Character For Review: The Beast (not the Marvel one)

[AlHazred]

Since Scifi_Toughguy's having problems with formatting, I thought I'd pitch in. This is Scifi_Toughguy's character, so direct all comments to him. This is not the original form of this character; I have incorporated suggestions from several people, including Haerandir, Gary, myself, Koshka, and Hugh Nielsen. It's preliminary; I think there's a great character concept here, who just needs a little polishing to take off the rough edges. I also think there're more power options here that Scifi_Toughguy's not taking advantage of - if we shave off a few points here and there, he could definitely pack a few surprises in (I'm thinking of stuff from The Ultimate Brick). The BeastVal Char Cost Roll Notes35 STR 25 16- Lift 3200.0kg; 7d6 [3]20 DEX 30 13- OCV: 7/DCV: 720 CON 20 13-20 BODY 20 13-12 INT 2 11- PER Roll 11-8 EGO -4 11- ECV: 315 PRE 5 12- PRE Attack: 3d66 COM -2 10-16/41 PD 9 Total: 16/41 PD (0/25 rPD)15/30 ED 11 Total: 15/30 ED (0/15 rED)5 SPD 20 Phases: 3, 5, 8, 10, 1216 REC 1030 END -548 STUN 0 Total Characteristic Cost: 147Movement: Running: 6"/12" Leaping: 7"/14" Swimming: 8"/16"Cost Powers END60 Scaly Skin: Armor (25 PD/15 ED)50 Alligator Attacks: Multipower, 75-point reserve, all slots Restrainable (-1/2)4u 1) Claws And Bite: HKA 4d6 (6d6+1 w/STR), Reduced Endurance (1/2 END; +1/4); Restrainable (-1/2), No Knockback (-1/4) 32u 2) Tail Slash: Hand-To-Hand Attack +5d6, Reduced Endurance (0 END; +1/2); Hand-To-Hand Attack (-1/2), Restrainable (-1/2)5 Tail: Extra Limb (1), Inherent (+1/4); Limited Manipulation (-1/4)11 Reptilian Regeneration: Healing 1d6, Can Heal Limbs, Reduced Endurance (0 END; +1/2), Persistent (+1/2); Extra Time (1 Turn (Post-Segment 12), -1 1/4), Self Only (-1/2)\tab Notes: No Healing Max (see FREd p. 120).3 Animal Senses: Tracking with Normal Smell; Concentration, Must Concentrate throughout use of Constant Power (1/2 DCV; -1/2)Skills5 Beast Brawling: +1 with HTH Combat 3 Bureaucratics 12-5 Computer Programming 12-5 Cramming 7 PS: Accountant 16-3 Shadowing 11-3 Stealth 13-3 Streetwise 12-7 Survival (Marine Surface, Urban) 13-Total Powers & Skill Cost: 176Total Cost: 323200+ Disadvantages15 Dependent NPC: Two Daughters 8- (Normal; Group DNPC: x2 DNPCs)20 Distinctive Features: Tall, Green And Scaly Lizardman With Tail (Not Concealable; Always Noticed and Causes Major Reaction; Detectable By Commonly-Used Senses)20 Enraged: when any little girl is threatened that reminds him of his daughters (Uncommon), go 14-, recover 11-5 Hunted: the other alligator man in the sewers 8- (As Pow, Limited Geographical Area, Harshly Punish)10 Hunted: VIPER 8- (Mo Pow, NCI, Watching)10 Money: Destitute15 Psychological Limitation: Despises Addictive Substances (Common, Strong)15 Psychological Limitation: Hot-Headed (Very Common, Moderate)20 Psychological Limitation: Protective Of Innocents/Helpless People (Common, Total)10 Social Limitation: Public ID (Occasionally, Major)5 Vulnerability: 1 1/2 x STUN from Mental Attacks (Uncommon)Total Disadvantage Points: 323Background/History: "I was like you, once." The beast rasped. "Normal... human..."

We were all that way once. None of us wanted to be down here skulking in the recesses of humanity, hiding from the rest of the world, cobbling together what food and clothing we could.

Jim over there was in the army. Sue was a secretary. Heck, I used to do security work part time. But this? We had to hear this.

The beast never spoke before. It let you know it was there, sure. The noises made while chasing down its food, grunting, and even the occasional roar would float from the tunnels and accessways we came to know as its territory. We just thought it was another one of those strange occurrences everyone else reads about in the newspaper the next day.

It had even saved our little community a few times. Before the beast, we would get raided periodically and people would end up missing, robed weirdoes, nuts with guns of some sort, young punks in some sort of gangs looking for a good time.

That’s why we left it alone. Maybe that’s why Jim left some beef jerky for it. Maybe that’s why it hung around. All I know is that we had some sort of working relationship. Cigarettes and other 'luxury' items were sometimes found in place of the stuff we would leave for it.

One day it was sitting in the tunnel opening to its territory. Just plopped right down like any man would sit, if that man were scaly, green and had a tail. Anyway, it was holding little Kimmy's dolly in its massive, clawed hands. The beast had saved her mom from some goons a few days before and she put the doll in the spot where our little trades usually took place.

That’s when it spoke. Everyone's head whipped around like they had just heard the crunching of metal and the breaking of glass down the street. The only sound heard was the gurgling of the waste water as it channeled through the area we called home.

"I had two little girls." It said, focused on the doll. It was hard to understand at first, you could see it trying to wrap its mouth around the words. "A life..." I don't think anyone even breathed while it gushed, little Kimmy didn't even fidget.

"I was an accountant in a law firm. I had a wife, a house, a family. I had a good life." Its deep, raspy voice scratched and scraped its way out of the beast's throat and its teeth gleamed as the light from our fire danced across its face. It stopped. It continued to stare at the doll.

