An Augmentation is any integral enhancement to a character that does not come with an XP cost and is not part of a Power, Template, or Advantage. Augmentations may include cybernetics, genetic manipulation, and magical tattoos. While typically limited in scope, they allow conservation of XP.
However, there is a Humanity cost to Augmentation, without exception. Since characters whose primary powers are Augmentations do not need to spend XP to improve them, they tend to excel at everything. Furthermore, they are often further enhanced by other players. Humanity loss serves to balance this.
Your beginning Humanity Index is (your Conviction + Self-Control) multiplied by ten. Whenever you receive an Augmentation, roll the indicated number of dice to determine how well you handle your new capabilities. The result is deducted from your Humanity Index. If your Humanity Index drops to 0, you lose control of your character (going utterly mad and becoming an NPC until you can be stopped and your Augmentation forcibly removed up to the point that you reach at least 1 Humanity Index).
There are drawbacks to Augmentation. For example, Cyborgs become vulnerable to attacks targeting technology, magical Augmentation is vulnerable to Unweaving, and Chimeras are subject to physiological drift (gaining animal features).
For every 10 points of Humanity Index loss, you suffer a penalty, as follows.
10 points: Conviction check, Difficulty 8
20 points: Permanent Derangement
30 points: Augmentation is obvious to onlookers, but is concealable with effort.
40 points: Self-Control rolls are at +1 Difficulty
50 points: Major drawback (a chimera is considered an animal for powers, a cyborg is vulnerable to electromagnetic pulses and the like, unweaving of magical Augmentations causes damage). In addition, you are obviously inhuman.
Each additional 10 points: Permanent Derangement
This may vary by type of Augmentation.
Helpful Hints for Clever Cyborgs:
Treatment: A good therapist can do you wonders. Characters who have lost at least 20 Humanity Index to Augmentation Gifts (Gifts only, not Augmentation from other sources) may receive a special Mentor as a Background (awarded at 5). This individual is a person familiar with your type of Augmentation who talks you through the transition and suggests helpful remedies. Between Games, you may roll your Mentor Rating (Difficulty: 7) to reduce the cost of Augmentation you have already received. Each success reduces the number of Index lost by 1, just as if you had rolled less on the initial die. The loss can never be reduced to less than the minimum possible loss, however. Note that Therapist Mentors do not provide Study Points, so it is possible to benefit from both a Therapist Mentor and a standard Mentor.
A PC with appropriate expertise can roll Manipulation + Psychology to reduce the cost of Augmentation in the same manner. Such a PC therapist must be fully familiar with the nature of the subject's Augmentation and must have a full personality profile and thorough understanding of the subject. NPC's can never act as therapists in this manner. Providing therapy is considered instruction for game purposes, and is subject to all the standard rules (though points used to reduce Humanity Index loss are not Study Points). Thus, it is not possible to provide or receive therapy and provide or receive Study Points in the same Downtime.
Tolerance can provide a "buffer zone" of sorts.
A Seasoned Character who has received at least 10 Gifts in Augmentation and the Tolerance Background may receive the Cyborg Template as a Gift. Note that the source of the Augmentation (magical, cybernetic, etc.) does not matter. All Augmentation rolls are halved in cost for Cyborgs. This applies to those already received in addition to any gained later. Therapy can now reduce Augmentation costs to the new (halved) minimum.
Only characters with at least 10 Gifts in Augmentation qualify for reductions in Humanity Index cost through a Template.
A character will receive 3d6 in Augmentation per Gift. It is not possible to cherry-pick; Harbingers will not grant a character only the strongest Augmentations.
Augmentation Listing
Some Augmentations may have prerequisites, at the judgment of the GM (e.g., replacing both legs before the Muscular System can be replaced).
Senses
1d6 per sensory enhancement. (No cost for cybernetic eyes, ears, or nose, only for the sensory enhancements.) Examples: Thermal/infrared or ultraviolet vision, vision magnification, enhanced hearing.
Limbs
2d6 per Limb. Limbs may have automatic Strength successes added at the cost of 1d6 per level (maximum of 5). These automatic successes are added to any Strength-related roll, including damage, for which the arm is used. (They are added rather than replacing a die as with Precision Striking.) Note that lifting may be limited by strain on the rest of the body. When multiple limbs with automatic successes are used together to perform a task (e.g., lifting with both arms), the automatic successes do not stack; the successes of the weaker limb are used.
