Universal System: Earth - Supplementary
The goal of this supplementary is to provide a single information resource for things like the equipment quality system, the equipment itself, skills, abilities, characters, quests, and more. I want to avoid including spoilers, but try to avoid leaving information holes that cause unnecessary confusion or misdirection, unless those things are part of the story-telling that I employ.
NOTE: If you haven’t read up to the latest chapter of Universal System: Earth, this document may contain spoilers. Go read it on Royal Road at https://www.royalroad.com/fiction/99666/universal-system-earth
Or…don’t…and hurt my feelings…meanie…
Table of Contents
Characters
Organizations
Attribute System
Skills
Abilities
Equipment System
Equipment
Quests
Characters
SYSTEM AI
Sex: N/A, Female voice
Age: Unknown
Ethnicity: Unknown
Notes:
MOON “ERIN” YE-RIN
Sex: Female
Age: 19
Ethnicity: Korean-Caucasian
Notes: Erin is the MC of the story, and despite being considered an adult in many capacities she still has not fully “found” herself in life. She often spends most of her time training her martial arts skills, though her time spent with Taekwondo currently far exceeds the other arts. She lives with her mother, Eun-ha, and has a good relationship with her. Erin also has anger management issues stemming from the helplessness of having her father and her sensei murdered beside her. They fell on Erin to shield her from the spray of bullets, but at six years old Erin was pinned by their collective weight, so she couldn’t even try to get help.
Resource Points: Ki
MOON EUN-HA
Sex: Female
Age: 43
Ethnicity: Korean
Notes: Erin’s mother, Eun-ha has been her sole caretaker for the last 16 years, following the death of her husband, Erin’s father. Her husband’s life insurance policy kept Eun-ha from selling their house, or having to work extensively (it was pretty good), but that just left her with more time to deal with a rambunctious young girl who harbours anger issues and a fear of loss. Eun-ha’s biggest fear is that no amount of love and compassion for her daughter will keep the young woman from doing something dangerous to protect someone she cares about.
Resource Points: Stamina
NOAH JACKSON
Sex: Male
Age: 15
Ethnicity: Black
Notes: Noah is a shy but highly intelligent kid with a natural skill for anything involving technology or engineering. He lives alone with his mother, and his father has not yet been discussed, especially since he has not willingly brought up the topic. He becomes an unexpected house guest with Mrs. McGibbons alongside Erin and Eun-ha when the gang he bikes across town to warn Erin about expands their control and cuts off his route back home. He maintains communication with his mom through the System chat via private messages.
Resource Points: Mental Stamina
MRS. MCGIBBONS
Sex: Female
Age: OLD
Ethnicity: Caucasian
Notes: Mrs. McGibbons comes off as a crotchety old racist lady to most, but Erin and Eun-ha find out fairly quickly that she’s a lot more compassionate than she lets on. Mrs. McGibbons has mentioned a past in the military, including activities that sound like they might have been black ops. When the Assessment phase ends, despite playing the aloof old lady, she carefully selects where to put her attribute points and does not discuss the skills and abilities the system detected.
Resource Points: Cleverness (weird, I know)
DEPUTY LOGAN ALVAREZ
Sex: Male
Age: 25
Ethnicity: Hispanic
Notes:
Resource Points: (Work in Progress)
DEPUTY SYDNEY CADE
Sex: Female
Age: 22
Ethnicity: Caucasian
Notes:
Resource Points: Dedication
THE ANTAGONIST (NAME UNKNOWN)
Sex: Male
Age: 33
Ethnicity: Bastard
Notes:
Resource Points: Narcissism
SABOMNIM RYU JIN-SOO
Sex: Male
Age: 72
Ethnicity: Korean
Notes: Born in Korea, Jin-soo moved to Middletown in his 40s to start Gumiho Dojang. He knew Erin’s old sensei, and had already been in talks with him to train her in Taekwondo when the tragedy happened. Respects the old ways, but tries not to make the younger generation feel unwelcome just because they do not. Jin-soo continues to train his students during Phase 2, even when Domus Nostra sends goons to scare him into giving up Erin, he doesn’t give them information and continues to protect his students. When The Antagonist decides to go to Gumiho himself, events escalate, causing the death of two students while Jin-soo is kidnapped.
