Introduction 3

Selecting, Using, and Compensating For Flaws 4

Master List of Flaws 5

Primary Flaws 9

GM Option: Flaw Synergy 13

GM Option: Buying Off Flaws 18

Medical Conditions 22

Psychological Conditions 26

Secondary Flaws 31

Weird Flaws 49

Seasoning With Age 52

Advantages: Selection and Use 55

Master List of Advantages 55

Advantage Descriptions 56

Advanced Occupation Packages 67

Open Game License Text 72

This is the revised version of the Book of Distinctions &Drawbacks Modern, originally released in July, 2003. This versioncontains numerous additions, clarifications, and point-cost adjust-ments, some of which you may recognize as having originated inthe fantasy Book of Distinctions & Drawbacks Revised if you owna copy. Any comments or questions about this PDF are, asalways, cheerfully welcomed at either e-mail address below.

Cheers and best,

SLSt. Paul, MinnesotaNovember 10, 2003

cryptosnark@yahoo.comcryptosnark_games@yahoo.com

http://www.minasithil.com/cryptosnarkgames

Table of Contents Foreword

Written and Designed by: Scott Lynch

'd20 System' and the 'd20 System' logo are Trademarks owned byWizards of the Coast and are used according to the terms of the d20System License version 1.0. A copy of this License can be found at

www.wizards.com. Dungeons & Dragons(R) and Wizards of theCoast(R) are Registered Trademarks of Wizards of the Coast, and are

used with Permission.

This product is not published or endorsed by Wizards of theCoast, Inc.

The section on medical conditions could not have been pre-pared without the assistance of Jennifer Hermey, so I once

again dedicate this cross-referenced collection of pixels to her,with love.

2

The Book of Distinctions & Drawbacks Modern is a “characterembellishment” sourcebook– that is, a set of character flaws and advan-tages for the d20 Modern system that is designed to allow the cus-tomization of characters beyond the degree allowed by the combinationsof race, class, and occupation alone.

GMs thinking of using this book in planning their next campaign shouldbe advised of two things:

1. If you use this book, things might get even more complexthan usual.

The Book of Distinctions & Drawbacks Modern is chock full of itemsjust begging to be weighed, contrasted, compared, and cross-referencedwith other items. Letting experienced gamers loose in an advantage/dis-advantage system can lead to many long hours of planning and “windowshopping.” Therefore, be advised– while this system can greatly increaseplayer satisfaction with the d20 Modern system, it will never speed upcharacter creation or play.

1. If you use this book, you’re going to have to stay on yourtoes.

One of the rules of thumb of the d20 system is that a character caneventually have just about anything (trait, item, weapon, exotic classlevel, spell, etc.) the player wishes, though there will be a trade-off or aprice for it. Many powers and abilities aren’t available until higher levelsof experience; every feat or special ability selected carries a “lost oppor-tunity” cost (as other feats or special abilities must be skipped); everyracial bonus is countered by some sort of racial limitation or cost. In short,“there ain’t no such thing as a free lunch.”

The use of any flaw/compensation system, even the one presented inthis book, will be viewed by some players (for reasons innocent or other-wise) as an excuse to strive for that nonexistent free lunch, by wringingmaximum benefit from the least damaging or hindering set of flaw choic-es possible. I have tried to make this as difficult as I could without turn-ing the system utterly dreary and draconian. GMs, please remember thatthe only defense against that sort of system abuse is your own vigilance.

Types of EmbellishmentsThis book is all about embellishments, good or bad– elements that help

or hinder a character in a way not already addressed by existing charac-

ter creation rules. There are several major types of embellishments:

Primary FlawsThis set of character flaws is meant to be as clearly and explicitly

defined as possible. Their drawbacks are predominantly mechanical innature. As a result, most of them require very little roleplaying “mainte-nance” or obtrusive attention from the GM. Thus, they may generally beused the most freely and with the least amount of GM oversight.

Medical/Psychological ConditionsSomewhere between Primary and Secondary flaws are the real-world

medical and psychological conditions presented on pages 22-31.Generally speaking, medical conditions may be treated as Primary andpsychological conditions should be treated as Secondary Flaws.

A great deal of abstraction has gone into the design of these conditionsin order to render them playable. Individuals actually dealing with theseconditions in real life (as I myself deal with asthma, page 22) should nottake it amiss if some of the subtleties and variations of their conditionshave been left out of each flaw’s description. Many medical conditionsthat would make excellent character flaws have also probably been leftout of this edition of the BODD Modern–I make as little pretense of inclu-siveness as I do of absolute accuracy, and for that I offer my apologies.

Secondary and Weird FlawsThese are flaws of personal inclination or flaws representing back-

ground difficulties. Although they can be just as debilitating as primaryflaws, they tend to require continual roleplaying attention and/or a greatdeal of thought on the part of the GM. Without such attention, many sec-ondary flaws will become nothing more than words on paper and willcease to penalize a character. GMs are cautioned to study them thor-oughly before allowing their use. Weird Flaws are occult in nature.

AdvantagesAdvantages are background benefits, material goods, and other awards

or inheritances that can be of great use to a character. Unlike feats, whichrepresent intrinsic qualities or trained abilities, advantages have nothingat all to do with the character himself and can be lost, stolen, or removedby a variety of means. Advantages are loosely divided into social, mate-rial, and special categories.

Introduction: Your Characters Need More Problems

3

Each flaw presented in this book is worth a certainnumber of Flaw Points, with which players can do the following:

• 1 Flaw Point may be traded for two (2) skill ranks• 1 Flaw Point may be traded for one-eighth (1/8) of the XP required for the character to advance to his next level• 2 Flaw Points may be traded for one (1) feat• 3 Flaw Points may be traded for two (2) ability points, to be distributed at the player’s will• 8 Flaw Points may be traded for one (1) character level• Flaw Points may also be traded for any of the Advantages listed from pages 56-66

Flaws should generally be chosen and applied before actual playbegins. Just as characters do not need to spend anything in exchange forequipment, money, friends, allies, and other benefits acquired duringactual adventuring, neither should they expect bonus points for enemiesand other complications acquired once a campaign has actually begun.The flaws presented in this volume are worth compensation becausethey’re trouble above and beyond that which the characters are natural-ly expected to face.

Any Flaw Points left over after play begins are lost, so there’s no rea-son not to spend them. If nothing else, stray Flaw Points can be used togain a small boost to skill points or to the character’s earned XP.

Flaws and ECL/Challenge RatingFlaws (and any compensations received because of them) cause no

adjustment in effective character levels or challenge ratings provided thatthe Flaw Points received for them are actually spent. A 1st level charac-ter with 8 Flaw Points (spent on, say, four new feats) does have somecapabilities not possessed by unmodified 1st level character, but he hasan equivalent set of handicaps. The two balance each other out.

A GM wishing to create exceptionally powerful and well-off charactersabove and beyond the bounds allowed by commensurate flaws may sim-ply assign free Flaw Points at a rate of 1 ECL per 8 free Flaw Points.

Permissible Numbers of Flaw PointsThe default recommended limit is 20 Flaw Points per character– the

fewer flaws a character possesses, the more contained will be any poten-tial disruption to the balance of a d20 campaign.

As flaws are heaped upon a character, not only does he gain compen-satory feats, skill points, or advantages– the amount of attention thatmust be paid to those flaws by the GM and the player alike increases. Acharacter with one or two flaws is interesting; a character with ten oreleven is a disaster waiting to happen.

However, if the GM sees fit, a campaign may allow a higher maximumnumber of flaws per character:

Campaign Style Flaw Points PermittedConservative 10Controlled (Default) 20Generous 25Very Generous 30Goofy 35

It is strongly recommended that characters be allowed to take a “goofy”number of Flaw Points only in games of an experimental or “one-shot”nature. Too many flaws, no matter how finely-balanced and delicatelyplayed, can turn an ongoing d20 campaign silly in a variety of ways.

When creating characters higher than 1st level, this system may still beused in a rewarding fashion, but the GM should watch out for attempts torender flaws totally meaningless by the calculated selection of magicitems, FX equipment, and special powers. Characters are quite free toseek out magical or FX compensations for their handicaps as a campaigngoes on, of course, but starting play with such compensations already intheir hands is contrary to the spirit of this system.

Sharing Flaws and AdvantagesA group of character may, with explicit GM approval, split the cost of

certain large secondary flaws. For example, four characters could split an8 point Nemesis (a villain, for example– page 44), accepting the burdenof that Nemesis as a group in exchange for 2 Flaw Points apiece. Thiswill ensure that the Nemesis will devote his attention to the group as awhole, rather than spending most of his time harassing one individual.

A group of character may also, quite logically, split the cost of anyadvantage that could be deemed to be communally divisible. There’s noway for three characters to split the cost of, say, the rank of Admiral in theUnited States Navy– but it would be relatively easy for three charactersto share an apartment and a car.

Selecting, Using, and Compensating For Flaws

4

Primary FlawsFlaw Brief Description of Impairment

Age Character enters the game at middle age or olderAlbinism Character suffers from a rare lack of skin and hair pigmentationAnimal Antipathy Animals dislike the character rather intenselyBad Driver Even when sober, character makes drunk drivers look skillfulBad Shot Character is more or less incapable of using ranged weapons effectivelyBodily Marked Character has a permanent identifying marker, such as a brand or tattooButterfingers Character is seriously lacking in manual dexterityClimate Aversion Character is extremely uncomfortable in either cold or hot climatesClumsy Dex modifier is not added to character’s base DefenseDisfigurement Something is obviously wrong with the character’s shape or appearanceDull Reflexes Character’s Reflex Saving Throws are unusually poorDwarfism Character’s adult growth is significantly shorter and smaller than the normEasily Winded Character lacks the endurance for long-duration physical activitiesEasily Slain Character doesn’t cling tenaciously to life when badly injuredFlinching Character suffers a limit upon his attacks of opportunityForesworn From Firearms Character refuses to carry or use firearmsFragile Character’s Fortitude Saving Throws are unusually poorGlass Jaw Character may be knocked silly by unarmed or bludgeoning attacksGuileless Character lacks a substantial amount of wit and social perceptionGullible Character is far too credulous for his own good.Illiterate Character cannot readImpaired Hand(s) Character’s fingers or hands suffer from injuryImpaired Hearing Character has hearing trouble, and may even be deafImpaired Movement Character moves more slowly and clumsily than normalImpaired Sense of Smell Character has no olfactory capabilities whatsoeverImpaired Sense of Taste Character’s sense of taste is utterly missing or destroyedImpaired Vision Character is not blind, but his vision troubles himImpaired Voice Character has suffered permanent damage to his palate or vocal chordsImpatient Character may never take 10 or 20 on a skill checkInattentive Character suffers a penalty to to Listen, Search, and Spot checksInflexible Character isn’t very good at Escape Artist, Jump, and Tumble checksLight-Headed Character suffers increased effects from stun and sleep attacksLummox Str modifier is not added to character’s Melee Attack BonusMagic Vulnerability Character suffers a penalty to all saving throws vs. spells and spell-like effectsMotion Sickness Character gets nauseous when aboard moving vehiclesNervous Character suffers a penalty to Will Saves vs. fear, horror, and demoralizationOafish Character suffers a penalty to all Hide, Jump, and Move Silently checksObese Character could stand to shed a few dozen pounds.Old Injury Character suffers ability damage from critical hitsOld Injury (II) Character suffers increased damage from critical hitsPacifism Character has chosen to foreswear the path of violence

Master List of Flaws

5

Poor Fighter Character’s fighting ability is obviously sub-par.Poorly Educated Character receives fewer skill points at 1st levelPredictable Fighter Character cannot charge, fight defensively, or aid anotherPsionic Vulnerability* Character suffers a penalty to all saving throws vs. psionic abilities and effectsSlow Healing Character’s rate of hit point recovery is diminishedSlow-Witted Character’s Initiative checks aren’t what they should beUnathletic Character’s Climb, Jump, and Swim checks suffer a variable penaltyUncoordinated Character is seriously lacking in agilityUnderweight Character is slender and scrawnyUnexceptional Character’s maximum number of skill ranks is decreasedUnhealthy Doubled fatigue penalties and diminished carrying capacityUnlucky Bad things happen when character rolls a natural 1Weak Constitution Character is unusually vulnerable to poisons and diseasesWeak-Willed Character’s Will Saves suffer a variable penalty

Medical ConditionsMedical Condition Brief Description of Impairment

Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome Character has AIDS or its precursor, HIVAsthma Character has chronic breathing troubleClubfoot One of the character’s feet is malformedDiabetes (Type I) Character’s body does not produce insulinDiabetes (Type II) Character’s body does not properly use what insulin it hasEpilepsy Character suffers from seizuresHemophilia Character lacks essential blood clotting factorsMultiple Chemical Sensitivity Character is allergic to many common modern-day chemicals

Psychological ConditionsPsychological Condition Brief Description of Impairment

Anxiety Disorder Character suffers from a general state of intense worryBipolar Disorder Character veers from states of manic enthusiasm to morbid lethargyChronic Confusion Character is befuddled about life, the universe, and everythingDelusional Character experiences hallucinations at regular intervalsDissociative Identity Character has a “secondary personality” born of past traumaDyslexia Character has difficulty interpreting visual symbology, such as writingNarcissism Character is poisonously fixated on his own aggrandizementNarcolepsy Character suffers random bouts of irresistible sleepinessObsessive-Compulsive Disorder Character is obsessed with order, details, and proceduresParanoia Character is always watching his back, as someone is ”out to get him”Phobia Some common situation or encounter gives the character quite a frightPost-Traumatic Stress Disorder Character suffers nervous episodes when reminded of a past traumaQuirk/Mannerism Character has a minor behavioral or social quirkTourette’s Syndrome Character continually erupts in involuntary movements and vocalizations

6

Secondary FlawsSecondary Flaw Brief Description of Impairment

Aggressive Character trusts his weapons too much and his wits too littleAiry/Flaky Character acts, dresses, and/or talks like an irreconcilable loonAmnesia The character’s entire life before now is a blank slateBilly the Kid Syndrome Character is regarded as the “one to beat” by a horde of eager wannabesBoastful Character is a compulsive exaggerator and often an outright liarCold Fish Character is markedly stiff, emotionless, and aloof Compulsive Liar Character simply cannot stop spinning webs of lies and exaggerationsCowardly Character values his skin much more than he values his dignityCriminal Honor Code Character is sworn to live by a rather “Sicilian” code of conductCriminal Record Character was convicted of one or more crimes and served time for themCruelty Character takes pleasure in dealing out pain and punishment to his foesDark Desire Character secretly years for vast cosmic power at any priceDebt of Honor Character owes favors to a powerful NPC and must repay themDependency Character is addicted to a chemical substanceDependent Character has one or more relatively helpless NPCs to guard and care forDivisive Destiny Character is fated to cause a major schism in his family, culture, or nationDouble Life Character adventures under a secret identity that must remain secretDriving Obsession Character’s life is consumed by his hunger for a single goalDuty/Responsibility Character is sworn and legally bound into the service of a nation or groupEstranged Character is emotionally alienated from his family and societyExplosive Temper Character blows his top with a frightening lack of controlGreed Character covets material possessions with an unhealthy lack of cautionHeroic Code: Fair Play Character refuses to fight in an unsporting fashionHeroic Code: Honesty According to the character, two wrongs never make a rightHeroic Code: Law and Order Character deeply respects and defers to the law and its uniformed defendersHeroic Code: Loyalty Character refuses to abandon his friends and allies even in suicidal situationsHeroic Code: Mercy Character has vowed never to take the life of another thinking beingHumorless Character is utterly without the slightest comprehension of humorImpulsive Character is rash and headstrong, disdaining calculation, caution, and planningInferiority Complex Character is a show-off, overly sensitive about any perceived mistreatmentInsatiable Curiosity Character is probably going to go the way of the proverbial catIntolerant Character has an extremely regrettable streak of racial prejudiceKleptomania Character lives for the thrill of stealing things from other peopleLazy Character is a slacker and a shirker; he is apparently allergic to hard workLecherous Character chases his compatible sex with single-minded zealLone Wolf Character dislikes working in a group and is a grating, divisive presenceMacho/Spartan Character laughs at displays of weakness and shuns all creature comfortsMelancholy Character is brooding, introspective, and morbidMiser Character is obsessed with hoarding the money he has accumulatedMistaken Identity Someone with power frequently mistakes your character for someone elseMonetary Debt Character owes a small fortune to a powerful NPCNemesis: Government Your character has an enemy within a local, regional, or national governmentNemesis: Legal Your character is pursued by lawyers

7

Nemesis: Media Your character is constantly harassed by one or more media figuresNemesis: Organization Your character has made an enemy of a non-governmental organizationNemesis: Villain Your character has made an enemy of a powerful and determined NPCNightmares Character suffers from recurring bouts of sleep-destroying visionsObnoxious Character is an obstreperous, opinionated loudmouthOstracism Character suffers formal or informal prejudice from the society he lives inOvercautious Character drags his heels and proceeds too slowly when taking decisive actionOverconfident Character doesn’t seem to realize that he’s not invinciblePompous Character is overly formal, domineering, and melodramaticPoor Reputation Character is reviled and disparaged by quite a few peoplePrimitive Character is a product of a less technologically advanced civilizationRisk-Addicted Character loves to consign his fate to the hands of Lady LuckStubborn Character is obstreperous, headstrong, and used to having his way.Tongue-Tied Character is shy and socially unpolishedUnsophisticated Character is presumed to be a hick or a rube.Vain/Dandy Character is image-obsessed, and possibly foppish or a clotheshorseVindictive Character has a revenge complex and cannot forgive any slight or injury

Weird FlawsWeird Flaw Brief Description of Impairment

Bane Character has an unusual vulnerabilityCursed Character suffers from the varying effects of a supernatural curseDark Taint Character has been touched by some form of evilHaunted Character suffers the attentions of a poltergeistPhotophobia Character hates bright light, and takes damage from sunlightStrange Attractor Character attracts bizarre occurrences and weird disruptions

8

PRIMARY FLAWS

AGE [ Primary Flaw ]

As your character can readily attest, it’s not necessarily the years, it’sthe mileage.

[2 Pts.] Middle Age: Your character begins the game just past the cuspof “middle age.” His starting age will be 1d4 years past the minimum “mid-dle age” prescribed for his race. Your character suffers a -1 penalty toStrength, Dexterity, and Constitution and gains a +1 bonus toIntelligence, Wisdom, and Charisma.

[4 Pts.] Old Age: Your character begins the game just past the cusp of“old age.” His starting age will be 1d4 years past the minimum “old age”prescribed for his race. He suffers an additional -2 penalty to Strength,Dexterity, and Constitution and gains an additional +1 bonus toIntelligence, Wisdom, and Charisma.

[8 Pts.] Venerable Age: Your character begins the game just past thecusp of “venerable age.” His starting age will be 1 year past the minimum“venerable age” prescribed for his race. He suffers an additional -3 penal-ty to Strength, Dexterity, and Constitution and gains an additional +1bonus to Intelligence, Wisdom, and Charisma. He also suffers an inher-ent -5 foot penalty to his base Speed and an inherent -1 penalty to hisDefense score.

Special Handicap [Frailty, +2 Pts.]: Your character suffers an addi-tional inherent -1 penalty to his Fortitude Save and his Reflex Save.

Limitation: The GM may determine that this flaw is incompatible withcertain unusual races or FX powers in use in specific campaigns.

ALBINISM [ Primary Flaw ]

Oculocutaneous albinism is a congenital condition that causes yourcharacter to have little or no pigmentation in his eyes, skin, and hair. Inaddition to affecting his physical appearance, this condition may impairvision or, rarely, cause more serious problems.

[2 Pts.] Mild Albinism: Your character is unusually pale, and suffers a-4 circumstance penalty to Disguise checks due to the difficulty of con-cealing his condition. He also suffers an inherent -1 penalty to Searchand Spot checks.

If your character suffers lengthy exposure (4 hours or more) to power-ful sunlight with little or no protection, he must make a Fort Save (DC 18)or suffer painful burns across the exposed areas of his body. These burnswill cause the temporary loss of 1d4 points of Dexterity, which will returnat the usual rate with rest and care.

[4 Pts.] Serious Albinism: Your character’s hair and skin are not mere-ly pale, but somewhere between snowy white and transparent. He suffersa -8 circumstance penalty to Disguise checks and a -2 penalty to Searchand Spot checks.

Even modest exposure (2 or more hours) to powerful sunlight will forceyour character to make a Fort Save (DC 20) or suffer painful burns acrossthe exposed areas of his body. These burns will cause the temporary lossof 1d6 points of Dexterity, which will return at the usual rate with rest andcare.

Special Handicap [Hermansky-Pudlak Syndrome, +2 Pts.]: This isan extremely rare form of albinism found almost exclusively (but not uni-versally) in people of Puerto Rican descent. Its symptoms are mild lungfibrosis (an inability of the lungs to expand or contract fully) and occa-sional bouts of bleeding, which are abstracted for game purposes to aninherent -2 penalty to Fortitude saving throws.

ANIMAL ANTIPATHY[ Primary Flaw ]

Although your character can make limited use of pack and riding ani-mals, neither they nor their wild counterparts have any affection for him.

[2 Pts.] Moderate Antipathy: Your character suffers an inherent -2penalty to all Animal Empathy, Handle Animal, and Ride checks, andmust always treat those skills as cross-class skills if he wishes to improvethem Dogs will bark at him, cats will hiss, and horses will buck and shyaway. Any wild animals encountered will have their reactions toward yourcharacter shifted one column into the negative.

[4 Pts.] Severe Antipathy: Your character suffers an inherent -4 penal-ty to all Animal Empathy, Handle Animal, and Ride checks, and mustalways treat those skills as cross-class skills if he wishes to improvethem. Dogs will howl at him, cats will hiss and scratch, and horses mayattempt to kick him. Any wild animals encountered will have their reac-tions toward your character shifted one column into the negative, andanimals that are already hostile will attack your character in preference toanyone else nearby.

9

[6 Pts.] Violent Antipathy: Your character suffers an inherent -6penalty to all Animal Empathy, Handle Animal, and Ride checks, andmust always treat those skills as cross-class skills if he wishes to improvethem. Any wild animals encountered will have their reactions toward yourcharacter shifted one column into the negative, and animals that arealready hostile will gleefully ignore anyone else nearby in their haste tohurl themselves upon your character. Lastly, any animal attacking yourcharacter gains a +1 morale bonus to its attack and damage rolls.

Limitation: A character with this flaw may not possess the feat AnimalAffinity, nor any other feat that offers a benefit or a bonus when dealingwith animals.

BAD DRIVER [ Primary Flaw ]

Putting your character at the controls of any ground vehicle with moreget-up-and-go than the average bicycle is an invitation to disaster.

[2 Pts.] Simple Ineptitude: Your character suffers an inherent -4penalty to all Drive checks.

[4 Pts.] Total Ineptitude: Your character suffers an inherent -8 penal-ty to all Drive checks.

[6 Pts.] Gruesome Incompetence: Your character automatically failsany Drive check he is called upon to make.

Limitation: This flaw is incompatible with the Drive-By Attack, ForceStop, Vehicle Dodge, and Vehicle Expert feats. A character suffering fromtotal ineptitude or gruesome incompetence may not take the SurfaceVehicle Operation feat.

BAD SHOT [ Primary Flaw ]

Your character is either woefully unpracticed or naturally handicappedwhen it comes to the use of ranged weapons.

[1 Pt.] Slight Impairment: Your character suffers an inherent -1 penal-ty to all ranged attacks.

[2 Pts.] Routine Ineptitude: Your character suffers an inherent -2penalty to all ranged attacks.

[3 Pts.] Woeful Ineptitude: Your character is lucky he understandswhich end of the barrel the bullet comes out of. He suffers an inherent -

4 penalty to all ranged attacks.

[4 Pts.] Perpetual Embarrassment: Opponents would rather be shotat by your character than by anyone else they know. He suffers an inher-ent -6 penalty to all ranged attacks.

Special Handicap [Uncoordinated, +1 or 2 Pts.]: Your character’spositive Dexterity modifier does not improve his ranged attack rolls. Thisspecial handicap may only be selected if your character has a Dexterityscore of 12 or higher. If at any time your character’s Dexterity score per-manently drops below 12, simply add another -2 penalty to his rangedattacks. This handicap is worth 1 point for a Dexterity score of 12-15 and2 points for a Dexterity score of 16 or higher.

Special Handicap [Luckless Shooter, +1 Pt.]: Your character maynever spend Action Points to improve ranged attack rolls.

Special Handicap [Ineffectual Shooter, +1 Pt.]: Your character maynever score a critical hit with a firearm. All critical hits rolled with a firearmwill be treated as ordinary hits.

Limitation: This flaw is incompatible with the following feats: AdvancedFirearms Proficiency, Burst Fire, Dead Aim, Double Tap, Far Shot, Point-Blank Shot, Precise Shot, Shot on the Run, Skip Shot, or Strafe. It is alsoincompatible with the Foresworn From Firearms flaw (page 12).

BODILY MARKED[ Primary Flaw ]

Your character ‘s body has been permanently marked with a brand, atattoo, a birthmark, or some similar marking, of a nature that is very diffi-cult to remove even with procedures such as laser surgery. This flaw isespecially appropriate for members of secret orders and societies. Bewarned– not only does it make disguise more difficult, it may be a deadgiveaway of your character’s identity or nature if his enemies learn themeaning of the mark.

[1 Pt.] Easily Concealed: Your character’s permanent mark is quiteindelible, but it is positioned so as to be very easily concealed– beneatha watchband, behind a necklace, under a breast or an armpit, on theinside of a thigh, etc. Your character suffers a -1 circumstance penalty todisguise checks.

[2 Pts.] Difficult to Conceal: Your character’s permanent mark is posi-tioned so that it may be hidden beneath relatively long clothing (full-length shirts and trousers), but will be revealed by anything less. Yourcharacter suffers a -2 circumstance penalty to disguise checks.

10

[3 Pts.] Glaringly Obvious: Your character’s permanent mark is eitherso large or so located as to be impossible to hide– the middle of his fore-head, for example. Your character suffers a -4 penalty to disguise checks.

Special Handicap [Invites Trouble, +1 Pt.]: Your character’s marksends a signal to certain people that your character may be openlyharmed or even killed. For example, some police states brand their crim-inals and enemies, and those markings would invite police and otherauthorities to arrest or attack your character if the markings were uncov-ered.

BUTTERFINGERS [ Primary Flaw ]

Your character is seriously lacking in manual dexterity, and tends tofumble and slip when he grasps at objects in moments of stress.

[2 Pts.]: Withdrawing or stowing a carried item or weapon (in a holsteror pack) are both treated as full-round actions for your character.Reloading a firearm with a box magazine or a speed-loader also requiresa full round, and reloading a firearm with an internal magazine or beltrequires two full-round actions. Your character suffers a -1 circumstancepenalty to all Sleight-of-Hand checks.

Limitation: This flaw is incompatible with the Quick Draw and QuickReload feats.

CLIMATE AVERSION[ Primary Flaw ]

Your character’s body has a hard time adjusting to the rigors of eithervery hot or very cold climates.

[2 Pts.] Cold Aversion: If your character is averse to cold climates, hesuffers a -2 circumstance penalty to all saving throws and skill checks intemperatures at or below 40 degrees Fahrenheit. He also suffers aninherent -2 penalty to saving throws made against cold-based FX powersor area effects. Cold-weather clothing will not remove this penalty.

[2 Pts.] Heat Aversion: If your character is averse to hot climates, hesuffers a -2 circumstance penalty to all saving throws and skill checks intropical or desert conditions (or in artificial conditions of extreme heat,such as steam baths). He also suffers an inherent -2 penalty to savingthrows made against heat-based FX powers or area effects.

Special Handicap [Intense Aversion, +1 Pt.]: Your character’s aver-sion to the climate is so intense that he also suffers a -2 circumstance

penalty to Defense and attack rolls while in it.

Special: A character may possess both types of climate aversion,meaning that he will be comfortable only in relatively temperate climates.

Limitation: This flaw may not be taken by a character with any sort ofintrinsic resistance to the range of temperatures he is supposed to beaverse to.

CLUMSY[ Primary Flaw ]

Your character’s defensive footwork needs a great deal of polish. Hisopponents find him somehow quite hittable.

[2 Pts.] Slightly Clumsy: Your character suffers an inherent -1 penal-ty to his Defense rating.

[4 Pts.] Fairly Clumsy: Your character suffers an inherent -2 penaltyto his Defense rating.

[6 Pts.] Very Clumsy: Your character suffers an inherent -3 penalty tohis Defense rating. Cover is your character’s friend.

[8 Pts.] Professional Victim: Your character suffers an inherent -4penalty to his Defense rating. May we suggest a comprehensive lifeinsurance policy?

Special Handicap [Uncomfortable With Armor, +1 Pt.]: If your char-acter wears armor of any sort, his Armor Check Penalty is worsened by-1.

Special: This flaw is incompatible with the Dodge feat.

DISFIGUREMENT [ Primary Flaw ]

Your character suffers from a permanent , painless, but very obviousphysical deformity. This could be anything from bestial features (a mane,a tail, etc.) to a misshapen body (hunchback, extensive scars) to unusu-al skin color (moon-white, dark blue, etc.).

[1 Pt.] Slight Disfigurement: Your character suffers an inherent -1penalty to his Charisma score. Only his very close friends, family, andassociates will disregard this penalty (GM’s discretion). Furthermore,your character will suffer an additional -1 penalty to all Disguise checks,due to the difficulty of concealing his unusual feature(s).

11

[2 Pts.] Moderate Disfigurement: Your character suffers an inherent -2 penalty to his Charisma score. Only his very close friends, family, andassociates will disregard this penalty (GM’s discretion). Furthermore,your character will suffer an additional -2 penalty to all Disguise checks,due to the difficulty of concealing his unusual feature(s).

[4 Pts.] Obvious Disfigurement: Your character suffers an inherent -4 penalty to his Charisma score. Only his very close friends, family, andassociates will disregard this penalty (GM’s discretion). Furthermore,your character will suffer an additional -4 penalty to all Disguise checks,due to the difficulty of concealing his unusual feature(s).

Special Handicap [Unusual Body Shape, +1 Pt.]: Your charactermust have all of his personal clothing and armor tailored to fit his disfig-ured form. Increase the base price of any armor or clothing so cus-tomized by 50%, or add 2 to the DC of the Wealth check.

Special Handicap [Uniqueness, +1 Pt.]: Your character suffers anadditional -4 circumstance penalty to Disguise checks.

DULL REFLEXES[ Primary Flaw]

Your character isn’t as fast as he could or should be when attemptingto dodge incoming disaster.

[1 Pt.]: Your character suffers an inherent -1 penalty to his Reflex sav-ing throw.

This flaw may be taken multiple times, up to a maximum Reflex Savepenalty of -8.

Limitation: This flaw may not be taken in conjunction with the LightningReflexes feat.

DWARFISM[ Primary Flaw]

Your character, due to a genetic condition, has reached an adult levelof physical development that is significantly shorter in stature than hisspecies norm.

[2 Pts.]: Your character is one size class smaller than the adult normfor his race. In the case of humans, this will make him a small creature.Apply all the appropriate modifiers. Your character suffers an intrinsic -4penalty to all Intimidate and Disguise checks. He may occasionally suffertaunts and pranks from insensitive NPCs.

EASILY SLAIN[ Primary Flaw]

Your character’s will to live is weaker than usual, and when seriouslyinjured his natural inclination is to give up the ghost rather than fight tostay alive.

[2 Pts.]: Your character dies at -5 hit points rather than at -10 hit points.Furthermore, he suffers a -2 penalty to any Fort Save made to avoidinstant death (as from massive damage, for example).

Limitation: This flaw may not be applied to characters with regenera-tion or unusually fast healing as natural powers.

EASILY WINDED[ Primary Flaw]

Your character’s ability to engage in lengthy bouts of physical activity issomewhat limited.

