are so hard to
find that it is little use trying for them.
You have a good chance of getting any
item that exists, or that ever existed, in
your own world – or any reasonably
similar item. If the desired item is
unusual, the GM may apply a penalty
to the IQ roll:
Item is significantly different from
anything that ever appeared in your
own world: -1 or more (GM’s option).
You could visualize “a perfect diamond,
bright green, the size of a hen’s
egg, carved into the shape of a typewriter,”
but you might be rolling at
-20!
Item is unique or almost unique
in any one world (e.g., the Hope
Diamond): -3 or worse (GM’s option).
You cannot clearly visualize what
you want: -4 or worse (GM’s option).
Even on a “success,” you might not get
what you were really hoping for.
You cannot get an item that works
by natural laws wholly different from
those in your world. For instance, if
your world is nonmagical (or has no
magic that you know of), you cannot
snatch a magic item, because you are
unable to visualize it properly; you
would get a pretty but powerless mundane
item. Similarly, if you are from a
low-TL world, you could not get a
laser pistol; you wouldn’t be able to
visualize it well, and your best effort
would be a broken or toy gun. (A generous
GM might bend this rule on a
critical success . . . and then let the
poor Snatcher try to figure out how to
use his amulet or laser pistol without
killing himself.)
Information is not available except
in the form of “ordinary” textbooks,
reports, etc. You can grab a history
book, but you can’t ask for “The Book
of What Happens Next in My
Adventure.” Note that the GM makes
the roll if information is requested. If
the roll fails by 5 or more, the information
comes from an alternate world
with different history, physics, etc.,
and is wrong – maybe subtly, maybe
not subtly at all!
Repeated Attempts
If your snatch attempt is unsuccessful,
you can immediately try to
snatch the same or a similar object
again. These “repeated attempts” are
made at a cumulative -1 to the IQ roll.
Each repeated attempt costs 4 FP
instead of the usual 2 FP. To eliminate
these penalties, wait one hour
between attempts.
The GM should be strict about
attempts to circumvent this. For
instance, a “.45 pistol” is not very different
from a “.357 pistol” for the purpose
of this advantage. Furthermore,
ignore critical successes on repeated
attempts made in quick succession. If
the snatch being attempted is very difficult,
there is little choice but to wait
an hour between attempts.
Duration
The objects you snatch remain
until you voluntarily return them or
use your Snatcher ability again. To
keep objects indefinitely, take the
Permanent enhancement (below).
Special Enhancements
Permanent: Objects you snatch
don’t vanish when you use your ability
again. The GM is free to forbid this
enhancement, as it allows a single
Snatcher to amass boundless wealth
by snatching small, valuable objects.
+300%.
Special Limitations
Less Weight: Your weight limit is
lower than 5 lbs.
Limit Cost Modifier
3 lbs. -5%
2 lbs. -10%
1 lb. -15%
4 oz. -25%
1 oz. -30%
Specialized: You can only grab a
certain type of object, or cannot touch
a certain class of thing. Examples:
Only metal, -5%; Only money, -10%;
Only weapons, -10%; Only information,
-20%; No metal, -20%; Only blue
things, -25%. The GM sets the limitation
value using the guidelines under
Accessibility (p. 110).
Stunning: You are mentally
stunned after a successful snatch.
-10%.
Unpredictable: On a failed IQ roll,
you get something, but it isn’t what
you wanted. The worse the failure, the
more different the item is. If you wanted
a loaded pistol, failure by 1 might
bring an unloaded pistol. Failure by 2
could mean a water pistol, failure by 3
a book on “How to Shoot,” and so on
. . . with a critical failure bringing a
live hand grenade. Any critical failure
is dangerous, regardless of what you
were looking for! -25%.
Social Chameleon 2
5 points
You have the knack of knowing
exactly what to say – and when to say
it – around your social “betters.” You
are exempt from reaction penalties
due to differences in Rank or Status.
In situations where there would be no
such penalty, you get +1 on reactions
from those who demand respect
(priests, kings, etc.). This is a cinematic
advantage!
Social Regard 4
5 points per +1 reaction
You are a member of a class, race,
sex, or other group that your society
86 ADVANTAGES
holds in high regard. To be an advantage,
this must be obvious to anyone
who meets you. This is the opposite of
Social Stigma (p. 155); membership in
a given social group cannot result in
both Social Regard and Social Stigma.
Social Regard costs 5 points per +1
to reaction rolls, to a maximum of +4.
This is not a Reputation, despite the
similarities in cost and effect. You are
treated well because of what you are,
not because of who you are. Think of
it as “privilege by association.”
The way you are treated on a good
reaction roll will depend on the type of
Regard:
Feared: Others will react to you
much as if you had successfully used
Intimidation skill (p. 202). Those who
like you stand aside, while those who
dislike you flee rather than risk a confrontation.
You are met with silent
deference, and perhaps even respect,
but never friendly familiarity.
Examples: a god among men or an
Amazon warrior.
Respected: You receive polite and
obsequious deference, much as if you
had high Status (p. 28), regardless of
your actual Status. Social interactions
other than combat usually go smoothly
for you – but there will be times
when the kowtowing gets in the way.
Examples: a member of a priest caste
or a ruling race.
Venerated: Total strangers react to
you in a caring way. They give up
seats, let you ahead of them in lines,
and receive your every word as pearls
of wisdom. They also take great pains
to prevent you from putting yourself
in danger or even discomfort – even
when you need to do so! Example: an
elderly person in many societies.
Speak Underwater 3 1
5 points
You can talk normally while submerged,
and you can understand what
others say while underwater.
Special Enhancements
Interface Crossing: You can talk to
those outside of the water while submerged,
and can understand people
on the surface talking to you. +50%.
Speak With Animals 2 1
25 points
You can converse with animals.
The quality of information you receive
depends on the beast’s IQ and the GM’s
decision on what the animal has to say.
Insects and other tiny creatures might
only be able to convey emotions such
as hunger and fear, while a chimp or a
cat might be able to engage in a reasonably
intelligent discussion. It takes
one minute to ask one question and get
the answer – if the animal decides to
speak at all. The GM may require a
reaction roll (+2 to reactions if you
offer food).
The GM is free to rule that alien,
unnatural, or mythical beasts don’t
count as “animals” for the purpose of
this advantage.
Special Limitations
Specialized: You can only communicate
with certain animals. “All land
animals” (including birds, insects, and
land-dwelling mammals and reptiles)
or “All aquatic animals” (including
amphibians, fish, mollusks, crustaceans,
and cetaceans) is -40%; one
class (e.g., “Mammals” or “Birds”),
-50%; one family (e.g., “Felines” or
“Parrots”), -60%; one species (e.g.,
“House Cats” or “Macaws”), -80%.
Speak With Plants 2 1
15 points
You can communicate empathically
with plants. All earthly plants are IQ
0, but a large tree might be “wiser”
than the average ivy, at the GM’s
whim. A plant might know how
recently it was watered or walked on,
or something else that directly bears
on its well-being, but would be unable
to relate an overheard phone conversation.
Any normal plant will always
cooperate, within the limits of its ability.
A mutant cabbage from Mars
might require a reaction roll!
ADVANTAGES 87
Special Rapport 2 5
5 points
You have a unique bond with
another person. This acts as a potent
version of Empathy (p. 51) that works
only with one person, without regard
to distance. You always know when
your partner is in trouble, in pain,
lying, or in need of help, no matter
where he is. This requires no IQ roll.
Your partner receives the same benefits
with respect to you.
Both partners in a Special Rapport
must buy this advantage. Your partner
need not be a lover, or even a close
friend, but the GM has the final say. In
particular, the GM may wish to forbid
PCs from buying Special Rapports
with powerful NPCs who would otherwise
qualify as Patrons (or allow it,
but require an Unusual Background).
Spines 3 1
1 or 3 points
You have sharp spines, like those of
a porcupine or an echidna, located on
strategic parts of your body. This is
defensive weaponry, intended to discourage
attackers; you cannot use
your Spines actively. However, you get
a DX-4 roll to hit each foe in close
combat with you once per turn, as a
free action. Roll at +2 against foes who
attacked you from behind. Those who
grapple or slam you are hit immediately
and automatically – and those
who slam you take maximum damage!
