ＩＴ＇Ｓ ＴＲＡＳＨ

[Hecatoncheires]

 

[Hecatoncheires]

SOLDIER STALKER DOCTOR ROUGHNECK ROGUE INNOCENT

• Key Attribute: Agility
  Specialist Skill: Press On
  
  Talents: Choose one of the options below, you can learn more later (if you survive).
  
  • Trained Killer: You've learned to live with the act of pulling the trigger on another human being. You can perform a coup de grace without rolling for Empathy.
  • Weapon Specialist: You're an expert at using a certain type of weapon. When you use this type of weapon, you get a +2 modification.
  • True Grit: You can roll for Press On immediately when you get broken by damage. This roll does not count as an action. If the roll succeeds, you can immediately perform one bonus action or maneuver. If your action requires a roll, this roll is made with your full attribute score.
  
  Relationships with other PCs: Choose from the options below, or come up with your own.
  
  • ...can hold their own in a fight.
  • ...is only playing at being tough.
  • ...looks like they'd panic and run when the chips are down.
  • ...deserves better than this.
  
  Relationships with NPCs: Use the options below as a starting point, or create your own.
  
  You Want To Protect...
  
  • The Soldier ... who saved your life on a scouting run.
  • The Doctor ... who pulled you back from the brink of death.
  • The Innocent ... who reminds you of someone you lost.
  
  You Distrust...
  
  • The Rogue ... who you think is hoarding supplies.
  • The Soldier ..., a domineering bully with dangerous ideas.
  • The Roughneck ... who's clearly hiding something.
• Key Attribute: Agility
  Specialist Skill: Pathfinder
  
  Talents: Choose one of the options below, you can learn more later (if you survive).
  
  • Watchful: The hairs on the back of your neck stand up when enemies lurk nearby. You get a +2 modification to Scout when trying to spot sneak attacks and ambushes.
  • Hunter: You get a +2 modification when you Scout for animals of any kind.
  • Scavenger: You can use Pathfinder when rolling to scavenge buildings, and gain a +2 modification when doing so.
  
  Relationships with other PCs: Choose from the options below, or come up with your own.
  
  • ...is too goddamn noisy.
  • ...gives you a bad feeling.
  • ...should be kept close.
  • ...actually knows what they're talking about.
  
  Relationships with NPCs: Use the options below as a starting point, or create your own.
  
  You Want To Protect...
  
  • The Roughneck ... who makes useful gear for you.
  • The Innocent ... who has the makings of a good hunter.
  • No-one, if they can't look after themselves they don't deserve to survive.
  
  You Distrust...
  
  • The Stalker ... who insulted your abilities.
  • The Doctor ..., a useless bookworm who acts like they run the colony.
  • The Soldier ..., a loud braggart who wastes ammunition.
• Key Attribute: Empathy
  Specialist Skill: Medicine
  
  Talents: Choose one of the options below, you can learn more later (if you survive).
  
  • Field Surgeon: You have learned the art of stopping bleeding and treating severe injuries. Your roll is modified by +2 when you roll to Heal someone who is broken by damage. The talent has no effect on other types of trauma.
  • Moonshiner: You have mastered the art of distilling potent alcohol from plants and other resources. A few hours of work and a successful roll of Medicine creates D6 doses of alcohol.
  • Therapist: You read others like an open book and you have a natural ability to make them open up to you. Your roll is modified by +2 when you roll to Heal someone who is broken by confusion or doubt – but not by damage.
  
  Relationships with other PCs: Choose from the options below, or come up with your own.
  
  • ...never thanks you for fixing them up.
  • ...helped you care for the patients in the infirmary.
  • ...is always getting themselves into bother.
  • ...isn't worth saving. Perhaps next time they'll have a little accident.
  
  Relationships with NPCs: Use the options below as a starting point, or create your own.
  
  You Want To Protect...
  
  • The Stalker ... who was able to find the medicine you desperately needed.
  • The X ...
  • The X ...
  
  You Distrust...
  
  • The X ...
  • The X ...
  • The X ...
• Key Attribute: Wits
  Specialist Skill: Jury-Rig
  
  Talents: Choose one of the options below, you can learn more later (if you survive).
  
  • Inventor: You get a +2 modification when you use Jury-Rig to create a new device (page 54) – but not when you repair something.
  • Motorhead: You get a +1 modification when you use a vehicle to ram someone (Fight) or to escape from a conflict (Move). You also get a +1 when you Jury-Rig to repair or modify a vehicle.
  • Tinkerer: You get a +2 modification when you Jury-Rig to repair a piece of gear, but not when you build something new.
  
  Relationships with other PCs: Choose from the options below, or come up with your own.
  
  • ...
  • ...
  • ...
  • ...
  
  Relationships with NPCs: Use the options below as a starting point, or create your own.
  
  You Want To Protect...
  
  • The X ...
  • The X ...
  • The X ...
  
  You Distrust...
  
  • The X ...
  • The X ...
  • The X ...
• Key Attribute: Empathy
  Specialist Skill: Measure Up
  
  Talents: Choose one of the options below, you can learn more later (if you survive).
  
  • Blackmail Material: You hold incriminating information on an important NPC. Decide the nature of this information together with the GM. Don't overuse this hold over the NPC: it could come back to haunt you.
  • Vicious Bastard: When you Manipulate someone and give them doubt, they suffers one extra point of it.
  • Self-Preservation: If you are attacked or otherwise end up in fatal danger, and if another PC or friendly NPC is within SHORT range (the same zone), you can make a MANIPULATION roll (straight roll, not opposed, and does not count as an action). If you succeed, you see the threat coming and find a clever way to make the other character suffer the attack or hazard instead of you.
  
  Relationships with other PCs: Choose from the options below, or come up with your own.
  
  • ...
  • ...
  • ...
  • ...
  
  Relationships with NPCs: Use the options below as a starting point, or create your own.
  
  You Want To Protect...
  
  • The X ...
  • The X ...
  • The X ...
  
  You Distrust...
  
  • The X ...
  • The X ...
  • The X ...
• Key Attribute: Empathy
  Specialist Skill: Inspire
  
  Talents: Choose one of the options below, you can learn more later (if you survive).
  
  • Beneath Notice: No matter what horrible situations you end up in, you always seem to make it out unscathed, probably because no one ever pays much attention to you. When you roll for a critical injury on yourself, you get to re-roll the dice and choose the result that you prefer.
  • To Be Protected: If someone attacks you and hits, an ally at Arms Length or Near to you can dive in to take the attack. Your ally rolls to Move. It doesn't count as an action in conflict. If they roll one or more successes they take the hit instead of you. They can push the roll.
  • Spotter: You get a +2 modification when you Inspire someone to Fight or Shoot.
  
  Relationships with other PCs: Choose from the options below, or come up with your own.
  
