TEXT: Written by WILLIAM H. STODDARD
  Edited by NIKOLA VRTIS
  Illustrated by SHEA RYAN and DAN SMITH
  Additional Material by JAMES L. CAMBIAS, S.A. FISHER,  
  STEVE JACKSON, PHIL MASTERS, DAVID L. PULVER, SEAN PUNCH,  
  HANS-CHRISTIAN VORTISCH, and JON F. ZEIGLER
  GURPS System Design z STEVE JACKSON
  GURPS Line Editor z SEAN PUNCH
  Assistant GURPS Line Editor z JASON “PK” LEVINE
  GURPS Project Manager z STEVEN MARSH
  Production Artist and Indexer z NIKOLA VRTIS
  Page Design z PHIL REED and JUSTIN DE WITT
  Chief Executive Officer z PHILIP REED
  Chief Operating Officer z SAMUEL MITSCHKE
  Managing Editor z MIRANDA HORNER
  Director of Sales z ROSS JEPSON
  GURPS FAQ Maintainer z VICKY “MOLOKH” KOLENKO
   Art Direction and Prepress Checker z NIKKI VRTIS
  Playtesters: Roger Bell_West, Frederick Brackin, Phil Masters, and Emily Smirle
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  by Steve Jackson Games Incorporated are trademarks or registered trademarks of Steve Jackson Games Incorporated, or used under license.  
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  STEVE JACKSON GAMES
  Stock #37-0150 
  Version 1.0 – February 2015
  ®
  Enhanced Senses
  TM
  
  IntroductIon   .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 3
  Publication History . . . . . . . . . . . . .3
  Required Books . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3
  About the Author. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3
  1 . SenSory PowerS  .  .  .  .  .  . 4
  SourceS and PowerS  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 4
  Power Sources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4
  Including Sensory Abilities  
  in Other Powers . . . . . . . . . . . . .5
  Other Sources  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .5
  defining the SenSeS  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 6
  Sensory Range . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6
  Near-Field Senses  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .6
  Under the Hood: Range Penalties  
  for Telecommunication  
  and Signal Detection  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .6
  The Sensory Hierarchy . . . . . . . . . .6
  Sensory Hierarchy Chart . . . . . . . .7
  Active and Passive Senses . . . . . . . .7
  Field Senses  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .7
  Variant adVantageS  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 7
  ModifierS   .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 8
  Generalized Modifiers . . . . . . . . . . .8
  Variant Modifiers . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8
  New Modifiers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9
  Normal Senses and Modifiers  . . . .9
  From Perception to Destruction   .  .  .9
  SenSeS and SkillS  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 9
  Skills Enhancing Abilities. . . . . . . .9
  Abilities Enhancing Skills. . . . . . .10
  Triangulation  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .10
  2 . SenSory AbIlItIeS  .  .  .  . 11
  electroMagnetic  
  radiation SenSeS   .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 11
  Radar and Radio . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11
  Visual Impairment  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .12
  Vision and Ladar . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12
  Illumination Levels  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .13
  Under the Hood:  
  The Mark One Eyeball .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .15
  Fields of View and Extra Eyes  .  .  .  .16
  X-Ray and Gamma  
  Ray Senses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .16
  electric and  
  Magnetic SenSeS  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 17
  Electric Currents . . . . . . . . . . . . . .17
  Electric Fields . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .17
  Magnetic Fields . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .18
  acouStic and  
  Vibratory SenSeS  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 19
  Sonar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .19
  Hearing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .19
  Loudness Levels  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .21
  Hearing in Tunnels  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .22
  Vibration Senses . . . . . . . . . . . . . .22
  tactile and PreSSure SenSeS   .  . 22
  How Fast Can You Read?  .  .  .  .  .  .  .23
  cheMical SenSeS  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 23
  Smell . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .23
  Taste . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .24
  Proteomic Senses . . . . . . . . . . . . .24
  Genomic Senses  . . . . . . . . . . . . . .25
  MiScellaneouS SenSeS  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 25
  Chi Sense . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .25
  Gravitational Sense . . . . . . . . . . . .25
  Sensory-Ability Perks  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .26
  Orientation and  
  Acceleration Senses . . . . . . . . .27
  Para-Senses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .27
  3 . SenSory  
  APPlIcAtIonS   .  .  .  .  .  .  . 28
  hyPerSenSory abilitieS  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 28
  PercePtual SPeed   .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 30
  SenSory knowledge  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 30
  Shared SenSeS  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 30
  SyneStheSia  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 31
  Sensory-Application Perks  .  .  .  .  .  .  .31
  APPendIx:  
  Power tAble  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 32
  Index  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 34
   
  Contents 
  2
  Contents
  About GURPS
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  com for errata, updates, Q&A, and much more. To dis-
  cuss GURPS with our staff and your fellow gamers, 
  visit our forums at forums.sjgames.com. The web page 
  for GURPS Powers: Enhanced Senses can be found at 
  gurps.sjgames.com/enhancedsenses.
  Bibliographies . Many of our books have extensive bibli-
  ographies, and we’re putting them online – with links to let 
  you buy the resources that interest you! Go to each book’s 
  web page and look for the “Bibliography” link.
  Errata . Everyone makes mistakes, including us – but 
  we do our best to fix our errors. Up-to-date errata pages 
  for all GURPS releases, including this book, are available 
  on our website – see above.
  Rules and statistics in this book are specifically for the 
  GURPS Basic Set, Fourth Edition . Page references that 
  begin with B refer to that book, not this one.
  
  Ruuarrh slipped through the fading twilight, her pupils 
  spread wide to watch the trail, so that no noise would betray her . 
  Her stealthy movements were half-instinct, and she gave them 
  little thought . All her mind was directed forward, seeking the 
  roundeye scout she was tracking . She had the scout’s tang in her 
  nostrils; now she had to track him down before he could bring 
  other men to the campsite where her sisters were looking after 
  her children .
  Up ahead, there was a sound of breathing, loud in Ruuarrh’s 
  ears . She couldn’t see through the bushes it came from, but that 
  wouldn’t matter .
  She had carried her horn-and-sinew bow already strung . 
  Now she took out an arrow and nocked it . All her attention went 
  to listening, as the Old One had taught her . Her ears turned, 
  bringing her target’s breathing closer and closer, until she heard 
  nothing else . Her own breathing became one with it, as she took 
  aim at the sound – and loosed the arrow .
  Heightened perception is a common special ability in fan-
  tastic fiction. It’s the defining trait of some characters, such as 
  Heimdal, the watchmen of the Norse gods; the Marvel Comics 
  superhero Daredevil; or Rachel Pirzad on the television series 
  Alphas . Many others have keen senses as one among multi-
  ple special abilities, such as the animal-like perceptiveness of 
  Tarzan of the Apes, or Superman’s vision and hearing powers. 
  Being able to see, hear, or otherwise sense what others can’t is 
  a subtle advantage, but it can be a potent one.
  The opening chapter reviews the GURPS rules for powers, 
  suggests ways of applying them to the senses, and examines 
  and expands the existing rules for sensory advantages. The 
  other chapters describe specific abilities: new or enhanced 
  channels for sensory input in the second, and improved ways 
  of processing that input in the third. Scattered through the 
  supplement are expanded or modified rules for Sense rolls and 
  other game mechanics.
  GURPS Powers: Enhanced Senses can be used in a wide 
  range of campaigns: hard science fiction rooted in biology 
  and engineering, fantastic adventures where a martial artist 
  or a sage can have mysterious gifts, supers campaigns where 
  drama overrules the laws of nature, and more. The abilities 
  presented in this supplement are categorized into powers that 
  fit these varied genres, sometimes as variants for different 
  powers. The GM should treat it as a toolkit, choosing abilities 
  to suit his campaign.
  Enhanced Senses also serves as a source of information 
  on realistic nonhuman sensory capabilities. The abilities 
  included in the Enhanced Senses power (p. 4) are based on 
  actual biology. A GM wanting to write up a real-world animal, 
  or a fictional alien race as discussed in GURPS Space, can 
  find added detail in this supplement.
  PubliCAtion History
  This is the first edition of GURPS Powers: Enhanced 
  Senses. It draws inspiration from GURPS Powers, whose treat-
  ment of sensory powers it expands upon; GURPS Bio-Tech  
  and GURPS Space for the biological basis of sensory abilities; 
  and GURPS High-Tech and GURPS Ultra-Tech for techno-
  logical sensors. However, nearly all of the content is original.
  required books
  This supplement requires the GURPS Basic Set and 
  GURPS Powers, as the abilities within make extensive use of 
  the advantages and modifiers in those works.
  About tHe AutHor
  William H. Stoddard is a professional copy editor, special-
  izing in scientific and scholarly publications in fields ranging 
  from aerospace technology to literary history. Fortunately, he 
  likes reading nonfiction; his research library is threatening to 
  take over his apartment, and he regularly visits the nearest 
  university library, which supplied many useful sources for 
  this supplement! His other pleasures include cooking, reading 
  science fiction and alternate history, and running and play-
  ing in roleplaying games, which he has been doing since 1975 
  when he first encountered Dungeons & Dragons. His previ-
  ous work for Steve Jackson Games includes GURPS Supers, 
  GURPS Low-Tech, and the award-winning GURPS Social 
  Engineering. He lives in San Diego with his cohabitant Carol, 
  two cats, two computers, and far too many books!
   
  introduCtion 
  3
  introduCtion
  And what magnificent 
  instruments of observation 
  we possess in our senses! This 
  nose, for example, of which no 
  philosopher has yet spoken with 
  reverence and gratitude, is actually 
  the most delicate instrument so 
  far at our disposal: it is able to 
  detect minimal differences of 
  motion which even a spectroscope 
  cannot detect . Today we possess 
  science precisely to the extent to 
  which we have decided to accept 
  the testimony of the senses .
  – Friedrich Nietzsche, 
  Twilight of the Idols
  
   
  sensory Powers 
  4
  “Senses” in this volume means abilities of the physical 
  body – the eyes, ears, nose, skin, tongue, and more exotic 
  sense organs. It doesn’t include abilities purely of the mind; 
  those can be found in GURPS Psionic Powers, especially 
  under ESP. Similarly, awareness of supernatural forces is 
  dealt with by GURPS Magic and GURPS Thaumatology. 
  (See Other Sources, p. 5, for exceptions.) It does cover a 
  wide range of sensory gifts, from documented abilities of 
  actual animals to the wildly unrealistic senses of supers and 
  space-opera aliens.
  sourCes And Powers
  As defined in the GURPS Basic Set and GURPS Powers, a 
  power has three components: a set of advantages, the power’s 
  abilities, that represent different manifestations of the power; 
  a power modifier based on the source of the power, which 
  turns an advantage into an ability of the power; and a Talent 
  that makes it easier to use a power’s abilities.
  Talents for sensory powers cost 5 character points/level. 
  However, 5 points/level is also the cost of raising Perception 
  above IQ. Why buy a Talent that only affects sensory pow-
  ers, when the same points will boost all the senses? There are 
  three reasons:
  • Many sensory advantages allow both 
  Sense rolls and IQ rolls (for example, to mem-
  orize or analyze sensory impressions). A spe-
  cialized Talent adds to both; raising Perception 
  only improves the Sense rolls.
  • For normal human characters, Per can’t 
  be raised above 20. However, a Talent can add 
  to this, giving up to +4 to Sense rolls.
  • Talent aids Power Block rolls (such as 
  with Glare Adaptation, pp. 13-14, and Reality 
  Testing, p. 29).
  Perception itself can’t be included in a sen-
  sory power. GURPS Powers disallows attri-
  butes within powers, and in this particular 
  case, it would be too much like double count-
  ing if the power source granted an ability that’s a near substi-
  tute for the power Talent! This also applies to Acute Senses, 
  which amount to discounted forms of Per for one sense each.
  Power sourCes
  A variety of power sources can grant sensory abilities. This 
  supplements presents five sensory powers.
  Enhanced Senses
  You have sense organs that normal human beings lack, or 
  your sense organs are modified from the human norm. (The 
  skin counts as a sense organ!) Your biological differences 
  can be identified by such methods as dissection, medical 
  imaging, or DNA sequencing. They are subject to technolog-
  ical countermeasures ranging from TL0 herbs to advanced 
  nanotechnology. Related abilities have the power modifier 
  Biological (Passive) (-5%) – distinguished from Biological by 
  not including Costs Fatigue as a limitation; see Active and 
  Passive Senses (p. 7).
  Hypercognition
  You can enter a state of intense concentration, through 
  self-hypnosis or innate neurodiversity. This lets you maximize 
  your brain’s processing of sensory information. The power 
  modifier is Savant (-10%). Your powers give you two Tempo-
  rary Disadvantages: Incurious (12), making it hard for you to 
  focus on anything you weren’t looking for, and Oblivious, hin-
  dering your interaction with other people.
  CHAPter one
  sensory  
  Powers
  The writer claimed by a momentary 
  expression, a twitch of a muscle, or a glance  
  of an eye, to fathom a man’s inmost thoughts . 
  Deceit, according to him, was an impossibility  
  in the case of one trained to observation  
  and analysis .
  – Arthur Conan Doyle, A Study in Scarlet
  
   
  sensory Powers 
  5
  Sensor Implants
  You have electromechanical devices inside your body, or 
  permanently attached to it, that augment its senses. Their func-
  tions include some that biological organs can’t provide. These 
  implants are more advanced than TL8 technology, probably 
  TL9-10, and their power modifier is Electronic (-30%): They 
  require weekly maintenance, at one hour per ability (Tempo-
  rary Disadvantage, Maintenance, -5%); they are easily found 
  by metal detectors and any sensor that can detect radio emis-
  sions (Nuisance Effect, Detectable, -5%); and they’re subject 
  to electrical disruption (Temporary Disadvantage, Electrical, 
  -20%). For far-future tech and superscience that lacks some of 
  these flaws, see Other Sources (below).
  Sensory Focus
  You’ve trained in esoteric mental and physical disciplines 
  that let you channel your life force into superhuman feats, 
  including perception. The power modifier is Chi (-10%). You 
  must engage in regular exercises to maintain your abilities; 
  this requires a -10-point disadvantage, such as Disciplines of 
  Faith (Monasticism or Mysticism), a major Vow, or combined 
  lesser disadvantages as discussed in GURPS Thaumatology: 
  Chinese Elemental Powers. If you neglect this, your power 
  fails the first time you call on it under stress, leaving you 
  mildly ill; treat this as one of coughing/sneezing, drowsy, nau-
  seated, or moderate pain (p. B428), as the GM determines. 
  You need 1d days of continued meditation to restore your 
  inner balance.
  Supersenses
  Your sensory abilities are a full-blown superpower; they 
  can include scientifically unrealistic advantages such as Dark 
  Vision, Para-Radar, or Penetrating Vision. The power modifier 
  is Super (-10%). Your abilities can be suppressed by Neutralize 
  or Static, or blocked or stolen by weird-science inventions – a 
  wider range of vulnerabilities than for Biological (Passive).
  inCluding sensory  
  Abilities in otHer Powers
  Many sensory abilities fit powers that aren’t primarily sen-
  sory. Sight relies on light and can form part of light powers. 
  Hearing can be part of sound powers. Smell and taste can 
  be added to chemical powers. An enhanced sense of touch 
  might appear in elastic powers. Exotic senses can be included 
  in powers based on what they detect: radiation powers for 
  X-ray vision, or electrical powers for radar, radio, or electric 
  field senses.
  Another option is to include enhanced senses in ani-
  mal-themed powers. For example, a character with bat pow-
  ers could have sonar as well as flight.
  It’s possible to break up a sensory power into narrower 
  themes, such as Enhanced Vision or Enhanced Taste and 
  Smell. The associated Talent costs less, just as Acute (Sense) 
  costs less than Per. Treat this as a -60% limitation on the 
  Talent: Only (Sense) .
  otHer sourCes
  Almost any power modifier can be used with sensory 
  abilities. Many modifiers have a value of -10%, and can be 
  substituted for Chi, Savant, or Super without recomput-
  ing costs; all that’s needed is to decide what abilities make 
  sense with a source, and the nuances of how they work. 
  Here are suggestions for alternate sources:
  Advanced Electronic (-20%): In a mature TL10+ setting 
  with pervasive nanotech, photonics, and so on, implants 
  will be distinguishable only via medical imaging. The 
  technology may have lifetimes that rival those of natural 
  body parts. These use Advanced Electronic (-20%), which 
  is Temporary Disadvantage, Electrical.
  Cosmic (+50%): Your abilities have the form of senses: 
  They perceive reality rather than controlling or creating it, 
  and they’re tied to your body and your (physical or meta-
  physical) location. However, they aren’t limited by natu-
  ral laws – only other cosmic powers can elude or block 
  them. Cosmic senses start with everything included in 
  Supersenses and go on from there! Cosmic senses fit gods 
  into whose domains the senses fall, and alien entities with 
  weird and inexplicable minds.
  Divine (-10%): Saints and prophets often have  
  abilities resembling Hypercognition (p. 4) or Sensory 
  Focus (above). These may be accompanied by access to 
  supernatural knowledge through Blessed, Oracle, or even 
  Common Sense. More potent blessings may be compara-
  ble to Supersenses.
  Magical (-10%): Lots of spells in GURPS Magic affect 
  the senses, and most mages rely on spells rather than on 
  powers. Moreover, a spell or enchantment may perma-
  nently enhance the senses, in ways comparable to any 
  of the listed powers – even Sensor Implants (above), for 
  Technological spells. The GM who favors Magic Is Power 
  (see Chapter 7 of GURPS Thaumatology) can select abil-
  ities, change their modifier to Magical, and include them 
  in a list of magical effects.
  Nature (-20%): Keen senses are a common benefit of 
  being raised by animals or nature spirits. Defining them 
  as Sensory Focus abilities, with a different modifier and 
  cost, usually works well.
  Psionic (-10%): Sensory abilities don’t have the “action 
  at a distance” that’s common to psi. Even so, psi can 
  improve sensory functions, just as Psychokinesis can grant 
  Lifting or Striking Strength. Hypercognition or Super-
  senses (above) can be reinterpreted as psionic effects.
  Superscience (-10%): Some supers use devices instead 
  of innate powers. Substitute Superscience for the stan-
  dard Super modifier of Supersenses, and add appropriate 
  gadget limitations.
  
