Ragdoll

[TheNaga]

Would the following be to much for a character? He is stuck in this form. The character's other powers is great agility.

 

He stands a full six feet in height. He is muscular, sleek muscles rippling under skin that is unnaturally smooth and featureless. The left side of his face is black in color while right side of his face is chalk white in color. His hairline starts at the top of his head. Black hair gently cascades down his back down to his elbows. His beady eyes are red in color. A row of long jagged fang-like teeth lines his large mouth. His lips which are ruby red in color appear to be in a perpetual grin. He wears a red ruff. A sharp iron colored claw comes out of each hand’s fingers and thumb. In his hands he holds a wicked looking scythe as though it were an extension of himself. Ten wicked looking chains are wrapped around his chest and torso.

The super being can transform into a human-shaped bundle of cloth, rags, straw, cotton stuffing, string, and similar materials, as if he were a living scarecrow. His real face is obscured, appearing either like a featureless sack or with sewn on features like a Raggedy Ann or Andy doll (mouth and eyes move, however, as if they were real). The appearance may be fairly ordinary, cutesy, or scary

 

Impervious to sound, shadow and cold-based attacks, gasses, poison, drugs and disease.

 

Projectiles like bullets and arrows do no damage at all, and go right through the rag character.

 

Clubs and blunt attacks, punches and kicks, as well as stabbing attacks and falls from great heights, only do 10% their normal damage.

 

Knives, swords, and other "cutting" weapons do full damage. Lasers, light, electricity and other energy-based attacks do normal damage to the strange character.

 

Wind and water-based attacks do half damage.

 

Explosions have one of two possible outcomes on the character's body (roll percentile dice). 01-40% Blows the character 2D6 yards/meters away (no damage), or 41-00% blasts the character's body over a large area. The character takes half of the damage from the force of the blast, but requires 3D6 melee rounds to reform his body, and he must do that before he can turn back into a human.

 

Heat, fire and plasma inflict triple damage!

 

The character does not need to breathe at all and can function in a vacuum indefinitely; floats on water but gets waterlogged and will sink after 1D4+2 hours.

[Christopher]

Re: Ragdoll

 

The immunities could best be done with Desolidification.

 

But than everything that can affect the world needs "Affects Physical World" Advantage.

[Ice9]

Re: Ragdoll

 

You're right on the borderline between Desolidification and just having lots of defenses here.

Which way you'd want to go depends on what the character can do in Ragdoll form. If it's just "get blasted around while mocking your foes", then Desolidification is the way to go (with a limitation for having more than the usual number of weaknesses). If you can fight at full strength, then just having very high defenses in certain areas may work better. In either case, you'll need Life Support (self-contained breathing). Also, depending on how different the Ragdoll form is, it could potentially be a Multiform.

 

Most of the ragdoll abilities just count as defenses, but a couple of them are Complications:

Vulnerability (fire/plasma)

Physical Complication (takes extra knockback, frequent, minor)

Physical Complication (sinks after a few hours in water, rare, major)

[Clonus]

Re: Ragdoll

 

Would the following be to much for a character?

 

Wrong game system. You seem to be thinking in D20 terms. And I don't see any reason why an intense enough sound based attack couldn't reduce such a character to shreds of scattered cloth.

[Hugh Neilson]

Re: Ragdoll

 

Wrong game system. You seem to be thinking in D20 terms. And I don't see any reason why an intense enough sound based attack couldn't reduce such a character to shreds of scattered cloth.

 

Every time I see "Would this be too much", my first inclination is to post "This would be too much and would never be allowed in my gritty street cop Hero Game" or something similar.

 

To say it once again, what is "not enough", "just right" or "too much" cannot be assessed outside the context of an actual game. This character could be vastly overpowered in some games, just right in others and barely qualified as comic relief sidekick in a third set of games.

 

As this is on the Champions board, I assume we're talking Superheroes. I agree with Ice9 that this can be modelled with either desolid or defenses. The former would be limited, as the character is easier to affect than normal, but would also require Affects Solid World on any other abilities which can be used at the same time. The latter could include things like Damage Reduction (using APG 100% negation would be required to get full immunities).

