12THE MATRIX UNISYSTEM Anyone who frequents the Eden Studios message boards knows there have been many calls for a Matrix RPG, and a few people have answered, but it doesnt appear that an official answer is forthcoming for any system. Being convinced of the fact that the Unisystem can simulate pretty much anything, I decided to have a try at a Matrix conversion.Being a fan of Eden Studios, and owning a copy of nearly every Unisystem book published (I have yet to pick up Pulp Zombies or the second Book of Archetypes), I found that nearly everything you need to run the Matrix has already been written, most of it in Enter the Zombie.I had previously tried to write all of it myself, with satisfactory enough results, but Id rather support the books that are already there than re-invent the wheel.What follows is what I ended up with.Its not nearly a stand-alone game, and its not meant to be.Youre going to need Enter the Zombie and some kind of Eden Corerulebook to be able to use this. Its meant for a strange kind of mix of the Classic and Cinematic Unisystem.While I felt that the Chi Rules from Enter the Zombie worked best just as they were (requiring use of the Essence stat), I simultaneously felt that the catch-all Kung Fu and Gun Fu Skills from Cinematic Unisystem more accurately portrayed the broad set of skills that any Matrix runner gets downloaded into their brain at the start of their career.For the same reason, it works better to use the Cinematic Unisystem martial arts rules, rather than one of the Classic Unisystem versions; characters in the Matrix dont have a limited repertoire of moves(although some of them have favorites that they use more frequently than others). Im not going to try and encapsulate the history of The Matrix series from the Second Renaissance onward if you dont know the story already, you probably arent reading this.I would like to mention that in addition to the Matrix movies, this work draws inspiration from other Wachowski-approved works, including The Animatrix, the Enter the Matrix video game (if you havent played it, you missed a full hour of the movie including most of Ghosts character development, an awesome fight scene between Ballard and Seraph, the first appearance of the Train Man, and most importantly, the full explanation for the change in the Oracles appearance), and finally, the Matrix comics, originally published on the website (and possibly still available there) and subsequently published in graphic novel form.That being said, were going to dive right into 3 CHARACTER CREATION Ive included three possible character types in the Matrix. FREEMINDS Freeminds are those who were once slaves of the Matrix.These souls make up the 1% of humans who did not accept the programmed reality they were offered, and with the help of those who have gone before, found a way to escape.Their lives are now dedicated to ending the tyranny of the machines and freeing the minds of humans.To this end, they train extensively in using the artificial reality of the Matrix to their advantage and pirate-broadcast themselvesback into it, hoping to take down the system from inside. Attribute Points: 25 Skill Points: 40 Quality Points: 15 Drawback Points: up to 15 Metaphysics Points: 25 POTENTIALS THE ORACLES KIDS A special type of Freemind, a Potential is one of many whose innate understanding of the artificiality of the Matrix allowed them some degree of control over it.Whereas ordinary Freeminds must exert great mental discipline to achieve feats of Focus in the Matrix, it comes more naturally to Potentials.With it often comes some degree of apparently supernatural power, as the instinctive knowledge they carry allows them to affect changes in their digital environment.Certain Potentials may show some aspect of the extraordinary powers possessed by Neo, but even they cannot approach The One in terms of their ability to manipulate the Matrix. Potentials are freed of the Matrix at the earliest age possible, and live in ships that hover constantly at broadcast depth.They spend most of their time jacked in to the Matrix, developing their gifts under the guidance of the Oracle. Subsequent to the disappearance of the Oracle, the Potentials who were under her care have been relocated to Zion.It is unclear whether she continued training Potentials after Neo was proven to be The One, or if the people of Zion would ever trust her again once it became clear what her actual role 4in the course of human history was.She has, however, been training Potentials for years, so it is quite possible that some of them are now grown and have joined hovercraft crews. Attribute Points: 20 Skill Points: 30 Quality Points: 20 Drawback Points: up to 10 Metaphysics Points: 40 A Potential character must buy the Quality of the same name.Special, Potentials Only Qualities can be found in the New Qualities section.These may be purchased with Quality or Metaphysics Points. PROGRAMS Machines view the world very differently than humans, which may go without saying.Since the advent of the Matrix, many AI constructs have no function in the physical world, and hence no need for a physical body.These beings