|
Post by WxMAN on Jan 2, 2016 19:44:23 GMT -6
Matias Torres Freelance photojournalist who was clearly born in the wrong time. He’s the real deal when it comes to ‘getting the story’ and has a reputation for going into any kind of hot spot, venturing where angels fear to tread, so to speak. He speaks fluent English and Spanish, is conversational in Arabic, Farsi and Hebrew, and speaks enough Russian to generally get his point across. As an embedded photographer, he saw action in the Middle East (where he met Howard Lee and Robert Mankiller while they were in the Army), but his principal area of expertise is Latin American drug cartels. He has a direct, familial link to Sofía – she’d call him her brother which pains him as the truth is a lot more complicated than that. Despite being a journalist, he has enough skills to pass as a soldier (which is frankly necessary, given the crazy places he tends to find himself in.) Also? He’s slightly psychic. He can’t control it, but sometimes he sees things before they happen. This has led him to being something of a loner but has given him key insight into uncovering the truth. -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- ST 12 [20]; DX 14* [80]; IQ 12 [40]; HT 12† [20]. Damage 1d-1/1d+2; BL 29 lb; HP 16 [8]; Will 13 [5]; Per 14 [10]; FP 12 [0]. Basic Speed 7.00 [10]; Basic Move 7 [0]; Dodge 11‡. Social Background TL: 8 [0]. CF: Latin American (Native) [0]. Languages: Arabic (Accented) [4]; English (Native) [0]; Farsi (Accented) [4]; Hebrew (Accented) [4]; Russian (Broken) [2]; Spanish (Native) [0]. Templates and Meta-Traits Avenger/Atoner (Monster Hunters; p. MH1:6) [0]; Military Hand-To-Hand - Krav Maga (Martial Arts; p. MA183) [0]; Scout (Monster Hunters; p. MH4:14) [0]. Advantages Ally (Miranda Flores, deepcover CIA agent; 100% of starting points; 9 or less) [5]; Combat Reflexes [15]; Contact Group (Journalists; Effective Skill 12; 9 or less; Somewhat Reliable) [5]; Craftiness 2 [10]; Daredevil [15]; Fearlessness 2 [4]; Fit [5]; Flexibility [5]; Higher Purpose (Reveal the Truth) [5]; Precognition (Passive Only) [20]; Psychometry (Passive Only) [8]; Reputation +2 (That Lunatic Who Goes Where Angels Fear to Tread; All the time; Small class) [3]. Disadvantages Addiction (Tobacco; Cheap; Highly addictive; Legal) [-5]; Code of Honor (Professional) [-5]; Curious (6 or less) [-10]; Enemy (Eduardo Torres, Red Court vampire … and your dad; More powerful than the PC; 9 or less) [-20]; Light Sleeper [-5]; Loner (6 or less) [-10]; Nightmares (12 or less) [-5]; No Sense of Humor [-10]; Obsession (Getting the Truth Out; Long-Term Goal; 6 or less) [-20]; On the Edge (12 or less) [-15]; Reputation -2 (That Lunatic Who Goes Where Angels Fear to Tread; All the time; Small class) [-3]; Stubbornness [-5]. Quirks: _Unused Quirk 1; _Unused Quirk 2; _Unused Quirk 3; _Unused Quirk 4; _Unused Quirk 5. [-5] Skills Area Knowledge (Central America) (E) IQ [1]-12; Area Knowledge (South America) (E) IQ+1 [2]-13; Armoury/TL8 (Small Arms) (A) IQ-1 [1]-11; Body Language (Human) (A) Per-1 [1]-13; Broadsword (A) DX-1 [1]-13; Camouflage (E) IQ+2 [1]-14§; Climbing (A) DX+2 [1]-16¶; Computer Hacking/TL8 (VH) IQ-2 [2]-10; Computer Operation/TL8 (E) IQ [1]-12; Computer Programming/TL8 (H) IQ-2 [1]-10; Current Affairs/TL8 (Business) (E) IQ [1]-12; Current