This equipment will self-destruct...

[concord]

Adversarial group does not want their agents or equipment falling into authority hands... so each of their fanatical agents has a cortex bomb and the equipment has self-destruct mechanisms that destroy/burn out the circuitry...

If these "self-destruct" systems only damage the agent and equipment, would you buy it as part of the character when constructing the agent? or is this a plot device?

Thanks in advance for your input...

[Conduit]

Do you ever want your PC's to be able to stop it? If so, stat it out somehow. If not, it's a plot device.

Even if you did want to let the PCs stop it sometime you could still just go with plot device and let them get to it once.

[Chuckg]

In most official Hero Games supplements that I've seen, self-destruct systems get statted. OTOH, those were self-destruct system for automatons or vehicles, not just foci.

Given that a class of foci exists that can only be used by a designated user -- Personal Foci -- and it costs zero points, I'd rule that self-destructing gear was a special effect for Personal Focus. OTOH, to be fair, I'd also allow the PCs to try and beat the SFX of the self-destruct... for example, if you write down privately "the gun's circuits will melt if the fingerprint sensors in the grip detect the wrong fingerprint", then if the group's gadgeteer comes up with a way to hack a fingerprint sensor (Security Systems roll after first correctly identifying what kind of sensor needs to be hacked, pulling an Images vs. Fingerprint Reader out of his gadget VPP, etc.), voila, the gun is intact for reverse-engineering.

Now, as for killing the *agents* -- again, two ways, One is stat it out (Triggered No Range RKA, Only Affects Character), and the other is to abstract it (Phys Lim: Dies If Captured (Infrequent, Greatly)), and adjudicate whether the PCs can stop it as a question of their SFX vs. your SFX.

[Rapier]

Well, you shouldn't make the characters pay points for a cortex bomb. Its not like they are ever going to trigger it themselves!

Just stat it out, put it on all the character sheets and either drop it to 0 points (the method I would use) or offset it with a Disad of equal cost.

[Chuckg]

Well, you shouldn't make the characters pay points for a cortex bomb. Its not like they are ever going to trigger it themselves!

You mean your Evil Overlords *don't* have fanatically loyal minions who will happily accept suicide missions?

[Lethosos]

You mean your Evil Overlords *don't* have fanatically loyal minions who will happily accept suicide missions?

Well, we do offer a fabulous life insurance policy...

[Lucius]

I think a 3d6/segment Susceptibility, does BODy, will kill the agent before the characters realize he's dying, let alone can do anything about it.

I once built a robot with a "Manufacturer's Recall" power. If anyone tried to disassemble it or hack the operating system or otherwise tamper, it triggered a heavily limited Teleport back to the inventor's hidden lab, with an 8 or less activation, and a huge Killing Attack side effects - if the teleport failed (as it probably would) then only PART of the robot teleported...

Lucius Alexander

Palindromedary Enterprises