NEXUS

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Sol System, Undisclosed Location, Timestamp
Redacted
[Message Received]
[Encoded Input Passcodes]
[Code Accepted Decrypting]
Theseus, we need emergency alternatives and I
mean like a week ago! Every Legionnaire, Nora killer and
combat-worthy Orgotek employee is committed to the
asteroid belt and were seeing casualty rates in excess of
42%. Nearly one out of every pair of psions is dying or out
of it, and our non-powered regulars are worse. Our defense
in depth has only lasted this long.
The Aberrants are just... too much. Too powerful, too
many and those we take down just burn themselves out
with Taint forces to return ten times the interest. Were
preparing for a retreat, but we cant get to Mars and break
contact and we cant just leave it to the freak titans.
If something doesnt ward them off or shift the bal-
ance.... Ill leave it there.
One more thing. Ive told them its absurd, but
between you and me... did they get him? Max Mercer. No,
no. We need him. Hes #*%(@$>...................
@*%**%)#@$
Dammit, fall back and cover the Final Perimeter---
2r481848!E
[Message Ends]
on Trinity Secure Covert Facility,
Location Classified,
2128.03.15
The power and lighting had been reduced down to
the minimum required for operation in this area. With Earth
itself under attack from advance infiltrators of the Aberrant
invasion, sabotage had crippled much of the infrastruc-
ture on the planet. Every bit of power was being diverted
towards the essential defense and support systems as the
SAMSARA
SAMSARA
Aeon Trinity braced for the final battle.
Sitara Prahaman wasn't bothered by the lack of light,
really. The bioware, boxy and backpack-like, seemed more
burdensome than the dimness. The datapod in her arms
felt more like a baby, so much that she cradled it automat-
ically. She fought the urge to find a blanket for it, or raise it
to her breast.
Even those impulses didn't trigger her grief. She'd
been floating in a cocoon of emptiness since she'd lost
Ramul and their two children. She wasn't the only one who
had lost someone when the Aberrant armada surged out
of the void and overran everything in the outer systems but
she'd heard them say she was the worst. Depressed, they
called it. She called it dead. Even amidst all the hell and
horror, her mental state was a particular concern to her kin
in the ISRA psi order. There were whispers she might do
something drastic.
I should have been there, she thought again, cradling
the datapod. She'd thought it before, many times. She'd
been on Earth, seeking a promotion when the monsters
had come out of the dark. She'd once had the cold comfort
of knowing that her husband had fought to protect his
family and system; that her children had merely been in the
wrong place. Her handlers had told her it was so mean-
ingless, not that they realized it. Ramul's death had meant
nothing. Her children had been victims for no reason. Not
that they were going to admit it out loud, much less in
public. The handlers and technicians couldn't lie to her
perceptions, no matter what their mouths said.
The Colony was going to kill or convert every last
human being in the Solar System.
Such a threat bred the desperation measures used
here. Time travel. Was that really possible? she won-
dered without any true curiosity. The Trinity said it was,
but according to her briefer, whatever proof they had did
not equate to surety in the bioware assigned her. She
suspected that was why they had specified her for this
operation. A powerful telesthesiac, with the ennui she had
developed after her loss; a person who would take risks
that even the most dedicated Legionnaires might not,
because she couldn't care.
1
 ABERRANT
They were wrong. She cared, because if she suc-
ceeded, Ramul, Jiaan and Warun would be alive. She could
have her family back, and that hope sustained her through
this insanity. That was why she stood in the black circle,
painted crudely on the floor in haste. This was her only
hope and she was crazy enough to take it.
Traveler in position, a voice came across the speak-
ers. Traveler, attune in 5... 4...
Sitara spread her mind and touched the bioware,
drawing it in. Her arms clutched tighter, and she thought
of Warun's warm weight in her arms when she fed him.
Soon, darling, she promised as she closed her eyes, and all
sensation ceased.
The sudden loss of her senses sent panic surging
through her. After a heartbeat of fear, she realized she
could still feel her fingers digging into the bioware. Tactile
senses remained, but she was in a void bereft of all else,
feeling shaken about like a leaf in a monsoon. There was
no stability, no security.
Then her acute mind somehow sensed a presence
across the emptiness, beautiful and as familiar as her own.
Ramul! It was her lost beloved, somehow screaming across
the abyss. Sitara, help!
She reached for him and lost her hold on the bioware.
The datapod was ripped from her grasp and everything
dissolved into stillness.
French Guiana, Cayenne,
Petit Maharashtracha,
2030.07.29
Sitara blinked, trying to focus on the round lights
overhead. Her eyes didn't want to focus; but her ears were
giving her the distant murmur of voices, something beating
on wood, and an odd sizzling sound. She could smell an
overwhelming cacophony of spices: turmeric, cardamom,
cumin, oregano and more. The floor under her fingers was
smooth, paint over concrete she thought.
A door opened and the sounds became louder, while
the smell of cooking food filled her nose. She heard a gasp
and the clatter of a metal bowl hitting the floor, then the
door slammed shut.
Groaning, Sitara sat up, keeping her eyes shut against
the stupid lights. Her mind raced as she determined her
next step: find out where she was, so that she could locate
the datapod. That was the priority.
The door opened again, and Sitara's gaze snapped
up. A slight man with sienna skin entered the room, easing
the door shut behind him. He was confident and calm, his
2 SAMSARA
aura of authority aided by the business suit he wore. Every-
thing about him said he was a competent professional, a
man used to getting his way.
Sitara Prahaman? he asked in French-accented
words. More interesting was his warm, genial voice, one
that was inclined to make the listener like him. She could
hear the odd vibrations in his tone that induced changes
in her brain, encouraging endorphins to rise and serotonin
to fall. She allowed herself to relax externally, knowing that
was what he wanted her to do.
Narrowing her eyes, Sitara said, Yes, I am. How did
you know that?
We found your picture in the datapod. He smiled
slightly. I am Claude Lefort.
A very French name but not a very French face. He
wasn't being forthcoming, and Sitara saw he was waiting
for something. You didn't answer me.
His smile widened. I'm waiting for the right question.
Or questions.
He had remarkably good control over his facial fea-
tures, but she could perceive the tremble in the muscles
that denoted anticipation. She gathered all the intel she'd
been absorbing--
--the scent of heat and tropical life when the door
opened--
--his obvious grace suggested martial training--
--the spice in the foods in the kitchen--
--the Paphinia cristata pollen clinging to his shoes--
--his wrists were too fine, even for an effeminate man,
and he had no adam's apple--
--his accent wasn't perfectly French; she could hear
subtle Creole influences, Haitian or possibly French
Guiana--
--the scent of copper -- a badge on him, somewhere--
--the scraps of bark caught in his cuff had the unique
smell of Tabebuia serratifolia--
Why am I in northern South America? Do you have
orchids around your house or your workplace? she asked,
turning her burnt umber eyes on him. Why is a transman
in a position of authority currently withholding information
from me? Why do you drink Yellow Lapacho tea? Who do
you work for?
His smile became a grin, and Sitara knew she'd passed
a test. Now if were done with tests, can I please get
some actual, useful information?
Yes, but please allow my friend, Basil, to prepare you
a meal, Lefort answered smoothly.
I dont have time for a meal, she snapped, I have-
She stopped short as she caught a faint, familiar vibration
in the air. Her skin crawled at the sensation. Youre an
aberrant, she hissed, drawing away from him.
Yes, I am a nova. I was disguised as a baseline so as
 ABERRANT
not to distress you, he said, his voice pitched to trigger
the release of ghrelin, a hormone that reduced stress. I
dont intend to deceive you, either.
I dont have time for this, she growled, standing up
despite the vertigo.
We have the datapod, Lefort said, the tone of his
voice still mitigating her hormones and forcing her to feel
better. Weve had it for decades. Now, will you come out
into the restaurant and let me explain everything?
Sitara weighed her options. She was no match for an
aberrant, physically, and if they had the datapod anyway,
then all was lost. If they knew about it, then they had
already abused the information within it. All is lost, and
none of this matters.
Okay, she agreed, rising smoothly to her feet. She
should be planning to escape, but she had no interest. The
mission was lost, and with it, all her hopes.
Lefort took her out through a kitchen; the gleaming
space was empty of people, though Sitara could smell the
dozen or so that regularly worked there. Deeper in the
room, out of sight but not out of range of her enhanced
perceptions, she heard someone breathing and moving.
I wonder if that is Basil or an attacker. Again, the thought
didnt move her.
The dining area of the restaurant was welcoming, with
bright, warm reds and oranges. Sitara felt her body react to
the colors, combining with the smell of food and signaling
her brain that she should eat.
Lefort guided her to a table and held out a chair for
her. She sat listlessly, wondering when they would kill her.
Her host sat across from her and folded his hands. Im sure
you have questions, he started.
No, she said, catching the muscle twitches that indi-
cated surprise. You have the datapod.
And you believe that were playing with you until we
kill you. Lefort sighed and sat back in the chair. Sitara, I
would never harm you. Its long been a dream of mine to
meet you. You have changed our world.
She frowned. I dont understand.
The information on your datapod. He leaned for-
ward as a man exited the kitchen, balancing two trays. As
he approached, she again felt that horrid vibration: the chef
was no man, but another hidden monster.
The chef was tall and lean; with broad African features,
soft ochre skin and neatly restrained braids. He smiled
proudly as he set the trays down with a flourish. Naan
bread with garlic and fried red and green chilli chutney,
kavathachi chutney, and cilantro mint coconut chutney.
Sitara considered the food, and Lefort laughed.
Here. He took pieces of bread and tried all of the chut-
neys, one by one, eating them with delight. No poison.
I know, she said. I can smell poisons. I was trying to
SAMSARA
determine what the payment for this feast would be, and
whether Im willing to pay it.
Lefort sighed and glanced at the chef, who shrugged.
The file said she was stubborn, the man said with a Cock-
ney accent. Im glad youre the one who has to explain it
to her, and I just get to make the food.
Thanks, Basil, Lefort snorted.
Explain what? Sitara asked sharply, and Basil bowed
and quietly left.
Your situation, the transman answered, sympathy
tinging his professional demeanour. Allow me to tell you
what happened with the datapod.
Do I have a choice? she queried irritably, wishing
hed start the torture or whatever horrors they had planned
for her.
Yes. There was no dishonesty or prevarication in his
voice or eyes; the latter were locked onto hers with all the
intensity of a quantum-powered personality. I asked out of
courtesy, and I meant it. If you dont wish to hear, well sit
here in silence, until the end.
Her gut clenched and she couldnt hide her dread.
The end of what?
Lefort leaned forward, his gaze entreating. Let me
tell you gently, please. She nodded and he drew a breath.
The datapod arrived twenty years ago. It was found by a
young scientist who knew immediately that he held some-
thing of value. He took it to friends of his at his university,
and together they determined how to access the data.
When they read what it contained, the group voted to
release the data onto the OpNet.
It created a media firestorm the likes of which had
never been seen before. The citizens of the world rose
as one in their outrage, demanding answers and justice,
Lefort continued. Many political figures and businessfolk
saw their careers and freedom end with the revelation of
their hidden crimes. Divis Mal and his Teragen left this
universe rather than tear Earth apart, and the Taint-mad
novas were taken along with them. The man who wouldve
become the Colony was killed in a... traffic accident...
before he ever erupted. The guilty among the Aeon
Council, along with those pulling its strings, were tried and
convicted of crimes against humanity at the Hague. Your
datapod was the ruin of them all.
Lefort gave her a ghost of a smile. The remaining
novas have largely left Earth for the human colony worlds,
though a few of us stayed. We work under the auspices of
the United Nations, covertly of course. We are here to find,
help, and evacuate any new eruptees before they disrupt
this old worlds fragile balance. Theres a global recession
from the colonizations, but there will be no Aberrant War.
It worked? Sitara breathed, unsure if she should trust
him. Her senses told him that he was being honest, but his
3
 ABERRANT
words were too good to be true. Whats the catch? With
aberrants, there was always a catch.
Not without a price. Her dinner companion swal-
lowed tightly and said, Youre a global hero, Sitara. Your
name was given to thousands of baby girls on Earth and
the colony worlds last year. But the future you knew is
gone. It has been replaced by ours.
That was the point, she said sharply as Basil came
out again, bearing glasses of Lassi for them to drink.
Sitaras eyebrows rose when she sipped it: the blended
yogurt drink had been whipped to a perfect foam, and she
could taste the cumin. To erase the nightmare we lived in
and replace it with something better.
That future never existed, Sitara. Lefort took a single
drink and set his glass aside. You are a temporal phan-
tom. Now that weve made those changes, you shouldnt
be here, and neither should the datapod. In the case of
the datapod, we have the information from it, but- He cut
himself off and pressed his hands together, gathering his
composure. You are not a thing to be copied. We will lose
you unless we take precautions.
Precautions? Sitara repeated dumbly, her head
swirling with the dire information. The scientists had talked
about this and told her it might happen, but theyd assured
her that shed have time to root herself in the new world.
The timeline here - it crystallized already?
Lefort nodded. Yes, he said softly, it did. We can
do a number of things for you: create a new body, use
nova powers to protect you, or move you to an alternate
timeline that is in the process of crystallizing. Were pre-
4 SAMSARA
pared to do any-
No, she said softly. Not unless you can assure me
that Ramul, Jiaan, and Warun would be there.
I cant do that, not without lying to you. Lefort
dropped the piece of naan bread, his appetite lost. You
cant know that youll be reunited with your family.
When I was in the timestream and became separated
from the datapod, I heard my husband. Sitara understood
now; Ramul was out in the temporal void, seeking her and
the children. She would go to him, and bring her family
together again.
Lefort rubbed his eyes, forcing back a hint of tears. I
had hoped we could save you, but that is your choice to
make. What do you need in the meantime?
Nothing, she told him. She studied him for a
moment before smiling. Thank you. I needed to know that
my mission was a success. Thats all I need before I - what,
pass on?
Aside from our copies of the information from the
datapod, it will be as if you never existed, Lefort said.
Oblivion. Are you sure?
I am, she said. Basil came out from the kitchen, his
tray loaded with Bharli Vangi and a side of Aamti. Did you
intentionally pick foods from my homeland? she asked the
chef.
No, I grew up in Mumbai. He grinned. Just like
you, Mrs. Prahaman.
You are very good, she assured him. As he dipped
his head in acknowledgement, she added, I couldnt have
asked for a better last meal.
 INTRODUCTION

Here Be Dragons the novas own larger than life status - so too have the
potential gains and threats they offer. Faced with all those
From the earliest days of human exploration, this
endless possibilities, only one thing is certain: wherever or
saying has (supposedly) been used in travelers tales and
whenever novas go, there will be conflict.
on sailors maps to denote places where literally anything
could happen, for good or ill. There fortunes could be
made, treasures were to be had, mysteries were to be What is Aberrant: Nexus?
found - sometimes also solved - and new discoveries could This RPG Post fanbook for Aberrant is the guide to
be made. It was also in those places where explorers couldexpanding the reach of your Aberrant chronicle to cover
easily lose their wealth, their freedom and their very lives
the rest of the Aeon Continuum game settings and beyond.
due to their own bad judgment or simple misfortune. The overall metaplot of the Aeon Continuum timelines
Likewise, the various activities of explorers have often had
is presented. The possibilities and dangers of both time
remarkable consequences for their own loved ones and travel and crosstime travel are examined, along with the
their homelands. Wealth reaped from foreign lands enrichednature of the multiple timeline clusters which make up the
families and regimes alike, while new lands could be traded
Aeon Continuum. Those singular figures whose actions
with, colonized and/or conquered if the local regime was have shaped the entire Aeon Continuum are given a closer
willing and able to do so. The loss of wealth used to fundlook. Crossover mechanics for Adventure! and Trinity
failed voyages of exploration imperiled many explorers are established, allowing Aberrant characters to directly
families and the regimes that supported them. Also, travels
experience all the wonders, horrors and strangeness of
into unknown territories carried the risk of explorers running
the Inspiration and Noetic Eras for themselves. Advice and
into cultures more advanced and just as rapacious - if guidelines for playing and Storytelling in high-powered
not more so - than their own, making it possible for theirAberrant chronicles are provided. New ways for the
homelands to be conquered and colonized by a hostile Storyteller to challenge players in such chronicles are also
foreign culture. Explorers could also imperil their homelands
discussed. The lesser-known effects of unfocused Telluric
directly by inadvertently acting as vectors to spread exotic
energy on the environment are looked over. New capabilities
new diseases and vermin, possibly leading to the deaths ofand options of use to novas traveling in time and/or the
millions of people, innocent and otherwise. Omniverse are offered for your perusal. A brief overlook
This state of affairs has changed only little in the Nova
of what Aberrant players and Storytellers can expect to
Age, as the definition of unknown territories - for novas, at
encounter in chronicles involving extrasolar and noetic
least - has merely shifted to indicate extrasolar space, other
space are laid out. And finally, we give a close examination
time periods and alternate universes instead of the remoteof what may prove to be one of the most potent alien threats
regions of Earth. And as the range of unknown territories for
to humankind in the entire Aeon Continuum: the Doyen.
novas to explore has increased exponentially - as if to match The doors have been revealed
and are ready to be opened. The
Passage, immediate passage! The blood burns in my veins! choice of whether or not to open a
Away, O soul! Hoist instantly the anchor! door and take that first, fatal step is
Cut the hawsers haul out shake out every sail! up to the players. Exactly where that
Have we not stood here like trees in the ground long enough? step will lead their characters is up
Have we not groveled here long enough, eating and drinking like mere brutes? to the Storyteller. The possibilities -
Have we not darkened and dazed ourselves with books long enough? both for good and ill - are limitless.
-- excerpt from Passage to India, by Walt Whitman

INTRODUCTION 5
 ABERRANT
Lexicon Astromanipulation quantum power at the highest rating
or as an accidental byproduct of a collision with a zoetic
Aeon Continuum (in-game): The specific Multiverse
universe. Doing the reverse and turning a zoetic universe
where the three static cosms and the infinite number of
into a dead universe requires either use of the Universe
associated universes (read: the canon settings and all of
Destruction quantum power or for an extremely rare natural
their possible variants) for the first editions of Adventure!,
disaster to arise in the subquantum medium.
Aberrant and Trinity are located.
Exile: Any being from a formerly zoetic universe who
Alternate Universes: All universes other than that
has managed to escape being destroyed along with it.
of ones origin. Also known as parallel realities and
Interface: A point in the spacetime of one universe
alternate timelines, depending on ones preferences for
where (and when) it comes into contact with another.
either time travel or crosstime travel.
Can be created either by the collision of a dead universe
Backup: A standard cosm that is a time-delayed and
with the affected zoetic universe or through use of the
near-perfect reflection of another one for all practical
Interface Manipulation quantum power or an equivalent
purposes. Very much sought after as an emigration
hypertechnology.
destination by refugees from dystopian universes and future
Intruder: Any time traveler or crosstime traveler in times
times.
or universes other than his or her own.
Dead Universe: A universe that cannot support any
Mirage: One of the many possible future timeline
form of life - Terran-descended or otherwise - for varied
branches that exist beyond a given timelines nexus. These
and different reasons. These universes are typically far
potential eras are highly unstable and prone to being greatly
more numerous, fragile, malleable and short-lived than
altered or even wiped out of their already tenuous existence
the zoetic universes, and often act as protective buffers for
by events taking place during or prior to their timelines
them against multi-universal collisions and similar hazards
nexus.
found in the subquantum stratum. Dead universes can be
Multiverse: A static cosm and its associated standard
transformed into zoetic universes either through use of the

6 INTRODUCTION
 ABERRANT
cosms. There is no limit to the number of standard cosms a
static cosm may have attached to it.
Nexus: The general point in a timeline where the future
has not yet crystallized out of quantum probability. Beyond
a given timelines nexus, the future is highly amenable to
being changed. Prior to the timelines nexus, the future is
highly resistant to change and tends to reassert itself against
any attempted changes. A nexus advances into the future
along with the ordinary passage of time in a given timeline.
The Omniverse: The totality of the subquantum
medium and all of its resident multiverses, including the
Aeon Continuum. Rough estimates place the Omniverse
outside of the Aeon Continuum and Trinity Continuum (see
below) as comprising at least 99.9999999% of the total
area of the subquantum medium as a whole. Most of its
universes are the dead universes, which although short-lived
are continually being created.
Phantom: Any item or being hailing from a mirage, often
encountered through use of time travel past a timelines
nexus. They are very likely to be altered considerably or
vanish into nonexistence if the circumstances supporting
their history are altered. These entities are known to have
achieved permanent existence by two methods: either
emigrating to alternate universes other than those of their
origin and residing there for an extended length of time, or
through having certain quantum powers used on them. Also
called zero-time ghosts.
Standard Cosm: Any zoetic univese that has budded
off from a supporting static cosm. These universes can be
entered, their sapient inhabitants possess free will and their
timelines progress normally.
Static Cosm: The inflexible support structure of
a group of related standard cosms. Almost a true zoetic
universe in its own right, except that the course of history in
it cannot be changed by any means and in that it endlessly
repeats only a single portion of its timeline. The inhabitants
are pre-programmed robots following a script instead
of free-willed sapients. Static cosms cannot be entered,
although they can be viewed from outside of them with the
appropriate means. Their inhabitants can be summoned -
or more accurately, copied - from a static cosm with certain
quantum powers. A static cosm cannot be destroyed by
anything, up to and including the most potent of quantum
powers and subquantum disturbances.
Terran Continuum: The range of Zoetic Universes in
which some recognizable version of Earth exists, has existed
or will exist, depending on said universes individual timeline
nexii. These universes may or may not contain some version
of humanity and/or human civilization. As a subsection of the
Omniverse, the Terran Continuum is of indeterminate size
and has been known to fluctuate rapidly.
Timeline: Any alternate universe when seen from the
perspective of a time traveler.
Trinity Continuum (in-game): a currently inchoate,
unstable and inaccessible funhouse mirror image of the
Aeon Continuum. It is speculated that in due time, travel
between the Trinity and Aeon Continua will be possible once
the universes comprising the Trinity Continuum stabilize
themselves. A.K.A. the upcoming Adventure!, Aberrant
and Aeon gamelines to be published by Onyx Path.
Zoetic Universe: Any universe capable of supporting
lifeforms, Terran-descended or otherwise. Considered to be
the default variety of alternate universe by the uninformed.
Zoetic universes can and do reproduce themselves naturally
by budding off new daughter zoetic universes from a
parent universes black holes.

Sail forth steer for the deep water only,

Reckless, O soul, exploring, I with thee and thou with me,
For we are bound whither mariner has not yet dared to go,
And we will risk the ship, ourselves and all.
-- excerpt from Passage to India, by Walt Whitman

INTRODUCTION 7
 A B E R R A N T
Margaret Mercer Personal Log

Private Memo - Hardcopy Only

January 14th, 1976

Margaret -
Its your Uncle Whitley writing to you here, kiddo. If youre reading this, then hopefully youre alive, healthy and
chomping at the bit to do something that matters with your life. Thats how I felt when I was your age, at least. I realize that
receiving a letter straight out of the blue from someone long buried may come as something of a shock to you, so let me
apologize beforehand. Theres a very good reason why youre getting this blast from the past, so please dont dismiss this
as the final rantings of a crazy old man. There is more to all this than youve been told, and your family history is a big part
of it.
Im not sure if you remember me all that well, as you were still a very young girl when I went out of circulation. Your
father promised me that youd be told all he could share about your grandfather Max and the adventures that I had with him
and our companions. Its true that our little band did a lot of good things throughout the decades of the Twenties, Thirties
and Forties. What you have to remember is that we were all human and imperfect, meaning that we made our fair share of
mistakes along the way. The consequences of our victories, mistakes and failures are still affecting the culture youre living in
and will do so for decades to come.
The organization that grew out of our old group isnt much different in their ability to shape our world for good or
ill. The difference between us and them is this: the organization Max Mercer founded has strayed far from the ideals your
grandfather set for them to follow. I had the displeasure of personally watching it happen after your fathers death. The cor-
ruption started in small ways, but it grew fast and strong as our older hands either retired or died out over the years. on is
no longer the force for progress and the champion of the general welfare of humanity that it was supposed to be. It is now
just another secret group attempting to control the world and the people who live in it.
So why am I telling you all of this? Easy answer: youre Margaret Mercer. Your family name still carries a lot of weight
among those in the know about on. The on Council knows this and wants to recruit you in order to lend themselves
some phony legitimacy, although theyd never admit it to your face. One way or another, they will find a way to bring you in
- on has lots of influence in the most surprising sections of society.
If youre feeling trapped by the snakepit Ive described, dont be. You have allies within on who still retain your grand-
fathers ideals, although they do so in secret. Your father introduced you to Professor Schnelling once, right? Look her up
first thing after you finish reading this file. In private, tell her that Styles wanted you to ask her about Project Pandora, then
give her the files youre reading now. She will help you learn how to work in on and build a loyal power base within their
ranks. And you will be needing that power base, young lady. Max Mercer had many secrets, and one of them is this: he will
return to fix what has gone wrong with on. And he will need your help in achieving that. If he wants to find me, just show
him my grave. Then hell let you in on one of my secrets.
One final note: to understand how just far on has fallen, you have to understand its origins. That in turn requires you
to understand everything about Max Mercer. That includes his history, his psychology, his strengths and most importantly his
failings. Remember what I wrote earlier about our choices having world-shaping consequences? The choice described in the
report this note is attached to is a classic example. Never limit yourself to just learning from your own mistakes, Margaret.
Learn from the mistakes of others as well. Humanitys future could depend on it.

8
 A B E R R A N T
Internal on Society Missive

ABOVE TOP SECRET - Babel Dossier - File #07g-1975-9-20-Q EYES ONLY

Arena: on Council
Status: Restricted
Author: Dr. Cosette Hebert, PhD
Subject: on Council, current disposition and recommendations
Minimum Security Rating: [REDACTED]

Final Summation: Mr. Styles, on has strayed so far from the ideals set forth by Maxwell Mercer that it has become a
twisted mockery of its former self. The only consolation that I can offer you is that the corruption engendered by the new
guard of the on Council is far from complete. I expect you know those noble holdouts better than I do, so I wont discuss
them further. Instead, I offer my recommendations on what must be done to remedy the situation. Put simply, the current
on Council and their supporters must be purged and driven out of power by any means necessary. Nothing less will suffice
to end the threat they pose to humanity as a whole.
As to the root cause of ons ongoing dilemma? After going over the files you so kindly provided, I am forced to posit
the culprit as being none other than Max Mercer himself. The cause you asked me to identify is his unfortunate tendency to
view other people through the proverbial rose-colored glasses. From what I can tell, Mr. Mercer always preferred to see the
potential for goodness in those around him instead of taking a realistic view of them. This failing negatively affected his life
in three ways, detailed below.
1- While Mercer encouraged people to attain their potential - such as the both of us did - others failed to do so and
disappointed him. Mercer also never realized that most who failed to reach that potential saw him as a constant reminder
of their failure and apparent lesser worth as human beings. This led in turn to those people developing a burning hatred of
Mercer and all he stood for, which was usually concealed behind a veneer of politeness.
2- Mercers rose-colored viewpoint also led him to be overly merciful toward his foes, the great majority of whom did
not merit any such consideration. Taking advantage of his vain hopes of rehabilitating or reforming them, many of these
miscreants went on to inflict much unwarranted suffering on the public at large.
3- Finally and perhaps most damning, Mercers viewpoint caused him to misjudge the character of people that he
should not ever have trusted with anything. He picked the wrong people to carry on his work, and they repaid his trust by
perverting his organization.
On a final note, there is one horrid little lagniappe to point out. Having looked over the transcripts of your discussions
with Mercer, there is no indication whatsoever that he ever understood this failing of his in the slightest degree. Mercer may
not even be truly capable of ever making that mental breakthrough. If he does somehow return as youve hinted in our pri-
vate discussions, it is imperative that Mercer not be allowed unfettered control over ons affairs should he regain control of
the organization. He will have to have equals on hand to correct the errors caused by his unique viewpoint. Blindly trusting
in his apparent wisdom will only cause on and humanity as a whole much uncalled for troubles.

9
Chapter One:
The Aeon Continuum
Chapter Three: Storytelling
What follows is a best attempt at outlining the
overarching metaplot - the structure that supports and
scientific
short, thisunderstanding
That
comprehending
game is a tool for your theirtheworld.
imagination, not other
it would eventually lead to the sparking of new modern
way around.
So, think youre smart enough to handle some of the
links all three of the Aeon Continuum game settings - as myths and legends is just another historical irony.
smartest people the world has ever seen? No matter how
a coherent whole instead of the disjointed conglomerate it Theme
smart you are, there are some challenges to incorporating Theme is what the overall story is about, the mean-
resembles at first to the casual reader. Whether or not the
the full potential of Mega-Mental Attributes into your Aber-
metaplot is adhered to, only used as a general indication
The Hammersmith
ing it imparts. Event
The major theme Aberrant explores is one of
rant chronicle. This chapter looks at them and ways you can powerThanks
and whatto people
the recklessness of Doctor
do with it, summed up inSir the Calvin
tagline
of what may happen without positive actions on the player
handle them without making your players regret those nova Hammersmith, the global state of Inspired
What would you do with the power of a god? Mega-Men- affairs was
characters part or simply tossed out the window has been st, 1922. A select group of
points they spent on giving their characters Mega-Intelli- changed forever on July 21
tal characters offer the opportunity to explore this and many
left to the individual Storytellers and players in an Aberrant
gence or Mega-Perception. Well also consider the possibil- witnesses
other themes. to the activation of the Hammersmith Engine
chronicle.
ity of chronicles based on novas with primarily Mega-Mental were inadvertently empowered, becoming powerful
Attributes rather than the traditional kick-ass quantum Responsibility
Inspired beings. Two of these augmented humans merit
The Pre-Hammersmith Epoch
powers. Its an
special mention.
responsibility.
old lineFirst,but
Perhaps
the with
geniusgreat
more than
prodigy
any
power
Donighal underwent eruption into a full nova, although his
Michael
other
comes
novas,
great
Daemon
those
Any PriorMoreto the Bright Ideas? of Doctor Sir Calvin
pivotal experiment
with Mega-Mental
capabilities abilities
at that time were have the potential
nothing too special to transform
by Nova
Hammersmith
Odds are, on after 21st, 1922;
Julyreading this book,Inspiredyoullactivity
have yourwas
the world, because they can conceive
Age standards. Second, Maxwell Anderson Mercer of things thatliterally
no one
sporadic, erratic and almost always
own ideas on how to handle Mega-Mental Attributes in inexplicable. With
before them ever has and, more importantly,
vanished from the scene of the explosion, becoming both they can make
the
yourexception
game andofsome the twists
ancientonChinese,
the gamenone rulesofand thesource
early
those things a reality. Thats a tremendous
permanently unstuck in time and hurled two full decades power, and an
civilizations had any real comprehension
material. By all means, use them! Maybe you want to make of Inspiration
awesome responsibility. How do novas
into the future. Finding himself in the backyard of his handle it? With so
and its effects.
Kuro-Tek and theAsDirective
for theinto Chinese,
puppets while
of a they did figure
world-spanning many problems
parents Chicagoinbrownstone,
the world, where Mercer do was
theythen
choose to apply
faced with
out some of the basic mechanics
conspiracy, with a Mega-Intelligent nova pulling the of Inspiration, their low
strings. their abilities first? What do they identify
his own older self, backed up by several members of the as problems and
level of scientific understanding - in
Or you want to have the most Mega-Perceptive novas start comparison to that of
how do they
Aeon Society. propose to solve them? What if some people
modern
going mad times - prevented
because them sensing
they keep from developing
something, anything
some- dontThe
agree with
elder Max theMercer
solutionproceeded
they cometo up(mis)educate
with? his
beyond
thing too basic noeticfor
horrible principles
their mindsand the advanced
to cope with,techniques
that other The key element of this theme
younger counterpart as to the nature of their shared is your actions have
powers,
incorporated
people cant see, withhiding
their formal
in the martial
shadowarts. of what we call reality. consequences.
the When youre
global circumstances that hetremendously
would face and powerful, your
the future
Combined with the relatively
Whatever you want to do with your Aberrant undeveloped naturetake
chronicle, of
actions often have tremendous consequences.
of humanity. Both the younger and elder Mercers falsely Weve
the Mazarin-Rashoud
it and run with it. gene sequence at the time, these
pointed out
perceived that,
their in the comic
timeline as being books, the world
a unitary thingnevermuchreally
like
circumstances
One particular madearea for brief
whereperiods
you might of time wantwhere the
to mess
exploits of the local Inspired - as opposed
around is in the places White Wolf cant. Two major things to time traveling
Inspired fromAberrant
limit official later eras products.
- spawnedFirst,a multitude
the need of legends
to maintainand
myths
a certainin the oral andworld
baseline written(nohistories.
pun intended) Few ofthatthese ancient
cleaves to
Inspired
the history ever of produced
the futureany Inspired
in Trinity and offspring,
of the pastensuring that
in Adven-
the
ture!mutation would remain
Just because White Wolfdormantisnt ingoing
almost toall of itsChina
have carriers
go
until the early 20 th Century. Of those few who did manifest,
to war with the rest of the world or have Earth invaded by a
the vasttimeline
parallel majorityinwere daredevils.
Aberrant doesnt Whether
mean that theseyou ancient
cant.
Inspired were considered heroes or
Second, White Wolf is limited by copyright in terms of what villains depended
on who
it can addone wasAberrant
to the talking to. mix.TheDointensely
you wanttribal
to have nature
a novaof
human society - which developed into
who thinks hes a certain Man of Steel (and has the powers nationalism around
modern
to match)? times - meant that
Time-Warner the heroes
probably of any
wouldnt likegiven tribe
it if White
would
Wolf did certainly
it, but be youseen
can.asWantvillains
some by the others.
of H.P. Eventually,
Lovecrafts cre-
the rising power of technology distracted
ations to drop in? Dig out your other books and introduce many humans
from their old
your novas myths beyond
to whats while providing
the quantum a solid foundation
level of reality. of In

10 CHAPTER ONE: THE AEON CONTINUUM

 ABERRANT
a river; rather fluid where small details are concerned but
quite inexorably rushing down its natural course. Armed with
the erroneous future knowledge provided by his elder self,
Mercer then unwittingly commited his greatest mistake, an
act with literally universal consequences. By making his first
time-jumps into Earths future eras, Mercer split his original
timeline into three main timeline groups. Two of the said
timeline groups had their nexii advanced by nearly one and
two centuries further up their histories respectively, making
them into concrete alternate futures of the original timeline.
Unfortunately, the third timeline group was not unaffected
by Mercer, as his unwitting initial time jump to 1943 made telluric vortex - this one having been created by elements
the development of Michael Daemon Donighal into Doctor of Psi Order Nora - actualizing this timeline group. Aside
Primoris (and later into Divis Mal), into a likely future from making their past histories inevitable and immutable,
probability. While Donighals metamorphosis could have Mercers time-jumps had little additional effect.
been altered into something less dire for humanity, Mercers
own mistaken beliefs about the nature of time prevented him
from making any such efforts.
The Adventure! Era
After completing his initial journeys, Mercer returned to
There are two important facts to note about Mercers
what he thought of as his present in June of 1923 and
time-jumping at this point. The first is that as a side-effect of
began laying the foundations of the nascent Aeon Society
his temporal meddling, Mercer split his own lifestream into
for Gentlemen. With his personal guidance the original Aeon
three branches of incarnations across the three timeline
Society stayed true to Mercers founding goals of investigating
groups. The first branch is the Mercers who manifested in
Inspired phenomena, promoting social progress, defending
the Universe 1 timelines; who managed to arrive safely in
the helpless against Inspired evildoers and maintaining the
2122 and personally witness the Noetic Era. The second
Aeon Society as a publicly transparent group. While mistakes
branch is comprised of the Mercers who manifested in the
were made - Mercer himself counted supporting Prohibition
Universe 2 timelines. These unfortunates rebounded off
in the United States and failing to prevent the rise of the
the Nora telluric vortex of 2122, giving them the mistaken
Nazis as two of his major ones - the Aeon Society generally
belief that the First Aberrant War would mean the certain
acted for the common good during this time. It would not,
destruction of Earth and the extinction of baseline humanity.
and could not, last.
The third branch represents the Mercers who manifested in
Please note that past this point, the metaplot described
the Universe 3 timeline group. Created from as a telluric
need not apply to the Universe 3 timeline group. While
interference pattern between the prior two branches, these
the development of baseline Terran human society may be
Mercers received second-hand memories from both the
more-or-less set in stone, that of the Aeon Society and the
Universe 1 and Universe 2 Mercers without advancing the
Inspired in general is not.
Universe 3 nexii at all.
The second fact is that Mercer made three separate time-
jumps into the alternate future timeline groups. Mercers Interregnum 1
first time-jump landed him in 1998, at the time of the Galatea As the Second World War drew to a close, so did the
Disaster and just after Divis Mals creation of his own telluric effects of Hammersmiths Telluric Vortex. Faced with a natural
vortex. The combined effects of Mercers arrival and Divis decline in Inspired activity and growing official awareness of
Mals telluric vortex actualized the timeline group, giving the (and social hostility to) the same, the remaining members
Nova Age the firmest of foundations. It also made the history of the Aeon Society decided to adopt a policy of covering
leading up to that point inevitable and impossible to alter. up everything Inspired from both public and governmental
Mercers second time-jump to 2069 was not reinforced by notice whenever possible. It was at this time that Mercer
any telluric energy events at that time, and so had a much committed his second greatest mistake: picking the wrong
more limited impact on the timeline group. This made the people to replace the lost Aeon Society members. These
First Aberrant War into only a likely future probability of the successors had personal agendas which in time (and Mercers
Nova Age which could be averted with sufficient knowledge absence) would guide the Aeon Society much farther from its
and effort, instead of an historical inevitability. Mercers third initial goals than Mercer himself would have ever allowed.
jump landed him in 2122, at the end of the early Noetic Mercers departure in 1950 and the efforts of the corrupt
Era. The impact of this time-jump was also reinforced by a U.S. Senator Joseph McCarthy reinforced and developed

CHAPTER ONE: THE AEON CONTINUUM 11

 ABERRANT
that policy into a full-fledged independent covert operation.
The Aeon Society took to the darkness; becoming darker,
more intrusive, prone to evil and ruthlessness themselves
as a consequence. It was during this time (circa the late
1970s) that the Proteus sub-group was retasked as a black
ops group handling assassinations and other ethically
reprehensible work.
The Nova Age
By the dawn of the Nova Age, the Aeons Societys
transformation was nearly complete and well-established,
with only a few dissenting elements holding true to Mercers
initial goals. Of the Aeon Council itself, only Margaret
Mercer (Max Mercers granddaughter by way of Maxs son
Michael) had refused to support the corruption of her fellow
Council members. When Mercer himself arrived back on the
scene in the mid 1990s he was not pleased with what he
found. Aided by Margaret Mercer and a rejuvenated Whitley
Styles, Max began the long, slow task of regaining control
over his wayward organization. His efforts would prove to
be too late to prevent some dire consequences of Aeons
corruption, however.
The Future Is Unwritten
To the casual reader of the Aeon Continuum core books,
the overarching metaplot of the three settings can appear to be
scripture carved in stone which cannot be deviated from in
any meaningful way, making the actions of the player characters
irrelevant in the greater scheme of things. While that can be
true for certain Aberrant chronicles - namely those set in the
Universe 1 timelines - it bears repeating that in most Aberrant
chronicles, the metaplot is only an indicator of how events will
play out if the player characters do not manage to somehow
change the global situation for the better. The players
characters are not inhabitants of a static cosm - their actions are
not predetermined in any way. Given sufficient ingenuity and
thinking outside the box of traditional superheroic conflict, the
player characters can and should be able to change the setting
in radical ways. With some serious diplomatic and political
efforts, the players can achieve things that Divis Mal (much less
Caestus Pax) could never hope to match. The Aberrant War
can be prevented from breaking out, or at least redefined into
being just another conflict between baseline governments and
power groups instead of a race war between novas and baseline
humanity. Proteus and its supporters in the Aeon Society can
be exposed and brought to justice, or at least prevented from
harming any more innocents. Divis Mal and the Teragen might
even be persuaded to leave Earth early to set up their own
idealized nova-only society on one or more extrasolar colony
worlds or in some baseline-free alternate universe.
12 CHAPTER ONE: THE AEON CONTINUUM
Having been forewarned of the coming of the novas by
Mercers writings, the Aeon Society had prepared the sub-
organizations of what would become Project Utopia and
the Triton Foundation long beforehand. The reformation
of Aeons old Proteus sub-group into Project Proteus would
be delayed to 1999, when Director Thetis made her Thetis
Proposal to Justin J. Laragione and the Aeon Council.
While maintaining a public faade of benevolence, the
Aeon Council were actively working to prevent novas from
becoming an established dominant factor in baseline human
society while simultaneously exploiting them as much as
possible. This in turn gave legitimacy to the anti-Utopia
sentiments held by many in the Nova Age, adding heat to
the already boiling pressure cooker that was baseline-nova
relations in Terran society. Unless that metaphorical pressure
cooker could somehow be vented, the situation would
eventually degrade into the First Aberrant War.
If the First Aberrant War comes to pass in your Aberrant
chronicle, further details on the metaplot during that time
can be found in The Story So Far section of the Trinity
softcover. Its also available online for free at various websites
and can be found with a decent search engine.
Past this point, the metaplot described need not apply
to the Universe 2 timeline group.
Interregnum 2
Describing the First Aberrant War is beyond the scope
of this ebook, and is covered in both The Story So Far
and on pp. 97-99 of the Aberrant: Teragen sourcebook.
Of more interest are the actions of the Aeon Trinity during
the Crash, as they sought to help rebuild nations and
cultures wrecked by the First Aberrant War. Unfortunately
for Aeon, caches of accurate historical records of that time
period had escaped the devastation in various libraries and
data archives, both private and public. Repeating history
once again, Aeon attempts to edit history to their benefit.
Desperate to strengthen their position as a global stabilizing
force, the Aeon Council initiated Project Rewrite. Wherever
their teams could get away with it - with Japan being one of
the few exceptions where they couldnt - those records are
confiscated for later public release. Before that happens,
Aeon carefully edits all mention of their own involvement
with the novas, especially of their own misdeeds and
atrocities committed against the nova population. For a
time, all goes well with this until the dawn of the Noetic Age.
The Noetic Age
The actions of Aeon in this time period are described
well enough in The Story So Far and the various Trinity
sourcebooks. At last notice, the Trinity sourcebooks were
available in PDF format at DriveThruRPG.com.
 ABERRANT
The Aeon Continuum Timeline
Seen below is our best attempt to fill in the enormous
blank spots between the partial histories presented in the
Adventure!, Aberrant and Trinity settings. For the sake of
brevity and avoiding legal hassles - Aberrant: Nexus is an
unofficial fanbook, after all - the aforementioned histories
from the setting core books have not been reproduced here.
The Pre-Inspiration Period
Prior to 21 July 1922 C.E., the official records of human
and prehuman Terran history for the Aeoniverse do not
noticeably diverge from those of our own world, with two
caveats. First, official history does not equate with actual
history, as official histories have always been altered to
suit the preferences of the wealthy and powerful in human
society. Second, events that are out of the context of a
cultures worldview will almost always be misunderstood
if they arent dismissed out of hand as hallucinations or
mirages. These two factors give Storytellers quite a bit of
leeway for chronicles that take place either temporarily or
permanently in those times.
The New Century and The
Adventure! Era
As per the timeline in the Adventure! core book, pp.
259-262.
Interregnum I - Twilight of the Inspired
The following section covers the period between the
Adventure! and Aberrant settings, and focuses on the
activities of the Inspired and the circumstances affecting
them.
1946: Having been infiltrated by the KGB, the
Ponatowski Foundation is taken over from within. The Czar
is captured and thouroughly interrogated by KGB agents,
only to be reduced to a broken shell of a man and sent to his
eventual death in the gulags. Princess Anastasia manages
to escape to Canada with the majority of the Czars wealth
and information. She shares the information with the Aeon
Society in return for their aid in setting up a new identity for
her retirement. Back in the U.S.S.R., enough hard information
on mesmerists is found to begin what will become the KGBs
psychic warfare & espionage programs.
1947: The surviving Inspired begin to go underground
in the First and Second World nations, although some
Second World Inspired manage to quietly defect to a
First World nation. Many then cease all Inspired activities
and begin to settle down and start families. Others do
so to evade official notice and involuntary conscription
CHAPTER ONE: THE AEON CONTINUUM
- especially as they make juicy targets for anti-communist
or anti-imperialist investigations - sometimes by becoming
part of their local political hierarchies and hiding in plain
sight. The physical effects of aging serve to put a brake
on the activities of most of the other Inspired. In the First
World nations, some of their offspring will briefly carry on
with their parents Inspired activities for larks - most often
by digging out a handy gadget such as a flight pack out of
a steamer trunk in the basement - but little comes of this
save for discounted tall tales and reports of Fortean events.
An alleged UFO crashlands on a ranch near Roswell, New
Mexico, and is quickly taken by the United States military.
The event is ineptly covered up, and civilians are threatened
by agents of the Federal government to remain silent about
the event.
1948: The Aeon Society begins their covert efforts
to cover up any and all Inspired activity in the First World
nations. In the United States, these efforts take silent
advantage of Senator Joseph McCarthys witch-hunts for
communists and leftist intellectuals to ensure that what few
Inspired remain keep their existence well out of the notice
of the government, the business community and the public
at large.
1949: The spread of television and televised journalism
brings further incentive for the Inspired and their offspring
to remain discreet.
1950s: Maxwell Anderson Mercer vanishes, undertaking
another one of his time travels. Hammersmiths Telluric
Vortex finally dies down, causing the disappearance or
death (in the case of dinosaurs & the like) of the vast majority
of the Inspired weirdness. New Inspired beings tend to be
either offspring of existing Inspired or latents who come
into direct contact with powerful Inspired beings and/or
devices. Dramatic Editing is no longer available to most of
the Inspired. United States intelligence agencies become
aware of the KGBs psychic warfare & espionage programs,
which is primarily focused on investigating telepathy, Kirlian
auras and psychotronics.
1960s: An apparently natural increase in the number
of Fortean Events and other Inspired weirdness occurs.
In the United States and Western Europe, the emerging
counterculture sparks a renewed popular interest in
paranormal capabilities. This allows the surviving Inspired a
slight degree of freedom for their activities, provided that
they can be written off by witnesses as advertising stunts
or drug-induced hallucinations. The first publicly recorded
incident of nova activity happens in Gary, Indiana, United
States of America, in 1964. The incident is covered up by
Aeon before any other serious notice is taken of it.
1970s: The Mini-Quantum Boom. Divis Mals most
notable early attempt at creating a Telluric Vortex, and
something of a qualified success by his standards. Instead
13
 ABERRANT
of being focused on creating novas like his later attempt in will not have much noticeable effect for decades. The two
1998, this vortex creates a population of Inspired individuals major worldines of the Aeon Continuum noticeably diverge
more in line with those created by Hammersmiths vortex in at this point due to Mercers own personal refraction in
1923. Most of the new Inspired do their best to keep just out his time-jump to 2122 - see p. 31 of this book for details.
of the public eye, having adventures and doing right and/or Divis Mal and a few of his select allies once again begin
wrong as their personal inclinations direct. Dramatic Editing preparations for creating his own desired variant of the
becomes available once more to the Inspired (both old and initial Hammersmith Telluric Vortex. On March 23rd, 1998,
new) for the duration. This vortex lasts until the late 1980s. Mal finally succeeds in his efforts and triggers the Nova Age.
The Aeon Council begins to alter the directives of Proteus,
making it into a corps of assassins and saboteurs as well as
spies. The elderly Whitley Styles undergoes the Sleep of
Kali at this time, entering a state of suspended animation The Early and Middle
and slow rejuvenation thanks to his psionic capabilities.
Styles will awaken sometime in 1996, restored to his youth
Nova Age
1998 - mid-2008: The Dawn of the Nova Age, as per
and full power and welcomed back by Max Mercer. The
the Aberrant core book, pp. 9-13. From here onwards,
United States Federal Government initiates the Stargate
the inevitability and even the precise nature of the events
Project, which explores the potential of psychic phenomena
described in this timeline depends on which universe your
with military, intelligence and domestic applications. Similar
chronicle is set in and the whims of your Storyteller. The
projects investigate electrodirection and pyrokinesis. The
dividing point from which your chronicle diverges from the
Stargate Project is most noted for their work in remote
canon timeline - if it does - will be established by your
viewing and precognition. The Stargate Project continues
Storyteller. There will be timeline variations due to the
until its cancellation in 1995.
individual circumstances your Storyteller establishes for
1980s: First known highly-Tainted nova eruption occurs
your chronicle and possibly the player characters actions
in Atlanta, Georgia in 1981. The nova is kept in quarantine
and the consequences thereof. This section and all those
by the CDC until the Aeon
following are only considered to be inevitable history for
Society uses its influence
Adventure! and Aberrant chronicles set in the Universe
to take the nova to one
One timeline, in which canon Trinity is set. For chronicles
of their private clinics.
set in the Universe Two timeline - where canon Aberrant
The novas fate after
is set - these are only potential future events that can be
that remains a mystery.
altered and even prevented with sufficient and well-
Acting on the revelations
directed efforts. Refer to Split Continua on
of the upcoming Nova
p. 29 for further details.
Age provided by Max
Mid-to-late 2008: Randal the
Mercer, the Aeon Society
Fireman Portman runs for and wins
also quietly begins
the Presidency of the United
developing what will
States as a Democrat. The
become Projects Utopia
Aeon Council meets
and Proteus and the Triton
and votes to act
Foundation.
against breeder
1990s: Max Mercer
novas, with only
reappears circa 1995 -
two council
much later than he had
m e m b e r s
intended - only to find
voting against
that the Aeon Society has
the decision.
strayed intolerably far from
Director Thetis
his original ideals and
begins laying the
operational methods.
groundwork for Proteus
He immediately begins
motherhunting operations.
plotting to regain his
The Aberrants make plans in turn
former influence over the
to thwart Aeon, Utopia and Proteus
wayward Aeon Council
in this matter however they can. Count
members, although his efforts
Raoul Orzaiz and Altaz the Apothecary Zia

14 CHAPTER ONE: THE AEON CONTINUUM

 ABERRANT
establish the Maer Enclave to solve the mystery of nova
sterility and to research possible cures for it.
2009: Beginnings of public disenchantment with
the nova phenomenon in general and Project Utopia
in particular. Spencer Antaeus Balmer leaves Project
Utopia due to concerns over the detrimental effects
of Operation Genesis on Earths environment. Donald
Zeleckis, a Jewish-American nova tourist, dies in the
course of preventing an Israeli nuclear missile from
obliterating a Syrian city. Gabriel the Miracle Melchior
escapes from Utopian/Proteus slavery. Having developed
extreme levels of both Quantum and Taint, Melchior
makes his way to the headquarters of the Church of the
Immanent Escheaton in Boulder City, Nevada. Melchior
proceeds to broadcast apocalyptic sermons with threats
to unleash bioweapon-grade plagues on the general
populace, provoking a standoff with forces of the U.S.
military, the Directive and Project Utopia. Unidentified
nova operatives manage to remove Melchior from
delivery boy foes increase in frequency as more breeder
the scene without him releasing any plagues, with his
novas and their offspring are discovered.
death reported a few weeks afterwards. The Church of the
The Night of Long Knives scenario occurs sometime
Immanent Escheaton fades back into obscurity with the
during this decade (see Aberrant: Teragen pp. 97-98 for
loss of its leader, with members quietly leaving to begin
details). A shadow war breaks out between the Camparelli-
new lives elsewhere as either normal citizens or members
Zhukov Megasyndicate and Opus Dei, a cultic faction within
of other nova cults. The Camparelli-Zhukov Megasyndicate
the Roman Catholic Church. Nova Arthur Francis Anningsley
begins their biotech operation under the auspices of Dr.
and his Temple Of The King cult/conspiracy is exposed
Morgan Dwyer. In Burma, an altruistic if highly Tainted nova
and neutralized. Radu Impaler Szlaniskovich and his squad
devours the Generals, the nations oppressive ruling cabal.
of elites attempt to take over the Ukraine. Team Tomorrow
Instead of the nova taking over the agricultural nation, he/
novas attempt to raid the Amp Room, resulting in Ibiza
she/it allows Burma the freedom to decide its own future as
being devastated by novas, many of them running riot for
a peaceful isolationist nation that will make it through the
no particular reason. The Cult of Astaroth find their sixth and
upcoming Aberrant War unscathed.
final Domitori, then make their way to the Mexican desert
2010s: Andr Corbin publicly turns himself in to
for their prophesied arrival of the True Beast Astaroth. The
Utopian custody at the Bahrain Rashoud facility, during which
Domitori manage to merge their bodies into a gigantic Taint-
Director Thetis and Proteus plan to have him assassinated.
wracked abomination, which proceeds to devour all the
Proteus plan fails due to unforseen interference from Divis
Astaroth cultists present before seeking to wreak devastation
Mal and several members of the Teragen Pantheon. Mal
on the world. However, unknown nova operatives manage to
soundly thrashes Caestus Pax in front of a global audience,
destroy the True Beast Astaroth well before it can harm
while the Pantheon members present free many imprisoned
any innocents or even make the local news.
novas from the Bahrain Rashoud facility. At his trial, Corbin is
The United States begins Earthside construction of
acquitted of all implications in the death of Jennifer Slider
the Olympus Lunar base. Yoshiro Nakamura launches his
Landers, and is a free man. Project Utopia is implicated in
Blood Fever plot (Aberrant: The New Flesh pp. 56-57);
many scandals of massive corruption, including the actions
which leads to the mass arrest, conviction (and in many
of Project Proteus and the murder of Jennifer Slider
cases summary execution) of the Nakato Gumi yakuza clan,
Landers. Project Utopia publicly disavows Project Proteus
the nationalization of Kuro-Tek and the purge of all Nakato
and makes moves to excise all Proteus infiltration from
gumi infiltrators from the Japanese branch of the Directive.
Utopian interests. Project Proteus survives with only token
In 2018, the collapse of the Three Gorges Dam triggers the
personnel lost to serve as scapegoats as the bulk of Proteus
collapse of the Peoples Republic of China. The PRC was
goes deeper underground. With the covert aid of the Aeon
already weakened due to a mix of government corruption,
Society, Proteus resumes its operations with a lesser amount
the harmful influence of their local organized crime, unethical
of support than that they had received from an unwitting
business practices and unrestrained corporate capitalism.
Utopia. Covert conflicts between motherhunters and their

CHAPTER ONE: THE AEON CONTINUUM 15

 ABERRANT
The novas of the Heavenly Exploding Mandate split apart
into factions with differing goals and philosophies, with
the largest supporting a former PRC general and would-be
warlord in his quest to establish himself as Chinas new
dictator. The Heaven Thunder Triad makes its own bid to
assume rulership over China at this time as well.
Daedelus League novas discover their first highly
Earthlike extrasolar planet and promptly begin drawing
up covert colonization plans. The League formally invites
the Protectors to join them on the new colony world.
The Protectors wholeheartedly accept the Leagues offer
and begin relocating personnel, supplies and equipment
from their subsurface Mars base. Other Daedelus League
exploration efforts turn up several more highly Earthlike
extrasolar planets later in this decade, which they plan to
offer to other peaceful nova factions and their baseline
followers who wish to escape the coming conflict on Earth.
2020s: A state of civil war breaks out in the former
Peoples Republic of China, as the various factions vie for
dominion over the nation. The Heaven Thunder Triad is more
or less exterminated in the factional struggles, presumably
by former Heavenly Exploding Mandate novas. The Neo-
Confucian New Chinese Empire establishes itself as the
successor to the PRC in 2022, and quickly reverts China to
an isolationist state primarily concerned with improving its
own decrepit and inadequate infrastructure. Many Chinese
novas begin leaving the NCE - whose isolationism and focus
on improving the living conditions of the common people
they find utterly dull compared to the last two decades of
the PRCs reign - for more exciting nations to live in. Dr.
Soguk Birlesme develops hyper-fusion, which revolutionizes
energy production and makes space colonies viable. The
United States unveils its first hyper-fusion powered orbital
spacecraft. Orbital defense satellites are launched by
several nations, the most notable of which is the United
States OMEN deathsat network.
Proposed acts of anti-nova legislation start becoming
more frequent, if not successful in being passed and made
into law. Finland, Sweden and Norway merge to form the
Northern Collective. Queen Elsbeth Tsarich becomes
monarch of Romania. Incidents of novas (some Taint-
mad, others just naturally anti-social) harming baselines
begin to increase beyond the point where they can be
prevented and/or covered up by Project Utopia. Conditions
in the global ambient telluric environment finally allow the
Camparelli-Zhukov Megasyndicates Eruption Catalyst to
function, causing its users to erupt as highly-Tainted novas
(Aberrant: The New Flesh pp. 24-25). Novel pathogens
known as Taint diseases begin to spread among the
baseline population. Some actually are caused by Tainted
novas, while others are deliberately created bioweapons.
16 CHAPTER ONE: THE AEON CONTINUUM
2030s: The United States begins Luna-based construction
of the Olympus Lunar base, which ends in 2041. Great
Britain begins construction of the Camelot Lunar Base.
Increasing levels of Taint among the general nova populace
leads to increasing numbers of said novas either becoming
actively dangerous or seeking to join the Teragen in
attempts to control their Taint. Nova conflicts increase
in both their frequency and in the amount of collateral
damage they cause to life, property and the environment.
Baseline-nova relations begin to noticeably degrade, with
many nova entertainers and nova-based media concerns
either dropping in popularity - such as Alejandra and her
New River Productions - or going out of business like the
XWF or Mefistofaleez and his Quantum Boom recording
label. The Pandaimonion Terat faction is subsumed into the
Casablancas as Narcosis media empire finally collapses.
The Nova Vigilance, Primacy and Harvester Terat factions
begin increasing their attacks against baseline humanity,
some of which are provoked by anti-nova actions and others
completely unjustified. Also, sometime in the early part
of this decade a nova with global-scale powers over the
ecology - the suspects include Antaeus, Regina Mundi and
Belladonna - manages to restore the fertility of some if not
all of the nova population.
Anti-nova sentiment among the baseline populace
rises as a result, leading to marked growth of the Church
of Michael Archangel in the United States and Canada.
The perjorative term aberrant becomes more widely
used among the general baseline population than the
neutral term nova when referring to the erupted. The
New Chinese Empire formalizes their pre-existing unofficial
status as where the novas dont want to live into actual
law in 2035; excluding all novas from entering, residing in
or having citizenship in the NCE. This action provokes a
few minor retributive attacks but is otherwise shrugged off
by the general nova population. Japan begins ejecting or
secretly executing any native novas with mental aberrations,
and develop scientific tests to determine which novas were
likely to become mentally unstable by 2035. Any Japanese
nova who fails the tests is secretly executed. The number
of (relatively non-Tainted) novas and allied baselines
emigrating to the nova colony worlds increases as the
more savvy among both populaces realize that matters
on Earth will only get worse for them. These unexplained
disappearances only serve to heighten the paranoia on both
sides of the Terran nova-baseline conflict. Terran baselines
assume that the baseline colonists were secretly abducted
and/or murdered by hostile aberrants, while Terran novas
assume the nova colonists were secretly murdered by anti-
nova operatives.
 ABERRANT
2040s: Baseline-nova relations seriously degrade, as
many First World nations begin drawing up and passing
increasingly draconian, half-baked and unjust acts of anti-
nova legislation. Many independent novas residing in those
nations either emigrate to more accepting countries and
nova colony worlds or join the Teragen or Aberrants as their
individual preferences dictate. Conflicts between novas and
nova attacks against the baseline populace reach new levels
of both frequency and collateral damage inflicted, due to
increasing levels of power and Taint-induced madness
among a significant portion of the nova population on
Earth. The Aberrant movement and other such factions try
to maintain the peace in the face of increasing numbers
of novas coming to agree with the more radical facets of
Terat philosophy. Japan begins accepting genetically and
intellectually fit refugees from Korea, Australia and the
United States as a source of inexpensive labor. By 2047, 13
million refugees and other resident outsiders have become
second-class Japanese citizens. The Terat Feathered Serpent
attempts to raise the ruins of the Aztec city Tenochtitln to
the surface in 2043, destroying the modern Mexico City that
rests above them in the resulting earthquake. Over a million
people are killed in the disaster. Russia starts building the
Yeltsingrad Lunar base, which is a mining facility. Both the
Camelot and Yeltsingrad Lunar bases go online in 2045. In
2046 nova Abdul Masiq and his Allahs Legion nova group 2049 the United Nations declares war against the aberrant
take over the entire island nation of Bahrain, converting the
former Bahrain Rashoud Clinic into their main headquarters.
This action spurs governments and corporations into making
serious efforts to defend themselves against nova attacks
CHAPTER ONE: THE AEON CONTINUUM
and make retaliatiory strikes in return.
Having made relentless attacks against Divis Mal in an
attempt to avenge his intial defeat by him at Bahrain in 2009,
Caestus Pax is finally killed by the leader of the Teragen
in a public battle. Project Utopia and Team Tomorrow
finally collapse, as former Utopian novas pursue their own
objectives, leaving Utopia for the pro-nova factions and/or
the nova colony worlds. Japan closes its borders to all non-
commercial traffic in 2047, citing concerns over rising global
terrorism. Japanese novas not loyal to the government
are publicly exiled from the Home Islands while the loyal
and sane novas are secretly retained, leading the world
to assume that all Japanese novas had been expelled.
The Camparelli-Zhukov Megasyndicate finally falls apart
due to a blend of nova-aberrant conflicts, innovations in
law enforcement and competition from newer organized
crime groups. The covert extrasolar colonization efforts kick
into high gear, as more qualified baseline colonists begin
realizing how bad things are getting on Earth and wanting a
safe haven for themselves and their loved ones. Some novas
organizing these colonization efforts turn to stealing funds
and/or supplies from certain transnational corporations
- usually those with a history of human rights abuses and
criminal behavior - which either drives them out of business
or makes then vulnerable to hostile takeovers. Finally, in
population - whether that resolution applies to only the
Taint-deranged novas or the entire nova race depends on
whom one is talking to. The First Aberrant War has begun.
17
 ABERRANT
Interregnum II - The Late Nova
Age, The First Aberrant War
and The Exodus
The following section covers the period
between the Aberrant and Trinity settings,
and focuses on the activities of novas and the
circumstances affecting them.
Late 2049: The Taint-mad aberrants
start constantly acting against - or acting
without regard for, at the minimum
- baseline humanity as their default
modus operandi, while the still-sane
novas seek to thwart and restrain them.
Baseline human groups aid both sides
in this conflict, and the death tolls of
innocent bystanders mount ever higher.
Emboldened by the increased support
from the increasingly Tainted segment
of the nova population, the Teragen
shift their attacks against baseline
humanity into high gear. The Olympus
Lunar Base is taken over by the Space
Brigade nova group. After establishing
control over the other Lunar bases, the Space
Brigade destroys 75% of the OMEN deathsat
network and declares Luna to be neutral ground
for all who wish to escape from the ongoing
conflict on Earth. A powerful aberrant calling itself
the Colony rises to prominence and a position of
leadership among the psychotic aberrants, and soon is
considered to be a rival of Divis Mal himself.
Somewhere beyond the Solar System, the alien
Doyen sense the emergence of quantum-manipulating
beings and immediately deem them a lethal threat to all life
in general and themselves in particular. As a race of ageless
beings mostly composed of noetic energy, mere exposure
to quantum energies can not only disrupt their psionic
powers but can make a Doyens body literally not exist
for a few moments. Accustomed to refraining from direct
conflict due to racial cowardice, they eventually decide to
find a useful alien species to fight the quantum-born by
proxy. This debate takes ten years to hammer out, given the
Doyen habit of long-term thinking. The activists among the
Doyen split into two factions after this. The majority faction
plans to use humanity against their quantum-born relatives
by gifting them with (limited) psionic powers and basic (by
Doyen standards) noetic biotechnology. The minority faction
seeks the extinction of all humanity and begins searching for
a suitable warrior species to perform that task.
2050s: Major cities - mostly in North America and
Europe - are destroyed by aberrant attacks over the

18 CHAPTER ONE: THE AEON CONTINUUM

 ABERRANT
decade. Likewise, aberrants attack commercial aircraft -
ending intercontinental air travel for decades - and launch
biological attacks against baselines lacking quick access
to medical care. In 2050 the Balkan nations devolve into
ceaseless warfare, becoming known as The Shatter. Later
that year Leon Borsov becomes president of the Russian
Federation and begins a campaign to eliminate all Russian
aberrants. While successful as the Russian aberrants had
either already fled Earth or become highly reclusive dwellers
in the wildnerness, this provokes aberrant retaliation which
devastates Russia over the rest of the decade. The nova
colony world of Eden is discovered by the Seekers, a
Daedelus League subgroup. It is given to Diana Kadmon and
her faction of sane novas, who establish it as a nova colony
world and quickly begin recruiting many sane novas and
thousands of allied baselines to populate it. The Yeltsingrad
Lunar base is closed to most baseline humans by the Space
Brigade, who remake it into their home for the duration of
the war. They also establish a no contact truce with the
baseline Lunar colonists.
Various government officials and members of sane nova
groups collaborate with the Aeon Society to find a solution
to the global crisis. What will become known as the Chinese
Ultimatum is their final solution. The NCE initiates The
Great Leap Upwards, redirecting considerable national
resources into space exploration. In 2053 China launches the
Xingyang Sujia - its first manned interplanetary exploration
craft - on a mission to Mars. This is followed in the next
year by the construction of a series of orbital factories and
space colonies secretly loaded with fusion missiles. Showing
remarkable foresight, the nations of South America establish
the Necessary Wall in 2054 to protect themselves against
possible North American military and economic aggression.
In late 2054, Terat Calvert Wycoff establishes the Prophets
of Jehovah, a survivalist and fundamentalist Christian cult in
CHAPTER ONE: THE AEON CONTINUUM
Hastings, Nebraska. Their illegal multimedia transmissions
of Wycoffs apocalyptic sermons provoke the FBI into
attempting to shut the cult down a few weeks later. Just
minutes into the raid on November 3rd, Wycoff releases
a tremendous blast of plasma and Taint energies - likely
induced by exposure to eclipsidol - that obliterates himself
along with everyone and everything around him in a 200
kilometer radius and Taint-irradiating a further thousand
kilometers of the Midwestern Heartland. With the area now
called the Blight unfit for agricultural use and human
habitation, the U.S. military joins with a coalition of U.S.
corporations and successfully takes over the federal and
state governments. The Omaha Declaration and the rise of
what will become a true fascist police state soon follow. The
U.S. military - aided by loyal military novas and aberrants
- then invades both Canada and Mexico in 2057 to gain
new agricultural lands to replace that lost to the Blight. By
the end of that year, all major North American population
centers and industrial centers are under U.S. martial law. In
2058 nova Felice Taylor accidentally floods and obliterates
Florida and Cuba in a botched attempt to stabilize the
weakening Gulf Stream and revitalize Floridas economy.
Taylor apparently dies in the catastrophe of her own making.
2060s: Out in extrasolar space, the nova colony worlds
thrive in their relative isolation, with the novas finally being
able to breed freely and their baseline citizens also doing
very well. Under nova guidance, their colony worlds quickly
become viable free-standing civilizations well able to
function on their own in all ways. Most nova colony worlds
cut themselves off from contact with Earth by this time, not
wanting to bear witness to Earths possible destruction. The
nova colonists establish regular contact between their worlds
for purposes of trade, communication, cultural exchange
and giving advance warning against any aberrant and/or
alien threats that might show up in the future. Meanwhile on
Earth, matters degrade even further.
In 2060, the Malay Republic is
devastated by the aberrant Dragons Eye,
who enslaves most of the residents of
Kuala Lumpur and transforms them into
cyborged beastmen. An aberrant causes
the Neva River to flood St. Petersburg,
killing 25% of the citys population. The
Japanese government begins genetic
testing of all citizens, with those having
the potential to become low-Taint novas
given the choice to be artificially erupted
and serve the government or have that
potential eradicated. Those who could
erupt as high-Taint novas simply have
their potential eradicated, as do many
with anomalous genetic markers - namely
19
 ABERRANT
the potential to become psiads, psions and paramorphs.
The Second Omaha Declaration is made by the U.S. military,
declaring the establishment of the Federated States of
America. In 2061, aberrants begin attacking Russian fission
reactors to gain access to their radioactive waste materials,
which they then proceed to spread across large swathes of
the Russian countryside. Nova Geslav renders the remaining
Russian fission reactors inert to prevent any further deliberate
contamination. Terat Alex Synapse Doan is attacked in
the OpNet by the aberrant Mungu Backlash Kuwasha.
Their battle wrecks large sectors of the OpNet, but Synapse
manages to kill Backlash, whose deathscream manifests as
an electro-optical pulse that destroys nearly the entire
remaining OpNet, save for that of the deliberately isolated
Nihonjin region.
On September 7th, an unknown spacegoing aberrant
attacks a Chinese orbital fusion platform, only to be killed
with a fusion missile. In retaliation, the NCE makes a
strike with six fusion missiles that obliterates the aberrant-
controlled island nation of Bahrain. Just after that the NCE
issues the Earth Strike Ultimatum, stating that any further
acts of aggression from either aberrant or human forces will
be met with a global fusion missile strike. In coordination
with the NCE, Aeon and their nova and government allies
begin exiling most of the Taint-maddened aberrants from
Earth by any means necessary. Realizing that he has no other
viable options, Divis Mal reluctantly agrees to help enforce
the Ultimatum. After 24 hours of concerted effort, the task
is completed and the majority of the novas leave the planet.
Some rare few novas and aberrants remain, but stay in
hiding for various reasons. Divis Mal then has the Teragen
20 CHAPTER ONE: THE AEON CONTINUUM
leave Earth, but does not depart himself
before going to the relocated United
Nations to issue his final declaration
to Earths residents while personally
incinerating the current UN Secretary-
General. Mal joins his followers and soon
after they depart from the universe itself,
emigrating to a new universe that the
Father of Teras has personally created.
Certain sane novas - who semi-
seriously refer to themselves as the
Solar Guardians - volunteer to both
covertly create and maintain a quantum
barrier around the Solar System.
Provided with support from the Nihonjin
(Japanese) novas, the Solar Guardian
novas spend their days patrolling the
outer edge of the Oort Cloud to guard
against any aberrant incursions. The First
Aberrant War has ended, and the NCE
fleet stands down as most regions of
Earth begin to suffer in what will become
known as the Crash. The exiled aberrants make homes of the
lifeless worlds where the novas stranded them and quickly
seek to survive, regain their lost numbers and redevelop
their lost capacity for insterstellar Warping. All this is done
for one goal: to once again make war against their nova
cousins, wherever they can be found. The largest faction of
the exiled aberrants - led by the Colony - refuses to accept
their exile and continually seeks the means to breach the
quantum barrier and conquer Earth. The Colony begins a
program of intensive breeding among its followers - in which
it also participates - in order to swell their ranks as much as
possible.
2070s: The aberrant colony worlds slowly begin using
the Colonys techniques to produce increasing numbers of
aberrants, as they are forced to use any means necessary to
make their world livable and produce as many offspring
as possible. The fact that they become even more Tainted
in the process is shrugged off as unavoidable and not
worth worrying about. This includes reining in their natural
egomania and cooperating with each other, leading to the
establishment of contact between their worlds facilitated
by courier aberrants from the Colonys faction. Other
aberrants of the Colonys faction begin searching for the
nova colony worlds.
The NCE launches the Khantze Lu Ge expedition
in its first interstellar colony spacecraft in 2075, which is
piggybacked onto the Lito comet and is headed for Alpha
Centauri. Nippon and the Solar Guardian novas covertly
assist them by allowing them through the quantum barrier
and shortening spacetime between the Sol System and
 ABERRANT
the Alpha Centauri system, allowing their journey to be
made in a mere 12 years instead of decades or centuries.
The spacetime distortion alerts the Colony and its faction,
who covertly study the colonists, their technology and their
databanks but otherwise do not make contact or interfere
with them. Special attention is paid to their passage through
the quantum barrier, and the Colony begins forming its
plans for the Solar System and baseline humanity.
In 2079, the NCE launches the colony spacecraft Kuan
Yin to join the colonists from the Khantze Lu Ge expedition.
Following the same trajectory as its predecessor, it is attacked
mid-journey by the Colonys forces, is captured and taken
to the Colonys own world. The surviving human colonists
are enslaved and transformed into sub-aberrant mutates
by the Colony and other aberrants with that capability. The
fertile sub-aberrants are drafted into the breeding program,
while the others are trained to serve as cannon fodder for
the invasion of the Sol System. The ships technologies
and databanks are also examined to gain an updated idea
of current circumstances on Earth and its intrasolar space
colonies.
2080s: The Colonys explorers manage to locate some
- but not all - of the nova colony worlds. In particular, Eden
CHAPTER ONE: THE AEON CONTINUUM
remains undiscovered.
2090s: Nippon initiates the Star Project in 2093, using
Nihonjin novas to locate and secretly colonize a viable
Earthlike extrasolar planet with Nihonjin citizens. The colony
world chosen is the second planet of the Iota Pegasi system
and is named Restored Hope. A quantum gadget is used
to warp the colonists, some Nihonjin novas, their equipment
and supplies to the new world. Once an infrastucture is
established with nova aid, the covert Nihonjin colony
world thrives with its steady influx of Nihonjin citizens and
Superiors eager to escape the confines of the Nihonjin
macro-arcologies. Nova Rushing Mountain claims the
third planet in the Beta Canum Ventaicorum system as her
own, and transforms a species of the native animal life into
primitive sapients. When discovered by ISRA psions in 2110,
the planet is named Erebus.
2100s: In 2100 the Purifiers locate the Chromatics.
Quickly recognizing them as a feasible soldier-species
due to their conflicts with the bestial Howlers, they locate
a nomadic band of aberrants known on Earth as the
Seraphim. Influencing their mentally unstable leader Uriel
with telepathic visions, the Seraphim are lured by the Doyen
to Chrome-Prime. Their initial contacts with the Chromatics
21
 ABERRANT
are peaceful enough, but the Seraphims true nature is soon
revealed as they betray the Chromatics initial trust and
attempt to conquer Chrome-Prime for themselves. In 2104
the Doyen then reveal themselves to selected Chromatics
as gods of light, granting them noetic biotechnological
knowledge stolen from humanity. With the new weapons,
the Chromatics manage to defeat the Seraphim and
exterminate much of the Howler species. The Doyens
Chromatic lieutenants establish their control over Chromatic
society and thrust the formerly primitive civilization into a
greatly accelerated program of technological development.
Within about 20 Earth years, the Chromatics go from a pure
T2 Bronze Age culture to a amalgam culture incorporating
technologies from many different Technology Ratings,
including T10 space travel roughly equivalent to Trinity Era
Earth. Information on Technology Ratings can be found in
Chapter Four of this book, pp. 114-118.
In 2103 the Benefactors implement their plan to
transform suitable (and pliable) humans into psionically
empowered agents of the Doyen. Doyen telepathic
propaganda doesnt manage to convince all the canidates
to respond, but eight of them do. In a hidden installation on
Luna, the candidates are informed of the upcoming return of
the aberrants and misinformed that the Doyen are engaged
in combat elsewhere. The humans are convinced to take up
the struggle and are transformed into potent (and limited)
users of psionics via implants of Doyen genetic material. S.
K. Bhurano, the Quantakinesis Proxy, is also possessed by a
Doyen operative in order to maintain a tighter control over
the nascent Quantakinetic Order. The newly-empowered
proxies are each given a nascent Prometheus Chamber,
knowledge of how to create noetic biotechnology and psi
coordinates to habitable worlds surrounding known nova/
aberrant space. They are also given Doyen-style plans for
the psi orders to be established in secret, eventually growing
to the point where they can launch interstellar war fleets
from the aforementioned habitable worlds to exterminate
the nova & aberrant colony worlds.
Later that year, the Colonys forces attack, overwhelm
and slaughter the Solar Guardians, causing the collapse of
the quantum barrier. Most of the Nihonjin novas - including
all those capable of interstellar travel - are killed by the
Colonys forces soon after. The warp device is destroyed
and Restored Hope is cut off from Nippon. Armed with
information stolen from the Chinese colony ships, aberrant
spies are sent ahead to Earth to secretly inflitrate human
society at all levels. People in positions of authority are
physically replaced, mind-controlled and subverted into
willing pawns of the Colony as is feasible and/or necessary.
Even the Aeon Society and the United Nations have human
aberrant sympathizers among their ranks. Meanwhile, the
bulk of the Colonys full aberrant forces are used to continually
22 CHAPTER ONE: THE AEON CONTINUUM
harass the nova colony worlds theyve found, in order to
keep the novas from coming to Earths aid. Fortunately for
them, precognitive warnings of the upcoming aberrant raids
- and the more nebulous threat posed by the Doyen - had
already galvanized the extrasolar novas into preparing for
the onslaught beforehand. Nova strategists and tacticians
begin planning on how best to deal with the aberrants once
and for all.
On January 28th, 2104, the Colony sends a band of
its followers to Research Outpost Vesta in its first overt
attack against baseline humanity since 2061. The raid has
two goals; first to announce to humanity that the Second
Aberrant War had begun, and second to determine how
advanced Earths weapons technologies had become
since the 2070s. The research station is wrecked, most of
the scientists and staff inside are murdered and military
reinforcements are held off with ease. The aberrants
leave after one of them is slain by an experimental pulse
cannon, leaving irrefutable evidence of what humanity is up
against. Further attacks are made against isolated intrasolar
space stations and colonies over the rest of the decade.
In 2106, an aberrant attack on the Sydney Spaceport is
thwarted by Psi Order Legions. Having received prior
warning of the attack from ISRA, the Legions soldiers are
posted early and ready to take on the Colonys forces, who
are just as surpised by the psions interference as most of
human society is. Further aberrant attacks on Austronesian
territory are likewise repelled by Legions psions, granting the
Psychokinetic Order astounding good press as trustworthy
defenders of humanity.
2110s: In 2112 a mining expedition from Eden is
discovered by Upeo wa Macho psions on an exploration
mission. Tentative contact between the Edenites and Upeo
wa Macho psi order follows during the next year, leading to
the Proxy Atwan and the Upeo coming to understand the
truth about the novas existence and the differences between
them and the aberrants. Unfortunately this information
leads to the Upeo having to abandon Earth in 2114 in order
to keep from being enslaved by the Ministry, Orgotek and
the Legions. In 2116 nova Apollo Milliken and three other
Edenite novas covertly assist the Upeo in the defense of
Karoo Station by vaporizing an attacking Chromatic war
fleet via matter/electromagnetic energy conversion.
In 2118 the NCE colony world of Khantze Lu Ge is
invaded by a sub-faction of the Colonys forces, led by its
daughter Kali. Their initial conquest of the city of Kuan and
Khantze Lu Ges northern territories goes well for them, until
internal bickering between Kali and her rival Yog-Death and
their followers slows down their battle plans considerably.
2120 and beyond: As per the timeline in the Trinity
core book, pp. 82-83 and subsequent books.
 A B E R R A N T
Teragen File

Encrypted OpNet Transcript

[Excerpt from private conversation log dated 9/15/2011]

Open Secure Channel (Superuser: Synapse)

Login: Mathematician
Login: Scripture
Scripture: I take it all has gone well with the missions, then?
Synapse: Looks that way. Santiago here has all the details, but I can tell you that absolutely no one has tumbled to what
we were doing. Ive kept a close watch over Utopia, Aeon and the Directive for the past two years like you asked. Not only
do they have no clue what the missions were supposed to accomplish, they had no idea that they even took place.
Mathematician: By telling our agents they were performing nonviolent reconnaissance, we were able to complete all
five missions according to the script. Going by the numbers, Mission Alpha saw our agent in rural Vietnam timeslipped back
to 1969 for about six minutes. Given the war that was going on at that time, its fortunate no soldiers decided to shoot at
her. Mission Beta had two of our agents in southern Brazil timeslipped to 1954. The brothers encountered two local women,
who only saw them in their alternate forms from a distance. As per their orders, they took back to the skies right after that
for the duration of the timeslip. Mission Gamma required the only non-flying agent to visit an abandoned mine in Argen-
tina, where she was timeslipped to 1953 for a full thirty minutes. Mission Delta is the most interesting, as our agent was
timeslipped twice in the same event over New York City. The first timeslip while he was flying over Brooklyn at night sent
him back to 1877 for eight minutes during the daytime. After returning to the present, he entered another timeslip over
Coney Island that threw him back into 1880 for ten minutes, again during the daylight hours. He reported that many people
saw him during both timeslips, although he always kept his altitude slightly above a thousand feet.
Scripture: Thats all very good news, especially concerning Mission Delta. We were hoping that the public exposure
during those two timeslips would prove to have more effect than the others. Even so, was it truly necessary to send our
people in without any information beyond the pittance we gave them? Young Leticia is still moping about being turned
down by that fellow she encountered in that Argentinian mine in 1953.
Mathematician: The operation was successful, and thats all that matters. Sending in our agents blind with only a simple
script of orders may have seemed counterintuitive, but they are Terats. The stakes were far too high to allow for any random
impulses - hormonal or otherwise - to interfere with carrying out their orders.
Scripture: Points made and taken, Pedro. How did your new toys hold up in the acid test?
Mathematician: My sensors performed excellently, as I expected. They were all able to record the scientific data from
the events, with emphasis on the chronometrics. Preliminary analysis appears to confirm the hypothesis you forwarded to
my private laboratory. We finally have hard evidence of natural temporal shifting... Its a pity well have to keep such a tight
lid on all this.
Scripture: As you said before, the stakes were far too high. Ensuring the safety of the movement takes precedence over
scientific curiosity, my friend.
Synapse: Were good to go on the data security aspects of this operation. Ive established a covert enclave for our
agents and a few of their closest friends so they can decompress safely without breaching secrecy. All the data we received
has been entrusted to Santiagos safekeeping. I understand that they will all be joining the group we selected for the extra-
solar colonization effort weve been planning?

23
 A B E R R A N T
Teragen File

Scripture: Theyre actually looking forward to becoming homesteaders in space, believe it or not. Thanks to your
intelligence networks we were able to recruit them before anyone else got to them, so they wont ever need Bountys help
outside of attending her parenting classes. If things go sour here on Earth, their new homeworld will become the seed of
the new nova nation weve been talking about for years.
Synapse: So were fine on that score. Im still having trouble wrapping my head around the hypothesis behind this
operation, though. Are we really up against someone thats capable of time travel? Ive seen Santiagos hypothesis on how
powerful a nova would have to be to do that, and Im damn sure that you both know the data on it a lot better than I do. Id
think that any nova that powerful would at least be somewhat sympathetic to the movement. What am I missing here?
Mathematician: I told you hed figure it out sooner or later, Jeremiah.
Scripture: Yes, you were right... So be it. Alex, our foe is indeed capable of travelling in time. Unfortunately for us, he
is not a nova and remains aligned with the interests of baseline humanity. Hence, our operation to use natural timeslips to
create the potential for paradoxes in the timeline. Best case scenario, we have literally made it too difficult for our foe to
erase the Teragen from existence. Worst case, weve only made it somewhat more difficult for him to do so.
Synapse: And since you and Mal have known about him for I dont know how long, youve developed more plans on
how to deal with him? Im really hoping here that youll say yes and mean it. Im afraid that everything I know about time
travel is what I learned from watching old Doctor Who shows as a kid.
Login: Divis Mal
Divis Mal: Fear not, young Alex. The one you speak of has yet to make any substantial moves against us. Instead, we
have faced only the inept stratagems of his errant underlings, who have failed in their roles as his understudies. The old man
will have to rein in his would-be followers and break them like wild horses before he can make his opening moves. Thats
when things shall truly begin to get interesting...
Scripture: Michael, are you seriously considering a man-to-man conflict against him?
Mathematician: The probability figures I came up with havent changed, if thats what youre thinking. Go up against
him directly, and the consequences could reach far beyond this mudball were all sitting on. Id rather not see Sidney Cole-
mans observation about Alan Guths inflationary universe theory put into action, thank you very much.
Synapse: Coleman and Guth? Werent they the ones who... oh, crap. Phase transition to a lower energy vacuum state.
Mathematician: Exactly. The destruction of not only the Earth, but the Solar System and the rest of our universe as well.
No matter where we fled to in the universe, it would only be a matter of time before we met the same end as Earth and the
baselines.
Divis Mal: Fortunately, my old friend knows this as well. He will not sacrifice the baselines civilization and the rest of the
universe to spite us. He loves this world and life too much for that to work, even as a bluff.
Synapse: Well, if I can help with whatever you three are planning, Im in.

24
 A B E R R A N T
Daedelus League File

(Hardcopy Only - Eyes Only)

To: Sputnik (Cyrus Katrak)

From: Chief Satellite Vela (REDACTED)
Date: 2015-03-26

As you requested, heres a summary of all our ongoing activities in support of Operation Dandelion. Everyone involved
on my end has done an impressive job of keeping their mouths shut, as we have no wish for the spotlight to come anywhere
near us. Your idea of arranging the League in this way is paying off in spades. Even so, you guys need to do something
big and flashy to distract the factions soon. Both PU and some Terats have had undercover agents sniffing around our shell
companies of late. Theyve found nothing yet, but they all need to be derailed before they come too close and draw the
Directives eyes in our direction. Is there some way we could make them get in each others way and leave us alone?
Operation Blossom: From what AfriStar tells me, you & your lot of fellow extroverts have been doing the same old,
same old - working with the ESA & NASA while doing your own public expeditions around the Solar System for the PR
value. And oh yes, telling all those recruiters from PU, the Directive & the Teragen to GFT again. Honestly, theyre worse
than spammers! Doing something big & flashy would give you breathing room, though you might not want to lead that
expedition personally. Be especially wary of the Directive. Sources I wont identify told both Telstar and Meridian that the
spooks have had super-stealthy agents tracking your personal movements in Antarctica and elsewhere. Its time to get your
loved ones - and ours - safely out of the Solar System ASAP before those bastards try to use them as leverage against us,
yes? The Prime colonization group is set to go, the details are below.
Operation Leaf: Pretty good news on this front, Fortes plan to buy out that vacation cruise line company was an
especially smart move. Combined with our shipping vessels, we have a ready-made transport fleet that our major warpers
can send to any of our colonies where weve got a port city built. Hexagon and Zhongxing are pleased as punch with their
prefab facilities and port equipment theyve set up on World #1. Arirang, Ekran and Molniya had a lot of fun shaping the
piers and basic infrastructure from the native rock. They also had a blast constructing the port city, although the blend of
architectural styles is a bit jarring. Classic Russian building styles - onion domes and all! - mixes oddly with Hong Kong-
style feng shui architecture and buildings carved directly out of solid stone like the ancient city of Petra. Everything is very
functional of course; the building styles are well-suited to the climate and not using all that solid rock cliff by the chosen site
wouldve been a stupid waste. Everythings also been built with Geotails anti-groundquake (cant call them earth quakes,
right?) subdesigns just in case. I dont know about the benefits feng shui architecture is supposed to give, but since Arirang
swears by it Ill give it a shot. All the native rock was transformed into silicon nanofiber matrix like Marisat proposed before it
was used in construction, so itll be a lot stronger than any natural stone could be. Theyre leaving the colors up to whoever
winds up living in them, which they certainly will do - silicon nanofiber matrix is a great building material, but it looks like a
warm grey basalt with no visual appeal at all. Well have to talk with Marisat about veneers or pigments or something.
Operation Stem: The news from Argon & Nimiq hasnt changed much. Aside from the usual reports of outside recruit-
ers attempting - and thankfully failing - to subvert League members, weve had spies from the Teragen & PU sniffing around
some of our shell companies as I mentioned earlier. The Directive is also trying to sniff out what were doing out of what
appears to be institutional paranoia. Aside from setting the PU guys and Terats against each other, my only suggestion is to
move our vital operations out of any Directive member countries. Threat estimations of the other factions dont appear to
have changed according to Nimiq. Argon says likewise regarding the baseline governments & corporations.

25
 A B E R R A N T
Daedelus League File

Our own recruitment plans are going well, if slowly. The Protectors idea of only recruiting college graduates and their
loved ones is fine as far as it goes, but Zircon has qualified that with her own standards for colonists. The college diploma
requirement has been waived in favor of authentic competence in their area of expertise, weeding out those who graduated
from the diploma mills or those religious fundamentalist universities. Instead, shes more stringent with the psychology
tests. People who are sociopaths, narcissists, borderline personalities and megalomaniacs are automatically dropped from
consideration, no matter how well theyve been socialized. The same goes for folks with impulse control disorder and other
disorders that could result in antisocial behavior. Invaders covert scans of potential recruits may seem unduly intrusive, but
they will give all of our colonies a much better shot at surviving in the long term.
Operation Root: Good news from the deep-cover guys; no ones picked up on their operations AFA Amazonas can
determine. Our long-term supply depots are all secure for the immediate future. Our restrictions against storing any kind of
weaponry is paying off, as everyone whod be investigating the depots is looking for things like old Soviet nukes or illegal
shipments from Kuro-Tek. Samos and his group have got us all covered on the financial end - whatever fundage well need,
he promises well have. Its best not to ask questions where the money will come from, though. Trumpets group is ready
and waiting for the rest of us to leave when the night comes. They will be in place for all Earthside operations - recruiting &
funding mainly, as well still be handling the warps - as the situation here degrades over the next two decades. She will have
orders to not be as picky on the educational requirements, as anyone willing to leave by then will be smart and sane enough
to get out while the gettings still good. Ofeq and Yantar are good to go with their Grand Archive - their label, not mine! -
which will be carefully updated as circumstances permit. Your comparison of these two to Christian monks right before the
Dark Ages isnt totally apt - they seem more like a comedy duo than anything else - but they do get the job done and done
well.
Operation Seed: Some more good news from this bunch - they have discovered two more extrasolar systems with
near-Terran quality exoplanets. This brings our complete tally to five worlds so far. Both of the new worlds have compatible
biochemistries and climates for Terran life and are somewhat primitive in their development. In local evolutionary terms
World #4 is comparable to Earths Devonian Period - theres some dangerous native life here, but its all strictly aquatic.
So beach resorts will be forbidden and fishing will be like something from those old Jaws movies. What animal-equivalent
life is found on land is comprised mostly of ground-crawling analogs of primitive insects and other small life-forms. World
#4 is also significant in that the local taxonomic kingdoms differ from Earths. There are no local animals or plants here as
Terran biologists know them. Instead, the pseudo-animals have a mixture of animal and plant traits. Likewise, the pseu-
do-plants have a mixture of plant and fungal traits. According to Lanyard and Gorizont, none of the local macro-lifeforms
pose any real threat to baseline human life as long as they stay out of the water. Their threat potential for other Terran
lifeforms is still being assessed. They will send updates our way as new data is discovered.
In contrast, World #5 appears to have had a mass extinction due to vulcanism in the last thousand Terran years or so.
Only some of the microlife - 5% of what it used to be - has survived and poses no threat to Terran life of any kind as far as
Yaogan and Teledesic can determine. All other kingdoms on this exoplanet have gone extinct. This is the mother lode, boss:
a world where we can import Terran lifeforms wholesale and have them flourish like wildfire. I suggest we make this our next
extrasolar colony ASAP. We could transplant entire regional biomes mostly wholesale (barring things like redback spiders,
king brown snakes and Ebola) with only minor difficulties. We will be needing this place very soon, I fear.
As far as your Standing Order #1, still no results, which is something I am personally thankful for. Corona will hate me
for saying this, but to hell with SETI right now! We need some new planets to call home first! That old sot can go looking for
E.T. after our colonies are firmly established, and not a second before! First Contact is a headache that neither me nor my
people need right now.

