FOCI
Beginning PCs can pick one level of focus. PCs
with the Expert class or the Partial Expert Adventurer
class option can choose an additional level in any
non-combat focus related to their background, including
level 2 in their initial choice. Most will choose
Specialist, Healer, Diplomat, or some other similar focus,
but the GM can allow other non-combat foci. PCs with
the Warrior class or the Partial Warrior Adventurer
class option can do the same in choosing an additional
combat-related focus.
As your hero advances in experience, you’ll get the
opportunity to pick up new foci or improve existing
ones as you refine your talents or learn new tricks. In
some cases, you might work with the GM to come up
with a custom focus reflecting your PC’s specific special
talent or a perk that makes sense given their recent
adventures. Foci are an important part of a hero’s character,
and they should always reflect something basic
about how they tend to interact with the world.
Alert
You are keenly aware of your surroundings and virtually
impossible to take unaware. You have an instinctive
alacrity of response that helps you act before less wary
persons can think to move.
Level 1: Gain Notice as a bonus skill. You cannot be
surprised, nor can others use the Execution Attack
option on you. When you roll initiative, roll twice
and take the best result.
Level 2: You always act first in a combat round unless
someone else involved is also this Alert.
Armsman
You have an unusual competence with thrown weapons
and melee attacks. This focus’ benefits do not apply
to unarmed attacks or projectile weapons. For thrown
weapons, you can’t use the benefits of the Armsman
focus at the same time as Gunslinger.
Level 1: Gain Stab as a bonus skill. You can draw or
sheath a Stowed melee or thrown weapon as an
Instant action. You may add your Stab skill level to
a melee or thrown weapon’s damage roll or Shock
damage, assuming it has any to begin with.
Level 2: Your primitive melee and thrown weapons
count as TL4 weapons for the purpose of overcoming
advanced armors. Even on a miss with a
melee weapon, you do an unmodified 1d4 damage
to the target, plus any Shock damage. This bonus
damage doesn’t apply to thrown weapons or attacks
that use the Punch skill.
Assassin
You are practiced at sudden murder, and have certain
advantages in carrying out an Execution Attack as described in the rules on page 52.
Level 1: Gain Sneak as a bonus skill. You can conceal an
object no larger than a knife or pistol from anything
less invasive than a strip search, including
normal TL4 weapon detection devices. You can
draw or produce this object as an On Turn action,
and your point-blank ranged attacks made from
surprise with it cannot miss the target.
Level 2: You can take a Move action on the same round
as you make an Execution Attack, closing rapidly
with a target before you attack. You may split this
Move action when making an Execution Attack,
taking part of it before you murder your target
and part of it afterwards. This movement happens
too quickly to alert a victim or to be hindered by
bodyguards, barring an actual physical wall of
meat between you and your prey.
Authority
You have an uncanny kind of charisma about you, one
that makes others instinctively follow your instructions
and further your causes. At level 1, this is a knack of
charm and personal magnetism, while level 2 might
suggest latent telepathic influence or transhuman memetic
hacking augmentations. Where this focus refers
to followers, it means NPCs who have voluntarily chosen
to be in your service. PCs never count as followers.
Level 1: Gain Lead as a bonus skill. Once per day, you
can make a request from an NPC who is not openly
hostile to you, rolling a Cha/Lead skill check at
a difficulty of the NPC’s Morale score. If you succeed,
they will comply with the request, provided
it is not harmful or extremely uncharacteristic.
Level 2: Those who follow you are fired with confidence.
Any NPC being directly led by you gains a
Morale and hit roll bonus equal to your Lead skill
and a +1 bonus on all skill checks. Your followers
will not act against your interests unless under
extreme pressure.
Close Combatant
You’ve had all too much practice at close-in fighting
and desperate struggles with pistol or blade. You’re extremely skilled at avoiding injury in melee combat, and
at level 2 you can dodge through a melee scrum without
fear of being knifed in passing.
Level 1: Gain any combat skill as a bonus skill. You can
use pistol-sized ranged weapons in melee without
suffering penalties for the proximity of melee
attackers. You ignore Shock damage from melee
assailants, even if you’re unarmored at the time.
Level 2: The Shock damage from your melee attacks
treats all targets as if they were AC 10. The Fighting
Withdrawal combat action is treated as an On
Turn action for you and can be performed freely.
Conjoined Psychic
You Inhabit two bodies. Your bodies manifest metadimensional quantum entanglement; you are literally a single being at the metadimensional level. The bodies you inhabit might be twins or they could be completely unrelated. If you are twins, it's quite likely you were born with this psychic connection, but it's also possible a very strong, seriously deranged psychic joined two unwitting, weak willed, clinically insane individual psychics into a single, stable, more powerful psychic. Everything that makes you you is shared by the two bodies. The Conjoined Psychic focus is only available to the full psychic class.
