Author Topic: Generic NPCs  (Read 139750 times)

Offline finnmckool

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Re: Generic NPCs
« Reply #495 on: July 16, 2011, 10:19:11 PM »
It is guns...or do you mean in the Skills section...and fair enough on the latter.

Offline Sanctaphrax

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Re: Generic NPCs
« Reply #496 on: July 17, 2011, 03:40:02 AM »
The Weapons skill cannot be used to use guns. You need the Guns skill for that.

Offline finnmckool

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Re: Generic NPCs
« Reply #497 on: July 17, 2011, 10:01:02 PM »
Ah. right. gotcha.

Offline Sanctaphrax

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Re: Generic NPCs
« Reply #498 on: August 02, 2011, 05:02:17 AM »
Stretching the limits of Pure Mortals here.

Nonetheless, I am quite proud of the way that this character's stats contain a simple and interesting combat tactic.

Dragoon (Feet In The Water)

High Concept: Final Fantasy-Style Dragoon
Other Aspects: Implausible Jumping Skills, Falling Spear Technique, Draconic Armour
Skills:
Great: Weapons
Good: Endurance, Athletics
Fair:  Fists, Might, Alertness
Average: Presence, Intimidation, Conviction, Discipline
Stunts:
Falling Spear Technique (Weapons): +1 to any attack in which a JUMPING aspect is tagged.
Gravity Helps (Weapons): Any attack in which a JUMPING aspect is tagged inflicts +2 stress.
Out Of Reach (Athletics): +2 to defense rolls against melee attacks when JUMPING aspect is present.
Mighty Leaps (Athletics): +2 to jump.
Blatantly Impossible Jumping Skills (Athletics): Further +2 to jump-based maneuvers, but all JUMPING aspects are automatically fragile.
Total Refresh Cost:
-3 (Pure Mortal)
Refresh Total:
3

Offline wyvern

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Re: Generic NPCs
« Reply #499 on: August 21, 2011, 05:27:24 AM »
Not quite a generic NPC, but it shouldn't be too hard to file off the serial numbers if you want a powerful summer sidhe for a different game.

Lady Austris, The South Wind

Austris is tall and thin, with nearly black skin, golden cat's eyes, and long black hair that shimmers and sparks like thick smoke drifting over a bed of coals.  Her hands and feet are clawed and insectoid and segmented in black and gold and red, and spiny red-gold plates of chitin guard her forearms and shins.  Massive dragonfly wings in similar colors sprout from her back.  (Color scheme can be seen here, though her wing patterns are more closely reminiscent of this.)

For clothing she favors silk in red and gold, either skin-tight or artfully draped to accentuate her lithe form - concealing, and yet leaving little to the imagination.  (See also her listed magic items - she rarely sets aside more than the comparatively bulky smoke-plated armor.)

High Concept: Sylph Sidhe Of The South Wind
  (For reference, the generic sylph high concept is "razor-edged dragonfly girl", a description which does still apply to Lady Austris)
Other Aspects: Burning Passions, Bringer Of Storms, A Wondrous Pet, The Hidden Flame Of Devil's Mountain, To Scorch The Heavens, (room for one more aspect that I haven't come up with)
  Notes on aspects:
Burning Passions is, roughly, her trouble aspect; once known, it can be invoked to aid in attempts to inflame her emotions - for any reasonably fire-related emotion, like lust, greed, fury, envy, etc.; it can also be compelled to have her simply fail to defend against such attacks, or for her to go overboard in her reaction to, say, a seduction attempt (or whatever).
A Wondrous Pet refers to Johann, whose skill and power catalyzed Austris' rise from a minor just-barely-sidhe to her current strength and position.
To Scorch The Heavens: Austris has her eyes set on becoming to the summer court as Leanansidhe is to winter; second in power after only the Queen.  She's nowhere near that point yet, of course, being still well below such enties as the Lady of Summer, or the Eldest Gruff... but her relatively rapid rise from minor sidhe is starting to gain some attention.  Compel or invoke this aspect for her to make grand gestures, grand plans, to overreach herself, or for attentions (both positive and negative) from those who watch the internal politics of Summer.

