Qualities

Positive Qualities List

Asexual (5)

Duration: Standard Type: Mental

A character with this quality is not tempted by the opposite sex (or the same sex, for that matter). This quality is only available in characters whose culture has a Romance universal motivation; the character does not take that motivation. Note that this character may still pursue relationships for other reasons; an asexual character may still desire to have children, for example, and in some cultures marriages have little to do with romantic love regardless.

Bilingual (10 or 30)

Duration: Lifetime Type: Mental

This character was taught two tongues from birth. At 10 points, she knows two languages that share a common World base. At 30 points, she knows two languages from different worlds. This quality can only be taken at birth; after birth, all languages must be learned the hard way.

Brick Wall (10)

Duration: Standard Type: Physical

Due to a good stance or simply the way he carries himself, this character is tougher to move than most people his size. When standing still, he gains an effective +2 to his effective BOD when calculating encumbrance, recoil, or lifting ability, +2 dice to damage resistance rolls from melee attacks, and +4 dice when resisting grappling. In addition, if this character does resist all of the damage from a melee attack or grapple attempt, the attacking character goes off balance and loses 1 IP in addition to whatever IP was spent on the attack itself. This quality has no effect if the character moved on his most recent turn or has not yet acted in combat.

Counter-Surveillant (5 × Level)

Duration: Standard Type: Social

The character's standard appearance when going outside is tailored in such a way as to confuse automated sensors and surveillance - examples include spiked bangs covering the face, retro-reflective eyeliner, makeup in wavelengths which cameras are especially sensitive to, thermally emissive clothing, and tattoos in strange patterns. Any computerized surveillance attempts to identify the character or pick her out of a crowd receive a -4 dice pool penalty per level. On the flipside, she is far more distinctive to sentient sensibilities, granting +2 dice per level when someone else is trying to track her down by talking to other people (just like the Distinctive Style quality).

Counter-surveillance techniques evolve with the technology and always seem to be one step ahead, so the quality may apply to people regardless of the CPU Tech Level of the culture; however, a character that travels to a culture with a higher CPU TL than their native culture may find herself outclassed, and the surveillance equipment of that culture will not have trouble tracking her unless she makes a point to learn local counter-surveillance techniques. If they wish to remain counter-surveillant, this quality must be bought with XP again, as the character must learn techniques relevant to the new culture.

Enhanced Attribute (20)

Duration: Lifetime Type: Physical

This character has one attribute raised one point higher after rolling his attributes, up to a maximum of 6 + Racial mods. If taken along with the Freakish quality, this limit does not apply.

Eidetic Memory (5)

Duration: Lifetime Type: Mental

This character has an eidetic memory, and is unusually adept at memorizing images or information. During any kind of precise recall memory test, this character gains +4 dice. A character that takes this quality may have double the normal points to put into Interests.

First Impression (10)

Duration: Temporary Type: Social

As the name suggests, this character gives a good first impression. The first time interacting with someone, she takes a +2 bonus on all social tests.

Genetically Modified (20)

Duration: Special Type: Physical

This character has genetic modifications that go beyond his species's natural abilities. In addition to the standard amount of XP available for Positive Qualities, this character may take a certain number of XP worth of Genetic Qualities. Having a unique genetic makeup makes medical care trickier; any test involving the Medicine skill where this character is the subject has its Glitch Risk increased by 1; if the medical practitioner has the Genetic Engineering specialization, this GR is negated. This quality is always passed along to children, even if none of the Genetic Qualities are passed on.

The amount of XP that may be spent on Genetic Qualities varies depending on the MED tech level. This limit is calculated using (MED TL - 3) × 10; this means 20 XP for MED 5 cultures, up to 90 XP for MED 12 cultures. This quality merely opens the ability to spend this XP; the XP still comes out of your character's XP Bank. Genetic modifications do not count towards the XP limit for Qualities in general.

