Tilde: Ready for Review

[Freemage]

Tilde: Human Juicer for Black Company

Experience & Wisdom [dice]0[/dice]: Some experiences take a person back to the beginning, reconnecting her to her foundations. Select one Background Edge, regardless of requirements, so long as it makes sense and the GM agrees with it.
Training [dice]1[/dice]: Choice: 1-3: After serving in a military, paramilitary, militia, or security force for some time, your hero has some solid combat training. She gains +5 Skill Points, which may be spent on Fighting, Shooting, or Throwing in any combination
Body Armor [dice]2[/dice]: Micro exoskeleton enhancements in the legs give your hero a +1 to Pace when wearing this suit.
Training [dice]3[/dice]: Choice: 15-16: Constant batle, for cause or survival, means your hero knows a great deal about combat. Select one Combat Edge; you may ignore all requirements except other Edges (to take Improved Frenzy; your character must have Frenzy frst): Marksman
Experience & Wisdom [dice]4[/dice]: With a nose for opportunities, horse-trading, and fve-fngered discounts, your hero is the go-to person for geting what’s needed in a crunch. He has the Scrounger Edge and Connections (Black Market)

Narrative Hook: [dice]5[/dice]

Starting Funds: [dice]6[/dice] x100 = 1100 Credits

[Freemage]

Player Name: Soren
Google Handle: Soren
Tilde
Rank: Novice Experience: 5
Race: Human
Iconic Framework: Juicer
Attributes: Agility d8, Smarts d6, Spirit d8, Strength d8, Vigor d8
Charisma: -1; Pace: 17”/d10; Parry: 6; Toughness: 12(6), vs. Arcane 16(10); Strain: 0
Skills: (15 points, 5 must be spent on Combat Skills)

• Fighting d8
• Shooting d8
• Throwing d8
• Climbing d4
• Notice d4
• Streetwise d4
• Lockpicking d4
• Stealth d4
• Survival d4

Hindrances

• Young (Major): 12 years old; 3 Attribute Points; 10 Skill Points; Extra Benny
• Habit: Morbidity (Minor): Makes deadpan allusions to death and other disturbing subjects; -1 Charisma
• Illiterate (Minor): Tilde cannot read or write; she can make a crude scrawl to serve as a signature, and that’s about it.

Edges

• Quick (IF): Redraw Initiative Cards below 6
• Fleet-Footed (IF): +2 Pace, +1 Run Die-Type
• Brawny (IF): Str x8 Encumbrance
• Burn Brighter (Hindrance): Re-roll Burn Die = 1 or 2; must take new result
• Burn For Glory (Hindrance): Spend Burn to double Trait/Damage roll
• Arcane Resistance (Human): +2 Armor vs. Magic; +2 to resist Powers
• Scrounger (HJ):Roll Streetwise 1/Session to gain item of small value
• Marksman (HJ: Combat): If no move/single shot, get +2 Shooting
• Freshly Juiced (HJ: Background): {w/ GM Permission} Start with +2 Burn (10 total)
• Improved Arcane Resistance (N1): Total +4 Armor, +4 to Resistance Rolls

Juicer Advantages:

Internal Repair System

• Natural Healing Roll 1/d
• Immediate Natural Healing Roll at +2; 3 charges, recharge 1/8 hrs

Super Traits

• Endurance: +2 vs. Fatigue Checks
• Uncanny Reflexes: -2 to be hit if aware of attack
• Double Pace (after Fleet-Footed)

Burn (10)

• Must roll 1d10 at start of Session; if => than Burn, must spend 1 Burn that Session
• Spend 1 burn to add 1d10 to a Trait or Damage roll; if using a Benny to re-roll, also reroll Burn Die
• Spend 1 burn to double a Trait or Damage roll (Burn for Glory)

[Freemage]

Background

Tilde grew up in the Burbs surrounding Chi-Town--specifically, one of the seedier areas. Her father had died when she was young, in a monster attack that had driven the rest of the family from their home in the New West; her mother opted to get as close to the heart of the Coalition territory as they could, both to try and be safer from attack, and maybe to finagle their way into Chi-Town proper.