Short Spines: One or two inches
long. Do 1d-2 impaling damage.
Reach C. 1 point.
Long Spines: One or two feet long.
Do 1d impaling damage. Reach C. 3
points.
Spirit Empathy 2 5
10 points
You are in tune with spirits, and
receive the benefits of Empathy
(p. 51) when dealing with them. You
can get a feeling for the general
intentions of any spirit you
encounter by making a successful IQ
roll. As well, your Influence skills
(Diplomacy, Sex Appeal, etc.) work
normally on spirits, which sets you
aside from most mortals. Spirit
Empathy does not prevent evil or
mischievous spirits from seeking to
harm you, but at the GM’s option, it
might make it easier to detect and
counter their plots.
Special Limitations
Specialized: You are naturally in
tune with the customs and moods of
one specific class of spirits.
Possibilities include angels, demons,
elementals, faerie, ghosts, and anything
else the GM wishes to allow.
-50%.
Status
see p. 28
High Status is an advantage, and
should be noted on your character
sheet.
Stretching 3 1
6 points/level
You can stretch your body in any
direction. Each level of Stretching lets
you increase your effective SM by +1
with any body part without increasing
your overall SM. You can elongate
your arms to increase reach (but not
swinging damage, as Stretching gives
no extra mass or muscle), your legs to
negotiate obstacles, your neck to see
over barriers, etc. For more information,
see Size Modifier and Reach
(p. 402). Your body parts grow or
shrink at the rate of ±1 SM per second.
By itself, Stretching is ideal for
machines with telescoping manipulators.
A super with a “rubber body”
should add some combination of
Elastic Skin (p. 51), Double-Jointed
(p. 56), Morph (p. 84), and Super
Jump (p. 89).
Striker 3 1
5, 6, 7, or 8 points
You have a body part that you can
use to strike an aimed blow, but not to
manipulate objects (see Extra Arms,
p. 53) or walk on (see Extra Legs,
p. 54). This might be a set of horns or
protruding tusks, a heavy tail, a
stinger, or any number of other natural
weapons.
Your Striker can attack at reach C
(“close combat only”), inflicting thrust
damage at +1 per die; e.g., 2d-1
becomes 2d+1. Damage is crushing or
piercing for 5 points, large piercing for
6 points, cutting for 7 points, or impaling
for 8 points. See Innate Attack
(p. 61) for details.
Roll against DX or Brawling to hit
with your Striker. You can also use it
to parry as if you had a weapon. Use
the higher of (DX/2) + 3 or your
Brawling parry.
Special Enhancements
Long: Your Striker is long relative
to your body. This increases your
effective SM for the purpose of calculating
reach (see Size Modifier and
Reach, p. 402). +100% per +1 to SM if
you can attack at any reach from C to
maximum, or +75% per +1 to SM if
you can only attack at maximum
reach (and never in close combat).
Special Limitations
Cannot Parry: You cannot parry
with your Striker. -40%.
Clumsy: Your Striker is unusually
inaccurate. This is common for tails
and similar Strikers aimed from outside
your usual arc of vision. -20% per
-1 to hit.
Limited Arc: Your Striker can only
attack straight ahead, straight behind,
etc. Specify a direction when you buy
the Striker. If your target isn’t in the
right place, and you cannot maneuver
to put him there, you cannot attack
him at all. -40%.
Weak: Your Striker is unusually
blunt or light, or simply incapable of
using your full ST. It inflicts only basic
thrust damage, without the +1 per die.
-50%.
Striking ST 3 1
5 points per +1 ST
You can strike more powerful
blows than your ST score would indicate.
Add Striking ST to base ST
88 ADVANTAGES
Stretching is ideal for machines with
telescoping mechanisms. A super with a “rubber
body” should add some combination of Elastic
Skin, Double-Jointed, Morph, and Super Jump.
solely for the purpose of calculating
thrust and swing damage (see Damage
Table, p. 16). Striking ST has no effect
on HP or Basic Lift. If you bought
your ST with the No Fine
Manipulators or Size limitation, apply
the same limitation(s) to Striking ST.
Subsonic Hearing 3 1
0 or 5 points
You can hear very low-frequency
sounds (under 40 Hz), such as the
rumble of distant storms, the vibrations
from incipient earthquakes, and
the approach of stampeding herd
beasts, armored vehicles, or dragons.
This gives +1 to Tracking skill if your
quarry is moving on the ground. Cost
depends on your capabilities:
You can hear very low-frequency
sounds only: 0 points.
You can hear very low-frequency
sounds and other sounds: 5 points.
Note that Subsonic Hearing is
included in the cost of Subsonic
Speech (below); you cannot take both
traits.
Subsonic Speech 3 1
0 or 10 points
You can converse using extremely
low-frequency sounds. This trait
includes Subsonic Hearing, above.
Subsonic speech is slow (half-speed),
and even if the frequency is shifted
into the normal range, subsonic
speakers are at -2 to Fast-Talk and any
other skill where versatile speaking is
important. However, subsonic speech
carries twice as far as normal speech.
Cost depends on your capabilities:
You can only communicate via
Subsonic Speech: 0 points.
You can switch between regular
speech and Subsonic Speech at will:
10 points.
Super Climbing 3 1
3 points/level
You can climb very quickly. Each
level of Super Climbing gives you +1
Move when climbing or using the
Clinging advantage (p. 43).
Super Jump 3 1
10 points/level
You can make superhuman leaps!
Each level of Super Jump doubles the
distance and height you can achieve
when jumping (see Jumping, p. 352).
Your Move while jumping is the
greater of your normal ground Move
and 1/5 your maximum long jump distance
(thus, your maximum jump
never takes more than five seconds).
For instance, if your long jump were
100 yards, your jumping Move would
be the greater of 20 and your normal
ground Move.
You can jump at a foe in order to
slam him. Figure the slam at your
maximum jumping Move! You don’t
need to make a separate roll to jump
accurately.
Finally, if you fall a distance less
than or equal to your maximum high
jump, you take no damage. You can
increase this distance by five yards
with a successful Acrobatics roll.
Super Luck 2 5
100 points
You are not just lucky – you have
limited control over probability. Once
per hour of play, you may dictate the
result of any one die roll you make (or
the GM makes for you) instead of
rolling the dice. Wholly impossible
attempts cannot succeed (your effective
skill level must be at least 3), but
you can choose any result that would
be possible – however improbable – on
a single normal die roll.
You can have Super Luck and any
degree of “normal” Luck, but no one
can take Super Luck more than once!
Supernatural Durability
3 5
150 points
Like a vampire or psycho killer
from a horror movie, you can “shake
off” most wounds. Injury comes off
HP as usual, and you suffer knockback,
but you are completely immune
to shock, physical stun, and knockout.
You don’t need High Pain Threshold –
this ability includes that one, and is far
more potent!
As long as you have 0 or more HP,
you are also immune to crippling
injuries, and have your full Move.
Below 0 HP, you are at half Move, and
can be crippled, but you won’t die
unless you are wounded by an attack
to which you are specifically vulnerable
(see below). The sole exception to
this is a single attack that inflicts an
injury of 10¥HP or more. That much
damage at once will blow you apart,
killing you.
To die, you must first be wounded
to -HP or worse. After that, one specific
item can kill you. You must specify
this when you buy Supernatural
Durability. Valid categories appear
under Limited Defenses (p. 46); the
item that can kill you must be of
“Occasional” rarity or higher. If
wounds from this item ever reduce
your HP to the point where a normal
human would have to make HT rolls
to survive, you must make those HT
rolls or die. If this item wounds you to
-5¥HP, you die automatically. If you
are already below -5¥HP from other
damage, any wound from this item
will kill you. Any item to which you
have a Vulnerability (p. 161) can also
kill you in this way.
Talent 2
Variable
You have a natural aptitude for a
set of closely related skills. “Talents”
come in levels, and give the following
benefits:
• A bonus of +1 per level with all
affected skills, even for default use.
