Through years of study, Rupert has developed a keen understanding of patterns in written or otherwise non-verbal forms of communication. He is able to discern the meaning hidden within any text, image, message, etc that he views.
Exert your Mind and spend an Action. This Effect cannot be used unless the relevant communication is written down or recorded visually in some way.
You may understand and communicate to Creatures and humans as if you are fluent in a relevant language for the next hour.
This also includes understanding any recorded communications from the relevant targets, including writings, scent trails, etc.
The rebellion in your heart has awakened a new persona.
You gain the following benefits at all times.
You are permanently and visibly transformed: Awakened Persona. You are considered to be a Sapient, Living being when targeted. Your Dexterity is increased by 1, your Perception is increased by 1, and your Intellect is increased by 1.
The Severity of any Injury caused by Ice is increased by 2.
Mikula Selyaninovich, the legendary bogatyr, was known for his unparalleled strength, not just of body but of presence. His very being carried the weight of the earth itself, and those who stood before him felt as if they were being crushed under an invisible force. Harry Johnson, striving to embody this immense power, taps into the legacy of Mikula when he unleashes his โCrushing Gaze.โ
When Harry activates this power, itโs as though he draws upon the ancient strength of Mikula, whose connection to the earth and its unyielding force was unmatched. The air around Harry becomes dense, heavy with a primal energy that can be felt even by those unaware of its source. Itโs not something seen but something sensedโa deep, instinctual recognition that the man before them carries within him the spirit of an unstoppable force.
For those who meet Harryโs gaze, the experience is overwhelming. They are suddenly gripped by the same crushing pressure that Mikulaโs enemies must have felt, as if the very ground beneath them is pulling them down, dragging them into the depths of the earth. Their mind buckles under this invisible weight, assaulted by the sheer power of Harryโs presence, which echoes the ancient bogatyrโs legendary might.
This is not just fearโitโs a confrontation with the raw, unrelenting power that Mikula embodied. The target feels their own insignificance in the face of such strength, a mental and spiritual blow that leaves them shaken to their core. Even after the moment passes, the lingering sense of dread remains, as if they have glimpsed the true depth of Harryโs potential to embody the legendary bogatyr.
Exert your Mind and spend an Action. Select a Sapient or Creature target within 20 feet. Roll Brawn + Influence Difficulty 6. Affected targets may resist by rolling Mind at Difficulty 7. If they are incapacitated or unconscious, they fail automatically.
If the Contested Outcome is positive, the target loses that much Source. Once their Source is depleted, excess Outcome is applied as Mind Damage. If you deal at least 3 Mind damage, the target gains a Trauma of the GM's choice.
This Trauma may be removed by Effects or mundane therapy, as normal. Affected targets are aware that they are being attacked and can generally tell who did it.
Thalassic Aegis manifests as an inexplicable protective phenomenon surrounding Marina. This ability creates a barrier of water that responds to threats with uncanny timing and precision.
Moments before an attack connects, ambient moisture coalesces or water seemingly materializes from nowhere. The aqueous shield adapts to each threat: hardening into ice to deflect blades, dispersing into mist to slow projectiles, or erupting in pressurized jets to alter the trajectory of incoming strikes.
The water's form shifts fluidly between states - liquid, solid, and vapor - each transformation accompanied by a faint, otherworldly shimmer. As Marina's experiences accumulate, Thalassic Aegis appears to grow more effective, occasionally even lashing out at attackers with tentacle-like water whips or sudden steam explosions.
Marina remains puzzled by the true nature and origin of this power. It feels instinctual, like an extension of her connection to the sea, yet carries hints of something vaster and more mysterious. Each activation leaves her with fleeting impressions of depths unexplored and secrets yet to be fathomed in the world's oceans.
You gain the following benefits at all times.
You have 3 Armor, which reduces incoming Damage. Armor from multiple sources does not stack. This Armor cannot be circumvented with Called Shots.
When he is trying to find new villains to beat up and prove that he is a true hero some heroes have to do some bad things to stop the overall evil. When he uses this power his eyes glow red and he smirks very suspiciously. He gets the intuition that the target is going to do something so heinous that only he can stop it!
Exert your Mind and spend a minute. Select a Sapient target within 20 feet. Make a Trauma roll when you activate this Effect. At the end of your investigation, roll Brawn + Alertness at Difficulty 6.
You learn all the following information about your target:
The quality and specificity of information gained depends on your Outcome.