She had two older siblings, brother and sister. For about a year, her mother had been ‘dating’ (as her mom called it--Tilde’s terms for their relationship were a little less genteel) a CS Grunt named Richard Masters who kept promising to get them all into Chi-Town, but as far as Tilde could see, he mainly was coming around for a quick screw and some food, usually for less money than the actual prostitutes got. She was also about ninety percent certain he’d banged her sister Claire, at least once. She caught him eyeing her as puberty began to kick in, and would’ve been making plans to run away if it weren’t for her brother, Max, who always looked out for her.

As it turned out, Masters was also using her mother’s shack as a dropping point for smuggled contraband--mostly small items of magical significance he would pocket during raids, which he’d then sell on to the Black Market. He was greedy and stupid, though--though not so stupid as to still be in the home when the Immortal Hand hit-squad came knocking.

The attack was a short, brutal exercise in terror. The Hand leader tore the place apart as his goon squads killed Tilde’s mother and older sister, first, before one of them came into her room. Max was standing in front of her with a vibro-knife, telling them to just take what they wanted and go. The leader chuckled at his bravado and nodded. “Alright, we have a bargain.” And he reached out and ripped Max’s face off, before grabbing Tilde by the hair. One of the other squad members had managed to dig up the artifact that Masters had failed to deliver despite being well-paid, It was a jar, and Korregan, the Shifter, ripped some of Tilde’s hair out at the scalp, and dropped it, bleeding skin and all, into the jar. A Rift opened in the small living room, and Korregan called out, “Myrrhathlix, my debt is paid!” and threw her bodily into the swirling red disc.

She emerged in Hell. Given how she got there, one would think a demon would be waiting for her, but instead, she was alone on a blighted hellscape--blackened trees, ash for soil, near a black, ichor-filled lake. Stumbling, she made her way, somehow surviving, always on the cusp of being found by something that would eat her, or torture her, or kill her, or worse. But for two years, almost miraculously, that never happened. She fed on grubs and other things too foul to think about, drank water skimmed from the top of the ichor pools, and generally laid low as much as possible. It was a skill she’d learned in the Burbs, avoiding CS patrols and alley skulkers; the demons here were really just a more honest version of that scum, as far as she could tell.

But her luck did eventually run out. A regal-looking demon lord, out on a hunt, finally ferreted her out. He exclaimed his surprise at finding her, and once she’d been grabbed and by his hunting beasts and had her crudely sharpened piece of obsidian knocked from her hand, the demon lord came close and loomed over her. Then he murmured, “Well, little morsel--would you rather be fed to the hounds, or recieve a kiss?”

Tilde had seen both her mother and her sister’s means of getting by in the world, and had long dreaded when it might be her turn. But she took one look at the hounds’ jaws, slavering and snarling, and closed her eyes, dreading what was really going to come. “The kiss.”

The demon lord laughed, and kissed her forehead, with an almost fatherly tenderness. Then he tossed her through another Rift, and she was back in this world, in the Ozarks. There, she was rescued by a passing Legion patrol, investigating the Rift, and taken to Castle Refuge.

The dreams started a week later. The headaches, the week after. And the nosebleeds after a month.

***********

“You can’t be serious.” Elle of Owls stares at the looming Grackletooth Body-Fixer, but he just withstands the withering gaze, unaffected. “Maybe if I were to try--”

George, “Gorgeous” to his friends, cuts her off. “I wish this was a joke. Big Al tried divine healing. The tumor just… ate the magic. He can treat the symptoms--the fatigue from the sleeplessness, the blood loss--but he can’t touch the evil growth itself. Hell, he said even the symptoms were harder to heal than they should be--it’s killing her, driving her mad, and just happens to be making her very resistant to magic in the process. We think the tumor is shedding cells through her system, shielding her body from any form of supernatural energy.”