Jim was in the army; he had more guts and less sense than most, so it figured he would be the one who said anything. "How'd you end up like this?" He asked.

"I found my wife in our bed with one of the partners of the firm. They had met at a work party my first year on the job and had been having an affair ever since. I had been too in love to see it. There was a separation and a messy divorce. I lost everything." I don't know what anyone expected. I mean, it was a giant talking lizard, as if that wasn't weird enough.

"Everywhere I turned for work I was stonewalled. It was a big firm; they must have had connections everywhere. I had lost everything I worked so hard to build. I went out of my mind. I turned to the bottle and eventually the dealer to cope. I had no money and no job and was a horrible crook. I owed a lot." Now that part sounded familiar. There were a lot of people in our little group who had similar experiences. The next part would make your skin crawl.

"Eventually my dealer wrote me off, gave me some bad stuff. When I woke up, I was in some sort of lab. There were lots of doctor and scientist types. I don't know exactly what they were doing to me but there were big machines they put me in, needles, chemical baths and a lot of pain. Who knows how long it went on, there were no clocks and no windows.

I must not have passed some sort of test. I remember hearing the word termination and they injected me with one last syringe and the blackness returned. When I came to the second time, I had washed onto a beach. My body was on fire. I crawled to what shelter I could find. The burning was accompanied by intense itching. If you've ever had to wear a cast you'll know what I mean. I couldn't stop. I did it till I bled. The more I scratched the more I bled. Then I made a horrific discovery. Underneath the blood was green, scaly skin. I spent the next excruciating days and weeks changing into... this."

I think Sue retched. Kimmy's mom had covered her ears a while ago. We knew we were hard luck cases, but this was one of the most twisted stories we'd ever heard. Not even Jim had something to say at that point.

The beast just remained seated there, in silence for a while longer. It stroked the hair on the doll's head, stood up to its imposing height and returned the toy to Kimmy. I was impressed; she didn't cry or even move. Once the doll was back where it belonged, it retreated into its territory once more, disappearing into the dark, mist shrouded tunnel.The Beast.hdcThe Beast.txt

[Scifi_Toughguy]

Re: Character For Review: The Beast (not the Marvel one)

 

okay, I really appreciate the help. The actual problem I'm having is that I made revisions to this character and I can't get the revisions from in front of me to these boards by copying and pasting. I don't really have the time to sit down and rewrite everything by hand, but I'm still trying. Everything keeps timing out on me.

[AlHazred]

Re: Character For Review: The Beast (not the Marvel one)

 

okay' date=' I really appreciate the help. The actual problem I'm having is that I made revisions to this character and I can't get the revisions from in front of me to these boards by copying and pasting. I don't really have the time to sit down and rewrite everything by hand, but I'm still trying. Everything keeps timing out on me.[/quote']

That's okay, the text file I included is the HTML for the character sheet. It's difficult to read, but by using the Find function you should be able to adjust stuff. Or you could make a list of your revisions, and I'll change the version I posted to reflect it.

[Scifi_Toughguy]

Re: Character For Review: The Beast (not the Marvel one)

 

Revised stats after taking some suggestions:

 

35 STR

25 DEX

30 CON

15 BODY

12 INT

10 EGO

20 PRE

06 COM

15 PD

15 ED

05 SPD

13 REC

60 END

48 STUN

10 Run

13 Swim

12 Leap

 

Skills

 

3 Bureaucratics 13-

4 Computer Programming (Computer Networks, Personal Computers) 11-

6 Accounting: PS: Accountant 14-

3 Stealth 14-

3 Streetwise 13-

3 Survival (Marine Surface, Urban) 11-

3 Shadowing 11-

5 Cramming

5 Beast Brawling: +1 with HTH Combat

 

Talents

 

3 Lightning Calculator

3 Lightning Reflexes: +2 DEX to act first with All Actions

 

Powers

 

5 Tail: Extra Limb (1), Inherent (+1/4) (6 Active Points); Limited Manipulation (-1/4)

 

8 Tracking Scent: Tracking with Smell/Taste Group, Inherent (+1/4) (12 Active Points); Concentration, Must Concentrate throughout use of Constant Power (1/2 DCV; -1/2)

 

0 Tracking Scent: Analyze with , Inherent (+1/4)

29 Regeneration: Healing 4 BODY, Can Heal Limbs, Trigger (when damage occurs; +1/4), Reduced Endurance (0 END; +1/2) (79 Active Points); Extra Time (Regeneration-Only) 1 Turn (Post-Segment 12) (-1 1/4), Self Only (-1/2)

 

9 +0 STR, Reduced Endurance (1/2 END; +1/4) (9 Active Points) (Modifiers affect Base Characteristic)

 

37 Scaly Skin: Armor (10 PD/10 ED), Inherent (+1/4) (37 Active Points)

29 Multipower, 44-point reserve, (44 Active Points); Restrainable (-1/2)

3u 1) Bite/claws: Killing Attack - Hand-To-Hand 2d6+1 (4 1/2d6 w/STR) (35 Active Points); No Knockback (-1/4)

3u 2) Tail Whip: Hand-To-Hand Attack +5d6, Double Knockback (+3/4) (44 Active Points); Hand-To-Hand Attack (-1/2)

 

Disadvantages

 

20 Distinctive Features: giant lizard man (Not Concealable; Always Noticed and Causes Major Reaction; Detectable By Commonly-Used Senses)

 

5 Vulnerability: 1 1/2 x STUN Magic (Uncommon)

15 Enraged: little girl threatened (Uncommon), go 11-, recover 11-

10 Money: homeless Destitute

10 Hunted: other alligator-man in sewers 11- (As Pow, Limited Geographical Area, Harshly Punish)

 

25 Hunted: VIPER 11- (Mo Pow, NCI, Harshly Punish) (He doesn't know who is hunting him)

 

15 Psychological Limitation: protect innocent/helpless (Uncommon, Total)

10 Psychological Limitation: hot headed (Common, Moderate)

25 Dependent NPC: daughters Shannon, Michelle 8- (Incompetent; Unaware of character's adventuring career/Secret ID; Group DNPC: x2 DNPCs)

 

5 Psychological Limitation: hates lawyers (Uncommon, Moderate)

10 Psychological Limitation: no alcohol, tobacco, drugs (Uncommon, Strong)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Okay, there I unlazied meself and did it. Glad that our arab-american friend deigned to start this and put up the original for comparison. Now, I have some things I think are going to hit snags. One is the analyze part of the tracking smell, seems like too few points. The other is the DNPC disad. They aren't really dependents because no one really even knows he's alive except those that did this to him. Please, fire away and lemme know what y'all think.