This quality is generally only available to characters who were born to a culture with a MED TL of at least 5. If the character's parents' backstory can justify it (at the GM's discretion), it may be available to cultures with a MED TL of 4, but the XP Cost of this Quality as well as the relevant Glitch Risk will be doubled, and regular medical checkups are required (no less than once a year, with a doctor from a culture with a MED TL of at least 4 and a specialization in Genetic Engineering) in order to prevent chronic health problems from developing (the character receives Old Age effects at a rate of one for each year he does not get a checkup). In this situation, treat this enhancement much like Cutting Edge gear - the child's genes will be highly valuable, and they may be targeted to become subjects of experimentation and research (willingly or otherwise). Thus, people in this situation will tend to keep their enhancements a secret.

A list of available Genetic Qualities is found in the Gear chapter.

Hardy (10 × level)

Duration: Hereditary Type: Physical

A character with this quality is more tolerant of extreme environmental conditions than normal. For every level of this quality taken, the range of tolerance in any one environmental tolerance is extended by one past the species standard (i.e. the maximum is increased, or the minimum is decreased). This can only be taken with each tolerance being affected by exactly one level of the quality, up to four levels.

High Bone Density (20 × level)

Duration: Lifetime Type: Physical

This character was raised on a planet or station with higher gravity than their species' homeworld. The quality manifests as a +(Level) modifier to BOD, as well as extending the character's upper GRV tolerance by (Level). If a character has this quality, they may not also have the Hardy quality affect GRV tolerance.

Immunity to Poison (5 × level)

Duration: Standard Type: Physical

When affected by a poison, this character adds (level) to the result of the first resistance roll.

Jack of all Trades (10)

Duration: Standard Type: Mental

....and master of none. This character has a special relationship with skills. This character never takes a penalty from defaulting, regardless of the specialization in question. However, he may never take any specializations in any skill.

Juryrigger (5)

Duration: Standard Type: Mental

This character is exceptionally talented at technical improvisation. When confronted with a broken piece of gear or vehicle, he can get it to work once more before it gives up the ghost. He can also use items slightly outside of their intended purpose (at GM's discretion).

Natural Immunity (15)

Duration: Hereditary Type: Physical

This character is fully immune to some specific toxin, chemical, poison, or disease (chosen with the quality), and it has no effect on her.

Officer (Varies)

Duration: Standard Type: Social

A character who has authority and clout in an organization, usually a military, must have this quality. Different militaries will have different names for these ranks; the XP Cost determines functionality, authority, and responsibilities of the character within the organization. This quality includes free XP to put into the Subculture for the relevant military - up to half the point value of the quality, rounded up. The actual ranks of any given military are listed in the Militaries chapter of the Reference section, along with their XP values.

As the campaign progresses, the character may at times be up for promotion, when the story and situation allows for it. When such an opportunity comes up, only XP gained from the Officer motivation - which is gained when orders are followed and successfully carried out - may be used to buy an upgrade in the rank used for this quality, so it is recommended that the character take the Promotion motivation, or else his rank will be stagnant throughout the campaign. When promoted, the character pays the difference in XP between the old rank and the new rank.

A list of militaries and their ranks, along with the XP cost of each, is available in the Reference section. If the organization or military does not have ranks listed in the Reference section of the book, the GM should use the existing ranks as guidelines to create appropriate ranks with commensurate XP costs.

Prodigy (20)

Duration: Lifetime Type: Mental

This character is able to learn more quickly than most people his age. The skill caps in any particular age range are increased by 2, to a maximum of 12.

Quick Healer (5)

Duration: Special Type: Mental

This quality halves the time period required for any kind of healing. A character over Middle Age may not have this quality. If the character ages past this point in a time skip, the quality is lost; this loss may replace one aging effect.

Sidekick (30)

Duration: Standard Type: Social

A character with this quality has a companion she is extremely close to. This may be another person (generally a subordinate), or it may be based on a critter (the hunter's loyal dog). The sidekick is built as a real character and is generally going to be completely loyal to the character with this quality. The sidekick may be built with 50% of the primary character's starting XP; for things that are dependent on age, use half the character's value for that. (That is, the sidekick's effective "age above puberty" is half the primary character's "age above puberty".) The XP cost of the base requirements (based on species and culture) of the companion may not exceed this starting XP value.