Organ Systems
- Circulatory System (heart, blood, blood vessels): You can control your bleeding. Lethal damage of Mauled or beyond does not worsen without medical care. You can also suppress your vital signs and feign death for up to 8 hours. Furthermore, you can go into Overdrive Mode, which allows you to add 1 to 5 dice to Athletics rolls by overdriving your heart. Circulatory stress forces a Stamina + Endurance check each turn at Difficulty (3 + die modifier) to avoid a heart attack. Cost: 4d6.
- Digestive System (mouth, esophagus, liver, stomach, gallbladder, pancreas, intestines, rectum): You can eat or drink virtually anything that is organic and non-poisonous (leaves, roots, twigs, wood, and so forth). You can bite for Strength + 1 Lethal damage. Furthermore, you need half as much food as a normal person and can go without food for several days without penalties. Cost: 4d6.
- Endocrine System (hypothalamus, pituitary gland, pineal gland, thyroid, parathyroids and adrenal glands): You need only two hours sleep per night. Furthermore, you fall asleep and wake up at will, instantly; you are aware when you are dreaming and can control your dreams (lucid dreaming); and you can hibernate to conserve energy. Cost: 4d6.
- Endocannabinoid System (neuromodulatory lipids and receptors): You have the Lightning Calculator and Eidetic Memory merits, and can can replay memories at will. Cost: 3d6.
- Excretory System (kidneys, ureters, bladder, urethra): You need one-tenth as much water as a normal person and can go without water for a full week without penalties. Cost: 3d6.
- Integumentary System (skin, hair, nails) (all four limbs must be replaced first): You can regulate your surface temperature, and can become temporarily invisible to thermal detection. In addition, polymers woven through your synthetic skin provide 3 Armor Dice. Cost: 5d6.
- Lymphatic System (lymph nodes and vessels): +5 dice to resist disease. Cost: 2d6.
- Muscular System (both legs must be replaced first): You move at double the normal movement rate, and jump twice the normal distance. Cost: 5d6.
- Nervous System (nerves and spinal cord): Add 5 to your Initiative total. If desired, you may add another 5 to this number per Willpower point you choose to spend. Cost: 3d6.
- Respiratory System (lungs, diaphragm, larynx, trachea): You can hold your breath for 12 hours. Cost: 3d6.
- Skeletal System (skeleton, cartilage, ligaments, tendons) (all four limbs must be replaced first): Your bones are extremely difficult to break, providing 2 Armor Dice and -1 Difficulty to soak Bashing damage (and, once you have the Cyborg Template, Lethal damage). In addition, you are not subject to limits to lifting from strain on your bones, and you have the Double Jointed merit. Cost: 5d6.
Other
- Armor: 1d6 per die, maximum of 5 (including Armor Dice gained from replacing the Integumentary System and/or the Skeletal System).
- Attributes: 1d6 per point if within the 1-5 range, 2d6 per point beyond that range (Attribute Maximum of 8). Can be further increased with XP normally (assuming they have not yet reached their normal limit).
- Extra Action: If conditional (3x per day, lasts for 5 rounds), the cost is 2d6 per action. If "always on", the cost is 3d6 per action. In either case the limit is 5 additional actions.
- Weapons: 1d6 per additional die of damage (maximum of +3).
- Regeneration:
- Healing Times reduced by 2 severity levels =1d6
- Healing Times Minimized: 1 hour for Bashing, 1 day for Lethal, Aggravated not affected=2d6
- Superhuman Healing: Bashing 1 Minute, Lethal 1 hour, Aggravated unaffected=3d6
- Inhuman Healing: As above, but Aggravated wounds heal at 1 level per day=4d6
- Supernatural Healing: Bashing 1 turn, Lethal 1 minute, Aggravated 1 day=5d6
- Extra Health Levels: 2d6 per extra "Bruised" level, 1d6 per extra "Incapacitated" level, maximum of 5.
Miscellaneous
- Minor Augmentation: 1d6. Example: Bonus +2 dice to a single ability roll under the right circumstances (Smartgun Link, Headjack, iPod/Data storage implant, Processing Chip/CPU (allows character to access information on the storage implant).
- Major Augmentation: 2d6. Example: Pain Editor (suffers no wound penalties).
- Critical Augmentation (e.g. organ systems): 3d6 to 5d6
- Miscellaneous Enhancements: 1d6 to 3d6 for most things not covered here.