I've noticed a few posts of people trying to deny themselves the pure joy and educational opportunity of tinkering with their favorite characters. I understand it can be overwhelming st first, but that's why I'm here. I believe that being comfortable with adjusting characters is very important (especially as a Narrator) because IT HELPS YOU LEARN HOW THE GAME WORKS. Having a decent foundation of what factors actually determine a Rank and being familiar with traits and powers will help your games run smoother, which translates to more fun at the table.

Before I get into my own stuff, I want to plug Fuzzy on the Details' YouTube channel he has a short series on understanding the game's mechanics, character building, and running MMRPG.. personally I think anyone wanting to get into this game should spend the cumulative hour and check out his videos.

https://youtube.com/@fuzzyonthedetails?si=-hJHPiJHPKYPboFO

Ok, where is the best place to start when de-ranking a character? My preferred method is with a blank character sheet, as for me, it's easier to build up using the original character as a reference than to copy everything and try to remove the correct amount of stuff. Let's also look at "What is a Rank" Ranks are a summary number that reflects the total number of attribute points, powers, and traits a character has. Per Rank, characters get 5 attribute points, 4 powers, and 1 trait. So if you're wanting a particular character to be Rank 3, for example, you're asking for a version of that character that has 15 attribute points, 12 powers, and 3 extra traits.

Ok, so you have your blank character sheet, the original character profile for reference, and an understanding of Ranks.. how do we start making magic happen?

Origin, Occupation, and Traits: In that order, start by copying the Origin and Occupation from the original character, then looking them up in the Core Rulebook (CRB). You will notice that many origins and occupations grant traits and tags, copy those down onto your character sheet. These do not count toward your "one trait per rank", and it allows you to now look back at the original character and figure out which traits they chose for their Rank. You can pick a number of these extra traits equal to your desired Rank and copy them onto your new character sheet. Reading up on what the traits do will help you determine which ones to pick.. if you want, nothing is stopping you from picking an entirely different trait if you think it fits. So you should have your origin/occupation traits plus 1 for each rank.

Powers: This is going to be the most time consuming, page swapping part of the process, but once you get familiar with how power sets work/flow it gets easier. First, spend some time looking at the powers on the original character's profile, and try to ask yourself which powers best represent what you want the character to do. Keep in mind the total number of powers you will have available to pick.. as the bigger the rank gap, the more choosy you'll have to be.

Now go back to your new character sheet. Starting with basic powers, copy the rank 1 version (oc has Mighty3, write Mighty 1 for now) of any basic powers your character has. My personal rule of thumb is that you shouldn't have more basic/power boosting powers than half your total available powers, because you still want some attacks and flavor powers. So for rank 2, not having more than 4 of your 8 powers be basic powers. Now tweak the basic powers (ranking them up, or removing them to meet your budget).

From here use the rest of your power picks to pick the powers that allow you to do what you want the character to be able to do. Be mindful of the power trees at the near back of the CRB, and rank requirements of each power. YOU NEED TO TAKE SUBSEQUENT POWERS IN ORDER TO TAKE POWERS HIGHER ON THE TREE. Elemental Blast, for example, will cost 2 of your powers because you'll need to take Elemental Burst first. I highly recommend having at least one attack power instead of relying on basic attacks. Now pick powers that fit in your budget, and remember your thematic bonus! If you pick from fewer power sets than your Rank, not counting basic powers, you get that many extra power picks or attribute points. Example, you are Rank 3, but you only picked basic powers and Elemental control powers. That only counts as 1 power set, so you'd get two extra power picks (or attribute points).

1. Attributes: easiest part.. follow your budget of 5 attribute points per rank. You can follow the basic spread of the OC and get pretty good results, though sometimes it's worth tweaking the ratios a bit to get a more effective character. The reason we picked powers first was because now you should have an idea of what attributes you'll be utilizing the most. It's best if those are the highest.

And boom. You did it. Copy the tags that apply from the OC and you've got a ranked down character! I highly recommend starting with something simple and low rank to get the hang out if. I think taking a rank 4 down to rank 2 is the best place to start!

Feel free to comment your own advice for de- ranking or questions you have!