WEAKEN TRAIT (ALTERATION)
| Name | Type | Action | Range | Duration | Resistance | Base Cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weaken Trait | Alteration | Standard | Close | Instant | Fort or Will | As base trait |
You can make a close attack check against your target’s Fortitude or Reflex Defense to temporarily reduce one of a target’s traits, like an Ability, Skill, Proficiency, Edge, Defense, Resistance, or another Trait. You cannot use the Weaken Trait effect to reduce the Tier Trait or other Effects. Choose which Trait is weakened when you configure the effect. If your attack hits, the target makes a Fortitude or Will resistance check against your Weaken Trait effect DC.
WEAKEN TRAIT RESISTANCE CHECK
Fortitude or Will vs. Effect Passive Check
- Success: No effect.
- Failure (one degree): The target’s Trait is weakened by -1 rank.
- Failure (two degrees): The target’s Trait is weakened by up to -2 ranks, not to exceed the Weaken Trait rank.
- Failure (three degrees): The target’s Trait is weakened by up to -3 ranks, not to exceed the Weaken Trait rank.
- Failure (four degrees): The target’s Trait is weakened by up to -4 ranks, not to exceed the Weaken Trait rank.
- Failure (five degrees): The target’s Trait is weakened by up to -5 ranks, not to exceed the Weaken Trait rank.
The target’s Trait is weakened by the above number of ranks, but cannot be weakened by more than your Weaken Trait effect rank per failed resistance check. This is typically expressed as Disadvantage on rolls using the affected Trait.
Multiple failed resistance checks against the Weaken Trait effect are cumulative, up to a maximum of -5 to the affected Trait, any additional reduction to the affected Trait results in the target becoming Debilitated. A Debilitated target effectively loses the use of the affected trait, and may not use or make any checks with that trait and might suffer other conditions while the Debilitated condition remains, depending on the trait.
Weakened Traits ranks are removed at a rate of 1 rank per round at the end of each of the target’s turns with a successful resistance check. Increase this time to 1 per minute if the trait has been weakened by three or more ranks. Any increase to recovery time also increase this recovery time as well.
The cost of Weaken Trait is the same per rank as acquiring a rank in the affected Trait, or Traits. Weaken Skills and Proficiencies are handled as ranks of Disadvantage, and not actual ranks. Weaken Trait can be used to give negative Ranks in certain Edges as well.
WEAKENING OBJECTS OR DEVICES
Weaken Trait with Affects Objects and the right descriptors can lower the traits of, or provided by, an object or device (see the Removable flaw). This also applies to equipment, although they tend to have fewer traits to weaken, and the GM should feel free to disallow any Weaken effects that don’t make reasonable sense.
Inanimate objects do not recover weakened Toughness, and they must be repaired. Objects may or may not recover other weakened traits, at the GM’s discretion and depending on the effect’s descriptors.
EXTRAS
Affects Objects: Weaken Trait with this modifier works on inanimate objects, although the effect can still only affect traits the objects possess. This is most often applied to Weaken Toughness for an effect that can weaken both creatures and objects. For +0 points per rank your Weaken Trait affects objects only. +0 or +1 cost per rank
Concentration: The Weaken Trait’s Duration parameter becomes Concentration. So long as you take a Concentrate action on your turn to maintain the effect, the target is subjected to a new Weaken Trait effect, with no attack check required. If the target overcomes the Weaken Trait, they are still subject to a new effect on your next turn so long as you continue to maintain the effect. +1 cost per rank
Incurable: Weaken Trait with this modifier cannot have its effects healed or countered by another effect, such as Restorative Healing, without the Persistent modifier; the target must recover from the Weaken Trait at the normal rate. +1 cost per rank
Precise: A Weaken Trait effect capable of reducing more than one trait at once can have this modifier, allowing you to choose which traits are affected, while not affecting others. Note this differs from the Selective extra (following). Flat +1 point
Progressive: If the target fails a resistance check to remove a weakened trait rank, it not only fails to remove a rank, but increases the weakened trait rank by one. A successful resistance check still removes a weakened trait rank. +2 cost per rank
Prolonged: Additional resistance checks to remove a weakened trait rank occur at the end of each encounter or rest, rather than per round or minute. Characters can still use a Surge for Resistance to gain a new immediate resistance check and the Weaken Trait effect can still be countered. +2 cost per rank
Selective: This extra is applied to an Area Weaken Trait so it only affects some targets and not others. Combined with Precise (previously), you can use an Area Weaken Trait to selectively affect only certain Traits of certain targets. +1 cost per rank
Sustained: The effect’s Duration parameter becomes Sustained. So long as you take a Sustain action on your turn to maintain the effect, the target is subjected to a new Weaken Trait effect, with no attack check required. If the target overcomes the Weaken Trait, they are still subject to a new effect on your next turn so long as you continue to maintain the effect. +2 cost per rank
Variable: You can change what Trait is reduced with the Weaken Trait Effect whenever you use this Effect, using the base cost to determine effective power points per rank of the new Trait chosen. +1 cost per rank
FLAWS
Onset: Although the target makes their resistance check against the Weaken Trait immediately as usual, the effect does not impose its weakened trait ranks right away. Instead, they occur after a specific onset time. The weakened trait ranks are either imposed, at the end of the Target’s next turn for -1 point per rank, at the end of the encounter for -2 points, or at the end of the Target’s next rest for -3 points. Resistance checks to remove weakened trait ranks then proceeds normally. This flaw is often combined with the Prolonged extra for slow, long-lasting Weaken Traits. -1, -2, or -3 cost per rank
