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BASH! Sci-FI Table of Contents
Introduction ...5
Key Terms ...5
Chapter 1: Character Creation ...7
Step 1: Stats ... 8
Step 2: Species ... 8
Step 3: Advantages ...10
Disadvantages ...11
Species Specific Disadvantages ...13
Step 4: Powers ...14 Energy ...14 Mundane Powers ...14 Special Powers ...18 Alien Powers ...18 Mechanical Powers ...18 Psionic Powers ...19
Limiting the Role of Psionics ...19
Psionic Disciplines ...20
Special Power Enhancements ...27
Special Power Limitations ...27
Step 5: Skills ...27
Chapter 2: Equipment ...31
Technology Levels ...32
Armor ...32
Futuristic Armor; Suits ...32
Weapons ...32
Archaic Weapons ... 32
Archaic Ranged Weapons ... 34
Modern Firearms & Bombs ... 35
Futuristic Weapons ... 37
Examples of Integrated Functions ... 39
Upgrades ...39
Modern Equipment ... 41
High Tech Equipment ...41
Medical Supplies ... 41
Useful Gadgets ...42
Black Market Goods ... 43
Chapter 3: Playing the Game ... 44
The Golden Rule ... 45
Experience Points ... 45 Hero Dice ... 45 Combat Rules ... 45 Movement ... 46 Wounds ... 46 Ranged Attacks ...47 Cover in Combat ...47 Knock-Back ... 47 Wrestling ... 47 Vulnerability ... 47 Size ... 47 Continual Damage ... 47 Collateral Damage ...48 Explosions ...48
Credits
Writing: Chris Rutkowsky, Layout & Art Director: David Jarvis, Index & Editing: Michael Taylor Cover Art: Thom Chiaramonte, Third Rail Design Lab
Logo and Cover Lettering by John Mathews
Interior Artwork: Skorched Urf Studios, Anthony Cournoyer, Paul Daily, Larry Elmore, Butch Mapa, Antonio Rojo, Shaman’s Stock Art, Richard Spake, Aaron Texiera, Jason Watson. Some artwork Copyright 2007, Reality Deviant Publications, Used with permission.
Some art work taken from Sci-Fi Clip-Art Collection One, Two, and Three copyright © Philip Reed and Christopher Shy. Used with permission. To learn more visit www.roninarts.com. Some art from Image Portfolio Anthology (Devil’s Workshop). Some artwork from Skortched Urf studios. Some artwork copyright Paul Daly, used with permission. Some artwork in this book is also ©2005 Team Frog Studios, used by permission.
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Healing ...48 Chase Scenes ...48 Minions ...49 Hazrads ...50Starvation and Thirst ...50
Drowning ...50 Extreme Cold ...50 Extreme Heat ...50 Falling ...50 Fire ...50 Fatigue ...50 Illness ...50 Immobilization ... 50 Poison ...51 Radiation ...51 Vacuum ...51 Gravity ...51 Zero-G ...51 Low-G ...51 High-G ... 51 Spacewalking ... 52
Artificial hazards- Traps & Security Systems ... 52
Alarm ... 52 Electroshock ... 52 Hologram ... 52 Landmine ...52 Laser Tripwire ... 52 Lockdown ...53 Pit ... 53 Poison Gas ... 53 Wall-Mounted Blaster ...53 Collapsing Walls ... 53 Creating Worlds ...53 Constructed Worlds ... 53
Random World Creation ...54
Creating Alien Species ...55
Chapter 4: Warfare & Exploration ...57
Building a Vehicle ... 58 Scale ... 58 Brawn ... 58 Agility ... 58 Mind ... 58 Inertia ... 58 Size ...58 Volume ... 59 Cargo Units ... 59 Crew/Passengers ... 59 Vehicle Combat ... 59 Priority ... 59 Defense ... 59 Damage ... 60 Breach Threshold ... 60
Effects of a Hull Breach ... 60
Incapacitating a Vehicle ...60 Boarding ... 61 Ramming ... 61 Repairs ... 62 Vehicle Powers ... 62 Weapon Systems ... 63 Vehicle Advantages ... 65 Vehicle Disadvantages ... 65
Types of Vehicles: Starships ... 66
Stardrive ... 66 Sample Starships ...67 Light Starships ... 67 Capital Starships ... 69 Terrain in Space ... 72 More Vehicles ... 72
Modern Land Vehicles ... 72
Futuristic Land Vehicles ... 74
Modern Sea Vehicles ... 75
Futuristic Sea Vehicles ... 77
Modern Sky Vehicles ... 77
Futuristic Sky Vehicles ... 78
Heavy Ordinance ... 79
Rules of War ... 80
Fleet to Fleet: Mass Combat in Space ... 80
Time, Space, and Movement ... 80
Ports and Planets ...81
Impact of and on Heroes and Villians ...81
Mass Combat on Planets ... 82
Chapter 5: Aliens & Adversaries ... 83
Size ...84
Energy Cost ...84
Skills ...84
Danger Level ...84
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Aliens, Mutants, & Monsters ...84
Alien Predator Beast ...85
Bear-Bat ... 85 Brhinox ...85 Claw-Titan ... 85 Cloaked Stalker ... 86 Doom Hopper ... 86 Dune Raiders ... 86 Furbles ... 87 Ice Beast ... 87 Jaw Monster ... 87 Omnipotent Entity ... 87 Phase Wraith ... 88 Razor Cat ... 89 Sand Runner ...89 Shifter ...89 Snow Strider ... 89 Sonic Bats ...89 Spike Strider ...90 The Swarm ...90 Tentacle Worm ...90 Thunder Beast ... 91 Tunnel Devil ...91 Unstoppable Gorger ...91 Viper Slug ...91 Colossus Creatures ...92
Great Dune Worm ...92
Star Kraken ...92
Leviathan Fish ...92
Robots, Cyborgs, and Droids ...92
Cyberninja ... 92
Duel Bot ...93
Utility Droid ...93
Star Knight ...93
War Droids ...94
Light Infantry Droid ...94
Heavy Infantry Droid ...94
Roving Gun Droid ...94
Juggernaut Assault Droid ...94
Sci-Fi Icons ... 94 Assassin ... 94 Bartender ... 95 Bounty Hunter ...95 Crime Lord ...95 Duelist ...95 Gangster ...95 Guards ...95 Gunfighter ...96 Merchant ...96 Noble ... 96 Pilot ... 96 Psi-Rangers ... 97 Dark Psi-Rangers ... 98 Scoundrel ...98 Space Pirates ...99 Starship Personnel ...99 Chief Engineer ...99 Crewman ...99 Starship Officer ...100 Starship Captain ...100 Startrooper ...100 Scout ...100
Heavy Assault Force ... 100
Regular ...100
Officer ...101
Star Marines ...101
Thief ...101
Chapter 6: Science Fiction Genres ...102
Victorian ...103 Space Pulp ...109 Space Opera ...112 Science Fantasy ...112 Post Apocalyptic ...114 Cyberpunk ...116 Mecha-Pilots ...118 Hard Sci-Fi ...122 Time Travel ... 123
Appendix A: Rules Options ... 127
Stats above 5 ... 127
Appendix B: More Powerful Starting characters ..128
Superheroes Conversion ... 128
Index ...129
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Introduction: What is an RPG?
