Character

^{Character Generation}Lead Developer's Note
My favorite technical editor has informed me that the character generation section is convoluted and confusing. Wow! After looking at it again, I couldn't agree more. Well, that means we need to do some more work on it I guess. Look for more streamlining to come in this section (don't worry, the end result will be the same), but we will try to get this fixed for everyone who hates the system due to the craziness of this section. For now we have developed a Microsoft Excel Spreadsheet to aid you in creating your characters.

Character generation is one of the most important sections of any role-playing game. Without character generation the rest of the role-playing system is worthless. The player character should not be skimped upon, but instead delved into. A character is more than a piece of paper with some words and numbers on it. A character is an alternate life, something through which players live in a world that would be otherwise impossible, and sometimes illegal.

The Paradox role-playing system uses the following statistics to determine a character's abilities:

Game Masters should insist that players have a valid character concept prior to generating the actual character statistics.

Character Concept
A character concept is the most important part of developing a character. Without a good basis of what type of character the player wants to play, it is very difficult to create a workable character. The basic idea here is, if the player does not know at least the rudimentary history of the character, he will not be able to play the character well, and subsequently will have little fun.

There are some exceptions to this, however. Some Game Masters like to start their games with the characters "Naked and Hanging on the Wall." Sometimes the characters know how they got there, most often they do not. The prime example of this type of plot development can be seen in the movie Total Recall, where Arnold Schwarzenegger's character initially doesn't know that he is actually a spy under deep cover--that is if you don't think he was just plain suffering from an implant induced schizoid embolism. This type of game is challenging, however, the players still must have a basic idea of what personality traits, race, and skill sets the character will have.

A character concept is a blueprint for the actual development of the character's race, stats, and skills. The best way to describe a character concept is to list some examples. The following examples are of well-known characters from well know books and movies. Just to make sure everyone knows—we didn't come up with them, don't claim to have developed them, and surely claim no rights to them. These characters were developed by many different creative people to whom society thanks for hours of entertainment.

Aladdin—Street rat, basic thief, young, human, of Arabic descent. Lucky and smart.
Crocodile Dundee—Backwoods hunter, smart, sexy, uncouth. Good wit, moderately strong and agile. Human of Caucasian descent.
Conan the Barbarian—Super-strong human, smart, sexy, uncouth. Intimidating. Greedy, self-serving, combat oriented. Soft heart for damsels in distress.

Using the above character concepts, the player generates his characters. He fills out the race, attributes, secondary attributes, and skill sets according to his concept of the character.

Aladdin would be a human, unskilled worker (thief), with good balance, athletics and perhaps some other boons, pretty high physical reflexes and dexterity in addition to high mental stats, he would not be overly strong.
Crocodile Dundee would be a human, skilled worker (hunter), with high levels of skill in tracking and other hunting type skills, high physical and mental dexterity, and an average build.
Conan the Barbarian would be a human, warrior, with high physical stats, above average intelligence, high martial arts, and security systems and criminology(thieving) skills. His physical dexterity and reflexes would be above average, but not extremely high.

Character Generation
As a person grows, he or she makes choices according to their wants, desires, and needs. Characters are not just instantly alive--they were once children. Early in their development, characters made choices as to how they were going to live their life. They determined, or had determined for them, their priorities and goals. Since a character is not truly alive, the player must rate the six aspects of the character's life according to what is most important to the character and what is least important. Remember to take character concept into effect when assigning these priorities. It doesn't make much sense for a character with a character concept of street bum to have resources as the first priority.

Note: Assigning priorities is only required for organic characters. If the Era allows non-organic characters (Robots, Androids, etc), see the Robots and Androids chapter.

Assigning Priorities
Players assign priorities to describe what areas of development were most important to the character as he or she developed. There are six categories of development, therefore six priorities. The player decides what was the character's first priority, second, and so on. There can be no duplicate values, ( i.e. A character cannot pick Resources Twice, nor can he pick Priority One for Attributes and Skills).

