At What Cost?

[tesuji]

A character has the ability to by touch absorb items into his body, gaining a tatoo of the item (.and giving it a "name") he can then later on bring out the items by speaking their name.

 

So, this seems fairly obviously some level of transform lets say he wants nothing bigger than 5 body so he buys 3d6 major transform touch only all or nothing no range for around 22 cp more if he wants it stealthy.

 

So said character would obviously use it for thievery but he would also try and "load up" with useful stuff like maybe grenades or dynamite or nunchucks or pistols or bottled water and duct tape.

 

so what else would you make the PC buy in addition to the ability described above? This assumes the stuff is not super-stuff but stuff one can buy or find to steal - but that includes guns and knives and lit torches etc. maybe a can of gasoline.

 

should he also buy some level of VPP gadget pool for the stuff?

buy grenades? buy knives? buy assault rifle?

 

consider your answers please for all threee cases-

superheroic game where you pay for equipment period.

game where you only pay for super stuff.

game where equipment is free.

 

thanks.

[Hyper-Man]

Re: At What Cost?

 

...

 

should he also buy some level of VPP gadget pool for the stuff?

...

 

consider your answers please for all threee cases-

 

1. superheroic game where you pay for equipment period.
   
2. game where you only pay for super stuff.
   
3. game where equipment is free.
   

 

thanks.

 

 

1. Yes.
   
2. A limited Multipower could be used here. Slots with a Naked buyoff of the Obvious (and Accessable) parts of the Focus Limitation and the active points of the Reserve being a hard limit on the power of any 'magic' item that can be 'stored' this way.
   
3. An even more limted version of #2.
   

[ghost-angel]

Re: At What Cost?

 

Superheroic: The Transform for "mundane but useful" stuff, or just any off the cuff thing they thing of. Anything with a specific Effect should be bought as per the Power - with the SFX being it becomes a Tattoo, guns (etc) may not be Focii, the OIHID Limitation (or variant thereof) seems more appropriate.

 

#2 - The Transform takes care of any and all "free" equipment items anyone else can get without a point cost, you're essentially paying for the ability to conceal items really well. Superstuff as above.

 

Heroic - If Encumbrance Rules are being enforced - just buying the Transform is enough for me to bypass those rules, I might limit how much stuff can be carried by tattoo size limitation.

If Encumbrance Rules aren't really being enforced, or not enforced at all, either a small Perk or just halving the cost of the Transform Power from above would probably be enough for me to let them carry all kinds of stuff without much need for explanation (after all, a tattoo of a gun can be allowed on an airplane, a tattoo of a sword isn't going to be checked at the front desk of the King's Palace, etc. . .) - since this could be a good and clever way of getting equipment smuggled pretty much anywhere, doubly useful when you get tossed in the brig.

[Wyrm Ouroboros]

Re: At What Cost?

 

As a GM, and going by the description of the power to do this to anything pretty much off the cuff, in my book this is all VPP stuff. The VPP would get 'OIF' for all the objects, but not on the pool itself. While an MPow might work as well, you'd always need points handy with which to purchase the next 'neat new slot' sort of thing. The VPP, on the other hand, might get 'Visible F/X' and/or 'Incantations', as the tattoo is on his body (for the first) and he has to call out what it is (for the second).

 

As a GM, the mundane stuff basically wouldn't matter -- though I MIGHT require a limitation as to how many tattoos the guy can have on at once...

[薔薇語]

Re: At What Cost?

 

It seems to me that the power described above is best represented as a VPP. One that is of suitable size to fit most mundane items and then tack on two limitations.

 

First is that it can only be changed in a given circumstance. The circumstance being given access to the item he will acquire. Part of the Special effect of the power is that it renders the original item: destroyed, useless, or missing. This could be linked to a simple cumulative RKA to get rid of the original.

 

The next Limitation I think is appropriate is to put on IIF. It is Inobvious becuase out side of the use of the item there isn't a situation where one can be reasonably removed from the item, but in use of the item it becomes manifest and as such can be removed. This is to go as a blanket disad on the VPP since all power built inside it will be some kind of manifested object that the character manipulates.

 

So in general low power terms I would envision something akin to this:

 

1.) Unmake: RKA 1d6; Limited Power Power loses almost all of its effectiveness (Only to unmake objects for VPP; -2), No Range (-1/2)

 

2.) Manifesting Tattoos: Variable Power Pool, 15 base + 3 control cost, VPP Powers Can Be Changed Only In Given Circumstance (-1/2), Linked (Unmake; -1/4); all slots IIF (-1/4)

 

 

Although the link might just be better written as being a limited power. IE: Can only copy items that are currently being Unmade.

 

La Rose

[Greywind]

Re: At What Cost?

 

At all costs...

[薔薇語]

Re: At What Cost?

 

As a GM' date=' the mundane stuff basically wouldn't matter -- though I MIGHT require a limitation as to how many tattoos the guy can have on at once...[/quote']

 

If it was built as a VPP there would be a absolute max. Depending on the real cost of the item it could have a special effect of being a larger or smaller tattoo. And there is an absolute maximum area of your body that the tattoos can occupy, this being based on the the pool size.

