Aberrant RPG - Mega-Attribute Books

Sprocket · December 3, 2003

Okay, here's my latest volley of replies.

Re: Playing baselines-

Finbar, I hope you have a copy of Aberrant: Directive on hand. If you want the real lowdown on how to manage baseline-vs.nova conflicts, that's the sourcebook you need. ::wink As far as the whole "fairness" thing... Even in Aberrant: Directive, the writers make it clear that if a baseline attempts to compete with a nova in an area in which the nova is superhumanly strong, then that baseline is going to lose. Quoting (a bit loosely) directly from the Directive book... "A Directive team should not expect to succeed at capturing Totentanz and bringing him in for questioning. If a Directive team challenges Divis Mal to a chess match, they'll be left holding the bag after Mal declares checkmate in three moves."

Being fair to one's player's isn't just an excellent idea, it's required in order to be a good Storyteller. That does not mean that the world of Aberrant is fair, though. (If it was, there'd be a lot fewer problems for the PCs to get involved in... ::devilangel )

As far as mixed groups go, a baseline might as well stay backstage unless said baseline has something to make him the equal of his nova compatriots. Now that's fair, don't you think? ::smile

Re: Powergaming and Aberrant-

Hmm. And here I thought that the problem of suddenly developing godlike powers (and deciding what to do with them) was one of the main points of the game. While I admit that Aberrant does hold a certain appeal for munchkins, most groups that I've played with had a "No Munchkins" policy established at the get-go. Very sensible and convenient, that. ::cool

Re: psions/mesmerists/etc.-

That's not the answer I got from reading all that setting material, Finbar. The Pulp-era Mesermerists and Stalwarts are essentially low-powered versions of their descendants. Your idea of them being "entirely different critters" doesn't sound very well thought out, friend. I mean, stalwarts are to novas what a 1930's Ford is to the latest Ferrari: the same basic device, only with a good deal more refinement put in over the years. They're both still easily recognizable as automobiles, though! ::laugh

(And yes, novas ARE Inspired. It's just that Mercer was likely one of the few people who even used that term in the Aberrant era... ::tongue )

Re: Fade and Incognito-

As I said earlier, just let me know when you guys have settled the dispute with Mr. Green over those two enhancements one way or the other. If you guys and Alex want to change them, post your revised versions here so I can incorporate them into the document for the Mega-Appearance section. If you decide that they should be axed, I'll delete them- but you'll have to help come up with the ideas for the replacements! ::devil

Re: Eidolon-

Still waiting for a response to my proposed alteration to the mechanics of this enhancement, folks. Is the revised version acceptable or not?

Re: Enhancement idea from The Dirty Pair-

Also waiting for some responses to that posting, folks. If I don't hear any soon, I'll either have to abandon the concept or scrounge for ideas in my copy of Mummy: The Resurrection. (I'd rather not, but I will if I have to... even though the ideas in that blasted book are painfully derivative!)

Finbar · December 3, 2003

1) A! states explicitly that mesmerists eventually evolve into psions. If this is the case, then it's a bit like calling chimps full-fledged humans. It's worth noting that most psions require Prometheus chambers to artificially evolve them. The few that don't are just naturally advanced evolution. However, as psiads can't access quantakinesis naturally (only a P-chamber evolved psion can). That assumes, of course, that you're basing it off the corebooke...

The corebook also states that novas are merely the next incarnation of stalwarts. That is, stalwarts are basically horse-and-buggies to the novas' Porsche. Although they may appear to have the same use, one is definitely not the other; there's just too big a difference in what they can do. Also, their capabilities are entirely different; a nova can't build or used an Inspired Gadget any more than a stalwart can build or use a Quantum-Powered Device (unless any Joe off the street could also use it). You can't hook a nova up to juice an Inspiration battery.

Of course, in your own campaigns, mileage may vary. But, I have yet to see any book-based evidence that stalwarts are nova or that psions are mesmerists....

2) If you need to implement a no-munchkin agreement, I think that basically shows that there's a definite fear of what a nova can do if you took off the governor. Just a note...

3) I have no problem with a nova coming in and squishing baselines, as long as the baselines have the opportunity to fight back. If you're game is ultimately about heroism, then you shouldn't need a cape or enhanced abilities to be a hero; anyone who has the moxie should be able to do what needs to be done. In the right situation, any character should be able to nail another; a smart character will make that situation happen. (And we have figured out several ways for a baseline to take out Pax, all within the rules. Hint: It doesn't take Mega-Intelligence to invent something.) However, that's the weak leg of the argument.

What really concerns me is that Inspired and psions can't resist the abilities unless they have a specific merit, nor can novas unless they have the appropriate stat or merit. Regardless of the baseline situation, a power that's extremely useful having a limited resistance; this is the issue. Fade and Incognito have a large number of potential uses. Being invisible to machines means that they can't target you, detect you, and anyone dependant on them suffers as much as they do. Being able to be forgotten allows you impunity in most situations; I can think of a 1001 uses for that kind of ability. That few characters will even be able to roll of against me, and that fewer still will make that roll, just invites abuse.

Just drop the Mega-Att/Eidetic Memory requirement to roll, and we're good to go. That's all that was needed. Personally, I'd split Fade into Invisibility and a couple of Quantum Flaws (Can't Be Seen in Mirrors is a good weak one (as it provides some minor benefits), but that's just me. Again, the work you've done has been excellent. This is one of the rare bumps I've seen you do (and it's just bump...).

FR

Alex Green · December 3, 2003

RE: The Dirty Pair

That sounds a lot like "Awe Inspiring" + Command + Domination, and way too strong for an enhancement.

RE: Eidolon

I like what it does. I think we should use the same mechanics as "Awe Inspiring". I think this means +1 die per dot of Appearance for seduction/intimidation rolls.

RE: Mechanics

I think we need to talk about what mechanics we want to use. What I would like to do is go with the various methods the books give (rather than create new ones). Unfortunately, my book isn't handy so I'm working off of memory here. I'm using the word "Appearance" for the words "Relevant Attribute + Mega-Stat".

Way #1:

Victim: Willpower+Attribute

Nova: Appearence+3d (with ties going to the nova)

Examples: ??? (Does "Face of Terror" use this or Way #2?)

Way #2

Victim: Willpower+Attribute

Nova: Appearence+[3] with ties going to the victim

Examples: Trickster, Persuader

Way #3

Victim: Willpower

Nova: Appearance

Examples: ???

Way #4

Victim: Willpower or Attribute+Ability whichever is greater.

Nova: Appearence+Ability+1d per dot of Mega-Appearance

Examples: Awe Inspiring

Are these 4 ways correct? Are there others?

ProfPotts · December 3, 2003

I can't think, off the top of my head, of any roll that adds Willpower & any other Trait - when Willpower is rolled it's almost always rolled alone. Many Enhancements just (mechanically) add either extra dice or extra successes to a normal Ability roll or range of Ability rolls - the mechanics of using (& resisting) the Ability are essentially unchanged.

Face of Terror adds 3 suto' successes to Intimidation rolls & other fear / disgust -based rolls.

Trickster adds 3 auto' successes to rolls to trick, fool, or deceive (such as Subterfuge).

Persuader adds 3, 2, or 1 auto' successes to rolls to change people's opionons, get them to perform tasks, & similar things (the bonus being based on how reasonable the suggestion seems).

Awe-Inspiring adds one auto' success to Intimidation, Command, & Interrogation rolls (or similar things) per Mega-Appearance dot, but looses one of those auto' successes per aberration the character has (the Enhancement having no effect at all if the number of aberrations ever exceeds the number of Mega-Appearance dots).

So - based on those examples, all most Mega-Social Enhancements should do mechanically is add up to 3 auto'-successes to related rolls. No specific resistence rolls are listed (or really need to be spelled out), but social Abilities are usually opposed by either Willpower (by itself), or the target's own Ability (such as rolling Perception or Wits + Subterfuge to oppose a Subterfuge attempt).

Gideon · December 4, 2003

So perhaps Fade should add +3 difficulty to any test for someone to recall they were there or what they looked like?

Alex Green · December 4, 2003

So perhaps Fade should add +3 difficulty to any test for someone to recall they were there or what they looked like?

Considering it is a straight Int roll, that sounds workable.

Note that with an Int of 3; the above average baseline has NO chance of dealing with this without writing things down.

Gideon · December 4, 2003

Well like some enhancements it could be a variable enhancement. i.e. after the nova spends the quantum point to activate it for the scene. Here is a quick idea I'm throwing out, may be garbage.

Idea for variable effect of Fade:

IF the nova has not spoken to or interracted with the person in question its +3 Difficulty.

If the nova merely spoke briefly (i.e. asked an unimportant question like, what time is it, is your manager in?), merely bumped into the person its a +2 diff.

If the nova attacked or questioned the person about important issues (to the person making the role), like what's the vault's combination, who killed JFK? Do you love me? Then its +1 Difficulty.

And perhaps we can permit the use of mental invasion to search the victim's mind for info about the "Faded" nova to let the vicitim retry recalling with some bonus. Say that every success in the recovery actionadds a bonus die to the vicitim's recall roll...

Alex Green · December 4, 2003

RE: Reducing the difficulty for more interaction.

I don't like it. If we go this way then baselines can resist without too much difficulty, even though they can never realize that there is something to resist (unlike with Trickster).

Fade doesn't allow long term memories to be created to begin with. Telepathy can't help because there is nothing to find. If that sounds grim, there are a number of drugs (illegally) available to the public that do the same thing. Even if the victim was raped or tortured during this time period they have nothing to remember. There are also some brain injuries and/or conditions that simulate the same effect. This phenomenon is pretty well understood as to its effects.

Gideon · December 4, 2003

Fine by me, I was just throwing out a way to mitigate the effects. As long as its effects are comprable to a level two power and no more it should be fine with a fixed +3 difficulty. I would accept it. (And it lets psions to resist some also if you want to see how well it maps to Trinity era).

Alex Green · December 4, 2003

I had forgotten about psions and psiads. Psiads can have mega-int, how do psions resist? (I'm much less familier with the Trinity system).

The rules I've seen only allow them to use Psi as soak. This isn't a soaked (although it wouldn't have any effect on the enhanced pre-cog senses).

ProfPotts · December 4, 2003

Considering it is a straight Int roll, that sounds workable.

If the only possible roll to resist the effect is an Intelligence roll with no added Abilities, then the Enhancement is still much more powerful than all other similar Enhancements.

General rules would favour resistance via either straight Willpower, or via an Attribute + Ability roll. This resistance doesn't need to be stated explicitly, if it'll vary from situation to situation.

If you allow a standard +3 difficulty on any resistance rolls, then a dice pool of 10 is needed to resist the Enhancement on an average roll. So, the best baseline in the world at [insert Ability used to resist] can resist the effect on average, but a normal professional at [insert Ability again], with a dice pool of 4, needs to roll maximum successes to resist the Enhancement.

Alternatively, you could state that the victim of the power needs to roll 2 successes (i.e. +1 difficulty) on a straight Intelligence roll - which is (statistically) much the same thing.

Anything that, by design, is more powerful than the above limits really should be brought as a power, not an Enhancement.

Alex Green · December 4, 2003

Point. And this would be a new mechanic as opposed to one from the book.

Core book rules would be... how about...

App+[3] against Int+{The Victim's Best Skill}.

Speaking of resistences.

The core book is pretty clear that Psi-Shield can't defend against this sort of thing.

I think we need a new power (Emotion Shield) that does.