The sidekick has his attributes assigned like a normal character.

After character creation, the primary character has the option to spend any XP he earns on his sidekick instead; the sidekick does not earn their own XP, so this is how they will advance. Record the amount of XP spent on the sidekick. If the sidekick dies (either due to old age or more violently), the character may find a new sidekick that has the same starting XP as the old sidekick, and has half of the XP that was spent on the old sidekick.

This quality can only be taken once per character, and a sidekick cannot have a sidekick. The GM may determine that certain skills or qualities are not appropriate for a sidekick (especially if the sidekick is non-sentient).

Upper Crust (10)

Duration: Standard Type: Social

This quality indicates that this character is part of the high-earning income bracket of whatever culture he is a part of. Anytime the Base Income is used (both at character creation and in time skips), the amount is doubled. In addition, there are social consequences; anytime this character is dealing with another of the Upper Crust, they have a +2 dice pool modifier on social tests. However, any character who is downtrodden or poor (or sympathetic to the poor) is likely to have a negative reaction, resulting in a -2 dice pool modifier.

Will to Live (5)

Duration: Standard Type: Mental

This character adds his WIL to his physical damage maximum.

Xenophilia (5 or 10)

Duration: Standard Type: Social

This quality may only be taken on a character with the Romance motivation. At 5 points, this character is sexually attracted to members of a particular alien species; at 10 points, the character is not deterred from romantic relationships by species at all. The quality, when applicable, nullifies the Romance motivation XP penalties for interspecies romance.

Negative Qualities List

Negative Qualities are the negative quirks of a character, the ones that will cause problems in life. They give you an XP bonus that may be spent on anything else at build time. Negative qualities gained after character creation are usually the result of aging, bad decisions, or bad luck, and do not grant an XP bonus.

Addiction (psychological) (5 × level)

Duration: Temporary Type: Mental

A character with this quality has a bad habit - it might be for a particular kind of media, a gambling addiction, or a self-image problem that requires a particular habit be fulfilled on a regular basis. At the given time interval (from the Addiction table), the character must make a WIL + CHA (level) test; if he fails, he is required to do anything he has to do to get a fix, and if he does not, he is then distracted, incurring a -(level) dice pool modifier to all mental tests involving concentration. The GM may also force the character to make such a test anytime the character is confronted by the object of his addiction.

For physiological or chemical addictions, use the quality Drug Tolerance.

Allergy (5 × Level)

Duration: Lifetime Type: Physical

This character is allergic or overly sensitive to a particular compound. Anytime he is in the presence of this compound, he takes one point of Environmental Damage per minute, or more for concentrated amounts. The total amount of Physical Damage that can be taken this way in one hour is limited to the level of the quality times 2.

Amnesia (5, 15, or 40)

Duration: Standard Type: Mental

This character has lost her memories, and the level to which this has happened determines the XP bonus. At 5 XP, she has lost memories of only one specific incident or time period in her life. At 15 XP, she has lost most of her memories including her identity, but still retains her skills.

At 40 XP, in addition to the loss of identity and memory, the character also forgets what skills she possesses. The player does not choose any skills for the character, but instead, allocates a certain number XP towards skills. The gamemaster creates the list of skills on the character's behalf. Anytime she attempts to perform an action, she rolls as if defaulting; if this is a skill the character unknowingly possesses, the GM rolls extra dice to bring the total up to the amount the character would be rolling with the skill. Only if the roll succeeds does the GM inform the player that this is a skill the character has.

Amputee (15 × level)

Duration: Lifetime Type: Physical

This character has lost a hand, foot, or limb. Naturally, the lost limb cannot be used for anything, and the character’s mobility or utility will be compromised as a result. Each level of this quality represents a limb that is missing (and has not been replaced), and therefore this quality cannot be taken more times than a character’s species has limbs.

If the character gets a prosthetic limb to replace the lost one, this quality must be bought off with Spendable XP first. If the character is unable to do so and gets an artificial limb anyway, the new limb will be lost; perhaps her body will reject it, for example.

