[Mutants & Masterminds] A World Less Magical But No Less Fantastic

[Davies]

I would need to know a LOT more than I do about the history and politics of German reunification before I said anything more substantive on the subject, and that's a level of research that can't really be justified by this project. I suspect that the 1990 East German federal election played out slightly differently, and that the Treaty on the Final Settlement With Respect to Germany took a slightly different form. How much the Pythons -- real ones, not wannabes like the Brotherhood -- influenced the direction things took is hard to say, but that they did do so is fairly clear.

 

[Voltron64]

I would need to know a LOT more than I do about the history and politics of German reunification before I said anything more substantive on the subject, and that's a level of research that can't really be justified by this project. I suspect that the 1990 East German federal election played out slightly differently, and that the Treaty on the Final Settlement With Respect to Germany took a slightly different form. How much the Pythons -- real ones, not wannabes like the Brotherhood -- influenced the direction things took is hard to say, but that they did do so is fairly clear.

Hey, that's a good answer as any to me and I was already satisfied with what you said before.

And let's face it, the Python Wars were the closest thing this setting had to World War 3 and the effects the Insurgency had on the world are immeasurable. There's a reason all the remaining known tinpot dictators are superpowers....

 

[Davies]

Symphony

The entity known as Symphony presents as a young woman in her early to mid-teens, extremely pale and fair-haired, but not necessarily of Caucasian ancestry. However, her appearance has not changed since she was first encountered in New York City by a pair of freelance paranormal investigators in 1977. Her memories of how long she has existed in her current state are mudded and confused, but nonetheless clearer than any memories of any previous existence.

Symphony believes that she's a ghost, though she has no memories of dying. However, every genuine haunting that has been documented since the parapsychological revolution of the 1950s has been much more geographically limited in comparison to her, as well as behaving with much less self-awareness. The current theory concerning her is that she is a human being whose superpowers left her invisible and intangible, causing her to develop the belief that she was a ghost, and suffered a psychotic break that left her incapable of returning to a tangible form.

A minority theory is that Symphony is a haunting that has gained a greater degree of independence and self-awareness thanks to the exercise of her primary psychic ability, which she refers to as 'melding'. This ability allows her to essentially seize control of another human (or animal) psyche, remotely operating it. This requires her full concentration, and she does not normally visually manifest while it is active. This has caused some observers to believe that she 'inhabits' the creatures with which she melds, but this does not appear to be the case.

Despite the violation of the individual's autonomy that this ability represents, Symphony has only ever been documented as using it to assist others, most often her targets themselves. She has notably melded with abuse victims and compelled them to follow through on plans to leave their abusers, taking them to safe places while melded, as well as covert crime fighting that often results in her taking control of criminals and subtly interfering with their activities. Further, she believes that every individual with whom she has ever melded has left a permanent impression on her own psyche, and frequently demonstrates unusual skills that she may have acquired in this fashion. She views her psyche as a composition of these 'notes' taken from many different minds -- hence her sobriquet.

While she has been encountered throughout the United States, Canada and Mexico, going wherever her whims take her, she apparently views New York as 'home'. In the current era, she often haunts the lower floors of Argus' headquarters, and provided useful help to the agency and its allies during the conflict with Dracula. She has often encountered Maureen Summerisle in their respective journeys, and is one of the few seemingly supernatural entities that the hunter doesn't consider to be a monster.

Symphony -- PL 9

Abilities:
STR -- (0) | STA -- (0) | AGL 3 | DEX 2 | FGT 6 | INT 1 | AWE 2 | PRE 2

Powers:
'Melding': Perception Range Cumulative Concentration Affliction 9 (Resisted & Overcome by Will; Dazed, Compelled, Controlled), Subtle - 46 points
Phantasm: Concealment 10, Materializing; Flight 8, Distracting; Immunity 30 (Fortitude); Permanent Insubstantial 4; Protection 9 - 79 points
Rematerializes: Regeneration 1 (natural healing) - 1 point

Advantages:
Fearless 2, Improved Initiative, Jack-of-all-Trades, Set-up, Taunt, Well-informed

Skills:
Deception 6 (+8), Expertise: Magic (INT-based) 6 (+7), Investigation 5 (+6), Perception 7 (+9), Persuasion 4 (+6), Stealth 6 (+9).

