Point Expenditures.

[Ragdoll]

Okay here's my problem. I'm putting together a heroine, that's part of a team. Her basic power is to urge a spark of life to spring up in an object or substance she touches and bring it to life in whatever shape her mind likes. Her basic power is this:

 

45 EC: Power of Creation

20a Life Spark: Summon up to 200 points; Any Object Class +1, Amicable: Friendly +1/4, Extra Time: Delayed Phase -1/4, Gestures -1/4, Incantations -1/4, Restrainable -1/2.

 

 

Here's my problem she's got 16 points left to spend, but she's pretty versatile already. I would like her to be able to eventually cause ranged attacks against her to come to life and then attack people she's trying to fight. I know how to stat out that power now thanks to the help of others on this board, but it's far too expensive to purchase with just 16 points. Should I hold onto the 16 points until I have enough to purchase it, or spend them now? What's the best way to build this character?

 

Any suggestions are appreciated. =)

 

Here's the other skills she has:

 

10 Armoured Costume: Armour 5PD/5ED; OIF -1/2

18 Self Defense Training

-Block OCV 7 DCV 7 Block, Abort

-Dodge OCV 5 DCV 10 Dodge, Affects All Attacks, Abort

-Legsweep OCV 7 DCV 4 3D6, Target Falls

-Joint Lock OCV 4 DCV 4 Grab Two Limbs, 20 STR For Holding On

-Throw OCV 5 DCV 6 2D6 + v/5, Target Falls

05 Defensive Maneuver II

06 CSL: +2 with Self Defense Training

01 Analyze: Hand to Hand Combat 8-

03 Acrobatics 12-

03 Breakfall 12-

03 Concealment 11-

03 Shadowing 11-

03 Stealth 12-

03 Climbing 12-

02 KS: Geek Subculture 11-

02 KS: Parkour Subculture 11-

10 +1 Overall Skill Level

01 Income: Well Off ($100K/Year - Trust Fund/Investments)

05 Amazing Climber: Clinging at STR, Requires Climbing Roll -1/2, Cannot

Cling To Ceilings Or Surfaces With More Than A 120 Degree Angle

-1/4, Cannot Resist Knockback -1/4

03 Acrobatic Leaping: Leaping +4" (6" forward, 3" up); Requires

Acrobatics Roll -1/2

02 Fast Feet: Running +2" (8"/16" NC)

03 Well Connected

05 Contact: Ravenswood Academy, Good Relations, Organization 8-

02 4 Favors

-

-

-

-

01 1 Follower (Noteworthy - 'Current Friend With Benefits')

[csyphrett]

Re: Point Expenditures.

 

are you putting this power into an existing object, or creating something out of thin air? If you need an object, OAF could get you some more points.

CES

[Hugh Neilson]

Re: Point Expenditures.

 

Her basic power is this:

 

45 EC: Power of Creation

20a Life Spark: Summon up to 200 points; Any Object Class +1, Amicable: Friendly +1/4, Extra Time: Delayed Phase -1/4, Gestures -1/4, Incantations -1/4, Restrainable -1/2.

 

Speaking for myself, I would not allow both Gestures & Incantations and restrainable. What can restrain the character which would not otherwise prevent one of Gestures and Incantations?

 

Here's my problem she's got 16 points left to spend' date=' but she's pretty versatile already. I would like her to be able to eventually cause ranged attacks against her to come to life and then attack people she's trying to fight. I know how to stat out that power now thanks to the help of others on this board, but it's far too expensive to purchase with just 16 points. Should I hold onto the 16 points until I have enough to purchase it, or spend them now? What's the best way to build this character? [/quote']

 

You could limit the power heavily so she has it, but it's very unreliable (perhaps to the point of being near useless - concentration, extra time, extra END, activation or RSR, etc.) and use XP to buy off the limitations over time. This would represent the ongoing development of this aspect of her power.

[ghost-angel]

Re: Point Expenditures.

 

What's the build for the Power you're looking to add specifically? And do the Active Points fit in the EC?

[Ragdoll]

Re: Point Expenditures.

 

are you putting this power into an existing object, or creating something out of thin air? If you need an object, OAF could get you some more points.

CES

 

Well, technically she needs to 'touch' something to bring it to life. The only problem is, she can touch a patch of earth or concrete and make it come to life in the form of a stone or earthen spider, scorpion, human warrior, weird amorphous blob, etc, etc. So I didn't really think OAF would really apply since there's virtually nothing to limit her unless you suspend her in mid air where she's not able to touch 'anything'.

 

Speaking for myself' date=' I would not allow both Gestures & Incantations and restrainable. What can restrain the character which would not otherwise prevent one of Gestures and Incantations? [/quote']

 

You're right. I see that now. My idea was that she brings something to life by shaking it and talking to it as if she were trying to rouse someone from sleep. If she were bound she'd not be able to do that, but gestures and incantations seems to cover that nicely, so I will drop restrainable.

 

You could limit the power heavily so she has it' date=' but it's very unreliable (perhaps to the point of being near useless - concentration, extra time, extra END, activation or RSR, etc.) and use XP to buy off the limitations over time. This would represent the ongoing development of this aspect of her power.[/quote']

 

I thought of that, of course, but it also has the side of effect of making her useless in a super heroic combat. Her martial arts and nimble moves are their mostly to keep her out of a fight, and not so much to inflict damage, it's the things that she brings to life that are essentially her energy blast for instance or her super human strength or what have you. Her social skills, contact, and follower are for no combat situations to be of some use, but I wanted her to be able to contribute in some way to the combat. =)

 

What's the build for the Power you're looking to add specifically? And do the Active Points fit in the EC?

