New Advanced Class - The Abductee

[MinscFan]

As I work feverishly on my original campaign setting, Prometheus: Earth, I've decide to come up for air and post one of my advanced classes for comment -- the Alien Abductee.

In the PE setting, humans do not have access to Psionic powers unless they have been abducted (or think they have).

This preview is a final draft of the Abductee. The only thing remaining is to finalize the Psychotic Episode Results Table.

Take a peak and let me know what you think...

The Alien Abductee (Adobe .PDF - 190kb)

-- M

 

[takyris]

Just looking at your description, I have a problem. It might be one that only bugs me, but I think it's worth mentioning.

Advanced classes are meant to be attainable by anyone. An Advanced Class does not, that I remember, ever require "Some event that the DM has to agree to" in order for you to qualify for it. The Soldier just needs Knowledge(Tactics) and handgun proficiency. The Gunslinger just needs some Tumbling and Sleight of Hand ranks, along with (again) handgun proficiency.

But with your Abductee class, you HAVE to be abducted. In my opinion, that makes it a prestige class.

If it were a class available to anyone who had studied alien stuff, I'd be fine with it -- but having to go through the experience makes it a PrC, not an AdC.

IN MY OPINION, of course.

 

[MinscFan]

Thanks for taking the time to review this.

Actually, nothing says you have to be abducted. I purposely left that out of the description. When a PC chooses the Abductee (and anyone can) they simply roleplay the fact that they have had some weird experience and they can claim alien abduction.

The Abductee doesn't know for sure if they have been abducted. They think they have. Their strange powers convince them of that, and their Psychotic Episodes and weird dreams reinforce the idea. However, those around them never see evidence beyond their manifested Psionic powers.

This leaves it open for the DM.

While I designed Pometheus: Earth to include aliens ("Greys") (right alongside magic and monsters), another person who decided to use the setting may want to make the alien / UFO phenomena more of a government coverup for advanced technology / weaponry research. Then, the abductee could have been "experimented" upon by some Black Ops project.

More on my PE setting later...

 

[takyris]

Ah. Much better. Cool. In that case, I think it looks like a cool class. I'd make sure that the Psychotic episodes weren't too powerful, since this guy can be a pretty heavy hitter already, but it looks balanced to me right now.

 

[MinscFan]

Ah. Much better. Cool. In that case, I think it looks like a cool class.

Thanks.

I'd make sure that the Psychotic episodes weren't too powerful, since this guy can be a pretty heavy hitter already, but it looks balanced to me right now.

Yeah, I'm trying to add a bit of fun, unpredictablility and some downright dangerous results that balance a class's abilities. I suspect that the results table will grow over time and get refined as we playtest it.

I've added some flavor text that should help put the class in context...

Alien Abductee

In the modern world, many terrifying myths from man’s past have dissolved under the scrutiny of science and mankind’s relentless technological progress. However, a new phenomenon has grown as a result of mankind’s endless technological stampede; to replace stories of dragons, the 20th century has produced the mystery of UFOs and of alien visitation to the earth.

Since the public frenzy over the well-known Roswell incident in 1947, humanity has become fascinated with the prospect of aliens in saucers, darting in and out of our peripheral vision and across the night skies. Rumors abound of government UFO cover-ups and dark conspiracy theories. The Abductee does not see these things as impossible, nor does he see them as a new mythology. For the Abductee, the presence of UFO’s and the occurrence of alien abductions are a very real and very painful reality.

The Abductee has no real proof with which to convince those around him that he has been taken by alien beings and nothing to show for the horrible experiments he is sure were performed on him. Despite the presence of wounds, physical abnormalities or telekinetic abilities, the Abductee typically can’t bear the scrutiny and public humiliation of trying to prove his plight. He instead goes about his life, trying to piece together what happened to him and trying to make sense of his newfound “gifts”.

* * *

-- M