''GURPS Powers'' is a role-playing character book written by
Sean Punch
Sean Punch (born July 27, 1967) is a Canadian writer and game designer. He is the author of the fourth edition of the '' GURPS'' role-playing game. Before he turned to writing he was a student of particle physics.
History with GURPS
After writ ...
(with
vignettes and additional writing by
Phil Masters
Phil Masters is a British role-playing game designer and author.
Career
Phil Masters' writing credits in role-playing games go back to ''White Dwarf'' Magazine #20 and the ''Fiend Folio'' of ''Advanced Dungeons & Dragons''. Masters wrote about h ...
) and released in December 2005 for the Fourth Edition of
GURPS
The ''Generic Universal RolePlaying System'', or ''GURPS'', is a tabletop role-playing game system designed to allow for play in any game setting. It was created by Steve Jackson Games and first published in 1986 at a time when most such systems ...
.
Contents
''GURPS Powers'' is a rule book that extends the basic character creation rules presented in the
basic set to better handle high powered characters, and allow highly detailed customization of powers.
The book aims to be genre independent and covers rules for characters from fantasy and myth to supers and science fiction with no bias towards any one.
The first section provides the framework and rules with which a player and
Game Master
A gamemaster (GM; also known as game master, game manager, game moderator, referee, or storyteller) is a person who acts as an organizer, officiant for regarding rules, arbitrator, and moderator for a multiplayer role-playing game. They are m ...
construct a Power. Next is a large section devoted to many worked examples to use straight away, and also provide a guide to work from when creating your own powers. Lastly chapters focusing running high powered games, and notes on various genres exist to help players and GMs integrate powers into their games.
What is a Power?
A ''Power'' is – like Psionics as presented in the ''Basic Set'' – a range of abilities (i.e., Advantages) and a Talent organized in a logical grouping. In addition, Powers have a ''Source'' and ''Focus'' that add color and help to tie together the abilities. Lastly there is an additional ''Power Modifier'' that acts like an Enhancement (rare) or Limitation to the power as a whole rather than individual abilities.
The source and focus of a power are significant. They take the generic abilities that are available, and tie them together in more unique ways. This approach may be familiar to players of the
Hero System
The ''Hero System'' is a generic role-playing game system that was developed from the superhero RPG '' Champions''. After ''Champions'' fourth edition was released in 1989, a stripped-down version of its ruleset with no superhero or other genre ...
Publication history
''GURPS Powers'' was published in 2005, one of several genre books published by Steve Jackson Games for the fourth edition.
Powers is the fourth edition replacement for ''
GURPS Supers
''GURPS Supers'' is a superhero roleplaying game written by Loyd Blankenship and published by Steve Jackson Games. The first edition was published in 1989.
Contents
''GURPS Supers'' is a supplement of rules for comic-book superhero characters an ...
'' and ''
GURPS Psionics'' from earlier editions of the game.
Reception
See also
*
List of GURPS books
References
External links
''GURPS Powers'' at sjgames.comReview at RPG.netSecond RPG.net Review
GURPS 4th edition
Powers
Role-playing game supplements introduced in 2005
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