Percussive Maintenance “Use of the hammer: $1. Knowing how to use the hammer: $999.”

1
The power to enhance your tools beyond mundane limits.
Used by Dr. Erin Skunk, Created by TheSuperChrisb.
(This Effect is obviously Alien when used. You must actively and obviously be using a Ball-Peen Hammer.)

Dr. Skunk, a great inventor, knows exactly what to do whenever she needs to improve a mechanical item. It's as simple as taking a look at something and knowing *just* the right spot to strike.

Skunk examines the item she wishes to work on for a short amount of time, visualizing it completely in her mind, before gently tapping it in a specific place to greatly improve its functionality. Over the duration of the improvement, the item takes on a faint shimmer, as if its saturation has been raised in a photo editing software, as well as having all dirt and grime cleaned from its surface.

Exert your Mind and spend a minute. Select a non-Alien Device within arm's reach. Roll a single D10 as a critical failure check. If you roll a 1, the Effect fails, and you the Upgraded object shatters the next time the user attempts to activate it. You must actively and obviously use a Ball-Peen Hammer to activate this Effect. Can be used on Armor.

Lasts the next day. Your target receives 2 extra dice to all actions taken for its intended use. Attacking with an upgraded weapon grants +2 Weapon Damage instead of additional dice. If it is a piece of Armor, it instead receives half that amount as bonus armor rating, rounded up. If an upgraded shield and armor are both worn, the upgrade bonus does not stack with itself.

  • Reminder: additional Weapon Damage granted by this Effect does not stack with any other bonus to Weapon Damage. Instead the largest bonus is used. The same is true for extra dice.
  • Extra dice from this Effect do not apply to Gift activation rolls.
  • 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.
Revision purchased with:
Improvement from writing a Journal for red scare spent on improving power: Percussive Maintenance    (since refunded)
Revision purchased with:
Gift from playing in Passing the Hours spent on revising power: Percussive Maintenance    (since refunded)
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Community Upgrade Gifts

Take a Severity-1 Injury and spend a minute to activate. Select a non-Alien Device within arm's reach. You must actively and obviously use A necklace of the image Yog-sothoth to activate this Effect. Cannot be used to improve Armor.

For the next day, your target receives 1 extra dice to all actions taken with its intended use.

You may choose a second valid Device target while activating this effect and splice both targets into a single new Device. The newly created item has the same size as the larger of the two initial targets, and can be used to perform the same actions as either of the original items. It receives 1 extra dice to those actions for the next day.

  • After the effect ends, spliced items become un-spliced and return to being separate items.
  • You can target yourself if you qualify as a valid target by the other requirements.

This Artifact has been upgraded.

This Artifact receives 2 extra dice to all actions taken for its intended use. Attacking with an upgraded weapon grants +2 Weapon Damage instead of additional dice. While it is upgraded, the item cannot be destroyed.

Upgraded weapons count as any material your opponent might be particularly vulnerable to. Upgraded Armor cannot be circumvented by called shots. Upgraded Devices do not run out of fuel or energy.

  • "Destroyed" in this context means "prevented from functioning for its primary purpose", so for instance, an upgraded land mine would still explode as normal if triggered, even though it cannot be "destroyed" and a car's windows may still be broken.
  • Reminder: additional Weapon Damage granted by this Effect does not stack with any other bonus to Weapon Damage. Instead the largest bonus is used. The same is true for extra dice.
  • Extra dice from this Effect do not apply to Gift activation rolls.

This Artifact has been upgraded.

This Artifact receives 2 extra dice to all actions taken for its intended use. Attacking with an upgraded weapon grants +2 Weapon Damage instead of additional dice. While it is upgraded, the item cannot be destroyed. Upgraded Armor is shredded by half the normal amount. If it is a piece of Armor, it instead receives half that amount as bonus armor rating, rounded up. If an upgraded shield and armor are both worn, the upgrade bonus does not stack with itself.

Upgraded weapons count as any material your opponent might be particularly vulnerable to. Upgraded Armor cannot be circumvented by called shots. Upgraded Devices do not run out of fuel or energy.

This item is a living thing. When targeted, it counts as a Living Creature in addition to its other target types. If destroyed or abandoned for more than two days, it dies and becomes unusable.

  • "Destroyed" in this context means "prevented from functioning for its primary purpose", so for instance, an upgraded land mine would still explode as normal if triggered, even though it cannot be "destroyed" and a car's windows may still be broken.
  • Reminder: additional Weapon Damage granted by this Effect does not stack with any other bonus to Weapon Damage. Instead the largest bonus is used. The same is true for extra dice.
  • Extra dice from this Effect do not apply to Gift activation rolls.

On alchemy:
Here comes the alchemist chef. Does Delphyrion need to specify that this is a transformation from one object to another? Not really. Do they really like the law of conservation of mass and matter? Nope. Do they know they don't have to do all this stuff to limit themselves? Debatable. They'll just insist that this is for the science, the discovery, the suspense, the funny shenanigans.

