Breaking Reality

Breaking Reality by DreamerOfThings
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Overview

A quest in which a woman named Linda McCallahan gets the ability to tell Reality to screw off. She quickly teams up with a side in the conflict over how to use these powers, and is generally hoping she'll get the chance to actually learn more about what's going on without dying.

The Cast

Linda McCallahan
The Protagonist of our story. She's a little inexperienced at the whole "breaking reality" thing, but she's seems to be picking up the tricks of the trade pretty quickly. She has a scar on her stomach from an incident involving a crazed gunman and exploding gas tanks, and the event left her sterile due to an injury to her abdomen. Linda has a very high alcohol tolerance, but when she does get drunk, events of epic proportions take place, from crashing into a wedding and sleeping with the bride to taking on whole gangs in the name of justice.
Stats: Strength-3/Finesse-9/Will-6
Spirit:5
BP Limit:29
Manifestation: Weapon Type
Barrett M82, w/ Modified X-Ray Scope- BP Cost: 2 (10 shots)
2xBaretta M9- BP Cost: 1 (15 shots)
Freeze Gun-BP Cost: 2 (30 seconds) Can fire a cartoon ice effect, freezing targets in place instantly, but isn't capable of killing anyone.
Twin Ring- BP Cost: 5 Creates an exact copy of the user, including current clothing, equipment and weapons. Does not have it's own BP pool, and cannot break reality or anything like it. Has the skill levels of Linda from before she became breaker, except for Finesse, which is at 9. Follows directions as literally as possible, and has almost no ability to adapt to situations. Has a limited mental link to Linda. ???
Spirit Abilities:
Battlefield Instinct
Evasion
Break Sight
Active Break
Death Avoidance
Manifest

XP: 0

Inventory: (available, not all on her person at once)
Tuned foci: 12.7×99mm, 9mm, capsule of liquid nitrogen, twin ring
Untuned foci: small black ball (makes holes), small stone-ball, Remembrance of Cally, wristwatch, shotgun shell
Mundane: Flashlight, Laptop, Satchel, Earpiece Comm, Holster, Guitar Case, Rented Car, Mecha Anime DVDs, Aria's Communication Gem, body armor, anti-breaking cylinders

Allies

Cassandra "Chainsaw" Geld
The first ally gained by our protagonist. She seems to be fairly calm and collected, and a little stand-offish, at least until the killing starts. Then she goes a little murder crazy. She has professed to hating herself for the way she is, a berserker killing machine. She also seems to have some trouble with technology, although she can seemingly operate a phone perfectly fine, a DVD player proves more... difficult. She has an insanely low tolerance for alcohol, getting drunk off of literally 2 beers.
Stats: Strength-13/Finesse-5/Will-1
Spirit:4
BP Limit: 29
Manifestation: Weapon Type
Chainsaw- BP Cost 4: Lightened, Strengthened, Longer. Now comes equipped with a flamethower, which jets out a short-range burst of flame. Requires 10 seconds of revving to recharge.
A Knife- BP Cost 1
The Knife- BP Cost 1
Spirit Abilities:
Weapon: Environment
Normality
Active Break
Death Avoidance
Manifest

XP: 2

Raphael
The second ally to join. He follows Linda out of a strange mix of interest and friendship. While he somewhat of a joker, he also tries very hard to make himself useful, mostly out of fear that others will hate or abandon him. Raphael is an albino, and while the only affect to his appearance is his white hair and red eyes, he is still very sensitive to sunlight. Still, he'll serve willingly no matter what, and is perhaps one of the few form type breakers serving in the group.
Stats: Strength-7/Finesse-3/Will-6
Spirit: 4
BP Limit: 29
Manifestation: Form Type
Nightmare- BP Cost: 5 Form Ability, allows Raphael wander the dreamtime, an artificial realm of dreams and nightmares. Considered ethereal. Can also induce waking nightmares and pure fear in victims that are awake. Has been modified to allow him to take the forms of other people's nightmares and fears.