Resource Points: N/A
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Organizations
Name: Domus Nostra
Leader: The Antagonist
Alignment: Evil
Known Members:
Notes: Domus Nostra, or “Our House”, is an existing gang at the time of the System integration. They have a firm belief that they should own whatever they want, and with the power they can gain using the System, they harbor delusions of taking over the city, then the region, then the country, and lastly the world.
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Attribute System
Description: Attributes are effectively the number values for a character in the System. They help determine to create a linear pattern for what users can do, and can display the limits of a character (though said limits are not impossible to break).
The Attribute System is broken down into categories which will show an average of the stats under it. Below are the attributes broken into their categories, along with descriptions and additional info.
Typically the human range in this System would be 0-15. 0 being a newborn baby, 15 being the absolute peak a human can currently achieve.
Physical
* Strength: Reflects physical power; Affects melee, carrying, lifting
* Dexterity: Reflects agility, reflexes, and coordination; Affects ranged attacks, evasion, fine motor tasks like lock picking
* Endurance: Reflects stamina and physical resilience; Affects HP, fatigue, recovery speed
* Agility: Reflects speed and flexibility; Affects movement speed, dodging, acrobatic
* Vitality: Reflects health and robustness; Affects max HP, resistances
Mental
* Intelligence: Reflects reasoning, learning, knowledge; Affects magical power, learning, problem-solving
* Wisdom: Reflects intuition, perception, insight; Affects decision-making, spiritual strength, spell acc.
* Willpower: Reflects mental fortitude and focus; Affects resistance to fear, mind control, magic effects
* Perception: Reflects awareness; Affects spotting hidden objects, tracking, detecting danger
Combat
* Attack Power: Represents maximum attack potential. Not a guarantee of the strength of an attack. Calculated based on Dexterity, Strength, and Endurance.
* Defence: Represents maximum defence potential. Not a guarantee of a person’s defensive capability. Calculated based on Strength, Endurance, and Vitality.
* Magic/Tech Power: Represents the potency of magic or tech powers. Magic/Tech Power appears to be a lower number because potency is harder to limit, and therefore it’s always an open fire hose. Specific abilities and skills that use this stat are the control factor for what they can do. Calculated based on Intelligence and Dexterity.
* Resistance: Ability to resist/counteract elemental attacks, afflictions such as poison, etc. Calculated based on Vitality, Strength, Willpower, and Intelligence.
* Speed: Represents the maximum speed potential of a user in their skill set. Usain Bolt is an estimated 26 speed in a straight line run, but would register slower in tasks outside his skill set. Calculated based on Agility, Endurance, and Strength
* Accuracy: Indicates a user’s ability to land a hit precisely where they aim. Calculated based on Perception and Dexterity.
* Evasion: Indicates a user’s ability to shift the accuracy of an attack made against them, or dodge it entirely. Calculated based on Dexterity, Perception, and Agility.
Resource
* Health Points (HP): HP is a representation of the health a user has. Reaching zero will kill a user, however it is not guaranteed permadeath (More on this later). Calculated based on Endurance, Vitality, and user level.
* Resource Points: Resource is akin to a fuel a user utilizes to power their abilities. This can be Ki, Stamina, Narcissism, or other non-physical sources of motivation, compulsion, or energy. Calculated based on Intelligence, Endurance, and user level.
Social
* Charisma: Reflects social prowess, magnetism, ability to influence others; Affects social interactions, persuasion, intimidation, and such.
* Luck: Reflects random outcomes; Affects loot quality, crit hit chance, gambling. Everyone starts with 1 luck. Increasing this can be done with skills, abilities, and equipment.
* Reputation: Reflects others perception of character; Effects interactions and opportunities. User level effects reputation, as leveling is a representation of skill and accomplishment.
* Trade: Reflects bartering skills; Affects prices, transaction success.
