Alien Sky:Character Generation Rules

Designing Characters

Basics

You have 70 points to design your character. Any excess points can be saved for increase later.

Level 1 - 1 CP - Hobbyist
Level 2 - 3 CP - Amateur
Level 3 - 6 CP - Professional
Level 4 - 10 CP - Skilled Professional
Level 5 - 15 CP - Experienced Professional
Level 6 - 21 CP - Expert
Level 7 - 28 CP - Master
Level 8 - 36 CP - Ancient Master
Level 9 - 45 CP - Superlative
Level 10 - 55 CP - Unmatched

You need a minimum of 1 in all normal stats, unless you've got GM permission (although Sympathy 0 can be argued). Anything else is at your discretion, but you should think carefully about each character's personality and what they need to best represent that.

Character creation can be done in any real order. Quickstart is to start with the character concept, then take Race, then decide stats, specialties, and Traits/Advantages/Disadds; do VM Abilities last because they're entirely dependent on your Sympathy score.

Races

There is no cost difference between races, because Liners and Rays get bonuses that negate their lower stats. Plus, life is inherently unfair. Characters of a given race cannot be created in a unit that doesn't have them unlocked.

Liner

The Liner is the standard human of Alien Sky, with minimal genetic enhancements. For the most part, they are identical to the emerging enhanced humans of the mid 21st century, with most congenital defects and genetic diseases removed, and slightly extended telomeres that reduce the effects of aging until their late seventies. Liners can also receive longevity treatments to put their lifespans into centuries, but most bio-conservatives will refuse them.

Liners begin with a rating of 1 in all stats, and receive an additional 15 CP to spend exclusively on traits and specializations. This only applies to named characters, representing the ability of some human beings to surpass their limitations through sheer effort.

Ray

Rays are extensively genefixed humans designed for superior performance in all categories. Unfortunately, their bodies burn out faster, and require extensive longevity treatments or else begin showing geriatric symptoms at age 35. With current medical science, Rays can still have the same lifespans as Liners and other variants of humanity, however.

Rays begin with a rating of 2 in Physical, Pilot and Education, and a 1 in all other stats. Ray characters receive 10 additional CP to spend on traits and specialties, representing their superior origins and will in spite of a very real sense of mortality and finality to their lives.

Marked

Marked are Liners who have been profoundly altered by their contacts with the Vectors, and carry a small portion of the Gaian lifeform in their bodies. They have all the same abilities as Liners, but face a stigma because of their natures. In return, they have an improved ability to connect with the Vectors and psychosympathetic lifeforms like the Fractals.

Marked begin with a rating of 3 in Pilot, 3 in Sympathy and 1 in all attributes, but take a -1 penalty to Charisma when dealing with non-Marked or Linked because of their unusual natures. They also receive +5 VM Power points to purchase Vector Manipulation abilities.

Talent

Talents stand at the apex of human genetic enhancement, and have greatly improved physiques and minds that set them above other human variants. Talents are common in Tsiolkovsky, although less so than their Cosmos bioroids, and popular among New Sargasso and Heng Sha elites. Talents are superior to Rays and lack their genetic frailties, often making them an object of ire and jealousy.

Talents begin with a rating of 3 in Physical and Education, 2 in all attributes, and have up to three ranks of Education Specialties for free.

Extended

Extended are cyborgs with limited enhancement, usually extending to a few implants distributed throughout the body and cyberlimbs. They tend to be tougher and stronger than the average Liner, but are still limited by their organic components. Extendeds are popular in national militaries, where some level of cyberware is de-rigeur for relatively 'normal' Liners.

Extendeds have a rating of 4 in Physical and 3 in Pilot, and a 1 in all other stats. They also get the Big Guy (Not Dying) specialization at 1, and 2 free ranks of Physical Specializations, but take a -1 Pilot penalty to operate N-Fractals.

Remade

Remades are the fully converted, humans who have transferred their braincases or cyberbrains into fully cybernetic shells voluntarily or after some extreme trauma. Current cybernetics allow for a fully fleshed cybernetic human that can eat, bleed, cry and have sex, but most suffer from some body image disorders because of the trauma related to cybersurgery.

