New person with wacky power question

[Brandi]

I even did a search around to see if this had been answered, but...

 

How expensive would it be to design a power that basically Transforms any Power (can't affect Characteristics, and presumably couldn't affect Inherent Powers any more than Drain/Suppress/Dispel would) into a Power with the -1 Limitation "Activation 11-"? Would it be a Minor or Major Transform? (Activation 8-, or Burnouts or Jams, would definitely be Major!)

 

Basically, I'm thinking of a character who jinxes or puts the whammy on people. This power would probably have some limitation in the form of Requires Perception Roll or some kind of successful Detect, as things like Mental Powers or Inobvious Foci wouldn't be spotted right away.

 

Would it have any Limitations for Target Group? *Could* it?

 

Also, when determining the Healing rate for a transform, do you get any limitations for a fast heal rate, like per turn? The only examples in the Hero 5 book seem to heal damage at the normal rate for healing damage to BODY (ie REC points per month).

 

Thanks for all your help (and BTW, lots of threads around here are pretty funny)!

[Jhamin]

This is actually kind of a cool idea!

 

A successful transform can do pretty much anything you want to somebody. As previous examples for using transform include blinding, removing limbs, transforming to frogs, and giving them a vulnerability to your other powers, I would think adding an activation roll is pretty ok. You specify a reasonable way to undo the transform when you buy the power. You can specify normal healing but you don't have to.

 

If you can put the "whammy" on any power, then there is no limit to the target group. If they can only affect Technology/Mutant Powers/Magic, then that might be a limit of around -1/2. What is the source of this "whammy" anyway? That will probably tell us alot about what it should affect and how they can get "dewhammied'. Powers that can affect "powers" are examples of metagame thinking. Powers that can affect "Technology" or "Mutants" are more proper.

[Ndreare]

I believe in the basic discription of Transform it covers giving a disadvantage/limitation to characters as...

 

 

Transform Xd6 target into target with activation on powers. Limited Target people with powers -1/2, Major Change =15 AC and 10 RC per die then you would have to transform the entire amount of their body and an aditional amount of points equal to the change desired. As transform is inherantly cumalative this could be as cheep or expensive as you like.

 

However I would buy it as the following which would not be a transform game mechanicly but would work well

 

55 Jinx: Custom Power "Activation -11 on up to 60 Active points worth of powers" 30 Active Points= Variable Special Effects Limited Group of SFX (+1/4), Ranged (+1/2), Usable As Attack (+1) (82 Active Points); Costs Endurance Costs END Every Phase (-1/2) 8

 

You are basicly changing the value of the character by X many points. So it all depends on weather you want an instant effect or a acheaved effect.

[Ndreare]

As an after thought you could even add things like uncontroled to make the limitation last for long periods of time.

[Brandi]

Well, the reason I left the powers category undefined is that I'm not sure how powers are defined in the campaign I'm thinking of joining. I considered the power as a sort of 'schadenfreude': the guy watches someone try to do something fancy and makes them screw up. I figure it's a mental power, BOECV, and might, with living beings at least, have the 'Works against EGO, not BODY' enhancement-- perhaps he's unconsciously creating mental static.

 

It's possible that that this could be worked out as a Multipower, so that it has the 'Works Against EGO' enhancement for the slot that whammies living beings' powers but not for the one whammying foci.

 

I *am* thinking it'd probably be an All or Nothing transform, and that it does wear off after a relatively short period of time, so healing would be defined as some fast rate like maybe REC's worth of BODY per turn instead of per month.

 

Another interesting jinx power I'd thought of, which doesn't affect Powers, is a Multipower Change Environment, 1 hex, -5 to STR/INT/DEX/PRE (and appropriate rolls) depending on which slot is activated....

 

I figure whatever jinxes I do will probably also be Invisible to Sight/Hearing (but visual to Mental Senses as if they were regular mental powers), and maybe requiring Concentration or having entertaining Side Effects (like backfiring to reduce his rolls or giving him several dice of Unluck).

[Guest WhammeWhamme]

Putting the whamme on something? Well, here I am.

 

 

I'd say 'affects superpowers' is valid. It's not playing the system; it's playing the genre. Making anyone with 'superhuman abilities' more likely to screw when acting all super is reasonable. Jinxing anything that isn't 'normal' and isn't as natural as breathing sounds like a (nasty) power that one could use in a comic...