 

I have never found Desolid overpowered in a typical Supers game, though Affects Solid World would cause me to look very closely. The character can be affected by some reasonable attack types, so I suspect it would not be unbalanced. Defense levels would have to be assessed against campaign standards, with consideration for what the character can accomplish while in this highly defended form.

[TheNaga]

Re: Ragdoll

 

I may not get to play him as a pc becuase of the following. Is there anything I can so that he would be playable. I also was wanting him to run a gang that dresses like clowns.

 

Insanities: He derives pleasure through inflicting pain and suffering on others. He also derives pleasure from torturing and killing people. He reacts with anger and violence toward the people making fun of him. The more people make fun of the way he looks more angry and violent he will be towards them.

History: He was born on September 11, 1988 in Las Vegas, Nevada. From an early age he found out he had great agility.

On his fifth birthday his father left him and his mother to be with his pregnant girlfriend. His father had been dating his girlfriend for three and-a-half months without being caught. Raised by his domineering mother.

[Hugh Neilson]

Re: Ragdoll

 

I may not get to play him as a pc becuase of the following. Is there anything I can so that he would be playable.

 

Design his personailty so that he fits the tone of the campaign in which he will be played. His current persona sounds a lot like a Secret Six (DC) character of the same name, so he would fit just fine in such a campaign. In a four colour Supers game, he will not fit. You would need to have a character more like Ragman (also DC) who has a more heroic personality and motivation.

 

I also was wanting him to run a gang that dresses like clowns.

 

Followers are certainly possible, but many GM's dislike having PC's with multiple characters cluttering the place up. If you envision these as combatants who are always with the character, they would be designed very differently than if you envision them having mainly noncombat roles. They could be merely contacts, followers with noncombat builds, SFX for a bonus with investigative skills (more people looking speeds the process) or even SFX for Money (they steal things and turn part of the take over to me). If they never have any real game effect, then they're just background. If they get in trouble and complicate the character's life more than they help him, they're dependent NPC's, so a complication.

 

What do you envision them doing in game?

 

Insanities: He derives pleasure through inflicting pain and suffering on others. He also derives pleasure from torturing and killing people. He reacts with anger and violence toward the people making fun of him. The more people make fun of the way he looks more angry and violent he will be towards them.

 

All I see when I read that is "villain", so he won't be a viable PC in most games. The rest is background fluff.

 

Powers and abilities don't make a hero. Attitude and morals make a hero. Change the personality and the most vile villain becomes the most stalwart of heroes.

[TheNaga]

Re: Ragdoll

 

I know that there are characters in Dc Comics known as Ragdoll. The reason he has the name Ragdoll is I was basing his name on his transforming powers which turns him into a ragdoll. I might see him if i change more like the anti-hero like the punisher. I know that I want to know some stage magic which he loves. He also likes clowns alot I know that he has thing from scythes, and bladed weapons. No matter what I change he will always be stuck in his ragdoll form unable to change back into a human.

[lapsedgamer]

Re: Ragdoll

 

You may look at a layered approach using Damage Reduction and Negation. This might get pricey, but Desolid with attacks that affect the physical world are pricey too. I think a Damage Reduction/Negation combo would be simpler to build.

[steriaca]

Re: Ragdoll

 

Hear is what I would do with the charater concept. I would ask myself the folowing questions:

 

1) How many points has the GM giving me to play with? I have to make this charater based on the GM's guidelines, so it is helpful knowing how many points I have to play with before I need to buy limitations (old lingo for compucations, pre-6th ed).

 

2) Would my charater fit in with the other players? A bloodthristy vigalantie dosen't fit in with a shiny four-colored world as a 'hero'. A magical charater would not fit into a mutants campain. (It can be done...see Magick of the New Mutants...but that is the exception to the rule, AND she started as a mutant first and gained magical powers on top of that).

 

3) Are you willing to tone down your charater ideal to fit in? Are you willing to tone down your charater ideal, so you can build with experence points over time the abilities you want?

