Savage Justifiers

The Verse

It's the 25th century A.D. Humanity has mastered space travel and spread out through the Milky Way, establishing colonies on dozens of habitable worlds. Many earthly nations hve fallen away in view of the vastness of space; the remaining national collectives have at least achieved something approaching world peace. In addition, the last few centuries have seen the rise of the megacorps, business concerns with the financial power of nations.

We're not alone. Other intelligent species exist, our neighbors and occasionally our rivals. Fortunately, the majority of them prefer peaceful coexistence, and as a result, the Galactic Union was formed. A coalition of a dozen or so technologically-advanced species, the Union exists to prevent interplanetary warfare and to facilitate cooperating and the sharing of information.

Setting Rules

The following Setting Rules are in play:

• Fanatics: Enemy thugs can take the damage for their masters.
• Fast Healing: Characters make natural healing rolls once per day instead of every five days, and recover a level of Fatigue from Bumps & Bruises every four hours instead of every day.
• More Skill Points: Start with 15 skill points instead of 12.
• No Power Points: Those with arcane backgrounds don’t track Power Points but instead subtract half the listed Power Point cost (round up) from their skill roll to activate the ability. Powers may be maintained as desired at a −1 penalty to all further arcane skill rolls.
• Wound Cap: Wild Cards never suffer more than four wounds from a single hit.

You're a "Beta"

A Beta-Class Sapient Humanoid Lifeform, as distinct from Alpha-Class Sapient Lifeforms, i.e, humans and other sapient species. Betas are anthropomorphic animal-people, genetically engineered and grown in artificial wombs. They resemble humans with animal features, or perhaps animals with a generally human size and build. The precise details vary from Beta to Beta, even those derived from the same animal species, but a Beta can never be mistaken for a human.

Betas have a unique legal position: they are recognized as intelligent and self-aware beings, and yet they are wholly artificial, created in laboratories at great expense. After years of legal wrangling between those who believed they deserved full freedom and those who believed they should be considered products rather than people, a compromise was reached. Betas are legally people, and as such are entitled to certain rights; they cannot be enslaved, killed, or otherwise harmed without the same due process available to naturally-born people. However, they are born into debt, and are required to work for the corporation that spawned them until such time as the cost of their creation is paid off. This cost is known as "buyback," since a Beta who reaches it is said to have bought themselves back from their corporate masters.

The corporations that employ Betas generally try to match the Beta to a job that suits their skills and attitude. The reasoning is pragmatic: it's better to have a talented and enthusiastic pastry chef than an unskilled and resentful soldier. A portion of a Beta's earnings is put toward their buyback, and Betas who reach buyback are often re-employed by the same corporation, this time with higher wages and better benefits. Other free Betas leave for better opportunities.

The highest-paid Betas are the Justifiers, skilled individuals who are sent on dangerous missions of exploration, security, and occasional corporate sabotage or espionage. Their name comes from their role: justification and pacification of new worlds and exploitable resources. Every corporation that employs Betas has its own Justifiers corps. They're the ones sent in to dangerous situations to rescue civilians, or salvage what company assets they can. They explore newly-discovered worlds and deal with dangerous indigenous lifeforms. They provide security when the competition between corporations becomes a little too hostile. In short, they're the elite ass-kickers who dive into situations that most intelligent beings would run screaming from.

You're a Justifier, and this is your story.

Character Creation

PCs are all Betas, and can be made using the race creation rules (SWADE p. 18). Betas are made with two points of positive racial abilities; optionally, you can take up to four points of negative racial abilities as well to get more positive racial abilities.

Otherwise, Betas are made as standard SWADE characters.

All PCs start at Seasoned rank, with four Advances.

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Beta Types

Betas are created from animal DNA. Although there are a wide variety of Beta types, the majority come from animals that humans interact closely with. Thus, there are many dog-, cat-, and white rat-Betas, but relatively few pangolin- or python-Betas. Exotic Beta-types definitely exist, but they are a distinct minority and were usually created either for a specific purpose, or as living art pieces to please extremely wealthy patrons.

There are no known Betas derived from fish, crustaceans, arthropods, or similar animals.

Common Beta types are as follows:

Canids

Dogs, wolves, foxes and dingos, these Betas are reliable and loyal. They make excellent soldiers and guards, and work well with humans.

Suggested Racial Abilities

• Bite [1]
• Edge: Common Bond [2]
• Skill: Survival [1]
• Skill Bonus: Notice [2]
• Hindrance: Loyal [-1]

Felids

Ranging from small domestic house cats to large Siberian tigers, felid Betas are elegant and agile with an undeniable charisma. Although less sociable than canid Betas, they make skilled solo agents, excelling at tasks that involve stealth, climbing, and hunting.