of sentient software carry out their function in the Matrix until the need for that function is no longer necessary, or a newer, more efficient program is designed to fill the same purpose.In the precisely ordered world of the Machines, an obsolete program has no purpose, and therefore is an unnecessary drain on resources.Such programs are deleted.Being sentient, many programs are not willing to submit to deletion.Those that can find a way often escape into the Matrix, where they can continue their existence so long as they keep a low profile. It is widely known that the Machines experimented with different versions of the Matrix before settling on the one currently in use.Their first idea was a paradise, where all humans would be happy, which proved to be a failure.Too good to be true, perhaps.Before finding a system that worked, its possible they experimented in the other direction, creating a world filled with mythological terrors that man had created throughout their history.Whatever previous versions of the Matrix were like, there are still some programs from those earlier versions living in the Matrix today, sporting a wide array of incredible abilities. Unlike Freeminds, Programs do not use Essence to achieve their miraculous feats.Their special abilities are part of their being.This has advantages and disadvantages; while they do not have to worry about keeping track of or running out of Essence, their abilities are not as far-reaching or adaptable as those a Focused freemind could potentially use.For the most part, each Program is a one-trick pony, possessed of a single special ability which they can use at will.Program Cast Members are likely to be Rogue Programs; any other programs are going to be a part of the system, and hence not very sympathetic to the average player character.Whether allowing a Program as a Cast Member, running a game with nothing but Program Cast Members, these are the points values for creating Programs. Attribute Points: 30 5Skill Points: 45 Quality Points: 25 Drawback Points: up to 15 Power Points: 40 A Program must buy the Program Quality.This gives the character the ability to purchase any number of special powers using Power Points.Depending on which specific Unisystem games you and your Operator have access to, a Program could theoretically possess any Power or Quality; the Demon Creation rules from the Angel RPG, Zombie Aspects from All Flesh Must Be Eaten, certain Invocations, Seer Powers, even Primal Powers from CJ Carellas Witchcraft or Armageddon could all be used to give your Program characters incredible powers as long as your Operator allows it.Programs may also buy the Qualities that are marked as Potentials Only. CHOOSING ATTRIBUTES The human limit on physical Attributes is waived for Matrix characters, but only while in the Matrix.You may spend Character Points to raise a physical Attribute above the normal maximum of 6, but the extra levels will not be available to you in the Real World.The human limit on mental Attributes does not apply to Potentials or Programs. SECONDARY ATTRIBUTES Speed: the characters base running speed.Equal to (Constitution + Dexterity) x2 in miles per hour, or (Con + Dex) in yards per second. Essence: Represents the life force, the soul of your character.This is the inner reserve of will that a character draws upon to perform feats of Focus in the Matrix. NEW SKILLS Read Matrix Code:Although the operator is any hovercraft crews dedicated Matrix Code specialist, he cant be awake all the time.Every member of the crew has to take shifts watching the monitors.For the Training Construct, the ships computers can translate the Matrix Code into an image that can be viewed on a monitor.This works well enough when dealing with a couple of people in a confined space, but if you watch the monitor in the scene in The Matrix when Morpheus and Neo fight, even the video resulting from that is black and white with a pretty low frame rate.No hovercraft crew has access to a computer powerful enough to decode the Matrix in real time, so they have to learn to read it in code. Construct Programming:Someone has to create all those training and equipment programs, so some people learn how to copy and manipulate the code of the Matrix on their own servers aboard the hovercrafts.Constructs are also used in Zions mission control center as a system interface for 6freeminds, and freeminds have also been shown to have construct terminals in their apartments in Zion.Creating a construct program can be as simple as copying and pasting code observed in the Matrix itself, but often some creative rule-bending is necessary for certain programs for example, the Jump Program (remember, nobody makes their first jump) has to allow people to fall from the top of a building without dying.Some creative programmers also use their skill to create works of art, beautiful or surrealistic people and places to visit recreationally. DOWNLOADING NEW SKILLS Neo: Can you fly that thing? Trinity: Not yet(reaches for her phone) The Matrix If there is anyone aspect of the Matrix canon that makes it difficult to translate into a game, its the ability of the