Detect Minds

[Lord Liaden]

Steve, you might have noticed an ongoing discussion of the uses and abuses of a "Detect Minds" power on the "HERO System" board. Someone pointed out that Menton in CKC has just such a Power with several Modifiers added to it, so I thought it might be useful to get your input on how you saw it working when you wrote it. (Afraid you left yourself open for this.) I'll phrase this in terms of issues raised during the discussion:

 

Say you have a character with Detect Minds, Discriminatory, Analyze, Sense, Targetting:

 

1) Would this Power require acquiring Line of Sight with another Targetting Sense to use like a Mental Power, or can it locate targets independently?

 

2) Can you target Mental Powers on a subject with it as you can with Mind Scan?

 

3) Does it apply to one class of minds as a default, or will it work vs. any class of minds if that's how it's defined?

 

4) Can you Detect Minds through ordinary barriers such as walls which block Line of Sight?

 

5) How would Detect Minds be affected by Mental Defense, if at all?

 

I don't expect your answers to end the debate, but the input might be helpful.

 

Thanks.

[Steve Long]

1. It's a sense. It works like other senses. It doesn't require LOS as if it were a Mental Power used to attack.

 

2. It's a Targeting Sense. It provides the same ability to target another character as any other Targeting Sense.

 

3. It's not restricted to any type of mind; if it were it would be defined as "Detect (Class) Minds."

 

4. That's up to the GM, but generally I'd treat it the same way I'd treat Detect Magic or the like. In most cases that probably means letting it bypass mundane barriers.

 

5. Mental Defense has no effect on Senses other than Mind Scan.