Elves & Espers: Drowleks
Posted by Joshua on Dec 12, 2008
Drowleks are one of the most feared and hated races in the universe, committed to wiping out all non-Drowlek life everywhere. Long ago they were a sub-species of Elf that lived underground, until the byproducts of their incessant warfare with the surface-dwellers poisoned their land and nearly killed off their species. A mad genius constructed cyborg bodies for the remaining members of their species and they set out to cleanse the universe of non-Drowleks, uttering their piercing battle-cry of “Annihilate! Annihilate!” Physically Drowleks resemble black and silver chess pawns, with eight spider-like legs sprouting from their underside, and a pair of pointed flanges that somewhat resemble Elven ears and have a Jacob’s-ladder electrical effect making a chilling drizzt-drizzt sound when active; these are the primary ranged weapon of the Drowleks, and can fire tremendous bolts of lightning at enemies. Their front two legs can extend scimitar-like blades for fighting in melee. Drowleks are nearly impervious to physical harm, but the magical Impermium metal of their outer casings is weakened by sunlight.
Drowlek
Attributes: Agil d4, Smarts d8, Spirit d6, Str d12, Vigor d10
Skills: Fighting d8, Shooting d10, Intimidation d10, Notice d6
Pace: 6 on any solid surface Parry: 6 Toughness: 11
Gear: 2 Scimitars: Str+d8, Lightning Generator: 2d10 Cone attack, ignores metal armor (except self-powered armor, which is presumed to be shielded)
Special Abilities:
Ambidextrous – ignore off-hand penalty.
Armor - +4
Construct - +2 recover from Shaken; immune to disease, poison, aging; called shots do no extra damage; no wound modifiers. Does not heal, must be repaired.
Fearless - Drowleks cannot be scared or Intimidated, even by magic, though they may proceed with caution if the situation warrants it.
Force Field - Drowleks cannot be harmed by non-Heavy weapons, and count as having Superior Magic Resistance
Sensors – Drowleks suffer no penalty for complete darkness, but are -1 in sunlight, and -2 in bright sunlight (but no penalties for equivalent artificial illumination).
Sphere of Annihilation – The orb on top of the “pawn” contains a Sphere of Annihilation, held in place magically. If it does nothing else during a turn, not even move, the Drowlek can unsheathe the sphere. Anything that touches the sphere, other than Drowleks, is instantly completely annihilated. A Drowlek with its sphere exposed is incapable of movement. It requires another full turn to sheathe it once again. The Drowlek can also cause the Sphere to expand: on the first turn, the Sphere encompasses the 1″ square the Drowlek occupies, on the second turn it occupies a Medium Burst Template; on the third turn is occupies a Large Burst Template, which is as large as it can get. This does not harm the Drowlek, but it can not perform any other actions once the sphere has expanded, nor perceive what is going on outside the sphere or communicate with other Drowleks; it will remain blind and immobile until it shrinks the sphere back to its normal size. While it is in the Sphere is cannot be perceived or targetted in any way, not even by magic or psionics. Shrinking the Sphere takes the same amount of time as growing it.
Two-Fisted - no multi-action penalty for using both Scimitars at once.
Hated - by ancient tradition and pure self-interest all cultures and races will put aside their differences temporarily in order to fight Drowleks.
Weakness – Sunlight degrades Drowlek armor; sunlight-based attacks are +2 AP (they must be defined as being sunlight-based, and not ordinary light…generally speaking this requires magical attacks, not lasers), and each turn of exposure to sunlight reduces the protection offered by the armor by 1. Shade will stop the degredation, and darkness reverse it at the same rate.
Xenophobe – will never agree, even temporarily, to cooperate with a member of another race.
Elves & Espers: COBOLds
Posted by Joshua on Dec 11, 2008
COBOLds are biological constructs left over from a previous era, designed as workers to do all the dirty and dangerous infrastructure jobs. Although looked down on and widely regarded as obsolete compared to the shiny new droids, they still do most of the grunt-work that keeps the arcology running because they still work and it would be too expensive to replace them. They are short, stocky humanoids, completely bald, with blue skins and big noses. They are persistent, but not very creative, and have little sense of self-preservation. When they do appear in the upper city, they are looked upon with a mixture of disdain and pity.
COBOLd
Construct – +2 to recover from being shaken, immune to poison, disease, radiation, and aging
Hardy – A second Shaken result doesn’t amount to a wound.
Small – -1 Vigor
Outsider – -2 Cha
Because of their backgrounds, in New Ark City COBOLds are forbidden to take AB:Esper, AB:Trooper, or AB: Roguechemist.
Elves & Espers: G-nomes
Posted by Joshua on Dec 2, 2008
G-nomes are the descendants of pre-Apocalypse gnomes, and embrace genetic engineering with the same enthusiasm (and sometimes explosive results) as their ancestors embraced mechanisms and before that alchemy. They use magical viruses to rewrite their own genetic codes to cosmetically alter their appearances and give themselves interesting and unusual animal parts and abilities. They are the size of gnomes (about the size of a human child) and are always humanoid, with large eyes, but sport a wide variety of fur, scales, feathers, or brightly colored skins, as well as accouterments like horns, claws, fangs, and so forth.