  • ...
  • ...
  • ...
  • ...
  
  Relationships with NPCs: Use the options below as a starting point, or create your own.
  
  You Want To Protect...
  
  • The X ...
  • The X ...
  • The X ...
  
  You Distrust...
  
  • The X ...
  • The X ...
  • The X ...

 

[Hecatoncheires]

Mechanics Overview​

ROLL THE DICE ROLLING WITHOUT SKILL THE ART OF FAILURE PUSHING YOUR ROLL ONLY ONE CHANCE GROUP ROLLS MODIFICATION OPPOSED ROLLS GEAR

• There are twelve core skills in total in The Dark Comes For Us. Every skill is connected to one of the four attributes: Strength, Agility, Wits, and Empathy.
  
  When you perform an action, you first describe what your player character does or says. Then you grab a number of six-sided dice equal to your skill level plus your current score in the attribute that is connected to that skill. If you have some sort of gear that may be helpful, you will get extra dice from that as well.
  
  Then you roll all the dice at once.
  
  DIFFERENT DICE
  Whether a certain die you have rolled originates from your attribute, your skill, or your gear, may be important. For that reason, you should use dice in three seperate rolls. The dice from attributes are called Base Dice, the dice from skills are called Skill Dice, and the dice from gear are called Gear Dice.
  
  SIXES MEAN SUCCESS
  To succeed with your action, you must roll at least one six. A six is called a *success*. If you roll more than one success you can achieve additional effects in some cases – this is specified by each skill.
  
  ONES WEAR YOU DOWN
  Ones on Base Dice and Gear Dice can be bad for you – they can mean that you suffer damage, exhaustion, fear, or that your weapon has been damaged. Ones have no effect on your first roll, only if you choose to push your roll (see below). A one is called a *bane*. Ones on Skill Dice are never counted as banes.
• If you don't have the skill required for the particular action you want to perform, you can roll anyway – simply roll your Base Dice and any applicable Gear Dice.
• If you roll no success (six) in your skill roll, something goes wrong. For some reason, you failed to achieve your goal. Feel free to elaborate on why with the help of the GM. She might even let a failed roll have further consequences to move the story forward in a dramatic way.
  
  Failure must not stop the story completely. Even when you fail, there must be a way forward – perhaps at the cost of time, risk, or silver, but still a way. The GM has the final say on the consequences of failure in that particular situation.
  
  You have one last chance if you really want to succeed – you can push the roll.
• If you are desperate to succeed with a dice roll, you can choose to push it. This means that you grab all the dice that did not come up as a success (six) or a bane (one on Base Dice and Gear Dice) and roll them again. You get a new chance to roll sixes.
  
  You cannot choose which dice to re-roll. When you push, you must roll all dice that did not come up as a success or a bane.
  
  Usually, you would only push a roll if you failed it – although you can push your roll even if you rolled successes at first, to get more successes to increase the effect of an attack for example. Pushing a roll is not without risk – more on that below.
  
  How a pushed roll plays out in story terms depends on what kind of action you are performing. It doesn't have to be a physical effort, it might be about complete mental focus or an emotional struggle.
  
  • Skill Dice: Ones on Skill Dice do not count as banes and can thus be re-rolled when you push the roll.
  • Gear Dice: If you push your roll, you must also push any Gear Dice.
  • Only Once: You can only push your roll once. If you don't succeed on your second try, you just have to deal with the consequences.
  
  BANES ARE ACTIVATED
  When you push yourself hard, there is a risk that you will suffer injury or exhaustion, or that your weapon will be damaged. After you have pushed your roll, look at all the dice on the table. In the first roll, banes (ones on Base Dice and Gear Dice) had no effect, but when you push they become active. It doesn't matter if the banes came up in the first roll or the second.
  
  • If you rolled one or more bane on a Base Die when you push, you suffer 1 point of damage to the attribute you have used for every bane rolled.
  • If you rolled one or more bane on a Gear Die when you push, your item's Gear Bonus is decreased by 1 per bane rolled.
  • Ones on Skill Dice never count as banes.
• As a rule, you only have one chance to succeed with any action. Once you have rolled the dice – and pushed the roll – you may not roll again to achieve the same goal. You need to try something different or wait until the circumstances have changed in a substantial way. Or let another player character try. This rule does not apply to combat, where you can attack the same enemy multiple times.
• When you face a challenge together with the other PCs, don't roll dice separately. Instead, you choose who among you is best suited to take on this challenge. The others may help (see below) if it's relevant to the situation. If the roll fails, it counts as a failure for all of you – you are not allowed to try one time each. This rule does not apply in combat, where each adventurer is free to attack any enemy they like.
• Sometimes, external factors help you to succeed. This gives you extra Skill Dice to roll. Other times, something hampers your action. This gives you fewer Skill Dice to roll than normal. This is called modification.
  
  Modification +1 means you roll one extra Skill Die, +2 means you roll two extra Skill Dice, and so on. Modification –1 means you roll one Skill Die fewer than normal, –2 means two fewer, and so on. Several modifications can apply to the same roll – add them together. A modification of +2 and one of –1 add up to +1.
  
  If you don't have enough Skill Dice to remove after a modification, remove Gear Dice. If you run out of Gear Dice as well, remove Base Dice. If you end up with no dice at all, you have no chance to succeed at this action – time to rethink your strategy!
  
  You can get modifications in several different ways: through talents, through the difficulty of the action itself, and through the help from others.
  
  DIFFICULTY
  Normally, the GM doesn't assess how difficult an action is. You only roll dice in challenging situations – period. But sometimes, the GM might want to underscore that external factors either help or hinder an action. Use the following table for guidance:
  
  

  DIFFICULTY	MODIFICATION
  Trivial	+3
  Simple	+2
  Easy	+1
  Average	0
  Demanding	-1
  Hard	-2
  Formidable	-3

  
  
  There are also cases when modifications are imposed by the rules, like when you aim carefully with a ranged weapon, shoot at long distance, or if you're in a bad bargaining position when you attempt to Manipulate someone. Some talents can also give you a positive modification in certain situations.
  
  HELP FROM OTHERS
  Other PCs or NPCs can help you succeed at a skill roll. This must be declared right away, before you roll your dice. It must also make sense in the story – the individual helping you must be physically present and have the capacity to support your action. The GM has the final say.
  
  For each person helping you, you get a +1 modification. No more than three people can help you with a single roll, meaning your maximum modification from assistance is +3.
  
  In combat, helping counts as the same type of action as the one you are supporting (fast or slow).
  
  NPCs can help each other in the same way as player characters. Letting NPCs act in groups instead of individually is often an easy way to manage large numbers of NPCs in combat.
• Sometimes rolling a six isn't enough to succeed with your skill roll. In some cases, you have to beat your foe in an opposed roll. To win an opposed roll, you have to roll successfully and roll more sixes than your adversary. Every six your adversary rolls eliminates one of your sixes. Only you (the attacker) can push your roll.
  
