Man, do I have a treat for you guys. Today we get to look at the Master Chief; one of the few characters to push our 400 experience limit. This incarnation of him takes us all the way through the end of Halo 4. This also uses information from my Savage Halo conversion (Player Guide and GM Information).
I will not be listing an explanation for every Edge in his description because he has so goddamn many, but I'll go over the gist of why he has what he does.
Name: John
Race: Spartan II
Experience: 400 (Legendary as f*ck)
Agility d12; Smarts d8; Spirit d10; Strength d12+3; Vigor d10
Pace 10; Parry 7; Charisma –2; Toughness 18 (8) (2)
Hindrances:
Edges: Cyborg, Great Luck, Elan, Brave, Command, Combat Reflexes, Improved Dodge, Light Speed Reflexes, Level Headed, Marksman, Spartan Combat Skill, Martial Artist, Tactician, Steady Hands, Natural Leader, Nerves of Steel, Harder to Kill, Command Presence, Quick Draw, Inspire, Alien Weapons Expert, Shotgun King, Alien Vehicle Expert, Two-Fisted, No Mercy,
Skills: Climbing d6, Driving d8, Fighting d10, Healing d6, Intimidation d10, Knowledge (Battle) d8, Notice d6, Piloting d6, Shooting d12, Stealth d8, Throwing d10
Cybernetics: Agility +1 step, Strength +2 steps, Dodge, Light Speed Reflexes, Leg Enhancements, Mule, Toughness +2, Vision Enhancement, Spartan Neural Interface
Inventory: MJOLNIR Mk VI (Armor +8, Shields +2, Neural Binding (Pace +2, Agility and Strength +1 step), Radar (Notice +2 vs Stealth), Zoom (Notice +2 at range), Targeting Computer (ignores 1 point of Shooting Penalties), –4 AP, Trauma System), Assault Rifle (2d8+1, AP 3, RoF 3, 24/48/96, 32 Shots), Magnum (2d6+1, AP 4, Semi-Auto, 15/30/60, 12 Shots), Frag Grenade ×2 (3d6, AP 2, Medium Burst, 5/10/20, Heavy Weapon), Cortana.
Boy, do we have a lot to cover. First, I'll go ahead and post the shield rules that I first established in my Arbiter post a couple weeks back.
Energy Shields: Shields provide a flat armor bonus to the wearer (taking priority over any other worn armor and does not stack). The user cannot be Shaken or Wounded by physical damage while the shield is active, and non-Heavy Weapon AP is negated.Spartan IIs were picked at a very, very young age and trained extensively. Only about 120 humans in all of UNSC space were selected, being "genetically perfect". To reflect this, all Spartans begin with the Young Hindrance, but also have 3 extra attribute points. They also begin with the Cyborg Edge.
When the user would have been Shaken, the shield is Low, and when the user would have taken a Wound, the shield is disabled. When a shield falls, the damage (including armor piercing) is compared against the user's normal Toughness (including worn armor).
Most shields recharge. When a shield is low, and the user isn't hit within a full combat round (regardless of damage), roll a d6. On a 4–6, it goes back to low, then full the next round.
Spartan training pushes them to become perfect warriors; it is intensive and highly comprehensive. They learn tactics on both a small and large scale, melee combat, weapon skills, vehicle operation, and anything else that a soldier might need to not only survive on the battlefield, but to excel.
At about the age of 14 (60 experience), Spartan IIs received their augmentations and implants. This made them bigger, quicker, stronger, tougher, and all around more terrifying. In addition, the neural interface Spartans are given have an available A.I. slot. It is rare to see a Spartan hit the field with less than 140 experience. Because of this, however, many individuals question exactly how much humanity Spartans have left in them (Outsider).
John, in particular, comes to be known as a "hyper-lethal vector." Cortana attributes this to luck, and looking at the Chief's track record, I'd say that's probably right (Great Luck). He's also said to have an unbreakable spirit (Elan, and later Brave), pushing himself to his limits and beyond on a regular basis.
He is shown to be a highly capable commander, becoming the de facto leader of the Spartan IIs. Intelligent and adaptable, he helped forge not only their physical success, but their tactical capabilities as well (Leadership Edges). Furthermore, the mere presence of a Spartan on the field of battle pushes marines to perform better (Inspire).
The Chief does not like ships, preferring to keep his boots on the ground, but was trained in flight and can make use of ships if he has to. He is also notoriously hard to kill, prompting the Covenant to name him "the Demon." He is accurate with one weapon or two (Two-Fisted and Steady Hands), always seeming to hit the one point that does the most damage (No Mercy).
On top of all of this, the MJOLNIR Mk. VI armor is the most advanced personal armor system in the UNSC. It further augments the Spartan's already impressive capabilities, and provides both shields and a trauma system to take care of any injuries the Spartan might sustain in combat.
Now, we have quite a few custom Edges and abilities here. Spartan Combat Skill is an Edge that allows the Spartan to take an additional action every round with no penalty, though he still may not repeat actions or exceed his weapon's Rate of Fire. Alien Weapons Expert and Alien Vehicle Expert both allow characters to utilize Covenant technology without penalty. Shotgun King allows the user to use shotguns as though they were semi-automatic, letting them Double Tap or Rapid Fire.
As for the cybernetics, Mule has been modified to also increase Size by 1, while Vision Enhancement has been nerfed to only allow for Low Light vision and a +2 to appropriate Notice rolls. Toughness represents the carbide-reinforced skeletal structure of the Spartans, making their bones nearly unbreakable. Lastly, Light Speed Reflexes is a Legendary Edge that allows the user to redraw any initiative cards lower than an 8 in combat.
There you have him: the guardian of humanity! As always, leave questions, comments, and lore rage below.
—DoctorBoson
Nice!
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