Playbook: The Changeling/Orphan

The Changeling/Orphan

I don't know what's happening to me! I'm normal!  This isn't supposed to happen to normal people. I just want everything to go back to the way it was before.

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Your character is not human or else comes from a bloodline of special humans.  In either case, you were separated from your proper family by circumstances and adopted by a normal family. Now your heritage is now coming out and revealing itself.  This usually happens in the late teens, but can hold to the early twenties.

To make your Changeling/Orphan, pick a name.  Then follow the instructions below to decide your look, ratings, moves and gear.  Finally introduce yourself and pick a history.

Look

Pick one from each line and write under Look

    Man, woman, boy, girl.
    Odd colorations, alluring voice, frightful aura, strange eyes, wings, or other odd feature
    Friendly face, alluring face, laughing face, trustworthy face, average face, serious face, sensual face
    Normal clothes, ragged clothes, casual clothes, goth clothes, sporty clothes, work clothes, street clothes, nerdy clothes.

Ratings

    Charm +1, Cool -1, Sharp +1, Tough +0, Weird +2
    Charm -1, Cool +1, Sharp +0, Tough +1, Weird +2
    Charm +1, Cool +0, Sharp -1, Tough +1, Weird +2
    Charm +0, Cool +1, Sharp +1, Tough -1, Weird +2
    Charm +2, Cool -1, Sharp +0, Tough -1, Weird +2

Moves

Choose 3 Moves

    Glamour - You are capable of maintaining an illusion that keeps you looking human to other people.  Your true form remains and has whatever unusual features you decided on for looks.  When creating the Glamour for a scene, make a +Cool roll. On a 10+, your Glamour is solid and presents a believable human appearance.  On a 7-9 some aspect of the Glamour is faulty, perhaps you've over-idealized some aspect of it or maybe a piece of your inhuman nature shines through.  In either case, the glamour gives you a reason to be able manipulate others.  On a miss, the Glamour fails completely at some point during the scene, probably during the worst possible time.
    Know When to Bluff - You pay attention and can tell when someone is freaked out by you, whether that's a monster that knows your heritage better than you or a bystander that just sees something unnatural. Roll +Sharp.  On a 10+ you give the impression of being much more dangerous than you are and the target will be cautious in the current encounter.  Unless you do something to expose yourself, the impression will remain throughout the entire encounter. On a 7-9 the opponent isn't sure about dealing with you and will hesitate.  The bluff will fall apart, but you've bought time for your allies to do something. On a miss the opponent realizes how in over your head you really are.
    Nurture over Nature - The way you were raised is clearly dominant over your instincts. If you persist in your goals in the face of your Unknown Heritage you gain a +1 Forward.  If you give up, you only suffer a -1 ongoing for that scene or encounter, not the whole session.
    Takes One to Know One - When a monster or other supernatural creature is claiming to be misunderstood or otherwise trying to relate to humans, you can tell whether or not they are being honest in the attempt.  This doesn't let you see through a monster's self-denial, however. This works on other supernatural hunters as well.
    Inhuman Talent - Name a particular theme of magic.  When Using Magic, you gain a +1 to rolls if you remain within that theme.  Examples: Smoke would give you +1 when using magic to manipulate smoke or using smoke to deliver magic.  Cloth would give a +1 when performing magic that uses or enhances cloth somehow.
    THEY are my people - Once per session, when you move to protect a normal human from harm, you can act as if you rolled a 10+.
    Constant Companion - You have acquired a friend somehow connected to your magical background.  This could be a pixie, a magical animal or a goblin.  It might also be someone who decided to follow you from your old life. This operates as an ally.  You determine the exact nature of the companion, but pick one of the following for the type: subordinate, lieutenant, friend, bodyguard, confidante, or backup.
    The Uncorrupted - Your people are a more natural precursor to a particular type of supernatural or even unholy monster. You gain a +1 when you act under pressure to resist that creature's powers.  However, if they realize what you are, they may feel determined to corrupt you into becoming what they are.
 

Unknown Heritage

Your non-human or psychic heritage has some pitfalls that you would be forewarned about if you were raised by your proper family. Choose three tags.

