Distinctive features

[wick]

What is your take on distincitve features? From what I have read on the forums there seems to be a debate on what should qualify as a DF. Certainly many heroes or villians will stand out in a crowd due to strange origins or by the SFX of their powers, but does that necessarily qualify as a disadvantage.

 

Looking on the master list of limitations :

http://web.archive.org/web/20080415152917/http://lostcoastgaming.com/files/masterlists.htm

There are lims like "Unearthly beauty 15 pts" or "Could have been a model 10 pts" or a variety of other DFs. But surely there must be something more to a 10-15 pt disadvantage then just attracting attention by walking into a room.

Most of the effects of having a "Distinctive Feature" can be simulated more appropriately with other disadvantages.

What are the disadvantages?:

-Attracts attention which makes the character easily to track or find. Just follow the sounds of cat calls and flashbulbs. Or follow the 9' tall, green guy as he walks through a crowded street.

-Paparazi (sp?) might hinder the character but this can also be purchased as Hunted: paparazi or even as DNPC: paparazi if they commonly get between villians and the character. Maybe even Rivalry: paparazi if they seek to humiliate the character.

-Maybe the public automatically has preconceived notions about the character due to their appearance. But this seems more like a social limitation...i.e treating the Beautiful Blonde Amazon like she is an airhead. Or maybe the character is never treated seriously by the media..but this can be bought with Reputation disadvantage instead.

Any thoughts on how distinctive features are a disadvantage?

-

[azrad]

Re: Distinctive features

 

I always think of DF as something about the character that will be noticed and remember, also it can typically be used to accurately describe the character to someone else.

 

Image the scene: The police walk into an office building and ask the receptionist "have you seen a 10 foot tall robot made out of shiny metal around here"? Her response "Yeah, he came in 10 minutes ago and asked for directions to the lab, its up on floor 12".

vs

The police walk into an office building and ask the receptionist "have you seen a man about 5'10" wearing a dark suit and glasses? Her response "Yeah, I've seen about 30 of them today".

[Utech]

Re: Distinctive features

 

Taking Distinctive Features just means that you want your character's appearance to be a hindrance from time to time. The hindrance is that your character really sticks out both in a crowd and in a witness' memory. You can decide by how many points you "invest" in DF whether:

 

• your character is noted
  
• everyone turns to look at your character
  
• everyone gawks at your character
  
• the image of your character is burned into the memory of all who were in the area
  

and so forth and so on.

 

Having DF might make it very difficult to use any sort of interaction Skills successfully -- or the Skills might have quite different results from those you might expect.

Having DF might make it very difficult to be unobtrusive, to sneak, to maintain a low profile, to give the spotlight to someone else, etc.

 

The really important thing here is that these hindrances only happen if you take DF. If you want to play a green-skinned, four-armed monster but don't want everyone to turn and stare, you don't take DF. (Your GM may not be able to wrap his mind around this and disallow it in his games, but that's a personal taste issue.)

[Ockham's Spoon]

Re: Distinctive features

 

Distinctive Features serve to make the character stick out, but as a GM I would not give more than 5 points for it unless it were really out of the ordinary or freakish (Unearthly Beauty only gets more than 5pts if the character pays for a power that reflects it). The one exception would be if the DF tips others off to your other Complications; i.e. if you take DF: Vampire then you get more points than DF: Goth Girl because everyone knows how to kill vampires, but goth girls don't have any particular limitations. Similarly, if your world has a smoldering hatred of orcs, DF: Orc gets you more than DF: Elf because of the accompanying Social Complication.

 

As a GM I tend to discourage high point DF because I find they often inhibit gameplay rather than enhance it, because so many interactions with NPCs are dominated or derailed by the DF, and stealth missions are too frequently nonstarters.

[SKJAM!]

Re: Distinctive features

 

One character in Allies was a cat-man who specifically did not have Distinctive Features because he was so good at "blending into a crowd" that you wouldn't notice the cat part unless you were staring directly at him.

[wick]

Re: Distinctive features

 

Take Ironclad for example, I would expect that a huge alien dude (7 foot tall) with metal skin would have DF, but he does not. And just reading the "Apperarance" section of his sheet you would think that he would. I am pretty sure that he would stand out in a crowd. And since he does have a public identity, people would probably recognize him and know his name.