Atrophy (5 × Level)

Duration: Temporary Type: Physical

This character has not used her muscles long enough that they are atrophied, much weaker than normal. For every level of this quality, the character's effective BOD attribute is reduced by 1, to a minimum of 1.

Bad Reputation (5 × Level)

Duration: Standard Type: Social

This character is someone that a lot of people don’t want to associate with. Maybe he’s a snitch or doesn’t get the job done, or simply attracts too much of the wrong kind of attention to himself. His mere presence in a team or at the negotiating table puts his side at a disadvantage, giving his side a -1 dice pool modifier per level on all social tests.

If Bad Reputation is a required quality of a culture, it does not apply when interacting with other members of that culture. However, if interacting with a member of a different culture that has the quality, the penalties may still apply - the qualities may be for different reasons.

Botched Resequencing (5 × Level)

Duration: Hereditary Type: Physical

This quality is only available to characters with the Genetically Modified quality. One of the genetic modifications the character has gone badly - either interacted unpredictably with existing genes, or it failed to fully take effect. In either case, it can cause issues anytime the modification is utilized - anytime a perception check is made with modified eyes, anytime damage is resisted with a carapace, and so on. Anytime such a test is made, the test will be subject to a +\(Level\) Glitch Risk.

Can't take a Joke (5)

Duration: Standard Type: Social

This character has a lousy sense of humor. In any social interaction, the GM rolls glitch dice with +2 Glitch Risk. In the event of a glitch, another character has made a joke or innocuous comment that this character will take offense to, and will possibly respond violently. If an enemy attempts to use the Derision specialization against him, it will enrage him - the effect of the derision will be doubled, but he will have a +5 dice pool bonus to attack the person who made the comment.

Combat Paralysis (5 or 20)

Duration: Standard Type: Mental

This character tends to freeze up during combat. At the beginning of a combat round, he rolls 1d6. At the 5-point variety, if he rolls a 1, he does not get a natural turn, and may only interrupt if he spends Chutzpah. At the 20-point variety, this happens when he rolls anything except a hit (that is, 1 through 4).

Counterculture (5)

This character is not known for following the rules. This quality is required in order to not follow the norms of the culture in which he lives. The character may choose to ignore any one Universal Motivation from his culture, replacing it with other Motivation(s) of his choosing. As a consequence, in interactions with any member of the Culture to which this character belongs, this character takes a -2 dice pool modifier.

This quality is only usable if the Motivation being removed is not covered in a similar way by another quality, including Sociopath, Depression, or Asexual.

Depression (20)

Duration: Standard Type: Mental

This character lacks the will to get up and do anything. This quality is only available if the character’s Culture includes the Achievement motivation; the character does not take this Motivation.

Distinctive Style (5 × Level)

Duration: Standard Type: Social

The character has a calling card, a unique look, or something else that makes him stand out (this attribute is chosen with the quality). If this character is under investigation of any kind, the investigator receives a +2 dice pool bonus per level to identify this character’s handiwork.

Double Life (5)

Duration: Standard Type: Social

This character maintains part of his life in one culture, but part of it in another. In game terms, he has one culture as his true self, but tries to pass for another culture elsewhere; for example, a collaborator trying to pass himself off as a resistance fighter. He takes all of his Universal Motivations, Qualities, and Income from his primary culture. He may choose to take those aspects of the faked culture as well as long as they are not mutually incompatible, but may also fake them.

People on either side of his life may discover his dual nature, either by perceiving his lack of a particular Universal Motivation (see those rules under “Universal Motivations” in the One Among the Crowd chapter) or by directly observing some activity that is counter to either culture. If this should happen, consequences can range anywhere from negative social dice pool modifiers to attempts at murder, depending on the situation.

Drug Recovery (1 × Addiction Factor × Level, minimum 1)

Duration: Lifetime Type: Physical

This character is a recovering drug addict. If she makes an addiction test for the drug which this quality applies to, she will have a much harder time resisting the addiction.