A varient on the Emotion Shield already posted on Eon as a new power. It would do nicely and I'm sure DBuss wouldn't mind. ::rolleyes

ProfPotts · December 4, 2003

... and I'm sure DBuss wouldn't mind.

::laugh ::laugh ::laugh ::wink

Core book rules would be... how about...
App+[3] against Int+{The Victim's Best Skill}.

I'd still say 'no' - Social Enhancements tend to do one of the two things you have there - the effect is either based off an Attribute roll (i.e. Attribute + Mega-Attribute Vs appropriate resistance), or adds some auto-successes, not both. Which approach you take depends on the type of thing you want the Enhancement to do - the added successes types tend to have less 'raw power', but often stack nicely with each other, normal Abilities, & certain powers; whilst the Attribute roll types tend to be closer to 'mini-powers' in their own right, with limited scope of effect, but pretty effective within that area.

Personally I'd change Fade from automatic electronic invisibility, to 'electronic & mechanical surveillance has a hard time noticing & recording the Nova'. That way you can just use the +3 successes rule (successes adding to Intrusion or Stealth rolls to avoid electronic detection, the difficulty of the rolls of others to observe the Nova via electronic surveillance, & similar things).

Incognito is more of the 'mini-power' type - the Nova spends a QP & rolls Appearance. Any character who later tries to recall details of the Nova from the scene in which the Enhancement was active needs to beat the Nova's rolled successes (usually on an Intelligence roll) to do so.

Ayre el KaBeer · December 5, 2003

I've only been skimming this thread, so sorry if this has already been covered...

Are you only putting in Enhancements, what about new social powers?

Alex Green · December 5, 2003

Personally I'd change Fade from automatic electronic invisibility, to 'electronic & mechanical surveillance has a hard time noticing & recording the Nova'. That way you can just use the +3 successes rule (successes adding to Intrusion or Stealth rolls to avoid electronic detection, the difficulty of the rolls of others to observe the Nova via electronic surveillance, & similar things).
Incognito is more of the 'mini-power' type - the Nova spends a QP & rolls Appearance. Any character who later tries to recall details of the Nova from the scene in which the Enhancement was active needs to beat the Nova's rolled successes (usually on an Intelligence roll) to do so.

Hm.... Those are both very good ideas. I like them both.

I've only been skimming this thread, so sorry if this has already been covered... Are you only putting in Enhancements, what about new social powers?

Feel free to suggest some. I think the only one on the table so far is "Emotion Shield".

Sprocket · December 5, 2003

Re: The Dirty Pair-

So the proposed effect is too strong for an enhancement then, Alex? All right, fair enough- but that still leaves us with nothing to use as a replacement for Fade or Incognito if one or both of them get the axe. ::smile

Re: Eidolon-

Alex, your suggestion on the effect and mechanics of Eidolon (basing it on Awe-Inspiring) makes no sense at all to me, I'm afraid. As I wrote it up, the main effect of Eidolon was to distort how a subject perceived the nova using it, in accord with either the subject's personal desires and tastes or his fears and distastes. Any eyewitness accounts as to what the nova using Eidolon actually looked like would be greatly confused as a result. The bonus of +3 dice to either Seduction or Intimidation is merely a byproduct of how Eidolon functions; so I decided to make it much less effective than Seductive Looks, Awe-Inspiring, or Anathema.

As for the mechanics of Eidolon, here's a revised version of my earlier proposal:

Eidolon

This enhancement allows even the most basic details of the nova's Mega-Attractiveness to be seen through and reinterpreted by the individual desires of every person who can see the nova. Aside from letting the nova assume the guise of "perfect romantic partner" to masses of people, it also prevents those people from getting a clear look at what the nova really looks like. Mega-Ugly novas have their own version of this enhancement, which uses people's fears and allows them to don the guise of "horrifying nightmare"- and to make things worse, it provides the same protection against being identified.

System: The nova spends 1 quantum point to activate this enhancement for a scene. A Mega-Attractive nova will appear as a "perfect mate" to everyone who sees her, regardless of individual gender and/or orientation, and gains a + 3 dice bonus on Seduction rolls. A Mega-Ugly nova will appear as the "worst nightmare" of everyone who sees him, and gains a + 3 dice bonus on Intimidation rolls. Both versions of this enhancement make it extremely difficult to discern what the nova actually looks like. The nova's Mega-Appearance +1 is rolled against the subject's Willpower. Powers, effects, and devices that protect against telepathic illusions will add Willpower successes to the subject's Willpower. Those subjects who fail the Willpower roll will see the nova through their own personal likes or dislikes, incurring a difficulty penalty equal to the nova's Mega-Appearance on all rolls made to identify the nova through eyewitness accounts. The nova's subjects will be unable to identify the nova and will also disagree strongly with each other as to the nova's appearance and gender. Please note that unless the nova also has Almost Live (from the Aberrant Player's Guide), a nova using Eidolon cannot affect beings that are viewing him via video transmissions or recorded media.

This enhancement is available to novas with either version of Mega-Appearance.

Re: Are novas Inspired?- ::offtopic

It seems that you have an overly-narrow definition of what an Inspired being is, Finbar. Once again, I direct you to the first paragraph of Max Mercer's Knack description (Chronal Awareness) on page 232 of the Adventure! Core Book. It states in no uncertain terms that aberrants (and therefore the non-Tainted novas as well) are Inspired beings. I realize that you might not have the Adventure! Core Book, but trust me- it's there, and as plain as day. And as that's the only official word we're likely to get on that subject until the release of the Aeon D20 books (which I am highly ambivalent about), why don't we simply let the matter drop here and now?

As for the problems of novas using Adventure!-style Inspired gadgets? Ironically enough, I think that this problem has already been adressed in the forums of the Aberrant Prime! website- the exponentially greater Quantum of Aberrant and Trinity-era novas basically overloads most (if not all) of the gizmos from Adventure!, which were designed to run off of ambient Telluric energies. It's a lot like delicate electronics being fried by a power surge.

Re: "No Munchkin" protocol-

Actually, my gaming group applied that restriction to all of our campaigns, Aberrant and otherwise.

It wasn't so much worry over in-game abuse of nova abilities as much as the fact that munchkins can easily ruin a good gaming session for everyone else there. ::biggrin

Re: Fade and Incognito-

Once again, Finbar: It was Alex Green who came up with those enhancements, so he's the one you lot should be talking to. If you guys manage to hammer out a compromise on how they should work (and I'm hoping you can), I'll use whatever revised version of Fade and Incognito that Alex Green comes up with. ::cool

Re: new Social powers-

I'm not sure what the others think about it, Ayre, but I'm inclined to dismiss any new powers from the Social Mega-Attribute book on general purposes. Since Aberrant: Brainwaves only offered enhancements and aberrations, that's likely all that we'll be offering in our Mega-Social book. I'd be delighted to look over anything you could come up with as far as enhancements for Mega-Charisma and/or Mega-Manipulation, though! As of this writing, the only "sure-fire" enhancements we've got for those two Mega-Attributes are:

>Pavlov's Bell (Mega-Charisma) submitted by Glitch,

>Symphony Of Touch (Mega-Manipulation) submitted by Glitch, and

>Tactful (Mega-Manipulation) submitted by T-dev.

Seeing as we're trying to come up with a total of 6 new enhancements for each Mega-Social attribute, we've got a lot of empty slots to fill.

If you've got new powers, body modifications, or aberrations to post, put 'em on the "New Powers" thread, Ayre. After all, that's what it's there for! ::devilangel

Finbar · December 6, 2003

1) Re: Emotion Shield

Why not just use Invulnerability? Once the resistance roll is determined, it would apply just as it can currently against Willpower attacks...

2) Another option (defenses-wise) would be to set up an enhancement that would allow for added "soak", such as:

Force of Personality (Mega-Charisma)

(or, if based on Mega-Wits or Mega-Int, See Through the BS)

Some novas have an inherent ability to perceive that they are being manipulated through Mega-socials, and are able to either use their own Mega-Charisma to shield themselves (or simply allow for it, in the case of Mega-Ints, or adapt to the new situation in the case of Mega-Wits) against the effect.

System: When a Mega-Social enhancement is used on the nova in order to manipulate their emotions, the nova gains +3 dice on any roll to defend against its attacks. By spending a quantum point, this ability may be used against powers such as Domination or Hypnosis.

3)

::offtopic

Two notes on the "Inspired" issue: a) I've generally used the term "Inspired" to refer specifically to those who use Inspiration, as a way of diferentiating mesmerists, daredevils, and stalwarts (who use DE (yeah, yeah, I know ::tongue), knacks and facets) from novas, psions, psiads, and normals.

My players and I (as well as others) have noted that WW seems to not really do a thorough editing job on a number of their products. Compare weapon damage from Trinity to Nova to Adventure, for example. It's also worth noting that the relationship between novas and psions have changed from "could be either, depending on circumstances" (TPG) to "vastly different" (APG) to "just different paths of genetics" (A!).

Try to combine all three theories, given that Trinity is supposed to have the greatest actual knowledge, BUT that you usually go with the newest book. Although the products over-all are great, continuity just doesn't seem to be on the priority list, which is usually a good part of the story, Yeah, I know that there's a number of great epics where continuity is thrown to the wind, and others that got bogged down in it, but I like a solid continuity because it gives me a number of plot hooks in and of itself, and it's also sorta fun to play around with "What If..."'s (which a "fluid" continuity makes sorta pointless).

Definitely something I hope d20 clears up (probably for A! version)....

Side note: Thanks, Sprocket, btw: I've actually been looking for something like that; it'll make for some interesting conversations Saturday night....

FR

Sprocket · December 8, 2003

Re: Force of Personality-

Hate to rain on your parade, Finbar, but check out your copy of the Aberrant Compendium. (If you don't have it, it's available for download here on EON.) I think that the "Clarity" enhancement for Mega-Manipulation provides a bit of what you're shooting for with "Force of Personality". Also, there's a Mega-Manipulation enhancement from the Aberant Prime! website called "Opacity" that does what you're proposing.

But by all means, repost "Force of Personality" if you feel that it can work well with the two Mega-Manipulation enhancements that I've just mentioned! I might not use all the suggestions I get, but they do aid in the creative process... ::smile

Re: The Inspired issue- ::offtopic

Yeah, the developers over at White Wolf do love the old "conflicting accounts" tactic, don't they? Also, Trinity isn't necessarily the best source of in-game information- between Project: Rewrite, the OpNet crash, and a ton of Doyen-influenced disinformation on the subject, most researchers in the Trinity-era aren't much better off than their predecessors.

BTW: Glad to be of help as far as Saturday night conversation topics, friend. Anything to stave off boredom, yeh? ::devilangel

Re: New Mega-Appearance enhancements-

As I've received no news on both the status of the "Fade" and "Incognito" enhancements and my revision of the "Eidolon" enhancement, I'm going to hold off on posting the finished "Mega-Appearance section" document. Please get back to me soon on these things, folks- I'd hate for this to delay our little Mega-Social book any more than is really necessary. ::halo

Re: New Mega-Charisma enhancements-

Not wanting to waste time, I'll go ahead and post what we've got for new Mega-Charisma enhancements at the moment.

New Mega-Charisma Enhancements

Disconcerting

Despite what some may think, not all of the forms of charisma (and therefore Mega-Charisma) are pleasant. Case in point: A nova with this enhancement can use her superhuman force of personality offensively, as her glare is enough to cow even the boldest of baselines.

