General beauty/looks/appearance is only an outward aesthetic. Each race (or even culture) has a range of values for their appearance – normal PC’s fall within these values. Appearance is relative to the particular aesthetic of a species or culture, and can easily change in relation to others. The impact of Physical Beauty should be stated for your campaign, as it may or may not play any role. Social and interpersonal interaction may be influenced by a character’s beauty or aspects of form – it is mostly situational and should be assessed by the GM. Distinct aspects of the character’s form help players envision their characters; these are color and/or shape of body areas, birthmarks/scars/tattoos, eyes, hair or fur, skin, limbs/handedness, age, and gender. Character Aging may also have an impact on the perception of beauty.
The subjectivity of personal preference when it comes to Beauty as a quantifiable attribute or stat is is not a strict measurable mechanic – though it is an aspect of Form Physicality Expression. All characters are to assume they are average looking, and if they want to use beauty in meaningful ways they should adopt the official rules for beauty/looks of form their own approach. Physical beauty is relative to species and cultural norms. In most cases it plays no significant factor – unless a character is shallow enough to be swayed by looks alone over other measurable character attributes or wishes to leverage those that do.
Relative to viewers norms and preferences. This includes…
Outside of this, players cannot assume any general advantages (or disadvantages).
Influences: Dress, style, makeup and other superficial influences may be able to achieve the same adjustments, offset penalties, or situational influences. Any modifiers beyond these would be attributed to serious alien qualities or qualities which inspire actual awe/revulsion (active attraction/avoidance, physical betrayal of feelings), not just social acceptance.
Determining: Because beauty is not an emphasis in the game, and not part of the normal attribute array, it has a simple scale which may be used. It may be determined randomly or by simply accepting the average value and using CP adjustments.
Hideous: Cost: +2 CP > Any checks influenced by appearance may suffer a -2 penalty
The character is negatively striking and memorable by common beauty standards. They are almost alien in appearance and highly distinctive. It takes more than normal cosmetics to mask Hideous looks.
Ugly: Cost: +1 CP > Any checks influenced by appearance may suffer a -1 penalty
The character is unpleasant to view, though not strikingly so. Normal cosmetics can mask this appearance.
Average: Appearance/Looks plays no influence. It is not nondescript per se, but that they possess little in the way of striking features. They may have striking eyes, or a chiseled chin, or thick, lush head of hair – but together their is not enough to separate them from the great variety of average creatures of their species and culture. Normal cosmetics can be used to make the character seem ugly, or attractive.
Attractive: Cost: -1 CP > Any checks influenced by appearance may gain a +1 success
The character is pleasing to view, though not strikingly so. Normal cosmetics can mask this appearance.
Beautiful: Cost: -2 CP > Any checks influenced by appearance may gain a +2 success
The character is positively striking and memorable by common beauty standards. This is not necessarily a good thing if they desire anonymity. Blending into a crowd becomes more difficult. It takes more than normal cosmetics to mask Beautiful looks.
An Aethereal manifestation has little or no distinct aspects – colors, textures, identifying marks, hair, etc. They are often translucent and take on or reflect only a rough outline that is vaguely humanoid or reflective of what they might have once been or represent – often appropriate to their surroundings or the even sometimes the viewer. As such, they most often reflect an ‘average’ appearance in determining their impact.