TEXT: Complete Omniversal Role-Playing System
  Complete Omniversal Role-Playing System
  Greg Porter
  Greg Porter
  
  
  Intro to the .pdf edition
  As the advantages and limitations of .pdf documents evolve,
  so does the “standard” BTRC document format. The lightly
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  As usual for BTRC hypertext documents, text in red is usu-
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  lems, we've left out the blue destination links. Colored text
  boxes serve the same function as in the hardcopy version of
  CORPS, green i
  i
  i
  i boxes for general info, blue ﬁ« boxes
  for alerts and red –ø boxes for things you just shouldn't be
  doing. Items in reversed text are just for visual contrast and
  have no special function other than a major subject heading.
  If you have problems with the reversed text, check to make
  sure your printer driver is set to raster mode.
  Printing this
  This should print well on normal 8.5“ x 11“ paper, and on the
  European A4 size as well. For best color printing we sug-
  gest a resolution of 360dpi or better, and the use of diffusion
  dither rather than regular halftones. The color mix is
  designed to be either a pure CMYK color or a 50-50 mix of
  two of them. Red is 50% magenta and 50% yellow, for
  instance. On laser printers, a modern 600dpi printer should
  do an excellent job. If you can adjust the level of halftone
  screening, it should be at least 85 lines per inch. Laser print-
  ers of 300dpi resolution provide adequate output for all
  pages of this document. 
   
  0
  0
  HYPERTEXT 1.0
  
  1994, 1998 by Greg Porter
  Published by: 
  Blacksburg Tactical Research Center
  P.O. Box 1121
  Collinsville VA 24078 USA
  email : 
  btrc@btrc.net
  web: 
  http://www.btrc.net/index.html
  Design: 
  Greg Porter
  Artwork: 
  Darrell Midgette
  Graphics: 
  Greg Porter
  Playtesters: 
  Dennis Cooke, Catherine DeMott, 
  Vince Esposito, H. Donald Flippen, 
  Lynn Gollwitzer, Matt Hazelgrove, Bret Jones, 
  Rod Klampfer, John Kolb, Otto Kopra, 
  Angel Ludwig, Jasper Merendino, 
  Darrell Midgette, Kreela Moore, R. Todd Pack, 
  Eric R. Samson, Greg Steele, Kenneth 
  Switzer, Jr., W.Kent Taylor, Byron S. Webb, 
  Ted West
  Special thanks: 
  Darrell Midgette, John Kolb, Jasper Merendino
  Dedicated to: 
  Cathy
  1st edition, November, 1990
  2nd edition, April 1995
  Hypertext edition 1.0, October 1998
  Printed in the United States of America
  All rights reserved
  Protected by the International Copyright Convention
  Enforced by Rocko and Guido
  This work may not be duplicated in part or in whole by any
  means, including text, electronic, facsimile, energy to matter 
  conversion or ether-wave transmission, without express written
  permission from the publisher.
  B
  BASIC
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  RULES
  ULES
  
  Megaforce ..........................................70
  Explosions.......................................70
  Grenades ........................................70
  Vehicles...........................................71
  Hit locations.................................71
  Vehicle combat............................71
  Mass Combat..................................74
  Life in the Real World .......................79
  Breaking Things ..............................79
  Drugs & Diseases ...........................81
  Environment....................................82
  Exertion...........................................83
  The Law ..........................................84
  i
  NPC's ..............................................87
  Papers & Paychecks.......................88
  Smuggling .......................................89
  Spotting Things ...............................90
  Tech Levels.....................................91
  Travel ..............................................92
  i
  You and your body..........................92
  Paranormal Powers...........................95
  Buying an ability..............................95
  Cost modifiers .............................96
  Minimum cost..............................99
  Foci .................................................99
  Paranormal Frameworks...............102
  Powers ..........................................104
  Absorb.......................................104
  Add............................................104
  Armor ........................................104
  Blast ..........................................105
  Block .........................................105
  Clairsentience ...........................105
  Create .......................................105
  Detect........................................105
  Dominate...................................106
  Multiples....................................106
  Area Multiple .........................107
  Power Multiple.......................107
  Time Multiple.........................107
  Target Multiple ......................108
  Mental Blast ..............................108
  Precognition ..............................108
  Protect.......................................108
  Shapeshift .................................108
  Subtract.....................................109
  Telekinesis ................................109
  Telepathy ..................................110
  Teleport.....................................110
  Cyberware.................................112
  Natural paranormal abilities ..........114
  Dealing with the Supernatural.......114
  i Campaigning ...................................116
  Power Level ..................................116
  Creating a campaign.....................116
  Campaign direction .......................117
  Pre-game notes.............................118
  Plot................................................119
  i
  Problems.......................................121
  Experience ....................................123
  Training .........................................124
  ASP awards ..................................125
  i Equipment Lists ..............................126
  Index.................................................132
  Character sheet ...............................133
  CORPS is supposed to be remarkably
  easy to use. Each major section has
  its own distinctive icon, and major
  subheadings are easy to spot.
  i If you are just getting started in role-
  playing games, or with this game in
  particular, the sections of the contents
  with this label are the ones you should
  check out first. 
  If all else fails, use the table of con-
  tents and see the section that seems
  closest to what you are looking for.
  i Introduction .........................................2
  Designer’s Notes ..............................3
  Character Generation .........................4
  i
  Attributes .........................................4
  Aptitude.........................................6
  i
  Skills.................................................7
  Skill types......................................8
  Difficulty.........................................8
  Skill trees.......................................9
  Professions .................................12
  Tech Level skills..........................12
  Free skills....................................12
  Automatic tasks...........................13
  Cultural limits...............................13
  Character background.................15
  i
  Ads & Disads.................................16
  Age..............................................16
  Authority......................................17
  Background.................................17
  Contacts......................................18
  Dependence................................19
  Destiny ........................................19
  Duty.............................................20
  Enemies ......................................20
  Extra Limb...................................21
  Fame...........................................21
  Frailness......................................22
  Habitual Behavior........................22
  Height/Weight..............................22
  Immortality...................................22
  Inheritance ..................................23
  Luck.............................................23
  Natural Aptitude ..........................23
  Natural Debility............................23
  Non-combatant............................23
  Pain tolerance .............................23
  Papers.........................................24
  Physical Ad .................................24
  Physical Lim................................25
  Psych Lim....................................25
  Size .............................................26
  Toughness ..................................27
  Tricks...........................................27
  Vulnerability.................................27
  Wealth.........................................27
  i
  Lifestyle...........................................29
  Non-human characters....................30
  i
  Character templates........................30
  i ASP’s..................................................35
  i Basic Skill Use...................................37
  Complementary skills......................38
  General Task Difficulty....................38
  General Task Modifiers...................38
  Optional Skill Rules.........................39
  i
  Sample Task listing.........................41
  Combat Basics ..................................42
  Initiative...........................................42
  Number of actions.......................43
  Sequencing .....................................43
  Held actions ................................43
  Action penalties...........................43
  Scale & Movement..........................44
  Damage...........................................45
  Damage Value ............................45
  Armor Value ....................................46
  Special armors ................................46
  Hit locations.....................................47
  Impairments ....................................47
  Special cases..............................49
  First aid ...........................................51
  Recovery.........................................51
  Permanent Injuries......................52
  Combat Tactics ...............................52
  Melee Combat....................................53
  Base Defense..................................53
  Modified Defense ............................53
  Maneuvers ......................................54
  Attacks ............................................54
  Actions ............................................54
  Carryover ........................................54
  Melee Skills .....................................54
  Maneuver Descriptions ...................55
  Optional Rules.................................58
  Ranged Combat.................................61
  Difficulty...........................................61
  Range Mod......................................61
  Range and damage.........................61
  Called shots ....................................61
  Increased damage shots.................62
  Out of combat..................................62
  Rate of fire.......................................62
  Movement .......................................62
  Recoil ..............................................63
  Autofire............................................63
  Shotguns.........................................63
  Advanced Rules..............................64
  Sample Combat ..............................67
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  11
  i
  CONTENTS
  
   
  “Part of being a game designer is the grim knowledge that at any
  moment you could be replaced by an infinite number of monkeys...”
  Greg Porter
  What is CORPS?
  CORPS is a role-playing game, an exercise of the imagina-
  tion and mind, where you take on the role of an adventurer
  in an exotic setting, slaying dragons, foiling villains, righting
  wrongs and occasionally saving the universe for fun and
  profit.
  The Rules
  The rules of the game set the boundaries of this imaginary
  reality. They give the person running the game (the Game-
  master, or GM) a way to arbitrate sticky situations that in a
  movie would be handled by the script. In a role-playing
  game, there is no script, however. So, there are guidelines
  to cover these situations, like “how much can I lift?”, “how
  skilled am I at my job?”, or “just how much did that hurt, any-
  way?”.
  The Genre
  Is the type of story your game will tell. These can be of any
  type, and genres you might consider these rules for could
  be:
  Espionage
  Characters are secret agents working for a
  shadowy government agency.
  High Fantasy
  Characters are adventurers in some past or
  future world of magic and swordsmanship. 
  Post-ruin
  Characters are survivors in a world devastated
  by natural or artificial disasters.
  Superheroes
  Characters are superbeings fighting crime and
  injustice.
  Conspiracy
  Characters are ordinary people caught in a
  global web of intrigue.
  Time Travel
  Characters travel through different times and
  dimensions to survive, avoid pursuit, or correct
  injustice.
  Dark Nihlism
  Characters are survivors in a violent, decadent
  society where financial and social advancement
  is based on combat and guile.
  Exploration
  Characters are exploring a new frontier of some
  type.
  Space Opera
  Characters are citizens of a interstellar empire,
  with its attendant intrigue and other sentient
  races.
  Often, these genres can be combined and mixed with little
  difficulty. For instance, characters could be spies in a low-
  tech fantasy world, combining espionage and fantasy, or
  superpowered mutants in a post-ruin world, combining these
  two genres. 
  The Gamemaster
  Is the one who runs the show. The GM provides the back-
  ground setting (espionage, wizardry, space exploration,
  etc.), and provides the background personalities that the
  characters interact with (the street contact that you got a
  vital piece of information from, for instance). The GM also
  uses the rules to arbitrate actions between characters and
  these personalities, like using the levels of skill to determine
  who wins a fistfight. In movie terms, the GM provides the
  stage, plot and extras, while the characters are the stars.
  The Players
  These are the “real people” playing the game. They don’t
  dress up for the part, or wander around a stage. Rather,
  they take the verbal setting provided by the GM, and provide
  the dialogue and descriptions of what they do. Most of the
  action takes place in everyone’s head, although there are
  times when a map of things is useful to see where people
  are and what they are up to.
  2
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  11
  INTRO-
  DUCTION
  i Information
  Throughout the rules, you may see a number of symbols in
  the margins of the text. These are to help you with rule prob-
  lems that may crop up, or answers to commonly asked
  questions. The first one is the information symbol, which
  explains a subject in a little more detail, or provides a quick
  synopsis of a longer rule topic.
  ﬁ« Alert!
  This is a notice. You may be referred to other related sec-
  tions of the rules. There might also be a pitfall in the rules
  here, a paranormal power that can be exploited, or some-
  thing that you really should remember about this section.
  –ø Don't do that!
  This is a note that a particular rule or item should not be
  used in a particular manner.
  There are other icons in the rules as well, designed to draw
  your eye to a particular topic faster than skimming the head-
  ings would.
  
  The Characters
  These are the actors in the story, imaginary personalities
  that act and interact with each other and the other inhabi-
  tants of the game world. They may have abilities vastly dif-
  ferent than the person playing them (the player), but they
  are still an aspect of the player’s personality, since it is the
  player who controls their words and actions. A character is
  represented not only by these actions, but by a character
  sheet, a piece of paper that assigns numerical ratings to the
  character’s abilities, like strength, agility, degree of skill and
  so on. This provides a permanent record of the character’s
  abilities, and allows comparison of the character to other
  characters or inhabitants of the game world.
  Dice
  Dice are what you use to determine the random and semi-
  random outcomes of events in the game world. For
  instance, the chance of a lottery ticket being a winner is ran-
  dom. However, the chance that you can hit a target with a
  gun is semi-random. That is, you have a certain level of
  expertise with firearms that influences your overall chance
  of success, but your chance of a particular shot going where
  you want requires a die roll, with higher skills having a better
  chance of success. Using dice to resolve situations will be
  more fully explained later.
  Plot
  The plot is the second most important thing in the game. All
  good adventures or riveting stories have a good plot. If you
  look at your favorite movie or novel, you can probably write
  down the basic plot in a paragraph or so. The tricky part is
  turning this outline into an enjoyable adventure. The plot
  should not be confining. Players should not feel they are
  simply going through motions to reach a pre-determined
  outcome. The story written is a joint venture of the GM and
  players. The GM may have a story in mind, but characters
  will often surprise the GM, or go in directions totally
  unplanned for, and the GM needs to be flexible enough to
  take this possibility into account.
  Having fun
  Is the most important thing in the game. You don’t play a
  role-playing game to create a story, or expound on a theme.
  You play to have a good time, and the story and theme
  should follow naturally from that. The GM needs to create
  an interesting world that players want to have characters in,
  and players need to create characters that they will enjoy
  running into the wonders and challenges of this world.
  Everyone is supposed to have a good time, even if you get
  annoyed and frustrated on occasion.
  Designer’s Notes
  CORPS is (to me at least), a radical departure in RPG
  design and philosophy. While designing it in early 1990, the
  thought of creating a role-playing system without the “roll”
  was enough to make me totally abandon other projects until
  I had the bare bones of the system down on paper. CORPS
  makes it possible to phase out over 90% of the dice rolls
  you would have to make in a normal system, but yet retains
  a level of realism that is unmatched by any other game of
  equal ease of play. If you have to read a rule twice to under-
  stand it, we did something wrong. CORPS is a system
  where the same modifiers apply to all characters, and once
  you know a basic rule, expanding it to cover other situations
  should be easy and intuitive.
  There are some who say that the story is everything, rules
  just get in the way, and that the system used is irrelevant...
  The answer to that is that while you can pound nails with
  your forehead if you want to, a hammer is a much more
  effective tool for the job. Roleplaying is more than just a GM
  making up a story with occasional input from players to give
  the illusion of free will. It is the combination of plot, personal-
  ities, skills and sometimes blind chance that keeps everyone
  on their toes and coming back for more. 
  A role-playing game is a tool to help a group of people, the
  players and GM, tell a story. Game systems do matter. A
  good GM can make any game great, but it certainly does
  not hurt to have a good system to begin with.
  That is what CORPS is supposed to be. A fast-moving, easy
  to learn system that provides enough realism and chance to
  make players think of the consequences of their actions. A
  system that is detailed, without being so mired in minutia
  that doing things becomes more an exercise in indexing
  than tactics. A system where characters have some certain-
  ty in their ability to get things done without dice rolls, and the
  uncertain chance of doing things in haste or beyond your
  normal skills.
  Just remember that everything here is only a guideline. If
  you can think of a better way to do something, go with it.
  Last, thanks to those who made the 1st edition a success,
  and to all who read this, I hope you like it as well.
  Good gaming,
  Greg Porter
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  3
  3
  
  Basics
  CORPS is the Complete Omniversal Role-Playing System,
  a simple game system that lets you create characters for
  play in any genre. 
  What is a character?
  A character is one of the inhabitants of the fictional world
  created by the GM. Like characters in a book or film, they
  have their own history and motivations, friends and ene-
  mies, and most importantly, a reason for doing things more
  exciting and dangerous than the average person. Your char-
  acter is represented most of all by you, the player. It is your
  attitudes and motivations that make the character work. To
  assist this, your character will have certain skills and attrib-
  utes that serve as a relative comparison between the char-
  acter and those individuals or adventure situations that are
  encountered.
  Example - You, as a person, are taking a walk, and a dog
  comes up and growls at you. You unconsciously make a
  threat comparison of your skill with the end of your foot and
  the dog’s skill with its teeth. If the comparison is vastly in
  your favor, you stand your ground. If odds are against you,
  you run. If they are about even, you have to decide.
  Likewise, if your character is confronted with the situation,
  you have a numerical rating that represents how well you
  kick, and how much damage you do, and the dog has a rat-
  ing for its attack and damage. You as a player compare
  these numbers, decide what the likely outcomes are, and
  then have your character perform the appropriate action.
  Your character will be built off a total of points, which are
  applied towards your skills and abilities. The better the abili-
  ty, the more points it costs. So, all characters are more or
  less equal. Your character can get more points by taking on
  certain limitations that can influence the way they act in a
  certain situation, or how the other people in the campaign
  treat them. These are sort of a “reward” for placing a hurdle
  in your character’s path that they must overcome.
  Example - A player wants their character to be chivalrous to
  a fault. This can get them in trouble in a number of situa-
  tions, so they get some extra points to compensate for it.
  Character Points
  Your CORPS character will be bought from two sets of
  points, Attribute Points and Skill Points (AP and SP).
  Characters have a default starting age of 16 years old, and
  get a number of AP and SP based on the campaign type,
  which usually falls into one of the four categories below.
  Note that AP and SP are not interchangeable. 
  “Real-world” campaigns
  100AP
  50SP
  Cinematic adventure
  150AP
  100SP
  High fantasy
  200AP
  150SP
  Superheroic adventure
  200AP
  200SP
  These points can be altered by taking ads or disads (p.16),
  through the purchase of special abilities (p.95), or invested
  in non-stat parts of character design.
  ﬁ« The thing to do right now is get an idea of what your charac-
  ter is supposed to be like, get a rough idea of the cost in AP
  and SP, and see if you've gone totally overboard.
  Attributes
  Your CORPS character will have 6 attributes, each of which
  will serve usually several functions. The character’s score in
  each attribute is marked down on the character sheet in the
  appropriate spot, along with the cost in AP.
  STR
  Strength - physical strength
  AGL
  Agility - dexterity, coordination
  AWR
  Awareness - IQ, perception
  WIL
  Will - toughness, personality, looks
  HLT
  Health - constitution, recovery, stamina
  POW
  Power - psychic potential
  People will usually range from 1-10 in each of these attribut-
  es, and the cost of a given Attribute level is the level times
  itself, so a level of 1 would cost 1AP, a level of 3 would cost
  9AP, a level of 5 would cost 25AP, and so on.
  Level
  Cost
  Average man*
  Average woman*
  1
  1
  STR
  5
  STR
  4
  2
  4
  AGL
  4
  AGL
  5
  3
  9
  AWR
  4
  AWR
  4
  4
  16
  WIL
  4
  WIL
  4
  5
  25
  HLT
  5
  HLT
  5
  6
  36
  POW
  1
  POW
  1
  7
  49
  8
  64
  *Based on 99AP
  9
  81
  10
  100
  Example - A player wishes their character to have an above
  average STR attribute, and buys a level of 6. This costs 36
  of their AP, points which are now used up and no longer
  available to put towards other attributes or character advan-
  tages. You would place a “6” in the box for STR, and 36 in
  the box for the cost in AP.
  44
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  CORPS
  CHARACTER
  GENERATION
  
  Strength (STR)
  Strength is a measure of your overall physical strength, how
  much you can lift, and how much damage you can cause
  with melee attacks or weapons.
  Your normal carrying capacity is your STR squared in kilo-
  grams (STR times STR), and you may carry up to a quarter
  of this (round to nearest kg) before you are impaired by the
  load. You take a +1 Difficulty to all physical actions if you are
  encumbered, and an additional +1 if carrying over half your
  capacity. If you carry over your normal capacity, each multi-
  ple of your normal maximum is an extra +2 to all physical
  actions, rounding up. Being encumbered means you tire
  quicker, and cannot run or fight as fast. Most routine adven-
  turing will not encumber a character, but those times that
  require extended outdoor journeying or wearing of heavy
  armor will be at some encumbrance penalty.
  STR
  Unenc.(+0)
  Half(+1)
  Full(+2)
  Max.(+10)
  1
  0kg
  1kg
  1kg
  5kg
  2
  1kg
  2kg
  4kg
  20kg
  3
  2kg
  5kg
  9kg
  45kg
  4
  4kg
  8kg
  16kg
  80kg
  5
  6kg
  13kg
  25kg
  125kg
  6
  9kg
  18kg
  36kg
  180kg
  7
  12kg
  25kg
  49kg
  245kg
  8
  16kg
  32kg
  64kg
  320kg
  9
  20kg
  41kg
  81kg
  405kg
  10
  25kg
  50kg
  100kg
  500kg
  Example - A STR 5 character has a normal full load of (STR
  x STR), or 25kg, and can carry a quarter of this, or 6kg with-
  out being impaired. From a quarter load to half load (7-
  13kg), they take a +1 penalty, and from 14-25kg they take a
  +2. They can carry more, but at a higher penalty. For
  instance, they can move 26-50kg at a +4, 51-75kg at a +6,
  76-100kg at a +8, and 101-125kg at a +10. You can never
  move anything past the +10 level, and most people will be
  unable to move at all past the +8 level, since the penalty to
  actions subtracts from the normal human maximum move of
  9 meters per second.
  Mark down your encumbrance levels in the area below your
  attributes for quick reference in play.
  i In the interest of providing minutia of possible game use, the
  amount of weight you can hold or pull with your arms is your
  maximum carrying capacity (half per arm). The amount you
  can push with your arms is half your maximum carrying
  capacity (half per arm). The amount you can push with your
  legs (braced) is four times your maximum carrying capacity
  (half per leg). For instance, a 90kg character with a STR of
  6 can barely do a one-handed chin-up, since their maximum
  load is 180kg, and they can pull half that much with one arm
  (if they are not tired or at all encumbered).
  5
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  These levels are sharply scaled, and 90% of an average
  human population will range from 3 to 7. Exceptional individ-
  uals have 8’s or higher in an attribute, and most of the time
  it is obvious. 
  That is, a person with an 7+ in STR is obviously muscular,
  while a person with a WIL of 7+ has a penetrating, forceful
  personality that tends to overshadow those around them.
  Likewise, very low levels of an attribute are also noticeable.
  A low STR character looks like a weakling, a low WIL char-
  acter is wimpy, a low HLT character looks sickly, and so on.
  For those attributes which do not usually have overt physical
  or emotional manifestation (like POW), low or high levels
  are not especially noticeable in casual encounters with the
  person.
  i If the idea you have for a character relies heavily on a par-
  ticular attribute, the character should have at least a 6 in
  that attribute (10 for superheros). Combat oriented charac-
  ters will require agility, and should have a 6+ in AGL. An
  academic character will have more intellectual skills, and
  should have a 6+ in AWR. Characters with high stamina
  should have a good HLT, and those who are tough,
  indomitable or charismatic should have a good WIL.
  ﬁ« One of the options in character creation is that of a Physical
  Ad (p.24). This lets you have a bonus in a particular part of
  an attribute at a lower cost than buying all the uses of the
  attribute at a high level.
  Name: _______________
  Height: _____cm Age: ____
  LEVEL
  PTS
  APT
  STR
  AGL
  AWR
  WIL
  HLT
  POW
  Occupation: ___________
  Weight: _____kg
  Appearance: _________________________
  Background: ________________
  ™
  BLACKSBURG TACTICAL RESEARCH CENTER
  Carrying capacity:
  Unencumbered (STR2 x .25)   
  Half encumbered (STR2 x .5)
  Full encumbered (STR2 x 1)
  2x encumbered (STR2 x 2)    
  3x encumbered (STR2 x 3)    
  4x encumbered (STR2 x 4)   
  5x encumbered (STR2 x 5) 
  Mass
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  Penalty
  +0
  +1
  +2
  +4
  +6
  +8
  +10
  Ads & Disads:
  ________________________
  ________________________
  ________________________
  ________________________
  ________________________
  ________________________
  ________________________
  ________________________
  ________________________
  ________________________
  Base amount
  Total AP and SP
  AP
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  SP
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  Skills:
  ___________________
  ___________________
  ___________________
  ___________________
  ___________________
  ___________________
  ___________________
  ___________________
  ___________________
  ___________________
  ___________________
  ___________________
  ___________________
  ___________________
  ___________________
  ___________________
  ___________________
  ___________________
  ___________________
  ___________________
  ___________________
  ___________________
  Total skill cost
  Cost
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  Level
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  Exp.
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  SP
  =Non-lethal
  =Lethal
  =HLT
  1
  2
  6
  7
  Carried items
  Hat  
  ____________
  ____________
  Shirt pocket
  ____________
  ____________    
  ____________    
  ____________
  Jacket
  ____________    
  ____________    
  ____________    
  ____________
  ____________
  ____________
  Trouser pocket
  ____________    
  ____________    
  ____________    
  ____________
  Boot/ankle
  ____________    
  ____________    
  ____________    
  ____________
  Jewelry, etc.:
  ____________    
  ____________    
  ____________    
  ____________
  Other:
  ____________    
  ____________    
  ____________    
  ____________
  ____________    
  ____________    
  ____________    
  ____________
  ____________    
  ____________    
  ____________ 
  ____________ 
  ____________ 
  ____________ 
  ____________ 
  ____________ 
  ____________ 
  ____________ 
  ____________ 
  ____________ 
  ____________ 
  ____________ 
  Size
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  Mass
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  Permanent Injury Record
  ASP's
  Exertion
  Current
  HLT
  Whole 
  body
  Other
  Health & Armor
  AV: __/__
  AV: __/__
  AV: __/__
  AV: __/__
  AV: __/__
  AV: 
  __/__
  AV: 
  __/__
  3-4
  5
  8
  9
  10
  p.4
  p.6
  p.5
  p.22
  p.53
  p.5
  p.16
  p.7
  p.52
  p.35
  p.83
  p.48
  p.46
  p.16
  Melee defense
  Base defense
    plus Dodge
    plus Block
    plus both
  : ___
  : ___
  : ___
  : ___
  Melee offense
  Punch
    Damage
  Kick
    Damage
  : ___
  : ___
  : ___
  : ___
  
  Aptitude
  An attribute represents raw potential or broad, non-specific
  experience. This potential gives the characters a low level of
  skill in all areas governed by that attribute.
  Example - A person with a high AGL would be naturally bet-
  ter at swinging a sword than a person with a low AGL, but
  would still not be as good as a person who was actually
  trained.
  All characters have a minimum chance to perform skills,
  based on their level of the attribute on which the skill is
  based. Your default level of skill in each attribute is equal to
  one-quarter the attribute, rounding to the nearest whole
  number. This represents any natural common sense or abili-
  ty that could be applied to performing the task.
  Attribute
  Aptitude
  SP savings 
   
  per skill
  1
  0
  0SP
  2-5
  1
  1SP
  6-9
  2
  4SP
  10-13
  3
  9SP
  14-17
  4
  16SP
  18-21
  5
  25SP
  Example - A character with an AWR of 6 has a base skill of
  2 in any skill based on the AWR attribute, while a person
  with an AWR of 5 has a base skill of 1.
  ﬁ« This is important, since the cost of your skills in SP is based
  on how far up you buy them from your Aptitude level. That
  is, a skill level of 1 costs 1SP. So, if your Aptitude with AWR
  skills was 1, you would save 1SP off the cost of each and
  every AWR-based skill. If your Aptitude with AWR skills
  were 2, a skill of 2 costs 4SP, so you would save 4SP off
  the cost of each and every AWR-based skill. 
  ﬁ« In addition, the maximum Primary skill level you can achieve
  is equal to the level of the attribute the skill is based on, so a
  person with a AGL of 6 could not buy any Primary AGL skill
  past a level of 6.
  6
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  Agility (AGL)
  As a tool-using species, many of our skills will default to
  AGL. For instance, combat skills are AGL skills. Whenever
  you try to do a physical task that requires dexterity or fine
  control of your physical abilities, it is an AGL-based task. 
  Awareness (AWR)
  AWR combines the attributes of intelligence, common sense
  and perception, and is a general measure of how aware you
  are of the world around you. If you see things, but can’t
  interpret them, you do not have a high AWR. If you don’t
  notice things, but are still intelligent, you do not have a high
  AWR. If you have common sense, see things, and intelli-
  gently use that information, then you have a high AWR.
  Will (WIL)
  A measure of the forcefulness of your personality, determi-
  nation, self-image and sheer willpower. Trying to verbally
  coerce or con someone is a WIL task, as is bluffing. To
  resist temptation, fear, pain or intimidation is also a WIL
  task. WIL also has an aspect of your personal appearance,
  to the extent that you can use it to influence people.
  Health (HLT)
  This is your physical stamina, drug and disease resistance
  and recuperative ability. It is not a measure of how much
  damage you can take, although it is vitally important to your
  survival if you take a wound which would be eventually fatal,
  or if you recover at all under poor conditions.
  Power (POW)
  An imprecisely defined quantity that is a measure of your
  psychic potential. The abilities lie dormant in all but a hand-
  ful of the population, and are never used. Even those with
  high potential have difficulty in learning to use it, and face
  constant hazards from an ignorant and unsympathetic pub-
  lic. An average non-psychic person will have a POW of 2,
  which is enough to “detect” some phenomena (a sense or
  foreboding, a chill in the air, and so on). In campaigns where
  there are no psychic phenomena, characters should have a
  POW of 1.
  
  Skills
  Attributes represent mostly the physical abilities of the char-
  acter, like how strong they are, how acute is their hearing,
  how good their stamina is, and so on, with some mental
  training components factored into how observant you are, or
  the strength of your will. Skills are the opposite. They are
  mostly those abilities which you have deliberately trained
  yourself in, but which often have a physical component or
  limit, like how good a dancer you are is dependent on your
  agility. Attributes represent the potential, while skills repre-
  sent the reality.
  Skills have the same cost as attributes (Level x Level), but
  broad skill categories (Primary skills) have the advantage
  that you subtract the “cost” of your Aptitude from the final
  cost. So, a person with an AGL Aptitude of 2 trying to buy
  an AGL skill of 5 would pay 21SP, since the skill costs
  (Level 5 x Level 5) = 25SP, and their Aptitude would save
  them 4SP (the cost of a skill of 2).
  Equivalence
  For purposes of your character background, a total skill level
  of 3 is high-school equivalence, with a 4 being an especially
  good student. A 6 is considered marginally professional, for
  instance, a Bachelor’s degree with a so-so grade average. A
  7 or more represents a solid professional level of skill, while
  anything at 8 or higher requires special advanced training,
  like a Master’s degree (8), or a Ph.D. (9). Most of the time,
  this will be achieved through Secondary or Tertiary skills,
  rather than an overall level.
  Total skill Description
  AWR sample
  AGL sample
  1
  Aptitude
  Untrained
  Untrained
  2
  Good Aptitude
  Grade school
  Yellow belt
  3
  Hobbyist
  High school
  Green belt
  4
  Trade school
  Blue belt
  5
  Serious amateur
  Assoc. degree
  Red belt
  6
  Low professional
  Bachelor's deg.
  7
  Professional
  Black belt
  8
  Master's deg.
  3rd level belt
  9
  Ph.D.
  5th level belt
  10+
  World class
  Nobel laureate
  Similar progressions apply to other fields, such as combat,
  trades or vehicle use. A character’s background should
  reflect how the character achieved any exceptional level of
  proficiency, especially in combat skills, where total levels of
  6 or better usually require GM permission and an unusual
  character background. The only combat skill that doesn’t
  require justification for an overall level of 6 or 7 is martial
  arts, and this represents a black belt level of skill.
  ﬁ« “Competitive” combat skills (martial arts, target shooting) are
  different than “the real thing”. You aren't worried about being
  killed or the target shooting back. You can buy these skills
  for competition at -2 Difficulty (p.8), but use in a real combat
  situation would be as though your skill were 2 points lower.
  Familiarity
  Characters who simply want to be “familiar” with a field can
  spend 2SP for familiarity. This does not increase the skill
  level past the Aptitude level, but does allow a character to
  use an “out of combat” bonus on the skill, or have a basic
  conversational knowledge of the subject. Familiarity applies
  only to skills which can be bought as a Primary skill, so you
  could buy a Familiarity with Projectile Weapons, for
  instance, but not for Pistols.
  Example - A character has Familiarity with “Air vehicles”.
  They probably do not have a pilot’s license, but perhaps
  have taken enough flying lessons to do simple tasks, and to
  understand what all the controls do.  
  If a skill is harder or easier to learn than normal, the cost for
  familiarity remains the same, but the cost to actually buy the
  skill past this level may be different. The SP you put towards
  familiarity with a skill will apply towards raising the skill past
  Aptitude level.
  Example - If you have an AGL of 6, your Aptitude is a 2. If
  you have familiarity with “Air vehicles”, you have spent 2SP
  to get it. The cost of a skill level of 3 is 9SP, minus the 4SP
  your Aptitude qualifies you for, minus the 2SP you already
  spent for familiarity, or 3SP. If you get 3SP worth of training
  or experience in flying, you will raise your skill to a 3.
  i In many low-tech or medieval cultures, trades, skills and
  knowledges were only learned through long apprentice-
  ships. A character without a particular skill who wished to
  learn it might spend years in the process. In game terms,
  having Familiarity means that the character has had a little
  training already, and can at least learn more through prac-
  tice, something that would be much more difficulty if they
  didn't have the skill at all.
  7
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  Skill types
  Skills fall into one of three categories, Primary, Secondary
  and Tertiary, which represent broad, narrow and extremely
  narrow areas of expertise.
  Primary skills
  Primary skills are broad categories, like Firearms, and are
  the only skills that Aptitude is applied to the cost of.
  Secondary skills
  Secondary skills are subgroups of Primary skills, and add to
  the level of the Primary skill, like Pistols would be a sec-
  ondary use of Firearms skill, and your level in Pistols would
  add to your Firearms skill when using a pistol. Secondary
  skills may never be more than half the level of the Primary
  skill, rounding fractional skills down, but you can always
  have a Secondary skill at a level of 1, if you have bought
  any level above Aptitude in the Primary skill. So, you could
  not buy a Pistol skill of +1 unless you had previously bought
  some level of Firearms skill. The cost for Secondary skills is
  like buying a Primary skill, except Aptitude does not reduce
  the cost. You can have more than one Secondary skill
  based on a Primary skill.
  Tertiary skills
  Tertiary skills are specializations of Secondary skills. For
  instance, Beretta semi-autos would be a specialization of
  Pistols, which is a secondary function of Firearms skill.
  Tertiary skills may never be more than half the level of the
  Secondary skill, rounding fractional skills down, but you can
  always have a Tertiary skill at a level of 1, if you have
  bought any level in the Secondary skill. The cost for Tertiary
  skills is like buying a Primary skill, except Aptitude does not
  reduce the cost. You can have more than one Tertiary skill
  based on a Secondary skill.
  Example - A character wants to be moderately proficient at
  brawling, better with punching, and better still with a right
  jab. They buy a Primary skill of 3 in Brawling, a Secondary
  skill of +1 in Punches, and a Tertiary skill of +1 in Right Jab.
  So, for general Brawling tasks, they have a skill of 3, but
  when doing a punches, they have a skill of 3+1=4, and
  when using a right jab, they have a skill of 3+1+1=5.
  ﬁ« Secondary or Tertiary skills in parentheses on a skill tree
  may be bought as Primary skills with -1 to normal difficulty,
  with suitable justification and GM permission. This takes into
  account cultural or training differences. For instance, one
  does not have to be a good hunter to be a good tracker. If a
  secondary skill is bought in this way, the character only gets
  proficiency in that particular skill, and has no knowledge in
  other areas of that skill hierarchy.
  Example - An urban character wants "Tracking" skill to rep-
  resent shadowing ability, but doesn't want Hunting (see third
  column, p.9). So, they buy Tracking with a reduced difficulty
  and lower cost, but get no knowledge of how to hunt.
  i The most economical way to get a good level of expertise in
  a given specific field is the 4-2-1 level, where you buy a
  level of 4 in the Primary skill for 16SP-Aptitude cost, a +2 in
  the secondary skill for 4SP, and a +1 in the Tertiary skill for
  1SP, for a total skill of 7.
  Example:
  Level
  Cost
  Unarmed combat----------------------------------- 4
  16SP
  Block ------------------------------------------ +2
  4SP
  Block w/hands ----------------------- +1
  1SP
  Total---------------------------------------------------- 7
  21SP
  Since the Primary skill is at 4, you would need an appropri-
  ate attribute (AGL in this case) of 4+ to do this, and the final
  cost would be 21SP, minus any amount gained for Aptitude.
  Averaging skills
  A very few skills are “averaging” skills. These are skills
  which enhance the use of a number of other skills, but which
  are useless in and of themselves. The best example of this
  is “Autoweapons”. This skill averages with the appropriate
  weapon skill, and allows the user to control and fire auto-
  matic weapons.
  An averaging skill is usually a Primary skill, so Aptitude does
  apply, even if you have no training at all. The skill is aver-
  aged with the main skill, and the result rounds down. This is
  applied whenever the two skills would be used together.
  Example - A person with autoweapon skill would use it
  when autofiring a machine pistol, submachine gun, battle
  rifle or machine gun. If the person had no autoweapon skill,
  they would use their AGL Aptitude instead.
  Difficulty
  Some skills are inherently harder or easier to learn than oth-
  ers. Skills that are Difficult will have a +1 or more next to the
  skill, while those that are Easy will have a -1 or less. You
  have to add that number to the level of skill you want to get
  before figuring the actual SP cost. It has no effect vs. the
  level of secondary or tertiary skill you can get, only the cost. 
  Example - Piloting air vehicles is a normal skill. For a per-
  son with an AGL of 5 (Aptitude of 1) a skill of 3 in Air vehi-
  cles would cost 9SP, minus 1SP for Aptitude, equals 8SP.
  The Secondary skill “High performance vehicles” has a +1
  difficulty. A +1 in this secondary skill would have the cost of
  a +2, or 4SP instead of 1SP.
  If a skill has a negative difficulty (easy skills), you must buy
  the skill up to a level where you actually spend SP on it. 
  –ø That is, you cannot buy an Easy skill at at a level where it
  would cost you no SP. To get such a skill, you have pay at
  least the SP cost for a level of Aptitude+1. However, for this
  investment you get a good level of skill.
   
  88
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  ULES
  
  Level
  Cost
  1
  1SP
  2
  4SP
  3
  9SP
  4
  16SP
  5
  25SP
  6
  36SP
  7
  49SP
  8
  64SP
  9
  81SP
  10
  100SP
  Space opera skill tree
  i Key
  Category (Attribute)
  Primary skills
  Secondary skills
  Tertiary skills
  Combat skills (AGL)
  Projectile weapons
  Pistols
  Longarms
  Launchers
  Crew-served weapons
  Melee weapons
  Knife
  Sword
  Club
  Thrown weapons
  Grenades
  Knives
  Other
  Unarmed combat
  Punch
  Kick
  Hold
  Block
  Martial Arts (+1)
  Punch
  Kick
  Hold
  Block
  Dodge
  Throw
  Lethal blow
  Vehicle Operation (AGL)
  Land vehicles
  Cycles
  Automobile/truck
  Tracked vehicle
  Ground effect vehicle
  Water vehicles
  Powerboat
  Powerski
  Minisub
  Air vehicles
  Winged vehicles
  Helicopters (+1)
  Grav vehicles
  Space vehicles
  Fighters (+1)
  Cargo tugs
  Equestrian
  Particular beast type
  Medical (AWR)
  First aid
  Each alien race
  Medicine(+1)
  Biomechanics
  Each alien race
  Trades (AWR)
  Mechanic
  Cook
  (Cuisine type)
  Programmer
  Electronics
  (Security systems)
  Trades (AGL)
  Entertainer
  (Particular field)
  Academics (AWR)
  Astronomy
  (Astrogation)
  Astrophysics
  Art
  (Particular art form)
  Archaeology
  Alien ruins
  Biology
  Xenobiology
  Computer science
  Hacking
  Artificial Intelligence
  Economics
  (Bribery)
  Foreign language (specify)
  Spoken or written only (-1)
  Related language
  History
  (Secret societies (+1))
  Investigative research
  Database research
  Bureaucratics
  Streetwise
  Law
  (Nationality)
  Mathematics
  (Cryptography)
  Military science
  Unit tactics
  Starship tactics
  Music
  (Instrument)
  Philosophy
  Alien religions
  Physics
  (Starship maintenance)
  Psychology
  Xenopsychology
  (Influence)
  (Interrogation)
  (Seduction)
  Theater
  (Disguise)
  (Catfall)
  (Pickpocket)
  Writing
  (Journalism)
  Area knowledge (AWR)
  Very large area/subject (+2)
  Example: Known space
  Known space politics
  Planetary leaders
  Large area/subject (+1)
  Example: Subsector geography
  Subsector politics
  National leaders
  Medium area/subject (+0)
  Example: Planetary geography
  Planetary politics
  Major industries
  Small area/subject (-1)
  Example: Country geography
  Country politics
  Major underworld figures
  Very small area/subject (-2)
  Example: City geography
  City politics
  Local criminals of note
  Environment (AWR)
  Survival
  Warm climate
  Cold climate
  Dry climate
  Urban 
  Low gravity 
  High gravity
  Vacuum (w/space suit!)
  Hunting
  (Stealth)
  (Tracking)
  Environment (HLT)
  Drinking
  Running
  Swimming
  Climbing
  Other (?)
  Sports
  Hobbies (-2)
  9
  9
  B
  BASIC
  ASIC R
  RULES
  ULES
  
  Level
  Cost
  1
  1SP
  2
  4SP
  3
  9SP
  4
  16SP
  5
  25SP
  6
  36SP
  7
  49SP
  8
  64SP
  9
  81SP
  10
  100SP
  Modern adventure skill tree
  i Key
  Category (Attribute)
  Primary skills
  Secondary skills
  Tertiary skills
  Combat skills (AGL)
  Projectile weapons
  Pistols
  Longarms
  Crossbows
  Launchers
  Grenade launchers
  Anti-tank missiles
  Flamethrowers
  Autoweapons (averaging skill)
  Melee weapons
  Knife
  Club
  Sword
  Polearm
  Thrown weapons
  Grenades
  Knives
  Other
  Unarmed combat
  Punch
  Kick
  Hold
  Block
  Martial Arts (+1)
  Punch
  Kick
  Hold
  Block
  Dodge
  Throw
  Lethal blow
  Vehicle Operation (AGL)
  Land vehicles
  Automobile
  Motorcycle
  Tracked vehicle
  Hovercraft
  Water vehicles
  Sailboat
  Speedboat
  Air vehicles
  Ultralight
  Light
  Commercial
  High performance (+1)
  Helicopter (+1)
  Equestrian
  Equestrian sports
  Medical (AWR)
  First aid
  Medicine (+1)
  Veterinary (+1)
  Trades (AGL)
  Carpenter
  Jeweler
  Locksmith
  (Lockpicking)
  Machinist
  Weapon repair
  Trades (AWR)
  Cook
  Cuisine type
  Electrician
  (Security systems)
  (Bomb disposal)
  Farmer
  Mechanic
  Automobiles
  Sciences (AWR)
  Aerospace
  Astronomy
  (Astrology)
  Chemistry
  (Explosives)
  Civil engineering
  Demolitions
  Computer science
  Hacking
  Electronics
  Electronic countermeasures
  Mechanical engineering
  Nuclear engineering
  Oceanics
  Liberal Arts (AWR)
  Art
  Forgery
  Biology
  Pharmacy
  Economics
  (Bribery)
  Foreign language (specify)
  Spoken or written only (-2)
  Related language (-1)
  History
  (Secret societies)(+1)
  Investigative research
  Forensics
  Library use
  (Streetwise)
  Law
  (Nationality)
  Criminal law
  Mathematics
  Cryptography
  Military science
  Tactics
  Music
  Specific instrument
  Composition
  Philosophy
  (Arcane religions)
  Psychology
  (Influence)
  (Interrogation)
  (Seduction)
  Theater
  (Disguise)
  (Catfall)
  (Pickpocket)
  Writing
  Journalism
  Area knowledge (AWR)
  Very large area/subject (+2)
  Example: World geography
  World politics
  Major corporations
  Large area/subject (+1)
  Example: US geography
  US politics
  The rich and famous
  Medium area/subject (+0)
  Example: State/prov. geography
  State/province politics
  Underworld leaders
  Small area/subject (-1)
  Example: Large city geography
  City politics
  Gang turf & colors
  Very small area/subject (-2)
  Example: Small city geography
  Local politics
  Local fences/weasels
  Environment (AWR)
  Survival
  Warm climate
  Cold climate
  Dry climate
  Urban 
  Hunting
  (Stealth)
  (Tracking)
  Environment (HLT)
  Drinking
  Running
  Swimming
  Climbing
  Other (?)
  Sports
  Hobbies (-2)
   
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  2001
  
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  Level
  Cost
  1
  1SP
  2
  4SP
  3
  9SP
  4
  16SP
  5
  25SP
  6
  36SP
  7
  49SP
  8
  64SP
  9
  81SP
  10
  100SP
  High fantasy skill tree
  i Key
  Category (Attribute)
  Primary skills
  Secondary skills
  Tertiary skills
  Combat skills (AGL)
  Projectile weapons
  Bows
  Crossbows
  Slings
  Melee weapons
  Knife
  Sword
  Mace/Club
  Polearm
  Staff
  Thrown weapons
  Axes
  Knives
  Spears
  Other
  Unarmed combat
  Punch
  Kick
  Hold
  Block
  Martial Arts(+1)
  Punch
  Kick
  Hold
  Block
  Dodge
  Throw
  Lethal blow
  Vehicle Operation (AGL)
  Land vehicles
  Wagon
  Water vehicles
  Sail ship
  Oared ship
  Equestrian
  Particular beast type
  Medical (AWR)
  First aid
  Medicine(+1)
  Veterinary (+1)
  Trades (AWR)
  Animal breeder
  Purpose or type
  Armorer
  Armor or weapon type
  Cook
  Nationality or cuisine
  Farmer
  Mechanic
  Shipwright
  Trades (AGL)
  Blacksmith
  Carpenter
  Jeweler
  Stonemason
  Locksmith
  (Lockpicking)
  Academics (AWR)
  Alchemy
  Poisons
  Architecture
  Fortifications
  Art
  Painting
  Sculpture
  Astronomy
  (Astrology)
  Biology
  (Herbalism)
  Economics
  (Bribery)
  Foreign language (specify)
  Spoken or written only (-2)
  Related language (-1)
  History
  (Secret societies (+1))
  Investigative research
  Library research
  Bureaucratics
  (Streetwise)
  Law
  Nationality
  Religious law
  Mathematics
  (Cryptography)
  Military science
  Unit tactics
  Siege tactics
  Music
  (Instrument)
  Philosophy
  Arcane religions
  Psychology
  (Influence)
  (Interrogation)
  (Seduction)
  Sorcery
  Sorcery type
  Theater
  (Disguise)
  (Catfall)
  (Pickpocket)
  Writing
  Illumination
  Area knowledge (AWR)
  Very large area/subject (+2)
  Example: Known world geography
  Known world politics
  Royal genealogies
  Large area/subject (+1)
  Example: Continental geography
  Local kingdom politics
  Thieves' Guild influence
  Medium area/subject (+0)
  Example: Country geography
  Single kingdom politics
  Pirates and freebooters
  Small area/subject (-1)
  Example: City-state geography
  Duchy politics
  Assassins for hire
  Very small area/subject (-2)
  Example: City geography
  City politics
  Local criminals of note
  Environment (AWR)
  Survival
  Warm climate
  Cold climate
  Dry climate
  Urban 
  Hunting
  (Stealth)
  (Tracking)
  Environment (HLT)
  Drinking
  Running
  Swimming
  Climbing
  Other (?)
  Sports
  Hobbies (-2)
  
  Skill trees
  There are as many possible skill trees as there are types of
  campaign. What skills are available for characters depends
  on the Tech Level and the culture and the background of the
  individual characters. The ones you have just looked over
  cover several types of campaigns, but your personal con-
  ception of that campaign may include more, or delete ones
  that are already there. In different genres, the same skill
  may be based off different categories.
  Example - Modern lockpicking is an AGL skill, based off
  Locksmithing. In a space opera campaign, it might be an
  AWR skill based off of Electronics.
  These lists are not meant to be inclusive, but rather a guide
  to help you out.
  Skills are deliberately not described in detail. The name of a
  skill should reflect what the character is going to do with it,
  whether or not it fits into a particular predefined niche. The
  player and the GM define exactly what a character’s exper-
  tise is. Players are encouraged to make up new Primary,
  Secondary and Tertiary skills to match their conception of
  what their character knows.
  Example - One player whose character has Biology and
  Pharmacy determines that it is a knowledge of how to make
  poisons and illicit pharmaceuticals, while another has it as a
  profession and is familiar with the usage and dosing of com-
  mercially available drugs. Each has an advantage in a par-
  ticular area, and the GM should take this into account. Or,
  one character has Psychology and makes up a secondary
  skill in Interrogation, while another has Psychology and
  chooses Intimidation. Both characters have some knowl-
  edge of the human psyche. One is more adept at getting
  information out of people, while the other is better at psy-
  chologically bullying them to get their way. 
  Professions
  There is a difference between a skill and a profession. A
  skill is a particular body of knowledge relating to a specific
  task or small group of tasks. A profession is several skills
  that combine to give the user a lot of flexibility and power in
  the areas where they overlap.
  Example - A professional soldier knows more than how to
  use a weapon. They also know tactics, how to lead others
  and other skills based on the Tech Level and culture, like
  how to use a battle-trained horse, camping or foraging.
  The CORPS system rewards characters that have profes-
  sions by giving a bonus to the chance of performing a task
  that can have multiple skills applied to it. These characters
  also have a higher starting income and accumulated sav-
  ings.
  Tech Level skills
  If the proper use of a skill requires a certain technological
  infrastructure or changes in knowledge over a period of
  years, a character may take penalties to their use of that
  skill. Tech Levels are explained in more detail on page 91.
  Any major breakpoint in the development of a science is a
  Tech Level, or TL. For instance, the changeover from vacu-
  um tubes to semiconductors is a Tech Level change, as
  would be the first use of atomic power, and when controlled
  fusion is attained, that will also be a Tech Level change.
  Each TL of difference between the character’s education
  and the actual application of the skill is a +1 penalty to the
  use of the skill. However, if a character is old enough that
  they learned the skill at a previous TL, and their background
  is such that they kept the education current (such as
  employment in the skill), these minuses are negated.
  Example - A character in the 1990’s who is 20 years old
  and has “electronics” as a skill, learned that skill at TL11. If
  they have to work on a device from the 1970’s (TL10), they
  will take a +1 penalty to use their skill, because it is different
  than the devices they learned on. However, if the same
  character were 40 years old, they would have learned at
  TL10, and so there would be no penalty.
  ﬁ« Obviously, this is only applicable in a campaign that crosses
  multiple Tech Levels. In a purely fantasy game, this would
  seldom apply, but in a space opera campaign, equipment of
  varying technological complexity will be common.
  Free skills
  All characters are assumed to get two particular skills free of
  charge. These are their native language and native culture,
  the first at a level of their AWR, and the second at half their
  AWR, rounding fractions up. Language covers everyday
  use, and may be tinged with regional accents. If the culture
  is bilingual, they may at GM option have the second lan-
  guage free of charge at a level of Aptitude+1. Culture covers
  the social, historical and geographical context of where the
  character was raised, and includes basic familiarity with sim-
  ple technology used in that culture, forms of address, how to
  use cultural eating utensils and so on. Characters with an
  overall AWR of 4 or less can be considered ignorant of
  many aspects of their culture due to lack of intelligence or
  curiosity.
  Example - A character with a Canadian background has an
  AWR of 5. So, they speak English at a level of 5, and have a
  basic knowledge of Canadian culture at a level of 3, which
  covers everyday history, sports, current events, and so on.
  The character might also have a second language at a level
  of 2 (their Aptitude+1). This might be French if they were
  near Quebec, or if they were from Quebec, French might be
  the native language at a level of 5, with English at a level of
  2. If their AWR were 6, the languages would be at 3 and 6.
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  Cultural limits
  The culture a character is raised in will limit the maximum
  level of some skills. This is especially true of combat skills.
  For instance, it may be culturally acceptable to have a high
  level of martial arts skill, and it can be practiced under near-
  combat conditions much more easily than a firearms skill
  (sparring is safer and cheaper than firing at each other with
  live ammo). So, while you can easily get low levels of train-
  ing in either guns or martial arts, it should be more difficult to
  gain a high skill level with guns than with fists and feet.
  Example - For a modern campaign, think of the difference
  in pistol training available to characters set in the United
  States, where gun ownership is common, to the level of
  training available to the average person in a country where
  gun ownership is extremely uncommon.
  If your campaign will have cultural limits, they need to be
  made known to the players before character creation, along
  with ways to exceed these limits.
  Example - In a modern setting, a GM places limits on any
  projectile weapon skills of 4 or less. No starting character
  may have a total skill with any projectile weapon (Primary +
  Secondary + Tertiary) of more than 4, although this can be
  increased once play begins. However, the GM also states
  that characters whose background included elite military
  training can exceed this. This training also means that the
  character must have certain minimum attribute levels, other
  associated skills, the disadvantage that they can be called
  to active service, or other character traits. Or, the player can
  think of an exotic and coherent character background, and
  the GM can consider raising the cultural ceiling by some
  amount, depending on how good the character concept is.
  In general, use the following guidelines for creating a cultur-
  al limit package. The limits to a skill are generally for
  Primary skill categories, but the level limit is on the total skill
  bought (Primary + Secondary + Tertiary). The lowest a limit
  can be is Aptitude.
  Legal restrictions
  Max. skill
  Skill is totally banned
  Aptitude
  Skill is heavily restricted
  4
  Skill is somewhat restricted
  6
  Skill is slightly restricted
  8
  Skill is not restricted
  10
  Social restrictions
  Alter by
  Skill is culturally frowned upon
  -1
  Skill is culturally approved
  +1
  Personal risk restrictions
  Alter by
  Skill involves severe personal risk to increase
  -2
  Skill involves personal risk to increase
  -1
  Skill involves no personal risk to increase
  +0
  Any other skill that everyone in a society is assumed to have
  qualifies as a "free" skill. If everyone knows how to ride a
  horse, then in that campaign this skill would not require SP
  for the base level. In general, if the skill is used constantly,
  every day (like talking), the free skill is at a level of the gov-
  erning attribute. If it is used only in a general sense, or is
  more limited in its scope, then it is at half the governing
  attribute, rounding fractions up. If it is something that every-
  one has, but can generally get by without, then it is only at
  Aptitude+1 for the governing attribute.
  Automatic tasks
  For players who like to have things written down, skills can
  be used to “prepare” a knowledge. For game purposes, if a
  skill is bought above familiarity, it lets the character automat-
  ically know one thing relating to that skill per level, appropri-
  ate to the way they learned it, as long as it is written down
  beforehand. So, a character with Chemistry of 4 can write
  down 4 chemical compounds that they know how to make,
  without having to make a skill roll. A character with a
  Firearms skill of 3 knows 3 different guns well enough that
  they need never make a roll to figure out how to load them,
  or where the safety is, etc. A character with an Area
  Knowledge of 5 on a city automatically knows the quickest
  way to get to 5 locations, a character with an Area
  Knowledge of 4 on a group of people automatically remem-
  bers the basic information on 4 people in that group, and so
  on.
  –ø This only applies to unopposed tasks. You cannot buy a
  level of a combat skill and say it can be used to automatical-
  ly hit a small set of opponents, or automatically pick a pock-
  et, since the chance of success is based partially on the
  actions of others. You could say you know how to pick sev-
  eral common kinds of lock, or memorize several epic
  poems, since the locks stay the same, and the poems are
  memorized and do not change. You can have a high enough
  level of skill to virtually guarantee success against opposi-
  tion by an opponent or target, but a predesignated task is
  only for those actions which are not subject to interference
  by others.
  ﬁ« Note that doing this will also result in more work for the GM,
  as they will then have to specify whether or not a task is one
  that matches a character's predefined ability. Is that door
  lock the same model the character knows how to pick with-
  out even thinking about it? Was the coded message in a
  form the character just happens to know how to decipher?
  The GM will have to set limits on how automatic tasks will
  apply in the game.
   
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  Example - If the limit on Projectile weapons was 4 (6 below
  10), but there was no limit on how good you could be with a
  crossbow, then the option package for Projectile weapons
  would only cost 5 exemptions instead of 6. 
  An “exemption” is some other facet of the character that pro-
  vides a rationale or justification for the higher than normal
  level of skill or ability.
  Option package item
  Exemption Points
  A Contact, Enemy, or Psych. Lim
  1 point per level
  Minimum skill level in other skill of 3+
  1, +1 per point over 3
  Minimum attribute level of 5+
  1, +1 per point over 5
  Example - If the cultural limit on projectile weapons and
  melee weapons was a 4 (6 lower than 10 in each), the
  exemption package would require 12 exemptions in other
  areas (6 points lower for each of melee and projectile
  weapons, times 1 point per level). This exemption package
  means that the character can buy any level in that skill for
  their character, provided they can find the SP to do it with. 
  The GM decides that these 12 levels are part of a special
  military program, and the character must buy:
  Package
  Exemption Points
  STR of 5+
  1
  AGL of 6+
  2
  HLT of 5+
  1
  Paramedic of 4+
  2
  Demolitions of 4+
  2
  Tactics of 3+
  1
  Survival of 4+
  2
  Climbing of 3+
  1
  Total
  12
  The character must pay for all of these attributes and skills
  from their normal AP and SP before they can buy the melee
  or projectile weapon skills they are trying to get. Obviously,
  this will take a fair amount of the character’s points, and will
  strongly influence how the character came to be the person
  they are. Note that they do not have to be active duty mili-
  tary characters to have these skills, but must have been in
  the military at some time before play starts.
  Limited exemptions
  There can be more than one “option package” for a given
  skill. A character could also have a criminal background that
  gives a certain exemption, for instance. It might imply having
  certain police of underworld organizations as Contacts or
  Enemies, but might also be much more limited. 
  If a character wants to exceed the cultural limit only in a par-
  ticular Secondary or Tertiary skill, it will cost a number of
  exemptions equal to the amount they exceed the cultural
  limit.
  Example - If all artistic expression in a country had to go
  past official censors, Sculpting skill would be “heavily
  restricted”, with a maximum skill of 4. If artistic expression
  was a part of the culture, however, and somewhat encour-
  aged (although heavily monitored), it would be a 5. 
  Skills that involve “severe personal risk” to increase are gen-
  erally those where you would be in mortal peril if someone
  were using the skill on you. “Personal risk” means that you
  risk being put in the hospital (or maybe killed) if someone
  used the skill on you. Just getting casually beat up does not
  count as “personal risk”. Skills that have social restrictions
  mean that in addition to legal strictures, there may be family
  or community values that apply. For instance, even if a par-
  ticular skill is legally restricted, it may be that there is a
  minority culture in which it is approved of, and in which the
  character can acquire training, or that while a skill is not
  legally prohibited, it is considered “immoral”, and thus more
  difficult to practice or find qualified teachers.
  General exemptions
  For each point below 10 a skill category is limited to, there is
  an “option package” that lets you exceed this limit, and each
  point will cost 1 “exemption”. Each Secondary or Tertiary
  skill which does not apply to the cultural limit from a limita-
  tion negates one of these required exemptions.
   
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  Example - A character wants to exceed their cultural limit of
  4 on projectile weapons, but only for pistols. If the character
  wants to get a Pistol skill of 6, this is 2 more than the cultural
  limit, and will require 2 exemptions.
  Limited exemptions must always have something to do with
  the skill being bought, and are seldom a simple attribute or
  skill minimum. If the character has acquired training illegally,
  then the exemption must reflect this somehow. If it was
  acquired legally (membership in a shooting club, for
  instance), then there will be exemptions relating to this
  (authorities know about any weapons you own). 
  ﬁ« Remember to note that for combat skills, your skill level
  relates to use in combat, not standing still at a range, shoot-
  ing at pieces of paper. A character might be a marksman at
  the range after standing still and taking numerous bonuses
  to hit, but not have the training or experience to shoot accu-
  rately in a firefight. See the note on p.7.
  Sample cultural limits
  The following limits generally apply to a modern campaign,
  and characters from a given culture will generally have to
  conform to these limits for combat skills. There are local
  variations, especially in areas painted with a broad brush.
  Getting a firearm is usually harder in urban areas than rural
  ones, for instance. These are first in terms of the general
  category, and then for specific Secondary skills within a cat-
  egory, for purposes of getting limited exemptions.
  If you wanted, you could expand this out to include other
  skill categories besides weapons, but that is campaign
  dependent.
  Character background
  The background of a CORPS character is very important,
  and the skills your character has acquired before the start of
  play are an integral part of that background. To give you
  some assistance, the following chart is provided. It gives
  you the hours per week a character would have had to study
  a skill to get a certain number of SP.
  Total time spent acquiring the skill
  Total SP
  1 year
  2 years
  4 years
  8 years 16 years
  4SP
  2hr/wk
  1hr/wk
  2hr/mo
  1hr/mo
  1hr/2mo
  8SP
  4hr/wk
  2hr/wk
  1hr/wk
  2hr/mo
  1hr/mo
  16SP
  16hr/wk
  4hr/wk
  2hr/wk
  1hr/wk
  2hr/mo
  32SP
  -
  16hr/wk
  4hr/wk
  2hr/wk
  1hr/wk
  64SP
  -
  -
  16hr/wk
  4hr/wk
  2hr/wk
  128SP
  -
  -
  -
  16hr/wk
  4hr/wk
  Example - Your character is 24 years old and has spent
  around 32SP on various martial arts or unarmed combat
  skills. If you started when you were 16, that would mean that
  for the past 8 years, your character has devoted about 2
  hours per week to training. This could be a few workouts a
  week at the local gym. This is something that is common
  enough that people who watch you would know about it,
  friends would know that they can find you there sometimes,
  and that you take it seriously enough to keep at it and con-
  stantly improve yourself.
  If on the other hand, if you did this in 2 years, that would be
  16 hours a week of training. Aside from working for a living,
  you eat, sleep and breathe your training regimen. Practicing
  2-3 hours per day is far above the average level, so what is
  there in your character’s background that caused this sud-
  den obsession with becoming a fighter?
  ﬁ« Any level of skill gain of more than 4SP per year requires
  professional training. Any amount of 4SP or less per year
  means the character could learn it on their own. Take this
  into account when working on a character background.
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  i Cultural limits, late 20th century Earth
  USA
  Austria Australia
  Finland Germany Netherl. N. Zealand Norway
  S.Africa
  Sweden
  Switz.
  England
  Projectile weapons
  5
  5
  3
  4
  3
  3
  4
  4
  3
  4
  5
  3
  Pistols
  5
  4
  3
  4
  3
  3
  4
  4
  3
  4
  5
  3
  Longarms
  5*
  5
  3
  4
  4
  3
  4*
  4
  3
  4
  5
  3*
  Launchers
  2
  Apt.
  Apt.
  Apt.
  Apt.
  Apt.
  Apt.
  Apt.
  Apt.
  Apt.
  2
  Apt.
  Autoweapons
  2
  Apt.
  Apt.
  2
  Apt.
  Apt.
  Apt.
  Apt.
  Apt.
  Apt.
  2
  Apt
  Bows
  7
  7
  5
  7
  7
  5
  7
  7
  7
  7
  7
  5
  * 1 point less for semi-auto, or military-type longarms.
  
   
  "My character has loads of guns, and bombs, and more guns, and
  is dead cool..."
  How 
   
  not to design a character, Volume 1
   
  Basics
   
  Usually (actually, almost always), you will find that you don’t
  have nearly enough points to make the character you want.
  You've listed the cost of all those attributes and skills, and
  found that you have far less AP and SP than you need to
  get the character you want. Trying to get those 6’s in the
  Attributes can get expensive, much less 7’s or 8’s. This hap-
  pens to everyone. You can solve some of these woes by
  taking disadvantages on your character, which give extra
  AP or SP for you to use, the rationale being that these limi-
  tations will make the character either less likely to survive,
  and these points help counter that by allowing higher skills
  or attributes, or that these limitations help you create and
  play a character with more personality, and these points are
  a reward for having a three-dimensional character concept. 
  Example - Being color blind is a minor limitation, and not
  worth many points, since it doesn't often affect the character
  in life-threatening ways. Being pursued and hunted by
  armed fanatics because of some action in your character's
  past is worth a lot of points, because it affects the charac-
  ter's actions constantly, and a slip-up could cost the charac-
  ter their life.
  Advantages, on the other hand, are positive traits that
  enhance the abilities of the character, and cost either AP or
  SP. You should look through these and see how they might
  apply to your character concept.
  Example - Having a street contact who feeds you informa-
  tion on local criminal activity is an advantage, since this is
  not a resource available to everyone. Being able to ignore
  pain is an advantage, as is having a set of false identity
  papers.
   
  ﬁ« GM’s should make a note of which ads & disads will be
  allowed. Any item with a “Ω” beside it is extremely unusual
  for normal humans, but which can occur in the game world.
  Whether or not there are characters who are mutants or
  other paranormals in a campaign is up to the GM.
  Age
  The base age for CORPS characters is 16 years, at which
  point you have 100AP and 50SP (or whatever the default
  amount is). You get 2AP and 4SP for each year of character
  age over 16.
  Age
  Extra AP
  Extra SP
  16
  +0
  +0
  18
  +4
  +8
  20
  +8
  +16
  22
  +12
  +24
  24
  +16
  +32
  26
  +20
  +40
  28
  +24
  +48
  30
  +28
  +56
  Characters over 30 years old may suffer aging effects,
  which are determined after character creation is complete.
  For each year over 30 years old, you need to roll a HLT task
  equal to your age/5, rounding fractions up (see Tasks,
  p.37). If failed, you lose age/10 (round up) in AP and SP,
  from attributes and skills of your choice. Normally, charac-
  ters over 30 years old are not allowed, as too many people
  will use it as an excuse to build up character points rather
  than character background. 
  If there is a good reason to have a much older character
  (veteran soldier, eccentric professor, etc.), then you will
  have to go through the aging process. This can be stream-
  lined by making 1 roll per 5 years instead of 1 roll per year,
  but failure multiplies AP and SP losses by 5.
  Characters may start the game as children, in which case
  they lose AP and SP, at double the rate they would gain
  them for being older (4AP and 8SP per year below age 16).
  Characters of less than a certain age (usually 13) will also
  have a level of reduced size (p.26). While limited to lower
  attributes initially, a child character naturally gains these AP
  and SP back as they get older, at the same rate they lost
  them (4AP and 8SP per year), and the only real limit on how
  they are spent is that all of the reduced size must be bought
  off using AP by the time the character reaches age 13.
  ﬁ« Age is the only tedious disadvantage to figure out, but only
  because it is so important. With age comes increased expe-
  rience and skill, but at a certain point, the degenerative
  processes of aging catch up with and overwhelm the rate at
  which you can increase your abilities. The random chance
  of losing points always makes having an older character
  potentially risky. If a player generates an older character
  and then decides they don't want to play it because of bad
  rolls, then their future characters should be restricted to age
  30 or less.
  ﬁ« These age-related gains in AP and SP assume the charac-
  ter has a high enough standard of living that they do not pre-
  maturely age due to malnutrition and other factors.
   
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  + -//
  ADS &
  DISADS
  
  Authority
  This is a nebulous category, and is meant specifically to be
  used with the Duty ad/disad. You usually cannot have an
  Authority without a corresponding Duty. An Authority is an
  official sanction of some activity which a higher power has
  declared off-limits to just about everyone else. For instance,
  if a policeman pulls you over and decides you are acting
  suspicious, he has Authority to search you and the vehicle,
  and if there is something illegal there, he has Authority to
  arrest you. A specific profession may have a number of
  Authorities, depending on rank and experience within that
  profession, and the legal and social background of the cam-
  paign.
  An authority which is “reasonable” costs 1SP, an authority
  which is “unreasonable” costs 2SP, and an Authority which
  can be delegated costs 2SP extra. A reasonable authority is
  one which is limited by law or custom. For instance, the
  authority to arrest someone or confiscate property may be a
  “reasonable” one, in that it requires cause, warrants and the
  like. If an “unreasonable” one, the authority can be used for
  warrantless seizures, breaking down doors, or dragging
  people off in the middle of the night on unspecified charges.
  A delegated Authority is one where the character can autho-
  rize other people to act with the character’s Authority in the
  character’s name.
  The benefit of an Authority is that it is a cultural construct,
  and if you have an Authority, it is almost immediately recog-
  nized and accepted by a majority of the people in that cul-
  ture. They don’t have to like it, but they are aware of the
  power it represents. Modern examples of this are a police
  badge, clerical collar or military uniform.
  Any civil power that can be of potential use to a character
  might be an Authority, but note that whomever grants this
  can generally revoke it at will if the character abuses it. 
  Reasonable
  Cost
  Authority to perform marriage ceremony
  1SP
  Authority to arrest within jurisdiction
  1SP
  Authority to use lethal force to stop violent crime
  1SP
  Authority to search persons or premises with cause
  1SP
  Authority to render civil judgements
  1SP
  Authority to render criminal judgements
  1SP
  Authority to openly carry weapons
  1SP
  Unreasonable
  Cost
  Authority to excommunicate
  2SP
  Authority to collect taxes
  2SP
  Authority to use lethal force more or less at will
  2SP
  Authority to confiscate property without cause
  2SP
  Delegated
  Cost
  Authority to deputize 
  +2SP
  Authority to give military orders (rank)
  +2SP
  Challenging an “authority” is usually either ignored or a
  crime, depending on the authority. The usual recourse is to
  go to whoever does the authorizing, and complain. Of
  course, if this individual or group approves of that use of the
  authority, you aren’t likely to get anywhere (tell the captain
  that you don’t like the sergeant’s attitude...).
  ﬁ« Note that Authorities are very powerful for their point cost,
  and that the GM must approve all Authorities, and make
  sure the characters are aware of their restrictions. The
  Authority/Duty package is especially suitable for characters
  who are members of some official organization, like a guild,
  military unit, espionage agents (licensed to kill), and so on.
  Background
  It has been stressed before that your character is more than
  just numbers on a page. To encourage character concep-
  tion, motivation and history, you can get up to 5 extra AP or
  SP for giving a written background to the GM before play.
  Each 100 words of background is worth 1 AP or SP, and the
  background should include some if not all of the following
  information:
  1.
  Description of your family, including the whereabouts and pro-
  fessions of parents, brothers and sisters. If any of them are
  deceased, how did it happen, and did this have any effect on
  the way your character views life?
  2.
  At least one important event from your childhood that influ-
  enced who you are today.
  3.
  Your physical description, including hair and eye color, style of
  dress, accents on your voice, and any birthmarks, tattoos or
  scars, with explanation of how and where you got the latter
  two.
  4.
  Your favorite food, type of music, and color.
  5.
  Four things you really don’t like (see if any qualify as Psych
  Lims).
  6.
  Your character’s goals for the next week, month and year.
  These can range from the mundane to the exotic. Also include
  something your character has never done, but which they
  would really like to do someday, like climb a mountain, sail
  around the world, etc.
  7.
  Justification for unusual skills, weird abilities, contacts, ene-
  mies or unusually high levels in a skill or attribute.
  8.
  What will motivate the character to live the dangerous lifestyle
  they are about to enter.
  This gives both you and the GM a better idea of exactly who
  and what your character is, and the AP or SP will help the
  character survive to reach the goals they have set for them-
  selves. This gives the character “life”, and gives the GM
  much more to build on when designing adventures. As an
  example, the “Background” section you have just read is
  around 300 words long.
  i A picture may not be worth a thousand words, but a good
  character sketch, regardless of source, should be worth an
  extra 2AP or SP.
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  Contacts
  You know people, or have friends who will stick their necks
  out for you, if only a little. Each level of contacts costs 5SP
  to get. The way contacts work is that a given “favor” will
  have a certain level of difficulty. If the level of the contact is
  greater or equal to the difficulty of the favor, you can get it,
  provided the contact is capable of providing it. The frequen-
  cy with which these favors can be granted is inversely pro-
  portional to their magnitude. Easy favors may be on a daily
  basis, but big ones may only be on a monthly or yearly
  basis. If the difficulty of the task is higher than the level of
  the contact, the favor can still be granted, provided that the
  player is willing to permanently lose the difference from the
  level of the contact. Or, the difference could be made up by
  a bribe or other inducement, at GM option. Contacts may
  also ask the same favors of characters, which the charac-
  ters must perform or risking losing levels in the contact. The
  GM will have to assign contact ratings according to their
  campaign, but guidelines are below. Illegal or black market
  contacts are less worried about the law, but have other con-
  cerns and reasons why they will or won’t help you out.
  Contacts
  Level 1
  You are acquainted with someone, and they will do you 
  favors that involve little hardship or risk, like anonymous 
  phone tips, street rumors, or looking up publicly available 
  information from files they have at their place of work.
  Level 2
  You are friends with someone, and they will do you favors 
  on occasion that may involve the risk of a reprimand if 
  caught, like leaving a confidential file within your sight 
  while they go for a cup of coffee, or processing paperwork 
  for you first, instead of earlier or more legitimate requests 
  for the same.
  Level 3
  You are close friends with someone, and they will 
  occasionally do you favors that could put them at risk of 
  losing their job, and they will perform these only if there is 
  little chance of being caught. Examples might be trying to 
  alter motor vehicle records, tamper with police files, or 
  reveal information that has been classified by the 
  government.
  Level 4
  You have been lifelong friends with someone, and they
  will risk prosecution on your behalf, at least once, and
  only if there is virtually no chance of being caught, or they
  really believe in the reason they are being asked to do the
  favor. Examples include computer fraud, theft of govern-
  ment property, or divulging information classed as
  “Secret” by the government.
  Level 5
  The contact is as close to you as humanly possible, and 
  is willing to risk almost anything for you at least once, 
  including personal injury, financial hardship or 
  imprisonment. Examples might include assisting a jail
  break, theft of military hardware, revealing top secret 
  information or stealing police evidence.
  Like Enemies (see p.20) characters should be limited in the
  level of contacts they can have, and have a reason in their
  character backgrounds for such. This does not mean that
  characters cannot have close, loyal friends at younger ages,
  but that they are not “on call” at the character’s whim. 
  ﬁ« Most of us have friends we could think of as Level 3+
  Contacts, but they usually don't have skills or influence that
  would help us out in an adventuring sense. Characters may
  claim friends as part of a character background at no cost,
  but the GM gets to determine their personalities, skills, moti-
  vations and limits. Your close friend may pick you up at the
  airport, but will they help you rob a bank? As they say,
  friends will help you move, real friends will help you move
  bodies... Contacts that are paid for with SP are still under
  GM control, but the player has a little more certainty of what
  kind of help to expect.
  Characters working for an organization may have “contacts”
  both inside and outside the organization. Remember that
  contacts are people outside the normal lines of authority.
  For instance, the group you work for may tell you some-
  thing, but conceal something else. Obviously, they didn’t
  want you to know. A contact there might be able to help you
  out, but then again, the organization probably does good
  background checks (finding out relationships to the contact).
  They might suspect you would try this angle, and could feed
  the contact false information, which would then make its
  way to the characters.
  –ø Contacts are not the same as Influence (p.125), although
  they might be able to provide similar assistance at times.
  For instance, your Level 2 Contact in the records branch of
  the police force is not going to intercede with the judge to try
  and get you out on bail, although they might “overlook” cer-
  tain files which might cause you to have bail denied alto-
  gether, should the judge get wind of them. It is a GM call
  whether or not a Contact can add to any Influence used in a
  particular situation. This can be helped by having the player
  specifically describe the abilities and limits of the contact.
  Since a level of a Contact costs the same regardless of how
  powerful it is, the GM should make sure that more powerful
  contacts ask favors more often.
  Example - One character has a Level 2 Contact with “the
  king” because the character’s father once did the king a
  great service. Another character has a Level 2 Contact with
  “street urchins” because the character used to be one.
  Guess which contact is going to put the character’s lives on
  the line more often...
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  Those with less scruples could also use the contact rules to
  represent blackmail instead of friendship. In either case,
  being caught performing an illegal, immoral or unethical act
  for the character will likely result in a loss of contact levels,
  and implication of the character. Contacts who are arrested,
  implicated or publicly humiliated are likely to go down one or
  more levels as a result. Contacts can be gained as a result
  as a result of play at no cost in points, gaining in level at an
  equivalent rate of 1 or 2 SP per adventure in which the char-
  acter and contact are useful to each other, and this is totally
  dependent on how well the character and the potential con-
  tact interact with each other. They might end up Enemies!
  A short sampling of contacts is below. Note that some can
  also be used for an Enemies disadvantage, at one level or
  another.
  i Sample Contacts/Enemies
  Private detective
  Local organized crime
  King’s Guard
  Member of Parliament
  Central Intelligence Agency
  Ex-Special Forces member
  Police records clerk
  Guerrilla group
  Private medical clinic
  Street gang
  Computer hackers
  Eccentric wizard
  Fence
  Tax collectors or other Gestapo
  Smuggler
  Evil cultists
  Dependence
  This is an addiction or dependence on a substance or some
  other condition which the character requires to stay healthy
  and/or sane. A Dependence can be wither physical or psy-
  chological. A psychological craving starts at zero, and
  increases 1 per day, and the character loses their rationality
  if they fail a WIL task equal to the current level of the craving
  (which means they get a number of free days at least equal
  to their WIL). At the point when the craving takes over, the
  GM acts for the character instead of the player, and the
  player might not get to know what happened between when
  they lost control and when they woke up after their last “fix”.
  For a physical need, the number is compared to HLT, not
  WIL, and each time the character fails, they take a +1 cumu-
  lative impairment on all their actions, which is not recovered
  until the character gets what they need, and is recovered
  then like a lethal injury. If total impairment reaches +10, the
  character dies. This level of Dependence is worth 5AP or
  SP, and if the character increases the rate of increase to 2
  per day, it is worth 10AP or SP. If a physical dependence
  has a maximum penalty to actions that can accumulate, it is
  worth 1 AP or SP less per point this is below 10.
  A Dependence, if it can be bought off, can only be done so
  by spending age-related AP and/or SP, combined with a
  desire by the character to “kick the habit”.
  i This disadvantage can cover everything from a vampire's
  need for blood, to an addict's drug habit, to an alien species
  requiring trace elements in their diet.
  Destiny
  Ω
  The character has an appointment with fate, but they don’t
  know what fate it is. This requires thought by the player, and
  permission from the GM. An example of Destiny might be
  that as a child, the character’s parents were killed by agents
  of Fu Manchu. This traumatic event so influenced the char-
  acter that they devoted their life to fighting injustice. This
  has placed the character in direct opposition to the fiendish
  Manchu, and they are destined to struggle until one or the
  other is eliminated. Events in both their lives will tend to
  draw in the other party, either by choice or coincidence.
  Sometime in the campaign, the destiny must be confronted.
  If the character survives, they lose the points for this disad-
  vantage, and must replace them with some appropriate
  Psych Lim, like losing your sense of purpose, or other dis-
  ads that total up to 25 points. A character may only have
  one Destiny, and this is worth 25AP or SP.
   