26
 A B E R R A N T
Daedelus League File

Operation Runner: Aside from the Protectors, our de facto covert external relations group has had little success in
stoking much interest among the other reputable nova groups. Sad to say, most of them have little to nothing in the way
of accurate foresight in regards to the coming global conflict. Most of the Aberrants are too wrapped up in their crusade
against Utopia to think of the long-term consequences of the global situation. The same can be also said of the Queer Nova
Alliance and Greenwar. The Gestalt is too tightly interwoven into Terran society to even consider our offer. Project Utopia
and the national groups were never contacted due to their ties to the oppressive geopolitical power structure. Likewise for
the DeVries Agency and the Teragen - theyre already helping to make Earth nonviable in the long run, so why would we
tell them about the extrasolar human colony worlds were working to establish? Theyd only ruin those worlds like theyre
ruining Earth.
There is some hope, though. First off, while the Aberrants arent interested in colonization en masse, they have already
started sending many quality colonists - both baseline and nova - our way. These people are good folks who have suffered
ill fortune due to conflict with Terran social hierarchies, be it political, social or economic. The only difference from historical
reasons for emigration is the distance theyll be traveling to their new homes. The nova colonists are interesting in that many
are breeder novas, sometimes with children who were born novas in tow. I dont know how much you know about these
kids, but they may be our best long-term hope to defend ourselves against hostile Terrans, nova or otherwise. Ask Euro-
bird and Spaceway for the details, and youll see what I mean pretty quick. On that note, we should see about establishing
breeder nova couples among our own ranks where feasible.
The other spot of good news is this: we have established covert contact with several dissident groups across the globe
including Israel. The dissidents are non-objectionable, have met our requirements and wish to relocate off Earth to find the
freedom and prosperity they currently cant achieve in the Terran socioeconomic structure. They will provide much needed
genetic and cultural diversity for our colony worlds. Symphonie and Thaicom are in charge of handling them. We also have
Satellites screening them for sleeper agents working on behalf of the Terran factions. We are not going to allow any Terran
governments or corporations to subvert our colonies, thanks very much!
The Israelis are different in that they are offering covert support in return for our aid in establishing a Jewish enclave
on one of our extrasolar colony worlds. Theyre mostly what you Americans know as Reform Jews - with some Conservative
Jews thrown in - and wish to emigrate for several reasons. First off, theyre sick of the social conflict between them and the
right-wing extremists that have dominated the Knesset for the past couple of decades. Theyve decided to go the Amer-
ican route of keeping government completely secular and separate from religion and have cut all ties with the Jewish State.
Second, they feel that the Jewish State will not survive to see the 22nd Century. Israel is already surrounded by hostile Arab
states, many of whom have nova soldiers and elites on their payrolls, so no surprises there. Finally, theyre apparently seeing
too many historical parallels to the current global situation and want to get off-planet while they still can. Theyre already
recruiting as many viable colonists as possible from both Israel and the Jewish Diaspora worldwide. Thats a lot of people,
but they have their own novas working to screen out any Mossad agents & the like. They have also agreed to abide by our
recruiting strictures.
All in all, things are looking up for us. With enough discretion and smart work, well have fully operational colony worlds
to live on no matter what those idiots do here on Earth.

27
Chapter Two:
Sojourns in Spacetime
Baggage Handling
The old woman awoke as she was tossed onto
the floor, letting out a light gasp from the collision.
Aching, she tried to get up, but a hand shoved her
down like a steel restraint before she could rise
to any posture above kneeling. The elderly lady,
known only to a privileged few as Director Thetis,
tried to kickstart her memory into action as she
instinctively surveyed the scene.
The wooden panel floor was clean, and so was
the rest of the dimly-lit room, which was about the
best that could be said for it. Sterile metal walls,
lengthy but claustrophobic, far different than the
comforts of her headquarters-cum-home. It had
comforts enough given the needs of dealing with
her advanced age...
...it all came back to her now, as Thetis
remembered what had happened with a jet of fear.
The security breach of her home. The red-haired,
grim-faced man who came into her panic room
first. Chiraben had moved to intercept him, but
I allowed Proteus to exist to handle the matters that
the red-haired intruder had shot Chirabens eyes out... with
Utopia cannot touch, for the sake of legitimacy. This... waste
a military-grade shotgun... one handed... her recollections
of time and money... is a pointless comic-book villains plot!
trailed off.
Your excesses... are ending.
The lights went up, just enough to illuminate the elegant
Thetis opened her mouth once more, but it penetrated
wooden chair and its occupant. The stern and wise founder
that Mercer was really talking to her, not with her.
of the Aeon Society himself: Maxwell Mercer.
To make a better world means having dirty hands,
Mercer! Thetis burst out, finally finding enough focus
but now I wash them of you. The polymath leader of Aeon
to speak. What the hell have you done?
made a chopping motion - and Thetis had the brief intuition
I might say the same to you, Mercer replied coldly,
that the redhead was behind her.
one leg crossed above the other. Jennifer Landers?
A swift calloused fist struck her neck, which snapped.
She was a security threat! She knew...
The red-haired man nodded to Mercer and scooped up the
And you created that threat! Mercer snapped, Slider
already cooling corpse for disposal. Mercer rose up and
might have just been left to have no one to believe her. When
stretched.
there was a body - her own dead body - people believed her
Hed already removed Ozaki and had determined
quite well, thank you. But that just pales in comparison to
Chirabens fate. Some proper lunatic had to be placed in the
the... sterilization program.
view of the world as Sliders killer. Who better than Chiraben
Thetis worked up her mind to start her desperate
himself, especially since he was the actual killer in the first
debate. The rate of nova population growth has been
place?
accelerating...

28 CHAPTER TWO: SOJOURNS IN SPACETIME

 ABERRANT
Split Infinities
When examining what most people think about the
future, there are two opposing viewpoints that tend to
emerge. The first viewpoint sees the future as being quite
static, something fixed to an inexorable outcome that cannot
be altered to any real degree by something as puny as the
efforts of mere individuals or even entire groups of people.
The second viewpoint depicts the future as a chaotic wide-
open field of possibilities - positive and negative alike - which
may be realized by anyone with sufficient means, knowledge
and opportunity. As is usually the case, the truth of the matter
is somewhere between those two extremes. This is especially
true in the Nova Age, as the question of which of the two
preceding viewpoints is more correct literally depends on
their location in the overall Aeon Continuum.
For purposes of this book, the term Aeon Continuum
is defined as the only known region of the Omniverse
containing multiple timelines where Inspired beings of
any and all types originate. (The Trinity Continuum will be
detailed in the upcoming books from Onyx Path.) The Aeon
Continuum is further divided into three known timeline
groupings. The first timeline grouping - broadly referred
to as Universe 1 - is comprised of the realities where the
canon version of Trinity and all of its variants take place.
The second timeline grouping - labeled as Universe 2 - is
likewise where the canon version of Aberrant and all of its
variants take place. Universe 3 is the final grouping and is
where the canon version of Adventure! and all of its variants
take place. The three groupings also have different values
for their respesctive nexii, showing the general point in the
timelines where the future has not yet crystallized beyond
the point where it can be changed. Universe 1s nexus is circa
2122 C.E., while that of Universe 2 is circa 2015 C.E., and
Universe 3s nexus is circa 1923 C.E. Precise dates will vary
with individual timelines. This is important for several reasons
related to the actions of one Maxwell Anderson Mercer and
the nature of time travel, all of which are discussed later on.
For now, the most relevant consequence of this
for the players and Storytellers is determining in which
timeline grouping your Aberrant chronicle takes place in.
For Aberrant chronicles set in the Universe 2 timelines,
the future beyond the nexus is essentially up for grabs by
anyone and everyone capable of changing it. Putting it as
plainly as possible, the future literally has not been written,
and anything past the nexus - including the First Aberrant
War - can either be averted or assured by characters with
foreknowledge of what could come and a sufficiently good
strategy to alter the existing historical factors to achieve a
desired outcome.
Of course, there will always be plenty of other factors
to interfere with such plans, ranging from deliberate
CHAPTER TWO: SOJOURNS IN SPACETIME
interference by other characters to simple human stupidity
and apathy.
For those Aberrant chronicles set in the Universe 1
timelines, they are faced with a future that might as well be
carved in the hardest of stone. With a nexus thats near 2122
C.E. - well past the Nova Age - the coming of the Aberrant
War and all of its tragic consequences is guaranteed,
regardless of whatever attempts are made to avert it. While
this can be appealing for the true angst junkies among
Aberrant players and Storytellers, most Universe 1 Nova
Ages are best used as alternate universe destinations for
nova crosstime travelers from the Universe 2 timelines. There
are few better ways to get players motivated than to show
them just how bad the future of the Nova Age can get, in
excruciating detail.
In the rare instance of Aberrant chronicles set in the
Universe 3 timelines, theirs is a precarious existence at best.
With their nexus located in 1923 C.E., these versions of the
Nova Age are mirages, potential futures that can be altered
and/or obliterated by actions taking place in their past. As
phantoms, novas from these Aberrant chronicles are faced
with nothing less than a monumental battle for their own
right to exist. If they succeed, they can attain a permanent
existence for their world, or at least for themselves and a
surviving population of novas and Nova Age baselines.
Otherwise, they face the prospect of literally being wiped
from reality like a chalk drawing on a sidewalk in the rain.
About Universe 3
The third timeline grouping of the Aeon Continuum
is known to very few travelers and visited infrequently
at best. Labeled as Universe 3, they are notable for the
markedly lesser power level of Earths resident Inspired and
the fact that their futures can typically be altered only with
truly heroic effort. Given the much lower power levels of
these adventurers (compared to their future counterparts,
anyway), any changes they make to history will have to be
both behind the scenes from public notice and require
long periods of time to have much noticeable effect on
their world. While the benevolent Inspired cannot possibly
hope to prevent World War II and similar upcoming events
of the 20th Century, the potentially world-altering plots of
the Inspired villains of the period can certainly be thwarted.
In rare cases, some of those heroes might - just might, mind
you - even be able to prevent the long-term plans of Michael
Daemon Donighal (a.k.a. Dr. Primoris, a.k.a. Divis Mal).
Whether doing so is feasible or even desirable has been left
to the wishes of the players and their Storytellers discretion.
29
 ABERRANT
Who Makes The World? : The second additional influence is contact with alien
races, which only begins to affect human history on a
Shapers of History wide basis during the Noetic Era. Between the covert
machinations of the Doyen and the overt contact with the
In most human worlds, actual history - as opposed to
Qin, Chromatics and Coalition, its hard to say which of
most of what is taught as such by the academic institutions
these has had the most effect on Terran-based humanity
- is shaped by two major factors. The first is the impersonal
as a whole. While the Doyen are responsible for setting up
and undirected forces of nature, which cannot (usually) be
the psi orders - causing massive changes in human society
resisted and can never be denied by sane, rational people.
- the social effects of overt contact with other alien species
The second is the collective efforts of humanity, with
cannot be discounted. Centuries of scientific speculation on
individuals altering historical outcomes to varying degrees
the possibility of encountering sapient alien species - which
- and often canceling out the changes made by others. In
the average man on the street could dismiss out of hand -
Aberrant and Trinity, two additional factors exist.
has been replaced with the hardest of proven facts.
The first additional influence is the effect of powerful
Aside from the aforementioned forces, certain
novas and aberrants, which basically lets them make
individuals also have the capability to change the course of
changes to history on a scale previously associated only
human history. While most of these are Inspired beings of
with the aforesaid forces of nature. This is much of what
great power, all thats truly required to shape history is for a
makes the Quantum-powered eximorphs so threatening
person to be faced with the right set of circumstances and
to the baseline human Establishments: natural disasters
have the opportunity and will to act. The only difference
such as volcanic eruptions and tsunamis have no guiding
between mundanes and the Inspired in this is that the
intelligence behind them. Human social matters are
Inspired merely have a wider range of opportunity and
irrelevant to nature. The same cannot be said of novas
circumstances to make real changes. What follows is our
and aberrants, who often have marked (and often justified)
best attempt at an outline of the foremost of these shapers
interest in changing human society to the detriment of the
of history.
Powers That Be.

30 CHAPTER TWO: SOJOURNS IN SPACETIME

 ABERRANT
Max Mercer, Refracted
Much of Max Mercers backstory is as presented in
the Adventure! core book, and need not be reprinted
here. Instead we will focus on how he has influenced the
Aeoniverse timelines and the different versions of him that
are available for use by Aberrant Storytellers.
Through ignorance of the nature of his own powers,
Mercers first few time travel attempts turns the potential
timelines he visits (different periods of the canon Aberrant
& Trinity settings) into their own concrete realities, which
cannot be altered as their respective nexii have been
advanced too far. He also splits himself into many versions
of himself when attempting to travel past the date of
Process 418. Compounding this error is Mercers mistaken
belief that those new realities are still part of one single,
fluid timeline. Put simply, Max thinks that he has trapped
himself in a timeline (in some cases, a personal Hell) and
he spends the rest of his existence thereafter attempting
to fix the negative consequences of his own meddling.
Mercers further meddling with causality ironically only helps
to create those very same negative consequences hes trying
to keep from happening. How he goes about doing this will
depend on how the Storyteller wishes to use Mercer in her
Aberrant chronicle.
When Max Mercer attempted his time jump past
Process 418, he subjected himself to a phenomenon much
like what happens when a narrow beam of white light hits
a prism. Where there had been but one Max Mercer in a
single timeline/universe, there were now many parallel
worlds, each with its own Max Mercer. And as those parallel
worlds differed from each other to varying degrees, so did
Max Mercer. This fact allows the Storyteller a wide range of
latitude to tailor Mercers personality and motivations as she
sees fit.
The Mercer Spectrum
There are three major factors in determining the
motivations of Max Mercer in your Aberrant chronicle. The
first factor depends on what that given version of Mercer
experienced when he attempted to time-jump past Process
418. The Mercer Spectrum is divided into three groupings.
Category One comprises those Max Mercers who managed
to jump beyond Process 418, experiencing the wonders
of the Noetic Age as baseline humanity - aided by the
psionic humans - struggles to become a stable interstellar
civilization during the Second Aberrant War. Unfortunately,
these Mercers also inadvertently crystallized their timelines
circa 2122 C.E. The universe/timelines these Mercers inhabit
are designated Universe 1 and are the settings of the
Trinity gameline and chronicles.
Category Two is made up of those Mercers who did not
CHAPTER TWO: SOJOURNS IN SPACETIME
make it past Process 418. Instead, these Mercers impacted
it and rebounded, much like a rubber ball thrown hard
against a stout brick wall. After experiencing levels of pain
undreamt of by mundane humans, they reappeared back in
the 1920s C.E. They were also convinced that the event they
had encountered was nothing less than the end of humanity.
The timelines of these Mercers were only crystallized to circa
2015 C.E., and are the settings of the Aberrant gameline
and chronicles. Category Three are those few Mercers who
managed to make it past Process 418 without crystallizing
their timelines at all. Armed with knowledge of the future
and remaining generally optimistic about humanity, these
Mercers inhabit the settings of the Adventure! gameline
and chronicles.
The second factor is how the morality of a given Max
Mercer has been shaped by his timejump. Again, there
are three divisions here. Sector One are the Optimistics/
Ethicals, whose outlooks remain generally true to how
Max Mercer has been presented in the Aeon Continuum
gamelines. These Mercers may commit illegal acts as
necessary - which can be often when dealing with unjust
laws - but they still qualify as Good Guys by most peoples
standards. Their common flaw is the unfortunate tendency
to see many people as being better than they truly are, if
only in potential. Sometimes those people will live up to
Mercers expectations, but more often he winds up being
disappointed. These Mercers are often overly forgiving of
their enemies, and will misjudge the character of people
they really should not trust with anything.
Sector Two are the Pragmatics/Situationals, who have
become morally gray in their pursuit of doing the most good
for the most people possible. These Mercers will commit
illegal actions when they deem necessary, but generally only
when such are more effective than the legal options. Their
common flaw is their situational morality, which will lead wise
people to distrust them on general principle. When ones
ethos can be summed up as whatever benefits me and my
aims is good, all else is either irrelevant or bad, it puts a
real damper on any feelings of having any long-term shared
common interests others may have.
Sector Three are the Pessimistics/Radicals, who can be
seen as necessarily evil in that they have come to believe
that the end always justifies the means when that end is
the survival and continued well-being of an independent
Humanity. These Mercers will commit illegal actions when it
is convenient for them to do so in the pursuit of protecting
Humanity against Inspired threats, regardless of who is
harmed and/or killed in the process of doing so. Their
common flaw is their blindness to their own evil, which
others will eventually recognize and become deeply hostile
to the Pessimistic/Radical Mercer in question.
The third factor is the general effects a version of Max
31
 ABERRANT
Mercer has on the world he inhabits. Note that this factor
has no bearing on the morality of any particular Max Mercer.
Well-intentioned if mistaken actions are long known to
be capable of having negative consequences. Likewise,
atrocities and other acts of ill-intent can have indirect
beneficial consequences, generally through the actions of
those opposed to said malicious actions. Division One are
the Beneficials, those Mercers whose actions have largely
positive consequences for Humanity as a whole. Division
Two are the Neutrals, the Mercers whose actions have
resulted in a mix of positive and negative consequences
for Humanity. Division Three are the Detrimentals, Mercers
whose actions for whatever reason have had mostly negative
consequences for Humanity.
Using the Spectrum
By picking and choosing a Category, Sector and
Division, the Storyteller can tailor-make a version of Max
Mercer that fits her Aberrant chronicle like a glove. With
the three coordinates providing a rudimentary structure to
build on, all that is needed is for the Storyteller to flesh it
out and make her version of Max Mercer live and breathe.
Example: Gabe is preparing to run a campaign with
Nexus content, and as part of building the setting is sitting
down to define this timelines Maxwell Mercer. Using the
Spectrum, he goes over each coordinate in order.
This game is Aberrant, so Max is a Category Two, who
did not get past Process 418 and is marked by the apparent
end of humanity and the threat thus presented. Gabe also
wants to try a more gray Mercer, someone who still has
elements of his ideals embedded in his plans, but much
more willing to kill or commit illegal actions when he feels
the situation requires it. Max is thus designated a Sector
Two. Gabe decides to assume for the sake of argument that
his actions have borne good fruit for Earth and humanity,
making Max a Division One.
Finally, Gabe fleshes out the details. Gabe thinks about
what necessary actions Max may have taken, and decides
that Max - though granting Project Proteus some latitude
to provide the covert and dirty backing for Utopia - had
enough the moment he heard about the Slider assassination
and confirmed the existence of the sterilization program.
Humanity Disclaimer
No matter which version of Max Mercer appears in your Aberrant chronicle - or Divis Mal, for that matter - it remains
vitally important to point out that they are and still remain human men, Mals Taint and Chrysalis notwithstanding. Both Mercer
and Mal are subject to personal limitations, bias and foibles. Both still make mistakes, and they cannot be everywhere at
once. If there are similarly great men and women in an Aberrant chronicle; it follows that they can, have and likely will make
equally great mistakes. All of this also applies to most high-caliber novas, though certain ones may have developed in ways to
ameliorate some of those flaws...
32 CHAPTER TWO: SOJOURNS IN SPACETIME
Max had both Thetis and Ozaki eliminated and began a
quiet purge of Project Proteus worst elements, rebooting
the organization completely. Chiraben was mind-wiped and
propped up as the culprit for Sliders death, then handed
over to the Hague for a public trial. Chiraben was then
found guilty on multiple criminal counts of murder, torture
and sabotage. He was executed soon afterwards.
As a result, Corben was not framed, the Aberrants
never formed and no scandals have blemished Project
Utopias image and efforts. Also, without the desire for extra
publicity by Utopian leaders, Antaeus was not pressed to
the point of departure and is being treated with a lighter
hand.
The Teragen havent really changed much, but Max will
deal with his old friends foolishness in time.
Divis Mal
Michael Daemon Donighals transformation into Doctor
Primoris and the beginnings of his eventual metamorphosis
into Divis Mal are as presented in the Adventure! core
book. Here, we will discuss how the different versions of the
Father of Teras may be used in your Aberrant chronicle.
To borrow from the Mercer Coordinates shown above,
the canon version of Divis Mal qualifies as Categories One
and Two (encountered in the Adventure! & Aberrant
timelines) and Sector Three (Pessimistic/Radical, in terms of
his views on nova/baseline relations). His Division coordinate
depends on the Storytellers interpretation of him. At best,
Divis Mal is considered Division Two; as the prime instigator
of the Nova Age his efforts have had a very mixed effect on
the world. At worst, Divis Mal is considered Division Three,
especially when his actions are viewed from the baseline
perspective.
Storytellers who wish to change this in their chronicles
have two choices available to them. First, the Storyteller can
alter Divis Mals initial circumstances; such as his nationality,
parentage, sexual orientation and gender. For point of
reference, the canon version of Divis Mal was a homosexual
male (and child prodigy) born in 1900 in the United States
of America to a heterosexual male Harvard professor and his
wife living in Cambridge, Massachusetts. While seemingly
insignificant, changing any of these facts can make an
alternate Donighals development skew wildly from the
 ABERRANT
canon version. A hetero- or bisexual Donighal would have how actual people (nova, baseline and otherwise) will react
much less of a love/hate relationship with Max Mercer and to them and himself. This has made him extremely reluctant
Aeon in turn, becoming either a patriarch of the Teragen who to act, making him near-completely irrelevant to the events
is less tolerant of his followers faults or a more committed going on around him. Mal still believes that nova capabilities
foe of Aeon. Likewise, a female Donighal could actually should grant superior morality, despite all the evidence
find her love for Max Mercer requited, leading to massive hes seen to the contrary. His ideas on proper human
changes in Aeons development as her clarity of vision social interaction are seriously behind the times in that he
counteracts the rose-colored glasses of an Optimistic/ essentially sees novas - and himself - as natural aristocrats,
Ethical Max Mercer. On the other hand, a female Divis Mal with all the sense of entitlement which comes with that.
might fuse her transhuman ideals with the feminism of Le
Salon des Femmes Nouveaux, leading to a Nova Age where
the vast majority of novas are female due to feeling that
most men should never be trusted with such power.
Second, the Storyteller can allow for nova player
characters to stymie Divis Mals historical track through
diplomatic means, although this requires a better-than-
average insight into Mals personality. Despite the popular
view of Mal as a perpetual (and petulant) overly empowered
teenager, thats not the only way to portray him. Back in the
Adventure! Era, Donighal was the pulp science hero Dr.
Primoris. Acting as a foil to the views of the Aeon Society,
Primoris authoritarianism and fear that a free humanity
would inevitably destroy itself led him to seek dominion
over the entire human race. From his viewpoint, human
freedom was irrelevant if it allowed the species to drive itself
into extinction. The Aeon Society - and more importantly
to Primoris, Max Mercer - disagreed violently with this and
the matter came to blows. After his defeat by Aeon and
subsequent disappearance, Primoris retreated to focus on
two things. The first was furthering his own metamorphosis,
which hed started back in the early 1930s. The second was
finding a way to save humanity from itself. As Mals Chrysalis
progressed, the latter goal gradually changed into a desire
to evoke the nova transformation in all those humans
capable of doing so. And some of these new novas would
go on to learn the Chrysalis and become beings like himself,
equals for Mal to socialize with and keep him company as
they built a bold new civilization that would outlast human
civilization by millennia. Unfortunately, reality was not so
accomodating.
Divis Mal is a classic example of the Ubermensch
archetype - hes always known that his nova capabilities
make him different from and arguably superior to normal
humanity. This has resulted in his alienation from normal
humans and from his own humanity, leading to the tragedies
of the Chrysalis and the Teragen, both of which are rooted in
Mals nave misunderstanding of humanity in general. Mal is
an overly cerebral philosopher who tries to act benevolently
with his power whose efforts have horrific consequences
due to his basic misunderstanding of humanity and himself.
While intelligent enough to see the global consequences of
his large-scale actions, Mal always manages to miscalculate

CHAPTER TWO: SOJOURNS IN SPACETIME 33

 ABERRANT
His Terat followers keep defining themselves by their worse for everyone involved, including himself.
relation to humanity, which is a supreme irony given how If the nova PCs are successful - and it should not be
Mals philosophy is rooted in his own humanity. For every an easy victory, given Mals difficulties in communicating
genuine transhumanist among the Terats - the ones closest with others - they can convince Mal to remove himself
to what Mal wanted the Terats to be - there are many more and the Teragen from human civilization. In the best case
sociopaths, narcissists, nova supremacists, opportunists and scenario, Mal will also exile the Taint-maddened novas from
posers. As a result the Teragen has become a huge train Earth while leaving the sane non-Terat novas free to stay
wreck of a movement, a quantum-powered horror show on Earth or leave to found extrasolar nova colonies as they
whose only thing going for them is having learnt Mals less- will. Without Divis Mal and the Taint-mad novas acting as
than-viable method of dealing with Taint accumulation. a gigantic Sword of Damocles hanging over the heads of
When events led Mal to initiate the nova Exodus in 2061, baseline humanity, the baseline Powers That Be will have
he created his own universe for himself and the Teragen to to find another scapegoat than novas to take the blame for
live in. And thus, Mal literally creates his own personal Hell; their next inevitable global conflict.
a realm where every nova residing there is effectively his, her
or its own species. Not only will the inhabitants have little
Other Time Travelers
in common with Mal, but their difficulties in communicating
When dealing with time travelers - quantum-powered
effectively with one another will decrease any desire to do
or otherwise - the possibilites as to who they are and why
so. Divis Mal will find himself more alone than he ever was
they are undertaking time travel are endless. Instead of
back on Earth, and may become self-destructive as a result.
listing all the possible reasons for novas to travel in time,
Putting things bluntly, Divis Mal is certifiably insane
we present Storytellers with a handy checklist of coordinates
by human standards. Widely held to suffer from both
using part of the Greek alphabet.
megalomania and schizophrenia, Mal is also obsessive
Alpha indicates which universe grouping the time
about his ideas on nova evolution. Finally, he is likely
traveler in question originates from. Alpha-1 indicates
delusional as to how baseline humanity will react to his
Universe One & the Trinity setting. Alpha-2 indicates
attempts at establishing nova dominance. That said, it is still
Universe Two & the Aberrant setting. Alpha-3 indicates
(barely) possible for Mal to be convinced of his errors.
Universe Three & the Adventure! setting. Alpha-4 is a
For nova PCs to get it through to Mal that he is deeply
special case, as it indicates the Trinity Continuum and the
mistaken about several very basic things about humanity
necessity of some kind of crosstime travel - likely accidental
and his goals is going to require convincing him of three
- in addition to the time travel event. Alpha-5 is the most
things. First, they must disprove his belief that morality has
exotic as it indicates some random universe within the
any link whatsoever to power. Granting a human power
Greater Omniverse, beyond both the Aeon & Trinity
clearly does not improve his or her morality. Likewise,
Continuums.
morality has no meaning if it grants any power. If Mal is truly
Beta indicates the relative stability of a time travelers
the Father of Teras, he must be held responsible for the
point of origin, and can be a huge factor in determining
crimes committed by his followers.
a travelers motivations. Beta-1 indicates travelers who hail
Second, the PCs must show Mal that according to
from a stable part of their universes timeline, which is the
Teras, the Teragen must be prohibited from taking any
most common case. Beta-2 indicates travelers that hail from
and all advantage of human society if they take the Null
the portion of their universes timeline that is crystallizing
Manifesto seriously. If Terats or other novas participate in
into established history and is near their timelines nexus.
human society, they should expect to be judged by human
While their origin points are not quite as stable as those of
standards. If Terats were truly superior to baseline humanity,
travelers from the fully crystallized portions of the timeline,
they would divorce themselves from it entirely. Instead,
these lifestreams of these travelers are just as resistant to
most Terats use their superiority as a blanket excuse for
temporal meddling. Beta-3 indicates travelers who hail from
lawlessness and the rampant abuse of baseline humans.
mirages, those portions of their universes timelines which
Third, they must prove to Mal that his repeated efforts
have yet to crystallize. Since these travelers are by definition
to cause nova eruptions are resulting in an increasing
phantoms (as per the Flaw on p. 119 of this book), they have
number of novas erupting with increased Taint. This in turn
what is possibly the best reason to engage in time travel of
only makes the already-strained relationship between novas
all: ensuring the continued existence of both their world and
and baseline humanity even worse, as such dysfunctional
themselves.
novas give the baseline Establishment ever more reason to
Gamma indicates the basic nature of the time traveler,
view all novas in a hostile light. In trying to help novas by
with increasing levels of weirdness from the general Terran
creating more of them, Mal is instead making the situation
perspective. Gamma-1 indicates a baseline human, an

34 CHAPTER TWO: SOJOURNS IN SPACETIME

 ABERRANT
Adventure!-style daredevil or equivalent being of human
derivation. These time travelers will either be using some
form of technology to facilitate their journeys or will be
acting as agents for a more powerful being or group
of beings that possess time travel capabilities of some
sort. Gamma-2 indicates either a psionic being of human
derivation or a non-Inspired being of alien derivation. Their
journey will usually be a function of advanced technology
(noetic or hardtech), although beings with advanced
Psychoportation capabilities might be able to accomplish
the feat. Gamma-3 indicates either a relatively untainted
nova or nova-equivalent of human derivation, with the latter
presumably hailing from the Terran Continuum. Gamma-4
indicates a highly-tainted nova of human derivation (what
most denizens of the Trinity setting think of as an aberrant)
or a relatively untainted nova or nova-equivalent of alien
derivation. Gamma-5 indicates a highly-tainted nova of
alien derivation, and is functionally equivalent to the classic
eldritch abomination trope. Gamma-6 is the most exotic, as
it indicates a human or humanoid being with actual mystical
powers. By definition, most will hail from either the Terran
Continuum or the Greater Omniverse and will be crosstime
travelers (accidental or otherwise) as well as time travelers.
Delta indicates how prepared the time traveler is
for his, her or its arrival in the target time period. Delta-1
indicates no preparation at all, with the traveler lacking
both knowledge of the target time period and anything that
would help the traveler survive until such knowledge could
be learned. Delta-2 indicates minimal preparation, with the
traveler having either rudimetary knowledge of the target
time period or sufficient means to survive with relative ease
until the knowledge is learned. Delta-3 indicates moderate
preparation, usually indicating adequate levels of both
knowledge and resourcefulness. Alternately, it can indicate
an excessive amount of either quality. Delta-4 indicates an
extreme amount of both qualities.
Epsilon indicates the intentions of the time traveler,
although from the general human perspective and only in
a general sense. Time travel can be extremely dangerous,
and the travelers reasons for taking such risks must always
be taken into account. Epsilon-1 indicates travelers whose
intentions are for the benefit of humanity in general. This
would include missions such as preventing the outbreak
of a global epidemic, defusing conflicts before nuclear or
biological weapons are widely used, or preventing certain
natural disasters. Epsilon-2 indicates travelers whose
intentions are still beneficial, but more limited in scope.
This includes attempts to alter social trends for the benefit
of a minority (such as novas or Jews), thwarting the efforts
of demagogues to attain power by demonizing social
minorities, and interfering in corporate affairs to either
promote or retard the development of influential new
CHAPTER TWO: SOJOURNS IN SPACETIME
technology. Epsilon-3 indicates travelers whose intentions
are essentially neutral in regard to general humanity.
Often, they have purely selfish motives in mind and a
corresponding lack of respect for the dangers of time travel.
These travelers are the ones seeking to prevent or ensure an
otherwise insignificant persons death, or make themselves
wealthy by using economic knowledge from the future.
Epsilon-4 indicates travelers with malignant intentions of
a limited scope. These travelers typically seek to disrupt a
particular beneficial change of any sort - social, political,
technological or economic - in order to preserve a previous
status quo they find appealing. Epsilon-5 indicates travelers
whose malignant intentions could affect most of humanity.
Examples of such include attempting to establish a global
repressive fascist regime to causing the world to become
overtly dominated by international corporations to causing
human extinction.
Zeta indicates what the actual effect of the time
travelers meddling will be in general terms. Please note that
this coordinate never has to be congruent to the Epsilon
coordinate. Well-intentioned meddling can easily have
detrimental consequences, while malevolent meddling can
create beneficial consequences for humanity through the
actions of those who resist a time travelers evil schemes.
Zeta-1 indicates that the travelers efforts will be - either
directly or indirectly - of great benefit to all of humanity.
Zeta-2 indicates travelers whose effect is beneficial yet are
of limited scope. Zeta-3 indicates those travelers whose
actions have neither any real beneficial nor detrimental
effect. Whether this is due to unexpected resistance, poor
planning on the travelers part or simple chance has been
left up to the Storyteller. Zeta-4 indicates travelers whose
efforts will have limited malignant effects on humanity.
Zeta-5 indicates travelers whose actions whose meddling
will have detrimental effects for all of humanity.
Human Nature
There is one important factor that can always stymie the
schemes of a time traveler: basic human nature. When most time
travelers think of changing the course of human history, they often
come to view most of the people inhabiting the time periods they
visit as being unimportant in the greater scheme of things. This
can be a deadly mistake. Humans are not all chess pieces to be
moved around, they will all have their own agendas which can
easily - if inadvertently - throw the proverbial monkey wrench into
a time travelers schemes. Even if a travelers efforts are for their
collective benefit, some humans will still resist due to contrariness,
a conservative mentality or a simple lack of understanding of what
the travelers actions could result in. That said, while the gods of
antiquity may contend with human stupidity in vain, that question
is still up in the air when novas are concerned...
35
 ABERRANT
Time Travel Explored
Whenever a player character gains the capability to
engage in time travel, the question of changing the course
of history always comes up. For most Storytellers, this is a can
of worms that they would just rather not deal with. For those
willing to give it a shot, however, we have provided a general
overview of the process as delineated in the Aeon Continuum
settings. For those who want to read over the means first,
please refer to the listing for the Time Travel quantum power,
in the Aberrant Players Guide, pp. 136-138.
The Five Basics of Time Travel:
A Review
Here is a quick review of how time travel is typically
assumed to work in most Aeon Continuum settings.
Law #1 - Time travelers can change the past, although
with difficulty. Historical inertia will replace historical figures
lost due to the efforts of time travelers, and ensures that
historical events prevented through such meddling will
happen a brief time later with different causes. Carefully
planned actions by time travelers can still alter history
successfully.
Law #2 - Time travelers can partially alter the causal
change that brought them to the past, but they cant
unwrite it entirely. Said time travelers may or may not
remember the unaltered version of their history.
Law #3 - Time travelers can undo any changes to
history made by themselves or others and restore the
original version of it, as historical inertia works in favor of
such corrections.
Law #4 - Time traveling into the future partially defines
it. The events a time traveler deals with most directly become
fixed - in other terms this is advancing the timelines nexus -
while the rest of the unobserved future world remaind fluid
and malleable.
Law #5 - Any historical changes made by time travelers
apply instantly.
All of this assumes that the chronicle in question - like
most Aeon Continuum chronicles - takes place within a portion
of its timeline that is close to said timelines nexus. In the case
36 CHAPTER TWO: SOJOURNS IN SPACETIME
of chronicles occuring within mirages, Laws #1, #2 and #3 are
drastically changed. Mirage futures are literally houses of cards
made into reality. Thus, their pasts are horribly easy to change,
which may or may not be a good thing depending on the
circumstances. Likewise paradoxes can be created, with time
travelers deleting themselves from existence in the course of
doing so shortly afterwards. Possible means of escaping this fate
can be found in the listing for the Phantom Flaw on p. 119 of
this book.
The situation is reversed when dealing with chronicles set far
in the past - within the crystallized portion of the timeline
- from their timelines nexus. From such points in the
timeline, the past cannot be changed and any attempts
to do so merely create new timelines. Time travelers
cannot create paradoxes or alter their own causal chains.
Since changes to a timeline at this point cannot be made,
the questions of whether such changes can be undone
and how quickly they take place become moot. Finally,
time travelers cannot define the future by traveling into it.
Instead, they travel to one of the infinite possible futures
of their timeline. These sojourns will have no effect on
the people who are living in that timelines actual future,
which cannot be visited.
Changing History:
A DIY Guide
As outlined above, changing the course of history via
time travel is nowhere near as as simple as demolishing a
building. What must always be kept in mind is that history is
produced by the collective interactions of humankind with
both themselves and their environment. Adding in the fact
of historical inertia existing in the timeline only makes this
task more daunting. What follows is our best shot at a rough
guide to changing a timeline, broken down into separate
stages.
Stage #1: Establish a clear idea of the desired change.
When most novas (or other varieties of Inspired beings)
engage in something as risky as time travel, they typically
have a very good idea of exactly what theyre attempting
to change. Vague goals such as preventing World War II
or prevent global warming are insufficiently clear for this
purpose. Stymie the establishment of the Nazi Party before
it can come into power and prevent the oil industry from
becoming the dominant energy source of the 20th Century
are more than sufficient.
Stage #2: Do your research.
Put simply, the wise time traveler should learn
everything possible that is relevant to the change that she
will attempt to make. If for example one wishes to stymie
 ABERRANT
the rise of a political party; the time traveler should identify
what social forces allowed the party to form in the first place.
Who supported that party financially, and for what reasons?
Were there any forces opposing it, and if so why did they
fail to stop the rise of the said party in its tracks? Were there
any pre-existing social weaknesses that the said party was
able to take advantage of? Were there any points in the said
partys development when it was particularly vulnerable to
its opposing forces? Even the most seemingly insignificant
detail can make the difference between success and failure.
In game terms, this can be represented with a series of
Academics (History) rolls made at whatever difficulty penalty
that the Storyteller deems reasonable.
Stage #3: Choose your method(s).
There are four basic kinds of changes that time
travelers can make to a timeline. The first variety are the
technological changes. Mega-Mental time travelers can
find this the easiest route to take, provided that they are
technologically inclined. Most often making this kind of
change means either introducing a new technology into the
targeted time period or preventing a new technology from
being successfully developed. Alternatively, ambitious time
travelers can seek to either raise or lower the targeted time
periods Technology Rating (see pp. 114-118 of this book) by
one or more levels. The former is best roleplayed, while the
latter can be handled with a series of whatever Ability rolls
the Storyteller deems appropriate.
The second variety are the political changes, which
require entry into the targeted time periods political
process. These can range from simply directing the targeted
government into making one or more decisions (for ill or
good) in line with the time travelers wishes to altering the
very form said government takes or even replacing it with
a new one. Mega-Social time travelers have an opportunity
to shine here, especially if the locals of the targeted time
period have no clue about nova capabilities.
The third variety are the cultural changes, which are
again a veritable playground for Mega-Social time travelers.
As with the political changes, this option requires the time
traveler to attain a basic level of influence within the popular
culture of the targeted time period. New religions can be
created and existing ones discredited. The targeted cultures
attitudes towards a social minority can also be altered
for better or worse. More trivially, fashion trends can be
created or rendered utterly tacky. New genres of the arts,
music, literature and cuisine can be introduced or made
unfashionable as desired.
The fourth variety are the exotic changes, which are
generally options for only nova time travelers or other Inspired
beings with Inspired devices of similar potency. Dubious
sanity is also a requirement for time travelers willing to use
such gambits. These actions include such drastic measures
CHAPTER TWO: SOJOURNS IN SPACETIME
Actual History vs. Official History
Wise time travelers should never place too much trust in
whatever passes for the local historical record. Official versions
of human history have always been written to the benefit of the
current Powers That Be in all time periods. Historians who present
hard evidence contrary to said official histories have often found
themselves discredited or even imprisoned for doing so. Attempts
by dissident historians often meet with determined - if informal -
resistance at all levels of officialdom and academia. Even without
such deliberate distortions historical records are still made by
humans; who can, have and will make mistakes in doing so.
Important historical details can even be overlooked for decades
or centuries. Caveat Lector.
as inducing nova eruptions (or other forms of Inspired
capabilities) in the local populace, reintroducing dinosaurs
into the targeted time periods ecosystem, initiating (or
faking) First Contact with an alien species, causing an entire
high-tech nation - four or more Technology Ratings higher
than the local standard - to appear in the place of its past
counterpart or outright attempts to conquer the entirety of
human civilization of the targeted time period.
In all four cases, changes to a timeline are also classed
by their magnitude. Type 1 changes are the minor ones, basic
alterations to a tiny part of the everyday status quo that are
highly attractive to the local culture. Examples of such would
be introducing a highly useful new cooking technology,
new political ideas that arouse little or no opposition, and
creating mildly popular new works of art. Type 2 changes
are intermediate alterations of the status quo which while
noticeable are not outside the realm of what the locals
consider normal. Examples of such include introducing
new and highly useful agricultural techniques, altering the
reputation of an existing public figure or establishing a new
one, and creating wildly popular new works of art. Type 3
changes are major and possibly lasting alterations to the
status quo which radically deviate - for good or ill - from
the expectations of the locals. In technological terms this
means either introducing revolutionary new technologies -
no more than one or two Technology Ratings higher than
what is current - or causing the loss of an existing technology
of a similar degree. Other examples of such would include
introducing new agricultural crops, altering the locals social
attritudes towards an entire social minority and introducing
either entirely new forms of art or major changes to current
ones. Type 4 changes are acute alterations of the status quo
which deviate from the locals expectations to the point where
strong social opposition to them is guaranteed. In terms
of technology, this means introducing new technologies
that are three or four Technology Ratings higher than the
local standard or reducing the local development of an
37
 ABERRANT
existing technology by the same degree. Other examples
of such would include starting a revolution against the
local government, making radical alterations of widespread
cultural practices, establishing a new major religion and
utterly transformating an existing art form.
Type 5 changes are in a class of their own. By definition,
these are extreme alterations of the status quo which not
only will engender vigorous social opposition, they have the
potential to cause serious social disruption merely from being
introduced into the targeted time period. All of the exotic
changes (see above) to the local timeline are considered
Type 5 changes by default. Going by technological terms,
this would also cover either introducing new technologies
that are five or more Technology Ratings higher than the
local standard or reducing the local development of an
existing technology by the same degree. Other such
changes would include the utter transformation of an
existing culture or making social changes that go against
what is locally assumed to be normal and healthy human
behavior.
Finally, it should be noted that most time travelers
often have to make many small (and profitable) changes
to a timeline in order to acquire the means to make the
larger ones. Throughout most of human history, gaining
large amounts of wealth has always led to gaining increased
political and cultural influence in turn. Wise time travelers
should always make use of that axiom - even if they might
not actually need large amounts of wealth acquired in the
targeted time period, it makes for a very handy cover for
them to engage in any political and/or cultural machinations.
Stage #4: Make the change.
The effort and time required for a time traveler to
make a change in the timeline is directly proportional to its
magnitude. Once a time traveler has set up an initial base
of operations and sufficient funding - creating & selling
precious gems is a favorite means of getting quick funds in
past eras - he may attempt to make any desired changes as
circumstances permit.
The process of making a technological change is
identical to that used to create new technology (Aberrant:
Brainwaves, pp. 23-25) when introducing a new technology,
though with two differences. The first is that a time traveler
will often have dots in the Hypertech Background, which can
help the time traveler due to the advanced technological,
political and/or social knowledge it represents. Further
details can be found on pp. 112-113 of this book. Sabotage
of the existing local technology depends on hindering the
efforts of the local researchers and depriving the local culture
of the resources and materials to support said technology.
Making political or cultural changes is little different, except
that the process depends on the Social Attributes and
38 CHAPTER TWO: SOJOURNS IN SPACETIME
Wits. The magnitude of the desired change is also a factor.
Type 1 & 2 changes are the equivalent of creating a simple
device. Changes of Type 3 and greater are equivalent to
increasingly complex devices.
Operating At The Margins
Changing history isnt the only option available to
time travelers. Provided that they refrain from interfering
with the course of human history and keep a low profile,
said time travelers can accomplish wondrous things. This
becomes especially true when making long-range plans,
such as going back in time to establish extrasolar nova
colony worlds without having to deal with interference from
governments and other groups that are aware of the novas
existence and capabilities.
The Basics Of Skirting History
When planning to successfully take advantage of time
travel without appreciably changing history, there are four
tenets that wise time travelers always keep in mind.
Anonymity: Keeping a low profile whenever possible
might as well be a religious edict for time travelers in
these circumstances. By blending in with the locals and
becoming deliberately bland and uninteresting by said
locals standards, time travelers can be ignored. The ideal
is to become insignificant and forgettable pieces of the
background scenery of historys stage.
Incredibility: When anonymity is not possible, time
travelers must adopt the near-opposite tactic. Bluntly, they
must be so unbelievable and outlandish that any and all
witnesses dismiss the time travelers as figments of their
own imaginations. Its a much harder thing to accomplish
than it first seems. There is a very fine line between being
considered some sort of intoxicated hallucinations and
being just believable enough for any local unorthodox
thinkers to take an interest in the bizarre incidents.
Isolation: When neither anonymity nor incredibility will
serve, being generally removed from the local human society
is a time travelers best bet. If a human has no real impact
on the timeline - has no children within human society and
takes no important actions that would affect it - he or she
becomes irrelevant to said timelines historical flow. Many
things can happen to these people without changing history,
as historical inertia simply reassigns any important future
actions they might have made to other people. Such folk
are ripe for removal from human society by time travelers
for whatever reason. This state of affairs can also become
a potent defense for the time travelers themselves, as this
irrelevancy allows them to engage in activities that would
otherwise alter human history irretrievably.
Ingenuity: When time travelers cannot interact with
human society for fear of leaving a paper trail and thus
 ABERRANT
entering the local historical record, resourcefulness is in the timenapping are self-evident and wont be gone into here.
highest demand. As people forced to interact only at the Historical Reconnaissance: With human historical
fringes of human society - with unofficial and anonymous records known to be less than reliable, its inevitable that time
dealings being preferred - time travelers must make the travelers will end up trying to find out what really happened
most of any and all opportunities that present themselves. themselves. This can be of great use when investigating the
Situational ethics can apply here to a point, as natural origins and goals of present-day - whatever that may be
disasters and tragic events where property and/or lives for the time travelers - human organizations, especially if
would otherwise be lost can make ripe pickings for time they are hostile to the time travelers for whatever reason. It
travelers who could make good use of them. can also help uncover secrets kept by powerful organizations
such as national governments and major religious hierarchies
that could have an impact on the humanity in general or
Living Off Of The (Historical) Record the time travelers plans. The time travelers can also make
Many people view enaging in time travel as being
excellent historical documentaries and records of their own
identical to changing history. They further reason that if
for posterity.
one isnt trying to change history, why bother
with time travel at all? Those people with more
imagination than most do not agree with that
idea. What follows is a general overview of what
can be accomplished without having to alter the
timestream.
Establish Coventry Colonies: Perhaps the
most common tactic, time travelers can establish
very isolated colonies where they, their friends
and followers can live without interference from
either hostile forces back home or from the
locals. Provided that a stable, self-supporting
colony can be established, three things must be
done to make sure it can grow safely. First, the colony must Crosstime Travel Explored
be able to evade the notice of any and all outside forces; From the Storytellers perspective, player characters
be they local humans, local aliens or other time travelers. that gain the capability to travel to alternate universes are
Second, the colony must have sufficient military might somewhat easier to deal with than those who can time
to ensure that anyone who discovers the colony does not travel. Instead of dealing with a changeable timestream, the
survive long enough for the news to get out. Third, the characters merely have their horizons expanded to a near-
colony must ensure that their younger residents dont get infinite degree. What follows is our best attempt to chart this
restless and try to leave the colony and interact with the widened setting in a general sense.
local human civilization. This is best done by providing the
colony with enough cultural diversity where those who grow
up in it wont feel imprisoned by overly restrictive customs
A Quick Guide To The Omniverse
The omniverse is an infinite sea mostly composed of
and any conservative tendencies that their elders might
inchoate gravitons and psion particles. The familiar human
have. This last problem can be ameliorated somewhat if the
senses of apparent three-dimensional space and linear
colony happens to be on a habitable extrasolar planet, as
time have little relevance here, making questions of time
they have extensive frontiers to absorb youthful energies
and distance pointless. This sea of transcendent chaos has
and frustration.
currents and weather, which leads to denser portions
Recovery Missions: If you need people, lifeforms
where gravitons clump together to form an infinite number
or items of property for any reason, timenapping is an
of newborn universes, drawing in varying amounts of psion
excellent way to acquire them. This can even be beneficient
particles in the process. Most universes formed this way
to the persons or lifeforms in question if they are saved from
draw in a substandard amount of psion particles at their
certain death and/or extinction in the process. If the time
moment of creation and are considered dead universes.
traveler has the right equipment & training - or the right
These stillborn universes are unable to support any form of
nova capability - genetic material can also be timenapped
life whatsoever, for varying reasons. They are also typically
instead of taking the entire person or lifeform. In this way
static unless acted upon by outside forces, and are the
even historically important people can contribute their genes
most fragile variety of universe. Dead universes act as
to a future civilization. The darker reasons for engaging in

CHAPTER TWO: SOJOURNS IN SPACETIME 39

 ABERRANT
insulation for the zoetic universes they surround, blunting
the effects of any hazardous omniversal weather may have
on said zoetic universes. Dead universes can be entered or
altered by crosstime travelers with the right capabilities or
equipment, although its quite rare for them to have any
good reason for doing so.
Other newborn universes draw in enough psion particles
to become zoetic universes, capable of supporting one or
more varieties of lifeforms. There are two main types of zoetic
universes - static cosms and standard cosms. Static cosms are
for all purposes invulnerable to being damaged or altered in
any way. They cannot be entered by crosstime travelers, but
can be examined from outside. The inhabitants of a static
cosm live in an infinite loop of the same time period, and act
out their predetermined roles without any variation or free
will involved. The past of a static cosm is little more than
stage dressing for the neverending play thats going on, and
the future of a static cosm beyond the set time period
is a meaningless concept. Finally static cosms also act as
support structures for their associated standard cosms.
Most static cosms will have many standard cosms budding
off from them, but stripped static cosms do exist. These
relics have lost their associated standard cosms to either the
Yeah, But What Does It Look Like?
From the viewpoint of any non-nova observers hailing from
any universe, transcendent chaos and sheer, utter madness
are the best labels they can apply to what they see when they
catch a raw, unfiltered glimpse of the omniverse. The fact that
the sight inflicts actual psychological trauma on most non-novas
who witness it tends to discourage any subsequent attempts to
define it further.
For novas witnessing the omniverse, they gaze into a
realm without any stable spatial or temporal dimensions. Every
sense of spatial relation and the passage of time is in a state
of constant flux. While the sight is disorienting, novas with the
Locus enhancement of Mega-Perception can block out the
chaos to perceive the free-floating universes hidden within it.
Dead universes resemble simple irregular crystal formations, and
look just as fragile as they really are. If they have no associated
standard cosms, static cosms resemble perfectly cut and flawless
crystals with small patches of an amorphic mineral crust. Standard
cosms will be found growing in groups on a shared static cosm,
resulting in a structure much like a water-ice snowflake save that its
structure is not limited to the standard three spatial dimensions. A
single standard cosm resembles a fairly regular crystal formation
with an amorphic mineral crust coating most of it. The bare spots
on standard cosms are points where new standard cosms can be
budded off through the formation of black holes - or use of the
Universe Creation quantum power - within the parent standard
cosm.
40 CHAPTER TWO: SOJOURNS IN SPACETIME
hazards of omniversal weather or the actions of sapients.
Stripped static cosms cannot regenerate lost standard
cosms on their own, but can have new ones made by the
efforts of novas with the Universe Creation quantum power
(Aberrant Players Guide pp. 140-141).
Standard cosms are considered the default variety
of zoetic universes. They are more durable than the dead
universes and less so than the static cosms, a happy medium
that allows them to continually absorb fresh psion particles
from the surrounding omniverse. That in turn allows standard
cosms to grow and develop in what human cosmologists
consider to be all the normal ways for universes to do so.
Standard cosms are typically funhouse mirror reflections
of their static cosms, being very similar save for having
changes of varying degrees. Standard cosms may be
entered or altered by crosstime travelers normally with the
right capabilities or equipment. Changing a standard cosm
is more difficult than changing a dead universe, thanks to
their innate flexibility.
Hazards Of The Omniverse
The fluid medium of the omniverse can have
dramatic effects on the universes it contains, although
the actual pace of such events is painfully slow from the
human perspective. The general types of events include
the following.
Universal Collisions: Omniversal currents have made
universes collide with each other. Most often all the
universes involved are dead universes, in which case a dead
universe is either destroyed or becomes a newborn static
cosm. Collisions of dead universes with zoetic universes
are somewhat different in that the zoetic universe always
comes out of it unchanged and intact. When a dead
universe collides with a static cosm or a standard cosm, it
is either destroyed or becomes a newborn standard cosm
itself. Zoetic universes never collide with each other as a
result of natural omniversal currents, but may be made
to do so with the Universe Destruction quantum power
(pp. 106-107 of this book).
Natural Interfaces: Some omniversal currents can form
temporary interfaces between two different universes, as
decribed in the listing for the Crosstime Interface quantum
power (pp. 96-101 of this book). Natural interfaces are
limited to duplicating the Annexation, Pocket Reality, Portal
and Transposition techniques. Interfaces between a zoetic
universe and a dead universe always result in the dead
universe being changed and the zoetic universe being
undamaged. Interfaces between two different standard
cosms are handled as per the technique being duplicated.
Standard cosms cannot interface with static cosms, even
their own.
 ABERRANT
Current Impacts: Sometimes an omniversal current will
impact a dead universe or standard cosm without any other
dead universes getting in the way. The impacted universe
then undergoes a basic change to its reality. In the case of a
dead universe, the impact either destroys it or transforms it
into a newborn static cosm. In the much more rare case of
a standard cosm being impacted, the effects are much less
severe due to its superior durability and flexibility. Instead
of being destroyed or transformed wholesale, the standard
cosm is partially changed as per the Astromanipulation
quantum power (p. 90 of this book). In this case, the currents
impact can duplicate any effect listed in the One to Five
Success Range.
Omniversal Flotsam: Instead of impacting a universe,
sometimes an omniversal current will apply suction to it.
When this happens to a dead universe, it is automatically
destroyed by the suction. When it happens to a zoetic
universe, the currents suction summons a random
item or lifeform from the target universe as per either the
Crosstime Retrieval quantum power with the Summoning
Extra (pp. 101-102 of this book) or the Limbo technique of
the Crosstime Interface quantum power (pp. 98-99 of this
book). In the case of items or lifeforms summoned to a
different standard cosm, exactly which standard cosm they
will end up in is anyones guess and is subject to the whim
of the Storyteller.
Current Twisting: Instead of impacting or applying
suction to a target universe, some omniversal currents will
spin the target universe slightly, creating a natural time
loop within its timeline near its nexus. This is equivalent to
use of the Temporal Loop quantum power (pp. 105-106 of
this book) at whatever power rating the Storyteller sees fit
to use.
Omniversal Maelstroms: The rarest and most
dangerous form that omniversal currents take is when they
collect into omniversal maelstroms. Like the black holes
found in zoetic universes, these gigantic whirlpools
destroy any dead universes or standard cosms that come
too close to them. Their wakes are littered with stripped
static cosms and omniversal flotsam of all sorts. Its not a
completely destructive phenomenon, as the passage of an
omniversal maelstrom also causes the creation of newborn
universes of all kinds from the inchoate fluid medium of the
omniverse. The only known method of protecting a standard
cosm from the effects of an omniversal maelstrom is use of
the Shielded Reality quantum power (p. 103 of this book). In
this case, the Storyteller treats the effect of the omniversal
maelstrom as per the Universe Destruction quantum power
(pp. 106-107 of this book) at whatever power rating she sees
fit.

Noetic Massminds
One unique potential hazard to crosstime travelers are the noetic massminds, conglomerate entities composed of
the collective noetic templates of the different species of deceased sapients. The noetic massmind of humanity can be
thought of as the species collective unconsciousness. Typically found resting just beyond the outer wall of their resident
standard cosms, noetic massminds spend their time passively absorbing the noetic templates from deceased members
of their associated species. Noetic templates that the massmind finds pleasing will be assmilated into its mindspace intact;
those which are displeasing are consumed, destroyed and recycled. Provided that a noetic massmind still has specimens
of its species living within its zoetic universe, it is for all purposes sessile as it will not abandon its food source. Only
when its associated species goes extinct will a noetic massmind gain mobility and begin its endless journey throughout the
omniverse.
This only becomes a problem when a noetic massmind encounters living specimens of its associated species - or
close analogues from other universes - traveling between universes, as its inclination will be to devour those beings noetic
templates. As a result of this attack, such beings appear to have either died for no apparent medical reason or are reduced
to mindless vegetables. Its probably for the best that noetic massminds cannot enter any kind of universe.
Fortunately for novas, their noetic templates are more or less permanently fused with their quantum matrices, making
novas immune to this form of attack. Unfortunately, noetic massminds are themselves also the functional noetic equivalents
of high-powered novas in the omniverse, and will automatically attack eximorphic members of their associated species in
an attempt to get at their noetic templates. There is a silver lining to this cloud though - noetic massminds are by definition
sapient. The trick for novas is to somehow draw the attacking noetic massminds attention to themselves, and get it to
establish control over its own automatic body functions long enough for them to establish communication. Whether the
communication with said noetic massmind proves fruitful or not depends on the player characters efforts.
The nature of any particular noetic massmind is left to the Storyteller to determine according to how she would
interpret the nature and personality of such an entity. The possibilities for the former include but are not limited to
eternal extraordinarily fun party, mass simulated reality and horrific enslavement to the massmind. The latter is
basically whatever the Storyteller considers appropriate.

CHAPTER TWO: SOJOURNS IN SPACETIME 41

 ABERRANT
At The Edge Of The Universe(s) After all, its not like news of their atypical - and likely highly
immoral - behavior will ever reach the ears of the folks back
Each and every zoetic universe is surrounded by a
home, right? Its not like whatever happens in an alternate
growing accretion of psion particles. Much like a Terran
universe wont stay in that alternate universe, right? Its not
coral reef, this amorphous encrustation acts as a coat of
like there will be any consequences that cant be fixed by
heavy armor for the zoetic universe it grows on. Inside this
leaving the alternate universe for home when things get too
noetic crust the environment is acutally fluid, complete
hairy for the crosstime travelers, right?
with weather. This is where the noetic portions of sapient
Wrong. So very, very wrong on all three counts.
consciousness takes place, such as dreams and telepathic
If crosstime travelers are sane and/or have some
communication. Weather in this environment equates
common sense, they will quickly realize that there are certain
to periods of increased creativity or stagnation in the
protocols to follow if they want to both return home and
scientific and cultural development of sapient cultures. This
not bring any trouble back with them. Exactly how much a
environment allows Inspired powers to function in its zoetic
particular crosstime traveler may need to adhere to them
universe.
depends on her individual capabilities, but they should still
The noetic crust also contains the noetic template for
be kept in mind.
everything that has ever existed within its zoetic universe.
The noetic templates of existing objects and living
Protocol #1: Decontamination Is Your Friend
lifeforms are tightly tied to the noetic crust. When objects
Nothing can put a damper on the thrill of crosstime
are destroyed and non-sapient lifeforms die, their noetic
travel like knowing that one has caused mass human death
templates dissolve to be incorporated into the noetic
by introducing a novel disease to an alternate Earth, or
templates of other newly created objects and lifeforms.
worse, ones own. Wise crosstime travelers will want to
When a sapient lifeform dies, things are a little different as
decontaminate both themselves and any cargo they are
their noetic templates are stronger than those of objects
bringing along both before and after they go on a crosstime
or non-sapient lifeforms. Depending on how strong they
voyage. In the case of nova crosstime travelers, this can
are (read: what their Willpower rating was when they were
be accomplished by simply developing the Adaptability
alive); sapient noetic templates may either be assimilated by
enhancement and exposing themselves to the vacuum
their respective noetic massminds, dissolve as lesser noetic
and radiation of space for an hour or two. Others can take
templates do or linger on as independent ghosts. These
advantage of decontamination sprays and use clean rooms
entities can interact with the noetic templates of living
as departure and return points when feasible. Of course,
sapients, although with some difficulty. As dead people -
none of this applies to accidental crosstime travel...
with all that implies - theres no telling what their personalities
and intentions toward the living will be. Fortunately, their
Protocol #2: Never Reveal Yourself To Be A Crosstime
ability to manifest within the zoetic universe has certain
Traveler Unless Necessary
limits, which will be described elsewhere.
Experienced crosstime travelers have a saying: The
Unfortunately, the ghosts of deceased sapients are not
ignorance of the locals is your bliss. In general, letting a
the only inhabitants of the noetic crust. Sometimes currents
local know that one is a crosstime traveler is far more trouble
within the noetic crust will spontaneously form noetic
than its worth. Provided that the local can even get his/her/
templates that lack any connection to the zoetic universe.
its mind around the concept, it then becomes a question
Most of these entities are harmless enough, as they feed
of whether the local is actually friendly or is just waiting for
by absorbing the ambient psion particles around them.
a chance to attack the crosstime traveler. After that, what
Others lack that ability and are either predators or parasites
the said traveler will have done amounts to painting a
on other sapient noetic templates, living and dead alike.
huge target on himself in the eyes of many of the locals.
Sapient and non-sapient varieties of these entities exist,
Discovering hard evidence of crosstime travel where it had
and theres no telling what one will be like or do when first
been considered only a theoretical possibility before is a
encountered. Further details on such discarnate noetic
worldshaking event. There will be enormous shockwaves in
entities can be found in Appendix #3 of this book.
the local scientific, cultural and political spheres, and the
hapless crosstime traveler will be at the epicenter of all of
Rules of the Omniversal Road them. If a crosstime traveler finds a trustworthy local willing
Like any other form of travel, crosstime travel can often to keep the secret, that is to be considered a rare stroke
have a disinhibitory effect on humans. As they are leaving of the sheerest good fortune. Any local who knows about
their own universe behind - often for the first time - there crosstime travel will want something from the traveler; what
is a great temptation to let it all hang out and go wild. lengths the local will go to get that is up to the Storyteller.

42 CHAPTER TWO: SOJOURNS IN SPACETIME

 ABERRANT
Protocol #3: When Possible, Keep Your Inspired Status
To Yourself
Much like Protocol #2 above, revealing oneself as
one of the Inspired in a world where they dont exist is not
something done lightly. Being outed as an Inspired can result
in being witch-hunted, branded as a freak of nature, drafted
into the local military or exploited by local businessmen.
Even in the rare best-case scenarios, one can expect to be
treated as an instant celebrity and lose all hope of privacy.
If crosstime travelers happen to be novas too powerful for
the locals to coerce, they can expect to be feared and have
serious attempts to kill them made by competent local
groups. If they are too powerful for the locals to kill them,
they can expect to be viewed with utter terror by said locals.
This changes slightly when visiting worlds with local
Inspired beings. In the cases where an Inspired crosstime
traveler can blend in with the local Inspired - which is not
always - it might be advantageous to do so. Thats an
extremely risky proposition if one wished to keep the fact
of being a crosstime traveler a secret from them, however.
In the worst-case scenario, some of the local Inspired could
achieve crosstime travel themselves, and discover ones
home universe...
Protocol #4: Leave Behind No Evidence Of Your Visit
This is always a good idea, especially when ones
technology is far more advanced than anything the locals
might have. Leaving equipment behind, even if its severely
damaged, is a truly stupid move. Not only could the locals
recognize it as being essentially alien technology, they
could also possibly reverse engineer it and spark a new
technological revolution.
Protocol #5: Never Underestimate (Or Overestimate)
The Locals
No matter where crosstime travelers go after having left
their home universes, one thing always remains the same.
They are invasive aliens in the alternate universes they visit.
Only the most foolish of crosstime travelers would treat any
local like an ignorant bumpkin, as they are just as smart and
capable as any other sapient. The matter becomes even worse
when there are local Inspired to deal with, some of whom
could be just as powerful if not more so than the crosstime
traveler. Likewise, one must resist the temptation to take the
locals at face value. If a crosstime traveler views the locals as
being better or worse than they actually are, that traveler is
in for a world of troubles, pun intended. Finally, by definition
the locals always have the home field advantage - theyve
had their entire lives and/or history to learn about their
surroundings and how they can be used to their advantage.
CHAPTER TWO: SOJOURNS IN SPACETIME
Protocol #6: Minimize Any Close Interaction With The
Locals
A necessary adjunct to the preceding protocols, as
following this one helps a crosstime traveler with following
all the others. The fewer locals that know of a crosstime
travelers existence means fewer locals that will need to be
dealt with in order for the crosstime visit to be a successful
one.
What To Do In The Omniverse
Weve outlined what the omniverse is, the universes
that can be found there, some of the hazards that lurk there
and some basic rules of thumb for crosstime travelers. The
question remains: Why do sapients bother with traveling to
alternate universes in the first place? What follows is a list of
the more common reasons.
Refuge
Possibly the best reason to engage in crosstime travel
is to ensure the survival of ones own species, subspecies or
culture when their survival is threatened by hostile sapients
or natural disasters. In these instances, the best case scenario
is to establish a thriving new colony on some alternate
Earth uninhabited by sapients. In the worst case scenarios,
the immigrants will either fail to establish a colony or lack
any scruples about displacing (and possibly subjugating or
exterminating) any locals they encounter.
Expansion
Considering the population pressures on Earth during
the 21st Century, gaining access to vast tracts of pristine
Terran-quality land is guaranteed to be highly attractive for
any government rich enough to make good use of them.
Between the natural resources and unspoiled spaces to
establish cities in, sponsoring nations could gain prosperous
new frontiers and enrich themselves in the process. Provided
that they have permanent access back to their home
universe/nation, a new colony would have much less of the
isolation that imperils (and protects) extrasolar colonies.
Unfortunately, some governments will also see certain
inhabited alternate Earths as ripe for conquest...
Exile
As they have in past centuries, certain governments
will see a one-way ticket to a crosstime colony as an
excellent way to get rid of criminals, political dissidents,
otherwise inconvenient people and certain bothersome
social minorities. Whether or not any attempts to set up a
viable colony are made will depend on how responsive a
government is to outside humanitarian pressure. Its also a
handy way to dispose of certain threats that merit extreme
43
 ABERRANT
measures. Provided that a nova has the Crosstime Interface
quantum power with the Interdiction technique, she can
seal the designated threat(s) into a standard cosm thats
about to be destroyed. Since no beings can survive taking
levels of cosmological damage (see p. 103), the permanent
obliteration of said threat(s) is assured.
explore alternate Earths. Anthropologists studying alternate
human cultures, biologists studying species that went extinct
in their own universes, astrophysiscists and geologists
examining alternate Earths devastated by nearby supernova
explosions or gamma-ray bursters... The list is endless.

Profit Strange Aeons: A Few Travel

Where there is wealth to be had humans have always
gone after it, and the fact that the wealth in question resides
Spots To Visit... Or Avoid
Presented below are three alternate universes that nova
on an alternate Earth is a mere detail to be resolved. The
crosstime travelers could encounter in their explorations.
business world will have uses for just about any alternate
All three of these are also alternate Nova Ages, but nova
Earth that can be found - even the uninhabitable ones. No
crosstime travelers should not expect to find the usual
environmentalist group will care if a lifeless alternate Earth
conflicts and problems found in their home universes.
is used as a dumping ground for toxic waste or biohazards
No matter where they exist in the Omniverse, human
that cant be dealt with back home. Even the shattered
civilizations - and those of other sapients - will always have
Earths can be mined for the metals found in their now-
problems and conflicts to contend with. The Greek idea of
exposed cores.
Utopia, the Persian myth of Paradise, the Abrahamic notion
of Eden... if any places like these are to be found within
Exploration
the Omniverse, be assured that they are temporary and/or
The simple human urge to see whats out there will
artificially sustained by some outside and not necessarily
always be a major reason for engaging in crosstime travel.
benevolent force. That said, while all alternate worlds will
Aside from typical historians wishing to see how history has
have their own different dilemmas, some will have more
gone askew from the perspective of their own historical
than others. These latter universes are best avoided by wise
records, there are many academics who would wish to
crosstime travelers. The fools, of course, will rush in...

44 CHAPTER TWO: SOJOURNS IN SPACETIME

 ABERRANT
Alternate Universe #1: Heliopause
Storyteller Note
Rubicon The invading alien threat in question here has deliberately
Point of Deviation: Mid-2002 C.E. been described in generic terms, so that the Storyteller can
Location: Universe/Timeline Grouping #2 (Variant create her own custom-designed alien civilization for this purpose
Aberrant setting). for her own Aberrant: Nexus chronicle. If a Storyteller wishes to
Current Date: Circa 2015. use one of the alien species from the Trinity setting instead, the
Synopsis: An otherwise normal Nova Age has been Coalition would serve that function admirably.
thrown off-course by the beginnings of an alien invasion of
the Solar System. With the initial alien scouting force defeated
Globally, all of the major powers have united under and
by Team Tomorrow, the United Nations prepares a globalized
given their full support to the United Nations, which now
Humanity for interstellar war with the oncoming alien threat.
has actual and permanent geopolitical power due to the
This alternate universe is identical to the standard
impending alien threat. For the sake of human unity and
Aberrant setting up until June 8th, 2002. The divergence
survival, rogue nations such as Niger and several Islamic
event is the arrival of a spacefaring alien scouting force
states have been overthrown and brought into line. Only a
at the Solar System, which sends off the alarms of deep
few nations are not members of the UN, namely the African
space astronomers and nova precognitives worldwide. A
nations of Liberia and Sierra Leone and the nations which
strikeforce comprising a majority of Utopias most powerful
comprised the former Warsaw Pact nation of Yugoslavia.
novas - including several Team Tomorrow novas - was in
The neighbors of the two African nations have been given a
place in high Neptune orbit to intercept the alien warship
green light from the UN to invade them at first opportunity
and its small contingent of fighter craft. The fighting was
so that stable democratic goverments can be installed. UN
fierce, but the Utopian novas won a hard-fought and costly
political and military analysts are still unsure what to do
battle over the aliens. Notable among the Utopian casualties
about the former Yugoslavia, but suspect that a mass off-
were Caestus Pax, Alison Psyche Pfaltzgraff and Ewan the
planet deportation of the Serbian population may be the
Apollo Kid Banks. Unfortunately, the victory was achieved a
only viable option.
few moments too late for it to be total. Later decryption and
All national militaries are being interlinked, retrained
analysis of a captured alien computer core revealed that the
and revamped in order to provide as much of a deterrence
warships captain had managed to send an FTL signal back
to alien invasion as possible. With much help from Aeon and
to its superiors detailing the Solar System and the resistance
Project Utopia, the UN has formed a new standing military
that had been offered them. Even worse, a responding
organization - the UN Space Force - in order to combat the
signal had been sent back indicating that the aliens main
alien threat. The UNSF has established bases throughout
battle fleet would arrive to invade the Solar System as soon
the Inner Solar System and the Asteroid Belt, and UNSF
as logistics allowed.
spacecraft now patrol as far out as Jupiter. Sadly, the UNSF
Faced with such an obvious and overwhelming threat,
space fleet is not yet large enough to support a sustained
the Aeon Council rapidly changed their policies in regard
military presence in the Outer Solar System, although
to the nova population, with Max Mercers guidance. Both
new UNSF spacecraft are coming out of the many orbital
Directors Thetis and Ozaki were quietly assassinated,
shipyards on an almost daily basis.
followed by a general purge of Project Proteus, since
The technology of this variant Nova Age has advanced
Thetis goal of reducing nova population growth was now
very rapidly, which is only partially due to nova and baseline
an obviously suicidal course for humanity as a whole. The
scientists reverse-engineering the aliens technology. All of
use of adrenocilin and moxinoquantamine in training novas
Utopias previous efforts to regulate ethical technological
was phased out as better, non-addictive technological
development have been abandoned in order to support
methods to attain the same benefits were developed.
the war effort. Utopias Technology Regulation department
Antaeus was given carte blanche to develop a cure for
now limits itself to policing truly unethical technological and
Proteus sterilization agent with the full support of the Aeon
scientific research, and now does so with full UN support.
Society and all of its subsidiaries. Said cure was found and
As a result, the Technology Rating (see pp. 114-118) of this
administered en masse within weeks, restoring the fertility of
Earth has reached T11 in all the fields directly relevant to
the majority of novas who wanted it. A cure for the effects
space warfare; including materials science, weapons and
of Taint accumulation is also still being sought, but without
defense technologies, communications and propulsion. In
much success. Until a cure is found, Utopia seeks to train
other areas such as medicine and agriculture, this Earth is
novas to avoid any and all behaviors which could lead to
solidly at the T10 ranking. Both Luna and Mars now have
gaining Taint as a stopgap measure.
large international settlements, while the Belt is dotted

CHAPTER TWO: SOJOURNS IN SPACETIME 45

 ABERRANT
throughout with Chinese mining operations and literal
swarms of (mostly Chinese) asteroid prospectors.
As could only be expected, this Earths global business
community has also been radically changed due to
globalization and militarization. The excesses and abuses
that corporations - including the banks - used to commit
as part of doing business are no longer tolerated. The
executives of most such institutions were savvy enough to
go with the flow on this, adopting honestly ethical business
and environmental practices out of sheer pragmatism.
Those who refused to change with the times saw their
corporate and personal assets frozen before being arrested
and convicted for economic treason against Humanity. The
non-monetary assets were sold to the former corporations
competitors, with the proceeds and seized monies all
redirected to help fund the newborn UNSF. This also put an
end to much of the Bank of Switzerlands illicit banking thanks
to intense political and economic pressure by the other UN
member nations. Likewise, the irresponsible rich have also
been brought to heel. Widespread global governmental,
legal and economic reform has eliminated the developing
oligarchic/fascist trends seen in other Earths at their current
date. The less savvy among the hyper-wealthy - a minority,
despite stereotypes to the contrary - found themselves
caught up in a globalized legal system where their money
and influence could no longer be used to shield them from
the consequences of their many crimes. The resulting riches
to rags stories made for excellent tabloid fodder.
Organized crime has become extinct due to the
efforts of combined Utopian/UN intelligence forces, who
exterminated all such operations without mercy. The head of
the American Central Intelligence Agency protested this at
the time, as illegal drug sales funded much of the CIAs black
budget. Said CIA official vanished two days later, and no
trace of his body was ever found. All members of the major
criminal organizations seen in the core book were executed
as traitors to Humanity. The Yakuza of Japan were especially
difficult to root out, as were the Chinese Triads and Tongs.
There were many unexplained disappearances at the time,
sometimes involving entire families. As a byproduct of this
global effort, the economies of several Third World nations
were weakened, which in turn aided the UN in asserting
control over them. The resulting economic shift to supporting
the development of the UNSF has all but eliminated poverty
in those nations, reducing one of the main reasons to engage
in criminal activities in the first place.
Of the nova factions known in the standard Aberrant
setting, few of them remain and many are changed in this
alternate Earth. Project Utopia is much more humanitarian
- and humane - than authoritarian, as Aeons attempts to
find a solution to the Nova Problem have been jettisoned.
Project Proteus as the late Director Thetis made it no longer
46 CHAPTER TWO: SOJOURNS IN SPACETIME
exists, although a similar organization has been formed
by and remains under the direct command and control of
Whitley Styles and Max Mercer. As there was never a Slider
Scandal in this Earth, there was never an Aberrant faction for
Sophia Rousseau to help form and direct. DeVries and most
other elite agencies either shifted to non-combat/espionage
operations or went out of business as the demand for nova
mercenaries died out due to the UNs global unification. The
Directive died stillborn as responsibility for nova oversight
was transferred to the UN World Health Organization by its
member nations. The WHO also ensures that the rights of
novas working for corporations and/or governments are not
abused.
The Teragen is still stuck in their coffeehouse
roundtable larval stage, as Utopias radical shift of attitude
towards novakind has deprived them of many sources of
nova discontent their analogs took advantage of in other
Nova Ages. Much of this is due to the fact that pre-Invasion
abuses of nova rights are no longer tolerated in the First
World nations. In the Third World, all novas and their loved
ones have free access to the UNs Nova Relocation and
Resettlement Program to welcoming First World nations.
Divis Mal has yet to reveal himself to the few members of the
Teragen as Jeremiah Scripture continues to speak for him at
the roundtable discussions. The erstwhile Father of Teras is
still trying to figure out how to salvage his dream of nova
domination in the face of the impending alien invasion, and
has not been making much progress.
Thats not to say that all is well for novas in this alternate
Earth. Novas with the right quantum capabilities face heavy
social pressure to join the global military, regardless of
whether theyd make good soldiers or not. The fact that no
one has yet found a cure for Taint accumulation will make
this a time bomb waiting to blow once the aliens try to
invade again. Novas are also constantly urged to start large
families as soon as possible, thanks to the hypothetical
increased power of second generation novas. Aeon has
even set up a nova sperm bank for the use of fertile female
novas who want to - or are obligated to - bear nova children.
Only novas who are truly unfit for parenthood - due to
Taint and/or psychological problems - are exempt from
this propaganda blitz. The Japanese custom of arranged
marriage candidate interviews - omiai - has been adopted
by Utopia and the UN as another means to increase the nova
birthrate without being blatantly coercive about it. All of this
has led to quite a bit of resentment on the part of female
novas. Unsurprisingly, they do not like being pressured into
becoming mothers or broodmares, especially to see any
children they bear possibly conscripted for the war effort.
The politeness of the Aeon/Utopian/UN officials involved
doesnt ameliorate matters much, nor does the massive
monetary compensation offered. And the Teragen lurks in
 ABERRANT
the background, like a cancerous seed waiting for the right
conditions for it to sprout...
There are also some problems with the baseline global
society as well. Global militarization is all well and good in
the face of an alien invasion, and with the aid of powerful
novas they have a good shot at winning against the invasion
force. What no one has yet asked is this: what happens after
the war is won? Will the UN be content with defending the
Solar System against all comers, or will they seek to track
down the invading aliens home star system or main base of
operations and conquer it in the name of Humanity? Will the
confict end there, or will Humanity seek to explore the Milky
Way Galaxy as would-be conquerors?
The economic situation is also a problem - while the
grossest abuses of the international corporate community
have been curtailed, some elements of the UN have a
vendetta against Big Business. They are convinced that
businessses can never be trusted to not commit atrocities in
the name of profit, and seek to establish tighter controls over
what corporations and wealthy individuals can accomplish.
While plausible in the short term, over the long term such
measures will stifle healthy economic growth and create the
conditions for a global economic collapse.
Of course, all of the preceding assumes that Humanity
survives the impending alien invasion of the Solar System.
And that is by no means guaranteed...
Alternate Universe #2: Scythian Dawn
Point of Deviation: 1925 C.E.
Location: Universe/Timeline Grouping #2 (Variant
Aberrant setting).
Current Date: Circa 2008.
Synopsis: A celestial event triggers a Taint-free N-Day
along with an incomplete male gendercide. This results in a
post-apocalypse drama with emphasis on gender politics,
social change and survival.
This alternate universe deviated from the standard
Aeon Continuum back in 1925 with the death of Michael
Daemon Donighal. In the process of saving the Aeon
Society and his Earth from a crosstime invasion by creatures
that could only be called Lovecraftian horrors at the time,
Dr. Primoris was forced to sacrifice himself to destroy the
invaders portal mechanism. (Later analysis proved the
creatures to be highly-Tainted alien aberrants.) Without
Donighal there to oppose his goals, Mercer was able to
keep the Aeon Society true to the course he had originally
plotted for them, mainly by listening to his closest allies
warnings about choosing the wrong sort of people to run
Aeon in his absence. This proved fortunate when Mercer
went into suspended animation in the mid-1950s after the
death of his wife Annabelle Lee Crackshot Mercer, leaving
their son Michael Maxwell Mercer to hold Aeons reins.
CHAPTER TWO: SOJOURNS IN SPACETIME
Mercer was revived in 1995 by Whitley Styles, Jake Danger
& his own granddaughter Margaret Mercer in order to help
Aeon prepare for a great calamity that their precognitive
associates claimed would strike the Earth in the year 2000.
Mercer and his allies suspected that it would be a typical
N-Day of the sort Mercer witnessed in his early temporal
travels. Mercer and his friends never suspected that they
would be so, so wrong...
N-Day finally arrived on May 12th, 2000 as the result of
an exotic and unprecedented celestial event impacting the
Earth. Fortunately for the world, the ensuing wave of nova
eruptions resulted in a population of non-Tainted (and Taint
resistant) novas. The eruptions were gender-imbalanced,
with only about 17% of the nova population being male -
for every single male nova, there were five female novas.
Unfortunately, the celestial event also triggered the mass
death of approximately 94% of the global male baseline
human population at the time. As of May 13th of 2000
C.E., there were 3,250,000,000 baseline females and only
191,176,471 baseline males worldwide. In laymans terms,
on the average for every 17 baseline human females on the
planet there was only one surviving baseline human male.
Males who were Inspired before N-Day were unaffected by
the gendercide. All novas in this Earth operate under the
Very Low Taint rules (Aberrant Players Guide, p.68) and
have the Taint Resistant Merit (Aberrant Players Guide,
p.76) free of charge.
This incomplete gendercide event was uneven in
both its effect on the victims and its global distribution.
The former factor was indicated by the gendercide effect
having a disproportionate effect due to age differences.
The gendercide effect was especially deadly for males past
middle age, of whom only a minority survived. In turn, the
population of prepubescent and adolescent males were
only lightly affected relative to their elders. The latter factor
was indicated by what would later be termed the Zones;
collections of geographical regions where the gendercide
had a varying effect on the male population, as described
below.
Zone Alpha: Russia, China, Mongolia, Kazakhstan,
the entire Middle East. The gendercide effect killed
approximately 98% of the baseline male population, leaving
one surviving male for every fifty females.
Zone Beta: Japan, Korea, Southeast Asia, North Africa,
Eastern Europe, the Indian subcontinent. The gendercide
effect killed approximately 90% of the baseline male
population, leaving one surviving male for every ten females.
Zone Gamma: Western Europe, North America,
Australia, New Zealand, Indonesia, East Africa, Sub-Saharan
Africa. The gendercide effect killed approximately 80% of
the baseline male population, leaving one surviving male for
every five females.
47
 ABERRANT
Zone Delta: South American continent, Antarctica. The
gendercide effect killed approximately 66% of the baseline
male population, leaving one surviving male for every three
females.
The last seven or so years after N-Day have seen
massive social changes as the nations of the world struggled
to restore themselves in a new era where Earths female
population was now in de facto charge of the planet. The
nations in Zones Beta, Gamma and Delta have had to
become more-or-less gender egalitarian by necessity as
women had to step in to take over traditionally male political
and economic roles. Polygynous marriages have become
socially acceptable, although the more developed nations
also retain fully-stocked sperm banks for women wanting to
bear children. Wives have also made a practice of loaning
their husbands services to select single female friends for
purposes of procreation when they cant afford to visit a
sperm bank. Racism as it was known prior to N-Day has died
out as applied to men, as the scarcity of living males has
forced women and their daughters to be far less picky than
they once were. Interracial breeding is even encouraged by
the medical community as a means to ward off even the
slightest chance of inbreeding. Sadly, the racist attitudes
that women may have towards other women are as strong
as ever.
Human males are now considered to be valuable
property in general given their new importance in ensuring
the survival of Humanity, and are legally prohibited from
engaging in any dangerous occupations, sports or hobbies.
That was a massive blow to the egos of the surviving male
members of the Zone Beta, Gamma and Delta nations
militaries, fire-fighting and law enforcement organizations,
as they have been both promoted and relegated to desk
jobs and/or training fresh waves of female recruits. Making
regular donations to their local sperm banks is also now
mandatory for all capable males by law. Male children and
teens are kept somewhat isolated from society at large
due to the ever-present risk of kidnapping, and undergo
mandatory martial arts and self-defense training to hopefully
prevent such attempts from succeeding. Baseline males
from most Zones have the Minority Flaw (Aberrant Players
Guide, p.75). Nova males dont qualify for it, due to their
power.
The Zone Alpha nations are the exception to all that,
having established female-dominant cultures due to their
extreme scarcity of surviving human males. A typical Zone
Alpha man now lives in near-total seclusion as an enslaved
house-husband, breeding stud and sexual toy for a small
harem group of women from their nations wealthy and
powerful female elite. Likewise, all male children in the
Zone Alpha nations are considered commodities from
birth, to be used as bargaining chips in dealings with other
48 CHAPTER TWO: SOJOURNS IN SPACETIME
harems. This is expected to lead to arranged marriages
and a continuation of the new harem system, but its
far too soon to tell if those expectations are realistic or
not. The Zone Alpha nations have also become global
troublemakers due their elites desperation to assuage the
desires of their commoner sisters and thus maintain their
own status and power. Combined with having sperm banks
with substandard equipment and quality control, this has
resulted in attempts by Zone Alpha militaries and espionage
organizations to acquire foreign human males and/or frozen
sperm samples by any means necessary. Only skirmishes
have resulted so far, but its only a matter of time before one
of these attempts triggers an international war... Baseline
males from Zone Alpha are either enslaved as described
above or have the Fugitive Flaw (Trinity Players Guide, p.
138) if they are living free or have escaped from captivity.
The economies of this Earth have become less
international than they once were, as nations have had
to concentrate on sustaining their agricultural bases and
providing for the needs of their citizenries. Socialism with
limited capitalism has become the default social operating
method around the globe out of sheer economic necessity.
The mass death of most of the older male population
shattered the infamous glass ceiling of the corporate
world, leaving female executives and CEOs in charge of
preventing the total collapse of international business. As
a result, businesses have been far more cooperative with
government directives to comply with environmental and
legal regulations both out of pragmatism and in order
to keep themselves afloat. National economies have
contracted, but are slowly beginning to rebound.
Most of the old organized crime organizations died out
in the gendercide, as they were predominantly comprised
of male criminals. The exceptions to this are the Yakuza
in Japan, the Triads of China and the drug cartels of
South America. The Yakuza always had a sizeable female
membership, leading them to abandon prostitution and
making pornography in order to take over their deceased
male colleagues smuggling and drug-dealing operations.
They have also become unofficial allies of the Japanese
government due to their nationalistic pride, and have helped
thwart several Chinese attempts to kidnap Japanese males.
The Triads have been outright co-opted by the Chinese
government, who now view the Triads opium production,
smuggling and international kidnapping operations as
essential to their nations survival and eventual return to
superpower status. The drug cartels of South America are
continuing their business despite the loss in manpower
(pun intended), as they now have the covert support of
their governments. Faced with the loss of much of their
legal international trade after N-Day, these nations turned
to their new drug baronesses. In return for going legit
 ABERRANT
and restricting all sales to non-South American markets, the
drug cartels now operate with almost no local bloodshed or
harassment from law enforcement.
Things are somewhat better for novas than baselines in
this world, as could only be expected. Without the problems
caused by Taint, the local novas are generally seen by the
local baseline populace as heroes and living symbols of
hope in face of the gendercide of 2000. The members of
the Aeon Society were lucky enough to have several close
relatives erupt as novas on N-Day. Already justifiably loyal
to Aeon, these novas quickly contacted and established
working relationships with the majority of novas worldwide.
In the chaos caused by the gendercide, this gathering of
novas managed to pull off a massive relocation effort of
their members in Zone Alpha, Third World nations and those
in bad circumstances (and their loved ones) to the city of
Chicago. This was the birth of the Nova Alliance - an Aeon
Society subsidiary - which in 2002 presented themselves
and the Aeon Society openly to the United Nations with an
offer of nova & Aeon support for the UNs peacekeeping
and humanitarian operations. In return for international
carte blanche to act as needed to ensure the survival and
well-being of Humanity, Alliance novas can operate in
Zones Beta and Gamma with impunity in regards to national
boundaries and jurisdictions. Alliance novas have prevented
the harm caused by decaying infrastructures, natural and
human-made disasters of all sorts, the operations of criminal
organizations and hostilities from the Zone Alpha and
Zone Delta nations. They also aid in ecology restoration,
agricultural redevelopment and all sorts of emergency
construction efforts. Alliance novas have also helped the
Zone Beta & Gamma nations to maintain and even advance
their technological development. The Nova Alliance helps
support itself by harvesting asteroids from the Aten, Apollo
and Amor near-Earth asteroid groups. Support also comes
from the Aeon Society and the Zone Beta & Gamma nations
in return for their efforts. Male novas face little social stigma
relative to their baseline cousins, although they are also
highly valued as potential breeders of the next generation
of novas. Aeon maintains a top-flight nova sperm bank with
mandatory donations, and male Alliance novas are given all
sorts of encouragements to marry their female colleagues
and start fathering nova children as soon as possible.
Novas continue to erupt to this day - still without Taint -
worldwide, with many seeking to join the Nova Alliance at
first opportunity.
Of course all cannot be well, on this alternate Earth
or any other. To begin with, the geopolitical situation on
this Earth is unstable. The Zone Alpha nations will become
increasingly desperate to acquire fresh new male human
breeding stock. Not only are their female populations aging,
their medical experts are fully aware of the need to avoid
CHAPTER TWO: SOJOURNS IN SPACETIME
any possible inbreeding effects their harem system will
cause over the next several generations. Depending on
just how desperate they get, those nations may either turn
on each other or on nations in other Zones, possibly to the
point of starting a nuclear war. Any males unlucky enough
to be kidnapped by agents of a Zone Alpha nation can
expect to be enslaved. If they are cooperative and/or very
young, they will live in what amounts to a gilded cage of
some wealthy Zone Alpha harem. If on the other hand they
are uncooperative, they can expect to wind up hooked into
various life-support machines in a chemically-induced coma
so that their female captors can continually harvest sperm
from them.
The Zone Delta nations are seeking to buy time to breed
their male population back to pre-N-Day levels and beyond,
so that they can hopefully dominate both Central and North
America through old-fashioned military force. This is a major
reason why they have become so accomodating to their
drug cartels - if foreign nations are busy combating the
problems caused by South American drugs, the more time
South America will have to pump out more little boys and
girls to become future soldiers. Argentina and Chile have
also allied to subvert the Antarctic Treaty System so they can
begin prospecting for valuable mineral resources in order to
try and match the asteroid mining operations of the Nova
Alliance. They are also seeking to forge all the other South
American nations into a united continental confederation
that can stand up against the rest of the planet.
To make matters worse, not all of the novas who
erupted on N-Day or afterwards joined the Nova Alliance.
Aside from the usual gamut of amoral opportunists and
sociopaths, these non-Alliance novas also include those
who remain deeply loyal to their homelands and/or cultures.
Many of these novas have been co-opted by their local
governments in attempts to develop nova forces of their
own in an attempt to match the Nova Alliance. Zone Alpha
is infamous in the global intelligence community for their
nova breeding camps, where Zone Alpha male novas
spend their days having sex with hordes of fertile baseline
female volunteers in an attempt to jumpstart a local nova
population. Independent novas follow their own desires,
sometimes to the detriment of all those unfortunate enough
to be around them.
And against these threats stand the Zone Beta and
Gamma nations, with the UN, the Aeon Society and the
Nova Alliance. Whether or not they are up to the task at
hand while ensuring that Humanity survives the 21st Century
is anyones guess...
49
 ABERRANT
Alternate Universe #3:
Paradise Meridian
Point of Deviation: Circa 15,000 B.C.E.
Location: Universe/Timeline Grouping #3 (Variant
Adventure! setting).
Current Date: Circa 10,931 B.C.E.
Synopsis: A prehistoric N-Day set off an ancient
Nova Age on the mythical Lemurian continent, which
developed an advanced and semi-enlightened civilization
led by a ruling class of philosopher-novas. Unfortunately,
the effects of Taint accumulation, baseline dependency
on nova leadership, growing social decadence, the misuse
of advanced technology and the Lemurian continents
geological instability all combine to send this doomed
Paradise on Earth into terminal decline. This ancient
civilization is finally destroyed when the Lemurian continent
will implode and sink into the depths of the Pacific Ocean
without any trace, leaving the survivors to spread their tragic
tales and found new civilizations elsewhere.
This alternate universe deviated from the standard
Aeon Continuum timelines before human recorded history
- as defined by 21st Century historians - began. About
15,000 years before the Common Era, an exotic celestial
event impacted the Earth and affected a small percentage
of the primitive baseline human population. This resulted in
a scattered nova population that would have no problems
with Taint... at first. Quickly banding together for mutual
survival, this large tribe of novas sought a new, fertile land
where they could settle and develop their new civilization
without interference from hostile baseline tribes. Alas, no
such lands were to be found - all the lands with welcoming
climates already had baseline inhabitants, while the one
land free of baselines was frozen in an eternal winter. A
radical plan was formed by the nova tribal leaders. Having
noticed the enormity of the ancient Pacific Ocean and the
excellent climate, the tribes most powerful earth controllers
reawakened a group of extinct undersea volcanoes. The
massive eruptions formed a new landmass over the next
year under the novas guidance, creating an island continent
roughly the size of Australia. Other novas turned most of
the volcanic rock surface into fertile topsoil, created lakes
and rivers, then imported the necessary lifeforms to create a
functional ecology. And so it was that the nova tribe settled
on what modern dissident historians would later describe as
the Lemurian Continent.
The novas intellectual and technological development
grew in leaps and bounds over the next decades, resulting
in a megalithic society far in advance of their contemporary
Stone Age baseline cultures. Schools of philosophical
thought grew like weeds and were refined by nova
intellects to surprising heights, although they had nothing
50 CHAPTER TWO: SOJOURNS IN SPACETIME
comparable to the modern post-Enlightenment social
science and philosphies. They also tapped into alternative
power sources, some of which modern science has yet to
discover. At the height of their civilization, the Lemurian
nova civilization had achieved the equivalent of T7 with T8
transportation, nuclear power and weapons, agriculture and
military technologies. With having so many hyper-intelligent
novas, the Lemurians never developed any sort of computer
technology beyond the abacus. Also, while their medical
knowledge was decent they lacked anything but the crudest
understanding of genetics. Their most powerful technology
itself used principles of quantum gadgetry, making them
unusable by baselines.
The novas own biological development was also
atypical. First, none of them had any capability of achieving
a Quantum Trait higher than 5. Second, they never
produced second generation novas. Instead they produced
children who would erupt as first generation novas at the
age of puberty. The tribal elders also established a tradition
of having their precognitive and clairsentient seers
keep a watch out for any new nova eruptions among the
baseline tribes, so that they could be rescued from living
among savages and recruited. They also adopted some of
the friendlier - and more pliable - baseline tribes found in
other lands, who thrived in Lemuria as the peasant caste
of farmhands, servants and workers. The nova tribe was
the undisputed ruling caste, and they did not abuse their
privileges. Every nova was both a philosopher - or at least a
student of one - along with whatever role they held in their
society.
The Lemurian nova civilization was stable, absurdly
prosperous and (relatively) enlightened for 4,000 years. The
capital city was gradually transformed into an intricate maze
of canals, lush gardens, public buildings of all sorts and
private homes. Their farmlands were rich but did not cover
the land, much of which was left to grow naturally. What
clothing was needed - which typically wasnt much, given
the tropical climate - were finely woven silks and cottons.
Even the smallest buildings had air conditioning devices,
which helped stave off any potentially lethal effects of the
tropical heat. Roads were made of a highly sturdy off-white
amorphic volcanic rock that acted as a capacitor for light.
Summoned into place by nova earth manipulation powers
and called shining paths, this road network stretched
across the entirety of the Lemurian continent. They dazzled
in the tropical sunlight - which they absorbed - and gleamed
brightly enough at night for travelers to see perfectly well
without the need of any other light. A special kind of plant
mutated by nova powers served to provide a level of
public sanitation as yet unmatched by modern standards.
Combined with advanced water filtration and methods of
food storage, the health of the Lemurian peasantry was
 ABERRANT
excellent.
The original nova tribe developed into a system of
extended family-based clans, which were divided into two
groupings. The first group - known as the Traditionalists -
originally sought to maintain, refine and improve all aspects of
Lemurian society. As a result, they ran what little bureaucracy
was needed, enforced their legal system, educated the
young, guided the primitive economy, archived all of their
accumulated historical and cultural knowledge and were
responsible for organizing any public defense. The latter was
rarely needed, as few baseline tribes were skilled enough as
sea travelers to even locate Lemuria, much less try and raid it.
Instead they organized Lemurian novas with the appropriate
quantum gifts when natural disasters threatened, which
were snuffed out like sparks hitting cold water. The other
clans - known as the Explorers - each claimed a region of
the planet for their own, and worked to seed new cultures
among the local baseline tribes. Their sea and air vessels
visited all of the inhabited continents, bringing back riches
of all kinds and willing immigrants to their homeland. They
also handled the rescue and recruitment of new novas and
established hidden redoubts of supplies and technology in
the case of some unknown disaster striking the homeland.
The bonds between clans were maintained through inter-
clan marriages.
The social life of Lemurian novas was active. Hunting was
well-thought of, and was one of several favored pasttimes
among the novas. Dancing, philosophical discussion, music,
fine dining and creating monumental works of art were also
favored. A crude form of theater existed - comparable to
that of the early Greeks - which was used to perform both
retellings of Lemurias history and illustrate tales of the
savagery of most of the baseline tribes encountered by the
Explorer clans. Religion was a very strong cultural force, and
took the form of ancestor worship of the nova tribe which
created Lemuria. The peasants had their own folk religion
centered on worship of the nova ruling class, but kept their
devotions private so as not to risk offending any of their
masters.
Lemuria took a turn for the worse circa 11,000 B.C.E.,
as multiple elements of Lemurian society began to fall
into decadence. After 4,000 years of unparalleled success
without any real challenges to be faced, the effects of
entropy slowly took hold over the artificial paradise the nova
tribe had built. Where once they regarded one another with
trust, the nova clans of Lemuria now viewed each other with
suspicion - which sometimes was well-founded - as tribalistic
instincts quietly came back to the fore. Instead of working
together for their common good of their culture, certain
novas and their families now sought to gain political and
social advantage over their fellow novas. This led to notions
of superior blood among most Traditionalist clans, who
eventually ceased the practice of inter-clan marriage in
order to maintain their purity. The resulting inbreeding
led to a vulnerability to Taint accumulation and aberrations
identical to that found in first-generation novas in the
standard Aberrant setting. The incidence of having the
genes for Taint accumulation was minor at first, but there
were sufficient inter-clan marriages before the practice was
ended for those genes to spread into all of the Lemurian
nova clans. Those novas who manifested distressing physical
aberrations were relegated to occupations with little or no
contact outside of their clan. Those who manifested other
aberrations - especially the mental ones - faced no such
stigma, and often wound up holding high-ranking positions
in both their clans and the greater Lemurian society.
Instead of seeking technological progress, some
Lemurian scientists made a new religion out of maintaining
their technologies with themselves as self-appointed priests.
Using their clans social connections, this techno-cult has
made innovation into heresy and forced the other Lemurian
scientists to go underground in order to continue their
researches. Education has likewise degraded, as the more
lauded teachers now give the lineage and social status of

Seeds of Adventure!
As indicated by its location, Paradise Meridian can be inserted within the prehistory of any Adventure! chronicle
with little trouble. Doing so can provide the Storyteller with a literal treasure trove of plot hooks, ancient mysteries
and dangerous artifacts to introduce to her players in the best pulp magazine tradition. Discovering and exploring any
surviving Lemurian ruins can even become the main focus of a thrilling Adventure! chronicle that could have come
straight out of the Indiana Jones film franchise.
For those Storytellers wishing to run an Adventure! chronicle in less modern times, the diaspora of the surviving
Lemurian novas provides that opportunity. Now that they are no longer effectively self-quarantined on the former
Lemurian continent, the quantum energies produced by those novas can cause some of the baselines they settle near
to become Inspired. Most of those ancient Inspired will be daredevils, effectively becoming the equivalent of the
heroes seen in mythology. Others will become mesmerists, and would be seen as oracles, witches and sorcerers. A very
rare few will become stalwarts, and be seen as minor demigods. With the upcoming conflict between the Lemurian
exile tribes acting as a backdrop, a skilled Storyteller can fashion a highly entertaining if offbeat chronicle.