[2 Pts.] Slightly Out of Shape: Your character suffers a -4 penalty toall skill checks or saves made to reflect exertion over an extended lengthof time. Furthermore, when holding his breath, he is treated as though hisConstitution score were 4 points lower than it really is.

[4 Pts.] Obviously Out of Shape: Your character suffers a -8 penaltyto all skill checks or saves made to reflect exertion over an extendedlength of time. Furthermore, when holding his breath, he is treated asthough his Constitution score were 8 points lower than it really is.

Limitation: This flaw may not be taken in conjunction with theEndurance feat.

FLINCHING[ Primary Flaw]

Your character tends to flinch and hesitate when opponents press closein combat, meaning that his attacks of opportunity are poorly directed.

[2 Pts.]: When an opponent triggers an attack of opportunity within yourcharacter’s threatened area, your character suffers a -4 circumstancepenalty to his attack roll.

FORESWORN FROM FIREARMS[ Primary Flaw ]

Your character shuns the use of guns of any sort, regarding them ascrude, clumsy, noisy, dishonorable, or all of the above.

12

[2 Pts.] Moderate Revulsion: Your character steadfastly refuses tocarry or use firearms, and usually regards those who do as beingbeneath contempt. In extreme circumstances, your character mayattempt to pick up a firearm and use it for a purpose other than shootingsomeone else (cutting a rope, detonating an explosive barrel, etc.). TheGM may call for a Will Save (DC 15+) before allowing him to do so.

[4 Pts.] Irrational Abhorrence: Your character refuses to even toucha firearm, even when his life or the lives of others might be on the line. Inutterly extreme circumstances (fate of the world hangs in the balance, forexample) the character may attempt a very difficult Will Save (DC 25+) inorder to pick up a firearm and use it on an inanimate object.

Limitation: This flaw is incompatible with any feat that improves thecharacter’s ability to use or maintain firearms. Feats that improve gener-al ranged attacks may be taken (with the GM’s permission), but neverapplied to the use of firearms.

FRAGILE[ Primary Flaw]

Your character suffers from a certain exceptional lack of vitality.

[1 Pt.]: Your character suffers an inherent -1 penalty to his Fortitudesaving throw.

This flaw may be taken multiple times, up to a maximum Fortitude Savepenalty of -8.

Limitation: This flaw may not be taken in conjunction with the GreatFortitude feat.

GLASS JAW[ Primary Flaw ]

Your character tends to wobble and swoon when an opponent lands asolid blow to his head or chin.

[2 Pts.] Wobbly: When an opponent scores a successful critical hitagainst your character with an unarmed attack or a bludgeoning weapon,your character must make a Fort Save, [DC 10 + points of damagetaken], or become stunned for 1d2+1 rounds.

[4 Pts.] Downright Delicate: When an opponent scores a successfulcritical hit against your character with an unarmed attack or a bludgeon-ing weapon, your character must make a Fort Save, [DC 15 + points ofdamage taken], or become stunned for 1d4+1 rounds.

Limitation: This flaw may not be taken by a character naturally immuneto critical hits.

GUILELESS[ Primary Flaw ]

Your character is somewhat deficient in shrewdness and social aware-ness.

[2 Pts.] Socially Unpolished: Your character suffers an inherent -2penalty to all Bluff, Diplomacy, and Sense Motive checks.

[4 Pts.] Fantastically Clueless: Your character suffers an inherent -4

13

By now it’s probably occurred to you that certain flaws, in combination,have a debilitating effect greater than the sum of their parts– just as alco-hol and some drugs multiply their effects when mingled. This leads intothe concept of flaw synergy.

Flaw synergy grants a player some extra bit of compensation for hav-ing the guts needed to take a set of flaws that compound one another ina potentially gruesome fashion. Note that flaw synergy does not occurmerely because a character has a set of flaws that are thematically relat-ed– for example, while it makes sense that an Inflexible character mightalso be Unathletic, those two flaws don’t complicate one another in adirect and particular fashion.

On the other hand, Glass Jaw and Light-Headed are potentially dead-ly in combination. The latter flaw all but ensures that your character willfall unconscious whenever the former flaw takes effect. Old Injury andOld Injury (II) are an equally dangerous match, greatly enhancing theeffect of every critical hit the character suffers.

Primary and secondary flaws may be combined to create synergy. Forexample, an Overconfident character with a Glass Jaw and an Old Injuryis simply asking for trouble.

If the GM determines that a player’s selection of flaws is appropriate-ly synergistic, he may award him one of the following benefits:

• 1 Flaw Point for mild synergy• 2 Flaw Points for dangerous synergy• 3 Flaw Points for suicidal synergy

GM Option: Flaw Synergy

penalty to all Bluff, Diplomacy, and Sense Motive checks.

Limitation: This flaw is incompatible with any feat that would enhanceor improve any of the skills it penalizes.

GULLIBLE[ Primary Flaw ]

Your character is far too credulous– not only does he tend to swallowlies, exaggerations, and tall tales put forth by others, he does so withenthusiasm.

[2 Pts.]: Your character suffers an inherent -4 penalty to all Bluff checksand Sense Motive checks. It’s against his nature to challenge the word ofothers except when he has direct proof that they’re wrong, and his friendsand allies will have many occasions to swat their foreheads in embar-rassment at his gullibility.

ILLITERATE[ Primary Flaw ]

Your character cannot read.

[2 Pts.]: Your character cannot read, and therefore cannot place skillranks in Knowledges, Professions, or Craft/Repair skills that could rea-sonably be determined to require any element of book-learning (GM’sdiscretion). Your character also begins the game knowing only the spo-ken form of his native language.

IMPAIRED HAND(S)[ Primary Flaw ]

Your character has suffered some form of damage to one or both of hishands.

[2 Pts.] Injured/Missing Fingers: Due to stiff or missing fingers, yourcharacter suffers a -2 circumstance penalty to all Climb, Craft, DisableDevice, Repair, and Sleight-of-Hand checks;

[5 Pts.] One-Handed: Your character’s off hand was completely sev-ered from his wrist, leaving him with nothing but a rounded and uselessstump. This flaw has a variety of effects:

•Your character cannot wield a weapon in his off-hand, nor use anyshield with that hand, save a buckler which can be strapped to his fore-arm;

•Your character may not wear rings or bracelets on his off hand. Magicalitems in the form of gloves or gauntlets may not be used if both must beworn to achieve the magical effect;

•Reloading a firearm with a box magazine or a speed-loader alsorequires a full round;

•Your character suffers a -2 circumstance penalty to all Climb, Craft,Disable Device, Repair, and Sleight-of-Hand checks; and

•Your character may not use ordinary bows, although he may load andfire crossbows as per normal.

•Your character suffers a -1 penalty to all grapple checks.

Limitation: Your character may not possess the following feats:Ambidexterity, Quick Reload, Two-Weapon Fighting, or Improved Two-Weapon Fighting.

Special: Injured/Missing Fingers is worth 1 bonus Flaw Point to arcanespellcasters, as it causes a 10% chance of failure to any spell with asomatic (gesture) component. One-Handed is worth 2 bonus Flaw Pointsto an arcane spellcaster, as it causes a 20% chance of failure to any spellwith a somatic component. These percentile chances of failure are rolledby the GM.

Special: The GM may see fit to assign penalties to actions notdescribed here if the lack of an off-hand could be reasonably determinedto hinder those actions.

IMPAIRED HEARING[ Primary Flaw ]

Your character has suffered some sort of damage (congenital, perhaps,or caused by an accident or a combat injury) to his auditory nerves.

[2 Pts.] Hearing Damage: Your character retains some auditory abili-ty, but not much. He suffers an inherent -6 penalty to Listen checks, andmay not spend Action Points to enhance them. The Listen skill will be for-ever considered cross-class for your character.

[5 Pts.] Deafness: Your character automatically fails any Listen check,suffers a -4 penalty to Initiative, and has a 20% chance to miscast anyspell with a verbal (V) component. Nothing less than a full Wish spell orthe equivalent ultra-powerful FX effect can restore your character’s hear-ing.

14

Limitation: This flaw may not be applied to characters with a naturalpower or ability that effectively replaces the sense of hearing.

IMPAIRED MOVEMENT[ Primary Flaw ]

Your character suffers from a physical condition that restricts his abili-ty to move. The nature of this condition is such that no magical, techno-logical, or other power can reverse or remove it, unless you wish to buythis flaw off (page 18) at 2nd level or higher.

[2 Pts.] Limp: Your character’s base Speed is reduced by 10 feet.

[4 Pts.] Serious Limp: Your character’s base Speed is reduced by 10feet. He suffers an inherent -2 penalty to Climb, Jump, and Tumblechecks.

[8 Pts.] Hobbled: Your character cannot run or charge. His base Speedis reduced by 10 feet. He suffers an inherent -1 penalty to Defense anda -4 penalty to Climb, Jump, and Tumble checks.

[12 Pts.] Paraplegic: Your character is paraplegic. He has lost all useof his legs and must rely upon a wheelchair or other conveyance. Ifremoved from such a device, he may move only by crawling while prone,at a rate of 10 feet per round. At all times, he loses his Dex bonus toDefense, suffers an intrinsic -2 penalty to Defense, grants attackers a +2bonus to attack rolls, and automatically fails Climb, Jump, and Tumblechecks.

Limitation: This flaw, in its Paraplegic form, is incompatible with any feator FX power that the GM determines to require bipedal movement.Paraplegism is also incompatible with the Inflexible flaw.

IMPAIRED SENSE OF SMELL[ Primary Flaw ]

Your character ‘s olfactory nerves have been damaged, leaving himunable to smell anything. While this may be a blessing in certain dis-gusting situations, it also leaves him without early warning of many pos-sible hazards, including fires, poison gas, or large nearby animals.

[1 Pt.]: In addition to the obvious effects of this flaw, your character suf-fers a -2 circumstance penalty to any roll made to ascertain informationby the sense of taste.

IMPAIRED SENSE OF TASTE[ Primary Flaw ]

Your character ‘s taste buds are permanently damaged or missing,leaving him sadly unable to taste anything, no matter how delicious or vileit may be.

[1 Pt.]: Everything your character eats or drinks is as flat and flavorlessas distilled water would be to an ordinary person. This leaves your char-acter unable to detect the subtle hint of drugs, poison, or putrefaction inanything he eats.

IMPAIRED VISION[ Primary Flaw ]

Your character isn’t completely blind, but his vision is a constant sourceof trouble to him. Magical healing will not suffice to alleviate this condi-tion.

[2 Pts.] Poor Vision: Your character suffers an inherent -3 penalty toSearch and Spot checks, and may not spend Action Points to enhancethem. The Search and Spot skills will be forever considered cross-classfor your character.

[4 Pts.] Terrible Vision: Your character isn’t yet absolutely blind, but inpractical terms he’s pretty close. Your character suffers an inherent -4penalty to Search and Spot checks, and may not spend Action Points toenhance them. The Search and Spot skills will be forever consideredcross-class for your character. Furthermore, he suffers a -1 inherentpenalty to all attack rolls due to his inability to judge the true position ofopponents in combat.

[6 Pts.] Truly Awful Vision: It isn’t quite safe to let your character outon his own– he’s always mistaking hostile ninjas for harmless pieces oflawn furniture, and vice versa. Your character suffers an inherent -5penalty to Search and Spot checks, and may not spend Action Points toenhance them. The Search and Spot skills will be forever consideredcross-class for your character. Furthermore, he suffers a -1 inherentpenalty to all attack rolls, as well as an inherent -1 penalty to Defense.

[8 Pts.] Blindness: In addition to the obvious effects of blindness (auto-matically failing Search and Spot checks, for example), your charactersuffers a 50% miss chance in combat, loses any Dexterity bonus toDefense, grants a +2 bonus to opponents’ attack rolls, moves at halfspeed, and suffers a -4 penalty on most Dexterity and Strength-basedskill checks, at the GM’s discretion.

15

IMPAIRED VOICE[ Primary Flaw ]

Your character has suffered extensive damage to his vocal cords, viainjury or disease. Magical healing and FX powers cannot correct this con-dition.

[1 Pt.] Slight Impediment: Your character suffers from a slight speechimpediment, such as an occasional stutter. This impediment should berole-played continually, but need only become severe when your charac-ter is under intense stress. The GM may call for a Will Save in times ofcrisis if your character wishes to try and maintain control over his voice.

[2 Pts.] Damaged Voice: Your character is unable to talk above aharsh whisper and cannot shout or sing. This should be role-played at alltimes. Your character suffers a 25% chance of spell failure when castingany arcane spell with a verbal (V) component. Any Perform check involv-ing a verbal element (save for singing, which is already totally precluded)suffers a -4 circumstance penalty. This level of Impaired Voice is worth 2bonus Flaw Points to arcane spellcasters, as virtually all spells have ver-bal components.

[4 Pts.] Mute: Your character ’s vocal cords are missing or irreparablydamaged. He may speak only in weak abstract noises, such as hissesand grunts. Otherwise, his communication must be limited to gesturesand writing (if he is capable of such). It is expected that this flaw will beroleplayed at all appropriate times. An arcane spellcaster may not bemute.

IMPATIENT[ Primary Flaw ]

Your character is notoriously incapable of focusing his attention longand hard enough to accomplish tasks requiring great dedication.

[2 Pts.]: Your character may never ‘take 10’ or ‘take 20’ on any skillcheck.

INATTENTIVE[ Primary Flaw ]

Your character is frequently oblivious to the fine details of what’s hap-pening all around him.

[2 Pts.] Distracted: Your character suffers an inherent -2 penalty toListen, Search, and Spot checks.

[4 Pts.] Clueless: Your character suffers an inherent -4 penalty toListen, Search, and Spot checks.

[6 Pts.] Thick as Concrete: Your character suffers an inherent -6penalty to Listen, Search, and Spot checks.

Limitation: This flaw may not be taken in conjunction with the“Blindness” version of Impaired Vision or with the “Deafness” version of“Impaired Hearing.

INFLEXIBLE[ Primary Flaw ]

Whether it’s due to age, an old injury, or simple lack of exercise, yourcharacter isn’t as lithe and nimble as he really should be.

[2 Pts.] Creaky: Your character suffers an inherent -2 penalty toBalance, Escape Artist, Jump, and Tumble checks.

[4 Pts.] Stiff: Your character suffers an inherent -4 penalty to Balance,Escape Artist, Jump, and Tumble checks.

[6 Pts.] Very Stiff: Your character suffers an inherent -4 penalty toBalance, Escape Artist, Jump, and Tumble checks, as well as an inher-ent -1 penalty to Defense.

Special Handicap [Arthritis, +2 Pts.]: Your character’s fingers are stiffand sore. As a result, he suffers an inherent -2 penalty to Craft, DisableDevice, and Sleight-of-Hand checks.

LIGHT-HEADED[ Primary Flaw ]

Your character has serious trouble remaining steady on his feet whensubjected to a stunning attack or a knockout effect.

[2 Pts.]: When your character would normally become staggered dueto the accrual of nonlethal damage, he instead falls unconscious. Whenhe suffers a successful stun attack, he must make a Fort Save (DC 15)or instead fall unconscious for the appropriate number of rounds. Yourcharacter suffers a -2 penalty to all saving throws vs. sleep-inducingspells, FX powers, and drugs.

Special: This flaw may not be taken by a character with an unusual orracial resistance to sleep-inducing spells and FX powers, or to nonlethaldamage.

16

LUMMOX[ Primary Flaw ]

Your character’s firm muscles are a testament to his physical strength,but he’s never really learned how to control that strength when swinginga weapon.

[2 Pts.]: Your character’s positive Strength modifier is not applied to hisBase Attack Bonus whenever he uses a melee weapon or makes anunarmed attack.

Limitation: This flaw may only be applied to characters with a Strengthscore of 12 or higher. If at any time the character’s Strength falls perma-nently beneath 12, apply an inherent -2 penalty to all melee attack rollsinstead.

MAGIC VULNERABILITY[ Primary Flaw ]

Your character is unusually vulnerable to the deleterious effects of hos-tile magic.

[2 Pts.] Slight Vulnerability: Your character suffers an inherent -2penalty to all saving throws against spells and spell-like effects.

[4 Pts.] Moderate Vulnerability: Your character suffers an inherent -4penalty to all saving throws against spells and spell-like effects.

[6 Pts.] Extreme Vulnerability: Your character suffers an inherent -6penalty to all saving throws against spells and spell-like effects.

[8 Pts.] Dying of Mojo: Your character suffers an inherent -8 penaltyto all saving throws against spells and spell-like effects.

Special: This flaw may only be taken in campaigns where magic ispresent.

MOTION SICKNESS[ Primary Flaw ]

Your character suffers intense discomfort and disorientation if heattempts to concentrate on anything but the scenery while in a movingvehicle. This flaw does not usually apply if the character is controlling thevehicle in question.

[2 Pts.] Woozy: Your character suffers a -2 circumstance penalty anytime he attempts to take any sort of action while riding within or upon a

moving vehicle.

[4 Pts.] Nauseous: What’s more, before your character may take anyaction while in or upon a moving vehicle, he must make a Fortitude Save(DC 15). Failure means that he will become nauseated until the begin-ning of his action in the next round.

Special Handicap [Total Vulnerability, +1 Pt.]: Your character evensuffers from motion sickness when he is the one controlling the vehicle.

NERVOUS[ Primary Flaw ]

Your character has some difficulty dealing with the horrors of battle,dark magic, and supernatural manifestations.

[2 Pts.] Trepidatious: Your character suffers an inherent -4 penalty toWill Saves made to resist fear, horror, shock, or demoralization.

[4 Pts.] Traumatized: Your character suffers an inherent -8 penalty toWill Saves made to resist fear, horror, shock, or demoralization.

Limitation: This flaw may not be taken by characters that are inherent-ly immune to fear effects.

OAFISH[ Primary Flaw ]

Your character is about as light on his feet as a sleepy grizzly bear.

[2 Pts.] Fumblefeet: Your character suffers an inherent -2 penalty to allHide, Jump, and Move Silently checks.

[4 Pts.] Omni-Bumbling: Your character is the anti-ninja. He suffers aninherent -4 penalty to all Hide, Jump, and Move Silently checks.

Limitation: This flaw is incompatible with the “Paraplegic” version ofImpaired Movement.

OBESE[ Primary Flaw ]

Your character is substantially overweight. Although his mother mightinsist that he’s just stocky, she’s wrong.

[3 Pts.] Overweight: Your character suffers an inherent -1 penalty tohis Defense rating, as he has difficulty moving nimbly when he needs to.

17

Your character must also have all of his personal clothing and armor tai-lored to fit his oversized form. Increase the base price of any armor orclothing so customized by 25% (if using a precise cash measure), or add1 to the DC of the Wealth check. Lastly, he suffers a -4 penalty toDisguise checks because his corpulence is a rather memorable trait. Onthe positive side, he does gain a +1 circumstance bonus to all Swimchecks.

[5 Pts.] Very Overweight: Your character suffers an inherent -1 penal-ty to his Defense rating, as well as a -2 penalty to all Climb and Jumpchecks, as he has difficulty moving nimbly when he needs to. Your char-acter must also have all of his personal clothing and armor tailored to fithis oversized form. Increase the base price of any armor or clothing socustomized by 50% (if using a precise cash measure), or add 2 to the DCof the Wealth check. Lastly, he suffers a -6 penalty to Disguise checksbecause his corpulence is a rather memorable trait. On the positive side,he does gain a +1 circumstance bonus to all Swim checks.

Limitation: An Obese character may not also be Underweight.

OLD INJURY[ Primary Flaw ]

Your character suffers from an old wound, long healed on the surfacebut ready to flare up again when aggravated by new injuries.

[2 Pts.] Aggravating: Whenever your character sustains a successfulcritical hit, he suffers a -2 penalty to both Strength and Dexterity. Theselost ability points must be recovered at the ordinary rate, with rest andcare.

[4 Pts.] Debilitating: Whenever your character sustains a successfulcritical hit, he suffers a -4 penalty to both Strength and Dexterity. Theselost ability points must be recovered at the ordinary rate, with rest andcare.

[6 Pts.] Crippling: Whenever your character sustains a successful crit-ical hit, he suffers a -6 penalty to both Strength and Dexterity. These lostability points must be recovered at the ordinary rate, with rest and care.He also suffers a -10 penalty to his Speed score and a -2 penalty toattack rolls and Defense until he has rested for at least eight hours.

Special: This flaw may be taken in conjunction with Old Injury (II).

Limitation: This flaw may not be taken by a character naturally immuneto critical hits.

18

Sooner or later, one of your players is probably going to express adesire to have his character overcome one or more of his flaws.Provided that a proper in-game rationale can be provided for this, it isn’ta problem. Medical science can correct neurological damage, repair bro-ken limbs, and offer new drug treatments for previously unbeatable prob-lems. Psychological counseling can help overcome many nervous dis-orders. Time, discipline, and increasing self-confidence can help burymany old handicaps, such as clumsiness or obesity.

When a player wishes to “buy off” a character flaw, he must spendsomething in exchange, at the time his character gains a level:

•1 Flaw Point may be bought off for 2 skill points;•2 Flaw Points may be bought off for 1 feat (whetherreceived for character level or as a class bonus);•2 Flaw Points may be bought off in place of oneability score increase (at 4th, 8th, 12th, 16th, or 20thlevel);

Note that the character doesn’t spend any feats or skill points healready has– he loses only new ones he would ordinarily get for a levelincrease.

Alternately (and with your explicit permission), a character may buy off1 Flaw Point by setting aside an “XP Tithe.” For each Flaw Point boughtoff, calculate 1/8 of the number of XP the character will require to reachhis next level. This “Tithe” must be paid off by earned XP before anyearned XP can be used for any other purpose– in effect, the character isbeing forced to earn a certain percentage of his next character leveltwice to pay off his former flaw. Once the Tithe is paid off, the characterresumes using earned XP in the usual fashion (to advance his level, tocraft FX items, etc.)

Some background flaws cannot be bought off– for example, an enemycannot simply be wished away, and a criminal record cannot be made tovanish into thin air (at least not without the expenditure of large amountsof time and money, an expenditure that should make the character payabout as much as if he’d bought off the flaw in the fashion describedabove). However, an enemy can be defeated, preferably after many,many encounters as the campaign nears its culmination. Characters thatwipe out an enemy after many long months or years of effort do not needto pay anything extra to be rid of their foe– they have earned their peacewith blood, sweat, and tears.

GM Option: Buying Off Flaws

Limitation: This flaw may not be taken by a character with the naturalability to rapidly regenerate lost ability points, nor by a character natural-ly immune to ability point loss or critical hits.

OLD INJURY (II)[ Primary Flaw ]

This is another form of old injury.

[2 Pts.] Bad: Whenever your character sustains a successful criticalhit, the damage multiplier of that critical hit increases by 1 (x2 becomesx3, x3 becomes x4, and so forth).

[4 Pts.] Worse: Whenever your character sustains a successful criticalhit, the damage multiplier of that critical hit increases by 2 (x2 becomesx4, x3 becomes x5, and so forth).

[6 Pts.] Pray For Deliverance: Whenever your character sustains asuccessful critical hit, the damage multiplier of that critical hit increasesby 2 (x2 becomes x4, x3 becomes x5, and so forth). Furthermore, yourcharacter suffers an additional 2d6 points of damage (added, not multi-plied).

Special: This flaw may be taken in conjunction with Old Injury.

Limitation: This flaw may not be taken by a character naturally immuneto critical hits.

PACIFISM[ Primary Flaw ]

Your character renounces (to a lesser or greater extent) the use of vio-lence as a solution to his problems. This includes not only physical vio-lence but magical violence, psionic violence, and any other form of vio-lence allowed by FX powers or other unusual abilities.

[3 Pts.] Self-Defense Only: Your character may only engage in acts ofviolence as a direct response to violent acts taken against himself or hisclose allies. In the event he witnesses a violent action that affronts hismoral code or allegiance (for example, if he witnesses innocentbystanders placed in danger by a criminal), he may attempt to intervenein a non-violent fashion.

[6 Pts.] Total Nonviolence: Your character may take no violent actionagainst anyone, under any circumstances. His role in a time of crisis willbe limited to rendering aid, healing, scouting, and other non-confronta-tional forms of assistance.

Limitation: This flaw, in its “Total Nonviolence” version, is incompatiblewith the Bad Shot, Foresworn From Firearms, Lummox, Poor Fighter,Predictable Fighter, Cruel, and Vindictive flaws. It is incompatible in anyfashion with the Aggressive flaw.

Special: The GM may decide to disallow this flaw in combination withany other flaw he determines to be as inappropriate as the ones listedabove.

POOR FIGHTER[ Primary Flaw ]

Your character, whether because of a lack of training, natural ability,or simple enthusiasm, does not fight as skillfully as he should.

[2 Pts.] Ungifted: Your character suffers an inherent -1 penalty to allattack rolls.

[4 Pts.] Ungainly: Your character suffers an inherent -2 penalty to allattack rolls.

[6 Pts.] Embarrassing: Your character suffers an inherent -3 penaltyto all attack rolls.

[8 Pts.] Disgraceful: Your character suffers an inherent -4 penalty toall attack rolls.

[10 Pts.] What’s Combat?: Your character suffers an inherent -5penalty to all attack rolls.

Limitation: This flaw is incompatible with the “Total Nonviolence” ver-sion of Pacifism.

POORLY EDUCATED[ Primary Flaw ]

Your character might be bright, enthusiastic, and talented, but his for-mal training is sadly lacking.

[2 Pts.]: At 1st level, your character suffers the loss of 4 skill points. AllKnowledge skills are thereafter treated as cross-class skills should hewish to place ranks in any of them.

19

PREDICTABLE FIGHTER[ Primary Flaw ]

Your character fights in a woefully limited and straightforward fashion.

[2 Pts.]: Your character is incapable of using the full defense, aidanother, trip, or disarm actions in combat.

Limitation: Your character cannot possess the Expertise feat or anyfeat requiring it as a prerequisite.

PSIONIC VULNERABILITY[ Primary Flaw ]

Your character is unusually vulnerable to the deleterious effects of hos-tile psychic abilities.

[2 Pts.] Slight Vulnerability: Your character suffers an inherent -2penalty to all saving throws against psionic powers and psionic FX abili-ties.

[4 Pts.] Moderate Vulnerability: Your character suffers an inherent -4penalty to all saving throws against psionic powers and psionic FX abili-ties.

[6 Pts.] Extreme Vulnerability: Your character suffers an inherent -6penalty to all saving throws against psionic powers and psionic FX abili-ties.

[8 Pts.] Ding! Your Brain is Done: Your character suffers an inherent-8 penalty to all saving throws against psionic powers and psionic FXabilities.

Limitation: This flaw may only be taken by characters in campaignswhere psionic abilities will be encountered relatively frequently.

SLOW HEALING[ Primary Flaw ]

Your character finds that recovery from serious injury is a slow andaggravating process.

[2 Pts.] Slow Healing: Your character recovers 1 hit point per eveningof rest per two character levels (or fraction thereof). If he receives com-plete bed rest (24 hours per day, with no other activity), he may recoverlost hit points at his regular rate.

[3 Pts.] Slower Healing: Even full-day bed rest cannot improve yourcharacter’s rate of healing.

Limitation: This flaw may not be taken by any character for whom fasthealing is a natural condition.

SLOW-WITTED[ Primary Flaw ]

When danger looms, your character is slower to react than thosearound him.

[1 Pt.] Somewhat Slow: Your character suffers an inherent -2 penaltyto his Initiative checks.

[2 Pts.] Rather Slow: Your character suffers an inherent -4 penalty tohis Initiative checks.

[3 Pts.] Nerves of Molasses: Your character suffers an inherent -6penalty to his Initiative checks.

[4 Pts.] Molasses in January: Your character suffers an inherent -8penalty to his Initiative checks.

Limitation: This flaw may not be taken in conjunction with theImproved Initiative feat.

UNATHLETIC[ Primary Flaw ]

Whether your character is out of shape, aging, or just disinclined tothrow himself around, he’s not as good at full-body movement exercisesas he might be.

[2 Pts.] Slacker: Your character suffers an inherent -2 penalty to Climb,Jump, and Swim checks.

[4 Pts.] Sluggard: Your character suffers an inherent -4 penalty toClimb, Jump, and Swim checks.

UNCOORDINATED[ Primary Flaw ]

“Right foot in front of left foot, then repeat” is about the most compli-cated action your poor, clumsy character can undertake without trouble.

[2 Pts.] Inept: Your character suffers an inherent -2 penalty to Balance,

20

Ride, and Tumble checks. Any Perform check involving dexterous move-ment (dancing or juggling, for example) suffers a -4 circumstance penal-ty.

[4 Pts.] Hopeless: Your character suffers an inherent -4 penalty toBalance, Ride, and Tumble checks. Any Perform check involving dexter-ous movement (dancing or juggling, for example) suffers a -8 circum-stance penalty.

UNDERWEIGHT[ Primary Flaw ]

Your character is unusually skinny for his height.

[2 Pts.] Slender: Your character suffers an inherent -1 penalty to grap-ple checks and to melee damage rolls. His lift/carry capacity is 75% ofthat normally allowed for his Strength score.

[4 Pts.] Emaciated: Your character suffers an inherent -2 penalty tograpple checks and to melee damage rolls. His lift/carry capacity is 75%of that normally allowed for his Strength score. He also suffers an inher-ent -1 penalty to all Strength ability checks and Strength-related skillchecks.

Limitation: This flaw may not be combined with the Obese flaw.

UNEXCEPTIONAL[ Primary Flaw ]

Your character displays no particular brilliance or excellence in any ofhis abilities.

[2 Pts.]: Lackluster: Your character may never have any natural abili-ty score higher than 13. He may place a maximum number of ranks inany class skill equal to his current level +2.

[4 Pts.]: Extreme Mediocrity: Your character may never have any nat-ural ability score higher than 11. He may place a maximum number ofranks in any class skill equal to his current level +1. He may never pos-sess the Skill Focus feat.

Special: Any permanent ability increase that would improve one of thecharacter’s ability scores above the allowed maximum is lost withoutcompensation.

Special: The character may still increase his abilities above the listedmaximum via the use of magical items or other FX artifacts, provided

they are acquired during the normal course of play.

UNHEALTHY[ Primary Flaw ]

Your character suffers from a variety of physical ailments that could bethe result of age, injury, disease, or even plain old hypochondria.

[2 Pts.]: All numerical fatigue penalties (to Strength and Dexterity) aredoubled for your character. His allowed light load is decreased by 10pounds, his medium load is decreased by 20 pounds, and his maximumload is decreased by 30 pounds. He suffers an inherent -1 penalty to allsaving throws against poison and disease.

Note: If your character is also Underweight (see above), apply the per-centile decrease in his lift/carry capacity before subtracting the totals list-ed here.

UNLUCKY[ Primary Flaw ]

Your character might not be fortune’s fool, but he’s almost certainly for-tune’s rubber chew toy.

[3 Pts.] Cursed: Any time your character rolls a natural 1 on a skillcheck, that skill check fails in the most picturesque and potentially com-plicating fashion possible, at the GM’s fiendish discretion. Whenever yourcharacter rolls a natural 1 on an attack roll, he drops the weapon he usedto make that attack roll. If he is incapable of dropping the weapon (forexample, if it is clenched inside a locked gauntlet), he will instead injurehimself for 1d4 hit points.

[6 Pts.] Cosmic Tragicomedy: Furthermore, your character cannotgain or spend Action Points.

WEAK CONSTITUTION[ Primary Flaw ]

Your character lacks resistance to pathogens and harmful substances.

[2 Pts.] Moderately Weak: Your character suffers an inherent -2 penal-ty to all saving throws made to resist poisons, drugs, and diseases.

[4 Pts.] Weak: Your character suffers an inherent -4 penalty to all sav-ing throws made to resist poisons, drugs, and diseases.

