On the table are presented 52 playing cards, face-down in a random order.
A human is asked to pick out the Ace of Spades among them.
They pull out a one...
-- And it is up to fate whether it is the card they desired --
Sometimes it does not require a powerful mage, a holy warrior of the church, a reality-breaking esper, a devious mystic or a high-tech android to defend others against the powers of the turnside of the world. Sometimes just the right person in the right place at the right time can make a world of difference. Heroes have risen from the unlikeliest of places and there are those that would be happy to answer the call of the supernatural if they just heard it.
However... mostly they are just normal humans. Normal humans who have no idea about what awaits of them in the night, on those small moments when they think they are not alone for some reason. Normal humans turn a blind eye to evidence of the unreal because they simply want to avoid thinking about it. The turnside of the world is not something meant for the normal eyes and automatically rejects humans and their will, leading in turn to humanity rejecting it and its denizens. The supernatural and the mundane are, and will always be, at odds with each other even if they do not know about each other.
Normal humanity has only few weapons to help them if and when they are faced with the inevitable fact that the world is much bigger and much darker place than even they could imagine. Once they become aware of the monsters lurking in the shadows there aren't many things they can rely on. Just a few, in fact: first is their technology, their ingenuity, their brains and power to adapt. There aren't many humans out there who haven't thought about what they'd do in such a situation. A mere daydream, perhaps, but good for sudden improvisation if the need suddenly arises.
Another power that humans have, something they might not even realize themselves, is that of their psyche, their very soul. Human soul is a powerful thing, capable of withstanding lot more than many give it credit for. It can also power up those who are in desperate need for help and give hope even in the darkest situation. Grit, gusto, determination, whatever you want to call it... it all stems from the human soul, which is their most precious and most dangerous possession. Many beings of the turnside covet human souls for that very reason. It is not unheard of that a young human who thought they knew everything of the world gets suddenly dragged into events beyond their comprehension, the only thing keeping them alive being their wit and desperate need for survival in any situation.
You are one of those poor souls; You are unwittingly leaving the safe arms of Humanity behind.
You are a human.
Although you do not know it yet, you have gotten yourself tangled up in business you have no business seeing. The supernatural side of the world, which many call simply 'The Turnside' is always lurking out there and a hapless traveler like you can easily stumble upon it. While this summer was supposed to be yet another batch of boredom, suddenly you find yourself up to your neck in trouble. Or, at the very least, you will find yourself in that sort of situation. For now, you are blissfully unaware of what is about to befall you eventually, just like every human out there. You think you know how the world is and that gives you confidence... but at the same time, there's this nagging sense of approaching danger at the back of your mind.
Still, as a human there are some things you can count on. Your kind can create long-lasting bonds with almost everyone, if you only try. Allies are never a bad thing to have, friends are even greater thing. With someone at your side, with your adaptive attitude holding your back strong and with that hope that you can survive even against paranormal threats, you steel yourself and step outside. The time has come to leave for your summer school.
After all, while you might not know it yet, something in your mind keeps telling that this summer is going to be different from the others.
Human Origin
As a member of humanity you are just a normal teenager, thrust upon situation you are not exactly familiar with. Your previous skills, whatever odd bit of knowledge you might have, a random thing you grabbed as your weapon... these are all potentially game changing in your hands. You must only improvise, adapt and hope for the best.
Upon choosing the Human Origin, you gain:
Homo Sapiens:
You are who you are. There might be some who have a background similar to yours, but nobody who is exactly like you. Your experiences are your own and you know they can't be replicated. What you have learned, what you haven't learned, what you've experienced and what you've avoided... it has all led you here as the person you are. In other words, you are you and nobody else. It is not easy to categorize a normal person, even if they were about to get involved into events much stranger their life before. One thing is clear, however: As long as you stay as yourself, you can proudly face any and all challenges, no matter how weird or fantastical. And who knows? Maybe you can learn some new things, experience some new things, and grow further as a person. Just some food for thought.
Skill Increase: Any four different skills +1 SP.
Granted: Perk [Only a Human].
Your Ability is: Psyche.
Normal humans have no supernatural abilities or special skills that would help them survive an encounter with the paranormal denizens of the turnside of the world. Rarely do they even have an access to competent weapons that might help them in any realistic way. Especially when alone, humanity is woefully weak compared to the even the most standard being from the turnside. A battle between the two of them is not something the human can really survive.
And yet... humanity is not completely powerless. After all, they have the power of their soul, their psyche, which shines deep within them. It allows them to grow, allows them to adapt, allows them to face great dangers with determination and seek a way out even from the most hopeless of situations. Experience grants knowledge, and if a human can survive one encounter with the supernatural, their chances to survive another raise drastically. When this experience piles up, when humans learn of what they are facing and what they must do to survive, they slowly grow up to be a credible threat even to a beast of the turnside.
Still, for human to get that far, they must first survive. And what is where their psyche comes in. The strength of the human soul is so vast that it can bend the probabilities around the human him- or herself to ensure that the human in question remains alive. They can momentarily heighten one's senses, make one faster, help one strike harder... like a surge of adrenaline, but coming from the very soul of a human itself. It is a power that allows mothers to lift vehicles to save their children and for soldiers to sustain terrible injuries just to get back home to see their loved ones.
Depending on the Rank of your WIL, you will gain a certain amount of Psyche Points. Psyche Points can be utilized in various parts of the game in order to bolster your own chances of survival or to add a little extra power to what you do. This PP is regained at the start of each morning fully, meaning that you have maximum amount of PP for each day. Still, be careful in how and when you use it. After all, if you keep relying on your luck, there will come a time when your luck runs out...
While by no means a comprehensive list, here are some things you can use your PP for in-game. All of these examples are things that last only for 1 turn. If there's something else you'd like to utilize your points in, do not hesitate to suggest that to the GM.