Speak No Evil. Would you like to learn about our lord and savior?

1
The power to communicate with corpses and humans.
Used by Janus Hect, Created by jumbohiggins.
(Activating this Effect is not obvious. The only sign you are using an Effect is Janus eyes change color from brown to blue. )

Janus reflects on his time in the cult and his slow but progressive indoctrination. How his food was subtly diminished, sleeping times were shifted, independence and decision making were shelved. How all of his behaviors were subtly curtailed to fitting what the cult wanted. He then tries to recreate a minor example of that on another in order to better understand them and their traumas.

Behavior Control (Examples)

* Promote dependence and obedience
* Modify behavior with rewards and punishments
* Dictate where and with whom you live
* Restrict or control sexuality
* Control clothing and hairstyle
* Regulate what and how much you eat and drink
* Deprive you of sleep
* Exploit you financially
* Restrict leisure time
* Require you to seek permission.

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Exert your Mind and spend one minute. Select a human or Dead target within arm's reach. For dead targets, you must possess their True name..

The target can communicate in your language for the next hour.

This Effect is not obvious, and the only sign you are using an Effect is Janus eyes change color from brown to blue. If someone suspects that an Effect was used, they must roll Perception + Alertness, Difficulty 8 to pick up on your Tell.

You may only use this Effect once per target per day.

Possession of this Power grants the following Trauma at all times: When encountering a particularly dumb individual Janus must resist the urge to change their behavior according to the B section of the BITE model..

  • The target of "human" refers to any target that speaks a human language.
  • You can target yourself if you qualify as a valid target by the other requirements.
  • Your target must be within line of sight, or within range of another sense if more fitting for the Gift's flavor.

Community Targeted Gifts

Exert your Mind and spend an Action. Select a Location within 30 feet. All Living or Animate targets within 20 feet of the chosen location are affected. You must actively and obviously use A throwing needle to activate this Effect. Roll Dexterity + Athletics at Difficulty 6. Affected targets may resist by rolling Body at Difficulty 6.

If you succeed, affected targets becomes drowsy for the next 3 Rounds, during which time they suffer an additional -2 dice Penalty to all Actions. At the end of their drowsiness, they fall into a state of sleep paralysis for Outcome x 3 minutes. During this time, they remain fully conscious and aware of their surroundings but are incapable of taking any actions.

Sleeping targets will not prematurely wake up on their own, and can only be awoken by taking Damage or nearing death from hunger, thirst, or suffocation. Drowsy targets always fall asleep, regardless of what happens while they are drowsy.

If an affected target was already sleeping when you used this Effect, they are put into a deep coma that lasts indefinitely, but they will be awoken from it if Pulling the needle out.

  • For targets where "sleep" does not make any sense in terms of flavor, they will power down, freeze, etc, whatever state they can be in which is analogous to sleep.
  • You can target yourself if you qualify as a valid target by the other requirements.
  • Your target must be within line of sight, or within range of another sense if more fitting for the Gift's flavor.

After retrieving the right and left bloods of the Gorgon from the Roman Crypt, David put great effort into studying the right vial. He was curious how the vial was able to seemingly replenish its own supply of blood. He found that within the vial was a bone of Medusa, the Gorgon, and that somehow after all these thousands of years the bone marrow itself was still creating new blood, perhaps a weeping at the wound Perseus struck. David decided to take a sampling of this bone marrow and study it under a microscope, see what it did to meat. Though the marrow cells would bond to meat, allowing it to twitch and regrow temporarily, they seemed to die off on their own without a greater source of nourishment, without a host. David decided, risky as it was, he would inject much of the bone marrow into his own bones, and would become that host. He did so, and shuddering with the new senses overtaking his form, David Vance became the body through which the blood of Medusa flowed and multiplied.

Take a Severity-1 Injury and spend an Action. Select a Dead target within arm's reach with at least half its skeletal structure remaining.

Your target rises as an Animate being. They remember their past life and retain their same personality. They can communicate as they would have been able to in life. They may roll Mind, Difficulty 8, to resist any commands you give them.

The creature lasts for eight hours or until it dies again. It is revived at full health. Any Injuries it had in life are not accounted for when determining its penalties or progression towards re-death, though they may affect its ability to perform certain actions at GM's discretion.

Raised creatures have their Abilities set to the same that they were in life. Their Attributes are all the same as they were in life. Raised creatures have access to any Effects they had in life.

You may end this Effect prematurely as a Free Action.

  • The Injury received from activating this Effect heals in 1 day and cannot be prevented or prematurely healed by any means.
  • You can target yourself if you qualify as a valid target by the other requirements.
  • Your target must be within line of sight, or within range of another sense if more fitting for the Gift's flavor.

