Description
You possess a shield of exotic energy. Different characters with this focus have auras of varying appearance – some glow, some are surrounded by smoke or haze, still others have auras that are nigh-invisible. Your aura is a powerful defense no matter what it looks like. No type of character is more likely than others to hide behind an aura; glaives, jacks, and nanos all have a need for protection.
Details
GM Intrusion: Your aura synchronizes with your attacker’s. You don’t take damage when he does, but you do feel his pain. You suffer a +1 step difficulty penalty on all actions for the rest of the encounter.
- Connection:
Pick one other PC. You can extend your aura to protect that person as well if you are within immediate range. If that person is within short range you can project your aura to protect your companion, but you forfeit the protection on yourself while doing so.
- Minor Effect Suggestions:
- Your aura flares when struck and blinds your opponent for one turn; your aura pulses when struck and knocks your attacker off his feet.
- Major Effect Suggestions:
- Your enemy’s weapon shatters as it strikes your aura.
- Tier 1:
Deflector Shield (1 Intellect point): You have an asset on any Might or Speed defense task for the next ten minutes.
Halo: Your aura emits light equal to a glow globe until you will it to stop. The light ceases after one hour if you are rendered unconscious. Action to initiate or end.
- Tier 2:
Force Armor (1+ Intellect points): You gain a bonus to your armor equal to the number of Intellect points that you spend for ten minutes.
Camouflage Aura (1 Intellect Point): Your aura changes color or otherwise interferes with visibility to make you harder to see. You have an asset on stealth-based tasks for one hour.
- Tier 3:
Hardened Aura (3 Intellect points): Your Deflector Shield now grants a two-step bonus. Enabler.
Mental Shield: You can use Deflector Shield for Intellect defense tasks. Activating Mental Shield requires a separate action and Intellect cost from Deflector Shield. Enabler.
- Tier 4:
Aura Strike (4 or 5 Intellect points): You can charge your limb or your weapon with the energy of your aura. Your melee attacks inflict +3 damage for ten minutes. For +1 to the cost the extra damage can be Intellect damage that ignores physical armor. Enabler.
- Tier 5:
Universal Shield: Your Force Armor and Hardened Aura abilities now apply to Intellect damage as well. You must make separate expenditures and actions to generate both physical and mental defenses. Enabler.
Stealth Haze (5 Intellect points): Your aura can now hide you from sight completely. Anyone who attacks or tries to spot you modifies the difficulty of the task four steps in your favor as if you were covered by complete darkness but they had some other means of detecting you. This protection lasts for ten minutes. Action to initiate or end.
- Tier 6:
Expanded Aura (5 Intellect points): You can extend your aura to protect yourself and all allies within short range for one minute. Action to initiate.
When you gain this ability you can extend your aura to protect the PC to whom you are connected while within short range at no cost. You can forfeit the protection on yourself to project your aura to your connection while within long range, also at no cost.