This Effect is not obvious, and the only sign you are using an Effect is His eyes glow gold and he gets a very suspicious smirk on his face. If someone suspects that an Effect was used, they must roll Perception + Alertness, Difficulty 8 to pick up on your Tell.
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. Exhaustionโs penalty and duration stacks with multiple activations.
Isaac claps his hands, and an illusion, one without substance, forms for all parties involved in the deal. It takes the appearance of the interior of a private railway car. Isaac will stand by the table and engage a member of the opposing force in a negotiation.
When the negotiation ends, hands are shaken, and the illusion ends.
The illusion takes the appearance of the private railway car of Ferdinand Foch, the Marshal of France during WW1, and is where the armistice was signed between the two sides. For a man tired of war, it was a fitting enough symbol.
You may make an oath with a physically-present, Sapient target. Communicate the oath's terms to the target, including the requirements and penalties for each participant. If all agree to the terms, you must take a Severity-1 Injury and all participants must Shake Hands to seal the deal.
Record the oath as a Condition. If a party breaks the oath, the Condition ends and they suffer the oath's penalty.
When crafting your oath, you may incorporate any of the following penalties:
The target cannot be compelled to agree via a direct threat of violence, another Effect, or another oath. If you would like to use clever wording to mislead the target, you must succeed a contested Intellect + (Culture or Influence) roll.
Whenever a participant breaks the oath, you are immediately made aware and may even witness the act as if standing nearby.
It is obvious to your target that the oath you are proposing will be supernaturally enforced.
Finally, the girls are fusing the way theyโve wanted to since they began Contracting, three and a half years ago. It took Graceโs left eye for them to try this, but the girls are now able to spend a week focusing their energy towards a Battle Scarred area and permanently replacing it with The Spiritโs ghostly flesh. The replaced chunks, eyes, arms, whatever may come, appear just as The Spiritโs: bluish and semi-transparent, but now function just as the respective physical flesh would.
You gain the following benefits at all times.
Any Injury you receive heals quickly, reducing its Severity by one level every 6 hours. Any Injuries you receive while this Effect is active do not deteriorate over time. However, any Battle Scars caused by such an Injury will remain unless it is Properly Stabilized as normal.
All Injuries you receive are considered Properly Stabilized. You may also choose to heal any Battle Scar on yourself that may not have been caused by an Injury. Doing so takes one day, and the Battle Scar affects you fully until that time.
Possession of this Power grants the following Battle Scar: any scars that heal this way leave the flesh in that area bluish and semi-transparent, causing you to be viewed as a freak by most people who see you.
The mutant has left humanity behind. They're are muted to the core, with glowing blue blood and a hunched posture that makes them more suited for running on all fours than using equipment and vehicles.
You gain the following benefits at all times.
You are permanently and visibly transformed: you have blue, bioluminescent blood and a hunched posture adapted to running on all fours. You are considered to be a Sapient, Living Creature when targeted. Your Dexterity is increased by 1.
Your body is adapted to sprinting. You receive +3 dice on non-attack rolls related to sprinting.
Any Animate being that consumes or is injected with your bodily fluids receives a Severity-1 Injury. Every Round, they must roll Body Difficulty 9. If they fail, the Injury worsens by 1 Severity. If they succeed, the Injury stops worsening.
You cannot be mistaken for a normal human. You cannot always use standard human clothes, equipment, vehicles, and facilities, and when you can, you suffer an increased Difficulty.
You cannot ignore or decrease the effects of Stress for any Self-Control rolls you make.
No terrestrial animal dares defy the will of the beastmaster. The beastmaster exerts their dominance over an animal by locking eyes and giving a primal cry. The creature immediately becomes docile and eager to please.
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.
Through years of practice, the mobster is able to shatter someone's kneecap without much effort.
Spend an Action. Select a Living or Animate target within arm's reach. You must actively and obviously use a melee weapon to activate this Effect. Roll Brawn + Melee at Difficulty 6. The target may roll Body, -2 dice at Difficulty 7, as a Free Action to resist.
If you succeed, the target receives a new Battle Scar of your choosing, limited by the contested Outcome:
All alterations you make must damage the target's knees.
This Gift cannot have more than 3 Drawbacks, and its Gift Cost is capped at 2.
The aquamancer is an adept swimmer and moves with agility in or out of the water.
You gain the following benefits at all times.
You may move easily and without a roll in any of the following situations.