Magnitude#
Disasters, hazards, and natural forces have a wide variety of effects and power levels. To help the GM judge these forces consistently, the magnitude scale is provided. See the master table of magnitude at right. Magnitude measures the quality or force of a phenomenon: its area, scale, duration, range, and force. Whenever you need to assess a potential catastrophe, use the magnitude scale as a guideline to judge how it compares relative to the examples given on the table.
You can use the magnitude of a phenomenon as a dice pool for a fortune roll to see how much effect it has, if it’s not obvious or certain.
A cargo hauler’s engines detonate at the station’s dock where the PCs are loading their freighter.
How badly does this damage the vessel and the crew? Obviously it’s gonna be bad for them, but are the sensors merely overloaded or are they instantly threatened of suffocation? The GM makes a fortune roll using 6d (the magnitude of the blast).
- On a 1-3, the blast has only little effect (for a dockside explosion), causing the craft to loose clamps and start drifting away from the dock.
- On a 4-5, the blast has reduced effect, damaging the hull and throwing some of the characters and their cargo around.
- On a 6, the blast has full effect, immediately tearing open the hull and requiring the crew to react immediately.
- On a critical, the ship is severly damaged, and the crew is fighting for their lives. Debris is everywhere and the oxygen level is falling rapidly.
You can add levels of magnitude together to describe a combination of effects, or simply focus on one key feature for the magnitude assessment, ignoring other elements, even if they’re on the magnitude scale. They’re not always additive.
In the example above, the blast generated magnitude 6 force and the GM included its area of effect “for free” as part of the phenomenon. A dockyard explosion should affect the boats and the crews there, in their judgment.
In a different session, the crew wants to craft a seismic charge that will collapse a power relay shrouded in a city block. The GM says that this is a very significant effect, so they add two levels of magnitude together: force 6 and range 5. That sets the minimum quality for the device very high. The GM offers a compromise: a simpler charge that takes a few hours to set up will only need a moderate quality level, but it will be more fragile – it may detonate too early, or fail unless rigged from the right vantage.
The magnitude table is provided as a tool to help the GM make judgment calls. It’s not meant to be a rigid restriction or mathematical formula to replace those judgment calls. Use the levels as a guideline for setting a magnitude number that seem appropriate to you.
This table can also be used as a guide to quality level when a PC acquires an asset or crafts a device or compound.
AREA/SCALE#
| 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A closet | A small room | A large room& Several rooms | A small building | A large building | A city block | |
| 1 or 2 people | A small gang (3-6) | A medium gang (12) | A large gang (20) | A huge gang (40) | A massive gang (80) | A colossal gang (160) |
DURATION/RANGE#
| 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A few moments | A few minutes | An hour | A few hours | A day | Several days | A week |
| Within reach | A dozen paces | A stone’s throw | Down the road | Several blocks away | Across the district | Across the city |
TIER & QUALITY / FORCE#
| 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Poor | Adequate | Good | Excellent | Superior | Impeccable | Legendary |
| Weak | Moderate | Strong | Serious | Powerful | Overwhelming | Devastating |