characters in the films to call up their Operator and have him download new skills directly into their brain.As gamers, its kind of hard for us to wrap our heads around.You mean they get new Skills without spending XP?Thats crazy talk!But since our aim here is to simulate the world of the Matrix, its just something were going to have to deal with, so its best to set some rules for it. 1. Each character will have to spend Quality points on Neuro-Kinetics.This Attribute will determine how much you can download in a turn.While speed of downloads may not be much of an issue when youre learning new things in the comfort of your hovercraft, but when you have agents on your tail and you need to learn how to fly a helicopter to get away, youre going to want to have a few extra levels in that. Each level of Neuro-Kinetics allows a character to download 1 Skill Level per Turn.Purchasing Neuro-Kinetics costs 2 points per level up to level 5, and 5 points per level thereafter. 2.The maximum skill level that may be learned in a download is 4. Good!Adaptation.Improvisation.But your weakness is not your technique Morpheus to Neo, The Matrix 3.Downloading skills is not the end-all of learning. Practice still helps to keep the skill sharp and even to improve upon what has been learned.Downloads cannot be used to improve a Skill.They can only be used to give a character a Skillthat they have no Skill Levels in at all. If a Skill the character already has is downloaded, it will replace the skill they already 7have. (E.g., if you have Kung Fu 5 and try to improve it with a download, you actually end up losing 1 Level at best.) 4.Optional Rule:The GM may continue to require Experience Point expenditures for new Skills, even downloaded ones, although perhaps at a lesser cost.This is a meta-game function that allows the GM to rein in the rampant character improvement.If using this option, players should bank some XP for rainy days.If they need a download, they spend the XP to get it.If they dont have the XP, then the Operator simply doesnt have the download they need.(But if they know the Operator has the download because he gave it to someone else last week, then something went wrong, like the disk containing it was somehow corrupted.It happens.)GMs wanting to meet in the middle on this issue can charge a Reduced XP cost.You might find half-price to be reasonable, or perhaps if you are more generous and also want to ensure that the Neuro-Kinetics Attribute stays relevant, divide the XP cost by the characters Neuro-Kinetics (round up). FOCUS They didnt call it anything in the movies.The game rules call it Essence.In the Enter the Matrix video game, which was closely tied into the story of both Matrix sequels and was overseen by the Wachowski Brothers, they called it Focus.Since we have to call it something, if Focus was good enough for Larry and Andy, its good enough for me. Focus Techniques The sharp-eyed among you will see that there is little detail to the Focus techniques listed below.This is because they correspond to the Chi Techniques from Enter the Zombie.Not all Chi Techniques make appropriate Focus Techniques, but enough of them work quite well that it seemed better to use them as they were than to invent something new.The text that follows each is a bit of flavor to explain the techniques place in the unique setting of the Matrix. Acrobatic Shooting As the Chi ability from Enter the Zombie. Aint Got Time to Bleed Essence Cost: Varies Although the psychosomatic effects of being injured in the Matrix seem very real, a disciplined Matrix runners can remind himself theyre not real. As the Chi ability from Enter the Zombie 8 Balance of the Cat Essence Cost: 1 per Turn With the amount of martial arts training Matrix runners receive, you expect theyll have great balance.Add that to the fact that in the Matrix, the laws of physics are only a simulation and by concentrating, they find themselves doing seemingly impossible things. As the Chi ability from Enter the Zombie Be Like the Water Essence Cost: Varies A free mind, constantly straining against the false sensory input of the Matrix, can occasionally transcend the artificially imposed limits of the Matrixs programming and react at the speed of thought.As the Chi ability from Enter the Zombie Blind Firing Essence Cost: 3 per ranged attack Theres no reason to fear the dark in the Matrix. The Matrix is simply telling your mind the lights are out; the truth is that there are no lights.If one is focused enough, they can refuse to believe this. As the Chi ability from Enter the Zombie Blind Strike Essence Cost: 2 per close combat attack As the Chi ability from Enter the Zombie Focused Punch Essence Cost: 3 per close combat attack This ability works the same as the Chi Punch in Enter the Zombie, but without the visible aura. Combat Sense Essence Cost: 3 per Turn As the Chi ability from Enter the Zombie Eagle Eye Essence Cost: 2 per ranged attack As the Chi ability from Enter the Zombie 9Enhanced Strength Essence Cost: Varies For 2 Essence, the character may increase their Strength by one for the purposes of lifting (Strength increases for hand-to-hand damage are