This effectively raises your attribute
scores for the purpose of those skills
only; thus, this is an inexpensive way
to be adept at small class of skills.
(Generalists will find it more costeffective
to raise attributes.)
• A bonus of +1 per level on all
reaction rolls made by anyone in a
position to notice your Talent, if he
would be impressed by your aptitude
(GM’s judgment). To receive this
bonus, you must demonstrate your
Talent – most often by using the affected
skills.
• A reduction in the time required
to learn the affected skills in play,
regardless of how you learn them.
Reduce the time required by 10% per
level of Talent; e.g., Animal Friend 2
would let you learn animal-related
skills in 80% the usual time. This has
no effect on the point cost of your
skills.
You may never have more than
four levels of a particular Talent.
However, overlapping Talents can give
skill bonuses (only) in excess of +4.
ADVANTAGES 89
Cost of Talents
The cost of a Talent depends on the
size of the group of skills affected:
Small (6 or fewer related skills): 5
points/level.
Medium (7 to 12 related skills): 10
points/level.
Large (13 or more related skills): 15
points/level.
Skills with multiple specialties are
considered to be one skill for this purpose.
Once you buy a Talent, the list of
affected skills is fixed. (Exception: The
GM may rule that a Talent affects new
skills appearing in later GURPS supplements,
or skills he invents in the
course of the campaign, if the Talent
would logically be of value to those
skills.)
Examples of Talents
The following Talents are considered
standard, and exist in most campaigns:
Animal Friend: Animal Handling,
Falconry, Packing, Riding, Teamster,
and Veterinary. Reaction bonus: all
animals. 5 points/level.
Artificer: Armoury, Carpentry,
Electrician, Electronics Repair,
Engineer, Machinist, Masonry,
Mechanic, and Smith. Reaction bonus:
anyone you do work for. 10
points/level.
Business Acumen: Accounting,
Administration, Economics, Finance,
Gambling, Market Analysis,
Merchant, and Propaganda. Reaction
bonus: anyone you do business with.
10 points/level.
Gifted Artist: Artist, Jeweler,
Leatherworking, Photography, and
Sewing. Reaction bonus: anyone buying
or critiquing your work. 5
points/level.
Green Thumb: Biology, Farming,
Gardening, Herb Lore, and Naturalist.
Reaction bonus: gardeners and sentient
plants. 5 points/level.
Healer: Diagnosis, Esoteric
Medicine, First Aid, Pharmacy,
Physician, Physiology, Psychology,
Surgery, and Veterinary. Reaction
bonus: patients, both past and present.
10 points/level.
Mathematical Ability: Accounting,
Astronomy, Cryptography, Engineer,
Finance, Market Analysis, Mathematics,
and Physics. Reaction bonus:
engineers and scientists. 10 points/level.
90 ADVANTAGES
Musical Ability: Group
Performance (Conducting), Musical
Composition, Musical Influence,
Musical Instrument, and Singing.
Reaction bonus: anyone listening to or
critiquing your work. 5 points/level.
Outdoorsman: Camouflage,
Fishing, Mimicry, Naturalist,
Navigation, Survival, and Tracking.
Reaction bonus: explorers, nature
lovers, and the like. 10 points/level.
Smooth Operator: Acting,
Carousing, Detect Lies, Diplomacy,
Fast-Talk, Intimidation, Leadership,
Panhandling, Politics, Public
Speaking, Savoir-Faire, Sex Appeal,
and Streetwise. Reaction bonus: con
artists, politicians, salesmen, etc. –
but only if you are not trying to
manipulate them. 15 points/level.
Custom Talents
At the GM’s option, you may create
your own Talent with a custom skill
list. However, the GM’s word is law
when determining which skills are
“related” and how may points the
Talent is worth. Talents should always
be believable inborn aptitudes. For
instance, Sports Talent might make
sense – some athletes really do seem to
have a gift – but the GM ought to forbid
Ninja Talent or Weapon Talent
(but see Weapon Master, p. 99).
Teeth 3 1
0, 1, or 2 points
Anyone with a mouth has blunt
teeth that can bite for thrust-1 crushing
damage. This costs 0 points, and is
typical of most herbivores. You have a
more damaging bite:
Sharp Teeth: Like those of most carnivores.
Inflict thrust-1 cutting damage.
1 point.
Sharp Beak: Like that of a bird of
prey. Inflicts thrust-1 large piercing
damage. 1 point.
Fangs: Like those of a Smilodon.
Inflict thrust-1 impaling damage. 2
points.
Telecommunication
2/3 1
Variable
You can communicate over long
distances without speaking aloud. You
can send words at the speed of
ordinary speech or pictures at the
speed at which you could draw them.
To establish contact requires one second
of concentration and an IQ roll.
After that, no concentration is
required. You can maintain multiple
contacts, but the IQ roll is at a cumulative
-1 per contact after the first.
Telecommunication works amid
even the loudest noises, although
interference and jamming can disrupt
your signal. Those with suitable
equipment may attempt to locate,
intercept, or jam your transmission.
This requires an Electronics Operation
(Communications) roll for an
electromagnetic signal, an Electronics
Operation (Psychotronics) roll for a
psionic signal, and so forth.
Each variety of Telecommunication
is a separate advantage with
its own benefits and drawbacks. Some
forms have limited range, which you
can adjust using Increased Range
(p. 106) or Reduced Range (p. 115).
Infrared Communication: You
communicate using a modulated
infrared beam. Base range is 500
yards in a direct line of sight. The
short range and line-of-sight requirement
make jamming and eavesdropping
almost impossible under normal
circumstances. You can only communicate
with those who have this
advantage or an infrared communicator.
10 points.
Laser Communication: You communicate
using a modulated laser
beam. Base range is 50 miles in a
direct line of sight. The narrow beam
and line-of-sight requirement make it
extremely hard to eavesdrop on you.
You can only communicate with people
who have this advantage or a laser
communicator. 15 points.
Radio: You communicate using
radio waves. Base range is 10 miles.
Your signal is omnidirectional, but
because you can shift frequencies,
eavesdroppers must still roll vs.
Electronics Operation (Communications)
to listen in. A side benefit of
this ability is that you can receive AM,
FM, CB, and other ordinary radio signals
on an IQ roll (takes one second).
Note that radio-frequency “noise”
from lightning and unshielded electronics
can interfere with Radio.
Radio does not work at all underwater.
10 points.
Telesend: You can transmit
thoughts directly to others via magic,
psi, or other exotic means (be specific!).
Your subject receives your
thoughts even if he lacks this ability.
Range is theoretically unlimited, but
the IQ roll to use this ability takes the
range penalties given under Long-
Distance Modifiers (p. 241). If you cannot
see or otherwise sense your subject,
you have an additional penalty: -1
for family, lovers, or close friends; -3
for casual friends and acquaintances;
or -5 for someone met only briefly. 30
points.
Special Enhancements
Broadcast: This enhancement is
only available for Telesend. It lets you
send your thoughts to everyone in a
radius around you. This requires an
IQ roll at the long-distance modifier
for the desired radius, plus an additional
-4. +50%.
Short Wave: This is only available
for Radio. You can bounce your signal
off a planet’s ionosphere (if the planet
has one). This lets you transmit to (or
receive from) any point on the planet.
Note that solar flares, weather, etc. can
disrupt short-wave communications.
+50%.
Universal: Your messages are automatically
translated into your subject’s
language. The GM may limit this
enhancement to individuals from
advanced tech levels, or restrict it to
Telesend. +50%.
Video: You are not limited to simple
pictures! You can transmit real-time
video of anything you can see. +40%.
Special Limitations
Racial: Your ability only works on
those of your own race or a very similar
race, per Mind Reading (p. 69).
-20%.
Receive Only: You can receive but
not send. This limitation is not available
for Telesend. -50%.
Send Only: You can send but not
receive. This limitation is not available
for Telesend. -50%.
Telepathic: Your ability is part of
the Telepathy psi power (see p. 257).
