Attributes
Lifting Feats
| Feat | Weight |
|---|---|
| One-Handed Lift | 48 lb |
| Two-Handed Lift | 192 lb |
| Shove & Knock Over | 288 lb |
| Carry on Back | 360 lb |
| Shift Slightly | 1200 lb |
Slam
Senses & Checks
| Age | 43 (apparent) |
| Gender | Male |
| Nationality | Federal Republic citizen, frontier-born |
| Height | 5’10" |
| Weight | 165 lb |
| Build | Lean, wiry, restless |
| Hair | Dark going grey at the temples, self-cut |
| Eyes | Pale hazel, quick |
| Skin | Rad-weathered over spacer-pale |
| Handedness | Right |
| Appearance | Average |
| Status | 0 |
| TL | 11 |
Active Defenses
| Location | DR |
|---|---|
| Torso | ~30 |
| Elsewhere (sealed) | ~6* |
Encumbrance
| Level | Max Wt | Move | Dodge |
|---|---|---|---|
| None (0) | ≤24 lbs | 6 | 9 |
| Light (1) | ≤48 lbs | 4 | 8 |
| Medium (2) | ≤72 lbs | 3 | 7 |
| Heavy (3) | ≤144 lbs | 2 | 6 |
| X-Heavy (4) | ≤240 lbs | 1 | 5 |
Advantages
| Gizmo ×2 | 10 |
| Signature Gear (recon rig) | 2 |
| Absolute Direction | 5 |
| Eidetic Memory | 5 |
| Versatile | 5 |
| Fit | 5 |
| Lightning Calculator | 2 |
| Less Sleep 1 | 2 |
Disadvantages
| Debt (10 levels) — Corvid Financial | −10 |
| Enemy (Marek Solano / Corvid recovery; appears 6 or less) | −10 |
| Obsession (make the GREAT discovery — the find that clears his name) | −10 |
| Gullibility | −10 |
| Unluckiness | −10 |
| Curious | −5 |
| Overconfidence | −5 |
| Phobia (Triskaidekaphobia — number 13) | −5 |
| Sense of Duty (former crew) | −5 |
| Stubbornness | −5 |
| Quirk: Never throws away a broken gadget — hoards salvage | −1 |
| Quirk: Narrates his own plan out loud while he works | −1 |
| Quirk: Won’t start anything important on the 13th | −1 |
| Quirk: Names every piece of his kit | −1 |
| Quirk: Keeps a running log of every anomaly he’s seen | −1 |
Skills
| Name | Lvl | Rel | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|
| Archaeology | 13 | IQ−1 | 2 |
| Astronomy | 13 | IQ−1 | 2 |
| Beam Weapons (Rifle) | 13 | DX+2 | 4 |
| Brawling Parry: 8 | 11 | DX+0 | 1 |
| Cartography | 14 | IQ+0 | 2 |
| Computer Operation | 16 | IQ+2 | 4 |
| Computer Programming | 14 | IQ+0 | 4 |
| Electronics Operation (Comms) | 13 | IQ−1 | 1 |
| Electronics Operation (Sensors) | 18 | IQ+4 | 16 |
| Electronics Repair (Sensors) | 15 | IQ+1 | 4 |
| Engineer (Electronics) | 14 | IQ+0 | 4 |
| Fast-Talk | 13 | IQ−1 | 1 |
| First Aid | 14 | IQ+0 | 1 |
| Free Fall | 11 | DX+0 | 2 |
| Geology (Rock Worlds) | 13 | IQ−1 | 2 |
| Mathematics (Applied) | 13 | IQ−1 | 2 |
| Merchant | 13 | IQ−1 | 1 |
| Navigation (Hyperspace) | 14 | IQ−1 | 1 |
| Navigation (Space) | 15 | IQ+0 | 2 |
| Physics | 12 | IQ−2 | 2 |
| Piloting (High-Performance Spacecraft) | 12 | DX+1 | 4 |
| Prospecting | 14 | IQ+0 | 2 |
| Scrounging | 16 | Per+0 | 1 |
| Search | 15 | Per−1 | 1 |
| Spacer | 14 | IQ+0 | 1 |
| Stealth | 9 base 10 | DX−1 | 1 |
| Survival (Rock World) | 16 | Per+0 | 2 |
| Vacc Suit | 11 | DX+0 | 2 |
Points Summary
| Attributes | 130 |
| Secondary Characteristics | 17 |
| Advantages | 36 |
| Skills | 72 |
| Disadvantages | −75 |
| Quirks | −5 |
| Total (spent) | 175 |
| Earned XP (Session 1) | +5 |
| Available (unspent) | 5 |
Melee Attacks
| Weapon/Mode | Skill | Parry | Damage | Reach | ST | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brawling punch | Brawling-11 | 8 | 1d−1 cr | C | ||
| Utility knife (thrust) | DX-11 (default) | 8 | 1d−2 imp | C, 1 |
Ranged Attacks
| Weapon | Skill | Damage | Acc | Range | RoF | Shots | ST | Bulk | Rcl | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Blaster carbine | Beam Weapons (Rifle)-13 | 5d(5) burn, sur | 10* | 500/1,500* | 3* | 350(3)* | −4* |
Shack Magellan reads as a man who has been everywhere twice and come home broke from all of it. Early forties, lean and restless, built narrow the way people get when they live on ship rations and never sit still. His hair has gone grey at the temples and he cuts it himself, usually a few days past when he should have. There is a permanent squint in a weathered, easy face that finds the joke in most things and trusts far too many of them. His hands never stop. There is always a bit of kit turning over in them, a probe-head or a coil of cable or one of the little canisters of nanomist he calls his “better idea.” Pale hazel eyes, quick and hungry. A sensor loupe pushed up on his forehead and a wrist display he checks the way other men check a watch, and clipped somewhere on him, always, the recon rig that ruined him and might yet buy him back.
