The More-Complete-While-Still-Un-official Physical Adepts Handybook

by Brett R. Brown/Calvinoi MindFlyer, Paolo Marcucci

Assembled by
Brett R. Brown/Calvinoi MindFlyer (calvinoi@freenet.scri.fsu.edu)
Paolo Marcucci (paolo@interware.it)

This is, as mentioned above, hardly “official”, so I won’t bother with all the legality drek. If you really are peeved by this, then please add it yourself and send me a copy, ‘k? ;)

The Force runs strong in me, impudent fool…

The following is excerpted and paraphrased from the following sources:

ShadowRun Second Edition copyright 1992 FASA Corporation
N.E.R.P.S. ShadowLore 1994 Robert A. Hayden
My Own Noodle 1980 Brett R. Brown
White Wolf magazine
The rec.games.frp.cyber Usenet group
Bill P. Flint (claymore@access1.digex.net)
MercenaryX (mercenaryx@aol.com)

Of course, thanks go out to all the people that contributed to the aforementioned sources.

Physical Adept Magical Abilities

Alertness

Cost: .5 per die

The adept has trained all his/her senses to notice the unnoticed, see the unseeable, and smell the unsmellable. He/she no longer relies on just one set of his senses, and thus becomes more aware of his environment and almost magically in tune with his surroundings. The adept adds the number of Alertness dice purchased to all Perception rolls (or perception-related rolls, GM’s discretion.)

Astral Perception

Cost: 2

The adept has the ability to see into the astral plane via Astral Perception, but cannot use astral projection. This enables the adept to use the Sorcery Skill in Astral Combat, but the character cannot cast spells nor does he/she have a Magic Pool.

Backstab

Cost: 1 per point

This power gives the adept the ability to channel This power gives the adept the ability to channel strong magical energies from his/her body into a weapon at the exact moment the weapon punctures the skin. The magic spreads from the weapon into the victim’s body, disrupting its constitution and increasing the damage.

In game terms, each .5 buys the adept one point. When the adept wished to Backstab, he/she must declare to the GM before the attack that he/she wishes to do so. The adept must then call their shot, per rules on pg. 92 of the black book but using a +2 instead of a +4 (usually, the attack is called at the back of the victim, hence the name of the power.) For each point the adept purchases, the damage is increased 1 stage (ignore the damage stagin automatically given by the normal called shots.) The power is also increased by +1 per point.

Note that only weapons using a piercing method of attack may be used. This is because slashing has no exact, climactic moment where is penetrates the flesh fully (and it moves through the flesh to try and create gaping wounds, whereas a piercing weapon allows the magic to smoothly course from it to the receiving end).

Example: Kung Lao (not-so-obscure reference, I know…) is a phys. adept who is highly practiced in Backstab (and he happens to be a thief…funny coincidence, y’think?) He is sneaking up on a prospective target, hoping to get the sucker quick and easy with a dagger in the back. But, while sneaking, he makes a little too much noise slipping his katana into its sheath and preparing his dagger. His victim whirls wildly and whips out an Ares. Kung Lao thanks his respective god(s) that he has already readied his dagger and quickly jabs it forward, aiming for the victim’s groin (uh oh…Bobbit revisited) and summons all his will into the weapon and it strikes home! Since Kung Lao had purchased 4 points, he stages the damage up 4 levels and adds a +4 to the power! Let’s just say that Mr. Victim is going to be very uncomfortable…

Breaking Blow

Cost: .5 per point

This power allows the adept to break and destroy barriers with his/her bare hands (a variation of Shattering Blow.) For each point purchased, the adept adds +1 to the power of the attack and subtracts 1 from the opposing Barrier Rating. This can be used in conjunction with Power Blow, but only in attacking objects with Barrier Ratings (such as cars.) Adepts trained in Breaking Blow and Power Blow can be looked at as mobile, mini-demolition crews.

Combat Sense

Cost: See Below

The adept with combat sense power has an almost sixth-sense about an area and any threats around him. Each level of this ability purchased gives the adept a number of extra dice in his Combat Pool, as well as the ability to spend Combat Pool dice to assist the Reaction Test in surprise situations.

Level	Combat Pool Dice	Cost
1	1	2
2	2	3
3	3	4

Deep Breathing

Cost: .25 per point

The adept has practiced incorporating magic and breathing exercises, and can use his/her lungs to a greater extent. Each point purchased (each .25 point) gives the adept an additional 20 seconds under water.

