Affliction

You can impose some debilitating condition or conditions on a target by making a close attack. You set the conditions your Affliction causes at each degree when you acquire it and they may not be changed. Higher degree conditions replace lower degree conditions and do not stack with them. See the possible conditions for each degree below. The target resists with Fortitude or Will defense (chosen when you take the effect):

Success: No effect.

Failure (one degree): The target is dazed, entranced, fatigued, hindered, impaired, or vulnerable (choose one). In the case of impaired you must also choose the affected trait. Potential descriptors include coughing or sneezing, creeping mental influence, drowsiness, euphoria, fear, itchiness, lethargy, nausea, pain, or tipsiness.

Failure (two degrees): The target is compelled, defenseless, disabled, exhausted, immobile, prone, staggered, or stunned (choose one). In the case of disabled you must also choose the affected trait. Potential descriptors include agonizing pain, confusion, ecstasy, momentary emotional or mental influence, paralysis, seizure, terror, or vomiting.

Failure (three degrees): The target is asleep, controlled, incapacitated, paralyzed, or unaware (choose one). In the case of unaware you must also choose the affected sense.

The target of an Affliction makes a defense check at the end of each of his turns to remove first and second degree conditions. Defense checks for third degree conditions are made each minute except for asleep which is every hour and controlled which is at the end of each of the victim's turns. Outside aid may be provided to remove conditions of any degree such as the Treatment skill or Healing effect. Bruised penalties and missing HP are not afflictions but will recover naturally if you have stamina: see Gameplay Rules: Recovery. A character asleep may wake up with a perception check at any time as long as they are aware of the sense and are sensing an outside influence (see conditions for details).

The exact nature and descriptors of the Affliction are up to you, chosen when you acquire the effect, with the GM's approval; some examples are provided, but feel free to make up your own.

Extras

Aura: If this Affliction inflicts compelled and/or controlled you must chose a specific fixed command at the time of applying this extra. For example: compelled to scream and controlled to flee. Other commands can't be given to the victim but the single chosen command will be forced upon the victim even if you are incapacitated. The command can't vary based on the target (even with Selective) so if the command doesn't apply to the situation/victim then the effect simply fails. Aura functions normally for Afflictions that don't involve compelled or controlled. +2 cost per rank.

Concentration: Once you have hit with a Concentration Affliction, so long as you continue to take a standard action during your turn to maintain the effect, the target must make a new defense check against it, with no attack check required. +1 cost per rank.

Cumulative: Normally, an Affliction does not have a cumulative effect on the same target, so getting two results of one degree, one after the other, has no more or less effect than a single one degree result; you have to get a higher degree with a later attack, which replaces the initial result. A Cumulative Affliction adds any further degrees to the existing degrees on the target. For example, if you hit a target and impose a vulnerable condition (one degree), then attack again and get one degree on the effect, you impose the Affliction's second degree condition. +1 cost per rank.

Extra Condition: Your Affliction imposes an additional condition per degree of success. So with one application of this extra, your Affliction imposes two conditions--such as dazed and hindered, or impaired and vulnerable--rather than just one. With two applications, it imposes three conditions, and so forth. Third degree conditions often overlap so that the extra conditions are worthless by that point because of this you are allowed to choose some of the conditions as empty (but without the flaw) so that only the first two degrees have two conditions for example. This is effectively the same as having Affliction linked to itself with different conditions. +1 cost per rank.

Incurable: Effects such as Healing and Regeneration have a harder time healing this Affliction although natural recovery from stamina or by repair (for constructs and objects) can still recover as normal. Effects with the Persistent extra can more aptly heal Incurable effects. Flat +1 point per application

Progressive: This modifier causes an Affliction to increase incrementally without any effort from you. If the target fails a defense check to end the Affliction, it not only persists, but increases in effect by one degree! So a target affected by the first degree of a Progressive Affliction who fails to resist progresses to the second degree of the effect at the start of his next turn. A successful defense check still ends the Affliction, as usual. +2 cost per rank.

Regressive: This modifier causes an Affliction to be longer lasting. If the target succeeds a defense check to end the Affliction instead the effect decreases in degree equal to the degrees of success, possibly ending the affliction. +1 cost per rank.

Unrecoverable: This functions like the complement of Incurable in that effects with this modifier can't be cured by natural recovery (stamina or repair) but all other forms of healing (Healing and Regeneration) still work. The target can't make periodic defense checks, since that's natural recovery, and is immune to the Treatment skill. Unrecoverable and Incurable can't both exist on the same effect for balance reasons. For an effect that can't be cured by a specific descriptor use a limited version of Incurable. +2 cost per rank

Flaws

Empty Degree: Choose any degree except your last, that degree now does nothing. If you have Extra Condition then that degree must have zero conditions not just one less. Flat -1 point.

Instant Recovery: Similar to the Reversible extra, the Affliction only lasts 1 round at which point the target recovers automatically, no check required. -1 cost per rank.

Limited Degree: Your Affliction is limited to no more than two degrees of effect (the last degree does nothing). With two applications of this modifier, it is limited to no more than one degree of effect (making any degrees after the first redundant). -1 cost per rank.