Mind Control Based On PRE

[steriaca]

If a character has a Mind Control power with Based On Presence [PRE], can the modifiers under PRE Attack affect the power? If not, how would you price an advantage which would do that?

[Derek Hiemforth]

All of the rules in the Advanced Player's Guides are optional, including Mental Power Based on PRE, so ultimately, it's a GM call on how they want to handle it, assuming they allow the optional Advantage at all. That applies to the following answer as well; GMs should feel free to change or ignore this (even more than they should feel free to change or ignore anything if it would make their game better):

 

The description of Mental Power Based on PRE makes it pretty clear that the intent of the Limitation is to allow you to use Mental Powers to make superhuman versions of Interaction Skills (APG1 p69). A Presence Attack is not an Interaction Skill, and does not work the same way an Interaction Skill does (it's an Effect Roll, not a Success Roll). Therefore, no, the PRE Attack modifiers do not apply to Mental Powers bought with Mental Power Based on PRE.

 

If you want suggestions on how to price an Advantage that would allow this, you should post in the HERO System Discussion forum. I think it warrants a lot of careful consideration, because adding and subtracting actual effect dice from a Power (especially a Mental Power) is a much different thing than just modifying a PRE Attack, and might significantly change the power levels of an ability pretty easily. I wouldn't want to venture an opinion without giving it a lot more thought.