Earth Elementalist questions

[jml]

Hello,

I'm filling up the corners for a fighter NPC with mastery of the element Earth and I am having some troubles with a couple of powers.

First, I want something like draconic tremorsense from D&D. That is, the character can sense and target creatures who are touching the ground. This is probably limited in radius somehow. Here's how I'm doing this now:

Ground Beneath Your Feet: Spatial Awareness (Unusual Group), Increased Arc of Perception (360 Degrees) (27 AP); Costs END (-1/2), Only When In Contact With The Ground (-1/4)

Second, I want the character to be able to sink into the earth. Effects: the character's location is nigh-undetectable; the character is as difficult to destroy as the ground that he is in; the character cannot move; and the character only has access to his tremorsense, otherwise he is blind.

I'm thinking something like Invisibility on sight and smell and some sort of defensive power. Desolidification also occurred to me, but I don't think it's right. I have no idea how to model the limitations.

cheers,
jml

[Dr. Evil]

Second, I want the character to be able to sink into the earth. Effects: the character's location is nigh-undetectable; the character is as difficult to destroy as the ground that he is in; the character cannot move; and the character only has access to his tremorsense, otherwise he is blind.


Desolid is the way to go, IMHO. Perhaps Invisibility linked with the Desolid to be undetectable. Power Lims might be "0 SPD, Only While Using Power; -1", and "Cannot See, Only While Using Power; -1".

[Fireg0lem]

How about Tunneling with Invisible Power Effects, Only to Go 1" Into the Ground And Come Back Up Later (-2), and a Linked Invisibility?

[Jhamin]

How about Tunneling with Invisible Power Effects, Only to Go 1" Into the Ground And Come Back Up Later (-2), and a Linked Invisibility?

This method makes you hard to find, but not hard to damage. Dr. Evil's method makes you visible to anyone who can see into the earth but hard to damage.

[badger3k]

Desolid is the way to go, but I wouldn't put it to SPD 0 (then you'd never be able to get out of it). If the character cannot move, I'd add that as a lim (Cannot move through material or Only to move into/out of earth). For the Tremorsense, I'd go with that, but add Only for targets that are touching the earth, since it is useless against flying beasties (unless you mean both the one with tremorsense and the targets by the limitation you have).

[Lightray]

Either variation - tunneling or desolidification - would benefit from some linked Life Support.

[Fireg0lem]

This method makes you hard to find, but not hard to damage. Dr. Evil's method makes you visible to anyone who can see into the earth but hard to damage.

I'd argue that if you're actually buried in the ground, you get the defense of the ground on top of your own - ie, to damage you, an attack has to cut through the DEF+BODY of the ground.

[Savinien]

When the desolid turns off, you're no longer using the power and therefore, no longer in the ground. Dr. Evil has covered the lot of it.

Also, anything that would normally affect the ground would affect the NPC and that would be the weakness to the Desolid.

YMMV

[jml]

Thanks, all of these posts really helped -- it's good to see how to figure these things out. I'm going to go with Dr Evil's model for sinking into the earth.

Can't wait till 5ER arrives... a written reference to the HERO rules would be very cool.

jml