Debate: Tear Gas Pellets

[TheEmerged]

BACKSTORY

 

One of my "fanfic" projects I can never seem to keep working on is something I jokingly call the "Even Newer, Even More Original Wonder Woman", based on the Wonder Woman TV Series -- basically, either engaging in the cliche "passing of the torch" to WW's daughter or engaging in the cliche of "updating" the show so she comes to Man's World for the first time in the modern era.

 

While scheduling our next HERO session, the players and I got onto this topic (at least in part because of a fan movie released recently). My buddy Jeremy brought up an interesting point -- that she'd almost have to develop some new defenses because the Bracers of Deflection just won't cut it against a lot of new less-than-lethal technology.

 

One in particular is a new "tear gas pellet". If you didn't know this "tear gas" is really a crystalline powder sprayed into the air. Put this powder into a thin & brittle plastic ball, use it as ammunition in a high-powered paintball gun. They shatter on impact, releasing the "tear gas" in a concentrated (almost targetted) area without the risk of the canisters being thrown back at the police.

 

Now, there's an obvious problem with this getup from the less-than-lethal perspective -- the balls still hit very hard. So hard in fact that the show I watched on them said the officers are trained to go for indirect hits (like hitting a wall near them).

 

However, from Wondie's perspective something like this has gotta suck -- you go to deflect it and you get a face full of tear gas in thanks.

 

WHY I'M MENTIONING THIS ON A HERO BOARD

 

This is turn led to inevitible (for us, anyway) debate about how to handle it in HERO

 

The obvious -- and probably most like the real technology -- is to have an EB vs PD and whatever mechanic you wanted to use for the tear gas (for the sake of argument, an NND) as seperate powers that you use as a multiple-power attack.

 

However, to really get the tear gas component working right you'd need to use Area Effect: One Hex. Do this, however, and you can't use it in an multiple-power attack anymore because the roll is different.

 

The suggestion was made to make the EB AE:1H too -- with a limitation that it "really" hits only if a true roll would have struck. That however seems needlessly clunky.

 

Any ideas?

[Fuzzy Gnome]

Tricky. The issue I see isn't that one component is an AE:Hex. I think you should be able to limit AE such that it goes against the target DCV and so on like a capsule or an impact fused grenade. What I don't know how to define is the AE still hitting if Wonder Woman successfully Missile Deflects the bullet. Buy non-deflectible for the tear gas?

[BoneDaddy]

Well, I've been teargassed. IMHO, its a flash, and a change environment. Flash - you can't see, not in any meaningful (targeting) way. Change Environment - breathing is really difficult (hard to breath, harder to fight). Except for frail folks to begin with, its nonlethal, and unlikely to knock you out. I think EB is inappropraite. As for the targeting aspect, I don't know. Area effect, one hex, requires a targeting roll sounds right, and not too clunky, except its persistant and uncontrolled, dissipated by winds, and not vs. eye covering for the flash and not vs. gas masks or self contained breathing for the CE. Sounds expensive if you want more than 4 charges.

 

Helpful? Anyone else get gassed for Uncle Sam?

 

I think Wonder Woman could still deflect it, if it was aimed at her. Her Amazonian reflexes are superior. She could deflct the round with a glancing blow, enough to miss her, not enough to break. Aim it at something else in her hex, as per the instructions on the side of the box, though...

[Fuzzy Gnome]

Tear gas: AE Hex attack of some kind

Impact: Energy Blast, AE Hex, maybe Linked, Deflectable, Only damages target if struck directly (custom limitation)

Or something like that. I think you need a clunky build for this.

[Lord Liaden]

Hmm... not sure if this is legal, but how about a Compound Power: straight Physical EB for the impact, and the Tear Gas part built with a Trigger: EB Hits Target? If the tear gas is AoE (either One Hex or One Hex: Accurate, I'm not sure which would be more appropriate), it still might not hit the target hex, but you could define that as the capsule bouncing or being partly deflected.

 

I'll give it some more thought.

[lemming]

Originally posted by BoneDaddy

Helpful? Anyone else get gassed for Uncle Sam?

I got gassed by Uncle Sam if that helps. Your description sounds about right.

[TheEmerged]

Originally posted by Lord Liaden

Hmm... not sure if this is legal, but how about a Compound Power: straight Physical EB for the impact, and the Tear Gas part built with a Trigger: EB Hits Target? If the tear gas is AoE (either One Hex or One Hex: Accurate, I'm not sure which would be more appropriate), it still might not hit the target hex, but you could define that as the capsule bouncing or being partly deflected.

 

I'll give it some more thought.

 

Woot! I think we have a winner here! AE:1H would be the better mechanic -- the "tear gas" still spreads it just doesn't spread nearly as much.

 

And for the record, I wasn't asking what mechanic to use for the tear gas -- that's probably a Flash linked with an NND, IMO.

 

Thanks!

[Pegasus]

Just a quick thought...

 

This is really one of those cases where SFX needs to rule the day as far as missle deflection is concerned. Remember, Missile deflection, like everything else, only works if the special effects allow it. Should WW be able to deflect the effect of an exploding pellet? Personally, I say no. Should Captain America's trusty shield deflect it? Perhaps. Yes or no, it's more likely than the bracelets. What about Cyclops's blast shooting out of the air? Yeah, I would allow that. Then of course there are characters whose miss. defl. is based on the SFX that it misses them completely (yes) or goes through them (no, depending).

 

I think we try too often to use mechanics to prepare for every eventuality. I'm a strong believer in just doing it.

 

That should in no way be taken as an endorsement for Nike, btw.

[caris]

Wouldn't Linked also produce a good result? Shouldn't you be able to Link an AE and a normal attack together?

 

That way Wonder Woman could Missile Deflect the EB, and still be effected by the NND.