Genius The Transgression

"They all laughed at my theories! They called me mad! But now I'll have my revenge!"

If only it were so simple. They laughed because you WERE mad. They laughed because your inventions crumbled when unveiled and your theories turned to gibberish. You wept when you saw your equations riddled with childish errors. But you know what you accomplished: you broke gravity's spell; you programmed a computer to dream; you banished death! These weren't delusions or lies!

Maybe they were right.

Or maybe just one more experiment will show you the truth. You can do everything you said. There's a price to pay, but you can do it. And you're not mad. The things you do...maybe they're not right. Maybe your peers would recoil in horror. But you're not mad. And you'll show them all.

Genius: The Transgression is a fan-made role-playing game for the New World of Darkness. In it, players take on the roles of mad scientists and wonder-workers, driven to the brink of insanity by the secrets they have uncovered. Version 1.1 of the rules is available for free download as a .pdf file:[1]

Table of Contents

Chapter Four: Special Rules and Systems

them; they can simply be manufactured. A person within a bardo can spend a point of Willpower instead of any number of Mania points to activate and use native wonder-like manes, and can use them without penalty. Other manes in a Bardo are not full wonders, but instead replicate more mundane technology: the clever and ruthless Ape Empire of the Hollow Earth employs ingenious crossbows that, while not Katastrofi wonders, are nonetheless deadly, while many Martians employ "lesser" radium guns that are about as dangerous as a 19 th century revolver. If taken outside a bardo, most inanimate manes simply disappear. Those that survive the transition become orphans. Many geniuses make use of orphaned manes, using them to supplement their own abilities, and there is a brisk trade in plundered super-science from different bardos. The Crystal Spheres: It's obvious that the Earth can't orbit the Sun, because we would all fall off, but the universe insists on not being obvious, and almost before the Inspired existed in their recognizable modern form, geocentrism gave way to a new model of the universe where the Sun stood immobile, encircled by planets, moons, and various bits of cosmic detritus. But don't tell that to the Christian and pagan "angels" that push the seven planets around the Earth. They have a difficult enough job, guiding the clockwork of the Crystal Spheres through its regular motions. Here, great planes of shimmering translucent glass stretch on seemingly forever, guided by strange but intelligent manes that take the form of winged beings of light. The worlds themselves aren't more than a few miles across, but they too often team with life, including intelligent manes called Micros (especially Crystal Mars, which is rarely more than a brief journey from the Martian Empire's naval base on Deimos). Dragonfly-riding Selenites and beings of living fire on the surface of the Sun crisscross the Crystal Spheres, but most of this realm is empty, bleak, and starkly beautiful. The angels, or the "Megas" as less theologically-minded geniuses are prone to calling them, hint obliquely at realms greater than their own, beyond the farthest Crystal Sphere. Geniuses have journeyed in vain, looking to find if anything still remains of Dante's system of the Cosmos, whether there is an icy Hell somewhere near the Hollow Earth, Purgatory's mountain in the Southern oceans, or some kind of Maniacal paradise still offering bliss and salvation beyond the Circles of the World. The Gray Plateau of Tsoska: Utopian bardos are everywhere: little Shangri-Las and workers' paradises and anarchocapitalist Utopias are tucked away in the world's hidden corners, hard to find and, once found, difficult for many people to leave. Some decay as Mania leaves them, some grow corrupt; a scant handful find a way to remain pure. But one thing is clear: Utopias are as numerous as the dreams that birthed them. But all the fascist dystopian shitholes humanity feared during the age of the Communist peril seem to run together and form one place: Tsoska. Somewhere in the bleak plains of central Asia stretches a dreary empire of fear, dirt, lies, and endless surveillance. Tsoska is where Utopian dreams go to die. It first appeared as the dreams of early 20 th century socialists were replaced by the brutal realities of Communist totalitarianism, and ever since the Soviet Union's collapse, it has been one of the more influential bardos, even more powerful, now, than its capitalist counterpart, Voltt City. Tsoska is an amalgamation of every badly-run empire in human history, magnified tenfold, the result of bitterness and failed visions of brotherhood and harmony. Few buildings are over three stories in Tsoska. The cities are gray and uninspiring; the government facilities squat and brutal. The people, who generally appear to be of mixed European and Asian descent, have lined faces and cold, slow hands built for tedious manual labor. A third, or a tenth, of 1% ― it's impossible to tell ― are part of Oversight, the counterespionage branch of 286 The Party, which controls all economic, social, and political activity in Tsoska. Fear is constant, and paranoia is institutionalized. But there are bright spots in Tsoska, and that is why the geniuses come. (Mostly the geniuses come because the place is full of Igors looking for work, but the bright spots, they also help.) In Tsoska, a genius can find hidden musical subcultures that move from one almost-empty state supermarket to the next after hours, gifted scientists who never share their best work with The Party, and occult philosophical periodicals on the afterlife and psychic powers, masquerading as science to avoid State suppression, all perfect for a mad scientist's needs. And Tsoska isn't as dangerous as many other bardos: so long as a genius' paperwork is in order and he can recreate the patina of gray weariness that coats everyone who comes to Tsoska, The Party seems almost eager to show off its "accomplishments" to visiting foreigners, and a genius can learn much just by being quiet and looking as if he expects to be impressed. The Grid: A two-dimensional holographic grid-plane stretching out to infinity, dotted with seas of deleted and undifferentiated liquid data, roads of shimmering information, and glowing rectangular cities inhabited by humanoid programs, the Grid is one of the newest and most fascinating of the bardos, the dim echoes of science fiction's vision of the Internet, before the Internet became just another fact of life. The Grid contains physical "metaphors" for every computer connected to the Internet wirelessly or through a land line; generally, computers connected through a land line reside on the ground, while wireless contacts hover unmoving in the sky, occasionally turning transparent or evaporating as contact is lost. This makes The Grid a wonderland for computer hackers, who can visit target computers physically and rummage their secrets in the same way. Of course, this is much more dangerous than regular hacking, as secure computers manifest snarling defensive programs that can rip an intruder to shreds. But the Grid isn't all business: here, geniuses mingle with a dizzying variety of net-life and localized programs in an atmosphere of digital chrome and gleaming neon, where the needs of the flesh fade away and different beings can meet mind-to-mind. These server-cities provide havens for data smuggling, rumor-mongering, and simple camaraderie, while outside some of them lurk deadly viral swarms and forgotten treasures from an earlier age of digital imagination. Rules for the Grid: Entering the Grid requires a computer with access to the Internet, a point of Mania, and (unlike with accessing most other bardos) an Intelligence + Computer check. Leaving The Grid can be accomplished by touching an "egress terminal," which are common in any inhabited area. A person can also leave instantly by spending a dot of Willpower. While in the Grid, anyone with a physical body leaves his physical body behind, comatose and clinging to the computer. Disconnecting a person from the computer snaps him back to his body and drains a dot of Willpower. Duplicates of anything in the character's possession appear with the character in the Grid, including mundane items and wonders that can be carried or worn. However, it's a one-way process: nothing in a character's possession when she leaves the Grid transfers into the real world. A genius can create wonders while in the Grid, though these wonders cannot be taken out of the Grid. Damage is handled normally in The Grid, which generally conforms to the normal laws of physics. A person killed in the Grid dies in reality. Once a person leaves the Grid, all damage received in the Grid is converted to Bashing damage, which heals normally. The Computer Skill gives anyone in the Grid an unusual advantage. A character can substitute her dots in the Computer Skill for any Physical or Social Attribute while in the Grid. 287 The Hollow Earth: The Hollow Earth can be found about ten miles below the Earth's crust, and is best accessed via the North or South Poles. Within the Hollow Earth, gravity attracts objects to the concave surface, while a strange false sun hangs in the Earth's center, providing eternal daylight. Enormous mountains, far larger than anything possible on the surface, rise up (or "inwardly") toward the inner sun, producing vast three-dimensional mazes of twisting, utterly dark rocky passages inhabited by strange albino creatures and enormous vermin. Those lands of the Hollow Earth drenched in pseudosunlight are drawn from every age of the Earth above. Here, dinosaurs stride side-by-side with the earliest lungfish, while primitive humans live savage lives of violence and passion, never rising far above barbarism. Thick jungles, jagged mountains, and sun-bleached deserts offer an environment far harsher than anything found on the surface. Many geniuses have wondered how the Hollow Earth, which is the largest bardo apart from the comparatively barren Crystal Spheres, maintains its existence: the idea was never seriously considered by science, and it does not attract the attention of pseudoscientists and science fiction writers like the Red Planet does. The answer, many Inspired think, is found in the peculiar "errors" found in many flora and fauna of the Hollow Earth: a genius might pass a "brontosaurus" with the wrong head, or meet a group of primitive humans menaced by Piltdown Man. The Hollow Earth, say these geniuses, is a kind of clearinghouse for every archaeological and paleontological misstep ever made by human science. Lemuria: Once upon a time, no one thought that the continents could move. This posed the world's scientists with a serious quandary: how did animals scatter all over the globe in the patterns that are seen today? For example, how did the lemur (the little monkey-like animal) get to Madagascar? The answer seemed clear: land bridges had helped them across, then fallen back beneath the sea. These land bridges could rise up over the ages and disappear again, all the time. The land bridge that got lemurs to Madagascar was called Lemuria. By the time evidence appeared to support continental drift and then plate tectonics, Lemuria had moved from a convenient explanation to an ancient wonderland full of psychics and spiritual techno-beings, similar to the stories of Atlantis and Mu, due to the imagination of Theosophists and other 19 th century mystics and spiritualists. And when it turned out that there had been no Lemuria, the manes there disagreed...violently. Their time-traveling hijinks are recounted in further detail elsewhere; basically, if they are to be believed, their work created our current timeline. After the Last Invisible War, Lemuria was reduced to a smoldering wasteland: nothing remains today but a few scorched fingers of land rising out of the waters of the Pacific Ocean, and whatever remains beneath the waves. The intelligent inhabitants, a mix of serpent-people and apparently normal humans, are mostly dead or scattered, though the remains of Lemuria are dangerous even without their xenophobic and devious natives. Strange monsters dwell beneath the surface, emerging at night, while the remnants of ancient Lemurian war-machines and cogitators still possess flickers of life and can awaken at any time to destroy an unwary traveler. Only recently have geniuses (often mixed groups from the Peerage and Lemuria) begun to return to Lemuria to explore it in numbers. The Martian Empire: Sometimes called Cydonia or Barsoom, the Martian Empire is located, naturally, on Mars, but not the frozen, almost airless wasteland that we know. Supported by a sea of ever-shifting Mania, the Martian Empire's air is breathable, if thin, and there walk the strange beings called Martians. Divided into three known castes (the brain-on-a-stalk Overlords, the spindly Technikers, and the brutal but humanoid egg-laying Throgs), the Martians threatened to conquer Earth less than half a century ago, and they still eye our world with cold 288 avarice. This avarice is tempered, now, with the knowledge that Earth stomped them in the last war: even were it not for Inspired super-science, Earth science has advanced far since Percival Lowell read of Martian canali and decided that the canals channeled water from the icy poles to a dying civilization. Mars is not exactly safe, but the Martians are more interested, now, in what a genius knows and what knowledge she is willing to trade, than in destroying her as a threat to their plans. And Mars is an extraordinary place, its dusty streets full of haggling merchants and exotic alien spices, its people enlightened masters of sciences humans have never imagined, and its libraries possessed of arcane and super-scientific wisdom. Even if the genius does not wish simply to grow rich on Martian sapphires by filling her rocketship with fresh water (worth more than gold to the dry world), a lifetime can be spent wandering the million-year-old universities and speaking with the incredible beings there. Mad scientists who reach Mars are encouraged not to wander too far from the city, where the Mania can sustain humanoid life, and are advised to have an escape plan ready at all times in case the warlike factions of the Martian government take over and once again launch an all-out assault on the Blue Planet. Space Station Colossus

