Creating A Nano

"A Nano may stand behind their fellows, but no exploration team can survive without them. They are the enablers who keep us alive."

Introduction to the Nano Type

Mage. Wizard. Sorcerer. Witch. A nano manipulates nanomachines in the environment in a way that is ubiquitous with the concept of magic. Nanos are intelligent, learned, and insightful. They are the ones who are best-equipped to identify the oddities of the world around them.

Nanos generally are viewed with fear or suspicion by the common man. A brute with a large axe may be frightening, but for the most part you know what they can do. A nano, on the other hand, manipulates the very fabric of reality. Some, of course, are able to wield the mantle of a wise man or sage, but just as many practically consider themselves gods. The demeanor of a nano directly impacts how a city or village will react to them.

Tier One Setup

Choose Your Background

Nano Origins fit one of the following three backgrounds. This will not only give a bit of direction to your personal story, but will also impact how you earn XP and describe your Tier advancement.

  • Forbidden Knowledge
    • You know far more about the truth about the world than the average citizen. You know about the nanomachines in the air around you. You know about the Datasphere and the satellite network that coats the planet in it. You gained your powers through intense, focused study, slowly figuring out the proper way to access the abilities of the numenera. Most of your esoteries are activated by small, personally cobbled devices you have stashed on your person, charms you activate, or other physical means.
    • Advancement: Study, study, study. Typically your advancements are the result of finding a new treatise on the impact of the numenera, or another way to manipulate it. Eventually, you master this new technique, or have it taught to you, and thus see a stat increase or new ability emerge.
  • Psionics
    • You are aware of the machines around the world, and have a mental link with them. You study, you improve your skill. but your ability to use esoteries is directly connected to your mental abilities. This will most commonly look like traditional spellcasting, be it wordless or should you add your own mystical spin to it.
    • Advancement: Advancement comes through time and training — experimentation, mind-altering drugs perhaps, or other forms of external stimuli that connect you further with the abilities of the machines around you.
  • Ports and Plugs
    • You understand the machines because you have made yourself part of the machine. Your nervous system may be laced with microscopic machinery. Your body may be covered in ports where you can plug and play to use your esoteries. However you do it, when you manipulate nanotech to use your esoteries, it is directly through the mechanical components of your body.
    • Advancement: Gaining new abilities is as simple as getting a new program or technical component added to your body. Finding these, and getting them to interface properly with your body (as well as getting your body to accept them), is where the time element is concerned. Talent and practice is still involved, of course, but your primary means of new acquisition is installation.

Set your Starting Stats and Pools

  • Might: 7
  • Speed: 9
  • Intellect: 12

Next, you have 6 additional points to spread among the above as you see fit.

Other stats:

  • Might Edge: 0
  • Speed Edge: 0
  • Intellect Edge: 1
  • Effort: 1

Skills:

  • Trained skill level in Numenera. (Allows identification of Cyphers/Oddities/Artifacts/Discoveries)

Practiced in Light weapons: Use light weapons without penalties.
Other Weapons: Medium weapons cost an additional difficulty step. Heavy weapons cost an additional 2 difficulty steps.
Cypher Maximum: 3
Esoteries: Select 2 from the Tier 1 Esoteries below.
Starting Equipment:

  • Clothing (Your design)
  • One weapon of your choice.
  • No Armor
  • A Book about the Numenera (+1 Asset to Numenera rolls)
  • Three random Cyphers (GM will provide)
  • One random Oddity (GM will provide)
  • 4 Shins

If you chose a ranged weapon as one of your weapons, you will have 12 of the corresponding type of ammo.
Consider holding off on choosing weapons and armor until we've also fleshed out your Esoteries, Descriptor, Homeland, and Focus.
GM will also work with you to help you create your general connection to the world

Esoteries

Tier One Esoteries

  • Aggression (2 Intellect cost)
  • Distortion (2 Intellect cost)
  • Erase Memories (3 Intellect cost)
  • Far Step (2 Intellect cost)
  • Hedge Magic (1 Intellect cost)
  • Machine Interface (2 Intellect cost)
  • Mental Link (1+ Intellect cost)
  • Onslaught (1 Intellect cost)
  • Push (2 Intellect cost)
  • Resonance Field (1 Intellect cost)
  • Scan (2 Intellect cost)
  • Sculpt Flesh (2 Intellect cost)
  • Ward

Tier Two Esoteries

  • Adaptation (2+ Intellect cost)
  • Cutting Light (2 Intellect cost)
  • Fetch (3 Intellect cost)
  • Flash (4 Intellect cost)
  • Force Field (3 Intellect cost)
  • Hover (2 Intellect cost)
  • Mind Reading (4 Intellect cost)
  • Overload Machine (3+ Intellect cost)
  • Retrieve Memories (3 Intellect cost)
  • Reveal (2+ Intellect cost)
  • Shock the System (3 Intellect cost)
  • Speed Recovery (3 Intellect cost)
  • Stasis (3 Intellect cost)

Tier Three Esoteries

  • Accelerate (4+ Intellect cost)
  • Barrier (3 Intellect cost)
  • Countermeasures (4 Intellect cost)
  • Disassemble (4 Intellect cost)
  • Energy Projection (3+ Intellect cost)
  • Fabricate Minion (4 Intellect cost)
  • Fire and Ice (4 Intellect cost)
  • Fling (4 Intellect cost)
  • Implant Suggestion (4 Intellect cost)
  • Mutation Enhancement (3 Intellect cost)
  • Sensor (4 Intellect cost)
  • Targeting Eye

Tier Four Esoteries

  • Construction (4 Intellect cost)
  • Exile (5 Intellect cost)
  • Ignition (4 Intellect cost)
  • Invisibility (4 Intellect cost)
  • Matter Cloud (5 Intellect cost)
  • Mind Control (6+ Intellect cost)
  • Open (4 Intellect cost)
  • Projection (4 Intellect cost)
  • Regeneration (6 Intellect cost)
  • Reshape (5 Intellect cost)
  • Slay (6 Intellect cost)
  • Wormhole (6 Intellect cost)

Tier Five Esoteries

  • Absorb Energy (7 Intellect cost)
  • Boost Physicality (6 Intellect cost)
  • Concussion (7 Intellect cost)
  • Create (7 Intellect cost)
  • Divide Your Mind (7 Intellect cost)
  • Dust to Dust (7 Intellect cost)
  • Fast Travel (7 Intellect cost)
  • Knowing the Unknown (6 Intellect cost)
  • Stimulate (6 Intellect cost)
  • Teleportation (6+ Intellect cost)
  • True Senses

Tier Six Esoteries

  • Control Weather (10 Intellect cost)
  • Earthquake (10 Intellect cost)
  • Freeze Time (9 Intellect cost)
  • Move Mountains (9 Intellect cost)
  • Relocate (7 Intellect cost)
  • Traverse the Worlds (8+ Intellect cost)
  • Usurp Cypher
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