Character Creation: Step 1

The following are the step-by-step character creation process. They are organized into:

Sketchley's Statistics	MRG - play stats here ABOUT LINKS	MAIN INDEX
LOCATIONS	TRANSLATIONS	FAQ & RULES	UPDATES

Step 1 Summary

Copy and paste the following character sheet into a text editor on your computer for ease of use. All of the stats created in the following steps will be written on the sheet.

• Character Sheet

Roll 3D6 for each attribute.

If the result is 16, 17, 18, roll another 1D6. If that roll's result is 6, roll another 1D6.
Max 30.

Optional Rules:

Roll 5D6 and remove the highest and lowest results.
Select a Character Archetype, and use the indicated rolls to determine each attribute.

Derived Attributes (cannot be improved over time)

Luck: (average ME, MA, PP, and PB)
Base Loyalty: (MA x 5)%
Affected By Disease/Resistance to Disease: (PE x 5)%

Derived Attribute-like Skills (can be improve over time just like skills)

Charm/Impress/Seduction: ([PB - 10] x 5; negative = 0)%
Get Noticed: (PB x 5)%

Inverse with a PB below 4 (Eg: PB 3 = 85%, usually with a negative response).

Perception: ([IQ + ME] x 2)%
Sense of Balance: (PP x 1)%
Trust/Intimidate/Leadership: ([MA - 10] x 5; negative = 0)%

über-simple creation:

Use the Character Archetype to determine attributes.

Then decide if your character has a Combat Focus or a Non-Combat Focus.

Characters with a Combat Focus have combat skills of 60% (+5% per level), and a non-combat skills of 40% (+5% per level).
Characters with a Non-Combat Focus have combat skills of 40% (+5% per level) and non-combat skills of 60% (+5% per level).

Combat skills are for any skill involved in combat. These include piloting rolls. Non-combat skills are everything else.

Optional Rules: Skills start at 50% and 30%, but that may be too low.

Link to Step 2

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Expanded Rules

Attribute Scale

The max for any attribute is 30.

The super-human element of Macross comes from the mecha (Variable Fighters and so on) that the characters pilot. If you want higher attributes, you'll have to play a different, non-Macross game.

Scale

23-30:
17-22:
13-16:

godlike
exceptional
above average—tried out for the Olympics?

7-12:
1-6:

average
low

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IQ & Perception

IQ:

IQ is arguably one of the only attributes that should not have a cap on it. The human mind is perhaps the sole part of us that can evolve into something greater. As is shown in fiction, however, the smarter you are, the more alien you become. This is not something to take lightly! Assuming a normal attribute scale of 3–18, an IQ of 25 would view us normals as dull children at best. At worst, they would have concerns on a scale of consciousness we could not comprehend. There is a reason why all those Gods with IQs the size of their egos are so remote and distant to mere mortals: to them mortal concerns are pithy at the best of times. Another point to consider is that as one get smarter and smarter, it gets more and more difficult to be mentally challenged. To simulate this, find a Curious George book and read it 100 times in a row without distracting yourself with anything else. You will become so frustrated and bored that you won't be able to do it. Now think of how it would be to view the ENTIRE world like that. 10–12 being average, then 25+ is extremely out of typical range, and even people with 20–24 are fairly removed. Talking to them would be like try to have a conversation with someone who knows way more than you on any given topic. Note that most high IQ people have low MA attributes, although this is not always universally true. It's generally proportional where the higher one goes, the lower the other goes. However, that is due to being more "distant" from day-to-day concerns and being locked into a higher mode of thinking—the higher the IQ is, the more they see the big picture. A high-IQ character may condemn a hunt to kill off excess predators in an area because he realizes it is part of the cycle of nature and that they are necessary in establishing balance in the ecosystem. They tend to think in resources, plans, and grand, sweeping strokes, and rarely see things in terms of people and dreams.

real-world IQ rating: IQ x 10
recollection of data (IQ x 5)%: for anything that doesn't fall under another skill, such as knowledge/memory tests. Max 98%.