[6 Pts.] Very Weak: Your character suffers an inherent -6 penalty to all

21

saving throws made to resist poisons, drugs, and diseases.

[8 Pts.] Extremely Weak: Your character suffers an inherent -8 penal-ty to all saving throws made to resist poisons, drugs, and diseases.

Limitation: This flaw may not be possessed by characters with anynatural or unusual immunity to poisons, drugs, or diseases.

WEAK-WILLED[ Primary Flaw]

Your character lacks the mental fortitude one might wish to have beforeventuring out into a world full of bizarre mysteries and deadly combat.

[1 Pt.]: Your character suffers an inherent -1 penalty to his Will savingthrow.

This flaw may be taken multiple times, up to a maximum Will Savepenalty of -8.

Limitation: This flaw may not be taken in conjunction with the Iron Willfeat.

MEDICAL CONDITIONS

ACQUIRED IMMUNODEFICIENCY SYNDROME (AIDS)[ Medical Condition]

AIDS is a chronic condition that causes degeneration of the humanbody’s immune system. It is thought to be a result of infection by theHuman Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV). Although there are an increasing-ly effective number of treatments for AIDS, there is no known cure, andthe condition can be extremely serious in its advanced stages.

[3 Pts.] HIV Positive: Your character has been infected by the HIVvirus. This does not necessarily mean that he has developed AIDS yet–with a careful lifestyle and the assistance of complicated drug treatments,the development of full-blown AIDS can be staved off for an increasinglyimpressive length of time. An HIV-positive character suffers an inherent -2 penalty to Fort Saves due to the side-effects of his anti-retroviral drugregime. Furthermore, the character must make a Wealth check (DC 15)each month in order to pay for this drug regime. Failure to maintain drugtreatment will invite the progression of the disease into AIDS.

Furthermore, your character may occasionally suffer medical and socialhassles due to his infection. The Ostracism flaw (page 45) would be

appropriate in some areas of the world.

Progression of Disease: For every two game weeks in which the char-acter does not receive his drug treatment, there is a cumulative 5%chance that the disease will progress to the point of genuine AIDS. If thishappens in play, no additional Flaw Points are awarded for the worsen-ing of the character’s condition.

[7 Pts.] AIDS: Your character’s immune system has become damagedto the point where he is considered to have a full-blown case of AIDS.Your character suffers a -2 penalty to his general Fort Save and a -6penalty (cumulative with the -2) to all Fort Saves made to resist diseases.AIDS patients frequently suffer serious illness or death from what arecalled “opportunistic infections,” that is, diseases that are normally easilyheld in check by a healthy immune system. Your character must alsomaintain his drug treatment on a continual basis, or the -6 penalty to FortSaves against disease will become a -8 penalty (after one week withoutdrugs, lasting until they are next taken).

Special: This flaw may be combined with the Weak Immune Systemflaw, if you don’t like your character very much.

Limitation: This flaw may not be combined with any feat or FX powerthat grants heightened resistance to diseases. The character may stillacquire or create a magic item or FX artifact that confers resistanceagainst disease, provided he does so during actual play rather than at orbefore 1st level.

ASTHMA[ Medical Condition]

This is a chronic lung condition that causes frequent bouts of laboredbreathing, as well as occasional attacks of brutal coughing, wheezing,and chest constriction. Asthma is often (but not always) linked to aller-gies.

[1 Pt.] Nuisance Asthma: Your character suffers an inherent -2 penal-ty to all skill checks or saves made to reflect exertion over an extendedlength of time.

[2 Pts.] Mild Asthma: Your character suffers an inherent -1 penalty toall Fort Saves and an inherent -2 penalty to all skill checks or saves madeto reflect exertion over an extended length of time. Furthermore, whenholding his breath, he is treated as though his Constitution score were 2points lower than it really is.

[4 Pts.] Serious Asthma: Your character suffers an inherent -2 penal-

22

ty to all Fort Saves and an inherent -4 penalty to all skill checks or savesmade to reflect exertion over an extended length of time. Furthermore,when holding his breath, he is treated as though his Constitution scorewere 4 points lower than it really is.

[6 Pts.] Severe Asthma: As per Serious Asthma. Furthermore, when-ever your character makes a skill check or save to reflect exertion overan extended length of time (carrying weights, running, holding his breath,etc.), he must make a Fort Save (DC 17) or suffer an asthma attack. Anattack will last for 2d10 minutes, and for that duration will confer a -2 cir-cumstance penalty to attack rolls, skill checks, and Defense due towheezing, coughing, and anxiety.

[8 Pts.] Crippling Asthma: As per Serious Asthma. Furthermore,whenever your character makes a skill check or save to reflect exertionover an extended length of time (carrying weights, running, holding hisbreath, etc.), he must make a Fort Save (DC 20) or suffer an asthmaattack. An attack will last for 4d10 minutes, and for the duration will con-fer a -4 circumstance penalty to attack rolls, skill checks, and Defensedue to wheezing, coughing, and anxiety.

During this time, the character must refrain from taking further violentor energetic action (running, charging, or taking an attack action in two ormore rounds in a row), or an additional 1d10 minutes will be added to theduration of the attack for each such action.

Special Handicap [Allergy Trigger, +2 Pts.]: Any time your characteris exposed to large amounts of dust, smoke, or any other nose/throat irri-tant (GM’s discretion), he must make a Fort Save (DC 15). If your char-acter has mild or serious asthma, he will suffer a -2 circumstance penal-ty to attack rolls and skill checks for 2d6 rounds (this penalty is cumula-tive in the event of subsequent bouts of allergic irritation). If your charac-ter has severe or crippling asthma, he will suffer one of his usual attacks.

The GM may increase the DC of the Fort Save if the intensity or quan-tity of the irritant is deemed to be unusually high.

CLUBFOOT[ Medical Condition]

This is a congenital deformation of one foot, more common in (but notentirely limited to) boys rather than girls. Surgical correction for clubfootis fairly routine in developed nations– this flaw presumes that some cor-rection has been made, but that it hasn’t been entirely successful.

[2 Pts.]: Your character suffers an inherent -3 penalty to all Balancechecks and Jump checks.

DIABETES (TYPE I)[ Medical Condition]

The body of a diabetic does not produce (or does not make proper useof) insulin, a hormone required for the conversion of sugar and starch intouseful energy. Type I is the less common form of diabetes, in which thebody simply does not produce insulin on its own. This form of diabetes isusually diagnosed in childhood.

[5 Pts.]: Your character is capable of living a full and exciting life, butmust do so at the expense of a number of inconveniences:

• Your character suffers an effective -1 penalty to his Wealth score dueto his need to carefully pursue a specialized diet and lifestyle regimen.

• Your character suffers one of the following three health problems;either select one at 1st level or roll randomly on a d6:

1-2: Diabetic Skin Condition: Your character suffers an inherent -1 penalty to his Charisma score.

3-4: Eye Trouble: Your character suffers an inherent -1penalty to all Search and Spot checks.

5-6: General Health Trouble: Your character suffers aninherent -1 penalty to all Fort Saves.

• Your character must make a Wealth check (DC 13) each month inorder to pay for his insulin regime. Failure to maintain insulin treatmentwill invite problems, as discussed below:

• Your character is dependent upon artificial insulin, and generally mustinject himself with it twice every twenty-four hours for maximum effec-tiveness. Each 24-hour period that passes without an insulin infusion willbestow a -2 circumstance penalty to Constitution upon the character; thispenalty will last until the character again receives an insulin injection andrests for at lest eight hours. This Constitution penalty is cumulative; acharacter that reaches a Con score of 0 will enter a diabetic coma anddie.

DIABETES (TYPE II)[ Medical Condition]

Type II diabetes (sometimes referred to as “adult onset” diabetes) isboth more common and less severe than Type I. The body of a Type IIdiabetic still produces insulin, but either doesn’t produce enough or does-n’t use what it produces properly. A relatively mild drug regimen may be

23

used to help contain Type I diabetes– in many cases, combined withproper exercise and diet habits, this regimen can nearly eradicate thesymptoms of the disease.

[2 Pts.]: Your character is capable of living a full and exciting life, butmust do so at the expense of a number of minor inconveniences, not asbad as those faced by Type I diabetics:

• Your character suffers an effective -1 penalty to his Wealth score dueto his need to carefully pursue a specialized diet and lifestyle regimen.

• Your character suffers one of the following three health problems;either select one at 1st level or roll randomly on a d6:

1-2: Diabetic Skin Condition: Your character suffers an inherent -1 penalty to his Charisma score.

3-4: Eye Trouble: Your character suffers an inherent -1penalty to all Search and Spot checks.

5-6: General Health Trouble: Your character suffers aninherent -1 penalty to all Fort Saves.

• Your character is somewhat dependent upon his medications to assistin controlling his condition. Each week that passes without a dose of thecharacter’s usual medication will confer a -1 circumstance penalty to thecharacter’s Con score. This penalty is cumulative. A Type II diabetic neg-ligent enough to reach a Con score of 0 in this fashion will enter a dia-betic coma and die.

EPILEPSY[ Medical Condition]

Epilepsy is a complex neurological condition that affects about 5% ofthe adult population at some point in their lives. The primary outwardeffect of epilepsy is a variety of seizures. For game purposes, the myriadforms of epilepsy have been greatly simplified into the hierarchy present-ed below. Emotional stress is often a trigger for epileptic complications,therefore, Will Saves have been used as the default triggers for possibleepileptic seizures.

[2 Pts.] Mild Epilepsy: Whenever your character is forced to make aWill Save, there is a 25% chance (non-cumulative) that he will have whatis called a “simple partial seizure.” During such a seizure one part of thecharacter’s body (typically an arm or a leg) will begin to twitch and spasmuncontrollably. This seizure will last 3d6 rounds, imposing a -1 circum-

stance penalty to attack rolls and skill checks for the duration.

[4 Pts.] Moderate Epilepsy: Whenever your character is forced tomake a Will Save, there is a 30% chance (non-cumulative) that he willhave what is called a “complex partial seizure.” In addition to the usualphysical seizure effects, your character’s consciousness and memorymay be briefly impaired.

During such a seizure one part of the character’s body (typically an armor a leg) will begin to twitch and spasm uncontrollably. This seizure willlast 3d6 rounds, imposing a -1 circumstance penalty to attack rolls andskill checks for the duration. Furthermore, there is only a 50% chance(non-cumulative, and rolled for each allowed action) that the characterwill be able to take any action he desires. In place of any lost action, thecharacter will mumble unintelligibly and fiddle with his clothes or equip-ment for a few seconds. This does not render him helpless.

[6 Pts.] Severe Epilepsy: Whenever your character is forced to makea Will Save, there is a 35% chance (non-cumulative) that he will havewhat is called a “tonic-clonic convulsive seizure,” also known as a “grandmal.” Your character will fall to the ground for 1d8+2 rounds, during whichtime he will be unable to take any conscious actions. Though he is nothelpless, he is considered prone for all defensive purposes, and oppo-nents entering or leaving his threatened areas do not trigger attacks ofopportunity from him. He may not sustain spells or other FX powersthrough such a seizure.

Special Handicap [Photosensitive Epilepsy, +2 Pts.]: Althoughwidely popularized, this is an extremely rare form of epilepsy (approxi-mately 3-5% of epileptics are affected by it). A photosensitive epilepticmay suffer seizures through exposure to flickering patterns of lights,including but not limited to strobe lights, video games, and certain danceor party lighting effects, as well as flashy magical spells and other visualFX abilities. Whenever your character is exposed (GM’s discretion) toflickering lights, there is a 40% chance (non-cumulative) that he will havea seizure appropriate to his level of epilepsy. This percentile chance mustbe re-rolled for every five rounds (thirty seconds) of continual exposureto flickering lights.

Note: After an epileptic character has experienced (and recoveredfrom) a seizure, he will not be susceptible to another one for a minimumof ten minutes. Photosensitive epilepsy is the sole exception.

Limitation: Photosensitive epilepsy may not be combined with blind-ness (page 15).

24

HEMOPHILIA[ Medical Condition]

Hemophilia is a hereditary condition (sex-linked, occurring far more fre-quently in men than in women) that compromises blood clotting. A hemo-philiac, when injured, will bleed for an unusually long period of time, bothinternally and externally. A cut that would be an inconvenience to an ordi-nary person may prove lethal to a hemophiliac if proper medical attentionisn’t sought.

[4 Pts.] Hemophilia: Whenever your character is injured by a piercing,cutting, or slashing weapon (basically, anything with a sharp or penetrat-ing edge), he will continue to lose 1 hit point per round thereafter due toblood loss. This blood loss will continue for 2d8 rounds, and may only behalted by a successful Treat Injury check (DC 15) or the use of a magi-cal healing spell or a similar FX power.

[8 Pts.] Severe Hemophilia: Whenever your character is injured by apiercing, cutting, or slashing weapon (basically, anything with a sharp orpenetrating edge), he will continue to lose 2 hit points per round there-after due to blood loss. This blood loss will continue for 2d8 rounds, andmay only be halted by a successful Treat Injury check (DC 17) or the useof a magical healing spell or a similar FX power.

Note: Subsequent injuries will not cause a cumulative loss of hit pointsdue to bleeding, however, each subsequent injury will extend the dura-tion of the bleeding by an additional 1d6 rounds.

MULTIPLE CHEMICAL SENSITIVITY[ Medical Condition]

Multiple Chemical Sensitivity (MCS) is an “environmental illness,” a setof chronic allergic reactions generally triggered by exposure to scentedchemical products (typically cleaning chemicals, detergents, perfumes,fabric softeners, and the like). MCS can make life in the contemporaryworld a continual aggravation for its unfortunate sufferers, as the majori-ty of ordinary people are totally oblivious to the scented chemicals theyare constantly using in public and private places alike.

[2 Pts.] Mild Sensitivity: Whenever your character enters a crowdedarea or a space that would be filled with scented chemicals (restaurants,public restrooms, etc.), there is a base 40% chance (rolled once everyten minutes or so) that your character will be exposed to a substance thatwill set him off. If he is exposed, he will suffer a fairly standard allergicreaction– watery eyes, runny nose, sneezing, and tightness in his throatand chest. This episode will last for 1d6 minutes and will inflict a -1 cir-cumstance penalty to attack rolls, skill checks, and Defense upon the

character for the duration.

[5 Pts.] Severe Sensitivity: Whenever your character enters a crowd-ed area or a space that would be filled with scented chemicals (restau-rants, public restrooms, etc.), there is a base 70% chance (rolled onceevery ten minutes or so) that your character will be exposed to a sub-stance that will set him off. If he is exposed, he will suffer an unusuallydebilitating allergic reaction– swollen eyes, runny nose, painful sneezing,and tightness in his throat and chest. This episode will last for 2d6 min-utes and will inflict a -2 circumstance penalty to attack rolls, skill checks,and Defense upon the character for the duration. Furthermore, he willsuffer a total circumstance penalty of -4 to all Spot and Concentrationchecks.

Note: If your character encounters a large concentration of any trig-gering chemical (particularly in an enclosed area), the GM may increasethe percentile chance of an allergic episode at his own discretion.

Friends and allies of your character may prevent allergic episodes byavoiding the use of strong perfumes, deodorants, aftershaves, and simi-lar substances. Of course, even a single person wearing a powerful scentcan trigger a full-on allergic attack if they get close enough to your char-acter (GMs take heed), so caveat emptor.

Special: Characters that possess the “scent” ability may only possessthis flaw with the GM’s explicit permission; although it might be appropri-ate for some character concepts, it might also be unduly crippling for acharacter with a hypersensitive nose to spend pretty much the entirecampaign in paroxysms of sneezing and gagging.

Special (Designated Flaw Synergy): If your character also possess-es severe or crippling asthma (page 22), each instance of a MCS aller-gic attack will require a Fort Save (DC 17). Failure will double the dura-tion and numerical penalties of the MCS allergy attack. Either of theabove degrees of asthma taken in conjunction with MCS is worth +1 FlawPoint.

If your unfortunate character possesses the Allergy Trigger specialhandicap for asthma, it is “set off” each time the character encounters aMCS trigger. All resulting penalties are cumulative! This special handicap,taken in conjunction with MCS, is worth +2 Flaw Points.

Limitation: Characters that do not breathe or need not fear airbornecontaminants for racial reasons may not select this flaw.

25

PSYCHOLOGICAL CONDITIONS

ANXIETY DISORDER[ Psychological Condition ]

Your character suffers from a very general condition of high anxiety– heis a chronic worrier and fretter, often spending weeks or months agoniz-ing (often in private) over everything from his financial future to his socialacceptability. This disorder interferes with his sleeping habits and hisgeneral state of health.

[2 Pts.]: Your character suffers an inherent -1 penalty to both FortSaves and Will Saves, as a result of the degradation of his physical andmental states due to a gnawing sense of worry. Roleplaying acute out-bursts of anxiety from time to time would not be inappropriate, however,bear in mind that this does not mean a constant stream of moaning andwailing.

BIPOLAR DISORDER[ Psychological Condition ]

“Manic depression” is a more common term used to describe bipolaraffective disorder. Although there are at least six clinically diagnosedvarieties of this disorder, for game purposes it is defined as a conditionthat causes pendulum-like swings between periods of high energy andelation (“manic phase”) and morbidity, agitation, and feelings of worth-lessness (“depressive phase”).

[3 Pts.]: Prior to each game session, the GM should roll 1d10 to deter-mine which “phase” your character is currently in. On a roll of 1-4, he iscompletely normal. On a roll of 5-7, he is in a “depressive” phase, and ona roll of 8-10 he is in a “manic” phase.

During a manic phase, the character should behave in an energizedand enthusiastic manner– he is gung-ho for just about any challenge,ready to seize the day and live life to the fullest. He receives a +1 moralebonus to Will Saves.

During a depressive phase, the character will be plagued by feelings ofintense worthlessness and bleakness; the pleasures of life hold no inter-est for him, and he may skip essentials such as eating or sleeping. Hemay entertain morbid or suicidal thoughts, and he will be bitter, morosecompany at best. A depressive character suffers a -2 morale penalty toall attack rolls, skill checks, and saving throws. At the GM’s discretion, hemay also suffer a -2 circumstance penalty to Charisma.

If a game session covers the events of more than one day, the GM mayre-roll to determine the character’s phase at the beginning of each gameday.

CHRONIC CONFUSION[ Psychological Condition ]

Your character suffers from lapses in memory and attention that seemto leave him a bit befuddled. This is quite above and beyond ordinaryabsent-mindedness, and is often associated with advanced age (page 9).From time to time, your character should have trouble rememberingnames and faces, as well as remembering where he is and what he’sdoing. He may suffer bouts of irritability, and will even wander away fromfriends and allies during critical situations.

[3 Pts.]: In addition to the role-played effects of this flaw, your char-acter suffers an inherent -2 penalty to Initiative checks, Concentrationchecks, Search checks, and Spot checks.

DELUSIONAL[ Psychological Condition ]

Your character suffers from occasional audiovisual hallucinations,sometimes imagining events or situations that aren’t actually real.

[2 Pts.]: From time to time the GM will feed you a description (withouttelling you that it’s delusional, of course) of an event or encounter thatyour character will believe to be utterly real. Most of these delusions willfall apart when examined and refuted by other party members, but thereshould always be some tension about each incident. Is your charactermerely hallucinating again, or is there really a shadowy figure followingthe group from nightclub to nightclub?

Special: No form of magical/FX healing or protection against illusionswill suffice to remove these delusions. They originate deep within yourcharacter’s mind for reasons appropriate to his background.

DISSOCIATIVE IDENTITY[ Psychological Condition ]

Formerly known as Multiple Personality Disorder, Dissociative IdentityDisorder is generally recognized as a result of severe childhood trauma.Temporary dissociation is a part of everyone’s life– daydreams, reveries,and intense absorption in a fictional medium such as a book are all rou-tine examples. An individual with DID has a particularly severe dissocia-tive disorder that has caused the formation of one or more secondarypersonality states within his mind; from time to time, one of these sec-

26

ondary personalities “takes over” conscious operation of the body whilethe character’s primary personality dissociates.

The “multiple personality” label was set aside because while a charac-ter with this disorder may feel that he has one or more “entities” withinhim, each of these entities is really a manifestation of his own identity, nomatter how extreme its behavior or opinions might be. These entities donot have random traits– their mannerisms and behavior patterns stemfrom the character’s primary personality and past experiences.

Regardless of the nature of the dissociative secondary personality,there are several set conditions which, for ease of game abstraction, maycause the secondary personality to “steal” conscious control of the char-acter’s body away from his primary personality. To wit:

• Each time your character awakes from sleep, there is a 20% chance,non-cumulative, that his secondary personality will take over for 1d6+2game hours (total rolled secretly by the GM).

• Each time your character is knocked or rendered unconscious, thereis a 40% chance, non-cumulative, that his secondary personality will takeover for 1d6+2 game hours once he regains consciousness.

• Each time your character suffers a state of panic, there is a 40%chance, non-cumulative, that his secondary personality will take over for1d6+2 game hours.

For the purposes of simplicity, your character’s secondary and primarypersonalities share the same set of skills and abilities, and share thesame body of background information. However, when a secondary per-sonality takes control, “he” will “arrive” knowing nothing of the past eighthours of the primary personality’s life. This information will not be assim-ilated into the shared memory of the two personalities until later.Conversely, the primary will return to control not knowing what has tran-spired while he was dissociated.

The value of this flaw is based on the fundamental attitude of the sec-ondary personality:

[3 Pts.]: Amiable Dissociation: Your character’s dissociative person-ality is fundamentally amiable to the main personality’s goals, lifestyle,and friends. Although he may have different preferred methods of actionand will still have to cope with the confusion of any new situation heenters, the secondary personality will generally cooperate with whateverhappens to be the plan when he assumes control.

[5 Pts.]: Neutral Dissociation: Your character’s dissociative person-ality is unconcerned with or indifferent to the main personality’s goals,lifestyle, and friends. The secondary personality may miss appointments,throw previous plans out the window, and otherwise disrupt the main per-sonality’s life; not out of malice but rather out of guilt-free disinterest.From time to time, the secondary personality may be coerced or per-suaded into pursuing one of the primary personality’s goals, especially intimes of danger or crisis– though he will almost certainly insist that someplans made by the primary personality need to be changed.

[7 Pts.]: Difficult Dissociation: Your character’s secondary person-ality is disdainful of or somewhat opposed to the primary personality’sgoals, lifestyle, and friends. He will actively work to interfere with any ofthe primary personality’s plans if he can– though he won’t behave in aviolent fashion toward any of the primary personality’s friends and allies,he won’t respect anything about them, including their personal posses-sions. The secondary may attempt to sabotage major areas of the pri-mary personality’s life out of sheer spite.

DYSLEXIA[ Psychological Condition ]

Although your character is literate, he has difficulty with reading, writ-ing, and spelling. Dyslexia is a congenital and developmental conditionthat “scrambles” some information between the brain and the page;although it does not make comprehension impossible, it can be very frus-trating, particularly in times of stress.

[2 Pts.]: Your character suffers a -4 circumstance penalty to anyprocess or skill check requiring him to refer to written material (GM’s dis-cretion), and a -8 circumstance penalty to any process or skill check deal-ing solely with written material (writing a novel or decoding an ancientscroll, for example). Generally speaking, comprehension of written mate-rial will take your character about twice as long as it ordinarily should.Taking ‘10’ or ‘20’ on a skill check involving reading or writing will proba-bly require a successful Concentration check (DC 12-18, depending onthe complexity of the task).

Limitation: A character may not be both illiterate (page 14) and dyslex-ic. Blind (page 15) characters may not be dyslexic, either.

Note: This condition is assumed to be “as bad as” illiteracy becausewhile an illiterate individual won’t be able to receive the information adyslexic does, he also won’t waste his time trying.

27

NARCISSISM[ Psychological Condition ]

Although every healthy individual has some narcissistic tendencies,“narcissistic personality disorder” occurs when narcissism overpowers anindividual’s other character traits and becomes the major driving force ofhis existence.

While a vain/dandy (page 48) character is obsessive about his person-al appearance, a narcissistic character is obsessed with his own impor-tance on a much deeper level– while a vain individual simply relisheslooking good, a narcissist cannot stand to turn over the spotlight to any-one else. A narcissist is a glory-hound of the worst sort, fixated uponcredit and recognition for achievement regardless of actual achievement.It is of paramount importance (often quite transparently obvious to oth-ers) for a narcissist to attempt to “hog the credit” for any positive actionand likewise shrug off the blame for any defeat, even if it falls squarelyon him.

[2 Pts.]: Your character’s unbridled conceit, unrealistic self-estimation,and glaring thirst for recognition all combine to make him somewhat dif-ficult to get along with. His behavior may be somewhat amusing in smalldoses, but over a long enough period of time it will probably becometremendously aggravating to his friends and allies.

At the GM’s discretion, your character may suffer a variable circum-stance penalty (-1 to -4) to Charisma-based skill and ability checks in sit-uations where his narcissism may be expected to grate on the nerves ofNPCs.

NARCOLEPSY[ Psychological Condition ]

Narcolepsy is a highly troublesome condition that often goes undiag-nosed; many of the individuals afflicted with it continue to believe thatthey’re just not getting enough sleep. In reality, they suffer from a neuro-logical condition in which the REM state of sleep intrudes quite precipi-tously into conscious activity.

Although there are a variety of conditions that fall under the general cat-egory of “narcolepsy,” for game purposes this condition will focus onepisodes of sudden unconsciousness.

[4 Pts.] Relatively Mild Narcolepsy: Your character experiences fre-quent (but short) bouts of irresistible sleep. The GM should select an arbi-trary point very early in any session of play; there is a 40% non-cumula-tive chance at that point (rolled secretly by the GM) that the character will

fall asleep (wherever he is and whatever he happens to be doing) for1d6+1 rounds. The character will fall prone and be unable to defend him-self; he will most likely be considered helpless.

Every hour on the hour (in real time, not game time) from that selectedpoint, there is another 40% chance that the character will experience anarcoleptic bout, no matter what he happens to be doing (unless he isalready unconscious). If this point occurs during a break in play, check fornarcolepsy immediately after play is resumed.

[8 Pts.] Severe Narcolepsy: Your character experiences more certainand sustained bouts of irresistible sleep. The GM should select an arbi-trary point very early in any session of play; there is a 60% non-cumula-tive chance at that point that the character will fall asleep (wherever he isand whatever he happens to be doing) for 2d6+2 rounds. The characterwill fall prone and be unable to defend himself; he will most likely be con-sidered helpless.

Every hour on the hour (in real time, not game time) from that select-ed point, there is another 60% chance that the character will experiencea narcoleptic bout, no matter what he happens to be doing (unless he isalready unconscious). If this point occurs during a break in play, check fornarcolepsy immediately after play is resumed.

Special Handicap [Cataplexy, +2 Pts.]: Cataplexy is a neurologicalsymptom frequently associated with narcolepsy. Whenever your charac-ter experiences an intense emotional reaction (gets angry, sad, violent,exuberant, tense, frightened, etc., at GM’s discretion), there is a non-cumulative 40% chance that he will suffer a temporary bout of muscleweakness or paralysis. This bout lasts 1d10 rounds and inflicts a -2 cir-cumstance penalty to attack rolls, saving throws, skill checks, andDefense for its duration.

Limitation: This flaw may not be possessed by characters that do not(for racial or FX reasons) sleep.

OBSESSIVE-COMPULSIVE DISORDER[ Psychological Condition ]

Your character is preoccupied with orderliness, perfectionism, and con-trol over virtually everything in his life and environment. This obsessioncomes at the cost of flexibility, spontaneity, openness, and efficiency, andcan drive others crazy.

[2 Pts.] Mild OCD: As your character sees it, following his establishedprocedures is even more important than the success of those proce-dures; all of the details, lists, and protocols he has established must be

28

respected or he will get testy. While his anally-retentive personal habitsmake him difficult to get along with, no real damage is actually done whenhis procedures are disrupted; he gets irritated and even more unpleas-ant, but certainly not violent. Your character may even attempt a WillSave (DC 20) in moments of crisis to bite back his instincts and cast offhis compulsions for a short period of time.

[4 Pts.] Severe OCD: As above, but your character is even more stub-born and prickly when his quirks and procedures are not respected, to thepoint where he will start heated arguments or childishly refuse to partici-pate in an ongoing plan or mission if he can’t have enough time to dothings his own way. Your character is not allowed a Will Save to overridehis habits; his mind simply won’t let him try. Your character expects theworld to bend over backward to meet his needs, and does not considerthe possibility of the reverse.

PARANOIA[ Psychological Condition ]

Your character is obsessed with the idea that nebulous parties or forcesare up to no good, beyond the understanding of most people (and wellbeyond their ability to interfere). Paranoia may be generalized (“They’reeverywhere, but they don’t know about me yet”) or personalized (“They’reafter ME specifically!”). Please note that paranoia isn’t worth any FlawPoints if “they” really are out to get your character– after all, in such cir-cumstances paranoia is a healthy survival trait. It may, however, still beused in a campaign in which shadowy conspiracies do exist, simply byextending its ridiculousness well past the boundaries of even the realthreat.

[1 Pt.] Nervous Quirk: Your character’s paranoid tendencies aresomewhat restrained, but still an obvious part of his life. Work with theGM to define 3-6 very minor paranoid habits or superstitions that will fre-quently spice up the manner in which you portray your character.

[2 Pts.] Full-Blown Paranoia: Your character’s paranoia is one of thedefining features of his life. His constant paranoid quirks are clearly obvi-ous to others. Though not dangerous, they range from amusing to irritat-ing. In concert with the GM, select 3-6 major paranoid habits that yourcharacter will continually engage in; a few superstitious rules of behavior(“Never, ever arrive at an appointment right on time”) would also be quiteappropriate.

[3 Pts.] Disruptive Paranoia: Your character’s paranoia is so pro-nounced that it visibly interferes in his attempts to lead a normal life andinteract with others. He will enact bizarre (and sometimes dangerous)security measures in his home or apartment, cancel appointments for no

apparent reason, double back on his route three or four times when driv-ing anywhere, hail one taxi and then sprint through traffic for another– thepossibilities are endless. Work with the GM to define 3-4 solid and debil-itating rules of superstitious behavior (“Sprinkle salt over any thresholdbefore you enter a room; this will negate the supernatural power of theBanzai Gnomes”), as well as a bevy of lesser quirks and habits.

Special Handicap [Schizophrenia, +1 Pt.]: Your character is not onlyparanoid, but his paranoia is defined by the unshakable belief that thereis One Root Cause for all of his fears and conspiracy theories, one “bigbad” that makes everything happen. This is a subject of frequentresearch and pontification on your character’s part.

PHOBIA[ Psychological Condition ]

Your character has an unreasoning fear of a certain thing or situation.This phobia must center on an object or situation that is reasonably com-mon, yet not entirely disruptive to the ongoing game. Possibilities include(but are not limited to):

• Snakes • Enclosed Spaces • Spiders • Fire• Darkness • Guns and Ammunition• Heights • Bridges• Water • Automobiles• Disease • Dirt/Uncleanliness• Open Spaces • Sharp Objects

[2 Pts.] Phobia: When your character is in the presence of the objectof his phobia, he suffers a -2 morale penalty to all of his skill checks,attack rolls, and saving throws. Generally speaking, he may remain inmoderate proximity to the object of his fear (while enduring the penaltiesdescribed above) but will be forced to attempt a Will Save (DC 14-18) ifforced to closely approach a phobia trigger or touch it directly.

[4 Pts.] Severe Phobia: When your character is in the presence of theobject of his phobia, he suffers a -2 morale penalty to all of his skillchecks, attack rolls, and saving throws. He will attempt to remove himselffrom proximity to the object of the phobia as fast as possible; each roundin which he wishes to even remain in sight of the object (or venture backtoward it) will require a Will Save, minimum DC 16). Failure of any suchWill Save means the character will be unable to attempt another one forat least five rounds. If the need to get away from the phobia trigger inter-feres with other actions he might wish to take during this time, so be it–he flees first and thinks later.