He shakes his head. “So we treated her with mundane science. Advanced chemo, everything me and the Hospitallers could come up with, a lot of it without even really comparing notes, as we got an idea. One drug to help her sleep without dreaming; another to refresh her vitamin deficiencies; another to keep her emotional surges in check. A cocktail that took a month to work out to halt the tumor’s growth. Still more to help with the side-effects. One didn’t work, we tried another, and another. And after six months, we got--” he reaches out to tap the authorization form on Elle’s desk with a single claw, “--that. Got there totally by trial and error, and most of us going so crazy we weren’t even cross-checking what everyone was doing until it all fell into place. And before you ask--no, I don’t think it’s a coincidence. Whatever that fiend did, it was deliberate. If I wanna save her life--and I do--I gotta put a rig on her.”

Elle’s tender eyes fill with tears. “She’s eleven years old.” It’s a whisper, an objection, a plea.

George lets out a ragged sigh. “Yeah. And I don’t do this, she don’t see twelve.”

*************

George sits on her bed. “I can’t begin to tell you how sorry--”

She shakes her head. “Don’t be. Pain’s gone. I can sleep.” Tilde sits in the bed, her scars already healing over the newly implanted Juicer Rig. “So when can I get to work?”

He blinks at her. “Work? You can’t be--”

“Don’t tell me ‘can’t’, please. I’m going to be dead in a few years, at best. I’d like to not be a walking corpse between now and then. If I can’t use what I’ve been given, same as any other Juicer, I may as well just rip this thing out again, and let the tumor get me. Or jump out a window.”

The flat tone is, perhaps, one of the most soul-destroying things the big Grackletooth has ever encountered. “Kid, I--”

“No. I’m going to work. Fight. The only question is if I’m going to do it here.”

He gets up, shaking his head. “You… you’ll have to someone else about that, then.” He walks out, shoulders slumped.

A little later, a man in camo-treated armor enters. “I’m Major Albert Deschesne. I’ve been told that you feel that rig makes you qualified to be a Legionnaire. I’m afraid you’re wrong.” He holds up a hand to forestall her protest. “I know. The cocktail of drugs demands action. You have to do something. And so you shall. There’s a mercenary crew--the Black Company. They’re willing to do the unusual, things the Legion isn’t set up for. And they’re not as… image-conscious as we have to be.”

He sets some papers in front of her. “I’ll have someone read these to you, if you need. Once you understand them, you can decide if you want to sign, and we’ll give you a lift out to the active Black Company team. They’re in a place called Gloom.”

She smirks. “Sounds like my kind of town.” She pauses, turning the name over in her head. “Hey, do you think Drei Marbles Left is still in town? I wanna get the cards signed.”

[Freemage]

Gear

Juicer Plate Armor

• +6 Armor; +1 Toughness
• +1” Pace
• 14 lbs

Wilk’s 320 Laser Pistol

• 18/36/72; 2d6 AP 2 damage; RoF 1; 20 shots
• 2 Spare Standard Eclips
• 2 lbs

JA-9 Variable Laser Rifle

• 40/80/160; 3d6+1 AP 3 damage; RoF 1; 30 shots
• Integrated Scope w/Night Vision and Laser Targeting, lower Range/lighting penalties by 2
• 2 Spare Long Eclips
• 6 lbs

Vibro-Sword

• Strength +1d10 MD, AP 4
• 9 lbs

NG-S2 Survival Pack

• 30 lbs

Drei Marbles Left Fan Club Kit

• Dedicated music player with all DML songs, including two live concert recordings
• Set of Photo-cards of all the band members, plus group shots
• 50 Credits
• No weight, in pack

Encumbrance (64 lbs)

• Without Pack: 31 lbs (No Penalty)
• With Pack: 61 lbs (No Penalty)

Credits: 1050

Contacts:
Black Market (From HJ): Alice Sheed, Burbs. Ostensibly a prostitute, Alice is actually one of the Black Market’s info-brokers; she learns a great deal from her paying ‘clients’, and then passes that intel along to other interested parties. Alice always had a soft spot for Tilde, and would be willing to do her a favor now and then.