part and parcel of other Focus Techniques).Refer to the following table for lifting capacities: StrengthLifting Capacity 1-550 lbs/25 kg x Strength (Max: 250 lbs/125 kg) 6-10200 lbs/100 kg x (Strength-5) + 250/125 lbs (Strength 10: 1250 lbs.) 11-15500 lbs/200 kg x (Strength 10) + 1500 lbs/750 kg (Strength 15: 4000 lbs/2000 kg) (2 tons) 16-201000lbs/500 kg x (Strength-15) + 5000 lbs/2500 kg (Strength 20: 10000 lbs/5 tons) Focused Sprint Essence Cost: Varies A character can dramatically increase their foot speed using this Focus Technique.Each Essence point spent in this way increases the characters Speed by 5 miles per hour/2 yards per second for one turn. Flying Focused Strike Essence Cost: 2 per close combat attack Using the same rules as the Flying Chi Kick in Enter the Zombie, but in the Matrix it can be used for punches as well. Flying Windmill Kick Essence Cost: Varies As the Chi ability from Enter the Zombie Golden Bell Essence Cost: Varies By reminding himself that the fist or weapon striking him is not really there (for that matter, neither is he), the character with this ability can absorb damage with no ill effect. As the Chi ability from Enter the Zombie. Practiced Matrix runners often use this ability to parry weapons with their hands.The Matrix still has to obey its own rules as best it can; any damage negated in this way is actually channeled 10outward to the area surrounding the landing point, following a ripple effect as the Matrixs processors scramble to deal with the unexpected transfer of force. Hurricane of Blows Essence Cost: Varies As the Chi ability from Enter the Zombie Instant Reload Essence Cost: 2 per reload As the Chi ability from Enter the Zombie Iron Palm Essence Cost: 2 per close combat attack In Kung Fu lore, rigorous training can allow a master to momentarily harden his hand to the resiliency of iron. In the Matrix, this only requires the mental discipline to bear in mind that your hands and iron are both actually made of the same thing: Matrix code.By Focusing, the character can refuse to let his body yield when it comes up against another surface.Not only does this cause more damage in combat, it is particularly effective against inanimate objects. As the Chi ability from Enter the Zombie Improved Jump Essence Cost: Varies Refer to the jump table, below.This is the standard, non-Focused jump for any given character.Double these distances if the character can get a good running start.A Dexterity + Acrobatics roll can also increase the jump by one yard (lengthwise) or one foot (straight up) per Success Level.Each Essence spent will double this amount.Any additional focus points add the original amount again to the jump.Three Essence Points, for example, would triple the jump distance.Jump Table StrengthHigh JumpLong Jump1-21 foot2 yards 32 feet3 yards 4-54 feet5 yards 65 feet6 yards 7-87 feet8 yards 9-1010 feet10 yards +1+2 feet+1 yard 11A Focused character can also perform actions, including firing guns accurately or changing direction, while Focusing during a jump.This ability can also be used at the last instant to cushion and eliminate damage from a long fall. Roll a Willpower and Martial Arts Skill Task. Each Success Level halves the damage multiplier of falls.The Matrix still has to obey its own rules as best it can; any damage negated in this way is actually channeled outward to the area surrounding the landing point, following a ripple effect as the Matrixs processors scramble to deal with the unexpected transfer of force. Multiple Shooter Essence Cost: Varies As the Chi ability from Enter the Zombie No Shadow Blow Essence Cost: Varies This is an advanced form of the Flying Windmill Kick, and can be used with a Punch as well. As the Chi ability from Enter the Zombie One-Inch Punch Essence Cost: 1 per close combat attack As the Chi ability from Enter the Zombie Penetrating Shot Essence Cost: Varies As the Chi ability from Enter the Zombie Quick Draw Essence Cost: 2 per draw As the Chi ability from Enter the Zombie Running the Gauntlet Essence Cost: 3 per Turn As the Chi ability from Enter the Zombie 12Super Throw Essence Cost: Varies While many martial arts incorporate throws and sweeps, only focused free minds can use this amazing technique. As the Chi ability from Enter the Zombie Trick ShotEssence Cost: Varies As the Chi ability from Enter the Zombie Two-Fisted Firing Essence Cost: 2 per turn As the Chi ability from Enter the Zombie FOCUS TECHNIQUES ONLY AVAILABLE TO POTENTIALS Healing Touch Essence Cost: 3 per touch Potentials can alter the Matrix to a limited extent, which is why any one of them could have been The One.A Potential with this ability can edit out the damage to someones Matrix avatar, preventing the Matrix from feeding their brain the message that they are injured and effectively healing the target.As the Chi ability from Enter the Zombie No See Blow Essence Cost: 4 per close combat attack Similar to the technique used in the Healing Touch Technique, the Potential interrupts the flow of data from the Matrix to a persons visual cortex, blinding.As the Chi ability from Enter the Zombie Power Flick Essence Cost: 3 per flick