For those unfamiliar with the term, RPG stands for Role-Playing Game. It is a game in which the players portray characters within a story. Unlike a story, however, there is no set script in a role-playing game. Like a game, there are rules to govern success and failure. Unlike a game, there are no “winners” and “losers”—the purpose is to enjoy yourself with friends, creating a story.
In an RPG, each player will control one character, which in BASH! is called a Hero. In addition, there is usually some sort of referee, who decides the outcome of various events and sets the stage for the story. In BASH! that person is called a Narrator.
These are the two roles you might play. The Hero is a larger-than-life character central to the story. The purpose of the game is to create a story in which the Heroes can overcome various challenges in order to save the day. A Hero overcomes these challenges using a combination of natural ability, powers, skills, and advantages, as well as their own ingenuity.
These challenges are created by the Narrator, a player who does not control a Hero, but rather, “sets the scene” for the Hero to perform his/her exploits. The Narrator decides, where and when the story takes places, as well as the actions of all the characters not controlled by the players, like the Villains and their minions. It is up to the players controlling the Heroes to portray their characters within the larger story created by the Narrator. For example, you may be playing a scientist who must defuse a bomb before the countdown reaches zero. In order to add some suspense, there has to be a chance for failure— and for that reason, we use description, numbers, and dice to decide how successful the actions of the characters within the story are.
What is BASH!?
BASH! originally stood for Basic Action Super Heroes. The BASH! System was a product of my attempt to invent a superhero role-playing game that would appeal to kids. What I found, however, was that it really worked well as a superheroes RPG for gamers of all ages. I also found that the rules worked in genres other than superheroes. Fantasy, wild-west, samurais and science fiction were all within the system’s capabilities. So now, it is Basic Action System Heroes.
What separates the Basic Action System from other role-playing games is an emphasis on high-adventure, and fast-paced action. Don’t expect to be bogged down in rules or spend an hour resolv-ing every sresolv-ingle thresolv-ing a character does. Even creatresolv-ing a character is fast and easy. The rules are light and simple, yet expansive and precise enough to build any character you want. BASH! Sci-Fi gives a complete list of sci-fi powers (both super-scientific, psionic, and mundane) without requiring the players to learn complicated formulas, memorize charts, or buy other books. In short, you will spend less time creating your Hero, and more time playing your Hero.
A Hero has many qualities. In BASH! Sci-Fi Edition, these quali-ties are rated as Stats, Powers, Advantages, and Disadvantag-es. Each has its own impact on what the character is capable of. When a character wishes to try some task where there is a chance for failure, the players roll 2 standard six-sided dice, and multiply the result by their stat or power to indicate the re-sult relative to their opponent’s or the difficulty of an unopposed task. If the roll is “doubles”, roll another die and add it (repeat if it matches) before you multiply. The higher number is victorious, and ties go to the Hero (the good-guys are supposed to win, after all). Simple, eh?
What is Sci-Fi?
Sci-Fi stands for Science Fiction. Defining what exactly Sci-Fi is, however is a very difficult task. One author said, “Science Fiction is what Science Fiction writers write”. This statement was vague, but also completely accurate. For some, science fiction may in-volve the crew of a starship patrolling the galaxy in the far future, while for others it may involve an ancient order of mystics in a galaxy far, far away. Science fiction is futuristic giant robots, but it is also a primitive band of road warriors who survived a nuclear holocaust. It can be a team of elite star-soldiers determined to defend their empire or it can be a Victorian gentleman in a clock-work time-machine. In other words, science fiction is in the eye of the beholder. What holds true for all science fiction, however is that their reality has at least one major difference from our own, often revolving around technology, though alternate history, or unexplained powers can also be the basis of a sci-fi setting. Whatever your favorite sci-fi setting, you can play it with BASH! Sci-Fi. Cross swords with space-pirates or hack your virtual self into the corporate Network. Send the Alien Predator out the air-lock or journey to the lost world at the center of the Earth. Pilot your Mecha in the interplanetary war, or explore the vast reaches of space for the guild. Whatever your adventure, BASH! Sci-Fi will take you there.
Key Terms
Active Multiplier: The number by which any action is multiplied
other than damage. The maximum active multiplier is x10.
Contest: When two or more characters are in direct opposition
with one another at some task, they both roll dice. After multiply-ing by the relevant stat or power, the character with the higher result wins. Ties go to the Hero, or whoever is acting more heroic at that moment. For example, if you read a description calling for a Brawn Contest, the two characters involved roll times their
Brawn stat—the higher of the two wins.
D6: An ordinary six-sided die. In this game, you often have to
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Dice Bonus/Penalty: A number that is added/subtracted from the
2d6 roll before multiplying. For example a +2 Dice Bonus would change a roll of 7 to a 9 before multiplying.
DM, Damage Multiplier: The number by which 2d6 are multiplied
to determine how much damage an attack does, how much dam-age is soaked, or how much damdam-age is healed.
Domino Effect: The ability for Heroes or Villains to attack another
minion in hand-to-hand combat if they have just taken one out.
Doubles: When both d6s display the same number. If this
hap-pens, roll another d6 and add it. If this also matches, roll and add until it doesn’t.
E.C.: Stands for: Energy Cost. When writing down a character’s
information, you should write down the E.C. next to the power if it is not simply equal to the point cost of the power.
Issue: The current game session, within an ongoing plot known as
a story arc.
Hits: This is how much physical damage your character can
with-stand before being knocked out. Heroes usually begin with 100 hits. Minions have less.
Intensity: This is how strong the effect of a power is, whether it is
damage, healing, or knock-back.
Multiplier Bonus/Penalty: A number that is added to/subtracted
from the multiplier that is affecting the dice roll before multiplying. For example, a +2 Multiplier Bonus would change a x3 multiplier to a x5.
Page: One round of combat is known as a “page”. In each 2-3
second page, there are several “panels” that take place.
Panel: During a “page”, each character takes an action, known
as a panel. Panels are numbered according to the combatants’ priority.
Priority: The order in which Heroes’ and their adversaries’ “panels”
occur. This is based on whoever has the highest Agility, and is af-fected by speed-wiring or similar powers.
Soak: The amount of damage all attacks are reduced by when
wearing armor, or using the armor power.
Square: The standard area of physical space used to measure
distances of movement, attack range, radius, etc. A square is 5 feet by 5 feet. Thus a range 5, radius 2 attack has a 25’ range, and a 10’ radius.
Story Arc: The ultimate goal of the Heroes over a given time. Once
that goal is achieved, players may move on to another story arc.
Stats: These are the fundamental raw aptitudes of any character.
They are Brawn, Agility, and Mind. See character creation step 1 for more details.
Total Result Bonus/Penalty: A number that is added/subtracted
from the total result of a die roll after multiplying. Abbreviated as TR. For example, with a +5 TR bonus, x3 multiplier, and a roll of 7, the result would be 3x7= 21+5= 26.