Affairs/TL8 (Headline News) (E) IQ [1]-12; Current Affairs/TL8 (Politics) (E) IQ [1]-12; Detect Lies (H) Per-2 [1]-12; Diagnosis/TL8 (Human) (H) IQ-2 [1]-10; Driving/TL8 (Automobile) (A) DX-1 [1]-13; Driving/TL8 (Motorcycle) (A) DX-1 [1]-13; Electronics Operation/TL8 (Media) (A) IQ [2]-12; Electronics Operation/TL8 (Security) (A) IQ-1 [1]-11; Electronics Operation/TL8 (Surveillance) (A) IQ-1 [1]-11; Fast-Draw (Knife) (E) DX+1 [1]-15‡; Fast-Talk (A) IQ [2]-12; First Aid/TL8 (Human) (E) IQ+1 [2]-13; Forced Entry (E) DX [1]-14; Guns/TL8 (Pistol) (E) DX [1]-14; Guns/TL8 (Rifle) (E) DX [1]-14; Guns/TL8 (Shotgun) (E) DX [1]-14; Guns/TL8 (Submachine Gun) (E) DX [1]-14; Hidden Lore (Vampires) (A) IQ+1 [4]-13; Intelligence Analysis/TL8 (H) IQ-2 [1]-10; Interrogation (A) IQ-1 [1]-11; Intimidation (A) Will-1 [1]-12**; Jumping (E) DX+1 [2]-15; Karate (H) DX [4]-14; Knife (E) DX+1 [2]-15; Observation (A) Per [2]-14; Occultism (A) IQ [2]-12; Parachuting/TL8 (E) DX [1]-14; Photography/TL8 (A) IQ+2 [8]-14; Running (A) HT [2]-12; Savoir-Faire (Mafia) (E) IQ [1]-12; Savoir-Faire (Military) (E) IQ [1]-12; Savoir-Faire (Police) (E) IQ [1]-12; Scuba/TL8 (A) IQ-1 [1]-11; Shadowing (A) IQ+2 [2]-14§; Soldier/TL8 (A) IQ [2]-12; Spear (A) DX-1 [1]-13; Stealth (A) DX+2 [2]-16§; Streetwise (A) IQ [2]-12; Survival (Desert) (A) Per-1 [1]-13; Survival (Jungle) (A) Per-1 [1]-13; Survival (Woodlands) (A) Per-1 [1]-13; Swimming (E) HT [1]-12; Thrown Weapon (Knife) (E) DX [1]-14; Tracking (A) Per-1 [1]-13††; Traps/TL8 (A) IQ [2]-12; Urban Survival (A) Per-1 [1]-13; Wrestling (A) DX-1 [1]-13. Techniques: Aggressive Parry (Karate) (H) [0]-10; Arm Lock (Wrestling) (A) [0]-13; Breakfall (Wrestling) (A) [0]-13; Choke Hold (Wrestling) (H) [0]-10; Disarming (Karate) (H) [0]-14; Elbow Strike (Karate) (A) [0]-12; Eye-Rake (Karate) (H) [0]-9; Ground Fighting (Karate) (H) [0]-10; Head Lock (Wrestling) (H) [0]-10; Knee Strike (Karate) (A) [0]-13; Stamp Kick (Karate) (H) [0]-11. Footnotes * Conditional +3 from ‘Flexibility’ when ignoring penalties for working in close quarters. † Conditional +1 from ‘Fit’. ‡ Includes +1 from ‘Combat Reflexes’. § Includes +2 from ‘Craftiness’. ¶ Includes +3 from ‘Flexibility’. ** Conditional -2 from ‘Reputation (That Lunatic Who Goes Where Angels Fear to Tread)’ when your reputation works against you, -2 from ‘Reputation (That Lunatic Who Goes Where Angels Fear to Tread)’ when your reputation works against you. †† Conditional +4 from ‘Psychometry’ when you know exactly who you’re following. Encumbrance [None]: Basic 29 lb. Ground Move 7 yd; Water Move 1 yd; Jump 7 yd. Dodge 11. Light: Basic 58 lb. Ground Move 5 yd; Water Move 1 yd; Jump 5 yd. Dodge 10. Medium: Basic 87 lb. Ground Move 4 yd; Water Move 1 yd; Jump 4 yd. Dodge 9. Heavy: Basic 174 lb. Ground Move 2 yd; Water Move 1 yd; Jump 2 yd. Dodge 8. X-Heavy: Basic 290 lb. Ground Move 1 yd; Water Move 1 yd; Jump 1 yd. Dodge 7. Defenses Parry: 11 (DX). Block: 9 (DX). Dodge: 11. DR: 0 (Torso). Melee Attacks Aggressive Parry Karate (10): 1d-4 cr. Reach C. Bite (14): 1d-2 cr. Reach C. Elbow Strike Karate (12): 1d-1 cr. Reach C. Eye-Rake Karate (9): 1d-2 cr. Reach C. Karate • Punch (14): 1d-1 cr. Reach C. Karate • Kick (12): 1d cr. Reach C,1. Knee Strike Karate (13): 1d cr. Reach C. Stamp Kick Karate (11): 1d+1 cr. Reach C,1.