[Hugh Neilson]

Re: Character For Review: The Beast (not the Marvel one)

 

Revised stats after taking some suggestions:

 

35 STR

25 DEX

30 CON

15 BODY

12 INT

10 EGO

20 PRE

06 COM

15 PD

15 ED

05 SPD

13 REC

60 END

48 STUN

10 Run

13 Swim

12 Leap

 

Overall, stats look a lot better. A couple of tweaks if you want to be a better min/maxer (hey, some do and some don't).

- DEX 23 gets you everything DEX 25 does except +2 for moving first and saving 2 CP for Speed, so you're paying 4 points for +2 Lighting Reflexes. I'd probably go 23 DEX, but you could go 26 to boost your CV's to 9 for another 2 points.

 

CON is commonly bought in figures ending with 3 or 8 for similar reasons. Losing 2 CON would save 4 points, cost 4 END and 1 STUN (effectively, the 2 points do get that STIN and END for free, so this is less inefficient).

 

INT 12 may as well be INT 10. INT 13 would raise your PER rolls, and other INT rolls, by 1.

 

I'd probably raise DEX and INT by 1 each and ditch the Lightning Reflexes.

 

Skills

 

3 Bureaucratics 13-

4 Computer Programming (Computer Networks, Personal Computers) 11-

6 Accounting: PS: Accountant 14-

3 Stealth 14-

3 Streetwise 13-

3 Survival (Marine Surface, Urban) 11-

3 Shadowing 11-

5 Cramming

5 Beast Brawling: +1 with HTH Combat

 

Talents

 

3 Lightning Calculator

3 Lightning Reflexes: +2 DEX to act first with All Actions

 

I'd likely ditch lightning reflexes. Going first isn't a big deal, especially for a guy who can take damage to this extent. Besides, I suspect you'll find most characters with better than a 26 DEX are 6 SPD and commonly move in different phases than you anyway. [i prefer to make the last hit of the fight, not the first.]

 

Powers

 

5 Tail: Extra Limb (1), Inherent (+1/4) (6 Active Points); Limited Manipulation (-1/4)

 

8 Tracking Scent: Tracking with Smell/Taste Group, Inherent (+1/4) (12 Active Points); Concentration, Must Concentrate throughout use of Constant Power (1/2 DCV; -1/2)

 

0 Tracking Scent: Analyze with , Inherent (+1/4)

 

Something's wrong here. Adding "analyze" to the sense will probably get the right result (and it should also have concentrate). Consider Targetting with your sense of smell as well. You go to half DCV, but can locate many invisible foes, and be effective if blinded by a Flash.

 

 

29 Regeneration: Healing 4 BODY' date=' Can Heal Limbs, Trigger (when damage occurs; +1/4), Reduced Endurance (0 END; +1/2) (79 Active Points); Extra Time (Regeneration-Only) 1 Turn (Post-Segment 12) (-1 1/4), Self Only (-1/2)[/quote']

 

4 BOD is a lot. With your defenses, taking BOD will be rare anyway. You could cut this down to 1 or 2 and free up some points.

 

9 +0 STR, Reduced Endurance (1/2 END; +1/4) (9 Active Points) (Modifiers affect Base Characteristic)

37 Scaly Skin: Armor (10 PD/10 ED), Inherent (+1/4) (37 Active Points)

 

I'd be inclined to eliminate Inherent, and perhaps go with 13/13 armor instead (although with DEX creeping up, I might look at DEF as getting a bit high, the character has other limitations, primarily movement powers). Your PD/ED can be drained anyway, and that's a more common adjustment power to see in game. In fact, other than the tail, I'd consider inherent pretty closely.

 

29 Multipower, 44-point reserve, (44 Active Points); Restrainable (-1/2)

3u 1) Bite/claws: Killing Attack - Hand-To-Hand 2d6+1 (4 1/2d6 w/STR) (35 Active Points); No Knockback (-1/4)

3u 2) Tail Whip: Hand-To-Hand Attack +5d6, Double Knockback (+3/4) (44 Active Points); Hand-To-Hand Attack (-1/2)

 

 

Disadvantages

 

20 Distinctive Features: giant lizard man (Not Concealable; Always Noticed and Causes Major Reaction; Detectable By Commonly-Used Senses)

5 Vulnerability: 1 1/2 x STUN Magic (Uncommon)

 

I'd have to ask "why magic"? I wonder if "cold" would make more sense - is he still fully warm-blooded?

 

15 Enraged: little girl threatened (Uncommon)' date=' go 11-, recover 11-[/quote']

 

"Back off, gator-boy, or I shoot the girl".

 

"RRRAAARGH!!"

 

[startled finger pulls trigger] BLAM

 

This may not be the result you're looking for, but I see it as a likely one.