   
  sensory Powers 
  6
  defining tHe senses
  Both natural human senses and senses available as advan-
  tages can be described by their range of operation; what they 
  detect; and whether they’re active or passive.
  sensory rAnge
  Senses are divided into ranged and contact senses. Contact 
  senses, such as taste and touch, respond only to things that 
  come in contact with the body. If this isn’t inherent in the 
  definition of the sense, it can be represented as Melee Attack, 
  Reach C (-30%); see p. B112. Inability to parry is included, but 
  can’t claim the extra -5%, being inherent in sensory abilities.
  Range
  Noncontact senses have varied ranges.
  Near-field senses work at a yard or less (see below).
  Short-range senses take -1/yard. This applies to smell, 
  which depends on chemical diffusion. Other senses can be 
  given Short-Range if sensitivity drops rapidly with distance.
  Intermediate-range senses take the standard range modifi-
  ers defined in the Size and Speed/Range Table (p. B550). This 
  applies to vision and to Detect and Vibration Sense. A 1,000¥ 
  increase in range means -18. Unless otherwise specified, ranged 
  senses use the standard range modifiers.
  Scanning senses have a base range; each doubling of dis-
  tance beyond this range imposes -2. Detect with Signal Detec-
  tion (p. B48) can pick up the emissions of a Scanning Sense 
  at twice its base range; each doubling of distance imposes 
  -1 (Under the Hood: Range Penalties for Telecommunication 
  and Signal Detection, below). The same applies to Telecom-
  munication (Receive Only) and to Detect (Signal Detection) 
  that responds to telecommunication. Hearing takes -1 per 
  doubling (Hearing Distance Table, p. B358; see also Loudness 
  Levels, p. 21, and Hearing in Tunnels, p. 22), though its base 
  range depends on the loudness of the sound source – and it 
  gets bonuses at shorter distances! A 1,000¥ increase in range 
  means -20 for Scanning Sense and -10 for other senses in this 
  group. Senses with a stated base range use these modifiers.
  Long-range senses take Long-Distance Modifiers (p. B241). 
  This applies only to a few supersenses. Past the initial range 
  steps, a 1,000¥ increase in range means -6.
  Arc
  Ranged senses also have an arc, or angular width (see New 
  Modifiers, p. 9, for more options).
  Tunnel Vision operates in a 60° wedge to the front.
  No Peripheral Vision operates in a 120° wedge to the front. 
  This is the usual arc for Scanning Sense.
  Normal Vision operates in a 120° wedge to the front and 
  allows peripheral vision 30° to each side, for a total of 180°. 
  (See Fields of View and Extra Eyes, p. 16.)
  Peripheral Vision operates in a 180° arc in front and allows 
  peripheral vision 30° to each side, for a total of 240°. Scanning 
  Sense with Extended Arc can be fully effective in a 240° arc.
  360° Vision operates all around the user. Scanning Sense 
  with Extended Arc can do likewise, and hearing, Detect, and 
  Vibration Sense normally work this way.
  tHe sensory HierArCHy
  Different senses yield different sorts of information 
  about the environment. This provides a basis for classify-
  ing them. Some senses function as if they belonged to a 
  higher class if the Sense roll is a critical success.
  Vague senses respond to the presence of a substance or 
  process. Example: Detect (Vague).
  Nondirectional senses (New Modifiers, p. 9) also reveal 
  the amount of a substance or the intensity of a signal. 
  Examples: Detect (Nondirectional), smell, taste.
  Basic senses, if ranged (see above), also reveal the direc-
  tion to the nearest significant quantity of a substance or the 
  source of a signal. If not ranged, they allow discrimination 
  of points of contact. Examples: Detect; hearing; touch with 
  the torso or limbs.
  Discriminatory senses have the capabilities of basic 
  sense and can distinguish individual objects or places, 
  enabling their use to navigate the environment or track 
  prey. Nonvisual discriminatory senses become substitutes 
  for vision and are at +4 to Sense rolls; vision doesn’t get 
  this bonus, because these capabilities are the baseline for 
  human vision. Examples other than vision: Discriminatory 
  Hearing, Smell, or Taste; Sensitive Touch. Analyzing senses 
  are comparable, but if a Sense roll to detect an object suc-
  ceeds, identification is automatic, as for vision; such senses 
  are forms of Detect (Analyzing).
  Near-Field Senses
  Some senses have little range but don’t require physi-
  cal contact, yet Reduced Range (p. B115) is unsuitable if 
  the smallest range is still too large. If range is just a yard, 
  use Melee Attack, Reach C, 1 (-20%) with a special inter-
  pretation: No touch is required, the sense always gets an 
  unmodified Per roll, and the user can claim +4 by forgoing 
  active defenses (“All-Out” use). Devices with such senses 
  always roll at effective Per+4.
  Under the Hood: Range Penalties  
  for Telecommunication  
  and Signal Detection
  Why is the range penalty for a radio receiver -1 per dou-
  bling of range, when the range penalty for a radar set is -2? 
  A radar set is both a transmitter and a receiver. To detect 
  a target at doubled range, it has to transmit a radar beam 
  to doubled range, for -1; then it has to receive a reflected 
  beam from doubled range, for -1. A purely receptive system 
  at doubled range is subject to only one penalty, because it 
  performs only one function. The same applies to hearing 
  versus sonar.
  
  Imaging senses have the capabilities of basic senses and 
  can also detect small objects and distinguish relief on a scale 
  from a centimeter (2/5”) to a millimeter (1/25”). Examples: 
  Imaging Radar; Infravision; Para-Radar; Sonar; vision with 
  Bad Sight (see p. 12); touch with the hands. If they are also 
  discriminatory senses, they have submillimeter resolution 
  (like human vision) and are at +4 to distinguish fine relief and 
  identify objects. Examples: Active IR; Ladar; Megahertz Sonar 
  (p. 8); Sensitive Touch; T-Ray Vision; vision (see p. 15).
  Precise senses have the capabilities of basic senses and can 
  determine the distance to a target, allowing an aimed ranged 
  attack. They are always ranged. Examples: Active IR; Detect 
  (Precise); Imaging Radar; Ladar; Megahertz Sonar; Para-Ra-
  dar; Radar; Sonar; T-Ray Vision; Vibration Sense; vision.
  Targeting senses have the capabilities of precise senses and 
  can determine a target’s exact range and speed, giving +3 to 
  hit with an aimed ranged attack. This option narrows your arc 
  of perception – you perceive the object normally, and 30° to 
  each side at -2. Examples: Radar (Targeting); Sonar (Target-
  ing); Vibration Sense (Targeting).
  ACtive And  
  PAssive senses
  Biologists define passive senses as simply responding to 
  energy or matter coming in from the environment, and active 
  senses as emitting energy into the environment, as in sonar or 
  active electroreception. GURPS uses the terms slightly differ-
  ently. An ability is passive if it’s in effect constantly or comes 
  on reflexively in specific situations. It’s active if it comes into 
  effect only when a maneuver is taken to use it or when a die 
  roll is based on it. This isn’t limited to senses that emit energy, 
  but that’s a common reason for not having a sense on all the 
  time. (Active and passive sensors in GURPS High-Tech and 
  GURPS Ultra-Tech use the biologist’s distinction.)
  An active ability must be either switchable or transient. 
  An advantage that’s not inherently switchable can be made 
  so as an enhancement (usually +10%) if there is some incon-
  venience in having it always on, but as an option (+0%) oth-
  erwise. An advantage that’s switchable can be made Reflexive 
  (see GURPS Powers) – keeping it on all the time at a low  
  level and automatically turning it on fully if something sig-
  nificant happens – but this can’t apply if the sense requires 
  emitting energy.
  Even a sense that emits energy rarely has Costs Fatigue as a 
  limitation. Bats, for example, spend energy sending out ultra-
  sound pulses, but they can do so hour after hour. Over the 
  course of a day, such senses may produce long-term fatigue at 
  a rate of 1 FP per hour of active use, as discussed in GURPS 
  Thaumatology: Chinese Elemental Powers . This prevents 
  keeping the sense on all the time but doesn’t seriously hinder 
  its use, and is worth -0%. Active Electroreception, Hunting 
  Sonar, Imaging Sonar, Metal Detection, Para-Radar Imaging, 
  Proximity Sense, Radar Imaging, Spy-Ray, T-Ray Imaging, 
  Ultrasonography, and X-Ray Vision cause long-term fatigue. 
  Such abilities can still take Biological (Passive) (p. 4).
  vAriAnt AdvAntAges
  Some 
  of 
  the 
  abilities in this sup-
  plement are based 
  on new versions of 
  existing advantages.
  Infravision
  see p. B60
  Standard Infravision detects everything between micro-
  waves and visible light. Sense organs restricted to particular 
  infrared bands gain some benefits but trade them off for cer-
  tain restrictions.
   
  sensory Powers 
  7
  field senses
  The rules for Detect (p. B48) cover awareness of an 
  object or substance, and of a beam of energy (Signal 
  Detection). But there’s a third case: awareness of a field – 
  gravity, electric, or magnetic fields, or such conditions as 
  pressure or temperature. Detect reveals several aspects 
  of fields:
  Quantity of a substance translates to intensity of a 
  field (or of a signal).
  Direction to a substance translates to direction of 
  change felt while moving through a field (for example, 
  increasing or decreasing pressure underwater). It may 
  also translate to orientation of a field – for example, a 
  compass pointing north rather than east or west.
  Distance to a substance translates to gradient of a 
  field – how rapidly it changes as you move through it.
  Speed and direction of movement have no equivalent 
  for most field senses – they can’t have Targeting (p. 8).
   
  Vague
   
  Nondirectional
   
  Basic
   Discriminatory 
  Imaging 
  Precise
   
  (Microscopic) 
   
  Targeting
  sensory HierArCHy CHArt
  
   
  sensory Powers 
  8
  Near Infrared Vision works with frequencies close to those 
  of visible light, allowing sharply resolved images, without a 
  penalty to see small details such as facial features or print. 
  Living organisms don’t radiate in this band and can only be 
  seen by reflected near infrared from sunlight, very hot objects, 
  or technological sources such as active IR. Fires and heated 
  objects emit a dull glow at 350°F and a bright one at 1,350°F. 
  Given such sources, you gain benefits similar to those of Ultra-
  vision; see Infrared Sight (p. 14). 0 points to see near infrared 
  but not visible light; 10 points to see both .
  Thermal Infrared Vision works with longer wavelengths, 
  including those emitted by human bodies. These aren’t 
  detected by the eyes, but by 
  separate structures similar 
  to pinhole cameras, which 
  still function if the eyes are 
  dazzled or injured. Their 
  resolution is too poor to 
  allow reading by reflected 
  infrared. 10 points .
  Scanning Sense
  see pp. B81-82 and Powers, p. 72
  Megahertz Sonar uses higher frequencies than standard 
  Sonar. Sense rolls to distinguish fine relief are at +4, making 
  subtle details (such as facial features) readily identifiable. 
  The range of Megahertz Sonar is greatly reduced: 200 yards 
  underwater, or two yards in air, multiplied by air pressure in 
  atmospheres. The frequencies you use are inaudible to normal 
  Ultrahearing or ultrasound detectors. 20 points .
  Telecommunication
  see p. B91; Powers, pp. 81-82;  
  and Ultra-Tech, p. 31
  Cable Jack gives you a plug for a fiber-optic cable, which 
  allows direct, unjammable communication with any other 
  computer or communicator with a similar jack and interface. 
  A short cable (up to 10 yards long) is included; you can use 
  extensions to add another 10-50 yards. 5 points .
  Vibration Sense
  see p. B96 and Powers, p. 86
  Active Electroreception uses a completely 
  different mechanism than standard Vibration 
  Sense (sensing electric field distortions rather 
  than air or water currents), but provides very 
  similar capabilities. It only functions in water 
  and can only detect objects that are either insu-
  lators or conductors relative to water. Water currents don’t 
  hinder it, and it can’t detect them. A successful Sense roll 
  identifies an object’s size, location, and speed and direction of 
  movement. The roll is modified for the range to the target, per 
  the Size and Speed/Range Table (p. B550); in addition, add the 
  target’s SM to the roll and subtract your own. Using this sense 
  generates an electric current that can be detected. 10 points .
  Modifiers
  Sensory abilities can take many different limitations and 
  enhancements other than power modifiers.
  generAlized Modifiers
  Some modifiers originally defined as special enhancements 
  or limitations for particular sensory advantages can apply 
  more broadly to other sensory traits – including normal senses. 
  See the original descriptions for additional details on usage.
  Precise (p. B48): Turns a ranged basic sense into a precise 
  one (see p. 7), enabling it to be useful in determining the dis-
  tance to a target. +100%.
  Profiling (Powers, p. 47): Provides a mental database of 
  sensory signatures, giving an extra +4 to rolls to analyze and 
  recognize targets using vision or a discriminatory sense. All 
  attempts to memorize new signatures succeed automatically 
  without an IQ roll. +50%.
  Stethoscopic (Powers, p. 73): Allows extracting sounds 
  from a nonacoustic sensory stimulus: vibrations of a surface, 
  electric currents in a phone line, etc. Requires actual acoustic 
  waveforms, not digital signals! +50%.
  Targeting (p. B82): Turns a precise sense into a targeting 
  one (see p. 7), giving +3 to aimed ranged attacks. +20%.
  Targeting Only (p. B82): As Targeting, but the sense is too 
  narrowly focused to spot targets; another sense must be used 
  for initial target choice. -40%.
  Universal (p. B96): Allows a sense that is normally restricted 
  to one of air or water to function in both media. +50%.
  vAriAnt Modifiers
  Some general modifiers are available in new versions.
  Hypersensory
  see Powers, pp. 46-47, 69
  Hypersensory abilities are based on the integration of sen-
  sory information at a depth impossible to normal people. This 
  can be an enhancement (as for Dark Vision) or a limitation 
  (as for Psychometry). Its value changes with the number of 
  senses it relies on:
  • If a “sixth sense” depends on other, mundane senses to 
  work, it’s at -80% if blocking one other sense stops it (in effect, 
  it’s an alternative ability), -65% if blocking two other senses 
  stops it, -50% if blocking three other senses stops it, -40% if 
  blocking four other senses stops it, or -30% if blocking all five 
  mundane senses stops it.
  • If a standard sense can fall back on other senses when 
  its primary channel is blocked, it’s at +10% if blocking one 
  other sense is needed to stop it, +25% if blocking two other 
  senses is needed to stop it, +40% if blocking three other senses 
  is needed to stop it, or +60% if blocking four other senses is 
  needed to stop it.
  Lose your mind and 
  come to your senses .
  – Fritz Perls
  
   
  sensory Powers 
  9
  In most cases, blocking some but not all senses gives a pen-
  alty to the Sense roll: For an ability based on two other senses, 
  -5 for blocking one; for an ability based on three other senses, 
  -3 for each sense blocked; for an ability based on four or five 
  other senses, -2 for each sense blocked. Blocking all senses 
  gives -10 (complete failure).
  Some Hypersensory abilities give a bonus to a roll. Block-
  ing one or more senses reduces the bonus proportionally. See 
  Reality Testing (p. 29) and Truth Sense (p. 29).
  Long
  Increases effective SM for a sense organ that extends out 
  from the body, but has no manipulatory functions – such as 
  eyestalks or antennae (see Size Modifier and Reach, p. B402). 
  +20% per +1 to SM.
  new Modifiers
  Some new modifiers are available for sensory advantages.
  Microscopic: Only applies to senses that are both discrim-
  inatory (p. 6) and imaging (p. 7). Each level gives 10¥ magni-
  fication, allowing -6 in SM penalties to be disregarded. +25%.
  Nondirectional: A less restrictive form of Vague (p. B48).  
  A Sense roll detects not only the presence, but also the quantity 
  of a material or the intensity of a field or signal; the direction 
  can be determined only on a critical success. An IQ roll can 
  identify what kind of thing is sensed. -25%.
  Restricted Arc: For Scanning Sense (pp. B81-82), this is the 
  opposite of Extended Arc – you can scan an arc less than 120°. 
  A 60° arc (comparable to Tunnel Vision) is -75%. You may 
  not take both Restricted Arc and Extended Arc! For senses 
  whose unmodified form covers 360° (including hearing, smell, 
  Detect, and Vibration Sense), the modifiers are -30% for 240°, 
  -60% for 120°, and -75% for 60°.
  norMAl senses  
  And Modifiers
  Some abilities are defined by applying one of the various 
  modifiers presented on pp. 8-9 to normal human senses. This 
  is done in the same way that special modifiers for Extra Arms 
  (p. B53) are applied to beings with one or two arms – the point 
  cost is set at a fraction of the percentage modifier: 1/5 the per-
  centage value of the modifier for vision, 1/10 for hearing, 1/50 
  for smell and taste, and 1/10 for touch. Thus, Precise is worth 
  +100%, so Precise Hearing is worth 10 points as an advantage 
  (see Locational Hearing, p. 20). If multiple modifiers apply to 
  a single normal sense, buy each as an ability in this way, and 
  add the costs.
  senses And skills
  The basic roll to use a sensory ability is a Sense roll – called 
  a Vision, Hearing, Smell, Taste, or Touch roll when a specific 
  sense is required. Sense rolls are made by the GM; the player 
  should not know whether his char-
  acter failed to perceive something 
  or there was nothing to perceive.
  If a Sense roll succeeds, the 
  character may try to analyze or 
  interpret what he perceived. This 
  calls for an IQ roll. The player 
  makes these rolls.
  skills enHAnCing Abilities
  It’s possible to substitute skill rolls for attribute 
  rolls in using sensory abilities, if the GM approves. 
  Talent with the power adds to these skill rolls. Two 
  main groups of skills provide such benefits.
  In a Sense roll to notice that something signif-
  icant is present, a Per-based skill can replace Per: 
  Observation to spot something that’s in sight but 
  not obvious, Search to find signs that something 
  has been hidden, or other skills at GM discretion.
  froM PerCePtion to destruCtion
  Some sensory abilities (see Active and Passive Senses, 
  p. 7) involve emitting energy into the environment; radar, 
  sonar, and active electro reception are all examples. More 
  intense energy of the same kind can provide an attack 
  capability. There are two ways to approach this.
  • Treat the sensory ability and the attack as Alternative 
  Abilities, as defined in GURPS Powers. This could be 
  either a low-damage attack and a primary sensory ability, 
  or a sensory ability and a primary high-damage attack. An 
  electric eel’s high-voltage attack is an example.
  • Treat the attack as a stunt based on the sensory 
  ability, as described in GURPS Powers under Using 
  Abilities at Default . Each such stunt costs 3 FP and will 
  usually cause only modest damage, as the total cost of the 
  attack can’t exceed that of the sensory ability. This would 
  fit dolphins using underwater sonar to stun fish.
  Example: The electric field of Corona’s body grants her 
  Proximity Sense (p. 18) for 31 points. Through intense 
  effort, she turns it into an attack: Burning Attack 4d 
  (Accessibility, Not in water, less effective in humid air, 
  -30%; Area Effect, 2 yards, +50%; Emanation, -20%; No 
  Incendiary, -10%; Side Effect, Stunning, +50%; Super, 
  -10%; Surge, +20%) [30]. By taking a Ready maneuver, 
  making a difficult HT roll, and spending 3 FP, she can 
  inflict electric shocks and shut down electronic devices 
  within a two-yard radius.
  