  Sometimes you and your adversary roll for different skills, sometimes the same. Opposed rolls are common when you Manipulate or Sneak, and when someone uses those skills against you. The GM can also use opposed rolls when she deems it appropriate, like rolling Force vs Force to determine the outcome of an arm-wrestle.
• To increase your chance of success, you can use gear. Gear can take many different forms depending on the setting of the game, and often includes weapons. Useful gear gives you Gear Dice to use in skill rolls. This is called the Gear Bonus. You roll Gear Dice together with Base Dice and Skill Dice, and they are counted the same way: sixes mean success.
  
  GEAR GETS WORN
  When you use gear and push your roll (see above), there is a risk your gear may be damaged. For every bane (one) you roll with your Gear Dice when pushing the roll, the item's Gear Bonus is decreased by one. It simply doesn't work as well anymore. If the Gear Bonus reaches zero, the item is broken and cannot be used.
  
  REPAIR
  Luckily, damaged gear can be repaired. It takes a Shift of work and a successful Craft skill roll. If the roll is successful, the Gear Bonus is recovered by one point for every success rolled, up to the starting score. If the roll fails, the Gear Bonus is permanently decreased to its current score. If the Gear Bonus has been reduced to zero and the attempt at repair fails, the item is permanently destroyed.

 

[Hecatoncheires]

The Skills​

ENDURE (Strength) FIGHT (Strength) CRAFT (Strength) SNEAK (Agility) MOVE (Agility) SHOOT (Agility) SCOUT (Wits) COMPREHEND (Wits) SURVIVAL (Wits) MANIPULATE (Empathy) SENSE EMOTION (Empathy) HEAL (Empathy)

• When your physical endurance or stamina is tested, roll to Endure. For example, roll for this skill when you travel in extreme weather or when you are forced to suffer bitter cold.
  
  Failure: You just can't take it anymore. You give in to the pain and suffer the consequences.
  
  Success: You manage to push on, ignoring the pain just a little longer.
  
  Stunts: For every extra success you roll, choose one stunt applicable to the situation:
  
  • Give one success to another PC in the same situation as you.
  • Gain a +1 modification to a later skill roll relating to this one.
  • You're hardened by the experience, and don't need to roll to overcome the exact same challenge in the future.
  • You impress someone.
• Sometimes, you have no choice but to fight for your life, eye to eye with the enemy. Roll for this skill when you attack someone in close combat.
  
  Failure: You stumble and miss. Now it's your opponent's turn…
  
  Success: You hit, and inflict damage to Strength equal to the weapon's Damage rating on your opponent.
  
  Stunts: For every extra success you roll, choose one of these stunts:
  
  • You inflict one more point of damage to Strength. You can choose this stunt multiple times, if you roll several bonus successes.
  • You tire your enemy. They suffer one point of damage to Agility. You can choose this stunt multiple times, if you roll several extra successes.
  • You outmaneuver your enemy and can trade Initiative scores with them, taking effect next turn. You can't go back to your earlier initiative.
  • You knock or pull a weapon or other object from your opponent. You choose which. During combat, picking up a dropped object counts as a Fast Action.
  • Your opponent falls to the ground or is pushed back – through a door or over a cliff, for example.
  • You hold the opponent in a Grapple.
  
  Weapons: In close combat you can use Melee Weapons.
  
  Blocking: When someone attacks you in close combat, you can try to block the attack.
• When you need to repair gear or tinker with mechanical items in some other way, roll for the Craft skill. Repairing a broken item generally takes a Shift of work (see Gear above).
  
  Failure: The blasted thing just won't do what you want. And what if the noise you made attracted unwanted company?
  
  Success: With a groan, the item bends to your will. If you're repairing a damaged item, its Gear Bonus is increased by one.
  
  Stunts: For each extra success rolled beyond the first, choose one stunt applicable to the situation:
  
  • If you're repairing an item, its Gear Bonus is increased one additional step. It cannot go above its starting score.
  • Gain a +1 modification to a later skill roll relating to this one.
  • You got this. You don't need to roll to overcome the exact same challenge in the future.
  • You do it quickly, in half the time it would normally take.
  • You do it quietly.
  • You show off.
• Often enough, it's wiser to avoid conflict and instead Sneak by your enemies. Use this skill when you try to move without being noticed or when you attempt a Sneak Attack. Roll an Opposed Roll, using your Sneak score against a Scout roll for your enemy.
  
  Failure: Your enemy sees you or hears you, and the element of surprise is lost.
  
  Success: You move like a shadow in the night, noticed by no one.
  
  Stunts: For each extra success rolled beyond the first, choose one stunt applicable to the situation:
  
  • Give one success to another PC in the same situation as you.
  • Gain a +1 modification to a later skill roll relating to this one.
• When the heat is on and you are trying to dodge the jaws of death, you need to keep a cool head and move quickly and silently. Roll for Move when you want to get out of a hazardous situation — be it a risky climb, a dangerous jump, or an enemy coming at you.
  
  Failure: Despite your best efforts, you fail and must suffer the consequences.
  
  Success: You survive the sticky situation.
  
  Stunts: For every extra success you roll, choose one stunt applicable to the situation:
  
  • Give one success to another PC in the same situation as you.
  • Gain a +1 modification to a later skill roll relating to this one.
  • You impress someone.
• If you have a gun you can take down your enemy from a distance without getting your hands bloody. Use the Shoot skill to fire all types of ranged weapons.
  
  Failure: The shot misses your target. Maybe it hits something else? And the sound of gunfire could attract unwelcome attention…
  
  Success: You hit, and inflict damage to Strength equal to the weapon's Damage rating on your opponent.
  
  Stunts: For every extra success you roll, choose one of these stunts:
  
  • You inflict one additional point of damage to Strength. You can choose this stunt multiple times, if you roll several extra successes.
  • You pin down your enemy. They take one point of damage to Wits. You can choose this stunt multiple times, if you roll several extra successes.
  • You position yourself and get to exchange your initiative score with your enemy, taking effect next turn. You can't go back to your earlier initiative.
  • Your target drops a weapon or other hand-held object. You choose which.
  • Your opponent falls to the ground or is pushed back, for example through a doorway.
  
  Taking Cover: When bullets start flying, it's often a good idea to seek cover behind something sturdy.
• In The Dark Comes For Us, you need to be on your guard at all times, or you won't live long. You use your Scout skill to spot someone sneaking (opposed roll, see Sneak). You can also use the skill when you spot an unknown threat of some kind, to learn more about it.
  
  Failure: You can't really make out what it is, or you mistake it for something else (the GM feeds you false information).
  
  Success: You are able to make out what it is, and whether or not it looks like a threat. The exact information you get is up to the GM.
  