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  Duty
  This is a combination advantage/disadvantage, and is a
  package of benefits and restrictions that usually costs no AP
  or SP. This is appropriate for any character who acts in an
  official capacity for some organization. A duty package must
  be taken as a whole, and each one is designed by the GM
  to suit a particular organization. Guidelines for point equal-
  ization are below:
  Item
  Points
  Minimum/maximum age requirement
  +2
  Attribute minimum of 4
  +1
  each point over this
  +1
  Skill minimum of 3
  +1
  each point over this
  +1
  Contacts
  -value
  Papers (legitimate, see p.24)
  -value
  Special authority (per)
  -1,-2 or more
  Wealth
  -value in SP
  Enemies
  +value
  Each category of ads/disads you can’t have
  +2
  Each category of ads/disads you must have
  +2
  Each category of ads/disads which you may have
  +1
  For ads or disads which are “can’t”, “may” or “must”, “can’t”
  means that you may not have any level in that category.
  “May” means that you can have a level up to half(d) any
  governing attribute if such applies, or a level of 2, whichever
  is lower. A “must” category is one that is at least equal to
  any governing attribute, if such applies, or a level of 5,
  whichever is higher.
  For instance, a low-level police package might be made up
  of the following (higher police ranks would differ, or coun-
  tries like the US might assume a driver's license and substi-
  tute something else for the points).
  Negatives
  Points
  Minimum age of 20+
  +2
  Minimum STR and HLT of 4
  +2
  Pistol skill of 3+
  +1
  Investigative rsch skill of 3+
  +1
  Criminal law skill of 3+
  +1
  Level 1 Enemy (Internal Affairs is watching you)
  +5
  Can't have any physical lims
  +2
  Can't be outside normal height/weight range
  +2
  Total
  +16
  Positives
  Level 1 Contact (mutual police support)
  -5
  Local/state concealed weapon permit
  -5
  Driver’s license (or substitute other Authorities)
  -3
  Authority to arrest within jurisdiction
  -1
  Authority to use lethal force to stop violent crime
  -1
  Authority to search persons or premises with cause
  -1
  Total
  -16
  Enemies
  Someone out there doesn’t like you. If you want enemies,
  you get 5AP or SP per level of enemies you choose to have
  after you. These enemies you start the game with, and you
  may pick up additional ones in play, but you will not get
  points for them.
  The level of an Enemy is below. Note that a character who
  is not currently in trouble with the law cannot have any legiti-
  mate authority as an Enemy at higher than a level of 2. Like
  Contacts, an Enemy (especially legitimate authority) may
  add its level to its Influence in affecting you, like a Level 1
  Enemy with the police might cause your bail to be raised a
  level if you are arrested. Like Contacts, when and whether
  or not this happens is based on how well the character has
  defined the Enemy. A broad, general Enemy may cause
  less trouble, but over a wide area, while a local Enemy may
  cause greater grief, but only while within their sphere of
  influence.
  Enemies
  Level 1
  They don’t know who you are yet, but they have a file on 
  activities that will eventually get your name. An example 
  might be an open police file in which the character may 
  be one of several suspects.
  Level 2
  They know who you are, and some of the things that you 
  have done, and would like to see you out of the picture. 
  An example would be a past police record (but no current 
  warrants), or suspected major tax evader.
  Level 3
  They have a complete file on you, and your actions have 
  been such that minor operations may be altered simply by 
  your presence in an area. You are to be captured if 
  spotted. An example would be being on the FBI “Most 
  Wanted” list.
  Level 4
  You are extensive thorn in their sides, and while they 
  have as much of your history as it is possible to know, 
  they would rather close your file altogether. You are to be 
  terminated on sight. An example would be the 
  relationship between an army and a known guerrilla 
  leader in a Latin American country.
  Level 5
  Your actions have been so detrimental to this organi-
  zation that you are the only work of several agents, 
  whose job it is to do nothing less than kill you as soon as 
  possible. An example would be a known secret agent 
  running loose in a hostile country.
  Obviously, having a Level 3 Enemy or greater in the area of
  the campaign means that you can have no fixed address,
  and that all your known relatives, friends and acquaintances
  may be watched to see if you show up there or contact
  them.
  ﬁ« Like Contacts, Enemies can be upgraded or downgraded
  during play. For instance, that Level 2 criminal record could
  easily turn into a Level 3 warrant for the character's arrest if
  they engage in too many shady activities. They would not
  get any extra SP for this, however.
   
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  Extra Limb
  Ω
  Humans get four limbs, two of which can be used for fine
  manipulation of objects (arms), and all of which can be used
  for combat purposes (arms & legs). If your character is of
  some race or species which has a different number, then
  you may gain or lose points. A limb which can be used for
  fine manipulation, but which has little or no strength (STR 0)
  costs 5AP. If it has the character's normal STR and can be
  used in unarmed combat, it costs 5AP extra. If it can be
  used for locomotion, it costs 5AP extra. If for some reason it
  has a higher STR than the character, each point of extra
  STR costs 5AP. A limb which has a STR of 0 and no ability
  to manipulate objects costs no points, although it may have
  some social, status or cultural significance (like a zero cost
  dog’s tail, wagging to show a friendly attitude). Humans
  have two limbs with no manipulation, but normal STR and
  locomotion capability (legs), at 10AP each, and two which
  are capable of manipulation and normal STR (arms), which
  are 10AP each. This is a total of 40AP which humans get
  “free”. A race with more than 40AP of limbs must pay an
  extra cost, while a race which has less gets extra AP for
  development in other areas.
  Limb
  Cost
  No manipulation, no STR
  0AP
  Add manipulation
  +5AP
  Add STR
  +5AP
  Add locomotion
  +5AP
  Human arm (STR, manipulation)
  10AP
  Human leg (STR, locomotion)
  10AP
  Example - A race which has a STR 0 prehensile tail capa-
  ble of fine manipulation would have to pay 5AP for it. If they
  didn’t pay the AP, they could be assumed to still have the
  tail, but lack the skills at the moment to use it. This might be
  improved later, with experience.
  i Note that a “limb” can be flexibly defined. A snake might
  have no limbs, but its body can be used in combat for crush-
  ing, and its muscles for moving, so it would be bought as 1
  limb. Likewise, a centipede-type creature might have many
  limbs, but group them into a smaller number, since individu-
  ally they cannot propel the creature, but a certain minimum
  number can.
  Movement ability is split between applicable limbs. Loss of
  function in half the limbs (round fractions up) usually results
  in near-immobility due to body geometry, and loss of less
  than this amount drops mobility by some proportional frac-
  tion. 
  Example - A creature with 4 legs would be almost immobi-
  lized if 2 of them lost function. This is a 100% drop in move-
  ment for loss of 2 legs, so losing function in 1 would reduce
  movement by half. A creature with 6 legs would lose a third
  of their movement if 1 leg was incapacitated.
  Fame
  This is both an advantage and disadvantage. Each level of
  “positive” fame costs 2AP or SP, and each level of “nega-
  tive” fame gets a character 2AP or SP, with a maximum of
  10 levels in either type. Each type may also require a similar
  number of total levels in Contacts or Enemies. 
  Positive fame acts as a limited form of influence and protec-
  tion. Other public figures may provide some support to or
  give deference to the character in public, in hopes that some
  of the fame will rub off, or to prevent the public from being
  unhappy with the public figure. Movie stars promoting chari-
  ty causes are an example. In general, each level is a -1 to
  the Difficulty of any task in getting to meet people more
  important than yourself, or getting casual cooperation from
  those less important than yourself. It can add or subtract up
  to 2 to the character’s influence for their ability to get things
  done. For instance, a person with an Fame of 2 might be
  able to get out of a speeding ticket (Influence 2 crime), or a
  serious offense might be downgraded a level or two. Or, a
  member of a notorious gang might have offenses “upgrad-
  ed”, because they are part of a “famous” organization.
  Negative fame has the opposite effect. Anyone with a public
  image will shun the character and deny them assistance for
  fear of adversely affecting their image. Politicians distancing
  themselves from radical groups are an example.
  The highest level of any fame adds to the chance a charac-
  ter will be recognized. However, fame is usually for a given
  field or category, and if the category is not immediately
  known to the general public, the level for recognition purpos-
  es is dropped 2 points (or to zero).
  Example - A shadowy assassin might be known in the cir-
  cles of power, whose members would not want to be seen
  publicly with the assassin. However, the average person on
  the street is unaffected, since the field of fame is not one
  they are acquainted with.
  Both forms of fame also have a counter-culture, or a smaller
  segment of the population that is opposite the normal opin-
  ion. For instance, a vocally racist politician might have a few
  negative levels of fame, which on the whole is bad.
  However, this increases that politician’s popularity with cer-
  tain racist splinter groups. Or a rock star might have a few
  levels of fame with the public, but some police will watching
  the character to see if they are using illegal drugs.
  Note that a character might not be famous, but have up to 1
  level of fame for being part of a famous group, in which case
  a Level 1 Contact is required with that group as well, regard-
  less of whether the Fame is positive or negative.
  Note that the famous always get more attention from the
  media, and have more trouble doing things in secret.
  Tabloids thrive on publishing secret details of the lives of the
  rich and famous.
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  Frailness
  Ω
  This is the opposite of the Toughness advantage (p.27). A
  Toughness of x.8 multiplies damage by x.8, making it small-
  er. A Frailness of x1.3 multiplies damage by x1.3, making it
  larger. Normal humans have a multiple of x1.0, and Frailness
  alters this multiple, rounding damage nearest. The adjusted
  damage is used when figuring out autokill or eventually fatal
  results, total impairment for healing purposes, and so on.
  Frailness applies after location modifiers on damage. Each
  level of Frailness increases the multiple by x.1, and gains
  the character 5AP or SP. Note that characters may take up
  to a total of x1.3 in Frailness as a result of failed aging rolls.
  Example - A character fails an aging roll at age 50, which
  results in the loss of 5AP and SP. The player opts to give
  the character a level of Frailness to counter the AP loss,
  preventing any attributes from going down at this time.
  ﬁ« Frailness adds some unnecessary complexity to damage
  calculations, so characters should be aware of the break-
  points for increased effects so as not to slow play. For
  instance, since it rounds nearest, a multiple of x1.1 means
  you take 6 points of effect if hit through armor for 5 points or
  more, so hits of 4 points or less are unaffected.
  i Both Frailness and Toughness are excellent for modeling
  animals or alien races who may have different body struc-
  tures. Low-gravity worlds may have frail creatures, while
  high gravity worlds may have tough ones.
  Habitual Behavior
  This is not quite a Psych Lim or Physical Lim, but contains
  elements of both. It is something that the character does
  unconsciously, and which can only be controlled by con-
  sciously trying not to do it. Examples might be holding doors
  open for members of the opposite sex, smoking after dinner,
  scratching your nose while thinking, a preferred cuisine
  when eating out, or a modus operandi when committing a
  crime. There is no direct penalty for this, but it is a +2 penal-
  ty to any acting, disguise or ability to blend in, if the watcher
  knows about the behavior. A Level 2 Enemy automatically
  has enough information to know this, and the knowledge
  makes it more difficult for a character to “hide in plain sight”. 
  Example - A character “on the run” has dyed their hair,
  shaved off a mustache and altered their normal wardrobe.
  However, the pursuers have been warned that their target
  may have changed appearance, but has a tendency to use
  their thumb and middle finger to whistle loudly for taxicabs,
  and wears a wristwatch on the right arm instead of the left.
  The character can negate the behavior for a specific short
  encounter, but cannot say “I won’t do such-and-such today”,
  as it happens without thinking. This is worth 3SP as a disad-
  vantage, provided it is common enough to get the character
  into trouble. Several less common behaviors may be used
  to equal one common one.
  Height/Weight
  Unless otherwise noted, characters are assumed to fall into
  human or other racial norms for a height and weight propor-
  tional to their STR. Normal mass for a human character is
  centered on an amount equal to their STR x 15, in kilo-
  grams. Height is an average of 180cm for men, and 175cm
  for women. Altering these heights by 5% or more, or mass-
  es by 10% or more requires GM permission. Height may
  never vary by more than 20%, and mass may never vary by
  more than 40%. Each 5% change will gain the character
  2AP or 2SP, and is a liability of some type. Excessively
  large or small characters may stand out, or take minuses to
  skills that would allow them to blend in. Each 10% total
  modifier (altered height + altered mass) will be a +1 modifier
  to affected skills, or a bonus to others to recognize or
  remember the character. Extra weight is also a permanent
  encumbrance that is added to any normal load carried, and
  characters with extremely low mass (total of 20% or more in
  reduced height and mass) may also be required to have a
  level of Frailness as well.
  Immortality
  Ω
  This advantage is extremely useful. A character with this
  advantage does not age, or does so only very slowly. In
  addition, they will regenerate lost body parts, although this
  takes 10 times as long as it would for the injury that caused
  it to heal. Lost heads do not grow back, instantly fatal
  injuries are still instantly fatal, but eventually fatal injuries will
  seal themselves when the character reaches a HLT equal to
  their starting HLT Aptitude. There are two forms of immortal-
  ity, permanent and limited. The permanent form costs
  100AP, and is immutable. The limited form must be renewed
  from some outside source every few years, or the character
  irreversibly reverts to their true age at the rate of a year per
  day. This only costs 50AP. 
  The only way to have an immortal character of equal skill to
  a regular character is to be very old, which should also give
  you a large complement of Enemies, something not con-
  ducive to continued survival. Even with this advantage, no
  character can start the game at over 100 years old without
  GM permission. 
  ﬁ« Characters who are immortal are not limited in the amount
  of savings they can buy with the Wealth advantage.
  If a form of limited or permanent Immortality has certain
  harmful side effects that can be represented by other char-
  acter limitations, the cost of that particular Immortality “pack-
  age” should be reduced by an appropriate amount.
  Vampirism is a typical example (Dependence on human
  blood, vulnerability to sunlight, etc.).
  ﬁ« One of the limits of immortality is that it takes a lot of time to
  keep attributes and skills at their peak. See the note on
  p.124.
  22
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  Inheritance
  This advantage only applies to a new character who enters
  the game because a previous character played by that per-
  son dies or is retired for some other reason. In addition to
  any physical objects bequeathed or passed on, the new
  character can have any one character advantage (up to
  10AP or SP) of the previous character at no charge. This is
  subject to GM approval, and must have some rational basis,
  based on the background of the new character. 
  Example - A character dies, and his “brother” takes up the
  torch. If the recently deceased character had a Natural
  Aptitude in Strength, the brother could claim it as a family
  trait. If the character died and a close friend started looking
  into the character’s affairs, there would be no basis for the
  Natural Aptitude being transferred. However, a Contact
  might. 
  –ø Players just starting the game can never have this advan-
  tage, nor can the Inheritance advantage be passed by a
  character who has survived less than 10 play sessions.
  Luck
  Ω
  This is either an advantage or disadvantage, depending on
  if it is good luck or bad luck. Good luck means that any time
  there is a rounding of numbers, it rounds in your favor. Tie
  votes are resolved in your favor, dice rolls that are a little
  crooked count in your favor, random disasters that could
  happen to several people don’t affect you first, and so on.
  Bad luck is just the opposite. Rounding goes against you,
  ties go the other way, you bear the brunt of random disas-
  ters, and so on. Good luck costs 5AP, and bad luck gives
  you 5AP. This may usually not be acquired after game start,
  as it is something a character is born with.
  Natural Aptitude
  Ω
  This advantage means that you are genetically gifted with a
  “knack” for certain things. This costs 10AP, and halves
  (round up) the cost of getting a single Attribute or Primary
  skill. The catch is that you must have GM approval for
  Natural Aptitude on that specific Attribute. You may choose
  also choose a “natural skill” rather than a “natural attribute”.
  This advantage is not recommended in “real world” cam-
  paigns, and strongly limited in other campaigns.
  For campaigns bordering on the “superheroic”, this advan-
  tage may be purchased multiple times, and each time
  halves the attribute or skill cost again. However, a character
  who is entirely human could only have one level of Natural
  Aptitude.
  i A level of Natural Aptitude is only cost effective if the
  Attribute is at a level of 5 or more.
  Natural Debility
  Ω
  This disadvantage means that you are genetically cursed
  with an inability to do certain things. This gets you 20AP or
  SP, but doubles the cost of getting a single Attribute or
  Primary skill, to represent things that you just can’t do as
  well as anyone else. This is useful to represent things like
  the STR of a physically small or weak race, and does not
  normally apply to humans. Multiple levels of this can be
  bought as necessary. Regardless of what it is bought on, it
  must be something that will limit the character in that partic-
  ular campaign. Obviously, a debility in Journalism will be of
  no concern if the character is in a pre-literate culture, or a
  debility in POW will not matter if there are no paranormal
  abilities allowed.
  i For one level of debility, it ceases to be cost effective to
  have an Attribute higher than 4. For two levels, it is not cost
  effective to have higher than a 2 in the affected Attribute.
  Option - Another way to apply this to skills is to treat a
  Natural Debility as a total +4 Difficulty in one or more
  Primary skills. For instance, a close-minded culture might
  have increased difficulty in doing theatre, art, dance or other
  expressive skills. Or, this might also be a Psych Lim.
  Non-combatant
  The character was never raised or trained towards violent or
  physical criminal activity. They may have no military,
  weapon or combat related skills at more than their Aptitude
  (familiarity), and may not have Secondary or Tertiary skills
  in these categories. They may have AWR-based criminal
  skills, and may learn any of the prohibited weapon or mili-
  tary skills in play. The “average” person has this disadvan-
  tage. It is worth 5SP, and is basically an extra bonus for a
  character conception that does not rely on martial abilities or
  fighting prowess. 
  –ø If cultural limits on skills are such that the character has no
  choice but to be a non-combatant, they may not have this
  disadvantage.
  Pain Tolerance
  This is an extremely useful advantage, and represents phys-
  ical conditioning, and knowledge of how best to take
  inevitable hits. This costs 5AP, but allows you to ignore non-
  lethal impairment on any attack, up to your WIL Aptitude.
  You must be conscious and aware of the attack in order for
  the advantage to work. 
  i That is, with a WIL of 2-5, you can ignore non-lethal attacks
  of 1 point, and with a WIL of 6-9 you can ignore non-lethal
  attacks of 2 points.
  –ø This advantage does not protect you against sneak attacks,
  drug effects or non-lethal attacks which cause impairment
  without causing pain (like a “nerve pinch”).
   
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  Papers
  Any documents, permits or papers which a character legally
  qualifies for at the start of the game are “free”, that is, they
  cost no points and no money, although certain papers may
  have renewal fees, like medical licenses, etc. If the papers
  come as part of an obligation or Duty, the “cost” will be fac-
  tored into the Duty or be part of an Authority. Normally “free”
  papers include a driver’s license or pilot’s license (if you
  have the skill), passport (if not a wanted felon), credit cards,
  national identity card, and so on.
  In the case of illegal or forged papers (credit cards, gun per-
  mits, passports, etc.), an appropriate contact might be able
  to procure them, but this would require a Contact level equal
  to the Influence needed for that particular item (p.18). These
  would have to be acquired during play, and this might take
  some time. Likewise, a shady employer might be able to
  provide these, but they would be of the employer’s choice,
  easily traceable by the employer, and might have to be
  returned after use. Independently procured, false papers
  may be in a character’s possession at the start of the game,
  if the character is willing to pay SP for them equal to the
  Influence level of the item. This basically means that the
  character has spent time establishing a false identity instead
  of applying their time to skill improvement. At GM option, it
  might also require at least a Level 1 contact or prior employ-
  ment with the appropriate agency to represent familiarity of
  how to procure or produce said items. Papers are more fully
  detailed on p.88, but the basics and SP costs of some com-
  mon forged or phony papers are below.
  i 20th Century Papers
  Cost
  Automatic teller machine card
  2SP
  Credit card
  3SP
  Driver’s license
  3SP
  International driver’s license
  3SP
  Local weapon permit
  3SP
  Local concealed weapon permit
  5SP
  Federal concealed weapon permit
  6SP
  Automatic weapon permit
  5SP
  Passport
  4SP
  Resident visa (on a per country basis)
  4SP
  Pilot’s license
  4SP
  These papers have a life of more or less a year, from the
  start of the game. After that, the real ID’s may have changed
  format, data files might have been purged, real permits
  would have expired, and so on. If used judiciously, the items
  will be good for a full year. If subjected to close scrutiny or
  suspicion, they will be good for less than a month after the
  first detailed check, like not showing up in court for a major
  traffic accident after you gave the police a false registration
  and license. Otherwise, they should flawlessly pass visual
  and casual computer scrutiny. Note that some papers
  require other papers as secondary items, like a credit card
  often requiring a driver's license to back it up.
  Physical Ad
  This is the opposite of a physical limitation. You have a
  known but uncommon physical advantage of some type.
  This costs 5AP, and exact effects must be determined by
  the player and GM. Examples would be ambidexterity, a
  slightly higher than normal running speed, or an especially
  keen physical or mental ability. Normally, the end result is
  up to a +2 bonus in a certain, specific aspect of an
  attribute’s functioning. In certain situations, this may provide
  a +1 to a character’s skill, like when the increased attribute
  function also increases character Aptitude for a certain skill. 
  ﬁ« A character can combine a Natural Aptitude and a Physical
  Ad to get an “extraordinary advantage”, like eidetic memory,
  being able to alter your height or voluntarily dislocate and
  relocate your joints, or other known but extremely rare tal-
  ents. This requires GM permission.
  i Sample Physical Ads
  Extra upper body strength (STR bonus to punches)
  Contortionist (AGL bonus to escape)
  Light sleeper (AWR bonus to wake up)
  Good memory (AWR bonus to recall things)
  Keen eyesight (AWR bonus for spotting things)
  Forceful personality (WIL bonus for persuading people)
  Good looking (WIL bonus for sex appeal)
  High stamina (HLT bonus for exertion)
  Healthy (HLT bonus for recovering from injury)
  Ambidextrous (negate AGL skill penalty for using off-hand)
  A character may have no more than 2 Physical Ads on a
  given attribute. More than this means they are good enough
  with that attribute that they should buy up the overall level. 
  –ø Physical Ads may never be cumulative. For instance, a play-
  er may not have +2 “upper body STR” and +2 “hand STR” to
  get a +4 "grip STR".
  ﬁ« It is also possible to model “charisma” or “looks” as a level
  or two of Fame, with the justification that people enjoy your
  company and are more likely to give you the benefit of the
  doubt. You will also have a segment of the population that
  resents your looks or charisma.
  24
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  Psych Lim
  This is some irrational trait you have which will affect your
  interaction with normal society, or your ability to act in cer-
  tain situations. You get 2AP or SP for each level of this limi-
  tation, and it adds to the Difficulty of any task you perform
  which is done in that situation, or increases the chance of
  success for anyone using a skill against you that plays on
  that limitation, and any level of limitation makes you vulnera-
  ble to situations a normal person could ignore. For instance,
  a person with a combative streak at level 3 would have to
  perform a WIL task with a Difficulty of 3 in order to back
  down from a direct challenge. Normally, this would be no
  problem, but what if their resistance had been lowered by
  alcohol? A person with level 4 claustrophobia would add 4
  to the Difficulty of any task performed in an enclosed space,
  and so on. The maximum limitation is +10, which makes the
  person totally non-functional in that situation. There are situ-
  ations in which Psych Lims can add together for their effect.
  For instance, someone who is both shy and afraid of open
  spaces would be severely limited in trying to make an open-
  air speech before a crowd. If a Psych Lim is such that any
  level would tend to make the person an outcast (say a fond-
  ness for human flesh), the point value is doubled.
  Level 1 Psych Lim
  In general, a Level 1 Psych Lim is “personality”, minor traits
  that give your character some life, and act as a guide to how
  they would behave in a particular situation. For instance,
  Level 1 Shyness means you add 1 to the Difficulty of any
  inter-personal tasks, especially those that are in public.
  However, it is not crippling, and you can overcome it with
  preparation. Players are encouraged to give their characters
  a few non-overlapping Level 1 Psych Lims as a relatively
  painless way to get a few extra AP or SP.
  Level 2 Psych Lim
  A Level 2 Psych Lim is a “bias”, some aspect of the charac-
  ter that influences many of the things they do. It is also obvi-
  ous enough that any of the character’s friends or profession-
  al colleagues will know about it or suspect it. The extra
  Difficulty to tasks involving the limitation is enough to make
  the character’s chance of success significantly more difficult.
  Cultural biases often fall into this category, even if the char-
  acter is aware of them and tries not to let it affect them.
  Level 3-4 Psych Lim
  A Level 3-4 Psych Lim is a “borderline psychosis”, a charac-
  ter trait that refuses to budge in the face of reason, and
  which colors almost everything the character does. Anyone
  who deals with the character for any length of time will
  notice the trait or side effects of the trait in the character’s
  conversation or actions. For interpersonal traits, this may
  adversely affect other characters in the group, as the repu-
  tation of the one character colors the perception of the
  group as a whole. Religious fervor, strong racism or mild
  phobias towards a relatively common item or situation fall
  into this category.
  Physical Lim
  A character with this limitation has some sort of non- or par-
  tially correctable physical problem that interferes with their
  daily activities. Each level of limitation gets the character
  2AP or SP, but subtracts directly from some action of the
  character, usually part of the use of an attribute. For
  instance, 10 levels of limited AWR could represent total
  blindness, a +10 Difficulty on AWR rolls when trying to see
  something. A few levels applied to movement could repre-
  sent a limp, or a level applied to WIL might represent mute-
  ness, which could conceivably also be a strong Psych Lim
  vs. public speaking. Specific effects vary, and also depend
  on whether or not there is some substitute for the limitation.
  For instance, a person missing a hand could not normally
  fire a gun with that arm, but might if they had a grasping
  hook.
  Limitations which the GM feels are only partly effective at
  negating certain kinds of actions only get half the points, like
  deafness or glasses (AWR), loss of a hand (AGL) or stutter-
  ing (WIL). Similar rules apply to appearance limitations,
  each level being a +1 modifier to the AWR roll of onlookers
  when trying to remember a character’s appearance, like a
  tattoo, clothing, hair color, etc.
  i A missing or crippled limb can also be bought as a negative
  “extra limb” (p.21), i.e. missing an arm or leg is worth 10AP.
  i Sample Physical Lims
  Cost
  Blind
  20AP or SP
  Missing an eye
  10AP or SP
  Strong corrective lenses (+5 to vision without them)
  5AP or SP
  Mute
  10AP or SP
  Stuttering
  5AP or SP
  Deaf
  10AP or SP
  Partially deaf
  5AP or SP
  Loss of a hand or foot
  5AP or SP
  Loss of an arm or leg
  10AP or SP
  Forgetful (+2 to remember details)
  2AP or SP
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  Level 5+ Psych Lim
  A Level 5 Psych Lim, or any Psych Lim which exceeds the
  WIL of the character (even temporarily) is an “obsession”, a
  character trait that regardless of intellect, the character is
  powerless before. Strong phobias are like this. Even if the
  character is aware that fear of closed spaces is irrational,
  they cannot control the panic they feel when stepping into
  an elevator. Fanaticism is another example, except the
  character doesn’t know that they are irrational. Rather, any-
  one or anything which contradicts their particular worldview
  must be wrong, because the character is “right”.
  Note that groups of people with a similar Psych Lim often
  increase the effect of the Psych Lim by 2 or more points,
  leading otherwise rational people to perform acts they would
  not do otherwise. This is the “lynch mob effect”, and can be
  very dangerous.
  Cultural Psych Lims
  A given culture or sub-culture may have “mandatory” Psych
  Lims that go with it, and for a character to be fully accepted
  as a member of that culture, they must have these Psych
  Lims as well. Normally, this is worth no points, and the char-
  acter gets points only for not having the Psych Lim. For
  instance, there might be respect for the elderly, deference to
  authority, obeying the results of majority votes, reluctance to
  kill, and so on. Note also that even if the characters do not
  have these limits, most “average” people in that culture will,
  and it will shape how they act and interact with the charac-
  ters. In a culture which reveres the wisdom of the elderly, a
  character who does not follow this will not be respected by
  others, and will take penalties when interacting with anyone
  who recognizes the character’s “anti-social” attitude. 
  ﬁ« Cultural packages of Psych Lims are a very important GM
  tool for shaping a campaign, as it provides a quick reference
  to the attitudes and likely actions of everyday people when
  confronted with a given situation.
  i Sample Psych Lims
  Shyness
  Short attention span
  Overconfidence
  No sense of humor
  Short-tempered
  Obsessions
  Talkative
  Compulsive behaviors
  Paranoia
  Bully
  Curiosity
  Gullibility
  Racism (believes one race is superior to another)
  Jingoism (believes one country is superior to another)
  Sexism (believes on sex is superior to another)
  Cannibalism (believes some people taste better than others)
  Acrophobia (fear of heights)
  Agoraphobia (fear of open spaces)
  Claustrophobia (fear of enclosed spaces)
  Technophobia (fear of machines/technology)
  Xenophobia (fear of the unknown)
  Size
  Ω
  This is a permanent physical characteristic, unlike a para-
  normal power which may temporarily change the size of a
  creature. Each level of size will increase or decrease the
  mass of the character, or be any amount between the norm
  (1x size) and this level. Note that this is separate from sim-
  ply being an over- or underweight character. A level of size
  implies a marked difference in size and appearance. One or
  two levels of increased size for a human would be a “giant”,
  and one or two levels of reduced size would be a “dwarf”.
  Usually, a level of increased size is accompanied by a level
  of Toughness and Natural Aptitude in STR, and a level of
  decreased size is accompanied by a level of Frailness and
  Natural Debility in STR (see the appropriate advantage/lim-
  itation), which has the normal point cost. The benefits or
  penalties of Size are as follows:
  Each level of increased size
  +1 level of reach with any melee attack
  x1.5 normal mass
  Each 2 levels of increased size (round down)
  -1 to be hit with any weapon
  +1 to normal maximum movement
  Character completely fills 1 hex
  +1 meter of height or length
  Each 4 levels of increased size (round down)
  +1 hex reach with any melee attack at no penalty
  Each level of decreased size
  -1 level of reach with any melee attack
  +1 to be hit with any weapon
  -1 to normal maximum movement
  x.5 normal mass
  Each 2 levels of decreased size (round down)
  Half normal height/length
  Example - A “giant” with 2 levels of increased size is -1
  Difficulty to be hit with any weapon, completely fills one hex,
  runs 1 meter per second faster than normal, adds 2 to the
  length of any melee weapon, is 3m tall and masses (1.5 x
  1.5)=2.3 times as much as their normal STR would indicate.
  Each level of Size costs 5AP, and may only be altered in
  play if the character starts as a juvenile, and “grows” during
  play. In this case, some portion of base age-related AP must
  be devoted to buying off or buying up their original size.
  Example - A child character has a level of reduced size, for
  5AP. Since the character normally gains 4AP/year through
  aging, the GM says that 1AP/year for the next 5 years must
  be devoted to “growing up”, and the character will be full-
  size at the end of this time. As it is bought off, the character
  gradually loses the benefits, in an order of the GM’s choice.
   
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  Vulnerability
  Ω
  A character with this disadvantage has a susceptibility to a
  condition which normal people find mildly irritating at the
  worst. The character gets 2AP or SP for each level of
  Vulnerability, and each level means they take the effect of a
  non-lethal hit of that level to any area exposed, upon expo-
  sure (for more than a few minutes), and again every hour. 
  Sample Vulnerabilities
  Pollen-induced asthma
  Bee sting allergy
  Sunlight vs. vampires
  Cold iron vs. Sidhe
  Alcohol intolerance
  Adverse drug reaction
  Rare blood type (adverse reaction to normal transfusions)
  If the damage is lethal instead of non-lethal, the character
  gets 5AP or SP per level. For instance, an albino might have
  Level 1 vulnerability to sunlight on exposed skin. A person
  with alcohol intolerance might have Level 1 vulnerability to
  liquor, or an epileptic might have Level 1 or 2 vulnerability to
  strobe lights (damage being from seizures). Extreme cases
  might be a vampire’s vulnerability to sunlight (or holy sym-
  bols), but a “normal” person would rarely have more than a
  Level 2 vulnerability from any known medical condition.
  Wealth
  Normally, characters will start with an amount of money
  based on their skill and age. Choose the skill your character
  has been making a living with, based on the character back-
  ground. If more than one skill applies, use the best one, and
  if the character has three or more job related skills at the
  same level (a profession), add 1 to the skill level for deter-
  mining income and savings. If the character does not have
  any marketable skills (for instance, career opportunities for a
  person whose best skill is “Knife” are fairly limited), they use
  an Attribute score instead, and subtract 2. Only active duty
  military and police can claim to make a legal living from
  combat skills, unless you run a training school for the same
  (like maybe a martial arts instructor). 
  Example - A character has a job as a “mechanic”, with skill
  in Mechanical Repair, Electronics and Metalworking of 5.
  Since all three of these would be useful in maintaining or
  repairing vehicles, the character is counted as having a skill
  of 6 for purposes of income.
  Savings Table
  Skill Level
  Years
  3
  4
  5
  6
  7
  8
  9
  1
  180Cr
  320Cr 500Cr
  720Cr
  980Cr 1280Cr 1620Cr
  2
  360Cr
  640Cr 1000Cr 1440Cr 1960Cr 2560Cr 3240Cr
  3
  540Cr
  960Cr 1500Cr 2160Cr 2940Cr 3840Cr 4860Cr
  4
  720Cr 1280Cr 2000Cr 2880Cr 3920Cr 5120Cr 6480Cr
  5
  900Cr 1600Cr 2500Cr 3600Cr 4900Cr 6400Cr 8100Cr
  6
  1080Cr 1920Cr 3000Cr 4320Cr 5880Cr 7680Cr 9720Cr
  7
  1260Cr 2240Cr 3500Cr 5040Cr 6860Cr 8960Cr 11.3KCr
  8
  1440Cr 2560Cr 4000Cr 5760Cr 7840Cr 10.2KCr 13.0KCr
  9
  1620Cr 2880Cr 4500Cr 6480Cr 8820Cr 11.5KCr 14.6KCr
  10
  1800Cr 3200Cr 5000Cr 7200Cr 9800Cr 12.8KCr 16.2KCr
  Toughness
  Ω
  Toughness means you are harder to injure than normal. It
  does not provide armor against attacks, but reduces the
  effects of larger attacks. Normal humans can have limited
  amounts of Toughness. Non-humans and large creatures
  can have several levels, with a minimum damage multiple of
  x.1, which is what a whale might have. Toughness costs
  5AP or SP per level, and the damage multiple applies
  before any pain resistance and after hit location modifiers.
  Sample scale
  Damage multiple
  Ratio
  Small dog
  x3.0
  3:1
  Medium dog
  x2.0
  2:1
  Large dog
  x1.5
  3:2
  Child
  x1.5
  3:2
  Frail person
  x1.2
  6:5
  Average person
  x1.0
  1:1
  Very tough person
  x.8
  4:5
  Average horse
  x.5
  1:2
  Elephant
  x.2
  1:5
  Large whale
  x.1
  1:10
  Example - A character is large and burly, and wants to be
  able to shrug off damage that would knock other people flat.
  So, they have a high WIL, Pain Tolerance, and spend 10AP
  or SP for two levels of Toughness, dropping their damage
  multiple from x1.0 to x.8 (round down). Now, the character
  only takes 4 points out of 5 that they are hit with (5 points
  times the x.8 multiple from two levels of Toughness). And, of
  these points that the character feels, they can stop some of
  the non-lethal effects with their Pain Tolerance.
  ﬁ« It is suggested that each level of Toughness after the first
  cost double the previous level unless the character also has
  a corresponding level in a trait that explains the Toughness.
  Example - A human with 3 levels of Toughness would pay 5
  points for the first level, 10 for the second, and 20 for the
  third. An ogre with 1 level of increased size would pay 5
  points for the first level, 5 points for the second, and 10
  points for the third.
  Tricks
  A character may have a “trick”, or something that they can
  reliably do that is not quite a skill or paranormal ability. For
  instance, being able to whistle two tones at once to dial a
  phone would be a “trick”. No roll is needed under most cir-
  cumstances, and there is no skill involved. The limitations of
  a trick are that it cannot supplant a regular skill, although it
  may act as a +1 modifier in certain circumstances. For
  instance, “can put feet behind head” would be a trick, and
  might get a character a +1 when trying to get out of being
  tied up. “Can hotwire old Volvos” would be a trick, but “can
  hotwire cars” is too broad and useful to be allowed. No two
  characters can have the same trick, just to prevent abuse. A
  trick costs 5AP or SP, and the player must have a note in
  their background on how they learned it.
  27
  27
  B
  BASIC
  ASIC R
  RULES
  ULES
  
  This effective level of skill squared (Skill x Skill), times 20Cr,
  times the number of years of employment, equals the total
  funds in the bank that you have to your name. Naturally, you
  can have access to more cash through things like credit
  cards, but the amount you just calculated is your “money in
  the bank”.
  ﬁ« Most attribute-based jobs (untrained) have a starting age of
  16, most non-degree professions have a starting age of 18,
  those requiring some degree of professional training have a
  starting age of 20, and those requiring college education
  have a starting age of 22. If characters reach “adult” age
  sooner than 16 in your game, adjust the starting ages down-
  ward by an appropriate amount. So to be realistic, a 26 year
  old character can only have money from that college training
  for 5 years (age 22-26), not 11 years (age 16-26).
  i CORPS really isn't meant for characters to start off filthy
  rich. It's next to impossible to start the game as a millionaire
  dilettante, just as a matter of play balance.
  For each 2SP you spend, you can increase your effective
  employment term at a particular job for wealth purposes by
  1 year, with a maximum increase of your WIL. Spending 1
  year’s worth of SP gained from the age disadvantage (p.16)
  translates into 2 years of additional savings. Likewise, you
  may sell off any amount of age, at the rate of 2SP a year,
  and with GM permission, even begin the game in debt.
  Example - If a character spent 3 years at a job, and wanted
  5 years of accumulated savings, it would cost them 4SP. If
  they wanted only 1 year’s savings, they would get 4SP.
  Characters may assume they are employed up to the start
  of the game (that may change), and their monthly salary is
  equal to the skill they are using, squared, times 50Cr.
  Characters starting the game unemployed should opt to
  have less personal savings to represent this.
  Optional rule - You can add 5Cr to the 50Cr for each year
  of experience at that particular job to represent seniority,
  promotions and experience (up to double the base amount).
  So, a person with 5 years experience would multiply by
  75Cr instead of 50Cr. This gives starting characters with
  stable jobs a greater income base.
  Taxes
  The amount of take-home pay depends on the local tax rate.
  Late 20th century United States characters can assume a
  30% bite is taken out before they even see it, from state and
  federal taxes. European characters are likely to lose even
  more. This does not affect the starting level of savings a
  character has.
  Starting goods
  The amount of savings a character starts with automatically
  generates twice as much value in material goods. For
  instance, a character with 2,000Cr in the bank can also
  have a 2,000Cr computer, and 2,000Cr worth of furniture
  and sundry possessions without having to dip into their sav-
  ings amount. These should be bought appropriate to the
  character’s lifestyle, and to some extent can be converted
  back into cash, like selling your car, although this is usually
  at a loss.
  If desired, the amount of material goods “owned” can be
  multiplied by 10 to represent items bought on loan but not
  paid for yet. So a character with 3,000Cr in the bank could
  have 6,000Cr in owned goods and 60,000Cr in “loaned”
  goods, like a car, house, etc. This presumes that the culture
  has developed a good way to keep track of individuals and
  loaned money. The GM will have to determine the length of
  loan, loan payments and things that happen if you miss too
  many of those payments...
  Supply and Demand
  If a particular profession or attribute is in high demand, the
  character can add 1 or 2 to their level for determining their
  savings and pay. Likewise, if there is a surplus of talent,
  those hiring can pay less, and characters would subtract 1
  or 2 from their level when determining savings and pay.
  If a job is hazardous, this will tend to increase the effective
  skill of the character for savings and income by 1 or 2, but
  should roll 1d10 for each year of employment. If the number
  comes up equal or less than the amount their skill is
  increased for “hazard pay”, they suffer some sort of physical
  limitation that is job-related. This is relatively minor, at a
  level equal to the “danger bonus” on their skill, and the char-
  acter does get points for it.
  Example - A character is working as a “bodyguard”, and
  fails a hazard roll. The player states the game result is that
  the character was shot in the leg and now has a permanent
  limp (which they get a few AP or SP for).
  28
  28
  B
  BASIC
  ASIC R
  RULES
  ULES
  
  Lifestyle
  Characters will have a certain standard of living to maintain.
  While they may go on extended journeys to distant places,
  they will still have a number of fixed expenses that may
  have to be paid. This is especially important during extend-
  ed times between adventures, or if there is no well-off
  patron paying the character’s bills.
  i Sample living expenses
  Car payments + insurance
  per month
  10,000Cr car
  250Cr
  20,000Cr car
  500Cr
  30,000Cr car
  750Cr
  40,000Cr car
  1,000Cr
  Sports car
  x1.5
  Bad driving record
  x1.5
  High accident rate city
  x1.5
  Insurance only (if car is paid for already)
  x.25
  Housing + insurance + fees
  per month
  Apartment
  400Cr
  Townhouse
  700Cr
  House
  1000Cr
  Mansion
  2000Cr
  Cheap
  x.75
  Average
  x1.0
  Luxury
  x1.5
  Bad location
  x.5
  Average location
  x1.0
  Good location
  x2.0
  Prime location
  x5.0
  In/near major city
  x2.0
  Food
  per month
  Fixed at home
  150Cr
  Restaurant once a week
  200Cr
  Restaurant twice a week
  250Cr
  Restaurant once a day
  400Cr
  Restaurant all the time
  750Cr
  Cheap
  x.75
  Average
  x1.0
  Luxury
  x2.0
  Example - An employed character with a Computer Science
  skill of 7 and 5 years experience will have (7 x 7) x 20Cr x 5
  years = 4,900Cr in the bank, and 9,800Cr in assets. The
  character has a current monthly salary of 3,675Cr (using the
  optional seniority rule). In the US, after taxes (30% bite), this
  leaves about 2,600Cr per month to live on. Our programmer
  lives in an average apartment in a major city (800Cr per
  month), eats out at least twice a week (250Cr per month),
  drives a 30,000Cr sports car (1,125Cr per month), and has
  about 400Cr a month left over for sundries, clothing and
  savings. 
  They have a computer worth 3,000Cr, 2,000Cr worth of fur-
  niture, an 800Cr stereo (including music), and a second car
  worth about 2,000Cr (paid for, but eats insurance money),
  leaving 2,000Cr for clothing and other possessions.
  Your lifestyle at the start of the game should not exceed
  your monthly take-home pay. This will give you an idea of
  your financial status at the start of the game. 
  Winning the lottery
  If a character wants to start poor, and later on have the
  chance to get a cash windfall like an inheritance, the GM
  may allow extra AP or SP to be devoted to this at character
  generation. When the opportunity arises, each AP or SP
  counts as one or more years of starting savings, depending
  on difficult it is for the character to get the money.
  Example - A character who starts off with their best employ-
  able skill at 5 would have 500Cr, and 1,000Cr worth of
  goods for each year of experience. If they set aside 4SP
  towards some distant relative giving them an inheritance,
  the GM might count each SP as 1 or more years of savings,
  depending on the conditions attached. If it just “happened”,
  then it might be less than if the character had to meet some
  sort of condition (getting married, clearing a dishonored rela-
  tive’s reputation, completing some test of skill or ability,
  etc.). The money might also be in the form of an heirloom,
  property or other material goods, which might have some
  conditions of their own (property haunted, etc.).
  29
  29
  B
  BASIC
  ASIC R
  RULES
  ULES
  
  Non-humans
  A character race which is not human may have differing
  ads, disads or paranormal powers open to them. For
  instance, a science fiction race from a high gravity world
  might get Natural Aptitude in STR, or a winged race from a
  low-gravity world might get a limited Telekinesis to get the
  effect of those wings.
  These are part of a “racial package”, just as humans have a
  “package” that covers their basic senses, arms, legs, etc.
  Racial packages should balance in points, or end up giving
  or taking points away from a character, so that no package
  has a distinct point advantage. 
  Example - The low-gravity race with flight might have this
  countered by a few levels of Frailness to represent a lighter
  bone structure. Since this will not pay for the flight ability, to
  be a member of this race will either cost extra AP or SP, or
  there must be some other disadvantages, like a Natural
  Debility in STR for carrying things, for instance.
  i Of course, it is only a play balance issue that requires this. It
  is quite possible that there could be races in your game
  which are superior to other races in every respect, but how
  you handle this in play is your own problem.
  Character Templates
  The CORPS system is very fast, but character generation
  can take as long as you want. People who want a lot of
  detail in their characters will find what they need, but if you
  insist on dropping right into the game, try grabbing one of
  the following character templates. They have everything you
  need, but still give you the flexibility of some customization.
  Since CORPS is a multi-genre system, the “name” of a
  character type may change across cultures. For instance,
  “police” in one game might be the same as “local militia” in
  another, and skill with guns might change to that with a bow
  or crossbow. Most templates are suitable for either sex.
  You can also usually switch attributes around, as long as
  the attributes have the same Aptitude, so while you could
  exchange a 3 and a 5 (Aptitude 1) or a 6 and a 7 (Aptitude
  2), you could not exchange a 4 and a 6. This is because the
  different Aptitudes would alter your skill costs.
  ﬁ« None of these templates have AP or SP from being given a
  Background (p.17), so remember that you can add up to
  5AP or SP to any template just by making up your own char-
  acter background. This will be enough to let you buy a
  Physical Ad. (ambidextrous, good looking, keen vision, etc.),
  or a new skill at a level of 3 if your Aptitude is a 2, or a level
  in a Contact, a Trick, or Familiarity with two new skills and a
  point left over for ASP. The best thing to do is just play the
  character as it comes to you, and after a session or two
  work out the background with the GM. Then put these 5AP
  or SP towards some of the things you think the character
  should have.
   
  30
  30
  B
  BASIC
  ASIC R
  RULES
  ULES
  
      
  RRRR
  RRRROO
  O
  OGG
  G
  GUUUUEEEE
  OO
  O
  OGG
  G
  GUUUUEEEE
  LLVL
  VL
  CCOST
  OST
  STR
  STR
  55
  25AP
  25AP
  AGL
  AGL
  66
  36AP
  36AP
  AWR
  AWR
  55
  25AP
  25AP
  WIL
  WIL
  55
  25AP
  25AP
  HLT
  HLT
  55
  25AP
  25AP
  POW
  POW
  11
  1AP
  1AP
  TTOTAL
  OTAL
  137AP
  137AP
   
  “Of course I can do it! I said I could...right?”
   
  Advantages
  AP
  SP
  Level 2 Contact - Local fence (he'll buy, no questions asked)
  0
  -10
  Disadvantages
  AP
  SP
  Level 2 Enemy - Police (you have a record)
  10
  0
  Level 2 Enemy - Local gang (they think you robbed them)
  0
  10
  Level 3 Psych Lim. - Impatient
  6
  0
  Age - 27
  22
  44
  Other
  AP
  SP
  Fake driver's license & credit card
  0
  -6
  Starting points
  100
  50
  Total
  138
  88
  Skills
  Level
  SP
  Skills
  Level
  SP
  Projectile weapons
  3
  5
  Streetwise (-1)
  6
  24
  Unarmed combat
  4
  12
  First aid
  2
  3
  Melee combat
  3
  5
  Law
  3
  8
  Land vehicles
  3
  5
  Lockpicking (-1)
  4
  5
  Hobby (fast cars)(-2)
  4
  3
  Security systems (-1)
  4
  8
  Area knowl.(city)(-2)
  5
  8
  Total (note leftover points)
  86
  Background
  Slightly smarter than average low level crook. Has dreams of grandeur,
  but lacks the motivation to do the work needed to get them. Is often look-
  ing for a quick fix, a fast scheme, and usually lives beyond their likely
  income, which requires even more schemes to pay the bills. Despite this,
  they are broadly skilled and fairly competent in a number of areas, just
  not professionally so.
  You've got 11,000Cr in assets and 5,500Cr in cash to start with. Make
  sure you have the tools of your (current) trade, a weapon, a stash, some
  flash, and a place to bed down that has a good lock and a back door.
  31
  31
  B
  BASIC
  ASIC R
  RULES
  ULES
  PPPPPPPPRRRRIIIIVVV
  VAAA
  ATTTTEEEE
  RRRRIIIIVV
  V
  VAAA
  ATTTTEEEE
  DDDDDDDDEEEETTTTEEEECCCCTTTTIIIIVVV
  VEEEE
  EEEETTTTEEEECCCCTTTTIIIIVVV
  VEEEE
  LLVL
  VL
  CCOST
  OST
  STR
  STR
  55
  25AP
  25AP
  AGL
  AGL
  55
  25AP
  25AP
  AWR
  AWR
  66
  36AP
  36AP
  WIL
  WIL
  55
  25AP
  25AP
  HLT
  HLT
  44
  16AP
  16AP
  POW
  POW
  11
  1AP
  1AP
  TTOTAL
  OTAL
  128AP
  128AP
  “The contract explicitly says what expenses you are liable for...pay up!”
  Advantages
  AP
  SP
  Level 1 Contact - Local police (you have some friends)
  0
  -5
  Level 1 Contact - Mafia (your sister married into “family”)
  0
  -5
  Disadvantages
  AP
  SP
  Level 1 Enemy - Various (old investigation targets)
  5
  0
  Age - 28
  24
  48
  Other
  AP
  SP
  Local weapon permit
  0
  0
  P.I. license
  0
  0
  Starting points
  100
  50
  Total
  129
  88
  Skills
  Level
  SP
  Skills
  Level
  SP
  Projectile weapons
  3
  8
  Investigative research
  5
  21
  Pistol 
  +1
  1
  Streetwise
  +2
  4
  Unarmed combat
  3
  8
  Records search
  +1
  1
  Law
  5
  21
  Psychology
  4
  12
  Land vehicle operation 2
  3
  Intimidation
  +1
  1
  Hobby (saxophone)
  4
  3
  Total (note leftover points)
  83
  Background
  You quit the local police after being passed up for promotion to detective,
  and decided to go it on your own. You had the experience, right? Wrong.
  Your business keeps the bills paid, but it's hardly booming. Lots of boring
  stakeouts of cheating spouses, the occasional skip trace, and if you're
  lucky, a bit of snooping for the the local politicos. You could use some
  excitement for a change. The grind is starting to wear you down.
  You've got 19,600Cr in assets and 9,800Cr in cash to start with. Make
  sure you have the tools of your trade, a weapon, maybe some light
  armor, transport, an office and a place to call home.
  
  CCCCCCCCYY
  Y
  YBBBBOO
  O
  ORRRRGG
  G
  G
  YY
  Y
  YBBBBOO
  O
  ORRRRGG
  G
  G
  LVL
  COST
  STR 7(8) 36AP
  AGL
  6
  36AP
  AWR
  5
  25AP
  WIL
  7(8) 36AP
  HLT
  5
  25AP
  POW
  1
  1AP
  TOTAL
  159AP
  “True, maiming you isn't part of my job...but this is my day off.”
  Advantages
  AP
  SP
  Inherent 1/1 armor
  -4
  -13
  Enhanced STR, WIL (+1 always, +2 boosted)
  -8
  -36
  Night vision, AWR 2
  -4
  -24
  Toughness, x.8 damage
  -10
  0
  Pain tolerance (up to 2 points non-lethal)
  -5
  0
  Disadvantages
  AP
  SP
  Age - 30
  28
  56
  Level 3 Enemy - Someone who wants your employer dead
  12
  3
  Level 4 Psych Lim - Loyal to employer
  0
  8
  Starting points
  150
  100
  Total
  161
  94
  Skills
  Level
  SP
  Skills
  Level
  SP
  Projectile weapons
  4
  12
  Streetwise (-1)
  4
  8
  Pistols
  +2
  4
  First aid
  3
  8
  Melee weapons
  4
  12
  Area kn.(employer)(-3) 5
  3
  Martial arts (+1)
  5
  32
  Area kn.(city)(-2)
  4
  3
  Lethal blow
  +1
  1
  Running
  3
  5
  Land vehicles
  3
  5
  Total (note leftover points)
  93
  Background
  Slightly wired muscle, worked your way up from the streets to be an
  executive bodyguard, able to deal out and stop damage without having
  to carry a weapon, although you usually do (and are quite good with it).
  Your job is to stand around and look intimidating, and keep an eye out
  for all threats.You also escort your employer to all sorts of interesting
  places. Keep them safe though, because dead clients don't pay...
  You've got 20,160Cr in assets and 10,080Cr in cash to start with. Make
  sure you have some serious body armor, a selection of weapons, and a
  few tricks up your sleeve just in case.
  BBBBBBBBAA
  A
  ARRRRBBBBAAA
  ARRRRIIIIAAA
  ANNNN
  AA
  A
  ARRRRBBBBAAA
  ARRRRIIIIAAA
  ANNNN
  LVL
  COST
  STR
  7
  24AP
  AGL
  6
  36AP
  AWR
  6
  36AP
  WIL
  7
  49AP
  HLT
  6
  36AP
  POW
  2
  4AP
  TOTAL
  185AP
  “There is no dispute that cannot be settled with gold...or steel.”
  Advantages
  AP
  SP
  Natural Aptitude - STR
  -10
  0
  Pain Tolerance
  -5
  0
  Luck
  -5
  0
  Disadvantages
  AP
  SP
  Level 3 Enemy - Evil cult (a misunderstanding, honest!)
  15
  0
  Level 3 Enemy - Kingdom (that was 
   
  whose daughter?...)
  15
  0
  Age - 24
  16
  32
  Level 3 Psych Lim. - Overconfident
  6
  0
  Level 2 Psych Lim. - Taciturn
  4
  0
  Starting points
  150
  150
  Total
  186
  182
  Skills
  Level
  SP
  Skills
  Level
  SP
  Projectile weapons
  3
  5
  Military science
  4
  12
  Melee weapons
  6
  32
  Area kn.(continent)(+1) 4
  21
  Sword
  +3
  9
  Survival (general)
  4
  12
  Unarmed combat
  6
  32
  Running
  5
  21
  Equestrian
  5
  21
  Climbing
  3
  5
  First aid
  4
  12
  Total (note leftover points)
  182
  Background
  Brash, young and strong, you make a living by the sword and a pretty
  good one at that. Blessed with a strong arm and a sure hand, your skill is
  almost unmatched, and you may have even seen temporary command in
  a military unit or two. However, your career has been marred by a few
  indelicate incidents involving important people, and for now, you prefer
  employment that doesn't tie you to one place for too long.
  You've got 26,000Cr in assets and 13,000Cr in cash to start with. Make
  sure you have the tools of your trade, some armor, transport, and per-
  haps a few magic talismans to protect your hunted hide.
  32
  32
  B
  BASIC
  ASIC R
  RULES
  ULES
  
  CCCCCCCCRRRRAA
  A
  AZZZ
  ZEEEEDDDD
  RRRRAA
  A
  AZZZ
  ZEEEEDDDD
  PPPPIIIILLLLOO
  O
  OTTTT
  PPPPIIIILLLLOO
  O
  OTTTT
  LVL
  COST
  STR
  5
  25AP
  AGL
  6
  36AP
  AWR
  5
  25AP
  WIL
  5
  25AP
  HLT
  4
  16AP
  POW
  1
  1AP
  TOTAL
  128AP
  “Of course I'm not worried about the landing! (thank God it's not my plane!)”
  Advantages
  AP
  SP
  Level 2 Contact - Airport crews (favors here and there...)
  0
  -10
  Physical Ad. - Keen eyesight (+2 to AWR for spotting)
  -5
  0
  Disadvantages
  AP
  SP
  Level 2 Psych Lim. - Cocky
  4
  0
  Age - 30
  32
  64
  Other
  AP
  SP
  Pilot's license
  0
  0
  Passport
  0
  0
  Starting points
  100
  50
  Total
  131
  104
  Skills
  Level
  SP
  Skills
  Level
  SP
  Projectile wpns. fam.
  2
  2
  Cooking
  3
  8
  Unarmed combat
  3
  5
  Second language
  4
  15
  Land vehicle familiarity 2
  2
  Area kn. (airports)(-2)
  5
  8
  Air vehicle operation
  6
  32
  Survival
  3
  8
  Light planes
  +2
  4
  Hobby (photogr.)(-2)
  4
  3
  Mechanic
  4
  15
  Total (note leftover points)
  104
  Background
  You learned how to fly in the service, quite a few years back. You loved
  the toys, but couldn't take the attitude, so you bailed out and became an
  independent. You do pretty well, but only because you take work that
  requires your level of expertise, and don't ask too many questions.
  Eventually you want a plane of your own, and a nice bush pilot outfit
  somewhere out of the way, but that takes money you don't have yet...
  You've got 35,840Cr in assets and 17,920Cr in cash to start with. You
  don't need much, but make sure you have the tools of your trade, and
  put your money into investments, maybe a down payment on a plane.
  RRRR
  RRRREEEETTTTIIIIRRRREEEEDDDD
  EEEETTTTIIIIRRRREEEEDDDD
  AA
  A
  ACCCCAA
  A
  ADDDDEEEEMM
  M
  MIIIICCCC
  AA
  A
  ACCCCAA
  A
  ADDDDEEEEMM
  M
  MIIIICCCC
  LVL
  COST
  STR
  5
  25AP
  AGL
  5
  36AP
  AWR
  8
  64AP
  WIL
  6
  36AP
  HLT
  5
  25AP
  POW
  1
  1AP
  TOTAL
  187AP
  “You wouldn't believe what I've seen, but I'm going to tell you anyway...”
  Advantages
  AP
  SP
  Level 2 Contact - Longtime colleague in distant country
  0
  -10
  Disadvantages
  AP
  SP
  Level 2 Enemy - Mexican police (they can't prove anything)
  5
  5
  Level 4 Psych Lim. - Intolerant of the willfully ignorant
  8
  0
  Level 2 Psych Lim. - Condescending
  6
  0
  Age - 55
  78
  156
  Other
  AP
  SP
  Passport and visa to country of choice
  0
  0
  Starting points
  100
  50
  Total
  197
  201
  Skills
  Level
  SP
  Skills
  Level
  SP
  Projectile wpn. fam.
  1
  2
  History
  4
  12
  Unarmed combat
  3
  8
  Second culture
  4
  12
  Land vehicles
  3
  8
  Second language
  4
  12
  Professional skill
  8
  60
  Survival (general)
  4
  12
  Related skill
  6
  32
  Hobby (-2)
  4
  8
  Investigative rsch.
  6
  32
  Total (note leftover points)
  198
  Background
  You've been around, done the field work, gotten the grants, even taught
  a few classes when you had to. Now, you're on extended sabbatical,
  maybe with personal savings, maybe with a small grant to cover travel
  expenses. Now's the time to do those investigations that no one else
  would fund...
  You've got 84,480Cr in assets and 42,240Cr in cash to start with. But,
  you have to make a number of aging rolls first, at age 30 and 5 year
  intervals (p.16). Make sure you have your papers in order, all the tools of
  your trade, and get ready for the unknown!
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  JJ
  J
  J
  JJ
  J
  JOO
  O
  OUUUURRRRNNNNAA
  A
  ALLLLIIIISS
  S
  STTTT
  OO
  O
  OUUUURRRRNNNNAA
  A
  ALLLLIIIISS
  S
  STTTT
  LVL
  COST
  STR
  4
  16AP
  AGL
  5
  25AP
  AWR
  6
  36AP
  WIL
  6
  36AP
  HLT
  5
  25AP
  POW
  1
  1AP
  TOTAL
  139AP
  "I'm a reporter, I'm allowed to have a double standard...and you're not."
  Advantages
  AP
  SP
  Level 2 Contact - Wire service (hot tips go back and forth)
  0
  -10
  Disadvantages
  AP
  SP
  Level 2 Enemy - Fanatic group (opposite political views)
  10
  0
  Level 2 Enemy - City Hall (that exposé didn't win any friends) 7
  3
  Level 2 Psych Lim. - Nosy
  0
  4
  Level 1 Psych Lim. - Doesn't know when to quit
  0
  2
  Age - 27
  22
  44
  Other
  AP
  SP
  Press pass
  0
  0
  Starting points
  100
  50
  Total
  139
  93
  Skills
  Level
  SP
  Skills
  Level
  SP
  Projectile wpn. fam.
  1
  2
  Investigative rsch.
  4
  12
  Unarmed combat fam.
  1
  2
  Streetwise
  +2
  4
  Land vehicles
  2
  4
  History
  5
  21
  Writing
  5
  21
  Area knowl.(city)(-2)
  5
  5
  Journalism
  +2
  4
  Hobby (Internet)(-2)
  5
  5
  Photography
  4
  12
  Total (note leftover points)
  86
  Background
  Investigative reporter, unwilling to make a living just rehashing other peo-
  ple's press releases. You want to be the one covering the story, because
  only you were able to get the information. You have to work for some-
  one, and do the normal routine, but if you can convince the editor that it's
  news, and it won't break the expense account, you're the one to do it.
  You've got 9,800Cr in assets and 4,900Cr in cash to start with. While
  your paper may provide some equipment, there's some stuff they won't.
  Make sure you've got the latter, you never know when you'll need it....
  WWW
  W
  WWW
  WEEEERRRREEEEWWW
  WOOO
  OLLLLFFFF
  EEEERRRREEEEWWW
  WOOO
  OLLLLFFFF
  LVL
  COST
  STR 5/7 25AP
  AGL 5/6 25AP
  AWR 7/4 49AP
  WIL
  5/6 25AP
  HLT 6/5 36AP
  POW 6/6 36AP
  TOTAL
  196AP
  "You don't like my long hair? Wait here a second, I'll be right back..."
  Advantages
  AP
  SP
  Level 3 Contact - Other weres/paranormal creatures
  0
  -15
  Pain tolerance
  -5
  0
  Trick - Can scare off most dogs with a stare
  0
  -5
  Shapeshift ability (requires Difficulty 8 skill roll and 1 sec.)
  0
  -18
  Disadvantages
  AP
  SP
  Level 2 Enemy - Various (monster hunters, tabloids, etc.)
  10
  0
  Level 3 Psych Lim. - Aggressive
  6
  0
  Age - 29
  26
  52
  Level 2 Lethal Vulnerability - Silver
  10
  0
  Starting points
  150
  100
  Total
  197
  114
  Skills
  Level
  SP
  Skills
  Level
  SP
  Projectile weapon fam. 1
  2
  Music
  3
  5
  Unarmed combat
  5
  24
  Area kn. (game)(-1)
  4
  5
  Claws
  +2
  4
  Hunting
  4
  12
  Land vehicle fam.
  1
  2
  Survival
  4
  12
  Carpentry
  5
  24
  Shapeshift skill
  5
  21
  First aid familiarity
  2
  2
  Total (note leftover points)
  113
  Background
  You're a type of werewolf, living a normal life, but hunted by those who
  fear you. You have the Shapeshift power, which lets you change to a
  humanoid wolf (rearrange attributes, do lethal melee damage with claws,
  adds AV1/1, +1AWR in animal senses and +1m/sec to movement). The
  change process requires a skill roll, and a full second of preparation.
  You've got 19,600Cr in assets and 9,800Cr in cash to start with. Make
  sure you have the tools of your trade, a weapon, maybe some light
  armor, transport, an office and a place to call home.
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  You know, that’s really going to hurt...
  For a campaign where the previous option is not allowed,
  1ASP may temporarily negate the effects of all weapon hits
  in a given turn for a number of turns equal to the character’s
  WIL. That is, the character takes a blow, but the pain and
  shock effects don’t actually kick in for several seconds. This
  is good to represent those actual instances where a person
  takes mortal or near-mortal wounds and keeps on coming.
  This also negates an instantly fatal result for the same dura-
  tion, at GM option, making it very suitable for creating those
  unstoppable psychopaths you see in the movies.
  Example - The drug-crazed hockey-mask maniac bursts
  through a doorway...and into a hail of lead from a few well-
  armed characters. He crashes to the floor, spilling
  gore...and then gets back up and lurches towards the
  incredulous characters...
  I knew I could do it...
  An ASP can alter any die roll by a maximum of 1 point in
  either direction. If used on a table (like hit location), a roll
  that is moved off the table is counted as no effect or a miss.
  This is usually done to a character to change a marginal fail-
  ure to a success.
  Example - A character with torso armor is hit, but the loca-
  tion roll is “head”. They spend 1 ASP to change the location
  roll of “1” to “0”, which is off the table, and therefore a near
  miss. The GM decides that the character’s ear is creased,
  and bleeding profusely, but with no other game effect.
  I’m not quite dead yet...
  All of your ASP’s will give you a “left for dead” result, at GM
  option. In a situation where the character would normally be
  killed outright (capture and execution, for instance), the
  character still suffers the damaging effects of whatever
  “killed” them, but instead of instant death, the character is
  just barely alive, but those responsible assume the charac-
  ter is dead, and then leave, dump the body, etc. Obviously,
  this will not protect you from a firing squad, the electric chair
  or being dumped into a blast furnace, but it might save you
  from a single burst of autofire, falling from a height, being
  strangled or drowned, and so on. The quality of the “left for
  dead” is based on how many ASP went into it. The charac-
  ter is unconscious, and wakes up at a time and place of the
  GM’s choosing. Given the circumstances, the character will
  almost certainly have taken enough lethal damage to suffer
  a permanent effect, but at least they’re alive. Note than an
  enemy is unlikely to make the same mistake twice, so don’t
  let it happen again...
   
