Harry Johnson was haunted by the faces of those he had failed, each one etched into his mind like a scar that wouldn’t fade. Driven to the edge, he chose to blind himself, hoping that darkness would bring him the peace he so desperately sought. But in the depths of his self-imposed blindness, he found no escape—only a curse that bound him even more tightly to the world he longed to leave behind.
As his vision faded, his other senses sharpened in ways he could hardly bear. It was as if the spirit of Sukhman Odikhmantievich, a mystic bogatyr from his lineage, had awakened within him, refusing to let him turn away. Sukhman was known for his uncanny ability to see beyond sight, a gift for perceiving the world’s hidden layers. Now, that power had passed to Harry, manifesting as a twisted gift that denied him the relief he had sought in blindness.
At first, Harry didn’t understand what was happening to him. His sense of smell became overwhelming, every scent pulling memories to the surface as if they were embedded in the air. He could smell the faintest traces of sweat, metal, and fear lingering around him, scents that brought back battles he thought he’d left behind. Each breath became a reminder of those he had lost, each scent carrying the echoes of faces and voices he could not forget. It was as if the world around him refused to let him go, holding onto him with the smells of sorrow, blood, and regret.
Soon, he discovered that his hearing had intensified, too. Every sound reached him with brutal clarity, each noise carrying a sense of purpose he couldn’t ignore. He could pick up the faintest whisper from across a room, distinguish the intentions behind movements, and feel the emotions in people’s voices. The softest sigh, the quietest scrape of a blade—everything spoke to him, telling him more than he wanted to know. Silence brought no peace, only a tense anticipation that something would break it, each sound pulling him back to the present, refusing him the respite he had hoped to find.
But the most unsettling discovery came when he began experimenting with music, trying to find solace in the familiar tones of an instrument. It was only then that he realized the full scope of his curse. When he played a note on a flute, a string instrument, or even a drum, he found that the sound reached out into the world, bouncing back with a picture of his surroundings. Each note provided him with a map—a way to “see” without sight, an echolocation that formed a mental image of the space around him. Yet, every time the sound returned, it carried something extra—a ghostly whisper, a faint echo of voices from his past, like the world was forcing him to confront the memories he’d tried to bury.
You gain the following benefits at all times.
Your senses are enhanced in the following way.
Possession of this Power grants the following Battle Scar: Complete Blindness.
Boyle reaches into his backpack, and instantly pulls out and collapses a full-sized & loaded M72 Law... before leveling it, and firing it off, at the school bus.
Spend a Quick Action to activate. You must actively and obviously use a backpack to activate this Effect.
You may withdraw an item from your stash, or add an item that is within arm’s reach to your stash. You may only stash targets which are in your possession, grappled, or otherwise controlled by you.
You may store Objects in your stash, each no larger than something which could fit inside a briefcase (15 liters), and you may store up to 3 things at a time.
You may choose to equip any equipment you withdraw at no additional cost.
Kenneth opens his briefcase, taking out a scalpel. He takes a moment to carve into his face, and slice off the outer layer of skin to it - it cleanly comes off, there is no blood, and this is a practiced motion.
Another face simply replaces the empty spot.
The appearance is a vague facsimile to somebody he has killed in the past. These are, regrettably, organically sourced. Each appearance he dons, is a person he himself has killed.
This is not a gift recieved from The Contracts, this is a baseline power. The character himself is some form of changeling - not adhering to any mainline folklore archetype. Consider this power as the character being an attempted body-double, he is the replacement of somebody, and so he takes their identity.
The removed face will, quickly, cease to exist within the span of a few minutes.
Any identity utilized is an identity assumed to have been, at one point, 'replaced', 'misplaced', or blatantly killed. As this character is an amnesiac with a slowly unraveling history, I might admittedly ass-pull a disguise. Important aliases will be listed on the 'stock' page.
Most importantly of all, Kenneth tries to embody the identity he uses. It would be an insult to the deceased if they are simply forgotten about, and their identities paved over. Kenneth, for the most part, does not remember anything about these people, simply supernaturally embodying them.
Spend a minute.
You become disguised in a manner of your choosing. The disguise lasts for two hours, or you may end it early at will.
The new appearance may have a different sex, age, and race to your own, and you may alter height by up to a foot and your weight by 50%. Your disguise cannot directly mimic an existing person. You cannot alter your clothes. A disguise cannot affect your Attributes or other stats.
You may roll Charisma + Crafts to attempt to make your disguise Beautiful. If your Outcome is 6 or higher, non-Effect Charisma rolls where your good looks could help are rolled at -2 Difficulty. If you fail or botch, you are ugly instead, and non-Effect Charisma rolls are made at +2 Difficulty.
Anyone who witnesses you during this Effect's activation will almost certainly be disturbed to see Kenneth taking a scalpel to his face, cleanly cutting it off, rolling it up, placing it in the briefcase, having his identity simply change before you, and perfectly blending in like nothing happened.