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CHAPTER ONE:
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1- Normal Man Lift 100 Pounds 2- A Soldier 200 Pounds 3- Primitive Barbarian 300 Pounds 4- Strongest possible human 400 Pounds 5- A very strong alien 800 Pounds
Agility:
This is how quick the character’s reflexes are. It is used to see who goes first in combat, to dodge all physical attacks, and strike in close combat. It also influences movement. A character can normally move 3 squares/Agility per page.1- Normal Man
2- An average marksman
3- A skilled marksman or a pickpocket
4- The most magnificent marksman in the area or a pro athlete (human maximum)
5- An alien or machine of incredible speed and accuracy.
Mind:
This is the character’s IQ, willpower, and psychic potential. It is also used to make ranged attack damage, social interaction, and to check perception. This is the key stat for piloting as well! 1- Normal Person2- Scholar
3- Brilliant, A very competent scientist. 4- Genius , A legendary scientist.
5- Supra Genius, Greatest scientist in the known universe
Step 2: Species
What Sci-Fi RPG would be complete without a host of alien species for players to choose from? In BASH! Sci-Fi, there can be many different sentient beings occupying the galaxy other than humans. The Narrator can establish a guideline of what skills or powers you should pay points for, which ones you cannot buy, and what advantages or disadvantages you should take based on what species you are playing. Many species enable you to buy powers unavailable to humans (glide, aquatic, fly). The species here are just examples. Feel free to change or add to this list! What we really recommend you do is pick and choose powers from the Alien Power List to create your own alien species!
Avinoid: 1pt Glide, Cannot buy Armor Familiarity power, Max
Brawn =3. Avinoids are Birdmen who live on low-gravity worlds, where they can soar amongst the clouds. In regular gravity, they can only glide, however. They have wings on their back as well as arms ending in taloned fingers.
Chapter 1: Character Creation
Step 1: Stats
Spread 7 points between each of the 3 attributes, rating 1-5. You may gain 1 extra point of stats by dropping 2 points of powers to a max of 8 points for stats.
Brawn:
This is the character’s Strength and overall Toughness. An example of a typical person with this brawn and a description of how much they can lift is included. A character’s Brawn is also equal to how many squares s/he can jump horizontally.8
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Cathulian: Psionic Powers advantage, Freak disadvantage,
Inhuman Voice disadvantage, Amphibious, Telepathy, Max Brawn =2, Max Agility =4. Cathulians are strange beings from a watery world. Their faces are squid-like, with a set of tentacles where their mouths should be. Every Cathulian has telepathic abilities, which enable them to communicate with other species, as their beak-like mouths covered in tentacles are not made for speech. They may buy the Appendage power if they wish.
Durg: Engineering Skill, 2pts Super
Sens-es (Infrared Vision), Minimum Brawn =2, Max Agility =3. The Durg are a short and stocky race from a high-gravity planet that receives little light. Their magnificent en-gineers have adapted to life on this world by using the energy of the planet’s core to power their cities and maintain their crops. Durg engineers are sought after through-out the galaxy, and often work for whoever pays the best (though never against the interest of Durg). It is not uncommon for them to have the Obsession: Wealth Dis-advantage.
Eldan: Max Brawn = 3, 1pt Charisma, Keen Senses (vision).
Fair-er and noblFair-er than humans, the Eldan live much longFair-er, but are far more rare. The onetime lords of the galaxy have declined over the centuries, and now tend to smaller systems they can maintain their influence over, and where the less refined species in the galaxy will leave them alone. Eldan resemble beautiful humans with pointed ears, and very colorful hair (green, blue, and violet are common, as are silver and gold). Almost all Eldan have the Psionic Powers advantage coupled with the star-born disadvantage.
Ifurian: Small. Max Brawn= 2, Max Mind =3, Outdoors skill.
Ifu-rians are a cute, bear-like species that is about half the size of a human. Despite their small stature, they are skilled warriors and hunters. Ifurians may have the Primitive disadvantage.
Half-Breed: You are half one species, and half another. This means
that you have a few of the traits of both. You and the Narrator should decide what these are, but you should have the limitations and disadvantages of BOTH species! Species whose limitations contradict each other are incompatible. For instance, a character cannot be half Wokana/Half Ifurian (Large/Small don’t agree, and Min Brawn 3/Max Brawn 2 don’t agree).
Human: Maximum Brawn =4, Maximum Agility =4. Humans have
no other restrictions and can buy whatever other stats and powers they wish, but cannot choose from the Alien Powers List.
Saran: Minimum Brawn =2, Max Agility =3, Max Mind =4.
Tough-ness 1 (+10 Soak) 1pt. Sarans are a species of lizard-like beings who inhabit a desert planet. Their muscular frames and their heavy
scales make them most resistant to damage. Sarans may have the Long Sleeper disadvantage or the Abnormal Diet (raw meat) disad-vantage. They can take the Appendage power for their tail.
Simbasa: 1pt fleet of foot, Athletics Skill (Acrobatics), 2pts Danger
Sense, 1pt Natural Weapons. Minimum Agility =3. These feline humanoids look relatively similar to lions. Simbasa may have the Long Sleeper disadvantage.
Vekar: Minimum Brawn =2, Minimum Agility =2, Honor Bound.
The Vekar are a very spiritual people who value honor and martial prowess above all else. Vekar resemble tall, strong humans, with ridged foreheads and dreadlocks. They usually have the armor familiarity power and the weapon technique power, favoring blades as well as blasters. All Vekar have the Military skill.
Wokana: Large, Inhuman Voice, Minimum Brawn =3, Max Agility
=3. These furry giants only recently became part of the “civilized” galaxy, but have adapted rapidly. Their vocal chords are incapable of ordinary speech, but they tend to get their points across with brute strength! It is common for Wokana warriors to also have Blaze of Glory and/or Berserk.
Xrek: Inhuman Voice, Toughness 2 +20 Soak, Venomous,
Cling-ing, Extra Arms, Leap. The Xrek are a race of bipedal insects standing about 7 feet tall, resembling a humanoid praying mantis. They have four arms, chitinous skin, and a poisonous bite. Their hands and feet end in hooks that allow them to stick to walls and ceilings. Because of their very alien appearance and inability to speak normally, they have been hated and feared by much of the gala for centuries.
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Dumb Luck:
Once per issue, you may re-roll any dice roll.
Eat Anything:
You are from a species that can obtain n o u r i s h m e n t from nearly any source. Animals, v e g e t a b l e s , minerals, and even chemicals can be converted into energy by your body. Some species refer to
you as a “living garbage disposal”, but this ability can be very handy when “real food” is hard to come by. In addition, you are immune to ingested poisons, though you can still become intoxicated by imbibing alcohol (and your species likely makes alcoholic drinks that would be lethal to others). Just because you can eat rocks and drink bleach, however, does not mean you necessarily enjoy doing so (it is up to you).
Enhanced: You are either cybernetic or genetically altered,
enabling you to have stats beyond the normal maximums for your species. This enhancement is not obvious to the naked eye.
Famous: Perhaps you are a well-known pilot or starship captain,
maybe a hero of an important battle, or a well known actor or scientist. Regardless of why you are famous, wherever you go, you run into well-wishers who want to make you happy. Whenever you want to exploit your fame for some sort of advantage, you can roll times your highest stat. If you get a 20, the person you are interacting with will recognize you and treat you differently because of your fame. (Sometimes this different treatment may not be to your benefit, however).
Fearless: You are completely immune to the effects of fear,
including psionic effects intended to drive you away (like the Daze power). Any attempt to frighten or intimidate you automatically fails. Whenever you try to intimidate people, you get a +2 Dice bonus to your check.
