Mano a Mano:Templates

Templates

Templates are used to generate characters. Each template represents a certain type of character. The character could be a person, animal, alien, monster or even a machine depending on their template. A template can be a race, species, model, stereotype or archetype. Age categories and sexes can have separate templates if the differences are significant. A template includes:

• The template's name, average mass, average length and length type, variability, and CP value
• The template's speed, agility, strength, toughness, running and possibly swimming and airspeed
• abilities and disabilities
• natural weapons and armor

Dimensions and Build

Mass

Record the average mass of characters based on this template.

Length and Length Type

Record the average length of characters based on this template and how it is measured: length, height or wingspan for example.

Variability

Variability determines how much characters with this template can differ from the average size and proportions.

	variability	CP	description
	none	-10	Characters of this template always have the average length, mass, agility, toughness and strength for their template. For example, a specific model of robot might be built to exact specifications and have no variability.
	low	-5	Characters of this template are always within 10% of the average length of their template. Bird species often have low variability.
	medium	0	Characters of this template can be up to 20% longer or shorter than the average length of their template. Humans and most mammals have medium variability.
	high	5	Characters of this template can be up to 30% longer or shorter than the average length of their template. Many reptiles grow slowly throughout their lives and have high variability. Species whose growth adjusts to the space or food available also have high variability.

Speed

Speed is maximum number of times a character based on this template can attack per round with a single weapon. Very large creatures typically have less speed. The main difference between speed and agility is that agility affects the success of actions while speed affects how fast actions can be performed.

	speed	CP	description
	¼	-30	very slow (sloth, tortoise)
	½	0	slow (python, elephant, turtle)
	1	30	medium (horse, average human speed)
	2	60	fast (dog, maximum human speed)
	3	90	fast (cat, shrew, tasmanian devil)

Agility (15 CP per level)

Agility is roughly based on size, but some templates are awkward or slow moving for their size, and others are surprisingly agile for their size. Human agility is 0, but agility for other species can be as high as 5 or as low as -5. Template agility determines the average and maximum agility characters created using this template can have. Each point of agility is worth 15 CP, so -5 agility would be worth -75 CP and 5 agility would be worth 75 CP.

Strength (10 CP per level)

Strength helps a character use heavy equipment and cause more damage. Template strength is usually less than template toughness and never less than 0. Creatures of roughly human size and power have 3 strength. Creatures with 0 strength cannot do any damage with their natural weapons. Each point of template strength is worth 10 CP.

Toughness (5 CP per level)

Toughness determines how much damage an average character based on the template can take without being injured or incapacitated. Template toughness is usually greater than or equal to template strength and never less than 0. Creatures of roughly human size and toughness have 5 toughness. Each point of template toughness is worth 5 CP.

Toughness, agility and strength are all related to a template's size. The following examples should help guide template creation, but some creatures will be stronger or weaker, quicker or clumsier than their mass would suggest.

Example	mouse	rat	cat	human	horse	elephant	whale
mass (kg)	0.02	0.3	5	80	500	8000	50,000
Agility	5	3	2	0	-2	-4	-5
agility CP	75	45	30	0	-30	-60	-75
Speed	1	1	1	1	1	½	½
speed CP	30	30	30	30	30	0	0
Toughness	0	1	2	5	12	40	100
toughness CP	0	5	10	25	60	200	500
Strength	0	1	2	3	8	25	50
strength CP	0	10	20	30	80	250	500
Cover	0	0	0	0	0	10	10
Absorption	0	0	0	0	0	1	2
armor CP	0	0	0	0	0	50	100
Total CP	105	90	90	85	140	440	1025

Running (10 CP per level)

Running determines how fast a typical character based on this template can travel on the ground. Running is measured in meters per second. Humans have 5 running. Running is never less than 0. Creatures with 0 running cannot move under their own power on land. Each point of running is worth 10 CP.

Swimming (10 CP per level)

Swimming determines how fast an untrained character based on this template can travel in water. Swimming is measured in meters per second. Humans have 0 swimming but they can learn to swim with training. Swimming is never less than 0. Creatures with 0 swimming cannot move under their own power in water. Each point of swimming is worth 10 CP.

Airspeed (10 CP per level)

Airspeed determines how fast a typical character based on this template can travel while flying. Airspeed is measured in meters per second. Only templates with the flying quality have airspeed (See Abilities and Qualities below.) Airspeed is never less than 0. Creatures with 0 airspeed have no control in the air but can float or glide with the speed and direction they were moving when they left the ground. Each point of running is worth 10 CP.