Remades have a rating of 4 in Physical and 3 in all other attributes, but take a -2 penalty to Charisma when dealing with non-cyborgs or artificials. They also get the Big Guy (Not Dying) specialization at 3, but are completely unable to pilot N-Fractals.

Cosmos

Cosmos are bioroids developped by the Tsiolkovsky as the recipients of their 5 million mindstate uploads through the Tannhauser Gate. Cosmos are similar to Remades, but created using biomicking systems that completely recreate the human body in a slightly optimized form, with improved abilities and network and AR implants in their wetware. Cosmos have the unique ability to change their forms at will, changing the minutiae of physical appearance such as hair and eye color, or make more obvious alterations to physical appearance and even physical sex in a gradual process that takes several days as a means of preventing body dysmorphia in new transfers to the body.

Despite these strange abilities, the Cosmos body is open source and the technologies to manufacture and transfer to them are free, so they are found in the Centauri Union, Parabolic Grove, Heng Sha and New Sargasso, in addition to Tsiolkovsky.

Cosmos have 3 in Education, 3 in Charisma and 2 in all other stats. They also get the Wits (Disguise) specialization at 3.

Linked

Linked are artificial humans created by the Vectors, that are in most ways functionally human, save for odd characteristics like technicolor hair, elfin ears and translucent wings and nodules in the skin. Their bodies contain massive concentrations of Vector biomass that effectively makes them an extension of the planet. Linked are the rare children of the largely sterile Marked, and are found among families as often as they are found among the mysterious Cradles that spring up from the Vectors. Many theorize that Linked are not truly the children of the Marked, but simply an expression of the planet's desire to understand humanity acting through the Vector biomass in their bodies, positing that the cradles are exowombs for the development of orphan Linked.

Linked begin with a 5 in Pilot and Sympathy, and 1 in all other stats. In addition, they receive an additional +10 points for purchasing VM powers, and receive the Pilot AN-Fractal and Pilot-N Fractal powers for free. Unless interacting with Cosmos and Cyborgs, they receive -2 Charisma when dealing with the same sex, but +2 when dealing with the opposite sex.

Stats

These are your core stats, representing general skills and talents. There are also specializations, which are sub-stats that apply in specific situations (and are paired with their relevant stat).

Pilot

Your pilot rating is an overall measure to operate aerospace and exotic ground craft such as airships, shuttles and the ubiquitous Fractal biomecha. Although your ability to control mecha is dependent on Sympathy, enlightenment and being a friend to all living things won't help you compensate for shifts in Linear patterns while flying at Mach 3. Pilot is also used for melee combat.

Common Specializations:

Evasive Maneuvers (Pilot): Evading while not trying to fight back, or avoiding collisions during high-speed maneuvering.

Melee Specialty (Pilot): Attacking with Fractal-grade melee weapons such as oscillating blades, laser boomerangs or just ramming them with your head-mounted lance.

Gunnery

Your effective ability to use vehicle-scale weapons, such as laser cannons or railguns, as well as missiles. Being able to fly circles around the opposition or commune with the most powerful living weapon in the universe is only going to come in so handy if you can't shoot back or aim the fleet-killing main gun. Because pilot is the godstat, it is split in two.

Common Specialization:

Sniper (Gunnery): The ability to use slow-firing, accurate weapons to deadly effect.

Hit and Run (Gunnery): Moving and shooting effectively while using direct fire weapons, or making strafing runs with missiles.

Vector Weapons (Gunnery): The usage of exotic beam weapons derived from the Vectors such as homing lasers and crisis fields. Itano Circus, anyone?

Sympathy

Your character's ability to sense and commune with the Vectors, and similar lifeforms such as Fractals. N-Fractals require a minimal Sympathy rating to be operated effectively, and high Sympathy gives access to an array of battlefield-shaping Vector Manipulation (VM) powers.

Common Specializations:

Sense (Sympathy): An improve ability to sense Vector lifeforms, which also affords the ability to discern their size, type and level of maturity.

