Perks and Flaws

Perks

Gall (1): You got moxy, kid. Add an extra die to any Social roll requiring backbone.

Concentration (2): You are very good at focusing, and modifiers regarding distracting situations can cause you to lose no more than 2 dice, or have no more than a +2 difficulty.

Perfect Recall (1): Having a "photographic" memory, you can accurately recall any sight or sound with a successful Intelligence + Alertness roll. Amount of successes indicate exactly how much you remember.

Lightning Calculator (1): You have a natural affinity for numbers, and all relevant rolls are at -2 difficulty.

Time Sense (1): You have an innate sense of time, and can with a good deal of accuracy tell what time it is without a watch. In performing feats where timing may be essential (such as certain combat or athletic maneuvers), difficulties may be lowered or dropped.

Acute Senses (1): One of your five senses is incredibly sharp, and detection rolls involving this sense have a -2 difficulty. You must buy this merit separately for each sense.

Night Sight (2): You can see in near-total darkness, and so your difficulties for being in a dark area are reduced (or nonexistent). You may, however, be sensitive to bright light, and sudden bright light may dazzle you for a turn or two.

Skill Aptitude (2): Pick a single non-combat skill: you're a whiz at whatever this is. -2 to difficulties relating to this skill.

Light Sleeper (1): You can function on very little sleep, suffering no penalties for extended periods of little rest. You are also more likely to awaken quickly, and so may gain bonuses to Wits rolls when something wakes you up.

Loyalty (1): You are devoted to a person, group, or cause, and easily resist attempts to persuade you away from the object of your loyalty. You also gain a Willpower bonus (in the form of bonus dice, or increased difficulty for your opponent) to try and resist forms of persuasion that challenge your loyalty.

Animal Magnetism (2): You have the "fuck me" aura, and receive a -2 difficulty on seduction and similar rolls (though this may inspire jealousy in the people who view you as competition). This is not a license to constantly cyber, and there must be more to your character than simple sexual appeal.

Culture Knack (2): You have a knack for fitting in wherever you are, and though you may not know them beforehand, you pick up on customs quickly. In appropriate situations, your social difficulties may be lowered, or you may be able to recover from a botched roll with another roll at normal difficulty. Must have ST approval, based on character concept.

Well-Traveled (2): You are knowledgeable of the ways of the world from your travels and studies. Once per game session, you can gain an automatic success on a roll to gain a piece of information.

Hideaway (2): You have a little place somewhere nobody else knows about, fairly well-stocked. If people actively search for it, your ST will roll 2 dice at difficulty 6; at least one success indicates you have not been found. Failure gives them an idea, continual failures, at least four, will indicate that the seeker finds you. Note that Oasis is far away from the important places in the Mojave, so if your hideaway is nearby there needs to be a good reason for it.

Honeyed Tongue (2): You've sold gallons of snake oil and more than a few oceanfront properties in Arizona, and most customers still think they're satisfied. All Bluff attempts gain one automatic success.

Soothing Voice (2): You have an entrancing voice. Add 2 dice to Speech rolls

True Love (1): You've found that one who makes your life complete. Automatic Willpower success when striving to protect, come closer to, or remain close to your True Love. Other benefits as well, Storyteller's discretion.

Good Old Boy/Girl (2): You're just a nice person, and people recognize and appreciate that. +1 die on social rolls when interacting with your fellow folk.

Innocent (2): You have an aura of childlike innocence (whether you're really innocent or not). -2 difficulty on rolls involving Manipulation.

Ambidextrous (2): You are equally dextrous, or nearly so, with both hands, and use your "off" hand at no penalty. Difficulties to do 2 different tasks at once (1 with each hand) are at +1 for both rolls, rather than +1 for the main hand and +3 for the other.

Graceful (2): You are extremely agile and delicate in your movements. -1 difficulty on all pure Agility rolls (Things like rolling Agility+Athletics to dodge are at normal difficulty). Botches will still hurt, but it is possible to gracefully fall down, and you'll die before you look clumsy.

Catlike Balance (2): -2 difficulty to rolls relating to balance.

Double-Jointed (2): -2 difficulty on any roll involving flexibility.