System: The nova automatically wins all staredowns (a form of the Intimidation ability) against non-Inspired beings and receives +3 automatic successes on staredowns against Inspired opponents. The nova may also temporarily stun a non-Inspired target with her superhuman force of personality via his gaze. To do so, the nova makes eye contact with the intended target (who must have a Willpower score that's equal to or lower than the nova's base Charisma rating). The nova then rolls Intimidation with a difficulty penalty of +1. Success forces the subject to lose his next combat action (if in combat) or automatically fail his next opposed Social roll (if out of combat). Fortunately(?), a nova is limited to using the secondary function of this enhancement only twice per day against any one individual.

Pavlov's Bell

The mood of a nova who possesses Mega-Charisma can have an effect on those around them, their approval arousing a warm and "good" feeling in others. Those novas who have developed this enhancement have learned to focus this effect in a useful manner, using their approval at a lesson learned to help others concentrate on the lesson that the nova is teaching. There is a darker side to this though: this same effect can be used to literally train people into reacting in a certain manner when presented with a certain stimulus, like Pavlov's dog salivating upon hearing the sound of a bell.

System: The nova may add a number of dice equal to their Mega-Charisma rating to any Animal Training or Instruction rolls they make, whether made to instruct a single individual or a group. By focusing this enhancement on an individual, the nova may instill a certain reflex into that person regardless of whether they know they are being trained or not. Each time the appropriate stimulus presents itself and the subject reacts in the desired manner in the nova's presence, the nova may spend a quantum point to "reward" the subject and rolls Charisma. After a number of successful rolls have been made in this manner (usually one successful roll per point of the subject's permanent Willpower rating), the subject must spend a Willpower when presented with the stimulus or reflexively react in the same manner. Once instilled, the new reflex remains until the nova ceases reinforcing it. The new reflex must be reinforced at least once per week, and will cost 1 quantum point to do so. Otherwise, the new reflex will last for one day beyond the deadline per dot of Mega-Charisma the nova possesses. One quantum point will activate this enhancement for the scene, but as noted above an additional point must be spent each time an individual's behaviour is "reinforced".

Politesse

As any serious world traveler could tell you, knowing and following the local rules of good behavior in a foreign culture isn't just a matter of being a good guest- it can literally be a lifesaver. A Mega-Charismatic nova with this enhancement has no need to worry about inadvertently making social faux pas in any human society, as he has a near-psychic capability to intuit whatever rules of proper behavior that hold sway in the culture he's currently interacting with. As a result, the nova can also follow those rules (if he wants to) with an ease that few of those who belong to the culture in question could match.

System: The nova with this enhancement automatically has his difficulty penalties reduced by [the nova's Mega-Charisma] points on any roll that involves knowing what is locally considered polite behavior- this usually means Etiquette rolls, but can apply to certain Streetwise rolls as well. The nova also receives three automatic successes on any Etiquette or Streetwise roll that involves acting in accordance with polite behavior. This enhancement is always in effect and costs no quantum points to activate.

Rancor

While most Mega-Charismatic novas use their superhuman force of personality in order to make themselves likeable and attractive, a few have learned to use their Mega-Charisma in the opposite manner. A nova with this enhancement can emanate enough hatred and bitterness to make most people instinctively keep their distance from her. It's even worse when a Rancorous nova fixes her gaze on someone in particular, as a venomous glare is all she'll need to drive an unfortunate victim from her sight. It should be noted that using this enhancement is not at all conducive to inspiring goodwill or loyalty in one's peers. Indiscriminate and/or inappropriate use of Rancor can easily leave the nova friendless just when she needs them the most.

System: The nova spends 1 quantum point to activate this enhancement for a scene. Everyone nearby (including the Rancorous nova's friends and allies) will feel the urge to get as far away from the nova as possible. If a subject still wants to approach the Rancorous nova, he must make a Willpower roll (with a difficulty penalty equal to the nova's Mega-Charisma) in order to do so. A Rancorous nova also gains a bonus of + 3 dice on all Intimidation rolls while using this enhancement.

If she so desires, the Rancorous nova can concentrate all that hatred and bitterness she's emanating into a glare that can drive a chosen victim from her sight. In this case, the Rancorous nova pits her Mega-Charisma against the victim's Willpower in a resisted roll. Failure on the victim's part will result in his or her backing off or otherwise folding if the Rancorous nova gains 1 success; further successes indicates that the victim might flee the scene, burst into tears, or do something equally melodramatic as a result of his or her emotional trauma. As a side-effect, from that point onwards the victim will be totally unable to think of the Rancorous nova in a positive way without Inspired aid or extensive mental therapy. Note: Any powers, effects or devices that protect against emotion-controlling powers will automatically provide additional successes on any Willpower rolls made to resist this enhancement.

So, what do you guys think? Will they make the cut, or is there a problem with any of them that needs to be addressed? I'm thinking of trying to write up a Mega-Charisma enhancement that would represent superhuman ability as a comedian, but feel free to post your own ideas here, guys. Even if all of the four enhancements listed above pass muster, that still leaves us with another two slots to fill... ::laugh

Alex Green · December 8, 2003

I think I like all four of them.

"Pavlov's Bell" needs an example or two.

I'll re-write and re-post the other two (Fade and something I don't recall) over the next couple of days.

Other M-Chr enhancement ideas.

Me! : (Yes, this isn't well thought up just yet).

Use of this enhancement allows you to focus other people's attention on you in a negative way. Similar to "Center of Attention", when activated the user of Me! becomes the most dangerous person present to the thinking of every hostile present.

System: This enhancement has two effects.

First) The nova pays a quantum point and there after anyone making an attack must make a willpower roll to do anything other than attack that nova, regardless of orders (etc) to the contrary. A nova using this enhancement may choose to not employ it against friendly forces, and non-combatants are not forced to take part in combat.

Second) The nova pays a quantum point and a specific person must make a willpower roll to resist loosing their cool and attacking the nova with whatever is at hand.

Gideon · December 8, 2003

Sprocket: I like Pavlov's Bell and Politesse both seem well thought out and internally balanced. As Alex said a couple exmaples of Pavlov's Bell in use on people (I might add) would be excellent to convey the intended use.

And not to sound offish about Rancor, but I liked it also. ::biggrin

I feel a little "disconcerted" with Disconcerting's automatic success on all baselines, I always feel that baselines with high Willpower should get a chance to resist a nova emotional enhacnement. It would seem a nice catch for the nova possessing the enhancement, that a baseline with exceptional Willpower has at least a chance to fight the reaction (even if its based on a previous experience or foreknowledge).

I guess this comes from the types of campaigns I normally run, where I like to keep the players on their toes, not all baselines are push overs such as the directive agent that possesses the unique Directive training to resist mental manipulation. I could see them developing emotive control training (ECT) for their agents also. Its also instinctual for me to hesitate at the word "always" or "automatically". HEck in most camapaigns 3 successes almost equates to always and automatically. But I digress.

Great ideas.

IDea for slang (may be borderline-ish wierd)

Gargoyles: These novas radiate negative emotions and use them as weapons against the emotionally pliable. (This term originated in Spain and Ibiza when a group of such novas showed up at the Amp room and tried to "scare" everyone out)

His Girl/Boy Friday: mildly derogatory slang describing a loyal or doting baseline lover/close firend, of a nova, that is clueless about the current nova tensions occuring around them.

Amped - following the violence that destroyed the Amp Room, many baseline used the phrase in statements like, "I knew things were about to get Amped, so I split." to describe when, usssually a nova, was about to start trashing a place/person/thing.

Breeder - slang for baselines that developed after the nova fertility issues became public to the nova community.

well those were a few that came out of my last campaign and just from my head. Some may not be appropriate for the book, but I though I would share them.

Sprocket · December 9, 2003

Re: Pavlov's Bell-

Nice to hear from you so soon, Alex! Although I'm glad that you and Gideon both liked this enhancement, I can't take any credit for it: it was submitted to our little Mega-Social e-book project here several months back by someone named Glitch. Perhaps we should give him/her/hir/it a chance to come up with some relevant examples of Pavlov's Bell in use? (Sorry about the pronoun confusion, I've been reading the GURPS Illuminati University forums for laughs and stress relief... ::biggrin )

Note: Glitch is also responsible for Yin-Yang (Mega-Appearance) and Symphony of Touch (Mega-Manipulation), both of which will likely be used in our Mega-Social e-book.

Re: Disconcerting-

Seeing as that Disconcerting is nothing more than the nova version of the "Steely Gaze" Heroic knack from Adventure!, I have to wonder just what your trouble with it is, Gideon. After all, shouldn't a nova (or a psion with the right aptitudes) be able to duplicate the Inspired powers of a daredevil? ::smile

Re: Your suggested enhancements and slang-

Thanks much for these, you two- I'll give them a good look-over. No promises on whether I'll use them, though!

Re: Gideon's website version of the Mega-Social e-book-

Gideon, you need to do some checking in your version of the lexicon. One of the definitions ("moth", I think) needs to be split off from the previous entry. It's not a major problem, but it still needs to be corrected ASAP.

See you lot later!

Sprocket · December 9, 2003

Re: Eidolon (Dec. 5th posted version)-

Since I've heard no feedback from either Alex or the rest of you lot on my latest version of the Eidolon (Mega-Appearance) enhancement, I think I'll just go ahead and add it to the main "Mega-Appearance section" document that's sitting here on my hard drive. Unless any of you folks object? ::cool

Gideon · December 9, 2003

Web version: Updated the introduction.html page, though I did not see any formatting errors in the lexicon section as you described, I did notice that the terms had two types of term parsers (i.e. either a hyphin or a colon) and I changed them all to colons. All of the terms had p-blocks around them so I was uncertain on the error. If you could double check the term with the error and perhaps tell me what browser you are using (I checked it with IE 6.0 and Netscape 4.0 (legacy check)) , as any help is appreciated.

Disconcerting: Sprocket, be that as it may, I did not like the automatic success in Adventure! either. If the consensus is for that enhancement I will not complain, I will just have my own house rule for it. ::smile As I said earlier I like the idea, and the write up. That was the only thing I did not like about it, but I do not want to be the lone sour grape on it. Its a good enhancement.

Eidolon: Okay I was orignally going to write how I thought it was still overly powerful, then I did my research into Seductive Looks, First Impression (minor over-lap in feel), Awe Inspiring, etc. and I realized it fits right in. A couple points why:

Seductive Looks affects the novas physical appearance, and so is recordable, but is only a guarranteed to affect one person.

First Impression, uses the line of being the "perfect mate" for the target, but Eidolon only means the nova has the physical form of a perfect mate's body, not their personality.

so I give two thumbs up for Eidolon.

Alex Green · December 9, 2003

Re: Eidolon (Dec. 5th posted version)-
Since I've heard no feedback from either Alex or the rest of you lot on my latest version of the Eidolon (Mega-Appearance) enhancement, I think I'll just go ahead and add it to the main "Mega-Appearance section" document that's sitting here on my hard drive. Unless any of you folks object? ::cool

Those subjects who fail the Willpower roll will see the nova through their own personal likes or dislikes, incurring a difficulty penalty equal to the nova's Mega-Appearance on all rolls made to identify the nova through eyewitness accounts. The nova's subjects will be unable to identify the nova and will also disagree strongly with each other as to the nova's appearance and gender.

I like Eidolon a great deal but am unclear on the effects of the bold statement above.

Shouldn't it just be...

Those subjects who fail the Willpower roll will see the nova through their own personal likes or dislikes. The nova's subjects will be unable to identify the nova and will also disagree strongly with each other as to the nova's appearance and gender.

