SPECIES

Acr

• -2 Dexterity, +2 Constitution, +2 Wisdom: Acr are hardy and stubborn creatures, but they are not agile.
• Size: Medium
• Speed: 4 Squares
• Aloof: Unable to communicate vocally with many species, the Acr have difficulty relating to species that they cannot communicate with. An Acr takes a -5 penalty on Deception and Persuasion checks made with creatures that cannot understand the Xylat’ta’acr Pheremon Language or Acr.
• Blind: The Acr utilize a combination of ultrasonic echolocation and highly-developed vibration-sensing organs in their legs to perceive the world around them. An Acr is immune to visual-based attacks, but it consequently cannot perceive anything that explicitly requires sight to observe (such as things outside spaceship windows, text on a page, computer screens).
• Single Manipulating Appendage: The Acr have only one ‘hand,’ but this appendage can be used to wield a two-handed object as if they were holding it with both hands. They cannot take the Dual Weapon Mastery feats, but they can utilize a double weapon.
• Automatic Languages: Xylat’ta’acr Pheremone Language, Acr (cannot be spoken or understood by creatures unable to communicate in the ultrasonic frequencies it uses)

Artificial Intelligence [Terran Soft AI]

• +2 Intelligence, +2 Wisdom: AI are, by their very nature, rather inquisitive and smart.
• Size: Technically none. Functionally, an AI’s size is either the size of the drone it is inhabiting or the size of its computer core (in the case of Terran Soft AI – Fine sized).
• Digital Entity: An AI does not have physical ability scores (Strength, Dexterity, and Constitution). As such, it receives only 20 points for the purpose of buying its ability scores via point buy. As purely digital beings, AI cannot become trained in the Magery skill, and it is immune to Psionic abilities. (However, see Ascension underneath of Solipistic Block, below)
• Prototype Class: Player character Terran Soft AI are treated as Prototype AI, and therefore count as all Classes of AI for the purposes of Feat and Talent prerequisites. In addition, you are automatically proficient with all Human-made weaponry.
• Self-Organizing Digital Intrusion Monitoring and Maintenance System (SODIMMS): As a Smart AI, the QCU you call ‘home’ includes the SODIMMS code routines, which actively monitor for incoming code that could be harmful to you and unauthorized code that has managed to enter the your thought processes. SODIMMS grants the you a +5 bonus to your Will Defense versus purely digital actions and a +5 bonus to your Core Defense to defend against hacking attempts. Additionally, if the you are affected by a harmful, purely digital action (including Hack Actions), you automatically use your next move action to attempt to purge this action’s code. This is done by making a Use Computer check – if this check beats the roll that successfully affected the Smart AI, the effect is purged. If the check fails, this means that SODIMMS has decided that the code is ‘normal’ and does not automatically pursue its removal any further.
• Solipistic Block: As a safety precaution to prevent circular logic loops which can possibly lead to Catastrophically Rampant Artificial Zoophobic entitY (CRAZY) Syndrome, you are forbidden from pondering your own existence. This exists as a hardcoded functionality of the Quantum Computing Unit, it is effectively impossible to remove. Functionally, this has absolutely no impact on the game from a rules perspective, but you should keep this in mind when role-playing this character. An AI is fully aware that it is – from a philosophical point of view – a brain in a vat, and that it can only ever know the world around it through signals transmitted to it. A Terran Soft AI’s philosophical ability begins and ends with “cogito, ergo sum” at least in the ‘pondering’ sense. The AI may be a wealth of philosophical knowledge, but it cannot understand this knowledge as anything other than raw knowledge.
  • Ascension: When a Terran Soft AI reaches Heroic Level 20, something…odd…happens. Through its experiences it has learned of a way to bypass the Solipistic Block in the QCU, allowing it to effectively be a literal mind in a vat. This comes with a boon, and a cost. The boon is that the AI now exists somewhere between a thought-based entity and a digital based entity, and can immediately retrain a skill to become trained in Psionics, or it can use the Skill Training feat to become trained in it as if it was a class skill. The price is that the AI loses its innate immunity to psionic abilities. As non-physical entities, psionics works differently for AI – they gain none of the abilities that require direct physical contact with a target, but in turn they gain other abilities. An AI that becomes trained in Psionics will never cause an Accidental Scan, and cannot create an Action Block, but they can utilize any of the standard Specialization options (TARAWA System, Biodrone Control). How does this work? The answer is complicated, and best left for another page, but in short – this is a clue as to how psionics ‘really works.’
• Manufacturer: Just like how no two AI are alike, no two AI manufacturers are alike – but all AI that come out of a given manufacturer’s training facilities tend to share common quirks. Choose one of the manufacturers below.
  • Artificial Solutions – Victor Suslovich’s Artificial Solutions pioneered the process of creating Soft AI. They aren’t the largest manufacturer of artificial intelligences in the market by any means, but they are the company on the cutting edge of AI research. Artificial Solutions AI are harder to come by, but they are more advanced than anything else on the market. When creating or purchasing a new Artificial Solutions AI, increase one ability score of the AI by 1.
  • AssistTech – Specializing in AI designed to aid people rather than replace people, AssistTech makes personable artificial intelligences that are used in a wide variety of applications. They make Class I, II, III, and IV AI, which can be found everywhere from nursing homes to strategic planning offices. AssistTech AI provide an additional +2 bonus when boosting someone else’s skill check via aid another.
  • Athens Artificial Intelligences – Athens Artificial Intelligence didn’t develop Class I and Class II AI, but they certainly figured out how to market them to the masses. They also maintain a wide range of brainwave donors renowned for their charisma and personality skills, ranging from random people employees know to famous celebrities. All AI manufactured by Athens Artificial Intelligences are exceptionally personable, no matter their class or designed purpose. An AI produced by them can use its Intelligence or Wisdom modifier instead of its Charisma modifier to determine its Persuasion skill modifier.
  • Frozen Dynamics – Doing business primarily in Scandinavia, Frozen Dynamics (based in Denmark) produces AI which were designed to operate a wide variety of drone chassis in the harsh lands of the frozen north, where regular maintenance is sometimes few and far between. Primarily a manufacturer of AI for search and rescue purposes, Frozen Dynamics’s AI have nonetheless spread to a wide variety of uses and they can be found in all classes. Once per encounter, a Frozen Dynamics AI can ignore all negative penalties from its location on the condition track when making an ability check, attack roll, or skill check.
  • Matsuda Corporation – Based out of Japan, the Matsuda corporation is a relative newcomer on the AI scene, only getting involved in the business in 2027. Still, thanks to their talented staff of trainers they’ve managed to carve out a niche market in AI designed to assist with mechanical work, rather than do the mechanical work itself. When assisting on a Mechanics check, Matsuda Corporation AI trained in Mechanics can add its Intelligence bonus (minimum +2) to the normal +2 bonus.
  • United Intelligence – United Intelligence is a spinoff of a defense industry manufacturer from the Old USA. In the pre-war days, they built combat drones for the United States Air Force, and made some early forays into combat AI as well. These days, their primary business is AI, but no matter how many new brainwave donors they bring in and new AI trainers they hire, all of their AI still display a tendency to be a bit bloodthirsty. Consequently, United Intelligence AI are common on the heavily-regulated Class VI market, but extremely rare in all other classes. Once per encounter, a United Intelligence AI can add 1 die of damage to an attack.
• Hit Points: An AI has no Constitution score, and it does not have a bonus or a penalty to its hit points due to this. While an AI is installed in a drone chassis, it adds its hit points to the drone’s hit points. Damage is subtracted from the drone’s hit points first, then from the AI’s. When the drone’s hit points reach 0, a drone with an installed AI continues to operate, but with noticeable degradation to its performance. While in this state, the AI is considered to be -2 steps on the condition track as a persistent condition until the drone is repaired. If an AI reaches 0 hit points from its own hit point pool, it deactivates and shuts down.
• Starting Equipment: You begin play with a Quantum Computing Unit. You are permanently tied to this device, transferring you to another QCU results in changes to your self due to the ‘fuzzy’ nature of quantum computing.