   
  sensory Powers 
  10
  In an IQ roll to identify what has been perceived, a relevant 
  knowledge-based skill can substitute for IQ.
  Abilities enHAnCing skills
  A sensory ability can substitute for access to high-quality 
  equipment, giving a bonus to skills that use such equipment. 
  Definitions of specific abilities provide some bonuses; for 
  others, listed here, an ability gives +2 if it takes the place of 
  fine-quality mundane equipment, or +4 if its aid goes beyond 
  that of purchasable equipment, into the realm of the miracu-
  lous. Some examples:
  Active Electroreception: +2 to Navigation (Underground) in 
  underwater caves.
  Blood Taste: +2 to Diagnosis or Forensics based on blood 
  samples.
  Cutaneous Chemical Sense: +2 to Tracking if you are 
  barefoot.
  Diagnostic Scan: +2 to Diagnosis or First Aid.
  Gene Sequencer: +2 to Forensics to extract clues from bio-
  logical residues. Genescan gives +4!
  Gravimetry: +2 to Cartography, Engineer (Mining), Geog-
  raphy (Physical), Geology, Mathematics (Surveying), Naviga-
  tion (Land), and Prospecting.
  Hunting Sonar, Imaging Sonar, or Sonar Implants: +2 to 
  Navigation (Underground) in underwater caves.
  Immune Spectrum Detection: +2 to Biology (Genetics) or 
  Diagnosis.
  Infrared Sight: +2 to Naturalist or Prospecting; +2 to Artist 
  (Pottery or Sculpting) or Metallurgy, for tasks that benefit from 
  knowing the temperature in a foundry or kiln; +2 to Vision-
  based Forensics, Observation, or Search rolls; +4 to Vision or 
  Observation in Quick Contests against Camouflage or Disguise.
  Infrasonic Hearing: +2 to Geology to detect earthquakes; +2 
  to Meteorology; +2 to Survival to locate large animals.
  Inner Awareness: +2 to Diagnosis or Esoteric Medicine 
  (Traditional Chinese); +2 to Alchemy or Herb Lore; +2 to 
  Expert Skill (Hydrology), Meteorology, Naturalist, Navigation 
  (Land or Sea), and Prospecting.
  Ladar Implants: +2 to Architecture or Cartography for 
  mapping the interior of a building or large vehicle.
  Laser Spectrometry: +2 to Chemistry, Hazardous Materials 
  (Chemical), Metallurgy, or Poisons to identify the composi-
  tion of objects or substances.
  Magnifiers: +2 to Forensics to examine small clues.
  Mass Perception: +4 to Search.
  Metal Detection or Metal Detector: +2 to Prospecting if 
  searching for shallow deposits of metals; +2 to skill rolls to 
  find buried metal objects, metal water or gas pipes, etc.
  Microscopic Sight: +2 to Geology or Metallurgy for identi-
  fying minerals or alloys; +4 to Bioengineering (Tissue Engi-
  neering) and many specialties of Biology; +4 to Forensics to 
  examine small clues.
  Micro-Touch: +4 to Bioengineering (Tissue Engineering) 
  and Engineer (Microtechnology); +4 to Forensics to examine 
  small clues.
  Object Reading: +2 to Archaeology or Forensics for inter-
  preting material evidence.
  Odor of Fear: +2 to Intimidation.
  Omnivision: +2 to Astronomy (for observa-
  tion), Engineer (Electronics), or Physics.
  Para-Radar Imaging: +2 to Observation; +4 to 
  Search.
  Passive Electroreception: +2 to Survival in 
  water environments.
  Radar Imaging or Radar Implants: +2 to 
  Observation in any situation where the sense 
  would work and be able to spot the objective.
  Radiation Scanner or Radiation Sense: +2 to 
  Hazardous Materials (Radioactive).
  Seismic Sense: +2 to Geology to detect earth-
  quakes; +2 to Survival to locate large animals.
  T-Ray Imaging or T-Ray Implants: +2 to 
  Observation in any situation where the sense 
  would work and be able to spot the objective; 
  +4 to Search if the concealing material is trans-
  parent to T-rays.
  Tactile Imaging: +4 to touch-based Forensics 
  or Search.
  Thought Tracking: +2 to Brainwashing, Inter-
  rogation, or Psychology (Applied); +2 to Teaching if working 
  with a single student; +4 to Detect Lies or Fortune-Telling.
  Ultrascan: +4 to Chemistry, Electronics Repair, Engineer 
  (Clockwork, Electrical, Electronics, or Materials), Hazardous 
  Materials (Chemical), Mechanic, and Physics.
  Ultrasonography or Ultrasound Scanner: +2 to Diagnosis for 
  internal injuries or pathologies.
  Ultraviolet Sight: +2 to Naturalist or Prospecting; +2 to 
  Vision-based Forensics, Observation, or Search rolls; +4 to 
  Vision or Observation in Quick Contests against Camouflage 
  or Disguise.
  Visual Profiling: +2 to Connoisseur (Visual Arts).
  Voice Profiling: +2 to Connoisseur (Music) for singing; +2 
  to Linguistics.
  Warpsense: +4 to Navigation (Hyperspace) to plot a course 
  in pursuit of another hyperspatial craft; +4 to IQ to pursue a 
  teleporter (see GURPS Powers, p. 89).
  X-Ray Vision: +2 to Diagnosis for internal injuries or 
  pathologies; +4 to Search if the concealing material is trans-
  parent to X-rays.
  Zoom: +2 to Forensics.
  triAngulAtion
  With ranged senses that reveal the direction of a substance or pro-
  cess – and particularly with signal detection – it’s possible to deter-
  mine distance indirectly by triangulation. This requires two Sense 
  rolls from some distance apart. After the second successful roll, the 
  GM makes a roll vs. IQ-4, Electronics Operation (Comm, EW, or Sen-
  sors)-2, Mathematics (Surveying)-2, or Navigation-2. The result of 
  this third roll can reveal where the lines from those places converge. 
  Accuracy increases with a longer baseline. On a success, you know 
  the target’s position to within (10 yards/length of baseline in yards); 
  on a critical success, to within (2 yards/length of baseline in yards). 
  On a failure, you can’t locate it accurately. On a critical failure, you’re 
  certain you know where it is – but you’re wrong.
  Triangulation can be improved as an Average technique, lim-
  ited to IQ, Electronics Operation+2, Mathematics (Surveying)+2, or 
  Navigation+2.
  
   
  sensory Abilities 
  11
  Because sensory powers overlap, abilities aren’t grouped 
  by which power they belong to, but by the energy, force, or 
  substance the sense responds to. Each ability’s entry includes 
  a list of which powers can include it. (See pp. 4-5 for expla-
  nations of the powers and their power modifiers.) The GM 
  may allow variations, if there’s a good rationale for them – but 
  players should ask before designing new versions!
  If your race entirely lacks a human sense, you may be able 
  to acquire it as an ability. Start with the cost of buying off 
  the relevant disadvantage (Blindness, Deafness, No Sense of 
  Smell/Taste, Numb) and apply a power modifier and any other 
  applicable modifiers. See Feelers (p. 22) for an example.
  Many of these abilities can aid with skill attempts; see 
  Abilities Enhancing Skills (p. 10) for details. For further infor-
  mation on range, see Sensory Range (p. 6).
  eleCtroMAgnetiC  
  rAdiAtion senses
  In the 19th century, James Clerk Maxwell, a theoretical 
  physicist, predicted that changing electric and magnetic fields 
  could produce electromagnetic radiation . The calculated speed 
  of such radiation was the same as that of light, which was 
  recognized as electromagnetic. Later research discovered 
  radiation at lower frequencies (such as radio) and at higher 
  frequencies (such as X-rays). The same equations describe all 
  of them, though they interact with matter in different ways. 
  Electromagnetic radiation is divided into bands based on fre-
  quency, wavelength, or energy; higher-frequency radiation 
  has shorter wavelengths and higher energy.
  The best possible resolution of an image is about half the 
  wavelength of the radiation used to form it.
  rAdAr And rAdio
  Electromagnetic radiation at long wavelengths (a milli-
  meter or more) can be generated and detected by electronic 
  circuits. It’s most conveniently described in terms of waves; 
  it’s sometimes measured by wavelength, but more often 
  by frequency (in hertz). Long wavelengths include radio, 
  microwaves, and millimeter waves. Recent technology has 
  opened up wavelengths shorter than a millimeter (the tera-
  hertz band), overlapping far infrared.
  There aren’t many natural sources of radio waves on Earth. 
  Senses attuned to them are either passive detection of techno-
  logical sources or active scanning of the environment.
  HF/DF
  4 points
  Included in: Sensor Implants.
  Pronounced “huffduff” (for high-frequency direction finder, 
  a radio receiver with a highly directional antenna). You can 
  point to a radio transmitter from up to twice its range with 
  a Sense roll. To locate it, see Triangulation (p. 10).
  Statistics: Detect Radio (Electronic, -30%; Signal Detec-
  tion, +0%) [4].
  Radio Source Detection
  7 points
  Included in: Supersenses.
  Equivalent to HF/DF, but an inherent ability rather than 
  an implant. It functions automatically. You can also sense 
  radio noise from lightning and distinguish it from technolog-
  ical sources.
  Statistics: Detect Radio (Reflexive, +40%; Signal Detection, 
  +0%; Super, -10%) [7].
  CHAPter two
  sensory 
  Abilities
  See the unseen . Know the unknown .
  – Motto of the Defence Imagery and 
  Geospatial Organisation (Australia)
  
   
  sensory Abilities 
  12
  Radar Detector
  4 points
  Included in: Sensor Implants.
  You can pick up the emissions of a radar system directed 
  toward you, at twice the system’s active range, on an unmodified 
  Sense roll (-4 for imaging radar). To locate it, see Triangulation 
  (p. 10). An IQ roll lets you identify the source (such as police 
  speed radar or targeting radar), if it’s one you’ve encountered 
  or studied; if not, an IQ roll lets you memorize it.
  Statistics: Detect Radar (Electronic, -30%; Signal Detec-
  tion, +0%) [4].
  Radar Detection
  7 points
  Included in: Supersenses.
  Equivalent to a radar detector, but an inherent ability 
  rather than an implant. It functions automatically.
  Statistics: Detect Radar (Reflexive, +40%; Signal Detection, 
  +0%; Super, -10%) [7].
  Radar Implants
  14 points
  Included in: Sensor Implants.
  You have an implant that generates millimeter radiation, 
  whose reflections you can use to perceive your surroundings. 
  Your base range is 200 yards, and your ability doesn’t work in 
  water. You can perceive through thin fabric or vegetation. 
  Make a Sense roll to distinguish fine relief on a scanned 
  object; roll at +3 to spot concealed weapons. Ordinary 
  radar detectors pick up your emissions at -4.
  Statistics: Imaging Radar (Electronic, -30%) [14].
  Radar Imaging
  18 points
  Included in: Supersenses.
  Similar to Radar Implants, but as an inherent power.
  Statistics: Imaging Radar (Super, -10%) [18].
  T-Ray Implants
  18 points
  Included in: Sensor Implants.
  You have an implant that generates submillimeter or 
  terahertz radiation, whose reflections you can use to per-
  ceive your surroundings at high resolution – Sense rolls are 
  at +4 to perceive fine relief. Your base range is 200 yards, 
  and your ability doesn’t work in water. You can perceive 
  through light cover, clothing, or wood or plaster walls. 
  Make a Sense roll at +4 to spot concealed weapons. Only 
  special sensors can detect your emissions.
  Statistics: T-Ray Vision (Electronic, -30%) [18].
  T-Ray Imaging
  23 points
  Included in: Supersenses.
  Similar to T-Ray Implants, but as an inherent ability.
  Statistics: T-Ray Vision (Super, -10%) [23].
  vision And lAdAr
  Vision is perception of the intermediate part of the spec-
  trum: infrared, visible, and ultraviolet light. These bands are 
  normally measured by wavelength. They can be described in 
  terms of rays, or straight-line paths, as in optics.
  Far and mid infrared are created by molecular rotation and 
  vibration – that is, heat. Near infrared, visible light, and ultra-
  violet are produced by chemical processes. Lenses work well 
  for near infrared, visible, and ultraviolet light. Earth’s atmo-
  sphere absorbs the longest wavelengths (far infrared) and the 
  shortest (vacuum ultraviolet), so there’s not much to see in 
  those ranges.
  Vision is a passive sense. Ladar is an active sense in the 
  same frequency range, using laser beams to scan objects.
  Darksight
  28 points
  Included in: Supersenses.
  Your vision is independent of light sources: You can see 
  even in total darkness as if you were in direct sunlight. This is 
  not a realistic ability!
  Statistics: Dark Vision (Color Vision, +20%; Super,  
  -10%) [28].
  visuAl iMPAirMent
  Bad Sight offers two options: Nearsighted or Far-
  sighted. However, other visual disabilities are possible.
  Many people become nearsighted when young; then 
  as they age, close-up things become increasingly difficult 
  to see, requiring bifocals as a Mitigator. This amounts to 
  Bad Sight (Nearsighted) with Bad Sight (Farsighted) as an 
  alternative disability; total point value is -30 (-12 with bifo-
  cals). You aren’t going to have trouble seeing things close 
  up and far away simultaneously!
  Other restrictions on vision are represented by new ver-
  sions of Bad Sight.
  Low Resolution: Human eyes are extraordinarily keen, 
  with closely spaced retinal cells. Most animals’ vision is 
  coarser. Treat this as a straightforward -4 to spot objects 
  at any range, and -8 to resolve fine details (see Under the 
  Hood: The Mark One Eyeball, p. 15). This can also repre-
  sent human visual defects such as astigmatism; in this case 
  only, it can be corrected with lenses.
  No Fovea: The high-resolution central area of your 
  vision has been destroyed – for example, by a blinding 
  laser. You can find your way about with peripheral vision, 
  but you defend against all attacks at -2, and all your attacks 
  count as Wild Swings (p. B388). You cannot read, and you 
  must work by touch to perform fine manipulation. You are 
  at -3 to DX for close combat and larger mechanical tasks.
  
   
  sensory Abilities 
  13
  Eagle Eyes
  19 points
  Included in: Enhanced Senses.
  Your eyes have superior focusing power, like a bird 
  of prey’s. You can ignore -4 in range penalties to Vision 
  rolls in general, and up to -8 if you have zoomed in on a 
  specific target with an Aim maneuver. If you use this with 
  a ranged weapon, you gain an extra +4 Accuracy with an 
  aimed attack, as if using a scope (p. B412) – but this isn’t 
  cumulative with actually using a scope.
  Statistics: Telescopic Vision 4 (Biological (Passive),  
  -5%) [19].
  Farsight
  9 points
  Included in: Supersenses.
  Your visual abilities go beyond mere telescopic vision! 
  Rather than standard range modifiers, you use long-distance 
  modifiers for Vision rolls (p. B241). This is not a realistic abil-
  ity, but fits the “telescopic vision” of some supers.
  If you use this ability with Forward Observer, apply  
  the long-distance modifier in place of the standard -3 per 
  500 yards.
  Statistics: Long-Range Vision* (Long-Distance Modifiers; 
  Super, -10%) [9].
  * An application of Normal Senses and Modifiers (p. 9).
  Glare Adaptation
  5 points
  Included in: Supersenses.
  Your eyes adapt rapidly to bright light (see Illumination 
  Levels, below). You are at +5 to HT rolls to recover from being 
  dazzled, and you make the first such roll after two seconds. 
  The same bonus applies against Vision-Based attacks. Your 
  sight will never be permanently damaged by excessive light 
  such as lasers or nuclear fireballs; treat such impairment  
  as temporary.
  If you have a very bright light source – brighter than direct 
  sunlight – you gain from +1 to +5 to Vision rolls for the illu-
  minated area, once you adapt. Light intense enough to cause 
  permanent blindness is still too bright to see by.
  illuMinAtion levels
  The human eye operates across an extremely wide 
  range of light levels; each -1 to Vision from low light cor-
  responds to tenfold less illumination. The following table 
  defines illumination levels, with examples of natural and 
  artificial light typical of those levels. (Values for point 
  sources such as candles assume they are one yard away.) 
  Water strongly cuts down the intensity of visible light – 
  each 75 yards of depth reduces illumination one level.
  Too much light, as well as too little, can hinder vision. 
  Illumination brighter than full sunlight saturates the 
  visual pigments, causing complete blindness (dazzle) on 
  a failed HT roll for minutes equal to the margin of failure. 
  Lower illumination has the same effect if it’s five or more 
  levels above what the eye has adapted to. Light-based 
  weapons such as stun grenades and laser dazzlers have 
  comparable effects, with a penalty to the HT roll; see the 
  statistics for each weapon. More intense light can cause 
  lasting or permanent vision loss; use the rules for crip-
  pling injury (pp. B422-423). Intense light from a distant 
  source damages the fovea (see Visual Impairment, p. 12). 
  Being surrounded by bright light can destroy the entire 
  retina, causing Blindness. Protected Vision reduces or 
  eliminates these effects (see Glare Adaptation, above).
  If you have a light source in a dark environment, this 
  eliminates or reduces Vision penalties in the illuminated 
  area, but prevents seeing outside it. Treat your light as in 
  plain sight to distant observers who have a clear view of 
  it: +10 to Vision rolls to notice the lighted area (p. B358). 
  However, they’re at -7 to see anything else.
   Illumination (lux) 
  Natural Light 
  Artificial Light 
  Penalty
   
  0 
  Total darkness 
   
  -10
   
  0.0001 
  Overcast night 
   
  -9
   
  0.001 
  Starlight 
   
  -8
   
  0.01 
  Crescent moon 
   
  -7
   
  0.1 
   
  Indicator LED 
  -6
   
  1 
  Moonlight 
  Candlelight 
  -5
   
  10 
  Twilight 
  Street lighting; torchlight 
  -4
   
  100 
   
  Living room 
  -3
   
  1,000 
  Overcast 
  Office 
  -2
   
  10,000 
  Full daylight 
  TV studio 
  -1
   
  100,000 
  Direct sun 
  Surgery 
  0
  For the eye altering alters all  .  .  .
  – William Blake, “The Mental Traveller”
  
   
  sensory Abilities 
  14
  When you use this ability for a Power Block, a roll vs. 3 + 
  (HT + Talent)/2 gives you +10 to resist.
  Statistics: Protected Vision (Super, -10%) [5].
  Eye Protection
  6 points
  Included in: Sensor Implants.
  Similar to Glare Adaptation, but technologically based, 
  and includes DR 2 for your eyes and +2 to HT rolls to resist 
  eye damage from any cause.
  Statistics: Nictitating Membrane 2 [2] + Protected Vision 
  (Electronic, -30%) [4].
  Infrared Sight
  10 points
  Included in: Enhanced Senses.
  Like the optic organs of some fish, your eyes have an extra 
  pigment that responds to near infrared. This lets you see 
  visual patterns that normal humans can’t recognize, giving 
  +2 to Vision rolls. Near infrared is less subject to scattering, 
  letting you ignore two levels of Obscure (Vision) or equiva-
  lent penalties from natural conditions – for example, swim-
  ming in murky water. In total darkness (-10 to Vision), you’re 
  still blind!
  You have no penalty to Vision rolls when seeing only by 
  infrared. However, there isn’t much to see – warm-blooded 
  animals emit almost no radiation in this band. If there is a 
  source of near infrared (such as a hot fire or an active IR sys-
  tem), you can see by its reflected light, with no penalty to dis-
  tinguish size and shape.
  Statistics: Near Infrared Vision (p. 8) (Biological (Passive), 
  -5%) [10].
  Ladar Implants
  14 points
  Included in: Sensor Implants.
  Your body contains a laser that can scan 
  your surroundings in a 120° arc in front of 
  you, to a base range of 200 yards (only in air). 
  You locate objects of interest on a Sense roll 
  at -4, and gain knowledge of their direction 
  and distance. If you have located an object, 
  you can identify it on an IQ roll at +4. You 
  can make a ranged attack against any object  
  you have located, but you don’t get a targeting 
  bonus. Others can see or detect the beam on 
  a Sense roll at -4, because of its narrowness.
  Statistics: Ladar (Electronic, -30%) [14].
  Laser Microphone
  10 points
  Included in: Sensor Implants.
  If you have an ability based on the Ladar advantage, 
  you can focus its beams on a vibrating surface, such as a 
  window. You can “hear” whatever sounds are made behind  
  it with a Sense roll, subject to penalties if you are beyond  
  the standard range.
  Statistics: Detect Vibrating Surfaces (Electronic, -30%; 
  Ladar-Based, Reversed, -20%; Stethoscopic, p. 8, +50%) [10].
  Laser Spectrometry
  12 points
  Included in: Sensor Implants.
  With a Sense roll, at -1 per yard, you can detect the spec-
  tra of chemical substances in a solid, a liquid, or an opaque 
  gas, and assess their intensities. With an IQ roll, you recog-
  nize familiar substances; on a critical success, you can judge 
  purity and recognize combinations of substances. This only 
  works if you direct ladar at the substance you want to ana-
  lyze; you must have an ability based on the Ladar advantage 
  to use it.
  Statistics: Detect Chemical Composition (Electronic, -30%; 
  Ladar-Based, Reversed, -20%; Short-Range 1, -10%) [12].
  Laser Targeting
  10 points
  Included in: Sensor Implants.
  Your body contains a laser that you can direct at a target 
  with an Aim maneuver. Your base range is 1,000 yards. The 
  target must be identified and located with some other sense, 
  such as vision. Once the target is acquired, you are at +3 
  with any aimed ranged attack. This is not cumulative with 
  weapon sights!
  Statistics: Ladar (Electronic, -30%; Increased Range, 5¥, 
  +20%; Targeting Only, -40%) [10].
  Microscopic Sight
  14 points
  Included in: Supersenses.
  Your eyes can resolve visual detail of nearby objects 
  down to the limit set by the wavelength of visible light 
  (1,000¥ magnification). You can see organelles within cells 
  or structural features on integrated chips (chips made after 
  2008 are too small!).
  
