Adaptable Defenses

[Armory]

I had an idea reading phoenix240's character Brickhouse.  In the description it states "...her body could adapt to almost any environmental conditions and trauma."  I didn't see a character sheet, but I got to thinking about adapting to trauma.

 

I want to build Damage Reduction that only kicks in after the character has been hit.  For instance, say she's hit with an electrical Blast.  The first shot she applies only her base ED.  But that shot triggers a Damage Reduction vs. Electricity, so from that point on she's essentially invulnerable to that SFX.  Until she's hit with something else, like a punch.  Then the Damage Reduction switches over to Physical, and no longer applies to electricity.  Almost-kinda like Ultra-Boy in the Legion of Super-Heroes, in that she can only be invulnerable to one thing at a time.

 

Below is my first crack at it.

 

Try That Again:  Energy Damage Reduction, Resistant, 75%, Variable Special Effects (Any SFX (Character does not control the change); Switches to the SFX of the most recent Attack; +1/4), Uncontrolled (+1/2), Trigger (Activating the Trigger is an Action that takes no time, Trigger resets automatically, immediately after it activates, Character does not control activation of personal Trigger; +3/4) (150 Active Points); No Conscious Control (-2)  (Real Cost: 50 Points)

 

I reduced the +1/2 for Any SFX to +1/4 since she can't control it.  I used the Set Trigger option instead of Variable Trigger, and defined it as "any attack".  Not sure if either of those is legit.

 

I think I'd need to buy it twice, once for Energy and once for Physical, since Variable SFX won't cover that part of it.

 

Thoughts?

[massey]

You don't need any Advantages on it.

 

75% Energy Damage Reduction, Resistant

only versus the special effects of most recent attack (-1)

30 points

 

 

You don't need anything to "switch" the power, because your base power applies to all energy effects automatically.  All you're doing is making it worse, ergo it's just a limitation.

[Armory]

I figured I was over-thinking it.  Or, under-thinking it actually.

[Surrealone]

You don't need any Advantages on it.

 

75% Energy Damage Reduction, Resistant

only versus the special effects of most recent attack (-1)

30 points

 

 

You don't need anything to "switch" the power, because your base power applies to all energy effects automatically.  All you're doing is making it worse, ergo it's just a limitation.

Keep in mind that unless there's handwaving going on this works ONLY against energy-based attacks since it is Energy Damage Reduction.  i.e. It's not Physical Damage Reduction ... and wouldn't work against a punch ... to use the original example.  To get that effect I suspect you'd need to purchase both Physical and Energy Damage Reduction ... each with a limitation of working only against the SFX of the most recent attack.  Note that if only one form of Damage Reduction (either physical or energy) could work at a time, then I believe you'd be able to layer that additional limitation into both of the Physical and Energy Damage Reduction powers, as well.  (The two powers, together, might work well as the constituent powers of a small multipower, wherein the Lockout limitation is taken to represent only one of the two being usable at a time? If so, it begs the question of how to make the slots 'switch' -- Trigger, maybe?)

[Armory]

Right, I would need to buy it twice, for Energy and Physical. 

 

I like the Multipower and Lockout idea because, as I over-thought it some more, just using one Limitation to restrict the SFX, while I'll need that too, doesn't give me the main effect I'm looking for:

 

The DR isn't there at all until the character is hit first;

The DR doesn't work against that first shot.  That's how the character acquires the defense, by her body adapting to the attack.  It will hurt the first time, but will *ping* after that, until she's hit by something else.

 

So I would use the Trigger as in my first build to switch between two Locked Out slots.  I'll try that on when I can get back to HD.

[Mister E]

"Meta-Immune System I": VPP, 30 Pool + 90 Control Cost; Requires A CON Roll (-1 to roll per 10 ap; +0),Character Has No Choice How Or When Power Changes (Power Changes When Hit With An Attack To The Power Attacked With; -1), No Conscious Control (Character Cannot Activate Power Nor Control How Power Is Used; -2). (41 cp)

 

"Meta-Immune System II": Personal Immunity To 90 ap Power In "Meta-Immunity I" VPP (-1/4). (18 cp)

 

--

 

The VPP can mimic any Power one Power at a time after first contact with Power if successful with a CON Roll.

 

The mimicked power cannot be consciously used in any way other than as a component of the naked/independent Personal Immunity advantage.

[massey]

Right, I would need to buy it twice, for Energy and Physical. 