  ﬁ« Note that if ASP are used in this fashion, only 2 characters
  may do so in a given encounter. So, if a group of 5 charac-
  ters is thrown out of an airplane, only 2 can survive the
  impact. No mass miracles here, it would be too much coinci-
  dence. This makes things scary. Given a choice, characters
  with the most ASP to spend will be the winners.
  ASP’s
  Or Ass-Saver Points. These are entirely optional, and it is
  up to the GM whether they will be used or not. If a character
  has points saved towards ASP, either from experience or
  leftover from character creation, they can use these to modi-
  fy die rolls. 
  Why?
  Because no one likes to lose characters, any many GM’s
  don’t like to creatively alter circumstances to keep charac-
  ters alive. ASP’s put the “creative alterations” in the hands
  of the players, and they can decide how exactly to spend
  this form of luck. But, like all luck, it can run out.
  Villain ASP’s
  Major enemies of the characters, who you would like to
  remain around for a while, should have ASP’s of their own.
  Medium level NPC’s should have 2ASP, and major ones
  should have 4ASP. These are renewed between adven-
  tures, since the villains are assumed to get experience too,
  but generally do not increase beyond the starting level. This
  makes major villains a pain in the neck, since you know that
  they are going to be able to dodge a few bullets, make
  miraculous escapes and get away with stunts normally
  reserved for the characters.
  Using ASP’s
  The GM tells players at the start of the campaign exactly
  how ASP may be used, from one or more the following
  guidelines. In any given "encounter", the character may
  spend up to 2 of these points, as follows.
  Ha! You missed!
  1 point can alter the type of success by 1 level. That is, a
  normal success could be made into a graze, and a graze
  could be made into a near miss (or 2 points could make a
  normal hit into a near miss). This is usually done to NPC’s
  who are trying to injure the character. If the use of a skill use
  generates multiple successes, each ASP will negate an
  extra success, but the original success must be turned into
  a graze. Multiple characters must all contribute ASP (if they
  have them) to avoid a group fate (like having their plane
  shot down).
  Example - A character without body armor is shot, and
  spends 2ASP to turn the hit into a near miss. Or, if they
  were hit by a shotgun blast and took 2 hits, 1ASP would
  negate one pellet hit, and the other would turn the remaining
  pellet hit into a graze.
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  Example - After a number of bad judgements, a character is
  staked out in the Australian desert and left for the buzzards
  and dingos to feed on. Clueless and with no way to get out,
  they spend all their ASP and pray the GM is kind. Some
  time after the character passes out from dehydration and
  before the buzzards start pecking at eyeballs, a bushman
  happens by and cuts the character free. The character
  wakes up delirious and disoriented somewhere in the
  Australian interior, with some GM-induced memory lapse to
  make life more difficult, surrounded by aboriginal faces...
  More ASP stuff
  For purposes of spending ASP, an “encounter” is any situa-
  tion where the character is attempting to resolve a particular
  task or set of tasks related to a particular goal. Bypassing a
  security system is an encounter. Bypassing several linked
  security systems is an encounter. A firefight is an encounter.
  Escaping a firefight and getting into another one is two
  encounters. Once the character exits the scene and is no
  longer a participant in events, for them, the encounter is
  over.
  Once spent, ASP’s are removed from the character record.
  The good side of ASP’s is that it lets characters survive
  things that they wouldn’t normally be able to, and perform
  slightly heroic feats that don’t warp reality too much. The
  bad side is that it is easy to overspend them, which will end
  up totally negating any ASP’s the character might gain for
  the adventure.
  For starting characters, GM’s might want to consider inform-
  ing the players on ASP’s and their use, and giving them a
  starting quota of 2-4 ASP’s, just to keep them alive until they
  develop some tactical sense. ASP’s are usually awarded
  separately at GM discretion as a reward for good role-play-
  ing, successfully completing an adventure, and so on.
  Maximum ASP
  The maximum number of ASP a character may have accu-
  mulated through play is equal to their highest attribute.
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  “All skill is in vain when an angel pees in the touchhole of your musket.”
  German mercenary proverb
  Basics
  The CORPS skill system makes the basic assumption that
  everyone, regardless of their level of skill, has a 100%
  chance of success, at their level of competence. Everyone,
  regardless of talent, can automatically succeed at some
  tasks.
  That is, a person with a Skill of 1 can automatically perform
  tasks that have a Difficulty of 1 or less, a person with a Skill
  of 4 can automatically perform tasks that have a Difficulty of
  4 or less, and so on.
  Any use of a skill or attribute is called a task. Tasks have a
  Difficulty, which is a measure of how hard they are to do. If
  the Difficulty of the task is equal or less than your level in
  the skill or attribute, you automatically succeed at the task.
  No dice roll is required, even in combat, so there are cases
  where you can automatically hit someone.
  For tasks with a Difficulty greater than your level of skill, you
  have to roll for success on 1d10. Your base chance of suc-
  cess is 11 or less, -2 for each level of Difficulty over your
  skill. So, the progression looks something like this:
  Extra difficulty
  Chance on 1d10 for success
  -0
  automatic
  1
  9 
  2
  7
  3
  5
  4
  3
  5
  1
  6+
  none
  So, a person with a Skill of 3 attempting a task with a
  Difficulty of 6 has a 50% chance of success (5 or less), as
  does a person with a skill of 7 attempting a Difficulty 10 task.
  i Just think “11 or less, minus 2 for each point over your skill”.
  Future examples in the rules will assume you can figure this
  out.
  Situational modifiers of any kind add or subtract to the
  Difficulty. Increased Difficulty decreases your chance of suc-
  cess, decreased Difficulty increases your chances, i.e. a
  Difficulty of 3 is easier than a Difficulty of 4.
  Tasks can apply to skills or attributes. For instance, a person
  might have to complete a HLT task to avoid catching a dis-
  ease, or be affected by a drug. It might be an AGL task to
  catch a thrown object, or run on a slippery surface, or a WIL
  task to avoid falling asleep while staying up very late.
  Virtually any number in the game can be compared to
  another to get a Difficulty for the task.
  Automatic success
  One of the nicest features of the CORPS skill system is that
  you don’t need to roll dice to do a lot of things. If the modi-
  fiers make your skill equal or greater than the Difficulty of
  the task, you automatically succeed. So, for instance, if
  you were attempting to sneak by someone and the Difficulty
  was 2 points greater than your Stealth skill, you would have
  to roll a 7 or less, but if you prepared or did something else
  for a +2 modifier to cancel this out, you would not have to
  roll to sneak by. It would be automatic. The only exception
  to this is that if you only have Aptitude as your skill level,
  you always have to roll, and a roll of 10 always fails. If you
  have purchased Familiarity with the skill, you can get auto-
  matic successes, however. A character who has a marginal
  automatic success (skill exactly equal to Difficulty) may
  choose to roll instead to try for a better success. The
  Difficulty of the task is increased by 1 for this roll (which
  allows the character a chance to miss entirely).
  Example - A character takes a shot during combat. Their
  skill is 4, and the Difficulty of hitting the target is also 4. This
  is a marginal success or “graze”, which would do minimum
  damage (using the “graze” rule, p.40). The player decides
  this isn’t good enough, and decides to roll. This increases
  the Difficulty by 1, to a Difficulty of 5. So, if they roll a 10,
  they miss. A roll of 9 means they succeeded exactly, and
  the result is still a graze, and any result of 8 or better means
  a more solid hit than the original graze.
   
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  90
  80
  70
  60
  50
  40
  30
  20
  10
       0
  -1 +0 +1 +2 +3 +4 +5 +6 +7
  Difficulty minus Skill
  % chance of success
  100
  SKILL USE
  
  Complementary skills
  If a character has more than one skill to apply to a given
  task, generally in a non-combat situation, they may get a
  bonus to their ability. If a character has two or more sepa-
  rate skills at the same level which they can apply to a task,
  the Difficulty of the task is reduced by 1, or they can get a -1
  for having 3 or more skills at a level over their Aptitude
  which can be applied. This represents the benefits of broad
  experience. You can not get more than a -1 bonus from
  complementary skills. Hobbies are not a skill that generally
  is used in play, but a character who has a “hobby” that
  relates to the use of another skill is eligible for a bonus to
  use of that skill, just like any other. A person whose hobby is
  “sports cars” would be more apt to recognize a particular
  model, know it by its sound, or spot it from a distance than
  the average person, just as a person who has a hobby of
  “horses” would be able to recognize different breeds, gear
  or riding styles easier than a person who didn’t care.
  General Task Difficulty
  The following list gives you an idea of how difficult to make
  tasks in your game and time guidelines for mental.or com-
  plex physical tasks Naturally, you can assign your own
  Difficulties and times to tasks, or just use the general modi-
  fiers to create them as the need arises. Note that many
  skills have time increments. Shooting a gun is takes an
  action, drawing a gun takes a second, but reloading a gun
  takes several seconds.
  Task
  Difficulty
  Base time
  Extremely easy
  1
  1 action
  Very easy
  2
  1 second
  Easy
  3
  2 seconds
  Average
  4
  5 seconds
  Moderate
  5
  10 seconds
  Hard
  6
  20 seconds
  Professional level
  7
  1 minute
  Impossible without training
  8
  2 minutes
  Impossible without professional training
  12
  1 hour
  Impossible for just about anyone
  16
  1 day
  Example - You might say that breaking into a museum with-
  out triggering the alarm system is impossible without profes-
  sional training, and even then it takes at least an hour. So,
  this task would have a Difficulty of 12, and a base time of 1
  hour. That is, you take penalties for trying to do it in less
  than an hour, and bonuses for taking more than an hour.
  General Task Modifiers
  While many skills will have specific modifiers, the following
  list applies to most skills.
  Task
  Modifier
  “Out of combat”*
  -2
  .25x time spent
  +2
  .5x time spent
  +1
  1x time spent
  +0
  2-4x time spent
  -1
  5-9x time spent
  -2
  10-16x time spent
  -3
  17-25x time spent
  -4
  Fortuitous circumstances (good equipment, etc.)
  -1 to -2
  Impairing circumstances (no idea how to do it, etc.)
  +1 to +5
  “Out of combat” means any situation where there is no pres-
  sure on the character to succeed, there are no specific time
  constraints or penalties for failure. You do not get this modi-
  fier if using a skill which you have not bought (using your
  Aptitude instead), since any use is under pressure, because
  you don’t know what you are doing. For instance, target
  practice is “out of combat”, unless you are sweating under
  the watchful eye of a drill sergeant. Free rock climbing is not
  “out of combat” climbing, because you have penalties for
  failure.
  ﬁ« Time modifiers apply only if you are willing to forego auto-
  matic successes for using some other time increment. For
  instance, if you had a lockpicking skill of 4, and were trying a
  lock with a Difficulty of 6, you would have a 7 or less to open
  it in the normal time (10 seconds). Or, you could use 5-9x
  the time and succeed automatically, but not both. One is
  several hurried attempts, each of which can be failed, while
  the other is a single, careful one. 
  –ø Time modifiers will never be a larger bonus than half your
  Primary skill (rounding fractions up), so a person with a
  Primary skill of 4 could never get more than a -2 from extra
  time.
  i Sometimes, it doesn’t matter. You can blow the lockpicking
  roll as many times as you want until you get it right.
  Sometimes it does matter. You can’t just botch a bomb
  defusing roll until you get it right. You have to spend the
  time to get as many positive modifiers as you can.
  Likewise, you can take modifiers to do something quicker
  than normal. If a task normally took 2 seconds, you could
  take a +2 modifier for using x.25 normal time. If you suc-
  ceeded, you would do the task in less than a second, and
  therefore you would get to do something else in that second.
  If you fail when hurrying to get something done, you have
  fumbled somehow, and act as though you used the normal
  time increment...and failed. Not only did you not do the task
  quickly, you waste the entire normal time increment recover-
  ing from the failure.
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  Doing it in a hurry
  If a character can complete a task in less than a second,
  they may perform another action on their movement
  Initiative. If the character can complete the task in less than
  half a second, they may count it as a normal action during a
  turn, and act again on their normal Initiative.
  Example - To draw a weapon from a holster is a Difficulty 4
  task, with a base time of 1 second. If you have a weapon
  skill of 4, you can spend an entire second drawing the
  weapon, and automatically have it ready for use at the start
  of the next second. Or, you can attempt to draw it quicker.
  To draw it in half the normal time (less than a second) would
  be a Difficulty 5 task, and to draw it in less than half a sec-
  ond would be a Difficulty 6 task. Failing either of these tasks
  would result in wasting a full second doing nothing until you
  had a chance to try again. In many circumstances, the GM
  may allow such failed rolls to be “aborted” so that the char-
  acter can perform a different action. For instance, a charac-
  ter who botched a roll to draw a weapon might be allowed to
  drop the weapon so that they could block an incoming
  melee attack.
  Skill vs. skill
  The last category of normal skill use is that of skill vs. skill,
  one character's skill pitted against another's. There are two
  varieties of this:
  Adversarial
  This would be a situation where one side is attempting to do
  something, and the other is trying to negate it. The first char-
  acter sets the Difficulty of the task equal to their skill, and
  then adds to the Difficulty for situational or time modifiers
  they choose to use in preparation (up to the maximum time
  bonus they would normally get). The opposing party then
  attempts to undo the first character's work at that level of
  Difficulty, with the same base time increment.
  Example - A good example of this would be one character
  making a time bomb, with time bonuses put into the con-
  struction, and the opposing character using this as a
  Difficulty in trying to defuse it. Of course, the character
  defusing the bomb has less time to defuse it than the builder
  had in making it...
  Competitive
  This is a situation where people are competing against each
  other. In direct competition, the other person's (skill+2) is the
  Difficulty for each character, and whoever makes their roll
  by the most wins. The same time increment is used,
  although one side may have equipment or other advan-
  tages. Indirect competition is similar, except all competitors
  use a fixed Difficulty for the overall task.
  Example - A game of chess would be direct competition
  (compete against one opponent), while a marathon would
  be indirect competition (competing against the clock).
  Options
  The above rules are all you need for the basic skill system.
  For more flexibility, you may use any of the following options
  that you think would make your campaign more enjoyable or
  realistic.
  The “On a 10” rule
  In order to prevent characters from having their heads blown
  off by gunmen who are good enough to automatically hit, or
  similar situations, GM’s may wish to have attacks vs. char-
  acters have a minimum 10% chance of failure, that is, a roll
  of a “10” misses in a situation that would normally be an
  automatic success, and may cause a temporary setback.
  The “Long shot” rule
  If the chance to successfully use a skill is less than 1, a roll
  of 1 may indicate a success. The Difficulty is given an addi-
  tional -5 modifier, and rerolled. Success here indicates a
  successful use of the skill.
  Example - Normally, a task whose Difficulty exceeds a
  character's skill by 7 is “impossible”. However, if the charac-
  ter rolls a 1, they get a second roll, but this time treated as
  though the Difficulty only exceeded their skill by 2. If this
  second roll is successful as well, the character lucks out and
  successfully does whatever they were trying to accomplish.
  The “Random disaster” rule
  In order to take into account things that can happen to dis-
  rupt the use of skills, but which are far too unlikely to occur
  on a 1d10 roll, do the following:
  Roll 1d10 once for a single long encounter, twice for a short
  adventure, and three times for a long session, and write the
  numbers down. Then, whenever appropriate (for instance,
  at the beginning, middle and end of a session), the next time
  one of those numbers comes up as a task Difficulty, the
  Difficulty of the situation is increased by 2, without the player
  knowing it beforehand, or a piece of equipment malfunc-
  tions, and is a +2 to the Difficulty of the task to quickly fix it.
  Example - Kragmar is sneaking down an alley, to get past a
  local cop, which he thinks is a Difficulty 4 task, no problem
  for his Stealth skill of 4. However, 4 is the “random disaster”
  number that was rolled for the first phase of the adventure.
  Kragmar fails to notice the tail of a tomcat sticking out from
  behind a garbage can until the last moment, and he must
  successfully complete a Difficulty 6 Stealth task to avoid
  making a racket.
  Another example might be to say that a gun malfunctions,
  adding 2 to the Difficulty of the shot and/or jamming up
  afterwards, being a AGL or weapon skill task to clear up.
  The “Random disaster” rule is optional, but recommended,
  otherwise, characters have too much certainty about the
  success of their actions.
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  The “Graze” rule
  For most skills, making a skill roll exactly or having a skill
  exactly equal to the Difficulty means that the task is suc-
  cessful, but just barely. The character takes no penalties for
  the success, but any bonuses the skill or maneuver would
  bestow do not apply. For instance, exactly making a throw
  means the target is unbalanced and must make an AGL roll
  to correct this, but you do not get the normal bonus to hit
  them before they recover.
  For all combat skills (including guns), such a barely suc-
  cessful task is counted as a grazing hit, which does 1 point
  of damage, if armor is penetrated. If a combat roll is made
  by 1, the hit does up to half the damage remaining (round
  up) after armor is penetrated. Non-combat skills are normal-
  ly successful. An automatic success by 2 points or more, or
  a roll which is successful by 2 points or more, always does
  full effect.
  ﬁ« Called shots increase the Difficulty of a combat task, but
  allow a more precise aim. Sometimes, it is not worth it to try
  for too precise a called shot. For instance, a full-damage hit
  to a larger hit location is better than a graze to a smaller
  one. That is, a roll good enough solidly hit a large target
  (and do full damage) might only be good enough to graze a
  smaller target (and only do grazing damage).
  The “Point blank” rule
  No matter how badly a character is mutilated, they can auto-
  matically succeed (any roll but a 10 is a solid success) at a
  single, unopposed, unmodified, basic combat task if:
  1.
  They are physically capable of holding the weapon.
  2.
  They do absolutely nothing else.
  3.
  They spend at least a full second preparing to do the action.
  4.
  The Difficulty for range is equal or less than the Range Mod of
  the weapon plus their skill.
  Example - Knocked down, bleeding and battered, Kragmar
  awakes to see a thug gloating over the prone form of a
  friend, ready to crush their neck under a booted heel.
  Kragmar is suffering from numerous penalties, but slowly
  lifts his pistol, desperately attempts to steady his wavering
  aim, and pulls the trigger. If Kragmar were defending him-
  self, looking around to see what else is going on, attempting
  a called shot, or the target was aware of his presence, he
  would have to check his skill normally. However, since he
  isn’t trying anything else, and the target is unaware of him,
  this can count as a “point blank” shot. 
  i The “point blank” rule can also apply to many non-combat
  tasks like flipping switches, croaking out a hoarse warning,
  crawling a short distance, non-strenuous skill use, etc. This
  makes it good for those dramatic game moments where the
  evil sorceror croaks out the last syllables to an incantation,
  or a nearly dead character saves the day by helping out in
  unexpected ways.
   
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  Sciences (AWR)a
  Difficulty
  Making homemade explosives (1 hr)
  5
  Placing a demolition charge (5 min)
  5
  Simple computer task (10 sec)
  3
  Average computer task (1 min)
  5
  Hard computer task (varies)
  7
  Illegal computer system entry
  +2
  Diagnose simple electronic malfunction (1 min)
  4
  Diagnose average electronic malf. (10 min)
  6
  Diagnose complex electronic malfunction (1 hr)
  8
  Liberal Arts (AWR)
  Bribe willing customs official (cultural mods apply)
  5
  Bribe cooperative official (cultural mods apply)
  7
  Bribe hesitant official (cultural mods apply)
  9
  Communicate simple ideas in foreign language
  3
  Speak fluently in foreign language (w/accent)
  5
  Speak fluently in foreign language (no accent)
  7
  Do basic library research (1 hour)
  5
  Find obscure but publicly available info (1 day)
  7
  Interrogate/verbally coerce individual (p.87)
  varies
  Hide behind obvious (non-deceptive) disguise
  3
  Use deceptive visual disguise (10 min)
  5
  Blending into a crowd (10 sec)
  6
  Assume mannerisms, voice, gestures (1 hour)
  7
  Environment (AWR)
  Light a fire using only matches (10 min)
  4
  Light a fire with flint and steel (10 min)
  5
  Build a shelter from the elements (10 min)
  5
  Environment (HLT)
  Run at 1 meter per second faster than normal (1 sec)
  7
  Run at 2 meters per second faster than normal (1 sec)
  9
  Run at 3 meters per second faster than normal (1 sec)
  11
  Stay afloat in the water
  2
  Swim at 1 meter per second
  3
  Climbing a ladder
  2
  Climbing a rope
  4
  Climbing a cliff with equipment
  6
  AGL tasks
  Standing up from controlled fall (1 sec)
  3
  Standing up from uncontrolled fall (1 sec)
  5
  WIL tasks
  Staying awake late at night
  3
  Staying awake extremely late at night
  5
  i Sample Tasks (various genres)
  The following list has a number of the more common tasks
  players can attempt, along with the base time for the task
  and the Difficulty.
  To design your own tasks, just remember that all it needs to
  be is consistent within the genre you are playing. Think of
  the movies and books in the genre, and the guidelines on
  page 38 on how professional a character needs to be to
  accomplish the task. Then think how long it would take
  under optimum circumstances to get the task done, and
  multiply that by about 4 to get the average time to complete
  the task.
  Combat skills (AGL)
  Sample task
  Difficulty
  Use weapon (1 action)
  varies
  Drawing a weapon (1 sec)
  4
  Draw a weapon (1 action)
  6
  Reloading a weapon (per unit of ammunition)(2 sec)
  6
  Clearing a malfunction (2 sec)
  6
  Vehicle Operation (AGL)
  Normal driving
  3
  Bootleg turn or other slightly fancy maneuver
  5
  Medical (AWR)
  Stop bleeding injury (p.51)
  varies
  Trades (AWR)
  Simple mechanical repair (15 min)
  6
  Average mechanical repair (1 hour)
  8
  Complex mechanical repair (4 hours)
  10
  Hotwire a car (1 min)
  5
  Deactivate a simple car alarm (1 min)
  6
  Deactivate a complex car alarm (1 min)
  8
  Deactivate a simple house alarm (1 min)
  7
  Deactivate a complex house alarm (1 min)
  9
  Deactivate complex commercial alarm (10 min)
  11
  Deactivate museum alarm (10 min)
  13
  Defusing a letter bomb (10 min)
  7
  Trades (AGL)
  Appraise quality of gems and metals (1 min)
  7
  Picking a padlock (10 sec)
  6
  Picking a door lock (10 sec)
  8
  Picking a high security lock (10 sec)
  12
  Convert semi-auto weapon to full-auto (1 hr)
  7
  
  “When in danger, when in doubt, run in circles, scream and shout...”
  Anonymous
  Basics
  Combat is one of the more important parts of several game
  genres, and important to all of them in that the system and
  your ability to use it will often have a direct bearing on the
  survival of your character.
  Use of combat skills is more than just tasks. The CORPS
  combat system can be very deadly, and combat is never
  something to be entered into lightly. No matter how good
  you are, someone else can always be better (or luckier),
  and one good hit can take out even the most experienced
  adventurer. There are other factors to consider as well. This
  sections covers the basics of all forms of combat, and their
  likely aftermath.
  i You can use as many or as few of these rules as you want.
  Many rules, especially those dealing with injury to a charac-
  ter (stun, bleeding, etc.), are optional, and simply provide an
  extra level of detail for GM’s who want it.
  Initiative
  Any form of skill or attribute use may require knowledge of
  who acts first, like in combat. This is Initiative. Each turn in
  CORPS usually lasts 1 second, and you can usually do sev-
  eral combat actions in that time, depending on how good
  your character is.
  The order of action in a given second is based on the high-
  est skill used, with non-skill actions like walking or running
  based on the AGL Aptitude of the person (or on AWR for
  most paranormal powers). People act from highest Initiative
  to lowest, equal Initiatives determined by the roll of a die or
  declared simultaneous (simultaneous actions are decided
  secretly and revealed simultaneously). Those with higher
  Initiatives may “hold action”, which is waiting to do some-
  thing, based on conditions, so you could let a slower person
  act first if you wanted to. 
  Example - You have an Unarmed Combat skill of 5, and
  your opponent has a Knife skill of 4. You act first, provided
  you use your Unarmed Combat skill. They have a Knife skill
  of 4, you have an AGL Aptitude of 2. They will get to use
  their Knife skill before you have a chance to move.
  Each turn, actions start with the highest skill being used,
  and the level of this skill is the highest “initiative segment”.
  Characters may act on Initiative segments from the highest
  level down to zero. Initiative 0 is the last time per turn that
  any action may be done.
  Example - If two characters are brawling, and each has a
  skill of 4, then the available Initiative segments for acting are
  4,3,2,1, and 0. A character with a skill of 3 who got in the
  fray would only be able to act on 3,2,1, or 0.
  Initiative Modifiers
  Certain types of actions will be modifiers to the Skill or
  Attribute used for Initiative.
  Condition
  Modifier to Initiative
  Weapon type
  Initiative of weapon
  Injury
  -impairment
  Holding an action or surprise
  +2
  Readying a weapon
  -2
  Attacking into side arc
  -1
  Right side arc w/longarm
  -2
  Attacking into rear arc
  -3
  Multiple actions
  -2 per
  Example - You have a Melee Weapons skill of 5, and a +1
  injury to your right arm, which is holding a sword loosely at
  your side. If you need to use the sword, your Initiative will be
  your skill (5), -1 for the injury, and -2 more for having to
  ready it, for a final Initiative of 2. Anyone with a higher
  Initiative will act before you.
  Pre-emptions
  If you try to preempt another person with a held action (they
  attempt something, and then you try to act before them), the
  person being preempted must complete a task with the
  Difficulty of the attacker’s Initiative.
  Example - You have an Initiative of 7, and are holding an
  armed suspect at gunpoint, their gun held over their head.
  They attempt to shoot, and have an Initiative of 5. In order
  for them to shoot before you do (their action being quicker
  than your reaction), they must successfully complete a
  Difforulty 7 task (your Initiative) with their Initiative of 5 (actu-
  ally an Initiative of 3, since they tas aa -2 for readying a
  weapon). If successful, the suspect will act on their Initiative,
  and the character can act immediately afterward (the same
  Initiative segment, or the next time they would be allowed an
  action). If unsuccessful, the character acts on the suspect's
  Initiative, and the suspect can act immediately afterward (if
  they are still able...).
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  BASICS
  
  If you are moving, one of your actions in a second must be
  to move, accelerate or decelerate. If this means you would
  get no other actions, then this is the case.
  Example - A person with a Projectile Weapons skill of 1
  cannot normally move and fire on the same turn, since you
  can’t have 2 points of Initiative separating weapon use and
  movement.
  Example - If you had a skill of 4 with a pistol, you could fire
  on Initiative 4, 2 and 0. If you fired three times at the same
  target, you would not take a consecutive action penalty,
  although penalties for recoil, movement, etc. would still
  apply. If, however, you fired at three separate targets, each
  one after the first would take an extra +2 because you are
  taking different actions.
  So, the order in which you do your actions is important. For
  instance, in melee, blocking as your first action and attack-
  ing as the second means the attack takes a +2 (making it
  harder for you to hit), while attacking and blocking means
  the block takes the penalty (making it easier for opponent to
  hit you). If an action has automatic penalties to other
  actions, this extra penalty usually still applies. 
  Example - If a character dodged a fist and then fired a gun,
  the gun would take a minus to hit because of the dodge, and
  because it was the second action. On the other hand, if they
  fired the gun and then declared a dodge, the dodge would
  take a 2 point penalty to its effectiveness because less time
  was actually spent on the dodge, and more on keeping the
  weapon aimed. And, if someone attacked the character on
  an Initiative segment before the dodge occurred, the charac-
  ter would not get the benefits of the dodge at all.
  First action
  +0 Difficulty
  Second action
  +2 Difficulty
  Third action
  +4 Difficulty
  Fourth action
  +6 Difficulty
  Number of actions
  The maximum number of actions you can do in a second is
  usually your first skill used/2(u). 
  –ø This is not your best skill, but the level in the first skill you
  realistically use on that second.
  Example - A character with a skill of 7 in Cooking and 4 in
  Brawling cannot use Cooking to get the drop on an oppo-
  nent in hand to hand combat (an attempt to do so is a sure
  sign of munchkinism (p.118)). Rather, they would use the
  Brawling skill, even if it is slower.
  Sequencing
  If you do multiple things in a given second, there will be at
  least 2 points of Initiative separating them, sometimes more. 
  Example - If your Initiative were 7 for shooting and you
  were going to shoot two separate targets, your first shot (or
  burst) would be on Initiative 7 and the second would be on
  Initiative 5. If you were going to shoot and move, your shot
  would be on Initiative 7, and you would move on an Initiative
  of your AGL Aptitude (not on Initiative 5). If you had an
  Initiative for punching of 4, you could either fire on Initiative
  7, punch on 4, and move on AGL Aptitude (probably 1 or 2),
  or shoot on 7, shoot on 5, punch on 3 and move on 1, since
  each action must be separated by at least 2 points of
  Initiative.
  Held actions
  A “held action” is one which you have usually spent at least
  a second preparing, like getting ready to fire, strike or run,
  and gets a +2 to Initiative. A held action is usually obvious to
  anyone observing the character. A held action for a surprise
  move means the observer must complete an AWR task with
  a Difficulty of your skill plus any modifiers to their AWR that
  would apply (visibility, etc.). If they fail, they don’t see the
  preparation.
  Example - Your character is held at gunpoint, and wants to
  kick the weapon from a guard’s hand. You have a skill of 6,
  and the guard has an AWR of 4, so they need to make a
  Difficulty 6 AWR task to notice you setting them up. You
  could spend extra time on the setup to make it tougher for
  them to notice. If they do notice, you don’t get the +2 to
  Initiative for a held action, and they are likely to be more
  observant in the future.
  Action penalties
  You normally get one “free” action per turn, like firing a gun,
  swinging a fist, etc. Any extra actions (except for firing a gun
  multiple times at the same target) take a cumulative +2
  Difficulty. A character can take as many actions as they can
  succeed at, but Initiative 0 is the last time a person can act
  each second. Regardless of injuries or modifiers to your
  skill, if you are conscious, you may attempt to perform one
  action on Initiative 0 if you would not get one otherwise. 
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  i How to do it
  1. Determine the first skill you are going to use in a turn.
  2. Apply any situational or injury modifiers to get your base
  Initiative.
  3. Act.
  4. Wait 2 Initiative points before acting again.
  5. Go to step 3 and repeat until you reach Initiative 0.
  6. Go back to step 1.
  
  Scale
  CORPS is based on a 1 meter/1 second scale, that is, each
  hex on a combat display is 1 meter across, and combat
  occurs in 1 second increments. Up to four people may fit in
  a hex (uncomfortably), but melee combat between two peo-
  ple is the normal maximum in a single hex. Usually, melee
  combat will occur between individuals in adjacent hexes.
  Most maps of an area can be drawn on hexagonal grid
  paper, or you can use normal maps, and simply estimate
  the distances involved.
  For small combats, as long as everyone has a mental grasp
  on the area in question, a map may not even be needed.
  Example - A bar brawl could be done on a normal map, but
  you could just as easily describe a room full of flying furni-
  ture, with a door at one end and a bar along the wall. What
  happens to a character in the encounter can be handled as
  a series of combat tasks of random Difficulty, without a
  scale or time increment ever being applied.
  Movement
  Human characters have a normal maximum move of 9
  meters per second, an acceleration of 3 meters per second,
  and a deceleration of 6 meters per second. You may change
  speed or position once at any time in a second on or after
  your movement Initiative comes up (AGL Aptitude).
  Maximum speed is halved (round down) if dodging.
  i The average HLT 4 person can do a 100 meter dash in 12.1
  seconds in this system, and can run at an ever-decreasing
  top speed for about 1.7 minutes before passing out. You
  shouldn't normally need to worry about exertion and stami-
  na, but if you do, the rules for it are on p.83.
  Example - If you have an AGL of 6 (Aptitude of 2), you may
  move, accelerate or decelerate on Initiative 2,1 or 0.
  You may only change your movement status once per turn,
  even if you have a movement Initiative of 2 or higher.
  Turning
  Turn mode for foot movement is based on your speed. You
  may make one 60° change of facing each number of hexes
  equal to the hexes that will be moved that second squared,
  divided by 10, rounding fractions up. Movement of 1 hex or
  less can change to any facing, kneel, go prone, get up or
  use available cover to best effect. Movement from the previ-
  ous turn does count towards the current turn. Situational
  modifiers like the surface you are running on can decrease
  your turning ability, or force you to make AGL rolls to avoid
  falling.
  i Turn mode chart
  Movement
  0-1m 2-3m
  4m
  5m
  6m
  7m
  8m
  9m
  60° turn per
  0m
  1m
  2m
  3m
  4m
  5m
  7m
  9m
  Example - If you were jogging at 4 meters per second, you
  could make a 60° facing change once each 2 meters
  moved. If you were sprinting at 9 meters per second, you
  could make a 60° facing change once each 9 meters
  moved. If you had turned after 3 meters of movement (say
  you had not changed facing at all on your previous move-
  ment), you would then have to wait until this point in your
  next movement to turn again, since you have 6 meters of
  movement left in this turn, and need 3 more before you can
  turn again.
  If you want to do a tighter turn than normal, it is usually an
  AGL or running task with a Difficulty of your velocity plus the
  number of hexes you are below the normal turn rate.
  Example - If you were moving at 6 meters per second, you
  would normally get to turn once each 4 meters. If you want-
  ed to turn after 3 meters, it would be a Difficulty 6 (your
  velocity), plus 1 (for 1 meter below normal turn mode), for a
  total Difficulty of 7. If you failed, you would fall flat on your
  face in the hex right past where you would have turned.
  Facing
  Characters have four facings that they can attack or see
  into. These are Front, Right Side, Left Side and Rear.
  Arc
  Modifier
  Front
  +0
  Side
  +1
  Rear
  +3
  Front
  Rear
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  Normally, you will take a 1 point penalty to any action taken
  into a Side hex, and a 3 point penalty to actions attempted
  into a Rear hex (including Initiative, blocks, dodges, etc.).
  However, most people find it easier to do attacks into the
  side opposite their good hand than on the same side as the
  good hand, and will take an additional +1 Difficulty on any
  two-handed longarm attacks into the same side as their pre-
  ferred hand (face forward and fire an imaginary rifle 90° to
  either side to see this).
  Example - If you have an Unarmed Combat skill of 6, and
  try to punch someone in your side arc, the task takes a +1
  Difficulty. If you try to punch someone behind you, the
  Difficulty gets a +3.
  ﬁ« This does mean that if you attack to the front, and then
  attack to the side, it takes an extra Initiative segment for the
  second punch (at least 3 segments for a consecutive action
  instead of 2). Likewise, if your first action in a turn was to
  strike to the rear, your Initiative would be 3 points lower
  because of the awkward arc.
  Normally, you may only change facing on your movement
  Initiative. However, you may also change facing as part of
  any attack. At the end of your attack, you are considered to
  be on the new facing (you take penalties for attacking into a
  bad arc, but after you attack, you are facing in the right
  direction for future attacks). This is especially useful if some-
  one gets into your side or rear arc during a melee combat.
  Example - Grond the Barbarian is outnumbered in a tavern
  brawl, which the gamemaster has decided to make a small
  map for. Grond has a Brawling Initiative of 8, an opponent in
  front of him, and another one behind him (actually, Grond's
  reputation is well known, and both opponents are trying to
  get behind him). Grond flattens the thug in front of him on
  Initiative 8. He then turns and attacks the thug behind him.
  Since all consecutive actions are separated by at least 2
  Initiative segments, he can't act again until Initiative 6. His
  attack to the rear drops this to Initiative 3. After this attack,
  Grond is now facing his new opponent, and take no arc or
  Initiative penalties for his action on Initiative 1 (though he
  will have consecutive action penalties for his actions on
  Initiative 8 and 3).
  Damage
  Before we get to specific combat tasks, you need to learn
  how damage is given and taken.
  Damage Value
  All weapons have a DV, or Damage Value. This is the num-
  ber of points they do to a living target, or towards penetra-
  tion of armor. This will be classed as either lethal, non-lethal
  or combination (half each, with fractions being non-lethal).
  Example - A gun with a DV of 5 will do 5 points of damage
  to a target, or barely be stopped by an Armor Value of 5.
  The damage done in melee combat is based on the STR of
  the attacker. Punches do the attacker’s STR Aptitude
  (STR/4) in non-lethal damage, and kicks do the attackers
  (STR/3), rounding fractions to the nearest number (.5
  rounds up). Martial arts attacks add the Martial arts skill of
  the user to their STR for purposes of figuring out damage.
  Melee weapons convert STR damage into lethal or combi-
  nation damage, and may additionally add to the DV.
  Melee attacks
  Damage Value
  Location Mod.
  punch damage
  STR/4(n)
  -1
  kick damage
  STR/3(n)
  +1
  small knife
  +0 DV
  -1
  knife
  +1 DV
  -1
  machete/short swd.
  +2 DV
  +0
  large swd/ax
  +3 DV
  +0
  Example - A normal person with a STR of 5 does a non-
  lethal punch damage of 1 (STR/4, round nearest), and a
  non-lethal kick damage of 2 (STR/3, round nearest). If this
  person had an overall Martial arts skill of 4, their punch
  would have a non-lethal damage of 2 (STR+Skill)/4, round
  nearest), and a kick with a non-lethal damage of 3
  (STR+Skill)/3, round nearest). If this person had an average
  knife, a stab or slice would have a lethal DV of 2 (their base
  damage of 1, plus 1 for the knife).
  i Martial arts is an equalizer, in that it lets a weaker character
  do the same unarmed combat damage as a much stronger
  one. You should go back to your character design and see if
  your unarmed combat damages are relatively efficient.
  Punch DV increases at an effective STR 6, 10 and 14, and
  kick DV increases at an effective STR of 5, 8, 11 and 14.
  ﬁ« Note that if you allow certain melee weapons to be used
  with Martial Arts skill, the base damage does get the Martial
  arts STR bonus, and the DV of the weapon is added to the
  base damage.
   
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  Armor Value
  Armor is rated by the protection it provides vs. blunt trauma
  and penetration, and is referred to as Armor Value, or AV. It
  will be two numbers separated by a “/”, like 2/4. The first
  number is the “soak” value, and the second number is the
  “blunt trauma” value.
  The soak value represents the rigidity of the armor and its
  ability to completely stop damage. The armor subtracts this
  much from every hit. 
  Example - A person wearing a 2/4 vest is struck by a
  thrown knife that has a lethal damage of 2. This is equal to
  the soak value, so the attack has no effect. 
  The blunt trauma value (second number) converts up to its
  value in lethal damage into non-lethal damage, and repre-
  sents the ability of armor to stop penetration, but not neces-
  sarily the force behind the blow. The blunt trauma value has
  no effect vs. non-lethal or combination attacks.
  Example - The person with the 2/4 vest is then struck with a
  bullet that does 6 points of lethal damage. The blunt trauma
  protection subtracts 2, and the blunt trauma value takes the
  remaining 4, and converts it into 4 points of non-lethal dam-
  age. If the person with this vest were just punched for 3
  points of damage, only the soak value would apply, and the
  person would take 1 point of damage that got through.
  ﬁ« For purposes of physically damaging the armor, you always
  count the full value (the two numbers added together). The
  force of a non-lethal attack can still damage or break
  objects.
  Damage that is greater than any applicable armor strikes
  the character without any modification. For purposes of
  stunning or knocking someone out, you always use the
  largest of either the non-lethal or lethal damage the charac-
  ter just took.
  Example - The person with the 2/4 vest is then struck with a
  bullet doing 9 points of lethal damage. The first 6 points are
  treated like the previous example, but the character also
  takes 3 points of lethal damage as well. For being stunned
  or knocked out by the damage, the non-lethal damage of 4
  is used, since it is the higher of the two amounts applied by
  that hit, but for purposes of injuring the character, both types
  of damage apply, and the character takes both lethal and
  non-lethal injury effects.
  Special Armors
  In the simplest case, armor works equally well against all
  kinds of attacks. These attacks are usually physical, like a
  fist, knife or bullet. Some armors have special effects vs. a
  particular type of attack, and some attacks have special
  effects vs. a particular type of armor. 
  Armor piercing
  An attack which is armor-piercing halves (round down),
  each part of a character's AV. 
  Example - Against an armor-piercing attack, a 3/4 vest
  would be counted as 1/2, since each part of the AV is halved.
  Armor-piercing has varying mechanics which are genre-
  dependent. If an armor was not designed to stop a given
  type of attack, the attack is counted as “armor-piercing”.
  Example - For instance, no natural creature evolved protec-
  tion against gunfire, so bullets against leather are counted
  as armor-piercing. So, against gunfire, a 2/3 leather armor
  would be counted as a 1/1.
  Attack
  armor-piercing vs.:
  Most bullets
  organic armors like wood, bone, etc.
  Armor-piercing bullets
  modern armors
  Thrusting melee attacks
  fabric armors
  ﬁ« Modern soft body armor (Level I and II vests) is a flexible
  fabric armor, and is not designed to stop anything except
  normal bullets. So, a knife thrust or even a fist is counted as
  armor-piercing vs. that type of armor.
  Attacks designed to be armor-piercing (rather than from cir-
  cumstance) may do less damage or leave a cleaner wound.
  An armor which is hardened against armor-piercing attacks
  will have an “H” after the designation, and will act at full
  effectiveness vs. both normal and armor-piercing attacks.
  Example - A high-tech armor might have a rating 4/3H,
  which means it is 4/3 vs. normal and armor-piercing attacks.
  Energy attacks
  Against most types of energy, an armor gets its full value
  (both values added together) vs. the attack, since each part
  stops some damage, and there is no blunt trauma to stop.
  Example - Against non-impact damage (like a laser), armor
  will get its full value (the sum) as the soak value, as a non-
  impact attack does no blunt trauma.
  Certain energy weapons may have the special effect that
  they will do blunt trauma (force beams, etc.), in which case
  armor is treated normally.
  Hollow point
  Some attacks are better or worse at penetrating armor than
  others. For instance, all armor is x1.5 (multiply each part
  separately, round up) vs. hollow-point or exploding rounds,
  to reflect that they penetrate less well. 
  Example - Against hollow-point ammunition, a 3/4 vest
  would be treated as a 5/6 vest. 
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  Hit Location
  If a character is struck by an attack, and the location is ran-
  dom, roll 1d10 on the following table. Each of these areas is
  a “large” hit location. Smaller hit locations would be things
  like a hand or foot (see Called Shots, p.61).
  Roll
  Location
  1
  Head/neck
  2
  Right arm
  3-4
  Chest
  5
  Left arm
  6
  Abdomen
  7
  Upper right leg
  8
  Upper left leg
  9
  Lower right leg
  10
  Lower left leg
  Example - A randomly aimed gunshot strikes a character.
  The GM rolls 1d10 and gets a 5, so the shot hits the charac-
  ter in the left arm.
  Location modifiers
  Different types of attacks may tend to cluster hits towards a
  certain part of the body. In general, punches and knife
  attacks subtract 1 from the hit location roll, and kicks add 1.
  Random cover
  Sometimes a target will take an attack while under partial
  cover. If the shot is not aimed at a visible part of the target,
  the shot may strike or go through cover before hitting the tar-
  get. In this case, any Armor Value of the incidental cover will
  subtract directly from the damage before it is applied to the
  target.
  Cover
  Armor Value
  Light interior wall or door
  2
  Heavy interior wall or door
  3
  Heavy exterior door
  4
  Reinforced door
  6+
  Light exterior wall (wood)
  4
  Medium exterior wall (brick)
  8
  Heavy exterior wall (stone)
  12
  Reinforced exterior wall 
  16+
  Vehicle door
  4
  Aluminum alloy, 5mm (TL10-12)
  6
  Steel, 5mm (TL4-7)
  8
  Steel, 5mm (TL8-9)
  10
  Steel, 5mm (TL10-12)
  12
  Pine, 25mm
  2
  Oak, 25mm
  3
  Water, 100mm
  1
  Earth, 25mm
  2
  Granite, 25mm
  5
  1
  2
  6
  7
  3-4
  5
  8
  9
  10
  Impairments
  When a person takes lethal damage, they take +1 Difficulty
  to use the portion of the body struck, per point of damage
  they took, plus a fixed amount based on location, with a
  maximum of +10 impairment for a head hit, and +5 impair-
  ment for a hit anywhere else. A character can take any
  amount in damage, but there is a ceiling on the impairment
  per hit. There is a minimum impairment of +1 for any lethal
  attack doing 0 points or more. The chance of a lethal injury
  being eventually fatal (like bleeding to death) is a 1d10 roll
  of the damage or less, modified by location and type of attack.
  Non-lethal attacks do a +1 impairment to use the portion of
  the body struck, per 10 points of damage taken (round up).
  However, the amount of the damage (up to 10 for the head
  and 5 everywhere else) is used to determine if the character
  is stunned or knocked out, and the damage taken plus loca-
  tion modifiers is a penalty to use that part of the body for the
  rest of the current turn. 
  Example - A lethal attack that does 4 points of damage has
  the same chance of stunning a character as a non-lethal
  attack that does 4 points. Both attacks have a +4 impair-
  ment on the turn the character is hit, but the non-lethal
  attack drops to a +1 impairment at the end of the turn, since
  there is no permanent damage done.
  Location
  Impairment mod.
  Event. fatal mod.
  head
  -1
  +1
  torso* or whole body
  +0
  +0
  arm or leg*
  +1
  -1
  *Maximum impairment per hit of +5 for arms, torso or legs, and +10 per head hit
  Example - A 2 point lethal hit does 1 point of impairment to
  the head, 2 points to the torso, or 3 points to an arm or leg.
  However, the chance of a 2 point lethal hit being eventually
  fatal is 3 or less for the head, 2 or less for the torso, and
  only on a 1 for the arms or legs.
  ﬁ« Note that a lethal damage of 0 would still do an impairment
  to an arm or leg of +1, so small grazing hits can still have an
  effect, although non-lethal damage of 0 is usually no effect.
  Different attack types may do more or less impairment, or
  alter the chance of an injury being eventually fatal.
  Attack
  Impairment mod.
  Event. fatal mod.
  Lethal melee thrusting attack
  -1
  +0
  Normal
  +0
  +0
  Hollow-point/exploding
  +1
  +1
  Armor-piercing
  -2
  -1
  Example - A knife thrust does less impairment than a slash,
  but it may also be better at penetrating certain types of
  armor. Hollow point ammunition does more impairment, and
  is more likely to get an eventually fatal result, but penetrates
  armor less well.
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  ﬁ« Remember that even after location and damage type modi-
  fiers, all lethal attacks that strike the character for 1 point of
  damage or more will do a minimum +1 impairment to that
  body part.
  Effects
  Impairment to a body area are a penalty to use that body
  part, and half the impairment (round down) is an impairment
  to the use of any adjacent body part for applicable tasks,
  and if a skill requires the direct use of both impaired and
  unimpaired body parts, this also applies.
  Example - A character takes a +3 impairment to the chest.
  Half this (rounding down) is +1, so they take a +1 to all skills
  that directly involve the use of the arms, abdomen or head
  (presumably the pain affects how clearly the character can
  think). If the character instead had a +2 impairment to their
  right arm, they would take a +2 for shooting a pistol with
  their right hand, but only +1 for shooting a rifle (which
  requires both hands). They would also only take a +1 if they
  used both hands on a pistol. This is because in this case the
  hands would be considered “adjacent”, so only half the
  impairment is used. This is often a GM call as to exactly
  how impairing a given hit is based on the type of damage
  and the action being attempted.
  When a character takes an impairment, you mark off one of
  the impairment boxes for that part of the body for each point
  of impairment suffered, using different marks for lethal or
  non-lethal. It is also usually a good idea to put a tick mark
  on the highest box marked for that injury, because you may
  be able to recover from a number of small injuries faster
  than from a single large one. If you place a mark after each
  injury, you can tell how many points of impairment each one
  did.
  Example - This person is
  hurting. It looks like they’ve
  been punched in the face a
  few times, been stabbed in
  the chest and leg, and are
  getting tired as well. They
  take an overall +2 from the
  HLT losses. AWR tasks
  take an additional +4 due to
  the head injury, movement
  is at a total of +4 from injury
  and exertion, and punches
  take a total of +3 from the
  chest wound and the exer-
  tion (since HLT losses affect
  everything, but only half of
  the chest wound counts
  towards use of the arms).
  =Non-lethal
  =Lethal
  =HLT
  1
  2
  6
  7
  Exertion
  Current
  HLT
  Whole 
  body
  Other
  Health & Armor
  AV: __/__  
  AV: __/__  
  AV: __/__  
  AV: __/__   
  AV: __/__   
  AV: __/__  
  AV: __/__  
  3-4
  5
  8
  9
  10  
  6 4
  i Once more, an impairment is a penalty that applies to the
  chance of doing anything with the affected part of the body.
  Location
  Directly affects
  Head
  Head butts, any AWR skills, AGL rolls for balance
  Arms
  Arm STR, punches, firearms, melee weapons
  Chest
  Exertion-based HLT rolls, running speed
  Abdomen
  Exertion-based HLT rolls, running speed
  Legs
  Leg STR, kicks, running speed
  Whole body
  All
  The maximum impairment that a given body part can take in
  one hit is +10 for the head, and +5 for everything else. If a
  character takes multiple injuries to a body part, you only
  count the worst one for skill modifier purposes, adding an
  extra +1 for each smaller wound. This +1 adds to the severi-
  ty of the largest injury for healing purposes as well, and
  injuries that exceed the normal maximum for a location
  automatically count as “broken bones” for purposes of heal-
  ing up.
  Example - A character is shot in the arm, and takes a +5
  impairment, which pretty much makes it useless. Later on,
  they take a +3 to the same arm from a knife wound. Since a
  +5 is the normal maximum for arm injuries, this additional +3
  only adds +1 to the total, so the character is counted as hav-
  ing a single arm injury at +6. Their penalty to actions is now
  at +6 (the +5 from the first wound, plus +1 for the smaller
  wound). When it comes time to laying around in the hospital
  and healing up, the character will be counted as taking 6
  points of impairment, with a “broken bone” modifier on the
  healing time.
  i The absolute maximum impairment for skill or attribute
  penalties is +10. If a character takes non-lethal and lethal
  injuries on a location adding up to +10, and then takes fur-
  ther lethal injuries, they are put in place of the non-lethal
  ones.
  Example - If a character with a +4 lethal and +6 non-lethal
  injury to the torso takes another lethal hit for +1, they would
  then have a +5 lethal and +5 non-lethal impairment.
  Blowthrough and blowoff
  Any damage in excess of armor plus the maximum damage
  a location can take is assumed to go through the character
  and continue on its normal path. For a person with normal
  Toughness, 5 points of cutting damage in one hit through
  armor may be considered an amputation (at GM option). If a
  portion of the body is hit by a beam or projectile for a num-
  ber of points greater than 10 times the STR of the character
  in a single hit, it is safe to say that location is no longer
  attached to the rest of the body. This does count as an
  autokill for torso or head hits. 
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  Special cases
   
  The above are the basic rules for damage and injury. There
  are a number of options you may also wish to include, either
  for characters, NPC’s, or both.
  Eventually fatal wounds
  As is, damage just accumulates, with no chance of wounds
  getting worse over time. For any 
   
  lethal injury, you may roll
  1d10. The result of this one roll determines if the damage is
  instantly fatal or eventually fatal, and if eventually fatal, how
  long it takes the character to bleed to death if they do not
  get proper care.
  The chance of a lethal injury being eventually fatal is a 1d10
  roll of the damage or less, with the reverse of the location
  impairment modifier, and optionally, adding the modifier for
  the type of attack.
  Example - A 2 point hit to the head would do an impairment
  of +1, since the location modifier for impairment is -1 (2
  points of damage minus 1). But, it has a chance of being
  eventually fatal of 3 or less (2 points of damage plus 1). 
  Example - A 2 point head hit with hollow-point ammunition
  would do an impairment of +2, since the ammunition type
  adds a point of impairment, but be eventually fatal on a 4 or
  less (2 points of damage, plus 1 for the location, plus an
  extra 1 for the ammunition). 
  Example - A 2 point head hit with armor-piercing rounds
  would do an impairment of +1 (2 points of damage minus 1
  for location, minus 1 for damage type, but with a minimum of
  +1 impairment for any lethal attack), but be eventually fatal
  on a 2 or less (2 points of damage, plus 1 for the location,
  minus 1 for the ammunition).
   
  i One of the side effects of the eventually fatal roll system is
  that it is possible to take an injury that will eventually kill you,
  but not stop you from fighting. It also allows people to even-
  tually die from small injuries if they do not get treatment.
  Bleeders
  Eventually fatal wounds will cause a decrease in your HLT
  attribute from bleeding, at the rate of 1 point per 1d10 min-
  utes (using the roll that determined if the wound is eventually
  fatal), and each time this increment is doubled. If HLT goes
  to zero from bleeding, the character dies from blood loss or
  shock. This bleeding can be stopped with a use of First Aid
  or Medicine skill. Any minus to HLT is a minus to all actions
  because the fatiguing effects.
  ﬁ« Note that if a character has a temporarily reduced HLT from
  exertion, and loses more HLT from blood loss, they only
  pass out when HLT goes to zero. Death would occur when
  the character takes their normal HLT in lethal losses.
  Example - A character with a HLT of 5 takes a 4 point chest
  hit, which is determined to be “eventually fatal”. The initial
  d10 roll is a 3 (the roll that determined this wound was even-
  tually fatal), so after 3 minutes, the character loses 1 HLT
  from blood loss, dropping their effective HLT to 4. They will
  lose another point at 6 minutes after the injury (HLT 3), 12
  minutes (HLT 2), 24 minutes (HLT 1), and 48 minutes (HLT
  0),at which point the character dies unless the bleeding has
  been stopped. If the character had previously taken a -1 to
  HLT from exertion, they would have passed out at the 24
  minute mark, and finished bleeding to death at the 48
  minute point.
  i If you were wondering about why the bleeding rules work
  the way they do, it was designed so that small lethal injuries
  would only be eventually fatal if they were quick bleeders,
  while large lethal injuries are more likely to have slower
  effects, provided they didn't kill you instantly (see below).
  Autokills
  Some eventually fatal injuries have a chance of being
  instantly fatal. When you roll for an injury being eventually
  fatal, the amount the roll is made by determines whether or
  not the wound is an “instant kill”.
  Head hits are instantly fatal if this roll is made by 3 or more.
  Chest hits are instantly fatal if the roll is made by 5 or more,
  and abdomen or whole body hits are instantly fatal if the roll
  is made by 7 or more. Arm and leg hits are never instantly
  fatal. GM’s might want to reserve autokills for NPC’s,
  depending on how lethal they want their campaign.
  Example - A 6 point chest hit does an impairment of +6, and
  is eventually fatal on a roll of 1-6. However, a roll of 1 makes
  the roll by 5 points, and is instantly fatal. A 6 point head hit
  does an impairment of +5 (damage of 6 minus the location
  modifier), is eventually fatal on a roll of 1-7 (damage of 6
  plus location modifier), and instantly fatal on a roll of 1-4
  (making the eventually fatal roll by 3 points or more).
  ﬁ« In the interest of keeping characters alive, it is not recom-
  mended that you use autokills on them. It is, however, a
  good way to get combat NPC’s out of the way quicker.
  Broken bones
  As an optional rule, roll 1d10 on any lethal injury. If the
  result is equal or less than the impairment, the damage has
  broken a bone or caused some other injury that takes longer
  than normal to heal. The actual degree of impairment is not
  increased by this result, only the healing time.
  Example - A character takes a 4 point chest hit. The d10 roll
  to see if it is eventually fatal comes up negative, so there is
  no problem. After combat, another roll is made to see how
  serious the injury is. If it is a 1-4, the injury is a “broken
  bone” result, like cracked ribs, torn muscles, or other slow
  healing injuries.
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  Example - You kick a dog and do 1 point of non-lethal dam-
  age. If the dog has a x2 damage multiple, it takes 2 points of
  non-lethal damage, which is then adjusted for location to get
  any impairment effect.
  i CORPS is a very lethal system. To decrease the overall
  lethality of your campaign, you might want to give all charac-
  ters a few levels of the Toughness advantage, free of
  charge. This gives them a damage multiple of a little less
  than 1, so they are not as badly affected as normal people.
  Pain and suffering
  A character can attempt to do a called shot (p.61) to an
  injured location. If any damage hits the character through
  armor, such a called shot would require the target to make a
  knockout roll as for the original injury, provided the hit does
  an impairment of its own.
  Example - A character has taken a +5 lethal impairment to
  their right arm. When struck, they had to make a Difficulty 8
  WIL check to avoid being stunned (eventually fatal chance
  of 4 or less, times 2). Since then, they have been guarding
  the arm. Their opponent, sensing weakness, delivers a
  punch to that arm, which does a +1 non-lethal impairment.
  The shock of being punched in the injury site jolts the char-
  acter, who must make another Difficulty 8 WIL check to
  avoid being stunned.
  i Obviously, this is a dirty tactic, but once a character takes a
  penalty to defend themselves, and is easier to hit, you can
  just keep on “twisting the knife” to batter them into submis-
  sion.
  Knockouts
  To see if a character is stunned by an injury is a WIL task,
  with a Difficulty equal to twice the “eventually fatal” chance
  for the level of impairment (lethal or not). For example, a 5
  point arm hit is “eventually fatal” on a 4 or less, so the “stun”
  Difficulty is a 4 x 2 = 8. This would be the case regardless of
  whether the damage was lethal or non-lethal. The maximum
  Difficulty is 8 for an arm or leg, 10 for the torso or whole
  body, and 12 for the head.
  An automatic success (WIL greater than or equal to the stun
  Difficulty) means no stun or knockout. A failed roll means
  you take a extra minus to all actions of the amount failed by
  until the end of the next second, as you are “stunned”.
  Failing by more than your current WIL means a knockout.
  Time spent unconscious is a minimum of 10 seconds, dou-
  bled for each point over the amount needed to knock the
  character out.
  Example - A character with a current WIL of 6 takes a 5
  point non-lethal hit to the abdomen (oof!). This has a “knock-
  out” Difficulty of 10 (twice the “eventually fatal” chance). A
  WIL of 6 vs. a Difficulty 10 task is a 3 or less on 1d10. 
  Result 1 - The character rolls a 1,2, or 3. This is successful
  vs. the Difficulty 10 WIL task, so the character takes no
  additional effect. They still take the +5 impairment from the
  non-lethal hit for the rest of the current turn. After that, they
  only take the +1 impairment for a non-lethal injury.
  Result 2 - The character rolls a 4-9. This fails the WIL task
  by 1-6 points, so the character will take an additional +1 to
  +6 penalty on all actions until the end of the next turn. This
  adds to the +5 impairment the non-lethal attack has on this
  turn, and also adds to the +1 the non-lethal injury leaves
  behind on the next turn. The turn after that, the character is
  only at a +1 from the non-lethal injury.
  Result 3 - The character rolls a 10. Since they needed a 3
  or less for success, this fails the roll by 7, or more than their
  current WIL. The character is knocked out, but since it was
  only by 1 point, they are only unconscious for 10 seconds.
  i As a character design note, characters whose current WIL is
  5 cannot be knocked out by arm or leg hits, characters
  whose current WIL is 7 cannot be knocked out by torso hits,
  and characters whose current WIL is 8 or better cannot be
  knocked out by head hits.
  Damage Multiples
  Big or small creatures will have damage multiples (the
  Toughness or Frailness character traits), like a small dog
  might have a x2 multiple to show that damage it takes (not
  is struck with) is doubled for determining impairment, knock-
  out and death, while an elephant might have a x.2 multiple.
  If there is any question about the damage taken, it rounds
  nearest (.5 rounds up).
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  i How to do it
  Basic rules
  1. Roll hit location.
  2. Apply armor.
  3. Apply damage that penetrates armor as impairments. Remember
  that non-lethal attacks only do an impairment of +1 per hit, but
  count total damage done for knockouts and for the rest of the
  current turn.
  4. Roll knockout chance vs. WIL, based on twice the largest dam-
  age taken, maximum Difficulty of 8 for limbs, 10 for torso, 12 for
  head.
  Advanced rules
  5. For lethal injuries roll 1d10 of less than impairment plus location
  modifier to see if wound is instantly or eventually fatal.
  6. If eventually fatal, the character loses 1 HLT per number of min-
  utes equal to the die roll at step 5, and again each time this num-
  ber is doubled.
  7. For lethal injuries, roll 1d10 of less than the impairment to see if
  any bones were broken.
  
