"Faulty" Power

[plancake]

Warning! Newbie Question!

 

I have a player who recently requested to have a "Flash"-style power that was based on a psychic ability to disrupt a target's sense (one of either sight, hearing, touch or smell) by "clouding their mind". Fine, the SFX of the power is the psychic ability stuff. However the player also wanted to simulate the PC "learning" to target the right area of the brain to disrupt by sometimes getting it wrong and messing up the wrong sense (so deaf instead of blind). Any suggestions on how I may go about constructing such a power?

 

Any thoughts would be much appreciated.

 

Cheers,

Richard

[Captain Xenon]

Re: "Faulty" Power

 

you could buy a multipower, with ultra slots for the various flashes.

 

or, you could take the 'side effect' limitation at -0.

 

either way, this sounds closer to an advantage, than a disadvantage overall. call it +0 and leave it at that.

[Teflon Billy]

Re: "Faulty" Power

 

I don't what I can add, just don't bring up the war.

 

TB

[plancake]

Re: "Faulty" Power

 

Thanks for the lightning responses.

 

I thought about the Multipower / EC concept, but wondered how I might model the "randomness" of the outcome. And its not really a "side effect" as such as it would actually impact on the game outcome if the intended "damage" did not occur.

 

Anyway, will keep searching for an answer.

[JmOz]

Re: "Faulty" Power

 

in my game it would be a MP, with each slot being a flash boecv vs a different scense

 

Then on the whole thing it would be a required skill roll, with a minor side effect (Side effect is different slot goes off)

[mikesama]

Re: "Faulty" Power

 

to track correctly against mental defenses you might want to make a mental illusion: only to 'black out' a sense -X side effect -1/4

 

Let the side effect be a control roll, if you fail you turn off the wrong sense. I actually think that it's worth something as a power limitation as you will most likely shut off a sense that isn't as useful as the one you were trying to get rid of.

[plancake]

Re: "Faulty" Power

 

Hey JmOz & Mikesama,

 

Thanks for that, those both sound like excellent solutions.

 

I agree with you Mike, the fact that the wrong sense gets shut off will almost always go against the player (guard blinded when meant to be deafened when trying to sneak past; brick deafened, not blinded, when about to clobber the pc with a super-haymaker... oops!) so will be a limitation.

 

Once again, thanks.

Richard

[Hugh Neilson]

Re: "Faulty" Power

 

While I agree it is limiting, I would also suggest it is less limiting than the power failing to work at all, and should carry a reduced limitation value compared to a simple "failure to work" would, whether as a RSR or Activation limitation.

[jkwleisemann]

Re: "Faulty" Power

 

Multipower - presumably, he could use either power, so it's only fair he pay for 'em both.

 

Then limit each slot with an Activation roll (or RSR) at half value: "If roll fails, other slot triggers." That should do the trick, I'd think.

[Enforcer84]

Re: "Faulty" Power

 

John Cleese as a wacky overstressed super hero, Basil Falty? Faulty Powers sounds like a great series.

 

[jkwleisemann]

Re: "Faulty" Power

 

*blinks*

 

Enforcer... that could be absolutely, maddeningly brilliant... as well as simply maddening.

[Teflon Billy]

Re: "Faulty" Power

 

John Cleese as a wacky overstressed super hero, Basil Falty? Faulty Powers sounds like a great series.

 

I'm glad I wasn't the only one who made that connection.

 

TB

[braincraft]

I thought of the Cleese connection, too

 

It would be easier to buy a Flash Against Targeting Sense with the Variable Special Effect advantage (limited group, +1/4) and a Miscellaneous Disadvantage (targets a different sense if skill rolls is failed, -1/2). That saves you the trouble of buying multiple slots in your multipower for just the one power, and possibly of having a multipower at all.

[JmOz]

Re: I thought of the Cleese connection, too

 

It would be easier to buy a Flash Against Targeting Sense with the Variable Special Effect advantage (limited group' date=' +1/4) and a Miscellaneous Disadvantage (targets a different sense if skill rolls is failed, -1/2). That saves you the trouble of buying multiple slots in your multipower for just the one power, and possibly of having a multipower at all.[/quote']

 

I don't think Variable special effect can change what a flash, umm flashes

[Hugh Neilson]

Re: "Faulty" Power

 

There is an adder for adding an extra sense group to the Flash. It should logically cost less to Flash any one sense than to Flash two or more senses. I'd allow the character to purchase the adder for the additional sense groups, limit that to "Only one sense group flashed" and further limit that with a "If skill roll fails, wrong sense flashed" restriction. That seems like a reasonable application.

