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Life Descriptors
The following are important descriptors for life powers, affecting how they are defined and how they work:
Biological: Originating from or affecting a living organism. Broadly speaking, living organisms in Mutants
& Masterminds can be defined as creatures possessing
a Stamina rank, whereas those that do not are typically constructs. Still, some constructsundead for
examplemay be biological in origin even though
they are no longer living. Likewise, certain powers or
effects may have the biological descriptor because
they target biological organisms, living or otherwise.
curse, but makes a poor healer. This often differentiates sorcerers or magicians from healers, empaths, or
other mystics, whose powers may have a touch of the
divine or involve a deeper connection to the life force
(previously).
Life Features
Feature effects associated with Life Powers include the following:
You radiate an additional degree of life-force, promoting the health and well-being of living things
around you, such that anything growing or healing
With just a touch and a standard action, you can automatically stabilize any dying creatures condition.
Offensive Powers
Although life powers most often work to preserve and
protect life, they are also capable of disrupting or even
destroying it, since the power to heal often includes the
power to harm as well.
Bio-Disruption
With a touch, you can cause a significant disruption of the
biological systems of a targets body. The effect is temporary, but can be quite distracting, and often painful. If
the Gamemaster allows, it can even be lethal, if pushed
beyond mere incapacitation (see Lethal Damage in the
Gamemasters Guide, page 193). With the broad range
of potential conditions this can cause, Bio-Disruption
may have the Variable Conditions modifier (see Illusion
Powers). If you can disrupt targets at a distance, add the
Ranged or Perception Ranged modifier. With both Variable Conditions and Increased Range, Bio-Disruption can
incorporate the other Affliction effects in this section.
Bio-Disruption: Cumulative Affliction (Resisted and Overcome
by Fortitude; Dazed, Stunned, Incapacitated) 2 points per rank.
Bio-Override
You exert control over your targets gross motor functions, manipulating them like a puppet. The victims mind
remains untouched, but you are in control of their body
and actions.
Bio-Override: Perception Ranged Cumulative Affliction
(Resisted and Overcome by Fortitude; Entranced, Compelled,
Controlled) 4 points per rank.
Bio-Sculpting
Like a sculptor working soft clay, you can reshape and
mold a targets flesh, changing appearance or potentially
adding or subtracting features. You can cripple any of the
targets physical abilities: rendering limbs useless or covering sensory organs with a layer of skin, for example. Like
Bio-Disruption, Bio-Sculpting is potentially lethal, if used
with that intent.
Bio-Sculpting: Cumulative Affliction (Resisted and Overcome by
Fortitude; Impaired, Disabled, Transformed) 2 points per rank.
Cellular Disruption
You inflict cellular damage on a living target by touch.
Cellular Disruption: Damage, Alternate Resistance (Fortitude)
1 point per rank.
Pathogen
You can inflict a pathogena disease organismon a
target by touch. Like the Bio-Disruption power, this one
may potentially inflict a wide range of conditions, in which
case it may have the Variable Conditions modifier. The Insidious modifier is particularly dangerous, as the victim
may not become aware of the pathogens effects until it is
too late to treat them.
Pathogen: Affliction (Resisted and Overcome by Fortitude;
Impaired, Disabled, Incapacitated), Progressive 3 points per
rank.
Seizure
You cause your target to suffer a seizure, stunning them
for a time until they are able to shake off the effect. The
basic power is often enhanced by extras like Perception
Ranged, Cumulative, or Progressive, and may be Subtle or
Insidious as well.
Seizure: Affliction (Resisted and Overcome by Will; Dazed,
Stunned, Incapacitated) 1 point per rank.
Defensive Powers
Defensive life powers primarily involve the enhancement
of biological systems to better resist disease, pain, toxins,
injury, or hostile environments.
Bio-Adaptation
Your body adapts to deal with harmful circumstances, a
kind of hyper-Mithratism, where once you have suffered
a harmful biological effect, you instantly develop a resistance or immunity. So you might suffer the effect of a flu
strain, for example, after which you become completely
immune to it.
Insensate
You have voluntary control over the pain receptors and
nerve endings in your body, allowing you to be aware of
pain but otherwise unaffected by it. Effects with a pain
descriptor do not work on you. Some with this power
might have the additional complication of not being
aware of pain at all, meaning they might suffer harm
without the normal reflex to pull away or otherwise
protect themselves.
Insensate: Immunity 5 (pain effects) 2 points.
Movement Powers
Movement effects are unusual for life powers, apart from
as outgrowths of bio-sculpting or ordinary movement capabilities, in which case see the movement powers given
in the Morphing Powers and Talent Powers profiles.
Lifeport
You can move from place to place through the field of life
force surrounding concentrations of living beings. Your
power cannot take you into areas that are truly lifeless or
with nothing more than scattered life-forms.
Lifeport: Teleport, Quirk (Not into areas where there is little or no
life, 1 point) 1 point for rank 1, +2 points per rank.
Utility Powers
Life powers have a wide range of other uses, involving
control over ones own life functions or those of others to
control over biological matter itself.