CHAPTER TWO: SOJOURNS IN SPACETIME 51

 ABERRANT
their students more account than any intellectual capability.
Teachers who refuse to go along with this corruption of
standards are typically relegated to seeing to the education
of peasant children, who ironically now receive a better
education than some of their nova masters. The legal system
has likewise been rendered ineffective by the support for
blood privilege among many Lemurian magistrates. Archives
are ignored when the records they contain contradict the
current wishes of those novas who currently hold power. The
former public defense militias have become marauders out
of boredom, going to other lands in order to terrorize the
local baseline population for the sheer thrill of it.
Lemurian infrastructure, which had needed only
minimal levels of maintenance, began to decay as personal
wishes took precedence over public duty in too many novas
minds. Philosophy was twisted to rationalize and justify
the base desires or more than a few novas. Many novas
began to pass off utter nonsense as great philosophical
statements to the baseline peasantry out of sheer mischief.
Certain Explorer clans began to demand tribute from
the baseline tribes of other lands. This was mostly done
to teach the savages their place through humiliation.
That said, they also sought attractive, healthy or just plain
interesting baselines to bring back to Lemuria as human
trade goods. Those unfortunate souls would then be gifted
to the aforementioned Traditionalist clan degenerates in
returns for all sorts of social favors and beneficial back-room
deals. And so it was that slavery came to Lemuria; as those
baselines became pleasure slaves, experimental subjects,
pets, wild livestock for nova hunters to pursue and slay,
and even the main courses of the cannibalistic banquets
that a few of the more depraved of Lemurias gourmets had
come to crave. This among other things has led nearly all
the baseline tribes that knew of them to hate the Lemurians
Future Fates
Lemurias nova civilization doesnt completely die out with
the sinking of the Lemurian continent. Many Explorer clans did
manage to escape their homelands destruction to resettle in their
overseas territories as they had planned. There, they founded
new cultures around the globe and became inspirations for the
local baseline mythologies. This plan didnt work out as the far-
flung clans fell back into inter-tribalistic hostility, which resulted in
open atomic warfare and the resulting destruction of all but a few
of the Lemurian colonies. The surviving novas lived reclusive lives,
preferring to intervene in the local baseline cultures only from
afar. They eventually died out due to inbreeding and widespread
infertility caused by Taint accumulation. That said, those colonies
did manage to spread a basic knowledge of agriculture among the
baseline tribes they encountered, although it was accomplished
though untaught imitation.
52 CHAPTER TWO: SOJOURNS IN SPACETIME
with a bloody - if impotent - passion. About the only virtue
the decadent Lemurian novas shared with their ancestors
was their fair and kind treatment of the Lemurian baseline
peasantry.
Now, the Lemurian civilization has finally reached a
tipping point. While there are a number of Lemurian novas
who have avoided falling into decadence, they are a minority
whose social influence has been fading for quite some
time. Open warfare between the nova clans is no longer a
possibility, but an inevitability. Some of Lemurias arsenals
of atomic intercontinental missiles are under the control of
insane military commanders. Vital functions of the Lemurian
government are being mishandled by officials who attained
their positions through corruption and social connections
instead of competence and personal integrity. The Lemurian
infrastructure is only a few years away from collapsing into
ruin due to widespread neglect. Several scientists are
developing dangerously powerful new quantum gadgets in
order to protect Lemuria, their clan or themselves from
threats both real and imagined. The fact that some of those
gadgets are powerful enough to lay waste to all of Lemuria
is considered to be of no consequence by their creators.
The Lemurian peasantry remains largely blind to their
rulers failings, due to a blend of habitual dependence on
the Lemurian novas, a deeply-held belief in those novas
divinity and their strong sense of tribalism. Why should they
worry about whatever their living deities-in-the-flesh do to
barbaric outlanders? Those savages are not part of the great
tribe of Lemuria, and so simply do not matter. They are
Lemurias peasant caste, and are beloved and treated very
well by their gods. Their gods have always protected them,
have always made Lemuria safe from all sorts of disasters,
and they expect that state of affairs to continue indefinitely.
Willful ignorance and near-pathological denial has kept the
peasantry faithful, productive and very pliable.
This ancient nova civilization now has all the inherent
stability of a house of playing cards - and some Lemurians
have begun to notice that fact. Several of the non-decadent
Explorer clans are quietly preparing to evacuate Lemuria
with their property, technology and peasantry to resettle
in their overseas territories. All that this doomed paradise
needs is just one little push to start its final downfall in
earnest.
The Lemurian continent itself has become as unstable
geologically as its residing nova civilization is socially. As an
artificially-created landmass that was not a product of the
natural processes of continental drift and tectonic plate
uplifting, there was no way it was going to last anywhere
near as long as the natural continents have. Even worse, the
novas who created said artificial landmass were not overly
skilled in performing such feats. Five thousand years is an
extraordinarily long period of time by human and even nova
 ABERRANT

standards, but its less than an eyeblink on the geological

timescale. Very soon by human standards, the Lemurian
continent will literally collapse in on itself, burying all traces
of its former existence under the floor of the Pacific Ocean.
Provided that nothing sets off the collapse early, that is.
And to top off this inevitable prehistoric apocalypse
is the fact that the nexus of this particular alternate Earths
timeline resides thirteen thousand years up into the future.
In the plainest of terms: Lemuria and its nova civilization are
doomed, and that fact cannot be changed. Interference
from outside the timeline can alter the minor details of
this tragedy, but the plot cannot be derailed. Unless they
are truly powerful novas and are willing to break the entire
Lemurian civilization like an untamed horse, the most that
crosstime travelers can hope to accomplish is to salvage
some Lemurian knowledge, technology and perhaps a few
Lemurian novas before this land of myth-made-flesh finally
sinks beneath the waves...
Extrasolar Space In The
Nova Age
While most novas restrict their travels in space to the
known territory of the Solar System, its inevitable that others
will press on beyond that limit. Previous Aberrant books
have touched lightly on space travel (see the Aberrant
Players Guide p. 36 and Aberrant: The New Flesh pp. 173-
175), but chronicles heading out beyond the heliopause will
need more details than have been provided. Outer space is
not for the faint of heart, regardless of their species.
Whats Out There?
If your Aberrant chronicle is headed for extrasolar
space, we suggest that Storytellers take a good look at those
astronomy websites which have up-to-date information on the
exoplanet surveys. What they have found will make excellent

Answering The Fermi Paradox

In 1950, physicist Enrico Fermi put forth the following question during an informal discussion about the possibility
of alien civilizations: Where are they? That triggered much speculation about how common organic life might be,
how many sapient species might evolve from that life and how many civilizations might manage to become spacefarers
without destroying themselves. Given the state of scientific progress at the time, there was little acknowledged hard
evidence one way or the other, and the matter remained hypothetical.
In the universes of the Aeon Continuum, organic life, sapient xenospecies and spacefaring civilizations are all
somewhat on the scarce side in the Milky Way for one single reason: the destructive activities of the Coalition. As
nomads traveling in huge generation ships through this and possibly other galaxies, these aliens demolish any and
all other carbon-based alien biospheres and sapient species who cant defend themselves against the Coalitions
technological might. They arent scheduled by the canon timeline to notice Earth and Humanity until 2119, but
theres no reason why nova space travelers couldnt stumble across them somewhere out there before then...

CHAPTER TWO: SOJOURNS IN SPACETIME 53

 ABERRANT
background settings for the players to get familiar with the idea
of their characters exploring extrasolar space. Its also a good
idea to treat the furthest surveyed systems as a final borderline
for determining where the Storyteller could plausibly place
any extraterrestrial civilizations. Inside that region of surveyed
space, we suggest that only primitive and on rare occasion
advanced non-sapient life should be found. There are three
reasons for doing so. First, it will serve to emphasize just how
large extrasolar space can be. Second, it also spotlights both
the rarity of advanced life and the extreme rarity of sapient
life. Third, such life-bearing planets are not likely to clash as
badly with the results of the ongoing exoplanet surveys. For
added plausibility, we further suggest that Storytellers give
themselves a wide margin between where the exoplanet
surveys leave off and where their imaginations can run wild.
When creating alien sapients and their civilizations,
there are a few things that Storytellers should keep in mind.
First is the fact that in the Aeon Continuum, alien sapients
should be very, very strange by the current standards of
popular science fiction. Consider the aliens seen in Trinity:
the Chromatics, the Qin, the Coalition, the Zeps and the
infamous Doyen. Only one of these xenosophont species
has anything but a cosmetic resemblance to Terran life, much
less humankind. The Coalition is that sole exception, due to
their unique and horrifying genetic manipulation technology.
In the Aeon Continuum the niche for the rubber forehead,
near-human variety of alien sapients seen in video series
such as Star Trek, Farscape and Tenchi Muyo! will eventually
be filled by nova-descended cultures. The second thing is the
fact that alien civilizations will have wildly varying Technology
Ratings at any point in their shared timeline. During Earths
21st Century; the Chromatics are at T2, the Qin are at T9
or T10, the Coalition has stagnated at T13, the Zeps are at
T12 and the Doyen are at T12. Those are rough estimates,
as these species will be advanced and retarded in different
areas of their technology. For instance, the Coalition has no
life-extension technology to speak of, while the Doyen have
concentrated their technological progress on their own noetic
biotech to the exclusion of everything else. The Qin also focus
entirely on noetic biotech, while the Zeps see no need for FTL
transportation, given their extremely long lifespans and highly
stable society.
How Often Does This Happen, Anyway?
The events described here happen only on very rare occasion when one lives in the same star system for most of
their life, which is part of what makes it so shocking and dramatic when they do happen. Space travelers by definition
will be operating on an infinitely larger scale, and so will encounter them far more often than their planet- or single star
system-bound contemporaries. Its a numbers game, really - the more games you observe, the better your chances of
witnessing a jackpot being hit.
54 CHAPTER TWO: SOJOURNS IN SPACETIME
Additional Hazards Of Space
Aside from the natural hazards of space already covered
in previous Aberrant books, here are some new ones that
the player characters should expect to encounter while
traveling in space.
Radiation Storms: While space always has a small
degree of radiation to deal with, regions close to stars and
other radiating objects often produce extremely high-speed
eruptions of protons. Known as stellar radiation storms,
these events can last for several days and can damage both
technological devices and living beings. In game terms, this
is treated as anywhere from 2 to 30 levels of both radiation
and EMP damage. Fortunately, stellar radiation storms can
be predicted well in advance so that space travelers can
either move out of their way or retreat to special radiation
shelters in their spacecraft.
Meteoroids & Micrometeoroids: In all but the newest-
born star systems, stellar dust will have compacted though
electrostatic attaction and gravity into solid rock and ices.
While most ends up being absorbed into planets, moons,
comets and asteroids, there are always more in various
orbits. They not usually a danger to inhabited planets due
to their protective atmospheres, yet they do pose a threat
to spacecraft of all sorts. In game terms, micrometeoroid
impacts are treated as doing 5d10 to 12d10 lethal damage
and are armor piercing as well. Likewise, meteoroid impacts
will do 5d10 [10] to 8d10 [10] lethal damage and are armor
piercing.
Asteroids & Comets: Bodies this big are threats to
rockball planets, much less spacecraft. Depending on their
size, most of these can impact and do damage equivalent to
missile strikes (10d10 [15] lethal) or fusion warheads (18d10
[30] lethal). The true potential planet-killers can do damage
equivalent to either the Tau Discharge quantum power (on
pp. 104-105 of this book) or the Quantum Inferno quantum
power (Aberrant Players Guide p. 139), making dealing
with such threats very important to spacefarers wishing to
colonize or terraform a likely planet.
Rogue Planets and Moons: Despite their apparent
stability, the orbits of planetary bodies in star systems are
actually quite unstable, especially in the early periods of
planetary formation. Its very easy for the immense gravity
of large gas giants to fling rockball planets, moons and the
smaller gas giants hurtling out of their star systems and into
 ABERRANT
interstellar space. Some of these castaways eventually enter
the gravity wells of other star systems, where they can disrupt
their planetary orbits in turn. We suggest that Storytellers
should use the game mechanics of Astromanipulation
quantum power (on p. 90 of this book) at a power rating of
one dot only to simulate this event.
Rogue Star Systems: Much like planetary bodies, the
galactic orbits of star systems arent stable either. In this
case, either the immense gravity of a supermassive black
hole or the chaos caused by a galactic collision has jolted a
start system out of its original galactic orbit and flung it into
intergalactic space. The only time when they can possibly
be considered a threat is when one of them enters another
galaxy and comes too close to an inhabited star system to
be safe. A close passage might only cause an increase in the
number of comets due to disturbing the Oort Cloud of the
star system in question. A direct impact only happens due
to either the rarest of circumstances or hostile use of the
Astromanipulation quantum power. In either case, the only
option is to flee the endangered star system if there isnt a
friendly nova around with the Astromanipulation quantum
power to defend it.
Stellar Novas: Instead of eximorphic beings, here we
are talking about the explosions that occur in binary stars
where one star is a white dwarf. What happens is that the
gravity of the white dwarf strips some of the hydrogen
and/or helium, which undergoes a runaway nuclear fusion
process on the white dwarfs surface. That produces much in
the way of elctromagnetic radiation, and is a deadly threat
to anything in nearby star systems. In game terms, treat a
nova explosion as a use of the Quantum Inferno quantum
power (Aberrant Players Guide p. 139) at a power rating of
one to three dots. Standard operating procedure requires
the evacuation of a star system where this event is taking
place. The only good thing about a nova explosion is that
it is limited by the speed of light, so spacecraft and nova
space travelers might be able to avoid the blast if they pay
attention to their surroundings.
Supernovas: These are stellar explosions caused by
either the gravitational collapse of a massive stars core or the
sudden reignition of nuclear fusion in white dwarf stars with
stellar companions. In both cases the resulting explosion is
much greater in intensity and range than stellar novas, as
they can outshine entire galaxies. In game terms, treat a
nova explosion as a use of the Quantum Inferno quantum
power (Aberrant Players Guide p. 139) at a power rating of
four to seven dots. Safety precautions against supernovas
explosions are identical to those for stellar novas.
Hypernovas & Gamma-Ray Bursts: The strongest
stellar explosions are the hypernovas, supernovas that emit
energies on levels that are greater than typical supernovas
by orders of magnitude. There are several different causes
CHAPTER TWO: SOJOURNS IN SPACETIME
of these events, but the end result is typically an explosion
that can disrupt nearby star systems within several parsecs.
Hypernovas are also a known source of both black holes
(described later) and gamma ray bursts, the brightest
electromagnetic events known to modern astronomy.
A gamma ray burst from within the Milky Way galaxy is
suspected to have caused the Ordovician-Silurian mass
extinction event on Earth 450 million years ago. These events
pose an extreme threat to any planet-based civilization. In
either case, treat a hypernova explosion or gamma ray burst
as a use of the Quantum Inferno quantum power (Aberrant
Players Guide p. 139) at a power rating of eight to ten dots.
Safety precautions are as for other stellar explosions.
Black Holes: As almost everyone knows, these are
regions of spacetime that are so warped that their gravity
will prevent anything from escaping, even light. Unless
space travelers can detect gravitational energy, black holes
can only be detected indirectly through their effects on the
spacetime, energy and matter around them. There are three
kinds of black holes. Microscopic black holes are known to
exist and have theoretical applications in computing and
energy production, making them a valuable natural resource.
The second kind are the stellar-mass black holes can be
encountered anywhere throughout space and are deadly
threats to spacecrafts and inhabited star systems. While it
is barely possible for objects and non-eximporhic beings
to come close to a stellar-mass black hole and escape
undamaged, anything that crosses the event horizon is
destroyed. When a stellar-mass black hole enters a star
system, it will immediately disrupt the orbits of everything
around its star. This results in massive increases in the
frequency of asteroids and comets impacting the inner
planets. The gas giants will be consumed as they come
into contact with it. The massive gravitational shockwaves
will also cause planet-wide major earthquakes and greatly
increased volcanic activity on the rockball planets. The black
hole will them head straight for the systems star and begin
to consume it. Any life-bearing rockball planets will them be
drawn too close to their star for organic life to survive as they
get hotter. Eventually, those rockball planets will melt down
completely before being consumed by the black hole. After
millions of years of being fed on, the victim star will be no
more, leaving the black hole to journey onwards towards its
next victim.
In game terms, the preceding consequences of
encountering a stellar-mass black hole can be simulated as
follows. Asteroid & comet impacts are as described earlier.
The planet-wide major earthquakes and increased volcanism
equate to uses of the Geological Supremacy quantum
power (Aberrant Players Guide pp. 133-134) increasing
continental drift at whatever power rating the Storyteller
deems plausible. Destruction of planets and stars equates to
55
 ABERRANT
use of the Astromanipulation quantum power (p. 90 of this
book) at power ratings of one and two dots, respectively.
Coming into direct contact with a stellar-mass black hole
equates to use of the Quantum Inferno quantum power
(Aberrant Players Guide p. 139) at whatever power rating
and damage type the Storyteller sees fit.
The third kind are the supermassive black holes, which
are found at the hearts of galaxies. These objects are
responsible for the creation of rogue star systems, which
equates to use of the Astromanipulation quantum power (p.
90 of this book) at a power rating of three dots. Coming into
contact with these objects is certain death for all but the
most powerful of novas, as it equates to use of the Quantum
Inferno quantum power (Aberrant Players Guide p. 139)
at whatever power rating and damage type the Storyteller
sees fit.
First Contact
If nova space travelers journey in extrasolar space long
enough, sooner or later they will make First Contact with
sapient alien life. As they will be novakinds - and Humanitys
- exemplars for the encountered species, this places a huge
burden of responsibility on the travelers in question. How
those travelers deal with that responsibility - or fail to do so
- can reshape the focus of an Aberrant chronicle in drastic
ways.
Unfortunately for the Storyteller, setting up this
momentous event in ones Aberrant chronicle requires
quite a bit of preparatory work beforehand. While one could
use the alien species showcased in the Trinity books, that
also makes them have less of a dramatic impact. While the
player characters wont know about them, the players almost
certainly will. While this state of affairs could still work with
cooperative players, Storytellers are encouraged to create
some alien species/civilizations beforehand to keep the
plots of your chronicles from getting too predictable.
Space Is The New Frontier... And Its Wild
Unlike other settings which contain superbeings, the Aeon
Continuum in the Nova Age has yet to develop any true multi-
species civilizations or organizations in the Milky Way Galaxy.
There are no known incidences of treaties having been made
between any alien civilizations. Combined with the rapacity of
the Coalition Space Arks, this makes for a situation where the
only laws and justice to be found are what space travelers carry
with them. Even more so than the historical North American
Wild West, what little authority space travelers may encounter
is likely to be indifferent to them at best. These circumstances
make for perilous living conditions and excellent opportunities
for roleplaying.
56 CHAPTER TWO: SOJOURNS IN SPACETIME
Alien Interactions
When describing how alien civilizations interact with
one another, biology offers the most convenient metaphor.
As there is no established social structure beyond single
civilizations in the Milky Way, its easier to see them as
different organisms coexisting in the same biosphere. What
follows is a brief overview of the relations alien civilizations
are likely to have, with a few examples from the Trinity
sourcebooks.
Competition is when two roughly equal civilizations
affect each other adversely. Most often this occurs when
both civilizations require one or more resources which
happen to be scarce. Competition can be political, social
or economic in nature. War is the most extreme form of
competition. The Human-Chromatic conflict is an example
of social competition escalating into war for religious
reasons.
Predation occurs when one civilization adversely affects
another and benefits itself. Such a civilization could prey
upon any other civilization which has desirable resources.
Such prey civilizations will typically be of a lesser Technology
Level than the predatory civilization, as more advanced
civilizations have the means to defend themselves against
such attacks. This interaction typically results in the death of
most or all of the sapient members of the prey civilization
before the predator civilization claims their resources for
themselves. The Coalition is a good example of a predatory
civilization.
Parasitism differs from predation only in that the sapient
population of the prey civilization is not exterminated.
Instead, said population is exploited in some manner over
a period of time. Such exploitation typically takes the form
of slavery. The aberrant forces of Kali and Yog-Death on
Khantze Lu Ge are a good rough equivalent of a parasitic
alien civilization.
Amensalism happens when one civilization is adversely
affected by another civilization, which is unaffected by the
interaction. In this interaction the unaffected civilization will
have a higher Technology Level than the other - possibly to
the point where that other civilization may be treated as a
mere nuisance, much as humans treat unwelcome insects
in their homes. Even seemingly benevolent civilizations
can have amensal interactions. For instance, a civilization
that grants some of its technological knowledge to a
less-advanced civilization can stymie or stunt the latter
civilizations own technological growth as they become
dependent on the gifted technology. At the most extreme,
the latter civilization destroys itself when it attempts to use
technologies that they dont truly understand.
Neutralism takes place when two civilizations avoid
any contact with one another. They have no real interaction
and do not affect each other in any significant way. This
 ABERRANT
Different Tokes For Different Folks
When figuring out how alien civilizations will interact with each other - and/or Humanity - the Storyteller must
always have a clear idea of the said alien civilizations needs. Most xenosapient species will have needs that match the
environments they evolved in. These needs will predetermine much of the kinds of resources a civilization will seek
out to claim. For instance, having evolved on a gas giant the Zeps likely gained their mineral resources by mining their
own atmosphere long before they learned how to mine their homeworlds ring system and captured asteroids. Having
long since expanded out into interstellar space, they saw only certain gas giants as viable colony words, ignoring the
rockball planets. Any life found on rockball worlds - such as that of Far Nyumba, orbiting the Zep colony world humans
call Mgitu - would be of scientific interest only.
In other words, the more needs that two civilizations have in common, the more reasons they could have to either
cooperate or compete with one another. Both can make for excellent storytelling.

often happens when two civilizations have wildly different

resource needs and psychologies. This in turn means that
Rolling Your Own
Sooner or later, Storytellers are going to want to
any attempted interactions would be extremely difficult to
challenge their players with aliens that cant be found in any
make and would result in little - if any - real gains. From what
of the Trinity books. As the process of creating a somewhat
little evidence can be found in the Trinity sourcebooks, the
realistic alien species is typically a very long and detailed
Zeps appear to be a Neutralist civilization.
process, we have decided to forego providing such in this
Commensalism occurs when one civilization benefits
fanbook. Instead, here is our best attempt at a quick and
from the interaction with the other civilization not being
dirty checklist to help those Storytellers create original alien
affected for good or ill. Commensal civilizations typically
species.
receive both advanced technological knowledge and the
knowledge of how to avoid misusing it from the other, more
1: Define the concept of the new alien civilization.
advanced civilization. Instead of stunting or preventing their
This breaks down to three steps. First, what purpose
own technological growth, the new knowledge benefits
will the alien civilization fulfill in your Aberrant chronicle?
the commensal civilization enormously. The interaction
We suggest picking one to three options from the Alien
between the Chromatics and the Doyen Purifiers appears to
Interactions list (seen above) to give a basic idea of how
be commensal at first glance, but is in fact parasitic as the
the alien civilization will seek to interact with the player
Purifiers are exploiting the Chromatics as cannon fodder in
characters. Second, what is the basic nature of the alien
their war against all Humanity.
species? Are they organic flesh and blood creatures, or are
Cooperation happens when two civilizations interact
they sapient machines or energy-based lifeforms instead?
in ways that are beneficial to both. Such ways include
If they are organic, are they analogous to Terran animals,
but are not limited to cultural exchange, trade, and joint
plants or fungi? Or do they combine features found in those
military ventures. At the extreme, both civilizations integrate
Terran phyla in ways never seen on Earth? Third, what will
themselves to form one dual-species civilization. The
the tone of the alien species interactions with the player
interactions between Humanity and the Qin are a good
characters be? Militaristic? Horrific? Political? Criminal?
example of the early stages of a cooperative relationship.
Comedic? Provided your players will accept the results, the
Mutualism is similar to cooperation except for the
Storyteller will have a wide range of options open to her.
beneficial interaction being obligatory instead of just a
matter of choice. In this case both civilizations must continue
2: Determine the nature of their biochemistry.
their symbiotic relation with each other or die out. This often
Is the alien species carbon-based, or does it use silicon
occurs when alien civilizations overspecialize and must
or a metal instead? If the alien species is carbon-based, what
enter into a symbiotic relationship with complementary
is its chirality? Does it use levo-proteins like Terran lifeforms
overspecialized civilizations in order to survive.
or does it use dextro-proteins? Levo-protein lifeforms
cannot digest dextro-proteins and risk being poisoned
if they try to do so, and vice versa in the case of dextro-
protein lifeforms. Does the alien species utilize or produce
any chemicals or energies that are potentially dangerous to
Terran life - such as chlorine gas, for example - as a part of its

CHAPTER TWO: SOJOURNS IN SPACETIME 57

 ABERRANT
metabolic processes? Are there any chemicals or energies
considered harmless by humans that could prove toxic to
the alien species? What chemicals and energies does the
alien species require in order to maintain health and sustain
normal body functions? How the Storyteller answers these
questions will give the alien species much more plausibility
and can have serious consequences for their use in the
chronicle.
Carbon Chauvinism
In 1973, Carl Sagan coined this term to reflect the commonly
held idea that most alien lifeforms would have carbon-based
biochemistries using water as a solvent, similar to Terran lifeforms.
While that idea is invalid from a purely scientific viewpoint, the
Storyteller should keep carbon chauvinism in mind when creating
new organic alien species for her Aberrant chronicle. If the player
characters having close interactions - hostile or peaceful - with
the alien species is desired, having similar biochemistries is a
good reason for them to do so. Species with radically different
biochemistries from that of Terran life will always have their alien
physical requirements as a barrier to interaction. Theres little
reason for an alien species to want to visit Earth when contact
with the planets environment - much less the native life - is
outrageously lethal to them.
3: Determine what their biosphere of origin is/was like.
What type of star(s) does the homeworld orbit?
Does said star(s) have any unusual stellar activity that the
homeworlds lifeforms would have to adapt to in order to
survive? What does the homeworld have in the way of an
atmosphere and hydrosphere - the latter of which does
not need to be water, by the way. Where is the homeworld
placed in its star systems life zone? Whats the gravity of
the homeworld? Is the homeworlds food chain supported
by photosynthesis, chemosynthesis or some more exotic
method of creating biomass from inert matter? What kinds
of climates exist on the homeworld, and how would they
have affected the developing alien civilization? That last
question is very important, as the native climate of the alien
species non-sapient ancestors will determine their main
method of locomotion.
4: Determine what their pre-sapient ancestor species
was and its niche in its native ecology.
Most sapient alien species ultimately descend from
naturally-evolved nonsapient creatures; save for those
sapients whose first ancestors were created by other
aliens via robotics or applied high-energy physics. As a
consequence of this, much of an alien species way of
life, physical capabilities and psychology will have their
basis in the biology and habits of its pre-sapient ancestor
58 CHAPTER TWO: SOJOURNS IN SPACETIME
species. Even something as simple as whether or not the
alien species experiences sleep will be important. Niches
include herbivores, carnivores, omnivores and ergivores,
with subtypes defined below. Note that these categories
only describe the general way the ancestor species acquired
nourishment. A silicon-based herbivore could consume
crystalline rock formations - as some Terran microbes are
also known to do - to sustain itself. Likewise, on a world
with mobile plant analogues, lifeforms that predate on them
would be considered carnivores despite their vegetarian-
analogue diet.
Herbivores consume food that does not physically fight
back; if alive their prey typically uses biochemical warfare
to resist predation. Saphrophyte herbivores consume
rotting organic matter, which is very low-energy food but
is relatively easy to find and does not need to be of high
quality. Grazer herbivores devour large amounts of low-
energy food such as Terran grasses and spend much of their
time eating. Browser herbivores eat mid-energy foods such
as roots, shoots and leaves. Gatherer herbivores eat high-
energy foods such as seeds, insects, nuts and fruits.
Carnivores actively hunt down and consume prey
creatures that will resist if given the chance. Scavenger
carnivores may hunt smaller prey creatures but prefer
to eat any carrion they come across, even to the point of
stealing prey from other carnivores. Chaser carnivores
patrol for prey and use bursts of speed to bring it down,
sometimes cooperating with each other to bring down
difficult prey. Herder carnivores are different from chasers in
that they use cooperative hunting by default to prey upon
the weakest members of large groups of prey creatures.
Pouncer carnivores hunt alone and use ambush techniques
to bring down single prey creatures. Stalker carnivores also
hunt alone and are adaptable enough to switch between
the tactics of pouncer and chaser carnivores as needed.
Parasite carnivores are a variation in that instead of killing
the prey item outright, they feed on it - usually by draining
circulatory fluid, but not always - while it continues to live.
Parasite carnivores will use the hunting tactics of one of the
other carnivore sub-types.
Omnivores will hunt prey creatures and gather
unresisting food, giving them greater flexibility when food
is scarce. Browser/Hunter omnivores prefer to hunt prey
but will usually settle for high-energy plant foods such
as insects, fruits, nuts and roots. Opportunist browser
omnivores typically eat mid- to high-energy plant foods but
will eat carrion and small prey creatures if given the chance.
Hunter/Gatherer omnivores live on high-energy plant foods
but will also hunt small prey creatures and fresh carrion if
given the chance.
Ergivores sustain themselves with primary energy;
typically stellar light, heat differentials such as found in
 ABERRANT
geothermal vents, electricity and even hard radiation.
Plants are the most common ergivores; as they use primary
energy to process the local liquid solvent, minerals, organic
chemicals and certain gases into food. Mixed ergivores
exhibit a blend of plant and animal characteristics and gender is also nonsapient and effectively disposable.
depend on primary energy for only part of their food, such
creatures will have a second niche to reflect this duality.
Tapper ergivores must search for high-quality (meaning
intense) energy sources to fuel their metabolisms, and
also consumes medium amounts of food to gain minerals
and fluids. Pure ergivores can sustain themselves almost
completely on primary energy - preferably high-end EM
radiation as it is the most energetic - although they must
also consume small amounts of minerals and the local liquid
solvent to heal, grow and reproduce.
One caveat: according to current scientific thought,
many organic alien sapient species will be descended
from predators such as carnivores and omnivores. Predator
species will tend to have more complex nervous systems than
those of their prey species simply to become better hunters.
This does not equate to being at the top of the homeworlds
food chain however - mid-level predators will have their
own predators, reinforcing their need for developing neural
complexity. Exceptions will be found - Terran sharks have
little neural complexity - but it is a general trend that the
Storyteller should keep in mind.
5: Determine how the alien species reproduces, and
their attitude towards their offspring.
Every naturally-occuring species must either reproduce
successfully or go extinct. That said, the three main factors
of how alien species accomplish this are varied. The first
factor is choosing the alien species basic reproductive
strategy. R-type breeders produce many offspring at a time
in the hopes that enough of the fittest will survive to reach
maturity and breed themselves. Little if any care is given to
the offspring, most of which perish from natural predation.
K-type breeders have only a small group or fewer offspring
at a time and invest moderate to severe effort and resources
into caring for them. The strategy chosen will have a telling
effect on the behavior and social values of the sapient alien
species. Some R-type breeders may even cull defective
members from their offsping in order to prevent the spread
of harmful mutations.
The second factor is the question of gender in the
alien species. The male-female binary seen in most humans
is only one option. An alien species might shift between
genders, spending most of their lives as neuter beings.
Hermaphrodism - with or without the option to self-fertilize -
is far from unknown. Alien species with three or more genders
than the basic male and female are plausible, although one
of the extra genders will likely be neuter. The degree of
CHAPTER TWO: SOJOURNS IN SPACETIME
sexual dimorphism - or polymorphism, in some cases - that
the alien species exhibits is linked to this, as having mutiple
genders will increase it. This can even lead to mating being
fatal to one of the parents, which is especially likely if said
The mechanics of how the alien species reproduces
is the third factor. Live birth is one commonly seen
method, with offspring being born with varying degrees
of development. Laying eggs is just as common, with the
offpsrings development upon hatching being just as
variable as it is with live birth. Seen less often is budding,
where offspring grow from a parents body much like a tumor
until they detach and become separate lifeforms. Fission is
an extreme version of budding, where one or more parentss
bodies literally split to form several offspring. An alien
species might reproduce parasitically, with the embryo(s)
implanted into a host creature and devouring the host as
it grows. The host creature is not necessarily of a different
species than the alien species in question, it might be a
captured individual of the same species or even a parent of
the unborn offspring.
6: Determine their basic social unit and how it develops
into higher forms of social organization.
All alien species will have some form of basic social
structure, otherwise they could never have attained
civilization in the first place! The most familiar social unit
to humans is the family group. Other social units include
bonded pairs, packs, herds and hives. Some alien species
may even be solitary by nature, and only form societies when
individual survival is not feasible or possible. Extrapolating
societies from these basic social units is left to the Storytellers
discretion. Any form of government ever found on Earth -
and several never before seen there - could plausibly form
the basis of an alien civilization. The only restriction she will
face is the challenge of making her choice plausible in the
opinions of her players.
7: Determine the alien civilizations Technology Rating
(pp. 114-118 of this book).
How advanced - or primitive - the alien civilization being
created may be has been left to the Storytellers discretion.
Alien civilizations in the T1-T4 range are best used as
harmless background scenery, with the possibility of nova
space travelers acting as Space Gods and messing with
the primitives. Alien civilizations in the T5-T9 range will have
advanced enough intellectually to conceive of nova space
travelers as powerful aliens instead of incarnate deities. In
this case, mid-20th Century science fictions fantasies about
encountering aliens can be re-examined with the player
characters playing the part of the intruding aliens. Tailoring
the response to the player characters to the psychology
59
 ABERRANT
of the alien species involved can and will make hoary old
science-fiction ideas from the 1950s and 1960s fresh and
new again, given some work on the part of the Storyteller. If
an alien civilization has a sufficiently high Technology Rating
- T10 at the minimum - then they can pose a credible threat
to nova space explorers. In these circumstances the player
characters would be well-advised to tread lightly and avoid
overt contact with such civilizations - or help to clean up the
mess when other nova space travelers run afoul of them.
Given that such messes could include the alien civilization
learning about Humanity and the Sol System and possibly
declaring interstellar war, this can add much drama and
tension to the chronicle.
8: Determine the location of their home star system and
their extrastellar colonies, if any.
When answering this question, the Storyteller nearly
has a free hand when placing the new alien civilizations
home star system within the cosmos. We say nearly for
two reasons. First, we recommend that Storytellers avoid
placing such civilizations near any of the known extrasolar
worlds showcased in the Trinity books. The ideal is to place
them in regions where ISRAs exploratory efforts have not
examined circa the 2120s. This gives Storytellers plenty of
wiggle room to operate in, especially in long-term Aberrant
chronicles that could endure into the Noetic Era of Earth.
Second, Storytellers should refrain from choosing known
stars visible from Earth. Unless one is willing to sort through
lots of star surveys for likely stars, its best to place alien
civilizations in regions that have yet to be surveyed by
Terran astronomers. Of course, none of that applies to alien
civilizations located outside the Milky Way Galaxy, save for
those in the 47 Tucanae globular cluster. As the Qin will have
no access to interstellar travel until 2107, the Storyteller is
free to place alien civilizations within that galaxy provided
that they could plausibly have no contact with the Qin.
Unless, of couse, she plans to have the player characters
intervene against such an aggressor...
9: Determine the exotic capabilities of the alien species,
if any.
Sometimes, an alien civilization will need to have
something more than just highly advanced technology to
make them a worthy challenge for nova space explorers. It
should be noted that this does not necessarily mean that
the alien species must have Inspired capabilities. First off
are the possible threats posed by an alien species biology.
For instance, alien species native to planets with oxygen-
chlorine atmospheres would pose an existential threat
to any and all planets with Terran-analogue biospheres.
As they produce free chlorine gas as a waste product of
their normal metabolism, they would be planet-killers on
Earthlike worlds, possibly without even meaning to. Such
beings would carry microbes from their homeworlds, which
would quickly evolve to thrive in their new environment.
There would be many chlorides left unused and no lifeforms
that could prey on them and restrict their growth. Given
enough time and left uncontained, those microbes would
quickly introduce large amounts of free chlorine gas to the
new environments atmosphere with catastrophic effects.
Nearly all of the infected planets native lifeforms would die
from chlorine gas poisoning. Any oceans of water would be
converted into a solution of bleach and hydrochloric acid.
The new atmosphere would quickly corrode most metals,
destroy all soils save for silicates and clays, and dissolve
minerals such as limestone. Only quartzes, gold, platinum
and ceramics would survive. Such aliens could even destroy
Earthlike worlds by merely placing large amounts of their
own microbes into meteorites and letting them impact the
targeted planet. Alien civilizations which use but have yet
to truly master nanotechnology can pose a similar threat by
causing the well-known gray goo doomsday scenario.
Then Storytellers have the option of alien civilizations
employing what current science fiction considers
transhuman augmentation technologies. If a civilization
has a Technology Rating of T12 or higher, it can easily
produce entities that could have come straight out of the

Taint, Teras and First Contact

Its a basic fact of living with excessive levels of Taint: such novas have a much more difficult time interacting with
baseline humans - and other Inspired - than they would have otherwise. Terats dont have it much better thanks to
the dehumanizing effects of the Chrysalis. Due to their acceptance of Taint and rejecting their own humanity, novas
who follow Teras have distorted their own noetic templates, also known as the noetic components of their quantum
matrices.
Unfortunately for them, the full magnitude of that misfortune will not be revealed until they encounter alien
civilizations. In both cases, highly-Tainted novas and Terats suffer the same penalties for social interactions with
aliens that they do with baseline humans. If the encountered alien species uses psionics as their major method of
communication - the Doyen being a prime example of this - those difficulties are automatically doubled.

60 CHAPTER TWO: SOJOURNS IN SPACETIME

 ABERRANT
fiction of Alastair Reynolds, Ian Banks
and Vernor Vinge. Such entities should
be able to pose credible threats to nova
space travelers. Likewise, they could
also prove to be potentially worthwhile
candidates for nova space travelers to
engage in mutually beneficial contact.
Both scenarios can make for excellent
drama in an Aberrant chronicle.
Storytellers seeking further inspiration
for creating these entities - no pun
intended - are advised to check out
the Orions Arm website.
Lastly, Storytellers can have alien
civilizations with Inspired capabilities.
In all but a tiny fraction of these
instances, the alien species in question
will have either psionic powers
comparable to those of the psions of
Trinity, with the few exceptions to that
instead developing Heroic Inspiration
in the manner of Adventure! Era
daredevils. According to the Trinity
books, the emergence of human
novas - and aberrants - onto the
aberrant extrasolar colonies, as they still share basic human
galactic scene after their Exodus from Earth in the mid-21st
psychology and social rules, if twisted and barbaric in the
Century took the Doyen completely by surprise. This implies
latter case. In the Aeon Continuum, such colonies will fill the
that eximorphic capability is extremely rare in the Milky
niche for the funny-looking human variety of aliens seen
Way, with humanity being the only known example of such
in popular science fiction and are not relevant to this topic.
among the sapient species in this galaxy. Provided that the
Instead of the usual Social game mechanics, the
Doyen have no capability to sense quantum manipulation
Storyteller should have the players use the Xenology
on an intergalactic scale, this leaves all the other galaxies as
(Intelligence) and Xenorelations (Manipulation) Abilities
potential places for eximorphic alien species to evolve. All
from the Trinity Players Guide (pp. 111 - 112) for all
the Storyteller needs to keep in mind is the extreme rarity
social interactions with actual aliens. Xenology is used for
of alien novas and/or aberrants - at the most, only having
understanding the psychology, biology, language and
one or two such xenospecies per galaxy is recommended -
sociology of the alien species in question, while Xenorelations
before using them in her Aberrant chronicle.
substitutes for all Social Abilities when dealing with an alien.
As both Abilities are only theoretical during the early Nova
Making Contact Age, player characters possessing them will be self-taught
Once a Storyteller has chosen an existing alien and must gain practical knowledge of them in the field.
civilization from the Trinity books or has created an original For this reason, the Storyteller is within her rights to declare
one, she then has to introduce them to the player characters that characters lacking real experience with aliens can
in a First Contact scenario. Unfortunately for all involved, only have a maximum ratings of two dots in Xenology and
such a momentous event cannot be simulated with the Xenorelations. In this case, it is recommended that player
game mechanics seen in the Aberrant core book and the character novas purchase the Mental Prodigy: Xenology
Aberrant Players Guide. The Social game mechanics in both enhancement for Mega-Intelligence and/or the Universal
books rely on all the parties involved having one thing in Charm enhancement for Mega-Charisma (on p. 87 and 89
common: a lifelong familiarity with basic human psychology of this book, respectively). Having these enhancements will
and society. As neither of these qualities can be applied give a de facto Terran ambassador a decent shot at gaining
to extrasolar alien civilizations, other game mechanics are the said practical knowledge of Xenology & Xenorelations
required. This does not apply to descendants of nova or without starting an interstellar war.

CHAPTER TWO: SOJOURNS IN SPACETIME 61

 ABERRANT
The Process Of First Contact
Like any other highly risky procedure, there is a certain
order of tasks involved in making First Contact that must
be followed if it is to be at all successful. Space travelers
of all stripes - even the novas - would be well advised to
use this guideline as a step-by-step process. It should be
noted that if the aliens in question prove to be hostile in
any way, the right thing to do is to immediately break off all
contact with them and return home without being followed
by those aliens. Once returned, the space travelers should
release all their gathered information on the hostile aliens
to Earths scientific community. Terran governments most
often cannot be trusted in this matter, as they will typically
classify all the space travelers information and sit on it,
accomplishing nothing of any real value in the face of the
potential alien threat. Another thing to notice is that there is
no set timescale for the process of First Contact. Depending
on the biology, psychology & sociology of the aliens
involved, the process could take months, years or decades.
Here is a brief overview of the tasks involved in making
First Contact.
1: Locate the Aliens, Or They Locate You
The necessary and obvious first step, best accomplished
through interception of the interstellar communications
attempts of the aliens. In any First Contact situation, the
62 CHAPTER TWO: SOJOURNS IN SPACETIME
party that detects the other first will have the upper hand.
This advantage becomes even more evident if the other
partys home star system is discovered at this stage. If the
detected alien civilization has a lower Technology Rating
than their other party, they are essentially at the mercy of
their discoverers.
2: Investigate the Aliens
Here is where the real work begins. The space travelers
must begin using Xenology and other Science-related
Abilities in order to learn everything they can about the
aliens, their civilization, their star system and their technology.
While this can be accomplished through signal interception
and scientific observation, nova space travelers also have
the option of using the techniques of the Astrosensor
quantum power (found on pp. 91-95 of this book) to
augment those methods. It is strongly recommended that
the space travelers learn everything they can about the alien
civilization being investigated before initiating First Contact.
The more they know about the aliens and their civilization
beforehand, the less chance theyll be caught off-guard by
any unpleasant features of the aliens and/or their culture.
Just as important, the space travelers can learn whether or
not the alien civilization theyre investigating is worth the
trouble of making First Contact with them in the first place.
 ABERRANT
3: Initiate Remote Communications
This is the first big step, where the space travelers
initiate First Contact with the alien civilization. There are two
methods for doing so, overt and covert. The overt method
will use a communications technology as appropriate to
the Technology Rating of the alien civilization. For ease
of reference, consider cultures that have developed radio
communications as being the absolute lowest bar for
initiating overt First Contact. Any cultures which havent
progressed to that point are unlikely to respond with anything
other than rampant paranoia and xenophobic panic. The
initial communication to the alien civilization must always
be some form of signal that shows clear and unmistakable
evidence of being produced by sapients. Factors involved in
designing such signals will involve mathematical concepts
- the prime numbers, Fibonacci numbers, atomic weights,
etc. - that natural signal sources cannot reproduce. If all
goes well, the alien civilization will receive the signal, take it
seriously instead of dismissing it as a locally-produced hoax
and respond in kind.
The covert method is used when an alien civilization
either isnt advanced enough for the overt method to be
successful or the alien civilization would be hostile to the
space travelers in some way. This can be very dangerous,
as it will involve traveling to the homeworld of the alien
civilization and performing what 20th and early 21st
Century Terran ufologists refer to as close encounters.
Communication can be established with individual alien
sapients, who can be used to learn intimate details about
their culture and civilization that scientific observation alone
could not uncover. Any information passed on to the alien
sapients and their civilization in this manner may or may not
be truthful as the space travelers see fit. Novas will have an
even greater capacity for this sort of disinformation, as the
right quantum powers can let them impersonate the aliens
themselves (among other beings), mess with the aliens
minds and subsume their most restricted information depots
without any of them being the wiser.
4: Share Basic Information
If the process of First Contact has reached this point, the
space travelers will have decided that the alien civilization
is trustworthy to some degree - and vice versa - and the
exchange of basic information can begin. This typically
consists of an overview of the biology of the sapients in
question, along with information on the local interstellar
neighborhood and any spacefaring threats that have been
encountered. The degree of honesty that is shown at this
stage by either party can have drastic and far-reaching
consequences. Honest information exchange can serve as
an excellent foudation block for establishing a long-term
relationship between the civilization of the space travelers
CHAPTER TWO: SOJOURNS IN SPACETIME
and the alien civilization being contacted. Dishonesty can
appear to function well until the true circumstances of the
situation are inevitably discovered, which will lead to conflict
between the two parties. Such conflict can and often will
lead to outright interstellar war between the space travelers
and the alien civilization. The canon example of the Doyens
dealings with both Humanity and the Chromatics is an
excellent example, as its easy to see how the vaunted Elder
Races dishonesty will see both civilizations turning against
them in the long term.
5: Relay First Contact Information Back Home
Provided that the space travelers have a home society
that they feel beholden to - the reverse is typically but not
necessarily true - they will feel a duty to share their collected
First Contact information with their civilization. Whether or not
that information ends up being classified as Top Secret by
the government or is released to the general public depends
on the goals of the space travelers. Only in the cases where
the space travelers home civilization is insufficiently advanced
- read: has a Technology Rating of 8 or less - and wouldnt
deal well with learning it is restricting such information a
good idea. Otherwise, attempts to restrict the First Contact
data will generally be initiated by those in the spacefarers
civilization who wish to preserve their current social, political
and/or economic status quo. These efforts will harm the
spacefarers civilization by inhibiting natural progress and
must be defeated, especially if the contacted alien civilization
is actively hostile. In that case, efforts to preserve a status quo
can be considered treason against their own civilization and
crimes against their own species.
6: Share Minimal Technological Knowledge
When or if the process reaches this point, the space
travelers will hopefully have the support of their home
civilization in furthering First Contact. Now they can explore
the option of sharing limited technological data with the
alien civilization, especially if a civilization is either advanced
or retarded in certain aspects of its Technology Rating. This
situation is much like the haggling done by Terran merchants,
as each civilization involved will try to get the best deal on
any attractive technologies the other may possess. The
Science, Medicine, Engineering and Computer Abilities will
eclipse Xenology in this situation, as technology is more
easily understood than the psychology of an alien sapient.
7: Exchange Limited Sociocultural Knowledge
The final stage of First Contact is a mutual exchange
of information about the culture, society and politics of
each others civilizations. The Xenology Ability comes back
into play as making any logical sense of the exchanged
information - and deducing what information is being held
63
 ABERRANT
back - is vitally important in order to prevent any unfortunate
misunderstandings. Aside from the appeal to academics,
this is also the time when thet can establish a formal
relationship between the two civilizations governments,
typically by posting trained ambassadors and diplomats
to an embassy on the aliens homeworld. Economic
interactions can also begin at this point, but will still require
use of the Xenorelations Ability instead of Biz.
Those Who Came Before
Forerunners. Ancients. Firstborn. Precursors. Whatever
labels that the successor sapient civilizations might apply
to them, members of this category of alien civilizations are
simply Those Who Came Before... and who are all now
absent from the galaxy and/or universe for one reason
or another. A well-established and favored trope in both
science fiction and superhero comics, there is little reason
for Storytellers not to use it in Aberrant chronicles involving
the exploration of extrasolar space. Surviving traces of
these apparently extinct civilizations can include ruins
with bizarre architecture and technological artifacts far in
advance of anything the successor civilizations are capable
of producing. Superweapons, far better means of travel...
anything could be found. The reconstruction of planets, star
systems and entire galaxies are all suitable feats for these past
civilizations to show off their engineering skills. The ability
to create dyson spheres, ringworlds and Monolith-type
artifacts (as per Arthur C. Clarke) is a given for civilizations
that have advanced to such high Technology Ratings. Even
successor civilizations currently existing can be creations of
the Forerunners, as the uplifting of presapient creatures into
full-fledged sapient species is another common endeavor of
theirs. Living Forerunners can even be encountered through
intergalactic or time travel, although that occasion should
be rare in the extreme. The reason for this is simple: beyond
all the endless complications, new plots and plot hooks
that introducing Forerunner civilizations can provide, they
should all impart a clear sense of wonder to the players of
your Aberrant chronicle.
Developing a Forerunner civilization is much the
same as creating any other alien civilization, as the same
suggestions and strictures apply. Once the Storyteller has
established who and what the Forerunner civilization shes
creating was - and possibly might still be - she must answer
the following four questions. First, what exactly did they
leave behind where curious successor civilizations might
find evidence of the Forerunners existence? As seen in the
paragraph above, the Storyteller will have many options
from which to pick and choose as she pleases.
Second, what was the overall nature of the variety of
Forerunner in question? Were they malevolent, regarding
64 CHAPTER TWO: SOJOURNS IN SPACETIME
the successor civilizations as primitive vermin to be toyed
with, exploited or exterminated? Were they benevolent,
seeing the successor civilizations as worthy of protection
from any possible threats to their existence created by either
themselves or other Forerunners? Were they neglectful, not
really caring about any successor civilizations one way or
the other? Were they oblivious, having been either in denial
of or unable to comprehend the concept of successor
civilizations? Answering this question will be the major
factor in determining what role a Forerunner civilization will
play in your Aberrant chronicle.
The third question is deceptively simple: what
happened to this particular Forerunner civilization the
Storyteller has created? The most pedestrian answer - and
often the least expected one - would be that they physically
left their old territories for regions elsewhere of their own
volition. Whether they did so out of altruism or a desire to
relocate to more interesting environs is an open question.
A variant of this is that the Forerunners evacuated their old
territories in order to escape some extinction-level threat.
The nature of the threat has been left to the Storyteller;
her options include galactic-scale natural disasters, out-of-
control superweapons and hostile Forerunners. Another
answer is that they went into hiding in order to survive
an extinction-level threat as described above, with their
hiding places chosen by the Storyteller. Some Forerunners
managed to transcend their prior existence, transforming
themselves through their radically advanced technology.
This generally covers things as organic sapients becoming
machine intelligences and matter-based sapients converting
themselves into some form of sapient energy being. Finally,
the darkest answer is that the Forerunners went extinct for
some reason; typically by way of war, genocide, suicide or
accident. Death by war means the Storyteller must figure
out who was the Forerunners enemy and decide on
their current disposition. If genocide was the end of the
Forerunners, the method of how it was accomplished must
be determined. If the Forerunners committed mass suicide,
their reasons for doing so and the method employed must
be established. If the extinction of the Forerunners was an
accident, the Storyteller must figure out what happened. Her
options include failed transcension attempts, overwhelming
collective guilt for committing an unspeakable crime and
the exponential propagation of self-destructive memes
within the Forerunners culture.
The fourth and final question is this: did any or all
members of the Forerunner civilization possess Inspired
capabilities? If so, as with other alien sapients most
Forerunners will have generally had either Heroic and/or
Psionic Inspiration, with the infamous Doyen being a prime
example of the latter. And yes, Forerunners with eximorphic
capabilities will be rare in the extreme.
 A B E R R A N T
Project Utopia File

Memo - Top Secret

To: Dr. Pesach Silbermann

From: Director Justin J. Laragione
Re: Situation Update

Dr. Silbermann-
As of yesterday, my bosses - and yours - have requested a full update on the activites your section has been pursuing
of late. Please whip up a secure folder on that ASAP. Enclosed is a message for you alone, Doctor. Theyre getting antsy
over something, so please give me some good news to relay to them if you can. If nothing else, itll help the bad news go
down better with them.

Memo - Top Secret

To: Director Justin J. Laragione

From: Dr. Pesach Silbermann
Re: Pressure from the top

Director Laragione-
Ive read over your last memo regarding Utopias space operations, and I cant say that Im at all surprised at the heat
youre getting from our bosses. Theyre sounding more desperate by the day, which isnt good for any of us. Ive been
getting daily reminders about Utopias need for some positive PR, as which space exploration apparently still qualifies. Im
afraid the news I have for you is mixed at best. The relevant files have all been sent to you via our secure courier, but I can
give you a brief overview here and now. The truth, straight, no chaser.
First off, the unalloyed good news. Our continuing operations in placing satellites of all sorts in Earth orbit are going as
strong as ever, cementing our support from the global business community and certain governments. Our ongoing support
of the EOHS also brings us some goodwill in return.
Second, the mixed news. Our relationships with the major space agencies remain cool and distant. Some of this is the
influence of their associated governments - namely the U.S., Japan and China - and is to be expected. In the case of the
ESA, this is due to their close working relationship with the Daedelus League. Apparently the ESA and NASA both appreci-
ate the League novas for their human-caliber egos as opposed to the personalities that some of Utopias space-capable
novas exhibit. Their words, not mine Director - no need to go shooting the messenger. Ive already reassigned our egoists to
duties where they wont grate on others sensibilities so much.

65
 A B E R R A N T
Project Utopia File

Third, the bad news. Despite the repeated best efforts of our Recruiting section, all novas associated with the Daede-
lus League continue to reject our attempts to bring them in line with Utopia and my section. As far as they are concerned,
Utopians might as well be pariahs. Their responses to our efforts are getting increasingly more exasperated and angry. They
no longer talk to our agents, they command them to leave them and their loved ones alone in no uncertain terms, some-
times with legal action backing them up. Ive already had to pull out one agent from a Florida State prison for violating a
restraining order against him. Our Legal section was only just able to get him released on the provision that he leave the
United States immediately and never return. I dont know who had put the word out on that agent, but they succeeded in
making a nasty example out of him. Our Medical section says that hell recover full use of his arms, left leg and jaw in time
with therapy. The mental injuries he suffered in that prison may never heal. Someone high up in Washington DC would be
my prime suspect, but I leave such speculation to our political heavyweights. Our chances of sucessfully recruiting any of the
League are now officially nil, and you can tell our bosses that yourself. Fortunately, that bad news does have a silver lining.
The Daedelus League has been shunning both the Teragen and the Directive just as much as they have Utopia. So thats two
less things for us to worry about.

Memo - Top Secret

To: Dr. Pesach Silbermann

From: Director Justin J. Laragione
Re: Good News/Bad News

Thanks for that, Silbermann. Id hoped for better news about the League, but that bridge seems beyond our ability
to construct. If all goes well, Ill take you and your wife out to lunch at that kosher deli your cousin owns. Will get back to
you soonest if the bosses have any more orders for you.

66
 Chapter Three:
Storytelling
If youve managed to make it this far, the odds are
good that youre a Storyteller thats serious about using
the contents of this book in your Aberrant chronicle. Along
with the usual focus on relevant themes and conflicts for
chronicles using Aberrant: Nexus, we have also provided
some basic guidelines so that you can open up the potential
scope of your chronicle to cover the entire Aeon Continuum.
Theme
When dealing with historical tales of travel, certain
themes are always found at their heart. Matters are no
different where Aberrant chronicles involving space travel,
time travel or crosstime travel are concerned. While power
and how humans use it remains a central theme of Aberrant,
the following themes should always be present.
Responsibility
Gifted with immense quantum power, all novas must
inevitably deal with the issue of responsibility. When
novas gain the capabilities of unaided space travel, time
travel or crosstime travel, this theme only becomes even
more emphasized. The first way this becomes apparent is
when - never if - they make discoveries of world-changing
magnitudes. Those novas then are faced with two simple
questions. First, do they share news of their discovery
with those they left behind back home, or do they keep it
to themselves? Second, what will be the consequences of
doing so in either case? Would sharing their new knowledge
with their society actually improve conditions back home,
or would it make things worse? Would keeping the new
information to themselves prevent it from being abused by
unethical people back home, or would doing so perpetuate
a problem that could otherwise be easily solved?
The second way that responsibility becomes apparent
is when they address the question of bringing back
anything other than simple information back home with
them from their travels. Taking a human away from his or
her home can be a good or bad thing, depending on said
humans circumstances. Saving people from life-threatening
situations or enslavement is laudable, but kidnapping people
CHAPTER THREE: STORYTELLING
to become slaves - or worse - deserves condemnation.
Things get even more troublesome when dealing with alien
sapients, as the novas society will likely imprison them as
involuntary research subjects. Even something as seemingly
benign as reintroducing recently-extinct species into the
novas home ecosystem must be weighed carefully. Then
there is the lovely quandary of introducing new strains of
microlife into environments that have no evolved defenses
against them.
The third facet of responsibility for nova spacetime
travelers is that of preserving both the places they visit - if
warranted - and the places that they inhabit. This can be as
simple as defending ones homeworld from alien invasion
and preventing others from taking undue advantage of their
travel-related quantum powers. It can also be as complex
as preventing others from making detrimental changes to
their worlds timelines or preventing the destruction - or
attempting to, at the very least - of the universe that they
inhabit.
Finally, the fourth way responsibility shows itself for nova
spacetime travelers is that of representation. By traveling
to times and/or places where novas or even humans do
not exist, such novas become de facto representatives of
novakind and/or Humanity to any locals that become aware
of their existence. Whatever said locals come to know the
travelers by depends on the novas themselves. Will they be
remembered as heroic explorers, essentially benign - until
provoked - in their dealings with the realms they visit? Or
will they be reviled as vicious marauders such as the Spanish
conquistadores of the 16th Century are today?
Isolation
Humans are for the most part highly social creatures, so
it should not be any surprise that most novas - save those
with the Autonomous enhancement - are the same way.
This makes for uncomfortable circumstances when they are
isolated from human society for long periods of time. This
theme has different faces depending on which form of travel
the novas are using.
For space travelers, the isolation they face is quite
obvious. When making space voyages lasting months
67
 ABERRANT
or years, the only people around for many thousands of
kilometers - if not many A.U.s or even parsecs - will be each
other. Extended social isolation has been known to make
baseline humans more likely to develop mental disorders,
and since novas are starting with an increased risk for such
anyway its a serious concern. Matters grow even worse
if they are cooped up within a small spacecraft and are
depending on its power and life support systems to keep
them alive. The Adapatability enhancement is worth its
weight in platinum in this situation, as simply being able to
go outside sans spacesuit and without immediately dying
makes a surprisingly good release valve for psychological
pressure. The Hyperenhanced Hearing enhancement is also
worthwhile as it allows novas to hear all forms of radio
waves. Baseline astronauts placed in conditions of extreme
quiet (such as the best isolation rooms) have been known
to start experiencing auditory hallucinations within forty-five
minutes. If the nova space traveler is on a solo voyage, he is
also at risk of forgetting the basic rules of whatever passes
for polite human social behavior back home.
Time travelers and crosstime travelers face a burden
of social isolation similar to that experienced by espionage
agents. As spies must, these novas have to constantly
deceive those around them in order for their efforts to be
effective, and unfortunately some of the deceptions dont
end when the mission does. By definition engaging in time
or crosstime travel typically requires an extreme degree
of secrecy to be kept indefinitely. This will affect a novas
personality - unless certain enhancements are developed -
potentially leaving said nova incapable of honest emotions
or stable relationships. The luckiest of these travelers will
have close friends and lovers who are already in the know
in regards to time or crosstime travel and their missions.
Otherwise, the travelers will eventually face the temptation
to go native during a mission. This is particularly
dangerous when time traveling as doing so could alter
history in undesirable ways.
In all three cases, the isolation involved in space, time
and crosstime travel should have a considerable impact on an
Aberrant chronicle. D. L. Moody once said that Character
is what you are in the dark. Extreme degrees of isolation
will provide that test of character for the nova travelers and
will also provide much drama. Will the travelers hold true
to the ideals and goals that caused them to travel in the
first place? Or will the isolation make them crack under the
pressure?
Courage
For most First World residents of 21st Century Earth,
travel has become much more convenient than it was
in times past. Before modern transportation networks
seemingly shrank the world into a global village, travel was
68 CHAPTER THREE: STORYTELLING
an arduous affair that could take weeks, months or even
years to achieve. A successful arrival at ones destination was
by no means assured, as the veritable fleets of ships lost at
sea can attest. Then there is the ever-present risk of piracy,
where unlucky travelers could be killed or taken as slaves as
their captors saw fit. These circumstances grew even more
precarious in times of war, when enemy ships and privateers
would also harass the shipping of hostile nations. Add in the
ever-present threats of dangerous weather, and it is easy to
see why travelers were romanticized back then.
For novas seeking to travel in space, time or alternate
universes, they are faced with much the same situation as
those historical human travelers. When going on their travels
in space and/or time, those novas are typically heading
out into the unknown with little or nothing in the way of
support from anyone back home. Unless they are extremely
fortunate, there will be no one but themselves to come to
their aid when they encounter unexpected difficulties. Travel
of this sort comes with the price of sacrificing many luxuries
that the novas would take for granted back home. Aside
from the obvious luxuries of governmental protection, social
support and a technical base, there is one that deserves
special mention. Novas engaging in these types of travel
cannot afford the luxury of turning back when the time
inevitably comes to make a tough decision. Do the right
thing is easy enough to say, until matters develop to the
point where doing so could cost them their lives or make
them permanent exiles from wherever they call home.
What these novas must have to survive their travels
is realistic courage. Not unthinking bravado, not foolish
optimism or pomposity but actual courage coupled with a
realistic assessment of the risks they are taking. While novas
may have titanic amounts of power at hand, if they travel
in space and/or time they will eventually wind up facing
equally titanic threats. Without courage, those novas might
as well have stayed home to enjoy their status as relatively
large fish in the small pond that is the Nova Age.
Freedom
Throughout human history, traveling away from
ones home and familiar environs has always implied an
increase - if only a minor one - in personal freedom for the
travelers. When they left the security of the households and
societies they grew up in, they also distanced themselves
somewhat from the social and cultural expectations of those
households and societies. When traveling around people
who dont know them and havent grown up with them, all
travelers save for the truly inhibited tend to feel a certain
liberation in regards to their social behavior. Provided that
it wont either offend the locals or disrupt the journey,
travelers can freely engage in behaviors that would have
earned them social reprimands back home. Unfortunately,
 ABERRANT
some travelers took this as license to act in ways that decent
human beings would find abhorrent, which often led to
horrible consequences for all involved.
None of this has changed much for novas enaging in
space, time and/or crosstime travel. After leaving behind
the global pressure cookers that Nova Age Earths typically
are, the sheer relief of finally being free from the constraints
of public scrutiny - and covert observation - can reach the
point of euphoria. Just how far these novas will take their
newfound sense of freedom depends greatly on their
circumstances. Some novas will manage to keep some self-
restraint over their behavior, subordinating their own desires
to the needs of their missions and the social mores of their
fellow travelers. Others will cast all restraint aside in the
manner of baseline ugly tourists and act with nothing to
keep their desires - both light and dark - in check. Most will
attempt to hold on to the social conditioning of their home
societies, only to find that increasing amounts of time spent
away from their home societies will weaken their learned
social mores considerably.
The only new factor in this age-old human equation is
the power that novas possess. When a baseline traveler got
out of line back in historical times, they typically endangered
only themselves and/or their fellow travelers. On rare
occasion, their misdeeds could ignite a war or give rise to an
epidemic, both of which cost many human lives. When nova
space, time or crosstime travelers are making that kind of
mistakes, the negative consequences are much more severe.
Interstellar wars and alien invasions are the two major threats
that misbehaving nova space and crosstime travelers could
trigger. Nova time travelers could face all that in addition to
hostile time travelers and the possible rewriting or erasure of
their own histories.
In all cases, there is one question that will be faced
by all nova travelers. Are the expectations of their home
societies the only thing keeping them from acting as vicious
barbarians? Or have they learned to make the rules of
civilized behavior part of their identities, to be carried with
them wherever their journeys in space and time lead them?
Conflict
As with all chronicles set within the Aeon Continuum,
there will be conflicts that the player characters must
face. The matter of exactly how they will resolve those
conflicts is one of the greatest factors that will influence
the development of the chronicle. What follows are a few
of the particular conflicts that players in a chronicle using
Aberrant: Nexus.
CHAPTER THREE: STORYTELLING
Explorers vs. The Unknown
This is the challenge that faced all of human historys
greatest explorers: heading off into what were literally
uncharted territories in order to discover whatever may be
found there. When dealing with the frontiers of extrasolar
space and alternate universes, the challenges posed are
merely amplified beyond anything 21st Century baseline
humans are prepared to deal with. Which of course makes
them just the sort of thing for nova explorers - especially the
high-powered ones - to have thrown at them.
The range of possibilities these unknown regions offer is
effectively infinite. For challenges based in extrasolar space,
the Storyteller need not feel limited to the alien civilizations
that were presented in the Trinity gamebooks. The universes
which comprise the Aeon Continuum are vast, with humanity
having only explored the tiniest of portions of them by the
22nd Century. That leaves quite a lot of room for enterprising
Storytellers to create and place any kind of alien civilizations
desired - developing, advanced or extinct - wherever and
whenever they see fit. On the other hand, alternate universes
allow the Storyteller to go utterly wild when coming up with
new places for nova crosstime travelers to visit, willingly or
otherwise. Literally anything can be found somewhere in the
Greater Omniverse, which should evoke both delight and
terror in wise crosstime travelers. As for the foolish among
the crosstime travelers, they can always be expected to rush
in where angels fear to tread...
Explorers vs. The Competition
One thing has always held true in accounts of journeys
throughout human history: whenever a group of explorers
set out in search of new lands and riches, other groups
were seeking the just the same things. On June 7th 1494,
Spain and Portugal signed the Treaty of Tordesillas. This
arrogant and overreaching document officially divided up
the Americas between themselves, reserving the New World
and all its riches to be exploited by them alone. Spain and
Portugal compounded this act of epic hubris by signing the
Treaty of Zaragoza on April 22nd 1529, which divided up
the rest of the planet in much the same way. To say that
the other ruling powers of Europe (and many of the more
powerful non-European nations) disagreed is a massive
understatement, leading to bloody conflicts wherever
Europeans established their colonies in what was claimed to
be Portuguese or Spanish territories. Beyond the Tordesillas
and Zaragozan meridians, it was said, there was no peace
to be had. There was only the savage battle to survive and
maintain their always-tenuous links to Europe.
Matters are not quite this tense in the Nova Age for two
reasons. First, the only new frontier that the Terran nations
currently plan on colonizing is solar space, as they have no
69
 ABERRANT
real access to extrasolar space or belief in the options of time
and crosstime travel. Second, technology has advanced to
the point that any hostile actions taken on behalf of a Terran
nation in solar space would be swiftly noticed and retaliated
against back on Earth. Instead, it will be the competition
between nova explorers - some of whom will be backed by
powerful nova factions on Earth - for the wealth of extrasolar
space, alternate universes and alternate time periods that
could potentially reach such heights of savagery. The reason
that these conflicts are only potential is the sheer scope of
the new frontiers involved. Extrasolar space has far more
territory to explore than Ye Olde Ancestral Mudball ever
had to offer by many orders of magnitude, to say nothing
of the alternate universes and alternate time periods. Given
the immense amounts of territories involved, the only real
reasons for nova travelers to interfere with each other will
be ones relevant to the offending explorers. Such matters
will include hostility due to national or factional allegiances,
personal vendettas and simply having been hired to
eliminate the nova explorers in question for various Terran
organizations. All of this makes encountering fellow nova
travelers an event frought with suspicion and tension.
Opportunism vs. Duty
Whenever something beneficial is discovered, those
responsible are always faced with a choice. Will they keep
the new knowledge to themselves, or will they share it with
others in their community for their collective benefit? It
should be noted that this is yet another conflict between
ethically neutral values. Neither duty nor opportunism
can be labeled good or evil in and of themselves. travelers will find their allegiances and beliefs thrust straight
Context is everything in this. For example, say that a group
of nova extrasolar explorers find a planet close enough in
environment to Earth-standard to where it would make a
viable colony world with minimal terraforming and has no
alien neighbors nearby to worry about. If they are beholden
to a Terran nation that is genuinely supportive of their nova
population, then claiming the new planet for said nation
would be both their duty and most likely a good thing. If
said nation is instead exploitative and seeks to control
their nova population, then the nova explorers would have
no legitimate reason to feel any duty at all towards that
nation. Instead, they can take the opportunity to establish
an independent colony world, recruiting desirable colonists
from both that nations nova population and their like-
minded baseline allies. When opportunism and duty clash,
wise nova explorers do not automatically choose one over
the other. Instead, they figure out the consequences of each
- both good and bad - and make a choice as to which set
of consequences they can live with. Making that choice and
dealing with its consequences always provides much drama
for an Aberrant: Nexus chronicle.
70 CHAPTER THREE: STORYTELLING
Conflicts of Loyalty
There has always been one notable byproduct of
engaging in long and arduous journeys that muct be
taken into account: a changed and often expanded sense
of perspective about oneself and ones role in society. If
travelling is said to broaden the mind, then travelling in
extrasolar space, time and in alternate universes should
do so in spades. When removed from the pressure cooker
that is the typical Nova Age Earth, all but the most obtuse
explorers will begin reassessing their lives and activities
to date. Faced with the enormities of attempting travel
in space, time or alternate universes, nova travelers are
inevitably faced with the following question:
Why am I doing this? Why am I risking so much to
make such an insanely dangerous journey?
Exactly what effects answering this question will
have on a travelers allegiances will depend on his or her
circumstances. For those who have lived their lives in
accordance with the wishes of others, they may finally get
a reason to start figuring out what they themselves really
want out of their lives. Whether that will coincide with what
those others wanted for the nova traveler will be an open
question. For those who were faithful followers of a Terran
faction - nova or otherwise - what they discover in the course
of their journey can either strengthen or shatter that faith.
For those seeking wealth, they may either find their desires
rewarded or dashed by the circumstances they encounter.
For whatever reasons they are attempting the journey, nova
into the crucible, to be either refined and made stronger
or melted into worthless slag. All of this provides excellent
drama for an Aberrant chronicle.
Basic Crossover Mechanics
Whenever a Storyteller decides to allow Nexus content
in her Aberrant chronicle, she must make plans for the
inevitable. Namely, how to handle any contrasting game
mechanics between Aberrant, Adventure! and Trinity.
What follows is our best attempt at some rules of thumb
for introducing characters from Adventure! and Trinity into
your Aberrant chronicle.
Nature
Unlike its sister games, Adventure! allows players to
mix and match the positive and negative aspects of their
characters Natures (Adventure! core book, pp. 129-131).
For those who feel unduly restricted by the old Nature
system presented in Aberrant and Trinity, it can be ported
over to those games without any real difficulty.
 ABERRANT
Attributes, Abilities and Backgrounds
As all three games in question use the same basic system,
porting over these basic stats from Adventure! or Trinity
poses no real problems. Special attention is required only in
that non-nova characters cannot have any of the nova-only
Abilities and Backgrounds. These include the Attunement,
Dormancy, Eufiber and Node Backgrounds (from the
Aberrant core book); the Weave Ability (from the Aberrant
Players Guide), the Channeling, Modulate and Unify Abilities
and the Boosted Attunement and N-Stage Node Background
Enhancements (from Aberrant: The New Flesh).
Mega-Attributes and Quantum
Powers
All Mega-Attributes and quantum powers will function
without any changes in both the Adventure! and Trinity
settings. That said, it should be noted that most of the
low-level Dynamic knacks and certain psionic powers
can duplicate the effects of certain Mega-Attribute
enhancements.
The Movement Question
Astute readers of the various core books will notice
that unlike Aberrant and Trinity, which state that characters
share a base walking speed of five meters, Adventure! has
them moving at (Dexterity + 2) meters per turn. As there
are no other differences in the base movement rates, we
suggest that you use the formula from Adventure! to
recalculate the base walking speeds of characters from the
Aberrant and Trinity settings. There simply is no reason for
characters from the later eras to be slower on the hoof than
their forebears.
Novas In Adventure!
Aside from noting the lesser amounts of power the
typical Inspired has to work with, the main problem facing
the Storyteller when using the Inspired is how to deal with
Inspiration itself. According to the Adventure! core book, the
energy labeled Inspiration, Telluric energy or Z-Rays the Additional Energy Type Extra affecting noetic energy
in the 1920s is actually an admixture of very low levels of both
quantum and noetic energies. At this low level of strength,
these energies do not disrupt one another and can work
together with relative ease. Mega-Perceptive novas with the
Quantum Attunement enhancement will be able to detect
Stalwarts and the use of Dynamic knacks. Those same novas
with the Psi Sensitivity enhancement (from the Aberrant
Compendium, and reprinted in Chapter Four of this book for
your convenience) will be able to sense Mesmerists and the
use of Psychic knacks. In order to sense Daredevils and the use
of Heroic knacks, novas will need to have Mega-Perception
and use both of the aforementioned enhancements in
CHAPTER THREE: STORYTELLING
A Question of Game Balance
Players familiar with the three Aeon Continuum gamelines
have often debated how the issue of game balance should be
addressed. Such debates usually ended up with the Adventure!
and Trinity players wishing to tone down nova capabilities, which
the Aberrant players typically flatly refused to even consider.
Those debates were also utterly pointless, as unlike the World
of Darkness, the denizens of Aberrant, Adventure! and Trinity
are generally restricted to separate time periods of Earth. With
the vast majority of these character types separated by gulfs of
spacetime, game balance was a moot issue.
Considering that crossing those same gulfs of spacetime is
what Aberrant: Nexus is all about, some players and Storytellers
may feel the need to bring up the issue of game balance once
again. That is not necessary for one simple reason. You are
playing Aberrant, not Adventure! or Trinity. The Inspired and
the psions are not the main characters of your chronicle - that
spot is reserved for your players characters, who will be nova
time- or crosstime travelers. The other two games are merely
expanded stage dressings for your Aberrant: Nexus chronicle.
concert. The enhancements in question can also be used
to detect Innovations created by stalwarts or mesmerists
respectively, as those devices utilize Inspiration to operate
much like quantum gadgets use quantum energies.
As far as affecting Inspiration, there are only a few
facts that novas must be aware of. First off, the temporary
Inspiration points possessed by the Inspired can be affected
by certain quantum powers at a 1:1 ratio. As they are
essentially proto-novas, the temporary Inspiration points of
stalwarts are equivalent to novas quantum points and can
be affected by the relevant quantum powers. The temporary
Inspiration points of daredevils are harder to affect as they
are comprised of a blend of low-power quantum and noetic
energies. All attempts to affect a daredevils temporary
Inspiration points are rolled at a +3 difficulty penalty. The
temporary Inspiration points of mesmerists depend on
noetic energy and cannot be affected unless a nova has
(found on p. 112 of this book) for the relevant quantum
powers. For this purpose, certain quantum powers
include Disrupt, Quantum Conversion, Quantum Leech and
Quantum Vampire.
From the point of view of the Inspired, nova travelers
will be glaringly obvious as extraordinary Inspired beings
of unthinkable power. Unless they have some sort of means
of masking their quantum capabilities, nova travelers with
Quantum Traits of 6 or higher can be automatically detected
by use of the Telluric Awareness knack and equivalent
devices. Novas with lower Quantum Trait ratings may be
detected with a standard roll. The reason for this is that
71
 ABERRANT
the Telluric Awareness knack is geared to detecting the far
weaker signals emitted by their fellow Inspired. This in
turn makes the more powerful novas that much easier to
detect if countermeasures arent taken.
On Dramatic Editing
This uncanny luck is as much a product of the Inspiration-
saturated environment of the Adventure! setting as it was
a reflection of the personal capabilities of the Inspired.
Once the levels of Telluric energy began to drop back down
towards pre-Hammersmith levels, physical reality started
to become less fluid. In most Aeon Continuum timelines,
the initial Hammersmith vortex finally dies down circa the
1950s, making Dramatic Editing no longer possible for the
Inspired to achieve. As such, few novas (aside from Divis
Mal, of course) will have any experience with Inspiration
and cannot use Dramatic Editing. That said it is possible
for certain novas to develop Dramatic Editing as a quantum
power. The listing for that new quantum power can be found
in Chapter Four of this book.
Adventure! Characters In
Aberrant
While the effects of the Hammersmith vortex did die
out in the 1950s, the same cannot be said for the Inspired.
Though many of the Inspired did come to bad ends of one
sort or another, others managed to reach the twilight of
their lives and die peacefully of old age. That said, a fraction
with the right knacks or gadgets could have managed to
survive to see the coming of the Nova Age while still being
every bit as vital as they were in the 1920s. Those Inspired
with some version of the Optimized Metabolism dynamic
knack had the surest means of survival, as it allowed them
to age only a year while decades passed. Others were the
beneficiaries of knacks or Innovative gadgets that used such
methods as suspended animation and/or age alteration to
extend their lifespans. Of said fraction, only those who had
a healthy sense of caution and the cunning to evade any
and all official notice over the decades will have survived to
become viable elements of the Aberrant setting.
When creating these survivors, it is important to
remember that most of them will be too powerful and
experienced to be modeled going strictly by the basic
character creation process in the Adventure! core book.
Elder Inspired can be generated using the following
changes to that process.
Characters start off with an extra 10 Transformation
points to spend for each 20-year period theyve lived
through. All characters are assumed to have survived
through the 1920s and 1930s at the minimum.
Characters are nominally limited to a maximum
Inspiration Trait rating of 10. It is possible to purchase an
11th dot of Inspiration, which will have differing effects
depending on the nature of the characters Inspiration. The
details for each character type can be found below.
All characters should buy appropriate Backgrounds
to reflect how theyve managed to evade official notice
over the decades, especially given the rise of computers
in the late 20th Century. While Cipher and Resources are
obvious choices; others of potential use include Device
(for technological methods of suspended animation or
preventing aging) Influence, Sanctum, Citizenship (from the
Trinity core book), and Identity (from the Trinity Players
Guide).
All characters must buy levels of the Hypertech
Background (using T6 as their base Technology Level)
to simulate their efforts to keep up with the scientific &
technological advances that have been made over the
decades. Details on the Technology Levels of the Aeon
Continuum settings can be found in the listing for the

Bulls In The China Shop

For Storytellers, the major problem with dropping nova player characters into the Adventure! setting is the
relative lack of anything that could present them with a suitable challenge unaided. That last word is key, as there are
two ways for a Storyteller to provide that aid by having the player characters restrain themselves. The first way is to
have the characters be time travelers into the past of their native timeline. If the player characters have any sense and
are not idiots, they will realize the need for self-restraint. The crystallized portion of a timeline may be hard to alter,
but nova time travelers have the potential to do just that, likely in disastrous ways. The second way is for crosstime
travelers to do their best to remain undercover in the culture of the early 20th Century, which can be surprisingly difficult
for denizens of the early 21st Century, novas or otherwise. Once the players realize and accept the constraints that their
characters will have to operate under, a devious Storyteller should be able to find plenty of challenges for them in the
Inspired era.

72 CHAPTER THREE: STORYTELLING

 ABERRANT
Hypertech Background on pp. 112-113 of this book. their development forward. Those who purchase the 11th
Characters will not have access to Dramatic Editing, dot of Inspiration are converted into psychomorphs, as per
as that was as much an environmental byproduct of the Psychomorphs in Trinity on p. 61 of the Aberrant Players
Hammersmith Vortex - which died out in the 1950s - as it Guide. Their psychic knacks will determine their primary and
was an Inspired capability. Aside from the mini-Quantum secondary Aptitudes. The characters will retain all Abilities,
Boom of the 1970s and 1980s when Dramatic Editing once Ability Masteries, Backgrounds, Background Enhancements,
again becomes possible, this option will not be available to Merits and Flaws.
the Inspired until August 3rd, 2122 when Process 418 takes One note: Mesmerists will not be affected much by the
place. first N-Day, aside from facing an additional difficulty penalty
Characters retain access to all other options from the of +1 on all psychic knack use for that first 24 hours of the
Adventure! core book, provided that the explanations for Nova Age. Fully manifested psychomorphs will also sense its
such are plausible in the Storytellers opinion. effects through psionic Attunement (Trinity core book, pp.
191-192) aside from suffering the difficulty penalty of +1 on
all psionic power use for that time.
Elder Stalwarts
The only important thing to remember when playing an
elder stalwart is that she is not a nova... yet. Until such time
as a stalwart manages to transform herself into a nova, she
will have all the limitations as described in the Adventure!
core book. That said, she also cannot gain Taint as she lacks
an M-R Node.
From Stalwart To Nova
Once stalwarts achieve Inspiration 10, there are two
options for their further development. The first is to simply
let their raw power plateau and focus instead on gaining
new Knacks and increasing their Abilities and Backgrounds.
Its a viable option, especially if they dont not consider
gaining novahood to be worth all the troubles it would bring
to their doorsteps.
Then there are those who feel that they must keep
developing in order to avoid becoming a living relic of
earlier times. These stalwarts will keep testing their limits
and refining their powers, which requires purchasing an 11th
dot of Inspiration with experience points. Upon doing so,
stalwarts undergo a fundamental change of being that is
very much like the eruptions of first generation novas. To
represent this transformation in game terms, the stalwart
must be rewritten as a nova at a nova point level of the
Storytellers choosing. The former stalwarts Inspiration is
traded in for a base Quantum Trait of 1, and knacks are
converted into their equivalent quantum powers and Mega-
Attribute enhancements. The only real difference is that as
a former stalwart, the quantum power version of Dramatic
Editing is always considered in theme for her or his
development. Also, the character will retain all Abilities,
Ability Masteries, Backgrounds, Background Enhancements
and Merits. Certain Flaws may be eliminated in the eruption
process if the Storyteller deems it plausible.