Priority Chart

Attributes	Race	Boons	Class	Skills	Resources
1350	5	9	3	95	1,000,000
1200	4	7	3	85	500,000
1050	4	5	3	70	200,000
900	3	3	2	60	60,000
825	2	2	2	55	12,000
750	1	1	1	50	1,200

Example
Ken wants to make a character based on one of his favorite movies. The character is the product of a genetic breeding program, skilled in the arts of warfare and leadership. Ken assigns his priorities as follows:1 Attributes 1350
2 Skills 85
3 Class 3
4 Boons 3
5 Race 2
6 Resources $1,200

Attributes
Attributes describe the character's physical, mental, and spiritual strengths and weaknesses. There are two types of attributes. Primary Attributes describe the character's Physical, Mental, and Spiritual nature. Secondary Attributes are derived from the Primary Attributes.

Primary Attributes
There are three categories of Primary Attributes: Physical, Mental, and Spiritual. Each of category relates to a realm of the Paradox Universe, which has three realms(physical, mental, and spiritual). Primary Attributes are based on species minimums and maximums.

Distribute the points from the Attributes priority in the following Attributes.Attribute Definitions
Physical Stature: A measure of the character's physical size.
Physical Might: A measure of the character's physical strength in relation to physical size.
Physical Endurance: A measure of the character's physical fitness and health.
Physical Reflexes: A rating to measure how quickly a character reacts.
Physical Dexterity: A measure of the character's agility and hand-eye coordination.
Physical Affinity: A measure of how attractive the character is to others of his or her race.

Mental Stature: A measure of the character's capacity to learn--IQ.
Mental Might: A measure of the character's current knowledge level.
Mental Endurance: A measure of the character's ability to cope with mental stress.
Mental Reflexes: A measure of the speed at which a character reacts to outside stimuli, specifically thinking on his or her feet.
Mental Dexterity: A measure of the character's ability to reason.
Mental Affinity: A rating to measure how the character's actions affect other characters--charisma.

Spiritual Stature: A measure of the character's spiritual capacity.
Spiritual Might: A measure of the character's current spiritual power level.
Spiritual Endurance: A measure of the character's ability to perform spiritual actions.
Spiritual Reflexes: A measure of the speed at which a character reacts to spiritual stimuli.
Spiritual Dexterity: A measure of the character's ability to manipulate spiritual energies.
Spiritual Affinity: A measure of the character's empathy for the spiritual energies around him or her.

Secondary Attributes
Secondary Attributes are attributes that are derived from the character's primary attributes. They represent certain aspects of the way a character interacts with the Paradox Universe. There are three categories of Secondary Attributes: Physical, Mental, and Spiritual. As with the Primary Attributes, the Secondary Attributes correspond with each other in relation to their specific realm of existence.Physical Stamina (PE ): A measure of how much a character's physical body can do. A player spends points from this attribute to perform physical tasks, such as lifting things, attacking, etc.
Physical Hits ((PS + PM) / 2): A measure of how much damage the character's physical body can withstand. A player spends points from this attribute to withstand death.
Phys. Heal Rate (PE / 16): A measure to determine how fast a character regenerates Physical Power.
Physical Initiative (PR / 10): A measure to determine how quickly a character reacts in a combat situation.
Physical Move ((PS + PM + PE + PR) / 150): The number of meters a character can walk in one action.

Mental Stamina (ME): A measure of how much a character's mind can do. A player spends points from this attribute to perform mental tasks, such as interacting with a computer system (whether Virtual Reality (VR) or not), engineering, etc.
Mental Hits ((MS + MM) /2): A measure of how much damage the character's mind can withstand. A player spends points from this attribute to withstand unconsciousness.
Mental Heal Rate (ME / 16): A measure to determine how fast a character regenerates Mental Power.
Mental Initiative (MR / 10): A measure to determine how quickly a character reacts mentally, used primarily for VR Combat, or any time the character is linked directly to a machine.
Mental Move ((MS + MM + ME + MR) / 150): The number of VR units a character can move in one action.