* Morality: Hard stat ranging from -100 to +100. Lowest number indicates a deplorable creature willing to do the worst, most depraved things (into sociopath territory). Highest number indicates someone holding themselves to the highest standards of morality, such as an outstanding police officer or soldier.
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Skills
Description: Skills represent learned proficiencies acquired through training, practice. In some cases a character may develop something akin to an “attitude” or “mindset”, which may also fall under the Skills category.
I will endeavour to keep these in alphabetical order.
Aikido:
Description: Japanese martial art known as “the way of harmonious spirit”, with a focus on defending both the practitioner and the attacker from injury. Redirects the motion and force of an attacker rather than approaching them head on or striking them.
Baking:
Description:
Positives: Improving this skill will improve your ability to achieve an edible result. At higher levels, this skill may impart beneficial statuses to the food.
Negatives: A low baking skill may result in burnt or inedible food.
Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings.
Body Types: Body Types only manifest for those with physically-focused skills and abilities such as training, exercise, martial arts, and related things inbetween. Characters will ONLY be aware of a Body Type if they have had the Body Type or if one person discusses a body type they know with someone else.
Each Body Type progresses from level 0-10. When they max out level 10 of a body type they will then transition to the next type, gaining all of the benefits of the new Body Type and giving up the benefits of the previous body.
> NOTE: It’s possible I may tweak aspects of the later body types before they appear in the story. Exalted and Deific bodies are incredibly powerful achievements for any user in the System, which means I could add or remove from them before I get to that point.
Body Type 0: Untrained Body:
Description: Effectively the baseline of an average human who does not workout/train in any capacity. This technically includes a large percentage of people, but will not show up on their skills list unless they start developing a skill that can rely on or impact the conditioning of their body.
Positives: No positives
Negatives: Includes a 10% penalty to the progress of learning any skills that rely on physical work such as exercising, martial arts, fighting, etc.
Body Type 1: Awakened Body:
Description: The person’s body is now in a state to be receptive to working out, exercising, and/or training. There are SIX body states above this.
Positives: No immediate positives
Negatives: Going at least 1 day without exercise will reset progress to the previous level.
Body Type 2: Disciplined Body:
Description: The body has now gone from being receptive to supportive, working with the user to increase the gains they make. There are FIVE body states above this.
Positives: 5% increase to the development of skills or abilities such as working out, exercising, training, etc. Increases a single physical attribute by 5%.
Negatives: Going at least 1 week without exercise will reset progress to the previous level.
Body Type 3: Fortified Body:
Description: The user’s body improves their workout capabilities, and increases a user’s resilience to physical attacks. There are FOUR body states above this.
Positives: 10% increase to the development of skills or abilities such as working out, exercising, training, etc. Increases up to two physical attributes by 10%.
Negatives: Going at least 2 weeks without exercise will reset progress to the previous level.
Body Type 4: Refined Body:
Description: With few weaknesses, a refined body works with the user to shore up the areas they most need to improve on. Body types will level from 0-10 before upgrading to the next type. There are THREE body types above this.
Positives: 15% increase to the development of skills or abilities such as working out, exercising, training, etc. Increases up to three physical attributes by 15%.
Negatives: Going at least 1 month without exercise will reset progress to the previous level.
Body Type 5: Conditioned Body:
Description: Peak human conditioning. Not superhuman, but certainly on the edge of reaching that peak. There are TWO body states above this.
Positives: 25% increase to the development of skills or abilities such as working out, exercising, training, etc. Increases up to four physical attributes by 25%.
Negatives: Going at least 1.5 months without exercise will reset progress to the previous level.
Body Type 6: Exalted Body:
Description: Two steps beyond the peak of terrestrial conditioning, an exalted body can temporarily or partially mimic some of the functions of a deific body. Exalted bodies are classified as “superhuman.” There is ONE body state above this.
Positives: 50% increase to the development of skills or abilities such as working out, exercising, training, etc. Increases up to five physical attributes by 50%. Minor control over aspects of form, function, feel, and design of their own body. Whereas a deific body can make these changes permanent, an exalted body will have limits on both the time and capabilities of these functions.