Take a Severity-1 Injury and spend 2 Actions. Select a Sapient target within arm's reach. At the end of your investigation, roll Perception + Melee at Difficulty 6.

You learn all the following information about your target:

  • You determine how many living beings the target has killed, what sorts of creatures they were, and how long it has been since they last killed.
  • You may follow the target's trail, no matter where or how they have traveled, so long as the trail is less than a day old.

The quality and specificity of information gained depends on your Outcome.

You cannot investigate the same target more than once per day.

  • Tracker You are not made instantly aware of where they have been in the past 24 hours; you must follow their trail. You may "happen upon" any trail they have made in the past 24 hours.
  • The Injury received from activating this Effect heals in 1 day and cannot be prevented or prematurely healed by any means.
  • You can target yourself if you qualify as a valid target by the other requirements.
  • Your target must be within line of sight, or within range of another sense if more fitting for the Gift's flavor.

Exert your Mind and spend one minute. Select a Location within arm's reach.

Select one of the following alterations to create out of stone originating at the target:

  • Sculpt: Sculpt a surface made of stone up to 20 feet by 20 feet. You may make aesthetic changes or minor functional improvements like a ladder or stairs. You may sculpt windows, doors, and similar alterations into structures you created with this Effect.
  • Wall: Create a straight wall made of stone up to 20 feet long, 5 feet high, and 6 inches thick. This wall can also be used to create a bridge, ramp, or similar. It must be free-standing.

The alteration begins to form when you activate this Effect and finishes forming on your initiative in the next Round. Until it finishes forming, it is not guaranteed to function.

This alteration lasts three hours but may be prematurely destroyed or altered. Your alterations may be broken through with appropriate tools. Anyone attempting to break through must roll Brawn + a relevant Ability. A cumulative Outcome of 3 across all attempts breaks a hole large enough to move through. See the extended system text for GM guidance on various tools.

  • Attempting to break any alterations with inappropriate tools may damage or destroy the tools at the GM's discretion.
  • Any structures you create leave precise gaps for obstacles in their path or push them out of the way. You cannot directly destroy objects or structures or damage beings by creating walls or domes.
  • Tool guidance for GMs:
    • Difficulty 9: Brawn 5, no tools.
    • Difficulty 7-8: One-handed tools or makeshift tools (like a sword). Mythic Brawn without tools.
    • Difficulty 6: Appropriate manual tools. Crowbar, sledgehammer, armor-piercing sword, unarmed mastery with Armored Fist.
    • Difficulty 4-5: Power tools, vehicles, explosives.
  • You can target yourself if you qualify as a valid target by the other requirements.
  • Your target must be within line of sight, or within range of another sense if more fitting for the Gift's flavor.

Exert your Mind and spend an Action. Select a Location no further than 40 feet from you and in your line of sight. This Effect cannot be used unless you drink blood directly from a human until it injures them. The area within 25 feet of the chosen Location immediately and obviously becomes imminently dangerous. Roll Brawn + Alertness at Difficulty 6. Targets inside the radius may attempt an appropriate Reaction at GM’s discretion. Finding a physical barrier to use as cover will cut total Damage taken in half (applies after Reaction roll but before Armor).

If the Outcome is positive, your blast hits everything within 25 feet of the chosen Location with Damage equal to your Outcome + 4. Armor is fully effective against this damage.

Anyone who witnesses you during this Effect's activation will almost certainly be disturbed to see the souls of those killed by previous blasts scream and wail about how torturous their death was.

  • When narrating disturbing content, be cognizant of your group's tone and accommodating to those who would like to "fast forward" through the description.
  • You can target yourself if you qualify as a valid target by the other requirements.
  • Your target must be within line of sight, or within range of another sense if more fitting for the Gift's flavor.

Stock Targeted Gifts

This Effect activates whenever you receive a Severity 2 or higher Injury from an attack. It does not require an Action or Exertion. Select a Living target within 45 feet. Roll Charisma + Influence at Difficulty 6. Affected targets can resist by rolling Mind at Difficulty 6.

If you succeed, for the next minute, your target will do things they otherwise wouldn’t have done, inspired by remorse for hurting such a pure soul. They will not necessarily display their emotions in an obvious way.

Actions they take will be in keeping with their character and the way they tend to deal with strong emotions. They will be unlikely to change their mind about any actions taken or decisions made until after the Effect ends.