|
|
|
Post by Rigil Kent on Jan 2, 2016 19:55:01 GMT -6
As with all other PCs, we can change up stuffs as appropriate to better fit your playing style.
|
|
|
Post by WxMAN on Jan 2, 2016 20:35:29 GMT -6
All I have to do is figure out what my playing style is in this universe
|
|
|
Post by Rigil Kent on Jan 14, 2016 14:26:21 GMT -6
Updated with minor revision: swapped Vow (don't kill a human) [-10] with Curious (6 or less) [-10].
|
|
|
Post by Rigil Kent on Feb 21, 2016 13:13:26 GMT -6
You mentioned wanting to spend some points to reduce the check for some of your disads, specifically Loner. It is currently at 9 or less which is -7 points. Reducing this to 12 or less reduces this disad to -5 pts (so net cost of 2 CPs). You also have On the Edge (12 or less, -15 pts) which is a very dangerous disad when we fricking remember it (you should have had to make checks against that during the fight); reducing this to 15 or less will cost you 8 pts.
Also, what are you doing in your free time? Is he trying to learn new stuffs? Etc.
|
|
|
Post by WxMAN on Mar 4, 2016 11:49:31 GMT -6
I've actually been playing him on the edge as "active" during the fights. I mean on the last fight he emptied his magazine in 2 rounds, chucked his only weapon at the bad person trying to escape - despite a bad guy in his face. When Sofia is in danger, everything stops and he'll immediately try and defend her unless it is blatantly apparent she has the situation well in hand.
I'd like to drop the loner disad to 12 or less. I'm trying to think if I wanted to add anything. I'm thinking he may be going towards a becoming almost a vampire hunter - furious at how the vampires have destroyed his family. Given that concept I think I'd like to bump up hidden lore: vampire a point or two with the justification of him studying and looking into them, especially using his journalistic skills to do so.
As far as what he's doing, aside from planning a almost one man war on vampires, he'll be doing some freelance journalism. He needs to acquire a gun and as he isn't a resident (I guess he'd apply for citizenship?) it'll have to be black market - and obviously a pistol as walking around with an AR-15 may draw unnecessary attention. He'll also probably acquire some fake IDs so he looks like a US citizen. What did you think about incendiary rounds and how they affect vampires?
|
|
|
Post by Rigil Kent on Mar 4, 2016 12:23:51 GMT -6
I'd like to drop the loner disad to 12 or less. Noted. That'll cost you 2 points. Increasing Hidden Lore (Vampires) to 14 will cost 4 points, which will leave you with 3 unspent. So here's a sneaky way around the citizenship thing: spend a point in the Citizenship perk from Power-ups 2: Perks (text: "In settings where nations defend borders and restrict such things as voting rights and property ownership to citizens, each PC is assumed to be a citizen of one particular state, complete with passport, Social Security Number, etc. Each citizenship beyond the first is a perk. This isn’t Cultural Familiarity (p. B23) – you might “inherit” citizenship through a parent without ever encountering the associated culture!" We can totally come up with an explanation for how he obtained it - perhaps he had dual citizenship already but this is the first time it's actually mattered? Also, if you recall, I had suggested having Mat relocate to OKC to keep an eye on Sofia and could get a job at KFOR as a video cameraman (using ElecOps (Media)) to pay the bills while trying to figure out what Eduardo (!!!!) is up to... Very effective. Probably difficult to obtain legally - would have to research that - but they are effective canonically. A character in one of the books used Dragon's Breath shotgun rounds against Red Court types to very great effect. ETA: My math was off. You could conceivably raise Hidden Lore by one more level, leaving you with 0 unspent (this is presuming you picked up Citizenship perk).
