OK, here's the scoop that may help. Sorry if this is TMI.
Characters were built on 350 points but with Attribute caps at 14 and Skill caps at 16...for the most part (our former "miss-spent youth" character started with a REALLY high climb with just 1 point, lol).
Books used: Basic (obviously), Martial Arts, Tactical Shooting, Social Engineering (all 3, though definitely Pulling Rank), Boardroom and Curia, Horror, Mysteries, High-Tech, Bio-Tech, Psionic Powers, Low-Tech...kinda (hasn't really come up yet in play but one character is a SCAdian/Ren-Fairer)
Basic options being used for the game world are:
* Benchmarks for Skills and Attributes come mostly from Kromm's post
HERE
* Know Your Own Strength (Pyramid 3/83)
* The short term Fatigue rules from The Last Gasp (Pyramid 3/44)
* A Full Complement (Pyramid 3/65)
* Speaking in Tongues (Pyramid 3/54)
* Appendix Z: Survivable Guns (Pyramid 3/44)
* The Fifth Attribute (Pyramid 3/120)
* Modified Combat Reflexes to not Include the Defense bonus
* Modified Trained by a Master to not include the option for Cinematic Skills
* No outright Cinematic Advantage, Skill or Technique. Only available with Unusual Background and only if it can be explained away without breaking the illusion of reality in the world. POSSIBLE to buy when the characters are fully immersed in the supernatural, but not guaranteed available
* Psionic Powers only with Unusual Background and none to start with that can't be explained as odd but plausible (Sense Psi with vague, etc)
* Magic is mostly book/ritual. Ritual Path Magic I think (haven't read myself)? Anybody can accidentally/deliberately cast a spell from the correct type of tome.
* Magic/Psychics/Supernatural is real but very hidden and controlled.
* Conspiracies do exist (just had a run in with Trinity from Tomb Raider reboot) and there is an overarching meta that I am not privy to.
* Currently the characters are part of the FBI and relegated to "the Basement" aka X-Files. One character has a degree in Occult studies and basically gets all the cases regular agents "can't be bothered with", cases with obvious occult/weirdo leanings and/or cold cases.
* Characters all actually come from bloodlines with ties to the supernatural world, but for various individual reasons have no true knowledge of such...yet.
* Session 0 set the fact that the characters will be immersed in the overarching meta eventually and may/may not stay with a government agency.
* Game is set in early 2000's (Dec '02 currently)
* All 3 characters have some level of Independent Income (2 are Wealthy, 1 Comfortable...which has the best story behind it, IMHO) and no REAL need for a job, but....story driven reasons behind doing so.
There are probably quite a few things I missed but I believe that pretty much sums up the game.
Oh...BTW, am a player in said game world. lol