The Potential can actually use the enemys bullets against them, or transform small pebbles or coins, even grains of rice, into deadly weapons. As the Chi ability from Enter the Zombie Stop Bullets Essence Cost: 3 per Test While not as powerful as Neos ability to stop bullets by blinking, Potentials often display telekinetic ability to go with their incredible reflexes and this is proof of it.As the Chi ability from Enter the Zombie 13Telekinetic Sweep Essence Cost: 4 per wave With this ability, a Potential can generate with only his thoughts a wave of telekinetic force.As the Chi ability from Enter the Zombie REGAINING ESSENCE Matrix Unisystem makes use of Unisystems Essence mechanic to allow characters to fuel their characters special abilities, but the metaphysics behind it is not the same.In standard Unisystem games, Essence is the collective life force of the universe.In The Matrix Unisystem, it is a useful mechanic that was already in place to measure your characters inner conviction regarding the unreality of the Matrix, and thus his ability to bend its rules. As a result, Essence in The Matrix Unisystem is recovered differently than the standard way, to reflect the nature of this conviction and self-confidence, as well as to make sure that characters always have some Essence on hand for unexpected needs.Listed below are some of the ways to regain Essence in the Matrix. Every time you succeed at a Focused action, roll Willpower (doubled).Every success equals one Essence point regained, up to the number spent on the action.Failing at a Focused action, or losing a fight during which you used Focus, always results in the loss of said Essence Points.Having a Focus action interrupted (by, say, a bullet) will also result in a loss of the Essence spent. One Essence will be regained for every success rolled on a Simple Willpower Test after the character is free to spend a round concentrating. Defeating an opponent in hand-to-hand combat will restore Focus as your own confidence increases.Roll a Simple Willpower Test after winning a combat; if successful, all FP spent in that combat are restored, plus one per Success Level, up to your maximum.Saying or doing something cool, something that only someone with balls of steel could get away with (taking the time to say Dodge this! to an Agent before shooting him point-blank in the head, waltzing through a metal detector while wearing your weight in firearms strapped to your body in front of a half-dozen security guards).These actions earn you 1-3 Essence Points, at the Operators discretion. Risking yourself to save someone gains you 1 Essence Point. Jacking into a Construct program designed for meditation/relaxation (like Ghosts Japanese garden) will earn you (Willpower) Essence Points for every hour you spend inside. NEW QUALITIES AND DRAWBACKS Following are the Qualities and Drawbacks unique to the Matrix RPG. 14Code-Colored Glasses: 20 Point Quality (Potentials Only) A character with this Quality sees the world inside the Matrix as the same lines of Code that an Operator sees on his viewscreen.This confers a number of advantages.The character can see through walls and other solid objects, and detect minute objects by making a Perception (doubled) roll, with a 2 penalty.Microscopic objects can be seen with a 5 penalty (although the object itself may seem small, it is made of code which is uniform in size).The character will be able to tell humans from sentient programs at a glance.Being able to make sense out of any of this, of course, requires the character to have some skill rating in Matrix Code. A Potential with Code-Colored Glasses automatically gains the Blind Firing, Blind Strike, Combat Sense, and Eagle Eye Focus Techniques at no additional cost. Malleable Residual Self-Image: 5 Points/Level Quality (Potentials Only) A Potential with this rare gift is so convinced of the unreality of the Matrix that their Residual Self-Image is completely under their control, and they can look like whatever they want by making a Willpower (doubled) roll and spending two points of Essence.The Level of the effect determines the number of Success Levels needed. The character intuits the Matrix code for the shape they want and make the changes to their avatar on the fly.The character can imitate any living shape in the Matrix or a Construct after one round of observation, and can instantly shift to any shape they have memorized.The number of memorized shapes is equal to the characters Neurokinetics Attribute.Every time the character initially jacks in to the Matrix, they appear in their basic RSI. Imitating a human being will give you a perfect facsimile of their appearance and voice, but imitating their mannerisms effectively would require skill in acting.Also, small forms (like birds) take double damage from physical attacks. Level 1: The character can take the form of a human being of the same gender, of roughly the same size and shape.They can change the appearance of their clothing easily. Level 2:The character can change gender and increase/decrease their mass by about 25%. Level 3: The character can alter their mass greatly, allowing them to take the form of small children or hulking giants. Level 4: The character is no longer limited to humanoid forms, and can become as small as a housecat or as large as an bear. Level 5: The character can change into truly fantastic forms, creating forms that the Matrix was not programmed for.The power is limited only by their imagination, and not necessarily limited to biological forms and functions.Such changes require the expenditure of one Focus Point for every round they are active. 