Level 1: Occupy two locations. AC, movement, encumbrance and entanglement are handled by each body independently. If using both bodies to act on an object requiring strength, the total weight limit is doubled, however any saving throws may only be attempted once. Any damage taken affects the total HP of the PC, regardless of the target. IE: A Conjoined Psychic with 5 HP takes 2 damage to one body, the PC's total HP drops to 3. Should HP fall to zero, both bodies become unconscious. To successfully stabilize a Conjoined Psychic PC at zero HP using conventional means (Lazarus Patch, med bay, etc.), the attempt must be made on the body that took the last hit. Psychic healing, or any other sort of psychic affect may be attempted on either body. When acting in combat, the PC may attempt a single action. In most cases, the player may choose which body will attempt the action. If the Conjoined Psychic dies, both bodies die.
Level 2: Gain a second, non -attack action during combat. This second action can only be attempted by the body not attempting an attack action. Both actions can only be attempted at the same time and cannot be held separately. The player may choose which action to take first.
Connected
You’re remarkably gifted at making friends and forging
ties with the people around you. Wherever you go, you
always seem to know somebody useful to your ends.
Level 1: Gain Connect as a bonus skill. If you’ve spent
at least a week in a not-entirely-hostile location,
you’ll have built a web of contacts willing to do
favors for you that are no more than mildly illegal.
You can call on one favor per game day and the
GM decides how far they’ll go for you.
Level 2: Once per game session, if it’s not entirely implausible, you meet someone you know who is
willing to do modest favors for you. You can decide
when and where you want to meet this person,
but the GM decides who they are and what
they can do for you.
Die Hard
You are surprisingly hard to kill. You can survive injuries
or bear up under stresses that would incapacitate a
less determined hero.
Level 1: You gain an extra 2 maximum hit points per
level. This bonus applies retroactively if you take
this focus after first level. You automatically stabilize
if mortally wounded by anything smaller than
a Heavy weapon.
Level 2: The first time each day that you are reduced to
zero hit points by an injury, you instead survive
with one hit point remaining. This ability can’t
save you from Heavy weapons or similar trauma.
Diplomat
You know how to get your way in personal negotiations,
and can manipulate the attitudes of those around
you. Even so, while smooth words are versatile, they’ll
only work if your interlocutor is actually willing to
listen to you.
Level 1: Gain Talk as a bonus skill. You speak all the languages common to the sector and can learn new
ones to a workable level in a week, becoming fluent
in a month. Reroll 1s on any skill check dice
related to negotiation or diplomacy.
Level 2: Once per game session, shift an intelligent
NPC’s reaction roll one step closer to friendly if
you can talk to them for at least thirty seconds.
Gunslinger
You have a gift with a gun. While this talent most commonly
applies to slugthrowers or energy weapons, it
is also applicable to thrown weapons, bows, or other
ranged weapons that can be used with the Shoot skill.
For thrown weapons, you can’t use the benefits of the
Armsman focus at the same time as Gunslinger.
Level 1: Gain Shoot as a bonus skill. You can draw or
holster a Stowed ranged weapon as an On Turn
action. You may add your Shoot skill level to a
ranged weapon’s damage roll.
Level 2: Once per round, you can reload a ranged weapon
as an On Turn action if it takes no more than
one round to reload. Even on a miss with a Shoot
attack, you do an unmodified 1d4 damage.
Hacker
You have a considerable fluency with digital security
measures and standard encryption methods. You know
how to make computerized systems obey you until
their automatic failsafes come down on your control.
Level 1: Gain Program as a bonus skill. When attempting
to hack a database or computerized system,
roll 3d6 on the skill check and drop the lowest die.
Level 2: Your hack duration increases to 1d4+Program
skill x 10 minutes. You have an instinctive understanding
of the tech; you never need to learn the
data protocols for a strange system and are always
treated as familiar with it.
Healer
Healing comes naturally to you, and you’re particularly
gifted at preventing the quick bleed-out of wounded
allies and comrades.
Level 1: Gain Heal as a bonus skill. You may attempt to
stabilize one mortally-wounded adjacent person
per round as an On Turn action. When rolling
Heal skill checks, roll 3d6 and drop the lowest die.
Level 2: Stims or other technological healing devices
applied by you heal twice as many hit points as
normal. Using only basic medical supplies, you
can heal 1d6+Heal skill hit points of damage to
every injured or wounded person in your group
with ten minutes of first aid spread among them.
Such healing can be applied to a given target only
once per day.
Henchkeeper
You have an distinct knack for picking up lost souls
who willingly do your bidding. You might induce them
with promises of money, power, excitement, sex, or
some other prize that you may or may not eventually
grant. A henchman obtained with this focus will serve
in loyal fashion until clearly betrayed or placed in unacceptable danger. Henchmen are not “important” people in their society, and are usually marginal sorts, outcasts, the desperate, or other persons with few options.