Communing (Sympathy): Being able to communicate with Vector lifeforms and guide their though processes, calming them or causing them to enter a frenzy.

Physical

This stat represents your character's overall physical abilities, including endurance, strength and coordination when outside of the cockpit. Characters with high physical are acrobats, swordsmen and marksmen of the highest margins, and make excellent support characters on the off-chance your ship is boarded. Unfortunately, this doesn't apply to combat inside of mecha, unless your unit has a trace system.

Common Specializations:

Endurance (Physical): Your character isn't just tough, but the kind of person who can survive 20G maneuvers and carry out dives and turns that would throw others into unconsciousnes.

Strength (Physical): Through genetic enhancements or sheer effort, your character is able to perform incredible feats of strength. This can range between lifting the back of a car or carrying dozens of children on his back.

Wits

The measure of a character's innate intelligence and creativity. In common parlance, street smarts, instinct and the ability to recognize and process information without knowing the underlying context and put it to use.

Common Specializations

Deception (Wits): Lying through your teeth or otherwise fabricating perfectly believable scenarios that probably aren't true. Also applies to seduction.

Disguise (Wits): Changing your clothes, and using prosthesis, makeup and clever body language to disguise yourself, and also includes acting, but only when trying to obfuscate your identity. Cosmos naturally excel at this because of their self-customizing abilities.

Education

Learned intelligence and knowledge acquired through study. It can be defaulted to when attempting to carry out a complex, but unfamiliar action, such as fixing a subsystem or trying to appear smart to a crowd.

Common Specializations:

Knowledge [Various] (Education): Knowledge that can be applied directly to a situation, such as an understanding of the Vectors or Aerospace technologies. Generally too dry for conversation, they synergize well with technical specializations.

Interest [Various] (Education): General knowledge that can be applied to conversation. After breaking the ice with strangers, there's only so much you can talk about, after all.

Charisma

Charisma is the general likeability of your character in a variety of manners. It includes physical appearance, but also the strength of their character and ability to attract others to their cause. A high morale group with a charismatic leader is generally tightly connected and loyal, while a low-morale group might all be loosely held together by some collective respect for the commander.

Common Specializations

Looks [Moe, Sexy, Frightening, etc] (Charisma): Your character has an exceptional look about them. When trying to convey or arouse a certain feeling in others, such as sympathy, lust or fear, they get bonuses to Charisma. Linked have this permanently on to people capable of feeling physical attraction to them.

Interrupt (Charisma): Your character is good at projecting their influence at just the right moment for maximum dramatic effect. Sometimes, this is accompanied by actions that benefit, horrify or kill those affected. Othertimes, they might involve a hug or a reassuring smile.

Specializations

Aside from those above, there are other specializations that warrant their own descriptions below. These are a bit more flexible in terms of what stat they're paired with; details can be found in the entries themselves.

Command

Command represents your ability to lead others to combat, devise new tactics and maintain a cohesive fighting force in the field. Command is an essential skill that determines the number of Pilots or Elites a single character can lead, and thus may limit the number of regulars that can be fielded. Because every member of a squad receives identical training, a character with high Command is a desirable way to make the best use of a high amount of Training. The number of soldiers a character can have under their command is equal to their Command Style + Tied Stat.

It is split into three subtypes depending on the command style of the character and the way in which they lead. Because there are effectively only three platforms for combat in most scenarios (airships, landships and Fractals), there is no specific Command skill for a given unit type.

Tactics: Tactics represents a Wits based approach to Command in the field, based on quick thinking and improvisational maneuvers and formations. You generally see a lot of combat because you're always reacting to enemies or trying to get the drop on them. On the bright side, a Strategist might steer clear of you by virtue of you generally having a knack for ruining their plans. Regulars under the leadership of a Tactician receive a +1 to Pilot for every three ranks, while Elites gain +1 Pilot and +1 Gunnery.