His edge is real. Shack invented a better way to scout the unknown, a nanotech recon rig that oozes around corners, down cracks, and into dead ships and relays back what is there before he ever sticks his neck out. It made him briefly valuable, and then it made him reckless. He borrowed big from Corvid Financial to bankroll the expedition that was going to make his name, because his rig had found something out past the charted lanes, or he was sure it had, and Corvid liked sure. Deep into the run a reclamation crew called Sable boarded him, stripped the hold, took the claim and most of the ship, and left him drifting with the debt and none of the payday. The men who did it did not talk and did not miss, and moved through his ship like they had been grown to do exactly that.
When the note came due he could not cover a tenth of it, so he did the only thing a frontier man can do with a debt like that. He ran. Town, then planet, then system. Corvid does not forget, and there is a recovery man named Marek Solano working his file. So Shack took the one job at the far end of nowhere, at MacMillian’s dead-end station, and he keeps chasing the next great find, the one that clears the ledger and gives him back his name. He is Curious, Overconfident, and too trusting to let a mystery lie, which is exactly the kind of loose end the dead system makes of people.
Name, history, and voice are Jay’s to finalize. The physical description and the Corvid / Solano / Sable web are drafts offered for Jay to keep, bend, or replace.
📄 Background handouts & references (offered to Jay Vasil / Tim): Corvid Financial - Notice of Default and Recovery (Magellan) · The Anomaly Log (Shackleton Magellan) · Sable Reclamation - Salvage Manifest (Magellan claim) · Recon Rig Spec (Shackleton Magellan).
| Name | Cost | Page | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gizmo ×2 | 10 | B57 | Twice per session, pull out a small item he could’ve been carrying — undefined until revealed, so it can’t be searched, lost, or stolen first. “Always has the right gadget.” |
| Signature Gear (recon rig) | 2 | B85 | Covers his nanotech recon rig + sensor kit (~$20k of distinctive gear). The one thing Sable / Corvid couldn’t take; foes can’t trace it. |
| Absolute Direction | 5 | B34 | Never lost; +1 Navigation. |
| Eidetic Memory | 5 | B51 | Remembers every scan, map, and anomaly he’s logged. |
| Versatile | 5 | B99 | +1 to improvise, jury-rig, and think creatively. |
| Fit | 5 | B55 | +1 to HT rolls for FP loss and staying conscious; faster recovery. |
| Lightning Calculator | 2 | B66 | Instant, perfect arithmetic — ranges, vectors, yields. |
| Less Sleep 1 | 2 | B65 | One hour less sleep; more hours to work. |
Advantages total: 36
| Name | Cost | Self-Control | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Debt (10 levels) — Corvid Financial | −10 | — | −1/level. Monthly payment = 1% starting wealth × 10 = 10%, from job income first. The trackable slice of what he owes. |
| Enemy (Marek Solano / Corvid recovery; appears 6 or less) | −10 | — | −20 base (medium recovery team, 6–20) × ½ (6-or-less). He skipped the system, so they surface rarely, but they surface. |
| Obsession (make the GREAT discovery — the find that clears his name) | −10 | 12 | The engine of his choices. |
| Gullibility | −10 | 12 | Believes what he’s told; must roll to doubt an obvious lie. |
| Unluckiness | −10 | — | Once/session the GM can make his worst roll happen. |
| Curious | −5 | 12 | Must roll to not investigate the interesting thing. |
| Overconfidence | −5 | 12 | Certain he’ll succeed; must roll to be cautious. |
| Phobia (Triskaidekaphobia — number 13) | −5 | 12 | His signature superstition. |
| Sense of Duty (former crew) | −5 | — | The people the failed mission cost him. |
| Stubbornness | −5 | — | Won’t be told the discovery isn’t out there. |
| Quirk: Never throws away a broken gadget — hoards salvage | −1 | — | |
| Quirk: Narrates his own plan out loud while he works | −1 | — | |
| Quirk: Won’t start anything important on the 13th | −1 | — | Leans into the phobia. |
| Quirk: Names every piece of his kit | −1 | — | |
| Quirk: Keeps a running log of every anomaly he’s seen | −1 | — | And re-reads it. |
Disadvantages total: −75 · Quirks: −5
Relationships
- Located at Thides Station — Took the MacMillian 'security' job at the dead end — far enough out to stay ahead of Corvid's recovery man.