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  First Aid
  Any lethal damage a character takes is serious. For
  instance, a +1 impairment to a hand is like driving a nail
  through it. Conversely, cuts, scratches and small (but not
  debilitating) injuries are largely ignored in this system.
  Scratches from briars, stubbing your toes and other minor
  injuries are taken for granted as a part of adventuring life. If
  you take a lethal injury in CORPS, it is something you
  should (in the real world) go immediately to an emergency
  room to have treated.
  i If you've ever gotten a scrape, bruise, cut or other minor
  injury that made you favor part of your body for a week or
  so, think about how it felt when the injury happened. That is
  roughly a +1 impairment.
  Paramedic Skill or First Aid can be used to stop an eventu-
  ally fatal result. A roll can be made once a minute if the
  character does nothing else, and the Difficulty of the task is
  the chance that the wound would be eventually fatal. If the
  character takes any damage at all to that area, the wound
  will reopen. A successful Medicine Skill use vs. the same
  difficulty can be used to permanently seal the injury, but this
  takes at least 10 minutes.
  Example - A character takes a nasty slash to the ribs, doing
  3 points of lethal damage, and which ends up being eventu-
  ally fatal. After combat, a friend bandages them up. It is only
  a Difficulty 3 Paramedic task to stop the bleeding in 1
  minute. This is just a temporary bandage, and any strain will
  start the bleeding again. To stitch up the gash is a Difficulty
  3 Medicine task, which has a base time of 10 minutes.
  First aid can be used vs. non-lethal injuries, and takes the
  form of ice packs, mild painkillers and other common sense
  treatments. The Difficulty of this is the total impairment the
  character has taken from all types of damage. It takes
  around an hour to take effect, but lets the character get back
  one point of non-lethal impairment at the end of the hour.
  Example - After a nasty brawl, a character has taken a total
  of +8 in cuts, nicks and bruises. If anyone with any medical
  skill can successfully make a Difficulty 8 task, then the char-
  acter will get back one point of non-lethal impairment after
  an hour or so.
  Recovery
  Recovering from injury or exertion is based on your current
  HLT, so characters who have lost a lot of blood will heal
  slower until they gain back some of the lost HLT.
  Exertion
  You get your current HLT in points per hour to recover from
  exertion, allotting these points towards increasing your HLT,
  on a 1 for 1 basis.
  Non-lethal impairments
  You get your current HLT in points per day to recover from
  non-lethal injuries, allotting these points towards non-lethal
  impairments (or HLT), on a 1 for 1 basis.
  Lethal impairments
  You get your current HLT in points per 30 days to recover
  from lethal injuries, allotting these points towards impair-
  ments (or HLT), on a 1 for 1 basis.
  Attribute impairments
  Are healed like lethal injuries. If an attribute has been low-
  ered due to some game effect, the loss is recovered like the
  points lost were an impairment.
  If HLT is at less than full, the first point of any healing of
  lethal injuries per unit of time is allotted to increasing HLT.
  After that, the smallest impairment is reduced by a point,
  then the next smallest, and so on, until all injuries are par-
  tially recovered. The process is then repeated. If an injury is
  determined to be a “broken bone”, the first point of the
  impairment is not recovered until 4 points of healing are
  allotted to it.
  Example - A character has a +3 impairment from broken
  ribs, and a +2 from a bullet graze. Their effective HLT is 7
  thanks to medical care, so they recover 7 points of impair-
  ment in 30 days, or roughly 1 point per 4 days. This alter-
  nates between impairments, so at the end of 30 days, the
  smaller wound is healed (2 points), and the ribs have 5
  points allotted towards them. Four points cancel out the bro-
  ken bone, and the last reduces the impairment to a +2.
  The effective HLT of the character for healing will be modi-
  fied by the conditions the character is under.
  Care
  Modifier to HLT
  intensive care, life support (10,000Cr/day)
  +6
  hospital, total rest (1000Cr/day)
  +4
  outpatient care, rest (100Cr/day)
  +2
  basic first aid, light activity
  +0
  poor care, medium activity
  -2
  ext. poor care, heavy activity
  -4
  –ø You can’t get a bonus to HLT of more than the largest single
  lethal impairment. For instance, with a lethal impairment of
  +2, you can’t get a HLT bonus of more than +2.
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  If effective HLT is negative, you lose points on lethal impair-
  ments instead of healing them, with points applied in
  reverse order of healing (largest injuries first). Lethal injuries
  that go to a +10 or more mean amputation is required. A
  torso or head “amputation” means the character has died
  from lack of care.
  Example - While in the Alaskan wilds, a character is mauled
  by a bear, taking a +4 impairment. Even worse, they were
  knocked out and lost a lot of blood, lowering their HLT to a
  3. If the character pushes themselves to get to civilization,
  their HLT would be counted as -1 (their current HLT of 3, -4
  for extremely poor care and heavy activity). So, not only
  would they not heal at all, they would actually get worse.
  i To increase or decrease the level of “traumatic heroism”
  characters can put up with, you may wish to alter the times
  required for healing of injuries. As shown, an average person
  recovering in a hospital from a +9 total impairment is still
  going to be there a month before they are back to normal.
  While this may be realistic, it makes for a lot of down time
  between adventures. Decreasing the recovery time to 10
  days instead of 30 speeds the healing process considerably.
  Permanent Injuries
  Each time a character accumulates a multiple of +10 in
  lethal injuries, over any time period, they have taken enough
  damage to leave scars and perhaps a permanent disability.
  This much impairment results in the permanent loss of 1AP,
  from either STR, AGL, AWR or HLT, chosen by the player.
  This may be countered by experience or training, but the
  points lost may not be recovered.
  Example - Del Thorp got in over his head in a fight, and was
  left for dead after taking a total of +20 in lethal damage. He
  is found and taken to a hospital, where they stitch him back
  together. He had no extra AP towards any of his attributes,
  and decides the 2AP lost due to being beaten half to death
  will lower his STR. If he can get 2AP towards STR from age-
  related training or adventuring, he can raise it back to where
  it was before, but this may take months of therapy.
  ﬁ« The amount of impairment that a character can take before
  suffering permanent injury is dependent on the level of med-
  ical care available. The higher tech the medicine, the more
  abuse a person can take before it becomes permanent.
  ﬁ« A character may also opt to take a Physical Lim rather than
  a loss of AP. The total points in the Physical Lim must equal
  the AP that would normally be permanently lost.
  Example - Del decides that instead of taking 2AP off of his
  STR, he will instead take a -1 Physical Lim of “slight limp”,
  worth 2AP. He takes a 1 point penalty on his running speed
  and kicks (and STR in the kick) with one leg, but otherwise
  keeps the same overall STR. Like the loss of AP, he can
  eventually buy this limitation off with age-based experience.
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  Combat Tactics
  The CORPS system has several inherent features which
  allow it to mimic actual combat extremely well. The most
  important of these is that people die when they get shot in
  vital areas, regardless of how experienced or tough they
  are. Players who wish to grow attached to their characters
  will have to play their tactics well in order to emerge
  unscathed, and even that is no guarantee.
  For projectile weapons, the first rule is simple: Wear body
  armor. Everyone who expects to get into fights on a regular
  basis should always be wearing some armor under their
  street clothing. This will turn potentially lethal wounds into
  merely painful ones, and will make horrible wounds some-
  what less devastating. If the circumstances permit, head
  and face protection is also well advised. 
  The second rule is: Don’t Get Hit. Easy enough to say, but
  most players will take experience from other games into
  CORPS, and will be carried off in body bags as a result.
  Always use available cover. It makes you a smaller target.
  Show as little of yourself as possible. If you have to move
  across a field of fire, try to have covering fire, and always
  move as fast as possible, preferably dodging the whole way.
  It does not take much skill to do a successful called shot to
  the head at 10 meters. If you can do it, so can your ene-
  mies. Make yourself hard to hit, and keep them worried
  about keeping themselves alive instead of killing you.
  For melee combat, again, you don’t want to be hit. Having
  the Pain Tolerance advantage (p.23) is extremely useful for
  brawlers and other unarmed combat types. This lets you
  take those punches to the gut without flinching, while other
  people end up rolling on the floor. Unless you want to be hit,
  or don’t care, always have some sort of defensive maneuver
  each phase. It may decrease your chance to hit, but also
  decreases your chance of being hit. If possible, use tools.
  You don’t break your knuckles on someone else’s face as a
  result, and it can sometimes be used to block with without
  risking personal injury.
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  Any action which counts towards a modified defense adds
  to the base defense of the character. To cleanly hit the char-
  acter is a Difficulty equal to the modified defense. An attack
  which hits the base defense but not the modified defense is
  assumed to be blocked or parried, depending on the nature
  of the modified defense.
  The base defense and modified defense are usually listed
  as x/y, where the first number is the base defense and the
  second number is the modified defense.
  Example - A character has a total defense of 2/6 (base
  defense of 2, and modified defense of 6). This means that it
  is a Difficulty 6 task to get by all the defenses and hit the
  character, and a Difficulty 2 task to just hit the character in
  their prepared defense (like a shield). Missing a Difficulty 2
  task means the attack missed completely.
  Example - Let's say the attacker has a skill with swords of
  3, and there are no other modifiers. Since the skill is higher
  than the base defense of 2, the attacker will always hit
  (assuming no negative modifiers). However, it is still a skill 3
  vs. Difficulty 6 task to get by the modified defense, or a 1d10
  roll of 5 or less. A roll of 1-5 means the character is hit nor-
  mally, and a roll of 6-10 means the character is hit some-
  where relevant to the modified defense. If a character was
  using a weapon or shield to increase their modified defense
  (like blocking), the weapon or shield would be hit (if a shield
  is used, assume it is hit).
  ﬁ« Your character sheet has a couple blanks next to the char-
  acter silhouette. Put your base defense in one, and then
  your modified defense while blocking, dodging and both. For
  blocking, use the number for the skill you use most often.
  ﬁ« It is extremely important to remember how the skill system
  works in melee combat. Since your opponent's base
  defense is the Difficulty you have to hit them, any bonuses
  or penalties you take apply to their base defense. For
  instance, if your opponent has a total defense of 2/4, and
  you have taken a +2 Difficulty on your attack for having
  done a previous action, their total defense vs. your attack is
  now 4/6. Or, if it was 2/4 and you got into their side arc for a
  -1 Difficulty, their total defense would drop to 1/3. 
  i Most of the time, you will usually be able to hit the base
  defense of an opponent (and vice versa), so it is the modi-
  fied defense that is more important.
  “Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow!”
  Julius Caesar
  Basics
  Melee combat is any combat that does not involve ranged
  weapons. Fistfights, clubs, swords or martial arts are all
  melee combat, and use the same basic rules.
  Melee combat involves the use of certain skills, and is done
  on the same principles as all other skills. The attacker’s skill
  is compared to the Difficulty of the melee task, which will
  vary, based on the defender’s skill and the tactical situation.
  If successful, the attack hits. If it fails, the attack misses.
  Base Defense
  The base Difficulty to hit something with a melee weapon or
  attack is the AGL Aptitude of the target, modified by blocks,
  dodges, etc. Base defense is not lowered by injury.
  Example - A normal person with an AGL of 5 is a Difficulty 1
  target to be punched, plus or minus anything they do that
  alters this (blocking, dodging, etc.).
  i A quick check shows that most untrained people will have
  Aptitudes of 1 or 2, and can reliably hit a similarly untrained
  person who isn't dodging the attack.
  This Difficulty is the “base defense” of the character. Any
  attack which misses the base defense of the character is a
  clean miss, and has no effect. It misses the character, their
  weapon, shield and so on.
  Modified Defense
  A character can perform actions that do not increase their
  base defense, but which can totally or partially negate the
  effects of a hit. For instance, a character who blocks with a
  shield does not make themselves harder to hit, but simply
  puts up something capable of taking the hit better than the
  character could. Likewise, a parry does not decrease the
  chance of a hit, but deflects a hit so that it doesn’t strike
  anything important. Any modified defense based on a skill
  will be reduced by any negative modifiers on that skill.
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  Maneuvers
  The following list of maneuvers gives their general defensive
  effects in combat.
  Maneuver
  Base defense
  Mod. defense
  Special effects
  Base defense
  AGL Aptitude
  +0
  None
  Retreat
  AGL
  +0
  Must move back
  Grab
  -STR Aptitude
  +0
  Opponent is held
  Block
  +0
  +Skill
  Blocks attack
  Parry
  +0
  +Skill-wpn. init
  Deflects attack
  Dodge
  +AGL Aptitude
  +0
  None
  Martial dodge
  +Skill
  +0
  None
  Attacks
  Normally, you just compare your skill to the Difficulty of the
  task to find your chance of success. Some maneuvers or
  attack forms may make it easier or more difficult to succeed.
  Maneuver
  Attack Difficulty
  Special effects
  Punch
  +0
  STR/4(n) damage
  Kick
  +1
  STR/3(n) damage
  Lethal blow
  +0
  Separate lethal hit
  Throw
  +0
  -2 on opponent’s def.
  Retreat
  +AGL Aptitude
  Must move back
  Dodge
  +AGL Aptitude
  None
  Martial dodge
  +Skill
  None
  Attack with off-hand +1 or +2
  None
  i These maneuvers and attacks give you a fair amount of
  variety, but you can add or subtract detail based on your
  campaign. A race with a strong prehensile tail might have a
  special attack type, or secret cults might have unique varia-
  tions or mastery of legendary techniques. Before you go
  overboard with customizing, see how many of these moves
  are just Tertiary skills or combination maneuvers (p.58).
  Actions
  You normally get one “free” action each turn. Extra actions
  take a cumulative +2 Difficulty, but a character can take as
  many actions as they can normally succeed at. So, the
  order of your actions is important. For instance, blocking
  and attacking means the attack takes a +2, while attacking
  and blocking means the block is 2 points less effective. 
  First action
  +0 Difficulty
  Second action
  +2 Difficulty
  Third action
  +4 Difficulty
  Further actions
  extra +2 per
  Each action is good only once per turn, although you can do
  the same action multiple times. That is, if you declare a
  block on Initiative 6, and you are attacked on Initiative 5, the
  block is “used up” if the attack hits your base defense or
  modified defense, and its bonus to your defense is gone
  until you block again. If you throw a punch on Initiative 3 and
  miss, that’s it. You have to try again on Initiative 1. The only
  exceptions to this are maneuvers which attempt to physical-
  ly move you from harm’s way, like Dodging and Retreating.
  These take place over the course of the turn, and add to the
  base defense of the character.
  Carryover
  One defensive melee action may “carry” into the next phase
  if it is not used or changed. For instance, if you declare
  “block” on Initiative 2 and “attack” on Initiative 0, and you are
  not attacked on that turn, on the next phase, you are still
  considered to be blocking, until your next action, so if
  attacked before your Initiative came up, you would not be
  caught off guard. An action that is carried over does not
  have any consecutive action penalties of the previous turn.
  Offensive actions like throws, holds, attacks and feints are
  counted as “held actions”, which are done like normal
  Initiative, but the held action gets a +2 Initiative when seeing
  who goes first. You can have an offensive held action, or
  defensive carryover, not both.
  Example - You have a Unarmed Combat skill of 5, so you
  can do actions on Initiative 5, 3 and 1. You declare “attack”,
  “block”, “attack” as those Initiative segments come up.
  Luckily, you stun your opponent with the first punch, and
  they never get a strike at you. On the next turn, the hapless
  victim’s friend turns from what they are doing, and attacks
  you on Initiative 6. Normally, you would be caught flat-foot-
  ed, but if you carried over the block, you get the modified
  defense it provides. After that attack, however, the block
  may be gone, and you must decide what to do on Initiative
  4. Unused defensive actions are “lost” at the start of your
  first action of the following turn.
  –ø That is, a single block or parry can’t last several seconds
  just because you weren’t attacked. You must “renew” it
  because of changing combat conditions.
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  Melee Skills
  There are three types of melee attacks: Unarmed Combat
  (aka Brawling), Martial arts, and Weapons.
  Brawling
  This is free-for-all “brute force” fighting, and includes
  wrestling techniques. There are three Secondary skills that
  are usually bought: Punch, Kick and Hold. Punch and Kick
  do normal melee damage, and Hold allows a grab to pin an
  opponent, who must complete a successful Brawling or STR
  task vs. your skill to escape, as one of their combat actions.
  Holds may do lethal or non-lethal damage each phase (like
  twisting an arm), but each point of attempted damage is +2
  Difficulty on the task of making the initial hold. Any hold is a
  penalty of the attacker’s STR Aptitude on the defender’s
  physical actions, and maintaining the hold is a penalty on
  the attacker of the defender's STR Aptitude. In addition to
  the overall penalties, the attacker can't do anything else with
  the part of the body they are grabbing with, and the defend-
  er can't use the body part grabbed.
  Example - If you have a STR of 6 (Aptitude of 2) and grab
  someone, they take a +2 Difficulty to all their physical
  actions (including their attempts to break loose), and can't
  use that body part until they break loose .
  Martial arts
  This is more advanced form of fighting, and can represent
  any technique that doesn’t rely mainly on wading in and
  swinging body parts until your opponent gives up. For
  instance, many institutionalized fighting “sports” would be
  considered to have their own “art”. Boxing would be such an
  art, limited in that it relies solely on fists to do damage, and
  is optimized for face-to-face open arena combat.
  Weapons
  This covers the use of anything worn or held as a means to
  increase reach, damage or both. This does not usually over-
  lap with unarmed combat forms, although there are excep-
  tions. For instance, some types of martial arts may have a
  particular weapon that is part of the training, or there may be
  certain weapons designed solely to aid brawlers (like brass
  knuckles).
  Maneuver Descriptions
  Within a given combat form, there are a number of specific
  maneuver types. These are:
  Punch
  An attack with fists, elbows or head. When used with
  Brawling, a punch does a non-lethal damage of STR/4(n),
  and is considered to be a Length 2 weapon if you use this
  optional rule. A character with martial arts skill gets to add
  their level of skill to their STR for purposes of damage done.
  Attacks with elbows or head are considered to be combina-
  tion damage, but are considered to be Length 1 weapons.
  Example - A person with a STR of 6 has a non-lethal punch
  damage of 2, or a combination elbow damage of 2
  (STR/4(n)). A person with a STR of 5 and a Martial Arts
  punch of 5 does a punch damage of 3, or a combination
  elbow strike damage of 3 (STR + Skill)/4(n).
  Kick
  An attack with feet or knees. When used with Brawling, a
  kick does a non-lethal damage of STR/3(n), and is consid-
  ered a Length 3 weapon if using this optional rule. The dam-
  age can be combination if using solid enough footwear, and
  is also combination damage if using knees, which are con-
  sidered to be Length 1 weapons. A character with martial
  arts adds their skill to their STR for purposes of damage
  done.
  Example - A person with a STR of 6 has a non-lethal kick
  damage of 2, or a combination knee damage of 2
  (STR/3(n)). A person with a STR of 5 and a Martial Arts kick
  of 6 does a kick damage of 4, or a combination elbow knee
  damage of 4 (STR + Skill)/3(n).
  Lethal blow
  This is a maneuver only available to those with martial arts.
  It allows you to do an extra damage Called Shot, where the
  extra damage is treated as a separate lethal attack, in addi-
  tion to the normal damage done by the blow. Levels in this
  as a Tertiary skill will help offset the called shot penalty.
  Example - A ninja with a STR of 5 and martial arts punch
  skill of 7 does a +2 called shot to a foe’s arm, and takes an
  additional +2 Difficulty to do extra lethal damage. If success-
  ful, he will do a 3 point non-lethal hit (STR of 5 + skill of 7
  gives a punch damage of 3), plus a 2 point lethal hit for the
  lethal blow called shot.
  ﬁ« Anyone can do a Lethal Blow if the situation is right.
  Stomping on a helpless foe’s wrist or fingers would be an
  example. However, certain forms of martial arts provide
  training in grabbing or striking areas for lethal effect without
  increasing the attacker’s vulnerability to retaliation. Everyone
  else is only at their base defense value when doing this,
  while a person with martial arts can gain the benefits of a
  defensive maneuver at the same time.
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  Example - Grond the Barbarian (STR 7) wrestles with an
  assassin (STR 5). Grond has a Brawling skill of 6. He does a
  +2 called shot to pin the assassin’s arm, and succeeds. The
  assassin cannot stab Grond until he unpins his arm, and the
  attempt is now at +2 Difficulty (Grond’s STR Aptitude) for a
  total Difficulty of 9, while Grond is at +1 to do anything else
  to the struggling assassin (the assassin’s STR Aptitude).
  Grond tries to wrest the knife from the assassin’s grip, by
  doing a +2 called shot again, but as a +2 “increased dam-
  age” called shot. Grond has a total of +5 when you count the
  grab (+4 for the increased damage called shot, +1 for the
  assassin’s STR Aptitude as he struggles to escape), but the
  assassin’s base defense is reduced by 2 (Grond’s STR
  Aptitude), which partially counters this. If Grond is success-
  ful, the assassin must complete a Difficulty 9 STR task
  (Grond’s STR, plus 2 for the called shot), or be forced to
  drop the knife.
  Retreat
  Any character can retreat in combat. This is a movement
  option that lets you use your AGL instead of AGL Aptitude to
  avoid being hit, but you must step into one of your three rear
  hexes on your movement Initiative. Your opponent may
  choose to move after you do, and may determine which hex
  you move into. If such movement is impossible, you may not
  retreat on subsequent turns. Retreating carries from turn to
  turn, and the status may be changed on your movement
  Initiative. Any defensive maneuvers you do add to your AGL
  for total defense, not your AGL Aptitude. You also take a
  penalty to hit of your AGL Aptitude.
  Example - A person with an AGL of 5 and a Brawling of 4 is
  retreating from a martial artist with a skill of 6. Their defense
  is a base defense of 1, which gives them a modified defense
  of 5 if they block, which means the martial artist will still
  automatically hit, since their skill is greater than the modified
  defense. If they retreat in addition to blocking, their base
  defense goes to 5, plus 4 more for the block, but -2 on one
  of them as a consecutive action, for a total defense of 7,
  which means there is a chance of being missed.
  Dodge
  A Brawling dodge lets the character increase their base
  defense by up to their AGL Aptitude, but this bonus is a
  penalty to all their attacks that turn. A Martial Arts dodge lets
  the character increase their base defense by up to their skill,
  but this bonus is a penalty to all their attacks that turn.
  Regardless of the type of dodge, only the AGL Aptitude part
  of the dodge bonus applies vs. ranged weapons. 
  A normal dodge is declared on an Initiative of your AGL, and
  may only be changed once per turn, while a martial arts
  dodge acts on the martial arts Initiative (on a given turn you
  can either start dodging or stop dodging, not both). For
  defensive maneuver carryover, dodges and retreats last
  only until the character’s next opportunity to change them,
  since that is the only time they can be changed. 
  Throw
  This is another martial arts maneuver, which is counted as
  an attack. If successful in getting by all defenses, no dam-
  age is done, but the target is automatically placed at a dis-
  advantage (prone, off-balance, etc.), and they have a -2 on
  their base defense until they get up or otherwise recover.
  This counts as one of their actions, and is usually a Difficulty
  5 AGL task. Optionally, any real difference in STR may be
  counted as a modifier on the throw attempt. Note that a
  throw must exceed the total defense of the person attacked,
  since a blocked or parried throw has no effect.
  Example - A diminutive character with a martial throw skill
  of 6 is accosted in a bar. Not being one to turn the other
  cheek, they attempt a martial throw/gutstomp combination
  maneuver. The accoster only has defense of 1, since they
  weren’t expecting an attack, so it is successful. This rude
  individual finds themselves on the floor with a heel in their
  solar plexus. The combination maneuver was used to pre-
  vent the target from recovering from the throw on their next
  action, possibly before the martial artist could take advan-
  tage of the temporary bonus.
  ﬁ« Again, anyone can attempt a throw under certain conditions.
  A strong person can pick up a weaker one and toss them
  around, but makes themselves vulnerable to attack. A mar-
  tial arts throw allows the character to keep their defenses
  up. Everyone else only gets their base defense value.
  Grab
  A grab lets you hold an opponent with your hands or arms. If
  done in general, you roll a hit location to see where the grab
  is centered. The opponent may not directly use that body
  part to attack with until they exceed your effective STR (on
  their movement Initiative). Note that impairments to the body
  parts doing the grabbing (or adjacent areas) may lower their
  effective STR, as would a modifier from being stunned.
  Martial artists or anyone with a secondary skill in Grab may
  add their skill to their STR for both holding and breaking out
  of holds. If done as a called shot, the attacker specifies the
  body parts the grab is intended for. If multiple parts are
  involved, the called shot is +1 more than the smallest part,
  and one limb of the attacker is required per part. For
  instance, grabbing both arms (say a bear hug) requires that
  the attacker use both arms. Each body part successfully
  grabbed reduces the base defense of both parties by the
  STR Aptitude of each other, and is a penalty to all other skill
  use as well. An increased damage called shot on a grab
  may either be used to do damage (like arm twisting), or to
  force someone to drop an item. In the latter case, there is no
  actual damage, but the result is added to the STR of the
  attacker, and the defender must complete a successful STR
  task of this level or drop the item.
  ﬁ« The penalties you give from grabbing or take from being
  grabbed are increased by 1 for each level increased or
  decreased size difference between the combatants.
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  Example - A character with an AGL of 6 has a base
  defense of 2 (their AGL Aptitude). If they dodge, their base
  defense goes to 4, but they take a +2 Difficulty on all their
  attacks because they are busy dodging. All ranged attacks
  also take an additional +2 Difficulty against the character. If
  the same character had a martial arts skill of 5, they could
  increase their melee defense to a maximum of 7 (AGL
  Aptitude + Skill), but they would suffer a +5 Difficulty to all
  their attacks because they are devoting all their attention to
  getting out of the way. In either case, if an attack makes it
  by this modified defense, the character is hit.
  Block
  A block is a combat maneuver, and acts the same for both
  Brawling and Martial Arts. The modified defense of the char-
  acter is increased by their skill. Blocks may be combined
  with other defensive maneuvers. The difference between a
  dodge and a block is that a character who successfully
  blocks may still be struck. The block allows you to choose
  where you are hit, however. For instance, if using a shield,
  and you were hit while blocking, there is a chance you were
  hit in the shield. If you take a penalty to your modified
  defense of the Initiative modifier of the weapon you used
  (minimum of -1), you may declare a block to be a “parry”
  instead. While it easier to hit you overall, a successful parry
  deflects a blow rather than absorbing it. This may or may
  not have special effects depending on genre and campaign. 
  Example - A boxer with a skill of 5 and an AGL of 6 goes
  fully defensive. Their base defense is 2 (AGL Aptitude), they
  get 2 more for dodging, and 5 more for blocking (+skill), giv-
  ing 9, minus 2 for one of these maneuvers being a consecu-
  tive action, making total defense a 7 (we’ll say the block was
  the second action). Since the defense types are mixed
  (dodge/block), it should be represented as 4/7 (base
  defense of 2, +2 base defense for the dodge, and +3 modi-
  fied defense for the block). 
  Let's say the attacker has a skill of 3. They have a 9 or less
  to hit a base defense of 4, so they only miss the boxer on a
  roll of 10. They have a 3 or less to hit a modified defense of
  7, so they only get by all defenses on a roll of 1-3. All other
  rolls mean the attacker hits the boxer, but only in the part of
  the body the boxer was using to block with.
  If the attacker were using a sword, blocking a blow with any
  body part would be a bad idea, so the character decides to
  parry instead. This reduces the defense to 4/6 instead of 4/7
  (-1 modified defense for a parry), so the attacker gets by all
  defenses on a roll of 1-5 (skill 3 vs. modified defense of 6).
  However, all other rolls have no effect, as the attack misses
  or is parried.
  If the character only blocked or parried instead of dodging,
  there would be no consecutive action penalty, and the
  defense would be 2/7 or 2/6 (base defense of 2, +4 or +5
  modified defense for the parry or block). The only difference
  here is that the extra benefit of the dodge (+2 base defense)
  would apply to making it harder for them to be shot.
  In this case, the attacker would automatically hit the base
  defense (skill of 3 is more than base defense of 2), but the
  chance of the attack being parried is skill the same as the
  previous example (skill of 3 vs. modified defense of 6). The
  only benefit of the dodge in this particular situation is that it
  makes the character harder to hit from multiple attackers or
  ranged weapons as well.
  Ow!
  If you make a unarmed attack and it is blocked or parried by
  a weapon, you are going to hurt yourself. How badly is the
  sort of the inverse of the normal success rules. If you miss
  entirely, you leave yourself open and you take the full dam-
  age of their weapon on the body part you attacked with. If
  you make the roll exactly, you take half damage, and if you
  make the roll by 1 or more, it counts as a graze and does 1
  point of damage. All of this damage may be stopped by
  armor. Any damage done by your attack is to whatever is
  used to make the block or parry, not the body part that is
  holding it.
  Example - You have a Brawling skill of 5 and attack some-
  one blocking with a knife, whose modified defense is a 6. If
  you roll a 10, you miss cleanly and they can elect to use up
  their block to get a free, successful attack against your arm
  for full damage. If you roll a 9, you make the roll exactly, and
  take half damage from their weapon. Since you did connect,
  their block is used up whether they like it or not. On any
  other roll, they still block you, but you only take 1 point of
  damage, which would not be a problem if you were wearing
  heavy gloves or had a jacket wrapped around your arm.
  i How to do it
  1. Base your first action on whether or not your opponent goes first.
  2. Your Base Defense is your AGL Aptitude
  3. Block and Parry increase your Modified Defense, and don’t
  directly affect your chance to hit except from the consecutive
  action penalty. Large weapons are harder to parry with.
  4. Retreat and Dodge increase your Base Defense, but each point
  of increase is an equal penalty to your attacks.Their effectiveness
  is decreased if you perform other actions first.
  5. The Base Defense of a grabbed person is reduced by the attack-
  er’s STR Aptitude, and the attacker's by the target’s STR
  Aptitude.
  6. A successful Throw reduces the Base Defense of the target by 2
  until they get back up.
  7. If your last attack in a turn is unused, it counts as a held action. If
  your last defense in a turn is unused, it carries over to the next
  turn until your next action, at which point it must be renewed or
  lost.
  
  Combination maneuvers
  Any combat move may be combined with a movement or
  other combat move. The combined action will occur on an
  Initiative segment of 1 point higher than the slowest action,
  and both actions will take an additional +1 Difficulty. For
  instance, if you had a Brawling skill of 6 and wanted to do a
  double punch, you would do 2 punches on Initiative 5, and
  each would take a +1. Normally, you would have punched
  on Initiative 6 and 4, the first at no penalty, and the second
  at a +2. Or, you could punch and advance. If your move-
  ment Initiative were 1, you would punch and move at the
  same time, on Initiative 2. The punch would be at +1, and if
  you were required to complete an AGL task while moving, it
  would be at +1 as well.
  i The latter example is especially useful in melee combat,
  since someone has to move into someone else’s range to
  initiate combat. The person defending has an advantage
  since they take no penalty for their first attack, while the
  attacker either takes a +1 from a combination move, or a +2
  for attacking after moving into range. The combination move
  lets the person moving counter the ability of the defender to
  make the first attack.
  Example - Two brawlers warily circle each other. On
  Initiative 2, one lunges forward. On Initiative 2, the defender
  punches the one who just moved. On Initiative 0, they both
  punch. If the first brawler did a combination move, he would
  lunge and attack on Initiative 3, and the defender would
  attack on Initiative 2. So, instead of attacking last, the per-
  son lunging gets in the first hit (if the other person didn't
  have a held action or act on Initiative 3).
  Called blocks
  A block or parry may be concentrated on protecting a cer-
  tain part of the body. This is declared when it is done. You
  get a bonus to defend that body part equal to the called shot
  modifier for that area, and a penalty of the same amount to
  defend everywhere else.
  Example - Having been kicked in the gut one too many
  times, a character declares a parry as protecting their torso.
  This would be a +1 called shot, so the character gets a +1 to
  their modified defense for protecting their torso, and a -1
  everywhere else. If attacked randomly, the hit location would
  be rolled first, and the defense based on where it will strike.
  If the attack was a called shot to begin with, the defense is
  based on the location attacked.
  Optional Rules
  That covers all the basics of melee combat. For many cam-
  paigns, this will be enough. However, some types of cam-
  paigns or melee combat forms are more realistic if you apply
  some or all of the following rules.
  Weapon length
  This is an optional rule, and is used to represent the advan-
  tages and disadvantages of having a shorter or longer
  weapon in different types of combat. A melee weapon or
  attack will be considered to have a “length”. If your weapon
  is longer than an opponent’s, they get a -1 to their base
  defense (and therefore, modified defense) per point of
  length difference when your opponent first enters the range
  of the weapon. Once engaged at the range of the shortest
  weapon, this bonus is lost. However, one or both parties
  may retreat outside the weapon range, and then the situa-
  tion would repeat. Also, if there are 2 length points or more
  between weapons, and the person with the shorter weapon
  can close to the shortest end of their range, their opponent
  gets a -1 to defend per point of length difference. If a person
  is using two melee weapons, they may declare their defense
  to be based on either one, and switch choices whenever
  they could act with the weapon being chosen.
  Type
  Example
  Range
  Length 1 
  Elbows, knees, head
  Same hex only
  Length 2
  Fists, knives
  Same or adjacent hex(≤.25m)
  Length 3
  Kicks, short swords
  Same or adjacent hex(≤.5m)
  Length 4
  Long swords
  Same or adjacent hex (.5-1m)
  Length 5
  Polearms
  Up to three hexes(>1-2m)
  Length 6
  Whips
  Up to three hexes (>2-3m)
  Each point of length over 5 gives an extra hex of reach.
  Weapon length is reduced by 1 point if the attack is made
  into a side or rear arc.
  Example - A person with a sword (length 4) is fighting a per-
  son with a dagger (length 2). Combat starts at a range of 3
  hexes, outside of weapon reach. The person with the sword
  advances to within 1m, and then swings. Since there are
  two length points of difference, the base defense of the knife
  wielder is reduced by 2, making it more likely the sword will
  connect. If he misses, and the knife fighter moves in, the
  swordsman no longer gets a bonus due to the tighter quar-
  ters (the range of the shortest weapon). If the knife fighter
  advances to grappling range (same hex), the swordsman
  will take a -2 to their base defense, since their weapon can-
  not be used effectively to block a close-in knife attack. 
  ﬁ« The reduced base defense for the longer weapon in close
  quarters applies as long as the weapon is held. While the
  base defense is reduced, attacks are affected only in the
  types of attack allowed, i.e. a sword might be able to cut, but
  not thrust.
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  Hurting yourself
  A Lethal Blow lets the character use their STR to do lethal
  damage rather than non-lethal damage. It acts like using a
  called shot to increase the damage of a weapon (see
  Ranged Combat), but the increased damage is counted as a
  separate, lethal attack. If the target is heavily armored (soak
  value of 3 or more), the character takes their base STR
  Aptitude (in non-lethal damage) on the body part used to
  strike with. Pain tolerance does not apply vs. this damage,
  although the soak value of any armor worn on the hands or
  feet would reduce the damage.
  Custom combat forms
  The way to design a certain martial art or combat form is
  usually by the use of Secondary and Tertiary skills. For
  instance, a defensive martial art might stress grabs and
  throws, or have custom Tertiary skills like “+1 Throw when
  Grabbed”, so if an opponent grabs them, they get a bonus
  to turn the tables. A close-in style might emphasize punches
  like “+1 elbow strike”, while a style that keeps opponents at
  a distance would put bonuses on the longer-reaching kicks.
  i Any style can take advantage of Tertiary skills in a particular
  combination move, since the +1 you get will offset the +1
  taken for doing two maneuvers at once. A style which
  emphasized single combat might “+1 double punch”, while
  one that dealt with multiple opponents might have “+1 front
  arc punch and rear elbow strike”.
  Called shot
  A melee weapon used for an increased damage called shot
  (p.62) may optionally be “held”. If successful, the attack can
  be delayed as a means of coercing an opponent. If, howev-
  er, they can break your held action, you lose the chance to
  do the attack.
  Example - A swashbuckler does a called shot to the ear
  with an epee and decides that if successful, they will “hold” it
  (and get the benefit of a held action). In this case, the point
  is poised next to the target's ear, and the character can slice
  it at will, unless the target can break the character's held
  action by going first.
  Shields
  Shields are used with Melee Weapon skill, or the Secondary
  skill of Shield. Shields provide a bonus to modified defense.
  Shield
  Modified defense
  small shield (buckler, AV3/0)
  +1
  medium shield (kite shield, AV4/0)
  +2
  large shield (tower shield, AV5/0)
  +3
  An item used to block with does take damage like it had
  been struck by the weapon, and the arm holding the shield
  may take damage if the shield is penetrated, usually if the
  hit would have struck the character even without benefit of
  the shield. Damage that penetrates a shield and does not
  strike the character will damage the shield, but usually not
  the character. Thrown items and low-velocity projectiles like
  darts, rocks and perhaps arrows may be blocked with a
  shield. Bullets may not be blocked, but may hit a shield acci-
  dentally, in which case the AV of the shield applies. This is
  especially true for any shield large enough to crouch behind.
  Feints
  A feint is any maneuver designed to throw an opponent off
  guard, and make it easier to hit them afterward. You must
  make a successful “attack” with an additional negative modi-
  fier of your choice. If this attack is successful in bypassing
  the modified defense of the target (avoids any block or
  parry, etc.), you may use this amount as a positive modifier
  on your next attack vs. that person, provided it is before the
  end of the next second and before they attack or move
  again. 
  i The best times to use a feint are as your last action on a
  turn if your skill is higher than your opponent (since you will
  go first), or as part of a combination move. The best reason
  to do a feint is to counter called shot penalties, using the
  bonus you get to offset the penalty for the called shot. 
  Example - A character with a skill of 7 does a +3 feint as
  part of a combination move (feint and attack). If they suc-
  ceed with the +4 penalty (feint + combination), then for their
  second attack they will able to do an even better called shot
  (increased damage?) for their main attack.
   
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  Moving attacks
  A character who moves as part of an attack (as opposed to
  moving and then attacking) will take a penalty equal to the
  square root of the number of hexes moved (round up). They
  are also harder to be hit by half this amount (round up) by
  everyone except the target. However, the amount of the
  penalty is added to their STR for purposes of doing damage.
  Example - A berserker charges madly, brandishing an axe.
  If they moved at a rate 9 hexes a turn, their target would get
  a +3 to their base defense. And, the berserker gets +2 to
  their base defense vs. everyone they run by. If the berserker
  hits, however, they add +3 to their STR for purposes of the
  damage done by the axe.
  ﬁ« This penalty for actions and bonus to STR is equal to the
  Difficulty modifiers for a moving attacker and target, shown
  under ranged combat on the next page, so you don't actual-
  ly have to sit around and figure square roots for things.
  Off-hand
  Weapon skills used with the off-hand (left for right-handed
  and vice versa) take a 2 point penalty. Unarmed attacks like
  punches and kicks usually only take a 1 point penalty. This
  is usually reflected as an increase in the opponent's base
  defense vs. that attacker, or a decrease in the modified
  defense of the person using the off-hand. The Physical Ad
  of Ambidexterity will negate these penalties.
  Gathering ki
  Anyone engaged in melee combat may “wind up” to deliver
  a more punishing blow. For each Initiative segment in a turn
  that you prepare an action, you can add 1 to your STR for
  figuring damage. However, each segment you prepare also
  subtracts 1 from your base defense, making you easier to
  hit.
  i Martial artists may use this to perform impressive feats of
  strength like breaking boards or blocks, or in a more practi-
  cal sense to represent powerful but slower moves.
  Example - A character does a “spinning hook kick”, which
  takes 2 extra Initiative segments to perform, but which adds
  2 to their STR for figuring damage (in addition to the martial
  arts bonus). However, from the segment the character
  declares the move to the one when it lands, the character's
  base defense is lowered by 2.
  ﬁ« This is a self-limiting advantage. Since it takes a segment of
  Initiative for point of extra STR you get, you can never get
  more STR than your skill (+2 more if you do it as a held
  action).
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  “On a clear day you can kill forever...”
  Jasper Merendino
  Basics
  Ranged combat covers all physical or energy type attacks,
  like guns, thrown weapons, bows, energy beams and so on.
  Like other skill use, your skill with a weapon is compared to
  the Difficulty of the chance to hit. Especially with ranged
  weapons, you may wish to apply the “graze” rule (p.40), so
  that attacks which barely hit do less damage than ones
  which solidly strike the target.
  Difficulty
  The base Difficulty for a ranged combat task is a function of
  the range to the target, as follows:
  i If you haven’t noticed, the base Difficulty is equal to the
  square root of the range, rounding fractions up, plus 2. This
  can be applied to any range.
  Example - The Difficulty for a range of 400 meters is 22, 20
  for being the square root of the range, plus 2.
  Range Mod
  All ranged attacks have a “Range Mod”. This is a stat that
  adds to user skill, but not an amount higher than the task
  Difficulty for range. That is, it cancels out range effects up to
  its level. 
  The effective range of a weapon is the range band that cor-
  responds to its (Range Mod + 10). Any shooting at ranges
  greater than this takes an extra point of Difficulty per range
  step. Because of the steep drop off this gives, GM’s should
  be liberal with +1/-1 modifiers on die roll (not skill) for cir-
  cumstances, like extreme ends of a range band. Typical
  Range Mods follow:
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  Weapon type
  Range mod
  Effective range
  snubnose, sawed-off
  0
  64m
  pistol, machine pistol
  1
  81m
  target pistol, smg, buckshot, bow
  2
  100m
  shotgun slug, crossbow
  3
  121m
  carbine
  4
  144m
  rifle
  5
  169m
  sniper rifle
  6
  196m
  There are modifiers that affect the effective maximum range
  of a weapon, like rifle scopes, setting, bracing, etc., which
  will increase the effective range of rifle-class weapons to
  several hundred meters.
  Range and Damage
  Most ranged weapons lose 1 point of damage per 6 range
  bands past 0m. Fragments from grenades lose 1 point of
  damage per range step, as do all weapons fired underwater.
  Example - If a pistol with a DV of 5 were fired at someone
  26-36 meters away, it would hit with a DV of 4, since this is
  6 range bands past 0m. It loses another point of DV in the
  122-144m range band, and if you continue far enough,
  would lose all its DV (5 points) when it reached the 842-
  900m range band. The DV of 0 would still be capable of light
  injury (remember the +1 impairment modifier on arm or leg
  hits), however, and this potential would remain until the DV
  reached -1.
  Movement
  If the firer is moving, the Difficulty is increased by the square
  root of the distance moved, rounding fractions up. Look on
  the range table, and subtract 2 from the Difficulty to find the
  penalty. For instance, a range of 5-9 meters is a Difficulty of
  5 to hit, so a person moving 5-9 meters would take a +3 (5-
  2) to their chance to hit. If the target is moving, halve this
  amount (rounding fractions up). If either the firer or target
  dodges, the firer takes an additional minus equal to the AGL
  Aptitude of the person dodging.
  The modifiers for a moving target are just like for those for
  moving in melee combat.
  Called shots
  The size of the area you aim at will be a modifier to your
  skill. A called shot “miss” to the center of mass of a target
  will hit an area appropriate to the miss amount, counting as
  a grazing hit. However, a called shot to an extremity that
  misses is considered a normal miss. The head, arms and
  legs are considered extremities on a human. The same idea
  applies to inanimate objects if a called shot is attempted vs.
  a single part.
  RANGED
  COMBAT
  Range(m)
  0
  1
  2-4
  5-9
  10-16
  17-25
  26-36
  37-49
  50-64
  65-81
  82-100
  101-121 122-144 145-169
  Difficulty
  2
  3
  4
  5
  6
  7
  8
  9
  10
  11
  12
  13
  14
  15
  Firer move
  +0
  +1
  +2
  +3
  +4
  +5
  +6
  +7
  +8
  +9
  +10
  +11
  +12
  +13
  Target move
  +0
  +1
  +1
  +2
  +2
  +3
  +3
  +4
  +4
  +5
  +5
  +6
  +6
  +7
  
  Example - If you aim for the chest (a +1 called shot) and
  only miss your roll by 1, you still hit the body somewhere (a
  grazing hit), and roll a random hit location (which could be
  the chest). If you aim for the hand (a +2 called shot) and
  miss by 1, you miss the target entirely. A shot for either the
  back window of a car or a tire would be at +1. However,
  missing the tire (an “extremity”) would result in a miss, while
  missing the back window would result in a grazing hit if the
  shot would have hit the car.
  Size of target
  Difficulty
  Example
  fills 16 hexes
  -3
  large truck
  fills 4 hexes
  -2
  automobile
  fills a single hex
  -1
  motorcycle
  man-sized
  +0
  human
  big hit location
  +1
  chest, abdomen, dog
  small hit location
  +2
  head, arm, thigh
  very small hit location
  +3
  neck, hand, foot
  The modifiers for called shots are also used for melee
  attacks, and are treated in an identical fashion. Note also
  that using these rules, there is no reason to not attempt a
  called shot vs. the center of mass on a target, like the chest.
  If you miss by 1, you still hit somewhere. However, the
  effect will only be a graze in this case.
  The smallest size called shot that you can aim for is usually
  a +4, which would be something the size of a large insect,
  wristwatch, silver dollar, etc. The size of an object you can
  aim for at range is based on the quality of the weapon, and
  the minimum size increases by 1 for each number of range
  bands past 0m equal to (the effective Range Mod of the
  weapon + 1), with a minimum effective Range Mod of 1.
  Example - A normal 9mm pistol has a Range Mod of 1, so
  the smallest size it could do a called shot against increases
  by 1 each 2 range bands (Range Mod of 1 + 1). So, at 2
  range bands past 0m (2-4m) it could only do a +3 called
  shot. At 4 range bands past 0m (10-16m) it could only do a
  +2 called shot, and at a distance of 6 range bands past 0m
  (26-36m), you would only be able to do a +1 called shot with
  the weapon. On the other hand, a rifle with a Range Mod of
  5 would only increase the size of the called shot area by 1
  level each 6 range bands, so at 26-36m it would still be able
  to do a +3 called shot.
  i This serves to limit the skill of the user to the quality of the
  weapon (a marksman with an inaccurate weapon is limited
  by the weapon). If the person in the previous example had a
  target pistol with a Range Mod of 2, they would have been
  able to target smaller items at a much greater range.
  Increased damage shots
  Optionally, a called shot may be used to increase damage
  done to the target. Each +1 Difficulty you take on the shot
  (up to but not greater than any penalty for the size of the
  area aimed at) will increase the damage that penetrates
  armor by 1 point. However, you cannot do more extra dam-
  age than that which penetrated armor to begin with. This
  can be used for crippling blows, or use surprise to do more
  damage with a small weapon, countering an increased
  chance to hit with a called shot minus. You aim the weapon
  where it will do the most good.
  Example - A character with a DV4 crossbow aims at the
  chest of a deer, which is a +1 called shot. They add an extra
  +1 to the called shot to do increased damage. If they hit the
  chest, the deer has no armor, and will take the effect of a
  DV of 5 (original DV, plus 1 for the increased damage shot).
  Note that if the called shot were missed and the chest was
  hit anyway, there would not be increased damage. Likewise,
  since the base called shot was only +1, an increased dam-
  age shot could only add 1 to the damage. Conceivably, the
  hunter could aim for the “heart”, which would be a larger
  penalty to hit, but with correspondingly higher damage if the
  shot is successful.
  Out of Combat
  Shooting at a target in an “out of combat” situation (no pres-
  sure, etc.) is at -2 Difficulty. This might apply to acquiring
  game in the wild, or at a competition, but not in any stress
  situation where you have no time to prepare.
  Rate of fire
  Most firearms have an ROF, or rate of fire stat. The ROF
  stat of a weapon indicates the absolute maximum number of
  shots that may be fired in a turn. For semi-automatic
  weapons, this number is usually 4 shots per turn, and for
  revolvers or other weapons it is usually 3 or less. For
  weapons capable of autofire, the number is usually 6 or
  more.
  When shots are fired individually or as bursts, one shot or
  burst is fired per Initiative segment the character acts on.
  When shots are fired autofire, the character chooses the ini-
  tiative segment the shots begin on. All shots are “fired” at
  this time, but the area fired at is a dangerous place to be for
  the entire turn. Use the Spray Fire rules (p.64) if someone is
  desperate enough to cross an area on the same turn that an
  autofire attack is going through it.
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  Shotguns
  Shotguns in CORPS have a “per pellet” damage, and get an
  increased or decreased number of hits based on pellet
  quantity. You normally get 1 hit for a success, plus 1 hit for
  each point the roll is made by. The bonus or penalty alters
  the die roll needed (not the chance to hit). The secondary
  table shows the change in bonus for a given shotgun gauge.
  Example - A 12ga shotgun normally fires from 10-16 pellets
  of 00 buckshot. However, birdshot is smaller, so a shell can
  hold more, and its bonus is altered by +3 when using bird-
  shot to represent this larger number of pellets.
  Pellets of buckshot
  Bonus
  Typical for
  2-4
  -2
  .410ga
  5-9
  -1
  20ga
  10-16
  +0
  12ga, 16ga
  17-25
  +1
  8ga, 10ga
  26-36
  +2
  4ga
  37-49
  +3
  50-64
  +4
  65-81
  +5
  82-100
  +6
  Pellet type
  Bonus
  00 Buckshot
  +0
  #2 Buckshot
  +1
  #4 Buckshot
  +2
  Birdshot
  +3
  Example - The previous 12ga shotgun with buckshot is fired
  with a skill of 3 against a target with a Difficulty of 5. This is
  a base roll of 7 or less for success. A roll of 7 means 1 graz-
  ing hit, and a roll of 6 means 1 solid hit and 1 grazing hit. If
  the shotgun were loaded with birdshot, the base roll would
  get a +3, and go to 10 or less instead of 7 or less. A roll of 7
  would be 3 hits for 8,9, and 10, and 1 grazing hit for the 7. If
  on the other hand, this were a 20ga shotgun firing buckshot,
  the total modifier to the base roll would be -1, making it a 6
  or less for any hits instead of a 7 or less.
  i The term “gauge” as applied to shotguns is a measure of
  how many lead balls it takes to make a pound, if each one
  exactly fits in the barrel. So, if twelve lead balls of a given
  size weigh a pound, a shotgun that could fire those balls
  would be a 12 gauge. The .410 gauge is an exception to this
  rule (it has a barrel .41 inches across). A similar rule applies
  to cannon. A cannon referred to as a “twelve pounder” fires
  iron balls that weigh twelve pounds each.
  Recoil
  All shots after the first in a single combat round have an
  negative impact on skill. For any weapon with recoil, each
  shot after the first takes a penalty of the DV of the weapon,
  divided by the STR of the user (round down). STR is dou-
  bled if you use both hands on a weapon, and tripled for use
  of a tripod. If using a fixed mount, the maximum recoil
  penalty is +1 per shot.
  Example - A character with a STR of 5 is firing a revolver
  with a DV of 7 and ROF of 3. The recoil penalty is +1 per
  shot after the first (DV divided by STR, round down). So, the
  second shot takes an extra +1, and the third shot takes an
  extra +2.
  ﬁ« Remember that this is on top of any consecutive action
  penalties you might have. Firing a weapon with a +1 recoil is
  a cumulative +1 per shot if firing at the same target, but if
  you change targets for the second shot, you take a +3 (+2
  for consecutive action penalty, +1 for the recoil).
  ﬁ« Note that in a science fiction campaign with lasers or other
  recoilless weapons, you would take no penalties for firing
  multiple shots at the same target (no recoil and no consecu-
  tive action penalty).
  Autofire
  Weapons with an ROF of 6 or more may use autofire, or
  bursts of at least 3 rounds. There is no penalty on the first
  shot of a burst. However, half (round fractions down) of all
  recoil modifies the rest of the shots, with 1 extra hit per auto-
  matic success or point past it, or one hit if a roll is made on
  the task.
  Example - A person fires an autorifle with a skill of 6, and
  recoil is +1 per shot. A total of 7 shots are fired in the burst.
  Assuming no other mods, the first shot is at a skill of 6, and
  the other 6 shots are fired as a group at a Difficulty of +3
  (half of the total recoil for 6 shots). If the Difficulty was a total
  of 5 for these last 6 shots, there would be two more auto-
  matic hits (one of them a grazing hit). If the Difficulty were a
  7, then there would be a roll for the chance of one additional
  hit. If it were a 6, there would be one additional hit, but it
  would be a grazing hit.
  ﬁ« An autofire weapon with no recoil should be treated as a
  shotgun for multiple hit purposes (one extra hit per point the
  roll is made by).
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  Spray fire
  This is autofire to fill an area, rather than to hit a specific tar-
  get. The minimum number of hexes a burst of spray fire can
  be distributed across is the Difficulty for the range, minus
  the effective Range Mod of the weapon. 
  Example - At a range of 25 meters, the base Difficulty is a
  7. A submachinegun with a Range Mod of 2 would have to
  distribute its spray fire over at least 7 - 2 = 5 hexes at this
  range. Bracing the weapon would reduce this to 4 hexes.
  ﬁ« Note that while you have to distribute your fire over a given
  number of hexes, it is quite possible that you can completely
  miss the hexes you are aiming at (overshoot, undershoot,
  etc.), and your spray fire chance reflects this. Spray fire is
  barely controlled shooting. To use autofire at long range,
  aim first.
  The “skill” of a spray fire burst is the average number of bul-
  lets allotted to each hex (round fractions down) or the firer’s
  skill (whichever is lower), minus the Difficulty based on
  range (do not count the weapon’s Range Mod). Difficulty
  modifiers from the firer’s actions or injuries do apply. Target
  movement, etc., does not. The Difficulty of hitting a person
  with spray fire is always a base of 0 (1 if prone), and for
  other objects or persons under partial cover, apply any
  called shot size modifiers. 
  Example - A character with an Uzi submachine gun (Range
  Mod of 2), fires a 15 round burst at a group of targets 25
  meters away. The Difficulty for range is a 7, minus 2 for the
  Range Mod of the weapon makes 5, so this means that the
  character must distribute the fire over at least 5 hexes. The
  skill of this attack is based on the number of bullets per hex
  (3), minus the Difficulty for range (7), for a “skill” of -4. Since
  the chance of hitting someone is simply a chance of statis-
  tics instead of skill, the targets are at Difficulty 0 to be hit. A
  skill of -4 vs. a Difficulty of 0 gives a difference of 4 points,
  so each target will be hit once on a roll of 1-3. Each target
  must be rolled for separately.
  Any targets in or crossing the line of fire during a turn of
  spray fire may be affected. To keep it simple, for targets in
  further range bands, the Difficulty is increased by 2 per
  range band, and for targets in closer range bands, the
  Difficulty is decreased by 1 per range band.
  Example - Using the previous example, anyone within the
  arc of fire stands a chance of being hit, even if they are out-
  side the 5 hexes being targeted. Normally, the Difficulty is 0.
  For targets in the next closest range band (10-16m), the
  Difficulty is -1, and for targets in the next furthest range
  band (26-36m), the Difficulty is 2.
  ﬁ« If enough bullets are fired to generate automatic successes
  with spray fire, multiple hits per target are possible, as with
  normal autofire rules.
  Advanced rules
  The previous rules cover the basics of ranged combat. The
  following rules are optional, but add more detail should your
  particular campaign need it.
  Snap shots
  This is a special case of moving, where the firer peeks out
  from behind cover, fires, and goes back under cover. This
  counts as a 2m/sec dodge, that is, the firer takes a +1 (plus
  their AGL Aptitude) to be hit, and a +2 (plus their AGL
  Aptitude) to their own fire. They appear from cover and fire a
  shot (or burst) on their movement Initiative, and move back
  under cover on their next movement or combat action, and
  can only be seen or fired at in this interval.
  Example - An AGL 6 character is pinned down behind a
  wall. After carefully choosing an arc that exposes them the
  least, they do a snap shot where they think fire is coming
  from. They take a +4 to their own chance to hit (+2 plus AGL
  Aptitude), and a +3 to be hit (+1 plus AGL Aptitude). They
  appear and fire on Initiative 2, and move back under cover
  on Initiative 0. If they had an AGL of 5, they would appear
  and fire on Initiative 1, and move back under cover on the
  next turn, on an Initiative of their skill. They could “hold
  action” for this maneuver so that they would instead appear
  and fire on Initiative 3, and move back under cover on
  Initiative 1, but this would require 1 turn to set up the action.
  i Most combat with modern firearms involves keeping your
  vital bits behind as much cover as possible, and making it
  harder for an opponent to know where you are. Snap shots
  help you do both. The other opinion is that having a good
  view of the scene offsets the risk of being seen. Having a
  full view and a held action can be better than peeking out
  and taking pot shots. But if you are in plain sight and two or
  three people pop out from cover and shoot at you, you aren't
  going to be able to hit more than one of them before they
  get their shots off. Tactically, foes that can't be seen by
  characters should be removed from the map, and likewise, if
  foes can't see the characters, they should move and act
  accordingly.
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  Setting/bracing
  Setting on a visible target will be a -1 to the Difficulty of the
  shot, cumulative up to the square root of the time spent
  (round fractions up), with a minimum of -1 for 1 second set
  time, regardless of weapon. The maximum gain is the
  Range Mod of the weapon. Setting requires a two-handed
  grip. Setting or bracing begins on an Initiative phase of one
  turn, and doesn't apply until that same phase of the next turn.
  Bracing counts as increasing the Range Mod of the weapon
  by +1, making it both easier to hit, and increasing the effec-
  tive range of the weapon. Bracing can be done simultane-
  ously with setting, and you can set and brace a weapon in 1
  second.
  Bracing
  Range Mod
  Maximum for
  1 sec
  +1
  snubnose, pistol, machine pist.
  2-4 sec
  +2
  target pistol, smg, shotgun
  5-9 sec
  +3
  light carbine
  10-16 sec
  +4
  carbine
  17-25 sec
  +5
  normal rifle
  You lose all set or brace bonuses if you move, fail a WIL
  task due to injury, distraction, etc., change targets or take
  any recoil penalties.
  Example - A character whose pistol has a Range Mod of 1
  decides to set on a visible target. Since their weapon has a
  Range Mod of 1, the maximum bonus they can get is a -1. If
  they set and brace, the Range Mod of the weapon goes to
  2, making it easier to hit, and the maximum bonus they can
  get for setting is now -2 instead of -1.
  Sights
  Telescopic sights give an extra bonus on the firer’s first set
  or braced shot in a turn by increasing the Range Mod by
  their power, up to the Range Mod of the weapon. For
  instance, a 3x scope gives a +3 Range Mod on set or
  braced shots, but only a +2 Range Mod on a weapon with a
  Range Mod of 2. A weapon with a Range Mod of 2 that is
  braced does count as a Range Mod of 3 for this purpose.
  Using a scope is a firearms task (1 second), with a Difficulty
  equal to the power of the scope. Until the task is completed,
  the benefits of setting or bracing do not apply or begin to
  accrue, although the minimum effects do count immediately
  once the scope is used correctly.
  Example - To use a 6x telescopic sight would be declared
  at the same time as setting or bracing, and is not a consecu-
  tive action. After a second, to use the sight would be a
  Difficulty 6 task on the weapon skill. This is difficult for most
  people, and in real-life the user would probably do it with an
  “out of combat” modifier (-2), and spend several seconds for
  an additional -1 or -2 Difficulty. Or, just use a scope with
  less magnification. After the task is successfully completed,
  the shooter gets a 1 second setting or bracing bonus, and
  can increase it on subsequent turns.
  Laser sights
  Laser sights add 1 second to any setting time, so it makes
  normal shots act as though they were set for 1 second, that
  is, a -1 Difficulty when used without setting or bracing.
  However, using a laser sight reduces the Initiative of the
  weapon by 1, since you have to spend a small amount of
  time seeing the projected laser spot, and correcting your
  aim to get the bonus (using the sight is always optional).
  And, laser sights generally only work in low-light conditions,
  like indoors, at night, or under very overcast conditions.
  Off-hand
  Attacks made with your off-hand (left if right handed and
  vice versa) take an additional +2 Difficulty. This is negated
  by the Physical Ad of Ambidexterity.
  One handed
  Only pistols may be fired with one hand. Longarms require
  both hands, and take a +3 Difficulty if only one is used.
  “Hipfiring” counts as firing one-handed in most cases (laser
  sights negate hipfiring, but will no longer give a bonus).
  Moving and Range Mod
  Weapons with a high Range Mod are usually longer and
  bulkier than those with small Range Mods. If a target is at a
  Difficulty for range of the weapon's Range Mod or less, all
  movement penalties are increased by 1 for the firer, whether
  it is firer movement or target movement. If the Difficulty for
  range is half (round down) the weapon's Range Mod, they
  are increased by 2, and if a quarter of the Range Mod
  (round down), they are increased by 3. If the target is not
  moving, however, they get no modifier.
  Example - A character with a rifle (Range Mod of 5) is track-
  ing a running character at a range of 8m, which has a base
  Difficulty of 5. So, the movement mods for the running per-
  son are increased by 1, making them harder to hit because
  the rifle has more trouble tracking them than would a shorter
  weapon like a pistol. 
  ﬁ« Snap shots are considered movement for purposes of this
  rule.
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  Example - A Stinger missile has a skill of 1, and a velocity
  of 500m/sec. If fired at a laterally moving target 1km away,
  with a size modifier of +2, and a quality modifier of +0 (up
  the tailpipe might be -2, head on might be +2), then on the
  first turn, the total Difficulty is -2. The missile tracks the tar-
  get, since the skill is higher than the Difficulty. On the sec-
  ond turn, the missile takes a +1 Difficulty, increasing it to -1
  vs. a skill of 1. So, the missile will hit the target unless eva-
  sive maneuvers or countermeasures are performed.
  On the turn a guided weapon would hit, the target may drop
  countermeasures, which may apply a penalty on the
  weapon’s chance to hit, and/or perform evasive maneuvers.
  This is a penalty of 1/10th the vehicle’s Turn (round up), and
  requires a piloting skill roll vs. (the skill of the guided
  weapon + 5).
  Example - The Stinger in the previous example is being
  fired at a jet with a Turn of 30. The pilot can make the mis-
  sile take +3 (the Turn/10) to the Difficulty of the task if they
  make a piloting skill roll at a Difficulty of 6 (missile skill of 1,
  plus 5). A success means the Difficulty of the task goes from
  -1 to 2, which is greater than the skill of the missile, so it
  now has to roll in order to hit. A miss means the missile
  passes the target without hitting. It might, however, have a
  proximity fuze that goes off at the closest approach, or on a
  miss by a small amount.
  ﬁ« Attacks vs. fixed targets (like a cruise missile target) are
  based on the size and visibility of the target, with a +1
  Difficulty per course correction rather than per second.
  Obviously, the target quality (accurate location, landmarks
  for course correction, etc.) will be very important.
  Indirect fire
  Some weapons are capable of indirect fire. That is, they
  have a high, arcing trajectory that lets them shoot over walls
  or hills, to hit a target that can’t be seen, or which is out of
  range of a regular attack.
  If a weapon is capable of indirect fire, its maximum indirect
  fire range is as though the Range Mod of the weapon was
  10 points higher. All other targeting is normal, and the actual
  Range Mod of the weapon is unaffected. To take into
  account that indirect fire weapons usually take several sec-
  onds to reach a target, and many times can be seen in
  flight, all movement modifiers for the target are
  doubled(after additions or subtractions from other modi-
  fiers). If the target is aware of the incoming attack, they may
  dodge it, and this is doubled as well. Note that if there are
  multiple incoming attacks of this type, only one may be
  dodged per turn. How long it actually takes for an indirect
  attack to reach the target is a GM decision. Grenades may
  take a few seconds, while artillery can take minutes.
  If the attack hits, it lands in the same hex as the target, or in
  a particular hex of a large target. It if misses, it is off by a
  distance up to the number of points the roll was missed by,
  squared, with a maximum “missed by” amount of the
  Difficulty of the shot, divided by 5.
  Example - A grenade launcher with a Range Mod of 2 is
  fired at a stationary target 250m away. The Difficulty for
  range is 18, minus 2 for Range Mod, makes 16. If the char-
  acter firing had a skill of 6, it would still take an incredible
  Long Shot to put it in the right spot. But, since the Difficulty
  is 16, the most they can miss by is the Difficulty divided by
  5, or 3 points, so all shots will land within 9 meters of the tar-
  get. And, those rolls which are exceptionally good will land
  closer.
  Guided weapons
  Few weapons in a normal CORPS campaign will have any
  type of guidance, although they may be relatively common
  in the future. The skill of a weapon or its bonus to hit will be
  listed after the name, i.e. Stinger(skill 1).
  The guidance bonus of a smart weapon is halved (round
  down) at a range greater than one second’s flight time for
  the weapon, and at each multiple of this distance.
  Self-guided weapons constantly correct their course, so the
  normal Range Mod stat does not often apply. The weapon
  starts off with its skill vs. a Difficulty of 0, with modifiers for
  target size and target quality, and takes a +1 Difficulty for
  each turn it is in flight. As long as the Difficulty is equal or
  less than the skill, the weapon tracks the target. If the
  Difficulty goes higher, the weapon must make a skill roll at
  that Difficulty or it loses lock-on.
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  i How to do it
  1. The Difficulty for any ranged attack is based first on the range.
  2. This Difficulty is reduced by the Range Mod stat of your weapon,
  but never to less than zero.
  3. Your movement, target movement, called shot, injuries, and other
  modifiers affect this post-Range Mod Difficulty.
  4. Compare this to your skill and check for success.
  5. Called shots to center of mass that miss may still hit the target
  elsewhere. Called shots to an extremity that miss are considered
  clean misses.
  6. The extra damage from an increased damage called shot is
  never more than the base called shot penalty, applies after
  armor, and never exceeds the amount that penetrates armor.
  7. Autofire is resolved as the first shot vs. the target, and a second
  shot based on average recoil for the remainder of the burst.
  8. You can only set or brace vs. visible targets. Your maximum
  bonus is never more than the Range Mod of the weapon.
  Telescopic sights increase the Range Mod of the weapon for the
  first shot in a turn, but not by more than the Range Mod of the
  weapon after bracing.
  
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  Cathy, sensing that Jasper isn't
  that tough after all, aims the back
  of her fist at the side of Jasper's
  head, but her defensive position
  makes the strike more difficult.
  Jasper, seeing that the attack
  could easily have hit him, belated-
  ly decides to block. 
  Seeing that she has gone too
  defensive to get through Jasper's
  guard, Cathy waits. Jasper, see-
  ing that Cathy is too hard to hit at
  the moment, bides his time.
  Turn 2 (description)
  Jasper is a split second ahead of
  Cathy this time.
  Jasper prepares to counter any
  incoming blow, and Cathy, seeing
  as Jasper hasn't attacked, pre-
  pares a defense herself.
  Jasper is up to something, but
  Cathy can tell only that it is an
  attack. She waits.
  Jasper does a one-two punch,
  leading with his right to the gut,
  and rebounding up into her chin,
  with an aim to put her lights out.
  Cathy is no slouch. She sees it
  coming and his fist is deflected off
  her forearm, for no effect.
  Initiative 4
  Cathy attacks Jasper, who has no
  defensive action up. She belatedly
  realizes that her full martial dodge
  means in addition to his base
  defense of 2, he has +5 for her
  dodge and +2 more for her sec-
  ond action, giving her a martial
  punch of 6 vs. his base defense a
  9. She needs a 5 or less, and rolls
  a 7, missing.
  Jasper's base defense stays at 2,
  but his modified defense goes up
  by 4 (his Unarmed Combat skill),
  but is dropped by 2 for one con-
  secutive action), making his total
  defense a 2/4. Cathy has virtually
  no chance of connecting with any-
  thing but a block for the rest of the
  turn, since her dodge and consec-
  utive action penalties will add to
  Jasper's base defense for deter-
  mining the final Difficulty to hit.
  Initiative 2
  Cathy and Jasper both stay put.
  Initiative 0
  Cathy and Jasper both stay put.
  Turn 2 (by the rules)
  Jasper wins Initiative.
  Initiative 6
  Jasper blocks, giving himself a
  total defense of 2/6. Cathy blocks,
  giving herself a total defense of
  2/7.
  Initiative 4
  Jasper does a combination move,
  which goes off on Initiative 3, at
  which time he declares what it is.
  Cathy knows it is an attack, since
  Initiative 3 is too high for it to be
  just movement. She does nothing,
  and takes no consecutive action
  penalty as a result.
  Initiative 3
  Jasper does a double punch, the
  first a +1 called shot to the torso,
  and the second a +2 called shot
  to the head with an extra +2 to
  get more damage. His base skill
  is a 6 with the punch. On the first
  punch he takes a 2 point penalty
  for the consecutive action, +1 for
  a combination move, and +1 for
  the called shot (this puts Cathy's
  defense at +4), for a skill of 6 vs.
  Cathy's total defense of 6/11. 
  He rolls a 4, which hits the modi-
  fied defense. Cathy blocks, and
  as before, takes no damage. 
  Sample Combat
  Combatant 1
  Cathy, the hard-boiled female
  detective.
  Reason 
  A difference of opinion over who
  is tougher.
  Skills
  Cathy has Martial Arts of 5, with a
  +1 in Punch, a Pistol skill of 4, a
  STR of 4 and a WIL and AGL of
  6. She has Pain Tolerance, which
  lets her ignore 2 points of non-
  lethal damage from non-surprise
  attacks.
  Cathy has a martial arts punch
  and kick damage of 3. 
  Equipment 
  She has a small pistol under her
  jacket (DV5, Range Mod 0).
  Turn 1 (description)
  After engaging in harsh language
  for a little while, they both assume
  defensive postures and proceed
  to have at it.
  They're equally matched, but
  Cathy is slightly faster on the
  uptake. 
  Unsure of Jasper's fighting skill,
  Cathy starts off defensively.
  Jasper who is only a brawler and
  passable knife fighter, is amazed
  at this show of skill, but decides to
  see if it's for real.
  Jasper makes a jab at Cathy's
  body, which is intercepted and
  lands solidly on her blocking arm. 
  She doesn't even flinch. Jasper is
  impressed.
  Combatant 2
  Jasper, an anti-social ex-biker,
  peeved at being disturbed.
  Reason 
  The mouthy twerp needs taken
  down a notch or two. No prob.
  Skills
  Jasper has Unarmed Combat of 4
  with a +2 in Punch, and Melee
  Weapons skill of 3, with +1 in
  Knife. He has a STR, WIL and
  AGL of 6. He also has Pain
  Tolerance.
  Jasper has a punch and kick
  damage of 2.
  Equipment 
  He doesn't have any real armor,
  but he has lined the torso of his
  jacket with a few layers of ballistic
  fabric to slow down most attacks,
  giving him a 2/2 vs. guns, and a
  1/1 vs. melee attacks. He has a
  knife (+1 DV) in a belt sheath.
  Turn 1 (by the rules)
  Neither person is caught unpre-
  pared, and both are assumed to
  have a held defensive action from
  the previous turn. 
  Initiative 6
  Since Cathy has a martial punch
  of 6 and Jasper has a brawling
  punch of 6, they roll off to see
  who performs their action first on
  each Initiative segment this turn.
  Cathy wins.
  Cathy has a held block and does
  a martial dodge as her first action.
  Her base defense is 2, which is
  increased by the martial dodge to
  2+5=7, so her modified defense is
  7 plus her skill at blocking (5),
  making her total defense a 7/12.
  Jasper decides to take a swing
  anyway. He has a skill of 6 vs. a
  Difficulty of 7/12. He needs ≤9 to
  hit the base defense (skill 6 vs.
  Difficulty 7), and only a long shot
  will get by the modified defense (6
  vs. 12). If he rolls a 10, he misses
  the base defense entirely (6 vs. 7).
  He rolls a 6 and connects with her
  block, doing 2 points of non-lethal
  damage. 
  However, Cathy soaks this up
  with her Pain Tolerance.
  
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  A slightly tricky move, consider-
  ing, but she almost makes it.
  Jasper drops his left arm to inter-
  cept the foot, with painful results.
  Jasper is surprised, and can't
  pivot quick enough to stop Cathy
  from taking advantage of the situ-
  ation.
  Turn 3 (description)
  Jasper decides to change tactics.
  Jasper goes for the knife on his
  belt.
  Taking advantage of Jasper's
  position, Cathy ignores her
  defense and goes for a massive
  roundhouse to Jasper's head. 
  Cathy has a base skill of 5, with a
  2 point penalty for the consecutive
  action, +2 for moving 2 hexes, +1
  for the combination move, +1 for
  called shot, +1 for extra damage,
  and +1 for the head hit earlier this
  turn, but a 1 point bonus for get-
  ting into his side arc. So, Jasper's
  defense is increased by 7, making
  it 9/13 vs. her skill of 5, or a ≤3 to
  hit his modified defense, and little
  chance of getting by it (5 vs. 13). 
  She rolls a 1, which gives her a
  “long shot” chance. However, this
  fails, and she hits Jasper's block.
  Cathy did only her normal 3
  points of damage for the kick,
  since she doesn't get any extra
  damage (the called shot missed
  its target). Since he didn't specify
  how he was blocking, the GM ran-
  domly decides it was the left arm
  which takes the damage. Jasper
  soaks up 2 points with his Pain
  Tolerance, and takes 1 point to
  the arm. This becomes an impair-
  ment of +2, so any actions Jasper
  performs with his left arm take an
  automatic +2 penalty.
  Jasper acted first on Initiative 0,
  and did nothing, so he can't
  change facing yet.
  Turn 3 (by the rules)
  Jasper wins Initiative.
  Initiative 6
  Jasper isn't as good with a knife,
  (skill 4) so he doesn't actually
  begin to draw it until Initiative 4.
  Since it is a new turn, Cathy no
  longer takes penalties from previ-
  ous actions or the head hit. She
  wants to knock Jasper out cold.
  Cathy has a Martial Punch skill of
  6. She takes +2 Difficulty for the
  head shot, +2 for extra damage,
  and -1 for being in Jasper's side
  arc, so his defense is increased by
  3. He only has his base defense,
  since he used last turn's block and
  did not declare one yet this turn,
  so his total defense is 5/5. This is
  an automatic hit for Cathy's skill of
  6, but for half damage (using the
  graze rule (p.40), which Cathy
  doesn't want, so she increases
  the Difficulty by 1 (to 6) and rolls,
  hoping she doesn't get a 10.
  She rolls a 7, and connects.
  But, she left herself open to a
  counterstrike.
  It's a tricky move, but he pulls it
  off. As her blocking arm goes
  down, Jasper's fist rams up into
  Cathy's chin.
  She staggers back and shakes
  her head. A little blood trickles
  from a busted lip. She wipes it on
  her sleeve and glares angrily at
  him.
  Jasper is having serious second
  thoughts about fighting fair. That
  blow should have dropped any
  normal person, or at least soft-
  ened them up for a coup de
  grace.
  Cathy glares at Jasper and
  makes a move.
  Jasper, amazed at the punish-
  ment Cathy is taking, does noth-
  ing. 
  Cathy steps across Jasper's
  guard and lashes out with her foot
  towards Jasper's midsection.
  However, her block is now used
  up. His second punch is like the
  first (consecutive action for +2,
  combination move for +1), but
  with an extra +4 Difficulty because
  the head is a smaller target and
  the extra damage called shot. 
  Cathy has a base defense of 2,
  plus 7 for Jasper's actions, so he
  is skill 6 vs. Difficulty 9, and he
  hits by rolling a 1 (he needed ≤5).
  Unfortunately, Cathy is just as
  tough there as anywhere else,
  and she subtracts 2 points of non-
  lethal damage from the 4 points
  Jasper did with his increased
  damage called shot (2 for his
  punch, plus 2 more for the extra
  damage shot). And, head hits
  subtract 1 from damage to get the
  impairment, so she only takes an
  impairment penalty of +1. This will
  apply to all her actions for the rest
  of the turn, but head impairments
  generally don't affect combat
  skills on subsequent turns.
  However, 2 points of damage get-
  ting through to the head is an
  eventually fatal chance of 3 or
  less, which for knockout purposes
  means Cathy must make a
  Difficulty 6 WIL roll (no, the injury
  can't be eventually fatal, but that's
  how you calculate the knockout
  chance for any injury). Since she
  has a WIL of 6, she can't fail, and
  takes no extra stun penalty.
  Initiative 2
  Cathy declares a combination
  move. Jasper guesses that this
  will be either a double attack or a
  move/attack combo. He hasn't
  used his block yet, so he waits.
  Initiative 1
  Jasper waits to see what Cathy is
  up to.
  Initiative 0
  Cathy does a combination move/
  attack, stepping two hexes into
  Jasper's side arc, and attempting
  to kick him in the ribs, with a +1
  Difficulty to the normal called shot
  to get some extra damage. She
  acts on Initiative 0 instead of 1
  because combination moves act 1
  point of Initiative faster than the
  slowest move (the move would
  start on 2, and the kick on 0, but
  kicks have -1 Initiative, so the kick
  would go off on -1, and so the
  combination move goes off on
  Initiative 0).
  
  69
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  Her knuckles connect with the
  side of Jasper's head as he thinks
  about drawing the knife.
  Jasper's chimes are rattled, but
  he stays up, much to Cathy's sur-
  prise.
  Jasper, realizing that he is going
  to get his clock cleaned, decides
  to draw his knife.
  Cathy follows up with a punch to
  the solar plexus to further hurt
  Jasper.
  Cathy, seeing the knife start to
  come out of its sheath, decides to
  step back.
  Cathy stands and cautiously waits.
  Turn 4 (description)
  Inspired by fear, Cathy acts slight-
  ly faster than Jasper.
  She goes for her gun, a combat
  accessory Jasper was unaware
  she possessed. Oops.
  Jasper does nothing except look
  worried about that pistol. He fin-
  ishes drawing the knife, and
  makes a split second calculation
  about her fumbling pistol draw.
  Initiative 2
  Cathy decides to abort her draw
  and do a parry vs. the knife attack
  she expects to occur. The half-
  drawn pistol drops to her feet. Her
  base defense stays at 2. Her mod-
  ified defense goes up by 5 (to 2/7),
  but with a 2 point penalty for con-
  secutive action, -1 more for the
  parry, for a total defense of 2/4.
  Jasper moves to the adjacent hex
  and prepares to attack.
  Initiative 0
  Cathy decides to crouch and grab
  at the pistol she just dropped (she
  now has a defense up, and failing
  the grab won't affect her adverse-
  ly). She has a skill of 4 vs. a
  Difficulty of 4, but with a +4 for
  consecutive actions and +2 for
  trying to get it in one action, for a
  total Difficulty of 10. She rolls a 1,
  which is normally a miss, but
  gives her a “long shot” chance.
  She rolls again with a -5 Difficulty
  (goes to Difficulty 5), and rolls a 4,
  succeeding, to Jasper's dismay.
  Jasper does a called shot to
  Cathy's gun arm with the knife.
  This is +2 Difficulty, with an addi-
  tional +2 for consecutive action.
  This ups Cathy's defense by 4, to
  6/8 vs. his skill of 4. He rolls a 3,
  which is exactly what he needed
  to get by her modified defense,
  for a grazing hit. She has no
  armor here, so he does 1 point of
  lethal damage. Since arm hits get
  an extra point of impairment, the
  gun arm has a +2 impairment.
  Turn 5 (by the rules)
  Jasper might have been able to
  cripple her arm had he gone first.
  Initiative 4
  She fires at point blank range.
  The Difficulty for range is 2, and
  after taking the +2 arm injury into
  account, it just matches her skill,
  for a grazing hit. She chooses to
  increase the Difficulty by 1 (to 5)
  and go for a normal hit. She rolls
  a 6, which succeeds. She did not
  do a called shot, and rolls for
  location, for a 1. Head hit. Oops.
  Jasper takes a 5 point lethal hit to
  the head. For a head hit, this is
  eventually fatal on a ≤6, and
  Jasper rolls a 5, so he is “dying”.
  He also has a knockout Difficulty
  of 6x2=12 vs. his WIL of 6, a roll
  which he fails by more than 6, so
  he slumps unconscious.
  Muttering unprintable obscenities,
  Cathy goes to a defensive stance,
  the half-drawn pistol clattering to
  the floor.
  Jasper smiles, steps forward and
  waves the knife menacingly.
  Cathy, trying to keep her defens-
  es up, makes a desperate grab
  for the gun at her feet. 
  She succeeds, and a wicked
  smile crosses her face as Jasper
  hesitates in his swing.
  Jasper, realizing his peril, takes a
  wild swipe at Cathy's gun arm,
  hoping to ruin her aim.
  Turn 5 (description)
  Cathy's reflexes are slightly
  faster, which makes all the differ-
  ence.
  Trying to ignore the bleeding
  slash across her arm, Cathy fires
  in Jasper's direction. 
  A long deep furrow appears on
  his jaw, bleeding profusely. He
  slumps to the ground, alive but
  unconscious. That'll teach him not
  to insult a lady...
  She does 3 points of damage nor-
  mally, +2 for the called shot, for a
  total of 5. Jasper's Pain Tolerance
  absorbs 2 of this, leaving 3 points
  of damage, for a +2 impairment
  for the rest of the turn, and a +1
  penalty to AWR tasks after that.
  However, a 3 point head hit is an
  eventually fatal chance of 4 or
  less, or a knockout Difficulty of 8
  vs. Jasper's WIL of 6. He needs
  to roll ≤7 to avoid being stunned
  further, and he succeeds.
  Initiative 4
  Jasper goes for the knife, taking a
  full turn to do so. This is normally
  automatic, since the Difficulty
  drawing a weapon in 1 turn is 4
  and his skill is also 4, but he has
  that +2 impairment from the kick
  to deal with (on this turn), making
  the Difficulty a 6. He rolls a 5 (he
  needed ≤7), and will have the
  knife available for use on Initiative
  4 of the next turn.
  This is a +1 torso shot with a fur-
  ther +1 for extra damage. Even
  with the consecutive action, she
  hits, but between his armor and
  Pain Tolerance, nothing gets
  through.
  Initiative 2
  A knife has a maximum range of
  the adjacent hex, so this will force
  Jasper to move to her before he
  can attack.
  Initiative 0
  Cathy, realizing that anything she
  would do would be at +6 Difficulty
  from consecutive action penalties,
  does nothing.
  Turn 4 (by the rules)
  Cathy wins Initiative.
  Initiative 4
  Since Jasper is out of knife reach,
  he can't possibly attack until
  Initiative 3 or lower (combination
  move/attack, or move and then
  attack). She goes for her pistol,
  trying to get it in 1 action (+2
  Difficulty). This is her skill of 4 vs.
  Difficulty 6 task, and she rolls a
  10, failing badly.
  Jasper doesn't attack just yet,
  since Cathy is out of range, so he
  waits until he can move.
  
   
  Grenades
   
  Grenades are any type of small explosive charge designed
  to be thrown, and may or may not have fragmentation
  effects. Grenades go off 4 seconds after being armed (on
  same Initiative), are 
   
  usually thrown at hex-sized targets (-1
  Difficulty), and scatter like indirect fire weapons.
  TL14-15 grenade
  0m
  1m
  2-4m
  5-9m
  10-16m
  Explosion
  5
  2
  1
  0
  0
  Fragment skill
  10
  9
  8
  7
  6
  Fragment DV
  6
  5
  4
  3
  2
  TL12-13 grenade
  0m
  1m
  2-4m
  5-9m
  10-16m
  Explosion
  4
  2
  1
  0
  0
  Fragment skill
  8
  7
  6
  5
  4
  Fragment DV
  5
  4
  3
  2
  1
  TL10-11 grenade
  0m
  1m
  2-4m
  5-9m
  10-16m
  Explosion
  4
  2
  1
  0
  0
  Fragment skill
  3
  2
  1
  0
  -1
  Fragment DV
  5
  4
  3
  2
  1
  TL8-9 grenade
  0m
  1m
  2-4m
  5-9m
  10-16m
  Explosion
  4
  2
  1
  0
  0
  Fragment skill
  0
  -1
  -2
  -3
  -4
  Fragment DV
  10
  9
  8
  7
  6
  TL6-7 grenade
  0m
  1m
  2-4m
  5-9m
  10-16m
  Explosion
  2
  1
  0
  0
  0
  Fragment skill
  -3
  -4
  -5
  -6
  -7
  Fragment DV
  8
  7
  6
  5
  4
  Stun grenade
  0m
  1m
  2-4m
  5-9m
  10-16m
  Explosion
  3
  1
  1
  0
  0
  An offensive grenade is usually just an explosive charge,
  with a DV of about 4. Use the appropriate grenade stats, but
  ignore the fragment damage. A defensive grenade has
  these effects as well, but also has a large number of frag-
  ments. These have a DV and a “skill”. Man-sized targets
  have a Difficulty of 0 (1 if prone). This skill goes down by 1
  per range step, as does the DV. 
  Example - At a range of 3m, a TL11 grenade has a skill of
  1, so it gets 2 automatic hits vs. a standing person (Difficulty
  0), and each hit has a lethal DV of 3 (one is a graze, though).
  It also does 1 point of explosion damage at this range.
  Smoke grenades will fill an area with some kind of obscuring
  or irritating substance. They will fill a circular or elliptical
  area of a given size, in hexes per second, and have an
  obscurement rating (penalty to use skill through), or a rating
  like a drug, which is inflicted on anyone without protection
  from the effects. Grenades can have both obscurement and
  irritant effects. Tear gas grenades are usually only available
  to police, security or the military, while smoke grenades are
  available to civilians.
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  “I say we take off, nuke the site from orbit...it's the only way to be sure.”
  Corporal Hicks, in “Aliens”
  Basics
  Megaforce covers those topics which begin to exceed the
  bounds of role-playing and storytelling, and start to become
  a statistical exercise in who can lay the most damage down
  per unit area of the map. It covers any aspect of a game
  world which characters survive encounters only by chance
  or large expenditures of ASP. Grenades, explosives, rock-
  ets, vehicle combat and the like all fall into this category.
  Explosions
  Explosives have a DV like any other weapon, which is
  counted as both a lethal attack and a non-lethal one, both
  blunt in nature, and affecting the entire body. Armor which
  covers the whole body gets half its soak value, and armor
  which only covers the torso (or torso+head) gets one-fourth
  its soak value, rounding all fractions down. 
  Example - A character wearing 8/5 armor on their torso only
  will get 2 points of protection against explosion damage.
  The base unit of explosive is about .25kg. Each time this
  amount is quadrupled, the effect is doubled.
  Explosive
  .25kg
  1kg
  4kg
  16kg
  64kg
  250kg
  Black powder (TL5)
  2
  4
  8
  16
  32
  64
  TNT (TL9)
  5
  10
  20
  40
  80
  160
  Pulverite (TL13)
  7
  14
  28
  56
  112
  224
  The damage of the explosive is halved for each range step
  to the target, rounding down. An explosive charge which has
  been properly placed and tamped down will only have half
  the effect in all directions except against the target, which
  will take double effect. Explosions add 1 to the DV in a given
  range step for each range step in which the blast bounces
  off two or more enclosing walls.
  Shaped charge explosives have their full effect in all direc-
  tions, but 100 times the effect against their target. This
  shaped charge attack is also counted as armor-piercing.
   
