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Aberrant: Quantum Zero - Nippontai High OOC


ProfPotts

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I've been having a think...

Would the School Newspaper could as a School Club or would that be something that happened outside of normal club hours?

Also, if the school is going to have a school newsletter, what would it be called?  Isn't the Japanese method of naming dispatches different from the western method?

1. It would be a club.

2. Im not sure. You may want to use your Google-Fu on Japanese newpaper names.

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good plan that man..

Also i have currently presently been made aware that my grammar sucks :)

I'll have to remember to proof read my posts in future

For the School Newsletter name... how does the name “Gakuto Osaka Shinbun” sound?

Also, if prof is around i've got a few questions to ask.

If the Osaka Academy is set up to house nova students, does this mean that the academy will have classes on the responsible use of powers or anything resembling training to help students control their powers?

Also guys.. check out the following website... it's quite amusing.

www.engrish.com

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  • 3 weeks later...

If I didn't do it, someone else would have.

Would you leave your silence breaking to any ignorant cretin, with no idea of how to break a silence? ::rolleyes

I rest my case.

*EDIT*

I realise that I should, possibly, add at least something the least bit constructive to my post.

Ummm...

Do we interact extensively with the youth outside the school? What is our reputation? I would assume we were treated with a certain amount of respect, considering the Japanese stance on Novas. Although our abilities would make us the targets of a certain amount of jealousy.

No-one has to answer this question unless they're really bored, by the way.

ADSL soon! /much rejoicing

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Unfortunately I haven't even been playing City of Heroes - or even sitting at the ol' computer - for the last few weeks due to a back problem... but, in general, I do think the CoH bug has worn off for me - after a while a body craves more interaction than just pressing the 'punch' button lots... Doesn't mean I won't keep playing the thing though! ::biggrin

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It's gonna' be a while until I'm up to speed on this one (& Darkling Two-Zero for that matter)- sorry guys, but the wait will have to continue for a bit.

One thing I'm strongly considering is seperating 'raw power' from 'control' when it comes to character powers. Usually in Aberrant a character's dice pool with their powers indicates both how powerful the ability is, & how skilled they are at using it. I'd quite like to, in this game, work things so that characters fling about power without necessarily having the control which using that power needs. I could just do this via ST narrative & PC role-playing, but that tends to be a bit nebulous & confusing (as players end up having their characters 'think real hard' or something in an effort to 'role-play' control over their powers).

The aberration mechanics don't really work that well for this either - since they represent, if anything, a progress loss of control rather than a character's ability to learn how to control their abilities over time.

I'm still thinking about this one - it's a work in progress...

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Well...how about a % chanse of a power misfireing?

I know thats how they do it in Heroes Unlimited 2e (per one of the Rifters, made for child mutants and sidekicks).

How about something like 50% for us first years, 25% for second year, 10% third year, and 0% thereafter or somesuch?

We may want to make it smaller or preferably a shorter time span (or a combo of both) because (if I remember correctly) dont Nova's know instinctivley how to use their powers?

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I'm not a big fan of random percentage chances in RPGs, since (in actual play) they seldom make any sense...

I'm thinking more along the lines of some drama-based mechanic - maybe an XP bonus for players who make bad power-related things happen to their own characters? In any case the effects I'm going for are the ol' classics 'powers start to manifest at the worst possible times' thing (usually something like when a character is trying to make a good impression on a first date or something), & 'can't fully control results of power when unleashed' (the character is never sure if his Quantum Bolt will blast the mugger unconscious - like he hopes, or put a big hole in the mugger, his victim, the building behind them, the Storyteller's screen, etc...).

Anyway, I appear to have sheets for the following characters (please correct me if I'm wrong) - although I haven't checked them all over yet:

(Names will be presented in the usual English format of given name, then family name - since this is an English-language forum & I find it easier to read that way.)

Player characters

Nori Nagayasu [Mr Ben]

male

Backing 2 - student newspaper

Influence 1 - students: rebellious 'fixer' type

Kenshi Koizumi [Alex Green]

male

Backing 0 - judo club

Influence 1 - students: athlete & rumoured Nova

Kenji Watabe [Asbjørn]

male

Backing 0 - judo club

Influence 2 - students: active & popular

Nabiki Watabe [Heritage]

female

Backing 1 - kendo club

Influence 1 - students

Yoshi Oda [bahamut810]

male

Backing 0 - kendo club

Influence 0

Akira Akechi [phoenix]

male

Backing 3 - judo club president

Influence 1

Isaac Woodford [shopping Mal]

male

Backing 2 - Western culture studies club

Influence 2 - students: friendly & musically talented exchange student

Jin Kai [Knave]

male

Backing 0 - no club as of yet

Influence 0

Akaji Maro [ezekiel]

male

Backing 5 - young entrepreneurs club president & class president

Influence 3 - everyone!: the most popular kid in school!