 

I am sure that there are many examples of other heros/villians that should have a DF if it was just as simple as being easily recognized, remarkable, or out of place.

[Utech]

Re: Distinctive features

 

I am sure that there are many examples of other heros/villians that should have a DF if it was just as simple as being easily recognized' date=' remarkable, or out of place.[/quote']

The HERO deal is simple: If he didn't take DF, his distinctive features don't cause him problems. If did take DF, his distinctive features cause him problems.

 

The fact that he has distinctive features does not mean that he must take the DF Complication/Disadvantage. The GM is well within his rights, of course, to say, "Sorry, I can't wrap my head around this. If you want to look like that, you need to take DF."

[wick]

Re: Distinctive features

 

The HERO deal is simple: If he didn't take DF, his distinctive features don't cause him problems. If did take DF, his distinctive features cause him problems.

 

The fact that he has distinctive features does not mean that he must take the DF Complication/Disadvantage. The GM is well within his rights, of course, to say, "Sorry, I can't wrap my head around this. If you want to look like that, you need to take DF."

 

That would be my point, it should be a compication rather than just standing out in a crowd.

 

Example, not only does 7'+ tall Frankenstein's monster look strange and makes an impression everywhere he goes, but he also causes negative reactions in those he mets. like causing women to flee screaming, shop venders close up shop, etc. He probably would have a village mob coming after him as well, but that should be bought as another disadvantage; Hunted: Village mob.

 

Ironclad, on the otherhand, would not have the DF (despite his distinctive appearance) becuase people know about him through his Public ID as a hero or maybe they are used to seeing large, obviously, Alien humanoids walking the strrets of Millinieum city. Whatever the reason his alieness is not a disadvantage to him in the least. Maybe he had a small one when he came to Earth but has since bought it off when the world accepted his presence.

[Hyper-Man]

Re: Distinctive features

 

This is how I have used it to represent Superman's sometimes unique status:

 

5 Distinctive Features: Last Son of Krypton (Not Concealable; Always Noticed and Causes Major Reaction; Detectable Only By Technology Or Major Effort; Not Distinctive In Some Cultures)

 

Basically, it means that only alien tech can tell he's not human and that most alien cultures consider a live Kryptonian a myth right up their with what we think of the possibility of living dinosaurs and finding Atlantis.

[wick]

Re: Distinctive features

 

This is how I have used it to represent Superman's sometimes unique status:

 

5 Distinctive Features: Last Son of Krypton (Not Concealable; Always Noticed and Causes Major Reaction; Detectable Only By Technology Or Major Effort; Not Distinctive In Some Cultures)

 

Basically, it means that only alien tech can tell he's not human and that most alien cultures consider a live Kryptonian a myth right up their with what we think of the possibility of living dinosaurs and finding Atlantis.

 

What's the "Major Reaction"?

 

I guess if you know that he is Kryptonian, then you probably know about a kryptonian's weaknesses?

[Hyper-Man]

Re: Distinctive features

 

What's the "Major Reaction"?

 

I guess if you know that he is Kryptonian, then you probably know about a kryptonian's weaknesses?

 

There were a couple of stories in the DCAU Superman & Justice League where he was traveling in space and aliens noticed he was Kryptonian and captured him because of this (some type of collector in Superman:TAS and Mongul needed a fresh 'gladiator' in JLAnimated).

[Escafarc]

Re: Distinctive features

 

That would be my point, it should be a compication rather than just standing out in a crowd.

 

Example, not only does 7'+ tall Frankenstein's monster look strange and makes an impression everywhere he goes, but he also causes negative reactions in those he mets. like causing women to flee screaming, shop venders close up shop, etc. He probably would have a village mob coming after him as well, but that should be bought as another disadvantage; Hunted: Village mob.

 

Ironclad, on the otherhand, would not have the DF (despite his distinctive appearance) becuase people know about him through his Public ID as a hero or maybe they are used to seeing large, obviously, Alien humanoids walking the strrets of Millinieum city. Whatever the reason his alieness is not a disadvantage to him in the least. Maybe he had a small one when he came to Earth but has since bought it off when the world accepted his presence.