[JohnTaber]

Hi Whamme,

 

I had to post this...I have an NPC/villain in my game who is called Jinx. Here is my writeup. Note that my campaign is low powered in some areas so no laughing...

 

Jinx

 

Player:

 

Val	Char	Cost
10	STR	0
20	DEX	30
20	CON	20
15	BODY	10
18	INT	8
20	EGO	20
20	PRE	10
16	COM	3
10/18	PD	3
10/18	ED	1
4	SPD	10
6	REC	0
40	END	0
30	STUN	0

7" RUN22" SWIM02" LEAP0Characteristics Cost: 117

 

Cost	Power	END
34	Unluck Probability Manipulation Powers: Elemental Control, 68-point powers
30	1) Hex: (Total: 67 Active Cost, 58 Real Cost) Drain DEX 2d6, Delayed Return Rate (5 Points per Minute) (+1/4), Reduced Endurance 1/2 END (+1/4), Ranged (+1/2) (40 Active Points) (Real Cost: 40) plus Drain Movement Powers Based On Limb(s) 1d6, Delayed Return Rate (5 Points per Minute) (+1/4), Ranged (+1/2), Movement Powers Based On Limb(s) Four Powers Simultaneously (+1) (27 Active Points); Linked to Drain (-1/2) (Real Cost: 18)	5
21	2) Ghost In The Machine: (Total: 67 Active Cost, 42 Real Cost) Dispel Focus Powers 11d6, Expanded Effect One At A Time (+1/4), Reduced Endurance 1/2 END (+1/4) (49 Active Points); Only on focus powers with activation rolls Power loses about a third of its effectiveness (-1/2) (Real Cost: 33) plus Telekinesis (5 STR), Fine Manipulation (18 Active Points); Only Works On Unliving Objects Limited Group of Objects (-1/2), Linked to Dispel (-1/2) (Real Cost: 9)	4
18	3) Unlucky Presence: Change Environment 2" radius, -1 Points of Telekinetic STR, -3 DEX Roll and all Skill Rolls based on DEX, -3" of any one mode of Movement, Personal Immunity (+1/4), Reduced Endurance 0 END (+1/2), Persistent (+1/2) (70 Active Points); No Range (-1/2), Always On (-1/2)
25	Fortunes Change: Luck 5d6
25	Unlucky Miss: +5 with DCV
	Padded Costume, all slots: OIF (-1/2)
16	1) Armor (8 PD/8 ED) (24 Active Points)
3	2) +5 PD (5 Active Points)
3	3) +5 ED (5 Active Points)
5	Tough To Probe: +10 Mental Defense (14 points total) (10 Active Points); Only To Resist Telepathy Very Limited Type of Attack (-1)

Powers Cost: 180

 

 

Cost	Skill
10	+1 Overall
3	Acting 13-
3	Conversation 13-
10	Defense Maneuver: I-IV
1	KS: Latest Fashions 8-
3	KS: Omega Brain (INT-based) 13-
3	Paramedics 13-
3	Persuasion 13-
3	Power (INT-based) 13-
3	PS: Nurse (INT-based) 13-
3	SS: Medicine (INT-based) 13-
3	Seduction 13-
1	Systems Operation 8-
1	TF: Small Motorized Ground Vehicles

Skills Cost: 50

 

Cost	Perk
3	Anonymity

Perks Cost: 3

 

 

 

Total Character Cost: 350

 

Val	Disadvantages
15	Distinctive Features: Blue Skin, White Eyes, Lots White Hair (Concealable; Always Noticed and Causes Major Reaction; Detectable By Commonly-Used Senses)
25	Hunted: UNTIL 11- (Mo Pow; Harshly Punish; Extensive Non-Combat Influence)
15	Hunted: Omega Brain 14- (Mo Pow; Watching)
10	Hunted: Rian White 14- (As Pow; Watching)
20	Psychological Limitation: Code Versus Killing (Very Common; Strong)
15	Psychological Limitation: Thrillseeker (Common; Strong)
5	Psychological Limitation: Feels Dependent On Omega Brain (Uncommon; Moderate)
15	Reputation: Companion Of Omega Brain 14-
5	Vulnerability: 1 1/2 x BODY Sonic Attacks (Uncommon)
5	Vulnerability: 1 1/2 x STUN Sonic Attacks (Uncommon)
20	Normal Characteristic Maxima

Disadvantage Points: 150

 

Base Points: 200

Experience Required: 0

Total Experience Available: 0

Experience Unspent: 0