Brutal Posted March 5, 2003 Report Share Posted March 5, 2003 A character in my campaign is making a Ghostlike character. So far so good, but he wants to have a powerless item, that if it gets destroyed, he "dies". I type "dies", because he basically loses the character (cant play with it anymore) if the item gets destroyed. How would you do this? At first I thought about using a foci, but then again he doesnt want any powers in it, (he wants to be able to get it taken away, though not forever because that could be dangerous ). So I thought about using a Physical Limitation. but that would give a mere 15 points (unfrequently, total). So he doesnt want that because he could get more points from using a susceptbibility, and lose body (or stun?) every segment. However, the problem is that Im not sure what kind of event or item could stop his susceptibility. Any suggestions on how to solve this? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Monolith Posted March 5, 2003 Report Share Posted March 5, 2003 I would go with Susceptability. The character takes 2d6 per Phase when the item is destroyed. That's worth 20 points and gives the character time to die a dramatic death (possibly taking the destroyer with him). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Acroyear Posted March 5, 2003 Report Share Posted March 5, 2003 Quite honestly, I would go with the Phys Lim or the Susc, too. Since the frequency of him "dying" is going to be pretty rare, I assume (uh, or at least only a 1 time thing) then it's not worth a lot of points as a disad. Nothing need stop his Susc, really. He could get the item back (it is possible to recreate items/repair items with certain powers) but the goal is that he is supposed to die, go poof, cease to exist if this happens... so I don't see it as an issue, myself. He could also put a limitation on his Body score. Drop it to zero and then buy it back up with a lim of some sort. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kevin Scrivner Posted March 5, 2003 Report Share Posted March 5, 2003 This sounds like a concept that would work better with an NPC villain. Then you wouldn't have to worry about game mechanics. Hmmm. How about taking the "seperable soul" approach? The seperable soul is a motif from folklore in which a mythological being places its soul inside a container or object of some kind -- an acorn, a locket, a small box, etc. It then hides the container. As long as its hidden soul remains intact, the mythological creature can't die. However, if an intrepid adventurer locates and destroys the soul, the mythological being is toast. It would be like buying the character's BODY down to zero, then purchasing BODY OAF with no DEF allowed on the focus. The character hides the focus in his safety deposit box, or wherever. If someone gets ahold of and damages the object that contains his soul, he loses the BODY and dies normally. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Acroyear Posted March 5, 2003 Report Share Posted March 5, 2003 If the vessel were hidden, it would need to be IAF unless there is some sort of glowing tether between the character and the item to make it "obvious" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brutal Posted March 5, 2003 Author Report Share Posted March 5, 2003 Originally posted by Acroyear If the vessel were hidden, it would need to be IAF unless there is some sort of glowing tether between the character and the item to make it "obvious" Okay, having talked to him some more about this, telling him to clarify it a little better, so he changed his mind a little bit about it. The current idea he has is that he DOES want powers bound to the object. Like some kind of a Sauron concept. If you remember that, when sauron loses the ring, he loses most of his power, and basically becomes just a spirit. But when the ring was destroyed sauron died too. So sorry for the confusion guys(i kicked his ass already for not clarifying it better ). So doing this would basically be just buying most (if not all?) powers through the item, and giving him a susceptibility disad, that says "if amulet (he decided it should be some kind of an amulet) is lost, 2d6 (or so?) each phase until object is recovered. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Acroyear Posted March 5, 2003 Report Share Posted March 5, 2003 Sounds like you have it worked out. Just figure out how long he can last if the item is destroyed and apply the dice appropriately. Also, you might want to consider pre-figuring out a way or two for it to be repaired/restored. That kind of "countdown to extinction" can create a wonderfully fun and dramatic moment(s) in gaming! So it would be a lim on the powers through the item (a focus. I highly suggest IIF) Then a disad susc to the item being lost (?) that slowly begins "killing him." You might want to make that "destroyed" or another fun one would be if the item is not within a specific range. So if it's more than 100 yards away (or whatever you are comfortable with), then he starts to fade. This will give him a fighting chance to get it back (although not much of one if he's lost his powers... this is where his teammates come in). As opposed to a Susc... you might want to make it a "Dependence." Then you can play with the time rate more and give him many minutes, even hours, before the force that keeps him real wanes and he begins to fade. Again, try to think of story possibilities, too. Since he's saving points on powers and gaining points in disads, it's now become a plot element which should crop up every now and then (just like all disads and limitations). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dynamo Posted March 5, 2003 Report Share Posted March 5, 2003 Maybe it's a little harsh, but I wouldn't give him any breaks for the "dies if items is destroyed" weakness. Think about it. It's a one-shot weakness. Whether expressed as a Disadvantage or a Limitation, you can only exploit it once, and then the character is out of play. Until then, it's free points. NIMG Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Acroyear Posted March 5, 2003 Report Share Posted March 5, 2003 Well, it's really no different than the inverse of Superman and Kryptonite. Supes starts dying when exposed. This spirit fellow starts dying with a lack of exposure to something. This is why I prefer the "countdown" method of a susc or a dependence. Back in Aquaman's 1 hour out of water days it could kill him if he stayed out for too long and, to some people's dismay, he never actually died from the weakness. Nor has Superman died from kryptonite (although he may have in some rare occasions, but they always found a way to undo it). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dynamo Posted March 5, 2003 Report Share Posted March 5, 2003 Superman and Aquaman at least suffer a period of weakness during their countdown to destruction, so as characters in RPG, they would suffer an inconvenience for their points. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Acroyear Posted March 5, 2003 Report Share Posted March 5, 2003 I agree. Which is why the clarifications include a number of the abilities being focused through the item, as well. Separated from the item... loses powers (weakness) and the countdown to demise begins. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dynamo Posted March 5, 2003 Report Share Posted March 5, 2003 Still, I would keep give the final construct much thought before permitting it and would likely require that the "death upon destruction" clause be replaced by a period of even greater weakness until a replacement could be crafted. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tamashii2000 Posted March 5, 2003 Report Share Posted March 5, 2003 I would suggest he buy down his body to zero, then puchase 10 body as a power through a focus (IAF) althrough you might want to reduce the 1/2 to 1/4 as he doesn't lose the body by losing the foci, he only loses it if its destroyed. That way when the object gets trashed, he starts to die. Come to think of it, it would have "hard to replace' too Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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