Couple of wierd power questions

[Eosin]

1. Cling to Form: This power is something of a transmigration of the soul effect. The possessor of the power can fling his soul out at the moment of death and hope that it takes root in a nearby "unformed soul," such as an infant, someone who is brain dead, or other being without motivation. The habitation doesn't tranform that being into a carbon copy but it is a type of reincarnation (they would get some inherent powers). The infant will grow to posses many similar traits and powers. I am thinking a linked mental transform along with a physical transform that bestows the actual powers.

 

2. Prophetic Dreams: The possessor of the power can give others precognitive dreams (specifically what he wants them to see) while they are dreaming. I toyed with both Danger Sense and Precognative Clairvoyance UBO but that doesn't seem to allow the user to "edit" what the target recieves.

 

Suggestions?

[Lemurion]

Re: Couple of wierd power questions

 

Take a look at what you're trying to do. Forex in power #2, you're trying to control what someone sees: Sounds like Images to me. Only usable on someone who's dreaming, and if you want to tie in the Precog, only to replicate things seen via that Clairvoyance. That way the user can look to the future and then put partial images from it into the dreamer.

[Eosin]

Re: Couple of wierd power questions

 

Yeah, I waffled between that an Illusions (right now it is built on Illusions but I ain't married to the idea).

[Lucius]

Couple of wierd power questions

 

You could try Clairvoyance, Precognitive, Usable AS ATTACK.

 

That leaves control in the hands of the person with the power.

 

As for the first one - Frankly, sounds like a plot device. The character dies, and is going to be out of the game for years as the infant grows up. Maybe he can take part in another game set several years in the future. But he is essentially a different character; it's not really different than when I chose to play a character who was a grandson of a previous character I played. Not something you have to pay points for.

 

Lucius Alexander

 

Listed on the palindromedary's sheet as Follower. Or is that the other way around?

[Eosin]

Re: Couple of wierd power questions

 

You could try Clairvoyance, Precognitive, Usable AS ATTACK.

 

That leaves control in the hands of the person with the power.

 

As for the first one - Frankly, sounds like a plot device. The character dies, and is going to be out of the game for years as the infant grows up. Maybe he can take part in another game set several years in the future. But he is essentially a different character; it's not really different than when I chose to play a character who was a grandson of a previous character I played. Not something you have to pay points for.

 

Lucius Alexander

 

Listed on the palindromedary's sheet as Follower. Or is that the other way around?

 

1. That is a great idea. Less wonky than what I was klooging together.

 

2. Yes, you are 100% correct... Plot device. However, this is an NPC power so I still gotta get it done. I think tranform to add a 5 point Physical Limitation - Soul of Fire or something similar would work.

[prestidigitator]

Re: Couple of wierd power questions

 

1. Cling to Form: This power is something of a transmigration of the soul effect. The possessor of the power can fling his soul out at the moment of death and hope that it takes root in a nearby "unformed soul' date='" such as an infant, someone who is brain dead, or other being without motivation. The habitation doesn't tranform that being into a carbon copy but it is a type of reincarnation (they would get some inherent powers). The infant will grow to posses many similar traits and powers. I am thinking a linked mental transform along with a physical transform that bestows the actual powers.[/quote']

I would probably build that as Duplication myself. Give it a fixed Trigger and probably No Conscious Control at the -1 level (or even at the -2 level if it is really that uncertain and you don't want to do it explicitly with Activation Roll or something). Possibly also a single (Non-Recoverable?) Charge. This would give you a well-defined way of defining those, "inherent," powers that go along with the reincarnation; even if you don't define them completely you can build the Duplication at a level that defines how many and at what power level those abilities can be conferred. Other than the abilities conferred, I would assume the base form is 0 points (1 point of course if you don't allow for any above-average abilities to be transferred). Leave the rest up to story.

 

Another possibility would be to define it as some kind of Triggered Teleportation plus Resurrection Healing (Regeneration) with Invisible Power Effects. Some pretty hefty Limitations could probably be added.

[Dust Raven]

Re: Couple of wierd power questions

 

1. Cling to Form: I agree with Lucius, it's a plot device. As such though, it's not worth any points. Or worthy of being statted in my opinion. You said it's on an NPC (which itself makes the actual build for it unnecessary), but assume for a moment a player has asked for something like that for his character. Think about what happends, as far as game mechanics are concerned, when a player character dies. Well, the only "mechanic" that happens is that the player writes up a new character. In this case, the new character is strikingly similar to the original (because the soul was reborn into the body of a coma victim in a nearby hostpital) but doesn't quite have the same powers. Or he writes up a completely new character because his original is busy growing up because he was reborn into an infant and won't really be playable for a few decades in game. Would you really make someone pay points for the ability to write up a new character if his current one dies? I'm sure you wouldn't. The question is really what limits are on the player when he writes up the new character?

 

The only issue I can see is if someone wanted to subject the character with this unusual ability to the final death, be it forcing the soul to move on or obliterate it completely. I figure it can just be a matter of SFX in this case, any attack dealing with the soul as part of its SFX might accomplish this if it's instrumental in the character's death. Completley up the the GM.

 

2. Prophetic dreams: Mental Illusions. If you want them to be truly prohpetic, then the attack should also have Precognative Clarisentience which he uses during or prior to using Mental Illusions on the target.