Faction Favorite (2): Someone in a particular faction favors you and will do a lot to get on your good side, possibly to bring you over to them, especially if you're currently disparate. Note this probably means they expect greatness of you, so don't disappoint them. -2 to social difficulties when dealing with this faction.

Favor (1-2): Someone of higher rank or ability than you in a faction owes you a favor. Level of the Perk indicates how big the favor is. This Perk is only available at ST discretion.

Reputation (2): You've built yourself an excellent reputation among your kind. Add 1 die to Social pools when dealing with the people in your faction.

Local Ties (1): You have influence and/or contacts in an important local institution, though the more you use these ties, the weaker they may become.

Geared (1): Over the course of your life, you’ve obtained slightly better equipment than the average person, be it by looting, crafting, or stealing. +1 gear points at character creation.

Well Geared (2): The same as Geared, except double. This level is usually not simply found or crafted, but issued by an army or larger group. +2 gear points at character creation. Can NOT be taken in conjunction with Geared; 1 or 2 points, not 3.


Flaws

Black and White (1): You see all situations in black and white, good and evil, etc. In situations where this limited, judgmental way of thinking may hinder your reaction to something or cause you to act socially inappropriate, add a +1 difficulty to social rolls.

Compulsion (1): You have a specific compulsion which may cause you problems. You have to spend a Willpower point to fight the compulsion for a short time.

Curiosity (1): Your incredible curiosity often overrides your common sense. Resisting temptation requires a successful Wits roll, difficulty depending on the situation. A very bad flaw to take with certain evil sadistic Storytellers.

Deranged (2): You have a permanent, severe mental disorder. You may spend Willpower to fight it at points, but you will never get rid of it. Definitely check with your ST, and possibly your fellow players, before taking this one.

Driving Goal (2): You have some goal which is at the basis of all your motivations, though it is of such depth or impossibility, it could probably never be achieved. Your obsession with your vision can temporarily be soothed by spending Willpower.

Flashbacks (2): When under pressure and/or in the presence of something which reminds you of something unpleasant in your past, you flashback to that past event. Whilst in a flashback, everything is to you as it was then.

Hatred (2): There is something out there which you absolutely loathe, and you will do anything to destroy it. You have to succeed a Willpower roll not to go after the object of your hatred if you encounter it, no matter how ill-advised it would be.

Hero Worship (1): You absolutely idolize someone, and disobeying them requires an effort of will (spending Willpower or succeeding a Willpower roll at difficulty 6). You also are at +2 difficulty to any roll that may force you to admit/realize that your hero may be in the wrong.

Inferiority Complex (1): No matter what you do, by your standards, it's just not good enough. In situations requiring you to take charge and strut your stuff, add +1 to all difficulties.

Intolerance (1): You have difficulty tolerating a specific thing or type of person. +2 difficulty on rolls involving doing that thing if you can't tolerate an action, +2 to social rolls involving the type of person if it's a person.

Lifesaver (2): You revere all life and will never risk killing someone for any reason. Unfortunately, in the harsh Wasteland, this can sometimes be a problem.

Low Self-Image (2): Suffering from a low self-esteem, you have -2 dice in situations where you don't expect to succeed, or you may have to make Willpower rolls to do something that requires self-confidence.

Masochist/Sadist (1): You either enjoy pain or enjoy inflicting it on others. In addition to the inconveniences this fascination may cause you, you may also be seen as sick, or even more sick people may use you for your obsession.

Nightmares (1): You're constantly plagued by nightmares, which at the worst may indicate there's something nasty in your fate, and at the least will make you cranky and irritable most of the time. A particularly bad night may cause you to lose -1 dice on all rolls for some time afterward.

Pacifist (2): A more extreme version of Lifesaver, you refuse to do any physical harm to anyone for any reason. Obviously, this limits your abilities when it comes to self-defense, and makes you an easy target if anyone finds out.

Phobia (1): You have a specific, incredibly powerful fear. If faced with this fear, you must succeed on a Willpower roll and get more than 3 successes. Failure to do so will result in you fleeing in terror.