 

I like the Multipower and Lockout idea because, as I over-thought it some more, just using one Limitation to restrict the SFX, while I'll need that too, doesn't give me the main effect I'm looking for:

 

The DR isn't there at all until the character is hit first;

The DR doesn't work against that first shot.  That's how the character acquires the defense, by her body adapting to the attack.  It will hurt the first time, but will *ping* after that, until she's hit by something else.

 

So I would use the Trigger as in my first build to switch between two Locked Out slots.  I'll try that on when I can get back to HD.

 

Again, forget the trigger.  You're just making things more expensive than they need to be.

 

 

75% rED Damage Reduction (60 active), only vs last special effect (-1), not if PD reduction is active (-1/2)

75% rPD Damage Reduction (60 active), only vs last special effect (-1), not if ED reduction is active (-1/2)

 

Total cost: 24 each (48 total)

 

That's probably cheaper than you'd get by doing it with a multipower with an auto-resetting trigger.

[Surrealone]

Again, forget the trigger.  You're just making things more expensive than they need to be.

 

 

75% rED Damage Reduction (60 active), only vs last special effect (-1), not if PD reduction is active (-1/2)

75% rPD Damage Reduction (60 active), only vs last special effect (-1), not if ED reduction is active (-1/2)

 

Total cost: 24 each (48 total)

 

That's probably cheaper than you'd get by doing it with a multipower with an auto-resetting trigger.

 

After review, Massey has assigned the same value (-1/2) as lockout to the 'not if X reduction is active' limitation -- so there's the lockout. That said, I agree with Massey about the trigger this one ... specifically because while it IS advantageous for the proper defense (energy or physical) for a given SFX to enable itself after being hit ... it's also potentially disadvantageous when being shot while also in HTH combat -- so it balances at 0.

 

I think the last detail to consider is the 'only vs last special effect (-1)' limitation -- just to make sure it has the consequence you desire. Note the wording is specific to given special effects -- which means if you just got hit with an ED-based electrical attack, your Energy Damage Reduction will work vs incoming electrical attacks ... but not vs fire attacks.  This may be what you are after (I'm not familiar with Brickhouse, so I don't know), but if not and you want to make it more generic ... then the limitation becomes worth less as it becomes more generic (obviously).

[mrinku]

I'd add in Unified Power on that.

 

Reminds me of a type of defensive module from EVE Online.

[Armory]

I think the last detail to consider is the 'only vs last special effect (-1)' limitation -- just to make sure it has the consequence you desire. Note the wording is specific to given special effects -- which means if you just got hit with an ED-based electrical attack, your Energy Damage Reduction will work vs incoming electrical attacks ... but not vs fire attacks.  This may be what you are after...

 

That is what I'm looking for, yes.  It means the character is in danger of being one-shot, so she'll need some significant base defenses to start with.  This whole idea could fall apart under combat conditions, we'll see.  I'll also need to decide if I want the Last SFX Lim on the Physical DR, but I definitely want it on the Energy DR.

 

To be clear, Brickhouse isn't my character, there was just something in the description that got my wheels turning.

 

Thank you, gang, for letting me pick your brains!

[Armory]

Again, forget the trigger.  You're just making things more expensive than they need to be.

 

 

75% rED Damage Reduction (60 active), only vs last special effect (-1), not if PD reduction is active (-1/2)

75% rPD Damage Reduction (60 active), only vs last special effect (-1), not if ED reduction is active (-1/2)

 

Total cost: 24 each (48 total)

 

That's probably cheaper than you'd get by doing it with a multipower with an auto-resetting trigger.

 

I've used up my "likes" today so this post didn't get one, but thanks massey!

[dsatow]

Or you can buy say DR 1/1 and absorption into DR, one for PD and one for ED.  Each hit will hurt less and less.

[Era Scarecrow]

Or you can buy say DR 1/1 and absorption into DR, one for PD and one for ED.  Each hit will hurt less and less.

I've never quite understood absorption because it seems it has a limit similar to aid, where once you hit the max value that's it... And absorption is 2x the points unless you use an adder...

[dsatow]

Actually a better build with absorption might be like this:

 

39 Absorption 14 Body Physical to Absorption, absorption as a resistant defense +1, Delayed Return Rate 5 per minute +1, Increased x4 +1/2, Unified Power -1/4

39 Absorption 14 Body Energy to Absorption, absorption as a resistant defense +1, Delayed Return Rate 5 per minute +1, Increased x4 +1/2, Unified Power -1/4

 

This would give him 14 points of defense against the attack and every 14 Body absorbed increases the defense by 4 and amount absorbed by 16, giving him an endless PD/ED.