Gifts

A Contractor who fulfils a Contract receives a Gift. A Gift can be used to acquire a new Power or improve an existing Power.

Active and Passive Powers

All Powers are either Passive or Active. Passive Powers are always in effect. Active Powers, on the other hand, must be activated.

Using an Active Power requires an action. When using Powers, multiple actions are possible as normal.

Tiers

Powers are classified by Tier: Novice, Seasoned, Veteran, or Harbinger. Novices can only receive Novice Powers. Seasoned Contractors can receive Seasoned Powers or below; Veterans can receive Veteran Powers or below; and Harbingers can receive Harbinger Powers or below.

Severity

A highly specialized Power, restricted to one specific function, can effectively act as one Tier higher. A highly specialized Novice Power, for example, has a Severity of Seasoned. Influence Powers are a good example of this.

A Power of this nature will be subsumed if the related higher-Tier Power is taken. For example, a Novice Influence Power would be subsumed by Subjugation, the related Seasoned Power. Thus, these Powers should be taken with caution.

Acquiring and Improving Powers

A Gift can be used to acquire a new Power or improve an existing Power.

If you use a Gift to acquire a new Power of your Tier, you receive the Power and also receive 1 Gift Point to spend improving it. If you use a Gift to improve an existing Power of your Tier, you receive 1 Gift Point to spend improving it.

A Seasoned Contractor who uses a Gift to acquire or improve a Novice Power receives 2 Gift Points to invest in that Power.

A Veteran who uses a Gift to acquire or improve a Seasoned Power receives 2 Gift Points to invest in that Power. A Veteran who acquires or improves a Novice Power receives 3 Gift Points to invest in that Power.

A Harbinger who uses a Gift to acquire or improve a Veteran Power receives 2 Gift Points to invest in that Power. A Harbinger who acquires or improves a Seasoned Power receives 3 points to invest in that Power; a Harbinger who acquires or improves a Novice Power receives 4 points to invest in that Power.

An Enhancement is a special quality that enhances or modifies a Power. Adding an Enhancement to a Power costs 1 Gift Point.

Increasing one parameter (such as Range or Duration) by 1 level costs 1 Gift Point.

Gift Points cannot be saved; they must be spent immediately. It is never possible to divide your Gift Points between multiple Powers; all must be spent on the same Power.

Upgrading Powers

Some Powers can be upgraded to a higher Tier. When a Power is upgraded to a higher Tier, Gift Points spent on it must be recalculated. This will often result in a decrease in the total number of Gift Points available for that Power. The player may allocate these points in any way desired, as if the Power had just been received. (Of course, all points must still be allocated to the same Power. Gift Points can never be shifted to a different Power.) The character need not end up with the same Enhancements; Enhancements previously possessed may be dropped entirely if desired. This revision represents the character's increasing mastery in that Power with the advancement to the higher Tier.

Flaws

A Power can be taken with one or more Flaws. Each Flaw provides 1 extra Gift Point to invest in the Power. A Flaw can be removed from one Power at a cost of 1 Gift Point. Some Flaws are permanent. Permanent Flaws cannot be removed.

A Flaw affects all Enhancements to the Power as well as the Power itself.

If you find a way to mitigate a Flaw, you no longer have the Flaw and it must be removed from your character sheet. The Gift Point it provided must also be removed from your character sheet, of course.

The purpose of Flaws is to provide a way to customize Powers to your character concept, and to make your character more interesting. A Flaw can only be taken if, in the GM’s sole judgement, it a) is appropriate to your Concept and b) makes your character more interesting. Flaws should not be taken just to get more Gift Points.

It is not the intent of the system for characters to have large numbers of Flaws. Most characters have only a few Flaws, or none. A character with numerous Flaws is likely to be distracting rather than interesting, so GM’s should be cautious about approving Flaws.

It is the player’s responsibility to remember Flaws and apply them when relevant. If you find yourself forgetting Flaws, your character is too complicated and needs to be simplified.

Items

It is possible to receive an Item as a Gift. Taking a Power in the form of an Item is considered a Flaw. Any Power can be taken as an Item. Additional Powers and Enhancements can be invested in an Item as normal; an Item can have a single Power or (with the investment of additional Gifts) multiple Powers.

Item is a Permanent Flaw; it cannot be removed.

Items can be used by anyone; it is not possible to prevent other people from using your Item. Items received as Gifts by Sorcerers have spell components, and those received as Gifts by Psychics have Psychic Tells, but this does not prevent others from using them. It is entirely possible for an Item to be lost or stolen.

The content of this page is licensed under the MIT/Expat License.