Holding her palm up, a gap in the environment expands to the size of a subway tunnel, warping the space around it, and train tracks lay themselves down in front of the tunnel. Shortly after, the Dead Line comes barreling through.
(The train pamphlet always remains when the Dead Line is expanded, merely acting as the focus for it's summoning.)
The gaps that the tunnel to the Dead Line can be things such as the mortar between bricks, the ridges between bark, or vacant alleyways. The Dead Line runs through all things.
This Artifact can be used as a subway train. It is roughly the same size as a subway train but can be collapsed into a train pamphlet and concealed. Collapsing or expanding it costs a Quick Action.
This subway train has tracks which lay themselves down in front of itself (never taking more than a 12 degree curve) and dissapear shortly after, standard subway cars, reinforced doors, an engine room with a pilot's seat, a car with a large table and a locker wall, a cowcatcher on the front, the classic fixings of a subway car including an intercom system, standard electrical outlets, and a nice hat hook for a conductor's cap. Any roll to pilot this vehicle receives +2 dice.
You also gain the following effects:
Anyone who touches this Artifact will notice it warping their mind and may drop it. If they choose to hold or use it, they immediately receive the following Trauma: Codependence. If the pamphlet is removed from your posession or destroyed beyond repair, you must roll self-control to take any action whatsoever as you become sluggish and unresponsive. If they lose possession of this Artifact, the Trauma heals over the course of the next day.
Charlie feeds a ticket into a slot in the front compartment of the Dead-Line, and the spectral train pulses with a resonant pressure felt by the souls of those around it. The environment begins to warp and split around it, twisting and extending in unnatural ways before settling into it's new form.
The railways are Charlie's playground, and she will frolic in them however she pleases.
Exert your Mind (unless you are Sculpting) and spend an Action. Select a Location within 50 feet. This Effect cannot be used unless the Dead-Line's front car is currently summoned. You must use up a subway ticket in order to activate this Effect.
Select one of the following alterations to create out of subway tracks and concrete originating at the target:
The alteration begins to form when you activate this Effect and finishes forming on your initiative in the next Round. Until it finishes forming, it is not guaranteed to function.
This alteration lasts indefinitely but may be prematurely destroyed or altered. Your alterations may be broken through with appropriate tools. Anyone attempting to break through must roll Brawn + a relevant Ability. A cumulative Outcome of 6 across all attempts breaks a hole large enough to move through. See the extended system text for GM guidance on various tools.
You may sculpt your walls, domes, or tunnels as you create them, without any additional activation time or cost.
[Rolls using Intellect + Trains]
Charlie sits beside her target and leans against them while closing her eyes. As Charlie naps, she begins to glow with an ethereal energy which spreads to the target and closes their wounds. If the Dead Line is summoned, the energy can be seen seeping from the walls of the vehicle. If it is not summoned, the energy can be seen emanating from the train pamphlet that Charlie clutches in her hand.
The Dead Line is a ferry for the dead to the afterlife. Or at least, it was supposed to be. Charlie's existence is a wrench in that plan, and so she can transfer a person's departed vitality back to them.
Exert your Mind and spend 1 minute. Select a Living or Animate target within arm's reach. Choose a specific Injury on your target that has not yet been treated with this Effect and roll Intellect + Drive at Difficulty 6.
If you succeed, the Injury is reduced in Severity by your Outcome. If you reduce its Severity to 0, the Injury is fully healed. Otherwise, it is partially healed and will heal the rest of the way at its natural rate.
This counts as a successful Makeshift Stabilization if the Injury was not already Stabilized; any Battle Scars caused by the Injury will remain.
When Tethered, the Dead Line shifts temporarily into a more spectral form that allows it to float next to Charlie's physical body, surrounded by a ghostly aura.
The Dead Line saps away the vitality of those who attempt to touch it with malice in their hearts, threatening to tear the very souls from their bodies.
Charlie is merely a puppet for the Dead Line, one which hasn't yet achieved it's true form. Her experience as a puppet has given her a passion that she would never have felt otherwise.
The motto of The Dead Line, engraved by Charlie herself onto a small plaque in the conductor's compartment, is as follows:
"For as many paths as our passengers walk down, many rails we must lay down in turn."
This Artifact cannot be broken. If this Artifact is lost and in no one else’s possession, it finds its way back to its true owner during the next Downtime.
By default, the creator of this Artifact is its true owner. The true owner may formally bequeath this Artifact onto another person within arm’s reach, after which they are its true owner. If the true owner dies or is destroyed, their ownership ends. If this Artifact has no true owner, anyone may spend one day attuning to it to become its true owner.
Those who disrespect public transport cannot hold or use this Artifact. They take a Severity 1 Injury each Round they touch or possess of the Artifact. It cannot be prevented or healed by any means until one day after they relinquish possession.