Suggested Racial Abilities

• Attribute Increase (Agility) [2]
• Bite [1]
• Claws [2/3/4]
• Edge: Quick [2]
• Low-Light Vision [1]
• Frail [-1]
• Hindrance: Curious [-2]

Rodents

White rats and mice are common lab animals, and rat- and mouse-Betas are perhaps the most common variety, though rabbit-Betas are also popular. Though physically small, they have impressive scent and hearing and are adaptable and quick to learn.

Suggested Racial Abilities

• Adaptable [2]
• Burrowing [1]
• Leaper [2]
• Pace [2]
• Skill: Notice [1]
• Attribute Penalty: Strength [-2]
• Frail [-1]
• Hindrance: Yellow [-2]
• Size -1 [-1]

Ursids

Though rare, bear-Betas are large and imposing beings with exceptional strength. They tend to be relaxed people, preferring sedentary roles, and are often gourmands.

Suggested Racial Abilities

• Attribute Increase: Strength [2]
• Attribute Increase: Vigor [2]
• Bite [1]
• Claws [2/3/4]
• Hardy [2]
• Size +1 [1]
• Toughness [1]
• Attribute Penalty: Agility [-2]
• Big [-2]

Ungulates

A wide category that includes farm animals (horses, cattle, pigs and goats) as well as antelopes, warthogs, and others. Ungulate Betas tend to be fast runners and good team players, and make exceptional athletes and often messengers.

Suggested Racial Abilities

• Hardy [2]
• Horns [1]
• Immune to Poison [1]
• Pace [2]

Aquatic Mammals

Dolphin, seal and sea lion-Betas are occasional employed for marine missions, such as servicing underwater equipment and exploring ocean worlds. They tend to be highly intelligent and good-natured.

Suggested Racial Abilities

• Aquatic/Semi-Aquatic [1/2]
• Attribute Increase: Agility [2]
• Attribute Increase: Smarts [2]

Reptiles

Snake, turtle and lizard Betas are rare, but they do exist. Their slow metabolism gives them an edge in certain hostile climates, and their un-mammalian ability to focus allows them to excel at roles that mammals would find too distracting.

Suggested Racial Abilities

• Attribute Increase: Vigor [2]
• Armor [1]
• Bite [1]
• Hardy [2]
• Infravision [1]
• Poisonous Touch [1/3]
• Regeneration [2/3]
• Semi-Aquatic [1]
• Toughness [1]
• Wall-Walker [1]
• Cannot Speak [-1]
• Environmental Weakness: Cold [-1]
• Reduced Pace [-1]

Avians

Even less common than reptiles, avian Betas range from small songbirds or corvids to large, fierce raptors, to flightless emus and ostriches. They tend to be high-strung and needy, but very clever and adaptable. They are the only Beta type with wings, making them irreplaceable for certain specific roles.

Suggested Racial Attributes

• Claws [2/3/4]
• Flight [2/4/6]
• Low-Light Vision [1]
• Pace [2]
• Skill Bonus: Notice [2]
• Frail [-1]
• Hindrance: Phobia (claustrophobia) [-1/-2]
• Size -1 [-1]

Psionics

Psychic powers are rare and little understood, but they do exist. Some alien species are racially psychic, and psionics is a documented phenomenon among certain rare humans. To the surprise of their corporate creators, Betas can also possess psionic abilities. This is extremely rare - perhaps one in a thousand Betas possesses measurable psychic potential.

Because psionics is so rare, it is a little-known field of study. Psionics draws on some as-yet-unknown form of energy to perform seemingly supernatural effects, which are often related to the psychic's personality and emotional state. Despite centuries of effort, there are no psychic academies or formal teaching methods; a Beta who demonstrates psionics will, if they are very fortunate, be put in contact with a more experienced psychic to help learn to control their abilities. Psionic Betas are both valued and feared for their extranormal powers.

Player characters can take Arcane Background: Psionics normally. Those wanting to play "wild talents," characters with a single reliable psychic skill, may take Arcane Background: Gifted instead. In either case, characters must choose their powers from the following list:

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Arcane Protection, Beast Friend, Blind, Bolt, Boost/Lower Trait, Confusion, Darksight, Deflection, Dispel, Drain Power Points, Empathy, Environmental Protection, Farsight, Fear, Havoc, Healing, Invisibility, Mind Link, Mind Reading, Mind Wipe, Object Reading, Protection, Puppet, Relief, Sloth/Speed, Slumber, Speak Language, Stun, Telekinesis, Warrior's Gift.

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All Trappings should be appropriate to the theme. For example, damaging powers should usually have some sort of "mental shock" trapping, unless something like pyrokinesis is justified, but psionic powers are not spells and should not feel like spells.

Note that psionic powers are mental, and creatures without true minds - automatic cameras, security systems, and robots - may not be affected by them.

Technology and Equipment

The Galactic Union

The Megacorps

Blue Sun Heavy Industries

Cyberdyne

Pentax

Roxxon

Umbrella Corp

Weyland-Yutani