29

[6 Pts.] Extreme Aversive Shock: As per Severe Phobia, with twoadditions. First, the -2 morale penalty inflicted by the presence of a pho-bia trigger is bestowed upon the character’s Defense score as well.Second, the first time the character enters the proximity of a phobia trig-ger (close enough for the GM to award the above penalties), the charac-ter must make a Will Save (DC 18). Failure means that the GM shouldroll a d6 and consult the table below:

1-2: Nausea Attack: The character becomes nauseated; he will remainnauseated as long as he remains in the presence of the phobia trigger,and for 1d6 rounds after leaving its presence.

3-4: Panic Attack: The character will become panicked until out of sightof the phobia trigger; for 1 hour thereafter he will suffer a -1 morale penal-ty to skill checks and attack rolls, cumulative with any other such penal-ties.

5-6: Nervous Collapse: The character will immediately fall unconsciousfor 1d6 rounds; this means he will fall prone and be considered helpless.Upon recovering consciousness, he must make another Will Save if heawakes in the presence of the phobia trigger. Failure means that the GMgets to roll that d6 again.

With the exception of the situation described above under “nervous col-lapse,” a character need make this Will Save only the first time heencounters any given phobia trigger. Afterward, he will be subject to thestandard conditions of Severe Phobia. If he flees the situation andreturns, it counts as a new encounter, and he must make the Will Saveagain.

Special Handicap [Common Trigger, +1-2 Pts.]: If the GM deter-mines that your character’s phobia trigger is unusually common or wide-spread in his foreseen campaign, he may award an additional 1 or 2 FlawPoints for that phobia, as appropriate.

Special: With the GM’s explicit permission, a character may possesstwo or more phobias.

POST-TRAUMATIC STRESS DISORDER[ Psychological Condition ]

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is a recurring nervous condi-tion that occurs in individuals subjected to some form of violent or dis-turbing experience in the past (a mugging, a wild animal attack, the deathof a loved one, combat, etc.). The precise nature of the traumatic experi-ence should be determined by discussion between the player and theGM.

When a character with PTSD encounters a situation that is reminiscentof his “trigger,” he will experience a nervous reaction, of a severity dictat-ed below:

[2 Pts.] Nervous Jitters: Whenever your character encounters a situ-ation similar to his “trigger,” he must make a Will Save (DC 16) or suffera -2 morale penalty to attack rolls and Defense for the duration of hisproximity to the trigger.

[4 Pts.] Disabling Flashback: Whenever your character encounters asituation similar to his “trigger,” he must make a Will Save (DC 18) or suf-fer a -4 morale penalty to attack rolls, skill checks, and Defense for theduration of his proximity to the trigger.

[6 Pts.] Panic Attack: Whenever your character encounters a situationsimilar to his “trigger,” he must make a Will Save (DC 20) or immediate-ly become panicked. Even after removing himself from proximity to histrigger, he will suffer a -1 morale penalty to attack rolls and skill checksfor 1d3 hours.

Special Handicap [Common Trigger, +1-2 Pts.]: If the GM deter-mines that your character’s stress trigger is unusually common or wide-spread in his foreseen campaign, he may award an additional 1 or 2 FlawPoints for that trigger, as appropriate.

Special: With the GM’s explicit permission, a character may possesstwo or more stress triggers.

Limitations: The situations that trigger stress should be more generalthan those associated with a phobia.

QUIRK/MANNERISM[ Psychological Condition ]

Your character has a recurring, involuntary nervous habit, mannerism,or general style of personal interaction that is quite unusual. This quirkshould be roleplayed whenever appropriate; at the GM’s discretion, itmay cause questions or comments from NPCs.

[1 Pt.]: This flaw is for the delineation of any sort of nonviolent, non-disruptive quirk not covered by other available flaws. Possibilities includebut are not limited to:

• Character affects a speech pattern or accent clearly not natural to him;• Character bobs and weaves drunkenly even when sober;• Character speaks to animals without apparent irony or humor;• Character frequently slurs his speech for no apparent reason;

30

• Character habitually wears coats or shirts inside out for “good luck;”• Character always speaks in the third person or narrates his own actions

At the GM’s discretion, a quirk or mannerism may inflict a -1 circum-stance penalty to Charisma-based skill and ability checks in certain situ-ations; at all times, it inflicts a -1 penalty to Disguise checks due to thedifficulty of consciously hiding it.

Limitation: A character may possess only one Quirk/Mannerism forwhich he receives a Flaw Point.

TOURETTE’S SYNDROME[ Psychological Condition ]

Tourette’s is a “spectrum” nervous disorder, meaning that it has a vari-ety of symptoms, some of which can be confused with those of other psy-chological disorders. Although it is widely known as the “CursingDisease,” there’s a bit more to it than that, even when abstracted forgame purposes:

[1 Pt.] Simple Tics: Your character suffers from occasional “simpletics,” which are completely involuntary physical actions or vocal out-bursts. Motor tics include pulling at clothes, jumping, skipping, imitatingothers, furious scratching, and obscene gestures. Vocal tics include ran-dom grunts, snorts, laughs, whistles, coughs, or even short nonsensewords. These tics should be roleplayed from time to time at the player’sdiscretion. The character also suffers an inherent -1 penalty to Charismadue to the off-putting social effect these tics have on strangers.

[2 Pts.] Complex Tics: Your character suffers from occasional “com-plex tics,” which last longer and are more involved than simple tics.Complex motor tics include sudden jerks, nods, waves, blinking, or facialgrimacing. Complex vocal tics include strings of obscenities, imitations ofspeeches made by other characters, socially taboo phrases, or evenstrings of nonsense words and phrases. These tics should be roleplayedfrom time to time at the player’s discretion. The character also suffers aninherent -2 penalty to Charisma due to the off-putting social effect thesetics have on strangers.

Note: Outbursts of obscenity are referred to as “coprolalia,” and maybe disruptive in some gaming groups. When roleplaying this disorder,players may feel free to substitute milder epithets and terms in order toavoid offending or disturbing fellow players. Also, please note that aTourette’s sufferer need not be callous about his outbursts– in fact, manyof them are mortified and apologetic about the things that come out oftheir mouths during an outburst.

Special Handicap [Stress Trigger, +2 Pts.]: Whenever your charac-ter is subjected to emotional stress (anger, fear, hatred, injury to a friendor loved one, etc.), there is a flat 50% chance that he will experience asudden and relatively long Tourette’s outburst (2d6+2 rounds if precisionis required). During such an outburst, he will suffer motor and vocal ticsof the appropriate complexity level; the motor tics will inflict a -1 circum-stance penalty to attack rolls and Defense, and the vocal tics ruin anyattempt to hide or move silently.

If the character can cast arcane spells, this special handicap is worthan additional 2 Flaw Points; an outburst of Tourette’s will greatly interferewith the vocalizations needed for spellcasting. There is a 20% chancethat any spell with a vocal (V) component will be lost when cast due to aTourette’s tic.

Special Handicap [Violent Outburst, +1 Pt.]: Your character suffersfrom Tourette’s tics of an unusually vehement or violent nature– thoughhe won’t feel at all violent, his hysterical, aggressive, and threatening out-bursts will often scare the bejeezus out of NPCs and strangers. The pos-sibilities for plot complication are endless.

SECONDARY FLAWS

AGGRESSIVE[ Secondary Flaw: Personality Conflict ]

Your character is impulsive and belligerent, favoring threats and com-bat over all other means of problem-solving.

[2 Pts.]: Your character tends to strike first and think later; he assumeshostility on the part of strangers and unknown beings, and he believesthat they are logically expecting hostility in return. Threats and demandsare the only forms of negotiation he understands, and the only forms heis likely to respect. Cracking a few skulls, in his opinion, is usually theonly way to get people to listen to reason.

Your character is not necessarily murderous, and his friends and alliescan talk him out of foolish courses of action, but they had best do soquickly!

Special: Your character suffers a -4 penalty to any Diplomacy checkmade against any character used to more civilized methods of persua-sion than totally overt threats.

Limitation: This flaw may not be combined with the Cowardly flaw or

31

with the Pacifism flaw.

AIRY/FLAKY[ Secondary Flaw: Personality Conflict ]

Your character acts and dresses in a manner that convinces others(accurately or otherwise) that he isn’t “all there,” mentally speaking.

[2 Pts.]: Perhaps your character has a particularly spaced-out person-ality, and speaks in flowery language full of references to nebulous mys-ticism. Perhaps he dresses like an aggressive gypsy version of EltonJohn. Possibly he writes a series of self-help books discussing hisencounters with anal-probing aliens from another galaxy. Whatever hisproblem is, his friends can endure it, but strangers find it off-putting. Inaddition to the obvious roleplaying consequences of this flaw, your char-acter suffers an inherent -4 penalty to Intimidate checks, and may suffera variable penalty to Charisma in other circumstances when interactingwith strangers.

AMNESIA[ Secondary Flaw: Personality Conflict ]

Your character’s life before now is a blank slate. He is unable to remem-ber where he came from, what his real name is, and what he was doingfor large portions of his life. Although he has not forgotten his skills andpersonal talents, the process by which he acquired them is a total mys-tery. Evidence pointing him in any specific direction is also frustratinglythin.

[2 Pts.]: In addition to the obvious difficulties this can cause, the char-acter is also quite obsessed with discovering what his mind is conceal-ing. Any time the chance presents itself to explore the mystery of his past,the character will have to exert an incredible force of will (The GM mayeven call for a Will Save against a high DC) to resist it.

Special: Psionic or magical examination of the character’s mind will beunable to reveal any of the secrets behind his amnesia, beyond generalflickers and glimpses of vague clues.

Limitation: This flaw is incompatible with any advantages that would (inthe GM’s opinion) require the character to have a fully working memoryof his past.

BILLY THE KID SYNDROME[ Secondary Flaw: External Trouble ]

For some lamentable reason, your character has acquired a reputation

as “the one to beat” within a certain field of skill or specialization. Cockyhotshots, ignorant wannabes, and consummate professionals alike areconstantly on the lookout for your character, seeking to test themselvesagainst him. They’re not enemies– they just want to see what he’s madeof, and how they stack up against him.

[2 Pts.]: At fairly regular intervals, complete strangers show up in yourcharacter’s life and challenge him to some sort of contest relevant to hisabilities (for example, if your character has a reputation as an inhumanlyfast video game player, opponents will be looking for a showdown withhis game of choice). They don’t take “no” for an answer and they’re notalways sporting or accommodating when your character is busy.

BOASTFUL[ Secondary Flaw: Personality Conflict ]

Your character is full of hot air concerning everything about himself– hismilitary record, his car, his drinking capacity, his skills at fishing and bas-ketball, the important people he knows, his personal weapons, hisromantic conquests, his close friends, and his aspirations in life.

[2 Pts.] Loudmouth: Your character cannot discuss himself or hisfriends without embellishing the facts and exaggerating the details.Unlike most veteran soldiers and bar regulars, he doesn’t regard thisbehavior as a playful sort of game– he’s a compulsive braggart with somepersonal deficiency or thirst for attention. He cannot bear to be upstaged,and will exaggerate his stories to the point that demands will usually bemade for him to prove his claims– which he usually can’t.

[4 Pts.]: Violent Loudmouth: What’s worse, your character willinevitably start a confrontation or threaten violence to defend his obvi-ously outrageous and exaggerated stories. The more he lies, the moreincredulous the reaction of those around him– and thus the angrier hergets.

Special: If your character must bite his tongue when discretion is obvi-ously called for, he may attempt a Will Save (DC set by the GM, moder-ate difficulty) to do so. If he must bite his tongue as a matter of life ordeath, he can swallow his pride for a short while without a Will Save.

COLD FISH[ Secondary Flaw: Personality Conflict ]

Your character is an unusually taciturn and emotionless person. He hasno interest in sports, wagers or amusements (save those of the quietestand most cerebral sort). He has little flair for personal interaction andseems decidedly uncomfortable around celebrants, drunkards, children,

32

attractive members of the opposite sex, and open displays of emotion.

[2 Pts]: Your character isn’t necessarily condescending or disdainfulabout the habits of other people. He’s just far removed from any ability toappreciate those habits. Imagine him as an alien presence, forever tryingto comprehend what’s going on around him and forever failing.Frequently, it’s more comfortable for him to withdraw from contact withothers than to tolerate exuberance, rashness, relaxation, and cama-raderie. Although he may value others, he has few ways of expressingthis value. He gives praise only rarely and matter-of-factly, because hedoes not grasp that others might enjoy it. His emotional displays are gen-erally limited to anger and its near-cousins.

Special: At the GM’s discretion, your character may suffer a -2 cir-cumstance penalty to certain Charisma-based skill checks made againststrangers or new acquaintances.

COMPULSIVE LIAR[ Secondary Flaw: Personality Conflict ]

Your character suffers from the psychological compulsion to exagger-ate, obfuscate, and even tell outright lies about virtually everything in hislife. Unlike a narcissist (page 28) or a boastful individual (page 32), yourcharacter’s lies don’t even have to be self-aggrandizing. For unknownreasons, your character simply cannot stop weaving webs of lies– harm-less or otherwise– around himself. Each lie he tells will inevitably requireanother lie at some point in the future when it comes under scrutiny. A liar,as a wise man once said, had best have an excellent memory.

[2 Pts.] You will be expected to roleplay this behavior an acceptablepercentage of the time; failure to lie often enough may result in the GMruling certain lies on your character’s behalf. Your character may attemptto force down his compulsion in moments of great need, with a Will Save(DC typically 15 or higher).

COWARDLY[ Secondary Flaw: Personality Conflict ]

Your character has an excessive fear of personal injury, death, failureand abandonment. He is not inclined to take risks, hates to enter a dan-gerous situation before others, and will often engage in pitiful displays ofcowardice that would shame a character made of sterner stuff.

[3 Pts.]: Your character will frequently attempt to maneuver himselfphysically to place others between himself and danger. He has very littleshame about cringing displays of cowardice. While he won’t completelyabandon close friends in need, he certainly won’t step boldly forward to

risk his neck on their behalf. He’ll do the minimum necessary (fleeing withan unconscious friend over his shoulder, for example, as opposed tofighting the gang member that knocked the friend unconscious).Whenever possible, he will fight in the least honorable and risky wayimaginable, taking cover or using high-powered weapons even if suchactions aren’t strictly necessary.

Special Handicap [Yellow, +1 Pt.]: Your character suffers a -2 moralepenalty to all saves against fear, horror, and demoralization effects.

Special: This flaw exerts a powerful pull on your character’s actions. Itmay be combined with other personality conflict flaws, provided thatwhen one cancels out the other the character will still suffer some penal-ty. For example, a cowardly character would never imagine leaping intoa freezing river to save a drowning pack animal. However, a cowardlymiser would do so in an instant if that pack animal carried his bags oftreasure, exposing himself to extreme risk without thought of his usualcowardice. While the character’s cowardice is temporarily subsumed, hisbehavior could by no means be termed healthy.

Limitation: This flaw may not be combined with the Aggressive flaw,nor may a cowardly character be Overconfident or Risk-Addicted.

CRIMINAL HONOR CODE[ Secondary Flaw: External Trouble ]

Your character adheres to a code of outlaw “honor.” The actual purposeof such a code is to make him a more effective criminal, more securefrom the authorities, than to make him more “honorable” for any practicalreason.

[2 Pts.]: Your character is expected to adhere to the following rules.Breach of a criminal “code” will generally result in violent reprisals fromother criminals if the breach is discovered.

• Never go to the authorities when you have been wronged by anoth-er; never inform the authorities of wrongdoing by another. Personalinsults and affronts must be settled personally– to ask someone in powerto protect or compensate you is unworthy and cowardly. Courts of law arefor chumps and weaklings;

• Justice must be of an equal measure to the crime; injury for injury,theft for theft, death for death. A direct personal insult (to one’s manhood,womanhood, or sense of honor) must be met with a duel or with murderif a duel is not accepted;

• Never, under any circumstances, forgive any insult or injury on any-

33

one’s terms but your own, after full satisfaction has been achieved. Thesole exception is when you are forced to extend forgiveness by a crimi-nal figure in authority over you; and

• Never betray a close friend; Never reveal information to anyone thatwould be harmful to a friend; In turn, never forgive a betrayal by a formerfriend.

Note: Adherence to a criminal code of conduct may require ritualizedgestures of loyalty to other, more powerful criminals, as well as otherminor lifestyle details that can be settled between player and GM beforea campaign begins.

CRIMINAL RECORD[ Secondary Flaw: External Trouble ]

Your character has been convicted of one or more crimes, and hasserved time for them. They remain on his record, and interfere with hislife to this day. Your character’s actual guilt, for purposes of this flaw, isimmaterial. In addition to the effects listed below, a criminal record willinterfere with a character’s attempts to gain legitimate employment,secure loans or credit, and rent living space.

[2 Pts.]: Lesser Crime: Your character never hurt anyone, but he diddo something stupid and illegal– possession or transportation of milddrugs, perhaps, or a bit of check fraud or similar con artistry, or a prankthat soured into accidental vandalism or theft.

[3 Pts.]: Multiple Lesser Crimes: Your character has an establishedhistory of misdemeanors and minor crimes– perhaps he is a habitualtrespasser or vandal, or likes to pick fights and make empty threats.

Your character may be considered somewhat infamous in a small area(his native city), and will gain a +1 bonus (whether he likes it or not) toReputation checks made by law-enforcement personnel in that area.

[4 Pts.]: Serious Crime: Your character committed a felony in whichno one was injured– computer hacking, perhaps, or automobile theft, ora major con scheme.

Your character may be considered somewhat infamous in a small area(his native city), and will gain a +2 bonus (whether he likes it or not) toReputation checks made by law-enforcement personnel in that area.

[5 Pts.]: Violent Crime: Your character didn’t necessarily hurt anyone,but at the very least he put others in danger. Assault and battery, arson,armed robbery, and kidnapping are all possibilities, as is manslaughter or

murder.

Your character may be considered infamous in a sizable area (hisnative city and surrounding regions), and will gain a +4 bonus (whetherhe likes it or not) to Reputation checks made by law-enforcement andmedia personnel in that area.

Your character will almost certainly face restrictions on his ability to pur-chase weapons and his ability to vote or hold a job (GM’s discretion,dependent upon local laws and customs).

[6 Pts.]: Multiple Violent or Serious Crimes: Your character has arecord involving several violent or unusually audacious felonies.

Your character will definitely be considered infamous in a sizable area(his native city and surrounding regions), and will gain a +6 bonus(whether he likes it or not) to Reputation checks made by law-enforce-ment and media personnel in that area.

Your character will almost certainly face restrictions on his ability to pur-chase weapons and his ability to vote or hold a job (GM’s discretion,dependent upon local laws and customs).

Special Handicap [On Parole, +3 Pts.]: Your character remains onparole for his last conviction. Although he has some freedom of move-ment and activity, he is required to report to his parole officer on a dailybasis, avoid contact with known criminals, and prove that he is seekingor holding down a legal job. Violation of any of these strictures may betreated very harshly– your character could even be returned to prison.This may put quite a damper on a life of adventure and excitement. Yourcharacter will remain on parole for at least two years of game time.

Limitations: The “On Parole” handicap may only be selected if yourcharacter is attempting to live (or present the illusion of living) an openand legal existence. It may not be selected in conjunction with the PoorReputation (Wanted) special handicap on page 46.

Furthermore, any character with a Criminal Record worth 3 or moreFlaw Points will almost certainly be disbarred from the possibility of futureservice in a military or law enforcement capacity (though exceptions arealways made, especially in the fictional worlds of adventure games).GMs, please take note.

CRUELTY[ Secondary Flaw: Personality Conflict ]

Your character takes genuine pleasure in inflicting pain upon others,

34

and often in watching pain be inflicted. It is rarely satisfying to him tomerely defeat his enemies when he can humiliate them or prolong theirsuffering as well.

[2 Pts.]: Your character is not necessarily murderous, nor does he evennecessarily like his cruel streak. Nonetheless, he feels a definite thirst forcruel, punishing solutions to his life’s problems– he desires those whointerfere with him to suffer a commensurate degree of aggravation, pain,and loss before he overcomes them. A straightforward and sporting vic-tory is an empty one, according to his heart. Clever cruelties fill him withjoy– after all, he is not a mindless brute, but rather a shaper of punish-ments to fit the nature of each crime.

This is differentiated from the Vindictive flaw (page 48); a vindictivecharacter is relentless in his pursuit of revenge or redress, but he isn’tnecessarily savage and uncouth in gaining it. A cruel character doesn’tneed to dash off and seek vengeance for every little wrong done to him,but when he does overcome an opponent, only a Will Save (DC fairlyhigh) will allow him to overcome his cruel impulses.

DARK DESIRE[ Secondary Flaw: Personality Conflict ]

Your character’s innermost desire can only be described as vile or evil–to possess some unimaginably powerful thing, to seize power for cruelpurposes, or perhaps even to bend the laws of reality and invite a super-natural force into our world.

[2 Pts.]: This is not an idle fascination for your character– it is the coreof his very existence, a black secret that he shares with no one. At alltimes, your character is pondering, scheming, seeking information, andcarefully moving himself in what he believes to be the proper direction forhis goal. It’s not so much that he’s working in opposition to the plans ofhis “friends and allies,” it’s that he considers them ultimately superfluous–tools to be used and discarded when necessary. Although your characteris infinitely patient, at the very end of his quest, when the goal is in sight,there is no betrayal he will not make and no bond he will not forsake tograsp what he has always desired.

Special: If your character attains his dark desire, it won’t happen aftera month or two of adventuring. It will happen after years, or, more likely,decades. The attainment of a dark desire will almost certainly turn yourcharacter into an antagonistic NPC under the GM’s control, so it is essen-tial for full dramatic impact that this flaw be kept as utterly secret as pos-sible.

Limitation: This flaw is perhaps best utilized in campaigns involvingsupernatural elements. It may only be selected with explicit GM approval,

due to the fact that it plants a long-term antagonist in the middle of theplayer-characters, who are usually presumed to be heroes.

DEBT OF HONOR[ Secondary Flaw: External Trouble ]

Your character owes a debt to a powerful NPC, and that debt is to berepaid with service rather than with goods or money.

[2 Pts.]: Moderate Debt: Over the course of the unfolding campaign,your character will be called upon to perform three substantial servicesfor an NPC. These services will test the character’s abilities and will con-tain assorted challenges and dangers. If your character fails to heed thecall when his services are requested, something unfortunate will happento him– he and his friends will very likely be targeted for violence by thecharacter he has spurned.

[4 Pts.]: Substantial Debt: As above, save that your character will beexpected to carry out six substantial services for the NPC over the courseof the campaign.

The nature of the NPC (crime boss, occult researcher, reclusive mega-lomaniac, etc.) should be such that he feels no real emotional connec-tion to your character. Your character will therefore have no idea howmuch of a risk he is facing when he undertakes each service. The natureof each service will also probably be contrived to minimize potentialreward for your character, especially when the NPC wants something ofvalue retrieved or an enemy wiped out. These missions are duties to bedischarged, not opportunities to acquire loot and glory.

Special Handicap [Certain Weirdness, +2 Pts.]: Oh, no. The natureof the NPC is such that the errands assigned to your character are cer-tain to involve unusually bizarre inconveniences, particularly strangerequirements, and especially weird or occult obstacles. The GM may dis-allow the use of this handicap in campaigns that do not featureoccult/weird elements.

Special: The NPC won’t mind at all if other characters accompanyyours out of friendship or duty, but he won’t offer them a single penny incompensation for their time and effort.

DEPENDENCY[ Secondary Flaw: External Trouble ]

Your character suffers an addiction to a chemical substance (for what-ever reason appropriate to his background). Unless the character mere-ly has an “ugly habit” (see below), his substance can be one of three

35

things:

• An illegal drug• A legal but expensive drug• A unique substance that the character must make or distill on his own.

If the character must spend money to secure a dose of the substance,each dose should require a Wealth Check, DC 11-14. If the charactermust create it himself, the raw materials should require a DC 10 WealthCheck per dose and the DC of the skill check made to create the chem-ical must be at least 15.

[1 Pt.]: Ugly Habit: The character suffers a need for a socially accept-able vice– he is a chain-smoker or a “boozer” (never quite reaching thelevel of a drunkard). Four waking hours without a smoke or a swig (asappropriate) will make your character grumpy and impose a -1 penalty toskill checks and attack rolls until he gets what he needs. This penalty iscumulative every two hours after that. There are other problems associ-ated with long-term smoking and excessive drinking, but other flawsshould be used to simulate them. Reduce your character’s Wealth scoreby 1 to reflect the money spent on this habit.

[2 Pts.]: Mild Addiction: Your character must receive at least one doseof this substance every twenty-four hours or he will suffer a -1 penalty toall rolls, including attack rolls, skill checks, and saving throws. An addi-tional cumulative -1 penalty will be applied for every twenty-four hoursthereafter in which the character is deprived of the substance to which heis addicted, until craving and withdrawal render the character effectivelyhelpless.

[4 Pts.]: Serious Addiction: Rather than a -1 penalty, your characterwill suffer a -2 penalty after each listed interval of time passes. When thispenalty reaches -10, your character must make a Fort Save (DC 18) orgo into a comatose state from withdrawal shock. This save must be madeevery six hours thereafter. If the character is not given his substance orhospitalized within twenty-four hours of going comatose, he must beginmaking Fort Saves (DC 18) every six hours or die.

[6 Pts.]: Deadly Addiction: As above, and worse. The DC of each FortSave starts at 20 and rises by 2 with every subsequent save. If a save isfailed, your character immediately dies of withdrawal shock.

Special Handicap [Controlled Supply, +2 Pts.]: The substance israre and proprietary, and someone else has a monopoly on it. Your char-acter is entirely dependent upon an NPC for his supply of the drug.

Special Handicap [Reprehensible Habit, +2 Pts.]: The substance isa notorious illegal drug, subject to societal controls and law-enforcementcrackdowns. Acquiring it is hazardous to the character’s pocketbook, hisreputation, and possibly his life.

Special Handicap [Side Effects, +1 Pt.]: The substance has an intox-icating or debilitating side effect. For one hour following the intake of eachdose, your character suffers a -4 penalty to both Dex and Wis.

Limitation: No racial ability, FX power, or feat granting resistanceagainst poisons or chemicals will have any effect on this addiction.

DEPENDENT[ Secondary Flaw: External Trouble ]

Your character takes care (emotionally and financially) of someoneextremely close to him (aunt, uncle, parent, grandparent, daughter, ward,etc.). This individual is relatively helpless compared to your character andhis adventuring friends.

[2 Pts.]: Your character must work to protect his own identity and theidentity of his dependent(s). If the dependent(s) were ever to be revealedto your character’s enemies, they would make the perfect hostages. Thedependent has a great deal of emotional loyalty to your character butcannot offer any practical assistance

Limitation: This flaw is incompatible with the Lone Wolf flaw.

Special: This flaw may be taken multiple times, provided that each newDependent is geographically separated from the others (for example, twograndparents would qualify as one Dependent if they lived together andtwo Dependents if they lived in different cities).

DIVISIVE DESTINY[ Secondary Flaw: External Trouble ]

Your character is bound by fate (and/or his own choices) to bring agreat deal of pain and anguish to his own family, community, or nation (orperhaps all of the above), and that destiny cannot be consciously avert-ed. This division will most likely occur over religious, political, or culturalmatters, and should be discussed and described with the GM’s coopera-tion before the campaign begins.

[2 Pts.]: This is a flaw that will almost certainly have a greater impactas the character gains levels and experience. The further along he pro-gresses toward his desired goals, the more he will splinter his family andculture, and the more painful (or bloody) the greater conflict will become.

36

Note: This flaw can have a great deal of bearing on the nature and out-come of any given campaign, and may be more appropriate to cam-paigns with supernatural elements. Even for a secondary flaw, this onerequires the explicit permission and cooperation of the GM.

Limitation: A character cannot be Estranged (see below) if he has aDivisive Destiny.

DOUBLE LIFE[ Secondary Flaw: External Trouble ]

While most characters adventure under their own names or have no dif-ficulty concealing their adventuring habits from others, your characterfaces a particularly delicate balancing act and must keep up his mas-querade or face drastic and lasting consequences. This flaw is particu-larly appropriate for spies, costumed vigilantes, and the like.

[2 Pts.]: Your character’s “civilian” identity is respectable and well-known enough (or his job is sensitive and prestigous enough) that con-nection to your character’s adventuring identity could irreparably damageit. At regular intervals, your character may have to take part in social orwork functions to “keep up appearances” when he would rather beadventuring.

Special Handicap [Wanted Double, +2 Pts.]: Your character’s adven-turing identity operates outside the law and is sought by legal or govern-mental authorities on a number of charges. Use this special handicaprather than the Poor Reputation (Wanted) (page 46) or Criminal Record(page 34) flaws when dealing with a secondary identity. After all, whileBob Johnson can be arrested or subpoenaed, his alter-ego, the CapedAvenger, keeps no mailing address.

DRIVING OBSESSION[ Secondary Flaw: Personality Conflict ]

Your character is totally consumed by a fixation with a single far-reach-ing (and probably unattainable) goal. This obsession has become thecornerstone of his life’s work– although he may occasionally be divertedfrom it by necessity, he always returns to it. Obsessions of this sort areoften vengeful. A young man who saw his parents murdered and vowedto hunt criminals for the rest of his life would be a prime candidate, forexample.

[2 Pts.]: Your character can feign temporary disinterest in his drivingobsession, but it really is his reason for living. He will not long tolerate anydistraction from it, and he will tolerate no sarcasm or teasing as a resultof it. If your character attempts to set aside his driving goal, he will find

himself tormented by everything from nightmares to waking hallucina-tions– at the GM’s discretion, this psychological punishment will make lifeincreasingly unlivable until the character resumes the duties dictated byhis obsession. This obsession will definitely come between your charac-ter and the long-term relationships most of us take for granted– espe-cially love and family.

Special Handicap [Specific Sense of Duty, +2 Pts.]: Your character’sdriving obsession has led him to adopt a very specific “duty” that hedrives himself to carry out as though it were mandated by a higherauthority. Compare and contrast with the actual Duty/Responsibility flaw(below)– your character keeps at his task because he is whipped by hispersonal mental demons, not because he owes anyone else a service.This duty should take a very clear form (such as “patrol this area regu-larly for crime/supernatural events” or “guard the members of a specificfamily at all times, without their knowledge”), and the character should bewilling to sacrifice himself for it without hesitation. This handicap may notbe taken in conjunction with an actual Duty/Responsibility.

DUTY/RESPONSIBILITY[ Secondary Flaw: External Trouble ]

Your character is bound by a regular and formal duty to an NPC or anorganization. This is not simply a personal feeling of loyalty– it is an offi-cial capacity, a commitment that must be met, or there will be conse-quences– personal, social, and perhaps even criminal.

[2 Pts.] Unchallenging/Occasional Duty: Your character either car-ries out his duties only part of the time or has an extremely unchalleng-ing duty, requiring him only to carry out orders and assignments. Areserve military officer might qualify for the former; a rookie beat copwould qualify for the latter.

[4 Pts.] Substantial/Challenging Duty: Your character spends mostof his waking hours every week in the pursuit of his duty, and must occa-sionally make important decisions on his own authority– a homicidedetective or any other professional law-enforcement officer would qualifyfor this level of Duty/Responsibility.

[6 Pts.] Important/Challenging Duty: Your character’s duty is thefocus of his life, and he spends a bare handful of hours every week doinganything not related to it. A staff officer in a sensitive military position(nuclear missile silo duty, for example) would qualify for this level ofDuty/Responsibility.

