Character Creation
This section includes both house rules governing character creation (as I think of them) and notes on the kinds of characters available and what they should know.
House Rules
Characters are created with 100 base points and up to 100 points in disadvantages. Mystery powers and/or disadvantages are allowed and will be revealed in the course of play.
Speed - Speed is figured as Dex/10 + Ego/10 + (Points spent on Speed)/10.
The rationale for this is twofold -first, it discourages buying down Ego (in fact, it may encourage buying it up) and second, it makes things more fair for mentalists who otherwise have to purchase additional Speed or Dex to be remotely competitive.Stunned Characters - Characters whose Recovery exceeds 10 recover from being stunned based on multiples of their Recovery. Thus, a character with a REC of 14, can recover 1/phase from -1 to -14 Stun as opposed to the standard -1 to -10.
This is intended to make it harder to put down and keep down Bricks and other tough characters.Disadvantages at at 8- show up about 1 adventure in 8, 11- is 1 in 4 and 14- is at least 1 in 2; any Hunted or Watched on 14- must be approved by the GM, since it requires an outlay of resources by the Hunter/Watcher. See Organizations or Independents for more information.
Limitations and Advantages will be similarly effective - if you've gained a big cost-reduction by using the limitation, then it will often not be usable.
GM has final approval on all characters, including "line item" veto.
General Notes
There are some generic character types/powers which players should consider. Characters are generally one or more of the following types. Some guidelines for those characters follow:
- Magic-based
- Magic exists but is not particularly common. Magicians tend to be older than other characters. There could also be magical creatures as characters, but there would have to be a good reason. Magical groups and independents are generally more likely to hunt other magically aware characters. The most famous example is probably Dr. Strange; the Scarlet Witch also had magical powers.
- Mutants
- Most characters in the game should be in this character. No one is sure what caused the rise in mutants and mutant-powers; some people fear mutants, others revere them. Most judge them individually but have some preconceived notions which must be overcome. Mutants are the most likely characters to have hidden powers and/or disadvantages. Mutant characters tend to be younger, although characters younger than 17 would require a good reason. The X-Men are the most popular example of mutant characters.
- Altered
- Altered characters are humans who have been subjected to some sort of process which has changed them. In most cases, these changes are irreversible and are alterations to molecular structure. These characters also tend to be younger, since they are more likely to survive the process. Spiderman and Captain America are both altered humans.
- Super Science
- Scientific-based characters use gadgets and other equipment as their primary tools. They tend to be older (and usually smarter) than other characters. Generally, characters relying on gadgets should be the creators of those gadgets, but exceptions are possible. Ironman is probably the most famous gadgeteer.
- Enlightened
- Enlightened characters are generally trained using special semi-mystical techniques. They include martial artists and some mentalists. Enlightened characters tend to be older and may have hidden powers. Many enlightened characters are also mutant or altered characters. Purely enlightened characters would include Iron Fist and The Shadow.
- Gods, Aliens, and Monsters
- While popular in comics, these types of characters are, for the moment, the province of the GM
It is possible that a character will combine two (or even more) of the above. Consult the GM before going too far in creating such a character.