Adrenal Control
You have conscious control over the bodys production
of adrenaline, capable of enhancing strength and athletic ability temporarily. Realistically, this power should be
limited to just a few ranks, but there are instances of people
under stress demonstrating incredible hysterical strength
that could justify higher ranks. Some versions of Adrenal
Control add the Side Effect flaw with an Affliction effect
after the enhancement wears off (Resisted and Overcome
by Fortitude; Fatigued, Exhausted, Incapacitated).
Biokinesis
Cure
You can treat conditions like disease and poisons, restoring the body to heal.
Cure: Healing, Limited to Disease and Poison 1 point per rank.
Energize
With a touch, you banish fatigue and fill your subject with
vital energy.
Energize: Healing, Energizing, Limited to Energizing 2 points
per rank.
Life Sense
You can sense the presence of living beings nearby, and
have a general sense of their species and overall wellbeing (healthy, diseased, etc.). An Accurate version of Life
Sense can target beings you sense with attacks, including
other life powers.
Life Sense: Senses 3 (Detect Life, Ranged, Acute) 3 points.
Pharmacopeia
You can produce the effects of a wide range of drug compounds in living targets by touching them. As an offensive
effect, this power is the same as Bio-Disruption (under Offensive Powers) but it is usually coupled with an Alternate Effect capable of treating illnesses and imbalances
and promoting healing.
Pharmacopeia: Healing (Alternate Effect: Bio-Disruption) 1
point + 2 points per rank.
Psychic Diagnosis
By examining a subject, you can determine the state
of their physical health: the presence of injuries, organ
damage, pathogens, toxins, and so forth. An Expertise
check (Biology, Medicine, or related field) may be required
to interpret what you perceive, but you are otherwise
as detailed and accurate as a battery of conventional
medical tests, and considerably faster. A use of Psychic Diagnosis may provide a circumstance bonus on checks to
then treat the patients conditions.
Suspended Animation
You can place yourself into a state where your life functions are nearly suspended, allowing you to go for a long
period of time without food, water, or air, and halting the
progression of any biological processes in your body (including the progress of disease or toxins, for example). If
you can place other (willing) characters into suspended
animation, apply the Affects Others modifier.
Suspended Animation: Immunity 5 (aging, starvation and
dehydration, suffocation, ongoing biological effects), Limited
(subject is incapacitated) 3 points.
Total Healing
Your considerable healing powers can treat any harm, up
to and including restoring life to the dead! Apply Affects
Objects (increasing cost by +1 per rank) if you can also
heal damage to non-living things.
Total Healing: Healing, Energizing, Persistent, Restorative,
Resurrection 1 point + 5 points per rank.
Skin-Shifting
Your skin and outer layer of muscle is malleable and you can
reshape them at will. This allows you to take on different appearances, limited only by your skeletal framework, meaning
you cannot significantly change your size. If you have greater
power to alter your body, see the Morphing Powers profile.
Skin-Shifting: Morph 2 (outward appearance limited by size and
shape) 10 points.
Speaking of which, Animal Powers can include biological adaptations suitable for flesh-shapers, and empathy
with life may include a connection with animals as well
as humans.
Given the connection between the light and life descriptorswith life force described as living lightsome Light
Powers may be considered life powers and vice versa.
Life Complications
Power Loss
Addiction
Quirk
Fame
Life is perhaps the most precious thing in the world, so
someone with known power over it is sure to become
famousand extremely in demand. A super-healer or
flesh-sculptor (able to cure deformities, scarring, and
other damage) could name his or her price from any hospital or medical institution in the world, but would likely
also face blistering criticism for withholding such a powerful gift from those unable to pay that price.
Honor
A life controller might take an oath similar to a doctor or
other medical professional to use such powers wisely and
well. Indeed, in the case of mystical or divine life controllers, such an oath may be an essential part of their training. In particular, a healer may be sworn to help those in
need, including injured or ill criminals!
Phobia
Those with life powers may shrink from the approach of
the forces of death, fearful of unliving creatures like the
undead or unnatural beings like robots, golems, or other
simulacra.
Knowledge of life and all of its complex vulnerabilities
may also bring about germaphobia (fear of infections and
Responsibility
Literally possessing the power to grant life is a heavy responsibility, and those with life powers may be strongly
motivated to use them to protect and preserve life whenever and however they may. Of course, complications
can arise when there are questions over the appropriate
use of such powers. Is a super-powered healer practicing
medicine without a license? Are there questions of patient
consent or legality? Can you sue a healer for malpractice?
Moreover, is it selfish for a healer to want things like a personal life or time away from treating the sick and injured,
or to triage or prioritize patients?
Secret
Given the heavy burden of life powers, some may choose
to keep the true nature or extent of their powers secret
so as not to have to deal with the judgments of others.
Of course, this renders the character vulnerable to blackmail and limits circumstances where those powers may
be used. It also means, should the secret come out, the
effects will be that much worse for being hidden from the
public in the first place.
Weakness
The most common weakness for healers is the Empathic
flaw for the Healing effect (Heros Handbook, page 111)
where healers suffer the conditions they cure. It is not a
complication, however, but included in the powers cost.
Those with life powers may be so attuned to the life
around them they suffer similar empathic backlash
when others are injured or killed, dealing with the
equivalent of an Affliction effect that can daze, stun, or
incapacitate them with the onslaught of others pain and
suffering.