Strategy: Strategy is Education-based Command based around planning and foresight, but also a grasp of long-term goals. A strategist doesn't just plan out how his people fight, but also decides where and when, and whether or not they should engage to begin with. Strategy is all about precise planning, followed up by contingencies and backups. At their best, they can outmaneuver and outflank the best Tacticians, and at their worst, panic when the house of cards comes crashing down. Regulars under the command of a Strategist receive a +1 to Gunnery for every three ranks, while Elites gain +1 Pilot and +1 Gunnery.

Leadership: Leadership is based on Charisma, and reflects an overall ability to lead from the front. It synergizes well with Tactics and Leadership, as it represents a 'lead by example' approach to command where you simply rally as many people behind you as possible. Leaders may add an extra Pilot or Elite to their squad for every three ranks of Leadership.

Conspiracy

Conspiracy is the measure of a character's pull in the politics of the world, either representing your own political power, friends in high places or shadowy influence garnered for other reasons, and is the Specialization that determines the build level of AN and N-Fractals. Conspiracy is taken with a single faction to demonstrate prestige with your home nation, or as 'General', which is a reputation among all the nations of Gaia.

Specific Conspiracy allows characters to use their full stat when interacting with their chosen faction and allies, but receive a -2 when dealing with outsiders. Should your patron faction and another go to war, your character may be blacklisted from the enemy group for the duration of the conflict, and will be unable to take missions or purchase resources from them. General applies a -2 penalty to all factional interactions, but you can never be blacklisted for having it.

When designing the standard AN-Fractal for a character's squadron, the build level equal to the character's Conspiracy. Custom A-Fractals (those with a cost of 2) have a build level equal to [Conspiracy -1].

Growth

If Sympathy is your ability to connect with Gaia, Growth is a raw value for the quantity and intensity of the memories the Vectors have of you, functioning similarly to Conspiracy for human factions. The Vector lifeform is a feeling creature, and some individuals leave a strong impression of respect, affection or even fear upon the Vectors, and may use this connection when trying to communicate with Vector gestalts larger or more complex than a simple worm or field.

Growth may be taken as 'General', which imparts no penalties or advantages, or may be taken with the 'Wilder', 'Caretaker' or 'Usurper' archetypes. Wilder reflects the desire to keep a pristine and unspoiled Gaia by human exploitation, while Caretaker and Usurper are generalizations of the different ideologies concerning the exploitation of Gaia. Caretakers desire responsible exploitation and peaceful cohabitation with the Vectors, while the Usurpers wish to control the lifeform by force.

The Wilder archetype imposes a -1 penalty to Mecha Build Points per level, but grants the character +1 VM points for each rank in exchange. Caretakers and Usurpers receive exclusive N-Fractal upgrades, but are excluded from using certain standard ones and those of the opposing ideology.

Growth also determines the effective power of N-Fractals, granting one Build Level for every rank of Growth. Custom A-Fractals may also be created using Growth, and have an effective build level equal to [Growth -1]

Traits

Shounen/Shoujo!
Your character is a child. It's not unusual to see young mercenaries, in part because the immortal elites tend to be complacent, but you're barely into your teens. You have some kind of exceptional quality that justifies your continued existence on a warship, and add +1 to one stat or +1 to two different specialties. However, no one takes you seriously and you tend to be given all the really crapy jobs on the ship.

Hotblooded
Your character wears his heart on his sleeve, acts on instinct and fights with all his heart. You gain +2 Pilot or Gunnery, but automatically fails rolls to resist deception or mind control. In either case, you can attempt to roll to dispel them, but only at the GM's discretion at some point later on.

Veteran
You're a veteran of previous conflicts that have hardened your heart and honed your skills. You gain +1 to Piloting and +1 Gunnery or a Command style. but take a -2 penalty to Sympathy because you have lost the ability to view life with any degree of innocence.

No Such Thing As Overkill
Guns are good. More guns? Better. If you can't pull the trigger and make something die, it's not a real weapon. You gain +1 Firepower due to your fixation, but suffer -1 Melee because you just don't get what the pointy beam thing is and why it only goes to arm's length.