Hideko Fujiwara [Damanor]

male

Backing 0 - young entreprenaurs club

Influence 2

Kaede Nakamura [Codex]

female

Backing 0 - no club as of yet

Influence 1 - school

Hiro Shujinkou [Nullifier]

male

Backing 0 - no club as of yet

Influence 0

Hiyugo Nishi [levinwurth]

male

Backing 0 - rugby club

Influence 0

Kazuki [Prince of Boredom]

male

Backing 0 - no club as of yet

Influence 2 - school

NPCs mentioned in character backgrounds so far (those who would be generally known to the pupils anyway):

Classmates

Rumiko Takahashi

female

best friend of Nabiki

Miho Yoshimori

female

best friend / girlfriend of Hideko

Nezumi

female

Backing 0 - yet to join a club

Influence 3 - (in)famous Novox idol singer

Senior pupils

Koko Izanami

female

editor of the student newspaper

Fujiko Watabe

female

elder sister of Nabiki & Kenji

Tomoya Fujikawa

male

elder brother of Hideko & Anzu

Junior pupils

Anzu Fujikawa

female

younger sister of Hideko & Tomoya

Staff members

Mr. Kanekura

male

school librarian

Yoko Toshiro

female

youth support officer - aka the woman who checks up on the 'problem' pupils

Others of note

Mr. Tendo

male

owner of an off-campus noodle shop which is a popular teenage hangout

There are still several NPCs people have taken with Backgrounds but not named or detailed.

Several characters are Novas, but have no Cipher - that's fine, & means that the character will be a known Nova. I'll add whether a character is a known Nova to the above list, but wanted to give players of those characters (you know who you are) a chance to alter their Backgrounds on the off-chance that they actually don't want their characters to be known Novas... Either way is fine by me.

A couple of characters are without back-stories (or very light on back-story), which will need to be worked out before the game starts. In any case, players may want to adjust their own characters here & there after seeing the class roster above - we're still in the planning stage, so that's okay at the moment.

I noticed that no one appears to have taken a teacher as a Mentor - again fine, but some of those characters with 'far removed' Mentors (e.g. the mystic old man who lives up the side of a distant mountain) may want to take a moment to consider the relative benefits of having a teacher as a Mentor in a school-based game...

In a similar manner, players who have taken other NPC-related Backgrounds which aren't related to the school may want to think over the utility of those NPCs in the game - a 'best friend' NPC is gonna' be more of a feature as a classmate than as a guy who goes to a different school, for example. This isn't a decree from on-high or anything, just a suggestion to mull over before the game starts.

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Okay I've added levinwurth's character to the list (even though he's forgotten to include a points breakdown for the guy... ::rolleyes ).

As for clubs - it might be a good idea for characters to focus on one or two, rather than be too spread out (after all, I'm gonna' be more inclined to write plots involving several characters than I am to write plots for individual characters).

'Young entrepreneurs', 'kendo', & 'judo' all have two PC members each (& I quite like the possibility of a kendo / judo rivalry developing).

'Student newspaper', 'Western culture studies', 'karate', & 'rugby' all have just one PC each.

My instincts here would be to shift Kenji from karate to the judo team - it's still martial arts, & it's the rival to his twin sister's club.

The 'student newspaper' seems to have quite a lot of plot potential to me, so I'd suggest Isaac moving to that - it's not the same thing as 'Western culture studies' of course, but I'd guess that it's about the same sort of academic level - maybe he could write his own 'Australian point of view' column for the paper?

Hiyugo's back story really only seems to call for him to be in a 'jock' club, so again it might be an idea if he were to change to 'judo' or 'kendo'.

That would leave us with: young entrepreneurs, student newspaper, judo, & kendo - quite a nice balance of two 'jock' clubs & two 'smart' clubs which the PCs are involved in, & four clubs which could have interesting interactions with each other as well. Characters who haven't chosen a club yet could either choose one of those, or remain outcasts... er... I mean 'loners', of course... ::wink

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My instincts here would be to shift Kenji from karate to the judo team - it's still martial arts, & it's the rival to his twin sister's club.

