Talk:Genius The Transgression/Chapter Two: Character Creation
Draft: new Obligation:
The Obligation Scale
Obligation exists as a continuum from zero to ten dots. Genius the Transgression characters begin play with seven dots, somewhat higher than the average. Humanity level reflects in a character’s behavior. As she grows more and more alien, . These descriptions are only guidelines; it’s up to you to determine how your character exhibits the path she walks. Also, there are minor Social modifiers listed. These modifiers apply to rolls relating to humans; any being without an Integrity track may be interacted with normally, at the Storyteller's discretion.
Retired (Obligation 10): A Genius at this level of Obligation has largely rejected the results of Inspiration as dangerous and foolhardy, adopting a position of humility and low status. She may have been traumatized by the results of their wonder-working or have longed for the simplicity of mundane life. Her wonders are mothballed and she no longer attempts to interfere with the course of history in even the most mundane ways; most Merits go dormant and are no longer used, although they are retained and can reactivate if the character lowers their Obligation. Characters at this level of Obligation are not appropriate for normal play, and are usually handled by the Storyteller. They are seemingly immune to Jabir, but this may simply be because they keep their crazy ideas to themself.
Teacher/Elder (Obligation 9): This degree of Obligation is achieved by those who seek to improve the world without setting parts of it on fire, focusing on research, politics and instructing students. It is rare among the Inspired, and difficult to maintain. Gain +2 to any social rolls where you are in a position of authority.
Paragon (Obligation 7-8): Most Geniuses in this range of Obligation are either spending time and resources maintaining it, or they’re very new to Inspired life. They resemble particularly skilled and impressive mortals, and almost certainly view themself this way. They are idealistic, and unwilling to commit acts they view as unjust or wrong. They gain +1 to social rolls when they adopt the "moral high ground", but this is cancelled out if they attempt to communicate technical or abstruse ideas.
Jaded (Obligation 4-6): At this point, she’s been around the block, and accepts that distasteful acts are sometimes necessary in the World of Darkness. Most Peers fall into this range. While they are far from psychopathic, most Inspired at this level have killed or severely injured Illuminated and criminals in order to protect others. Their casual attitude to things may shock some mortals, but they have no problem relating to them. Their motivation is comprehensible to mortals, but they think and act in ways they may find unintuitive or mildly disturbing. Jabir penalty increases by one when communicating their worldview.
Callous (Obligation 1-3): At this level, a Genius has committed acts that would horrify most mortals, and knows that they will likely need to do so again. Most Unmada fall into this range. They view most mortals as pawns in the service of a higher goal, and consider what most mortals would view as fundamental rights as at best guidelines, ones that sometimes impede their effectiveness. Take -2 in any social roll that is not being enhanced by Inspiration (for example, with a Director's Grant.)
Illuminated (Obligation 0): A character that reaches zero Obligation dots views their fellow beings as obstacles or, at best, irritatingly unresponsive tools. They see no issue with even the most disturbing or monstrous acts, although most Illuminated who survive for long are intelligent and manipulative enough to pretend otherwise. They likely see some things such as scientific torture or the extinction of humanity as actively desirable, and there are only the faintest rumors to suggest these individuals are capable of regaining Obligation. Most Inspired view killing them as a public service at worst, and arguably an act of heroism.
Breaking Points
Breaking points are moments and experiences in a Genius' life that encourage her to ignore societal taboos. Any time she experiences a breaking point, roll to resist Transgression. For an event to constitute a breaking point, it must be applicable to her Obligation level, or lower. For example, a Obligation 5 character risks a breaking point if she commits manslaughter (Obligation 4 breaking point), but not if she lies (Obligation 8 breaking point).
The listed breaking points are examples. Add breaking points at Storyteller discretion, or shift these up or down to fit the situation. Typically, the more personal the event is, the lower level a breaking point it should be. If something is significantly distanced from the character, or she had no way to prevent it, it should be a Humanity level higher. If, however, it resonates deeply with the Genius - the child resembles their dead daughter, for example, or they had sworn an oath to defend the temple - it might be treated as a Humanity level higher; generally, this need only be employed at the player's request. Some Storytellers may wish to shift the Obligation level of some transgressions up or down to suit the themes of their Chronicle, or even remove them altogether; however, it is generally advisable to avoid rendering Obligation identical to mundane morality.
Many breaking points reference human contact. This refers to interaction, usually verbal. While it does not have to be positive interaction, it should be human in nature, and meaningful. Beating up a bank robber and flying away before the cops arrive is not interaction. Nor is tying up a mortal and experimenting on them in a basement. However, the act of feeding the captive or arguing with the robber that he doesn't need the money could be. The subject of this interaction need not be strictly human; however, they must be humanlike psychologically, and cannot be Inspired.
Certain breaking points can occur without the Genius' knowledge. At the Storyteller's discretion, these may be applied when the Genius discovers what they have inadvertently done.
samples should be a breakout or sidebar
Obligation 10 (Five Dice)
Benefiting from Inspiration in any way.
Using a Merit above one dot.
Acknowledging Inspired status.
Saving someone from harm.
Learning you are Inspired (if you didn't know.)
Obligation 9 (Five Dice)
Personally engaging in combat.
Minor selfish acts.
Experimenting on animals.
Temporarily transforming yourself or others (not healing.)
Being physically attacked.
Obligation 8 (Four Dice)
Lying.
Failing to save someone from death of serious injury.
Desecrating corpses (grave-robbing.)
Risking injury for knowledge (self-experimentation.)
Allowing an Illuminated or other psychopath to die.
Being lied to by a close friend or confidant.
Obligation 7 (Four Dice)
Mind control.
Petty crime (shoplifting.)
