House Rules · GURPS 4e
Life-Cells (Mana Batteries)
GURPS Powerstone economy — Sim vs real, tier caps, seed crystal copy costs, recharge by zone, registration law.
Life-Cells (Mana Batteries)
Game: Orion Corridor — 2277 · Setting: Khesret system · Rules: GURPS Powerstone Legal term: Life-Cell · Street: mana battery
Companion: Khesret Magic System · Enchantment Gadgeteer
Sim vs real
| In the Depth sim | Out here |
|---|---|
| Huge crystals in chests | 100–1000 caps = vault wars, not loadouts |
| Copy any item | Spells + ₡ + materials + rolls + time |
| Unlimited recharge | Void off; ship slow; preserves fast |
Muscle memory isn’t wrong — the physics bill arrived.
Tier table (what exists)
| Capacity | Who owns them | PC craft? |
|---|---|---|
| 1–10 | Licensed hunters, lodges | Yes — expensive |
| 11–30 | Guild / corp | Arc project |
| 31–100 | Vaults, warships | Plot, not grind |
| 100–1000 | State / pre-Exodus myth | MacGuffin |
GURPS creation (Powerstone spell)
- +1 capacity per casting — 20 energy each
- Fail → quirk; crit fail → destroyed
- One Life-Cell at a time when casting (no stacking small stones for one big spell)
- Six-foot rule: larger stone nearby → smaller won’t recharge
- Enchantment Gadgeteer does not skip growth math (table default)
Seed crystal (table)
One 10-capacity Life-Cell — party seed asset. PC may Analyze Magic and copy schematic:
| Phase | Rough ₡ |
|---|---|
| Schematic (once) | ~12,000 |
| Shell (cap 1) | ~10,400 |
| Grow 2→10 (9 steps) | ~23,400 |
| Reserve + registration | ~5,400 |
| First duplicate total | ~₡51,000 + ~200 energy |
Second copy (schematic done): ~₡39,000 + energy. Retail clean 10-cap (broker): ~₡85,000.
Parts (fiction)
| Part | Note |
|---|---|
| Lattice-grown quartz boule | Certified — black market = quirks |
| Bio-resonant electrolyte | Living-world export |
| Astral Court serial filament | Traceable |
| Hex-phase growth serum | Per +1 capacity |
Recharge by zone
| Zone | Speed |
|---|---|
| Deep space | None |
| Verdigris | ~1 MP / week (charge rack upgrade: ask GM) |
| Normal world / hub | ~1 MP / day |
| High preserve | ~1 MP / 12 h (permit) |
| Very high (Fae'ana canopy) | ~1 MP / 6 h (CTL required) |
| From garden pool | 1:1 — overdraw kills plants |
Law
- Register new cells — Astral disclosure / Court notary
- >15 capacity on civilian ship without guild seal → gate trouble
- Seed may flag Sim-trace on scans — register before hub travel if possible
Realistic goals
| Goal | Viable? |
|---|---|
| One backup 10-pt cell | Yes — broke for a month |
| Greenhouse charge rack | Yes — ₡8,500+ |
| 20-pt workshop cell | Maybe — ~₡320k territory |
| 100-pt “like the Sim” | Story only |
| Belt crystal mining | No |
Source canon: WCP_Website/campaign-authoring/palimpsest/KHESRET-MANA-BATTERIES.md