Fine by me. Don't really have much preference either way... ::smile By the way, prof... did Heritage send you the Watabe family background stuff?

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Don't think I have a character from you Prince of Boredom - you're certainly welcome to play!

Of the thirteen characters I have been sent, only four players have managed to both follow my instructions & add-up all their dots correctly... the teacher in me is inwardly screaming... ::rolleyes ::tongue

But congratulations to: Damanor, ezekiel, Asbjørn, & Bahamut810 - our star pupils for chargen mathematics & paying attention!

As for the rest of you... I'll be sending out PMs detailing the changes which need to be made to your characters...

::brick

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Okay - I've added Prince of Boredom's character to the list (& he himself to my list of players with superior maths skills... ::wink ).

levinwurth - which club do you want Hiyugo to be in then, Judo or Kendo (& do you want to adjust his Abilities to fit)?

By the way, prof... did Heritage send you the Watabe family background stuff?

Nope.

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Of the thirteen characters I have been sent, only four players have managed to both follow my instructions & add-up all their dots correctly... the teacher in me is inwardly screaming... rolleye13.gif tongue.gif

But congratulations to: Damanor, ezekiel, Asbjørn, & Bahamut810 - our star pupils for chargen mathematics & paying attention!

Ooh, yeah, those were some glaring errors on mine all right... ::rolleyes ::tongue

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I stand by my maths. It was correct. I was just wrong about how much 1 dot of Tainted Holo cost ::rolleyes

And Prof isn't infallible either. Unless Mega-Atts cost 5 and I was't informed ::blink

With the control versus power idea, I remember a system I had for Mage: The Awakening. Arete rolls directed the control, but Willpower determined the strength of the effect.

Maybe, since Novas are controlling something intrinsic to their minds, Quantum determines power, Willpower control?

Just throwing out ideas.

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Ideas for the power control (or lack thereof) rules.

It seems to me that there is already a system (kinda) in place for this ready to be used.

I don't have my books with me, but from what I remember Node is described as a nova's ability to control their power. So use node as the control aspect, and quantum as the power aspect.

In order for a student to have perfect (or at least very good) control, their node has to be equal to or better than their quantum rating. The beauty of this system is that they both use the same scale (1-5). Of course you then need to develop a system for what it means when your node is not high enough.

Something like if the difference of Quantum and Node is x, then y is penalty to a control role:

Diff_________Pen

5 (Q5, N0)______-5

4______________-4

etc.

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I dont think thats a good idea for two reasons.

1. It only allows them to channel quantum energy, and allows them to channel more quantum energy more easily then someone with a smaller node. It dosent actually give anyone more finesse with their powers.

2. What about the people with level 3 powers that require 4 or 5 quantum? That is needlessly forcing the person to take an extra 2 or 3 taint. Not only that, but it would be mental aberrations...which can cause more then a few problems when more then a few people have them (14 people now...how many would have to have node of 4 or 5?)

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Okay - both Codex & Knave have decided to pull out. Sorry to see you go guys - although I guess it does make the numbers a bit more managable. I may steal the character concepts (or bits of them) for NPCs anyway... ::wink

On to some more rules stuff...

Quirks

Something I've decided to try in this game is 'quirks'. Technically they're just lower-than-minor level aberrations for those first three dots of permanent Taint (one for each dot), but - in game setting terms - they can't be called 'aberrations' as they don't really make the character any less human (even though they do, technically, stem from the same Quantum-backlash-disorder effect).

Some quirks are things the character will have worked through by the time they leave school, others are just minor 'special effects' type stuff - none have huge penalties associated with them.

The idea came to me from two angles - firstly there is some 'manga' stuff I'd like to get into the game somewhere, & this looked like a good place; secondly I got fed-up telling people over the years that 'aberrations' they'd chosen for their characters weren't actually 'aberrant' enough to qualify even as a minor aberration...

Here are my example quirks:

Physical

Underdeveloped: the character is yet to undergo that hormonal growth-spurt that happens to teenagers. He or she looks much younger than the other kids of the same age. Over time the character will, eventually, develop - but until then will often be treated like a kid (which isn't gonna' be easy during those teen years)

Overdeveloped: the character has (physically) matured quickly & is often taken for a young adult - which tends to lead to certain expectations being placed upon them by everyone else. For a teenager, this isn't the sort of thing they need to be coping with...