The last of the great Space Age dreams, a vision drawn from Clarke, Heinlein, and thousands of other writers during the Golden Age of science fiction, Space Station Colossus is an enormous O'Neill cylinder floating between the Earth and the Moon near the L4 point. It flickered to life in 1984, when science fiction had largely abandoned its starfaring dreams. When it first appeared, Space Station Colossus was a glittering jewel in the heavens, ten miles long and containing fifteen separate counter-rotating sections. Today it is a run-down hole in the sky full of unemployed mane dock workers, bitter Atomists trying to create one Utopia or another, and failing mechanical systems. The air is stale, the lights flicker, and the "futuristic inventions" that litter its interior ― vid phones, hover bikes, charming robotic assistants ― never work right. Despite its many faults, and despite its control by Lemurians with rather strange plans, Space Station Colossus is a sight to behold. Not only is it one of the best recruiting-grounds for beholden in the known universe, Colossus is a trading-post where Larvae, manes, and stranger things from the distant corners of reality can be found. The "aboveground" markets are bustling and well-run, and if a genius cannot find what she needs there, the deeper levels, close to the station's outer hull, are hives of criminality where anything can be found for the right price. Autocthon, Vulcan, Planet X, and Nemesis: These elusive worlds did not last long enough in the scientific eye to generate enough Mania to exist fully, but occasionally they flicker into existence. Little is known about them, as every time they appear, they seem subtly or completely different. Autocthon (the alternate Earth on the far side of the Sun), Vulcan (the world closer to the Sun than Mercury), Planet X (a possibly rogue planet beyond the asteroid belt), and Nemesis (a world ― sometimes a brown dwarf or black hole ― at the edge of the solar system trailed by deadly comets) flicker into existence just long enough, usually, to capture a passing rocketship and seek to drain it of its Mania. Should one of these worlds succeed, it might become fully solid. Madness: A genius who believes that his worldview is the only correct one and that all others are mistaken, deluded, lying, or conspiring against him is an unmada. This attitude is, in theory, opposed to the notion in the Peerage that Mania is something outside regular 289 reality that impinges upon it. Nonetheless, some members of the Peerage are unmada. Other unmada are rogues, typically lonesomes who barely understand who they are or what they're doing. (Not all lonesomes are unmada, though: many realize that their wonder-working is not entirely "sane," even if they lack the language to explain what's wrong with them.) All Lemurians are unmada. The principle behind Lemuria is that one's worldview as a genius is correct and that anyone who opposes it opposes you. To connect the many different contradictory philosophies of individual Lemurians, Lemuria postulates an " Archweltanschaaung ," a Unified Theory of Genius in which every Lemurian's worldview is simultaneously valid. Illuminated are also all unmada. Though they may seem perfectly cognizant of their nature, they nonetheless twist reality merely by their existence as Inspiration spills from them into the mundane world. An unmada experiences the following modifiers and special conditions: • Attempts to argue against them (usually Persuasion checks) based on external facts about the world, or to change their mind with regard to facts about the world ― but not about moral or Obligation- based considerations ― suffer a penalty equal to half their Inspiration. • An unmada suffers double the normal Jabir penalty. • An unmada loses one point of Mania per day instead of regaining one like other geniuses. The genius cannot refuse to spend this point of Mania. • An unmada generates a field around herself, called an unmada field, its extent based on her Inspiration. An unmada who cannot spend a point of Mania (see above) cannot sustain her field, which collapses until she gets a point of Mania. (Once she has Mania, she immediately spends one point to restore the field.) The Unmada Field

An unmada field extends around an unmada, covering an area based on her Inspiration. A mad scientist's unmada field reflects the unmada's own beliefs, echoing her philosophy back at her and twisting reality and perception so the unmada's worldview and aesthetic sensibilities are repeatedly validated. This unmada field offers a rich environment for manes, who can remain stable (not orphans) if ideologically compatible with the unmada's madness. Manes spawned by the genius' madness or drawn by compatible nonsense inhabit the unmada field. They have no fixed number, but geniuses usually estimate a total number of Size units of manes in an unmada field equal to genius' maximum Mania. Inspiration Area Nature of Local Manes 1 Same building Small regular objects and plants 2 City block Small animals, hand-held objects 3 Several city blocks A few clever person-sized animals, many smaller creatures 4 City neighborhood A few intelligent creatures, several animals, many smaller creatures 5 City directional location Thriving ecosystem and small communities 6 Half of city Thriving intelligent culture 7+ Entire city A few Inspired manes The manes inhabiting an unmada field view their sustainer as a sort of liege. Maniacal animals treat him not quite as a master, but as a source of safety and authority. An unmada automatically receives Allies (Unmada Manes) with a dot rating equal to half his Inspiration. Manes can guard areas, report suspicious activity, pass 290 along information, or offer super-scientific advice (if intelligent). They will not be used as a personal army or security force. A genius needs automata or beholden for lab work or muscle; unmada manes don't serve in that capacity. These manes, of course, also have a vested interest in keeping a mad scientist crazy. An unmada field follows a genius, though it may take time to re-establish the field if the genius moves a lot. If a genius moves outside of his field, his effective Inspiration (for determining area of control and the richness of the maniacal life there) begins at zero and increases at a rate of one dot per week until it reaches its maximum. An unmada field is noticeable to geniuses. (See Detecting Wondrous Things, Page 292.) Even at low levels, ripples of insanity swirl through a genius' home. Evidence against his world-view seems to disappear. Arguments falter, growing confused and unconvincing. As an unmada's power grows, small objects appear that satisfy the unmada's philosophical or aesthetic sense: one might find that the store next to an Etherite's house sells tiny but functional toy electro-guns or more cars with fins tend to drive by, while traditional Oracles find unsavory technology disappearing around them, replaced by simple, well-made machinery. A powerful unmada is basically sovereign inside his own mind, immune to contradictory evidence ― which vanishes ― and surrounded by eager, fawning servants, happy to feed the echo doctor's delusions back to him. Manes that match the genius' ideas appear constantly, reshaping the unmada field like fairy-tale brownies until it resembles the unmada's ideal environment. Going Crazy and Getting Better Again: A genius becomes an unmada by failing an unmada check. Several types of frantic Maniacal work can trigger an unmada check. (See Unmada, Brilliant Madness, Page 80.) Some geniuses deliberately cultivate madness, repeatedly performing Deep Inspiration (see Page 83) without spending the Mania gained until they lose their minds. Snapping out of being an unmada is not easy. If the genius is a Lemurian, she must leave her baramin behind, either becoming a rogue or joining the Peerage. This takes a full month for the subscription to run out. Next, she must focus on "stoppering" the flow of Mania. This requires one point of Willpower per day for a number of days equal to the genius' Inspiration. These points must be spent every day, in order, or the genius must start again. During this time, an unmada's resident manes will grow increasingly frantic, attempting to stop her from abandoning her psychological state. Once the work is done, the genius must spend all her current Mania and make an Inspiration + Resolve check. (A genius can spend her Mania on "nothing" at her normal expenditure rate.) Dramatic Failure: The genius' maniacal resolve hardens. She must make an unmada Check, which threatens Illumination. Failure: The genius cannot escape her unmada status. She may start again by spending Willpower again. Success: The genius escapes her unmada status. Her unmada field diminishes as if her Inspiration were declining by one point per day until it is gone. Exceptional Success: The genius snaps back to full lucidity. Her unmada field disappears instantly and she regains a number of Mania equal to her per-turn expenditure. Suggested Modifiers: Every point of Mania still in the genius' system (-1), the genius has fended off her unmada manes (+1 to +3), the genius has risked Illumination in the past month (-2), the genius has left her unmada field (+1), the genius still belongs to a Lemurian zotheca (-2), the genius belongs to an unmada-free 291 collaborative (+2) Other Elements of Mad Science: Detecting Wondrous Things: While a genius can build Apokalypsi wonders to detect any Mania-based activity, her naked eyes can also reveal information about wonders, manes, and other phenomena. A genius can detect the following automatically: • When someone is in the process of creating or modifying a wonder • When someone transfers Mania into a wonder or capacitor (and the target of that transfer) • When someone channels Mania into an object (and the target of that channeling) • When someone is performing Deep Inspiration • Whether or not the genius is in an unmada field, and the Inspiration level generating the field: "low" (Inspiration 1-3), "medium" (4-6), or "high" (7+) To gain more information, the genius can spend a minute examining the object. A genius also needs to analyze an object this way if it is partially hidden (a mane in a long coat, for example) or if a wonder has the "concealed" or "normal-looking" variables. Roll Inspiration + Wits. Dramatic Failure: The genius completely misinterprets what he's seeing. Failure: The genius gains no further information, and cannot try again on that subject for the rest of the scene. Success: The genius gains more information, answering the following applicable questions: • Whether something is a wonder; its rank, primary Axiom, and any "support" Axioms of a wonder • Whether a wonder is an orphan • Whether something is a mane • Whether something is a Larva, and if it is a transgressive Larva • Whether something is a capacitor, and how much Mania it currently holds • A genius' Inspiration (low, medium, or high) • A Clockstopper's Acedia (low, medium, or high) • How much Mania someone or something has spent with its last action Exceptional Success: The genius gains even more information, answering the following applicable questions in addition to those available from a regular success: • A wonder's faults • A wonder's creator (if the genius knows the creator) • What Axioms are influencing a person or object (Exelixi stat boosts, Metaptropi polymorphing, etc.) • The idea or philosophy that birthed the mane • A genius' catalyst, foundation, and highest Axiom • Whether or not a genius is unmada (this will not reveal Illumination) • A Clockstopper's highest Void • How much Mania a genius, mane, or automaton currently possesses Suggested Modifiers: Genius has a relevant Apokalypsi gizmo (bonus equals rank of wonder), genius cannot touch subject (-2), genius takes only one turn in analysis (-2), genius has encountered a genuinely new or unique phenomenon (-3), genius has encountered a "common" mad science phenomenon (+1), genius is 292 studying a member of his own foundation (+2), target is partially concealed (-1 to -3) Other People Using Wonders

It's possible for a genius to loan out her wonders to others, and sometimes it's even useful: a whole squad of beholden armed with venom-slingers and mechanical wings can do a genius a lot of good. However, it's not always easy. A mad scientist's own beholden suffer no penalty when using wonders that their Inspired master created. Though they need the appropriate abilities to use many wonders effectively (Firearms for most weapons, Medicine for many wonders of Exelixi, etc.), and may need Mania to power them, they have no difficulty using the devices. Another genius can use the wonder, but may suffer penalties to doing so. If the borrowing genius has an Inspiration equal to or higher than the creator's own, and if the borrower can match all the Axioms needed to build the wonder, there is no penalty. Otherwise the genius suffers a -1 penalty to using the wonder per rank of the wonder. Another genius' beholden suffer the same penalty as that genius when using another person's wonders. Mere mortals suffer a -1 penalty when using a wonder per rank of the wonder, and their clumsy manipulation triggers a Havoc Check every turn of use. Other metanormal creatures also suffer a -1 penalty per rank of the wonder, but they do not trigger Havoc. The Universalist Merit removes this penalty for some or all wonders. Installing Internalized Wonders