Blademaster
You follow the way of the Bushido, or some other martial discipline; conversely, you like swords. You gain +1 Melee because of your focused training, but your distaste for ranged combat gives you -1 Firepower.

Made Of Iron
Your Fractal has somehow become tougher by virtue of observing your stout nature or as a reaction to your extreme will to live. It gains +1 Armor, but takes a -1 Speed penalty because of tissue densening. What's odd is that this will or nature of yours is so strong that is applies to EVERY unit you've ever used.

2 Fast 2 Furious
Turn and burn. Your tactics favour high speed and maneuverability; you specialize in not getting hit at all. You get +2 Speed for your lead foot and quick joystick, but you tend to react badly to getting hit, suffering -2 to Defense.

Advantages

Sacrificial Lamb (2 CP)
The character is doomed to die early in the story for one reason or another, but still manages to be memorable enough to be remembered by the rest of the cast as their adventure continues. Maybe they pulled off a heroic sacrifice, or just were just too cool to live. The character gains +1 to all main stats, but is automatically the first casualty in a unit, and die in the stead of any other character, including Pilots and Elites.

Sacrificial Lion (6 CP)
The character is incredibly popular and well-respected by their peers, and is likewise extremely loyal to them in return. If another character is going to die, the player may choose to substitute that character for the Sacrificial Lion. The character also gains +1 to Pilot, Gunnery or Charisma, because they're probably too cool to live.

Fan Favorite (6 CP)
You are the Patrick, the lovable and sympathetic loser who has contractual immortality for some reason or another. You'll survive all but the most extreme and rediculous of scenarios, inside or outside of the cockpit, at the cost of probably not falling into the spotlight. Once per session, the GM will reroll a check that went favorably for you, representing your general bad luck.

Heroic Luck (4 CP)
Destiny favors you for one reason or another, and your character is clearly meant for greatness. Once per session, you may reroll a dice set, or negate a forced reroll by the GM caused by Fan Favorite or Jinxed.

Type Master (3-5 CP)
Your character excels at combat versus a single type of Fractal, or a given faction's forces and tactics. You count as having +1 to Pilot or Gunnery versus your chosen type. The low-cost version represents a faction, while the high-cost is a Fractal type, and the effects of two do stack. There are only three, after all.

Vector-Positive (4 CP)
You have undergone procedures to attempt to simulate Linked traits, giving you artificial connections to Vector-life via implants. You receive an Extra four points of Vector Manipulations, but you also suffer from side effects of your treatment, ranging from adaptation illness to madness. Medication helps this, but you suffer the Linked Charisma Flaw. Linked can take this to represent the same processes done on them to enhance their powers - the flaws stack.

Cheer Up! (6 CP)
You're an inspirational character who really brings others together, and everyone around you seems to be drawn to your presence. In effect, you permanently increase the Morale of a unit by 10. Once per session, you can cancel the Morale loss from a number of casualties equal to your Charisma or Sympathy scores. When you die however, your unit takes a permanent -20 hit to Morale because the glue holding them together was just eaten by mindworms or killed by Messians.

The Power of Love (5-10 CP)
The Power of Love is a special ability that acts similarly to the Sacrificial abilities, save that it does not require the character with the trait to die. The character may permanently select one character per rank of Sympathy they have. Once per encounter, this character can save their lives on a successful Pilot + Sympathy roll, although fewer than four successes will result in a bad effect on the savior. Alternatively, they can select one character that they can save a number of times per session equal to their Sympathy score. If this effect is taken by two characters who choose eachother as their single recipient, the cost is doubled. The results of failing to save someone are generally not pretty.

Disadvantages

Type Failure (3-5 CP)
There is a certain faction or Fractal type which just....escapes you. For whatever reason, you just have trouble with your bugbear, fumbling normally flawless tactics and misjudging capabilities. You count as having -1 to Pilot or Gunnery versus your chosen type. The low-cost version represents a faction, while the high-cost is a Fractal type, and the effects of two do stack. There are only three, after all.