This Artifact's true owner is always aware of the direction and distance to this Artifact.
Whenever this Artifact is unattended and within 300 feet of its true owner, it will fly back to them. When not held or stowed, it floats beside its true owner, moving with them. While within 10 feet, the true owner does not need to touch it to use it.
This Artifact's true owner must have it with them to have restful sleep. They cannot regain Mind or Source while separated from this Artifact.
Anyone who touches this Artifact will notice it warping their mind and may drop it. If they choose to hold or use it, they immediately receive the following Trauma: Nightmares: Falling into the void - Your sleep is plagued with horrible nightmares. At the start of each Contract and each time you fall asleep, make a Self-Control roll. If you fail, you take one Mind Damage. If they lose possession of this Artifact, the Trauma heals over the course of the next day.
From the outside, the Dead Line appears to have two cars. A front car with a passenger compartment and the conductor's seat, and a back car with some storage. The Dead Line's back door leads into another car which shouldn't exist, and then another, and then another.
Up to ten total cars exist in the Dead Line proper and, should Charlie deem so, a given car can loop around forever on itself to prevent anyone inside from escaping.
Looking out the window in one of the faux storage containers shows an infinite dark expanse with glimmering lights passing by in the far distance, and occasionally moving past the window at high speeds as the Dead Line rumbles forth infinitely.
This Artifact holds 5 times what it normally could inside of it. Objects stored inside weigh their normal amount.
Living things can be stored in this Artifact. They will have access to anything else inside but cannot break free.
If this Artifact is destroyed, things inside may get out, and it will cease to function until it is repaired.
When scanned or investigated without opening, the contents of this container appear normal and unremarkable.
If anyone other than you opens the container, it appears empty. Others can still destroy it to get at the contents.
When he takes a photo, anyone he takes it of is disintegrated and turned to ash.
(Photography Roll)
Spend an Action. Select a Living target within 300 feet. Roll Perception + Alertness Difficulty 6. The target may contest by rolling to Dodge or Defend as a Reaction, Difficulty 6.
If the contested Outcome is positive, the target takes that much Damage plus 2. The target's material Armor is completely ignored.
This Gift's Cost is capped at 2 and cannot be increased further.
When activated, light is distorted around the wielder, rendering them a rippling outline difficult to distinguish from their surroundings.
The Cross-Eye has further advanced, allowing the user to use it's latent nanotechnology to cloak the user in a special suit. This suit reflects light around the target, and softens all noise made by it. With this, a sniper could be right next to it's target or miles away, and they would never know
Expend a point of Battery and spend an Action to activate.
You and any clothes or equipment you are wearing are partially obscured from sight for the next 10 minutes. All attempts to detect you using sight are rolled at a -3 dice penalty, and all attempts to detect you where sight would assist are rolled at -1 penalty.
Entering Combat or being Injured does not cause the Effect to end early. Anyone you attack will immediately notice you; anyone else may re-roll to notice you each time you take a Combat action, at -1 Difficulty per Combat action you have taken. When the Effect ends, it is disabled for 1 hour.
The C.R.O.S.S. optic projects a laser holograph over the selected firearm, then upgrades the desired functionality through a HUD display menu.
The advanced technology in the C.R.O.S.S, optic can enhance the ballistic quality of firearms for a limited time.
Expend a point of Battery and spend a minute to activate. Select a non-Alien Firearm within arm's reach. Cannot be used to improve Armor.
For the next day, your target receives 2 extra dice to all actions taken for its intended use. Attacking with an upgraded weapon grants +2 Weapon Damage instead of additional dice.
The small card is held against the computer system, and the Shadow Government communicates via NFC with the secret override codes that they've ensured are installed in all technology. The card makes quiet beeps and boops, glowing some as the onboard quantum computer system generates the huge elliptic curve tables that protect the overrides.
The Shadow Government has an arms-length alliance with the Shadow Governments of other species, and allow their field teams a degree of interoperability.
Spend 2 Actions. Select a Computer within arm's reach. Can be used on Alien technology. Roll Intellect + Technology, with the Difficulty set by the GM depending on the security of the system you are hacking. Sapient targets can resist by rolling Mind at Difficulty 6.
If you succeed, you may issue a single command to the targeted system. This command must have a specific outcome or be a request for specific login credentials. The command you issue must be within the machine's current capabilities. For example, you cannot order a standard security camera to grow legs and walk around.
This Gift cannot have more than 3 Drawbacks, and its Gift Cost is capped at 1.
It’s a mech suit
This Artifact can be used as a mech suit. It is roughly the same size as a mech suit and just as difficult to conceal.
This mech suit has 1-to-1 body control. Any roll to pilot this vehicle receives +2 dice.
