Val CHA Cost Roll Notes 25 STR 15 14- Lift 800 kg; 5d6 HTH Damage [2] 18 DEX 16 13- 21 CON 11 13- 14 INT 4 12- PER Roll 12- 8 EGO -2 11- 10 PRE 0 11- PRE Attack: 2d6 6 OCV 15 6 DCV 15 3 OMCV 0 3 DMCV 0 4 SPD 20 Phases: 3, 6, 9, 12 13 PD 6 Total: 13 PD (5 rPD) 13 ED 6 Total: 13 ED (5 rED) 9 REC 5 40 END 4 13 BODY 3 37 STUN 9 Total Characteristics Cost: 127 Movement: Running: 12m/24m Leaping: 30m/30m Swimming: 0m Cost Powers & Skills 5 Apathetic: +10 PRE; Only To Defend Against Offensive Presence Attacks (-1) 53 Military-Grade Cyberbrain: +25 EGO plus +9 OMCV plus +9 DMCV; Cybersystem (-¼), Restrainable (EMP cut-off switch; -¼) 14 Multi-Layered Attack Barrier: Mental Defense (17 points total), Hardened (+¼); Software (-½) 15 Cybergraft Shell: Resistant Protection (5 PD/5 ED) 40 Combat Cybergraft Shell: Physical Damage Reduction, Resistant, 50% plus, Energy Damage Reduction, Resistant, 50%; STUN Only (-½) 15 Full-Conversion Cyborg Body: Does Not Bleed 2 Heavy: Knockback Resistance -2m 11 Cybernetic Legs: Leaping +26m (30m forward, 15m upward), Reduced Endurance (0 END; +½); Cybersystem (-¼), No Noncombat Movement (-¼), Restrainable (EMP cut-off switch; -¼) -2 Cyborg Body: Swimming -4m 6 Cranial Radio: HRRP (Radio Group); Affected As Hearing Group As Well As Radio Group (-½), Cybersystem (-¼), Restrainable (EMP cut-off switch; -¼) 3 Thermographic Filter: IR Perception (Sight Group); Cybersystem (-¼), Restrainable (EMP cut-off switch; -¼) 3 Ultraviolet Filter: UV Perception (Sight Group); Cybersystem (-¼), Restrainable (EMP cut-off switch; -¼) 17 Full-Conversion Cyborg Body: LS (Immunity All terrestrial poisons; Immunity: All terrestrial diseases; Safe in High Pressure; Safe in Intense Cold; Safe in Intense Heat; Safe in Low Pressure/Vacuum) 2 Datajack: +1 with all computer-related Skills; Requires DNI-Capable Device And Accessible Datacable (-½), Cybersystem (-¼), Restrainable (EMP cut-off switch; -¼) Martial Arts: Commando Training Maneuver OCV DCV Effect 3 Aikido Throw +0 +1 5d6 +v/10, Target Falls 4 Boxing Cross +0 +2 7d6 Strike 4 Judo Disarm -1 +1 Disarm; 35 STR to Disarm 4 Kung Fu Block +2 +2 Block, Abort 1 Weapon Element: Knives Perks 4 assorted Contacts 2 Fringe Benefit: Sergeant Talents 3 +1/+1d6 Striking Appearance (vs. all characters) Skills 20 +2 with All Attacks 2 AK: Seattle 11- 3 Breakfall 13- 3 Climbing 13- 3 Demolitions 12- 3 Electronics 12- 2 KS: The Military/Mercenary/Terrorist World 11- 1 KS: United North America Fighter Aircraft 8- 2 KS: United North America Military History and Customs 11- 0 Language: English (idiomatic; literate) 4 Language: German (completely fluent; literate) 3 Mechanics 12- 2 Navigation (Land) 12- 3 Paramedics 12- 2 PS: United North American Special Forces 11- 3 Stealth 13- 2 Survival (Temperate/Subtropical) 12- 3 Tactics 12- 6 TF: Common Motorized Ground Vehicles, Parachuting, Advanced, Parachuting, Basic, SCUBA, Small Motorized Boats 5 WF: Small Arms, Blades, General Purpose/Heavy Machine Guns, Grenade Launchers Total Powers & Skill Cost: 282 Total Cost: 408 400+ Matching Complications (75) 10 Distinctive Features: Synthskin/Cyborg Body (see Kazei 5 page 37) (Concealable; Noticed and Recognizable; Detectable By Commonly-Used Senses) 5 Distinctive Features: Uniform (Easily Concealed; Noticed and Recognizable; Detectable By Commonly-Used Senses) 10 Hunted: United North American Military, Infrequently (Mo Pow; NCI; Watching) 15 Physical Complication: Cyborg (Infrequently; Greatly Impairing) 10 Physical Complication: Heavy (weighs roughly 200 kg) (Infrequently; Slightly Impairing) 20 Psychological Complication: 1000-Yard Stare, currently too far gone to care about much of anything (Very Common; Strong) 15 Psychological Complication: Desperate For A Sense Of Purpose And Direction (Common; Strong) 20 Social Complication: Subject To Orders (Very Frequently, Major) Total Complications Points: 75 Experience Points: 8