Offense:
Initiative +7
Unarmed +6 (Close Damage based on possessed subject's Strength)
Possession -- (Perception Range Will 9)

Defense:
Dodge 9, Parry 9, Fortitude --, Toughness 9, Will 9

Totals:
Abilities 12 + Powers 130 + Advantages 7 + Skills 17 + Defenses 16 = 173 points

Complications:
Doing Good--Motivation. Mischievous. Obviously Inhuman (semi-transparent even when visible.)

Author's Notes: The parenthetical values for Strength and Stamina should be used if her Phantasm power is ever nullified.

 

[Davies]

Union

While the events of 2007 were the end of many groups of would-be superheroes across the world, they were somewhat ironically also the start of at least one more. Thrown together by the fact that people were trying to kill them, self-proclaimed 'hyper-athlete' Angelo Massoli, empathic investigator Joyce Hays, Hyperbrain inventor Tasha Lafayette, and speedster Stewart Johnson joined forces for mutual self-defense, and continued to cooperate in the coup's aftermath. Based out of Greenwood, Mississippi and active throughout the surrounding micropolitan area, they dubbed themselves the No-Brand Heroes. If they never had the sort of noteworthy achievements that other groups have enjoyed, they were never an embarrassment, either.

Since 2011, however, appearances by the members of the No-Brand Heroes have been increasingly few, far between, and also brief. It seems fairly likely that their activities have been curtailed by the appearance of another superhero in the Greenwood area, a somewhat mysterious 'Paragon-type' who goes by the name 'Union'. There has never been any documented conflict -- or any known contact of any sort -- been Union and the No-Brand Heroes, but that might simply be due to the fact that they recognize that he is significantly more powerful than they are, an opponent that would probably be beyond them, as well as one who doesn't seem to be doing anyone any harm. As they themselves did, Union has made himself available to the Greenwood civic government whenever it requests his assistance, while also independently assisting people as best he can.

Argus is somewhat concerned about Union, mostly due to the fact that ten years of investigation have been unable to turn up any sign that the hero has any sort of civilian life, much less a secret identity. It is strongly suspected that Union, like Paragon, is an extraterrestrial, but as he has not been nearly as forthcoming about his origins (or anything else) there is understandable concern that his motives may not be nearly as pure. One popular theory is that Union has been able to hide his identity through the use of undocumented shape-changing abilities, and that he killed the No-Brand Heroes and occasionally poses as them.

Completely wrong, of course. In 2011, while taking a vacation in the Theodore Roosevelt National Wildlife Refuge Complex, the members of the No-Brand Heroes chanced to witness the landing of what they took to be a meteorite, but quickly discovered to be a humanoid of extraterrestrial origin. They attempted to assist the badly wounded visitor, but were unable to help him before the alien apparently died and disintegrated into dust, which dispersed onto all four of them. A moment later, the No-Brand Heroes felt a strange compulsion to hold each other's hands; having done so, they physically and psychically merged into the being whom they would dub 'Union'.

As Union possesses greater physical power than any of the members of the group, they have since generally preferred to engage in their activities while using his form. Union's mind appears to be a synthesis of all four of the members, along with an additional mentality they have dubbed 'the Silent Partner' which seems to be the entity who decides when they unite into a single entity and when they divide. No attempt to communicate with the Silent Partner has produced any results. Regardless, at any given time Union might express some aspect of his component personalities, producing some confusion when those personalities contradict each other.

Union -- PL 12

Abilities:
STR 12 | STA 14 | AGL 5 | DEX 3 | FGT 7 | INT 2 | AWE 3 | PRE 3

Powers:
Gestalt: Heroic Summon 6, Continuous, General Type, Horde, Multiple Minions 2, Limitation (main character ceases to exist) - 42 points
Invulnerability: Immunity 10 (Life Support); Impervious Toughness 12 - 22 points
Super-Awareness: Senses 6 (extended vision, low-light vision, acute extended radius mental awareness) - 6 points
Super-Speed: Enhanced Advantages 7 (Close Attack 3, Improved Initiative 3, Move-by Action); Enhanced Defenses 6 (Dodge 3, Parry 3); Flight 9 (1,000 MPH); Quickness 6 - 37 points
Super-Strength: Enhanced Strength 3, Limited to Lifting (800 tons) - 1 point

Advantages:
Agile Feint, Close Attack 3, Beginner's Luck, Defensive Attack, Improved Initiative 4, Move-by Action Power Attack.