On the vials:
They appear to be generic vials of clear liquid when unused, though that's questionable enough in and of itself if Delphyrion ever needs to get it past TSA (not that it's much of an issue anymore, considering the availability of their little stash). Hopefully Delph has labeled these correctly, lest they try to chuck this at someone instead of their signature piranha solution. What is the liquid called, anyway? ...Schrodinger's solution. It either exists or it doesn't. Or maybe it's somewhere in between...

On the backpack:
This consumable used to be a backpack. It was easy enough to mistake for any backpack at all, and Delphyrion had not put a label on it. They have lost quite a few beakers and pens to it whenever they mused about their next experiment, as they often reach epiphanies by saying, "If only I had [food item]". Perhaps that's why the artifact works this way.

On food quality:
For some reason the output quality directly ties to the price of food in Orlando. So, use a 5-cent pencil, and you'll get a 5-cent quality potato fry*.
Also, yeah, make sure it's 1 minute exactly. This is a theoretical number; no one has tried to test its limits, hence its reference to Schrodinger.
*Food will vanish from your stomach after 2 hours.

Use up this pair of chemical vials and spend 1 minute. Roll 7 dice Difficulty 6, dice penalties do not apply.

Choose a specific type of Food, Drugs, and Administration which could fit inside a regular backpack (up to 27 liters). It must be Non-Alien and generic. You cannot create explosives. You may create firearms.

Roll Intellect + Science to fabricate up to 5 copies of your chosen Object. The Difficulty is assigned by the GM and depends on the specificity of your chosen Object. The created item lasts 2 hours.

  • This consumable is destroyed when used and cannot be used again.
  • The Difficulty for the fabrication roll increases based on specificity. Something like a "shirt" would be Difficulty 5, whereas "Police uniform" would be Difficulty 9. The Outcome determines overall quality and how well the item fits the request.
  • You can fabricate a container of something so long as it contains a single type of thing (such as a tank of water) or it is designed to be packaged together (such as a first aid kit).
  • If you are able to activate this Effect as a Reaction, its roll contests the incoming Attack.

Exert your Mind and spend 1 Action. Select a non-Alien Device within arm's reach. Cannot be used to improve Armor.

Lasts the next day. Your target receives 2 extra dice to all actions taken for its intended use. Attacking with an upgraded weapon grants +2 Weapon Damage instead of additional dice. While it is upgraded, the item cannot be destroyed.

Upgraded weapons count as any material your opponent might be particularly vulnerable to. Upgraded Armor cannot be circumvented by called shots. Upgraded Devices do not run out of fuel or energy.

Anyone who touches this Artifact will notice it warping their body and may drop it. If they choose to hold or use it, they immediately receive the following Battle Scar: The Drowsy Scribe - The Sleeping Scribe's artifact pulls your body toward slumber (Attempts to put you to sleep succeed automatically. A restful sleep requires 10 hours for you. +2 difficulty to wake you from sleep and on perception checks while sleeping). If they lose possession of this Artifact, the Battle Scar heals over the course of the next day.

  • "Destroyed" in this context means "prevented from functioning for its primary purpose", so for instance, an upgraded land mine would still explode as normal if triggered, even though it cannot be "destroyed" and a car's windows may still be broken.
  • Reminder: additional Weapon Damage granted by this Effect does not stack with any other bonus to Weapon Damage. Instead the largest bonus is used. The same is true for extra dice.
  • Extra dice from this Effect do not apply to Gift activation rolls.
  • 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 Upgrade Gifts

Exert your Mind and spend a minute. Select a non-Alien Device within arm's reach. You must use up $10,000 cash (or equivalent) in order to activate this Effect. Cannot be used to improve Armor.

Lasts the next two hours. Your target receives 3 extra dice to all actions taken for its intended use. Attacking with an upgraded weapon grants +3 Weapon Damage instead of additional dice.

  • Reminder: additional Weapon Damage granted by this Effect does not stack with any other bonus to Weapon Damage. Instead the largest bonus is used. The same is true for extra dice.
  • Extra dice from this Effect do not apply to Gift activation rolls.
  • 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 1 Action and use up this glowing blue disk. Select a non-Alien Device within arm's reach. Cannot be used to improve Armor.

Lasts the next two hours. Your target receives 2 extra dice to all actions taken for its intended use. Attacking with an upgraded weapon grants +2 Weapon Damage instead of additional dice. While it is upgraded, the item cannot be destroyed.

After the Effect ends, any upgraded targets suffer a -2 dice penalty until they are either repaired or upgraded again.

  • "Destroyed" in this context means "prevented from functioning for its primary purpose", so for instance, an upgraded land mine would still explode as normal if triggered, even though it cannot be "destroyed" and a car's windows may still be broken.
  • This consumable is destroyed when used and cannot be used again.
  • Reminder: additional Weapon Damage granted by this Effect does not stack with any other bonus to Weapon Damage. Instead the largest bonus is used. The same is true for extra dice.
  • Extra dice from this Effect do not apply to Gift activation rolls.
  • 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.