Known Fears:

That Which Is Unknowable (Elizabeth)

Giant Spider (Linda)

Death (Morpheus)

That which Cannot be Cut (Subject 23)

Nightmare Horse (Raphael)

Spirit Abilities:
Weight Null
Warped Reality
Warped Minds
Death Avoidance
Manifest

XP: 3
Theme Song: Avenged Sevenfold- Nightmare http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8dR-9ytZpMk

Elizabeth Baker
A 17 year old girl who joined mostly because her abilities have sort of guided her to Linda. She identifies Linda as the "Angel", and while she's distrustful of Cass, she understands that Linda considers her a friend, and treats her mostly with indifference. She has somewhat of a childlike personality, preferring to refer to people by nicknames, and when she isn't being her insanely serious oracle self, she can generally be found spacing out, staring at walls, or otherwise not really being completely lucid. She has absolutely zero combat abilities, as she hates combat, but she has an astounding level of support skills, even from her first focus.
Stats: Strength-1/Finesse-2/Will-6
Spirit: 3
BP Limit: 20
Manifestation: Weapon Type
Oracle Eye- BP Cost: 3 Support Weapon, Elizabeth can "see" small amounts into the future, granting her knowledge as to the MOST LIKELY outcome of an action. She can also "see" the properties and traits of a foci, although this doesn't always work. She also has the unique ability to "see" the true fabric of reality while her foci is manifested, Normality Cloak and other means of blocking detection are negated when conflicting with her eye. Unlike other manifestations, she can't keep her foci active for long, due to the hight amount of strain it places on herself as well as reality. She can either activate her eye to perform one of the two first abilities, or for up to 5 minutes for the third ability. The eye also passively grants her automatic access to Break Sight and Spirit sight, even when not manifested.
Control Wire- BP Cost: 2 per Wire(Up to 10 wires) A weapon that grants direct control of an opponent, as long as you succeed a will check against the opponent. Essentially, Elizabeth may give orders to those she's "dominated", moving them like puppets to her will. The wires only work if they are attached at the back of the neck with a small needle, however. If the wires are broken, control is returned to the person.
Spirit Abilities:
Active Break
Warped Minds
Break Sight
Spirit Sight
Death Avoidance
Manifest

XP:0
Theme Song: Paprika- A Drop Filled With Memories http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cDp5WmdUn5I&feature=related

Nicole Reed
Joined the group after hearing about Cass and Linda's skill in combat. She's taken an interest in Raphael, and has joined up with Linda's "squad" to get closer to the man. She seems to have a fear of people who are on fire, and is an impatient person when it comes to fights, but is highly skilled at taking down opponents quickly. Because she doesn't utilize a weapon of any kind, she has the almost unique capability to take down normal opponents without killing them. This makes her invaluable in missions where Normals need to be avoided or removed from the picture without deaths.
Stats: Strength-8/Finesse-6/Will-3
Spirit: 4
BP Limit: 17
Manifestation: Weapon Type
Fingerless Fighting Gloves- BP Cost: 3 Multiplies the amount of force applied to a target when punched. Can charge the force gathered by one glove into the other, multiplying the force farther than normal.
Spirit Abilities:
Weapon: Environment
Forceful Break
Active Break
Death Avoidance
Manifest

XP: 0

"Subject 23"
Brainwashed, tortured, and broken, she served Division 7- a secret government agency that deals with breakers. Now serves Linda. A swordswoman of absurd agility. Easily dodged or cut through everything we could throw at her. Capable of running horizontally along walls.
Stats: Strength-3/Finesse-13/Will-2
Spirit: 5
BP Limit: 23
Manifestation: Weapon type
Muramasa -BP Cost 7: Capable of cutting through metal, concrete, and giant nightmarish demons with little to no effort.
Spirit Abilities:
Instant Movement- BP Cost5: preforms a short ranged "jump" to a nearby location.
Finesse Focus
Warped Minds
Normality
Death Avoidance
Manifest

XP:0

Others

Non-party members we have stats for. As these people are not under direct or indirect player control (or are outright enemies!) this information may be outdated, incomplete, or speculative, and is complied (by players) from spoilers and combat experience.

