Follow up to 'Increased Points of Maximum Effect and Advantages'

[Marcus]

Noted in your response below that Advantages increase the cost/active points of the 'increased maximum effect' Adder for Adjustment Powers.

 

Question:

Spacers Toolkit, P 26, has an Attack Nanobots power. The power is described as a self-sustaining, continously increasing nanobot swarm. This is purchased as an RKA with an attached Aid. The aid splits its points between increasing the size of the Aid, and increasing the AOE on the RKA (And explains that increasing the size of the AOE of the RKA with the aid is not legal- but that isnt germaine to the question). The Aid is 4d6, Maximum of 30 points of effect, Continuous (+1), Uncontrolled (+1/2). If Half Aid goes into making the Aid bigger... it seems that it cannot grow without limit, but instead 'tops out' fairly shortly. The first 15 points of 'effect' on the aid buy 15 Active Points of Increased Maximum Effect. 15 Active Points of Continuous, Uncontrolled Increased Maximum Effect is +12 Maximum Effect. 6 of those 12 will go into increasing the maximum effect again, by 4-5 points this time. Not long after, the power peters out, having Aided RKA by about 25-26 points... less than if the Aid hadnt aided itself at all.

 

Obviously it was not the intent of the author that the Attack Nanobots 'peter out' after increasing their AOE by 25 or so active points, but that is what the rules (by my understanding and your below ruling) seem to indicate.

 

Options (to the best of my understanding)

1.) The Power is incorectly purchased. There is some correct way to purchase it that follows the 'Turing Machine' Philosophy, IE some way to build an Adjustment Power that grows without limit.

 

2.) The power is incorectly purchased. There is no way to build 'Turing Machine' Powers by their small initial effect, but they should instead be defined by their potential maximum effect, and then limited to reflect the time necessary for them to grow to that potential, and their vulnerability while growing.

 

3.) The power is correctly purchased, and I have made a grevious error somewhere.

[Steve Long]

I'm not entirely sure I understand the problem (but then again, I have a fever;)). Since there are no rules for "keeps increasing regardless of the points," by definition any Aid is finite. You could buy it up to the point of practical limitlessness, but strictly speaking they're always limited by the Maximum Effect paid for. If you don't like the limit chosen for a power, you can increase it, or apply some other appropriate effect to enhance the power.