Techno-Possessor RCC

This R.C.C. was created by accident and since, the process to create the TP has only resulted in a low success rate (1 out of 250, or 4 in 1000).

Many years ago, two enemies engaged on a stormy region by a ley line. One was a Techno-Mage (TM) and the other was a Mind Melter (MM). The two were long time enemies but they were civil enough to agree to a structured battle. One (the MM) chose the weapons and rules and the other (the TM) choose the place and the stakes. The battle was to take place near a ley line with motorcycles and swords, no powers were to be used and it would be to the death.

The TM thought that the MM would cheat and decided to protect himself just in case. He devised a helmet that linked his mind directly into the motorcycle in order to control the bike better and to divert any attacks into the machine. Needless to say, this was a very experimental device.

The time came and they fought for a little over an hour. The MM was on the losing end and as the mage predicted, he cheated. The MM tried to possess the TM's mind and nearly succeeded except for a chain of near impossible events. At that exact moment a lightning bolt came out of the sky and went through the ley line and struck the mage. Somehow the mix of magic, nature, psionics, and the power of the ley lines transferred the mage's essence into the motorcycle he was riding and caused a powerful backlash of intense psychic energy that left the MM's mind a virtual blank slate.

Although difficult to reproduce the exact conditions of the transformation, it is possible (this explains part of the low success rate). One of the main reasons that there are not many people that have this power is that during the transformation there is an 80% chance that the Mind Melter will become mentally unstable due to the psychic backlash and he will "fry" his own mind. Most people do not want to risk this chance, thus there are few volunteers.

Through some experimentation by the TM, now a Techno-Possessor, it was learned that the transformation now allowed the TP to transfer himself into all types of machines. The range of this power is 1 foot per every 2 levels. The TP must always be inside a working machine (meaning if the machine was shut off completely he would die). Most machines have batteries or hold a charge for a long time after being shut off so it still works to a certain degree, just enough for the TP to stay alive. For example, if he was in a radio and someone turned it off he would not be killed. Why not? Well more than likely the radio would be plugged into a power supply, or have batteries. As long as it has batteries the machine is not completely off. If the machine that he is in is destroyed he is instantly killed unless he can transfer to a different machine within 1 melee.

Each techno-possessor gets the following powers:

1. Machine Transfer and Control: This is the ability to transfer his essence to any machine and then take over the machine. It takes 1 action to transfer from one machine to another. The TP can take control of the machine at a rate of 1 melee for every MDC. The only restriction is that the machine must be at least somewhat computerized and the new machine must be within 1 foot for every two levels of the TP (i.e. 1 foot at first level , 2 feet at third level, 3 feet at fifth, etc).
   
   If a machine with an AI (Artificial Intelligence) is taken over, the TP must defeat the AI before he can control the computer. Cybernetics and bionics can be possessed, but both must be "defeated" as per the AI rule below.
   
   If there is a contest between the TP and an AI both must roll a d20, each person adds the roll to his/her IQ and the highest wins the contest. If a T-P wins by 10 or more points then it means it only takes one-third as long as normal to take the machine over, and that the winner has free reign of whatever he took over for as long as he has it.
   
   To determine the extra time it takes to control an AI, take the AI's IQ and multiply it by 3. That is how many minutes it will take to take the AI over. The penalties to take over are cumulative (i.e., if it is a power armor with an AI it will take 1 melee multiplied by it's M.D.C. for the main body plus the time needed to overpower the AI).
   
   If the T-M looses the contest, he will not be able to start another contest with that AI for 4 hours.
   
   
2. Information and System Control: Once the TP has taken over the machine he can (while he is in the machine that contains the information) use all information contained within and control all the systems associated with the machine.
   
   He can gain access to the information and control over the machine at a rate of 5% per hour. (I.E. after 5 hours he will be able to control 25% of all information and 25% of the weapons and other systems. At 100% he will be able to use any PA as well as any person that has the elite skill to do so). After he leaves the machine he will no longer recall what the former machine had for information after 10 days. This is a gradual change in which he looses 10% per day (i.e. after 4 days, he would be at 60% to recall information he didn't study). Roll a % to see if the player has remembered any information that he did *not* study in detail.

The TP receives the following bonuses/penalties:

• W.P.: Knows how to operate all weapons that are integral to the machine he has possessed. This applies only to weapon's that are an integrated part of the machine. For example, the T-P can use the internal missile pods, but does not automatically know how to use any weapons in the PA's hand. The T-P can still use any hand-held weapons as long as he normally knows the W.P. for it.
  
  
• +15% to all Computer skills
  
  
• Psionics: None, the TP lost any abilities he had with the transformation. However, the TP is still vulnerable to some psionics. The GM can determine which psionics are able to affect the TP. Remember, though, the TP no longer has a physical body.
  
  
• Magic: None (he lost that ability in the transformation). However, The TP still understands the theories, information, and legends behind magic. Even though he cannot cast magic himself, he can still instruct and counsel those who can.
  
  
• Cybernetics: None, the TP no longer possesses a physical body.
  
  
• O.C.C.: Choose a magical OCC. This is the OCC that the character had before the transformation to the TP.
  
  
• Skills: The T-P still retains all his skills from his magical OCC and gains skills as from the OCC.
  
  However, skills normally work somewhat differently for a TP. Knowledge based skills remain the same, but skills requiring a physical body can only be performed through a machine. Most machines, though, cannot physically perform the same way as a human.
  
  Skills that aren't used for long periods of time will often start to atrophy. The GM can determine whether any skills should get a penalty to perform them.

By Ben Martin (walker@atcon.com).

Additional comments and revisions by Chris Curtis (c-curtis@tamu.edu).