Spiritual Stamina (SE):A measure of how much a character's spirit can do. A player spends points from this attribute to perform spiritual tasks, such as casting spells, divining the future, reading other people's emotions, etc.
Spiritual Hits ((SS + SM) / 2): A measure of how much damage the character's spirit can withstand. A player spends points from this attribute to withstand spiritual death.
Spiritual Heal Rate (SE / 16): A measure to determine how fast a character regenerates Spiritual Power.
Spiritual Initiative (SR / 10): A measure to determine how quickly a character reacts spiritually, used primarily for combat in the Spiritual Realm.
Spiritual Move ((SS + SM + SE + SR) / 150): The number of Spiritual Realm units a character can move in one action.

Race
Character's race is one of the major determinate factors in his or her abilities. Race defines maximum and minimum attributes, natural abilities inherent in all beings of the race, and general cultural and psychological commonalties.

Since the Paradox role-playing system does not limit itself to the Genre/Epic that one can play using it, the game master must determine which races the player can choose from. Below are listed the races available throughout most of the history of the Paradox Universe. If you are curious as to what time periods these races exist, look for Paradox, the Eternal Struggle , coming soon. It gives a brief history of the unchangeable events through time in the paradox Universe.The following is a list of character races and their cost. Max Stats describes first the Maximum Stat for each realm, and second, any deviation from that with specific statistics within that realm.

Name Scientific Name Explanation/common name Cost
Human (Homo Sapiens)(1)
PS parameters: 56 – 110 Bonuses: None
Life Span: 85 avg. / 120 max Max Stats: (P)100, (M)100, (S)100

Neo-Human, type 1 (Homo Gravis Arduus)Heavy Gravity evolutionary step (2)
PS parameters: 59 – 95 Bonuses: +10 PM, PE
Life Span: 90 avg. / 125 max Max Stats: (P)110, (M)100, (S)100

Neo-Human, type 2 (Homo Gravis Abiectus)Light Gravity evolutionary step (2)
PS parameters: 65 – 110 Bonuses: +10 PR, PD
Life Span: 95 avg. / 130 max Max Stats: (P)110, (M)100, (S)100

Neo-Human, type 3 (Homo Magistrus) Academic evolutionary step (2)
PS parameters: 69 – 95 Bonuses: +10 MS, MM, MD
Life Span: 110 avg. / 150 max Max Stats: (P)100, (M)110, (S)100

Neo-Human, type 4 (Homo Veneficus) Spiritual evolutionary step (2)
PS parameters: 68 – 95 Bonuses: +7 SS, SM, SE, SR, SD, SA
Life Span: 120 avg. / 200 max Max Stats: (P)100, (M)100, (S)110

Dwarf (Homo Aliquantulus)(2)
PS parameters: 57 – 73 Bonuses: +7 PM, PE, MD, Thermographic Vision, Toughness, Iron Constitution
Life Span: 150 avg. / 200 max Max Stats: (P)110, (M)100, (S)100, (PR)80

Elf, type 1 (Astrum Princeps) Nobility (2)
PS parameters: 72 – 90 Bonuses: +5 PR, PD, SS, SM, SD, SA, Night Vision, Presence, Acute Hearing
Life Span: 200 avg. / 250 max Max Stats: (P)110, (M)100, (S)100, (PM)80, PE(90)

Elf, type 2 (Astrum Nemus) Wood elf (2)
PS parameters: 77 – 95 Bonuses: +7 PR, PD; +5 SS, SM, SA, Night Vision, Athletic Ability
Life Span: 180 avg. / 220 max Max Stats: (P)110, (M)100, (S)100, PM(90), PE(90)

Elf, type 3 (Astrum Nox) Dark elf (2)
PS parameters: 77 – 95 Bonuses: +5 PM, PR, PD; +6 SS, SM, SE, SR, SD, SA, Night Vision, Acute Hearing, Magical Aptitude
Negatives: Allergic to ultra-violet light (1 Stamina/hr bright sunlight)
Life Span: 225 avg. / 275 max Max Stats: (P)100, (M)100, (S)110, (PM)80, PE(80)

Goblin, type 1 (Homo Turpis Nequam) Gundie (2)
PS parameters: 23 – 46 Bonuses : +10 PR, PD, Mark 4 Toxin Bite, Night Vision, Mechanical Aptitude
Negatives: 75% chance of Psychological disorder
Life Span: 65 avg. / 80 max Max Stats: (P)150, (M)50, (S)100, (PM)50, (PE)75