Perception:

The derived Perception ability fills an important gap that exists in the grey area of combat (mostly initiative) and IQ. This is NOT the ability to PROCESS the information—since that falls under IQ—but is simply the ability to COLLECT information. It is both a blessing and a curse: while you may be able to see all and know all, your senses will be overwhelmed at the higher levels. A high Perception ability does not necessarily mean that you UNDERSTAND the information, just that you noticed it. Sherlock Holmes would have a huge Perception, but he has an equally huge IQ to comprehend what he perceives. For example, if a character has a low MA and a high Perception, they may be really good at picking out facts and figures, but probably won't be able to read people very well. They could tell that Joey has dark circles under his eyes and is in a bad mood and is glaring at Sue, but that doesn't mean the character can figure out that they had a fight last night.

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ME represents willpower, resistance to psionics, concentration abilities, patience, and spirit. It can include things such as attention span (short or long), raw willpower, and the ability to persevere in the face of insurmountable odds. It may be better described as something like a mood indicator—while IQ indicates raw processing power, ME indicates the emotional filter that it goes through. This is especially important for player characters, because characters need this fortitude to continue their adventuring in the face of overwhelming odds, and they need to maintain their mental health. ME represents the ability of the character to deal with feelings and emotions, and often character's with low ME are troubled individuals, manic-depressive, or simply moody and sullen; while character's with high ME are optimistic and stable. ME's major use is to gauge the general mental stability of the character—the ability for the character to handle shocks and surprising news, their general emotional barometer, and their tendancy to mood swings or lose control of their emotions. Low ME characters are subject to very emotional outbursts and tend to follow their passions more, while higher ME characters are more adept at keeping control of their emotions and being able to repress their passions if they need to. Characters with higher ME scores don't "fly off the handle" or make snap decisions based on the heat of the moment, and can restrain themselves to think things through.

ME is generally paired off versus MA/PB for the effects of trying to befriend an NPC or connect emotionally to them.
Save versus psionics, Save versus Horror Factor: based on ME
Low ME characters: are more susceptible to Insanities/Phobias/etc. (high ME characters are more resistant).

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MA is generally charisma and charm. However, it can be a lot more. To characters, it represents empathy and humanity—two things that can doom a munchkin character if used properly—as the ability to connect with other humans is a fundamental part of humanity. While MA is not the deciding factor in a character's interpersonal relationships, it does represent the inherent "beneath the looks" angle of the character. Characters with MA beyond 24 get far too ridiculous to play effectively, as a character with that much charisma and charm would be wrapping people around their little finger, and able to manipulate them to get whatever they want. If you are going to add a character with a very high MA into your game, they had best be a plot device like an antagonist and not a character, as it will quickly get out of control. Animals also recognize the inherent magnetism in higher MA characters. They recognize when an unstable (low MA) character is around and respond accordingly—not necessarily disobeying but being wary and keeping an eye on the character.

Base Loyalty (MA x 5)%: used with any companions (NPCs/animals) and should be checked when morale is low or after a tragedy strikes.
Low MA characters: have little or no ability to connect with people, and will literally be constantly suffering from emotional crises—much like a very young child.

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The character's raw strength and lifting capability. Note that extreme strength comes with its own problems (diet, lifestyle, accidentally injuring someone, etc.) Even in the future, people still judge others on strength—or the lack of it: a character with a PS of 18 will be regarded more favourably than one with PS 6. Along the same lines, someone with greater strength will be expected to be more heroic than weaker characters, and they will generally be considered a greater threat than the weaker ones.

Damage bonus: only applies to hand to hand and melee weapons—except for ones like vibro weaponry that use a gimmick other than raw strength to cause damage.
Forget one's strength: refer to the Optional Rules below.

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PP covers manual dexterity as well as agility and reflexes. This can affect dodges, hand-to-hand strikes, and a variety of physical skills that require deft actions. It also affects natural grace—characters with low PP are forever running into things or tripping over their feet, while characters with high PP are much better able to handle themselves and their bodies. Characters with extremely high PP (the unearthly kind) move with preternatural grace and flow like living mercury. PP also covers physiological excitability (not psychological,see ME), and a character's metabolic rate is determined by PP and PE. In general, the greater the difference between PP and PE, the more the character must consume to maintain his high PP—as a character's body reacts faster, it requires more energy to keep it going at that level. "So, my character has to eat more, whoopee, I have a +100 to dodge" may sound pithy at first, but it can be truly terrible once the game begins and the GM reminds the player of their character's ration requirements.