Some Inspired cannot resist installing wonders in their own bodies and minds. This is not easy, since either the genius must do all the work beforehand, saving the actual installation for a single previously prepared act, or she must trust another genius or one of her beholden to perform the experiment. Installing an internalized wonder is an Obligation-7 transgression. If the Storyteller judges the operation to be unusually dangerous or foolhardy (such as if the genius is rolling a chance die), it becomes an Obligation-5 transgression. These rules also apply to installing grafted wonders, though geniuses rarely graft wonders onto themselves. To install a wonder, a genius must first construct it. This occurs normally. Then, either the genius or a trusted assistant must install the wonder. The person performing the installation spends one hour and rolls Inspiration + Intelligence + Medicine + Laboratory Equipment. If the wonder is a formulation or formula, not a physical wonder, replace Medicine with Academics. The installer can also rush the job (replacing Intelligence with Wits). The penalty is -2 for a one-minute installation and -4 for a one-turn installation. Dramatic Failure: The genius dies. The wonder turns orphan and tries to escape. 293 Failure: The wonder is installed incorrectly. It does not function, and the genius gains one fault. Success: The wonder is installed correctly. Exceptional Success: The wonder is installed correctly. The genius suffers only a single Health Level of Lethal damage. (See "Recovery," below.) Suggested Modifiers: Genius engaged in self-installation (-5), genius engaged in self-installation but possesses at least Automata-1 (-2), genius' own beholden performing installation (+1), every grafted or internalized wonder already present (-1) If a genius is conscious for this procedure (such as engaging in self-installation and not using Automata), all damage received is doubled due to pain and trauma. Removing a Badly Installed Wonder: If the installation roll is a failure, the wonder can be removed. This requires the exact same roll as installing the wonder. Dramatic Failure: The genius dies. The wonder turns orphan and tries to escape. Failure: The wonder remains within the genius. Success: The wonder is removed and the installation can be tried again. Exceptional Success: The wonder activates as if a Success had been rolled on the original installation roll. The genius suffers only a single Health Level of Lethal damage. (See "Recovery," below.) Recovery: Installing internalized wonders, or attempting to remove a badly installed one, is physically taxing on the genius. Upon the conclusion of the operation, the genius suffers as many levels of Lethal damage as the rank of the wonder. The rest of her Health boxes are filled with Bashing damage. If an Exceptional Success is rolled, she suffers only one Health Level of Lethal damage, but the rest of her boxes still fill with Bashing damage. Orphaned Internalized Wonders: If the internalized wonder is a physical thing within the genius' body, it will attempt to dig its way out of a genius and escape. Every turn, roll a number of dice equal to the wonder's rank. If it fails, the genius suffers one Health Level of Bashing damage. If it succeeds, the wonder rips free (causing ten dice of Lethal damage) and tries to escape. These rules also apply to grafted wonders, except upon tearing free grafted wonders cause one automatic level of Lethal damage per point of Size plus ten dice of Lethal damage. If the internalized wonder is instead some kind of "formulation" or idea without a physical form, it causes mental instability and confusion. Every scene that the genius possess an orphan wonder of this sort, the genius suffers a -1 penalty to all actions involving Mental Attributes per rank of the wonder. If a genius should die with a physical internalized or grafted wonder, it will try to free itself in the same way. (Though the genius probably will not care at that point.) Formulations or ideas normally die with their host genius, since they cannot escape. 294 Capacitors

Geniuses often need to store, transfer, and trade raw Mania. Fortunately, Mania can be stored in specially- designed devices called capacitors, which hold the energy for future use. Any genius can build a capacitor; its construction is not tied to any Axiom. Building a capacitor works much like building a regular wonder. Science is the key Skill used. Like any other wonder, building a capacitor can benefit from beholden, it can be kitbashed, and so on. (See Creating a Wonder, Page 136.) Capacitors differ from regular wonders in several ways: • Capacitors do not require bound Mania. • Capacitors do not have faults. • Capacitors suffer Havoc differently from other wonders. A capacitor that suffers Havoc rolls no dice; instead it simply loses a point of Mania for every event that would require a Havoc check. • Capacitors cannot employ variables. • Capacitors cannot be orphaned. If a genius dies or abandons the capacitor, it continues to function normally. • If the roll to build the capacitor is a Dramatic Failure, rather than becoming an orphan, the capacitor explodes. Roll a number of dice of Lethal damage equal to the Generator's maximum held Mania against everyone involved in the capacitor's construction. A capacitor holds Mania based on its Size. Max Held Mania Size 3 0 6 1 10 2-3 15 4-5 20 6-11 25 12-29 Indefinite 30+ Moving Mania: A genius can move Mania into a capacitor as fast as she can normally channel Mania, simply by touching the capacitor. Getting the energy out again is just as easy: by touching the capacitor, the genius can pull a number of points of Mania per turn equal to her normal channeling ability, based on Inspiration. However, drawing Mania from a capacitor can be dangerous. Every scene, a genius can draw a number of points of Mania from capacitors or other sources equal to her maximum Mania per turn. Beyond that, she must make an unmada check with a penalty equal to the number of extra Mania points channeled that scene. (See Unmada, Brilliant Madness, Page 80.) Types of Capacitors: Though the term "capacitor" implies that they hold some kind of electrical charge, that is not necessarily the case. A genius can instead choose to make a codex (made of books and data) with an Academics check, a compressor (made of wound springs of pneumatics) with a Crafts check, or a catabolizer (made with organic material) with a Medicine check. A genius can also build a compounder (stored computer data) with a Computer check ― however, since mad science only recently figured out this trick, few geniuses with a 295 Computer score of less than four dots know how to do it. Capacitors and Regular Work: With Automata-1, a capacitor can be used to function like a regular power generator, allowing it to power regular objects with its Mania automatically. In its capacity as a power generator, Mania provided by a capacitor provides power for ten times as long as normal. This power source does not risk damage to the technology. (See Spending Mania, Page 81.) Encumbrance

An Optional Rule

Wonders are heavy and bulky. If characters attempt to carry an exceptional number of wonders on their person, the Storyteller may use this rule to limit a genius' carrying capacity. A person can always wear regular clothes and wear mundane articles (such as sunglasses or headphones) without difficulty, ignoring their Size. A person can carry a number of Size points worth of other objects (weapons, tools, armor, wonders, miscellaneous equipment or wearables) equal to her Size without difficulty. She is considered Unencumbered. Carrying more than one's Size, up to one's Size + Strength, means one is Encumbered and suffers a -2 penalty to Move. Carrying more than one's Size + Strength, up to one's Size + Strength + Stamina, means one is Heavily Encumbered and suffers a -1 penalty to all Physical Attributes in addition to the -2 penalty to Move. Carrying more than one's Size + Strength + Stamina means on is Extremely Encumbered and suffers a -2 penalty to all Physical Attributes in addition to a -2 penalty to Move. The maximum amount of stuff someone can carry and still move at all is left to the Storyteller's discretion, but double one's Size + Strength + Stamina is a good guess. The Storyteller can also adjudicate based on how the genius intends to carry all his equipment, though for most geniuses, rigging up harnesses and belts is no problem. Objects that must be worn to be used, such as goggles and armored suits, should be treated as half their regular Size when worn. The Strong Back Merit grants a +2 bonus to the character's effective Size for this purpose. Encumbrance penalties to Attributes cannot reduce an Attribute below one dot, but they still reduce Speed as if that Attribute were lower. The chart below lists the total penalties, including penalties to Move based on the reduction in Physical Attributes. Stuff Carried Encumbrance Physical Attribute Penalty Total Move Penalty Up to Size Unencumbered None None > Size to Size + Strength Encumbered None -2 > Size + Strength to Size + Strength + Stamina Heavily Encumbered -1 -4 > Size + Strength + Stamina Extremely Encumbered -2 -6 Damage and Healing: A genius is physically human, meaning that the Inspired get injured and recover from injuries much as humans do, barring the employment of wonders to protect or heal. Since a genius is a living being, she can also suffer from deprivation, poisoning, and anything else that can affect a regular person. 296 Geniuses don't have any specific vulnerabilities. However, internalizing faults may produce vulnerabilities to specific substances, such as lightning or fire, causing attacks from those sources to cause Aggravated damage. Life Span

A genius has a normal human life span. The only way to avoid a natural death is through preserving one's body with Exelixi, creating a clone body with Automata, transferring one's consciousness with Epikrato, or similar mad science tricks. Exelixi automatically extends a genius' lifespan by some amount: the genius gains 20 years of additional life per dot of Exelixi. However, this only delays the inevitable. True immortality requires advanced (and often unscrupulous) wonder-working. Aesthetics