Skills:
Close Combat: Unarmed 2 (+9), Expertise: Science 7 (+9), Insight 6 (+10), Investigation 7 (+9), Perception 8 (+11), Persuasion 8 (+11), Ranged Combat: Throwing 4 (+9).

Offense:
Initiative +21
Unarmed +12 (Close Damage 12)

Defense:
Dodge 8/5, Parry 10/7, Fortitude 14, Toughness 14, Will 10

Totals:
Abilities 98 + Powers 102 + Advantages 5 + Skills 21 + Defenses 7 = 239 points

Complications:
Doing Good--Motivation. Secret (identity, alien nature.) Unstable Personality.

Angelo Massoli - PL 6

Abilities:
STR 4 | STA 4 | AGL 4 | DEX 4 | FGT 6 | INT 1 | AWE 1 | PRE 1

Advantages:
Accurate Attack, Agile Feint, All-out Attack, Chokehold, Defensive Attack, Diehard, Fast Grab, Improved Grab, Improved Hold, Power Attack, Takedown Attack.

Skills:
Acrobatics 6 (+10), Athletics 6 (+10), Close Combat: Unarmed 2 (+8), Expertise: Popular Culture 6 (+7), Intimidation 8 (+9), Perception 6 (+7), Ranged Combat: Throwing 4 (+8).

Offense:
Initiative +5
Unarmed +8 (Close Damage 4)

Defense:
Dodge 7, Parry 8, Fortitude 6, Toughness 4, Will 4

Totals:
Abilities 50 + Advantages 11 + Skills 17 + Defenses 12 = 90 points

Complications:
Achievement--Motivation. Intolerance (weakness.) Secret Identity.

Joyce Hays -- PL 6

Abilities:
STR 1 | STA 1 | AGL 2 | DEX 2 | FGT 2 | INT 2 | AWE 6 | PRE 2

Powers:
Empathy: Effortless Mind Reading 6, Limited to emotions - 12 points
Mental Awareness: Senses 4 (acute extended radius mental awareness) - 4 points

Advantages:
Attractive, Defensive Attack, Defensive Roll 2, Fascinate (Persuasion), Leadership, Teamwork

Skills:
Close Combat: Unarmed 4 (+6), Deception 4 (+6), Expertise: Streetwise 7 (+9), Insight 5 (+11), Perception 2 (+8), Persuasion 5 (+7), Stealth 3 (+5)

Offense:
Initiative +2
Unarmed +6 (Close Damage 1)

Defense:
Dodge 6, Parry 6, Fortitude 3, Toughness 6/1, Will 9

Totals:
Abilities 40 + Powers 16 + Advantages 7 + Skills 14 + Defenses 13 = 90 points

Complications:
Responsibility--Motivation. Pacifism. Secret Identity.

Tasha Lafayette - PL 6

Abilities:
STR 0 | STA 1 | AGL 2 | DEX 2 | FGT 2 | INT 6 | AWE 3 | PRE 1

Powers:
Goggles: Senses 2 (extended vision, low-light vision); Removable (-0 points) - 2 points
Jet Pack: Flight 5 (60 MPH); Removable (-2 points) - 8 points

Advantages:
Beginner’s Luck, Defensive Roll 2, Equipment 5, Improved Initiative, Improvised Tools, Inspire, Inventor, Skill Mastery (Technology)

Equipment:
Blaster (Ranged Damage 5) and 15 points of equipment as needed

Skills:
Expertise: Science 5 (+11), Insight 4 (+7), Investigation 4 (+10), Technology 5 (+11), Perception 5 (+8), Ranged Combat: Blaster 5 (+7), Sleight of Hand 6 (+8), Vehicles 4 (+6).

Offense:
Initiative +6
Unarmed +2 (Close Damage 0)
Blaster +7 (Ranged Damage 5)

Defense:
Dodge 6, Parry 6, Fortitude 3, Toughness 6/1, Will 7

Totals:
Abilities 34 + Powers 10 + Advantages 13 + Skills 19 + Defenses 14 = 90 points

Complications:
Discovery--Motivation. Impatience. Secret Identity.