Shy (1): You're not a social butterfly, to say the least. Many social rolls are at +1 difficulty, and if you're the center of attention, all rolls are at +2 difficulty.

Soft Hearted (1): You can't stand to witness suffering, and if you do, difficulties are at +2 for the next hour.

Vengeance (1): You are consumed with avenging something very important to you. Your obsession can only be temporarily swayed by spending Willpower.

Absent-Minded (1): You have a lousy short-term memory, and need to make a Wits roll to remember most things. You can spend Willpower as a last resort to try and remember.

Amnesia (2): You have no memory of your past, or at least are missing a significant portion of it. You have the option of taking up to 4 points of extra flaws to be determined by the Storyteller (you don't get to find out about them till you're playing...).

Weak-Willed (2): You can only spend Willpower when survival is at stake, and the ST is the one who gets to decide when that is.

Big Mouth (1): For whatever reason, you have difficulty sticking to the rule, "If you can't say anything nice, don't say it at all." You can't help being loud and blunt, maybe even to the point of being a bit of a prick. Note that as this is in fact a Flaw, there WILL be consequences for all those times you couldn't keep your mouth shut.

Graceless (2): You always look awkward, no matter what you're doing. +2 difficulty to all social rolls that involve making an impression.

Speech Impediment (1): 2 dice penalty to all verbal communication rolls. Learn to talk, weirdo.

Craven Image (1): There's something about you that makes you appear sniveling and "low." In appropriate situations, social difficulties are at +2.

Disturbing Mannerism (2): You have a habit or character trait which is peculiar, gross, or annoying. You may not even be aware of it; but boy, everyone else is. Difficulties of social rolls are increased at the ST's discretion.

Enemy (1-2): Somebody's out to hurt you or your reputation, or even kill you (or people close to you). A 1-point enemy is less than or comparable to your own ability, a 2-point enemy could easily kick your ass into next Tuesday.

Isolated Upbringing (1): You were raised in your tribal society, or were somehow otherwise sequestered away from "normal" life, so you have trouble dealing with this Outside-World thing. Dealing with any community outside the one in which you were raised adds 1 to social difficulties.

Mistaken Identity (1): People think you're someone you're not. Maybe you look a lot like the NCR president, or walk like a Legion soldier. Even if that person isn't bad, it can still cause you trouble if they realize you're not who they think you are.

Mistreated Minority (1): You belong to a group or have a trait to which the average person will react badly. This depends a lot on where the game takes place and what kind of people you run into, so check with the ST before you assume you can take this.

Ward (2): You are devoted to protecting someone, perhaps a close friend or relative from your pre-badass days. These people have a knack for unknowingly getting in the middle of whatever mess you're involved with, or may even help create one.(ST permission required.)

Hunted (2): There's a bounty on your head for some reason, from some faction or other. Whatever happened, you pissed somebody off and they either want you dead or brought to them in chains so they can teach you some manners. They can't hurt you if they see you in the Oasis, but expect them to make a play the second you're outside the safe zone.

Bad Sight (2): Difficulties for sight-related rolls are at +2, and you suffer from night blindness.

Blind (2): You can't see. This obviously hinders certain Perception attempts.

Color Blind (1): You can see only in varying shades of grey, which may make some perception rolls more difficult (note in real life color blindness makes you unable to perceive only a certain portion of the color spectrum, but this rule makes it a little easier to handle and roleplay).

Deaf (2): You can't hear. Ditto for what I said about "Blind."

Hard of Hearing (1): Difficulties for hearing-related rolls are at +2, and people may get sick of you asking them to repeat themselves.

One Eye (2): You lack peripheral vision on one side, and you are at a +2 dice difficulty for rolls related to depth-perception. On the upside, you can wear a nifty eyepatch and say "Arrrrr" a lot.

Allergic (1): You suffer from an allergy to some substance, which may inconvenience you and may increase difficulties in certain situations. Since is a Flaw, please make sure your allergy is something you might encounter. Being allergic to some obscure drug that hasn't been produced since the Great War does not count.

Aging (2): Your get up and go has got up and went. Lower any physical Stat by one point (AFTER you have spent your creation points). The character must be old enough for this to apply, so it's a safe bet that they're at least 40.