Powers:
-1 wings
-6 mythic speed
-2 inhuman toughness
-2 physical immunity to fire & fire byproducts (heat, smoke, obsidian blades, poisonous volcanic gasses, etc.)
-4 supernatural recovery
+3 catch (cold iron - and just cold iron; Austris burns hot enough that attacks with cold or ice have no special effectiveness against her - though unseelie magic does retain its normal reduction of toughness level.)
-0 human guise
-1 fae tongue (Speech is speech; it matters little to Austris if she's speaking modern German or ancient Sumerian or whatever other language is needed at the time.)

-1 claws
-1 natural blades (uses weapons skill for attacks with claws)
-2 where does she keep them all? (Austris can conjure mundane bladed weapons as a free action, though they dissolve into ectoplasm not long after leaving her hands; this is a re-flavored "breath weapon" power.  Typically these weapons are obsidian, but she can also manage bronze, aluminum alloys, and a few other non-ferrous options.)
-1 lady of the searing edge (+2 weapon rating when making melee attacks against targets that aren't immune to fire.)
-1 paint the skies with blood (+1 weapons while flying)
   Notes: Austris typically fights in a dual-wielding style with a burning scimitar and claws; this offers her no game-mechanics advantage, but looks cool.
   Edit: looking over this again, I think she actually should get a dual-wield stunt.  This would explicitly apply before "lady of the searing edge", though; the stunt would let her attack at weapon: 5.  (Two base - for either claws or scimitar, +1 from dual-wield, +2 fire damage from her custom power.)  The reason for this is simple: as I originally statted her, she's better off using greater glamours to conjure up a two handed weapon of some sort (spear, greatsword, whatever) and using that at weapon 5 (3 base for a two handed weapon, +2 fire damage from her custom power).

-4 greater glamours  (Note that this can easily see use in preparing for social combat, with maneuvers like "distracting appearance" or "perfect business suit".)
-4 seelie magic
-3 refinement (for more item slots)

Skills:
+7: weapons, presence
+6: alertness, athletics
+5: performance, deceit, rapport
+4: intimidation, lore, discipline
+3: endurance, conviction, empathy, contacts
+2: investigation, resources, stealth, might
+1: driving, burglary, scholarship, survival

Magic Items:
Crown of Flames: +3 control for offensive fire magic
  This is a thin golden circlet wreathed in tendrils of steady blue-white flame.

Obsidian-Edged Girdle: +3 power for offensive fire magic
  A belt made from interlocking slivers of volcanic glass; daggerlike protrusions extend artfully both up and down.  For a human, wearing such a belt against bare skin would inevitably end in a trip to a hospital; for Austris, the sharpened edges are merely a fashion statement.

Golden Silk Shawl: defensive enchanted item (one slot); functions as block 4 or armor 2 for one exchange

3x Potion Slot: most often used for social maneuvers (power 4), typically in the form of subtle mood-altering perfumes.

Smoke-Plated Armor: defensive enchanted item (four slots); functions to upgrade the shawl's defense to block 8 or armor 4.  It also provides a full-time armor 2 just from its base construction; it's the fae equivalent of a bulletproof vest.  Austris does not wear it unless she expects to be going into combat, though, unlike the rest of her items.

Rotes:
Fanning the Fires: A primarily social maneuver to place an aspect of "Burning Passions" on a single target - though this could also see use in physical combat to make a foe overreach themselves, or an ally fight with their full fury.  Power 6, typically resisted by discipline, costs one mental stress to cast.

Gale Winds: A blast of hot, dry, air hits the target like a hammer blow; treat as a might result of 4 for attempting to move whatever the wind is directed at; in some unusual cases (such as if the target is in front of a cliff edge or other dangerous location) this may instead be treated as a simple weapon: 4 attack rote.  Costs two mental stress.

The World In Flames: Sets fire to a wide area, applying a simple zone-wide aspect of "on fire"; this aspect is magically maintained for two exchanges, though it can last past that if there are flammable materials present.  Costs one mental stress.

Searing Vortex: Calls up a miniature fiery tornado, burning and trapping one target.  Casting this spell requires an invoke-for-effect on a pre-existing aspect indicating that either the target or the zone they are in is on fire (as per normal grapple rules - you can't initiate a grapple without a tag on an appropriate aspect).  Power 6, lasts two exchanges, costs two mental stress.
« Last Edit: November 01, 2011, 09:01:46 PM by wyvern »

Offline ways and means

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Re: Generic NPCs
« Reply #500 on: August 21, 2011, 03:27:20 PM »
Name: Nero
High Concept: Composite of the Dead
Trouble: A millions minds rage.
Creation of War, Enemy of Authority, Eternal Hatred, No ones Servant, Bound twice never again

Powers
Consumption Curve [-2] - Enemies who you take out can be consumed and there powers  memories and skills can be used. Eating an enemy causes a free recovery period once per scene and anything a consumed enemy knows Nero now knows.

