Ground Control Houston, We Hear Your Problems

1
The power to heal the mind after traumatic experiences.
Used by Andromeda, Created by Beezleboppy.
(This Effect may or may not be obviously Alien when used. )

For everyone except the target, there is no visual component to this gift. For the target, however, they will watch as reality begins to crack, the fissures emanating from the user (or the user's method of communication). The cracks encompass everything that the target is able to see, before quickly shattering, revealing a lively cosmos underneath the world. Looking around, the target will be able to identify that they are in an altered version of our familiar solar system. The planets are closer together, bridges that span miles of empty space connect distant celestial bodies, lights line every planet in the system, spaceships navigate through the depths, unfathomably large superstructures dot the horizon, and the stars shine brighter than they ever have before. In this sight, humanity's indomitable will and the true beauty of the cosmos are revealed to the target. The target spends hours here, watching an idealized version of the world revolve as the user's disembodied voice talks to them about their traumas. As the session comes to a close and the user makes the roll to determine the outcome of this therapy, the paths diverge.

If the roll succeeds:
The sun grows, becoming brighter, and brighter, and brighter, until it bursts. The sun goes supernova. Light begins to consume everything around the target, burning up the world that they just spent hours observing. Humanity screams as the supernova erases them, and the target is powerless to make it stop. The light blinds the target, engulfing them. When their vision returns, they will find themselves where they were when the cracks first emerged, feeling lighter.

If the roll fails:
The sun runs cold, and the universe follows suit. Where once there was a bustling universe, there now sits a lifeless corpse. The target stays there for a moment, before the darkness becomes too overbearing to remain. The target opens their eyes, and finds themselves where they were, their traumas still plaguing them.

This gift was manifested through a combination of Andromeda's dream of a cosmos that's at her fingertips, and her desire to help the people around her. She imagines a world where everyone has achieved her dreams, hoping that her realized passion will have a positive impact on her friends.

Andromeda is aware of the vision that she gives the target, though she is not aware of the supernova, nor the heat death that accompanies the session's success or failure. She has only caught brief glimpses of the world, having subconsciously designed it through occasional dreams.


Exert your Mind to activate. Select a Living target at any distance, provided you are able to communicate. You cannot target yourself. Over the course of one day, your patient must communicate with you and reveal at least one of their Traumas to you, including the details of those Traumas and the circumstances of how they were acquired. After the full treatment time has elapsed, roll Charisma + Occult at Difficulty 6.

Your target may Resist. If your treatment is successful, you may remove one of the patient's revealed Traumas without incurring any Experience cost.

Anyone who witnesses you during this Effect's activation will almost certainly be disturbed to see the end of humanity as the sun either goes supernova, or runs cold.

  • When narrating disturbing content, be cognizant of your group's tone and accommodating to those who would like to "fast forward" through the description.
  • The treatment time may be broken up into multiple sessions if necessary.
  • 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.

Community Targeted Gifts

Exert your Mind and 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. You must actively and obviously use Bones to activate this Effect.

You may send a single message to your target. It can be as complex or as large as you like.

The message will only be perceived by the intended recipient. You must share a common language for your target to understand the message.

  • Depending on the length of your message, it may take a target some time and/or effort to understand it in its entirety.
  • Receiving a message does not force a target to pay attention to you, and they can feel free to ignore your message if they choose. Depending on the flavor of your Gift, they may or may not be able to return to it and read it later on.
  • Generally you cannot communicate with Contractors who are not in a Contract with you.
  • 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.

Expend a point of Battery and spend an Action. Select a Location no further than 40 feet from you and in your line of sight. Roll a single d10, Difficulty 4. If you fail or botch, the Effect fails and you cannot activate it again for an hour. The area within 25 feet of the chosen Location immediately and obviously becomes imminently dangerous. Anyone in the area has 1 Round to attempt to escape. During the next Round, on your Initiative, roll Brawn + Melee at Difficulty 6. Targets remaining inside the radius may attempt an appropriate Reaction at GM’s discretion. Finding a physical barrier to use as cover will cut total damage taken in half (applies after Reaction roll but before Armor).

If the Outcome is positive, your blast hits everything within 25 feet of the chosen Location with Damage equal to your Outcome + 4. Armor is fully effective against this Damage.

Any object destroyed or individual killed in your blast turns to dust. Any parts of structures within your blast radius are destroyed and cannot bear a load or block movement. Your blast leaves a 15 foot deep crater in the ground and deals +1 Damage.

When you activate this Effect, roll a single D10. if the result is 5 or lower, you receive a Severity-1 Injury and a Minor Battle Scar.

  • If this Effect fails due to the Unreliable check, you must still pay any associated activation costs.
  • 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.

Exert your Mind and spend an Action. You must make a Trauma roll when you use this Effect. Its Difficulty cannot be reduced by any means. The area within 25 feet of you immediately and obviously becomes imminently dangerous. Roll Dexterity + Occult at Difficulty 6. Targets inside the radius may attempt an appropriate Reaction at GM’s discretion. Finding a physical barrier to use as cover will cut total Damage taken in half (applies after Reaction roll but before Armor).

If the Outcome is positive, your blast hits everything within 25 feet of you with Damage equal to your Outcome + 4. If you botched the activation roll, you will also take full Damage from the blast, otherwise it will not hurt you.