Abilities and Qualities

Abilities (8 CP per modifier level)

Templates can have natural abilities with a modifier level from 1 to 5. This is the minimum amount of this ability that all characters of this template will have and it affects the maximum ability modifier which they can develop. Each level of template ability modifier is worth 8 CP. (See Game Design/Abilities.)

Qualities are aspects of a template which do not have levels. Either a template has a quality or the template does not have it. Qualities can have a positive CP value, negative CP value or no CP value, depending on whether the quality is more of an advantage or disadvantage. A character can have some qualities which his template does not have, but in most games a character cannot have the mechanical quality or any of the flight-related qualities unless his template has it.

flying (15 CP)

This quality allows powered flight, like a bird that can fly by flapping it's wings.

gliding (10 CP)

This quality allows a character to steer while falling. A template cannot have both gliding and flying because flying includes the ability to steer while falling.

soaring (5 CP)

This quality allows a character to gain altitude by riding thermals. Soaring requires gliding or flying

parachuting (5 CP)

This quality prevents a character from taking falling damage. A template cannot have both parachuting and flying because flying includes the ability to take no damage from falling.

perfect regeneration (10 CP)

A character with perfect regeneration always heals successfully without having to roll. As a result, the character heals slightly faster than normal, even when exerting himself. The perfect regenerator is immune to many common types of infections (but not necessarily all diseases), and can regrow complete limbs and organs if he can live without them for long enough.

daily regeneration (10 CP)

The character heals daily instead of weekly, but still requires healing rolls and cannot regenerate most limbs and major organs unless he also has perfect regeneration.

hourly regeneration (30 CP)

The character heals hourly without healing rolls, and is able to regrow complete limbs and organs. (A character cannot have both hourly and perfect regeneration, because hourly regeneration includes all of the advantages of perfect regeneration.) In practice hourly regeneration usually means a character is automatically healed between battles, but does not heal during battles.

sudden regeneration (50 CP)

The character recovers half of his damage instead of all of his stun when he uses the rest action and has no stun.

mechanical (5 CP)

A mechanical character does not heal, but can be repaired using craftsmanship or abilities which allow characters to modify mechanical characters. Mechanical characters do not require surgery rolls when they are modified. Characters who do not have this ability are called organic characters. The main difference between mechanical and organic characters is how they are affected by trauma. (A very complex robot which can heal itself but can be easily destroyed by an attempted modification might not have the mechanical quality.) Mechanical characters do not decay as quickly as organic creatures, so they can be easier to resuscitate from fatal injuries. Mechanical characters can be repaired more quickly than organic (non-mechanical) character's heal. For each day of repairs the mechanical character recovers damage equal to the ability of the character performing the repairs plus circumstance modifiers. Mechanical characters recover from stun like normal characters. Even a simple machine can often correct temporary mechanical problems, especially autonomous and semi-autonomous robots with redundant systems like space probes.

blind (-70 CP)

The character has very poor or no vision (legally blind or worse.)

deaf (-30 CP)

The character has very poor or no hearing.

dumb (-10 CP)

The character cannot speak. In other words the character cannot reproduce the complex sounds used by some species for communication. Most species who do not have a complex language are dumb even though they use their voices for simple communication and emotional expression. (This ability is not related to intelligence or competence. See the inept and unintelligent qualities for characters who are "dumb" in the pejorative sense.)

mute (-15 CP)

The character has no voice. A template cannot have both the mute and dumb qualities because a mute character also cannot speak.

inept (-20 CP)

The character has serious difficulty doing most things a normal person can do, but may still be able to do some things well. The character has a -4 modifier to all rolls unless the character has an ability which applies to that roll. Animals which are smart but not as intelligent as people are often inept.

unintelligent (-40 CP)

The character does not do anything except what it was designed or trained to do, although it might be very good at those things. The things the character can do are basically limited to it's abilities. If the character does not have a fighting ability it cannot fight. If the character does not have a communication ability it cannot communicate. A template with this quality cannot have the inept quality because an unintelligent character cannot do any of the things which are difficult for an inept character.

Natural Armor

A template can have one or more types of natural armor.

Absorption

Each type of armor has an absorption feature with a value of at least 1. The absorption value is the amount of attack power the armor can block from a single attack.

	1	tough skin, scales or guard hairs
	2	big scales, small bones in skin, thick padding
	3-5	large bony plates, flattened ribs
	5-9	carapace, bony sheild, hard shell
	10+	extremely thick and tough armor

Cover

Each type of natural armor also has a cover feature with a value from 1 to 9 or complete. The cover value is the area protected by the armor.