The body no longer loses progress from lack of training. Existence itself maintains the user’s body at this tier.
Negatives: Near-deific status means that weapons specifically designed to target deities may injure or kill someone with an Exalted Body.
Body Type 7: Deific Body:
Description: Refined to a state far beyond terrestrial limits, a deific body defies logic, reason, and the confines of evolution itself.
Positives: 75% increase to the development of skills or abilities such as working out, exercising, training, etc. Increase to all base (non-calculated) attributes by 100% (physical and mental). User has effortless control over the form, function, feel, and design of their own body
Negatives: May weaken the user to some weapons specifically designed to target deities.
Bokator:
Description: Cambodian martial art characterized by the heavy use of weapons (bamboo staff, sword, short sticks)
Positives: Contains a variety of techniques for different scenarios, and helps condition the body as a natural effect of training.
Negatives: Techniques can be complex, making learning difficult. Reliance on weapons. Less applications in modern self-defense scenarios
Cooking:
Description: This is the base skill for all other cooking skills. You cannot learn another cooking skill without also receiving this. Leveling up other cooking skills will also level this skill, which will in turn help to level or learn other cooking skills.
Positives: Improving this skill boosts your ability to level or learn other cooking skills. At higher levels, this skill may increase the beneficials statuses generated by other cooking techniques.
Negatives: A low cooking skill may result in burnt or inedible food.
Flipping:
Description: A cooking technique used to shift food, allowing for even cooking.
Positives: At higher levels this skill may modify the beneficial statuses imparted by other cooking techniques.
Negatives: A lower levels, flipping is a slower technique and may fail, causing food to spill.
Frying:
Description: A common cooking technique, this typically involves cooking food in a pan or skillet over a medium or high heat, and often uses oil or animal fat to achieve a crisp exterior.
Positives: Improving this skill will improve your ability to achieve an edible result. At higher levels, this skill may impart beneficial statuses to the food.
Negatives: A low frying skill may result in burnt or inedible food.
Grilling:
Description: A cooking technique where the food is cooked directly over an open flame.
Positives: Improving this skill will improve your ability to achieve an edible result. At higher levels, this skill may impart beneficial statuses to the food.
Negatives: A low grilling skill may result in burnt or inedible food.
Karate:
Description: Japanese martial art that utilizes striking techniques with kicks, punches, knee, and elbow strikes. Some variations of the art may include grappling, throws, joint locks, etc.
Martial Arts:
Description: General martial arts skill; Indicative of progression in martial arts as a whole (not a specific martial art), .
Positives: Skill level can directly impact ability to improve existing martial arts or learn new ones. The higher this stat, the quicker one can develop martial arts skills.
Negatives: None listed
Muay Thai:
Description: A Thai martial art that includes significant use of elbow and knee strikes
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Abilities
Description: Abilities are innate talents, powers, or moves acquired through milestones, leveling up, or perhaps even awarded through unique circumstances.
I will endeavour to keep these in alphabetical order.
Compassion:
Description: Willingness or drive to help alleviate someone’s pain and suffering
Dragon King’s Wrath:
Description: Dragon King’s Wrath significantly increases strength, speed, defence, and perception. Upon activation, a massive release of energy occurs, flowing through the user’s body and emanating out to create a shimmer effect around them that can harm others.
Positives: Increased Strength, Speed, Defence, and Perception; Slowly increases Ki
Negatives: Use of the skill can drain the user to the point of unconsciousness; Slowly decreases Ki.
Empathy:
Description: The ability to understand and share in someone’s feelings
Focus:
Description: Indicates a high level of ability to concentrate on something the user sets their attention towards.
Positives: Can increase the ability for the user to learn something or ingest information on a topic, without easily having their attention drawn away.
Negatives: Focus level can induce near-meditation like behaviours, which if done at an unsafe location could leave the user open to attack.
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Equipment System
Description: Equipment under the purview of the System will appear under six primary quality levels. Bronze is the lowest quality and is typically a throwaway item. It won’t have any modifiers, and the name is often meant to poke fun at the user it’s given to.