 

10 Money: homeless Destitute

10 Hunted: other alligator-man in sewers 11- (As Pow, Limited Geographical Area, Harshly Punish)

25 Hunted: VIPER 11- (Mo Pow, NCI, Harshly Punish) (He doesn't know who is hunting him)

15 Psychological Limitation: protect innocent/helpless (Uncommon, Total)

10 Psychological Limitation: hot headed (Common, Moderate)

25 Dependent NPC: daughters Shannon, Michelle 8- (Incompetent; Unaware of character's adventuring career/Secret ID; Group DNPC: x2 DNPCs)

 

To address your concern, I think as long as the GM is OK with the girls showing up in adventures, there's no problem here. The fact they don't know who you are isn't any different from Mary Jane not knowing it's Peter Parker under that SpideySuit.

 

5 Psychological Limitation: hates lawyers (Uncommon, Moderate)

10 Psychological Limitation: no alcohol, tobacco, drugs (Uncommon, Strong)

 

hmmm...wonder what happens if he happens to see one of his daughters trying a cig...

 

Overall, I;d say it's looking good

[AlHazred]

Re: Character For Review: The Beast (not the Marvel one)

 

Cool, nice brick.

 

10 Run

13 Swim

12 Leap

Cool, that's about as far as you can go with innate movement powers, without justification (e.g., supersonic jets, etc.)

 

3 Bureaucratics 13-

4 Computer Programming (Computer Networks, Personal Computers) 11-

6 Accounting: PS: Accountant 14-

At this point, it would make sense to give him a 13 INT. That hits the breakpoint for these skills, so he'd be 12- with Computers, and would only need to spend 5 points on Accounting, so it pays for itself. It will also give you a 12- with your Perception roll, which will be important later.

 

3 Survival (Marine Surface, Urban) 11-

Marine Surface Survival is the art of living on a boat or raft, say, or being a surface-dwelling fish. From what you describe, I think your character would only need Urban to survive in the sewers; to survive in the nearby swamp, he should have Temperate/Subtropical Coasts.

 

8 Tracking Scent: Tracking with Smell/Taste Group, Inherent (+1/4) (12 Active Points); Concentration, Must Concentrate throughout use of Constant Power (1/2 DCV; -1/2)

0 Tracking Scent: Analyze with , Inherent (+1/4)

At this point we have to step back and thing about how this power functions. Do you want to say that The Beast can differentiate between different scent-trails? If so, then here are my recommendations:

1. Get rid of Inherent; it's not usually needed for Sense Powers, since the way they typically get removed is through Flash or Darkness. It's usually more appropriate to buy Flash Defense instead.
   
2. Change the Tracking Scent to only Normal Smell; I doubt your character is going to be tasting the ground to follow the trail, interesting as the visual is. It also makes the Tracking Scent power cost 3 points instead of 8, when you also do number 2 above.
   
3. Analyze can only be taken with a sense that already has Discriminatory on it. It's also for really minute scientific-style analysis of the subject. ("This scent is composed of 41% benzene, 19% magnesium, 10.5% adamantium, etc. etc.") What you want is Discriminatory, which will tell you that you're following Scent A or Scent B, that Scent A is about half benzene and half other chemicals, and that Scent B was eating chili dogs for breakfast. It costs 5 points for Discriminatory Normal Smell.

29 Regeneration: Healing 4 BODY, Can Heal Limbs, Trigger (when damage occurs; +1/4), Reduced Endurance (0 END; +1/2) (79 Active Points); Extra Time (Regeneration-Only) 1 Turn (Post-Segment 12) (-1 1/4), Self Only (-1/2)

The problem with Trigger in this case, is that your character needs to be conscious in order for the Trigger to reset. I suggest Persistent, which will make the power cost 33 instead of 29, but it'll always work to heal you and will gradually regenerate your limbs.

 

9 +0 STR, Reduced Endurance (1/2 END; +1/4) (9 Active Points) (Modifiers affect Base Characteristic)

The way to do this in Hero Designer, is to use Naked Modifier in the Power list.

 

29 Multipower, 44-point reserve, (44 Active Points); Restrainable (-1/2)

I still don't see it as restrainable, but that's a matter between you and the GM. If you still wanted the really potent attack power, I'd let you have it in my game, but I'd require you to have Reduced Penetration. That leaves your STUN damage alone anyway, but would make it less likely for you to kill mooks outright. It's also really common for natural weapon attacks that are supposed to represent claws and teeth.

 

5 Vulnerability: 1 1/2 x STUN Magic (Uncommon)

In Vibora Bay, I'd say this would be Common or Very Common.

 

5 Psychological Limitation: hates lawyers (Uncommon, Moderate)

If you up the Vulnerability to Common, then you can get rid of this; it's really more of a quirk, anyway, unless lawyers are relatively common in the campaign.

 

The Beast v2.hdc

[AlHazred]

Re: Character For Review: The Beast (not the Marvel one)

 

4 BOD is a lot. With your defenses' date=' taking BOD will be rare anyway. You could cut this down to 1 or 2 and free up some points..[/quote']

 

I'd agree with this one. Your character's defenses are really good anyway, and if you free up the points you could get the Targetting on the Scent.

 

I'd have to ask "why magic"? I wonder if "cold" would make more sense - is he still fully warm-blooded?.

 

This is also a really good idea. This would remain Uncommon for Vibora Bay.

 

"Back off, gator-boy, or I shoot the girl".

"RRRAAARGH!!"

[startled finger pulls trigger] BLAM

This may not be the result you're looking for, but I see it as a likely one.

 

Ah, but that's the kind of thing drama is made of! Your character's temper will likely be a sticking point with other characters and may be something you want to make an element of your guy's subplots.

[CBikle]

Re: Character For Review: The Beast (not the Marvel one)

 

Pretty good character. Some suggestions:

 

-You might want to increase your Int to 13 (maybe higher because you have a lot of Int-based skills and Enhanced Senses which are based on int; depends whether you think it'd fit the character).