Tags

    Dietary Requirement - Your physiology requires something specific in order to remain healthy.  Alternately, there are foods which are perfectly fine for other people which you can't eat without being severely ill or at risk of death.
    Reputation - Whatever you are, it or they have a reputation that you are expected to live up to. Good reputations can be as problematic as evil reputations in this case.
    Pain - You haven't been properly trained in the use of your powers and because of this, you sometimes experience crippling pain.
    Emotional Use - Sometimes when your emotions are riding high, your power activates on its own and this rarely a good thing.
    Erratic Power - Sometimes your power fizzles when you most need it, sometimes it comes out too powerful.
    Strange Thoughts - All teenagers find strange feelings coming over them, but you have emotions truly unusual for most humans.
    Madness - Rather than force your body to withstand the rigors of your uncontrolled Power, you tax your mind instead. The fits are passing, so far, but if someone doesn't teach you to properly control yourself then you might find yourself permanently insane.
    Sensory Bombardment - You have senses you haven't been trained to deal with, whether physical or mental, and sometimes the clash of information is too much for you to deal with.
    Alienation - Your normal family reacted poorly when your supernatural heritage started to develop.  Almost no one you knew from the old days will have anything to do with you.  If you're a minor, you haven't even been reported as missing.  The feeling of abandonment creates a behavior that makes strangers have difficulty trusting you, enhancing your feeling of alienation.  You can still have a companion while suffering from feelings of alienation.
    Allergy - You have a weakness. Something that would normally be harmless to humans causes you great pain.
    Repulsion - Some substance,sound or object repulses you greatly.  You can't bare even the slightest smell or sight of it.
    Attraction - Some substance, sound or object attracts you greatly.  You can barely pull yourself away from it.
    Obsession - Whether it's possible or not, you're obsessed with going back to being normal.  You have a tendency to look for any possible solution to "fixing" yourself, even things that other people consider to be obvious scams or traps.

The Keeper can use these tags to present obstacles or dangers to your goals.  If you push through to try and obtain your goal despite the obstacle, mark an experience.  If you abandon your goal in order to avoid the obstacle presented by your heritage, then take a -1 ongoing for the rest of the session due to the loss of confidence and other mental strain.

Gear

You have a few remnants of your old life and a weapon to serve your new one:

Transportation, choose one:

    Skateboard
    Roller Skates
    Bicycle
    Pickup
    Motorcycle
    Van
    Fairly new car in decent condition
    Classic car in poor condition

Weapon, pick one:

    Golf club/baseball bat/cricket bat/hockey stick (2 harm hand innocuous messy)
    Useful knife/multi-tool (1 harm hand useful small)
    Small handgun (2 harm close loud reload)
    Hunting rifle (3 harm far loud reload)
    Sledge-hammer/fire axe (3 harm hand messy)
    Talisman or Artifact (1-harm magic close ignore armor)

Gear, pick two:

    A childhood toy.
    A laptop.
    A knapsack/backpack/purse
    An mp3 player/mobile gaming platform
    Photo keepsakes.
    A locket/ring/necklace/etc
    A favorite piece of clothing.
    A journal
    Letters or email from home (unlikely if alienated)

Introductions

When you get here, wait for everyone to catch up so you can do your introductions together.

Go around the group.  On your turn, introduce your Mundane by name and look, and tell the group what they know about you.

History

Go around the group again, when it's your turn, pick one for each of the other hunters:

    They first explained to you that you weren't human.  Ask them how they realized and tell them how you reacted.
    You suspect that they know more about your heritage than they are telling.
    They tried to slay you, but eventually decided you weren't evil. Ask them what convinced them.
    You see them as your anchor to humanity. Ask them if they're a stable choice or not.
    You are romantically involved with them or one of their close relatives.  Decide among the exact nature.
    They see you as bait to bring in bigger prey.  This may be a facade, ask them what their true feelings are.
    They claim you and your kind are part of their destiny.  Tell them what your reaction to that is.
    They see you as a protege to train for hunting.  Ask them how persistent they are in this agenda.
    One of you saved the other's life once before. Tell them which of you saved whose life.  Ask them what the details were.

Luck: As normal

Harm: As normal

Leveling Up: As normal

Improvements

Get +1 Weird (Max +3)

Get +1 Cool (Max +2)

Get +1 Sharp, (Max +2)

Get +1 Charm, (Max +2)

Take another Changeling/Orphan move

Take another Changeling/Orphan move

Take a move from another playbook

Take a move from another playbook

Meet another lost changeling/orphan of a different sort who becomes an ally.