Drug Tolerance (5 × Addiction Factor × Level)

Duration: Standard Type: Physical

This character has been regularly using a drug (chosen with the quality) long enough that her body depends on it. If the character is not under the influence of the drug, she will experience the inverse effect of any positive Attribute effect within the drug's Standard Effects. For example, if the drug's effect is REA + 1, she will take REA - 1 for each level of this quality when not on the drug. In this case, the attribute is reduced to a minimum of 1. If the character has this at a higher level, the Standard Effect of the drug, instead of altering the attribute, cancels out this effect, regardless of the level of the quality (but will not increase the attribute beyond that).

This quality may result from repeated use of an addictive drug, and if so, will not result in an XP bonus. In order to remove this quality, the character must go through withdrawal. (See the Drugs, Toxins, Poisons, and Chemicals section in the Rules of Acquisition chapter for more details.) Anytime a level of this quality is removed, the character takes a level in the Drug Recovery quality for the same drug, which can never be removed.

Freakish (15)

Duration: Standard Type: Physical

This character may have an unusually high attribute for his species, or if not, he looks like it. This quality removes the 6 + Species Mod limit on attributes, and is often taken alongside qualities like Enhanced Attribute, cybernetic, or genetic qualities to allow these to be used to their full potential. This quality is usually fairly evident, and people often react poorly to such a character, either through intimidation, jealousy, distrust (especially when used with INT or MAN), or simply being uncomfortable around someone “weird”. If a character with this quality is interacting with someone who might be affected in this way, the other character should make a Perception check with a threshold of 2 for Physical Attributes or 4 for Mental or Social Attributes; if the other character succeeds at the test, the player character takes a -2 dice pool modifier in all Social interactions with that character. This modifier does not apply when interacting with anyone else with the same Freakish attribute, or if interacting with a member of a society which has this quality (for the same attribute) as one of its required qualities (or anyone who regularly interacts amicably with said society).

Immunocompromised (5 × Level)

Duration: Standard Type: Physical

There are many reasons a character's immune system could be compromised. Some diseases and poisons attack the immune system directly, and immunosuppressants are often given to patients receiving transplants to prevent the new organ from being rejected. When resisting biological infection, an Immunocompromised character has the threshold increased by (Level).

Incompetent (10)

Duration: Standard Type: Social

This character does not have one of his culture’s Universal Skills (chosen with the quality), and does not have to pay for this skill with XP. He’s likely to be looked down on by other members of that culture, receiving a -2 dice pool modifier on social tests if the opposing character knows about the lack of skill. Typically, the lack of this skill will be evident in daily life.

Infirm BOD/AGI/REA (10 × level)

Duration: Standard Type: Physical

This character has a particular physical infirmity that restricts the use of one attribute (chosen with the quality). For each level in this quality, this attribute's effective value is reduced by 1 (after racial modifiers). If any particular attribute is reduced to 0 or below by this quality, the character is considered an invalid in that area, and cannot use skills related to it; if all three physical attributes are 0 or below, the character will die.

Lenny (10)

Duration: Standard Type: Mental

This quality is only available for characters whose BOD rating is 5 or 6 (before mods). This character doesn’t know his own strength. Anytime he is handling something (or someone!) delicate, he must make an AGI + PER test with a threshold determined by the GM, anywhere between 1 and 4, with higher numbers being used for the most delicate objects. Negative modifiers for mood and distraction may apply to this test. If he fails this test, he either breaks the object outright or deals BOD damage to it.

Lone Wolf (40)

Duration: Standard Type: Social

This character does not play well with others, or at the very least, no better than she does when she is alone. This character cannot contribute to nor benefit from the Team Bank, nor does she contribute or gain XP from the Team Motivations.

Lost Sense (20)

Duration: Standard Type: Physical

Whether sight, smell, hearing, or some extra sense that humans lack, this quality means that the individual is lacking a sense that others of this species has. If a given perception test is possible at all, but might possibly be affected by the lost sense, this character will take a GR +2 on the test.

Low Bone Density (10 × Level)

Duration: Lifetime Type: Physical

This character has weak bones, most likely from having grown up in a low gravity environment. For every level of this quality, the character's maximum GRV tolerance is reduced by 1.