Special Handicap [Hazardous Duty, +2 Pts.]: Although danger is apart of the life of any d20 adventure game character, your character

37

doesn’t even have the option of choosing when and how he will facemany of the dangers in his life. He has volunteered for a position ofenhanced risk, and his superiors will frequently order him into risky situ-ations– perhaps even suicidal ones– regardless of his opinion on anygiven mission.

Special Handicap [Restricted Movement, +2 Pts.]: Your character,by the nature of his duty, is confined to certain areas and facilities evenwhen he is technically “off-duty.” This handicap is particularly appropriateto military personnel, who are not usually free to enter or leave militarybases as they please and must formally request extended leaves well inadvance of their desired date.

Special Handicap [Restricted Contact, +1 Pt.]: Your character is notallowed to freely communicate with those outside of the establishment heserves. Any letters or phone calls he sends will be monitored. He mayexpect to be completely out of touch with friends and relatives at regularintervals, and he may also expect to have his contact with certain indi-viduals barred for security reasons.

Note: This flaw may be quite harmful to group cohesion in certain cam-paigns. For example, a U.S. Army Special Forces officer may have somedifficulty adventuring with a party of three biker-gang members. The bik-ers have freedom of movement nearly everywhere save on the soldier’sbase, and he can hardly be expected to leave it any time he likes to hangout with them.

Special: This flaw can and should be used to routinely offset at leastsome of the cost of the Civil Rank, Clerical Rank, Law EnforcementRank, and Military Rank advantages.

ESTRANGED[ Secondary Flaw: External Trouble ]

Your character is cut off from both his family and the society that rearedhim, not by formal outcasting or rule of law, but by emotional conflicts thatare too painful for either side to even confront, much less set aside.

[2 Pts.]: Your character carries a great weight of mixed frustration andregret about this situation, and will spend much of his time contemplatingit, often at the expense of good humor or good fellowship. He will get noaid from his family or his society; indeed, he will be reluctant to go nearthem, even when circumstances seem to require it. A good GM willweave this estrangement throughout an ongoing campaign, ensuring thatit rears its head from time to time to turn some satisfaction or new happi-ness into ashes in your character’s mouth.

Special: While reconciliation is not impossible, it will only come at theend of a long effort by both sides-- an effort that the other side may notbe willing to make even if your character is.

Limitation: A character cannot be Estranged (see above) if he has aDivisive Destiny.

EXPLOSIVE TEMPER[ Secondary Flaw: Personality Conflict ]

When your character gets angry, he erupts– losing control over hiswords and actions, and often making impulsive, heated decisions that hewill later have cause to regret.

[2 Pts.]: When something happens to make your character angry, hemust succeed at a Will Save (DC set by the GM based on circumstances,ranging from moderate to near-impossible) to avoid flying completely offthe handle. While he’s bad enough when he makes that save, he’s a ter-ror when he fails it. He will kick objects, throw things, threaten his friendsand allies, disorder everything around him, start fights, and throw himselfheedlessly into potentially foolish combat. After a temper tantrum hasspent itself, your character will generally sulk, making himself miserablecompany for an hour or two.

Special: This differs from the Aggressive flaw in that your charactermight not even want to be a terribly violent person. His bouts of ragemight be accurately described as incidents of possession– his temperconsumes him, and he doesn’t particularly enjoy it, but it happensnonetheless.

GREED[ Secondary Flaw: Personality Conflict ]

While most heroic adventurers enjoy the rewards of their missions, yourcharacter covets the acquisition of new material possessions to anextremely unhealthy degree.

[2 Pts.]: The lure of wealth seems to draw a curtain down over yourcharacter’s better judgment. Any chance for easy money (heck, anychance for not-so-easy money, too) has your character wetting his lips,rubbing his hands together, and trying to think up some scheme (oftenquite ludicrous) whereby he can get away with said money.

Curiously enough, once he’s got his hands on a new pile of cash, hetends to do with it as he pleases and thinks no more of it. It’s the acqui-sition of riches that sets his blood on fire, not the hoarding of them.

38

At the GM’s discretion, your character may be forced to make a WillSave against a moderate DC (12-16) to successfully turn down a money-making opportunity unless pressing, life-or-death business is keepinghim occupied.

Special: This flaw does not make the character a kleptomaniac. He suf-fers no compulsion to take things that are clearly owned by people helikes, fears, or respects.

HEROIC CODE: FAIR PLAY[ Secondary Flaw: Personality Conflict ]

Your character has made it part of his “work ethic” to never take undueadvantage of an opponent, and to always fight in a forthright and sport-ing manner.

[2 Pts.]: Your character refuses to flank others, shoot anyone in theback, take opponents unaware, or attack anyone lying prone upon theground. In moments of drastic need, your character may attempt a WillSave (DC dictated by the GM, no doubt a very high number) to overridethis habit.

Limitation: This flaw probably isn’t suitable for character classes withthe ability to make sneak attacks. It is incompatible with the Cruelty flaw.

HEROIC CODE: HONESTY[ Secondary Flaw: Personality Conflict ]

Your character is scrupulously truthful, even when dealing with villainsand criminals. Two wrongs don’t make a right, after all.

[2 Pts.]: Your character may not place any ranks in the Bluff skill or theGambling skill. Furthermore, he absolutely refuses to tell lies except inthe most dire circumstances, even to “bad guys,” and refuses to exag-gerate, gamble, or even lie on behalf of others. In moments of drasticneed, your character may attempt a Will Save (DC dictated by the GM,usually a rather high number) to override this habit.

Special: Your character may still conceal his non-adventuring secretidentities, and assume false names and faces.

Limitation: This flaw is incompatible with any feat that improves theBluff skill or the Gambling skill, and it is incompatible with the Boastfuland Compulsive Liar flaws.

HEROIC CODE: LAW AND ORDER[ Secondary Flaw: Personality Conflict ]

Even if your character is a costumed vigilante or an extralegal interlop-er, he has the utmost respect for the letter of the law and balks at push-ing its boundaries too far. He views himself as a “forward element” of uni-formed law enforcement and prefers to turn matters over to the legitimateauthorities as soon as possible.

[2 Pts.]: Your character refuses to pick locks, break and enter, interro-gate suspects without turning them over to the police first, commandeervehicles or property from ordinary citizens, etc. Basically, if it involvesanything more than patrolling and confronting criminals or villainsengaged in obvious acts of mischief and mayhem, your character tut-tutsat it. In moments of drastic need, your character may attempt a Will Save(DC dictated by the GM, no doubt a very high number) to override thishabit.

Limitation: This flaw is probably not entirely compatible with anyadvanced character class predicated on sneaking and thieving. It isincompatible with the Kleptomaniac flaw and with the Cruelty flaw.

HEROIC CODE: LOYALTY[ Secondary Flaw: Personality Conflict ]

Your character views the bonds of his friendships as sacred and invio-late.

[2 Pts.]: Your character is incapable of abandoning a friend or ally, evenif it would make sense to do so, even in foolish or suicidal conditions.Come hell or high water, your character prefers to fight side by side withhis friends and will die doing so if that’s what fate decrees. Your charac-ter is rarely the one that gets sent running for help.

Limitation: This flaw is incompatible with the Lone Wolf complication(page 41).

HEROIC CODE: MERCY[ Secondary Flaw: Personality Conflict ]

Your character has sworn an oath to never take the life of another sen-tient being, even in the pursuit of the greater good.

[2 Pts.] Merciful: Your character cannot intentionally kill another per-son, nor allow another person to die when action on the hero’s part couldsave them. Your character will consider even an accidental death to behis complete responsibility, and will therefore exercise extreme caution

39

with his powers and abilities.

[4 Pts.] Remorseful: Furthermore, your character has extreme diffi-culty dealing with the guilt caused by a death that he could have pre-vented. If he accidentally causes or fails to prevent (provided such pre-vention was in his power at all) a death, he will lose all of his currentAction Points as a reflection of his anguish, as well as 50 XP per char-acter level.

HUMORLESS[ Secondary Flaw: Personality Conflict ]

Your character is absolutely (possibly even genetically, if nonhuman)without a sense of humor. He doesn’t understand the concept of humor,and attempts to explain it to him will only baffle him further.

[2 Pts.]: Your character might even be friendly, sociable, and capableof enjoying himself– he simply does not laugh or grasp why anyone elselaughs. His earnest sincerity and genuine lack of comprehension arealien and often disquieting to those who don’t know your character.Occasionally, his failure to understand the nuances of humor will causehim to miss the subtext of an important social interaction, or give some-one the false impression that he is making fun of them.

Special: In addition to the roleplaying consequences of this flaw, yourcharacter will suffer a -8 circumstance penalty to any Perform checkwhere an element of humor is involved in the performance.

IMPULSIVE[ Secondary Flaw: Personality Conflict ]

Your character lacks patience– in moments of crisis, he demands actionimmediately, even if it may be the wrong action, for in his opinion there’sabsolutely nothing worse than inaction.

[2 Pts.]: Your character hates to wait for advice, confer on a plan orprocedure, or put off any decision that can (in his opinion) be madeimmediately. When his under-utilized common sense does take hold, hewill still be forcefully opposed to what he thinks of as “dithering and dick-ering,” and will tend to quickly aggravate others with his insistence uponrapid, decisive action.

Note: This flaw is differentiated from Aggressive (page 31); an impul-sive character isn’t after violence per se, merely decisive action. Anaggressive character, provided he can keep a watchful eye on his tar-get(s) of choice, has no trouble making careful preparations for violenceprovided that violence is imminent.

INFERIORITY COMPLEX[ Secondary Flaw: Personality Conflict ]

Your character has a permanent chip on his shoulder. All his life, as hesees it, nobody has ever appreciated the true depth of his talents andabilities.

[2 Pts.]: Your character is extremely sensitive about small things thathe imagines reflect the contempt others feel for him. If asked to take thelead on the trail, he’ll assume it’s because he’s thought unimportantenough to be risked. If asked to take the rear, he’ll assume it’s becausethey think him boring If asked to take the middle, he’ll assume it’sbecause they don’t think he’s skilled enough to handle himself in the frontor the rear. While your character is usually able to subsume his festeringresentment beneath a layer of jagged humor or false conviviality, it occa-sionally boils over and causes extreme discomfort for everyone aroundhim. Sometimes, your character also takes foolish and unnecessary risksin an effort to demonstrate his skills.

INSATIABLE CURIOSITY[ Secondary Flaw: Personality Conflict ]

Your character is compelled at every step of his life by an incurableneed to peek behind every closed door (metaphorically speaking) andunearth every secret he possibly can. This includes everything from theintricacies of a villain’s plans to the hidden contents of abandoned build-ings. Your character must be exceedingly cautious, lest he go the way ofthe proverbial cat.

[2 Pts.]: Whenever your character is confronted with a chance to learnsomething new and interesting, especially if relevant to his currentadventure or investigation, he must make a Will Save against a DC setby the GM in order to keep his mind on whatever else he needs to bedoing.

Special: No character with this flaw is ever compelled to pry into theprivate lives and secrets of those he trusts, respects, and adventureswith. Though surely a few questions every now and again can’t hurt abit...

INTOLERANT[ Secondary Flaw: Personality Conflict ]

Your character is vehemently prejudiced against a certain race or largesocial group other than his own. Whether this intolerance springs fromsimple ignorance or a legitimate grievance is up to you.

40

[2 Pts.]: Your character’s overt hostility (which goes as far as name-calling, fight-picking, and boorish public behavior, but not as far as mali-cious mayhem such as arson or murder) will generally be an embarrass-ment to his friends and allies. It might also get him and the rest of theadventuring party into regular trouble with NPCs (especially politicians,police officers, bartenders, business owners, soldiers, etc.) of the appro-priate race.

Special: At the GM’s discretion, your character may suffer a -4 cir-cumstance penalty to certain Charisma-based skill checks made againstcharacters of the appropriate race or social group, as well as againstother, more enlightened NPCs who find your character’s prejudice con-temptible.

Limitation: This flaw may not be taken if the prejudice it grants is com-monly held by a large percentage of the campaign world’s population andis generally regarded in a positive fashion. Furthermore, it may not applyto “monstrous” races such as trolls or goblins (if used in the campaign)which are generally assumed to be inimical to the civilizations from whichplayer-characters come. Remember, this isn’t a flaw unless it’s sociallyreprehensible.

KLEPTOMANIA[ Secondary Flaw: Personality Conflict ]

Your character lives for the thrill of stealing things from other people.This flaw is differentiated from Greed (page 38) in that a kleptomaniaccares more about the act of theft (not just acquisition) itself than the valueof anything being stolen. While a kleptomaniac has no problem withseeking a nice payoff from a crime, he’s often just as thrilled to snatchsomething small and unobtrusive from a purse or a wallet.

[3 Pts.]: Your character feels constant urges to steal things, and lovesnothing more than the secret thrill of getting away with his thefts. Atrestaurants, he will steal silverware; when left with unattended purses orcoats he will lift small valuables from them. If your character is a profes-sional criminal, so much the better– but big thefts are how he makes hisliving, not how he gets through the day. If your character isn’t trying tosteal from others (even his close friends, alas) often enough, the GM maybegin enforcing theft attempts upon him (possible Will Save allowed toresist the kleptomaniac impulses in moments of danger or crisis). Thiscan be a very tricky flaw for a character to live with, so caveat emptor.

LAZY[ Secondary Flaw: Personality Conflict ]

Your character is a slacker, a layabout, and a wastrel. he has no inter-

est in honest work, or even in dishonest work. He prefers to let othersbear the brunt of any effort– he might not even care whether or not hegets any of the credit as long as he doesn’t have to waste any time oreffort pulling his own weight.

[2 Pts.]: Your character suffers an inherent -1 penalty to Will Saves andto all Profession skills due to his lack of drive and discipline. He will con-stantly attempt to shirk or avoid work and his attention to detail is some-what lacking; this can be either amusing or irritating to his friends,depending upon the circumstances.

Limitation: A lazy character may not have a Driving Obsession (page37).

LECHEROUS[ Secondary Flaw: Personality Conflict ]

Your character is frequently and severely distracted by his weaknessfor his compatible sex.

[2 Pts.]: Your character finds it difficult to resist the lure of any chanceto be near potential romantic entanglements. Just as a drunkard dreamsof wine bottles, beer cans, and shotglasses, your character dreams ofhealthy young flesh, flirtations, and brief but passionate romantic affairs.Your character is continually hopping in and out of beds (or trying to, if hislechery exceeds his personal charm) and wasting many long hours atbars, clubs, and restaurants cruising for a new conquest.

Special: Your character must make a Will Save (DC generally ratherhigh) to avoid the urge to make a pass at a potential partner wheneverthe opportunity presents itself (save in dire moments of emergency). Thiscan cause no end of complications for the character and his allies whentime or discretion is of the essence

LONE WOLF[ Secondary Flaw: Personality Conflict ]

Your character is anything but a team player. Whether he regards thepresence of others as a hindrance to his abilities and style or just prefersto keep his own company is up to you.

[2 Pts.]: Your character has an extremely difficult time working with oth-ers in groups and getting along in such arrangements for any length oftime. If forced to tolerate the continual presence of others, he will be agrating, sarcastic, and generally divisive influence when he’s not ditchingthe others to do things his own way. He will frequently find excuses to“scout ahead” or “take care of some personal business,” ensuring that he

41

won’t often be close at hand when he’s needed in an emergency.

Limitation: This flaw can go a long way toward splintering a group inthe most inconvenient fashion possible. GMs, be certain that playerswishing to take this flaw for their characters can be trusted not to take itso far that it ruins the game for everyone.

MACHO/SPARTAN[ Secondary Flaw: Personality Conflict ]

Your character makes a point to project himself as tough, bullish, andready for anything. He’ll have nothing but scorn for anyone with a lessertolerance for adversity and he certainly won’t back down from a challengeto his fortitude.

[2 Pts.]: The central function of this flaw is that your character will geton others’ nerves with amazing regularity. Furthermore, your characterwill routinely refuse to do things the easy and comfortable way. Beds?Beds are for sissies. Heavy clothing in freezing weather? Hey, freezingweather’s good for you. Grin and bear it! Your character’s machoassumptions may sometimes leave your adventuring party without vitaltools or clothing when entering a hazardous situation. Even when freelyoffered creature comforts, your character will utterly disdain their use.

The GM may call for a Will Save if your character attempts to backdown from a direct challenge to his machismo. If acceptance of creaturecomforts is a matter of diplomatic importance, your character will makeevery effort to appear content with them, while making every private effortto shun them that he can.

Limitation: This flaw may not be taken in conjunction with Vain/Dandy(page 48), nor with Lazy (page 41).

MELANCHOLY[ Secondary Flaw: Personality Conflict ]

Your character is uninvolved in the excitement and pageantry of life–his world is introspective, bleak, and morbid. While not actively out to killhimself, he has no complaints about dying, and seems somewhatbemused by the lengths everyone around him goes to to avoid it.

[2 Pts.]: This is not merely a pose– something has happened to yourcharacter to rob him of joy and exuberance. Although he keeps a senseof humor, it’s wry and cynical, frequently exercised at the expense of oth-ers. Your character often speculates on the nature of death and on themanner of the death that awaits him, regardless of whether or not suchtalk discomforts those around him. When injured or left in a state of

extreme peril, your character is quite lackadaisical, and will be more of adetriment than a benefit to anyone struggling to survive nearby. If yourcharacter does find the will to carry on, it’s only because he’s foundsomething new to amuse him for a little while.

MISER[ Secondary Flaw: Personality Conflict ]

Your character is obsessed not so much with the joy of making new for-tunes as he is with hoarding and contemplating what he’s already gained.He’s also a notorious skinflint.

[2 Pts.]: Your character balks at spending a single nickel more thanabsolutely necessary for anything, from the food he eats to the places hesleeps in and the weapons and equipment he trusts to save his life. Yourcharacter has very little dignity where his wallet is concerned, and willgladly sleep in the back seat of a car and wear the same clothes for sixmonths straight, no matter how much better he could do for himself.

Furthermore, your character will suffer a continual -2 penalty to allWealth checks, due to the fact that he will inevitably hold some of hisresources back no matter how dire the situation.

MISTAKEN IDENTITY[ Secondary Flaw: External Trouble ]

Someone with power (or powerful friends) has mistaken your charac-ter for someone else (someone they despise, naturally) and is out to getyour character. Alternately, your character might find himself continuallyconfused with a criminal or villain.

[2 Pts.] Limited Recognition Your character has the equivalent of a 2Pt. Nemesis: Villain (see page 44), a dangerous NPC (and that NPC’s cir-cle of friends and allies) who thinks your character is someone else–someone he needs to hunt, hinder, or punish

[4 Pts.] Widespread Recognition Your character is widely mistakenfor another individual who has offended or alarmed a great many people.His life will be more constantly and deeply disrupted by this problem.

Special Handicap [Perfect Double, +1 Pt.]: Your character really isan exact physical double of the NPC he’s being confused with– althoughvery small details (birthmarks, scars, etc.) may be different, only the clos-est friends and associates would be able to reliably tell the two apart, andthen only with time and observation.

42

MONETARY DEBT[ Secondary Flaw: External Trouble ]

Your character owes a relatively huge sum of money to a powerful NPCthat expects repayment. Although it’s understood that your character willpay in installments as his adventuring career proceeds, those install-ments had better be generous and steady.

[2 Pts.] Significant Debt: If the NPC is a vicious and dangerous char-acter (crime boss, loan shark, terrorist warlord) the debt owed is set at$75,000. This is the equivalent of 15 + 1d6 wealth checks against a DCof 13 + 1d4, at least one of which must be made about every two gameweeks.

If the NPC is merely firm and unfriendly (disapproving relative, largebank) the debt owed is $100,000. This is the equivalent of 20 + 1d8wealth checks against a DC of 25+1d4, at least one of which must bemade about every game month.

[4 Pts.] Massive Debt: If the NPC is a vicious and dangerous charac-ter (crime boss, loan shark, terrorist warlord) the debt owed is set at$150,000. This is the equivalent of 30 + 2d6 wealth checks against a DCof 15 + 1d4, at least one of which must be made about every two gameweeks.

If the NPC is merely firm and unfriendly (disapproving relative, largebank) the debt owed is $200,000. This is the equivalent of 40 + 2d8wealth checks against a DC of 17 +1d4, at least one of which must bemade about every game month.

Special: A vicious NPC denied payment on the amount owed will resortto intimidation and violence. A firm and unfriendly NPC denied paymentwill resort to repossession of goods, lawsuits, and slashing your charac-ter’s credit rating.

If your character fails to make one or more of his regular payments, orsomehow displeases his creditor without entirely defaulting on the repay-ment, compound interest may begin to accrue on what he still owes(necessitating one or more extra payments) and a new repayment sched-ule may be forced upon him.

It is possible that the NPC creditor may be willing to occasionally nego-tiate the substitution of a service for one or more payments.

NEMESIS: GOVERNMENT[ Secondary Flaw: External Trouble ]

A powerful figure in a major government (or an entire agency, or a multi-national coalition) is out to get your character for reasons justifiable orotherwise. This nemesis will make recurring appearances in your char-acter’s life. Your character might experience everything from tax troublesto arrest warrants to expulsion from an entire country. The precise natureof their argument with your character is up to you.

[2 Pts.] Minor Nemesis: The nemesis is a local power figure (citybureaucrat, small-town mayor) or a relatively weak or distant agency.

[4 Pts.] Moderate Nemesis: The nemesis is both popular and power-ful (mayor of a huge city) or an agency with a respectable reach.

[6 Pts.] Major Nemesis: The nemesis is a dangerously powerfulnational figure (senator, vice-president) or a formidable agency such asMI-5 or the CIA.

[8 Pts.] Daunting Nemesis: The nemesis is either a pivotal world fig-ure (President of the United States, perhaps) or a major coalition (NATO)with worldwide striking power.

NEMESIS: LEGAL[ Secondary Flaw: External Trouble ]

A powerful lawyer (or an agency full of lawyers) is out to get your char-acter for some real or imagined slight. They might be seeking a civil suitrelating to one of your character’s earlier adventures (Property damage?Wrongful assault?) or they might be set upon your character by his ene-mies. The annoying possibilities of this complication are endless. Yourcharacter would be well advised to retain skilled legal counsel and toavoid accepting manilla envelopes from strangers in public places.

[2 Pts.] Hassle: The nemesis is a local ambulance-chaser, persistentif not overly menacing.

[4 Pts.] Major Hassle: The nemesis is a cunning and experienced part-ner in a decently-sized firm with branches in several cities.

[6 Pts.] Big-League Trouble: The nemesis is a legal juggernaut, oneof the ten most powerful firms in North America or Europe, with offices allover the place and a team of lawyers assigned full-time to your charac-ter’s case.

[8 Pts.] The Stuff of Nightmares: The nemesis in question has abranch office dedicated entirely to pursuing your character’s case, twen-ty-four hours a day. Private detectives are after your character, a dozensummons await him at any given time, and civil suits are pending in a

43

dozen jurisdictions. Pray for death.

NEMESIS: MEDIA[ Secondary Flaw: External Trouble ]

An influential figure (or group of figures) in the local or national mediaholds a grudge against your character and they love nothing better thanto pursue it in print, on tape, and on the internet. Your character will findhimself routinely criticized, lambasted, ridiculed, and dissected(metaphorically speaking) in a wide variety of journalistic tableaus, asappropriate to the nemesis’ sphere of influence.

[2 Pts.] Fleabiter: The nemesis is a small-town reporter or editor, or atabloid nutcase.

[4 Pts.] Muckraker: The nemesis has some clout, as an editor oraward-winning reporter for a major city newspaper or TV station.

[6 Pts.] Big Name: The nemesis is a national media figure – an estab-lished syndicated columnist read by millions or a major network TV jour-nalist seen by tens of millions.

[8 Pts.] Angling For A Pulitzer: The nemesis is an entire publishingchain or a major national network, full of celebrities and researchersclamoring for your character’s head on a pike.

NEMESIS: ORGANIZATION[ Secondary Flaw: External Trouble ]

Your character has made an enemy of a powerful non-governmentalorganization. This could be anything from a private “think tank” to a asecret society, a religious cult, or a body of organized criminals.

[2 Pts.] Local Trouble: The organization is either very weak andoverextended, or its power is confined to a relatively small area.

[4 Pts.] Cause For Concern: The organization is fairly large and com-petent. Your character will have to watch his back wherever he goes.

[6 Pts.] Lurking Danger: The organization has quite a reach and theresources to back a major power play. Your character had best have allof his cards up his sleeve when he takes them on– they’re certifiable badnews.

[8 Pts.] Big, Big Trouble: The organization is perhaps one of theshadowy masters of the world, capable of striking anywhere on earth atany time, with agents and resources in hundreds of places, ready and

willing to make your character’s life rather miserable.

Special Handicap [Unusual Powers, +1 Pt.]: If the organization hasaccess to powers (psionics, magic, supernatural abilities, high-tech alienFX abilities, etc.) that your character and his allies do not, the GM mayconsent to allow an extra Flaw Point for this special handicap.

NEMESIS: VILLAIN [ Secondary Flaw: External Trouble ]

A villain or criminal has taken a decided interest in pursuing and defeat-ing your character. Your character’s nemesis regards his fight with yourcharacter as one of the driving interests of his life. Whether or not yourcharacter agrees is irrelevant.

[2 Pts.] Minor Antagonist: The nemesis is directly comparable inpower and ability to your character, though he doesn’t show up veryoften.

[4 Pts.] Competent Antagonist: The nemesis is directly comparablein power and ability to your character, and he takes a much more frequentinterest in bothering your character.

[6 Pts.] Major Antagonist: The nemesis is more powerful and ablethan your character, with significant resources at his command, and hetakes everything very, very personally.

[8 Pts.] Grounds For Suicide: How could it be worse? The villain is atotal nightmare– he’s your character’s superior in every human sphere,he dresses better, he has more friends and more money, he has a seem-ingly endless supply of ninja assassins, and he spends a great deal ofmoney to ensure that the local TV stations only play late-night moviesthat your character can’t stand.

Special Handicap [Lieutenant, +1 Pt.]: If the villain has a noteworthylieutenant (not as powerful as the chief villain, but still competent enoughto enhance the villain’s capabilities significantly) the GM may consent toallow one or more (in the case of multiple lieutenants) extra Flaw Points.

Special Handicap [Unusual Powers, +1 Pt.]: If the villain has accessto powers (psionics, magic, supernatural abilities, high-tech alien FX abil-ities, etc.) that your character and his allies do not, the GM may consentto allow an extra Flaw Point for this special handicap.

NIGHTMARES[ Secondary Flaw: External Trouble ]

44

Your character suffers from recurring and nearly incurable nightmares,stemming from an extremely stressful event or encounter in his past (orperhaps from some mysterious cause not yet explained).

[2 Pts.] Occasional Nightmares: There is a 40% chance per period ofsleep that your character will experience extremely vivid and lengthynightmares. The character must make a Will Save against a DC of 15;failure means that the character will be mentally fatigued the next day.While he can still run and charge, he will suffer a -2 circumstance penal-ty to all Spot, Search, Knowledge, and Concentration checks, and he willsuffer a -1 circumstance penalty to all of his attack rolls. These penaltieslast until he is next able to sleep undisturbed.

[4 Pts.] Frequent Nightmares: There is a 65% chance per period ofsleep that your character will experience extremely vivid and lengthynightmares. The character must make a Will Save against a DC of 17;failure means that the character will be mentally fatigued the next day.While he can still run and charge, he will suffer a -2 penalty to all Spot,Search, Knowledge, and Concentration checks, and he will suffer a -1penalty to all of his attack rolls. These penalties last until he is next ableto sleep undisturbed.

Special: If the character is an arcane spellcaster, this flaw is worth anadditional two (2) Flaw Points. A bout of nightmares will rob the charac-ter of a single prepared spell slot of each level he can cast for the nextday. For example, if a character that can prepare two 1st level spells suf-fers a bout of nightmares, he will only be able to prepare one 1st levelspell the next day.

Limitation: This flaw may not be possessed by characters that do notsleep (for racial, supernatural, or technological reasons) as humans do.

OBNOXIOUS[ Secondary Flaw: Personality Conflict ]

Plainly speaking, your character is a jerk. He has little or no grasp ofsocial niceties, and his personal behavior is guaranteed to offend andaggravate just about everyone around him. Whether this is a calculatedposture or an innocent (if unfortunate) set of habits is up to you.

[2 Pts.]: Your character is one or more of the following things– loud,rude, impatient, arrogant, intrusive, insensitive, bombastic, crude, stri-dent, and/or narrow-minded. In addition to the roleplaying burden ofthese traits, your character suffers a -4 penalty to all Diplomacy checks.

Limitation: A character may not be both Obnoxious and Tongue-Tied(page 48).

OSTRACISM[ Secondary Flaw: External Trouble ]

Your character is feared, hated, and discriminated against for some-thing in his nature that he cannot change, be it his skin color, his socialbackground, or any unusual racial abilities and powers.

[2 Pts.] Limited Ostracism: Your character experiences occasionaltaunts from strangers, and often finds himself subjected to epithets orunpleasant scrutiny. Sometimes, shops or restaurants won’t admit him,but he’s relatively free from actual violence.

[4 Pts.] Severe Ostracism: Your character faces a society with adeeply-entrenched suspicion of his kind, and as a result experiencesconstant discrimination, embarrassment, disdain, and occasionally eventhreats or physical assaults.

[6 Pts.] Sanctioned Ostracism: The prejudice your character faces isofficially sanctioned by the government of the society in which he lives.He is formally treated as a second-class citizen, if he enjoys any rights atall, and must often submit himself to “security registration” and restrictedmovement patterns. Legal and police authorities will be no help at all if heis persecuted, threatened, or injured.

Special: This flaw may only be taken with explicit GM permission, as itis obviously highly dependent upon the nature of the campaign world.

OVERCAUTIOUS[ Secondary Flaw: Personality Conflict ]

Your character is no coward– he is quite willing to face danger andcarry out his responsibilities. However, he is too dependent upon plan-ning, information gathering, caution, and second opinions. He will attemptto delay any decisive action as long as possible, until “all options havebeen considered,” and he will proceed with unseemly slowness evenwhen he becomes set on a course of action.

[2 Pts.]: Your character will drag his heels on virtually everything– hedoesn’t see himself as indecisive, but in essence that’s his problem.While there’s much to be said for caution, it cannot serve in every situa-tion, and your character’s friends and allies are bound to get aggravatedwith him at regular intervals for his love of “thorough consideration.”

OVERCONFIDENT[ Secondary Flaw: Personality Conflict ]

Your character is absolutely certain that he can take any challenge

45

set before him, even if the odds against him are ridiculous. Unfortunately,your character is also pretty much wrong.

[2 Pts.]: Your character scoffs at the idea that “discretion is the betterpart of valor.” He won’t back down from a fight, he dislikes calling for rein-forcements, and he has a habit of constantly underestimating any dangeror opponent placed in his way. Your character might be forced to make aWill Save (difficulty relatively high) any time he attempts to withdraw fromdanger or back down from a challenge.

Limitation: This flaw may not be taken in conjunction with theCowardly flaw or the Overcautious flaw.

POMPOUS[ Secondary Flaw: Personality Conflict ]

Your character is a staggeringly snooty, affected, and formal individual.

[2 Pts.]: Your character always acts as though he owns the place he’sstanding in and everyone nearby happens to work for him. While yourcharacter might mean well and be a perfectly lovely person, he speaksand acts in a fashion that, while perfectly natural to him, is either ludi-crous or grating to almost everyone else. He never uses a ten-cent wordwhen a five-dollar word is available, takes too long to say just abouteverything, and relaxes only when inebriated or somehow mind-con-trolled.

Special Handicap [Condescending, +1 Pt.]: What’s worse, yourcharacter continually acts as though nobody around him truly under-stands anything as well as he does (or, indeed, is capable of doing soeven under optimum circumstances). He makes a constant show ofexplaining things to people that don’t necessarily need them explained.