-10%.
Vague: You cannot send speech or
pictures. You can only send a simple
code (e.g., Morse code) – or general
concepts and emotions, in the case of
Telesend. -50%.
ADVANTAGES 91
Telekinesis 2/3 1
5 points/level
You can move objects without
touching them. In effect, you manifest
an invisible force that acts under your
conscious direction at a distant point.
Specify how you do this; possibilities
include magnetism, psionic psychokinesis,
an ultra-tech “tractor beam,” or
a supernatural “poltergeist effect.”
You can manipulate distant objects
just as if you were grasping them in a
pair of hands with ST equal to your
Telekinesis (TK) level. You can move
any object you have strength enough
to lift, at a Move equal to your TK
level, modified as usual for encumbrance
level (see Encumbrance and
Move, p. 17). Regardless of level, maximum
range is 10 yards. To modify
range, take Increased Range (p. 106)
or Reduced Range (p. 115).
Telekinesis requires constant concentration
to use. In combat, this
means you must take a Concentrate
maneuver on your turn. Your TK may
then perform one standard maneuver
as if were a disembodied pair of hands
at some point within your range: a
Ready maneuver to pick up an object;
a Move maneuver to lift and carry it;
an Attack maneuver to throw it, or to
grab or strike directly; and so on.
Example: On your turn in combat,
you take a Concentrate maneuver and
state that your TK is taking an Attack
maneuver to grab a gun from a foe.
The following turn, you can
Concentrate again and specify that
your TK is taking an Aim or Wait
maneuver to cover your enemy with
the gun, an Attack maneuver to shoot
him, or a Move maneuver to bring the
gun to your hand.
No rolls are necessary for ordinary
lifting and movement. For more complex
actions, the GM might require
you to make a DX or skill roll. In situations
where you would roll against
ST, roll against your TK level instead.
All of the above assumes that you
are using TK to perform a task at a
distance. TK can also discreetly assist
you with such skills as Gambling
(especially to cheat!), Lockpicking,
and Surgery. In general, anything that
would benefit from High Manual
Dexterity (p. 59) gets a +4 bonus if you
can successfully make an IQ roll to use
your TK properly. On a failure, the
GM may assess any penalty he feels is
appropriate.
Grappling and Striking: You can use
TK to attack a foe directly. Roll against
DX or an unarmed combat skill to hit.
Your foe defends as if attacked by an
invisible opponent (see Visibility,
p. 394). If you grapple, your foe cannot
grab hold of the TK force, but he
can try to break free as usual – and if
he also has TK, he can take a
Concentrate maneuver and use his TK
level instead of his ST. The turn after
you grapple a foe using TK, your TK
can use a Move maneuver to pick him
up off the ground, provided you have
enough TK to lift his weight. Someone
in this position can’t do anything that
relies on ground contact (run, retreat,
etc.), but can perform any other action
that is possible while grappled.
Levitation: If you have enough TK
to lift your own body weight, you can
levitate. Take the Concentrate maneuver
and have your TK take Move
maneuvers to propel your body. For
true psychokinetic flight, take Flight
(p. 56) with the Psychokinetic limitation
(below).
Throwing: By applying a TK
impulse for a fraction of a second, you
can throw objects faster (and farther)
than you can move them. Take a
Concentrate maneuver and have your
TK take an Attack maneuver. This
works just as if you were throwing the
object with ST equal to your TK level.
Roll against Throwing or Thrown
Weapon skill to hit, depending on the
object being hurled. For 1/2D and Max
purposes, measure range from the
object (not yourself!) to the target; for
the purpose of range penalties, use the
sum of the distance from you to the
object and from the object to the target.
Once you throw something, you
have “released” your telekinetic grip –
your TK must take a Ready maneuver
to pick it up again.
Special Limitations
Magnetic: Your TK is “super
magnetism,” and only affects ferrous
metals: iron (including steel), nickel,
and cobalt. -50%.
Psychokinetic: Your ability is part
of the Psychokinesis psi power (see
p. 256). This makes it mental (2)
rather than physical (3). -10%.
Visible: Your TK is not an invisible
force, but a disembodied hand, glowing
“tractor beam,” or similar. This
makes it much easier for others to
defend against your TK attacks (do
not use the Visibility rules). -20%.
Telescopic Vision 3 1
5 points/level
You can “zoom in” with your eyes
as if using binoculars. Each level lets
you ignore -1 in range penalties to
Vision rolls at all times, or -2 in range
penalties if you take an Aim maneuver
to zoom in on a particular target. This
ability can also function as a telescopic
sight, giving up to +1 Accuracy per
level with ranged attacks provided you
take an Aim maneuver for seconds
equal to the bonus (see Scopes under
Firearm Accessories, p. 411).
The benefits of this trait are not
cumulative with those of technological
aids such as binoculars or scopes.
If you have both, you must opt to use
one or the other.
Special Limitations
No Targeting: Your field of vision is
broad and not “zeroed” to your ranged
attacks. You get no Accuracy bonus in
combat. -60%.
Temperature Control
2/3 1
5 points/level
You can alter the ambient temperature.
Heating or cooling is limited to
20° per level, and occurs at a rate of 2°
per level per second of concentration.
You can affect a two-yard radius at a
distance of up to 10 yards. Use
Increased Range (p. 106) or Reduced
Range (p. 115) to modify range; add
levels of Area Effect (p. 102) to
increase radius.
92 ADVANTAGES
Telekinesis: Possibilities include magnetism,
psionic psychokinesis, an ultra-tech “tractor
beam,” or a supernatural “poltergeist effect.”
This ability never does damage
directly. For that, buy Innate Attack –
usually either burning (for flame) or
fatigue (for attacks that damage by
altering body temperature).
Special Limitations
Cold: You can only decrease the
temperature. -50%.
Heat: You can only increase the
temperature. -50%.
Psychokinetic: Your ability is part
of the Psychokinesis psi power (see
p. 256), often called “cryokinesis” (for
cold) or “pyrokinesis” (for heat). -10%.
Temperature Tolerance
3
1 point/level
Every character has a temperature
“comfort zone” within which he suffers
no ill effects (such as FP or HP
loss) due to heat or cold. For ordinary
humans, this zone is 55° wide and falls
between 35° and 90°. For nonhumans,
the zone can be centered anywhere,
but this is a 0-point feature for a zone
no larger than 55°. A larger zone is an
advantage. Each level of Temperature
Tolerance adds HT degrees to your
comfort zone, distributed in any way
you wish between the “cold” and “hot”
ends of the zone.
Temperature Tolerance confers no
special resistance to attacks by fire or
ice unless the only damage is a result
of a rise or fall in the ambient temperature.
In particular, it cannot help you
if your body temperature is being
manipulated.
In a realistic campaign, the GM
should limit normal humans to
Temperature Tolerance 1 or 2.
However, high levels of this trait are
likely for nonhumans with fur or a
heavy layer of fat.
Temporal Inertia 2 5
15 points
You are strongly rooted in probability.
If history changes, you can
remember both versions. If you are
involved in a genuine time paradox,
you are not erased, even if the rest of
your world is! You have a place in the
new timeline, whatever it is, and
remember all your experiences – even
the ones that never happened. (In an
extreme case, you have two complete
sets of memories, and must make an
IQ roll any time you have to distinguish
between them under stress . . .
you might need Acting skill to stay out
of the lunatic asylum.)
There is a drawback: there is a
“you” in any parallel or split timeline
you encounter, and he is as similar to
you as the timeline allows.
This trait is only worthwhile in a
campaign in which paradoxes or
changes in history – erasing past
events or whole timelines – are
possible. See Unique (p. 160) for the
opposite of this advantage.
Temporary Rank
see Rank, p. 29
Tenure 4
5 points
You have a job from which you
cannot normally be fired. You can
only lose your job (and this trait) as
the result of extraordinary misbehavior:
assault, gross immorality, etc.
Otherwise, your employment and
salary are guaranteed for life. This is
most common among modern-day
university professors, but also applies
to judges, priests, senators, etc. in
many societies.