 

Specifically it's from this thread: http://www.herogames.com/forums/showthread.php?t=72942

 

The power is a bit modified. For instance, I'm not sure this will work if the original power has takes extra time, I'm pretty sure you can't missile deflect with takes extra time because it has to happen now, right?

 

Anyway, this is how Fireleaper layed out the power:

 

Summon: 250 point summon, any creature +1, friendly +1/4, (112active) Gestures -1/4, Incantations -1/4

 

Trigger: summon when using missile deflection, resets automatically after it activates for up to 112 active points of summon (84 active) Gestures -1/4, Incantations -1/4

 

Missile deflection: can deflect any ranged attack, can deflect attack at anyone (50 active) Gestures -1/4, Incantations -1/4

 

 

as it stands you can only control one summon at a time but you can improve on that in time.

 

------

 

I don't think Missile Deflection will fit in the EC unless I add points to it with extra OCV for blocking. And I don't know a lot about how a naked power modifier works, if at all, in an EC, if it'd even fit besides.

 

I envisioned a metahuman tossing a stream of fire at her from their hands, and she reaches out and just as the fire hits, it twirls around her hands and arms, and stretches itself out into a firery serpent then slithers though the air back to the attacker or any of his allies or what have you to do her bidding and attack them.

[Lucius]

Re: Point Expenditures.

 

I've started games with unexpended points, and encouraged others to do so, more than once.

 

Sometimes just "so you'll have them if you think of something later you should have had."

 

Lucius Alexander

 

And an unexpended palindromedary

[csyphrett]

Re: Point Expenditures.

 

My only other thought is do you need 200 points for a summoning? You might be able to get some more points if your drop it down to a 100 point summoning.

CES

[ghost-angel]

Re: Point Expenditures.

 

I keep coming back to the fact the "Bring To Life" may not be a simple single Power. It sounds like the SFX for an entire Suite of Powers.

 

Bring a Fence to life that wraps around and traps an opponent: Entangle

Bring a mail box to life that grows a fist and hits someone: Energy Blast + Indirect

 

Buying just one Power "Summon" and trying to dump enough points that the Summoned Creature can do whatever you want is an awfully cheap way of trying to get a VPP.

 

Though, Summoned Creatures go away, and at the Friendly level may not be willing to enter combat without an Ego Contest.

[Hugh Neilson]

Re: Point Expenditures.

 

I thought of that' date=' of course, but it also has the side of effect of making her useless in a super heroic combat. Her martial arts and nimble moves are their mostly to keep her out of a fight, and not so much to inflict damage, it's the things that she brings to life that are essentially her energy blast for instance or her super human strength or what have you. Her social skills, contact, and follower are for no combat situations to be of some use, but I wanted her to be able to contribute in some way to the combat. =) [/quote']

 

Here's my problem she's got 16 points left to spend' date=' but she's pretty versatile already. I would like her to be able to eventually cause ranged attacks against her to come to life and then attack people she's trying to fight. I know how to stat out that power now thanks to the help of others on this board, but it's far too expensive to purchase with just 16 points. Should I hold onto the 16 points until I have enough to purchase it, or spend them now? What's the best way to build this character? [/quote']

 

I was thinking only of limiting the power you want to develop in the future, while you rely on the Summon initially.

[Ragdoll]

Re: Point Expenditures.

 

I keep coming back to the fact the "Bring To Life" may not be a simple single Power. It sounds like the SFX for an entire Suite of Powers.

 

Bring a Fence to life that wraps around and traps an opponent: Entangle

Bring a mail box to life that grows a fist and hits someone: Energy Blast + Indirect

 

Buying just one Power "Summon" and trying to dump enough points that the Summoned Creature can do whatever you want is an awfully cheap way of trying to get a VPP.

 

Though, Summoned Creatures go away, and at the Friendly level may not be willing to enter combat without an Ego Contest.

 

Well, I'm just not interested in stating up a bunch of powers for a few reasons.

 

1. I'm not keen on having to come up with powers in a multislot or whatever that covers every possible aspect of what a summon might do.

 

2. For the purposes of the build, Summon is rather IC for her, so it simply must stay in for that reason.

 

Eventually I'm going to increase the loyalty of the power and begin branching out into more followers. Either friends that she's met in her adventures and gotten as followers, or more interestingly permanent summons. Small point ones at first, but more and more as she develops. I also intend to shore up her skills and combat abilities to make her even more survivable. She's a social character primarily with a very 'useful' one power combat ability. Basically I'm looking at a character with one main power, plus a small secondary power that is basically just a special effect of how her main power works (the missile deflect bringing things to life).

 

The actual Summon power has to remain for those purposes.

 

I was thinking only of limiting the power you want to develop in the future' date=' while you rely on the Summon initially.[/quote']

 

That actually 'might' work. Not sure I can get away with bringing both powers down to a grand total of 16 points. One has to be a naked modifier and the other the missile deflect. I'll take a look at it and get back to the thread. =)