Berserker (3 CP)
You tend to lose it in battle. I mean, really lose it. Think those drugged up Viking warriors who rushed headlong into battle, chanting litanies to Odin while taking arrows to the gut without flinching, bleeding out as they killed anything that moved more than an inch in any direction. Now put one of those in a mech. That's you. The 111GM can reroll any successful set from a Command check, either because people don't listen to a raving lunatic or because your ideas just aren't that good.

Adventurous (3 CP)
Your character is brave, but sometimes too much for their own good. You can ignore unwanted Command checks automatically, but also don't benefit from the niceties of fighting as a team such as covering fire and are almost never going to be rescued by your peers.

Jinxed (3-9 CP)
Despite being a great pilot, accomplished commander or skilled mechanic, you're also unlucky. Maybe you're clumsy, or destiny conspires to stick you into a lemon of a Fractal. The end result is that you're prone to accidents and mishaps. Once per session, the GM may reroll ANY successful roll you make. This flaw can be taken up to three times, demonstrating increasing bad luck and more rerolls. On the bright side, it's ~moe~.

Lethal Friend (6 CP)
A Lethal Friend is a person who is likely to get their allies killed. You take a -1 penalty to two attributes, but tend to survive events because everyone else is trying to save you. If the character is going to die, you may substitute them with another character, including Pilots and Elites. In addition, you give your unit a permanent -10 to morale until you finally do die for one reason or another.

Senseless Sacrifice (4 CP)
Some people decide to go out in a blaze of glory in the hopes their allies will recover. When you do, it has absolutely no effect on the outcomes and often leaves your allies weakened. If paired with a 'Sacrificial' Advantage, you have a 50% chance of failing to save the other person, causing two people to be lost instead of one.

Code of Honor (4 CP)
Your character is bound by a tight code of conduct that influences their way of thinking and what actions they might take in combat. For four points, your character can have a code that negatively impacts their ability to fight, such as refusing to use ranged weapons or not using environmentally unfriendly weapons such as missiles or DU railgun shells. Always being courteous or never leaving a man behind in battle is not a flaw, you dirty munchkin.

Naive (3 CP)
Your character just doesn't understand how the world works, and even though they're clever, get things wrong very often. Once per session, the GM will lie to you about something that your character can observe and interpret. Although sensor data and warning sirens are unmistakable, you might confuse someone's body language or take a lie at face value.

Designing Pilots/Elites

The bread and butter of most military and paramilitary forces on Gaia, regular pilots and their veteran counterparts are the background characters that support the PCs. They don't particularly stand out in terms of personality, and tend to have average stats, but they present strength by their numbers. A group of green pilots can be used to pin a particularly skilled character, soak up damage for the fan favorite and swarm the enemy battleship while you distract the ace pilot defending it.

Pilots and Elites cannot buy specializations or traits, but are otherwise generated normally using the points from the Training attribute as CP, with Elites doubling whatever stat was taken. They are limited in scope, however, as an extra's stats may not exceed a rating of 7, Elite or not.

By default, they are generated 'in bulk' with every squad under a character's command having identical statistics, to simplify the chargen process.

Like characters, Pilots and Elites may take VM powers as listed in the section below, but may not take powers with a cost over 4.

Vector-Manipulation Powers

Vectors possess staggering capabilities. They can bend physics to achieve reactionless movement, alter their surroundings to an unparalleled degree, integrate with other life forms on a fundamental level, and even create their own organisms. This superlative capacity for manipulating their surroundings has been passed on to their creations - in particular, the humanoid Linked. Not only that, but regular humanity can achieve similar power, if they possess the Sympathy necessary to achieve rapport with Vector Life.

Below are listed some of the abilities one can gain by manipulating Vectors, and the costs in Vector manipulation points. You receive a number of VM points based on your Sympathy rating, as noted in the chart below. You may save spare points for later powers.