All combat bonuses: apply ONLY to hand-to-hand attacks (E.g. not applied to guns.)

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PE represents your actual health from a physical standpoint. The capacity to handle illness and the frequency of illnesses are especially important in the world of Macross, where strange and alien diseases can be present on any planet or ship. It also represents stamina—the staying power of a character for doing whatever it is that they are doing. PE's primary use is for resisting diseases and determining endurance. This is important as one disease can make for a horrible plot twist (good horrible that is)—even more so if it is alien in origin. It also applies to resisting animal and plant poisons, and also to drinking contaminated water. PE also determines not only how long a character can carry a heavy load without resting, but also the amount of G-force the character can take.

Low PE characters: tire quickly (high PE characters take much longer to tire).
Resistance to Fatigue (PE x 5)%: the chance the character will be affected by fatigue after a standard period has passed. -10% for each subsequent day without rest until the character literally collapses from exhaustion.

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PB represents the general appearance of the character, and this covers a wide array of things. Low PB could indicate terrible scarring, unsightly features, no fashion sense, or any such sort of typically "superficial" sort of thing. As beauty is very subjective—and despite the basic features that people generally agree are beautiful or not—that subjectiveness should be taken into account. Which is why the appearance ought to be explained with such things as fashion sense and features such as scarring. High PB characters should not just be able to charm everyone they meet and get whatever they want out of them. These are other people, and are not simply walking, talking resources: members of the same sex will get jealous of high PB characters and probably mock low PB characters. The opposite sex, on the other hand, may end up with a pile of unwanted travelling companions, who generally do not react well when they learn they are unwanted—especially if this was after a quick tryst that the character thought that they could get away with. In addition, if the character is very good looking, certain unsavoury elements may notice them and wish to enlist them into their stables. On top of that, another more powerful warlord or crime boss might equally try to enlist them or even 'headhunt' them from a rival's table—causing an underworld feud that the character is right in the middle of.

PB determines the character's relative obscurity—or notoriety—level.
Get Noticed (PB x 5)%: the chance that the character is noticed—for good or ill—modified by whether or not they are trying to be noticed.
Characters with a PB below 4: there is an inverse chance that they will be noticed (Eg: PB 4 has a 20% chance, whereas PB 3 has an 85% chance.) The response is usually a negative one.

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Spd (Speed)

Use common sense: no matter how many Physical Skills the character takes, the human body can only be so fast. A character can improve themself to peak performance, but there will still be a limit on how fast they can practically go. Biology is a strong inhibitor!

Max Speed rating: PP + PE (if it's too short, try: [PP + PE + PS] ÷ 2.)
The metabolic rate described under PP applies here, too.

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Optional Rules

The following are up to the GM. They may be applied all the time, some of the time, or never.

PS:

Some GMs may check if the character forgets their own strength. This could be when the character is roughhousing, pulling punches, or even during daily activities such as pushing their way through a crowd! This is only applicable in realistic situations where the character might actually—believably—forget that they have a high PS of 25 or greater.

Forget one's strength: PS x 5%

PE:

High PP and low PE characters can become overeaters—they must consume the equivalent of 5 or 6 meals a day (10 or 12 to feel sated). If they can't, they feel cold, lightheaded, and weak. Reduce all combat bonuses and initiative by -1. They will feel mild anxiety and be afflicted by pangs of hunger. If they see food, they will feel a nearly irresistible urge to drop anything they're doing and consume a meal (save versus insanity [plus ME bonuses, if any] is necessary to resist the urge at inappropriate times). Eating less than 10,000 calories (but at least 2,000) a day will severely weaken the character: reduce all combat bonuses by -1 (cumulative) per day. If they don't eat for a day, all the bonuses and melee attacks are halved, and the character will be racked with hunger pains. The starving character must save versus insanity to avoid going crazy at the first sight of food. Failing the roll means the character dives in and eats whatever he can get his hands on (and will fight, perhaps kill, to get it)!

Overeating possibility: each point of difference between PP and PE is a 10%

Increasing Attributes

In addition to increasing attributes through skills, it is possible to increase attributes by player action. Some possibilities are plastic surgery, experimental chemicals, brain training activities and so on. In some cases the effects are permanent, in other cases they are temporary. GM's choice if it is possible, and if so, how many points. Some recommendations are: +1, +1D2 or +1D4 depending on the seriousness that the character persues the increases, and the method persued.

