Empowered by Adam Warren

[CptPatriot]

As a lark, I was reading Empowered by Adam Warren and I was curious if anyone had ever written her up before.

 

The book's Wikipedia entry can be found here http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Empowered

 

If not, perhaps we can collaborate on her here.

 

Chat logs for writeup attempt as listed in the archives:

12/21/2008 05:57 I keep posting right after you address what I'm saying.

12/21/2008 05:57 oops.

12/21/2008 05:57 Although, that would seem to negate Ablative as functional, since she never actually gets hurt

12/21/2008 05:56 Just need to look up ablative again to see how it handles it again

12/21/2008 05:54 Nice idea.

12/21/2008 05:54 but she never gets really hurt from being shot they usually just show a hail of bullets then she's standing there 1/2 naked. The powers could be links to the armor activation level

12/21/2008 05:54 That, and the fact that it makes her almost invulnerable, yet is easily broken itself...

12/21/2008 05:53 Not sure if there's a way to apply Ablative to powers other than armor though...

12/21/2008 05:53 probably

12/21/2008 05:52 perhaps ablative?

12/21/2008 05:52 So, how to write her up. I suppose it protects her until not enough of the membrane is left, that seems to indicate a threshhold level.

12/21/2008 05:50 got it

12/21/2008 05:49 I don't know, I always just post the address as the link...

12/21/2008 05:49 for got how to use bbcode tag

12/21/2008 05:48 The wiki says it only grants her the powers, no one else, so forget about

12/21/2008 05:45 doing that now

12/21/2008 05:44 lol

12/21/2008 05:44 Maybe you should link that in your post, especially if it gives a good description of her powers...

12/21/2008 05:44 it has references to powers

12/21/2008 05:44 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Empowered

12/21/2008 05:43 Not sure what to do with that.

12/21/2008 05:43 I found a wikipedia entry for her

12/21/2008 05:43 Although, then the suit would need body and defense...

12/21/2008 05:43 Including a Healing power that only works on the suit, not hte wearer.

12/21/2008 05:43 Might have to build the suit as an Independent Focus (can be used by anyone) and build all the powers directly into it...

12/21/2008 05:42 about 8 hrs

12/21/2008 05:42 Hmm....

12/21/2008 05:40 According to the book, the hypermembrane regenerates in time

12/21/2008 05:39 Or the suit should be an OAF, Obvious because it can be easily damaged.

12/21/2008 05:38 Seems all powers should be OIHI with some major limitations...

12/21/2008 05:37 Yes, she's completely normal, all powers from suit

12/21/2008 05:36 Question: does her powers actually come from the suit?

 

12/21/2008 03:58 Published by Dark Horse, that's why I haven't heard of it.

12/21/2008 03:58 he put out 4 volumes total

12/21/2008 03:57 Just read the description, sounds good.

12/21/2008 03:55 adam warren

12/21/2008 03:54 oh

12/21/2008 03:54 I might have to look that one up. Who published it?

12/21/2008 03:54 Here's a link to the book on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Empowered-Adam-Warren/dp/159307672X

12/21/2008 03:53 It's a fun read, makes fun of this character that has this flimsy suit that gives her powers but after the first volley of shots, her costume always gets torn up and she gets put in ropes, chains, etc to be rescued by her teammates.

12/21/2008 03:50 I'm at work, just reading up and wasting time...

12/21/2008 03:50 Not familiar with that.

12/21/2008 03:47 Working on a post, trying to see if anyone ever wrote up Adam Warren's Empowered main character

[Hyper-Man]

Re: Empowered by Adam Warren

 

Never read it before but it looks interesting (in a Byrne She-Hulk kind of way).

 

Here's what I came up with based on the wiki:

 

Super Suit, all slots OIF Fragile (skin-tight hypermembrane costume; -3/4), Limited Power Requires Full Skin Contact To Function (No Underwear Allowed; -1/4)

25 1) +50 STR (50 Active Points) 5

25 2) +25 CON (50 Active Points)

25 3) Armor (25 PD/25 ED) (75 Active Points); Ablative BODY or STUN (Thinner than a soap bubble; -1)

Notes: Ablative: (Hero System Fifth Edition Rule Book, page 77-78; Revised, page 115) A Defense Power with this Limitation is shot off little by little by attacks.

