Bad Powers

[SpydirShellX]

I'm trying to come up with an array of really bad powers.

Basically, I'm trying to create a character who had started out as a normal and attempted to somehow gain super-powers. Fortiantly for him, the various chemical/radiation/biological experiments he put himself through did gain him super-powers...however, they were not "cool" or "useful" powers. So, in a fit of envy, he decide if he couldn't have cool superpowers, nobody else could. So, taking what powers he did have, he begins hunting down super-heros.

The character's powers shouldn't rely on gear or magic... but I need some junky powers.

[薔薇語]

Re: Bad Powers

 

can take all the differant vissions slapp them in a multi-power and place uncontrolled on it. So he either hopes he gets IR and gets mircroscopic or randomly he gets night Vission in the middle of the day and goes blind for a moment.

 

same thing for Flight 1" levitaion only with uncontrolled. Everyonce and a while he just starts lifting off the Earth by a couple inches an can no longer move since he can't effectivly controll it.

 

then he could also have...ect

 

La Rose

[Supreme Serpent]

Re: Bad Powers

 

100 pts Sight Flash Defense, only works to keep seeing purple. Not so bad if fighting Barney with a flare gun, generally not as useful as normal flash-goggles.

 

 

+20 PD Armor, Only vs. Copper.

 

 

[Narratio]

Re: Bad Powers

 

The Rose has a good idea there with the etc. How about Uncontrolled random growth and shrink, 1 level, lasts 1 turn before changing again (either higher up or lower down). Now that would be funny!

[NestorDRod]

Re: Bad Powers

 

Actually, you can't go wrong just taking any moderately interesting power and slapping Uncontrollable on it...

 

Regeneration, Uncontrollable - At random times, body parts will grow out of the wrong place. An extra nose on the side of your head, that sort of thing.

 

Yes, yes, I know, you wouldn't use Regen, it would be Shape Shift, bla bla bla, the point is that Uncontrollable can make powers junky and fun.

[secretID]

Re: Bad Powers

 

How about some weird transforms? They could give you ridiculous and nearly useless powers that could still have some small utility (since he IS hunting supers), e.g.:

flesh to stone

gold to lead

color changes

[John T]

Re: Bad Powers

 

An Entangle that transforms the target's clothing into duct tape.

[Kenn]

Re: Bad Powers

 

Flash Defense vs the Touch Group.

 

10d6 Energy Blast - emitted from either his sphincter or his phallus. To add insult, make it Always On, so he needs a ruby quartz diaper (or prophalactic) to control it.

 

I'm not sure of the build, but he gains the ability to use his feet like they were hands. But the trade off is that his fingers and thumbs on his hands shink and become as useful as toes.

[Hermit]

Re: Bad Powers

 

Invisiblity to Touch (In this case pressure plate like tech) and IR vision, Always on, Only against automatic doors and streetlights.

[Cancer]

Re: Bad Powers

 

Some weird mental-type powers I thought of last night in a different context:

 

Anti-psionic snot: Mind Attack, Range limited by strength (as a thrown object), Explosive, can affect self. Load up a spit-ball, throw it, and where it hits, there's this noiseless Bang and a burst of sourceless pain to anyone nearby.

 

I'm thinking, "Nobody likes me! WAAAAAAAAAH!!": Flash, Mental Sense group only. This is pretty cheap, actually, and it should make any nearby Mentalist really miserable.

 

I make people around me stupid: Drain INT, AE + radius, Constant, Cumulative, IPE, gradual effect. Probably too expensive to be worth building, unless you have one hell of a set of limitations added.

 

(Along the same lines, you might search for Steve Long's High-Intensity Boredom Beam that got posted in the last year.)

[Weldun]

Re: Bad Powers

 

Mind Control (vs. Machine Class of Mind) 20d6.

Only vs. Shopping Trolleys (-2).

 

Of absolutely no use, as anyone who has tried pushing a shopping trolley around a supermarket carpark knows, shopping trolleys have 100 ego, +20 ego outdoors, +20 ego if children attached, and are violently opposed to doing anything YOU want it to, as opposed to what the kids hanging off the trolley want.

[Supreme Serpent]

Re: Bad Powers

 

(Note: I'm putting out powers that can be useful in limited circumstances, and if the person can set the field in his favor might even be considered powerful, but would not be terribly useful for a standard general-purpose hero/villain.)

 

Telekinesis - only vs. radioactives. The more radioactive something is, the more TK STR he can apply against it.

 

Absolute Time Sense - only to tell how long until X-mas (or New Year's, or next full moon, solstice, etc). The character has a running mental countdown reminding him of the dwindling shopping time available.

[Cancer]

Re: Bad Powers

 

Always carry a lunch: Summon homemade egg salad sandwich, zero END.

[CaptainGoldfish]

Re: Bad Powers

 

360 Degree Taste, Ranged, Always On, No Concious Control.........ewwwwwww

[Lord Liaden]

Re: Bad Powers

 

Extra Limbs is not exactly useless, but the Special Effects could be rather unpleasant.

