The Project: Noah Virus from 'The Passage'

The Project: Noah Virus

F: +1cs (To max of Am 50))
A: +2cs (To max of In (40))
S: +2cs (To max of Rm (30))
E: +2cs (To max of In (40))
R: -
I: +2cs (To max of Am (50))
P:-

Health: Variable
Karma: Variable, but initially 0 after infection
Popularity: - 20 in Post infection America
Resources: variable, depending on the Viral Hive

Talents:
The virals maintain their talents from previous life, but occasionally are little more than puppet-drones of a central viral.
Survival

Powers:
Project: Noah Upgrade All virals are the result of the disease created by the Project: Noah program, which was to create a super-soldier. The Project Noah virus resulted in mass hemorrhagic fever which killed a good number of those infected. Some of those infected returned to a sort of life, improved by the virus but transformed into virals (vampires). The original twelve inmates who were used as guinea pigs also gained additional powers, which included psychic powers and mind control. Babcock, the most powerful and main antagonist had at one time the ability to influence and control up to thousands. Virals gained the following abilities:

• Body Resistance: Like traditional vampires, virals were more resistant to damage with Ex (20) protection vs. physical, Gd (10) protection to energy (except Radiation).
• Resist: Aging: Unless destroyed, Virals simply stopped aging and would not die from conventional means. Virals could exist for potentially hundreds of years without aging from their initial conversion.
• Resist: Radiation: While not immune direclty to the damaging aspects of atomic bombs, Virals were resistant to background radiation and are considered to have Rm (30) resistance.
• Natural Weaponry: Claws: Rm (30) edged damage, halving effective body armor.
• Natural Weaponry: Bite: Rm (30) slashing damage, with a chance on a red FEAT to infect the target with the virus. If infected, the hero must make a Red End FEAT to survive the infection. While later in the book, a serum exists to stop the infection, it does not exist during the first 100 years of the virus.
• Hyper Speed: gd (10) hyper speed
• Psychic Powers: Some Virals gained psychic powers, including Telepathy and mind control. These powers actually grew with experience, starting at Gd (10) and going to Mn (75) in some cases (Specifically Babcock). Nearly all the Virals have some form of telepathy with one another at Gd (10), and are considered to possibly be a hive-mind to the main Viral of the colony.

Contacts:
Most virals do not have contacts outside of their hive and/or their hive leader.

Limitations:
Despite their strengths, the Virals have many flaws that balance their abilities:

• Tied Directly to the Hive Mind: If a Hive leader is killed, all Virals in that colony also die, crumbling to dust in some cases due to age.
• Psychotic: Most virals are considered insane and do not have the ability to reason. If the Hive Leader is also insane (like Babcock), then they are even more so
• Aversion to seeing themselves: Most Virals cannot stand to see themselves in mirrors, and must make a Psyche FEAT at -2cs when encountering their reflections or be forced to react.
• Ultraviolet Radiation: For some reason, Ultra-violet light does +2cs damage to virals, even capable of killing them if exposed to it directly for more than 4 - 6 rounds.