Heat/Cold Endurance

Cost: .25 per die

When the adept is faced with a temperature challenge, he overcomes his physical feeling/reactions by focusing magical energy and mental fortitude. The character rolls versus a target number of wat the GM feels is appropriate. A good guide to the numbers is the success table in SR book (i.e. 2 being slightly nippy, whereas 12+ is your sitting in and ice block, 2 being a hot day, 12+ you are being cooked in an oven.) Each success gives the adept 5 minutes of activity or 15 minutes of sitting around being totally inactive (no complex movements, just sitting/laying down/standing doing little more than breathing.) Once this time is up, the adept may not attempt to make another roll (nor can he/she attempt another roll during the duration of the power’s effect) to extend the time period. The adept then succumbs to the heat/cold just like your average Joe Shmoe. Note that the adept may attempt to reroll and extend the period if the GM feels it is acceptable (i.e., on a warm day, the adept is likely to be able to resist the effects for a long period of time, not just for a shorter, intermittent period of time.)

Improved Ability

Cost: See Below

The physical adept is able to purchase additional dice for use with a specific general skill. Dice purchsed for the general skill carry over equally to any Concentrations or Specializations of the skil that the character may know. In addition to the +2 target modifier received for every circle passed on the Skill Web, any Improved Ability dice are reduced at a rate of one per circle crossed. For example, passing three dots would add a +6 modifier, while subtracting 3 Improved Ability dice.

There is an additional restriction on dice purchased for use with Combat Skills: the adept cannot have more extra dice than the character’s current Combat Skill Rating. Thus, a character with Firearms 4 cannot have more than 4 additional dice.

Skill	Cost
Athletic Skills	.25/die
Stealth	.25/die
Combat Skills
Armed Combat	.5/die
Unarmed Combat	.5/die
Throwing	.5/die
Projectile Weapons	.5/die
Firearms	1/die
Gunnery	1/die

Improved Physical Attributes

Cost: See Below

With this ability, the physical adept can raise a Physical Attribute (only Body, Strength, or Quickness), but not a Mental Attribute. If the adept later wants to increase a Physical Attribute using Karma in the normal manner, the cost is based on the total attribute rating, that is, including the magical improvements. The actual cost of the ability depends on how much higher (or lower) than the character’s Racial Maximum is the final attribute rating.

Attribute Level	Cost
Less than or equal to 1/2 Racial Maximum	.5 per +1 rating
Up to Racial Maximum	1 per +1 rating
Up to 1.5 x Racial Maximum	1.5 per +1 rating

Improved Physical Senses

Cost: .25 per improvement

These improvements include low-light or thermographic vision, high-frequency/low-frequency hearing, enhanced smell or taste, and so on. Unless an improvement involves radio or similar technological phenomena, anything that can be improved by cyberware can be improved by this power. Unlike cyberware, there are no package deals.

Increased Reaction

Cost: See below

Increased Reaction gives the physical adept points of Reaction, based on the degree of ability purchased. Consult the table below. The adept receives only the Reaction bonus, bit no additional Initiative dice.

Attribute Level	Cost
Less than or equal to 1/2 Racial Maximum	.5 per +1 rating
Up to Racial Maximum	1 per +1 rating
Up to 1.5 x Racial Maximum	2 per +1 rating

Increased Reflexes

Cost: See below

Increased reflexes gives the adept additional Intitiative dice, based on the degree of ability purchased. Consult the table below.

Extra Initiative Dice	Cost
1	1
2	4
3	6

Extended Jump

Cost: .25 per point

The adept uses his entire body to propel himself/herself forward/upward. For every .25 he/she spent in Extended Jump, he/she gets and extra upward lift of 25cm and an extra 50cm forward. This would be added to the (meta)human average distance after an athletics test. Two reasons why the Olympic Games became such a farce.

Killing Hands

Cost: See below

The physical adept may use his magical force to turn his Unarmed Combat attacks from Stun to Physical damage. When using Unarmed Combat, an adept with Killing Hands may choose to do either the normal Stun damage or the improved Physical damage, as purchased. See the table below for the costs for each of the four different levels of Kiling Hands available. The player must declare use of Killing Hands with the Unarmed Combat attack. The attack itself is effective against creature with immunity or magical defenses against normal weapons. Their defensive bonuses do not apply when used against Killing Hands (as the attack is not truly physical, the hands merely serving as a channel for the magical energy). Note that Killing Hands is a bare-handed strike and cannot be augmented by either weaponry or magic, though they may use other physical adept abilities like Improved Ability. Also, note that a physical adept can use Killing Hands only at the level(s) purchased. For example, if an adept purchases Killing Hands at D and L levels, he/she can use the power only at Physical damage levels of L and D.