 

Just how "junky" do you want these powers to be? A lot of the suggestions above, while clever and creative, are getting into the realm of gag powers, and I'm not sure if that's what you're going for.

[ThothAmon]

Re: Bad Powers

 

Slippery Character - overactive sebacious glands - +20 STR, 0 END cost, only to escape grabs and slip away from entangles

 

Leaves A Trail - smelly - xd6 EB, NND (gas based attack), AoE variable line (the last x hexes the character walked through), 0 END cost, persistent, always on

 

Attractive To Some - sweat/pheremones - Summon (Insect Swarm), 0 END cost, No Conscious Control, only in appropriate environment

 

Repellent To Others - bad breath - xd6 Flash (vs sight, smell and taste), Damage Shield, Personal Immunity, 0 END cost, always on, turns off when unconscious

Everything He Touches - corrupting touch - xd6 Transform (anything to corroded / rotten version of itself)

Turns To Garbage - iron metabolism - Life Support vs disgusting smells, inedible food / materials, orthodox food-based bacteria/toxins, immunity to insects

 

Ideally this guy behaves like a hormonal, lovesick teenager

[Doc Samson]

Re: Bad Powers

 

Bad powers is one thing but if all his powers are totally useless, he's gonna have his butt handed to him by even a low powered superhero. I think I would take real powers but then put unusual special effects or limitations on them to make them less heroic. Some good examples can be taked from the movies Sky High and Mystery Men. Here's a few examples...

 

Supreme suggested Armor that is only effected by copper, that's a power that may never get used. Make it against lead and you may not have a very heroic power, but it will stop bullets. To make it even less appealing, add a Disadvantage that he cannot feel anything. That would be enough to send most people on a rampage after awhile.

 

Cancer suggested a Mental Flash. That may actually be too useful, but how about a Sight Darkness with the special effect that he emits a blinding light that blinds even him (i.e. no peronal immunity). He may not like the power but at least he has the advantage of knowing when everyone is going to be blinded too. He can take advantage by hiding or getting away. (This idea came from the glowing kid in Sky High.)

 

Similar to the above, how about Invisibility that only worked while your eyes were closed. Not incredibly powerful but useful if you practice moving around while blind. (This is inspired by Invisible Boy from the Mystery Men).

 

How about a power that emits a foul odor causing everyone in the area to become nauseus (Change Environment causing -OCV, -DCV, ect.) It's a very useful power, but I would hate it if I were a hero. (This idea came from the Spleen in Mystery Men)

 

Last one, how about the ability to turn yourself into a solid object. You become invulnerable, but cannot move. It's not flashy but has tactical uses. (This one is very loosley based on the melting kid from Sky High).

[Hyper-Man]

Re: Bad Powers

 

I'm trying to come up with an array of really bad powers.

Basically, I'm trying to create a character who had started out as a normal and attempted to somehow gain super-powers. Fortiantly for him, the various chemical/radiation/biological experiments he put himself through did gain him super-powers...however, they were not "cool" or "useful" powers. So, in a fit of envy, he decide if he couldn't have cool superpowers, nobody else could. So, taking what powers he did have, he begins hunting down super-heros.

The character's powers shouldn't rely on gear or magic... but I need some junky powers.

 

My best advice would be to go down to your local comic book shop and look for some old issues (from 70's and 80's) of Legion of Superheroes featuring their backup team, The Legion of Substitute Heroes (Heroes that flunked the regular Legion entrance exams). They are chock full of bad power ideas.

[Doc Samson]

Re: Bad Powers

 

Just because I can't resist, I am going to string together of few of my own suggestions and make character concept.

 

I give you Lead Man...

Larry Thick was once a mild mannered custodian working in a high security research laboratory. One day while coming home from work, Larry was saved from certain death by a local superhero. From then on, Larry worshipped superheroes and secretly wished he could be one. In an attempt to gain super powers and become a superhero himself, Larry exposed himself to a battery of biohazardous, toxic, and radioactive chemicals at work. In a stroke of extremely good fortune, not only did Larry not die, he actually got powers! The only problem was that Larry did not like the powers he got. In a fit of insane jealousy Larry vowed if he could not be the super hero he wanted to be, then noone would!

 

Larry has the ability to control and transform into Lead. Though his abilities are unrefined, he is still a very dangerous foe. Poisoning from the lead of his own body has left him mentally unstable. The more he uses his powers, the greater his dementia and schizophrenic symptoms become.

 

Powers:

"Lead Control" Telekinesis, Limited Power: Only vs. Lead (If he carries lead with him, change the limitation to Physical Manifestation.)

"Lead Form" Damage Reduction, Density Increase, and Total Life Support, Side Effect: Cannot Move, Visible (see section on Crushing Damage for possible uses, think "Cannonball!")