How a wonder looks can be as important to a genius as what it does. This is not just a matter of style or fashion; a genius' view of the world shapes what he creates, and what he can create. To many geniuses, the artistry behind their creations is as important as their function. Of course, some of a genius' aesthetic is just style. The ezine Alloy Blend is a popular online destination for geniuses interested in the latest mad science fashions (and for completely mundane people who don't realize how over-their-heads they are), and many smaller circulations exist for different styles and aesthetics. Popular aesthetics change over time, but to geniuses, these aren't just fashion statements: an aesthetic is everything a genius wants to be true and real and good about the wonders she creates. To an unmada, an aesthetic is even more important. It is a picture of their philosophy, of what they think is true. A medical Etherite who rejects the vulgar fallacies of modern genetic science simply cannot build a wonder that resembles a modern genetic research lab: if he tried, his Inspiration would leave him. Mechanically, attempts by an unmada to "disguise" a wonder, to make it resemble someone else's aesthetic or a different aesthetic entirely, incurs a -1 penalty in the building phase. If the aesthetic fundamentally violates the genius' approach to Inspiration or wonder-working, the penalty becomes -5 and building the wonder also requires a dot of Willpower. Geniuses are welcome to select one of the aesthetics below or to create their own. Some geniuses combine different styles, while others try to stick with functional creations, and others still are defined more by their "medium" ― something like "sonics" or "mirrors" ― than by a formal aesthetic. Alembic: Sometimes called Technomancer, this aesthetic replaces the normal trappings of science and technology with a "magical" look, ranging from traditional alchemical laboratories (hence the term) to glowing "runes of power." The latter was considered half-baked before it premiered by many older geniuses, though the traditional "dirty mortar and pestle" look is popular with some Progenitors and Scholastics. Geniuses with a specific cultural or ethnic identity or a specific interest in ancient cultures focus on specific Alembic styles, such as Egyptian or ancient Chinese. It is also the most common Oracle aesthetic, alongside Crystal Future. Some geniuses who favor this style sincerely believe in the unity of science and "magic" (however they define it); others are playing around with semiotics and what it means to be a wonder-worker. Black Plastic: A modern organic style that came about around the same time as Digital Chrome, Black Plastic encourages an 297 organic look to its technology (even the non-organic stuff), usually casting everything in asymmetric black rubber that is designed to unsettle viewers. Black Plastic is a perennial favorite, with its popularity oscillating but remaining fairly constant in the Peerage. Progenitors are very fond of this aesthetic; they often incorporate insect motifs into their creations. A combination of Black Plastic and Trash Praxis has recently become popular; its most common nickname is Crawling Rusty Meat. Brutalist: An outgrowth of the Functionalist anti-movement of the 70s, which basically said "Stop dressing up your fucking wonders and just make sure they work," the Brutalist doctrine goes one step further, encouraging a deliberately functional and inelegant look. Wonders in this school are made from pre-fab parts, if possible, because that's cheaper, or unpainted (or camouflage) custom parts if necessary. Components look stripped- down, ugly, and exposed. The Brutalist style is popular with Navigators and some Mechanists, and with many militaristic and survivalist geniuses. Exposed metal and clashing combinations of alloys and polymers are common in this style. Clockwork: One of the oldest aesthetics that is self-consciously an aesthetic, clockwork is exactly like it sounds: geniuses who adhere to this style favor mechanical devices if at all possible, using springs and muscles for power and intricate assemblages of gears for moving parts. For Axioms where this maxim might seem inapplicable, such as Apokalypsi, Inspired employ clever mirrors and prisms. This aesthetic is of course most popular with Mechanists, though it is also popular with many older and more traditional Inspired. An older variant, called Baroque, mixes Clockwork with rococo fashions; it is little-practiced today. Crystal Future: "Crystal Future" refers to the images of the future or of "lost" but advanced civilizations popular from the 19 th century well into the mid or late 20 th . In this Utopian vision, the streets are clean, machinery is powered by crystals or other nebulous sources, and everyone wears togas and seems very calm all the time. Its practitioners are an equal mix of sincere devotees and snickering parodists. This aesthetic is still popular in Lemuria, especially among Oracles, as well as certain Etherites and those Mechanists focused on Apokalypsi or Katastrofi. Among the Peerage, this aesthetic has a faintly sinister reputation, despite its squeaky-clean appearance, as many of Lemuria's Secret Masters maintained this style before they were wiped out. Extropic: The current "far future" style, with the hard edge of reality coupled with the optimistic vision of a transhuman future, is termed Extropic. In this aesthetic, the genius focuses on advanced speculative science such as nanotechnology, gene-line body alteration, and digital consciousness. Extropy is as much a philosophy as an aesthetic, and the actual appearance of wonders varies, though effort is put into making technology appear elegant, unobtrusive, and functional. But the core of the Extropic aesthetic is not the appearance, but an approach to technology that focuses on cutting-edge research and the blurring of the concept of "human." Macedon: Another perennial aesthetic, dating back at least to 15 th century Italians imagining what Aristotle's wonders might have looked like, Macedon sees surges in popularity every few decades. The current return to the spotlight is probably the fault of "Greek-punk" movies and video games, just as the previous jump began during Hollywood's Golden Age of sword-and-sandal flicks. The Macedon aesthetic uses as its starting-point the steam-powered machines of Hero of Alexandria. Stylistic elements include the use of bronze instead of more advanced metals, Hellenic friezes, and intricate mirrors to engage in long-distance communication and 298 attack. Variant styles, based on the ancient bronze-steam-and-glass wonders of Persia, Egypt, and India have also seen intermittent popularity; these styles are distinguished from their Alembic equivalents by being more explicitly technological, often sporting exposed Antikythera-style clockwork. Digital Chrome: "Cyberpunk" stylings are called Digital Chrome by mad scientists. Typical affectations include heavy chrome or plastic cybernetics, thick plugs bolted into flesh, and chunky, bulky communication devices, coupled with bright colors, neon, and vinyl. Digital Chrome was the look back in the 80s, though it has since declined in popularity. It now sits between modern and properly retro, and has few new adherents, though geniuses who catalyzed in the midst of that era (now in middle age) still sport the look. The colonization of the Grid may see a resurrection of the style. Oscilloscope: A popular style during the "golden age of science fiction" and a little bit beyond ― from the late 40s to the late 70s ― "Oscilloscope" was the first aesthetic that actually received a name, rather than "that style that the geniuses in California are into now" or whatever. Oscilloscope style focuses on plastic, aluminum, chrome, atomic power, jets, and radio technology. Expect big computers, angular machinery in that off-beige "old PC" color, and track suits. It is deeply uncool among modern geniuses, and practically marks one as an Atomist, for whom the Jet Age and Space Age dreams have yet to die. A few young geniuses have begun wearing this style ironically, or mixing it with Extropic, but the Oscilloscope aesthetic is still associated with earlier generations. Home Grown: While this aesthetic got its start among underwater-themed geniuses, it has spread onto land with the rise of modern biotechnology. The Home Grown look features organic components, subtle curves, and bioluminescent illumination, giving it a warmer and more humane appearance than Black Plastic. It is popular among ecologically-minded geniuses in the Peerage as well as some Oracles, and is well-regarded among geniuses for whom the biological sciences are of primary interest. Experiments with overlapping Home Grown and Alembic led to a short-lived fad that is now referred to (contemptuously) as Fairy Princess. Pod People: This term was originally an insult, though many of its practitioners have co-opted the term as their own. Pod People aesthetic includes a sleek, refined look, usually in all-white or some other solid color, with rounded edges, a "finished" appearance (in contrast to the rough appearance of many wonders), and a user-friendly interface with as few buttons, gadgets, and doo-dads as possible. (A one-panel comic in Alloy Blend shows the standard Pod People ray gun: a smooth-cornered hand-held white rectangle with a single black button labeled "Kill.") This aesthetic also favors small, elegant devices, and practitioners often try to make handheld wonders as small and unobtrusive as possible. Pod People aesthetic is sometimes held in low regard, especially by Steampunks and Functionals; its adherents are thought to spend too much time polishing their devices to look pretty, and not enough time working out the bugs. The style is most popular among Directors and some Progenitors; it is extremely rare in Lemuria. Ray Gun: The most common term for the "retro-future" look that dominated mad science (and some sane science) from the 1930s to the 1950s. Common elements of Ray Gun styling include fins and "fiddly bits" on Skafoi devices, Jacob's ladders, big cylindrical robots, and a focus on electricity and chemistry. (Chrome and atomic power are generally considered late Ray Gun or Oscilloscope) Ray gun fashions are, of course, huge among Etherites, though it also has many adherents among Directors, who favor the classic image of power and confidence it 299 provides. Googie is a sort of West Coast "beachfront" ray gun style in pastel colors and eye-assaulting fonts; Raygun Gothic mixes the classic Ray Gun look with baroque spires and exposed metal. Steampunk: If Oscilloscope is not quite retro and Digital Chrome is just past its sell-by date, Steampunk is the current too- cool- for-school "big thing." All the kids are doing it: brass goggles, clanking mechanical servants, radium guns, and rivet-covered work uniforms are currently all the rage among the postgrads. (The Martian Empire is confused, but happy, that they are now "totally hip"). Steampunk is deliberately retro and it reflects a past that never was: even the geniuses who lived in the Victorian era dressed practically or in traditional fashion, rather than the "brass rivet" look, and many wonders from that era actually affected a Baroque look (which was, in its own time, deliberately retro and reflecting a 17 th century aesthetic that also never existed). Steampunk aesthetic is popular in the Peerage, particular among Scholastics. In Lemuria, it has begun to eclipse Ray Gun styles for Etherites. Trash Praxis: First appearing in the 80s, Trash Praxis (named after the now-defunct magazine of the same name) is the name for a style based on scavenging whatever one can in order to build one's wonders. Trash Praxis is popular among geniuses in impoverished nations (though they aren't making a damn fashion statement) and with the poor, the disaffected, and the self-styled punks of the modern world. The Dumpster Diver Merit is nearly a prerequisite for this aesthetic. It is rare in Lemuria, but many Artificers and no-nonsense Navigators like the brutal effect of a wonder built out of trash and discarded normal machinery. Universal: Named for the movie studio, not any sense of universal style, this aesthetic dates from an era before geniuses thought much about "aesthetics" and just used what was at hand. In fact, it was nearly the last such style before the 20 th century ushered in a new sort of self-awareness among the Inspired. Resembling Frankenstein's laboratory from the movies (hence the name), this bubbling, crackling, cluttered look was common in the 19 th and early 20 th centuries, especially among remote geniuses who were forced to use and re-use specimens. An elegant aesthetic for a more civilized age, Universal has mostly been usurped by Steampunk, Alembic, and other deliberately "retro" stylings on one side, and more modern functional aesthetics like Oscilloscope or Brutalist on the other. Nonetheless, it was so common in Europe and America for so long that old labs (some labs have been in continuous use for centuries) still feature the stitched homunculi, sizzling Jacob's ladders, and stained beakers that came to symbolize "mad science" in the minds of a century of movie-goers. Time Travel

