GURPS Landfall character creation rules v0.1

[passerine]

Characters are built off of a 150-point base. Anywhere between 10 and 50 of the 150 points MUST be reserved for "hidden advantages" per the Secret Advantage rules.

Tech Level for starting purposes is 10. This is a space-faring society but just barely...;)

Basic Stat requirements:

NO attributes below 8 are permitted in any case.

IQ must be at least 11.

HT must be at least 10.

One of the four basic attributes (your choice) must be 13 or greater - these are exceptional people who are either working professional scientists or hand-picked as colonists.

Physical Characteristic requirements:

Characters are normal humans with normal human variety of size, shape, etc.

All characters must be legal adults. Playing a character who is younger than 25 or older than 50 requires GM permission and a Damn Good Reason(tm).

Appearance levels lower than Ugly are not allowed. The Mistaken Identity disadvantage is not allowed.

-15 point Odious Personal Habits are DEFINITELY not allowed. -10 point OPHs require special permission and Damn Good Reason.

Social Characteristic requirements:

All characters must have full competency in their native oral and written language. (Canonically speaking, this was probably Spanish. Call it what you will.) Additional languages are encouraged as background color but might or might not have much meaning game-wise. Knowledge of sign language is included in this but sign is not an acceptable substitute for spoken comprehension.

Wealth levels should be chosen from Struggling, Average, Comfortable, and (possibly, with permission) Wealthy. This is not that likely to have game effects other than starting cash, so the involved character points are cut in half.

Independent Income, Debt, and Reputations of any kind are disallowed because they will be pretty much meaningless in this setting.

Rank is used in lieu of Status. If you are interested in buying Rank, please discuss this as part of the character creation process.

Social Stigmas are not allowed at the start of play; it is theoretically possible for something stigmatizing to occur in-play.

Associated NPCs of ANY kind (Ally, Dependent, Contact, Patron) are most likely not going to be allowed. I might be persuaded into accepting an NPC Ally, but this is very much a case-by-case thing. Ally Groups, Dependents (unless also Allies), Contacts, Enemies, Favors, and Patrons are definitely not allowed.

Advantages and Disadvantages:

The general disadvantage limit is 75 points, unless discussed with the GM and cleared otherwise.

All characters are required to take at least the "Reluctant Killer" level of the Pacifism disadvantage.

As mentioned above, 10 to 50 points must be reserved for "Secret Advantages". Essentially, this is a 50% down-payment on various useful abilities. :)

"Exotic" advantages and disadvantages are not allowed in ANY case.

"Supernatural" advantages and disadvantages may be allowed on a case-by-case basis; please discuss any such plans with me.

Any advantage or disadvantage related to magic is NOT allowed. Any advantage or disadvantage related to psi may be allowed on a case-by-case basis; please discuss with me.

In addition, the following advantages are specifically disallowed:

- Alternate Identities of any kind.
- Claim to Hospitality
- Cultural Adaptability
- Dominance
- Favor
- Quick Gadgeteer (the regular Gadgeteer skill IS allowed)
- Illuminated
- Legal Immunity
- The 15-point version of Security Clearance (if you want the 5-10 point versions, we need to talk about that)
- Tenure
- Trained by a Master
- Weapon Master
- Zeroed

The following disadvantages are specifically disallowed:

- Addictions, except Minor Addiction as a Quirk.
- Alcoholism
- Amnesia
- The -25 point level of Bad Back
- Bad Smell
- Blindness
- Bully
- Callous
- Cannot Learn
- Cannot Speak
- Most Compulsive Behaviors are not setting-appropriate. If you want a Compulsive Behavior, talk to me about it and we'll figure something out that IS appropriate.
- Cursed
- Deafness
- -15 point Delusions are disallowed; -10 point Delusions require permission.
- Draining
- Dyslexia
- The "Crippling" level of Flashbacks
- Greed
- Hemophilia
- Infectious Attack
- Innumerate
- Intolerance
- Kleptomania
- Lame at any level beyond "Crippled Leg"
- Lifebane
- Low Empathy
- Megalomania
- Neurological Disorder at any level more serious than "Mild"
- One Arm, One Eye, One Hand, etc.
- The "Diabolical" level of Phantom Voices.
- Pyromania
- Quadriplegic
- Restricted Diet
- Revulsion
- Sadism
- Secret
- The "Crippling" level of Shyness
- Slave Mentality
- Social Disease
- Split Personality
- Supernatural Features
- Terminally Ill
- Trademark
- Uncontrollable Appetite

Skills:

TL-based skills are generally bought at TL 10. Anachronistic skills ARE allowed if discussed.

Scientific skills are highly encouraged!

Bang! skills (broad groups of skills) are not allowed.

--

All for now due to I'm tired.

Comments

[distractionary]

I was kind of hoping that there would be a post like this up at some point! it does at least answer the question of whether or not you're on a computer while you're at work ever, although not the question of frequency.

Although I can understand how most of those disallowed disadvantages would make things difficult from a gameplay advantage, some of them make me sad because of how much fun giving them to characters can be. On the other hand, just because I have a character who's a pyromaniac, or one who's a sadist, or one who's completely blind, doesn't mean that translating any of them to this game would be a good idea.

I'll probably amuse myself for the rest of class thinking about putting specifically those three on a space ship and crash-landing it somewhere, admittedly, but that doesn't mean they'll survive my imagination...