Optional Character Creation Rules

by Chuck Stevens ()

Point-based Systems

The standard method of assigning Priorities to each of the five character categories (Race, Magic, Attributes, Skills, and Resources) is simple enough to understand, but is a bit lacking in finesse when it comes to fine-tuning a new character. The Point-based System allows players to spend a certain amount of Creation Points that correspond to a specific quantity of Attribute Points, Skill Points, Resources, Race, and Magic Ability.

This procedure allows for greater flexibility in character creation, and solves the age-old problem of deciding which category is more important than the others. If, for example, you consider Attributes and Skills to be equally important, you can spend the same number of points on each. You may purchase each category only once, however (nice try).

Also, this system allows Game Masters to easily incorporate higher-level starting characters simply by allowing the players to spend more points.

Listed below are two possible systems, Simple and Expanded. The Simple System is a direct conversion of the original Priority Table, and allows the player to spend 10 Creation Points. The Expanded System allows even greater flexibility, allowing 31 Creation Points to be distributed as the player wishes. In both tables, the More Metahumans rule is assumed, and the original Priorities are listed for comparison purposes only.

Simple Point-based System

(Beginning characters have 10 points to spend.)

Example: Say you want to create a Human Sorcery Adept. Being Human is free (0 points), and being an Adept costs 3 points. That leaves 7 points to divide among Attributes, Skills, and Resources. This WizMage wants some pretty expensive gear, as well as a nice collection of spells, so you spend 3 points on Resources (400,000�/35FP). 4 points left. You wrack your brain trying to decide which is more important, Attributes or Skills. Finally you throw your hands in the air and treat them equally - 2 points each (20 Attribute Points and 24 Skill Points). That's 10 Creation Points. Now you assign your Attributes, Skills, and Resources as usual.

Expanded Point-based System

(Beginning Characters have 31 points to spend.)

Let's return to the aforementioned example, this time using the expanded system. Again, Humanity is free (yeah, right), but this time being an Adept costs 9 points (don't panic - this time we have 31 points to spend, instead of 10). After examining the available Gear, the WizMage decides he doesn't need all the 400,000� from above, so we spend 7 points on Resources (245,000�/30FP). Again, Skills and Attributes are equally important, so we put 8 points in Attributes (23) and 7 in Skills (27). That's 31 points.

Optional: The Game Master can use this point system to restrict certain technologies, simply by assigning a Creation Point cost to access them. For example, access to the Bioware and Cyberware in Shadowtech or Cybertechnology may cost 2 points each; Class-A Cyberware and Cultured Bioware might cost an additional 2 points, and Class-B Cyberware an additional 4 points.

If the Game Master decides to use Creation Points to gain access to certain technologies, he or she may also wish to increase the amount of Creation Points the players have to spend.

Note: When creating a non-magically active Human character with the Point system, the player will have a few more Creation Points to spend on Attributes, Skills, and Resources than he or she would using the standard Priority system. This is due to the ability to assign the equivalent of Priority E for both Race and Magic (each costing zero points), instead of one E and one D. The difference equates to one additional point using the Simple system, and two points with the Expanded system. This is fairly minor, but the Game Master is always free to adjust Creation Point totals accordingly.