Nuts & Bolts #75 - Hacking the Cypher System - Cypher System Focus - Opens Doors

The University of Doors. The Dark Tower. Beetlejuice. Locke & Key. The TARDIS. Howl's Moving Castle.

All of those and more brought this idea to bloom. I hope you enjoy, and if you ever use this please let me know if you did.

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Opens Doors

Doors at their most simple are amazing things. They are portals between two places that can allow or bar passage between those places. However, some doors are more than simple passages through walls into adjacent space. Some doors breach the barriers of space, time, and even cross dimensions. With the right door, and the right key, a single step can carry you to new places, new worlds, or even new states of being.

You have studied doors extensively. You understand how to find doors that are hidden, open doors that are barred, and know how to travel the secret paths between doors. With enough training you can connect even forge new connections between doors no matter how far apart they are.

Connection:

1. Pick one other PC. You helped them to escape captivity.
2. Pick one other PC. You stumbled into their life while fleeing through a door.
3. Pick one other PC. You are both seeing something in common.
4. Pick one other PC. You believe that they know of a door you are looking for.

Minor effect suggestion: You forge a connection to the target door, and can find it without fail for the next 24 hours.

Major effect suggestion: You gain a moment of insight into the ways between doors and learn the true location of a door previously unknown to you.

Tier 1: 

Skeleton Key -  You have a key that you created yourself. It can change itself so as to fit into the lock of any door so long as that door uses a key. If lost or destroyed you can create a new key with 8 hours of work and appropriate materials to craft a replacement. Enabler.

The Key Opens the Way (2 Intellect) -  Using your Skeleton Key you can open any locked door so long as it's lock possesses a physical key. This ability will not work for doors that use passwords, codes, biometrics, telepathic locks, or other more exotic forms of security. Action.

Tier 2:

A knowledge of locks. - Your experience with locks has grown substantial. Your key only opens locked doors, but you don't let that stop you. You are trained in all tasks related to opening locks. Enabler

Navigating the ways. - You have looked for the hidden doors & keys that open hidden ways through space, time, and dimensions. Doors no longer bar your way but instead grant you access to all the places you wish to visit. You are trained in all tasks relating to finding and identifying doors, and navigating the secret paths between doors. Enabler.

 Tier 3:

Open the Way (5 Intellect) - You use your Skeleton Key to open a door and in so doing you ply your will to open a way between this door and any other door within 1 mile that you know of. The way remains open until either door is closed again. Alternately if the door in question is attuned to another door, regardless of distance or location, you can open the path to that location. Action.

Tier 4:

Specialized with locks. You are now specialized in all tasks related to opening locks. Enabler.

Sense the Paths (3 Intellect) - You can spend a moment attuning yourself to the energy of the ways and sense any doors attuned to paths linked with other locations within 1 mile of your location. Action. 

Tier 5:

Follow the Way - The range of Open the Way increases to any door on your world that you know of. Enabler

Specialized in Navigating - Your knowledge of the hidden ways between doors and dimensions is now at its zenith. You are specialized in all tasks relating to finding and identifying doors, and navigating the secret paths between doors. Enabler.

Tier 6:

The Infinite Door (8 Intellect) - You use your Skeleton Key to open a door creating a pathway through space to any location you know the name of within your solar system. For each level of effort applied you can increase the distance (1 level of effort for anywhere in the galaxy, 2 levels of effort for anywhere in the universe), or you can breach dimensional barriers and open a pathway to another reality (the GM determined the exact amount of effort required to access the target dimension) . Unless you have the name of a specific door, or have personally been to the target location, you cannot choose exactly what door you will exit from. Action.