Character Creation: Teenagers From Outer Space

I got a request some months back for this game, but I never got around to it, so here we are.

The Game: Teenagers From Outer Space
The Publisher: R. Talsorian 
Degree of Familiarity: None, just read through the PDF.
Books Required: Just the one.

 

I got TFOS in a bundle on DTRPG some years back, and never really looked at it, though just by the title it reminded me of the mid-80s Saturday morning cartoon Galaxy High School. The idea is that aliens think Earth is a pretty cool place to hang out and go to high school, and anime hijinks ensue.

The game is an anime comedy game, so it's drawing on source material I'm both unfamiliar and un-enamored with, but I can get the behind the idea of weird, wacky aliens in a high school setting easily enough. The opening comic has an alien princess landing and offering herself to whichever of the drooling boys can find the "lust stone," so that's, um, an odd choice to open the book with, but whatevs.

We start off determining Type, which is broadly alien or human. I want to be an alien, obviously. That sub-divides into Near Human, Not Very Near Human, and Real Weirdies, depending on how much I can pass for human (Vulcans are Near Human, E.T. is a Real Weirdie - oh, wait, no, E.T. is actually given as an example of the middle type, while fucking Godzilla is a Real Weirdie. OK, then).

I'll split the difference and be Not Very Near Human, how 'bout, though I do not wish to be ET (or Mac, for that matter).

Now, the next thing would be to describe what my alien looks like, but here's the thing: chargen is random, include what kind of alien powers I get, so it really makes more sense to determine everything else and then come back to description, so I'll do that.

Stats: OK, this is kind of stupid. There are 8 stats, each of which we determine with a roll of a d6. But wait, after you've rolled, though you can't reroll, you can shift points around so long as you observe the min 1, max 6 rule. So...why roll? Weird. Anyway, I get 3, 2, 3, 3, 3, 5, 3, 1. I could shift 2 points into my last stat and give myself 3s across the board, except that one little 2. Actually I think I will, because that last stat is Bonk, which doesn't mean that, it means how much damage you can take. That gives me 3 in Smarts, Driving, Cool, Bod, Luck, Looks, and Bonk, and two in Relationship with Parents. Off to a pretty consistent start, here.

Knacks: These basically just refined skills. I get a d6 of points to put into them, and I get a 5. That's better. I should think about what kind of character I'm making here, I guess. Well, this being a high school, I shall hearken back to my own high school days and make someone suicidally depressed a theater kid. So I'll take Acting! as a Knack with 2 points, Interpersonal Drama at 2 points, and Makeup at 1 point.

Powers: Here's the fun stuff. I choose three tables and roll a die on each of them. I get 2, 2, 2.

(Funny aside, not that anyone reads these anymore: We were playing Blue Rose with my kiddos the other day and Cael rolled three 2s, and said "Two, two, and two. Who intervenes?" That's an In Nomine joke. I was so proud.)

Anyway, that gives me Fly, Force Field, and Swap Shop. The hell is that? Oh, I can swap bodies with another person. Yow.

Traits: These are just that. It's actually weird to see an RPG using the word "traits" to literally mean "character traits." I'll say my guy is Gregarious, Fabulous, and Possessive.

And that's basically it, other than getting money and shopping, and you know I don't care much about that. So let's go back to the beginning and do the description thing.

Coblax is from Thespos 3, and comes from a long line of theatrical folks...except that he's not from the Actor caste. He's from the Set Crew caste, and his parents are hardworking folks, using their telekinetic powers to lug sets and lift lights and so forth. But Coblax dreams of his time in the spotlight, and his telekinesis is weak - sure, he can fly, all Thespians can fly, and he can make a force field, but then he's got this weird ability to swap bodies with other folks, which is something commonly associated with the Actor caste. Is there something mom isn't telling us?

Anyway, Coblax is about average human height, but his hands are weirdly oversized, his fingers are long, and his eyes are far too large for his face and glow a sparkly silver. He likes to wear jackets with big shoulder pads and spangly bits, and he usually wears a wig (his species is naturally hairless).

That'll do it!