   
  sensory Abilities 
  15
  There is no “Enhanced Senses” version of this ability.  
  No species is much better than humans at seeing close-up 
  fine detail.
  Statistics: Microscopic Vision 3 (Super, -10%) [14].
  Magnifiers
  4 points
  Included in: Sensor Implants.
  You have contact lenses or eye implants that enhance the 
  magnifying function of your natural lenses by 10¥. You can 
  just barely make out single cells as tiny dots.
  Statistics: Microscopic Vision 1 (Electronic, -30%) [4].
  Night Sight
  3/6/9 points for levels 1-3
  Included in: Enhanced Senses, Supersenses.
  Your eyes function efficiently under low light through reti-
  nal sensitivity, pupil dilation, and/or greater size. Two natural 
  levels are available: The 3-point version (typical of nocturnal 
  animals) cancels three levels of darkness penalties, while the 
  6-point version (found in deep sea creatures and some noctur-
  nal predators) cancels six levels of darkness penalties. A third, 
  extreme level, only available as a superpower, eliminates dark-
  ness penalties if there is any light.
  Statistics: Night Vision 3 (Biological (Passive), -5%) [3] or 
  Night Vision 3 (Super, -10%) [3]. The second level adds three 
  levels of either Night Vision (Biological (Passive), -5%) [+3] or 
  Night Vision (Super, -10%) [+3]. The third level adds another 
  three levels of Night Vision (Super, -10%) [+3].
  Light Amplification
  3/5 points for levels 1-2
  Included in: Sensor Implants.
  Equivalent to Night Sight, but based on miniaturized light 
  amplifiers as corneal implants.
  Statistics: Night Vision 3 (Electronic, -30%) [3]. The second 
  level adds three levels of Night Vision (Electronic, -30%) [+2].
  Omnivision
  38 points
  Included in: Supersenses.
  You see the entire electromagnetic spectrum, from radio 
  waves to gamma rays (including all infrared bands). You suf-
  fer no vision or combat penalties if there is any light avail-
  able. Under normal light, you are at +3 to Vision rolls and to 
  visually based Forensics, Observation, Search, and Tracking 
  rolls. In total darkness, you can see opponents whose body 
  temperature is above the background level; roll at -4 to see 
  small details or tell individuals apart.
  Statistics: Hyperspectral Vision (Extended Low-Band, 
  +30%; Extended High-Band, +30%; Super, -10%) [38].
  Thermal Sense
  9 points
  Included in: Enhanced Senses.
  You have a pair of pits like a rattlesnake’s that work like pin-
  hole cameras in response to radiant heat. These aren’t affected 
  by eye injury or impairment. You detect warm-blooded crea-
  tures, or objects hotter or colder than the background, at -1 to 
  your Sense roll per yard of range. You can’t see color and have 
  only a vague sense of shape, but you fight at no penalty even 
  in total darkness against a target you can detect. You gain +2 
  to Vision to spot any such target, and +3 to Tracking for a 
  trail no more than an hour old, but you are at -4 to Vision to 
  distinguish similar objects.
  This is more common in cold-blooded life forms, but not 
  limited to them – vampire bats have heat sensors.
  Statistics: Thermal Infrared Vision (p. 8) (Biological (Pas-
  sive), -5%; Short-Range 1, -10%) [9].
  Thermal Locator
  6 points
  Included in: Sensor Implants.
  Functionally equivalent to Thermal Sense, but based on 
  electronic implants.
  under tHe Hood: tHe MArk one eyebAll
  A Vision roll to see something in plain sight is made at 
  +10; this is how good the unaided eye is at spotting things 
  that aren’t hidden or camouflaged. But this isn’t the right 
  modifier for every visual task. If you’ve already located a 
  target, and are focusing on it to see small details (such 
  as reading text or seeing facial expressions), the modifier 
  doubles, to +20, the same way the modifier for Telescopic 
  Vision doubles for similar tasks. (You don’t get a bonus 
  to aimed attacks; normal human visual acuity is already 
  factored into ranged attack rolls!)
  Example: The eye chart in an optometrist’s office is 
  viewed from 20’ away, a range modifier of -3. The line for 
  20/20 vision requires seeing details as small as 0.0698”, 
  a Size Modifier of -18. The combined penalty is -21; the 
  basic +20 modifier offsets all but -1.
  An unmodified Vision roll is made in several cases:
  • You aren’t consciously watching for anything signifi-
  cant, and may or may not notice it in passing.
  • You’re in a Quick Contest against a skill used to con-
  ceal something.
  • Your Vision roll must be followed by an IQ or skill 
  roll to gain the relevant information.
  Vision-based skill rolls do not take the +10 or +20 
  modifier.
  
   
  sensory Abilities 
  16
  Statistics: Thermal Infrared Vision (p. 8) (Electronic, -30%; 
  Short-Range 1, -10%) [6].
  Ultraviolet Sight
  10 points
  Included in: Enhanced Senses.
  Like many birds, you have a fourth visual pigment that 
  responds to ultraviolet light. This lets you see visual patterns 
  normal humans can’t recognize, giving +2 to Vision in the 
  presence of ultraviolet (outdoors or under fluorescent light; 
  window glass blocks ultraviolet). At night, your eyes receive 
  the benefit of ultraviolet in starlight, letting you ignore -2 in 
  darkness penalties. Ultraviolet penetrates water to greater 
  depths than visible light, halving Vision penalties underwater 
  – but in total darkness (-10), you’re still blind!
  Statistics: Ultravision (Biological (Passive), -5%) [10].
  Zoom
  4 points
  Included in: Sensor Implants.
  Your lenses have been replaced with transparent materials 
  that can be controlled to achieve higher refraction. You can 
  ignore -1 in range penalties to Vision rolls in general, and up 
  to -2 if you have zoomed in on a specific target with an Aim 
  maneuver. With a ranged weapon, you gain +1 Accuracy with 
  aimed attacks. This can be combined with a custom-made 
  scope (double cost), but not a normal scope.
  Statistics: Telescopic Vision 1 (Electronic, -30%) [4].
  X-rAy And  
  gAMMA rAy senses
  X-rays and gamma rays are what “radiation” means in 
  everyday language (as opposed to physics, where it includes 
  the entire electromagnetic spectrum). These have very high 
  energy, enough to disrupt chemical bonds, and are most con-
  veniently described as little bundles of energy, or particles, 
  measured by energy content. Sources are nuclear reactions, 
  matter-antimatter reactions, and high-energy collision of elec-
  trons with atoms.
  Realistic living organisms don’t have sense organs for 
  radiation. Technological implants may detect it, but their 
  applications are limited. Few natural materials reflect  
  radiation, so it isn’t much use for a scanning sense, and nat-
  ural sources are (fortunately!) rare, so it isn’t much use as a 
  light source. Less realistic treatments of radiation figure in 
  comic-book supersenses.
  Radiation Scanner
  11 points
  Included in: Sensor Implants.
  You have a built-in device that 
  responds automatically to radiation 
  on a Sense roll; it will even wake you 
  if a source suddenly appears! You can 
  tell in what direction different sources 
  are and how intense they are. An IQ 
  roll lets you determine whether you’re 
  dealing with alpha rays, beta rays, 
  gamma rays, X-rays, or neutrons.
  Statistics: Detect Radiation (Elec-
  tronic, -30%; Reflexive, +40%) [11].
  Radiation Sense
  13 points
  Included in: Supersenses.
  The same as Radiation Scanner, 
  except that it’s an inherent power of 
  your body.
  Statistics: Detect Radiation (Reflex-
  ive, +40%; Super, -10%) [13].
  X-Ray Vision
  14 points
  Included in: Supersenses.
  You can see through solid objects made of organic mat-
  ter or silica up to 1’ thick. Dense metals such as gold, lead, 
  mercury, and uranium block your vision. Light metals and 
  many minerals appear as shadowy shapes – you can see a 
  human skeleton, for example. If you see through an object, 
  things on its other side appear in full color, as if under vis-
  ible light.
  Statistics: Penetrating Vision 2 (Blockable by dense metals, 
  -20%; Super, -10%) [14].
  fields of view And eXtrA eyes
  Human eyesight has about 120° of binocular vision, with 30° of peripheral 
  vision to each side, for a total of 180°. It has a vertical arc of about 120°. Stan-
  dard Peripheral Vision is a 30° expansion in every direction – left, right, up, and 
  down – giving a vertical range from straight up to straight down. 360° Vision 
  is a full sphere.
  Realistic Peripheral Vision is often achieved by moving the eyes to the side, 
  which doesn’t affect the vertical arc. This is a special limitation: No Increase in 
  Vertical Arc, -10%. It reduces the central overlap from 120° to 60°, a Nuisance 
  Effect worth -5%: you defend against attacks from outside the 60° wedge at -2.
  Putting the eyes on the sides of the head, like a rabbit’s, is Extreme Periph-
  eral Vision, covering 300°, for 20 points. This gives no overlap, which is func-
  tionally effectively No Depth Perception: You have -1 to DX in combat and for 
  eye-hand coordination, and -3 on ranged attacks (unless you Aim first), all for 
  -15%. Furthermore, you also have No Increase in Vertical Arc for -10%.
  Realistic 360° Vision requires at least one occipital eye. This also has lim-
  ited vertical arc, and can’t overlap with the two frontal eyes, giving it the lim-
  itations for No Depth Perception when looking backward, a Nuisance Effect 
  worth -5%. Having two occipital eyes avoids the latter problem.
  Full vertical arc requires two tiers of eyes, looking upward and downward. 
  Applying this to the frontal eyes alone gives normal side-to-side range but verti-
  cal arc 180°. This is a limitation on Peripheral Vision: Vertical Only, -50%.
  
   
  sensory Abilities 
  17
  eleCtriC And MAgnetiC senses
  Electric or magnetic fields that are unchanging, or change 
  slowly, produce little or no electromagnetic radiation; this 
  includes magnetic fields produced by steady electric cur-
  rents. Such fields have separate electric and magnetic effects. 
  Human senses don’t respond much to these effects; other life 
  forms have specialized sense organs for them.
  eleCtriC Currents
  Electric current is a flow of charge through a conductor. 
  The human nervous system responds directly to electric cur-
  rent, as many people have found out the hard way! But elec-
  tronic devices with complex circuits were a human invention; 
  there are no biologically evolved senses to trace currents in 
  such devices. Technological implants are better suited to this 
  function. See Sensory-Ability Perks (p. 26) for Circuit Probe.
  Wiretap
  3 points
  Included in: Sensor Implants.
  Comparable to Circuit Probe (see Sensory-Ability Perks, 
  p. 26), but the implant can interpret a signal as audio, enabling 
  listening in on conversations with a Hearing roll.
  Statistics: Detect Electric Currents in Circuits (Contact 
  Agent, -30%; Electronic, -30%; Melee Attack, Reach C, -30%; 
  Stethoscopic, p. 8, +50%) [3].
  eleCtriC fields
  Electric fields are produced by charged objects; in a con-
  ductive medium such as water, they are accompanied by dif-
  fuse electric currents. Aquatic organisms have evolved sense 
  organs to detect them. Sensitivity to electric fields is rare in 
  land organisms.
  This section offers three versions of electric field senses, 
  two based on Detect and one on Vibration Sense. Two of the 
  abilities here are based on the senses of actual organisms, for 
  biologically realistic campaigns; the third is designed for cam-
  paigns about cyborgs or powerful supers.
  GURPS Supers defined a different advantage, Field Sense, 
  as a form of Scanning Sense. None of the abilities here is 
  based on it. Field Sense can be used as a generalized sensory 
  advantage for a campaign with few scientific details.
  Active Electroreception
  12 points
  Included in: Enhanced Senses.
  You have organs – like the tuberous organs of weakly elec-
  tric fish – that respond to AC fields at a few hundred hertz. You 
  generate low-voltage electric pulses at these frequencies and 
  use them to perceive your surroundings, in a process similar 
  to Vibration Sense (p. 8). This sense only functions in water.
  To use active electroreception, make a Sense roll. Apply sep-
  arate modifiers from the Size and Speed/Range Table (p. B550) 
  for your own size and for the size of your target, and a penalty 
  for the range to the target. Water currents don’t hinder it and 
  you can’t perceive them. A successful roll reveals the target’s 
  size, location, and direction. You can only detect targets that 
  are either insulators or conductors compared to water; on an 
  IQ roll, you can use a target’s electrical characteristics to iden-
  tify the type of material. You cannot perceive shape or color.
  With an Aim maneuver, you can lock onto a target and 
  determine its precise range and speed. This gives you +3 to hit 
  the target with an aimed ranged attack. The modifiers for your 
  Sense roll also apply to the attack roll, but only if they add up 
  to a net penalty.
  Others with Active Electroreception, or suitable devices, 
  can detect your fields when you are using this sense.
  Statistics: Active Electroreception (p. 8) (Biological (Pas-
  sive), -5%; Targeting, p. 8, +20%) [12].
  Passive Electroreception
  11 points
  Included in: Enhanced Senses.
  You have organs that respond to DC or low-frequency AC 
  electric fields, like the ampullae of Lorenzini of many fish. You 
  perceive electric field sources, such as the gills of fish (typi-
  cally about 1 mV), with a Sense roll. Higher-voltage sources 
  create stronger fields, as shown in the table.
   
  Source 
  Modifier
   
  Flashlight battery (1.5 V) 
  +6
   
  Lithium battery (3-3.6 V) 
  +7
   
  Car battery (12 V) 
  +8
   
  Household current (120 V) 
  +10
   
  Electric eel (600 V) 
  +11
   
  Power lines (35 kV) 
  +15
  You can identify the strength, direction, and distance of a 
  source. With an IQ roll, you can recognize different species or 
  different electrical devices. This sense only functions in water.
  Statistics: Detect Low-Frequency Electric Fields (Accessi-
  bility, Only in water, -30%; Biological (Passive), -5%; Precise, 
  +100%; Reflexive, +40%) [11].
   .  .  . the settlers went blind  
  a long time ago and now think 
  themselves superior to sighted 
  people . Radar wires tickle their 
  living brains .  .  .  .
  – Cordwainer Smith,  
  “Mother Hitton’s  
  Littul Kittons”
  
   
  sensory Abilities 
  18
  Proximity Sense
  31 points
  Included in: Supersenses.
  Your body can generate a static charge and use it to sense 
  objects by their capacitance. With a Sense roll you can judge 
  direction and distance, allowing you to attack targets. You are 
  at -1 for each 10% humidity. In fog or rain or when grounded, 
  you can’t perceive anything. You have a 360° arc of aware-
  ness; you defend against side and rear attacks at no penalty, 
  and you are at +5 to detect Shadowing attempts. On an IQ 
  roll, you can judge an object’s overall shape and composition. 
  People who touch you, or come within an inch of your body 
  surface, may feel sparks.
  Statistics: Detect Dielectrics (Accessibility, Not in water, 
  less effective in humid air, -30%; Nuisance Effect, Shocks, 
  -5%; Precise, +100%; Super, -10%) [31].
  Capacitive Mesh
  24 points
  Included in: Sensor Implants.
  Your body contains a subdermal network of capacitive 
  proximity sensors. The principle is similar to Proximity 
  Detection, but you operate at low voltage and your range is 
  limited to one yard. Your Sense roll is unmodified by range, 
  and if you forgo active defenses, you make it at +4. You are 
  never surprised by melee attacks from the side or rear, and 
  your active defenses against such attacks are at only -2. In 
  close combat, you can attack a foe to your side or rear with-
  out a visibility penalty.
  Statistics: Detect Dielectrics (Accessibility, Not in water, 
  less effective in humid air, -30%; Electronic, -30%; Melee 
  Attack, Reach C, 1, -20%; Precise, +100%) [24].
  MAgnetiC fields
  Magnetic fields are produced by permanent magnets and 
  electric currents, and by natural objects such as magnetic 
  rocks or Earth itself. Many organisms have receptors for 
  them, based on iron oxide particles or electrochemical reac-
  tions in neurons.
  Magnetic Field Sense
  14 points
  Included in: Enhanced Senses.
  You have receptors for magnetic fields, which you perceive 
  on a Sense roll. Changes in the field automatically allow a 
  Sense roll and even wake you if it succeeds. With an IQ roll, 
  you can find the source of a magnetic field by moving about 
  the area where it’s present. You sense Earth’s magnetic field, 
  giving +1 to Navigation by air, land, and sea, as if using a com-
  pass. Strong nearby fields disrupt your navigational abilities.
  Statistics: Detect Magnetic Fields (Biological (Passive), 
  -5%; Reflexive, +40%) [14].
  Internal Magnetometer
  7 points
  Included in: Sensor Implants.
  The same as Magnetic Field Sense, except that it’s  
  technologically granted rather than biological and has to be 
  turned on.
  Statistics: Detect Magnetic Fields (Electronic, -30%) [7].
  Magnetism Detection
  9 points
  Included in: Supersenses.
  The same as Magnetic Field Sense, but it must be con-
  sciously turned on.
  Statistics: Detect Magnetic Fields (Super, -10%) [9].
  Metal Detector
  4 points
  Included in: Sensor Implants.
  Your body contains an implant that gen-
  erates an oscillating magnetic field, which 
  is modified when you pass over electrically 
  conductive material. You detect such mate-
  rial on a Sense roll at -1 per yard of depth 
  below your feet, and sense the amount. 
  With an IQ roll, you can identify different 
  metals. This is an active sense, creating a 
  magnetic field that can be detected.
  Statistics: Detect Metal (Electronic, -30%; 
  Nuisance Effect, Generates a signal, -5%; 
  Restricted Arc, 60°, p. 9, -75%; Short-Range 
  1, -10%) [4].
  Metal Detection
  15 points
  Included in: Supersenses.
  Similar to Metal Detector, but an inherent power rather 
  than an implant. Your awareness of metal is omnidirectional.
  Statistics: Detect Metal (Nuisance Effect, Generates a sig-
  nal, -5%; Short-Range 1, -10%; Super, -10%) [15].
  
