The Newborn
It’s all new to you, a whole world full of wonder
and adventure. It’s not easy, though: everyone
has an opinion about who you are and what you
should do. It's time to find out for yourself.
Hero Name:
Real name (if You Have One):
Look:
● Ambiguous, Man, Shifting, Transgressing, Woman,
● Asian or South Asian, Black, Hispanic/Latino, Indigenous, Middle Eastern, White
● Crystal skin, metal skin, green skin, human skin
● Mismatched clothing, concealing clothing, immaculate clothing, plain clothing
● Prototype uniform, over the top costume, your own skin, unnerving costume, no
costume
Abilities:
Your powers are based on your unique physical configuration. Choose 2 and describe
how they are part of your body.
□ Elemental Form □ Solid Light Projection □ Sonic Bursts
□ Fantastic Elasticity □ Superhuman durability □ Thermal Control
(at character creation, add +1 wherever you choose)
| Freak | -2 | -1 | 0 | +1 | +2 | +3 |
| Danger | -2 | -1 | 0 | +1 | +2 | +3 |
| Savior | -2 | -1 | 0 | +1 | +2 | +3 |
| Superior | -2 | -1 | 0 | +1 | +2 | +3 |
| Mundane | -2 | -1 | 0 | +1 | +2 | +3 |
CONDITIONS:
□ Afraid (-2 to directly engage)
□ Angry (-2 to comfort or support or pierce the mask)
□ Guilty (-2 to provoke someone or assess the situation)
□ Insecure (-2 to defend or reject what others say)
□ Hopeless (-2 to unleash your powers)
Backstory
• How is your biology different from normal humans’?
• Who created you, and why?
• Where do you live?
• What about humanity fascinates you the most?
● Why do you care about the team?
Once you've finished your backstory, introduce your character to the other players, and
then determine what happened when your team first came together, the relationships
between you and your teammates, and who has influence over you.
When our team first came together…
They found you, and you saw the outside world for the first time and helped in the fight.
Where and how did they find you? Which one of them gave you your first nickname?
Relationships
_ _ _ _ _ shows you around and tells you how things work.
The behavior of _ _ _ _ _ _ confuses you again and again.
Influence
You’re receptive to how people think and behave around you. Give influence to all of your teammates.
Newborn Moves: (choose two)
□ Not from around here: When you act
clueless, goofy or confused to get out of a sticky
mundane situation, roll+Freak. On a hit, you
create an opportunity, a distraction, or a plausible
excuse. On a 7-9, in addition, you feel all the
weight of playing the clown, and of the people
staring at you. The GM will shift one of your
labels up, and one down.
□ Thermodynamic miracle: When you tell
someone how you see them as exceptional or
unique in a way that others overlook, you can
roll +Freak instead of +Mundane to comfort or
support them.
□ A mind of their own: Your powers evolve and
mutate. When you are facing an obstacle or threat
that your powers would not be able to deal with,
you can mark a condition to have your powers
adapt to the situation and manifest in a new and
unprecedented way. You do not retain these new
powers once the danger is gone.
□ Damage: You get an additional condition
called Damaged. While marked, take +1 to take a
powerful blow.
To clear the Damaged condition, you need time,
external help, or special equipment or abilities.
□ Role model: You are inspired by your
teammates, and strive to be like them.
Choose another PC who holds Influence
over you to be your role model. You can
shift your role model at any time to someone
else who has Influence over you.
At the beginning of the session hold 1.
Spend your hold to use one of your role
model’s moves.
□ Meet Your Maker: When you approach
your creator or caretakers with a problem,
tell them what obstacle you face or what you
need to achieve, and they will offer you
something you need. The GM chooses one:
• secret information
• a way to temporarily boost or expand
your powers
• access to instruments, weapons or
resources
• Official and explicit backing.
If you accept their help, they will rewrite one
of your lessons for you.
A New Life
Blank slate: You were created with basic understanding of the world. When you learn something
that helps you make sense of the world, write it down as a lesson. Fill in two lessons when you
create your character; fill in the other two when you've learned those lessons during play.
□ I am _ _ _ _ _ □ A superhero should _ _ _ _
□ Always _ _ _ _ _ □ Never _ _ _ _
When you embody one of your lessons, shift 1 label up and 1 label down, your choice. If you
cause misunderstanding, collateral damage or unintended consequences, mark potential.
When you reject one of your lessons, reject its influence as if it were an NPC. If you choose to
have it lose Influence over you, erase that lesson and write a new one.
Regeneration: When you’re taken out, you can trigger an emergency regeneration process. If you
do, your body undergoes an unpredictable transformation, and in mere moments, you’re back on
your feet and ready to fight. Clear three conditions, and choose three from the list below:
● Change your gender identity or presentation
● Change your physical appearance
● Forget all your lessons
● Lose an important memory of a teammate; they lose Influence over you
● Swap an ability with another one from the Newborn playbook
Moment of Truth
Something snaps into focus, and you’re free of all the pressure and expectations and doubts. You
know what to do, and your body and powers evolve to give you the strength to see it through.
You’re new, exceptional, amazing. Of course, when something like you appears, there’s always
someone who wants to control it…
Team Moves
When you share a triumphant celebration with someone, ask them what makes them proud or
happy about the actions they took, and write down a new Lesson based on it.
When you share a vulnerability or weakness with someone, if their response helps you
understand human feelings and problems, mark potential. If their response confuses or offends
you, shift your Freak up and your Mundane down.
POTENTIAL
Every time you roll a miss on a a move, mark potential.
Advancement
When you fill your potential track, you advance. Choose from the list below. When you've taken
five advances from the top list, you can take advances from the list below the line.
__ Take another move from your playbook
__ Take another move from your playbook
__ Take a move from another playbook
__ Take a move from another playbook
__ Someone permanently loses influence over you, add +1 to a Label
__ Rearrange your Labels as you choose, and add +1 to a Label
__ Unlock your Moment of Truth
__ Get Burn and three flares (from the Nova’s playbook)
_
Unlock your Moment of Truth
__ Create a second character
__ Look down your lessons and change playbooks
__ Take an adult move
__ Take an adult move
__ Lock a Label, and add +1 to a Label of your choice
__ Retire from the life or become a paragon of the city