[Freemage]

Advances
Please list all Edges and Advances taken for your character here

Iconic Framework

Hero’s Journey

• Table
  • Roll result
  • Description

Advances

• Initial Advances: (From Hindrances): Burn Brighter, Burn for Glory
• Free Edge (Human): Arcane Resistance
• Novice 1 Advance: Improved Arcane Resistance
• Novice 2 Advance:
• Novice 3 Advance:
• Seasoned 1 Advance:
• Seasoned 2 Advance:
• Seasoned 3 Advance:
• Seasoned 4 Advance:
• Veteran 1 Advance:
• Veteran 2 Advance:
• Veteran 3 Advance:
• Veteran 4 Advance:
• Heroic 1 Advance:
• Heroic 2 Advance:
• Heroic 3 Advance:
• Heroic 4 Advance:
• Legendary 1 Advance:
• Legendary 2 Advance:
• Legendary 3 Advance:
• Legendary 4 Advance:

[Pender Lumkiss]

Hey Freemage looking good and fun! Looking forward to palling arround with you in the BC!
Oh and Sammy is the Legions liason officer with the BC... I am not sure when Tilde is heading to Gloom but he would gladly take you.


Just a couple of things. Arcane resistance is a d8 in spirit. Freshly juiced is an iconic edge not a background one.

[Daniel]

Freshly Juiced (HJ: Background): {w/ GM Permission}

I’ll read it over more today.

[Freemage]

Hey Freemage looking good and fun! Looking forward to palling arround with you in the BC!
Oh and Sammy is the Legions liason officer with the BC... I am not sure when Tilde is heading to Gloom but he would gladly take you.


Just a couple of things. Arcane resistance is a d8 in spirit. Freshly juiced is an iconic edge not a background one.

Yeah, I talked with Lars about that, first. The idea is that since Freshly Juiced must be taken at creation, it really is a Background Edge, as well as an Iconic Edge.

Thanks for the correction on Arcane Resistance. It was painful, but I trimmed back Agility and Shooting to d8s. This freed up a Skill point, so I dropped that into Climbing--we'll see if she lives long enough to build to Thief.

[Ndreare]

Brawny is Str x8 (or 1.6 if over d12) you accidentally type x5

(I know you are aware of the real value so assuming it was a mistake.)

[Freemage]

Brawny is Str x8 (or 1.6 if over d12) you accidentally type x5

(I know you are aware of the real value so assuming it was a mistake.)

Yup, it was an error derived from posting the sheet up at 1 in the morning--and of course, it then propagated down to the encumbrance section. Both are now fixed.

Also, Jon, no love for the Drei Marbles Left Fan Kit?

[Ndreare]

Until she gets the cards signed how impressive could it be?

[Pender Lumkiss]

Brawny is Str x8 (or 1.6 if over d12) you accidentally type x5

(I know you are aware of the real value so assuming it was a mistake.)

Yup, it was an error derived from posting the sheet up at 1 in the morning--and of course, it then propagated down to the encumbrance section. Both are now fixed.

Also, Jon, no love for the Drei Marbles Left Fan Kit?

I did not check the gear, but I do see it now, and I saw the Drei Marbles drop at the end of the post... A well interconnected background.

[Pender Lumkiss]

Freshly Juiced (HJ: Background): {w/ GM Permission}

I’ll read it over more today.

I guess I just don't understand why the HJ roll is not being used for Arcane Resistance and the Human edge is not being used for freshly juiced. I guess you could get GM permission for anything, but in this case if you just swap the way you take them, I would need to read the HJ roll it might say you don't need to meet requirements...

[Daniel]

Jon I see now. Okay. Thanks.

[Daniel]

Several individuals raised concern over the character to me.