 

4) Have you included skills for your charater? Always remember that not eveything will be combat...do you have any skills which are not about combat? Are you willing to buy combat related skills later as your charater grows?

 

It is always best to start small, then grow, then to start fully grown and have no place to go. A stagnent charater loses intrest real fast.

[matthewcelis]

Re: Ragdoll

 

It looks like you've created a supervillain crime lord to me, not a playable hero.

 

Maybe you should give this character to your GM and have him create an adventure where your heroic characters can face off against the Ragdoll and his clown gang.

[TheNaga]

Re: Ragdoll

 

I will do what is need to make him playable. I know will have Profession (Stage Magican). I know he is a skilled knife thrower and poker player. What about him being a contortionist? How can i show in his history he is very agile? I left out the follwing from the thing he can do as a a ragdoll.

 

The character can pull apart his body parts, such as his hand, hand and arm, foot, etc. and they will continue to move and do things he desires.

The character can create gaps and pockets within the stuffing that fills his body. The size of these pockets is limited to about twelve inches (0.3 m) cubed in total available volume, but the dimensions can be altered to fit the whim of the character. This would allow the character to hide away a small object, like a gun, grenade, knife, computer disk, book, etc. From the outside, the pocket looks no different from the rest of his body, with no obvious openings or access. Only the character himself can access the inside of the pocket, without cutting him open.

[matthewcelis]

Re: Ragdoll

 

It sounds like you want a character who can do way too many things. Maybe you should start by focusing on a few things and then upgrade when you get experience points and your character learns new facets of his power/body.

[TheNaga]

Re: Ragdoll

 

How would I do him as a Stage Magician?

[steriaca]

Re: Ragdoll

 

Skills for a stage magition:

1) Slight of Hand.

2) Profesinal Skill: Stage Magic.

3) Knolage Skill: Stage Magic.

4) Knolage Skill: The Preforming World.

5) A high Presence stat.

6) Optinal tallent: Double Jointed.

[TheNaga]

Re: Ragdoll

 

How should I do his powers to so he a good player character to play as? also how should I work him being a skilled satge magican into game play and his history?

[Hugh Neilson]

Re: Ragdoll

 

How should I do his powers to so he a good player character to play as?

 

MECHANICAL: Ensure his OCV, DCV, damage classes, speed, defenses, movement and other abilities fit within the campaign parameters, being neither excessively powerful nor excessively weak as compared to the other characters and the campaign norms. Ensure he has a good mix if combat and non-combat abilities so he will be able to participate in combat, investigation, interaction and other scenarios common to the specific campaign. Also ensure he has areas of strength, where he will shine in the game, and areas of weakness where he will be challenged and likely need the aid of his teammates.

 

NON-MECHANICAL: Ensure the character has a personality. This is more than psychological complications, but will likely provide some fodder for same. What does he like and dislike? This means depth of personality, not attitudes designed to run contrary to the genre and/or campaign tone, personality traits designed to ensure he can always make the best tactical decisions and traits whose primary impact is shock value.

 

What motivates him to be part of the PC group (eg. in a Supers game, what makes him a hero rather than hiding his powers away or using them in his own self-interest, whether overtly as a villain or more subtly behind the scenes). What would motivate the PC group to want to interact with him?

 

Of the two, the more critical are the non-mechanical aspects. Characters with creative power sets are great one offs. Characters with great personalities are memorable, come to life in the game, and grow and adapt over the course of the campaign.

 

also how should I work him being a skilled satge magican into game play and his history?

 

Define when and how he learned his skills, and how he uses them outside his adventuring career. Characters don't live in a background. The character was born and raised - who and what influenced him to become what he is today. This would include much of his personality, as well as his skills, occupations and personal relationships.

 

In game play, what advantages and drawbacks do his stage magician skills provide? Pulling a rabbit out of a hat is rarely essential on an adventure, but distraction and misdirection of an observer can be extremely useful in many situations. Will he use stage magic tricks on his adventures? Flash powder and smoke pellets seem potentially useful in combat. Superskills are another option (for example, "How'd he get way over there?" - Teleport that must pass through intervening space, and works only when he is not under direct observation; or Invisibility which can only be activated when not under direct observation, cannot function in combat and requires a skill roll).