Deep Sleeper (1): Waking up is hard; getting you moving is hard enough (+2 difficulty to attempts to wake you), getting you comprehending what's going on after you're up isn't much easier (+1 difficulty to all rolls for one IC hour after waking up.)

Deformity (2): You have a withered limb, hunchback, or other physical defect which causes you difficulty in movement, as well as in some social interactions. Depending on the type and circumstance, difficulties can be raised on appearance and/or Agility rolls.

Disfigured (2): You have an injury or physical defect which makes you perfectly hideous; Appearance trait is automatically 1 and cannot be raised.

Lame (2): Your legs are somehow permanently injured, and you suffer a -2 dice penalty to movement-related rolls.

Mute (2): You are physically unable to speak, and must communicate through writing or sign language. ST permission required, and this flaw is not an excuse to not interact with other players.

One Arm (2): Due to an unfortunate injury or birth defect, you suffer a -2 dice penalty to rolls where an action would usually require two hands.

Permanent Wound (2): For some reason, you have a wound that never heals, which is effectively a permanent Lethal health level. If you repair the damage with super science, the wound re-opens by the next day.

Short (1): You are well below average height, and have difficulty reaching high objects, seeing over things, etc. -2 dice penalty to pursuit rolls. On the up side, you may get bonuses to hiding attempts.

Slow Healing (2): For some reason, your healing processes are slow, and you heal twice as slowly as others. In the chaotic Wasteland, this is a real problem. In game terms, this means any damage you take persists for two real-life days after the fight in which you took it, rather than being handwaved away with freeform medical care.

Group Enmity (1): Some group among your faction doesn't like you, and may prevent you going certain places or otherwise give you hell in a variety of ways.

Inconvenient Alliance(1): You have an ally with someone who is discomforting to you and/or your faction, but can't easily get rid of him because of a favor owed, sense of guilt, or whatever.

Notoriety (1): You did something, or at least others think you did, that is frowned upon by your peers and elders. -2 dice to all social rolls dealing with your faction.

Probationary Member (1): You're not on the greatest terms with the group you belong to and are suspected of various naughtiness. You may not have the normal privileges of being part of your group, nor will you necessarily receive aid when you ought to.

Outsider (2): Though you're not exactly infamous, you have a poor reputation amongst your kind. +2 difficulty on all social rolls when interacting with your group.

Rival (1-2): Someone within your own society viciously competes against you and tries to undermine your plans; really obsessive rivals may even want you dead.

Poorly Geared (1): You have slightly less to your name than the average Wasteland dweller, though not an insurmountable level. -1 gear points at character creation.

Very Poorly Geared (2): Gear is survival in the Wasteland, and brother, you have none, either from theft, damage, or just inability to obtain it. -2 gear points at character creation. Can be taken in conjunction with Poorly Geared, though it's not recommended.



GAME CHANGERS
These perks are powerful enough that no other Perk may be taken with them. You must also take a full 3 point's worth of Flaws to balance them.


Common Sense (2): You are full of practical wisdom. Thus, any time you are about to do something that flagrantly violates common sense, the Storyteller will let you know. A great perk for starting characters.

Self-Confident (2): When you declare that you are spending Willpower for an automatic success on a roll, you do not lose the Willpower unless you fail the roll, due to the strength of your self-confidence.

Charmed Existence (2): Somebody up there likes you. Ignore a single 1 on every roll you make.

Danger Sense (2): "Spider-sense tingling!" A successful Perception + Alertness roll, difficulty depending on the situation, will give you a timely sense of foreboding before something bad happens. This goes beyond what you'd normally get for an Alertness roll, into the realm of nigh-precognition.

Luck (2): You manage to succeed in places when others fail. You can repeat three failed rolls per event, one repeat per roll, and the second roll always stands.

Ironhide (2): Maybe you're a towering giant with muscles like an oak tree and bones like steel. Maybe you're all wang leather and gristle, made of nothing but the toughest materials regardless of size. Whatever the reason, you are one tough son of a bitch. You can soak Lethal damage. Standard DC for doing so is 7, but the ST may raise or lower that depending on the type of attack.