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Many advantages and disadvantages deal with disease, either directly or
indirectly. Their character point values might change in a campaign where disease plays a major role.
The Big Four
Immunity to Disease. [10 points] The character succeeds
in all contagion rolls, always resisting infection. This advantage
is a steal at 10 points in a campaign where PCs commonly encounter
diseases. If diseases come up in every adventure,
raise the value to 20. Keep in mind that some of the more creative
diseases defy this advantage — The Mummy's Curse, for example,
is probably too supernatural to be held back by Immunity to
Disease.
Disease-Resistant. [5 points] With this lesser version of
Immunity to Disease, it is possible (but still very unlikely) for the character to contract an infectious illness. To balance this out, you can give the character an Achilles
Heel: a disease that he has no special resistance to. In a disease-based
campaign, this advantage gives him a +8 on HT rolls to resist infection.
Panimmunity. [2, 5, or 10 points] This is simply an
ultra-tech version of the previous two advantages. Characters in
TL9+ worlds can get an injection that permanently gives them Immunity to
Disease, Disease-Resistant, or an even less-effective advantage: a
2-pointer that offers half the bonus of Disease-Resistant.
Weak Immune System. [-30 points] In a disease-based
campaign, this disadvantage is crippling. It should be worth -60 points or
more. The GM is rolls monthly for a "potentially serious" disease for
the character. No matter what he does, short of living in a sealed
environment, he's going to catch something. In any campaign where disease comes up all the time (an ER campaign, post-apocalypse,
etc.) the weak-immune-system character will immobilize the PC group with his sickness — and spread his illness to the others.
Healing
Rapid Healing. [5 points] This advantage adds +5 when you
roll to recover lost HT or to get over a crippling injury. If the
disease rules are being used, add this: the character gets a +5 on all rolls to resist the increase in symptoms/effects. The advantage does not help the character avoid catching a disease.
Very Rapid Healing. [15 points] Any character with Very Rapid Healing succeeds
automatically when he rolls to resist the advance of a disease's symptoms/effects.
Faith Healing. [30 points] The GM sets a modifier to the
Will roll when a faith healer tries to cure a disease. The examples
in the book are "from +1 to cure the common cold to -15 to heal an
AIDS sufferer" (Compendium I, p. 36). A successful roll
means the disease instantly drops a level and then automatically declines one
level at the end of every interval until it is gone.
Healing. [25 points] This is similar to Faith Healing.
The character "lays on hands," rolls vs IQ (with a standard -2
penalty for disease), and then spends Fatigue. The disease
decreases by one level for every 2 Fatigue spent. If the level is
reduced to zero, the character is cured.
Regeneration. [10 to 100 points] Characters who
regenerate get the Rapid Healing advantage thrown in for free. If you are using the disease rules, give the character more frequent immune system rolls. Suggested levels:
| Slow regeneration |
every 8 hours |
| Regular regeneration |
every 6 hours |
| Fast regeneration |
every 4 hours |
| Instant regeneration |
every 2 hours |
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Regrowth. [40 points] This advantage also works for lost
inner organs, skin, and bodily fluids. The GM can rule, however,
that a particular lost body part can only regrow after the disease
has been cured.
Slow Healing. [-5 per level] Every level adds 12 hours to
the character's immune system rolls. For examppe, with one level he rolls
against disease every 24 hours. At level five, he rolls every three
days.
Unhealing. [-20 or -30 points] Most characters with
Unhealing are undead — or similarly unnatural creatures —
and are probably immune to disease. If, however, the character can
catch disease but cannot heal normally, he gets an immune system
roll when he uses the special conditions available to heal lost HT
(see Compendium I, p. 106). When his HT is fully restored,
he gets an immune system roll. A character with the 30-point
version can never make an immune system roll; he requires direct
treatment from psionics, magic, and technology to fight any disease
he catches.
Hemophilia. [-30 points] Although this disad generally
relates to injuries from physical attacks, the hemophiliac's poor
healing is relevant when he becomes ill, especially if the disease
attacks internal organs. Hemophiliacs are already limited to a HT
of 10, so little else is needed to make them realistically
vulnerable to disease. If you want, you can add a -1 or -2 to
penalty to immune system rolls.
Other Ads and Disads
Filter Lungs. [5 points] This advantage adds +6 to resist
catching any airborne disease.
Doesn't Breathe. [20 points] This is much less effective
than Filter Lungs. The character still breathes, but he does it
through his skin. Normally, this makes diseases slightly harder to
catch (+1 in rolls to resist contagion). But some diseases,
especially exotic ones, will be easier to catch because the
skin provides a larger exposed surface area than the lungs. The GM decides
when this occurs and what penalty the character suffers. (Keep it
rare, or the advantage's value will have to be changed.)
Hard to Kill. [5 points per level] Hard-to-kill
characters suffer normally from all ailments, but they can come
back from a fatal illness. When the character returns from the
dead, he still has the disease but it is treated as if he just
caught it — one interval until the first level of effect
begins. Most characters will be able to shrug it off at that point.
If he can't, a particularly nasty disease will make the
hard-to-kill character feel cursed. He may have to repeat his
suffering of the disease that just killed him!
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