CREW MEMBERS
Every crew in Mortisphere is made of individuals.
Even the smallest organism, machine or corpse carries its own existence. A crew member is not simply a resource to spend. It is a piece of your crew's history.
Some members will become legends.
Some will disappear without anyone remembering their names.
That is the nature of the final age.
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CREW MEMBER PROFILE
Every crew member is defined by several elements.
Name
Every member should have a name.
This may be their original name, a designation, a title or simply whatever the crew chooses to call them.
A name gives something identity.
Even in Mortisphere, identity matters.
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Type
A crew member's type describes what kind of existence they represent.
Examples include:
- Survivor - Machine - Mycelian - Mutant - Remnant - Construct - Other beings discovered during the campaign
A type may affect abilities, equipment and how the member interacts with the world.
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Existence Die
Every crew member has an Existence Die.
This die represents their current value and potential.
The standard dice are:
Die| Value d4| 4 d6| 6 d8| 8 d10| 10 d12| 12 d20| 20
A larger die represents a more powerful existence.
However, power is not the same as importance.
A d4 survivor who has crossed ten battles may have a greater history than a newly recruited d20 creature.
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Equipment
Many crew members carry equipment.
Equipment may include:
- Ancient weapons. - Forgotten technology. - Industrial machinery. - Biological modifications. - Recovered relics. - Items whose original purpose has been lost.
Equipment changes what a crew member can do and may alter their Existence Die.
A creature is not defined only by what it was.
It is also defined by what it has acquired.
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Abilities
Some crew members possess unique abilities.
These may come from:
- Their biology. - Their construction. - Their origin. - Their experiences. - Their equipment. - Their evolution throughout the campaign.
No two crews will develop in exactly the same way.
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THE LEADER
Every crew has a leader.
The leader is the character through which the player experiences the campaign.
A leader is more than another crew member.
They are the individual who gathers the crew, makes decisions and determines the direction of its future.
The leader may be:
- A commander. - A scavenger. - A survivor. - A creature with ambitions. - A being that should not still exist.
Their exact abilities and progression are described later.
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LOSING A CREW MEMBER
Mortisphere is not kind.
Crew members can be damaged, changed or destroyed.
A lost member is not replaced without consequence.
The loss of a crew member may affect:
- The crew's available strength. - Future scenarios. - Relationships. - Campaign events. - The story of the survivors.
A crew that loses members is not necessarily a failed crew.
Sometimes the things that survive the end of everything are the things that have lost the most.
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REMEMBERING YOUR CREW
Players are encouraged to record important events.
A crew member that:
- Survives against impossible odds. - Defeats a powerful enemy. - Gains unusual equipment. - Suffers a memorable injury. - Changes through the campaign.
should be recorded.
Mortisphere is not about creating a perfect collection of statistics.
It is about creating a history of things that refused to disappear.