High-Tech: You are from a more advanced culture, or maybe you
are from the future. As a result, you have access to equipment and knowledge from a higher Technology level than most. Usually, this will be 2 Tech Levels higher than the rest of the campaign setting. This advantage is only allowed with Narrator approval!
Large: You are a size 1 creature. You must be a member of a
race that is much bigger than humans, like a Wokana. As a size 1 creature, you add +1 Dice bonus to all Brawn rolls, but you also
Step 3: Advantages
Your species is not the only important part of your background you need to determine before deciding the special abilities and skills of your character. An advantage is a special edge that grants your character some unique ability. “You “buy” advantages by taking an equal amount of disadvantages—character flaws that we will discuss later (see page 11).”
Some aspects of your character (especially social ones) are de-termined by buying advantages. These advantages will help you decide what kind of person your Hero is, and will help you establish a guideline for buying powers later. For instance, if you want to play a telepath, you would have to buy the “Psionic” advantage, while a hot-shot pilot with ice-water in his veins might want the “Fearless” advantage.
This list is by no means complete. Narrators and players should feel free to come up with their own Advantages to fit their games.
Blaze of Glory: When reduced to 30 or less Hits, you get a +2
Dice bonus on all rolls. You may also take an additional panel as soon as you fall in combat (they occur simultaneously) including an extra attack even if you have already made one this page. You may also ignore the penalties for wounds for one panel by taking 10 damage.
Companion: You have a companion who helps you through your
adventures. A companion is essentially a weak Hero controlled by the Narrator. A companion does not need to be humanoid: it can be an android or an alien animal for instance. Companions have a base of 6 points of stats and 5 points of powers.
Contacts: You know people who owe you favors all over the
galaxy. It seems everywhere you go, you know someone who can help you out, whether it be information, a place to hide, etc. As long as you don’t ask a contact to put themselves at great risk, they will help you however they can. Contacts can really help you find out things that would otherwise remain unknown—like a villain’s whereabouts, or the secret ritual of a cult—but you will usually get this info in the form of subtle hints—not direct information.
Cyborg: You are partly alive, and partly machine. This advantage
allows you to buy powers from the mechanical power list. Whenever you are hit in combat, roll a d6. If the number on the die is less than (not equal to) the points you have in machine powers, it means that a mechanical part of you was hit, and that damage must be repaired rather than healed (see the Unliving advantage below). Regardless of whether the damage is to your machine or living parts (or both) however, a total of 100 hits of damage will incapacitate your character.
Diehard: You are very stubborn when it comes to giving up your
life. You may re-roll any dice roll that resulted in your Hero’s death. Example: if you fell to your death after failing a climbing check, you can re-roll the climbing check. If you were struck down by an energy blast, you can re-roll your dodge roll to avoid being hit, etc.
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engine out of spare parts, and succeeds at a 20 technology/jury-rig check. The techno-wizard managed to put together a working engine, that functions long enough for the ship to limp to a nearby star-base. Using this ability to jury-rig costs 1 experience point, payable at the end of the issue.The Cause: Choose a cause worth dying for (liberating your planet,
defending the galactic alliance, etc). Whenever you do something directly for the cause, you receive a +2 Dice bonus to your rolls. This includes attack rolls, damage rolls, skill rolls, social interaction rolls—everything.
Unknown Ally: Some mysterious stranger keeps coming to your
aid whenever you are in your most desperate peril, and then disappearing with no explanation. The Narrator decides all the details of this NPC, as well as how much to reveal about their true identity.
Unliving: You are not alive, but either an android, computer
program, or hologram of some sort. As such, you automatically gain immunity to mind control, suggestion, and other “psionic” powers (unless the power is bought with an enhancement that allows it to affect you). You are unaffected by poison, and require no food, water, sleep or oxygen, and you do not age. The downside to this is that you cannot heal normally. You cannot buy the psionic advantage, and the Healing power and the physician skill cannot work on you. Instead, it takes a successful technology/repair or computers/programming check (Narrator determines which is appropriate— use as you would physician skill to heal an organic) to heal you of hits. This is obviously a slow process. You are also susceptible to EMPs (Electro Magnetic Pulses).
Virtuous: While you maintain your principles, you cannot be broken.
You have a +4 Dice bonus to resist being compelled doing anything shameful, even under torture. Example: a virtuous courier is being interrogated in “the machine” to reveal his master’s whereabouts. The courier gets a +4 to his dice rolls before multiplying to resist the torture. You also can re-roll resistance to suggestion or mind control if compelled to do anything disgraceful even if you failed before. Example: a virtuous soldier fails his Mind check and is psionically commanded to kill his ally. Before every attack roll, he gets to roll another attempt to break free of the control. It is common to have the Honor-Bound disadvantage along with this.
Step 3 Continued: Disadvantages
Just as Heroes have their perks, they also have drawbacks. For every advantage you chose, you must choose a disadvantage. Note that you cannot have disadvantages that obviously conflict with your advantages or disadvantages. For instance, you cannot be a craven if you have true grit, nor can you be fearless if you have a phobia!
Age: You are either over 50 or under the age of majority. Old
characters are less resilient, only having 80 hits instead of 100, while young characters are considered minors according to the take a -1 Dice penalty to all Agility rolls. You also get to add a 5 TR
bonus to all damage dealt and soaked, even if you are unarmored. You can also lift twice as much as a size 0 creature with your Brawn score.
Lifelike Appearance: If you are an android or a cyborg, this
advantage makes you still appear to be a normal life form. You have realistic skin, hair, and even can simulate breathing. Your true nature can be discovered when a psychic attempts to probe your mind (if you are an android) and finds none, or if you are examined with a medical scanner. Likewise, when you do something that should be impossible for your “species” (like plug your finger into a data port, etc) you may give yourself away.
Membership: You are a member of something exclusive and
important, perhaps a guild, order, league, or secret society of some kind. You and your Narrator must work together to figure out the benefits and obligations of this membership. It is likely that this membership will also require you to take an oath, duty, or some other disadvantage.
Psionic: You can use the force of your mind to alter reality. You can
purchase powers from the psionic list. In order for you to use your powers, you must be conscious and able to concentrate. If you are drugged, asleep, etc, you may be unable to use your powers at the Narrator’s discretion.
Quick healer: Your natural healing is double the normal rate. This
does not influence the effects of psionic or high-tech healing upon yourself, however.
Short Sleep: Your species requires less rest per day than humans
do. You only sleep 4 hours per day instead of the standard 8 that most species do.
Shrewd: It is very difficult for a person to deceive, cheat, or take
advantage of you. You get a +4 Dice bonus to any roll to resist these circumstances.
Starship: Whether by inheritance, purchase, or duplicity, have
somehow come into the possession of a starship. If you are the sole owner, your ship is a standard size 3 ship. If you are part owner (the other owner must also have this advantage) your ship is size 4. If the ship is owned by a small company of at least 4 partners (all of whom have this advantage), then it can be a size 5 ship. Unlike a military vessel, this ship is your personal property to do with as you wish.