Stewart Johnson - PL 6

Abilities:
STR 1 | STA 2 | AGL 4 | DEX 2 | FGT 4 | INT 0 | AWE 1 | PRE 2

Powers:
Fast Blow: Strength-based Damage 3 - 3 points
Fast Healing: Regeneration 5 - 5 points
Super-Speed: Enhanced Advantages 7 (Defensive Roll, Evasion, Improved Initiative 3, Instant Up, Move-by Action); Enhanced Defenses 8 (Dodge 4, Parry 4); Quickness 7; Speed 7 (250 MPH) - 29 points

Advantages:
Defensive Roll, Evasion 2, Improved Disarm, Improved Initiative 3, Instant Up, Move-by Action, Redirect

Skills:
Athletics 6 (+7), Close Combat: Unarmed 4 (+8), Deception 4 (+6), Expertise: Popular Culture 4 (+4), Perception 4 (+5)

Offense:
Initiative +20
Unarmed +8 (Close Damage 4)

Defense:
Dodge 8/4, Parry 8/4, Fortitude 5, Toughness 4/2, Will 6

Totals:
Abilities 32 + Powers 38 + Advantages 2 + Skills 11 + Defense 8 = 90 points

Complication:
Thrills--Motivation. Secret Identity. Soft Touch.

 

[Davies]

Curveball

Elliot Ross thought of himself as a simple man. He worked hard at his clerical job at one of New York's busiest law firms, and he played hard after the day's work was done, especially enjoying a small sideline as a pool shark, earning just enough to keep paying the rent on his (illegally) sublet apartment. He also engaged in a bit of amateur boxing, mostly to keep in shape but occasionally to let off a bit of steam. He was one of countless people whose lives had never, and likely would never, be touched by the influence of the superpowered.

In 2013, however, everything changed. He was contacted by the police about reports of performance enhancing drugs being used at a gym where he was a member. Elliot had heard rumors about this, but had never sought out more information as he was happy with his performance already. The investigating officers asked him to assist their investigations while wearing a wire. Against the advice of his attorney, Elliot agreed to help, as he was troubled by what he'd been told.

The investigation was a botch from the very beginning. Elliot was made almost immediately, and taken prisoner by the scientists who were manufacturing the drug. They decided to punish his temerity by using him as a test subject, and injected an overdose of a new version of their substance right into his eyes. The police officers who were supposed to be protecting him had abandoned him to his fate once they'd realized the jig was up. When he awakened in the hospital, a few days later, he found that he had been blinded by the experiment ...

... except not really. His vision was now a confusing negative image -- light, especially daylight, registered as a black void in his vision, but he could see somewhat normally in areas of shadows and darkness. Learning how to see in this new manner took most of a year, in which Elliot also learned that his reflexes had also been greatly enhanced by the overdose. Whether he liked it or not, he was a superpower, now, and while he was left with contempt for the police by his experiences, he wasn't interested in using these dubious gifts for the purposes of crime.

In 2016, then, he made his debut as Curveball, the acrobatic protector of New York's Garment District, using a specially designed club and some throwing balls. He's mostly active at night, since his powers fade in daylight, for some reason. His most frequent enemies are agents of Tarot, who were tangentially involved in his origin, but he has also frequently crossed paths with Dyamick when the latter and his lemans operate in New York. Elliot Ross still lives in his old apartment, with the rent now covered by his medical benefits payments, but is no longer employed nor associated with his old friends. All this has made him something of a cold and bitter man, but he tries not to express such sentiments while engaged in his crimefighting. It doesn't always work.

Curveball -- PL 8

Abilities:
STR 2 | STA 3 | AGL 7/3 | DEX 5/1 | FGT 10/4 | INT 1 | AWE 1 | PRE 0

Powers:
Modified Club: Strength-based Damage 2, Improved Trip, Reach 3; Movement 1 (swinging); Easily Removable (-2 points) - 5 points
Nightbane: Enhanced Agility 4; Enhanced Dexterity 4; Enhanced Fighting 6 - 28 points
Probing Sight: Senses 3 (acute darkvision) - 3 points

Advantages:
Agile Feint, Assessment, Defensive Attack, Defensive Roll, Equipment, Evasion 2, Favored Environment (Garment District), Power Attack, Precise Attack (Close, Concealment), Skill Mastery (Insight), Tracking, Uncanny Dodge.

