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Prince Charon · 09-08-2017, 05:21 AM

Notes

If the GM wishes to set the PCs' city in a different terrain, replace Woodlands with that one.

Walter has begun working on Geoff's social skills (not that Walter is brilliant in that area), in the hope that Leslie will start chasing a guy in her own age group... who isn't a creep.

Walter was already an unusually-skillful character before the Probe from Dsp-Earth/Earth-2 arrived, though he lacked any cinematic abilities or disadvantages, and his rivals were business rivals, who didn't go around challenging people (though at least the ones he knows about do polite, formal challenges, not walking up to people in the street like a chambara film). Somewhere along the way, they've discovered that the spirits reward 'in-genre' behavior (Crunch: You get character points for it, and/or better luck), and are trying to balance that with staying within the law, and (mostly) otherwise not being jerks.

Trained By A Master is replaced by Active Thoughtform Generation (or Thoughtform Talent, or a Chi-related Talent) and Path/Book Adept, in this setting.

The Aikido variant Walter's school teaches includes Esoteric Medicine (Yin/Yang Healing), which is thus covered by Path/Book Adept, as well as First Aid instruction (which isn't, but doesn't need to be); it adds Pharmacy (Herbal)/TL8 and Karate (Aikijutsu) to Optional Skills, and Feint (Karate) to Optional Techniques. The Aikijutsu variant teaches First Aid, but not Yin/Yang Healing, and adds Karate (Aikijutsu) to required skills, and Feint (Karate) to required techniques. Both styles add Body Language to Optional Skills, and Sense Killing Intent (see below) to Optional Techniques.

Since he gained his powers, Walter has begun to have dreams about a group of rather stereotypical Old Martial Arts Masters, who have been teaching him various cinematic skills, starting from the prerequisites thereof. He's gotten his Stealth up to a level that the Master of Invisibility Art considers barely adequate, and is now learning Hypnotism from her. His skill in Pressure Points, on the other hand, is still far below the level at which he could learn Pressure Secrets. He's hoping one of the Old Masters will be Bruce Lee, but it hasn't happened, yet.

His Avatar, resembling a Kirin, manifests when he uses a cinematic skill or technique at an important moment, for those who have any esoteric sensitivity (even a Perk, or a point of skill in an information-gathering Path, will do), or are a target. It may also manifest under other circumstances, such as when meditating. He can suppress it if he wishes, but must choose to do so. Sometimes, when he suppresses it, it manifests after he's done, but some observers and targets may remember it as if it happened during the action. The kirin always appears 'above and behind' him (that is, he is between the observer and the kirin, which towers over him), regardless of the angle(s) of the observer(s).

For critical failures, Walter rolls on the "Oriental" Table (Thaumatology p259); his style is functionally Effect Shaping.

Detect Killing Intent defaults to Per-7 to detect psychically emitted Killing Intent (satsu ki, or 'sakki'), but requires some level of psychic awareness (Active Thoughtform Generation is enough, as are receptive Telepathy Perks like 'I Know What You Mean', 'Synchronize', and particularly 'Tactical Reading'; advantages such as Danger Sense and Empathy also work) to sense killing intent from mundanes, or empowered individuals who do not emit it telepathically (Walter falls in the latter category, if provoked enough to have killing intent at all). This is a passive skill, rolled by the GM.

A purely mundane (and fairly realistic) form of Detect Killing Intent was suggested by Walrus, as an Average technique based on the Body Language skill. That also works in this setting, but has all the usual limitations of Body Language (such as not being useful for detecting ambushes, unless you can see one of the ambushers). I'm calling the technique 'Sense Killing Intent', to distinguish it from the skill. As with Detect Killing Intent, it is a passive technique. Walter had it before the other Earths showed up, and taught it to those who were interested in studying Body Language.

Psychically emitted Killing Intent in this setting, if improved to the point that it can be used as an attack (rather than a Quirk or exotic Disadvantage that can give away your position and/or intentions), is usually some variant of Instill Fear (Psionic Powers pp64-65). This is sometimes accompanied or replaced by an Affliction of some sort, or in rarer cases, Binding (e. g. Gaze of the Serpent, below) or an Innate Attack (occasionally with the Aura or Emanation enhancement, such as a PK-based Crushing attack on the floor, ground, and/or nearby objects (often with a Follow-Up that has the fragments floating in the air), as seen in many anime and manga). The latter effect is often Uncontrollable, and the main power may be, as well.

Walter's unknown enemy (don't read if you plan to play Walter Suzuki):

Spoiler:

Might build up to something like these:

Flying Fist (Crushing Attack [5/lvl]; Double Knockback, +20%; Increased 1/2D, 100 meters, +50%; Jet, +0%; Psychokinetic, -10%; Selectivity, +10%; Variable, +5%) (+75%) [8.75/lvl] (with Low Signature: 9.25/lvl; with No Signature: 9.75/lvl)

Gaze of the Serpent (Binding [2/lvl]; Based on Will, +20%; Engulfing, +60%; No Signature, +20%; Telepathy, -10%; Vision Based, -20%) (+70%) [3.4/lvl]

So, thoughts?

