Making Checks

Two-Skill Check
Most checks are made by taking the value of two different
Skills, putting them together and then rolling 1d20 to get your
total check. For instance, Repairing a computer would require
Crafts (to show you are fixing it) and Technology (because of
what you are fixing).
Single-Skill Check
Sometimes only a single Skill affects the outcome. In this
case, the player receives x1.5 of the value for their Skill to per-
form the check. For instance, throwing a straight punch uses
the Fighting Skill only. If the characters had Fighting 4, they
would actually roll 1d20 with a +6 bonus (4 x 1.5).
Difficulty
The GM sets the difficulty based on how hard the task is to
perform. Below are general guidelines:
Simple (10) Basic application of the skill with little
to no fuss.
Moderate (20) Advanced applications of the skill that
often requires intimate knowledge of
the subject.
Tough (30) Complex skill applications that require
more work than usual and usually in-
volve unique problems.
Legendary (40) Nearly impossible feats of skill that
only a master could accomplish.
Cheat Sheet
Boost
For every 5 the player rolls over the Difficulty, they gain an
additional bonus effect to the result. When used with Opposed
checks, the character receives a Boost for every 5 they roll over
their opponent’s check. For example, if the character rolls a 25
on a Moderate (20) Difficulty check, they gain 1 Boost. The fol-
lowing are some of the standard Boost effects:
VV Additional Targets: When using a Skill on a single target,
their influence may spread to more targets with each Boost.
VV Bonus Damage: In combat, each boost adds +1 damage to
the character’s attack.
VV Bonus Info: They receive an extra item of interest above
what they were looking for.
VV Style: They pull off their tasks (such as Athletics jumps or
Performances) in a particularly flashy or stylistic manner,
impressing more people with each Boost.
VV Streak Bonus: They receive a +2 bonus per Boost to a fol-
low-up task. For example, deciphering a clue so well that all
other clues are much easier to figure out.
VV Time Crunch: Boosting cuts a bit of time off of the task. For
instance, if fixing the car engine would normally take an
hour, they may cut off 10 minutes per Boost.

