Here are a collection of optional rules that add flexibility and new choices for mutant characters:
These rules are recommended for advanced players and may not be available in all campaigns.
I intend to eventually put together the following pages, but for now they're just listed here as a reminder for me:
Don't get too excided about the details; I expect that these rules will need to be updated over time...
Most characters roll their mutant perks and flaws randomly. Build Points can be spent to reroll particularly nasty mutations, but the player has little control over the whole process. These advanced rules allow the player to select mutations for their character, but at a cost.
There are several ways to get non-random mutations:
The simplest way to pick your mutations is to pick your genotype. Some strains have bred pure, with all individuals having similar or identical mutations. For many genotypes, everyone possesses the same perks and flaws (such as munchkins). For other genotypes, individuals have a selection of mutations from limited "stock" lists (phrenics, for example). In this case, Build Points can be spent to select the desired perks and flaws from the list. Either way, make sure with your GM that the genotype is appropriate for your campaign.
Genotypes that can select mutations from a stock list can advance them normally (as detailed below). Note that the cost of a given perk or flaw may not match the standard value. A furry, as an example, may possess bat-like wings - but they cost a lot of Build Points.
Another basic example of non-random mutations are advanced perks and flaws. Characters can advance a mutant perk once for the listed cost; a second advancement costs double. Likewise, a mutant flaw can be advanced once for the listed number of Build Points, but a second advancement only grants half the BPs.
Some mutations just seem to go well together. A mutant with Pincers, for example, would almost be expected to have Crude Hands. An Additional Limb could likely be considered an Aberrant Deformity. These are examples of contingent mutations. Of course, in each case, one could also imagine a mutant without the corresponding mutation (a mutant could have regular fingers in addition to crab-like members, or an extra arm may sprout from the same shoulder as his regular limb).
Contingent mutations are summarized in the following table:
When a character receives a perk or flaw from the list of "base" mutations, they can spend the listed number of Build Points to select a contingent perk, or receive BPs for taking a contingent flaw.
Only characters who roll their mutations randomly are eligible for contingent mutations. So furries, phrenics, and the like cannot pick them (they are restricted to their stock lists). And characters may only select contingent mutations that they would be able to receive normally, so a near-human could not pick a major perk just because it's listed on the table. Contingent mutations count towards the maximum number of mutations for the character.
Contingent mutations are never mandatory; the player has the choice to select them or not. They are intended to encourage the selection of complimentary mutations, and to increase the playability of mutants with particularly devestating flaws (such as Blindness). Also note that there are no uncommon mutations on the contingent lists; only standard perks and flaws.
Note that some mutations (such as Bicephalous and Tumourization) include sub-mutations. These are similar to contingent mutations, but aren't quite the same - sub-mutations are not optional and do not count towards the mutation limit of a character.
Finally, players can "cherry-pick" desired mutations instead of rolling for them. The price is quite steep, however.
Cherry picking mutant perks costs double the regular amount. Minor mutant perks cost 4 BPs each, medium perks cost 8 BPs, and major perks cost 12 BPs. If a perk appears on both the minor and medium lists, it costs 5 BPs; if it is on both the medium and major lists, it costs 10 BPs.
Conversely, cherry-picking a mutant flaw grants only half the regular BPs. Minor flaws grant 1 BP, medium flaws grant 2 BPs, and major flaws grant 3 BPs. If a flaw appears on more than one list, it grants the lesser number of Build Points.
Since cherry-picked perks and flaws cost a different number of Build Points than usual, they screw with some BP-based requirements. A mutant human who cherry-picks Gigantism (costing 12 BPs), for example, would have to come up with as many points of flaws to meet the minimum number required. And if he cherry-picks these flaws, they only count for half the normal BPs.
Cherry-picking is not worthwhile in most circumstances. If the player has a particular concept in mind, however, it may be the only way to build the character as envisioned.
Some mutations are more prevalent in the gene pool than others. Survival-related physical mutations are very common, for example, while strange psionic powers are quite rare.
The most common perks and flaws are represented on the standard tables. The following uncommon mutations do not appear on the regular mutant perks or flaws tables. With GM's permisison, characters can roll on these uncommon tables as long as they possess more common mutations than they do uncommon. A PC with 3 common mutations, for example, could roll up to 2 uncommon mutations (perks or flaws), but no more:
In general, uncommon mutations are "weirder" than perks and flaws from the common lists. Some may have more difficult game mechanics, or a little more "graphic", or else they might just be mutations that I didn't think of until the common lists were complete.
Because of the small number of uncommon flaws, the method for determining them is different than for other mutations. Instead of selecting a category (minor, medium, or major) then rolling on the appropriate column, a player who decides to take an uncommon flaw rolls on the full list instead. If the result is not allowed (such as a near-human rolling a major flaw), simply roll again until an appropriate flaw is gained.
Sometimes mutations take different forms than usual. A character with claws, for example, may possess them on only one limb. Or a mutant with gills might be unable to breathe air. When a character rolls up a mutation with variants, he must select whether to possess the 'regular' form or one of the rarer alternatives. Many variants have a different BP cost than usual.
Variant mutations are summarized in the following table:
Only characters who roll their mutations randomly are eligible for variant mutations.