...is almost always a bad idea. But that hasn't stopped many masters of Skafoi from building time machines. And time travel is possible. It's not even all that difficult for a powerful genius, but it is phenomenally dangerous. Now, we're all grownups here and we all know what time travel is and what it does, but the question is, what happens when I screw with the past? What used to happen (and here the past tense gets in a bit of trouble), is that you got your ass kicked by the transsapient gods who lived at the end of time. The Terminals , as they were called, didn't like any time- traveling blunderers whose actions might have prevented them from existing. They were right to worry, because apparently someone annihilated them from the timeline. Now it's a kind of 300 temporal free-for-all, with mad scientists and arch-magicians and alien psychics from the black hole in the center of the Galaxy all running about history, mucking things up. However, this did not (and again, the past tense would like to apologize) last long. A détente settled into place, agreed to by various powerful factions and enforced by a group calling itself the Guardians of Forever , the Terminals' former servants. This group ― not a fellowship, as it includes much more than just mad scientists ― allows others to "blow off steam" by permitting minor changes to the timeline: a murdered wife rescued here, a genius' wretched younger brother striking it rich there. The idea is that the relentless enforcement of absolute causal stasis is what eventually forced the rebellion against the Terminals that resulted in their destruction. Nonetheless, the Guardians of Forever enforce the unfolding of the grand sweep of history: the dinosaurs must perish, whether by an asteroid or a plague or a volcanic apocalypse. Rome will fall, as will the Spanish Empire and the Eternal Terran Dynasty of Yao Ming. The Guardians' solution is simple and expedient: whenever a major shake-up occurs, they travel back in time to shortly after the event (or sometimes during, if they cannot fix the problem afterward) and juggle events around so things unfold as they always have. When a furious genius went back in time and killed Helmut Schenk, the cruelest genocidal mastermind of the 20 th century, as a child, the Guardians of Forever went back and elevated the art student Adolf Hitler to that same role. It's not like they enjoy doing that. In fact, the genius who made the above "swap" committed suicide a week later. But the Guardians have discovered that the Terminals were not acting entirely out of self-interest: the timeline that leads to the Terminals' existence, despite its horrors, produces a universe of boundless life and richness. It may be the best of all possible timelines. However, there appears to be no going back to the way things were: the future is unstable, with constant subtle shifts producing enormous effects, despite the best efforts of the Guardians, and scholars of time fear that things will grow worse, as the eagerness of explorers to travel back in time outstrips the resources of those determined to maintain the timeline. Even with an agent placed (it sometimes seems) once every ten years, the Guardians of Forever are losing control of the universe. So, can you travel back in time and kill Hitler? Yes. He's been killed six times: the Guardians gave up finding new candidates and have just started cloning him. (There's a facility outside Hamburg in 1921, actually. Feel free to drop by. They give tours.) Can you go back in time and ask out that pretty girl? Yes, and when you come back to the present, you might be married to her. However, make sure that you come back to exactly the point where you left, or you'll find that the other you is married to her. And of course, even if you merge back perfectly, you won't have the set of memories from the timeline. You can travel backwards in time, but you better have a good reason and/or take excellent care of the local causality, or there's a good chance that a very angry Guardian will show up, while you're there or when you get back, explaining to you what she will do to you the next time you go to "show the kids some dinosaurs" and accidentally step on a bug. Fortunately for minor blunders, though, time is pretty stable. The Terminals appeared to have created much of our current timeline as a kind of "causality trench," and screwing things up requires a lot of effort. You can go forward in time, too, but that's the least stable of all, and for a very good reason: the moment you travel forward in time, you disappear from the timeline, and the future where you emerge is one where you ceased to exist. Since you're a genius, and you probably changed the world in some important, if small way, you cannot travel to your own future, since you won't have been there . And yes, if you kill your own grandmother before your father is born, you will cease to exist. The universe, it turns out, doesn't care that much if your grandmother gets shot in the head and there's no shooter. You still go poof . Ditto if you bring your past self into the future. (If your past self is in the future, he can't become your 301 present self, now can he?) Ditto if you kill your past self, or your presence gets him killed. Other than that, though, you won't suffer too many directly dangerous effects from journeying in the past: your memories won't be overwritten, and you won't simply "pop" out of existence ― there seems to be some kind of system in place that makes it very unlikely for the beating of the chaos butterfly's wings to knock a genius out of existence, unless you accidentally kill off the entire human race or something. The Cost of Making Changes: "The gods had given me almost everything. I had genius, a distinguished name, high social position, brilliancy, intellectual daring; I made art a philosophy, and philosophy an art: I altered the minds of men and the colour of things: there was nothing I said or did that did not make people wonder." -Oscar Wilde, De Profundis Whether it was the work of the Terminals in creating a "causality trench," as many temporal scholars say, or whether time is just naturally inelastic and inertial, causing changes is exhausting. To cause a change, a genius must "fuel" it with his own Inspiration. Making most minor changes that affect a single person (rescuing your grandfather, fixing your friend up with that pretty blond) costs one point of Willpower and ten points of Mania. If the subject to be manipulated is metanormal in any way, it costs one point of Willpower, as well as ten points of Mania per dot of the relevant Metanormal Advantage. More significant changes, from "family line" up to "village" requires an expenditure of one dot of Willpower, and ten points of Mania. If anyone in the affected area is metanormal, this costs ten points of Mania per dot of Metanormal Advantage of the creature with the highest Advantage, plus 20 points of Mania and a Willpower dot. "Village" or "off-world colony" is about as large an area as the Guardians of Forever will tolerate before they go back and fix things (and possibly kick your ass). Sometimes exceptions are made if the area has no long- term viability (if you want to transport a whole doomed planet into the past, the Guardians won't care if the planet burns up in the supernova or disappears five minutes beforehand, as long as the survivors don't affect the timeline as they live out their lives). If permitted, these larger changes, up to redirecting the timeline of a whole world, cost one dot of Inspiration, one dot of Willpower, and 100 points of Mania. Failure to pay this cost to the timeline in short order will result in the regular timeline reasserting itself: "rescued" people get killed off, relationships that the genius built that weren't there to begin with fall apart, and generally things slide back to the way they were. Alternatively, sometimes Guardians will crawl all over a site because of minor changes that might "jump the trench" and produce significant future deviations. What triggers a butterfly effect in the timeline is never clear, but occasionally a seemingly minor change will result in a lot of pissed Guardians popping out of the temporal stream to stop a genius' plan. The Temporal Tithe: Maintaining the timeline costs money, and this comes in the form of the tithe for any change. This temporal tithe is distinct from the cost paid to make changes; the former arises naturally from the nature of time and time travel; the latter is a tax leveled by one's fellow beings. Geniuses who make changes will be visited by one or more Guardians shortly after their change, who expect payment in the form of Mania. This is usually ten times the amount the genius had to expend to make the actual change. The Guardians of Forever are in no rush to receive payment, but refusal to pay can result in the Guardians going back and changing things or just killing the offending genius. Picking a fight with a Guardian of Forever is usually a bad idea: they're 302 frighteningly powerful, and if there's trouble, they travel in groups. However, it's becoming increasingly clear that not all Guardians of Forever are honest, and not all who claim that title are who they say they are. Temporal protection rackets, con jobs, and shakedowns have been reported "recently" all over the timeline. The Guardians seem to be losing their grip on their owner members, as well as the timeline as a whole. Really Stupid Time Travel: Messing about with yourself from a previous time travel jaunt is about the stupidest thing you can do without a death ray and a bottle of tequila. Whatever quantum coherence you naturally maintain is enough to keep you in existence while you're operating in the same time frame as a previous jaunt, but it doesn't feel good. While in any past time frame you function much like a mane, and can go up in a puff of Havoc if not careful. In ordinary past or future time frames, this isn't a danger. However, when in a previously visited past time frame, the danger is there. Merely being in that time frame causes you to suffer from a severe Derangement as your memories get overwritten and scrambled. You must make a Havoc check (using your Inspiration as a dice pool) if you directly interact with your past echo in any way, or if your past echo sees or otherwise clearly detects you. This experience is worse than mere physical discomfort. Interacting with your previous time-traveling self is a hideously traumatic experience, as memories and ghost-thoughts tumble through your head, trying to sort themselves out. Even the maddest scientist knows not to interact with his previous time-traveling self, even if interacting with his younger self is perfectly fine.

Appendix One: Samples Wonders

T’sais said doubtfully: “Yet I have heard Earth is a place of beauty, and I would know beauty, even though I die.” “How will you know beauty when you see it?” “All human beings know beauty... Am I not human?” “Of course.” -The Dying Earth , Jack Vance Though powerful geniuses often build unique, baffling, one-of-a-kind wonders, other common devices recur again and again, either because a genius copies a useful design, or because certain ideas just make sense: flying machines, "ray" weaponry, healing devices, and long-range communicators have been popular with the Inspired for thousands of years, and versions of these wonders have been found that date back to the dawn of civilization. The sample wonders below are just that: samples. It is possible to build more or less powerful versions of these devices, and many geniuses do, gradually upgrading existing wonders as they grow in Inspiration and technical proficiency. All wonders assume an Inspiration equal to the wonder's rank, unless listed otherwise. Wonders of Automata also assume that the genius doing the building possesses or has access to the requisite Skills that the wonder knows. Agonizer

Construction: Lower of Crafts and Science Requires: Katastrofi ● Bound Mania: 1 Size: 1 (minimum Strength 1) Damage: 5 Bashing (microwave heat) Range: Melee Roll: Strength + Weaponry +5 Initial Cost: 1 Mania to turn on Variables: Melee Weapon, Only Against Organics This sadistic weapon causes tremendous agony while barely leaving any sign of its use. Some geniuses use it as a humane alternative to disintegrating their enemies, though it is most commonly found in the hands of sadistic mad scientists, who use it to keep their beholden and servitors in line. All-Purpose Genetic Recombinizer

Construction: Medicine Requires: Exelixi ●●● Bound Mania: 3 Size: 2 (stored in a rucksack) Cost per Use: 1 point of Mania per dot added, up to 3 Range: Touch Roll: Intelligence + Medicine Variables: Flexible Organic Upgrade This scary-looking device can be injected into the neck of any poor fool who looks eager for a genetic scrambling. A successful Intelligence + Medicine roll grants up to a +3 bonus to any Physical attributes, a three- 397 dot Merit, or any combination of Merits and Attribute boosts that total three dots. Attributes or Merits cannot be made higher than the genius' maximum, based on Inspiration. Antiphantom Field

Construction: Lower of Occult and Science Requires: Prostasia ●● Bound Mania: 2 Size: 6 (resembles a huge lantern) Armor: 8 vs. ghosts Initial Cost: 4 Mania per scene to activate Variables: Barrier (ghosts roll Power vs. 9 dice to push through at 5' diameter, vs. 8 dice at 10' diameter, vs. 7 dice at 20' diameter, etc.), Charge-up Time (3 turns), Expandable, Increased Mania Cost (+2), Limited Protection (ghosts), Shielding Device A regular mainstay among Karnackis ― Inspired ghost-hunters ― the antiphantom field is a bulky device that usually requires two people to carry into place. However, once activated it creates a powerful hedge to ghostly intrusion. A typical ghost will batter its corpus into a puddle flinging itself at the barrier, allowing the people within to perform experiments or engage in techno-exorcism. Automatic Overdrive

Construction: Crafts Requires: Exelixi ●● (Skafoi ●● ) Bound Mania: 2 Size: 2 (tool box) Cost per Use: 2 Mania Range: Touch Roll: Intelligence + Crafts +1 Variables: Focused Mechanical Upgrade (Speed only) This wonder can be applied to any kind of vehicle. A successful roll increases the vehicle's Safe Speed (and linked stats, including Maximum Speed and Acceleration) by 40% for the duration of a scene. Burst Boots

Construction: Crafts Requires: Skafoi ●● Bound Mania: 2 Size: 2 (boots) Initial Cost: 2 Mania Cost per Use: 2 Mania per six hours of travel Safe Speed: 16 mph Maximum Speed: 24 mph Acceleration: 8 mph/turn Handling: Dexterity + (lower of Athletics or Drive) +1 Variables: Handling +2/Speed -20% These devices are smaller than a jet pack, allowing them to be stowed more easily, with only a slight loss in speed and maneuverability. They can be used as normal (if bulky) boots, but when activated they can grant a mad scientist the power of flight. Cogitator Overmind

Construction: Lower of Academics and Computer Requires: Automata ●●●● Bound Mania: 4 398 Max Mania: 8 Size: 6 (fills a small room) Health: 8 Speed: 0 Initiative: 5 Defense: 0 (would be 2, but it can't move) Obligation: 7 (Paragon) Variables: Cannot Move, No Manipulators Automation Points: 24 Mental Attributes: Intelligence 5, Wits 3, Resolve 2 Physical Attributes: Strength 1, Dexterity 3, Stamina 2 Social Attributes: Presence 3, Manipulation 3, Composure 2 Mental Skills: Academics 4, Computer 4, Medicine 3, Science 4 Social Skills: Empathy 3, Persuasion 3 Merits: Eidetic Memory, Encyclopedic Knowledge The cogitator overmind is an example of a highly intelligent and independent artificial intelligence, capable of problem-solving and analysis. An automaton of this level of sophistication is often used to assist a genius with his work, as its programmed knowledge often exceeds the genius' own merely-human memory. Upgrades to a cogitator can feature an Apokalypsi system: while the current model possesses senses matching those of a regular person's, an integral communicator would allow the wonder to connect to the Internet, massively increasing its potential store of knowledge. Corvid Transformation Chamber

Construction: Lower of Medicine and Science Requires: Metaptropi ●●●● (Exelixi ● , Skafoi ●● ) Bound Mania: 4 Size: 6 (phone booth-shaped) Roll: Intelligence + Science +2 Range: None Cost per Use: 1 (2 for Size 2, 2 for racial flying speed of 15, 1 for +1 Dexterity, -2 for "no fine manipulators," -1 for "only one manipulator"; everything halved for the wonder being a transformation booth) Variable: Specific Transformation (turns flesh into a crow and back again, +2), Transformation Booth This cramped chamber turns any living creature into a crow, or at least a creature that's similar enough to fool casual inspection. This corvid can then be sent on espionage missions: since many cities and wooded areas are full of crows, they are surreptitious almost everywhere. Disguise Kit

Construction: Lower of Medicine and Science Requires: Metaptropi ● Bound Mania: 1 Size: 1 (small bag) Roll: Intelligence + Science Range: Touch Cost per Use: 1 Mania per 5 points of Size or fraction thereof Variables: Specific Transformation (disguise only) This simple wonder allows a genius to disguise himself. It can also be used to add significant cosmetic modifications for novelty's sake or to confuse enemies. If the genius is trying to resemble a specific person, a success means the subject gains one automatic success on any disguise attempts for the duration of the scene. 399 Doom Cannon