  Stunts: For every extra success you roll, you get to know the answer to one of these questions:
  
  • Is it coming for me?
  • Are there more of them close by?
  • How do I get in/past/away?
• Roll for Comprehend when you want to understand something strange and interesting that you encounter.
  
  Failure: The object of your study makes no sense to you at all, or you are mistaken (in this case, the GM can feed you false information about the object):
  
  Success: You understand the nature or function of the object.
  
  Stunts: For every extra success you roll, choose one stunt applicable to the situation:
  
  • Gain a +1 modification to a later skill roll relating to this one.
  • You impress someone.
• Roll for Survival when you're in a hazardous environment of some kind, be it extreme heat and cold, sandstorms, acid rain, or other forms of extreme weather, and need to figure out a way to stay alive.
  
  Failure: You find no safe haven. Unless someone comes to your rescue, you're on borrowed time.
  
  Success: You find a safe haven to weather the storm.
  
  Stunts: For every extra success you roll, choose one stunt applicable to the situation:
  
  • Give one success to another PC in the same trouble as you.
  • Gain a +1 modification to a later skill roll relating to this one.
  • You impress someone.
• The world of The Dark Comes For Us has many dangers, but you can often reach your goals without violence, through charm, threats, or sensible reasoning. To make another person see things your way, make an opposed roll for Manipulation against your opponent's Sense Emotion. Your chances are affected by your negotiating position.
  
  Failure: Your adversary won't listen and won't do what you want. They might start to dislike you, or even attack you if provoked.
  
  Success: If you succeed, your adversary must either do what you want or immediately attack you physically. Even if your adversary chooses to do what you want, they can still demand something in return. The GM decides what that entails, but it should be reasonable enough for you to be able to meet those demands. It is up to you to accept the agreement or not.
  
  Stunts: For each success you roll in excess of what you need to win the opposed roll, you can choose one of these stunts:
  
  • Your opponent does what you want without demanding a favor in return.
  • Your opponent does more than you ask for, for example giving you some useful piece of information. Details are up to the GM.
  • Your opponent is impressed by you and will try to help you later on in some way. Details are up to the GM.
  
  Being Manipulated: NPCs and other PCs can Manipulate you. If their roll succeeds, you must attack or offer a deal of some kind. Then it is up to the GM (or the other player) whether your adversary accepts or not.
• To be able to read another person like an open book can be a mighty weapon. You roll for Sense Emotion when someone tries to Manipulate you (above). You can also use the skill when you want to know an NPC's mood or intent toward you. You need to be within Short distance.
  
  Failure: You fail to read, or misread, the NPC. The GM can feed you false, or a mix of true and false, information.
  
  Success: The GM must reveal the NPC's most powerful emotion at this point in time – hate, fear, contempt, love, etc.
  
  Stunts: For every extra success you roll, you get the answer to one of these yes/no questions about the NPC:
  
  • Are they telling the truth?
  • Do they want to hurt me?
  • Do they want something from me?
• As a character in The Dark Comes For Us, there is a significant risk that you and your friends will be injured, sooner or later. This is when the Heal skill is useful. It can be used in two different ways:
  
  Recovery: A person who has suffered so much damage to Strength or Agility that the attribute has been reduced to zero is Broken, and cannot act any further. If you apply your Heal skill to them and your roll succeeds, they get back on her feet and immediately recover a number of attribute points equal to the number of successes you roll.
  
  Save a Life: The most important application of Heal skill is giving first aid and saving the life of a fallen comrade who has suffered a critical injury. A failed roll at this point could mean the end for your patient, so be careful.

 

[Hecatoncheires]

I'd like to tell you it's gonna be okay, kid, but it's really not.

Hell, it hasn't been for the last seven years, has it?

Ever since my kind failed. The edgerunners. The mercenaries and radicals. The cyberpunks. We had it good, back in the day. Money and power, danger and exhilaration, you name it. But we couldn't stop what was coming. Hell, most of us didn't even try.

Now there's a new power squatting on the ruins of what was that grand ol' USA. A new authoritarian state, born from the remnants of old-world government agencies and MegaCorporation influence. It is a power dedicated to retaining an iron grip on the nation it has obtained, no matter what it costs, no matter what is destroyed in the process. They call themselves the Incorporated States of America: the ISA. Got themselves a fancy bastard in a suit who calls himself president and everything. All the trappings of pre-Collapse stability.

Just without all that pesky freedom and democracy.

Now they plunder, they slaughter, and they steal: this they call stability. And where they make a wasteland, they call it peace. The Free States are being brought into line, one by one. Night City, the LA Metroplex, you name it: they all fly the ISA flag now. Those edgerunners who haven't sold out and taken corporate jobs are on the run from a world we barely understand anymore.

But you and yours do, I reckon. After all, you grew up in it.

The CyberGeneration, they're calling you. Generation Chrome. The inheritors of a broken, fucked up world. If your parents are lucky enough to hold MegaCorp jobs they stuff you into schools to be raised by corporate nannies, trained to be loyal little drones. Those of you who live outside the CorpZones are even more fucked: out in the badlands that the ISA is still working to pacify you're basically living in the apocalypse already.

But you kids are alright. Probably more so than me and mine ever were. You rejected our bullshit, forged your own path. Formed your gangs, banded together for protection and prestige. Even them CorpZone kids have taken to politics and activism, to vandalism and urban exploration. Warms my bitter old heart, truly.

I think you all just wanna be left alone. To live your lives away from all the shit we caused.

But it's like I said at the start, kid. It isn't gonna be okay.

For two years, the Carbon Plague's been doing the rounds. Devastating whole regions, turning anyone over the age of 21 into half-dissolved mounds of flesh and hexite. But if you're younger than that? Well, that's when shit gets real weird. Some of you come out the other end of the plague's rampage. Only you're different. Changed. Mere children, granted the ability to speak to machines and reform your limbs. To heal others, to move faster than any person ought to.

Hate to be the bearer of bad news, kid, but I know you got it. And if I can find that out? It means they can, too.

They're coming for you now, one way or another. President's already declared a national emergency, declared that all survivors of the Carbon Plague are carriers who need to be detained for the safety of the public. Every government agency and MegaCorp wetwork squad is out to black-bag you, to rush you off to some lab where they'll take you apart, piece by piece, to figure out what makes you tick.

Maybe you can run. Or hide. Or maybe you'll sink so low as to work with the people who wanna dissect you, helping to capture kids in the same predicament as you. Turkeys for Christmas, and all that shit. But there's another alternative, if you're feeling bold. Us old cyberpunks? We're down but not out. There's some of us still out there, in the quiet little corners the ISA hasn't claimed yet. And when we found out what they were doing to survivors like you, we decided it was time to get the band back together.