 

- I noticed you bought the Inherent advantage on your armor and extra-limb. Check with your GM and see if you really need(want) this for the character. If you don't, it'll free up some points.

[Gary]

Re: Character For Review: The Beast (not the Marvel one)

 

If you want to reach the next level of point twinking, then consolidate all your movements into a Multipower.

 

Instead of spending 8 pts on +4" Running, 11 pts on +11" Swimming, and 5 pts on +5" Leap, use this structure:

 

11 Multipower

1 u +11" Swimming (13" total)

1 u +5" Running (11" total)

1 u +11" Leap (18" total)

 

You save 10 points, and you get better Running and Leap. The drawback is that many GMs won't allow a movement Multipower built this way for game balance reasons.

[AlHazred]

Re: Character For Review: The Beast (not the Marvel one)

 

I certainly wouldn't allow a Movement Multipower like that. I've only ever allowed it for Wings, to include Flight and Gliding.

[Haerandir]

Re: Character For Review: The Beast (not the Marvel one)

 

Some good advice already, and I'm not the character-review guru that some of these guys are, so my only real contribution is a piece of general advice for SF_TG...

 

It may seem like we're finding "a lot" of flaws in your character, but honestly, this is one of the better 'first attempts' I've seen in a while, certainly at least as good as my first character, which I wrote up in, um... 1993, I think. I don't think any one of us has ever built a character that somebody on this board couldn't suggest a few tweaks on. If only because we're all used to operating in different play environments. So, don't think we're picking on you or anything, we do this to everyone!

 

Oh, and as to whether or not the daughters qualify as DNPC's, the only real requirement is that he might end up having to rescue them periodically, or that they are similarly important to him. The intent of the Disadvantage is that the NPC represents a recurring plot hook, not that they have a specific type of relationship with the PC. Much like Hunteds, they help the GM plan adventures by giving him some guidance on when and how often certain characters should have an impact on the plot of the campaign.

[Ki-rin]

Re: Character For Review: The Beast (not the Marvel one)

 

If you want to reach the next level of point twinking, then consolidate all your movements into a Multipower.

 

Instead of spending 8 pts on +4" Running, 11 pts on +11" Swimming, and 5 pts on +5" Leap, use this structure:

 

11 Multipower

1 u +11" Swimming (13" total)

1 u +5" Running (11" total)

1 u +11" Leap (18" total)

 

You save 10 points, and you get better Running and Leap. The drawback is that many GMs won't allow a movement Multipower built this way for game balance reasons.

Nice. Of course, if you are allowed to be this "efficient", then so is everything else that Swims+Runs+Leaps in the Game World. Thus is Balance preserved.

 

...and _that_ AlHazred is how I keep minor effciency tweaks like this from trashing the campaign. As soon as "evolution" discovers a better, more efficient way to do something (IOW, meta game construct tweaks) I make sure the entire gameverse benefits from it. People get to play what they want and the game stays balanced...

[Hugh Neilson]

Re: Character For Review: The Beast (not the Marvel one)

 

honestly' date=' this is one of the better 'first attempts' I've seen in a while, [/quote']

 

Ditto. I generally end up doing a lot of the character grunt work for new players.

[Scifi_Toughguy]

Re: Character For Review: The Beast (not the Marvel one)

 

...CON is commonly bought in figures ending with 3 or 8 for similar reasons. Losing 2 CON would save 4 points' date=' cost 4 END and 1 STUN (effectively, the 2 points do get that STIN and END for free, so this is less inefficient)... [/quote'] Whoah. Yeild on green. I don't understand this point. I understand that some numbers are munchkinly more optimal than others it's the parenthetical statement that throws me.

 

...INT 12 may as well be INT 10. INT 13 would raise your PER rolls, and other INT rolls, by 1.

 

I'd probably raise DEX and INT by 1 each and ditch the Lightning Reflexes.

 

I'd likely ditch lightning reflexes. Going first isn't a big deal, especially for a guy who can take damage to this extent. Besides, I suspect you'll find most characters with better than a 26 DEX are 6 SPD and commonly move in different phases than you anyway. [i prefer to make the last hit of the fight, not the first.]

So what you're saying is, I don't need lightning reflexes?

 

 

...Something's wrong here. Adding "analyze" to the sense will probably get the right result (and it should also have concentrate). Consider Targetting with your sense of smell as well. You go to half DCV' date=' but can locate many invisible foes, and be effective if blinded by a Flash.[/quote'] I did add concentrate to the tracking sense. I wanted to add something like analyze to it but this was the only way I could get it to work. I probably was simply mistaken and should have done discriminatory, like some later posters said. Targetting is pretty expensive, so although that would be nice, I only have so many points. Besides, I'm imagining this guy is not your well practiced superhero. In my mind, he is actually recruited very near or even after the beginning of the campaign.

 

 

...4 BOD is a lot. With your defenses' date=' taking BOD will be rare anyway. You could cut this down to 1 or 2 and free up some points.[/quote'] I had this power at 2 BOD originally (note the first generation attempt) and someone in the other thread said that this was too little to regenerate lost limbs unless the limbs were my pinky finger/toe.

 

 

 

...I'd be inclined to eliminate Inherent' date=' and perhaps go with 13/13 armor instead (although with DEX creeping up, I might look at DEF as getting a bit high, the character has other limitations, primarily movement powers). Your PD/ED can be drained anyway, and that's a more common adjustment power to see in game. In fact, other than the tail, I'd consider inherent pretty closely.[/quote'] True, armor does sort of imply that the power is 'stuck on you' unless you take the limitation stating its seperate. I decided to go with consistency here. If my tail is inherent, then the other abilities I say he gained as a result of the same genetic tampering probably should have that trait as well. Thats my reasoning, anywho.