Special Handicap [Snob, +1 Pt.]: Perhaps most aggravating of all,your character is simply incapable of enjoying anything unless he issimultaneously denigrating the taste or accomplishments of someoneelse. His continual disdain for the opinions, habits, and possessions ofothers is bound to get on someone’s nerves sooner or later. His lack oftact inflicts an inherent -2 penalty to all of his Diplomacy checks.

POOR REPUTATION[ Secondary Flaw: External Trouble ]

Your character has an extremely unflattering reputation in a certain areaor within a certain group of people. Regardless of whether or not the rep-utation is deserved, it’s firmly entrenched and all but impossible to count-er. This is not the same as a formal record of alleged wrongdoing (like a

criminal record), but it can be just as troublesome.

[2 Pts.] Suspicious/Untrustworthy: The precise nature of the reputa-tion should be left to the GM, as appropriate to your character’s back-ground. If your character is law-abiding, he might have a reputation as asuspicious and unsavory person. If your character is already an unsavoryperson, he might have a reputation among other unsavory people as anoath-breaker, or potential informer. While this reputation won’t make any-one attack your character on sight, it will make virtually everything hetries to do more difficult. Contacts won’t take him seriously, police officersor criminals (or both) will hassle him on the streets, and so forth.

This flaw will provide a +3 bonus to all Reputation checks made byappropriate NPCs when attempting to identify your character. If yourcharacter is successfully identified, he will suffer –4 circumstance penal-ty on checks involving the following skills for the duration of theencounter: Bluff, Diplomacy, Gather Information, and Perform.

[4 Pts.] Presumed Corrupt/Malicious/Awful: As above, but worseand/or more widespread. If your character is law-abiding, he might findhimself slandered as anything from a murderer to a crooked business-man. If your character is already an unsavory person, he might have areputation among other unsavory people as a definite otah-breaker orinformer.

This flaw will provide a +6 bonus to all Reputation checks made byappropriate NPCs when attempting to identify your character. If yourcharacter is successfully identified, he will suffer –6 circumstance penal-ty on checks involving the following skills for the duration of theencounter: Bluff, Diplomacy, Gather Information, and Perform.

Special Handicap [Wanted, +1-4 Pts.]: Your character is sought bylegal or governmental authorities for crimes he may or may not havecommitted. Compare and contrast with Criminal Record (page 34); acharacter with this handicap has not yet been caught. The more seriousthe charges, and the wider the area of the hunt for him, the more thishandicap is worth (GM’s discretion). This handicap is incompatible withthe Criminal Record (On Parole) handicap, page 34.

Special Handicap [Bounty, +1-3 Pts.]: One or more governments (orwealthy private citizens, or criminal organizations) in the region whereyour character has a poor reputation have put up a reward for his captureor death. The more this bounty is worth (GM’s discretion), the more pointsit provides, as the more interest it will arouse. This is not entirely thesame as a Nemesis flaw (pages 43-44), as the threat comes from ran-dom and unknown bounty hunters, skip tracers, and assassins rather

46

than a consistent enemy.

PRIMITIVE[ Secondary Flaw: Personality Conflict ]

Your character comes from a culture and society that are significantlybehind the level of technological development common in the campaign.Not only does your character lack the casual familiarity with technologythat most of us take for granted, he has no appreciation of the customs and safety precautions that technology may require.

[4 Pts.] Backwards: Your character comes from a society several gen-erations removed from current technology and social developments.While not familiar with many of the specifics of modern life, the characterwill not be at a total loss when it comes to simple things like operatingdoorknobs. An average man or woman from 1910 would suffer from thisflaw if dropped into the early 21st century– they would be familiar with thegeneral concept of airplanes, electricity, and automobiles, but quiteunused to the speed, size, noise, and automation of modern society. Inaddition to the obvious roleplaying consequences of this flaw, your char-acter suffers the following:

• At 1st level, he may not select the following feats: Advanced FirearmsProficiency, Aircraft Operation, Burst Fire, Drive-By Attack, ExoticFirearms Proficiency, Gearhead, Surface Vehicle Operation, or VehicleExpert. Nor may he select any other feat deemed by the GM to enhanceor depend upon skills or techniques beyond his level of training.

• At 1st level, he may not place any ranks in the following skills:Computer Use, Craft (Electronic), Drive, or Pilot. These skills will be for-ever considered cross-class if he learns them at a later time.

• He suffers an inherent -1 penalty to all of the following skills: Craft(Chemical),Craft (Mechanical), Craft (Pharmaceutical), Craft (Structural),Demolitions, Disable Device, Investigate, Knowledge (all), and TreatInjury.

[6 Pts.] Truly Primitive: Your character comes from a society that ismany centuries behind current technological and social developments.He has no conception of the power sources, weapons, transportation,and entertainment devices used by modern people; his reaction to mod-ern society may veer from amusement to terror, depending on the situa-tion.

• At 1st level, he may not select the following feats: Advanced FirearmsProficiency, Aircraft Operation, Burst Fire, Drive-By Attack, ExoticFirearms Proficiency, Gearhead, Personal Firearms Proficiency, Surface

Vehicle Operation, Surgery, or Vehicle Expert. Nor may he select anyother feat deemed by the GM to enhance or depend upon skills or tech-niques beyond his level of training.

• At 1st level, he may not place any ranks in the following skills:Computer Use, Craft (Chemical),Craft (Mechanical), Craft(Pharmaceutical), Craft (Structural), Craft (Electronic), Demolitions,Disable Device, Drive, or Pilot. These skills will be forever consideredcross-class if he learns them at a later time.

• He suffers an inherent -2 penalty to all of the following skills:Investigate, Knowledge (all), and Treat Injury.

Special Handicap [Superstition, +1 Pt.]: Your character’s worldviewis too supernaturalist to accept the true nature of technology. Your char-acter is constantly making offerings of goods or prayer to the “spiritforces” around him; he may evolve a number of rituals that he performsbefore doing anything from entering an automobile to turning on a televi-sion.

Note: If you wish your character to suffer additional social conse-quences for his culture of origin, select the Unsophisticated flaw (page47) as well.

RISK-ADDICTED[ Secondary Flaw: Personality Conflict ]

Your character is held in thrall by the surge of adrenaline he feels when-ever he stares into the gaping jaws of death or misfortune.

[2 Pts.]: This flaw is quite similar to Overconfident (page 45)– in fact,in terms of effects, the two are nearly identical. The difference is that aRisk-Addicted character is totally cognizant of the extreme danger of anygiven situation, and well aware that he might not be skilled enough totake on the entire world and live, and he simply does not care. Your char-acter never feels more alive than when his fate and fortune are hangingby a slender thread, and he seeks to put himself in such situations asoften as possible. In short, he will rarely retreat, surrender, or back downfrom games of chance and risk. A Will Save against a fairly high DC maybe required if he ever wishes to exercise discretion rather than valor.

Limitation: This flaw may not be taken in conjunction with theOverconfident flaw (page 45), as their effects are too close to one anoth-er.

47

STUBBORN[ Secondary Flaw: Personality Conflict ]

Your character is obstreperous, thick-skulled, and incorrigible– whatev-er decision he makes and however he makes it, he expects to have hisway. No appeal to duty, rationality, or friendship can penetrate this stub-born veneer without a fight.

[2 Pts.]: Your character is aggravatingly certain that he knows bestabout everything. He will fight to have his own way just about all the time,asserts his authority over others even when he doesn’t have any, and dis-regards the good advice of those who know better even when it’s for hisown clear good. In certain circumstances, your character may be alloweda Will Save (moderate difficulty) to swallow his pride and accept some-one else’s leadership without protest for some length of time.

Limitation: This flaw is incompatible with the Tongue-Tied flaw (seebelow).

TONGUE-TIED[ Secondary Flaw: Personality Conflict ]

Although your character frequently wishes to express himself, he is shy,hesitant, uncertain, and woefully unpolished in the social graces.

[2 Pts.]: Your character is extremely socially handicapped, in a mannerdetermined by agreement between yourself and the GM. In addition tosuffering a -1 penalty to your character’s initial Charisma score, you mustroleplay one or more of the following– shyness, hesitance, lack ofassertiveness, and general submissiveness to virtually everyone aroundyou. Your character may be required to make a Will Save if he wishes toassert his presence or authority in anything but a life-or-death situation.

Special: If your character has the Leadership feat, he does not add hispositive Charisma modifier (if any) to the Leadership check total.

Special: This is a secondary flaw largely as a result of the roleplayingburden it places upon you. Playing a milquetoast is not for everyone, sothink carefully before applying this to your character.

Limitation: This flaw is incompatible with the Stubborn flaw (seeabove) and the Obnoxious flaw (page 45).

UNSOPHISTICATED[ Secondary Flaw: Personality Conflict ]

Your character might not be lacking in genuine brainpower, but he

comes from an ethnic group or area that is considered by most ordinaryfolks in the campaign world or nation to be amusingly backwards.

[2 Pts.]: Your character displays the accents and personal habits cus-tomary to his place of origin; as a result of these traits, he is regarded asa hick, a rube, a redneck, or a provincial. Their presumption may be thathe is anything from quaint and superstitious to downright stupid. Conartists and tricksters will single your character out for attention, andstrangers in bars or restaurants will have plenty of choice witticisms andtaunts to throw at him. At the GM’s discretion, your character will suffer a-2 circumstance penalty to most Charisma-based skill checks in situa-tions where his origin could be considered a hindrance in the eyes ofonlookers.

Note: Compare this flaw with Primitive (page 47). This flaw means thatyour character isn’t actually backwards, but is treated like he is. APrimitive character actually is backwards, but receives no social troublefor it unless he takes this flaw as well. The two flaws may be combined.

Special: This flaw is incompatible with Vain/Dandy.

VAIN/DANDY[ Secondary Flaw: Personality Conflict ]

Your character is excessively obsessed with his clothes and appear-ance, in one of two ways:

[2 Pts.]: A character that is principally vain doesn’t necessarily careabout the quality of the clothes he wears, but he is absolutely fastidiousabout his image and his presentability. He bathes at every opportunity,dotes on his hair, flexes and poses, and generally seizes any opportuni-ty to make himself look dashing. He’s the sort of person who polishes hisboots twice a day even when on trail in the wilderness. He cannot abidethe feeling of uncleanliness, even when dirt on his face or clothes wouldhelp hide him from a nearby danger. He must make a Will Save (GM’sdiscretion) to tolerate a state of uncleanliness for any length of time.

A dandy, in contrast, is a foppish clotheshorse with a preference for thecomforts of civilization over the hard pleasures of the street or the wilder-ness. While a dandy can bear a bit of grime or sweat, he can do so pri-marily because he likes to keep a change of clothes (or several) on hand.When setting out on an adventure, he will inevitably try to haul along asmany improbable and unnecessary fine things as he can get away with,and while his friends might occasionally appreciate that rare bottle ofcognac while on the mountain trail, they won’t be pleased to discover thathe tossed out the GPS locator device to make room for it.

48

Limitation: This flaw is incompatible with Macho/Spartan, Primitive,and Unsophisticated.

VINDICTIVE[ Secondary Flaw: Personality Conflict ]

Your character cannot bear to let others have the last word or the lastblow. If wronged, he must revenge, no matter how inconvenient or fool-ish that may prove.

[2 Pts.]: Your character has a vicious revenge complex, and is inca-pable of bearing up with dignity under insults or injury. Likewise, he is allbut incapable of forgiving a slight or an injury, and will go to elaborate(and frequently dangerous) lengths to secure his revenge. Although hedoes not ask that his friends and allies help him achieve his vengeance,he grows highly irate when they attempt to interfere. “Letting it go” is notin his vocabulary; strung together in that order, those three words aremeaningless to him.

Special (Dedicated Flaw Synergy): If your character has a CriminalHonor Code (page 33), this flaw will exacerbate that beyond any rationallimit. Your character, when wronged, will be a demon incarnate, thirstingfor blood. This flaw, taken in combination with Criminal Honor Code, isworth one (1) additional Flaw Point.

WEIRD FLAWS

BANE[ Weird Flaw ]

Your character is extraordinarily vulnerable to injuries from a singlematerial substance. A bane might be a specific metal (gold, silver, coldiron, etc.), a special wood (Rowan, Ash, Yew, etc.) or a completely fic-tional substance, as appropriate to your character’s background. Yourcharacter had best try to keep his vulnerability a closely-guarded secret.

[2 Pts.] Moderate Bane: Whenever your character is struck by aweapon shaped from or incorporating his bane, the following must benoted:

• All attacks with a bane weapon or substance have their critical threatranges doubled against a vulnerable target;

• All attacks with a bane weapon deal +1d4 damage against a vulner-able target. This damage is not multiplied in the event of a critical hit.Damage from a bane weapon can never be non-lethal; and

• Even simple contact with the bane substance will result in 1d3 pointsof irresistible damage to a vulnerable target.

[4 Pts.] Severe Bane: Whenever your character is struck by a weaponshaped from or incorporating his bane, the following must be noted:

• All attacks with a bane weapon or substance have their critical threatranges tripled against a vulnerable target;

• All attacks with a bane weapon deal +2d4 damage against a vulner-able target. This damage is not multiplied in the event of a critical hit.Damage from a bane weapon can never be non-lethal; and

• Even simple contact with the bane substance will result in 1d6 pointsof irresistible damage to a vulnerable target.

[6 Pts.] Deadly Bane: Whenever your character is struck by a weaponshaped from or incorporating his bane, the following must be noted:

• All attacks with a bane weapon or substance have their critical threatranges tripled against a vulnerable target;

• All attacks with a bane weapon deal +2d8 damage against a vulner-able target. This damage is not multiplied in the event of a critical hit.Damage from a bane weapon can never be non-lethal;

• A character struck by a bane weapon must make a Fort Save (DC 17)or suffer the temporary loss of 1 point of Con, which must be healed inthe usual fashion. This Con loss is cumulative, if the character is struckseveral times and fails more than one Fort Save.

• Even simple contact with the bane substance will result in 2d6 pointsof irresistible damage to a vulnerable target.

Special Handicap [Common Bane, +2 Pts.]: Your character’s banesubstance is fairly cheap and widely available. Iron, for example, is agreat deal more common than silver.

Note: Damage from a bane substance will negate natural DamageReduction and fast healing alike.

CURSED[ Weird Flaw ]

Your character suffers from some sort of supernatural curse; thiscurse is both subtle and shrewdly applied, so that it is very difficult to

49

detect, let alone remove. The curse causes a rotating variety of colorfulmisfortunes– your character can never be sure what’s going to go wrongon any given day until something actually does.

[3 Pts.] Mild Curse: The GM should secretly roll 1d10 at the beginningof each game session. This will determine the misfortune suffered by thecharacter for that entire session, not to be revealed to him until neces-sary:

Roll Misfortune1 -2 to Ref Saves2 -2 to Fort Saves3 -2 to Will Saves4 -1 to all saving throws5 -2 to all skill checks6 -1 to Defense7 -1 to attack rolls8 -4 to Initiative checks9 -4 to all Intelligence-based skill checks10 -4 to all Dexterity-based skill checks

[5 Pts.] Serious Curse: The GM should secretly roll 1d10 at the begin-ning of each game session. This will determine the misfortune sufferedby the character for that entire session, not to be revealed to him untilnecessary:

Roll Misfortune1 -4 to Ref Saves2 -4 to Fort Saves3 -4 to Will Saves4 -2 to all saving throws5 -3 to all skill checks6 -2 to Defense7 -2 to attack rolls8 -8 to Initiative checks9 -6 to all Intelligence-based skill checks10 -6 to all Dexterity-based skill checks

DARK TAINT[ Weird Flaw ]

Your character’s body or spirit (or perhaps even both) has become“contaminated” by some form of evil supernormal power; whether or notyour character wishes to fight back against this power, this will causecomplications for him.

[3 Pts.]: This flaw causes several problems:

•Your character will register as vaguely “evil” to any spell or FX powercapable of detecting such a quality. Although the impression will be min-gled with that of his true nature, it will still be quite suspicious.

•Your character only has a 50% chance of responding to any magicspell (or FX power) capable of healing him, cleansing a poison or diseasefrom his body, or otherwise restoring his health. Any such spell cast uponhim that does not take effect will be lost.

•Your character will be unable to wield or activate FX items that aredefined by the GM to be intrinsically “good;” such items will be totallydead in his hands and may even cause some pain when handled.

•From time to time, strange events may take place around your char-acter that will cause even his friends and allies to worry about him. Plantsmight wither at his touch, computers might shut off spontaneously, booksmight burst into flame. These events will not be continual, but may occuronce or twice a month, and their exact nature is left to the GM’s fiendishdiscretion.

HAUNTED[ Weird Flaw ]

Your character suffers from the subtle but persistent attention of aninvisible poltergeist or some other minor supernatural force. This pres-ence might have been picked up as a result of looting a tomb or archae-ological dig, or it might be related to an ancestral legacy.

[2 Pts.] Weak Poltergeist: Your character is the subject of continualmischief as a result of this haunting– small objects will be moved orstolen, animals will be spooked, food and beverages will be spoiled, andso forth. Strange noises might wake him in the night, and vulgar or threat-ening notes might be typed on computer screens. While the hauntingspirit doesn’t have the power to harm your character directly, his life willbe a bit messy and aggravating as long as the spirit lingers.

[4 Pts.] Strong Poltergeist: The poltergeist’s actions are more per-sistent and harmful. While still incapable of directly attacking your char-acter, the spirit will misplace important objects (personal weapons, vitaldocuments, car keys, etc.) and perform substantial acts of environmentalsabotage (slashed tires, exploded home appliances, etc.) roughly 1d3times per session (roll kept secret by the GM, of course).

Special: This supernatural presence is extremely canny and difficult toget rid of. Religious blessings and genuine magic can drive it away for awhile, but only an extremely involving and costly divine or magic ritual

50

(well beyond the reach of any 1st level character) will ever drive the spir-it away (GM’s discretion). The spirit may have difficulty following the char-acter into other planes, at the GM’s discretion. Then again, it might beclose at hand when he travels to another plane, and take the opportuni-ty to slip through with him.

PHOTOPHOBIA[ Weird Flaw ]

Your character has a marked aversion to bright light in general anddirect sunlight in particular. If he has a severe enough version of this flaw,he may develop the unseemly habit of exploding when sunlight hits him.

[2 Pts.] Mild Photophobia: Whenever your character is exposed tobright light without the benefit of protection (such as sunglasses), he willsuffer a -1 penalty to all of his skill checks and attack rolls. Whenever heis exposed to direct natural sunlight, he suffers that penalty automatical-ly and loses 1 hit point per round of exposure. This damage is irresistible.

[4 Pts.] Moderate Photophobia: The effects of the flaw are doubled.In bright light, the character suffers a -2 penalty to all skill checks andattack. When exposed to natural sunlight, he suffers that penalty auto-matically and loses 2 hit points per round of exposure. This damage isirresistible.

[6 Pts.] Severe Photophobia The effects of the flaw are tripled. Inbright light, the character suffers a -3 penalty to all skill checks andattack. When exposed to natural sunlight, he suffers that penalty auto-matically and loses 3 hit points per round of exposure. This damage isirresistible.

[8 Pts.] Extreme Photophobia: In bright light, the character suffers a-4 circumstance penalty to all skill checks and attack rolls. When exposedto natural sunlight, he must make a Fortitude Save against a DC of 20 orsuffer 4d6 points of irresistible damage per round of exposure, as hebursts into actinic flame. If he makes his save, he will suffer only 2d6points of irresistible damage.

Special Handicap [Explosive, +1 Pt.]: If your character is reduced to0 hit points by exposure to sunlight, he must make a Fort Save (DC 25)or immediately explode. This explosion will kill your character instantlyand deal fire damage in a ten-foot radius, 1d4 per level or hit die pos-sessed by your character (whichever allows for a more powerful explo-sion). A Ref Save (DC 15) is allowed for half damage in the event anyoneelse is caught in the radius of this explosion. The danger of explosionremains each round your character is exposed to sunlight.

Limitations: This flaw is incompatible with any resistance or immunityto light-based attacks and with any FX power that allows the creation oflight.

STRANGE ATTRACTOR[ Weird Flaw ]

Your character is a “weirdness magnet,” a focal point for bizarreoccurrences and strange disruptions. This flaw is not necessarily harm-ful– it just means that an orderly life is out of the question.

[2 Pts.]: While the precise effects of this flaw are up to the GM, youshould expect your character to suffer visitations of weirdness above andbeyond that which is par for the campaign. Mobsters might decide to burythe bodies of a few of their victims in his backyard. He might start receiv-ing all the incoming mail for two dozen Churches of Scientology. Thecockroaches in his apartment might begin to display alarming hints ofsentience, including the construction of small altars to him. All the moneyin his wallet might spontaneously transmute to Confederate States ofAmerica currency, circa 1862. These effects should never be directlyharmful, but will often be somewhat irritating.

51

The concept of “seasoning with age” allows players to quickly and eas-ily build a sort of back story for their characters. While most adventurersstart out at 1st level fresh out of youth or school with little worldly experi-ence, a character given a few rolls on the table below can spend sever-al years working in one or more careers, acquiring a little money and per-haps a few skills or useful goods along the way.

To season a character with age before 1st level, assume that the char-acter enters a career at the age of 18, as listed below. For every roll onthe table below, Seasoning With Age, the character is aged one year.

There are three types of trade into which your character can enter. AMundane Occupation means steady if somewhat boring work in a thor-oughly civilized area– clerical work, work-study at a university, or a bor-ing retail job, for example. While there are no opportunities to acquireriches or glory, a mundane occupation is relatively safe work. In additionto whatever he picks up from rolling on the chart, a character receives a+1 temporary Wealth Bonus for every two full years he spends in a mun-dane occupation.

A Risky Occupation is a bit more adventurous. On a regular basis, thecharacter will be expected to travel or expose himself to some chance forinjury or misfortune. Work aboard a commercial fishing boat, cutting tim-ber, and working in a busy factory near hot furnaces and molten metalwould all qualify as risky occupations.

In addition to whatever he picks up from rolling on the chart, a charac-ter receives a +1 temporary Wealth Bonus for each year he spends in arisky occupation.

A Dangerous Occupation pays well and offers as much seasoning asthe character can handle. Working as a soldier, a bodyguard, a safariguide, or a race-car driver would qualify as a dangerous occupation. Inaddition to whatever he picks up from rolling on the chart, a characterreceives a +1 temporary Wealth Bonus for each year he spends in a riskyoccupation or a +3 temporary wealth bonus for every two full years.

Your character may hop from job to job as each increment passes, orhe may spend his years comfortably ensconced in the same occupation.

Note that while money accrues steadi-ly and other rewards are still fairly fre-quent, there is a chance with each rollthat the character will suffer some sort ofsetback... an injury, an illness, or eventhe acquisition of an enemy.

A player may roll as many times as heis willing to on the table at left. When aplayer ceases rolling, his characterenters his adventuring career at 1stlevel, with any extra cash, goods, andproblems he has picked up from thetable.

Misfortunes of Seasoning

Seasoning a character with age can bea rocky process. Occasionally, a roll onthe table will result in the acquisition of amisfortune. While your character gets tokeep his temporary Wealth bonus (ifany) for that year, in place of bonus skill

Roll Mundane Occupation Risky Occupation Dangerous Occupation

1 Misfortune Misfortune Misfortune2 1d2 Craft ranks 2 Craft ranks 1d4 Craft ranks3 1d2 Knowledge ranks 2 Knowledge ranks 1d4 Knowledge ranks4 +1 Temp Wealth +1 Temp Wealth Misfortune5 Equipment +1 Wealth +1 Wealth6 1d2 Profession ranks 2 Profession ranks 1d4 Profession ranks7 +1 Temp Wealth +1 Wealth +2 Wealth8 1d2 Craft ranks Misfortune Misfortune9 +1 Wealth Equipment Equipment10 +1 Temp Wealth Equipment +1d4 Temp Wealth11 +1 Wealth +1 Wealth +200 XP12 Equipment Misfortune Misfortune13 1d2 Class Skill ranks +2 Temp Wealth Equipment14 +1 Temp Wealth +100 XP +1d2 Wealth15 50 XP 2 Class Skill ranks +1d4 Class Skill ranks16 +1 Temp Wealth +100 XP Misfortune17 Equipment +2 Temp Wealth +1d4 Temp Wealth18 1d2 Craft ranks 2 Craft ranks 1d4 Craft ranks19 1d2 Knowledge ranks 2 Knowledge ranks 1d4 Knowledge ranks20 Misfortune Misfortune Misfortune

Table: Seasoning With Age

Seasoning With Age: Something Extra at 1st Level

52

ranks or other rewards, he suffers some sort of permanent handicap asa result of misadventure, injury, illness, or dumb luck.

The GM should roll 1d20 on the table below. If your character is in amundane occupation, subtract 2 from the roll (the minimum possibleresult is still 1). If your character is in a risky occupation, add 4. If yourcharacter is in a dangerous occupation, add 8.

Misfortune Table

Roll Problem1 Slight Injury. -1 Hit Point2 Slight Injury. -1 to Fort Saves3 Failed Love Affair. -1 to Wealth4 Lingering Illness. -1 to Constitution5 Lingering Illness. -1 to Strength6 Repetitive Stress Injury. -1 to Dexterity7 Broken Arm, Slow Healing. Your choice of -2 to Sleight-of-

Hand or -2 to Repair checks.8 Broken Leg, Slow Healing. Your choice of -2 to Climb checks

or -2 to Jump checks.9 Serious Financial Setback. -2 to Wealth10 Slight Injury. -1 Hit Point11 Lingering Neurosis. Acquire a Quirk/Manner ism (page 30) for

no compensation. If you already have one, lose 1 point of Charisma

12 Skin Disease. -2 to Charisma13 Chronic Fatigue. -1 to Climb, -1 to Jump, and -1 to all Fort

Saves.14 Serious injury. -1 Constitution, -1 Strength15 Major Financial Setback. -3 to Wealth16 Pick up the “Ugly Habit” version of the Dependency flaw (page

35) with no compensation. If you already have it, proceed to MildDependency for no compensation.

17 Suicide Attempt. -1 to Constitution, -1 to all Will Saves18 Major Illness. -1 to Wealth, -1 to Constitution19 Family Crisis. End up with a 2 pt. Dependent (page 36) or

become Estranged (page 38). Your choice– no compensation for either.

20 Make an enemy. Select a 2 pt. Nemesis (page 43) of your choice. No compensation.

21 Nervous Episode. Acquire 2 Pt. version of Nervous (page 17) or 2 pt. version of Bad Shot (page 10).

22 Devastating Financial Crisis. -4 to Wealth.23 Legal Trouble. Acquire 2 pt. Nemesis (Legal) on

page 43 or 2 pt. Poor Reputation (page 46). No com-

pensation.24 Severe Injury. -1 Hit Point, -1 Strength, -1 Dexterity, -1 to Fort

Saves25-26 Make an Enemy. Select a 4 pt. Nemesis (page 43) of your

choice. No compensation.27+ GM’s Choice! Select any 3 Pts. worth of flaw(s) appropriate to

character. No compensation!

Benefits of Seasoning

On the other hand, the majority of the results rolled on the table aboveare going to benefit your character in some fashion.

• Skill Ranks: Gain the indicated number of ranks to apply in one ormore skills of the listed type.

• Temporary Wealth: A temporary wealth bonus may be used onlyonce, to enhance any Wealth check. A character with a temporary wealthbonus higher than +1 may blow it all at once or divide it between multipleWealth checks, or even pass it on to others.

• Wealth: A permanent Wealth Bonus.

• XP: Gain the indicated amount of XP.

• Equipment: Roll 1d20 on the table below. If your character is in amundane occupation, subtract 2 from the roll (the minimum possibleresult is still 1). If your character is in a risky occupation, add 4. If yourcharacter is in a dangerous occupation, add 8. Any equipment notdesired may be disposed of for cash before play begins.

Equipment Table

Roll Result1 Briefcase, Field Bag, or Range Pack (Standard)2 Casual Outfit, Fatigues, or Tool Belt3 Aluminum Case (10 lb.) or Business Outfit4 Cell Phone, Multipurpose Tool, or Briefcase5 Backpack, Climbing Gear, or Sleeping Bag6 Cell Phone, Business Outfit, or 2-Person Tent7 2-Person tent, Climbing Gear, or First Aid kit8 Digital Camera, Gas Mask, or Formal Outfit9 Aluminum Case (75 lb.) or Business Outfit10 Digital Camera or 2 Cell Phones11 2 Business Outfits or Formal Outfit

53

12 Player’s Choice, Wealth Check DC 13 or less13 Walkie-Talkie (Professional) or 35mm Camera14 Kit: Disguise, Demolitions, or Chemical15 Basic Tool Kit or Formal Outfit16 Kit: Disguise, Chemical, or Surgery17 Desktop Computer or Notebook Computer18 Player’s Choice, Wealth Check DC 18 or less19 Desktop Computer or Notebook Computer20 Desktop Computer with Printer, Scanner21 Notebook Computer with Digital Camera22 Deluxe Tool Kit or GPS Receiver23 Player’s Choice, 2 items of Wealth Check DC 18 or less24 Yamaha YZ250F or Chevrolet Cavalier25 Player’s Choice, one item, Wealth Check DC 23 or less26 Yamaha YZ250F or Chevrolet Cavalier27 Chevrolet Corvette or Harley Davidson FLSTF or player’s

choice, one item, Wealth Check DC 26 or less28 Player’s Choice, one item, Wealth Check DC 30 or less

The GM may also wish to allow players to acquire certain low-costadvantages by using the Seasoning With Age system (after all, if flawscan be acquired, it may seem only fair). If so, use the alternate tablebelow– in addition to equipment, several advantages are offered as pos-sibilities for certain rolls.

Alternate Table: Equipment and Advantages

Roll Result1 Briefcase, Field Bag, or Range Pack (Standard)2 Casual Outfit, Fatigues, or Tool Belt3 Aluminum Case (10 lb.) or Business Outfit4 Cell Phone, Multipurpose Tool, or Briefcase5 Backpack, Climbing Gear, or Sleeping Bag or 1 average

connection (page 60) of the player’s choice)6 Cell Phone, Business Outfit, or 2-Person Tent7 2-Person tent, Climbing Gear, or First Aid kit8 Digital Camera, Gas Mask, or Formal Outfit9 Aluminum Case (75 lb.) or Business Outfit10 Digital Camera or 2 Cell Phones, or 2 average connections

(page 60) of the player’s choice11 2 Business Outfits or Formal Outfit12 Player’s Choice, Wealth Check DC 13 or less, or a 1 pt.

Academic Degree (page 56) of the player’s choice13 Walkie-Talkie (Professional) or 35mm Camera14 Disguise Kit, Demolitions Kit, or Chemical Kit; or a 1 pt.

Alternate Identity (page 57)

15 Basic Tool Kit or Formal Outfit16 Chemical Kit, Disguise Kit, or Surgery Kit; or a major

connection (page 60) of the player’s choice17 Desktop Computer or Notebook Computer18 Player’s Choice, Wealth Check DC 18 or less; or a 1 pt.

Property (Living Space or Land, player’s choice)19 Desktop Computer or Notebook Computer20 Desktop Computer with Printer, Scanner, or a 2 pt. Database/

Library21 Notebook Computer with Digital Camera22 Deluxe Tool Kit or GPS Receiver, or a 2 pt. Property (Land or

Living Space, player’s choice)23 Player’s Choice, 2 items of Wealth Check DC 18 or less24 Yamaha YZ250F or Chevrolet Cavalier, or a 2 pt. Ally (page

57) of the player’s choice25 Player’s Choice, one item, Wealth Check DC 23 or less26 Yamaha YZ250F or Chevrolet Cavalier, or a 2 pt. Alternate

Identity (page 57) or Ally (page 56) of the player’s choice27 Chevrolet Corvette or Harley Davidson FLSTF or player’s

choice, one item, Wealth Check DC 26 or less28 Player’s Choice, one item, Wealth Check DC 30 or less

GM Option: Weird and Arcane Equipment

With the GM’s explicit permission, a character in a risky or dangerousprofession may stand a chance of picking up an FX item over the courseof his pre-game adventures. If this option is used, whenever a natural 20is rolled on the equipment table, give the player the option of rolling 1d12on the table below rather than taking the “mundane” benefit.