Elder Mesmerists
As with the stalwarts, mesmerists must make a choice
of whether to let themselves plateau or to keep pushing

CHAPTER THREE: STORYTELLING 73

 ABERRANT
Elder Daredevils
As they generally see themselves as exceptional
humans, the vast majority of elder daredevils allow
themselves to plateau and focus on other areas of their
development upon reaching Inspiration 10. Elder daredevils
and paramorphs can and do both benefit from developing
new heroic knacks, examples of which can be found on
several Aeon-related websites on the Internet.
The few elder daredevils who have any inkling of how
they could further develop their power are often reluctant
to do so, as it is dangerous in the extreme. By purchasing
an 11th dot of Inspiration with experience points, elder
daredevils literally become paramorphs, beings unstuck
in time. Those spent experience points are used to buy
two or more levels of the Chronal Awareness heroic knack
(Adventure! core book p. 232), with the first level always
being the Time Travel sub-knack. The price of becoming a
full paramorph is always an involuntary time jump, which
can be dangerous in the extreme depending on when the
new paramorph winds up. There are a million ways to die in
any period of human history, and paramorphs are immune
to exactly none of them. New paramorphs may spend
additional experience points to gain the Looper Merit (see
p. 119 of this book), in which case the new paramorphs
initial time jump will be redirected to a place of safety by
their future selves. This is how Max Mercer survived his own
initial time jump, and requires a paramorphs future self to
have the Temporal Beacon sub-knack.
Due to their special relationship with time, paramorphs
are immune to historical shifts caused by time travel. They
are also highly resistant to adverse temporal manipulation
effects, adding their Inspiration Trait rating to the dice pool
of all rolls made to resist techniques such as Age Alteration,
Dilate Time and Stop Time.
Aside from the base Time Travel sub-knack, Chronal
Awareness can duplicate - more or less - any technique
of the Temporal Manipulation quantum power (Aberrant
core book, pp. 226-228) with the following caveat. Any
technique that affects beings other than the paramorph
himself are drastically limited in duration if they can function
so at all. The sub-knack version of Stop Time has a duration
of (Inspiration) turns, while the sub-knack version of Age
Alteration can only affect the paramorph himself. Other
quantum powers and power techniques - not just the
obviously time related ones! - can be adapted with the
Storytellers approval, provided that the player can figure
out a way for them to function by messing with time. New
Temporal Manipulation techniques and the Looper Merit
are described in Chapter Four of this book. Using Chronal
Awareness requires the paramorph to spend temporary
Inspiration, just as novas must spend quantum points to use
most quantum powers.
74 CHAPTER THREE: STORYTELLING
Novas In Trinity
When dealing with novas in the Trinity setting, the main
difficulties are the inaccurate terminology used on 22nd
Century Earth when discussing the Quantum-born, Taint and
how they both interact with noetic energy. Most of these
errors have been addresed in prior Aeon Continuum books
(canon and otherwise) in a piecemeal fashion. For claritys
sake, we are listing all the corrections here for everyones
convenience.
Also, all Aberrant players and Storytellers should
disregard all the relevant material found in the Trinity
books in favor of the Aberrant books. The developers of
Trinity had little clear idea of what novas and/or aberrants
would be capable of, and they never really spoke with the
developers of Aberrant on the matter. Disagreements and
clashing game mechanics were bound to occur. And as
youre playing Aberrant...
The Basics
In all but a few cases described below, the Mega-
Attributes and quantum powers of nova travelers will
function normally - as per the Aberrant core book - in the
Trinity setting. Nova travelers do not become any less
powerful just by leaving the quantum-enriched environment
of the Nova Age.
Most denizens of the Trinity setting - save for certain
Nihonjin scientists, quantakinetic psions and novas such as
the Edenites - do not differentiate between Quantum and
Taint. They see no need to, instead preferring to label it
all as Taint with all the negative connotations that term
implies. Its understandable, if also simplistic and stupid.
This inaccurate viewpoint was promulgated - and reinforced
- by the majority of psions (and their Doyen puppetmasters)
due to the disruption effect between quantum and psi.
Quantum energies and psi energies do disrupt each
other. Novas with the Disrupt quantum power can use it
normally against psions, who can resist by rolling Psi + the
Mode being disrupted. In turn, all psions can create the
noetic equivalent of the Disrupt quantum power by rolling
Psi + their highest Mode. Other effects of the quantum/
psi disruption effect include mild physical distress and
uneasiness on the part of the psions and highly-Tainted
novas (including Trog second generation novas/aberrants),
but that is all just more stage dressing for the Storyteller.
Due to their direct channelling of psi energy, psions
enjoy an increased resistance to certain quantum powers.
All mental quantum powers that are resisted with
Willpower and Psychic Shield are resisted with the psions
Willpower or Psi, whichever is higher. This includes but is
not limited to Empathic Manipulation, Mental Blast and
Telepathy. This may or may not also include use of the Social
 ABERRANT
Mega-Attributes and their associated enhancements at the
Storytellers discretion - few if any Trinity-era novas have
been shown to be Mega-Social, so its anyones guess.
Most quantum powers that directly manipulate a psions
quantum signature automatically fail. Dont even bother with
the power roll. This includes but is not limited to Aberration
Transfer, Node Spark, Quantum Imprint, Quantum Authority
and Quantum Supremacy. Quantum Leech and Quantum
Vampire are the exceptions, as they can respectively be
used to drain a psions Psi pool or affect a psion if the nova
has the Additional Energy Type Extra for those powers.
That Extra can be found on p. 112 of this book.
Attempts by novas to track the quantum signature
of a psion with just the Node Background or the Quantum
Attunement enhancement of Mega-Perception are rolled
at +2 difficulties. Such attempts using the Psi Sensitivity
enhancement (on p. 84 of this book) are rolled normally.
As can only be expected, no form of noetic bioware
will function for a nova. Likewise, psions and other noetically-
Inspired beings cannot use any kind of quantum gadgetry.
When reinterpreting Trinity aberrants - as opposed
to the Colonys Sub-Aberrants - into Aberrant terms, there
are several things to keep in mind. First, the largest portion
of them - Storytellers discretion as to the exact percentage
- will have Taint ratings equal to their Quantum Trait ratings,
and will have several additional aberrations to boot.
Those extra aberrations will always include the Taint Bleed
aberration (Aberrant Players Guide p. 96). It is speculated
that the Colony permanently gifts all of its nova-caliber
followers with that aberration by means of the Aberration
Transfer quantum power (Aberrant: Teragen pp. 125-
126). Its reasons for doing so remain unknown (Storytellers
discretion as to the details). Second, they may not use Social
Mega-Attributes - except for the Mega-Ugliness variant of
Mega-Appearance - on either psions or baseline humans
who are not insane. Third, their Taint pools are equivalent
to novas quantum pools at a 1:2 ratio (1 Taint point equals
2 quantum points).
Sub-Aberrants are as described on pp. 68-69 of
Aberrant: The New Flesh. They cannot have Mega-
Attributes and do not have the Taint Bleed aberration of
their nova-caliber superiors.
Quantum energies can and do have an effect on the
noetic world, but this is not a negative thing in and of itself.
Neither quantum nor psi energies are inherently good or
bad, as context is everything. Much has been written on the
negative effects of quantum energy on the Telluric (read:
quantum and noetic) environment, yet the negative effects
of excessive amounts of noetic energy have been ignored
entirely. Likewise, the beneficial effects of both quantum and
psi energies have been mentioned only in passing if at all.
That changes now.

CHAPTER THREE: STORYTELLING 75

 ABERRANT
The Telluric Environment
In Trinity, much is made of how the use of quantum
powers is damaging to the noetic environment. The fact
that they dont differentiate between Quantum and Taint -
only the latter of which is truly harmful to living biospheres
- only confuses the matter. Of course, the psions have their
own reasons - and inclination - to promote their inaccurate
beliefs over the actual facts.
While quantum and psi energies do disrupt each other
at the elevated levels produced by novas, aberrants and
psions, they do not do so appreciably at lower levels. In
fact, they can work together quite well. This non-disruptive
interaction between quantum and psi is what has allowed
life to evolve wherever the local circumstances permit.
Areas where these interactions are most noticeable form
what occultists term ley lines or dragon paths, some and waterways drying out. The latter included such things
of which manifest in all the natural waterways on Earthlike
planets.
These interactions between quantum and psi energies
- hereafter termed Telluric energy for brevitys sake - and increased psi energy regions allowed the excesses of
run on a cyclical pattern, with the balance always shifting
between quantum and psi over time. On Earth, this has an
effect on the local human cultures. Areas where that balance
has shifted toward quantum tend to make the local cultures
wild and vigorous, as the locals feel less constrained by their
traditions, laws and customs. This can be a good thing, as
these conditions allow for social progress, innovations and
new things of all sorts to be made with less difficulty than is
typical. The negative aspect of this situation is a tendency
for some to ignore beneficial beliefs, laws, traditions and
customs, leading to increased criminal activity and social
corruption. On the other hand, areas where the balance has
shifted toward psi tend to make the local cultures attachment
to their identity and practices that much stronger. The
benefit of this - aside from a more orderly populace - is that
information encoding is somewhat easier
than is typical. In practical terms, this
allows people to increase their Abilities,
Backgrounds and whatnot at a slightly
accelerated rate. The negative aspect
of this situation is that the local cultures
become somewhat lackluster, fatalistic
and unimaginative due to the increased
influence of their social structure. This
leads to social stagnation, strengthening
of whatever is considered the local status
quo and an inability to overturn harmful
beliefs, laws, practices and customs.
On the larger scale, this strengthened
cultural identity also increases the risk of
violent conflicts with other cultures. In
game terms, the Storyteller should feel
76 CHAPTER THREE: STORYTELLING
free to add difficulty penalties of varying strength - +1 in
an Adventure!-equivalent Telluric environment, +2 or
higher in environments similar to Aberrant or Trinity - on all
relevant rolls made to affect society in ways going against
the current Telluric flow. Rolls that take advantage of the
current Telluric flow may also have their difficulties lowered
by a similar amount.
These regions also shifted locations and changed the
amount of Telluric energy they emitted, usually due to
interference in their natural energy flows. Some areas would
emit barely enough Telluric energy to preserve any nearby
life, while others would emit huge amounts of Telluric
energy. The causes for this are either geological events or
human interference. The former would be anything from
earthquakes and volcanoes to new sinkholes opening up
as dams, underground nuclear explosive testing and what
the Chinese would consider bad feng shui.
Usually, the cycles between the increased quantum
both to dissipate gradually, allowing the local cultures to
regain some degree of equilibrium. The creation of the
Hammersmith Telluric Vortex in 1922 failed to change that
process very much, as it produced both quantum and psi
energies in equal measure and only lasted 20 years. Not
even Dr. Michael Donighals first attempt to replicate his
own version of the Hammersmith Vortex in the 1970s was
any different.
All of that changed on March 23rd, 1998, as Dr.
Donighal - who now called himself Divis Mal - managed to
create a variant form of Telluric Vortex that was purposely
imbalanced towards quantum energy. In terms of the
noetic environment, the greatly elevated quantum made
the structures of cultural laws, traditions and customs
increasingly more fragile as the Nova Age progressed.
 ABERRANT
As they had (and still have) the power to act as catalysts
to change human society, novas picked and chose which
specific cultural constructs to either destroy or reinforce -
with help from existing baseline social trends, of course. The
ending of the entrenched patriarchy and misogyny in Asia
in the mid-21st Century - which had a sordid history going
back thousands of years - is a prime example of the beneficial
cultural damage novas can help to cause. Likewise, while
the degradation of the old United States into the overtly
fascist FSA was the culmination of many pre-existing social
factors that had been present since before the Nova Age, it
was the actions of hostile novas and aberrants that acted as
the catalyst for it.
While the Quantum Vortex accomplished Mals intended
purpose - the mass eruption of certain latent humans into
first generation novas - the extremely elevated levels of
quantum energy it produced also resulted in increased levels
of general cultural damage, lawlessness and corruption at all
levels of society. None of the latter really mattered to Mal,
who had written off baseline humanity as irrelevant and had
enough bad history with the baseline Western culture of the
20th Century to not have much sympathy for it. As Mal kept
renewing his Quantum Vortex until his departure from Earth in
2061, that cultural damage, lawlessness and corruption kept
growing right along with the rate of nova eruptions. The fact
that many of the new novas erupted with increasing levels of
Taint didnt help matters as the environmental effects of Taint
quickly became apparent.
After the First Aberrant War, the telluric environment
slowly repaired itself as best it could. Aberrants and novas still
erupted from on occasion - the latter often in Nihon - while
corruption and lawlessness reigned over many damaged
cultures of the planet. This state of affairs continued even as
the Psi Orders were established in 2104. With the addition
of powerful human psions and their heavy use of noetic
biotech, the regions where they lived and worked became
saturated with elevated amounts of psi energy. This has led
to the expected decrease in social and ideological flexibility,
increased social stagnation and strengthening of a status quo
which simply is not workable in the long term. In the highest
elevated psi regions, discarnates - known to the Aeon Council
as psi forms and described in Appendix #3 of this book -
began to manifest in increasing numbers.
Then on August 3rd, 2122, Process 418 occured. Nora
scientists in Venezuela managed to replicate the initial
Hammersmith Vortex, with effects as described in Trinity:
Terra Verde (pp. 25-26). Although this event has cast the
global noetic and quantum environment into severe flux, it has
also given a chance for Earths Telluric environment to reach
a new balance after over a century of imbalance. Provided,
of course, that threats such as the Colony and the Coalition
dont succeed in their plans for Earth and humanity...
CHAPTER THREE: STORYTELLING
Welcome To The Noetic Era
(Hope You Survive The Experience...)
As anyone who has read the Trinity gamebooks could
attest, most of the Solar System and the extrasolar Terran
colonies can be considered hostile territory for nova time-
and crosstime travelers. Consider the local situation: Terran
society had barely survived the First Aberrant War, and has
only recently begun to rebuild itself in the 22nd Century
into anything comparable to pre-War levels of prosperity.
Technology has advanced - albeit in a piecemeal fashion -
to the point where baseline militaries have a much greater
chance of defeating hostile aberrants than their 21st Century
predecessors did in the First Aberrant War. Worse yet, the
widespread hatred of aberrants and anything related to
them is not only at an all-time high, its almost considered
to be a virtue. Entire groups of noetic humans have arisen
specifically to defend baseline humanity against the aberrant
threat - with lethal force being their overwhelmingly-
preferred method. And to top off this steaming mess, not
only have the Taint-ridden forces of the Colony started the
Second Aberrant War, they will see nova travelers as either
potential recruits or as enemies to be eliminated posthaste.
If they have any common sense or intelligence at all,
nova travelers will immediately seek to lay low as transient
baselines upon arriving in the Noetic Era. If they have the
option, using the Dormancy Background can literally be
a life-saver in this situation. A better option would be for
nova travelers to use some form of temporal or cross-time
method to gather intelligence on 22nd Century Earth before
they even arrive there. If they are smart, savvy and very
lucky, a group of nova travelers could go for weeks before
attracting any unwelcome attention - and in this case, any
attention qualifies as unwelcome.
The main attraction for nova travelers to voluntarily visit
a Noetic Era Earth is to learn of their advances in science and
hard technology (as opposed to noetic biotech). This will
not be easy given the fragmented and paranoid redesign of
the OpNet and the expected safeguards against industrial
espionage, but can be fruitful if the right targets are chosen
and the right precautions are taken. Historical databases will
be especially hard to come by, thanks to the censoring done
by Operation Rewrite (Trinity core book, p. 73).
Some truly idealistic nova travelers may wish to assist
baseline humanity against the Colony. Unless they are
truly powerful - and were talking Divis Mal-powerful here
- it is also a truly excellent way for nova travelers to get
themselves killed in short order. Remember that they will be
acting as a third side in a two-way conflict where both of
the opposing sides would sooner kill the nova travelers than
talk with them peacefully. There is no sane, logical reason
to fight for the sake of people who want you and everyone
77
 ABERRANT
like you dead or worse. That said, heroic action against the
Colony is still possible - it just means that the nova travelers
will have to pick their battles carefully, achieve & retain the
strategic and tactical edge, then bug out of the combat
theater once the enemy forces are disposed of. A healthy
dose of masochism is also helpful. Provided that said nova
travelers are prepared to operate without any support from
others at all - and are capable of doing so successfully - they
can function as a true wildcard in the Second Aberrant War.
Unsurprisingly, there are several ways that novas can
wind up in the Noetic Era, willingly or otherwise. Accidents
involving time travel or crosstime travel are obvious methods.
An excessively powerful form of the Stop Time technique of
Temporal Manipulation could easily send a group of novas
on a one-way trip to the future. The use of suspended
animation - as either the Mega-Stamina enhancement or a
technology - is another such method. Nova space travelers
whose vessels fly at relativistic speeds will certainly undergo
enough time dilation to end up in the 22nd Century. Terat
novas who undergo a Chrysalis run the risk of possibly
spending decades in their quantum-charged comas, and
could easily have been hidden away and forgotten in all the
tumult and chaos of the First Aberrant War.
Aberrant Classifications In Trinity
One particular question that has never been answered
well in Trinity is this: what is a Prime Threat aberrant?
For that matter, what exactly does the weak, average,
powerful scale - as seen on the table for detecting aberrants
with psionic Attunement in the Trinity Players Guide, p.
Now That Were Here, How Do
We Get The %#@& Out!?!
In cases where involuntary nova travelers have no inherent
ability for time travel or crosstime travel, winding up in the Trinity
setting makes for dire straits indeed. Theyre stuck on a future
Earth whose populace is taught to hate people like them, and
have good reason for doing so. The existence of the Psi Orders
makes even simple things like purchasing food a dangerous task.
That said, there are ways to novas to escape the Solar System. If
they are resourceful enough, they might find old records hinting
at the location of one of the nova colony worlds, which could
provide a safe haven for them. Possible methods of reaching
the nova colony worlds will generally revolve around creating
interstellar Warps, through which either the novas themselves or
a small spacecraft could pass. Another possibility is for the novas
to contact and prove themselves to the Upeo wa Macho. In return
for providing the Teleportation Order with valuable data from the
Nova Age (which was lost in the Crash), these psions could easily
grant the novas passage to Eden.
78 CHAPTER THREE: STORYTELLING
145 - translate to in Aberrant terms? Is psionic Attunement
better suited to detect the Taint-twisted aberrants than their
nova cousins, or does it depend on the aberrants or novas
Quantum?
The second and third questions are easy enough to
answer, once you recall that almost no one in the Trinity
setting bothers to tell the difference between Quantum and
Taint. As it is the Quantum Trait that disrupts Psi energy,
that is what psions use to detect eximorphic beings such as
novas and aberrants. Certainly they can note the difference
between an eximorphs Quantum and Taint Traits - which
is what makes the Edenites and other novas so puzzling to
psions and most Terran scientists - but they havent been
taught that any difference exists between Quantum and
Taint.
The first question depends on how a high-powered
(Quantum 6 or higher) nova or aberrant has developed his
or her quantum powers - in Aberrant terms, whether or
not he or she has developed the Mastery Extra (Aberrant
Players Guide p. 119). Having the Mastery Extra always
qualifies a nova or aberrant for status as a Prime Threat for
the purposes of psionic Attunement (automatic success on
all detection attempts). Of course, unless steps are taken to
shield ones quantum signature from being detected, Prime
Threat novas in a Trinity setting should expect missiles with
armed fusion warheads to be fired at them on a regular
basis.
Aberrant Characters
in Trinity
Some Trinity and Aberrant Storytellers may be
wondering what those novas and aberrants who have
survived into the 22nd Century would be like. Assuming
that they have lived through all those decades between
the Nova Age and the Noetic Era, these individuals provide
the Storyteller with an excellent way to shake up the status
quo, bring in new opponents or even give an unexpected
helping hand.
The means by which novas and/or aberrants could
have survived the First Aberrant War are glaringly obvious.
Many novas have Mega-Stamina, which can extend a novas
lifespan up to 5,000 years at the extreme. That figure rises
dramatically if the nova has the Adaptability enhancement,
and is rendered irrelevant if the nova has the Unaging
enhancement (Aberrant: The New Flesh, p. 214). Novas
with the Immortality or Reincarnation powers (Aberrant:
The New Flesh, pp. 228-229 and 234-235 respectively)
also make excellent candidates for survival. Finally, use
of suspended animation as either the Mega-Stamina
enhancement or technology can allow a nova to survive the
decades, albeit at the cost of being less powerful than those
 ABERRANT
who actually lived through them instead of sleeping them oriented works of Jack Kirby, Jim Starlin and John Byrne.
away. Unfortunately, the Power Isnt Everything gray sidebar on
The next question that must be asked is this: assuming p. 67 of the Aberrant Players Guide has proven to be far less
these novas and aberrants were active during the Second than sufficient for its stated purpose of providing guidelines
Interregnum, what exactly were they doing all that time? for such Aberrant chronicles. As high-powered is exactly
Helping to establish nova or aberrant colony worlds? what most chronicles using Aberrant: Nexus will have to be
Engaging in crosstime travel? Exploring the Milky Way and/ by definition, there is no better place for this problem to be
or other galaxies? Setting up hidden bases throughout the remedied.
Solar System from which to hatch plots for humanitys future
in the best Evil Mastermind tradition? The possibilities are
Big Fish In A Little Pond
endless.
There are three main factors that every Storyteller
When creating survivors and relics of the Nova Age,
planning to run a high-powered Aberrant chronicle must
keep in mind that most of them will be too powerful and
realize and make preparations in advance to deal with. First,
experienced to be modeled going strictly by the basic
we are talking about chronicles where each and every player
character creation process in the Aberrant core book. Elder
character is effectively a major god in terms of personal
novas and aberrants can be generated using the following
power. At that point, there is little that baseline humanity
changes to that process.
can do to challenge such beings, and even less that will
Characters start off with an extra 20 nova points to
be remotely effective. The idea of any baseline society
spend for each 20-year period theyve lived through. All
managing to persecute such novas as they do to baseline
characters are assumed to have survived through at least four
human minorities is - to be blunt - utterly absurd. This issue
decades of the Nova Age at the minimum.
becomes most obvious when discussing Chinas Ultimatum
Characters are not limited to a maximum Quantum
of using fusion warheads to carpet-nuke the entire planet to
Trait rating of 5 at creation.
force the aberrants to go into exile. While the action was
All characters should buy appropriate Backgrounds
real - as shown by the destruction of Bahrain by those very
to reflect how theyve managed to survive and thrive over
warheads - it simply was not enough of a threat against the
the decades, especially given the chaos of the First Aberrant
aberrants, most of whom were high-powered novas, if highly
War.
tainted. The real force behind the Chinese Ultimatum was
All characters must buy levels of the Hypertech
the unified power of the still-sane novas and Divis Mal and
Background (using T9 as their base Technology Level)
the Teragen. Which in turn leads us to the second factor...
to simulate their efforts to keep up with the scientific &
The second factor is this: the only way to challenge a
technological advances that have been made over the
high-powered nova is with another high-powered nova or
decades. Details on the Technology Levels of the Aeon
equivalent being. No baseline human is going to be able to
Continuum settings can be found in the listing for the
stand up to a handful of mildly irritated novas at that level
Hypertech Background on pp. 112-113 of this book. Please
of power. No baseline human will ever be as perceptive
note that the nova colony worlds are almost guaranteed to
or clever as a nova super-genius so it doesnt matter how
have a higher Technology Level than the Trinity standard,
subtle or tricky they are, they will be found out and quickly.
due to two main factors. First, the nova scientists & inventors
Even other Inspired beings will have massive difficulties if
will have had plenty of time for unrestricted research &
they try to take on high-powered novas.
development efforts. Second, many of the nova colonies
The third factor is the fragility of Earth in the Nova Age, in
will also be facing the challenge of having to fight off the
all of the physical, socio-cultural, economic and geopolitical
Colonys nova-caliber aberrant hordes to help spur their
senses. Most such characters could literally destroy the Earth
technological progress.
if they ever got ticked off enough to do so. Novas could
Characters retain access to all other options from the
literally cause centuries-old traditions and folkways to be
Aberrant books, provided that the explanations for such are
tossed out the window in the name of social progress. Novas
plausible in the Storytellers opinion.
might choose to advance human technology to the point
where human civilization becomes a global socialist state in
Playing High-Powered Novas which resource scarcity has become a thing of the past. In the
If youre reading this, its a fair bet that youre either a face of such change, national economies will have to either
Storyteller who wants to run a chronicle with high-powered totally reinvent themselves or die. All wealth-based social
novas or a player whod like to explore the challenges of structures would also be severely disrupted, which would be
playing one. Perhaps you wish to have your characters the greatest nightmare of the current baseline social elite.
have adventures that could have come out of the cosmic- As for baseline human governments, their historic monopoly

CHAPTER THREE: STORYTELLING 79

 ABERRANT
For Everything, There Is A Season
When starting off a high-powered Aberrant chronicle, the
Storyteller may be tempted to toss in something from outside the
typical parameters of Nova Age Earth before the player characters
ever leave the planet. While it sounds neat on paper, it isnt a
good idea in practice. The canon geopolitical situation of Nova
Age Earth is messed up enough without tossing in something like
an alien invasion. Its best to let the player characters fix the Earth
first before they actually leave it for the stars. Thats when you
have them make First Contact with the warlike aliens.
on the use of force is shattered by the mere existence of
high-powered novas, much less their actions. Nations in the
Nova Age face more than mere international sanctions or
conventional warfare if they take unprovoked action against
each other. They also face the threat of immediate reprisal
by any high-powered novas who may have interests in the
targeted nation.
Add all of that up and one thing becomes crystal-clear:
all high-powered Aberrant chronicles are going to have to
shift their focus away from Earth, and the sooner the better.
There simply is nothing on Earth in the Nova Age that can
be used to provide high-powered novas with anything but a
brief challenge. It helps to think of Nova Age Earth as merely
the player characters troubled home town; which they help
to set matters right again before going off to explore the
wider, far more challenging and much more rewarding world
that exists beyond the city limits. Goals such as destroying
Project Proteus, bringing the Aeon Society to justice as war
criminals and heading off the First Aberrant War should
only be the beginning. Once novas have the power to
leave Humanitys birthworld behind and colonize, terraform
or even create extrasolar planets, the Earth becomes little
more than just another ball of dirt. There is only one way for
a high-powered Aberrant chronicle to really blossom into
something memorable, fun and generally worth playing.
High-powered novas must head out into the uncharted
territories of extrasolar space, time, and/or the Omniverse.
Setting the Stage
If youre going to run a high-powered Aberrant
chronicle, be prepared to do an extremely heavy load
of preparation work beforehand. Nova Age Earth as
presented in the Aberrant books is by necessity only a
tiny part of the entire stage that this kind of chronicle will
play out on. Before gameplay even begins, the Storyteller
should develop several NPC high-powered novas to act
as opponents, nuisances and the occasional friend for the
player characters. These NPCs should leave Earth to have
the opportunity to grow and develop much like the player
80 CHAPTER THREE: STORYTELLING
characters will, and can have all sorts of reasons to make
the player characters lives that much more interesting... in
the sense of the Chinese curse.
Wise Storytellers will also develop at least 10 major
alien civilizations, a dozen or more alternate universes and
perhaps four to six future human or nova civilizations that
could logically provide high-powered nova player characters
with serious challenges. Dont think that youre limited
to just having other high-powered novas as the player
characters only source of competition and/or conflict. If
there are any beings in fiction which are roughly equivalent
to high-powered novas, feel free to use your own versions
of them in your chronicle. You have over eighty years worth
of excellent science fiction to choose from.
Well say it again: be prepared to do a LOT of work
before the game even begins. The current Aberrant books
(both canon and fan) will NOT be enough to provide your
players with anywhere near enough of a challenge to make
playing in a high-powered Aberrant chronicle worth their
while. If youre not prepared to do the stagework, do not
even bother running such a chronicle in the first place.
Otherwise, you risk disappointing your players and wasting
everyones valuable free time.
Casting The Players
Just as important to the success of your chronicle will
be the player characters themselves. Before play begins,
the Storyteller should sit down with the players and talk
seriously about the characters they plan to create. This
goes beyond discouraging the typical create a character
with an automatic I WIN button syndrome that some
Aberrant players are prone to. Every facet of the characters
must be taken into account - what happens when a Mega-
Intelligent character has almost no one in the group that
can communicate with him at his intellectual level? What
of a Mega-Manipulative grifter; will she grease the social
wheels for the groups collective benefit, or will she play
them all as her puppets? The player characters should have
more in common than just their nodes, planet of origin and
level of quantum power. They must also share a common
agenda beyond the usual get rid of the Aeon Council and
Proteus that will grant them a unity of purpose. This can be
like trying to herd a bunch of drunken housecats with some
Aberrant players, but it is absolutely necessary. Otherwise,
the Storyteller will end up with a chronicle of alienation
creeping in between near-omnipotent people working in
their own private sandboxes towards their own personal
goals. The player characters might be interesting in and of
themselves, but that does not make for fun roleplaying and
its even more boring to have to run. What makes roleplaying
fun is characters interacting, having conflicts and resolving
them, and generally being people. Anything else is a waste
 ABERRANT
of your time and effort.
Storytellers whove read this far might be feeling a bit
discouraged by the prospect thats been set out here. Thats
why we advise you to prepare in advance like crazy and to
cheat as much as is needed. Yes, youll have to do a lot of
work - thats why you do as much as you can beforehand.
You will need mountains of creativity - if you have access to
a decent library of science fiction, all that creativity is yours
to reap & modify to your taste. You will need the ability to
out-think pretty much every player character in the chronicle
- download a PDF of Aberrant: Brainwaves. On pp. 33-34,
the rules for running Mega-Mental games have excellent
advice on how to simulate Mega-Intelligence in the game.
And thats exactly what you as the Storyteller will be required
to do. It helps if the players also understand this and are
willing to help you out for the sake of the chronicle.
Aside from that, the Storyteller must remain as involved
with the roleplaying as possible. Its recommended that the
Storyteller should always have multiple complications at
hand to inflict on the player characters. Complications can
be used to hook the player characters and drag them all
into the same problem, which is excellent for preventing
alienation and solipsism. Complications can also set the
player characters at odds with one another, forcing them
into compromise or conflict. Complications can also be
used to shock the players out of a rut by tossing something
completely unexpected at them - provided that it wouldnt
derail the plot completely - which you as the Storyteller have
carte blanche to do as is needed to keep the game fun for
everyone and running smoothly.
Playing On The Cosmic Stage
A problem with running a high-powered Aberrant
chronicle is the perception that if taken to the extreme, it
becomes a session of interactive cooperative writing where
the game mechanics are irrelevant instead of a roleplaying
game. There are ways for Storytellers to combat this.
First, where no limitations are explicitly shown to exist,
as the Storyteller you must establish them. If no game
mechanics exist in any Aberrant or Trinity book that cover
a given situation, make new ones as needed. And as for
challenging the player characters in any meaningful way,
keep the following Commandment of Roleplaying Gaming
in mind: THERE IS ALWAYS A BIGGER FISH. As the second
paragraph title says, on Earth high-powered novas such
as the player characters were big fish in a tiny pond. That
changes when they leave Earth for extrasolar space and/
or the Omniverse - out there, these former big fish find
themselves in the deep blue ocean. Whats worse - for them,
anyway - is that the former big fish are large enough to be
noticed, and some of that attention is certain to be hostile.
And thats a situation ripe for excellent roleplaying.

Visiting The Old Hometown

While Nova Age Earth - and baseline humanity - might fade into the background of a high-powered Aberrant
chronicle, the Storyteller shouldnt simply write it and them off entirely. More likely than not, the player characters will
still have some emotional ties to the people of Earth - nova and otherwise - if not the planet itself. It isnt likely that
they will just stand back and watch if Earth faces an alien invasion or some other Threat From Beyond that they have no
chance against. What better way for the player characters to realize how much theyve grown since leaving Earth than
returning there in order to save it? What better way to show them the fruits of their efforts to fix the Earth before they
left for the stars? That said, such occurrences should be very rare in this kind of Aberrant chronicle. Extrasolar space
is huge by anyones standards, and the Milky Way in the Aeon Contiuum is not exactly teeming with many spacefaring
alien civilizations.

CHAPTER THREE: STORYTELLING 81

Chapter Four:
New Items
New Mega-Attribute
Enhancements
Freefaller (Mega-Dexterity)
As any experienced astronaut could confirm, humans
whove just gotten their first taste of microgravity (or
freefall) tend to be awkward and clumsy in the extreme. It
generally takes several misions in Earth orbit for an astronaut
to learn how function effectively in zero-G. Novas with this
enhancement are the exception to the rule, as they have an
instinctive knowledge of how best to operate in microgravity.
System: The nova has +3 automatic successes on all rolls
for physical actions attempted in microgravity environments,
and is also immune to spacesickness. This is permanent, and
has no quantum point cost.
FTL Reflexes (Mega-Dexterity)
Even for Mega-Dexterous novas, maneuvering in space at
velocities approaching or greater than C (the speed of light in
a vacuum) is difficult in the extreme, if not downright suicidal.
Novas who manage to develop the power of relativistic or
superluminal flight universally develop this enhancement as
well. While its possible for a nova to fly at near- or greater-
than-lightspeed without this enhancment, such a reckless fool
is certain to quickly fly headfirst into something thats lethal
even to novas. Something like a black hole, for example.
System: A nova with this enhancement suffers only half
the penalties (round up) on rolls for moving at relativistic
and/or superluminal speed in space. If the nova also has
the FTL Reactions enhancement, she will suffer no penalties
whatsoever. This is permanent, and has no quantum point
cost. Its also fairly useless for novas incapable of moving at
relativistic and/or superluminal speeds in space.
Note: Novas without this enhancement should encounter
severe difficulties when attempting to maneuver at relativistic
and/or superluminal speeds in space. The Storyteller has
the final say on this, but a good rough guideline would be
+12 difficulties at relativistic speeds and +16 difficulties at
superluminal speeds.
82 CHAPTER FOUR: NEW ITEMS
Acceleration Tolerance
(Mega-Stamina)
Despite the benefits provided by their quantum-
enhanced metabolisms, most novas are only slightly
more resistant to the dangers of high-G acceleration or
deceleration than your average baseline. Even speedsters
and novas with Adaptibility face this problem. Speedsters
can ignore the inertial effects of their own powers, but if you
strap one to an ICBM (many of which have boosting speeds of
at least 25 Gs) and launch it hes likely to end up either dead
or nearly so. Novas with Adaptibility are in the same boat,
as that kind of protection is geared towards environmental
conditions- that much acceleration only needs a few seconds
to turn a human (or superhuman) body into so much meat
pudding. Fortunately for them, novas with this enhancement
can dismiss such problems with a laugh. These novas are also
in much demand by space agencies worldwide to serve as
astronauts.
System: The nova can totally ignore the effects of
high-G acceleration and deceleration. The Storyteller may or
may not choose to determine a quantum point cost for this
enhancement, as per Adaptibility.
Gut Reaction (Mega-Perception)
A Mega-Perceptive nova with this enhancement tends to
have strong instinctive reactions to the people he meets. In
this way the nova can instantly tell if a person is good, neutral
or bad news as far as hes concerned and react appropriately.
While this capability is usually accurate, it isnt guaranteed -
mistakes have been known to be made, especially if the nova
has grown overly reliant upon it.
System: Whenever the nova meets someone, the novas
player can have the Storyteller make a secret Perception
roll for the nova to experience a visceral reation about that
subject. If the roll is successful, the Storyteller must tell
the novas player whether the subject in question is good,
neutral or bad news for the nova. If the Perception roll fails,
the Storyteller is free to give the novas player inaccurate
information about the subject, especially if it could lead to
the nova making an embarrassing mistake. If the Perception
 ABERRANT
roll is botched, the Storyteller will give the novas player
wildly inaccurate information that is sure to get the nova in
trouble if he acts on it. In all cases, the Storyteller is under
no obligation to reveal the resuts of the Perception roll
to the novas player. Instead, the novas player will have
to find out whether the information he received via this
enhancement was accurate during the course of the game.
This enhancement has no quantum point cost and is always
on.
Locus (Mega-Perception)
Prerequisites: Mega-Perception + , Holographic
Awareness and Spacetime Awareness enhancements.
Novas who manage to attain both the upper levels of
Mega-Perception and develop their sensitivity to spacetime
can eventually learn to literally expand it to heights lesser
novas can only speculate about. In addition to an increased
sensitivity to her current spacetime, a nova with this
enhancement can sense the presence of intrusions to and
from both parallel universes and other points in the novas
current timestream.
System: This enhancement provides the nova with the
following capabilities.
Improved Distortion Sense: The nova can detect
any extreme and/or unnatural spacetime distortions within
(Mega-Perception) parsecs with an Awareness roll. The novas
range will increase in tandem with her Mega-Perception
rating; kiloparsecs at Mega-Perception 7, megaparsecs
at Mega-Perception 8, gigaparsecs at Mega-Perception 9
and teraparsecs at Mega-Perception 10. Phenomena that
can be detected include but are not limited to pulsars,
neutron stars, black holes, white holes, naked singularities,
wormholes, temporal rifts and the use of FTL space travel
capabilities and technology.
Improved Temporal Sense: As per the Holographic
Awareness enhancement (see Aberrant: Brainwaves), the
nova has the equivalent of the Internal Clock technique of
the Temporal Manipulation quantum power. The difference
here is that the novas temporal sense cannot be affected
by any temporal distortions such as relativistic effects, use
of the Temporal Manipulation quantum power or time
travel. The nova will also always know exactly when she is
in the timestream in relation to her time of origin in exact
mathematical values - an Intelligence roll is required to
convert that information to a specific calendar date. This
also grants the nova a bonus of +3 dice on all rolls for the
Time Travel power, should the nova possess it.
Reality Distortion Proof Memory: The nova is immune
to having her memories altered by changes to her own
history or that of her current world. Instead, she will have
both sets of memories - or more, if this has happened to her
before - and will be able to differentiate between them as an
CHAPTER FOUR: NEW ITEMS
Whats A Parsec?
A parsec is a unit of length commonly used in astronomy.
One parsec is equivalent to 3.26 light-years and is slightly under
31 trillion kilometers. Larger units of astronomical length are
noted below.
One Kiloparsec = one thousand parsecs.
One Megaparsec = one million (1,000,000) parsecs.
One Gigaparsec = one billion (1,000,000,000) parsecs.
One Teraparsec = one trillion (1,000,000,000,000) parsecs.
automatic action. Forgetting unwanted additional memory
sets (and negating their emotional impact) only requires a
simple Willpower roll. The nova will also suffer nothing in the
way of mental illness or psychological stress from dealing
with multiple sets of memories.
Spacetime Intrusion Sense: The nova can
automatically make an Awareness roll to sense the use of
the Crosstime Travel and Time Travel quantum powers (and
similar phenomena and/or technologies) within a range
of (Perception + Mega-Perception x 1,000) kilometers. It
makes no difference whether said crosstime or time travelers
are either arriving at or departing from the novas local
spacetime, they will be detected. The nova can also spend
1 quantum point to determine the location of said travelers
origin or destination point as applicable, with each success
past the first granting increasingly precise information on
that location.
Reality Analysis: The nova can make an automatic
Awareness roll to determine the nature of her local reality.
At the most basic level, this lets the nova determine the
laws of reality for her current universe. She can also sense
whether her current universe is either a naturally-occuring
alternate reality or a product of reality alteration created via
the use of either the Time Travel or the Astromanipulation
powers with an Awareness roll. Further details on either
the reality alteration or the differences between the current
universe and her home universe can be gained by spending
1 quantum point and making another Awareness roll.
Each success past the first will grant increasingly precise
information on the differences and/or alterations.
Foreign Element Detection: The nova can spend 1
quantum point and make an Awareness roll to detect any
elements (living beings, inanimate objects, what-have-you)
that are foreign to her current reality. The nova will also be
able to tell whether said elements arrived via Crosstime
Travel or Time Travel, with each success past the first
granting increasingly precise information on the elements
universe or time of origin.
83
 ABERRANT
Chronal Distortion Sense: The nova can automatically
sense things that are outside the normal flow of time,
becoming aware of such things and knowing that she
should rightly have no knowledge of them. This is done
by having the Storyteller make an Awareness roll for the
nova and telling her player what the nova senses in general
terms. Any specific information beyond this being/event
does not belong can be acquired by the nova spending
one quantum point and making another Awareness roll,
with the number of successes indicating how detailed the
information received will be. This is of most use when the
past of her current timeline has been tampered with, as the
nova can identify all particulars of the tampering and intuit
how to correct them if need be.
Omniversal Location Sense: The nova will always know
her own current location in the Omniverse in relation to her
designated home universe. This grants the nova a bonus
of +3 dice on rolls for all crosstime quantum powers and
Navigation (Omniverse).
Medium (Mega-Perception)
Although its not anywhere close to being common
knowledge, certain Mega-Perceptive novas have developed
the ability to perceive and communicate with the quantum
echoes (also known as psi forms) of deceased people
- ghosts, essentially. Other spirits may be encountered -
including those that were never human - but beneficial
interaction with those entities is far more difficult. Novas
with this capability typically choose to keep it a well-guarded
secret, as its an invaluable source of otherwise inaccessible
information. They also dont want to be deluged with
requests to speak with Elvis Presley.
System: The nova can both see and hear ghosts
without having to make an Awareness roll or spend quantum
points. He can also speak with them silently by means of
quantum transmissions from his M-R node. Once the
ghosts learn that the nova can perceive them, most will
eagerly hang out and talk with him. This isnt as useful as
it sounds; for every ghost with information the nova would
find interesting and/or useful, there are at least thirty who
will pester the nova with trivia and demands to perform
tasks for them. Fortunately, this enhancement can be turned
on or off at will as an automatic action that costs nothing.
If the nova wants to summon a particular ghost, or
one that has specific information that the nova desires, he
can spend 1 quantum point and make an Awareness roll.
One success will result in the arrival of the ghost in question,
but does not ensure that the ghost will be willing to speak
with the nova. If the Storyteller deems it fitting, the nova
may have to make a bargain with the ghost in order to gain
the information. Typical tasks that may be required of the
nova include ensuring the survival and well-being of the
84 CHAPTER FOUR: NEW ITEMS
ghosts living loved ones, publicly exposing past injustices
and even solving the ghosts own murder. (Note: This
experience should be roleplayed when possible.) Further
successes on the Awareness roll will result in the ghost being
increasingly willing to speak with the nova or willing to settle
for smaller favors in return for the information. Alternatively,
summoning a particular ghost can negate the worst-case
scenario - placing the wrong ghost into a resurrected body
- when attempting to use the Resurrection quantum power
(Aberrant: The New Flesh, pp. 235-237). In this case, each
success gained on the summoning roll will negate one
failure made on the Resurrection power roll.
If a second level of this enhancement is taken, the nova
can reduce the ghosts Perceptions ratings by (Perception +
Mega-Perception) dots as an automatic function. This effect
only extends to the nova himself and anyone connected to
him (family, close associates, etc.) and can be selectively
dropped or restored as an automatic action. This allows the
nova to insulate himself and those he cares for from ghostly
pestering.
This enhancement has no quantum point cost except
where noted above.
Psi Sensitivity (Mega-Perception)
Prerequisite: either Quantum Attunement or Psychic
Awareness (from Aberrant: Brainwaves)
A nova with this enhancement has developed the
ability to perceive subquantum energies. While other
novas wouldnt know psionics from persimmons, this nova
instinctively senses the differences (and the problematic
interactions) between quantum and subquantum energies.
(Storyteller note: Given Max Mercers establishment and
leadership of Project Pandora, one can be sure that a nova
with this enhancement who doesnt keep the existence of
psionics under wraps will come to his attention sooner
or later...)
System: The nova can automatically sense any psionic
power used against her or in her presence as visible effects.
If the nova is targeted by a psionic power, she can make
an Awareness roll to sense the identity of her attacker
(against the psions Wits + Mode rating). Psionic beings
may be detected with a simple Perception + Awareness
roll. The nova can also scan psionic beings by making a
Medicine roll; this allows the nova to sense the rough level
of Psi possesed by her subject and determine whether the
subjects suffering from psionic dysfunction. With three or
more successes, the nova may determine the Aptitudes and
Modes of her subject.
The automatic function of this enhancement has no
quantum point cost, but the scanning function costs one
quantum point per turn to use.
 ABERRANT
Spacetime Awareness
(Mega-Perception)
Some novas have the capability to directly perceive the
fabric of spacetime. Aside from allowing them to take note
of any distortions of spacetime in their vicinity, this also lets
them determine their own location in relation to a chosen
origin point within their current universe. Such novas can
also create tiny fluctuations in spacetime - commonly known
as gravity waves - in order to communicate verbally with
each other.
System: This enhancement has the following four
functions.
Distortion Sense: The nova can detect local spacetime
distortions at a range of (Perception + Mega-Perception
x 20) meters with an Awareness roll. This allows the nova
to detect the use of any powers that affect space, time &
gravity. The nova can also perceive gravity waves, allowing
him to receive gravity wave communications and sense any
solid objects within range solely by their mass. Use of the
Gravity Contol power can also be detected with this.
Teleport/Warp Detection: The nova can automatically
sense the use of the Teleport and Warp powers, provided
that either of the subjects origin or destination points is
within range (Perception + Mega-Perception x 20 meters).
The nova can also spend 1 quantum point to determine the
location of the out-of-range coordinate point in the case
of long-range teleports and warps, with each success past
the first granting increasingly precise information on that
location.
Gravity Wave Communication: The nova can
communicate using weak gravity waves by spending 1
quantum point to activate this capability for a scene. As
gravity waves are not hindered at all by water or solid objects,
it can be very handy in situations where the nova would
otherwise be incommunicado. This form of communication
is limited to speech, but can only be received by novas who
either possess this enhancement or have the Gravity Control
power. Intense gravitational flux can disrupt gravity wave
communication, which will typically be created on Nova Age
Earth only by novas with the Gravity Control power. In space,
such interference is provided by hazards such as neutron
stars, pulsars and black holes. The novas communication
range is (Perception + Mega-Perception x 10 kilometers).
Location Sense: The nova will always know his own
current location in relation to a chosen origin point within
his current universe. This grants a bonus of +3 dice on rolls
for the Navigation ability and the Teleport & Warp quantum
powers.
This enhancement has no quantum point cost except
where noted above.
CHAPTER FOUR: NEW ITEMS
Stellar Traveler (Mega-Perception)
Prerequisite: Teleport, Warp or Transmit, Holographic
Awareness
Some Mega-Perceptive novas who possess the ability
to transport themselves and a perfect awareness of space-
time can enhance their holographic awareness to augment
their capability. They use their better understanding of the
true nature of existance on a deeper level to focus upon their
transportation powers, making them even more effective.
System: The nova gets +3 automatic successes for out
of combat warp, teleport, or similar rolls which can only be
applied to extending distance. This enhancement is always
on and has no quantum point cost.
Void Sense (Mega-Perception)
Baseline humans are a product of their environment
- and one thing that nearly all of them require in order to
function psychologically in a microgravity environment is a
local vertical. Without something to orient themselves to,
untrained baselines (and many novas) become hopelessly
disoriented, nauseated and terrified before losing control of
their body functions. For most, only astronautics training can
alleviate this. Mega-Perceptive novas with this enhancement
have no such troubles. Much like Adaptability lets a nova
survive without air, food and water; this enhancement
lets the nova adapt mentally to a truly three-dimensional
environment without any applicable up or down. While
novas dont actually need this enhancement to operate in
space - those with the Adaptability enhancement manage
well enough - theyll never do as well as a nova with Void
Sense.
System: The nova gains + 3 automatic successes on
any rolls involving space navigation or maneuvering in
microgravity or other environments where theres no real
up or down. He also doesnt suffer any penalties that
result from not having a local vertical to orient himself with,
and is wholly immune to vertigo.
This enhancement is always on and costs no quantum
points to use.
Computation (Mega-Intelligence)
Prerequisites: Mega-Intelligence +, Data Analyst
and Eidetic Memory enhancements.
Some researchers into human intelligence have
declared it to be nothing more than pattern matching and
memory. The capabilities of some Mega-Intelligent novas
lends credence to this idea, as they have taken the human
talent for pattern matching to unbelivable new heights.
When it comes to understanding the past, present and
possible futures of a subject - be it a single being or the
entire world - they have few equals.
85
 ABERRANT
System: This enhancement lets the nova chart the good stuff is in there, but its mixed in with tons of useless
course of a chosen subject, regardless of whether its a junk. That isnt the case for a nova with this enhancement,
single person, an event or a group of any size up to and as her prodigious intellect lets her sift out the worthwhile
including entire civilizations and universes. Unless the nova information from the useless data with ridiculous ease.
has some paranormal means of accessing the information System: Each dot of Mega-Intelligence possessed by
required, the nova will have to do research on the subject the nova reduces the time she requires to process data
in question in order to perform these feats. The quality of and extract useful information from it by 20%. At Mega-
the research materials is also a factor, as low-quality records Intelligence ratings of 5 or more, the nova can find the
will impose a difficulty penalty of the Storytellers choosing information she needs just about instantaneously. The
on the novas Intelligence rolls for using this enhancement. effects of this enhancement are fully cumulative with the
This enhancement has the following three functions: Speed Reading enhancement.
Evaluation: This function lets the nova determine the This enhancement has no quantum point cost and is
present state of the subject with an Intelligence roll. One always on.
success grants the nova a basic
idea of the subjects current state
of affairs, while further successes
will grant the nova increasingly
detailed information on the
hows and whys of the subjects
circumstances. The nova can also
roll Intelligence as an automatic
action to notice anything
about the subject thats worth
examining (in the Storytellers
opinion) with either of the
Extrapolation or Retrospection
functions.
Retrospection: The nova
can make an Intelligence roll to
assess the history of the subject, along with determining the
major factors in the subjects past that have had long-term Hyper-Enhanced Learning
consequences. One success grants the nova a basic idea of
the subjects history. Further successes will grant the nova
(Mega-Intelligence)
Prerequisites: Eidetic Memory, Enhanced Memory,
increasingly detailed information on the subjects history as
Fast Learner, Mega-Intelligence +
well as providing possible ways to ensure or prevent other
Some novas can learn and retain knowledge to an
such subjects from either suffering those consequences or
exceptional degree, grasping new ideas and information
coming to pass, as applicable.
quickly. They never forget anything, and pick up new bits
Extrapolation: The nova can make an Intelligence
of knowledge and understanding at lightning speed. Novas
roll to predict the future actions of or determine the future
with this enhancement take their capability to learn far
consequences of the subject, as applicable. One success
beyond even that, mastering even the most complex ideas
grants the nova a basic idea of the results and long term
with ease and speed that leaves others gasping for breath.
effects of subjects future actions or consequences.
These novas can become expert in things far beyond what
Further successes will grant the nova increasingly detailed
any baseline would be capable of mastering in years.
information on said future actions or consequences as well
System: This enhancement extends the effects of the
as providing possible ways to ensure or prevent them from
Fast Learner enhancement to other abilities beyond those
happening.
based on Intelligence. The nova must possess a Mega-
This enhancement has no quantum point cost and is
Attribute dot associated with that ability and the novas
always on.
player must role-play the learning process to the Storytellers
satisfaction. If both requirements are met, the nova gains
Data Analyst (Mega-Intelligence) two benefits. First, he may extend the maximum number
Even with computer databases and search engines, of specialties in Intelligence based abilities up to his Mega-
performing research is too often like panning for gold - the Intelligence dot rating. Second, he gets a free specialty (no

86 CHAPTER FOUR: NEW ITEMS

 ABERRANT
experience point cost) in any Intelligence based ability he
has rated at 4+. This enhancement has no quantum point
cost and is always on.
Example: Brainy McBrain has Mega-Intelligence 5
with Eidetic Memory, Enhanced Memory, Fast Learner and
Hyper-Enhanced Learning, he also has Mega-Wits 1 with
Multitasking. He can learn the Wits based abilities of Arts,
Biz, Cunning, Rapport, Meditation, Modulate, Unify and
Weave with the reduced experience cost and speed of the
Fast Learning Enhancement as though they were Intelligence
based abilities. In addition, he has the Science ability at four
dots, so he gets a free specialty with that, as long as he
goes though the trouble of role playing it to the Storytellers
satisfaction. Finally, he can develop up to 5 specialties in
Science, since he has Mega-Intelligence 5.
Mental Prodigy: Xenology
(Mega-Intelligence)
A nova with this enhancement is a genius when it comes
to alien lifeforms - in some cases, the nova may actually
relate better with alien sapients that he does with baseline
humans! Aside from making the nova an excellent candidate
for First Contact (and subsequent diplomatic relations), his
genius also applies to every possible facet of alien life -
xenobotany, xenoecology, xenozoology, xenosociology, you
name it!
System: Whenever the nova is involved in situations
or problems concerning extraterrestrial life forms, and/
or nonhuman terrestrial sapients, the player may make an
Intelligence roll. For each success achieved, he may roll an
additional die when making Xenology and Xenorelations rolls
and any other rolls related to those tasks. This enhancement
costs 1 quantum point to activate; the effects and bonuses
received last for a minimum of an hour, and possibly longer
(at the Storytellers discretion).
Wayfarer (Mega-Intelligence)
Given the globe-trotting lives many novas end up
leading, it should come as no surprise that they face certain
difficulties in their journeys that others dont even consider.
Aside from the extra attention they get from their status as
celebrities, the use of quantum powers brings up certain
questions. How does one fly to another country without
being flagged down by the local air force? How does one
smuggle five young orphans (who also happen to be latent
novas) out of mainland China without attracting the attention
of the Heaven Thunder Triad, who are always looking for
more nova bodies to process into lucrative nova-derived
drugs? And even if you do manage to get the kids away from
the Triad, how do you get them past the customs agents
and the local INS? How does one avoid Directive agents,
CHAPTER FOUR: NEW ITEMS
or even nosy paparazzi? A nova with this enhancement has
an intuitive understanding of both the problems faced by
traveling novas and how best to evade those problems.
Some novas have used this to become superhuman
smugglers - whether they run Underground Railroads for
innocent people or funnel black market items to First World
nations has been left to their individual consciences.
System: The nova automatically reduces all rolls
made by others to track, intercept, or waylay him (and/or
his cargo while traveling by [Mega-Intelligence] successes.
This enhancement is permanent, and has no quantum point
cost when used by the nova himself. If the nova wants to
use this with a group of travelers or a cargo, he must spend
2 quantum points to protect the group or cargo for the
duration of their journey. (The nova must also accompany
the group or cargo in order to provide his protection.)
Acumen (Mega-Wits)
Humans - and therefore most novas - are dependent on
a wide variety of environmental factors in order to function
at their best. As with their physical and social requirements,
people also have intellectual needs that must be met in
order to avoid mental stagnation and prevent the eventual
degradation of their healthy brain functions. Even worse,
their minds often are prevented from developing to their
full potential in the first place due to harmful influences
in their intellectual environments. Mega-Witty novas with
this enhancement can shrug off those problems with ease,
as their evolved intellects can function just fine without
adequate intellectual stimulation and will develop properly
in even the most hostile intellectual environments. While this
can cause social conflicts with people and cultures of an anti-
intellectual bent, such is only to be expected and planned
for in advance.
System: The nova can sustain himself intellectually for
an indefinite period on residual quantum energies. So long
as he still has at least 1 quantum point in quantum pool, the
nova will have no need for sources of intellectual stimulation
to keep his mind active and fully capable, but will still enjoy
and desire such. For purposes of this enhancement, sources
of intellectual stimulation include having intelligent
discussions with other people near the novas intellectual
plateau, all forms of thought-provoking entertainment and
exposure to the arts. The nova will still require a knowledge
base to work from, but that wont be any great problem if
the nova also has a Mega-Intelligence rating and suitable
enhancements.
The nova is also able to operate and develop at his
full intellectual capacity in the most hostile of intellectual
environments. For purposes of this enhancement, hostile
intellectual environments contain some or all of the
following harmful influences: anti-intellectual social norms,
87
 ABERRANT
prevention of full access to instruction, dishonesty and
disinformation by the instructor, the instructors refusal to
explore controversial topics which are germane through
intelligent and measured discussion, any irrelevant
distractions and all harmful social influences intended to
prevent the nova from making full use of and improving his
own critical thinking and complex reasoning. (This covers all
forms of harassment and abusive speech.)
The nova is automatically immune to undesirable
(distracting, harmful, subversive, virulent, self-destructive,
etc.) memes* of all sorts, hysterical reactions, cognitive
distortion, all forms of cognitive bias**, mundane detrimental
biofeedback effects and gaslighting***. The nova also gains
6 Willpower or Attribute successes against Inspired effects
which cause detrimental biofeedback effects or reduce the
characters Intelligence and/or Wits ratings and those of the
corresponding Mega-Attributes. The nova can automatically
recognize cognitive dissonance - when two cognitions, or a
cognition and a behavior, are in contradiction - within his
own thought processes and correct for it as he pleases.
Finally, the nova can detect and identify any and all memes
he encounters as an automatic action.
Acumen is an automatic enhancement and requires no
quantum point expenditure.
*Meme: a concept, behavior or style that spreads
through sapient minds via their communications, much like
diseases spread among living organisms.
**Cognitive Bias: a form of distortion in judgment
resulting in false deductions about a given subject.
***Gaslighting: a form of psychological abuse in which
false information is presented with the intent of making a
victim doubt his own memory and perceptions.
FTL Reactions (Mega-Wits)
This is the mental counterpart to FTL Reflexes, and
allows novas to react fast enough mentally to travel at
relativistic and/or superluminal speeds in space with much
less trouble than their slower brethren. Those novas who
possess FTL Reflexes as well as this enhancement can
traverse interstellar distances as easily as Joe Sixpack could
walk the length of an empty field.
System: A nova with this enhancement suffers only half
the penalties (round up) on rolls for moving at relativistic
and/or superluminal speed in space. If the nova also has
FTL Reflexes, she will suffer no penalties whatsoever. This
is permanent and has no quantum point cost. Its also fairly
useless for novas incapable of moving at relativistic and/or
superluminal speeds in space.
Multiplexed Mind (Mega-Wits)
Prerequisites: Mega-Wits +, Hypercognition for power usage apply.
88 CHAPTER FOUR: NEW ITEMS
and Multitasking enhancements.
While all Mega-Witty novas possess superhuman speed
of thought, those who develop the upper ranges of Mega-
Wits can attain degrees of processing speed that rival if not
outperform the most advanced supercomputers. Novas
who develop this enhancement can perform mentally to
match and/or exceed the efforts of entire groups of less-
sharp individuals. Some such novas are even rumored to be
capable of performing just as well in the physical realm, but
there has been no hard evidence for that as of yet.
System: A nova with one level of this enhancement
can perform (Mega-Wits x 5) extra mental actions per turn,
ignoring any and all penalties for making multiple actions.
Additional levels of Multiplexed Mind can be purchased as
the nova increases his Mega-Wits and Quantum Trait ratings
in tandem, as seen below. This is a permanent augmentation
of the novas mental processes and has no quantum point
cost.
2 Levels: Requires Quantum 7 and Mega-Wits 7, allows
nova to perform (Mega-Wits x 10) extra mental actions
per round. If the nova also has the Neural Acceleration
enhancement for Mega-Dexterity, he may convert any of his
extra mental actions into extra physical actions as desired.
The nova still limited to using only one quantum power per
turn at this stage, however.
3 Levels: Requires Quantum 8 and Mega-Wits 8, allows
nova to perform (Mega-Wits x 15) extra mental actions
per round. If the nova also has the Neural Acceleration
enhancement for Mega-Dexterity, he may convert any of his
extra mental actions into extra physical actions as desired.
The nova has also begun to optimize his quantum power
usage, and may use up to 5 of his extra actions to use his
quantum powers. All normal quantum point costs for power
usage apply.
4 Levels: Requires Quantum 9 and Mega-Wits 9, allows
nova to perform (Mega-Wits x 20) extra mental actions
per round. If the nova also has the Neural Acceleration
enhancement for Mega-Dexterity, he may convert any of his
extra mental actions into extra physical actions as desired.
The nova has continued to optimize his quantum power
usage, and may use up to 10 of his extra actions to use his
quantum powers. All normal quantum point costs for power
usage apply.
5 Levels: Requires Quantum 10 and Mega-Wits
10, allows nova to perform (Mega-Wits x 25) extra
mental actions per round. If the nova also has the Neural
Acceleration enhancement for Mega-Dexterity, he may
convert any of his extra mental actions into extra physical
actions as desired. The nova has also fully optimized his
quantum power usage, and may use any of his extra actions
to use his quantum powers. All normal quantum point costs
 ABERRANT
Techgnosis (Mega-Wits)
For all their superhuman genius, many Mega-Intelligent
scientists and engineers share a basic failing with their
baseline counterparts. Simply put, they make incorrect -
and often wildly over-optimistic - assumptions as to how
human technology will progress. While their eventual failure
is embarrassing for futurists when they are proved wrong,
this can also lead to decades worth of wasted effort and
resources. Novas with this enhancement are not burdened
with that handicap; as they have an intuitive grasp of
technology that lets them understand how to reverse
engineer, mass produce and use wisely any device they
encounter.
System: The nova never suffers any difficulty penalties
for working with technologies from different Technology
Ratings than her own. Provided that the nova has the correct
basic Ability to use a device, she can figure out exactly how
to use it as a free action. If she gets the chance to examine
the device in a non-destructive manner, the nova can make
an Intelligence roll to intuit how the device functions and
whatever is needed to reproduce it. This enhancement works
on both advanced mundane and Inspired technologies
of any origin; be it human, transhuman or even alien. This
enhancement costs 1 quantum point to use for a scene,
although the understanding it grants is permanent for all
practical purposes.
Absurdity (Mega-Appearance)
Prior to the Nova Age, most people had a reflexive
disbelief of people and things that were beyond what their
worldviews defined as normal. Some novas have learned
to take advantage of this common bias to nullify unwelcome
attention to their activities. Be warned, this tactic isnt always
successful...
System: When activated, this enhancement will cause all
non-Inspired beings in the novas vicinity to dismiss her, her
words and her deeds as some sort of hoax or hallucination
instead of taking them seriously. Inspired beings (and their
equivalents) can make a contested Willpower roll against the
novas Mega-Appearance in order to avoid this effect. If the
non-Inspired beings have any prior experience with actual
Inspired beings or their equivalents, the Willpower roll is
considered an automatic success. This enhancement costs
1 quantum point to activate for a scene and is available to
novas with either variety of Mega-Appearance.
Universal Appeal (Mega-Appearance)
Prerequisite: Two or more dots of the Shapeshift power
A nova with this enhancement is retains his superhuman
beauty (if sometimes in a weird way) no matter what form
he assumes. While often provoking commentary on the
CHAPTER FOUR: NEW ITEMS
novas personality, this can provide a number of unexpected
benefits - most beings dont feel threatened by something
they consider beautiful.
System: The novas Mega-Appearance and most
enhancements will apply in whatever nonhuman form the
nova takes (unless the nova wishes otherwise), be it animal,
alien, plant, mythological beast or inanimate object. Mega-
Appearance enhancements dependent on sexual appeal
are never carried over by this enhancement, for obvious
reasons. This enhancement is permanent, has no quantum
point cost and is only available to Mega-Attractive novas.
Credibility (Mega-Charisma)
Prior to the Nova Age, most people had a reflexive
disbelief of people and things that were beyond what their
worldviews defined as normal. As this attitude is found
among humans in nearly all universes without publicly
recognized paranormal beings, many novas who travel to
parallel universes and to previous eras can find themselves
dismissed as hoaxers and the like. While thats useful for
keeping a low profile, occasionally a nova will need to
shatter that reflexive disbelief. Certain novas have the ability
to do just that.
System: When activated, this enhancement will cause
all non-Inspired beings in the novas vicinity to take her, her
words and her deeds seriously instead of dismissing them as
some sort of hoax or hallucination. Inspired beings (and their
equivalents) can make a contested Willpower roll against
the novas Mega-Charisma in order to avoid this effect. This
enhancement costs 1 quantum point to activate for a scene.
Universal Charm (Mega-Charisma)
While Mega-Charismatic novas are famous for getting
along with just about anyone on Earth; a nova with this
enhancement can get along with just about anyone, period!
Such a nova can interact well socially with any form of sapient
being they encounter, no matter if its a Zep scientist or Joe
Schmoe from Cleveland.
System: The novas Mega-Charisma and most
enhancements are equally effective against any type of sapient
being. Mega-Charisma enhancements dependent on sexual appeal
cant be used with most alien races, for obvious reasons. (The only
exception to this would be theweird-looking human variety of
aliens portrayed in the various Star Trek television/movie series
and the Lum*Urusei Yatsura manga/anime series.) The nova also
gains a -[Mega-Charisma] difficulty bonus on all social rolls for
interacting with aliens, baseline humans, tainted or high-Chrysalis
novas, psions, daredevils, etc.
This enhancement is permanent, and has no quantum point cost.
89
 ABERRANT
New Quantum Powers knowledge of astronomy. The changes listed in the third
table below are merely guidelines and dont cover everything
this power is capable of. Induced cosmic explosions and
Astromanipulation damaging effects (such as novae, supernovae, hypernovae,
Level: 6 gamma ray bursters and exploding galactic cores) should
Quantum Minimum: 10, must also posess Astrosensor be treated as equivalent to uses of the Quantum Inferno or
at equal or greater power rating. Universe Destruction powers at the novas Astromanipulation
Dice Pool: Intelligence + Astromanipulation power rating. It should also be noted that such induced
Range: See below cosmic disasters will act just like their natural counterparts,
Area: See below such as a created gamma ray burster being unable to
Duration: Permanent exceed the speed of light, for instance.
Effect: The nova can manipulate astronomical bodies Successes and Possible Changes
in various ways. One - Superficial changes: Induced planetary
Multiple Actions: Yes explosions, safe rearrangement of tectonic plates of
Description: The nova gains control over the Earthlike planets that have them. Induced alterations of a
astronomical bodies within her sphere of influence, letting planetary bodys rotation period, spin axis, magnetic field,
her make any alterations she desires. At high power ratings, geological activity, chemical makeup and orbital trajectory.
a nova with this power can literally remake her current Two - Minor changes: Induced novae, transformation
universe - entire galaxies and all their attendant star systems of planetary bodies into anything desired of the same mass.
Creation and ignition of stars from interstellar gas & dust.
Basic alterations of stellar objects.
Power Rating Range Three - Moderate changes: Induced supernovae,
1 dot (Quantum + Astromanipulation) parsecs transformation of stellar bodies into anything desired of
3 dots (Quantum + Astromanipulation) kiloparsecs the same mass. Creation of full-fledged star systems from
5 dots (Quantum + Astromanipulation) megaparsecs interstellar gas & dust. Basic alterations of sub-galactic
7 dots (Quantum + Astromanipulation) gigaparsecs objects such as star clusters. Alter a targets mass by a factor
9 dots (Quantum + Astromanipulation) teraparsecs of five.
Four - Major changes: Induced hypernovae, complete
Power Rating Target Maximum Size with the simultaneous creation of a gamma ray burster and
1 dot Planetary bodies of gas giant size and smaller. a brand new stellar-mass black hole. Creation of black holes
2 dots Stars of up to red supergiant size and smaller. of any mass desired. Transformation of sub-galactic bodies
3 dots Entire star systems. into anything desired of the same mass. Basic alterations of
4 dots Entire star sytem clusters. galaxies. Alter a targets mass by a factor of ten.
5 dots Entire dwarf galaxies or a quadrant of a larger Five - Extreme changes: Induced galactic explosions,
galaxy. transformation of sub-galactic bodies into anything desired
6 dots Entire galaxies plus all their attendant dwarf of the same mass. Basic alterations of galactic superclusters.
galaxies and star clusters. Alter a targets mass by a factor of fifty.
7 dots Entire galactic cluster. Six - Cosmologic changes: Alterations of the physical
8 dots Entire galactic supercluster. constants of the novas current universe, such as changing
9 dots 50% of the total area and contents of the a closed universe into an open one or any other universe
novas current universe. type desired. Induced simultaneous explosions of multiple
10 dots The total area and contents of the novas cur- galaxies, transformation of galaxies into anything desired of
rent universe. the same mass. Basic alterations of all galactic superclusters
within the novas current universe. Alter a targets mass by a
factor of two hundred.
Seven - Full-Fledged Reality Warping: Transformation
are hers to do with as she pleases. Note that while such of the target universes paradigms, such as changing a
a nova can easily create habitable planets with this power, scientific universe into a magical one. Mass transformation of
the actual creation of a biosphere (composed of Terran all galactic superclusters within the novas current universe.
lifeforms or otherwise) requires using the Bioform technique Reduction of all matter in the target universe into subatomic
of Ecological Supremacy. Players of novas with this power particles. Alter a targets mass by a factor of five hundred.
(and their Storytellers) are encouraged to brush up on their Extras: None.

90 CHAPTER FOUR: NEW ITEMS

 ABERRANT
Astrosensor
Level: 4
Quantum Minimum: 6
Dice Pool: Variable
Range: Variable - see Description
Area: Variable
Duration: Variable
Effect: Character has galactic-scale clairsentience (at a
minimum).
Multiple Actions: Yes
Description: This power lets the nova sense things
and places at galactic-scale ranges. While this power
is almost useless for most planetbound situations, the
techniques it offers are of much use in space exploration,
either interplanetary or interstellar. Novas with this power
should have or learn the Science Ability with the appropriate
specialties in order to make sense of the data they receive.
The unit of measurement used for this powers effective
range is dependent on the novas Quantum Trait, and
increases exponentially with higher levels of Quantum. At
Quantum 6, the range of this power is measured in parsecs.
At Quantum 7, this is increased to kiloparsecs. This becomes
megaparsecs at Quantum 8, gigaparsecs at Quantum 9 and
teraparsecs at Quantum 10.
Those few novas who develop this power will tend to
keep it under wraps, as they will be seen as even more
precious commodities than other novas of comparable
Quantum levels. Astrosensors who also have Warp capability
are guaranteed to become some of the most highly sought-
after novas on Earth. Of course, this may lead said novas to
gather up their friends, family, and other friendly folks and
leave Earth for quieter pastures... provided that they can
manage to create and maintain a stable, functioning colony.
Locate
Dice Pool: Perception + Astrosensor
Range: (Quantum + power rating) x 10 parsecs (at
Quantum 6)
Area: N/A
Duration: (Quantum) days
This technique is used to locate a given type of large
deep-space object (asteroid-sized and up). It doesnt give
detailed information about the object detected, just its
general location and distance from the nova. Initiating the
scan requires a power roll, with each extra success halving
the total search duration before finding the chosen object.
The scans basic duration depends on the size of the target
sought and and any known data that could narrow down the
scanning area. Scans can take anywhere from a few hours to
a few days to perform- see the table below. All novas with
the Astrosensor power automatically have this technique,
CHAPTER FOUR: NEW ITEMS
which does not use up a dot in the power.
Time Measurement Unit and Target Classification
Days: Planetary bodies and anything smaller.
3-hour units: Stars.
Hours: Entire star systems.
30-minute units: Star clusters.
Minutes: Galaxies.
Seconds: Galactic clusters.
Automatic success: Galactic superclusters.
Having data that could narrow down the scanning area
can shorten the base scanning time by anywhere from 10%
to 80%, although the Storyteller is encouraged to be stingy
with this when the character is scanning unknown territory.
After all, space is vast enough for even a nova to overlook
things here and there... If the nova is attempting to locate
an object that is well-known either to the nova or to the
astronomical community in general, the scanning time is
automatically reduced by 80%.
Note: Using this technique to simply see whats out
there is much easier than hunting down a specific type of
target - all the nova has to do is make his power roll. While
not enough to focus on a specific target, its enough for a
nova with the Astromanipulation power to work with...
Remote Survey
Dice Pool: Perception + Astrosensor
Range: (Quantum + power rating) x 10 parsecs (at
Quantum 6)
Area: one astronomical body
Duration: Concentration
This technique lets the nova study a located target
(found by Farscan or Locate) in extremely rough detail. The
nova can sense for anything he desires; like a suns rotation
speed, the precious mineral content of an asteroid, or how
much of a planetary surface is covered with plant life. Sadly,
anything more detailed than very crude estimates isnt
possible with this technique, but the nova can still gather
an incredible amount of raw data over immense distances.
Ultimately, if the nova doesnt have the background or
knowledge to understand what hes sensing, the data gained
by means of this technique will mean little or nothing to him.
The number of successes rolled determines the detail of
information gained. One success indicates whether a region
is hospitable, three successes will indicate the areas general
conditions and five successes reveals slightly more precise
data (general ocean temperature in comparison to Earths
oceans, basic mineral content of the terrain, terrain type,
etc). Repeated attempts may be made to get more data.
The area of focus may be moved around, but a new power
roll is required for each new area sensed. This technique
can also be used to sense the conditions on smaller objects
91
 ABERRANT
like space stations or individual spacecraft, but they have to
be located before they can be scanned. All novas with the
Astrosensor power automatically have this technique, which
does not use up a dot in the power.
Assess Civilization
Prerequisite: the Mindscan technique (see below)
Dice Pool: Intelligence + Astrosensor
Range: (Quantum + power rating) x 10 parsecs (at
Quantum 6)
Area: one civilization
Duration: (Quantum) days
This technique allows the nova to detect and evaluate
any civilization(s) that may exist within a chosen star system.
Assess Civilization can be used without any training in
sociology or engineering, but such training will make the
nova that much better at interpreting the data he senses
with this technique.
The number of successes rolled determines the
detail of information gained. One success determines the
presence of civilization among the local sapient life and
provides a rough estimate of their general level of social
and technological development in comparison to that of
baseline humanity. Two successes grant the nova insight as
to the basic form of the detected sapients culture and their
exact Technology Rating, and the ways in which they differ
from or resemble the historical development of baseline
human civilization. Three successes indicate the general
social mores and beliefs of the detected sapients along
with the spread of their more widely-used technologies.
Four successes reveal relatively detailed knowledge of the
detected sapients sociocultural structure, the nature of their
current bleeding-edge technologies, and their potential
(if any) for further social development and technological
progress. Repeated attempts may be made to get more
data. The area of focus may be moved around, but a
new power roll is required for each new area sensed. This
technique can also be used to sense the sociocultural matrix
of sapients detected on smaller objects like space stations
or individual spacecraft, but the targets have to be located
before they can be scanned.
Bioscan
Dice Pool: Perception + Astrosensor
Range: (Quantum + power rating) x 10 parsecs (at
Quantum 6)
Area: one planetary body
Duration: (Quantum) days
This technique lets the nova gather precise details
about a given planets biosphere. Unfortunately, as with
Remote Survey the nova wont understand much of what
92 CHAPTER FOUR: NEW ITEMS
he sees unless he has the appropriate background and/or
knowledge to make sense of it.
The number of successes rolled determines the detail of
information gained. One success determines the presence
of life and provides basic data on what forms of life comprise
the detected biosphere. Two successes indicate whether
the biosphere is compatible with Terran life, three indicates
the biospheres general condition and five reveal more
precise data (local biological quirks, sapient or potentially
sapient lifeforms). Repeated attempts may be made to get
more data. The area of focus may be moved around, but a
new power roll is required for each new area sensed. This
technique can also be used to sense lifeforms on smaller
objects like space stations or individual spacecraft, but the
targets have to be located before they can be scanned.
Farscan
Dice Pool: Perception + Astrosensor
Range: (Quantum + power rating) x 10 parsecs (at
Quantum 6)
Area: N/A
Duration: (Quantum) days
This technique allows the nova to extend his senses
over vast distances, enabling him to plot relatively safe and
efficient courses for interstellar and/or intergalactic travel
without the benefit of star charts or other navigational aids.
It also lets him sense very reliable space travel routes on
an in-system scale with a mere Perception + Astrosensor
roll. Objects, bodies, barriers, and other potential threats
that may be encountered en route to the novas chosen
destination can be detected with even one success.
Unfortunately, this technique doesnt allow for highly-
detailed investigations. A standard success on the power
roll gives the nova only a basic sense of the most obvious
direction to take (not necessarily the fastest), and indicates
major obstacles along the way. Each extra success provides
a more refined course (shortening the travel time, but not
making the trip any safer or more dangerous) and more
detail about any significant factors along the route (such
as clear data on the size, distance, and heading of celestial
bodies).
To sense any previously-undetected imminent
encounters, spatial disturbances or nearby objects while
Farsensing is active, roll Awareness. This roll is made no
matter what the nova is doing at the time (even if sleeping
or comatose, hell be startled awake by the vision). As
a general rule, objects and bodies that move erratically,
suggesting intelligence, require two successes to detect.
Repeated attempts may be made to get more information.
 ABERRANT
Fermi Analysis
Dice Pool: Intelligence + Astrosensor
Range: (Quantum + power rating) x 10 parsecs (at
Quantum 6)
Area: one star system
Duration: (Quantum) days
This technique allows the nova to detect and evaluate
any past or current extra-systemic visitation (or interference)
within a chosen star system. Note that unless the nova has a
good grounding in either astronautics or xenology, she will
not understand much of what she senses with this technique.
The number of successes rolled determines the detail of
information gained.
One success determines the presence and general
location of any current extra-systemic visitors within the
chosen star system. Two successes lets the nova determine
the precise location of any current extra-systemic visitors and
grants knowledge of their undisguised physical appearance.
Also, the nova can detect the presence and general location
of any evidence of past extra-systemic visitors. Three
successes lets the nova learn about the basic biology,
psychology, and sociology of any current extra-systemic
visitors. Also, the nova can determine the precise location of
any past extra-systemic visitors and gain knowledge of their
undisguised physical appearance. Four successes grants
the nova detailed knowledge of any current extra-systemic
visitors origins, capabilities, technologies, and their
intentions for visiting the chosen star system. Also, the nova
can learn about the basic biology, psychology, and sociology
of any past extra-systemic visitors. Five successes grants the
nova detailed knowledge of the past extra-systemic visitors
origins, capabilities, technologies, and their intentions for
visiting the chosen star system.
Repeated attempts may be made to get more data. The
area of focus may be moved around, but a new power roll is
required for each new area sensed. This technique can also
be used to sense any extra-systemic visitors (or evidence
of their sojourn) on smaller objects like space stations or
individual spacecraft, but the targets have to be located
before they can be scanned.
Galactic Survey
Prerequisites: Quantum 8, Astrosensor of sapient life and provides a rough estimate of their general
Dice Pool: Perception + Astrosensor
Range: (Quantum + power rating) x 10 megaparsecs
(at Quantum 8)
Area: one galactic body (at Quantum 8)
Duration: (Quantum) days
This technique is used to perform a rough survey
of a chosen galaxy. Without training in astronomy and
astrophysics, however, the nova is likely to misinterpret the
CHAPTER FOUR: NEW ITEMS
import of what he senses with this technique.
The number of successes rolled determines the detail
of information gained. One success lets the nova determine
the general characteristics of the target galaxy- its class,
size, and its ratio of Population II (very old) to Population
I (very young) stars. Two successes allow the nova to
determine how much of the target galaxy is safe for long-
term habitation (a good guideline is several million terran
years at a minimum) by complex organic (carbon-based)
lifeforms. The inhospitable regions have likely become
so due to either an overabundance of cosmic threats that
tend to destroy developing ecosystems (such as orbital
instabilities, cometary collisions, and exploding stars) or a
general lack of chemical elements heavier than helium (what
astronomers refer to as metals). Three successes grant
the nova somewhat detailed knowledge of any currently
existing and/or extinct lifeforms within the target galaxy-
including their general locations. Four successes let the
nova determine the future general stability of the target
galaxy as a long-term habitation for complex organic life-
if the core of the target galaxy is going to explode just a
few centuries down the road and eradicate any organic
life caught in the radiation wave, it would be best to know
about it beforehand. Five successes allow the nova to
detect any artificial manipulations (by either technological or
paranormal means) of the target galaxy.
Mindscan
Prerequisite: Telepathy
Dice Pool: Wits + Astrosensor
Range: (Quantum + power rating) x 10 parsecs (at
Quantum 6)
Area: one star system
Duration: (Quantum) days
This technique allows the nova to detect and evaluate
any sapient life that may exist within a chosen star system.
Unlike several other Astrosensor techniques, Mindscan can
be used quite well without any scientific training- developing
a sense for evaluating other people is a skill that everyone
develops.
The number of successes rolled determines the detail of
information gained. One success determines the presence
level of intelligence in comparison to baseline humanity.
Two successes grant the nova insight as to the ways in which
the detected sapients differ from or resemble the mentality
of baseline humanity. Three successes indicate the general
psychology and attitudes of the detected sapients, and
four successes reveals relatively detailed knowledge of the
detected sapients common psychological quirks, current
mental abilities and future potential. Repeated attempts
may be made to get more data. The area of focus may be
93
 ABERRANT
moved around, but a new power roll is required for each information gained. One success determines the presence
new area sensed. This technique can also be used to sense of any active Inspired activity. If the nova is aware of Psionic
sapients on smaller objects like space stations or individual and Heroic Inspiration, she can also distinguish these forms
spacecraft, but the targets have to be located before they of Inspiration from Quantum Inspiration. Two successes lets
can be scanned. the nova determine the average power level and frequency
of Inspired beings among a chosen populace of lifeforms
within the scanning area. Three successes allows the nova to
Orbital Tracking detect individual Inspired lifeforms and evaluate their power
Dice Pool: Intelligence + Astrosensor
levels. Four successes lets the nova evaluate the potential
Range: (Quantum + power rating) x 10 parsecs (at
for further development (or degeneration, in the case of
Quantum 6)
Tainted quantum-manipulators) that the Inspired lifeforms
Area: one chosen astronomical body
within the scanning area may possess. Five successes allows
Duration: (Quantum) days
the nova to detect the latent potential for Inspiration within
This technique lets the nova analyze and evaluate the
a given population of lifeforms, and can also let the nova
orbit (if any) of a given astronomical body. The subject
detect active Psionic and/or Heroic activity (among other
might be anything from a moon orbiting a planet, a planet
possible forms) if she was previously unaware of those forms
orbiting a star, or even a star orbiting the center of a spiral
of Inspiration.
galaxy. Note that without a firm grounding in astronomy and
Vortices in the quantum/noetic medium (such as the
astrophysics, the nova will be unable to make more than
Hammersmith Explosion in 1922, the Galatea Incident
educated guesses about what he senses with this technique.
in 1998, and the Venezuelan Phenomenon in 2122) are
The number of successes rolled determines the detail
automatically detected by the nova using this technique!
of information gained.
Dont even bother to make the roll - its kind of like trying
One success allows the nova to determine the targets
to hear a Metallica concert when youre in the audience.
orbital period, the shape of its orbit (a circle, ellipse,
Repeated attempts may be made to get more data. The
parabola, or hyperbola; for objects orbiting a single mass),
area of focus may be moved around, but a new power roll is
and the stability of the targets orbit. Two successes let the
required for each new area sensed. This technique can also
nova determine the future trajectory of the target, including
be used to sense any Inspired activity among the sapients
any possible collisions with other orbiting bodies the target
detected on smaller objects like space stations or individual
will happen to pass close to. With three successes the nova
spacecraft, but the targets have to be located before they
can accurately predict the effects of any perturbation of the
can be scanned.
targets orbital trajectory, even to the point of knowing how
to best engineer such perturbations deliberately if desired.
If applied to a life-bearing world, the effects could be Stellar Analysis
anything from world-saving to apocalyptic. Four successes Dice Pool: Intelligence + Astrosensor
let the nova detect any current or past alterations of the Range: (Quantum + power rating) x 10 parsecs (at
targets orbital trajectory, whether caused by natural or Quantum 6)
artificial means. Area: one stellar body
Duration: (Quantum) days
This technique allows the nova to perform a highly-
Parascan detailed analysis of a given stellar body. Without a solid
Dice Pool: Wits + Astrosensor
grounding in astronomy and/or astrophysics, the best a
Range: (Quantum + power rating) x 10 parsecs (at
nova will be able to do is make educated guesses about the
Quantum 6)
data he is receiving via this technique.
Area: one star system
One success grants basic data on the chosen star: the
Duration: (Quantum) days
stars spectral type, mass, diameter, rotational period, and
This technique allows the nova to detect and evaluate
classification/position on the Hertzprung-Russel diagram
any Inspired activity (or the evidence of past Inspired
of stellar evolution. Two successes reveal the stars average
activity) that may exist within a chosen star system. Unless
density, luminosity, absolute magnitude, and remaining
the nova has knowledge of and experience with the non-
lifespan. Three successes inform the nova about the stars
Quantum varieties of Inspiration (typically Psionic and/
astroseismology, stellar cycle, and current stability. Four
or Heroic Inspiration), she will only know to search for the
successes let the nova know about any threat (both imminent
manipulation and channelling of Quantum energies.
and eventual) that the star may pose to lifeforms within its
The number of successes rolled determines the detail of
system including the potential for the star to undergo a nova/

94 CHAPTER FOUR: NEW ITEMS

 ABERRANT
supernova/hypernova explosion or to become a black hole.
Five successes alert the nova to any extraordinary aspects of
the star in question - examples would include a property that
interferes with a certain form of Inspired powers, or evidence
of technological or paranormal stellar manipulation.
Tactical Scan
Dice Pool: Perception + Astrosensor
Range: N/A
Area: (Quantum + power rating) parsecs (at Quantum 6)
diameter sphere, centered on the nova
Duration: (Quantum) hours
This technique lets the nova maintain a clairsentient
radar geared to detect all non-normal and/or dangerous
objects within range of this technique. For purposes of
this technique, non-normal is read as anything that isnt
a naturally-occuring asteroid, comet, or planetary body.
Dangerous objects are those that pose any danger to the
astonomical body the nova is currently residing on, or to
any other life-bearing insystem body. The effective field of
detection is a sphere centered on the novas current position.
This technique is just the thing to detect spacecraft, space
stations and the occasional spacegoing life-form (such as
spaceworthy novas and aberrants or biotech spacecraft).
The number of successes rolled determines the detail
of information the nova can gain about anything within
her field of detection. One success detects the presence
of a target. Two successes determine its nature (whether
its a hardtech or noetic biotech ship, a rock, some form of
weapon, a quantum-powered superbeing or simple space
junk), trajectory, and relative speed. Three successes indicate
the general status of the target (nova or aberrant, heavily-
damaged freighter, abandoned colony ship, alien attack
vessel, escape pod, etc.). Four successes give an estimate
of the targets firepower, maneuverability, and other combat
capabilities. Five successes give detailed information (target
origins, target intentions, danger posed by target to nova
and/or her world, residence, society or what-have-you).
Extras: Multiversal Awareness (the nova can use this
power to detect astronomical objects in nearby alternate
universes- the ones that arent Exotic as defined in the
power listing for Crosstime Travel - see the Aberrant Players
Guide, p. 122. If the nova buys this Extra a second time, the
Exotic alternate universes may be scanned as well).
Augmented Willpower
Level: N/A (costs one nova point/ three experience
points per level)
Quantum Minimum: 1
Dice Pool: N/A
Range: Self
CHAPTER FOUR: NEW ITEMS
Area: N/A
Duration: Permanent
Effect: Increases the novas temporary Willpower pool
by 1 point per level.
Multiple Actions: N/A
Description: This power simulates the capacity
some novas have for greater than normal reserves of
psychological strength. While the overall Willpower of the
nova is unaffected (read: her permanent Willpower rating is
unchanged), she does have one extra temporary Willpower
point for each level of this power. A nova may only take up to
3 levels of this power, unless she also has a Mega-Willpower
rating. In that case, the nova has no upper limit as to how
many levels of this power she can purchase with either nova
points or experience points.
Extras: None.
Crosstime Awareness
Level: 3
Quantum Minimum: 5
Dice Pool: Perception + Crosstime Awareness
Range: Special
Area: N/A
Duration: Concentration
Effect: Allows character to perceive alternate universes.
Multiple Actions: No
Description: Look before you leap has always been
considered good advice, and is doubly so when faced with
the prospect of traveling to an unknown alternate universe.
This quantum power lets the nova peer through the barriers
between his current universe and any alternate universes
he wishes to examine. The nova can use both mundane
and nova senses with this quantum power, especially
the Locus enhancement. Typical uses include finding the
home universes of other crosstime travelers, determining
the threats posed by potentially hazardous universes and
researching alternate histories. Note that attempting to peer
through the barriers of universes with a different Static Cosm
than the one that the nova currently resides in is much more
difficult, requiring the nova to have a Quantum Trait of 8 and
a Crosstime Awareness power rating of 6.
Using this power requires the novas player to roll
Perception + Crosstime Awareness, with the degree of
information received dependent on the number of successes
gained.
Successes & Information Gained
1 - Very Basic. The nova receives the most minimal,
bare bones information about the alternate universe in
question, with everything else falling under the Storytellers
jurisdiction.
3 - Basic. The nova gains a basic overview of the target
95
 ABERRANT
universe, with all further details under the Storytellers
jurisdiction.
5 - Moderately Detailed. The novas gets a useful
accounting of all the information on the target universe
that is pertinent to his desire for knowledge. For example,
a character tracking a group of nova crosstime bandits back
to their home universe would get a basic overview of that
universe with a special focus on the bandits homeworld and
social situation, especially as it applies to novas.
7 - Highly Detailed. The nova learns practically all
the relevant information there is to know about the target
universe. At the Storytellers discretion, an Intelligence roll
must be made for the nova to keep from missing one or
more important details.
Extras: Apparition (requires Telepathy +, the nova
can create psychic illusions - typically of himself - in the
minds of up to [Quantum + power rating] sapients within the
target universe. Mental combat is impossible, but the nova
can read and communicate with the sapients minds using
the apparition as a conduit. Communication can be done
verbally and/or through imparted visions.).
Crosstime Interface
Level: 5
Quantum Minimum: 8
Dice Pool: Variable
Range: Variable
Area: Variable
Duration: Variable
Effect: The character can affect the interfaces between
universes.
Multiple Actions: Yes
Description: The nova gains control over the barriers
that divide universes; allowing him to create, alter and
destroy interfaces where two otherwise separate realities
(or sub-realities) can come into contact with each other. This
power has only two limitations. First, if the nova creates an
interface between a zoetic universe and a dead universe,
the dead universe automatically becomes the target of the
technique leaving the zoetic universe undamaged. Second,
any attempts to create an interface between a standard
cosm and a static cosm automatically fail.
Crosstime Interface provides a list of techniques, of
which the nova may master one for every dot in this power.
The nova can attempt to use technique that he hasnt
mastered - if he has a sufficiently high Quantum Trait to use
it - but must pay double the normal quantum point cost
and make the power roll with a difficulty penalty of +1 to do
so. The novas player can choose from the techniques listed
here or come up with his own with the Storytellers approval.
96 CHAPTER FOUR: NEW ITEMS
Annexation
Prerequisites: Quantum 10
Dice Pool: Intelligence + Crosstime Interface
Range: N/A
Area: Special
Duration: (Quantum + power rating) months
The nova creates a specialized interface between two
separate universes, with the nova choosing one of them (the
subject universe) to engulf the other (the target universe)
into a fused amalgam universe. This is a gradual process,
with the target universe losing anywhere from one to three
cosmological Structural Levels per month as it is slowly
subsumed into the subject universe. Most universes will
have anywhere from 10 to 18 cosmological Structural Levels
and cannot soak cosmological damage. Of course, the
Storyteller is free to provide exceptions to that as she sees
fit. When the target universe is reduced to 0 cosmological
Structural Levels, it has become permanently a new region
of the subject universe. Which fundamental laws of reality
of the two affected universes will apply in the amalgam
universe are the novas to choose, although that will be
limited by the number of successes scored on the novas
power roll. The details of that are determined on the table
below.
Successes Effects
One Adequate - The nova can select 25% of
the applicable fundamental laws of the two
universes, with everything else being left to
the Storytellers discretion.
Three Close - The nova can select 50% of the
applicable fundamental laws of the two
universes, with everything else being left to
the Storytellers discretion.
Five Very Similar - The nova can select 75% of
the applicable fundamental laws of the two
universes, with everything else being left to
the Storytellers discretion.
Seven Exact - The nova can select nearly 100% of
the applicable fundamental laws of the two
universes, with everything else being left to
the Storytellers discretion. Unless the nova
happens to forget about one or more small
details (requiring a secret Intelligence roll
made by the Storyteller), nothing will escape
his control.
 ABERRANT
This universal cannibalism can be halted in three ways.
The first is for the nova responsible for starting it can shut
it down as an automatic action. The second is to obliterate
the subject universe with the Universe Destruction power.
The third method is for another nova to disrupt the process
with this technique which requires pitting the second novas
Intelligence + Crosstime Interface dice pool in a resisted roll
against the same dice pool of the culprit nova. If the process
is stopped, the two affected universes will immediately
separate and the target universe will begin regaining
cosmological Structural Levels at a rate of one per month.
During that time, both universes will gradually return to their
previous states.
Battlezone
Dice Pool: Wits + Crosstime Interface
Range: (Quantum + power rating) x 100 meters
Area: (Quantum + power rating) km
Duration: Maintenance
When combat involving novas, trained soldiers, law
enforcement officers or violent criminals occurs, its always
a safe bet that they wont restrict themselves to fighting
in areas devoid of innocent bystanders and/or valuable
properties. It was inevitable that countermeasures to this
situation would be developed.
This technique allows the nova to create an interface
around one or more groups of subjects (typically combatants),
sending them all into a temporary subreality that is a fairly
close reflection of the targeted area in their current universe.
The battlezone can support life but will have no lifeforms in
residence, foiling most kinds of assassination attempts and
preventing innocent bystanders from becoming hostages
and/or casualties. More importantly, most Inspired powers
will function normally within it, save for those which would
otherwise allow a combatant to escape from the battlezone.
That topic is covered below.
The number of combatants that the nova can transport
into a battlezone depends on the successes achieved on the
novas power roll. If the nova himself is part of one of the
combatant groups, he has full control over which members
of his group and its allied combatants are transferred to the
battlezone.
This technique is also handy in that any property
damage that occurs in a battlezone will have no effect at
all on the targeted area back in the real world. Finally,
any buildings will have working utilities but will otherwise
be like colorless television studio production sets, generic
and bland equivalents of their real world counterparts. There
will be nothing in the way of food, specialized equipment or
personalized items such as valuables, portraits, journals or
even nameplates to be found.
CHAPTER FOUR: NEW ITEMS
Successes Effects
One Rough - The nova transports the obvious
combatants that he has noticed in the
target area. Combatants that the nova has
not noticed are not affected. Non-obvious
combatants such as hidden snipers, assassins
lying in wait or combatants staying undercover
in plainclothes are also not affected.
Two Adequate - The nova transports all of the
obvious combatants in the target area whether
he has noticed them or not. As above, non-
obvious combatants are not affected.
Three Precise - The nova transports all of the obvious
combatants along with any allied non-obvious
combatants that they know about in the
targeted area.
Four Excellent - The nova transports all of the
obvious combatants along with any allied
non-obvious combatants that they may have
in the targeted area, regardless of whether
the obvious combatants know about them or
not.
Five Superb - As above, except that the nova
can also send anyone in a position of direct
command over the combatants but not
otherwise involved into the battlezone as well.
Examples of such include organized crime
bosses and their underlings, the superiors
of covert ops and intelligence agents, the
backers/leaders of violent organizations
(nova or otherwise) and the political figures
commanding unethical services from crooked
cops.
Depending on the novas wishes, he may join the
combatants or remain in the real world. Either way, he
will have full knowledge of what goes on both within the
battlezone and back in the real world. The same cannot be
said for the combatants in the battlezone and observers in
the real world outside of it - they will not be able to perceive
past the interface of the battlezone without the Crosstime
Awareness power or similar capabilities. This convenient
feature can allow the combatants to act in ways that they
would otherwise never be able to do so in public, for various
reasons.
When the nova ceases maintaining it the battlezone
will fade away, with the combatants - or their remains,
as appropriate - fading back into reality at the real world
counterparts of their last locations within the battlezone.
97
 ABERRANT
Escaping from a battlezone (or entering one from the highly inimical beings, as all the nova has to do is leave them
outside) is difficult, but not impossible. All that is required is trapped in a dying universe, which will take said inimical
for the would-be escapee to have either the Crosstime Travel beings with it to oblivion when it expires.
power or Crosstime Interface with the Portal technique (or The duration and strength of the interdiction depends
equivalent Inspired technology) and to pit her relevant on the number of successes the nova achieves on his power
dice pool aginst the novas Wits + Crosstime Interface in a roll for this technique.
resisted roll. One: Temporary interdiction, lasts for (Quantum +
power rating) years. Can be undone by various circumstances
involving exotic spacetime phenomena (Storytellers
Hijack discretion).
Dice Pool: Wits + Crosstime Interface
Two: Temporary interdiction, lasts for (Quantum
Range: (Quantum + power rating) x 10,000 km
+ power rating) centuries. Can be undone by various
Area: N/A
circumstances involving exotic spacetime phenomena
Duration: Instant
(Storytellers discretion).
This technique allows the nova to establish control over
Three: Indefinite/Conditional interdiction, lasts until
any existing crosstime interfaces - natural or otherwise - that
either undone or a given condition (chosen by the novas
he may encounter. It should be noted that the nova will only
player with the Storytellers input) has been honestly
be able to take control of crosstime interfaces that he could
met by the targets. The novas player can choose which
plausibly create himself. There is no way that a nova with
form of Interdiction to apply. Can be undone by various
this technique and Quantum 8 is going to have any effect
circumstances involving exotic spacetime phenomena
on an Annexation, for example.
(Storytellers discretion).
Using this technique requires a Wits + Crosstime
Four: Permanent interdiction, but can be undone
Interface roll, with each success replacing one success from
by various circumstances involving exotic spacetime
the targeted crosstime interface. In the case of crosstime
phenomena (Storytellers discretion).
interfaces created by novas, the roll is contested, with the
Five: Permanent interdiction, can only be undone by
player characters Wits + Crosstime Interface roll pitted
deliberate use of this technique. Doing so uses the same
against the power roll of the other nova. In the case of
game mechanics as the Disrupt power. If the nova is undoing
natural crosstime interfaces, the number of successes to
an Interdiction of his own creation, it counts as an automatic
be overcome is determined by the Storyteller.
action instead.