You can use more conventional pay or inducements
to acquire additional henchmen, but these extra
hirelings are no more loyal or competent than your pay
and treatment can purchase.
Level 1: Gain Lead as a bonus skill. You can acquire
henchmen within 24 hours of arriving in a community,
assuming anyone is suitable hench material.
These henchmen will not fight except to save
their own lives, but will escort you on adventures
and risk great danger to help you. Most henchmen
will be treated as Peaceful Humans from the
Xenobestiary section of the book. You can have
one henchmen at a time for every three character
levels you have, rounded up. You can release
henchmen with no hard feelings at any plausible
time and pick them back up later should you be
without a current henchman.
Level 2: Your henchmen are remarkably loyal and
determined, and will fight for you against anything
but clearly overwhelming odds. Whether
through natural competence or their devotion
to you, they’re treated as Martial Humans from
the Xenobestiary section. You can make faithful
henchmen out of skilled and highly-capable NPCs,
but this requires that you actually have done them
some favor or help that would reasonably earn
such fierce loyalty.
Ironhide
Whether through uncanny reflexes, remarkable luck,
gengineered skin fibers, or subtle telekinetic shielding,
you have natural defenses equivalent to high-quality
combat armor. The benefits of this focus don’t stack
with armor, though Dexterity or shield modifiers apply.
Level 1: You have an innate Armor Class of 15 plus half
your character level, rounded up.
Level 2: Your abilities are so effective that they render
you immune to unarmed attacks or primitive
weaponry as if you wore powered armor.
Psychic Training
You’ve had special training in a particular psychic discipline.
You must be a Psychic or have taken the Partial
Psychic class option as an Adventurer to pick this focus.
In the latter case, you can only take training in the discipline
you initially chose as a Partial Psychic. As with
most foci, this focus can be taken only once.
Level 1: Gain any psychic skill as a bonus. If this improves
it to level-1 proficiency, choose a free level-
1 technique from that discipline. Your maximum
Effort increases by one.
Level 2: When you advance a level, the bonus psychic
skill you chose for the first level of the focus automatically
gets one skill point put toward increasing
it or purchasing a technique from it. You may
save these points for later, if more are required to
raise the skill or buy a particular technique. These
points are awarded retroactively if you take this
focus level later in the game.
Savage Fray
You are a whirlwind of bloody havoc in melee combat,
and can survive being surrounded far better than most
combatants.
Level 1: Gain Stab as a bonus skill. All enemies adjacent
to you at the end of your turn whom you have not
attacked suffer the Shock damage of your weapon
if their Armor Class is not too high to be affected.
Level 2: After suffering your first melee hit in a round,
any further melee attacks from other assailants automatically miss you. If the attacker who hits you
has multiple attacks, they may attempt all of them,
but other foes around you simply miss.
Shocking Assault
You’re extremely dangerous to enemies around you.
The ferocity of your melee attacks stresses and distracts
enemies even when your blows don’t draw blood.
Level 1: Gain Punch or Stab as a bonus skill. The Shock
damage of your weapon treats all targets as if they
were AC 10, assuming your weapon is capable of
harming the target in the first place.
Level 2: In addition, you gain a +2 bonus to the Shock
damage rating of all melee weapons and unarmed
attacks. Regular hits never do less damage than
this Shock would do on a miss.
Sniper
You are an expert at placing a bullet or beam on an
unsuspecting target. These special benefits only apply
when making an Execution Attack with a firearm or
bow, as described on page 52.
Level 1: Gain Shoot as a bonus skill. When making
a skill check for an Execution Attack or target
shooting, roll 3d6 and drop the lowest die.
Level 2: A target hit by your Execution Attack takes a
-4 penalty on the Physical saving throw to avoid
immediate mortal injury. Even if the save is successful,
the target takes double the normal damage
inflicted by the attack.
Specialist
You are remarkably talented at a particular skill. Whether
a marvelous cat burglar, a world-famous athlete, a
brilliant engineer, or some other savant, your expertise
is extremely reliable. You may take this focus more than
once for different skills.
Level 1: Gain a non-combat, non-psychic skill as a bonus.
Roll 3d6 and drop the lowest die for all skill checks
in this skill.
Level 2: Roll 4d6 and drop the two lowest dice for all
skill checks in this skill.
Star Captain
You have a tremendous natural talent for ship combat,
and can make any starship you captain a significantly
more fearsome opponent. You must take the captain’s
role during a fight as described on page 117 of the Ship
Combat rules in order to benefit from this focus.