Sprocket · December 10, 2003

You gotta love these quick response times... ::laugh

Re: error on Gideon's Mega-Social e-book website-

Whoops! Looks like my browser had somehow locked onto an older version of your Introduction page by accident, Gideon- my bad. ::blush Please disregard my error report, as it's obviously been fixed in the current version.

Re: Disconcerting-

That's okay by me, Gideon. It's been my experience that there are few Aberrant Storytellers who don't have at least a few house rules to shape the game to the tastes of both themselves and their players. ::wink

Re: Eidolon-

Thanks for the two-thumbs-up, Gideon. ::cool And as for your question, Alex: earlier I'd gotten a lot of feedback from the other posters to this forum stating that Eidolon was overpowered. That bit about the difficulty penalty was added to make seeing through the "illusion effect" Eidolon creates difficult, but not impossible. That said, your take on how the mechanics for Eidolon should work does sound a lot simpler and easier to use in play.

So here's what I'll do. I'll revise my current version of Eidolon to match Alex's latest suggestion- and if nobody objects, then that's the version I'll use in the finished "Mega-Appearance section" document. Fair enough?

Re: Incognito and Fade-

I'm very eager to get a look at your revisions for those two enhancements, Alex. Once I can wrap up the Mega-Appearance section, I can turn my full attentions toward the Mega-Charisma section. Something tells me that the Mega-Charisma essays are going to take a while, though... ::devilangel

Alex Green · December 10, 2003

Incognito

Novas with Mega-Appearance tend to be easily remembered. This enhancement prevents other people's short-term memories of the nova from being turned into long-term memories. As short-term memory only lasts for a minute or two, a nova with this enhancement can go everywhere, be identified everywhere, but still remain anonymous. Unlike Mr. Nobody, Incognito doesn't make the nova unobtrusive, reduce Mega-Appearance, or prevent on the spot identification. It only prevents other people from remembering the nova.

System: The Nova spends 1 quantum point and rolls Appearance. Anyone who later tries to recall details of the Nova from the scene in which the Enhancement was active needs to beat the Nova's rolled successes (usually on an Intelligence roll) to do so. Characters with Eidetic Memory get three extra dice on their roll. This enhancement is extremely subtle, unless someone was aware of this effect at the time it was in effect, they can not spend willpower on their memory roll. Similarly, since long-term memories never formed to begin with, telepathy and similar powers can not be used to help a person’s memory roll. This enhancement does nothing to prevent the nova from being recorded on any form of media (photos, movies, digital video files, etc.), nor can it operate through video transmissions. Both of these problems can easily be remedied by use of the "Almost Live" enhancement (from the Aberrant Player's Guide). This enhancement only affects the people exposed to it.

Example: John Stupid has Incognito and activates it before he knocks over a building and kills two hundred baselines. When T2M shows up 10 minutes later, although all the witnesses agree that a nova must have done this, they don't remember which nova or what the nova looked like. John stays on site and appears in front of everyone who saw this. He figures that they won't be able to connect him to his crime. Unfortunately for John, one of the witnesses dialed 911 and gave the police his description before he forgot it. T2M easily matches him to his description and hauls him in on the spot.

This enhancement is available to novas with either version of Mega-Appearance.

Fade

While it hasn't become quite as pervasive as George Orwell feared, electronic surveillance is still widespread in the developed regions of Earth, circa 2015. Given that a person is likely to be monitored by at least one video camera in any public area (and in many private areas as well), the development of this enhancement was inevitable. Novas with Fade are virtual ghosts as far as electronic surveillance is concerned.

System: A Nova using this enhancement is extremely difficult to detect or record by technological devices and effectively casts no reflection. This "cloaking effect" includes the nova’s shadow and his clothes, but attempts to cloak anything larger should be handled with the Attunement Background rules. The nova spends 1 quantum point to activate this enhancement for a scene. While active, any attempt to capture the nova’s image on video monitors, cameras (old-fashioned film or digital) or similar media (including motion detectors) has a +3 difficulty. Alternatively, the nova may gain +3 succ for any Stealth, Intrusion, or similar rolls when dealing with electronic surveillance or detection. While the nova may choose to end the effect at any time, he can not be selective. I.e. he can not choose to both have a reflection and at the same time avoid being recorded on film. Lack of a reflection can lead to consternation among superstitious people, and even your average citizen of the First World will likely find this somewhat disturbing. Where appropriate Artificial Intelligences should treat this enhancement as the electronic version of the Incognito enhancement.

This enhancement is available to novas with either version of Mega-Appearance.

Sprocket · December 10, 2003

Re: New Mega-Appearance enhancements-

Ah, so the revisions have been posted! Much thanks, Alex. ::cool Provided that nobody objects, I'll go ahead and add these latest versions of Fade and Incognito to the Mega-Appearance document. I will give the rest of you a grace period of a few days before posting the Mega-Appearance document on this forum and declaring it to be finished- if any of you have gripes with the latest versions of Fade, Incognito, or Eidolon, then speak up quickly! ::laugh

Re: New Mega-Charisma enhancements-

Okay, I've got one new Mega-Charisma enhancement for you lot to look over. I've also done a little bit of revision to Disconcerting, as I'd forgotten to note the matter of the quantum point cost... oh well. ::tongue Read through them and tell me what you think, folks.

Disconcerting

Despite what some may think, not all of the forms of charisma (and therefore Mega-Charisma) are pleasant. Case in point: A nova with this enhancement can use her superhuman force of personality offensively, as her glare is enough to cow even the boldest of baselines.

System: The nova automatically wins all staredowns (a form of the Intimidation ability) against non-Inspired beings and receives +3 automatic successes on staredowns against Inspired opponents. The nova may also temporarily stun a non-Inspired target with her superhuman force of personality via his gaze. To do so, the nova makes eye contact with the intended target (who must have a Willpower score that's equal to or lower than the nova's base Charisma rating). The nova then rolls Intimidation with a difficulty penalty of +1. Success forces the subject to lose his next combat action (if in combat) or automatically fail his next opposed Social roll (if out of combat). This enhancement is always in effect and costs no quantum points to activate. Fortunately(?), a nova is limited to using the secondary function of this enhancement only twice per day against any one individual.

Autonomy

Despite the Hollywood myth of rugged individualism, all humans (and most novas) remain extremely social creatures. The saying "no man is an island" isn't just a cliché, but is part and parcel of our evolution as social beings. Clint Eastwood aside, a human's sense of self-worth is entirely dependent on the admiration of and reassurance by his or her social peers. The varied problems of belonging to a social group are inescapable for the most part, as socially isolated humans become depressed and suffer from poor health as a result of their alienation. Usually, these ostracized humans die an early death.

A Mega-Charismatic nova with this enhancement is the exception to that rule, as his evolved psyche allows him to survive in social circumstances that would quicky drive a baseline to a premature death. The near-indestructible sense of self-worth possessed by an Autonomous nova not only allows him to function effectively without the support or approval of a social group, but also aids in social conflict. As they are instinctively aware of their own dependence on social groups, baselines and other novas are often admiring of or unnerved by an Autonomous nova's social independence. A few worried researchers have even made claims that Autonomous novas suffer from a form of sociopathy. Likening the social group to a multicellular organism, they have declared Autonomous novas to be the social equivalent of cancer cells: rogue individuals who benefit by putting their own needs before that of the social group. Understandably, this view is ridiculed by the scientific mainstream, although it receives enthusiastic support from the Church of Michael Archangel and other anti-nova organizations.

System: The nova can sustain himself emotionally and psychologically for an indefinite period on residual quantum energies, so long as he retains at least one quantum point in his Quantum Pool. The Autonomous nova has no need for (but can still enjoy) social attachments, the affection of others, or social recognition. He can also survive indefinitely in hostile social environments such as social isolation or living in hiding within a hostile culture. The nova is automatically immune to most forms of psychosomatic damage (illness & impaired health), perceived irrelevance to society (loss of the will to live and self-destructive behavior), mental disorders caused by lack of social contact, and the Social attacks employed by all humans. In the case of especially powerful social forces such as the pressure to obey the dictates of the social group and Mega-Social attacks, the Autonomous nova gains an extra six Social soak or Social Resistance dice. (See the rules for Social combat for details, either in this book or on pg.s 16-17 of Aberrant: Worldwide- Phase I.) Finally, the nova receives a difficulty bonus equal to his Mega-Charisma on all Social rolls where his social independence could be of benefit to him. This enhancement is always in effect and costs no quantum points to activate.

Send me some feedback on these ASAP, okay?

Finbar · December 11, 2003

The modified enhancements are cool, and Autonomy is definitely nice. However, Disconcerting has two problems.

First, is the "auto-success vs. mortals" issue; I would really hate to run a baseline in your game. The +3 is good enough, especially as the nova already has at least one dot in the applicable mega-stat. Second, "base Charisma" would limit it to affecting targets with Wllpower 5 or less; you may want to make this a straight Cha+Mega-Cha versus Willpower roll. This would also allow you take the limit of twice per day off. Basically, you have one effect that too powerful and the other that's too weak.

Side Note: You'll obviously need a note towards the beginning specifying that you consider "Inspired" to be any psion, psiad, nova, mesmerist, stalwart, or daredevil. As that's currently not canon, you'll get a lot of confusion.

FR

Alex Green · December 11, 2003

RE: Disconcerting

With +3 autosucc I'm not sure we need to say "baseline's automatically lose".

RE: Autonomy

I like the description and the definition. However, the system makes this the social equivalent of Adaptation, INV: Social, Density Decrease, and perhaps Health.

If this is a defense against pretty near all of the other mega-socials, then it should probably give +1 diff per level of Mega-Chr.

If this pumps certain skill rolls in Social Combat, then +3 auto succ should be enough.

(I badly need to re-read the Social Combat rules before talking more.)

Bahamut810 · December 11, 2003

I dont think it needs to be said when you have a Mega-att v a baseline-att. Somewhere in the rules (I cant remember where) it says that if one opponent has mega-att and the other dosent....mega att always wins.

Alex Green · December 11, 2003

I dont think it needs to be said when you have a Mega-att v a baseline-att. Somewhere in the rules (I cant remember where) it says that if one opponent has mega-att and the other dosent....mega att always wins.

How about, "Staredowns uses Mega-Stat contest rules?"

Gideon · December 11, 2003

Bahamut810: contests between mega-Attributes and non.

In fact it actually says that the only time a role is required in such contested actions is when the base attribute is a 5 and the mega-Attribute is a one. Then the non-mega attribute user needs to spend a willpower point to be equal to the MEga-Attribute 1 person for 1 turn. So a baseline could compete in a Nova arm-wrestling contest if their opponenet only had M-Str 1...and the baseline had sufficient Willpower available.

ProfPotts · December 11, 2003

In fact it actually says that the only time a role is required in such contested actions is when the base attribute is a 5 and the mega-Attribute is a one.

Actually it doesn't. As long as the normal Attribute is at 5 dots, then that character can spend a point of Willpower each turn to gain a single die to roll in the resisted action. The other guy's Mega-Attribute can be anything - & he gets to roll all his dice, as per normal for such a resisted action. So a baseline bodybuilder can beat Geryon at armwrestling - it's just not very likely.