Mark Use Magic as advanced

Choose one:

    A human community (neighborhood or small town) that accepts you for what you are. Come up with the nature of the community with your Keeper.  Use the Sect and Agency creation rules as guidelines, but focus on a more normal community.
    A supernatural sect connected to your true heritage. Created as per an Initiate's sect.

Advanced Improvements

Get +1 to any rating (Max +3)

Change this hunter to a new type

Make up a second hunter to play as well as this one

Mark two of the basic moves as advanced

Mark another two of the basic moves as advanced

Retire this hunter to safety

Erase one Luck mark from your playbook.

Change or remove one Unknown Heritage tag as you've gotten control over that facet of your nature.

Your character "retires" to evil and becomes a Threat.  Either she gave in to her heritage, was corrupted by others or else turned evil for what she believes is the greater good, but the end result is that she is a threat.

Unknown Heritage


Notes

Looks pretty cool. I love the Unknown Heritage options, they give a real flavour of the weird faerie background.

Have a think about your moves, as you have included some that don't really gain the character anything. E.g. "Seriously, I'm Normal" on a success just has people treat you like everyone else. Maybe it would be cooler to have the "Glamour" make you seem beautiful and interesting to whoever you are talking to. Mechanically, that could always count as a reason for manipulating mortals.

I'd also suggest that the Constant Companion should be more tied to the faerie background - maybe you should choose from a pixie, goblin, or magical animal?

Is there a reason you've given them four move choices? That's one more than usual, plus you've included those two "pick a move from Monstrous/Summoned/Divine" which is a good sign that you don't need more of them!

I also like to make sure that a new playbook has some moves to deal with investigating, interacting with people, fighting, and some things only this character type can do. You don't have any fighting moves, so consider including something for that (although sometimes this is fine, if the hunter just isn't good at that stuff at all).

Overall, it's a great idea and I look forward to seeing where you go with it.

You may notice that I've kind of focused on the faerie background although you've left it open to other interpretations. The reason for that is that the Monstrous is kind of a catch-all non-human hunter, so I feel like it's more interesting to take specific non-humans in a very different direction (as the Divine and Summoned do).

I'll definitely take a look at it.  I have to admit to thinking in the parlance of my own setting where a "changeling" is any species that appears human at birth but takes on other form at puberty.  In Divine Blood that would include trolls, succubi, sidhe and gorgons.

As to why 4, the book noted that if I gave them an entirely negative one like the Spooky's Dark Fate that you should give them an extra move...and since Unknown Heritage is roughly based on that, I thought to include that.

The character that was in my head was from the convention scenario I've made for a Demon Next Door style campaign in the Divine Blood game (Demon Next Door focuses on sitcom or TV drama slice of life stuff and isn't intended to be deadly or even very traumatic or dangerous).  So I was probably thinking too close to a supernatural version of the Mundane.

The two choose from X moves is to help people differentiate to another sort of critter.  I can drop them in favor of something else.

Force of Nature - You have some supernatural means of attack.  This is related to your particular heritage and could be lightning, maddening illusions, summoned insect swarms or anything else.  Choose two of the following features:

Base: Psychic Assault - 1 harm close ignores armor, magic
Base: Energy Assault - 2 harm close, tagged as energy appropriate to attack (fire, ice, lightning, etc)
Base: Summon Assault - 2 harm close, messy (summoned blades, insects, etc)
Swarm - Add "area"
Intense - +1 Harm
Flexible - add either hand or far range

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Lockdown - You have some method of bringing the enemy to a halt.  This is related to your particular heritage and could be a petrifying gaze, illusionary maze, freezing them in a block of ice or something else.  Roll +Weird.   On 10+ the target will be immobile for the remainder of the scene, barring a Keeper or Monster move being employed.  On a 7-9, the target will remain immobilized for only as long as the Changeling focuses their attention on them and they may still escape via an appropriate move.  On a miss, the lockdown fails dramatically, possibly causing backlash to the Changeling or people surrounding the target.  The target cannot be harmed while the lockdown is maintained.

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Faerie Trods - Your unknown nature allows you to commune with local benign spirits such as pixies, brownies, elementals, dryads or animal totems.  You may roll +Weird to Investigate the Mystery by questioning these other locals.  You may also ask the following questions.

