Nivel de aceptación

of a mental aberration. This requires a Willpower roll at stand- ard difficulty, subtracting the character’s permanent Taint rating from the Willpower pool before rolling. If this reduces the char- acter’s Willpower pool to 0, the character must spend a Will- power point in order to resist the urge to give in to the aberra- tion. If the character has no Willpower left, he is at the mercy of his mental aberrations and his Nature.

The Mental Aberrations of novas sometimes boggle the minds of psychologists because they do not always corre- spond to science’s understanding of the brain. In other words, novas frequently develop actual cases of Hollywood-style men- tal disorders; conditions which do not actually exist, or at least do not exist in the way that pop culture portrays them. Psy- chologists speculate that the development of these bizarre mental conditions occurs for the same reason that novas are able to defy physics: That is to say, they don’t know.

 Absent-Minded (3 XP): The character has difficulty remembering things. The Storyteller can require an lntelligence roll at any time to see if a character remembers a particular fact, appointment, duty or such. The Storyteller can also spring “surprise” events on the character from time to time, which the character knew but forgot about.

ABERRANT

 Addiction/Compulsion (3 or 5 XP): You are driven to use some substance (addiction) or engage in some action (compulsion). For each 24 hours after the first 24 where you fail to satisfy your craving, you suffer +1 to all of your difficulties. This continues until you satisfy your addiction (so going “cold turkey” for four days imposes a +3 difficulty penalty).

This aberration is worth 3 XP if the addic-

tion/compulsion is something legal, like cigarettes, alcohol, sex or the like. It’s worth 5 XP if the character is addicted to some- thing illegal or hard to get, like Amp Wells, soma or murder.

Note that novas are generally immune to most addic- tive drugs used by baselines, like cocaine and heroin. Soma is one of the few substances a nova can get high on. Nova char- acters can also be addicted to using their powers. This is a le- gal addiction for most powers: the nova is simply addicted to the “high” of being able to fly, shapeshift or whatever, though this makes the nova poorly suited for covert missions. lllegal power addictions include abilities that affect other people, like Domination, Hypnosis, Quantum Leech and Telepathy.

 Amnesia (5 XP): The character has no memory of a significant part of his past, or perhaps his entire history. At- tempts to recall anything related to his past result in mental an- guish. Even if forced to confront the past, the character will be unable to process it, and will forget anything about it again in short order. Some novas have been known to suffer amnesia as a result of a particularly traumatic eruption, giving them the sensation of being “reborn” as a nova, with their memories and experience a blank slate.

Note that this aberration is appropriate only when the forgotten memories are a major issue for the character. Forget- ting the events of a car crash would be inconsequential (at least for this aberration) unless something profoundly important happened at that time.

 Bipolar Disorder (5 XP): Also known as Manic- Depressive Disorder. The character goes from periods of ex- treme lethargy, apathy and depression to manic bursts of en- ergy and frantic activity. The Storyteller determines when an episode of mania or depression comes on.

 Combat Paralysis (4 XP): The character freezes up when entering combat. This is usually do to psychological trauma, but might also represent a glitch in an internal comput- er. However, sometimes the disturbing truth (with novas) is that the character is pausing to contemplate how much pain she can inflict in the shortest amount of time.

You tend to “freeze up” in combat situations, either due to inexperience, previous trauma or simple fear. Roll two dice for Initiative and take the lowest result. Enhancements to your Initiative still apply.

 Combat Stress (6 XP): A character with this aber- ration is constantly in a fight-or-flight state of mind. In other words, she is constantly “wired”. Whenever something possibly threatening happens (fireworks, a kid jumping out of a dark al- ley, someone pointing something at the character), she must make an Awareness roll at +1 difficulty (before any other modi- fiers, such as poor lighting are factored in) or immediately initi- ate combat, whether by attacking or by running for cover. If the character is threatened, she must succeed on a +3 difficulty Willpower roll or attack if possible. This may result from Taint or augmentation surgery but is far more common in military veterans with psychological issues from seeing too much com- bat.