Sprocket · December 12, 2003

::blink Wow! And here I was contemplating having to wait for a few days to get that feedback I asked for... ::laugh

Re: Autonomy-

Alex, perhaps you should dig out your copy of the Aberrant Core Book and turn to the page detailing Mega-Stamina and its enhancements. Given that the writers who came up with the Social Combat rules (pg.s 16-17 of Aberrant Worldwide: Phase I) listed Charisma as the social equivalent of Stamina, I felt that Adaptability would translate well into the Mega-Charisma format.

Basically, Autonomy is more-or-less a direct conversion of Adaptability- and if anything, it's a bit less powerful than Adaptability. Look- Adaptability frees a nova from having to eat/sleep/breathe, lets the nova survive in extremely hostile environments, AND gives her an automatic immunity to most poisons, gases, diseases, and drugs. To top things off, it also grants the nova an extra six soak or Resistance dice against especially virulent diseases and nova-derived poisons, and increases the nova's lifespan by centuries (at a minimum).

So take another look at Autonomy, all right? Trust me, Alex, it's no more of a game-buster than Adaptability is. ::cool

Re: Disconcerting-

And here I thought that Autonomy was the potential troublemaker of the two... It's always nice to spark a good debate now and then, though! ::biggrin

So you guys think the mechanic for Disconcerting should rely on the basic "Attribute vs. Mega-Attribute" scenario? When all a daredevil with "Steely Gaze" has to do is give some unsuspecting-but-hopefully-deserving normal Joe a harsh look to make him run off with his tail between his legs? I'm not sure if your argument is valid, guys. You might want to remember that all of the Aeoniverse settings are cinematic in terms of character power levels. Unless they've got latent transhuman capacities of their own, John & Jane Baseline are really little more than minor characters in the script.

Bottom line: Unless you can give me a really good reason why a baseline should fare better against a nova than he would against a daredevil, the writeup for Disconcerting will likely stay "as is". But keep that feedback coming, please!

Re: "Canonical" definition of the term "Inspired"- ::offtopic

I hate to say this, Finbar, but not only are you splitting hairs, you're apparently working off of faulty data. Judging from the setting information presented in the

Adventure! Core Book, Max Mercer apparently not only used the term "Inspired" as a label for homo sapiens who gain transhuman powers from exposure to Telluric Energy (novas, psiads, psions, daredevils, stalwarts, and mesmerists), but also for other creatures who gained in power due to Telluric exposure. Come on, doesn't the name "Enkidu" ring a bell? ::wink

(Side Note: I was bitterly disappointed that Adventure! didn't provide a template for playing Inspired sentient gorillas. Every campaign needs an Inspired sentient gorilla... ::hehe )

Alex Green · December 12, 2003

Re: Autonomy-
Alex, perhaps you should dig out your copy of the Aberrant Core Book and turn to the page detailing Mega-Stamina and its enhancements. Given that the writers who came up with the Social Combat rules (pg.s 16-17 of Aberrant Worldwide: Phase I) listed Charisma as the social equivalent of Stamina, I felt that Adaptability would translate well into the Mega-Charisma format.
Basically, Autonomy is more-or-less a direct conversion of Adaptability- and if anything, it's a bit less powerful than Adaptability. Look- Adaptability frees a nova from having to eat/sleep/breathe, lets the nova survive in extremely hostile environments, AND gives her an automatic immunity to most poisons, gases, diseases, and drugs. To top things off, it also grants the nova an extra six soak or Resistance dice against especially virulent diseases and nova-derived poisons, and increases the nova's lifespan by centuries (at a minimum).
So take another look at Autonomy, all right? Trust me, Alex, it's no more of a game-buster than Adaptability is. ::cool

Adaptability is an extremely strong enhancement because it grants a lot in many different areas. Having said that, poisons and diseases are very rare situations that you don't see very often. For the most part, people use Adaptability to either get rid of ageing or to allow them to use transport powers into extreme environments. Mostly you don't run into extreme environments unless you want to.

In the nova community, mega social enhancements (MSE) are common, no, make that very common. MSE's can be, and are, used openly (meaning that not only are MSE common, but they are also used frequently).

Autonomy grants the much the same as the already overpowered enhancement adaptability, but it grants it in very common situations. It should be toned down or broken up.

Which in turn raises a different issue. I suspect that a lot of ST's wouldn't allow "INV:Social Enhancements/Megas" because MSE's add a lot of flavor and such to the game (and for the other reason's I gave above).

Alex Green · December 12, 2003

After I slept on it, my thinking got a bit clearer.

In the case of especially powerful social forces such as the pressure to obey the dictates of the social group and Mega-Social attacks, the Autonomous nova gains an extra six Social soak or Social Resistance dice.

If Mega-Chr is Stamina, then Mega-Manip is Strength. Adaptability doesn't grant 6 soak against ANYTHING that you can do with Mega-Strength.

Gideon · December 12, 2003

Right you are Prof. ::biggrin The reference is pg.155 in the core book.

I guess it strikes me is rather odd that a guy who can only dead lift 240kg (only...man Aberrant skews whats signifigant), can win a contest of strength contest with some one who can dead-lift 25,000kg at M-Str 3, or 50,000kg at M-Str 5 just plain wrong ::blink .Lets scale this down for a mommen and divide all numbers by 240.

So a person that can only lift 1kg, can overwhelm someone that is over 104 times stronger and able to life 104.16kg? or even 208.33kg? normally I would require a botch for such an outrageous fluke, or at least a Str+ Might role in the case of armwrestling.

We did not mean it to be a house rule ::halo , but our group just assumed (collectively without discussion), that you could only one-up in a strength contest, since the increases were so big between each rank in Mega-Strength.

Sprocket · December 12, 2003

Re: Autonomy-

I hope you or one of your friends has a copy of Aberrant Worldwide: Phase I, Alex- you need to take a look at it. On pages 16-17, the Social Combat rules interpret Mega-Manipulation to be the Social equivalent of Mega-Dexterity, not Mega-Strength. Those same rules give the nova a choice of using either Mega-Appearance or Mega-Wits as the Social equivalent of Mega-Strength.

As for the "automatic immunity" and +6 soak/Resistance dice bonus... Well, perhaps they do affect a bit too much as they are currently written. But then we'll have to figure out the Social equivalents of poisons, gases, diseases, and drugs (for the automatic immunity); and the Social equivalent of "especially virulent diseases" and nova-derived poisons (for the +6 soak/Resistance dice).

Sprocket · December 12, 2003

Re: the Mega-Appearance section-

Since I've yet to hear any objections to the revised versions of the Eidolon, Fade, or Incognito enhancements; I'm going ahead and posting the entire Mega-Appearance section here and declaring it finished. (Finally! ::smokin ) So go ahead and transfer it to your website, Gideon. Now that that's out of the way, I can concentrate on the Mega-Charisma section... ::smile

Mega-Appearance: Idols

Humans have always paid close attention to physical appearances, both their own and those of others. As a result, those people who are deemed attractive are admired, desired, and envied by most of their fellows. The emergence of the idols, novas with Mega-Appearance, has taken this to the extreme. The superhuman beauty possessed by these modern-day Venuses and Adonises has made them darlings of the media and stolen the hearts of baselines around the world. For good or ill, they are the sirens of the Nova Age.

Exquisite Beauty

Arguably the most obvious Social Mega-Attribute, Mega-Appearance is also the simplest- it enhances all of the myriad and seemingly minor aspects of the human body that contribute to what we know as "physical beauty". While literally millions of people (men and women alike) do whatever they can to enhance their appearance with special diets, cosmetics, plastic surgery and the like; novas with Mega-Appearance look better than any baseline supermodels to be found without any need for such extreme measures. Many baseline social commentators have compared the idols to living works of art. It's not an unreasonable description- given that all humans are "hardwired" to find looking at a beautiful person very pleasurable, merely catching a glimpse of an idol can dazzle even the most rational and disciplined person. And if that idol shows any interest at all in that person, he or she is likely to be reduced to a beatific daze. Is it any wonder, then, that most baselines (and many novas) can turn to putty in an idol's hands?

A Bed Of Roses...

It's also no wonder that Mega-Attractive novas tend to receive preferential treatment from most of the people around them- humans seem to instinctively want to please a beautiful person. Lacking any other data to go on; most people will tend to assume that a Mega-Attractive nova is more intelligent, more sociable and popular, of better character, and of higher social status than a less-glamorous peer. If she's smart, an idol can often have the world for her oyster, especially where matters of romance are concerned. Even in the 21st Century, many people (novas and baselines alike) still have a hard time believing that an evil mind can reside behind a beautiful appearance. Consequently, a sufficiently savvy idol can sometimes get away with committing even the most serious crimes- and not only is she less likely to be reported than other novas, she's also less likely to be accused or penalized if she is. Even if the idol winds up being penalized for her crimes, her punishment will more likely than not be a good deal lighter than would usually be expected. Certain baseline psychologists explain this as the long-standing belief that "beautiful people are better in every way- including inherent goodness- than ordinary people". Despite being fallacious, this myth does help to explain why idols are often granted perks and gifts more appropriate to the god-kings of antiquity instead of mortal aristocracy. As all novas are larger than life, idols are often treated as being more than mere mortals- in short, as they're treated as living gods.

...Complete With Thorns

Ever since the early days of the Nova Age, baselines have fantasized about what the lives of the Mega-Attractive novas must be like. What they usually end up imagining is a mélange of Hugh Hefner-style hedonism, Robin Leach-style extravagance, a love life straight out of a paperback romance novel, and a supremely high quality of life possessed only by the greatest of historical royalty. After all, they think, they're so wonderfully perfect that their lives have to be perfect too! It's a nice fantasy- "champagne wishes and caviar dreams", gorgeous young baseline groupies always eager for a night of passion- good times and the Good Life, as far as many baselines are concerned.

The realities of an idol's life, however, are somewhat different.

Being Mega-Attractive means that an idol will be desired sexually by many of the people that he or she will encounter in a social setting. While that sounds great at first, several drawbacks soon make themselves apparent. For one thing, there is no guarantee whatsoever that a person who is turned on by an idol's quantum-charged good looks will meet the idol's own criteria for a possible lover or significant other- the idol's admirer might be of the wrong gender, too young or old, be unpleasant in appearance or personality, or simply might be repulsive to the idol for one reason or another. Also, many of the status symbols that grant otherwise boorish and unappealing individuals high status in baseline society- extreme wealth, political power, academic achievement, descent from the upper social strata, being an influential figure in a powerful organization, etc.- often count for little to an idol. More often than not, those egotistical baselines are left dumbfounded- and sometimes resentful- when their displays fail to win an idol's affections. On the other hand, a baseline whom an idol becomes romantically interested in can fail to see the idol's interest as being honest and legit. With a head filled with fantasies of what an idol's life is like, some baselines simply cannot imagine any reason why a Mega-Attractive nova would have any real interest in them, and assume that the idol has dishonorable attentions towards them. That usually ends the matter then and there.

Then there's the fact that a large fraction of an idol's admirers will seek treat the idol as a sex object. (Yes, Virginia, women can and do sometimes treat attractive men as sex objects. Welcome to the 21st Century.) While the more lusty idols don't have much of a problem with that, those who are less hormone-driven quickly tire of being wanted only for impersonal sex instead of a healthy romantic relationship. Making things even more difficult is the tendency of many people to constantly misinterpret any simple gestures of friendship the idol might make as signs of sexual interest or seduction attempts.

