B R A I N W A V E S
Brainwaves is the second in a series of Aberrant sourcebooks that examine the potential and the ramifications of Mega-Attributes in the Nova Age. Cult of Personality looked at the effects of Social Mega-Attributes on the world of Aberrant. This book looks at the effects of Mental Mega-Attributes, particularly Mega-Intelligence.
Brilliant novas have helped to transform the world of 2015 with their inventions and innovations. Thanks to them, the environment is clean, the cities are safer, and virtually any kind of information or entertainment is available instantly to anyone in the world via the OpNet. But these novas have also created new weapons, designer drugs, and technology that may take away human freedoms and privacy, leading Project Utopia to step in to regulate technological development. Now Utopia controls some of the most advanced technology in the world, it only remains to be seen what they will do with it.
There are also concerns over the impact of nova mental abilities on society. Some novas are stronger and tougher than baselines, some of them able to lift tank and bounce bullets. Many novas are more beautiful and popular than baselines, making them media icons and objects of worship, but what about the novas smarter than baselines? How long are these nova "masterminds" likely to allow their intellectual inferiors to continue running the world? Will they inevitably take over, running the world openly or behind the scenes and, more importantly, what if they've already begun?
A popular type of character in the comic books is the "gadgeteer," the super-inventor, a scientific genius who creates gadgets and devices far beyond the ability of modern science. From Iron Man's suit of power-armor to the endless array of fiendish devices dreamed up by Lex Luthor, comic books are full of strange technology.
In the world of Aberrant, Mega-Intelligent novas are capable of duplicating some of the feats of their comic book counterparts, but they have to deal with some limitations that gadgeteers don't usually operate under.
The first is that nova inventors find their work limited by the laws of science. Sure, a nova's M-R node grants the ability to bend the laws of science as we know them in all sorts of interesting ways, and some novas can do the same thing when they're coming up with new gizmos. The problem is that the gizmo only works because the nova wants it to work, and bends the laws of physics enough to make it so. If the nova wants an invention that can benefit everyone, it has to obey the same physical laws as baseline technology (although nova powers are often useful in creating things much more quickly and efficiently than baseline inventors).
Second, nova inventions have the potential to radically change the world. Comic book characters rarely put their scientific skills to work solving environmental problems or finding cures of diseases, but novas do. They also research alternative energy sources, explore space, invent new materials, and plumb the mysteries of quantum reality. In less than twenty years, novas have helped transform the world, and the pace of nova invention only continues to accelerate.
Brainwaves looks at the implications of nova inventors and scientists, provides guidelines and rules for research and development, and looks at how baseline society is controlling the pace of technological advancement through Project Utopia's Science & Technology Division.
It's fairly easy to see how physically powerful or socially influential novas can fit into an ongoing story. It's somewhat more difficult to involve novas whose primary abilities are cerebral in an Aberrant chronicle. Brainwaves provides some guidelines on how to use and include characters with Mental Mega-Attributes in your games.
Take a look at Chapter One for an overview of the mental "landscape" of the world of 2015. If you're a player, check out Chapter Three for information about playing a gadgeteer character and Chapter Five for more information on Mental Mega-Attributes, including new Enhancements and Aberrations. If you're a Storyteller, read through Chapter Four, which has advice on how to handle masterminds in your Aberrant chronicle, story hooks, and even ideas for chronicles focused on Mega-Mental characters. Then look through the other chapters for additional material you can use in your games, and give some thought to which abilities you want to allow, based on the advice in this book and your vision for the chronicle.
Brainwaves is divided into four chapters:
Chapter One: The Thinkers covers some of the greatest intellectual and technological factions in the world of 2015. This includes Project Utopia's Science & Technology Division, DeVries' Dr. Rachel Alinsky, the criminal Kuro-Tek, Hong Kong's Novelty Consulting, and a number of other masterminds and organizations that may become allies, antagonists, or backdrops for your game.
Chapter Two: Inventing Fun talks about gadgeteers and inventors in Aberrant. It focuses on how to play a gadgeteer character including possible pitfalls and how to avoid them.
