Automatic Suppression Field

[LaughingLunatic]

Hey Herophiles, I need some feedback on a build.

 

Background:

A player in my group is playing a sentient robot made up of nanites. The 'builders' have given him a 'hard-coded' 'protection' from "Magic". They believe that the existance/use of magic could cause damage to the robot's intelligence due to it's 'illogical' and 'impossible' effects. To this end, they have given him an automatic defense in the form of a magic suppression field which automatically prevents the use of "Magic" within a 14 meter radius. Unfortunately, when this field is activated, it prevents the use of all of his other powers due to the strain on his system. The field remains active as long as a magic user/item remains within the area of effect of the field and automatically ends when they are removed. Unbeknownst to the character, he can attempt an EGO roll to de-activate the power but this is very difficult and will create dangerous feedback if it fails.

 

Here is my first run with this build:

 

Suppress Magic 10d6 (SER: 30 Active Points)

--All Powers with a Magic Special Effect (+2);

--Area of Effect (21” Radius, +1);

--Trigger (Magic user/item within Area of Effect, Character doesn’t control activation, +1/4);

--Uncontrolled (until all Magic user/items are removed from Area of Effect, +1/2);

--Reduced Endurance (0 END, +1/2);

[263 Active Points]

--*Reduced Radius (7” Radius, -1 1/2);

--Does Not work When Wet (-1/2);

--Does Not work in Intense Magnetic Fields (-1/2);

--Lockout (-1/2);

--No Range (-1/2);

--**Requires EGO roll to intentionally de-activate when Magic user/item is within Area of Effect -

----Assuming EGO roll is: 11-; ( Active Point Penalty is -1 per 5 active points; -1 1/2);

--***Side Effect (failed de-activation EGO roll, ??);

44 Real Points

 

*I felt that this reduced the power's effectiveness by 2/3 per the limited power limitation (21" radius down to 7")

 

**This is the Requires Skill Roll, but used to de-activate instead of activate. The huge active point penalty to the roll will be used as a role-playing/development hook for the character. i.e. writing new 'software' to help deal with "magic", opportunities to buy down the disadvantage with experience points, etc.

While the player knows what the penalty will be, his character will not and will want to 'grow beyond his limits' and will attempt to override the field, particularly during dramatically appropriate events.

 

***This is where I want to include the side effect when the EGO roll fails to de-activate the power. (I'm thinking a Mental Group Flash to simulate his O/S re-booting after a 'BSD'...) However, I'm having trouble coming up with a value for this limitation.

 

Thanks for your help,

-The Laughing Lunatic

[Hyper-Man]

Re: Automatic Suppression Field

 

I have a couple of suggestions. Change AOE to Explosion. Use No Conscious Control and then a separate Custom Power to buy off this single Limitation that you can then add the Requires Ego Roll and Side Effects.

 

example:

 

53 Magic...What's Magic?: Suppress Magic 10d6 (standard effect: 30 points), all [special effect] powers simultaneously (+2), Trigger (Activating the Trigger requires a Zero Phase Action, Trigger requires a Turn or more to reset, Character does not control activation of personal Trigger, Two activation conditions apply simultaneously; Magic user/item within Area of Effect, Character doesn’t control activation; +1/4), Reduced Endurance (0 END; +1/2), Uncontrolled (until all Magic user/items are removed from Area of Effect; +1/2), Explosion (+1/2) (237 Active Points); No Conscious Control (-2), No Range (-1/2), Lockout (-1/2), Limited Power Does Not Work In Intense Magnetic Fields (-1/2)

Notes: Real Cost is 95 without 'No Conscious Control Limitation'.

 

14 Oh... I Remember How To Let Magic Work!: Custom Power (42 Active Points); Requires An EGO Roll (Active Point penalty to Skill Roll is -1 per 5 Active Points; -1 1/2), Side Effects (-1/2)

Notes: This base cost of this ability is based on the difference between the Suppress's real cost of 53 and 95 (without NCC).