Techno-Wizard: You have an uncanny knack with machines. You
can spend your own experience points to improve machines that can have powers. In addition, it takes you half the normal time to make enhancements or repairs to a machine (meaning every hour you spend repairing a machine counts as two man-hours). You can also use the technology/jury-rig skill with a difficulty of 10/20/30/40/50 to temporarily give a 1/2/3/4/5 point power to a machine. This power will cease functioning once it is used (if it is a weapon for instance) or at the end of the scene (if it is a power that is in continuous use, like extra engines). For example, a techno-wizard is on a ship that is adrift in space. He tries to jury-rig an extra
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law, and are not taken seriously by adults and may be kept out of such things as dangerous missions or cantina brawls because of it.
Note: this is by age by human standards. Many species achieve
physical maturity and reach old age at radically different times. If you are old, you are old for your own species.
Compulsive Behavior: You have a behavior that you cannot stop
yourself from doing. It could be drinking, gambling, lying, stealing, or various other things, but no matter what it is, it is bound to either get you into trouble or cost you a lot of money.
Bad Reputation: You have a reputation of being not very
trustwor-thy, and you live up to this reputation. You will lie, cheat, and steal whenever you feel you can get away with it, and if you get caught, you can always deny it. The upper class shuns you, and the lower class only tolerates you as long as your coin lasts you. As such, people are unlikely to believe anything you say, lend you anything, or entrust you with a secret. You get a -2 Dice penalty when trying to convince someone to believe you or trust you.
Berserk: When you get angry, you lose all control of yourself.
When the Narrator decides you have become upset, you must make a 20 Mind check to maintain your composure. If you fail, you “black out” and while you are in this state, you will savagely attack your perceived enemies. While in this state, you do not behave rationally. You cannot speak (except maybe obscenities), or use any mental skills or abilities.
When you attack your foes, you do not employ any strategy other than hand to hand attacks. Ranged weapons, martial arts, or any defensive maneuvers cannot be used while you are berserk. Run-ning away, or listeRun-ning to what others have to say is not an option either. If you are berserk and there are no enemies to attack, you will begin breaking things. The berserk state lasts 3 pages. Note: This is very dangerous combined with Pride.
Craven: You are a coward. This does not necessarily mean that
you do not enjoy fighting, you may even revel in humiliating your opponents, but you are terrified of losing, especially when your life is on the line. You suffer a -2 Dice penalty on all Agility dice rolls in any combat where your opponent has successfully damaged you. If you are reduced to half your total hits, you must make a 20 Mind check that page, and each page you are struck after that point, not to attempt to flee, yield, or surrender immediately.
Cursed: You have attracted the wrath of gods it would seem. No
matter what you do or where you go, bad things always seem to happen to you. Once per issue, the Narrator can make you re-roll any die roll, and take the worse of the two. In addition, trouble always seems to come your way. You befriend someone who later turns out to be a traitor. You make the major faux pas at a state dinner that botches a potential alliance. You are essentially a living plot device for the Narrator to put your party in a sticky situation!
Duty: You owe your allegiance to someone or some organization.
You obey all orders from your superiors within that organization without question. If it means sacrificing your life, so be it.
Freak: You are physically unlike most sentient life forms. You may
be deformed, scarred, or from a species that is very inhuman in appearance (without the standard two arms, two legs, two eyes, and one mouth, etc).
Honor Bound: Your honor means more to you than anything else,
including your life. You would die before you would engage in an action that dishonored you—lying, stealing, or cheating. This means that you cannot lie, even to spare someone’s feelings, can-not steal medicine to save a dying child, or attempt to cheat an evil villain you know will betray you. If you for some reason dishonor yourself, you are at -2 to all dice rolls (before multiplying) until you atone. In some cultures, suicide is the only way to atone.
No Legal Status: You do not have the rights and privileges of a
normal person. Perhaps this is because you are a machine or a hologram, or perhaps you are from the lowest possible caste in your society. In any case, you do not have the right to a trial, nor would anyone be criminally tried for harming you. It’s best you keep your head down and stay out of the way of others.
Oath: There is something that you must never do. Your character
will do anything, even die, in order to avoid breaking this oath.
Obsession: You are completely fascinated by a certain person,
thing, or behavior. It could be money, a certain behavior, or some sort of addiction. You devote inordinate amounts of time, and take unnecessary risks to satisfy this obsession.
Outcast: You are an outcast from a certain society (perhaps a
trade guild, a military organization, or even a planet). Whenever you meet someone from this society, you will be treated as lower than dirt. People from other societies will not welcome you warmly either if they know that you are an outcast and why.
Outlaw: You have been declared a criminal (whether innocent or
not) in the galaxy (or at least in some parts of it), and must not at-tract attention to yourself. There is likely a bounty on your head, and if anyone recognizes you, they may try to collect!
Overconfidence: You have too much faith in your own abilities.
You often do not have the good sense to back down when you should, even when your life may hang in the balance. You always believe that things will turn out in the end, and do not believe you can be beaten. This often leads you to take unnecessary risks.
Phobia: There is something that you are deathly afraid of. It could
be heights, a certain type of alien, the dark, closed spaces, or crowds. You will always do whatever you can to avoid this thing, no matter what. If this means fleeing from combat and abandoning your friends, so be it. If you are forced to confront your phobia, you can only perform an action if you succeed in rolling 20 or more on a Mind check each panel, until the object of fear is out of your sight. If you fail the Mind check, you are frozen with fear, unable to move or act.
Poor Hearing: You do not hear very well, perhaps as a result of
your species, defect, or injury. As a result, you suffer a -2 Dice penalty on any roll made to hear noises.
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metabolism, or perhaps you just aren’t very fast. As a result, your movement speed is Agility x2 (instead of x3) and you cannot buy the Fleet of Foot power.True Grit: When fighting for a cause bigger than money, you
can-not retreat or yield, no matter what.
Ward: You are the primary caretaker of a normal person (5 points
in stats, no powers). This person can be used by villains as bait, attacked, etc to get to you. You are constantly having to rescue this person as a result.
Species Specific Disadvantages
Abnormal Diet: Your species does not consume normal food and
water by human standards. Either you require double the normal food and water rations of a human per day, or you cannot eat most food eaten by humans. For instance, a species that can only con-sume raw meat might have difficulty acquiring it in space. If you require special food, it cannot be replicated—it must be the real thing.
Alternate Respiration: Your species does not breathe normal air,
and must have something else to breathe. While you are among ordinary air-breathers, you must wear a breathing device to supply you with what you need to breath. This respirator device is vital to your survival outside your native environment, and without it, you immediately begin to suffocate.
Chemical Dependence: Your species requires the regular
con-sumption of certain chemicals in order to live. These chemicals are not usually found to be naturally occurring except on your own planet. Without the chemicals, taken at least once per day, you will begin to die. Going a day without the chemical will cause you to develop a serious illness. The second day, the illness will become life-threatening. The illness can only be cured when the chemical is provided to you.
Environmental Frailty: Your species was not made to withstand
certain environments. Choose an environment that is especially harmful to you. Heat, cold, poisonous, radioactive, and vacuum are all examples. Whenever you are exposed to this environment, you suffer double the normal effects.
Inhuman Voice: Your species are incapable of ordinary speech,
and can only communicate with your own species. You may be able to understand the speech of another species by learning their language, but you cannot speak to them. Likewise, however, peo-ple of other species can learn to understand your language, but cannot communicate in it.