Chapter Three: Storytelling offers advice for the Storyteller on how to handle masterminds and how to integrate them into a chronicle. It also includes ideas for running specialized Aberrant chronicles focused around the activities of mastermind characters.
Chapter Four: Knowledge is Power takes an in-depth look at all three Mental Mega-Attributes, and provides new Enhancements and Aberrations related to each, along with how these extraordinary abilities are seen by the rest of the world and how to roleplay mastermind characters.
Brainwaves introduces and uses a number of new terms relating to novas with Mega-Mental Attributes and things and organizations in the world of 2015 that involve them.
biotech: Technology based on, derived from, or affecting biological life forms. Many researchers in the 21st century are turning to biological models and techniques for developing new technologies, although this raises concerns about "tampering" with nature.
blacktech: Any technology declared illegal or restricted (usually by Project Utopia). So named because it usually turns up on the black market via sources like Kuro-Tek.
brainiac: A nickname for novas with Mega-Intelligence. Other common nicknames include brains, eggheads, Einsteins, geeks, techies, and smarties.
gadgeteer: A nova who develops devices based on quantum powers and usually requiring the quantum energies of a nova to operate. Contrast with inventor.
inventor: Someone who develops new technology. Novas with Mega-Intelligence are among the foremost inventors in the world of 2015. Unlike gadgeteers, the work of inventors is replicable and usable by anyone with the necessary resources.
mastermind: A general nickname for novas with Mega-Mental Attributes (Perception, Intelligence, and Wits), simultaneously arrogant and somewhat derogative.
metasensory: A nova ability to sense beyond the range of the normal five human senses of sight, hearing, taste, touch, and smell, usually applied to quantum powers like ESP and Telepathy.
nanotech: Technology based on the creation of very small machines or robots, often microscopic (or at least insect-sized). Molecular-scale nanotech has the potential to revolutionize all areas of technology, although it has not yet been developed.
quantum tech (AKA nova tech): Technology based on the quantum energies or abilities of novas, either to duplicate their abilities or to detect, enhance, or suppress them.
quick-thinker: A nickname for novas with Mega-Wits. Others include wits, mega-wits (or mega-witty), razor (or rapier) wits, and Wildes.
sphinx: A term used to refer to Mega-Intelligent novas who manipulate people and events on a wide scale to suit their own particular agendas. Some theories suggest that becoming a sphinx is a matter of choice while others say that novas above a certain threshold of mental ability can't help but become sphinxes, and that they manipulate the world around them almost instinctively. Those who subscribe to the sphinx theory are often concerned about the potential for conspiracies of nova masterminds.
TecReg: The Technological Regulation Department of Project Utopia's Science & Technology Division, the part of that organization in charge of regulating nova created and derived technology world-wide.
watcher: A nickname for novas with Mega-Perception. Others include peeper, seer, sentinel, visionary, and voyeur.
Brainwaves was intended to be one of three "Mega-Attribute" books for White Wolf's Aberrant game. The first, Cult of Personality, focused on the Mega-Social attributes, and the third, Brute Force (the working title), would focus on Mega-Physical attributes. Ultimately none of the Mega-Attribute books were published due to White Wolf's decision to discontinue the Aberrant line to focus on other projects.
This material includes all of my work for Brainwaves. While I've gone through and given it a quick once-over, I'll note that it's not throughly edited, nor has it been developed. This is the first-draft text that I wrote. It is in no way "official" or endorsed by White Wolf in any way. There may be some errors here and there, but overall the text is pretty clean.
I felt that this material wasn't doing any good just sitting on my hard drive, and with Aberrant discontinued, wasn't likely to ever see the light of day any other way. Although I'm making this material available online I'm not giving up my claim of ownership to it, so I'd ask that it not be reproduced except for personal use. It's not intended as any challenge to White Wolf's ownership of Aberrant and, if they want, I will take it down.
With all that said, I hope you enjoy this sample of what might have been.
-- Steve Kenson