   
  sensory Abilities 
  19
  ACoustiC And vibrAtory senses
  Acoustic waves are pressure fluctuations in material media. 
  Unlike electromagnetic waves, they cannot travel in vac-
  uum. Their speed, and thus their wavelength, varies with the 
  medium: 1,125 feet per second in air at sea level, but 4,911 feet 
  per second in fresh water. Low sound frequencies overlap with 
  frequencies that can be felt as vibrations.
  sonAr
  Sonar is an active sound-based sense. It bounces sound 
  waves off objects in the environment, building up a pic-
  ture from the echoes. Resolution is limited by wavelength; 
  sonar-using animals rely on ultrasonic frequencies for bet-
  ter detail.
  Hunting Sonar
  6 points in air/4 points in water
  Included in: Enhanced Senses.
  You can locate objects by directing ultrasound at them, 
  either in air (like a bat) or in water (like a dolphin). Your 
  sound beam is directed straight ahead and 30° to left and 
  right; you can only spot things in that arc. Your base range is 
  20 yards in air (multiplied by air pressure in atmospheres) or 
  2,000 yards in water. You have a resolution of one millimeter 
  in air, or five millimeters in water. You can spot small objects 
  and determine their shape, but you must make a Sense roll 
  to distinguish details (for example, to recognize a face); roll 
  at -3 in water. By taking an Aim maneuver, you can lock onto 
  objects and determine their precise range and speed; this 
  gives you +3 to hit them with aimed ranged attacks.
  Statistics: Sonar (Accessibility, In air, -10%; Biological 
  (Passive), -5%; Restricted Arc, 60°, p. 9, -75%; Targeting, 
  +20%) [6] or Sonar (Accessibility, In water, -30%; Biological 
  (Passive), -5%; Restricted Arc, 60°, -75%; Targeting, +20%) [4].
  Imaging Sonar
  18 points
  Included in: Supersenses.
  You can locate objects and scan their shapes, as described 
  for Hunting Sonar (above), with the same resolution. Your 
  base range is 20 yards in air (multiplied by air pressure in 
  atmospheres) or 2,000 yards in water, with an arc of 120°. 
  Your sonar functions both in air and under water. You must 
  make a Sense roll to perceive details such as faces, at -3 in 
  water. You get no bonus to targeting.
  You have a limited capability to sense the interiors of liv-
  ing bodies or solid objects, as described for Ultrasonography 
  (below); make a Sense roll at -4 to do so.
  Statistics: Sonar (Super, -10%) [18].
  Sonar Implants
  12 points in air/8 points in water
  Included in: Sensor Implants.
  Similar to Imaging Sonar, but based on electronic implants. 
  This set of implants works either in air or under water but not 
  both – though they can be purchased as alternative abilities!
  Statistics: Sonar (Accessibility, In air, -10%; Electronic, 
  -30%) [12] or Sonar (Accessibility, In water, -30%; Electronic, 
  -30%) [8].
  Ultrasonography
  11 points
  Included in: Supersenses.
  You can generate megahertz sonar frequencies, beyond 
  the limits of realistic biological systems. These penetrate 
  solid matter to a depth of 1’, revealing internal structure and 
  defects. The high frequencies you use allow enhanced reso-
  lution, down to 1/15 millimeter. Thus, you can perceive fine 
  detail automatically (enabling facial recognition) and very 
  fine detail on a Sense roll. Your base range is two yards (mul-
  tiplied by air pressure in atmospheres), and your ability only 
  works in air. Your emissions are too high-pitched for normal 
  Ultrahearing to detect.
  Statistics: Megahertz Sonar (p. 8) (Accessibility, In air, 
  -10%; Penetrating*, +50%; Restricted Arc, 60°, p. 9, -75%; 
  Super, -10%) [11].
  * Penetrating represents the ability of megahertz frequen-
  cies to penetrate solid matter.
  Ultrasound Scanner
  4 points
  Included in: Sensor Implants.
  Similar to Ultrasonography, but requires actually touching 
  the person, creature, or object you are examining.
  Statistics: Megahertz Sonar (p. 8) (Accessibility, In air, 
  -10%; Electronic, -30%; Melee Attack, Reach C, -30%; Pene-
  trating*, +50%; Restricted Arc, 60°, p. 9, -75%) [4].
  * Penetrating represents the ability of megahertz frequen-
  cies to penetrate solid matter.
  HeAring
  Hearing is the ability to perceive sound. Normal 
  human hearing ranges from 20 to 20,000 hertz (the upper  
  limit decreases with age!). Other species hear lower or 
  higher frequencies.
  They say a bat’s got radar
  And he can fly through fan
  – Carly Simon,  
  “De Bat (Fly in Me Face)”
  
   
  sensory Abilities 
  20
  Analytical Hearing
  15 points
  Included in: Enhanced Senses.
  Your sense of hearing is attuned to subtle acoustic distinc-
  tions. You can always tell individual voices apart or recognize 
  individual machines by their sound signatures. On an IQ roll, 
  you can memorize a sound after listening to it for at least one 
  minute. You are at +4 to Shadowing when following a noisy 
  subject and to any task that utilizes hearing.
  Statistics: Discriminatory Hearing (Biological (Passive), 
  -5%) [15].
  Super-Hearing
  14 points
  Included in: Supersenses.
  The extranormal version of Analytical Hearing.
  Statistics: Discriminatory Hearing (Super, -10%) [14].
  Augmented Pinnae
  14 points
  Included in: Enhanced Senses.
  You have ears like a cat’s: large, pointed, and movable. You 
  can aim them at the source of a sound, canceling -1 of the 
  range penalty to hear it clearly; this happens automatically 
  with sounds too faint to hear consciously. You can judge the 
  distance and direction to the source of a sound, and the speed 
  and direction of motion of its source, letting you target it with-
  out penalty.
  Statistics: Parabolic Hearing 1 (Biological (Passive), -5%) 
  [4] + Precise Hearing* (Biological (Passive), -5%) [10].
  * An application of Normal Senses and Modifiers (p. 9).
  Infrasonic Hearing
  8 points
  Included in: Enhanced Senses, Supersenses.
  Like elephants, tigers, or whales, you can hear sounds 
  too low-pitched for the human ear, such as distant thunder, 
  earthquakes, or the movement of large animals or vehicles. 
  Your effective range is doubled below 50 Hz – ignore the 
  first -1 modifier for distance. You have +1 to Tracking if your 
  quarry is on the ground (or moving through water you are 
  immersed in).
  Statistics: Subsonic Hearing (Biological (Passive), -5%) [5] 
  + Parabolic Hearing 1 (Accessibility, Only infrasonic and very 
  low frequency sounds, -20%; Biological (Passive), -5%) [3]; 
  or Subsonic Hearing (Super, -10%) [5] + Parabolic Hearing 
  1 (Accessibility, Only on infrasonic and very low frequency 
  sounds, -20%; Super, -10%) [3].
  Locational Hearing
  10 points
  Included in: Enhanced Senses.
  You have asymmetrical ears (in placement or shape), like 
  an owl’s, that enable you to distinguish the exact location a 
  sound is coming from on a Sense roll, with the usual range 
  penalty for hearing. You can make a melee or ranged attack 
  on the source at no penalty for being unable to see.
  Statistics: Precise Hearing* (Biological (Passive), -5%) [10].
  * An application of Normal Senses and Modifiers (p. 9).
  Targeting Hearing
  11 points
  Included in: Supersenses.
  Functions like Locational Hearing, but you can lock onto 
  the source with an Aim maneuver. This lets you determine its 
  exact range and speed, and gives +3 to hit it with an aimed 
  ranged attack.
  Statistics: Precise Hearing* (Super, -10%) 
  [9] + Targeting Hearing* (Super, -10%) [2].
  * An application of Normal Senses and 
  Modifiers (p. 9).
  Microphonics
  9 points
  Included in: Sensor Implants.
  You have highly sensitive ear implants that let you hear 
  at greater distance. You can disregard up to -3 in penalties to 
  Hearing rolls for distance (8¥ range).
  Statistics: Parabolic Hearing 3 (Electronic, -30%) [9].
  Passive Sonar
  34 points
  Included in: Supersenses.
  You can sense moving objects underwater with a Sense roll 
  at +4, with separate bonuses for the target’s size and speed, 
  and penalties for the range to the target and the speed of cur-
  rents in the water. If you succeed, you know the target’s direc-
  tion, distance, the general class of object, and the speed and 
  direction of motion. You are at +8 to IQ to identify the specific 
  type of target, +4 to Shadowing to follow it, and +3 to hit it 
  with an aimed attack, if you take an Aim maneuver to lock 
  onto it. You can memorize a new acoustic signature by listen-
  ing for one minute. Your hearing range includes ultrasound, 
  letting you track active sonar systems.
  Despite the name, this isn’t based on the advantage Sonar. 
  It doesn’t send out sound waves, but only picks up incoming 
  waves. Thus, it can’t be detected by Ultrahearing.
  Statistics: Discriminatory Hearing (Accessibility, Only 
  underwater, -30%; Link, +10%; Profiling, +50%; Super, -10%) 
  [18] + Ultrahearing (Accessibility, only underwater, -30%; 
  Link, +10%; Super, -10%) [4] + Vibration Sense (Water; Link, 
  +10%; Super, -10%; Targeting, p. 8, +20%) [12].
  Sound carries farther in narrow tunnels .
  
   
  sensory Abilities 
  21
  Hydrophony
  28 points
  Included in: Sensor Implants.
  Similar to Passive Sonar, but based on electronic implants.
  Statistics: Discriminatory Hearing (Accessibility, Only 
  underwater, -30%; Electronic, -30%; Link, +10%; Profil-
  ing, +50%) [15] + Ultrahearing (Accessibility, only under-
  water, -30%; Electronic, -30%; Link, +10%) [3] + Vibration  
  Sense (Water; Electronic, -30%; Link, +10%; Targeting, p. 8, 
  +20%) [10].
  Ultrasonic Hearing
  5 points
  Included in: Enhanced Senses, Supersenses.
  Like dogs, bats, or some insects, you hear sounds too high-
  pitched for the human ear. This is functionally a signal detec-
  tion sense: You detect active sonar (technological or biologi-
  cal) at twice its effective range on a Sense roll. With an IQ roll, 
  you can identify distinctive sources of ultrasound.
  Statistics: Ultrahearing (Biological (Passive), -5%) [5] or 
  Ultrahearing (Super, -10%) [5].
  loudness levels
  Hearing distances in GURPS (p. B358) are based 
  on the decibel scale, or dB. Each decibel level allows an 
  unmodified Hearing roll at a certain range. Apply +1 or -1 
  for each range step by which the sound source is closer or 
  more distant. Some decibel levels have other effects.
  • Prolonged exposure to 100 dB or more causes tinni-
  tus lasting the rest of the day, making you Hard of Hear-
  ing. Roll vs. HT: On a failure, you remain Hard of Hearing 
  for 1d months. On a critical failure, you are permanently 
  Hard of Hearing.
  • Any exposure to 130 dB or more causes moderate 
  pain while the sound lasts. This becomes severe pain at 
  150 dB and terrible pain at 170 dB. You also suffer tinni-
  tus and risk hearing loss; roll vs. HT as above, but at -1 per 
  10 dB over 130 dB.
  • At 190 dB, roll vs. HT to avoid ear injury. Failure 
  results in Deafness for 1d months, and critical failure in 
  eardrum rupture and permanent Deafness. For each extra 
  10 dB, roll at -5!
  Protected Hearing (p. B78) gives +5 to HT to resist 
  these effects, and prevents permanent hearing loss.
  Sound
  dB
  Range
  Effects*
  –
  0
  1/2”
  Threshold of hearing
  Quiet breathing
  10
  1”
  Critical success on Stealth
  Very quiet room
  20
  2”
  Whisper
  30
  4.5”
  Leaves rustling, library
  40
  9”
  Success on Stealth
  Quiet conversation
  50
  1.5’
  Conversation, cocking pistol
  60
  1 yard
  Failure on Stealth
  Light traffic, vacuum cleaner
  70
  2 yards
  Loud conversation
  80
  4 yards
  Shout, gasoline engine
  90
  8 yards
  Critical failure on Stealth
  Silenced pistol, orchestra
  100
  16 yards
  Long-term hearing damage
  Chainsaw, car horn, rock concert
  110
  32 yards
  Jackhammer
  120
  64 yards
  Loud hand clapping, siren
  130
  128 yards
  Threshold of pain
  Light pistol, bat sonar
  140
  256 yards
  Smithy, heavy pistol
  150
  512 yards
  Stun grenade
  160
  1,024 yards
  Jet engine
  170
  1 mile
  Tank gun
  180
  2 miles
  –
  190
  4 miles
  Eardrum rupture
  Explosive shockwave
  200
  8 miles
  Limit of undistorted sound in air: 194 dB
  Artillery
  210
  16 miles
  Dolphin sonar
  220
  32 miles
  * Deleterious effects are for exposure at one yard. Each step of range increase lowers the effective decibel level  
  one step.
  Example: An explosive shockwave is at 200 dB at one yard. At two yards, it drops to 190 dB – still able to rupture 
  eardrums. At 128 yards, it reaches 130 dB – the threshold of pain and able to cause short-term hearing loss.
  
   
  sensory Abilities 
  22
  Extreme Ultrasonic Hearing
  6 points
  Included in: Supersenses.
  Extends ultrasonic hearing above biological limits to tech-
  nologically generated megahertz and gigahertz frequencies. 
  This ability provides signal detection vs. Ultrasonography.
  Statistics: Ultrahearing (Extended High-Band, +30%; 
  Super, -10%) [6].
  vibrAtion senses
  You have sense organs that respond to vibration in the air, 
  the water, or the ground. Awareness of air or water vibrations 
  lets you move in total darkness without penalty by making 
  a Sense roll.
  Lateral Line
  10 points
  Included in: Enhanced Senses.
  Like a fish, you have lateral lines – sense organs along your 
  sides that respond to vibrations in the water (they don’t func-
  tion in air), based on hair cells like those in the inner ear. 
  You spontaneously detect movements in the water, or notice 
  barriers or openings in an area you are moving through, on a 
  successful Sense roll. Apply separate bonuses for target size 
  and speed, and penalties for the distance to the target and the 
  speed of any currents. You learn its rough location, size, speed, 
  and direction of motion, and can target it with an attack.
  Statistics: Vibration Sense (Water; Biological (Passive), 
  -5%) [10].
  Seismic Sense
  4 points
  Included in: Enhanced Senses.
  You can feel faint movements in the surface you’re stand-
  ing, walking, or lying on with a Sense roll, including earth 
  tremors, distant explosions, and footsteps. Modify the roll 
  for loudness and distance as for sound (p. B358). If lying full 
  length, roll at +2! Standing still and taking a Concentrate 
  maneuver lets you guess the source’s direction within a 60° 
  arc; with an IQ roll, you can tell what’s causing the vibra-
  tions and which way it’s moving, if it is. Taking Extra Time 
  (Time Spent, p. B346) gives bonuses. You can use triangula-
  tion (p. 10) to locate a continuing source.
  Statistics: Subsonic Hearing (Biological (Passive), -5%; 
  Melee Attack, Reach C, -30%) [4].
  Sensory Hairs
  10 points
  Included in: Enhanced Senses.
  Part or all of your body is covered with fine, stiff hairs (like 
  a cat’s vibrissae or a spider’s leg hairs) that respond to air cur-
  rents and contact with objects. This is similar to a lateral line 
  (above), but in air rather than water.
  Statistics: Vibration Sense (Air; Biological (Passive),  
  -5%) [10].
  tACtile And Pressure senses
  The sense of touch detects steady or slowly changing 
  mechanical forces applied to the body. In human beings, it’s 
  most acute on the face and hands; other species have other 
  patterns. The sense of pressure is related but responds to 
  overall average force from the air or water, rather than local-
  ized force.
  Feelers
  7 points
  Included in: Enhanced Senses.
  This ability is intended for life forms with rigid exoskele-
  tons, such as an insect’s chitin, that make them Numb as well 
  as granting Damage Resistance, or for biologically modified 
  human beings with similar traits. You have specialized feelers 
  that are not armored and provide a normal sense of touch. 
  These are not manipulatory organs; you must use your hands 
  or other manipulators, which suffer the effects of one level 
  of Ham-Fisted unless you take twice as long to perform the 
  action and can clearly see what you are doing. Your feelers 
  are physically comparable to eye-stalks (p. B34) and can be 
  targeted at -6.
  When you travel in darkness, you can use your feelers to 
  detect hazards before you walk into them.
  Statistics: Not Numb (Biological (Passive), -5%; Partial, 
  Feelers Only, -60%) [7].
  HeAring in tunnels
  Hearing sometimes works differently in enclosed envi-
  ronments. Sound carries farther in narrow tunnels or tun-
  nel-like caves. On the Hearing Distance Table (p. B358), 
  once the range in yards exceeds the width of the tunnel, 
  the penalty to Hearing rolls is -1 for each two steps.
  Example: A party of monster hunters venture into 
  the sewers, in pursuit of rat men. They keep their voices 
  down to a quiet conversation level (range of one yard). 
  The Hearing penalty is -1 at two yards. But the sewer is 
  only two yards wide! The narrowness makes the penalty 
  -2 at eight yards, -3 at 32 yards, -4 at 128 yards, and -5 at 
  512 yards. The lycanthropes have a chance to hear them 
  a long way off.
  
