I have developed an Excel-based character sheet specifically for this campaign. All players should use this sheet for character creation and record-keeping. For those without Excel, I will assist in documenting your characters. The sheet can be downloaded at the following link:

Read through the Background section prior to coming up with your concept. Remember, the Gifted are not the flashy heroes you saw on "Super Friends" as a kid. They are dark, and often monstrous.

There are several points that your concept must cover:

What was the event that "triggered" your gift? Did it occur before or during birth? Did some traumatic event occur that made it appear? Did you die? Please note that death is an extremely rare trigger and will have certain disadvantages associated with it.

Where do you come from? How old are you? And what was your life like before now? What impact did the appearance of your gift have on your life?

What is your appearance? Are you normal looking, a bit odd, or totally inhuman? This will have an impact on you as discussed further below.

What kind of profile do you keep now? Are you able to function normally in society? Do you have to keep a low profile? Are you forced to hide in the shadows?

The event of this campaign will take place in New York City in the current day. What is your reason for going there? Did you live there already, or are you seeking something?

What are your objectives with your newfound gift? Do you want to hide them and live a normal life? Do you want to seek out answers about your gift? Do you want to "clean up Dodge"? Do you want to sell out your talents to others? Do you want to abuse your gift for personal power?

Do your want your background to be a mystery that must be solved during the course of gameplay?

Let your imagination go wild!

POWER LEVEL

All player characters will start at Power Level 7, with 105 power points to allocate among abilities, skills, feats, powers and devices. This is lower than the standard Power Level 10 starting point suggested in the M&M sourcebook, and represents the idea that characters are just beginning to discover their "gifts".

In addition to the starting power points, all characters will be required to have a weakness: Gifted Nature. Even those Gifted who appear human have a presence that is disturbing to normal people… while others are truly inhuman. Players have a choice between these two extremes, and will be granted varying bonus power points based on this selection. However, this weakness will have an impact on the character in gameplay. For example, characters with inhuman appearances will need to cover themselves when in public areas where normal humans may see them.

SANITY

Players will discover information and encounter things that will have a profound effect on them. The secret knowledge of the Gifted is powerful and horrifying, and may overwhelm those who lack will and experience. Accordingly, the campaign will incorporate the sanity rules from the Call of Cthulhu RPG published by Wizards of the Coast. These rules are very straightforward, and no one will need to purchase that sourcebook. The key concepts are as follows:

All characters have a Starting Sanity score equal to 5 times their Will ability score. This represents the character's initial strength of sanity and the upper limit of sanity that may be restored using certain powers (see below).

All characters have a Maximum Sanity score equal to 99 minus their ranks in the Gifted Mythos skill (see below). A character's Current Sanity may never exceed the Maximum Sanity.

The Gifted Mythos skill is a special knowledge skill, and represents the character's knowledge and comprehension of the Gifted's secret world. This knowledge may benefit the player, but it comes at the price of their mental equilibrium. Players cannot gain ranks in this skill using power points; however, there is also no maximum rank for this skill. Players gain ranks during the course of gameplay as determined by the GM when they discover Gifted Mythos artifacts or encounter beings or powers of the Mythos.

Upon encountering disturbing, unnatural or horrifying situations, they may be asked to roll a sanity check. The sanity check is rolled with percentile dice (d%); a result that is less than the character's Current Sanity is a success. Failure will result in a loss of Sanity points.

Loss of Sanity points may have a number of short-term and long-term effects. A drastic loss may leave a character temporarily paralyzed with fear, or with long-term psychological damage (nightmares, phobias, psychoses). If a character ever reaches a Current Sanity level of -10 points, they become permanently insane.

The effects of insanity differ in a world of super powers, and players may deal with sanity loss in a number of ways. Characters that are temporarily disabled due to shock or fear may be aided through use of the Heal power. Long-term psychological damage or even insanity may be alleviated over time with the help of those with the Telepathy power, or by undergoing psychological therapy. However, even the most experienced telepaths and psychiatrists may be unable to heal all of the effects of encountering unearthly horror, and players should expect that they will bear scars.

LETHALITY

As noted in the Rules section, all damage from super power attacks will be considered lethal damage unless the attack is "pulled". The Gifted generally play for keeps. However, the Gifted are also much more resistant to damage than normal humans. It is highly recommended that players take ranks in Amazing Save (Damage) or Regenerate.

LIMITATIONS

The world of the Gifted differs from the four-color super-hero standard, and the characters will be limited in or prohibited from the use of certain powers and abilities.

FEATS

Minions/Sidekick - May not be taken in character creation. These may be taken as the character advances and developed through roleplay.

POWERS

All powers must have the Mutation power source.

Cosmic Power - Prohibited. There are no "cosmic powers" in the Gifted world.

Dimensional Travel - Prohibited. As far as characters are aware, there are no other dimensions. They are only myths.

ESP - Prohibited.

Gadgets - Requires GM approval, and a Hero point will be required for each use.

Flight - Requires GM approval. Flight is an extremely rare ability among the Gifted.

Precognition and Postcognition - Requires GM approval and the "Uncontrollable" flaw. These are extremely rare abilities among the Gifted, and generally very limited in their capabilities.

Sorcercy - Prohibited. There is no "magic" or sorcery in the Gifted world.

Space Flight - Prohibited.

Time Control and Time Travel - Prohibited.

All words, pictures, characters, tiles and just about everything else was created by and is copyright Stephen Rice and Electric Comics, 1996

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