  ﬁ« Shaped charges are extraordinarly vicious, and will cut
  through any armor that TL12 science can even conceive of.
  MEGAFORCE
  
  Vehicles
  Vehicles are ubiquitous in most campaigns, whether an ox
  cart or grav cycle, found everywhere from megaplexes to
  remote corners of the globe. 
  A vehicle will have a number of stats, most of which are its
  armor from various facings and on various components, but
  a few have to do with its conventional performance. Vehicle
  stats are:
  Armor
  This is the AV of various facings and internal fittings, and is
  only a single number that subtracts directly from the dam-
  age of all attacks. All hits on a vehicle strike the armor first,
  and hit location is rolled on 1d10, the table used depending
  on the direction of the attack.
  Size (size modifier)
  This is the dimensions and the modifier to hit for attacks
  against the vehicle in general. Called shots ignore the size
  modifier, and use the size of the part aimed for. However,
  misses by an amount that would still hit the overall vehicle
  may still be hits against a random location, depending on
  where the called shot target is.
  Example - A called shot to the driver's door (+0 size modifi-
  er) on a car (-2 size modifier) might still hit the car if the roll
  would hit a car-sized object, since this is like a body shot on
  a person. A called shot to the tire that misses is more like an
  extremity hit, and therefore would miss entirely.
  Hexes filled
  Sample vehicle
  Size modifier
  1-3
  Motorcycle
  -1
  4-15
  Automobile, ultralight
  -2
  16-63
  Large truck, jet fighter
  -3
  64-255
  Patrol boat, small bomber
  -4
  256-1023
  Airliner, frigate
  -5
  1024-4095
  Large cargo plane, destroyer
  -6
  Mass
  This doesn't often make much difference unless two vehi-
  cles are trying to push each other off the road or colliding
  with one another.
  Hit locations
  If a vehicle is targeted by an attack, and it is not a called
  shot, the attack will strike a random part of the vehicle.
  Roll
  Front†
  Rear†
  Side
  Top
  1
  Body
  Body
  Body
  Body
  2
  Controls
  Body
  Controls
  Controls
  3
  Controls*
  Fuel*
  Engine*
  Engine*
  4
  Engine
  Cargo*
  Window
  Body
  5
  Engine*
  Controls
  Body
  Window
  6
  Engine*
  Window
  Accessory
  Accessory
  7
  Window
  Body
  Fuel*
  Cargo*
  8
  Body
  Window
  Cargo*
  Fuel*
  9
  Window
  Accessory
  Controls
  Controls
  10
  Accessory
  Body
  Body
  Body
  †Assumes front engine, reverse for rear engine
  Location
  Description
  Body
  The outer surface of the vehicle. This would be the
  armor of an armored vehicle, or the first body surface
  hit by an attack for other vehicles (i.e. the floor of an
  open vehicle attacked from the top).
  Controls
  The maneuvering surfaces of the vehicle and the
  machinery or communication links to operate them.
  These may have the same armor as the body (planes),
  or less (tires), but are rarely more.
  Engine
  The motive power source, whether an ox, a sail or a
  fusion plant. If the vehicle has multiple engines, roll
  randomly to see which is hit. Only on vehicles with
  completely exposed engines can this be an initial hit
  location.
  Window
  On civilian vehicles, especially cars, this would be the
  windshield or other window glass. Any damage getting
  through may hit an occupant. It would not apply to port-
  holes or other small viewing ports, and hits on such a
  vehicle would be Body hits, with remaining damage
  going into the passenger area.
  Cargo
  This is a hit to the cargo compartment of the vehicle.
  Fuel
  This hit is to the fuel supply of the vehicle. If there are
  multiple fuel tanks, roll randomly to see which one is
  hit.
  Accessory This is any equipment which is not vital to the contin-
  ued operation of the vehicle, but which may have a
  long term effect on the vehicle. Examples might
  include a spare tire, ejection seat, radio, etc.
  Hits that completely penetrate the body of the vehicle roll
  again for location, and you continue to apply armor and
  absorb damage until none remains, or 4 locations are hit
  (the hit goes out the other side). 
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  Turn
  This is the vehicle’s turn mode. A vehicle can make one 60°
  turn each number of meters equal to velocity squared, divid-
  ed by turn mode. Attempting tighter turns is a driving task of
  the turn mode attempted, failure resulting in the vehicle’s
  regular turn being used. Common turn modes are below:
  Speed in meters per second
  Turn Equivalent
  5
  10
  15
  20
  25
  30
  5
  Motor home
  5
  20
  45
  80
  125
  180
  6
  Large truck
  4
  17
  38
  67
  104
  150
  7
  Average truck
  4
  14
  32
  57
  89
  129
  8
  Average car
  3
  13
  28
  50
  78
  113
  9
  Sports car
  3
  11
  25
  44
  69
  100
  10
  Race car
  3
  10
  23
  40
  63
  90
  30
  50
  100
  200
  300
  500
  20
  Light plane (TL8) 45
  125
  500
  -
  -
  -
  30
  Light plane (TL9) 30
  83
  333
  1333
  -
  -
  40
  Fighter (TL9)
  -
  63
  250
  1000
  2250
  -
  60
  Fighter (TL11)
  -
  -
  167
  667
  1500
  4166
  Example - A sports car doing 30m/sec (108kph/68mph) can
  make a 60° turn each 100m of travel. A TL11 fighter jet that
  can pull 6g's in a turn while sprinting at 500m/sec (1800kph/
  1125mph) can make a 60° turn each 4.2 kilometers.
  Passengers
  This is the number of people the vehicle has seating for
  (each point can carry 100kg of cargo instead).
  Cargo
  This is the number of “human equivalents” the vehicle has in
  cargo space, each point roughly the size and mass of a per-
  son plus equipment (100kg or Size 100). Vehicles designed
  for heavy lifting may be able to carry significantly more
  mass, and as a rough guide, vehicles can usually carry
  cargo equal to the same density as the vehicle itself, i.e. a
  tank with 5 spaces of cargo capacity can carry heavier
  cargo than a blimp with 5 spaces of cargo capacity.
  Range
  This is the vehicle’s cruising range in kilometers. Range at
  full speed is about half this, while cruising at the most eco-
  nomical speed (about 25% of maximum) will double this.
  Fuel
  This is the number of liters of fuel the vehicle requires to fill
  all internal tankage, battery capacity, etc. Vehicles that do
  not consume fuel will have a "-" here.
  Exceptions - Locations marked with an “*” are never hit on
  the first roll (hit body instead), and all body hits adjacent to a
  window automatically go into the passenger compartment,
  as does extra damage penetrating the windows. 
  Hits to the passenger compartment have a chance of hitting
  someone equal to a skill of 0 vs. a task Difficulty of 8, and a
  -1 to Difficulty for each 20% of used passenger capacity,
  rounding up. The “Long shot” option does apply here.
  Normal car (-2 Difficulty to hit)
  Front
  4
  Top
  4
  Sides
  4
  Rear
  4
  Bottom
  4
  Windows
  1
  Controls
  2
  Engine
  10
  Max
  45
  Acc/Dec
  4/6
  Turn
  7
  Passengers
  5
  Cargo
  2
  Range
  500km
  Fuel
  50 liters
  Max
  This is the maximum speed of the vehicle under normal cir-
  cumstances, in meters per second. To convert to kph, multi-
  ply by 3.6, and to get mph, multiply by 2.2. Cruising speed is
  usually 60% of maximum. Maximum reverse speed (if
  applicable) is 25% of maximum forward speed. If a vehicle
  has a minimum speed to be functional (like aircraft), the
  minimum will be after the maximum, in parentheses.
  Acc/Dec
  This is the maximum amount the velocity of the vehicle may
  increase or decrease per second, in meters per second.
  Deceleration is linear, but acceleration is reduced by 1 for
  each multiple of acceleration in current speed, so a vehicle
  moving at 3 times its Acc would have its Acc at that speed
  reduced by 2 meters per second. A vehicle loses 1 point of
  Acc if loaded to more than half capacity in passengers or
  cargo, and loses 2 points of Acc and 1 point of Dec if loaded
  to more than half capacity in both, with a minimum Acc and
  Dec of 1.
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  Vehicles can be used for ramming attacks, sideswipes and
  shoving other vehicles. These tactics, especially the latter,
  can be handled using the normal chase rules, but with an
  additional modifier based on vehicle mass. The first multiple
  of vehicle mass the larger vehicle has on the smaller is a 2
  point differential, and each doubling after that is another 2.
  Example - A 1600kg car is bumping a 200kg motorcycle. A
  mass of 400kg is double that of the motorcycle, and doubled
  again at 800kg and 1600kg, so the car gets a +6 to its
  maneuvering total (any applicable vehicle stats added
  together) whenever it does a maneuver that pits the mass of
  one vehicle against the other. 
  The effects of the mass modifier include increasing collision
  damage, up to double the normal amount, but does not
  increase impact damage against people, who use the nor-
  mal falling rules.
  An attempt to force someone off the road is usually counted
  as both an attack by one vehicle against the other, and as
  an effect vs. the steering of the losing vehicle. For instance,
  if one vehicle had a total 4 points higher than another vehi-
  cle, each vehicle would take a 4 point attack, and the losing
  vehicle would subtract 4 from its Turn stat for its next move-
  ment. If there were a bend in the road, and this vehicle did
  not slow to make the corner...
  If a vehicle wants to pass someone who doesn't want to be
  passed (i.e. they would attempt to bump you), they may get
  past if their total exceeds the person in front by (their vehicle
  length plus trailing distance) or more.
  Example - You are trying to get past a road blocker in front
  of you, but they swerve into your lane each time you try. If
  your car is 5m long, and you are only 2m behind them, you
  have to beat their total by 7 to get alongside with them after
  faking them out.
  Vehicle Damage
  If a vehicle component other than armor takes damage
  which exceeds its AV (if any), there is a chance of malfunc-
  tion. Extra damage is counted as a direct impairment to any
  vehicle function that location controls, such as turn mode,
  acceleration or maximum speed. 
  Location
  Effect
  Catastrophic
  Body
  Punctured
  n/a
  Controls
  Acc, Max, Turn, Dec
  Blowout
  Engine
  Acc, Max
  Shutdown
  Window
  Broken
  Shattered
  Passenger
  Injury
  n/a
  Fuel
  Range
  Fire or explosion
  Accessory
  Damaged
  Destroyed
  Cargo
  Damaged
  Destroyed
  The impairment is the chance of an “eventually fatal” result,
  which would be an additional 1 point impairment each 1d10
  minutes. An “eventually fatal” roll that is made by 3 or more
  (head autokill) means an immediate malfunction, while a roll
  made by 7 or more (abdomen autokill) is an immediate cata-
  strophic malfunction. Note that a hit which penetrates a nor-
  mal auto tire (a control hit), automatically counts as a 1 point
  impairment, and an “eventually fatal” result. For dramatic
  effect, the GM may allow a roll for catastrophic failure
  (blowout) if hit by a large weapon.
  Example - A rifle bullet with a DV of 16 hits a car. The first
  shot hits the armor, subtracting 4, and then hits the engine,
  which stops 10 points of damage, but takes 2 internally. So,
  the car takes a -2 to its acceleration and top speed.
  Vehicle Combat
  Combat in, on or between vehicles follows all the standard
  rules. Vehicles act on the driver’s Initiative for accelerating,
  decelerating or maneuvering, or on Initiative 0 if uncon-
  trolled. Combat is based on the Initiative of the person using
  the weapon, range and relative vehicle movement. Usually,
  passengers will always take modifiers based on the side-
  ways amount of any sudden maneuvers they experience,
  since they cannot compensate for the unexpected motion of
  their own vehicle. 
  Example - A vehicle that swerves 2m to the side to dodge
  debris counts as 2m/sec movement for all shooters in the
  vehicle. 
  Chase combat is done by adding together any vehicle stat
  that would give one vehicle an advantage in the chase situa-
  tion (Max on highway, Turn on mountain roads, etc.), plus
  the driver’s skill. High total wins and may alter the range by
  the difference. However, drivers may attempt a task with the
  Difficulty of their choosing. If successful, they may add any
  amount greater than their skill to their vehicle’s total. If they
  fail, the amount is subtracted instead.
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  Mass Combat
  There may be situations where characters play a minor part
  in a much larger conflict, one that is obviously too large to
  role-play on a turn by turn basis. This is especially true in
  mercenary or fantasy games where you have armies meet-
  ing in grand field battles. Apply the following steps:
  1. Combat Strength
  Figure the combat strength of each side. The combat
  strength of a force is equal to its average AV (add both parts
  of armor number (a/b)), plus its average DV per attack (not
  counting attacks which cannot be maintained for the dura-
  tion of the fight), plus their skill with this attack, times a mul-
  tiplier for the number of combatants and other factors.
  Combatants
  Multiplier
  -
  x.25
  1-3
  x.50
  4-9
  x1.0
  10-29
  x1.5
  30-99
  x2.0
  100-299
  x2.5
  300-999
  x3.0
  1000-2999
  x3.5
  3000-9999
  x4.0
  10000-29999
  x4.5
  Modifiers
  Result
  Each 2 TL superiority in equipment (round up)
  shift down 1 row
  Poorly motivated (conscripts, peasants)
  shift up 1 row
  Highly motivated (fanatics, elites)
  shift down 1 row
  Moderate terrain advantage (hill)
  shift down 1 row
  Superior terrain advantage (fort, castle)
  shift down 2 rows
  Weapon type superiority (air power, bows)
  shift down 1 row
  Example - A group of 100 men with light armor (AV4), and a
  skill of 5 with swords and bows (DV4) would have a base
  combat strength of 13, times 2.5 for their number, for a total
  of 32 (round down). If they were defending a castle against
  an attacking horde that had no comparable ranged
  weapons, they would multiply by 4 instead of 2.5, for a total
  strength of 52.
  i It is worth mentioning that with large weapons and armor,
  skill plays very little part in this system. However, it is very
  important to make the note that poorly skilled forces are
  much more likely to be poorly motivated (simply trying to
  stay alive is good, but it does not make you highly motivated
  to throw yourself into the maw of the enemy when you have
  no idea how to use the weapon in your hands).
  ﬁ« If a significant fraction of a force has a useful "one-shot"
  type weapon (anti-tank missile, etc.), then this counts as a
  weapon type superiority rather than a fraction of average
  damage. If a side has a really useful one-shot weapon (like
  a nuke), this is treated as a separate combatant whose
  points must be applied to Offense.
   
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  That is the "guts" roll. The "glory" roll is the same, except all
  the modifiers are reversed, making it easier to get glory if
  you are at the forefront of the battle and badly outnumbered.
  Each character's success on this roll nets the character's
  group 1 point, and each point past automatic success gains
  1 additional point towards Influence if the enemy had a
  chance of injuring the character with their average damage
  (no one is impressed if you fight heroically when no one can
  hurt you). Whichever Influence-eligible character makes
  their roll by the most (or automatically succeeds by the
  most) gains 2 points towards their personal Influence. Rolls
  that are failed subtract from the total for group Influence,
  and if a character who was hanging back fails a roll, they
  lose a point towards personal Influence.
  4. Allot combat points
  Whoever is commanding each force decides secretly how to
  allot the points available. These go into Intelligence, Special
  Ops, Offense, Defense, Escape and Reserve.
  Intelligence - This represents scouting, spies and knowl-
  edge of the terrain gleaned by your forces. Whichever side
  has more points in this gets a 1 point bonus to their die roll
  when resolving the battle.
  Special Ops - Risky or unorthodox tactics that may or may
  not work (commando raids, untested magic, etc.). Which-
  ever side has the highest total may put the difference into
  Offense from their reserve, after their opponent has put
  points into Defense from their reserve.
  Offense - Points put towards attacking the enemy. A mea-
  sure of the aggressiveness of the attack. At least 1/10th
  (round up) of your points must go here. If the attack has a
  specific objective other than killing enemy units (take that
  hill!), then if the Offense does not exceed the Defense of the
  opponent, the objective will not be taken unless the enemy
  suffers 100% losses. All other side effects of the battle do
  take place, however (casualties, etc.). Suicide troops and
  one-shot weapons put all their points into Offense.
  Defense - Points put towards defending against enemy
  counter-attacks, guarding your flanks, protecting key units,
  etc. At least 1/10th (round up) of your points must go here.
  Escape - Points put towards cohesiveness and/or an order-
  ly retreat of your forces. At least 1/10th (round up) of your
  points must go here, with the exception that only 1 point
  may be put towards Escape if there is a siege situation.
  Reserves - Forces held in check to place where needed.
  May only be applied towards Defense or Escape unless you
  won the Special Ops contest.
  ﬁ« In the event a force has less than 3 points to allot between
  categories, you may round however you wish.
  2. Player Contributions
  Figure the contributions of the player characters as a group,
  just as you would for a force of 1-3 people (regardless of
  how many characters are involved). Characters are likely to
  be well motivated, and/or have an edge in personal firepow-
  er. This number is added to the combat total of the charac-
  ter's side. However, each 2 rows of difference (round up)
  between the number of characters and the total number of
  fighters on their side will shift their result up 1 row.
  Example - A group of 4 characters has an average DV of 6,
  with an average skill of 6 and an armor of 5. This is a base
  of 17, times .5 for their quantity. However, the characters
  also have magic and superior weapons, and are highly moti-
  vated, for a 2 row shift. However, they are also part of a 100
  unit force, which shifts it back up 2 rows, which puts them
  back where they started, for a combat strength of 8.
  3. Guts & glory
  Each character involved in the battle must make a roll on
  the combat skill they used for determining their combat
  strength. Any complementary skills (like military science)
  may be used to get a bonus. The Difficulty is twice the aver-
  age skill of their opponents, the total modified as below.
  Modifier
  Difficulty
  Character highly motivated (at front of battle)
  +2
  Character poorly motivated (at rear of battle)
  -2
  Opponents outnumber your side
  +1
  Opponents outnumber your side by 2 to 1
  +2
  Opponents outnumber your side by 4 to 1
  +3
  Opponents outnumber your side by 8 to 1
  +4
  Each doubling of average enemy damage past DV5
  +1
  Failing the roll means the character takes a lethal whole
  body hit per point the roll is failed by. The DV of this hit is
  equal to 1 for the first hit, 2 for the second and doubled for
  each extra hit, with a maximum of the odds times the aver-
  age damage the enemy force has. The character's average
  personal or vehicle armor applies vs. each hit.
  Example - A high-tech mercenary in AV25 armor fails the
  guts roll by 6 while facing opponents with an average dam-
  age of 40. The merc takes 6 separate hits, with DV's of 1, 2,
  4, 8, 16 and 32. Only the last one penetrates, and will do a
  +7 overall lethal impairment. An ASP could be spent to mod-
  ify the die roll to negate this.
  ﬁ« If a character is involved in leading part or all of the friendly
  forces, the motivation of the forces led will not exceed the
  characters personal level of participation.
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  Sample combat
  A group of skilled, magically empowered characters is part
  of a 1000 person army, preparing to fight a 3000 creature
  horde of chaos monsters summoned from the infernal pits.
  1. Figure combat strength.
  The army on the character's side is equipped with +2DV
  swords, and the fighters have an average STR of 5, for a
  total DV of 3. They are moderately armored, with an aver-
  age AV of 5, and semi-skilled, with an average skill of 4.
  Some units, especially the commanders, are much better,
  but this is the average. This gives them a base strength of
  3+5+4=12, and a base multiplier of x3.5. They are highly
  motivated, as they are fighting to save their country from an
  invasion of evil, but do not have an edge of any type. So,
  their multiplier goes from x3.5 to x4.0, and their strength is
  12 x 4.0 =48.
  The chaos monsters have an average DV of 3, and average
  armor of 4, and a skill of 5. They aren't motivated much in
  either direction (they'd rather be swirling in the chaotic void),
  but they do have a weapon type superiority (tentacles, acid
  sprays, fear rolls, etc.). This gives them a 1 row shift, for a
  basic strength of 12, and a multiplier of 4.5, for a total of 54.
  2. Player contribution
  In addition, there is a party of characters involved, whose
  average damage is 4, with an armor of 7 and a skill of 6.
  They have a weapon type superiority over most of their
  foes, and all players declare themselves highly motivated.
  This gains them 2 rows. However, they lose 3 rows because
  they are such a small part of the overall army, so their base
  strength of 17 is multiplied by x.25, for an additional strength
  of 4. Not much, but the characters by themselves are an
  additional 8% of combat strength. The total for the good
  guys is 48 + 4 = 52.
  3. Guts & glory
  We'll assume one of the player characters is exactly aver-
  age. The base Difficulty of the guts task is 10 (twice the
  average chaos creature skill), +2 because the character is
  highly motivated, and +2 more because they are outnum-
  bered more than 2 to 1 (but less than 4 to 1), for a final
  Difficulty of 14. The character's skill is only 6, but they have
  complementary skills that drop the Difficulty to 13. A long
  shot is needed for success (roll a 1, then roll a 7 or less).
  Rolling a 2, they fail by 4 (they needed a 1, followed by a 7
  or less, so they take hits for 1, 2, 4, and 8 points, the last of
  which does 1 point to the character.
  The glory roll is a base Difficulty of 10, -4 for the odds and
  the character's motivation, -1 more for complementary skills,
  so they have a skill of 6 vs. a Difficulty of 5, for an automatic
  success. The character's group gains 2 points towards
  Influence.
  5. Fight battle
  Each side compares its Offense strength to the Defense
  strength of the opposing unit. Whichever side won the
  Special Ops contest may see how their opponent puts any
  Reserve points into Defense, and then decide whether to
  put any Reserve points into their Offense.
  The base "skill" for victory is zero, and the Difficulty of the
  task is a 3, with Difficulty modified as follows.
  Item
  Difficulty
  Your side has better military leaders (base on Military Sci)
  -1
  Your side has double the leadership skill of opponent
  -2
  Your side won the Intelligence contest
  -1
  Your Offense is less than .25x opponents Defense
  +3
  Your Offense is down to .25x opponents Defense
  +2
  Your Offense is down to .5x opponents Defense
  +1
  Offense and Defense within 10% of each other
  +0
  Your Offense is up to 2x opponents Defense
  -1
  Your Offense is up to 4x opponents Defense
  -2
  Your Offense is up to 8x opponents Defense
  -3
  Whichever side makes their roll by more "wins" the battle.
  An automatic success beats any rolled amount. Since you
  are rolling for a large number of people, ASP may not be
  spent on this roll.
  6. Resolve casualties
  The losing side compares their Escape value to the Offense
  of the winner, just like a battle was being fought, substituting
  Escape for Defense, with a base Difficulty of 7 instead of 3.
  Each point of difference means that number x 10% of the
  loser's forces were able to get away (up to 100%, obvious-
  ly). Highly motivated troops add 20% after this amount is fig-
  ured (better morale), and poorly motivated ones subtract
  20% (more likely to desert), again, up to 100%. Losers that
  don't “get away” are presumed to be captured or killed by
  the winners, or they cowardly slithered off when no one was
  looking.
  Example - A “skill” of 0 vs. an adjusted Difficulty of 7 means
  70% of the loser's troops retreated in good order.
  The winners take casualties as well, but their base Difficulty
  is 9 instead of 7. If characters are on the losing side, they
  have to make another "guts" roll, and take the result. If they
  take damage that brings them to a total of +10 or more
  impairment, then they have to roll to avoid capture. This is
  equal to the escape percentage or less. If a group votes to
  stay together, one player may roll for a group fate.
  ﬁ« Almost all battles have some casualties. Even a result of
  zero percent will have a few losses due to lucky shots, bad
  luck or friendly fire. In the event of zero losses, roll 1d10 and
  subtract 1 to get a more realistic percentage if needed.
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  Tactical notes
  Just so you don't mess up the first time you try to use this
  system, here are a few guidelines on how to allot your
  points. If a category isn't stressed, you should still have
  some points there, just not as many as in the main cate-
  gories.
  Strategy
  Stress
  All out attack
  Offense
  Very aggressive
  Offense, Reserve
  Aggressive
  Offense, Defense, Reserve
  Conservative
  All categories equal
  Defend at all costs Defense
  Fighting retreat
  Defense, Escape
  Hit and run
  Escape, with a few in Intelligence
  Mass combat and role-playing
  Would basically seem to be the opposite of each other, but
  there are a number of role-playing opportunities.
  First, characters can be the Special Ops team. While the
  rest of the battle is raging, you can do a small combat
  between the characters and whatever objective they are
  assigned to. If they succeed, their side gets to use their
  Reserve points for Offense if needed, or the characters may
  gain valuable information that gives their side a +1 on the
  battle resolution roll. If they fail, neither of these occurs. The
  characters still have to make guts & glory rolls for the main
  battle if they come back from their assignment.
  On the flip side, characters could be the target of someone
  else's Special Ops attack. The characters are usually much
  more powerful than the average combatant, so removing
  them from play subtracts their contribution from the battle.
  Second, there are always personality conflicts among lead-
  ers. The characters may be more skilled in group combat
  than the person who is actually in command, and if they can
  somehow gain this command for themselves, and keep the
  loyalty of their troops at the same time, it can make a big dif-
  ference in the battle. Dealing with morale problems, inde-
  pendently-minded subcommanders, spies and traitors can
  all be preludes to the main battle.
  Third, the characters can be unit commanders. A battle
  does not have to be fought between homogeneous forces. If
  there are four characters, then both sides could be split into
  four forces, and each character fights a battle with their own
  command and objectives. Whichever side wins more of
  these battles wins the day.
  Note that if characters kill a lot of their supreme leader's
  troops because of their battle tactics, this will not reflect well
  on them even if they win, especially if someone else did just
  as well with a lot less casualties.
  4. Allot combat points
  Of the 52 points the character's side has, 3 points are put
  towards combat intelligence. A further 4 points are put into
  Special Ops. Coinicdentally, this matches the character's
  contribution to the battle. A total of 20 points is put into the
  Offense, 15 into Defense, and 5 points into reserves, with 5
  points put into Escape (although the reserve could be used
  for that).
  The chaos creatures have 54 points. They put none into
  Intelligence or Special Ops, 44 points into Offense, and 5
  points into Defense and Escape. They are just going to
  cause casualties, and don't really care much about their own
  losses.
  5. Fight battle
  The good guys have an Offense of 20 vs. a Defense of 5.
  The base skill of the human forces is zero, and the Difficulty
  is a base of 3, with a -1 for winning the Intellgence bid, -2 for
  having 4x opponents Defense, for a total of 0, an automatic
  success vs. the skill of 0.
  The chaos creatures have an Offense of 44, vs. the human
  Defense of 15. They have a base skill of zero vs. a Difficulty
  of 3, and get a -1 Difficulty for having 2x the human
  Defense. This means they do not have an automatic suc-
  cess, and therefore the humans win. Yea!
  6. Casualties
  The losing side (chaos) now fights a battle for survival. The
  human side starts with zero vs. a Difficulty of 7, and uses
  their Offense of 20 vs. the chaos Escape value of 5. They
  modify Difficulty by -3, as before, so there is 4 points of dif-
  ference (skill 0 vs. Difficulty 4). This means around 40% of
  the chaos monsters live to fight another day, while the rest
  are dispatched where they lie.
  The chaos creatures now fight vs. the human Escape value
  of 5, which with 44 points would normally give them 8 to 1
  odds. The human reserves are called in at this point to
  make the human Escape value a 10, which reduces their
  bonus by a point. The chaos creatures start at zero, and get
  a -2 Difficulty for the odds, for a total Difficulty of 7 vs. skill of
  0. This is 7 points of difference, so normally only 70% of the
  human forces would have survived. However, they were
  highly motivated, and get the 20% bonus, for a total survival
  rate of 90%. The rest? C'est la guerre...
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  Sample units
  Some sample units are below. Their "possible advantages"
  represent those that would apply in battles against contem-
  porary forces. A Napoleonic soldier vs. a Medeival footman
  is not even because of the technoloigcal edge.
  Sample units
  Combat strength
  Possible advantages
  Peasant rabble (TL4)
  6
  None
  Mounted knight (TL4)
  18
  Mobility
  Medeival footman (TL4)
  10
  None
  TL6 soldier
  9
  Range
  TL6 artillery
  35
  Range
  TL8 soldier
  20
  None
  TL8 combat airplane
  25
  Mobility
  TL8 tank
  100
  None
  TL9 combat airplane
  60
  Mobility
  TL9 soldier
  21
  None
  TL9 medium tank
  700
  Mobility
  TL12 soldier
  25
  None
  TL12 medium tank
  1200
  Mobility
  TL12 combat airplane
  1500
  Mobility
  TL13 power armor
  75
  Mobility
  TL12 tactical nuke
  10000
  Area effect
  Example - The combat strength of a single modern tank
  (TL12) is around 1200. It gets a base quantity multiple of
  x.5. Put up against medeival rabble (TL4) it gets a 4 row
  shift for technological edge, and another row for ranged fire-
  power and mobility, for a total multiplier of x3.0, or a total
  combat strength of 3600. Peasant rabble has a combat
  strength of 6, and when you look at the numbers, no earthly
  quantity is going to ever do anything to that tank except pos-
  sibly gum up the treads. If you throw 1000 of them at the
  tank, that will be a total multiple of x3.5, for a combat
  strength of 21. Lousy odds. However, they do have 1000 to
  1 numerical superiority, which is good for a +10 Difficulty on
  the guts roll (if it were characters in the tank).
  To make it a more even fight, we'll make it a squad (8 men)
  of TL12 soldiers vs. medeival footmen. Each soldier has a
  base strength of 25, with a quantity multiple of x1.0. This
  gets shifted down 4 rows because of the technology edge,
  and another one because of superior range, night vision
  equipment, etc., for a total multiple of x3.5, and a total com-
  bat strength of 87. The footmen have a base strength of 10,
  and have no advantages. Again, no reasonable quantity is
  going to get them anywhere (the Zulu problem). If you throw
  1000 footmen at these soldiers, you get a total combat
  strength of 35. They will lose, but might be able to inflict a
  casualty or two. This presumes an open field battle. The
  TL12 soldiers can just stay at range and pick people off one
  at a time. If this fighting took place in a crowded medieval
  city, the TL12 troops might not get a ranged weapon advan-
  tage, and the defenders might get a home field bonus (mod-
  erate terrain advantage). This would alter the TL12 total to
  75, and the TL4 total to 40. This is still going to be brutal,
  but both sides are going to bleed this time.
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  “Money talks...it usually says ‘bend over’...”
  Anonymous
  Basics
  This section is devoted to the miscellaneous rules that will
  crop up on occasion, and are listed alphabetically by name
  for the overall category, and alphabetically for each subcate-
  gory. Anything that is not basic character creation or combat
  will from here to the back of the rules.
  Breaking Things
  Items will often take damage in combat or adventure situa-
  tions. If an item takes less damage than its AV, the damage
  is only nicks and scratches, which are effects that happen to
  all pieces of equipment over time. If the damage is exactly
  equal to the AV, there has been serious cosmetic damage to
  the object or that part of the object. It is still perfectly func-
  tional, although certain special effects may be negated, like
  a waterproof watch no longer being waterproof. If an item
  takes damage over its AV, count the size of the object as a
  “skill”, and the extra damage taken as a task Difficulty.  If the
  task is failed, the object is broken, probably irreparably. If
  the task is exactly made, the item will work, but erratically
  (add 2 to Difficulty of all tasks using the device), and if the
  task is automatically made, the object still works well.  Extra
  damage is cumulative for this purpose.
  Example - A size 3 gun with an AV of 4 is struck by a bullet
  that does 9 points of damage. This is 5 more than the AV of
  the gun, so the gun has a skill of 3 (its size) vs. a Difficulty 5
  task (the excess damage) to stay functional, or a 7 or less.
  Regardless of how large an item is, it usually will have a
  maximum Size for purposes of being broken.  This is based
  on the construction of the item. A statue made of eggshell
  porcelain has the same physical size as one made of
  bronze, but one is obviously less able to take damage.
  Item is:
  Maximum effective Size
  Delicate
  5
  Normal
  10
  Tough
  20
  Homogeneous
  Size
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  Very large items will have several subsystems, each with a
  specific effect if damaged. For instance, a car radio would
  be a single object for purposes of taking damage, but the
  car itself is a number of related items, each of which can
  take damage separately, with varying effects on the perfor-
  mance of the car.
  Fixing things
  Fixing something that is broken is usually a function of a
  particular skill, the size of the item, and the damage taken.
  The Difficulty is normally as below:
  Factor
  Difficulty
  Actual size of broken part + damage taken
  count as range
  Jury-rigged repair or total part replacement
  -2
  Average repair, functionality only
  +0
  Repair includes cosmetic damage
  +2
  Repair includes artistic restoration
  +4
  This gives the basic Difficulty of the repair task. The time
  needed for this task will be based on this amount (p.38), but
  the Difficulty is modified solely for time purposes as follows:
  Factor
  Difficulty
  No tools (if repair is possible at all)
  +8
  Improvised tools
  +4
  Adequate tools
  +2
  Exceptional tools
  +0
  Multiple people working at same skill level (up to -2)
  -1
  Item was well maintained before repair
  -1
  Item was poorly maintained before repair
  +1
  Item was very poorly maintained before repair
  +2
  Example - An average person changing a tire uses AGL
  Aptitude (a 1) as their skill. The tire has a size of about 50
  (A person is about size 100), and the Difficulty for taking a
  shot at 50 meters is 10. This drops to 8 because it is “out of
  combat”, and to 6 because it is total parts replacement
  (spare tire).  This means they have a skill of 1 vs. a Difficulty
  of 6, and a base repair time of 20 seconds (as per Task
  Difficulty, p.38).  However, the repair time is increased by +2
  for only having adequate tools (tire iron and jack), up to 2
  minutes. So, the untrained character gets to roll once for a
  long shot (skill 1 vs. Difficulty 6) each 2 minutes.
   
  ﬁ« Badly botched repair rolls can result in damaged parts or
  minor non-lethal or lethal impairments.
  i These rules can also be used to build things, but you can
  assume there is a +12 Difficulty for the time it requires.
  Example - A person with a complete tool shop decides to
  build a size 12 average, functional crossbow. The Difficulty
  for a range of 12 meters is 6, which goes to 4 for being “out
  of combat”. The Difficulty for time purposes is +12 more, or
  16, so provided our craftsman has all the materials and
  makes their skill roll, this will take about a day to complete.
  j
  R
  e
  LIFE IN THE
  REAL WORLD
  
  City
  Latitude
  January
  April
  July
  October
  Acapulco
  17°N
  26°C/8
  26°C/10
  28°C/3
  27°C/4
  Baltimore
  39°N
  1°C/5
  12°C/5
  25°C/4
  14°C/5
  Bangkok
  14°N
  26°C/8
  31°C/5
  27°C/4
  28°C/3
  Beijeng
  40°N
  -4°C/5
  14°C/5
  27°C/5
  14°C/5
  Berlin
  53°N
  2°C/6
  8°C/6
  23°C/5
  9°C/6
  Buenos Aires 24°S
  23°C/5
  16°C/5
  9°C/5
  16°C/5
  Chicago
  42°N
  -4°C/6
  9°C/5
  23°C/5
  13°C/5
  Copenhagen 56°N
  2°C/6
  7°C/6
  22°C/5
  9°C/5
  Dallas
  33°N
  7°C/6
  19°C/5
  30°C/5
  20°C/5
  Edinburgh
  56°N
  4°C/4
  7°C/4
  15°C/4
  9°C/4
  Geneva
  46°N
  4°C/5
  9°C/5
  25°C/5
  11°C/5
  Helsinki
  60°N
  -6°C/6
  1°C/6
  17°C/5
  6°C/5
  Johannesburg 26°S
  20°C/4
  16°C/5
  11°C/8
  18°C/5
  Juneau
  58°N
  -3°C/5
  5°C/5
  14°C/6
  6°C/6
  Leningrad
  60°N
  -8°C/7
  3°C/6
  18°C/5
  5°C/6
  London
  51°N
  7°C/6
  9°C/6
  23°C/6
  11°C/5
  Los Angeles
  34°N
  13°C/5
  15°C/6
  21°C/10
  18°C/7
  Moscow
  55°N
  -6°C/6
  4°C/6
  20°C/5
  4°C/5
  Nairobi
  1°S
  25°C/6
  19°C/3
  21°C/7
  19°C/5
  Paris
  49°N
  6°C/6
  11°C/6
  24°C/5
  11°C/5
  Rome
  42°N
  12°C/5
  14°C/6
  29°C/8
  24°C/4
  Seattle
  48°N
  4°C/4
  9°C/5
  17°C/6
  11°C/5
  Sydney
  34°S
  26°C/4
  19°C/4
  16°C/5
  19°C/5
  Tokyo
  36°N
  3°C/5
  13°C/6
  25°C/6
  16°C/6
  Example - On an average Chicago day in July, the average
  temperature will be around 23°C (up to 28°C during the day,
  down to 18°C at night), and the chance of rain is 1 in 10
  (skill of 0 vs. Difficulty 5).
  i Weather is useful to have as a game element, if it is not too
  obtrusive. Heavy clothes weigh characters down, mud
  impedes travel, rain reduces visibility and masks sound, and
  so on. Many important historical events have hinged around
  the weather at the time. Note that characters in a game
  world presumably have some intelligence about the weath-
  er, and will take precautions, and make plans accordingly.
  Climate
  The GM generally sets the climate for an area. Most of the
  time, the characters simply need to know whether it is hot or
  cold, dry or wet, and equip themselves accordingly.
  The quick way to do climate in a given area is to assume
  that the area has a “skill” of 0 at generating rainfall. The
  Difficulty of generating rain on any given day is usually a 10.
  Failure by a large amount means the weather is clear, suc-
  cess means it rains or snows, and a graze or near miss
  means heavy clouds or light precipitation. The Difficulty is at
  -1 per 1cm of rain that falls in a season (3 month period),
  and each time this is doubled (round down).
  Example - If the spring rains only total around 20cm, then
  there is only a 1 in 10 chance of rain each day (Skill 0 vs.
  Difficulty 5).
  Difficulty
  Rain per season
  Precipitation once per
  10
  0cm
  100 days
  9
  1cm
  30 days
  8
  2-3cm
  20 days
  7
  4-7cm
  14 days
  6
  8-15cm
  11 days
  5
  16-31cm
  10 days
  4
  32-63cm
  3 days
  3
  64-127cm
  2 days
  2
  128-255cm
  1.4 days
  1
  256cm+
  1 day
  The following cities have the average daily average temper-
  atures in °C listed for various times of year, with the appro-
  priate Difficulties for each season. Note that seasons in the
  Southern Hemisphere are the opposite of the ones in the
  Northern Hemisphere, hence the higher winter and lower
  summer temperatures in these areas. Daily highs are
  around 20% more than average, and daily lows are about
  20% below average (usually at least 3°C more or less than
  average). Areas far or near to water will vary more or less.
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  Arctic
  Cold temperate
  Temperate
  Warm temperate
  Subtropical
  Tropical
  Equatorial
  Tropical
  Subtropical
  Warm temperate
  Temperate
  Cold temperate
  Wet
  Arid
  Average
  
  Dosage
  These drug results presume you are using an appropriate
  dosage for the size of the creature being dosed. Each level
  of Toughness or Frailness or altered size will decrease or
  increase HLT task Difficulty by 1 in cases where it would
  apply (ingested or injected drugs usually). Likewise, you can
  deliberately overdose or underdose a drug, which will also
  change the Difficulty of the task, noting that many drugs can
  be lethal if overdosed by a significant amount.
  Mace
  Mace acts against WIL, and a spray to the face means
  the target must instantly complete a Difficulty 10 WIL task
  in order to take no effect. Failure is a 1 point penalty on
  AWR and all skills. Each subsequent second they must
  make another WIL task, with a Difficulty of 9, 8, 7, etc. If
  the task is failed, the target takes a cumulative 1 point
  penalty to AWR and all skills. Losses are recovered like
  exertion losses (base on current HLT), with a +2 on HLT
  if water is available for rinsing. Pain tolerance does not
  affect the actual impairment, but the character can sub-
  tract their pain tolerance from the total effect (a +3 effect
  on a WIL 6 person would only cause a +1 to their actions).
  Chloral
  This is usually ingested, and mixed with strongly flavored
  hydrate
  food or drink to disguise the taste (Difficulty 9 AWR task).
  The user must complete 4 Difficulty 10 HLT tasks at 15
  minute intervals to avoid taking effects. Each failure is a
  cumulative 2 point penalty to all skill use and attribute
  rolls (except HLT). When penalty exceeds both HLT and
  AWR, the character passes out. If the target fails all of the
  HLT rolls by more than their HLT, they will stop breathing
  when they pass out, and will require constant CPR in
  order to survive. The penalty to attributes and and skills is
  recovered like exertion losses, except the target's HLT
  starts at 1 for recovery purposes.
  LSD
  May be absorbed through any mucous membrane, or
  through the skin if mixed with an agent that can cross this
  barrier (like DMSO). The user must complete 4 Difficulty
  10 HLT tasks to avoid taking effects, at 10 minute inter-
  vals. Each failure reduces the user's AWR by 2, in the
  sense that 2 points of their AWR is experiencing things
  that aren't there. This can be very confusing and danger-
  ous when hallucination and reality are mixed, but once
  “real” AWR drops to zero, the character goes inert, lost in
  a world of their own. Addiction rating 4/1.
  Heroin
  May be injected, ingested or smoked, with varying onset
  times. If injected, user must complete 2 Difficulty 12 HLT
  tasks at HLT minute intervals. Each failure increases the
  user's WIL by 1 for pain tolerance purposes, and gives
  pain tolerance that applies vs. all damage. The user's
  AWR goes down by 2 for each failure, and they may hal-
  lucinate, but not usually in an energetic or violent way.
  Think “opium den” to visualize the effects. Effects wear off
  like a non-lethal impairment. Addiction rating 12/1.
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  Drugs
  Drugs may be used to immobilize, interrogate, knock out,
  deaden pain, speed healing, cause hallucinations, or have
  any number of other effects.  The only difference between a
  drug and a poison is the quantity and the reason it is admin-
  istered. Drugs will work against an attribute, and will have a
  Difficulty that must be successfully rolled against to avoid the
  effects of the drug. These effects will probably be a bonus or
  penalty to an attribute or specific portion of an attribute. 
  Most drugs may target HLT, but can act against any
  attribute, like STR and AGL for paralysis, HLT for systemic
  poisons, AWR for drugs that knock you out, and so on. 
  Example - Alcohol targets HLT, and affects AGL, AWR and
  skills based on them. The Difficulty of the task is 2, and is
  cumulative for each “dose” consumed in an hour. If AWR
  goes to zero from impairment, the character passes out and
  recovers from the effects at HLT points per hour. Skill in
  Drinking would add to HLT for purposes of holding your
  liquor.
  i The Difficulty of the task represents the potency of the drug.
  Multiple tasks should have to be completed over a period of
  time, as very few drugs or chemicals will allow you a single
  task to totally avoid their effects.
  Addiction
  Some drugs are addictive, either physically or psychologi-
  cally. An addiction rating is the maximum Difficulty of the
  WIL task a character will have to make to avoid taking the
  drug when it is available. An addiction rating starts at 0, and
  increases by the second number in the addiction rating each
  time the character uses it.
  A character can have the Psych Lim “predisposed to addic-
  tion”, which decreases their WIL by the level of the limitation
  for this purpose.
  A person who fails an addiction roll by more than their cur-
  rent WIL will perform irrational and/or criminal actions to get
  the drug, like theft, prostitution, assault and so on. Should
  this ever happen to a character, the GM has control of the
  character until after they get their latest dosage. The charac-
  ter may have some, little or no memory of events that tran-
  spired in the meantime.
  Withdrawal can lower a characters addiction rating by 1 per
  day, but usually with side effects that cause a 1 point penal-
  ty to all actions per 2 points of addiction, like cramps, fever,
  vomiting, depression, shakes and so forth. Even after with-
  drawal, the character may still have lingering desire for the
  drug, should they have an easy opportunity to use it.
  Example - A character with a level 6 addiction will have a
  +3 Difficulty to all actions from withdrawal for 2 days, a +2 for
  2 more days, a +1 for 2 more days, and be “clean” after that.
  
  Environment
  In most cases, characters will have more pressing enemies
  than the weather, but it may on occasion be necessary to
  brave the great outdoors to get something done.
  Pressure
  Humans and most other species need air to breathe, and
  tend to expire rather quickly if they don’t get it. Even minor
  variations in pressure can be debilitating.
  Pressure
  Effects
  Vacuum
  Increase exertion level by 4***
  Too thin
  Increase exertion level by 3**
  Very thin
  Increase exertion level by 2*
  Thin
  Increase exertion level by 1*
  Normal
  Normal
  Thick
  Increase exertion level by 1*
  Very thick
  Increase exertion level by 2*
  Too thick
  Increase exertion level by 3**
  Liquid
  Increase exertion level by 4***
  *
  Level 0 exertion is not increased
  ** HLT loss is counted as lethal impairment after it goes negative. Character dies if HLT
  reaches -(base HLT).  This level matches a totally inert atmosphere or breath holding.
  *** HLT loss is counted as lethal impairment. Character dies if HLT reaches -(base HLT)
  These gradations are left deliberately vague, and can apply
  to whatever pressure range a given species is comfortable
  with. Whenever HLT drops due to lack of breathable air, the
  character must make a current HLT task with a Difficulty of
  their base HLT. Failure means that the character passes
  out, with a time unconscious as for knockout rolls (base of
  10 seconds, times 2 for each extra point the roll is failed by).
  Conditions with very thick or thin atmosphere simply mean
  the character is getting no air, or not enough. Vacuum or liq-
  uid imply some inherent damage the character takes from
  the environment in addition to the lack of air.
  Example - A character with their head stuck underwater
  would be holding their breath, and would be in the “too thick”
  atmosphere category, since they aren't breathing, rather
  than breathing water, and all their exertions would be
  increased by 3 levels for purposes of exhaustion. When
  their HLT drops, they must make a HLT roll, or pass out,
  which would be very bad if this was an attempt to kill them.
  They would accumulate exertion points after passing out at
  the “too thick” rate (since water isn't inherently damaging),
  and when these reached a level where the total is double
  that which put them to zero HLT, they die. If trapped in a
  building when a carbon dioxide fire extinguishing system
  went off, they would also be at the “too thick” level.
  Example - A character with a HLT of 5 has 15 exertion
  points before their HLT goes to zero (5+4+3+2+1=15).  If
  they were drowning and passed out, the damage would be
  recovered like regular exhaustion, until they went below a
  HLT of 0. All points after that would count as lethal impair-
  ments, and when HLT went to -5 from accumulated exertion
  points (15 more), the character would die.
  Venom 1 This is typical for hemotoxic poisons like rattlesnake
  venom. The victim must make a Difficulty 8 HLT task after
  HLT minutes, or take a +1 lethal impairment to the site of
  the bite. This is repeated 4 more times, each time the
  number of minutes in HLT is doubled. Each time it is
  failed, the impairment is increased and the target must
  roll for an eventually fatal result, based on the total
  impairment and the location bitten (worse to be bit in the
  neck than the foot). An eventually fatal result can be treat-
  ed like any other lethal injury, but is bad news for animals
  (which don't have that skill). The impairment is recovered
  like any other lethal injury.
  Venom 2 This is typical for neurotoxic venoms like that of cobras.
  The victim must make a Difficulty 10 HLT task after HLT
  minutes, or take an overall +1 lethal impairment. This is
  repeated 4 more times, each time the number of minutes
  in HLT is doubled. Each time it is failed, the impairment is
  increased and the target must roll for an eventually fatal
  result, based on total impairment and location bitten.
  Eventually fatal results cannot usually be treated without
  modern medical facilities or antivenins. The impairment is
  recovered like any other lethal injury.
  TV drug This is that stuff they use in the movies to instantly knock
  someone out without a struggle. Immediately upon expo-
  sure, the victim must make a Difficulty 12 HLT task, or
  take a penalty to all rolls equal to the amount the roll was
  failed by. If this penalty is greater than the character's
  WIL, they pass out. If it more than twice their HLT, they
  stop breathing. This is recovered like exertion losses.
  Antidotes
  Once an antidote is administered, the Difficulty of resisting
  the effects is reduced by 2, as is any eventually fatal chance.
  First aid
  If pre-emptive measures are taken before half the time has
  elapsed to the first drug effects, the victim gets a -1 Difficulty
  for rolls to resist the effects of the drug. This could be things
  like sucking out venom, drinking coffee to stay awake, and
  so on.
  i Diseases act in much the same way, but are almost always
  targeted against HLT, and have onset times of days rather
  than minutes. Symptomatic treatment may reduce the
  Difficulty of the tasks by 1, and recovery from a disease will
  often provide some degree of immunity against getting the
  disease again (reduce the Difficulty of resisting infection by
  1 to 4).  A constantly mutating disease like the common cold
  would get no benefit, influenza might be at -1, while dis-
  eases that seem fairly stable (like measles) might give a -4
  immunity.
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  Temperature
  Humans have a comfort range of 15°-30°C. If hotter than
  this, or very humid, all exertion levels have 1 point added to
  them, a Level 1 exertion being 2 points per 10 minutes
  instead of 1 point, for example. Even if doing nothing, you
  will accrue 1 point per hour (which you recover under nor-
  mal circumstances). If the temperature is colder, you auto-
  matically accrue exertion points as your body tries to keep
  itself warm. From -5° to 4°C is an automatic 1 point addition
  to exertion cost, for example. When cold, you are automati-
  cally considered to accrue points at the level 1 rate (1 per 10
  minutes). When either cold or hot, you are considered to get
  your HLT at the end of the hour in recovery, applied to your
  HLT at the end of the hour after exertion is applied.
  Temperature
  Effects
  41° to 45°C (106°-113°F)
  Add 3 points to exertion loss
  36° to 40°C (97°-105°F)
  Add 2 points to exertion loss
  31° to 35°C (88°-96°F)
  Add 1 point to exertion loss
  16° to 30°C (61°-87°F)
  Normal
  5° to 15°C (41°-60°F)
  Add 0 points to exertion loss
  -5° to 4°C (23°-40°F)
  Add 1 points to exertion loss
  -15° to -6°C (5°-39°F)
  Add 2 points to exertion loss
  -25° to -16°C (-13°-4°F)
  Add 3 points to exertion loss
  A character does not die from exposure until HLT goes to
  negative its base value, just like for drowning. Also like
  drowning, all impairments accrued after HLT goes negative
  are considered lethal impairments. A character does not
  pass out from heat or cold until HLT goes to 0, although
  they will be feeling pretty poor when HLT drops to 2 or 1.
  Example - A HLT 5 character is lost in freezing weather (-5°
  to 4°C), and tries to huddle in the lee of a rock. They lose 2
  exertion points per 10 minutes, or 12 per hour, of which they
  will recover a few due to their regular HLT recovery (they go
  to a HLT of 2 from the cold, which lets them recover back up
  to a 4). However, unless they find shelter quickly, they will
  go to a HLT of 0 in the next hour, and begin to suffer frost-
  bite, passing into a coma and dying a few hours later.
  Armor will add its blunt trauma protection to effective tem-
  perature for negating freezing temperatures, but also adds
  to it for seeing if a character feels like they are in the >30°C
  bracket. This applies if the armor only covers the torso. If
  the armor covers the head or arms and legs as well, double
  the effect or temperature increase, and if the armor covers
  the whole body, triple it. Clothes designed for insulating from
  the cold have (Tech Level/2) times the normal effect, i.e. a
  TL12 winter jacket is 6 times as effective as a non-insulated
  jacket with the same rating. Note that things like hot meals,
  huddling together, etc. can also raise effective temperature.
  Example - A character with a 4/6 torso armor at 25°C will
  feel like they are at 31°C for exertion purposes (25°C plus
  6°C for the armor). If they added a helmet, they would feel
  like they were in the 37°C bracket (add 6°C more).
  ﬁ« Note that high-tech armors may have climate control to off-
  set these penalties. Of course, in cold conditions, having
  armor that keeps you warm might be a real benefit.
  The safe range for water is 5°C higher than air, or 21°-35°C.
  Count each 5°C below the safe range as the next lowest
  temperature bracket for effects. Count temperatures over
  35°C as in air, with physical damage occurring at 60°C and
  up. Wind will reduce the felt temperature by its velocity (up
  to 5m/sec). Wet characters will have wind effects tripled.
  Exertion
  How much stamina characters have is based on HLT.
  Exertion points are accrued when a character undergoes a
  given amount of physical stress, usually movement, and is
  affected by any load carried. These rules are not meant to
  be applied unless situation demands it, and normally can be
  used before or after a situation to see if characters have
  been overdoing it. For instance, after a fight, characters may
  be worn out from the leftovers of the adrenaline rush.
  Exertion
  Movement
  Accrue 1 point per
  Level 0
  none
  1 hour*/1 day*
  Level 1 
  1m/sec
  10 minutes
  Level 2
  2-4m/sec
  1 minute
  Level 3
  5-9m/sec
  10 seconds
  Level 4
  10-16m/sec
  1 second
  *Only for thirst and starvation purposes
  Example - If you run a 4 minute mile, that comes out to
  around 7m/sec on average, so you burn 1 exertion point
  each 10 seconds. There are 24 increments of 10 seconds in
  4 minutes, so you burn 24 exertion points in the effort.  
  Each time the total points accrued equals the character’s
  current HLT, their HLT is dropped a point from exertion.
  This is cumulative with any other HLT losses, but a drop to a
  HLT of 0 simply means that the character passes out until it
  rises back to 1, like if a character with reduced HLT from
  blood loss overexerted themselves. 
  The total number of exertion points a character has
  decreases as they get tired. A HLT 1 person has 1 exertion
  point. A HLT 2 person has 3 exertion points (2+1), a HLT 3
  person has 6 exertion points (3+2+1), and so on.
  Base HLT
  Total exertion points available
  1
  1
  2
  3
  3
  6
  4
  10
  5
  15
  6
  21
  7
  28
  8
  36
  9
  45
  10
  55
  
  The Law
  Since characters are going to be on the wrong side of it
  most of the time, it is a good idea to have some knowledge
  of the law. While many actions of the characters may go
  unreported by the victims simply because of their nature,
  others will not. For instance, if you torched a major drug lab,
  the owners would not cry “Arson!”, because that would risk
  discovery and arrest. They would have enough problems
  avoiding suspicion from the local fire marshall, without
  aggravating the situation by inviting a full-scale investiga-
  tion. However, if you were burgling a corporate headquar-
  ters for incriminating information, the security guards could
  easily arrest you, and prosecute you for breaking and enter-
  ing, trespass, and assault (a guard claims you attacked
  him). You might also be badly beaten up while “resisting
  arrest”. The law would be on your side in the first instance,
  and against you in the second. Any time that conventional
  means can be used to neutralize a threat (like the charac-
  ters), it is preferred to non-conventional means.
  The laws of the United States and foreign countries vary
  widely, as do the extent of their enforcement. Police depart-
  ments generally have an Influence of 1 level less than the
  population of that area. This is based on the log10 of the
  population. A city of 100,000 has a population of 5 (five
  zeros after the 1), and a police department with an Influence
  of 4. Characters require a certain level of Influence to get
  out of jail. Provided that another organization doesn’t use its
  Influence to keep you in jail, any group you work for can get
  you out if their Influence is greater than the Influence of the
  crime, and the organization’s Influence is applicable in that
  area of the world. If exactly equal, the best they can do is
  get you released on bail, and if less, you stay in jail.
  Influence can be matched or supplanted by money in many
  cases, or used if a character has no helpful Influence to get
  them out of a situation, like bail money. For instance, a
  crime that requires an Influence of 3 to get out on bail could
  be $1,000 bail, or $100 and a useful Level 1 Contact, or just
  an Influence of 3. The effective Influence of the local police
  depends on the nature of the crime you are accused of, as
  does the maximum influence, regardless of the locality in
  which the crime is committed.
  Example - The runner in the previous example needed 24
  exertion points to endure the stress of a 4 minute mile.
  Looking at the chart, you can see that you need a HLT of 7
  to actually have 24 exertion points.
  i For very long distance runs or hikes, you need to alternate a
  slower pace with a faster pace to get reasonable results.
  The exertion level from movement is increased by 1 if the
  character is carrying over their normal maximum load, and 1
  more for each multiple of it, so a STR 5 character (normal
  maximum load of 25kg) would be at Level 2 exertion if walk-
  ing (1m/sec) with 26-49kg, and Level 3 if carrying 50-74kg.
  ﬁ« As mentioned earlier, any loss of HLT subtracts directly from
  the normal human maximum move of 9m/sec.  As you get
  tired or weak, you slow down.  
  i Any skill which allows you to add to movement applies to
  your current top speed, and the exertion penalty to actions
  makes it harder to succeed.
  Recovery of lost HLT from exertion is at the rate of current
  HLT per hour, so in moderate cases, HLT loss will be fully
  recovered in an hour or less. This may be done in smaller
  increments if needed, a person with a HLT of 6 recovering 1
  point of HLT per 10 minutes, for example. Severe losses,
  like going to a HLT of 1, can take several hours to recover.
  Any leftover exertion points are kept until the recovery after
  the one that gets the character back to full. For recovering
  exertion or environmentally caused HLT losses, HLT never
  goes below 1 (otherwise people with 0 or negative HLT
  would never recover at all).
  Example - A character with a HLT of 6 burns 8 exertion
  points in a sprint, temporarily lowering their HLT to 5 (6
  exertion points lowers HLT to a 5, and the 2 remaining
  points apply towards lowering the 5 to a 4). Since they have
  lost a point of HLT temporarily, all the character's actions
  and skills also take a +1 (being tired is a penalty to all
  actions).
  They get back their current HLT in points per hour, or 1
  point per 12 minutes. So, after 12 minutes, they recover 1
  point of HLT, and are back to a 6. However the 2 leftover
  exertion points are still on the character until they get anoth-
  er recovery (which will be in 10 minutes, since their HLT is
  now at 6).
  Optional - To represent a “second wind”, when a character
  goes to half HLT (round to next lowest number) from exer-
  tion, they may at that instant “reset” their HLT back to full by
  taking an overall +1 lethal impairment. This may not be
  repeated until the lethal impairment has healed (usually
  about a week). This does not apply to permanent injury
  totals, but simply is a long-term drain of the body’s reserves
  of energy which takes a little while to regain.
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  Note that government police agencies like the FBI, Secret
  Service or Scotland Yard all have an Influence roughly equal
  to the population of the country, minus 1, so the United
  States FBI has an influence of 7 (7.4), while government
  police in El Salvador would have an influence of 6 (5.7).
  This only applies vs. Federal or government crimes, and
  only to characters under direct government custody.
  Misdemeanors
  Influence
  Pickpocketing
  3
  Vandalism
  3
  Shoplifting
  2
  Reckless driving
  3
  Driving while intoxicated
  3
  Assault
  3
  Concealed weapon possession
  3
  Minor drug possession
  4
  Breaking and entering
  4
  Manslaughter
  4
  Felonies
  Influence
  Auto theft
  4
  Kidnapping
  5
  Rape
  4
  Assault with a deadly weapon
  4
  Assault with intent to kill
  4
  Armed robbery
  5
  Drug distribution
  5
  Murder
  6
  Federal crimes
  Influence
  Assault on government agents
  5
  Trespass on government property
  3
  Lying to government agents
  3
  Drug smuggling
  6
  Bank robbery
  5
  Grand theft of government property
  5
  Kidnapping across state/territory lines
  5
  Air piracy
  5
  Piracy on the high seas
  5
  Treason
  7
  Other modifiers
  Modifier
  Local resident
  -1
  Public figure
  -1
  Previous felony conviction
  +1
  Previous felony conviction on related charge
  +2
  ﬁ« We didn't say the criminal justice system made sense or
  was on solid moral ground. These two concepts are often
  totally alien to the way things really work, both now and in
  numerous other cultures and times.
  The difference between various types of crimes is based on
  your campaign. “Misdemeanors” generally do not involve
  deliberate lethal violence, and moderate amounts of proper-
  ty loss or damage. A person with no criminal record would
  often be released on bail or their own recognizance for a
  misdemeanor arrest. Misdemeanors generally do not have
  any serious social or legal stigma attached to them.
  “Felonies” are more serious, and involve larger sums of
  money, deliberate violence with intent to maim or kill, or
  some action which is seen as detrimental to a large number
  of people. Bail is usually higher, and may be denied alto-
  gether, and convictions may disbar the person from certain
  activities, like holding public office, acquiring a weapon per-
  mit, or getting many regular jobs. “Federal” crimes are those
  which attempt to bypass or hinder the collection of govern-
  ment revenue, or challenge the authority of government rep-
  resentatives.
  Trial
  Normally, you would be left to the criminal justice system,
  whose wheels turn slowly, and crush the innocent and guilty
  alike. You however, are not just a common criminal, so
  whether you go free or not has little to do with your actual
  innocence or guilt.
  Provided you show up for your trial, your chance of convic-
  tion is a task equal to the Influence level of the crime, com-
  pared to the amount of Influence which is brought to bear by
  money spent on lawyers, publicity, bribes or any other skill
  or ability that can be used to manipulate the human psyche
  (and therefore the legal system). The Influence level of the
  crime is increased by any amount your enemies choose or
  are able to spend towards it, with a maximum increase in
  level of the initial level of the crime. To show that justice is
  not entirely blind, you get an additional 1 point in your favor
  if you are innocent, and a extra point against you if you are
  actually guilty as charged. There is always a 10% chance of
  conviction (a “10”), and a 10% chance of acquittal (a “1”).
  Example - Your character is framed for auto theft, a
  Influence 4 crime. You pay $10,000 in legal expenses, or a
  money Influence of 4, plus your innocence, for a total of 5.
  This would ordinarily give you an automatic success, but an
  appropriate Level 3 Enemy throws 3 points of Influence into
  negative media coverage and subverting witnesses, giving
  your task a Difficulty of 7 instead of 4. A level 5 defense on
  a level 7 task gives you a 70% chance of acquittal (7 or
  less). Using the “graze” rule, a roll of 7 might be a mistrial or
  hung jury, leaving open the chance of another trial at a later
  date.
  i For characters with legal training, they can count half (round
  up) their skill as their legal Influence if they represent anoth-
  er character, but only one-fourth (round up) if they have to
  represent themselves.
  
  If appeals fail, punishment follows. For misdemeanors, this
  is either a fine equal to the level of the crime, or a jail sen-
  tence of 1 day per 10Cr of equivalent fine, like 100 days for
  1,000Cr. There may be additional penalties as well, like
  revocation of driver’s license, rehab programs, etc. For
  felonies, someone wants you out of commission, so this is
  probably a jail term, like for misdemeanors. Wealthy individ-
  uals might get large fines. Parole may be possible after one-
  fourth the time is served, and time may be reduced by up to
  half for “good behavior” (fat chance). In addition, anyone
  convicted of a felony or federal crime in the U.S. may no
  longer vote, legally own a gun or run for public office
  (although this can be reversed, with the proper influence).
  Low-tech punishments will vary with the culture. Religious
  strictures may mandate punishments far beyond the severity
  of the crime (amputation for thieves, for instance), while cul-
  tures where status makes a difference will decrease the
  severity of the punishment for those above the median, and
  increase punishment for those below the median (like
  deporting children to Australia for petty theft).
  ﬁ« Low tech prison conditions are not to be envied, nor is the
  means of transport to distant prisons. Accelerated aging,
  HLT checks to survive malnutrition and disease, and skill
  checks to survive encounters with other prisoners and
  guards will be needed on a regular basis for any character
  who doesn't break out immediately.
  Living on the run
  If a character flees prosecution, they have to face an uncer-
  tain life. You need a valid identity to hold down a convention-
  al job, and pay records can be traced through government
  computers. Likewise, valid ID is needed for a vehicle
  license, auto purchase, credit card, bank account, gun per-
  mit, gun purchase, etc. You are no longer part of “the sys-
  tem”, and your existence must be in the shadows until you
  are cleared, or you can obtain a valid new identity.
  Characters wanted for major crimes at TL12+ cannot leave
  or re-enter a country by legitimate means, as computer files
  will tag the character’s passport number and alert authori-
  ties. While many countries have extradition treaties, they are
  not often invoked for minor crimes (say anything of Level 4
  or less). An Enemy might be able to use their Influence to
  change this, however.
  Note - You may have heard of “the statute of limitations”.
  This is the time period in which you can be charged for com-
  mitting a crime. If you are known as the culprit, with war-
  rants outstanding, there is no time limit on arresting you.
  However, if you are only a suspect, there is a time limit in
  which you can actually be charged with the crime. A year is
  usually sufficient, but for crimes of murder or treason, there
  is no time limit.
  Legal systems
  Different cultures will have differing legal mechanics, and
  these will have certain special effects.
  Inquisitorial
  If you are arrested, you are presumed guilty unless you prove your-
  self innocent. If the character cannot provide evidence of innocence
  (alibi, witnesses, etc.), then increase the severity of the crime by 1
  for purposes of conviction chance.
  Conciliatory
  The interest of the court is the fastest processing possible, due to
  overwork. The character may usually plead automatic guilt to a
  crime one level less severe, or demand a normal trial. If found guilty
  in the latter case, punishments will be increased up to double.
  Kangaroo court
  You are guilty, period. Only blackmail or credible threats of retalia-
  tion by outside parties are likely to be noticed.
  Mercenary
  The entire point of the legal system is to generate revenue, and
  people in jail don't do that too well. Almost all crimes are punished
  by fines or other economic penalties, some of which may go to the
  injured party (or their heirs). If you can't pay, you go to jail, which
  almost certainly involves “working” the fine off through very low-paid
  prison labor.
  Rule of law
  Law is more important than justice, and it is better that the innocent
  be hurt by adherence to the law than the law be altered for individ-
  ual circumstance. If you do the crime, you do the time. Mitigating
  circumstances will not affect conviction chance or punishment, only
  the determination of guilt is at stake.
  Procedural nightmare
  The legal system has become too complex for mere mortals to
  understand. Any verdicts of barely guilty or barely innocent (within 1
  point of the roll needed) results in appeals by the losing party, which
  will result in another trial, which costs additional money and may
  have additional incarceration time while waiting for it. Appeals will
  go on until a clear verdict is reached. If the defender runs out of
  money, they are presumed guilty until they acquire enough money
  for an appeal.
  Punishment
  If a character is found guilty, they can appeal, which will
  take 1d10 months to accomplish, and during which the char-
  acter will either be in or out of jail, depending on Influence.
  An appeal has the same chance of success as the initial
  trial, but costs money and Influence again.
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  In lower tech cultures, a person who flees the local legal
  authority is usually declared an “outlaw”. This means that
  since the character has refused to accept the judgement of
  the law, they have forfeited any legal protections of the law.
  The character has no more legal protection than a wild dog,
  and like the wild dog, can be killed without fear of retribution.
  This tends to make outlaws desperate people. If the local
  authority really wants the outlaw to be publicly punished, a
  reward will be offered for their capture, making it profitable
  to capture the outlaw instead of killing them.
  New identity
  For characters living outside the law, a new identity can be
  bought if you have the contacts or money, or your organiza-
  tion has the influence to procure it.
  Identity
  Influence/Cost*
  Poor (fake driver’s license)
  2/100Cr
  Moderate (real credit card)
  3/1,000Cr
  Good (valid passport and federal ID number)
  4/10KCr
  Excellent (valid birth, school and medical records) 5/100KCr
  Perfect (complete identity, with plastic surgery)
  6/1MCr
  *See Influence (p.125)
  Time can often be substituted for money, and each level of
  appropriate Contacts may be able to divide costs by 10, with
  a limit on maximum savings based on the contact type.
  Example - Your Level 1 street contact may be able to net
  you a savings when trying to score a fake driver's license,
  but is unlikely to know a good plastic surgeon.
  Poor ID’s pass visual checks only, like getting into a bar or
  cashing a check. Moderate ID’s pass basic computer
  checks or detailed visual checks, but may be stolen, or with
  limited lifetimes. They will not pass a check against corrobo-
  rating records. Good ID’s will pass detailed computer
  checks, but not a check vs. corroborating data, like school
  records. Excellent ID’s will pass almost any paper trail
  check, and perfect ID’s include a selection of bogus
  acquaintances, complete to the last detail. The Difficulty of a
  research task to uncover a false ID is double its Influence
  cost.
  In the course of their careers, characters will undoubtedly
  need to take advantage of these services.
  NPC’s
  NPC’s (or Non-Player Characters) are everyone in the game
  world that isn’t represented by one of the players. They can
  range from faceless, nameless nobodies, to powerful orga-
  nizational heads or world leaders. Each has a part to play.
  The detail an NPC is given depends on their importance.
  Combat NPC’s, who exist only to get into fights with the
  characters, only need the basic stats, plus their combat
  skills. Research NPC’s only need their AWR skills, but
  NPC’s that the GM expects to use over and over should
  have attributes, skills, personality and background.
  NPC Reactions
  When characters run into NPC’s in a social or professional
  situation, the chance of the NPC being impressed favorably
  or cooperating is based on the WIL of the character, and is
  a task with a Difficulty of the target’s WIL, plus 2, minus any
  WIL difference between the characters. Any interpersonal
  skills may be used instead of WIL, or as a complementary
  skill to the WIL task. If there would be a favorable reaction
  based on Psych Lims, then this applies in the character’s
  favor, and negative reactions go against them. Interrogation
  is based on double the WIL of the target. If a character or
  NPC has a reputation, personal influence or an intangible
  like higher social status, it may add to their WIL, while influ-
  ence skills may be used instead of WIL. 
  Naturally, the reaction should be based on the dialog
  between the character and the NPC, but this serves as a
  quick way of judging.
  A roll that fails by 2 or less is ambivalent, failing by 3 or 4 is
  negative, and a failure by 5 or more is extremely negative.  
  Example - A WIL 5 character meeting a WIL 5 contact in a
  bar for the first time has a 7 in 10 chance of making a favor-
  able impression, since it is a Difficulty 7 task (contact’s
  WIL+2) vs. the characters’ WIL (a 5). If both had a similar
  hobby or interest, the character would get a +1 on their WIL.
  If the contact had a Level 2 Psych Lim “no respect for
  women”, and the character was a woman, the contact’s WIL
  would be a 7 instead of a 5.
  ﬁ« Note that leaving a favorable impression is a relative term.
  A psychopath may just maim you instead of killing you on a
  good reaction roll.
  Determining the emotional state (unhappy, lying, hiding
  something) of an NPC is a Psychology task vs. the person's
  WIL, and modified by any applicable Psych Lims. A person
  who is attempting to stonewall can add any Psychology or
  other applicable skills to their WIL, as can a person who is
  deliberately being evasive or trying to pass false informa-
  tion. Think of this as the mental equivalent of a melee block
  or dodge, and note that a person without skills to hide their
  true feelings still gets their AWR Aptitude to add to their WIL
  in any case. NPC's can also do this to characters...
  