|
|
|
Post by WxMAN on Mar 4, 2016 12:40:52 GMT -6
So here's a sneaky way around the citizenship thing: spend a point in the Citizenship perk from Power-ups 2: Perks (text: "In settings where nations defend borders and restrict such things as voting rights and property ownership to citizens, each PC is assumed to be a citizen of one particular state, complete with passport, Social Security Number, etc. Each citizenship beyond the first is a perk. This isn’t Cultural Familiarity (p. B23) – you might “inherit” citizenship through a parent without ever encountering the associated culture!" We can totally come up with an explanation for how he obtained it - perhaps he had dual citizenship already but this is the first time it's actually mattered? Also, if you recall, I had suggested having Mat relocate to OKC to keep an eye on Sofia and could get a job at KFOR as a video cameraman (using ElecOps (Media)) to pay the bills while trying to figure out what Eduardo (!!!!) is up to... Up to you, I don't want to take away what may be interesting plot for all of us on the basis of a sneaky rules lawyer thing. So if you want to make it a story element let's play it out, if not, I'll gladly take BS citizenship. Maybe Obama gave amnesty to all of us in canon. Very effective. Probably difficult to obtain legally - would have to research that - but they are effective canonically. A character in one of the books used Dragon's Breath shotgun rounds against Red Court types to very great effect. This may be my lack of knowledge with guns, but I was referring less to the "Dragon's Breath" style rounds which are *super* illegal, and more along the lines of stronger tracer ammo which (I'd think) would be much easier to obtain. If this wouldn't actually effect vamps, no worries, then I wouldn't bother, but I figured there'd be no way I could legitimately try and snag dragon's breath ammo without overpowering my character or getting chucked into gitmo. Also, I think I wanted to get the search or scrounge or whatever skill it is to look for specific things in like a cluttered room. I think I was lacking that skill and it would have become very useful. As far as how I learned it? I don't know? I got a pretty girl's number and lost it in my apartment and tore the place apart and learned some tricks? I lost my favorite stuffed animal at frontier city and had to search the bins to find it?
|
|
|
Post by Gigermann on Mar 4, 2016 12:53:21 GMT -6
Could also go with Alternate Identity (Legal) instead of the Citizenship Perk—more expensive, but more encompassing
|
|
|
Post by Rigil Kent on Mar 4, 2016 13:05:03 GMT -6
So here's a sneaky way around the citizenship thing: spend a point in the Citizenship perk from Power-ups 2: Perks (text: "In settings where nations defend borders and restrict such things as voting rights and property ownership to citizens, each PC is assumed to be a citizen of one particular state, complete with passport, Social Security Number, etc. Each citizenship beyond the first is a perk. This isn’t Cultural Familiarity (p. B23) – you might “inherit” citizenship through a parent without ever encountering the associated culture!" We can totally come up with an explanation for how he obtained it - perhaps he had dual citizenship already but this is the first time it's actually mattered? Up to you, I don't want to take away what may be interesting plot for all of us on the basis of a sneaky rules lawyer thing. So if you want to make it a story element let's play it out, if not, I'll gladly take BS citizenship. Maybe Obama gave amnesty to all of us in canon. Ha ha ha! I'm okay with adding Citizenship (U.S.) - it stands to reason that when Solomon arranged for Sofia to obtain citizenship way back when, he did the same for you. Not to mention, he's got an Ally who might have been able to pull a few strings and clear out some red tape... Noted. Let me check - I don't think the tracer ammo would do much to them. Obtaining the DB rounds is probably feasible but potentially dangerous. I'll have to review to figure out the legality of it here. If only he knew someone in the government ... That could be either Scrounging or Search. Scrounging - "This is the ability to find, salvage, or improvise useful items that others can’t locate." whereas Search is "This is the ability to search people, baggage, and vehicles for items that aren’t in plain sight." He doesn't have either so you might want to pick them both up. Regarding the "vampire hunter" angle, tell me more. Think of him in the future. Is he a gadget guy (e.g., Batman with all of his wonderful toys)? Has he obtained some form of exceptional ability to help fight the vamps (e.g., maybe he got bit and is half-vampire himself? Or perhaps he sought out Power(tm) in a different way to combat them?) Does he perhaps go off to Navy SEAL school because he was recruited by a secret government taskforce and learn how to be the ultimate killing machine without powers? Etc. I am gradually upgrading all of the PCs to actual "GURPS: Monster Hunters" levels so at some point, Mat will get a ~100 pt bump ... I'm just unsure on what at this point. Not a priority at the moment, but something to consider...
|
|
|
Post by Gigermann on Mar 4, 2016 13:23:53 GMT -6
Incendiary rounds, not Dragons' Breath, do actually exist, but there is no non-military application for such a thing, so they will be hard to find—but not impossible
|
|
|
Post by Rigil Kent on Mar 4, 2016 13:44:21 GMT -6
Incendiary rounds, not Dragons' Breath, do actually exist, but there is no non-military application for such a thing, so they will be hard to find—but not impossible You sure? I could swear reading or hearing about firefighter types using incendiary rounds for some reason when starting controlled burns or something.
|
|
|
Post by Gigermann on Mar 4, 2016 14:05:28 GMT -6
|
|
|
Post by WxMAN on Mar 4, 2016 14:29:32 GMT -6
'MERICA! F YEAH!
|
|
|
Post by Rigil Kent on Mar 5, 2016 0:48:13 GMT -6
Looks like I had it written down: Mat was at -22 hp. Allison bound his wounds with a first aid kit (provided by Mankiller) who took the 10 minutes, made the skill check and rolled a very good 5 on the 1d for recovered. That still leaves him at -17 currently, but I have a few ideas on how to handle that.