Ways to Gain Juice

Danger and surprise are both good ways to generate more.
Below are examples of events a character would gain 1 Juice Armor Examples
from experiencing. If several happen at once, they stack, but Name AR Hind. Weight Cost
remember most AMPs are limited to a total of 10 Juice at any
Modern
given time.
VV Start of any combat with another AMP Thick clothing 1/0 0 2 0
VV Ambushed or Victim of a Trap Kevlar 1/3 1 2 1
VV Roll a Natural 20 Flak Jacket 2/3 2 4 2
VV Roll a Natural 1 Riot gear 5/5 3 6 3
VV Reach 1/2 Integrity Archaic
VV Reach 1/4 Integrity (2 Juice) Leather 2/2 1 2 1
VV Exciting Car Chase Chain mail 3/3 2 4 2
VV Dangling or falling from a terrible height Scale mail 3/4 1 4 3
VV A comrade takes a near fatal/fatal hit Full plate 4/5 4 6 4
VV Enemy reinforcements arrive
VV Armor Rating (AR): Damage absorbed by the armor. First value is nor-
VV Loyalty comes under harm/threat mal damage negated, and the second is Brutal (B) damage negated.
VV Extended Exercise VV Hindrance: Restriction of armor. Apply as a -1 penalty to all physical
VV Making an important discovery and combat checks.
VV Sexual Activity VV Weight: Weight of armor. Might Skill must be equal to or higher, or the
VV Stimulants (Drugs) character suffers an additional -2 penalty to all checks.
VV Successful check against Fear VV Cost: Wealth required to buy the armor.
Combat Actions Combat Reactions
VV Inflict Harm (Close Combat): Hand-to-hand attacks deal 2 VV Block: Stopping an attack, usually by parrying with it with an
damage + Weapon Damage + Boost Damage + Modifiers. arm or leg, a shield or another weapon. If they Block a Brutal
The player may opt to gain a +3 bonus to a close combat attack, suffer a -4 penalty and take half damage even if they
attack by dealing -1 damage or take a -3 penalty to deal +1 are successful.
damage. VV Dodge: Getting out of the way of an attack, including duck-
VV Inflict Harm (Ranged): Only the attacker makes a check for ing, jumping or sidestepping.
a Ranged attack: Skill Combo + Weapon Bonus + Modifiers, VV Grab: Suffers a -4 penalty, but initiates Grab is successful.
but suffers penalties (Cover, Concealment, Range, etc). The
gunman must beat a Simple (10) Difficulty. If they succeed, VV Find Cover: If within (Movement/2), cover can be taken and
they deal Weapon Damage + Boost Damage + Modifiers. applied normally. If further than that, the attacker suffers a
-2 penalty to their attack.
VV Inflict Pain: Applies a cumulative -2 Pain penalty to the tar-
get’s checks, plus an additional -1 penalty per Boost (up to VV Catch: An attempt to catch something (or someone). If
-10 max). A victim who reaches a -10 penalty due to pain is catching something with sharp edges, suffer a -4 penalty. A
assumed to have lost use of one of their limbs. This penalty failure means they take full damage as normal.
reduces by 1 per Round. VV Resist: Generally resisting some of the less attack-oriented
VV Prepare: Includes standing, drawing a weapon or reloading. Actions, like resisting a Feint or having the willpower to not
If the character takes another action during the same Turn, have your emotions manipulated.
they suffer a -3 penalty to their check. VV Protect: The character gets in front of an attack that is oc-
VV Grab: Target suffers a -3 penalty to physical checks for each curring within (Movement/2), taking full damage instead of
opponent restraining them. May add Might as a Secondary the intended party. If they have already taken an Action this
Skill to checks. Round, they suffer a -2 penalty to this Reaction.
VV Break Grab: Make an Opposed Strength check against their
opponent to break free of a Grab. Common Combat Skill Combos
VV Feint/Distract: Provides a +2 bonus and +1 damage to the
next attack on the target. Action or Reaction Common Skill Combo
VV Knock Back: Attack with -3 penalty to deal 0 damage + Punch, kick or use weapon Fighting
Boost damage + Modifiers. The target stumbles backward Attack with improvised weapon Fighting + Crafts
a number of feet equal to the difference between their two
Throw weapon Marksmanship + Athletics
Strength bonuses.
Use firearm Marksmanship
VV Knock Down: Tackles, trips or throwing something in the
way to make them stumble. This Action suffers a -2 penalty, Sucker punch Fighting + Stealth
but target falls to the ground. Gut punch Fighting + Might
VV Touch: Gets +2 bonus to check, but deals no damage. What’s that over there? Fighting + Deception
VV Take Aim: Receive +3 bonus to their next Action against the Rip lamppost from ground Might + Athletics (Strength)
target. Initiate Grab Might + Fighting
VV Change Emotional State: Alter their target’s emotional Strangle Might + Fighting
state, like intimidation. The GM can give the target either a -3
Slip free Might + Athletics (Strength)
penalty or a +3 bonus to their next check.
Intimidate your foe Intimidation + Fighting
VV Move: Travel up to their (Movement) for Free or (Movement
x2) with an Action, but suffer a -3 penalty. Shove Might + Fighting
VV Sprint/Rush: Travel at (Movement x15). Followup Action Sweep Fighting + Speed
limited to Inflict Harm, Knock Back, Knock Down, or phys- Throw something in the way Marksmanship + Fighting
ical Skills/Powers for their next Action. Attackers suffer a
Touch Fighting
-3 penalty to hit the AMP while they are sprinting and the
AMP receives a +3 bonus to hit and +1 damage on their next Get them in crosshairs Marksmanship + Perception
attack. They can negate their damage bonus to activate a Avoid obstacles while running Athletics + Speed
Knock Back effect instead with a +3 bonus to their Strength.
Forward Block Fighting
If their next Action is to Inflict Pain, they inflict a -2 penalty
per Boost (instead of -1). Parry with weapon Fighting + Crafts
VV Use Power: Follow power instructions. Jump over a sweep Fighting + Athletics