Goblin, type 2 (Homo Turpis Subtraho)Grantz (2)
PS parameters: 48 – 66 Bonuses: +7 PR, PD, Mark 2 Toxin Bite, Night Vision, Athletic Ability
Life Span: 75 avg. / 90 max Max Stats: (P)125, (M)75, (S)100, (PM)75, (PE)100

Goblin, type 3 (Homo Turpis Bellator)Hobgoblin (2)
PS parameters: 97 – 115 Bonuses: + 15 PS, PM; PE, Night Vision, Toughness
Life Span: 75 avg. / 90 max Max Stats: (P)115, (M)90, (S)100, (PR)90

Goblin, type 4 (Homo Turpis Patricius)Frawpen (3)
PS parameters: 83 – 110 Bonuses: +10 PM, PE, PR, PD, SS, SM, SE, SA, Night Vision
Life Span: 95 avg. / 110 max Max Stats: (P)110, (M)110, (S)110

Troll, type 1 (Homo Prodigium Aque) Amphibious evolutionary step (2)
PS parameters: 88 – 110 Bonuses : +10 PS, PM, PE, Heal rate = Hourly, Regenerate body parts, Thermographic Vision, Toughness
Life Span: 150 avg. / 175 max Max Stats: (P)110, (M)90, (S)100, (PR)80

Troll, type 2 (Homo Prodigium Ornus) Arid Mountains evolutionary step (3)
PS parameters: 98 – 130 Bonuses: +20 PS, PM, PE, Thermographic Vision, Toughness, Stamina
Life Span: 105 avg. / 130 max Max Stats: (P)120, (M)90, (S)100, (PR)75, (PD)90

Troll, type 3 (Homo Prodigium Barathrum)Underground evolutionary step (4)
PS parameters: 87 – 105 Bonuses: +5 PS, PM, PE, +10 SS, SM, SE, SR, SD, SA, Thermographic Vision, Magical Aptitude
Life Span: 150 avg. / 175 max Max Stats: (P)110, (M)100, (S)110, (PR)90

Eugenics Program, type 1 (Homo Casimyris Bellatoris Alpha) Warrior (2)
PS parameters: 83 – 110 Bonuses: + 7 PS, PM, PE, PR, PD, Toughness
Life Span: 125 avg. / 225 max Max Stats: (P)110, (M)100, (S)100

Eugenics Program, type 2 (Homo Casimyris Laboris Alpha) Worker (2)
PS parameters: 82 – 100 Bonuses: + 5 PM, PD, ME, MD, Stamina
Life Span: 125 avg. / 150 max Max Stats: (P)110, (M)105, (S)100

Eugenics Program, type 3 (Homo Casimyris Paratus Alpha) Skilled Worker (2)
PS parameters: 82 – 100 Bonuses: +7 PR, PD, MS, MM, MD, Mechanical/Technical Aptitude
Life Span: 125 avg. / 150 max Max Stats: (P)110, (M)110, (S)100

Eugenics Program, type 4 (Homo Casimyris Veneficus Alpha) Spiritual (2)
PS parameters: 77 – 95 Bonuses: +7 SS, SM, SE, SR, SD, SA, Magical Aptitude
Life Span: 125 avg. / 150 max Max Stats: (P)110, (M)110, (S)110

Eugenics Program, type 5 (Homo Casimyris Optimus Alpha) Optimus Alpha (2)
PS parameters: 85-103 Bonuses: +7 PM, PE, PR, PD, MS, MM, MR, MD, MA, Toughness, Presence
Negatives: Ego problems, 1-5 psychosis
Life Span: 130 avg. / 150 max Max Stats: (P)110, (M)110, (S)110

Eugenics Program, type 6 (Homo Casimyris Bellatoris Beta) Warrior II(3)
PS parameters: 89 – 107 Bonuses: +10 PS, PM, PE, PR, PD, Toughness, Athletic Ability
Life Span: 140 avg. / 170 max Max Stats: (P)120, (M)120, (S)120