	1	limited armor - protects a specific area of the body like a shield
	3	partial armor - more areas covered but less than 50%
	5	extensive armor - at least 50% cover like a shell or carapace
	7	mostly armored - covers most of the body but exposes large ares
	9	fully armored - covers the whole body but has weak points
	complete	tough hide - full cover without weak points

Natural Armor CP

The CP of natural armor is 5 multiplied by the cover and absorption values, or 50 multiplied by the absorption if the cover is complete. For example, natural armor with 3 cover and 2 absorption is worth 30 CP, and natural armor with complete cover and 4 absorption is worth 200 CP.

Natural Weapons

Describe each type of natural weapon and list the weapon's features. Natural weapons can have the following features:

quantity (0, -20 or -50 CP)

Having more than one natural weapon allows a creature to attack more often. If a creature cannot use it's natural weapons quickly, they may count as a single natural weapon. For example, an Elephant has both tusks and a trunk that can be used as weapons, but the elephant cannot use them as separate weapons in a combo attack. If a character has no natural weapons he cannot attack at all. This is worth -50 CP. If a character has only a single natural weapon, this is worth -20 CP. Two or more natural weapons are worth 0 CP.

hand (10 CP each)

A natural weapon may be a hand. Each hand allows you to wield one weapon. A character with at least two hands can do a secondary attack with a hand weapon - as long as the character has a weapon in each hand. Each pair of hands allows you to wield one two-handed weapon effectively. Each hand is worth 10 CP.

leverage (4 CP per level)

Sometimes characters have a natural weapon which is significantly larger or more powerful than the rest of the character's appendages. Leverage increases the power of attacks with this limb, but it does not increase the character's carrying capacity or make it easier to wield hefty weapons. Each point of leverage is worth 4 CP.

Some limbs can have less power than the character's strength. These limbs can have negative leverage, but the absolute value of this negative leverage cannot exceed the character's strength. (For example, if a template had a strength of 10, the lowest leverage any of its limbs could have would be -10.) Limbs with hands on them have -4 CP for each point of negative leverage, as long as the template has no more than one limb that has a hand and higher leverage or power.

range (1 CP per meter)

The maximum effective range of attacks with the weapon. Most natural weapons have no range. A weapon with range is typically a chemical or missile weapon (like spitting venom.) Exceptionally long limbs tend to have the offense feature rather than range. Each meter of range is worth 1 CP. The range feature is written with the number of meters of range followed by an "m" for meters. The word "range" does not have to be listed.

offense (5 or 10 CP)

Offense is a number (1 or 2) which is added to a character's attack modifier with this weapon. Long limbs which can easily reach past an opponent's defenses and help grappling attacks may have this feature. 1 offense is worth 5 CP and 2 offense is worth 10 CP.

sharp (20 or 30 CP)

Sharp weapons do all damage instead of half-damage and half-stun. One sharp natural weapon is worth 20 CP. Two or more sharp natural weapons is worth 30 CP.

padded (5 or 8 CP)

Padded weapons do all stun instead of half-damage and half-stun. One padded natural weapon is worth 5 CP. Two or more padded natural weapons is worth 8 CP.

Any natural weapon can be used to do blunt attacks which are not sharp or padded. As long as a character has some speed and mobility, he can fling some part of his body to bash, whip or slap an opponent. This means many short, blunt natural weapons do not have to be listed on a template or character sheet: a humanoid template might have only hands and feet listed as natural weapons, but they can also attack by biting, head-butting, and knee and elbow strikes, which are not listed.

Make a Template - Template Generation Example

To demonstrate the creation of a character template, this tutorial will show how to create a human template which can be used for many RPG settings. This template can be used to create most adult human characters, including both men and women.

1. Build - A quick Internet search suggests that average humans are around 75 kg and 1.7 meters tall. Most humans are within 20% of average height but many are more than 10% taller or shorter, so humans have medium variability (worth 0 CP.) Humans have 1 speed (worth 30 CP), 3 strength (worth 30 CP), 5 toughness (worth 25 CP), 0 agility (worth 0 CP), 5 running (worth 50 CP). Humans have no swimming, although individuals can learn to swim, and no airspeed because they cannot fly. 2. Abilities and Qualities - Humans have no special abilities or disabilities. 3. Natural Defenses - Humans have two or more natural weapons, which is worth 0 CP. They have two hands, which together are worth 20 CP. Humans have no natural armor. 4. Template CP - The total CP value of our new human template is 105 CP.

0 variability CP 25 toughness CP 30 strength CP 30 speed CP 0 agility CP 50 running CP 0 ability and quality CP 20 natural weapons CP + 0 natural armor CP 105 template CP

human, 75 kg, 1.7 m height, medium variability, 155 CP
1 speed, 0 agility, 3 strength, 5 toughness, 5 running
2 hands (hand)
2 feet