One of the best ways to define a character's motivations and personality is through an interesting application of disadvantages, especially Psychological Limitations. Dark Champions contains a number of examples useful for most anime-cyberpunk games. A few genre-specific are as follows:
DISTINCTIVE FEATURES
Cyborg: Most full-body cyborgs no longer look fully human. Certain cyborgs may belong to a particular model line, which is known to have common features and implanted devices. Cyborgs with bodies designed to look as natural as possible still have to worry about the fact their weight is far greater than their size indicates, their skin may not feel right, damage to their skin could expose internal plates, and so on.
Distinctive Features: Cyborg Body; obvious cyberlimbs, rigid body plating, mass is much greater than size indicates. (Concealable, Noticed And Recognized): 10 Character Points
Distinctive Features: Synthskin and Cyborg Body; skin doesn't quite feel right to the touch, character doesn't sweat, mass is much greater than size indicates, skin degrades if hit by an attack. (Concealable, Noticed And Recognized): 10 Character Points
Esper: This disadvantage defines how epsers are able detect one another's mere presence. The more powerful (or unstable) the esper, the easier they are to detect. In the Kazei 5 campaign, it is recommended all characters have one of the following levels of Distinctive Features.
Powerful Epser: The character generates such extensive psychokinetic energy almost anyone with Esper Awareness can detect him. All Esper Awareness rolls to detect the character are at +3; +5 if they are using their powers.
Distinctive Features: Powerful Esper (Not Concealable, Noticed and Recognizable, Detectable Only With Unusual Senses): 10 Character Points.
Obvious Esper: The character generates significant psychokinetic energy, but can dampen his field by concentrating on it. The psychokinetic can complete simple tasks while damping his power, but not complex ones, and may lose concentration if surprised. Concentration is presumed to be lost automatically if involved in combat, asleep, or unconscious. All Esper Awareness rolls to detect the character are at +0; +2 if they are using their powers.
Distinctive Features: Obvious Esper (Concealable, Noticed and Recognizable, Detectable Only With Unusual Senses): 5 Character Points.
Esper: The character generates psychokinetic noise when his powers are in use. The character can be spotted with a normal Esper Awareness roll if using their powers. To prevent detection, the character need only stop using his powers.
Distinctive Features: Esper (Easily Concealable, Noticed and Recognizable, Detectable Only With Unusual Senses): 0 Character Points.
PHYSICAL LIMITATIONS
Cyber Rejection: A character with this disadvantage can never receive cyber implants, as his body will not accept them. The character cannot use most common forms of cyberware and is limited to costly bioware systems. It is important to note most psychokinetics cannot tolerate any form of cyber intrusion into their systems. Although their body may not reject the implant, it almost always has a detrimental effect on their powers.
Physical Limitation: Cyber Rejection (Infrequently, Fully Impairing): 15 Character Points
Does Not Heal Body; Must be Repaired: The character does not heal Body damage normally, but instead must be repaired. For example, broken limbs and damaged armor plating must be replaced. Internal injuries may heal normally, or they might require the swapping out of damaged artificial organs for new ones.
Physical Limitation: Does Not Heal Body; Must be Repaired (Frequently, Greatly Impairing): 15 Character Points
Requires Specialized Medical Attention: This Limitation is required for those characters who have had undergone cyborg modifications. "Requires Specialized Medical Attention" gives a base modifier of -3 to any Paramedic roll performed on the character. It may also mean certain injuries (such as gunshot wounds) will be next to impossible to treat without access to specific tools. Any extensive injuries to a cyborg's torso, for example, will usually be untreatable unless a carapace cracker is available (which is highly unlikely).
Physical Limitation: Requires Specialized Medical Attention (Infrequently, Greatly Impairing): 10 Character Points
Totally Helpless if Cybersystems Shutdown: The character is rendered helpless and immobile by damage to his cybernetic systems. Damage sufficient to disable the character's torso will shutdown the character's primary cybernetic control system, turning off the cyborg's augmented Strength and Dexterity. Until these systems can be repaired, the cyborg is effectively helpless. If the cyborg in question has undergone extensive replacement of his internal organs, these may shutdown as well, causing further problems.
Physical Limitation: Totally Helpless if Cybersystems Shutdown (Infrequently, Totally Impairing): 15 Character Points
PSYCHOLOGICAL LIMITATIONS
Addicted To Simsense: The character is heavily addicted to simulated sensory experience (i.e. simsense) programs and has great difficulty separating simsense-induced fantasies from reality. A common result of simsense addiction is the character assumes the persona and mannerisms of his favorite simsense character(s) whenever exposed to extreme stress. The character may also assign assorted roles to persons around him, usually based upon their relation to the simsense character. While under this psychosis the character may perform extremely dangerous actions.
Psychological Limitation: Addicted To Simsense (Common, Total): 20 Character Points
Cyber-Induced Psychosis: This limitation represents extensive psychological damage resulting from the implantation of numerous cybernetic systems. The character suffers from varying degrees of psychopathic tendencies and is often prone to acts of extreme violence. The Enraged (or Berserk) Disadvantage may also be bought to better simulate the character's mentally imbalanced state.
Psychological Limitation: Cyber-Induced Psychosis (Common, [Intensity Varies]): Variable Character Points
SOCIAL LIMITATIONS
Clone: The character is a genetic copy of another individual. In most cultures a clone has no legal identity at all, and the usual practice is to consider any clone the property of the being from which the genetic material came. According to the legal code of United North America and of most other nations, killing a clone is not considered murder, but destruction of property. Clones are exceedingly rare and are usually used to supply needed body parts for a specific individual.
Social Limitation: Clone (Very Frequently, Major [character has no legal or civil rights]): 20 Character Points
Synthetic Human (Property): The character is a synthetic human and thus is not considered a person in many cultures, but instead is thought of as property. The character has no rights guaranteed by law and can suffer from extreme mistreatment by his owner with no legal repercussions. The character may or may not be distinctly non-human in appearance, and his DNA is marked with identifying codes, so any detailed bioscan will reveal him as an engineered organism. Even cultures recognizing the possibility of a free synthetic human will assume the individual is property unless proper documentation is on file with the appropriate government organization.
This Limitation has differing values depending on what the synthetic human is used for. A combat synthetic, who has no say over the nature, number, or type of missions he is sent on, would receive a 25-point Limitation (Very Frequently, Severe), while a corporate office synthetic,who has a desk job, would have a 15-point limitation (Frequently, Major). The "default" value for this Limitation is 20 points (Very Frequently, Major).
Social Limitation: Synthetic Human (Very Frequently, Major): 20 Character Points
Free replicants (only possible in Australia and those countries recognizing synthetics as legal Australian citizens), have a 15-point Social Limitation defined as Very Frequently, Minor. Free synthetics are required to carry their identification at all times proving they are free and independent citizens or face imprisonment until they can be turned over to their owners (this is only for Australia, on other nations the penalty can include death).
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