Arts and Crafts for Aberrant 2.0

Gadgeteering

“Gadgets” are the catch-all term used for the most unique devices in the nova age. These items are, for now, the sole form of device which can use and channel nova powers. Although lumped under ‘techno-logical advancement’, gadgets are nothing of the sort. They are focused expressions of the nova’s will and capability to alter reality, Quantum-infused talismans that do not work because of any coherent and consistent scientific laws, but rather because a godlike being said so.

Even technological-seeming gadgets are only superficially technological, while other gadgets are crafted out of, quite literally, quantum magic, resembling nothing more than the trappings of fantasy novels and games. Enchanted swords made of purest gold coursing with the energies of the sun, magical staves, a sapphire that summons fireball-throwing djinns, and more are all possible ‘gadgets’.

Gadget Creation

To create a gadget, a character rolls Intelligence + Quantum. Each roll is roughly 1 week of work time, assuming working on the gadget for 12 hours a day for an entire week (84 hours in total). If the character does other things during this period of time, each roll may take more than 1 week. A roll may not be done faster than 1 week, even if the character has Enhancements such as Fast Tasks or powers such as Temporal Manipulation, as building a gadget is not a mundane activity at all, but rather a nova splitting off a shard of themselves and weaving it into a device.

Each success on the roll becomes 1 nova point, which is used to purchase attributes, abilities, and powers for the gadget. All gadgets start at Quantum 0 and have no Quantum pool. A gadgeteer is limited in the power of the gadgets he or she builds as well - a gadgeteer cannot build a gadget with a Quantum higher than his own Quantum, and may not spend more NP on powers, attributes, abilities, and Mega-Attributes than ([Intelligence + Quantum)] x2) for a non-autonomous gadget. An autonomous gadget, such as an android or AI-driven supercar, may double the maximum amount of NP spent on powers, attributes, abilities, and Mega-Attributes, to take into account the greater amount of . She may spend as many NP as she wants on increased duration or quantum pool, however.

If a gadget is defined as an autonomous system, it requires at least 1 dot of Intelligence to interpret commands and/or act autonomously. An autonomous gadget may only use its own dice pools.

Gadget Powers

Gadgets normally may be given the powers and Mega-Attributes of their creators only. However, it is possible to emulate powers the creator is familiar with via a gadget. To do so, a character must study the power for 1 week per dot, or 1 day per dot if the character has a lab equipped to study quantum effects, and increases the difficulty of the construction roll.

Gadget powers are treated just like nova powers, except they use the gadget’s internal quantum storage. A character using Quantum Bolt 5 from a gadget adds his Dexterity to the 5 dots of Quantum Bolt to find the dice pool, and rolls that. However, the gadget may have its own attributes, which can be used in conjunction with the gadget’s powers (so a gadget might have Dexterity 5 and Quantum Bolt 5, allowing anyone who uses it to throw out 5-dot Quantum Bolts with a 10d pool).

No power on the gadget may have a rating higher than the gadgeteer's (Mega-Intelligence + 1), or the rating the gadgeteer possesses it at, whichever is higher (although the maximum rating of a power is still limited by the Quantum). Powers the gadgeteer lacks may not be rated higher than (Mega-Intelligence) or the rating of the studied subject, whichever is lower.

For every power the gadgeteer desires to add which he or she lacks at the desired level but can study in a lab, add +1 to difficulty. For every power the gadge-teer desires to add which she cannot study in a lab, add +2 to difficulty. Increasing the gadget's lifespan past 1 month adds +1 or more difficulty.

Gadget Items

Many gadgets have mundane origins which provide their own benefits-an enhanced suit of full plate which projects a forcefield, an assault rifle with a few special firing modes, so on and so forth. A gadget retains these mundane benefits, such as armor soak, mundane offensive ability, and so on. Furthermore, a gadget may potentially be built tougher or do more damage than its mundane counterparts, via the proper use of Enhancements, "Body Modifications", and powers. Although powers typically enhance both the user and the gadget, body modifications modify the gadget itself. Improvements to gadget "health levels" only affect the gadget by increasing its durability-they do not improve the user's durability. Armor gadgets gain +2 to their Destruction rating and +1 Armor Health Level from every augmentation which increases health levels, no matter how many health levels the augmentation provides.

Gadgets typically look like what they do. A suit of power armor provides protection, a jetpack lets the user fly, a blaster pistol shoots ranged attacks at people, and so on. This is because it is harder to make gadgets which don’t look like what they do, such as earrings which shoot quantum bolts. A character adds +1 difficulty to gadget creation rolls if the item looks only vaguely related to the purpose of the gadget (a magic wand that controls the weather, a broomstick that flies, a forcefield belt, a computer that is used to Dominate others), or +3 difficulty if the item has absolutely no relation to its powers (a ring that gives the wearer super-strength and speed, a tongue piercing that fires off Quantum Bolts).