 

How about when he tries to disquise himself to sneek into somewhere? He should some level of DF. Of course if this type of stuff never happens in your game then I wouldn't worry about it.

[wick]

Re: Distinctive features

 

How about when he tries to disquise himself to sneek into somewhere? He should some level of DF. Of course if this type of stuff never happens in your game then I wouldn't worry about it.

 

Depends on how easy it is to disguise based on the DF; a 15 point not concealable no way while a 5 pt easily concealed sure. A 10 pt concealable with a disguise skill...I am not sure how much harder it would be than to disquise a regular character. Frankenstein or Ironclad might have issues unless they disquise themselves as another tall person+large person i would give them the 15 pts of not concealable. According to the Champions book, since Ironclad does not have a DF he could put on a trenchcoat and a fedora and not stand out.

 

From this view point it looks like being disadvantaged by not be disguisable is not enough to be a DF. Also under the disguise skill he would probably get a -5 penalty to look like a normal sized human rules as written and probably not at all under a GM's discretion. I don't care how much skill you have in disguise, you can't make Godzilla look like Bambi.

[BNakagawa]

Re: Distinctive features

 

One of the advantages of being nondescript is being able to get away with things and deny involvement.

 

If you have a distinctive features, if you do anything, you will probably have to take responsibility for it.

[Hyper-Man]

Re: Distinctive features

 

What's the "Major Reaction"?

 

I guess if you know that he is Kryptonian, then you probably know about a kryptonian's weaknesses?

 

In some ways, this is the same kind of reaction that mutants get in Marvel. The difference with this build for Superman is that it only applies to other aliens.

[bigbywolfe]

Re: Distinctive features

 

Depends on how easy it is to disguise based on the DF; a 15 point not concealable no way while a 5 pt easily concealed sure. A 10 pt concealable with a disguise skill...I am not sure how much harder it would be than to disquise a regular character. Frankenstein or Ironclad might have issues unless they disquise themselves as another tall person+large person i would give them the 15 pts of not concealable. According to the Champions book' date=' since Ironclad does not have a DF he could put on a trenchcoat and a fedora and not stand out. [/quote']

It worked for Thing, didn't it? In fact, it's an old (though rather cheesy) comic book trope that putting on a trench coat and fedora can disguise someone like Thing or Ironclad or Cyborg or Disney's Gargoyles, et cetera. If that's not the feel you want in your campaign, then don't use it.

 

From this view point it looks like being disadvantaged by not be disguisable is not enough to be a DF. Also under the disguise skill he would probably get a -5 penalty to look like a normal sized human rules as written and probably not at all under a GM's discretion. I don't care how much skill you have in disguise' date=' you can't make Godzilla look like Bambi.[/quote']

Everything is under the GM's discretion. If he has a DF that makes disguising himself impossible, than the character shouldn't have the disguise skill, and if the GM misses something that obviously contradictory, well...

[quozaxx]

Re: Distinctive features

 

If you have DF, wouldn't be easier for another person / villain to disguise themselves as you and ruin your life?

 

"I saw that thing steal the money! What do you mean, 'am I sure it was him'? Nobody else looks like that!"

[bigbywolfe]

Re: Distinctive features

 

It should also be noted that the “reaction level” or whatever you want to call it is built into the Complication. Someone up-thread argues that that should be covered by Social Limitation, but I disagree. In a fantasy campaign where Orcs are hated, sure, being an Orc is a Social Comp and appearance doesn’t enter into it, but in a modern campaign where there isn’t a socially established (hence, Social Complication) reaction an Orc will still probably get a pretty strong reaction simply based on their appearance, (hence Distinctive Feature).

[Armitage]

Re: Distinctive features

 

There was a variant rule in Adventurer's Club #4, reprinted in Hero System Almanac 1.

A character makes an INT Roll to describe someone, such as to the authorities after a crime. The greater the Margin of Success on the roll, the more detailed and accurate the description is. The points spent on Distinctive Features provide a 1:1 bonus to the INT Roll.