Zephyren's birdlike senses have attuned him to the so-called languages of the animal kingdom. He can finally comprehend the song of the forests, but this is only the beginning.
On music:
It's a blemish in Zephyren's past, yet one of his most fond highlights all the same. The sense of community that music brings is universal, as anyone can understand when a score sounds upbeat or solemn. He could put his emotions into it and no one would know the subject of his grief, only that he does have feelings after all. It never quite leaves his mind, so he finds himself stopping in his tracks whenever he hears it - whether geophonic or anthropophonic or biophonic - he has to appreciate how it all flows together.
On animals:
Wildlife is harder to spot in Hong Kong, with all the urbanization. Zephyren remembers his first few months in Canada, which were often spent just gawking at the animals he's never seen. Particularly, he had no idea coyotes were dangerous. Whoops.
On comprehension:
Now that even animals can speak to him, he has more noise to filter through. It might just be his downfall.
You gain the following benefits at all times.
You may understand and communicate to Creatures as if you are fluent in a relevant language.
A part in my left arm near the Radius comes out and goes to whatever part it needs to and starts to fix that scar on my body then goes back in my body
Exert your Mind and spend a minute. Select a Battle Scar on yourself to treat.
The treated Battle Scar heals as you finish activating this Effect.
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You gain the following benefits at all times.
As long as you maintain Concentration, you can take Actions and interact with things that are within 10 feet without needing to physically touch them or be near them. Any rolls made for Actions taken in this way use a Mental Strength of 2 in place of your Brawn rating, a Mental Agility of 2 in place of your Dexterity, and otherwise use your own Attributes and Abilities.
Telekinetic actions have the following restrictions and behaviors:
A Mutated organ produces a strange flammable black gas lazily exuding from the mouth with a quiet hiss is expelled, a deep breath and exhale to spread it followed by a strong bite into it causes it to burst it brightly into flames.
Exert your Mind and spend an Action to activate. Select a target within arm's reach which has both fuel and oxygen available (if you are starting a new fire).
You may start a new fire as large as a fire in a residential fireplace at your target. You may create fires the size of a lighter or candle flame without Exerting your Mind. Your fires require fuel and oxygen in order to continue burning.
Lighting a target on fire deals 3 damage per round, starting in the next round after the one in which they caught fire. This damage is reduced by Armor, but the target’s Armor rating will be depleted by any damage dealt, destroying the Armor once it reaches 0.
Rollie rolls over their enemy.
Spend an Action. Select a target within arm's reach. Roll Brawn + Athletics 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 4.
The target suffers a -3 dice penalty for the next hour or until the Injury is healed. This dice penalty does not stack multiple times on the same target.
This Gift's Cost is capped at 2 and cannot be increased further.
After you finish activating this Effect, you cannot move quicker than a walk (max 15 feet per Round) for one minute and suffer a -1 dice penalty for an hour. Exhaustion’s penalty and duration stacks with multiple activations.
Eva imbues a parasite within her body and proliferates it to reach a critical mass. Doing so includes extracting the parasites from herself and readministering them in specific locations.
Exert your Mind and spend 30 minutes. You may only target yourself. The target can easily Resist.
You may add one augmentation to your target. Each augmentation counts as a Battle Scar and can have exactly one of the following Effects:
The augmentations you provide are not outwardly visible nor obvious.
You may end this Effect prematurely as a Free Action.
Anyone who witnesses you during this Effect's activation will almost certainly be disturbed to see parasite treatment.
While addressing a crowd, the influencer may use coded language to send secret messages to a particular person in the crowd. These messages can't be noticed or understood by anyone but the intended target.
Spend an Action. Select a target any distance away from you. You must have a specific target in mind, but you require only an intuitive understanding of them, such as their name, face, or Location. This Effect cannot be used unless you are speaking to multiple people and the target is listening.
You may send a single message to your target. It can be no more complicated than a multi-page letter or a long email.
The message will only be perceived by the intended recipient. You must share a common language for your target to understand the message.
This Effect is not obvious, and the only sign you are using an Effect is your left hand making a fist. If someone suspects that an Effect was used, they must roll Perception + Alertness, Difficulty 8 to pick up on your Tell.
This Gift cannot have more than 3 Drawbacks, and its Gift Cost is capped at 2.
Unimportant characters just can't seem to hit our hero with their attacks. Injuries that are sustained from underlings are conveniently non-severe.
You gain the following benefits as long as the attacker isn't important enough to have a name.
You have 4 Armor, which reduces incoming Damage. Armor from multiple sources does not stack. This Armor cannot be circumvented with Called Shots.
Any successful musician knows the value of a good roadie. The musician calls for a roadie, and one will promptly arrive. The roadie doesn't talk much, and they aren't too bright, but they can sure haul gear.
After a couple hours of work, the roadie will retire to smoke and get some sleep.
Exert your Mind and spend an Action.
Summon a single Sapient roadie at your location. They last for two hours or until they are destroyed. They are controlled by the GM but will follow any commands you give. You may have at most one minion active at a time.
You may only use this Effect once per day.
By focusing and whispering a prayer under their breath, the priest may invoke their god to protect those who have good works left to do.
Exert your Mind and spend an Action or Reaction. Select a Animate target within 20 feet. This Effect cannot be used unless the target is a living human. Roll a single d10, Difficulty 4. If you fail or botch, the Effect fails and you cannot activate it again for an hour. Roll Charisma + Occult at Difficulty 6.
If you succeed, you create a barrier around your target, which absorbs the next Outcome +2 Damage. The Damage reduction from the barrier is applied before Armor. You may only have 1 active barrier at a time.
You must maintain Concentration while using this Effect. The barrier will fall if you are interrupted, or if it absorbs the full amount of Damage. When a barrier falls, you cannot use this Effect again for a minimum of 2 Rounds.
This Effect is not obvious, and the only sign you are using an Effect is you whispering a prayer under your breath. If someone suspects that an Effect was used, they must roll Perception + Alertness, Difficulty 8 to pick up on your Tell.
The mobster presents a reasoned, logical case to the target: there's a lot of dangerous folks out there, and only they can offer safety... for a price.
If they agree, they will pay the mobster a monthly fee for protection. If they stop making their payments... well, let's just say, the mobster can't be held responsible for any unsavory types that might pay them a visit.
This Effect cannot be used unless you are making a deal to exchange money for protection.
You may make an oath with a physically-present, Sapient target. Communicate the oath's terms to the target, including the requirements and penalties for each participant. If all agree to the terms, you must Exert your Mind and all participants must shake hands to seal the deal.
Record the oath as a Condition. If a party breaks the oath, the Condition ends and they suffer the oath's penalty.
When crafting your oath, you may incorporate any of the following penalties:
The target cannot be compelled to agree via a direct threat of violence, another Effect, or another oath. If you would like to use clever wording to mislead the target, you must succeed a contested Intellect + (Culture or Influence) roll.