Author Topic: Statting Darker than Black Contractors.  (Read 2359 times)

Offline razorsmile

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Statting Darker than Black Contractors.
« on: September 26, 2011, 11:34:44 PM »
Has anyone seen the anime series Darker than Black? Anyone tried statting out the Contractors from that setting in DFRPG? For those who haven't seen it, Contractors are basically superpowered people with exactly one power each and an OCD price they have to pay for using their powers. One example would be a character from the first ep who could reduce gravity around himself and others -- but has to break one of his own fingers every time he uses his powers. By contrast, another can use his own spilled blood as a will-triggered explosive. His remuneration? Cutting himself.

Their Catch would obviously be the Remuneration.
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Offline computerking

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Re: Statting Darker than Black Contractors.
« Reply #1 on: September 26, 2011, 11:47:13 PM »
I think their renumeration would probably be best represented by a "feeding dependency" and an aspect linked to the action.
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Offline ways and means

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Re: Statting Darker than Black Contractors.
« Reply #2 on: September 26, 2011, 11:52:58 PM »
One way you could stat contractors is via sponsored magic (a specific type per power) and having the remunerations being a result of sponsor agenda, so each time you cast a spell in a scene you gain a point of sponsor debt which can only be paid of by enacting the remuneration. Or you could do each power as a custom power and attache a refresh rebate proportional to how bad the remuneration is each time you lose the power. 

+0 for stuff like drinking or baking, +1 for something awkward like having to reveal a secret, +2 for something dangerous like cutting yourself and +3 for something completely abhorrent such as rapid aging when using the power or drinking the blood of children.   
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Offline The Mighty Buzzard

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Re: Statting Darker than Black Contractors.
« Reply #3 on: September 27, 2011, 12:10:59 AM »
One way you could stat contractors is via sponsored magic (a specific type per power) and having the remunerations being a result of sponsor agenda, so each time you cast a spell in a scene you gain a point of sponsor debt which can only be paid of by enacting the remuneration. Or you could do each power as a custom power and attache a refresh rebate proportional to how bad the remuneration is each time you lose the power. 

+0 for stuff like drinking or baking, +1 for something awkward like having to reveal a secret, +2 for something dangerous like cutting yourself and +3 for something completely abhorrent such as rapid aging when using the power or drinking the blood of children.

Might even work it as a pay up front version of sponsored magic.  I could see some entities demanding their payment first rather than allowing debt.
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Offline razorsmile

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Re: Statting Darker than Black Contractors.
« Reply #4 on: September 27, 2011, 12:38:40 AM »
Yeah, it would definitely have to be Sponsored Magic and Feeding Dependency.

Might even work it as a pay up front version of sponsored magic.  I could see some entities demanding their payment first rather than allowing debt.

Actually the up-front model seems to be canon for DtB, in the sense that Contractors seem to be able to perform Remunerations before, during or after the use of their powers. Wei (the explosive blood guy) pays his remuneration at the same time as he uses his powers (surprised it doesn't turn into a feedback loop though) as does the teleporter Brita (her remuneration is to kiss people on the cheek. She can teleport people if she's touching them. 1 + 1 = 2)

Then there are the characters who were able to pay off their Remunerations permanently (in effect, paying the mortage on their powers in full) like the body-hopper whose original body died. Wonder how to model that? Probably with a change in Aspect and Refresh.
They rose amid the crag as lightning blasted the mountains black against the sky and lashed blue fire over their saddles and along the guns.