Eugenics Program, type 7 (Homo Casimyris Laboris Beta) Worker II (3)
PS parameters: 85 – 103 Bonuses: + 7 PM, PD, ME, MD, Stamina, Eye-hand Coordination
Life Span: 140 avg. / 170 max Max Stats: (P)120, (M)120, (S)110

Eugenics Program, type 8 (Homo Casimyris Paratus Beta) Skilled Worker II (3)
PS parameters: 85 – 103 Bonuses: + 10 PR, PD, MS, MM, MD, Mechanical/Technical Aptitude, Eye-hand Coordination
Life Span: 140 avg. / 170 max Max Stats: (P)120, (M)120, (S)110

Eugenics Program, type 9 (Homo Casimyris Veneficus Beta) Spiritual II (4)
PS parameters: 81 – 90 Bonuses: +15 SS, SM, SE, SR, SD, SA, Magical Aptitude, Presence
Life Span: 140 avg. / 170 max Max Stats: (P)120, (M)120, (S)120

Eugenics Program, type 10 (Homo Casimyris Optimus Beta) Optimus Beta (5)
PS parameters: 81 – 90 Bonuses: + 10 PM, PE, PR, PD, MS, MM, MR, MD, MA, SS, SM, SE, SR, SD, SA, Toughness,Magical Aptitude, Presence, Stamina

Replicant, type 1 (Homo Geneticus Ballatorus)Warrior (2)
PS parameters: 91 – 100 Bonuses: + 30 PM, PE, PR, PD, Toughness, Stamina, Athletic Ability,
Character does not physically age.
Negatives: 10-year life span
Life Span: 10 Max Stats: (P)130, (M)100, (S)100

Replicant, type 2 (Homo Geneticus Laboris)Skilled Worker(2)
PS parameters: 91 – 100 Bonuses: + 30 PM, PD, ME, MD, Stamina, Mechanical Aptitude
Character does not physically age.
Negatives: 10-year life span
Life Span: 10 Max Stats: (P)110, (M)110, (S)100

Replicant, type 3 (Homo Geneticus Venificus)Spiritual (3)
PS parameters: 91-100 Bonuses: +20 SS, SM, SE, SR, SD, SA, Character does not physically age, Magical Ability
Negatives: 10-year life span
Life Span: 10 Max Stats: (P)100, (M)100, (S)110

Fradorian (Tractus Venificus)(3)
PS parameters: 90 – 99 Bonuses: +10 PD, MD; +7 SS, SM, SD, SA
Negatives: Sensitive to ultra-violet light (-1 Stamina in direct sunlight)
Life Span: 125 avg. / 150 max Max Stats: (P)110, (M)100, (S)110

Man-taur (Homo Bovis)(3)
PS parameters: 115 – 130 Bonuses: +30 PS, PE, PM, Toughness, Stamina
Life Span: 55 avg. / 80 max Max Stats: (P)130, (M)90, (S)100

Note This listing is only for character generation purposes. If you are curious about any of these races, please refer to the Races section of this manual, or upcoming sourcebooks.

BOONS & BANES
Boons and Banes are quirks which set a character apart from another character with similar backgrounds and abilities. Not all characters are created with the same abilities, and therefore, all characters will have at least one Boon.

Boons are assigned to characters according the priorities the player chooses at the time of character generation. Banes can be assigned to add points toward assigning more Boons.

