Mutations
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While a mutation can take many forms, it typically denotes an abnormal trait or ability that is not common in the species. Mutations can be pronounced or unnoticeable. They may grant extraordinary abilities or effect subtle to grotesque changes in a creature’s physiology.
Mutations may appear at birth or manifest as consequences of radiation exposure or some horrible physical trauma.
Characters who are Mutants cannot benefit from other difficulties.
Player's use the Mutation Point(MP) system presented below to acquire mutations. GMs do not necessarily have to strictly follow the rules below when creating NPCs or villains for the Players to fight. Thus, they can use these rules creatively to support storytelling and player adventure.
Mutation Points
Mutation Points (MP) provide a simple method of selecting mutations while preserving game balance. All creatures (including Player Heroes) begin with 0 MP. A creature/character gains MP by selecting one or more drawbacks that make the creature less effective in some way. Then they “spend” the MP on one or more beneficial mutations. The total MP spent on beneficial mutations cannot exceed the total MP the creature gains from drawbacks. A creature may still have unspent MP after choosing beneficial mutations, however. These unspent MP can be stored for later use.
Earning MP Points
Every odd level, starting at level 1, a Character can earn and spend MP points. A Character cannot use MP points on even levels, only when leveling up a Character on an odd level ie 3,5,7 etc... can a Character modify mutations by earning and spending MP points. One exception is the ability to earn an MP with a feat. A Character can gain any number of MP but can only spend up to their Character Level + 3 in MP. So at level 1, they can spend 4 MP points to gain a mutation and will have to wait until level 3 to earn and/or spend more MP, at which time they can utilize up to 6 MP. To earn MP the Character must gain a Drawback from the options below.
Delayed Manifestation
The choice to become a Mutant doesn't have to happen when building a Level 1 Character. Instead, a Player can choose to have their Character become a Mutant at a higher level. The Player should develop a story explanation for the late manifestation of powers. The simplest option is to say the mutation doesn't start to manifest until later in life. The Character gains a penalty of -1 MP for every 5 levels skipped. If a Character becomes a mutant at an even level the number of MP that they can spend is equal to their lower odd level.
NOTE: This applies to even preplanned Characters. The idea is to avoid a character dynamically changing their power level. However, the GM should be able to make exceptions. If, for example, the GM has a Character fall into a vat of chemicals, this could be the outcome, and it should be up to the GM and Player if this penalty applies.
Innate Drawbacks
While the Player can choose from a list of Drawbacks to make the Mutant Character unique, there are also some aspects of being a Mutant that are shared.
- For every 3 MP spent, the Character gains a -1 to Disguise checks. This works the same as Cybernetics, where the Disguise now has two DCs: one to see if the person notices you are a Mutant (the lower one) and another to correctly identify you. However, because Mutants are rare, the GM should consider this when an NPC attempts to identify the Character in question.
- For every 5 MP spent, the Character gets -1 to one of the following Ability Scores: Strength, Dexterity, Constitution, or Charisma. The Player decides which Ability gets the negative.
Mutation Drawbacks
Visit the Mutation Drawbacks page to see a full list of all drawbacks. Below is a table for Drawbacks.
| d% | Drawback | MP Value |
|---|---|---|
| 01–05 | Ability Decay | 5 |
| 06–10 | Blood Hunger | 4 |
| 11–17 | Brittle Bones | 2 |
| 18–23 | Chemical Dependency | 3 |
| 24-29 | Combat Fear | 4 |
| 30-36 | Festering Sores | 2 |
| 37-42 | Frailty | 3 |
| 43-49 | Heat/Cold Susceptibility | 1 |
| 50-54 | Lethargy | 4 |
| 55-60 | Light Sensitivity | 1 |
| 61-68 | Pheromone Repulsion | 1 |
| 69-74 | Reduced Speed | 2 |
| 75-80 | Slow Minded | 3 |
| 81-88 | Thin Skin | 2 |
| 89-94 | Ultraviolet Allergy | 3 |
| 95-100 | Weak Immune System | 3 |
Mutations
Types of Mutations
There Four Types of Mutations. Cosmetic, Offensive, Defensive and Enhanced Abilities. There are also Customizations, which are a list of improvements that can be added to existing Offensive/Defensive and to some extent Enhanced Abilities. To view the full list of Mutations with descriptions, visit the Mutation Enhancements page.
- Cosmetic
- These Abilities instantly increase your Desguise Penality as if you spent 3 more MP points. However, it requires no other Innate Drawbacks and provides no enhancements or other effects for the Character. All Cosmetic-only Mutations cost 0 MP points unless specified otherwise. There are examples provided below. A Player, however, can make their own choice about how their appearance changes, but should discuss this with the GM.
- Offensive
- These are enhancements that directly affect combat or in some way improve a Character's ability to attack. These give the Character a new Natural Attack ability or enhance an existing ability. Notably, this doesn't include physical enhancements such as Super Strength. Offensive Types either provide a new Natural Attack or directly affect Advantage Die, Attack Bonuses, Extra Attacks, Critical Modifiers, or any offensive Combat-related modifier.
- Defensive
- These are enhancements that focus on defense in combat situations. They can involve both passive and reactive abilities. Examples include Scale Skin, which provides a Natural AC bonus, and Body Regeneration, which can provide HP recovery. Just like with the Offensive Type, this, however, doesn't include passive Ability bonuses, as this would be classified as an Enhanced Ability. Defensive Types either provide new Natural Abilities such as passive healing or directly affect AC, DR, Damage Resistance, HP, Saving Throws, or any defensive Combat-related modifier.
- Enhanced Abilities
- This category is a broad set of Mutations. They can include new natural abilities such as Flight or Dark Vision. They can include passive improvements that focus on enhancing one or more of the 6 Physical Abilities or any of the Skills. This also includes any Mutation that doesn't fit in the other 3 Types.
Gaining Mutation Types
By default, a Mutant can only have up to 2 of each type of Mutation Enhancement except for Cosmetic. A Primary and Secondary for each Type. For Cosmetic, it is assumed that the first mutation is the most pronounced, and all following Cosmetic changes are less pronounced. A Character only gets the penalty for Disguise once with Cosmetics.
For Offensive, Defensive, and other Enhanced Abilities, if a Character chooses a second mutation of the same type, they must do two things. First, they must declare which Mutation is the Primary mutation. For example, if the Character has Fangs and then gains Claws, they must declare which is their Primary Natural Attack and which is considered Secondary. This allows for the combat rules for secondary weapons to apply. Second, the Character has to pay 1 more MP point immediately to gain the Secondary mutation. And from then on, whenever improving their Secondary mutation, it always costs 1 more MP. Feats can remove this restriction.
Lastly, for every new Mutation after the 3rd non-Cosmetic mutation gained by the Mutant, it costs an additional 1MP but only once upon gaining the mutation. Again, there are Feats that can change this.
Mutation Tables
Below is a table of Mutations Enhancements separated by Type and with links to a full description located on the Mutation Enhancements