- Indebted to Corvid Financial — Borrowed big to fund the expedition that ruined him; the note came due and he ran.
- Hunted by Marek Solano — Corvid's contracted recovery agent, working Shack's file with unhurried patience.
- Raided by Sable Reclamation — The boarding crew that stripped his ship and claim mid-mission and left him with the debt.
Active Defenses
| Location | DR |
|---|---|
| Torso | ~30 |
| Elsewhere (sealed) | ~6* |
Melee Attacks
| Weapon/Mode | Skill | Parry | Damage | Reach | ST | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brawling punch | Brawling-11 | 8 | 1d−1 cr | C | ||
| Utility knife (thrust) | DX-11 (default) | 8 | 1d−2 imp | C, 1 |
Ranged Attacks
| Weapon | Skill | Damage | Acc | Range | RoF | Shots | ST | Bulk | Rcl | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Blaster carbine | Beam Weapons (Rifle)-13 | 5d(5) burn, sur | 10* | 500/1,500* | 3* | 350(3)* | −4* |
Rules Reference
| Roll | Location | Mod |
|---|---|---|
| 3–4 | Skull | –7 |
| 5 | Face | –5 |
| 6–7 | Right Leg | –2 |
| 8 | Right Arm | –2 |
| 9–10 | Torso | — |
| 11 | Groin | –3 |
| 12 | Left Arm | –2 |
| 13–14 | Left Leg | –2 |
| 15 | Hand | –4 |
| 16 | Foot | –4 |
| 17–18 | Neck | –5 |
| — | Vitals | –3 |
| — | Eye | –9 |
Source: GURPS Basic Set 4e, p. B552
| Speed/Range | Size | Linear Measure |
|---|---|---|
| 0 | 0 | 2 yd |
| -1/+1 | ±1 | 3 yd |
| -2/+2 | ±2 | 5 yd |
| -3/+3 | ±3 | 7 yd |
| -4/+4 | ±4 | 10 yd |
| -5/+5 | ±5 | 15 yd |
| -6/+6 | ±6 | 20 yd |
| -7/+7 | ±7 | 30 yd |
| -8/+8 | ±8 | 50 yd |
| -9/+9 | ±9 | 70 yd |
| -10/+10 | ±10 | 100 yd |
| -11/+11 | ±11 | 150 yd |
| -12/+12 | ±12 | 200 yd |
| -13/+13 | ±13 | 300 yd |
| -14/+14 | ±14 | 500 yd |
| -15/+15 | ±15 | 700 yd |
Source: GURPS Basic Set 4e, p. B550
Equipment
| Qty | Item | Cost | Weight | Location | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nanotech recon swarm (“nanomist”) | (confirm) | neg. | Belt canisters | Oozes around corners / into wrecks, relays A/V/IR. The heart of his invention. |
| 1 | Nanobugs ×several | ~$100 ea | neg. | Belt pouch | Drop-and-watch scouts (−18 to spot). |
| 1 | Nanoweave “smart rope” + sensor head | (confirm) | ~1 | Coiled at hip | Physical access where the swarm can’t fly. |
| 1 | MiniHUD + earpiece comm | ~$50+ | neg. | Worn | Swarm feed to his eye; +1 to fast-info skills. |
| 1 | Multiscanner / small radscanner | ~$1,000 | 0.5 | Chest rig | +2 Electronics Op (Sensors). |
| 1 | MicroNav | (confirm) | neg. | Wrist | Absolute Timing, +2 Navigation. |
| 1 | Bug detector | ~$500 | 1 | Kit | Knows when he’s the one being watched. |
| 1 | Portable tool kit (Electronics Repair) | ~$1,200 | 10 | Pack (droppable) | Field fixes for the rig; the swing item for encumbrance. |
| 1 | Personal computer (wrist/tiny, C5–6) | ~$1,100 | 0.5 | Wrist | Computer Op / Programming. |
| 1 | Light vacc suit (sealed) | (confirm) | ~10 | Worn | Vacc Suit 11 — non-negotiable. Lightest sealed option to protect Basic Lift 24. |
| 1 | Monocrys vest | ~$300 | 2 | Worn | Concealable torso DR. |
| 1 | Blaster carbine | ~$9,200 | 5.6 | Sling | Beam Weapons (Rifle) 13. |
| 1 | Survival kit + personal basics | ~$300 | 3 | Pack (droppable) | Survival 16 off the ship. |
| 1 | Spare power cells | ~$300 | 1 | Pouches | Reloads for carbine + rig. |
| 1 | Electric Stun Wand (TL9) | $100 (issued) | 1 | Belt | MacMillian security issue — not Signature Gear. sw/thr cr + linked HT-5(2) aff: non-lethal knockdown/paralysis. Shortsword skill (defaults DX-5). B cell, 20 strikes. LC4. |