Surgical Awakening is a gruesome spectacle that blurs the lines between science and bio-horror. In a quiet lab, Oleg meticulously performs the painful open procedure, using chemicals, surgical tools, and a touch of source magic to awaken dormant potential within the target's nervous systems. The subject’s body thrashes and protests as the flesh is reformed, reshaped, and augmented—an eerie blend of organic tissue and the unnatural. The results are profound, granting the subject new abilities like unnatural strength, hidden compartments within their body, or adaptations to extreme environments. The process is raw and visceral, with the flesh itself rebelling against its forced transformation, leaving an no marks upon the skin, but psychological scars that can take a while to fade.
Exert your Mind and spend 30 minutes. Select a Living or Animate target within arm's reach. You must make a Trauma roll when you use this Effect. Its Difficulty cannot be reduced by any means. If you fail or Botch, you receive one Mind Damage and a new Trauma. Your target must make a Trauma roll to reap the benefits of this Effect. They may choose to Resist the Effect and not make the roll. The target can easily Resist.
You may add one augmentation to your target. Each augmentation counts as a Trauma and can have exactly one of the following Effects:
The augmentations you provide are not outwardly visible nor obvious.
You may end this Effect prematurely as a Free Action.
Anyone who witnesses you during this Effect's activation will almost certainly be disturbed to see a delicate open surgery where the flesh and nerves visible deform and struggle against the procedure.
You gain the following benefits at all times.
Your senses are enhanced in the following way.
Any senses which have been heightened cannot be overloaded. Battle Scars you receive cannot affect these senses.
Whether it’s a spooky forest with lots of fog or a densely populated foreign city, you’ve seen enough tv shows to know they love switching up their settings. Insert tropes here. Looking around tells you what you need to know.
Spend a minute. Investigate an area with a radius of up to 100 feet You must actively and obviously use glasses to activate this Effect. At the end of your investigation, roll Perception + Investigation at Difficulty 6.
You learn the following information about the area:
This Gift's Cost is capped at 2 and cannot be increased further.
You cannot investigate the same area more than once per day.
Maria checks the plans and looks around, seeing how things match up. She checks if the machinery is outdated, if the floor is about to fall through, and where it differs from her plans and permits.
Exert your Mind and spend a minute to activate. Investigate an area with a radius of up to 100 feet At the end of your investigation, roll Perception + Investigation at Difficulty 6.
You learn the following information about the area:
You gain the following benefits as long as you are piloting any vehicle.
You receive +2 dice to any rolls to pilot a vehicle.
You also gain the following effects:
The vampire/dhampir has a face people want to trust, and belongs in every social situation.
You gain the following benefits at all times.
Your Charisma rating is increased by 0. You may Exert your Mind to automatically gain an Outcome of 5 on any roll that uses Charisma (Cannot be used on combat rolls or Power activations).
Possession of this Power grants the following Trauma at all times: Low Self-Esteem (When a character or other Contractor who is similar to this Contractor in archetype or core aesthetic has an advantage over the Contractor in any noticeable way, roll Self-Control to keep from having to do anything to impress them in any way).
You also gain the following effects:
You never know whether or not the musician's death is merely part of the performance.
You gain the following benefits at all times.
If you would take an Injury that would kill you, you don’t die. Instead, you survive in an Incapacitated state. This state lasts for the next hour, at which point you fully return to life. Unstabilized Injuries do not degrade while you are Incapacitated
If, while you are unconscious, your wound level rises above your rating in Body + Charisma, or if you take an Injury with Severity greater than your rating in Charisma, you die. After you return, the Injury that would have killed you, as well as any Injuries sustained while Incapacitated, are healed. Battle scars obtained during this time remain.
Any successful musician knows the value of a good roadie. The musician calls for a roadie, and one will promptly arrive. The roadie doesn't talk much, and they aren't too bright, but they can sure haul gear.
After a couple hours of work, the roadie will retire to smoke and get some sleep.
Exert your Mind and spend an Action.
Summon a single Sapient roadie at your location. They last for two hours or until they are destroyed. They are controlled by the GM but will follow any commands you give. You may have at most one minion active at a time.
You may only use this Effect once per day.
The ninja does not approve of guns; they prefer using the bow for its stealth and versatility.
You gain the following benefits as long as engaged in combat with wooden longbows.
You receive +2 dice to all rolls using wooden longbows. Reloading is a Free Action, and drawing your weapon does not require a Quick Action as long as it is on your person.
You also gain the following effects:
Years of scouting in dangerous areas has left the survivalist hyper-vigilant. They are impossible to catch in a trap.
You gain the following benefits at all times.
Your Perception rating is increased by 1. You may Exert your Mind to automatically gain an Outcome of 5 on any roll that uses Perception (Cannot be used on combat rolls or Power activations).
You also gain the following effects:
The creature's claws rip through the poor, defenseless doctor's coat, opening deep gashes in their gut. It bares its fangs to lunge for the killing blow, but the doctor looks up at the attacker. Their eyes filed not with utter terror at their imminent demise, only a look of disappointment and pity. Touched, the monster hesitates. . .
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. Your target should be intuitively based on the triggering event. 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.