Damage Level	Cost
(Strength)L	.5
(Strength)M	1
(Strength)S	2
(Strength)D	4

Nerve Strike

Cost: See below

After careful study of the human anatomy (or lots of beating up on people), the adept has perceived certain nerve clusters in the body. He/she has toughened his/her fingers and improved his/her manual dexterity to penetrate these zones and channel magical energy into them. Today’s martial artist has adapted to the street environment and as such knows the strengths and weaknesses of modern protection, but can still strike home his/her blows!

The adept uses this attack in a similar fashion to Killing Hands, (bare-handed strike, etc.), but it causes Stun damage, not Physical. The power of Nerve Strikes can also penetrate up to but not over 4 points of impact armor (generally, ignore ballistic points, unless GM feels differently.) Also, adept with this magical skill can automatically (regardless of the level(s) of Nerve Strike they purchased) reduce the level of Stun damage inflicted upon them by another adept using Nerve Strike on them by one damage level. Like Killing Hands, the adept may only use Nerve Strike at the level(s) at which it is purchased at.

Damage Level	Cost
Light	.5
Moderate	1
Serious	1.5
Deadly	2.5

Pain Resistance

Cost: .5 per point

Pain Resistance allows the physical adept to ignore the effects (injury and Initiative modifiers) of a number of boxes of damage equal to the number of Pain Resistance points purchased. Thus, a character with 3 point of Pain Resistance does not suffer any modifiers when taking Light or Moderate wounds. Once the character’s damage passes the Moderate wound level (more than 3 boxes), all injury and Initiative modifiers will apply normally. Points purchased work equally on both Physical and Stun Condition Monditors.

Note that even if a character has 10 point of Pain Resistance, he/she will still go unconscious, and possibly die, once he/she reaches the Deadly wound level. What happens is that the character will show no signs of being injured until he/she simply drops unconsious.

Pain Resistance also allows the character to resist pain from torture, magic, illness, and so on. Add the number of points of Pain Resistance to the target numbers for inflicting pain on the adept; subtract them from the target number to resist pain (e.g., in a Body or Willpower Test against the symptoms of a painful disease). Again, Pain Resistance does not prevent or heal actual damage, but may prevent or reduce the damage’s effect on the character’s skills or Initiative.

Pain Resistance cannot be used to augment and form of Damage Resistance Test.

Power Blow

Cost: .5 per +1

This ability allows to adept to focus his/her chi (magical power) into any blow!

This skill does not need a bare-handed attack. It focuses magical energy into the point of attack, so the character adds the influence of the Power Blow to any melee attacks (ranged combat cannot be improved, because of the high speed of the projectile, and the fact that the adept cannot be in direct contact with the projectile to channel the magical energy.) Each .5 adds +1 to the power (STR) of the attack. Note that this ability cannot be used with devices such as stun gloves, stun batons, etc., as their effects are solely technological, and the magic cannot affect the power of the attack. You can’t focus magical energy like this into a non-impact weapon, and stun batons and the like manipulate electricity to achieve their effect.

Shattering Blow

Cost: .5 per die

The adept summons all of his/her focus: mental, physical, and magical, into a dramatic move which can destroy the hardest stone!

The adept makes an unresisted test with a number of dice equal to the number of purchased Shattering Blow dice vs. the Barrier Rating of the object of the attack.

Damage	TN#	Reaction
Moderate	+2	-1
Serious	+3	-2
Deadly	+4	-3

One or more successes and the object is broken (5+ successes would be incredibly impressive and flashy…)

0 successes and nothing happens. The adept likely has a slightly sore limb and a bit of embarrassment, but nothing more.

Roll of Ones and your in the shi….errr…pits. The limb is broken. Do not pass GO, proceed directly to the nearest Doc.

If used against living targets, the combat attack is treated as an Aimed Blow. If the attack succeeds, then the area is broken. The recipient of the blow can’t move the limb, because it becomes quite painful. For game purposes, the broken limb cannot be used at all (no shooting with it, no wielding of weapons, no grappling, etc.), but, of course, GM discretion should be applied.