Modular Abilities [-50]

True Shape Shifting [-4]
True Mind Shifting [-4]: You can change your mind and skills as will being a composite entity.

Physical and Mental Immunity [-16]
Catch: +0 True Love

Skills:
100 skill points. Cap Legendary

Description
Nero was the creation of War when millions of people were killed in the slaughter fields of the first world war the areas became saturated with shadows and ghosts and these echoes grew thicker and thicker to the point that the attained a life of there own. One ghost may not be powerful but millions united in rage and sorrow slowly congealed into a being of great power a primordial a power not seen in the world since the old ones Nero. Nero feeds on war the chemicals, the bodies and most importantly the emotions. Being a composite of many men's ghosts, nightmares and despairs Nero does not need skills anything one of the ghost that are part of him could do he can do.     
« Last Edit: August 21, 2011, 07:50:36 PM by ways and means »
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Offline Sanctaphrax

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Re: Generic NPCs
« Reply #501 on: August 21, 2011, 06:25:23 PM »
@w+m: Who's Nero? What's his skill cap? And what is he going to spend 48 power points on?

Also, I don't understand Consumption Curve. What does it offer that Blood Drinker does not?

@wyvern: Solid. Should work nicely.

Some stunts and such look a bit sketchy, but it really does not matter.

She's actually surprisingly similar in some ways to Lepid's father. I may decide that there is a connection there.

I think you overestimate the Summer Lady and the Eldest Gruff. Austris seems to be in their ballpark, roughly speaking.

Hm. With the number of powerful Summer fey running around in EtA, I may need to decide definitively what Titania's inner circle consists of.

She has 77 skill points, which is rather a lot. I may reduce her skills a little when I use her.

Good job balancing her against the PCs.

The tag for Searing Vortex isn't necessary. It totally should be, but it probably isn't.

Offline ways and means

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Re: Generic NPCs
« Reply #502 on: August 21, 2011, 08:06:45 PM »
Consumption Curve with all of the other powers allows Nero to basically become anyone he consumes, personality, memories, powers and all.

Nero is in my increasingly deviating from DF universe the ultimate god of War who has consumed most of the other gods on earth, Odin etc and is a power akin to the old ones. He is meant to be Arch Angel powerful and because of his ability to consume anything that gets in his way could become much more powerful.   

Oh he is also a stated plot device in that he can have any power he want and any skill he wants up to ludicrous levels and is utterly impossible to negotiate with a giant primordial wrecking ball.
« Last Edit: August 21, 2011, 08:08:36 PM by ways and means »
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Offline Sanctaphrax

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Re: Generic NPCs
« Reply #503 on: August 22, 2011, 02:27:55 AM »
2 refresh probably isn't enough for that.

I approve of the effort to stat a plot device, but I'm not sure this works. This game really doesn't support a godly power level, although it probably could with a little bit of tweaking.

Offline wyvern

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Re: Generic NPCs
« Reply #504 on: August 22, 2011, 03:46:33 AM »
@wyvern: Solid. Should work nicely.

Good job balancing her against the PCs.
Thanks!

Some stunts and such look a bit sketchy, but it really does not matter.
That's because some of the "stunts" are actually custom powers - specifically fae tongue and lady of the searing edge.  The latter is there as a sort of a half-of-inhuman-strength thing; she really needed a higher weapon rating, but didn't deserve to have an actual strength power.  It's one of those works-in-context things that I wouldn't allow a PC to take on top of strength powers or other weapon rating boosts.  (That's also why I didn't give her the dual-wielding stunt; the searing edge power covers the same niche and they really shouldn't be able to stack.)

She's actually surprisingly similar in some ways to Lepid's father. I may decide that there is a connection there.
You're welcome to add whatever connections you like; that sounds like a great option for filling in the aspect I left blank.