Long Sleeper: Your species requires much more sleep than
ordi-nary humans—about 12 hours per day as opposed to 8.
No Enhanced Healing: Your species ability to repair its body
can-not be aided outside assistance other than traditional first aid or surgery. Devices that speed up the healing process are incompat-ible with your body for some reason.
If there is a great deal of background noise, you may not be able to distinguish other people’s voices at all.
Poor Vision: You do not see very well, either as a trait of your
species, or some sort of defect or injury. You may have even lost an eye. You suffer a -2 Dice penalty for all activities requiring good distance vision, like firing a blaster or piloting a starship. If you can wear corrective lenses to fix your vision, do not take this disadvan-tage.
Powerful Enemy: Somehow in your life, you have attracted the ire
of a powerful person who wishes you harm. Often, this is a person of political importance, but it could just as easily be a crime lord, wealthy CEO, or a former associate you rubbed the wrong way. This enemy either has lots of resources at his/her disposal to use to harass or kill you, or they are very skilled and come after you personally (i.e. a Villain with better stats, more powers, and more experience points than you). This enemy will routinely show up (or send agents) to make your life miserable throughout your career. If you ever come to a situation where your enemy can no longer be a threat to you, this disadvantage is lost, and must be replaced by another disadvantage. Alternatively, the Narrator can treat this as an advantage wherein in any session in which the Hero overcomes this enemy or one of his machinations, the Hero receives an extra experience point for that session.
Pride: You cannot abridge any insult, no matter how slight, whether
it was in jest, or who the insulter was. You must satisfy your honor, even if it means fighting a dozen duels to the death! Your pride can often get you into trouble as you tend to assume everyone who disagrees with you is incorrect or stupid. You will never own up to any mistakes, and will refuse the aid of others if you think such an offer is made out of pity.
Primitive: You are of a culture that has not developed technology
to the standard level of the campaign setting. Whenever you use “modern” technology, you have a -2 Dice penalty regarding its use. As you are also unused to space travel, you suffer a -2 Dice penalty whenever you are weightless or exposed to changes in g-forces. These penalties are cumulative with one another.
Secret: You have a secret you try to protect at all costs. Nobody—
not even your dearest friend or relative—knows the truth, and you would die before you would allow someone to find out. The Nar-rator decides if the secret is damaging enough to allow it as a dis-advantage. Sample secrets: (you are really an enemy spy, the president is an alien shape shifter, you are the sole survivor of an illegal organization long thought extinct, etc).
Slave: You are someone else’s property. You might be a
body-guard, courtesan, personal servant, or worker, but your will is not your own. You must obey your master and accept any punishment your master gives you (often corporal punishments) without retalia-tion. The laws do not apply to you in nearly any way, and you have no legal rights. If you run away, you must trade this disadvantage for the outlaw disadvantage.
Slow: For some reason, you are not as fast as most other people.
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In addition, Healing cannot be used on you for the very same reasons. Only your body’s own natural healing has any effect on you.
Slave Mind: You have no free will of your own, and always behave
as commanded or programmed. This disadvantage is common for androids, clones, or bio-engineered servants. It also exists among certain “hive” species. This disadvantage implies that you have at least one specific person whose orders you obey without question, even at the risk of your own life.
Small: You are a size -1 creature. You must be a member of a race
that is much smaller than a normal human. You get to add +1 Dice bonus to all Agility rolls, but take a -1 Dice penalty on all Brawn rolls. You also subtract a 5 TR penalty from all damage you deal and soak. If you soak no damage, you take an extra 5. In addition, you can only lift three-quarters the weight of a size 0 creature with your same Brawn.
Star-Born: You are of a species that has been exploring space for
so long that you are completely adapted to space travel. You do not suffer any penalties for weightlessness or changes in g-force. However, you are also completely dependant upon technology to do almost anything. You receive a -2 Dice penalty involving any-thing you attempt that you do not use a futuristic gadget to accom-plish. This includes using primitive weapons, tracking without using scanning equipment, attempting first aid with only “primitive” ban-dages instead of a medpack, etc. Lastly, you suffer from “ground sickness” whenever you are on the surface of a planet. You have a -2 Dice penalty when you are on a planet’s surface instead of in space. This penalty does not apply if you are in a building with current technology.
Technology Dependence: Your species lacks some of the
physi-cal abilities of other races. You have managed to make due, but only through technology that has allowed you to do so. Your race may have no hands, or arms, or be able walk. Perhaps your race exists naturally as energy or is gaseous by nature. With special mechanical suits, you have been able to get beyond your races limitations and can perform on par with other species. However, if you were ever somehow deprived of this technology, you would be disabled by it.
Step 4: Powers: 7 points
Powers are the special abilities that make the Heroes stand out from “ordinary” folk. Even Heroes with no special psionic abilities or cybernetic enhancements still have powers—whether it be being an ace pilot, a leader of men, or just handy with a blaster. Just think about the stunts that Heroes from the action movies have pulled off and you will realize that your character has amazing potential. In addition, aliens, cyborgs, and mutants, may be capable of feats beyond that of “ordinary” humans.
Energy
Before you begin selecting your powers, you should know what it takes to make them work. Certain powers, ALL psionic powers, and various other situations (like holding one’s breath or standing in a burning building) can cause a Hero to spend Energy. Every character in BASH! has 10 points of Energy, which is a pool of physical and mental endurance that is expended when the character engages in strenuous activities, such as using powers. If a character’s Energy pool is reduced to zero, s/he is unable to use any abilities that require the use of Energy until the required amount of energy is regained. A character can rest to regain one point of lost energy in a panel. In a panel in which you rest, you can move your Agility x2 Squares, but that is it. Psionic characters can also utilize the Psionic Rejuvenation power to regain Energy more quickly.
Powers generally use 1 point of Energy per point in the power, each time the power is used, but this is not always the case, and many powers don’t use Energy at all. Some powers only use Energy when they are first activated—but that Energy remains spent until the power is “turned off” by the user. These details should be in the power’s description.
Mundane Powers
These powers can be purchased and used by any character, and are usually a function of a character’s background or intensive training. Unless otherwise noted, mundane powers use no energy. While these powers are called “mundane” they are still very useful abilities. Example:
For instance, a soldier with B3 A2 M1 may have 2 points in “blaster pistol technique” power that allows him to attack as if he had Agility +1 and do +1 DM when wielding a blaster pistol. This would be on top of the normal weapon bonus of +3 DM, for his total of x5 damage, x3 to hit. A person without this “power” using a blaster, with the same stats would do x4 damage at x2 to hit. As you can see, even non-psionic powers (hereafter called mundane) can be really useful!
Armor Familiarity: 1-3pts. You are used to wearing armor, and
it does not impede your movements in any way. For 1/2/3 points you can wear light/medium/heavy armor with no penalty. For each point in armor familiarity you lack when wearing a given type of armor, you take a -1 Dice penalty on all Agility rolls. Thus, a person wearing heavy armor without this power has a -3 Dice penalty on all Agility rolls. If a person with 1 point in this power wore heavy armor, they’d have a -2 Dice penalty on their rolls, and so on.