The damage level to break various body parts is different. For hands/feet/(other small “limbs”…here’s an idea for Lorena Bobbit), it requires a Moderate damage level. For medium-sized limbs (arms, legs, etc.) and ribs, it requires a Serious damage level. For necks and skulls (ouch!) it requires a Deadly damage level. The modifiers listed above apply to the Unarmed Combat Rolls (i.e. If you are attempting to break a neck, you get a -3 to your Reaction the round you try it, and a +3 to your TN to succeed.)

Steel Fingers

Cost: .5 per point

The adept has practiced thrusting his/her fingers into soil and sand while focusing his/her magical energies to obtain this discipline, and can penetrate through most forms of body armor. Why, even plate mail is said to be useless against a master of Steel Fingers!

For game purposes, each .5 spent negates one point of impact armor in melee combat. Masters of this kill also make superb gardeners.

Paralyzing Touch

Cost: see below

This power allows a physical adept to take a person out without physically harming the person. When the adept uses this power on someone/something, it will never do physical damage even if there stun overflow.

Damage Level	Cost
(Strength)L	0.5
(Strength)M	1
(Strength)S	2
(Strength)D	4

Regeneration

Cost: 10

This power makes your condition monitors drop five squares every turn. If you ever take a deadly wound you make a body(8) test to see if you survive, if you get one success you live and your condition monitor drops 5 squares the next turn.

Nerve Strike (Alternative)

Cost: 2

A nerve strike is made like a normal unarmed combat attack. Instead of inflicting damage, each net success reduces the target’s Quickness by one. If Quickness is reduced to zero, the target is paralyzed. Lost Quickness recovers at a rate of one point per minute.

Ranged Killing Hands

Cost: (Killing hands cost) + 1

Just like the original killing hands except it may be used on anyone within his LOS.

Invisibility

Cost: 5

Allows user to turn invisible for a number of turns equal to his willpower, after he becomes visible he must stay that way for the number of turns he was invisible.

Mist Form

Cost: 6

This power allows you to turn into a mist that can seep through any cracks that are not airtight. He may stay in mist form for a number of turns equal to his willpower, after he becomes normal again he must stay that way for the number of turns he was in mist form.

High Jumps

Cost: 2

Allows user to jump six times his normal height.

Molecular Agitation

Cost: see below

This power allows the physad to agitate the molecules of certain things as to set them ablaze. The power has a range of ten yards, LOS. With level one you may set paper or things with similar consistancy ablaze, 2: something like cloth, 3: wood, skin or other ortganic material, the physad may set fire to a number of sq. feet equal to half his magic rating, this fire may spread though.

Level	Cost
1	2
2	4
3	6

Initiated Powers

Animal Control

Cost: 2

This power allows a physical adept to charm an animal (except for insects or other invertebrates, whose mind can’t be grasped by an adept). The adept does this by an opposed success test with the adept using his/her magic rating against the animals willpower.

If the adept scores any net successes the animal is considered to be under the adept’s control and can be commanded to do or not to do anything as the adept wishes with the exception of commanding the animal to inflict harm to itself. The adept may use a simple action to give the animal a command as long the command isn’t to complex and the animal is capable of accomplishing the task. An adept may only have one animal under this power at any one time. This last for 24 hours or when the adept has charmed another animals after which the previous animal is free of the adept and considered to be neutral towards the adept.

Animal handling skill adds a number of dice to the opposed success test equal to the skill.

Astral Cloak

Cost: 0.5 per level

This power helps shield physical adept from detection spells. A detection spells target number goes by the number levels of astral cloak the adept has.

Enhanced Healing

Cost: 1

This power allows a physical adept to heal stun and physical damage more quickly by entering a state of dormancy. When the adept is recovering from stun damage he/she makes the same roll for recovering, but double the number of successes made. The adept heals physical damage at a rate of one extra box a day.

When the adept is healing by this power he/she is also considered to be asleep too, so is oblivious to his surroundings. If the adept doesn’t get the required amount of sleep (which is eight hours), then the time spent in the dormancy is wasted.

Enhanced Movement

Cost: see below

This power allows an adept to increase his/her movement modifier. The adept adds the level bought to his/her racial movement modifier. The adept is able to maintain this rate of speed for a number of combat turns equal to the adept’s magic rating after which the adept must stop and rest. The amount of time the adept must spent resting is equal to double the number of combat turns spent running.

Level	Cost
1	1
2	2.5
3	5

Face Anonymous

Cost: 0.5

The power allows the physical adept to make people unable to remember anything about what the adept looked like. This power only effects the conscious mind, but has no effect on the subconscious mind.