Background/History: The room was not very large. It was, in fact, quite small, and to Tamara Vane, it got smaller everyday. Scarcely larger than the efficiency apartments that were all the rage in Neo York, MegaTokyo and Neu Berlin—any place with too many people and not enough space—the room had all the same fixtures: a bed, bathroom (complete with minuscule shower) desk, chair, TV, computer, shelves, a few books.... The only thing it didn't have was a window... and an unlocked door.
The lack of a window didn't bother Tamara, she'd caught a glimpse of her surroundings several times during her stay and it told her nothing. High mountains, thick forest, a deep blue sky... she could be anywhere, although she guessed the Alps. The door on the other hand.
The door was the perfect symbol of her captivity. It was a featureless slab of stainless steel that dominated the far wall. There was no window, handle or hinges to mar its otherwise smooth surface. The door only opened at select times; meals and the occasional exercise periods that were few and far between. All the other doors where the same. Flat, smooth blocks of steel, electronically locked and magnetically sealed. No one in, no one out. The prison was on permanent lockdown, a natural reaction considering its inmates where, for the most part, much more than human. Cyborgs and genetic upgrades for the most part, although if the rumors were true there were a few esper weapons tucked away in the depths. All guilty of some crime that didn't quite rate the death penalty or recycling.
Laying on her bed, dressed only in her prison-issue jumpsuit—a bright orange affair that contrasted drastically with the dull gray walls—Tamara stared at the ceiling. She spent a lot of time staring at the ceiling... or the walls, or the floor, it wasn't like there was much for her to do. At first, she had tried to keep herself busy; reading books, exercising, attempting to practice what she could of her hand-to-hand combat skills solo. But as time went by, and she realized that she wasn't getting out anytime soon, that no one seemed to know, or care, that she was here, she gave it up.
Now she spent most of her time inert, her body still, her expression blank. She took showers only sporadically—it wasn't like she had to worry about body odor—ate erratically, slept when ever she felt like and found her self wearing less and less as time went by. She'd gone nude for a while, the room was perfectly climate controlled and she didn't really need clothing, until it turned out nude people didn't eat.... So, she had settled for a happy medium of sorts; she wore the regulation jumpsuit and not much else. Even now, as she lay on her thin bed, her jumpsuit was open as far as it would go, exposing a broad swath of sun-bronzed flesh. One hand was tucked under the back of her head, lost amid the tangled black tresses, while the other idly circled one pale nipple.
She had considered not eating, but starving herself to death wasn't really an option. Odds were they just turn off her body and hook her up to life support, leaving her fully aware of her surroundings but unable to do anything other than lie there. A situation that virtually guaranteed insanity within a few weeks. At one point she'd tried smashing herself to pieces against the walls, but her body was built tough and her captors had solved the situation by dialing down her muscular augmentation, leaving her weaker than most full-flesh bodies.