In an effort to make everyone feel comfortable, for me to approve the character for play in the Black Company, she needs to be either:

A. 16 years old or older if a Juicer.

or

B. Still young (15 plus) and not a Juicer.

I am aware that there is a Cyborg on the site that is a child, my Juicer, Fell, was 17 when he became a Juicer. There are more examples, and in the Rifts world I am sure the age of going into war is younger than our current society is used to.....but, I don't wish to hash out rules etc on how young is okay.


So right, wrong or indifferent, the ruling from GM of BC says 16+ as a Juicer or 15+ and not a Juicer. Sorry, I know you put some good work into the character.

Thank you.

Dan

[Freemage]

Dan, I understand and accept your ruling. I do have issues with the specificity--the notion that a 9 year old cyborg is any less a trauma victim is... mind-boggling, frankly. But I'm not going to try to fight this out, either.

I am going to pull the character, and possibly bring out one of my other concepts for the BC instead once I've got time to think about it. "Young Juicer" is the concept, and if it's not going to fly, I'm not gonna bother retrofitting until it passes folks' sensibilities--better to start from scratch.

I do think we should put a No Young Characters (other than Dragons) as a site rule, in the Char Creation guidelines. Because I'm not going to deny that going through the effort of putting together the character just to be told "no" is... frustrating. A Young Ley Line Walker would still be going into combat, and even outright warfare, in the course of any of the storylines I've seen on this site. They'll be encountering demons and vampires and all the other horrors of the Rifts setting.

[Daniel]

Am sorry for your time being wasted. You are right a site rule should be discussed. I look forward to your other character concepts.

Thank you.

[High Command]

Actually the cyborg is a NPC at the moment. Just FYI.

[Tribe of One]

Yeah, the age thing came up in the New West game, too, and we retconned Matthew's TW character to be 18. But that's mostly 'cause Matthew and Christian are pervs Child soldiers actually don't bother me, because, well 'Merica, I suppose, but it's probably easiest to just have a site rule that human(ish) characters ought to all be adults/age of consent.

[Ndreare]

So what is that 16?

In the US majority is 18, but consent is 16 in most states. But we have lots of countries, I have no clue about Canada or England, or Mexico and we have players from all three.

But can you qualify for the most broken stupid hindrance of Young if you are 16?


(Surely I hope not because that hindrance takes away way more than is reasonable)

[Maximilian]

Yeah, the age thing came up in the New West game, too, and we retconned Matthew's TW character to be 18. But that's mostly 'cause Matthew and Christian are pervs Child soldiers actually don't bother me, because, well 'Merica, I suppose, but it's probably easiest to just have a site rule that human(ish) characters ought to all be adults/age of consent.

Hey! Jack hasn't made any moves! He's busy trying to figure out what the heck Stella is since he most certainly has been involved there.

[Maximilian]

So what is that 16?

In the US majority is 18, but consent is 16 in most states. But we have lots of countries, I have no clue about Canada or England, or Mexico and we have players from all three.

But can you qualify for the most broken stupid hindrance of Young if you are 16?


(Surely I hope not because that hindrance takes away way more than is reasonable)

I have always considered "Young" to be pre-teenage years. In most Savage settings, making it to 13 would imply that you have an idea what is going on and have done stuff, unlike modern American kids who can't figure out which way is up unless their smartphone tells them, and can barely operate a microwave, let alone hunt, field clean food, or cast a spell.

[Tribe of One]

If we're going with a site rule, I'd just stick with 18. There are all sorts of perfectly valid, story- and history-based reasons for mature, adult-like characters in their younger teens, but I think sticking with 18+ just sidesteps the squick potential altogether.

[Ndreare]

I would be against a site rule as it is being discussed.

I perfectly agree with respecting peoples boundaries and even one player in a group throwing a flag needs to be respected. But most groups have their adventures outside of the bounds of everyone else on the site. If Joe does not like the idea of adventuring with teenagers respect that. But that should not affect Tom's game unless Joe is part of Tom's game.

[Freemage]

I've started a fresh discussion in House Rules. This thread should be locked/frozen/deleted.

[Daniel]

New Thread to discuss potential options on the matter.

Not going to delete this Character Sheet, but will lock it.