Terrain Adaptation 3 1
0 or 5 points
You do not suffer DX or Move
penalties for one specific type of
unstable terrain: ice, sand, snow, etc.
Cost depends on your capabilities:
You can function normally on one
specific type of unstable terrain, but
suffer the DX and Move penalties that
most characters experience on that
terrain type when you traverse solid
ground: 0 points.
You can function at full DX and
Move both on solid ground and on one
particular type of unstable terrain: 5
points.
You must buy this ability separately
for each terrain type.
Terror 2 5
30 points + 10 points per
-1 to Fright Check
You can unhinge the minds of
others. There are many way this effect
can manifest: a chilling howl,
mind-warping body geometry, or even
divine awe or unbearable beauty.
When you activate this ability, anyone
who sees you or hears you (choose one
when you buy this trait) must roll an
immediate Fright Check (see Fright
Checks, p. 360).
Modifiers: All applicable modifiers
under Fright Check Modifiers (p. 360).
You can buy extra penalties to this
Fright Check for 10 points per -1 to the
roll. Your victims get +1 per Fright
Check after the first within 24 hours.
If a victim succeeds at his Fright
Check, he will be unaffected by your
Terror for one hour.
Add the Melee Attack limitation
(p. 112) if your Terror affects only
those you touch.
Special Limitations
Always On: You cannot turn off
your Terror to engage in normal social
activities. This limitation often accompanies
the extreme levels of
Appearance – usually Hideous or
worse, but possibly also Transcendent!
-20%.
Trained By A Master 2
30 points
You have been trained by – or are –
a true master of the martial arts. Your
exceptional talent means you have half
the usual penalty to make a Rapid
Strike (see Melee Attack Options,
p. 370), or to parry more than once per
turn (see Parrying, p. 376). These benefits
apply to all your unarmed combat
skills (Judo, Karate, etc.) and
Melee Weapon skills.
Furthermore, you can focus your
inner strength (often called “chi”) to
perform amazing feats! This permits
you to learn Flying Leap, Invisibility
Art, Power Blow, and many other
skills – anything that requires this
advantage as a prerequisite (see
Chapter 4).
The GM is free to set prerequisites
for this advantage if he wishes.
Common examples from fiction
include Judo, Karate, Melee Weapon
skills, Philosophy, and Theology.
This ability is definitely “larger
than life.” The GM may wish to forbid
it in a realistic campaign.
ADVANTAGES 93
True Faith 2 5
15 points
You have a profound religious
faith that protects you from “evil”
supernatural beings such as demons
and vampires. To enjoy this protection,
you must actively assert your
faith by wielding a physical symbol
revered by your religion (e.g., crucifix,
Torah, or Koran), chanting, dancing,
or whatever else is appropriate to
your beliefs. If you wish to use this
ability in combat – to repel zombies,
for instance – then you must choose
the Concentrate maneuver each turn,
and can do nothing else.
For as long as you assert your faith,
no malign supernatural entity (GM’s
judgment as to what this covers) may
approach within one yard of you. If
one is forced into this radius, it must
leave by the most direct route possible,
as if it suffered from Dread
(p. 132). If it cannot leave without
coming closer, it must make a Will
roll. On a success, it may run past you
to escape, pushing you aside if necessary
(but using only the minimum
force required to escape). On a failure,
the monster is cowed. It must cower,
helplessly, and cannot move, defend
itself, or take any other action.
To keep True Faith, you must
behave in a manner consistent with
your religion. You will nearly always
have to take and adhere to one or more
of the traits listed under Self-Imposed
Mental Disadvantages (p. 121). In
effect, True Faith comes with a built-in
Pact limitation (p. 113); do not apply
this modifier again. You do not have to
be kind, loving, or law-abiding, however.
A violent bigot or religious terrorist
can be just as sincere in his religious
devotion as a saintly ascetic.
Tunneling 3 1
30 points + 5 points per point
of Tunneling Move
You can bore through earth and
stone, spewing rubble behind you. The
passage you dig is wide enough for you
to walk through. You move through
stone at half normal Tunneling Move.
The GM may wish to assess a chance
that your tunnel collapses behind you.
Roll each minute vs. the highest of
Engineer (Mining), Prospecting-3, and
IQ-4 to dig a stable tunnel. This can be
modified upward for hard rock and
downward for soft rock or loose earth.
Each halving of your Tunneling Move
gives +1 on this roll.
Ultrahearing 3 1
0 or 5 points
You can hear sounds in the frequencies
above the normal range of
human hearing (20 kHz). This allows
you to hear dog whistles, sonar,
motion detectors, etc. You can detect
active sonar at twice its effective range.
Cost depends on your capabilities:
You can hear only high-frequency
sounds: 0 points.
You can hear high-frequency
sounds and other sounds: 5 points.
This advantage is included in
Ultrasonic Speech, below; if you have
Ultrasonic Speech, you cannot take
this as well (but don’t need to).
Ultrasonic Speech 3 1
0 or 10 points
You can converse in the ultrasonic
range. This advantage includes
Ultrahearing, above. Note that many
creatures find it intensely annoying or
even painful to be within earshot of
sustained ultrasonic pitches! Cost
depends on your capabilities:
You can only communicate via
Ultrasonic Speech: 0 points.
You can switch between regular
speech and Ultrasonic Speech at will:
10 points.
Ultravision 3 1
0 or 10 points
You can see ultraviolet light (UV).
Solar UV is present outdoors during
the day, even under cloud cover, but is
stopped by window glass or any solid
barrier (earth, stone, etc.). Fluorescent
lamps also emit UV. Provided UV is
present, you can make out more colors
than those with normal vision.
This helps you discern outlines; spot
trace quantities of dust, dyes, etc.; and
identify minerals and plants. You get
+2 to all Vision rolls made in the presence
of UV, as well as to all Forensics,
Observation, and Search rolls to spot
clues or hidden objects.
At night, a small amount of UV
reaches the ground from the stars.
This doesn’t let you see in the dark, but
it does let you ignore -2 in darkness
penalties (cumulative with Night
Vision). UV penetrates farther underwater
than visible light. This lets you
halve all vision penalties underwater
(but in total darkness, you are as blind
as anyone else).
Cost depends on your capabilities:
94 ADVANTAGES
You can only see UV, and are blind
indoors, underground, or anywhere
else there is no UV, even when there
are normal light sources present: 0
points.
You can see both visible light and
UV: 10 points.
Unaging 3 1
15 points
You never grow old naturally and
cannot be aged unnaturally. Your age
is fixed at any point you choose and
will never change. You never have to
make aging rolls.
Special Enhancements
Age Control: You can “age” in either
direction at will, at up to 10 times the
normal rate. +20%.
Unfazeable 2
15 points
Nothing surprises you – at least,
nothing that’s not obviously a threat.
The world is full of strange things, and
as long as they don’t bother you, you
don’t bother them.
You are exempt from Fright
Checks, and reaction modifiers rarely
affect you either way. You treat
strangers with distant courtesy, no
matter how strange they are, as long as
they’re well-behaved. You have the
normal reaction penalty toward anyone
who does something rude or
rowdy, but you remain civil even if
forced to violence. Intimidation
(p. 202) just does not work on you.
You are not emotionless – you just
never display strong feelings. The
stereotypical aged kung fu master or
English butler has this trait.
You must roleplay this advantage
fully, or the GM can declare that it has
been lost. In a campaign where Fright
Checks are an hourly occurrence, the
GM can charge 20 points – or more! –
or disallow Unfazeable altogether.
This advantage is incompatible with
all Phobias.
Universal Digestion 3 1
5 points
You have remarkably adaptable
digestive processes that let you derive
nutrition from any nontoxic animal or
plant protein, no matter how alien or
fantastic. This enables you to subsist
on things that would normally be
harmless but non-nutritious. You have
no special resistance to poison,
though; for that, buy Resistant (p. 80).
One side benefit of this trait is that you
can quickly and safely dispose of any
nontoxic, organic evidence by eating it!
Unkillable 3 1
50 to 150 points
You cannot be killed! You are subject
to all the other effects of injury.
