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The Illumination
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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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Aggressive Sludge"Isaac taketh"

Cost: 2

The power to grievously injure a target.

Isaac summons otherworldly ooze to use as a dangerous projectile. This ectoplasm is charged with necrotic negative energy that is so cold, it burns.

Extended Description

After a horrible nightmare about Isaac drowning in bullets, a supernatural defence mechanism awakens in Issac. He woke up slinging balls of ectoplasm all over his room, It took way too long to clean.

Spend an Action. Select a target within 50 feet. Roll Intellect + Occult Difficulty 6. The target may contest by rolling Dodge or Defend, Difficulty 6.

If the Contested Outcome is positive, the target takes that much Damage plus 2.

You may use this Effect to Defend against any melee, projectile, or firearm Attacks within range or Clash against any Attack targeted at you. Using it to Defend deals no Damage but does not cost Exertion.

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.

Anyone who witnesses you during this Effect's activation will almost certainly be disturbed to see a layer of steaming, slime rapidly develop on your hands like mold on old bread, under the slime your bones are visible.

This Gift cannot have more than 3 Drawbacks, and its Gift Cost is capped at 2.

Extended System

When narrating disturbing content, be cognizant of your group's tone and accommodating to those who would like to "fast forward" through the description.
You can target yourself if you qualify as a valid target by the other requirements.
Your target must be within line of Effect. There must be no substantial obstructions between you and your target.

Gift Example

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Editing Gift
Aggressive Sludge

Power

Injure

Customize

Cost: 2

Aggressive Sludge"Isaac taketh"

Cost: 2

The power to grievously injure a target.

Isaac summons otherworldly ooze to use as a dangerous projectile. This ectoplasm is charged with necrotic negative energy that is so cold, it burns.

Extended Description

After a horrible nightmare about Isaac drowning in bullets, a supernatural defence mechanism awakens in Issac. He woke up slinging balls of ectoplasm all over his room, It took way too long to clean.

Spend an Action. Select a target within 50 feet. Roll Intellect + Occult Difficulty 6. The target may contest by rolling Dodge or Defend, Difficulty 6.

If the Contested Outcome is positive, the target takes that much Damage plus 2.

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 cannot have more than 3 Drawbacks, and its Gift Cost is capped at 2.

Extended System

When narrating disturbing content, be cognizant of your group's tone and accommodating to those who would like to "fast forward" through the description.
You can target yourself if you qualify as a valid target by the other requirements.
Your target must be within line of Effect. There must be no substantial obstructions between you and your target.

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: 2

Style

Targeted

Trap (Gift Cost: -1)

Activation Roll

Defensive Roll

Range

Damage

Gift Cost: -1

Enhancements

Gift Cost: +3

Accursed Wounds (Any Injury inflicted is considered Unstabilized no matter its Severity. The roll required to Stabilize it is treated as though it is a minimum of Severity 6. These wounds do not heal naturally, though Effects may still be used to heal them.)

Beam-o-war (You may use this Effect to Defend against any melee, projectile, or firearm Attacks within range or Clash against any Attack targeted at you. Using it to Defend deals no Damage but does not cost Exertion.)

Breath Attack (You may choose to have this Effect Damage all targets in a perfectly straight line up to its maximum range.)

Cantrip (Activating this Effect has no Exertion cost, but it can have no more than 3 Drawbacks and its Gift Cost can never be increased above 2.)

Death Pact (When you die, you may activate this Effect targeting the person that killed you at any range and without any penalty. Its roll is at -1 Difficulty.)

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

Cannot be taken with Cantrip

Finesse (When Attacking a single being, you may limit the Severity of any Injury you inflict or determine a maximum Wound Level, including Incapacitated. You may also choose to make this Injury properly or improperly stabilized, or to keep it unstabilized.)

Forceful Blow (If the target receives an Injury, they are knocked back 5 * Severity feet.)

Internal Injury (You may only target Living beings, but their Armor is completely ignored. This Effect deals 2 less Damage.)

Cannot be taken with Beam-o-war

Painful (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.)

Shredder (If you successfully hit your target, the value of any Armor they are wearing is reduced by 2. For material armor, this penalty lasts until it is repaired. For intrinsic armor, it lasts until the end of Combat and any relevant wound is healed.)

Suspend (When you activate this Effect, instead of occurring immediately, you may choose to delay its effects until the target takes a particular Action. For example: "when they fire a gun" or "when they swim in deep water.")