 Costume Fetish (1 XP): The character has a pen- chant (some might say obsession) for wearing a certain type of clothing. It can be skintight eufiber, leather and spikes, liquid latex, a mask or full Renaissance Faire garb. The important

point is that it’s odd, and the character tends to wear it even under the most inappropriate circumstances. This can impose a +1 or greater difficulty on Social rolls and may be a serious

faux pas in some situations. It also makes the character stand

out in a crowd and makes her a less than ideal candidate for subtle and covert activities. The player can spend a Willpower point for her character to dress “normally” for a scene, but the character doesn’t like it (as is likely to tell just about everyone).

This aberration is developed almost exclusively by novas, and is sometimes a symptom of a far greater derange- ment. Such novas tend to feel detached when not in costume, coming to think of their costumed identity as their true selves, and their out-of-costume identity as the “costume”.

 Delusions (3, 6 or 12 XP): The character has hal- lucinations, or comes to incorrect conclusions about things with no basis in fact. For example, a character might see images of spiritual figures, hear the voices of “guides” and come to the conclusion that his powers are spiritual in nature (either as a curse or a blessing). A character might come to believe her powers are magical or supernatural, that she is a reincarnation of some historical or mythic figure, that she is a character in a comic book or television show or just about anything else. De- lusions usually start out small and become increasingly irra- tional (as the character’s Taint increases or he continues en- hancing herself), but they may spring full-blown from the char- acter’s twisted mind. Storytellers are encouraged to come up with interesting delusions, and players are encouraged to roleplay them accordingly.

At 3 XP, the delusions are troublesome and embar- rassing, but not dangerous. The character might believe the planets are alive and actually battling each other or that some demonstrably historical event never occurred. She might be narcissistic, believing she is incapable of error.

At 6 XP, the delusion is creepy and has an effect on the character’s daily life and interactions with others. She might believe that all redheads are aliens here to conquer the planet or that god will protect her from any and all harm.

At 12 XP, the character’s delusion is dangerous and all-consuming. The character might believe herself to be a god or demon, here to rule or destroy all of creation. Delusions of this kind are especially horrifying when developed by novas, as they may have the power to back up their delusion.

 Dependence (3-13 XP): The character requires a particular substance in order to live. If the character cannot get a regular intake of the substance, she will deteriorate and eventually die. For normal baselines, this might be medication, such as insulin. For Enhanced humans, this often takes the form of anti-rejection drugs. For novas, this could be just about anything, including blood, aquatic environments or soma.

The value of this aberration depends on the following factors: the rarity of the substance and the frequency with which it must be consumed.

Rarity of Substance Value

Common (water) 3 XP Uncommon (chlorophyll or silver) 5 XP Rare/Illegal (plutonium or soma) 7 XP Required Frequency of Intake Additional Value Every 24 hours No adjustment

Every 8 hours +2 XP

Every 4 hours +3 XP

Every hour +4 XP

ABERRANT

67

Damage is Lethal instead of Bashing

+2 XP

The character suffers one Health Level of the appro- priate damage type (usually Bashing) for every period of intake that she misses. This damage is unsoakable and cannot be healed until the character receives her next “dose”.

 Dissociative Identity Disorder (7 XP): This aber- ration causes the character’s personality to break into distinct parts, each with its own Personality and identity. A character may be a classical “split personality” with two identities, or there may be dozens of personalities. Usually, the personality with the most appropriate Nature to deal with a situation is dominant at any given time, but personalities can sometimes switch for no apparent reason. The character can make a Will- power roll to avoid such a change.

Novas often develop splits between their nova and human natures, having a “character” and “human” identity that know nothing of each other. Novas with the Clone power may find their clones taking on individual identities, with personali- ties (and agendas) of their own. Novas with Quantum Con- struct sometimes find their “creatures” taking on a life of their own, while novas with Homunculus may manifest a war be- tween their personalities as a true separation into individual be- ings.

 Easily Overwhelmed (3 XP): The character needs a quiet, stable environment in order to function properly. Chaot- ic situations, like gunfights or large parties, turn her into a nervous wreck. She suffers a difficulty modifier of +1 to +3 in such conditions, determined by the Storyteller. A character with this Aberration cannot have the Concentration Merit. This Aber- ration is most common among novas with Mega-Perception or baselines with sensory improvements, whose enhanced sens- es are more easily overloaded by chaotic conditions.