  • When triggered, the Effect activation resolves immediately after the triggering Action. It is not Reaction speed.
  • Common emotions and the actions they inspire
    • Anger (shouting, cruelty, denying requests, attacking)
    • Pity (stopping an attack, executing an injured target)
    • Happiness (generosity, dancing, joking, socializing)
    • Sadness (finding solitude, openly crying, demotivation)
    • Fear (running, attacking)
  • If you succeed, the target MUST take at least one Action they otherwise would not have. Hey, GM who is reading this, I'm talking to you. You have to enforce this. Remember: Gifts must feel powerful.
  • You can target yourself if you qualify as a valid target by the other requirements.
  • Your target must be within line of sight, or within range of another sense if more fitting for the Gift's flavor.

Thank you to the original creator of this Gift, Frakcherd https://www.thecontractrpg.com/profile/view/603/

Exert your Mind and spend an Action. Select a target within 20 feet which has both fuel and oxygen available (if you are starting a new fire). You must actively and obviously use a laser pointer to activate this Effect.

You may start a new fire as large as a torch's flame at your target. You may create fires the size of a lighter or candle flame without Exerting your Mind. Your fires require fuel and oxygen in order to continue burning.

Lighting a target on fire deals 2 Damage each Round on your turn, starting in the Round after the one in which they caught fire. This Damage is reduced by Armor, but the target’s Armor rating will be depleted by any Damage dealt, destroying the Armor once it reaches 0.

You may extinguish flames as a Reaction. This does not extend to explosives.

You may spend a Free Action on your initiative move a fire as large as a torch's flame that is within 20 feet to another location within 20 feet. You may Exert your Mind to draw a line which a fire up to twice as large as a torch's flame cannot cross.

  • Someone may attempt to extinguish a fire that you started by spending an Action and rolling Dexterity + Athletics. An Outcome of 2 puts out the fire
  • You can target yourself if you qualify as a valid target by the other requirements.
  • Your target must be within line of sight, or within range of another sense if more fitting for the Gift's flavor.

Exert your Mind and spend a minute. Investigate an area with a radius of up to 100 feet You must actively and obviously use a magnifying glass to activate this Effect. At the end of your investigation, roll Perception + Investigation at Difficulty 6.

You learn the following information about the area:

  • You can tell the age of any structure or natural formation in the area. This includes trees and plants growing in the area.
  • You learn how heavily trafficked the area is, what sorts of Animate beings have moved through the area and when.
The quality and specificity of information gained depends on your Outcome.

  • You can target yourself if you qualify as a valid target by the other requirements.
  • Your target must be within line of sight, or within range of another sense if more fitting for the Gift's flavor.

Spend an Action. Select a door, lock, or locked target within arm's reach. Cannot be used on Alien technology. This Effect cannot be used unless the targeted lock or door is being used to restrain or imprison you.

You may lock, unlock, and/or open your target.

  • Any door or restraint that is fastened or shut with a mechanism may be considered locked, at the GM's discretion. Can be used on control panels or other electronic locks, but not computer security systems.
  • If you operate a locking mechanism through this Effect which has some other secondary effect (such as the ignition on a car causing the car to start) you may cause that effect as well.
  • You can target yourself if you qualify as a valid target by the other requirements.
  • Your target must be within line of sight, or within range of another sense if more fitting for the Gift's flavor.

Exert your Mind and spend one minute. Select a Living target within 20 feet. This Effect cannot be used unless the target deserves it. Roll Charisma + Occult at Difficulty 6. Your target may resist by rolling Body at Difficulty 7.

If you succeed, the target is afflicted with a Condition that causes one of the following symptoms:

  • Poisoned: The target gains a Severity-1 Injury which ignores Armor and doesn’t heal naturally. For every hour that passes, they receive a new identical Injury. If this new Injury would kill them, they roll 1d10 at Difficulty 6. Success cures the condition; otherwise, they will die.
Symptoms begin to appear immediately, and will remain and continue to worsen until the affliction is cured. The affliction is not contagious and will not spread to others.

The affliction is not treatable by modern medicine. It may be diagnosed by rolling Intellect + Occult at Difficulty 6, and can be cured by bathing fully in clear running water.

This Effect is not obvious, and the only sign you are using an Effect is you staring at the target, speaking calmly. If someone suspects that an Effect was used, they must roll Perception + Alertness, Difficulty 8 to pick up on your Tell.

  • Successfully diagnosing an affliction also includes information about the treatment method.
  • The chosen method of treatment must be something that you could obtain in a small town given an afternoon.
  • Curing an affliction removes the Condition, but does not automatically heal any Injuries, Battle Scars, or Traumas which may have been caused by that condition.
  • You can target yourself if you qualify as a valid target by the other requirements.
  • Your target must be within line of sight, or within range of another sense if more fitting for the Gift's flavor.