[McManus]

Re: "Faulty" Power

 

How about including other sense flashes in the "opps pool". Flash v. smell, taste or touch as possible wrong targets.

[Oruncrest]

Re: "Faulty" Power

 

I think there's two ways to do it:

 

27 The Easy Way: 12D6 Mental Illusions; Mandatory Effect (EGO+20, must always achieve, -¾) Only to 'block' one sense (-½), Requires a Psyche (or whatever skill you would use for Psychic Powers) Roll (Failure means that the wrong sense was 'blocked',-0)

 

Since the PC must achieve EGO+20 for his attack to have any effect (since he's completly altering the way one sense perceives the environment), I gave the power Mandatory Effect to simulate this.

 

61 The Hard Way:8D6+1 Suppress any 1 Sense power, Standard Effect (25pts, +0), Works against Mental Defense, not Flash Defense (+¼), ½ END; Requires a Psyche (or whatever skill you would use for Psychic Powers) Roll (Failure means that the wrong sense was suppressed,-0)

 

The reason Works against Mental Defense, not Flash Defense is +¼, is because there's only one type of mental defense compared to the 6+ types of flash defense (sight, hearing, mental, radio, taste/smell, touch, unusual(?), voice(?)).

 

In both cases, I'm assuming that the PC would buy the required skill as a background skill (costing 2 for 11- and improves on a +1/ 1AP basis, If he bought it as characteristic-based, add ¼ to the limitation), and since there's always some effect (even if it's not the one the PC was aiming for), I deducted a -¼ from the RSR limitation.

[Killer Shrike]

Re: "Faulty" Power

 

Something like this:

 

Sight Group Flash 10d6 (50 Active Points); Sense Affected Is Random (Roll 1d6: 4-6 = Sight Group, 3 = Hearing Group, 2 = Smell / Taste Group, 1 = Touch Group; -1/4)

[Hyper-Man]

Re: "Faulty" Power

 

Warning! Newbie Question!

 

I have a player who recently requested to have a "Flash"-style power that was based on a psychic ability to disrupt a target's sense (one of either sight, hearing, touch or smell) by "clouding their mind". Fine, the SFX of the power is the psychic ability stuff. However the player also wanted to simulate the PC "learning" to target the right area of the brain to disrupt by sometimes getting it wrong and messing up the wrong sense (so deaf instead of blind). Any suggestions on how I may go about constructing such a power?

 

Any thoughts would be much appreciated.

 

Cheers,

Richard

 

Killer Shrike's version is simpler and probably more elegant to use but here is a more complicated version:

 

53 Sensory Lobotomy: Sight, Hearing, Smell/Taste and Touch Groups Flash 5d6, Based On EGO Combat Value (Mental Defense applies; +1) (80 Active Points); Limited Effect Only affects 1 of the 4 listed Sense Groups. Use random result among un-chosen 3 when skill roll fails. (-1/4), Requires A Skill Roll (RSR Skill is subject to Skill vs. Skill contests, No Active Point penalty to Skill Roll; Still use Active Point penalty but roll failure only means that the chosen Sense Group is not affected. Randomly choose 1 of the other 3 instead; -1/4) - END=8

 

And if stealth is desired:

 

49 Sensory Lobotomy (version 2): Sight, Hearing, Smell/Taste and Touch Groups Flash 3 1/2d6 (standard effect: 4 Segments), Invisible Power Effects, Source Only (Fully Invisible; +1/2), Based On EGO Combat Value (Mental Defense applies; +1), Range Modifiers Apply (-1/4) (74 Active Points); Limited Effect Only affects 1 of the 4 listed Sense Groups. Use random result among un-chosen 3 when skill roll fails. (-1/4), Requires A Skill Roll (RSR Skill is subject to Skill vs. Skill contests, No Active Point penalty to Skill Roll; Still use Active Point penalty but roll failure only means that the chosen Sense Group is not affected. Randomly choose 1 of the other 3 instead; -1/4) - END=7