Construction: Lowest of Computer, Crafts, and Science Requires: Katastrofi ●●●●● (Apokalypsi ● ) Bound Mania: 5 Size: 30 (immobile) Explosive Force: 6 Aggravated (8-again) (lightning/plasma) Blast Area: 1,000 yards (¼ mile), Secondary Blast Area 2,000 yards (½ mile) Range: Short range 500 miles, medium range 1,000 miles, long range anywhere on Earth Roll: Intelligence + Firearms Initial Cost: 4 Mania to charge up Variables: Charge-up Time (20 minutes), Reduced Range (as heavy artillery), Explosive Weapon (free with Katastrofi 5), Orbital Gun (+40 automatic damage to target, penalty to target anything below Size 30), Variable Explosion This weapon demonstrates the upper bounds of destructive power a genius can muster if sufficiently motivated. This weapon takes some time to charge up, but its attack is devastating, able to wipe away most enemies or level a building. Anything within a quarter-mile typically eats enough Aggravated damage to result in immediate death. Used as an orbital gun, it can take shots at Navy destroyers or other large targets. This weapon is the sort of silly thing that a mad scientist might use to threaten a whole city with destruction. Building this sort of wonder usually draws furious vigilantes, determined strike squads, and pissed-off time- travelers who don't want their favorite vacation spot disintegrated. Presumably a bomb (a one-use wonder) could cause even more devastation, over an even wider area, drawing even more ire from the Inspired community. Earth-Mars Courier Craft

Construction: Lower of Crafts and Science. For the cannons: Lower of Crafts and Science. For the scanner: Computer. For the communicator: Computer. Requires: Skafoi ●●● , Apokalypsi ●● , Exelixi ● , Katastrofi ●●● , Prostasia ● (Automata ●) Bound Mania: 14 Size: 50 Durability: 5 (30 with shields up) Structure: 55 (80 with shields up; after 30 points of "bonus" Structure damage, the shields drop) Initial Cost: 3 Mania to activate Cost per Use: 3 Mania per six hours of operation; after which 4 Mania per week of operation Safe Speed: 18,000 mph Maximum Speed: 27,000 mph Acceleration: 9,000 mph/turn Interplanetary Speed: 3 AU/week Stall Speed: 120 mph Handling: Dexterity + Drive +1 Variables: Handling -2/Speed +20% • Twin Integral Laser Cannons: Katastrofi 3. Size 6 each. Damage 8 Lethal (9-again). Roll Intelligence + Firearms + 7 (9-again). Range 3 miles/6 miles/12 miles. Costs 3 Mania each to activate. Artillery. • Integral Long-Range Scanners: Apokalypsi 2. Size 6. Range 1,000 miles (1 million miles in space). Roll Wits + Computer +3. Onboard Storage. • Integral Medium-Range Communicator: Apokalypsi 1. Size 3. Range 1 mile (1,000 miles in space). Roll Wits + Computer +1. • Integral Energy Shield: Prostasia 1. Size 5. Durability x6. Costs 1 Mania. Shielding device. • Integral Life Support: Exelixi 1. Size 6. 1 Mania sustains up to 10 people for one day. This is a basic "merchant vessel" that might be used either by human geniuses or Martian Technikers in an 400 Earth-Mars run. It possesses enough firepower to scare off pirates or deal with ground-based enemies, but its guns lack the firepower to punch through heavy armor plating. Scanners and communicators are only of middling quality in order to make room for additional storage space. Ectoplasmic Locater

Construction: Lower of Computer and Occult Requires: Apokalypsi ●●● (Automata ● ) Bound Mania: 3 Size: 1 (blinking screen) Range: 1 mile Detects: Ghosts, spirits, and gateways to their realms Roll: Wits + Computer +1 Cost: None Variables: Narrow Focus (phantom phenomena), Onboard Storage This is a fairly standard "Karnacki sweeper," built to detect various kinds of incorporeal alien interlopers: ghosts, "spirits," spectral minds, and other ethereal phenomena. It possesses recording and playback capabilities, a USB hub, and a tolerably user-friendly interface for analyzing data. Electrochemical Zombie

Construction: Lower of Medicine and Occult Requires: Automata ●● Bound Mania: 2 Max Mania: 4 Size: 5 Health: 6 Speed: 7 Initiative: 1 Defense: 0 Physical Attributes: Strength 3, Dexterity 1, Stamina 1 A fairly typical "goon" automaton, these electrochemical zombies can serve as massed shock troops. Geniuses who specialize in their production (or in the production of similar automata) often take the Assembly Line Merit in order to build up slavering zombie hordes to hurl at their enemies. Electroscanner Goggles

Construction: Computer Requires: Apokalypsi ●● Bound Mania: 2 Size: 1 (goggles) Range: 10 feet Roll: Wits + Computer -1 Cost: None Variables: Goggles These goggles provide a heads-up view of all sorts of strange phenomena that might interest a genius. Typical models feature a simple set of button-controls on the side, allowing the genius to focus on and scan particular targets. Due to their small Size, their range is limited. Many electroscanner goggles employ the "narrow focus" variable to provide data on a specific type of phenomena. Energy Sword

Construction: Lower of Crafts and Science for Katastrofi, Science for Prostasia Requires: Katastrofi ●●● , Prostasia ● (Metaptropi ● ) 401 Bound Mania: 4 Size: 3 when deployed; 1 when not deployed (minimum Strength 3) (Prostasia is Size 0) Damage: 5 Lethal (9-again) (fire) Range: Melee Roll: Strength + Weaponry + 5 Armor: Number of successes +3 on a Dexterity + Weaponry roll when taking an action to defend; otherwise no Armor Variables (Katastrofi): Collapsible, Melee Weapon (no Mania cost) Variables (Prostasia): Integral, Shielding Device, Targeted Deflection Initial Cost: 1 Mania to activate to bring to full Size. 1 Mania to activate for shielding. This is actually two wonders in one. The first part contains a Katastrofi weapon that causes damage to anyone struck with the glowing blade (Size 3, reduced to Size 1 when shrunk). The second part contains a "targeted deflection" Prostasia shield that grants a protective bonus when used actively to defend the wielder (Size 0). Functionally, the object is one unit: a small handle when shrunk, which springs into the form of a five-foot blade of shimmering energy when activated. Activating the wonder is not too expensive, and it causes impressive damage if the genius can get close, and a skilled user can switch between attack and defense as the need arises. Upgrades to this weapon can cause Aggravated damage or add the "reflection" variable to its shielding element. Fear Wave

Construction: Academics Requires: Epikrato ●●● Bound Mania: 3 Size: 2 (handheld orb) Range: 30 feet Initial Cost: 3 Mania Roll: Manipulation + Academics +1 vs. Composure + Metanormal Trait Variables: One-Purpose Manipulator (fear only) A successful attack with the fear wave subjects the victim to a bout of near-hysterical fear, almost certainly causing him to flee a conflict. Geniuses use devices like this to clear out enemies that they don't necessarily want to kill. Feline Biomatrix Serum

Construction: Lower of Medicine and Science Requires: Metaptropi ●●●● (Apokalypsi ●, Exelixi ● , Katastrofi ● ) Bound Mania: 4 Size: 1 (syringe) Range: Touch Roll: Intelligence + Medicine -2 Cost per Use: 5 (1 for +1 dot in Strength, 2 for +2 dots in Dexterity, 1 for two-dot Fast Reflexes Merit, 2 for claws, 1 for night vision, reduced Mania -2) Variables: Limited Uses (4), Reduced Mania Cost (-2) This wonder transforms the subject into a cat-like beast, hulking but nimble, with long, curved claws (2 Lethal) and glittering cat-like eyes. The result is enhanced Physical Attributes and the ability to tear apart enemies. This sort of wonder is often used on a genius' beholden before a fight begins, granting them superior combat abilities. Hallucination Engine

Construction: Science 402 Requires: Metaptropi ●● (Automata ●● ) Bound Mania: 2 Size: 2 (stored in a small briefcase) Range: 20 feet Cost per Use: 1 Mania per 5 Size points Roll: Wits + Expression vs. Wits + Composure A genius can unload this wonder just about anywhere and cause havoc with the fully real three-dimensional illusions it generates. An onboard computer brain allows this wonder to function somewhat independently once activated, with convincing illusions that react to stimuli in a simple manner. The illusions cannot, for example, engage in ad hoc conversation, but they respond to events around them in a manner that resembles intelligence. If controlled actively, the hallucination engine can attack people, draining Willpower due to the sheer terror generated by the illusions. Instant Air Bubble

Construction: Science Requires: Exelixi ● , Prostasia ● Bound Mania: 2 Size: 4 (2 for Exelixi, 2 for Prostasia) Cost per Use: 3 for Prostasia shield. For life support, every point of Mania provides air for one person for one day. Variables of Prostasia: Expandable, Integral, Shielding Device Armor: 4 for one person, 3 out to 5', 2 out to 10', 1 out to 20' This cylinder provides a sphere of clean, fresh air in a 20' sphere around its location. Not built for combat, it is instead deployed when mad scientists are underwater or in a hostile atmosphere and, for whatever reason, cannot use environmental suits. Internal Cellular Repair Gland

Construction: Medicine Requires: Exelixi ● Bound Mania: 1 Size: 0 (internal) Cost per Use: 1 Mania per level of Lethal damage or two levels of Bashing damage healed Range: Self Roll: Dexterity + Medicine -1 Variables: Internalized, Self Only This gland is positioned just below the heart and allows the genius to heal herself with a moment's concentration and internal somatic manipulations. It can only affect the genius, allowing for a quick patch-up in the midst of battle. The wonder heals heals one point of Lethal damage or two points of Bashing damage per success on the Dexterity + Medicine roll. A common modification removes the "Self Only" limitation, allowing the genius to secrete healing fluid from the pores of his fingers. This change increases the check penalty to -2. Invisibility Cape, Version 1

Construction: Academics Requires: Epikrato ●●● Bound Mania: 3 Size: 4 (cape) Initial Cost: 3 Mania Roll: Manipulation + Academics vs. Wits + Composure 403 Variables: Many Minds (40' diameter), No Range, One-Purpose Manipulator (Invisibility Only) Anyone wearing this bulky cape triggers a powerful "you don't notice me" reaction in anyone within forty feet. Though the effect is not perfect ― unusually strong-willed people may still notice the wearer ― it is usually enough to get around regular guards, especially when coupled with a bit of regular Stealth. Invisibility Cape, Version 2

Construction: Lowest of Crafts, Medicine, and Science Requires: Metaptropi ●●●●● Bound Mania: 5 Size: 4 (cape) Cost per Use: 1 Mania/5 points of Size Range: Touch Roll: Intelligence + Science +3 Variables: Attached Transformation, Specific Transformation (invisibility only) This device works on entirely different principles from the first version of the invisibility cape, and while it requires considerably more talent to create, it is also much more effective, granting the wearer true invisibility: the wearer cannot be detected by any sort of vision. Kepler-class Aetheric Gunboat