So, here she lay, doing nothing, waiting for her door to hiss open so that she could get up, pad out to the mess hall and eat the processed glop that passed for food. Then she'd come back, lay down and... do nothing.
Once, a long time ago—perhaps forever and ever, she'd had a real life. She'd been just like anyone else, alive, awake and living free. Originally, she'd wanted to be a pilot, flying fighters like her father. So, following in her father's footsteps she'd joined the military... only to flunk out of flight school—her reflexes and hand-eye coordination were far too slow for her to make an effective fighter pilot. So, she'd ended up as a specop trooper, trained in the arts of infiltration, demolitions, recon and killing people.
It was the last bit that explained her present situation. The government of United North America had taken the military’s best and brightest and turned them into better and more efficient soldiers. It was a simple plan, really; take the brain of each applicant and place it into a new full-body cyborg shell. Now, the government had a cadre of strong, fast, powerful, and highly durable combat soldiers to use in a wide variety of missions, all in the interest of "national security."
Tamara had thought this to be a fine turn of events. Now, she was no longer constrained by the limits of flesh and blood, seeing as she was equipped with one of the best cyborg bodies money could buy. Granted, she wasn't quite as strong, or powerful as some—she remembered a certain cyborg bounty hunter in MegaTokyo that could topple a large truck and treated a 10-story drop like a hop off the front porch—but her body was more than sufficient for her needs.
In due time, she was assigned to Europe, attempting to track down armaments that had gone missing from several UNA military bases. The word was the weaponry—advanced battle rifles and assault cannons—were destined for certain terrorist groups opposed to the current German government. Her unit's job was to recover the stolen material before they were used to create an unpleasant international scene; recovering the people responsible—alive—would be a pleasant bonus.
The op had started well enough. They knew the drop point—a train-switching yard; they knew the time—the middle of the night; they even knew who was the buyer. What they didn't know was the rest of the evening was going to be the biggest cluster-fuck of the past five years. No sooner had the UNA team sprung their trap, then one of the supposed terrorists had exploded in mass of smoke and dust, tossing around debris like a miniature tornado. Bullets, cannon shells, and grenades had been of useless against him, as he ripped his way though the UNA commandos and the men who had brought the guns in the first place.
Tamara found herself surrounded by far to many of the enemy and totally without backup, so she'd done the only sensible thing, she'd opened fire. Ripping short bursts into anything that wasn't one of her fellow troopers, she'd tried to rejoin with what was left of her unit, only to discover her unit didn't seem to exist anymore. Most were dead, and the rest looked to have run off. That was when the damn esper weapon had decided to pick her up and toss her into a boxcar.
She woke up as a captive of the German government, accused of terrorist operations and subversive activities. The esper, it had turned out, was part of a German counter-terrorist op, and the whole weapons exchange had been a set up to capture the people smuggling the guns into and out of Germany. The trial, if you could call it that, was very short. She didn't have much of a defense, technically she wasn't supposed to be in the country, and for some reason the UNA had decided to deny she even existed. So she was tried, found guilty, and convicted. She expected a death sentence, but instead it was life in prison... which, considering her present surroundings, amounted to the same thing.
Rolling over onto her side, Tamara pulled at the blanket and tried to sleep. Once, long ago, she'd done her best to protect her country from all manner of threats, both internal and external. But, her country seemed to have turned its back on her, so she turned her back on them. Now, the days passed, each one blending into the other, becoming a endless succession of monotony. Perhaps, one day, she'd have a reason to live again, but right now all she wanted was to sleep.
Personality/Motivation: Tamara is someone who has almost given up. She feels betrayed and abandoned by her country and her extended isolation in solitary confinement has only reinforced these emotions. In addition, she has developed what is often called "the 1000-yard stare," where she sits in an almost catatonic state, apparently unaware of her surroundings, her gaze fixated on something far in the distance.