This Gift's Cost is capped at 2 and cannot be increased further.
This Effect ends if you take an Injury or are stunned or incapacitated.
After training extensively for his films Asher has become a crack shot.
You gain the following benefits as long as engaged in combat with firearms.
+2 dice to all firearms rolls.
You also gain the following effects:
On a whim Ricter requests something, and from the open space around him, a weasel-like creature known as a kamaitachi appears in a small swirl of air holding the item before handing it to him, then slowly fading out in a swirl of air seconds later.
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"Today I woke up with a small weasel on my chest, and it wasn't just Kazarisu it was another Kamaitachi but brown and cream colored. After some introductions, she told me she had no name and had only been realized in the world. She mentioned she could 'feel' my power as if I radiated an attractive breeze, so she flew straight to me."
"She held no name, so I named her Saifu meaning 'wallet' or 'purse as she's been shown to whisk away items to some unknown wind pocket whenever she likes. She's even grown to just giving me things I've requested be held in her care, thinking it was the best way to repay me for letting her stay here."
"It's been about two months now, and I, Kazarisu, and Saifu have grown close. So much so that Saifu's started addressing me as 'father', and given that I see Kazarisu as my son, it's just a cute reminder that I have much more than myself to care for. I have a family now, and I'll do what I can to ensure their safety."
Spend an Action.
You may withdraw an item from your stash, or add an item that is within arm’s reach to your stash. You may only stash targets which are in your possession, grappled, or otherwise controlled by you.
You may store Objects in your stash, each no larger than something which could fit inside a briefcase (15 liters), and you may store up to 3 things at a time.
Freya waves her wand just before a flash of light, followed by descending shimmering particles that rain down around her. In the blink of an eye she becomes the creature of choice.
Exert your Mind and spend an Action. You must actively and obviously use Wand with runes to activate this Effect.
You transform into Raven or any region-appropriate medium-sized animal for two hours or until you choose to end the Effect. See the Extended System text for stats.
While transformed, you cannot use any equipment (including Artifacts and Consumables), and you do not have access to any of your Powers. Any equipment you are wearing transforms with you.
Injuries and Wound Level are carried over between forms. However, transforming can never kill you; you merely remain Incapacitated until your Injuries are sufficiently healed.
While transformed, you may speak and use any Influence or Communication Powers you posses.
Possession of this Power grants the following Battle Scar: Shoulder Subluxation.
It's true the mad scientist is one of the greatest minds of our generation, that they can solve any puzzle or riddle. However, no one wants to spend time with them.
You gain the following benefits at all times.
Your Intellect rating is increased by 1. You may Exert your Mind to automatically gain an Outcome of 5 on any roll that uses Intellect (Cannot be used on combat rolls or Power activations).
You also gain the following effects:
By slowing the hands of one of their watches, the time-traveler may interrupt and slow a target's movement through time. The target appears to be moving in slow motion for the duration.
Exert your Mind and spend an Action. Select a Animate target within 20 feet. You must actively and obviously use a watch or clock to activate this Effect. Roll Intellect + Science at Difficulty 7.
If you succeed, the target will suffer a dice penalty equal to the Outcome for the next 2 Rounds. Dice pools may be reduced all the way down to 0 by this penalty. This breaks Concentration.
You may activate this Effect as a Reaction to contest any Action a valid target is taking, reducing their Outcome by your own. Your command has no impact beyond disrupting their Action.
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.
The aquamancer channels a nearby source of water into a flexible whip, which can be used to attack or to defend.
Spend an Action. Select a target within arm's reach. You must actively and obviously use at least a gallon of water to activate this Effect. Roll Dexterity + 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. Armor is fully effective against this Damage.
You may use this Effect to Defend or Clash in Combat, including against ranged attacks such as firearms.
This Gift's Cost is capped at 2 and cannot be increased further.
The survivalist spends a moment setting up a makeshift booby trap. The tripwires and pressure plates are so expertly hidden, they can only be noticed by those who have fallen victim to them before.
The victim is hit with a tiny curare dart. Pain wracks their body as a potent neurotoxin spreads through their veins.
Exert your Mind and spend 30 seconds to trap a region of any shape that contains your current location and fits entirely within 45 feet. This trap lasts one day or until triggered or disarmed. You must use up a dart in order to activate this Effect. Roll Intellect + Survival Difficulty 6.
The trap looks like a tripwire, a pressure plate, or a hidden switch. Only those who have seen this trap before can identify it as a trap. Anyone who is aware of the trap may intuitively avoid, trigger, or destroy it.
Any Living target that enters the chosen region will trigger the trap. The target may contest by rolling Body, Difficulty 6.
If the contested Outcome is positive, the target takes that much Damage plus 4. The target's material Armor is completely ignored.
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.
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.