"Lead Poisoning" Change Environment "to create nausea/ vomiting" (-OCV and DCV), No Range, Personal Immunity, Always On

"Thomson Effect" Missile Deflection and Reflection vs. Electrical Attacks, Uncontrolled

"Leadsled" Running, Physical Manifestation (rides on a clunky piece of lead siding)

 

Disadvantages:

Psychological Limitation "Hunts Superheroes with Lead Pipe Cruelty" (Very Common,Total)

Physical Limitation "Dementia/ Schizophrenia" (All the Time, Fully)

Distinctive Features "Skin Tarnishes Like Lead" (Easily Concealed, Noticed and Recognizable)

Susceptibility to Immersion in Water "Plumbosolvency"

Physical Limitation "Increased Mass" (floors crack, furniture breaks, ect.)

[SpydirShellX]

Re: Bad Powers

 

Good ideas so far.

To answer some of the questions: I want powers that he and other would think of as junky, yet would be somewhat useful against other supers.

 

DocSamson, exactly, the type of things I'm looking for. I was sorta thinking of Mystery Men when I posed the question.

 

Powers that have aspects that make them less-than-useful. I do like the uncontrolled shrinking and growth that Narratio suggested.

[NestorDRod]

Re: Bad Powers

 

Well, in that case, look no further than "Freshmen", a comic book in the same territory as "Mystery Men." Working entirely from memory, the group's powers consisted of stuff like:

 

* You can talk to plants. Of course, most plants have nothing really much to say, and are generally rude about it. Nevertheless, they are the perfect snitches since no one pays attention to what they say in front of their garden. The problem? You are an avowed vegan.

 

* Yo have the ability to take over other people's minds for a short period of time, during which your own body lies comatose. You don't gain their memories, but have access to any powers they may have.

 

* You have an incredibly adhesive body. Everything sticks to you. Everything.

 

* You are incredibly intelligent. You're also a beaver. When not otherwise occupied, you spend your time desinging reaally big dams.

 

* You can cause a localized earthquake by shaking your belly. (?!?)

 

* Your... er. member becomes about 24 inches long. It's also nigh indestructuble.

 

* You can make any person fall in love with you. Unfortunately, sooner or later they realize it's not them, it's you.

 

* You have applied telekinesis. Sounds all right, until you realize it only works when you hold hands with your significant other, who you can't stand, and one of you can't only push things away, while the other can only pull things toward you.

 

That's all my poor brain can come up with. Use at your own discretion.

[Basil]

Re: Bad Powers

 

-50 STR Telekinesis, Fine Manipulation (13 points {assuming one must spend at least enough on TK for 2 STR, even if STR is less than 2}) plus +5 Skill Level, Only For Controlling The Fine Manipulation Of Telekinesis (-1.5) (10 points).

 

This allows a force of 25 gram-force-equivalent, or not quite enough to hold 1 oz. avdp. aloft. OTOH, it can flip coins, control dice, influence small objects, etc., especially with Fine Manipulation in there.

[Remjin]

Re: Bad Powers

 

to make this guy any more than comedy relief, he has to be effective. Some powers suggested help with that, but a lot are just funny.

 

I really liked the AoE Int drain, though! Reminds me of the debate contest at the end of Billy Madison, and the announcer's reaction to it... especially funny part being the "may God have mercy on your soul."

 

Lead man, from above, works. That general conceptual type seems more like what is being asked for, just like the various Mystery Men types. But to be a villain to actually challenge the players, he'd have to be at least creative in the use of powers or in the perfect environment. Like lead man in an ammunition factory. =)

 

How about powers like flight, 1", megascale...? He can only glide along slowly or at superfast speeds.

 

Or a time-stop in which he is also stuck in, except it gives him time to think, or he can only make a single step in.

 

Or... regenerating ablative armor.

 

Or... drain comeliness. Traumatic for high comeliness characters like most female heroes and the starshine teeth guys.

 

Or... suppress speed, bring everyone into a manageable speed for him.

 

Or... "so slow it confuses me." + OCV levels with SFX "David Carradine Effect", his attacks are so slow that people defend too quickly and are thus hit anyway. Rooted in my argument for D. Carradine winning a fight against Jackie Chan. =)

[Lord Liaden]

Re: Bad Powers

 

One route to take is to give the character Powers that are not very effective most of the time, but in the right circumstances could be quite potent. For example:

 

Mental Damage Reduction. No good at all against bullets or punches, but he'll be able to wade through anything that a mentalist hero can throw at him.

 

Invisibility, Only In Darkness Or Shadows. At night or in a darkened room he'd easily gain the element of surprise.

 

Hand-To-Hand Attack, Only With Haymaker. A Power that requires a "windup" to use. Easy to avoid in standard combat, but the hero who believes his opponent is no physical threat may just stand there and allow the villain to get in a heck of a sucker punch.

[SKJAM!]

Re: Bad Powers

 

Armor, high PD/ED, Invisible Effects, "only vs. superpowers", so he can stand up to Firewing's blasts all day, but an ordinary thug with a gun can take him out easily.