   
  sensory Abilities 
  23
  Long Feelers
  11 points
  Included in: Enhanced Senses.
  Similar to Feelers, but long enough to feel things a  
  yard away.
  Statistics: Not Numb (Biological (Passive), -5%; Long, p. 9, 
  +1 SM, +20%; Partial, Feelers Only, -60%) [11].
  Pressure Sense
  7 points
  Included in: Enhanced Senses.
  You have an organ like a fish’s swim bladder that 
  expands or contracts in response to external pres-
  sure. This is only useful under water, where pres-
  sure increases rapidly with depth. A Sense roll lets 
  you judge the pressure level, recognize changes, and 
  determine the direction of change. An IQ roll can 
  identify transient pressure changes such as explosive 
  shockwaves. If subject to decompression sickness (The 
  Bends, p. B435), you are at +2 to HT to avoid ill effects, 
  because your pressure sense warns you if you ascend too fast.
  Statistics: Detect Pressure (Accessibility, Only in water, 
  -30%; Biological (Passive), -5%) [7].
  Pressure Gauge
  4 points
  Included in: Sensor Implants.
  Similar to Pressure Sense, but based on a device rather 
  than a biological organ.
  Statistics: Detect Pressure (Accessibility, Only in water, 
  -30%; Electronic, -30%) [4].
  Tactile Imaging
  10 points
  Included in: Enhanced Senses.
  Part of your body – typically the hands for a human being 
  – has extremely closely spaced tactile receptors, like those in 
  a star-nosed mole’s nose (10¥ as close as on a human hand). 
  You can recognize patterns by touch as readily as most people 
  can by sight; you can read Braille as fast as print (How Fast 
  Can You Read?, below). You’re at +4 on Touch rolls and skill 
  rolls based on tangible qualities. You can disregard penalties 
  to skill for working by touch, if a task doesn’t require visual 
  information; unfamiliarity penalties apply for the first eight 
  hours performing a given task.
  Statistics: Sensitive Touch (Biological (Passive), -5%) [10].
  Micro-Touch
  12 points
  Included in: Supersenses.
  An enhancement of Tactile Imaging: Your tactile resolu-
  tion is 100¥ that of the human hand. You automatically notice 
  anything that could be sensed by an ordinary human with a 
  Touch roll. You can detect objects or patterns as small as sin-
  gle human cells by succeeding at a Touch roll.
  Statistics: Sensitive Touch (Microscopic 1, p. 9, +25%; 
  Super, -10%) [12].
  Super-Touch
  12 points
  Included in: Supersenses.
  A different enhancement of Tactile Imaging: You can read 
  print by feeling the outline of the ink. By making a Touch roll 
  at -5, you can read computer screens by feeling tiny differ-
  ences in heat or electric field strength.
  Statistics: Sensitive Touch (Super, -10%; Ultra-Fine, 
  +30%) [12].
  CHeMiCAl senses
  The chemical senses – in human beings, smell and taste – 
  are triggered by contact with molecules, producing different 
  sensations depending on the kind of molecules encountered.
  sMell
  Smell is the ability to recognize chemical substances from 
  traces carried about by diffusion. It’s a ranged sense, taking 
  -1 per yard of distance from the 
  source of the odor (but see Long-
  Range Smell, p. 26). Like Vibra-
  tion Sense, it should be specified 
  as working either in air or in 
  water; some fish have a sense of 
  smell, for example.
  How fAst CAn you reAd?
  A normal, sighted human being can read IQ ¥ 25 words 
  per minute. Speed-Reading multiplies this by a factor of 1 + 
  (skill/10). Bad Sight (Farsighted) divides reading speed by 3.
  Reading Braille is slower – divide reading speed by 2 (thus, 
  IQ ¥ 12.5 words per minute). Speed-Reading (Braille) is a sep-
  arate required specialty. With Tactile Imaging or Super-Touch, 
  you can read Braille as fast as print. With Super-Touch, you can 
  read print by touch!
  Even my dirty socks? Some things just don’t need to be smelled .
  – Jonathan Luna and Sarah Vaughn, Alex + Ada #6
  
   
  sensory Abilities 
  24
  Analytical Smell
  15 points
  Included in: Enhanced Senses.
  You have a sense of smell comparable to that of a dog 
  (which has four billion olfactory cells, compared to 12 million 
  in a human!). You can recognize people, places, and things 
  by scent. On an IQ roll, you can memorize a scent by sniffing 
  it for at least a minute. You are at +4 on all tasks that utilize 
  the sense of smell, specifically including Tracking (Sanitized 
  Metabolism protects against this).
  Statistics: Discriminatory Smell (Biological (Passive), 
  -5%) [15].
  Super-Smell
  14 points
  Included in: Supersenses.
  This is the extranormal version of Analytical Smell.
  Statistics: Discriminatory Smell (Super, -10%) [14].
  Odor of Fear
  8 points
  Statistics: Supersenses.
  On a Sense roll, you can tell whether a person or animal is 
  feeling fear. Roll at -1 per yard of distance. This isn’t a biolog-
  ically realistic ability!
  Statistics: Animal Empathy (Accessibility, Only Fear, -30%; 
  Smell-Based, Reversed, -20%; Super, -10%) [2] + Empathy 
  (Accessibility, Only Fear, -30%; Smell-Based, Reversed, -20%; 
  Super, -10%) [6].
  tAste
  Taste differs from smell in requiring contact with sub-
  stances, normally with the tongue. The human sense of taste 
  can discriminate a limited number of substances: acids (sour), 
  alkaloids (bitter – often a signal of toxicity), salts (salty), sug-
  ars (sweet), and amino acids and their salts, such as monoso-
  dium glutamate (the “fifth taste” of East Asian cuisine, called 
  umami in Japan).
  Analytical Taste
  10 points
  Included in: Enhanced Senses.
  You can recognize people and things, including food and 
  drink, by taste; you must ingest a small quantity of material 
  to do so (for a living being, this means bodily fluids). On an 
  IQ roll, you can memorize a taste or discern whether a sub-
  stance is safe to eat. You are at +4 on tasks that utilize the 
  sense of taste.
  Statistics: Discriminatory Taste (Biological (Passive),  
  -5%) [10].
  Super-Taste
  9 points
  Included in: Supersenses.
  Similar to Analytical Taste.
  Statistics: Discriminatory Taste (Super, -10%) [9].
  Cutaneous Chemical Sense
  8 points
  Included in: Enhanced Senses.
  You have chemical sensors in your skin, especially the 
  palms of your hands and the soles of your feet. You can taste 
  chemical substances as if with your tongue; a Taste roll 
  will detect unobvious tastes or judge concentration. An 
  IQ roll can discern combinations of tastes.
  Over your general body surface, your chemical sense 
  is more limited. You can recognize strong tastes, but not 
  judge concentrations, and you can’t attempt an IQ roll.
  Statistics: Detect Chemical Substances (Biological 
  (Passive), -5%; Melee Attack, Reach C, -30%; Nuisance 
  Effect, Must touch with palm of hand or sole of foot 
  for full sensitivity, -5%; Reflexive, +40%; Touch-Based, 
  Reversed, -20%) [8].
  ProteoMiC senses
  Identifying specific proteins is possible for living organisms 
  – that’s how the immune system selects targets. Proteomic 
  senses allow this identification to be made consciously.
  Blood Taste
  9 points
  Included in: Enhanced Senses.
  You can identify human blood types from a few drops on a 
  successful Taste roll. You must actually take the blood in your 
  mouth to do so. On an IQ roll, you can recognize an individu-
  al’s distinctive combination of blood components if you have 
  tasted his blood before, or recognize toxins and other patho-
  logical conditions. For other species, apply the appropriate 
  physiology modifier (p. B181).
  Statistics: Detect Blood (Analyzing, +100%; Biological 
  (Passive), -5%; Taste-Based, Reversed, -20%) [9].
  Blood Group Analyzer
  8 points
  Included in: Sensor Implants
  Similar to Blood Taste, but based on a device rather than 
  a biological organ, and requires penetrating a vein with a nee-
  dle. This causes a perceptible sting but does not inflict signif-
  icant damage.
  
   
  sensory Abilities 
  25
  Statistics: Detect Blood (Analyzing, +100%; Contact Agent, 
  -30%; Electronic, -30%; Melee Attack, Reach C, -30%; Nondi-
  rectional, p. 9, -25%; Nuisance Effect, Causes minor discom-
  fort, -5%) [8].
  Immune Spectrum Detection
  9 points
  Included in: Enhanced Senses.
  Recent research suggests that the chemistry of the major 
  histocompatibility complex (a key component of the immune 
  system) affects the composition of sweat, and that people 
  respond to both their own and other people’s immune spectra 
  behaviorally. This ability makes the process conscious. You 
  automatically recognize your own immune spectrum, and 
  with a Smell roll, you can judge how different another person’s 
  spectrum is and how wide a range of immune responses he 
  has. On an IQ roll, you can identify specific immune responses 
  or recognize someone you know. For other species, apply the 
  appropriate physiology modifier (p. B181).
  Statistics: Detect Immune Responses (Analyzing, +100%; 
  Biological (Passive), -5%; Smell-Based, Reversed, -20%) [9].
  genoMiC senses
  DNA controls the form and development of living beings, 
  but the nervous system can’t detect it. The ability to perceive 
  genetic material requires advanced technology or unrealis-
  tic superpowers.
  Gene Sequencer
  9 points
  Included in: Sensor Implants.
  You can extract genetic material from a living creature’s 
  tissues or bodily fluids; you must touch living tissue to obtain 
  this. You can then discern the concentration of genetic mate-
  rial, and the size of the genome, with a Sense roll. An IQ roll 
  can determine the exact sequence of the genome and compare 
  it with other genomes.
  Statistics: Detect DNA and RNA (Analyzing, +100%; Con-
  tact Agent, -30%; Electronic, -30%; Melee Attack, Reach C, 
  -30%; Nondirectional, p. 9, -25%) [9].
  Genescan
  14 points
  Included in: Supersenses.
  Essentially the same as Gene Sequencer, but it’s an innate 
  power and requires only touching the subject’s tissues, not 
  sampling them.
  Statistics: Detect DNA and RNA (Analyzing, +100%; Melee 
  Attack, Reach C, -30%; Nondirectional, p. 9, -25%; Super, 
  -10%) [14].
  MisCellAneous senses
  Other sensory abilities can be defined that don’t fit the pre-
  ceding categories.
  CHi sense
  Qi, or chi, is an unseen energy thought to pervade the 
  natural environment (see GURPS Thaumatology: Chinese 
  Elemental Powers). It’s similar to the élan vital or “life force” 
  of 19th-century biological thought. 
  Inner Awareness
  18 points
  Included in: Sensory Focus.
  You can detect the flow of chi within living bodies and 
  through the environment, locate such flows, analyze the ele-
  mental affinity of chi, or diagnose disturbances in its flow. 
  You are especially sensitive to intense flows of chi created by 
  the use of cinematic skills or chi-based powers – but not only 
  to these. This requires a Sense roll for detection, or an IQ roll 
  for analysis. If the GM allows cinematic Fortune-Telling, you 
  can learn cinematic Fortune-Telling (Feng Shui) (Chinese 
  Elemental Powers, pp. 19-20).
  Statistics: Detect Chi (Chi, -10%) [18].
  grAvitAtionAl sense
  Physicists and astronomers have worked on developing 
  gravity-wave detectors, but they have few practical applica-
  tions. The shortest predicted wavelengths are over 600 miles, 
  which means they could reveal objects no smaller than 300 
  miles (SM +33), such as small moons or huge space stations. 
  In a universe with superscience or superpowers, the instru-
  ments or abilities might pick up signals from gravity-warp-
  ing technology or powers. Static gravitational-field detection 
  could be the basis for three-dimensional mass perception, like 
  that of Rigellians in the Lensman novels.
  He knew that he did not invent the information brought to him by his senses . There had to 
  be something else out there, some otherness that produced the things his senses recorded .
  – Robert A . Heinlein, “They”
  
   
  sensory Abilities 
  26
  Gravimetry
  23 points
  Included in: Supersenses.
  You can judge the strength of the local gravitational field 
  with extreme precision. If a Sense roll succeeds, you can per-
  ceive stronger or weaker fields created by mineral deposits, 
  caves, or tunnels. An IQ roll will let you identify the most likely 
  cause of the difference after surveying an area.
  Statistics: Detect Gravitational Fields (Precise, +100%; 
  Reflexive, +40%; Super, -10%) [23].
  Mass Perception
  36 points
  Included in: Supersenses.
  You can sense matter by its gravitational mass. This is 
  an ongoing process, giving you continued awareness of your 
  surroundings; a Sense roll will let you notice something 
  significant. Mass Perception is at -1 per yard. You automati-
  cally know how massive an object is and what direction it’s in; 
  an IQ roll can estimate density or notice patterns.
  Statistics: Detect Matter (Short-Range 1, -10%; Reflexive, 
  +40%; Super, -10%) [36].
  Warpsense
  9 points
  Included in: Supersenses.
  You can detect a sharp fluctuation in the gravitational 
  field, as from a starship entering hyperspace, a wormhole 
  drive (GURPS Space), or teleportation that warps space. This 
  requires a Sense roll, which uses long-distance modifiers. 
  An IQ roll allows you to analyze a fluctuation; for wormhole 
  drives and teleportation, this lets you estimate the direction of 
  the jump. If you weren’t expecting the event, roll to analyze at 
  -2. You can sense a signal from a gravity ripple communicator 
  (GURPS Ultra-Tech) at twice its range, but not understand it!
  sensory-Ability Perks
  A few perks affect the senses. Perks don’t take limita-
  tions, since they normally cost only 1 point, but they can 
  be included in powers and benefit from their Talents (see 
  Power Perks in GURPS Power-Ups 2: Perks).
  Accessory: Accelerometer
  Either as an implant or as an innate ability, you can 
  sense the acceleration you are subjected to from moment 
  to moment. You always know the local G-rating.
  Accessory: Circuit Probe
  Your body contains an implant that functions like a 
  multimeter. It responds to both DC and low-frequency 
  AC. A Sense roll notices the presence of electric current or 
  voltage; an IQ roll measures voltage, current, frequency, 
  or resistance. You must touch exposed conductors at two 
  points with conductive probes built into your body.
  Accessory: Radio Receiver
  You can hear AM, FM, CB, police band, and other 
  radio signals with a Concentrate maneuver and an IQ 
  roll. You can understand what’s being said if you know 
  the language (and if you know the code, for telegraphic 
  transmissions).
  Illumination
  Your vision is not dependent on external sources of 
  light. Your body can emit light, at a cost of 1 FP/hour. This 
  is normally equivalent to a torch, illuminating a circle with 
  radius equal to your body’s longest dimension with a dark-
  ness penalty of -4. Optionally, it may take the form of a 
  10-yard beam with a darkness penalty of -3. In effect, sight 
  is an active sense for you. You’re in plain sight to observers 
  who can see your light: +10 to Vision rolls to spot it.
  Long-Range Smell
  This represents application of one level of Long-
  Range (see GURPS Powers) to the sense of smell, allow-
  ing it to use standard range modifiers, like the olfactory 
  organs of a wolf or a shark. At the GM’s option, someone 
  with a Supersenses ability may take a second level of this 
  perk, letting the sense of smell use long-distance modi-
  fiers (p. B241).
  Polarization Detection
  Direct sunlight is not polarized, but sunlight scattered 
  by the atmosphere is vertically polarized (its waves go 
  up and down, not side to side). Like the eyes of bees or 
  cephalopods, your eyes can tell the difference. You know 
  the true direction of the sun even through clouds, and can 
  navigate without a penalty for being unable to see it. You 
  have +2 to spot water surfaces from above or below.
  Robust Sense
  One of your senses is less vulnerable to overloading, as 
  if you had a weaker version of Protected Sense (p. B78). 
  You get +1 to HT rolls to resist sensory impairment. You 
  can ignore -1 to Sense rolls from distracting stimuli (glare, 
  noise, etc.).
  Tetrachromatism
  The range of wavelengths you can see is no wider than 
  normal, but you have a fourth visual pigment, giving you 
  much finer color discrimination. At the GM’s discretion, 
  you gain +1 to skills and Sense rolls where subtle color 
  differences are relevant.
  Universal Smell
  Your sense of smell operates both in air and underwater.
  
   
  sensory Abilities 
  27
  At the GM’s option, if gravitational weapons such as force 
  beams, graviton beams, or displacers (Ultra-Tech) – or compa-
  rable powers – exist within the setting, you can perceive their 
  use, but at -5 to Sense and IQ rolls, except with displacers.
  Statistics: Detect Gravitic Anomalies (Long-Range 1, +50%; 
  Reflexive, +40%; Super, -10%) [9].
  orientAtion And 
  ACCelerAtion senses
  Orientation and acceleration senses overlap gravitational 
  senses, as they also respond to gravitational fields. However, 
  they’re more realistic, being based on the position and move-
  ment of internal structures and fluids in response to gravity. 
  They can often be affected by other forces acting on the body 
  as well.
  Nav Implants
  20 points
  Included in: Sensor Implants.
  Your natural sense of balance has been augmented with 
  accelerometers, gyroscopes, and a chronometer. You auto-
  matically know what forces you are being subjected to and 
  what accelerations you are undergoing, including the local 
  G-rating; your implants track this to tell you your current 
  velocity and position and how much time has passed. You 
  have +1 to Climbing; +2 to Free Fall, Navigation (Space), and 
  Piloting; and +3 to Acrobatics, Body Sense, and Navigation 
  (Air, Land, and Sea). You can walk along any stable surface; 
  on a slippery or unstable surface, you have +6 to DX to keep 
  your feet. In combat, you have +4 to DX and DX-based skill 
  rolls to avoid being knocked down. If you teleport, or travel 
  through hyperspace, you can track your subsequent move-
  ments only from your new three-dimensional starting point.
  Statistics: 3D Spatial Sense (Accessibility, Only in three-di-
  mensional space, -10%; Electronic, -30%) [6] + Absolute Tim-
  ing (Electronic, -30%) [2] + Accessory (Accelerometer) [1] + 
  Perfect Balance (Electronic, -30%) [11].
  Super-Balance
  14 points
  Included in: Hypercognition, Sensory Focus, Supersenses.
  As bipedal animals, human beings have a good natural 
  sense of balance. Yours is even better! You can keep your foot-
  ing on any surface, no matter how narrow, without a skill roll. 
  If the surface is slippery or unstable, you roll at +6. In com-
  bat, you roll at +4 to DX and DX-based skill rolls to keep your 
  feet or avoid being knocked down. You get +1 to Acrobatics, 
  Climbing, and Piloting.
  Statistics: Perfect Balance (Chi, Savant, or Super, -10%) [14].
  PArA-senses
  You perceive the world through energies unknown to 
  21st-century science. These are cinematic, hand-wavy abili-
  ties, not suited to a realistic campaign!
  Para-Radar Imaging
  36 points
  Included in: Supersenses.
  You perceive your surroundings through reflected para-en-
  ergy; this works in any environment. Your base range is 200 
  yards. Make a Sense roll to distinguish fine relief; roll at +3 to 
  spot concealed weapons. Only exotic superscience detectors 
  or powers can locate your emissions.
  Statistics: Para-Radar (Super, -10%) [36].
  Spy-Ray
  58 points
  Included in: Supersenses.
  You can emit a narrow beam of nearly undetectable energy 
  that can pass through air or water or up to 1’ of solid material. 
  Your base range is 2,000 yards. You must make a Sense roll to 
  find a target. Once you do, you can both see and hear events 
  taking place there, with another Sense roll to pick up details 
  accurately.
  Statistics: Para-Radar (Increased Range, 10¥, +30%; Pen-
  etrating, +50%; Restricted Arc, 60°, p. 9, -75%; Stethoscopic, 
  p. 8, +50%; Super, -10%) [58].
  Ultrascan
  64 points
  Included in: Supersenses.
  Similar to Para-Radar Imaging (above), this ability also 
  provides detailed information on the physical and chemical 
  characteristics of anything it scans, penetrating up to a foot 
  into a solid object. Effective range is limited to 20 yards.
  Statistics: Para-Radar (Penetrating, +50%; Reduced Range, 
  1/10, -30%; Scanner, +50%; Super, -10%) [64].
  If the doors of perception 
  were cleansed every thing 
  would appear to man as it is, 
  infinite . For man has closed 
  himself up, till he sees all 
  things through narrow chinks 
  of his cavern .
  – William Blake,  
  The Marriage of 
  Heaven and Hell
  