Cannot be taken with Disturbing

Cannot be taken with Cantrip

That's Gonna Leave A Mark (If the target suffers an Injury from this Effect, they will receive at least a Minor Battle Scar regardless of its Severity. When this Effect causes a Battle Scar, you may select which one of the appropriate level.)

Seasoned Enhancements

Chain Lightning (You may opt to have this Effect spread to all targets within 5 feet of the initial target, then to all unaffected targets within 5 feet of them, and so on, jumping a maximum of 5 times. No target may be hit more than once. You cannot hit yourself.)

Requires Seasoned status.

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.)

Requires Seasoned status.

Cannot be taken with Cantrip

No Contest (If the Contested Outcome of your activation roll is 4 or higher, the activation cost of this Effect is refunded.)

Requires Seasoned status.

Voodoo Doll (This Effect has unlimited range, but you must use up a token of your target to do so. One activation per target per day. The chosen token must be an object that the target actively created or that was in the target’s possession for at least 24 hours.)

Requires Seasoned status.

Veteran Enhancements

Kill (If a Living target would suffer an Injury Severity 5 or greater from this Effect, they die.)

Requires Veteran status.

Drawbacks

Gift Cost: -1

Biohazard (This power only affects Living targets.)

Cannot be taken with Beam-o-war

Conditional (This Effect is only available when a certain condition is met. This condition must be severe enough that this Gift is unusable the majority of the time.)

Critical Failure (Roll a single D10 when you activate this Effect. If you roll a 1, you critically fail in a way that is extraordinarily dangerous. Failure should cause at least a Severity-4 Injury, a Major Battle Scar, or an effect counter to its purpose.)

Disfiguring (Possession of this Gift grants a minor Battle Scar that can only be cured by buying off this Drawback.)

Disturbing (Witnessing this Effect's Activation is extremely disturbing and/or morally abhorrent to the average person. Anyone who witnesses its activation will almost certainly be repulsed, outraged, and think differently of you from that moment on.)

Disturbing aspect:

Exhausting (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.)

Focus (Using this Effect requires a specific kind of item.)

Fuel (Using this Effect consumes some material good in addition to its other costs.)

Maddening (Possession of this Gift causes a Trauma that cannot be cured by any means. The chosen Trauma must be likely to come up on a Contract.)

Mage (Activating this Effect requires two consecutive Actions of Concentration. It involves intricate use of the body and voice. If interrupted during activation, the Effect fails. It is obvious you are preparing to activate an Effect during casting.)

Cannot be taken with Disturbing

Once per Day (You may only use this Effect once per day.)

Sacrifice (Instead of Exerting your Mind or expending Source, activating this Effect gives a Severity-1 Injury that worsens by 1 Severity each time you use an Effect with Sacrifice. This Injury cannot be prevented by any means or healed before 1 day has passed.)

Cannot be taken with Cantrip

Slow (Instead of dealing Damage all at once, the Injury caused by this Power starts at Severity 1 and worsens at the rate of one level per Round until it reaches the Severity it would have otherwise been.)

Traumatic (You must make a Trauma roll when you use this Effect. Its Difficulty cannot be reduced by any means. If you fail or Botch, you receive one Mind Damage and a new Trauma.)

Unreliable (When you activate this Effect, roll a single d10, Difficulty 4. If you fail or botch, the Effect fails and you cannot activate it again for an hour.)

Cannot be taken with Cantrip

Customize Flavor and Finish

Gift Name

Tagline

(Optional) Introduce the Gift in a flavorful way.

Visual Description

A concise description of what this Gift looks like when it is used. What do participants and observers experience? This will be referenced by GMs at game-time to help them narrate.

Anyone who witnesses you activate this Effect is very likely to be disturbed to see a layer of steaming, slime rapidly develop on your hands like mold on old bread, under the slime your bones are visible.

Extended Description

(Optional) Wax poetic about this Gift's background, metaphysics, etc.

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Editing Gift Aggressive Sludge

Editing Gift Aggressive Sludge

Aggressive Sludge"Isaac taketh"

Customize System

Style

Activation Roll

Defensive Roll

Range

Damage

Enhancements

Seasoned Enhancements

Veteran Enhancements

Drawbacks

Customize Flavor and Finish

Visual Description

Extended Description

Editing Gift
Aggressive Sludge

Editing Gift
Aggressive Sludge