 

La Rose

[Chris Goodwin]

Re: At What Cost?

 

Transform: Object to "Thin Air". Reversal Condition: Object Manifests In VPP. Possibly: Side Effects: Transform (Self to Tattooed Self)

 

VPP, Only Items He Has Currently Transformed Into Thin Air, Incantations.

 

Season to taste.

[prestidigitator]

Re: At What Cost?

 

Hmm. As an unusual take on the problem...Extra Limbs only usable to hold the items and Images or a large (Extraordinary 10+) bonus to Concealment....

[Wyrm Ouroboros]

Re: At What Cost?

 

If it was built as a VPP there would be a absolute max. Depending on the real cost of the item it could have a special effect of being a larger or smaller tattoo. And there is an absolute maximum area of your body that the tattoos can occupy' date=' this being based on the the pool size.[/quote']

 

Err ... no. It's like this.

 

'I pick up rope and transform it. I pick up a gun, a burning torch, thirty logs, four cups, two gallons of milk, six loaves of bread, and a pound of butter and transform it all.' This takes all of the stuff and dumps it into the pool, whatever it happens to be. It's when the stuff goes active that it has to be written up as part of the pool -- because that's when it's used. The max is how many you could have active at once, not how many tattoos you could have. That would be a limitation on the pool...

[Chris Goodwin]

Re: At What Cost?

 

Err ... no. It's like this.

 

'I pick up rope and transform it. I pick up a gun, a burning torch, thirty logs, four cups, two gallons of milk, six loaves of bread, and a pound of butter and transform it all.' This takes all of the stuff and dumps it into the pool, whatever it happens to be. It's when the stuff goes active that it has to be written up as part of the pool -- because that's when it's used. The max is how many you could have active at once, not how many tattoos you could have. That would be a limitation on the pool...

 

Exactly correct, and exactly how I was envisioning it when I wrote up my VPP.

[薔薇語]

Re: At What Cost?

 

Err ... no. It's like this.

 

'I pick up rope and transform it. I pick up a gun, a burning torch, thirty logs, four cups, two gallons of milk, six loaves of bread, and a pound of butter and transform it all.' This takes all of the stuff and dumps it into the pool, whatever it happens to be. It's when the stuff goes active that it has to be written up as part of the pool -- because that's when it's used. The max is how many you could have active at once, not how many tattoos you could have. That would be a limitation on the pool...

 

 

ah. I guess I misunderstood the concept then. So as long on as the character has come into contact and acquired the item into his tattoos he is able to manifest the item. And he will be able to have tattoos of more items then he could concievable manifest at any one time. So working from the example provided earlier. He could only manifest 15 real points of powers at a time but could concievably have 100 real points worth of tattoos on his body?

 

Now in that case it might be best to remove the circumstance in which it can be changed that I placed on my example. However it would be worth noting that if the powers are not already pre-generated in the pool it could become troublesome to manifest in a stressful (such as combat, on the run, etc) situation. As he would have to be doing such an activity quickly and need to make a skill roll to achieve the effect. If he had them pre-generated in the pool it would save him the headache of rolling for that item. But this could be worked around by buying -no skill roll required or -cosmic on the Cost Control.

 

As it relates to the number of tattoos, the mechanic of the pool total allows for you to have a justifiable benchmark to work from that is internally consistant with the basic rules. Any limit other than that would seem to be more arbitrary, although perfectly fine. Perhaps, if I may suggest, a limit of tattoos (when all built) equalling some multiple of the total pool value. Maybe 3x or 4x the value. That would give you and him a nice number to work from and as he buys up his VPP it will also increase the total he has access too. Although the downside of that idea, is that it still requires you to consider the build dynamic of all possible tattoos on the character and this can become tedious and time consuming.

 

La Rose

[Sean Waters]

Re: At What Cost?

 

Let us reason from effect.

 

The described ability allows the character to carry stuff unobtrusively. That, it seems to me, is it.

 

Now if, in a superheroic game, this was the base sfx of the ability to produce weapons, defences and such pretty much at will, then a VPP seems the very thing, certainly

 

However, unless you prohibit the carrying of stuff you find in the game, I'd start with the assumption that you shouldn't have to pay for this ability above and beyond the transform (or, if you fancy an extra dimesnional wardrobe, EDM). If you are not supposed to be able to use the stuff you've transformed then the GM should probably either not leave it lying around, or should think of some good reason why it is ineffective or unobtainable.

 

This is not so much a question of how you build it as what access you allow to 'stuff' in your game. This is just the ability to have access to 'stuff' in-game, nothing more. Of course having access to stuff at will is horribly abuseable, but no more, really, than a character who decides they want to carry with them a large rucksack stuffed with potentially useful stuff.

 

In a superheroic game I try and ensure that normal 'stuff' is pretty useless when compared to superpowers, so it is usually not an issue. In heroic games, the only real difference here - and you are paying for the ability to conceal items with points anyway by buying this ability - is that you can carry more stuff with you and do so unobtrusively. I mean, this sounds like a magical or super ability anyway, and so should be pretty darned useful as is.