Interdiction
Dice Pool: Intelligence + Crosstime Interface
Limbo
Dice Pool: Wits + Crosstime Interface
Range: (Quantum + power rating) x 10,000 km
Range: (Quantum + power rating) x 10,000 km
Area: Variable
Area: One target, variable mass
Duration: Variable
Duration: Permanent
By creating an incompatibility between a target and the
The nova can create a miniature interface around a
interface of its current universe, the nova can prevent that
single chosen target, which has the effect of making it a
target from traveling to one or more alternate universes by
harmless exile from its current universe. The maximum
any means, be it the Crosstime Travel power or equivalent
allowable mass of the target depends on the novas power
technology. The number of targets affected and the number
rating, which is treated as Mega-Strengths deadlift capacity
of restricted universes the target will be barred from
for this purpose. Depending on the novas power rating,
depends on the novas Quantum Trait. At Quantum 8, the
he could affect anything from a single being to large
nova can affect only one being and prevent him/her/it from
vehicles with full complements of crew and passengers.
traveling to one alternate universe (typically the novas home
Targets in such a state are immaterial phantoms, unable
universe). At Quantum 9, the nova can affect one specified
to interact with their current universe in any physical sense
group of beings (such as an organization, civilization or an
and trapped in what they perceive to be an endless gray
entire species) and bar them from travelling to a specified
void. Even novas with five or more dots of Density Control
group of alternate universes (such as all universes where
- Decrease cannot physically interact with the target. This
humans exist). At Quantum 10, the nova can affect all the
is a handy way to dispose of inconvenient things such as
inhabitants of the subject universe and prevent them from
thermonuclear warheads, large-scale bioweapon dispersal
travelling to any of the alternate universes altogether. This
warheads, out of control power reactors and other such
can be a very handy means of disposing of one or more
dangerous technology. After a certain period of existing in

98 CHAPTER FOUR: NEW ITEMS

 ABERRANT
this state, such items will discoporate into nothingness.
This technique is also a great way to dispose of
inconvenient people - or other beings - without having to kill
them. Sapient beings subjected to this technique will neither
age nor experience any physical needs, but may still suffer
the effects of the loss of social and mental stimuli depending
on their nature and the circumstances of their particular exile.
Communication with beings stuck in Limbo is possible, but
only through Inspired extrasensory capabilities such as the
psionic Clairsentience Modes and equivalent nova powers
- Storytellers discretion as to whats exactly required to
accomplish this. Note that the Medium enhancement cannot
be used for this - ghosts and the targets of this technique
inhabit separate sub-levels (frequencies?) of reality.
It is possible for other novas with this technique to
rescue victims from Limbo. In this case, the novas dice pool
for this technique is pitted against that of the first nova as a
resisted roll.
Pocket Reality
Dice Pool: Wits + Crosstime Interface
Range: N/A
Area: (Quantum + power rating) x 2,000 km diameter
Duration: Permanent
This technique allows the nova to create a specialized
interface for his own personal use. The end result is a
personalized sub-reality which the nova has sole access
to and can alter as he sees fit within certain parameters.
One very convenient feature of a pocket reality is that
the entrance point is always fixed within one meter of the
nova, instead of remaining fixed to a single point in normal
physical reality. The nova can enter it at will as an automatic
action, but he must personally escort others in if they are
to enter the pocket reality. Attempting to trespass into
another novas pocket reality requires the invader to pit her
Perception + Crosstime Interface (Portal) dice pool against
the novas own Wits + Crosstime Interface with an additional
difficulty penalty of +3. Sensing intruders (or anything else of
interest) within the novas own pocket reality merely requires
a Perception roll as an automatic action on the novas part.
Depending on the novas tastes and the amount of
effort hes willing to put out into crafting it, the pocket
reality can manifest as anything from grim secret bunkers in
harsh terrain and opulent palaces in unspoiled wilderness
to simple rows of storage racks and furniture suspended in
a void for the nova to fill up with his stuff. Creating anything
more than simple storage space or wilderness requires the
nova to invest dots of the Sanctum Background and possibily
the Sanctum Sanctorum Background Enhancement, with the
pocket reality as the novas Sanctum. Note that the actual
Sanctum structure does not need to take up all the area of
the personal reality, as wilderness, gardens and farmland
CHAPTER FOUR: NEW ITEMS
are all viable options to help provide a healthy living
environment. Crafting a personal reality requires a Wits
+ Crosstime Interface roll, with the quality of the product
depending on the number of successes rolled. If the nova
invests his Sanctum Background into this, the personal
reality will also grant some level of functioning amenities
for it. Said amenities are essentially unlimited and cannot
be exhausted, although that wont help if theres only one
shower in the sanctum.
One: Marginal - the pocket reality is a barren, empty
place which always has fresh air if little else. Nothing in
the way of wildlife can survive for long here. If the nova
invests a sanctum in it, the pocket reality will offer the same
equivalent amenities to a modern temperature-controlled
warehouse - adequate lighting, electrical power at whatever
settings desired, sewage systems and potable tap water. As
it even lacks dust, it makes for excellent storage space for
non-perishable items.
Two: Adequate - the pocket reality is mostly primeval
wilderness, complete with realistic weather and untamed
wildlife with no fear of humans. If the nova invests a sanctum
here, the pocket reality will offer the same equivalent
amenities as can be found in modern housing and/or
professional buildings. In practical terms, that covers
everything but food and consumer goods.
Three: Comfortable - the pocket reality is a mix of
primeval wilderness, gardens and farmlands in whatever
ratios the nova desires. The local wildlife are all plentiful,
robust and have a healthy fear of humans. If the nova invests
a sanctum here, the pocket reality will offer any amenities
that can be found on the novas current homeworld (typically
Nova Age Earth). This includes some means of providing
foodstuffs of all sorts.
Four: Well-Appointed - the pocket reality is a mix of
agricultural areas and artificial structures (such as emergency
housing and hospitals, for example) in whatever ratios
the nova wants. If desired, the nova can create regions
specialized for some form of agricultural production such
as growing vineyard grapes or prime territorry for hunting
moose. Likewise, areas with complexes specialized for
things like manufacturing can be created. If the nova invests
a sanctum here, the pocket reality will offer any amenities
that are either available on the novas current and past
homeworlds or that he could plausibly create with his
scientific and technological knowledge.
Five: Paradisical - the pocket reality is a mix of
agricultural areas and artificial structures in whatever ratios
the nova desires. The nova can create specialized regions for
agricultural production and/or industrial production that are
noticeably superior to any of their Terran counterparts. The
local wildlife can include whatever extinct species the nova
wants, provided that they can adapt to a baseline human-
99
 ABERRANT
suited environment. If the nova invests
a sanctum here, the pocket reality
will offer any amenities that are either
available on the novas current and past
homeworlds or that he can imagine,
provided that they are scientifically
plausible (Storytellers discretion).
While the lower-quality pocket
realities can plausibly (if not comfortably)
support small groups of people, the
well-appointed and paradisical
ones can support large numbers of
humans for indefinite periods of time.
In those latter cases, the maximum
additional occupancy is equal to the
novas (Quantum + power rating) x
10,000 adults for well-appointed pocket
realities and (Quantum + power rating)
x 1,000,000 adults for paradisical ones.
If the nova attains a power rating
of 6+ in Crosstime Interface and has
this technique, he can create multiple to spend temporary Willpower if undesired) to determine
floating acccess points between his pocket reality and this techniques duration, with a portal lasting for one turn
his physical reality. Each dot of Crosstime Interface beyond per success. Temporary Willpower points can be spent to
the fifth will grant the nova five extra access points, which keep a portal open past that time for one extra turn per
he can place anywhere at any time. The access points will Willpower point spent. Portals share the same barriers to
also able to let in anyone that the nova wishes, regardless pressure and temperature equalization as warps, so attacks
of hostile companions and/or coercive devices such as using jets of pressurized stellar plasma or vacuum-induced
exploding collars (Aberrant: Brainwaves p. 21). Once the suction are not possible with this technique.
invited guest steps through an access point, the uninvited To use this technique, the novas player makes a
ones and nasty devices are left harmlessly behind. Even if power roll and consults the table used for Crosstime
the coercive devices are surgically implanted, they will be Travel (Aberrant Players Guide, p. 122) to determine how
removed harmlessly from the invited guest when he or well the universe the portal leads to matches up with the
she steps through the access point. If required, the nova novas intended destination. The only real difference is
can even shunt an immobilized invited guest through that this technique automatically includes the equivalent
an access point with a Dexterity + Crosstime Interface roll of the Exotic Worlds Extra, so universes with different
without jostling him or her or any such delicate things as fundamental laws - such as working magic and alterations
life-support systems. in how nova powers function - may be chosen as possible
destinations.
The nova can also use portals in combat to attack by
Portal opening one up in front of a target. Doing so requires both
Dice Pool: Perception + Crosstime Interface
a Dexterity + Crosstime Interface roll to determine accuracy
Range: (Quantum + power rating) x 10 meters
and a Perception + Crosstime Interface roll to determine
Area: N/A
where the target(s) end up. Moving targets can dodge a
Duration: Special
portal, while nonmoving targets must make an Athletics roll
This technique functions in almost the same way as
to avoid being engulfed.
the Crosstime Travel power, except that it creates a gate
(much like that of the Warp power) that anyone can use.
Portals typically are fifteen meters square, and the nova may
alter the shape by five meters per dot in either dimension.
Anything thats too big to fit through a portal cant go
through it. Portals can be opened anywhere within the novas
range. The nova must make a Willpower roll (without having

100 CHAPTER FOUR: NEW ITEMS

 ABERRANT
Severance
Dice Pool: Intelligence + Crosstime Interface
Range: (Quantum + power rating) x 10,000 km
Area: N/A
Duration: Instant
This technique allows the nova to destroy any existing
crosstime interfaces - natural or otherwise - that he may
encounter. It should be noted that the nova will only be able
to destroy crosstime interfaces that he could plausibly create
himself. There is no way that a nova with this technique and
Quantum 8 is going to have any effect on a Quantum 9
Interdiction, for example.
Using this technique requires an Intelligence +
Crosstime Interface roll, with each success canceling out
one success from the targeted crosstime interface. In the
case of crosstime interfaces created by novas, the number
of successes is determined by the power roll involved in
their creation. In the case of natural crosstime interfaces, the
number of successes is determined by the Storyteller.
Transposition
Prerequisites: Quantum 9
Dice Pool: Perception + Crosstime Interface
Range: (Quantum + power rating) x 1,000 km
Area: (Quantum + power rating) x 20 km diameter
sphere
Duration: Instant
This technique allows the nova to exchange a chosen
area - usually from a planets surface - with another region of
the same size in an alternate universe. This territory exchange
happens near-instantaneously, with nothing in the way of
seismic tremors in the case of landmass transpositions. All
of the areas structures, contents and current inhabitants
will be taken along for the ride. Also, when transpositioning
inhabited landmasses, half the affected area will be taken
Successes Suitability
One Adequate: The transpositioned area
is situated so that there are no major
inconveniences beyond the expected, such
as possible loss of certain utilities for a
community.
Two Minor Benefit: The transpositioned area has
one minor benefit in its new location.
Three Major Benefit: The transpositioned area has
multiple minor benefits or one major benefit
in its new location.
Four or more Excellent: The transpositioned area has
multiple major benefits in its new location.
CHAPTER FOUR: NEW ITEMS
from the atmosphere above it, with the bottom hemisphere
being comprised of landmass.
Using this technique requires a Perception + Crosstime
Interface roll, with the successes used in two ways. First,
the table for Crosstime Travel (Aberrant Players Guide,
p. 122) is used to determine how well the universe the
transpositioned area ends up in matches the novas intended
destination. Second, the successes rolled also determine
how well-situated the transposed area will be in its new
location, according to the previous table. Depending on
the nature of the transpositioned area, this may represent
available natural resources, improvements in climate,
advantageous positioning for a community to expand or the
ready availability of improved utilities at the new location.
Extras: None.
Crosstime Retrieval
Level: 4
Quantum Minimum: 6
Dice Pool: Wits + Crosstime Retrieval
Range: (Quantum + power rating) x 5 meters
Area: N/A
Duration: Special
Effect: Allows character to retrieve items from alternate
universes.
Multiple Actions: No
Description: Crosstime Retrieval is the ability to literally
bring items through the barriers between realities, from
alternate universes to the novas vicinity. While it can easily
be used to summon mundane items of technology, most uses
for this power are to briefly gain access to technology they
cannot acquire for some reason or that is not widely known
to exist (yet) in the novas current universe. Once retrieved,
the item will remain in the novas current universe for one
day per dot in Crosstime Retrieval before automatically
returning to its home universe. If the nova gains three extra
successes on his power roll, the item will stay in the novas
current universe permanently until dismissed by the nova or
sent back through other means. The nova can always send
it back early as an automatic action, especially if the item in
question is something that he does not wish for the local
scientific community or business interests to examine and
possibly reverse engineer. It should be noted that items
which depend on different physical laws than those found in
the novas current universe will not function without the aid
of the Unreality Zone quantum power.
101
 ABERRANT
Extras: Summoning (the nova can retrieve living beings
The maximum mass of the retrieved item is determined from alternate universes. Mundane animals only require one
by the novas power rating, as seen below. success to summon, while non-Inspired sapients require
two successes. Inspired beings - which are usually sapients
- will require anywhere from three to seven successes as
Power Rating Maximum Mass
per the Storytellers dictates. For instance, novas could be
One dot 5 kilograms more difficult to summon than the other kinds of Inspired
Two dots 50 kg beings. The nova will be unable to summon unwilling
Three dots 500 kg Inspired beings whose power Trait - Quantum, Inspiration,
Psi, what-have-you - is higher than his own Quantum Trait.
Four dots 5 metric tons
For double the quantum point cost, the nova can also
Five dots 50 metric tons summon a phantom or a denizen of a Static Cosm into
Six dots 500 metric tons his current reality, granting said being a permanent and
Seven dots 5,000 metric tons free-willed existence, although beings made real in this
way can never be dismissed. Finally, please note that this
Eight dots 50,000 metric tons
power does nothing whatsoever to let the nova command
Nine dots 500,000 metric tons or control the summoned being, who may not appreciate
Ten dots 5,000,000 metric tons being plucked from familiar surroundings).

Exactly what the nova with this power can retrieve is

determined by the number of successes he gains on the
power roll, as per the chart below.

Successes Effects
One Mundane items (equivalent to the novas home universes current or past technology), 1 dot
Devices (or any Devices based on reputation), or items equiv. to lvl. 1 quantum powers.
Two Items from Hypertech 1 technologies (as judged by the novas home universe), 2 dot Devices,
items providing the equivalent to lvl. 2 quantum powers.
Three Items from Hypertech 2 technologies, 3 dot Devices, items providing the equivalent to lvl. 3
quantum powers.
Four Items from Hypertech 3 technologies, 4 dot Devices, items providing the equivalent to lvl. 3
quantum powers with an Extra.
Five Items from Hypertech 4 technologies, 5 dot Devices.
SIx Items from Hypertech 5 technologies, 5 dot Devices w/ Artifact Background Enhancement.
Seven Items from Hypertech 5 technologies with the S.A.T. Background Enhancement.

102 CHAPTER FOUR: NEW ITEMS

 ABERRANT
Dramatic Editing
Level: 2 Cosmological Damage,
Quantum Minimum: 3
Dice Pool: N/A Structural Levels and Soak
Range: Self When dealing with powers and effects that can destroy
Area: N/A entire universes, attempting to calculate damage using the
Duration: Permanent standard categories of bashing, lethal and aggravated simply
Effect: The novas player can use the Dramatic Editing cannot handle the job. Likewise, how resilient a universe is must
rules to the novas benefit. also be accounted for. Its for this reason that the Cosmological
Multiple Actions: Yes category of damage, Structural Levels and soak had to be
Description: The nova has an uncanny - and uncontrolled invented solely to use with universes. Cosmological damage is
- relationship with the forces of probability, chaos and treated as lethal damage, as it severely damages universes but
chance. Although the Hammersmith Vortex died out long can be soaked. Cosmological Structural Levels are treated as per
before the dawn of the Nova Age, a nova with this quantum the rules for Vehicle Damage (Aberrant core book, p. 279) and
power enjoys the same outrageous fortunes of his Stalwart cannot be harmed by anything short of cosmological damage.
predecessors. All the rules for Dramatic Editing (Adventure! Cosmological soak works just like normal soak against attacks
core book, pp. 193-197) apply except for the point costs. causing cosmological damage, and is complete proof against all
As the current Quantum Vortex created by Divis Mal - which lesser forms of damage.
began the Nova Age in the first place - is weighted towards
quantum energies, using this power drains energy solely
from the novas own quantum pool. The revised costs for ones, its only to be expected that they can protect existing
Dramatic Editing are as seen below: universes as well. By strengthening the natural barriers of
a chosen universe, the nova can provide that universe with
three points of cosmological soak for each dot of Shielded
Effect Quantum Point Cost Reality the nova possesses. Most standard cosms will have
Minor Offscreen Effect 2 anywhere from 10 to 18 cosmological Structural Levels and
Minor Extension 2 cannot soak cosmological damage. Of course, the Storyteller
is free to provide exceptions to that as he sees fit.
Minor Onscreen Effect 4
Aside from defending against direct attacks such as
Major Onscreen Effect 6 the Universe Destruction power, Shielded Reality is also
Obvious Continuity 8 effective against any power, technology or effect that would
Violation otherwise reduce a target universes cosmological Structural
Plot Ramification +2 Levels. This includes effects that subvert those cosmological
Structural Levels, such as the Annexation technique of the
Plot Complication -2
Crosstime Interface power. Shielded Reality can also protect
the timeline of the target universe from unwanted changes
made through time travel. For each dot of Shielded Reality
Extras: None, no Extras can ever be applied to this the nova possesses, all rolls made by others to change
quantum power. history automatically lose two successes.
Extras: None.

Shielded Reality
Level: 6
Quantum Minimum: 10
Dice Pool: Intelligence + Shielded Reality
Range: N/A
Area: One universe
Duration: Maintenance
Effect: Provides target universe with +3 cosmological
soak per dot in Shielded Reality.
Multiple Actions: Yes
Description: With sufficiently powerful novas having the
capability to both destroy existing universes and create new

CHAPTER FOUR: NEW ITEMS 103

 ABERRANT
Starflight
Level: 4
Quantum Minimum: 6
Prerequisites: Flight and Hyperflight at equal or greater
power ratings. The nova should also have some way of
staying alive in space (such as the Adaptability enhancement
or the Bodymorph power) in order to keep use of this power
from becoming suicidal. The FTL Reflexes (Mega-Dexterity)
and FTL Reactions (Mega-Wits) enhancements are also
worthwhile.
Dice Pool: Dexterity + Starflight
Range: Self
Area: N/A
Duration: Maintenance
Effect: Allows the nova to fly at superluminal speeds.
Multiple Actions: Yes
Description: This is the penultimate form of the Flight
power, as it allows the nova to fly at speeds greater than C
(the speed of light in a vacuum, which is 299,792,458 meters
per second). The mechanism by which this power functions
varies somewhat with each nova who develops Starflight.
One nova might alter her body in order to duplicate some
of the properties of tachyons, while another might form an
induction ring of negative energy around himself to create
a bubble of warped spacetime which can attain FTL speeds.
Regardless of the precise mechanism used, all versions
of Starflight have the same effect. The nova can fly through
space (and other three-dimensional areas of vacuum) at
a speed determined by his Quantum Trait and Starflight
power rating. The basic speed equations are [(power rating
x4) + 40] x 0.001 units/action in combat and (Quantum +
Starflight) x 50 units per hour out of combat. The actual
unit used in the speed equations is also dependent
on the novas Starflight power rating - at the first dot, the
unit used is the Astronomical Unit (A.U.), which is equal
to 149,597,870 kilometers. The novas speed is measured
in parsecs at a power rating of 2 dots; this increases to
kiloparsecs at 4 dots, megaparsecs at 6 dots, gigaparsecs
at 8 dots, and teraparsecs at 10 dots. What this boils down
to is that while a nova with one dot of Starflight can zoom
across a star system in minutes, making an interstellar
voyage would take several weeks of nonstop FTL flight.
For instance, Sol System is 274,379 A.U.s [or 1.33 parsecs]
from Alpha Centauri. Since a Quantum 6 nova with 1 dot
of Starflight could fly at 350 A.U.s per hour, he would take
a total of 32 days, 15 hours, 56 minutes, and 24 seconds to
get there (not counting rest stops). As the nova increases
his Starflight power rating hell be capable of transgalactic,
intergalactic, and ultimately inter-galactic cluster voyages.
Ordinarily, an object traveling at superluminal
speeds would suffer severe damage from hazards such as
micrometeorites and electromagnetic radiation. Fortunately
104 CHAPTER FOUR: NEW ITEMS
for a nova with Starflight, one aspect of this power allows
him to automatically form a deflector shield around himself,
which simply diverts such dangers around the nova, leaving
him unharmed.
If a nova develops Starflight without developing the
FTL Reflexes and FTL Reactions enhancements, he will
encounter serious difficulties (difficulty penalty of +16) on all
rolls made to maneuver while flying at superluminal speeds
in space. Having one of those enhancements halves the
difficulty penalty, while having both eliminates the difficulty
penalty entirely.
Unless the nova is completely immaterial at the time,
using Starflight while inside a planetary atmosphere is
(usually) an Extremely Bad Idea - the shockwaves produced
are nothing short of catastrophic. Treat the effect of an FTL
nova passing through a Terra-equivalent atmosphere as
being equal to a combined base of a 100d10 Lethal Blast
(heat), 100d10 Strobe (auditory), 100d10 Strobe (visual), 50
dots in Thunderclap and 50 dots in Shockwave per dot of
Starflight. The nova can reduce this effect by slowing down,
but must drop to subluminal velocities to avoid causing
such damage. Novas with the Silent Running enhancement
(affecting Flight, from the Aberrant Compendium) can turn
this effect on or off at will.
Depending on the precise mechanics of how his version
of Starflight functions, the nova may produce Cerenkov
radiation (an optical sonic boom composed of harmless
incoherent blue visible light) when flying at FTL speeds.
In this case, the nova would generate enough light to
simulate the effects of the Strobe (visual) power at the novas
Starflight power rating. The downside of this is that it also
reduces the difficulties on all attempts to detect the nova
by means of optical astronomical observation by -1 for each
dot of Starflight the nova possesses. The nova can mute
the Cerenkov radiation by slowing down, but must drop
to subluminal velocities to avoid making a spectacle (and
possibly a target) of himself in this manner. Novas with the
Silent Running enhancement (affecting Flight) can turn this
effect on or off at will.
Extras: None.
Tau Discharge
Level: 5
Quantum Minimum: 9
Dice Pool: Dexterity + Tau Discharge
Range: (Quantum + power rating) A.U.
Area: (Quantum + power rating) x 10 kilometers
diameter per projectile.
Duration: Instant
Effect: The character fires off one or more small
projectiles at near-lightspeed at a chosen target.
Multiple Actions: Yes.
 ABERRANT
Description: This decidedly simple (and devastating)
power allows the nova to accelerate one hand-held projectile
- nothing larger than a small hand grenade - per dot in his
power rating to relativistic speeds, and fire them at a chosen
target. Each missile will inflict (Quantum + power rating) x
10 levels of bashing damage, (Quantum + power rating) x
5 levels of lethal damage, or (Quantum + power rating) x 2
levels of aggravated damage to the target and everything
within the blast radius of the targets subsequent explosion.
Please note that both the damage and the area of effect
are cumulative if more than one projectile hits a target.
This power is generally used in space combat against large
spacecraft, space stations, and asteroid bases; but can be
quite effective against inhabited planets. Enough of these
relativistic projectiles could easily trigger a nuclear winter
effect if they impact at the right places...
It should be noted that this quantum power is best
used only in the vacuum of space. Attempting to use Tau
Discharge within any but the thinnest of atmospheres will
result in an area-effect blast wave centered on the nova that
will inflict the full damage on the novas surroundings. The
projectile(s) will be burnt into harmless ash long before they
even get close to the novas target. Also, if this power is used
to launch a nova employing the Sizemorph: Shrink power
as a projectile, that unfortunate soul is almost guaranteed
to either die on impact (if in vacuum) or be incinerated (if in
an atmosphere) unless he has some defense or other way to
survive that severe mistreatment.
Extras: None.
Temporal Loop
Level: 5
Quantum Minimum: 8
Dice Pool: Intelligence + Temporal Loop
Range: (Quantum + power rating) x 1,000 km
Area: Special
Duration: Special
Effect: The character can create temporal loops and
disrupt existing ones.
Multiple Actions: Special
Description: The nova can split off a tiny portion
of her current universes timestream and shape it into a
perpetual loop. While this sometimes happens naturally
on extremely rare occasion - only when the circumstances
involved would affect the entire universe - the nova is by
no means so limited. At first she will only be able to create
minor temporal loops, but as her skill with this power
grows, the nova will eventually be able to create major
temporal loops. Both kinds of temporal loops are essentially
permanent until they are disrupted, usually by an outside
force. Said outside force will typically be another nova with
this power, which uses the mechanics of the Disrupt quantum
CHAPTER FOUR: NEW ITEMS
power (Aberrant core book, pp. 190-191) for this purpose.
Other means of disrupting temporal loops from the outside
typically require unorthodox applications of certain forms of
FTL (Faster Than Light) spacedrive technologies that involve
warping spacetime, although direct contact with natural
spacetime distortions might also serve to achieve this feat
(Storytellers discretion). Disrupting a minor temporal loop
from within requires either use of this power, use of the Time
Travel quantum power (Aberrant Players Guide, pp. 136-
138) or use of the Starflight quantum power. In all cases,
the power used is treated as the Disrupt quantum power for
this purpose. Additionally, major temporal loops can also be
disrupted internally by altering the circumstances supporting
its creation, although doing so is typically quite difficult.
At power ratings of 1 to 5 dots, the nova is limited to
creating and disrupting minor temporal loops. These loops
will appear as spherical force bubbles, with each one just
large enough to hold a maximum of two adult baseline
human-sized creatures or objects. Larger numbers of smaller
targets may be held by a single minor temporal loop, but
larger targets will require for multiple minor temporal loops
to be consolidated into one big enough to engulf the target
in question. Treat a consolidated minor temporal loop as
having the equivalent of one dot of the Sizemorph - Grow
quantum power (Aberrant core book, p. 222) for every
normal minor temporal loop used to form it. In both cases,
common sense and your Storytellers judgment will be the
guidelines. Multiple actions are possible when creating or
disrupting minor temporal loops. As an advanced version
of the Stop Time technique of Temporal Manipulation,
being imprisoned by a minor temporal loop cannot be
resisted by Willpower, although the Storyteller may allow
Mega-Witty novas a roll to dodge out of the way when its
being formed. Once formed, minor temporal loops may
be touched as normal physical objects and transported
normally. Unfortunately, minor temporal loops also cannot
be teleported, sent through Warps or transported via FTL
travel of any sort, as they prevent such powers, effects and
technologies from functioning when in contact with them.
Targets within a minor temporal loop are cut off from
the rest of their universe, locked into experiencing just a
few seconds worth of time (just prior to their imprisonment)
indefinitely. Viewed from the outside, the targets will
appear to be endlessly repeating their last few seconds of
movement. The targets cannot affect or interact with the
universe outside the minor temporal loop in any way, and will
also remain unaffected by external conditions. The targets
will not age or experience any passage of time, making any
physical, mental and social needs a moot point. Aside from
being a good means of imprisoning truly difficult prisoners,
minor temporal loops are also handy for rescuing people
from natural disasters and accidents, stabilizing severely
105
 ABERRANT
injured or ill patients, and preventing the detonation of
bombs from harming innocent people.
The number of minor temporal loops the nova can
create at the same time depends on her power rating. Refer
to the chart below for the progression.
Power Rating Temporal Loops
One dot 1 Note that instead of simple spatial volume, the limiting
Two dots 10
Three dots 25
Four dots 50
Five dots 100
Six dots 200
Seven dots 400
Eight dots 800
Nine dots 1,600
Ten dots 3,200
At power ratings of 6 dots and higher, the nova is
capable of creating and disrupting major temporal loops.
These loops have no appearance at all, and can only be
perceived through use of the Spacetime Awareness and/
or Locus Mega-Perception enhancements or equivalent
technologies and Inspired capabilities. Unlike their lesser
counterparts, major temporal loops can cover up to
(Quantum + power rating) days of the targets time just prior
to imprisonment. Prisoners caught within a major temporal
loop will experience that same length of time endlessly,
with all their circumstances (such as supplies) and memories
being reset when the loop finishes a cycle and starts anew.
Inspired beings within a major temporal loop can roll their
power Trait (Quantum, Inspiration, Psi, etc.) + Willpower +
Awareness to recall memories of previous cycles of the loop,
which can be of great help with disrupting the loop through
circumstance alteration. Crosstime travelers who are not
Inspired can make a Willpower + Awareness to likewise
recover their memories of previous cycles, provided that
the major temporal loop is not happening within their home
universe. At the Storytellers discretion, sensitive sapients
not in either category just mentioned can experience
flashes of deja vu and general fatigue when their erased
memories of previous cycles begin to build up pressure in
their minds. Multiple actions are not possible when creating
or disrupting major temporal loops.
It is possible for novas with the right powers to enter
and escape from a major temporal loop without disrupting
it. Achieving either feat requires only the use of the
Temporal Loop power, use of the Time Travel quantum
106 CHAPTER FOUR: NEW ITEMS
power (Aberrant Players Guide, pp. 136-138) or use of
the Starflight quantum power. Treat such feats as disruption
attempts, although they will be made with an additional
difficulty penalty of +1 or more as the Storyteller decides is
appropriate. Bringing additional people along for the ride
requires use of the Attunement Background.
The maximum area of effect that the nova can place
within a major temporal loop depends on her power rating.
factor is instead the number of sapients to be trapped
within the loop. As such, the benchmarks in the chart below
can be adapted for spacecraft with ease. Refer to the chart
below for the progression.
Power Rating Maximum Area of Effect
Six dots (Quantum + power rating) x 10 people
Seven dots An entire town
Eight dots An entire city
Nine dots An entire continent
Ten dots One planet
Extras: None.
Universe Destruction
Level: 6
Quantum Minimum: 10, must also posess Universe
Creation at equal or greater power rating.
Dice Pool: Intelligence + Universe Destruction
Range: N/A
Area: N/A
Duration: Permanent
Effect: The nova can destroy an existing universe. And
were not joking about this, either.
Multiple Actions: No
Description: As novas with sufficient power can
create new universes within the greater structures of the
Multiverse, so too can they destroy already most existing
universes. Although widely considered to be something of
a Doomsday Weapon power, it can be used to prevent
disasters such as a new universe expanding into the
spacetime of an existing one. Other possibilities include
destroying a created universe which is being used as a prison
(possibly imprisoning its own creator as well), preventing
a predatory universe from engulfing other ones like a
cosmic amoeba and preventing new universes from being
created in the first place. Interestingly, any use of this
power can easily be blocked by another nova with Universe
Creation, as all he has to do is create a new universe to
take the bullet for the target universe. Likewise, use of
 ABERRANT
this power can prevent Universe Creation from functioning
by unraveling the new universe at the instant of its birth. This
form of conflict should be treated as resisted power rolls.
While the precise method of destruction used is left
to the players discretion, the game mechanics of how
this power works are simple: the nova pays the quantum
point cost and an Intelligence + Universe Destruction
roll is made. Her successes, plus a number of automatic
successes equal to her Quantum Trait, equals the number
of levels of cosmological damage that will be inflicted
on the target universe. As they are utterly invulnerable to
outside forces, static cosms are unaffected by this quantum
power. Most standard cosms will have anywhere from
10 to 18 cosmological Structural Levels and cannot soak
cosmological damage. Dead universes will only have 2 to 4
cosmological Structural Levels. Of course, the Storyteller is
free to provide exceptions to that as he sees fit. Dont even
bother to roll for damage to the living inhabitants (if any) of
the target universe. Unless a being within the target universe
either has some way to flee from it into another universe or
can exist indefinitely within trans-universal hyperspace, she/
he/it will be obliterated once the target universe dies.
Extras: None.
Unreality Zone
Level: 4
Quantum Minimum: 7
Dice Pool: Wits + Unreality Zone
Range: (Quantum + power rating) x 100 meters
Area: (Quantum + power rating) x 10 meters
Duration: Special
Effect: The character can create an area where the
physical laws of the local reality need not apply.
Multiple Actions: Yes
Description: Essentially a severely diminished and
restricted form of Planck Scaling, this power allows the nova
to slightly loosen the physical laws of her current universe
in a small area. Instead of the full-fledged transformations
of reality possible with Planck Scaling, the nova instead
prevents her current universe from negatively affecting any
beings within the zone. This power is most often used to allow
the survival of said beings within incompatible universes.
However, it can also allow the special capabilities of Inspired
beings - and similar devices, such as quantum gadgets or
magical artifacts - to function normally in universes where
they either couldnt or would be altered for the worse.
Note that this power cannot be used to make any positive
alterations in the special capabilities of Inspired beings - that
feat requires much more than this power is capable of. A
less frequently seen use is to temporarily protect vulnerable
beings of any kind from being either altered or erased from
existence by the changes in history made by time travelers.
CHAPTER FOUR: NEW ITEMS
Successes Results
One Minor: Allows temporary survival of
incompatible beings within the current
universe. Examples include but are not limited
to the following. Preventing magic-dependent
beings from dying or fading out of existence
within a non-magical universe. Preventing
living beings from dying when in universes
where their normal biological processes are
locally impossible. Preventing matter-based
entities from dying or being destroyed in
universes where baryonic matter was never
able to form. Also allows temporary normal
function of nova capabilities (and quantum
gadgets) within this powers area of effect.
Three Moderate: Allows temporary normal function
of nova capabilities (and quantum gadgets)
within their normal parameters, regardless
of this powers area of effect. Also allows
temporary normal function of the special
capabilities of non-eximorphic Inspired beings
(and equivalent Devices) within this powers
area of effect.
Five Major: Allows permanent normal function
of nova capabilities (and quantum gadgets)
within their normal parameters, regardless
of this powers area of effect. Also allows
temporary normal function of the special
capabilities of non-eximorphic Inspired beings
(and equivalent Devices) within their normal
parameters, regardless of this powers area of
effect.
Seven Extreme: Allows permanent normal function of
nova capabilities (and quantum gadgets) within
this powers area of effect, which can help
make a handy place for a base of operations
when exploring (or planning to conquer) an
otherwise nova-incompatible universe. Also
allows permanent normal function of the
special capabilities of non-eximorphic Inspired
beings (and equivalent Devices) within their
normal parameters, regardless of this powers
area of effect.
107
 ABERRANT
In the first case, the protection provided by this power
depends on the degree of reality alteration required and the
number of successes rolled. Temporary reality alterations
will have a duration of (Quantum + power rating) hours,
after which whatever non-instant effects will fade away.
Permanent reality alterations are just that and will remain
in the otherwise incompatible universe, much to the
mystification of the local sapients.
In the second case, this power functions as a continuous
form of the Disrupt quantum power against whatever dice
pool the time traveling culprit used to alter the subjects
history. As this is not a permanent solution to the subjects
dilemma, its best used to buy time for either the subjects
altered history to be repaired or for the subject to be
transferred into a suitable alternate universe where hell be
safe from the temporal revision.
Extras: None.
108 CHAPTER FOUR: NEW ITEMS
New Ecological Supremacy
Techniques
Bioform
Prerequisites: Quantum 9, the Viability technique
Range: Global
Area: Global
Duration: Permanent
This technique lets the nova reshape the surface of
a lifeless rockball planet (both land and sea, if any) into a
prepared garden-bed for transplanted lifeforms in mere
moments. The environmental chemistry will be more-or-less
capable of sustaining life of whatever kind the nova desires,
although extra successes past the first can be spent to
improve the planets compatibility - one extra success would
be sufficient for a planet comparable to Averiguas or Khantze
Lu Ge, while planets like Mars or Venus would require four
extra successes to transform them into bioformed worlds.
Please note that the nova must have examined a living,
vital planetary ecosphere to use as a template for the new
world - if the only such world the nova knows well is Earth,
then thats the only template hell have to work with. The
transplanted lifeforms will then progress at their own rate -
realistically, it could take a few centuries for life to colonize
most of a bioformed world without extensive human
aid in the process. Of course, theres always Ecological
Supremacy...
Diversify
Range: Global
Area: Global
Duration: Permanent
This technique alters the genetics of a target population
just enough to increase its genetic diversity to optimal
levels. This has mainly been used to offset the effects of
inbreeding among small, isolated populations. There is
a darker use for this, however - the nova can spend one
success from his power roll to decrease the genetic diversity
of a target population instead, paving the way for all sorts
of inherited deformities to appear among any offspring the
target population may have in the future. With two or more
successes, the gender ratio of a population can be altered
in lieu of increasing general genetic diversity. The uses of
this latter application range from the beneficial (saving an
isolated population from dying out) to malicious (creating
a same-sex environment where extinction is assured) to the
downright mischievous (transforming everyone in a selected
group of people that the nova doesnt like into members of
the opposite sex)!
 ABERRANT
Genesis
Prerequisites: Quantum 10, the Bioform and
Spontaneous Generation techniques
Range: Global
Area: Global
Duration: Instant
This technique lets the nova create an entire planetary
ecosystem on a lifeless rockball planet. Whether the planet
has toxic soil like Mars or a lethal atmosphere like Venus
matters not - the effects of this technique can make those
unpleasant realities into fading memories. The state of the
biosphere created by the use of this technique depends on
the number of successes achieved on the power roll, but it
will always be sufficient for lifeforms of the appropriate
variety to survive there with some slight degree of comfort.
Please note that the nova must have examined a living, vital
planetary ecosphere to use as a template for the new world
- if the only such world the nova knows well is Earth, then
thats the only template hell have to work with.
Note: The following chart assumes that the nova is
creating a Terran-style ecosystem. If the nova is creating
an alien ecosystem instead, the results will be just as bad
or good for beings hailing from the variety of ecosystem in
question.

Successes Results
One The nova creates an ecosphere that can sustain human life, but with some discomfort. For an
archaeological example, think of prehistoric Earth during the one of the Ice Ages. All created
species are of the hardy survivor varieties, will have no instinctual fear of humans at all and are
not particularly well-suited for domestication. If climatic conditions improve these species will
explode out into the ecosphere, diversifying and speciating in a mad rush to colonize as much
of the freed-up territory and any available ecological niches they can grab hold of. Set up the
greenhouses.
Two The nova creates an ecosphere comparable to that of prehistoric Earth - Its clean, its very
comfortable, and there are many diverse species of Terran life out there; but there are none
of the domesticated (and formerly-domesticated) species of plants and animals. As an added
frustration, the local animals have no instinctual fear of humans. Hope that the settlers brought
their own seedlings and livestock. Otherwise, hope that they like foraging for wild plants and
hunting for game meat.
Three The nova creates an ecosphere thats almost a carbon-copy of Earths. While the domesticated
species dont exist here, there are plenty of formerly domesticated species out there to be
tamed, if the settlers are into that sort of thing. Also, the local animals all have that useful,
instinctual fear of humans. The temperate, subtropical, and tropical landmass regions are prime
real estate and farmland.
Four The nova creates an ecosphere thats a bit better than Earths ever was - for one thing, the local
versions of some of the more annoying species of vermin, parasites, and pests will avoid humans
and their settlements like the plague. The climates are better for agriculture as well: bumper
crops can be expected on a regular basis.
Five The nova creates an ecosphere that could be called a paradise, if it wasnt all wilderness. Local
versions of many Terran food species taste better and are healthier for humans to eat than their
Earthly counterparts. Few if any parasites and pests feed on humans, and those are easily kept
away with safe, naturally occuring plant-based repellents. The weather is a bit less dangerous
than Earths. Everything on the planet seems to have been optimized for its aesthetic appeal
to humans. Congratulations, youve just created what could become one of the Galaxys most
popular vacation planets in the centuries to come!

CHAPTER FOUR: NEW ITEMS 109

 ABERRANT
Mass Transformation Near Sapience
Range: (Quantum + power rating) x 1,000 km Range: (Quantum + power rating) x 1,000 km
Area: (Quantum + power rating) x 100 km Area: (Quantum + power rating) x 100 km
Duration: Instant Duration: Permanent
Basically, this is the Form Manipulation technique of the This technique lets the nova transform a target
Biomanipulation quantum power on steroids. It functions population of existing animals into near-sapients. By
just like Form Manipulation - the number of successes increasing the complexity of the animals brains via this
on a Intelligence + Ecological Supremacy roll determines genetic manipulation, the target population will become
the level of changes which can be made on a target. This perfect targets for the Create Consciousness technique of
technique can be used to affect novas, (who may resist these Consciousness Supremacy (Aberrant Players Guide, p.
changes with a Stamina + Resistance roll), but it cannot be 131). If three or more successes are made on the power
used to give a baseline target the Mega-Attributes of novas. roll, the animals means of communication will be upgraded
to the level of homo sapiens sapiens vocalization as well.
The effects of this technique are normally permanent.
And since the effects of this technique are permanent,
any offspring of the transformed animals will inherit these
Successes Changes
changes from birth.
One Superficial Changes: Give the targets any
Appearance from 0 to 5, change skin color,
facial structure or similar features, change the Viability
targets apparent race, fingerprints or retina Range: (Quantum + power rating) x 1,000 km
prints. Make the targets look like an exact Area: (Quantum + power rating) x 100 km
copy of anyone else with a similar weight, Duration: Permanent
height, and build. This technique lets the nova terraform a barren patch of
sterile dust and rocks into an area of healthy, life-supporting
Two Minor Changes: Alter the targets height
Terran soil (complete with humus). Provided that the climatic
or build, change the targets muscle to fat
conditions in the area wont simply kill Terran-descended
ratio. Move dots around between the targets
plants, animals and microlife on contact, the transplanted
Physical Attributes. Change the targets
lifeforms will have a decent chance - roughly about 25% -
apparent gender. Disguise anyone as anyone
to transform the rest of their environment without further
else of approximately the same mass.
aid and thrive in the process. If further human management
Three Moderate Changes: Change the targets and aid is given to the transplants, assume a success rate
physical gender, alter the targets masses of 95% unless something catastrophic happens. Extra
by up to a factor of two. Give the targets successes on the power roll may be spent to either increase
superficial features belonging to other the transplants chances of survival (+15% per success) or
species (give a human a tail or claws). increase the area of effect (double the area of effect per
Change any of the targets Physical Attributes success spent).
from 1 to 5.
Four Major Changes: Give the targets functional
organs and abilities from other species (give
a human functional wings, gills, or tentacles).
Change the targets masses by up to a factor
of four.
Five Extreme Changes: Completely change the
targets physical forms, create new creatures
by mixing traits from several other creatures.
Change the targets masses by up to a factor
of 10 (turn humans into pigs, sculpt muscle,
flesh and bone like clay).

110 CHAPTER FOUR: NEW ITEMS

 ABERRANT
New Spatial Manipulation
Techniques
Spatial Beacon
Range: (Quantum + power rating) meters
Area: (Quantum + power rating) x 10 meter radius
Duration: Maintenance
This technique allows the nova to redirect a single
teleportation or warp to his own physical & temporal
location. If successful, the nova will be able to redirect exactly
where he wishes the target to arrive. The act of redirecting a
traveler requires the nova to pit her Manipulation + Spatial
Manipulation dice pool against the targets Teleport or Warp
dice pool in a contested roll. Failing the roll means that the
targets teleportation or warp is unimpeded. If the target is
being involuntary moved by those methods, a simple Wits +
power rating roll is all thats required to redirect her.
Spatial Shunt
Range: Self
Area: (Quantum + power rating) x 10 meter radius
Duration: Maintenance
This technique allows the nova to prevent any and all
teleportation or warps from reaching his general location
in spacetime. Setting up a spatial shunt requires the nova
to make an Intelligence + Spatial Manipulation roll, against
which any and all travelers must pit their Teleport or Warp
dice pools in a contested roll. Failing the roll means that the
teleportation or warp attempts in question are unimpeded.
CHAPTER FOUR: NEW ITEMS
New Temporal Manipulation
Techniques
Temporal Beacon
Prerequisites: Quantum 8
Range: Special
Area: (Quantum + power rating) x 1,000 km radius
Duration: Maintenance
This technique allows the nova to redirect a single
time traveler to her own physical & temporal location in
spacetime. The physical range for this technique is (Quantum
+ power rating) meters, with the nova able to redirect exactly
where she wishes her target to arrive. The temporal range is
(Quantum + power rating) x 10 years, with the novas current
time at the midpoint of that span of time. This will increase
to (Quantum + power rating) centuries at Quantum 9 and
(Quantum + power rating) x 1,000 years at Quantum 10. The
act of redirecting a time traveler requires the nova to pit her
Manipulation + Temporal Manipulation dice pool against
the targets Time Travel dice pool in a contested roll. Failing
the roll means that the targets time travel is unimpeded. If
the target is an involuntary time traveler, a simple Wits +
power rating roll is all thats required to redirect him.
Temporal Shunt
Prerequisites: Quantum 8
Range: Special
Area: (Quantum + power rating) x 1,000 km radius
Duration: Maintenance
This technique allows the nova to prevent any and all
time travel attempts from reaching her nearby region
of spacetime. The physical range for this technique is
Self where the nova is concerned. The temporal range
is (Quantum + power rating) years, with the novas current
time at the midpoint of that span of time. This will increase
to (Quantum + power rating) decades at Quantum 9 and
(Quantum + power rating) centuries at Quantum 10.
Setting up a temporal shunt requires the nova to make an
Intelligence + Temporal Manipulation roll, against which any
and all time travelers must pit their Time Travel dice pools
in a contested roll. Failing the roll means that the time travel
attempts in question are unimpeded.
111
 ABERRANT
New Generic Technique
Regulate
Dice Pool: Intelligence + power rating
Range: (Quantum + power rating) x 10 meters
Area: (Quantum + power rating) x 10 meter radius
Duration: Maintenance
Similar to the Disrupt quantum power, this technique
allows the nova to prevent any Inspired power from affecting
her chosen element. The nova spends the quantum
points and rolls her dice pool for this technique. Any other
nova attempting to influence the novas element must roll
Quantum + Node to resist. Other Inspired beings must roll
their Power Trait - typically Psi or Inspiration - instead. Each
net success the nova achieves over the number of successes
achieved by the opposing Inspired being reduces the power
by one dot per success.
This technique is available to novas with Biomanipulation,
Cyberkinesis, Elemental Anima, Elemental Mastery, Entropy
Control, Gravity Control, Information Manipulation,
Magnetic Mastery, Molecular Manipulation, Momentum
Control, Spatial Manipulation, Temporal Manipulation and
Weather Manipulation. It can also be used with the Level
4 Authority quantum powers and the Level 5 Supremacy
quantum powers, although the range and area parameters
will be increased to match their potency.
New Extras
Teleport/Warp
Starjump (Requires Quantum 6, replaces the kilometer
with the parsec as the base unit of distance used to calculate
range when making interstellar teleports or warps. When
teleporting or warping on anything less than interstellar
scales, the original distance scale is used instead).
Stealth Jump/Warp (The nova automatically imposes a
difficulty penalty equal to her Teleport or Warp power rating
on all attempts to detect her teleportations or warps).
Quantum-Affecting Powers
Additional Energy Type (The nova can affect another
form of exotic energy than just quantum energy. In the Aeon
Continuum settings, such alternate energies are Inspiration
and noetic energy. This Extra can be applied to the Disrupt,
Quantum Conversion, Quantum Leech and Quantum
Vampire powers).
112 CHAPTER FOUR: NEW ITEMS
New Backgrounds,
Adversarial Backgrounds &
Background Enhancements
Hypertech (Background)
Aside from being a time of superbeings and deadly
intrigue, the Nova Age is also a time when technologies
that common humanity wont master or fully understand
for centuries have been made reality instead of fanciful
speculation. This state of affairs has happened before
in human history, and will certainly happen again. In any
case, your character has access to a technology base that
is of a higher Technology Rating than what is commonly
available to others in the same setting. This often represents
advanced technology that a Mega-Intelligent nova or
Inspired gadgeteer has developed from her own research
and efforts, although alternatives do exist. Such alternatives
include enjoying the support of a more advanced culture
(possibly at the cost of having responsibilities to said
advanced culture), being part of an organization with
access to black ops technology or even having found
and learned to use the technology found in a derelict
extraterrestrial spacecraft or installation. The player will
cooperate with the Storyteller in defining just what kinds of
hypertech the character has access to, as appropriate for
how this Background is interpreted.
This Background is also of use when the character finds
herself in a culture with a lower Technology Rating than her
original setting. Provided that she has it through her own
capabilities instead of depending on the support of others,
each dot of Hypertech counts as an additional dot of Mega-
Intelligence when creating what the surrounding culture
would consider new technologies.
One important thing to note about this Background is
that there is almost always a limiting factor on the amount
and varieties of advanced technology that it provides.
Nova inventors and Inspired gadgeteers typically have to
build, test and fine-tune their own items. While they can
and do use commercial components when possible - even
if only to kit-bash them to fit their own designs - they are
often forced to custom-build special components, which
can be difficult and time-consuming. Exotic materials,
unique fabrication techniques, hard-to-get items and
obscure research materials that have been rejected by the
orthodoxy of the scientific community may also be required.
Characters supported by an advanced culture must provide
good reason for requesting advanced items beyond that
which they are already issued. Characters working for
organizations with black ops technology will have to deal
with the same in addition to filling out paperwork, following
 ABERRANT
their regulations and keeping said items as much of a secret
as possible. Characters dependent on an extraterrestrial
technology source may not be able to repair and/or
fabricate new items of that technology, and if they can do
so it will take time and possibly exotic materials as well. In
all cases, the character will have to deal with thieves, spies,
governments, businesses and other groups who will stop
at nothing to gain the characters advanced technology for
their own ends.
X: None; you only have access to items and associated
Abilities of the Technology Rating (TR) of your setting and
lower.
: Bleeding-edge; you have access to items and
associated Abilities rated at +1 dot higher than the
chronicles base TR.
: Cutting-edge; you have access to items and
associated Abilities rated at +2 dots higher than the
chronicles base TR.
: Advanced; you have access to items and associated
Abilities rated at +3 dots higher than the chronicles base TR.
: Highly advanced; you have access to items
and associated Abilities rated at +4 dots higher than the
chronicles base TR.
: Radically advanced; you have access to items
and associated Abilities rated at +5 dots higher than the
chronicles base TR.
S.A.T. / Sufficiently Advanced
Technology (Background
Enhancement for Hypertech)
Any sufficiently advanced technology is
indistinguishable from magic. - Arthur C. Clarkes Third Law.
This background enhancement represents access to a
technology base with a Technology Rating of 6 dots or more
higher than that of the characters setting. While having
technology this advanced offers immense advantages to the
character; it also offers immense dangers from others who
either wish to exploit that technology, steal it to sell to the
highest bidder or destroy it to keep it safely out of the hands
of an ignorant and reckless humanity. This enhancement is
also subject to most of the same limitations as the Hypertech
Background, with the exceptions of automated fabrication
and resource harvesting being possible. As before, the
player and Storyteller will cooperate to determine the exact
nature of the S.A.T. items either created or possessed by the
character.
This Background Enhancement can be purchased
multiple times, although the exact levels available will
depend on the base Technology Rating of the players
chronicle. As Technology Ratings have an upper limit of T16,
CHAPTER FOUR: NEW ITEMS
the Storyteller is recommended to disallow any attempts to
raise a characters personal TR beyond that point as a waste
of points and gaming time. The first level of S.A.T. costs 1
nova point or 12 experience points, and indicates a TR of 6
dots higher than the chronicles base TR. Two levels costs 2
nova points or 14 experience points, and indicates a TR of 7
dots higher than the chronicles base TR. Taking a third level
of S.A.T. costs 3 nova points or 16 experience points, and
indicates a TR of 8 dots higher than the chronicles base TR.
The fourth level costs 4 nova points or 18 experience points,
and indicates a TR of 9 dots higher than the chronicles base
TR. The fifth and final level of S.A.T. costs 5 nova points or 20
experience points, and indicates a TR of 10 dots higher than
the chronicles base TR.
Retrograde (Adversarial Background)
No matter whether it is the Inspired, Nova or Noetic
Era, the cultures of humanity have never shared equally in
the fruits of technological advancements. Whether due to
sheer poverty, a repressive culture, a malignant government
or even a total breakdown of society, many cultures on
Earth are one or more steps behind in technological
development from the First World nations. This adversarial
background reflects that your character hails from such a
technologically deprived culture and will have some difficulty
in comprehending and operating items from the chronicles
base Technology Rating. Aside from an unfamiliarity with
the capabilities of the more advanced technologies, the
character will have to buy off his dots in Retrograde before
he can purchase Abilities linked to the chronicles base
Technology Rating. In game, this is reflected as the character
receiving serious re-education in science and technology.
Rules for buying off adversarial backgrounds and adversarial
background enhancements can be found in Aberrant:
Forceful Personalities, p. 39.
For characters with high dot ratings in Retrograde, it
should be noted that items of lower Technology Ratings than
the chronicles base TR will be easier for those characters to
understand and operate. For this purpose only, the characters
Retrograde dot rating - and the associated difficulty penalty
- is effectively reduced by however many dots the TR of the
item in question is lower than the chronicles base TR.
X: None; you have full access to items of the base
Technology Rating (TR) of the chronicle and lower.
: Obsolete; you only have access to items rated at
1 dot lower than the chronicles base TR. You also have a
difficulty penalty of +1 when attempting to operate or
comprehend items from the chronicles base TR without
proper instruction.
: Antiquated; you only have access to items rated
at 2 dots lower than the chronicles base TR. You also have
113
 ABERRANT
a difficulty penalty of +1 when attempting to operate or without proper instruction. Taking a third level of Primitive
comprehend items from the chronicles base TR without indicates a TR of 8 dots lower than the chronicles base
proper instruction. TR and inflicts a difficulty penalty of +5 when attempting
: Archaic; you only have access to items rated at to operate or comprehend items from the chronicles base
3 dots lower than the chronicles base TR. You also have TR without proper instruction. The fourth level indicates a
a difficulty penalty of +2 when attempting to operate or TR of 9 dots lower than the chronicles base TR and inflicts
comprehend items from the chronicles base TR without a difficulty penalty of +6 when attempting to operate or
proper instruction. comprehend items from the chronicles base TR without
: Ancient; you only have access to items rated at proper instruction. The fifth and final level of Primitive
4 dots lower than the chronicles base TR. You also have indicates a TR of 10 dots lower than the chronicles base
a difficulty penalty of +2 when attempting to operate or TR and inflicts a difficulty penalty of +7 when attempting to
comprehend items from the chronicles base TR without operate or comprehend items from the chronicles base TR
proper instruction. without proper instruction.
: Antediluvian; you only have access to items
rated at 5 dots lower than the chronicles base TR. You also
Technology Ratings
have a difficulty penalty of +3 when attempting to operate
When dealing with issues of truly advanced nova
or comprehend items from the chronicles base TR without
inventions, Inspired gadgeteers, time travel, parallel
proper instruction.
universes and alien civilizations, some form of measurement
and comparison is extremely handy to help define the non-
Inspired technologies the player characters will encounter.
Primitive (Adversarial Background Fortunately, a set of benchmarks has been provided below
for just that purpose. The listings are deliberately made to
Enhancement for Retrograde) be as minimalist and generic as possible, and while Terran
With the uneven distribution of technological capability
labels have been used for convenience the Storyteller
across to globe, its only to be expected that while many
is free to alter the listings as she sees fit when applying
cultures would be somewhat deprived, some would be
them to a particular culture and/or situation. For example,
extremely so. Even when the United States sent the Apollo
an alien civilization from a planet with an oxygen-chlorine
missions to land on and explore Earths moon, there were still
atmosphere would not have any strong metals due to the
humans eking out primitive or even Stone Age existences
corrosive atmosphere and the inability of fires to be set
in the undeveloped regions of the planet. Your character
there. Instead, it would have to initially rely on the local
comes from one of these severely deprived cultures and will
wood, quartzes, ceramics and plastics - with the latter two
have severe difficulties with comprehending and operating
produced in quartz solar ovens - as substitutes.
items from the chronicles base Technology Rating. This can
Another thing to note is that it is fully possible for
be remedied with extensive re-education from one of the
civilizations to regress to lower Technology Ratings due to
advanced cultures in the chronicle and buying off both this
wars, natural disasters, cultural interference and population
adversarial background enhancement and the characters
collapse from epidemics. There are many factors that
five dots of the Retrograde adversarial background with
affect technological progress for good or ill, and continual
experience points.
advancement is never guaranteed. Other variations include
This adversarial background enhancement can be
advancement and/or retardation in facets of a cultures
taken multiple times, although the exact levels available
Technology Rating. In these cases, a given culture will have
will depend on the base Technology Rating of the players
one or more facets that are either one to two TRs higher
chronicle. As Technology Ratings have a lower limit of T1,
or lower than the cultures base TR. It is also worthwhile
the Storyteller is recommended to disallow any attempts to
to remember that the really advanced technologies in a
reduce a characters personal TR beyond that as a waste of
civilization may be tightly controlled by the culture that
points and gaming time.
developed them. An excellent historical example of this
The first level of Primitive indicates a TR of 6 dots lower
is the glassmakers guild of 17th Century Venice. In order
than the chronicles base TR and inflicts a difficulty penalty
to maintain their position as the best glassmakers in
of +3 when attempting to operate or comprehend items
Europe, they required loyalty oaths from their members
from the chronicles base TR without proper instruction. Two
and employed assassins to hunt down and kill glassmakers
levels indicates a TR of 7 dots lower than the chronicles base
who broke those oaths by attempting to work anywhere
TR and inflicts a difficulty penalty of +4 when attempting to
else in Europe and/or teach Venetian-style glassmaking to
operate or comprehend items from the chronicles base TR
outsiders.

114 CHAPTER FOUR: NEW ITEMS

 ABERRANT
Going by the canon settings, Adventure! starts out
at T6 (circa the 1920s), goes through T7 and reaches the
earliest days of T8 by the 1940s. Aberrant likewise starts out
at late T9 circa 2008 and will achieve T10 circa the mid-21st
Century. As for Trinity, it is mostly at T10 with retardations
in several facets due to the effects of the Aberrant War.
Trinity is T9 in human genetics and artificial intelligence,
and T11 in certain forms of weapons technology. Due to
the deliberately restricted nature - Nova Age computer
geeks would consider it mutilated - of the global OpNet,
communications are effectively T8. As for space travel, the
psionic Teleportation Modes and equivalent biotech devices
are the only means of FTL travel overtly available to Earths
cultures as of 2122, although the FSA (certainly among
others) is researching at least two possible methods of non-
psionic FTL travel.
Finally, not all worlds will have Inspired beings, so
special sub-listings have been added to point out their
technological efforts in the Aeon Continuum timeline and
the consequences thereof. These sub-listings are headed
with an asterisk (*).
T1 - Stone Age: Materials are chipped or ground
stone, wood, bone, leather and ceramics. Native copper
begins to be used just before T2 is achieved. The use of
fire is mastered. Hunting and fishing techniques, including
the use of nets and traps, are developed. Crude surgical
techniques come into use. Smaller animals are domesticated
as servants and/or food sources. Small-scale agriculture
begins as plants are domesticated for food, medical uses
and useful fibers for string, cord and crudely woven cloth.
Food storage is developed along with basket weaving. Tents
and huts are developed. Vehicles are rafts, canoes and sleds.
Hunting weapons and shields are used for melee combat;
with slings, thrown spears, blowguns, bows and arrows used
for ranged combat. Settled communities develop, with rules
for marriage, kinship, inheritance and gifting established.
Chiefdoms and priests provide and maintain social order.
Barter is the only form of trade.
T2 - Bronze Age: Bronze becomes the metal of choice.
Small glass objects are created, mostly as jewelry. Larger
animals are domesticated as beasts of burden and food
sources. Herding of food animals is developed. Large-scale
agriculture begins, with irrigation and plowing techniques
in use. Wheeled animal-drawn vehicles and ships with oars
and crude sails are developed, with animal-drawn chariots
are used for war on land. Writing, basic mathematics and
calendars are developed. Architecture comes into its own as
large buildings become possible, resulting in walled cities.
Warriors are outfitted with helmets and body armor. Siege
warfare techniques are developed. Social orders grow into
city-states and single-culture empires; complete with written
laws, armies and diplomatic relations. Trade blossoms as
CHAPTER FOUR: NEW ITEMS
valuable materials (such as gold & silver on Earth) are used
as money valued by weight and official marketplaces are
established.
T3 - Iron Age: Iron becomes the metal of choice. Large
pieces of glassware are made. Primitive water-powered mills
are developed for grinding grain into flour without having
to do it by hand. Concrete allows new kinds of construction;
while arches, vaults and domes improve architecture.
Theoretical mathematics is developed. Primitive medicine
- often with highly inaccurate ideas of bodily function - is
developed. Riding animals are used for transportation, to
aid in herding and for cavalry in warfare. Phalanx formation
warfare is developed for infantry soldiers. Mechanical
artillery is developed for large-scale combat. Specialized war
galleys are created for naval combat. Social orders develop
into multi-culture empires and universal religions are born.
Historical scholarship begins. Coins are made from valuable
materials by governments to provide a more-or-less honest
guarantee of their worth.
T4 - Medieval Age: Steel is invented. The mould-board
plow is invented, allowing several furrows to be plowed in a
field simultaneously. Three-field crop rotation is developed
to restore depleted soil fertility. Heavy high-quality riding
animals are bred. Water mills become widely used, windmills
are developed. The flying buttress is introduced into use in
architecture. Distillation of liquids is invented. Magnetic
compasses are invented. The zero is invented for use in
mathematics. Universal religions become well-established
parts of the social order, monastic communities associated
with those religions develop and become repositories of
written information. Elite mounted warriors in heavy armor
- supported by archers and infantry - rule the battlefield.
Buildings are fortified to the point where they become
castles, counterweighted mechanical artillers is developed
in response. Black gunpowder weapons begin to be
developed.
T5 - Renaissance Age: Cast iron is invented. The
printing press is developed, encouraging literacy to become
widespread. Full-rigged sailing vessels are developed,
with clockwork navigational aids invented to supplement
celestial navigation techniques. Telescopes are invented.
The development of synthetic medicines begins. Social
orders develop into nation-states, absolute monarchies and
overseas empires. Cannon are invented for mass warfare
and specialized shots are developed for use with them.
Black-powder muskets and pikes become standard infantry
arms, bayonets begin to be developed. Formal military
drill is developed to increase soldiers effectiveness in mass
combat. Castles are replaced by star forts, whose sloped
walls can absorb the impact of cannon balls without being
shattered by them. Sailing warships are armed with cannon.
T6 - Early Industrial Age: Steam engines become
115
 ABERRANT
the signature technology of this era. Coal comes into
widespread use and modern-strength electrical batteries are
developed. Crucible steel, rubber and friction matches are
invented. Barbed wire aids in restricting the movement of
herd animals and sapient enemies alike. Seed drills and four-
course crop rotation are developed, while cotton gins and
reaping machines aid crop harvesting. Powered looms allow
faster weaving of cloth. Canned foods and pasteurization
increase food safety. Mass production techniques and
interchangeable parts for machines become available. News
periodicals replace old-fashioned broadsheets, and carry
advertising for businesses. Public libraries are established,
as are scientific journals and photography. Telegraphs are
invented, and telegraph networks quickly spread. Medical
researchers develop antiseptics, anesthetics, hypodermic
syringes and vaccines. Social orders develop into several
kinds of democracies, constitutional monarchies, totalitarian
states, dictatorships and theocracies, with all but the last
often reducing if not negating the place of the local universal
religions as the arbiter of law and justice. Bicycles begin
to replace horses for personal transportation, while steam
locomotives, railroads and paved macadam roads serve for
mass transit. Hot air balloons begin to be used widely, while
the screw propeller helps drive steamships and submarines.
Fireams come into their own with breech-loading rifles,
revolvers, and nitroglycerine being invented. Mechanized
warfare likewise begins to develop with ironclad warships,
rockets and mechanical machine guns being put into use
on the battlefield.
T7 - Mature Industrial Age: Aluminium, Bessemer
steel, early polymers such as Bakelite and synthetic fibers
are all developed. Herbicides, pesticides and mechanical
harvesters come into widespread use in agriculture.
Refrigeration comes into common use; making new methods
of food storage, certain food production methods and some
medical procedures much safer. Internal combustion engines,
electric motors, hydroelectic power and steam turbines are
invented. Mass transportation and mass production mature,
resulting in a huge influx of affordable goods into the market.
Electric lighting change city life immensely, especially at
night, while vacuum tubes allow for many new electronic
inventions to proliferate. Medical advances include
sterilization of germs, inoculations, penicillin, insulin, sulfa
drugs, safe blood transfusions and the electrocardiograph.
Transportation speeds up as zeppelins, automobiles, high-
speed road networks, primitive helicopters and airplanes
are developed. Telephones are invented, making long
distance voice communications a reality. The entertainment
business expands as sound recording and motion pictures
are developed. The news media also expands as first radio,
then television are invented. Color photography is invented.
Fingerprint records are established, aiding law enforcement,
116 CHAPTER FOUR: NEW ITEMS
private investigators and intelligence agencies in their
efforts. Mechanized warfare comes into its own with the
invention of automatic weapons, tanks, military aircraft,
battleships and aircraft carriers. Radar units scan the skies,
while sonar units do the same underwater. High explosives
and poison gases are also developed.
T8 - Computer Age: Nuclear power is harnessed, both
as weapons and as fission reactors. Hybrid crops and chemical
fertilizers increase agricultural production. Transistors,
integrated circuits and lasers are invented, advancing
the field of electronics greatly. Television and high-speed
printing presses are invented, bringing the media into an
increasingly influential position. Computers are invented,
but are crude and cumbersome. Petroleum-derived plastics,
composite materials, electrical superconductors and
titanium are developed. Gas turbines and photovolatic cells
are invented. Organ transplants and crude artificial hearts
are developed. High-speed trains and jet aircraft shorten
travel times for cross-contninental and intercontinental
journeys considerably. Spacecraft begin to be developed,
although manned spacecraft are limited to reaching orbit
or Earths Moon at the utmost. Unmanned craft can be sent
anywhere in the Solar System, although their journeys take
years or decades to reach their destinations. Soldiers on the
ground use assault rifles and ballistic body armor. Military
helicopters and jet aircraft patrol the skies, while guided
missiles come into widespread use.
T9 - Early Interplanetary Age: Computer technology
matures, resulting in the invention of personal computers, a
globe-spanning Internet and desktop publishing. Increased
computer capabilities also allow for rapid prototyping of
inventions. Fullerenes, microfibers and carbon fibers are
developed. Genetically engineered crops and pesticides
are developed. Power plants are computer-integrated,
while wind farms for generating electricity are established.
Advanced batteries are invented. Laser surgery, genetic
screening and artificial fertilization are developed. Hybrid
automobiles, electric automobiles and hydrogen powered
automobiles are all developed. Reusable manned spacecraft
are invented, making manned voyages to Mars and the
other inner planets possible. Arcologies are developed,
maximizing population density without overcrowding.
Crude directed energy weapons, bioengineered diseases
and unmanned drones are invented, while tasers and other
personal defense weapons become widely available.
*By 2022 Dr. Soguk Birlesme develops hyper-fusion,
which will become the premier power source for humanity
throughout the 21st and early 22nd Centuries, if not longer.
Artificial eufiber allows the old electronic Internet to be
superseded by the optical OpNet, which in turn makes
telephones, broadcast and cable television and broadcast
radio obsolete. Hypercombustion engines allow for
 ABERRANT
automobiles to have extremely superior gas mileage. In
addition to all this many further advancements are made by
nova inventors, most of which are too numerous to fully list
here.
T10 - Mature Interplanetary Age: Space travel
systems become affordable and reliable, allowing for orbital
space stations and offworld colonies to be established.
Interplanetary space travel becomes a matter of months
or weeks for reaching the inner planets, while reaching the
Moon is only a days travel on even the slowest spacecraft.
Interstellar travel and colonization begins to be possible
but is limited to STL (Slower than Light) propulsion,
necessitating that they be either generation ships or make
heavy use of suspended animation technology, which is
now viable. Artificial gravity may or may not exist at this
time. Nuclear fusion and clean energy sources such as
solar power predominate, with fossils fuels becoming a
thing of the past. Miniaturized fuel cells and gas turbines
power many portable devices. Composite and nano-scale
materials, polymer-based electronics and orbital steel
radically transform the field of machinery, making devices
lighter and stronger. Most appliances are computer-
controlled and automated, practically all human-scale
manufacturing is handled by robots. Robots handle many
other tasks but lack self-direction, much less sentience and/
or sapience. Antimatter can be manufactured at great cost,
and is typically used in medicine as a radiation source and as
a catalyst for triggering clean nuclear explosions. Medicine
shows dramatic improvements, as growing replacement
organs outside the body for transplant has become routine
and lifespans have increased considerably. Directed energy
weapons mature and are common alternatives to both
conventional and electromagnetic firearms. Advances in
robotics result in the invention of powered exoskeletons and
full-fledged combat mecha.
*The noetic-powered biotechnology created by the
Psionic Orders allows for a wide range of feats that are
ordinarily rated at one or more TRs higher than the setting
baseline of T10, with fast interstellar travel via the Upeo
wa Macho teleporters and Orgotek Leviathan jump ships.
Nippon is also the world leader in cybernetics and bionics,
and have created non-sapient androids that are nevertheless
eerily human-like. Nippon also certainly has access to wet
and possibly dry molecular nanotechnology, which can
operate in liquid and gaseous envioronments respectively.
T11 - Early Interstellar Age: Spacecraft capable of
interstellar travel are invented, and employ FTL spacedrives.
The closest stars take weeks to reach and those further
out months or years as appropriate. The first true sapient
artificial intelligences appear, and can either inhabit robot
bodies or powerful computers. Molecular nanotechnology
is routinely used to create devices and exotic materials,
CHAPTER FOUR: NEW ITEMS
including self-healing plastics. Devices using ceramics,
metals, semiconductors and diamond-hard materials are still
manufacutred using traditional methods, however. Super-
strong composite materials are common. Medicine at this
level can ensure lifespans of centuries and longer, with
advanced neurotechnology and cybernetics making many
new and useful brain modifications possible. Direct neural
interface between living minds and computers becomes
possible, although requiring cybernetic implantation.
Artificial gravity certainly exists at this time, and other gravity
manipulation technologies are beginning to be developed.
Battle tanks, mecha and fighter spacecraft become more
deadly as nuclear fusion reactors are small enough to serve as
power plants for these military vehicles. Nuclear dampening
devices are invented, and can shut down nuclear reactors
and nuclear bombs with equal ease. Plasma guns and sonic
weapons mature and are added to the military arsenal.
T12 - Mature Interstellar Age: Spacecraft capable
of quick interstellar travel are invented. The closest stars
take hours to reach and those further out days or a few
weeks as appropriate. Crossing an entire galaxy will take
many weeks, months or years. Spacecraft capable of slow
intergalactic travel are possible, but are limited in function
as are T10 interstellar spacecraft and generally only travel
to the satellite dwarf galaxies and star clusters of their home
galaxy. Interplanetary travel is a matter of mere minutes.
FTL communications systems are invented, allowing data
to flow quickly as far as the network spreads. Molecular
nanotechnology matures, allowing for the cheap fabrication
of high-quality devices and organics. Mass production of
diamondoid and other materials of diamond-quality strength.
Means of feasibly producing exotic forms of matter - such as
hyperdense matter - are developed. Affordable antimatter
production allows it to be used as a compact energy source
and as hyper-efficient rocket fuel. Medical nanotechnology
makes nearly all older medical practices obsolete, as living
bodies can be harmlessly taken apart and reassembled in
perfect health in specialized vats. Minds can also be copied
without requiring the originals destruction and played
back into living bodies or AI formats. Neurotechnology
matures; allowing for the invention of direct neural interfaces
that only require skin contact to function, neural disruption
weapons and telepathic technology. Sensors can
automatically scan for nearly anything known to T12 science.
Matter transmission between transceivers is invented. X-ray
laser weapons and many forms of particle beam weapons are
invented. Body armors are typically powered exoskeletons
and incorporate diamondoid composites and exotic alloys.
Gravity manipulation technologies mature; allowing for the
development of personal flight gear, small AI-driven robot
missiles, force fields, tractor/pressor beams and gravitic
weapons. Hypergravity technology allows for very compact
117
 ABERRANT
nuclear reactors and hyperdense armor to be created.
T13 - Early Intergalactic Age: Spacecraft capable
of intergalactic travel are invented. The closest galaxies
take weeks to reach and those further out months or
years as appropriate. Total mass/energy conversion is the
premier power source of T13 spacecraft and cities, with
tiny antimatter reactors being used for small vehicles.
Astronomical engineering is now possible, with moving
planets and disassembling them for raw materials being
commonplace. Dyson sphere and ringworld construction
are also feasible. The T12 advances in exotic matter and
nanotchnology are woven into the fabric of civilizations at
this Technology Rating. Self-healing metals containing
their own repair nanomachines are invented. Nanomachine
swarms capable of reproducing themselves are developed.
Medical nanomachines can assemble full-grown living
bodies from a genetic sample in just a few days and imprint
them with recorded minds. They can also grow cybernetic
implants within living bodies without any need for surgery.
The distinction between organic and machine sapience
becomes academic, as organic sapients can upload their
minds into AI formats and AIs can download themselves
into organic bodies as a routine medical procedure. Lifespan
length becomes indefinite, as proper medical treatments
prevent aging and can transfer minds permanently into new
bodies as desired. The creation of Von Neumann machines
is now feasible, and can transform planets in almost any
way desired - bioforming, reconstruction, disassembly - in
just a few months. Matter transmission that do not require
transceivers to receive and retrieve passengers and/or cargo
is invented. Gamma-ray lasers, and matter disintegration
weapons are developed. Time dilation effects can be
created with force fields, even to the point of seemingly
freezing time. Personal force fields and stasis fields
become standard defenses against T13 weaponry.
T14 - Mature Intergalactic Age: Spacecraft capable of
intergalactic travel are invented. The closest galaxies take
hours to reach and those further out days or a few weeks
as appropriate. Crossing an entire universe will take many
months or years. Interplanetary and interstellar travel is a
matter of mere minutes. Total mass/energy conversion
is woven into the fabric of civilizations at this Technology
Rating. Medical devices using this technology have replaced
the nanotechnology-based reassembly vats of ealier
times, are instantaneous with walk-through convenience
and are often fitted into airlocks and matter transmission
transceivers. Matter can be instantaneously created from
energy in any design and form desired, with the creation of
cooked foods and beverages being the most common use.
The most extreme example of this is the creation of entire
planets complete with developed biospheres. Given that
this application is both experimental and energy-intensive,
118 CHAPTER FOUR: NEW ITEMS
only mundane planets can be created by civilizations at this
Technology Rating. T14 weaponry and defenses are potent
by the standards of starfaring civilizations.
T15 - Temporal Age: Spacetime manipulation is the
signature technology of this era, with miniaturization of
devices duplicating many feats once only available to novas.
Size alteration, quick genetic transformation, full intangibility
and levels of invulnerability are all possible with the right
devices. Teleportation gates that function similarly to both
the Warp quantum power and the noetic Transportal effect
simultaneously are developed. Spacecraft capable of time
travel are invented. The closest eras take subjective hours
to reach and those further out on the timeline days or a few
weeks as appropriate. Crossing an entire timeline from one
end to the other will take many months. Simple space travel
is a matter of mere minutes. Matter transmission no longer
requires large transceivers and are now handheld items.
Temporal scanners can view any other point in spacetime
desired, although temporal interference can disrupt them.
Resurrection of the dead is possible through a combination
of temporal scanning and the medical body recreation
technology of the previous Technology Rating. Temporal
weaponry destroys matter by instantaneously aging or
youthening it to nothingness, while temporal shielding
protects against all harmful and/or inconvenient temporal
effects. Planet creation technology matures, with any kind
of planet or construct desired being created from energy in
mere moments. Star creation technology is developed, with
main sequence stars being most commonly created.
T16 - Dimensional Age: Dimensional manipulation is
the signature technology of this era, with travel to parallel
universes and the creation of sub-realities being the two
major applications. Energy/matter creation from zero-point
energy is the premier power source for civilizations at this
Technology Rating. As this allows for self-powering circuits
that will run their devices indefinitely, power plants become
utterly obsolete. Sub-realities are created to provide private
regions where unwelcome intrusion from outsiders is most
often impossible. Uses for this include living spaces, storage
facilities, secure laboratories and prisons. The weapons
technology of this era are uncreation weapons, which
literally erase their targets from existence permanently
so they cannot be resurrected by even T16 medical
technology. Dimensional shielding is typically developed
as a countermeasure to such fearsome weapons, although
creating a quantum copy of a victim using crosstime
scanning technology is a viable tactic. Devices can also
be converted from matter into energy constructs and back
at will, which is invaluable for robotic probes in hostile
environments and is often built into T16 body armor as well.
 ABERRANT
Errata: N-Stage Node (Aberrant:
The New Flesh, pp 242-243)
It is possible for a nova to take a fifth and final level
of this Background Enhancement, which essentially makes
the novas entire cellular structure into one big M-R node.
This 11th instar node can channel 50 quantum points per
turn. Likewise, the difficulty for attempting Rapid Recovery
of quantum points is +1 for every six quantum points above
the normal recovery rate and the roll cannot be botched.
The fifth level of this Background Enhancement costs 5 nova
points or 20 experience points.
New Merits & Flaws
Looper (1-5 point Merit)
Due to getting involved with time travel, the characters
lifestream is caught up in a stable time loop. The upshot
of this is that the character has gained the attention of
his future self, who will act as a 5 dot Mentor (as per the
Background) in the interest of his own self-preservation. The
main drawback is that the characters future self will have
the right to impose demands on the characters time and
activities at any time for much the same reason, which the
character must accept. The point value of this Merit depends
on how often the characters future self will appear to render
aid to the character. At 1 point, the characters future self
only intervenes occasionally. This increases to periodically
at 2 points, often at 3 points, regularly at 4 points and
almost nonstop at 5 points.
There are five things to take note of when purchasing
this Merit. First, the character must eventually gain access to
some form of time travel in his future for this to be possible.
Second, the character can never contact his future self
directly. Third, that future self is still human and therefore
just as fallible as anyone else. Fourth, the point value of
this Merit will decrease as the character grows under the
tutelage of his future self, which the Storyteller will convert
into additional experience points for the character at a 1:2
ratio. Finally, if the chronicle lasts long enough the Storyteller
is within her rights to impose a Debt (as per the Flaw on p.
75 of the Aberrant Players Guide) on the character equal
in point value to the original Merit, which can be bought
off with experience points at a 2:1 ratio. The character will
have no option but to honor that debt to his younger self,
and eventually will complete the stable time loop. In both
phases of this cycle, the Storyteller has full control over the
point value changes involved with this Merit.
CHAPTER FOUR: NEW ITEMS
Space Rat (1 point Merit)
The character has undergone specialized training
allowing her to function normally in microgravity
environments without having a local vertical to orient
herself with. Untrained humans (nova or otherwise) typically
become hopelessly disoriented, nauseated, and terrified
before losing control of their body functions. This Merit can
be earned with experience points reflecting a week or two of
training. Novas with the Void Sense enhancement for Mega-
Perception or the Adaptability enhancement for Mega-
Stamina cannot take and do not need this Merit.
Phantom (5 point Flaw)
The character hails from a future point in a given
timeline that its nexus has not advanced to yet. As the
characters home time and history has yet to crystallize, it
remains fluid and very vulnerable to change by events taking
place in the past. If such changes are made to the characters
native timeline, he and his personal equipment are at risk
of fading away into oblivion. This is different from mere
death in that instead of merely losing his life, the character
will have never existed in the first place. The Storyteller has
full control over when and if this happens to the character.
Fortunately, there are three ways to escape this fate (and
buy off this Flaw). First, the characters mind can be recorded
with Personality Recording Technology (Aberrant: The New
Flesh p. 29) and imprinted into a freshly made clone of his
original body produced from synthesized DNA. Second, the
character can temporarily be protected from fading away by
use of the Unreality Zone quantum power (on pp. 107-108 of
this book). Third, the character can emigrate to an alternate
Earth which has a timeline in the process of crystallizing (read:
has its nexus in the present time). After remaining there for
five years (and saving up enough experience points), the
character can buy off this Flaw.
Singleton (1 point Flaw)
The character has no alternate versions of herself
anywhere in the Omniverse. While this prevents the character
from benefiting from the existence of alternate versions of
herself - a very handy tactic for crosstime travelers - it also
provides the character with the equivalent of five dots of the
Cipher Background when visiting alternate universes. The
downside of this is that as a legal non-person, the character
had best steer clear of the local authorities, who will consider
her to have no legal rights whatsoever once they attempt to
uncover her identity.
119
Appendix #1:
Mega-Willpower
Note from the Writer: When I first got my hands on
the Aberrant core book in 1999, I couldn't help but notice
a glaring omission in the Mega-Attribute listings. While
novas had Mega-Attributes that allowed them to make
many of the superhuman physical, mental and social feats
seen in the comics, nowhere was there a Mega-Attribute to
represent the superhuman force of will that some charac-
ters exhibited. This material represents my best attempt to
address that omission while keeping true to the tone and
genre of Aberrant. Finally, the material presented here
supersedes all previous versions of Mega-Willpower that I
have posted on RPGPost.com.
Mega-Willpower
If Mega-Strength is the best known Mega-Attribute,
then Mega-Willpower is certainly the least known. It's also
one of the more subtle Mega-Attributes; as the effects of
Mega-Willpower are often mistaken for other quantum
powers that protect against mental effects, such as Psychic
Shield and certain forms of Invulnerability. There's a good
deal more to Mega-Willpower than that, however.
A character with Mega-Willpower has more drive,
is more confident and is more emotionally stable than even
the most iron-willed humans ever to have lived. This super-
human strength of character not only aids him in throwing
off the effects of mental powers, but it also lets him resist
pain of both the physical and psychological varieties. This
makes such a nova the despair of even the most skilled
torturers and brainwashers in the world. As with Willpower
itself, Mega-Willpower also reflects the character's aug-
mented ability to control his own instinctual responses and
psychological impulses, his capability to safely max his
quantum powers and his capability to perform extraordinary
actions.
Much like Mega-Wits, Mega-Willpower is also a very
disturbing Mega-Attribute for normal humans to have to
deal with. Thanks to the global media, most people are well
aware that many novas can and do give in to their instincts,
temptations and urges, just like everyone else. While that
fact worries the more astute members of the baseline
120 APPENDIX #1: MEGA-WILLPOWER
population, it reassures the rest of humanity and gives them
something in the way of common experience with novas.
This isn't the case for a Mega-Willful nova - he has achieved
levels of self-control, perserverance and confidence that
normal humans just can't match. Seeing someone ignore
overwhelming temptation or the most primal human
instincts with the same ease that a normal human would
brush off a trivial annoyance can make a Mega-Willful nova
can seem quite alien indeed.
Not all novas can develop Mega-Willpower, how-
ever. As Taint is known to impair novas' use of Willpower, it
should be no surpise that accumulating anything more than
low levels of permanent Taint can either greatly impair a
nova's capacity for developing Mega-Willpower or destroy
it completely. Novas with Chrysalis ratings are also impaired
in developing Mega-Willpower as described below.
Using Mega-Willpower
Mega-Willpower is little different from the
other Mega-Attributes. A nova is limited to a maximum
Mega-Willpower rating equal to either his base Willpower
or his Quantum Trait +1, whichever is lower. Assuming their
base Willpower is 10, novas with Quantum of six or above
are limited to their Quantum rating, and not their rating +1.
Novas with permanent Taint ratings of six or seven are also
limited to a maximum rating of three or one dots respec-
tively, regardless of their Quantum Trait or base Willpower
ratings. Likewise, Terat novas with any amount of tempo-
rary Chrysalis are limited to a maximum rating of three
dots, while those with any rating of permanent Chrysalis
are limited to a maximum rating of one dot. Novas with
permanent Taint ratings of eight or more cannot develop
Mega-Willpower at all, and will lose any dots of Mega-Will-
power (along with any associated enhancements) they may
have previously possessed. A particularly kind Storyteller
might grant a player character nova in such dire straits an
equivalent amount of nova points to make up for that loss,
but has no obligation to do so whatsoever. Taint and the
Chrysalis do have their price.
The Mega-Willful nova also has permanent and
temporary Willpower ratings, which will generally function
 ABERRANT
as explained in the Aberrant core book on pp. 144-146,
except where contradicted below.
A character with Mega-Willpower enjoys the follow-
ing benefits:
Mega-Dice: A Mega-Willful nova can apply her
Mega-Willpower dots to either add Mega-Willpower dice
or to lower her difficulties on Willpower rolls, using the
same basic mechanics as the other Mega-Attributes (Aber-
rant core book, p. 154).
Resistance to mental powers and social abilities:
A Mega-Willful nova gains grants 1 extra die per dot of
Mega-Willpower on all rolls made to resist mental powers
such as Telepathy and Dominate. The nova can also apply
these additional dice to any roll made to resist the effects
of social abilities, including the Social Mega-Attributes and
their associated enhancements.
Resistance to torture and brainwashing: A
Mega-Willful nova gains grants 1 extra die per dot of
Mega-Willpower on all rolls made to resist the effects of
being tortured or brainwashed by any method whatsoever.
(Refer to Aberrant: The Directive, p. 62, for all the sordid
details and game mechanics for torture. EON's fan-pro-
duced e-book for the Social Mega-Attributes - Aberrant:
Forceful Personalities - has systems for brainwashing.)
Resistance to pain: A Mega-Willful nova automati-
cally has any dice pool penalties that are caused by pain
reduced by one point per dot of Mega-Willpower. This is
cumulative with the bonuses derived from Mega-Stamina
and the Sensory Editing (Mega-Perception) enhancement
(from Aberrant: Brainwaves).
- Stupendous: Your emotional stability lets you
function in situations that would turn a normal human into
a basket case. You receive one extra die to resist mental
powers, social abilities and all forms of torture or brain-
washing. Dice pool penalties due to physical or psychologi-
cal pain are reduced by one.
- Amazing: Your strength of will makes Shaolin
monks seem timid by way of comparison. You receive two
extra dice to resist mental powers,
social abilities and all forms of
torture or brainwashing. Dice pool
penalties due to physical and/or
psychological pain are reduced
by two.
- Incredible: Torture is
useless where you're concerned.
You receive three extra dice
to resist mental powers, social
abilities and all forms of torture or
brainwashing. Dice pool penalties
due to physical and/or psychologi-
cal pain are reduced by three.
APPENDIX #1: MEGA-WILLPOWER
- Spectacular: Your resolve makes you the very
definition of implacability. You receive four extra dice to
resist mental powers, social abilities and all forms of torture
or brainwashing. Dice pool penalties due to physical and/or
psychological pain are reduced by four.
- Godlike: Whenever you attempt to perform
extraordinary actions, you redefine the term "over the top".
You receive five extra dice to resist mental powers, social
abilities and all forms of torture or brainwashing. Dice pool
penalties due to physical and/or psychological pain are
reduced by five.
- Godlike: Anything capable of daunting your
self-confidence is rare in the extreme. You receive six extra
dice to resist mental powers, social abilities and all forms of
torture or brainwashing. Dice pool penalties due to physical
and/or psychological pain are reduced by six .
- Godlike: You can shrug off even the most
primal human instincts with ease. You receive seven extra
dice to resist mental powers, social abilities and all forms of
torture or brainwashing. Dice pool penalties due to physical
and/or psychological pain are reduced by seven.
- Godlike: Telepaths tend to get headaches
when they attempt to influence your mind. You receive
eight extra dice to resist mental powers, social abilities and
all forms of torture or brainwashing. Dice pool penalties
due to physical and/or psychological pain are reduced by
eight.
- Godlike: Satan himself would consider
trying to tempt you a fruitless endeavor. You receive nine
extra dice to resist mental powers, social abilities and all
forms of torture or brainwashing. Dice pool penalties due
to physical and/or psychological pain are reduced by nine.
- Cosmic: You are the ultimate force of
will, can anything break you? You receive ten extra dice to
resist mental powers, social abilities and all forms of torture
or brainwashing. Dice pool penalties due to physical and/or
psychological pain are reduced by ten.
121
 ABERRANT
Enhancements
Affirmative Activity
(Mega-Willpower)
Similar to novas with the Restorative Activity enhance-
ment (Aberrant: The New Flesh p. 212), novas with
Affirmative Activity have also learned how to make
engaging in a favored activity into an reinvigorating
experience. The difference is that where novas with
Restorative Activity refresh themselves physically, novas
with Affirmative Activity can refresh themselves
emotionally and spiritually. This enhancement not only
restores confidence and soothes mental stress, but also
grants the nova a powerful sense of purpose.
System: In its basic form (one level), this enhancement
allows the nova to regain [Mega-Willpower] points of temporary
Willpower for each period (60 minutes/ Mega-Willpower,
rounded up) spent engaging in his favored activity (chosen by the
player, with Storyteller approval). With two levels of this
enhancement, the nova can regain 1 point of Temporary
Willpower per 3 consecutive and uninterrupted periods of
engaging in his chosen activity. He is also incapable of becoming
numbed in any way (physically, psychologically or emotionally)
to the experience of his favored activity. The chosen activity of the
nova can be any sort of sport, hobby or other recreational
pastime, even ones that most people would consider strenuous in
the extreme. However, the chosen activity cannot be one for
which the nova would have to spend quantum points to engage
in. Actual combat is also prohibited from being a chosen activity
for use with this enhancement. Engaging in the chosen activity
will never be tiring for the nova; if he's interrupted before he can
gain the benefits of this enhancement, it still refreshes him the
way a brief catnap would a normal human (no real game effect).
It's possible for the nova to have more than one special pastime,
but he will have to purchase this enhancement separately for
additional pastimes. This enhancement is always on and costs no
quantum to use.
Anticipation (Mega-Willpower)
Novas with Anticipation know full well the truth behind
the axiom "good things come to those who wait". The
superhuman patience of these novas gives them a subtle
edge in many situations.
System: The nova gains + [Mega-Willpower] extra
dice on any rolls that involve waiting for something to
either happen or to end. This includes resisting torture
122 APPENDIX #1: MEGA-WILLPOWER
or pain, staying immobile for long periods, riding out the
effects of drugs, or maintaining a cool head when everyone
else is fleeing in a blind panic. He can also apply these
extra dice to any dice pools for extended actions. This
enhancement has no quantum point cost and is always on.
Assurance (Mega-Willpower)
Despite their superhuman strength of character,
most Mega-Willful novas are still prone to squandering
their reserves of psychological strength just like anyone
else. That isn't the case for a Mega-Willful nova with this
enhancement, as she is confident and sure of her abilities,
and knows when to exert herself and when to hold back
her reserves.
System: Whenever the player of a nova with Assur-
ance makes a Willpower roll to gain an automatic success,
she has the option of choosing to spend the nova's tempo-
rary Willpower point after the roll is made instead of having
to spend it beforehand. This allows the Mega-Willful nova
to make more efficient use of her Willpower, as the player
can cancel unexpected botches and not waste Willpower
points on rolls where an automatic success isn't needed.
A nova with Assurance is still limited to spending only
one temporary Willpower point per turn this way. Also,
this enhancement only affects the nova's own rolls, and
cannot be used to affect the results of rolls made by other
characters. For example, the player can choose to spend a
temporary Willpower point after her character attains only
a marginal success on an attack roll, but couldn't spend a
temporary Willpower point to cancel an opponent's single
Dodge success. This enhancement has no quantum point
cost and is always on.
Centered (Mega-Willpower)
In general, Mega-Willful novas have a very strong
and well-defined sense of their own identities, allowing
them a superhuman resistance to any attempts that others
may make to sway their hearts and minds. A nova with
this enhancement can take that innate resistance to being
influenced to the extreme - for a while.
System: A nova with this enhancement can spend
1 quantum point to become temporarily immune to any
attempts made by a specific aggressor to control his
mind in any way, either through Social means (including
Mega-Social effects) or Inspired mental powers. The nova's
player may declare his intention to use this enhancement
after the aggressor makes her initial roll, or the nova can
"let her in" if he so desires. This enhancement costs 1
quantum point to use and lasts for the duration of the
scene.
 ABERRANT
Code of Honor (Mega-Willpower)
The ideal of honor has been known (even if only to pay
lip service to it) throughout a good portion of human his-
tory. A nova with this enhancement has learned how to use
adherence to a code of honorable behavior as a psycholog-
ical focus, allowing him to resist any outside influences that
would lead him to violate his code of honorable behavior.
System: A nova with this enhancement is more effec-
tive at resisting any mind- or emotion-controlling effects
that would make him behave in ways that run counter to
his code of honorable behavior. This enhancement grants
the nova + [Mega-Willpower] extra dice on all Willpower
rolls made to resist attempts to force or persuade him to
violate his code of honor, either by mundane techniques or
Inspired powers. This enhancement has no quantum point
cost and is always on.
Crucible (Mega-Willpower)
Prerequisites: Mega-Willpower + and the Soli- nova's quantum points being converted, but immediately
taire and Quantum Baffle enhancements.
When Willpower and quantum energy work in con-
cert, wondrous things can happen. Certain novas that
have attained the upper ranges of Mega-Willpower are
living proof of this, as they have learned how to use their
quantum-amplified Willpower to literally purge themselves
of the effects of Taint, both their own and that inflicted by
them by others.
System: A nova can have up to 5 levels of this
enhancement, with the benefits described below.
- The nova gets (Mega-Willpower / 2) additional dice
on all rolls to resist the effects of quantum powers that
involve altering (but not increasing) her own Taint or lack
of same, such as Aberration Transfer. Also, the ratings of
any noetic effects that would interfere with the nova's use
of quantum are automatically halved before any rolls are
made. Requires Mega-Willpower 6.
- The nova gets (Mega-Willpower) additional
dice on all rolls to resist the effects of quantum powers
that involve altering (but not increasing) her own Taint or
lack of same, such as Aberration Transfer. The nova gets
(Mega-Willpower / 2) additional dice on all rolls to resist
the effects of quantum powers that would increase her
own Taint (both permanent and temporary) ratings, such as
that possessed by the Terat Sin-Eater. Also, the ratings of
any noetic effects that would interfere with the nova's use
of quantum are automatically halved before any rolls are
made.
- The nova is automatically immune to the effects
of quantum powers that involve altering (but not increasing)
her own Taint. The nova gets (Mega-Willpower) additional
dice on all rolls to resist the effects of quantum powers
APPENDIX #1: MEGA-WILLPOWER
that would increase her own Taint (both permanent and
temporary) ratings. The nova is automatically immune to
any noetic effects that would interfere with the nova's use
of quantum. Also, the ratings of any quantum powers -such
as Disrupt and Disimmunize - that would interfere with the
nova's use of quantum are automatically halved before any
rolls are made. Requires Mega-Willpower 7.
- The nova is automatically immune to the effects
of quantum powers that involve either altering or increasing
her own Taint. The nova is automatically immune to any
noetic effects that would interfere with the nova's use of
quantum. The ratings of any quantum powers -such as Dis-
rupt and Disimmunize - that would interfere with the nova's
use of quantum are automatically halved before any rolls
are made. Also, the nova can now purge herself of tem-
porary Taint by making a Willpower roll. If successful, she
can spend quantum points to rid herself of temporary Taint
on a 1-to-1 basis. If the roll fails, the quantum points aren't
converted and nothing happens. A botch results in the
dissipating into the local noetic medium without providing
any benefit to the nova. The nova can also purge herself
of permanent Taint - along with any associated aberrations
and social penalties - in the same way, although at a cost of
10 quantum points per point of permanent Taint. Requires
Mega-Willpower 8.
- The nova is automatically immune to the
effects of powers that involve either altering or increasing
her own Taint. The nova is automatically immune to any
noetic effects that would interfere with the nova's use of
quantum. The ratings of any quantum powers -such as Dis-
rupt and Disimmunize - that would interfere with the nova's
use of quantum are automatically quartered before any rolls
are made. The nova can purge herself of Taint as described
above. Also, the nova can now spend 3 quantum points per
scene to generate a "taint anodyne" effect, which is essen-
tially the counterpart to the "Taint Bleed" aberration (Aber-
rant Players Guide p. 96). When employing this effect, the
nova gives off a form of telluric energy that automatically
negates any ambient taint radiation - not quantum energy!
- around her and permanently cleanses it from her vicinity,
restoring the health and fertility of her current environs.
The taint anodyne affects everything within 100 square
meters of the nova per scene of use. While using the taint
anodyne, the nova's mere presence is enough to prevent
baselines humans from not only contracting taint diseases,
but allows them to recover from taint diseases as either
bashing or lethal damage, depending on the details of
their specific taint diease (Storyteller's discretion). Tainted
organisms within the range of effect may also recover from
taint exposure in the same way, at the Storyteller's discre-
tion. However, the taint anodyne can do nothing to protect
123
 ABERRANT
against future taint exposure, nor can it help other novas to
deal with their own Taint in any way. Requires Mega-Will-
power 9.
All of this does not come without a cost; as a nova
who takes any level of Crucible cannot purchase Tainted
Quantum, Mega-Attributes, enhancements or quantum
powers with either nova points or experience points. This
enhancement has no quantum point cost and is always on
except where noted above.
Dauntless (Mega-Willpower)
Novas with this enhancement perform unusually well
under stress, especially in life-threatening situations. Given
the dangers that a nova is likely to face on a frequent basis,
this ability has definite survival value.
System: Whenever the nova attempts a particularly
difficult and dangerous action (in the Storyteller's opinion),
he can add 3 extra dice to his roll. Also, any botches that
involve less than [Mega-Willpower] rolled "1s" will be
considered failures instead of botches. "Difficult and dan-
gerous" actions are generally those made with a minimum
+2 difficulty penalty and that have the potential to inflict
immediate and grievous harm if failed. Note to players:
Use this too often (to the point that it annoys your Story-
teller and fellow players), and it could fail you at the worst
possible time. This enhancement has no quantum point
cost and is always on.
Detached (Mega-Willpower)
Mega-Willful novas with this enhancement have
learned the mental trick of seeing their quantum powers
as being something separate from their physical existence.
Even in the most adverse conditions, they can concen-
trate on using their powers as if they were in comfortable
surroundings.
System: Any wound penalties that the nova suffers
will not affect his rolls for power use until his Health Level
reaches Incapacitated- and even then the nova will only lose
a maximum of 2 dice from the dice pools for his powers.
This enhancement costs no quantum and is always on.
Dispassion (Mega-Willpower)
Some Mega-Willful novas have developed an emo-
tional counterpart to the Steel Will enhancement. This
emotional discipline essentially grants them a superhuman
sang froid. Novas with this enhancement tend to be calm
more often than not, and their emotions have proven
extremely difficult to sway.
124 APPENDIX #1: MEGA-WILLPOWER
System: A nova with Dispassion receives +3 auto-
matic successes on all rolls made to resist powers that
would influence his emotions; such as Mega-Social effects
or powers such as Empathic Manipulation. This doesn't
provide any protection from effects that would influence
her thoughts, such as Dominate, Mirage, and most forms
of Telepathy. This bonus is also effective against mundane
emotion-control techniques, including some forms of
brainwashing. If the nova's emotions should ever fall under
the influence of a mentalist, he can spend 1 quantum point
to automatically shake off the effect of any emotion-influ-
encing power that has a dot rating equal to or lower than
his Mega-Willpower rating. This enhancement is always on
and has no quantum point cost except where noted above.
Excellence (Mega-Willpower)
Baseline athletes have known for decades that
"putting a little soul" into one's efforts can sometimes
mean the difference between victory and defeat. When a
Mega-Willful nova with this enhancement decides to put a
little extra effort into doing something, the results can be
absolutely astounding.
System: Whenever the nova spends a point of tem-
porary Willpower to gain an automatic success, she can
spend 1 quantum point to make another Willpower roll as
an automatic action. Each success scored on the Willpower
roll will grant an additional automatic success.
Focus (Mega-Willpower)
A Mega-Willful nova with this enhancement has
developed immense powers of concentration, allowing
her to ignore the constant barrage of distractions that are
to be found in the society of 2015. While this provides no
protection against being distracted by the pain of an injury,
it's still a great aid in performing all sorts of tasks under
less-than-ideal conditions.
System: When performing any action, the nova can
ignore up to [Mega-Willpower] points of die pool and/
or difficulty penalties caused by distractions or environ-
mental conditions. (Wound penalties aren't affected by
this, however.) She can also add [Mega-Willpower] dice to
all Meditation rolls made for the purpose of focusing or
recalling information. The effects of this enhancement are
fully cumulative with the Total Concentration (Mega-Intel-
ligence) enhancement from Aberrant: Brainwaves. This
enhancement costs no quantum points to use and is always
on.
 ABERRANT
Grit (Mega-Willpower)
With their self-confidence reinforced by their own
quantum energies, certain Mega-Willful novas have devel-
oped extraordinary reserves of psychological strength.
System: The nova gains an additional temporary Will-
power point for every odd number of Mega-Willpower dots
he possesses. A nova with this enhancement would gain an
extra temporary Willpower point at Mega-Willpower ratings
of 1, 3, 5, 7 and 9. It's also possible to take a second level
of this enhancement, in which case the nova will instead
receive a number of additional temporary Willpower points
equal to his Mega-Willpower rating. Please note that the
benefit gained from having a second level of Grit are not
cumulative with that gained from having the first level. This
enhancement has no quantum point cost and is always on.
Incurable Optimism
(Mega-Willpower)
Novas with Mega-Willpower are able to endure many
trials that would pummel others into the dust, but even
they can grow weary at heart. Novas with this enhancement
are the exception to that, as they can keep their spirits up
with incredible ease. Unfortunately, it can also cause others
to doubt their sanity...
System: Whenever the nova would ordinarily regain
temporary Willpower, he can make another Willpower roll
as an automatic action. Each success on the roll will let him
regain 1 temporary Willpower point. This enhancement is
always on and costs no quantum or Willpower to use.
Intractible (Mega-Willpower)
Despite their quantum-enhanced strength of will, most
novas with Mega-Willpower are still somewhat vulnerable
to the submission instinct that our evolution as highly social
animals has hardwired into the brains of all humans. A
Mega-Willful nova with this enhancement is strikingly differ-
ent from all other humans, as he simply does not submit to
anyone. Ever.
System: An Intractible nova actually lacks the "neural
circuitry" for emotional submission; making him men-
tally and physically resistant to becoming submissive to
another person. Since he also lacks the euphoric response
(endorphin release) caused by submission, he can't find
the experience of being dominated by another person to
be pleasurable in the least. This quirk of altered neurol-
ogy grants the nova [Mega-Willpower] extra dice to resist
Inspired attempts (via Mega-Social effects, quantum or
psionic powers, daredevil knacks, etc.) to make him submit
to being dominated by another person(s). The nova is also
completely immune to mundane attempts to make him
submit to being dominated.
APPENDIX #1: MEGA-WILLPOWER
Its possible for a Mega-Willful nova two have two
levels of this enhancement. In this case, the nova receives
[Mega-Willpower x 2] extra dice to resist Inspired attempts
(Mega-Social effects, quantum or psionic powers, daredevil
knacks, etc.) to make him submit to being dominated by
another person. If he ever finds himself in danger of being
dominated or controlled, the nova can instead spend 1
quantum point and make a Willpower roll to enter a state
of extreme hostility, focused on the would-be dominator(s).
Each success on the Willpower roll will increase the nova's
own feelings of hostility towards the would-be dominator(s)
by 1 step on the "Hatred" column of the Empathic Manip-
ulation table (Aberrant core book, p. 196) for the duration
of the scene. The result of this is usually the nova making
a savage attack of one kind or another on the would-be
dominator(s), which is much preferable to being treated like
a doormat or plaything. This enhancement has no quantum
point cost and is permanent except where noted above.
Finally, it should be noted that Intractible novas are
fully capable of cooperating with other sapients when there
is good reason to. This enhancement merely protects such
novas against pointless attempts at social dominance made
by others seeking to reinforce their own egos at the nova's
expense.
Intrepid (Mega-Willpower)
Novas with this enhancement enjoy a special resis-
tance to the effects of unreasoning fear. Given how many
novas use fear-inducing powers and Mega-Social effects,
this can prove to be quite handy.
System: The nova receives + [Mega-Willpower] extra
dice on any Willpower rolls made to resist his own fear
reactions, whether they be natural or induced. This includes
hysteria, unthinking panic, and attempts to overwhelm the
nova's sensibilities through inspiring horror or terror. The
nova can still feel fear, but it simply doesn't impair him in
any way. This bonus also helps the nova resist the attempts
of others to use Intimidation on him. This enhancement has
no quantum point cost and is always on.
Lucidity (Mega-Willpower)
Some Mega-Willful novas who suffer from mental
disorders have learned how to use their superhuman force
of will to temporarily force their minds into functioning cor-
rectly in times of need. This is a drastic measure, as there
are serious consequences for screwing up while tinkering
with one's own brain.
System: To use this enhancement, the nova must
spend 1 quantum point and make a Willpower roll. If
successful, the nova can temporarily ignore the effects of
any mental disorders and mental aberrations he might be
125
 ABERRANT
suffering from for a number of scenes equal to the number
of successes rolled. Failure on the Willpower roll will
merely result in the quantum point being wasted. Botching
the Willpower roll is much more serious, as the nova will
automatically fail on any Willpower rolls made to resist the
effects of his mental disorders and/or mental aberrations
for a period of 24 hours. As a side benefit, this enhance-
ment also automatically reduces the successes scored on
any rolls to negatively affect the nova's sanity made by
another being by [the nova's Mega-Willpower] successes at
no quantum point cost.
Mental Resilience (Mega-Willpower)
Some Mega-Willful novas have displayed an aug-
mented resistance to induced states of mental dysfunction.
While this ability is a wonderful safety measure- quantum
powers mixed with insanity tends to make for very bad
situations- it sadly provides no defense against the effects
of mental aberrations.
System: The nova is automatically immune to all
effects (Inspired or otherwise) that induce insanity. This
enhancement has no effect at all on the nova's own metal
disorders and/or mental aberrations, however. The nova
also receives a bonus of +3 extra dice on all rolls to resist
other mind-altering powers and effects. This enhancement
has no quantum point cost and is always on.
Moral Compass (Mega-Willpower)
A nova with this enhancement has what amounts to
an automatic ethical guideline program running within his
mind. It's no substitute for a strong conscience, but it does
help keep oneself on the "straight and narrow" during con-
fusing situations and instances of personal weakness.
System: The nova has an internal guide that keeps
him from accidentally straying from following his chosen
code of ethics due to weakness or distraction, typically with
a sharp mental slap. Note that it does nothing if the nova
consciously chooses to stray from his chosen path - it's a
guide, not a leash. The nova can also keep himself from
"wasting time", relaxing and playing around only enough
to stay mentally healthy. This enhancement costs no quan-
tum and is always on.
Moxie (Mega-Willpower)
A nova with this enhancement has learned how to use
his superhuman force of will to assume an aura of author-
ity and self-confident superiority that has nothing to do
with his physical looks or charisma. Other people tend to
quickly defer to the nova's decisions and will often accept
his authority without thinking. This enhancement also gives
126 APPENDIX #1: MEGA-WILLPOWER
the nova a serious defensive advantage in the social arena,
as he isn't shaken by the wicked wit or subterfuge of his
foes.
System: The nova can use his Willpower to either
augment or use in place of his Appearance and/or Cha-
risma on all Social rolls that could benefit from superhuman
self-confidence or authority. This usually covers rolls for
Intimidation, Interrogation, Command; and also works
on rolls for persuading people or giving them orders.
Additionally, people won't interfere with the nova if he
looks like he knows what he's doing, provided that it isn't
an obvious threat to them. This enhancement also inflicts a
difficulty penalty equal to the nova's [Mega-Willpower] on
all rolls that others may make to mislead or intimidate the
nova. This enhancement costs no quantum points to use
and is always on.
Persistence (Mega-Willpower)
Whenever a person has to perform a long and boring
task (without any serious incentives to finish it), there's
always a good chance that he will either get bored and
make mistakes, or simply abandon the task. Even novas
aren't immune to this problem. A nova with this enhance-
ment is the exception, as he can keep his nose to the
grindstone and ensure that whatever he's working on will
be done and done right.
System: When performing an extended action, the
nova can add [Mega-Willpower] extra dice to every roll
made after the first. This enhancement costs no quantum
points and is always on.
Probity (Mega-Willpower)
Prerequisite: Code of Honor (either as a Mega-Will-
power enhancement or a Merit)
In a similar fashion as Mega-Willful novas that have
developed the Code of Honor enhancement, a nova with
Probity has learned to use a chosen code of honorable
behavior as a psychological focus. The difference is that
instead of granting protection against outside influences,
Probity lets the nova resist the effects of any of her own
psychological problems that would violate her code of
honorable behavior.
System: A nova with Probity is more effective at resist-
ing any of her own impulses that run counter to her code
of honorable behavior. This enhancement grants the nova
+ 3 automatic successes on all Willpower rolls made to
resist the effects of any Mental Flaws, mental disorders or
mental aberrations where giving in to those effects would
cause the nova to violate her chosen code of honor. This
enhancement has no quantum point cost and is always on.
 ABERRANT
Protean Power (Mega-Willpower)
A few novas have learned how to alter the minor
details of how their quantum powers appear to other
people. While this doesn't change a power's effects in any
way, it provides a subtle edge when participating in covert
operations and similar secretive activities.
System: The nova can control the special effects
(Aberrant Player's Guide, pp. 96-97) of her own quantum
powers, altering or even shutting them off at will. This
enhancement has no quantum point cost and any changes
she makes will last until the nova deliberately alters them
again.
Psychic Firewall (Mega-Willpower)
Prerequisite: At least one dot of the Telepathy power.
Mega-Willful novas with telepathic abilities have been
known to develop what amounts to a mental firewall in
their minds. With this in place, even skilled telepaths can
be kept out of private memories.
System: Any attempts to telepathically uncover
information from the nova's mind that she wants to conceal
automatically suffers a difficulty penalty equal to the nova's
Mega-Willpower. This enhancement has no quantum point
cost and is always on.
Quantum Baffle (Mega-Willpower)
A Mega-Willful nova with this enhancement has
learned how to control how her own quantum energies
interact with the ambient quantum/noetic energies in her
environment, and can even cloak them.
System: Aside from being able to keep oneself from
inadvertently triggering nova eruptions, novas and psions
will suffer a + [Mega-Willpower] difficulty penalty on any
rolls made to detect the nova with the Node background or
psionic Attunement while this enhancement is active. This
enhancement has no quantum point cost and can switched
on or off at will.
Quantum Regulation
(Mega-Willpower)
Mega-Willful novas with this enhancement enjoy an
increased ability to control their own quantum energies.
With incidents such as the death of Mu Lung in 2006
(Aberrant: Year One, pp. 27-31) likely to become more
common, this ability can greatly enhance a nova's chances
of survival.
System: The nova receives + 3 automatic successes
on all rolls made to maintain control over her own quantum
energies. Aside from allowing the nova to better resist the
effects of quantum-related powers such as Disrupt or Disi-
APPENDIX #1: MEGA-WILLPOWER
mmunize, she can also make a Willpower roll to harmlessly
dissipate any excess quantum points from her quantum
pool, preventing any possible overloads and the resulting
explosive death. This enhancement has no quantum point
cost and is always on.
Resolute (Mega-Willpower)
Mega-Willful novas have become infamous in certain
circles for the extreme difficulty others face when trying to
change their minds about something. A few Mega-Will-
ful novas have harnessed their natural stubbornness and
turned it into a serious advantage. Once a Mega-Willful
nova with this enhancement sets his mind on doing some-
thing, there's absolutely nothing that can be said to stop
the nova from achieving his goal. And more likely than not,
he'll succeed at his chosen task.
System: A nova with this enhancement can spend
1 quantum point to utterly and completely set his mind
on a completing a chosen task. Not only will the nova be
unable to be forced to abandon or act in any way contrary
to achieving his chosen goal, but he will gain + [Mega-Will-
power] extra dice on any roll made to complete the indi-
cated task. This enhancement costs 1 quantum point to use
and will last until the chosen task is completed.
Restraint (Mega-Willpower)
Many novas tend to be extremely individualistic, if
not outright egocentric. This near-pathological obsession
with the self is the root cause of many problems in too
many novas' lives - an inability to effectively cooperate with
others, insensitivity to other people, a blindness to the real-
ity beyond their own activities and needs, and a preoccupa-
tion with one's own needs and desires. What's worse is that
this also leads to a disregard for the consequences of their
actions with regard for other people, an inability to love or
feel regard for other people, and allowing themselves to
be controlled by anyone who flatters them or appears to
consider their needs and importance. This sorry state of
affairs usually results in severe damage to all the aspects of
a nova's life, ranging from the personal (an inability to form
healthy romantic relationships) to the global (the upcoming
devastation of the Aberrant War).
A Mega-Willful nova with Restraint suffers from none
of these problems, for she has attained complete mastery
over her own ego. Not only does she have a clear and
objective understanding of what events are taking place in
her environment, but she can respond to those events in
a superhumanly effective manner. Ironically, this enhance-
ment does nothing to ease the nova's alienation from the
masses of baseline humanity (most of whom are just as
egocentric as the novas); and she's likely to be alienated
127
 ABERRANT
from the egocentric novas as well. costs no quantum except where noted above and can be
System: A nova with Restraint automatically has her switched on or off at will.
difficulties lowered by [Mega-Willpower] points on any roll
in which being able to subordinate her own ego could be
Solitaire (Mega-Willpower)
of benefit to her (Storyteller's decision). Difficulties cannot
To many in the Nova Age, novas with the Adaptability
be reduced below zero, however. While this obviously
enhancement seem to embody the ideal of self-sufficiency.
lends itself to attempts to empathize with other people
Without any need to eat or drink, food and beverages
and resist the effects of ego-stroking, there are many other
become luxuries that can be set aside instead of neces-
situations where the effects of this enhancement can be
sities. Without the need to breathe, fresh air becomes a
applied to the nova's benefit.
pleasant part of the environmental background instead of
The other major factor of this enhancement is the
vital life support. Add on the capability to survive in hostile
effect it has on the nova's psychology. A nova with
environments that would quickly kill an unprotected base-
Restraint will have no need to show off, won't have an
line (and many other novas), and it's easy to see the reason
"attitude", won't brag about herself endlessly or swagger,
for this idea. Ironically, these novas aren't truly as indepen-
and won't take pride in ignorance or violence. She won't
dent as they would like to think. Deny them the ambient
feel any special need for the favorable, fearful, or fawning
quantum energies that they're used to having around and
attentions of other people beyond a simple respect for her
they'll soon suffer from quantum deprivation, which is
as a person; nor will she be affected by the attempts of
much like starvation and is just as unpleasant. Deny them
other people to influence her with flattery or other forms
access to the ambient "ordered" noetic energy produced
of ego-gratification. She won't let her ego blind her to any
by thriving biospheres and healthy baseline humans, and
potential threats to herself or other people; especially if
they will be more likely to develop Taint. Deny them the
such threats are disguised with feigned friendship, love,
chance to ally themselves and interact with other people
respect, or adoration. She won't commit herself totally to
in difficult circumstances, and their personal growth will be
an ideal, concept, or endeavor (which is only a more subtle
stunted.
form of ego-gratification); but can discard them the instant
A Mega-Willful nova with this enhancement is the
they prove to be ineffective or detrimental. Close personal
exception to those rules; as he is able to survive in telluric
relationships cannot be discarded so easily, but the nova
environments that would quickly cause other novas to
will have an easier time with severing her attachments
perish, lose control of their quantum powers or become
after an unforgivable betrayal. Her own sense of personal
Taint-wracked abominations. The Solitaire nova also enjoys
worth won't be affected by the opinions (good or bad) that
an enhanced resistance to attempts to disrupt or hinder
ignorant and shallow people have of her. It's a difficult role-
his quantum powers by telluric means, as well as greater
playing challenge to portray such a nova, but well worth it
control over his own quantum energies.
if you're interested in portraying a true transhuman instead
System: The nova with this enhancement can provide
of your average egomaniacal nova.
for all of his own telluric needs for an indefinite period,
This enhancement has no quantum point cost and is
as long as he retains at least one quantum point in his
always on.
Quantum Pool. A Solitaire nova enjoys a stronger link to
the quantum level of reality than other novas, which allows
Sobriety (Mega-Willpower) him to replenish his Quantum Pool wherever he is, even
Mega-Willful novas have achieved levels of self-con- in regions that are seemingly devoid of ambient quan-
trol that other novas, much less ordinary humans, simply tum energies. The nova is also capable of converting his
cannot match. Novas with Sobriety have achieved levels of quantum energies into "free" noetic energy, allowing him
self-control that make even other Mega-Willful novas seem to both continually emit "ordered" noetic energy at levels
diffident. identical to those of an equivalent number of baseline
System: A nova with Sobriety can ignore any instances humans (see "General Guideline: The Work Hour" in
where the Storyteller would ordinarily require her to spend Aberrant: The New Flesh, p.253 for comparative noetic
a point of temporary Willpower to avoid giving in to either output rates) and replenish his own noetic template by
her instinctual responses or the base temptations of her himself - in game terms, a Solitaire nova is at no risk of
Nature (Aberrant core book, p. 145). Also, if the nova ever developing Taint if he should forego regular contact with
runs out of temporary Willpower and risks falling prey to baseline humans and vigorous biospheres. The Solitaire
her Compulsion, she can spend 1 quantum point to make nova can also survive indefinitely in hostile telluric envi-
a Willpower roll as an automatic action. Each success will ronments; such as areas contaminated with taint energies,
restore 1 point of temporary Willpower. This enhancement regions with excessive amounts of ambient noetic (psi)