Decreasing Attributes

It is possible to lose attribute points in ways other than injury and mental trauma. Some possibilities are lifestyle choices (such as being a couch potato) and lack of action to maintain high or above average attribute levels. As it is hard to quantify how much of what causes what detremental effects, it is recommended that a GM either make the effects temporary, or—at worst—reduce attributes back to a pre-skill increase level, with the option of the player character needing to take action to regain the lost points if the player so desires.

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Attribute Modifiers & Low-Attribute Table: 6 and below

Attribute Modifiers

Attach an attribute to a skill and apply a penalty or bonus for it. With skills being tied to attributes, then suddenly the guy with PP 15 might make a better weaver, the guy with PS 14 would make a better ammo mule, and so on. It allows non-exceptional attributes to impact on the skills inversely to how exceptional attributes do. The theory here is that the lower your attribute, the harder it is for you to perform. The bonuses provided by high attributes are only geared towards providing an edge.

Attribute:
1:
2:
3:
4:
5:
6:
7-11:
12:
13: Modifier:
-45%
-30%
-20%
-12%
-6%
-3%
+/-0%
+3%
+4% Attribute:
14:
15:
16:
17:
18:
19:
20:
21:
22: Modifier:
+5%
+6%
+7%
+8%
+9%
+10%
+11%
+12%
+13% Attribute:
23:
24:
25:
26:
27:
28:
29:
30: Modifier:
+14%
+15%
+16%
+17%
+18%
+19%
+20%
+21%

Low-Attribute Table: 6 and below

Attribute	Effect	0	1	2	3	4	5	6
IQ	negative to skill percentages	-60%	-45%	30%	-20%	-12%	-6%	-3%
ME	negative to save vs. psionics/insanity	-5	-4	-3	-3	-2	-2	-1
MA	chance of a VERY negative social response	61%	50%	40%	31%	23%	16%	10%
PS	penalty to damage	-7	-6	-5	-4	-3	-2	-1
PP	negative modifier to strike, parry, and dodge	-5	-4	-3	-3	-2	-2	-1
PE	negative to save vs. coma/death	-18%	-14%	-12%	-10%	-8%	-6%	-4%
PE	negative to save vs. poison and magic	-5	-4	-3	-3	-2	-2	-1
PB	percentage chance to disgust/depress/bore	51%	42%	34%	27%	21%	15%	10%
Spd	negative modifier to Initiative	-4	-4	-3	-3	-2	-2	-1

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Spirita Abilities

Players may skip this—even if your GM allows it—if you don't want a character with Spiritia abilities.

Refer to the Anima Spirita OCC and Spirita Rules pages for details. Alternatively, use psionics for a quick and dirty representation of Spirita abilities. Refer to the "Rifts" core book (original) for the specifics of the psionic powers.

Roll 1D100:

01–04:

05–13:

14–00:

Minor Spirita abilities (psionics):

select two (2) powers from any one of the following psionic categories: Sensitive, Physical, or Healer.
Base ISP: ME + 2D6. Add 1D6 per each level of experience.

Major Spiritia abilities (psionics):

select eight (8) powers from one category, or six (6) from any of the three categories available. The available categories are: Sensitive, Physical, and Healer.
Base ISP: ME + 4D6. Add 1D6 + 1 per each level of experience.

In games that don't use levels of experience:

the character gets the Psionic skill. In addition to being used for psionic saves and so on, it is used to indicate when a character the aforementioned increases to their base ISP.
1 level equals 10%.
characters start at ME value = Psionic Skill % (bump up to 10% for players with less than 10). Eg: a character with ME 12 starts with Psionic Skill 12%.