You feel pain, your wounds slow you,
and you can be stunned or knocked
out. You lose the use of any limb that
receives a crippling wound, and you
might even lose the limb itself. You
can even lose attribute levels, advantages,
etc. to disease, injury, or poison.
However, you will only die if your body
is physically destroyed – and sometimes
not even then.
This advantage comes in three
levels:
Unkillable 1: Injury affects you normally,
but you need never make a HT
roll to stay alive. You can survive (and
even function, if you remain conscious)
down to -10¥HP, at which
point your body is physically
destroyed and you die. As long as you
are alive, you heal at your usual rate –
typically 1 HP/day, modified for any
Regeneration (p. 80) you may have.
Crippled limbs do heal, but severed
limbs are gone for good unless you
have Regrowth (p. 80). 50 points.
Unkillable 2: As Unkillable 1, but
you do not die at -10¥HP. Once you
reach -10¥HP, you are reduced to an
indestructible skeleton and automatically
fall unconscious. You sustain no
further damage from any attack. Once
the damage stops, you heal normally –
even if you’ve been hacked to pieces –
and any severed body parts will grow
back. You regain consciousness once
you have positive HP. Note that your
enemies can imprison your remains
while you are unconscious, or even
expose them to a source of continuous
damage (fire is a common choice) to
prevent you from healing. 100 points.
Unkillable 3: As Unkillable 2, except
that at -10¥HP, you become a ghost,
an energy pattern, or some other
incorporeal form that cannot be contained
or damaged through normal
means. At this stage, you fall unconscious
and heal normally. Once you
are at full HP, your fully intact body
will coalesce in a location of the GM’s
choosing. 150 points.
With the GM’s permission, if you
have Unkillable 2 or 3 and are taken to
-10¥HP, you can trade in Unkillable
and use the points to buy a spirit or
undead racial template (if such things
exist in the setting), becoming a ghost,
revenant, etc. once you heal all your
HP.
By default, you age normally, and
will eventually die of old age. To be
truly immortal, combine Unkillable
with Unaging (above) – and possibly
one or more of Doesn’t Breathe (p.49),
Injury Tolerance (p. 60), Regeneration
(p. 80), and Resistant (p. 80).
Special Limitations
Achilles’ Heel: Damage from one
particular source (possibly one to
which you have a Vulnerability, p. 161)
can kill you normally. You must make
normal HT rolls to survive at -HP and
below, and die automatically if this
damage takes you below -5¥HP. The
limitation value depends on the rarity
of the attack, as defined under Limited
Defenses (p. 46): -10% if “Rare,” -30%
if “Occasional,” or -50% if “Common”
or “Very Common.”
Hindrance: A specific substance
(e.g., silver or wood) prevents healing
– whether by natural means or
Regeneration – for as long as it
remains in your body. Once you pass
out from your injuries, you stay dormant
until this substance is removed.
The limitation value depends on the
rarity of the substance: -5% if “Rare,”
-15% if “Occasional,” or -25% if
“Common.”
Reincarnation: This is only available
for Unkillable 2 or 3. When
reduced to -10¥HP, you recover at
your usual rate, but you wake up in an
entirely new body with new abilities.
The GM creates the new form (or may
allow you to do so), but you always
retain the Unkillable advantage. -20%.
Trigger: This is only available for
Unkillable 2 or 3. Once reduced to
-10¥HP, you require some substance
(such as human blood) or condition
(such as a ritual) before you will start
to heal. Until then, you will remain
dormant. The limitation value depends
on the rarity of the trigger: -25% if
“Rare,” -15% if “Occasional,” or -5% if
“Common” or “Very Common.”
ADVANTAGES 95
Unusual Background 2
Variable
This is a “catch-all” trait that the
GM can use to adjust the point total
of any character with special abilities
that are not widely available in the
game world. “Special abilities” might
mean cinematic traits, magic spells,
exotic advantages (for a human),
supernatural advantages (for anyone),
or almost anything else – it
depends on the setting. Players are
free to suggest Unusual Backgrounds
to the GM, but the GM decides
whether a proposed Unusual
Background is acceptable, and if so,
what its cost and benefits are.
Example 1: “Raised by wizards” to
justify access to magic spells might be
a 0-point special effect in a fantasy
world where magic is common, a 10-
point Unusual Background in a conspiracy
campaign where magic is
known but kept secret, and a 50-point
Unusual Background – or simply forbidden
– in a horror game where a PC
who wields supernatural power would
reduce the suspense.
Example 2: “Daughter of the God
of Magic” to justify the Unkillable
advantage would be an Unusual
Background in any setting, and would
be worth as much as the advantage
itself – 50 points or more – if the GM
allowed it at all.
Not every unusual character concept
merits an Unusual Background.
The GM should only charge points
when the character enjoys a tangible
benefit. For instance, it would be
unusual for a human to be raised by
wolves, but unless this gave him special
capabilities (such as Speak with
Animals), it would be background
color, worth 0 points.
Vacuum Support 3 1
5 points
You are immune to deleterious
effects associated with vacuum and
decompression (see Vacuum, p. 437).
This advantage does not give you an
air supply; buy Doesn’t Breathe (p. 49)
for that.
Those with Vacuum Support usually
have the Sealed advantage (p. 82),
and often have Radiation Tolerance
(p. 79) and Temperature Tolerance
(p. 93), but none of these traits are
required.
Vampiric Bite 3 1
30 points + 5 points
per extra HP drained
You can bite people and drain their
life force, healing your own wounds in
the process. You can only feed if your
victim is helpless (pinned, stunned,
unconscious, etc.), grappled, or willing.
If he is wearing armor, your biting
damage must penetrate its DR. Once
you’ve bitten through your victim’s
DR, you can drain 1 HP per second
from him. For every 3 HP stolen, you
heal 1 HP or 1 FP (your choice). You
cannot raise your HP or FP above normal
this way.
The basic Vampiric Bite described
above costs 30 points. You may buy
increased HP drain for 5 points per
additional HP drained per second; for
instance, to drain 10 HP per second,
pay 75 points.
Vampiric Bite also lets you bite in
combat without feeding. Treat this as
Teeth (Sharp Teeth) or Teeth (Sharp
Beak) (p. 91) – your choice. You do not
need to purchase that advantage
separately.
Versatile 2
5 points
You are extremely imaginative. You
get a +1 bonus on any task that
requires creativity or invention,
including most rolls against Artist
skill, all Engineer rolls for new inventions,
and all skill rolls made to use the
Gadgeteer advantage.
Very Fit
see Fit, p. 55
Very Rapid Healing
see Rapid Healing, p. 79
Vibration Sense 3 1
10 points
You can detect the location and
size of objects by sensing vibrations
with your skin, whiskers, or antennae.
You must specify whether this ability
works in the air or in the water.
Vibration Sense is not a substitute
for vision. You can locate an opponent
in the dark, but you cannot detect
details (e.g., whether he is armed). In
a perfectly still, dark chamber, you
would have only a vague notion of the
size of the area, but you would be able
to sense a barrier before you ran into
it, and could find openings by sensing
the flow of air or water.
To use Vibration Sense, make a
Sense roll. Consult the Size and
Speed/Range Table (p. 550) and apply
separate bonuses for the target’s size
and speed, and a penalty for the range
to the target. Wind (in air) or swift
currents (in water) will generate
“noise” that interferes with your sense.
Find the speed of the wind or current
on the table and assess the relevant
speed penalty.
A successful roll reveals the rough
size, location, speed, and direction of
movement of the target. It does not
provide any information about the
object’s shape, color, etc. Once you
have detected something, you may target
it with an attack. The modifiers
that applied to your Sense roll also
apply to your attack roll, but can never
give you a bonus to hit.
Note that if you are outside the element
(air or water) where your ability
functions, or if you are wearing a
sealed suit, this ability does not work
at all!
Special Enhancements
Universal: Your Vibration Sense
works both in the air and in the water.
+50%.