   
  sensory APPliCAtions 
  28
  In addition to new or enhanced senses, some abilities let 
  you do extraordinary things with the senses you already have. 
  These can be included in sensory powers. (For explanations of 
  the powers and their power modifiers, see pp. 4-5.)
  Many of these abilities can aid with skill attempts  
  beyond what’s described here. See Abilities Enhancing Skills 
  (p. 10) for details. For additional notes on range, see Sensory 
  Range (p. 6).
  HyPersensory Abilities
  Hypersensory abilities are advantages normally treated as 
  mystical, supernatural, or psionic, but acquired with a Hyper-
  sensory modifier (pp. 8-9). They are a big part of Hypercogni-
  tion (p. 4).
  This section also includes two abilities that don’t have the 
  Hypersensory modifier, based solely on vision, but that simi-
  larly rely on heightened attention to sensory input: Archer’s 
  Trance and Battle Arc. (Note that characters can have both of 
  these abilities, but they don’t function at the same time!)
  Archer’s Trance
  4 points
  Included in: Hypercognition, Sensory Focus.
  By taking an Aim maneuver, you can lock onto a target 
  in your range of vision and determine its precise range and 
  speed, within ±5% (the GM will roll 2d-7, keeping negative 
  numbers, if needed). This gives you +3 to hit with an aimed 
  attack. While you’re using this ability, the field of your vision 
  narrows, as for Tunnel Vision (p. B151): you see the tar-
  get clearly, and anything within 30° to either side as if with 
  peripheral vision, giving you -2 to active defenses. You’re blind 
  to side attacks.
  Statistics: Targeting Vision* (Chi, Savant, or Super, -10%; 
  Temporary Disadvantage, Tunnel Vision, -30%) [3] + Eye for 
  Distance (GURPS Power-Ups 2: Perks, p. 13) [1].
  * An application of Normal Senses and Modifiers (p. 9).
  Battle Arc
  11 points
  Included in: Hypercognition, Sensory Focus.
  Your eyes are physically no different, but thanks to sensi-
  tivity to the flow of chi in your environment, or heightened 
  ability to shift attention between different areas of your 
  surroundings, you have a wider arc of alertness in combat. 
  You can attack foes in “side” as well as “front” hexes – though 
  attacks with the opposite hand are treated as Wild Swings 
  (p. B388). You defend against attacks from “side” hexes at no 
  penalty, and against those from “rear” hexes at -2. The GM 
  will make a Vision roll for you to notice an attack from behind 
  your back, but not other actions or events that happen there.
  Statistics: Peripheral Vision (Aspected, Combat, -20%; Chi 
  or Savant, -10%) [11].
  Darksense
  53 points
  Included in: Hypercognition, Sensory Focus, Supersenses.
  Your brain automatically synthesizes a visual image of 
  your environment, exempting you from all penalties for being 
  unable to see, even in complete darkness or against an invis-
  ible target. What you perceive does not include color. The 
  process depends on information from your senses of hearing, 
  smell, touch, and vision (based on tiny flashes of light caused 
  by cosmic rays, electric discharges, and the like). Each sense 
  that is blocked gives you a cumulative -2 to Vision rolls (not 
  exceeding the current penalty for low light or an invisible tar-
  get). If all four senses are blocked, you’re completely blind.
  CHAPter tHree
  sensory 
  APPliCAtions
  I see the bird, but I 
  don’t see the tree or you .
  – The Mahabharata
  
   
  sensory APPliCAtions 
  29
  Statistics: Dark Vision (Chi, Savant, or Super, -10%; Hyper-
  sensory, pp. 8-9, +40%) [33] + See Invisible (Electromagnetic; 
  Chi, Savant, or Super, -10%; Hypersensory, +40%) [20].
  Diagnostic Scan
  6 points
  Included in: Hypercognition, Sensory Focus, Supersenses.
  You can integrate sensory impressions of other people to 
  detect pathological conditions within their bodies. A Sense 
  roll, from up to one yard, will tell you if illness or injury is 
  present and how severe it is (points of injury suffered). Each 
  of sight, hearing, smell, and touch that’s blocked gives a cumu-
  lative -2. If all four are blocked, you automatically fail. If you 
  totally focus on the scan, precluding active defense, you make 
  the Sense roll at +4.
  If you perceive illness or injury, you can attempt an IQ roll 
  to identify the organs or body regions affected. On a critical 
  success, you identify the specific illness or injury, if it’s one 
  you are familiar with.
  Statistics: Detect Illnesses and Injuries (Chi, Savant, or 
  Super, -10%; Hypersensory, pp. 8-9, -40%; Melee Attack, 
  Reach C, 1, -20%) [6].
  Object Reading
  8 points
  Included in: Hypercognition, Sensory Focus, Supersenses.
  When touching an object, or standing in a place, you can 
  reconstruct its history from minute clues detected by your 
  senses of sight, smell, and touch. Roll vs. IQ to gain a general 
  sense of events connected with it. Roll at no penalty for events 
  earlier the same day, at -1 for up to 10 days ago, -2 for up to 
  100 days ago, -3 for up to three years ago, and an another -1 
  per additional 10¥ multiplier. Each sense that’s blocked gives 
  a cumulative -3. If all three senses are blocked, your ability 
  doesn’t work.
  On a critical success, you experience an actual vision of a 
  highly significant past event, if any occurred in the indicated 
  time span.
  Statistics: Psychometry (Chi, Savant, or Super, -10%; 
  Hypersensory, pp. 8-9, -50%) [8].
  Reality Testing
  3 points
  Included in: Hypercognition, Supersenses.
  The sensory functions of your brain are exceptionally resis-
  tant to distortion. If subjected to telepathic illusions, deceptive 
  “sensies,” hallucinations, hypnotic suggestions about percep-
  tion, or the like, you reflexively test them against your senses 
  of sight, touch, and balance, giving you +3 to resist; roll vs. Per 
  rather than Will to do so. Each sense that is unable to function 
  reduces the bonus by one – but the illusion itself doesn’t pre-
  vent its functioning.
  When you use this ability for a Power Block, a roll vs. 3 + 
  (Will + Talent)/2 allows you to double your bonus to resist.
  Statistics: Resistant to Mental Illusion (+3) (Based on Per, 
  +20%; Hypersensory, pp. 8-9, -50%; Savant or Super, -10%) [3].
  Enhanced Reality
  5 points
  Included in: Supersenses.
  As above, but you are at +8 to resist, and each sense that is 
  unable to function reduces the bonus by three. The bonus to 
  resist rises to +16 when you rely on the ability for a Power Block.
  Statistics: Resistant to Mental Illusion (+8) (Based on Per, 
  +20%; Hypersensory, pp. 8-9, -50%; Super, -10%) [5].
  Thought Tracking
  9 points
  Included in: Hypercognition, Supersenses.
  You can observe another person closely enough to recon-
  struct his surface thoughts, as if he were speaking them aloud. 
  This requires awareness of the subject through sight, hearing 
  (subvocalized words and breathing), and touch (for muscle 
  tension). Roll a Quick Contest of IQ vs. the subject’s Will, at 
  a cumulative -3 for each sense that’s blocked. If you have no 
  sensory contact, you cannot use the ability. If you attempt it 
  at a distance, you are at -1 per yard, in addition to the penalty 
  for not being able to touch the subject. Winning lets you track 
  the subject’s thoughts as long as you maintain concentration. 
  You may try again if you lose, but at -2 per attempt in the past 
  hour. Any critical failure precludes further attempts on that 
  subject for 24 hours.
  If the subject speaks a language you don’t know, or no lan-
  guage at all, you can only pick up images, feelings, and gen-
  eral intentions.
  Statistics: Mind Reading (Hypersensory, pp. 8-9, -50%; 
  Savant or Super, -10%; Short-Range, -10%) [9].
  Threat Detection
  6 points
  Included in: Hypercognition, Sensory Focus, Supersenses.
  You have an innate or trained ability to recognize subtle 
  evidence of danger. On a Sense roll, you detect the presence of 
  a threat, and it can’t surprise you. On a 3 or 4, you get a feeling 
  for the kind of threat. The GM may allow an Observation roll 
  to identify the threat.
  Each of sight, hearing, and smell that’s blocked gives you a 
  cumulative -3. If all three are blocked (or there is no physical 
  evidence to react to), you get no warning.
  Statistics: Danger Sense (Chi, Savant, or Super, -10%; 
  Hypersensory, pp. 8-9, -50%) [6].
  Truth Sense
  3 points
  Included in: Hypercognition, Sensory Focus, Supersenses.
  You notice subtle clues to another person’s truthfulness: 
  microexpressions and pupil dilation (sight), voice stress (hear-
  ing), and muscular tension and perspiration (touch). If all 
  three senses are available, you have +3 to Detect Lies. Each 
  sense that’s blocked reduces this bonus by one.
  Statistics: Empathy (Aspected, Truth and lies, -20%; Chi, 
  Savant, or Super, -10%; Hypersensory, pp. 8-9, -50%) [3].
  
   
  sensory APPliCAtions 
  30
  PerCePtuAl sPeed
  More efficient neural architecture, or rewiring of the ner-
  vous system for accelerated transmission of impulses, may 
  allow faster perception. Simply being in tune with the uni-
  verse may grant similar benefits.
  Stop Motion
  32 points
  Included in: Hypercognition, Sensory Focus, Supersenses.
  You perceive everything with high time resolution. With a 
  Sense roll, you perceive things too fast for normal people to 
  notice, such as bullets in flight, individual frames of a moving 
  picture, or a fluorescent light’s 60-hertz flicker. If something 
  happens at normal speed, you can study it at leisure. You 
  can read text equal to your words per minute (How Fast Can 
  You Read?, p. 23) in a single turn . Roll for Observation, Body 
  Language, Connoisseur, Lip Reading, and Tracking at +5, 
  as if taking the maximum possible extra time on these tasks 
  (p. B346). You never freeze in a surprise situation, and get +6 
  on IQ rolls to recover from surprise, but you gain no other 
  direct combat benefits.
  Statistics: Enhanced Time Sense (Aspected, Perception, 
  -20%; Chi, Savant, or Super, -10%) [32].
  Rewired
  23 points
  Included in: Sensor Implants.
  The same as Stop Motion, but based on ultrafast neural 
  connections, a neural accelerator chip, or something else 
  electronic.
  Statistics: Enhanced Time Sense (Aspected, Perception, 
  -20%; Electronic, -30%) [23].
  sensory knowledge
  The Profiling enhancement (p. 8) can be used to store vast 
  amounts of information for later reference. Abilities simi-
  lar to Voice Profiling can be based on Discriminatory Smell, 
  Discriminatory Taste, or Sensitive Touch.
  Visual Profiling
  9 points
  Included in: Hypercognition, Supersenses.
  You automatically memorize any visual pattern you 
  encounter – faces, fingerprints, maps, works of art – without 
  an IQ roll. You make rolls to recognize and analyze visual 
  images at +4, by comparing them with your mental database.
  Statistics: Profiling Vision* (Savant or Super, -10%) [9].
  * An application of Normal Senses and Modifiers (p. 9).
  Voice Profiling
  18 points
  Included in: Hypercognition, Supersenses.
  You have the normal benefits of Discriminatory Hearing 
  (see Analytical Hearing, p. 20), but only for human speech and 
  singing. Your awareness is superhumanly acute, comparable 
  to an audiospectrograph. You remember every voice you’ve 
  ever heard, and can memorize the signatures of new voices 
  automatically. You’re at +8 to IQ to analyze and recognize 
  individual voices, and at +4 to Mimicry to imitate them.
  Statistics: Discriminatory Hearing (Aspected, Speech, 
  -20%; Profiling, +50%; Savant or Super, -10%) [18].
  sHAred senses
  The senses are sources of data. With high enough band-
  width, “sensie” capabilities may allow sharing sensory data 
  with others.
  Sensory Link
  8 points
  Included in: Sensor Implants.
  You can connect yourself with a fiber-op-
  tic cable to another person who has a Sensory 
  Link. This carries not only vocalized or subvo-
  calized speech, but also sensory impressions 
  from your nervous system and implants. Com-
  munication is direct and unjammable.
  Two people with shared senses are at +3 to Per, Observation, 
  or Search to spot a hidden person or object (roll once vs. the 
  higher score). Shared senses allow triangulation (p. 10) with 
  up to a 10-yard baseline. The same bonus applies to collabo-
  rative tasks where knowing exactly what the other person is 
  doing is an advantage. It’s not an advantage in melee combat, 
  where divided attention gives -2 to attack rolls.
  I see it feelingly .
  – William Shakespeare, King Lear
  
   
  sensory APPliCAtions 
  31
  Either person can apply his skills through the other’s 
  senses. Encountering sensory capabilities you don’t share (for 
  example, a blind person linking to a sighted one) imposes -2 
  for unfamiliarity for the first eight hours.
  Sensory Link can function as Peripheral Vision or 360° 
  Vision if the participants are looking in different directions, 
  but then they don’t gain the direct benefits of collaboration.
  Statistics: Cable Jack (p. 8) (Electronic, -30%; Sensie, 
  +80%) [8].
  synestHesiA
  In the real world, synesthesia is a neural process where 
  stimulation of one sense produces involuntary sensations in 
  another modality – numbers may appear colored, or sounds 
  produce tactile sensations. This may function as a perk if the 
  GM agrees (see below). In a cinematic treatment, it might 
  have more dramatic effects, with multiple sensory modalities 
  processing input from one sense. This can be represented as a 
  group of alternative abilities that make up a meta-trait.
  Sensory Refocus
  18 points
  Included in: Hypercognition, Supersenses.
  You can devote the processing power of your brain to a 
  single sense, as if you were a single huge eye or skin surface. 
  This is voluntary – you have the option of not boosting any of 
  your senses! Whichever senses you aren’t focusing on recede 
  into the background; you see poorly resolved images, barely 
  notice odors or tastes, or feel only unlocalized pressure, for 
  example. The sense you are focusing on is enhanced beyond 
  normal human limits.
  • Your vision can ignore -3 in range penalties when scan-
  ning the environment, or zoom in on a target to ignore -6 in 
  range penalties – you can read a computer screen casually 
  from 15-20’ away, for example. You can disregard -6 in dark-
  ness penalties at the same time. If you are using a ranged 
  weapon without a telescopic sight, your eyes act as a sight, 
  giving +3 Acc if you take an Aim maneuver for three seconds.
  • Your hearing is at +4. You gain +4 to sound- 
  based tasks and to Shadowing if your target is making 
  sounds. You can instantly recognize people by voice, or 
  machines by sound signature.
  • Your smell is at +4, and you gain +4 to smell-based 
  tasks and to Tracking to follow anyone who leaves a scent 
  trail (Sanitized Metabolism will stop this). You can instantly 
  recognize people, places, or things by scent.
  • Your taste is at +4. If you ingest a small sample of a 
  substance (including bodily fluids, for a person), you can 
  recognize whether you have encountered it before, and 
  judge whether it’s safe to consume.
  • Your tactile senses are at +4 to discriminate between 
  objects or materials by texture, or to find minute irregu-
  larities. You can feel faint seismic vibrations as someone 
  walks toward you, or trace heat in an object that someone 
  has touched.
  Statistics: Telescopic Vision 3 (Savant or Super, -10%; 
  Temporary Disadvantage, Hard of Hearing, -10%; Tem-
  porary Disadvantage, No Sense of Smell/Taste, -5%; Tem-
  porary Disadvantage, Numb, -20%) [9] + Night Vision 6 
  (Savant or Super, -10%; Temporary Disadvantage, Hard of 
  Hearing, -10%; Temporary Disadvantage, No Sense of Smell/
  Taste, -5%; Temporary Disadvantage, Numb, -20%) [4] 
  + Discriminatory Hearing (Savant or Super, -10%; Tempo-
  rary Disadvantage, Bad Sight, Nearsighted, -25%; Temporary 
  Disadvantage, No Sense of Smell/Taste, -5%; Temporary Dis-
  advantage, Numb, -20%) [2]* 
  + Discriminatory Smell (Savant or Super, -10%; Temporary 
  Disadvantage, Bad Sight, Nearsighted, -25%; Temporary Dis-
  advantage, Hard of Hearing, -10%; Temporary Disadvantage, 
  No Sense of Taste, -2%; Temporary Disadvantage, Numb, 
  -20%) [1]* 
  + Discriminatory Taste (Savant or Super, -10%; Temporary 
  Disadvantage, Bad Sight, Nearsighted, -25%; Temporary Dis-
  advantage, Hard of Hearing, -10%; Temporary Disadvantage, 
  No Sense of Smell, -2%; Temporary Disadvantage, Numb, 
  -20%) [1]* 
  + Sensitive Touch (Savant or Super, -10%; Temporary Dis-
  advantage, Bad Sight, Nearsighted, -25%; Temporary Disad-
  vantage, Hard of Hearing, -10%; Temporary Disadvantage, No 
  Sense of Smell/Taste, -5%) [1]*.
  * Alternative Abilities (¥1/5 cost) to combination Telescopic 
  Vision + Night Vision.
  sensory-APPliCAtion 
  Perks
  Three perk-level sensory applications are available.
  Page at a Glance
  You have the superhuman reading speed of Stop 
  Motion (p. 30), but none of its other benefits.
  Perfect Pitch
  You can identify or recreate a musical note or tone 
  without a reference tone. You have +2 to all rolls to tune 
  musical instruments or to confirm that they’re in tune 
  (or out of tune), and to Hobby Skill (Whistling) (GURPS 
  Low-Tech Companion 1).
  Synesthesia
  You have cross-modal associations between two 
  senses or cognitive functions, resulting in enhanced cre-
  ativity. You are at +1 to a specific artistic skill or a narrow 
  set of closely related skills, such as Poetry and Writing, 
  when you are using them creatively.
  