With each higher tier of quality, the potential modifiers of an item can increase, as will the durability (though I don’t intend to display this as a stat at this time). Items in the Exalted quality tier can be named unique items, however Deific items are guaranteed to be unique and therefore named.
Quality Ratings:
Bronze
Description: The lowest quality rating an item can have. It will not have modifiers, and cannot be a named item. Durability is typically pretty bad, and bronze items won’t last long.
-0 modifiers
Silver
Description: Silver quality is about the absolute minimum anyone is going to want to use. It will have better durability, though still not great. The real boon will be that it CAN have one modifier (can doesn’t mean will)
- Up to 1 modifier
Gold
Description: Gold quality items start to get enough durability to last a worthwhile amount of time. On top of that, it can have up to two modifiers, but is not guaranteed to get any modifiers (though a gold quality item with no modifiers is pretty uncommon. Just don’t piss off the System AI)
- Up to 2 modifiers
Platinum
Description: Platinum quality is the game changer. Equipment at this level can actually last a decent amount of time, and stand up to use and abuse from more powerful users. Platinum quality is also guaranteed at least one modifier, but can potentially have up to three.
- 1-3 modifiers
Exalted
Description: Exalted is a truly valuable quality level. Not only can items with this quality stand up to an absolute beating, requiring an item of equal or greater quality to even damage, they are guaranteed two modifiers, can have up to three, and are the first quality tier with the potential to be a named item. Named items are unique, and will never appear in a duplicate form in any way, shape, or form. Hold onto these if you find them, or make sure you sell them for at least 1.5 firstborn children. Seriously, they’re valuable.
- 2-3 modifiers, might be uniquely named (ie. The Chef’s Hat; or Ballerina’s Slippers)
Deific
Description: Deific items are the pinnacle of item users seek to achieve. Nigh indestructible god-tier items, they’ll have between three and five modifiers, will ALWAYS be uniquely named, and a skilled enough crafter may be able to change the modifiers or fill in empty modifier slots up to the maximum of five. If you trade or sell one of these you’re either in love or stupid…so really just stupid. Don’t do it.
- 3-5 modifiers, always uniquely named, may be modified (to replace modifiers or fill empty modifier slots)
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Equipment
Description: Equipment in the system can be awarded (ie. from Reward Boxes), found (ie. looted off a dead user, possibly found in environments eventually), or crafted once users start to discover the ability to do so.
> NOTE: I may omit details from some equipment for now, or not even list it here yet (despite knowing that it’s already in the hands of a user). Part of this may be that I’m not ready to reveal it, in other cases because I haven’t fleshed it out yet.. Rest assured that if it’s been discussed in the story, I’ll aim to include it here.
>
> NOTE2: I’m going to organize equipment by quality level for now, but not stress over alphabetical order. I’ll deal with the alphabetical part later (mark of a true procrastinator).
Item Name: Silver Weighted 3rd Dan Belt (Silver Taekwondo Box)
Quality Level: Silver
Description: A 3rd Dan Taekwondo belt in the style of the Gumiho Dojang. Black with 3 red bars at either end.
Modifier 1: Weighted. Increase experience when using physical skills. +10% XP.
Notes: Unlike traditional belts, martial arts belts do not hold your pants up. They are a symbol of your skill and dedication. You are indeed skilled as a 3rd Dan, but clearly not skilled enough since there are 7 more levels above you!
Item Name: Gold Necklace of Focus (Gold Focus Box)
Quality Level: Gold
Description: A golden necklace of gold quality. Aside from appearing to be 24k gold, it lacks any intricacies.
Modifier 1: Focus. This necklace provides improvements to the wearer’s focus. This can manifest as improvements to learning while in a trance-like state of focus, or perceiving details in an environment otherwise difficult to notice, but requires the user to stop and fully focus on the environment.
Notes: Bling is supposed to make people focus on you, not make you focus on other things. Just remember to be in a safe space while focusing, or someone bad may focus on you!
