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Cosms: Nile Empire

The vigilantes of the Nile Empire are not the four-color super heroes of modern comics. They are pulp heroes with powers more in line with the Shadow, Green Hornet, or even “street level“ crimefighters such as Batman. They are, in essence, ordinary men and women with a few extraordinary abilities, but cut them, and they will bleed.

Pulp hero powers have many different trappings. One character’s Super Strength might be the result of exposure to strange radioactive isotopes in Dr. Mobius’s lab. Another hero’s might come from the “Electro-Static Belt“ he wears. Whatever the reason, the powers work the same. If the power comes from a gadget it doesn’t work correctly for anyone else. If the GM takes powers away (usually by confiscating relevant devices) the hero should get them back by the next act as usual.

Enhancements & Limitations
Pulp Power Perks can be made more effective by taking any of the Enhancements listed with that power. An Enhancement may be taken by spending a Perk, a Major Limitation, or two Minor Limitations.

Major Limitation
Below are examples of Major Limitations. Each one taken for a particular power grants it one Enhancement. There’s no limit to the number of Limitations you may put on a power.

  • Only works in darkness/daylight.
  • Only works on men/women.
  • Only works on humans/nonhumans.
  • Doesn’t work if you’re Stymied or Vulnerable.
  • Doesn’t work in Dramatic Scenes.
  • Doesn’t work in Standard Scenes.
  • Doesn’t work if Wounded.

Minor Limitation
Two Minor Limitations grant a power one Enhancement (a single Minor Limitation has no effect). Here are some examples.

  • Doesn’t work against a target wearing or primarily of a specific color.
  • Doesn’t work while another Pulp Power is active.
  • If a Mishap occurs when using the power, it ceases to function for the remainder of the scene. The power must require a skill test to use or activate to take this Limitation. It doesn’t work on Force Field, for example, since that requires no skill test.
  • The item can’t be used in melee.
  • The power requires both hands (they cannot hold other items, weapons, shields, etc.).
  • Must be Wounded.
  • The power comes from a gadget that could be taken away (a ray gun or amulet) or might be occasionally inaccessible (a costume or armored suit).
  • The power cannot be activated if a hero was KO’ed until after the current encounter.

 

Electro-Ray (*)

  • Prereq: None.

The hero can fire a powerful bolt of electricity. He attacks using energy weapons or Dexterity and causes 13 damage. The ray has range 10/25/50, Ammo 5, and regenerates 1 shot each round.

Dangerous When Wet: Increase the damage by +2 in light rain or if the target is standing in a puddle, and +4 in heavy rain or if the target is in water up to his ankles or higher.

Enhancements:

  • Damage: The damage is increased to 15.
  • Rapid Fire: The character may use the Short Burst option when using his Electro-Ray.
  • Shots: The power now holds 10 shots.
  • Small Blast Radius: The ray gun affects everyone in a Small Blast Radius.

 

Flight (*)

  • Prereq: None

The caped crusader can fly! She can soar into the clouds, over the oceans, or across the burning sands without ever touching the ground. The hero may fly up to her walking speed. She may “rush“ up to 8× that speed but incurs a –2 penalty to any other actions performed during her turn. She uses Dexterity to maneuver.

Enhancements:

  • Aerial Acrobatics: The flyer remains in constant motion. As long as she’s flying, has room to maneuver, and isn’t caught Flat-Footed, ranged attacks against her suffer a –2 penalty to hit.
  • Control: The hero incurs no penalty when rushing.
  • Speed: The flyer can move up to 150 meters per round (Value 11).

 

Force Field (*)

  • Prereq: None

A shield of invisible energy surrounds the hero.  The force field has three “charges.“ Each time the hero suffers a Wound, the field expends a charge to block the wound and 2 Shock. The field recharges at the rate of one charge per hour.

Enhancements:

  • Power: The field has 5 charges.
  • Recharge: The field regains a charge every 10 minutes.
  • Size: The field can be used to protect an adjacent ally.

 

Mind Control (*)

  • Prereq: None

This invasive power allows a crimefighter to control his foes, turning them into puppets who dance on the ends of his mental strings. Mind Control allows a pulp hero to control a single foe. This is a contest of willpower or Mind. Apply a -4 penalty if the target is in a hostile state (such as in combat). If the Mind Controller loses the contest, the target’s mind is off-limits the remainder of the scene.

If a target is tasked with something drastically against his nature, such as harming an ally or himself, he gets an immediate Mind or willpower test to resist. The GM should modify this as she sees fit—+4 to resist harming a loved one or oneself, +2 to resist harming his allies. If a subject breaks free due to such a test, he cannot be controlled again during that scene.

How long Mind Control lasts depends on the success level:

  • Standard: Until the end of the target’s next turn, or about 10 seconds out of combat.
  • Good: One minute.
  • Outstanding: Until the end of the current scene.

Enhancements:

  • Charisma: The hero may use persuasion or Charisma instead of willpower or Mind. (The target resists normally.)
  • Control: Negate the –4 penalty for hostile targets.
  • Power: Any bonus to resist an act against the target’s nature is reduced by 2.

 

Super Attribute

  • Prereq: Attribute selected must be 10+.

Super Attribute allows a pulp hero to exceed normal maximums of Charisma, Dexterity, Mind, Spirit, or Strength. She is a paragon of one of these virtues with few rivals in the Nile Empire. When taken, Super Attribute increases a selected attribute by +1. The Nile Empire is a pulp realm—not a world of four-color superheroes—so Super Attribute may only be taken once (not once per attribute). Choose wisely! Super Attribute increases the attribute limit a like amount.

Enhancements:

  • Power: The attribute and its limit are increased to +2.

Super Skill

  • Prereq: At least three adds in the selected skill.

The pulp hero is exceptionally good at something.Maybe he’s a crack shot in fire combat, a mind unrivaled in science, or has a wit that cuts his foes to the bone via taunt. When Super Skill is taken, the character increases any one skill by two adds. She may exceed the usual maximum of +5 adds without taking the Mastery Perk. (If the character has the Mastery Perk, it stacks with Super Skill.) This stacks with all other skill increases and allows a pulp hero to reach superhuman levels of competency far faster than most. Like Super Attribute, the champion may only take this Perk once—she cannot have more than one Super Skill.

Enhancements:

  • Favored: The skill is considered Favored.
  • Power: The skill is increased to +4 adds.