There's no place in this fucked up world you've inherited any more. Maybe there never was. You can either run from that fact, or you can do something about it. Take a stand, take the fight to the people who want to take you apart.

Gotta make a choice, kid.

Evolve or die.

 

[Hecatoncheires]

Parahuman
noun
A person who has undergone a Trigger Event and developed superpowers. Known colloquially as "capes".

Trigger Event
terminology
Also known as a crisis point or simply a trigger. A moment of extreme trauma that grants parahuman abilities to ordinary human beings.

Nothing in this life comes for free. And power costs more than anything.

This is a lesson that you have learned more brutally than most. It took the most traumatic moment of your life. The moment when you were pushed to the very edges of your limits... and then beyond them. In that moment, something snapped in you. Something triggered.

You emerged from this experience altered. Different. Possessing strange new powers you had no choice in being granted. You emerged parahuman, one of a growing population of ordinary human beings who have developed extraordinary abilities. A growing population that has emerged over the last three decades to permanently alter the landscape of your world.

Nothing in this life comes for free. And from this moment on, your life will never be the same. Your powers single you out, mark you as one of a rare breed. How you make use of them will mark you as hero or villain, regardless of the good intentions you may have. Powerful groups will seek to influence you, to bring you into their fold or destroy you depending on the choices you make. Even refusing to get involved is a conscious choice, one that carries repercussions. All too often, you may find yourself doing the wrong things for the right reasons.

Nothing in this life comes for free.

So just what sort of price are you willing to pay to stay in the game?

Games Master: @sticky
General Admin Monkey: @Childish Grumpino

'Weaverdice: Detroit' is an RP based in the world of the Parahumans web serials, written by John McCrae (aka Wildbow). Set in a world not unlike our own where humans with extraordinary powers have emerged to alter the landscape of society over the last few decades, 'Parahumans' takes a more grounded and cynical look at the superhero genre. It is a world in which the heroes can just as easily be more unsavoury than the villains, where the consequences of superpowers and their effects upon society are heavily explored, and where the difference between life and death can come down to how creatively you can make use of unnatural abilities you had no choice in being given.

This is the world of Earth Bet. A world pretty much identical to our own… right up until 1982, when a mysterious golden-skinned man was discovered floating over the Atlantic. In the wake of his appearance, individuals with strange powers began to appear across the globe. The first superheroes emerged, and inevitably the first supervillains. The world has never been the same since: be it through the inventions of superpowered inventors, the geopolitical shifts, or the emergence of apocalyptic threats that seem tied to the arrival of parahumans, Earth Bet now stands ever closer to the brink.

Unlike a number of Superhero RPs, where players decide on all aspects of their characters, 'Weaverdice: Detroit' works a little differently. Though players will decide on who their character is and what they're about, the process of deciding on their powers is a collaborative process between player and GM. The player describes the Trigger Event their character undergoes, and the GM describes the powers that come as a result of it. This is a game where characters don't get to choose the powers inflicted upon them: all they can do is make the best of it.

If you're familiar with Worm, Ward and the Parahumans setting as a whole, great. If not, don't worry: this is a self-contained story that people new to the world will have no problems jumping in to.

 

[Hecatoncheires]

Power Classifications and the accompanying number ratings are used by the Parahuman Response Team (PRT) to quickly identify parahuman threats and strategise accordingly, although the system is used in non-American countries as well, including capes in India. Each classification is matched with a number indicating severity, where higher numbers mean a greater threat to public safety.

In theory, power classifications are only intended to rate the threat posed by the power itself, and not the user's own skill or any other factors. Power classifications are also not intended to rate the "power level", usefulness, or raw strength of an ability, only measuring the threat the power poses to PRT personnel and civilians. However, in practice they are often used poorly, or simply to cut through "red tape" and justify treating a parahuman a certain way.

MOVER SHAKER BRUTE BREAKER MASTER TINKER BLASTER THINKER STRIKER CHANGER TRUMP STRANGER

• 
  Movers have the ability to transport themselves or others to other locations, using a variety of different methods to accomplish this.
  
  Mover is a common secondary rating, often in the form of flight: It's in fact so common that flying Brutes and flying Blasters have unique names to distinguish them: Alexandria-packages (named for the legendary member of the Triumverate) and flying artillery respectively.
  
  Takeoff, Transit and Terminus Movers have offensive potential through a Blaster or Shaker effect attached to their Mover power, while Slip and Hurdle Movers access their Mover powers through other enhancements. Tinkers, of course, express their Mover potential through their ability to create vehicles, or devices that replicate Mover effects, such as jet-packs or even hoverboards.
• 
  Shakers use their abilities to control the battlefield. They use several methods to accomplish this, including, but not limited to:
  
  • The creation and manipulation of forcefields in a variety of shapes and sizes.
  • Blasts with an area of effect, combining Shaker powers with a Blaster rating, similar to the old Nuker classification.
  • The manipulation of terrain, hampering the mobility of enemy forces.
  • The use of auras, either aiding allies or debilitating enemies.
  • The use of different forms of telekinesis.
  • The creation of environmental hazards, such as gasses and explosions.
• 
  A Brute classification typically indicates enhanced strength or durability, often both. There are no known Brutes without at least some form of self-protection or enhanced durability. Brute powers might manifest themselves in variety of ways. Most Brutes are either some combination of big, strong, and tough or possess some other method of self-protection.
  
  Muscle and Armor Brutes often fall close the Changer rating, have powers that morph their form and appearance. Flight is also a common secondary power for Brutes, to the point flying Brutes are known as Alexandria-packages.
  
  A rare subset of Transfiguration brutes is the Resurrection brute. Who are, as the name implies, able to come back from the dead when they die. however they usually lose something in the process.
• 
  Breakers have the ability to alter themselves to a different state in which they maintain different abilities, although Breakers with permanently altered states also exist.
  
  Nearly all powers have some small element of Breaker to them: the innate defences of parahumans that keep their own powers from harming them are generally Breaker powers. This does lead to some confusion however.
  
  Powers that earn a true Breaker rating are those that cause the user to alter their physical (and sometimes mental) state to something alien and power-generated. This altered state can have a singular benefit that breaks the defined laws of reality (as any power does, but centred around the parahuman's capabilities) or a state that contains a suite of powers.
  
  The altered state may have costs when adopting it, costs to maintain it, or costs and complications in other forms.
• 
  Masters are parahumans that are either able to manipulate others or to create minions to do their bidding. They can do this through a variety of ways, including, but not limited to:
  
  • The ability to create and control minions, with a large amount of variations in size, control, amount, and exact method:
    • The ability to control and sometimes enhance existing creatures, such as bugs, rats, or dogs.
    • The power to animate normally inanimate objects.
    • The creation of duplicates of oneself.
    • The power to create projections.
  • The ability to control other people actively or passively, either directly or by manipulating emotions or attitudes.
  