Roll Result1 Potion of cure light wounds2 Tattoo of spider climb3 Scroll with 1 1st-level arcane spell. Roll 1d6. 1: Feather Fall, 2:

Hold Portal, 3: Jump, 4: Mage Armor, 5: Shield, 6: Sleep4 Potion of darkvision5 Potion of invisibility6 Scroll with 2 1st-level arcane spell. Roll 1d8, twice. 1: Feather

Fall, 2: Hold Portal, 3: Jump, 4: Mage Armor, 5: Shield, 6:Sleep, 7: Power Device, 8: True Strike

7 Potion of Charisma8 Potion of Constitution9 Potion of Dexterity10 Potion of Intelligence11 Potion of Strength12 Potion of Wisdom

54

As mentioned earlier, the difference between advantages and feats isthat feats gnerally represent some intrinsic quality of a character (grant-ed by nature, training, or experience) while advantages generally repre-sent qualities or material goods that can, in one way or another, be lostor destroyed. They exist primarily outside the character.

Advantages are best used with strict GM permission and supervision,to ensure that all of the player-characters will fit into the campaign envi-sioned by the GM.

The Price of AdvantagesAdvantages must be purchased with Flaw Points. The price of each ver-

sion of an advantage is listed beside its description.

Taking Shares in AdvantagesOrdinarily, one character will have absolute control over an advantage.

However, in the case of certain material advantages (businesses, prop-erties, etc.)it is possible for characters to take a “share” by each placingone or more Flaw Points into a common pool. For example, one charac-ter could buy a large house for 4 Flaw Points. Four characters could also

pitch in to communally purchase the same house for 1 Flaw Point apiece.

Advantages and RealismPlayers and GMs alike should remember that the systems provided for

the use of most of these advantages are meant for use only on a micro-level within a campaign world. That is, they function very well whenexamined from the limited perspective of the characters but perhaps notso well when extrapolated to the macro-level economics of an entire cityor nation.

Adding and Subtracting AdvantagesSooner or later, someone or something is probably going to do some-

thing lamentable to one or more of your character’s advantages. While itmight be hard to deal with the burning of a favorite building or the murderof a valued ally, you should remember that one of the primary functionsof most advantages is to start your character off with a bang. By the timeyour alter-ego has reached a moderately high character level, hisresource intake should have become substantial enough to replace orimprove upon any advantage knocked briefly out of play by enemyaction. Don’t forget that it’s perfectly acceptable to take those resourcesand pump them into improving the fruits of your old advantages, too,even before anyone messes with them. The point cost of an advantagedictates its starting point, not its ultimate potential!

Master List of AdvantagesAdvantage Brief Description

Academic Degree The character has earned a formal degree of some sort from an accredited institutionAllies Character has one or more NPC associates willing to risk something on his behalfAlternate Identity Character has one or more specially-prepared false identitiesAssistant Character has a close NPC supporter to help him in times of needBlack Market Ties Character has insider knowledge of the black marketBusiness Character owns or controls a profitable businessCivil Rank Character has a position within a government agencyClerical Rank Character has political clout within a religious hierarchyConnections Character has an information network of NPCsDatabase/Library Character owns a number of books or a useful computer databaseGhosted Evidence of the character’s existence has been deliberately covered upLaw Enforcement Rank Character is empowered to arrest suspects and uphold the lawMilitary Rank Character holds a position of command authority in an army or navyPatron Character has a “sugar daddy,” not quite an ally and not quite a bossProperty: Land Character owns one or more tracts of landProperty : Living Space Character owns one or more buildings or areas within buildings Special Reputation Character enjoys the benefits of a positive or helpful reputation

Advantages: Selection and Use

55

ACADEMIC DEGREE[ Social Advantage ]

Your character has received a degree of some sort from an accreditedinstitution of higher learning. His placement of skill ranks should reflectthe nature of his degree(s); these aren’t handed out for free (honorarydegrees, while flattering, carry none of the same advantages).

[1 Pt.] Four-Year Degree: Your character has a four-year (“bachelor’sdegree”) degree in a subject of his choice. This will improve his employ-ment prospects as well as his credibility in his chosen field. He receivesa +1 circumstance bonus to one selected Profession skill whenever heuses that skill to make money.

[2 Pts.] Master’s Degree: Your character has a master’s degree in asubject of his choice, which generally requires two years of work beyonda bachelor’s degree. This will significantly improve his employmentprospects as well as his credibility in his chosen field. He receives a +2circumstance bonus to one selected Profession skill whenever he usesthat skill to make money. He also receives a +1 bonus to all Bluff,Diplomacy, and Intimidate checks made in academic circles.

[3 Pts.] Doctorate: Your character has a PhD (from the LatinPhilosophiae Doctor) in a subject of his choice, which generally requiresthree years of graduate work culminating in a dissertation. This will great-ly improve his employment prospects as well as his credibility in his cho-sen field. He receives a +3 circumstance bonus to one selectedProfession skill whenever he uses that skill to make money. He alsoreceives a +1 bonus to all Bluff, Diplomacy, and Intimidate checks madein academic circles. He also has the legal right to refer to himself as“Doctor,” and NPCs in academic circles will gain a +2 circumstancebonus to any check (including Reputation checks) they make to recog-nize or identify him.

ALLIES[ Social Advantage ]

An ally is an NPC, well-known to your character, who feels some sortof emotional attachment and loyalty to him(contrast this with a connec-tion, page 60, an NPC that will provide your character with informationbut feels no particular loyalty toward him).

While an ally might not necessarily be a friend, he is willing to risksomething to help your character when necessary, and he’s also willingto offer financial or material assistance on relaxed or deferred terms. Anally in the right place can aid your character and his friends in a wide vari-ety of ways– by providing information without prompting, by providing

safe haven after a hard day, or even by fighting alongside your characterif circumstances force him to do so.

As the GM sees fit, an ally might even serve as an adventure hook forthe entire party, by summoning your character to his aid in a time of need.An ally’s practical bond to your character must sometimes be reaffirmedby action on your character ’s part, but you should rest assured that well-maintained alliances are the most effective alliances of all.

[2 Pts.] Standard Ally: A standard NPC ally costs 2 Flaw Points; thecharacter will be a capable individual about as formidable as a player-character of 1st or 2nd level.

[4 Pts.] Powerful Ally: An unusually well-placed or capable ally costs4 Flaw Points; such an ally will be a relatively well-placed or skilled indi-vidual at least as formidable as a player-character of 3rd or 4th level.

[6 Pts.] Very Powerful Ally: A very powerful ally costs 6 Flaw Points;such an ally will be a highly-placed, influential, or outstandingly skilledindividual; at least as formidable as a player-character of 5th or 6th level.

Special Benefit [Unusual Powers, +2 Pts.]: Your ally has access topowers (psionics, magic, supernatural abilities, high-tech alien FX abili-ties, etc.) above and beyond the pale of normality. This will make himmore dangerous, more knowledgeable, and harder to destroy. This spe-cial benefit is not appropriate to campaigns without supernormal ele-ments.

Special: The NPC ally will usually be a character of comparable (or atleast closely compatible) temperament and allegiance to your own char-acter. NPC allies may also be “ordinaries;” if so, the GM should add 1-2class levels to them.

Allies and Adventuring: Allies are not cohorts! If they join your char-acter on a mission or an adventure, it will be because they’re heeding thecall of friendship or obligation rather than the siren song of a share in any-thing captured or taken. Allies will not leave their business to run off withyour character at the drop of a hat– most frequently, they’ll only do sowhen their interests (or interests shared with your character) are thoughtto be endangered.

The following tables can be used to generate allies in a hurry, or to pro-vide ideas for the creation of more detailed NPCs. Roll 1d20 on theappropriate table.

56

Table: Standard NPC Allies*

Roll Ally1-2 Beat Cop, Detective3-4 University Professor5-6 City Council Member/Alderman7-8 Shop Owner9-10 Writer, Reasearcher, or Journalist11-12 Military Officer (Noncom)13-14 Computer Programmer15-16 Thief or Con Artist17-18 Forest Service Ranger19-20 Smuggler or Black Marketeer

*Such a character will typically be able to call upon the services of1d4+1 1st level Ordinaries at any time.

Table: Powerful NPC Allies**

Roll Ally1-2 Police Precinct Captain3-4 Major University Administrator5-6 City Mayor7-8 Powerful Business Owner9-10 Influential Major Journalist11-12 Military Officer (Commisioned)13-14 Renowned Computer Expert 15-16 Freelance Cat Burglar17-18 U.S. Marshal, Senior FBI Agent19-20 Major Underworld Figure

**Such a character will typically be able to call upon the services of1d6+1 2nd level Ordinaries at any time.

Table: Very Powerful NPC Allies***

Roll Ally1-2 Police Chief3-4 World-Renowned Scholar5-6 Senator or Parliamentarian7-8 National Tycoon9-10 Globe-trotting Aristocrat11-12 Military Officer (Senior)13-14 National Religious Figure15-16 National Underworld Chief17-18 FBI Divisional Supervisor

19-20 Veteran Secret Agent

***Such a character will typically be able to call upon the services of1d8+2 3rd level Ordinaries at any time, and anywhere between 40-1001st level Ordinaries.

ALTERNATE IDENTITY[ Special Advantage ]

Your character has constructed at least one false persona (completewith documents and paperwork) in addition to his “default” identity. Theusefulness and depth of this alternate identity both depend on how manyFlaw Points are invested in it.

[1 Pt.] Superficial ID: Your character’s identity will withstand any nor-mal perusal– he has a fake mailing address, a well-forged picture ID, afalse employment record, and even a small bank account.

[2 Pts.] Thorough ID: Your character’s alternate identity is far betterdeveloped. It includes a driver's license, passport, work permits, bankaccounts, rent and property records, criminal records, and schoolrecords, all expertly forged or arranged from legitimate sources. Only themost paranoid investigation or the most solid evidence of wrongoing byyour character could crack this fictional facade.

[3 Pts.] Excellent ID: Your character’s alternate identity has a greatdeal of substantiating background evidence– photos, mementos, lettersfrom fictional relatives, awards and plaques, school papers, and men-tions in newspapers and other media dating back at least several years.Any private investigator or routine police inquiry would be absolutelyfooled, and even a suspicious and thorough investigation would turn upalmost nothing to reveal your character’s fraud.

Your character may have multiple alternate identities if he desires.

ASSISTANT [ Social Advantage ]

Your character is aided in his adventuring life, work, or research by aclose NPC associate who helps the character organize his affairs andprotect his secrets. Although called an “assistant,” this person is reallymore of a best friend, and might be a servant (butler, chauffeur, pilot,executive secretary, etc.), a relative (uncle, aunt, parent, etc.), or justabout anything your character concept can accommodate.

Please note that it isn’t an assistant’s purpose to fight alongside yourcharacter as a bodyguard or “yes-man.” Your character’s assistant exists

57

to pick up the burden of certain supporting tasks such as investigation,research, shadowing of other NPCs, equipment acquisition, and occa-sional helpful errands such as the purchase of groceries.

[3 Pts.] Competent Assistant: Treat the Assistant as a 2nd LevelSmart or Dedicated Hero NPC, with skills and feats selected by you andapproved by the GM.

[6 Pts.] Skilled Assistant: Treat the Assistant as a 4th Level Smart orDedicated Hero NPC, with skills and feats selected by you and approvedby the GM.

Special: Should you wish to assign flaws to the assistant NPC in orderto grant the NPC more skills or useful abilities, you may do so, but onlywith the GM’s explicit permission.

BLACK MARKET TIES[ Social Advantage ]

Your character has insider knowledge of the black market; this will allowhim to gain access to black market goods (and speed the acquisition ofthose goods).

General Black Market Ties: For each Flaw Point invested in thisadvantage, your character gains a +3 competence bonus to Knowledge(streetwise) checks made to locate any black market merchant.

Specific Black Market Ties: For each Flaw Point invested in thisadvantage, your character gains a +6 competence bonus to Knowledge(streetwise) checks made to locate a black market merchant within aspecified urban area (and its outlying suburbs). This area is selected at1st level and cannot be changed.

The bonus from specific ties is cumulative with that provided by gener-al ties.

BUSINESS[ Material Advantage ]

Your character owns (or has a controlling interest in) a stable businessin a town or city. Your character doesn’t actually run the business (count-ing inventory is rarely an activity appropriate to a life of heroic adventur-er), but he oversees its operations at the highest level and receives reg-ular reports from the NPC employees that run it for him. These employ-ees are considered loyal and friendly, insofar as they are paid to do theirjob. They won’t risk their lives for your character, nor, under any circum-stances, will they serve as cohorts or collaborators on an adventure.

Your character will receive income from the business on a monthlybasis. This income takes the form of a monthly Wealth bonus that maybe applied to 1d2+1 Wealth Checks per game month.

Each month, the GM should roll 1d6 to determine how well the busi-ness is currently doing:

1-2: Poor month3-4: Average month5-6: Excellent month

Each of the four types of business available for player-character own-ership has those three income levels listed after its description below.The initial cost of business ownership is as follows:

Prices: Small Business: 1 Flaw PointAverage Business: 2 Flaw PointsLarge Business: 3 Flaw PointsHuge Business: 4 Flaw PointsChain Business: 6 Flaw Points

Small Business: Most small businesses are administered from a homeor apartment. If they have a storefront, it will be relatively tiny. In somecrowded urban areas, a small business may be nothing more than amobile food cart or a fixed stall at a farmer’s market.

Income– Poor Month: +1 WealthAverage month: +2 WealthExcellent Month: +3 Wealth

Average Business: An average business deals in a more expensiveor specialized set of goods, or has an established storefront with decentfoot traffic. Most family restaurants and competitive franchises are aver-age businesses.

Income– Poor Month: +2 WealthAverage month: +3 WealthExcellent Month: +4 Wealth

Large Business: A large business is situated in a busy district, possi-bly near harbor facilities or a major airport to pick up on the business oftravelers. A large and successful bar or hotel would qualify.

Income– Poor Month: +3 WealthAverage month: +4 WealthExcellent Month: +5 Wealth

58

Huge Business: A huge business is a rare and well-tended affair, withdozens of employees, a steady clientele, and an established marketpresence.

Income– Poor Month: +4 WealthAverage month: +5 WealthExcellent Month: +6 Wealth

Chain Business: Your character controls 1d4+1 average businessesscattered over a certain area. Their combined income is rather nice.

Income– Poor Month: +6 WealthAverage month: +7 WealthExcellent Month: +8 Wealth

Special Benefit [Enhanced Profit, +2 Pts.]: Your character’s businessis unusually profitable, thanks to positioning, lack of competition, quality,or sheer dumb luck. The business’ Wealth bonus may be applied to1d4+1 Wealth Checks per game month.

Special: While your character needn’t spend any of his time oversee-ing the day-to-day details of mundane commerce, there are a number ofreasons why a business will occasionally demand some attention. Yourcharacter will be expected to deal with extortion and protection schemes,buyout offers honest or otherwise, potentially violent competitors, andother extraordinary distractions. Generally speaking, the better your busi-ness does, the more attention it will attract from government authoritiesand unscrupulous interlopers alike.

Should your character neglect his duties as the owner and overseer ofa lucrative business (or fail to take adequate steps for good managementwhen he’s away for long periods of time), he can expect to enjoy theadventure of dealing with arsonists, extortionists, hostile creditors, penni-less debtors, callous tax-men, police officers, annoyed bankers, andother colorful characters.

CIVIL RANK[ Social Advantage ]

Your character holds a position of authority in a government (either asa policy-maker or a figure within an agency that carries out policy).

[1 Pt.] Superficial Rank: Your character is a “gopher” on a senate flooror something similar. His title grants him access to certain areas that areoff-limits to the public and puts him in contact with movers and shakers;possibly there’s some sort of holiday party every year, but not much else.

[2 Pts.] Minor Rank: Your character is a personal advisor or aide to apowerful regional decision-maker, such as a mayor or state senator. Yourcharacter has some influence of that NPC’s opinions, and may juggle thatcharacter’s appointment schedule and make certain promises on thatNPC’s behalf. Your character may gain (at the GM’s discretion) a +1 cir-cumstance bonus to Bluff, Diplomacy, and Intimidate checks made whenhe is speaking on behalf of his employer.

[4 Pts.] Substantial Rank: Your character is a powerful local decision-maker or a minor national decision-maker; the chief inspector of a citybureau, perhaps, or a city council member (or even the mayor of a smallcity). If your character has national influence, he might be an administra-tor for an agency such as the EPA or the IRS. He may serve in an advi-sory capacity to a law-enforcement agency, however, Law EnforcementRank (page 62) is required to have any real powers in that respect. Yourcharacter gains a +1 circumstance bonus to Bluff, Diplomacy, andIntimidate checks made when dealing with his constituents or underlings.

[6 Pts.] Significant Rank: Your character is the mayor of a large city,a powerful division head for a state agency, a trusted advisor to a gover-nor (or possibly even a head of state), an appointed official with state- orregion-wide powers, or perhaps even some sort of “troubleshooter” forthe highest powers of the land. Your character gains a +2 circumstancebonus to Bluff, Diplomacy, and Intimidate checks made when dealing withhis constituents or underlings.

Civil rank beyond the types described above is not offered, due to thegeneral difficulty of integrating such responsibilities with a career of hero-ic adventuring. Governors, Senators, Presidents, MPs and the like givethe orders that send adventurers out to do business– they tend not to goout and do it themselves.

Limitation: There are almost certainly stringent codes of professionalconduct and public behavior that will constrain a character with thisadvantage, and there will be established procedures for tossing yourcharacter out on his behind if he violates them. If your character has afixed set of time-consuming duties, use the Duty/Responsibility flaw(page 37) to offset some or all of the cost of this advantage.

CLERICAL RANK[ Social Advantage ]

Your character has been invested and confirmed as a formal leaderwithin a church hierarchy, responsible for the spiritual guidance of thechurch’s worshippers, the oversight of mundane church affairs, and thesocial welfare of the church’s community.

59

Characters with this advantage have a formal investment in the ever-shifting decision-making hierarchy of a priesthood, and while they maystill adventure (especially on missions for the priesthood or againstopposed supernormal powers), they will from time to time be summonedback to a church to engage in relatively mundane work.

Price: There are three ranks attainable through the use of this advan-tage, each of which has a title meant only to convey an approximation ofthe character’s duties. Religion-specific titles may be quite different.

Priest: 2 Flaw PointsSenior Priest: 4 Flaw PointsRegional Senior Priest: 6 Flaw Points

Along with the responsibilities of a position, your character will havesome discretion over the use of church funds and may call for aid fromchurch followers. Either form of aid will be available once per month– avariable Wealth bonus and a variable number of 1st level Ordinary NPCs(for a day of non-hazardous service). Funds and followers may only beused in the clear pursuit of church goals or worthy causes (or causes thatcan be safely disguised as such).

Priest: Your character assists in the running of a large church, or issolely responsible for the running of a small or rural church.

Wealth Bonus: 10+1d2Followers: 1d4 1st level Ordinary NPCs

Your character gains a +2 circumstance bonus to any check made togather information relating to his church, its history, or its hierarchy. Hemaintains some physical control over church facilities and property.

Senior Priest: Your character would be given control over a largechurch in a medium-sized city, or over several smaller churches in an out-lying region.

Wealth Bonus: 10+1d10Followers: 1d8+1 1st level Ordinary NPCs

Your character gains a +4 circumstance bonus to any check made togather information relating to his church, its history, or its hierarchy. Hemaintains significant physical control over church facilities and property.

Regional Senior Priest: Your character would be responsible for thelargest church in a given city, or for several medium-sized churches in asimilar area. He will almost certainly be a public figure and commentator

of some sort.

Wealth Bonus: 15+4d6Followers: 3d8+3 1st level Ordinary NPCs

Your character gains a +8 circumstance bonus to any check made togather information relating to his church, its history, or its hierarchy. Hemaintains total physical control over church facilities and property withinhis assigned area.

Special Benefit [Well-Liked, +1 Pt.]: Your character is unusually likedby many of his church’s worshippers and community members. He cantherefore call upon his allowed number of Ordinaries twice per gamemonth rather than once.

Special: If the addition of clerical ranks to a game seems almost cer-tain to bog it down, consider making one or more characters a roving“troubleshooter” for his priesthood, traveling from church to church, deal-ing with unusual problems and using his formal clout to expedite matters.In campaigns with supernatural elements, “special” clerics can also bedispatched by church hierarchies to hunt the forces of darkness. See thespecial benefit below:

Special Benefit [Privy to Secrets, +1 Pt.]: Your character is part of aninitiated elite within the church hierarchy (or perhaps even a secret soci-ety), with access to forbidden information. Your character will probably becharged with extraordinary responsibilities– in supernatural campaigns,this benefit takes on special meaning. Your character gains a +2 circum-stance bonus to all Gather Information checks made to find anything outabout his church.

Note: All characters possessing this advantage will receive monthlyroom and board courtesy of their religious order– nothing fancy, butalways available in a time of need.

CONNECTIONS[ Social Advantage ]

A connection is an NPC contact, known to your character, willing to sup-ply occasional information and perhaps certain services involving little orno personal risk (smuggling, fencing of goods, passage of messages,etc.)

Compare and contrast a connection with an ally– the latter is tied toyour character by a bond of friendship or loyalty, while the former won’tstretch out his neck for your character except when paid well and paid inadvance. A connection is a valuable resource, but he should never be

60

mistaken for a dependable comrade.

Price: One Flaw Point will buy two average contacts– NPCs describedin cooperation with the GM. Average contacts ore people “in the know”that are nonetheless not really in command of their situations. An aver-age contact might be:

• A street-level gangster or thief• A beat cop• A minor bureaucrat• A rookie journalist• A low-ranking military officer

One Flaw Point can also be used to buy a major contact, along the linesof an average contact but much more powerful and well-connected. Forexample:

• A crime boss or smuggler chief• A police captain or veteran detective• An influential politician• A popular and established journalist• A high-ranking military officer

Generally speaking, a connection can be contacted about once pergame week (by pre-arranged message service, if not in person) and asingle conversation (or the equivalent) can be held. If your characterwishes to press a connection for more information in a short time period,he will be intruding upon that connection’s regular routine and will haveto pay (in goods, cash, or information of his own) for the privilege.

A connection, if abused or mistreated, will generally slink back into thecharacter’s employ in exchange for an unusually large payment by wayof an apology. It is , however,quite possible for a connection to vanish andswear off all contact with your character if he severely mistreats that con-nection!

If your character treats a connection well, especially by dropping occa-sional gifts of cash or information in the connection’s lap, that connectionmay (at the GM’s discretion) proactively approach your character withimportant information rather than waiting for your character to come tohim.

A canny GM can use connections to put out information leading towardadventure, or tying into the ongoing plot of the campaign.

Special: When in serious doubt as to what a connection can do for a

character, the GM may use the following rule of thumb. By getting intouch with an average connection, your character can make a GatherInformation check with a +2 circumstance bonus to the roll. By contact-ing a major connection, your character can gain a +4 circumstance bonusto his roll. Double these bonuses if the questions lie within the very nar-row field of the connection’s specialty– there is a difference, for example,between asking a Navy SEAL about aircraft carrier logistics (not his spe-cialty) and underwater demolition techniques (right up his alley).

DATABASE/LIBRARY[ Material Advantage ]

Your character own a massive computer database or physical library,which he frequently consults.

[2 Pts.] Useful Library/Database: This is a database or library offer-ing a +2 circumstance bonus to each of three (3) Knowledge, Profession,or Craft skills, selected when the library or database is acquired. At leastan hour of study must be spent in the library to gain one of these bonus-es for the next roll made with the skill in question. A library or databasebonus for any given skill may be used only once per day per character.

[4 Pts.] Huge Library/Database: As above, save that the database orlibrary offers a +2 circumstance bonus to all Knowledge, Profession, andCraft checks made following at least an hour of study. A library or data-base bonus for any given skill may still be used only once per day percharacter.

Special: A player may negotiate with the GM for a special capability orfocus for his database or library. For example, a crimefighting adventur-er might wish to own a library of criminal files or a database that con-stantly updates the known locations and rap sheets of perpetrators. Suchspecial functions are available only with the GM’s explicit permission.

Special Benefit [Arcane/Forbidden Materials, +1-3 Pts.]: Your char-acter’s library or database contains material of an occult or highly secretnature (depending upon the supernormal content of the GM’s campaign).The nature of this material must be settled by the GM prior to the start ofthe campaign; whether or not your character knows the full extent of thismaterial is up to him.

Special Benefit [Focus, +1 Pt.]: Your character may select a singleKnowledge, Profession, or Craft skill; the library will offer a +4 circum-stance bonus rather than a +2 bonus to checks involving that subject.

61

GHOSTED[ Social Advantage ]

According to all official records and histories, your character does notexist. There is no record of his birth. He has no criminal record or schoolhistory, no licenses for anything, no credit records, no purchase records,no fingerprints or DNA samples in storage. He is a ghost, a nonentity, ahigh-tech rat that has been allowed to slip between the cracks of civiliza-tion.

[2 Pts.]: This tactic is often used by secret agencies to make their oper-atives anonymous. This renders them immune to blackmail or trackingvia background habits– it also makes them more easily expendable, andleaves no paper trail to tie them to their employers.

Nobody knows your character, or will recognize him on the street untilhe’s done something to establish himself. Perhaps cosmetic surgery hasbeen used to alter his natural features. Whatever the case, your charac-ter is protected by a blanket of total obscurity. Anyone attempting to pryinto his background will find nothing but dead ends or those false leadsyour character wishes them to find.

Note: This advantage is incompatible with the following flaws: CriminalRecord, Dependent, and Poor Reputation. It may not be taken in con-junction with a glaringly obvious Bodily Mark, nor with the SpecialReputation advantage, nor with the Renown feat. It is often taken in con-junction with the Alternate Identity advantage.

LAW ENFORCEMENT RANK[ Social Advantage ]

Your character has been deputized or employed by a legitimate lawenforcement agency, and as a result has both the legal authority and thelegal responsibilities of a sworn officer of the law.

Your character has arrest and detention powers, search powers, andthe power to use reasonable force (modified by the specifics of whereand when your character was granted this authority, at the GM’s discre-tion) within his jurisdiction. On the other hand, you character mustrespect the authority and operations of uniformed law enforcement offi-cials, or his legal powers are history.

[2 Pts.] Minor Rank: Your character is a beat cop, a rookie, or a part-time assistant, such as a rural deputy sheriff. Your character is essential-ly a “spear carrier,” fulfilling the orders of his higher-ups without doing toomuch thinking on his own. His jurisdiction will generally be limited to a sin-gle urban area or county. He gains a +1 circumstance bonus to Bluff,

Diplomacy, and Intimidate checks made against criminals or members ofthe general public (when he is acting in his official capacity).

[4 Pts.] Substantial Rank: Your character holds a rank commensuratewith some ability and experience. He might be a beat sergeant, respon-sible for several other beat cops and their reports. He might be a detec-tive, responsible for high-pressure investigations and challenging assign-ments. His jurisdiction will generally be limited to a single urban area orcounty. He gains a +2 circumstance bonus to Bluff, Diplomacy, andIntimidate checks made against criminals, subordinates, or members ofthe general public (when he is acting in his official capacity). He alsogains a +2 bonus to Gather Information checks made to discover any-thing about his department, its history, or its personnel.

[6 Pts.] High Rank: Your character is a fairly big fish in the law enforce-ment food chain. He might be a precinct captain, responsible for com-manding and controlling dozens of officers. He might be a senior detec-tive, responsible for an entire investigation team or department. His juris-diction will generally be limited to a single urban area or county. He gainsa +3 circumstance bonus to Bluff, Diplomacy, and Intimidate checksmade against criminals, subordinates, or members of the general public(when he is acting in his official capacity). He also gains a +4 bonus toGather Information checks made to discover anything about his depart-ment, its history, or its personnel.

Special Benefit [Wider Jurisdiction, +1-2 Pts.]: Your character’spowers are granted by an agency with more area to cover than one cityor county. For 1 point, he can have regional jurisdiction (for example, inan entire U.S. state), and for 2 points he can have national jurisdiction(anywhere within a single sovereign country). Your character will gener-ally outrank (or at least have some advantages over) local law enforce-ment when specifically assigned to a local case.

Special Benefit [Lessened Scrutiny, +2 Pts.]: Your character is on avery long leash, as far as his behavior is concerned. For whatever rea-son is appropriate to his story (perhaps he is undercover, perhaps he hasfriends in high places), many routine disciplinary and procedural viola-tions on his part will be overlooked. While he should be careful not topush things too far, he can get away with quite a bit if he’s careful.

Limitation: There are almost certainly stringent codes of professionalconduct and public behavior that will constrain a character with thisadvantage, and there will be established procedures for tossing yourcharacter out on his behind if he violates them (unless he benefits fromLessened Scrutiny, detailed above). If your character has a fixed set oftime-consuming duties, use the Duty/Responsibility flaw (page 37) to off-

62

set some or all of the cost of this advantage.

MILITARY RANK[ Social Advantage ]

Your character holds an enlisted or commissioned rank in the armedforces of a single country.

Military rank, precedence, and service distinctions can be a terriblycomplicated body of knowledge, even for those with many years of activeservice under their belts. The following very loose abstraction is designedto render the general concept playable to gamers with little or nor practi-cal military knowledge, rather than to capture all the nuances of a systemin a manner that will be thoroughly pleasing to those that might have livedwith them– my apologies!

Also, for direct demonstration purposes, the system provided discuss-es only the rank and grade structure of the United States armed forces.

Special: All characters selecting this advantage should also select the“military” occupation at 1st level. Players may wish to examine theAdvanced Occupation Packages offered on pages 67-71 for ideas.

Rank/Grade: The United States armed forces use a system of equiva-lent “grades” to define the order of rank precedence while preserving theindividual titles and idiosyncrasies of each service. There are two gradetracks, (E)nlisted) and (O)fficer, as may be seen on the table above.Characters of equivalent grade are considered equal in precedence evenacross service boundaries; a navy O-6 (Captain) is fundamentally even-ly matched by an army O-6 (Colonel); he would be outranked by an armyO-7 (Brigadier General) and would himself outrank an army O-5(Lieutenant Colonel). This of course assumes a neutral setting for anymeeting– an army General would not presume to tell a navy Captain whatto do aboard the bridge of his own ship.

Duties: Players and GMs should define a character’s military dutiesand aspirations before a campaign begins, using reference materialwhenever required. Loosely speaking, enlisted personnel are the “doers”and officers are the “planners;” grunt work is no more assigned toColonels and Admirals than strategic planning is assigned to buckPrivates. There are, of course, too many exceptions to this general ruleto cover– combat pilots in most services are officers, and many lower-ranking officers take to the field with their enlisted personnel and endurethe same conditions as well as their command responsibilities.

