Problems with Foci and Constant Powers...

[Yamo]

If I'm not mistaken, a Constant attack continues to affect the target on each of the user's subsequent Phases for as long as it's maintained, without requiring a new attack roll.

 

Okay, so far, so good.

 

What trips me up is this: Unless I'm mistaken, this applies to Powers bought through Foci and such, as well.

 

Thus, a SPD 1 guy aims a flamethrower (Constant attack) at a target and holds down the trigger. After taking initial damage, the target sustains further damage during each subsequent Phase 7.

 

Later, a SPD 12 guy picks up the exact same flamehrower, aims it at the exact same target, holds down the trigger and then proceeds to dish out damage with it twelve times as fast!

 

Similarly, a napalm grenade would incinerate a target twelve times quicker if SPD 12 guy lobbed it than if SPD 1 guy did. Huh?

 

Needless to say, this makes no sense whatsoever!

 

Is there any way to solve this problem? Or am I mistaken (hope so!) as to whether it works this way at all?

 

Note: This is assuming a Heroic-type campaign where none of these characters paid points for their equipment. In a Superheroic one, it's much easier to justify Constant Powers working this way, I imagine.

[Lord Liaden]

I'm afraid you do have that right - one of the quirks of the system. But if, as you say, your concern is primarily for heroic-level games, it doesn't have to be that big a deal. Most characters opposing each other in those games will have Speeds within a couple of points of each other, and SPD over 5 will be rare, so you won't get the extreme difference in damaging ability in these games that you cite in your example.

 

In the case of a flamethrower, you can rationalize the difference as representing the quickness of an attacker in reacting to follow a moving target with the fire stream. Obviously, that won't work for a Constant attack by grenade; if that bothers you, I'd suggest giving all of those "throw and forget" weapons a default SPD to attack on, probably SPD 2 like baseline characters. Since a grenade should keep working even if the character who launched it is Stunned or Knocked Out, it's easier to justify it using its own SPD separate from the character's.

 

In the end, though, it's like the arguments over segmented vs continuous movement: just one of those mechanical elements of the system design that you have to either rationalize, alter to suit your preference, or blithely ignore.

[Doug Limmer]

Re: Problems with Foci and Constant Powers...

 

Originally posted by Yamo

Similarly, a napalm grenade would incinerate a target twelve times quicker if SPD 12 guy lobbed it than if SPD 1 guy did. Huh?

 

Needless to say, this makes no sense whatsoever!

In real life, no. In stories, weapons are always more powerful in the hands of the heroes.

[Talon]

It's easy to fix if it bugs you: just give the weapon a limitation "Always functions at campaign average SPD". Should be a -0, as long as you get "campaign average" right.

[Aroooo]

Re: Problems with Foci and Constant Powers...

 

Originally posted by Yamo

If I'm not mistaken, a Constant attack continues to affect the target on each of the user's subsequent Phases for as long as it's maintained, without requiring a new attack roll.

 

For some reason, I always interpreted that as "...affected by the power on the target's phases, not the firer's." Maybe just another example of reading what I wanted it to say, and not what it said

 

It does make some sense though. If I walk through a wall of fire, I'm going to take damage on my active phases, not the wall's. But realistically, I should take damage on every phase, not just phases I get to do something.

 

Aroooo

[JmOz]

If it really earks you place the extra time: one turn on the power, then it only effects them per turn...

[Arsenal]

This isn't so much a suggestion of how-to as the semantics of how to handle it, but I would suggest that you could take some degree of liberty with the Real Weapon limitation (5E pg 328) in the case of the flamethrower or grenade (or most Foci). The intent of said lim seems to be to require maintenance, but you could also use it to reflect other "real" limitations - such as acting more in line with a universal or average speed as suggested previously.