Reality Gifts

List of Positive Reality Gifts

Anti-Lucky Cost: 1 Reality Points

Max Times Taken: 1

Description: Luck is… A complicated idea. Some people say it doesn’t exist, and to your character, in a very strange sense, it literally doesn't. Things never seem to happen, for better or worse, as a result of their ‘luck’, and the universe is more than happy to give it to other people. Rather than rolling luck, they simply take a flat 7. In other such situations, GM discretion should provide the most average result. They cannot be subject to anything that would otherwise modify their luck, for good or bad.

Absolutely Iron-Willed Cost: 4 Reality Points

Max Times Taken: 4

Description: Maybe they’ve seen some things that have hardened them, maybe they’re so new to the horrors of the galaxy that they just don’t understand what’s to be afraid of, or maybe they’re just that good, but affecting your character mentally is extremely hard. They always succeed by at least MFD 1.5 on Mental Resist rolls, even if they crit fail. They’re probably going to be called a monster for it, but at least they’ll live through the day. Each time they retake this gift improves the MFD by 1 step.

Agile Tongue Cost: 3 Reality Points

Max Times Taken: 1

Description: Some people can make funny shapes with their tongues, lick their own nose, or tie cherry stems into knots. Your character is so good with their tongue that they don’t show off around those people for fear of hurting their feelings. Or maybe they do, who knows! Your character’s abilities give them a +5 in Deception, Speechcraft, and Languages, and a +10 in Seduction. There’s no question of how situational those benefits are.

It’ll Fit Cost: 2 Reality Points

Max Times Taken: 1

Description: Your character knows how to use spaces as well as they can be used, and excels at pictureing things fitting together in 3D like a puzzle. When they personally help in installing cargo fittings, those fittings take up less cargo space as your character finds ways to fit parts in the rest of the ship. When installing a cargo fitting, multiply the cargo space it takes up by 0.9 before installing it. Each further tier drops this modifier by 0.1, down to 0.8, 0.7, and so on.

Lucky Cost: 4 Reality Points

Max Times Taken: 3

Description: Your character always seems to have the best luck, those around them know better than to bet against your character, and if even their luck runs out, those people really get worried. This manifests as a +1 on luck rolls. Every time they take this gift they gain an additional +1.

Lucky Day Cost: 2 Reality Points

Max Times Taken: 1

Description: Sometimes, your character finds that everything just seems to be going their way. At the beginning of every session, roll 2d6. For every point above 7 they roll (8+), they can pick a skill roll that session to:

Be unable to crit-fail, and double their crit range (2-10)

OR

Double their crit-fail range (91-100) but have a further expanded crit range (3-15), super crit range (1-2), and have crit successes count as 2 MFD better than their max success, not 1.

Impending Doom Cost: 4 Reality Points

Max Times Taken: 6

Description: This character has an innate danger sense. 1/10 of the time an alarm goes off in their head when they comes within a few seconds of a dangerous situation. The GM rolls secretly and alerts the player when it is successful. Taking this gift multiple times adds two to the denominator of that fraction, bringing the character’s chances up to 1/8, 1/6, 1/4...

MD Gunslinger Cost: 3 Reality Points

Max Times Taken: 1

Description: Your character can tell how precisely how wounded enemies are, and identify their DR, shield strength, and effective HP with a medicine roll, no contact necessary. This roll is free, but can only be made once total per round. Knowledge is power, and your character gains +1 damage versus enemies they’ve passed this roll for.

Sniper Cost: 3 Reality Points

Max Times Taken: 1

Description: A multitool in your character’s grasp means certain death. No matter the form they’re looking at, they know how to predict where vital targets are about to be, and called shot penalties are now reduced by one MFD.

Quick Learner Cost: 2 Reality Points

Max Times Taken: 8

Description: Your character picks up skills you have no real leanings towards with surprising ease. At the end of every session, they may pick one skill whose base stat score is no higher than 3 and raise the training of that skill by +1. Retaking this gift will allow you to either raise the base stat cap by 1, max of 5, or the bonus per session, up to +5.