Boons Acting Ability (2)
Character gets -1 Dif. Level on all rolls involving MA. (i.e. Acting, Mimicry, etc.)
Acute Hearing (2)
Character gains -1 Dif. Level on all rolls involving sense of hearing. (i.e. Perception)
Acute Smell (1)
Character gains -1 Dif. Level on all rolls involving sense of smell. (i.e. Perception)
Acute Taste (1)
Character gains -1 Dif. Level on all rolls involving sense of taste. (i.e. perception)
Acute Touch (1)
Character gains -1 Dif. Level for all rolls involving PD. (i.e. Engineering, Technician, etc)
Acute Vision (2)
Character gains -1 Dif. Level for all rolls involving vision. (i.e. Sniping, Perception, etc)
Ambidexterity (2)
Character can perform any skill equally with either hand. Suffer no negatives for Offhand.
Artistic Ability (2)
Character gains -1 Dif. Level for all rolls involving the fine arts, photography, forgery, or artistic avenues.
Athletic Ability (1)
Character gains -1 Dif. Level on all rolls involving Physical Attributes.
Blandness (3)
Character is normal, with no significant markings that stand out. Character gains -1 Dif. Level on all rolls involving a situation where the character does not want to be noticed. Also any other character trying to remember specific details about the character must make a MM check at Dif. Level 7, or only remember basics like (dark hair--can't remember if it was brown or black, light eyes--might have been blue, but I'm not sure, etc.). Anytime a character meets the character with the blandness advantage for a subsequent time, s/he must roll MM check to recognize who it is. This roll is modified -1 Dif. Level for every time the character has seen the character with the blandness advantage.
Computer Aptitude (3)
Character gains -1 Dif. Level on any roll dealing with computers.
Double-jointed (3)
Character gains -1 Dif. Level on contortions or escape rolls.
Empathy (2)
Character gains -1 Dif. Level on any perception roll involving MA.
Eye-hand coordination (3)
Character gains -1 Dif. Level on any roll that requires Eye-Hand Coordination.
Fearlessness (2)
Character does not have to make a ME roll in frightening situations.
Good Balance (2)
Character is allowed a roll/re-roll any time the character might fall.
Internal Compass (1)
Character knows which direction is up, down, N, S, E, and W at all times with no roll necessary.
Internal Magic Ability (5)
Character has access to Internal Magic Ability, but no full magic capability.
Iron Constitution (2)
Character has an extremely resilient constitution. He heals faster; can drink more and not get as drunk; withstand allergens, toxins, and poisons better than other characters. Characters with this boon gain:
1. Increased Heal Rate, 10% bonus
2. Characters have a –1 Dif vs. any Endurance test, including Chemicals, Poisons, Drugs, etc.
Language Ability (2)
Characters gain any language skill at half cost.
Light Sleeper (2)
Characters awake automatically completely alert.
Magical Aptitude (5)
In addition to characters gaining any Magical skill at half cost, characters with this boon also have an increased chance of being magically active. Characters with this ability have a chance equal to their Spiritual Affinity instead of the normal chance.
Magical Ability (10)
Character is magically active and has full access to the Spiritual Realm.
Mechanical/Technical Aptitude (2)
Characters gain -1 Dif. Level on all Mechanical/Technical Based skills.
Musical Ability (1)
Characters gain -1 Dif. Level on all skills requiring musical ability.
Night Vision (2)
Character's vision extends into either the Ultra-Violet or Infrared spectrum.
Social Chameleon (3)
Character gains -1 Dif. Level when using a social based skill (i.e. blending in with any culture)
Thermographic Vision (3)
Character's vision is heat based.
Toughness (2)
Character's Basic Phys, Mental, and Spiritual hits are increased by 10% each.
Two Track Mind (6)
Character can perform two mental tasks at the same time.
Obscure knowledge (3)
Character gains a roll to know any obscure information. (i.e. History, Customs, etc.)
Observation (3)
Character is allowed a MM roll to remember exact experiences he has had, to include smells, sights, obscure things, etc.
Peripheral Vision (2)
Character's Line of sight is increased from the normal 120 degrees to 170 degrees.
Photographic Memory (6)
Character has all bonuses given the observation advantage, plus can remember and reproduce anything he sees on text.
Presence (3)
Character gains -1 Dif. Level in all MA rolls involving leadership.
Sensuality (2)
Character gains -1 Dif. Level in all rolls dealing with the opposite sex.
Stamina (2)
Character can exert himself at twice the normal level.
Wealth (4)
Character's starting money is doubled.