Is there anywhere that the supernatural environment is being affected?

How long has it been in the area?

When did it first arrive?

Last, but not least, the Changeling always has the temptation to ask this question, which may not directly benefit the mystery:

What do you know about me?

Note that these minor spirits often have limited or unusual perspectives and thus might not give as complete an answer as a human with the same information would.

I like those new moves, they give a lot more flavour to the changeling and give them a few different options for style.

A note about the Unknown Heritage/4 moves: I wouldn't call unknown heritage purely negative, as it gives the chance to earn extra experience checks.

All right, modified. 

I'm now tempted to put in a healing move since this is beginning to remind me of my school girl medusa and she leaned more to Medusa's healing aspects than her deadly aspects, but that's possible via advances, so no problem. 

As it is they now have three moves related to hanging onto their humanity, one ally move, one disguise, two moves connected to their heritage, an attack, a control and an investigative. 

I figure travel powers could be done with an advance by taking the angel wings from divine and fluffing it. 

I would say go with your gut feeling and add that healing move.

If you want to have some kind of fancy movement power, perhaps a way to fund hidden paths that lead wherever you want, but sometimes go through somewhere bad on the way (i.e. when you roll badly)? But, as you say, players can always grab a move from another playbook.

One tip: I found when I was writing all the basic playbooks that I could tell when each move was right. The thing to look for is when you look at the move after your last change, and think "I want to play this hunter so I can take *this* move!" Keep at them until each move, individually, is that cool.

well, all the previous moves are that, because I like the "monster" that is really much closer to the human end than the traditional good monster...but yeah, I like it...


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Renewal - The changeling can focus her powers to advance the healing of those around her.  Once per session when the hunters get a chance to rest and recover, the Changeling can roll +Weird.  On a 10+ every Hunter resting in the same building as her recovers 3 harm that day.  On a 7-9 every hunter recovers 2 harm that day.  On a miss, no one recovers anything.

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Set to Nature - The Changeling may try to remove a supernatural transformative curse or infection.  Roll +Weird.  On a 10+ the curse or infection is removed entirely.  On a 7-9, the curse or infection is reset back to its starting point granting the victim more time to find another cure.  On a miss, the end manifestation is influenced by the nature of the changeling (a gorgon failing to cure the onset of vampirism would find her friend becoming a rather snakish vampire).  This may only be attempted once per infection or curse.

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Strange Paths - The Changeling can walk (or drive) between the worlds, however, as she is lacking proper teaching she doesn't know the ways very well.  Once per mystery roll +Weird.  On a 10+ the Changeling can find a path to the desired location in much shorter time than the team would otherwise have traveled.  On a 7-9 the Changeling finds a path through, but they experience some trouble that may delay them:

They come out only part of the way to their destination.

They encounter natives of the way who demand a toll of some sort.

They get momentarily lost and arrive later than they hoped, but still quicker than they otherwise would have been.


On a miss, they encounter some sort of dangerous trouble that may prevent them from arriving at all, much less in time.  Or perhaps someone gets separated from the others somehow.

The Changeling may lead anybody who remains within hand range of her, or anybody who is in a vehicle that she is driving through these paths.  Note that each time a vehicle travels through the paths it becomes more and more supernatural itself.

Those are really good. Lots of character in which one you pick, and all totally new kinds of abilities that will push the game in different directions.

Just for the heck of it:

Terra Thora Black

Look:

Terra is a voluptuous young woman of 16 to 18 years with beautiful green scaled skin, warm orange eyes and long tentacles growing out of her skull that reach down to her feet.

Ratings:
Charm +2
Cool -1
Sharp +0
Tough -1
Weird +2

Moves:
Glamour - Her glamour is of a blonde girl with her hair in long dreadlocks.  Her skin coloration in this illusion is closer to Sub-Saharan African than Caucasian though the shape of her features are Russian-Germanic.

Lockdown - Terra can turn opponents to stone temporarily.  She doesn't have enough righteous fury or unholy hate to do it in a lethal manner (which would be Force of Nature)

Renewal - Terra can raise the health of those around her just by being present.

Gear

Beat-up Car

Baseball Bat

Knapsack, Locket

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This is a somewhat older version of her story: http://fav.me/dcqw6o