I think you overestimate the Summer Lady and the Eldest Gruff. Austris seems to be in their ballpark, roughly speaking.
Perhaps.  But Eldest Gruff casually one-shot a combat-oriented denarian.  Austris... could probably kill one with a fire spell, but it'd cost her most of her consequences and probably some sponsor debt to boot; she'd need quite a bit more power to be able to do that casually.  Still, I could see her being behind them by a mere 10-ish refresh spent on evocation / thaumaturgy / refinement, if that's how you choose to stat those NPCs.
Hm.  If you wanted to scale her down without trivializing encounters with her, you might consider giving her a few particularly competent minions (other than Johann).  Then again, she'll need minions anyway if she's going to pose a credible conflict for the party in any sort of more-than-one-at-a-time situation...

She has 77 skill points, which is rather a lot. I may reduce her skills a little when I use her.
Yes, lots of skill points; I just picked numbers that looked right without paying much attention to the total.  I'd actually considered making a second pass through to drop some of those down and take stunts instead - to give her a bit more focus and less general ability - but, er, decided that was more work than I felt like doing at the time.

The tag for Searing Vortex isn't necessary. It totally should be, but it probably isn't.
Searing Vortex is a grapple.  A grapple should require a tag, imo, even if it's being done with magic.  If it doesn't, then World In Flames should probably be replaced with something else (perhaps a generic fire attack spell); the only reason I gave her that rote is to make sure she can use Searing Vortex.  Because, well, burning tornado; that's just such an awesome visual effect; had to make sure she'd be able to use it.

Offline Sanctaphrax

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Re: Generic NPCs
« Reply #505 on: August 22, 2011, 04:11:46 AM »
The stunts as powers make sense. Actually, Faerie Tongue should probably go onto the master list. Needs a new name for that, though. Do you mind?

Eldest Gruff is undoubtedly a better fighter, but he probably actually has fewer skill points. Outside of combat, Austris would likely match or beat him at many things.

As for the grapples:

http://www.jimbutcheronline.com/bb/index.php/topic,22465.0.html

Offline wyvern

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Re: Generic NPCs
« Reply #506 on: August 22, 2011, 04:28:22 AM »
The stunts as powers make sense. Actually, Faerie Tongue should probably go onto the master list. Needs a new name for that, though. Do you mind?
Be my guest;  I gave it to Austris because she needed more languages than her scholarship skill would give her - and I couldn't justify a higher scholarship in terms of who she was (or make it fit into the skill stack, either.)  Plus - minor Changes spoiler:
(click to show/hide)

As for the grapples:

http://www.jimbutcheronline.com/bb/index.php/topic,22465.0.html
Hm.  Well... I think it ought to have the tag required.  If it doesn't need it as a tag-for-effect, then perhaps utilize it to boost the block strength or make the spell zone-wide or somesuch, akin to the "Grasping Branches" example on YS294?

Offline ways and means

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Re: Generic NPCs
« Reply #507 on: August 31, 2011, 10:06:35 PM »
High Concept: Half-Crazed Drunk Airship Captain
Trouble: Making ends meet
Aspects: Fearless Pilot, Estranged Farther, Veteran of the Last War, Unforgiving Captain, Last of my old unit.

Skills:
+5: Piloting/Driving, Fists
+4: Guns, Endurance
+3: Might, Survival
+2: Presence, Mechanics/Craftsmanship   
+1: Empathy, Resources, Contacts, Scholarship, Weapons

Pure Mortal +2
Sky Ship Buyer: Count Resources at +2 when buying ship parts and vessels
I know every rivet: +3 to mechanics rolls on his Sky Ship.
Footwork (fists)
Pistol Marksman (guns) - +1 accuracy when firing a pistol
Shatter points (guns): +2 weapons rating when tagging an aimed aspect.   
Fair Weather or foul: +2 to piloting rolls in storms.
Drunken Fighter: This reduces any of the penalties from being drunk in battle by 2.

Refresh Adjust -5
 
     
« Last Edit: September 01, 2011, 02:20:51 AM by ways and means »
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Offline Sanctaphrax

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Re: Generic NPCs
« Reply #508 on: September 01, 2011, 02:16:43 AM »
I like him, even if he's questionably generic. (Let's be honest, I've posted less generic characters here. I have no right to point fingers.)

Might steal some of those stunts for the master list, if you don't mind.

Offline ways and means

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Re: Generic NPCs
« Reply #509 on: September 01, 2011, 02:19:48 AM »
Don't mind at all.
Every night has its day.
Even forever must come to an end....
I think.