In New Ark City they’re often found as Web Runners, using their rocket-skates to traverse the cables that make up the web delivering messages hither and yon, or in similar professions where regard for one’s personal safety is regarded as a handicap.
G-Nome
Small (-1 Toughness)
Natural Weapons (Str+d6 with one, or Str+d4 with two) – G-Nomes may choose what natural weapons they have, and may choose to shed them and grow different ones, though the process takes a week during which they will have no usable natural weapon.
Attractive +2 CHA. G-Nomes may look bizarre, but they see no reason to be unattractive, and whatever look they adopt will be designed to be aesthetically pleasing
Low Light Vision. Their large eyes give them low-light vision.
Elves & Espers: Zombots
Posted by Joshua on Dec 2, 2008
Zombots are corpses that have been infested with nanite colonies that grow mechanical linkages to make them lurch around in an unholy resemblance to life. Zombots are hideous travesties, with wires and rods piercing their flesh, writhing under their skin and snaking around their bloody and decaying bodies, manipulating them like grotesque marionettes. In settings where the Guts skill is used, encountering a Zombot requires a Guts check.
Zombots have no other drive than to create more Zombots and consume flesh and circuitry to sustain themselves, though forbidden Necrotech can be used to command them. In its inactive form, the nanites are a grey dust (Zombot Dust) that is harmless unless it comes in contact with a corpse or an open wound. A corpse will become a functioning zombot in 1d6 rounds; a living being will have to make a Vig roll every hour or suffer a Wound and once it becomes Incapacitated will rise as a zombot. Zombots require flesh to function (it’s part of the programming of the nanites), so although fire won’t destroy the mechanical parts, if you burn away all the flesh, the Zombot is destroyed. Zombots require a steady infusion of new flesh and circuitry to sustain their activity, and will always be on the prowl trying to consume; once a Zombot has killed a victim it will spend 1d4 rounds feasting, ignoring what else is going on unless it comes under attack. If it spends more than a day without being able to consume anything, it will go into hibernate mode, remaining motionless and emitting no energy readings until a victim gets within movement range (Pace).
When deciding what to attack, the Zombot will go first for the closest person who attacked it, next for the closest victim (choose randomly for equally distant targets); count all robots, computers, and sophisticated machinery as potential victims. Zombots will only employ ranged attacks (if the form has them) if it is not possible to close to melee. Zombots will incorporate whatever weapons the victim was carrying into itself and use them. Zombot infection, however, is only carried by natural weapons, not incorporated ones.
Trafficking in Zombot dust (and all forms of Necrotech) is punishable by death in New Ark City.
Zombots
Zombots have stats as their living counterpart with the following exceptions:
Str: +2d Smt: Unintelligent Pace: -2.
Undead: +2 Toughness, +2 to recover from Shaken, No Called Shots, No Wound Penalties
Infectious: creatures bitten/clawed by Zombots must make a Vig roll every hour or suffer a wound, and will become Zombots after they’ve been Incapacitated
Regeneration none while active, Fast once killed
Weakness Fire, double damage, prevents regeneration
Elves & Espers: Pigsies
Posted by Joshua on Dec 2, 2008
Pigsies are flying porcine vermin. They are sentient, though they never direct their intelligence towards anything other than getting high, eating, crapping, and screwing. They resemble pigs with butterfly wings (the dust from which is highly psychoactive) and human hands instead of front trotters, and wear rags for clothes. They are generally armed with bows and spears, and bags of magical powder that they hurl at opponents. They can chew their way into just about anything, and whatever they can’t eat or snort they break and befoul. They stink to the high heavens. They enjoy playing malicious tricks on people, but will usually stop short of outright murder, though if a blinded, hallucinating victim should fall to his death from a great height that would be hilarious.
Pigsie
Str d4 Agl d8 Spr d6 Smr d4 Vig d6
Parry 5 Tough 3 Pace 4/10
Size -2 (-2 to be hit, +2 to hit man-sized foes, -2 Tough-already accounted for)
Fight d8 Throw d6 Shoot d6 Taunt d8
Bow d4 +2 AP Elf-shot d8 v. Smr or -2 to Trait Rolls (-4 on Raise) from hallucinations
Spear d4
Slumber Powder (1 use) Spr -2 in a Medium Burst or sleep for 1 minute
Blind Powder (1 use) d8 vs. Spr or -6 to Trait Rolls, Parry drops to 2 for 3 rounds
Pigsie Dust
Magically psychoactive dust from ground Pigsie wings, highly addictive. Grants 2d10 extra Power Points for 1 hour, Vig -2 roll (cumulative if you take another dose before the first wears off) or accompanied by hallucinations (-2 to Trait Rolls for 1 hour); on a 1 on the Vigor die, you’ve become addicted (gain the minor Hindrance. If it happens again it becomes a major Hindrance. Each time thereafter you lose a die off Smarts). Addicts may take a maintenance dose that takes the edge off (doesn’t grant them extra PP, but doesn’t risk worsening the addiction). Pigsie Dust is illegal in New Ark City (misdemeanor possession, felony distribution); you don’t want hallucinating magic users with power to burn running around the city.