Aberrant 2.0 Paramorphs
Background
The Hammersmith Incident created three types of Inspired. The first two were the most well known, the Novas and the Psions, both capable of manipulating fundamental universal forces to meet their ends, having influenced the course of human civilization through centuries.
The third type is far rarer, and far more interesting. Their control is over another fundament of the universe, but one more subtle than the Novas or Psions. Their control is over time and probability. This is innate control, not the emulation of time and probability control a Nova gains from brute force via the powers of Entropy Control or Temporal Manipulation. Paramorphs are naturals at using time and probability to their advantage.
They are also Inspired, perhaps the purest Inspired. Every Daredevil holds the ability to become a legendary polymath, no matter their intellect, inclinations, or education. Theories on this abound. Perhaps the Many-Worlds theory is true, and a Daredevil can reach into one of any infinity of parallel universes and find a double of him who happened to have mastered the skill. Perhaps it's an innate part of their probability manipulation. Perhaps it's an entirely unrelated cause, correlation versus causation. Research on paramorphs (versus psychomorphs and eximorphs, or Psions and Aberrants as Aeon typically calls them) is slow-going, and even decades of accumulated research on fully willing subjects has brought little fruit.
Character Creation
Paramorphs are built as normal baseline characters for Step 1 (baseline) character generation. Step 2 (inspiration) is where they get significantly altered. A Paramorph has 30 Transformation Points to work with, and a starting Inspiration of 1. A Paramorph's Inspiration pool is equal to (Inspiration).
Transformation Point Costs
- Inspiration: 1 per 5 transformation points
- Attributes: 2 per 1 transformation point
- Abilities: 6 per 1 transformation point
- Ability Mastery: 1 per 4 transformation points
- Backgrounds: 5 per 1 transformation point
- Merits: 3 BP per 1 transformation point
- Knack: 1 per 3 transformation points
Unique Abilities
Detection
Paramorphs are nearly impossible to detect. In fact, only a few characters are capable of detecting Paramorphs at all.
Novas
A Nova with Temporal Manipulation or Entropy Control (or similar temporal and probability manipulation powers) may attempt to roll their power's rating as a dice pool at +2 difficulty (+1 difficulty if the Nova has both powers, use the lower of two power ratings in this case) to detect a Paramorph. Success gives a rough idea that one exists and is nearby, but little more than that.
Inspiration
A Paramorph's ability to alter time and probability allows them to do interesting things. They can change the tactical situation, apparently unconsciously, to their own advantage, avoid even the most certain of fates via strings of increasingly-unlikely coincidence, and so on.
Innate Abilities
Inspiration allows any Paramorph to do more than a few things.
- Fortune's Favored: Paramorphs may reroll a number of rolls per scene for free equal to his permanent Inspiration. The second roll, of course, stands.
- Incredible Luck: A Paramorph may spend 1 Inspiration point to reroll any dice which did not come up as successes on one of his rolls, or reroll all successes on an opponent's roll. Obviously successes and failures on these dice both stand. This even applies to Nova Mega-Attributes. Either of these forms of incredible luck may only be used once per roll. However, both can be used simultaneously (for 2 Inspiration points).
- Strength of Will: A Paramorph's ability to succeed and his ability to twist the odds greatly improve the results from expenditure of will. A Paramorph gains double the effect of any willpower points spent.
- Temporal Immunity: Paramorphs are extremely resistant to temporal alterations. They control their own personal timelines, and cannot be erased by time travel shenanigans such as going into the past and killing their mother. Against powers such as Stop Time or Dilate Time, they gain a number of bonus successes equal to their permanent Inspiration.
- Dramatic Editing: Paramorphs can alter probability and create the most unlikely coincidences. Use the Adventure! rules for dramatic editing.
Ability Masteries
Whereas Novas (and to a lesser extent, Psions) accomplish things via inhuman ability, a Paramorph accomplishes tasks via inhuman skill. The delineation between the two is not fully understood, but a Paramorph seems to bias their probability bending into certain lines of thought alongside their natural expertise, rather than along their physical attributes.
A Paramorph with Ability Mastery in an ability is an incredible expert in said ability, beyond normal human capabilities. Having an Ability Mastery adds 1 bonus success to any rolls the Paramorph makes related to the power, and also grants several additional benefits. Ability Mastery of a field skill grants the mastery of all abilities in the field.
- Desperation Maneuver: Once per scene, a Paramorph may pay 1 willpower and 1 Inspiration point to convert all die in a dice pool to successes.
- Superhuman Mastery: The Paramorph may buy the ability up higher than normal, increasing its maximum rating by +2, representing further refinement of the Paramorph's mastery of probability control and time. This normally will increase the maximum rating to 7, but it can go even higher.
- Fast Learner: The Paramorph pays only (Current x 1) cost to raise an ability above 5 if the Paramorph has a relevant ability mastery.
- Botch Protection: Paramorphs may never botch the use of an ability with an Ability Mastery.