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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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Legendary Artifact

Drink the Light

Cost: 2

This Artifact allows you to transfer Injuries, Mind, and Source between targets.

Gereg takes a bite, siphoning the energy from a target to strengthen his master.

Exert your Mind and spend an Action. Select two Sapient targets within arm's reach. Roll a single D10 as a critical failure check. If you roll a 1, the Effect fails, and you an Injury you have increases in Severity by 1d4 points. If a target does not consent to the transfer, you must roll Intellect + Occult at Difficulty 6 to use the effect on them. They can resist by rolling either Body or Mind at Difficulty 6, depending on what you are attempting to transfer to them.

You may choose a single instance of one of the following to transfer between your two targets:

Up to two points of Mind damage
A single Power. Lasts two hours. You cannot transfer this Power.
A single Injury and any Battle Scars it caused

This Effect cannot be used again on the same target for the next hour.

Anyone who witnesses you during this Effect's activation will almost certainly be disturbed to see the snake lash out and siphon the effects from the target, and imbue them into Lau, or the reverse.

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 sight, or within range of another sense if more fitting for the Gift's flavor.

Gift Example

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Editing Gift
Drink the Light

Legendary Artifact

Energy Transfer

Customize

Cost: 2

Legendary Artifact

Drink the Light

Cost: 2

This Artifact allows you to transfer Injuries, Mind, and Source between targets.

Gereg takes a bite, siphoning the energy from a target to strengthen his master.

You may choose a single instance of one of the following to transfer between your two targets:

Up to two points of Mind damage
A single Power. Lasts two hours. You cannot transfer this Power.
A single Injury and any Battle Scars it caused

This Effect cannot be used again on the same target for the next hour.

Anyone who witnesses you during this Effect's activation will almost certainly be disturbed to see the snake lash out and siphon the effects from the target, and imbue them into Lau, or the reverse.

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 sight, or within range of another sense if more fitting for the Gift's flavor.

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

Range

Cooldown

Enhancements

Gift Cost: +5

Attune (You and another target within range may spend one minute Concentrating to attune to one another. For the next 4 hours, you may use this Effect on them at any range.)

Battery-operated (Instead of Exerting Mind to activate this Power, it has its own 3-point Source pool. The Source regenerates at the rate of one point per day and cannot be raised with Experience.)

Blood Bond (You may only use this Effect on a single, predetermined target, but you may use it at any range.)

Cannot be taken with Cut Out The Middleman

Cult Leader (This Power's cooldown is tracked per-target. Meaning you must wait the cooldown to use this Power on the same person again, but you may use it on others in the meantime.)

Cut Out The Middleman (You may now make transfers directly between any two targets without having to include yourself.)

Everything all at Once (Instead of only choosing a single thing to transfer, you may transfer each of the things you are capable of transferring.)

Forced Exchange (You may use this on an unwilling target by making a contested roll. You determine the roll you make when you take this enhancement, Difficulty 6. They will roll either Body or Mind to resist, depending on what you are attempting to transfer.)

Activation Roll:

Pooled Resources (Your target may opt to pay the Exertion cost for this Power.)

Transfer Type: Bloody Mess (You may transfer Battle Scars without also transferring the Injury which caused it.)

Transfer Type: Head Case (You may transfer Traumas.)

Transfer Type: Mind Meld (You can transfer up to two Mind Damage per activation.)

Transfer Type: Power Exchange (You may transfer Powers temporarily between targets. Lasts two hours. You cannot transfer this Power)

Novice Enhancements

Transfer Type: Universal Exchange (You can transfer up to three points of Source.)

Requires Novice status.

Seasoned Enhancements

Transfer Type: Drain Attribute (You may transfer an Attribute between targets. The giver suffers a penalty of up to -3 dice to all rolls using that Attribute, capped at their rating. The receiver gets the same dice as a bonus to all rolls using the Attribute. Lasts two hours.)

Requires Seasoned status.

Drawbacks

Gift Cost: -2

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.)

Critical Failure effect:

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.)

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.)

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.)

Scarring (When you Activate this Effect, roll a single d10. If the result is 5 or lower, your target receives a Minor Battle Scar.)

Cannot be taken with Forced Exchange

Sloppy Technique (Any Injuries or Mind damage transferred are increased by 1)

Squeamish (You cannot transfer Injuries with this Effect.)

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.)

Traumatizing (Your target must make a Trauma roll to reap the benefits of this Effect. They may choose to Resist the Effect and not make the roll.)

Cannot be taken with Forced Exchange

Customize Flavor and Finish

Gift Name

Tagline

(Optional) Introduce the Gift in a flavorful way.

Attach to existing Legendary Artifact?

Item name

The name of the Legendary Artifact

Item description

(Optional) A physical description of the Artifact

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 the snake lash out and siphon the effects from the target, and imbue them into Lau, or the reverse. You must obviously use this Artifact to activate this Effect. When activating this Effect, this Artifact is obviously Alien and cannot be concealed under your clothes or similar.

Extended Description

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

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Editing Gift Drink the Light

Editing Gift Drink the Light

Legendary Artifact

Drink the Light

Customize System

Range

Cooldown

Enhancements

Novice Enhancements

Seasoned Enhancements

Drawbacks

Customize Flavor and Finish

Visual Description

Extended Description

Editing Gift
Drink the Light

Editing Gift
Drink the Light