Trevor Ferguson
A member of the fixer faction. Showed up with his brother on the morning Linda woke up broken, and tried to recruit her. Unfortunately for him, Linda went with Cass, and his brother ended up dead. He's come back for revenge, with better stats. His focus takes the form of an ethereal pet wolf that follows him around.
Stats: Strength-4/Finesse-1/Will-2
Spirit: 2
BP Limit: at least 17
Manifestation: Form Type
Giant Wolf- BP Cost: 1
Werewolf- BP Cost: 2
Spirit Abilities:
Death Avoidance
Manifest

Marc “The Boss” Conner
The man in charge of the free spirits faction Linda and her allies belong to. He comes across as a personable pragmatist; his organization seems mostly concerned with their own survival, independence and influence, and offering that same protection to new breakers. Disapproves of harming normals. All in all, seems a good guy. (Provided he doesn't have a secret evil agenda, of course!). Smokes. He doesn't like people to ask about the creepy doll, though...
Stats: Strength-1/Finesse-2/Will-8
Spirit: 7
BP Limit: 54
Manifestation: Avatar Type
“Amelia” Kill Doll- BP Cost: 10, life sized female doll. "When he gets angry an wakes her up, she kills. Everyone and everytin. Ya wouldn't stand a chance. Aint seen no one survive yet. Just don't get him mad, and ya'll be fine." -Mac.

Stats: Strength-5/Finesse-3

Speech(1)

Self-Repair(3)

Break Channel(2)

Sudden Appearance(2)

Spirit Abilities:
Normalcy
Active Break
Warped Minds
Break Sight
Beloved
Fear Itself
Death Avoidance
Manifest

Aria Galliana
A mysterious, polite woman Linda met in the sewers. Capable of some impressive high level breaking, and independent of all known factions. Knew Marc Conner before she became a breaker. Gave Linda a gem to summon her if she notices anything "odd", especially concerning her Boss, in exchange for aid, if she should need it. A possible lifeline if Marc is hiding some deep, dark, secret.
Stats: unknown. Presumably high wil.
Spirit: high!
BP Limit: hidden
Manifestation: Avatar Type
Younger Self Doll- BP Cost: Unknown, doll of herself as a child, lifelike enough to pass as a normal child.
Spirit Abilities:
Active Break (Presumably)
Normality Cloak
Normality
Death Avoidance
Manifest

Maria
"Damned breakers. You all deserve to die."
Fixer, Assault Section Leader. Her philosophy is pretty self explanatory. High finesse build, consistently pulls off high difficulty shots. Can dodge bullets, at close range, with relative ease. Thankfully, her weapon couldn't hurt Raphael's golem form. Swore to hunt down and kill Linda and co. Wants Elizabeth alive (presumably to use her abilities to hunt down other breakers).
Stats: crazy high finesse
Spirit: at least 4
BP Limit: at least 38
Manifestation: Weapon Type
Pistol
Presumed to have no higher caliber / firepower guns
Spirit Abilities:
Does not have Active Break
Unknown ability- finesse check for an automatic roll to cover after fatal damage
Death Avoidance
Manifest

Michelle "Lilith"
A reluctant (though regular) combatant Linda encountered in the Sun City arena. Her focus takes the form of a small snake plushie, which transforms into the giant Leviathan when manifested. When "Levi" is not manifested, her number appears on the doll (it reverts back to floating by her when he is). He is apparently able to communicate with her even in plushie-form.
Stats: Presumably high will, low str fin
Spirit: unknown
BP Limit: at least 23
Manifestation: Avatar Type
Leviathan- BP Cost 11: Giant biblical sea serpent, with teeth as large as a man is tall. Still plenty deadly on land, though. Eats people. This hunger is what drives Michelle to fight in the arena, despite her reluctance. Purportedly a major demon, with a gateway to hell in his stomach.

Repair(?)- BP Cost 1: Activated by breaker, in exchange for a brief interval of concentration, repairs damage to the avatar.

Devour- BP Cost 5: Opens mouth impossibly wide and sucks everything nearby into oblivion.

