Labels & Conditions

Labels

Freak

Freak is about being strange, different, unusual. It's about being abnormal, weird, uncanny, odd, disturbing, upsetting. It's about being unique, powerful, special, individual, interesting. Being beautiful, extraordinary, and a good kind of different.

Freak is used to unleash your powers.

Danger

Danger is about being scary, frightening, intimidating, threatening. It's about being destructive, deadly, fearsome, explosive, and dangerous. It's about being strong, powerful, dangerous, a weapon, a soldier, a thug.

Danger is used to directly engage a threat.

Savior

Savior is about being a martyr, a boy scout, a goody two shoes. It's about being responsible, noble, hopeful, helpful, naïve, obedient. It's about being protective and heroic; a guardian and a rescuer.

Savior is used to defend.

Superior

Superior is about being better than them, smarter than them. It's about being right, correct, intelligent, clever, stubborn, type A. It's about being a leader, someone who's going places, most likely to succeed, and annoying.

Superior is used to assess the situation and provoke someone.

Mundane

Mundane is about being human, empathetic, sympathetic, kind, understanding. It's about being unremarkable, average, unidentifiable, normal, regular, invisible, plain, standard issue. It's about being emotionally healthy, capable of connecting, capable of supporting others.

Mundane is used to comfort or support and pierce someone's mask.

Shifting Labels

When you shift a label, it means that your view of yourself is changing. You see yourself more as the label you shift up, less as the label you shift down.

If you ever need to shift a Label and can’t, instead you must mark a Condition, GM's choice.

Conditions

Condition List

● If you're Angry, take -2 to comfort or support someone or pierce the mask.

● If you're Afraid, take -2 to directly engage.

● If you're Guilty, take -2 to provoke someone or assess the situation.

● If you're Hopeless, take -2 to unleash your powers.

● If you're Insecure, take -2 to stand in defense or reject what others say about you or the world.

Clearing Conditions

You can always clear a Condition by taking a certain action. At the end of any scene in which you take the corresponding action, clear that condition.

● To clear Angry, hurt someone or break something important.

Clearing Angry requires you to vent your anger, either on someone or on something. It’s not enough to just punch a bag—you have to take your anger out on someone, or something important. What’s important is different for every character, but the GM should ask if and why an object is important when the Angry character breaks it. Hurting someone doesn’t necessarily mean hurting them physically—yelling at them and hurting their feelings would do the trick, too.

● To clear Afraid, run from something difficult.

Clearing Afraid requires you to avoid or flee from a complicated, dangerous, or problematic situation. That could mean anything from running away from a villain to fleeing the room when someone wants to have a conversation about your recent actions. The key is avoidance—instead of confronting something, you’re running from it.

● To clear Guilty, make a sacrifice to absolve your guilt.

Clearing Guilty requires you to pay some cost on behalf of others, those you feel you’ve wronged or let down. It doesn’t require them to actually absolve you of your guilt—just so long as you pay a price in an attempt to redeem yourself. This might be anything from standing alone against a dangerous villain so your teammates can escape to agreeing to follow the older heroes’ rules even when it’s easier not to.

● To clear Hopeless, fling yourself into easy relief.

Clearing Hopeless requires you to seek the easiest and quickest way to relieve your feelings. Most likely, that means making stupid decisions in pursuit of stupid fun. It could be anything from finding some cheap booze and getting drunk to making out with the wrong person.

● To clear Insecure, take foolhardy action without talking to your team.

Clearing Insecure means following your worst, most impulsive instincts without consulting anybody first. You feel doubtful of your own abilities, so you’re proving yourself by following your own plan without talking to anyone first. That could be anything from deciding to attack the bad guy while the rest of your team waits in stealth to agreeing to give up the crucial component for the death ray in exchange for escaping right now, all without anyone else’s input.

● You can also clear a condition when someone else comforts or supports you, or when you defend someone.