Visualization 2 5
10 points
You can improve your chances at a
task by visualizing yourself successfully
performing it. The closer your mental
picture is to the actual circumstances,
the greater the bonus. The
visualization must be detailed and
must involve a clear and specific
action. This makes it useless in combat,
where the situation changes faster
than you can visualize it.
To use this talent, you must concentrate
for one minute. You, the player,
must describe the scene you visualize
(which can include senses other
than sight) and the results you hope to
achieve. Then make an IQ roll.
You get a +1 bonus to the action
you visualized for every point by
which you succeed – if the circumstances
correspond almost exactly to
the visualization. If they are not quite
96 ADVANTAGES
the same, which will almost always be true,
halve the bonus (minimum +1). And if
something is clearly different, divide the
bonus by 3 (no minimum). The GM can
assess a further bonus of up to +2, or a
penalty of any size, for a good or bad
description!
Voice 3
10 points
You have a naturally clear, resonant,
and attractive voice. This gives
you +2 with the following skills:
Diplomacy, Fast-Talk, Mimicry, Performance,
Politics, Public Speaking,
Sex Appeal, and Singing. You also
get +2 on any reaction roll made by
someone who can hear your voice.
Walk on Air 3 1
20 points
Air, smoke, and other gases are
like solid ground beneath your
feet, allowing you to walk up and
down “invisible stairs” at your
ground Move. This won’t work in
a vacuum – there has to be some
kind of air present. If you get
knocked down or slip, you fall!
You may attempt one DX roll per
second of falling. If you succeed,
you stop in thin air, unharmed.
Otherwise, you hit the ground for
normal falling damage (see
Falling, p. 431).
Walk on Liquid 3 1
15 points
You can walk on the surface of
any liquid as if it were solid ground.
You move at your usual ground
Move. This doesn’t protect you
from any damage that you would
take from coming into contact with
the liquid, however. You can’t
traverse volcanic lava or boiling acid
without taking damage!
Warp 2 5
100 points
You have the ability to teleport,
traveling from point to point without
moving through the intervening space. To do
so, you must be able to see your destination
with your own eyes, or view it remotely (via
closed-circuit TV, someone else’s eyes using
Mind Reading with the Sensory enhancement,
etc.), or visualize it clearly (which is only possible if
you have visited it previously in person).
ADVANTAGES 97
You can carry up to Basic Lift
when you travel, plus any Payload
(p. 74). To carry more, or to bring
along other people, take the Extra
Carrying Capacity enhancement
(below).
Make an IQ roll to activate your
ability, modified as follows:
Distance: Distance penalties appear
on the table below. If actual distance
falls between two values, use the
higher.
Distance Penalty
10 yards 0
20 yards -1
100 yards -2
500 yards -3
2 miles -4
10 miles -5
100 miles -6
1,000 miles -7
Add an additional -1 for each 10¥
increase in distance.
Preparation Time: The amount of
time taken to prepare for the teleport
affects the IQ roll, as follows:
Preparation Time IQ Modifier
None -10
1 second -5
2 seconds -4
4 seconds -3
8 seconds -2
15 seconds -1
30 seconds 0
1 minute +1
2 minutes +2
4 minutes +3
8 minutes +4
15 minutes +5
30 minutes +6
1 hour +7
2 hours +8
4 hours +9
8 hours +10
This table is not open-ended; +10 is
the maximum possible bonus.
Removal: If you have a “secondhand”
view of the destination, you are
at -2 per level of removal. For instance,
seeing it on TV or through someone
else’s eyes would give -2, while seeing
it on a television set that you are viewing
through someone else’s eyes would
give -4. There is an additional -2 to
teleport to a place you have visited but
cannot see.
Fatigue Points: Apply a bonus of +1
per FP spent. You must declare this
before you roll, and you lose the FP
whether you succeed or fail. You never
have to spend FP, but it is usually a
good idea if you must travel far or
without much preparation.
On a success, you appear at your
target destination. On a failure, you go
nowhere and strain your power: you
are at -5 to use it again in the next 10
minutes. On a critical failure, you
arrive at the wrong destination. This
can be anywhere the GM wishes! It
need not be dangerous, but it should
seriously inconvenience you. In addition,
your power temporarily “burns
out” and will not function again for 1d
hours.
You can use Warp to evade attacks
in combat. Once per turn, you may
teleport to any location you can see
within 10 yards, instantly. This is considered
a dodge. Of course, the IQ roll
will be at -10 for instant use, so you
might want to spend FP to improve
your odds!
You can improve this ability with
practice, spending points to add
enhancements or remove limitations.
You cannot take Reduced Fatigue
Cost or Reduced Time (p. 108);
instead, take Reliable (below) so that
you will need less time or fewer FP to
teleport reliably.
Special Enhancements
Blind: You can teleport to a specific
set of coordinates (distance and
direction) without seeing or having
visited the destination. This gives you
an extra -5 to your IQ roll! You must
pay two FP per +1 bonus when using
this enhancement. +50%.
Extra Carrying Capacity: You can
carry more than your Basic Lift. If
your carrying capacity is high enough,
you may transport one person with
you. Light encumbrance is +10%;
Medium, +20%; Heavy, +30%; Extra-
Heavy, +50%.
Reliable: Your power is stable and
predictable. Each level of this
enhancement gives +1 to the IQ roll to
use this ability, allowing you to teleport
with little preparation (e.g., in
combat) or over long distances without
spending as many FP to improve
your odds. +5% per +1, to a maximum
of +10.
Warp Jump: This enhancement is
only available if you have the Jumper
advantage (p. 64). You must apply it to
both Jumper and Warp. If you are
both a time- and world-jumper, and
wish to use Warp with both abilities,
buy this enhancement twice. When
you jump, you can simultaneously use
Warp to appear anywhere at your destination.
Two die rolls are necessary –
one per ability – and it is possible for
one to succeed while the other fails, or
for both to fail. +10% per linked
Jumper advantage.
Special Limitations
Hyperjump: You physically move
through “hyperspace” or “jump space”
to journey between destinations. This
is not true, instantaneous teleportation;
you have an effective speed,
which means the trip takes time. On
long trips, you will need to address
life-support needs! In addition, you
cannot activate Hyperjump in atmosphere
and you cannot travel distances
shorter than one light-second (186,000
miles, -10 to IQ). This effectively limits
you to space travel. There is one benefit
to Hyperjump: if you possess
98 ADVANTAGES
Wild Talent: You can simply do things without
knowing how. It does apply to skills that
normally have no default, provided you meet any
advantage requirements. It has no effect on skills
you already know.
Navigation (Hyperspace) skill, you
may substitute it for IQ. -50% if your
effective speed is the speed of light
(every 186,000 miles traveled takes
one second); -25% if you can travel
one light-year (-17 to IQ) per day.
Naked: You can carry nothing
when you teleport! You always arrive
naked. -30%.
Psionic Teleportation: Your ability is
part of the Teleportation psi power
(see p. 257). -10%.
Range Limit: You cannot teleport
more than a certain distance per hop.
Choose a range and find its distance
penalty above. The limitation is worth
-5% ¥ (10 + penalty); e.g., 10 yards (-0)
would be -50%, while 100 miles (-6)
would be -20%. A range limit of more
than 100,000 miles is not a
meaningful limitation.
Wealth
see p. 25
Above-average Wealth is an advantage,
and should be noted on your
character sheet.
Weapon Master 2
Variable
You have a high degree of training
or unnerving talent with a particular
class of muscle-powered weapons
(swords, bows, etc. – not guns).
Available classes are:
All muscle-powered weapons. 45
points.
A large class of weapons.
Examples: all bladed weapons, all onehanded
weapons. 40 points.
A medium class of weapons.
Examples: all swords, all ninja
weapons. 35 points.
A small class of weapons.
Examples: fencing weapons (maingauche,
rapier, saber, and
smallsword), knightly weapons
(broadsword, mace, shield, and
lance). 30 points.
Two weapons normally used
together. Examples: broadsword and
shield, rapier and main-gauche. 25
points.
One specific weapon. 20 points.
In all cases, if a weapon can be
thrown, the benefits of this advantage
also apply when throwing that
weapon.