VMP per Sympathy

Level 1 - 0 VM Points
Level 2 - 2 VM Points
Level 3 - 4 VM Points
Level 4 - 8 VM Points
Level 5 - 12 VM Points
Level 6 - 18 VM Points
Level 7 - 24 VM Points
Level 8 - 34 VM Points
Level 9 - 40 VM Points
Level 10 - 50 VM Points

Abilities

Pilot AN-Fractals: 1 (Min 2)
Your character can operate AN-Fractal mecha, and process the massive amount of sensory information the machines feed back to their pilots without blacking out. Without this, a character must make a Physical test to endure operation every round of combat, or once for an extended period of flight outside of combat, or risk crashing.

Pilot N-Fractals: 1 (Min 5)
Your character can operate N-Fractal mecha due to his superior responsiveness to psychosympathetic processes inherent in natural Vector lifeforms. Simply put, that person's mindstate is somehow able to provoke trust from the normally paranoid hivemind structures of N-Fractals. Without this, a character must make a Wits test to endure operation every round of combat, or once outside of it, or risk crashing.

Peak Senses: 1
Thanks to Vector modifications to your sensory organs, you have fantastic senses, allowing you to hear a pin drop or see a leaf fall from inside your Fractal. Little details are easy for you to discern, allowing you to spot things signs that others would miss. You gain your Sympathy rating to any rolls involved in being ambushed or tracking.

Vector Synergy: 1
You use Vector nodules localized in your body to supplement your natural abilities, allowing them to emulate your cognitive processes. You may substitute Sympathy for another skill for one roll per operation. Non-Marked or Linked must somehow be in proximity to a Vector lifeform in order to do this, as most human beings lack the ability to rewire their tissues to function as cognitive components.

Spatial Awareness: 2
You have an innate ability to measure distances and dimensions, instantly calculating vectors and ranges without effort by using the Vectors as surrogate senses. You know every inch of the space between your gun and the target. Your Sympathy reduces penalties for called shots and high-risk maneuvers, negating a range bracket per rating.

Cognitive Overload (Linked/Marked Only) 2
You can induce a burst of activity in your Vectors, generating massive spikes in brain activity, reflex time, and processing. You temporarily add your Sympathy to all stats for a period, with rolls every turn up to your Sympathy. Failure ends the effect and stuns you, preventing you from taking action for a while and reducing all stats by 2 for the remainder of a battle.

Vector Machinery (Cyborgs Only) 2
Although your body is cybernetic and enhanced with machinery, the Vectors have not rejected you. This may be because of Vector nodules implanted into your chassis or your unique perspective on life that allows you to overcome the limitations of your body. You ignore the penalty to pilot N-Fractals applied to cyborg characters, but tend to be eccentric or have a weird way of thinking of your own body.

Illusions: 4 (Min 6)
You can affect the minds of your enemies by generating by bending the light along Linears to generate volumetric projections. These illusions are often doubles of yourself, but can be anything you can imagine if you can concentrate on them. An illusion can only be disbelieved away with sheer will, against the target's Sympathy or Wits. While they have no substance, they can convince a person that he's hurt for a brief time.

Sympathetic Aura: 6 (Min 3)
You generate psychic charisma, your natural charms magnified and projected to empower your teammates. This goes beyond simple personality; this cuts through all doubt, dispelling fear and bolstering bravery even without words. A number of people equal to your combined Charisma and Sympathy ratings are immune to fear and environmental effects, and you add a 1 to successful Charisma checks.

Commune: 6 (Min 5)
You can communicate with the Vectors more effectively than others, and they listen and respond to your pleas. On a successful Sympathy check, your character can calm all of the Vector worms within eyesight. Calm Vector worms can even be touched by unprotected skin without a risk of being contaminated and made Marked.

Locate: 6 (Min 5)
Your character can locate Cradles and N-Fractals with ease. This is an exceptional ability generally unique to the Linked, and most do not abuse it because of the great love their have for Gaia and their own kin. On a successful Sympathy roll, a character can detect any rare Vector lifeforms within 20 km per Sympathy level.

Tectonic Event: 4 (Min 5)
You can cause minor battlefield features to appear on a successful Sympathy roll. This is limited to enough cover for one or two Fractals, the rise of a pillar to knock a stationary gun off-axis or the creation of a small sinkhole to collapse an object or disrupt a ground formation. This can be done on the fly each round, and is thus an extremely useful ability.