 

 

...I'd have to ask "why magic"? I wonder if "cold" would make more sense - is he still fully warm-blooded?

Good question. Answer: I dunno. I just sort of chose it. I have only read the blurbs on Vibora bay that are public, so all I know is that it seems to be kind of magic centric. That may mean that this is more of a disadvantage than I think. Perhaps I should switch it out. *muses over the idea*

 

 

 

..."Back off, gator-boy, or I shoot the girl".

 

"RRRAAARGH!!"

 

[startled finger pulls trigger] BLAM

 

This may not be the result you're looking for, but I see it as a likely one.

I agree with AlHazred. Sure it's not very convenient, but he's not a solo hero, he's to be part of a group. Plot hooks, drama and all that.

 

Thanks for the advice!

[MechaGM]

Re: Character For Review: The Beast (not the Marvel one)

 

First off, I agree with everyone in that this is one of the best first character builds that I've seen. Kudos.

 

Originally Posted by Scifi_Toughguy

Originally Posted by Hugh Neilson

...4 BOD is a lot. With your defenses, taking BOD will be rare anyway. You could cut this down to 1 or 2 and free up some points.

I had this power at 2 BOD originally (note the first generation attempt) and someone in the other thread said that this was too little to regenerate lost limbs unless the limbs were my pinky finger/toe.

 

Just wanted to clear this up. Basically, from what I read, the original build of the character his regeneration was built as healing with no conscious control. This will work differently than building it with the required regeneration advantages and limitations. With straight healing, there is a maximum amount of BOD one can heal, and the 2d6 healing could heal at most 4 BOD. (the max body one can roll on 2d6) Making Healing into regeneration doesn't have this upper cap, so you need fewer dice to achieve the effect you're going for. (which is why I am still confused as to why they removed Renegration as a stand-alone power in 5th edition)

 

Hope that helps clear things up a bit, and I hope you have a blast playing your character.

[Scifi_Toughguy]

Re: Character For Review: The Beast (not the Marvel one)

 

Cool, nice brick.

 

 

Marine Surface Survival is the art of living on a boat or raft, say, or being a surface-dwelling fish. From what you describe, I think your character would only need Urban to survive in the sewers; to survive in the nearby swamp, he should have Temperate/Subtropical Coasts.

Thankee for that.

 

The problem with Trigger in this case' date=' is that your character needs to be conscious in order for the Trigger to reset. I suggest Persistent, which will make the power cost 33 instead of 29, but it'll always work to heal you and will gradually regenerate your limbs.[/quote']

These are the types of problems you run into when you own none of the books and only have the free demo version of the character generator. I greatly appreciate the 'define' button in the program, but it doesn't tell me everything. You guys are the best!

 

 

The way to do this in Hero Designer' date=' is to use Naked Modifier in the Power list.[/quote'] Will have to experiment with that, had no clue what it was or how to use it. Now I know...

[Scifi_Toughguy]

Re: Character For Review: The Beast (not the Marvel one)

 

First off, I agree with everyone in that this is one of the best first character builds that I've seen. Kudos.

 

 

 

Just wanted to clear this up. Basically, from what I read, the original build of the character his regeneration was built as healing with no conscious control. This will work differently than building it with the required regeneration advantages and limitations. With straight healing, there is a maximum amount of BOD one can heal, and the 2d6 healing could heal at most 4 BOD. (the max body one can roll on 2d6) Making Healing into regeneration doesn't have this upper cap, so you need fewer dice to achieve the effect you're going for. (which is why I am still confused as to why they removed Renegration as a stand-alone power in 5th edition)

 

Hope that helps clear things up a bit, and I hope you have a blast playing your character.

 

Okay so is this the roll the dice and divide by a certain number to see how much good you actually did? If so, does this only apply to healing and not Regeneration or how does that work?

[Hugh Neilson]

Re: Character For Review: The Beast (not the Marvel one)

 

Whoah. Yeild on green. I don't understand this point. I understand that some numbers are munchkinly more optimal than others it's the parenthetical statement that throws me.

 

OK, if I buy CON from 28 to 30, it costs 4 points. My STUN is figured based on 1/2 CON, so I gain 1 STUN (would cost 1 point) and my END is 2x CON, so I gain 4E END (would cost 2 points). Effectively, going to 30 CON from 28 only cost 1 point, if we assume you would have bought STUN and END back up. It's just minor stat tweaking, though.

 

So what you're saying is' date=' I don't need lightning reflexes? [/quote']

 

My personal bias is that I don't find it that useful. Plus, after suggesting you consider buying some stats up, the obvious next question is "and get the points from where?" While I won't say lightning reflexes is useless - I'm sure you'll find a situation where you'll curse me for talking you into eliminating them, or be grateful youdecided to keep them - it's an item I would consider less than central to the character's effectiveness.

 

I did add concentrate to the tracking sense. I wanted to add something like analyze to it but this was the only way I could get it to work. I probably was simply mistaken and should have done discriminatory' date=' like some later posters said. Targetting is pretty expensive, so although that would be nice, I only have so many points. Besides, I'm imagining this guy is not your well practiced superhero. In my mind, he is actually recruited very near or even after the beginning of the campaign.[/quote']

 

Laco of clarity on may part - I would have had Concentrate on the Analyze portion as well (but I agree Discriminatory is preferable). I may just be misreading the HD writeup.

 

As for Targetting, it's all about tradeoffs. You'll likely see a few things you'd like the character to have that you can't buy on 350 points, but they're good things to file away for possible spending of future experience.

 

I had this power at 2 BOD originally (note the first generation attempt) and someone in the other thread said that this was too little to regenerate lost limbs unless the limbs were my pinky finger/toe.

