Hard to build powers.

[Lord Quintus]

Okay, while I've been able to build the powers for almost any character I've thought of so far, there have been a couple which have stumped me. I can't remember them all at the moment, but the one that I do remember is Rouge, from the X-Men. How would one build that set of powers?

[Steve Long]

Re: Hard to build powers.

 

Check out the Miscellaneous Powers section of The UNTIL Superpowers Database.

[Hugh Neilson]

Re: Hard to build powers.

 

I've yet to find a power Hero can't do (especialy thrown out to the gurus on this board). Some, however, are overbalancing (thus excruciatingly expensive) or just work poorly in a game context.

 

Luck or probablity manipulation (eg. Scarlet Witch hexes, Longshot, Marvel's Shamrock "luck") work poorly. I'd use either a huge multipower or large VPP, but they all have No Conscious Control because the character lacks control over how the powers will manifest. That's not too hard to stat out, but a pain to GM, and not a lot of fun to play, since the player lacks control over the character's powers.

 

The ability to mimic other characters' abilities has been a tough one since Day One. It needs to be, from a game balance perspective. If a character can do anything anyone else can do, the character is pretty quickly overpowered. As a result, the ability is pricy. Rogue (Rouge is makeup, by the way - that seems the most common RPG spelling error and is a "personal pet peeve" ) removes the powers of her target as well, making her even more powerful, and thus even more pricy.

 

Steve's mechanic in USPD is pretty accurate, and very costly (I think upwards of 600 points, although there are a number of ways one could bring that cost down by sacrificing some power). I won't restate it here - buy the book for Steve's proprietary knowledge. [steve, out of curiosity, how much thought went into the power - ie how many different mechanics did you try before settling on the one you ultimately chose?] A common mechanic for similar characters is a Variable Power Pool to mimic the powers of others. Again, though, copying the powers of a number of characters requires a very large VPP, so very expensive.

[Checkmate]

Re: Hard to build powers.

 

One of the more creative ways I've seen Rogue's power was with a large Mind Control. Not perfect by any means, but 1 character is "out cold" while the other is using the powers.

[SleepyDrug]

Re: Hard to build powers.

 

This is in the archives at least a few times. But the typical response is a double approach:

 

1) Huge VPP to mimic powers, skills, knowledge

 

2) Drain/Transform/Mind Control to KO the victim

 

3) Some include a linked telepathy for reading memories

[Metaphysician]

Re: Hard to build powers.

 

Any kind of power that combines effects is tricky.

[Lord Quintus]

Re: Hard to build powers.

 

Check out the Miscellaneous Powers section of The UNTIL Superpowers Database.

I would Steve, but I make almost no money. I'm borrowing a friend's FREd until 5Erevised comes out. I can't afford extra things.

[TheEmerged]

Re: Hard to build powers.

 

RE: Rogue's Power. This power *should* be obscenely expensive, let's remember that during one of those annual events a few years back Rogue practically took out the entire Marvel Universe with it. BTW, did they ever make the "can only drain once" thing canon? They sure implied the heck out of it a couple of times.

 

RE: Difficult powers in general. There are three powers that make very good standbys -- Mind Control, Transform, and Change Environment (the latter, especially since being massively expanded under 5th Edition). Mental Illusions is a noteworthy and often overlooked tool as well (it's the best mechanic for "mental paralysis" in my opinion).

[Steve Long]

Re: Hard to build powers.

 

[steve, out of curiosity, how much thought went into the power - ie how many different mechanics did you try before settling on the one you ultimately chose?]

 

Following the "measure twice, cut once" principle, I didn't really try any others -- I thought about it a lot before putting pen to paper (well, fingers to keyboard;)) because I didn't want to have to rework such a complex power if I changed my mind. Naturally one possibility that occurred to me was a whopping big Transfer, but ultimately that proved unsatisfying. I think the final solution worked out well. Admittedly, it is expensive...

 

...but then again, not every power we see portrayed in the comics is necessarily appropriate for a player character in a Champions game.

[Magmarock]

Re: Hard to build powers.

 

...but then again' date=' not every power we see portrayed in the comics is necessarily appropriate for a player character in a Champions game. [/quote']

 

I agree with this statement.

 

 

IMO, just because a power can be built, doesn't mean a character should have it. It must fit within the constraints of the campaign as much as within the character concept.

 

Villains, on the other hand, should have wierd and wonderful powers and effects. They aren't on the scene all that much and they should be memorable. But the good thing is, they aren't restricted in points like the PCs are.

 

 

Mags

[Hugh Neilson]

Re: Hard to build powers.

 

Admittedly, it is expensive...

 

...but then again, not every power we see portrayed in the comics is necessarily appropriate for a player character in a Champions game.

 

Rogue as written in the comics needs to be extremely expensive. Note how frequently her powers simply didn't work against a given target (or worked at some unusual effect, as against Juggernaut). She is (especially with the removal of her Ms. Marvel abilities) very much an all or nothing character. Works in the comics, but not so great as a game character, as "all" is deestatingly effective and "nothing" is frustrating to the player.

 

Without getting into the mechanic, 840 AP and 552 RP can be reduced significantly if one is prepared to reduce the total character points that can be utilized simultaneously. You could probably halve the RP cost substantially - say, 275 - and still have a very workable result by lowering the maximum points available at any one time and/or adding a "does not affect characters with X defense/SFX" limitation. At 275 RP, the player has limited room for any other abilities within the 350 point norm, but would have a very playable character.

[SuperBlue]

Re: Hard to build powers.

 

This is the reason why in my Alternate X-Men Universe campaign, Rogue is a member of the Brotherhood :-p

[Snarf]

Re: Hard to build powers.

 

I would Steve' date=' but I make almost no money. I'm borrowing a friend's FREd until 5Erevised comes out. I can't afford extra things.[/quote']

Check out Mimic Pool in the sidebar on page 210 of 5'th edition for some ideas. I kind of prefer power pools to the way power stealing was done in USPD.

[Fireg0lem]

Re: Hard to build powers.

 

I never actually tried to build the complete character, but after a while, I came up with this setup.

 

1. Elemental Control: Draining Powers

Slot A: Drain vs. All Superpowers Always On Damage Shield

Slot B: Drain vs. All Physical Abilities Always On Damage Shield, with a bought-up recovery time

Slot C: Transform: Target to Target With No Superpowers or Memories Always On Damage Shield - Heal Back bought up a ridiculous amount

 

 

KS: The Memories of People She's Drained

 

VPP Only for Multiform of "Character" with all her abilities, plus all the Skills, Talents, and Powers of everyone she's drained, up to a truly obscene total cost.

 

The three damage shields cover removing the target's superpowers and then weakening them or knocking them out, and the Transform is what brain-fries people. The VPP is then used to actually get those powers (and is used to Multiform, rather than directly mimic the powers, so as to be able to steal power frameworks, skills, and so on). The KS covers the memories she's drained.