Oh, and while we're talking about friendship... Despite what one would think, idols are sometimes rather lonely, since they can find it extremely difficult to establish and maintain lasting friendships. By definition, a Mega-Attractive nova's good looks are far beyond the "1-to-10 scale" commonly used in the singles scene. Potential sexual rivals will tend to feel envious of and/or threatened by the idol's superhuman attractiveness, even if they're ostensibly his or her friends. Nobody likes to be outshined by a more attractive rival- they'd much rather outshine other potential rivals. Potential sexual partners will tend stare at the idol and otherwise act bizarrely. This becomes even worse if it's a friend's significant other that's getting flustered over the idol. It also makes Platonic friendships rare, as it's hard for an idol to keep things Platonic when the other person can't help but spend his or her time thinking about how to get into the idol's pants. After dealing with these types of situations for several years, some idols might get married just to escape from the singles scene!

Another problem has to do with the preconceptions that many people will have about attractive people in general and Mega-Attractive novas in particular. If an idol is female, baseline men tend to assume that she is sexually permissive and confident, and that she has a high sex drive. Female idols are also thought to make poor mothers- and given that there have been no known nova pregnancies, the matter is still considered to be strictly academic. As for the image problems of male idols? Well, baseline women don't automatically assume that a male idol is a skilled Don Juan with a quantum-charged libido, although a few of them may fit that description. No, the major problem for male idols is that many ignorant people automatically assume that they are all homosexuals, regardless of their actual sexual orientation. The efforts of "Ironskin" Andy Vance and the QNA notwithstanding, as of 2015 male idols of all orientations are still liable to face anti-gay prejudice from bigoted baselines (usually macho thugs) on increasingly rare occasions simply due to being seen as "pretty boys". This can result in some truly ugly situations, but most male idols come out none the worse for wear. The same can't be said for their baseline antagonists, though...

There are a few other drawbacks to being an idol. Like attractive baselines, Mega-Attractive novas are often seen as being less prone to maintaining their fidelity in a relationship, and more likely to instigate a divorce. An idol's superhuman beauty can very easily distract other people from any other valuable qualities that he or she may have, which can lead to much frustration on the idol's part. Being Mega-Attractive doesn't automatically make other people see an idol as having integrity, being sensitive, or being compassionate. Finally, there are always some people who despise their beautiful fellows for one reason or another- and if they loathe beautiful baselines, then how much more will they hate a Mega-Attractive nova?

Roleplaying Mega-Appearance

If you're intending to play a character with Mega-Appearance, take a moment to think about the really handsome guys or the drop-dead-gorgeous femmes you might have known. Now remember all the ways- both good and bad- in which other people would treat them. Did you know a beautiful woman that had practically all of the guys on the local rugby team begging her for a date? Or maybe it was her boss who was infatuated with her, to the point of committing sexual harassment? On the other hand, were you drinking buddies with the hunk who always seemed to have lovely ladies either hanging onto him or fighting over him every Saturday night? Or was it a "pretty boy" that you remember, mainly for all abuse that the local macho ne'er-do-wells (who were probably inbred to boot) tried to dish out to him because they thought he was gay? Did any of those beautiful people have an entourage of buddies, or were those potential friends too afraid of losing their love interests to someone much more attractive than they were?

That kind of treatment, both good and bad, is exactly what Mega-Attractive novas can expect to receive on a regular basis- only it's amplified to almost ridiculous levels. How does an idol deal with all of that? Does he take advantage of his Mega-Appearance and indulge in one-night stands seven days a week? Will a female idol be flattered at being courted by a business tycoon, or will she brush him off as an arrogant blowhard? Can an idol manage to make friends out of potential sexual rivals and keep them as friends, or will the idol ruin good marriages and demolish serious relationships without a care?

In the end, the biggest question about an idol is the same as for any other nova: will the idol use the power of his or her Mega-Appearance responsibly? Or will the idol test the limits of what superhuman beauty can let him or her get away with- and the limits of what the people affected by the idol's actions can tolerate?

The Bimbo Factor

One vital thing to remember about Mega-Appearance is that it only enhances a nova's good looks- it does not provide any of the social graces that's required to make the most of an idol's superhuman beauty. An idol who lacks Mega-Charisma will basically dispel any illusions of being thoughtful and charming that his Mega-Appearance might've fostered among other people the instant he speaks. If the nova is also lacking in Intelligence or Wits (ratings lower than 3), he or she will be swiftly categorized as a "bimbo-nova". Note: The myriad slang terms used for these quantum-powered bubbleheads vary greatly with the local culture and media. For reference, El Puerto (from Aberrant: Underworld) is a prime example of a "bimbo-nova".

New Mega-Appearance Enhancements

Eidolon

This enhancement allows even the most basic details of the nova's Mega-Attractiveness to be seen through and reinterpreted by the individual desires of every person who can see the nova. Aside from letting the nova assume the guise of "perfect romantic partner" to masses of people, it also prevents those people from getting a clear look at what the nova really looks like. Mega-Ugly novas have their own version of this enhancement, which uses people's fears and allows them to don the guise of "horrifying nightmare"- and to make things worse, it provides the same protection against being identified.

System: The nova spends 1 quantum point to activate this enhancement for a scene. A Mega-Attractive nova will appear as a "perfect mate" to everyone who sees her, regardless of individual gender and/or orientation, and gains a + 3 dice bonus on Seduction rolls. A Mega-Ugly nova will appear as the "worst nightmare" of everyone who sees him, and gains a + 3 dice bonus on Intimidation rolls. Both versions of this enhancement make it extremely difficult to discern what the nova actually looks like. The nova's Mega-Appearance +1 is rolled against the subject's Willpower. Powers, effects, and devices that protect against telepathic illusions will add Willpower successes to the subject's Willpower. Those subjects who fail the Willpower roll will see the nova through their own personal likes or dislikes. The nova's subjects will be unable to identify the nova and will also disagree strongly with each other as to the nova's appearance and gender. Please note that unless the nova also has Almost Live (from the Aberrant Player's Guide), a nova using Eidolon cannot affect beings that are viewing him via video transmissions or recorded media.

This enhancement is available to novas with either version of Mega-Appearance.

Fade

While it hasn't become quite as pervasive as George Orwell feared, electronic surveillance is still widespread in the developed regions of Earth, circa 2015. Given that a person is likely to be monitored by at least one video camera in any public area (and in many private areas as well), the development of this enhancement was inevitable. Novas with Fade are virtual ghosts as far as electronic surveillance is concerned.

System: A Nova using this enhancement is extremely difficult to detect or record by technological devices and effectively casts no reflection. This "cloaking effect" includes the nova’s shadow and his clothes, but attempts to cloak anything larger should be handled with the Attunement Background rules. The nova spends 1 quantum point to activate this enhancement for a scene. While active, any attempt to capture the nova’s image on video monitors, cameras (old-fashioned film or digital) or similar media (including motion detectors) has a +3 difficulty penalty. Alternatively, the nova may gain +3 successes for any Stealth, Intrusion, or similar rolls when dealing with electronic surveillance or detection. While the nova may choose to end the effect at any time, he cannot be selective. I.e. he can not choose to both have a reflection and at the same time avoid being recorded on film. Lack of a reflection can lead to consternation among superstitious people, and even your average citizen of the First World will likely find this somewhat disturbing. Where appropriate Artificial Intelligences should treat this enhancement as the electronic version of the Incognito enhancement.

This enhancement is available to novas with either version of Mega-Appearance.

Halo Effect

For some reason, everyone considers a nova with this enhancement to be pure and innocent, though not necessarily naïve. This enhancement grants a Mega-Attractive nova a saint-like quality that is hard to pinpoint but cannot be denied. Unless confronted with direct evidence to the contrary, people will perceive the nova as being likeable and trustworthy, and will tend to confide in her. She will even tend to receive lesser punishments for wrongdoing, as people find it very difficult to think ill of her.

System: People who catch sight of a nova using this enhancement must roll Mega-Wits against the nova's [Mega-Appearance +1] to resist the Halo Effect. Those who fail will perceive the nova as described above. Novas lacking Mega-Wits and other Inspired beings can automatically shake off the Halo Effect after [the nova's Mega-Appearance] hours. Baselines automatically fail this roll, and may remain under the sway of the Halo Effect for years without Inspired aid or serious mental trauma. Furthermore, unless the nova has the Trustworthy enhancement (from the Aberrant Compendium), any subject (Inspired or not) who witnesses the nova committing some act that strongly contradicts her "saintly" image may make a Willpower roll at standard difficulties to shake off the Halo Effect immediately. This enhancement is permanent but can be turned on or off at will, and has no quantum point cost. This enhancement is also restricted to Mega-Attractive novas- Mega-Ugly novas cannot take it.

Incognito

Novas with Mega-Appearance tend to be easily remembered. This enhancement prevents other people's short-term memories of the nova from being turned into long-term memories. As short-term memory only lasts for a minute or two, a nova with this enhancement can go everywhere, be identified everywhere, but still remain anonymous. Unlike Mr. Nobody, Incognito doesn't make the nova unobtrusive, reduce Mega-Appearance, or prevent on the spot identification. It only prevents other people from remembering the nova.

System: The Nova spends 1 quantum point and rolls Appearance. Anyone who later tries to recall details of the Nova from the scene in which the Enhancement was active needs to beat the Nova's rolled successes (usually on an Intelligence roll) to do so. Characters with Eidetic Memory get three extra dice on their roll. This enhancement is extremely subtle, unless someone was aware of this effect at the time it was in effect, they cannot spend Willpower on their memory roll. Similarly, since long-term memories never formed to begin with, telepathy and similar powers can not be used to help a person’s memory roll. This enhancement does nothing to prevent the nova from being recorded on any form of media (photos, movies, digital video files, etc.), nor can it operate through video transmissions. Both of these problems can easily be remedied by use of the "Almost Live" enhancement (from the Aberrant Player's Guide). This enhancement only affects the people exposed to it.

Example: John Stupid has Incognito and activates it before he knocks over a building and kills two hundred baselines. When T2M shows up 10 minutes later, although all the witnesses agree that a nova must have done this, they don't remember which nova or what the nova looked like. John stays on site and appears in front of everyone who saw this. He figures that they won't be able to connect him to his crime. Unfortunately for John, one of the witnesses dialed 911 and gave the police his description before he forgot it. T2M easily matches him to his description and hauls him in on the spot.

This enhancement is available to novas with either version of Mega-Appearance.

Two-Faced

Normally, a nova with Mega-Appearance becomes either Mega-Attractive or Mega-Ugly during his eruption, and is stuck with that result for the rest of his existence. However, a few novas have developed the ability to shift between the two opposing forms of Mega-Appearance at will. Aside from the obvious benefits in establishing apparently utterly dissimilar identities as two different novas, the shock value of seeing a Mega-Attractive nova suddenly becoming Mega-Ugly might aid a nova who's inclined to mischief in pulling off some truly mean-spirited practical jokes.

System: This enhancement allows a nova to switch from being Mega-Attractive to being Mega-Ugly (or the other way around) by spending 1 quantum point. The nova loses access to Mega-Appearance enhancements that are restricted to either Mega-Attractive or Mega-Ugly novas while using the opposing form of Mega-Appearance. (See "Banned Enhancements" in the Mega-Ugliness section for details.) The nova also doesn't gain any additional enhancements with Two-Faced, but may purchase them normally. (For example, a normally Mega-Attractive nova with Awe-Inspiring could not use it while Mega-Ugly, and would not gain a different enhancement to make up for that loss.) The effects of this enhancement last for a scene, and can be activated multiple times during a scene to switch back and forth. The nova cannot employ both forms of Mega-Appearance at the same time- it has to be one or the other. A Two-Faced nova must declare one form of his Mega-Appearance to be a "default visage"; to which the nova will revert to if sleeping, knocked unconscious, or incapacitated. Note: A Two-Faced nova cannot have both of his visages based on the same form of Mega-Appearance; one must be Mega-Attractive, and the other must be Mega-Ugly. This enhancement is available to novas with either version of Mega-Appearance.