Spirit Abilities:
Death Avoidance
Manifest

"Blades"
A mercenary, hired by an unknown businessman to cause trouble for Linda's faction. The first breaker we've encountered fortunate enough to have actual, preexisting training and/or skill with the weapon(s) reality saw fit to bestow upon her (which really makes a difference!). Unusual in that she tried to negotiate a her way out combat- even after the shooting started.
Stats: unknown. Likely a finesse-strength build.
Spirit: unknown
BP Limit: at least 23
Manifestation: Weapon type
Cruciform swords- BP Cost unknown: a life sized crucifix that morphs into a set of four blades (two swords, a greatsword, and dagger).
Spirit Abilities:
Instant Life(?)- drastically reduces or removes the respawn delay when death avoidance kicks in.
Death Avoidance
Manifest

Spirit Abilities

Death Avoidance- Anytime you would normally be killed(like getting shot in the head) will be negated as Reality warps to defend you. This only activates if you have a break point to spend, however, so don't go getting yourself killed on a regular basis.

Manifest- Allows a breaker to turn on or otherwise activate a focus. The effect varies from focus to focus. For weapon types, this generally means pulling a weapon out of thin air. For form types, it means a transformation. For avatar types, waking up their avatar. (General guidelines only- there are exceptions and unusual manifestations).

Break Sight- One will be able to "see" peoples' remaining Break Points (including your own), although this doesn't tell you the max number they can have, or how they can use it. The number is usually seen floating over a person, although position can vary.

Normality- By expending a Break Point, the world around you is convinced of normalcy. People will forget the massive gun duel that just took place above their heads, the random people who died will be erased from existence itself. Everything will be made... normal.

Warped Minds- "Normal" people will generally notice if you're toting around a massive gun. With this, they'll just ignore you. After all, if it isn't normal, obviously it's not real, right?

Active Break- Normally, breaking reality during say, combat, is relatively more difficult to do than if you have the time to concentrate on things. With Active Break, you don't suffer the normal penalties to ripping reality apart with you will while in combat or other stressful situations.

Spirit Sight(req. Break Sight)- You can now spot the Spirit of a target as well as the Break Points, allowing you a better estimate of your opponents abilities. Unlike break sight have to focus on a person to "see" their Spirit level, and the result is an abstract optical illusion that shows a person's power level, instead of a definite number.

Normality Cloak(req. Normalcy)- You passively cloak yourself from the Sights of others, letting you appear as normal to even other Reality Breakers. They still have a chance to see you based on their Spirit vs yours.

Evasion- passively makes all evasive actions better, reducing the number of successful dice needed to dodge. If an attack lands anyway, another roll is made to see if the attack is reduced in severity, from death to critical damage, critical damage to moderate damage, and so on. The reduction in severity doesn't work for all weapons, such as Linda's rifle, as it doesn't matter where the weapon hits for it to cause fatal damage.

Weapon: Environment- Everything around you is a weapon to be used. EVERYTHING! In addition, all attacks against another person use the Strength stat for purposes of hitting the target, unless Strength cannot be a factor for hitting(such as guns or bows).

Warped Reality(req. Warped Minds)- Reality will move itself even further to keep people from noticing you're not supposed to do that. Even battles you participate in will be ignored by Normals, unless they specifically are dragged into it. Furthermore, reality can and will warp to make things easier for you to reach a goal, such as doors mysteriously unlocking themselves, or a camera glitching at just the right time.

Forceful Break(req. Active Break)- Bullies reality into allowing breaks that would normally be beyond a person's reach. Roll twice with Spirit and combine the successes of both rolls to determine success.

Weight Null- Nullifies the weight of things(cars, big boulders, etc) for the purposes of carrying and throwing. This allows objects that normally could not be moved very quickly or effectively to be handled with ease.

Finesse Focus- Replaces the use of Strength for physical attacks with Finesse. Does't work if the weapon being used is intended for the brute strength method(ie- warhammers, shields, claymores, etc.)

Battlefield Instinct- For Linda, the battlefield has quickly taught her more about fighting than anything else, particularly in regards to the need to hit multiple targets at once. As long as Linda has a gun in her hand, she can expend 5BP to instantly unload the entire clip of whatever weapon(s) she has into any number of visible targets without any recoil or delay. This does not reload a weapon, however, every hit does count as a death.