When using a suitable weapon, add
+1 per die to basic thrust or swing
damage if you know the relevant
weapon skill at DX+1. Add +2 per die
if you know that skill at DX+2 or better.
You also have half the usual penalty
to make a Rapid Strike (see Melee
Attack Options, p. 369), or to parry
more than once per turn (see Parrying,
p. 376). None of these benefits apply
to default use.
You are familiar with – if not proficient
in – every weapon within your
class. This gives you an improved
default: DX/Easy weapon skills default
to DX-1, DX/Average ones to DX-2,
and DX/Hard ones to DX-3. Note that
these skills are no easier to learn, and
may not be “bought up” from the
improved defaults in order to save
points.
Finally, you may learn any cinematic
skill that names this advantage
as a prerequisite (see Chapter 4) – e.g.,
Blind Fighting and Power Blow – if
you could reasonably use that skill
with your weapons of choice. The GM
is the final arbiter in all cases.
This trait is best suited to a “cinematic”
swashbuckling game. The GM
may wish to forbid it in a realistic
campaign.
Wild Talent 2 5
20 points/level
You can simply do things without
knowing how. Once per game session
per level of this advantage, you may
attempt a roll against any skill, using
your score in the appropriate
attribute: IQ for IQ-based skills, DX
for DX-based skills, etc. You do not
incur any default penalties, but situational
and equipment modifiers apply
normally, as do any modifiers for
advantages or disadvantages. Tech
level is irrelevant: a TL3 monk could
make an IQ roll to use Computer
Programming/TL12!
Wild Talent does apply to skills that
normally have no default, provided
you meet any advantage requirements.
For instance, you could cast
unknown magic spells provided you
had Magery, or use unknown cinematic
martial-arts skills provided you
have Trained By A Master.
Wild Talent has no effect on skills
you already know.
Special Enhancements
Retention: You can learn the skills
you use! To do so, you must have one
unspent character point available
when you attempt the skill roll. On a
success, you may buy the skill at the
one-point level. You cannot improve a
skill learned this way for one month,
during which time you use it at -2. On
a critical success, you can start
improving the skill immediately, and
there is no -2. On a failure, you cannot
learn the skill; on a critical failure, you
also lose your unspent character
point! Regardless of success, if you
lack any of the skill’s prerequisites,
your skill is at -4 until you acquire
them, and you cannot improve the
skill in the interim. This enhancement
does not let you learn skills from a TL
higher than your own. +25%.
ADVANTAGES 99
Special Limitations
Emergencies Only: Your Wild
Talent only works in life-threatening
situations, such as mortal combat. To
use it, you must ask for a particular
result related to your predicament.
Your request must be specific (e.g.,
“Get him away from me.”), but you
cannot specify a skill (e.g., “Use Judo”
or “Cast the Command spell”). The
GM will then choose a skill that could
bring about the desired result. He is
not limited to mundane skills; he may
choose a spell if you have Magery, a
cinematic martial-arts skill if you have
Trained By A Master, and so forth.
Once the GM has chosen, roll against
the governing attribute, as usual. If the
GM feels you already have skills equal
to the task, he will advise you on
which skill to use. This still counts as
one of your uses of Wild
Talent! -30%.
Focused: You can only use (and if
you have Retention, learn) one specific
class of skills. Options include
Mental (mundane skills based on IQ,
Perception, or Will), Physical (mundane
skills based on ST, DX, or HT),
Magical (spells), and Chi (cinematic
martial-arts skill). -20%.
Xeno-Adaptability
see Cultural Adaptability, p. 46
Zeroed 4
10 points
You do not officially exist. Even the
highest authorities in the land know
nothing about you. In a fantasy setting,
you are a “mysterious wanderer”;
magical divination cannot discover
conclusive details about your past or
true identity. In a high-tech world, you
don’t appear in the public
records – and if computer
databases exist, they
contain no evidence of your existence.
You must provide a reason for this;
e.g., your parents hid you away at
birth, you are legally dead, or you
somehow managed to destroy all the
records (explain how!).
To maintain this status, you must
deal strictly in cash or commodities.
Credit and bank accounts must be
blind (keyed to pass-code, not a person
– the “Swiss bank account”) or set
up through a Temporary Identity (see
p. 31).
If the authorities investigate you,
they will initially assume that there
has been an error. They will become
increasingly concerned as no information
can be found about your life.
Eventually, they will attempt to apprehend
you. If they can’t find you, then
they’re likely to give up. But if they
catch you, you are in for a thorough
interrogation, possibly involving torture,
mind probes, or worse. After all,
a nonperson has no rights . . . and it
will be very difficult for your allies to
prove that you are being held, as you
don’t officially exist!
PERKS
A “perk” is a very minor advantage,
worth only 1 point. Perks cannot be
modified with enhancements or limitations,
and they can be added in play
without upsetting game balance.
Otherwise, perks use the same rules as
other advantages.
The GM is encouraged to create
new perks. No perk should provide
wealth, social standing, or combat
bonuses. A perk can provide a modest
bonus (up to +2) to an attribute, skill,
or reaction roll in relatively rare circumstances.
The GM may allow more
generous bonuses, if they apply only
in extremely rare situations.
Accessory 3 1
Your body incorporates a tool or
other useful gadget (e.g., a siren or a
vacuum cleaner) that provides minor,
noncombat benefits not otherwise
covered by a specific advantage.
Alcohol Tolerance 3
Your body metabolizes alcohol
with remarkable efficiency. You can
drink steadily for an indefinite period
with no major detrimental effects.
Binging affects you as it would anyone
else. You get +2 on all HT rolls related
to drinking.
100 ADVANTAGES
Autotrance 2
You can enter a trance at will. This
requires one minute of complete concentration
and a successful Will roll,
at -1 per additional attempt per hour.
This trance gives +2 on rolls to contact
spirits, etc. You must make a Will roll
to break your trance. If you fail, you
can try again every five minutes.
Deep Sleeper 3
You can fall asleep in all but the
worst conditions, and can sleep
through most disturbances. You never
suffer any ill effects due to the quality
of your sleep. You get an IQ roll to
notice disturbances and awaken, just
like anyone else; success is automatic
if you have Combat Reflexes.
Fur 3 1
You have fur. This prevents sunburn.
Thicker fur might justify 1-3 levels
each of Damage Resistance (p. 46)
and Temperature Tolerance (p. 93),
while spiky “fur” might grant Spines
(p. 88). You must buy these other
traits separately.
Honest Face 3
You simply look honest, reliable, or
generally harmless. This has nothing
to do with your reputation among
those who know you, or how virtuous
you really are! People who don’t know
you will tend to pick you as the one to
confide in, or not to pick you if they
are looking for a potential criminal or
troublemaker. You won’t be spotchecked
by customs agents and the
like unless they have another reason to
suspect you, or unless they are truly
choosing at random. You have a +1 to
trained Acting skill for the sole purpose
of “acting innocent.”
No Hangover 3
No matter how much you drink,
you will never get a hangover. This
does not mitigate the effects of intoxication
– it just eliminates the unpleasant
aftereffects.
Penetrating Voice 3
You can really make yourself heard!
In situations where you want to be
heard over noise, others get +3 to their
Hearing roll. At the GM’s option, you
get +1 to Intimidation rolls if you surprise
someone by yelling or roaring.
Sanitized Metabolism 3 1
You are totally clean. Your body
produces minimal, sanitized waste
products, and you never suffer from
bad breath, excessive perspiration, or
unsightly skin problems. This gives -1
to attempts to track you by scent and
+1 to reaction rolls in close confines
(cramped spaceships, submarines,
elevators, etc.).
Shtick 2/3
You have a cool move or slick feature
that sets you apart from the masses.
This provides no combat or reaction
bonuses, and you can’t use it to
earn money, but it might occasionally
give you some minor benefit in play
(GM’s discretion). Example: your
clothing is always spotless, even after
combat or swimming the Nile; you
can run, climb, fight, etc. while wearing
high heels without suffering any
special penalty for bad footing.