Equipment:
Throwing Balls (Strength-based Ranged Damage 2)

Skills:
Acrobatics 5 (+12), Athletics 6 (+8), Close Combat: Club 2 (+12), Deception 6 (+6), Expertise: Streetwise 6 (+7), Insight 10 (+11), Intimidation 8 (+8), Investigation 6 (+7), Perception 11 (+12), Ranged Combat: Thrown 4 (+9), Stealth 4 (+11).

Offense:
Initiative +7
Unarmed +10/4 (Close Damage 2)
Modified Club +12/6 (Close Damage 4)
Throwing Balls +9/5 (Ranged Damage 4)

Defense:
Dodge 10/6, Parry 11/5, Fortitude 6, Toughness 5/3, Will 7

Totals:
Abilities 30 + Powers 36 + Advantages 13 + Skills 34 + Defenses 13 = 126 points

Complications:
Justice--Motivation. Disability (blinded by natural daylight.) Mysterious and Enigmatic. Power Loss (Nightbane, Probing Sight, in daylit areas.) Secret Identity.

 

[Voltron64]

Is Union's physical apperance based mainly off that of the dying alien/Silent Partner?

 

[Davies]

Is Union's physical apperance based mainly off that of the dying alien/Silent Partner?

Nope, while closest in appearance to Angelo (hair color, skin tone), he has features that seem to resemble those of Joyce (ears/nose), Tasha (eyes) and Stewart (legs), as well as others that don't resemble any of them. This has contributed to the 'alien doppelganger' theory. The original alien looked a bit like this:

Not resembling any of the species known to contemporary humanity, though wearing a uniform somewhat like that of Union.

 

[Davies]

Medjay

Historically, the name 'Medjay' referred to a collection of nomadic groups from Nubia which had come under Egyptian rule in the Old Kingdom, often acting as mercenary soldiers. By a thousand years later, the name came to refer to a paramilitary police force in the Egyptian New Kingdom, which acted as the guards of palaces and tombs alike. Within a few centuries, however, they had vanished from the historical record and, despite what certain films would suggest, probably did not survive as a secret society right up until the twentieth century. What these people would have thought of the young woman who has taken their name as her own is unknowable; nor is it something she gives a great deal of thought.

For most of her life, Eman Hegazy, born 1996 in Aswan, never seemed to give a great deal of thought to her nation's history in general. She was aware that her family's business, like most businesses in Egypt, depended on tourism which in turn depended on the ancient ruins of the past which were practically everywhere. But none of it interested her, and her plan was to go to South Valley University and get a good education in something relevant and modern, like Education or Social Work, and then get a job that didn't have anything to do with Egypt's ancient past.

And then, one particular morning in 2013, her parents attempted to rouse her and found themselves unable to do so. Eman was still alive, just cataleptic, and nothing that the doctors could do would wake her up. She remained in this state for a week, until she finally awakened. But the girl who awakened was quite different from the girl who'd gone to sleep seven days earlier, mentally and physically. She escaped from the hospital and disappeared into the night, and has never returned to her original home or family since then.

Eman, now calling herself Medjay, views herself as the protector of Egypt, specifically of its historical treasures. She has no problem with tourists, or even archaeologists, as long as they aren't trying to steal the legacy of those who went before. What truly angers her is the way that foreign occultists keep trawling through Egypt's ruins in search of lost secrets that can empower themselves further, or who try to use them to perform sorcerous rituals to that end. It's all so pointless, to her mind, since these atrocities usually don't do anything, or even destroy those who perform them when they somehow work.

To this end, Medjay uses her own superpowers as well as a sword she discovered early in her adventures, and a horse she befriended. She will make it very clear to anyone who inquires that the sword is just a well-crafted and entirely mundane artifact, not some sort of mystical weapon. While capable of inflicting lethal wounds with it, she prefers to deal less mortal ones and accept her opponents' surrender, except in situations where she's given no choice in the matter. The horse, which she's dubbed Sethos, is clearly not just a horse, and she believes him to be descended from a long line of Arabic-American race horses of some fame. While they are unable to communicate, there is a bond between the two of them that even Medjay will admit that she doesn't fully understand.

