Cypher System Types:

• Warrior: Fighter type
• Adept: Magical type
• Explorer: Adventurer type (Indiana Jones)
• Speaker: Bardic type

Unmasked Types:

• Smasher: Barbarian type
• Thinker: Intelectual type
• Mover: Speedster
• Changer: Stirs hearts type

Numenera

• Jack

ADEPT (Cypher System Rulebook, Page 29)
You master powers or abilities outside the experience, understanding, and sometimes belief of others. They might be magic, psychic powers, mutant abilities, or just a wide variety of intricate devices, depending on the setting.

Modern: psychic, occultist, witch, practitioner, medium, fringe scientist
Superhero: mage, sorcerer, power-wielder, master, psion, telepath

Adepts are almost always emblematic of the paranormal or superhuman in some way—wizards, psychics, or something similar. If the game you’re playing has absolutely none of that, an adept could be a charlatan mimicking such abilities with tricks and hidden devices, or a gadgeteer character with a “utility belt” full of oddments.

EXPLORER (Cypher System Rulebook, Page 38)
You are a person of action and physical ability, fearlessly facing the unknown. You travel to strange, exotic, and dangerous places, and discover new things. This means you’re physical but also probably knowledgeable.

Modern: athlete, explorer, adventurer, drifter, detective, scholar, spelunker, trailblazer, investigative reporter
Superhero: adventurer, crimefighter

Not all explorers are out traipsing through the wilderness or poking about an old ruin. Sometimes, an explorer is a teacher, a scientist, a detective, or an investigative reporter. In any event, an explorer bravely faces new challenges and gathers knowledge to share with others.

JACK (Numenera Corebook, Page 40)
Jacks are intrepid explorers and adventurers. They are jacks of all trades—hence the name—although the word also hearkens back to fables involving a wily, resourceful hero who always seems to be named Jack. Used as a verb, “to jack” means to steal, to deceive, or to get out of a tight scrape through ingenuity or luck.

Jacks don’t use one skill or tactic exclusively; they use whatever weapons, armor, esoteries, or anything else that might help them. They are hunters (particularly treasure hunters), con artists, skalds, rogues, scouts, and experts in a variety of fields.

SPEAKER (Cypher System Rulebook, Page 44)
You’re good with words and good with people. You talk your way past challenges and out of jams, and you get people to do what you want.

Modern: diplomat, charmer, face, spinner, manipulator, minister, mediator, lawyer

Superhero: charmer, mesmerist, puppet master

Speakers are smart and charismatic. They like people and, more important, they understand them. This helps speakers get others to do what needs to be done.

WARRIOR (Cypher System Rulebook, Page 22)

You’re a good ally to have in a fight. You know how to use weapons and defend yourself. Depending on the genre and setting in question, this might mean wielding a sword and shield in the gladiatorial arena, an AK-47 and a bandolier of grenades in a savage firefight, or a blaster rifle and powered armor when exploring an alien planet.

Modern: police officer, soldier, watchman, detective, guard, brawler, tough, athlete

Superhero: hero, brick, bruiser

Warriors aren’t always soldiers or mercenaries. Anyone who is ready for violence, or even potential violence, might be a warrior in the general sense. This includes guards, watchmen, police officers, sailors, or people in other roles or professions who know how to defend themselves with skill.

SMASHER (Unmasked Source book, Page 33)

Smashers follow the old motto of walk softly and, uh . . . smash everything in sight. Their first and last thought when confronted by a threat is usually, “Can I hit it?” If the answer is yes, you’d better get out of their way.

These mask-forms are often big and brawny, but again, not always. Some Smashers are psychics and don’t need muscles to get the damage done.

THINKER (Unmasked Source book, Page 38)

Thinkers live in their mind, two minutes ahead of the rest of the world. Sometimes their powers are psychic, sometimes physical, and sometimes a mix, but they are always concerned with outcomes, likely actions, and directing matters towards a desired conclusion.

Most Thinker maskforms are small, but again, there is no restriction. Their constant calculation sometimes makes them appear distant and hard to communicate with.

MOVER (Unmasked Source book, Page 42)

Movers are sure that where they are must certainly be less interesting than where they are not. As such, they’re always in motion.

These mask-forms tend to be small and fast, but not always. This alacrity sometimes affects more than just their movement speed or focus abilities sometimes their mouths run a bit fast, too.

CHANGER (Unmasked Source book, Page 46)

Changers change things. Whether their target is a mind or an object doesn’t really matter. Some Changer mask-forms are really good-looking, others know just what to say and when, and still others can reach into the mind of a target or force the physical nature of an object to change.

Changers are all about relationships—between people, places, and things. They like to smooth over disagreements and make plans work.