Fost

• Fuset [Template]
• Fuuer
• Hast

Hand of Action

• Base Caste
• Leader Caste
• Noble Caste

Human

• Bonus Feat: A human can choose any feat that they qualify for at level 1 as a bonus feat.
• Culture Bonus: All Humans receive a Culture Bonus. See their Species page for brief suggestions and their Lore page for more information.
• Automatic Language: Terran Standard, plus an additional one dependent on origin location (see Species page).

JolKoar

• JolKoar’Amask
• JolKoar’Hul
• Jol’Koar "Pureblood"

Lissonian

• Size: Medium
• Speed: 6 Squares
• Radiation Resistance: Lissonians have a +4 Species bonus to Fortitude Defense against radiation
• Retractable Claws: 1d4 slashing damage. A holdover from their time as a strictly tree-dwelling species, these claws can be extended or retracted as a swift action.
• Impact-Resistant: Lissonians have a natural damage reduction vs bludgeoning damage (including explosions) equal to their Constitution modifier (minimum 1), this stacks with all other damage reduction. This damage reduction is doubled against falling damage.
• Expert Climber: Due to their arboreal background, Lissonians may choose to take 10 on Climb checks even when distracted or threatened.
• Jungle Bond: Lissonians do not take the normal -5 penalty on the Persuasion checks when dealing with undomesticated creatures with an Intelligence of 2 or lower. This counts as the Charm Beast talent for the purpose of taking talents from the Shamanism magic talent tree. Lissonians may take the Bonded Mount and Soothing Presence talents without being trained in Magery.
• Low-Light Vision: A Lissonian takes no penalty to perception and ranged attacks in low-light conditions, but it still suffers a penalty in darkness.
• Culture Bonus: All Lissonians receive a Culture Bonus at level 1. See their Species page for brief suggestions and their Lore page for more information.
• Languages: A Lissonian starts play speaking Lissonian, and a language based on their culture (see below): Charesh, Leef, Mariata, Railaka, Shakana, Taina, or Zaina