 

I'd discuss that with your GM. There are no explicit rules for how limbs regenerate. My assumption is that limb loss is sufficiently rare (esp. in a supers game) that the adder itself is sufficient to regrow over time. I also missed the Trigger, and assumed you were building the "Regenerate" construct, which has no limits based on # of dice. {By the way, I would go the Regenerate route.]

 

True' date=' armor does sort of imply that the power is 'stuck on you' unless you take the limitation stating its seperate. I decided to go with consistency here. If my tail is inherent, then the other abilities I say he gained as a result of the same genetic tampering probably should have that trait as well. Thats my reasoning, anywho.[/quote']

 

Absent a Focus, armor is natural. It's really a holdover from older versions of the game, since Armor is just PD or ED + Damage Resistance. And Inherent isn't a problem with your thiking, but with the advantage itself. For example, human beings' base 6" running is not considered "inherent".

 

good question. Answer: I dunno. I just sort of chose it. I have only read the blurbs on Vibora bay that are public' date=' so all I know is that it seems to be kind of magic centric. That may mean that this is more of a disadvantage than I think. Perhaps I should switch it out. *muses over the idea* [/quote']

 

Again, personal bias, but I always like to know why my character's abilities work like they do. Alternatively, you could simply say "he's vulnerable to magic and doesn't know why". This leaves it as a possible plot hook for the GM.

 

I agree with AlHazred. Sure it's not very convenient' date=' but he's not a solo hero, he's to be part of a group. Plot hooks, drama and all that.[/quote']

 

My concern here is only an understanding of what the disadvantage does, and whether that meshes with your vision for the character. That's another reason I like to provide explanatory notes on "how his powers and disad's work" - the GM can then look it over and say "The construct doesn't get the result you're looking for - let's try building it this way". [Plus, I hope to keep your DNPC's alive - those poor kids have suffered enough!]

 

Anyway, we're just playing with tweaks now - I'd say you're pretty much good to go.

[AlHazred]

Re: Character For Review: The Beast (not the Marvel one)

 

Okay so is this the roll the dice and divide by a certain number to see how much good you actually did? If so' date=' does this only apply to healing and not Regeneration or how does that work?[/quote']

Basically, with regular Healing, you roll the dice, count the total, and heal that many Character Points of that Characteristic. So, since BODY costs 2 points per 1 BODY, if you rolled, say, 14 on 4d6 BODY Healing, you would get back 7 BODY. If you use the Standard Effect Rule, then every die is assumed to roll a "3", and you would get back 12 points/6 BODY from 4d6 BODY Healing. There is a cap on how many points you can get back from Healing, equal to the best possible roll. The best possible roll on 4d6 BODY Healing is 4 sixes, or 24 points/12 BODY, so you can get back at most 12 BODY from a 4d6 Healing power.

 

With Simplified Healing, you roll the dice, count the Normal Damage BODY like it was, say, an Energy Blast, and heal that many BODY points. Then you count the total of the dice and heal that many STUN. So, if you rolled, say, 14 (6, 4, 2, 2) on 4d6 Simplified Healing, you would get back 5 BODY and 14 STUN. If you use the Standard Effect Rule, then every die is assumed to roll a "3", and you would get back 4 BODY and 12 STUN from 4d6 Simplified Healing. There is a cap on how many points you can get back from Simplified Healing, equal to the best possible roll. The best possible roll on 4d6 Simplified Healing is 4 sixes, or 8 BODY, so you can get back at most 8 BODY from a 4d6 Simplified Healing power.

 

With Regeneration, you always use the Standard Effect Rule. It only heals BODY, and only 1 BODY per die. However, Regeneration is the only way most GMs will let you buy Healing for yourself that is always working. Also, as a trade-off, GMs will ignore the maximum BODY cap on Regeneration Healing; that's the most important benefit to taking Regeneration Healing.

 

So, your guy only needs maybe 1d6 or 2d6 Regeneration Healing (1 or 2 BODY per Turn), and he will eventually regrow limbs and so forth.

 

That's what the other poster meant by not being able to regrow your limbs. Most likely, the attack which severed one your limbs would be a 15 BODY attack or higher after defenses. With either the BODY Healing or Simplified Healing options above, you'd never be able to regrow a limb because you'd never be able to Heal enough BODY. By making the power Regeneration instead, the cap is removed and you'll eventually hit enough BODY to heal the limb back.

[Scifi_Toughguy]

Re: Character For Review: The Beast (not the Marvel one)

 

OK' date=' if I buy CON from 28 to 30, it costs 4 points. My STUN is figured based on 1/2 CON, so I gain 1 STUN (would cost 1 point) and my END is 2x CON, so I gain 4E END (would cost 2 points). Effectively, going to 30 CON from 28 only cost 1 point, if we assume you would have bought STUN and END back up. It's just minor stat tweaking, though.[/quote'] So you're saying that by reverting to 28 CON and then buying the END and STUN back to their natural CON of 30 level I would save one point? My next question is what about buying that ability up later with experience? Does that mean I'd spend points and get no bonus from them because the secondary characteristics are already at that level?

 

 

I'd discuss that with your GM. There are no explicit rules for how limbs regenerate. My assumption is that limb loss is sufficiently rare (esp. in a supers game) that the adder itself is sufficient to regrow over time. I also missed the Trigger' date=' and assumed you were building the "Regenerate" construct, which has no limits based on # of dice. {By the way, I would go the Regenerate route.']

Again, I thank you for all of your wonderful help. Please pardon my ignorance (my birthday is soon and I'm hoping someone comes through with hero books) but how would one do the regenerate construct (I do have the basic free version of hero designer)?

 

Absent a Focus' date=' armor is natural. It's really a holdover from older versions of the game, since Armor is just PD or ED + Damage Resistance. And Inherent isn't a problem with your thiking, but with the advantage itself. For example, human beings' base 6" running is not considered "inherent".[/quote'] So I can legally and without remorse save 7 points? Dude, I'm there.

