Cyphers, Numenera, and YOU!

Numenera is an incredibly awesome game.  I've already gone off about it, but if you don't own it or don't know about it, you should probably check it out (and likely buy it) here: Numenera by Monte Cook Games

One of the brilliant things about Numenera is the Cypher and Artifact system.  The true beauty of it is that it takes William Gibson's writing philosophy of "The Street Will Find Its Own Use" and injects it straight into a faster-than-light drive.  Boiling it down, Cypher in Numenera are remnants of bygone technology that now do something useful in a manner they were not originally intended.  An unstable power core from an old vehicle is a grenade.  An old portable entertainment system is now a displacer cloak style adornment that broadcasts multiple images of you for a few minutes.  A charged energy crystal can be affixed to your armor to deliver a nasty jolt to anyone attacking you, or to your trusty weapon to make it a combo weapon/taser.

And that's not even touching on the artifacts.

This article is a reference document for some of the custom  cyphers that I have come up with and used (or have yet to unleash) in my Numenera games.  Cyphers with similar effects can look wildly different.  One unstable power core that is now a grenade can be a rusty hunk of strange metal, while the next one could be biomechanical, or completely organic, or even stranger.  I've included how I personally envisioned them, but if you decide to use one from this list, please change it up as you desire to make it fit the mood and environment in which it is found.  That's part of the glory of Numenera... you always have to keep things weird.

Temporal Stones.
A blue glass orb with a red panel on one side that seems to be filled with a grey liquid or gas.
The stone is activated by thumbing the panel, then thrown (or slung) towards the target.  If the stone strikes the target, the target repeats the last action it took.  If a cost was paid for that action, no additional points need to be spent.

Hazy Shade of Spray
A small crystal canister that appears to contain small stormclouds.
When used, it fills the immediate area with nanites that travel near the canister.  The nanites will attach to any invisible or clear item and project scintillating light.

Brickwash:
Small glass orbs of thick brown/red liquid that feels like a gritty paste.
When smashed and rubbed  on the skin, it hardens the body against assault, granting 2 pts of armor and lasting 1 hour.  For the duration, all speed defense tests are one step more difficult.

Moonfruit:
A pale white fruit about the size of an eyeball.
When eaten, the PC can see in the dark for 28 hours, but their eyes glow a pale white color and they can not speak above a hoarse whisper.

Three-Eyed Squid Stone
Small, six inch statue of a mass of tentacles  -- When activated, 3 glowing gold eyes appear in orbit around it.  Activates for 10 minutes.
Creates an extradimensional field which removes organic and mechanical life forms from the dimension, though they remain visible.  All affected life forms can still communicate, but no combat or external effects can be used, and nothing the life forms do can affect the rest of the world.  A life form can still use esoteries, skills and powers on itself, however.

Kiss of Karu'zul
Small vial of black liquid which, when shaken, produces a faint musical chiming
When quaffed it will heal 1d6 might and restore half that to a pool of the imbiber's choice.
Side Effect:  Makes everything taste like rotten meat for two days, and causes all body fluid to become acidic and/or explosive.

Mechanical Jackalope:
Glass and steel statue of a small, two headed ground rodent with horns, antlers, or antennae.
When activated (stays active for 2 hours) the statue animates and begins to scan the area for bits of salvage, cyphers, or artifacts.  The good part is that it finds things.  The bad part is that it doesn't discriminate what it finds, and will occasionally activate/destroy things in the course of digging.

Unrelenting Past
A white orb full of thick blue goo
When eaten, nanites restructure the user's brain to give them total recall of memories.  Also, anything experienced for the next two weeks can never be forgotten.

Groundserpent Oil
A small clay bottle of spicy smelling liquid, also produced in pill form
Made from the prismatic ground serpent, this externally applied liquid gives a boost in confidence and a unique aroma to the user, who then counts as 'trained' in all matters of social interaction for the next four hours.

Antennae Grub
An odd, metallic caterpillar about three inches long
When placed on the head, it burrows several hind legs in to the skull and begins to transmit sonar-sight in to the forebrain.  Lasts for 28 hours.

Rain Bomb
A six inch diameter crystal orb full of white ooze with several wires attached to the outside
When broken, this cypher creates a sudden storm effect.  Player rolls d20 for result:
1 - 2 feet of ground fog over short range
2 - waist high fog for short range
3 - light snow in area for 20 mins
4 - heavy snow and wind in area for 10 mins
5 - sudden cold multicolored rain for 10 mins
6 - 40 mph musical winds for 10 mins
7 - 60 mph silent winds for 10 mins
8 - a searing sandstorm for 10 mins
9 - hail, pea sized, for 5 mins.  Unarmored/unsheltered individuals may take damage per GM
10 - blizzard like snow for 30 mins
11 - heavy rains for 8 hours, may cause flooding
12 - thick, pea soup fog for 5 miles, lasting 4 hours
13 - temperature drops by 40 degrees for an hour within long range
14 - vicious hail, up to golf ball sized, can do considerable damaged to unarmored/unsheltered individuals
15 - blizzard for 2 hours
16 - torrential downpour, 1 hour, monsoon strength.  Might test to not be knocked off footing when trying to move.
17 - tornado
18 - rain of frogs
19 - pick one from table above
20 - pick two from table above

Double-headed circuit snake
A small blue box with a cable coming out of two opposite sides.  Ends of each cable end in a jaw-like clamp.
The circuit snake is a power conduit/transformer that will route power from any device to any other device, and will not overcharge the receiving device.  After it is done, it fries out, and destroys itself.  This can be very useful in recharging depleted artifacts.

Seeds of Shas-Balu
A soft, spongy orb that explodes in a non-damaging puff of ochre spores when thrown or suffers an impact.
The shas-balu is a quickly growing fungal life form that is highly aggressive.
-- If thrown during the daytime the spores cause choking, coughing, blindness, and possibly death.  Might defense vs. diff four or take 5 points of might damage and go blind.   Also speed vs. diff 4 or take 5 points of speed and you can not communicate vocally or physically from coughing and shaking.
-- If thrown during the night time the spores will grow in 4 rounds to a highly evolved fungal predator that will last until dawn unless slain.
Shas-Balu
Health 25
Level 4
Armor 3
Trained in tracking, sneaking, and hand to hand
Takes double damage from fire and cold
Any electrical damage done to the Shas-balu heals it instead of harms.

Bifuricaine
Usually injected, sometimes a pill form.
When taken, a large black discoloration appears on the skin.  The taker ceases to feel all pain and gains 10 might pool for 1 week, as well as +5 to all recovery tests.  At the end of 1 week, the PC falls into a coma from which they can not wake for 1 day, during which the discoloration begins to swell and grow into a fist-sized tumor.  Sometime during that day (usually when no one is watching) the tumor detaches and rolls/floats/digs its way through the ground to get away.  One week later, a complete clonal copy of the PC begins to track it down in order to slay the PC.