Bishonen: (males only) this is the guy with long hair & slender, 'pretty-boy', features who often features in Manga. Strangers will often mistake the guy at first glance for a girl, & certain types will tend towards presuming he must be gay (although he's no more likely to be than any other character).

Boyish: (females only) the flip-side of the above quirk, this girl finds she can't grow her hair long (unlike most Japanese girls), so has to have a short cropped style which, coupled with a rather 'flat-chested' figure leads strangers to often mistake her for a boy. Certain types will presume she's a tom-boy (at the least...), although she's no more likely to be than anyone else.

Manga hair: the fan-favourite. The character has a strange hair colour & / or style which they can't get rid of (dye & mousse just don't seem to help). People will just presume the character has coloured & styled their hair like that though - so it doesn't count as an 'inhuman' feature.

Alcohol intolerance: although the character is still immune to the serious side-effects of the demon drink (like being poisoned, or killing off your liver), they manage to get drunk on even a sip of the stuff - usually slurring speech, falling over, & getting over emotional. This may well be as much a psychological problem as a physical one...

Nosebleeder: the ol' manga joke - when the character is confronted with erotic situations they get a nosebleed (& even faint in extreme circumstances). At the very least it makes the character's arousal obvious to everyone...

Romance magnet: the character attracts lots of romantic interest - but only from characters he or she isn't the least bit interested in! Anyone they actually like isn't attracted in this way, & the character wants nothing to do with their 'fans' (i.e. this can't be taken advantage of to get free Followers).

Mental

Otaku: the character is a fan-boy (or -girl) of some trivial thing. On the plus side they can apply their usual Academics dice pool to answering the most detailed questions about their subject of interest. On the down side, it can't be a helpful subject, & it's kinda' embarassing (not to mention annoying to all their friends). Examples include manga or animé, Novas, sports teams, computer games, TV shows, plushies, action figures, dolls, etc.. Note that there is a social stigma attatched to this level of fandom in Japan.

Late: for some reason the character is always late - it's like a mental block - no matter how hard they try to be on time, they always get distracted or delayed in some way. This is bad if you happen to be attending a Japanese school...

Honorable: the character abides by a bushido-like code of honor, even if everyone else around them doesn't. This isn't really seen by anyone as a bad thing (quite the opposite in most cases) - but it is easy for others to take advantage of.

Archaic: often related to 'honorable', the character tends to act like they're in some historical Samurai epic - they're not delusional as such, they just like to see life in those terms. Mostly this manifests as an archaic mode of speech (think over-done Shakespear) & manners.

Toxic cook: this character (usually female) thinks she can cook really well, & won't be told otherwise. She can't.

Rivalry: the character has developed a rivalry with anyother character which spills into all aspects of life - romantic, scholastic, sporting, etc.. This isn't a 'try to hurt each other' thing, but when one character does something, the other feels compelled to top it in some way.

Lecherous: the character (usually male) is, basically, a little perv' - to the level of sneaking a peek into the girls' locker room, or stealing panties. There is (obviously) a big social stigma here (plus a clever character could push this guys buttons pretty easily). - but he just can't seem to help himself... ::blush

Unresolved karma: the character has feelings attributed to a 'past life' of some kind - usually interpersonal relationships with other 'reincarnated' souls - which they feel compeled to explore. They often have vivid 'past life' dreams & the like. Belief in reincarnation is pretty common in Japan.

Quantum

Transformation sequence: the character (who needs Dormancy or some other 'alternate form') has to undergo an overly dramatic 'transformation sequence' to change forms - lights, posing, the whole nine yards. A slight variation is the 'naked transformation sequence' in which the character is briefly naked during the change from one form to another. This isn't a huge limit to the character's ability - it just makes it a challenge to change without being noticed.

Activation sequence: the character's powers need a spoken phrase & specific gestures to be used - this is common amongst Nova martial artists (who relate powers to kata-like moves) as well as others. Stealthy use of powers becomes a big issue.

Quantum mentor: the character's Mentor (which is a needed Background for this quirk) is actually an offshoot of the character's own quantum consciousness. This tends to manifest in one of two ways: an 'animal guide' - a small pet gets infused with the Quantum energies & the character (only) can now hear the thing 'talk' to them; or a 'spirit guide' - the energies manifest as an ephemeral figure which only the character (& those with the appropriate Quantum-related senses) can see & hear. In both cases the Mentor gains no 'powers' - an animal just has it's natural animal abilities, & a spirit can't effect the 'real' world in any way - but serves as a source of information & advice for the character. The downside is that a 'normal' Mentor can usually do more practical things for a character as well - a Quantum mentor is interesting, but limited.