Vector Madness 8 (Min 7)
By emulating the Vector's emergency signals, you can induce violent activity in those nearby, causing the worms to enter biological overdrive. The resulting effects are often chaotic and dangerous, and can be directed with a Sympathy roll; however, to do so requires full concentration. This lasts for half your Sympathy in turns, rounded down. Obviously, the magnitude of this effect depends on the local Vector life.

Tectonic Shift: 8 (Min 7)
You can completely reshape the environment you are in, creating massive pillars to sprout from the ground or dropping half of an airbase into a massive sinkhole. You can dig wells or drill boreholes by commanding the Vectors to move for you, but the effect requires intense concentration and may not be to your exact wishes due to the capricious nature of the Vectors and the sub-Vector geology.

Scalar Magnification: 9 (Min 5)
The character focuses on their Fractal's weapons systems, generating a limited Scalar force that bolsters their energy weapons, increasing yield and efficiency of transfer. As a result, your weapons become more powerful, granting half your Sympathy score to damage.

Linear Boost: 11 (Min 7)
By stressing the tectonic fault lines on the ground, the character is able to increase the energy of Linears as they please. Any craft using reactionless drives doubles its speed for a number of rounds equal to half of the character's Sympathy score in combat, or halves travel times if used otherwise.

Linear Translocation: 12 (Min 7)
By generating a pervasive Scalar field in harmony with the surrounding Linear, your Fractal can effectively achieve null-mass, allowing for virtually instantaneous movement. Your Fractal appears to blur out of existence, appearing nearby as you move faster than light through solid matter. The Scalar field nullifies most of the destructive forces that would arise from suddenly stopping and regaining full mass, though it does generate a significant shock-wave from around you as it shunts air from around you. You must make a Sympathy roll to see if you can make a jump, with failure meaning you wind up 'clipping' solid matter and suffering explosive damage. Your range is dependent on your Sympathy rating.

Linear Storm: 14 (Min 8)
The character causes the potentials held in the tectonics to burst in a brilliant explosion of light and energy. All reactionless drive speeds are tripled, but all units in the field take a -2 Penalty to Pilot because of the increase in energy. A botched pilot check results in the unit losing control and 'wiping out' as it plummets through the sky, crashing along multiple layers of Linear energy that have become so dense that the unit is temporarily buoyed when it impacts the threshold. While crashing, a character can attempt to recover every 100 meters as they hit another layer.

Scalar Command: 14 (Min 8)
You develop a direct connection with your Fractal's weapon output, allowing you to alter energy flow and create impossible physical effects. You can directly control beams, causing them to bend and track targets or go around corners. Melee weapons can be twisted into whips to wrap around limbs or snake their way through a target, or flatten into shields to ward off attacks. Your pilot's imagination is the limit (that and stress; extreme alterations in power output can severely damage the Fractal). This reduces difficulty of attacks and defenses with energy weapons by Sympathy, and allows for very cool stunts.

Linear Beam: 17 (Min 9)
By condensing the effects of a Linear Storm, a VM user is able to condense and redirect the flow of Linears into a cohesive beam of energy that can rip through entire groups of enemies or destroy flying airships. This is an incredibly difficult power that requires concentration for five rounds while making a series of successful -1 Sympathy checks each round, exposed to the open air. A failed roll will paralyze the character for a number of days equal to their Sympathy, minus Physical. The result allows a character to destroy a single large target such as an airship, or a number of Fractals or Vector lifeforms equal to double their Sympathy.

Command Cluster: 0 (Min 10)
Your character has ceased to exist as a human being and has become wrapped in thousands of tons of near-impenetrable Vector biomass, which have aggregated into a dense shell. You are able to control the Vectors as an extension of your own body, although your physical one is effectively being destroyed and absorbed. Reroll and make a new character, because taking this ability was a terrible idea. If the character with this effect was in a romance with a character with the 'The Power of Love' Advantage or vice versa, the character that isn't trapped in a mile of horrible hardened biomass unlocks a number of secret effects of the GM's choosing.