Zero was born suspicious. He came into the world squinting at the doctor like the man owed him money, and it’s only gotten worse from there. Every twitch, every hesitation, every half-second delay in someone’s response—it all feeds into the ever-spinning gears of Zero’s mind. This isn’t just paranoia; it’s a razor-sharp instinct honed by experience and necessity. Zero notices what others dismiss—the too-clean alley in a dirty neighborhood, the nervous twitch of a dealer whose product’s been cut wrong, the way a room’s energy shifts just before someone pulls a gun. When he walks into a place, he clocks every exit, every blind spot, every potential weapon. He knows when he’s being watched. More importantly, he knows when he’s being set up. Maybe it’s supernatural. Maybe he’s just seen too much. But whatever it is, when Zero mutters, “I don’t like this, not one bit,” smart people listen. The dumb ones? Well, they find out why he was right the hard way.
You gain the following benefits at all times.
Your Perception rating is increased by 1. You may Exert your Mind to automatically gain an Outcome of 5 on any roll that uses Perception (Cannot be used on combat rolls or Power activations).
You also gain the following effects:
A lot of animal communication is soundless, and most of that is through movement and posture. I've learned to understand that and make the appropriate motions in return. That much is obvious to anyone's eyes, though they may not realize that I intuitively understand the sounds animals make as well (which are easier to hear clearly, now that my hearing range is extended). When communicating to them I make as many of the right sounds in their speech as I can: whistling to a bird, meowing to a cat, chittering to a squirrel, and so on. They also seem to pick up on human language, at least when I say it, but it's like someone speaking with an accent. I prefer to only use human speech if I can't make the right sound, both for clarity and also to avoid humans overhearing and understanding my side of the conversation.
Anyhow, they get me and I get them, but if I take the form of a similar enough animal (or the same kind) then they understand me flawlessly. We can talk easier then, and also not be understood by humans when we do.
Some legends talk about humans learning the languages of animals, often from a mystical source like tasting dragon blood, but also as simple as being taught bird tongue by a bird. How did this ability spontaneously manifest? Honestly, it's through an inherent connection with animals that comes about from latent and innate shapeshifting abilities. It's in the blood, metaphorically anyway.
You gain the following benefits at all times.
You may understand and communicate to terrestrial animal as if you are fluent in a relevant language.
Arthur Annuler is wreathed in a black mist, then disappears for a short amount of time into the gap between realities. The spot he disappeared from leaves an imprint of black mist behind. Arthur is fully capable of moving in the gap between realities.
Exert your Mind and spend an Action to activate.
You phase out of reality for 3 Rounds. During this time, you cannot perceive or affect the outside world but may take mental and self-targeting Actions. Nothing can interact with you in any way.
You leave An imprint of black mist in the shape of Arthur behind at your location in the real world when you use this effect.
The imperial aura of Imperator Augustus Constantine the Great seeps out of him. Granting him extraordinary charisma.
You gain the following benefits as long as you have your My great mustache..
Your Charisma rating is increased by 1. You may Exert your Mind to automatically gain an Outcome of 5 on any roll that uses Charisma (Cannot be used on combat rolls or Power activations).
If you are witnessed actively using this Effect, whoever sees it can make a Perception + Alertness roll at Difficulty 6. A complete success reveals the source of your power.
You also gain the following effects:
People always keep whining and complaining and crying over their injuries. "My leg!" "I can't feel my hands!" "My fingers, oh God!"
Get a grip! Jeez...
I've been thinking of uh just... I give em the typical assurances, and then I... tell em! Spout out some medical jargon and tell em that it'll heal in just a sec! Looking em in the eye makes them wanna believe me... almost.
And it does! Injuries seem to have never happened in the first place! One moment it was broken, the next... poof! Like magic. Was your arm even broken in the first place? I mean... it seems to work; you can feel your limbs working, you can stretch your fingers normally. It feels fine... but something feels off.
Don't let the doubt fester. Don't lie, yourself. Honesty is the best policy, and it's easier to believe in a lie when you trust what you say to be true. Otherwise, the illusion will shatter.