Focus: one or more dots of the character's Attunement (which is a needed Background for this quirk) are permanently assigned to a specific object. The upside is the thing doesn't need to be Attuned every scene, & still shares the character's Quantum signature when the two aren't touching. The downside is that the dots of Attunement used can't ever be used for anything else.

Shared signature: taken by two or more characters this quirk means that all those characters have a common Quantum signature - i.e. they're immune to each other's powers, & can sometimes benefit from each others powers when in physical contact (just as if they were always Attuned to each other). This can be a good or a bad thing. All the characters tend towards common power manifestations as well - not the same powers necessarily, but similar enough special effects that people would be able to guess at the relation. This sort of thing crops up as much between bitter rivals & enemies as it does with unified hero teams - Go Sailor Senshi!

Ki power: the character's powers are linked to his or her belief in the Ki power of Japanese mysticism & martial arts. Similar to the activation sequence quirk, the character has to practice 'secret techniques' & the like to actually use their powers. Such powers can also interact in strange ways with those of other Novas who share this quirk (& sometimes even with the actions of baseline Ki users) - e.g. a Ki-based Quantum Bolt could potentially be blocked by a baseline martial arts master who knew the ways of Ki flows. This sort of thing is an example of cultural influences affecting the Nova's power manifestations. Of course the plus side is that the character can effect the powers of other Ki-based Novas, the downside is that they can do the same thing back. Meditation & Martial Arts will tend to feature on the character sheets of Ki-based Novas.

Ofuda: similar again, the character's powers are activated by using Buddhist or Shinto prayer papers, & can affected by the shared religious beliefs of others. To take this quirk the character obviously requires an appropriate background & training.

Displaced power: like the Quantum mentor quirk, some of the character's Quantum consciousness has been displaced - in this instance certain powers. Some or all of the character's powers have manifested as a semi-independent being with a (pseudo-)personality of its own. The character usually controls the powers as well as any other Nova, but, in some situations, they can actually argue back & be unhelpful - although this won't happen in a life-threatening situation (unless the character happens to be suicidal in the first place - the manifestation is, after all, a displaced aspect of their own being). The powers can be displaced into a 'spirit' being (like the Quantum mentor 'spirit guide') or an 'object of power' - in either case the manifestation doesn't know any more than the character does (unless this quirk is taken along with the Quantum mentor quirk). The manifestation can use the powers 'it' holds 'by itself' but not in a way totally independent of the character. I.e. the character can't use this quirk to gain any extra range on powers, or to target things they couldn't normally see, or use a power when KOd. Basically the character visualises his or her powers as coming from something / someone else who s/he has to 'ask' to use them. E.g. the character perceives a Genie who 'has' the powers, but who obeys his instructions.

So there you have 'em - quirks.

What do ya' all think?

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Power Maxing

I'm gonna' expand the power max rules a bit for this game...

1. A Nova can power max once per scene.

2. It costs one Willpower for each turn of power maxing.

3. It costs one QP per die of power maxing (& the character is still limited in how much s/he can spend each turn based on the Node Background).

4. A character can 'safely' power max a number of dice equal to his or her Quantum Trait. That's over the course of the entire power max - not every turn of the power max (i.e. the 'safe' dice can only be added once).

5. Each die of power max over the character's Quantum generates a dot of temporary Taint.

6. Power maxing can be built-up over several turns - as long as the character keeps spending both Willpower & their maximum number of QP per turn. Dice are rolled each turn, & successes accumulated until the power max ends. The turn after the character stops power maxing those successes have to be spent (all the energy needs to go somewhere).

7. Failed power max dice generate effects which spill over into the environment (again - the power is generated & needs to go somewhere, the character just failed to control it). Think 'Dragonball Z' power-ups & the like.

8. Botches are bad.

That should make power maxes both more useful, & (potentially) more dangerous.

::nuclear

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I love it ::biggrin

"Late" made me laugh.

For Isaac, I was considering a mix between Acohol Intolerance and lecherous. Isaac is normally really nice and easy to get along with. When he gets a drop into him, though...

Casanova's got nothing on him.

And maybe, like there's the standard Manga "slippery slide" sequence. He takes a sip. The room darkens. His hair grows darker. He starts to grin strangely. He turns to the side and looks drooling at the girl next to him.

You get what I mean? Tell me what you think.

And excuse any typing errors. The keyboards on our school laptops suck.

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