|
|
|
Post by WxMAN on Mar 5, 2016 21:45:40 GMT -6
How long does the entrancement by the white court last? Also, I'm guessing being at more negative HP that I have positive HP is quite bad for me. Ow.
|
|
|
Post by Rigil Kent on Mar 5, 2016 22:48:10 GMT -6
How long does the entrancement by the white court last? Normally, just for as long as she is in physical contact with him or is actively concentrating on emitting her mojo. Since you rolled an 18, the worst possible roll ever, well ... we'll see. Yes. Very much so. But like the cylons, I have a plan. Unlike them, however, I actually do have a plan...
|
|
|
Post by Rigil Kent on Mar 7, 2016 17:45:27 GMT -6
Giger had an interesting idea: treat Mat's critically failed resistance against Diana Raith's mojo as the equivalent of a fright check, then use the Awe check table (Powers, p85). So, with that in mind, give me a 3d6 roll and add +1 (the difference between his effective Fright Check and his actual roll.) As GM, I'm hoping for 12 or greater...
|
|
|
Post by WxMAN on Mar 7, 2016 19:27:32 GMT -6
Also, I technically rolled a 17, so it was slightly more likely than rolling an 18 (4/216 vs 1/216)
rMVaTmCe1-61-61-61-6·1-6·1-6
|
|
|
Post by Rigil Kent on Mar 7, 2016 19:45:40 GMT -6
Ah. Okay. So, he'll be Stunned for 2d seconds. Every second after that, roll v Will to snap out of it. Darn. I was hoping for 18 - 1d minutes of ecstasy.
|
|
|
Post by WxMAN on Mar 7, 2016 19:50:30 GMT -6
Bah, that's no fun. Make up something better.
|
|
|
Post by Rigil Kent on Mar 7, 2016 20:01:00 GMT -6
Bah, that's no fun. Make up something better. What? The Stun? Based on the results, these are the best (and the maximum) from the table. If you'd prefer one of these, I'm game: In case you're wonder, Ecstasy is described thus: Agony is So if you're really into screwing poor Mat over (heh. Screwing him over), you could go with 17 or 18 to get 1d minutes of basically lying on the floor and moaning ... and probably having made a mess of your pants.
|
|
|
Post by WxMAN on Mar 7, 2016 20:07:02 GMT -6
From the way this all happened, I'd say 14, 15 are the most relevant, lasting, and interesting. I mean everything else is just a couple minutes of pain or pleasure but no real lasting effect. Thoughts?
|
|
|
Post by Rigil Kent on Mar 7, 2016 20:11:21 GMT -6
16 is as well as it has the Stun plus the extra quirk. I'm game if you are. What are you thinking? I can skim through Power-Ups 6: Quirks to finds something appropriate unless you have something specific in mind ...
ETA: The Hedonist quirk might be what you're thinking (if I am not wildly off-base):
|
|
|
Post by WxMAN on Mar 7, 2016 20:21:47 GMT -6
I think the hedonist quirk may be a bit much. I was thinking something along the lines of what you suggested: suddenly he finds some aspect (hair color, eye color, etc) very attractive and will not really pursue anyone who doesn't have that trait.
Either way, I'm up for whatever - it is a fun story element
|
|
|
Post by Rigil Kent on Mar 7, 2016 20:32:40 GMT -6
I think the hedonist quirk may be a bit much. I was thinking something along the lines of what you suggested: suddenly he finds some aspect (hair color, eye color, etc) very attractive and will not really pursue anyone who doesn't have that trait. That works for me. And since this is a Quirk obtained due to the equivalent of a failed fright check, it allows you to exceed the normal 5-Quirks only ... although ... you haven't populated all of your quirks, so Ta-Dah! We'll populate one of them with this. So now we have to figure out what it is that he really, really likes about Lady Raith...it could be a type ala "Slim Brunette" or "Tall Brunette" or the equivalent. The quirk "Preferred Looks" is phrased thus: Interestingly, since Lady Raith has "Very Beautiful" due to being a White Court vamp (this gives +6 on reaction rolls to people attracted to her sex, and +2 to others), whatever you decide means she'd be "Transcendent" to Mat (and thus, would have a +8 (!) bonus on reaction rolls to you...)
|
|
|
Post by Rigil Kent on Mar 12, 2016 20:24:41 GMT -6
Is this Mat in the near future?
|
|
|
Post by Rigil Kent on Nov 8, 2016 9:12:05 GMT -6
FYI, I've updated Mat's page on the Portals to take into account his new capabilities following the training we discussed.
|
|