15 Matrix Runner: 5 Point Quality The default Quality for Freemind characters, this reflects the training you have received for making journeys into the Matrix.The neural download system assures that everyone has some baseline training in gunplay and hand-to-hand combat.You take orders from your Captain, who receives them directly from Zion command.This Quality includes: Obligation: Captain and Zion: 3 Adversary: The Machines: 3 +2 Martial Arts +2 Gun Fu +2 Acrobatics +2 Read Matrix Code Hard to Kill 2 Potential: 5 Point Quality You have special gifts, so special that they once thought you might be The One.Despite the fact that youre not, you still have abilities far more esoteric than the average freemind.This Quality allows you access to the Potentials-only Qualities. Program: 6 Point Quality You are a sentient program that formerly served some function in the Matrix.To exist as a program without being an agent of the system, your character is by definition a fugitive; this is reflected in a 3-Point Secret Drawback.If your existence is discovered by the Machines, your life is forfeit.On the other hand, Rogue Programs do not officially exist.They cannot be investigated or discovered through the normal channels that are used to track people down.This constitutes a 3-Point Quality, bringing the cost back up to 5.Having this Quality gives you access to design the program with any powers your GM will allow. Psychic Visions: 1 Point Quality (Potentials Only) Some Potentials can see the future in visions or dreams.Most of the time, the visions are not very clear, nor do they happen very often, and they cannot be activated on purposethey just happen.No rolls are needed.Your Operator should make the visions or dreams ambiguous and use images and situations from your characters life.The visions should reflect his current problems and 16worries.Friends and enemies of your character may pop up in the visions, offering advice, vague threats, or deep philosophical comments.The Operator can use the visions to drop hints about upcoming eventsthe rise of some great evil, the potential bad decision to come, the next winner of American Idol, and other fun stuff.As your character has little to no control over this ability, it only costs one point. Self-Substantiation: 8 Point Quality This Quality must be bought at Character Creation. You managed to wake yourself up to The Matrix, either by being so driven, almost to point of Monomania, that your brainwaves were rejected by The Matrix, or you came to the conclusion that the world that had been pulled over your eyes wasn't a place you wanted to live and your dreams drew you to Zion.This Quality affords the character an additional 10 points of Essence.However, the People who Self-Substantiate are never the most well adjusted people. As such, they also must take either Obsession, Emotional Problem (2) or Reckless as a Drawback. The cost of the Drawback is factored into the cost of the Quality, so you gain no points from taking it. ENTERING THE MATRIX Niobe: Sparks, is the Exit clean? Sparks: As vestal as my bunghole. Enter the Matrix Spending time in the Real World might make for plenty of interesting role playing opportunities, but sooner rather than later your players are going to want to get their characters into the Matrix, where all the real action is.First, theyre going to want to take a trip to the Construct to gear up.You remember the Construct; its that featureless white void where Tank hooked Neo and Trinity up with guns lots of guns.From the Construct, they can load in clothes, equipment, guns, even vehicles. Vehicles? Since when can they load vehicles?Well in The Matrix Reloaded, Trinity jacks in on the roof of a parking garage with a motorcycle, that had to come from somewhere.Not convinced?Remember the car that Niobe was driving during the big freeway chase in that same movie? In the Enter the Matrix game, you actually see the scene where Sparks (the Operator onboard the Logos) loads that car up for them in the Construct.So there you have it, a canon answer to the question of whether they can load vehicles or not. 17 Once the characters are equipped, the Operator broadcasts them into the Matrix.The white void is replaced as the elements of their new surroundings slide into place.The entry point is usually near a telephone land line, which the Operator will call to confirm the characters appeared in the right place.Unless something goes wrong (and what are the odds of that?), this same phone will be used as their exit point. Speaking of exit points, those are very important.To exit the Matrix, your character must get to a confirmed Exit.Exits are always land lines (but land lines are not always Exits).There are a lot of them in random locations, all in out-of-the-way places.The Operator will rarely have any trouble finding one relatively close by.Trouble is, if your planned Exit is compromised, theres probably an Agent chasing you.Upon reaching the Exit, the phone attached to said land line will ring.The character must answer the phone, whereupon they will simply disappear in the Matrix and wake up in the real world.Only one character can go per call.Those following them must hang up the phone and wait for it to ring again.If the phone, or even just the receiver, is destroyed, they are stuck in the Matrix until they get to another Exit.If an Agent was close enough on your tail to disable the phone you planned to use as an Exit, this is very bad news. PROGRAMS AGENTS Morpheus: I wont lie to you, Neo.Every man or woman who has stood their ground against an Agent has died.But where they have failed, you will succeed. Neo: Why? Morpheus: I have seen Agents punch through brick walls.Men have emptied entire clips at them and hit nothing but air.But for all their strength, they still live in a world that is based on rules.Because of that, they will never be as strong or as fast as you can be. The Matrix Agents are the ultimate boogeyman to the free minds operating within the Matrix, more terrifying than any boogeyman in fact because theyre absolutely real.And they could be anywhere. If you are not one of us, you are one of them.They can move in and out of any software still hardwired to their system.They are guarding all the doors, they are holding all the keys, which means that sooner or later someone is going to have to face them. Morpheus, The Matrix 18Agents are not Machines in the strictest sense; they are sentient software, moving at will throughout the Matrix.Dressed in identical black suits, speaking in calm voices that are just barely more than monotone, sporting sunglasses and unassuming haircuts, their appearance is so blandly forgettable as to defy description.They possess all the credentials they need to take on the role of mysterious agents of a government bureaucracy you may or may not have heard of.Anyone who is still wired into the Matrix (that is, anyone who is not a Freemind, Potential, or Program) could find themselves the unwitting host of an Agent.They find someone near where they need to be and take that persons place in the Matrix, literally transforming their residual self-image into the likeness of an Agent.They try to be as surreptitious as possible, but if their need is desperate they have been known to take over a body in the middle of a crowded street.This doesnt normally end well for the host.In the worst case, they may die; killing an Agent will kill the host (and even worse, the Agent will simply find a new body).In the best case scenario, the person suffers an unexplained blackout for the duration of the Agents stay.This is worst when you come out of a blackout with a pile of black-vinyl clad bodies at your feet. You see an Agent, you run. Cipher, The Matrix Agents are the enforcers of the Machines rules, and scour the Matrix constantly for signs of rebel activity.They are well equipped for their job: Agents are incredibly strong, incredibly fast, tireless and no matter whose body they take over, they always appear with a fully loaded Big Ass Pistol tucked under that black suit jacket. Agent Str:10 Dex:10 Con:10 Int:6 Per:6 Wil:6 Speed:40 mph/ 20 yards per turn Essence: N/A Skills: Kung Fu 6, Getting Medieval 6,Gun Fu 6, Driving 6, Piloting 6 Equipment: Big-Ass Pistol, anything they can commandeer (which is pretty much anything). 19 Agents do not have any Powers of Focus Techniques, but with Attributes like those, they dont need them.Whats more, you dont need to roll for everything an Agent does.For Combat Actions, yes, give the characters the best fighting chance they can muster, but for jumping across buildings, dodging bullets at anything other than point-blank range, and other things that everyone knows Agents can do, you dont always have to bother.Everyone should know that Ciphers advice to Neo on the subject of Agents was dead-on.If they dont, they will soon enough. For all their strength and ability to dodge bullets and all, Agents when caught by surprise seem to die just like everyone else.Gunshots, falls, car crashes and even severe beatings from the one person in the Matrix powerful enough to give them one have been seen to kill Agents.Trouble is, they never stay dead.And they think nothing of the lives of humans when pursuing a goal. THE ORACLE The Oracle is an intuitive Program designed to bridge the gap between machine logic and the emotional thought processes of human beings.It was she who originally suggested the idea of the less-than-perfect Matrix, which worked much better than previous versions.Even within this version, one per cent of human subjects did not accept the programmed reality.That small percentage would have eventually compounded itself until the system crashed, and the Oracle was ready with another solution.The machines would make allowances for certain humans to be freed from the