Hypnotic Influence

Cost: 2

This power allows a physical adept to mesmerize people like the Influence power of certain paranormal animals. With a voluntary subject the adept can access deep memories, plant minor posthypnotic suggestions, release inhibitions while in the trance state, etc. Unwilling victims require a opposed test matching the adept’s magic rating versus the victim’s willpower. The number of net successes by the adept determine the level of effect.

Kai Strike

Cost: see below

This power is exactly like killing hands, but is a range attack. The adept does this by channeling his inner energy into a distance strike. The range equal the adept’s magic rating in meters. The adept attacks as if doing a melee attack. The defender must roll his/her body plus any die from combat pool that available against a target equal to the willpower of the adept minus any impact armor to resist the attack.

Damage Level	Cost
(WILLPOWER)L	1
(WILLPOWER)M	2
(WILLPOWER)S	4
(WILLPOWER)D	8

Mesmerize

Cost: 0.5

This powers allows the physical adept to impose his will on another person that the adept meets eye contact with. This is settled by an opposed success test by pitting the adept’s magic rating versus the victim’s willpower. If the adept wins, then the victim is under the adept’s control for as long the adept maintains eye contact with the victim.

Any person under this power is subjected to the adept’s wishes. This person will do what ever the says, even kill itself. This power also gives the victim access to information forgot consciously, but remembered in the subconscious.

Negamage

Cost: 2

This power gives the physical adept an spell defense pool. This pool is equal to the adept’s willpower or sorcery skill, the higher of the two. An adept with astral perception gain 2 extra die while astrally perceiving.

Mimicry

Cost: 1

The power allows a physical adept to mimic sound effects, another person voice, or another creature sounds in every way. For the adept to fool a person or creature, the adept roll an opposing success test with his/her magic rating versus half of the person’s or animal’s intelligence and with the person or animal rolling their intelligence versus the adept magic rating. Against voice identification devices the adept rolls his/her magic rating versus the full rating of devices and with the device rolling its rating against the adept’s magic rating.

Animals get a -2 bonus to target number for checking against sounds of it own species.

Singing skill add extra dice equal to the skill rating to the opposing success test.

Restore Life

Cost: 1

This power allows a physical adept to heal physical wounds at a extremely faster rate. The adept must enter a trance to use this power. The physical adept will heal 1 physical box every 10 minutes or 1 wound category every hour, which ever is faster. It takes 1 full combat turn to wake up from the trance.

Sonic Scream

Cost: see below

This power allows the physical adept to create a yell/scream that can be hear from a great distance. The force of this scream is so great that it can shatter glass, deafen people, or even knock people out.

Such an attack leave people with a ringing sound in their head which causes deafness for a number of minutes equal to the adept’s magic rating and also create a +2 modifier to all target numbers, unless the person has some sound damping which would then ignore the these effects. The area effect radius is equal to the adept’s magic rating in meters. Any distance beyond that radius and the power begins to drop 1 point per meter. The adept rolls his/her magic rating versus a target number is 4. For every 2 net successes raises the wound level by 1. People resistance this attack using body. Anybody wearing protective head gear lowers the power rating by the impact armor rating of the head gear. Anyone one who has sound dampers lower the power by 4.

Sing skill will add a number of dice to the attack equal to the skill’s rating.

Damage Level	Cost
(WILLPOWER/2)L (stun)	1
(WILLPOWER)L (stun)	2
(WILLPOWER)M (stun)	4
(WILLPOWER)S (stun)	8

Stone Breathing

Cost: 0.5

This power allows physical adept to go for a prolong period of time without oxygen. The amount of time is equal to the adept’s magic rating or ½ the magic rating it the adept is exerting himself in minutes.

After this time period the adept must spent 1 minute to catch his/her breath before the adept can reuse this power.

Web Of Concealment

Cost: see below

This power helps physical adept better hide from people or machines. The 1st level has a base target number of 6 to be defeated and is only good against low-light vision and video cameras. The 2nd level raises the above target number to 8 and also creates a target number of 5 for thermographic vision, but isn’t effective against ultrasound detection. The last level is makes it impossible to detect the adept except with ultrasound detection.

All the above levels are only for sight and have no effect on sound. An adept with a stealth skill can also roll his/her skill to increase the target number to defeat this power.

Level	Cost
1	.5
2	1
3	2