BanesAddiction 1 (2)
Character is addicted to legal minor drugs (i.e. caffeine, or nicotine, etc). If the character does not get the drug on an hourly basis, the character suffers a +1 Dif. Level on all rolls.
Addiction 2 (4)
Character is addicted to an illegal drug that alters the character's physical, mental, or spiritual abilities. If the character is not under the effects of the drug, s/he makes all rolls at increased difficulty (determined by GM and dependent upon time without substance). When on the drug the character gains both the benefits (i.e. bonus to reaction for amphetamines) and negatives (paranoia when on amphetamines).
Color Blind (1)
The character cannot distinguish the differences in colors.
Cowardice (4)
In a hostile situation the character must make a ME roll or flee.
Deep Sleeper (2)
Character sleeps very deeply and cannot be awakened as easily as other characters. Must make their ME roll to wake up at +1 Dif. Level.
Dependent 1 (2)
Character has an able bodied non-payer character dependent upon him/her for support or friendship. Boyfriends, Girlfriends, Wives, Husbands, parents, and adult children fit into this category. If anything happens to the Dependent, the character must go to their aid or suffer a +1 Dif. Level on all rolls due to worry.
Dependent 2 (3)
Character has a non-payer character dependent that cannot take care of him/herself for more that a few hours at a time. The non-payer character is always within an hour travel from the character. Small children, invalids, and the elderly fall into this category.
Dependent 3 (4)
Character has a non-payer character dependent that cannot take care of him/herself at all. The non-payer character must always be with the character or in the care of a qualified person. Infants and the extremely handicapped fall into this category.
Enemy 1 (1)
Character has a minor enemy with limited resources (usually another non-payer character of equal skill and resources as the character). The enemy will do everything in his power to thwart the character's plans. These enemies are not always around, but if they happen to show up...
Enemy 2 (2)
Character has a more powerful enemy--a minor government official, or a powerful non-payer character. The non-payer character wants the Character either dead, or incarcerated. These enemies (or agents of these enemies) should show up at least once per game year.
Enemy 3 (4)
Character has a very powerful enemy--a major government official, or a influential non-payer character. The non-payer character wants the character dead, and has the resources to make it happen. The non-payer character (or agents of the enemy) will show up at least once per gaming session.
Gambling (2)
Character has a gambling habit. Whenever the character is tempted to gamble he or she must make a Mental Endurance test or gamble. The character will gamble until out of money, or a ME roll is made. The character rolls to stop gambling whenever s/he has lost half his/her money, or doubled his/her money.
Greed 1 (2)
Character is greedy to a fault. He or she will do anything to make a buck, even if it is illegal. Often times characters with this fault will even steal, cheat, or otherwise hurt friends and family in order to gain more wealth. Should a character wish to resist the urge to exploit an opportunity, a ME roll is made with the difficulty level determined by the GM who takes all things into account (i.e., character's current wealth, the amount that could be gained, how close a friend this is, etc.)
Greed 2 (4)
Character is greedy to a fault. He or she will do anything to make a buck, even if it is illegal. Often times characters with this fault will even steal, cheat, or otherwise hurt friends and family in order to gain more wealth. Should a character wish to resist the urge to exploit an opportunity, a ME roll is made with the difficulty level determined by the GM who takes all things into account (i.e., character's current wealth, the amount that could be gained, how close a friend this is, etc.) This difficulty level must be twice what a normal greedy character would need to resist.
Hearing Impairment 1 (2)
Character has correctable Hearing impairment, but suffers +3 Dif. Level to all rolls involving hearing checks when theimpairment is not corrected.
Hearing Impairment 2 (4)
Character is completely deaf.
Illiteracy (2)
Character cannot read or write.
Lechery (2)
Character is always thinking about sex. The character is always trying to get his/her choice of partner into bed. Character must make a roll vs. ME (+1 Dif. level per Target's PA/10), or pursue the target with all resources available. non-payer character's with seduction do not need to roll when trying to seduce the character with the Lechery disadvantage.
Moral Qualms (2)
Character has a moral code that prevents him/her from doing something that could endanger him/herself or keep him/her from accomplishing a task. (i.e. Killing, torture, etc).
Night Blindness (2)
Character makes all vision related rolls at +3 Dif. Level when in complete darkness.
Short-winded (3)
Character can only perform a physical activity for ½ the time a normal character would be able to. (Physical Stamina = PE /2)
Uncouth (2)
Character will make a FOPAH whenever in a situation that requires etiquette.
Unmistakable Feature (1)
Character has a feature that cannot be hidden that distinguishes him/herself from other characters.