Yin-Yang

Ever wanted to see how the other half lives? Those novas possessing this enhancement can do so as they can change their sex at will. The change is a complete one; internal organs are changed along with the more obvious features and even the nova's scent changes. This enhancement is also very handy when being pursued, as few people normally confuse male and female bodies. Note, however, that this ability to change gender does not cause any additional radical changes in appearance; both sexes have similar features, and look sufficiently alike to be siblings.

System: It takes roughly one minute for the nova to make the change from one gender to the other and does not require a roll. However, an Appearance roll can be made to cut this time in half. It costs one quantum point to activate Yin-Yang, but once the change is complete there is no need to maintain this enhancement. It is as if the nova had always been of that gender. Note: if a nova with Yin-Yang is not sterile, that nova can become pregnant while female if contraceptive measures are either not used or somehow neutralized. Yet another interesting wrinkle is that upon the moment of conception, a pregnant nova with Yin-Yang will find him- or herself locked into "female mode" for the duration of the pregnancy. Once the pregnancy ends (through birth, miscarriage, or the death of the fetus), the nova will again be able to switch gender freely.

This enhancement is available to novas with either version of Mega-Appearance.

Mega-Appearance Aberrations [Aberrations marked with an * are from the Aberrant Compendium.]

Aberrations derived from Mega-Appearance tend to reflect a desire for other people's favorable attention, and result in physical aberrations that increase the nova's chances of being noticed. (There can be too much of a good thing, though.) Mental aberrations that may be manifested are usually obsessions with either the nova's own good looks or beauty in general, although sometimes a loss of the nova's self-image will occur. The aberrations listed here are generally limited to novas with at least one dot in Mega-Appearance, but a few are available to Mega-Ugly novas- refer to the Mega-Ugliness chapter for details.

Common aberrations from Aberrant and the Aberrant Player's Guide for novas with Mega-Appearance include Aberrant Eyes, Albinism, Androgyny, Colored Skin, Fur/Feathers, Glow, Hairless, Hermaphrodite, Hormonal Imbalance (Lust), Obsession, Obsessive/Compulsive Disorder, and Unearthly Beauty.

Low-Level Aberrations (Taint 4-5)

Aberrant Hair: Something about the nova's hair is weird. While its color is more-or-less normal (providing that the nova doesn't also have the Chromatic Hair aberration), something about it simply isn't possible for baseline hair without extensive styling. The nova's hair might be stiff enough stand up naturally without the aid of hairspray or styling mousse; novas with hair that sticks up vertically for heights of 40 centimeters or more are not unheard of. The nova's hair might naturally grow in an odd style, such as a 1970s-style punk-rock mohawk or a lion's mane. Other possibilities include the nova's hair developing a metallic, rubbery, or plastic texture; or being uncomfortably warm or cold to the touch. Some novas' hair might actually move of its own accord! As the permanent Taint of a nova with this aberration accumulates, the nova's hair may actually change into something unsettling and problematic such as flames, stiff metal wires, or living snakes. (In these extreme cases, this aberration might only affect the hair on the nova's head- the Storyteller has the final say on this matter, as always.)

Chromatic Hair: The nova's hair -all of it- is of a (usually) attractive color that isn't naturally found in baseline humans. Just about any hue is possible- bright blue, leaf green, cherry red, and pastel pink are just a few of the possibilities. Some novas even develop hair the color of polished metal- for example, Teardrop from Teen2M has bright silver hair. Other people get a -2 difficulty bonus to recognize a nova with this aberration- and unless the nova is around people as colorful (pun intended) as herself, other people will get a -2 difficulty bonus on all Perception rolls to pick her out of a crowd. Since baseline teenagers and nonconformists have been dyeing their hair unnatural colors for over a decade (as of 2008), this doesn't draw quite as much attention as other minor physical aberrations do... unless someone gets close enough to the nova to realize that the supposed dye-job is in fact natural color! As the permanent Taint of a nova with this aberration accumulates, the color of the nova's hair will become ever-more striking and noticeable- some novas' hair might even glow like fiberoptics! This results in an additional -1 difficulty bonus on rolls for other people to recognize or spot the nova per 2 points of permanent Taint the nova accumulates after manifesting this aberration. Oddly enough, several Japanese novas (and foreign novas who have been influenced by Japanese anime) have developed this aberration without the Taint that normally accompanies it. These novas also have been known to develop oddly-colored irises without Taint accumulation as well. (In game terms, these novas have taken both the Chromatic Hair and Aberrant Eyes aberrations as 1-point Flaws- see the Aberrant Player's Guide, page 92.)

Distinctive Looks: Something about the looks of a nova with this aberration really stands out in the minds of those who see her (or visual records of her). Whether it's something as blatant as smoldering sex appeal or as subtle as how the light hits her, this makes the nova's appearance quite unique. Unless she takes extreme measures to alter her appearance (via shapeshifting or cutting-edge cinematic special effects makeup), she is likely to be spotted and recognized on sight by anyone who's seen her before. In game terms, other people (novas, baselines, and psiads alike) will gain a difficulty bonus on all Perception rolls made to identify the nova equal to her Taint-derived difficulty penalty on social interactions with baselines. On the flipside, all rolls made for attempts to impersonate the nova with this aberration likewise suffer a difficulty penalty equal to her Taint-derived difficulty penalty on social interactions with baselines.

Mega-Vanity: Mega-Beautiful and Mega-Handsome novas who develop this aberration become obsessed with their personal appearance. These are the novas who simply cannot pass by a mirror without looking at themselves, and cleaning up their appearance if need be- even during combat! They dread the problems of aging (baldness, grey hair, wrinkled skin, sagging figures, etc.), and will seek to become very good friends with any nova capable of using the Age Alteration technique of Temporal Manipulation. Flattery works very well on these novas, making them more vulnerable to certain Manipulation-based skills (+1 difficulty penalty to resist such attempts). Insulting or marring the looks of novas with this aberration is guaranteed to anger them- they suffer a difficulty penalty of +1 on all their rolls until the insult is avenged and the damage (even if it's nothing more than having mud thrown in the face) is corrected. Mega-Vain novas tend to resent other novas who have greater Mega-Appearance than their own, especially if they are romantic rivals of the Mega-Vain nova in question. (They can appreciate the Mega-Appearance of potential romantic partners just like anyone else!) In all of these cases, a Mega-Vain nova can make a Willpower roll (penalized by his or her permanent Taint, of course) to resist the urge to give in to his or her vanity whenever it is felt, even when it isn't the best time to indulge. The Storyteller may adjust the difficulty if the circumstances are especially tempting. The nova may spend a Willpower point to resist the effects of this aberration for one scene, but will feel distinctly uncomfortable doing so.

Quantum Beacon: The nova's self-image has changed drastically from what it was prior to his eruption- he sees existence as a nova as being clearly distinct from baseline existence, overemphasizing the differences. As a result, the nova cannot have the Dormancy background and will have to deal with the special problems of living as a nova 24 hours a day, seven days a week. As an added burden, anyone who attempts to detect the Quantum and/or Taint of a nova with this aberration (via Node, psionic Attunement, or certain powers and devices) receives a difficulty bonus equal to the nova's permanent Taint. This aberration is especially common in those novas who were markedly deficient in some way as baselines; such as having physical deformities or birth defects, being an invalid or disfigured by a disease, or simply being born ugly. As these problems are usually corrected as a byproduct of the eruption process, the nova will understandably have no desire whatsoever to return to his previous baseline existence, even temporarily. Note: This aberration can only develop in those novas who have learned to employ the Dormancy background- if a nova never bothers to develop this innate ability in the first place, he won't manifest this aberration. Storytellers are encouraged to apply this aberration only to novas that would be inconvenienced by it.

Sex Object*: The nova is simply too attractive for his/her own good. Upon first meeting the nova, people attracted to members of the nova's gender must roll Willpower to avoid becoming lust-stricken by the nova and treating him/her as a sex object. The victim also suffers a penalty on the Willpower roll equal to the nova's Taint-derived penalty on rolls for social interactions with baselines. (If the victim is alone with the nova in a private setting, the roll is made with an additional +1 difficulties.) Those who succeed on the Willpower roll may act as they please. The actions of those who fail the roll will vary with their individual personalities- unabashed staring, deciding to stalk the nova, or simply acting like a blabbering idiot are all good possibilities. Those who botch the roll will seek to become intimate with the nova ASAP, although their tactics will vary with individual personalities, as noted above. Novas who develop this aberration often encounter jealousy from potential romantic rivals, for obvious reasons. When added to the difficulties of social interaction with someone who's determined to either become your significant other or get into your pants, it's not hard to understand why many such novas become recluses.

Strange Scent: A nova with this aberration has a natural body odor that smells like nothing a normal human body is capable of producing. The scent can be literally anything, although Mega-Attractive novas will produce pleasant scents (such as roses, fresh sea spray, or cedar wood). Mega-Ugly novas produce unpleasant scents (such as sulfur, decaying flesh, or fresh sewage). Mega-Ugly novas will suffer an additional +2 difficulty penalty on Social rolls for interacting with baselines and less-tainted novas. Mega-Attractive novas will only suffer that penalty if the baseline or nova in question is allergic to or simply dislikes what would ordinarily be considered a pleasant scent. All attempts to track a nova with this aberration by scent are made with a -2 difficulty bonus.

Surreality*: Other people (including other novas!) will tend find a nova who develops this aberration to be irresistibly fascinating. (Victims must make a resisted Willpower roll vs. the nova's Mega-Appearance to resist, with a difficulty penalty equal to the nova's Taint-derived penalty on rolls for social interactions with baselines.) If a victim succeeds on the Willpower roll, he or she may act as he or she pleases. If they fail, people will stare at the nova and attempt to strike up conversations at inappropriate times in hope of getting to know the nova better. Worse still, criminals and other people of a less savory nature will always choose the nova over other potential targets for their illicit acts.

Twisted Perspective: Mega-Beautiful and Mega-Handsome novas who develop this aberration undergo a slight change in their ideas of human beauty. Having come to accept their superhuman attractiveness as the norm, such novas will find the unenhanced features of even the most gorgeous baselines to be homely, if not downright repulsive! Novas with this aberration have a -2 difficulty bonus to resist any seduction attempts made by baselines that are based on sexual attraction. The flipside of this is that these novas also have a difficulty penalty of +2 on all vision-based Perception rolls made to identify baselines by sight- after all, these novas likely won't even want to look at baselines if they can help it... As the nova's permanent Taint increases, so will the effects of this aberration- raise the value of the bonus (and penalty) by 1 point for every 2 points of permanent Taint accumulated after gaining this aberration.