Prerequisites: Enlisted personnel must meet certain minimum physi-

Table: Military Ranks: Flaw Point Costs, Grade, and Service Equivalents*

Cost/Grade Army Air Force Navy Marines1 (E-2) Private Airman Seaman Apprentice Private 1st Class2 (E-3) Private 1st Class Airman 1st Class Seaman Lance Corporal3 (E-4) Corporal/Specialist Senior Airman Petty Officer 3rd Class Corporal4 (E-5) Sergeant Staff Sergeant Petty Officer 2nd Class Sergeant5 (E-6) Staff Sergeant Technical Sergeant Petty Officer 1st Class Staff Sergeant6 (E-7) Sergeant 1st Class Master Sergeant Chief Petty Officer Gunnery Sgt.7 (E-8) Master Sergeant Sr. Master Sergeant Sr. Chief Petty Officer Master/First Sgt.8 (E-9) Sergeant Major Chief Master Sgt. Master Chief Master Gunnery Sgt.7 (O-1) 2nd Lieutenant 2nd Lieutenant Ensign 2nd Lieutenant8 (O-2) 1st Lieutenant 1st Lieutenant Lieutenant (j.g.) 1st Lieutenant9 (O-3) Captain Captain Lieutenant Captain10 (O-4) Major Major Lt. Commander Major11 (O-5) Lt.Colonel Lt. Colonel Commander Lt. Colonel12 (O-6) Colonel Colonel Captain Colonel13 (O-7) Brigadier General Brigadier General Rear Admiral (Lower) Brig. General14 (O-8) Major General MajorGeneral Rear Admiral (Upper) Maj. General15 (O-9) Lt. General Lt. General Vice Admiral Lt. General

•This chart refers only to the grades and ranks of the United States armed services.

63

cal standards. Anyone with a Strength, Dexterity, or Constitution score ofless than 10 will not be eligible for service. Enlisted personnel must alsohave relatively clean criminal records; felony convictions will almost cer-tainly preclude service.

Officers must meet the same physical standards and even more strin-gent educational and background standards. Anyone with an Intelligencescore of less than 10 will not be eligible for officer rank in any service; theGM may deny officer rank to any character he deems to have an obvi-ously deficient technical or educational background. The criminal recordsof a potential officer will be scrutinized even more closely than those ofan enlisted individual.

Command Responsibilities: This advantage must be used very care-fully and judiciously– the higher a character’s rank, the more he will beresponsible for within the military hierarchy, the more competition andscrutiny he will face, and the more paperwork he will have to endure.There is a point at which a career of heroic adventuring becomes out ofthe question for an individual serving in the military.

Cost: The cost in Flaw Points of any given rank is provided on the tableon the previous page. Definitely use the Duty/Responsibility flaw (page37) to offset some or all of the cost of this advantage. AlthoughDuty/Responsibility is a secondary flaw, it should be considered manda-tory for characters taking military rank.

Special Benefits: Enlisted characters of grade E-5 or higher receivean additional +1 Wealth bonus. Characters of grade E-7 or higher receivean additional +2 Wealth bonus.

Officer characters of grade O-2 or higher receive an additional +1Wealth bonus. Characters of grade O-4 or higher receive an additional +2Wealth bonus, characters of grade O-6 or higher receive an additional +3Wealth bonus, and characters of grade O-8 or higher receive an addi-tional +4 Wealth bonus.

Military rank-holders gain a variable circumstance bonus to all Bluff,Diplomacy, and Intimidate checks made against military personnel oflesser rank. This bonus increases as the gap between the characterswidens (based on the difference in the number of Flaw Points spent ontheir respective ranks), as indicated on the chart below:

Point Difference Effect

1 +1 bonus to Bluff, Diplomacy, and Intimidate2 +2 bonus to Bluff, Diplomacy, and Intimidate

3 +3 bonus to Bluff, Diplomacy, and Intimidate4+ +4 bonus to Bluff, Diplomacy, and Intimidate

Furthermore, an officer gains an additional +1 bonus against enlistedpersonnel, in addition to those listed above. Please note that thesebonuses may only be used in situations where the personnel involved areacting in a military capacity.

Special Benefit [Lessened Scrutiny, +2 Pts.]: Your character is on avery long leash, as far as his behavior is concerned. For whatever rea-son is appropriate to his story (perhaps he is a Special Operations sol-dier, perhaps he is detached on a special mission), many routine disci-plinary and procedural violations on his part will be overlooked. While heshould be careful not to push things too far, he can get away with quite abit if he’s careful.

If your character is an officer, he may even have an independent com-mand on a special project, away from continuous scrutiny and oversight.This may be an ideal situation from which to launch a d20 Modern cam-paign involving military characters.

This special benefit is incompatible with the “Restricted Movement”handicap of the Duty/Responsibility flaw (page 37).

PATRON[ Special Advantage ]

Not wholly an ally, not wholly an employer, a patron is an NPC or anorganization that supports your character with money and information inexchange for his services or consultation. Your character must be care-ful not to offend or upset his patron, lest his funds be reduced or cut off.He should also keep in mind the fact that a patron can be a great targetfor an enemy if the patron’s involvement in his affairs is made too obvi-ous.

[2 Pts.] Weak Patron: Your character may call upon his patron 1d3+1times per month for any one of the following:

• A +1 bonus to any Wealth check;• A 1st level Ordinary NPC to perform a support or research task (for up to twelve hours);• A +2 bonus to any Gather Information check; or• A weapon or piece of equipment, Wealth check DC not to exceed 10, generally to be loaned for about a week, though lengthier arrangementsare certainly possible.

[4 Pts.] Useful Patron: Your character may call upon his patron 1d3+1

64

times per month for any one of the following:

• A +2 bonus to any Wealth check;• 1-3 1st level Ordinary NPCs to perform a support or research task (for up to twenty-four hours);• A +4 bonus to any Gather Information check;• A weapon or piece of equipment, Wealth check DC not to exceed 15, generally to be loaned for about a week, though lengthier arrangementsare certainly possible;• Travel arrangements or hotel reservations in any major city on twelve hours’ notice; or• A rental vehicle (in the patron’s name) on eight hours’ notice, generally rented for 1 day

[6 Pts.] Powerful Patron: Your character may call upon his patron1d3+1 times per month for any one of the following:

• A +3 bonus to any Wealth check;• 1-5 1st level Ordinary NPCs to perform a support or research task (for up to forty-eight hours);• A +8 bonus to any Gather Information check;• A weapon or piece of equipment, Wealth check DC not to exceed 21, generally to be loaned for about two weeks, though lengthier arrangements are certainly possible;• Travel arrangements or hotel reservations in any major city on three hours’ notice; or• A rental vehicle (in the patron’s name) on one hours’ notice, generally rented for 1-3 days

Special Benefit [Generous Patron, +1 Pt.]: Your character may selectthis benefit multiple times; each time he selects it the number of aidrequests he may make per month is increased by 1.

PROPERTY: LAND[ Material Advantage ]

Your character maintains or owns one or more tracts of undeveloped(or estate) land, in the location of his choice (with GM approval). The sizeof this acreage is based on the number of Flaw Points spent; what yourcharacter does on his land is his own business.

Flaw Points Total Acreage1 102 253 504 1005 250

6 5007 1,0008 2,5009 5,000

10 10,000

PROPERTY: LIVING SPACE[ Material Advantage ]

Your character maintains one or more rental properties, hidden bolt-holes, houses, or secure hideouts to which he can retire (or send others)in a time of need. It may be assumed that the character does not need topay anything for the upkeep of each property (having taken care of thatwhen he set each property up), and that their locations are not publicizedunless the character allows himself to be traced or followed to one dur-ing the course of a campaign.

Cost Nature of Property1 Studio apartment or run-down house2 Large apartment or average house3 Luxury suite or large house4 Multi-unit housing or manorial house5 Apartment building, warehouse,

mansion, or linked network of luxurysuites

Special Benefit [Secure Space, +1 Pt.]: Your character has taken thetrouble to beef up security in the chosen space or building. The windowsare barred and reinforced, the doors are steel with multiple heavy locks,and a thorough check has been performed to ensure that there are nooverseen means of entrance. The walls are thick and sturdy, offering sub-stantial cover from incoming fire and other sources of damage. All in all,the property is a good place to weather a siege or hide from enemies.

Special Benefit [Protected Space, +1 Pt.]: Your character has takenthe trouble to have the chosen space wired with a variety of alarms andsecurity devices. Each window and door has a breakage alarm, eachventilation unit has an intrusion sensor, and there are pressure plates inthe floor in front of each door. Video cameras cover most of the interiorand the immediate exterior, and thermal or motion sensors cover the doorapproaches. This security network can be set to flash loud or silent intru-sion warnings to anyone inside the space, via a single control area.

Special Benefit [Secret Space, +1 Pt.]: The space in question issecret! If it’s a building, the useful space within is disguised. If it’s under-ground or similarly concealed, it’s about the size of the listed property (astudio apartment is a studio apartment whether 300 feet underground or

65

300 feet above it). Entrance and egress are provided for by one or morehidden doors, some of which may have tunnels that open a fair distanceaway from the secret base itself.

Special Benefit [Hermetically Sealed, +1 Pt.]: The space in questionis airtight, and has an atmosphere-processing system. This renders any-one inside it immune to radiation, smoke, and toxic atmospheres existingoutside the structure. All entrances are equipped with airlocks.

Special Benefit [Special Room, +1 Pt.]: The space in question (if larg-er than one room) contains a room specially equipped to serve a certainfunction. A special room offers a circumstance bonus to one or moretypes of skill check performed within:

• Emergency Room: +3 to Treat Injury checks• Forensics Lab: +3 to Investigate checks• Garage: +3 to Repair checks made on vehicles• Laboratory: +1 to Knowledge checks , +2 to Research checks• Machine Shop: +1 to Craft (electronic) checks, Craft (mechanical) checks, and Repair checks

A character may select more than one special room for his living space,provided the GM rules that the space is big enough to contain it. Thebonuses granted are in addition to those usually granted by equipmentsuch as surgical kits or tool kits.

SPECIAL REPUTATION[ Social Advantage ]

Your character enjoys a great deal of positive word-of-mouth concern-ing himself or his actions. His reputation precedes him and often makeslife easier for him within a selected geographic area or sector of society.

Cost: Select two of the following skills: Bluff, Diplomacy, GatherInformation, Intimidate, and Perform. For every Flaw Point invested inthis advantage, the character gains an additional +2 bonus to those twoskills for the duration of an encounter where an NPC has recognized him(in a friendly fashion). This is cumulative with the usual +4 modifier to allof the above skills that is awarded for such recognition.

Up to 4 Flaw Points may be invested in this advantage (not countingany points spent on special benefits).

Special Benefit [Very Good Reputation, +1 Pt.]: Any bonus pointsare awarded to all five listed skills, not just the two your character wouldordinarily select.

Special Benefit [Wider Reputation, +1-2 Pts.]: The wider your char-acter’s reputation stretches (i.e. the more sectors of society in which hecan play it to his advantage), the more it will cost. A 2-point version of thisbenefit would suggest a national or even international reputation, asmight be possessed by a major media star.

Limitation: This advantage is incompatible with the Ghosted advan-tage (page 62) and the Poor Reputation flaw (page 46).

66

The following Advanced Occupation Packages are meant to be usedas templates to facilitate the rapid creation of certain character arche-types, and to serve as an introduction to the character customization pos-sible with the system presented in this book.

Adventuring Archaeologist

Your character is a fairly non-traditional scholar of human history,beliefs, settlements, and civilizations. Cocky, physically fit, and assuredof his own immortality, your character is much more likely to be foundclandestinely breaking into forbidden tombs or wrestling priceless arti-facts from smugglers than he is grading term papers. True, his methodscan leave something to be desired– a number of journalists have spreadinsinuations that he is a callous violator of cultural traditions, and his entryinto a Pharaoh’s tomb a few years ago may have placed a small curseupon him. However, when a field study has to be conducted in a danger-ous corner of the world, there’s no one more qualified for the task.

Starting Occupation: Academic or AdventurerPreferred Starting Class: SmartFlaw Package: Old Injury (II) (2 pts.), Debt of Honor (2 pts.), InsatiableCuriosity (2 pts.), Nemesis (Media, 4 pts.), Nemesis (Villain (Evil archaeologist) 4 pts.), Strange Attractor (2 pts.), Overconfident (2 pts.)[Total Package Value: 18 Flaw Points]Bonus Feats and Advantages: +1 class level (Tough or Strong), GreatFortitude, Brawl, Educated, Patron (Small University, 2 pts.), AcademicDegreeDiscretionary Flaw Points: 1

Army Ranger

Your character is a Ranger, one of the U.S. Army’s fast-moving, hard-hitting scouts, pathfinders, and shock troopers. Your character has notbeen tested in combat, and, truth to be told, he’s worried about how wellhis nerves will hold up.

Starting Occupation: MilitaryPreferred Starting Class: Tough or StrongFlaw Package: Nervous (2 pts.), Duty/Responsibility (Challenging, Hazardous, Restricted Movement, Restricted Communication, 11 pts.), Macho/Spartan (2 pts.)[Total Package Value: 15 Flaw Points]Bonus Feats and Advantages: Endurance, Personal Firearms Proficiency, Military Rank (E-4, Army Specialist, 3 pts.), Toughness,

Weapon Focus (M16 Rifle), Far ShotDiscretionary Flaw Points: 2

Aspiring Rock Star

Your character is an inexperienced, lippy, aggressive, and impatient lit-tle cuss just beginning to find acclaim on the local club scene. Althoughhe’s not quite as good as he thinks he is (heck, nobody could possibly beas good as your character thinks he is), there’s no denying that he doesput on a show worth paying to see.

Starting Occupation: Creative or CelebrityPreferred Starting Class: CharismaticFlaw Package: Bodily Marked (Tattoos, 1 pt.), Impatient (2 pts.), Inattentive (2 pts.), Boastful (2 pts.), Impulsive (2 pts.)[Total Package Value: 9 Flaw Points]Bonus Feats and Advantages: Skill Focus (Perform skill of your choice), Renown, Creative, Special Reputation (1 pt.), Connections (2 average connections in the local club scene)Discretionary Flaw Points: 1

Blind Assassin

Your character is a harmless-looking elderly man whose obvious blind-ness is the perfect disguise for his profession. He is a deadly close-quar-ters assassin, specializing in knife attacks and relying upon his ultra-sharp ears to replace the sensory input once provided by his eyes.

Starting Occupation: Criminal or AthletePreferred Starting Class: FastFlaw Package: Impaired Vision (Blindness, 8 pts.), Slow Healing (2 pts.), Age (4 pts.), Quirk (Always apologizes to bystanders for things he did not do, 1 pt.)[Total Package Value: 15 Flaw Points]Bonus Feats and Advantages: Blind-Fight, +2 Dex (3 pts.), Combat Expertise, Combat Reflexes, Dodge, Heroic Surge, MobilityDiscretionary Flaw Points: 0

Cat Burglar

Your character is no common window-smasher or carjacker– he’s acommitted cat burglar, light on his feet and deft with his hands, the sortof debonair and coldly professional criminal you don’t see very often out-side of caper movies. He’s at his best dressed all in black, padding silent-ly across a rooftop or rappelling down an unclimbable stone wall, on hisway to a heist that nobody but the best could possibly pull off. Despite his

Advanced Occupation Packages

67

eagerness to help himself to the valuables of his victims, he’ll never allowhimself to truly harm another person and goes so far as to eschew car-rying a gun so he’ll never be tempted to use it.

Starting Occupation: CriminalPreferred Starting Class: FastFlaw Package: Foresworn From Firearms (2 pts.), Predictable Fighter(2 pts.), Criminal Record (4 pts., Felony conviction and time served),Heroic Code (Mercy, 2 pts.), Risk-Addicted (2 pts.)[Total Package Value: 12 Flaw Points]Bonus Feats and Advantages: +2 Dex, Black Market Ties (1 pt., spe-cific urban area of your choice), Acrobatic, Skill Focus (Climb), SkillFocus (Disable Device), StealthyDiscretionary Flaw Points: 0

Con Artist

Your character is a slick and charming young confidence trickster, for-ever running from city to city, just one step ahead of the law– and hisaggravated victims.

Starting Occupation: CriminalPreferred Starting Class: CharismaticFlaw Package: Greed (2 pts.), Kleptomania (2 pts.), Risk-Addicted (2 pts.)[Total Package Value: 6 Flaw Points]Bonus Feats and Advantages: Confident, Deceptive, TrustworthyDiscretionary Flaw Points: 0

Conspiracy Theorist

Your character never thought he’d end up dedicating his life to siftingthrough the great mass of disinformation that is human history and jour-nalism, looking for the keys that will reveal the clandestine machinationsbehind everything. Unassuming, meek, and a little afraid to leave thecomfortable confines of his home city, your character ekes out a meagerliving from his conspiracy-related newsletter and website, all the whilelooking over his shoulder for any sign that They might be on to him.

Starting Occupation: Investigative or Blue-CollarPreferred Starting Class: Smart or DedicatedFlaw Package: Butterfingers (2 pts.), Impatient (2 pts.), Nervous (2 pts.), Paranoia (Disruptive, 3 pts.), Phobia (Agoraphobia, 2 pts.)[Total Package Value: 11 Flaw Points]Bonus Feats and Advantages: Skill Focus (Investigate),Educated, +1 skill rank in each of the following Knowledges: Arcane

Lore, Current Events, History, Philosophy; Skill Focus (Research),Business (1 pt., Conspiracy newsletter), Connections (2 averagecontacts; fellow conspiracy buffs around town)Discretionary Flaw Points: 1

Alternate Flaw Package: If “They” are real, add a 4-8 point Nemesis(Organization) and beef your character up with a few feats that will aid hispractical survival (Dodge, Alertness, etc.).

Daredevil Stuntperson

Your character was small-statured and unpopular in high school, so hebecame a physical prankster, using his own body as the focal point ofattention-getting stunts. Although the tactic was only modestly success-ful in school, it led to a later career as a stuntperson for film and stage.Your character has been shot from a cannon, dropped from great heights,submerged underwater, and covered in flames too many times to count.He isn’t indestructible, but try telling him that!

Starting Occupation: Athlete or AdventurerPreferred Starting Class: ToughFlaw Package: Old Injury (2 pts.), Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (2 pts., relates to stunt that went wrong and killed mentor), Impulsive (2pts.), Inferiority Complex (2 pts.), Risk-Addicted (2 pts.)[Total Package Value: 10 Flaw Points]Bonus Feats and Advantages: Acrobatic, Athletic, Great Fortitude,Toughness (twice)Discretionary Flaw Points: 0

Famous Writer

Your character was working the graveyard shift at an industrial laundrywhen he sold his first novel for a truly ludicrous sum. Since then, he’spiled on success after success, and has reached middle age with a hugebody of work and an even larger body of fans. He uses his ample sparetime for amateur investigation of crimes and Fortean occurrences.

Starting Occupation: CreativePreferred Starting Class: SmartFlaw Package: Age (2 pts.), Butterfingers (2 pts.), Clumsy (4 pts.), Easily Winded (2 pts.), Poor Fighter (3 pts.), Dependents (Family, 2 pts.), Insatiable Curiosity (2 pts.)[Total Package Value: 17 Flaw Points]Bonus Feats and Advantages: Windfall (twice), Renown, Property: Living Space (Large House, 3 pts.), Studious, Trustworthy, Connection (1 major contact in the New York publishing biz), Library (2

68

pts.)Discretionary Flaw Points: 0

High-Rolling Gambler

Your character is an attractive young jet-setter, a fixture at the tables inVegas and Atlantic City, and an occasional sit-in at illicit games of poker,blackjack, or roulette played for high stakes against very dangerous peo-ple. Your character cultivates a devil-may-care demeanor and shrugs offthe loss of thousands of dollars at a time to conceal one unfortunate fact–he’s a physical coward. Gambling is his means of building and maintain-ing self-confidence in the face of of the terrible secret that he’s no goodin any genuinely dangerous confrontation.

Starting Occupation: DilettantePreferred Starting Class: CharismaticFlaw Package: Climate Aversion (2 pts., cold climates), Glass Jaw (2pts.), Cowardly (2 pts.), Explosive Temper (2 pts.), Vain (2 pts.)[Total Package Value: 10 Flaw Points]Bonus Feats and Advantages: Windfall (twice), Confident, Skill Focus(Gamble), RenownDiscretionary Flaw Points: 0

Investigative Journalist

Your character is an idealistic and well-educated freelance journalist,dedicated to a personal struggle for truth in the public interest. Your char-acter pits his sleuthing abilities against everything from corrupt politiciansto abusive corporations. Although he is perhaps a bit too much in lovewith his own romanticized image of himself, he is well-nigh incorruptible.

Starting Occupation: InvestigativePreferred Starting Class: Dedicated or SmartFlaw Package: Clumsy (2 pts.), Dull Reflexes (2 pts.), Flinching (2 pts.), Heroic Code: Honesty (2 pts.), Insatiable Curiosity (2 pts.), Vain(2 pts.)[Total Package Value: 12 Flaw Points]Bonus Feats and Advantages: Skill Focus (Gather Information),Skill Focus (Investigate), Attentive, Trustworthy, Academic Degree(Journalism, 1 pt.), Contacts (2 average contacts of your choice)Discretionary Flaw Points: 2

Martial Artist

Your character is a dedicated student of the martial arts, seeking per-fection of body and spirit through rigorous fighting discipline. His quest for

perfection has been interrupted by the murder of his former master– nowhe quests for vengeance against the evil martial arts instructor who car-ried out that murder!

Starting Occupation: AthletePreferred Starting Class: Fast or StrongFlaw Package: Foresworn From Firearms (2 pts.), Dependent (Aged grandmother, 2 pts.), Macho/Spartan (2 pts.), Nemesis: Villain (7 pts., includes 1 major lieutenant) [Total Package Value: 13 Flaw Points]Bonus Feats and Advantages: Connections (2 minor connections in the Chinese underworld), +1 character level or Blind-Fight, Brawl, Combat Martial Arts, and Combat ReflexesDiscretionary Flaw Points: 2

Monster Hunter

Your character is a private eliminator of supernatural horrors, obsessedwith a one-person war against the power of the shadows. Supported onlyby his mysterious benefactor, his trusty shotgun collection, and his four-pack-a-day habit, he’s out to kick monster ass.

Starting Occupation: Adventurer or InvestigativePreferred Starting Class: Tough or DedicatedFlaw Package: Old Injury (2 pts.), Dependency (Ugly Habit, Smoking, 1 pt.), Driving Obsession (Destroy powers of darkness on earth, 2 pts.), Overconfident (2 pts.) [Total Value: 7 Flaw Points]Bonus Feats and Advantages: Iron Will, Patron (Weak), Personal Firearms ProficiencyDiscretionary Flaw Points: 1

Alternate Flaw Package: If you’d like your character to have more ofa history with the forces of darkness, add a 4-8 point Nemesis (Villain)and spend the extra Flaw points to increase his knowledge or his fightingabilities. Weird Flaws (pages 49-51) might also be appropriate.

Navy SEAL

Your character is a newly-forged Sea-Air-Land specialist, one of theU.S. Navy’s elite go-anywhere, do-anything special operations person-nel. Your character has endured a hellish training regimen and acquireda deadly set of skills. The only flaw he really faces is a peculiar (andsecret) trait for a man in his position– he’s frightened of sharks!

Starting Occupation: MilitaryPreferred Starting Class: Tough or Strong

69

Flaw Package: Bodily Marked (SEAL Tattoo, 1 pt.), Duty/Responsibility (Challenging, Hazardous, Restricted Movement, RestrictedCommunication, 11 pts.), Macho/Spartan (2 pts.), Overconfident (2 pts.), Phobia (Sharks, 2 pts.)[Total Package Value: 18 Flaw Points]Bonus Feats and Advantages: Endurance, Great Fortitude, Personal Firearms Proficiency, Military Rank (E-5, Navy Petty Officer 2nd Class, 4 pts.), Stealthy, Surface Vehicle Operation (Powerboat)Discretionary Flaw Points: 4

Occult Knight

Your character is a sworn initiate of a secret order of chivalry, whichmay or may not be connected to any major world religion. Your charac-ter’s knightly order, which dates back to medieval times, opposes anoth-er secret society or clandestine cabal. Once, they did this openly on thefield of battle. In modern times, they live, fight, and die completely in theshadows. There are only a few dozen of your character’s brothers andsisters active at any given time, all serving willingly in an unforgiving andoften-fatal occupation.

Starting Occupation: Religious or MilitaryPreferred Starting Class: Fast, Strong, or ToughFlaw Package: Bodily Marked (Symbols of his Order; 2 pts.), Duty/Responsibility (Challenging, Hazardous; Serve his Order to the death,8 pts.), Heroic Code: Loyalty (2 pts.), Macho/Spartan (2 pts.), Nemesis(Organization, 6 pts.), Melancholy (2 pts.), Nightmares (2 pts.)[Total Package Value: 24 Flaw Points]Bonus Feats and Advantages: +1 class level, Weapon Focus (ofyour choice), Brawl, Dodge, Improved Initiative, Toughness, AlternateIdentity (Thorough), Patron (Useful; His Order)Discretionary Flaw Points: 0

Professional Bodyguard

Your character thought he was out of the bodyguard game for good, buthis independent business venture failed, leaving him with a substantialdebt and only one way to pay it off– the “monkey suit” business. Now hechauffeurs VIPs and watches their every move, ready to throw himself infront of a bullet or a knife in the blink of an eye. Although not currentlylicensed to carry a firearm, your character flatters himself that he doesn’tneed to do so in order to get the drop on any potential assailant.

Starting Occupation: Adventurer, Athlete, Law Enforcement orMilitaryPreferred Starting Class: Strong or Tough

Flaw Package: Obese (3 pts.), Duty/Responsibility (Challenging, 6 pts.; guard clients’ lives with his own), Heroic Code: Loyalty (2 pts.), Monetary Debt (2 pts.), Stubborn (2 pts.) [Total Package Value: 15 Flaw Points]Bonus Feats and Advantages: Alertness, Skill Focus (Spot),Improved Initiative, Combat Martial Arts, Defensive Martial Arts,ToughnessDiscretionary Flaw Points: 3

Professional Athlete

Your character is a young player of a professional sport (baseball, bas-ketball, soccer, football, rugby, tennis) or a competitive athlete training forOlympic-caliber events (swimming, gymnastics, track and field, etc.). Hisphysical abilities are top-notch, though his combat experience isextremely limited. Perhaps the occasional heroic adventure on the sideadds spice to his life– his relative fame makes it harder for the shadowyevils of the world to dispose of him as they might a more obscure adven-turer.

Starting Occupation: Athlete or CelebrityPreferred Starting Class: Fast, Strong, or ToughFlaw Package: Dependent (2 pts., close family member), Select oneof the following for 2 pts.: Boastful, Overconfident, or Risk-Addicted;Duty/Responsibility (2 pts., currently optioned to pro sports team), Heroic Code: Loyalty (2 pts.), Heroic Code: Fair Play (2 pts.), Quirk(Talks trash and uses sports lingo at odd and inappropriate times, 1 pt.)[Total Package Value: 11 Flaw Points]Bonus Feats and Advantages: +2 in one of the following abilities:Strength, Dexterity, or Constitution; Skill Focus (Choose one: Jump,Tumble, Climb, Swim, or Ride), Athletic, Renown, Run Discretionary Flaw Points: 0

Rich Vigilante

Your character is the young heir to an extensive industrial empire, buthis wealth is nothing but a means to an end. A decade ago, your charac-ter’s parents were murdered in cold blood, and your character sworeeternal vengeance on the entire criminal fraternity. Having intenselyhoned his body and his mind, your character now prowls his city by nightin a lightweight black armored costume, hunting wrongdoers of any sort.Although he has sworn a solemn oath never to take a human life, he hasabsolutely no compunctions about administering severe beatings to thecriminals he faces.

Starting Occupation: Dilettante

70

Preferred Starting Class: StrongFlaw Package: Foresworn From Firearms (4 pts.), Driving Obsession (2 pts.), Heroic Code: Mercy (2 pts.), Double Life (2 pts.), Lone Wolf(2 pts.), Macho/Spartan (2 pts.), Nemesis: Organization (6 pts., localbranch of the mafia), Nemesis: Media (4 pts.; crusading anti-vigilanteTV reporter), Risk-Addicted (2 pts.)[Total Package Value: 26 Flaw Points]Bonus Feats and Advantages: Acrobatic, Armor Proficiency (Light),Athletic, Blind-Fight, Combat Martial Arts, Combat Throw, DefensiveMartial Arts, Windfall (three times), Ally (Sympathetic police sergeant,2 pts.), Assistant (2nd level Dedicated Hero, 3 pts.; sardonic aged butler who has grudgingly agreed to aid your character’s vigilantism.)Discretionary Flaw Points: 1

Secret Agent

Your character was a career naval officer before he was selected forsecret service training. Cunning, ruthless, debonair, and often “wolfishlyimmature,” he is nonetheless the agent his superiors turn to time andtime again when things get desperate.

Starting Occupation: Dilettante or MilitaryPreferred Starting Class: Charismatic or DedicatedFlaw Package: Double Life (2 pts.), Duty/Responsibility (Challenging, Hazardous, Restricted Movement, Restricted Communication, 11 pts.), Glass Jaw (2 pts.), Vain (2 pts.), Lone Wolf (2 pts.), Nemesis (Villain, global menace bent on revenge, 1 major lieutenant, 9 pts.), Risk-Addicted (2 pts.) [Total Package Value: 30 Flaw Points]Bonus Feats and Advantages: +1 character level, Connections (4 connections in various countries, 2 pts.), Military Rank (Navy O-4, Lt. Cmdr., 10 pts.), Attentive, Deceptive, Confident, Quick Draw, Alternate Identity (1 pt.)Discretionary Flaw Points: 2

Surveillance Geek

Your character is a black-box genius and an old-school tech whiz;though not much to look at, he has a razor-keen mind and the infinitepatience required for surveillance operations. He also has a serioushandicap for his line of work– scrupulous honesty.

Starting Occupation: TechnicianPreferred Starting Class: SmartFlaw Package: Asthma (Allergy Trigger, 8 pts.), Underweight (2 pts.), Tongue-Tied (2 pts.), Paranoia (2 pts.), Diabetes (Type II) (2 pts.), Heroic Code: Honesty (2 pts.) [Total Package Value: 18 Flaw Points]

Bonus Feats and Advantages: Alertness, Attentive, Cautious, Gearhead, +2 Intelligence (3 pts.), Meticulous, Ally (Fellow Surveillance Geek, 2 pts.)Discretionary Flaw Points: 3

SWAT Officer

Your character is a highly-trained and motivated Special Weapons andTactics officer for a major metropolitan police department. Your characterand his peers are called out to deal with the most dangerous and unsta-ble disturbers of the peace, and despite the risks of his position yourcharacter thrives on the challenge and the sense of camaraderie withinhis elite unit.

Starting Occupation: Law EnforcementPreferred Starting Class: Fast, Tough or StrongFlaw Package: Duty/Responsibility (Challenging, Hazardous, 8 pts.),Dependent (Child or aging parent, 2 pts.), Heroic Code: Law and Order(2 pts.), Aggressive (2 pts.)[Total Package Value: 14 Flaw Points]Bonus Feats and Advantages: Personal Firearms Proficiency,Advanced Firearms Proficiency, Burst-Fire, Weapon Focus (H&K MP5Submachinegun),Law-Enforcement Rank (2 pts.), Improved Initiative,Armor Proficiency (Light)Discretionary Flaw Points: 0

Veteran Homicide Detective

Your character has been around the block, as they say, and is nearingfifteen years of active duty. Truth to be told, those years have really piledon the problems, and your character just isn’t as spry as he used to be.His resolve to put wrongdoers behind bars remains undiminished– fornow, at least. Another bullet in the ribs might mean an early retirement.

Starting Occupation: Law EnforcementPreferred Starting Class: Tough or SmartFlaw Package: Age (2 pts.), Inflexible (2 pts.), Old Injury (II) (2 pts.), Unathletic (2 pts.), Asthma (2 pts.), Duty/Responsibility (4 pts., homi- cide detective), Quirk (Persistent, vocal distrust of new technology) (1pt.) [Total Package Value: 15 Flaw Points]Bonus Feats and Advantages: +1 character level, LawEnforcement Rank (4 pts.), Attentive, Quick Draw,Connections (2 average connections on the street)Discretionary Flaw Points: 0

71