Risking injury to willing volunteers for knowledge.
Unintentional mass property damage (doom cannon misfire.)
Killing an Illuminated or other psychopath.
Being stolen from.
Obligation 6 (Three Dice)
Serious crime (Theft or kidnapping.)
Going without human interaction for a week.
Attempting to create a sentient being.
Body-swapping.
Risking one's life or permanent injury for knowledge (self-experimentation.)
Discovering you are not human.
Obligation 5 (Three Dice)
Death of a loved one.
Risking the lives of willing allies for knowledge.
Mass property damage (most doom cannons.)
Permanently altering someone's personality.
Discovering you are someone else.
Obligation 4 (Two Dice)
Sadistic mind control (of the "forcing two friends to fight for your amusement" variety or similar acts of cruelty.)
Impassioned killing (manslaughter.)
Becoming permanently and visibly nonhuman (grafting wonders to oneself.)
Treating a sentient but inhuman mane as subhuman.
Going a month without human interaction.
Being inadvertently tortured or permanently injured.
Obligation 3 (Two Dice)
Treating a human or humanlike mane as subhuman (slavery.)
Killing someone with Obligation 4+
Going a year or longer without human interaction.
Becoming permanently unrecognizable as human (being uploaded into a computer.)
Discovering you were murdered.
Obligation 2 (One Die)
Killing an innocent.
Attempting to raise the dead or become immortal.
Casual murder.
Attempting to destroy a city, town or other population center.
Attempting to kill someone with Obligation 7+
Having your hometown or neighborhood utterly destroyed.
Obligation 1 (Zero Dice)
Scientific torture.
Attempting to destroy a human or humanlike civilization.
Unnecessarily painful slow death.
Being extensively tortured.
Having your home or adopted civilization destroyed.
end samples
Gaining and Losing Obligation
When reaching a breaking point, the character faces Transgression as the justification for following rules wears thin. To resist Transgression, roll the number of dice associated with the breaking point’s level. Five Willpower, or one dot of Willpower, may be spent to receive an automatic Exceptional Success, but WP cannot be used normally to improve this dice pool. Any time your character faces a breaking point, regardless of the result, take a Beat.
Breaking points are not instantaneous. Characters who anticipate the breaking point may roll Presence or Manipulation plus an appropriate social Skill, minus the Genius' Composure, to undermine or reinforce their confidence in their actions - adding or subtracting their successes from the breaking point dice pool. For the rest of the scene, and possibly afterwards at the Storyteller's discretion, friends or confidants may appeal to the character, rolling Presence or Manipulation (depending on their manner of persuasion) versus the character's Resolve. A success allows the character to reroll the Breaking Point, and this reroll can be affected by other characters just as the original.
Roll Results
Dramatic Failure: Not only does the character lose sight of their Obligation, she sees the breaking point as nothing of consequence whatsoever. They lose a dot of Obligation, and cannot be persuaded to reroll.
Failure: Your character justifies their actions, but feels shaken to her core. Lose a dot of Obligation and gain Shaken, Notoriety, Guilty, Embarrassing Secret, or some other appropriate Condition.
Success: Your character recoils in shock at what they have done. Gain Shaken, Notoriety, Guilty, Embarrassing Secret, or some other appropriate Condition.
Exceptional Success: Your character recoils in horror at what they have done. Regain a dot of Obligation and gain Shaken, Notoriety, Guilty, Embarrassing Secret, or some other appropriate Condition.
Derangements
When a Genius has just rolled for a Breaking Point, they may gain certain Persistent Conditions as they seek to avoid responsibility for their actions or reassure themself it will not be repeated, possibly on a subconscious level. For example, they might ritualistically check and recheck safety procedures, or simply claim the breaking point never occurred They are no longer affected by that breaking point, but they gain a cumulative -1 penalty to breaking point rolls due to mental instability. A character cannot have more than three Derangements. A Severe Derangement is treated as two Derangements, and "upgrades" an existing similar Mild Derangement. You may choose from the sample derangements below, or create your own. As a rule, most derangements resemble mental disorders of some kind, and their effect is resisted with Obligation. They are usually related to the breaking point they were gained by and/or the Genius' Catalyst in some way.
Example Derangements (sidebar?)
Fugue (Persistent) Something terrible happened. Rather than deal with it or let it break you, your mind shuts it out. You are prone to blackouts and lost time. Whenever circumstances become too similar to the situation that led to your gaining this Condition, the player rolls Obligation. If you fail the roll, the Storyteller controls your character for the next scene; your character, left to his own devices, will seek to avoid the conflict and get away from the area.
Incoherent (Persistent) Your character saw or did something that jarred her loose from reality. The Storyteller has a pool of dice equal to 10 – (Obligation). Once per chapter, the Storyteller can apply those dice as a negative modifier to any Mental or Social roll made for the character.
Obsessive (Persistent) When something’s on your character’s mind, she just can’t shake it. When pursuing a long-term metal task or research project, including wonder creation, roll Obligation. On a failure, the character gains the Obsessed Condition until the task is complete. On rolls that are unrelated to her obsession, she loses the 10-again quality. However, she gains the 9-again quality on all rolls directly related to pursuing her obsession.
Offensive (Persistent) When your character is offended, they launch into a tirade of vitriol and condemnation, deliberately inflaming tense situations even if they are in a position of weakness. If any character is deliberately offensive, attempts to threaten the character or does not accord them (in their view) sufficient respect, the Storyteller may call for an Obligation roll. If they fail, the Genius does their very best to insult and provoke the offending character, who may reciprocate, attack or simply refuse to help the characters any further. The player may voluntarily fail this roll, fulfilling their Vice (or even Virtue) if applicable; resisting and failing never grants willpower.