Matrix and permitted to live outside of it, all the while believing their freedom to be the result of their own efforts.Included in the plan was a savior for the human race who would act as a Messiah figure for humanity: The One.This all served to give humanity hope and keep those who did not accept the Matrix embroiled in the search for The One so as to minimize their impact on the humans still in the Matrix. The process was as follows: The One was made aware of his destiny and spectacular ability, allowed to choose a selection of people to free from the Matrix with which to build a free human city, which became a staging ground for freeing more people.As generations passed, The One would eventually expire of old age after assuring his followers that there would be another like him.Humanity would search for the new One, and when they found him, he would begin a journey that would eventually lead him to The Architect.The Architect was the Oracles counterpart and equally responsible for the creation of the Matrix.He would reveal to the One his true purpose and inform him that he could return to the Matrix and be responsible for the death of all humankind, or stand by while every man, woman, and child in Zion was killed.Afterward, he would be permitted to start over with the people he chose to free from the Matrix. This worked quite well the first five times it happened, giving the machines a way to alleviate and control those people who could not accept the false reality of The Matrix, while cleansing said population periodically to ensure that it didnt 20become so large as to be an actual threat (after all, this all took place over a period of at least 500 years). Through all of this, the Oracle would reside within the Matrix, posing as a freed human.She would guide humanity in their search for The One, even fostering children who displayed the kind of abilities The One might be expected to have.She had been programmed to intuit the outcome of events and to comprehend human behavior, predicting human response, as well as display convincingly human-like behavior.Its possible that in understanding humans, she also empathized with them; when humanity finally had a chance to take charge of their destiny, she was neither surprised nor resistant to the idea. The Oracle has long had an adversarial relationship with the Program known as the Merovingian, although the reason for this is unclear and seems to stem from the Merovingian rather than the Oracle herself.Two programs who needed to smuggle their daughter (a program they co-created) into the Matrix sold the Oracle out to the Merovingian, when he demanded the termination code to the Oracles shell (the shell being a Programs Matrix interface basically, a Residual Self-Image for Programs) for their daughters safe passage.It took some time for the Oracle to get a new shell, and it did not appear the same.Her memory was also fragmented by the process.It is a perfect example of the Oracles benevolent and ambiguously anti-Machine nature that she nonetheless took the child Program, Sati, under her wing just as she had taken in many Potentials. The Oracle is aptly named, and through some miracle of Artificial Intelligence, was able to make startlingly accurate predictions of the outcome of events, even those which were a result of human action and emotion. In either of her shells, she appears as a kindly African-American grandmother, who takes the baking of cookies very seriously, smokes cigarettes, and loves candy. The Oracle Str2 Dex2 Con2 Int6 Per5 Wil6 Speed:8 mph/4 yards per turn Essence:N/A Skills: Knowledge 10, Influence 5 21SERAPH The mysterious program known as Seraph is designed for combat and operates within the Matrix as a bodyguard and messenger for the Oracle.He is the point of contact for the Oracle; when she wants to see someone, he has the phone numbers needed to contact the Operator of any ship in Zions fleet to arrange a meeting.Seraph will always meet someone himself before escorting them to the Oracle (usually in a teahouse in the citys Chinatown district), and will always pick a fight with them before doing anything else. This peculiar habit of fighting everyone he meets (as he says, You do not truly know someone until you fight them,) is apparently a part of his programming, although its exact purpose is unclear.Most likely he is programmed to obtain a sample of everyones fighting style so he can adapt to it in order to better protect the Oracle should the need arise. From the events of Matrix Revolutions, it is clear that Seraphs place is not only to protect the Oracle, but to ensure that her role in the journey of The One is fulfilled, and he will take direct action to assist in this, even when it means combating other Programs.Although he will appear sympathetic to the cause of humans, his ultimate purpose (of which he himself may not necessarily be aware) is the completion of the Machines agenda regarding The One.Seraph Str:8 Dex:10 Con:8 Int:4 Per:4 Wil:4 Speed:32 mph/ 16 yards per turn Essence: N/A Skills: Kung Fu 6, Getting Medieval 6,Gun Fu 6 Equipment: two pistols, ring of keys that open programmer-access back doors