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Character Archetypes

Brainy

IQ 1D6+18

ME 1D6+12

MA 1D4+10

PS 1D6+9

PP 1D4+9

PE 1D4+8

PB 1D6+9

Spd 1D6+11

Physically Strong

IQ 1D4+10

ME 1D4+10

MA 1D6+10

PS 1D6+19

PP 1D4+12

PE 1D6+15

PB 1D6+12

Spd 1D6+11

A Beauty or Pretty Boy

IQ 1D4+10

ME 1D6+8

MA 1D6+15

PS 1D6+11

PP 1D6+8

PE 1D6+9

PB 1D4+20

Spd 1D6+9

Strong-willed

IQ 1D6+11

ME 1D6+19

MA 1D6+9

PS 1D6+9

PP 1D4+13

PE 1D6+10

PB 1D6+9

Spd 1D6+8

Fast Reflexes and High Dexterity

IQ 1D4+10

ME 1D6+9

MA 1D6+8

PS 1D6+9

PP 1D6+19

PE 1D6+9

PB 1D6+10

Spd 1D6+17

Fast as Lightning

IQ 1D4+9

ME 1D6+9

MA 1D6+8

PS 1D6+9

PP 1D6+14

PE 1D6+10

PB 1D6+10

Spd 1D6+20

Charismatic

IQ 1D6+10

ME 1D6+9

MA 1D6+18

PS 1D4+10

PP 1D4+10

PE 1D6+8

PB 1D6+14

Spd 1D6+9

General Endurance

IQ 1D4+9

ME 1D6+14

MA 1D6+8

PS 1D6+9

PP 1D6+9

PE 1D6+19

PB 1D6+9

Spd 1D6+12

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Encounter Reaction Table

A simple and quick way of determining NPC reactions to the player characters, based on their general behaviour. The table can come in handy for random encounters or on-the-fly GMing.

1D20 + (Trust/Intimidate % ÷ 10)

E.g. Trust/Intimidate 40% = 1D20+4.

GM determines how the characters are acting and rolls on the appropriate table (below).
Note: Friendly/Indifferent uses Trust, and Indifferent/Hostile uses Intimidate.

	acting friendly	acting indifferently	acting threateningly	acting hostile
20 and higher	Friendly	Friendly	Friendly	Flight
19	Friendly	Friendly	Friendly	Flight
18	Friendly	Friendly	Cautious	Flight
17	Friendly	Friendly	Cautious	Flight
16	Friendly	Friendly	Cautious	Cautious
15	Friendly	Indifferent	Cautious	Cautious
14	Indifferent	Indifferent	Cautious	Cautious
13	Indifferent	Indifferent	Cautious	Threatening
12	Indifferent	Indifferent	Threatening	Threatening
11	Indifferent	Indifferent	Threatening	Threatening
10	Cautious	Cautious	Threatening	Threatening
9	Cautious	Cautious	Threatening	Hostile
8	Cautious	Cautious	Threatening	Hostile
7	Cautious	Threatening	Threatening	Hostile
6	Threatening	Threatening	Hostile	Hostile
5	Threatening	Threatening	Hostile	Hostile
4	Threatening	Threatening	Hostile	Hostile
3	Hostile	Hostile	Hostile	Hostile
2	Hostile	Hostile	Hostile	Hostile
1	Hostile	Hostile	Hostile	Hostile

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Example Character:

Character Sheet (standard):

Attributes:
IQ: 13 (6+1+6)
ME: 10 (5+3+2)
MA: 8 (2+1+5)
PS: 10 (5+4+1)
PP: 18 (5+5+6; bonus +2)
PE: 8 (1+1+6)
PB: 12 (5+3+4)
Spd: 9 (5+2+2)

Derived Attributes:
Luck: (average ME, MA, PP, and PB)
Base Loyalty: (MA x 5)%
Affected By Disease/Resistance to Disease: (PE x 5)%

Derived Attribute-like Skills:
Charm/Impress/Seduction: ([PB - 10] x 5)%
Get Noticed: (PB x 5) %
Perception: ([IQ + ME] x 2)%
Sense of Balance: (PP x 1)%
Trust/Intimidate/Leadership: ([MA - 10] x 5; negative = 0)%

über-simple Character Sheet:

* Note: only items different from the standard creation are indicated herein.

Attributes:
IQ: 12 (4+10)
ME: 11 (2+9)
MA: 10 (2+8)
PS: 13 (4+9)
PP: 25 (6+19)
PE: 13 (4+9)
PB: 13 (3+10)
Spd: 21 (4+17)

Attributes:
Fast Reflexes and High Dexterity

Combat Focus (combat skills: 60%, non-combat skills: 40%)

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REFERENCES

Based on the Palladium Books Game Engine

Expanded information on attributes condensed from Rifts Attributes: A Closer Look: http://spleen.mearcair.net/rifts/attributes.htm.