  Concealed weapon permit - Some states have their own,
  non-transferable concealed weapon permits. To get one
  requires a criminal background check, fingerprinting, and a
  legitimate need for the weapon (which varies widely). It is
  issued only for a single, registered weapon. Legitimate
  needs vary, but may include licensed couriers, police (off-
  duty), private investigators, wealthy businessmen, and
  important individuals who have been the target of threats.
  This is a Level 5 item for Influence purposes.
  Federal weapon permit - This allows the bearer to carry a
  concealed firearm anywhere in the United States, including
  airline flights. It requires a criminal background check, and a
  government job which requires the carrying of a concealed
  weapon, or a position important enough to need one for
  possible self-defense. Examples include cabinet ministers,
  agency heads or legislators. It is a Level 6 item for Influence
  purposes, if available at all. Normally it is not a document,
  but an Authority granted by the government to certain indi-
  viduals while they are employed on the government's behalf
  (i.e. an FBI agent uses his FBI papers to justify weapon pos-
  session, not a “federal weapon permit”).
  Automatic weapons permit - These are issued only by the
  federal government, and provide for the legal ownership of
  an automatic weapon. In the US it requires a criminal back-
  ground check, approval by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco
  and Firearms, and a 200Cr fee per approved weapon. It
  also gives them the right of spot inspection to insure you still
  possess the weapon in question. This is a Level 5 item for
  Influence purposes.
  Passport - A passport is required for all travel from the US
  to any country other than Canada, Mexico, some Caribbean
  islands and all US dependencies (Guam, Puerto Rico, etc.).
  It requires valid proof of identity, not being a wanted crimi-
  nal, and usually takes 1-2 months to process. This is a Level
  4 item for Influence purposes.
  Pilot’s license - Required to legally pilot any form of air-
  craft. The character must have passed certification for the
  appropriate type of plane (skill of 3), and must maintain a
  minimum number of flying hours to retain the license
  (adventure use or yearly practice). The only category that
  does not require a license is ultralight aircraft. This a Level 4
  item for Influence purposes.
  Visa - Aside from a passport, many countries require an
  entrance visa for travel into or through that country. This
  requires permission of the government in question, and is
  usually a formality for those travelling as “tourists”. This will
  usually take 1-2 months to process, although many coun-
  tries will issue “travel visas” or “tourist visas” with only a
  short delay, at any convenient border. Many countries do
  not require visas at all for tourists.  A regular or work visa is
  a Level 4 item for Influence purposes, and requires Influence
  extending into that country.
  Papers & Paychecks
  Anywhere past TL10, people begin to exist in a seriously
  electronic, documented society. In order to to function within
  its normal bounds, you need to have certain items.
  Characters who are “clean” can get most of these on their
  own. For influence purposes, they can be gotten as either
  usable forgeries, or valid ones under different identities.
  Forgeries may look good, but will not stand up to any other
  kind of inspection. A store can determine the validity of a
  credit card in a minute or less, bank machines won’t accept
  phony cards, and police can check a driver’s license from
  any state over the radio in 10 minutes or less. Some modern
  identification is below. Some of these may have lower tech
  equivalents, depending on the culture.
  ATM card - Any bank account with a balance of over 500Cr
  is sufficient for this. You can withdraw up to 300Cr per day
  at any bank machine in that country, with an extra 1Cr fee
  for using another bank’s machines. Some will let you draw
  more than your current account balance, but charge a hefty
  fee. This is a Level 2 item for Influence purposes.
  Credit cards - Accepted worldwide at major stores, hotels
  and brothels. To get one, you need either 2,000Cr in the
  bank, or a regular job (if only as cover) that pays at least
  15,000Cr a year. Or, you can just wave your hands at the
  bank and have someone who qualifies countersign the
  application. This is a Level 3 item for Influence purposes.
  Driver’s license - This is required for legal operation of a
  motor vehicle. You need to have Familiarity or better and be
  a resident of the area in question to legally acquire one of
  these for any given vehicle class (car, cycle, semi, etc.).
  This is a Level 3 item for Influence purposes.
  International driver’s license - This is a driver’s license
  that gives you some legal protection when driving in foreign
  countries. It requires an application for the country or coun-
  tries involved, a good driving record, and a 1-2 month wait.
  This is a Level 3 item for influence purposes.
  Weapon permit - To legally own a weapon in many U.S.
  cities, a weapon permit is required. This is not transferable,
  and does not give the right to carry the weapon on your per-
  son. Most people don’t bother with them, as you only get in
  trouble if unauthorized weapons turn up in a search of your
  premises, and by then you have other things to worry about.
  This requires a clean criminal background, and is a Level 3
  item for Influence purposes.
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  Smuggling
  This is a large-scale variation of hiding things, and may also
  be combined with bribery and other skills. Characters
  attempting to smuggle things across a border will usually
  have to deal with machine-based security (x-ray machines,
  etc), and person-based security (customs officials, dogs,
  etc.).  These can be given “security ratings”.  For a machine,
  it is the “Difficulty” for an item to trigger it. It is compared to
  the size of the items in each parcel, using the size of the
  item as its “skill”. 
  Example - A character tries to get a Size 1 knife past a
  Difficulty 5 metal detector. So, this is a skill of 1 vs. a
  Difficulty of 5, or a 1 in 10 chance of triggering the detector.
  An exact match is an ambiguous result, and may result in a
  package or person being pulled aside for manual inspection.
  An airport “walk-through” metal detector would have a
  Difficulty of 4 or 5. If a detector picks up a class of items, all
  items of that type would add their sizes together.  So, a per-
  son carrying a size 2 gun and a size 1 metal keyring has a
  total of 3 points of metal on them for triggering a metal
  detector.  Some of the modern plastic-based guns use half
  their size instead of the full size, rounding fractions down.
  People-based security is based on bribery. Officials will
  have a certain “fee schedule” and methods, which will also
  have a Difficulty rating. A successful use of bribery skill lets
  the character know the proper route to take, but the skill
  alone does not actually pay the bribes, which will be based
  on the overall level of local corruption and the illegality (or
  supposed illegality) of the deed.  For instance, Mexican
  Customs might have a Difficulty rating of 4, and a fee sched-
  ule based on the type of traveller. For a “tourist” who wants
  their bags to not be searched for quicker passage through
  an airport, the fee is 20Cr in most cases. A chartered plane
  would be significantly more, as would a yacht or freighter.
  ﬁ« Note that security measures are applied at both ends of a
  trip across a border, but manual searches are more likely
  when you enter a country instead of leaving it.
  Hiding things
  Trying to conceal an item on your person is commonly done.
  An article of clothing has a concealment level, and items
  have a size. The chance of spotting a hidden item (but not
  its nature) on a casual view is an AWR task for the range,
  with an extra Difficulty of any surplus space. That is, a very
  perceptive person will spot the telltale bulge easier than a
  non-perceptive person. They have to be looking for it to see
  it, or have some background where they would uncon-
  sciously notice such things, like a policeman. A light frisking
  will give a -2 to the Difficulty of the AWR roll for the areas
  frisked, and a detailed frisking will give a -4. Naturally, a
  strip search finds everything.
  Area
  Concealment level
  Baseball cap
  5
  Pocket
  5
  Shoe
  5
  Boot
  9
  Ankle holster
  9
  Oversized shirt
  10
  Hip holster under jacket
  10
  Jacket w/shoulder holster
  12
  Suit w/shoulder holster
  13
  Custom suit w/shoulder holster
  14
  Trench coat (only 12 vs. a frisk)
  16
  Example - A large pistol has a Size of 3.  If you carried one
  in a shoulder holster under your jacket, there would be 9
  points of concealment left. So, an average person (AWR of
  5) making a short range, casual look for bulges would have
  to add 9 to the Difficulty of the task.  
  At a range of 2 meters, the Difficulty for range would be 2 (if
  it is out of combat), so the observer would have a total
  Difficulty of 11 to spot the pistol. This isn't likely (which is the
  entire point of it being concealed, after all). Trying to carry a
  Size 8 Uzi under a jacket with 12 points of concealment
  means there is only 4 points left, so this observer would
  have only a Difficulty 6 task to spot the bulge (4 points of
  surplus concealment, +2 for the Difficulty at the range of 2
  meters).
  ﬁ« Characters with extra levels of size get +2 to the conceal-
  ment rating of any article of clothing per level of extra size,
  and characters with reduced size get -1 to the rating per
  level.
  If successful, they would know that you have a suspicious
  bulge, but not its identity. However, suspicion might be
  enough in some cases... Note that the Size of items is
  cumulative to detect if something is hidden, but does not
  reveal what is hidden. If your pockets are full, your pockets
  look full, but that is it. Size 0 items are counted as Size .2 for
  purposes of cumulative effect.
  
  Spotting things
  Usually, any use of perception is an AWR task. The base
  Difficulty to hear something is the Difficulty for range, like in
  ranged combat, compared to the character’s effective AWR.
  This may either be “in combat”, or “out of combat”, depend-
  ing on the situation.
  For seeing something, it is the same, except you divide the
  range-based Difficulty by 2 (round down). The Difficulty of
  the task is adjusted as follows. Modifiers for sight apply after
  halving Difficulty for range.
  Vision
  Difficulty
  Camouflage
  +1
  Size
  as called shot
  Time
  as skill use
  Poor visibility (also applies to combat)
  +1 to +4
  Target movement
  as for combat
  Viewing broad area (60° arc)
  +4
  Viewing average area (30° arc)
  +2
  Viewing small area (15° arc)
  +0
  10x binoculars (arc viewed still applies)
  -3
  20x spotting scope (arc viewed still applies)
  -5
  Stealth task vs. (AWR-(range penalty/2))
  +amount made by
  Sound
  Difficulty
  Gunshots
  -DV
  Silenced weapon
  -(DV/5)(round up)
  Screams
  -4
  Loud conversation
  -2
  Average conversation
  +0
  Background noise
  opposite of above x 2
  Quiet background
  -1
  Very quiet background
  -2
  Intervening light wall
  +2
  Intervening heavy wall
  +4
  Example - To hear an average conversation in a restaurant
  booth 6m away, over the normal background noise would be
  a base Difficulty of 5 (for range), -2 (non-combat), and +4
  (background noise), for a total Difficulty of 9.
  Example - To spot a camouflaged person crawling through
  tall grass 50m away (after you know about where they are)
  would be a base Difficulty of 4 (range Difficulty, halved), +1
  (for camouflage), and +2 (poor visibility), for a total of 7. To
  this would be added the amount the sneaking person made
  any Stealth task by. For instance, if the GM said this was a
  Difficulty 3 task (task is easier than normal because of tall
  grass), and the character had a skill of 5, they would auto-
  matically make the roll by 2, making the total Difficulty a 9.
  Or, they could trust to luck and roll a die, knowing that on
  average they would make the roll by more than 2, but also
  knowing that they could also roll a 10 and fail, which would
  increase the chance they were spotted.
  Some items are too bulky or long to hide under most articles
  of clothing (except possibly trench coats or cloaks). An
  example would be a shotgun. It is up to the GM to determine
  if an item's dimensions make it impractical to hide, regard-
  less of its Size.
  Weapons with two sizes (like 5(8)) have folding stocks or
  something similar. The stats of the weapon are based on
  the larger size if it is a two-handed weapon, and the smaller
  size if a one-handed weapon. Two-handed weapons with
  folding stocks are usually 3 points smaller when folded, and
  gain 1 point of Initiative, but lose 2 points of Range Mod and
  the ability to use telescopic sights. One-handed weapons
  which use folding stocks gain 1 point of Range Mod, and
  lose 1 point of Initiative when the stock is in use.
  Example - An assault rifle with a folding stock has stats that
  assume the stock is unfolded and being used. If you fire it
  with the stock folded, you take penalties. On the other hand,
  a machine pistol with a folding stock has stats representing
  one-handed use. If you unfold the stock, the weapon is
  automatically more accurate, but now requires both hands
  to use.
  Body armor
  Armor worn under clothing has a size as well.  This acts nor-
  mally for concealment purposes, but since armor is tailored
  to fit the body, this number represents how bulky it is under
  clothing, not how bulky it is in a backpack or piece of lug-
  gage. Concealed armor and concealed objects are cumula-
  tive for concealment purposes over any locations where
  both apply.
  Example - A character wearing a jacket and shoulder hol-
  ster has a concealment level of 12. If they had a Level II bul-
  letproof vest under this (Size 4) and were carrying a Size 3
  pistol, the total would be a Size of 7. This means the base
  Difficulty of spotting something is 12 minus 7, or 5. Almost
  anyone who comes close and cares to look will notice the
  extra bulk underneath the outfit.
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  i
   
  Note that for stealth, the longer the range, the easier it is
  (the base Difficulty is their AWR 
   
  minus the range penalty).
  However, stealth requires that there be some cover to hide
  behind. All the stealth in the world won’t hide you in the mid-
  dle of an empty football field. The GM can arbitrarily add to
  the Difficulty of any stealth task based on available cover
  and background noise.
  ﬁ« This perception system only works for relatively short
  ranges (out to about a kilometer), and is designed for people
  spotting other people. For strategic rather than tactical visu-
  al spotting, divide the Difficulty for range by twice the size
  modifier of the object looked for instead of by 2. This will
  suffice for seeing jets in the sky, vehicle movement at long
  range, etc., but is a little more cumbersome, and still has its
  limits (you can’t spot the Moon, for instance).
   
  Lighting
  Flashlights and other light sources will negate part or all of a
  darkness penalty (poor visibility), and may have a rating,
  which drops by 1 point for each range step for area lights,
  each 2 range steps for broad beams, and each 4 range
  steps for tight beams. So, a +4 broad beam flashlight will
  negate all darkness penalties in its arc for 2 range steps, 3
  points of darkness penalties for the next 2, and so on.
  Trying to see a particular thing while staring into a light
  takes similar penalties, and this does affect aiming if you
  can't spot your target against the glare.
  Tech Levels
  The term Tech Level is a convenient number for categoriz-
  ing the technological advancement of a given culture.
  CORPS will assign these advancements numbers from 1 to
  15, and for those TL’s which we have already experienced,
  equivalent dates as well.  For reference, the very end of the
  20th century is just between TL11 and TL12 in this system.
  Tech Level Approx. date
  Things developed during this TL
  1
  10000BC
  Stone tools
  2
  3000BC
  Metal tools, taxes, beer
  3
  1000BC
  Sailing, long-distance trade
  4
  0AD
  First rockets
  5
  1400AD
  First gunpowder weapons
  6
  1700AD
  Steam engines, basic physics
  7
  1800AD
  Percussion weapons, germ theory
  8
  1900AD
  Cartridge weapons, vacuum tubes
  9
  1930AD
  Atomic bombs, antibiotics, transistors
  10
  1960AD
  Microchips
  11
  1980AD
  Early genetic engineering
  12
  2000AD
  First fusion reactors, cloned parts
  13
  2100AD
  Energy hand weapons, hyperdrive
  14
  2200AD
  Full cloning, antimatter power
  15
  2300AD
  Full development of all previous tech.
  Within any widespread civilization, there will be local varia-
  tions, and within different types of technology there may
  also be variation. For instance, biotechnology might be
  ahead of microelectronics.  A general guide is below.
  Advanced research in highest tech culture
  +1 TL*
  Wealthiest or most powerful culture
  +0 TL
  Second-rate power or culture
  -1 TL
  Third-rate power or culture
  -2 TL
  *Usually more in theory than practice
  Note that this does not prevent outside items from being
  imported from one culture to another, but such items will be
  higher priced, and probably cannot be manufactured locally,
  unless of course a powerful culture uses a less powerful one
  as a source of cheap labor. Even then, the technology and
  expertise for manufacturing will have been imported.
  Example - The United States in 1900 was at TL8, as were
  the major European powers, and the scientific research
  there was exploring TL9 concepts. Russia was TL7 and
  rapidly narrowing the gap in some areas, while China was
  TL6 and stagnant.
  Naturally, if the area is large enough and conditions allow,
  aborigines at the lowest TL’s may still exist, even in a world
  that is 10 or more TL’s higher.
  i Tech Levels theoretically go up to TL26, but anything higher
  than TL15 is beyond the laws of nature as we currently
  understand them. Developments leading to TL16 will repre-
  sent a profound change in our understanding of the uni-
  verse, much as E=mc2 changed things at TL8-9.
  
  You and your body
  Characters in most genres will be human or something rea-
  sonably close. This means that you will fall within certain
  norms and absolute limits as to what you can do. Strength
  has been covered earlier, so this section has other stats you
  may occasionally need to know.
  Running
  Humans have a normal running top speed of 9m/sec, and
  an absolute maximum of 12m/sec without paranormal assis-
  tance. Other races may vary.
  You can normally accelerate a quarter (round nearest) of
  your racial maximum per turn, or decelerate half (round
  nearest) your racial maximum per turn. Level 1,2,3 and 4
  exertion usually correspond to 10%, 20%, 40% and 80% of
  your racial maximum speed (round up).
  Jumping
  A human character can do a standing horizontal jump of
  twice their STR Aptitude in meters, which may keep frac-
  tions if necessary.  A running jump adds 1 meter for each 2
  meters of movement. Jumping down will add 1 meter for
  each meter dropped, up to the character’s movement, and
  jumping up will subtract 4 meters horizontally for each meter
  up. Characters who are overweight or encumbered will take
  penalties on their effective STR, and those who are under-
  weight will get a bonus on their STR.
  Swimming
  A character who fails a swimming task is assumed to be
  fully exerting themselves to stay afloat (remember encum-
  brance). You can hold your breath just like the previous
  example for being in a “too thick” atmosphere, where it adds
  to the exertion points a character accrues for any actions
  performed. A character who is floundering about and pan-
  icking may be “breathing” water, which is worse than being
  without air, but accrues exertion points at the same rate.
  Throwing
  A character can throw a balanced, aerodynamic object up
  their STR squared (STR x STR) in meters, divided by twice
  the mass of the object, with a maximum throw range of 100
  meters (superheroic characters may have greater throw
  range). For example, a STR 5 person could throw a .25kg
  grenade up to 50 meters (25/.5). A running throw or “wind-
  ing up” (takes 1 second) adds 1 to effective STR per 4
  meters of movement (minimum of +1 STR), while an awk-
  ward or off-hand throw will subtract 2 or more from effective
  STR. If an item can be effectively thrown with both hands
  (usually while stationary), they can add 2 to effective STR.
  Any impairment to the throwing arm or torso will affect the
  effective STR of the character. For accuracy purposes, note
  that it about a Difficulty 9 task to reliably put pitches in the
  strike zone for a baseball pitcher.
  Travel
  Characters are going to travel quite a bit, and the costs add
  up. The table below covers travel speeds and costs.
  Travel mode
  Speed
  Boarding
  per 100km
  On foot
  3kph
  none
  -
  Horse
  6kph
  none
  -
  Stagecoach
  12kph
  1 day
  20Cr
  Sailing ship (TL7)
  12kph
  2 days
  20Cr
  Steamship (TL7)
  10kph
  2 days
  25Cr
  Steamship (TL8+)
  30kph
  2 days
  50Cr
  Hydrofoil/hovercraft
  100kph
  60 min
  50Cr
  Personal car (autobahn)
  200kph
  none
  10Cr
  Personal car (hwy)
  100kph
  none
  10Cr
  Personal car (town)
  50kph
  none
  10Cr
  Personal car (city)
  20kph
  none
  10Cr
  Taxi
  as road
  5 min
  50Cr
  Limousine
  as road
  30 min
  100Cr
  Long distance bus
  100kph
  30 min
  5Cr
  City bus
  20kph
  10 min
  5Cr
  Train (TL8)
  50kph
  30 min
  5Cr
  Train (TL9+)
  100kph
  30 min
  5Cr
  Bullet train (TL11+)
  200kph
  30 min
  10Cr
  Light air charter for 6
  600kph
  30 min
  100Cr
  Passenger jet (TL10+)
  1000kph
  60 min
  25Cr
  Modifiers (if applicable)
  Cost
  Extremely cheap
  x.50
  Cheap
  x.75
  Average
  x1.0
  Luxury
  x2.0
  Hazardous terrain to cross or monopoly on route
  x2.0
  Fare bought within 7 days of trip
  x1.5
  Fare bought more than 14 days before trip
  x.50
  Speed is the average speed you can manage on a long trip,
  assuming you are not heavily burdened down, and includes
  any necessary stops for fuel, food and bodily functions.
  Boarding is the time you should allot to get that form of
  transportation once you arrive at the boarding location, and
  covers luggage check-in, etc. The per 100km number is the
  fare or expenses per 100km of travel. 
  Modifiers apply to any travel which has multiple levels of
  quality. Extremely cheap fares are generally only found in
  poor countries, and in fact may be extremely cheap due to
  currency exchange advantages.
  Example - A group of characters in a Victorian-era game
  (TL8) decide they want to book normal passage from
  England to the United States (about 4000km). On average,
  they will have to wait 2 days for the next departure. The cab-
  ins will cost around 2000Cr per person, and the trip will take
  about 6 days if they aren't delayed by weather or other con-
  cerns. 
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  The number of attacks is equal to the DV, and is combina-
  tion damage (odd amounts being non-lethal). For instance,
  a DV3 fall would be three attacks, each doing 2 points of
  non-lethal and 1 point of lethal damage. Separate locations
  are rolled for each “attack”. Hard, unyielding surfaces will
  either add 1 to the damage, or make the odd numbered
  points of combination damage lethal instead of non-lethal.
  Example - If thrown as in the previous example for a DV of
  2, the character would take a pair of attacks, and each
  would do 2 points of combination damage. 
  Armor of any type only stops as much falling damage from
  each hit as the characters STR Aptitude. It cushions against
  any particularly hard edges, but the character simply falls on
  their armor rather than the ground. If the armor is designed
  to absorb impacts like this, it may get up to its soak value.
  For jumps, the first two “attacks” must be split between the
  legs, with the remainder rolled for randomly. Armor does not
  apply normally vs. falling damage. Falling rules also apply to
  other types of impact damage, like getting hit by a car, and
  the impact velocity is counted as an equivalent height.
  Hunger
  Characters who do not get enough food to eat do not get
  their full HLT for recovery purposes on the next day.
  Adequate food is about 1kg, plus .5kg for each 4 points of
  HLT lost to exertion that day (losing 1 point of HLT four
  times counts as 4 points of HLT lost). If no nourishment is
  taken, the character automatically accrues 1 exertion point
  in addition to anything else done that day, and this exertion
  point is not recovered. This means that the HLT and recu-
  perative ability of the character will slowly decrease, and
  when HLT reaches zero, they die of starvation or complica-
  tions of the prolonged fast.
  Example - A character with a HLT of 5 goes without food for
  a week. So, they accrue 7 exertion points which cannot be
  recovered, which drops their HLT to 4, with 2 exertion points
  towards it going to 3. This loss of HLT means they take a +1
  to all their skills and attribute rolls due to malnourishment.
  Since a character with a HLT of 5 has a total of 15 exertion
  points, they can survive 15 days without any food. 
  Partial rations decrease HLT by a fractional amount, like
  taking an exertion point every other day on half rations.
  Total rest will also halve the rate at which points are lost.
  Once adequate food is found, the lost HLT is recovered as a
  lethal injury, that is, current HLT towards your full HLT, per
  30 days, making a full recovery from near-death a prolonged
  task. Note that hunger losses may be counted as lethal
  impairments for long-term injury purposes if the GM wants
  to do so.
  Mass
  STR
  .25kg
  .5kg
  1kg
  2kg
  5kg
  10kg
  20kg
  50kg
  1
  2m
  1m
  .5m
  -
  -
  -
  -
  -
  2
  8m
  4m
  2m
  1m
  .5m
  -
  -
  -
  3
  18m
  9m
  5m
  2m
  1m
  .5m
  -
  -
  4
  32m
  16m
  8m
  4m
  1.5m
  1m
  .5m
  -
  5
  50m
  25m
  13m
  6m
  2.5m
  1m
  .5m
  -
  6
  72m
  36m
  18m
  9m
  3.5m
  1.5m
  1m
  .5m
  7
  98m
  49m
  25m
  12m
  5m
  2.5m
  1m
  .5m
  8
  128m
  64m
  32m
  16m
  6.5m
  3m
  1m
  .5m
  9
  162m
  81m
  41m
  20m
  8m
  4m
  2m
  1m
  10
  200m
  100m
  50m
  25m
  10m
  5m
  2.5m
  1m
  Thrown items are treated like any other ranged weapon for
  purposes of modifiers on chance to hit, and usually have an
  initiative modifier of +0, and Range Mod of 0.
  ﬁ« If an item is so large that simply carrying it encumbers the
  character, the apply this encumbrance modifier to the
  Initiative of any attempts to throw it rather than to the char-
  acter's chance to hit.
  Falling
  Falling damage is treated as separate attacks to different
  parts of the body. The DV of a controlled fall is the same as
  the firearms Difficulty for that range, minus the character's
  STR or AGL Aptitude (whichever is better), and with another
  -2 for “out of combat”. For instance, a 5-9m fall is a Difficulty
  of 5, minus 1 for average STR or AGL Aptitude, minus 2
  more, leaving a DV of 2. Uncontrolled falls do not get STR
  Aptitude. Acrobatically inclined skills at a level of familiarity
  or better may be added to STR or AGL for determining
  “Aptitude”. The table below shows the base DV from a fall,
  taking the “out of combat” -2, but not STR Aptitude.
  Distance fallen
  Base DV
  Time
  Equivalent
  1m
  1
  .4 sec
  Fence
  2-4m
  2
  .8 sec
  High wall
  5-9m
  3
  1.2 sec
  2nd story window
  10-16m
  4
  1.6 sec
  4th story window
  17-25m
  5
  2.0 sec
  6th story window
  26-36m
  6
  2.5 sec
  9th story window
  37-49m
  7
  2.9 sec
  13th story window
  50-64m
  8
  3.4 sec
  17th story window
  65-81m
  9
  3.8 sec
  Too damn far
  82-100m
  10
  4.3 sec
  Terminal velocity
  Example - A character with a STR of 5 jumps down 3
  meters. The base DV is 2, and their STR Aptitude is 1, so
  they take a DV1 attack to one leg. A STR 6 character would
  have an Aptitude of 2, and would take no damage. If either
  of them were thrown from this height, STR Aptitude would
  not apply, and each would take a base DV of 2.
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  Thirst
  Characters who do not get enough water will suffer from
  dehydration. Adequate water is about 2 liters, plus 1 liter for
  each 2 points of HLT lost to exertion (or exposure) that day.
  High-moisture foods can supply up to half this. This has
  effects like starvation, but you accrue extra exertion points
  each hour, after the first 6 hours without sufficient water. In
  extremely hot or humid weather, this is reduced to every
  hour past the first 3 hours. If HLT reaches zero, the charac-
  ter goes into a coma and dies, much as for starvation, but
  significantly quicker. 
  Example - Lost in the burning desert, a character will
  accrue an exertion point each hour after the first three hours
  without water, so the HLT 5 person in the previous example
  would only last 18 hours before succumbing to the heat (3
  hours, plus 1 hour for each exertion point).
  Once adequate water is found, the lost HLT is recovered as
  a non-lethal injury, that is, current HLT towards your full
  HLT, per day.  If both thirst and starvation are in effect, note
  that recovery of HLT will only be up to the level of whichever
  impairment is worst, so you can’t recover a thirst impairment
  by eating, or a hunger impairment by drinking. Also note that
  extra exertion points are cumulative if a character is suffer-
  ing from both dehydration and starvation.
  Sleep
  Characters will usually require (12-HLT) hours of sleep per
  night.  Failure to get this is a cumulative 1 point penalty to all
  actions, and starts to apply HLT hours after the normal
  sleep period begins.  For skills, this is a +1 modifier, and for
  attributes, it is a subtraction of 1 from the current level. If a
  character’s Aptitude drops as a result of a lack of sleep (or
  any other reason in most cases), it does not mean that skills
  based on that attribute drop as well. Impairments last until
  the character gets a full night’s sleep in good conditions, two
  full night’s of sleep in less than optimum conditions, or in the
  case of a single night's lost sleep, an afternoon nap.
  Example - A character with a HLT of 5 stays up too late on
  watch duty and only gets 5 hours of sleep (they need 7).
  So, on the next day, they are feeling a bit slow, and will take
  a +1 overall penalty on their actions. If they take an after-
  noon nap for a few hours, they will feel better in the evening.
  ﬁ« It is possible to have a Physical Ad or Lim relating to the
  environment or metabolism. For instance, the Physical Ad
  “Night owl” might mean the character needs 2 hours less
  sleep than normal, or a Level 1 Limitation “heat intolerance”
  means the character takes an extra point of effect from any
  hot weather they encounter.
   
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  “Magic is just a science you haven't figured out yet.”
  Porter's Corollary to Clarke's Law
   
  Basics
   
  Paranormal abilities are those talents which “normal” people
  do not have, but which have been a staple of adventures
  since people first started telling stories. The Siren luring
  men to their doom, will-o-wisps, ghosts and wizards all rep-
  resent some manifestation of a paranormal ability. Almost all
  campaigns will have some aspect of the weird and unex-
  plainable. A real-world campaign may have very few, while
  a fantasy campaign may have it as a fact of everyday life.
  Characters in a campaign may buy paranormal abilities, with
  GM permission.
  The special effects of paranormal abilities vary from genre
  to genre, and very seldom do you see all the special effects
  together at the same time. A high fantasy game might say
  the special effect is magic. A space opera game might use
  psionics, while a dark future game might stress biological or
  electronic augmentation. All three use the same set of rules,
  but each has different limits and special effects.
  Example - In each genre, characters might be able to have
  the paranormal ability to levitate themselves. The fantasy
  character might read from a scroll and summon an air ele-
  mental to lift them. The space opera character might con-
  centrate on activating a telekinetic discipline, and the dark
  future character might just have an antigrav unit built into
  their legs.
   
  i The CORPS paranormal power framework was designed
  with the idea that powers are difficult to learn and use. With
  an absolute minimum cost of 5SP, it would take months to
  learn the simplest, most limited power. If you want powers to
  be more common or accessible, apply an overall multiple to
  power cost, like x.5, x.25 or even x.1. Likewise, you could
  apply multiples to specific types of powers. You could say
  psi frameworks are x1.0, while ritual magic is x.5 (or x2.0).
  You decide.
  Buying an ability
  Abilities usually work off the POW attribute of the character,
  and the higher the POW, the greater the effect generated.
  The ability itself is something learned, and is bought with a
  character’s SP. So, a character who learned an ability could
  teach it to someone else, given enough time. Using normal
  age-based SP gains, learning an ability will take quite a
  while.
  The characteristics of an ability come in a number of combi-
  nations, and any character with an ability must apply one
  item from each of the following categories:
  Power types
  Cost
  1. Ranged vs. non-ranged
  5SP/2SP
  2. Others vs. self 
  5SP/2SP
  3. Invisible vs. visible
  5SP/2SP
  4. Constant vs. drain
  5SP/2SP
  5. Conscious vs. automatic
  5SP/2SP
  6. Inherent vs. focused
  5SP/2SP
  To get the cost of a power, you add together the cost of
  each particular aspect of the power, and the total is the cost
  in SP that must be spent for the power. This gives you the
  overall framework of the ability, as follows:
  Ranged/non-ranged
  A “ranged” power may be used anywhere the character can
  see, and requires a successful AWR task vs. the target.
  “Non-ranged” powers may only be used if the person is
  touching the intended target or is in the same hex with them.
  Ranged powers cost 5SP, and non-ranged powers cost
  2SP.
  Self/others
  A “self” power can only be used on the person the power
  belongs to, while an “others” power can in addition be used
  on or loaned to other willing or unwilling subjects. Self pow-
  ers cost 2SP, and others powers cost 5SP.
  Visible/invisible
  A “visible” power can be spotted in use on a successful
  AWR task, whenever it is in use (user, target or anywhere in
  between), with a bonus to be spotted equal to the POW in
  the effect. An “invisible” power cannot be detected without
  sophisticated equipment of the GM’s choice, or some natur-
  al or paranormal sense which can detect the special effects
  of the ability. This does not usually prevent a target or
  bystander from guessing the direction an attack came from,
  since they can make an educated guess from any effects on
  the target. Visible powers cost 2SP, and invisible powers
  cost 5SP.
   
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  POWERS
   
  Ω
  
  Mandatory categories:A
  SP cost
  Power has range/does not have range
  +5/+2
  Power usable on others/only usable on self
  +5/+2
  Invisible effects/visible effects
  +5/+2
  Does not drain attributes/does drain attributes
  +5/+2
  Requires conscious control/acts independently
  +5/+2
  Inherent to character/requires a focus
  +5/+2
  For any powers:
  Has minimum POW/HLT required to use
  -1
  Requires a second of concentrate time to use (Init 0)
  -1
  2 seconds
  -2
  5 seconds
  -3
  10 seconds
  -4
  1 minute
  -5
  10 minutes
  -6
  1 hour
  -7
  5 hours
  -8
  Requires concentration time for each use
  -2
  Requires gestures or vocalization
  -1
  For powers which affect other characters:
  Requires POW vs. POW+0 task to be successful
  -1
  Requires POW vs. POW+2 task to be successful
  -2
  Requires POW vs. POW+4 task to be successful
  -3
  Requires POW vs. POW+6 task to be successful
  -4
  Requires POW vs. POW+8 task to be successful
  -5
  For powers which require a knowledge to use:
  Requires a Difficulty 6 skill roll
  -1
  Requires a Difficulty 8 skill roll
  -2
  Requires a Difficulty 10 skill roll
  -3
  Requires a Difficulty 12 skill roll
  -4
  Requires a combat skill roll (Range Mod of 0)
  -3
  Each point of Range Mod in the power
  +1
  General modifiers:
  Omni-power
  +10
  Power may be “prepared”
  +5
  Causes a special effect
  +5
  Prevents a special effect
  +1
  Backfires if casting fails (must be able to fail)
  -3
  Side effect
  -1
  May only be used at POW/HLT Aptitude
  -3
  Requires a Psych Lim of same level as POW
  -3
  Offense/defense power used for one purpose only
  -1 to-5
  Has common weakness that negates it/works on a 3-
  -5
  Has uncommon weakness that negates it/works on a 5-
  -3
  Has v.uncommon weakness that negates it/works on a 7-
  -1
  Immutable power
  -5
  Similar power bonuses
  Character follows a particular school/branch/type
  -1 to -5
  Foci
  Power is in an object
  +0
  Object is not concealable or bulky (>5kg)
  -2
  Object is not movable under normal conditions (>100kg)
  -5
  Power has one use
  -5
  Power has 2-3 uses
  -4
  Power has 4-8 uses
  -3
  Power has 9-15 uses
  -2
  Power has 16-24 uses
  -1
  Power has 25+ uses
  +0
  Drain/constant
  A “drain” power may be one of two types, a power that
  either drains the POW of the character or the HLT of the
  character, recovered in both cases like exertion. The first
  lets the character keep HLT at a high level, while the effec-
  tiveness of the power decreases, while the second subtracts
  from the physical reserves of the character, but allows full
  use of the power until the character passes out. In both
  cases, a task with a Difficulty equal to the POW used must
  be made based on either POW Aptitude or HLT Aptitude to
  avoid the loss. A “use” of a power is a duration of 1 second.
  This allows characters to continuously use the ability at low
  levels (Aptitude or less), but has a draining effect if pushed
  to higher levels. A “constant” power does not drain the char-
  acter at all and may be used more or less all the time. Drain
  powers cost 2SP, and constant powers cost 5SP.
  Conscious/automatic
  A “conscious” power is only triggered by a direct mental
  command from the person with the power. “Automatic” pow-
  ers cannot be consciously triggered, but instead are activat-
  ed whenever the character needs it for their survival, and
  operates at the most efficient level for that purpose. The sit-
  uations in which an automatic power activates are set when
  the ability is acquired, and usually may not change. The GM
  is always the final arbiter of when an automatic ability acti-
  vates. An automatic, draining power will not trigger if it
  would drive the character unconscious or kill them.
  Conscious powers cost 5SP, and automatic ones cost 2SP.
  Focused/inherent
  A “focused” power is one which requires some sort of tech-
  nological or mystic gadget in order to work. Even though the
  actual ability is within the character, this may be a physical
  or psychological aid which the character requires or thinks
  they require to use the ability. The item is usually of no use
  to anyone else, unless they require the same type of focus
  for their ability. “Inherent” powers are inseparable from the
  character. Most paranormal powers will be inherent, as you
  can buy a focus for many of the powers in the form of a gun,
  armor vest, etc. Focused powers cost 2SP, and inherent
  ones cost 5SP.
  Frameworks
  This framework will allow you to use most of the abilities that
  are available. However, depending on your campaign and
  players, there are innumerable “special effects” of paranor-
  mal abilities, which a given fictional universe might require in
  order to work.
  For instance, a campaign with “psionics” would have vastly
  different special effects than one with “ritual magic”, and this
  would in turn be different than “mutant superpowers”.
  The special effects and limitations to the right will allow you
  to duplicate virtually any type of paranormal effect and spe-
  cial effect, and are explained in detail below.
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  Minimum POW/HLT required to use ability
  Powers may not work unless a character reaches a certain
  peak or threshold or psychic ability, or may stop working if
  the character is dangerously weakened. For instance, all
  people may have latent psionic potential, but all powers in a
  particular game world might have a minimum POW of 5, so
  most people are never able to use them.
  Requires concentration time
  The character must focus themselves inward to draw forth
  the power, and may perform no other action. The power
  may be used on Initiative 0 on the last second of the time
  increment, and on their AWR Initiative each second after
  that. If the character must start over after each use, they get
  an extra discount on the cost. If the character takes any
  impairment or makes any conscious efforts on anything
  except preparing the ability, the concentration is broken, and
  must be repeated from the start.
  Having a power go off after a time delay (cast it, then an
  hour later the fireball goes off) is an advantage. This costs
  half (round up) the listed number of points for a fixed delay,
  and the full number of points for a delay that is variable up
  to the maximum time (decide the delay when you cast the
  spell).
  Requires gestures/vocalization
  The character must move, speak, dance, sing or do some-
  thing that is either visually or audibly obvious. This is not
  likely with psionics, unless the person has some sort of
  chanting or mental focusing gestures that aid in concentra-
  tion. However, gestures or vocalization would be common
  for many kinds of magic. If the character is prevented from
  using the proper words or movements, they are usually pre-
  vented from using the ability. If there is a skill roll involved,
  the ability may be used if the Difficulty of the task is
  increased by 3. Note also that any physical impairments
  which affect the gestures or vocalization will also increase
  the Difficulty. Even if no skill roll is required, an injury will
  prevent proper use of the gestures or vocalization if a WIL
  task vs. the impairment is failed.
  Requires POW vs. POW test
  This is for paranormal backgrounds where a power works
  against the “soul” of the target, so that even people without
  powers may have strong ability to resist being affected by
  them. For instance, a “spell” that puts you to sleep might be
  shrugged off by someone with a high POW, but not by
  someone with a low POW. The higher the POW of the tar-
  get, the more difficult it is to work the ability on them against
  their will. Normally, a truly cooperating subject would not
  apply any bonuses to their POW before comparison. For
  special effect purposes, the POW vs. POW test may apply
  to other attributes, like POW vs. STR to resist telekinesis,
  POW vs. WIL to resist mind control, etc.
  Power requires a skill roll
  For any power framework which requires the user have a
  knowledge of some type, this modifier applies. This could be
  a knowledge of “sorcery”, “meditative techniques”, “gather-
  ing ki”, or anything else appropriate to the game world. The
  more difficult it is to use that power or powers in general, the
  higher the Difficulty of the task. In magical campaigns, cer-
  tain magic-rich or magic-poor regions may make it easier or
  harder to make such a skill roll. If the skill roll for a power is
  somehow linked to the level of POW in the effect, the
  Difficulty would be the POW used, and SP savings based on
  the maximum POW the character can put into the effect.
  For powers which require a combat skill roll, this means that
  the power starts at the user, and literally travels through
  space to strike the recipient. It must be aimed and targeted,
  and can easily miss. Melee powers are treated just like a
  type of melee attack, and may usually be blocked or parried,
  dodged, etc. Ranged powers have a Range Mod of 0 when
  used in this way, and must be targeted against the appropri-
  ate sized object (mental powers usually must hit the head,
  etc.). Only powers which use a gun combat skill can pur-
  chase extra points of Range Mod.
  Omni-power
  This advantage is only available with GM permission. If
  bought on a paranormal ability, the character may shift
  around the basic parameters of the ability subject to any
  other limits the GM requires that powers might have (like
  requiring a skill roll, gestures, etc.). The power is always
  bought at maximum base cost before this is applied (30SP).
  Example - A character with Blast could change it from a fire
  blast to an ice blast, ranged to non-ranged, conscious to
  automatic to prepared, regular to armor piercing, and so on.
  The only limit is that the total cost of any power combination
  not exceed 30SP. So, since a full power normally costs
  30SP, adding a special effect would make the total 35SP,
  and the player would need to add 5SP of limitations to
  reduce the overall effective cost.
  Prepared power
  This is for powers which can have a “tripwire”, or some set
  of conditions that activate it. This only works for powers
  which are under conscious control. The person using the
  power may assign the effect to a particular location, which
  they must be able to use the power on, and a set of condi-
  tions that will trigger it. The character then uses the power at
  that location, with the requisite time spent, gestures used,
  HLT lost, etc. After this, the power is in place, and can be
  detected by anyone who can sense that type of paranormal
  energy. The trigger parameters cannot exceed the charac-
  ter’s personal abilities, and if a paranormal ability is required
  as part of the trigger, the character must be using that ability
  when the power is prepared, but they do not need to main-
  tain it after the casting.
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  Side effect
  This is a paranormal power which has some odd side effect
  constantly associated with its use, and which usually limits
  the power in some way. For each 5 points of POW used
  towards the effect (round down), 1 point is “lost”, and per-
  forms some other paranormal effect, which must cause a
  limit to the usefulness of the ability. For instance, a Mental
  Blast might have a side effect that gives the user or a 1
  point Mental Blast headache. Or, a person with night vision
  could have their eyes glow (+1 to be seen). You can't have
  a side effect unless the power can be used at a level that
  would generate one.
  May only be used at Aptitude
  This is for powers which may never be used at more than a
  fraction of a character’s potential. The effective POW in an
  effect is never greater than the characters POW Aptitude. A
  power limited in this way usually may not have Power
  Multiples. It is a good way to limit easily abused powers to
  manageable levels.
  Example - A wizard sets a psychic trap to activate if anyone
  with hostile intent passes through a doorway. This is only
  possible if the wizard has some power to detect hostile
  intent. If the trigger was to activate if a code phrase was not
  uttered, an invisible person would not trigger it unless the
  wizard also is using some ability to detect the invisible when
  the power is prepared.
  The triggered area can be a place or a thing. It can be a liv-
  ing creature if the creature consents (usually). Each trigger
  in place drops the current POW of the user by 1 (for all pur-
  poses) until it is triggered, or the user makes a conscious
  decision to release it, at which point it goes off like it had
  been triggered or vanishes away (caster's choice). Triggered
  powers can also be traced back to their originator by anyone
  who can detect the paranormal energies involved. This is a
  time consuming process, as the trail is followed manually,
  like following a string laying on the ground.
  Prepared powers can be abused, so the GM should think
  through the ramifications of allowing them. Prepared powers
  are very unlikely to apply to what is usually called “psionics”,
  and is more of a “magical” special effect.
  Causes a special effect
  This adds to the cost of a power, but gives it a special effect
  that it doesn’t normally have. This increases the effect in
  certain situations, but which can easily be negated by physi-
  cal or paranormal means. Making a Blast to count as armor-
  piercing would be an example of this. Making a Telekinesis
  extinguish open flames in the area of effect, or a Mental
  Blast that affects self-aware computers are special effects,
  as is adding the ability to do combat targeting off a Detect.
  Prevents a special effect
  This cost addition allows a paranormal ability to negate a
  particular special effect that might apply against it. Each
  special effect has a separate cost, and there are as many
  special effects as there are imaginative players of the game.
  The protection afforded against a special effect may not
  duplicate some other power. 
  Example - A special effect for Armor is that it negates the
  special abilities of armor-piercing ammunition.
  Example - A special effect of an Armor force field may not
  be that it holds atmosphere in, protecting the character from
  vacuum, since this duplicates the Protect power.
  Backfires
  If a power fails for some reason like a blown skill roll or dis-
  rupted concentration, it backfires and affects the user
  instead. Powers that can backfire must be specified as to
  their intensity and intended effect before being used, so that
  there is no question as to what happens if it fails. If the
  power is a beneficial one and backfires, the effects are usu-
  ally reversed, or left up to the GM.
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  Requires a Psych Lim
  The power requires a certain mindset to use, one which
  does not conform to the usual social norms. This could be
  for game worlds where wizards are “strange”, or for where
  paranormal powers slowly rot your mind and drive you
  insane, or where the ability to use a power is directly related
  to one’s loyalty to a god. The character must have a Pysch
  Lim of a level equal to the maximum POW they can use in
  the effect before any Power Multiples are applied.
  Used for one purpose only
  If a power may be used in several distinct ways, and the
  character only wishes to use a specific aspect of the ability,
  this modifier can be taken. For instance a power “usable
  only for good” (adjudicated by the GM) would have this, as
  would a Blast that only works against living creatures (like a
  “life drain”). The actual amount of the bonus is determined
  by the GM, and is based on how much the power is limited,
  compared to its usefulness without the limit.
  Power has weakness that negates it
  This can be either a magical or practical limit on a power.
  For instance, it would be likely that a ranged electrical Blast
  that required a gun combat skill roll (lightning bolt), would be
  negated if the target was wearing metal armor. Or, the
  “Essence of Insufferable Guilt” spell might be turned by
  those who are pure of heart. How common a weakness is is
  determined by the game world.
  If a power simply has some random chance of failure inde-
  pendent of circumstance or the character, this also applies.
  Each time the character attempts to use the power, they roll
  1d10, and if the number is more than that listed, the power
  fails to work. Note that any preparation time is expended
  before the roll is made.
  If a power is partially limited, this should be handled as a
  Multiple with the limit, like a Power Multiple that has a 50%
  chance of working on any given attempt. Half the time the
  character gets the benefit, half the time they don’t.
  Immutable power
  This is a modifier that the GM may require for powers which
  can be abused if expanded. An immutable power may never
  have the modifiers on it changed. It may gain Multiples at a
  later time, but these may not have any advantage the base
  power does not have.
  Example - A wizard with an immutable Armor that protects
  them “Only from undead” may never upgrade this power to
  a general purpose Armor that protects against everything,
  but would have to buy it from scratch as a separate ability.
  i The GM should feel free to insist certain types of powers
  have this limit, especially with players who would tend to
  abuse the system otherwise.
  Similar power bonus
  A character who limits themselves to a certain subset of
  powers or methods of using powers will get a bonus to the
  cost of each of those powers, but double this amount as a
  penalty to powers outside that sphere.
  Example - A fire wizard might get a -3SP to the cost of all
  “fire” related powers, but a +6SP cost to any power that can-
  not be associated with fire. A psychic might get a -2SP on
  the cost of any power associated with the mind (Dominate,
  Mental Blast, etc.), but +4SP to the cost of everything else.
  The bonus or penalty depends on the campaign, and the
  degree of limitation.
  Minimum cost
  All paranormal powers cost at least 5SP each, regardless of
  how many modifiers are stacked on. This represents a mini-
  mum effort required to learn or acquire the ability, even if it
  is greatly limited and has a bought cost of less than 5SP.
  Foci
  If a physical object is an independent source of a power,
  rather than a requirement for its use, all the costs for the
  power are “in” the object. The creator of the object must
  have spent the time to generate the SP needed for the abili-
  ty, and the usual cost associated with that amount of time.
  Once done, however, anyone who matches the limits of the
  item can use it. If it stolen, the SP represented are stolen
  too. If destroyed, the SP represented are forever lost.
  Example - A magic wand might have a minimum POW to
  use. Anyone who has that level of POW or higher can use it.
  An item may have other requirements of a person that might
  be needed for its use (loyalty to a deity, for instance).
  If an item is self-aware, it would be created with AP and SP
  to represent any appropriate stat it might have or need, and
  the time required is as for normal age-related gains, with
  bonuses for “training” if the purchaser of the item wants it
  quicker.
  A focus can also partially expand or limit a power, and the
  cost for this expansion or limit is the difference between the
  normal and modified cost. For instance, in a magic-oriented
  world, a flawless cut ruby might count as a power multiple
  for fire spells. This gem would have an SP cost equal to that
  for a single Power Multiple, with various limits appropriate to
  the type of magic framework in this world.
  Or, magical restraints might be used on wizards. These limit
  abilities to Aptitude, which is 3SP (since the cost of a power
  with this limit is 3SP less). However, you would need a set
  of restraints tailored for each ability, so this is unlikely to be
  applied in general. However, a restraint that stops a witch’s
  “evil eye”, a vampire’s “turn to mist” or some other single,
  known ability would be very useful.
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  In a magical or superheroic world, any character with an
  Enemy at a Level of 4+ would likely be hunted by individuals
  who were aware of the character's abilities, and might be
  specially equipped with the means to keep the character
  contained. For instance, they know you can walk through
  walls, so they have a set of restraining cuffs designed espe-
  cially to block your ability.
  Virtually any character advantage or limitation can be placed
  in a magical focus, with the minimum cost of 5SP. For
  instance, a magical ring could identify the wearer to other
  members of a secret organization, and act as levels of
  Contact. Or, Grond the Barbarian could swallow a magical
  potion without reading the label “Berserk Rage in a Drum”.
  With appropriate Time Multiples on this Psych Lim, he could
  be angry for quite a while (a ring would work constantly with-
  out Time Multiples, but the effect could be set to stop the
  instant it is removed). The same applies to things like
  Toughness, Physical Ads, Psych Lims. and so on.
  There is no normal defense against this type of effect except
  the Block power, which stops its level in SP of the effect.
  Example - A person with Block and a POW of 5 would be
  able to negate 5AP or SP of magically applied bonuses or
  penalties. The power would be targeted against the source
  of the effect, not the person who is affected.
  i To keep magic mysterious, restrict the availability or utility of
  powers that can analyze or identify other powers. Also it is
  important to note that characters don't know what their
  “stats” are except in a general sense. A character who
  acquires a ring that gives them extra HLT will not realize it
  until they encounter a situation where they require the extra
  endurance. Even then, the GM should only give hints. For
  magic to have “mystery”, as much as possible needs to be
  unknown to ordinary people.
  Limited uses
  If a power in an object has a limited number of uses before it
  becomes inactive, this will decrease the cost. This is most
  useful in magically oriented campaigns, where it can repre-
  sent single-use scrolls, potions, wands with stored energy,
  and so on. Normally, once all the uses are expended, the
  item loses any paranormal potential. If the item can be
  “recharged”, this does not cost extra, but should be written
  down as part of the design. “Recharging” may require any
  number of eldritch rituals, but the most important thing is
  that it is not convenient. That is, it takes long enough to be a
  pain in the neck, proportional to the SP in the item. In gener-
  al, 1 hour of time is needed per SP of the power per charge.
  i While you can design gun-like magic items, the system is
  not meant to be used for detachable clip wands and their ilk.
  It is worth noting that in any magical campaign, people who
  construct such items would be acting in their own best inter-
  est if magic items were not rechargeable. They can make
  more money by selling new ones that by recharging old
  ones. Ones that are rechargeable would cost significantly
  extra. Also, the special effect of some items may preclude
  recharging at all (potions, for instance).
  A character may have a power that is inherent to them, but
  still with a limited number of uses, like some mystical ability
  that is only usable “thrice between sunrise and sunset”. With
  GM approval, the character may have such a limited ability,
  and the number of uses and how they are recharged should
  be clearly defined. These limited uses may still drain the
  character, and all other modifiers can still apply.
  Item cost
  An item with paranormal abilities will have a cost to produce
  roughly equal to the materials involved, plus the time need-
  ed to accumulate the SP involved through normal experi-
  ence or practice. Under normal aging rules, this is 4SP per
  year or 2AP per year, and represents about 2 hours of dedi-
  cated work each week per category, or 50 hours dedicated
  work for 2 SP, and 50 hours dedicated work per AP. It is up
  to the GM as to how fast these AP or SP can be accumulat-
  ed, whether it can be done over a few days, or if the process
  of manufacture is long and drawn out. 
  Assume that this sort of work is technical and requires a
  degree of skill that can command reasonable wages, say up
  to 50 credits per hour of work. In any case, spending money
  faster can generate the AP or SP faster, similar to training
  costs. Each time you double the cost of the craftsmanship,
  you get +1AP or SP for the time spent, up to a maximum of
  +2AP or SP more than normal.
  Time spent
  Cost
  Result
  Time spent
  Cost
  Result
  50 hours
  2000Cr
  2SP
  50 hours
  2000Cr
  1AP
  50 hours
  4000Cr
  3SP
  50 hours
  4000Cr
  2AP
  50 hours
  8000Cr
  4SP
  50 hours
  8000Cr
  3AP
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  Example - A wizard in a magic-oriented campaign wants
  the previously described power multiple gem. The GM says
  the gem has a base cost of 2000Cr, and must be skillfully
  carved and attuned to the magical energies. It has the fol-
  lowing limits.
  Range (Power Multiple works at same range as spell)
  5SP
  Usable on others (Multiple works on same target as spell) 
  5SP
  Visible effects (gem is linked by energy flows to the Blast)
  2SP
  Does not drain attributes (Multiple is free energy)
  5SP
  Requires a focus (itself)
  2SP
  Requires a second of concentration to use first time
  -1SP
  Requires a Difficulty 8 Sorcery roll
  -2SP
  Backfires if roll is failed
  -3SP
  Only works for fire-based Blast powers
  -3SP
  Total
  10SP
  At 25 hours of work per SP, this will take about 250 hours of
  skilled work, for around 10,000Cr in labor charges, or about
  6 weeks work by the enchanter/craftsperson. Of course, if
  you needed it in a hurry, you could get it in 120 hours, or 2
  weeks with overtime, and it would have a labor cost of
  20,000Cr instead.
  In fantasy campaigns, making enchanted items requires a
  skill called “Enchanting”, with secondary skills for potions,
  scrolls, items, etc., and also usually requires knowledge of
  the power being enchanted and the limitations or lack there-
  of that it uses. The more AP and SP in the item, the more
  difficult the overall enchantment task.
  Total AP + SP in item
  Difficulty to enchant
  1
  1
  2-4
  2
  5-9
  3
  10-16
  4
  17-25
  5
  26-36
  6
  Doing it yourself
  Naturally, the process of being able to enchant an item can
  be done by characters, and is a campaign-dependent skill or
  power. In order to prevent characters from abusing magical
  abilities by creating items as fast as possible, the GM should
  limit this ability. The best limit is that such items must be cre-
  ated with the character’s own experience. That is, the char-
  acter spends their personal age-related experience between
  adventures to make up these items, and does not get the
  experience to apply to their character. If they are using
  some type of crafting skill to make the item, the AP or SP
  they put towards the item may be increased at the same
  cost as if they were trying to raise their skill. To counter the
  possible effects of losing the item or having it destroyed, the
  character should get 2 points for the item for each AP or SP
  they use from their own experience.
  Example - The GM says that there will be several months of
  game time between adventures, during which time a normal
  character would get 2SP. A wizard spends these towards
  making a magic item, which wil cost about 2,000Cr, if for no
  other reason than they are not collecting a paycheck while
  working on the item, and the 2,000Cr represents lost wages.
  This will become 4SP of powers in the item created. If the
  wizard were to spend extra money to make the enchant-
  ment go faster (just like having someone else make the
  item), they would get proportionately more SP for the time
  spent, which would be doubled for the item effect.
  Money and SP
  In CORPS, if you can buy it with money, you don’t spend SP
  on it. You already spent SP to get the Wealth advantage, or
  played well enough to come into a sum of cash, and being
  able to buy expensive things is the reward you’ve earned.
  SP and AP for paranormal powers only apply to those things
  in the game world which cannot be bought with money. For
  instance, while you could design a pistol as a paranormal
  power and buy it with SP (focus, limited uses, requires a
  gun combat skill roll, etc.) you would never need to do so
  unless playing in a campaign where guns were so scarce
  that no amount of money could get you one. Likewise, if
  magic is common, characters can spend money instead of
  SP to get magic items, and so can their enemies. If playing
  a superhero game, with bizarre items lying around for the
  taking, characters who wish to purchase them should have
  the monetary cost based on the “magic item” cost for it.
  Damaging paranormal items
  A paranormal item will have an AV appropriate to its power
  and material construction, and the AV may be better at
  resisting some forms of damage than others. Mystic fire-
  seeds (an area effect Blast) may be easy to crush, but
  almost totally fireproof, for instance. If paranormal items are
  stronger than normal ones, you use the AV for the material
  in the item, and add 1 for the square root of the total AP +
  SP in the item (round up). An item with 36SP of spells would
  add 6 to its AV, for instance.
  If an item is damaged, it generally ceases to work. If it has
  any backfire or side effect potential, that effect usually hap-
  pens when it is damaged. A damaged item can usually be
  repaired, depending on the powers and the type of item.
  Campaign limits
  The scope and power of paranormal abilities is greatly
  expanded from 1st edition CORPS, so the GM will have to
  set limits on what can and cannot be had by characters (and
  NPC’s). If you run a campaign where powers are common
  encounters for delvers into the unknown, then you have to
  take into account their potentially unbalancing effect. If there
  are certain powers or power modifiers that are forbidden in
  the game, make sure everyone knows it.
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  Paranormal frameworks
  Different campaign types with paranormal powers will imple-
  ment them in different ways. Even in a genre where all para-
  normal powers are the same “type” (magic, for instance),
  different cultures may have different ways of accessing or
  using that power, each with its own advantages and disad-
  vantages. Here are a few sample frameworks for paranor-
  mal effects:
  Psionics
  Power comes from an inherent mental ability, which may or
  may not be enhanced by technology.
  Limits
  No Multiples allowed except as foci
  All powers must either have a HLT or POW drain
  Meditative techniques
  Power comes from enhanced awareness of natural abilities,
  and may only be used to generate effects that can be dupli-
  cated by extraordinary levels in an Attribute or skill.
  Limits
  Only at Aptitude level
  Requires a skill roll
  No Multiples allowed
  Ritual magic
  Power comes from an outside source, which is summoned,
  appeased, channeled or coerced by complicated rituals.
  Limits
  Requires ritual focus (altar, chalice, dagger, etc.)
  Requires extra time of at least 10 minutes
  May supply POW or HLT from outside sources (sacrifice?)
  Extra participants may be required for Multiples
  Requires a skill roll
  Backlash if roll is failed
  Elemental magic
  Power comes from elemental forces of nature, which are
  summoned to perform a specific task. If summoned incor-
  rectly, the force may attack the summoner or others.
  Limits
  Requires a skill roll (find and summon elemental creature to
  create magical effect)
  Backlash (if failed, creature attacks caster)
  Necromancy
  Power comes from the forces of death. The user taps forces
  of decay and entropy to generate paranormal effects.
  Limits
  Always drains HLT
  Has detrimental side effects on caster and/or others
  Multiples limited to areas of death and decay
  102
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  B
  BASIC
  ASIC R
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  ULES
  
  B
  BASIC
  ASIC R
  RULES
  ULES
  Channelers
  Power comes from the user, who manipulates existing
  sources of energy to get more effect.
  Limits
  May only modify existing energy (fire, emotion, wind, etc.)
  Power Multiples limited to maximum effect of source
  Divine service (prayer)
  Power comes from a divine being, and is granted as a boon
  to the faithful. Frivolous or selfish use may cause the wrath
  of the being to be vented on the supplicant.
  Limits
  Requires allegiance to deity of a level at least equal to the
  POW in the effect
  May require extra time to voice the request
  Multiples available only from deity or holy items
  Backlash (if used for personal benefit)
  Rings, wands, etc.
  Power is in a magical item which can be commanded by the
  wielder.
  Limits
  May be a rechargeable or non-rechargeable focus
  May have a minimum POW requirement
  May require a skill roll
  Potions
  Power is stored in a liquid focus, which activates upon being
  consumed or applied, whichever is applicable.
  Limits
  Requires a focus
  Limited number of uses per container
  May require extra time to begin effect
  Triggered by application or consumption
  Scrolls
  Power is stored in glyphs or runes that are energized or
  released by the act of reading them. Incorrect reading may
  cause uncontrolled energy release.
  Limits
  Triggered by reading
  Requires a skill roll
  Backlash if skill roll failed
  Cursed items
  Item is of the normal magical sort, but due to malevolence
  or defect, use of item has detrimental effects on the user.
  Limits
  Side effect always
  Backlash if fails to work
  Booby trapped items
  Item was constructed by someone with a fail-safe so that
  only the proper person could use it safely.
  Limits
  Triggered item
  Automatic backlash or side effect if triggered
  Naturally magical areas
  Areas that naturally overflow with the energies that make
  magic of all types easier, or perhaps restricted to certain
  types of power, depending on whether the area is “good” or
  “evil”.
  Limits
  Acts as a Time, Area or Power multiple for powers of a cer-
  tain type used in that area. Area may also have a power,
  which anyone can use with the proper skill roll (singing, con-
  centration, etc.)
  Magically damped area
  Areas that have had the magic drained from them, making
  all magic much harder to cast effectively.
  Limits
  Continual Subtract applied to POW (an exception to the nor-
  mal limits on that power), or a continual Block
  Blessing or curse
  A magical boon or bane that operates on a person, place or
  thing independent of that entity's ability to perform magic.
  Limits
  Prepared power
  Requires a POW vs. POW task
  Backfires if task failed
  Power doesn't work if recipient unsuitable (too good or evil)
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  Add
   