128 APPENDIX #1: MEGA-WILLPOWER

 ABERRANT
energy, natural phenomena that can hinder quantum use thoughts should ever fall under the influence of a mentalist,
(such as certain forms of stellar activity), regions seemingly she can spend 1 quantum point to automatically shake off
devoid of ambient quantum and/or noetic energy and the the effect of any thought-influencing power that has a dot
detrimental effects of telluric vortices (such as the Hammer- rating equal to or lower than her Mega-Willpower rating.
smith Effect of 1922, the Galatea Incident of 1998 and the This enhancement is always on and has no quantum point
Venezuela Phenomenon of 2122). cost except where noted above.
The Solitaire nova is also automatically immune to
the effects of any substances or devices meant to directly
Stoicism (Mega-Willpower)
impair novas' use of quantum energies. This would include
Over the centuries, certain yogis and ascetic mar-
all sorts of Inspired technological power dampeners and
tial artists have learned to refine their self-control to a
inhibitors. He also gains six extra soak, Resistance dice,
degree that most people find astounding. A nova with this
Willpower successes, or automatic successes in resisted
enhancement has outdone those ascetics several times
actions (as applicable) against noetic interference with his
over, as her control over herself allows her to resist sensa-
quantum powers and use of the Disrupt or Disimmunize
tions that others would find overwhelming.
(Aberrant: Teragen, p. 127) quantum powers against him.
System: The nova receives + [Mega-Willpower] extra
Finally, the Solitaire nova can stimulate his own
dice on all rolls made to resist the effects of physical or
personal growth without requiring close contact with
emotional sensations, including pain and pleasure. The
others - in game terms, he can gain experience points from
nova can also spend 1 quantum point and make a Will-
adventuring solo as if he was actually part of a group. This
power roll. Success allows the nova to remain completely
enhancement is always on and has no quantum point cost.
motionless for days on end (1 day per success) without
cramping or tiring, even while in the most uncomfortable of
Steadfast (Mega-Willpower) positions. The first use has no quantum point cost.
Novas with Mega-Willpower can be some of the most
tenacious and intransigent people on the planet when it
Strong Matrix (Mega-Willpower)
comes to influencing them through social means. Novas
A Mega-Willful nova with this enhancement has such
with this enhancement are even more difficult, as they bring
a strong belief in her self-image that she actually becomes
new meaning to the term "willfulness" once their minds are
somewhat resistant to powers that would alter her body in
set on a given course of action.
ways run counter to her self-image.
System: The nova gains + [Mega-Willpower] extra dice
System: The nova's quantum matrix is even more
for any resisted roll when someone attempts to persuade
strongly bonded to her noetic template than is typical for
her to act against her own wishes. The extra dice provided
novas, making her extremely difficult to alter with quan-
by this enhancement can also be applied to resist Inspired
tum or psionic powers. Any such power that has a direct,
forms of mind control. This enhancement has no quantum
physical effect on the nova or items that are attuned to her
point cost and is always on.
suffers an additional + [Mega-Willpower] difficulty penalty.
On the other hand, any attempts made to detect the nova
Steel Will (Mega-Willpower) by means of psionic attunement will receive 1 automatic
Many mentalists have found the enhanced ability of success unless the nova can somehow hide her quantum
Mega-Willful novas to resist their psychic control to be a energies. This enhancement costs no quantum points and
most unpleasant surprise. Given how the psychic manipu- is always on.
lation of other peoples' thoughts has become increasingly
common in the Nova Age, it's only natural that some
Sufferance (Mega-Willpower)
Mega-Willful novas have become even more resistant to
While all Mega-Willful novas enjoy an enhanced resis-
that particular tactic.
tance to pain, a few of them have developed their innate
System: A nova with Steel Will receives +3 automatic
pain resistance to disturbing new heights.
successes on all rolls made to resist powers that would
System: The nova's wound penalties are reduced by -2
influence her thoughts; such as Dominate, Mirage, and
points per dot of Mega-Willpower, instead of just -1. This
most forms of Telepathy. This doesn't provide any pro-
enhancement has no quantum point cost and is always on.
tection from effects that would influence her emotions,
such as Mega-Social effects or powers such as Empathic
Manipulation. This bonus is also effective against mundane
mind-control and brainwashing techniques. If the nova's

APPENDIX #1: MEGA-WILLPOWER 129

 ABERRANT
Temperance (Mega-Willpower)
Quite a few novas have had to deal with the problem
of addiction, most often to the Quantum-regulating drugs
(such as adrenocilin and moxinoquantamine) administered
by Project Utopia. Then there are the recreational drugs
offered by organized crime to consider, along with the
powers of novas such as Marcel "the Apostle" Delorim-
ier. A nova with this enhancement enjoys an augmented
resistance to the effects of addiction, which is a good thing
considering how many such traps a nova can expect to
encounter.
System: Whenever the nova is exposed to an
addictive substance or effect, the Addiction Rating of the
substance or effect is automatically lowered by [Mega-Will-
power] points. If the Addiction Rating is lowered to zero in
this manner, the substance or effect in question is consid-
ered totally non-addictive as far as the nova is concerned.
This enhancement costs no quantum points and is always
on.
Tranquility (Mega-Willpower)
Certain Mega-Willful novas have cultivated an inner
peace that is almost palpable. Where other people would
be driven over the edge, Tranquil novas can take life in
stride, even when it becomes crazy and weird. They can
also shrug off the stresses of daily life, to the point that
even major events like losing a loved one cannot make
them lose control.
System: A nova with Tranquility enjoys a firmly estab-
lished sense of self, a bulwark against experiences that has
been amplified to a superhuman level. The emotions of a
Tranquil nova are just as relevant to him as anyone else's,
but he simply doesn't give much rein to things like surprise
or fear. In game terms, the nova gains + [Mega-Willpower]
extra dice for any Willpower roll that involves remaining
calm or not overreacting to unusual stimuli. This enhance-
ment has no quantum point cost and is always on.
130 APPENDIX #1: MEGA-WILLPOWER
Unbreakable (Mega-Willpower)
While all Mega-Willful novas enjoy a superhuman
resistance to all forms of torture and brainwashing, a few
have developed this resistance to a degree that would
make Big Brother himself admit defeat.
System: This enhancement doubles the number of
extra dice the nova receives from his Mega-Willpower on
all Willpower rolls made to resist the effects of any form
of torture or brainwashing that is inflicted on him. Further-
more, the nova is effectively immune to mundane brain-
washing and mind-control techniques. This enhancement
costs no quantum points and is always on.
Yugen (Mega-Willpower)
The Japanese have long known of and appreciated
a kind of beauty that does not depend on the outer
appearance of an object or person. Instead, it radiates
from within as a kind of highly attractive spiritual essence.
A Mega-Willful nova with this enhancement has the same
quality, as she has an aura of superhuman spiritual appeal
and desirability that transcends physical good looks and
charisma.
System: The nova can use her Willpower to either
augment or use in place of her Appearance and/or Cha-
risma on all Social rolls that involve attracting people who
know her on closer terms than a mere short-term acquain-
tance. This enhancement costs no quantum points to use
and is always on, unless the nova deliberately switches it
off for a time.
 A B E R R A N T
DeVries Files

DeVries Report (Hardcopy Only - Eyes Only)

Re: Operation Welcome Wagon

To: Anna DeVries
From: Taproot
Date: 2012-10-31
Here is the current status of my ongoing meet and greet crusade, Boss. To date, I have verified that none of the novas publicly known to
claim that they hail from parallel worlds have any real evidence to back their supposed origins. Of the said novas, eight were delusional due to
mental aberration. Theyve all been flagged as potential future liabilities if - or when - they become even more aberrated. Six were con artists
looking to scam wealthy and foolish baselines out of their money by selling them fake works of art and historical artifacts. The remaining four were
scammers posing as bearers of wisdom from other Earths and had set up minor nova cults around themselves. By the way, those four cults seem
to be pretty harmless as these things go - theres no violence or criminal activity involved that Ive found. Instead, theyre crosses between beatnik
academic communes from the 1950s and hippie sex cults from the 1960s.
In light of these findings, I think we can safely say that Dr. Roches idea that immigrants to our universe would publicly announce their status is
optimism taken to the point of Pollyannaism if not clinical delusion. If any such visitors are living among us, theyre doing their best to stay incognito
and blend in with us locals. From their point of view, it would only be common sense. Not only are they effectively illegal aliens, but the means for
traveling to alternate universes would be a treasure beyond price for anyone on this planet. I understand your wanting to be that person, but it will
take both delicate negotiating and the strictest measures we can take to keep them covert. Assuming, of course, that we ever find any of these
hypothetical cross-time immigrants and that theyd be willing to deal with DeVries.
On a lighter note, what the heck is going on with that new prediction technology that youve got me testing out? Ive kept it to myself so far,
but Im too close to my limit for assorted oddities in my life. Ever since I started working for DeVries when your people helped me with my eruption,
bizarre stuff keeps happening in my vicinity. I keep crossing paths with all kinds of espionage agents, nova cultists and criminals from what seems
like sheer dumb luck. Nova eruptions are becoming commonplace events for me, which would be fine if recruiting them was my job. (The finders
bonuses are nice, though.) Rains of small living creatures - fish, frogs and assorted sea life so far - occur every other week. For crying out loud, Ive
even had a close-range Bigfoot sighting! And thats just the freakiness Ive witnessed that Im willing to go on our record about! Its more than a little
trite, but the Yanks have summed up a life like mine the best. For me, every day for the last two years has been Halloween and its getting old.
Ill send another update next month as circumstances permit. Ill keep at it, but Im starting to get discouraged. This assignment is looking more
like a snipe hunt with every passing day.

DeVries Internal Memo

Re: Operation Welcome Wagon & Taproot

To: Rachel Alinsky
From: Anna DeVries
Date: 2012-10-31
I hate to say it, but Taproots latest report has verified your initial speculations on cross-time immigrants to our universe. If we have such
expatriates living here, theyre keeping extremely low profiles. Ill let you have the pleasure of informing Dr. Roche that youve won the bet you two
had going. Also, your idea of using Taproot as a stalking horse due to his (hopefully not) unique quirk is paying off in several ways, but hes getting
stressed from all the weirdness. Have you made any progress in identifying his quirk in other novas? I know you said that Taproots quirk was not the
result of aberration, but the man needs some serious vacation time if not full-fledged therapy. We need someone else to take over for him ASAP.
Also, you should break the news about his quirk to him yourself. My reputation would only be a handicap if I tried to do so myself.

131
 A B E R R A N T
Directive File

Mission Log, Fyodor Pashkevich Bakulev, 10/31/12 [translated from Russian]

Why exactly has my career gone off the rails so badly? My service record at the FSB was spotless, with two commendations for service above and beyond the
call of duty and three promotions. Being invited to join the Directive seemed like such a godsend at the time. Now I find myself riding herd on a team composed
of what must be the agencys screwups and charged with a mission thats nothing short of punishment detail. Whose ass do I have to kiss or shoot to get myself
reassigned to a less nerve-wracking position?
Enough with the bitching, Fyodor Pashkevich. Time to start reporting on the latest shitloads of lunacy that our unwitting stalking horse has uncovered for us.
At least this nova also has the unerring power to find the best restaurants in his vicinity for us. Small comfort, but Ill take whatever I can get at this point.
Mission Report: 7 July, 2012, 0437 hours. Taproot has uncovered a dangerous gentlemens club for the aristocracy operating out of Bristol,
England. In addition to planning to subvert the British government, they were also engaging in the kidnapping and cannibalization of lower-class college students.
We tipped off MI-6 to the threat, which has since been neutralized. The investigation has also revealed an entrenched corrupt element within New Scotland Yard,
which has also been purged as of this writing. Also notable were the unexplained rain of small living squid at 4 May, 1104 hours and the Mayor of Bristol suffering
from a psychotic break while attending a Bristol City Council meeting at 1440 hours that same day.
Mission Report: 18 August, 2012, 1542 hours. Were in Seattle this time. While shadowing Taproot, we had what the Americans call a close encoun-
ter of the second kind. My team has made photographic and audiovisual recordings of the UFO in question, and also acquired samples of some local foliage
damaged by the object. All such evidence was sent to Omsk via the Directives current nova courier as per our standing orders. Our later encounter and subse-
quent dispute with a pair of Men in Black was also recorded and sent to Omsk. This is going to be a jurisdictional nightmare, and Im glad to have no further
part of it. Also, Taproot encountered some kind of unknown animal at one of the nearby national forests. My current forensics agent has recovered anomalous hair
samples from the scene for analysis at Omsk.
Mission Report: 5 September, 2012, 0034 hours. And now were in Boston. Taproot is beginning to show signs of weariness and stress - whatever it
is that Anna DeVries has him looking for, hes clearly having no luck finding as of yet. Our own interrogation of one of Taproots local passing acquaintances went
just as badly, as the man was suffering from what I can only describe as demonic possession. Aside from exhibiting psychotic behavior completely at odds with
his personality profile, the man manifested several dangerous and disturbing powers - most notably pyrokinesis - in his attempts to harm my agents. The subject
has no detectable M-R node or other aspects of nova physiology, and so has been remanded to CIA custody via Director Harris contacts. An explanation of this
incident would be welcome, but Im not optimistic.
Mission Report: 22 October, 2012, 1355 hours. Its good to be back in Russia, even if St. Petersburg is a far cry from my hometown of Vladivostok.
Taproot is visibly despondent and has been overheard muttering about being on a snipe hunt more than once. His errands in the city apparently have turned
up nothing once again. Would that my team were so lucky! At 0928 hours we noticed what appeared to be a bar of light crossing the sky, similar to the scanning
lights used in photocopiers. My team and I found the city around us transformed into a scene from the 16th Century; complete with wooden buildings, medieval
squalor and archaically-dressed townsfolk. Even worse, the roads were unpaved and muddy as it seemed we were now in the middle of the rasputitsa. We ducked
into a convenient alley hoping to avoid notice, only to encounter what I swear was an honest to God Oprichnik and his personal gang of hired thugs. Our weapons
allowed us to dispose of the thugs and capture the nobleman with minimal trouble. The man - whose name was David Pakovlev - stated that the year was 1565
after some quick and dirty interrogation. Then we noticed the bar of light crossing the sky again, causing our surroundings to revert back to the modern city of
the 21st Century. We found ourselves in the middle of a closed-down clothing store. The thugs had disappeared with the rest of 16th Century, yet Pakovlev had
somehow accompanied us back to the present. His now dead body had become a dessicated mummy, yet his personal effects and regalia - including the real sev-
ered dogs head that the Oprichniki carried as a badge of office - were still in pristine condition. All the evidence has once again been shipped to Omsk for further
analysis. For myself, Im planning on buying a bottle of the best vodka I can find and getting blind stupid drunk tonight.
Overall, this ongoing assignment to discover whatever Taproots mission may be has been a fools errand. The man himself isnt finding whatever Anna
DeVries had hoped he would find, and no longer cares to hide that fact. I am sure that Taproot will be taken off his own assignment soon. I would ask that the
same happen to me and my team. Watching this sort of weirdness on a television show like The X-Files is all well and good, but actually living it is nothing short of
a drunkards nightmare. My only consolations are that we will have learned something from all this madness, and that it will go away when Taproot does.

132
 Appendix #2:
Telluric Weirdness
In Aberrant and Trinity, much is made of the Inspired
capabilities of novas and the various psionic beings. What
they failed to mention is that Inspired effects can manifest
in the natural environment without any actions by Inspired
beings to act as a catalyst. While such effects were brought
to the attention of the Aeon Society and others in the after-
math of Hammersmiths Telluric Vortex in 1922, they had
always been happening long before and ever since that
time. Popularly referred to as Fortean events, these are a
great way for the Storyteller to inject a little natural mystery
into her Aberrant chronicle.
The Basic Nature Of Weirdness
At its core, a Fortean event is a natural phenomenon
not too dissimilar from thunderstorms, ocean tides or earth
tremors. The only differences are that Telluric energies are
more directly involved in their creation, and that the main-
stream scientific establishment of the Nova Age still hasnt
any clue at all about them. Inspired researchers will have
Chronicler Of The Damned
In 1919, the North American writer and researcher
Charles H. Fort (August 6, 1874 May 3, 1932) wrote
The Book of the Damned, which was his first collection of
accounts of anomalous events. As those accounts dealt with
phenomena that the science of his time could not find any
serious explanations, they were rejected and/or ignored
by the scientific establishment and thus damned. Fort
worked throughout the 1920s, writing three more books
- New Lands (1923), Lo! (1931) and Wild Talents (1932) -
before his death. His final work was a posthumous printing.
Aside from providing inspiration - pun intended - for
Storytellers to use Fortean events in their Aberrant and
Trinity chronicles, those running Adventure! chronicles have
the option of using Charles Fort as a background Storyteller
character. The man was quite colorful, maintained regular
contact with a wide range of people researching anomalous
events and was a one-man clearinghouse of such informa-
tion. All of this allows him to fit in seamlessly into an Adven-
ture! chronicle as a non-Inspired yet still remarkable figure.
APPENDIX #2: TELLURIC WEIRDNESS
a slight advantage as they might be able to perceive the
mingled quantum and noetic energies directly or through
Inspired sensor technology. Fortean events occur without
the aid of any guiding consciousness - they merely happen,
with any beneficial or detrimental consequences being
entirely coincidental. As they also depend on environmental
conditions in order to manifest, certain areas can be identi-
fied as regions ripe for Fortean events to occur. Geological
factors such as tectonic plate faults, latitude and local geo-
magnetic fields are often - but not always - good indicators
of where such regions will tend to be. Otherwise, they can
only be discovered by witnesses of the Fortean event surviv-
ing the experience and having their tales recorded for later
analysis instead of being dismissed as mere tall tales.
Strange Attractors
These are what can only be called weirdness mag-
nets; passive foci of the ambient Telluric energies in the
environment which spawn Fortean events. There are three
categories of weirdness magnets: places, objects and living
sapient creatures. Places are locally considered accursed
sites in Fortean circles. The largest ones include the
famous Bermuda Triangle, the Dragons Triangle near Japan,
Germanys Black Forest and the Zone of Silence in Mexico.
Smaller sites of this nature can be created - or destroyed -
by natural Telluric forces or the actions of sapient beings.
Objects with passive Telluric foci are also thought to be
cursed, and usually affect anyone and everything in their
immediate vicinity. The only difference with sapient passive
Telluric foci is that they cannot ever have or develop any
control whatsoever over this effect. One last thing: weird-
ness mangets can and will either attract - or in some cases
repel - one another much as natural magnets will. When two
or more weirdness mangets reinforce each other, the weird-
ness that they attract will increase accordingly. Exactly how
weird things can get is left up to the Storyteller and what
her players will tolerate.
For those who are interested, a listing for Weirdness
Magnet as both a Flaw and a nova aberration is presented
at the end of this appendix.
133
 ABERRANT
Flavors Of Weirdness
What follows is an overview of the general catego-
ries of anomalous events, arranged in progressive levels
of oddity. Despite the seeming mundanity of the subtler
events, they still qualify as Fortean for our purposes as
they represent a radical skewing of probability towards the
bizarre instead of anything consistently detrimental or ben-
eficial. Most of the effects described below can be applied
to either people - as either owners of weirdness magnet
items or being weirdness magnets themselves - or places.
Mundane Weirdness: Something of a contradiction
in terms, these are extremely odd events based on highly
unlikely flukes of probability instead of the other blatantly
paranormal varieties of Forteana. Technology will exhibit
inexplicable malfunctions or dysfunctions. Freak accidents
become everyday mishaps. Notable people - the Inspired,
celebrities, government agents, members of criminal orga-
nizations, secret societies, cultists, comspiracy members,
the mentally ill, etc - will be encountered by sheer chance.
Potential romantic interests will inevitably have some sort
of odd, possibly undesirable personality trait - obsses-
sive, neurotic, has a possibly unpalatable fetish, etc. - that
prevents them from being considered as whatever passes
for normal. People tend to commit extreme and often
senseless acts - murders, suicides, seductions, etc. - when
they are in the vicinity. Animals will behave in strikingly
unusual and/or inappropriate ways. Recorded information
about the weirdness magnet will become confused with
other records in computer databanks and in bureaucratic
files. Unusual messages - coded reports from spies, threats
intended for others, and other sort of incriminating or
embarrassing things are received on a regular basis. Offi-
cial hassles and other bothersome social interactions due
to mistaken identities are commonplace.
Skyfalls: Although the name is a misnomer since it
sometimes happens indoors, it describes a natural Telluric
event that has characteristics of both the Warp quantum
power and a noetic Transmassion effect. Many small
objects are teleported from elsewhere through this effect
to a random elevated destination, where they fall to the
surface normally. Skyfalls are either large and stationary
over a certain location or are small and fixated on an unfor-
tunate person. Skyfalls have produced rains of fish, frogs
and toads, jellyfish, worms, spiders, blood (actually water
contaminated with reddish dust and/or microbes), stones,
flower blossoms or petals, nuts, fragments of animal flesh,
small live sharks, grain, butter, dead monkeys, cylinders of
stone, golf balls, various unidentified gelatinous and resin-
ous substances, fruit, crabs, shellfish, turtles, snails, lizards,
snakes, and insect larvae. Aside from the hassle of cleaning
up the resulting mess, there are seldom any negative con-
sequences of experiencing a skyfall.
134 APPENDIX #2: TELLURIC WEIRDNESS
Spontaneous Telekinesis: Just as it says, these are
incidents of telekinetic manipulation of objects, although
there is no directing consciousness to guide them. At the
low end is what is commonly referred to as poltergeist
activity, as seen in many accounts of ghosts and other such
entities. (Those are detailed in Appendix #3 of this book.)
At the upper end large objects such as massive chunks of
soil - sometimes with multiple full-grown trees still rooted
in them! - have been reported as being torn from the land-
cape and levitated to a new location. Boulders, vehicles
and other such items of a similiar size can also be affected
in this manner with the results being either completely
random or whatever the Storyteller desires.
Out Of Place Artifacts: These are artifacts found in
places in which there is no logical reason for them to be
there. Most credible items of this variety are found while
mining or exploring long-sealed ancient tombs, as its far
too easy to explain other locations as the result of human
negligence and/or mischief. In a few cases these are
rediscovered evidence of forgotten advanced technolog-
ical devices, such as the famous Antikythera mechanism.
Most often, these items are displaced from alternate time
periods or alternate universes in a similar fashion as those
items displaced by skyfalls as mentioned above. Most out
of place artifacts will be nonfunctional and/or badly dam-
aged from their entombment, but this isnt always the case.
This also makes a handy means for Storytellers to introduce
mysterious new Devices and Artifacts - as per the Adven-
ture! core book - into their chronicles with a minimum of
fuss.
Cryptids: These are animals that are either unknown
to mainstream science or whose existence dismissed as
hoaxes by the scientific establishment. The most well-
known cryptids during the 20th and 21st Centuries are as
follows. First off is Bigfoot, a.k.a. Sasquatch, Yeti, Orang
Pendek and Yowie; which are suspected to be descen-
dants of the extinct Gigantopithecus. Others include lake
monsters such as those said to inhabit Loch Ness , Lake
Tahoe and Lake Champlain, giant sea serpents, giant
carnivorous bats (said to inhabit Central America and the
rainforests of Java in Indonesia), giant octopi large enough
to threaten sailing vessels, mapinguari (possible giant sloth
descendant said to inhabit the rainforests straddling the
border between Brazil and Bolivia), thunderbirds (giant
North American raptors reported to have unsuccessfully
attempted to prey on small human children), living dino-
saurs (of various types, reported in Africa, Australia and
the North American Southwest), giant anacondas in South
America which dwarf the green anaconda (thought to be
the largest variety known) and giant river fish capable of
preying on adult humans. Other cryptids can be found
worldwide and are far too numerous to list and describe
 ABERRANT
here. Encounters with such beasts can be rewarding for
novas who manage to kill them or capture them alive for
presentation to the global scientific community. One point
of interest: in the 19th Century, gorillas were considered
to be cryptids until explorer Paul Du Chaillu brought dead
gorilla specimens to the UK in 1861. This prompted serious
scientific investigations, as the scientific establishment of
the time was forced to accept the existence of gorillas as
an authentic group of primate species.
Surreal Beings: Unlike cryptids, these creatures are
cannot be considered to be products of mundane evolu-
tionary processes and are likely Inspired in some manner. In
some cases, they may actually be low-powered aberrants
(in the Trinity sense of the term). A few examples from
North America include the Mothman (West Virginia, U.S.A.),
the Jersey Devil of the Pine Barrens (New Jersey, U.S.A.)
and the Lechuza of the Rio Grande valley (Southern Texas,
U.S.A. and Northern Mexico). Worldwide, such beings
include figures out of any mythology ever developed by
humans - centaurs, werewolves, vampires, fey creatures,
dragons and other things which are clearly not of any Aeon
Continuum Earth. Aside from those which are actually aber-
rants as mentioned above, surreal beings are considered
to be omniversal flotsam as described in Chapter Two of
this book (p. 41). Whether or not the latter variety of beings
have become permanent residents of Aeon Continuum
Earth instead of temporary visitors is left to the Storytellers
discretion.
Discarnate Beings: Familiar from centuries of folktales,
legends and ghost stories; these are beings consisting
solely of noetic templates, most often those formerly living
humans or alien sapients. Others will have had no prior
existence as material lifeforms; and can be beneficial and
protective, neutral and aloof or dangerous and predatory
where the living are concerned. See Appendix #3 of this
book for details.
Close Encounters: These need little explanation, as
the concept of encountering unknown alien spacecraft -
and their occupants, on occasion - has become part of the
popular global culture of the early 21st Century. This cat-
egory covers everything from simple sightings to outright
alien abduction - and sometimes dissection - of Terran life-
forms. Its important to note that these beings should not
belong to any of the known xenosapient civilizations found
in the Trinity setting. As these beings can be intergalactic,
extratemporal or from alternate universes, the Storyteller
has carte blanche to let her imagination run wild here. That
last option is especially convenient if the Storyteller desires
to introduce near-human aliens.
The most remarkable difference between close
encounters and other kinds of Fortean events is that the
governments of Aeon Continuum Earth in the 20th and 21st
APPENDIX #2: TELLURIC WEIRDNESS
Centuries take them very seriously. Aside from the national
security implications of alien space travelers intruding into
their controlled airspace, those governments have long
known the technological advances to be gained from
reverse-engineering advanced alien technology. This was
especially evident during the Cold War as both NATO and
the Warsaw Pact nations were always seeking to gain any
possible military advantage over each other. To this day, all
of those governments seek to either cover up or debunk
any and all evidence of close encounters their citizenry
might come across. Muddying matters further are the Men
In Black, some of whom are government black ops agents
and others are alien biocontructs. In both cases, they seek
to silence obstinate UFO witnesses by any means they
deem necessary. All of this can make for great conspiracy
and espionage plots to add to an otherwise-typical Aber-
rant chronicle.
Dimensional Rifts: The second-rarest kind of Fortean
event, these are incidents when the surrounding Tellu-
ric forces distort local spacetime. While most often this
creates effects equivalent to the Teleport or Warp quantum
powers at varied ratings, sometimes full-blown portals
between universes - equivalent to the Portal technique of
the Crosstime Interface quantum power on p. 100 - will
manifest. In all cases, there will be little or no warning signs
of these effects before they are learned of in the hard way.
Teleportation and Warp incidents have been responsible
for several notable and unexplained vanishings of people,
regardless of whether they were in a vehicle at the time.
Portal incidents are less common and are mostly associated
with long-known Fortean locations such as the Bermuda
Triangle. Warps and Portals located in midair often cannot
be escaped from due to the fact that few 20th and early
21st Century aircraft aside from helicopters are capable
of sustained hovering or extremely sharp banking. Those
located on the ground or in subterreanean passages can
often be found by retracing ones original path, allowing
the unfortunate(s) to return to the original location. Aside
from being a source of surreal beings, Portals are also an
interesting method to introduce Aberrant: Nexus material
into your Aberrant chronicle.
Timeslips: The rarest kind of Fortean event, timeslips
are nothing less than naturally-occuring brief incidents of
uncontrolled time travel. A timeslip has limited duration
- anywhere from 20 seconds to 2 days, on the average
- but can send one or more people either backwards or
forwards in time. The temporal range of a timeslip can be
anywhere from years or decades to centuries and millennia
at the extreme. Regardless of the temporal displacement
involved, the location of the affected person(s) is never
changed relative to the locale. People who are experienc-
ing a timeslip at the corner of Elgin and Nepean Streets in
135
 ABERRANT
Ottawa, Ontario, Canada will remain at that same physical
location instead of being flung off into interplanetary or
interstellar space. Witnesses undergoing a timeslip may or
may not sense that something unusual is going on during
the incident. If a timeslip occurs at night, the witnesses
might observe a glowing white bar of light - similar to that
of a copy machines scanner - stretching to the horizons
and passing overhead. In daytime conditions, the effect
is most often drowned out by the sunlight. After the light
passes, witnesses will typically notice an odd brief quiet-
ness, which is a byproduct of being temporally shifted.
Then the sounds of their new surroundings are heard as
the inadvertent time travelers arrive at their destination.
Upon their arrival, the witnesses can interact with their
new surroundings normally. They can and will perceive and
be perceived by the locals - if any are around - and may
even take solid matter from the alternate time period back
with them when the timeslip ends and they return to their
native time period. Food eaten during the timeslip will be
metabolized normally without any odd effect aside from
possible food poisoning, if the timeslip takes witnesses
back to a time before modern food inspection was in
practice. Inanimate objects brought back from a past
time period will tend to age - if not outright disintegrate -
rapidly due to being shifted forwards through time. If the
witnesses are in a position to notice - such as looking into
a past-time clothing store which is currently a bookstore
- they will see their immediate surroundings change in a
flash of white light once the timeslip ends and they are
returned to their original time period. From the perspec-
tive of the locals, timeslip witnesses will vanish once the
temporal displacement ends. Depending on the amount of
time crossed by a timeslip, the reaction of the locals can
range from mild interest to mute astonishment or outright
panic.
Timeslips can be very handy for the Storyteller in that
it gives her a means to send characters either backwards
or forwards in time that she will have full and total con-
trol over. Whether or not the player characters are either
witnesses or locals when a given timeslip occurs is
up to her discretion as well. This allows the Storyteller to
inflict all sorts of lovely time travel-related plot twists and
plot hooks into her Aberrant chronicle without needing
any player characters to attain Quantum 8 and develop the
Time Travel quantum power. One note: if the chronicle is
set in the Universe 2 or Universe 3 timeline groupings
(p. 29 of this book) - a.k.a. the main settings for Aberrant
and Adventure! - all timeslip witnesses from future times
are considered Phantoms as per the Flaw on p. 119 of this
book.
136 APPENDIX #2: TELLURIC WEIRDNESS
Using Fortean Events In
Your Chronicle
At their base, Fortean events are defined by two fac-
tors: their rarity and their seemingly inexplicable bizarre-
ness by the standards of 20th and 21st Century witnesses.
While the first factor can be lessened somewhat if the
Weirdness Magnet Flaw/aberration is in play, using Fortean
events in an Aberrant chronicle is much like cooking with
hot peppers. Use too much of either, and the players (or
diners) will not be able to enjoy what the Storyteller (or
chef) is offering them. Storytellers are strongly encouraged
to find out what their players consider to be a desirable
weirdness level and adjust their use of Fortean events to
their players collective taste. For purposes of information,
a chart detailing said levels of weirdness is provided below
in the Weirdness Magnet Flaw/aberration listing.
Once that matter is settled, the next question is
this: how can the Storyteller make the best use of For-
tean events? In the hands of a creative Storyteller, they
make for an excellent source of plot devices, red herrings
and adventure hooks. They are also an excellent way
for the Storyteller to jolt overly-complacent players out
of whatever rut their thinking is currently stuck in. That
said, Fortean events should never be trivial, silly or overly
disturbing to the chronicle. They are also not a way for lazy
Storytellers to disguise plot holes in the chronicle, deus ex
machina for fixing problems in the chronicle or a substi-
tute for actual roleplaying. Fortean events should provide
inconvenience and opportunities for emotional reactions,
but not to the point where they alter the course of the
chronicle - unless that is what the Storyteller desires.
New Flaw/Aberration
Weirdness Magnet (3 point value /
medium level at default)
A character with this Flaw is a natural fluke of proba-
bility - events that would normally happen once in a million
are instead nine times out of ten whenever he is involved.
The character will encounter unlikely situations - including
nova eruptions - and Fortean events on a regular basis, and
is often at the center of them. At the default level of this
Flaw the weirdness attracted is just highly inconvenient,
and is only a threat or benefit to the character on rare
occasion. The character gains an additional +1 difficulty
on all Social rolls with most people who understand both
what a weirdness magnet is - a minority of humanity - and
that the character is one. Such people will typically want
to avoid the character and the attracted weirdness. The
exceptions will be parapsychologists who want to study the
 ABERRANT
character, thrill seekers and those rare few who are used
to frequent encounters with weirdness. The Flaw will take
effect two to three times per session at the Storytellers
discretion.
The effects of this Flaw can change in two ways. First,
weirdness magnets of all kinds tend to attract each other
much like powerful mundane magnets. This grouping
together will increase both the frequency and the level of
weirdness of the attracted events. Second, novas who gain
this Flaw as an aberration will have it increase in strength
and have its nature change as their Taint increases. For
each dot of permanent Taint accumulated after gaining this
aberration, the attracted weirdness will become increas-
ingly dangerous to the character. The listings for these
alterations are seen below.
Flaw Value & Weirdness Level
Default: A mix of mundane weirdness and Fortean
events, with most of the latter being in theme. Said
Fortean events have a 50% chance of directly targeting
the character. In theme Fortean events indicates some
form of weirdness that the character could logically have
become entangled with in the past.
Four Points: Mundane weirdness strikes at the Story-
tellers whim and is not counted against the Flaws event
maximum. Only 50% of the Fortean events caused by this
Flaw are in theme and they all have a 75% chance of
directly targeting the character. As this level of weirdness is
achieved by having two average Weirdness Magnets in
close proximity, the frequency of the events is doubled.
APPENDIX #2: TELLURIC WEIRDNESS
Five Points: As above, except that the Fortean events
no longer have to be in theme and they will always
directly target the character. As this level of weirdness is
achieved by having three average Weirdness Magnets in
close proximity, the frequency of the events is tripled.
Six Points or more: This level of bizarreness can be
best described as sheer insanity made flesh. Mundane
weirdness and average Fortean events both no longer
count against the Flaws event maximum. Fortean events
do not need to be in theme and will always directly target
the character. Incidents generated at this degree of weird-
ness are utterly bizarre. The Storyteller is encouraged to
let her imagination run wild when creating such incidents,
provided that she keeps the players tolerance levels for
weirdness in mind. As this level of weirdness is achieved by
having four or more average Weirdness Magnets in close
proximity, the frequency of the events is quadrupled.
Aberration & Weirdness Nature
Default: Mostly just inconvenient, rarely beneficial or
dangerous.
+1 Taint: 70% just inconvenient, 30% dangerous,
never beneficial.
+2 Taint: 50% just inconvenient, 50% dangerous,
never beneficial.
+3 Taint or more: 100% dangerous, never just incon-
venient or beneficial.
137
 A B E R R A N T
Internal on Society Missive

TOP SECRET - Babel Dossier - File #03-1964-2-05-Q EYES ONLY

Arena: on Council
Status: Archive
Author: Kimball Mastersson
Subject: The Aguateca Relic, final disposition of
Minimum Security Rating: Epsilon

Now that all the ruckus has finally died down, Ive been chosen to present a final accounting of this mess of greed,
nepotism and blatant stupidity in the hopes that it will not be repeated in ons ranks in the future. It should also serve
as a warning to all those whose worldviews are limited to what society deems to be factual and true. Humans have never
known as much as we think we do, and we ignore the dangers of the unknown at our peril. Two men have just died as a
result of ignoring this truism. They are not to be mourned, instead they are clear examples for future on operatives of
what not to emulate in their endeavors.
The affair started with a Mayan sacrificial obsidian knife uncovered by an on archeological expedition exploring
the Aguateca site in Guatemala in 1925. The relic was discovered to have an oddly malignant Telluric aura (as claimed by
the late Professor Levitz) which alerted them to the presence of a hostile Telluric entity that was connected to it. After a
drawn-out battle with the Aguateca entity, Professor Levitz managed to defeat it using his own mesmeric capabilities to
send it into a state of indefinite dormancy. Afterwards the relic was sealed in a lead case, welded shut and was archived in
one of our most secure vaults for safekeeping. Further analysis by Professor Levitz and other on mesmerists was incon-
clusive. The relic would remain untouched and dormant for the next thirty-four years.

138
 A B E R R A N T
Internal on Society Missive

All that changed with the appointment of

[NAME REDACTED] to the position of main admin-
istrator for the secure vaults in 1962. The son of
a sitting on Council member, he proved to be
a somewhat competent bureaucrat if difficult to
work with professionally. His coworkers described
[NAME REDACTED] as petty, needlessly authori-
tarian and having a sense of personal entitlement
due to his fathers connections to the on Council.
Several incidents of harassment of lower-ranking
female on operatives were also noted before
being hushed up by [NAME REDACTED] s father.
This pattern of misbehavior would culminate in
the unsanctioned breaching of the Aguateca
Relics storage case. Upon touching it, [NAME
REDACTED] fell under the influence of the afore-
mentioned hostile Telluric entity, although this fact
would not be discovered for several months.
[NAME REDACTED] s behavior underwent a marked shift during that period, which was initially mistaken by his
co-workers for the onset of delayed psychological maturation. Instead of engaging in his previous offensive actions, he
began searching out locations around the city of [LOCATION REDACTED] that were said to be haunted in his spare time.
The sites he visited ceased exhibiting any Telluric activity immediately afterwards, which the property owners considered
beneficial as all said hauntings were uniformly malignant in nature. [NAME REDACTED] took no payment for these services,
instead asking the property owners to remain silent about the matter. Covert footage (see enclosed photos #014-020)
clearly shows [NAME REDACTED] carrying and likely using the Aguateca Relic during his outings. Several vagrants also went
missing during the last two weeks of this period.
Matters came to a head when an on investigative team under the personal direction of Whitley Styles presented their
findings to the full on Council on 1964-01-05. The Council immediately voted to have [NAME REDACTED] taken into
custody and the Aguateca Relic resealed or destroyed in order to stop the threat it presented. Our other few remaining
mesmerist operatives were called in to join our hunt.
We found [NAME REDACTED] in an abandoned housing tenement, dressed in the garb of a Mayan priest and prepar-
ing to perform a ritual of mass human sacrifice using the missing vagrants as the victims. Sensing our arrival, the Aguateca
entity manifested itself and began fighting us. Even with our advantage of numbers, it was tossing us around like ragdolls
until [NAME REDACTED] used the Aguateca Relic to stab his father in the heart. This act caused a Telluric backlash that
killed both men, shattered the Aguateca Relic and visibly weakened the Aguateca entity. Then, what I can only describe
as the ghost of the late Professor Levitz appeared and stuck the Aguateca entity what seemed to be a mortal blow. Both
entities vanished, although one of our mesmerists somehow divined that the Aguateca entity had been destroyed once and
for all. Our team and the surviving Aeon Council members escaped without any other casualties.
The matter is now considered settled. Organizational reforms have been instituted at all levels of on and the bodies
are buried. Our security protocols have also been drastically improved. Nevertheless, the question of Professor Levitz and
the entity we fought still remains a mystery beyond the remit of this simple former homicide detective.

139
Appendix #3:
The Discarnate
In Adventure!, the existence of ghosts and other be called "none of the above". This results in an environ-
"spiritual" entities was established (Adventure! core book, ment of infinite "sub-realms" that resembles something
p. 75) but no rules for introducing such entities into an best described as one of Jack Kirby's epic fever-dreams,
Aeon Continuum chronicle were ever given. That changes provided that he had ever overdosed on a drug cocktail of
now. What follows is our best attempt at a set of rough LSD, peyote, ayahuasca and absinthe. A small fraction of
guidelines for Storytellers to use to create all sorts of noetic this environment is a funhouse mirror-image of the noetic
entities with which to challenge and perplex their players. space's standard cosm, complete with functional ecologies
on the noetic templates of life-bearing planets.
Aside from the noetic templates that comprise most
Things That Go Bump In The Night of noetic space there are also the memetic entities, literally
For as long as Humankind has been sapient, they have
ideas that have taken on lives of their own. Most of these
been influenced by the belief that they were surrounded by
are little more than analogs of simple animals and plants,
spirits of all sorts. The intangible remainders of deceased
which serve as prey for the noetic templates of living (and
humans always watched the living - sometimes to pro-
formerly living) things. A small fraction of the memetic
tect, sometimes to attack, sometimes just from curiousity.
entities are the equivalent of advanced animals, with a
Entities that were never human were also known, some
percentage of those being fully sapient. Of the sapient
of which were usually best avoided when possible. Ideas
entities, they can be benevolent, malevolent or just plain
and dreams that took on lives of their own and followed
indifferent in regards to humanity and other sapients. That
their own alien logic. All of these "spirits" literally haunted
said, it's always best to be wary of such beings. Many of
the world since time immemorial. However, as science
them are just as capable of engaging in deception as any
advanced and ancient beliefs were disproven, the belief
human, which leads to problems for the living...
in spirits was likewise considered to be the combined
product of overactive imaginations and a lack of proper
education. In most universes where Humanity exists, that The Noetic Menagerie
is true enough. The universes of the Aeon Continuum are The inhabitants of noetic space can be broken down
not "most universes". There, the existence of spirits is - for into the following categories, determined by their eco-
good or ill - a documented if little known fact. logical niche, degree of sapience and inclinations towards
living sapients. Given that the sapient types of these enti-
ties can change their appearance at will, the living simply
The Flipside Of Reality cannot judge them that way. Those foolish enough to do so
To understand a being, one must first understand
should not expect to survive an encounter with them.
its natural environment. In the case of noetic entities,
Ghosts are the surviving noetic templates of deceased
that would be the interior of the psion particle crust that
sapients that have resisted the calling of their species'
covers a standard cosm, hereafter referred to as "noetic
respective noetic massminds. On Earth, most such enti-
space". Nearly everything within noetic space is a "psi
ties are of baseline human origins. As deceased people
form" of one sort or another, patterns of information itself.
- with all that implies - the personalities and motivations
This isn't too different from the objects within a standard
of ghosts can and will vary wildly. Some stay in order to
cosm, which can be thought of as patterns of subatomic
complete some unfinished business from their lives, while
particles and energy. Most of these patterns are the noetic
others don't even realize they've died and carry on with
templates of everything that has ever has, does or could
the routines they followed in life. There are just as many
exist in the associated standard cosm of the noetic space
ghosts who stay on Earth to watch over their loved ones
in question - along with even more things that can only
as there are those who remain to carry on with the type