  Masters don't often have secondary powers, instead expressing them through their minions instead.
  
  One exception is the Master-Stranger combination: Master powers based around controlling or influencing others are often extremely useful for infiltration, while a more niche Master-Stranger can use self-duplicates as a distraction.
  
  Tinkers able to build drones or breed creatures, often fall under the Master classification.
• 
  Tinkers are distinct from other parahumans in that their powers don't work through them so much as they enable them to fabricate things: They can create devices or alter existing devices well beyond usual restrictions of education, knowledge, resources, or physics. Most Tinkers have a specialty, an area of technology in which they operate either exclusively or better than others. Some draw on real world technical knowledge while others rely more on instinct.
  
  Tinkers are among the most flexible parahumans, as a typical Tinker can artificially assume any number of other classifications depending on speciality, in addition to drawing inspiration from the powers of other parahumans or the work of other Tinkers.
• 
  Blasters are parahumans that have ranged offensive options. The majority of these powers are damaging, but this is not always the case.
  
  Blasters use their powers to attack their enemies from range, generally using deleterious blasts with a large variety of effects: Blasters involve one or more types, which determine the amount, range, accuracy and power, among other factors (essentially the 'gun' that the Blaster fires); and an 'element', which determines the type of damage and any special effects of the shots.
  
  Blasters commonly venture into the Shaker classification: Ruin Blasters through their ability to manipulate the environment, and Impact Blasters through the large radius of their blasts. Enchantment Blasters, on the other hand, cross over into the Striker classification.
  
  Flight is a common secondary power for Blasters: Blaster-Mover combinations with flight are so common they have their own name, often being called 'flying artillery'.
• 
  Thinkers have powers related to knowledge, skills and enhanced perception. Thinker powers do not necessarily make an individual smarter, although increased intelligence is considered a Thinker power.
  
  Thinkers might use their abilities to gather or receive information, such as various types of clairvoyants including post-cogs, pre-cogs, peri-cogs and more. Alternatively, they are able to process the world around them in a specific way.
  
  Thinker is an extremely common secondary classification, often in support of other powers, as such, Thinker is not truly tied to any other classification.
• 
  Strikers are parahumans that have powers that are touch-based or melee ranged. This includes a large amount of different abilities, including, but not limited to:
  
  • The ability to empower weapons or other objects, granting them unique qualities.
  • The power to impart some sort of changed state on a target through touch.
  • The power to create weapons.
  • Abilities that enhance melee strikes with a variety of effects.
  • Particularly short ranged forms of telekinesis, including pyrokinesis.
  
  It should be noted that enhanced strength is generally not a Striker power, but part of the Brute classification.
• 
  Changers can alter their form, appearance, or natural abilities through some form of manipulation of their own bodies. They exploit this in a various ways, including, but not limited to:
  
  • The power to grow extra weapons or armour.
  • The ability to streamline one's body, allowing for improved movement and evasion, often used for infiltration.
  • The ability to alter ones appearance or to alter one's human features, as found in the old Shifter classification.
  • The use of self-targeted biokinesis, possibly to heal oneself.
  
  The Changer rating does not include new powers beyond natural weapons, armour, or durability.
• 
  Trumps have powers that can manipulate powers in some capacity; altering, granting, strengthening, weakening or removing them entirely. It also includes parahumans that can adapt new powers. Some Trumps have powers that solely interact with the powers of others. Trump powers are very rare: only about three to five percent of parahumans have a Trump rating.
  
  A notable characteristic of Trump ratings is that they will always be connected to one of the other eleven classifications, albeit the exact relation can vary. Some powers can have a small Trump note, while others have the Trump aspect as the most noticeable, where the other rating is only a method of expression or even just a complimentary factor.
• 
  Stranger abilities might allow the user (and sometimes their allies) to bypass defences, mislead opponents, or to avoid notice. Some effects may not be patently obvious and can potentially be used in civilian guise. They can work through a variety of ways, including but not limited to:
  
  • Obscuring or altering the senses of others, including blinding, gas clouds, and holograms.
  • Affecting the target's mind to distract or debilitate, using things like hallucinations and perception filters.
  • Allowing the user to disable, deny or repossess enemy equipment (and objects in general).
  • Granting invisibility, stealth or different forms of camouflage.
  • Imitating others in appearance, voice and mannerisms.
  • Enabling or benefiting surprise attacks.
  • Granting or enhancing skills and abilities while unobserved.

 

[Hecatoncheires]