  G
  The character can temporarily add the POW used to any
  single attribute (except POW) that is chosen when the
  power is bought. If needed, this power can subtract from the
  effects of the attack if used as a defense. This power can
  also be used to negate a particular impairment, but the
  impairment will return when the power is turned off. All sec-
  ondary functions of the attribute are increased while the
  power is in effect. The power may also be used to enhance
  a particular non-skill ability by up to the POW used, like run-
  ning speed, jumping distance, or attractiveness. If an
  attribute is raised to the point that Aptitude goes up, the
  character's level in all skills based on the attribute goes up
  by the amount Aptitude is raised.
  Examples - Increased strength, resist pain, healing, eagle
  eyes.
  Limited effect - Only vs. sight, only vs. non-lethal impair-
  ments, only to resist being knocked out.
  Armor
  G
  The character can create a defensive wall around a person-
  sized object that stops up to the POW used. This stops all
  forms of physical and energy damage. It may be bought to
  stop POW only, to shield against magic attacks or prevent
  passage by spirits whose POW is less than that of the
  armor. If an “others” power, half this amount can surround a
  hex, and a quarter of this amount can surround a 1 hex
  radius. An Area Multiple dedicated to it will allow it to fill an
  area instead, rendering anything in the area more or less
  immobile until it escapes the area (reduce movement and all
  damage passing through the area by POW used). The level
  of the armor ability is usually all applied as a soak value,
  although for “natural” armor, the GM may set limits on how
  much can be soak, and how much applies to convert lethal
  damage into non-lethal damage.
  ﬁ« This makes a tremendous difference in how characters are
  played. Armor that stops all damage makes characters
  invulnerable to a point, then they start taking lethal damage.
  Armor that only converts lethal to non-lethal damage means
  that attacks can incapacitate easily, but seldom kill. A 50/50
  split is a good compromise for any armor power that repre-
  sents a tough hide, worn armor, or personal force fields.
  Examples - Force fields, magically enhanced physical
  armor, entangle fields, missile deflection.
  Limited effect - Only stops physical or energy, armor drops
  to zero if penetrated, requires a skill roll to deflect.
  Powers
  The following list covers the paranormal powers available to
  CORPS characters, which can duplicate most fictional and
  claimed effects of psionics, magic or other paranormal abili-
  ties. On each major paragraph heading there will be a sym-
  bol, G, I, or N.
  G
  The paranormal power can be used safely in most campaigns
  without fear of overwhelming foes or unbalancing encounters.
  I
  The paranormal power can be creatively abused, and may
  have unusual effects that cause a play imbalance. The GM
  should be careful when allowing such powers to enter play.
  N
  The paranormal power can be easily abused, and may often
  create attacks or effects which are extremely difficult to defend
  against, and which can unbalance play to a great degree. The
  GM should carefully examine all powers of this type before
  allowing characters to have them, and should examine NPC’s
  with this ability to make sure they are not too powerful.
  Absorb
  I
  The character can take on some of the characteristics of
  anything in their surroundings, by leaching that characteris-
  tic from the target. Each point of POW used will drain a point
  of some characteristic from the target, and may add it to the
  user, or to someone else if there is a Target Multiple dedi-
  cated to that purpose, with a maximum absorption of the
  POW used. Characteristics involved can be attributes
  (except POW), Primary skill levels or AV. The drained points
  may not be used by the target until the power is turned off.
  The power is usually bought separately for each characteris-
  tic involved. Losses of an attribute that affects Aptitude will
  drop all affected skills by the difference in Aptitude until the
  effects wear off. Loss of all AV will not destroy an item, but
  will allow it to take damage from any attack.
  ﬁ« Absorbed AV, attributes and skills do not add to the person
  doing the absorbing. Rather, they may substitute for them.
  That is, you can't make yourself smarter by absorbing the
  AWR of a moron, stronger by draining the STR of a weak-
  ling, or more dextrous by absorbing the AGL of a klutz.
  The characteristic can be another paranormal power. In this
  case, the power is usable after all the SP cost of the power
  has been absorbed, and stays with the absorber until they
  choose to drop the ability or are rendered unconscious,
  depending on the special effect of the Absorb.
  Example - If a creature had the ability to automatically leech
  out the strongest paranormal ability of whatever it touched,
  then knocking it out would have no effect. It would either
  have to be killed, or placed in contact with some other item
  with paranormal abilities, at which time the old Absorb would
  be canceled, and a new one begun. On the other hand, a
  wizard with this as a consciously controlled spell could be
  coerced into dropping it, or knocked out to have it released.
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  B
  BASIC
  ASIC R
  RULES
  ULES
  Blast
  G
  The character can do lethal damage to an object equal to
  the POW used, targeted on a successful AWR task. Half of
  this amount can be used to surround (not fill) a hex, and a
  quarter of this can surround a 1 hex radius. An Area Multiple
  dedicated to this can fill an area instead, and such an attack
  would go against the average AV of the target.
  Examples - Energy blast, wall of fire.
  Limited effect - Only does non-lethal damage, only affects
  living objects, only affects spirits.
  Block
  I
  This power is psychic damping. It has the effect of reducing
  the effective POW of the target person, place, thing or other
  power by the attackers POW, reducing their ability to gener-
  ate a paranormal phenomenon. This effect ceases the
  instant the power is dropped. If used defensively around
  yourself (no range), it will stop paranormally created dam-
  age just like the Armor power. It will also stop Absorb,
  Dominate or any other power that must pass through the
  Block to affect a target. It has no effect vs. mundane ener-
  gies. It may be used as an area power, in which case half
  the POW used can surround a single hex, and a quarter of
  this can surround a 1 hex radius. Anyone passing through
  an enclosed barrier would be “blocked” until they exited the
  area. An Area Multiple dedicated to this can fill an area
  instead. Although confusing, the Block power may be used
  to cancel out another Block.
  Examples - Psychic damping, mana drain, pentagram.
  Limited effect - Only vs. a particular class of powers, only
  usable defensively, only usable offensively.
  Clairsentience
  N
  The character can sense what is happening elsewhere, as if
  they were actually there. The Difficulty for the task is based
  on the distance in kilometers the character is sensing to
  (rather than meters). If the character knows the area well, or
  uses a “target” person to home in on, the Difficulty is low-
  ered by one. This power is usually taken with the “concen-
  tration for each use” limit, and may take extended time (con-
  stant concentration) to use. The GM should make this roll in
  secret, as a failed Clairvoyance attempt often results in
  “mental noise” that may seem like an actual remote sensing.
  A character using this ability can use other powers that
  require visual targeting, if their clairsentience includes sight.
  Examples - Speak with dead, astral travel.
  Limited effect - Only someplace the character has been,
  only sight, only sound, only through the eyes of animals.
  Create
  N
  This is a highly dangerous power, and really only applies in
  campaigns with “magic”. It is the ability to create “some-
  thing” out of “nothing”. The POW used may count as AP or
  SP towards making any other paranormal item or its mun-
  dane equivalent, or the POW used can count as a STR, and
  the user can create anything that STR could lift. However,
  this is similar to a Shapeshift in that the characteristics of
  the item are either major or minor changes. For instance,
  creating dirt is no big deal (POW of 1 makes 1kg of dirt).
  Creating a sword is a minor change (POW of 3, 2 for the
  mass, +1 for a minor change). Creating a person is a major
  change however, and each of that person’s attributes and
  skills is a minor change. The created item usually only lasts
  as long as the power is maintained, however, something
  that actually exists elsewhere (like a creature) might count
  as being “summoned”, and will stay around just like it had
  been teleported in. Or, the GM may require that “summon-
  ing” have a number of mandatory Time Multiples. 
  Creating an independent living being does not give the user
  of the power any innate control over that being if it is a
  “summoned” creature. Creating a generic “faithful guard
  dog” is one thing, and it will probably serve you well.
  Creating “Baechiol, Evil Minion of the Pit” is quite another...
  Usually, each category of “Create” (animals, manufactured
  items, demons, etc.) is a separate power, and a person with
  several Creates should reduce cost by applying a “similar
  powers” bonus, or buy it with the “Omni-power” advantage.
  Examples - Create food, summon “creature”, resurrection.
  Limited effect - Has no control over created item.
  Detect
  G
  This power allows the character to sense something not nor-
  mally detectable by human senses, or a paranormal “sixth
  sense”. The POW used counts as a hearing AWR, with a
  minimum of 1 (although there may be a visual component,
  range is counted as for hearing). This is usually not suffi-
  cient for combat targeting, but will give a fairly reliable indi-
  cation of direction and intensity. The category of detection
  may be broad or narrow, but the quality of the information
  gained should be inversely proportional to the quantity. For
  instance, a person who can detect “any psychic activity” will
  not be as good at narrowing down a location or recognizing
  a psychic signature as a person whose detection is “psychic
  illusions or mental control”. The same would apply on
  “intense emotions” vs. “fear”, or “electromagnetic anomalies”
  vs. “anomalies caused by underground water” (dowsing).
  For a mystical campaign, “sense spirits of the dead” is more
  specific than “sense paranormal events”. The character with
  the former should find it more useful in sensing spirits than
  the person with the latter. For many “real-world” effects, a
  “special effect” on a Detect may let the character generate
  the same energies they are able to sense, provided this
  does not duplicate any other power. 
  105
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  Multiples have a separate SP cost from the other power,
  and may have separate characteristics from the base
  power. However, to use the multiple with the power, all con-
  ditions for using both must simultaneously be in effect.
  Example - A Power Multiple on a mental power can be
  bought to increase the effect. If the mental power is ranged,
  then if the Power Multiple is to work at a distance, it must
  also be ranged. However, the character could buy the
  Power Multiple as non-ranged, in which case they would
  only get the extra effect if actually within touching distance.
  A power with several Multiples of the same type may have
  different limits or advantages on each multiple.
  Example - An ability has two Power Multiples, with a total
  cost of 40SP. The first Power Multiple works all the time, but
  the second only works on a 5-. This would be a 3SP savings
  on the second multiple, dropping the total cost to 37SP.
  Limited multiples of the same type are dependent on each
  other, and are “stacked” in a specific order when the power
  is bought. If one fails to work, all the ones after it fail to work.
  Example - In the previous example, the second Power
  Multiple only works on a 5-. The first can work without the
  second. The second cannot work without the first. In this
  case, the character has access to some power all of the
  time, and increased power about half the time they use it. If
  the first Power Multiple has the 5- limitation, the power
  would have about a 50% chance of having no Multiple, but if
  the first worked, the second would automatically work as
  well.
  You can stack limitations on Multiples to get a wide variety
  of special case powers, or villain plots tied to powerful
  magic.
  Example - The evil priesthood of Yog-Sowhat wants to
  summon him to devour their enemies and lay waste to the
  land. But, on the Multiples required on the Create power, it
  requires human sacrifice, a full moon, proper alignment of
  the planets, special sacrificial implements, and so on.
  Unless all the conditions are met simultaneously, the spell
  will fizzle, and there will be weeping and wailing and gnash-
  ing of teeth.
  Being able to generate ultrasound or radio waves is an
  example of this. If +5SP is spent on a Detect as a special
  effect, the Detect may be used for targeting in combat, pro-
  vided the character actually spots the target first.
  Examples - Detect evil, thermal vision, radio hearing.
  Limited effect - By definition, each type of detection is a
  limited effect, and the cost should reflect the utility and nar-
  rowness of a particular limit.
  Dominate
  G
  The character can make a puppet of the target. To avoid
  this, the target must perform a WIL task equal to the POW
  used on the power. If they fail, they will see, do or feel what
  the character wants them to. This may be especially useful
  against animals. The Difficulty of the WIL task may be modi-
  fied by the action the character wants the target to do, and
  the target gets a WIL roll to break free anytime a command,
  illusion or emotion is changed. Psych Lims may modify the
  WIL of the character, for better or worse (self-preservation is
  +10 WIL). If the power is invisible, the target may not realize
  they are under control, depending on how subtle the manip-
  ulation is. This power will add to the WIL of a person if used
  as a defense against this kind of attack. Note that illusions
  require a certain level of sophistication, and the target usual-
  ly gets to add their AWR to their WIL to see if they believe it.
  It is possible for a person to be limited by an illusion, but not
  believe it, in which case they can act with that knowledge.
  For instance, you can’t see through the illusion of a wall, but
  if you know it is an illusion, you can walk through it.
  Examples - Mind control, illusions, mental defense.
  Limited effect - Only to make someone speak the truth,
  only to defend vs. mental control, only to create illusions.
  Multiples
  I
  These are special purpose powers that are useless unless
  applied to a particular other power or magical effect. They
  expand the effects of the power in some way, and may be
  limited in and of themselves in ways separate from the main
  power. For instance, a Power Multiple (increases effect)
  might have a limit of 10 seconds concentration. The charac-
  ter could use their base power at the base level any time,
  but to get double effect would have to concentrate for 10
  seconds. 
  Multiples are bought as separate powers, which must used
  in combination with a particular other power. The first multi-
  ple for a particular power has normal cost, and each extra
  multiple also has normal cost. 
  Example - If a character got a Power Multiple for 20SP that
  doubled the effect of an ability, doubling it again would cost
  20 more SP, for a total of 40SP, and doubling a third time
  would cost 20 more SP for a total of 60SP.
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  ASIC R
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  B
  BASIC
  ASIC R
  RULES
  ULES
  Time Multiple
  N
  This increases the duration of the power. The character
  using the power does not have to target or power it after the
  initial roll, and effects continue at the rate initially applied. It
  continues with the effect until the time duration expires. The
  base time of effect is 1 second for any power, and each
  Time Multiple quadruples this. The character can use the
  power elsewhere while the earlier use is still in force. If the
  same power is used on the same target, Time Multiple may
  be cumulative, at GM option. Usually this requires a deliber-
  ate effort and no failures during consecutive attempts.
  Apply power for
  Effect lasts for additional
  1 second
  1 second
  2 seconds
  4 seconds
  3 seconds
  15 seconds
  4 seconds
  1 minute
  5 seconds
  5 minutes
  6 seconds
  20 minutes
  7 seconds
  1 hour
  8 seconds
  4 hours
  9 seconds
  1 day
  10 seconds
  1 week
  Example - The Add power may be used for healing injuries,
  but is rather useless as they keep reappearing when the
  time runs out. However, with a single cumulative Time
  Multiple and constant application for 10 seconds, the effect
  would last 1 week, by which time natural healing may have
  taken over (15 seconds is considered to be a permanent
  effect). Or, an evil sorcerer could Dominate his minions so
  that they are forced to do his bidding for weeks at a time.
  Used in this way, it would require 10 separate, consecutive,
  successful uses. Or, it could be bought more expensively as
  having 10 Time Multiples, and the whole power used in 1
  second, or 5 Time Multiples used for 5 seconds, etc. 
  This can be extremely unbalancing if applied to an attack
  power, or one which causes physical damage to the target.
  In this case, the least abusive way to interpret it is to say
  that the target takes the greatest effect that occurs over the
  time period.
  Example - A “prepared” firebomb spell striking a person
  with armor might do a certain amount of damage for 15 sec-
  onds, but the total damage would only be the maximum of a
  single attack. So, if worn armor protected them initially, they
  might take no damage, but once the armor burned off, they
  would take an effect. 
  For any power which can be “prepared” ahead of time, the
  cumulative effect of a Time Multiple may be “compressed”
  into the instant when the power is triggered.
  Example - A “prepared” sonic deafening attack (Subtract vs.
  hearing) might hit a character instantly, but the deafening
  effect might last for hours.
  Area Multiple
  I
  If a power is capable of area effect, each time this power is
  added, the radius of effect doubles. If the special effect of
  the power is that it affects a certain shape of area, it may
  instead be used to double the number of hexes affected. If
  the normal area effect is to surround an area, it may be
  used to fill the area instead. If the special effect is an explo-
  sion, an Area Multiple will fill the area, double the effect in
  the inner third of the radius (round up), and halve it in the
  outer third. One Area Multiple may also create a special
  effect involving area, at normal Area Multiple cost. 
  Example - An invisible character is invisible over any area,
  since they can’t be seen regardless of range. This would be
  an Area Multiple for a special area effect on the Subtract
  power (subtracting from an opponent’s chance AWR to see
  you). Without this Area Multiple, the power would only work
  on one person at a time.
  Example - A Blast may normally surround a single hex and
  the surrounding hexes at reduced effect (1/4 normal). So, a
  Blast with a POW of 8 would surround all these hexes with a
  2 point Blast. One Area Multiple is bought for increasing the
  radius to 2 hexes, and one Area Multiple is bought to make
  it an explosion. Now, the center hex takes a 4 point Blast,
  the next row takes a 2 point Blast, and the outer row takes a
  1 point Blast.
  Power Multiple
  I
  This power can apply to any paranormal power, and is only
  used in high-powered campaigns. It is bought to affect a
  particular power, and each time it is bought, the effect gen-
  erated by that power is doubled, without changing the POW
  required, attribute rolls, etc. If the term “base POW” is used,
  it means the POW before a Multiple is applied, and if the
  term “effect” is used, it means the amount after a multiple is
  applied. This allows characters to have abilities far beyond
  that allowed by the normal limits of the POW attribute. The
  limits on this power may be different for each level.
  Example - Fluxmaster has a magnetic Blast power, and a
  POW of 5. He buys two Power Multiples with the same limi-
  tations as his normal Blast, and one more that is limited so it
  only works in strong magnetic fields. His Blast now has an
  effect of 5 x 2 x 2 = 20, and if he is in an area with strong
  magnetic fields, it is doubled again to 40.
  ﬁ« Obviously, this lets characters create energy blasts or other
  paranormal effects that no normal human being could with-
  stand, and could totally ruin even superheroic characters. A
  40 point Blast vs. a character with an Armor of 20 means
  some serious impairment at the very least! The Toughness
  advantage and some ASP are strongly suggested in such a
  campaign.
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  Protect
  G
  The character is immune to the effects of one condition of
  their environment that would inherently harm a normal per-
  son, such as drowning, vacuum, acid, tear gas, poison, etc.
  The level of protection is equal to the POW used, and must
  be a successful task vs. the Difficulty of the condition
  (drowning in water vs. toxic waste, for instance). It will not
  protect against something the character is vulnerable to,
  since vulnerabilities are vs. things that are not normally
  harmful to an average person. Neither will it substitute for
  the Armor power.
  Protection
  Difficulty of task
  Immune to drowning
  3
  Immune to noxious fumes
  3
  Immune to desert heat
  3
  Immune to arctic cold
  3
  Immune to a poison
  3
  Immune to vacuum
  4
  Immune to radiation
  4
  Immune to ocean pressures
  5
  Immune to all poisons
  5
  Examples - Breathe water, immunity to poison.
  Limited effects - Must be enough air in water to support
  fish, only vs. poisoned weapons.
  Shapeshift
  N
  The character can alter their shape or substance, with a limit
  on abilities proportionate to the POW used. Normally, a
  point of POW may be applied to altering an attribute by 1
  point, or making a minor appearance or ability change.
  Minor changes include things like converting normal melee
  damage to lethal damage (claws), adding a point of AV
  (tough hide), a +1 bonus to a particular sense (keen hearing
  or sense of smell), an extra hex of reach, negating a point of
  impairment, and so on. Or, a point of POW may let the char-
  acter shift around all their attributes (except POW) by as
  many points as desired, so long as the total remains the
  same. Major changes in the character that do not affect
  attributes require 5 points of POW be applied per major
  change, and these can have effects that mimic other pow-
  ers, so long as they have corresponding disadvantages. If a
  shapeshift has 5 minor changes, this counts as a major
  change. Major changes also include those that affect the
  inherent armor, metabolism or bodily form of the character.
  Each doubling or halving of size or mass after the first has
  double the POW requirement (10, 20, 40 etc.).
  –ø STR is not inherently altered by changed size unless the
  GM wishes it (a side effect, perhaps).
  Shapeshift may not be used to change something in a cata-
  strophic manner. For instance, you can’t change matter to
  antimatter, or living people into dead people, or humans into
  some form that can’t survive normal gravity or atmosphere.
  Target Multiple
  I
  For a power which normally affects only one target, each
  time this power is bought, the number of targets that can be
  affected is doubled. Each one must be targeted separately,
  but each takes the full effect of the power. If one target is hit
  several times, the target either takes all effects separately,
  or is affected by their worst defense roll against the power.
  Example - A multiple target Blast could hit a target several
  times, doing damage each time, but a multiple Dominate
  would simply force the character to roll several times to see
  if it took effect.
  If a power has both Area Multiple and Target Multiple, the
  user can fill an area with the power’s effect, and single out
  people to be affected or unaffected, up to the number of
  possible targets. Or, they can affect everyone in multiple
  areas. 
  Mental Blast
  G
  The character can do non-lethal damage to a living creature
  equal to the POW used, but must make a successful AWR
  task vs. the mind of the target (+3 Difficulty). This power will
  subtract from the damage of this attack if used as a
  defense. Optionally, the power could be directed against
  any part of the nervous system, like a non-lethal Blast. Used
  as a defense, it protects the whole body. Knockout or stun
  chance is as for other types of damage.
  Examples - Psychic strike.
  Limited effects - Only for defense, must have eye contact.
  Precognition
  N
  The character can predict the most probable future. This
  can take any number of forms, whether it be a “vision” of
  things to come, or merely the name of someone you’re going
  to meet comes into your mind. It usually requires a skill roll,
  and the Difficulty of the task is like a range modifier, where
  you substitute hours into the future instead of meters of dis-
  tance (i.e. 1 hour is the same Difficulty as shooting at a range
  of 1 meter, 100 hours is the same Difficulty as shooting at
  100 meters, etc.). The maximum distance that can be seen
  into the future is a Difficulty equal to the characters effective
  POW. If the subject of the Precog is under a Block, this
  affects the distance into the future. If the character has con-
  trol over the power, they can attempt to use this power for
  general tasks, and if uncontrolled, the GM may use it for
  dramatic effect, noting that the player spent SP on the
  premise that it would be worth the investment. Used as a
  “danger sense”, POW used counts as a multiplier on actual
  time spent using a skill or attribute to avoid the danger.
  Examples - Divination, Pyromancy, Tarot reading.
  Limited effect - Does not work for owner of power, always
  shows future in abstract symbols that must be interpreted.
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  Examples - Turning to living stone is a major change, and
  gives you an AV equal to the POW used, but any “broken
  bone” result would likely mean an amputation. Changing to
  mist might let you ooze through small openings and be
  immune to many weapons (count each point of POW used
  as a level of Toughness), but you could be trapped in a con-
  tainer that would not let you change back without fatal con-
  sequences. Changing to a humanoid giant (a level of
  increased size) is one major change, but changing to a griz-
  zly bear (doubling of size and major change of shape) is two
  major changes. The major change of shape with the bear
  would also count the conversion of fingers to claws for com-
  bination or lethal damage in melee, since this is a function of
  the shape. Changing to a small dragon would not give you
  flame breath. This would be another major change, since it
  is a new ability, not an enhancement of an old one. 
  ﬁ« Note that while shapeshift is a very useful power, it can be
  readily abused. For instance, 10 Power Multiples will make
  a person 2 kilometers tall. Fortunately, this is very expensive.
  Examples - Wereform, body of metal, mimicry, terrain alter.
  Limited effect - Only to a single form or subset of forms,
  always takes on mental characteristics of form.
  i If a shapeshifter has a radically altered personality while
  shifted, the GM may allow that form to have separate skills,
  in which case it would have a separate character sheet.
  Subtract
  G
  The character can temporarily subtract the POW used from
  any single attribute except POW, chosen when the power is
  bought. No permanent effect results from this. This power
  will subtract from the effects of this attack if used as a
  defense, and is appropriate to the special effect of the attack.
  Examples - Invisibility, Blind, Deafen, Weaken.
  Limited effects - Only vs. a particular sense, only as a
  defense against opposing Subtracts of that type.
  Telekinesis
  G
  The character can levitate and manipulate objects, including
  themselves, as though the POW used was their STR. Any
  amount of STR greater than needed to lift the object is the
  maximum movement rate in hexes per second. That is, if a
  STR of 5 would lift something, and you have a POW of 6,
  you can lift it at 1 meter per second. The rate of acceleration
  to top speed is a quarter (round up) of the top speed per
  second. This power can be used to cancel out part or all of
  other telekinesis powers. For instance, a person whose
  Telekinesis was a psionic ability could try to counter and
  drag down a person whose Telekinesis was “wings”, and in
  this case, the Telekinesis of the one would be compared to
  the maximum movement of the other to which way the per-
  son with wings would move (and how fast).
  STR
  Maximum lift
  Example
  1
  5kg
  Assault rifle
  2
  20kg
  3
  45kg
  Child, large dog
  4
  80kg
  Average human
  5
  125kg
  Large human
  6
  180kg
  7
  245kg
  8
  320kg
  Motorcycle and rider
  9
  405kg
  10
  500kg
  Horse
  12
  720kg
  14
  980kg
  16
  1280kg
  Economy car
  18
  1620kg
  20
  2000kg
  Luxury car
  25
  3125kg
  30
  4500kg
  Delivery truck
  The ability to fly is bought as Telekinesis, only on self, only
  for moving self (-3SP), with Power Multiples for extra veloci-
  ty. The turn mode of a flying creature is equal to its AGL or
  any skill at flying, whichever is greater.
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  Example - A character with a POW of 5 buys “flight”. With
  no Power Multiples, they can basically levitate or slowly rise,
  and nothing more, since this is only slightly more lift than
  human mass. With 4 Power Multiples, their effective POW
  goes to 5 x 2 x 2 x 2 x 2 = 80, so they have 75 extra points
  of STR, and thus can move up to 75 meters per second.
  Examples - Flight, levitation, earthquake, weather control.
  Limited effect - Only for flight, always pushes away from
  character, only against iron, only to negate gravity.
  Telepathy
  G
  The character can speak directly into the mind of a person
  in their line of sight up to their POW used in range difficulty.
  If the receiver is expecting to be receiving communication at
  that time, he can be up to 1000 times this distance away
  (range Difficulty in kilometers instead of meters, like
  Clairsentience). Additionally, a character can use this power
  to attempt to read the mind of another person (Dominate is
  a purely projective power and does not allow reception of
  thoughts from the victim). The character must specify one
  particular piece of information they are looking for, and the
  Difficulty number is the AWR+WIL of the victim. Sleeping or
  heavily drugged victims get only the better of AWR or WIL.
  Optionally, a person with a Detect and Telepathy may be
  able to communicate with beings not normally sensed.
  Examples - Detect lies, farspeaking.
  Limited effect - Only for communication, only with willing
  subjects, only vs. surface thoughts.
  Teleport
  G
  The character can teleport a man-sized object from one
  location they can see to another, with a maximum range of
  the POW used in range Difficulty, as long as the destination
  location is filled with a substance which the character can
  displace. For instance, gunfire at a range of 25 meters has a
  base Difficulty of 7, so a person with an effective POW of 7
  could teleport a maximum of 25 meters. This power can be
  used to cancel out part or all of an opposing teleport. If there
  are multiple planes of existence, one or more Power
  Multiples may be bought with the special effect of allowing
  teleport between planes, or a Target Multiple may allow mul-
  tiple quick hops or doubling of mass that can be moved.
  Often, certain sites or mystical constructs will act as Power
  Multiples for those with the required minimum level of the
  ability, allowing teleports of great distance. A POW of 5 and
  10 Power Multiples will get you an effective POW of over
  5000, enough to teleport halfway around the world.
  Examples - Teleport, planar shift.
  Limited effect - Only at a “gate”, only living matter.
  Canceling powers
  If a paranormal ability is canceled out by the use of a similar
  ability, this is not the same as being armored against the
  effect. The one ability is “pushing” the other one, and there
  is a battle of wills and power between the two users.
  Normally, competing powers meet between those involved,
  and if the powers cause physical damage, the meeting point
  will suffer the effects and side effects of both powers.
  Example - Two opposing psionicists engage in a battle of
  projected (like gunfire) telekinetic wills, each one attempting
  to lift and dash down the other. The line between them suf-
  fers the effect of each of their powers, and the spot where
  they meet is crushed and mangled by both.
  Flexibility
  While a simple list, the overlap of abilities means that there
  is a staggering array of combinations in which they can be
  used, abused and expanded.
  Example - A person desiring defense a mental attack could
  either get Block, usable only vs. Dominate, or Dominate,
  usable only defensively. Both have the same effect. But,
  with later experience the character with Block could learn to
  block all paranormal attacks, and the one with Dominate
  could learn to use it offensively, but the reverse would not
  apply. Or, the ability to walk through solid objects could be a
  Shapeshift or a Teleport, each with different special effects.
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  Perils of Powers
  A few well designed powers can totally ruin a campaign,
  especially when these powers aren't that common. The spe-
  cial effect of certain abilities can far outstrip their cost, mak-
  ing them very effective weapons. For instance, Telekinesis
  with a few Power Multiples, usable at range against others.
  Pick someone up and smack them against a wall. Splat! If
  powers are uncommon, so are the defenses, so a character
  with this ability quickly can defeat superior numbers or skill.
  While these powers can simulate the abilities of most super-
  heroic figures, it does not give the characters the benefit of
  a pre-determined script that says “the good guys win”. In the
  comics, if the powerful villain meets the weaker hero, the
  hero gets away, gets pummeled or gets lucky. In the “real
  world”, human psychology would indicate an alternate sce-
  nario where the hero has his body mangled beyond belief,
  at which point the villain stuffs it into a pizza box, sprinkles
  some pepperoni on it, and has it delivered to Hero Central.
  Without the proper defenses and support from friends, this
  could happen to your character...
  The GM is the final arbiter of what powers are and aren’t
  allowed in a game which uses them, and if some unbalanc-
  ing effect crops up after the start of the game, then the GM
  has the right and privilege of making the player remove or
  alter these unbalancing aspects. A lack of cooperation in
  this regard simply indicates that the GM should have similar-
  ly abusive NPC teach the concept of “play balance” to the
  character. Repeat as necessary.
  Another problem with high-powered characters is the “oops”
  factor. Especially in superheroic games, characters may be
  extraordinarily powerful in many respects, but have a glaring
  loophole or two that can result in instant fatality. For
  instance, an armored character being mind controlled into
  taking off the armor, a super strong character being sub-
  tracted into a weak one, or a mentalist getting taken out by a
  sniper. You spent 30SP to control people's minds. They
  spent 500Cr on a hunting rifle and a set of camouflage.
  These don’t happen too often in the comics, as many
  heroes have reasonable amounts of all defenses, but when
  it does happen, it really hurts. Characters should be well
  rounded, and the GM should make sure that if an enemy
  exploits a character’s weakness, that they found out about
  said weakness “honestly”. This is not because the GM
  thought it convenient that they should know, but because
  the player accidentally revealed it, or left enough clues that
  some investigation could dig something up. The same
  applies if characters try to find the weakness of a powerful
  enemy. The enemy will not advertise that they are crippled
  by sneezing fits during the pollen season, and in fact will
  take great pains to make sure this remains unknown. The
  characters however, may see something suspicious in the
  similar deaths of a number of leading allergy specialists...
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  Powers in Action
  Superheroic energy blaster - A four color hero from the
  comic book of choice. They have the ability to fly, project
  damaging beams of energy from their hands, and can stop
  bullets with their bare flesh. In addition, the character can
  also do other powers based on their energy projection abili-
  ties, but has problems with any other kind of paranormal
  power. We'll assume this character has a POW of 6 and
  HLT of 8, and describe their armor and flight abilities below.
  Flight (bought as Telekinesis)
  No range
  2SP
  Only on self
  2SP
  Visible effects (energy flare)
  2SP
  Drains HLT (tiring to use at full effect)
  2SP
  Conscious control
  5SP
  Inherent
  5SP
  Requires a second of concentration to use (warms it up)
  -1SP
  Similar power bonus (energy projection only)
  -3SP
  Used for one purpose only (generate thrust)
  -3SP
  Side effect (sets things on fire)
  -1SP
  Power multiple #1 (same as base power, but no drain)
  +13SP
  Power multiple #2 (same as base power, but no drain)
  +13SP
  Power multiple #3 (same as base power, but no drain)
  +13SP
  Total cost
  49SP
  Notes - With a POW of 6 and 3 Power multiples, this gives our hero
  an effective POW of 6 x 2 x 2 x 2 = 48,which is 43 more than they
  need to levitate, so they can move at up to 43m/sec. At top speed,
  they have to make one HLT Aptitude roll each phase vs. a Difficulty
  of 6, or lose 1 HLT to exertion. However, if they only use 2 POW
  (which goes to 16 when the Power Multiples kick in), this is the
  same as their HLT Aptitude (a 2), so they can maintain an 11m/sec
  speed indefinitely (they need 5 points of the 16 to get airborne).
  Armor
  No range
  2SP
  Only on self
  2SP
  Visible effects (crackling force field)
  2SP
  No drain
  5SP
  Conscious control
  5SP
  Inherent
  5SP
  Requires a second of concentration to use (warms it up)
  -1SP
  Similar power bonus (energy projection only)
  -3SP
  Power multiple #1 (same as base power)
  +17SP
  Power multiple #2 (works on 7-, drains HLT, automatic) +10SP
  Total cost
  44SP
  Notes - A shimmering aura that slows all forms of damage that
  would hit the character. Since there is no drain and 1 Power
  Multiple, it always provides an AV of 12 as long as the character
  wills it, and it provides an Armor of 24 if the player rolls a 7 or less
  when the character is struck by an attack. However, if an attack
  strikes for more than 12 points and the armor activates, the charac-
  ter has to roll HLT Aptitude vs. a Difficulty of 6 to avoid fatigue.
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  Cyberware
  Implanted, external or other technological enhancements
  generally count as cyberware. Unlike a magic item which
  works through some eldricht energy and does not need to
  follow normal laws of energy and motion, cyberware is com-
  puters, machinery, biotech or all of the above, which are
  “real world” items and thus have to fit certain guidelines.
  Overall:
  1. Cyberware is always a focus. Usually it cannot be removed
  without surgery, although you could use the rules to get a
  cost for an item like a power glove, exoskeleton, etc.
  Usually, the item will have to have its own POW attribute as
  a “power source”. Cyberware is assumed to run from a bat-
  tery charged by the character's own biological processes,
  and this POW has no effect vs. magic of any type. Even if an
  item is “inert”, like armor, it may be living and self-regenerat-
  ing, and thus requires some energy input to maintain itself. 
  Example - Augmented STR effect is bought as a drain on
  the item's POW. If the character uses it at low levels (its
  POW Aptitude), there is no drain. If they want to “push” the
  output to higher levels, this requires a roll to see if the item's
  POW temporarily drops (the battery is partially discharged).
  Any number of cyber items may run off the same POW “bat-
  tery”, but the maximum POW that any of them can use is
  the current level of the battery.
  Example - A character has a POW 3 cyber-battery. No
  cyberware can have an effect of more than 3, and the total
  effect running at any one time cannot exceed 3 either. With
  an Aptitude of 1, no more than 1 draining power could be
  used at a time without having to roll for drain effects.
  Enhancement
  AP
  SP
  Cost as paranormal item
  POW 1 cyber-battery
  1
  0
  2KCr
  POW 2 cyber-battery
  4
  0
  8KCr
  POW 3 cyber-battery
  9
  0
  18KCr
  POW 4 cyber-battery
  16
  0
  32KCr
  POW 5 cyber-battery
  25
  0
  50KCr
  POW 6 cyber-battery
  36
  0
  72KCr
  2. Only powers that are reasonable to give a technological
  basis to are allowed. Usually, this will be:
  Range
  Others
  Invisible No drainConscious Focus
  Add
  No
  No
  Apt.
  No
  Yes
  Yes
  Armor
  No
  No
  Apt.
  Yes
  No
  Yes
  Blast
  Either
  No
  Either
  Either
  Either
  Yes
  Clairsent1 Yes
  No
  No
  Yes
  Yes
  Yes
  Detect2
  Either
  No
  Either
  Either
  Either
  Yes
  Protect2
  No
  No
  Either
  Either
  Either
  Yes
  Subtract3Either
  No
  No
  Either
  Either
  Yes
  1Only into computers, through computers (cyberspace)
  2Only vs. technological/natural sources
  3Like stunners, blinding flashes, etc.
  If a category says “either”, the cyberware can take either
  category, depending on special effects. Powers cannot be
  loaned to anyone else, even if there is a “yes” in the
  “Others” category. If a category says “Apt.” it means the
  answer is “yes” if the power is at less than or equal to the
  character's HLT Aptitude (it is small enough to be hidden),
  or “no” if it is more (you have excessive bulges).
  3. All cyberware is pretty much limited to a specific use, pro-
  grammed when it is installed. This is -5SP to the cost. If a
  power that might affect the entire body is limited to a certain
  portion of the body, you also get a bonus for the “chance of
  failure” to represent the decreased utility (it works all the
  time, but only for a fraction of your person).
  Location
  SP saved
  Money saved
  Head or one arm or one sense
  -5SP
  5,000Cr
  Both arms or one leg
  -4SP
  4,000Cr
  Torso or two senses or both legs
  -3SP
  3,000Cr
  Torso and head or arms or legs
  -2SP
  2,000Cr
  Arms and legs
  -2SP
  2,000Cr
  All but head or arms or legs
  -1SP
  1,000Cr
  Three senses
  -1SP
  1,000Cr
  Whole body (head counts as whole body for AWR)
  zero
  Example - A cybered addition to AWR that only improved
  sight would cost 5SP less. Implanted armor that only pro-
  tected the torso and head would cost 2SP less than normal.
  4. Cyberware does not usually get any Multiples unless it is
  a non-implanted focus (i.e. powered armor, etc.). The
  Subtract power is the most likely exception.
  Sample cyberware
  Costs are listed in AP and SP, which would apply during
  character generation, and in Cr, which may apply during
  character generation, but more likely after play has started.
  The AP cost for the POW necessary is split off in case a
  common POW “battery” is used.
  Attribute enhancement - No range, self only, visible or invisi-
  ble effect, drain, conscious control, focus (implanted syn-
  thetic muscle). Has an inherent POW of the enhancement
  level (minimum POW of 2). This can be used at the POW
  Aptitude for no drain (constant use), or pushed occasionally
  as the risk of temporarily draining the POW. Enhancement
  is listed as constant/maximum amount, like +1/+2.
  Enhancement
  AP
  SP
  Cost as paranormal item
  +1/+2 Attribute (invisible)
  4
  18
  8KCr/18KCr
  +1/+3 Attribute (visible)
  9
  15
  18KCr/15KCr
  +1/+4 Attribute (visible)
  16
  15
  32KCr/15KCr
  +1/+5 Attribute (visible)
  25
  15
  50KCr/15KCr
  +2/+6 Attribute (visible)
  36
  15
  72KCr/15KCr
  +2/+7 Attribute (visible)
  49
  15
  98KCr/15KCr
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  Implant armor - No range, self only, visible or invisible
  effect, no drain, automatic, focus (implanted synthetic
  armor). Armor is split between soak value and blunt trauma
  protection, rounding odd amounts to soak value. Has a
  POW equal to the total level of protection.
  Enhancement
  AP
  SP
  Cost as paranormal item
  +1/0 Armor (invisible)
  1
  18
  2KCr/18KCr
  +1/1 Armor (invisible)
  4
  18
  8KCr/18KCr
  +2/1 Armor (visible)
  9
  15
  18KCr/15KCr
  +2/2 Armor (visible)
  16
  15
  32KCr/15KCr
  +3/2 Armor (visible)
  25
  15
  50KCr/15KCr
  +3/3 Armor (visible)
  36
  15
  72KCr/15KCr
  Blast - Range, others, visible or invisible effect, drain, con-
  scious, focus (implanted weaponry), requires gun combat
  skill roll, has Range Mod of 1 (cost=0SP). Options: No range
  (-3SP, -3KCr, requires melee skill roll), no drain (must have
  charges), automatic (must have triggering conditions, -3SP,
  -3KCr). Has a POW equal to the maximum damage.
  Enhancement
  AP
  SP
  Cost as paranormal item
  DV1/2 Blast (visible)
  4
  21
  8KCr/21KCr
  DV1/3 Blast (visible)
  9
  21
  18KCr/21KCr
  DV1/4 Blast (visible)
  16
  21
  32KCr/21KCr
  DV1/5 Blast (visible)
  25
  21
  50KCr/21KCr
  DV2/6 Blast (visible)
  36
  21
  72KCr/21KCr
  Clairsentience - Range, self only, visible effect, no drain,
  conscious, focus (circuitry and interface jack), within a com-
  puter system only (-5SP). Lets the user see and hear elec-
  tronic communications within an electronic system. Has an
  effective AWR of the POW used. Using cyberspace in detail
  is not covered in the CORPS basic rules.
  Enhancement
  AP
  SP
  Cost as paranormal item
  AWR1 computer jack
  1
  17
  2KCr/17KCr
  Detect - Ranged or non-ranged, self only, visible or invisible
  effect, no drain, conscious control, focus (implanted sen-
  sors). Has an AWR for detection purposes equal to the
  POW used.
  Enhancement
  AP
  SP
  Cost as paranormal item
  Implant radio
  1
  24
  2KCr/24KCr
  Implant radio/video
  1
  24
  2KCr/24KCr
  Night vision (targeting)
  4
  29
  16KCr/29KCr
  Thermal vision (targeting)
  4
  29
  16KCr/29KCr
  Ultrasonic hearing (targeting) 4
  29
  16KCr/29KCr
  Geiger counter
  1
  24
  2KCr/24KCr
  Air sampler
  1
  24
  2KCr/24KCr
  Protect - No range, self only, visible or invisible effect, no
  drain, automatic, focus (implanted protection). Provides arti-
  ficial protection against some hostile environment. Has a
  POW requirement proportional to the protection afforded.
  Enhancement
  AP
  SP
  Cost as paranormal item
  Prot. from gases
  9
  18
  18KCr/18KCr
  Prot. from absorbed
  9
  18
  18KCr/18KCr
  Self-contained breathing
  9
  18
  18KCr/18KCr
  Prot. from vacuum (visible)
  16
  15
  32KCr/15KCr
  Prot. from radiation (visible) 16
  15
  32KCr/15KCr
  Prot. from poisons
  25
  18
  50KCr/18KCr
  Subtract - No range, self only, visible or invisible effect, no
  drain, automatic, focus (drug injectors, flash lenses, artificial
  skin). Option: Acts against a limited number of senses or
  limited part of body (-1 to -5SP). May have an Area Multiple
  for special effect (wide area flash, invisibility, etc.).
  Enhancement
  AP
  SP
  Cost as paranormal item
  -1/-3 Attribute drain
  9
  18
  18KCr/18KCr
  -2/-6 Attribute drain
  36
  18
  72KCr/18KCr
  -1/-3 Chameleon field
  9
  18
  18KCr/18KCr
  -2/-6 Chameleon field
  36
  18
  72KCr/18KCr
  New paranormal abilities
  While just about any effect can be generated with these
  powers, you may think of something new that isn't covered.
  A power is usually one of the following: An addition, subtrac-
  tion or substitution to an attribute or skill, a Difficulty that
  must be opposed, an Armor Value, a Damage Value, or an
  enhancement to some non-combat ability. With this, you can
  generate any number of special effects. 
  Example - Moleman has a zero-range Blast (claws) and
  wants to be able to dig a tunnel with it. The GM says that
  this is more than a special effect, and should be counted as
  an Area Multiple dedicated to the effect. Moleman can now
  dig through a 1 hex area of any material he can damage
  with his claws. If Moleman wanted to move through more
  than one hex of material per turn, then a Target Multiple
  would be used to get the extra targets (hexes) needed.
  Example - A wizard can become insubstantial and pass
  through walls without leaving a trace. To become a vapor
  would be a Shapeshift, but to pass through solid objects
  would be a Teleport, with the limitation that you only move
  at your regular movement rate per turn. You would not take
  damage unless an opponent had a damaging power with
  the special effect “affects magically insubstantial objects”.
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  Natural paranormal abilities
  The paranormal power rules may also be used to mimic cer-
  tain abilities which could be entirely natural in origin, but
  which are given a point cost to balance them or supply a
  certain game mechanic. For instance, if a character race
  has wings that allow them to fly, this might be bought as a
  paranormal power, with appropriate limits. In the special
  case where the ability is natural to the creature, the effect
  may be based on HLT instead of POW, with multiples apply-
  ing to HLT as well.
  Example - A creature that is armored might have the Armor
  ability, and the score is based on its HLT, supposing that the
  healthier the creature, the tougher it will be. Or, a flying
  creature would have an effective STR for flight based on its
  HLT, so if it is tired, it cannot fly as fast or carry as much.
  Natural creatures will have abilities proportional to their nor-
  mal habitat, prey and life cycle. Very few creatures have
  evolved around a diet of armed adventurers or sentient
  prey, for instance. This doesn't mean a large creature
  wouldn't see characters as a tasty snack, but does mean
  that it would likely only have abilities tailored to killing and
  eating natural prey about that size. Intelligent or directed
  creations are another matter...
  Undead paranormal abilities
  Undead and other monstrosities can generally be created
  using normal character creation rules, and don't cost too ter-
  ribly much in the way of points. For instance, zombies have
  appalling levels of Toughness, making them impossible to
  “kill”, and they must simply be dismembered or beheaded.
  Vampires may have a shapeshift, a Subtract power (to
  sneak and make people sleep), and unusual dietary require-
  ments. Ghosts lack a material form, and are just AWR and
  POW, with abilities that drain POW to use. Any creature can
  usually be designed using powers or character advantages.
  Just use common sense when working them out. 
  Dealing with the supernatural
  Some game genres are characterized by creatures and/or
  events which push mortal endurance past its limits. These
  could range from ghosts or zombies, to terrors from beyond
  time and space.
  If you incorporate such into your game so that characters do
  not always have the option of acting rational in the face of
  fear, such events should have a “fear rating”. This is simply
  a Difficulty that characters must make a WIL check against.
  Success means the character overcomes the normal irra-
  tional response and can act more or less normally. Failure
  means the character takes a penalty of the amount failed by
  on all their actions except further fright checks, and failing
  by more than your current WIL means that the character is
  either frozen in terror (unable to do anything), panics, drops
  everything and runs away as fast as possible, or attacks
  with maximum force and without regard to personal safety
  (base defense only). These cover the usual reactions, but
  you are free to make up more on your own. The exact action
  a character takes will usually be influenced by their Psych
  Lims, but people can always snap in unexpected ways.
  Example - While exploring a ruined temple in the jungles of
  Oxtlan, a group inadvertently awakens the temple guardian.
  As a fetid wind rises and forms the decaying matter of the
  jungle floor into a hideous, writhing mass of tentacles and
  eyes, each character has to make a Difficulty 9 fright check.
  Grond the Barbarian, with a WIL of 7, makes his roll (he
  needs a 7 or less) and is unaffected. The native bearers
  behind him however, are not so lucky. They each have a
  WIL of 5 and need a 3 or less. Rolling a 9 or 10 (failing by
  more than their WIL) means they snap. One stands terror-
  struck, and doesn't even begin screaming until grabbed by a
  tentacle and shoved down a bottomless maw. 
   
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  Most of the others drop everything to lighten their load, and
  run as fast as possible in the other direction, and the last
  draws a belt knife and charges the ancient thing, plunging
  his dagger ineffectually into its fibrous hide again and again,
  even as it engulfs him.
  Characters who are terror-stricken get one chance to snap
  out of their terror each turn they are away (out of immediate
  sight of) from the source of the fear, on an Initiative of their
  current WIL. The fear rating goes down by 1 each second.
  Failing the roll means you continue doing whatever panic-
  stricken action you had been, to the best of your ability.
  Success means that you snap out of it, and can act normally
  on your next action.
  In campaigns where fear checks are used, it is acceptable
  to have the Physical Ad of “mental strength” on WIL, to rep-
  resent increased calmness in the face of danger of any type.
  How badly a character is affected by fright is also dependent
  on the culture. Things that 20th century people might take
  for granted (trains leaving a tunnel, for instance), might
  seem terribly frightening to a medieval peasant. However,
  some things seem to have a general horror component
  regardless of the genre.
  Item
  Fear rating
  Ferocious large carnivores
  4
  Mutilated corpses
  4
  Self-mobile corpses
  5
  Ghosts
  5
  Demons
  6
  Horrors that are life, but not as we know it
  6
  Each 2x of human size (up to +5)
  +1
  Each 2x quantity (up to +5)
  +1
  Characters have nearby emotional support
  -1
  Example - A group of 16 zombies claw their way out of the
  ground and shamble towards a group of characters. This is
  a base fear rating of 5, +4 more for the quantity, -1 for the
  characters backing each other up, for a final fear rating of 8.
  Characters that successfully make an initial fear check vs. a
  particular type of creature or thing get a cumulative +1 on
  subsequent exposures until they are more or less immune
  to fear from that item. Characters failing an initial exposure
  roll and getting badly traumatized might take penalties on
  subsequent exposures.
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  Creating a campaign
  You probably have some general idea of the type of cam-
  paign you want to run, but do you have a “game world”?
  Depending on the style of play you and the players enjoy,
  this will have varying levels of detail. At the very least, you
  should have some idea of the basic society the characters
  will be part of for their first adventures. Sometimes this is
  easy. In a modern conspiracy game, the “real world” is the
  background, and you can use already established political
  and social norms as the backdrop. Sometimes this is hard.
  An alien culture is much more than humans in funny suits.
  Working up an internally consistent history and structure for
  a different race, culture or other group can be very difficult,
  although highly rewarding if your players get into that type of
  roleplaying. The players should have this information before
  they start designing their characters. At the very least, you
  should have a vague idea of most of the following concepts
  for the area the game will take place in.
  Basic geography
  Justice system and methods of enforcement
  Political system and current events involving it
  Class, race or gender distinctions
  Technological infrastructure
  Monetary system and commerce
  Behavioral and appearance norms
  Example - Spamm is a male-dominated feudal monarchy,
  currently not on speaking terms with Venasaus (to the
  north), and allied with the Devlham (to the south and west),
  the eastern border being the Sea of Gris. Spamm is
  medieval place. Gunpowder is a relatively new invention,
  and all heavy work is done by animal or wind power. The
  basic unit of currency is the ritz, which may be further divid-
  ed into ritzbits for small transactions. Spamm is self-suffi-
  cient in all goods, although imports from Devlham are
  always into demand, arriving by sea or land caravan. The
  laws of Spamm are harsh, and enforced more or less evenly
  across the country. Crimes are judged by the local magis-
  trate, and punishments are set according the Book of Laws,
  which includes fines, disfigurement, prison, slavery and exe-
  cution. Only active members of the militia may carry arms in
  a town or city, although all men are expected to keep
  weapons at home for the common defense, and weapons
  for defense are commonly carried when travelling. 
  “In any given scenario, there are four possible player actions - the
  three reasonable ones the GM expects, and the fourth one that players
  ultimately devise and use...”
  The First Law of GameMastering (John Dunn)
  Basics
  This section covers everything you need to know as a GM. If
  you have never run a role-playing game before, then you
  should definitely read this section before running your first
  session. Even if you are an experienced GM, there are
  probably still bits in here that will help you out, and of course
  you will need this section for awarding experience, handling
  between game training, and so on.
  Power Level
  CORPS as a system is designed to be more down to earth
  realistic than comic books, and for superheroes it tends to
  have a dark and gloomy outlook, as people can die all too
  easily. To keep the spirit of a heroic world, it is suggested
  that you apply the following, remembering that a campaign
  that spans multiple genres will use the highest numbers or
  widest range of all the categories. For instance, a post-ruin
  espionage campaign would have more paranormal abilities
  allowed than a straight espionage campaign.
   
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  N
  S
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  CAMPAIGNING
  Cultural
  Base
  Natural
  Paranormal
  Paranormal
  Paranormal
  Type
  AP
  SP
  skill limits
  Toughness
  Aptitude
  powers
  multiples
  items
  Conspiracy
  100
  50
  Yes
  x1.0
  Rare
  Ext. rare
  None
  Ext. rare
  Post-ruin
  100
  50
  Yes
  x1.0
  Uncommon
  Rare
  Rare
  Rare
  Time Travel
  100
  50
  No
  x1.0
  Rare
  Rare
  Rare
  Rare
  Exploration
  100
  50
  No
  x1.0
  Rare
  Rare
  Rare
  Rare
  Espionage
  150
  100
  Yes
  x.8
  Rare
  None
  None
  None
  Dark Nihilism
  150
  100
  No
  x.8
  Rare
  Rare
  1 only
  Rare
  Space Opera
  150
  100
  Yes
  x.8
  Uncommon
  Rare
  Rare
  Rare
  High Fantasy
  200
  150
  Yes
  x.8
  Uncommon
  Common
  2 or 3
  Common
  Superheroes
  200
  200
  No
  x.5
  Common
  Common
  4 or more
  Common
  
  Campaign Direction
  Your CORPS campaign will be uniquely your own, but will
  probably have one of several overall themes. Some typical
  CORPS starts are below.
  Mercs
  You work for money, any money. Anytime, anywhere, no job too
  big, no fee too large. You have a lot of freedom, but not much of a
  safety net. Mercs doesn't necessarily mean “nothing but combat”. In
  a modern game you might be part of an ordinary private investiga-
  tion firm, that just happens to have secret government contracts, or
  individuals who are known in the “community” to be reliable, and if
  need be, disposable resources. In the future, there are bodyguards,
  private police forces, or figures paid to do things that governments
  can't officially do. In the past, you could be wandering ronin, mer-
  chant explorers or questing warriors.
  May tend to stress
  Combat, tactics, equipment, direct approach
  May tend to discourage
  Puzzle solving, negotiation
  Advantages
  Campaign theme can change rapidly, depending on employer.
  Disadvantages
  May result in unacceptably high character deaths
  Secret agents
  You work for the government, part of a secret group funded by
  “black” (i.e. unaccounted for) government money. You are responsi-
  ble only to your superiors, and can get away with a lot of excess, as
  long as your get the job done. A merc type of person could be a
  “retired” secret agent, who still has ties to the parent organization.
  Both past and future societies are likely to have intelligence net-
  works, spies, and secrets that need protected or stolen.
  May tend to stress
  Travel, intrigue, climactic fights
  May tend to discourage
  Trust between characters, mundane adventures
  Advantages
  Gadgets, intrigue, master villains, incredible plots.
  Disadvantages
  Too much escalation can make it difficult to create believable plots.
  Hired help
  You do what you do because you have no choice. There is some-
  thing in your past that doesn't bear close scrutiny, and they know
  what it is. The pay is good, the benefits are nice, but they still tug
  your leash on occasion to let you know who's boss. For instance,
  you might have gotten away with a crime several years ago, and
  they discovered who did it, or maybe even set you up to begin with.
  Past, present or future, having the GM run the character's lives is a
  good way to start players who don't have a direction of their own
  yet. A superior, whether king, general, or tribal leader, says “Go!”,
  and the characters have no choice but to obey. Once they gain a
  reputation, they get more freedom to decide their own path.
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  May tend to stress
  Combat, chases, betrayals.
  May tend to discourage
  Concern for those lives that the characters touch.
  Advantages
  Can be used to bring together characters of widely dissimilar types.
  Disadvantages
  Not as much personal motivation to adventure.
  Nightstalkers
  There are evil creatures afoot, lurking in the dark corners of society.
  They may be mutants, aliens, or horrors from beyond normal time
  and space, but you are here to see that they don't achieve their ulti-
  mate goals. It isn't very financially rewarding, but you know you are
  working for the right side...you think. You might be part of a covert
  organization, or simply a small group of individuals that “knows too
  much”. In the first case, you may have some degree of resources to
  back you up, both physically and in terms of background information
  from an organization archive. In the latter case, you only know what
  tidbits of information your own efforts are able to procure. In the
  future, these could be awakened remnants of some past alien hor-
  ror, or infiltrators from another continuum trying to usurp power from
  within. In the past, you could be fighting creatures of chaos,
  charged by some higher power to root out and destroy its influence.
  May tend to stress
  Acquisition of knowledge, stealth, long term planning.
  May tend to discourage
  Seeing shades of gray, fosters an “us vs. them” mentality.
  Advantages
  Long term campaign theme, easily recognizable evils, lots of drama.
  Disadvantages
  Some inhumanly powerful foes. Some battles just aren't winnable,
  and players may have trouble accepting retreat as an option.
  Total idiots
  You stumbled onto the tip of a large and sinister iceberg, and without
  any idea what you are doing, begin to dig, deeper than a lot of peo-
  ple would like. Since few if any characters will start the game with
  more than the most superficial knowledge of the “real world”, almost
  all campaigns will start with some degree of this element. This is for
  characters who are thrust into circumstances beyond their control.
  Since they are unlikely to be experts in combat, being good role-
  players and fast thinkers is a must. You don't want to do this with a
  player who is used to simply charging into combat with no provoca-
  tion. In CORPS, they'll get totalled.
  May tend to stress
  Investigation, misinformation, trying to discover the “truth”.
  May tend to discourage
  Combat, confrontation, massive displays of force.
  Advantages
  The world only has to be as detailed as the characters' knowledge.
  Disadvantages
  A less detailed world may be harder to keep consistent as it evolves.
  Without some successes, players may get discouraged.
  
  Pre-game notes
  You should always spend some time before GM'ing a game
  to go over everything you expect to happen. Different types
  of players have different styles and expectations, and enjoy
  play for different reasons. If these are people you deal with
  all the time, you already have an idea of this, but most role-
  players fall into the following categories:
  The Intellectual Explorer
  Plays more by talking with people than anything else. Enjoys learn-
  ing about the game world by interacting with NPC's, and pieces
  together information by snippets of dialogue here and there.
   
   Do: Have a few interesting NPC's that they can bump into, with
  some useful information that no one else is likely to find elsewhere.
  
  Don't: Make the player roll too much on social skills, but let them
  role-play it out. They should have a reasonable level in these skills
  though. Munchkins may have high combat skills and no social skills,
  and attempt to cover for it by talking a lot.
  The Combat Monster
  Lives to fight, even more so than the tactician. Plays mainly by tag-
  ging along with everyone else, and then going wild when an oppor-
  tunity to fight presents itself.
   Do: Make sure that you want someone like this playing in the game.
  Insist the character have a few useful non-combat skills and encour-
  age their use. Make sure to occasionally have a combat nasty
  enough that only this character's presence gives a hope of success.
  
  Don't: Allow this to degenerate into munchkinism. Don't let the play-
  er ruin everyone else's fun by turning every game event into a com-
  bat situation.
  The Tactician
  Likes combat and making plans. They love it when a plan comes
  together. They may see the entire campaign as an intellectual chal-
  lenge that they win by surviving.
   Do: Have some part of the session require short or long term plan-
  ning. Let the character make contingency plans, and even keep
  them secret from you if you trust their ability to act within their char-
  acter's limits. This keeps you on your toes. Do use maps or draw-
  ings to make things clear if there is any confusion at all.
  
  Don't: Describe things vaguely, or have the character fall into traps
  or take damage just because it is convenient to the plot. They may
  have out thought you, and fair is fair... Tactician munchkins exceed
  the limits of the character, and often try to get or use equipment or
  knowledge they couldn't reasonably get.
  The Quiet Onea
  Plays to be with friends, but doesn't say or do much, despite being
  able to. Often has the best ideas, but they are just as often ignored.
   Do: Make sure the player is close to you so you can hear them over
  the crowd. If the player has a good idea and can't get it across,
  either help them out by getting the group's attention, or let them suf-
  fer ignominious defeat and tell them later that the player had a great
  solution to the problem, but no one would listen. Encourage them to
  speak up, or make a point of asking all players individually when
  posing a question to the group.
  
  Don't: Let other player's words or actions drown out someone else.
  Don't forget the basic abilities and skills of each character, or traits
  which may become central to the plot (enemies, contacts, etc.).
  The Munchkin
  The munchkin plays solely to get the maximum amount of power,
  wealth and influence for their character. They use rules interpreta-
  tion instead of tactics or roleplaying in a lot of cases, are usually
  quick to fight, grab treasure or use all kinds of personal knowledge
  that their character has no experience with.
   Do: Examine all characters closely before the game begins, prefer-
  ably a week or more in advance. Be extremely wary of characters
  they want to import from other people's campaigns. Look really
  closely at any background which gives the character god-like skills
  in a given area, and then ask yourself if the player is one to role-
  play this well, or simply milk it for all it is worth.
  
  Don't: Give a munchkin an even break. If they can't be weaned off
  these tendencies by interesting plots, and adventures that require
  creative thought as much as good stats, then make sure the laws of
  the world are reliably enforced against them. Since munchkin char-
  acters usually have little respect for laws, incarceration is always a
  useful option, with execution as a last resort.
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  Plot
  Every game session needs a plot. The following list is con-
  densed from Georges Polti's The 36 Dramatic Plots, and
  lists the name of the plot, the opposing force, the role of the
  characters, and any other parties involved. Most good plots
  incorporate several of these, intertwined and linked.
  Plot
  Obstacle
  Characters
  Other
  Supplication
  Persecutor
  Suppliant
  Power in Authority
  Deliverance
  Threatener
  Rescuer 
  Unfortunates
  Revenge
  Criminal
  Avenger
  Victims
  Vengeance by 
  Guilty kin
  Avenging kin
  Relatives
  family on family
  Pursuit
  Fugitive
  Pursuer
  Other plot
  Victim of cruelty
  Master or fate Unfortunates
  Pre-game events
  or misfortune
  Disaster
  Vanquished
  Victors
  Messenger
  Revolt
  Tyrant
  Conspirator(s) Third parties
  Daring enterprise Adversary
  Adventurers
  Bold Leader, goal
  Abduction
  Abductor
  Guardians
  Abducted
  Enigma
  Problem
  Seeker
  Interrogator
  Obtaining
  Foes
  Seekers
  Object
  Familial hatred
  Relative
  Relative
  Cause of hatred
  Adultery
  Betrayed
  Adulterer
  Adulterer
  Madness
  Madman
  Victim
  Cause of madness
  Imprudence
  Blackmailer
  Imprudent one Victim or lost object
  Crime of love
  Revealer
  Lover
  Beloved
  Kin kills kin 
  Revealer
  Killer
  Victim
  Self sacrifice
  Reason
  Hero
  Thing sacrificed
  Rivalry
  Rival
  Rival
  Object of rivalry
  Crimes of love
  Lover
  Beloved
  Crime
  Discovery of
  Guilty one
  Discoverer
  Reason
  dishonor
  Obstacle to love Obstacle
  Lovers
  Other circumstance
  An enemy loved Enemy
  Lover
  Hater
  Ambition
  Adversary
  Ambitious one Coveted thing
  Conflict w/deity
  Immortal
  Mortal
  Reason
  Bad judgement
  Victims
  Mistaken one
  Restitution
  Remorse
  Interrogator
  Culprit
  Victim
  Recovery
  Seeker
  Seeker
  Lost thing
  Example - A particularly famous science fiction movie might
  have a background of Revolt (against an Empire), with the
  key to a Daring Enterprise (destroying a battle station) being
  a Recovery (of the stolen plans), with side plots of Pursuit
  (being chased by the Empire), Obstacles to Love (Princess
  and Smuggler) and An Enemy Loved (father-son problems).
  GM Hints
  The gaming environment should be comfortable for all
  involved. The most soft-spoken people should be closest to
  the GM, and the most obnoxious ones furthest away. You
  should have all your gaming materials close at hand, along
  with dice, scratch paper and pencils. If mood music makes
  the game better, have it playing in the background, but not
  too loud. Turn the television off, as it is too much of a visual
  distraction. Make sure there is a clear path to the refrigera-
  tor, and that everyone has plates, coasters, and so on to
  protect the floor and furniture.
  Always play in the abstract whenever possible. Describe the
  look and feel of a situation, without laying out a map or mak-
  ing drawings. Too many players go into “tactical” mode
  when they see a map, and worry more about getting a good
  position for a combat they see as inevitable than they do
  about interacting with the people they are there to meet. If
  you get out a map, you encourage people to think of place-
  ment rather than personality.
  Describe things the characters encounter in terms of their
  senses. Any location that the characters need a feel for
  should involve at least two of the senses, which can include
  sixth senses for eerie places.
  Example - “The darkened wharf is deserted except for a few
  derelicts, and quiet except for the creaking of the greasy
  planking and the lapping of dirty water against the pilings.”
  This provides a good mental picture of what the area looks
  like, and players can mentally fill in the details of what you
  can expect here.
  Given this, you should always give the players not only the
  information the characters would gain from application of
  their skills and senses, but a little slack as well. The charac-
  ters will act according to their backgrounds. A combat-ori-
  ented character will be watching other people, and constant-
  ly appraising the situation. A talker will be mingling, a thief
  casing, and so on. A player should not be penalized
  because their character didn't see something that would be
  second nature for a person with that background. They
  should have to roll for things that are more subtle, however.
  If, however, you give them hints and information, and they
  fail to follow up on it, especially if the information was only
  given to one person because of a skill or background they
  have, then the consequences of deliberate ignorance should
  apply.
  Example - A group of characters goes to a nightclub that
  they suspect runs a different kind of business in the off-
  hours. Characters without any security systems experience
  might notice the infrared sensors on the walls, and that is it.
  A character with a decent level of skill might know the
  approximate capabilities of the sensors, the area they cover,
  and just as importantly, that they are a standard model used
  in a lot of other businesses, maybe with known weaknesses. 
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  Funny voices
  Something to give a good impression of an NPC is, well, a
  good impression. Bad accents, wide hand gestures, posture
  and expression can often convey more than a verbal
  description of what an NPC is like. Make a few short notes
  on NPC sheets to help you out. For instance, “weaselly,
  whispers a lot, glances nervously from side to side”. Act like
  this whenever the NPC is talking to a character. It will influ-
  ence how the players respond, and thus may influence how
  the characters view the situation.
  Props
  Props are not needed for adventures, but they can often be
  made and handed out as clues or reference information.
  This most often works in the form of dossiers, news articles,
  personal letters, faxes or other written information. This can
  also serve a useful game purpose, by interposing real-world
  problems on top of the game. If you give a character a “royal
  pass”, which is only useful if produced on demand, tell the
  player that if they don't have it when the GM asks for it, their
  character doesn't have it either. Then if you can swipe it
  from them, you can make the assumption that a thief could
  also get it from the character, and watch them squirm if you
  ask them to produce it. That's not really nice, but it can be
  fun once in a while.
  Pulling strings
  Also known as yanking chains. Characters have disadvan-
  tages for two reasons: To get points for the character
  design, and to give the GM hooks to hang adventures from.
  Character flaws should be used in each adventure, prefer-
  ably at least 1 from each character. Characters with ene-
  mies can have them show up, or work behind the scenes.
  Characters with phobias or personality quirks should have a
  chance to find out why they got points for them. Characters
  with a duty should be called upon to make difficult decisions
  on occasion, and those with authority tempted to abuse it.
  That is, nothing out of the ordinary or suspicious. The char-
  acters would get this information without having to roll for it.
  The character with security systems would not get to notice
  the strain sensors on the stairs to the back room, or the con-
  cealed TV camera unless they were suspicious as to why a
  secret operation had such mediocre security, and actively
  looked for less obvious devices. This would be a skill check,
  and might also allow anyone watching the character to
  deduce what they were up to.
  Also, give players some latitude. If their character has cer-
  tain skills that let them pick up information that others can't,
  supply it. If characters have certain contacts that let them do
  things or acquire things, let them. Go over each character
  before play and tell the player how you interpret the charac-
  ter so that if you and the player have different ideas, you
  can get it sorted out before play.
  Since you are being devious and withholding the secrets of
  the universe from the players, the players ought to have the
  same opportunity. If their characters want to “buy things”, let
  them, but also let them know that anything you don't
  approve might be rejected at a later date if it is something
  that the character couldn't get, or couldn't get by Customs,
  etc. So, if they happen to have picked up the ingredients for
  home-made explosives while you weren't looking, and it
  seems reasonable, then go with it. Mutual surprises make
  the game a lot more enjoyable, provided you can run with
  the new directions that they may cause things to move in.
  Pointless and devious dice rolling is another tactic that can
  be used to good effect. Telling someone to make an AWR
  roll in the midst of a perfectly ordinary situation (like at a
  stoplight), will tend to make players edgy, as will rolling dice
  secretly and then looking up random sections of the rules.
  About the time the players think you are just faking it and
  drop their guard, then spring something on them...
  Foreshadowing
  In books and movies and comics, everything turns out right
  because it has all been written beforehand. Not so with
  game adventures. Even if using a pre-written adventure,
  players will often go in unexpected directions, or chase irrel-
  evant leads. One way to “guide” players, and keep them on
  edge, is “foreshadowing”, where you provide clues or hints
  about the future well ahead of when it actually happens. For
  instance, a psychic character starts having bad dreams
  about events that won't happen for several adventures yet.
  An investigator might have a notice on their door that they
  need to pick up a package at the post office. Heroic adven-
  turers might pick up bits of rumor from far-off places.
  As much as anything else, this lets players plan ahead, and
  perhaps spend some training or thinking time on things that
  might help them out, but which they otherwise wouldn't have
  considered.
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  Problems
  Campaigns can get into trouble for a variety of reasons.
  Maybe people have different expectations of how the game
  is run. Problem solvers may be happy with a campaign that
  bores tactics gurus, and so on. As the GM, you will need to
  address these issues eventually, as suits the personalities
  of everyone involved. Besides that, there are other things
  that can crop up to throw a monkey wrench in the works.
  Too much combat
  Combat will happen, and when it does, play will slow down
  immensely as everyone tries to get a tactical advantage,
  and uses all the information and resources at their disposal.
  This isn't the way it works. Combat is chaotic, with life-or-
  death decisions being made in a split second, on little infor-
  mation, and with no chance to ask for second opinions. To
  really have players make decisions like their characters do,
  do the following: All players decide what their action will be
  on a given Initiative segment in order of skill, lowest to
  highest, and each player only gets as long to state action
  as their best combat skill in seconds. If the player can't
  make up their mind in time, the character stands and does
  nothing except try to block any incoming melee attacks or
  find cover from ranged attacks. After the first person
  decides, the GM writes this down, and the next person gets
  their few seconds, and so on. The people who have the
  highest skill get to go last, and have the benefit of some
  time to plan while everyone else goes. Each person is only
  allowed to communicate with the others during this
  sequencing by using a single word or hand gesture, so there
  will be no drawn out tactical discussions. After everyone has
  decided what they are going to do, the GM runs through the
  initiative segments one by one, highest to lowest, and every-
  one sees what happens as a result.
  The general result of this is more like real life. People stand
  around until they gather their wits, or dive for cover so that
  they can assess the situation relatively safely, or just plain
  make decisions in haste that they regret later. It also makes
  the combats proceed much quicker a lot of the time. The
  disadvantage is that it doesn't work well for players who are
  indecisive, trying to play characters who are fast on their
  mental feet. However, you could say it is good training for
  the player...
  Realism
  Characters are heroic, larger than life and all that rot, but
  both players and the GM can take some lessons from the
  real world. 
  Most people have a very strong self-preservation instinct. In
  fact, unless a character has a Psych Lim greater than their
  WIL, it is unlikely they will voluntarily do anything likely to be
  fatal. Religious fanaticism, duty to a higher authority, fear of
  a worse fate and love are the main reasons for such a self-
  sacrifice. 
  Often, this self-preservation includes not sticking one's head
  out from behind cover during a gun battle, or closing with
  someone else who has a gun. Listen to the world news
  about hot spots and conflicts. Often, pitched battles between
  hundreds of people with automatic weapons will only result
  in a few dozen casualties. If this were played out between
  typical groups of characters using a painfully impartial GM, it
  would be over in 20 seconds with a 50% mortality rate. The
  obvious difference is that real people are more willing to just
  throw lead around and hope someone at the other end gets
  unlucky. Give NPC's this survival instinct, the ability to keep
  their head in one piece, simply run away when things get
  too hot, and get their revenge later. It can be just as frustrat-
  ing to fight, win and have nothing to show for it, as it is to
  fight and actually lose.
  Socializing
  While there are lots of rules for combat, there are less for
  normal personal interaction. This is because while combat is
  a life or death affair, people are seldom killed by well-aimed
  rhetoric or verbal shrapnel.
  However, normal conversation and use of social skills is just
  as important to a campaign as being able to lob a spell or
  grenade. A good plot has lots of twists, and information to
  be uncovered. Using your wits and your ears can often
  achieve things that sheer firepower cannot, and this works
  on both sides of the fence. Characters can be set up by
  being fed false information, leading them into a trap, or they
  can use subterfuge to mislead their enemies, without ever
  having to draw a weapon.
  If it is alive, it has motivations. As a GM, you need to know
  what these are. If characters talk to someone, why does that
  NPC engage in conversation? What to they hope to gain
  from this expenditure of their time?
  Money? - “I'll tell you what you want to know, but it will cost you...”
  Social status? - “Ooh, I'm actually talking to (insert hero name). My
  friends will be so jealous!”
  Fear? - “Ok, ok, don't hurt me!”
  Loyalty? - “Yes, sir!”
  Favors? - “You owe me one...”
  Self-interest? - “Get them good for what they did to me!”
  Deception? - “Sure, I know exactly where the (insert villains) have 
  their hideout...”
  And remember that NPC's can be just as devious as the
  players can, although this can be difficult to implement on a
  practical basis since one GM is managing an entire game
  world, and the players just need to worry about themselves.
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  Non-attendance
  Sometimes, not everyone can show up for a game session.
  Hopefully, you have scheduled playing time so that every-
  one can attend on a regular basis, but sometimes there is
  unexpected work, exams, or other previous commitments
  more important than gaming (sad but true). If this is between
  adventures, it is easy enough. The missing player simply
  isn't there for the start of the next adventure. Perhaps they
  got sick, had important family matters to attend to, and so
  on. Sometimes, they can rejoin the party in the middle of the
  adventure, sometimes not. 
  If they have to depart in the middle of an adventure, this is
  more serious, especially if the character has key talents or
  skills needed to complete the adventure. You can either
  “balloon” the character, in which case they tag along like a
  balloon on a string, but do little else (defending themselves
  in combat, doing minimal amounts of what they specialize
  in, and so on), or you can “take them out”. Sometimes, they
  can be called away on urgent matters. The breathless mes-
  senger finds the characters and says that a particular char-
  acter's father is on his deathbed and to return home immedi-
  ately, for instance. Sometimes this isn't possible. Then the
  character is laid low. Perhaps they are poisoned, or catch a
  disease, or are cursed, possessed, abducted, what have
  you. The character then becomes a burden on the rest of
  the characters, and they must deal with it as best they can.
  The missing character makes a speedy recovery as soon as
  the player gets back into the game.
  In either case, a missing character should only get experi-
  ence based on the time they spent playing, and on actions
  done while the player was present. For instance, a character
  laid low by illness because they couldn't play does not get
  any points towards improving their HLT. If a player is forced
  to disappear from play frequently, the best thing to do is
  make their character an NPC, and let the GM run it, or let
  any player whose character is captured or unconscious play
  the NPC. When the irregular player is available, they take
  the NPC over. Of course, the character can get killed this
  way, but that's a chance you have to take.
  Kibbutzing
  One of the things that makes gaming fun is kibbutzing, or
  the constant sharing of information, in-jokes, jibes and recol-
  lections of past events. In the real world, this wouldn't hap-
  pen, especially in combat, where turns are 1 second long,
  and the shout “watch out behind you!” is probably going to
  be too late to make any difference.
  However, it is fun, and fun is the name of the game. The
  group talking also takes the place of the experience and
  skills the characters are supposed to have, where you
  quickly consider several options before deciding what to do.
  Usually, if you need to impart secret information to a player,
  you just take them aside, or pass them a note. In situations
  where confusion and lack of communication make the situa-
  tion more tense, simply invoke a silence rule. The GM says
  “no talking among yourselves”, often with an implied threat
  like “violators will penalized 1 ASP per word”. This is pretty
  nasty, but things get quiet real quick. For instance, if players
  are split into two groups out of touch with each other, you
  don't have to do the role-playing in separate rooms, but
  there should be no talking between the groups until they get
  back together.
  Backup plots
  Sometimes players go off in completely unexpected direc-
  tions, occasionally with no hope of resurrecting the main
  plot. Oh well. The GM should have a contingency plot in
  mind that is general enough to fit the situation, or, if the GM
  is good enough, can simply make it up as they go. The
  abandoned plot can be brought up later, or the character's
  non-participation can affect its outcome, and the repercus-
  sions happen in the next adventure. All the NPC's, maps
  and miscellany you created can be saved for when needed,
  or reused elsewhere.
  Unpleasantries
  Characters who are captured, arrested or otherwise subject
  to someone else's will may undergo a number of unpleasant
  experiences, to say the least. One only needs to look at the
  newspaper and see evidence of abuse of authority at every
  level, and this is just the items that reach the public eye. The
  level of detail a GM wishes to go into should mesh with the
  level the players are comfortable with, on a group and indi-
  vidual level. It is something to be considered when the cam-
  paign starts, or when new players are introduced, a level of
  “ground rules” on how detailed one wishes to get on the
  blacker side of human behavior. This can range from simply
  saying “you get mangled up” and assigning various levels of
  non-lethal or lethal impairment, to painfully graphic descrip-
  tions designed to turn the stomach and make the players
  lose all respect for you as a person.
  Dying
  No game would have quite the level of excitement if there
  was no risk to the characters. But, even experienced char-
  acters are not immune to the fickle hand of fate. A bad roll, a
  lapse of judgement, a shortage of ASP or any number of
  things can suddenly separate your character from the land
  of the living. And it hurts. Anyone who has played for a long
  time will know it's more than “just a character”.
  Players should be encouraged to prepare for the demise of
  a character, even if it never happens. Disposition of the
  character's property and personal effects, last requests,
  funeral instructions, and where to send those incriminating
  video tapes of the Prime Minister and the sheep should all
  be written down beforehand, and if at all possible, made part
  of game play. The survivors should deal with the questions
  that are sure to arise, make arrangements, deliver eulogies
  and everything else that you, as a real person, would do for
  your close friends.
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  In addition, players should make up a “backup” character,
  someone who could take up the character's cause should
  they perish prematurely. For instance, that Level 3 newspa-
  per contact might decide to take a vacation to investigate
  the death of a friend. The brother or sister you corresponded
  with but never told everything to decides to find out exactly
  what you were up to. To keep the new character from being
  too outclassed by other characters who have much more
  experience, the new character gets the Inheritance advan-
  tage. The new character should meet the old characters at
  some point that fits the situation, and play then continues,
  although perhaps on a more somber note for a while.
  It sometimes happens that a player has to leave a group,
  and would rather “kill off” the character than simply have
  them retire. This is a serious decision, and leaves the GM in
  the awkward position of planning the demise of a particular
  character. Usually, the events leading up to this are an
  adventure in and of themselves, ominous foreshadowing
  (omens, threats, etc.), with a heart-wrenching climax (often
  with parting speech). How you handle this is an extremely
  individual matter.
  Bluebooking
  This is basically making a written journal of the high points
  and important information in an adventure. For instance, the
  character's background should be here. Players can make
  notes of spectacular things they did for future experience
  awards, write down names of important NPC's they meet,
  make maps, write down questions that need to be answered,
  and generally use the pages as an adjunct to their own
  memory. The GM might also keep a book, to write down
  important things the characters did, especially ones that
  may come back to haunt them (insulting powerful NPC's, for
  instance).
  Sample uses
  A wizard's list of spells and their limitations
  A mercenary's list of previous employers
  Anyone who owes the characters a favor
  Anyone the characters think might try to oppose them
  Culture notes of a particular area
  Weapons a character has used successfully
  Lists of tattoos and scars
  Known abilities of enemies or enemy organizations
  What your character normally carries at all times
  Experience
  Experience can be gained during adventures to increase a
  character's attributes or skills. Any successful use of a skill
  in a combat or pressure situation counts towards gaining
  experience, as does any exceptional use of an Attribute. A
  mass combat as part of an adventure counts as 1AP
  towards whichever attribute the character used most, and
  1SP to the skill used most. Casual use simply counts as
  practice. There must be a GM-determined degree of risk
  involved to count as “adventure” experience. At the end of
  an adventure (not a single session), 1AP may be gained for
  an Attribute used in this way, and 1SP towards any skill
  used successfully under pressure. It is still slow, but several
  times faster than the normal gain for non-adventure prac-
  tice. Note that no attribute can usually get more than 1AP in
  an adventure. A skill as a whole may get more than 1SP in
  an adventure through use of Secondary or Tertiary skills. If
  two or more related Tertiary or Secondary skills gain SP, the
  Secondary (for Tertiary) or Primary (for Secondary) skill they
  are based on may have 1 of the SP transferred to it. How-
  ever, no part of a skill can gain more than 1SP per adven-
  ture. Also, any Secondary or Tertiary skill which is at its
  maximum may not be increased, and SP gained towards it
  are either lost or converted to ASP, at GM discretion.
  Example - A character successfully used both Pistol and
  Longarm secondary skills, for 1SP each. One of the SP may
  be transferred towards increasing the character's overall
  Projectile Weapons skill.
  In either case, gaining a point in a high-level Primary skill is
  still a difficult, time-consuming task, and will usually take at
  least a year of game time, so make sure you are satisfied
  with your character before play begins. Using experience to
  make major changes will take a long time.
  If, through experience, a character gains enough in an
  Attribute that their Aptitude goes up, they do not gain in
  associated skills. Any new skills bought, however, will be
  bought up from the new Aptitude level. Skills that had been
  bought previously are not affected. If it makes a difference,
  AP may be allotted before or after SP when gaining experi-
  ence.
  Example - If your character is on the verge of increasing
  their AWR from 5 to 6, and is gaining some age or adven-
  ture related SP towards an AWR-based skill, it only makes
  sense to wait for your AWR Aptitude to go from 1 to 2 before
  buying up the AWR-based skill.
  Ads & Disads
  If a character does something really amazing while under a
  physical or psychological penalty, they may be awarded an
  AP or SP by the GM towards an advantage or buying off a
  disadvantage.
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  SP Transfers
  There are cases where a character can be reasonably
  expected to “forget” a skill to learn a new one. This usually
  only applies to Tertiary skills of similar types. For instance,
  you have a +1 skill in driving a particular model of car. When
  you sell the car and get a new one, you gradually trade the
  +1 in the old model into a +1 in the new model. This usually
  takes 3 game months, and can be done with GM permission
  only. It does not require any extra SP, just a change in
  Tertiary skill assignment. In the event the character needs
  the old skill back for some reason, they may repurchase it at
  any time using 1 unspent ASP allotted to the Tertiary skill. 
  Example - A character, having traded in their Porsche 911
  for a Mazda RX-7, transfers their +1 in driving the Porsche
  into a +1 in driving the Mazda. In a later adventure, they are
  back behind the wheel of a Porsche 911, and really need to
  do some fancy driving. So, they spend 1 ASP from points
  available to get that +1 back. Now they have a pair of +1
  Tertiary skills, each with a particular automobile type.
  Once spent, such ASP cannot be reassigned back where
  they came from, but can be transferred again to a similar
  Tertiary skill.
  Training
  As characters adventure, they will gain the opportunity to
  improve their skills. When a character gets enough AP or
  SP to make up the cost difference between one level of skill
  or attribute and another, the level is increased by 1. 
  In sessions between adventures, characters normally accu-
  mulate 1AP per 6 months, and 1SP per 3 months, just like
  the Age character advantage, which can be applied howev-
  er the character chooses, within limits. If a character spends
  a 3 month period between adventures in the hospital,
  improving their horsemanship is probably out of the ques-
  tion. In such a case, the GM can demand that experience
  gained be put towards something applicable, as your age-
  based experience must be spent as it is accrued (you can't
  save it up).
  Characters can also spend 100Cr times the appropriate
  Primary Skill or Attribute to add 1 to these gains through
  training, and continue to add points (up to a total of 4x nor-
  mal), by quadrupling the cost. You can train in multiple
  attributes and skills (paying a separate training cost for
  each), but the total AP or SP gained cannot exceed 4x the
  normal amount for aging, i.e. you can never gain more than
  4AP and 8SP in a single 6 month period by training.
   