Precognition Cost: 6 Reality Points

Max Times Taken: 3

Description: Every fiber of your character’s being is a conduit for a latent ability otherwise long lost to the galaxy. It allows them to reflexively and subconsciously see and react to the immediate future in ways that they can’t understand until after it’s already happened. Once per session, you may ask the GM to tell you what’s immediately imminent within sensory range of your character, and they will tell you, as best your character could possibly tell. For example, while it’s fair to be able to tell the moment an NPC stiffens up to draw a weapon before they’ve even fully committed to attacking you character, it’s impossible to know what number from a random pool is about to appear. Each time they take this gift grants an additional use per session.

Alcoholic’s Metabolism Cost: 2 Reality Points

Max Times Taken: 1

Description: There’s never been a person who can drink your character under the table, because alcohol just doesn’t affect them. They’re not sure how, or why, but they cannot become drunk, and they have to raise their blood-alcohol level so high in order for it to become dangerous to them that they’d need to inject it directly into their blood, because they also process it out of their body quickly. Have fun winning so many bar bets that they never need to become an adventurer in the first place.

Stable-Minded Cost: 2 Reality Points

Max Times Taken: 1

Description: Nothing tricks your character’s eye, they never see things that aren’t really there, and they find card tricks to be honestly pretty underwhelming. When rolling Mental Resist to overcome hallucinogens and holographic illusions, they roll with +2 MFD, and no matter how poorly they roll, these things only affect your character for half as long.

Stone-Faced Cost: 2 Reality Points

Max Times Taken: 1

Description: When your character is caught off-guard, they never panic, they’re always ready to act as soon as something goes wrong. They’re not necessarily the fastest person alive, but when it comes to someone getting the jump on them, they’d better be ready for another thing. Your character cannot be surprised in combat, if a surprise round would otherwise happen without them, they may roll initiative as normal.

Spark of Genius Cost: 4 Reality Points

Max Times Taken: 1

Description: Your character’s quick wit makes it easier to learn new skills, and they put logic into practice whenever they can. They gain +10 skill points per stat when they receive this gift, and at the end of every session they gain +3 skill points per stat. However, their brain uses up resources faster than it can refresh itself, and they find themselves easily exhausted, requiring +2 hours of sleep every night.

<h2 style="text-align: left; font-size: large;">Attacked Last Cost: 3 Reality Points

Max Times Taken: 1

Description: Your character just… They don’t make for a threatening figure, and people really don’t worry about taking them out unless they’re the last one standing, because it’s not like they’re going to cause any trouble. Starting on the first round of combat, any enemy has to roll Mental Resist to knowingly damage your character directly, AoE does not apply. This starts at MFD 2, and gets one step harder every round your character makes no attacks of their own. This no longer applies when A) they make any kind of offensive maneuver, regardless of if it hits, or B) they are the only remaining target. However, in the second case, they may find it easier to negotiate their way out than most would.

<h2 style="text-align: left; font-size: large;">Extra-Dimensional Mind’s Eye Cost: 4 Reality Points

Max Times Taken: 3

Description: Many people struggle to think of things in even three dimensions without significant effort; the mark of a great pilot is one who can effortlessly consider a full six axes of movement. Your character, however, can do more, thanks to being truly gifted, being able to consider the effects of full four dimensional movement through hyperspace, allowing them to set courses faster than any person limited by standard mental processes could. Every time they take this gift, they receive a 1 MFD bonus to FTL drive use, and cut 10% off hyperspace jump times.

<h2 style="text-align: left; font-size: large;">Extremely Reliable Talent Cost: 5 Reality Points

Max Times Taken: 2

Description: Your character never messes up. Never. No one ever sees them make a mistake, because even when they do, they still pulls things off. They sometimes outright lack the needed skill, but once they figure things out, they’ve figured things out. Your character can no longer super crit-fail, and they can only crit-fail on a roll of 100. If they take this gift a second time, they cannot even crit-fail on a 100, they’re just immune to bad luck.