Level 1: Gain Lead as a bonus skill. Your ship gains 2
extra Command Points at the start of each turn.
Level 2: A ship you captain gains bonus hit points equal
to 20% of its maximum at the start of each combat.
Damage is taken from these bonus points first,
and they vanish at the end of the fight and do not
require repairs to replenish before the next. In addition,
once per engagement, you may resolve a
Crisis as an Instant action by explaining how your
leadership resolves the problem.
Starfarer
You are an expert in the plotting and execution of interstellar spike drills. While most experienced pilots can
manage conventional drills along well-charted spike
routes, you have the knack for forging new drill paths
and cutting courses too dangerous for lesser navigators.
Level 1: Gain Pilot as a bonus skill. You automatically
succeed at all spike drill-related skill checks of difficulty
10 or less.
Level 2: Double your Pilot skill for all spike drill-related
skill checks. Spike drives of ships you navigate
are treated as one level higher; thus, a drive-1 is
treated as a drive-2, up to a maximum of drive-7.
Spike drills you personally oversee take only half
the time they would otherwise require.
Tinker
You have a natural knack for modifying and improving
equipment, as given in the rules on page 100.
Level 1: Gain Fix as a bonus skill. Your Maintenance
score is doubled, allowing you to maintain twice
as many mods. Both ship and gear mods cost only
half their usual price in credits, though pretech
salvage requirements remain the same.
Level 2: Your Fix skill is treated as one level higher for
purposes of building and maintaining mods and
calculating your Maintenance score. Advanced
mods require one fewer pretech salvage part to
make, down to a minimum of zero.
Unarmed Combatant
Your empty hands are more dangerous than knives
and guns in the grip of the less gifted. Your unarmed
attacks are counted as melee weapons when it comes to
binding up opponents wielding rifles and similar long
arms, though you need at least one hand free to do so.
Level 1: Gain Punch as a bonus skill. Your unarmed
attacks become more dangerous as your Punch
skill increases. At level-0, they do 1d6 damage. At
level-1, they do 1d8 damage. At level-2 they do
1d10, level-3 does 1d12, and level-4 does 1d12+1.
At Punch-1 or better, they have the Shock quality
equal to your Punch skill against AC 15 or less.
While you normally add your Punch skill level to
any unarmed damage, don’t add it twice to this
Shock damage.
Level 2: You know locks and twists that use powered
servos against their wearer. Your unarmed attacks
count as TL4 weapons for the purpose of overcoming
advanced armors. Even on a miss with a Punch attack, you do an unmodified 1d6 damage.
Wanderer
Your hero gets around. As part of a life on the road,
they’ve mastered a number of tricks for ensuring their
mobility and surviving the inevitable difficulties of a
vagabond existence.
Level 1: Gain Survive as a bonus skill. You can convey
basic ideas in all the common languages of the
sector. You can always find free transport to a desired
destination for yourself and a small group of
your friends provided any traffic goes to the place.
Finding this transport takes no more than an hour,
but it may not be a strictly legitimate means of
travel and may require working passage.
Level 2: You can forge, scrounge, or snag travel papers
and identification for the party with 1d6 hours
of work. These papers and permits will stand up
to ordinary scrutiny, but require an opposed Int/
Administer versus Wis/Notice check if examined
by an official while the PC is actually wanted by
the state for some crime. When finding transport
for the party, the transportation always makes the
trip at least as fast as a dedicated charter would.
Wild Psychic Talent
Some men and women are born with a very limited
form of MES, the mental condition that allows for the
use of psychic powers. While these people are not true
psychics, these “wild talents” can create one limited psychic effect. Training is not always required to develop
this ability, and their MES is so mild that they don’t
suffer the risk of madness or brain damage that more
developed psychics risk should they use their powers
without proper training.
Wild talents are not treated as psychics for general
purposes and cannot “torch” their powers. When
relevant, they are treated as having one point of Effort.
Psychics and Partial Psychics cannot take this focus.
Level 1: Pick a psychic discipline. You gain an ability
equivalent to the level-0 core power of that discipline.
Optionally, you may instead pick a level-1
technique from that discipline, but that technique
must stand alone; you can’t pick one that
augments another technique or core ability. For
example, you could pick the Telekinetic Armory
technique from Telekinesis, because that ability
does not require the use of any other Telekinesis
power. You could not pick the Mastered Succor
ability from Biopsionics, because that technique is
meant to augment another power you don’t have.
Level 2: You now have a maximum Effort of two points.
You may pick a second ability according to the
guidelines above. This second does not need to be
a stand-alone technique if it augments the power
you chose for level 1 of this focus. Thus, if your
first pick was gaining the level-0 power of Psychic
Succor, your second could be Mastered Succor. You
still could not get the level-1 core power of Psychic
Succor, however, as you’re still restricted to level-0.