Windcharger Contact Build (Transformers Essence20 rpg)

Today's contact build if the last of the Autobots from the original 1984 release: Windcharger!

Of all the original Autobot toys, Windcharger had to be one of the worst. His transformation was infantile-simple, and his robot mode was incredibly uninteresting.

Despite this, he was a great character in the setting. Unlike many other Autobots, Windcharger possessed a superpower: a could control magnetic forces using his arms like poles of an electromagnet. This was something we saw him use to great effect and in lots of creative was during the original G1 animated series. Less so during the Marvel comics, where he barely appeared.

Unfortunately, as his toy was incredibly unpopular, Windcharger was one of the confirmed deaths -- seen next to a dead Wheeljack -- during the Autobot City battle in the '86 Transformers Movie.

WINDCHARGER

“Quick action equals quick victory.”

Of all the Ark's crew who crash-landed on Earth, Windcharger is unquestionably the fastest on the ground, at least for short distances. Windcharger can go from zero to 60 MPH virtually instantly, limited only by the traction between his tires and their driving surface. Frequently, after tearing away with a neck-snapping jerk, he will just as rapidly squeal to a halt to investigate something that caught his eye, for Windcharger is impulsive as well as impatient, both in mind and in body.

In robot mode, Windcharger can energize his arms and make them the poles of a precisely controllable electromagnet, powerful enough to levitate ten tons of steel 700 feet away. With care, he can draw objects gently toward him or hurl them violently away. Also, as the long-suffering laws of physics dictate, this field is extremely strong near Windcharger; at close range, he can tear magnetic objects to shreds.

Unfortunately for Windcharger, his power supply, biased as it is toward a brief, heavy overload, is prone to failure if the overload is too severe or too long-lasting. Even worse, his impulsive nature makes him hardly willing to exercise the mental control he needs to avoid overusing his power. As a result, Windcharger often finds himself stumbling home, reeking of ozone and burned insulation, and needing medical attention and a nice, tall, chilled glass of dielectric oil.

Influences

Experiment, Investigator: Windcharger was an "outlier": a Transformer who had some abnormal skill or attribute that had nothing to do with his alt mode. (He called them his "magic arms".) Functionists hate that crap, so he kept it secret and hung out at the Jhiaxian Academy of Advanced Technology.

Origin

Champion: Windcharger assumes the alt-mode of a Pontiac Firebird Trans Am.

Role and Focus

Scientist (Elementalist): Windcharger has the unique ability to manipulate electromagnetic forces using his arms as separate poles of a magnet.

Essence Scores and Skills

Strength 4: Athletics +d4, Might +d4

Speed 8: Driving +d4, Initiative +d8, Targeting +d4

Smarts 6: Alertness (Situational Awareness) +d6, Technology +d4

Social 6: Deception +d4, Persuasion +d4, Streetwise +d4

Gaining Windcharger As A Contact

Fellow Autobot: If this Contact is on scene, the PCs can summon them for 1 round.

Make a Decision: Windcharger is not one to sit around waiting for his team to make a plan. Acting now and getting something done is better than sitting around and preparing for all the different things that can go wrong. Windcharger admires those who make a choice quickly and stick to their decision. If the PCs spend time with Windcharger and succeed on three DIF 14 Alertness, Driving, and Initiative Skill Tests, they gain Windcharger as a permanent Contact.

Allegiance Points: 3

Contact Perks

Let’s Go! (1 Allegiance Point): One would think that Windcharger is from Velocitron, as fast and impulsive as he reacts. When a PC attempts to reset their Initiative, they gain an Edge and roll the Initiative Skill Test as if Specialized. Their Initiative result using this Contact Perk CANNOT be lower than their current Initiative.

Tractor Beam (2 Allegiance Points): Windcharger uses his magnetic powers to help his allies move across the field of battle. A PC Gains an Aerial Movement equal to their alt-mode Movement speed. This Aerial Movement lasts until the start of their next turn.

Zero to Sixty in Nothing Flat (3 Allegiance Points): Windcharger is known for his speed, and taking off before anyone can stop him. Each PC gains an additional Movement Action in addition to their normal Movement Action for their next turn.

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