140 Appendix #3: The Discarnate

 ABERRANT
of crimes that they committed in life. Seeking justice - or
revenge - for what a ghost considers his or her unjust death
is also not uncommon. Others were simply too comfortable
with their surroundings in life to have any desire to leave
just because their bodies died and they legally don't own
their former homes any more. Nevertheless; sooner or later
all ghosts must eventually give in to the call of their noetic
massmind, leave quantum space for good and face their
fate for good or ill. The only question is whether they will
do so voluntarily or not.
Though rare in the extreme, Ghost Animals are known
to exist. They are the result of a combination of two factors.
The first is an animal dying in extreme pain, which is far too
common in Nature to be remarkable. The second is for the
death to occur in an area with a heightened background
level of Telluric energies. Ghost animals will generally carry
on as they did in life, although some do end up seeking
out and attacking whatever creatures caused their deaths.
As bestial spirits, their psionic powers will be used instinc-
tively and cannot be improved through experience. It's
also important to note that only advanced animals have
the potential to become ghost animals. For a selection of
appropriate Terran animal species that could become ghost
animals, please refer to Aberrant: The New Flesh p. 62.
Though called different names by different cultures,
Heralds are all the creations and servants of a noetic
massmind, acting as its agents in both noetic and quantum
space. Usually thought of by living sapients as escorters of
worthy souls into a paradisical afterlife, heralds are in fact
more like programmed machines psychologically. While
they have emotions and social responses that are some-
what similar to those of their associated sapient species,
they are limited in that they cannot act against the direc-
tives of their noetic massmind. What's more, heralds have
absolute behavior fixations that make even considering
alternative actions physically painful for them. If a noetic
massmind directs its heralds to rescue a group of innocent
people from danger, they will do so without hesitation.
Likewise, if they are told to commit mass murder on a
group of innocent people, heralds will obey that order. This
alien mentality makes communicating with heralds a risky
proposition for the living, as their observations and inap-
propriate questions can upset a herald as it literally cannot
think in the way of the beings it's talking to. In the final
analysis, heralds are unquestioning and near-sociopathic
soldiers of their noetic massmind. For them, their faithful
obedience and service is all that matters - everything (and
everyone) else outside of those concerns is irrelevant. On
occasion, a herald will find its emotions conflicting with its
service to its noetic massmind, creating a degree of unend-
ing emotional trauma unknown to baseline human psychol-
ogy. Such unfortunates eventually suffer the equivalent of a
Appendix #3: The Discarnate
psychotic break and become rogues, which are described
below.
Despite proclaiming themselves to be independent
agents, Rogues are in fact funhouse mirror images of the
heralds. Where heralds are the soldiers of the noetic mass-
mind, rogues serve their noetic massmind as procurers of
"food", meaning those noetic templates of the massmind's
associated sapient species which it deems unsuitable for
assmilation into its mindspace. Unlike the heralds, the pre-
conceptions that living sapients have of rogues as hunters
of souls is in this case completely accurate. They also pos-
sess free will, but that perk comes with a very heavy price.
Rogues must exist under the constant, very real and serious
threat of being consumed and destroyed by their noetic
massmind if they fail to provide a steady supply of suitable
noetic templates in their place. To avoid this fate, rogues
work tirelessly to tempt, trick and deceive those of the
living that they deem offensive into committing whatever
acts their noetic massmind considers worthy of condem-
nation. Unlike the heralds, their mentality is somewhat com-
prehensible by baseline human standards. As free-willed
beings, rogues have lost the absolute behavior fixations
of heralds and can begin to comprehend the thinking of
other spirits and the living, although that learning process
will take time. They also have an aversion to anything that
reminds them of their noetic massmind, which can become
a full-blown phobia in some individuals. Obsessions geared
towards finding ways to thwart the designs of their noetic
massmind and its heralds are also common. That said, all
that most rogues are truly capable of is delaying their inevi-
table fate of becoming food for their noetic massmind. The
only variable in that equation is how long they can manage
to do so.
This Is Not (Necessarily) Good Vs. Evil
Going by the preceding two listings, readers may be
inclined to see heralds and rogues as merely angels and
demons as described in the Abrahamic religions with new labels
applied to them. That is a mistake that we must correct. The
true nature of any cadre of heralds or rogues always depends on
the personality of their associated noetic massmind. If a herald
serves a malevolent noetic massmind, its demeanor and actions
could easily lead to it being seen as demonic by living sapients
of a religious bent. The rogues of that noetic massmind could
in turn be considered angelic by such sapients, as they would
encourage actions that are contrary to their noetic massminds
desired traits. One cannot simply judge by appearances in this
situtation.
141
 ABERRANT
The Memetics are concepts that serve as the spirit-an-
alogs of plants, animals and other phyla in the ecologies
of noetic space. They are created by the normal thought
processes of living sapients and reproduce through being
communicated to other living sapients. Living sapients
can also perceive memetics in certain circumstances, and
consider them hallucinations. This is fortunate for the
inhabitants of noetic space, as it provides them with an
practically infinite food supply - as long as the sapients
whose minds are creating the memetics survive. While
most memetics are considered the equivalent of wild-
life and are treated as such by sapient spirits, some are
domesticated by sapient spirits to serve various functions.
Only the mid- to apex predators pose any possible threat
to living sapients, and that only on the rare occasion that
living beings enter noetic space in the flesh. That said,
those predators do find large amounts of suffering and
negative emotions quite attractive, much as Terran sharks
are attracted to blood in the water...
Thoughtforms are nothing less than fully sapient
memetics, spawned by the intensely focused - or obsessive
- thought processes of a living sapient. Creating a thought-
form requires a living sapient to have the Meditation
Ability and is treated as creating an invention (Aberrant:
Brainwaves pp. 23-27) based on (Wits + Meditation) rolls.
Also known as tulpas and "imaginary friends", these spirits
"bud off" from the noetic template of their living sapient
creators. Most sapients create thoughtforms in order to
gain the psychological benefits of having a close personal
relationship when their circumstances don't allow for that
to happen with other living sapients. Thoughtforms have
their own personalities and preferences, and they're not
completely under their creators' control. A thoughtform
will determine its own appearance and gender (if any),
often choosing what its creator would find appealing. Sus-
tenance is gained through social and emotional interaction
with their creators - or other sapients, if their creators have
died. They have to use their creator's brainpower to think
on anything deeper than an everday level, which makes
for problems when their creators are also trying to think
Thoughtforms And Novas
As their noetic templates have been fused into their quan-
tum matrix by the eruption process, novas are unable to create
thoughtforms as described above. A thoughtforms existence
depends on a sapients latent (or activated) psionic potential,
which novas lack by definition. It might be possible to create a
thoughtform with a new and currently undefined technique of
the Pneuma Manipulation quantum power. The answer to that
question has been left to your Storyteller to decide.
142 Appendix #3: The Discarnate
deeply at the same time. Along with ghosts, thoughtforms
are the spirits with the closest psychological resemblance
to living sapients. Thoughtforms are always benevolent
towards their creators, and will act to help them in any way
possible when their creators are in distress. As they are
directly linked to the noetic templates of their creators,
thoughtforms gain an automatic success on using any
Telepathic and/or Vitakinetic powers they have on them.
This also means that most thoughtforms will follow their
creators to meet the noetic massmind upon their deaths;
with only a few choosing to remain in noetic space for
whatever reason.
Then there are the Bedlamites, thoughtforms that
have been spawned by the natural vortices of currents
in noetic space. Lacking any direct connection to living
sapients, these entities are insanity made manifest. A
bedlamite will vaguely resemble a member of a living (or
extinct) sapient species in psychology, if only to provide a
baseline for its mental disorders to make it deviate from.
Bedlamites are the noetic equivalent of Taint-maddened
aberrants (in Trinity terms) in function if not raw power
and are feared by all other spirits in noetic space. They
cannot be reasoned with, bought off or intimidated by
other spirits. It's bad enough that bedlamites can and will
interfere with other spirits for reasons that only make sense
to their own insane thought processes. What's worse is that
bedlamites are infamous for feeding on any other sapient
spirit they can overpower; as they cannot gain sustenance
or regain lost Willpower and temporary Psi points in any
other manner. They can band together in (barely) functional
groups in order to hunt spirits cooperatively, but that is
the highest point of social organization which bedlamites
are capable of. They are only found in quantum space on
the very rarest of occasions, which is a good thing for the
living.
Finally, the Strangers are spirits that are remarkable
in that the healthy biospheres found in quantum space
are their natural habitats. These entities are sometimes
sapient and are produced by the long-term accretion of
ambient noetic energy in the environment. Most often
known as "nature spirits", "kami", "djinn" and "spirits of
place" among other monickers, strangers tend to embody
whatever concepts found in Nature that provokes strong
emotions in living sapients. Strangers are not only found in
the wilderness however, as they can also develop from the
noetic energies produced by sapients. Family heirlooms
and historical buildings are prime examples of objects that
can develop into strangers once they've been exposed to
sufficient noetic energy from sapients. Their psychology
is somewhat comprehensible to sapients who are familiar
with them, as a stranger will have one or more mental
disorders - usually phobias, compulsions and/or obsessions
 ABERRANT
- which reflect its particular orgins and habits. These are not
true mental disorders, but naturally-occuring features of its
thought processes and cannot be "cured". Strangers can
and do sustain themselves on the ambient noetic energy
found in quantum space, but will typically not hesitate to
feed on the strong emotional reactions of living sapients if
circumstances and/or their desire demands it.
Residuals
Often mistaken for actual ghosts, these things are more
noetic automatons instead of any kind of spirit. They are created
by the noetic energies caused by intensely emotional events
experienced by living sapients. Those noetic energies them
imprint themselves more or less permanently into the immediate
vicinity, resulting in a visible and/or audible apparition that will
manifest periodically for centuries or even millennia. Residuals
are non-sapient and will usually reenact a preprogrammed series
of actions when manifesting. Residuals can be intelligent but
they have no interior lives, no goals other than to follow their
programmed actions and only rudimentary personalities. They
cant analyze their own behavior or formulate their own goals
and desires. They are also mindless in terms of telepathy and
similar Inspired powers. Residuals do respond to stimuli and are
able to carry out complex instructions. While they can be very
unsettling, residuals are essentially harmless and lack any psionic
powers beyond the Phantasm basic technique of the Manifesta-
tion Mode of Pneumakinesis.
The Nature Of The Beasts
Despite any of their differences in origins, behaviors
and means of survival, all of the entities discussed in this
Appendix are the same thing at their core: "living" patterns
of psionic particles/energy. Known as "psi forms" to Aeon's
highest-ups in the 22nd Century, these entities are made
of both information and the transmission medium for the
same. Inside noetic space, most spirits regain their strength
(temporary Psi, Health Levels and Willpower points) and
sustain themselves by feeding on ambient noetic energy
and/or lesser psi forms. When in quantum space, they
typically must either rely on their personal stores of noetic
energy - much as marine mammals rely on the extra
oxygen stored in their muscle tissue - or feed on the noetic
energy which the living produce through strong emotional
responses. This energy can be tapped directly from living
sapients or absorbed from the ambient noetic imprints
of those emotions in the immediate vicinity. The specific
strong emotions it chooses to provoke in the living is usu-
ally a good indicator of a hungry spirit's true nature.
One thing spirits will all have in common is the need
to establish anchors in order to remain in quantum space.
Appendix #3: The Discarnate
These are objects, structures or people that the spirit in
question uses as lifelines to their home region of noetic
space. If one or more of those lifelines are severed, the
spirit that was relying on them will be banished back to
its home region for a variable length of time. That can be
anything from a few days to months or years (Storytell-
er's discretion), depending on how powerful the severed
anchor was. If all of a spirit's anchors are severed at once, it
can be permanently banished back to noetic space.
Their existence as beings of pure noetic energy also
makes spirits extremely vulnerable to the quantum energies
used by novas and quantum gadgets. Spirits automatically
treat all damage from quantum powers and quantum gad-
gets as aggravated, even if the attack in question would
normally only inflict Stun damage. This includes the "taint
radiation" given off by novas with the Taint Bleed aberra-
tion (Aberrant Players Guide p. 96). Sapient spirits that
know about this fact will be very wary of novas, if not out-
right fearful for their continued existence when confronted
by an eximorph.
Discarnates in Noetic and
Quantum Space
On their "home turf" of noetic space, most spirits
recover Health Levels, temporary Willpower and temporary
Psi as a standard psion would (Trinity core book pp. 252-
253, and 190-193, respectively). This means periods of rest-
ing, acting in accordance with their Natures (or Virtues, if
the system from Adventure! is being used) and consuming
lesser spirits as "food". All spirits will have a minimum Will-
power of 6 - a necessity for beings lacking any true flesh to
protect their noetic templates. They can also be perma-
nently destroyed in this environment though any method
of inflicting damage that can overcome their Soak ratings.
Quantum or psionic powers, Inspired technology and even
mundane weapons will do the job, although using the
latter method requires spending one point of temporary
Willpower to "charge" the weapon with noetic energy. In
all other aspects, spirits can be treated as psions for issues
of Attributes, Abilities, Health Levels, Psi, Attunement and
using noetic bioware as per the Trinity core book. The
psionic powers available to spirits will be detailed later in
this Appendix.
In quantum space, most spirits have enough ambient
noetic energy around them to "breathe", but lesser spirits
suitable for dining on are too rare to be considered a
reliable "food" source. Thus, spirits in quantum space have
little choice but to feed on the noetic energy produced
living sapients as described above. Using the chart found
in the listing of the Empathic Manipulation quantum power
(Aberrant core book, p. 196), we can provide Storytellers
143
 ABERRANT
with a rough gudeline as to the "food value" emotions
have for spirits. The states listed on the first line count
for nothing. Emotional states on the second line are like
snacks for spirits - enough to tide them over for a short
while if they're feeding regularly, but not enough to fend
off starvation. On the third line are emotional states strong
enough to serve as full meals for spirits. The emotional
states listed on the fourth line can only be considered hol-
iday feasts where a hungry spirit is concerned. Please note
that these values are derived from the emotional states of
a single living sapient. If a spirit or some other being is pro-
voking strong emotional responses in more than one living
sapient, the noetic energy released will imprint itself into
the immediate vicinity if it isn't immediately consumed by
the spirit. This results in the equivalent of a larder for spirits
to feed from as needed, and they can last for decades if
left undisturbed.
Spirits in quantum space are intangible by nature,
having the equivalent of three to five dots of Density Con-
trol - Decrease (Aberrant core book, p. 189). To determine
a spirit's degree of intangibility, simply divide its Willpower
rating by 2 and round down. The only functional differ-
ences are as follows. First, since intangibility is their natural
state in quantum space, spirits do not have to sustain that
effect with Psi points or temporary Willpower and the dura-
tion is effectively infinite. Second, spirits with the equiva-
lent of five dots of Density Control - Decrease cannot turn
parts of themselves solid, as that requires use of the Man-
ifestation Mode. Spirits cannot be permanently destroyed
in quantum space except by taking sufficient damage from
quantum-based attacks as noted above. Damage from any
other source will merely banish the spirit back to its home
region of noetic space for a period of time (Storyteller's
discretion), much as what happens when a spirit's links
to its anchors are all severed. Spirits in quantum space
are vulnerable to the equivalent of suffocation (Aberrant
core book, p. 257) if they can be trapped in an area of
abnormally low noetic energy - which will also be an area
of abnormally heightened quantum energy. If spirits are
denied their "food" of emotion-rich noetic energy, they are
also vulnerable to the effects of starvation (Aberrant: The
New Flesh, p. 175). There is no equivalent to water in the
ecology of spirits, so there is no equivalent to dehydration
for spirits to worry about.
There and Back Again
For spirits, travelling between noetic and quantum
space is almost as easy as walking next door is for an urban
human in a First World nation. We say "almost" as it can
be an imprecise process in terms of arriving at their desired
location and time. One major difference between noetic
and quantum space is that the concepts of both space and
144 Appendix #3: The Discarnate
time - as humans understand them - have little meaning
in noetic space. This fact can wreak havoc with a spirit's
attempts at targeting its arrival point in the spacetime of
the living. Spirits typically do well enough with the spatial
coordinates, as they typically rely on their anchors to guide
them. Instead, spirits traveling to quantum space some-
time miss their desired point in time, appearing for a brief
period (1 to 2 turns) in the past or future of the timeline
they're attempting to enter before being yanked back to
their departure point in noetic space. Further details can
be found in the listing for the Trespass Mode of Pneumaki-
nesis, seen below.
That said, having an anchor in quantum space isn't an
absolute requirement for spirits wishing to travel. Life-bear-
ing planets in quantum space typically have a balanced
amount of telluric energy in their background environment;
meaning equal amounts of both noetic and quantum ener-
gies at low levels. When sapient lifeforms begin to tap into
those energies it is almost certain that they will become
imbalanced. The major effects of having too much quan-
tum and/or noetic energy in an environment have already
been described in Chapter Three of this book. Regions that
are imbalanced toward noetic energy are easier for spirits
to travel to, as their Trespass difficulties are lowered by -1
or even -2 for especially noetic-rich regions. One addi-
tional consequence of having too much noetic energy in
the telluric environment is the potential for noetic vortices
to form. These phenomena are direct conduits to noetic
space and also elevate the level of ambient noetic energy
in their vicinity. Spirits in noetic space can and do use such
vortices as gateways into quantum space without needing
to use the Trespass Mode. In game terms, all attempts by
spirits to travel to (and from) quantum space via a noetic
vortex receive an automatic success. The excess ambient
noetic energy spewed out by a noetic vortex also makes
the vicinity the equivalent of noetic space, making it
capable of supporting the "metabolic" needs of spirits for
many years. This is not a good thing for anything and/or
anyone living in the affected region of quantum space, as
they have the hassle of dealing with the spirits in addition
to their other problems caused by the imbalance. There
are methods that living sapients can use to remedy such
situations. Unfortunately, they all require the use of quan-
tum energies...
The Arsenal Of The Discarnate
Due to their nature as noetic entities, spirits are natural
users of psionics and will have a number of dots in the
psionic Aptitudes comparable to that of a psion of equiv-
alent age and experience. The main differences between
the psionics of spirits and psions are as follows. First, spirits
do not have the artificial Aptitude restrictions of psions,
 ABERRANT
instead having primary and secondary Aptitudes like psiads
(Aberrant Players Guide p. 61). Second, Teleportation
is not automatically a secondary Aptitude. Third, spirits
cannot ever manifest Quantakinesis. The fourth difference
is that spirits will also have an equal number of dots in the
Pneumakinesis Aptitude, which is described below. Fifth,
Pneumakinesis counts as a "free" Primary Aptitude for all
spirits. Sixth, spirits are also naturally capable of engaging
in Psi Coordination (Trinity: Aurora Australis pp. 51-53) as
an automatic action, and it can be applied to any psionic
power that affects others. If two or more spirits each
possess a minimum of five dots in the same Pneumakinesis
Mode, they can utilize the associated 6 dot Pneumakine-
sis Mode technique via psi coordination. Spirits cannot
perform this feat with the Modes of any other Aptitude.
In all other ways, spirits follow the established rules for psi
coordination.
Pneumakinesis
The province of spirits, this Aptitude uses noetic
energy to deal with the advantages and problems of
being composed entirely of psion particles. Something
of a counterpart to Quantakinesis, spirits use this power
to manipulate noetic energy - known to the Greeks as
"pneuma" - in ways that living psychomorphs simply
cannot match. This also requires spirits to channel larger
amounts of noetic energy than is typical with other psionic
powers - think of it as controlling the flow of water from a
fire engine's hose as compared to that of a garden hose.
As a result, all spirits will have having a minimum Psi Rating
of six. This Aptitude allows spirits to interact with the living
- sometimes in deeply invasive ways - and travel between
Pneumakinesis and the Living
Living psychomorphs who wish to develop their Pneumak-
inetic capabilities have one major hindrance - the fact that they
are still living. Much of Pneumakinesis functions depend on the
user either having become a purely noetic being or having been
created as one. Add in the fact that the physics of noetic space
are entirely antithetical to those of quantum space - where
living psychomorphs reside - and the handicap such aspirants
are faced with becomes glaringly obvious. Living psiads can
only take Pneumakinesis as a secondary Aptitude. In the Trinity
setting, only a rare few psions ever manage to develop auxiliary
Modes in Pneumakinesis. In both cases, they must also have a
minimum Psi Trait rating of six. It should also be noted that living
users of Pneumakinesis are using their own noetic templates
to manifest these powers. When using a pneumakinetic power,
psiads and psions are just as vulnerable to quantum energies as
the spirits themselves.
Appendix #3: The Discarnate
noetic and quantum space. It is also unique in that all uses
of Pneumakinesis are vulnerable to the noetic disruption
attempts of highly-trained non-psionic living sapients.
These individuals are typically known as "exorcists" in the
Terran cultures, and wise spirits know to step lightly around
them. The foolish among the spirits end up learning that
lesson the hard way.
Botching
Botching a Pneumakinesis roll is highly unpleasant for
spirits, as it results in doing damage to their own psion
particle-based forms. This damage can take whatever
form the Storyteller deems appropriate, as it's the effect
that matters. The dot level of the power determines the
type of damage inflicted, as botching with a one dot
power wouldn't cause as much harm as botching with a
four or five dot power. The amount of damage inflicted by
botching with this Aptitude has been left to the Storyteller's
discretion. A chart of guidelines for botching damage is
presented below:
Dot Level Damage Type
Basic, One Stun
Two, Three Bashing
Four, Five Lethal
Six Aggravated
On Exorcism
As mentioned earlier, the major weakness of Pneu-
makinesis is that these powers can be disrupted by trained
sapients using their own natural noetic energy - in game
terms, their Willpower. Using a psychological focus of
some sort - mysticism and religious faith are two of the
most common ones - an exorcist pits her Willpower in a
contested roll against a spirit's Psi Trait rating to combat
it. In this way the exorcist may disrupt a spirit's use of
Pneumakinesis and/or drive it out of the vicinity, possibly
even out of quantum space entirely. Power disruption is
handled on a 1:1 basis, with each success achieved on a
Willpower + Command roll negating one of the spirit's
successes. Driving a spirit away from a place is a contested
roll against the spirit's own Willpower. Once exorcised, a
spirit may never return to that place. And to top things off,
exorcist can have assistants aid her in her efforts by pooling
their temporary Willpower and reinforcing the exorcist's
Willpower Trait rating. This pooling is typically achieved by
such methods as being led in prayer or mystic ritual by the
exorcist. In game terms, the aid of each assistant will boost
the exorcist's Willpower by +1 or even +2 dots in the case
145
 ABERRANT
or highly trained assistants. This increase is cumulative.
Assistants can also donate a number of temporary Will-
power points for the exorcist to draw upon.
EVP
EVP is short for Electronic Voice Phenomena, a phenome-
non where commercially available electronic recording devices
can record the speech of ghosts and other spirits. Most EVP
recordings are brief, consisting of a single word or short phrase.
Depending on your Storytellers discretion, certain Inspired
gadgetry and electrokinetic techinques may also be capable
of picking up EVP with much greater accuracy. The Medium
enhancement of Mega-Perception (p. 84 of this book) allows
novas to perceive EVP with crystal clarity.
Basic Techniques
Phantasm
One of the two stepping stones to all other Pneumak-
inetic powers, this is the inherent capability of spirits to
make themselves visible and audible to living beings and
electronic audio/video capture devices.
System: Roll Psi. Success on the roll means the spirit
becomes both visible and audible for one turn for every
success. The spirit also has full control over how it appears
- orbs of light and shadow beings are as common as the
traditional spectral, angelic, or demonic figures. The one
thing a spirit can't present itself as with this technique is a
living being.
Transference
This is the other stepping tone to Pneumakinesis, and
while not quite as vital as Phantasm, it can save a spirit's
existence when things get dangerous. The spirit can trans-
fer itself from noetic space to quantum space - and vice
versa - as an automatic action. The only limitation is that
spirits can only travel to locations in quantum space where
one of their anchors resides.
System: Roll Psi. The spirit will always arrive near one
of its anchors, so the location is irrelevant. Instead, the
number of successes indicates how close the spirit's time
of arrival conincides with when it wanted to arrive. One
success means a time lag of a few days. Two successes
indicates a few hours, while the time lag is measured in
mintues at three successes. The time lag is reduced to
seconds at four successes. Five or more successes allows
the spirit to arrive at the exact moment it was aiming for.
146 Appendix #3: The Discarnate
Failing the roll means the spirit arrives at a random time in
the past for a few turns - automatically using the Phantasm
technique to boot - before being bounced back to its point
of departure. Botching is identical save for the spirit also
losing four points of temporary Psi in the process. In both
cases of effect failure, please note that spirits cannot affect
the past they inadvertently visit in any way.
Manifestation
Spirits use this Mode to make their presence and
wishes known to the inhabitants of quantum space... by
any means necessary. Humans have always found this
power disturbing, as it literally makes things that should
not be into vivid - if temporary - reality. Controlling how
a spirit's own psion particle-based form interacts with
quantum space is what Manifestation is all about. This soon
grows into the capability to manifest things other than itself
into quantum reality for brief periods of time. Experienced
manifesters can even briefly masquerade as living beings
and alter the forms of other spirits to their own liking.
Basic Powers: Chimera, Create Ectoplasm, Material-
ize, Incarnation, Mayfly, Fusion.
Alternate Powers: Assault, Phantom Fluid, Ectoplas-
mic Bonds, Mutability, Alter Spirit.
Chimera: The spirit can create illusions to confuse
and trick the living, typically to provoke emotional reactions
or attempt communication with them. As long as the illusion
created is somewhat plausible, it can be used to influence
the actions of the living with a little forethought. While this is
functionally similar to the Electrokinetic Hologram Creation
power, the underlying physics involved are entirely different.
Instead of using Psi to manipulate photons (which are quan-
tum particles) into a pattern of coherency, the spirit effec-
tively casts a mold of its choosing and "pours" pure noetic
energy directly into it.
System: Spend one Psi point and roll Psi. Every
success rolled adds an additional sense that the illusion
affects. Furthermore, every dot in Manifestation the spirit
possesses increases the believability and accuracy of the
illusion. In game terms, this means adding +1 difficulties to
all Perception rolls to determine the true nature of the illu-
sion. If the target's Perception roll fails, she will believe that
the illusion is real unless something indicates otherwise.
That calls for another Perception roll. If the Perception roll
succeeds, the target can see the illusion for what it is and
be unaffected by it.
Assault: The spirit can attack living beings and inan-
imate objects, although the damage done is minor at best.
Although based on noetic energy discharge, this technique
results in what appear to be scratches or the occasional bite
mark appearing on the target. While somewhat painful,
these attacks do no real damage and are used to forcefully
 ABERRANT
demand the attention of the living.
System: Spend one Psi point to roll Psi against a living
target's Resistance. If the spirit gets more successes, a
living target will suffer cosmetic damage - typically drawing
a small amount of blood - and be distracted enough by the
pain to be considered Dazed (Trinity core book p. 246) for
one turn per two successes, rounded down. A living target
will also be at +1 difficulties for all tasks on his next action.
Against an inanimate target, use of this power is treated as
a simple Brawl attack with the spirit's Psi Trait replacing its
Strength Attribute.
Create Ectoplasm: The spirit can manifest ecto-
plasm, either as a vapor or as soul-chilling slime. The vapor
is used as a means to gain (or regain, in the case of ghosts)
the capability to touch physical objects in quantum space.
While exciting (or comforting) to the spirit, sudden touches
out of nowhere can be quite unnerving to living beings. If
manifested as slime, the spirit can use it to harass a living
being or even potentially cause said being physical harm.
System: Spend one Psi point and roll Psi. If creating
vapor, the spirit gains the ability to touch physical objects
and beings for the rest of the scene. Ectoplasmic vapor
cannot exert any force greater than that required to make a
keystroke on a typewriter, computer keyboard or elec-
tronic keypad. Neither can it be used to inflict any kind
of damage. If creating slime, the spirit can launch it as a
thrown weapon. If the slime hits, the spirit's Psi roll is pitted
against the target's Willpower in a resisted roll. If the spirit
wins, the target loses one temporary Willpower point and is
Dazed (Trinity core book p. 246) for one turn per success.
Alternatively, the slime can be applied to a floor for the
target to step in it. In this case, the target must make a
Dexterity check to stay upright and avoid falling. This can
be extremely dangerous around staircases, balconies and
around open pits. If used as a thrown weapon, the slime
will completely cover the target and adds one kilogram of
weight until it is either cleaned off or vanishes on its own.
Ectoplasmic slime will dematerialize in (the spirit's Manifes-
tation dot rating) turns after being created. Holy water and
similar "blessed" liquids or powders will cause the slime to
instantly vanish into nothingness.
Phantom Fluid: The spirit can briefly create any
kind of physical liquid that it is familiar with from ectoplasm.
These will either be highly unpleasant - typically to freak out
and/or drive off the living - or physically damaging in some
way. The liquid can be biological, mineral or synthetic in
origin. Some spirits will even create paint with this power to
leave graffiti-style messages for the living.
System: Spend one Psi point and roll Psi. Each success
creates (the spirit's Manifestation dot rating) liters of the
desired liquid, which can be applied to the spirit's immedi-
ate surroundings in whatever manner desired. The spirit can
Appendix #3: The Discarnate
make walls bleed and (brief) rains of blood fall, but those
are only the most clichd uses for this power. Liquids that
directly damage a target such as stong acids or alkalines
can be created, but will only inflict one die of damage for
every two successes rolled, rounded down. Also, they can
only be used against immobile targets. A more effective
tactic is to create highly flammable liquids such as gaso-
line, alcohol or kerosene, which can then be ignited with
Pyrokinesis. Whatever form it takes, the created liquid will
dematerialize in (the spirit's Manifestation dot rating) turns
after being created.
Materialize: The spirit can manifest itself in quan-
tum space briefly as a physical being. However, "physical"
does not mean "can pass for one of the living". While mate-
rialized spirits have manifested a physical form, that form
cannot bleed, eat, produce body heat or perform any other
body functions associated with living sapients. The details
will vary depending on the spirit using this power, but there
will always be something to tip off living observers that a
materialized spirit is something far out of the ordinary. For
instance, ghosts can appear as either animate corpses
or bathed in heavenly light. Other spirits will have similar
anomalies indicating their nature and true intentions.
System: Spend one Psi point and roll Psi. The number
of successes indicates the number of minutes the spirit has
before it reverts back into intangibility. Each extra Psi point
spent will increase this time by one minute. For purposes
of taking damage the spirit is the equivalent of a psion
in terms of Health Levels, soak and such. Drugs, toxins
and diseases mean nothing to a materialized spirit. If the
spirit loses more than half of its Health Levels from taking
damage (either bashing or lethal), this power's effect will
end prematurely. Taking any damage at all from a quan-
tum-based attack will do the same. If a materialized spirit
is "killed", it will simply vanish into the ambient noetic
background energy to reform itself sometime later.
Ectoplasmic Bonds: The spirit can manifest ecto-
plasmic slime thick enough to act as restraints for physical
beings. These stands of tough, thick slime will wrap a target
like a cross between heavy ropes and a boa constrictor,
keeping most targets from breaking the bonds from within
as they shift and squirm. Some other being cutting or break-
ing one of the strands will free the target prematurely.
System: Spend one Psi point and roll Psi against an
animate target's Dexterity. Each success the spirit scores
reduces the target's effective Dexterity by one, and if it's
lowered to zero the target cannot move. Scoring three or
more successes means the target's mouth is covered, muf-
fling aubible speech, but the bonds will not interfere with
the target's ability to breathe. This power becomes very
dangerous when used against aerial or swimming targets,
who will fall or drown respectively if they can't break free.
147
 ABERRANT
The bonds will have an effective (the spirit's Psi rating)
Health Levels and (the spirit's Manifestation dot rating)
Soak for purposes of taking damage. Please note that
creatures much stronger than baseline humans - namely
Mega-Strong novas and many animals - will be able to
break free of the bonds with a simple Might roll. Unless
destroyed, ectoplasmic bonds will dematerialize on their
own in one hour.
Incarnation: Having mastered the next stage of
the Materialize power, the spirit can manifest itself physically
as something close to a living being. At this point, the incar-
nated spirit can bleed, breathe and even consume food and
drink. Unfortunately, digestion and all other body functions
are still beyond them - they don't produce body heat and
any consumed food and drink will eventually be regurgi-
tated. Ghosts will manifest as somewhat idealized versions
of their former bodies, while others will usually manifest as
generic members of the sapient species they're interacting
with.
System: Spend two Psi points and roll Psi. If the roll
is successful, the spirit can become physical for one entire
scene per success. The spirit can stay incarnated for longer
periods by rerolling Psi to use this power again at the end
of its initial duration. The number of successes scored also
determines how close the spirit comes to mimicking the
form of a living physical body of its choosing. Aside from
the changes listed above, an incarnated spirit is otherwise
identical to a materialized spirit.
Mutabilty: The spirit can make multiple cosmetic
and/or functional alterations to its form, even while mani-
festing as a physical being. Practically anything outside of
the typical sapient body pattern associated with the spirit
can be added. Despite this power being most often used
by heralds and rogues to conform to the preconceptions of
the living sapients they interact with, nearly all sapient spirits
will find some use for this power when in desperate straits.
System: Spend two Psi points and roll Psi. Each suc-
cess the spirit scores can be used to make either two cos-
metic changes or one functional change to its form. Also,
Mutability vs. Body Sculpt
As written, Mutability may seem like just a souped-up ver-
sion of the Transmogrify 4 Body Sculpt power (Trinity core book,
p. 201). What must be remembered is that these two powers are
altering two very different things: the patterns of psion parti-
cles which make up a spirit and the living flesh of a biokinetic
psion. As its working with a body composed entirely of noetic
energy, Mutability doesnt have to contend with either the del-
icate functioning of living cells or the quantum particles which
comprise them. Spirits do have their own problems in using
Biokinesis, which will be discussed later on in this Appendix.
148 Appendix #3: The Discarnate
the spirit can make up to (the spirit's permanent Psi rating)
minor changes - meaning within the normal body pattern
of its associates sapient species - without spending a suc-
cess if the Psi roll is successful. For purposes of this power,
"cosmetic" changes from a baseline human viewpoint
would include odd skin colorations, pigmentation patterns,
dermal ridges and unusual scents. "Functional" changes
provide advantages to the spirit, and can be anything that
novas would consider a Body Modification (Aberrant core
book, p. 184 and elsewhere). The spirit can make a number
of functional changes equal to its permanent Psi rating.
Alter Spirit: Spirits who develop this power are
highly respected - or feared - in noetic space, as they can
permanently alter the forms of other spirits. While this can
be done to "repair" damage done to spirits that cannot be
healed "naturally", other times it has been used to reshape
other spirits into whatever else the spirit-crafter desires. That
includes inanimate objects - more than one spirit-crafter
has disposed of a defeated foe by turning that spirit into
an insensate trophy commemorating their victory. Ethical
spirit-crafters use only memetics as raw material, although it
takes several of them to complete a project. Others happily
use other sapient spirits, viewing them as the equivalent of
raw metal that's already been smelted from the ore. And if
such high quality material happens to deliver itself to the
spirit-crafter's workshop... well, who are they to turn down
such good fortune?
System: Spend three Psi points and roll Psi in a
resisted roll against the target spirit's Willpower. Each
success the spirit-crafter scores can be used to alter or
negate one functional aspect of the target spirit's form.
For purposes of this power "functional aspects" consists
of the following; Attribute dots, Ability ratings, functioning
limbs, sensory capabilities, Health Levels - including those
lost to aggravated damage - and permanent Willpower.
The spirit-crafter may also add up to (its permanent Psi
rating) minor changes to the target spirit; such as cosmetic
changes, Flaws and mental disorders. Spirit-crafting can be
a long process and is typically done as an extended action.
Reducing a sapient spirit into a docile slave could be done
in one or three sessions of spirit-crafting. Reducing that
same spirit into a tamed riding animal could take five to six
sessions, while reducing it to an inamimate object might
even take ten sessions. The Storyteller has full discretion as
to what the spirit-crafting process will require in terms of
the spirit-crafter's Mental Attributes and relevant Abilities.
Mayfly: Having mastered the final stage of the
Materialization power, the spirit can now manifest itself as
a living, fully functional and "normal" member of its associ-
ated sapient species. That said, this power does have some
serious limitations. First off, the spirit loses access to all of
its psionic powers and capabilities while using Mayfly, as
 ABERRANT
all of its noetic strength is focused on maintaining its new each success on the Fusion roll negating two of the victim
physical life. This also means that any body alterations made spirit's permanent Willpower points. Once the process is
with the Mutability power are lost for the duration of this completed, the spirit can add a number of Attribute dots,
power. Second, the manifested spirit is now vulnerable to Ability dots, Health Levels or psionic Mode dots equal to its
all of the dangers which can end the lives of members of permanent Psi rating. However, the victim spirit itself must
its associated sapient species. Third, if a spirit is killed while have possessed the relevant traits in order for the spirit to
using Mayfly, that's the end for it. The spirit is completely cannibalize them. For example, if a spirit wishes to increase
and permanently destroyed for all time. Fourth, using this its Pyrokinesis Mode rating through Fusion, the chosen
power successfully is difficult for the spirit, as it must invest victim spirit must also have dots in the Pyrokinesis Mode.
a large amount of its noetic resources to attain this state of Attribute ratings can only be raised to a maximum of eight.
temporary life in the first place. Fifth, ghosts and other spirits Ability dots and Health Levels may be taken from the victim
wanting a taste of actual life find it powerfully addictive. For spirit without restriction, although Ability Specialites also
them, using this power is like a living human junkie taking a count as Ability dots for purposes of this power.
hit of the ultimate high.
System: Spend three Psi points and one temporary
Possession
Willpower point, then roll Psi. Every two successes the
While both prehistoric and ancient humans widely
spirit scores counts as one success for using the Mayfly
believed in spirits, they also feared them. In the Aeon
power, with two successes being the absolute minimum
Continuum, those people had good reason to do so. The
required to achieve this state of being. Scoring three or
powers of this Pneumakinesis Mode represent one of early
more successes has no additional effect. The duration of
humankind's greatest nightmares - the idea that a spirit
this power cannot be extended beyond twenty-four Terran
can invade a person's body and take over. In what amounts
hours. While using Mayfly, the spirit has no access to any
to one of the greatest transgressions known to humanity,
of psionic powers and is considered a fully functional
spirits can use this Mode to inflict great harm among the
specimen of its associated sapient species. It also has all
living, only to abandon their living hosts to face the punish-
the vulnerabilities mentioned above, including the risk
ment for the spirits' deeds. A few of these powers do have
of permanent destruction if killed. Finally, using Mayfly is
benefical uses, yet this Mode has more then earned its dark
highly addictive. Using the Addiction rules (Aberrant: The
reputation.
New Flesh p. 31), Mayfly has an Addiction rating of 3 + 1
Basic Powers: Sense Possession, Hijack, Eviction,
for each use of Mayfly beyond the first.
Daemon, Enslavement, Hivemind.
Fusion: The most advanced Manifestation
Alternate Powers: Animal Possession/Gremlin, Exor-
power - and certainly the darkest - Fusion does just what it
cism, Gird, Lifedrain, Noetic Drain.
says. This power allows the spirit to alter other sapient spirits
Sense Possession: One of the first things a spirit
into new components of its own form, which are then per-
learns about this Mode is how to tell if another spirit is
manently implanted into itself. The spirit grows more power-
possessing a living creature or machine. It's a good way to
ful, and the victim spirits are utterly destroyed in the process.
avoid being attacked by other, likely more powerful spirits
Fortunately, this power cannot be used on other spirits with-
who do not appreciate someone else trying to steal their
out prior preparation, ensuring that only a few spirits will
latest plaything. It's also a good way to locate spirits using
ever become potent enough - and depraved enough - to
Possession as way to hide amongst the living and their
use Fusion. Pity those spirits unlucky enough to encounter
machines.
one of those singular individuals...
System: Roll Psi, success allows the spirit to notice any
System: Attempting to use this power requires certain
possessed creatures or machines within (the spirit's perma-
prerequisites to be met by the spirit beforehand. First the
nent Psi rating) meters. Each additional successes after the
spirit must have five dots of the Possession Mode and the
first provides a further detail. Examples include the variety
Enslavement power, which the spirit must use to bind the
of possessing spirit, its dot rating in the Possession Mode,
mind of the victim spirit to itself. Second, the spirit must
its permanent Psi rating and its identity. This power can
use the Alter Spirit power to reduce the victim spirit's
also be used to detect novas or aberrants using the Dom-
permanent Willpower rating to zero. Once those tasks are
ination quantum power with the Parasitic Possession Extra
complete, the spirit can spend four Psi points and one
and Doyen that have possessed psions.
temporary Willpower point, then roll Psi. Each success the
Animal Possession/Gremlin: The spirit can possess
spirit scores allows it to partially fuse the victim spirit into
an animal or a machine, effectively using it as its new phys-
itself. The victim spirit's former permanent Willpower rating
ical body. As nonsapients and inanimate objects, animals
is used to determine how difficult this process is, with
and machines can make handy tools for spirits wishing to

Appendix #3: The Discarnate 149

 ABERRANT
directly intervene in the physical realm. Sadly such tools
can only do so much, especially where the social interac-
tions of living sapients are concerned.
System: Spend one Psi point and roll Psi. If successful,
the spirit can possess the target animal or machine for one
scene per success. When possessing an animal, the spirit
will automatically know how to move its body around and
use its other natural capabilities. If the spirit is careful and
keeps its behavior in line with that expected of the target
animal, the spirit can observe until the moment comes for
it to act. If the target animal feels any pain while possessed
- and it doesn't have to be from a serious injury - the spirit
takes actual damage. The Storyteller has full discretion
over the kind and amount of damage the spirit suffers
in this case. The spirit is also automatically ejected and
cannot repossess that animal for (7 - the spirit's Possession
Mode dot rating) days.
Once the spirit attains Possession , it may instead
choose to remove the target animal's noetic template
in order to permanently take over the beast's body. The
spirit spends one Psi point and rolls Psi in a resisted action
against the animal's Willpower (see Adventure! core book,
pp. 247-248). If the spirit's successes match or exceed the
animal's Willpower, the template is permanently removed
and the spirit can inhabit the animal's body without having
to spend Psi points. Unfortunately, spirits are not the same
as the noetic templates of living creatures and cannot
sustain a living body permanently. After the animal's tem-
plate has been removed, its former body will die after (the
spirit's Psi rating x 2) days.
Things are only a little different when possessing a
machine. The possession roll is made as above. Provided
that the spirit knows how to operate the machine in ques-
tion - meaning has the correct Ability - the spirit can control
the machine as an automatic action as long as the machine
is turned on and the power source lasts. Unless the spirit is
exorcised from the target machine, the spirit can repossess
it at any time. This limitation can be waived if the spirit has
four dots in the Technokinesis Mode and the Recharge
alternate power (Trinity: America Offline p. 82), as its own
psionic power can then activate the machine and act as a
temporary power source. Unlike animals, machines cannot
be permanently possessed with this power. That requires
the use of the Trespass Mode to make the target machine
into an anchor.
Hijack: This effect represents what most consider
the ultimate definition of Possession: a spirit invading and
taking over the body of a hapless and unknowing person.
With Hijack a spirit can possess the body of any sapient
being without that being's knowledge, using it as a proxy
to act in the physical world of quantum space. That said,
using this power is not without risk as any pain experienced
150 Appendix #3: The Discarnate
by the host will be inflicted on the intangible body of the
spirit as actual damage.
System: Spend one Psi point and roll Psi in a resisted
action against the victim's Willpower. Each success allows
the spirit to control the victim for one scene. The victim
will have no memory of being possessed, as this power
induces a state that prevents long-term memories from
being made in the victim's mind. If the victim takes
experiences any pain while possessed - real or otherwise
- the spirit takes actual damage. The Storyteller has full
discretion over the kind and amount of damage the spirit
suffers in this case. The spirit is also automatically ejected
and cannot repossess that person for (14 - the spirit's
Possession Mode dot rating) days. Once the spirit attains
Possession that limitation vanishes, leaving exorcism
as the only viable way of getting rid of the possessing spirit
before this power's duration expires. Hijack has no effect
on novas or other eximorphic beings.
Exorcism: With the knowledge of how to possess
the living also comes the capability to stymie the Pneumak-
inetic powers of other spirits. This power allows the spirit
to cure possessions, banish manifestations and prevent
trespass; all of which can make that spirit very unpopular
with its fellows.
System: Spend one Psi point and roll Psi. The target
can resist with its Psi Trait. Each net success scored by the
spirit negates one dot from the target's Pneumakinetic
Mode rating. Normally, Exorcism can only affect one
Pneumakinetic Mode at a time. If the spirit has attained
Possession , the spirit can instead spend two Psi points
to affect all Pneumakinetic Modes within a radius of (the
spirit's Psi x 5 meters).
If used to permanently drive off another spirit from
a certain place or group of living sapients, the spirit must
spend one Psi point and roll Psi + Command in a con-
tested roll against the target spirit's Willpower. If the spirit
is successful, the target spirit is permanently banished from
either the locale or the living sapients in question. The
banished spirit can never enter a location it has been exor-
cised from ever again. In the case of living sapients, the
banished spirit cannot remain within (The spirit's Psi rating)
kilometers of their current location. These interdictions only
apply to the banished spirit itself, and not any spirit allies it
might have...
Exorcism can also be used to negate certain other
Inspired powers, although doing so requires the spirit to
spend double the normal Psi point cost and a point of
temporary Willpower. The relevant powers include all the
Telepathic Modes and the following quantum powers;
Domination, Empathic Manipulation, Hypnosis, Mental
Blast, Mirage, Telepathy, and the Possession form of
the Reincarnation power (Aberrant: The New Flesh pp.
 ABERRANT
234-235). At the Storyteller's discretion, Exorcism can also
negate Social Mega-Attribute effects.
In all the preceding cases, the spirit's efforts can be
aided by those of other spirits with the Exorcism power
and living sapient exorcists, as described earlier in the "On
Exorcism" paragraph seen above.
Eviction: One of the darkest powers of this Mode, The protections will last for a number of hours equal to the
Eviction allows the spirit to literally kick the soul out of an
unfortunate sapient, who then moves into the newly-soul-
less husk. The spirit gains a living sapient body and can
enjoy all the pleasures - and the pains - of the living. And
the only cost for that soujourn is to commit what amounts
to cold-blooded murder. For too many spirits, such a price
is cheap indeed.
System: Eviction lets the spirit attempt to remove the
target sapient's noetic template and permanently take over
the sapient's body. The spirit spends one Psi point and rolls
Psi in a resisted action against the sapient's Willpower. If
the spirit's successes match the sapient's Willpower, the
sapient's template is only "imprisoned" and the spirit can
inhabit the sapient's body for seven days. At that time, the
spirit must spend another Psi point and roll Psi to reinforce
its control over the sapient's body. Holding onto that con-
trol is another problem, as the imprisoned sapient template
will have full awareness of what the spirit is doing with its
body and can initiate resisted Willpower rolls against that
of the spirit at any time. This often happens whenever
the spirit is at its weakest - such as when the spirit must
reinforce its control or spend temporary Willpower points
and/or more than one Psi point at a time. If the sapient is
successful, the spirit is ejected from the stolen body and
can never use Eviction on that sapient ever again. If the
spirit is successful, it stays in control of the stolen body...
for the moment. Eviction has no effect on novas or other
eximorphic beings.
If the spirit's successes exceed the sapient's Willpower,
the template is permanently removed and the spirit can
inhabit the sapient's body without having to spend any
further Psi points. Unfortunately, spirits are not the same as
the noetic templates of living creatures and cannot sustain
a living body permanently. After the sapient's template has
been removed, its former body will die after (the spirit's Psi
rating x 2) days.
Gird: The only other beneficial power in this
Mode, Gird allows the spirit to place protections on a
living sapient against all forms of possession by spirits.
Spirits who use this power on a regular basis are almost as
unpopular with their fellows as those spirits who employ
the Exorcism power. That said, this power can be abused,
as placing only the weakest protection on a sapient can
be like dumping blood on a human who is swimming in
shark-infested waters...
Appendix #3: The Discarnate
System: Spend two Psi points and roll Psi. Success
lets the spirit give a living sapient a defense against all
the other powers of the Possession Mode save for Exor-
cism. The degree of protection Gird grants depends on
the number of successes rolled; as each success scored
negates the dot rating of Possession Mode powers by one.
spirit's Possession Mode dot rating. During that time, other
spirits will have all difficulties on Perception rolls to notice
the protected person reduced by two. Please note that the
spirit does not have to use all of the successes scored on
its Psi roll. Some spirits abuse this power by only using one
success, making the sapient a target for all other spirits who
might take an interest - possibly lethal or worse - in that
unfortunate soul.
Daemon: Daemon creates a temporary and
inferior copy of the spirit's own consciousness within the
mind of a living sapient. This allows the spirit to effectively
possess the sapient without risking itself. Once installed
into a living sapient the daemon will act as the spirit directs,
and will follow the spirit's last known commands if they are
separated.
System: Spend two Psi points and one temporary
Willpower point, then roll Psi in a resisted action against
the sapient's Willpower. Each success allows the daemon
to control the victim for one scene. The daemon will have
Mental Attribute, Willpower and Psi ratings two dots lower
than those of its creating spirit. It will also have access to
all of the creating spirit's non-Pneumakinetic Aptitudes
and Modes, although at only half the creating spirit's dot
ratings, rounded down. As with Hijack, the sapient will
have no memory of being possessed by the daemon. If the
victim takes experiences any pain while possessed - real
or otherwise - the daemon is destroyed and the sapient is
freed. Daemon has no effect on novas or other eximorphic
beings.
Lifedrain: Spirits with this power have learned
how to feed on the noetic templates of both objects and
living organisms found in quantum space. Inanimate mate-
rials become brittle and extremely weak, collapsing into
tiny fragments and powder at the slightest touch. Living
organisms sicken for no discernable reason, possibly to the
point of death.
System: Spend two Psi points and roll Psi in a resisted
action against the targeted living organism's Willpower or
Resistance, whichever is greater. If the target is inanimate
matter, the Psi roll is made against it's estimated Soak
rating - the Storyteller will determine that from the Material
Strengths chart (Aberrant core book p. 257). If successful,
the spirit inflicts one level of automatic bashing damage
per success scored. Also, the spirit gains that stolen life
energy as additional Bruised health levels. These additional
151
 ABERRANT
health levels are temporary - they will fade away after one
hour - but they are sufficient to heal any damage the spirit
has taken from attacks, noetic deprivation and similar
threats to its existence. If the spirit wishes - or is forced
to by an exorcist, the spirit can return those stolen health
levels to the target provided that the duration has not
expired. Lifedrain has no effect on novas or other eximor-
phic beings.
Enslavement: This abhorrent power does just rating) days pass. Victims of this power will recover lost
what the name says - it breaks the psychology of a living
sapient or spirit, making an otherwise independent being
into a cringing servant for a depraved spirit. While such
unfortunates may not wear collars or shackles, their loss of
personal freedom is all too real.
System: Spend three Psi points and roll Psi in a
resisted roll against the target sapient's or spirit's Will-
power. Each success the spirit scores affects one point of
the target's temporary and permanent Willpower, with the
temporary points being affected before the permanent
points. Enslavement is a long-term process and in most
cases is performed as an extended action, meaning the
target will undergo several bouts of horrifying psionic
assault unless an outside factor interrupts the process.
Once the spirit manages to bring the target to zero
temporary and permanent Willpower, the target loses all
capacity for initiative. Without clear orders from the spirit,
the target will be confused and incompetent. The target
suffers a difficulty penalty of +3 on all rolls for taking any
action that isn't a direct order from the spirit or is not part
of an established routine. All Willpower rolls made by the
target to assert itself or resist the social influences of the
spirit automatically fail. Undoing this power's effects is
possible, but will require a telepathic nova or psion to alter
the target's memories. Using either the Telepathy quantum
power or the Mindwarp power of the Psychbending Mode,
three successes is all that's needed to repair the damage. If
the process is instead left unfinished, the target will slowly
heal the noetic damage this power caused at a rate of two
points per twenty-four hours. Of course, exorcism will also
undo an enslavement, but that brute force approach is
much less effective than the delicate mental surgery that
telepaths are capable of performing. Enslavement has no
effect on novas or other eximorphic beings.
Noetic Drain: A refinement of the Lifedrain or other eximorphic beings.
power, this aspect of Possession allows the spirit to literally
steal the noetic energies of living sapients and other spirits
and use them as its own. This power can and has ensured
the continued existences of more than a few spirits faced
with destruction.
System: Spend three Psi points and roll Psi in a
resisted roll against the target's Willpower or Psi, which-
ever is higher. Success lets the spirit steal (the spirit's per-
152 Appendix #3: The Discarnate
manent Psi rating) temporary Willpower points or Psi points
from the target, which are then transferred to the spirit's
temporary Psi pool. A spirit using Noetic Drain can store
more temporary Psi points than its pool can normally hold,
up to a maximum of twice its normal amount. This comes
in handy if the spirit is engaging in heavy use of high-rated
Psi powers. The extra Psi points are retained by the spirit
until they are either used or (the spirit's Possession Mode
Willpower and/or Psi points normally. Finally, any attempt
to use this power on novas, aberrants and other eximorphs
automatically fail, as their quantum energies overpowers
what noetic energy they may have. Noetic Drain has no
effect on novas or other eximorphic beings.
Hivemind: The ultimate Possession power is a
refinement of the Daemon power. Hivemind lets the spirit
implant multiple daemons into the minds of multiple living
sapients. Not only will these advanced daemons function
better than their more primitive analogs, they are also in
constant mental contact with each other and their creat-
ing spirit. This allows for a frightening level of teamwork
among the spirit's temporary thralls as they can employ
collective tactics and strategies with unnerving ease.
System: Spend three Psi points and one temporary
Willpower point, then roll Psi in a resisted action against
the average Willpower of the targeted sapients. The
spirit can implant up to (the spirit's permanent Psi rating)
sapients. Each success allows the daemons to control their
victims for one scene. As with other daemons, hivemind
daemons will act as the spirit directs and will follow the
spirit's last known commands if their mental contact is
somehow severed. Hivemind daemons will have Mental
Attribute, Willpower and Psi ratings one dot lower than
those of their creating spirit. They have access to all of the
creating spirit's non-Pneumakinetic Aptitudes and Modes
at half the creating spirit's dot ratings, rounded down.
Hivemind daemons also enjoy a permanent Mindspeak
effect (Trinity core book, p. 224) with each other and their
creating spirit, allowing them to coordinate their actions.
Sapients victimized with Hivemind will have no memory
of being possessed by the daemons. Destroying a group
of hivemind daemons before the duration of this power
expires requires exorcism. Hivemind has no effect on novas
Trespass
All spirits have the basic capability to travel between
noetic and quantum space. This Mode expands that capa-
bility into a potent and fairly flexible array of powers which
help spirits remain where they want to be, which is often
quantum space. Practiced tresspassers can get other spirits
- and sometimes living sapients! - into and out of their
 ABERRANT
current situations as they please. Whether those situations
will be acceptable to those who have been relocated in this
way is another matter entirely...
Basic Powers: Forge Anchor, Place Anchor, Spirit Trap,
Trespass and Teleportation
At first glance, the Trespass Mode appears quite similar to
the Teleportation Aptitude. Appearances deceive. While they
both utilize noetic space for travel, they have different focuses.
Teleporters take brief dips into noetic space in order to traverse
huge distances within quantum space, and remain tightly bound
to the spacetime of their realm. Trespassers are hardly bound to
quantum space at all, and have to make anchors to ensure that
they arent ejected from quantum space. Where teleporters are
natives of quantum space - and enjoy all the benefits that come
with that - most trespassers are outsiders seeking to invade
a reality whose laws of physics are hostile to them. Theres a
reason that this Mode is called Trespass.
Crucible, Haunt, Create Vortex.
Alternate Powers: Sense Anchor, Soul Object, Soul
Jar, Abduction, Banishment.
Forge Anchor: The first thing a smart spirit does
when setting up shop in quantum space is to forge an
anchor for itself. By investing a physical object with some
of its own noetic energies, the spirit can use the noetic
connection linking it to itself to remain safely moored in
quantum space. The nature of the object can be anything
the spirit finds emotionally significant. For example, ghosts
will tend to choose items - or people - which they trea-
sured during their lives. Heralds and rogues would choose
items that they would consider to be either consecrated
or defiled, respectively, in terms of the cultures they are
associated with. Other spirits will choose items to use as
anchors in accordance with their own tastes.
System: Spend one Psi point and roll Psi. If the spirit
scores three or more successes, it can make the target into
a (more or less) permanent anchor. Aside from mooring it
in quantum spacetime and providing a navigation beacon,
the spirit can also perceive its anchors and their immediate
vicinities with a Perception + Awareness roll. The spirit can
have a maximum of (the spirit's Willpower /2, rounded up)
anchors at any one time.
An anchor must have some serious significance to the
spirit - enough to make events happening to it detectable
via noetic resonance (Trinity Players Guide, pp. 144-145)
for this power to function. If the item is an inanimate object
or anything similarly inactive - such as a tree or a sapient in
suspended animation - then it will remain an anchor until
it is cleansed of the spirit's noetic energy through either
exorcism or physical destruction. While inanimate anchors
Appendix #3: The Discarnate
can vary in size from personal jewelry to large personal
residences, wise spirits will only make a building into an
anchor if it is somehow protected from legal demolition.
If they are small, inanimate anchors will be hidden away
someplace secure by the spirit in order to safeguard them
if possible. The more devious spirits will have multiple
inanimate anchors hidden in different secure locations in
order to stymie hostile exorcists. Once the spirit attains
Trespass , it may instead invest two Psi points when
forging an anchor. If successful, the inanimate anchor
cannot be destroyed through exorcism and must be phys-
ically destroyed. Permanent anchors which are machines
can also be permanently possessed by the spirit if it has
Possession and the Animal Possession/Gremlin power.
Neither quantum gadgets nor Trinity Era noetic biotech
items can be made into anchors.
If the anchor is instead an active living sapient, the
established anchor link will be somewhat more tenuous.
The emotional connection between the sapient and the
spirit is what serves as the anchor link - if the sapient's
emotions toward the spirit change in nature or intensity,
the anchor link is automatically destroyed. Once the spirit
attains Trespass , it may instead invest two Psi points
when forging an anchor link. If successful, the anchor link
to the sapient will be unaffected by the sapient's emo-
tions toward the spirit, leaving exorcism as the only viable
method of severing the link.
Sense Anchor: Once a spirit masters the art of forg-
On The Necessity of Anchors
Why are anchors so important for spirits? As mentioned
previously, spirits depend on their anchors in order to remain in
quantum space. Any time that a spirit without an anchor suffers
bashing, lethal or aggravated damage in quantum space, it
must make a Willpower roll to avoid being pulled into noetic
space. This includes the damage resulting from psionic Attune-
ment. Destroying an anchor - or the noetic link between a spirit
and a living sapient anchor, which amounts to the same thing
- banishes the spirit to noetic space for a period of time. If all of
a spirits anchors are destroyed, the spirit is banished to noetic
space more or less permanently. Unless a permanently ban-
ished spirit can make use of a noetic vortex to re-enter quantum
space - or is somehow summoned there - its gone for good.
Anchors also serve as beacons for spirits traveling from of noetic
space so that they can arrive in the correct point in spacetime
- a definite bonus considering that neither space nor time as
humans know them exist in noetic space.
ing anchors, it may then learn to detect the anchors made
by other spirits. This comes in handy when combating other
spirits in quantum space, as a hostile spirit's anchors can
then be discovered and destroyed. Unfortunately, this is of
153
 ABERRANT
little use in noetic space...
System: Roll Psi, success allows the spirit to sense
the location of any anchors within (the spirit's permanent
Psi rating x 50) kilometers. Each additional successes after
the first provides a further detail. Examples include the
associated spirit's category, the nature of the anchor, the
associated spirit's permanent Psi rating and the associated
spirit's identity.
Place Anchor: Place Anchor allows the spirit to
teleport any one if its anchors - or its soul object - wherever
it pleases. This power is typically used to either hide small
inanimate anchors or to whisk them away from danger.
Provided that the spirit has previously scouted out places
where such important items are likely to be well-protected,
it can defend itself from exorcists and other threats with
relative ease.
System: Spend one Psi point, roll Psi and declare the
desired destination for the item. If successful, the item
arrives without incident five turns afterward. If there is solid
matter already there at the desired destination point - such
as a Ming Dynasty vase having been placed in the empty
spot on the museum storage shelf where the spirit wanted
its item to arrive - the attempt fails and the Psi point is
wasted.
Soul Object: While anchors are a necessity for
spirits in quantum space they are also vulnerabilities. Too
many spirits have found themselves banished though the
destruction of all their anchors for a countermeasure not
to have been developed. While creating a soul object has
both risks and costs of its own, some spirits are more than
willing to pay it in order to remain in quantum space.
System: Spend two Psi points and 1 point of perma-
nent Willpower. If the spirit scores three or more successes,
it can invest that noetic energy into an inanimate object
of no more than two kilograms in mass. The object in
question must qualify as emotionally significant to the spirit
just like an anchor would. The spirit can only have one soul
object, ever. Fortunately, the soul object will not count as
towards the spirit's maximum number of anchors. Wise
spirits will also choose inanimate objects that are consid-
ered valuable in and of themselves to use as soul objects.
Such valuables include large precious gems, extremely
valuable works of art and priceless historical artifacts that
are kept in the high security archives of major museums.
In this way the spirit can ensure that its soul object will be
defended from meddling exorcists by many well-paid and
highly-trained living sapients.
The benefits of having a soul object are twofold. First,
the spirit can no longer be ejected from quantum space
though loss of its anchors as long as its noetic link to its
soul object remains intact. Even the Banishment power
will be ineffective against the spirit, although it will destroy
154 Appendix #3: The Discarnate
all of the spirit's normal anchors. Instead of winding up in
noetic space when all of its anchors are lost, the spirit will
merely haunt the vicinity of its soul object as it regains its
strength and forges new anchors. Second, the spirit cannot
be imprisoned by use of the Spirit Trap or Crucible powers,
which are detailed later.
The only way to sever the noetic link between the
spirit and its soul object is an exorcism directly targeting
the soul object, with the exorcist having to spend one
point of temporary Willpower to aid the exorcism attempt.
Physical destruction is less of a threat to the soul object, as
it will become as intangible as its creating spirit for as long
as it is in danger. The risk of creating a soul object is this:
should it be successfully destroyed through exorcism as
described above, the spirit is destroyed. While the details
will vary - ghosts are either subsumed or consumed by
their noetic massmind, as are heralds and rogues, respec-
tively - it is gone once and for all.
Spirit Trap: Spirits have something in common
with living sapients - once a discovery is made, it doesn't
take long for someone to make it into a weapon. This
power allows a spirit to make another spirit's inanimate
anchor into a trap. If the targeted spirit attempts to
make contact with the trapped anchor, it is sprung and
the unfortunate spirit finds itself confined within its own
anchor. More than a few trespassers keep small collections
of trapped spirits that were unlucky enough to come into
conflict with them.
System: Spend one Psi point and roll Psi. Success
allows the spirit to trap the inanimate anchor of the
targeted spirit. The trap is triggered when the targeted
spirit next interacts with the trapped anchor. The targeted
spirit must make a contested Willpower roll against the
spirit's Psi. If the spirit wins, the targeted spirit finds itself
imprisoned within the trapped anchor. In case of a tie, the
targeted spirit will merely be at +2 difficulties on all rolls
for the next turn due to disorientation. If the targeted spirit
wins it avoids the trap, which dissipates into nothingness in
the next turn. Space and time have no meaning within the
trap, so it can last for a very long time, the exact length of
which is determined by the number of successes scored as
seen on the chart below.
Success Duration
One One month
Two Six months
Three One year
Four One decade
Five One century
 ABERRANT
The noetic energies sustaining the trap do not come scored as seen on the chart below.
from the spirit who initially made it; instead it is drawn
from those of the trap's prisoner. Imprisoned spirits cannot
Success Duration
regain Psi points or temporary Willpower points until they
are freed by outside action. Exorcism of the spirit trap - but One One week
not the anchor it's been placed in - will free the imprisoned Two One month
spirit. Destruction of the trapped anchor will both free the Three Six months
imprisoned spirit and temporarily banish it. Once freed
Four One year
from the spirit trap, the former prisoner will regain their
full amount of temporary Willpower and Psi points. If they Five One decade
aren't banished by destruction of the trapped anchors, such
freed spirits will then seek to either attack their jailer for
The target of a Soul Jar can only be freed by outside
revenge or flee the vicinity.
action. Exorcism or physical destruction of the Soul Jar
Soul Jar: For as long as spirits have been inter-
will free the target's noetic template. Once freed from the
acting with living sapients, spirits have sought to exploit
Soul Jar the target will regain his full amount of temporary
them in one manner or another. After the Spirit Trap power
Willpower and Psi points, which are immediately deducted
became widely known, some inventive spirits wondered if
from the relevant pools of the spirit.
the noetic templates of living sapients could likewise be
Crucible: For spirits, sources of "food" that are
imprisoned in that manner. After many failures and much
safe to exploit on a regular basis tend to be scarce. Feed-
experimentation the Soul Jar power was developed, giving
ing off of living sapients will suffice for a time, but stories
unethical spirits yet another atrocity to inflict upon the
of hauntings can make sensible people avoid such places
living. While more difficult to employ than the Spirit Trap,
and cut off that "food" supply. Worse, if the living sapients
the ability to effectively hold a living sapient's soul hostage
a spirit is feeding from in an unpleasant manner have a
makes for powerful leverage.
legal claim on a spirit's residence, they can bring in trained
System: First, the spirit must acquire a small material
exorcists to get rid of the spirit much like they would have
object of some sort to serve as the Soul Jar. Second, the
vermin removed. Desperation breeds innovation, and an
spirit must steal a small personal item from the living sapi-
alternative "food" source was found. Spirits who use Cruci-
ent with the sapient's Psi print. The stolen item will serve
ble don't talk about it for obvious reasons.
as the link between the Soul Jar and the target's noetic
System: First, the spirit must acquire a small inanimate
template. Third, spend two Psi points and one temporary
anchor of the targeted spirit. Second, spend two Psi points
Willpower point, then roll Psi in a contested roll against
and one temporary Willpower point, then roll Psi in a con-
the target's Willpower. If the spirit wins, the target's noetic
tested roll against the target's Willpower. Success allows
template is trapped inside the Soul Jar. In case of a tie, the
the spirit to turn the inanimate anchor of the targeted spirit
target is at +2 difficulties on all rolls for the next turn due
into a Crucible. The Crucible is triggered when the targeted
to disorientation. If the target wins he avoids the trap and
spirit next interacts with it. The targeted spirit must make a
remains free. This also erases the psi print on the target's
contested Willpower roll against the spirit's Psi. If the spirit
stolen item. This power has no effect on novas, aberrants
wins, the targeted spirit finds itself imprisoned within the
and other eximorphs - don't even bother making the Psi
Crucible. In case of a tie, the targeted spirit will merely be
roll. Their noetic templates are permanently fused into
at +2 difficulties on all rolls for the next turn due to disori-
their quantum matrices, leaving nothing for the Soul Jar to
entation. If the targeted spirit wins it avoids being caught
imprison.
in the Crucible, which dissipates into nothingness in the
A target whose noetic template is imprisoned in a Soul
next turn. A Crucible will last for (the number of successes
Jar is still alive and can function, but loses all capacity for
scored by the spirit / 2, rounded down) months, which is
initiative and personal drive. The target cannot regain tem-
typically more than enough time for a Crucible to serve its
porary Willpower points - or Psi points, if he has any - and
purpose. If the spirit already has an occupied Spirit Trap it
automatically fails all rolls made for actions that would con-
can easily be converted into a Crucible - doing so adds one
flict with the spirit's wishes. The target does not even have
automatic success to the Crucible roll, even if it raises the
to know what the spirit's wishes are - the spirit "hardwires"
total number of successes scored to six.
them into the Soul Jar. The noetic energies sustaining the
Once the targeted spirit is inside the Crucible, it
Soul Jar do not come from the spirit who initially made it;
cannot regain temporary Willpower points, Psi points or
instead it is drawn from the Soul Jar's target. The duration
health levels. Furthermore, the spirit can begin feeding
of the Soul Jar is determined by the number of successes
on the targeted spirit's Willpower, Psi and health level

Appendix #3: The Discarnate 155

 ABERRANT
traits in that order. The targeted spirit's pools of tempo-
rary Willpower and Psi points count the equivalent of one
full "meal" each. The targeted spirit's dots of permanent
Willpower, Psi and its health levels count as one full "meal"
per dot or health level. Alternatively, the spirit can use the
Crucible as a noetic battery, allowing it to use the targeted
spirit's Psi points as its own. If the spirit wishes, it can
even perform Psi Coordination without the consent of the
targeted spirit. These alternative functions of the Cruci-
ble drain one permanent Psi dot from the targeted spirit
per use. If being used as a battery, a Crucible provides a
number of extra Psi points equal to the targeted spirit's
former temporary Psi pool to the spirit.
Once the targeted spirit loses all of its permanent Will-
power, Psi and health levels, it is considered destroyed for
all time and the Crucible dissipates. If the targeted spirit is
somehow rescued from the Crucible before that, its stolen
Trait dots and health levels are automatically deducted
from those of the the spirit. If that reduces the spirit to zero
permanent Willpower, Psi or health levels it is destroyed
in place of the targeted spirit. If the spirit does not have
enough dots of the required Traits to restore its former
victim, the freed spirit will have to regain its lost Trait dots
through spending experience points.
Abduction: As proven by the Teleportation Apti-
tude, objects and creatures from quantum space can exist
in noetic space. Spirits that have mastered Abduction can
exploit that fact to shift material objects and lifeforms into
"nearby" noetic space for short periods of time. While the
malevolent uses of this power are obvious, Abduction can
also be used to rescue valuable items and lifeforms from
danger.
System: Spend two Psi points and roll Psi. The number
of successes rolled will indicate how many hours the target
can remain in noetic space before it is automatically shifted
back into quantum space. The target's reentry point in
quantum space will always be within (the Spirit's Psi rating
x 5) meters of the initial Abduction point. If the spirit is
shifting an object into noetic space, only one success is
needed. Unfortunately the mass of the shifted object is a
limiting factor, as the spirit's Psi Trait determines how mas-
sive an object it can shift, as seen on the chart below.
Psi Mass Limit
6 250 kg
7 400 kg
8 750 kg
9 1.25 metric tons
10 2 metric tons
If the spirit is shifting a sapient into noetic space, the
circumstances will vary. If the sapient truly wants to move
away - to escape from an assailant or a fire, for instance
- the spirit's Psi roll is made with two additional dice. If

When The Living Visit Noetic Space

Using Abduction does not allow spirits to place material objects and living creatures far from the noetic templates of
their homeworlds. Most subjects of this power wind up on the noetic equivalent of solid ground, usually close to or within the
noetic template of the building in which they were residing. Taking a subject any deeper into noetic space requires the spirit to
physically haul it there itself. There is no equivalent to vacuum in noetic space, as the space between planets and star systems
is instead filled with noetic mist that will serve as perfectly breatheable atmosphere for any living creature.
Functioning in noetic space is only difficult for animals and the weakest-minded sapients. Any being with a Willpower
rating of four or lower will be at +2 difficulties on all rolls while in noetic space due to being unable to adapt to the new envi-
ronment. Inspired beings of all sorts are a different story, as they automatically receive access to Dramatic Editing (Adventure!
core book, pp. 193-197) while in the extremely fluid reality of noetic space. For this purpose, Inspired applies to all beings
with extranormal capabilities - novas, aberrants, psions, psiads and any alien equivalents in addition to the charatcer types pre-
sented in the Adventure! core book. That said, aberrants (in the Trinity sense of the term) and novas with Chrysalis ratings (see
Aberrant: Teragen) automatically lose in any attempt to use Dramatic Editing against any other Inspired when in noetic space.
Spirits cannot use Dramatic Editing at all and have no way to counter it.
The final matter to be considered is the effects of using quantum energies in noetic space. Trinity-era psions are well-
known for stating that taint - meaning all quantum energies - wreaks havoc with the noetic environment. In noetic space, that
statement is the literal truth. Quantum capability use will inflict damage to the novas surroundings in noetic space at a level
of the Storytellers choosing. For most cases, we suggest that the equivalent of the Storm technique of the Elemental Mastery
quantum power (Aberrant core book p. 196) would be appropriate. Effects that are less or more damaging would be associ-
ated with the use of less or more powerful quantum capabilities. Novas with permanent Taint ratings of seven or higher literally
poison noetic space with their presence as if they possessed the Taint Bleed aberration (Aberrant Players Guide p. 96). Small
wonder that wise spirits stay away from novas whenever possible.

156 Appendix #3: The Discarnate

 ABERRANT
the sapient is unconscious, asleep or not expecting to
being moved, the Psi roll is made normally. If the sapient is
unwilling to be moved, the spirit must make a resisted Psi
roll against's the target's Willpower, Psi, Quantum or Taint,
whichever is highest. The spirit must score more successes
than the sapient for Abduction to take place.
Haunt: One of the most famous Trespass powers Anchors" gray sidebar. Three successes also prevents the
in ghost stories, Haunt allows the spirit to bring a little slice
of noetic space into quantum space. While the associated
creepiness is useful for keeping most of the living well away
from the residence of a spirit, that's only a useful byprod-
uct. The real benefit to this power is the easy access it pro-
vides to a long-term and nearly endless "food" supply in a
reality where such is scarce indeed. Add in the advantage
of not having to feed off the emotional reactions of living
sapients and you have a near-perfect "living" arrangement
for the spirit. Spirits known for using this power often find
themselves becoming the equivalent of feudal lords, as
more than a few less powerful spirits are willing to swear
loyalty to them in return for a place at the spirit's (meta-
phorical) dining table.
System: The spirit must first have a large material
building - such as an abandoned hotel or upper-class
residence - to serve as its domain. Alternatively, a very
large vehicle such as a naval vessel or cruise ship would
suffice. Second, the spirit must spend three Psi Points and
one temporary Willpower point. Success on the Psi roll
allows the spirit to create a long-term transit field from
noetic space into the spirit's residence. The transit field
only allows harmless memetics to come through, where
they may be preyed upon by the spirit and its underlings, if
any. The transit field also "pens in" the memetics within the
spirit's domain, preventing any of the mobile "food" from
escaping. The number of successes scored determines how
long the transit field lasts, with each success counting for
a decade of continuous operation. Exorcism or physical
destruction of the material structure will collapse the transit
field prematurely. Having the noetic equivalent of small
wildlife inhabiting a building also makes for a very creepy
experience for any living sapients who enter it. This is best
reflected through Storytelling instead of any actual game
mechanics.
Banishment: This power is feared among
spirits who desire to visit or emigrate to quantum space,
as it strikes at those desires in a horrible way. Banishment
is more than the simple removal of an offending spirit
from quantum space; it also severs all links to that spirit's
anchors and prevents it from returning to quantum space
for decades or even centuries at the extreme. Short of
being outright destroyed, this is one of the worst punish-
ments a spirit can suffer in quantum space.
System: Spend three Psi Points and one temporary
Appendix #3: The Discarnate
Willpower point, then roll Psi at +1 difficulty. The degree
of this power's effect depends on the number of successes
scored by the spirit. One success merely severs the target
spirit's links to all of its anchors. Two successes also ejects
the target spirit from quantum space, but only for the
normal conditions described in the "On The Necessity Of
target spirit from returning to quantum space for a number
of decades equal to the spirit's Psi dot rating. This duration
is measured in fifty-year increments with four successes,
and in full centuries with five successes.
Create Vortex: Spirits have always known the
potential advantages of using noetic vortices to travel into
quantum space. The only reason why naturally formed
noetic vortices aren't often used is that there's no telling
where or when in quantum space a given vortex will lead.
With this power, the spirit can create a noetic vortex at will.
While creating a vortex makes travel to and from quantum
space very convenient, in quantum space it also drastically
imbalances the local telluric environment towards noetic
energy, which can be very unhealthy for anything living
nearby.
System: Spend four Psi points and one temporary
Willpower point, then roll Psi at +1 difficulty. If the spirit
scores one or two successes, a temporary noetic vortex is
formed that will last for (The spirit's Psi dot rating) scenes
or days, respectively. Scoring three or more successes will
create a vortex that is permanent unless destroyed, which
typically requires powerful exorcism or the use of quantum
energies. If this power is used in noetic space, the spirit
can determine the exact point in quantum spacetime that
the created vortex will end in. If instead used in quantum
space, the spirit has control over where the entry point of
the vortex will form in noetic space, as the exit point will
form in the spirit's immediate vicinity. In both cases the
number of successes scored determines the accuracy of
the spirit's targeting with this power. The effects of created
noetic vortices are identical to naturally formed ones, and
are described in "There And Back Again" in this appendix.
Discarnates and Other
Aptitudes
Spirits are infamous for their use of the other psionic
Aptitudes. The German term poltergeist - literally meaning
"noisy ghost" - became synonymous with the Telekinesis
Mode in late 20th Century and early 21st Century parapsy-
chology. Save for Quantakinesis - which no spirit can ever
manifest - there are few Modes that cannot prove useful to
a spirit in the right circumstances. Unfortunately, spirits do
have difficulties with using Biokinesis and to a lesser degree
Vitakinesis. Both of these Aptitudes focus on using noetic
157
 ABERRANT
energy to influence living biology, as which spirits simply Pneuma Analysis
do not qualify. A spirit must possess a living sapient - using Dice Pool: Perception + Pneuma Manipulation
either Hijack or Eviction - in order to use any Biokinetic Range: Line of Sight
powers it may possess. Spirits have less of a problem with Area: N/A
Vitakinesis as they can use it on the living without prob- Duration: Concentration
lems. The counterpoint to both of these hindrances is the This technique is automatically known by all pneuma
fact that since spirits have nothing but the barest similarity manipulators and does not use up a dot in the power. A
to matter-based biology, they are immune to all Biokinetic nova with Pneuma Manipulation can analyze any spirit or
and Vitakinetic powers that affect biological processes. noetic template in his line of sight to determine a con-
siderable amount of information about it. The amount of
New Quantum Powers information revealed by this technique depends on the
number of successes scored on the power roll and is laid
out on the chart below.
Pneuma Manipulation
Level: 3 Successes Effect
Quantum Minimum: 5, must also possess the Medium
and Psi Sensitivity enhancements. One Subjects true identity, general
Dice Pool: Variable personality, preferences and
Range: Variable intentions.
Area: Variable Two Subjects truthfulness, general
Duration: Variable history and hidden traumas.
Effect: The character can affect spirits and noetic Three Subjects complete history,
templates. Willpower rating and any outside
Multiple Actions: Yes influences.
Description: The nova has the capability to affect Four Subjects loyalties, secrets and any
highly complex organized patterns of psion particles, i.e. plans that others may have for the
both spirits and to a lesser degree the noetic templates subject.
of the living. While this overlaps with the Information
Manipuation quantum power (Aberrant Players Guide pp. Five+ Subjects potential to affect the
115-116), their respective foci are very different. Where greater scheme of things.
Information Manipuation affects noetic particles in their
most basic state - information - this power deals with the
patterns of information that are more complex by several
orders of magnitude. Unfortunately noetic patterns that Aegis
complex are exceedingly fragile when exposed to quan- Dice Pool: Wits + Pneuma Manipulation
tum energies such as novas command. Any botches rolled Range: Self or Touch
for this power are treated as uses of the Blast technique Area: N/A
(see below) on the subject. Unlike Information Manipula- Duration: Special
tion, Taint does not make using this power more difficult. The nova can establish a quantum shell around himself
Instead Taint poses a serious threat to the continued exis- or another living sapient that protects against all forms of
tence and correct function of spirits (as explained earlier in possession. Each success scored on the power roll negates
the Appendix), making use of this power moot. Regardless, two dots' worth of any and all noetic Possession powers
a nova skilled with this power can perform feats that most (see above). Against the Domination quantum power with
spirits simply cannot match. the Parasitic Possession Extra, successes from the power
The nova can automatically make a Perception + roll will negate that powers' dot rating on a 1-to-1 basis.
Pneuma Manipulation roll to accomplish minor feats such One use of this power will last for (the nova's Quantum +
as detecting a spirit's presence and determining which power rating) hours. If used to defend the nova himself
category it belongs to. Doing so does not require the nova against Domination and/or relevant Pneuma Manipula-
to spend any quantum points. tion techniques, this technique may be defaulted to as an
aborted action (Aberrant core book p. 242).

158 Appendix #3: The Discarnate

 ABERRANT
Banish
Dice Pool: Charisma + Pneuma Manipulation
Range: (Quantum + power rating) x 10 meters
Area: N/A
Duration: Special
The nova can disrupt a spirit's ability to remain in
quantum space, ejecting it into noetic space for a variable
period of time. Scoring only one success severs the target
spirit's links to all of its anchors and ejects it from quantum
space as per the normal conditions described in the "On
The Necessity Of Anchors" gray sidebar. Two successes
prevents the target spirit from returning to quantum space
for (the nova's Quantum + power rating) decades. This
base period of time is increased to fifty years at three
successes, full centuries with four successes and millennia
(thousand-year periods) with five successes. If the target
spirit is using a soul object (see above), it is automatically
destroyed with three or more successes. If used on a
ghost, the effect of this power is somewhat different as it
sends the ghost straight to its associated noetic massmind
for judgment and its final fate. In either case, the former
ghost will never return to either quantum or noetic space.
Alternatively, the nova can use this technique to make
any and all hostile spirits flee his presence by making a
contested power roll against their Willpower ratings. If
the nova scores even one success, the affected spirit will
flee from him in a blind panic for the rest of the scene. As
a minor function of the Banish technique, performing this
feat only costs one quantum point.
Blast
Dice Pool: Intelligence + Pneuma Manipulation
Range: (Quantum + power rating) x 10 meters
Area: N/A
Duration: Instant
The nova can project quantum energy that directly
damages both spirits and the noetic templates of living
creatures. Against spirits, this technique inflicts (the nova's
Quantum + power rating) levels of aggravated damage.
When used against the noetic templates of living creatures,
the nova must make a contested power roll against the tar-
get's permanent Willpower. Each success the nova scores
permanently lowers the target's permanent Willpower by
one dot. If the target reaches zero permanent Willpower
it loses its self-awareness and is functionally non-sapient.
At this point the nova can choose to either stop there or
continue inflicting damage, which will be considered lethal.
Victims killed with this technique will have no explainable
cause of death in terms of non-Inspired forensics.
A living target rendered non-sapient by this technique
retains its intelligence but has no "interior life", no goals
Appendix #3: The Discarnate
other than to follow its instincts and only a rudimentary
personality. It can't analyze its own behavior or formulate its
own goals and desires. It is also mindless in terms of telep-
athy and similar Inspired powers. The target will respond
to stimuli and is able to carry out complex instructions.
The target is also now a prime candidate for possession by
spirits, who highly value such soulless husks.
Commune
Dice Pool: Perception + Pneuma Manipulation
Range: Special
Area: N/A
Duration: Concentration
The nova can make contact with any spirit that is either
known to him or has an anchor that he has access to. The
communications link formed by this technique is two-way
and is fully audiovisual. The spirit can be reached anywhere
in noetic space as both space and time don't really exist
there, but quantum space is another matter. If the nova has
one of the chosen spirit's anchors in his possession, he can
commune with that spirit regardless of its location in quan-
tum space. Otherwise he is limited to a range determined
by the number of successes scored on the power roll, as
seen below.
Successes Distance
One 2 kilometers
Two 20 kilometers
Three 200 kilometers
Four 2,000 kilometers
Five+ 20,000 kilometers
This technique cannot be used to help the nova
control a spirit with Domination or similar powers. Instead
it is best used for conversation, much as baseline humans
use telephones. Non-coercive Mega-Social Attributes and
enhancements with this technique will function normally.
Daemon
Dice Pool: Manipulation + Pneuma Manipulation
Range: (Quantum + power rating) meters
Area: N/A
Duration: Special
The nova creates inferior quantum-energy based
copies of his own mind to possess living sapients. All
that's required is a power roll in a resisted action against
the average Willpower of the targeted sapients. The nova
can implant daemons in up to (Quantum + power rating)
159
 ABERRANT
sapients. Each success allows the daemons to control their
victims for one scene. The daemons will act as the nova
directs and will follow the nova's last known commands if
their mental contact is somehow severed. The daemons
will have base Mental Attribute and Willpower ratings one
dot lower than those of their creating nova. They can be
used as remote foci for the creating nova's other quantum
powers without harming their hosts. The daemons also
have a permanent Psychic Link (Aberrant Players Guide,
pp. 64-65) with each other and the nova, allowing them
to coordinate their actions. Sapients victimized with with
this technique will have no memory of being possessed by
the daemons. Destroying a group of daemons before the
duration of this power expires requires exorcism, preferably
by another nova with Pneuma Manipulation.
Drone
Dice Pool: Perception + Pneuma Manipulation
Range: (Perception + power rating) x 20 meters
Area: N/A
Duration: Concentration
By taking control of a non-sapient spirit - typically a
residual or memetic - the nova can use it as an intangible
observation drone. Residuals are preferred, as they have
no wills of their own and have both human-equivalent
senses and psionic Attunement. The nova may also use
the drone once as a remote focus for one of his other
quantum powers, destroying the spirit in the process. This
technique is best used to covertly investigate places that
are too hazardous for living sapients and machines. It's also
handy when investigating people, provided that they have
no awareness of spirits. Finally, it can serve as a particularly
underhanded means of assassination or similar crimes if the
nova has an appropriate quantum power.
Exorcism
Dice Pool: Charisma + Pneuma Manipulation
Range: (Quantum + power rating) x 10 meters
Area: Special
Duration: Special
The nova can use quantum energies in a way designed
to disrupt the psionic Pneumakinesis Modes and simi-
lar Inspired powers. In all cases, the nova must make a
On Religion
As the writers of this book it is not our intention to make
any statement one way or the other on the religions of humanity
and other sapient civilizations. That has been left entirely to the
Storytellers discretion, who may or may not address that ques-
tion in your Aberrant chronicle as she sees fit.
160 Appendix #3: The Discarnate
contested power roll against the target's Psi, Quantum or
Inspiration Trait. Against psionic targets, each net success
scored by the nova negates two dots from the target's
Pneumakinetic Mode rating. Against the Inspired, each net
success scored by the nova negates two levels from the
target's Knack or equivalent Innovative gadget. Against
nova or aberrant targets, each net success scored by the
nova negates one dot from the target's relevant quantum
power. Normally, this technique can only affect one of
the target's powers at a time. If the nova has a Pneuma
Manipulation rating of or higher, the nova can instead
choose to affect all appropriate powers within a radius of
(Quantum + power rating) x 5 meters.
If used to permanently drive off another spirit from
a certain place or group of living sapients, the nova must
make a contested power roll against the target spirit's Will-
power. If the nova is successful, the target spirit is perma-
nently banished from either the locale or the living sapients
in question. The banished spirit can never enter a location
it has been exorcised from ever again. In the case of living
sapients, the banished spirit cannot remain within (the
nova's Quantum + power rating) kilometers of their current
location. These interdictions only apply to the banished
spirit itself, and not any spirit allies it might have...
Exorcism can also be used to negate the effects of
certain other Inspired powers. The relevant powers include
all the Telepathic Modes and the following quantum
powers; Domination, Empathic Manipulation, Hypnosis,
Mental Blast, Mirage, Telepathy, and the Possession form
of the Reincarnation power (Aberrant: The New Flesh pp.
234-235). At the Storyteller's discretion, Exorcism can also
negate Social Mega-Attribute effects. In all the preceding
cases, the nova's efforts can be aided by those of other
novas with the Exorcism technique and living sapient exor-
cists, as described earlier in the "On Exorcism" paragraph
seen above. It is possible for this technique to be used
in concert with psionic Exorcism, but the innate conflict
between the two power sources will impose an additional
+1 difficulty on the power roll.
Mark
Dice Pool: Intelligence + Pneuma Manipulation
Range: (Quantum + power rating) x 5 meters
Area: N/A
Duration: Special
The noetic patterns of a spirit's form or a living sapi-
ent's noetic template have a surprisingly strong role in their
ability to socially interact with other beings. By imprinting
a special subpattern into a spirit or living sapient's noetic
template, the nova can augment or hinder that capability
as he pleases. Augmentation makes the target be seen as
safe, pleasant and harmless by spirits and living sapients,
 ABERRANT
provided that the target's actions don't do anything to con-
tradict said feelings. Hindrance makes the target be seen
as disturbing, disgusting and a possible threat, and there's
little the target can do to counteract that.
To use this technique the nova must make a contested
power roll against the target's Willpower. Each success
scored either adds or lowers the target's difficulties by
one on all of the its subsequent Social rolls with spirits
and living sapients for the duration of this techniques'
effect. The duration of this technique is determined by the
number of successes scored by the nova, as seen on the
chart below.
Success Duration
One One week
Two One month
Three Six months
Four One year
Five One decade
Projection
Dice Pool: Perception + Pneuma Manipulation
Range: Special
Area: N/A
Duration: Maintenance
The nova can create a "quantum spirit" form for his
mind to remotely operate, similar to early 21st Century
telepresence technology. This construct allows the nova's
mind to travel in both quantum and noetic space, leaving
his comatose body behind.
In quantum space, the nova may travel up to (Quan-
tum + power rating) x 1,000 kilometers from his body while
inhabiting the construct. The construct will have permanent
versions of both Invisibility and Density Control - Decrease
at the nova's power rating, although it cannot turn parts of
itself solid. The construct will only be visible to spirits and
novas with the Medium Mega-Perception enhancement.
While the construct is composed of quantum energy its
structure is mainly in the subquantum strata of reality, which
few novas are even aware exists. If the nova wishes to make
the construct visible in quantum space, he has to make a
power roll. Each success will grant one minute of visibility.
The construct can also act as a remote focus for the nova's
Mega-Attributes and quantum powers that are not purely
physical in nature. As a permanently intangible thing, the
contstruct can only be attacked as per the equivalent dot
rating in the Density Control - Decrease listing (Aberrant
core book, p. 189).
In noetic space, the nova may travel anywhere as "dis-
Appendix #3: The Discarnate
tance" has no real meaning there. The trouble is finding
where one wants to go in an environment that is so alien to
quantum space. The nova must roll Perception + Pneuma
Manipulation to accurately find his way to his desired des-
tination. One success means the nova can find the specific
sub-realm in noetic space he wishes to go; which is much
like finding one specific nation on Earth. Two successes nar-
rows it down to a general area comparable to a large city.
Three successes lets the nova arrive in the general vicinity
of his target destination, comparable to a large neighbor-
hood. With four successes the nova arrives within a one
block radius of his target. Five or more successes lets the
nova arrive very near to his target, which is a good thing if
said target is unsafe to be around. The construct will have
the equivalent of the Movement technique (Aberrant core
book, p. 193) at his power rating, unless the nova has a
form of Flight that the Storyteller thinks should function in
noetic space. The construct is also essentially a "spiritual"
copy of the nova's physical body and is a remote focus with
full access to his physical Mega-Attributes and quantum
powers.
In both cases the construct will be an idealized repre-
sentation of the nova's self-image and may not resemble
the nova's actual body, especially if said body is crippled
in some way. The construct will have "spiritual" simulations
of any clothing and equipment the nova has on his actual
body which are created by this technique. If the construct
is damaged or destroyed, the nova's mind will immedi-
ately reawaken in his actual body, both of which will be
undamaged. The real danger in using this technique is if
the nova's actual body is left unguarded, as the nova will
have no awareness of anything around it while his mind is
traveling elsewhere.
Sculpting
Dice Pool: Manipulation + Pneuma Manipulation
Range: (Quantum + power rating) meters
Area: N/A
Duration: Instant
The nova can reshape spirits and the noetic templates
of living sapients. The nova a must make a resisted power
roll against the subject's Willpower. Each success the nova
scores can be used to alter or negate one functional aspect
of the subject. Against spirits, "functional aspects" consists
of the following; Attribute dots, Ability ratings, functioning
limbs, sensory capabilities, Health Levels - including those
lost to aggravated damage - and permanent Willpower.
The nova may also add up to (Quantum) minor changes
to the subject spirit; such as cosmetic changes, Flaws and
mental disorders. Against living sapients, only changes to
the subject's Willpower, Flaws and mental disorders may be
made, and none of them count as "minor changes". Note
161
 ABERRANT
that in both cases, the changes the nova makes can be
either beneficial or detrimental to the subject as the nova
wishes. Sculpting can be a long process and is typically
done as an extended action. The Storyteller has full discre-
tion as to what the sculpting process will require in terms
of the nova's Mental Attributes and relevant Abilities.
Summon
Dice Pool: Perception + Pneuma Manipulation
Range: Special
Area: N/A
Duration: Maintenance
The nova can summon a spirit to him and - if all goes
well - temporarily restrict its behavior so that it does not
become an immediate threat to the nova and those around
him. A contested power roll is made against the target
spirit's Willpower. If the nova scores even one net success,
the target spirit is brought into quantum space within
(Quantum) meters of the nova at a pre-chosen point of his
choosing. The degree of behavioral restriction depends
on the number of net successes scored, as per the chart
below. Note that the nova has full control over how much
restriction he applies to the target spirit. This technique
can be used to confer with and aid friendly spirits as well as
to bind hostile ones.
Successes Restriction
One The spirit cannot act against the
nova in any way; any others present
are fair game.
Two The spirit must truthfully answer any
and all questions put to it by the
nova or others.
Three The spirit must perform one action
of the novas choosing, following
the order closely both in spirit and
to the letter, without twisting the
intent in any way.
Four The spirit must perform a long-term
duty of the novas choice with the
same restrictions as above, with a
maximum duration of (Quantum +
power rating) decades.
Five+ The spirit must perform a long-
term duty as above for (Quantum
+ power rating) centuries.
Alternatively, the spirit can be
permanently prevented from
taking any action against a chosen
individual or group.
162 Appendix #3: The Discarnate
After the duration of the summoning has expired, the
spirit will usually return to wherever it was before the nova
summoned it. There are two exceptions to this. First, if the
nova has bound a spirit to perform some long-term duty it
will leave the nova's presence to begin that task upon expi-
ration. Second, the spirit will be unable to go anywhere if
it's been imprisoned with the Vault technique (see below).
It should also be noted that this technique is an excellent
way for the nova to make enemies among the spirits if
used unwisely.
Transplant
Dice Pool: Manipulation + Pneuma Manipulation
Range: (Quantum + power rating) meters
Area: N/A
Duration: Instant
The nova can remove and reinstall the noetic tem-
plates of living creatures, much like baseline humans
remove and install the operating systems of computers.
The nova can also convert noetic templates into ghosts
and do the reverse with any spirit. All changes made with
this technique are permanent.
The process of removing a noetic template from a
living creature only requires a simple power roll if the
subject is unconscious. If the subject is conscious and
unwilling, the power roll is contested and made against
the subject's Willpower. Only two successes are required
to remove a noetic template. A removed noetic template
can be held in stasis by the nova for (power rating) hours
before it must be installed in a body, converted into a
ghost or imprisoned with the Vault technique (see below).
Installing a noetic template only requires scoring two
successes on the power roll and a suitable lifeform for it
to inhabit. Said lifeform must be alive and can be either
an empty sapient or a sufficiently complex animal. Only
animals that can be boosted to near-sapience (Aberrant:
The New Flesh pp. 61-62) can house a sapient noetic
template. On Earth, that category includes most mammals,
birds, cephalopods and certain species of monitor lizards.
A sapient noetic template installed in an animal can either
posess the animal or have no control over it at all as the
nova desires. If installed into an empty sapient body, a
noetic template will retain all Abilities from its previous
incarnation, although regaining full Physical-based Abilites
will take (10 - successes) days as it gets used to its new
body. Psionic and Inspired capabilities are also carried
over, and are regained in (10 - successes) hours.
Converting a noetic template into a spirit - and the
reverse - requires only a power roll if the subject is willing
or unconscious. Otherwise a contested power roll against
the subject's Willpower is required. The number of suc-
cesses scored determines how well the conversion from
 ABERRANT
noetic template to spirit goes. With one success the new
spirit loses some memories of its previous existence. At two
successes there is no memory loss and the new spirit is the
equivalent of a beginning psion. Three successes doubles
the number of psionic Mode dots the new spirit gains.
That is tripled at four successes and quadrupled at five
successes. The nova has full control over whether the new
spirit gains any expanded psionic capability beyond the
two success level, however. Converting a spirit into a noetic
template follows the same formula but removes psionic
Mode dots. Once the spirit has lost all of its former mode
dots, only one additional success is required to convert it
from an extremely weak spirit to a noetic template suitable
for installation.
Vault
Dice Pool: Ability + Pneuma Manipulation
Range: (Quantum + power rating) meters
Area: N/A
Duration: Special
The nova can imprison a spirit or living sapient's noetic
template within a small material object. This requires a
contested power roll against the target's Willpower. In the
case of a spirit, using one of its anchors adds +1 to the
spirit's difficulties on its Willpower roll. In both cases, if the
target wins it is automatically Dazed (Aberrant core book
p. 229) but remains free. In case of a tie, the target is at
+2 difficulties on all rolls for the next turn due to disorien-
tation. If the nova wins, the target (or its noetic template) is
drawn into the vault. This technique cannot be used against
novas, aberrants and other eximorphic beings, even if the
nova has the "Affects Novas" Extra. Due to their noetic
templates being fused into their quantum matrices, there's
simply nothing there for this technique to catch. Don't even
bother making a power roll, it's wasted effort.
As spirits have only a tenuous link to quantum space-
time, it is essentially held in stasis inside the vault. The
number of successes scored by the nova determines how
long the vault will function while holding a spirit, as seen
below.
Success Duration
One One year
Two One decade
Three Fifty years
Four One century
Five One millennia
Appendix #3: The Discarnate
The noetic templates of living sapients are much
harder to retain within a vault, as reflected on the duration
chart below. A target whose noetic template is imprisoned
in a vault is still alive and can function, but loses all capacity
for initiative and personal drive. The target cannot regain
temporary Willpower, Psi or Inspiration points and automat-
ically fails all rolls made for actions that would conflict with
the nova's wishes. The target does not even have to know
what the nova's wishes are - the nova "hardwires" them
into the vault.
Success Duration
One One week
Two One month
Three Six months
Four One year
Five One decade
Aside from locking up bothersome spirits and gaining
extreme leverage over living sapients, the main benefit of
using this technique is that it allows the nova to quickly
purge his own temporary Taint or that of other novas.
This process requires the nova to spend twice the normal
quantum point cost for this power and make a power roll.
For every two successes scored the nova - or his patient -
will lose one point of temporary Taint. As the process uses
the noetic energy inside the vault as a catalyst, it is very
destructive to the prisoner. That spirit or noetic template
will lose one dot of permanent Willpower, Psi or Inspiration
for every point of temporary Taint purged by the nova. If
a spirit reaches zero permanent Willpower or Psi in this
manner, it is destroyed. If a noetic template reaches zero
permanent Willpower, Psi or Inspiration it is destroyed and
the targeted sapient dies for no reason readily apparent to
conventional medical science.
In both cases, a prisoner of a vault cannot regain
temporary Willpower points, Psi points or Inspiration points
until it is freed by outside action. Exorcism of the vault will
free the prisoner, although exorcists who are not novas
with Pneuma Manipulation will have a difficulty penalty of
+2 on their Exorcism rolls. Physical destruction of the vault
will also work, although it will also banish an imprisoned
spirit. Freed prisoners will have to regain their temporary
Willpower, Psi or Inspiration points naturally, as regaining
their freedom will have no ill effect on the nova.
163
 ABERRANT
Ward Willpower Corruption
Dice Pool: Intelligence + Pneuma Manipulation Dice Pool: Manipulation + Pneuma Manipulation
Range: N/A Range: (Quantum + power rating) x 5 meters
Area: (Quantum + power rating) x 10 meters Area: N/A
Duration: Maintenance Duration: Special
The nova can set up an intangible barrier that dis- This technique turns the Willpower of spirits or living
suades spirits and/or living sapients and animals from sapients into a weapon that the nova can use against
attempting to pass through it. The successes scored on them. The nova spends the required quantum points
the power roll determines the strength of the ward, which and makes a power roll in a resisted action against the
has two layers. Subjects attempting to pass through the victim's Willpower. If the nova scores more successes, he
first layer must make a contested Willpower roll against can cause a temporary dysfunction in a spirit's form or the
the ward. Failing the roll means that the subject imme- noetic template of a living sapient. If the target spends any
diately leaves the vicinity and will now consciously avoid temporary Willpower points, they count as botches instead
the warded area. A tie indicates that the subject does not of automatic successes. Nova targets with Mega-Willpower
flee but won't go any closer. If the subject wins, it can pass are automatically immune to this technique. The duration
through to the second layer. If the subject is a spirit, it of this technique is determined by the number of suc-
suffers (power rating) levels of aggravated damage as long cesses scored as per the chart below.
as it remains in contact with the ward. If the subject is a
living creature, it must immediately make another con-
Success Duration
tested Willpower roll against the ward. If the ward wins, the
subject loses (power rating) dots of permanent Willpower. One One turn
Animals will die as a result of being reduced to zero per- Two One scene
manent Willpower. Living sapients will become functionally Three One episode
non-sapient and possibly dead as described in the Blast
Four One year
technique listing seen above.
Five One decade

Extras: Affects Novas (All techniques that can affect

living sapients except Vault can be used on novas).

164 Appendix #3: The Discarnate

 Appendix #4:
The Doyen
Doyen: noun, originally French.
1- the most respected or prominent person in a partic-
ular field, or
2- the senior member, as in age, rank, or experience, of
a group, class, profession, etc.
As fans of the Trinity gameline well know, there is a
more or less covert agency behind much of the intrigue
and conflicts of Earth's 22nd Century - the advanced alien
species known to the Proxies, a few other psions and the
higher echelons of Aeon as the Doyen. These beings
of almost-pure noetic energy are near-immortal. Many
individual Doyen are older than Terran multicellular life, as
a civilization they predate the ignition of Earths Sun. Their
original star system was abandoned long ago, as their
home star is likely now a white dwarf. They are powerful
psions, and their noetic biotechnology is understandably
far in advance of anything produced by either the alien Qin
or by the human psions of Earth's Noetic Era. These aliens
are one of the most important threats to humanity in the
entire Aeon Continuum, and they have not been outlined in
anything but the broadest of details.
Until now.
Here we will put forth our best attempt to describe
these behind-the-scenes puppetmasters, their civilization
and their technology. Their biology and psychology are
examined, complete with the consequences both have for
their culture. Finally, we offer suggestions as to how Sto-
rytellers may use them in any Aeon Continuum chronicle,
with special attention paid to the Nova Age.
As they have for aeons, the Doyen are waiting.
The Elders
Little is known about the evolutionary origins of the
primitive Doyen. They were once flesh and circulatory
fluid of some sort like other biological xenosapients, and
were carbon-based. The early Doyen were intensely social
sapients with a verbal language and basic senses similar to
those of Humanity. Their psychology was somewhat alien
to that of humans, though. The proto-Doyen were fairly low
on their planet's food chain, and shared their environment
with many predatory species that saw them as tasty prey. In
practical terms, a quick death was waiting for them at every
turn. This resulted in four major psychological develop-
ments. First, they developed a sense of group identity so
strong that it reached the point of xenophobia. Anything
and everything outside the group was seen as either a
potential threat or a disposable resource. Second, the
proto-Doyen developed what humans would consider an
inborn pathological cowardice. Risks were never to be will-
ingly taken, as doing so was the Doyen equivalent of play-
ing Russian Roulette. Third, paranoia became a hallmark of
all Doyen thought, which was inevitable given their environ-
ment. Fourth, their mental development was accelerated.
Only the smartest could think of new ways to survive, only

Untold Origins
We have chosen to keep many details about the Doyens origins as vague as possible for one specific reason:
to give the Storytellers as much free rein as possible when using them in their own versions of the Aeon Continuum.
As far as their impact on your chronicle is concerned, knowing exactly which star system and biosphere the primitive
Doyen evolved in simply does not matter very much. Keep in mind that both as a species and a civilization, the
Doyen have existed for five billion years, which is impossibly old by human standards. Likewise, while they are not a
true intergalactic civilization, the Doyen have had the entire Milky Way Galaxy and its associated dwarf galaxies to
explore and exploit for quite some time. Within that huge region, the Doyen can be wherever the Storyteller wants
them to be. This also applies to the Doyens evolutionary origins. They are or were naturally psionic, products of
an alien evolution, carbon-based organic lifeforms and had genetic material that is somewhat compatible (through
genetic engineering) with that of Humanity. Aside from that, there are no constraints as to what the Doyen could
have been like before they transformed themselves into noetic energy beings.