Medjay has encountered the UltraGirls on a few occasions, and gets along with some of them. She makes no bones about distrusting Blakestone, Snowfall and Belle, but has a high regard for Magnolia and Danielle. Most importantly, she's able to work even with people she doesn't fully trust as long as they don't trespass her personal boundaries. Blakestone, however, wonders whether there might be something deeper at work here, since she's done the math, and the night when Eman Hegazy went to sleep for a week is also the night that Prydwen arrived in the present ...

Medjed -- PL 9

Abilities:
STR 2 | STA 2 | AGL 6 | DEX 3 | FGT 7 | INT 2 | AWE 2 | PRE 2

Powers:
Ancient Sword: Strength-based Damage 3, Penetrating 6; Easily Removable (-2 points) - 7 points
Enduring: Immunity 4 (cold, heat, need for sleep, starvation & thirst), Limited to half effect - 2 points
Swiftness: Enhanced Advantages 3 (Evasion, Improved Initiative 2); Enhanced Defenses 4 (Dodge 2, Parry 2); Leaping 3 (60 feet); Speed 2 (8 MPH) - 12

Advantages:
Accurate Attack, Agile Feint, Assessment, Defensive Attack, Defensive Roll, Diehard, Evasion, Great Endurance, Improved Defense, Improved Initiative 3, Languages 2 (Coptic, English, French, Middle Egyptian, [Arabic is native]) Move-by Attack, Power Attack, Precise Attack (Close/Concealment), Sidekick 14, Takedown, Uncanny Dodge.

Skills:
Acrobatics 5 (+11), Athletics 5 (+7), Close Combat: Sword 6 (+13), Expertise: History 8 (+10), Expertise: Streetwise 6 (+8), Expertise: Survival 6 (+8), Insight 7 (+9), Investigation 6 (+8), Perception 6 (+8), Persuasion 5 (+7), Ranged Combat: Guns 4 (+7), Stealth 6 (+12).

Offense:
Initiative +18
Unarmed +7 (Close Damage 2)
Sword +13 (Close Damage 5)

Defense:
Dodge 12/10, Parry 14/12, Fortitude 6, Toughness 4/2, Will 8.

Totals:
Abilities 52 + Powers 21 + Advantages 30 + Skills 35 + Defenses 19 = 156 points

Complications:
Responsibility--Motivation. Distrust of Mysticism. Loner.

Sethos -- PL 6

Abilities:
STR 5 | STA 6 | AGL 1 | DEX 0 | FGT 4 | INT -2 | AWE 2 | PRE 0

Powers:
Born to Run: Speed 3 (16 MPH) - 3 points
Enduring: Immunity 4 (cold, heat, need for sleep, starvation & thirst), Limited to half effect - 2 points
Hooves: Strength-based Damage 1, Improved Critical - 2 points
Horse Sense: Senses 3 (acute scent, low-light vision, radius sight) - 3 points
Size: Permanent Growth 2 (Strength +2, Stamina +2, Intimidation +1, -1 Dodge, -1 Parry, -2 Stealth), Innate - 7 points

Advantages:
All-out Attack, Great Endurance, Power Attack.

Skills:
Athletics 4 (+9), Close Combat: Unarmed 1 (+5), Expertise: Survival 8 (+6), Insight 4 (+6), Intimidation 5 (+7), Perception 6 (+8).

Offense:
Initiative +1
Hooves +5 (Close Damage 6, Crit 19-20)

Defense:
Dodge 4, Parry 6, Fortitude 7, Toughness 6, Will 5

Totals:
Abilities 24 + Powers 17 + Advantages 3 + Skills 14 + Defenses 12 = 70 points

Complications:
Loyalty--Motivation. No Hands or Speech. Temper.

 

[Davies]

Phlarrn

The Phlarrn were one of the first species encountered by Chiraben humanity as they began to explore their local region of space, roughly a thousand years ago. There are a number of different accounts of this first contact. The most commonly accepted one is that the Chiraben discovered the Pharrn living at an iron age level and quickly made allies of them by providing them with technology that let them leapfrog several centuries of industrial development. A less commonly told tale suggests that the Phlarrn were pre-technological and possibly pre-sapient when the Chiraben arrived on their home planet, and that they were subjected to technological uplift to create a subjugated species. Those Phlarrn who have an interest in history regard that account with horror, but will admit that there's not much evidence to either contradict or support it.