Low Lung Capacity (10 × Level)

Duration: Lifetime Type: Physical

This character has half the lung capacity of a normal member of her species. Anytime she takes Environmental damage based on atmosphere or air (or lack thereof), she takes one extra point of damage for each level of this quality.

Low Pain Tolerance (10 or 20)

Duration: Standard Type: Physical

Negative modifiers from Stun damage affect this character more. At 10 points, the character takes -1 die for every two points of combined Physical and Stun damage; at 20 points, the character takes -1 die for every point.

Nervous Fidget (5)

Duration: Standard Type: Mental

The character has a habit (chosen with the quality) such as fidgeting, nailbiting, finger-drumming, restless leg, etc. If they are not performing this habit when doing any given action, they take a -2 dice pool penalty on that action for lack of focus.

Out of Touch (5 × level)

Duration: Standard Type: Social

This character has trouble relating to characters that are not of his own generation. When interacting with any character (including those he knows personally), he takes a -1 × (level) dice pool penalty for every full 10 years of age difference between them. This quality is common among older characters.

Phobia (Variable × Level)

Duration: Standard Type: Mental

This character suffers from a phobia of a particular situation or object. Each phobia has a point value based on how common it is. In addition, this quality may be taken at multiple levels; the level the quality is taken at is multiplied by the point value of the phobia. When this character is faced with the object of his phobia, she must make a WIL + CHA (Level) roll; if she does not succeed, she must do everything possible to avoid the situation. If forced into the situation anyway, the character must make a separate WIL + CHA (Level) to avoid having a panic attack, incapacitating her for (Level) minutes (at which point she may make another test, unless the situation has passed); the only thing the character may do during this time is to directly escape the problematic situation, and even then, only simplistic actions may be taken.

Phobias may be taken that are not explicitly a part of this list; the GM should assign a point value for such a phobia.

It is important to note that phobias, in the sense of this quality, are fears, not prejudices; xenophobia, for example, is only appropriate for this quality if the character is actually fearful of aliens (simply being prejudiced against aliens would fall under the Prejudiced quality).

* Claustrophobia, notably, applies in space as well as tight spaces, if the character has little control; for example, floating in a spacesuit with no propulsion control, handhelds, or tether may trigger an episode.

Prejudiced (5 × level)

Duration: Standard Type: Social

A character with this quality has an unreasonable dislike for a particular group or kind of sentient being. This character will attempt to make life difficult for any members of that group he comes across; anytime faced with the option to bring harm to such a person, the character with this quality must succeed in a WIL + CHA (level) test in order to have the option not to take that action, even if the action is risky or inconvenient for them.

PTSD (5 × level)

Duration: Standard Type: Mental

This character has a memory that haunts him, and can occasionally be triggered to relive it, rendering him temporarily paralyzed or catatonic. This trigger (chosen with the quality) may be (as examples) a gunshot, the sight of a blade, the smell of blood, or the act of getting onboard a spacecraft. Anytime the trigger is encountered, the character must make a WIL + CHA (Level) test to not go catatonic. If the GM determines that the trigger is too rare to be an issue in the game, he may halve the XP bonus gained from this quality.

In the case of other related situations - any loud banging noise instead of a gunshot, for example - the character may grow impatient, fearful, or short-tempered, even if it does not trigger a full-fledged PTSD flashback. Treat the character in this situation as if he has the Short Fuse quality at the same level.

Radiation Sickness (2 × level)

Duration: Temporary Type: Physical

This character has recieved a significant dose of radiation, and will have health problems because of it. Each level of Radiation Sickness reduces both the Stun and Physical damage tracks by 1 as long as it is in play; if this reduces the Physical damage track to 0 or below, the character is dead. This quality may be removed one level at a time with a INT + Medicine \(Longterm care\) test, with a threshold of current level - doctor's MED TL (minimum 1); if successful, the character may pay the XP difference to remoce the level. Each time any medical or healing test is made (including the test to reduce this quality as well as tests to recover any Stun or Physical damage, made with or without a doctor), the current level - doctor's MED TL (if applicable) acts as a Glitch Risk; if a glitch is rolled, the level of this quality is increased by 1.