5 4) Clinging (normal STR) (10 Active Points)

8 5) Flight 10" (20 Active Points); Restrainable (Wings; -1/2) 2

7 6) Invisibility to Sight Group , Reduced Endurance (0 END; +1/2) (30 Active Points); Conditional Power Affects Hypermembrane Only (-2)

 

Super Suit Mask, all slots OIF (skin-tight costume; -1/2)

5 1) +4 PER with Sight Group (8 Active Points)

4 2) +4 versus Range Modifier for Sight Group (6 Active Points)

3 3) Infrared Perception (Sight Group) (5 Active Points)

7 4) Microscopic ( x100) with Sight Group (10 Active Points)

13 5) N-Ray Perception (Sight Group), Discriminatory, Analyze (20 Active Points)

3 6) Ultraviolet Perception (Sight Group) (5 Active Points)

 

Total Powers & Skill Cost: 130

[CoreBrute]

Re: Empowered by Adam Warren

 

Doesn't she also have an energy blast?

[freakboy6117]

Re: Empowered by Adam Warren

 

Hmm maybe you could buy the strength and con etc as linked to the Armour thus as its torn up they diminish. another option would be to buy them in small amounts requiring an ego roll as the abilities seem to depend on her state of mind. its quite hard to model the suit as it does seem to apply a great deal of protection if not the other powers even when mostly destroyed but can be torn like clingfilm. one of her abilities that seems hard to model is that teh sut can turn invisble in part or full at will again this ability was eesential to defeting a villian in teh fourth volume.

Hmm maybe you could buy the strength and con etc as linked to the Armour thus as it’s torn up they diminish. Another option would be to buy them in small amounts requiring an ego roll as the abilities seem to depend on her state of mind. It’s quite hard to model the suit as it does seem to apply a great deal of protection if not the other powers even when mostly destroyed but can be torn like Clingfilm. One of her abilities that seems hard to model is that the suit can turn invisible in part or full at will again this ability was essential to defeating a villain in the fourth volume.

 

skills wise she has a degree in surahuman studies so KS supra human world and possibly SS suprahuman powers and abilities she also has an excellent working knowledge of bondage equipment and techniques possibly a PS she has used both these skills to defeat Villains most notably the demon wolf she caged using leftover bondage gear from a previous incident. And defeating a villain that supra-villain that had defeated the rest of the supra-homey's with a technique she devised for a term paper.

For disadvantages

You have DNPCs THUGBOY and NINJETTE

Psych Lim. Extremely insecure about appearance

Psych lim extremely good person (will let dying kid/supra villain tie her up. will save a minion from a brain aneurism etc.)

Reputation inept bondage prone D list supra hero

Rivalry Sistah Spooky

Reputation everyone knows how to defeat her EVERYBODY.

[bigbywolfe]

Re: Empowered by Adam Warren

 

Hyper-Man: Good basic write-up to start us out. I think the biggest problem however, is not what her powers should be, but how to model them being affected by damage being done to the suit.

 

 

Freakboy6117: Even if the STR, CON, and other attributes/powers are linked to the suit/Armor, they would not automatically diminish as the suit is "torn up" (baring GM fiat just randomly placing varying values on the powers). Obviously that is what happens. We need a way to model that effect in game mechanics.

 

Also, since some of us have not read the source material, why would “superhuman powers and abilities” be a Science Skill instead of a Knowledge Skill? Did she make the suit? Or does she have some kind of biological, medical, or other scientific knowledge about the source of super powers? Just curious.

[Adventus]

Re: Empowered by Adam Warren

 

Give a susceptibility to armor being damaged 3d6 drain to powers.