 

Again' date=' personal bias, but I always like to know why my character's abilities work like they do. Alternatively, you could simply say "he's vulnerable to magic and doesn't know why". This leaves it as a possible plot hook for the GM.[/quote'] Like I said before, I really just kind of chose this arbitrarily. I could simply lose the inherent advantage on a few of the powers and then erase the 5 point disad all together, wouldn't bug me any. I don't really like having the vulnerability, but like you said before, you can't be good at everything...

 

 

 

My concern here is only an understanding of what the disadvantage does' date=' and whether that meshes with your vision for the character. That's another reason I like to provide explanatory notes on "how his powers and disad's work" - the GM can then look it over and say "The construct doesn't get the result you're looking for - let's try building it this way". [Plus, I hope to keep your DNPC's alive - those poor kids have suffered enough!']

 

Anyway, we're just playing with tweaks now - I'd say you're pretty much good to go.

Addressing the kids. According to my write up, only the people who did this to him have any clues as to who he is... Okay I'm sure this made sense in my head but the more of it I put on paper the less it makes sense so I'll stop talking now...

 

Oh and was it yourself that mentioned the mystery hunted disad? How does one do that?

[Hugh Neilson]

Re: Character For Review: The Beast (not the Marvel one)

 

So you're saying that by reverting to 28 CON and then buying the END and STUN back to their natural CON of 30 level I would save one point? My next question is what about buying that ability up later with experience? Does that mean I'd spend points and get no bonus from them because the secondary characteristics are already at that level?

 

essentially, if you spend XP on a primary stat, the impact on secondaries comes along with it. Either you'd notionally spend 4 on CON (going from 28 to 30), and get back 1 from STUN and 2 from END (since your total stat is now covered by figured characteristics), spending 1 xp net or your STUN and END would go up by 1 and 4, and you'd spend 4 xp on the CON. Some GM's might say "Hey, you spent 1 point on STUN and 2 on END - you have to always keep your STUN and END that much higher than the figured values". I don't, and I'm not aware of anyone who does.

 

Points spent as XP work exactly like poiints spent on character creation.

 

Again' date=' I thank you for all of your wonderful help. Please pardon my ignorance (my birthday is soon and I'm hoping someone comes through with hero books) but how would one do the regenerate construct (I do have the basic free version of hero designer)?[/quote']

 

I don't use HD at all, so I'm at a drawback there. And I don't have the books with me. As I recall, it's pretty much like your writeup, but pull Trigger and add Persistent. It should work out to 8 points per BOD (1d6 Healing), so I suspect I may be missing something. Are you certain "PS 12" isn't -1? Maybe someone with their books or better memory can help us out here...

 

So I can legally and without remorse save 7 points? Dude, I'm there.

 

I don't really like having the vulnerability' date=' but like you said before, you can't be good at everything...[/quote']

 

I don't mind having a Vulnerability. If the GM's determined you're going down, you're going down, so may as well provide an easier way. I just like to try for one that has a basis I can link to the character. "Cold" made sense to me given the character's basis, but there's lots of options.

 

Oh and was it yourself that mentioned the mystery hunted disad? How does one do that?

 

The term is shorthand, actually. Some groups use this, others despise it. Basically, the premise is that I am hunted by someone, but my character doesn't know who or why, so I just indicate "It's a 20 point Hunted - GM to decide who it is". It then comes out in play.

 

The broader concept is "Mystery Disadvantages", or even Mystery Powers in general, but I find Hunteds lend themselves exceptionally well to this, especially if I don't know which characters the GM may plan on featuring. Often, as a GM, I'll read a background and think Hey - that links in perfectly with how I'm using this character, that scenario, or what have you.

 

Proponents will tout the better link to the source material - how often do characters know everything about their powers and backgrounds? Opponents will argue about the extra work for the GM, or the ability of the GM to screw with the character (or the frustration when, as GM, you're ready for the secret to come out and the player changes characters or leaves the game!!!).

[Scifi_Toughguy]

Re: Character For Review: The Beast (not the Marvel one)

 

Okay so AlHazred, how would you build that regen power using HD?

[AlHazred]

Re: Character For Review: The Beast (not the Marvel one)

Some GM's might say "Hey' date=' you spent 1 point on STUN and 2 on END - you have to always keep your STUN and END that much higher than the figured values". I don't, and I'm not aware of anyone who does.[/quote'] I do.

Okay so AlHazred' date=' how would you build that regen power using HD?[/quote']

Cost Power END 11 Regeneration: Healing 1d6, Can Heal Limbs, Reduced Endurance (0 END; +1/2), Persistent (+1/2); Extra Time (1 Turn (Post-Segment 12), -1 1/4), Self Only (-1/2) [Notes: No Healing Max (see FREd p. 120).] 0 Powers Cost: 11

There is a free Special Powers Prefab which has Regeneration already in it, so you don't have to do much work.

[Scifi_Toughguy]

Re: Character For Review: The Beast (not the Marvel one)

 

Okay, so with this construct you've given me, how good of a regenerator is he? Like how would you go about doing say Wolverine's healing factor? (How does this character's compare to the clawed one's?)

[AlHazred]

Re: Character For Review: The Beast (not the Marvel one)

 

That's a subjective matter since there will never be an "official" writeup for Wolverine. I've seen people give Wolvy anywhere from 2 BODY Regeneration to 6 BODY Regeneration.

 

Look at it this way, with 1 BODY Regen per Turn, you'll heal up your full BODY stat in 3 Minutes. You could come back from the brink of death (-14 BODY) in under 6 Minutes.

 

Darren gave the Hulk 3 BODY Regen in the official writeup in Game Trade Magazine, but the Hulk also has ten more BODY than your guy.

 

It's a matter of taste. You're talking superheroes. Go with your concept.