Construction: Lower of Crafts and Science. For the cannons: Lower of Crafts and Science. For the scanner: Computer. For the communicator: Computer. Requires: Skafoi ●●● , Apokalypsi ●● , Exelixi ● , Katastrofi ●●●●● , Prostasia ●●● Bound Mania: 20 Size: 20 Durability: 24 Structure: 44 Initial Cost: 3 Mania to activate Cost Per Use: 3 Mania per six hours of operation, then 3 Mania per week of operation Safe Speed: 25,000 mph Maximum Speed: 37,500 mph Acceleration: 12,500 mph Interplanetary Speed: 5 AU/week Handling: Dexterity + Drive +5 Variables: None • Integral Twin Devastator Cannons: Katastrofi 5. Size 5 each. Damage 7 Aggravated (8-again). Roll Intelligence + Firearms +7 (8-again). Range 5 mile/10 miles/20 miles. Costs 1 Mania to charge up. Artillery, Railgun (+20 automatic successes, -1 per point of Size difference below 15.) • Integral Medium-Range Scanners: Apokalypsi 2. Size 3. Range 1 mile (1,000 miles in space. Roll Wits + Computer +1. • Integral Medium-Range Communicator: Apokalypsi 1. Size 3. Range 1 mile (1,000 miles in space. Roll Wits + Computer +1. • Integral Nullification Armor: Prostasia 3. Size 2. Durability x6. • Integral Life Support: Exelixi 1. Size 2. 1 Mania sustains a person for one day. This potent warship is designed to travel interstellar space and destroy enemy vessels, especially vulnerable cargo ships. The craft's whole front end is covered in cannons designed to rip through an unprotected ship's hull: non-Prostasia Durability provides no protection against the devastator cannons' Aggravated-damage attacks. Aetheric gunboats usually feature a crew of three: a pilot, a gunner who handles the cannons, and an engineer to make repairs and navigate. 404 Future Car

Construction: Crafts. For the Armor: Crafts. For the Commlink: Computer. For the Processor: Computer Requires: Skafoi ● (Metaptropi ● ), Apokalypsi ● , Automata ● , Prostasia ● Bound Mania: 4 Size: 10 Durability: 12 Structure: 19 Initial Cost: 1 Mania Cost per Use: 1 Mania per six full hours of travel Safe Speed: 75 mph Maximum Speed: 113 mph Acceleration: 38 mph Handling: Dexterity + Drive +1 • Integral Radio Comm: Apokalypsi 1. Size 1 Range 1 mile. Roll Wits + Computer +1. Audio only. • Integral Prostasia Armor: Prostasia 1. Size 1, Durability x4. • Integral Automata Processor: Automata 1. Size 1. Cost 2 Mania/use. Max stored Mania 2. Rolls a number of dice to drive equal to the genius' Drive Skill +1. A useful wonder for a genius on the go, this car has a good supply of integral equipment, some protective armor, and solid handling. It makes a good starter package for a new genius and can be upgraded with new integral equipment or superior speed and handling. Most geniuses prefer to build these wonders at Inspiration 2 (at which point their performance is immediately superior to almost anything on the road), but the jalopy above is a bare-minimum version. The one dot in Automata allows the car to come when called vocally by the genius. Knockout Gas Gun

Construction: Lower of Academics and Crafts Requires: Katastrofi ●● Bound Mania: 2 Size: 2 (heavy pistol; minimum Strength 3) Explosive Force: 2 Blast Area: 10 feet, Secondary Blast Area 20 feet Range: 20/40/80 Roll: Dexterity + Firearms Initial Cost: 2 Mania Variables: Explosive Weapon (10' diameter), Continuing Damage, Increased Mania Cost (+1), Lingering Area Damage (turns), Slow Reload (1 turn) This bulky weapon fires gas pellets that can knock people out. The combination of continuing damage and lingering area damage can bring down even tough foes in time. Lightning Gun

Construction: Lower of Crafts and Science Requires: Katastrofi ●●● Bound Mania: 3 Size: 3 (rifle; minimum Strength 2) Damage: 4 Lethal (9-again) (electricity) Range: 300/600/900 Roll: Dexterity + Firearms +4 Variables: Variable Damage Initial Cost: 3 Mania. Damage can be tuned down, overcharged, or can be converted to Bashing damage. Initial Cost: 3 405 Cost per Use: If desired, additional Mania can be spent to increase damage: 1 Mania for 5 damage, 2 Mania for 6 damage, and 3 Mania for 7 damage, per shot. A "lightning gun" is a type of ray gun that causes electrical damage to anyone targeted by it. This model features a damage-variance switching, allowing the weapon to be "set to stun" and to be overclocked to cause additional damage. This is a handheld model, about the Size (and usually the shape) of a bullpup rifle. Other models might be pistol-Sized (Size 1, same damage but no variable damage possible) or backpack rigs (Size 4, 5 Lethal damage). Love Potion

Construction: Academics Requires: Epikrato ●●● Bound Mania: 3 Size: 1 (small vial) Range: Personal Cost: 3 Mania Roll: Manipulation + Academics +1 vs. Composure + Metanormal Advantage Variables: In Pill Form, One-Purpose Manipulator (love only) This handy if rather unethical device causes the subject to experience feelings of love toward the first person he sees after drinking the concoction. The effect lasts for the duration of the scene, and can trigger anything from an Obligation-8 to an Obligation-2 transgression, depending on what the genius and the victim do in that time. Mechanical Wings

Construction: Crafts Requires: Skafoi ●● Bound Mania: 2 Size: 5 (large folded wings) Initial Cost: 2 Mania Cost per Use: 2 Mania per six hours of travel Safe Speed: 20 mph Maximum Speed: 30 mph Acceleration: 10 mph/turn Variables: Hovering Handling: Dexterity + (lower of Athletics and Drive) These enormous wings stretch twenty feet across when fully unfurled. An ancient design, mechanical wings are often made of brass, ivory, or bamboo, and sometimes feature real or synthetic feathers. The genius uses his body to turn and maneuver. Modifications to mechanical wings might make them entirely organic, requiring Medicine. Wings such as this are often grafted to beholden. Mole Machine

Construction: Crafts. For the bore: Lower of Crafts and Science. For the armor: Crafts. For the communicator: Computer. For the life support: Medicine. Requires: Skafoi ●● , Apokalypsi ● , Exelixi ● , Katastrofi ●●● , Prostasia ● Bound Mania: 8 Size: 16 Durability: 16 Structure: 32 Initial Cost: 2 Mania 406 Cost per Use: 2 Mania per six hours of travel Safe Speed: 15 yards per turn Cruising Speed: 1500 (1,027 mph) Handling: Dexterity + Drive + 3 • Integral Earthshredder Bore: Katastrofi 3. Size 4 (drill). Damage 6 Aggravated. Roll Dexterity + Weaponry +6. Costs 3 Mania. Armor-Piercing 3. Melee. Railgun (+20 automatic successes, -1 per point of Size difference below 15.) • Integral Armor Reinforcement: Prostasia 1. Durability x4. • Integral Long-range Communicator: Apokalypsi 1. Size 4. Range 1,000 miles. Charge-up time 3 turns. • Integral Life Support. Exelixi 1. Size 1. One point of Mania sustains one person for 12 hours. This is a fairly typical mole-machine with a useful set of equipment for exploring the Hollow Earth and places beneath the soil. Mole machines like this have a somewhat shadowy reputation. This design, with few variations, is used by Hollow Earth Nazis for conducting surface raids as well as certain Inspired bank robbers for attacking banks and other institutions from below the ground. Multi-Tool

Construction: Lower of Crafts or Science Requires: Epikrato ● , Exelixi ● Bound Mania: 2 Size: 1 (Epikrato 0, Exelixi 1; a single tool resembling a large screwdriver) Initial Cost: 1 (Epikrato) Cost per Use: 1 Mania per 5 Structure points restored (Exelixi) or 1 Mania (Epikrato) Range: 10 feet (Epikrato only) Variables of Epikrato: Integral Roll: +1 to any mundane repair check; or Dexterity + Crafts -2 for Exelixi repairs; or Intelligence + Science for Epikrato This wonder is actually two wonders (requiring two points of bound Mania) in one package: a basic repair tool and a "mechanical manipulator" based on Epikrato. A handy all-purpose device popular among many geniuses, the multi-tool allows for hasty repairs as well as short-range manipulation. (Note that the genius cannot perform repairs at range with this device; the level of Epikrato is sufficient only for basic manipulation of an object). The wonder's small Size means that it is not tremendously precise. Night on the Town Serum

Construction: Medicine (Exelixi), lower of Medicine and Science (Metaptropi) Requires: Exelixi ●●● , Metaptropi ● Bound Mania: 4 Size: 0 (Internalized) Roll: Intelligence + Medicine for disguise; Merit boost is automatic Cost per Use: 1 Mania per 5 points of Size for disguise, 2 Mania for Merit boost Shared Variables: Internalized, Self Only Metaptropi Variables: Specific Transformation This internalized gland is a combination wonder allows a genius to change her appearance, generally making herself more attractive and assertive in the process, to make her more appealing to potential mates. The genius gains two dots in the Striking Looks Merit, but other than that can appear however she desires, gaining three automatic Successes to any disguise check. More advanced versions of this modification might add dots in Composure or Presence, or replace or supplement Exelixi with Epikrato, allowing for direct control of a person's emotional state. 407 Petrification Beam

Construction: Lowest of Crafts, Medicine, and Science Requires: Metaptropi ●● (Katastrofi ● ) Bound Mania: 2 Size: 2 (heavy pistol; minimum Strength 3) Range: 20/40/80 Roll: Wits + Katastrofi +1, then Intelligence + Science +5 – target's Stamina + Metanormal Trait Cost per Use: 1 Mania to activate for a scene, then 1 Mania per 5 points of Size or fraction thereof Variables: Metaptropi Ray, Specific Transformation (flesh to stone) This wonder is designed to turn an enemy to stone, petrifying the target. If at least one success is rolled, the subject is turned to stone for the duration of the scene. An Exceptional Success can result in permanent transformation. Portable Flame Screen

Construction: Science Requires: Prostasia ●●● Bound Mania: 3 Size: 4 (backpack) Armor: 12 Health Levels of ablative armor vs. fire over a five-foot diameter Initial Cost: 1 Mania per Health Level of ablative armor activated or restored Variables: Expandable, Limited Protection (fire), Shielding Device A useful device for geniuses who expect to be on fire at some time in their careers (hint: that's likely), the flame screen creates a variable-diameter buffer around the genius that hedges out heat and flames. While continual exposure to fire will eventually chew through the ablative force field, a genius with a steady supply of Mania can remain safe in all but the worst blazes for several turns. Once fed with Mania (every point of Mania adds one Health level), the portable flame screen loses protective Health level at a rate of one per day. Powered Battle-Suit with Integral Energy Cannon and HUD Visor

Construction: Crafts. For the cannon: Lower of Crafts and Science. For the visor: Computer. Requires: Prostasia ●● , Katastrofi ●● , Apokalypsi ●● Bound Mania: 6 Size: 5 (heavy suit of armor) Armor: 5 Cost: None Variable: Heavy Armor (-2 to Speed, -1 to Defense, minimum Strength 2) • Integral Energy Cannon: Katastrofi 2. Size 1. Damage 5 Lethal (energy). Roll Dexterity + Firearms +5. Range 20/40/80. 2 Mania to charge up. • Integral HUD Visor: Apokalypsi 2. Size 1. Range 100 feet. Goggles. Roll Wits + Computer. This is a fairly typical "starter" battle suit for geniuses who have learned the basics of the relevant Axioms. It includes a wrist-mounted blaster and a helmet visor with benefits such as low-light vision. Its solid design also provides enough armor to deflect small arms fire, though it requires some Strength to move around comfortably. Powered Battle Suit with Integral Exoskeletal Rig and Jet Pack