[freakboy6117]

Re: Empowered by Adam Warren

 

from a story you can read online here for her midterm for suprahuman studies she worked out the kinetic energy produced by throwing a SUV at someone was less than if you where instead to get in and drive said SUV at the target she then used this technique to defeat her foe.

Equally in the first volume when facing the demon wolf she used the same skill and her knowledge of bondage gear to deduce that the energy draining harness he had been subjected to might absorb the demon wolf which is why he is now caged on her coffee table.

In the fourth volume she uses her knowledge of suprahuman powers to deduce her opponents plan and win the day. In all of these examples

Her knowledge seems to act more like a science than merely knowledge of known suprapowered beings

[Katherine]

Re: Empowered by Adam Warren

 

Doesn't she also have an energy blast?

 

Yes but she doesn't seem to use it very much, usually when she's feeling really confident or enraged. Her powers seems tied to her self image and esteem but maybe that's better reflected as a psychological limitation?

[Katherine]

Re: Empowered by Adam Warren

 

from a story you can read online here for her midterm for suprahuman studies she worked out the kinetic energy produced by throwing a SUV at someone was less than if you where instead to get in and drive said SUV at the target she then used this technique to defeat her foe.

 

Off topic but in Champions isn't that true too? Since you could get the speed bonus to damage and it's not capped at your Strength or its Def/Body as a Move through? The main drawback being you'd be subject to attack on the approach and generally the SUV (and you) would have a lower DCV.

[Bloodstone]

Re: Empowered by Adam Warren

 

Freakboy6117: Even if the STR' date=' CON, and other attributes/powers are linked to the suit/Armor, they would not automatically diminish as the suit is "torn up" (baring GM fiat just randomly placing varying values on the powers). Obviously that is what happens. We need a way to model that effect in game mechanics.[/quote']

 

Powers that are linked are used proportionately, unless you take a lesser version of the limitation (5ER p301).

[bigbywolfe]

Re: Empowered by Adam Warren

 

Give a susceptibility to armor being damaged 3d6 drain to powers.

 

Brilliant.

 

 

 

from a story you can read online here for her midterm for suprahuman studies she worked out the kinetic energy produced by throwing a SUV at someone was less than if you where instead to get in and drive said SUV at the target she then used this technique to defeat her foe.

 

Wouldn’t that depend entirely on how hard you were capable of throwing the car? I mean, if a baseball pitcher can throw a ball at 90+ miles an hour, I’m pretty sure Superman could throw a car faster than 70mph (the speed she lists in that study). Also, wouldn’t that have more to do with physics (speed and mass) than superpowers? I know a regular person can’t throw a car, but it’s a matter of varying speeds for an object of the same mass.

 

 

Equally in the first volume when facing the demon wolf she used the same skill and her knowledge of bondage gear to deduce that the energy draining harness he had been subjected to might absorb the demon wolf which is why he is now caged on her coffee table.

 

I’m not trying to argue, I’m just wondering what the heck knowledge of bondage gear has to do with an energy draining harness…Are energy draining devices normal bondage equipment in that universe? Are demons considered “suprahuman”? Is there a difference between “normal” super powers and mystical powers/beings in this universe? Again, just curious. Also, does the comic ever give a reason for the “supra” thing? At first I just thought you couldn’t type…

 

 

In the fourth volume she uses her knowledge of suprahuman powers to deduce her opponents plan and win the day. In all of these examples

Her knowledge seems to act more like a science than merely knowledge of known suprapowered beings

 

 

