In Hero ID vs Multiform

[Powerhouse]

Working on a new character and asking some help.

 

During the Golden Age, a young archealogist was bestowed the power to become a cat-like creature by Bast, who I think is the Egyptian goddess with the cat motiff. Fast foward to today and a new character will be bestowed the power, a student of the field itself.

 

Anyway... my take is that the switch between the student more physical in that she has a new body and approrpriate powers. Mentally, she has the same knowledge and memories but her emotions shift a bit to be a bit more cat-like (affectionate, likes hunting, enjoys laying out in the sun, and also feels more empowered/confident).

 

So, is this a MF or IHID? Also, what is the difference between the two? Barring an accidental change that forces you to stay in a hero, or non-hero, ID, I fail to see while one saves points while the other costs them.

 

Thanks!

[OddHat]

IMO, if the mind stays the same then it's OIHID. Banner into the Hulk under the current rules might be a multiform; most of the time in the comics they weren't the same person. Pietor Rasputin into Colosus looks like OIHID; same person, powers only work when he's made of metal. Beast Boy into his beast forms is probably Multiform, but you could still do it as a bunch of powers with OIHID and different special effects. Captain Trips into his different super-forms is definitely Multiform.

 

Multiform saves you a ton of points, and lets you ignore some of the campaign limits if the GM permits it. OIHID saves fewer points, but you don't have to keep re-buying your skills and the design is simpler.

[Lupus]

To me, it's also useful if the base form has powers that the second form doesn't have, and vice versa. That is, if the human form has certain powers, and the multiform have certain powers, and they differ. (Especially if, in hero ID, the character has different limitations - such as vulnerability) Otherwise, you're looking at an odd construct of limitations, including 'OIHID' and 'OICID' or something like that.

 

Especially if the base form doesn't look like a normal human, which would remove a geniune Hero ID, and make OIHID questionable.

 

I know you're meant to take the more expensive option, but in this case, I think multiform would be appropriate.

 

As long as, y'know, they didn't then hugely limit multiform and get it way cheap. That's just poor form.