Attack Weak Point: 2pts. You must make your attack roll by 20
or your attack does normal damage. If you succeed, your damage roll does double damage. This ability is only learned by smugglers, bounty-hunters, and the like. You must have the advantage Membership (Smuggler’s or Bounty-Hunter’s Guild or something similar) in order to purchase it.
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You can instantly regain 1 point of energy (that can be immediately spent if you choose) by taking10 Hits of Stun damage (no soak, you just take the damage). You can spend as many hits as you like this way, and can even fall unconscious from overexerting yourself (dropping to 0 Hits) in this manner. This is a good thing to save as a last resort, when you must use powers (to save an innocent or escape certain death) when you have no energy to spend.Energy and Powers that affect Friends
At the time of the activation, a psionic character usually pays an Energy cost equal to the points of the power. After that point, if the power needs to be maintained, the target of the power pays the Energy cost to use the abilities granted. A power that is granted to another lasts for an hour at most. For example, Tyrus, a psi-ranger uses Endure Heat on his friend, Gar. He pays an energy cost of 2. When Gar gets burned by a thermal grenade, however, Gar must pay the 2 energy to soak the damage. An hour later, Gar can no longer shrug off such intense heat.
PUSHING YOURSELF
You cannot combine the use of this power with weapon technique or any other power.
Swift Strike: 2pts. You can attack foes with great speed, making
an extra hand to hand strike per page. This is exhausting and you must spend 2 energy per panel you use it. This can be combined with paired weapons, for even more attacks.
Break Weapon: 2pts. In hand to hand combat, you can attack
your opponent’s weapon in an attempt to break it. You must make an attack roll by at least 10. Then, roll damage normally, but the damage only applies to the opponent’s weapon. A small, delicate weapon like a vibro-dagger or blaster pistol has 20 Hits and 20 soak. A thick weapon, like a vibro-axe or blaster carbine has 30 Hits and 30 soak. A wooden weapon (is anybody still using these?) has 30 Hits but only a 10 soak. An energy blade (a small delicate weapon) can be broken, but you must make your attack roll by 20 (as you must hit the handle that emits the energy, not the blade itself).
Charisma: 1pt. You have a certain magnetism that draws people to
you. Whenever you are trying to negotiate, entertain, or persuade someone, you add 2 to your Mind before rolling.
Combat Driving: 1pt. This power is required in order to drive
military grade vehicles (like tanks) using the drive skill.
Deflect: 1-2pts. You may add 1-2 points to your Agility for defense
when wielding a shield or energy shield. If you make a successful defense against a high-velocity projectile or beam by 5 or less, the shot is reflected back at the shooter! If you also have Danger Sense, you may use this power with an energy blade instead of a shield.
Disarm: 2pts. If you make a hand to hand attack roll by 10, instead
of doing damage, you force an opponent to drop his weapon. It will land 2d6 feet away from the opponent. If you make the roll by 20, and you have a free hand, you can take the weapon instead.
Dog fighting: 1-5pts. When small aircraft or spacecraft engage
in combat, the winner is often the pilot with the best moves. The Dogfighting power gives the pilot 2 maneuvers, plus one more maneuver per point in this power. These maneuvers can only be used while the pilot is in a flying craft size 1-3 (anything size 4 or larger is not maneuverable enough to make use of these special dogfighting maneuvers). The maneuvers can be combined, but any penalties imposed by their use are also combined. Concerning fractional penalties, the largest fraction is applied first, followed by the next largest, continuing in descending order until all have been applied. For example, an spacecraft with a movement of 20 squares using the Spin and Strafe maneuver would have its movement reduced to 7 squares (half for strafe reducing it to 10, three-fourths that for spin reduces it to 7). Note that not all maneuvers work in all environments and situations (for example the Spin maneuver only works in the vacuum of space).
•Strafe: This maneuver allows the pilot to fire on multiple targets, but also makes the craft more vulnerable when doing so. A character employing the Strafe maneuver halves their movement
for the page it is employed. The pilot can then fire on a number of targets equal to his/her Agility during that page. The targets must be close together, usually along a line that is on, or parallel to, the pilot’s flight path that page.
•Barrel-Roll: This maneuver is used for defense, as it makes the craft harder to hit— but also makes the craft far less accurate with its own attacks. A pilot that is barrel-rolling increases his/her Piloting multiplier for the purpose of defending against enemy fire, but decreases this multiplier by 1 for the purpose of making attacks for the page it is barrel-rolling. A pilot can only use this maneuver for a number of consecutive pages equal to his/her Brawn stat (they don’t want to get dizzy or black out while flying).
•Loop: This maneuver is especially useful when one is being pursued by an enemy fighter. This maneuver allows the pilot to move up to half their movement directly backward from their present position, while maintaining their same direction of travel, while ignoring any obstacles in the way. This is because the craft actually went straight up, then backwards, then returned to its previous flight path— just further behind. This maneuver can allow the prey to become the predator, and is very useful in dogfights. When you employ this maneuver, you must beat your opponent in a Piloting/Stunts contest or they will mimic your flight pattern, preventing you from getting behind them.
•Evasive Action: Even more erratic than the Barrel-Roll maneuver, Evasive Action is used only in times where the pilot is overwhelmed by the enemy. A craft engaged in Evasive Action halves its movement (as it is spending so much time zigzagging randomly
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while traveling). A pilot engaged in Evasive Action adds 2 to his/her piloting multiplier for defense, but the ship cannot take any other action that page.
•Power Dive: By flying dangerously close to the enemy, a pilot using a Power Dive can deal some serious damage. A craft engaged in a Power Dive does +1DM with its attacks for that page, but its Breach Threshold is reduced by 10 until its next panel, making the ship more vulnerable to enemy attacks. A ship with a Breach threshold of 10 normally, is reduced to 5 until its next page.
•Target Fixation: This maneuver makes it harder for enemies to shake your pursuit, making your attacks more accurate. By focusing on your target, you get a +1 bonus to your piloting multiplier for the purpose of attacks, but because you are only focused on attack, you get a -1 penalty to your multiplier on defense. This lasts until your next panel. Thus, pilot with x3 skill would have a x4 multiplier for offense, but only a x2 for defense until its next panel.
•180: You are skilled enough to make hairpin turns. You can make up to a 180 degree turn while moving in your craft (normally turns are limited to 90 degree angles). When you use a 180 (turn more than 90 degrees), your craft’s movement is halved. It takes a 20 Piloting/Control check to successfully pull off a 180—or else, the turn is limited to 90 degrees as normal.
•Spin: This maneuver only works in the gravity-free vacuum of
space. Using the inertia of your forward momentum to move you, you turn your ship around like a flying turret in space, hardly deviating from your course as you fire behind you! While employing the Spin maneuver, your craft can fire its forward guns in any direction, no matter what direction it is moving (normally you are limited to targeting in front of your craft). While you employ the Spin maneuver, your movement is reduced to three-fourths its normal movement, and you have a -1 piloting multiplier penalty on defense until your next panel.
Double Taps: 1pt. You can fire your weapon (choose one ranged
weapon type, TL2 or higher) at double the usual speed (meaning you can fire two shots per panel) at a single target. However, you must aim carefully, and cannot move or use any powers during a panel that you use this ability.