If released from her current situation, Tamara will be open to almost any suggested course of action. She is desperate to find some sense of purpose and direction in her life; some sense of meaning and self-worth. If given a mission she will carry it out with gusto, only to return to her more catatonic state once the operation is over. Her current state of mind has also rendered such things as fear, pain and death meaningless to Tamara, and she will take great risks without a second thought.
It should be possible to bring Tamara out of her current mental fugue, but it would require a great deal of work. As is, she would not make for a good player character, although she makes an excellent NPC for a cyberpunk or dark near-future setting.
Quote: “If you say so.”
Powers/Tactics: Tamara is a full-body, full-conversion cyborg. Her brain and spine were removed from her original flesh body, and placed in a synthetic construct. This construct has been modeled to look like her original body, but has some inherent advantages that should be fairly obvious (she has a perfect figure for starters). The construct body has been wrapped with an assortment of sensory films, that feed neural information back into the brain, allowing Tamara to feel, taste and touch as if she was a full-flesh human. This makes her feel more comfortable in her body, and keeps her from going insane due to lack of sensory input. However, this sensory film has reduced pain receptors, allowing Tamara to withstand severe shocks, and the construct body's inorganic nature means that she is pretty much secure from bleeding to death in case of severe physical trauma.
As a full-body, full-conversion cyborg, Tamara has a number of fairly standard abilities common to construct bodies. She is much stronger than a normal, unmodified human, as somewhat faster as well. Her synthetic body is reasonably resistant to small arms fire and weapons such as knives, hydraulic jacks in her legs make her capable of leaping 30 meters in a single bound, her optical system includes thermographic and low-light imaging, and she has an internal broadband radio system. Finally, she has a standard information data port so she can jack into to almost any standard computer system.
All of this hardware is backed up by extensive military training. This includes hand-to-hand combat skills, weapons proficiencies, and expertise with electronic and mechanical devices, explosives, orienteering, living off the land, and the use of SCUBA gear and boats. In a combat situation, Tamara will use her training to move close to the enemy, remaining in cover and moving as quietly as possible. Outlying guards or pickets will be removed though the use of commando training and a knife, backed by her cyborg enhanced strength. Once among the enemy, explosives will be set where they will cause the most damage or distraction, at which point Tamara will leave the same way she came. If open combat is called for, she will use the heaviest weapons she can find, counting on her enhanced strength to allow her to readily control any firearm she picks up.
Appearance: Tamara is of average height, standing 5'7", with a fairly athletic physique, and looks to weigh about 130 lbs. She has perfect sun-bronzed skin, thick black hair that comes to just past her ears, and pale blue eyes. Her entire body, however, is synthetic, and simply serves as a chassis for her brain and spinal column. She actually weighs close to 300 lbs, and her body is wrapped in multiple layers of sensory film that allow her to touch, taste and feel as if she was still in her original body. The differences between her current artificial shell and a full-flesh body become readily apparent if she is ever seen nude. Her skin is perfectly toned, lacking any blemishes, scars of other distinguishing marks; it is also hairless, with the exception of eyelashes, eyebrows and head.
When on duty, Tamara will dress in her Navy SEAL uniform, or in combat dress appropriate to the situation. Off-duty, she tends towards more casual wear.
Designer's Notes: Tamara is meant for use in my Kazei 5 setting and all of her powers and abilities are taken from the Kazei 5 sourcebook for 6E. Her characteristics represent her current mental state, while her Complications are a mix of her current situation and ones for her time in active service. By modifying her Complications, you can easy turn Tamara into a active service member of the military. At 408 point she’s she’s typical for the power level of Kazei 5, although can reduce her power level a bit by removing her Damage Reduction. You can also increase her power level by adding in any number of cybernetic systems from the sourcebook.
(Character sheet created by Michael Surbrook)