How do you Build this?

[Deathwatch]

How do you build this power.

player absorbs both PD and ED 1/2 of this goes to various stats. the other half goes to a VPP that can mimic the effects he has been hit with. the trick here is the VPP has no active PTS. in it except the ones it gains through the absorb .. so i ask you within the rules how is this built.. im having issues on the vpp.

thanks

Deathwatch

[Fireg0lem]

Technically, you need to buy at least the minimum expenditure of CP for your campaign in the VPP, then give the control cost the limitation "Cannot Be Used Until At Least X Points Are Absorbed."

However, I'd let you just buy a 0-point VPP that can only be absorbed to.

Note, though, that the points going to the VPP need to go both to the VPP and also powers within it...see the rules on adjusting frameworks.

[GamePhil]

Eh, what he said.

[Vorsch]

Doesnt a 0pt VPP cost 0 pts?

can i have one ? ( hell make it two im feeling expansive )

[GamePhil]

Well, yeah. How much should it be worth?

Personally, I'd feel more comfortable with a minimum cost VPP, myself, but that is not an entirely unreasonable possibility.

[Fireg0lem]

Given that it is entirely in concept, I'd allow a 0-pt VPP for 0 points. Now this could be abused - for example, a character with Absorption with variable effect at the +2 level and hundreds of 0-point powers all with the same special effects....but this isn't that.

If you really want to be picky, apply the minimum cost rule and charge 1 CP for the pool and 1 CP for the control cost.

[Vorsch]

Whats the minimum cost for a VPP? as most powers are 10pts ( except specials ) then the VPP should be 10pts plus controll cost( as VPP dont allow specials without GM permission ). then theres no skill roll and 0 phase, now the player has to at least think about the cost.

I wouldnt give a VPP to a character for literally 0pts, just think of the advantages he can pile on it.

Actually id make the player buy a huge VPP with your suggested lim ( maybe even NCC) and drop the Absorbtion, adjustment powers are funny in a non hilarious way.

[AngryBug]

If the special effect that you're going for is that the character gets hit with an attack, and now he has the power that hit him, I'd definitely start with as many points as you can afford to put in the VPP, with the limitation Only to mimic the most recent power which has been Absorbed (-1), reflecting that the character cannot control when or how the pool changes.

Having only half the points from Absorption in the pool will mean it will take a loooong time before your VPP will posess more than a fraction of the dice your character is originally hit with. On an average Absorption roll you will be Absorbing AP/10 in Character points (average of 1 BODY/Die, only half go to VPP). Assume your Absorption and an incoming EB are each 60AP, or 12d6. After getting hit once by a 12d6 EB and Absorbing an average of 12 AP, you now have a 1d6 EB in your VPP (half the points went elsewhere, remember). This means on an incoming attack the same AP as your Absorption you will have to get hit 10 TIMES before you will posess the same number of dice as your attacker! That's assuming you've bought down the fade rate, and you're still conscious by the time the 10th attack hits...

The points could still go to your VPP, but having it "topped up" with some ready-to-use AP will make your power much more effective. Assume in the above 12d6 example you had a base of 30 AP in your VPP. This would mean getting hit by a 12d6 EB would give your character a 7d6 EB (6 pts. from Absorption + 30 from the pool) instead of the 1d6 from Absorption alone. Further hits Absorbed will still increase the VPP, but you won't start out so ineffectual.

[Deathwatch]

thanks for your replies .. as well as the word of warning ... we did have a brief discussion on being the most powerful knocked out guy in the game as well so thanks for keeping the weakness of the idea as well.

Deathwatch

[Fedifensor]

Why not have a 5 or 10 point base VPP that can be accessed without rolling Absorption, and add to it from there? If he absorbs PD and ED, just walking around and standing in sunlight should be enough to give him a low-level pool to work with.

[Asperion]

Here is a quick and simple (and dirty) way that I would build this power.

VPP (Mimic Power): Mimics Last Power that was Attacked By (-1/2); No Control of Change (-1); Only upto DCs of Attack (-1/2)

Doing this removes the need for the nasty Absorption Power to power the VPP and GREATLY increases the versitility and usefulness of the character. However the VPP will have to have whatever the max amount that can be duped. If the character is attaced by an attack that exceeds this max the the overage will be lost (it was too much power for the character).