Red Shirt (25)

Duration: Standard Type: Physical

Sometimes, your sole purpose in life is to serve as an example to somebody else. A character with this quality is likely to be the first to be targeted when fighting breaks out. Furthermore, when any action is being carried out where a glitch would threaten the Red Shirt's life, the Glitch Risk is increased by 1.

Repulsive (20)

Duration: Standard Type: Social

This character is disfigured in some way. Perhaps he was born deformed, or has suffered some kind of accident or combat wounds that are immediately obvious and overly distracting. His BEA attribute is effectively a 0, and most characters (GM's discretion on who the exceptions might be) would gain no XP from romantic involvement with this character, especially the short-term, shallow kind of romantic involvement.

Scarred (2 × level)

Duration: Lifetime Type: Social

This character has a permanent, visible scar from some past injury. Though the scar incurs no practical penalty, it is likely to cause some reaction in those that see it. Whether this reaction is positive or negative depends on the situation and on the beholder (at GM's discretion), and acts as anywhere between a +(level) to -(level) modifier, inclusive. The level of this quality taken depends on the number and severity of scars - a small scar is one level, while a body-covering scar may be as many as 5 levels.

Schizophrenia (20 × level)

Duration: Hereditary Type: Mental

A character with schizophrenia may have auditory and visual hallucinations and generally has a hard time discerning what is real from what is not. On all perception tests, the character will have a Glitch Risk of (level). This condition may be managed with the proper medication, which is available if the culture's MED TL is high enough. At MED TL 4, medication is available to reduce the effective level by 1; at MED TL 7, it reduces the level by 2; at MED TL 9, it reduces the level by 3. A character with this quality does not necessarily know that he has it.

Senile (10 × level)

Duration: Lifetime Type: Mental

As this character ages, she starts to forget things she once knew well. At the start of every game session, randomly choose one skill, and roll 1d6; that skill level is reduced by the roll's result, and specializations are lost accordingly. For each additional level, randomly choose another skill to forget; the number of skills reduced each day is the level of this quality. (Randomizing tip: Keep a set of homemade cards, one with every skill written on it, and shuffle those to choose the skill.) At the GM’s discretion, you may choose a new set of randomly forgotten skills after your character gets a good night’s sleep.

In addition to the forgotten skills, the GM may have the player roll a Memory Test (WIL + INT) with a threshold equal to the level of this quality taken, to recall basic information about what’s going on around them, including the identities of the people he is having a conversation with, the objective of the current mission, or what planet he is on.

Short Fuse (5 × level)

Duration: Standard Type: Social

This character is easily angered. Anytime something is said or done to this character that might cause anger, roll a WIL + CHA (level) test. If it is failed, the character loses his temper and reacts in some way - perhaps violence, perhaps snark, or anywhere in between - that will incur a negative Social dice pool modifier in the amount of the level for the remainder of the encounter, and may possibly incur other, more permanent effects.

Social Apathy (5 × Level)

Duration: Standard Type: Social

Characterized by not giving a fuck what other people think, Social Apathy manifests as a negative social modifier in the amount of its level in most social situations. However, it does grant the character bonus dice in the amount of its level in WIL tests that are related to the opinions of others.

Sociopath (25)

Duration: Lifetime Type: Mental/Social

This character feels none of the usual empathy towards family or friends. This Quality is only available to a character in a Culture that has the Family/Friends motivation; this character chooses not to take this motivation. The character may still choose to help those he associates with, but generally does so out of mutual self-interest.

This character must “fake” a lot of the social interactions and small talk necessary to convince others that he is normal; the Charisma attribute is replaced by the Manipulation attribute for all social situations. However, if the character fails any opposed social test, the opposing character rolls CHA + PER with a threshold of the character's real CHA attribute; if they succeed, they now see the Sociopath character for what they are, and the Sociopath character suffers a -4 modifier on all future opposed social tests with that character where seeming inhuman would be disadvantageous.

Uncouth (20)

Duration: Standard Type: Social

This character always says the wrong thing at the wrong time. Her Glitch Risk on all social tests is increased by 2.