GURPS - Compendium 1..

Pressure Points (Mental/Hard)
Defaults to
Yin/Yang Healing-4 in a Cinematic campaign
Prerequisite: Trained By A Master
This is the application of acupuncture techniques to combat.
The attacker seeks to strike pressure points in the body that
allow him to paralyze, and even kill, an opponent. In game
terms, the attacker must make a successful roll using Karate or
the appropriate combat skill (see below); use the Parts of the
Body modifiers (p. B203) at an extra -2. At least 1 point of damage
must get through clothing or armor; natural Toughness does not
protect. Then, roll a Quick Contest of Skills between the
attacker's Pressure Points skill and the victim's HT. If the
attacker wins, the body part is paralyzed; otherwise, nothing
happens other than normal damage.
Arms or legs struck this way are considered crippled for 5d
turns. A hit to a torso pressure point will diminish, or even totally
arrest, the victim's breathing. He starts suffocating as per p.
B122 and must make a HT roll every second to recover. A hit to
the head will stun the victim; he must roll versus IQ to recover.
The Pressure Points skill can be used with Judo techniques, in
conjunction with the Arm or Wrist Lock Maneuver (p. 165). The
Pressure Points skill is used after a successful lock has been
applied; the attacker can choose to do damage in addition to the
momentary crippling. A separate version of this skill can also be
used with missile weapons.
Limitations: This skill is designed to work on the human
body. Attacks on animals are at -6 unless a Zoology-2 or a
Naturalist-4 roll is made. Nonhuman beings of basically
humanoid physiology (Dwarves or Elves, for instance) are
affected at -2 (the same for an Elf attacking a human). More
alien creatures (a human-looking being with three hearts in different
parts of the body, for instance) have penalties - perhaps
huge ones - or may be impervious to this type of attack (GM's
call). All these penalties can be reduced or eliminated if the
attacker can make appropriate Xenology (see p. 159) and
Physiology (p. B61) rolls.
There is enough documentation about the use of this skill to
warrant an open mind. GMs may allow this skill in a realistic
campaign; the difficulty of the hit rolls will make prac tical use
of this skill very hard for most characters, so the potentially
unbalancing effects can be kept in check. The GM may also
change this skill to Mental/Very Hard, making high levels of the
skill almost impossible for beginning characters.
Pressure Secrets (Mental/Very Hard) No default
Prerequisites: Trained By A Master,
Pressure Points at 18+
This powerful skill teaches the user the most vulnerable vital
points in the human body. A user of this skill can kill a normal
man with a light blow, by crushing and tearing vital organs and
nerve clusters with deadly precision. Due to its lethality,
Pressure Secrets is very rarely taught. Many masters teach this
skill only to one or two carefully-chosen pupils after a long
apprenticeship; others take the secret to their graves.
On a successful roll, the user's next hand-to-hand attack will
do double damage after penetrating armor and Toughness; his
hands or feet have in effect become impaling weapons. Attacks
on normal "vital organs" (see p. B203) will do triple damage.
This also applies to Arm Locks (see p. 165); the damage or DX
penalty resulting from a lock is doubled, representing the ability to
know exactly where to apply the pressure to tear or sprain
joints and ligaments.
Limitations: The same as for the Pressure Points skill
(above).
This is definitely not a realistic skill; GMs may restrict or
forbid this skill if they consider it too unbalancing for their campaign.
Alternatively, they can limit it to NPCs, thus creating terrifying
enemies for the heroes.
Push (Physical/Hard)
No default
Prerequisite: Trained By A Master
This difficult skill allows the user to "gently" push away an
adversary, or to cause him to lose his balance. A small man with a
high level in this skill could knock down or push away a
Weightlifter.
To use this skill, the character must score a hit in combat; the
target can attempt any active defense, but PD from armor does
not protect. This "blow" does no damage, but can be used in
either of two ways. The first option is to cause the opponent to
fall; the victim must roll against DX, at -1 for every point the
Push roll was made by, or fall down. Alternatively, the attack
can be treated as a slam attack (see p. B112 and B106), with the
Push skill replacing ST and DX.
Ritual Magic (Mental/Very Hard) No default;
must specialize
This skill reflects an understanding of the intellectual and
mystical process involved in conducting magical rituals. On a
successful skill roll, you can understand the purposes of a ritual
being conducted in your presence, as well as the types of entity
being summoned. You must specialize in a specific form of
magic. Specializations include Voodoo, Witchcraft, Native
American, and so on. Each type defaults to any other at -5. The
processes involved are roughly the same, but the actual rituals
and spirits involved are quite different.
The Ritual Magic skill is a prerequisite to use the magical
Paths presented in GURPS Voodoo, and each of these Paths
defaults to Ritual Magic -6 (to a maximum level of 14). See
Chapter 3 of Voodoo for details.
Shapeshifting (Mental/Hard)
No default
Prerequisite: Morph, or planar travel
abilities (see below)
This is the skill of molding your body and features (real or
virtual; see below) into another shape. This skill is only available
thos e who possess a power - such as Morph (p. 61) - that
allows them to easily alter their shape, or to those who can travel to
other planes - such as the astral plane, cyberspace or dream
worlds - where the traveler's form can be altered by thought.
On a successful skill roll, you can bring about the desired
change to your form over the next 3 seconds.
Depending on the form desired, the GM may add penalties to
the skill. Small changes (slightly altering facial features, or
making the body one or two inches taller, for instance) have no
penalty. Significant changes require rolls at -2 (changing race
and gender) to -8 (for becoming a member of another species).
When picking the skill, you can select one form besides your
usual one that you can take without penalty. Add an additional
form for every eight levels in the skill.
Characters with a skill of 20 or higher in this skill have mastered
the art of shapeshifting. They can reshape their features into
any form, no matter how ludicrous, as long as their basic form
remains relatively unchanged. Cartoon-like effects become possible
on a simple skill roll, and can appear immediately (eyes growing to
the size of plates, jaws literally falling out of their faces, and so
on; consult Toon for inspiration). The GM can outlaw this "special
effect" rule if it threatens the tone of the campaign, of course.
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