VV Non-Combat Action: Something outside of the fight. Avoid a sword Fighting + Speed

VV Retreat: Similar to a Move or Sprint/Rush Action, but takes Thanks for the weapon Fighting + Athletics
the character out of combat. Opponents with Speed 5+ Resist being distracted Fighting + Discipline
higher than the retreater can make a free close combat Ac- Avoid a Trap Perception + Speed
tion against the retreating character, but only inflict half
their normal damage. I’m your opponent Fortitude + Speed
Combat Order After a Gaming Session
Step One: Each player rolls Intuition + Speed + After a successful gaming session, the GM and players dis-
Initiative 1d20 to see who goes first. cuss the events of the evening and the GM distributes points
to worthy players. There are a few XP examples below, but
Step Two: The player decides how their charac- these don’t apply to every session. The average XP gained per
Choose Action ter will act. session at about 3 XP per player, depending on the length and
Step Three: If being targeted, the defending play- quality of the session and whether there were big moments
Choose Reaction er decides how they react. during play. The GM is also encouraged to create their own
Step Four: Both the attacker and defender criteria, as well, to fit the group’s play-style. Some GMs give an
Choose Skills choose which Skills they are using for XP to the player who brings snacks, for instance.
their check and roll their 1d20. VV 1 point – Showing up to Play: Every player who shows up to
Step Five: If an attack is successful, deal 2 + play receives 1 XP just for joining in the game and making
Dealing Weapon Damage + Boost Damage for it happen in the first place.
Damage Close Combat or Weapon Damage + VV 1 point - Loyalties: If the player used their character’s Loyal-
Boost Damage for Range. ties in interesting ways to affect the session, add drama or
give the group a way out of a problem, they should receive

Strength Tests this point. See Loyalties on pg. 39 for more.

The average adult can carry up to 50 lbs on their person
without being encumbered and can dead lift twice as much
as they can carry (100 lbs on average). Their carrying weight
increases by 25 lbs for every level put into the Might Skill. For
instance, a character with Might 2, can now carry 100 lbs. and
lift 200 lbs. If they attempt to carry around more than their
allowed weight, they suffer a -2 penalty to all physical checks.
Attempting to lift more than their Lifting Weight incurs the
same penalty, but they also cannot take any other Actions be-
sides lifting while doing so, or they will drop their load.
Strength checks are made using Might + Athletics to re-
flect how much power the character can summon and allows
them to perform a range of Strength Feats. See below for a list
of examples, but keep in mind some of these may require pow-
ers to be active in order to perform (i.e. throwing a truck may
require bonus Might from powers like Behemoth or Sizing).
VV 1 point – Spotlight: If one character took charge of a sit-
uation or was an effective leader during the session, they
receive this point. It’s a good idea for the group to vote on
which player deserves this XP.
VV 1 point – Memorable Moment: If a player did something to
make the group say something like “That’s so awesome!”,
“Man, dude, what, no, really?” or made the GM speechless
from how cool or clever it was, they receive this XP. This
shouldn’t happen every session or it loses its flavor.
VV 1 point – Moral of the Story: If the character has learned
something from the session, it is important to award XP for
growth. The GM should go around the table and ask each
player “What did your character learn?” It could be anything
from “My character will never throw a car behind him with-
out looking again” or “My character will never again try to
break out of jail using the front door.”