Introduction Timeline

• The following is a breakdown of global events on Earth Bet, from the moment it's timeline diverged with our own in 1982. Events have been seperated by year, and arranged in as close to a chronological order as possible.
• • May, 1982. An ocean liner travelling across the Atlantic Ocean discovers a mysterious golden man, floating above the water. In the wake of his discovery, rumours begin to abound that humans with mysterious and unnatural powers are being discovered across the globe.
  • 1983 to 1986. Rumours of vigilantes possessing superpowers continue to spread.
  • 1987. Five years after the golden man (now known as Scion) was first discovered, superheroes reveal themselves to the public in an official capacity. The Golden Age of Heroes is in full force.
  • 1989. Vikare, one of the first superheroes to reveal themselves in North America, is murdered whilst attempting to quell a riot in Michigan. The public are given a brutal lesson in the fact that parahumans, for all their strengths, are not invincible. The Golden Age of Heroes ends.
  • December, 1992. In the Marun Oil Fields of Iran, what is initially believed to be an earthquake turns into an outright catastrophe when a towering, monstrous entity capable of dynakinesis (the manipulation of all forms of energy, from radiation to electricity) emerges in the quake's aftermath. The destruction left in the entity's wake is unprecedented and only the presence of the Triumverate, a superpowered team comprised of some of the most powerful heroes alive, is enough to finally drive it off.
  • January, 1993. The entity is named "Behemoth". In response to this new and unprecedented threat, the United States forms the Parahuman Response Team and a formalised parahuman organisation known as the Protectorate.
  • 1993 to 1995. Behemoth re-emerges to launch a series of attacks on cities across the globe, culminating in the destruction of Moscow in June 1995. It takes the sacrifices of many parahumans and the arrival of Scion, whose power seems to trump even that of Behemoth, to stop the entity's assaults.
  • 1995. In San Francisco a group of rogues (parahumans who are unaligned with heroes or villains) form the organisation 'Uppermost', involving themselves in entertainment and production. Their success is meteoric. It creates enemies.
  • Early 1996. The Baumann Parahuman Containment Centre, a prison specially designed to house dangerous and violent parahumans, comes into operation in a remote part of Canada. It will later be nicknamed "the Birdcage".
  • June, 1996. A new threat sweeps in from the ocean just outside Oslo, Norway. In the wake of its first attack it is described as a scaled, reptile-like entity nearly thirty feet tall with clawed limbs and a massive prehensile tail, possessing devastating hydrokinetic powers. The entity is named "Leviathan".
  • November, 1996. Behemoth re-emerges to attack Cologne, Germany. The world's parahumans must now grapple with two such entities operating simultaneously. They receive the collective term of 'Endbringers'.
  • April, 1997. Leviathan attacks Busan, South Korea.
  • July, 1997. The lease of Hong Kong from China comes to an end.
  • September, 1997. Behemoth attacks Buenos Aires, Argentina.
  • January, 1998. An attack by Leviathan on Sydney, Australia leaves the city uninhabitable.
  • March, 1998. The NEPEA-5 bill, which seeks to curtail parahuman involvement in business and media, gathers considerable support in the USA. Uppermost petitions the Parahuman Response Team for help in curtailing the bill, but the request is denied by the PRT head office. Later in the year the bill passes and Uppermost is forced to disband. Many former members join the Protectorate and their Wards (a training group for up-and-coming heroes). Others, however, choose to pursue a less legal path.
  • July, 1998. Behemoth attacks Jinzhou, China.
  • December, 1998. Leviathan attacks Madrid, Spain.
  • July, 1999. Behemoth attacks Ankara, Turkey.
  • November, 1999. Leviathan launches an attack on Kyushu, the third largest island in Japan. Over the course of a few days the island is largely submerged by the Endbringer's attack, devastating the rest of the nation. Japan will still not have recovered over a decade later.
  • January, 2000. Former members of Uppermost who rejected the PRT have formed an organisation known as the Elite, which has spread to numerous cities and forced the various organised crime groups in operation there into submission. They will quickly grow into the largest villain organisation operating in the United States, with their influence spreading all across the West Coast.
  • February, 2000. The Brockton Bay Brigade, a superhero team, successfully brings down the crime lord known as Marquis. In the wake of their success the Brigade publicly unmask themselves and begin to advocate for capes to live openly: they rename themselves New Wave.
  • April, 2000. Behemoth attacks Lyon, France.
  • January, 2001. A parahuman triggers in the small town of Ellisburg, USA, and rapidly consumes it. Of the 5,000 people residing in the town, there are no reported survivors. Several PRT response teams sent in to take out the parahuman responsible are wiped out, almost to a man: the survivors describe the town now filled with strange, inhuman creations. The one responsible is given the name Nilbog.
  • February, 2001. The PRT sets up a quarentine zone around the town of Ellisburg. Nilbog seems content to reside within his conquered territory.
  • February, 2001. Behemoth attacks Vanderhoof, Canada.
  • July, 2001. Leviathan attacks Hyderabad, India.
  • December, 2001. Behemoth attacks Lagos, Nigeria.
  • February, 2002. The PRT expands to incorporate Canada as part of its remit.
  • April, 2002. Leviathan attacks Shanghai, China.
  • August, 2002. Behemoth attacks Bogotá, Colombia.
  • December 27th, 2002. Over the city of Lausanne, Switzerland, a fifteen-foot woman, waif-thin and unclothed with asymmetric wings covering his body, suddenly appears in the sky. She hangs in the sky, inactive, for three days as authorities attempt to make sense of the situation.
  • December 30th, 2002. The winged entity above Lausanne suddenly lets out some form of psychic "scream", driving the residents of the city into deranged violence and insanity. Much of the violence is immediate and obvious, but not all victims of the entity are clearly antagonistic until much later: many people evacuated from the city will later commit acts of mass violence and domestic terrorism. The entity is declared to be an Endbringer, and given the name "the Simurgh".
  • Early 2003. The victims of the Simurgh's attack are declared to be incurable. Those remaining within the city of Lausanne are wiped out, and efforts to trace escapees before they can cause further damage begin.
  • March, 2003. The parahuman warlord known as Moord Nag seizes control of vast swathes of Namibia, Africa.
  • April, 2003. Leviathan attacks Seattle, USA.
  • August, 2003. The Simurgh reappears to attack London, UK.
  • October, 2003. Behemoth attacks Lyon, France for a second time. It is speculated that this is due to the number of nuclear facilities in its vicinity.
  • Early 2004. A group of murderous supervillains known as the Slaughterhouse Nine are growing in the public consciousness due to their attacks across North America, which leave hundreds dead.
  • May, 2005. Newfoundland is sunk and destroyed by Leviathan, leaving half a million dead.
  • Early 2006. The supervillain Lab Rat, notorious for his use of human experimentation to perfect his tinker serums, is captured and incarcerated in the Birdcage.
  • Early 2007. A power vacuum amongst villain groups operating in Boston creates an opportunity for many criminals and villains in the region, who flock to the city in a bid for control. The PRT and numerous hero groups work to try and contain the escalating violence and chaos: many villain organisations are eventually driven off, though some were still able to establish a foothold in the city.
  • Mid 2007. Fleur, a hero and member of New Wave, is murdered in her civilian identity by a white nationalist in the city of Brockton Bay. Several prominent members of the group retire, and the unmasking movement rapidly fizzles out.
  • Late 2007. The supervillain known as Jamestowner attacks a convoy carrying nuclear materials to a Pennsylvania nuclear facility.
  • April, 2008. The Simurgh launches another attack, this time on Detroit, USA. After her initial scream survivors report a sudden detonation that seals an entire section of the city and Windsor within a dome of seemingly unbreakable crystal. The fate of those within the dome is unknown, though flyovers report that there might be moving shapes inside. It is hoped that the Simurgh has perished in the explosion.
  • September, 2008. Jamestowner attacks another nuclear facility in the midwest USA, but is killed by a PRT response team.
  • April, 2009. The criminal tinker known as Blasto becomes crime lord of East Alston in Boston.
  • December, 2009. Defying optimistic reports that she might have perished in Detroit the year prior, the Simurgh launches an attack on Madison, USA. After her initial scream she appears to release strange parahuman that run amok through the rioting population. The PRT sets up a quarantine zone around the city after the Simurgh is finally driven off, opening fire on any survivors attempting to escape.
  • 2010. Current year in-game.

 

[Hecatoncheires]

For a brief, beautiful moment it looked as though the late 2000s might have been Detroit's moment.

Though the rise of automation and the increasing globalisation of markets were beginning to pinch at the Motor City's traditional industries of manufacturing and car-making, Leviathan's destruction of Newfoundland in 2005 changed everything. Faced with the continued threat of the waterborne Endbringer assaulting other coastal regions, industries began focusing their investments and shipping routes through more inland, protected regions. For five years Detroit saw considerable economic growth as wealth, jobs and opportunities flowed in from across the world.

Of course, it was not to last.

