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The Illumination
GameMaster's Manual
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Setting: The Illumination
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Building Custom Gifts
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Building Custom Gifts

"Gifts are why we sign The Contract"

Each session of The Contract, the Players' Contractors are invited to risk their lives in a deadly mission. Those who succeed are rewarded with a Gift Credit that can be spent here in exchange for extraordinary Artifacts or incredible Powers.

No two Contractors are alike. Each Contractor's Gifts are a unique expression of their concept, and any character concept can be realized by building custom Gifts.

Each Gift's system is automatically generated during creation. These systems are simple but specific. While such precise systems can be verbose, they focus gameplay on creatively using Gifts rather than interpreting them, and they ensure your Contractor plays the same no matter who is acting as GM.

Building Custom Gifts is Easy

Form an idea of what you want your Contractor to be able to do.
Describe your concept to this Gift-Building webpage. Select a Gift Type and Effect, then customize its modifiers until it matches your idea.
Apply flavor to your Gift by adding a description, name, and tagline.

You can also start by customizing a premade Stock Gift.

Watch the video tutorial

Further instructions are available at the bottom of this initial "Select Gift Type" page, and many elements can be tapped on hovered over for more information.

Gift Type: Powers

"Everything in life comes and goes. Everything but Powers."

Powers are a Contractor's bread and butter. They may be obvious or subtle, arcane or technological, actively called upon or passively empowering. Powers are the only Gift Type that doesn't always require equipment, making them the most reliable.

Powers include:

Any superpower
Magical spells and divine invocations
Cybernetic implants and other bodily augmentations
Supernaturally honed Abilities
Mythical Brawn, Dexterity, Intellect, Perception, or Charisma
Beneficial effects stemming from your Contractor's otherworldly nature

If your idea for a Gift isn't obviously one of the other Gift Types, it's probably a Power.

Gift Type: Legendary Artifacts

"I sure hope no one steals this."

Legendary Artifacts are high-risk and high-reward. These one-of-a-kind items are far more powerful than Powers or crafted items. However, they can be lost, destroyed, or even stolen by other Contractors. While there are ways to protect Legendary Artifacts, some risk always remains.

As your Contractor progresses, you may invest multiple Gifts and Improvements into a single Legendary Artifact, granting it multiple activated and passive Effects. Just remember, your Legendary Artifacts can be used by anyone, whether or not you're still alive.

Legendary Artifacts Include:

Unique alien technology
Mythical relics
Family heirlooms
One-of-a-kind creations

Any extraordinary equipment your Contractor did not create themselves is a Legendary Artifact.

Gift Type: Artifact Crafting

"Sure, I'll make you one. If you provide the proper incentive."

Artifact Crafting turns your Contractor into the golden goose. No Gift Type demands more sacrifice, nor a higher price. However, those Contractors who invest in Artifact Crafting create equipment that rivals the Gifts of the Harbingers. And make no mistake: most Contractors' loyalty can be bought.

Any Contractor who takes a crafting Gift can craft. When you craft with an Artifact Crafting Gift, you can either create a new Artifact with that Gift's Effect or add its Effect to another Artifact you've created.

Investing a Gift Credit or Improvement into an Artifact Crafting Gift lets you craft it once for free. After that, crafting with the Gift costs Experience equal to its Gift Cost + 1.

Crafted Artifacts Include:

Extraordinary weapons and armor
Skunkworks prototype devices
Spellbooks
Alien technology
Super-suits for your team

If you're looking to rival Hephaestus or Stark, you want Artifact Crafting.

Gift Type: Consumable Crafting

"Everybody take one. Use it if you get into trouble."

Consumables are single-use items that are easy to share and trade.

Any Contractor who takes a crafting Gift can craft. Each Downtime between Contracts, Contractors can craft one of each of their Consumables for free. Investing a Gift Credit or Improvement into a Consumable Gift grants an extra one for free. Additional Consumables may be crafted at a cost of 1 Exp each.

Crafted Consumables Include:

Potions
Specialty ammunition
Settable traps
Deployable super-tech
Magic makeup
Energy drinks that turn you into a mongoose

If it's supernatural, single-use items your Contractor makes, it's Consumable Crafting.

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Spring

Cost: 5

The power to transform into Deck of Cards.

The cardist preforms the cardistry move spring. Launching the cards into the air. As the cards cascade down the cardist will disappear into the falling cards, as the cards fall they will land neatly stacked, inside the a box. When transforming back the cards will fly out of the box swirling around in the air and then taking the shape of the cardist and bringing him back.

Exert your Mind (unless you win a coin flip) and spend an Action or Reaction. You must use up playing cards in order to activate this Effect.

You transform into Deck of Cards no larger than an SUV for one hour. While transformed, you may control the functioning of the object you have transformed into. You can perceive your surroundings as normal. You can be targeted as a Non-Living, Sapient Object.

If you are damaged while transformed, the damage is realized when you return to normal. If you are damaged before you transform, your inanimate form will appear partially damaged.

You may transform into any generic inanimate object that could easily be acquired in a town. No firearms or explosives.

You may end this Effect prematurely as a Free Action.

Extended System

If a character is inside of you when you revert to your original form, you take a Severity-5 Injury when they burst from your innards as you shrink.
You cannot move in any way the object wouldn't normally be able to move. If you are a feather duster, you cannot float around, etc.

Gift Example

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Editing Gift
Spring

Power

Inanimate Transformation

Customize

Cost: 5

Spring

Cost: 5

The power to transform into Deck of Cards.

Exert your Mind (unless you win a coin flip) and spend an Action or Reaction. You must use up playing cards in order to activate this Effect.

If you are damaged while transformed, the damage is realized when you return to normal. If you are damaged before you transform, your inanimate form will appear partially damaged.

You may transform into any generic inanimate object that could easily be acquired in a town. No firearms or explosives.

You may end this Effect prematurely as a Free Action.

Extended System

If a character is inside of you when you revert to your original form, you take a Severity-5 Injury when they burst from your innards as you shrink.
You cannot move in any way the object wouldn't normally be able to move. If you are a feather duster, you cannot float around, etc.

Customize System

Customize your Gift's behavior.

When you're satisfied, scroll down to flavor and finish.

Tap this button any time to preview your Gift:

Cost: 5

If you would like to turn other people into objects, use the Warp Form Effect.

Style

Activated

Passive (Gift Cost: -1)

Chosen Form

You cannot choose an Alien form, nor one that is beyond your capability to acquire normally (e.g. a black hawk helicopter).

Duration

Gift Cost: +1

Enhancements

Gift Cost: +4

Easy (When you activate this Effect, flip a coin. If you win, its Exertion cost is refunded.)

Fairly Odd (You may transform into any generic inanimate object that could easily be acquired in a town. No firearms or explosives.)

I want to be. . . Big (The object you transform into may be as large as a suburban home)

Nothing to See Here (In addition to your normal, predetermined form, you may transform into a copy of any touched Object. )

Too Slow! (You may activate this Effect as a Reaction.)

Triggered (You cannot manually activate this Effect. Instead, choose a triggering event, always outside your control, that activates this Effect without requiring an Action or Exertion cost from you.)

Cannot be taken with Easy

Cannot be taken with Too Slow!

Willful End (You may end this Effect before its duration has elapsed as a Free Action.)

Seasoned Enhancements

Conditionally Costless (This Effect does not require Exertion in certain circumstances. The condition should be balanced such that it has an activation cost the majority of the time you are able to use it.)