Mano a Mano:Artificial Characters

Creating Artificial Characters

Artificial characters are characters manufactured by other characters. Examples from popular fiction include the monster created by Dr. Frakenstein, and Robby the Robot created by Dr. Morbius. Creating artificial characters works like creating a weapons & armor, except:

• The difficulty modifier is 1% of the new artificial character's CP. For example, creating a new artificial character who will have 2000 character points will have a difficulty modifier of 20.
• A more appropriate ability is used in the place of craftsmanship. A game which allows characters to create artificial characters needs to state which abilities can be used for this. For example, if a character might use an ability called "robotics" to build a lunar rover robot.
• Players may have to create a new template if there is no appropriate template for the new artificial character. The new artificial character may be a unique life form or machine. If the artificial character requires a new template, increase the difficulty modifier by 2.
• If the character is in a culture where artificial characters created with the same ability are common, add 2 to the success modifier. If the character is in a culture which avoids creating artificial characters, add 2 to the difficulty modifier.
• The difficulty modifier is increased by 2 if the type of technology being used to create artificial characters is undeveloped compared to the culture's other technology.

Artificial Character Example

1. Design the Character

An evil alien decides to make a synthetic clone of Modre. Therefore no new Template (or character design) is needed. The clone will therefore have 2500 character points.

2. Determine Difficulty Modifier

Because the Clone's CP is 2500, evil alien's difficulty modifier for making it is 25.

3. Determine Success Modifier

We start with the evil alien's +5 biotech ability modifier. The evil alien is using a alien cloning laboratory (futuristic technology,) adding a +7 modifier (for a total modifier of +12 so far.) The brain-wave reading cloning vat he uses is considered "state of the art" even by alien standards, giving him another +5 modifier and making the total success modifier +17.

4. Determine Time Modifier

The Time modifier is the Difficulty Modifier with the Success Modifier subtracted from it. The evil alien's difficulty modifier is 25, and his Success Modifier is 17, so his Time Modifier is 8 (25 - 17 = 8.) Looking at the Time modifier chart, we see it will take the evil alien 64 hours to make the Clone (over 5 days if the evil alien is working 12-hour days.)