Anyone who witnesses you during this Effect's activation will almost certainly be disturbed to see Glowing spacematter and incredibly sharp stars explode!.

  • 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.

Exert your Mind (unless you win a coin flip) and spend an Action to activate. Select a target within 45 feet. Roll Intellect + Occult 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. fully effective

If you successfully hit a target with this Effect, the value of any Armor they are wearing is reduced by 2. This penalty lasts until the armor is repaired.

  • 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.

Exert your Mind and spend an Action to activate. Select a Living target within 45 feet. This Effect cannot be used unless The target must be close enough to death that using this power would kill or destroy them. If you do not deal enough damage to kill or destroy them, your action is wasted. Roll Intellect + Occult Difficulty 6. The target may contest by rolling Mind, Difficulty 6.

If the contested Outcome is positive, the target takes that much damage plus 3. The target's material Armor is completely ignored.

  • "Material Armor" includes armor from equipment but not Armor from Mythic Brawn, barrier, or mystical armor.
  • You can target yourself if you qualify as a valid target by the other requirements.

Stock Targeted Gifts

Exert your Mind and spend an Action. Select a Non-Alien Creature within 20 feet. This Effect cannot be used unless the target is a terrestrial animal.

For the next day, you may issue specific commands to your target which they will be compelled to follow.

Your commands can be complex and multi-layered, though they must still be specific. You cannot make them obviously endanger themselves or violate their instinct for self-preservation. The effects of the command will fade after a day has passed.

  • Your commands must be directly communicated to your target in some way, though this does not require a shared language.
  • If targeting a Sapient target that counts as a Creature due to an Effect, you must succeed a contested Mind roll. You roll at Difficulty 6, and the target rolls at Difficulty 8.
  • Targets with Body ratings higher than 10 require a Charisma + Animals roll resisted by the target’s Body. Kaiju and environment-scale targets are immune.
  • 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.

Exert your Mind and spend an Action. Select a Location within within arm's reach. All Sapient targets within 20 feet are affected. This Effect cannot be used unless the target is looking directly into the device with uncovered eyes. Roll Charisma + Influence at Difficulty 6. The target may resist by rolling Mind at Difficulty 7.

If the contested Outcome is positive, the most recent 1 hour from your target’s memory is either replaced with new memories or forgotten entirely. This is recorded as a Condition. The level of detail and completeness of the alteration depends on your Outcome. If you fail, the target realizes that you are attempting to alter their memories.

The period is chosen either by time (i.e. “last Friday night”) or by reference to a specific event (i.e. “when the murder occurred”).

  • You do not gain mind-reading through this effect, so your ability to alter their memory is limited by your knowledge of what they might know.
  • The target's roll to realize their memories have been altered can be made a maximum of one time per day.
  • 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.

Spend an Action.

You may lock, unlock, and/or open any number of doors, containers, knots, or locks within arm's reach of you. Cannot be used on Alien technology.

If you successfully operate a lock, you may choose to destroy it, rendering it inoperable.

  • Operating some locking mechanisms through this Effect may have a secondary effect, such as a turn-key ignition on an older or cheaper car causing it to start or stop. Note that the locking mechanism itself must satisfy the standard targeting requirements (including line of sight), not just the vehicle.
  • Any mechanism that requires a key, keycard, key fob, or combination may be considered locked, at the GM's discretion. This Effect may be used on doors and containers secured with control panels or other electronic locks, but not computer security systems at large.
  • 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.

Spend an Action and use up this small metallic grenade with pin (unless you succeed on 1d10, Difficulty 7). Make a thrown Attack at a Location within normal Attack range. Roll a single D10 as a critical failure check. If you roll a 1, the Effect fails, and you are hit as it activates immediately at your present location. The target may roll to dodge or Defend, as normal for thrown Attacks. The Attack itself does not deal any Damage beyond the Effect.

If you succeed, all affected targets will be restricted at their location by a physical, tangible binding. They can still move their arms and use Effects, but are reduced to ¼ of their movement speed.

The binding around a target must be destroyed in order for them to break free. Breaking the binding requires a total amount of Damage equal to twice the original Contested Outcome. Damage from multiple attacks is cumulative and stacks linearly.

  • The Attack roll used to activate this Consumable cannot be at a Difficulty lower than 6. You may only use one Consumable per Action.
  • This consumable is destroyed when used and cannot be used again.
  • For entities whose movement could be considered an attack (e.g. a kaiju), the GM may rule that they are merely slowed instead of fully restricted.
  • 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.

Exert your Mind and spend 15 minutes. Select a Living target within arm's reach. This Effect cannot be used unless you can forage for herbs. You must actively and obviously use water, a container, and heat to activate this Effect.

You may cure any Non-Alien diseases, toxins, or poisons afflicting your target even if you have not diagnosed or fully understood it. You may cure diseases or poisons even if they are not treatable through modern medicine. During treatment, the malady you are treating does not progress or cause additional Damage or other effects.

Whenever you cure a disease, poison, or toxin, if it had inflicted any Damage, your target is healed for half that Damage.

  • Without some sort of diagnostic Effect, “fully diagnosing” a disease or poison will always require a roll of some sort, frequently Intellect + Medicine, but the specific roll and difficulty is at GM’s discretion.
  • 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.