If Only I Had The Will (or Building 'Stock' Meters for Fun and Beatings)

[Fabricati]

So in building fighting game-style characters, as the above implies, I've hit a little bit of a snag. Call them Desperation Moves, Super Arts, Hyper Combos, whatever- one of the fun little strategic bits of old 2D fighting games was the little meter at the bottom of your screen that accumulated both as you hit things and as things hit you. That meter fills, and then you get a chance to land a nasty turnaround blow.

 

From there, the idea then starts to veer wildly from game to game, allowing things like multiple 'meters' (and varying levels of inflicting pain!), using these meters for things other than pre-made Super Maneuvers, having a specific ability that increased your Meter at the cost of essentially being 0 DCV, etc.

 

I have no idea how to do this in HERO. Not even the basic concept. Oh, the things that follow are no problem- that's stuff like vanilla HAs, Linked attacks, bonuses to Sweep or Grapple, CON for purposes of Stunning with a Continuous Recoverable Charge- but the actual building of the meter escapes me. Is it an END Reserve? A nutty form of Absorption/Aid? A strange use of Transfer?

 

Suggestions? Comments that maybe I should leave well enough alone?

[bigbywolfe]

Re: If Only I Had The Will (or Building 'Stock' Meters for Fun and Beatings)

 

What about Absorption to an Endurance Reserve only usable for X?

[Fabricati]

Re: If Only I Had The Will (or Building 'Stock' Meters for Fun and Beatings)

 

I'd considered that; the problem there is twofold.

 

First, the Absorption maximum- of xd6 of Absorption, I can only achieve x*6 END. Now, likely, I'm never going to reach that max in a useful length of time (in fact, considering how blindingly fast most HERO combats go in 'game time'- compared to a 2D fighting game, at least- it'd probably never get that far, especially since everyone's slinging Normal Damage in the Absorption dice range).

 

Second, the END reserve in that case only fills when the character takes damage- If I give out damage, the reserve just sits there. It encourages much more defensive play than I'd like. Maybe there's some funky way to do it so damage done (Normal Damage BODY) gets in there too? That's mostly what I'm hung up on.

 

I'd also say it's porky, but since I'm mostly doing this for giggle value, there's no reason I can't use as many points as I like (though it might belie the character's abilities).

[jtelson]

Re: If Only I Had The Will (or Building 'Stock' Meters for Fun and Beatings)

 

Auto Resetting triggered Aid/Heal to Reserve X; Works for other things as well. Dodge Meter, Block Meter, Jump Meter; Whatever'd you'd like metered.

[ghost-angel]

Re: If Only I Had The Will (or Building 'Stock' Meters for Fun and Beatings)

 

I'd create a simple House Rule specific to this style of game:

 

buy the Endurance Reserve, and then a Recovery. For purposes of the campaign I would make everyone buy the same Recovory, or have Stepped Levels for various "strength of fighter" and a House-Ruled Trigger: End Reserve gets REC every time Character hits or is hit.

 

you can have all kinds of fun here; taking a hit is 1/2 the REC, delivering a Hit is the full REC. Start to Hit more than once in a row (combos) and you get Bonuses to the REC.

 

Once the END Reserve reaches a threshold you can unleash whatever Attacks draw from it.

[pinecone]

Re: If Only I Had The Will (or Building 'Stock' Meters for Fun and Beatings)

 

So in building fighting game-style characters, as the above implies, I've hit a little bit of a snag. Call them Desperation Moves, Super Arts, Hyper Combos, whatever- one of the fun little strategic bits of old 2D fighting games was the little meter at the bottom of your screen that accumulated both as you hit things and as things hit you. That meter fills, and then you get a chance to land a nasty turnaround blow.

 

From there, the idea then starts to veer wildly from game to game, allowing things like multiple 'meters' (and varying levels of inflicting pain!), using these meters for things other than pre-made Super Maneuvers, having a specific ability that increased your Meter at the cost of essentially being 0 DCV, etc.

 

I have no idea how to do this in HERO. Not even the basic concept. Oh, the things that follow are no problem- that's stuff like vanilla HAs, Linked attacks, bonuses to Sweep or Grapple, CON for purposes of Stunning with a Continuous Recoverable Charge- but the actual building of the meter escapes me. Is it an END Reserve? A nutty form of Absorption/Aid? A strange use of Transfer?

 

Suggestions? Comments that maybe I should leave well enough alone?

 

 

I think Ninja Hero or UMA has a little section on "Rage meters"...I'd likely build it as a Absortion, into a End bat with no REC, that powers what ever.....

 

Like...Payback is a B****!!! multi (40)

u HA +6D6 REnd>1/2

u HA+ 4D6 AP

...yadda yadda

[Sean Waters]

Re: If Only I Had The Will (or Building 'Stock' Meters for Fun and Beatings)

 

+20 STR 0 END (30 points) ONLY USEABLE WHEN ON 10 or FEWER STUN (-1)

 

15 points

 

(or +4d6 EB if you are an energy projector)

 

All you are after is 'I'm at my most dangerous when I'm on the back foot', and that seems the most straightforward way to do it.

 

You could make it NCC (only works in certain situations) or based on some different criteria in the limitation - but the bones of it work fine, if I've correctly divined your intention.

 

Bear in mind that 2-4 hits is all it takes to KO most Hero characters, so a meter that builds is a bit of a luxury you probably can not afford - them mechanical systems are very different - and the damage through defences very different - from teh fighting games you describe.

 

You CAN build those fighting games - but you'd have to do it as a completel campaign guidline to make it at all meaningful - and have everyone built that way.

[Killer Shrike]

Re: If Only I Had The Will (or Building 'Stock' Meters for Fun and Beatings)

 

Threshold Framework