Mutant animal superpowers rules

[hansnhsu]

There appears to be three different rules systems for adding super abilities to TMNT/AtB style mutant animals.

The first appears on pp. 22-24 of TMNT Adventures.
In this system if you are lucky enough to roll up a Mutant Animal with a Superpower from one of the revised Random Power Tables (TMNT Mutant Animals are called Animal Power here), you get awarded 50 extra BIO-E points to buy one superpower from the list given on pp. 23-24, many of which are major superpowers. This free BIO-E is offset by the exorbitantly high cost of most of the powers. Also, rules are given which gives the player the option to randomly roll up a Superpower (for instance, Animal Abilities cannot be chosen but must be rolled up, given that it's free- costs no BIO-E); it tells you to roll it up on the Super Power Table on HU p. 9. I assume it meant the original edition of HU? Because the Super Ability Tables in both Revised HU and HU2 are not on p.9, and in addition, they are split between major and minor powers, so there isn't a way to roll up a power from the list given on pp.23-24 of TMNT Adventures from a single table. Not to mention the fact that Revised and 2nd Ed. HU contain many more powers than those on pp. 23-24, for which no BIO-E costs are given and thus can't be purchased.

A second system is given on pp. 9-12 of Mutants in Orbit.
In that system you can either roll up a Random Mutation for free from a table with slightly toned down versions of the HU superpowers, or buy them with BIO-E at much reduced costs compared to those in TMNT Adventures (10 BIO-E and 1 P.B. for minor, 20 BIO-E and 2 P.B. for major) This is balanced out slightly by requiring the rollup of unusual characteristics and reduced P.B. points. It is not clear, if the "Super abilities of choice" items are rolled on the Mutation Determination Table, if those abilities have to come from the following Random Mutation list or if they can be chosen from the full list of HU abilities.

Now a third system has been introduced on p. 170 of HU2.
In that system super abilities must be purchased with BIO-E, only up to 2 minor, no major abilities can be chosen. Unlike the other two systems, a mutant animal who purchases super abilities cannot purchase any psionics, and vice versa.
The BIO-E prices are in most cases more costly than in Mutants in Orbit but more modest than most of those given in TMNT Adventures. However, you don't get 50 extra BIO-E points to spend, nor do you have the option of rolling up a power for free, and only minor powers can be purchased, although the full list of minor powers from HU2, Powers Unlimited and other, even future, sourcebooks is available.

Needless to say, the availability of these three different systems is pretty confusing. Which one should we choose?

I had heard way back that there was planned a TMNT/AtB mutant animal sourcebook that would not only include and compile a full list of animals from all the various TMNT/AtB sourcebooks into one massive book and rollup table, but also include a definitive, unified, and expanded rule system for combining super powers with mutant animals. I had hoped that first TMNT 2nd Ed., then the new AtB, and lastly Mutant Underground, would finally provide this rule system. I had high hopes for Mutant Underground, whose description on the back of the book itself describes: "Mutant animals with super abilities".
Alas, the Eugenic Animal Mutants described on pp. 25-33 of MU are yet another power category altogether, completely separate from the TMNT/AtB style of Mutant animals with BIO-E, and more akin to HU-style mutant humans. Pretty disappointing.

Also disappointing is the fact that, although the new AtB does provide a Full List of Animals rollup table, it's missing the Cheetah from TMNT, so it's still not comprehensive. To say nothing of the fact that it omits Insects from Mutants in Orbit and even the option of dinosaurs and prehistoric mammals from Transdimensional TMNT. Incidentally, although we can't have licensed TMNT source material anymore, most of the stuff in Transdimensional was useful despite the license in both current HU and AtB settings, like the dinosaurs and prehistoric mammal mutants, Time Lord magic, time travel, dimensional travel, and building time machines. That material needs to find a new home in a new sourcebook for AtB or HU.

[Tinker Dragoon]

Take your pick. There's no law dictating that you use one particular set of rules over others.

For updated mutant dinosaurs check out Todd Yoho's two-part Mesozoicland article in Rifters 23 and 24.

Alas, much of the nifty source material and rules from TMNT Guide to the Universe and Transdimensional TMNT have been dumped, though Ninjas & Superspies and Heroes Unlimited both use some of the tables and air combat rules from GttU (and one notes that the TMF values for flying mutants and robots are included on one table). I think TDTMNT's crossdimensional rules should have been included in Rifts at some point by now, but it has yet to happen

[Killer Cyborg]

All three sets of rules are official and still valid.

I usually go by whichever one I think suits the character best.

If I want to make a mutant animal with full human looks, speech, biped, and hands, I will often go for the TMNT Adventures option and pick Animal Abilities at a cost of 0 Bio-E, then use the bonus 50 on standard traits.

If I don't care about the character's Physical Beauty, I'll go for Mutants in Orbit and have an ugly but powerful mutant character.

Incidentally, one time I ran a Rifts party through a campaign in Palladium Fantasy world. They encountered a Demon with wings, six arms, four legs, and chameleonic chameoflage abilites. It scared the heck out of them and sliced them up with it's 6 swords.
Eventually, they dropped it with a poisoned dagger and killed it.
Much, much later, after they begged for a long enough time for me to tell them what it was, I let them know that it was a mutant octopus with super powers and a few mutations from Mutants in Orbit.

[Todd Yoho]

For updated mutant dinosaurs check out Todd Yoho's two-part Mesozoicland article in Rifters 23 and 24.

Thanks for the plug. One of the reasons that I wanted to write that article is because I loved TDTMNT. It's one of my all time favorite RPG suppliments ever, and I really wanted to bring the dinosaurs up into ATB 2nd edition. I'm hoping to get around to updating the prehistoric mammals (along with some other prehistoric animals) sometime in the future, unless of course someone beats me to it.

I'd also like to see the rules for cross-dimensions and time travel reincorporated into the ATB setting. That book was gold for so many reasons. Erick, are you listening? The sooner you add more books to the line, the sooner Kevin may let some of the rest of us add to it as well...

[CyCo]

I was thinking that an updated Mutants Down Under book with some of the various Megafauna would be cool...

;)