You also gain the following effects:
The user takes some money out of the wallet, and offers it to the target, along with the spoken command. While this seems like an ordinary bribe to the recipient, observers can see hellfire emanating from within the money-pouch of the wallet, and the money dimly (but visibly) glows.
Exert your Mind (unless you win a coin flip) and spend at least one Action. Select a Human target within 20 feet. Your target cannot be engaged in Combat. Communicate a command to your target. Roll Charisma + Influence at Difficulty 6. The target may resist by rolling Mind at Difficulty 7.
If the contested Outcome is positive, your target will be compelled to follow your command to their best understanding of the letter and spirit of the command until they have completed it or for your Outcome in hours. You cannot issue another suggestion to the target until 10 minutes after they have completed the first command or 10 minutes after a failure.
The target is unaware that they are under supernatural influence and feel they are acting of their own free will. If you fail, they realize that you were attempting to influence them supernaturally with your command.
Your command can be an order to take an immediate Action and a conditional request. You cannot order a target to "do nothing," and they are free to take other Actions as they fulfill your request. Your command cannot be obviously self-destructive. The Effect ends if following your command would cause a target to cross one of their Limits in a way that would necessitate a Trauma roll.
Standard issue in the Future Soldier's home time, the Personal Shield Generator (PSG) projects a protective energy barrier around the body. It absorbs damage far better than traditional armor, but its battery is quickly drained. When depleted, the PSG must spend a few seconds recharging.
When struck, the normally-invisible field of the PSG flashes, revealing a bright yellow honey-comb pattern encasing the body.
You gain the following benefits as long as you are wearing this Artifact.
You have 6 Armor, which reduces incoming Damage. Armor from multiple sources does not stack.
Your Armor cannot be destroyed, and it always provides a minimum of 2 Armor regardless of any Armor shredding or penetration. It cannot be circumvented with Called Shots. When shredded, it returns to full potency in one hour.
Any time your Armor prevents Damage, your Armor rating is temporarily decreased by 2. Whenever it goes five Rounds without preventing any Damage, it is restored back to its full value.
The "Reaper" Assault Helmet is the signature piece of the Future Soldier's arsenal. It has a sleek, design and is made of a mysterious matte-metallic alloy. The wearer's face is exposed normally, but when activated, a blue holographic visor flickers to life in front of the eyes. This HUD contains information about the soldier's ammunition and shield status, but more significantly can detect enemy combatants. Anyone nearby who is holding a weapon is painted with a red dot that follows them in real time. This allows the Future Soldier to fire at painted targets in the dark, detect ambushes lurking around corners, and grants an overall tactical advantage.
Expend a point of Battery and spend an Action.
You automatically detect all people wielding weapons within 300 feet of you for the next hour. This includes any who come within range during the duration. You have a sense of how many valid targets are nearby, as well as their distance and direction.
If the Selkie's seal skin is worn close to the body, any contact with salt water will cause them to transform into a seal. While transformed, they have full access to their normal suite of Powers.
This Effect activates whenever you are submerged in salt water. It does not require an Action or Exertion. Your target should be intuitively based on the triggering event.
You transform into small for two hours or until you choose to end the Effect. See the Extended System text for stats.
While transformed, you cannot use any equipment (including Artifacts and Consumables), and you cannot use your Active, Targeted, or Trap Powers. However, you can use your Passive Powers. Any equipment you are wearing transforms with you.
Injuries and Wound Level are carried over between forms. However, transforming can never kill you; you merely remain Incapacitated until your Injuries are sufficiently healed.
The Future Soldier's PSG is capable of briefly supercharging its effectiveness with a jolt of Omega Cell energy. While active, the future soldier glows with an extremely bright golden light.
While the shield is supercharged, the Future Soldier cannot move or see the outside world, but they are completely isolated from anything that occurs outside the shield.
Expend a point of Battery and spend an Action or Reaction.
You phase out of reality for up to 4 Rounds. During this time, you cannot perceive or affect the outside world or take any Actions. You cannot move. Nothing can interact with you in any way.
When you activate this Effect, you may limit its duration to a period of your choosing. If you are able, you may also end it as a Free Action on your initiative.
You leave a golden glow shaped like yourself at your location.
The Predatory Raiment has a cloak feature that allows its owner to hide themselves and their equipment with active camouflage. When viewed, they look like a slightly shifted and shimmering version of the surrounding environment.
You gain the following benefits as long as you are not at all wet and you are wearing this Artifact.
You and everything you are carrying is obscured in one of the following manners. You may Spend an Action to change the way in which you're concealed.
While this Effect is active, any Effect that would obscure you or your equipment specifically from other, additional senses fails automatically.
If someone discovers you, this Effect will not help you hide from them for the next minute. This Effect does not end early when you activate an obvious Effect, attack, or receive an Injury.