[prestidigitator]

Re: Couple of wierd power questions

 

1. Cling to Form: I agree with Lucius' date=' it's a plot device. As such though, it's not worth any points. Or worthy of being statted in my opinion. You said it's on an NPC (which itself makes the actual build for it unnecessary), but assume for a moment a player has asked for something like that for his character. Think about what happends, as far as game mechanics are concerned, when a player character dies. Well, the only "mechanic" that happens is that the player writes up a new character. In this case, the new character is strikingly similar to the original (because the soul was reborn into the body of a coma victim in a nearby hostpital) but doesn't quite have the same powers. Or he writes up a completely new character because his original is busy growing up because he was reborn into an infant and won't really be playable for a few decades in game. Would you really make someone pay points for the ability to write up a new character if his current one dies? I'm sure you wouldn't. The question is really what limits are on the [i']player[/i] when he writes up the new character?

I have to disagree on this one. One benefit that is conferred is that the character presumably has all or some of his/her old memories after this reincarnation. Possibly also the same personality. In a sense the character has continued to live. Consider it, if you will a, "radiation accident," rather than death.

 

I don't think we charge points for what a player can do. I think we charge points for what the character can do. A good player (one who can seperate his or her charater's desires and benefit from the overall story) could even be in full control of a No Conscious Control Power (even if it is completely out of the character's hands).

 

If you must make it in terms of the benefits given the player, then consider it paying for the ability to have some continuity between characters, in terms of abilities and personality, and possibly in terms of knowledge. A GM might otherwise be completely justified in denying a character concept that is too like the one the player just had. Taken to the ridiculous extreme, consider a player who wants to continue playing the same character after that character's death and so decides to bring in a character with exactly the same traits and personality with the excuse that:

This is Merico's

brother

. His twin brother. And Merico sent him a daily journal with every minute detail of his adventures. He knows everything that Merico knew, has the same motivations and vendettas, and even inherited Merio's fortune when Merico died.

I don't know about you, but when I am GM I don't go for that kind of thing.

[David Johnston]

Re: Couple of wierd power questions

 

This is Merico's

brother

. His twin brother. And Merico sent him a daily journal with every minute detail of his adventures. He knows everything that Merico knew, has the same motivations and vendettas, and even inherited Merio's fortune when Merico died.

I don't know about you, but when I am GM I don't go for that kind of thing.

 

I'd just say, "Fine. But you have to design Merico II with KS: Life of Merico"

Which is how I'd handle Mr. Reincarnation as well. I'd say, "OK, you need a KS for the lives of your previous incarnations. Maybe several."

 

(Well, actually, I'd say "Dude, we can bring Merico back from the dead if you want. That's part of the genre.)

[DangerousDan]

Re: Couple of wierd power questions

 

1. Cling to Form: I agree with Lucius' date=' it's a plot device. As such though, it's not worth any points. Or worthy of being statted in my opinion. You said it's on an NPC (which itself makes the actual build for it unnecessary), but assume for a moment a player has asked for something like that for his character. Think about what happends, as far as game mechanics are concerned, when a player character dies. Well, the only "mechanic" that happens is that the player writes up a new character. In this case, the new character is strikingly similar to the original (because the soul was reborn into the body of a coma victim in a nearby hostpital) but doesn't quite have the same powers. Or he writes up a completely new character because his original is busy growing up because he was reborn into an infant and won't really be playable for a few decades in game. Would you really make someone pay points for the ability to write up a new character if his current one dies? I'm sure you wouldn't. The question is really what limits are on the [i']player[/i] when he writes up the new character?

 

 

If the new character bearing the old soul retains not only the old character's personality, but his memories as well, I'd at least make the new character pay for at least one knowledge skill related to the personal memories of the previous character, and I'd be quite disappointed if he didn't buy a significant portion of the previous character's skills. But the old character doesn't necessarily pay anything for this ability.

 

OTOH, I'd be quite disinclined to allow a character to achieve reincarnation or resurection in an alternate form so cheaply. I'm especially inclined to think this way since I decided that this was too cheesy for a character I created under 4th edition rules. (A werewolf that had died more than once before and come all the way back) Someone in our group had already built a character with a similar ability using Duplication. The Duplicate has Duplication, the duplicate of the duplicate has duplication,..., but there is never more than one duplicate up and about at any one time. My character has been played for several years and the ability has never been used. The character the power was initially applied to has died many times. This is a clunky and expensive build, but not nearly as cheesy as drawing up the same character over and over and pretending that it is a new one.

 

Fifth Edition has a Resurection adder for Healing, and there are ways to combine regeneration with other powers including Multiform to build the desired effect, but they are all undoubtedly subject to GM approval.

[Dust Raven]

Re: Couple of wierd power questions

 

Exactly, the reincarnated version should have a KS: Complete Live of [Original Character] on a fairly high roll. In this case, the extra "power" should be written into the new character.

 

I probably wouldn't go for something like this, and even if I did, it's have to be arranged ahead of time. I'd be more willing in a superhero game though, where characters come back from the dead more often than in soap operas.

[prestidigitator]

Re: Couple of wierd power questions

 

So does the reincarnation slowly grow to be the original character, or is there just some common ground shared? That could be a deciding factor, actually.