The single word that describes a Phlarrn best is enthusiastic. Whatever a Phlarrn finds themselves doing, they always give that activity everything they have at the moment, never worrying about what might come afterwards and letting tomorrow take care of itself. However, they are also easily persuaded to change the focus of their enthusiasm from one activity to another. For example, a Phlarrn mechanic might be working on repairing an engine as part of their job, and give that assignment their full attention, but if someone were to interrupt them and describe something interesting happening elsewhere, the mechanic would probably switch to observing that interesting event.

That enthusiasm influences their politics, as well. Phlarrn society tends to be dominated by their most charismatic individuals, those who are able to convince any other Phlarrn of just about anything. The good thing is that Phlarrn tend to be truthful, in the sense that they rarely knowingly speak untruths, though they can lie by omission as easily as humans and other species do. Phlarrn leaders also tend to be fairly unambitious, desiring no more influence than being able to tell the members of a single community what to do. Ruling a planet, or even a nation, is generally more than they'd want to do.

The willingness with which Phlarrn adopt causes ensured that there were plenty on both sides of the Imperium's civil war, and thus plenty of Phlarrn who traveled with the Armada to help form the Technate. Within the Crimson Imperium, they can be found among the Imperial Guard and the Insurgency, and working for other factions as well. Within the Technate, they have found themselves locked in a somewhat predictable if generally friendly rivalry with the Hazlan.

The Phlarrn have an even more diverse variety of ethnicities than Chiraben do, with many different colors and patterns of fur. While they tend to form relationships and breed within these ethnicities, there's no particular taboo against relationships between Phlarrn of different ethnicities. Unfortunately, relationships between Phlarrn, regardless of their situation, tend to suffer from their periodic changes of enthusiasm, and are usually quite temporary.

Phlarrn Soldiers - PL 6/MR 4

Abilities:
STR 1 | STA 3 | AGL 1 | DEX 0 | FGT 3 | INT 0 | AWE 2 | PRE 0

Powers:
Bite: Strength-based Damage 2, Inaccurate - 1 point
Keen Senses: Senses 3 (low-light vision, acute tracking scent) - 3 points

Advantages:
All-out Attack, Equipment 4.

Equipment:
Blaster rifle (Ranged Damage 8), Body Armor (Protection 4)

Skills:
Athletics 2 (+3), Expertise: Soldier 4 (+4), Perception 2 (+4), Ranged Combat: Blaster 4 (+4), Vehicles 2 (+2)

Offense:
Initiative +1
Unarmed +3 (Close Damage 1)
Bite +1 (Close Damage 3)
Blaster Rifle +4 (Ranged Damage 8),

Defense:
Dodge 5, Parry 5, Fortitude 7, Toughness 7/1, Will 4.

Totals:
Abilities 20 + Powers 4 + Advantages 5 + Skills 8 + Defenses 12 = 49 points

Complications:
Loyalty--Motivation. Overly Enthusiastic. Others As Needed.

For a more experienced PL 7 Phlarrn Elite Soldier, increase STR to 3 ranks, STA to 4 ranks, AGL to 2 ranks, and FGT to 4 ranks, add Improved Initiative, increase Perception to 5 ranks, Ranged Combat: Blaster to 6 ranks, and Vehicles to 4 ranks; reduce Parry to 6.

 

[Davies]

Lumati

Despite what some of the legends claim, the Lumati did not invent or discover technomancy. The practice was known throughout the space that would become the Imperium, if often not fully understood, long before the Lumati achieved spaceflight as clients of the Seshai. What they did discover, a little under two and half centuries ago, was a way of giving the ability to perform technomancy to anyone willing to undergo an intrusive medical procedure -- and that was what started the Schism Wars.

Much like their patrons, the Lumati -- once ironically called the 'little brothers' by the Seshai, whose average height is about a head shorter -- had been fascinated by the possibilities of 'medical enhancement', especially of the nervous system. They were also leaders in the field of quantum computing, some of the first engineers to build a computer able to facilitate technomancy, rather than relying on the computer systems of Artifacts for that purpose. Almost inevitably, someone -- and Lumati histories are oddly quiet on the identity of that someone -- got the bright idea to combine these two technologies.

