{"id":"mage/creature/npc/victor","type":"creature","system":"npc","line":"mage","name":"Victor","sources":[{"source":"M20","page":625},{"source":"M20","page":626}],"entries":["Homo superior gets grown in a vat, tweaked to perfection, and released into the world through the genius of the Progenitor Convention. Whether male or female, this person’s designation is “Victor” – an apparent jest whose origin remains unclear. Bred and conditioned to serve designated purposes, these apparently human beings act as clones of special individuals, field-assignment","agents, infiltration experts, and public-relations symbols of the excellence that is the Technocratic Union.","Older-generation Victors tended to be rather dull-minded. The newer generations are quicker on the uptake, with dazzling hand-eye coordination and staggeringly good looks. Like their predecessors, new-millennium Victors seem stubbornly immune to pain – they recognize damage but don’t appear to feel its effects. That said, they’re still subject to mental instability (a psychological manifestation of Paradox, perhaps?), and – unlike cyborgs – remain unable to Awaken to the greater sense of things. Although they can use hypertech Devices, they cannot employ Enlightened Procedures, and thus remain limited in their usefulness to the Technocracy.","Suggested Attributes: Strength 4, Dexterity 5, Stamina 4, Charisma 4, Manipulation 3, Appearance 4, Perception 3, Intelligence 2, Wits 3 Suggested Abilities: Alertness 2, Athletics 4, Brawl 4, Firearms 4, Melee 4, Technology 3; depending on their training, most Victors also have two or three of the following Abilities at between one and four dots per Ability: Computer, Drive, Etiquette, Intimidation, Government, Martial Arts, Politics, Science, Seduction, Stealth, Streetwise, Subterfuge. Willpower: 4 Health Levels: OK, OK, OK, -1, -1, -2, -2, -2, -5, Terminated Armor Rating: 0 (but see below) Attacks/ Powers: Beyond their immunity to pain, all Victors all have one or two Enhancements (as per the Background Trait). For examples, see the Biomods and Genegineering Modifications featured in Appendix II. Countermagick: 2 dice of innate countermeasures. Image: A combination of breathtakingly good looks, feline grace, animal charm, and supreme fitness give the Victors an air of superiority. Unless one has been modified (or specially grown) to replace a particular person, these clones share the kind of aesthetic perfection you see on magazine covers and fitness advertisements. Victors look Photoshopped, but they obviously are not. That said, they have a near-universal tendency toward volatile emotions, mental illness, and irrational behavior. Roleplaying Notes: You don’t just look better than everybody else – you are better than everybody else! The Technocracy may be your god, but you’re superior to damn near everyone who’s not a high-ranking Technocrat. Do your job with pride, but never forget that you’re the next iteration in human development… no matter what anyone else might think!",{"type":"box","title":"HIT Marks (Mage 20, pp. 625-626)","entries":["Hyper-Intelligent Tactical units – formerly Hyper Intelligence Technologies, aka HIT Marks – provide the classic shock troops of Iteration X… and, more recently, the last-resort terror agents of Panopticon and the NWO. Although such extreme operatives have gone out of fashion in recent years, the Union still maintains, tinkers with, and occasionally upgrades these cybernetic machines. Drastic situations call for drastic measures, and in certain crises HIT Mark deployment seems… dare we say, traditional.","All HIT Marks appear to be somewhat bulky humans, so long as they remain fully dressed – muscular, but not inhuman. Careful observers who know what to look for, however, (Perception + Awareness, difficulty 8) might notice an occasional, flickering red glow in a HIT Mark’s eyes as its targeting systems scan its environment. A HIT Mark’s programming allows it to mimic human social interaction, but such monstrosities are far from good at it. Neither human nor machine but an uncanny fusion of both that’s not even as human as a highly enhanced cyborg, each HIT Mark is essentially a skilled weapons system with vague sentience and ruthless targeting protocols.","Previous iterations (so to speak…) of these infamous machines featured deadly yet unreliable weapons, bulky design, heavy construction, and a fearsome susceptibility to the Paradox Effect. Subsequent redesigns (especially during the days of the full-scale RD purge of the previous decade) lowered the weight, increased flexibility, improved the camouflage systems (read: the ability to mimic human beings), and – most importantly – refined the HIT Marks’ Paradox Effect profile. One short-lived version even incorporated the sentience of mind-wiped rival mages, but that experiment proved disastrous for everyone involved. The most current generation, however, can pass for human under most conditions, assuming that they’re not forced into the sort of awkward social interactions that often betray their kind. Meanwhile, the popularity of movies featuring killer cyborgs, and the advancements in drone-weapon systems, allow the newest forms of HIT Mark to remain coincidental within technological reality zones. This, of course, makes them easier to deploy in urban environments… and if the Technocracy’s true leadership has noticed this capability (which is probably the case), then there might be a growing army of HIT Mark Xs prepared for an approaching and terrible endgame…","For details about HIT Marks VI-IX, see the source- book Gods, Monsters, and Familiar Strangers."]}],"_links":{"self":"/api/v1/records/mage/creature/npc/victor","html":"/records/mage/creature/npc/victor","parent":null,"children":"/api/v1/records/mage/creature/npc/victor/children","sources":[{"abbr":"M20","page":625,"folio":625,"title":"Mage: The Ascension 20th Anniversary Edition"},{"abbr":"M20","page":626,"folio":626,"title":"Mage: The Ascension 20th Anniversary Edition"}]},"_db":{"title":"Victor","props":[],"parent_id":null,"level":null,"category":null,"summary":"Homo superior gets grown in a vat, tweaked to perfection, and released into the world through the genius of the Progenitor Convention. Whether male or female, this person’s designation is “Victor” – a","tags":[],"children":[]}}