It wouldn't have to be "merely knowledge of known suprapowered bings." You could have KS:known superbeings, KS:superpowers, CuK:superheros/villains, and any combination of the three, plus any other similar background skill. It just depends on how specified you want the background skills to be. “To deduce her opponents plan and win the day.” It sounds like she needs the deduction skill, with a knowledge/professional/science skill as a complimentary roll. Is “suprahuman” studies (is that really what it’s called, or does she just talk that way?) considered a “particular field of science” (the HDv3 definition of what a SS covers)? It’s not a really important point, they cost the same, I’m just wondering about your definition. My thinking on it, explained using a Marvel comics example. Wolverine has fought with just about everyone in the Marvel universe and has run across almost every type of power imaginable. I’d say he would have a fairly high KS: Superpowers (I mean, he’s been attacked by most of them). Reed Richards, on the other hand, is a scientist, and has used his knowledge of science and how it applies to the manifestation of superpowers (gamma dampeners/accelerators on the Hulk, Cosmic Ray knowledge to cure several X-men of Fantastic Four-like cosmic mutations, etcetera). That, in my mind, would be a SS:superpowers. We may just be arguing semantics. Again, it’s not a huge deal either way, I’m just curious about how the source material defines it, and your choice of definition.

[bigbywolfe]

Re: Empowered by Adam Warren

 

Powers that are linked are used proportionately' date=' unless you take a lesser version of the limitation (5ER p301).[/quote']

 

I forgot about that. Thanks.

You would have to do a lot of math, though, wouldn't you? You'd need the percent of power being used for each individual point of armor and figure all those percentages for each power attached to it. I'd think there would be an easier way.

[TheQuestionMan]

Re: Empowered by Adam Warren

 

Never read it before but it looks interesting (in a Byrne She-Hulk kind of way).

 

Here's what I came up with based on the wiki:

 

Super Suit, all slots OIF Fragile (skin-tight hypermembrane costume; -3/4), Limited Power Requires Full Skin Contact To Function (No Underwear Allowed; -1/4)

25 1) +50 STR (50 Active Points) 5

25 2) +25 CON (50 Active Points)

25 3) Armor (25 PD/25 ED) (75 Active Points); Ablative BODY or STUN (Thinner than a soap bubble; -1)

Notes: Ablative: (Hero System Fifth Edition Rule Book, page 77-78; Revised, page 115) A Defense Power with this Limitation is shot off little by little by attacks.

5 4) Clinging (normal STR) (10 Active Points)

8 5) Flight 10" (20 Active Points); Restrainable (Wings; -1/2) 2

7 6) Invisibility to Sight Group , Reduced Endurance (0 END; +1/2) (30 Active Points); Conditional Power Affects Hypermembrane Only (-2)

 

Super Suit Mask, all slots OIF (skin-tight costume; -1/2)

5 1) +4 PER with Sight Group (8 Active Points)

4 2) +4 versus Range Modifier for Sight Group (6 Active Points)

3 3) Infrared Perception (Sight Group) (5 Active Points)

7 4) Microscopic ( x100) with Sight Group (10 Active Points)

13 5) N-Ray Perception (Sight Group), Discriminatory, Analyze (20 Active Points)

3 6) Ultraviolet Perception (Sight Group) (5 Active Points)

 

Total Powers & Skill Cost: 130

Ahem... Honey Where is my Super Suit

 

 

The Incredibles - Where's my Super Suit?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V-WFgoS_7b0

 

 

LOL

 

 

QM

[freakboy6117]

Re: Empowered by Adam Warren

 

I think the supra thing is probably because DC and Marvel hold the copyright on the term superhero (thus most Indie superhero titles using some other term Meta science hero etc)

 

As for the car thing that’s an interesting one having not done the maths myself I couldn't say but assuming you could throw a car at 70 MPH actually quite hard it’s not a balanced throwing item like a baseball you would find air resistance would be a serious problem especially as it would tend to roll in flight where as if you where driving the car you would have the advantage of constant acceleration right up to the point of impact plus you would know you would be hitting with the densest part of the vehicle.

 

The energy draining harness was alien bondage gear used by an alien who wanted to kidnap Emp as a concubine until he decided her butt was too big he let her keep the harness.

 

The source material seems to suggest suprahuman studies is a kind of geeky degree combining social/cultural, philosophical and scientific study of suprahumans.

 

Before I forget one disadvantage I should have added she has at least 4d6 of unluck

[Tom]

Re: Empowered by Adam Warren

 

iirc; thrown items do damage based on the thrower's STR, not how 'fast' they're thrown. A Move Through with a driven vehicle would be the vehicle's STR + v/5...

