Teleporting objects to you

[The Alien]

I'm working on a magical effect for a character of mine. I would like to have the character be able to teleport objects(from within line of sight and range of course) to him.

I immediately thought of the Float Like A Teleporter, Sting Like A Bee power I'd seen in the online USPD: (http://www.herogames.com/USPD/teleportation.htm)

Stretching 8", Does Not Cross Intervening Space (+1/4) (50 Active Points); No Noncombat Stretching (-1/4), No Velocity Damage (-1/4), Instant (-1/2). Total cost: 25 points

That could work well. I was pondering the value of "only to pick up objects" limitation when I realized I wanted this to work to grab things away from people. This leads me to the following questions...

How much of a limitation is "Only for Grabs" or "Only to Grab objects" for such a power? Grabbing a person probably wouldn't work anyway(they would only be grabbed for an instant), so excluding that wouldn't be worth any points, I imagine. But if an object is grabbed away from someone, it is now in my "hands" and not their hands, so when my "hands" pop back from whence they came, I'm still holding the object, much as if I'd used the power to pick something up off the ground. At least, so I believe.

The character this is intended for isn't very strong. How much of a limitation should "Only for Grabs" be when applied to strength? Would it be lame to try to 'grab' unattended objects with strength with such a limitation?

As a final note, I might recycle this power onto a different character some day. Teleporting local objects around is a fine teleporter trick. For many such characters, I would probably Link the Stretching and the Strength, but the present character uses a VPP so I don't think that would be legal.

Or would there be a better way to represent this ability that I'm not thinking of?

[CrosshairCollie]

I, personally, would buy it as Teleport Useable As Attack.

[Devon]

I think using Stretching, as you have done, is a creative way to stat the power, but ultimately I think Teleport Useable as Attack is the more clear and established option.

[colinjshiels]

Keep in mind if you use the stretching option you must make a strength vs strength roll to get the focus away from the person who has it.

[The Alien]

Ah, teleport usable as an attack. I have good memories here of a character made just after I got The Blood & Dr. McQuark. Teleport, extradimensional, usable on others, usable at range. "You go to the Inferno. Now YOU go to the Inferno, now you..."

(Hey, I was 12 or 13 at the time.)

Teleport usable as an attack seems more flexible and generally more powerful than what I was going for. When I get home I'll examine my book and see how I might limit that.

[The Alien]

I don't see any mechanic for resolving use of teleport to steal, for example, someone's accessible focus. I don't think just an attack roll is really fair for that sort of thing. Actually, I'm not sure it's even allowable...the only relevant example is that you cannot teleport someone without their armor or vice versa, which is clearly a question involving inaccessible foci.

[Blue Jogger]

The new options for Stretching is great for short distance tricks like this. If you don't have the strength, however, you need to buy extra Strength with some sort of limitation.

[Old Man]

Using Summon wouldn't work?

[SCUBA Hero]

I don't see any mechanic for resolving use of teleport to steal, for example, someone's accessible focus. I'd go with the same method as shooting at someone's Accessible Focus - a normal Attack Roll (with Range penalties) at -2 (? IDHMBIFOM) OCV.

[CrosshairCollie]

I'd go with the same method as shooting at someone's Accessible Focus - a normal Attack Roll (with Range penalties) at -2 (? IDHMBIFOM) OCV.

That's it. If you just wanted the power to be 'teleport objects to you' instead of 'teleport them anywhere in range', it'd just be a limitation (Fixed Location: Right Hand, only to Fixed Location), and a size/weight limit.

[The Alien]

I'd go with the same method as shooting at someone's Accessible Focus - a normal Attack Roll (with Range penalties) at -2 (? IDHMBIFOM) OCV.

I'm still a bit wary of fairness here. With a grab, you need to beat them on a roll. With shooting, you need to actually damage the object. With this, it's just a single attack roll.

This would benefit me, especially when my teammate gets her OAF daggers swiped by some big bruiser...so I don't want to give the wrong impression, but I can also envision my GM saying "That's it? He has no defense?" and then a few sessions later we encounter a bad guy who starts teleporting peoples' foci back to his house or at least out of line of sight.

[CrosshairCollie]

"That's it? He has no defense?"

Well, there are several defenses. First, of course, is not being hit ... not always the most RELIABLE defense, I grant you, but it is there. The attack would still suffer range penalties, and things like cover would certainly apply.

Also, Useable As Attack (UAA) powers require a 'reasonably common' set of defenses that completely nullify the attack. Something as simple, and commonplace, as a Force Field could prevent the attack from happening. What 'reasonably common' constitutes is a GM call, though, of course.

The other defense would be that the power is limited for you; the item goes into your hand, by the definition of the power. Yes, you have a character's blaster pistol ... now, how are *you* going to keep them from taking it back? Additionally, I can guarantee you that, first time you pull that trick, every focus-bearing character on the other team is going to lay into you for fear of being disarmed. Not a GM picking-on situation, but common sense.

[zornwil]

Nobody mentioned TK (I think) - if STR is important, I'd say use that.

[paigeoliver]

Here, I may have worked up a better version.

Thats my lager!

Stretching 8", Does Not Cross Intervening Space (+1/4) (50 Active Points); No Noncombat Stretching (-1/4), No Velocity Damage (-1/4), Instant (-1/2), only against mugs, glasses, and bottles.(-2).

Total cost: 12 points