Appendix #4: The Doyen 165

 ABERRANT
the most quick-witted could adapt to new threats as they
presented themselves. Personal charisma and the ability to
manipulate other proto-Doyen were also strongly selected
for, as they both aided group survival. Thus these alien
beings eventually managed to invent technology, mastered
their environment and developed a civilization.
The culture of the proto-Doyen was viciously com-
petitive, although conflicts within a group were almost
always political and non-violent. The rationale was that
the larger one's group was, the less likely one would have
to risk doing anything dangerous. Even at this primitive
stage, only a rare few psychotics among the proto-Doyen
were capable of committing violence - much less murder -
within their own groups. Exile was the favored method of
dealing with such individuals, and considered worse than
a simple execution. A proto-Doyen alone in the wilderness
would die a thousand deaths from fear before meeting
its eventual demise. Such examples served to strengthen
the bonds of a group's social hierarchy quite well. Con-
flicts between groups were more a matter of negotiation,
with direct violence between groups being rare. Indirect
violence - especially causing harm through traps or decep-
tion - was always the preferred method of Doyen warfare.
Managing to manipulate another group to fight against a
group that threatened one's own was seen as an especially
praiseworthy tactic.
Sometime later in their development, certain pro-
to-Doyen began manifesting psionic powers. These
beings quickly came to dominate their groups, which now
had advantages that the non-psionic proto-Doyen had
no hope of matching. It did not take many generations
for the psionic proto-Doyen to outcompete their rivals,
leading to the point where the non-psionic proto-Doyen
became extinct. This development also led to a new view
of themselves as one great group instead of thousands of
competing groups. War between these early Doyen ceased
as they turned their efforts towards achieving total control
over their world's ecology. With their world's wildlife no
longer a threat, the early Doyen discovered how to exploit
those creatures' biology to serve their own ends. And so
the early Doyen developed noetic biotechnology. For a
time life was good for the early Doyen as they raised their
civilization to new heights of development in culture, tech-
nology and psionic prowess. They had broken their world
like a wild beast and tamed it to their desires. Their rate of
reproduction also declined by this time, as Doyen young
were no longer likely to die from disease or predation
as they were in the past. As a unified civilization, they no
longer had any outside groups to threaten their continued
survival. They were correct about the former, but deeply
mistaken about the latter.
166 Appendix #4: The Doyen
First Contact and Xenocide
It is said by some that ignorance is bliss. That was
certainly true for the early Doyen, as their ignorance was
irretrievably shattered when their clairsentient astronomers
noticed the arrival of a spacecraft into their home star
system. The Doyen had not yet developed any "manned"
space travel capabilities, as they thought of space travel
as being extremely dangerous and best left to unmanned
probes. This event brought their dormant xenophobia
back into full flower, as they saw the alien vessel only as an
immediate threat to their species. Old records of inter-
group conflicts between groups of the pre-Unification
period were re-examined, and a typically Doyen plan was
made. Whoever these alien intruders were and whatever
their reason for traveling to the Doyen's home star system,
they could not be allowed to leave... ever. The attack was
swift and brutal, as the Doyens' most skilled telepaths used
augmentation bioware to remotely infiltrate the aliens'
minds. After programming the vessel's autopilot to settle
into an orbit around the Doyen home planet, the enslaved
aliens shut down their own life support systems. With the
aliens safely dead, the Doyen readied themselves to study
this novel threat and the wealth of knowledge their ship
carried. What they learned would change the course of
galactic history, and not for the better.
The captured alien vessel hailed from one of several
starfaring civilizations that roamed the ancient Milky Way
Galaxy. These star cultures explored, traded or fought with
one another, leaving the galaxy a chaotic wilderness rem-
iniscent of the proto-Doyen's earliest days. After learning
all they could from their alien prize, the Doyen leadership
debated over what to do. A consensus was eventually
reached, and the Doyen used their new knowledge to
form a plan for galactic dominance. As the most powerful
psionic species in the galaxy the Doyen had an edge over
their unknowing foes, and they exploited it ruthlessly. It
was long, tedious and difficult in the extreme, but the plan
was executed without serious error.
Over the next several millennia the Doyen waged a
covert war of espionage across the galaxy. Doyen clairsen-
tients found isolated alien spacecraft whose crews could
be telepathically manipulated into becoming unknowing
quislings. Interstellar wars between targeted civilizations
were fomented whenever feasible. Other civilizations were
pushed to the edge of extinction - and over it - thanks to
some well-placed Doyen sabotage. Only one civilization
managed to survive the Doyens' indirect warfare, escaping
from their dying homeworld to the stars using a vast fleet
of colonization arks fitted with an experimental stardrive.
That fleet vanished from the Milky Way Galaxy, which
suited the Doyen just fine. At the end, all of the targeted
civilizations had been shattered, their accumulated wealth
 ABERRANT
and knowledge picked over by the Doyen like Terran vul- achieving political dominance at the time. Development of
tures. There were no advanced sapients left in the galaxy to their noetic biotechnology was almost as important, as the
threaten them. use of hard technology became stigmatized. That in turn
The Doyen had prevailed. required Doyen scientists to develop biotech equivalents
of every hard technology known to them. Combined, these
two endeavors bore fruit as the most psionically potent
Renaissance and Dominion Doyen began the transcendence process. These volunteers
The Doyens' scientific and technological prowess
also happened to be elderly, so their fear of dying over-
grew in leaps and bounds as they learned from the stolen
whelmed their fear of the risky and untried noetic transfor-
archives of their victims. Their skill in creating noetic bio-
mation. With their entire species watching them over the
technology rose to new heights as technical data from the
Doyen information networks, these first pioneers entered
stolen alien archives was used to match the hardtech-based
their biotech conversion tanks. The transformations were
might of their fallen enemies. A handful of extrastellar
successful, and the incarnate Doyen were awed to see the
colony worlds were founded, resulting in a brief flowering
pioneers rise up from the tanks as one-meter-diameter
of Doyen cultural progress as established hierarchies on the
spheres of charged plasma sheathed in telekinetic force.
homeworld had to either readjust or collapse. For a time,
Such was the debut of the Doyen as beings of (almost) pure
the Doyen surveyed their newly-won territories - namely the
noetic energy in the Aeon Continuum.
entire Milky Way and all of its attendant dwarf galaxies and
With the transcendence process proven to be safe
star clusters - taking careful note of the young biospheres
and successful, even the youngest Doyen made achieving
likely to produce sapient life in the future.
it their lives' goal. With a stable population of a few billion
When primitive sapients were encountered, Doyen
individuals and death from old age no longer a factor,
xenologists would attempt to steer their development in
Doyen culture took a sharp turn towards what humans
directions where they would not pose any future threat to
would consider a monastic way of life. It took a few million
the Doyen. When that was not possible, they engineered
years, but the day did come when the last few flesh-bound
all sorts of disasters to weed out recalcitrant species. Spe-
Doyen went into the conversion tanks to join their tran-
cies with nascent psionic potential were subtly groomed
scended peers. The Doyen had finally overcome their own
to become Doyen servitor races, to handle future threats
biology and were now beyond the reach of time, ageless
that the Doyen considered themselves too advanced to
immortals - or so they thought. Now that they could plausi-
deal with directly. In other words, they wanted disposable
bly present themselves as higher beings to unsophisticated
cannon fodder to act as janissaries for them. One such spe-
sapients, the Doyen sent agents to the dozens of primitive
cies that the Doyen would mold in later times was the pro-
alien civilizations that had sprung up during their Great
to-Qin, from the 47 Tucanae cluster. Planets which lacked
Transcendence. Presenting themselves as gods - Doyen
life with the potential for sapience - at that time - would be
had always favored using religious belief as a means of
given only sporadic surveys over the coming epochs.
social control and manipulation - they sent their message
The Doyen now had more pressing concerns than
to priests, shamans and "wise ones" throughout the Milky
keeping close tabs on primitive alien lifeforms. They had
Way and its dwarf galaxy neighbors. Saying that the results
become masters of the galaxy and were the pinnacle of
of this galactic public relations blitz were mixed is an under-
evolution - or so they thought - yet they were still prey to all
statement. While this evangelization effort found fertile soil
the frailties of organic lifeforms throughout the galaxy. They
in some alien cultures; it was ignored, rejected as a bad
were still at risk of suffering injury or sickness, they grew
joke or condemned as heresy in the others.
feeble with advanced age. Worst of all, they were still living
After having more or less sequestered themselves from
under the threat that had haunted the lives of their earliest
contact with other alien sapients, the Doyen were taken
sapient ancestors - death. Spurred on by their most ancient
aback at their failure to convince all of the primitives of
dread, they sought a way to achieve immortality through
their authority. Having adapted their thinking to operate
psionics. After a million years of noetic research, they finally
on the scale of Deep Time instead of the frenzied pace
found a method that seemed to be everything the Doyen
of mere organic lifeforms, the Doyen leadership debated
desired - a means to escape their own mortality.
for several centuries over what to do with the recalictrant
xenocultures. They were currently too primitive to pose
Transcendence and Transgression any sort of immediate threat to the Doyen, yet they would
Preparation for the transcendence process became an develop quickly enough to do so if left unmolested. They
all-consuming obsession among the Doyen. The pursuit of decided to turn certain of the compliant xenocultures into
reaching their fullest psionic potential even overshadowed more servitor races to do battle on the Doyen's behalf as

Appendix #4: The Doyen 167

 ABERRANT
needed. Under the guise of advancing the cultures of their
"disciples", the Doyen imparted psionic potential and
primitive biotechnology to them. With corrective measures
put into place, the Doyen returned to what would become
their eternal - and impossible - quest.
Plus a Change, Plus C'est La
Mme Chose
From the Doyen perspective, all has gone more or
less smoothly from that point up into recent times. Finding
out that they weren't truly immortal was a shock, as tran-
scendence did nothing to curb the occurrence of either
lethal disease or violent psychosis among the Doyen. The
first murder among the transcended Doyen shocked the
species as a whole, as they had thought themselves to
have grown out of such savagery. The ancient practice of
exile from the group's territory - now defined as the Doyen
home systems - was revived to dispose of such deviants.
Exile also became popular as a way to remove dissident
factions (read: the losers of the Doyens' political conflicts)
from proper Doyen society and its resources. Many of the
least obssessive Doyen even committed suicide out of
sheer ennui. Combined with the expected deaths result-
ing from accidents involving extremely powerful biotech
devices, this has made for a gradual decrease in the Doyen
population over the millennia. By the time period in which
the Aeon Continuum gamelines are set, their total popula-
tion hovers at approximately one billion Doyen.
Doyen culture has remained monastic and obsessed
with furthering their own psionic development and evolv-
ing beyond the material level of reality. Doyen beliefs
on the noetic level of reality hold that it is an empty void
of random noetic patterns that only they are advanced
enough to have any hope of entering. Once there, they will
be able to shape that reality in any way they see fit. This bit
of self-serving dogma has effectively become the basis of a
species-wide delusion among the Doyen, as they have no
hard information or experience with noetic space. Likewise,
memetics are the only true discarnates (see Appendix #3)
they have ever encountered. In the absence of hard evi-
dence, belief became a substitute for empirical truth.
While their current disembodied state is effective
at providing life without aging, the Doyen have found
it less than ideal. Their plasma-forms are not quite what
they had aspired to become. As they still have a physical
component to their bodies - an information-rich organic
fluid - they remain vulnerable to disease, injury and death.
Beings wholly composed of noetic energy would suffer
none of that - or so Doyen thought and dogma hold to
be true. They came very close to becoming that with their
initial transcendence effort; their new physiology is directly
168 Appendix #4: The Doyen
dependent on their noetic templates and autonomic uses
of their psionic powers serve in place of cellular walls,
muscle tissues and nervous systems. The Doyen are now
convinced that their current state of being is only an inter-
mediary step in the transcendence process, which can be
refined still further to achieve their ultimate goal. This task
has consumed the efforts of the Doyens' best noeticists
ever since the obvious flaws of the original transcendence
process became self-evident. As of yet, no substantial
progress has been made.
Doyen Civilization Now
What follows is a brief overview of the major aspects
of the Doyen as they currently exist.
Territory
The Doyen occupy six planets - called the Core
Worlds - in a close group of five star systems and main-
tain manned strategic outposts in a few dozen other star
systems. One of those planets is the Doyen homeworld,
which was teleported into its current star system before its
original star could engulf it in the process of becoming a
red giant. Most Doyen have only a passing proficiency with
the Teleportation Modes and consider travel by spacecraft
to be a necessary evil. Combined with the end of Doyen
population growth when they transcended, these factors
have prevented much in the way of manned space explo-
ration. Surveys of the Milky Way, its dwarf galaxies and star
clusters are all performed by clairsentient astronomers.
Biology
As stated in several Trinity books, the Doyen are now
beings mostly comprised of noetically-charged plasma.
Their biological component can no longer exist without a
highly developed noetic pattern. In turn, the noetic pattern
of a Doyen cannot exist without its biological component.
Doyen do not age, but they can still suffer and die from
injury and disease. Likewise their physical needs are slight.
They do need an atmosphere warm enough to keep their
biological fluid from freezing, cool enough to keep them
from evaporating and with enough pressure to keep from
overstressing their skins of telekinetic force. Doyen also
use their biotech devices to synthesize liquid nutrients
to replenish their biological fluid, which is only required
every few centuries barring injury or disease. They can
and do sleep, but only to refill their Psi point pools and
regain temporary Willpower instead of any actual physical
requirement.
Only one of the drawbacks to this state of being is
known to the Doyen in all the Aeon Continuum timelines:
the Doyen have lost the capability to reproduce them-
 ABERRANT
selves. "Transcended" Doyen are naturally sterile; it is
unknown just what form of sexual reproduction the Doyen
used during their incarnate times. The early attempts to
create new Doyen through artificial means failed miserably
and were quickly abandoned. This didn't bother the Doyen
very much - like everything else in their society, breeding
young was an intensely political affair. Parents were often
grouped together for arranged matings, with the resulting
young being raised in a communal creche of their political
faction. The human concepts of family, mate-bonding and
parent-child bonding are utterly alien to the Doyen. With
the apparent immortality granted by the transcendence
process, all but a few Doyen were glad to be finished with
the wretched business. Having spent millennia as noetic
energy beings, most Doyen now find the concept of bio-
logical reproduction to be completely revolting. Xenosa-
pient species that still practice such methods are seen as
primitives at best and near-beasts at worst.
Psychology
By the period of Earth's Inspired, Nova and Noetic
Ages, the Doyens' psychology has hardly changed at all
from ancient times except for growing ever more egotis-
tical, manipulative, stodgy and self-serving than before.
Xenophobia, utter cowardice, obsession and paranoia
remain their most notable psychological traits. Among
themselves, Doyen don't put much stock in concepts of
trust, loyalty, friendship or personal honor. At its very core,
a Doyen truly cares for nothing but itself. Keeping their
own (telekinetic) skins intact, improving and/or maintaining
their social position, getting others to do anything danger-
ous and refining their psionic powers is all that matters. The
former three "values" have resulted in the Doyen becom-
ing master manipulators, although they are at their best
when manipulating their own kind. They have an imperfect
understanding of alien psychology, which is a limiting factor
when they attempt to manipulate xenosapients such as
humans.
Other "charming" traits of the Doyen psyche include
hypocrisy, arrogance, conceit, pretension, vanity, nar-
row-mindedness, vengefulness, dogmatism and paternal-
ism towards the younger xenosapient species. The Doyen
consider themselves to be far superior to all xenosapient
species and take offense at the idea that such beings would
question their "wisdom". From the Doyen point of view,
only they can see the big picture of what is going on in the
universe and their actions are always in the best interests
of the younger xenospecies. And as said xenospecies are
mostly ignorant of what's actually going on in the galaxy,
their opinions are just not worth listening to, much less
considering. The idea that those opinions might actually be
correct never crosses a Doyen's mind, even in their wildest
Appendix #4: The Doyen
speculations.
Another important thing about Doyen psychology
is that their transcendence reformatted their minds to
perceive time differently from the younger xenospecies.
This lets them operate over extremely long periods of
time, which is a necessity for being ageless. Doyen are the
among the best deliberate long-term thinkers in the Aeon
Continuum, capable of making master plans that span
centuries. Unfortunately for them, that benefit came with
two heavy costs. First, the Doyen have lost the capacity
for quick mental reactions, meaning that they're horrible
at things like "on the spot" thinking, adapting to rapid-
ly-changing conditions, dealing with surprises and making
correct snap decisions. In game terms, they have an effec-
tive Wits rating of one dot for all rolls where quick mental
reactions are required. They still use their normal Wits
Attribute for all other purposes including initiative. Second,
they no longer comprehend the apparent "impatience" of
the younger xenospecies, most of whom are evolved to
perceive time similarly to humans.
Culture
As it is both geared to operate continuously over
long periods of Deep Time and is instinctively fearful of
change, Doyen culture can only be considered reactionary
and stagnant by human standards. Maintaining the status
quo always comes first in this society, even at the cost of
preventing changes that would be beneficial coming from
within society. The only exception to this is when adopting
a change to society must be done to ensure its survival
as a whole. In most Aeon Continuum timelines this hasn't
happened since their mass transcendence event. A handy
visual metaphor for Doyen culture would be the movement
of glaciers - they can sit still for centuries or even millennia
before internal pressures and gravity forces them to shift.
As stated earlier, Doyen culture is now monastic in
nature, somewhat similar to the Taoist monasteries of
Ancient China on Earth. Doyen daily life is austere but not
ascetic, as their transcended state has left them with only
intellectual and social pleasures to enjoy. Attaining their
ultimate psionic potential is what their culture has deemed
to be the life goal of every right-thinking Doyen. All other
activity is intended to enable that activity. This includes per-
forming maintenance and upkeep of their biotech, fulfilling
and invoking social obligations, performing noetic research,
dealing with aliens and anything else that would keep the
Doyens' attention focused away from their obsession. All
art is psionic in nature and intended to convey accepted
Doyen thought and provide greater insight into the noetic
Totality. Anything that deviates from accepted Doyen
thought is considered both heretical and treasonous and is
quickly suppressed.
169
 ABERRANT
Politics plays an extremely important part in every Instead they are drafted into it by their superiors in the
Doyen's individual life. It determines which civilian order civilian orders, for any number of reasons. The methods
they belong to, their access to certain forms of intellectual used to ensure the compliance of new conscripts include
pleasures (approved and otherwise) and their basic place in invoked social obligations, the repayment of social favors,
the pecking order of Doyen society outside of their mon- the threat of exile for losing in a political conflict or being
asteries. Despite their species-wide policy of non-violence accused of being a criminal (falsely or not), telepathic
towards their own kind, Doyen paranoia ensures that the control and simple blackmail. Tours of duty can last for
concept of trust simply does not apply to Doyen outside of hundreds of millennia, which means endless time spent
their own political faction. Things are only somewhat better training, doing maintenance and performing monitor duty
within one's own faction, as while trust can be established, at their extrastellar observation outposts. On the other
it's always conditional at best. pseudopod, all of that makes for excellent ways to practice
their psionics and further develop their noetic templates. It
is no surprise that all Military Order members who survive
The Ruling Council to muster out - which is almost all of them - get to join
As a collection of what can only be considered
a hermitage order immediately afterwards. All in all, this
monastic orders, the Doyen are ruled by an interlocked
makes for more than a little disaffection with Doyen ortho-
collection of "religious" hierarchies with a Ruling Council
doxy in the Military Order. They are some of the Criminal
of faction leaders at the highest level of government. Indi-
Order's best customers for contraband of all sorts, just as
viduals must scheme, connive and backstab their way up
often out of sheer mind-numbing boredom as from actual
in order to advance while keeping a close watch on their
need. Familiarity with combat drugs - which the Ruling
own underlings. Often, the best a Doyen can do is "tread
Council doesn't even know exist - is an well-guarded secret
water", expending serious effort to maintain its position
within the Military Order.
and rank. As the Doyen no longer age, this leaves only
All that said, the Military Order dreads having to
three ways for one of them to lose its social rank. In order
face an actual threat. The only reason they've become
of frequency, those ways are: losing in a political conflict,
so adept at simulated combat is that they know that it is
being proven incompetent and voluntary retirement to a
not real. Engaging in physical combat is seen as a des-
hermitage order. The latter option allows Doyen to join an
peration move, as Doyen much prefer to pilot biotech
ascetic order where they can focus on their psionic devel-
fightercraft, other battlecraft and VARGs when in combat.
opment to the exclusion of all else.
Using biotech weapons of mass destruction is even more
In practice, Doyen government is corrupt in the
preferable as it allows them to remain far away from the
extreme, with the equivalent of "old boys' networks" and
killzone that they are targeting, especially if those weapons
underhanded dealmaking in metaphorical smoke-filled
are delivered by teleportation. It is for this reason that the
back rooms being where the actual work is done. Those
Military Order has entered into a covert alliance with the
Doyen with government positions are allowed to enjoy
Doyen Scientific and Criminal Orders so that they will have
things that are prohibited to common civilian Doyen. This
access to new weapons and military-grade technologies
mainly means license to possess contraband intellectual
that the Ruling Council would prohibit from being devel-
pleasures and is a double-edged gift. While Doyen do
oped if they knew about them. Whenever an actual threat
find such enjoyable, it also provides their superiors with a
arrives, the Military Order knows that they will be the ones
handly means of disposal should their underlings pose any
to face it. They want to have whatever edges that can be
sort of threat to them.
acquired on hand and ready to be used, regardless of what
the Ruling Council thinks.
The Military Order
Though seemingly a contradiction in terms, the Doyen
actually do have a Military Order that answers directly to
The Intelligence Bureau
As with the Military Order, no Doyen willingly becomes
the Ruling Council. Aside from maintaining their biotech
an agent of the Intelligence Bureau. Unlike the Military
arsenals and performing in virtual reality combat simu-
Order, conscripts for the Bureau are not those who are
lations, they haven't had to actually do anything that a
merely unfortunate enough to be tricked, coerced or
human military would consider "real soldiering" - or even
blackmailed into service. Instead, they are those Doyen
slightly dangerous - for many millions of years. Which is
who their superiors consider to be too clever, devious and/
exactly how the Military Order prefers things to be. Even
or manipulative for their own good. In short, they're the
without any actual danger to face, no Doyen has ever
most likely threats to their superiors' own positions and
willingly joined the Military Order throughout its history.
ranks, and must be culled from the civilian orders in order

170 Appendix #4: The Doyen

 ABERRANT
to preserve the status quo. Most Bureau agents serve as a
combination of police officers, domestic spies and censors
among the civilian orders. They are always on the lookout
for signs of heresy and treason (which the Doyen consider
to be the same thing), criminal activity (although officially,
crime does not exist among the Doyen) and contraband.
The rare incidences of violent crime among Doyen are also
under their jurisdiction.
All of that is straightforward enough except for one
thing: the Bureau is corrupt and has long been compro-
mised by the Criminal Order. Those Doyen too clever,
devious and/or manipulative for their own good make
excellent recruits for the Criminal Order, as they see it as
a safe means of revenge against their former superiors. In
theory, the Bureau enforces Doyen law & dogma to the
letter. In practice, they look the other way when non-violent
"crimes" are committed if the perpetrators are sufficiently
discreet about it. Those they do catch are sometimes
offered advice on how to better keep things under wraps
if they are savvy enough not to have bought into the
official propaganda produced by the Ruling Council and
the Civilian Orders. The price for this is to become covert
associates of the Criminal Order and to be on call for the
exchange of reciprocal secret favors. The rest are accused
and sent off to join the Military Order posthaste. Violent
criminals are dealt with by the book and exiled, as the
Criminal Order considers their continued existence in
Doyen society as bad for business.
The few Bureau agents who are not recruited by
the Criminal Order are instead trained to infiltrate alien
civilizations, gather intelligence and perform all sorts of
covert operations in hostile territory. While the quality of
their training hasn't diminished over the millennia - Doyen
paranoia and xenophobia saw to that - they have been out
of action for quite a long time. Most of their reconnais-
sance missions amount to little more than "check out how
the primitives are destroying their own pathetic excuse for
a civilization this time". Only rarely are they directed to
intervene with a primitive civilization, typically to either aid
one that has accepted Doyen guidance or deal with one
that hasn't. Those missions are more akin to gardening than
anything else; aiding the "useful" plants and removing the
weeds.
The Scientific Order
All Doyen with scientific training end up in the smallest
civilian order, where Doyen censors can more easily watch
over them. Given how high a priority their culture places on
maintaining the social status quo, all but a few Doyen view
technological progress with suspicion. Unless of course,
embracing that change allows the Doyen to escape or
eliminate something dangerous to their survival, in which
Appendix #4: The Doyen
case a period of rapid technological progress will ensue.
After the threat is dealt with the Doyen leadership allows
their scientists' efforts to be milked for all they're worth.
Once that's finished and a new status quo of Doyen society
is established, they return to controlling and censoring any
and all scientific research that could disrupt it.
For Doyen scientists, this state of affairs is only barely
tolerable. Their scientific curiosity is constantly being driven
to new heights by their innate paranoia, which is exces-
sive even by Doyen standards. They can easily imagine
the appearance of new threats to the Doyen that their
leadership will have no idea how to deal with. The Ruling
Council are considered the equivalent of Terran ostriches,
burying their metaphorical heads under the sand instead
of keeping watch for novel threats to their people. Some
Doyen scientists even speculate that the Ruling Council has
been compromised by hostile alien agencies. This shared
level of paranoia ironically makes for an unheard-of level
of mutual trust, loyalty and even friendship in the Scien-
tific Order; as they consider themselves (rightly) as being
under perpetual siege by orthodox Doyen society. As a
result, they've become extremely skilled at dissembling,
especially where their research is concerned. In public,
they present a bland appearance of compliance with the
Ruling Council's restrictions. Among themselves, those
restrictions are flouted without a moment's hesitation.
They have developed enough new technologies to push
Doyen technology up into T13 in some areas, but have
been prevented from doing so due to the requirements of
keeping their researches as covert as is possible. Hence
their covert alliance with the Military and Criminal Orders
- when the threats the Scientific Order has been expecting
finally arrive, they intend to be ready. They will do this by
whatever means necessary.
The Criminal Order
According to the official doctrine of the Ruling Council,
crime among the Doyen simply does not exist. Therefore,
there is no such thing as a Criminal Order as far as the
majority of the Civilian Orders are concerned. Members of
the Criminal Order gladly espouse that official opinion in
public, as it helps them and their operations stay under-
cover. Even their true allegiance to the Criminal Order is
kept secret, as they maintain positions in the other Doyen
Orders as cover identities. Most members of the Criminal
Order are found in the Intelligence Bureau and the civilian
Computation and Transport Orders, although they can be
found throughout the other Civilian Orders. Only the Scien-
tific Order is free from infiltration due to the fact that they
face far too much official scrutiny for the Criminal Order to
feel comfortable with.
The operations run by the Criminal Order is pretty
171
 ABERRANT
Contraband
Orthodox Doyen society is hidebound, repressive and
reactionary. Nowhere is this most evident as in their efforts to
suppress the spread of contraband among their own citizenry.
In Doyen terms, "contraband" is defined as the following -
recreational drugs, any works of art that deviate from accepted
Doyen thought, unapproved (read: factual) historical records,
data on proscribed (read: hard) technologies and all recovered
information from alien civilizations. Investigative journalism is
also taboo to orthodox Doyen, as it could cause untold social
disruption if the practice was left to spread unchecked. All of
this makes contraband highly desirable to those Doyen who are
not content to accept the propaganda and pablum that ortho-
dox Doyen society approves of and distributes. It also gives the
Criminal Order serious political leverage in the most surprising
places...
much limited to the production, smuggling and distribution
of what orthodox Doyen culture deems contraband. Iron-
ically enough, this has made the Criminal Order the only
organization where accurate historical research, authentic
cultural conservation and honest investigative journalism
can be practiced. The leverage that this provides the Crim-
inal Order is considerable, but their leadership has kept it
in reserve. Several select members of the Ruling Council's
subordinates have been replaced with deep-cover agents
of the Criminal Order. Instead of exposing a few members
of the Ruling Council to public disgrace, loss of their social
rank and possible exile, the Criminal Order means to do
that to the entire Ruling Council in one lightning-quick
coup d'etat. They have the covert support of the Intelli-
gence Bureau (most of whom are secretly Criminal Order
members) along with that of the Military and Scientific
Orders. Whether this gambit will be successful or not is
anyone's guess.
The Civilian Orders
These groups comprise the bulk of Doyen society and
are differentiated by their functions. The Architect Order
handles all aspects of building design and construction.
The Entertainer Order produces works of art, government
propaganda and inspirational entertainments, all of which
are tailored to the tastes of orthodox Doyen society. The
Roboticist Order creates and maintains biotech robots of
all sorts, which perform all the required physical labor in
Doyen society. The Conservator Order maintains most of
the original Doyen homeworld as one big habitat for all
of their native biosphere's surviving (and non-threatening)
wildlife. They also provide specimens of the plant-analogs
for many Doyen monasteries who enjoy having ornate
meditation gardens within their walls. The Crafter Order
produces and maintains biotech devices of all sorts except
for weapons, vehicles and robots. The Healer Order is
responsible for all kinds of medical services - including
psychiatry - and has the authority to deal with any and all
threats that could endanger the Doyen public health. They
are also charged with maintaining mental institutions to
house the few Doyen who succumb to nonviolent mental
disorders. The Terraformer Order evaluates, implements
and maintains the changes required to alter alien planets
to Doyen tastes. The Computation Order produces and
maintains all aspects of Doyen computer science, includ-
ing the Doyen computerized communications network.
The Transport Order handles all of transportation outside
of personal Translocation, including all aspects of space
travel. Production and piloting of spacecraft, asteroid
mining and creating unmanned probes are just a few of the
activities falling under their purview. The Computation and
Transport Orders also differ in that all of their members are
also secretly members of the Criminal Order.
The Civilian Orders derive most of their social influ-
ence by tirelessly promoting Doyen orthodoxy. As their
members all live on the Core Worlds and have easy access
to all the benefits of Doyen civilization, they have every

Doyen And Drugs

Doyen orthodoxy frowns on recreational drug use of all kinds, as it is considered a distraction from the ultimate goal of
attaining ones ultimate psionic potential as soon as is possible. Unfortunately, the stresses of Doyen life require some safe way
to vent all of that frustration to prevent the development of mental disorders. The recreational drugs created by the Criminal
Order provide that necessary relief and help Doyen society to function more or less smoothly. The Criminal Order is particular
about what drugs their agents will sell to certain customers. Most Doyen drug users are sold non-addictive and safe drugs that
are comparable to the products of the Nora of 22nd Century Earth. They have also developed what can only be called combat
drugs for the Military Order, the most common one of which is called Instant Courage and temporarily negates a Doyens
innate cowardice. Customers in positions of political influence are sometimes sold highly addictive drugs in order to gain lever-
age over them. Then there are the customers whose activites threaten the Criminal Order and/or its secret allies. Those wor-
thies are given hot doses of drugs intended to produce irreversible mental disorders, with catatonia being a popular choice.

172 Appendix #4: The Doyen

 ABERRANT
reason to do so - dissenting from Doyen orthodoxy is seen
as both treason and heresy, and is a quick way to be con-
scripted into the Military Order. This has rendered Doyen
cultural life bland and somewhat similar to the Stalinist Era
of Soviet Russia on Earth. The fact that Doyen orthodoxy
also makes the masses all the more pliable to the wishes
of the Ruling Council is considered a classic example of
Doyen social engineering and a complete triumph. The
Ruling Council is correct on the former, at least.
Outside Relations
In a word, "antagonistic". While millennia of life in
their disembodied state has made most Doyen dismissive
of outside threats, their own political and social conflicts
have kept these natural cowards all too familiar with the
emotion of fear. They have decided on a policy of covert
reconnaissance of the "unenlightened" (read: not sub-
verted) xenocultures throughout the vicinity of the Milky
Way, and have prepared countermeasures for those most
likely to pose any possible future threat to the Doyen, such
as the Zeps. Even the subverted xenocultures are seen as
potential threats, given that they can still reproduce them-
selves, sometimes at exponential rates. Fortunately their
schedules for surveying primitive xenocultures is infrequent
at best.
Doyen Technology
As befits a determinedly stagnant culture, the tech-
nology of the Doyen has not really advanced - as far as the
Ruling Council knows - ever since their mass transcendence
event. Prior to the 2060s C.E., they are officially a T12
civilization (see "Technology Ratings", on pp. 114-118 of
this book) with retardations in the fields of gravity technol-
ogy (T11) and artificial intelligence (T10). One other point
of interest is that due to widespread cultural prejudice, all
current Doyen technology is noetic biotech in nature.
The Scientific Order has developed several secret
technologies that are much more advanced than what the
Ruling Council would prefer. One historical example of such
a covertly-developed technology was the World-Shifter,
a massive Teleportation biotech device that was used to
move the original Doyen homeworld out of its original
star system and into its current one by means of a gigantic
Transportal effect. This device pushed the Doyen up into
the earliest stages of astronomical engineering and T13.
Unfortunately, the successful use of the World-Shifter also
destroyed it, as Doyen power generation technology wasn't
quite up to the task of powering such a hyper-powerful
artifact in a non-destructive manner. After the World-Shift
was accomplished the plans for the device were classified
on order of the Ruling Council, sealed away and placed in a
Appendix #4: The Doyen
What The Doyen Know About Earth
The Doyen are not totally unaware of Earth; they know
where it is, theyve visited it before and have performed
clairsentient surveys of the primitive lifeforms they found. The
Doyen have visited Earth three times in its entire history. The
first visit was during Earths Devonian Period. The results were
of no interest to Doyen society as a whole and only of passing
interest to Doyen xenologists, who noted some slight potential
in the primitive amphibians humans would later call ichthy-
ostegans.
The second visit was slightly before the end of the Cre-
taceous Period, as Doyen clairsentients had dimly foreseen a
vague possible threat arising from primitive Earths biosphere.
The survey team noted that both Saurornitholestes and Troodon
had evolved larger brains for their body sizes than was average
for dinosaurs and appeared to be evolving toward sapience.
The Ruling Council of the time decided to take no chances
and ordered the obvious threat to be nipped in the bud. The
Doyen survey team altered the orbital trajectory of a convenient
asteroid large enough that its impact would wipe out Saurorni-
tholestes and Troodon before either species could evolve any
further. Lacing the asteroid with a generous amount of radioac-
tive minerals was the icing on the cake. The resulting Chicxulub
Impact triggered the CretaceousPaleogene extinction event,
which killed off much of the biosphere of the time. As insur-
ance that the threat could not reappear, the survey team was
instructed to hunt down and exterminate any large dinosaurs
that survived. Their x-ray laser weapons made short work of
that task, and the survey team reported a completely successful
mission before heading back home.
The Doyens third visit to Earth occured in the late Pleis-
tocene and was prompted by another clairsentient vision,
foretelling the appearance of a new naturally psionic proto-sa-
pient xenospecies. The survey team arrived in haste, only to
personally witness the extinction of the new servitor race they
had hoped to discover. A mutant psionic australopithecine male
had evolved and sired psionic offspring. Unfortunately for the
mutant, gaining psionic capabilities was not accompanied by
any increase in intelligence. The mutants offspring had formed
their own small troop by the time of the Doyens visit, only to
be ambushed and devoured en masse by a bask of crocodiles
as the survey team watched. The survey team gave the mental
equivalent of a shrug, wrote off the mutant australopithecines
as too stupid to survive and transmitted the bad news back to
the Ruling Council. After being ordered to set up a few shielded
bunkers for possible future operations, the survey team did their
work and went home. Since then, the Doyen opinion of Earth
can be summed up as harmless and not of the slightest inter-
est. Doyen in the Trinity timelines have known better since the
2060s, but that will be detailed later.
173
 ABERRANT
secure archive, where they remain to this day.
The Scientific Order has covertly developed working
prototypes of certain T13+ technologies, with the following
provided as a few examples. Medical nanotechnology that
can assemble full-grown bodies from a genetic sample in
days. Biotech equivalents of cybernetic implants, which
can be grown inside the host's body without any need for
installation surgery. Teleportation biotech that does not
require transceivers to either receive or retrieve passen-
gers and/or cargo. Telekinesis-based force fields, some
of the projectors of which are small enough to be worn
into personal combat. Directed energy weapons using
gamma radiation and disintegration weapons that atomize
unprotected matter. There is simply no telling what else
the Scientific Order may have developed in secret - they've
had millions of years of unsupervised R&D time in their lab-
oratories, after all. Covert production facilities have been
established for all of the Scientific Orders' covert products
by the Criminal Order. From there they will be used by
members of the Military Order and agents of the Criminal
Order within the Intelligence Bureau and Civilian Orders
as appropriate. Given an event that could panic their
entire civilization - such as discovering eximorphs - these
renegade Orders could propel the Doyen solidly into T13
territory, barring the already mentioned retardations.
Storyteller Note: The covert R&D activities of the
Scientific Order provides carte blanche for the Storyteller
to equip the Doyen with whatever advanced technologies
she sees fit. This will be especially necessary if they are
to be encountered in an Aberrant chronicle. If the Doyen
are to provide any real challenge to powerful novas and/
or aberrants, they will need to have extremely powerful
biotech "on hand", so to speak. The only limits on this are
the needs of your chronicle and the Doyens' own taboos
regarding certain technologies, as seen below.
A few aspects of Doyen noetic biotechnology deserve
closer attention. As should only be expected of products
bettered through extreme long-term improvement and
refinement, all Doyen biotech devices are practically the
ultimate definitions of reliability and ruggedness. They
also consume less power, require less maintenance and
have remarkably lower Tolerance ratings (Trinity core book
p. 193) than the equivalent devices produced by either
the Qin or Trinity Era human psions. Doyen biotech is
also capable of entering a state of indefinite suspended
animation, which was a necessity as their makers have
essentially unlimited lifespans. If left undisturbed they can
easily be reawakened with a small burst of noetic energy
after any indefinite period of Deep Time and function at
full capacity. Unfortunately, Doyen biotech devices that are
"awake" also require specialized maintenance just like any
other form of noetic biotech. If they do not receive that
maintenance, they will die and become useless after a few
years or until they run out of power, whichever comes first.

Taboo Technologies
Despite being part of a highly advanced technological civilization, the Doyen Scientific Order has refused to develop
certain technologies for various reasons, as described below. Not even the most radical Doyen scientist will dare explore these
fields, as their cultural abhorrence of them is far too great. Breaking these taboos is grounds for a Doyen scientist to be sum-
marily mindwiped and exiled upon exposure.
Gravitic Technology: Ever since their mass transcendence event, the Doyen have felt an instinctual revulsion for any grav-
ity-controlling technology more advanced than their own equivalent of Trinity Era pseudo-gravity. This is due to the conflict
between gravity (one of the four quantum forces) and noetic energy, which the Doyen can sense on a deeply visceral level.
Artificial Intelligence: As paranoid xenophobes with few equals, Doyen scientists have long recognized - and feared - the
possibility that careless tinkering with computer technology might cause it to develop some degree of actual sapience. It is for
this reason that all Doyen computer systems are regularly inspected for signs of spontaneous self-awareness. Theyve only had
one incident of such - about 200 million years ago - but that was one instance too many as far as the Scientific Order is con-
cerned. As a result all Doyen computer technology lacks any capacity for self-direction and is incapable of becoming sapient.
Dry Nanotechnology: Doyen scientists have no trouble with wet nanotechnology, which can only operate in special-
ized vats and requires premade chemical feedstocks in order to function. Such technology is very easy to closely control in a
large variety of ways. As dry nanotechnology requires none of that in order to function, Doyen scientists consider it a disaster
waiting to happen. No Doyen scientist to date has ever been desperate enough to defy the edict against this form of nano-
technology.
Hardtech: The pride the Doyen take in having achieved their transcended state has caused them to place undue cul-
tural significance on noetic biotechnology. While they did possess hard technology of their own in the past, the use of it soon
became unfashionable in the extreme. Using such devices is now equated with heresy against the Doyen belief of psionic
supremacy.

174 Appendix #4: The Doyen

 ABERRANT
The Doyen Dilemma
According to their own self-serving dogma, the Doyen
have become higher beings than all other sapients found in
their universe. They see their transcended state, advanced
psionic capabilities and immense age as self-evident proofs
of that statement. That is their justification for warping
some younger xenocivilizations to eventually serve Doyen
needs, and for eliminating those others who pose any
sort of threat to their so-called "betters". They see their
billion-year plus dominion of the Milky Way galaxy as
necessary for them to continue their quest for a final tran-
scendence into beings of pure noetic energy. Which the
Doyen think that they can achieve, given enough effort and
dedication to their mastery of psionics.
Unfortunately for the Doyen, the actual truth of the
matter is quite different. Their beliefs are not and have
never been in accord with the realities of Doyen existence
on four important points as described below.
On "Higher Beings", A.K.A. The
Great Faade
The Doyen like to think of themselves as the responsi-
ble elder race of the galaxy, whose authority the younger
xenosapients must defer to due to their experience and
superior knowledge. This is nothing but Doyen egotism writ
large and is used as an excuse to interfere with other xeno-
civilizations as they see fit. The reason why the Doyens'
collective ego has managed to become so massively over-
inflated is that they have never dealt with a serious threat
on anything less than terms favorable to themselves. When
they caused the downfall of their competitor xenociviliza-
tions prior to their mass transcendence, they did so though
subversion and skullduggery. Not once have they ever
faced an alien foe in direct combat.
The Doyen constantly surround themselves with
reminders of how great they have become, how far they
have advanced both as a species and a civilization. In
human terms, they are always selling their own hype to all
who will listen. This usually means other Doyen, who have
made not buying into said hype both heresy and treason.
They do not do this in order to impress the primitive xeno-
species that they infrequently deal with, although many
are credulous enough to take the Doyen at their word. No,
they have to do this since their toughest customers are
the Doyen themselves. They have to do this in order to
conceal the essential, horrifying truth behind their faade
of advanced enlightenment, which all Doyen know deep
in their metaphorical hearts. Although they will never will-
ingly admit it - even to themselves - their base nature has
remained unchanged from their earliest days spent avoid-
ing predators in their homeworld's primeval wilderness.
Appendix #4: The Doyen
Take away their psionic powers and advanced technology,
and all that remains is a tribe of paranoid, xenophobic
cowards. If their strength as a civilization is ever shown to
be lacking, there will be nothing to keep them from selling
each other out in order to stay alive, even if only for one
more day.
Transcendence... In Name Only
When the fleshbound Doyen discovered their tran-
scendence process, they thought that they had found the
means to become immortal beings of pure noetic energy.
They based their entire scheme on a fatally flawed under-
standing of how the universe functions at both the quan-
tum and subquantum levels. What they acually managed
to do is transform themselves into a state that has only the
absolute minimum of living material to avoid death and
becoming a discarnate. This unnatural state of being has
done more than just make them unable to age - they can
no longer reproduce themselves and are no longer capable
of evolution. Without any new Doyen being born, there
is no way for their population to replenish their numbers.
Finally, as the transcendence process is irreversible, the
Doyen are blindly traveling down a path with only one
possible destination: extinction.
There is another hidden cost to the Doyens' transcen-
dence that they have yet to learn of in the Adventure! and
Aberrant timelines - their utter vulnerability to the quantum
energies wielded by novas, aberrants and other eximorphic
beings. As beings mostly comprised of noetic energy, they
feel the disruption of quantum energy far more intensely
than human psions or other psionic aliens. Not only will a
Doyen find it harder to manipulate noetic energy in regions
of elevated quantum energy, it will be disrupted both
physically and mentally. Such an unfortunate Doyen would
find itself literally flickering in and out of existence, much as
a person can flicker into and out of visibility when viewed
under a strobe light in a darkened room. Suffering a quan-
tum-based attack is even worse, as all such attacks that
inflict bashing or lethal damage will instead inflict aggra-
vated damage (Aberrant core book, pp.253-254) when
used against Doyen. Taint energies such as produced by
the Taint Bleed aberration (Aberrant Players Guide, p. 96)
also inflict aggravated hard radiation damage to any Doyen
unlucky enough to be exposed to it. Doyen in the Trinity
timelines know all of this. While they do fear novas/aber-
rants and their power intensely, there is one fact that has
kept them from breaking out into total hysterical panic. As
far as they can tell, no nova or aberrant knows anything at
all about the existence of the Doyen. This ignorance on the
part of what those Doyen regard as their natural enemies
has given them enough metaphorical distance to attempt
to deal with the threat in their typical fashion, as detailed in
175
 ABERRANT
the Trinity gameline books. If the Doyen are instead found
by nova space travelers in the early to mid-Nova Age,
their shock at a face to "face" close encounter is certain
to explode into full-blown hysteria. Unthinking and foolish
"knee-jerk" hostile actions on the part of those Doyen are
certain to follow.
The Sisyphean Quest
While the Doyen certainly take undue pride in their
current disembodied state, they also see it as just a
transition point in the process of truly becoming beings of
pure noetic energy. They have convinced themselves that
furthering their already advanced mastery of psionics will
allow them to attain that goal. Never mind the fact that
increasing their psionic capabilities now takes eons of dili-
gent work to achieve where it only required mere years of
effort for the fleshbound Doyen. Never mind the fact that
by reducing the material aspect of their bodies - the part
that is supported by the quantum forces and allows beings
to change - to such a minute fraction of what it once was
has retarded their psionic developmental rate to almost nil.
They have all of eternity - barring lethal misfortune - to per-
form this necessary task. Doyen orthodoxy makes a point
of constantly reminding the less faithful among them that
their ultimate goal can be achieved. The Doyen believe
this, as they are by their own definition the ones who know
best in all the known universe.
Once again, the empirical truth of the matter is once
In Case Of Doubt
Like authoritarians throughout the Omniverse, the Doyen
are sure that they know how all other sapients should live,
and will do whatever is necessary to make those sapients
live according to their static view of the universe. The Doyen
think - incorrectly - that they know all there is to know about
everything. They desire to control the course of the history of
sapient life in the entire Milky Way galaxy, preventing its natural
development. They want to keep the current galactic hierarchy
as it is - with themselves at the apex - until they succeed in their
quest to completely transcend the physical universe. As that
quest is impossible, this means they will be imposing their will
on all sapient life in the Milky Way practically forever.
This is a proven recipe for disaster, as the Aeon Contin-
uum timelines are organic things, and not static as the Doyen
mistakenly believe. This is proven by the emergence of novas
and aberrants from humanity, which had no precedent in all
the history known to the Doyen. There can be no negotiation
or compromise with such beings. They are a straight-up enemy
race for any sapient species that are not Doyen themselves, and
must be destroyed if interstellar and galactic civilization is ever
to establish itself and thrive.
176 Appendix #4: The Doyen
again radically different from what the Doyen believe to be
true. The Doyen have taken their transcendence process as
far as it is possible to go and remain living beings. It simply
no longer matters how further they manage to develop
their psionic powers - they cannot advance their transcen-
dence at all. Like King Sisyphus from the Greek mythology
of Earth, the Doyen are past masters of deceitfulness and
are consumed with hubris. Also like Sisyphus, the Doyen
are condemned to an eternity of pointless, useless and
ultimately wasted toil. Fanaticism and zealotry are the only
outlets the Doyen have for their neverending frustration in
pursuit of an impossible, unattainable goal. The true irony
of the Doyens' situation is this: they did it to themselves.
The Doyen have no scapegoats to take the blame and final
reponsibility for their predicament. And they will never
accept that fact.
Big Fish In A Small Pond
As a consequence of their innate xenophobia, the
Doyen have never truly felt safe whenever the slightest
possibility existed that something might threaten their
lives. This manifested itself as an urgent need to control
everything in their environment. It is for this reason that
the Doyen warped their native biosphere into a pattern
of their own choosing, ensuring their own safety. That this
destroyed any chance of a new sapient species arising
from that biosphere was considered irrelevant. It is why
the Doyen destroyed all of the advanced xenociviliza-
tions they learned of after their First Contact. That those
xenocivilizations had no knowledge that the Doyen even
existed was irrelevant - they had to be done away with to
end the potential threats they presented. This is why after
achieving total dominance over the Milky Way galaxy and
its associated regions that the Doyen started to "garden"
the younger xenocivilizations. The fact that this has caused
serious cultural damage to the compliant xenocivilizations
and meant the eventual premature deaths of the recalci-
trant ones is regarded by the Doyen as the necessary price
of long-term galactic stability.
From the Doyens' perspective, they are only doing
what they must in order to protect themselves and their
way of life. From an informed outside perspective, they are
nothing more than stagnant - if still potent - authoritarians
who are addicted to their position as "top dogs of the
galaxy", seeking to inflict their own self-serving ideals and
desires on everyone else. The Doyen are so emotionally
invested in their self-image as the dominant civilization of
the Milky Way galaxy that any proof to the contrary will
be a massive blow to their collective ego. That blow will
be even greater if they are "dethroned" by a younger
xenospecies - such as humans - whose unimaginably rapid
(by Doyen standards) development they had ignored. If the
 ABERRANT
younger xenospecies in question also lacks psionics and
noetic biotech yet has powers matching and exceeding
those of the Doyen in potency, the perceived insult will be
of legendary proportions. Once the Doyen understand the
ramifications of eximorphs and Quantum manipulation,
they will view erupted humanity with a degree of horror
and terror that H.P. Lovecraft could have only dreamed of
evoking through his writings.
Problem is, the Doyen are also psychologically
addicted to their self-perceived collective social status.
Their entire culture is set up to endorse and exalt that
addiction, among other aspects of Doyen life as noted
previously. Combined with all of the preceding factors, it
should be clear that the Doyen are not going to gracefully
step aside and give up their long-held dominance to any
young upstarts that come along. Conflict - which will likely
reach the point of xenocide - is assured.
Doyen Supporting Cast
The only two examples of individual Doyen shown with
stats in the canon Trinity books are both members of the
Intelligence Bureau's alien infiltration section, and should
not be taken as examples of what all Doyen are like. Below
we offer a basic Doyen template with a variety of alter-
ations to represent Doyen in all walks of life, from the Order
Masters on the Ruling Council to the Doyen equivalent of
Joe Hologram.
The Basic Template
Attributes: Doyen have (14/14/11) dots for their pri-
mary, secondary and tertiary Attributes.
Abilities: Doyen receive 60 Ability points for their Abil-
ity groups and anywhere from 20 to 50 points to be spent
as desired. The older the Doyen, the more "extra" Ability
points it will have. The Doyen seen in Darkness Revealed:
Ascent Into Light was a relatively junior agent taked with a
simple retrieval mission. As the one seen in Alien Encoun-
ter: Invasion was in charge of a much more important task
- ensuring that the Chromatics retained their antagonism
for Humanity - it had the training expected of a senior
agent. One note: Due to their obsession with their psionic
development, all Doyen will have the Meditation Ability at
5 dots. They will also have the Survival Ability at 5 dots due
to a paranoid fear of being without food-producing biotech
and/or caught in perilous circumstances without adequate
life support.
Advantages: Doyen receive 26 points for Back-
grounds, most of which will reflect their duties to Doyen
society. The monastic nature of Doyen culture and their
own disembodied nature has reduced the importance of
material objects that are not relevant to one's duties. Back-
Appendix #4: The Doyen
grounds are the only stats of a Doyen that can experience
rapid change, as their actions cause their political fortunes
and social status to rise or fall. Adversarial Backgrounds
(Aberrant: Forceful Personalities pp. 39-46) are also
recommended for Doyen, as they reflect the drawbacks of
failure in their intensely political society.
Willpower: The Doyens' monastic lifestyle lends itself
to meditation, strengthening one's drive and increasing
one's emotional stability. Doyen will have Willpower ratings
of 9 or 10.
Psi: Most Doyen will have a Psi rating of 9, with the
most powerful rated at 10.
Special Abilities: Doyen manifest their Physical Attri-
butes as focused telekinesis.
Psi Mastery: Doyen are advanced Psi manipula-
tors and have 75 dots to use for Modes in all the psionic
Aptitudes except Quantakinesis. Doyen will always have
equal Mode ratings within an Aptitude to avoid psionic
dysfunction as a matter of course. Exactly which Aptitudes
a given Doyen specializes in - read: has all Mode ratings
at 5 - depends on the Order it belongs to, as described
later. The most powerful Doyen - those with Psi 10 - will
sometimes have Proxy-level powers in their specialized
Aptitudes. Unfortunately the canon material has left most
of those undefined and relegated to the status of plot
devices. A good way for Storytellers to fake proxy-level
psionics is to use a Level 3 quantum power that has no
suite of techniques and redefine it as a psionic power. This
was done in Trinity: Terra Verde ("Split Personality", p.
103) as the Biokinetic proxy Guiseppe del Fuego has the
psionic equivalent of the Clone quantum power. What
special powers the other proxies might possess has been
left to the Storyteller's discretion.
Reduced Damage: All mundane attacks - both
bashing and lethal - inflict half damage after soak, rounded
down. Psionic attacks are applied normally.
Psi Pool: Doyen are mostly composed of concen-
trated noetic energy, allowing them a considerable amount
of power to fuel their psionic powers. A Doyen starts with
25 current Psi to spend and can make a Psi recovery roll
every 15 minutes.
Weaknesses
Quantum Energy: The downside of being mostly
composed of concentrated noetic energy is an increased
vulnerability to quantum energy. Quantum attacks - both
bashing and lethal - inflict aggravated damage against
Doyen. They also take aggravated hard radiation damage
from exposure to actual taint energies. In areas of elevated
quantum energies - which already interfere with Mode
use - a Doyen will flicker into and out of existence. Doyen
in these circumstances will flee the vicinity for fear of their
lives if possible. For further detail, Storytellers should refer
177
 ABERRANT
to "Psi and Taint" on pp. 146-147 of the Trinity Players
Guide.
Long Term Focus: Doyen are geared towards
thinking in the extreme long term, and have no capacity for
thinking correctly in the extreme short term. Doyen have
an effective Wits rating of one dot for all rolls where quick
mental reactions are required. They still use their normal
Wits Attribute for all other purposes including initiative.
Also, they no longer comprehend the "impatience" of
younger xenospecies, most of whom are evolved to per-
ceive time similarly to humans.
Innate Psychological Flaws: All Doyen are nat-
ural intolerant xenophobes, obsessives, paranoids and
cowards. They suffer from the Intolerance (all aliens),
Obsession (developing their psionic potential) and Phobia
(xenophobia) Flaws (Aberrant Players Guide pp. 72-74).
They also suffer the equivalent of the Paranoia aberration
(Aberrant Players Guide p. 94) and a version of the Fearful
Flaw (Aberrant: The New Flesh p. 240) that allows them
to have Willpower ratings above 4. These are natural fea-
tures of the Doyen psyche and cannot be "cured". Doyen
receive no bonus points for these Flaws. Doyen can take
these Flaws separately to reflect a higher level of dysfunc-
tion than is typical for the species.
Experience Hock: Doyen are not suitable as player
characters, due to astronomical experience point costs for
improving Traits and gaining new ones. Where the younger
species can develop rapidly over the course of a few years,
a Doyen requires millennia to accomplish the same. In
practical terms, a Doyen character might as well not be
given experience points at all, making playing one a waste
of good gaming time.
Doyen Allegiances
In Doyen life, the Orders are the equivalent of political
faction, trade union and social caste. A Doyen's Order also
detrrmines which psionic Aptitudes it will specialize in. The
relevant Aptitude(s) and Abilities associated with the orders
are listed below.
Ruling Council
Aptitudes: Telepathy. Order heads will also specialize
in the Aptitude of their Order.
Abilities: Bureaucracy, Command, Etiquette, Rapport,
Subterfuge, one Combat Ability, one Commumications
Ability.
Notes: As government workers and bureaucrats,
underlings of the Ruling Council should invest heavily
in the appropriate Backgrounds and Adversarial Back-
grounds.
178 Appendix #4: The Doyen
Military Order
Aptitudes: Psychokinesis plus the Aptitude of their
former Order.
Abilities: Athletics, Awareness, Brawl, Pilot, Demoli-
tions, Endurance, Engineering, Firearms, Gunnery, Heavy
Weapons, Martial Arts, Navigation, Resistance, Science.
Notes: As conscripts, Military Order members retain
the Aptitude specialites and Abilities of their former
Orders.
Intelligence Bureau
Aptitudes: Telepathy.
Abilities: Athletics, Brawl, Command, Etiquette,
Firearms, Interrogation, Intrusion, Linguistics, Martial Arts,
Subterfuge, Xenology, Xenorelations.
Notes: As conscripts, Intelligence Bureau agents
retain the Aptitude specialites and Abilities of their former
Orders. Only agents trailed to deal with aliens will possess
Xenology & Xenorelations. All other agents are also Crimi-
nal Order members.
Scientific Order
Aptitudes: Electrokinesis.
Abilities: Academics, Astrophysics, Awareness, Engi-
neering, Intrusion, Investigation, Linguistics, Noetics, Savvy,
Science, Subterfuge, one learned Ability, one technical
Ability.
Notes: All Scientific Order members will have stronger
than typical Paranoia, and are at +2 difficulties on Will-
power rolls made to avoid overreacting to any "suspicious"
things they notice. Also, the atypical organizational struc-
ture of their Order leaves most of these "mad scientists"
ill-equipped to deal with the bureaucracy found in the rest
of Doyen society.
Criminal Order
Aptitudes: Clairsentience plus the Aptitude of their
cover Order.
Abilities: As per cover Order plus Academics, Brawl,
Bureaucracy, Etiquette, Firearms, Intrusion, Investigation,
Savvy, Stealth, Subterfuge.
Notes: All Criminal Order members will have the
Secret Flaw, representing the drawbacks of their illegal
activities.
Architect Order
Aptitudes: Clairsentience.
Abilities: Academics, Arts, Awareness, Bureaucracy,
Demolitions, Engineering, Investigation, Savvy, Science,
Subterfuge, one learned Ability, one technical Ability.
 ABERRANT
Notes: Investigation in this Order is tailored to
determining existing and potential sources of damage to a
given structure. Subterfuge is also interpreted as disguising
deliberate design flaws in said structures.
Entertainer Order
Aptitudes: Clairsentience.
Abilities: Academics, Athletics, Arts, Awareness, Engi-
neering, Etiquette, Investigation, Medicine (psychology),
Perform, Rapport, Savvy, Science (memetics), Style, Subter-
fuge, one Combat Ability, one Commumications Ability.
Notes: Investigation in this Order is tailored to deter-
mining existing and potential sources of social tension
in Doyen culture. Subterfuge is used for detecting when
other Doyen have heretical opionions on Doyen ortho-
doxy. Science focuses on memetics, essentially the art of
propaganda and shaping public opinion distilled into a
hard science.
Roboticist & Crafter Orders
Aptitudes: Electrokinesis.
Abilities: Academics, Awareness, Bureaucracy,
Engineering, Investigation, Linguistics (computer code),
Noetics, Savvy, Science, one learned Ability, one technical
Ability.
Notes: These Doyen focus on the production & main-
tenance of proven, time-tested devices instead of doing
anything that would break new technological ground. They
approach their work much like medieval human necroman-
cers - they follow the directions as accurately as is possible,
as to deviate from them is to invite disaster. Investigation
in this Order is tailored to determine existing and potential
design flaws in a given device, allowing for slow refine-
ment.
Conservator & Terraformer Orders
Aptitudes: Biokinesis.
Abilities: Academics, Astrophysics, Awareness, Engi-
neering, Linguistics (Terraformers only), Savvy, Science,
Xenology (Terraformers only), one learned Ability, one
technical Ability.
Notes: For two Orders that are so very similar, they
have a great deal of animosity towards one another. The
Conservators despise the Terraformers for "giving up" on
maintaining the artificial stasis of the Doyen homeworld's
biosphere. The Terraformers loathe the Conservators for
attempting to dictate to them, which is the main reason
they left the Doyen homeworld as soon as they felt it was
safe to do so.
Appendix #4: The Doyen
Healer Order
Aptitudes: Vitakinesis.
Abilities: Academics, Awareness, Bureaucracy, Com-
mand, Engineering, Investigation, Medicine, Rapport,
Resistance, Science.
Notes: As a group that handles the health care of all
Doyen, the Healer Order routinely finds itself under a lot
of work-related stress. Therefore they are given special
consideration by the Intelligence Bureau, who allow them
carte blanche for discreet use of contraband as a way to
relieve that stress. Those few agents who did not go along
with that found themselves suffering from incapacitating
diseases. The Healer Order takes care of its own, even
before the rest of Doyen society.
Computation Order
Aptitudes: Electrokinesis.
Abilities: Academics, Awareness, Bureaucracy, Com-
mand, Engineering, Investigation, Linguistics (computer
code), Noetics, Savvy, Science, one learned Ability, one
technical Ability.
Notes: All Computation Order members are sanc-
tioned to hunt down and destroy developing spontaneous
artificial intelligences. They have the right to inspect all
computer systems and production facilities at any time
for signs of their quarry. They also belong to the Criminal
Order.
Transport Order
Aptitudes: Teleportation.
Abilities: Astrophysics, Awareness, Bureaucracy, Com-
mand, Engineering, Firearms, Navigation, Pilot, Science,
Xenology, one learned Ability, one technical Ability.
Notes: All Transport Order members also belong to
the Criminal Order.
Doyen Throughout The Ages
As ageless alien beings, the Doyen can appear in any
Aeon Continuum chronicle the Storyteller wishes to run. It's
only a question of how they would best fit into the different
themes of the three gamelines. Offered below are our best
suggestions on how to use the Doyen.
Using The Doyen In
Adventure!
In the best traditions of the pulp adventures of the
1920s and 1930s, the Doyen are best used in an Adven-
ture! chronicle as an offscreen presence. This lets the
Doyen fill the same role as H.P. Lovecraft's Elder Things,
179
 ABERRANT
as written in At The Mountains Of Madness. The only aware of each other in your Aberrant chronicle? Second,
difference is that no Doyen should ever be encountered what will the Doyen do to respond to the apparent - to
on Earth in the Inspired Era. As they have no reason to them, anyway - threat posed by eximorphic beings? Third,
develop a renewed interest in Earth in the early 20th Cen- how will the novas handle their end of the situation?
tury, the Inspired will only learn of their existence second-
hand through finding and investigating their long-sealed
First Contact
ruins and the biotech devices found within. With their
There are three main ways that novas and the Doyen
last visit to Earth having taken place almost three million
could make First Contact. First is the least dramatic option,
years before the 20th Century, their shielded bunkers make
in where the Doyen detect the quantum manipulations of
for excellent pre-human alien ruins to be sought out and
nova space explorers from a distance. While this method is
explored by doughty archaeologists. The Doyen noetic
somewhat logical - it's the method the Doyen used to dis-
biotech devices stored within will serve as excellent Gad-
cover about eximorphs in the Trinity timelines - using it in
gets for daring mesmerists, with some of them surely being
a chronicle can be seen as ambushing the player characters
of Artifact caliber.
if the Storyteller isn't careful. Foreshadowing is the Story-
When describing Doyen ruins, the Storyteller must
teller's best tactic here, as many novas have some form of
keep in mind the advantages the Doyen enjoy and how
precognition. A few well-timed visions of the danger that
that has affected their ways of building structures and
awaits them should alert the players that they're about to
producing technological devices. First off, any xenosapient
step into a metaphorical minefield.
species that's as long-lived as the Doyen will build to last
The second option is dramatic in the "ancient mys-
over multiple geologic eras, which explains why their ruins
tery" vein, where nova space explorers happen upon
on Earth are still around to be discovered. As a naturally
evidence of one of the Doyen's past "gardening" opera-
flight-capable race, Doyen buildings will only have stairs,
tions. Given their very long track record of manipulating
ladders or elevators for use by service robots. Doors
or exterminating younger xenosapient civilizations, the
that are strictly for Doyen use may be placed wherever is
Storyteller can come up with any sort of world - living or
convenient - such as in a ceiling. As they use telekinesis
dead - to show the players that All Is Not Well In The Milky
to manipulate physical objects, devices made by Doyen
Way. Having the player characters find a dead xenocivili-
for their own use are going to be awkward at best when
zation that's been murdered by the Doyen is ironically less
a human attempts to use them with hands of flesh and
disturbing than letting them discover a living one that's
bone. Even worse is the fact that as with their art, all device
been warped to the Doyen's specifications. The dead don't
readouts and displays are either telepathic or photoki-
suffer the way that the living can. Both cases should be as
netic in nature. The Doyen can hear just fine, but they
creepy and unnerving as possible, but in all other ways the
use telepathy instead of vocalizations to communicate.
Storyteller is encouraged to let her creative process run
Added up, one gets a flying race with almost no discern-
freely. The only limitation is that the result would have to
able physical needs, no depictive art that baseline humans
be acceptable to the Doyen.
would recognize and no recognizable written language.
The third option is the most dramatic, as it involves
Their technology is only barely fit for human use at best,
nova space explorers encountering a functional - and pos-
and functions - usually - in near-complete silence without
sibly manned - Doyen installation or exploration craft. If the
any of the normal visual tell-tales humans would use. This
installation or spacecraft is unmanned, the explorers have
should be enough to drive home the utterly alien nature of
an excellent chance to gain vital information about the
the Doyen to the players without one of them ever having
Doyen, preferably with the Doyen gaining either falsified
to make an appearance in the chronicle.
information from the explorers or none at all. Depending
on the explorers' quantum capabilities, they might even
Using The Doyen In Aberrant be able to pose convincingly as extragalactic explorers - a
possibility that only the hyper-paranoid members of the
In Aberrant, the Doyen are most suited for use as
a galactic-scale foe to threaten Humanity's continued Doyen Scientific Order have been open-minded enough to
existence. Putting it bluntly, they are the established, worry about. Even so, nova space explorers attempting this
stodgy, self-satisfied & opportunistically malign Forerunner sort of misdirection must make no mistakes. Doyen noetic
civilization that will serve as a natural foil for nova space biotech uses a clairsentience effect that allows for a Doyen
explorers, some of whom will certainly be foolish enough operator to have exceedingly long-range and instanta-
to rush in where angels fear to tread. The only questions neous telepresence without any time lag in the transmis-
are as follows. First, how will the Doyen and novas become sion. Cautious explorers must treat any Doyen unmanned
installation or spacecraft as having active security surveil-

180 Appendix #4: The Doyen

 ABERRANT
lance at all times. Even so, any successful misdirection will
only buy the explorers - and Humanity, in turn - more time.
Whether that time is used productively or is wasted will
depend on Humanity.
If the Doyen installation or spacecraft is manned, all
bets are off. The innate xenophobia, paranoia and intoler-
ance of the Doyen guarantees that any such encounter is
a potential flashpoint for xenocidal war. It matters little if
the Doyen involved are Order members or exiles - both will
be hostile, if for slightly different reasons. Order members
will see nova space explorers as a powerful, unexpected
threat to the Doyen race that must be extinguished in
order to maintain their galactic dominance. Exiles will seek
to flee and bring news of the explorers back to the Core
Worlds in hopes of being readmitted to Doyen civilization.
Most encountered Doyen will flee if they can - as expected
of cowards - and only fight if forced to. Military Order
members will fight if necessary, as they have the "Instant
Courage" combat drug, which will be detailed later. If the
Doyen manage to escape from the explorers - and worse,
have an accurate idea of their probable origins - Earth will
be in serious trouble as the Doyen seek to drive Humanity
into extinction. If the explorers prevail - meaning that they
manage to kill all the Doyen present and leave behind
no identifying traces or other evidence - they will then be
faced with the question of what to do next.
The Doyen Response
Overall, the Doyen's reaction to learning of the "Nova
Threat" will be a mixture of panic, offense, disbelief and
false moral outrage. The offense is to be expected consid-
ering their pomposity and egotism. As a Precursor species,
they've always held the younger xenospecies in a pater-
nal contempt. From their point of view, being seriously
threatened by such beings would be like modern humans
finding themselves facing a shooting war against evolved
cockroaches. The disbelief will be focused on the apparent
superiority of quantum powers. Doyen are obsessed with
psionics and have believed it to be the ultimate power in
the universe. The discovery of quantum powers disproves
that belief in ways that even the most stubborn Doyen
cannot fail to realize. The false moral outrage is due to
the moral weight that the Doyen have mistakenly applied
to psionics and its antithesis quantum. Put simply, Doyen
equate psionics with all that they consider "good", making
quantum "evil" by nature of their opposition to each
other. This surprisingly primitive superstition has also been
imparted to all psionic xenocultures that the Doyen have
influenced over the millennia. Thus the Doyen and their
unwitting lackeys will regard novas as Horrors That Should
Not Exist. In reality, both psi and quantum are morally
neutral and impersonal forces, and novas are only sapient
Appendix #4: The Doyen
lifeforms that have evolved to directly manipulate quantum
energy instead of noetic. Finally, the Doyen will panic, as
should be expected of a species of cowards. That said,
Doyen don't fit the stereotypical image of the cringing,
honestly timid and non-threatening coward. Instead their
cowardice is sly and aggressive. Doyen are capable of com-
mitting any atrocity against aliens in the name of self-pres-
ervation.
All of these feelings among the Doyen point to the
same conclusion: war against Novakind and Humanity.
Exactly how that war will be fought is still an open question.
Their first option is their favored method of indirect warfare:
fomenting armed conflict within the target xenospecies
until it reaches apocalyptic levels. Once they have analyzed
the geopolitical situation on Nova Age Earth, the Doyen
will seek to exacerbate the existing tensions between novas
and unerupted Humanity, ensuring not only that the First
Aberrant War comes to pass but that it causes complete
nova and human extinction. This will not only divert the
attentions of nova space explorers back to Earth, it will
hopefully prevent the spread of novakind throughout the
Milky Way Galaxy. Unfortunately for them, this gambit
will work only if the majority of novas and humans remain
unaware of the threat posed by the Doyen. Against an
informed and vigilant Terran populace, other ways to wage
war must be employed.
The Doyen's second option is to use one of their
psionic servitor xenospecies as janissaries. This tactic is
well-thought of by the Doyen, as it allows them to wage
shooting wars by proxy without having to risk their own
near-immortal lives in actual combat. It also allows the
Doyen to mask their own involvement in the subsequent
invasion of Earth, as acting behind the scenes is much more
preferable to their tastes. The fact that the alien janissaries
are more or less expendable if such is necessary to achieve
human extinction is an acceptable price to pay by Doyen
standards. The only known servitor xenospecies in the
Trinity books are the Qin and the Chromatics, with the
latter being both still undiscovered and far too primitive in
the Nova Age for the Doyen to boost them to a feasible
technological level in time to be of any use. That leaves the
Storyteller with the choice of either using the Qin as the
Doyen's latest janissaries or another psionic xenospecies of
her own design. The Qin may be able to serve as credible
threats given Doyen biotech weaponry, but their weak
psionics means that they will have to rely on numerical and
technological superiority when pitted against the powers of
novas. It also lets the Storyteller showcase the Qin and their
civilization in a far different light than is used in Trinity. On
the other hand, using an original xenospecies will prevent
the players from knowing just what to expect from their
alien foes. Psionics, alien biology and Doyen biotech can
181
 ABERRANT
be mixed and matched in whatever ways the Storyteller
sees fit in providing a worthy challenge to Novakind and
Humanity.
The Doyen's third and final option is what these
cowards will dread the most: having to fight for their own
lives in a direct shooting war against armies of novas. The
Doyen have enjoyed a peaceful existence for several billion
years. As a result, saying that they are out of practice at
bringing their civilization to wartime readiness is a heinous
understatement. While Doyen society has been extremely
stable over the eons, it also has not been subjected to
any serious external pressures ever since their Dominance
War. The Doyen lack the bonds of family and spouses that
humans enjoy, as they have only loyalty to their Orders
and political cliques instead. This makes the social bonds
that hold their vaunted unified civilization together fragile
in the extreme. An external stress to that structure at the
right place and time could shatter the Doyen into several
fragment societies without any overarching loyalty to their
own species. Even worse, their panic over the Nova Threat
will reach new heights of hysteria when it sinks in that the
Doyen will have to fight against the novas on their own.
If the Doyen are ever forced into this situation, they will
have lost any chance to make their enemy self-destruct.
They will have no alien servitor species on hand to act as
cannon fodder. This state of affairs is a recipe for extreme,
ill-considered actions on the part of the Doyen. Given their
access to hypertech weapons of mass destruction, the
Doyen could wreak damage on Earth and other inhabited
worlds that only the most powerful novas could match.
The Human Reaction
As for the nova space explorers, they are likewise
faced with the dilemma of waging war on the Doyen.
Even given the egotism that most novas suffer from, the
prospect of having to fight an interstellar war against a
living Precursor xenocivilization should make them realize
that they cannot do so alone. Those who fail to do so are
either too stupid or too insane to be competent space
explorers in the first place. The two options available to
Novakind in this situation are as follows.
The first option is for Earth's novas and their allies
to fight a clandestine war aginst the Doyen, with most of
common Humanity remaining unaware of the conflict. The
point to this approach is that it allows Terran culture to
remain essentially unchanged, which will be very desirable
to the baseline national governments. Otherwise, being
faced with an alien invasion would divorce many people's
view of themselves from nationalism in favor of a new
global identity as humans. No national government ever
wants that to happen. The downsides to covert warfare
are all the secrecy involved and the possibility of Doyen
182 Appendix #4: The Doyen
interference with Terran society. People will take notice
when novas begin disappearing for no apparent reason,
especially if some of them fail to reappear in Terran
society. That will make for very fertile ground for all sorts
of conspiracy theories to sprout and grow like kudzu. That
will serve to increase tension between baselines and novas
in turn, making the Aberrant War that much more likely to
happen. If the public remains unaware of the threat the
Doyen pose to their lives, they are left wide open to action
by Doyen provocateurs, who will be only too happy to
fan the flames of the nova-baseline conflict to apocalyptic
levels.
A second and better option is for the nova space
explorers to go public with news of the Doyen threat. The
benefits of this approach are sevenfold. First, it allows the
novas a comforting degree of transparency in the eyes of
baseline society, who otherwise would've been left in the
dark about the aliens plotting to wipe out all human life.
The second benefit is that it allows the baseline govern-
ments, agencies and corporations to protect themselves
against any Doyen influences. Third is the necessary
unification of all baseline governments under the aegis
of the United Nations. If unerupted Humanity is going
to assist the nova population in waging war in extrasolar
space, political unification simply has to happen. Not even
China can go it alone, especially as they aren't in the best
of economic shapes circa the 2010s. Nationalism will be
forced to take a backseat to ensuring Human (and Nova)
survival. The fourth benefit is the vast reduction in nova/
baseline tensions that the war effort will cause. Alien
invasion and the threat of human extinction is a threat
severe enough that all other conflicts will be dwarfed by
it. With novas more obviously a boon to human survival
that a threat, anti-nova operations such as those perpe-
trated by Project Proteus and the Directive will be shut
down immediately. The agents and leaders of Proteus in
particular will likely face execution as traitors to Humanity
for their atrocities. Certain members of the Aeon Council
will face trial for crimes against Humanity at the Hague.
These actions will in turn remove much of the abuse of
novas that drives sympathy for the Teragen, who will face
an unenviable choice: enlist in the war effort against the
Doyen or face permanent exile from human-held terri-
tory. Benefit #5 is the massive technological leap that will
have to take place in order for the fight to be carried to
the Doyen Core Worlds. If the nova space explorers have
managed to obtain one of the Doyen Scientific Order's
data archives, they have access to technological data that
the Doyen scavenged from the several ancient starfaring
xenocivilizations they murdered. This will lift Earth's Tech-
nology Rating up to T12 and possibly T13, given time. The
sixth benefit is that the nova explorers will have discov-
 ABERRANT
ered the existence of psionics, which can then be used
to identify and openly recruit human psiads for Project
Pandora. Armed with reverse-engineered Doyen biotech,
the psiads can act as a wild card in the upcoming conflict.
The seventh benefit is that Humanity will finally have good
use for its immense stores of weapons of mass destruction.
What better use for the global nuclear stockpile than to
bomb the Doyen Core Worlds until they are radioactive
wastelands? Biological and biochemical weapons may
have reduced effects on the semi-material Doyen them-
selves, but their technology base is composed entirely
of noetic biotech. As living, fully material carbon-based
organisms, these devices will be just as vulnerable to such
WMDs as is human flesh. There is only one drawback to
this approach: in order to ensure the survival of novas and
baseline Humanity, Earth as it was before the explorers
made First Contact with the Doyen will be gone forever.
Whether that is a good or bad thing will depend on one's
point of view.
War And Aftermath
The Doyen War will largely be fought by novas in the
beginning stages, as it will take some time for baseline
human civilization to be raised from T9 - the base Tech-
nology Rating for the early Nova Age - to T12 or higher.
Becoming a true spacefaring civilization overnight will
require massive effort from novas and baselines alike,
with the aid of novas making such a goal only barely
achievable. The transformation of Terran civilization will by
necessity follow much the same course as outlined in the
"Heliopause Rubicon" alternate Earth (see pp. 45-47 of
this book) with a few minor differences. Where Heliopause
Rubicon describes a defensive war against an invading
alien fleet, the Doyen War will be both defensive and
offensive. One force of novas and military spacecraft will
patrol and defend the entire Solar System, while a second
larger force - comprised of six separate sub-fleets - will
launch an all-out attack against the six Doyen Core Worlds
and any other Doyen spacecraft and installations. The
Doyen War will be an ugly conflict with devastation and
xenocide as the fate of the losing civilization. Only conflict
is guaranteed.
Provided that Humanity wins the Doyen War, the Sto-
ryteller will be left with one question: what next? Does she
want the chronicle to shift focus to novas aiding Humanity
in settling the Solar System before leaving to establish
their own extrasolar colonies? Would a civil war erupt on
Earth as certain nations attempt to break away from the
global unification imposed by the United Nations? Will the
nova space explorers leave the Solar System on a galactic
voyage of exploration and discovery? With novas involved,
the only limit is the Storyteller's imagination.
Appendix #4: The Doyen
Instant Courage
This alien drug temporarily negates a Doyens natural
cowardice, allowing it to engage in combat without fleeing to
find a hiding place like a sane Doyen. Unfortunately this comes
at the cost of enhancing a Doyens natural paranoia for the
duration. The drug is kept in small spherical biotech dispensers
about the size of a large Terran walnut, and is inhaled as a
vapor. Coming down off an Instant Courage rush leaves a Doyen
almost comically phobic for a short time. The Military Order has
issued standing orders for soldiers in that state to be placed in
isolation cells until their neurology reasserts its normal function.
It has no effect on either human or nova neurochemistry.
Effect: Removes Fearful Flaw while increasing the Paranoia
Flaw to double its normal level.
Duration: 30 minutes
Addiction Rating: 2
Detox: Temporarily gain the Phobia Flaw (Storytellers
choice) for 1 hour.
Using The Doyen In Trinity
As the Doyen have already been used in the canon
Trinity books, the basics of how they fit in with that setting
have already been adequately explained in "The Story So
Far". Instead, we will examine how the information pre-
sented in this Appendix fits in with the game setting. Also,
further ramifications and consequences of the Doyens'
covert meddling will be explained.
Integrating The Basics
Doyen society had not been touched upon in the
canon Trinity gamebooks beyond their split into the
"Benefactor" and "Purifier" factions. It should be noted
that despite this apparent schism, Doyen society as a whole
remains unified as both camps are using tactics and strate-
gies which their entire culture considers to be time-honored
and pragmatic. Neither camp really disapproves of each
others' plans so long as there is no interference between
the two. While the Benefactors argue that Humanity is of
more use remade into yet another useful psionic servi-
tor xenospecies, they would still eventually exterminate
Humanity. As Doyen consider all such species to be dispos-
able resources at best, a psionic Humanity would only be
allowed to exist as long as their service was of use to the
Doyen. Likewise, the Purifiers have no real objection to the
other Doyens' exploitation of Humanity. From their point of
view, aliens that are not an immediate threat to the Doyen
- such as the aberrants and novas - exist to be used and
disposed of as needed. Unfortunately for the Doyen, inter-
ference of that sort is exactly what has happened, resulting
in yet another source of political conflict within their ranks.
183
 ABERRANT
The Benefactor/Purifier schism does not fall neatly
along the lines between the Doyen Orders, as it's more a
matter of like-minded individuals banding together than
anything else. Members of all the Doyen Orders can be
found within both camps, contributing their varied gifts to
WMDs
When dealing with Precursor xenocivilizations and interstel-
lar warfare, weapons of mass destruction - WMDs, for short - are
certain to be used. This poses a problem for the Storyteller,
as stats for such devices are few and far between in the canon
Aberrant and Trinity books. There are two ways to simulate the
damage a WMD can do shown in the canon books, the mechan-
ics of which are described as follows.
The first method is to simply tack on Damage Adds
(Aberrant core book p. 241), which add a certain number of
automatic damage successes - seen in brackets - to the stated
amount of damage dice. Damage Adds can only be reduced
or negated by Armor Adds (Aberrant core book p. 278), which
are most often possessed by vehicles and other large structures.
Even so, theres nothing preventing a nova from having Armor
Adds with her Soak rating, likely as a result of a Mega-Stamina
enhancement or an Extra for the Armor quantum power.
The second method is to simulate a WMDs effects by
choosing analogous quantum powers and Mega-Strength
enhancements set at a static (yet high) number of dice per
effect. Alternatively, psionic attacks may be used. This is shown
in the listing for the Kinetic Energy Interceptor satellite, an
orbital railgun kinetic-kill weapon (Aberrant: Worldwide Phase
2 p. 150). This approach treats the total damage done as simul-
taneous uses of the Strobe (auditory and visual) and Quantum
Bolt quantum powers, the Lethal Blast technique of the Elemen-
tal Anima quantum power and the Shockwave and Thunderclap
enhancements. It should be noted that effects simulating quan-
tum powers of levels 5 and 6 are only in the reach of civilizations
with the highest Technology Ratings.
As cowards, Doyen find using WMDs to be a preferred
option whenever engaging their foes in indirect combat is not
possible. In addition to the familiar triad of nuclear, chemical
and biological WMDs the Doyen will also have access to kinet-
ic-kill weapons such as orbital railguns and possibly even rela-
tivistic-speed kinetic missiles. Antimatter warheads are another
option that the Doyen are fond of. Then there are the special
augmentation devices that amplify a chosen psionic attack to
WMD caliber. For example, the Doyen are known to have used
a biotech WMD that replicates the Premature Decomposition
(Algesis 5, alternate) power over a large province-sized region
against an offending xenocivilization at least once. As long
as a particular WMD is plausible for their Technology Rating,
isnt considered taboo and can be replicated with biotech, the
Doyen likely have it.
184 Appendix #4: The Doyen
their chosen cause. It's also important to note that only a
minority of "activists" among the total Doyen population
belong to either faction, as the rest are going about their
accustomed lives as they have for millennia. Most of the
"activist" Doyen are in the Benefactor camp, with a large
fraction having thrown in with the Purifiers, as per Trinity
canon. There is no conflict between the canon material on
the Doyen and the information presented in this Appendix.
Current Affairs
As of 2122 C.E., the situation between the Benefactors
and Purifiers can only be descibed as increasingly tense.
The hysteria of the anti-human Purifiers has resulted in their
taking too-hasty action - from the Doyen perspective - that
has failed catastrophically. Their overnight acceleration of
the Chromatics' technological development turned a race
of Bronze Age savages that could have been eliminated
with a few choice asteroid strikes against Chrome-Prime
into a spacefaring civilization. Helping the Chromatics
to enslave captured Upeo psions instead of developing
a noetic-based stardrive was another tactical error that
will show that the Doyen have malevolent intentions for
Humanity. Their attempt to have the Chromatics invade
Earth was repelled (Darkness Revealed 3: Ascent Into
Light), wasting the lives of many humans and Chromat-
ics that would have been better spent fighting against
aberrants. If more time had been spent establishing firmer
contol over the Chromatics' social structure and giving
their soldiers a deeper comprehension of advanced tech-
nology and space travel, they would have stood a much
better chance against the forces of Earth. Worst of all, two
Purifier agents were exposed both as Doyen and hostiles
to Humanity and the Chromatics alike, endangering the
Doyens' hold over the former and shattering that on the
latter. All of this has placed great public censure in the Puri-
fier ringleaders, some of whom already face legal penalites
and eventual exile for their blunders.
That is not to say the Benefactors' actions have been
found without fault, however. While more subtle and far
less hasty, their own crimes against Humanity are also
being uncovered. Their placement of artificial Aptitude
restrictions in the Prometheus Chambers has been discov-
ered by the Proxies. The ability of the Doyen to possess
human psions - another hidden feature of the Prometheus
Chambers - has likewise been discovered. At least three of
the Proxies - namely Giuseppe del Fuego, Bolade Atwan
and Rebecca Bue Li - suspect Doyen involvement in the
Chitra Bhanu Purge. If proof of such is ever discovered -
and it will be, eventually - they will spark the impetus for
the Proxies to break all ties with their supposed patrons.
 ABERRANT
Prognosis
Despite their Doyen pre-
tension, matters have grown
beyond the control of both
the Purifiers and Benefactors.
Ironically enough, only the
Purifiers have any real idea
of the magnitude of their
failures. Their control over
the Chromatics is no more,
they've exposed their race
as being hostile to Humanity
and they're a breath away
from being condemned to
perpetual exile from Doyen
civilization.
With the existence and
hostility of the Doyen having
been revealed by the Purifi-
ers, the Benefactors are now
in between the proverbial
rock and hard place. With aberrants to threaten their own diplomatic relations with
Humanity having finished its conflict with the Chromatics, Terra. With the Qin lacking any knowledge of the difference
the Proxies have hard questions waiting for the Benefac- between novas and aberrants, this would likely force Terran
tors. Only one option is available to those aliens: to explain Humanity to have to choose between maintaining relations
about the Benefactor/Purifier schism within Doyen society. with either Qinshui or Eden. Given the existing anti-aber-
The Benefactors will portray themselves as the morally rant prejudice and wariness about Edenite motivations, this
superior faction of the Doyen in an attempt to distance strategy could work if not counteracted.
themselves from the actions of the Purifiers and banish Eventually, the Benefactors' plans will be shattered
any doubts the Proxies have about them. Unfortunately for as Terran Humanity turns against all Doyen, much like the
them, the Benefactors have no idea that the Proxies are Chromatics did. Unlike the Chromatics, Terran Humanity
on to their aforementioned deceptions, which will doom has the means to prosecute a war against their would-be
their attempt to save "face" before it even begins. With the alien manipulators. If they can ally with the existing nova
Proxies no longer willing to act as their frontmen, the Psi colony worlds - Eden is far from the only one out there
Orders cannot be easily used as catspaws for the Benefac- - they can aid each other against both of their mutual ene-
tors' plans without possessing psions. mies. One particularly nasty option would be for accurate
Even worse - from the Benefactors' point of view - an information about the Doyen - including the location of
Upeo expedition has established diplomatic relations the Core Worlds - to be leaked to aberrant sympathizers
between Terra and the nova-ruled colony planet of Eden. within the United Nations. If the Colony could be made
If Aeon, the United Nations and the Orders do form an to view the Doyen as a credible and immediate threat to
alliance with the Edenite novas against the Colony's aber- the aberrant colony worlds, it could send much of both its
rants, they will be seen by the Doyen as allying themselves nova-caliber troops and its sub-aberrant mutate cannon
with the Taint. Enabling that horrific turn of events will paint fodder to destroy the meddling aliens. This would weaken
the Benefactors as having threatened the survival of the both foes considerably, making the task of exterminating
entire Doyen species. As with the Purifiers, they would also them completely somewhat less difficult for Terran Human-
face exile from Doyen civilization. To prevent that chain of ity and their nova and alien allies. It won't be easy and it
events from happening, the Benefactors will seek to keep will be Hell - like all other wars - but it would be feasible.
the human psions' hostilities focused against the aberrants After both the Doyen and the Colony's forces are extinct,
and to sabotage any and all relations between Terran the future course of human and nova affairs has been left to
Humanity and Eden. Some have proposed leaking the the Storyteller's discretion and imagination.
United Nations knowledge of Eden to the Qin, allowing
the invertebrates' wariness about Humanity and fear of the

Appendix #4: The Doyen 185

Errata for Aberrant:
The New Flesh
As with everything else created by ordinary folks, a few
important things were mistakenly left out of the finalized
PDF of Aberrant: The New Flesh. Heres whats missing.
Credits Page:
The cover art was designed and created by Jessica
JessiLaurn Orsini.
p. 84, Combat Styles
Novas with the right Mega-Attributes can learn an
Inspired Combat Style much faster than other Inspired
students. The learning time required to gain a specialty
is reduced by 50% for associated Mega-Attribute a nova
student possesses, down to a minimum of three months.
Potentially, a beginning nova student with the right
Mega-Attributes could completely master an Inspired
Combat Style within nine months. This does nothing to
reduce the experience point cost, however! If the player of
the nova student does not have enough experience points
saved to buy the specialty and any associated Advanced
Techniques, the training will be a waste of good gaming
time.
Example: Felipe Vasquez is an independent nova and
Tai Chi Chuan stylist from LA who has managed to find a
mentor willing to train him in Q Mng. Ordinarily, gaining
his first Q Mng specialty would take two years of intense
training. Fortunately for him, Felipe has Mega-Dexterity
3, Mega-Stamina 4 and Mega-Wits 5, of which the base
Attributes of all three are associated with Q Mng. With
Felipes player having stored up sufficient experience points
to pay for it beforehand, Felipe gains his first Q Mng
specialty after only three months of game time spent in
training. Felipes player could have chosen to extend the
training period and get Felipe a second Q Mng specialty,
but instead decided to start gaining more experience
points to save for raising the required Abilities of his new
Combat Style.
Novas can learn non-Inspired Combat Styles even
faster, with the required training time being reduced by 1/2
186 Aberrant: The New Flesh Errata
for each dot in an associated Mega-Attribute a nova stu-
dent possesses. Even so, non-Inspired Combat Styles cant
be mastered in less then a weeks worth of instruction and
any experience point costs must still be paid in full.
pp. 111-116, Q Mng
combat style listing
Prerequisites: A character does not have to use his
Martial Arts specialities for learning Q Mng. Instead, spe-
cialties from his Meditation Ability may be used. Q Mng
stylists who also practice Tai Chi Chuan will have an easier
time mastering Q Mng, as the two Combat Styles have
several Advanced Techniques in common.
Purge Temporary Taint Advanced Technique
Instead of imposing an experience point cost, the Sto-
ryteller may choose to have the Q Mng stylist spend an
additional 24 hour period at the reduced strength level for
each point of temporary Taint the stylist wishes to purge.
The Wits + Meditation roll is still required.
Node Reconfiguration Advanced Technique
In addition to being useless for 2nd generation novas,
this technique is also of no use for novas with the N-Stage
Node Background Enhancement (Node) at a high enough
dot rating that they no longer suffer from Node-derived
Taint.
Pressure Secret: MR Coil Disruption Strike Advanced
Technique
Only stylists who have achieved the third Q Mng
specialty can learn this Pressure Secret.
New Advanced Technique
Quantum Balance (3 experience points Associated
Only)
Prerequisites: 2nd Q Mng specialty.
Q Mng stylists as a rule are wary of maxing their
 ABERRANT
powers (Aberrant core book p. 147), as it is considered to
be node abuse. Even so, they do recognize that there will
be times where it is necessary to reach beyond their normal
limits. This Advanced Technique - developed by the Sifu
him- or herself (no one who knows for sure is talking) allows
Q Mng stylists to max their powers safely. The stylist is
required to spend a week of meticulous study to learn
whats required to perform the desired special maneuver,
during which time he cant do much else. After this the
stylist can very carefully restructure his quantum signature
so that performing that particular special maneuver is
hardwired into his quantum matrix.
Once your stylist has Quantum Balance, you can pur-
chase a special maneuver at a cost of 1 experience point
per three successes involved with the special maneuver.
Instead of the variable results normally associated with
maxing a power, a set effect is established. Using that
special maneuver requires the stylist to spend double the
normal quantum point cost of the associated power, even
if the stylist has the Reduced Quantum Point Cost Extra.
Failures and botches are handled normally except that the
stylist cannot gain Taint from botching.
p. 128, Thrown Weapons
Table
The stats for the hatchet as a thrown weapon are as
follows:
Damage: +3L, Range Multiplier: special*, Rate of Fire
1, Conceal: J, Mass: 1.5 kg, Special: N.
*: The range of a thrown hatchet is determined as per
Throwing on p. 236 of the Aberrant core book.
p. 134, Firearms Table
Machine Pistols, Gen. 9mm Luger: The Accuracy for
this firearm is 0.
Rifles, Gen. Target: The Range for this firearm is 150.
Rifles, Gen. Anti-Material Rifle: The Rate of Fire for
this firearm is 1.
p. 223, Improved Attribute
Body Modification
The Storyteller is within her rights to forbid characters
from taking any level of this Body Modification if they also
have a Mega-Attribute for the affected Attribute. Individ-
ual Storytellers might allow one or two levels of Improved
Attribute, but anything more than that can cause problems
in gameplay.
Aberrant: The New Flesh Errata
New Enhancement
Ability Wizardry
(Any Mega-Attribute except
Mega-Willpower)
Prerequisite: A rating of in the chosen Ability.
Novas are well-known for being able to exceed the raw
physical, mental and social capabilities of baseline humans
to absurd degrees. That said, most people also know that
novas are limited to the same range of actual skill that
baselines exhibit, from novice to master. The existence of
so many mediocre nova would-be artists and musicians
using their Mega-Attributes to make up for their lack of
actual skill appears to be empirical proof of that notion. A
nova with this enhancement proves most people wrong
in that, as she can achieve levels of skill beyond anything
a baseline could hope to attain. She has attained the rank
beyond mere mastery: wizard.
System: The nova with Ability Wizardry gains two ben-
efits. First, she permanently adds (the relevant Mega-At-
tribute) dice to the dice pool for her chosen Ability. These
additional dice are cumulative with any others the nova
receives from her other enhancements and her Mega-At-
tribute. Second, the nova no longer has an upper limit for
purchasing specialties for the chosen Ability with experi-
ence points. While this enhancement can be taken multiple
times without any upper limit, no more than one can be
linked to any given Ability the nova possesses.
This enhancement is permanent and has no quantum
point cost. Also, the nova cannot purchase and has no
need for Ability Mastery (Adventure! p. 138).
New Optional Rule:
Accidental Power Interaction
At their most basic level, all quantum powers are reality
distortions of varying degrees. This is usually of no conse-
quence in practical terms when they clash with one another,
as the vast majority of novas lack the power to severely
disturb the fabric of reality. This changes when the novas
involved have attained the upper reaches of their quantum
potential but have yet to fully master their powers. On very
rare occasion - read: when the Storyteller needs a handy
plot device - the powers of such novas can unwittingly
combine to create an unintended and unpredictable effect
of the Storytellers choice.
The first requirement for such an event is actual
combat between novas with Quantum Traits of 6 or higher
using powers with ratings of or lower. Novas with
higher power ratings have truly mastered the powers in
187
 ABERRANT
question to the point that this kind of event does not As to the nature of the created effect, it could be any-
happen. Second, the powers being used must have some thing on the level of the Level 4, 5 or 6 quantum powers;
plausible relevance to the effect that the Storyteller wishes as described in the Aberrant Players Guide (pp. 121-141)
to create. Powers involving energy discharges or spacetime and Chapter 4 of Aberrant: Nexus. Time travel, cross-
distortions are always eligible for this phenomenon, but time travel, ecological or geological upheavals, temporal
the Storyteller should not limit herself to those options. loops - anything is possible. The Storyteller is free to inflict
Anything could happen with the correct combination of whatever she wants on her players to help the story, at the
quantum powers. Third, one combatant must use the cost of allowing them a chance to reproduce or undo the
Power Block maneuver (Aberrant core book pp. 243-244) effect by replicating the circumstances that created it in the
to defend against the simultaneous attacks of 2 or more first place. Either way, this can be a great way to emphasize
other combatants with appropriate powers. the consequences of the use (and misuse) of godlike power
To calculate the power level of the created effect, the and makes for excellent roleplaying. And thats part of what
Storyteller takes the highest Quantum Trait among the Aberrant is all about.
combatants and adds +1 for each combatant with equal
Quantum Traits. The resulting Trait value determines the
effective Quantum Trait for the created effect will be.
Combatants with lower Quantum Traits arent counted
in this equation, as their power is swamped by the more
powerful novas present. Note that the most powerful of
quantum gadgets and Innovations (Adventure! p. 176)
also qualify for this, as do the time manipulating abilities of
paramorphs.

188 Aberrant: The New Flesh Errata

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Samsara 1
Introduction 5
Chapter One: The Aeon Continuum 10
Chapter Two: Sojourns In Spacetime 28
Chapter Three: Storytelling 67
Chapter Four: New Items 82
Appendix #1: Mega-Willpower 120
Appendix #2: Telluric Weirdness 133
Appendix #3: The Discarnate 140
Appendix #4: The Doyen 165
Table Of Contents 189
Credits 190

TABLE OF CONTENTS 189

 CREDITS

Credits Interior Artwork: The original Aberrant, Adventure!

Authors: Shawn Sprocket Henley, Gabe Jeremy
Noctis Meadow, Dawn Dawn OOC Prough
Additional Contributors: darksol-aeternium,
Rorx, Brothrrice, SalmonMax, Malachite Drake,
Chuckg, Sakurako Hino, Seraph Orissa Harmony,
Jason Grant, SkyLion, Dave ST, Kazuo, Sonja
Bahaar, jameson (ST)
Storyteller Game System Designed By: Mark
ReinHagen
Aberrant Developed By: Robert Hatch, Kraig
Blackwelder
Developers: Shawn Sprocket Henley
Editors: Shawn Sprocket Henley
Cover Artwork: RPG Post
and Trinity artists, RPG Post
Layout and Typesetting: RPG Post
Special Thanks:
To the posters at RPGPost.com, for their feedback to
the sample alternate Earths.
To the fine folks at Onyx Path, for the promise of
breathing new life into Aberrant.
Dedication: To everyone who has been playing
Aberrant, Adventure! and Trinity for all those long years
after the official game lines died. Weve kept the flame
alive, and Im eager to see what these games will become
in the hands of the Onyx Path.

2016 RPGPOST.COM
Various terms used throughout this book are copyright Onyx Path Publishing. This publication is purely fan fiction, it is in no way
associated with or recognized by Onyx Path Publishing. In short, this book is completely unofficial, please take it as that.
In order to use the contents of this book you will need to have purchased several of the official books available from Onyx Path
Publishing or in electronic format from DriveThruRPG.com. Support Aberrant and the Trinity Universe by either visiting Onyx Path
Publishing website at theonyxpath.com, or your local gaming store to purchase the official books.
This book in its entirety has been developed to be freely available to fans of Onyx Path Publishings Trinity Universe the most
recent copy of this book can be downloaded for free from RPG Post at http://rpgpost.com
The mention of or reference to any company or product in these pages is not a challenge to the trademark or copyright con-
cerned. This book uses science fiction for settings, characters and themes. All science fiction and geopolitical scenarios are fiction and
intended for entertainment purposes only. Reader discretion is advised.

190 CREDITS
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