Medium-Level Aberrations (Taint 6-7)

Fashion Disaster: A nova with this aberration has lost all appreciation of the importance of being dressed well (or of being dressed at all). While the nova can still understand why baselines place such emphasis on fashionable clothing in an intellectual, abstract manner, he will feel that engaging in such displays himself is pointless and/or ridiculous. From the nova's viewpoint, for him to indulge in such behavior would be the equivalent of an adult dressing and acting like a small child- and since when do adults take the opinions of little children on how (or if) they should dress, anyway? Novas with this aberration will dress in either utilitarian clothes or whatever attire the nova deems comfortable- if the nova also has the Adaptation enhancement and the Armor power, this may mean going around in little clothing or none at all! Given the importance that baseline society places on wearing whatever clothing is considered fashionable at the time, this aberration can cause the nova serious social difficulties- after all, most baselines tend to take silly things like dress codes, fashion trends, and laws regarding indecent public exposure quite seriously. In game terms, the nova's taint-derived penalty on Social rolls for interactions with baselines is doubled for all rolls where wearing appropriate clothing is a factor. If someone (not necessarily another nova) whose opinion the nova respects attempts to convince him that he should wear appropriate clothing to an event, the nova must make a Willpower roll (with a penalty equal to her permanent Taint) in order to follow that person's advice for the duration of the event. (The nova will get himself out of that "ridiculous get-up" ASAP once the event is over, however!) Note: Depending on the circumstances, the increased difficulty penalty imposed by this aberration may not apply in some situations- a nova who insists on wearing 1970's-style leisure suits wouldn't be looked down on by people with similar tastes, while a Mega-Attractive nova who hates wearing any clothes at all would be well-received at a clothing-optional beach or a nudist colony.

Heartthrob*: The nova is absolute dynamite when it comes to infatuating those people attracted to members of the nova's gender. The problem is that the nova is like this all the time, and can't turn off his or her sex appeal... (This should be restricted to novas with the Seductive Looks enhancement.) In game terms, any and all extra successes the nova may gain via the Seductive and/or Seductive Looks enhancements are effectively doubled for seduction rolls (not persuasion- the nova's victims will tend to hear only what they want to from the nova). The downside of this is that the bonus is applied to ANY action of the nova's that could be seen as seductive by his/her victims (Storyteller's decision). Also, the Storyteller will kindly make all Seduction rolls for the nova's player, and doesn't have to inform the player about it beforehand. Novas with this aberration will often have no idea that they've won a victim's affections- until the victim makes some moves of her/his own...

Laughable: There's simply something about a nova with this aberration- namely, something that makes him seem utterly ridiculous to baseline humans (and most other novas as well). Perhaps it's the fact that the nova resembles a humanoid French poodle, complete with puffy pink fur. Perhaps the nova looks like something Monty Python would've created for a superhero skit. Perhaps the nova simply looks like he should have "ludicrous dingbat" tattooed on his forehead. In any case, the nova's appearance gives rise to feelings of scorn, derision, and disrespect among baselines. As a result, most baselines will feel inclined to mock the nova or dismiss him out of hand. Even more insightful baselines will have serious trouble taking a Laughable nova seriously without hard evidence to the contrary- they must win a contested Willpower roll against the Laughable nova's Mega-Appearance in order to see the nova as anything other than a quantum-powered buffoon. A Laughable nova will be considered both harmless and unworthy of respect by most baselines and novas alike- he's won't be seen as being worth the time to deal with. It should be noted that novas with the Mental Mega-Attributes are not likely to suffer from that misperception, however. As an added burden, a Laughable nova automatically loses 1 success per dot of permanent Taint possessed on all rolls for Intimidation, Command, Interrogation, and otherwise persuading or inspiring other people. Laughable novas also cannot possess the Awe-Inspiring, Commanding Presence, or Dreadful Mien enhancements. Laughable novas can still be seen as being sexy; albeit in a ditzy, bimbo-ish manner.

Object of Desire*: Something about the nova makes people want to possess him or her. Upon first meeting the nova, people attracted to him or her must make a resisted Willpower roll vs. the nova's Mega-Appearance. The victim also suffers a penalty on the Willpower roll equal to the nova's Taint-derived penalty on rolls for social interactions with baselines. Failing the roll means that the victim will see the nova as a commodity or treasure to be owned instead of as a person with his or her own desires and needs. (Just think of how certain rich folk manage to acquire their "trophy spouses", and how those spouses are treated after they've been landed.) The form that the ownership takes will vary with individual victims- some might settle for signing the nova to a contract or hauling off the nova to a wedding chapel, while others may take the idea of owning the nova all too literally... The nova's victims will be very possessive of him or her, and they will go to great lengths in order to either establish or retain their control over the nova.

Piecemeal Metamorphosis: A nova with this aberration is ever-so-slowly changing into something other than human, one portion of his body at a time. When this aberration first manifests, a small portion of the nova's anatomy (such as the lower face or hands) will change into whatever the Storyteller decides would be appropriate. As the nova accumulates permanent Taint, exponentially-larger parts of the nova's body will be altered in this fashion. A common theme for this aberration is gradual transformation into a humanoid animal- for instance, the lower face of the elite known as Dog (from Aberrant Worldwide: Phase II) has changed into that of a humanoid schnauzer. Other themes include changing into a humanoid plant or some form of living machine, inorganic matter or energy. (The latter three themes are very appropriate for novas with the Bodymorph power- once the gradual transformation of the nova's body is complete, this aberration effectively becomes identical to Permanent Power-Bodymorph.) Note that only a defined portion of the nova's body is affected by this- aside from his lower face, Dog's body is fairly normal for a male nova at this point in his accumulation of Taint (6 points, F.Y.I.). If Dog reaches 7 Taint, his head will certainly become entirely that of a humanoid schnauzer, and he may develop a full-body coat of fur as well. Depending on what kind of nonhuman morphology the nova is developing, the nova may face certain physical difficulties as well as the inevitable social difficulties. For example: A nova who's turning into a snake-man might find his legs turning into a single serpentine trunk and tail, while an amphibious female nova might turn into a classical mermaid. A male nova whose head has permanently turned into living thermonuclear plasma won't be able to wear a hat, nor will he be likely to get any kisses from baseline ladies. A nova whose limbs have turned into living bionics is likely to have trouble with metal detectors and security officers. And let's not forget the tailoring problems faced by a nova who's changing into a 173-cm tall humanoid flying squirrel! (Those darn patagia make wearing a tuxedo impossible, and most tailors don't do tail-flaps.)

Shifting Features*: A nova with this aberration has partially lost control over the appearance of his body. The nova suffers from a shifting in his body weight, mass, and tissue colorations that is virtually unnoticeable from minute to minute, but can radically alter his features over the course of a few hours. While the changes are gradual, they are constant- the nova will look different enough within 24 hours to make him unrecognizable as the same person on the basis of visual recognition. This unsettles baselines (and many novas), resulting in the nova suffering an additional +2 difficulty penalty on all Social rolls beyond making a first impression.

High-Level Aberrations (Taint 8+)

Addictive Visage: While all Mega-Beautiful and Mega-Handsome novas are capable of inspiring adoration and lust in other people, some of those novas take the idea of being attractive to others a bit too far. The undisguised physical appearance of a nova with this aberration is psychologically addictive to baselines that are sexually oriented towards members of the nova's gender. In game terms, treat the nova's visage as a drug with an Addiction Rating equal to the nova's permanent Taint score when the nova is viewed by baselines of the correct sexual orientation. When watching a nova with this aberration, affected baselines will feel intense euphoria and feelings of romantic love along with a loss of inhibitions- consider their effective Wits and Intelligence scores to be lowered by [the nova's permanent Taint -5] dots, down to a minimum of 1. Additionally, all Willpower rolls to resist sexual overtures from the nova (real or imagined) suffer a difficulty penalty equal to the nova's permanent Taint. If the nova is being viewed via recordings, the Addiction Rating of his or her visage is lowered by 4 points, unless the nova has the Almost Live enhancement. Addicted baselines will gain the 2-point version of the Addiction Flaw (on pg. 71 of the Aberrant Players Guide). The effects of this aberration will last for [the nova's permanent Taint -5] hours. "Detoxing" from the effects of this aberration takes the same length of time, and will leave affected baselines with both a +1 difficulty penalty on all perception rolls to detect pleasurable sensations and a +2 difficulty penalty on all Willpower rolls until their neurochemistry returns to normal. Addicted baselines with Willpower scores of 4 or less may also develop delusions of having a romantic relationship with the nova- these unfortunates often become stalkers. The only way for the nova to control this for any length of time is to use the Mr. Nobody enhancement, provided that his or her Mega-Appearance is high enough to "cover up" this aberration. It should also be noted that a nova with this aberration is likely to be regarded with jealousy from baselines of the same sexual orientation- these folks will see the nova as a sexual rival, resulting in the nova suffering an additional +1 difficulty penalty for social interactions with those people.

Doppelgänger Syndrome: Shapeshifting novas who develop this aberration actually suffer from both a highly specific form of dissociative amnesia (namely, forgetting one's original appearance) and a compulsive disorder (focused on impersonating other people). Having lost all idea of what she is supposed to look like, the nova will seek to shore up her sense of self by assuming the identity of another person, usually a baseline or nova whose powers the Doppelgänger nova can simulate. If the Doppelgänger nova has the Yin-Yang Mega-Appearance enhancement, she may even forget her original gender! Whenever the nova has an opportunity to assume someone else's identity, she must roll Willpower (with a penalty equal to her permanent Taint) to avoid impersonating that person. Furthermore, if the nova is somehow prevented from impersonating anyone for 24 hours, the nova will suffer a +1 difficulty penalty on all of her rolls until she can indulge her compulsion. The nova will suffer a cumulative +1 penalty for each 24 hour-period of deprivation past the first. A Doppelgänger nova will seek to maintain her assumed role for as long as possible, although whether she will resort to violence in order to do so is up to her personal sense of ethics. It should be noted that since many shapeshifting novas already work as infiltration agents, they can be quite casual about making someone "disappear" and taking her place... If her impersonation is exposed, the Doppelgänger nova must make a Willpower roll (with a penalty equal to her permanent Taint) to avoid fleeing the scene in a panic- if hindered, she will lash out violently against any who try to restrain her.

Sprocket · December 12, 2003

Whoops! My apologies for forgetting about Alex's proposed Mega-Charisma enhancement and Gideon's latest Mega-Social slang terms, folks. Anyway, here are my replies.

Re: the "Me!" enhancement-

No matter how many times I read through this, Alex, it still sounds like one heck of a white elephant as far as enhancements go. I mean, there are easier ways for a nova to make a target of himself without developing an enhancement expressly for that purpose! Really, it seems like little more than painting a bullseye on one's chest- while I can see the appeal for a masochistic nova, few others would want that enhancement.

Re: Revised slang terminology for the Mega-Social Lexicon-

Gideon, I've gone ahead and revised the latest four slang terms you posted. I haven't changed them (much), but I have cleaned them up a bit. Take a look and tell me what you think, okay?

Revised versions of Gideon's latest proposed slang terms-

Amped: Slang term meaning that a place, thing, or person is about to suffer severe damage; usually at the hands of one or more novas. Following the violence that destroyed the Amp Room in the summer of 2015, many baselines used this term in statements like, "I knew things were about to get Amped, so I split."

Breeder: Somewhat derogatory (and occasionally envious) slang term for both fertile baselines and fertile novas that developed after the reality of widespread infertility among novas became public knowledge in the nova community.

Gargoyles: Derisive slang term for novas who radiate negative emotions and use them as weapons against the emotionally pliable. (This term originated in Spain and Ibiza when a group of such novas showed up at the Amp Room on the night of October 31, 2011 and tried to "scare" everyone out.)

Girl/Boy Friday: A mildly derogatory slang term describing a loyal and/or doting baseline lover or close friend of a nova. These individuals tend to be clueless about the current social tensions about novas.

Aberrant RPG - Mega-Attribute Books

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