start:rpg:double_life2

Double-Life

The player may decide to play a doubler, a magic user. The player must determine their second-life ability (fireball, butterfly invocation, stag metamorphosis, etc.). Then, through their life, their second-life will evolve to match the character's needs better. The player gains xp points, which unlock up to 10 ranks of double-life mastery.

Rule of thumb table.

Title Xp E casting cost/H regen roll Reach Autonomy Permanent Damage Passive ability
1 Novice/Hatchling 1-2 1 1m 30s D2 cast the second-life
2 Initiate/Wriggler 3-5 2 3m 1min D3 control the second-life
3 Apprentice/Fledgling 6-9 5 5m 5min 10e/1h D4 can have permanent effect
4 Adept/Crawler 10-14 25 10m 20min 8e/30min D6 personal passive ability
5 Revealed/Strider 15-20 50 20m 1h 6e/10min 2D4 second-life constantly visible1)
6 Companion/Climber 21-27 75 50m 3h 5e/2min 2D6 personal passive ability
7 Master/Glider 28-35 90 100m 12h 4e/30s 2D8 reactivity greatly increased
8 Grand Master/Soarer 34-44 95 500m 1j 3e/5s 3D6 personal passive ability
9 Twice-born/Skymaster 45-54 98 visible 6j 2e/1s 3D8 autonomy greatly increased
10 Unity/Starfinder 55+ 99 inf inf 1e/instant 4D6 personal passive ability
x Title Xp Focus test Total Failure Bad Blah Not bad Good Excellent
1 Novice/Hatchling 1-2 Impossible Unconscious Unconscious Unconscious Unconscious Unconscious Unconscious
2 Initiate/Wriggler 3-5 Overwhelming Unconscious Unconscious Exhaustion Exhaustion Exhaustion Exhaustion
3 Apprentice/Fledgling 6-9 Hard Unconscious Exhaustion Exhaustion Exhaustion Exhaustion Low
4 Adept/Crawler 10-14 Hard Unconscious Exhaustion Exhaustion Exhaustion Low High
5 Revealed/Strider 15-20 normal Unconscious Exhaustion Exhaustion Low Low Full
6 Companion/Climber 21-27 normal Exhaustion Exhaustion Low Low High Full
7 Master/Glider 28-35 easy Exhaustion Low Low High High Full
8 Grand Master/Soarer 34-44 easy Low Low High High Full Full
9 Twice-born/Skymaster 45-54 trivial Low Low High Full Full Full
10 Unity/Starfinder 55+ trivial Low High Full Full Full Full

The doubler summons its second-life or takes control of it (if they are a revealed doubler). They can then control their second-life inside their control reach but must maintain focus (periodic Focus test).

fireball, milk telekinesis, beaver mind-control, …

The second-life tries to fulfill its commands and disappear after success or after it has depleted its energy reserve. It can go farther than the controllable reach, but then the doubler can get the control back or change its commands.

Examples: tracking, auto-defense, invocation, illusion, …

Their second-life can allow the doubler to alter the world permanently. They can either create or remove matter or energy or transform something into something else.

  • to alter things but without adding effects requiring energy; in this case, it is the simple result of your second life. Example: healing, transformation, …
  • You just need extra energy to create natural things that do not consume energy. Example: permanent invocation, creating matter, …
  • To create permanent unnatural matter or effects that consume energy, you need a way to furnish this energy to the second-life either from you or the environment if you do not want it to end. Example: permanent magical invocation, enchantment, …

To use their second-life the player must follow the following steps:

  1. Throw the casting cost (in Energy), the player must pay the cost, if energy is not sufficient the player will start consuming their Health.
  2. Test their Focus
  3. Given the test result, the player can pay additional energy to add effects (autonomy, power, reach, …)
  4. The character must focus while the ability is channeled in control mode. In autonomous mode, focus is needed to change the commands.

Focus Test

  • Total Failure: you lose control of the effects (against your interest)
  • Bad: you lose control of the effects (randomly)
  • Blah: you cannot stop the casting + the second-life does mostly what you want
  • Not bad: you can stop the casting when you reach 1 energy + the second-life does most of what you want
  • Good: you can stop the casting at half the cost + the second-life does what you want
  • Excellent: you can stop the casting at any time + the second-life does perfectly what you want
  • “The Sun in the palm of my hand.” Fire → Control of an orb of fire
  • “Burp!” Digestion → spit acids and build minerals-organic structures (bones)
  • “If you need a hand…” Division → can create autonomous bits of their body sustained by the main body
  • “Careful! It's slippery…” Texture → can change the texture and color of surfaces (chameleon invisibility, walking on any surface, slide on any surface, …)
  • “Whatever I say.” Suggestion → Oral Control
  • “And round, and round, and round!” Water → Water Swirl Snake
  • “Kaboom!” Explosion → Explosive arrows, deafening arrows, smoke arrows, …
  • “Hope can do more than repel the darkness.” Hope → Combat Booster
  • “You just need to find the good rhythm.” Vibration → earthquake, echolocation, deafening cry, heating metal
  • “You! And… you!” Attraction → Attract two things toward one another (partial telekinesis, moving like Spider-Man, communication, trap, etc.)

Leeching stones allow doublers to extract energy from the environment but at the cost of corrupting their mind and bodies. Each player has a clean body with 20 spots (1-20) and loose clean spots after using the leeching stones (by throwing a D20). When all spots are corrupted, the doubler disappears.

Focus + Will Test

  • Total Failure: -5 D20 and Large corruption
  • Bad: -3 D20 and Medium corruption
  • Blah: -2 D20 and Small corruption
  • Not bad: -1 D20 and Small corruption
  • Good: Nothing
  • Excellent: +1 D20

Training

Rank Xp Throw Difficulty
1 1-2 very hard roll
2 3-5 very hard roll + 1
3 6-9 very hard roll + 3
4 10-14 hard roll
5 15-20 hard roll + 2
6 21-27 normal roll
7 28-35 normal roll + 2
8 34-44 easy roll
9 45-54 easy roll + 2
10 55+ very easy roll

1)
it can now be use instantly in close-combat without repercussion
  • start/rpg/double_life2.txt
  • Last modified: 2025/05/13 21:41
  • by aretis