<h2 style="text-align: left; font-size: large;">Natural Gymnast Cost: 2 Reality Points

Max Times Taken: 1

Description: Your character has always been able to balance extremely well, regardless of the situation. Every time they take this gift, they gain a +1 MFD bonus to rolls to gain or maintain physical balance. This does not apply to combat, they fall prone just as fast when they’re tackled.

<h2 style="text-align: left; font-size: large;">Everything That Connects Us Cost: 3 Reality Points

Max Times Taken: 1

Description: Every living thing, even the truly alien, is connected in some way, by the act of living itself. No being is ever so different to your character that they can’t sympathize with it and appreciate what is important to that being. They are far more open to those connections than most people, and when it comes down to negotiations, they’re ready for any possibility. Whether it’s pirates, changelings, or even sentient plants, they can work that understanding for a bonus, and they’re often seen as more compassionate in general. They gain +1 CHA, and the first CHA skill roll they make with a being they’ve never met before cannot be worse than MFD 2.

<h1 style="text-align: center; font-size: large;">List of Negative Reality Gifts

<h2 style="text-align: left; font-size: large;">Unlucky Chain of Events Value: 3 Reality Points

Max Times Taken: 1

Description: When things go wrong for your character, they seem to go really wrong. When your character critically fails, no matter how skilled they are, the fail is always treated as though they have failed by MFD 2, rather than their usual worst case MFD, unless their crit-fail would be worse than MFD 2.

<h2 style="text-align: left; font-size: large;">An Old Dog Value: 1 Reality Point

Max Times Taken: 10

Description: Your character might be a master of many things, or maybe this was how they were born, but they’ve begun to realize it's harder to grasp new concepts in flashes of insight, and they rarely learn new abilities on the spot due to some outside force. When spending skill points, you have to spend 5% more than you would otherwise to improve your character's skills. Every time this gift is taken the penalty goes up 5%.

<h2 style="text-align: left; font-size: large;">Oops! Value: 2 Reality Points

Max Times Taken: 1

Description: The title of this gift is actually the last word of many characters that have it. Also common are “My Bad!” “I just don’t know what went wrong!” and “OH SH-“. Characters with this gift have a problem involving explosives and other thrown items. That is, your character is good at throwing them quickly, but they’re bad at throwing them far enough away. This reduces the range increment of items thrown by half, making their maximum thrown range often still dangerously close.

<h2 style="text-align: left; font-size: large;">Scavenger Value: 4 Reality Points

Max Times Taken: 1

Description: Your character calls themselves a scavenger. Others have called them a number of less flattering names – thief, kleptomaniac, crazy person with a ship full of everything you can carry, etc., etc. People with this gift have a problematic habit of taking everything that isn’t nailed down. This tends to have a few negative side effects, such as making it harder for them to sneak (because their loot weighs them down and makes noise), and making it difficult to manage party inventory. However, none of your friends can scoff when it comes time to trade for goods with a merchant. Your character is compelled to grab everything they can when they go through any location that is either occupied with hostiles or is uninhabited. When the time comes that their inventory starts to fill, they may then begin prioritizing based on weight to value ratios, but not before. This gift doesn’t apply to items that are known to belong to a friendly or neutral faction, however – grabbing those would get you in trouble!

<h2 style="text-align: left; font-size: large;">Argumentative Value: 1 Reality Point

Max Times Taken: 1

Description: Your character constantly plays the devil’s advocate. They rejoice when an exploitable situation arises, arguing even though they sometimes agree with their adversary. The argument becomes a game, a strange contest of wills. There’s nothing wrong with your character that can be fixed, per say, they might even see it as a good thing, but to most people it’s extremely annoying.

