The Blandness Power!

[NisseFrasse]

Greetings all!

I am currently hoIding a HERO campaign with a few friends, and my players have really immersed themselves into the system! Even so much they started to make their own powers, and everything is all fine and good. Recently one of my players asked me how to make a "Blandness power", and I have no really idea how to make one. I believed it be done by Illusions, while two of others have given suggestion of either a power that includes the skills disguise and stealth, and a other player suggested with geting a huge amount of presence, but presence limited to only "Blend into the crowd."  I am very unsure of this and could really use some help how to do this! And example of this exists in Shadowrun of how it's properly working.

"Blandness

The is character blends into any crowd. He is average in height, weight, and appearance, and has a distinct lack of distinguishing physical characteristics or mannerisms. Anyone attempting to describe the character cannot come up with anything more precise than “he was kinda average.” Individuals attempting to shadow or physically locate the character through social means or in even slightly crowded settings receive a –2 dice pool modifier on all tests made during such attempts. The modifier does not apply to magical or Matrix searches."

My friend's character is a supernatural investigator, pretty much Constantine from DC, love the character. So he want a "spell" that make him blend more into crowds, so no one take notice of him or care for him as much. As he want to move around more freely. The spell part of it, I got no problem with, as I know how to properly add the disadvantages to make it a magical spell. But how the power itself it's supposedly to work i don't know how to do. We are playing the Sixth Edition.

Thanks on before hand!
Sincerely NisseFrasse

[Sean Waters]

Have you considered limited invisibility?

[L. Marcus]

Yah -- Invisibility, Fringe, Invisible Power Effect. 

[DasBroot]

That's really what the suggestions boil down to when this question gets asked (which is often).

 

Invisibility with a 'blandness' special effect that doesn't work against magic spells.  

 

There are lots of other ways, too, like Mental Illusion damage shield, change environment that reduces peoples perception, etc... but they're all more pricey, harder to design, and accomplish the same thing: a character gets somewhere they're not supposed to be barring certain types of interference. 

 

Sometimes it seems we get so many calls for Obfuscate (http://whitewolf.wikia.com/wiki/Obfuscate_(VTM)) or Arcane (http://whitewolf.wikia.com/wiki/Arcane) that I wonder if someone might want to take a shot at creating it for an official APG.

[massey]

Invisibility can work (you don't notice the guy).  Shapeshift can work (he just looks perfectly average, and it doesn't matter if people can't remember exactly what he looks like, because the character doesn't really look like that).  Bonuses to certain skill rolls can work as well (you're better at Stealth, Disguise, etc, because people just stop paying attention to you).

 

Any of these can be done legally, it's just up to the player which direction they want to go.

[Sean Waters]

Go left.  Always go left.

[L. Marcus]

Right.

[Lucius]

Blanding into the Crowd: (Total: 28 Active Cost, 8 Real Cost) Shape Shift (Sight Group, limited group of shapes), Imitation, Instant Change (28 Active Points); Limited Power Only to resemble average member of the current crowd the character wants to disappear into (-1), Lockout (Any power that draws attention; -1/2), Restrainable (-1/2), Conditional Power Needs a crowd (-1/2) (Real Cost: 8)

 

Lucius Alexander

 

And a crowd of palindromedaries

[mrinku]

I think Lucius is pretty much spot on here. The spell doesn't prevent him being targeted by sheer bloody bad luck (i.e. he's infiltrating a bank crowd and the robbers happen to pick him as the hostage to be shot next...) or being photographed... it's just that the person photographed can't be identified, so it does sound like a non-specific shapeshift.

 

I'd expand it to cover more than sight, though. For a start, if it conceals the voice, hearing will be needed, and it might cover touch and/or smell as well (you can probably leave Taste alone).  If you want it to work against mental probes, throw that one in as well. Mind Scan can still detect you, but your thoughts are also disguised as bland, uninteresting ones. The spell as I understand it won't provide any actual mental defense... if you're unlucky to be picked as the stooge to walk out in front of a bus as a distraction by Mind Control Mo, he'll be unaware that he's attempting to control Not-John Constantine, but he may still succeed. Of course at that point he's likely to realise the nonentity he picked is something unusual. I realise that part isn't part of the Shadowrun one, but if mental detection is a common thing the player might want that.

 

The "needs a crowd" modifier could be left out if you like. I could see it usable to become a solitary bystander (waiting at a bus stop, derelict sitting by the alley etc). But as with any camouflage it works best used in the right environment. 

 

Edit: Actually, the "Imitation" adder isn't needed as you're not trying to imitate a specific person (quite the opposite). The Limited Group is enough to cover the desired effect.

[IndianaJoe3]

"Blandness

The is character blends into any crowd. He is average in height, weight, and appearance, and has a distinct lack of distinguishing physical characteristics or mannerisms. Anyone attempting to describe the character cannot come up with anything more precise than “he was kinda average.” Individuals attempting to shadow or physically locate the character through social means or in even slightly crowded settings receive a –2 dice pool modifier on all tests made during such attempts. The modifier does not apply to magical or Matrix searches."

 

Given that the primary purpose of the power is to not be seen, I favor the Invisibility approach. Normal sight (perhaps with the fringe effect) and requiring a crowd (or breaking line-of-sight) should be enough. 

[g3taso]

 

Sometimes it seems we get so many calls for Obfuscate (http://whitewolf.wikia.com/wiki/Obfuscate_(VTM)) or Arcane (http://whitewolf.wikia.com/wiki/Arcane) that I wonder if someone might want to take a shot at creating it for an official APG.

 

That is a great idea DasBroot!  Care to whip 'em out for us?

[Lucius]

Edit: Actually, the "Imitation" adder isn't needed as you're not trying to imitate a specific person (quite the opposite). The Limited Group is enough to cover the desired effect.

You have a point - I included it because while not imitating any one person in particular, the Power is imitating everyone in general.

 

Lucius Alexander

 

And an unherd of palindromedaries

[NisseFrasse]

Oh wow! Thanks alot all for the suggestions! I do like the invisibility and the shapeshift! : D

[L. Marcus]

Lugna puckar.

[Mister E]

Extraordinary level INT Skills like Shadowing Disguise or Concealment would work too.

[Tech]

I think Lucius nailed it with Shape Shift because the power is not 'to not be seen', but to not be noticed. He will be noticed if in a crowd only in a general manner (ex: there were 6 people in that crowd but I don't remember what the last guy looked like). I prefer Shape Shift because it's similar to disguise, not invisibility power-wise. To each their own though.

[IndianaJoe3]

I don't like the Shape Shift build because it's convoluted. If the character wanted to become transparent so he could move through the crowd without being noticed we'd all say it was Invisibility. Why do things get more complicated when the player wants the same thing with a different special effect?

[massey]

I don't like the Shape Shift build because it's convoluted. If the character wanted to become transparent so he could move through the crowd without being noticed we'd all say it was Invisibility. Why do things get more complicated when the player wants the same thing with a different special effect?

Depends. What if he wants to talk to people while he's not noticed?

[Lucius]

I don't like the Shape Shift build because it's convoluted. If the character wanted to become transparent so he could move through the crowd without being noticed we'd all say it was Invisibility. Why do things get more complicated when the player wants the same thing with a different special effect?

I expect any Invisibility build that matches the ability described would be just as "convoluted."

 

Lucius Alexander

 

convoluting a palindromedary