Designing a quantum computer powerful enough to perform technomancy and yet small enough to be implanted inside of a humanoid brain was well beyond the abilities of the designers. The system that they designed ultimately duplicated the entire nervous system, working alongside it. Further, it was fashioned from organic fibers and crystals and introduced nanoscale fabricators that could reproduce itself into the enhanced subject's reproductive system. Thus, if two enhanced individuals mated, their children would almost certainly develop the enhancement as well.

As a result, within a generation, virtually the entire Lumati population, and a fairly large representation of other species as well, had received the enhancement and been trained as technomancers. That, more than anything else, was the cause of the mystics' panic. Their numbers were significantly lower, and the ascetic tendencies of the Starlight Path encouraged (and in some cases required) celibacy, making increasing those numbers difficult. The mystics believed it likely that the technomancers would seek to gain influence over the Imperium's politics. This wasn't simply paranoia; the technomancers' activities during this time indicate that this was a goal that many of them sought.

And so, civil war ensued. While the feud between mystic and technomancer was the spark that touched off the flame, other old grievances between the founding nations of the Imperium and the ambitions of other groups were also ignited at this time, creating a chaotic milieu where alliances might change daily. There are those who argue that this conflict made the rise of a figure like the Crimson King inevitable.

In the end, the mystic-led forces triumphed, and nearly all the surviving Lumati joined the Armada and fled to found the Technate. Those left behind are believed to have been exterminated. There are persistent rumors that the Seshai or the Manguai may have protected small populations of Lumati, but these have never been proven. Ironically, the Technate's restrictions against medical enhancement made it all but impossible for the Lumati to share the benefits of their research with other peoples in the aftermath. While the Lumati were exempted from those laws, many of them were horrified by the devastation that their studies had unleashed and arranged for their enhancements to be limited, making the practice of technomancy once more a rare one.

While the implanted fibers and crystals of their enhancements are too wedded to a Lumati's nervous system to be removed without extensive and life-threatening surgery, they can be easily disabled by removing the crystal nodes that grow on the surface of their body, particularly their face. However, that can normally only be done to a subject who is already incapacitated or otherwise helpless. Doing this is considered an exceptionally heinous act by the Lumati, a fate worse than death.

Lumati Technomancer -- PL 6

Abilities:
STR 3 | STA 2 | AGL 2 | DEX 3 | FGT 3 | INT 5/1 | AWE 2 | PRE 0

Powers:
Implanted Crystal: Enhanced Advantages 3 (Eidetic Memory, Speed of Thought, Technomancer); Enhanced Intelligence 4; Senses 2 (extended ranged tactile); Removable (-2 points) - 11 points
Translator Circuit: Comprehend Languages 3 - 9 points

Advantages:
Assessment, Eidetic Memory, Equipment 4, Evasion, Speed of Thought, Technomancer, Well-informed.

Equipment:
Protective Uniform (Protection 4, Subtle), Smartphone-Equivalent, Stunbeam (Ranged Affliction 5 [Fortitude; Dazed, Stunned, Incapacitated]), and 3 points of equipment as needed.

Skills:
Deception 6 (+6), Expertise: Galactic 3 (+8), Expertise: Science 4 (+9), Insight 6 (+8), Investigation 5 (+10), Perception 5 (+7), Persuasion 6 (+6), Ranged Combat: Stunbeam 4 (+7), Technology 6 (+11), Vehicles 5 (+8).

Offense:
Initiative +5
Unarmed +3 (Close Damage 3)
Stunbeamer +7 (Ranged Fortitude 5)

Defense:
Dodge 5, Parry 5, Fortitude 5, Toughness 6/2, Will 7.

Totals:
Abilities 32 + Powers 20 + Advantages 7 + Skills 25 + Defenses 13 = 97 points

Complications:
Discovery OR Power--Motivation. Others as Needed.

To create an average Lumati who doesn't practice technomancy, remove Technomancy from their Implanted Crystal's Enhanced Advantage, lower their Enhanced Intelligence to 2 ranks, and lower their Technology skill to 4 ranks, and consider lowering some of their other skills as well. The most powerful Lumati technomancers have Technology +13.