  ﬁ« Immortal or high-point characters may have extremely high
  levels of skill, which require time just to maintain, let alone
  improve. In this case, assume that all characters must
  spend 1AP per 6 months for each 25 attribute levels and
  1SP per 3 months for each 25 skill levels (round down) just
  to maintain their current levels of proficiency.
  Example - A character with a STR of 5 decides to pay for
  intensive weight training. Normally, they would gain 1AP per
  6 months, but if they spend 500Cr (100Cr times Attribute
  level), they will gain 2AP instead. Quadrupling this to 2000Cr
  would result in a gain of 3AP, and 8000Cr would give the
  maximum allowable gain of 4AP. If they trained for 2AP in
  both STR and AWR (night classes), they would pay as for
  two separate 2AP trainings, not as a single 4AP training.
  Experience/time per wk
  each 3 months
  each 6 months
  Base
  1SP/2 hr
  1AP/2 hr
  100Cr x current level
  2SP/4hr
  2AP/4hr
  200Cr x current level
  3SP/8hr
  3AP/8hr
  400Cr x current level
  4SP/16hr
  4AP/16hr
  One AP or SP will represent about 2 hours a week of effort
  for that time period (3 or 6 months), and each point after that
  doubles the time required. So, going for the maximum bene-
  fits of training in a single attribute or skill will take 16 hours a
  week for the AP, and another 16 for the SP, making a nor-
  mal job difficult, if not impossible.
  Example - A character has a job as a private detective, so
  in between GM-run adventures, they do more mundane
  detective work to make ends meet. The character decides
  that after one adventure, they are going to take an intensive
  course to brush up on their hand-to-hand skills, to get 4SP
  over the next 3 months of non-adventure time. These 4SP
  can be put into any Martial Arts Primary, Secondary or
  Tertiary skill. This will take 16 hours a week of their time, so
  they attend classes and practice for an average of 2 hours
  every night during the week, and 3 hours on each day of the
  weekend. If they had a Martial Arts skill of 4, this 3 months
  of training would cost 4 x 400Cr=1600Cr, or roughly 500Cr
  per month (payable in advance, of course). Obviously, this
  is a major change in the way the character lives, and will cut
  into the time spent on other activities.
  Characters who do not have a lot of spare time should keep
  track of time spent in practice, so that when it adds up to an
  amount that would give them AP or SP, they can apply it,
  1SP being around 25 hours of dedicated work, 1AP being
  around 50 hours of dedicated work, and doubled for each
  additional SP or AP. Only half of this time can be spent
  alone practicing, the rest requires active supervision of
  someone at your skill level or more (getting a skill level bet-
  ter than your teacher is only done at the base age-related
  AP or SP increase rate).
  For character advantages which can be bought during play,
  or disadvantages which can be bought off during play, age-
  related AP or SP can be used for this purpose, and if money
  would make the process go faster, this can apply as well.
  Example - A modern character is fed up with a phobia, so
  they spend lots of money and 6 months of between game
  time at a therapist to “buy off” the problem.
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  ASP awards
  Because CORPS is such a lethal system, and characters
  need every edge they can get, any completed adventure
  should also result in a gain of ASP. An adventure is the res-
  olution of a major or minor plot, and is generally more than a
  single play session.
  Length
  Short adventure (1 session)
  0 ASP
  Medium adventure (2-3 sessions)
  1 ASP
  Long adventure (4 or more sessions)
  2 ASP
  Character
  Used ASP wisely (besides saving own skin)
  +1 ASP
  Saved another character's life
  +1 ASP
  Best character (by majority vote)
  +1 ASP
  Voluntarily betrayed others to save self
  -2 ASP
  Luck
  No character hospitalized (-5 lethal impairment)
  +1 ASP
  Overcame impossible odds (surprised the GM)
  +1 ASP
  Snatched defeat from the jaws of victory
  -1 ASP
  Since ASP are worth their weight in gold, the “character”
  actions used to gain or lose them should be exceptional. For
  instance, saving another character's life should be consid-
  ered only if the rescuer put their own in jeopardy. Likewise,
  unless most of the players (and GM) vote for a particular
  character, it isn't a majority, and no ASP are gained. If a
  character accumulates more ASP than they are allowed
  (their highest attribute), the excess is lost at the start of the
  next adventure. It is suggested in the interim that characters
  use the excess to increase their chances of winning the lot-
  tery or having other fortuitous events occur. That is, with GM
  permission the character can use skills or play with random
  chance and use these excess ASP to get a better deal on a
  new car, find a scarce item, make more income than nor-
  mal, and so on.
  Influence
  The last category of experience is a nebulous quantity
  known as “influence”. It is similar to the Fame advantage,
  but only applies towards negotiations. As such, it works best
  in campaigns where the characters work for a more power-
  ful employer, or when their ability to gain useful adventuring
  employment depends on their past reputation for getting
  things done. Just what Influence can be used for depends
  on your campaign. It may act as Fame does within limited
  circles, usually anyone who could be influenced by the char-
  acter/group/organization with little ability to counter it.
  Example - A gang running a protection racket may have
  Influence over the people they terrorize, allowing them to
  get free food, shoplift without penalty, and so on, but this
  Influence won't get them out of a speeding ticket, or get
  them free passes to the opera.
  Characters may have Influence either individually, or as a
  group, and these numbers are separate. Points gained
  towards the group can only be applied by a character when
  acting on behalf of the group, and those gained by an indi-
  vidual do not transfer to the character's friends. However, a
  individual with an Influence higher than a group could nego-
  tiate better than the group. Success or failure of this enter-
  prise would then apply to the individual, not the group.
  Points of influence are gained at the end of each adventure
  in which it would apply, and the type of work the characters
  do will affect the nature of the influence. A group with a rep-
  utation as ruthless killers is not going to be able to use its
  Influence for work that involves subtlety and negotiation.
  Influence starts at zero, and is increased like an Attribute.
  Each point gained through adventuring counts as 1AP.
  Example - A group that has collected 4 points towards
  Influence has 4AP, which buys an Influence of 2.
  Item
  Influence
  Employer gained major victory because of characters
  +3
  Employer gained minor victory because of characters
  +1
  Employer suffered minor setback because of characters
  -1
  Employer suffered major setback because of characters
  -3
  Employer happy with attitude of characters
  +1
  Employer unhappy with attitude of characters
  -1
  Characters abused any privileges granted
  -1
  Characters destroyed/lost valuable property of employer
  -2
  Each personal point gained donated towards group
  +1
  Each 2 ASP donated towards Influence
  +1
  Example - A group of characters uses their Influence to get
  loan of a magic sword in a particular quest. They succeed
  extremely well, and their employer is well pleased, but they
  lost the sword, and don't seem that remorseful about it.
  They gain 3 points for the victory, but lose 2 for the sword,
  and lose another 1 for not seeming to care. So, they gain no
  Influence as a result.
  Influence is used in negotiations as follows. Each point in
  the Influence “Attribute” acts like a zero behind a 1Cr bill, i.e.
  an Influence of 2 is “worth” 100Cr. In addition to any normal
  payment characters can work out for a service, their reputa-
  tion for getting things done is enough that they can get
  “perks” for being reliable or competent. This could take the
  form of equipment, papers, medical care, and so on, if the
  employer can (and is willing to) produce it.
  Example - A group of adventurers with an Influence of 4 is
  hired by agents of the King to do a task. In addition to their
  payment, the characters request two men-at-arms, with
  horses, and full provisions for the whole group. This is worth
  less than 10,000Cr, so it will probably be agreed to. Of
  course, if these men are killed, it will reflect badly on the
  characters...
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  Ranged weapons
  Name
   
  The name of the weapon. If the weapon has a special char-
  acteristic (stunner, targeting sensors, etc.) there may be a
  note here. Weapons with a bonus to hit apply this to 
   
  skill.
  Caliber
  The type of ammunition the weapon uses. Weapons of the
  same category and caliber usually use identical ammunition.
  DV
  The Damage Value of the weapon. Shotguns will list their
  bonus on the to hit roll in parentheses, i.e. 4(+0).
  Initiative Mod
  The bonus or penalty to skill when determining who acts first
  when this weapon is used.
  Range Mod
  The Range Mod stat of the weapon.
  Size
  For concealment or storage purposes. If there are two num-
  bers, two-handed weapon stats presume the larger number,
  and one-handed weapons the smaller. The number in
  parentheses is for when a folding stock is extended. For
  damaging the weapon, always use the larger size.
  TL
  The Tech Levels when the weapon would be available as a
  “new” item. DV is based on lowest TL, and may increase.
  Mass/Extra clip
  The mass of the loaded weapon, and the mass of an extra
  load of ammo. Weapons with a "-" are loaded with loose
  ammo or are not reloadable (i.e. single use rockets).
  Rate of fire
  Maximum number of shots the weapon fires per second.
  Clip
  The size and type of the ammunition storage of the weapon.
  i
  Internal magazine, rounds must be loaded one at a time
  c
  Clip, rounds are carried in a detachable magazine
  e
  External, rounds are in a box or hopper
  AV
  The Armor Value of the weapon, for resisting damage.
  Cost
  The cost of the weapon in credits, as designed in 3G3. Cost
  will be higher depending on local laws, and military weapons
  may command much higher prices.
  Origin
  If the weapon is historical, this is the country of origin.
  “Whoever dies with the most toys wins!”
  Unknown
  Basics
  As a character, there is only so much you can do with your
  raw intellect and abilities. Since the first primitive human
  wrapped a skin around them for protection, or used a sharp-
  ened rock or pointed stick to get that skin, we have been
  avid tool users (and abusers). This section gives you a basic
  equipment list, slanted towards modern equipment, but with
  a selection of items suitable for just about any genre.
  The format is pretty self-explanatory, and uses terms and
  concepts that you should be familiar with by now. Like other
  sections, it doesn't go into a lot of detail and assumes you
  know how to use something. If you want a category or type
  of item with abilities different than normal, ask the GM and
  see what you can come up with.
  126
  126
  B
  BASIC
  ASIC R
  RULES
  ULES
  WEAPONS &
  EQUIPMENT
   
  e
  e
  
  Melee weapons
  Name
  The common name of the weapon. Most weapons will have
  an inherent ease of use that affects the skill of the user.
  High quality weapons will have positive numbers, while low
  quality ones will have negative number. This number adds
  or subtracts to the skill of the user before initiative is applied.
  Damage
  The type of damage the weapon does (non-lethal, combina-
  tion, lethal), and the types of damage the weapon is capable
  of (blunt, cut, puncture), for if you use damage special
  effects. You can ignore these if you don't want the detail.
  DV
  The addition to normal STR damage the weapon does, in
  the same order as the type of damage. If you aren't using
  this level of detail, just use the highest number.
  Initiative mod
  This is the penalty to your skill you take for initiative purposes
  only. Heavier or unwieldy weapons are slower to bring into
  play, may be used less often per turn, and are harder to
  parry with. Weapons with multiple numbers apply them in
  the same way as damage (a weapon may be quicker to
  thrust with than swing with, for instance).
  Length
  For if you are using the optional weapon length rules.
  Size
  If the weapon needs to be concealed, stored or damaged.
  TL
  The Tech Level the weapon was first introduced. Usually
  available at any TL past this, and high-tech versions may
  have better AV and lower mass.
  Mass
  The mass of the weapon in kilograms.
  Primary, Secondary, Tertiary
  The most likely skill hierarchies that would be used when
  wielding this weapon.
  AV
  The Armor Value of the weapon, in case you ever need it.
  Cost
  The cost of the weapon in credits. These numbers are
  based on 3G3 design rules, and may be altered to suit a par-
  ticular game world.
  Origin
  The historical country of the weapon's origin. An “any” listing
  means that the weapon or similar ones were available just
  about anywhere during that TL.
  127
  127
  Armor
  Name
  The common name of the armor. 
  TL
  The Tech Levels the armor is commonly available at. If
  there is a range, the armor may be lighter and/or higher in
  quality at the higher end of the range.
  Armor Value
  The protection the armor affords, in the normal soak
  value/blunt trauma format.
  Covers
  The body parts covered by the armor. Some armors can be
  bought in sections, and piecewise stats are listed.
  Mass
  The mass of the armor for a normal size human (≈75kg). For
  larger or smaller individuals, the mass may be increased or
  decreased proportionally.
  Size
  The Size of the armor for being concealed under other cloth-
  ing. This may be altered for large or small individuals.
  Cost
  The cost of the armor in credits.
  Special notes
  Information specific to that particular type of armor.
  Equipment
  Name
  The common name of the equipment. 
  TL
  The Tech Levels the item is commonly available at. If there
  is a range, the item may be lighter and/or higher in quality at
  the higher end of the range.
  Mass
  The mass of the item in kilograms.
  Size
  The Size of the item for storage or concealment.
  AV
  The AV of the item for purposes of stopping damage. For
  items normally packed away (blankets, kits, etc), AV is for
  the packed item. Unpacked, it is usually 1/4 this (round up).
  Cost
  The cost of the item in credits.
  Special notes
  Game information relating to that particular item.
  B
  BASIC
  ASIC R
  RULES
  ULES
  
  128
  128
  B
  BASIC
  ASIC R
  RULES
  ULES
  Initiative Range
  Extra
  Rate
  Pistols
  Caliber
  DV
  mod
  mod
  Size
  TL
  Mass
  clip
  of fire
  Clip
  AV
  Cost
  Origin
  Hand cannon
  12mm
  4
  +1
  -1.
  7
  5
  2.1kg
  -
  1
  1i
  9
  70
  Germany
  Cavalry pistol
  12mm
  5
  +1
  0
  5
  6
  1.5kg
  -
  1
  1i
  8
  75
  Any
  Derringer
  11mm
  3
  +2
  -1.
  1
  7
  .4kg
  -
  1
  1i
  7
  60
  USA
  Colt 1873
  .45 Colt
  5
  +1
  1
  3
  8-11
  1.2kg
  -
  2
  6i
  7
  160
  USA
  Government .45
  .45 ACP
  4
  +1
  1
  3
  8-9
  1.4kg
  .3kg
  4
  7c
  7
  280
  USA
  Walther P-38
  9mm
  6
  +1
  2
  3
  9-11
  1.0kg
  .2kg
  4
  8c
  6
  660
  Germany
  Gov't Longslide
  .45ACP
  6
  +1
  2
  3
  10-12
  1.5kg
  .3kg
  4
  7c
  7
  690
  USA
  Colt Python
  .357 Mag
  7
  +1
  2
  3
  10-12
  1.1kg
  -
  3
  6i
  6
  395
  USA
  Beretta 92F
  9mm
  6
  +1
  2
  3
  11-12
  1.2kg
  .2kg
  4
  15c
  6
  720
  Italy
  Calico M-950
  9mm
  7
  +0
  2
  7
  11-12
  2.6kg
  1.6kg
  4
  100c
  6
  190
  USA
  Grendel P-10
  9mm short
  4
  +2
  -1.
  2
  11-12
  .5kg
  -
  4
  10i
  4
  135
  USA
  IMI Eagle
  .357 Mag
  8
  +1
  2
  4
  11-12
  1.7kg
  .3kg
  4
  9c
  6
  860
  Israel
  Glock 19
  9mm
  6
  +1
  2
  3
  12
  .9kg
  .3kg
  4
  17c
  5
  720
  Austria
  FN P96
  5.7mm
  8
  +1
  1
  3
  12
  1.1kg
  .2kg
  4
  25c
  5
  450
  Belgium
  Entires C9
  4mm railgun
  10
  +1
  1
  4
  14
  1.7kg
  .6kg
  4
  100c
  4
  1050
  -
  Punisher (impact stun) 20mm
  10
  +1
  -1.
  3
  15
  1.3kg
  .2kg
  4
  5c
  4
  280
  -
  Initiative Range
  Extra
  Rate
  Machine pistols
  Caliber
  DV
  mod
  mod
  Size
  TL
  Mass
  clip
  of fire
  Clip
  AV
  Cost
  Origin
  Vz-61 Skorpion
  .32 ACP
  4
  +1
  1
  4(7)
  10-11
  2.0kg
  .4kg
  20
  20c
  5
  360
  Czech.
  Beretta 93R
  9mm
  7
  +0
  2
  3(6)
  11-12
  1.2kg
  .3kg
  6
  20c
  6
  1130
  Italy
  MAC-10
  9mm
  7
  +1
  0
  5(8)
  11-12
  3.5kg
  .6kg
  18
  32c
  6
  245
  USA
  MAC-11
  9mm short
  5
  +1
  0
  5(8)
  11-12
  2.1kg
  .5kg
  20
  32c
  5
  190
  USA
  Ares FMG
  9mm
  7
  +0
  1
  3(7)
  12
  2.2kg
  .3kg
  11
  20c
  5
  510
  USA
  PolSci CQuel (stun)
  5mm
  5
  +2
  0
  1
  13
  .6kg
  .1kg
  12
  300c
  2
  1100
  -
  Synerg 12/2 (+1 to hit)12mm
  16
  +1
  2
  5
  14
  2.0kg
  .2kg
  6
  15c
  4
  900
  -
  Initiative Range
  Extra
  Rate
  Submachineguns
  Caliber
  DV
  mod
  mod
  Size
  TL
  Mass
  clip
  of fire
  Clip
  AV
  Cost
  Origin
  Sten
  9mm
  6
  +0
  0
  10
  9
  3.5kg
  .7kg
  9
  32
  7
  110
  England
  Thompson
  .45 ACP
  6
  -1
  2
  11(14)
  9-12
  7.2kg
  2.3kg
  12
  50c
  6
  430
  USA
  Uzi
  9mm
  7
  +0
  2
  8(11)
  10-12
  4.1kg
  .6kg
  10
  32c
  6
  270
  Israel
  Beretta 12S
  9mm
  7
  +0
  2
  8(11)
  10-11
  3.8kg
  .6kg
  9
  32c
  6
  245
  Italy
  Ilarco 180
  .22LR
  5
  +0
  3
  14
  11-12
  4.3kg
  .9kg
  20
  165c
  6
  410
  USA
  Spectre
  9mm
  6
  +0
  2
  5(8)
  11-12
  3.6kg
  .7kg
  14
  50c
  6
  470
  Italy
  Reaper
  10mm
  5(+1)
  +1
  3
  5(8)
  12
  3.0kg
  .7kg
  10
  40c
  6
  1300
  Italy
  FN P-90
  5.7mm
  9
  +1
  3
  7
  12
  3.2kg
  .4kg
  15
  50c
  5
  320
  Belgium
  Sauer-Bosk(+1 to hit)3mm rail
  16
  +1
  3
  8
  15
  3.0kg
  1.0kg
  10
  100c
  4
  1750
  -
  Initiative Range
  Extra
  Rate
  Civilian shotguns
  Caliber
  DV
  mod
  mod
  Size
  TL
  Mass
  clip
  of fire
  Clip
  AV
  Cost
  Origin
  Blunderbuss
  12ga
  8
  +0
  0
  9
  6-7
  2.6kg
  -
  1
  1i
  10
  55
  Any
  (00 Buckshot)
  3(+0)
  0
  Winchester 1901
  10ga
  10
  +0
  2
  15
  8-9
  4.1kg
  -
  1
  5i
  9
  195
  USA
  (00 Buckshot)
  3(+1)
  1
  Remington 870
  12ga
  10
  +0
  2
  13
  10-12
  4.1kg
  -
  2
  7i
  8
  410
  USA
  (00 Buckshot)
  4(+0)
  1
  SPAS 12
  12ga
  11
  +0
  2
  13
  11-12
  4.8kg
  -
  4
  7i
  7
  635
  Italy
  (00 Buckshot)
  4(+0)
  1
  Striker
  12ga
  10
  +0
  1
  14
  11-12
  5.0kg
  -
  2
  12i
  7
  145
  S.Africa
  (00 Buckshot)
  4(+0)
  1
  
  Initiative Range
  Extra
  Rate
  Civilian rifles
  Caliber
  DV
  mod
  mod
  Size
  TL
  Mass
  clip
  of fire
  Clip
  AV
  Cost
  Origin
  Matchlock musket
  16mm
  8
  -1
  1
  16
  5
  6.1kg
  -
  1
  1i
  11
  120
  Any
  Kentucky Rifle
  12mm
  10
  +0
  3
  17
  6-7
  4.1kg
  -
  1
  1i
  10
  140
  USA
  Sharps 1874
  .50-70
  12
  +0
  2
  15
  8
  4.0kg
  -
  1
  1i
  9
  180
  USA
  Weatherby Mk.V
  .460 Mag
  26
  +0
  5
  15
  10-12
  4.8kg
  -
  1
  2i
  9
  1980
  USA
  Ruger 10/22
  .22LR
  6
  +0
  2
  13
  11-12
  2.5kg
  .2kg
  4
  50c
  5
  165
  USA
  Ruger Mini-14
  5.56mm
  16
  +0
  4
  13
  11-12
  3.3kg
  .4kg
  4
  30c
  7
  600
  USA
  Browning M78
  6mm
  20
  +0
  5
  13
  11-12
  3.9kg
  -
  1
  1i
  7
  820
  USA
  Remington BR7
  7mm/c
  21
  +0
  5
  10
  13
  4.0kg
  .2kg
  4
  10c
  6
  1890
  USA
  Initiative Range
  Extra
  Rate
  Military rifles
  Caliber
  DV
  mod
  mod
  Size
  TL
  Mass
  clip
  of fire
  Clip
  AV
  Cost
  Origin
  M-14
  7.62mm
  17
  -1
  4
  15
  9-12
  5.1kg
  .7kg
  11
  20c
  8
  800
  USA
  Colt M-16A3
  5.56mm
  16
  +0
  4
  14
  11-12
  3.9kg
  .5kg
  6
  30c
  6
  870
  USA
  Ultimax 100
  5.56mm
  16
  -1
  4
  16
  11-12
  6.2kg
  1.8kg
  9
  100c
  6
  750
  Singapore
  Steyr AUG
  5.56mm
  16
  +0
  4
  10
  11-12
  4.0kg
  .7kg
  11
  42c
  6
  750
  Austria
  H&K G3A3
  7.62mm
  18
  +0
  4
  13
  11-12
  5.2kg
  .8kg
  10
  20c
  8
  910
  Germany
  FN-FAL
  7.62mm
  17
  +0
  5
  15
  10-12
  5.0kg
  .8kg
  11
  20c
  8
  860
  Belgium
  H&K G-11
  4.73mm/c
  15
  +0
  4
  10
  12
  4.3kg
  .4kg
  10
  50c
  6
  900
  Germany
  AK-47
  7.62mm
  14
  +0
  3
  10(13)
  10-12
  5.3kg
  .9kg
  10
  30c
  8
  400
  CIS
  AK-74
  5.56mm
  14
  +0
  3
  14
  11-12
  4.2kg
  .6kg
  11
  30c
  6
  300
  CIS
  Walther WA2000
  .300 Mag
  23
  -1
  6
  16
  11-12
  8.3kg
  .4kg
  4
  6c
  8
  4430
  Germany
  H&K OICW
  5.56mm
  16
  -1
  4
  16
  12
  7.3kg
  .5kg
  6
  30c
  6
  14KCr
  USA
  20mm
  2E
  -1
  4
  .5kg
  1
  6c
  Kalashnikov AK-9
  7mm
  20
  +0
  3
  10
  12
  6.5kg
  1.1kg
  10
  70c
  6
  550
  CIS
  Aratech 7c
  7mm/c
  21
  +0
  4
  9
  13
  4.2kg
  .6kg
  10
  50c
  6
  1160
  -
  Novafire II
  7mm laser
  34
  +0
  4
  9
  15
  7.3kg
  4.0kg
  10
  50c
  3
  7000
  -
  Initiative Range
  Extra
  Rate
  Military shotguns
  Caliber
  DV
  mod
  mod
  Size
  TL
  Mass
  clip
  of fire
  Clip
  AV
  Cost
  Origin
  USAS-12
  12ga
  11
  -1
  1
  16
  11-12
  6.5kg
  2.0kg
  6
  28c
  7
  1200
  USA
  (00 Buckshot)
  4(+0)
  1
  Witness Protection
  12ga
  10
  +0
  1
  7
  11-12
  2.1kg
  -
  1
  3i
  7
  500
  USA
  (00 Buckshot)
  4(+0)
  1
  Eisensturm (+1 to hit) 16mm
  18
  +0
  2
  10
  14
  3.8kg
  .9kg
  6
  50c
  5
  655
  -
  (flechette)
  8(+0)
  2
  4.5kg
  1.5kg
  Initiative Range
  Extra
  Rate
  Machineguns
  Caliber
  DV
  mod
  mod
  Size
  TL
  Mass
  clip
  of fire
  Clip
  AV
  Cost
  Origin
  .45/70 Gatling
  .45-70
  11
  -2
  3
  18
  8
  38.1kg
  7.2kg
  10
  200e
  8
  970
  USA
  Lewis Gun
  .303
  17
  -1
  4
  18
  8-9
  11.8kg
  1.3kg
  9
  40c
  9
  800
  England
  MG-34
  7.92mm
  19
  -1
  4
  18
  9-10
  18.0kg
  6.0kg
  15
  200e
  8
  1040
  Germany
  M60 LMG
  7.62mm
  19
  -1
  4
  18
  10-11
  16.3kg
  5.8kg
  9
  200e
  8
  970
  USA
  Browning M2
  12.7mm
  36
  -2
  10
  36
  9-12
  60.0kg
  20.0kg
  10
  200e
  10
  2500
  USA
  Maskei
  15mm
  69
  -3
  6
  27
  13
  81.5kg
  63.7kg
  10
  200e
  9
  4330
  USA
  Initiative Range
  Extra
  Rate
  Heavy weapons
  Caliber
  DV
  mod
  mod
  Size
  TL
  Mass
  clip
  of fire
  Clip
  AV
  Cost
  Origin
  RPG-7
  85mm
  427/7E
  -1
  1
  14
  10-11
  9.3kg
  2.3kg
  1
  1i
  7
  135
  CIS
  LAW 80
  94mm
  513/8E
  -1
  2
  19
  11-12
  8.8kg
  -
  1
  -
  5
  250
  England
  Stinger (skill 1)
  70mm
  22E
  -2
  7
  22
  11
  18.3kg
  13.4kg
  1
  1i
  8
  2000
  USA
  Oerlikon KAA (AP)
  20mm
  57
  -3
  26
  36
  11
  109kg
  21.0kg
  17
  50c
  11
  7820
  Switz.
  Tronskaal (skill 1)
  95mm
  590/9E
  -1
  4
  12
  14
  7.1kg
  -
  1
  -
  6
  650
  -
  Initiative Range
  Extra
  Rate
  Archaic weapons
  Caliber
  DV
  mod
  mod
  Size
  TL
  Mass
  arrow
  of fire
  Clip
  AV
  Cost
  Origin
  Bow (STR 4)
  -
  2
  +1
  2
  9
  5
  .9kg
  .1kg
  1
  1i
  4
  60
  Any
  Bow (STR 5)
  -
  3
  +1
  2
  9
  5
  1.2kg
  .1kg
  1
  1i
  4
  75
  Any
  Bow (STR 6)
  -
  4
  +0
  2
  9
  5
  1.5kg
  .1kg
  1
  1i
  4
  100
  Any
  Crossbow (STR 8)
  -
  8
  -1
  3
  13
  5
  3.2kg
  .05kg
  1
  1i
  4
  360
  Any
  Crossbow (STR 8)
  -
  8
  +0
  3
  13
  10
  2.2kg
  .05kg
  1
  1i
  3
  360
  Any
  Assume any TL12+ weapon can mount a laser sight or equivalent for a cost of 200Cr and .1kg
  A bow can be held ready for 10 seconds, +10 seconds for each extra point of STR. The Difficulty to reload a crossbow is its STR+3, and can only be accompliished through using extra time modifiers
  129
  129
  B
  BASIC
  ASIC R
  RULES
  ULES
  
  130
  130
  B
  BASIC
  ASIC R
  RULES
  ULES
  Melee weapons
  Initiative 
  (skill modifier)
  Damage
  DV
  mod
  Length
  Size
  TL
  Mass
  Prim.
  Sec.
  Tert.
  AV
  Cost
  Origin
  Small knife (-1)
  lethal(c/p)
  +0/+0
  +0/+0
  2
  0
  6
  .1kg
  Melee
  Knife
  -
  4
  5
  Any
  Hunting knife (+0)
  lethal(c/p)
  +1/+0
  +0/+0
  2
  1
  3
  .3kg
  Melee
  Knife
  -
  4
  35
  Any
  Short sword (+0)
  lethal(c/p)
  +2/+2
  -2/-1
  4
  4
  3
  1.1kg
  Melee
  Sword
  -
  10
  145
  Any
  Broadsword (+0)
  lethal(c/p)
  +3/+2
  -2/-2
  4
  5
  3
  1.6kg
  Melee
  Sword
  -
  10
  195
  Any
  Katana (+1)
  lethal(c/p)
  +3/+2
  -2/-1
  4
  6
  4
  1.3kg
  Melee
  Sword
  -
  10
  1750
  Japan
  Greatsword (+0)
  lethal(c/p)
  +4/+4
  -3/-3
  5
  13
  4
  3.6kg
  Melee
  Sword
  -
  11
  450
  Any
  Epee (+0)
  lethal(c/p)
  +0/+1
  -1/-1
  4
  4
  5
  .5kg
  Melee
  Sword
  -
  4
  80
  Any
  Hand ax (-1)
  lethal(c)
  +2
  -1
  3
  4
  3
  .7kg
  Melee
  Ax
  -
  8/2
  30
  Any
  Battle ax (+0)
  lethal(c)
  +3
  -3
  4
  7
  3
  2.0kg
  Melee
  Ax
  -
  14/7
  255
  Any
  Mace (+0)
  lethal(b/p)
  +3/+3
  -2/-2
  4
  4
  3
  1.6kg
  Melee
  Club
  -
  11/6
  195
  Any
  War hammer (+0)
  lethal(b/p)
  +2/+2
  -2/-2
  4
  5
  4
  1.0kg
  Melee
  Club
  -
  10/5
  225
  Any
  Billy club (+0)
  comb.(b)
  +1
  -1
  4
  3
  3
  .3kg
  Melee
  Club
  -
  2
  65
  Any
  Large wrench (-1)
  comb.(b)
  +2
  -3
  4
  9
  5
  5.0kg
  Melee
  Club
  -
  14
  30
  Any
  Brass knuckles (+0) comb.(b)
  +0
  +0
  1
  1
  4
  .3kg
  Unarmed
  Punch
  4
  20
  Any
  Sap glove (+0)
  non-lethal(b)
  +1
  +0
  1
  1
  8
  .3kg
  Unarmed
  Punch
  2
  30
  Any
  Armor
  TL
  Armor Value
  Protects
  Mass
  Size
  Cost
  Special notes
  Heavy clothing
  2+
  0/1
  All but face and hands
  1.2kg
  -
  80Cr
  All thrust/puncture count as AP
  Legs only
  .4kg
  -
  30Cr
  Torso only
  .3kg
  -
  20Cr
  Arms only
  .3kg
  -
  25Cr
  Padded cloth
  3+
  1/2
  All but face
  6.2kg
  -
  120Cr
  All thrust/puncture count as AP
  Legs only
  1.8kg
  8
  40Cr
  Torso only
  1.5kg
  12
  30Cr
  Arms only
  1.2kg
  8
  40Cr
  Hardened leather
  3+
  2/2
  All but face
  4.6kg
  -
  300Cr
  Lethal thrust/puncture count as AP
  Legs only
  1.4kg
  4
  100Cr
  Torso only
  1.1kg
  6
  70Cr
  Arms only
  1.2kg
  4
  100Cr
  Mail
  4+
  2/4
  All but face
  31.0kg
  -
  1200Cr
  All thrust/puncture count as AP
  Legs only
  9.0kg
  4
  400Cr
  Torso only
  7.0kg
  6
  300Cr
  Arms only
  8.0kg
  4
  400Cr
  Plate
  4+
  3/4
  All
  44.0kg
  -
  600Cr
  All bullets count as AP
  Legs only
  12.6kg
  -
  200Cr
  Torso only
  10.0kg
  -
  150Cr
  Arms only
  11.2kg
  -
  200Cr
  Flak jacket
  9+
  2/2
  Torso only
  3.8kg
  14
  80Cr
  All melee thrust count as AP
  Level I vest
  10+
  2/3
  Torso only
  1.1kg
  3
  150Cr
  All melee thrust count as AP
  Level II vest
  10+
  5/5
  Torso only
  2.5kg
  4
  500Cr
  All melee thrust count as AP
  Level III vest
  10+
  18/3
  Torso only
  8.4kg
  7
  800Cr
  Level IV vest
  10+
  18/3H
  Torso, upper legs
  11.5kg
  14
  1000Cr
  Hardened against AP attacks
  Motorcycle helmet
  10+
  3/1
  Head (2/0 on face)
  1.0kg
  -
  80Cr
  All bullets count as AP
  Metal helmet
  8+
  4/1
  Head (not face)
  .9kg
  -
  20Cr
  PAGST helmet
  11+
  8/1
  Head (not face)
  .7kg
  -
  60Cr
  Hardened against AP attacks
  Vacc suit
  11+
  2/3
  All
  35.0kg
  -
  20KCr
  All melee thrust count as AP
  Armored vacc suit
  12+
  4/3H
  All
  40.0kg
  -
  40KCr
  Full value vs. most attacks
  Battle dress
  13+
  25/3H
  Torso
  10.0kg
  -
  2000Cr
  Typical AV for light powered armor
  Head
  2.0kg
  -
  500Cr
  Arms only
  11.0kg
  -
  2500Cr
  Legs only
  12.0kg
  -
  2500Cr
  
  131
  131
  Equipment
  TL
  Mass
  Size
  AV
  Cost
  Special notes
  Small pack
  4+
  1.5kg
  12
  1
  20Cr
  Holds up to Size 10 of items
  9+
  1.0kg
  12
  1
  40Cr
  Medium pack
  4+
  4.0kg
  50
  1
  60Cr
  Holds up to Size 45 of items
  9+
  2.5kg
  50
  1
  100Cr
  Large pack
  4+
  6.0kg
  100
  1
  80Cr
  Holds up to Size 90 of items
  9+
  4.0kg
  100
  1
  130Cr
  Camping sundries
  4+
  1.0kg
  10
  1
  35Cr
  Toiletries, mirror, etc. for 30 days
  9+
  .5kg
  5
  1
  35Cr
  Waterskin, 4 liter
  2+
  4.4kg
  5
  1
  15Cr
  Will last an average person 1-2 days
  Trail food, 1 day
  4+
  1.0kg
  10
  1
  10Cr
  Can be stretched twice as far if resting
  9+
  .8kg
  8
  1
  10Cr
  Oil lamp (rating 2)
  3+
  .6kg
  5
  1
  15Cr
  Holds .2 liters oil, burns for 4 hours
  Carbide lamp (rating 4)
  8+
  .3kg
  5
  1
  20Cr
  Holds .1kg carbide, burns for 10 hours
  Flashlight (rating TL/3)(u)
  8+
  .6kg
  5
  1
  20Cr
  Holds .3kg batteries, burns for TL hours
  Lightstick (rating 2)
  11+
  .1kg
  2
  1
  2Cr
  Loses 1 point of rating each 3 hours
  Blanket
  2+
  1.2kg
  5
  2
  15Cr
  Provides a 5°C temperature shift
  Sleeping bag
  8+
  3.0kg
  15
  3
  50Cr
  Provides a 10°C temperature shift
  Sleeping bag
  10+
  2.5kg
  10
  2
  150Cr
  Provides a 20°C temperature shift
  Emergency blanket
  11+
  .1kg
  2
  0
  10Cr
  Provides a 5°C temperature shift
  Mess kit
  4+
  .7kg
  10
  3
  15Cr
  Suitable for cooking for 2 people
  Mess kit
  9+
  .4kg
  5
  2
  15Cr
  2 person tent
  6+
  6.0kg
  20
  3
  40Cr
  Minimal protection from the weather
  2 person tent
  10+
  2.0kg
  10
  2
  150Cr
  Fully floored and waterproofed
  Portable computer
  12
  3.0kg
  5
  1
  2000Cr
  Capable of executing programs of skill 6
  Automobile tools
  9+
  10kg
  20
  5
  200Cr
  Adequate tools for most parts replacement
  Electronic tools
  10+
  2kg
  8
  1
  200Cr
  Adequate tools for most parts replacement
  Lockpicks
  5+
  .1kg
  2
  1
  100Cr
  Suitable for locks of its own Tech Level
  First aid kit
  7+
  1.0kg
  8
  1
  100Cr
  Adequate for 5 First Aid rolls
  Disguise kit
  4+
  2.0kg
  10
  1
  200Cr
  Sophistication varies with Tech Level
  Multi-tool
  9+
  .2kg
  3
  2
  70Cr
  Count as inadequate tool for almost anything
  Rope, 50m
  3+
  4.5kg
  15
  1
  25Cr
  Holds up to 150kg safely
  Rope, 50m
  9+
  3.5kg
  15
  2
  150Cr
  Holds up to 1000kg safely
  Large book
  4+
  4.0kg
  25
  6
  200Cr
  Large spellbook, illuminated Bible, etc.
  Medium book
  7+
  1.0kg
  5
  2
  50Cr
  Textbook, reference book
  Small book
  7+
  .3kg
  2
  1
  10Cr
  Novel, small role-playing game
  Writing tools
  4+
  .1kg
  1
  0
  10Cr
  Pens, pencils
  Saddle & tack
  5+
  25.0kg
  70
  2
  400Cr
  Styles and accouterments may vary
  Saddlebags
  5+
  10.0kg
  35
  2
  100Cr
  Holds up to Size 15 in each of two pockets
  Formal clothing
  3+
  3.0kg
  20
  1
  500Cr
  Suitable for most formal outings
  Work clothing
  3+
  2.0kg
  10
  1
  80Cr
  Denims, T-shirt, sneakers, etc.
  Personal sundries
  2+
  .3kg
  3
  1
  100Cr
  Wristwatch, wallet, keys, etc.
  Binoculars
  7+
  1.0kg
  5
  1
  100Cr
  Bonus to AWR for spotting things
  Rifle scope
  8+
  .4kg
  3
  1
  200Cr
  Variable from 3x to 8x power
  Night vision goggles
  11+
  .9kg
  5
  2
  7000Cr
  Cuts off periph. vision (count as rear hexes)
  Night vision glasses
  13+
  .3kg
  2
  1
  500Cr
  Negates all darkness penalties
  Small electronic gadget
  10+
  .2kg
  3
  0
  50Cr
  Calculator, small radio or tape player
  Medium electronic gadget
  9+
  1.0kg
  8
  1
  150Cr
  WWII handheld transceiver
  Large electronic gadget
  8+
  5.0kg
  20
  1
  300Cr
  Old shortwave radio
  Suitcase
  8+
  5.0kg
  50
  2
  50Cr
  Lockable, holds up to Size 45 of items
  Steamer trunk
  8+
  10.0kg
  110
  2
  100Cr
  Lockable, holds up to Size 100 of items
  B
  BASIC
  ASIC R
  RULES
  ULES
  
  A
  Acceleration/Deceleration...................44,72,92
  Addiction..................................................19,81
  Ads & Disads ................................................16
  Age ...............................................................16
  Aliens............................................................30
  Armor Value..................................................46
  ASP .......................................................35,125
  Attribute Points (AP) .......................................4
  Authority .......................................................17
  Autofire .........................................................63
  Automatic successes...............................13,37
  Autokills ........................................................49
  Averaging skills...............................................8
  B
  Background .............................................17,30
  Base Defense ...............................................53
  Blocking ..............................................54,57,58
  Bracing .........................................................65
  Breaking things.............................................79
  Broken bones ...............................................49
  C
  Called shots........................................59,61,71
  Campaign problems ...................................121
  Campaign types..........................................117
  Character templates .....................................31
  Chase combat ..............................................73
  Climate .........................................................80
  Combination maneuvers...............................58
  Complementary skills ...................................38
  Contacts .............................................18,24,84
  Cultural psych lims .......................................26
  Cultural skill limits .........................................13
  Cyberware ..................................................112
  D
  Damage multiples.........................................27
  Damage Value.........................................45,50
  Death .....................................................49,122
  Dependence .................................................19
  Destiny..........................................................19
  Difficulty ................................................8,37,38
  Diseases.......................................................82
  Dodging ...................................................54,56
  Drowning ......................................................82
  Drugs ............................................................81
  Duty .........................................................17,20
  E
  Enemies...................................................20,84
  Eventually fatal results..................................49
  Exertion ........................................................83
  Experience..................................................123
  Explosives ....................................................70
  Exposure ......................................................83
  Extra Limb ....................................................21
  F
  Facing.................................................42,44,45
  Falling ...........................................................93
  False identity ...........................................24,87
  Fame ............................................................21
  Familiarity .......................................................7
  Fear checks ................................................114
  Feints............................................................59
  First Aid ...................................................41,51
  Fixing things .................................................79
  Frailness .......................................................22
  Free skills .....................................................12
  G
  Gathering ki ..................................................60
  GM notes ....................................................119
  Grabs............................................................56
  “Graze” rule ..................................................40
  Grenades......................................................70
  Guided weapons...........................................66
  H
  Habitual Behavior .........................................22
  Healing .........................................................51
  Height ...........................................................22
  Hiding things.................................................89
  Hipfiring ........................................................65
  Hit locations .............................................47,62
  Hunger..........................................................93
  I
  Immortality .............................................22,124
  Immutable powers ........................................99
  Impairments..................................................47
  Indirect fire....................................................66
  Inheritance...............................................23,29
  Initiative ........................................................42
  J
  Jumping ........................................................92
  K
  Kicks ........................................................45,55
  Knockouts.....................................................50
  L
  Laser sights ..................................................65
  Laws .............................................................84
  Legal systems...............................................86
  Lethal Blow ...................................................55
  Lifestyle ........................................................29
  Lighting .........................................................91
  “Long shot” rule ............................................39
  Luck ..............................................................23
  M
  Martial arts...............................................10,55
  Mass combat ................................................74
  Modified Defense..........................................53
  Movement.....................................................44
  Moving attacks....................................60,61,73
  Multiples .....................................................106
  N
  Natural Aptitude............................................23
  Natural Debility .............................................23
  Natural paranormal abilities........................114
  Non-combatant .............................................23
  NPC's............................................................87
  O
  Off-hand attacks ......................................60,65
  Omni-power ..................................................97
  “On a 10” rule ...............................................39
  “Out of combat” modifiers .............................38
  P
  Pain Tolerance .............................................23
  Papers ..........................................................24
  Paranormal frameworks .............................102
  Paranormal powers ......................................95
  Parrying ........................................................57
  Perils of powers ..........................................111
  Permanent injuries........................................52
  Physical Ad............................................24,115
  Physical Lim .................................................25
  Plots............................................................119
  “Point Blank” rule ..........................................40
  Pre-game preparations...............................119
  Prepared powers ..........................................97
  Professions...................................................12
  Psych Lim .....................................................25
  Punches...................................................54,55
  R
  “Random Disaster” rule ................................39
  Range Mod ...................................................61
  Recoil............................................................63
  Recovery .................................................51,83
  Repair ...........................................................79
  Retreating .....................................................56
  S
  Sample combat.............................................67
  Scale.............................................................44
  Setting ..........................................................65
  Shaped charges ...........................................70
  Shotguns ......................................................63
  Side effects...................................................98
  Size.....................................................26,56,89
  Skill Points (SP)..............................................4
  Skill use ........................................................37
  Sleep ............................................................94
  Smuggling.....................................................89
  Snap shots....................................................64
  Special armors..............................................46
  Spotting things..............................................90
  Spray fire ......................................................64
  Suffocation....................................................82
  Swimming .....................................................92
  T
  Tech Level ....................................................91
  Tech Level skills ...........................................12
  Telescopic sights ..........................................65
  Thirst.............................................................93
  Throwing.......................................................93
  Throws..........................................................56
  Toughness....................................................27
  Training.......................................................124
  Travel............................................................92
  Tricks ............................................................27
  Turning ...............................................44,45,73
  U
  Undead .......................................................114
  V
  Vehicles ........................................................71
  Vulnerability ..................................................27
  W
  Wealth ...................................................27,101
  Weapon length .............................................58
  Weight ..........................................................22
  Wrestling.......................................................56
  132
  132
  B
  BASIC
  ASIC R
  RULES
  ULES
  INDEX
  i
  
     
  Name: _______________ Height: _____cm Age: ____
  LEVEL 
  PTS
  APT
  STR
  AGL
  AWR
  WIL
  HLT
  POW
  Occupation: ___________
  Weight: _____kg
  Appearance: _________________________
  Background: ________________
  ™
  BLACKSBURG TACTICAL RESEARCH CENTER
  Carrying capacity:
  Unencumbered (STR2 x .25)   
  Half encumbered (STR2 x .5)
  Full encumbered (STR2 x 1)
  2x encumbered (STR2 x 2)    
  3x encumbered (STR2 x 3)    
  4x encumbered (STR2 x 4)   
  5x encumbered (STR2 x 5) 
  Mass
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  Penalty
  -0
  -1
  -2
  -4
  -6
  -8
  -10
  Ads & Disads:
  ________________________
  ________________________
  ________________________
  ________________________
  ________________________
  ________________________
  ________________________
  ________________________
  ________________________
  ________________________
  Base amount
  Total AP and SP
  AP
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  SP
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  Skills:
  ___________________
  ___________________
  ___________________
  ___________________
  ___________________
  ___________________
  ___________________
  ___________________
  ___________________
  ___________________
  ___________________
  ___________________
  ___________________
  ___________________
  ___________________
  ___________________
  ___________________
  ___________________
  ___________________
  ___________________
  ___________________
  ___________________
  Total skill cost
  Cost
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  Level
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  Exp.
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  Melee defense
  Base defense
    plus Dodge
    plus Block
    plus both
  : ___
  : ___
  : ___
  : ___
  SP
  M A Y B E P H O T O C O P IE D F O R P E R S O N A L U S E
  =Non-lethal 
  =Lethal 
  =HLT
  1
  2
  6
  7
  Melee offense
  Punch
    Damage
  Kick
    Damage
  : ___
  : ___
  : ___
  : ___
  Carried items
  Hat  
  ____________
  ____________
  Shirt pocket
  ____________
  ____________    
  ____________    
  ____________
  Jacket
  ____________    
  ____________    
  ____________    
  ____________
  ____________
  ____________
  Trouser pocket
  ____________    
  ____________    
  ____________    
  ____________
  Boot/ankle
  ____________    
  ____________    
  ____________    
  ____________
  Jewelry, etc.:
  ____________    
  ____________    
  ____________    
  ____________
  Other:
  ____________    
  ____________    
  ____________    
  ____________
  ____________    
  ____________    
  ____________    
  ____________
  ____________    
  ____________    
  ____________ 
  ____________ 
  ____________ 
  ____________ 
  ____________ 
  ____________ 
  ____________ 
  ____________ 
  ____________ 
  ____________ 
  ____________ 
  ____________ 
  Size
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  Mass
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  Permanent Injury Record
  ASP's
  Exertion
  Current
  HLT
  Whole 
  body
  Other
  Health & 
  Armor
  AV: __/__
  AV: 
  __/__
  AV: __/__
  AV: __/__
  AV: __/__
  AV: __/__ 
  AV: __/__
  3-4
  5
  8
  9
  10
  
  Equipment
  _________________________
  _________________________
  _________________________
  _________________________
  _________________________
  _________________________
  _________________________
  _________________________
  _________________________
  _________________________
  _________________________
  _________________________
  _________________________
  _________________________
  _________________________
  Vehicle record
  Name
  Front
  Top
  Sides
  Rear
  Bottom
  Windows
  Controls
  Engine
  Max
  Acc/Dec
  Turn
  Passengers
  Cargo
  Range
  Fuel
  Notes:
  _______________________________________________
  _______________________________________________
  _______________________________________________
  _______________________________________________
  _______________________________________________
  _______________________________________________
  : ______________
  : ____
  : ____
  : ____
  : ____
  : ____
  : ____
  : ____
  : ____
  : ____
  : ____
  : ____
  : ____
  : ____
  : ____
  : ____
  Vehicle record
  Name
  Front
  Top
  Sides
  Rear
  Bottom
  Windows
  Controls
  Engine
  Max
  Acc/Dec
  Turn
  Passengers
  Cargo
  Range
  Fuel
  Notes:
  _______________________________________________
  _______________________________________________
  _______________________________________________
  _______________________________________________
  _______________________________________________
  _______________________________________________
  : ______________
  : ____
  : ____
  : ____
  : ____
  : ____
  : ____
  : ____
  : ____
  : ____
  : ____
  : ____
  : ____
  : ____
  : ____
  : ____
  Papers and ID
  __________________________
  __________________________
  __________________________
  __________________________
  __________________________
  __________________________
  __________________________
  __________________________
  __________________________
  __________________________
  __________________________
  __________________________
  __________________________
  Real/Forged
  _________
  _________
  _________
  _________
  _________
  _________
  _________
  _________
  _________
  _________
  _________
  _________
  _________
  Good until
  _________
  _________
  _________
  _________
  _________
  _________
  _________
  _________
  _________
  _________
  _________
  _________
  _________
  AV
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  Size
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  Mass
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  Notes
  _______________________
  _______________________
  _______________________
  _______________________
  _______________________
  _______________________
  _______________________
  _______________________
  _______________________
  _______________________
  _______________________
  _______________________
  _______________________
  _______________________
  _______________________
  Location
  _______
  _______
  _______
  _______
  _______
  _______
  _______
  _______
  _______
  _______
  _______
  _______
  _______
  _______
  _______
  Game history, character notes, etc.
  ________________________________________________________________________
  ________________________________________________________________________
  ________________________________________________________________________
  ________________________________________________________________________
  ________________________________________________________________________
  ________________________________________________________________________
  ________________________________________________________________________
  ________________________________________________________________________
  ________________________________________________________________________
  ________________________________________________________________________
  ________________________________________________________________________
  ________________________________________________________________________
  ________________________________________________________________________
  ________________________________________________________________________
  ________________________________________________________________________
  ________________________________________________________________________
  ________________________________________________________________________
  ________________________________________________________________________
  ________________________________________________________________________
  ________________________________________________________________________
  ________________________________________________________________________
  ________________________________________________________________________
  ________________________________________________________________________
  ________________________________________________________________________
  ________________________________________________________________________
  ________________________________________________________________________
  ________________________________________________________________________
  ________________________________________________________________________
  ________________________________________________________________________
  ________________________________________________________________________
  ________________________________________________________________________
  ________________________________________________________________________
  ________________________________________________________________________
  ________________________________________________________________________
  ________________________________________________________________________
  ________________________________________________________________________
  ________________________________________________________________________
  Guns
  __________________
  __________________
  __________________
  __________________
  __________________
  __________________
  __________________
  __________________
  __________________
  __________________
  __________________
  Caliber
  _____
  _____
  _____
  _____
  _____
  _____
  _____
  _____
  _____
  _____
  _____
  DV
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  Init.mod
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  Rg.mod
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  Size
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  Mass
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ROF
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  Clip
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  AV
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  Cost .
  ____Cr
  ____Cr
  ____Cr
  ____Cr
  ____Cr
  ____Cr
  ____Cr
  ____Cr
  ____Cr
  ____Cr
  ____Cr
  Cash flow
  __________________
  __________________
  __________________
  __________________
  Location
  ________________________
  ________________________
  ________________________
  ________________________
  Amount
  _______Cr
  _______Cr
  _______Cr
  _______Cr
  Under what name
  __________________
  __________________
  __________________
  __________________
  
  Name: _______________
  Height: _____cm Age: ____
  LEVEL
  PTS
  APT
  STR
  AGL
  AWR
  WIL
  HLT
  POW
  Occupation: ___________
  Weight: _____kg
  Appearance: _________________________
  Background: ________________
  ™
  BLACKSBURG TACTICAL RESEARCH CENTER
  Carrying capacity:
  Unencumbered (STR2 x .25)   
  Half encumbered (STR2 x .5)
  Full encumbered (STR2 x 1)
  2x encumbered (STR2 x 2)    
  3x encumbered (STR2 x 3)    
  4x encumbered (STR2 x 4)   
  5x encumbered (STR2 x 5) 
  Mass
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  Penalty
  -0
  -1
  -2
  -4
  -6
  -8
  -10
  Ads & Disads:
  ________________________
  ________________________
  ________________________
  ________________________
  ________________________
  ________________________
  ________________________
  ________________________
  ________________________
  ________________________
  Base amount
  Total AP and SP
  AP
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  SP
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  Skills:
  ___________________
  ___________________
  ___________________
  ___________________
  ___________________
  ___________________
  ___________________
  ___________________
  ___________________
  ___________________
  ___________________
  ___________________
  ___________________
  ___________________
  ___________________
  ___________________
  ___________________
  ___________________
  ___________________
  ___________________
  ___________________
  ___________________
  Total skill cost
  Cost
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  Level
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  Exp.
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  ____
  Melee defense
  Base defense
    plus Dodge
    plus Block
    plus both
  : ___
  : ___
  : ___
  : ___
  SP
  M A Y B E P H O T O C O P IE D F O R P E R S O N A L U S E
  =Non-lethal
  =Lethal
  =HLT
  1
  2
  6
  7
  Melee offense
  Punch
    Damage
  Kick
    Damage
  : ___
  : ___
  : ___
  : ___
  Carried items
  Hat  
  ____________
  ____________
  Belt pouch
  ____________
  ____________    
  ____________    
  ____________
  Tunic
  ____________    
  ____________    
  ____________    
  ____________
  ____________
  ____________
  Breeches
  ____________    
  ____________    
  ____________    
  ____________
  Boot/ankle
  ____________    
  ____________    
  ____________    
  ____________
  Jewelry, etc.:
  ____________    
  ____________    
  ____________    
  ____________
  Other:
  ____________    
  ____________    
  ____________    
  ____________
  ____________    
  ____________    
  ____________    
  ____________
  ____________    
  ____________    
  ____________ 
  ____________ 
  ____________ 
  ____________ 
  ____________ 
  ____________ 
  ____________ 
  ____________ 
  ____________ 
  ____________ 
  ____________ 
  ____________ 
  Size
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  Mass
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  Permanent Injury Record
  ASP's
  Exertion
  Current
  HLT
  Whole 
  body
  Other
  Health & 
  Armor
  AV: __/__
  AV: 
  __/__
  AV: __/__
  AV: __/__
  AV: __/__
  AV: __/__
  AV: __/__
  3-4
  5
  8
  9
  10
  
  Equipment
  _________________________
  _________________________
  _________________________
  _________________________
  _________________________
  _________________________
  _________________________
  _________________________
  _________________________
  _________________________
  _________________________
  _________________________
  _________________________
  _________________________
  _________________________
  Creature record
  Name
  STR
  AGL
  AWR
  WIL
  HLT
  POW
  Size mod.
  Toughness
  AV
  Max spd.
  Acc
  Bite DV
  Strike DV
  Other DV
  Other DV
  Notes:
  _______________________________________________
  _______________________________________________
  _______________________________________________
  _______________________________________________
  _______________________________________________
  _______________________________________________
  : ______________
  : ____
  : ____
  : ____
  : ____
  : ____
  : ____
  : ____
  : ____
  : ____
  : ____m/sec
  : ____
  : ____
  Skill
  : ____
  : ____
  Skill
  : ____
  : ____
  Skill
  : ____
  : ____
  Skill
  : ____
  Creature record
  Name
  STR
  AGL
  AWR
  WIL
  HLT
  POW
  Size mod.
  Toughness
  AV
  Max spd.
  Acc
  Bite DV
  Strike DV
  Other DV
  Other DV
  Notes:
  _______________________________________________
  _______________________________________________
  _______________________________________________
  _______________________________________________
  _______________________________________________
  _______________________________________________
  : ______________
  : ____
  : ____
  : ____
  : ____
  : ____
  : ____
  : ____
  : ____
  : ____
  : ____m/sec
  : ____
  : ____
  Skill
  : ____
  : ____
  Skill
  : ____
  : ____
  Skill
  : ____
  : ____
  Skill
  : ____
  Papers and ID
  __________________________
  __________________________
  __________________________
  __________________________
  __________________________
  __________________________
  __________________________
  __________________________
  __________________________
  __________________________
  __________________________
  __________________________
  __________________________
  Real/Forged
  _________
  _________
  _________
  _________
  _________
  _________
  _________
  _________
  _________
  _________
  _________
  _________
  _________
  Good until
  _________
  _________
  _________
  _________
  _________
  _________
  _________
  _________
  _________
  _________
  _________
  _________
  _________
  AV
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  Size
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  Mass
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  Notes
  _______________________
  _______________________
  _______________________
  _______________________
  _______________________
  _______________________
  _______________________
  _______________________
  _______________________
  _______________________
  _______________________
  _______________________
  _______________________
  _______________________
  _______________________
  Location
  _______
  _______
  _______
  _______
  _______
  _______
  _______
  _______
  _______
  _______
  _______
  _______
  _______
  _______
  _______
  Game history, character notes, etc.
  ________________________________________________________________________
  ________________________________________________________________________
  ________________________________________________________________________
  ________________________________________________________________________
  ________________________________________________________________________
  ________________________________________________________________________
  ________________________________________________________________________
  ________________________________________________________________________
  ________________________________________________________________________
  ________________________________________________________________________
  ________________________________________________________________________
  ________________________________________________________________________
  ________________________________________________________________________
  ________________________________________________________________________
  ________________________________________________________________________
  ________________________________________________________________________
  ________________________________________________________________________
  ________________________________________________________________________
  ________________________________________________________________________
  ________________________________________________________________________
  ________________________________________________________________________
  ________________________________________________________________________
  Ranged weapons
  __________________
  __________________
  __________________
  __________________
  Caliber
  _____
  _____
  _____
  _____
  DV
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  Init.mod
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  Rg.mod
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  Size
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  Mass
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ROF
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  Clip
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  AV
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  Cost .
  ____Cr
  ____Cr
  ____Cr
  ____Cr
  Cash flow
  __________________
  __________________
  __________________
  __________________
  Location
  ________________________
  ________________________
  ________________________
  ________________________
  Amount
  _______Cr
  _______Cr
  _______Cr
  _______Cr
  Under what name
  __________________
  __________________
  __________________
  __________________
  Melee weapons
  __________________
  __________________
  __________________
  __________________
  __________________
  Damage type
  __________
  __________
  __________
  __________
  __________
  DV
  __/__
  __/__
  __/__
  __/__
  __/__
  Init.mod
  __/__
  __/__
  __/__
  __/__
  __/__
  Length
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  Size
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  Mass
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  ____kg
  AV
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  ___
  Cost .
  ____Cr
  ____Cr
  ____Cr
  ____Cr
  ____Cr
  Paranormal powers
  ______________ ______________ ______________ ______________ ______________ 
  ______________ ______________ ______________ ______________ ______________ 
  ______________ ______________ ______________ ______________ ______________ 
  ______________ ______________ ______________ ______________ ______________ 
  ______________ ______________ ______________ ______________ ______________ 
  ______________ ______________ ______________ ______________ ______________ 
  ______________ ______________ ______________ ______________ ______________ 
  ______________ ______________ ______________ ______________ ______________ 
  ______________ ______________ ______________ ______________ ______________ 
  ______________ ______________ ______________ ______________ ______________ 
  ______________ ______________ ______________ ______________ ______________ 
  ______________ ______________ ______________ ______________ ______________ 
  ______________ ______________ ______________ ______________ ______________ 
  
  137
  137
  B
  BASIC
  ASIC R
  RULES
  ULES
  NPC Name: ________________________________________
  STR
  : ___
  AGL
  : ___
  AWR 
  : ___
  WIL
  : ___
  HLT
  : ___
  POW
  : ___
  Skills
  Level
  __________
  ____
  __________
  ____
  __________
  ____
  __________
  ____
  __________
  ____
  __________
  ____
  __________
  ____
  __________
  ____
  Special abilities
  __________
  ____
  _____________________________
  __________
  ____
  _____________________________
  __________
  ____
  _____________________________
  Equipment & notes
  __________________________________________________
  __________________________________________________
  __________________________________________________
  __________________________________________________
  __________________________________________________
  __________________________________________________
  __________________________________________________
  1
  2
  6
  7
  Whole 
  body
  AV: __/__  
  AV: __/__  
  AV: __/__  
  AV: __/__   
  AV: __/__   
  AV: __/__  
  AV: __/__  
  3-4
  5
  8
  9
  10 
  NPC Name: ________________________________________
  STR
  : ___
  AGL
  : ___
  AWR 
  : ___
  WIL
  : ___
  HLT
  : ___
  POW
  : ___
  Skills
  Level
  __________
  ____
  __________
  ____
  __________
  ____
  __________
  ____
  __________
  ____
  __________
  ____
  __________
  ____
  __________
  ____
  Special abilities
  __________
  ____
  _____________________________
  __________
  ____
  _____________________________
  __________
  ____
  _____________________________
  Equipment & notes
  __________________________________________________
  __________________________________________________
  __________________________________________________
  __________________________________________________
  __________________________________________________
  __________________________________________________
  __________________________________________________
  1
  2
  6
  7
  Whole 
  body
  AV: __/__  
  AV: __/__  
  AV: __/__  
  AV: __/__   
  AV: __/__   
  AV: __/__  
  AV: __/__  
  3-4
  5
  8
  9
  10 
  NPC Name: ________________________________________
  STR
  : ___
  AGL
  : ___
  AWR 
  : ___
  WIL
  : ___
  HLT
  : ___
  POW
  : ___
  Skills
  Level
  __________
  ____
  __________
  ____
  __________
  ____
  __________
  ____
  __________
  ____
  __________
  ____
  __________
  ____
  __________
  ____
  Special abilities
  __________
  ____
  _____________________________
  __________
  ____
  _____________________________
  __________
  ____
  _____________________________
  Equipment & notes
  __________________________________________________
  __________________________________________________
  __________________________________________________
  __________________________________________________
  __________________________________________________
  __________________________________________________
  __________________________________________________
  1
  2
  6
  7
  Whole 
  body
  AV: __/__  
  AV: __/__  
  AV: __/__  
  AV: __/__   
  AV: __/__   
  AV: __/__  
  AV: __/__  
  3-4
  5
  8
  9
  10 
  NPC Name: ________________________________________
  STR
  : ___
  AGL
  : ___
  AWR 
  : ___
  WIL
  : ___
  HLT
  : ___
  POW
  : ___
  Skills
  Level
  __________
  ____
  __________
  ____
  __________
  ____
  __________
  ____
  __________
  ____
  __________
  ____
  __________
  ____
  __________
  ____
  Special abilities
  __________
  ____
  _____________________________
  __________
  ____
  _____________________________
  __________
  ____
  _____________________________
  Equipment & notes
  __________________________________________________
  __________________________________________________
  __________________________________________________
  __________________________________________________
  __________________________________________________
  __________________________________________________
  __________________________________________________
  1
  2
  6
  7
  Whole 
  body
  AV: __/__  
  AV: __/__  
  AV: __/__  
  AV: __/__   
  AV: __/__   
  AV: __/__  
  AV: __/__  
  3-4
  5
  8
  9
  10 
  
  138
  138
  B
  BASIC
  ASIC R
  RULES
  ULES
  Creature: __________________________________________
  STR
  : ___
  AGL
  : ___
  AWR 
  : ___
  WIL
  : ___
  HLT
  : ___
  POW
  : ___
  Size mod: ___
  Toughn. : ___
  AV
  : ___
  Max spd.: ___m/sec
  Acc
  : ___
  Bite DV : ___
  Strike DV: ___
  Other
  : ___
  Other 
  : ___
  Skills
  Level
  Special abilities
  ___________
  ____
  _____________________________
  ___________
  ____
  _____________________________
  ___________
  ____
  _____________________________
  ___________
  ____
  _____________________________
  ___________
  ____
  _____________________________
  ___________
  ____
  _____________________________
  ___________
  ____
  _____________________________
  ___________
  ____
  _____________________________
  ___________
  ____
  _____________________________
  Head
  Torso
  Abdomen
  R.F.Leg
  L.F.Leg
  R.R.Leg
  L.R.Leg
  Whole 
  body
  Creature: __________________________________________
  STR
  : ___
  AGL
  : ___
  AWR 
  : ___
  WIL
  : ___
  HLT
  : ___
  POW
  : ___
  Size mod: ___
  Toughn. : ___
  AV
  : ___
  Max spd.: ___m/sec
  Acc
  : ___
  Bite DV : ___
  Strike DV: ___
  Other
  : ___
  Other 
  : ___
  Skills
  Level
  Special abilities
  ___________
  ____
  _____________________________
  ___________
  ____
  _____________________________
  ___________
  ____
  _____________________________
  ___________
  ____
  _____________________________
  ___________
  ____
  _____________________________
  ___________
  ____
  _____________________________
  ___________
  ____
  _____________________________
  ___________
  ____
  _____________________________
  ___________
  ____
  _____________________________
  Head
  Torso
  Abdomen
  R.F.Leg
  L.F.Leg
  R.R.Leg
  L.R.Leg
  Whole 
  body
  Creature: __________________________________________
  STR
  : ___
  AGL
  : ___
  AWR 
  : ___
  WIL
  : ___
  HLT
  : ___
  POW
  : ___
  Size mod: ___
  Toughn. : ___
  AV
  : ___
  Max spd.: ___m/sec
  Acc
  : ___
  Bite DV : ___
  Strike DV: ___
  Other
  : ___
  Other 
  : ___
  Skills
  Level
  Special abilities
  ___________
  ____
  _____________________________
  ___________
  ____
  _____________________________
  ___________
  ____
  _____________________________
  ___________
  ____
  _____________________________
  ___________
  ____
  _____________________________
  ___________
  ____
  _____________________________
  ___________
  ____
  _____________________________
  ___________
  ____
  _____________________________
  ___________
  ____
  _____________________________
  Head
  Torso
  Abdomen
  R.F.Leg
  L.F.Leg
  R.R.Leg
  L.R.Leg
  Whole 
  body
  Creature: __________________________________________
  STR
  : ___
  AGL
  : ___
  AWR 
  : ___
  WIL
  : ___
  HLT
  : ___
  POW
  : ___
  Size mod: ___
  Toughn. : ___
  AV
  : ___
  Max spd.: ___m/sec
  Acc
  : ___
  Bite DV : ___
  Strike DV: ___
  Other
  : ___
  Other 
  : ___
  Skills
  Level
  Special abilities
  ___________
  ____
  _____________________________
  ___________
  ____
  _____________________________
  ___________
  ____
  _____________________________
  ___________
  ____
  _____________________________
  ___________
  ____
  _____________________________
  ___________
  ____
  _____________________________
  ___________
  ____
  _____________________________
  ___________
  ____
  _____________________________
  ___________
  ____
  _____________________________
  Head
  Torso
  Abdomen
  R.F.Leg
  L.F.Leg
  R.R.Leg
  L.R.Leg
  Whole 
  body
  
  139
  139
  B
  BASIC
  ASIC R
  RULES
  ULES
  Vehicle: ____________________________________________
  Front
  : ___
  Top
  : ___
  Sides 
  : ___
  Rear
  : ___
  Bottom
  : ___
  Windows: ___
  Controls : ___
  Engine
  : ___
  Max
  : ___
  Acc/Dec : ___
  Turn
  : ___
  Pass.
  : ___
  Cargo
  : ___
  Range
  : ___
  Fuel
  : ___
  Special features
  __________________________________________________
  __________________________________________________
  __________________________________________________
  __________________________________________________
  Accessories and equipment
  __________________________________________________
  __________________________________________________
  __________________________________________________
  __________________________________________________
  Vehicle: ____________________________________________
  Front
  : ___
  Top
  : ___
  Sides 
  : ___
  Rear
  : ___
  Bottom
  : ___
  Windows: ___
  Controls : ___
  Engine
  : ___
  Max
  : ___
  Acc/Dec : ___
  Turn
  : ___
  Pass.
  : ___
  Cargo
  : ___
  Range
  : ___
  Fuel
  : ___
  Special features
  __________________________________________________
  __________________________________________________
  __________________________________________________
  __________________________________________________
  Accessories and equipment
  __________________________________________________
  __________________________________________________
  __________________________________________________
  __________________________________________________
  Vehicle: ____________________________________________
  Front
  : ___
  Top
  : ___
  Sides 
  : ___
  Rear
  : ___
  Bottom
  : ___
  Windows: ___
  Controls : ___
  Engine
  : ___
  Max
  : ___
  Acc/Dec : ___
  Turn
  : ___
  Pass.
  : ___
  Cargo
  : ___
  Range
  : ___
  Fuel
  : ___
  Special features
  __________________________________________________
  __________________________________________________
  __________________________________________________
  __________________________________________________
  Accessories and equipment
  __________________________________________________
  __________________________________________________
  __________________________________________________
  __________________________________________________
  Vehicle: ____________________________________________
  Front
  : ___
  Top
  : ___
  Sides 
  : ___
  Rear
  : ___
  Bottom
  : ___
  Windows: ___
  Controls : ___
  Engine
  : ___
  Max
  : ___
  Acc/Dec : ___
  Turn
  : ___
  Pass.
  : ___
  Cargo
  : ___
  Range
  : ___
  Fuel
  : ___
  Special features
  __________________________________________________
  __________________________________________________
  __________________________________________________
  __________________________________________________
  Accessories and equipment
  __________________________________________________
  __________________________________________________
  __________________________________________________
  __________________________________________________
  
  140
  140
  B
  BASIC
  ASIC R
  RULES
  ULES
  Vehicle: ____________________________________________
  Front
  : ___
  Top
  : ___
  Sides 
  : ___
  Rear
  : ___
  Bottom
  : ___
  Windows: ___
  Controls : ___
  Engine 1: ___
  Engine 2: ___
  Engine 3: ___
  Engine 4: ___
  Max
  : ___
  Acc/Dec : ___
  Turn
  : ___
  Pass.
  : ___
  Cargo
  : ___
  Range
  : ___
  Fuel
  : ___
  Special features
  _______________
  _______________
  _______________
  _______________
  _______________
  _______________
  _______________
  _______________
  _______________
  _______________
  _______________
  Accessories
  _______________
  _______________
  _______________
  _______________
  _______________
  _______________
  _______________
  _______________
  _______________
  _______________
  _______________
  Equipment
  _______________
  _______________
  _______________
  _______________
  _______________
  _______________
  _______________
  _______________
  _______________
  _______________
  _______________
  Scale: _________
  
  141
  141
  B
  BASIC
  ASIC R
  RULES
  ULES
  Campaign Start-up Sheet
  Backdrop:
  ___________________________________________________________________________________
  ___________________________________________________________________________________
  ___________________________________________________________________________________
  Tech Level:
  ____
  Weapons
  ____
  Examples: __________________________________________
  Medicine
  ____
  Examples: __________________________________________
  Transport
  ____
  Examples: __________________________________________
  ________
  ____
  Examples: __________________________________________
  Paranormal
  ___________________________________________________________________________________
  Powers:
  ___________________________________________________________________________________
  ___________________________________________________________________________________
  Character
  ___________________________________________________________________________________
  Guidelines:
  ___________________________________________________________________________________
  Racial
  ___________________________________________________________________________________
  Guidelines:
  ___________________________________________________________________________________
  Gender
  ___________________________________________________________________________________
  Guidelines:
  ___________________________________________________________________________________
  Base AP:
  ____
  Maximum AP after Disads:
  ____
  Base SP:
  ____
  Maximum SP after Disads:
  ____
  Attribute limits
  ___________________________________________________________________________________
  and notes:
  ___________________________________________________________________________________
  Disads not 
  _________________________________
  Ads not
  ___________________________________
  allowed:
  _________________________________
  allowed:
  ___________________________________
  _________________________________
  ___________________________________
  Disads that
  _________________________________
  Ads that
  ___________________________________
  are restricted:
  _________________________________
  are restricted: ___________________________________
  _________________________________
  ___________________________________
  Disads that
  _________________________________
  Ads that are
  ___________________________________
  are mandatory: _________________________________
  mandatory:
  ___________________________________
  _________________________________
  ___________________________________
  Useful skills
  ____________ ____________ ____________ ____________ ____________ ____________ _____
  to have:
  ____________ ____________ ____________ ____________ ____________ ____________ _____
  Cultural skill
  _________________________________
  Cultural
  ___________________________________
  lims:
  _________________________________
  Psych Lims:
  ___________________________________
  _________________________________
  ___________________________________
  What the average person knows in terms of geography, history, standard codes of behavior, laws and morality (i.e. the
  free skill “Area Knowledge - Native Culture”).
  ________________________________________________________________________________________________
  ________________________________________________________________________________________________
  ________________________________________________________________________________________________
  ________________________________________________________________________________________________
  Character backgrounds well suited to this campaign:
  ________________________________________________________________________________________________
  ________________________________________________________________________________________________
  
  142
  142
  B
  BASIC
  ASIC R
  RULES
  ULES
  Campaign Reference Sheet
  GM/Campaign: ________________________
  Character:
  ________________________
   
  OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
  Local Date:
  ________________________
  Location:
  ________________________
  Prologue:
  ___________________________________________________________________________________
  ___________________________________________________________________________________
  ___________________________________________________________________________________
  Events of note: ___________________________________________________________________________________
  ___________________________________________________________________________________
  ___________________________________________________________________________________
  ___________________________________________________________________________________
  Loose ends:
  ___________________________________________________________________________________
  ___________________________________________________________________________________
  Down time:
  ___________________________________________________________________________________
  ___________________________________________________________________________________
  OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
  Local Date:
  ________________________
  Location:
  ________________________
  Prologue:
  ___________________________________________________________________________________
  ___________________________________________________________________________________
  ___________________________________________________________________________________
  Events of note: ___________________________________________________________________________________
  ___________________________________________________________________________________
  ___________________________________________________________________________________
  ___________________________________________________________________________________
  Loose ends:
  ___________________________________________________________________________________
  ___________________________________________________________________________________
  Down time:
  ___________________________________________________________________________________
  ___________________________________________________________________________________
  OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
  Local Date:
  ________________________
  Location:
  ________________________
  Prologue:
  ___________________________________________________________________________________
  ___________________________________________________________________________________
  ___________________________________________________________________________________
  Events of note: ___________________________________________________________________________________
  ___________________________________________________________________________________
  ___________________________________________________________________________________
  ___________________________________________________________________________________
  Loose ends:
  ___________________________________________________________________________________
  ___________________________________________________________________________________
  Down time:
  ___________________________________________________________________________________
  ___________________________________________________________________________________
  
  B
  BASIC
  ASIC R
  RULES
  ULES
  143
  143
  
  B
  BASIC
  ASIC R
  RULES
  ULES
  144
  144
  
  A new beginning...
  A new beginning...
  Tabula rasa, a blank slate. CORPS is the role-playing system 
  that looks at what 
  Tabula rasa, a blank slate. CORPS is the role-playing system 
  that looks at what you
  you want. Rules you can remember. Dice 
  you don't have to use. Guidelines for both new and exper- 
  ienced players. Everything you need in one volume that's 
  half the thckness you would normally expect. From swords 
  to psionics, magic to machine-guns, past, present or future, 
  this game 
   want. Rules you can remember. Dice 
  you don't have to use. Guidelines for both new and exper- 
  ienced players. Everything you need in one volume that's 
  half the thckness you would normally expect. From swords 
  to psionics, magic to machine-guns, past, present or future, 
  this game has
  has what you need.
   what you need.
  It's complete. It's omniversal. The only 
  thing it can't supply is what 
  It's complete. It's omniversal. The only 
  thing it can't supply is what you
  you have to 
  bring to the game...imagination.
   have to 
  bring to the game...imagination.
  BTRC 7001
  ISBN 0-943891-28-0
  
SOURCE: textdata/thevault/Corps/CORPS 2e - BTRC7101 Core Rulebook.pdf