Pak Protecters in GURPS

[Dalillama]

Originally Posted by Kelly Pedersen

The stats are really going to depend on where, exactly, you draw the Protectors from Niven's continuity. They got steadily more impressive over time. There's quite a gap between Jack Brennan, who's smarter than most humans, but capable of error (for example, failing to think of the Pak colonizing fleet), and Louis Wu, literally incapable of comprehending his own thought processes once he gets "reset" back to baseline humans

I prefer the earlier versions of the Protectors, where they're not invincible, impossible-to-outthink demigods, so my comments will be geared along those lines.

I'm mostly thinking of Brennan and Pthssspok as my models here.

I think IQ+10 is much too high, for a couple of reasons. First, it doesn't leave any room for variation - practically all human-derived Protectors will be identical intelligence levels, sitting at 20. I feel there should be some room for differences in Protector intelligence, whether from starting from an inherently higher-intelligence baseline, or long experience. Second, high IQ on its own doesn't really do much of what the Protectors manage to do - I think you need other advantages for that, which I'll cover below.

There is room for variance. Protectors made from Pak/Homo Habilis (and probably Morlocks) are pretty stable at 16, Protectors made from humans range from 20-25 (I figure in GURPS terms Louis Wu probably had a higher starting IQ than Jack Brennan)

I'd make the human-baseline Protector IQ boost be something like +5 or +6 - enough to make even an average human into a genius, but leaving room for improvement above it. For a baseline barely sapient breeder, like a Pak, I'd peg the IQ boost at more like +8. That's enough to turn an IQ 6 breeder into something comfortably smarter than a human, but not as intelligent as, say, Brennan post-transformation.

The template is meant to be universal across hominids; a Neanderthal gets the same ST boost as a Homo Sapiens, leaving a higher final ST (Also in Known Space Neanderthals are telepathic, and a Protector version would either be utterly terrifying or notably more chill than average).
ETA: And the IQ boost needs to take a subject from 'clever chimp' to 'supergenius'

If you've got it, I'd also strongly recommend the Foresight advantage, from the article "Fortunately, I Saw This Coming" in Pyramid #3/53. It's a generalization of the Gizmo rules, allowing the character to retroactively declare they did something, brought some piece of gear, or otherwise were prepared, and it's one of the best traits I know to describe a cinematically intelligent character, which Protectors definitely qualify for.

Unfortunately not

Originally Posted by Agemegos

Should there be a bunch of taboo traits such as "Lecherous", reflecting protectors' fundamental change of motivations?

Sexless should cover that pretty well.