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This week's first COTW offering is a scientist embroiled in
a political situation keeping him from his life's work... At
least for now.
Dr. Solan Ezar; obsessed roboticist
(c) copyright 2000 Brandon Cope
Total Points: 60 Points
Age 42; 5'7"; 147 pounds; an intense and highly-focused man,
with light golden skin, black eyes and black hair with grey
streaks.
ST 9 [-10] - thrust 1d-2, swing 1d-1
DX 10 [-] - basic speed 5, move 5, dodge
5
IQ 14 [45]
HT 10 [-]
WL 14 [-]
ADVANTAGES: Mathematical Ability [10]; Single-Minded
[5].
DISADVANTAGES: Callous [-6]; Curious [-5];
Obsession (Pursue Robotics Research) [-10]; Stubborn
[-5]; Workaholic [-5].
QUIRKS: Prefers to wear jumpsuits rather than lab-coats;
Likes "getting his hands dirty"; Dislikes biological pets.
[-3]
SKILLS: Administration-12 [.5]; Beam Weapons/TL10
(Laser)-11 [.5]; Computer Programming/TL10-18*
[8]; Electronics/TL10 (Computers)-17* [4];
Electronics Operation/TL10 (Computers)-17* [2];
Engineering/TL10 (Robotics)-17** [6]; History
(Robotics)-11/17 [1]; Mathematics-17* [4];
Mechanic/TL10 (Robotics)-14 [2]; Psychology
(Artificial Intelligence)-14 [4]; Research-16
[6]; Scrounging-14 [2]; Writing-14
[2].
*includes +3 for Mathematical Ability
**includes +2 for Mathematical Ability
LANGUAGES: English (native)-14 [0]; Gerodian-13
[1]; Irari-13 [1].
EQUIPMENT
Dr. Ezar - while working, at least - is likely to be wearing
a jumpsuit, and carrying electronics and mechanics
mini-tool-kits, a small portable computer programmed with
several pertinent technical databases, and a concealed laser
pistol. Other equipment would be dictated by his current
activities.
BIOGRAPHY
The son of two biologists, Solan Ezar always demonstrated a
strong interest in math and science, and was raised in the
right kind of environment to encourage this talent. But
unlike his parents, who worked with living creatures, Ezar
preferred non-living subjects, and went into robotics. And
while Solan wasn't a child prodigy, he proved to be talented
with computers and graduated college with distinction.
Several groundbreaking papers helped pave the way to his
doctorate.
For a time, Dr. Ezar enjoyed a noteworthy career as a
robotics engineer for the military, but this ended when he
offended a mid-level government official. He was removed
from his post, and only his rescue by a small group of
rebels saved him from spending the rest of his life
repairing labor robots in a mining camp. Since that time, he
has lived on a backwater planet, unable to do much research
because the rebels keep him constantly busy with repairing
and modifying their obsolete robots and computers.
ENCOUNTERED
Ezar can be found on just about any backwater planet where
the "galactic" government has little pull, a place where the
rebellion is able to operate with little significant
interference. Dr. Ezar is unhappy with his current
situation. His overriding concern is to engage in further
research into advanced robotics, something his current
situation with the rebels does not allow. Despite the lack
of sufficient funds and materials, however, there are some
benefits to working for the rebels; there are no
bean-counting bureaucrats looking over his shoulder, nor -
for the most part - unrealistic project deadlines to
meet.
Ezar is something of an idealist, in that he has always
considered his research above 'petty' political situations -
which is how he views the rebellion - and he would gladly
work for the government again. But this idealism could also
be described as naïveté; Ezar himself may
genuinely be above political ideologies, but he sometimes
fails to recognise that his field - robotics and AI - very
much has military applications that he would see as coarse
and short-sighted.
CANONICALITY
Dr. Ezar was designed as per standard GURPS rules.
Due to the manner in which he was removed from his military
post, it is assumed that he has lost credibility and renown
(i.e., Good Reputation) in his field. Optionally, GMs may
want to give him a +2 reaction from scientists unaware of
his dismissal, and a -2 reaction from those who know, each
balancing out the other in terms of Character Points. Note
that Ezar is not actually wanted for any crimes. (At least
not yet: the government is not aware he is working with the
rebels, though some may suspect it. If they were to learn
the truth, they would certainly qualify as an Enemy.)
It should also be noted that Ezar is written with English
(which may or may not be Galactic Basic) as his native
language, and he also speaks Gerodian and Irari, both
languages that can be expected in a "GURPS Space" campaign.
The can obviously be changed as appropriate.
WHAT IF?
Dr. Ezar was written for a science-fiction setting not
unlike that of "GURPS Space". While many space campaigns
feature a rebellion of some sort, others do not; instead of
rebels, Dr. Ezar could have been "rescued" by terrorists -
such as the Ine Givar organisation from "GURPS Traveller" -
or pirates, or perhaps even a rival galactic power.
Cyberpunk: Dr. Ezar would work reasonably well in a
cyberpunk setting, with a bit of modification. Instead of a
roboticist, he might be a noted cyberneticist. His dismissal
might have been from a megacorporation, and his "rescuers"
might be a rival zaibatsu, or an underground team of
hackers, terrorists or black clinic. His TL skills would be
changed as necessary, and perhaps his Beam Weapons skill
replaced with Guns (Pistol).
Other Sci-Fi: With greater degrees of modification, Ezar
could be retooled for an Atomic Horror or Steampunk setting.
Although he is not exactly a Mad Scientist, he does have a
stronger-than-usual dedication to his craft, an attitude
that could easily lead to being recruited by one.
ADVENTURE SEEDS
The Fuzz: Ezar accidentally discovers a government secret
agent and strikes a deal: in return for turning over several
rebels and information vital to government forces, he will
get his post back. Or so he is told. In truth, the
government considers him just as expendable and
untrustworthy as the rebels. Assuming the PCs are the
rebels, this could get interesting...
The Monstrosity: Just as Ezar put the finishing touches on
rebuilding (and improving) a badly damaged robot, it went
berserk - apparently there was hidden damage to the computer
brain, or perhaps a virus responsible of the robot's
original demise. Unfortunately, the party is in a remote
location (a starship works best) and they are in no position
to call for help, unless they want to be arrested as rebels
or worse on the spot. The robot prefers not to attack
directly, trying to pick off the party one person at a time.
Ezar is sure he can disable the robot, if the party can just
find some way to immobilize it for a few seconds... (As a
twist, the robot could be too valuable to destroy, or at
least that's how the rebel leader feels until he falls
victim to it.)
- written by Brandon Cope (copeab@hotmail.com)
- editted and formatted by andi jones
(andi@angelwerks.com)
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