Entangle: 2pts. When wielding an appendage, energy whip, or
a concussion flail, you can use a move that restricts the target’s movement, preventing them from attacking until they break free. To break free, the target must succeed in a Brawn test against a difficulty of 20. A target can try once per panel. An attempt, whether successful or not, spends an action. However, if the target succeeds by more than 10 points, s/he breaks free instantly, not requiring an action to do so. The reach of the entangle is equal to the reach of the weapon.
Exemplary: 2pts. Science Fiction stories are full of characters who
are the best in their field, and you are one of them. Choose a job (medic, pilot, gunner, engineer, scientist, soldier, etc). Every issue, you get one free Hero die that can be spent on a roll involved in
doing your job. If this job involves a ship, you can use the Hero die to aid the ship in regard to your job (i.e. a gunner could use a Hero die for a ship’s damage roll). The Exemplary power is especially useful if you are a Starship Captain (with Rank 3). Unlike other Exemplary characters, as a Captain, you can use your extra Hero die for anything—whether resisting the charms of an alien temptress, fighting a robot in a gladiator arena, or aiding the ship’s attack roll. A Captain can use their Hero die to aid anyone else’s roll under their command as well.
Expert Marksman: 1-3pts. Your maximum range with any ranged
weapon is increased by a fourth/third/half (round up) for 1/2/3 points in this power. This does not affect the reach of thrown weapons, however. In addition, your range penalties are reduced by 1.
Feint: 1pt. INSTEAD of making a hand to hand attack for a panel,
you can make a contested Mind roll with your opponent (Mind shield is of no help for this). If you win, you get a +10 (after multiplying) to your next hand to hand attack roll against that opponent.
Fleet of Foot: 1pt. You run at Agility x4 squares per panel, while
most people only run Agility x3 squares per panel. Also, a normal person can jump Brawn squares with a running start, but you can jump Brawn+1.
Footwork: 1pt. In hand to hand combat, you can use your feet
to gain more advantageous position for either offense or defense. You can trade off 1 point of Agility to hit for 1 point of Agility for defense, and vice versa. Reducing Agility to hit to 0 means you cannot attack, reducing Agility for defense to 0 means you cannot avoid attacks. When you begin using footwork, you must spend a point of energy, as this is tiring. You cannot turn this power off until the page after you turn it on.
Inspiring Leadership: 1-5pts. Men and women in the military are
expected to follow the orders of their superior officers. People under your command would follow you to the gates of Hell if you asked them. When you demand the impossible, they can get it done. Whenever you order a subordinate to do something, and you are in frequent contact with the person, that character adds your points in this power as a Dice bonus to any rolls made to achieve your order. This can only be working on a number of individuals equal to your Mind at a time, and can be used to motivate competence in a vast array of tasks from piloting to engineering to medicine. Also, when running mass combat, any unit you are personally a part of also gets to add this bonus to all dice rolls. You must also have at least 1pt in the Rank power to buy this power.
Jetpack Jockey: 3-5 pts. You own and are skilled in the use of a
jetpack. You and your pack can handle speeds of up to 4/5/6 times your Agility per panel, depending on how many points you invested in this power. A person without this power who uses a jetpack must make an Athletics/Aerobatics check equal to 10 times the speed multiplier s/he wishes to fly every panel s/he uses it. Failure indicates a crash. With this power, no roll is necessary—success is automatic.
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Keen Senses: 1pt. You can hear, see, or smell far better than a
normal person. Mind is +3 for sense checks for this sense.
Martial Artist: 1-5pts. You have undergone very intense martial
arts training, and know how to fight very effectively without weapons. Such training is rather common in military organizations. Every point in this power you have lets you choose two techniques in addition to Punch and Kick (even people without this power know those techniques). By choosing your techniques carefully, you can develop a unique fighting style.
•Catch: If you successfully avoid an unarmed (or knife) attack and are within 10 of the attack roll, you grab the opponent’s arm or leg. They must beat you in a Brawn contest to free it, and may try once per page before taking their panel. In the meantime, they must fight without it, giving them a -2 Dice penalty to all Agility rolls. •Cyclone Kick: +1DM, Stun, -2 Dice penalty to hit, Radius 1, 2 Energy •Choke: x3 Continual Damage (as long as the hold is maintained). To maintain a hold, you must defeat the opponent in a Brawn Contest every page. 1 Energy per page.
•Elbow Smash: +1DM, Stun, -1 Dice penalty to hit, 1 Energy.
•Head Butt: +2DM, you take half the damage yourself. You can do this move while restrained at no penalty. •Heel Stomp: +3DM, Stun, only works on an opponent who is down. •Jump Kick: +3DM, Stun, -3 Dice penalty to hit, after a jump move, 2 Energy
•Kick +1DM, Stun, -2 Dice Penalty to hit 1 Energy. Everyone knows how to kick, regardless of Martial Arts training.
•Kippup: You instantly get back up when knocked down, 1 Energy •Knee Smash: +2DM, Stun, -2 Dice penalty to hit, 2 Energy. •Knife Strike +0DM, Lethal 1 Energy
•Leg Sweep: -1DM, Stun. Make a Brawn contest with your opponent. If you win, they are knocked onto their back.
•Martial Block: +1 Agility defending against unarmed (or knife or similar hand weapon) attacks when unarmed.
•Pressure Point: x2 continual damage, -2 Dice penalty to hit, 1 Energy
•Punch +0DM, Stun. This is the standard punch that everyone knows how to do.
•Spinning Backfist: +0DM, Stun, Radius 1, 1 Energy
•Suplex: If you beat your opponent in an Agility contest, followed by an immediate Brawn contest, you flip them over your back and land on them, doing +3DM, Stun. 3 Energy.
•Throw: If you beat your opponent in an Agility contest followed immediately by a Brawn contest, you can throw your opponent a number of squares equal to your Brawn. They take +1DM Stun damage and will land on their back. 2 Energy.
•Uppercut: +2DM Stun, -3 Dice penalty to hit, 2 Energy.
Mind Shield: 1-3 pts. While there are
people in the galaxy naturally adept at the use of psionic powers, there are also those who are naturally resistant to their effects. Add 2x these points to your Mind for defending against psionic powers.
Off-Hand Pistol: 2pt. You can fire a pistol
in your off-hand while shooting or fighting with your good hand. This enables you to make an extra pistol attack per panel. Attack rolls made with either hand are less accurate (you are splitting your attention between two weapons) and have a -2 Dice penalty to hit. Without this power, the penalty would be -4.
Paired Weapon Fighting: 1pt. You can
wield a hand to hand combat weapon in each hand. You are able to make one extra attack per panel. However, doing this is tiring, and you must spend 1 energy whenever you do it with a weapon heavier than a dagger. This can combine with Swift Strike.
Pierce Armor: 3pts. If you make your
attack roll against an armored opponent by 10/20/30 (for light/ medium/heavy armor), you have found a chink in their armor. The effect of this is that their armor’s soak (not including size bonuses) is halved for that attack. Thus, if you hit an opponent wearing heavy armor by 30, their armor only soaks 20 damage of your attack instead of 40.
Push Technology: 2pts. You are somehow able to make
technological devices defy physics. When you have to make them, the shields/engines/weapons can last long enough for you to finish the fight or get out of Dodge! Whenever you are in a desperate situation, you may make an appropriate Engineering skill check.