 Flashbacks (4 XP): The character has some trau- matic experience in your past that she sometimes recalls with terrifying clarity. Whenever she is in a situation similar to that experience, she must make a Willpower roll at +1 difficulty to avoid being overwhelmed by memories of it. She tends to mis- take people, places and things for similar things in her memory and may act on those erroneous conclusions. If she botches the Willpower roll, she become almost catatonic, entirely lost in her recollections. She can spend a point of Willpower to ignore the effects of this aberration for one scene.

 Insomnia (3 XP): Some people cannot sleep until their bodies literally pass out from exhaustion. Insomniacs cannot fall asleep for a number of days equal to their Stamina or Willpower, whichever is greater, during which they suffer penalties for fatigue.

 Masochism (2 XP): The character derives pleasure from feeling pain and humiliation. The character still suffers penalties for injuries, but often because he’s too busy enjoying them. The character tends to seek out opportunities to feel pain, whether dangerous assignments or dangerous liaisons with a willing partner. This aberration most often shows up among characters with protective powers like Mega-Stamina and Ar- mor. Sometimes pain is the only sensation the character can really feel enough to enjoy.

 Prejudiced (2 XP): The character has an unflinch- ingly narrow view of a certain category of people. The bias may be positive, but it is usually negative, and in either case is un- realistic. The character’s opinion cannot be changed, even with damning evidence (“there’s always outliers”, “the exception that proves the rule”), and the prejudiced group would feel insulted by the stereotype.

 Narcolepsy (3 XP): The character suffers frequent sleep attacks during the day, making regular activity difficult: she probably shouldn’t drive a car or do anything else requiring constant focus.

 Obsession (3 XP): The character is fascinated with a particular person, place or behavior and do everything she can to satisfy her interest. If she is obsessed with a person, she spends all her available time with them and learns all she can about them (she’s basically a stalker, whether or not she means any harm). If she’s obsessed with a place, she spends all her time there, and she’s very reluctant to leave.

 Obsessive/Compulsive Disorder (2 or 5 XP): The character is unable to resist a certain urge. This urge may cause her to perform ludicrous tasks or speak absolute perfec- tion in every detail. You may spend a Willpower point to over- come your obsession for one scene. Works as the Addic- tion/Compulsion Flaw.

At 2 XP, the disorder is annoying, but not usually a major inconvenience. The character might always check every door five times to make sure it is locked or feels compelled to avoid walking on cracks.

At 5 XP, the character’s life is noticeably impeded by the disorder on a regular basis. She might clean her hands every time she touches something (washing them until they’re raw), restart a sentence every time she fails to speak perfectly, or cannot leave a room unless every chair is perfectly straight.

 Overconfidence (2 XP): The character has a ten- dency to overestimate his own abilities or underestimate a sit- uation. This is especially common with novas possessing Mega-Attributes. They really are better-equipped to handle sit- uations, and so may push themselves into ever-more- dangerous situations. Even if they are defeated, some such novas never learn, assuming it was a fluke, cheating, or even believing they really did eke out victory.

In any situation where an assessment of your abili- ties is a factor, the Storyteller will tend to exaggerate them (“He doesn’t look so tough to you,” or “You’ve seen this kind of se- curity system before, and they’re easy,” for example). You must also make a Willpower roll at +1 difficulty to back down from a direct challenge to your abilities. You can spend a Will- power point to ignore this Aberration for one scene.

Overconfidence tends to develop into Delusion, par- ticularly narcissism.

 Paranoia (8 XP): The character becomes increas- ingly convinced that “others” are out to get her and sees plots and conspiracies everywhere. The character has to make a Willpower roll to avoid overreacting to any “suspicious” things she notices. She tends to keep secrets and doesn’t trust any- one completely. lronically, paranoid characters often find them- selves involved in just the sort of conspiracies they imagine. In the world of Aberrant, just because you’re paranoid doesn’t mean they’re not out to get you!

 Sadism (2 XP): The character derives pleasure from inflicting pain and degradation on others. This may start out with willing partners, but the character must also make Willpower rolls to avoid giving in to the need to inflict pain even in inappropriate circumstances. The character tortures people to get information from them (and eventually, for simple amusement) and is generally cruel and sadistic. This aberra- tion will almost certainly ruin a character’s reputation if it be- comes publicly known and will earn the character few allies, except those of a similar inclination.

 Schizophrenia (16 XP): Extreme levels of mental aberration can result in total disassociation from reality. A schizophrenic character may be completely delusional, no

ABERRANT