Speedball Posted May 6, 2008 Report Share Posted May 6, 2008 My team (the Century Station Saints: Mass-ter, The Bogeyman, Xerox, The Machinist, and Psi-kick) recently stumbled upon an abandoned underwater base in the course of an adventure and we decided collectively to make it our own. So, here's the challenge/invitation/plea: post your base designs that follow the following guidelines... underwater/urban placement 512" area as cheaply/efficiently built as possible, since we don't have a lot of points with which to play. The Century Station Saints thank you in advance... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheQuestionMan Posted May 6, 2008 Report Share Posted May 6, 2008 Re: All Your Base Belong to Us 512" = 512 Meters = 0.512 Kilometers Thats a huge base, hmmm... Somebody check my calculations please. Underwater Habitats' http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Underwater_habitat Atlantis in art, literature and popular culture http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atlantis_in_art%2C_literature_and_popular_culture Hmmm... QM Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Speedball Posted May 6, 2008 Author Report Share Posted May 6, 2008 Re: All Your Base Belong to Us 512 hexes is correct. I'm working off the map supplied by the GM. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aylwin13 Posted May 6, 2008 Report Share Posted May 6, 2008 Re: All Your Base Belong to Us 512" = 512 Meters = 0.512 Kilometers Thats a huge base, hmmm... Somebody check my calculations please. Underwater Habitats' http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Underwater_habitat Atlantis in art, literature and popular culture http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atlantis_in_art%2C_literature_and_popular_culture Hmmm... QM 1 hex/1" = 2m; so 512" = 1024 m = 1.024 km Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
name_tamer Posted May 6, 2008 Report Share Posted May 6, 2008 Re: All Your Base Belong to Us Assume a hex is a circle, diameter 2 m. Then its area is pi square meters. 512 such hexes have an area of 512 * pi square meters. Assuming they are arranged in a circle, the circle would have a radius of sqrt(512) meters, or 22.6 meters. So the diameter of your base is about 22-23 hexes. Not so big. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pariah Posted May 6, 2008 Report Share Posted May 6, 2008 Re: All Your Base Belong to Us Yeah, that 'r-squared' term really cuts that number down, doesn't it? Question: How does the team get to/from the base? Airlocks and vehicles? Teleporation? Their own powers? A disused subway line that happens to connect to is? It seems to me that would make a lot of difference in the overall design of the base. After all, if you're using vehicles to get there, your base design pretty much has to start with a docking area for those vehicles. And that can take up a lot of space, depending on how it's designed. Just my $0.02. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BoloOfEarth Posted May 6, 2008 Report Share Posted May 6, 2008 Re: All Your Base Belong to Us For 4 points apiece, your five heroes can have the Sea Trawler. (You may need a few more apiece if you want to also get a basic computer to help run things.) This barnacle-covered undersea habitat was found sitting on the sea floor, apparently left behind long ago by persons unknown. The habitat has treads, allowing it to travel (verrrrry slowly) along the sea floor, though typically it is left in one spot. This writeup assumes the heroes get to/from the base under their own power or using a submersible that docks with the structure. Cost -- Characteristics 24 -- DEF 10 8 -- BODY 10 20 -- Size 16x32=512 hexes (22,036 sq ft), DCV -10 25 -- Location (Distant, Underwater) Cost -- Equipment [END] 7 -- Micro-Fusion Plant and Batteries: 70 END Reserve, 10 REC/turn; OIF: -½; Immobile, -1 7 -- Rebreather: LS: scb; Costs END: -½ [1] 7 -- Filters: LS: Disease/Toxin/Poison, All Diseases & Bio Agents; Costs END: -½ [1] 1 -- Temperature Control: LS: Envir - Intense Cold; Costs END: -½ [1] 1 -- Structure: LS: Envir - High Pressure 1 -- Food Supplies: LS: Diminished Eating (once/week) 11 -- Passive Sonar: Spatial Awareness; Increased Arc: 360-Degree, +5; IIF: -¼; Immobile, -1; Micro-Fusion Plant must be operational: -¼ 4 -- Telescopic Sense (Hearing, +6 to PER vs. Range); IAF: -½; Immobile, -1; Micro-Fusion Plant must be operational: -¼ 4 -- Heat-sensitive External Cameras: Infrared Perception; Increased Arc: 360-Degree, +5; IAF: -½; Immobile, -1; Micro-Fusion Plant must be operational: -¼ 4 -- High Range Radio; IAF: -½; Immobile, -1; Micro-Fusion Plant must be operational: -¼ 25 -- Pop-Up Sonic Blasters: 10d6 EB; IAF: -½; Immobile, -1 [2] 10 -- Additional 3 Sonic Blasters (4 Total) [2 each] 8 -- Regen Tube: 2d6 Healing; Any one physical characteristic at a time, +½; OIF -½; Immobile, -1; Extra Time: 5 min., -2 [1] 1 -- Sea-Bottom Treads: Running (+1", 1", NC: 2"); Extra Time: 5 min., -2 [1] Cost -- Labs/Skills 17 -- No Records: Concealment, 16- 9 -- Barnacle-covered: Disguise, 12- 9 -- Machine Shop: Mechanics, 12- 5 -- Marine Biology Lab: SS: Marine Biology, 12- 9 -- Med Lab: Paramedics, 12- 9 -- Crime Lab: Criminology, 12- 225 Total Base Cost 100+ Disadvantages 100 -- Look What We Found! (Cost rebate for original structure / size / location / power plant / LS except food) 5 -- DNPC: Marine Biologist / Caretaker (Normal, 8-, Useful Skills) 10 -- Hunted by ??? (Original owners) 10 -- Mystery Disad (for GM to decide) 125 -- Disadvantages Total Cost: 100/5 = 20 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Speedball Posted May 6, 2008 Author Report Share Posted May 6, 2008 Re: All Your Base Belong to Us Bolo-- That looks good, but I don't think I can talk our GM into giving us a 100-point rebate! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BoloOfEarth Posted May 6, 2008 Report Share Posted May 6, 2008 Re: All Your Base Belong to Us Bolo-- That looks good, but I don't think I can talk our GM into giving us a 100-point rebate! You never know until you ask. When my players decided to take over a VIPER base they had uncovered, I cut the cost by the total of the DEF, BODY, and Size that VIPER had already paid. If not, it'll cost 4 more points apiece, or you can cut some stuff to bring it down a point or two. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pariah Posted May 6, 2008 Report Share Posted May 6, 2008 Re: All Your Base Belong to Us Nice little write-up there, Bolo. Repped. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pinecone Posted May 7, 2008 Report Share Posted May 7, 2008 Re: All Your Base Belong to Us You can also take more disadds too...I like Haunted (Combo Unluck and Hunted) after all some body abandoned the thing (or never left after death).....If you can swing it add a sub hanger with a minisub so transpo is not an issue... If I was GM i'd let the team "owe" the extra EP's and pay them off with future earnings (say 50% of future Eps till payed off) So you could ask about that as well.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vondy Posted May 7, 2008 Report Share Posted May 7, 2008 Re: All Your Base Belong to Us 512" = 512 Meters = 0.512 Kilometers QM 1" = 2M. 512" = 1024 M. Effectively, 1 KM. However, that's area, not square. 1024" Area is 32 X 32 (meters). In feet, 192 X 192. That is approx. 34,864 square feet. The average American home is 2,500 square feet. The White house is 55,000 square feet (but has six floors). Still, this base is darned sizable. And would constitute the largest permanent underwater structure on Earth. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AThousandYoung Posted May 7, 2008 Report Share Posted May 7, 2008 Re: All Your Base Belong to Us I thought that if it moved, it was a vehicle and more expensive. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vondy Posted May 7, 2008 Report Share Posted May 7, 2008 Re: All Your Base Belong to Us I thought that if it moved' date=' it was a vehicle and more expensive.