09-08-2017, 05:21 AM	#547
Prince Charon Join Date: Dec 2012	Re: Five Earths, All in a Row Notes If the GM wishes to set the PCs' city in a different terrain, replace Woodlands with that one. Walter has begun working on Geoff's social skills (not that Walter is brilliant in that area), in the hope that Leslie will start chasing a guy in her own age group... who isn't a creep. Walter was already an unusually-skillful character before the Probe from Dsp-Earth/Earth-2 arrived, though he lacked any cinematic abilities or disadvantages, and his rivals were business rivals, who didn't go around challenging people (though at least the ones he knows about do polite, formal challenges, not walking up to people in the street like a chambara film). Somewhere along the way, they've discovered that the spirits reward 'in-genre' behavior (Crunch: You get character points for it, and/or better luck), and are trying to balance that with staying within the law, and (mostly) otherwise not being jerks. Trained By A Master is replaced by Active Thoughtform Generation (or Thoughtform Talent, or a Chi-related Talent) and Path/Book Adept, in this setting. The Aikido variant Walter's school teaches includes Esoteric Medicine (Yin/Yang Healing), which is thus covered by Path/Book Adept, as well as First Aid instruction (which isn't, but doesn't need to be); it adds Pharmacy (Herbal)/TL8 and Karate (Aikijutsu) to Optional Skills, and Feint (Karate) to Optional Techniques. The Aikijutsu variant teaches First Aid, but not Yin/Yang Healing, and adds Karate (Aikijutsu) to required skills, and Feint (Karate) to required techniques. Both styles add Body Language to Optional Skills, and Sense Killing Intent (see below) to Optional Techniques. Since he gained his powers, Walter has begun to have dreams about a group of rather stereotypical Old Martial Arts Masters, who have been teaching him various cinematic skills, starting from the prerequisites thereof. He's gotten his Stealth up to a level that the Master of Invisibility Art considers barely adequate, and is now learning Hypnotism from her. His skill in Pressure Points, on the other hand, is still far below the level at which he could learn Pressure Secrets. He's hoping one of the Old Masters will be Bruce Lee, but it hasn't happened, yet. His Avatar, resembling a Kirin, manifests when he uses a cinematic skill or technique at an important moment, for those who have any esoteric sensitivity (even a Perk, or a point of skill in an information-gathering Path, will do), or are a target. It may also manifest under other circumstances, such as when meditating. He can suppress it if he wishes, but must choose to do so. Sometimes, when he suppresses it, it manifests after he's done, but some observers and targets may remember it as if it happened during the action. The kirin always appears 'above and behind' him (that is, he is between the observer and the kirin, which towers over him), regardless of the angle(s) of the observer(s). For critical failures, Walter rolls on the "Oriental" Table (Thaumatology p259); his style is functionally Effect Shaping. Detect Killing Intent defaults to Per-7 to detect psychically emitted Killing Intent (satsu ki, or 'sakki'), but requires some level of psychic awareness (Active Thoughtform Generation is enough, as are receptive Telepathy Perks like 'I Know What You Mean', 'Synchronize', and particularly 'Tactical Reading'; advantages such as Danger Sense and Empathy also work) to sense killing intent from mundanes, or empowered individuals who do not emit it telepathically (Walter falls in the latter category, if provoked enough to have killing intent at all). This is a passive skill, rolled by the GM. A purely mundane (and fairly realistic) form of Detect Killing Intent was suggested by Walrus, as an Average technique based on the Body Language skill. That also works in this setting, but has all the usual limitations of Body Language (such as not being useful for detecting ambushes, unless you can see one of the ambushers). I'm calling the technique 'Sense Killing Intent', to distinguish it from the skill. As with Detect Killing Intent, it is a passive technique. Walter had it before the other Earths showed up, and taught it to those who were interested in studying Body Language. Psychically emitted Killing Intent in this setting, if improved to the point that it can be used as an attack (rather than a Quirk or exotic Disadvantage that can give away your position and/or intentions), is usually some variant of Instill Fear (Psionic Powers pp64-65). This is sometimes accompanied or replaced by an Affliction of some sort, or in rarer cases, Binding (e. g. Gaze of the Serpent, below) or an Innate Attack (occasionally with the Aura or Emanation enhancement, such as a PK-based Crushing attack on the floor, ground, and/or nearby objects (often with a Follow-Up that has the fragments floating in the air), as seen in many anime and manga). The latter effect is often Uncontrollable, and the main power may be, as well. Walter's unknown enemy (don't read if you plan to play Walter Suzuki): Spoiler: A Kyokushinka (Martial Arts pp171-172) descended from a man killed by one of Walter's ancestors (in, arguably, fair combat), who gained an Obsession when he gained his powers. Very in-genre for a martial artist, very disturbing when you consider the implications. Of course, his enemy was already mentally unstable before the other Earths showed up, which is why the spirits chose him, rather than someone else descended from someone killed by one of Walter's ancestors. Like Walter, he rolls on the "Oriental" Table (Thaumatology p259) for critical failures, but unlike Walter, his style is Energy Accumulating. He doesn't speak English, instead using a relatively cheap translation item, which causes him to appear to speak out of synch, and occasionally makes strange errors. Might build up to something like these: Flying Fist (Crushing Attack [5/lvl]; Double Knockback, +20%; Increased 1/2D, 100 meters, +50%; Jet, +0%; Psychokinetic, -10%; Selectivity, +10%; Variable, +5%) (+75%) [8.75/lvl] (with Low Signature: 9.25/lvl; with No Signature: 9.75/lvl) Gaze of the Serpent (Binding [2/lvl]; Based on Will, +20%; Engulfing, +60%; No Signature, +20%; Telepathy, -10%; Vision Based, -20%) (+70%) [3.4/lvl] So, thoughts? __________________ Warning, I have the Distractible and Imaginative quirks in real life. "The more corrupt a government, the more it legislates." -- Tacitus Five Earths, All in a Row. Updated 12/17/2022: Apocrypha: Bridges out of Time, Part I has been posted.