<h2 style="text-align: left; font-size: large;">Gunshy Value: 4 Reality Points

Max Times Taken: 1

Description: Characters with this gift don’t like using mobile guns, blasters, cannons, anything of the sort. This doesn’t, however, apply to any weapon that doesn't use projectiles, or to vehicle-mounted turrets. Gunshy people who are forced to use guns take a whopping -3 MFD penalty to hit. Better find some other way to kill the people shooting at your character!

<h2 style="text-align: left; font-size: large;">Literal Minded Value: 3 Reality Points

Max Times Taken: 1

Description: Your character tends to take things a bit… literally. Companions will quickly realize that the use of euphemisms, sarcasm, and colorful metaphors around them is not the best idea. Your character may understand the idea of these things, but unless explicitly instructed they’ll not recognize implications like those if they encounter them. This results in a -2 CHA.

<h2 style="text-align: left; font-size: large;">Bad Luck Value: 3 Reality Points

Max Times Taken: 3

Description: Your character tends to have the worst luck; first their cargo shipment is stolen by pirates, then the blaster that they just fixed falls and the barrel gets bent, and then their last grenade blows up in their face in the middle of a firefight. But that’s just how things always tend to go for them, and they get by as best they can. This hindrance forces a -1 penalty on luck rolls. The effects of this gift stack with other abilities that would modify luck rolls.

<h2 style="text-align: left; font-size: large;">Bad Luck Charm Value: 1 Reality Point

Max Times Taken: 1

Description: Your character keeps finding that those around them tend to have a bad time. It’s not your character's fault – people just have worse luck than normal when your character is around. Once per session, you must choose one friendly NPC or player character (not including your own) to take a -1 penalty on a luck roll, or cause an otherwise successful roll to lose 1 MFD of success. The longer you wait, the higher the chance the GM will manifest this for you, so don’t wait too long!

<h2 style="text-align: left; font-size: large;">Enemy Value: 3 Reality Points

Max Times Taken: 1

Description: Your character has pissed off someone or some group much more powerful and deadly than they are who is currently chasing them around the galaxy, looking to beat the living hell out of them, and then leave them to die. The GM should try and incorporate the enemies that this gift represents into the storyline as frequently as possible until they are defeated.

<h2 style="text-align: left; font-size: large;">Skeleton in the Closet Value: 2 Reality Points

Max Times Taken: 1

Description: Your character has elements of their past that they do not want anyone to unearth. The player should choose a specific “skeleton” and tie it in with the character’s history. No matter what, they must never reveal this secret. It will bring harm to either them or those they love.

<h2 style="text-align: left; font-size: large;">Wanted for a Crime Value: 2 Reality Points

Max Times Taken: 1

Description: A corporation, culture, or empire has declared your character a criminal. They may or may not have actually committed said crime, but nevertheless, the authorities have begun to search for them.

<h2 style="text-align: left; font-size: large;">Sadist Value: 3 Reality Points

Max Times Taken: 1

Description: Some people just want to watch the world burn, and your character is one of them if they’ve got this gift. They take an enormous amount of pleasure from the suffering of others, particularly when they’ve caused it themselves. Sadists are generally not nice or good sorts, but there are exceptions. Some people just want to cause specific groups suffering: all pirates, certain members of some empire, the majority of a slaver gang, people from less reputable colonies, etc.

<h2 style="text-align: left; font-size: large;">Obsessive Tendencies Value: 2 Reality Points

Max Times Taken: 1

Description: Whenever your character decides on a course of action, they cannot help but become totally focused on that action, ignoring all other issues in their life, alternate ideas, simpler routes, or anything to that effect.

<h2 style="text-align: left; font-size: large;">Stage Fright Value: 4 Reality Points

Max Times Taken: 1

Description: It's pretty common to be nervous when trying to function under the scrutiny of a large number of people, but your character never worked over that fear, and it impacts their lives frequently, sometimes even causing them to choke up when their own party is watching. When you go to roll a non-combat roll for your character, if anyone is watching them, there's a 50% chance they'll freeze up and find themselves unable to finish the task, forcing you to either take a crit fail, or change the situation before rolling. If there are more than 10 people paying attention, this will always happen.