Item Name: Gold Enhanced Charm of the Equalizer (Gold Reverse-Gangbang Box)
Quality Level: Gold
Description: A charm for attachment on a bracelet or necklace. Once attached it cannot be removed.
Modifier 1: of the Equalizer. This modifier, when activated, will create a duplicate of the user for one minute. The duplicate has all of the skills and abilities of the user. This ability can only be used once per 24 hour period.
Modifier 2: Enhanced. This modifier enhances the benefits of the item it is attached to. In the context of this charm, the enhanced modifier will create two additional duplicates of the user.
Notes: It’s important to remember that ganbangs are only fun when they’re consensual. But for those times when a group attempts one non-consensually there’s the Gold Enhanced Charm of the Equalizer. Even the odds a little.
Item Name: Platinum Weighted Dobok of the 3rd Dan (Platinum Martial Arts Box)
Quality Level: Platinum
Description: A weighted Taekwondo uniform coloured a cobalt blue with black accents on the collar and cuffs. It has a stylized, almost holographic, version of the Gumiho Dojang logo on the back, and the user’s name on the front left breast in Korean.
Modifier 1: Weighted. Increases experience when using physical skills. +10% XP.
Modifier 2: of the 3rd Dan. Increase the development of Taekwondo skill.
Notes: A weighted version of the uniform using the style of the Gumiho Dojang. Have you ever seen that show with that guy who wears weighted clothing, you know, the one I can’t name because the CIPS will smack me down for copyright? Well, this is like that…except with cloth physics.
Item Name: 10x Potion of HP Regeneration (Level Up Box)
Quality Level: Unlisted
Description: Standard HP regen potions. These will refill 1% of your health per second for 30 seconds. Do not stack. Cannot be sold. Cannot be traded. Can be thrown at walls, but I don’t recommend doing that.
Notes: User heal thyself! You can’t achieve your life goals if you’re dead. Swallow your pride, and swallow these cherry cough syrup-tasting delicious treats or you might DIE!
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Quests
Description: Quests don’t need a lot of introduction as a concept, but as it stands I’m still undecided what part they’ll play in my story. Some authors will throw a quest at their characters for the mere implication of a task that needs to be completed, whereas others will make them scarce and story-relevant. Both have their fun sides, and hopefully I decide before too long (or I don’t, and when I do the System AI just says “You guys suck, here’s a quest!”)
Complete the Integration Phase:
Description: The first quest that is received, automatically given at the start of System initialization. Completion requires surviving/reaching the 24 hour mark after the quest is given.
Rewards: 150XP (exact amount to hit level 1)
Penalties: None
Notes: If an individual is unable to accept/acknowledge the nature of what is happening, they will receive headaches, which can ultimately lead to their death and the failure of the quest.
SYSTEM MESSAGE:
Congratulations! You have completed the following quest: Complete the Integration Phase.
You have been granted the following rewards: 150 XP
Complete the Assessment Phase:
Description: The second question a user will receive, automatically, and is given at the start of the System assessment phase.
Rewards: 50XP; Triggers Phase 2: Assessment - Hidden Quest
Penalties: None directly; It is very difficult to register zero stats, skills, or abilities during the assessment period, but even doing so will not strictly fail the quest.
Notes: This quest does not directly reward much experience, however accepting the completion of the quest will give the Phase 2: Assessment - Hidden Quest.
SYSTEM MESSAGE:
Congratulations! You have completed the following quest: Complete the Assessment Phase.
You have been granted the following rewards: 50 XP
Your attributes will now impact your experience, including XP gain and attribute point acquisition.
Phase 2: Assessment - Hidden Quest:
Description: Given upon completion and acknowledgement of Complete the Assessment Phase quest. Once received, the user must open this quest for it to resolve. Upon opening, this quest will calculate rewards based on assessment done during Phase 2.
Rewards:
* Bonus XP based on the level of the skills and abilities detected + bonus XP based on every 5 skills or abilities detected.
* Reward Boxes for each skill at least level 5 or higher.
Penalties: None.
Notes: None.
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