Character Creation

In this bleak place there are two types of human beings. The lucky ones, born free in Zion, stand as the last bastion of humanity on Earth.  From an early age, they are taught how to operate, program and hack computers. Each one is given the necessary instruction on the interpretation of the complicated Matrix code. Some choose to be Operators, to assist Jumpers when they return to the Matrix.  Others choose to pilot the hacker ship hovercrafts, or to fix the endless cores of Zion. Many still choose to defend their city from the machines which try to invade it and kill it’s every living inhabitant. Those who fight use either their own natural talents and skills or the Apu exoskeleton.

The other breed of human is held captive in a prison they have no perception of and fed a world where they live out their entire lives in nothing more than an illusion.  A complicated computer program made up of variables, sub-routines and electronic files.  But to these damned souls, it is unquestionably real.  In the Matrix, people feel, taste, smell, see and hear with the clarity of humans in the Real World. They are grown from infants to adults, experiencing all the joys and pains of the human condition, as it has been for the species' entire history within this vast simulation. This simulation functions as a perfect mimic of the real world. The physical laws of the universe are hardwired into the system:  gravity, time, entropy, relativity, and electro-magnetism.

Some of these enslaved humans have discovered these laws are as illusionary as everything else in the Matrix.  With this knowledge, they are able to unlearn their expectations of the physical world and, while in the Matrix, perform formidable feats even the Machines and their minions cannot mimic.

Attributes

Remember even a score of 11 or 12 will set a character apart from his immediate peers, a 13 or 14 will make him stand out in his society at large, and an attribute of 15+ is world-class. Avoid going overboard with high attributes by keeping three factors in mind: Context. At a critical moment, a strategically positioned, slightly above-average man may be remembered as something of a wonder compared to his merely average peers. Both sycophantic contemporaries and admiring historians occasionally make outrageous claims like, "He was the strongest and wisest man of his time." The person being described in such situations was most likely exceptional, but this doesn’t make him the strongest, wisest, etc., man in the world nor does it entitle him to an extreme attribute score of 18, 20 or more. Most of these "wonders" were likely 12s, 13s and 14s among the 9s, 10s and 11s.

Aptitude

If the character's defining trait is prodigious inborn talent in a narrow area controlled by one of GURPS' broad attributes, use an appropriate "aptitude" advantage rather than a high attribute score to reflect this. Alertness and Strong Will, Charisma (for leaders), Language Talent (for men of letters), Mathematical Ability (for scientists), Musical Ability (for musicians), Single-Minded (for the dedicated) and Versatile (for the multi-talented) can replace high IQ; Manual Dexterity (for artists and craftsmen) can stand in for high DX, and Fit/Very Fit (for athletes) and Hard to Kill (for survivors of assassination attempts) can be used instead of high HT.

Skill

If the character's defining trait is amazing skill in a specific field of endeavour, give him high skill levels in that field, not an excessive score in the controlling attribute. Artistic skills can be viewed as "inborn talents", and many skills replace or enhance attribute scores for the purpose of one specific task (e.g., Jumping skill).

ST and HT

A case can be made the average ST and HT should vary by time and place due to differences in diet, physical activity, hygiene and so on, but for the purpose of GURPS character design, please rate them in relative terms. This means an average character from any time or place on Earth will have ST 10, HT 10, and exceptional scores will always be measured from that baseline. A similar remark applies to Appearance.

IQ

This includes education, and one could argue that average IQ should vary from place to place and time to time.  Once more, we are setting the average at 10 in all historical settings, and request that this be used as the baseline in all cases.

Advantages

All characters, regardless of it they are pod born or normally born, have basic advantages. Everyone is exceptional at something. These Advantages apply in the Matrix as well.

Matrix Advantages

These Advantages may only be taken by the pod born humans.

Disadvantages

All characters, regardless of it they are pod born or normally born, have basic Disadvantages. Almost everyone has a flaw of some kind. These Disadvantages apply in the Matrix as well.

Quirks

These are the things a person’s personality traits. They are not Advantages, nor are they Disadvantages. They are simply something unique about the character.

Skills

Most "masters" will have skill level 16-20 in their area of expertise; skill levels over 25 aren't realistic.  Keep in mind the knowledge of a real-life expert is usually better characterized by its astounding breadth rather than by its excessive depth.