Construction: Crafts. For the cannon: Lower of Crafts and Science. For the visor: Computer. For the jet pack: Crafts. Requires: Prostasia ●●●● , Katastrofi ●●● , Apokalypsi ●● , Exelixi ●● , Skafoi ●●● Bound Mania: 14 Size: 5 (heavy suit of armor) Armor: 7 408 Variables: Heavy Armor (-2 to Speed, -1 to Defense, minimum Strength 4) Cost: None • Integral Plasma Cannon: Katastrofi 3. Size 1. Damage 4 Lethal (9-again). Roll Dexterity + Firearms +4. Range 40/80/160. Autofire. Costs 3 Mania to charge up. • Integral HUD Visor: Apokalypsi 2. Size 1. Range 100 feet. Roll Wits + Computer. • Integral Exoskeletal Reinforcement: Exelixi 2. Grants +2 to Strength, +1 to Dexterity, and +1 to Stamina (maximum score based on genius' Inspiration). 4 Mania/scene. • Integral Jet Pack: Skafoi 3. Size 5. Safe Speed 2,000 mph, Maximum Speed 3,000 mph, Acceleration 1,000 mph/turn. Handling Dexterity + (lower of Athletics and Drive) +2. Hovering. 3 Mania to activate. 3 Mania/six hours of operation. This kind of combat suit is the sort of thing that powerful Inspired with a lot of money and drive end up producing after years of experimentation. Able to fly and equipped with an incinerating cannon that can reduce enemies to slag, this suit is heavy enough that many people need to activate the integral Strength boost in order to move around easily. Rather Tedious But Polite Robot Butler

Construction: Lower of Computer and Crafts Requires: Automata ●●● Bound Mania: 3 Max Mania: 6 Size: 5 Health: 7 Speed: 7 Initiative: 5 Defense: 2 Automation Points: 9 Mental Attributes: Intelligence 1, Wits 2, Resolve 1 Physical Attributes: Strength 2, Dexterity 2, Stamina 2 Social Attributes: Presence 1, Manipulation 1, Composure 3 Physical Skills: Drive 3 Social Skills: Socialize 3 Some variation on this model is de rigeur for Inspired looking to entertain their fellows. Generally humanoid in appearance, robot butlers can be used for social events when called upon or for manual tasks. They are fairly clever, making them useful around the lab ("zombies" tend to make stupid mistakes that can prove fatal during an experiment), and they can speak a few hundred words, allowing them to entertain guests and offer amusing anecdotes during social calls. Robot butlers are not clever or innovative, but they have good memories and can usually remember to deliver a message. More intelligent versions (Automata 4) are loaded up with superior social Skills and proficiency with several million forms of communication. Shrink Ray

Construction: Lowest of Crafts, Medicine, and Science Requires: Metaptropi ●●● (Katastrofi ● ) Bound Mania: 3 Size: 1 (pistol; minimum Strength 1) Range: 30/60/120 Cost per Use: 1 Mania to activate, then 1 Mania per 2 Size points shrunk (maximum 3 Size points shrunk) Roll: Wits + Firearms, then Intelligence + Science +5 - Stamina + Metanormal Advantage Variables: Metaptropi Ray, Specific Transformation (shrinking only) This wonder, if it hits, can shrink a target to any degree desired. Shrink rays are more than just popular novelty items: they can be used to eliminate a threat without having to kill anyone. Since it looks like a gun (with 409 Metaptropi, it can literally look exactly like a Colt .45 or something similar at no additional cost), just pointing it at someone can stop a fight. It can also be turned on one's allies, shrinking them for use in espionage. The shrink ray's effects normally last for one scene. Storm Generator

Construction: Science Requires: Epikrato ●●●● Bound Mania: 4 Size: 6 (back of a Winnebago) Range: 1 mile away from wonder per point of Mania Roll: Intelligence + Science +4 Cost per Use: 1 Mania per step of wind or precipitation; 1 Mania per additional ¼-mile of diameter Variables: Storm Machine (+2) This destructive machine can spread chaos over a city, demonstrating a mad scientist's power. For that reason, most wonders like this are closely watched by the Peerage, which does not smile upon Maniacal lightning storms. Subdermal Communicator

Construction: Lower of Computer and Medicine Requires: Apokalypsi ● Bound Mania: 1 Size: 0 (Internalized) Range: 10 feet (cellular plan) Roll: Intelligence + Computer -1 Cost: None Variables: Internalized, One-Medium Communicator (audio only) A useful wonder for the surreptitious genius, this hidden communicator is implanted surgically below the ear. The communicator remains hidden even during active communications, allowing a genius to send messages without being noticed. The tiny wonder usually employs a cell phone plan, since otherwise its range is very poor. Super-Grappler

Construction: Crafts Requires: Skafoi ● (Katastrofi ● ) Bound Mania: 1 Size: 2 (handheld grapple-gun) Initial Cost: 1 Mania to activate Cost per Use: 1 Mania per 6 hours of use Range: 20 feet horizontally and 10 feet vertically Roll: Dexterity + Athletics Variables: Bouncing, Clinging, Increased Bouncing Range Whether it uses a diamondoid tip or sticky glue launched from a central reservoir, the super-grappler is designed to move a genius around quickly, and is best used to make escapes or to suddenly change one's elevation. Many geniuses build a matched pair, allowing them to brachiate around a vertical environment, alternately shooting and sticking. (A clinging, hopping wonder cannot hop while clinging, meaning that using just one results in a fall.) This wonder's range is increased by requiring a check to aim and fire the device. Telekinetic Gauntlet

Construction: Science Requires: Epikrato ●● 410 Bound Mania: 2 Size: 1 (fits over one hand) Range: 20 feet Initial Cost: 2 Mania Roll: Normally. Can move Size 0 objects at 4 yards/turn, Size 1 objects at 2 yards/turn, and Size 2-3 objects at 1 yard/turn. In contested actions, Intelligence + Science + 1 vs. Strength + Dexterity. Variables: Charge-up time (3 turns), Fragile This mechanical glove fits over the user's hand and allows him to engage in almost any kind of telekinetic manipulation. These basic versions are delicate and not particularly powerful, but they fit right over a single hand. Teleportation Gate

Construction: Science Requires: Skafoi ●●●● Bound Mania: 4 Size: 15 (fills up a room) Cost per Roll: 1 Mania per 5 points of Size Roll: Intelligence + Science +4; number of successes depends on distance unless teleporting to another transporter Variables: Transporter Teleportation gates allow a genius to get around the world easily. Keeping one at home also allows for easy escape when things go wrong. Throne of the Dark Lord

Construction: Computer Requires: Apokalypsi ●●●●● Bound Mania: 5 Size: 12 Cost: None Range: Anywhere on Earth Roll: Wits + Computer +3 This enormous throne contains scanning equipment that can detect any conceivable sort of phenomena, at instantaneous rates of speed, through any kind of material. It is used by masterminds and paranoids to keep an eye on nearly anything that occurs. UV "Sungun" Lamp

Construction: Lowest of Crafts, Occult, and Science Requires: Katastrofi ●● Bound Mania: 2 Size: 4 (backpack rig; minimum Strength 3) Damage: 4 Lethal (sunlight; only damages vampires, so 4 Aggravated vs. vampires) Blinding: 3 dice are rolled to blind enemies; roll vs. Stamina + Metanormal Advantage. This can affect mortals, too, and is treated as a "Lethal" attack for determining healing time Range: 20/40/60 Roll: Dexterity + Firearms +4 Initial Cost: 2 Mania Variables: Reduced Range, Only Against Specific Material; in this case, the weapon will only damage vampires and other creatures vulnerable to sunlight Many geniuses extend their Obligation to humanity to protecting it from the predation of "aliens" and 411 "mutants." To deal with a hemophage infestation, geniuses break out a weapon like this. It resembles a two- handed flashlight with twin batteries mounted on the shoulders, and though it's nearly harmless to humans (though there is an off-chance of blinding or dazzling one), it is fatal to blood-suckers, able to turn them to cinders after a few sweeps. These weapons are favored over flame-throwers, another popular way of removing a hemophage nest, since they are less likely to damage the surrounding environment. Handheld versions are also common. These are Size 1. They cause 2 damage, but still roll 3 dice to blind. Vat-Grown Hunter

Construction: Medicine. For Claws: Medicine. For Wings: Medicine. For Armor: Medicine. Automata ●●● (Apokalypsi ● ), Katastrofi ●● , Prostasia ● , Skafoi ●● Bound Mania: 8 Max Mania: 6 Size: 3 Health: 6 Speed: 8 Initiative: 3 Defense: 2 Armor: 4 Automation Points: 11 Variables: Biological, Decentralized Anatomy, Limited Battery Life (rest 16 hours/day), Low-Light Vision Strength 3, Dexterity 2, Stamina 3 Intelligence 1, Wits 2, Resolve 1 Presence 1, Manipulation 1, Composure 1 Skills: Brawl 3, Athletics 3, Stealth 3 • Integral Claws: Katastrofi 2. Size 3 (two claws). Damage 7 Lethal (melee). Roll 13 dice. 2 Mania to sprout claws. • Integral Membrane-Wings: Skafoi 2. Size 3. Safe Speed 30 mph, Max Speed 45 mph, Acceleration 15 mph/turn. Handling +0. Roll 5 dice. Hovering. Reduced Mania Cost (-2; no Mania cost to operate). • Integral Scale Armor: Prostasia 1. Armor 4. This is the sort of monster that a genius might keep on a leash in case he makes enemies: it can be ordered to seek out and kill enemies, and it does that very well, though it must rest frequently. These creatures are normally built for function over form, and display a hideous combination of organic components from the scattered corners of the animal world: fangs, claws, wings of different sorts of creatures, and a compact, chitinous body that can deflect blows or absorb gunfire. Vat-grown hunters rarely speak, but they possess a cruel, malevolent intelligence and are usually eager to do their master's bidding in exchange for Mania and fresh meat. At this level of ability, they are best sent out in swarming packs; more powerful ones are effective as solitary slayers. Walking Eye

Construction: Lower of Computer and Crafts. For the Cannon: Lower of Crafts and Science. For the Scanner: Computer. For the Armor: Crafts. Requires: Automata ●●● , Katastrofi ●● , Prostasia ● , Apokalypsi ●● Bound Mania: 8 Max Mania: 6 Size: 5 Structure: 9 Speed: 9 Initiative: 5 Armor: 5 Defense: 2 Variables: No Fine Manipulators 412 Automation Points: 11 Physical Attributes: Strength 2, Dexterity 4, Stamina 4 Mental Attributes: Intelligence 1, Wits 2, Resolve 1 Social Attributes: Presence 1, Manipulation 1, Composure 1 Physical Skills: Firearms 3, Brawl 3 • Integral Pulse Cannon: Katastrofi 2. Size 3. Damage 6 Lethal. Roll 13 dice. Range 300/600/1200. Costs 2 Mania to charge up. • Integral Scanner Unit: Apokalypsi 2. Size 1. Range 100 feet. Roll Wits + Computer. • Integral Deflector Shield: Prostasia 1. Armor 5. Costs 1 Mania. Shielding Device. A standard combat support unit capable of assault, reconnaissance, and patrol, the walking eye resembles a big sphere on top of many spindly legs. It has excellent senses, though it is sometimes too stupid to make the most use out of them, and the cannon stored just beneath its central eye is deadly accurate. Wonder Forge

Construction: Lowest of Computer, Crafts, and Science Requires: Automata ●●●●● Size: 10 Cost per Use: 4 Mania per rank of the wonder at a rate of one Size point per hour (5 Mania/minute, 6 Mania/turn) Variables: Dynamic Factory (anything) This incredible device can create any wonder that can be built with only the Computer, Crafts, and Science Skills. (The wonder forge is literally a forge; a "wonder-womb" might include Medicine or other Skills.) It requires schematics to build from in order to create a wonder. The forge can build wonders of up to Size 10. It requires appropriate raw materials, though these can be stored outside the wonder itself. The wonder forge can also create all sorts of mundane items, though without Medicine, it cannot create living t