Strength Feat Min Strength Spending XP

Crush a beer can +0
Drag someone your same size +2
1 Skill Point (Level 1-8) 5 XP
Break a wooden chair +4
1 Skill Point (Level 9-10) 10 XP
Drag someone twice your size +6
1 Primary Power Level 15 XP
Break down a wooden door +8
1 Secondary Power Level in 15 XP
Break a 2x4 Board +10
Primary Strain
Break open a metal fire door +12
1 Secondary Power Level in 20 XP
Throw a motorcycle +14 Different Strain
Flip over a small car +16 1 Tertiary Power Level in 15 XP
Break a 3’ lead pipe +18 Primary Strain
Punch through a cement wall +20 1 Tertiary Power Level in 25 XP
Different Strain
Uproot a lamppost +22
1 Loyalty Level 10 XP
Throw a station wagon +24
1 Augment (Primary Only) 10 XP
Use car as a weapon +26
1 Bonus Point 5 XP
Throw a truck +28
Throw a yacht +30
 Close Combat Weapons
Name Damage Attack Defense Hurl Str. Min. Cost Size
Axe +4B +1 +1 +0 +5 2 3
Baseball Bat +2 +2 +1 +0 +2 0 2
Brass Knuckles +1 +2 +1 +0 +0 1 1
Chain +2 +1 +1 +1 +2 0 2
Knife +1B +2 +0 +1 +0 1 1
Sledgehammer +4 -1 +1 +0 +5 2 2
Spear +3B +1 +0 +2 +4 2 3
Staff +2 +1 +2 +0 +2 1 2
Sword (Standard) +2B +1 +2 +0 +4 2 2
Whip +0 +2 +0 +0 +0 1 2
Motorcycle +7 +1 +0 +2 +22 2 4
Car/Truck +10 +2 +2 +0 +26 3 5
Tree +13 +4 +0 +1 +30 N/A 6
Ranged Weapons
Name Damage Attack Range Ammo Str. Min. Cost Size
Assault Rifle (A) +4B +2 300/600/900 35 +4 3 3
Bow +2B +2 75/150/300 N/A +3 2/3 2
Machine Gun (A) +6B +2 150/300/450 100 +3 3 3
Pistol (Light) +3B +2 60/120/180 12 +0 3 1
Pistol (Heavy) +5B +1 75/150/225 8 +1 3 1
Revolver (Light) +4B +2 60/120/180 6 +0 2 1
Revolver (Heavy) +6B +1 90/180/270 5 +2 2 1
Rifle +10B +3 600/1200/1800 8 +3 2 3
Shotgun +8B +1 30/60/90 6 +2 2 2
SMG (small) (A) +4B +1 45/90/150 40 +1 3 2
SMG (Large) (A) +6B +2 60/120/240 60 +3 3 3

Modifier Chart
Armor Piercing: The attack ignores a number of AR equal to your AP level.
Assault Round: For 1 round: +1 Action (no penalty), +3 to combat checks, +1 damage. Suffers -4 penalty to Reactions
Blind-fighting: Partial (-5 penalty), Full (-10 penalty).
Description Bonus Gain up from +2 to +5 bonus based on great scene description
Cover: -2 penalty for 25% covered (behind a plant), -4 penalty for 50% (half-concealed by a wall) and -6
penalty for 75% (all but their head is hidden)
Improvised Weapons: -8 penalty to checks with weapon. -4 penalty if it falls under a Weapon Style.
Knockout: If character half their Integrity or more in damage from an attack, they must make a check vs. Un-
consciousness. Difficulty is Simple (10), plus the damage dealt
Range: Short: No modifier, Medium: -2 penalty, Long: -4 penalty and -1 damage
Multiple Actions: Suffer a cumulative penalty to all Actions for each one taken after the first.
Targeted strike: An attempt to strike a certain part of the opponent’s body. Torso (-2), Arm/Leg (-4), Head or hands/
feet (-6), Small (eye, pressure point) (-8)
Improvised Weapons: -2 penalty to all checks. GM should decide how many strikes can occur before item breaks.