As small size implies increased precision and complexity, even if gadgets are entirely arbitrary smaller gadgets are harder to make. A Conceal N gadget (one which cannot be concealed on a person) is normal cost. Building a gadget requires an additional +1 difficulty for Conceal O (can be hidden under an overcoat, such as a lightweight wetsuit or a carbine), +2 difficulty for Conceal J (can be hidden under a jacket or ‘street clothes’, such as a T-shirt, small SMG or swimsuit) and +4 difficulty for Conceal P (can basically be hidden via anything, such as a smartphone, underwear, or the aforementioned tongue piercing).

Augmentation

Non-autonomous gadgets are often used to augment, rather than replace, a user's prowess. There-fore, it is possible for a character to pay double the nor-mal NP cost for a trait to have it add to the user's rating. For example, a Nova gadgeteer might make a suit of powered armor, paying 4 NP to have it add +4 to strength and another 4 NP to have it add +1 to Mega-Strength. A gadgeteer may even pay 10 NP per dot of Quantum to have a gadget which amplifies his or her Quantum score. However, a gadget may not augment its user by more than (creator’s Quantum) in Quantum, any power, or any Mega-Attribute. Augmenting normal attributes is easier, relatively speaking. The gadget may not augment its user by more than (creator’s Quantum) or (creator’s Intelligence), whichever is higher.

Flaws

Complex, powerful gadgets often end up with massive difficulty modifiers that make it virtually impossible for a character to build them. However, a character may give a gadget flaws to make up for this problem. Flaws in a gadget can reduce its construction difficulty by anywhere from -1 to -4, allowing even the most powerful gadget to be built by any nova. If the sum of flaws would reduce the difficulty below 0, the additional reduction is added in as automatic successes. Gadgets may have any number of flaws-but they must have at least one Moderate flaw for every 3 Minor flaws, and at least one Major flaw for every 3 Moderate flaws.

A Minor flaw is one that reduces the utility of a gadget to some extent but is largely harmless. A shapeshifting gadget that cannot be used for disguise, a flight gadget that only allows for controlled descent rather than true flight, a healing gadget that doesn’t heal injuries, only diseases and poisons, or a powered armor suit that has hissing hydraulics and glowing radiators instead of quiet artificial muscle (making stealth impossible) are all gadgets with Minor flaws. Minor flaws reduce the construction difficulty by 1.

A Moderate flaw is problematic but can be worked around. Examples include the gadget being entirely powerless against a significant portion of the population, or providing no benefits against a relatively common occurrence (gadget armor that fails to protect against bullets, gadgets which cannot harm the ‘right-eous’/’wicked’ as defined by the creator). Another example would be giving the user an extremely inconvenient aberration such as extreme aggression or being literally addictive when used. A Major flaw is one that makes using the gadget almost more trouble than it’s worth. A major flaw may be something like gaining an automatic point of temporary Taint every time you use the gadget, having to kill people to charge the gadget, or a healing gadget spreading lethal radiation (but only to people you like).

Quantum

A gadget must fuel its abilities from its internal battery, and requires it for normal operating. If it lacks such a battery, a Nova may fuel its powers from his own Quantum Pool, but this requires double cost. Further-more, a gadget without a quantum storage system of some sort costs the Nova 1 quantum point whenever the Nova wishes to take advantage of its abilities, attributes, or enhancements above and beyond any costs for powers. Recharging a gadget's Quantum pool costs 2 Quantum per point of Quantum it possesses, and gadgets do not normally regenerate Quantum pool. To do so, the character must give the gadget the Quantum Regeneration power.

Usage

Gadgets, as directed manifestations of a nova’s will, resemble magical items more than anything technological. A user must imprint on a non-autonomous gadget before it works for them, which may involve anything from a mystic ritual for an enchanted dagger to adding the user to a list of authorized profiles for an advanced computer. This process takes a minute per dot of Quantum in the gadget. Autonomous gadgets are simpler to use-they need no imprinting. A single gadget may be imprinted on any number of people, and by default has no security. If it may only be imprinted on someone via the creator’s permission, add +1 difficulty to its creation roll. Characters may be imprinted on as many gadgets as they have Quantum, plus one. This means even baselines can use a single gadget. If they wish to use a new gadget and have already imprinted on Quantum + 1 gadgets, they must lose their imprint on another gadget. Characters may unimprint on a gadget reflexively.

Costs

A gadget is held together by the will and quantum power of the creator. It costs 1 point of temporary Willpower per dot of Quantum to build a gadget, which may not be regained during downtime. To keep a gadget from degrading, either its builder must sacrifice 2 points of Quantum pool per dot of Quantum in the gadget to make it permanent, plus 1 point of Quantum pool per attribute, power, ability, or Mega-Attribute that the gadget possesses to stabilize it in reality, or allow it to stay ephemeral, forcing its users to maintain it by constant expenditures of will.

Ephemeral gadgets are maintained by their imprinted users. A nova may do so by paying the amount of quantum pool that the gadget would have required to be made permanent upon imprinting. This spent quantum does not regenerate by any means until the gadget is no longer imprinted. A baseline has a much harder time, and must spend 1 Willpower for every 2 quantum pool that making the gadget permanent would normally cost. Like quantum spent for this maintenance, this willpower may not be regained by any means until the imprinting is broken.

A gadget that is not maintained by either method may still be used without restriction, but breaks down and is rendered completely useless at the end of the scene.