[/quote'] Aren't both 1:5? Technially, if it has movement it should probably be defined as a vehicle. But, if its primary function is that of a base, and the GM feels you can rationally leverage the options you use when building a base, I don't see why you couldn't give a base movement. And, there is a precedent. The 4th Edition Zodiac Conspiracy had a mobile base. Once a vehicle gets big enough it essentially becomes a question of semantics. Is an aircraft carrier a base or a vehicle? It moves - its a ship after all - but it is also a floating city with 5,000 souls aboard, dispensaries, laboratories, workshops - and other vehicles! Mechanics are abstractions that let us get things done. The difference between a base and vehicle in the rules is really predicated on the function of the object being modelled. If it is intended to move you from point A to point B, or to deliver ordinance (or both) its probably a vehicle. If its intended as a domicile and base of operations its probably a base [even if it moves]. Just my 2 AP. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thia Halmades Posted May 7, 2008 Report Share Posted May 7, 2008 Re: All Your Base Belong to Us Or. You purchase your base normally, by the normal base guidelines. You then purchase a power for your base. Like Swimming, 1". Now your base moves. *shrug* It costs the same regardless, and it's a SFX at the end of the day. And as Vondy points out, they're both 1:5. And at 512", that's really something on the order of 25"x25" square, isn't it? 22 and change to be technical, but you get the gist. And that'll only be one level, or a sum total of any area covering 512 hexes, depending on the GMs mood. If it were me, it would be enforced as "a sum total of 512 hexes, placed in an area not to exceed 30" by length or width and not to exceed 10" at its highest point, where each hex is counted as a three dimensional space (2m x 2m), giving it a maximum height of 20m (which is fairly high, but not insane). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Speedball Posted May 7, 2008 Author Report Share Posted May 7, 2008 Re: All Your Base Belong to Us Yeah, that 'r-squared' term really cuts that number down, doesn't it? Question: How does the team get to/from the base? Airlocks and vehicles? Teleporation? Their own powers? A disused subway line that happens to connect to is? It seems to me that would make a lot of difference in the overall design of the base. After all, if you're using vehicles to get there, your base design pretty much has to start with a docking area for those vehicles. And that can take up a lot of space, depending on how it's designed. Just my $0.02. An excellent question: there's an access tunnel from the shore leading to an abandoned shed. Think: GM fiat... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Speedball Posted May 7, 2008 Author Report Share Posted May 7, 2008 Re: All Your Base Belong to Us oh--and I should've included this in the original: the base is indeed circular and has 4 floors. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BoloOfEarth Posted May 7, 2008 Report Share Posted May 7, 2008 Re: All Your Base Belong to Us Okay, revising my earlier writeup: This one doesn't split evenly among five heroes as-is, but if everybody puts in 7 points you should have enough for a basic computer to help run things. This sea floor habitat is not mobile and includes no cost savings due to the original structure. I removed the external cameras and sonar, dropped the marine biology lab, reduced the skill rolls for the remaining labs, and lowered the damage from the blasters. I also added internal cameras and moved the blasters inside. IMO, this base retains some utility while remaining fairly inexpensive. It has a farily handy med lab, decent criminology lab, and the machine shop can be swapped out for some other lab that better fits a hero's skills. And there's room for expansion if someone wants to donate more points later on. If the GM says that the shed and tunnel aren't part of the Size, each floor is 13" radius. Otherwise, I went with a 10" radius, plus a 2"x2" shed and a 113" long, 1" wide tunnel. That's not very long (only 0.15 mile), but making it longer will seriously cut into the size of the base. If I were GM, I would throw in the shed and tunnel