   
  Power tAble 
  32
  This table presents the abilities described in Chapters 2 and 3 by the five main powers they are associated with. (For alternate 
  power sources, see p. 5.) It offers the following details.
  Ability: The name of the ability.
  Levels: The maximum number of levels permitted for the ability.
  Cost: The character point cost of the ability’s levels.
  Page: The page reference for the ability.
   Ability 
  Levels 
  Cost 
  Page
  Enhanced Senses (p. 4)
   Active Electroreception 
  1 
  12 
  17
   Analytical Hearing 
  1 
  15 
  20
   Analytical Smell 
  1 
  15 
  24
   Analytical Taste 
  1 
  10 
  24
   Augmented Pinnae 
  1 
  14 
  20
   Blood Taste 
  1 
  9 
  24
   Cutaneous Chemical Sense 
  1 
  8 
  24
   Eagle Eyes 
  1 
  19 
  13
   Feelers 
  1 
  7 
  22
   Hunting Sonar 
  1 
  6 in air/ 
  19
    
   
  4 in water
   Immune Spectrum Detection 
  1 
  9 
  25
   Infrared Sight 
  1 
  10 
  14
   Infrasonic Hearing 
  1 
  8 
  20
   Lateral Line 
  1 
  10 
  22
   Locational Hearing 
  1 
  10 
  20
   Long Feelers 
  1 
  11 
  23
   Magnetic Field Sense 
  1 
  14 
  18
   Night Sight 
  2 
  3/6 
  15
   Passive Electroreception 
  1 
  11 
  17
   Pressure Sense 
  1 
  7 
  23
   Seismic Sense 
  1 
  4 
  22
   Sensory Hairs 
  1 
  10 
  22
   Tactile Imaging 
  1 
  10 
  23
   Thermal Sense 
  1 
  9 
  15
   Ultrasonic Hearing 
  1 
  5 
  21
   Ultraviolet Sight 
  1 
  10 
  16
   Ability 
  Levels 
  Cost 
  Page
  Hypercognition (p. 4)
   Archer’s Trance 
  1 
  4 
  28
   Battle Arc 
  1 
  11 
  28
   Darksense 
  1 
  53 
  28
   Diagnostic Scan 
  1 
  6 
  29
   Object Reading 
  1 
  8 
  29
   Reality Testing 
  1 
  3 
  29
   Sensory Refocus 
  1 
  18 
  31
   Stop Motion 
  1 
  32 
  30
   Super-Balance 
  1 
  14 
  27
   Thought Tracking 
  1 
  9 
  29
   Threat Detection 
  1 
  6 
  29
   Truth Sense 
  1 
  3 
  29
   Visual Profiling 
  1 
  9 
  30
   Voice Profiling 
  1 
  18 
  30
  Sensor Implants (p. 5)
   Blood Group Analyzer 
  1 
  8 
  24
   Capacitive Mesh 
  1 
  24 
  18
   Eye Protection 
  1 
  6 
  14
   Gene Sequencer 
  1 
  9 
  25
   HF/DF 
  1 
  4 
  11
   Hydrophony 
  1 
  28 
  21
   Internal Magnetometer 
  1 
  7 
  18
   Ladar Implants 
  1 
  14 
  14
   Laser Microphone 
  1 
  10 
  14
   Laser Spectrometry 
  1 
  12 
  14
   Laser Targeting 
  1 
  10 
  14
  APPendiX
  Power tAble
  Well, thief! I smell you and I feel your air . I hear your 
  breath . Come along! Help yourself again, there is plenty 
  and to spare!
  – J .R .R . Tolkien, The Hobbit
  
   
  Power tAble 
  33
   Ability 
  Levels 
  Cost 
  Page
  Sensor Implants (continued)
   Light Amplification 
  2 
  3/5 
  15
   Magnifiers 
  1 
  4 
  15
   Metal Detector 
  1 
  4 
  18
   Microphonics 
  1 
  9 
  20
   Nav Implants 
  1 
  20 
  27
   Pressure Gauge 
  1 
  4 
  23
   Radar Detector 
  1 
  4 
  12
   Radar Implants 
  1 
  14 
  12
   Radiation Scanner 
  1 
  11 
  16
   Rewired 
  1 
  23 
  30
   Sensory Link 
  1 
  8 
  30
   Sonar Implants 
  1 
  12 in air/ 
  19
    
   
  8 in water
   T-Ray Implants 
  1 
  18 
  12
   Thermal Locator 
  1 
  6 
  15
   Ultrasound Scanner 
  1 
  4 
  19
   Wiretap 
  1 
  3 
  17
   Zoom 
  1 
  4 
  16
  Sensory Focus (p. 5)
   Archer’s Trance 
  1 
  4 
  28
   Battle Arc 
  1 
  11 
  28
   Darksense 
  1 
  53 
  28
   Diagnostic Scan 
  1 
  6 
  29
   Inner Awareness 
  1 
  18 
  25
   Object Reading 
  1 
  8 
  29
   Stop Motion 
  1 
  32 
  30
   Super-Balance 
  1 
  14 
  27
   Threat Detection 
  1 
  6 
  29
   Truth Sense 
  1 
  3 
  29
  Ability 
  Levels 
  Cost 
  Page
  Supersenses (p. 5)
   Darksense 
  1 
  53 
  28
   Darksight 
  1 
  28 
  12
   Diagnostic Scan 
  1 
  6 
  29
   Enhanced Reality 
  1 
  5 
  29
   Extreme Ultrasonic Hearing 
  1 
  6 
  22
   Farsight 
  1 
  9 
  13
   Genescan 
  1 
  14 
  25
   Glare Adaptation 
  1 
  5 
  13
   Gravimetry 
  1 
  23 
  26
   Imaging Sonar 
  1 
  18 
  19
   Infrasonic Hearing 
  1 
  8 
  20
   Magnetism Detection 
  1 
  9 
  18
   Mass Perception 
  1 
  36 
  26
   Metal Detection 
  1 
  15 
  18
   Micro-Touch 
  1 
  12 
  23
   Microscopic Sight 
  1 
  14 
  14
   Night Sight 
  3 
  3/6/9 
  15
   Object Reading 
  1 
  8 
  29
   Odor of Fear 
  1 
  8 
  24
   Omnivision 
  1 
  38 
  15
   Para-Radar Imaging 
  1 
  36 
  27
   Passive Sonar 
  1 
  34 
  20
   Proximity Sense 
  1 
  31 
  18
   Radar Detection 
  1 
  7 
  12
   Radar Imaging 
  1 
  18 
  12
   Radiation Sense 
  1 
  13 
  16
   Radio Source Detection 
  1 
  7 
  11
   Reality Testing 
  1 
  3 
  29
   Sensory Refocus 
  1 
  18 
  31
   Spy-Ray 
  1 
  58 
  27
   Stop Motion 
  1 
  32 
  30
   Super-Balance 
  1 
  14 
  27
   Super-Hearing 
  1 
  14 
  20
   Super-Smell 
  1 
  14 
  24
   Super-Taste 
  1 
  9 
  24
   Super-Touch 
  1 
  12 
  23
   T-Ray Imaging 
  1 
  23 
  12
   Targeting Hearing 
  1 
  11 
  20
   Thought Tracking 
  1 
  9 
  29
   Threat Detection 
  1 
  6 
  29
   Truth Sense 
  1 
  3 
  29
   Ultrascan 
  1 
  64 
  27
   Ultrasonic Hearing 
  1 
  5 
  21
   Ultrasonography 
  1 
  11 
  19
   Visual Profiling 
  1 
  9 
  30
   Voice Profiling 
  1 
  18 
  30
   Warpsense 
  1 
  9 
  26
   X-Ray Vision 
  1 
  14 
  16
  She was strangely and 
  wonderfully blind, for she  
  could see in the infrared only, 
  from 7,500 angstroms to one 
  millimeter wave lengths, far below 
  the normal visible spectrum .  
  She saw heat waves, magnetic 
  fields, radio waves; she saw her 
  admirers in a strange light of 
  organic emanations against  
  a background of red radiation .
  – Alfred Bester, The Stars  
  My Destination
  
   
  indeX 
  34
  Abilities, alternative, 9; enhancing skills, 
  10; listed by powers, 32-33; long-term 
  fatigue and, 7; senses as attacks, 9; 
  stunts, 9; see also Advantages, Powers, 
  Senses, specific senses.
  Acceleration sense abilities, 27.
  Accelerometer perk, 26.
  Accessory perks, 26.
  Acoustic sense abilities, 19-22.
  Active Electroreception, ability, 10, 17; 
  advantage, 8; long-term fatigue and, 7.
  Advanced Electronic power modifier, 5.
  Advantages, 7-8; modifiers, 8-9; perks, 
  26, 31; Talents, 4, 5; see also Abilities, 
  Powers.
  Analytical Hearing ability, 20.
  Analytical Smell ability, 24.
  Analytical Taste ability, 24.
  Archer’s Trance ability, 28.
  Augmented Pinnae ability, 20.
  Bad Sight disadvantage, 12; new versions, 
  12.
  Battle Arc ability, 28.
  Biological (Passive) power modifier, 4.
  Blood Group Analyzer ability, 24-25.
  Blood Taste ability, 10, 24.
  Cable Jack advantage, 8.
  Capacitive Mesh ability, 18.
  Chemical sense abilities, 23-25.
  Chi power modifier, 5.
  Chi sense abilities, 25.
  Circuit Probe perk, 26.
  Cosmic power modifier, 5.
  Costs Fatigue limitation, 7.
  Cutaneous Chemical Sense ability, 10, 24.
  Darksense ability, 28-29.
  Darksight ability, 12.
  Detect advantage, arc, 6; classification, 6; 
  fields and, 7; range, 6.
  Diagnostic Scan ability, 10, 29.
  Disadvantages, new, 12.
  Discriminatory senses, 6.
  Divine power modifier, 5.
  Eagle Eyes ability, 13.
  Electric current abilities, 17.
  Electric field abilities, 17-18.
  Electric sense abilities, 17-18.
  Electromagnetic radiation sense abilities, 
  11-16.
  Electronic power modifier, 5.
  Enhanced Reality ability, 29.
  Enhanced Senses power, 4; ability list, 32.
  Extreme Ultrasonic Hearing ability, 22.
  Eye Protection ability, 14.
  Eyes, see Vision.
  Farsight ability, 13.
  Fatigue, long-term, 7.
  Feelers ability, 22; long, 23.
  Field Sense advantage, 17.
  Field senses, 7.
  Gamma ray sense abilities, 16.
  Gene Sequencer ability, 10, 25.
  Genescan ability, 10, 25.
  Genomic sense abilities, 25.
  Glare Adaptation ability, 13-14.
  Gravimetry ability, 10, 26.
  Gravitational sense abilities, 25-27.
  GURPS, 3, 7, 21; Basic Set, 3, 4;  
  Bio-Tech, 3; High-Tech, 3, 7;  
  Low-Tech Companion 1, 31; Magic, 
  4, 5; Power-Ups 2: Perks, 26, 28; 
  Powers, 3, 4, 7-10, 26; Psionic 
  Powers, 4; Space, 3, 26; Supers, 17; 
  Thaumatology, 4, 5; Thaumatology: 
  Chinese Elemental Powers, 5, 7, 25; 
  Ultra-Tech, 3, 7, 8, 13, 26, 27.
  Hearing, abilities, 19-22; arc, 6; 
  classification, 6; loudness effects, 21; 
  loudness levels, 21; range, 6; tunnels 
  and, 22.
  HF/DF ability, 11.
  Hunting Sonar ability, 10, 19; long-term 
  fatigue and, 7.
  Hydrophony ability, 21.
  Hypercognition power, 4; ability list, 32.
  Hypersensory abilities, 28-29.
  Hypersensory modifiers, 8-9.
  Illumination levels, 13.
  Illumination perk, 26.
  Imaging Sonar ability, 10, 19; long-term 
  fatigue and, 7.
  Immune Spectrum Detection ability, 10, 
  25.
  Infrared Sight ability, 10, 14.
  Infrasonic Hearing ability, 10, 20.
  Infravision advantage, 7-8; classification, 
  7.
  Inner Awareness ability, 10, 25.
  Internal Magnetometer ability, 18.
  IQ rolls, abilities and, 10; Talents and, 4.
  Ladar abilities, 12-16; classification, 7.
  Ladar Implants ability, 10, 14.
  Laser Microphone ability, 14.
  Laser Spectrometry ability, 10, 14.
  Laser Targeting ability, 14.
  Lateral Line ability, 22.
  Light Amplification ability, 15.
  Locational Hearing ability, 20.
  Long enhancements, 9.
  Long Feelers ability, 23.
  Long-Range Smell perk, 26.
  Loudness, effects, 21; levels, 21.
  Magical power modifier, 5.
  Magnetic Field Sense ability, 18.
  Magnetic fields abilities, 18.
  Magnetic sense abilities, 17-18.
  Magnetism Detection ability, 18.
  Magnifiers ability, 10, 15.
  Mass Perception ability, 10, 26.
  Megahertz Sonar advantage, 7, 8.
  Melee Attack limitation, 6; near-field 
  senses and, 6.
  Metal Detection ability, 10, 18; long-term 
  fatigue and, 7.
  Metal Detector ability, 10, 18.
  Micro-Touch ability, 23.
  Microphonics ability, 20.
  Microscopic enhancement, 9.
  indeX
  To know ultraviolet, 
  Infrared and X-rays,
  Beauty to find
  In so many ways
  – The Moody Blues,  
  “The Word”
  
   
  indeX 
  35
  Microscopic Sight ability, 10, 14-15.
  Modifiers, 8-9; normal senses and, 9.
  Nature power modifier, 5.
  Nav Implants ability, 27.
  Near Infrared Vision advantage, 8.
  Night Sight ability, 15.
  No Depth Perception limitations, 16.
  No Increase in Vertical Arc limitation, 16.
  Nondirectional limitation, 9.
  Object Reading ability, 10, 29.
  Odor of Fear ability, 10, 24.
  Omnivision ability, 10, 15.
  Only (Sense) limitation, 5.
  Orientation sense abilities, 27.
  Page at a Glance perk, 31.
  Para-Radar Imaging ability, 10, 27; long-
  term fatigue and, 7.
  Para-sense abilities, 27; classification, 7.
  Passive Electroreception ability, 10, 17.
  Passive Sonar ability, 20.
  Perceptual speed abilities, 30.
  Perfect Pitch perk, 31.
  Peripheral Vision advantage, 16; special 
  limitations, 16.
  Perks, 26, 31.
  Polarization Detection perk, 26.
  Powers, ability lists, 32-33; benefits of 
  Talents, 4; including sensory abilities 
  in, 5; sources, 4-5; see also Abilities, 
  Advantages, Senses.
  Precise enhancement, 8.
  Pressure Gauge ability, 23.
  Pressure Sense ability, 23.
  Pressure sense class of abilities, 22-23.
  Profiling enhancement, 8.
  Proteomic sense abilities, 24-25.
  Proximity Sense ability, 18; long-term 
  fatigue and, 7.
  Psionic power modifier, 5.
  Radar abilities, 11-12; classification, 7.
  Radar Detection ability, 12.
  Radar Detector ability, 12.
  Radar Imaging ability, 10, 12; long-term 
  fatigue and, 7.
  Radar Implants ability, 10, 12.
  Radiation Scanner ability, 10, 16.
  Radiation Sense ability, 10, 16.
  Radio abilities, 11-12.
  Radio Receiver perk, 26.
  Radio Source Detection ability, 11.
  Reading speed, 23.
  Reality Testing ability, 29.
  Reflexive enhancement, 7.
  Restricted Arc limitation, 9.
  Rewired ability, 30.
  Robust Sense perk, 26.
  Savant power modifier, 4.
  Scanning Sense advantage, 8; arc, 6; new 
  limitation, 9; range, 6.
  Seismic Sense ability, 10, 22.
  Sense rolls, 9; abilities and, 9; Talents  
  and, 4.
  Senses, active, 7; arc, 6; as attacks, 9; 
  definition, 4; field, 7; general aspects 
  of, 6-7; hierarchy, 6-7; hierarchy chart, 
  7; near-field, 6; passive, 7; range, 6, 
  10; skills and, 9-10; see also Abilities, 
  Advantages, Powers.
  Sensor Implants power, 5; ability list, 
  32-33.
  Sensory Focus power, 5; ability list, 33.
  Sensory Hairs ability, 22.
  Sensory knowledge abilities, 30.
  Sensory Link ability, 30.
  Sensory Refocus ability, 31.
  Shared senses abilities, 30-31.
  Sight, classification, 7; human vision, 15; 
  illumination levels, 13; reading speed, 
  23.
  Signal Detection, range penalties, 6.
  Skills, enhancing abilities, 9-10; vision 
  modifiers and, 15.
  Smell, abilities, 23-24; classification, 6; 
  range, 6.
  Sonar abilities, 19; classification, 7.
  Sonar Implants ability, 10, 19.
  Spy-Ray ability, 27; long-term fatigue and, 
  7.
  Stethoscopic enhancement, 8.
  Stop Motion ability, 30.
  Super power modifier, 5.
  Super-Balance ability, 27.
  Super-Hearing ability, 20.
  Super-Smell ability, 24.
  Super-Taste ability, 24.
  Super-Touch ability, 23.
  Superscience power modifier, 5.
  Supersenses power, 5; ability list, 33.
  Switchable enhancement, 7.
  Synesthesia abilities, 31.
  Synesthesia perk, 31.
  T-Ray Imaging ability, 10, 12; long-term 
  fatigue and, 7.
  T-Ray Implants ability, 10, 12.
  Tables, illumination, 13; loudness, 21; 
  sensory hierarchy chart, 7.
  Tactile Imaging ability, 23.
  Tactile senses, abilities, 22-23; 
  classification, 6, 7; reading speed, 23.
  Talents, benefits of getting, 4; limitation, 5.
  Targeting enhancement, 8.
  Targeting Hearing ability, 20.
  Targeting Only limitation, 8.
  Taste, abilities, 24; classification, 6.
  Telecommunication advantage, 8; range, 
  6; range penalties, 6.
  Tetrachromatism perk, 26.
  Thermal Infrared Vision advantage, 8.
  Thermal Locator ability, 15-16.
  Thermal Sense ability, 15.
  Thought Tracking ability, 29.
  Threat Detection ability, 29.
  Touch, see Tactile Senses.
  Triangulation ability, 10.
  Truth Sense ability, 29.
  Ultrascan ability, 10, 27.
  Ultrasonic Hearing ability, 21.
  Ultrasonography ability, 10, 19; long-term 
  fatigue and, 7.
  Ultrasound Scanner ability, 10, 19.
  Ultraviolet Sight ability, 10, 16.
  Under the hood, 6, 26.
  Universal enhancement, 8.
  Universal Smell perk, 26.
  Vertical Only limitation, 16.
  Vibration sense abilities, 22.
  Vibration Sense advantage, 8; arc, 6; 
  classification, 7; range, 6.
  Vibratory sense abilities, 19-22.
  Vision, abilities, 12-16; arc, 6; 
  classification, 6, 7; extra eyes and, 
  16; illumination levels and, 13; 
  impairment, 12; modifiers for rolls, 15; 
  range, 6.
  Visual Profiling ability, 10, 30.
  Voice Profiling ability, 10, 30.
  Warpsense ability, 10, 26-27.
  Wiretap ability, 17.
  X-ray sense abilities, 16.
  X-Ray Vision ability, 10, 16; long-term 
  fatigue and, 7.
  Zoom ability, 10, 16.
  She’d walked past a stall selling roasted meats and her 
  mouth had started to drool! The sense of smell wanted 
  the body to eat without consulting the brain!
  – Terry Pratchett, Thief of Time
  
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SOURCE: textdata/thevault/GURPS [multi]/4th edition/GURPS 4e - Powers Enhanced Senses .pdf