[eightiesboi]

Re: Automatic Suppression Field

 

My thoughts, as they occur.

 

A 20d6 Flash would be the equivalent of an "extreme side effect", or you could go with a 10d6 for a major one. Note that the Mental Group flash would only blind mental "senses", and would not necessarily incapacitate or even inconvienence the character, depending on the power build (i.e., if the character has no mental "senses").

 

Also, is it a 7" radius or a 14" one? The build differs from the explanation in beginning.

 

IIRC, you should probably add "continuous" to the build. Otherwise, a bad roll on the effect dice could result in having no real effect on magic within the area of effect, unless this is by design.

 

Based on your power description, I might add No Conscious Control, as the build says that it turns on whenever a magic item is brought near him regardless of his wishes, and that it prevents him from using his powers. I might even drop the trigger at the present time for the same reason, and handwave it turning on--as long as its activation has the effect of disabling his other abilities.

 

By the way--I assume the character actually *has* the ability to detect magic. Assuming so, this should be linked to that ability.

[bigbywolfe]

Re: Automatic Suppression Field

 

A character does not have to be aware of a triggering condition for it to apply. There is no need for the robot to be able to sense magic unless it is part of the build.

[Hyper-Man]

Re: Automatic Suppression Field

 

...

 

Also, is it a 7" radius or a 14" one? The build differs from the explanation in beginning.

 

IIRC, you should probably add "continuous" to the build. Otherwise, a bad roll on the effect dice could result in having no real effect on magic within the area of effect, unless this is by design.

 

...

 

By the way--I assume the character actually *has* the ability to detect magic. Assuming so, this should be linked to that ability.

 

He said 14 meters at the beginning which is 7" in current Hero terms.

 

Continuous is actually not needed due to it also having Trigger. Uncontrolled just replaces part of the reset cost of Trigger. But now that you mention it, the Trigger should have a 0 Phase reset too.

 

I concur on the requirement to have a separate 'Sense Magic' ability.

[Hyper-Man]

Re: Automatic Suppression Field

 

A character does not have to be aware of a triggering condition for it to apply. There is no need for the robot to be able to sense magic unless it is part of the build.

 

But he does need to have the appropriate sense.

 

from Hero System 5th Edition, Revised ■ Chapter One page 269

 

The circumstance that activates a Triggered power must be easily verifiable, and cannot depend on any Senses the character does not possess — characters cannot use Trigger as a cheap way to detect phenomena they could not ordinarily perceive. (If the character wants to create a Trigger that has special Senses, he can buy these specifically for use with one Triggered power for a -2 Limitation, or with any Triggered power for a -1 Limitation.)

[bigbywolfe]

Re: Automatic Suppression Field

 

I was thinking of an answer Steve gave, but it was about triggering Accidental Change, not Trigger the advantage:

 

Nothing in the rules for Accidental Change requires the character to perceive the triggering effect for the Change. It’s all a question of how the trigger is defined, which affects the frequency of the Disadvantage. “During the full moon” is a more frequent condition than “when the character perceives the full moon,” for example.

 

I had forgotten the context and was thinking it applied to Triggers in general. Sorry.

[eightiesboi]

Re: Automatic Suppression Field

 

He said 14 meters at the beginning which is 7" in current Hero terms.

 

You are right, of course! Color me embarrassed...

 

Continuous is actually not needed due to it also having Trigger. Uncontrolled just replaces part of the reset cost of Trigger. But now that you mention it' date=' the Trigger should have a 0 Phase reset too.[/quote']

 

I guess it could be either-or (in regard to continuous versus a 0 phase reset).

 

As a GM, I might insist on standard effect being applied to speed up gameplay. Every phase when a magic item is present within the field, the field gets stronger by a set increment. This seems (to me) to make thematic sense for a science based "logical" power to counteract illogical magic.