for free, 'cause I'm a nice guy. Cost -- Characteristics 21 -- DEF 9 6 -- BODY 8 20 -- Size 16x32=512 hexes (22,036 sq ft), DCV -10 25 -- Location (Distant, Underwater) Cost -- Equipment [END] 7 -- Micro-Fusion Plant and Batteries: 70 END Reserve, 10 REC/turn; OIF: -½; Immobile, -1 7 -- Rebreather: LS: scb; Costs END: -½ [1] 7 -- Filters: LS: Disease/Toxin/Poison, All Diseases & Bio Agents; Costs END: -½ [1] 1 -- Temperature Control: LS: Envir - Intense Cold; Costs END: -½ [1] 1 -- Structure: LS: Envir - High Pressure 1 -- Food Supplies: LS: Diminished Eating (once/week) 10 -- Internal Cameras: Clairsentience, 200", Sight Group, IIF -¼; Immobile, -1; Blind Spots (Activation 15-, -¼) [2] 4 -- High Range Radio; IAF: -½; Immobile, -1; Micro-Fusion Plant must be operational: -¼ 20 -- Pop-Up Sonic Blasters: 8d6 EB; IAF: -½; Immobile, -1 [2] 10 -- Additional 3 Sonic Blasters (4 Total) [2 each] 7 -- Regen Tube: 2d6 Healing; Any one physical characteristic at a time, +½; Half END: +¼; OIF -½; Immobile, -1; Extra Time: 5 min., -2; Requires Paramedics roll, -½ [1] Cost -- Labs/Skills 15 -- No Records: Concealment, 15- 7 -- Barnacle-covered: Disguise, 11- 7 -- Machine Shop: Mechanics, 11- 7 -- Med Lab: Paramedics, 11- 7 -- Crime Lab: Criminology, 11- 190 Total Base Cost 160+ Disadvantages 5 -- DNPC: Caretaker (Normal, 8-, Useful Skills) 15 -- Hunted (8-) by ??? (Original owners are as powerful as PCs, have no NCI, and the base is easy for them to find) 10 -- Mystery Disad (for GM to decide) 200 -- Disadvantages Total Cost: 160/5 = 32 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mattingly Posted May 8, 2008 Report Share Posted May 8, 2008 Re: All Your Base Belong to Us If the GM allows it, I'd try to swap out Concealment for Anonymity, and use the saved points for the tunnel. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Speedball Posted May 8, 2008 Author Report Share Posted May 8, 2008 Re: All Your Base Belong to Us I'm pretty sure the GM will give us the shed and tunnel for nothing, since he hasn't made a map of it or mentioned it in game--I think it's more of a device of convenience. Maybe later in the game we'll install some kind of security system in the tunnel or hut that would make it sensible to map out the areas. My understanding of concealment vs. anonymity is that the former hides it from people who are actively looking for it, while the latter just erases the records that the place exists and that once a person knows that there's a base, s/he wouldn't have any trouble finding it. Is that others' reading of the difference as well, or have I screwed up the rules? Bolo--that's another nice write-up, though the Def/Body make me wonder what happens to us the first time someone decides to fire some kinda super-torpedo at the wall.! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BoloOfEarth Posted May 8, 2008 Report Share Posted May 8, 2008 Re: All Your Base Belong to Us Bolo--that's another nice write-up' date=' though the Def/Body make me wonder what happens to us the first time someone decides to fire some kinda super-torpedo at the wall.![/quote'] It would have to do 17+ BODY to breach the wall, but yeah, that's something to worry about. Given that you're paying 25 points for "Underwater", and have LS to boot, I'd assume that individual rooms have watertight doors that can be closed in case of an outer wall breach. For another 5 points in the base (1 character point donation), you can bump it up to 10 DEF, 10 BODY. I was just trying to trim points, and figured most of your "defense" is through people not knowing where the base is located. I'd arrange the base with rooms along the outer wall, surrounding a central (common) room. Pop-down internal defense blaster in the center of the ceiling on each level. Elevator / lift on one side of the common room, circular staircase (with iris valves able to close between levels) on the other side of the common room. The latter allows any fliers to move relatively quickly between levels. Just my $0.02, YMMV. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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