Uhhh we gaslight reality itself, basically.
Exert your Mind and spend a minute. Select a Living target within arm's reach. You cannot target yourself. Select a Battle Scar on your target to treat.
The treated Battle Scar heals as you finish activating this Effect. If used on a Battle Scar caused by an Unstabilized Injury, that Injury is Stabilized.
Your patient is required to not tell a direct lie (i.e. lying by omission and technical truths are fine) for the next month. If they violate this rule, your treatment is immediately reversed.
This Effect is not obvious, and the only sign you are using an Effect is a faint, yellow glimmer in your eye. If someone suspects that an Effect was used, they must roll Perception + Alertness, Difficulty 8 to pick up on your Tell.
Andromeda selects her target and drinks an entire glass of milk. For the target, the world around them grows dark and the milky way galaxy shines above them. It's a beautiful, comforting silence, the perfect environment for stargazing until you fall asleep. Wouldn't it be nice to just... Lie down and watch for a while before drifting off?
Exert your Mind and spend an Action. Select a Living target within 30 feet. You must use up enough milk to fill a glass in order to activate this Effect. Roll Perception + Occult at Difficulty 6. Affected targets may resist by rolling Mind at Difficulty 6.
If you succeed, your target becomes drowsy for the next 30 seconds, during which time they suffer an additional -2 dice Penalty to all Actions. At the end of their drowsiness, they fall asleep for Contested Outcome x 3 minutes.
Sleeping targets will not prematurely wake up on their own, but may still be woken up by sudden loud noises, being jarred or splashed with water, taking Damage, or similar rousing events. They will also awaken before dying of hunger, thirst, or suffocation. Drowsy targets always fall asleep, regardless of what happens while they are drowsy.
When an affected target wakes up, they remain drowsy for the next minute, and suffer a -3 dice penalty. If an affected target successfully resists being put to sleep, they will still become drowsy for the next minute, and will suffer the same penalty.
The toon shouts a catchphrase, strikes a pose, and then zips away at a high speed, leaving a cloud of dust behind. While moving, they look like a blur.
Exert your Mind and spend an Action.
Lasts 1 minute. Whenever you use your Movement, after all other calculations, the distance you may travel is doubled.
The Toon performs some sort of cartoonish act of violence. This may be handing someone a bomb, hitting someone with a cartoon mallet, burping a burp that is so noxious it melts flesh, or anything else as long as it is cartoonish.
The attack is more of a throwaway gag than a plot element, so any props or properties of the attack are incidental and disappear immediately. Animated mallets evaporate in a puff of smoke, fire does not spread, and electricity cannot power devices.
Exert your Mind and spend an Action. Select a target within 45 feet. Roll Charisma + Performance 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.
The ninja is a master of a wide variety of martial weapons. They kill quickly and quietly.
You gain the following benefits as long as you are engaged in combat with melee ninja weapons.
+2 dice to all rolls with melee ninja weapons. You may Defend against firearm attacks from any range using melee ninja weapons.
You also gain the following effects:
Once the werewolf tastes the blood of their prey, there's no escape. Those injured by the beast's claws and teeth are marked with its saliva. Their wounds smell strongly of blood, and it's only a matter of time before the werewolf returns with a vengeance to finish the kill.
This Effect activates whenever a target you have injured with your teeth or claws escapes the range of your unarmed attacks. It does not require an Action or Exertion. Select a target within arm's reach. Your target should be intuitively based on the triggering event. This Effect cannot be used unless the target is alive and bleeds.
Your target is marked with a throbbing wound that smells strongly of blood. The mark can only be discovered with a deep medical inspection or Effect. Removal inflicts a Severity 1 Injury on the target.
You are aware of the marked target's direction and distance from you. This lasts for the next month, or until either the mark is removed, or you choose to end the Effect. You can have up to 1 mark active.
You receive +2 dice to any rolls made against a marked target.
The mobster's been through tougher scrapes than this. A few cuts and bruises won't stop them.
You gain the following benefits at all times.
Your Stress from Injuries is reduced to 0. Does not reduce Stress from Mind Damage.