This list is not a complete list. In order to personalize characters, we encourage players and Game masters to come up with their own boons and banes.

Profession
A character's profession determines the character's calling. There are six professions in the Paradox role-playing system: Unskilled Worker, Skilled Worker, Warrior, Administrator, Scholar, and Theologian. Each profession has certain bonuses, since each profession tends to attract certain types of people.

Each profession also has a certain list of skills. This does not limit the player from choosing additional skills from other lists; however, any skills picked from an alternative list are subject to a cost increase by a multiple of three, except for the general skills list. Administrator (3)
Politicians, Military Officers, Executives, etc.
Bonuses: +6 PA, PM, ME, MR, MA
Skill Categories: Administrative
Scholar(3)
Teachers, Researchers, Scientists, College Grads, etc.
Bonuses: +10 MS, MM, MD
Skill Categories: Scholastic
Skilled Worker(2)
Engineers, Tech School Graduates, etc.
Bonuses: +5 PM, PD, MS, MM, MD
Skill Categories: Technical
Theologian(3)
Priests, Magicians, etc.
Bonuses: +5 MA, SS, SM, SE, SR, SD, SA
Skill Categories: Theological
Unskilled Worker(1)
Manual laborers, High School Graduates, etc.
Bonuses: +5 PM, PE, PR, PD
Skill Categories: All (at double the cost)
Warrior(2)
Military Enlisted, Police Officers, etc.
Bonuses: +7 PM, PE, PR, PD
Skill Categories: Combat

Skills
Skills are an integral part of your character. Think of the skills listed on a character sheet as lines on your character's resume. Skills are determined at the time of character generation, or can be purchased later with experience points. A character can pick any skill from any list, however, the skills from a list other than the character's profession cost 3 times normal cost to advance.

When creating a character, the player decides which skills his character would have learned in the past and at what levels of expertise.

Each skill is based on an attribute that determines the character's base percentage. The Base% is equal to a third of that attribute. Each character will also assign a proficiency level for the skill. This represents the character's ability to perform the skill. Each skill level is equal to a percentage according the chart below. At the time of Character Generation, the a character cannot possess a skill with a proficiency level higher than 10.

Proficiency	Level % per Level
1 - 10	3
11 - 20	2
21 - 30	1

Cybernetics
Cybernetics is the inevitable mix between man and machine. The existence of Cybernetic Organisms (Cyborgs) can be traced back to the late 20th century. Replacing a defective part of an organism with a machine was the first step in Cybernetic advancement, however, governments and corporations soon discovered that they could improve their employee's productivity by adding cybernetics. Soon Law Enforcement, Corporate Security, and Military Organizations began to develop special units with heavy cybernetics and bionetics. By the late 21st century 25% of these organizations personnel were fitted with some sort of mechanical augmentation.

Replacement parts are not the only developments in the fields of cybernetics and bionetics. With the aid of genetic and mechanical engineering, an organism can be entirely redesigned to be as efficient as their robotic or android counterparts. By 2159 every organic body function had either been designed to be replaced or augmented, including the brain.

Cybernetics vs. Bionetics
Cybernetics is the science of engineering a mechanical augment/replacement for an organic body part. Bionetics is the science of engineering an organic augment/replacement for an organic body part. There is really only a semantic difference between Cybernetics and Bionetics, both seek to improve an organism through the augmentation of body systems.

At the time of character generation, players add cybernetics and bionetics with the expenditure of resources. For a list of Cybernetic and Bionetic Equipment and costs, see the section by that name.

Non-Organic Characters
Since the Paradox system is designed to allow game play in many different genres, eras, and epics, there are also rules which allow for non-organic character races; however, these rules are almost as complex as designing the robot yourself. For those players who do not wish to create their own robots, a series of standard, starting level Androids and Robots are provided in the Basic Rulebook. Should you feel like tackling the design of an Android Robotic Cybernetic Organism (ARCO), please see the attached section on them. A Microsoft Excel Spreadsheet has been developed in order to aid you in the creation of your ARCO.