In April 2008, the Endbringer known as the Simurgh launched an attack on the city. It was to be her shortest one to date. After only thirty seconds of her screams being heard, an explosion erupted through the streets of Detroit near where she had emerged. What happened in it's immediate wake remains largely unknown, due to the damage it caused and the lack of survivors. But when the detonation receded, the Simurgh was gone and an entire section of Detroit and Windsor was sealed within a bizarre dome of crystal. It is believed that due to the short duration of the Endbringer's attack, she was unable to drive any potential victims insane. But that is one of the few silver linings on an otherwise devastating blow to the city.

The crystal dome that emerged in the explosion's aftermath has proven to be impregnable, even to the powers of capes and the latest tinker technology. The fate of those inside the wall is similarly unknown, despite flyovers from helicopters showing moving shapes inside, the faceted crystal distorting any attempts to look within. It is unknown just how many thousands were trapped within the crystal on the day of the attack, but some of the damage is far more quantifiable.

Of all the groups active in Detroit, the Parahuman Response Team suffered the most. Their offices were literally split in two by the emergence of the dome, and with it a sizeable proportion of their equipment, infrastructure and manpower: even more was lost trying to manage the chaos that followed in the wake of the attack. The criminal elements of the city, powered or otherwise, smelled weakness and seized the opportunity. Whole sections of the Motor City are now under the sway of parahuman gangs and organised crime groups, with the PRT being forced to call up young heroes from the Wards or else bring in capes from outside the region for much-needed support.

Detroit now balances on a knife's edge. Parahuman crime groups control a sizeable portion of the city, and more villains arrive every week having heard of the opportunities it holds for them. State, Federal, and PRT forces save their mettle for the most egregious offences, waiting for attrition and in-fighting to claim the various personalities that plague the broken Motor City.

2010 sees it still reeling from the global financial crash and the abortive Simurgh attack, and where the government does not hold sway, capes are there to own the day. As the cold war between different factions, groups and law enforcement agencies threatens to turn hot, another group is beginning to make its presence known. Whilst their legend is not quite so prolific, their resources not quite so potent, and their allies not quite so widespread, they do have one thing that the others do not. They have a tip-off from a corrupt middle manager within the PRT, himself a rogue cape. A tinker-designed drill has been brought in for some exploratory drilling into the crystal dome, and is being transported by armoured convoy to the new PRT headquarters. They want to open up a hole in their old offices, to see what is left. This lesser known team, however, has been given a bigger target by their benefactor. Through his analysis of deep-penetration scans of the dome, and his access to PRT intelligence reports, he's discovered a cluster of buildings within one of the outer sections of the intricate honeycomb structure inside.

A cluster of banks.

If this new band of capes can make good on this intel, stealing into a region of Detroit that has not been seen by the outside world for years, they might just walk away with enough of a payday to put themselves on the map.

And they might well make some enemies, too.

Michigan Ironworker's Liberation Front The Militia Movement The Erie Cabal Apex

• The slow decline of Motor City over the years put the squeeze on the trade unions and workers of Detroit, and factory closures, a rapidly declining population, and an exodus of capital did not help things. In the late 90s, as more capes hit the streets to make names for themselves, it was only natural that someone would rally the dispossessed, the downtrodden, the damned to their banner. The Michigan Ironworker's Liberation Front, a Stalinist organization that saw glasnost and perestroika as critical weakness and the collapse of the USSR as avoidable and counter-revolutionary absorbed many failing unions under the leadership of Stahl. A union man all his life, Karl Remer was hospitalized in 1986 in a terrible accident that cost him his arm. What it gained him, however, was a strange ability to strengthen those who stood with his cause. The MILF boasts a large non-cape contingent because of this, and their schemes to extort what businessowners remain in the city are greatly aided by his ability to make anybody a cape for a day.
• Few people benefited from Detroit's steady decline. The militia movements, however, found the recruiting easier with the economic fallout from the steady bleeding of the city, the demographic change, and the subsequent change in power dynamics as non-white capes became the leading figures both in the PRT and in the less legal sphere. The Oath Keepers, the 3%ers, and other militia groups ticked along slowly, buoyed by their own capes tied to the area, until The Westerner came along in 2007. Kim Garcia, a veteran of the Second Gulf War and the ensuing insurgency, became a controversial figure on social media for her views on God, capes, guns and country after she was dishonorably discharged from the military. Her trigger event managed to get more than a few American soldiers killed - but, as the event was covered up, the American far-right are more than willing to call her "our Miss Militia". While she is a leader amongst their numbers, she is not the only one jostling for power over America's armed and dangerous, and capes such as Racket, Slider and Castle hold significant sway over territories and movements.
• Far less political than many of the factions within Detroit, the Erie Cabal position themselves as a mystic group. Their attitude towards parahuman abilities are definitely unorthodox, but holds a certain popularity amongst the remaining wealthy of the city. Their true abilities are masked behind the constant layer of bullshit they spout, but the five core members of the cabal do not seem to be the traditional blaster kind of cape.
• Apex are a parahuman group who generally focus on high-end crime, like art theft and money laundering. Their numbers tend to shift as they are a loose coalition, but there is a total of seven members with a varied skillset, from tinkers to blasters to breakers.

 

[Hecatoncheires]

A brief guide brought to you by our GM, Sticky.

Part 1
For the first part of character creation, all we will need is a character outline of their life up to and including the point where they experienced their Trigger Event – when they became a parahuman. Focus on the different aspects of their trigger, from the emotional, intellectual, and physical ramifications: why was it so bad, why did it affect your character so much? Bear in mind these triggers can be nearly anything – being beaten and mugged, losing millions on the stock market, being lost in a plane crash.

But, I swear to god, if one of you edgelord chucklefucks decides to create "A Portrait of Rape: My experiences being cock-slammed by a very handsome fellow who is definitely not an author avatar" you are out on your ear. Spots are limited, I don't want to juggle too many people as the GM, and I'd prefer this to be a thoughtful consideration of emotional trauma, not "lmao, I said the N-word, aren't I cool?"

Part 2
If I like your concept, I'll assign you a power and Grumpy will draw 4 tarot cards for you. These tarot cards will introduce modifiers to your life, and to your power – both negative and positive. You should also make a copy of the character sheet from the Google Drive link.

From there you can fill it out! You can fiddle with your stats on a 1 for 1 basis (for example, removing one point of Wits to add it to Guts instead) but you do need a reason to drop it to either 1 or 5. Maybe you're disabled somehow, or a reigning marathon champion. Your wounds are based on your Guts score. Again, 1 for 1.

After this, you may put 2 times your Wits score into Skills, which can be viewed at this link.

Make sure to add the bonuses your skills provide to your character sheet as a helpful reminder to both the GM, and you. Mainly the GM. He's an idiot.

Part 3
Once all this terrible ordeal is over, you can fill out the rest of the sheet, including your history between your Trigger, and the present day, 2010. Then, perhaps, we can play some roles.