 

The big question being, how strong is the thrower... Supes can probably throw harder, but that may not be the case for many brick/demi-brick class chars.

[bigbywolfe]

Re: Empowered by Adam Warren

 

freakboy6117: Thanks for the clairifications.

[Bloodstone]

Re: Empowered by Adam Warren

 

iirc; thrown items do damage based on the thrower's STR' date=' not how 'fast' they're thrown. A Move Through with a driven vehicle would be the vehicle's STR + v/5...[/quote']

 

Move Through is STR + V/3 actually.

 

And remember a normal thrown object only does a maximum of it's DEF+BODY

 

For reference, a typical SUV has 35 STR, 23" of movement, DEF of 4 and BODY of 14.

 

Someone with enough STR to throw it can do a maximum of 18 DC's with it (at -4 plus range penalties...)

 

However, anyone with a 70 STR or less is probably better off just driving the thing at someone

[bigbywolfe]

Re: Empowered by Adam Warren

 

My point about throwing vs driving was about something said in the source material and actual physics, not about game mechanics.

[CptPatriot]

Re: Empowered by Adam Warren

 

We've gone off topic a bit.

 

Do we think we've hit all the details regarding the powers shown to date?

[Dr Archeville]

Re: Empowered by Adam Warren

 

I think the supra thing is probably because DC and Marvel hold the copyright on the term superhero (thus most Indie superhero titles using some other term Meta science hero etc)

Not quite.

 

Summary: DC & Marvel hold a joint trademark on the term "super heroes" (and variations thereof, like "superhero" and "super-hero") for use in publications (you cannot copyright a phrase), which only means that they are the only ones who can use "super-hero" in the title of their comics & on the packaging of their action figures and trading cards and pencil sharpeners and so on. They filed for this trademark back in 1979, and had it registered in 1981.

[freakboy6117]

Re: Empowered by Adam Warren

 

oops thanks for clarifying that Dr Archeville but a lot of indie titles do still seem to avoid using the term in general.

[freakboy6117]

Re: Empowered by Adam Warren

 

most things seems OK she probably doesn't need flight the angel form so far is a mysterious one time occurrence of incredible badassery of which EMP has no recollection its kind of a GM fiat power possibly a result of a mystery disadvantage on her powers.

 

one thing I'm a little curious about is how much the suit protects her even when its damaged while she looses the strength and energy blasts when its shredded. she doesn't seem to get injured even when its cut though how much of that is some sort of villain code against harming defeated foes the source material is kind of vague about this

[Tom]

Re: Empowered by Adam Warren

 

Move Through is STR + V/3 actually.

 

And remember a normal thrown object only does a maximum of it's DEF+BODY

 

For reference, a typical SUV has 35 STR, 23" of movement, DEF of 4 and BODY of 14.

 

Someone with enough STR to throw it can do a maximum of 18 DC's with it (at -4 plus range penalties...)

 

However, anyone with a 70 STR or less is probably better off just driving the thing at someone

I realized I'd put the formula down wrong last night after I'd logged out an gone to bed... *sigh*

 

(teach me to post before bed... Or not... )

[Bloodstone]

Re: Empowered by Adam Warren

 

Do we think we've hit all the details regarding the powers shown to date?

 

That depends on the level of detail you want in the writeup and the setting.

 

For example, are there campaign rules that stae she will be tied up and mercilessly mocked whenever shes naked and powerless or do we need to build some kind of Triggered AoE mind control?

[Susano]

Re: Empowered by Adam Warren

 

I think that's part of her Rep: Loser Superhero.

 

Also, doesn't she have a degree of some sort in superhuman powers?

 

Hmm... I may need to archive this thread, as I wanted to try writing some of the cast at some point.

 

BTW....

 

 

Does Volume 4 explain any of what happened at the end of Volume 3, when EMP rescued Ninjette? A simple yes no is fine.