 

A famous magician might well have contacts, wealth and/or a reputation, all of which can be useful outside of combat.

 

What do you envision his skills as a stage magician including, and how do you envision him using them off the stage.

 

Like many things in Hero, there is no "Stage Magician - if you buy this Profession, you get the following benefits". Being a stage magician is simply a special effect for the benefits, and drawbacks, that YOU envision the character to have by virtue of being a stage magician. That said, there is probably a "stage magician" (or at least a "performer") package writeup out there somewhere which would provide a good list of likely skills and abilities to base this on.

[TheNaga]

Re: Ragdoll

 

I would like him to use his skill as a stage magician in combat Any of the items he uses in combat that related to him being a stage magician are designed by him.

I would like is possible he does Escapology and illusions as part of his act as a stage magician and also combat if possible. I see him being in a circus where he learned his skills as a magician. How do I make it him as a stage magician if magic is real?

[steriaca]

Re: Ragdoll

 

Again, it sounds like your doing to much.

We got the Ragdoll suit (+DCV, PD, ED, with the limitations of IIFocus and Restranable), designed to be bigger and padded.

Excapologie: Desolification, only vs Entangle, Requiers Skill/Stat Roll (Lockpicking for things with locks, Dexterity for getting out of ropes), Limited Power (only VS felexable entangles...will not work if sumerged in quick harding concreat or ice, for example).

Flash Pellets (Flash VS Sight, IIFocus (Flash Pellets).

I see no room for illusions.

[TheNaga]

Re: Ragdoll

 

I was thinking Escapology was a skill he knew not a power.

[Hugh Neilson]

Re: Ragdoll

 

Skills, powers, attributed, whatever - eveything comes from the same pool of points. To me, the first step is to define the core elements of the character and build those. If that leaves points to spare for a suite of illusion powers, add them in. If not, don't. If you run out of points before building the core character you envision, you need to scale that back.

[steriaca]

Re: Ragdoll

 

I was thinking Escapology was a skill he knew not a power.

 

There is no "Escapology" skill, per say. To simulate the skill, you have to rely on the skill Lockpicking (to simulate opening locks), Contortion (to squeeze into and out of restrants and tight places), and the profesinal skill "Stage Magition" (which should not be based on a stat, and is a complmentary skill). Other magician skills are Acting (to pull off fake surprise), Slight Of Hand (to pull off makeing small objects disapear and reappear, as well as picking someone's pocket or putting something into someone's pocket), Concelment (to hide self and others, including objects), and the GM might alow you to use Conversation to pull off misdirection with your words ("I tell you a story which makes you look over there while something is going on over in another direction")

 

Hugh Neilson is corect ... buy what your charater needs first, then buy anything else which helps...and then make a wish list of stuff to buy once you get the experence points to get.

 

And, it would be helpful to know exactly what the concept is. What I am getting now is 'ex-homeless kid who ran away from home and became a street preformer for cash is befriended by an old stage magician who use to be a golden age superhero and teaches him the ropes...then dies and the now adult kid assumes the goldenage idenity'. Am I corect?

[TheNaga]

Re: Ragdoll

 

Would be better if he look like scarecrow since he like use scythes as weapons besides his claws?

 

He was born on September 11, 1988 in Las Vegas, Nevada. From an early age he found out he had great agility.

 

On his fifth birthday his father left him and his mother to be with his pregnant girlfriend. His father had been dating his girlfriend for three and-a-half months without being caught. Raised by his domineering mother.

 

After divorcing his father she got full time custody of him. She then moved to Salt Lake City, Utah with him to be closer to her family.

 

He left his mother on the day before his sixteenth birthday and ran away to the circus that was in town. The circus was packing up that day and heading to in San Fransisco, California do a show While in circus a He was first trained as a clown. Two years after completing his training as a clown he was trained by circus's own stage magician who happen to be a world famous stage magician.

[TheNaga]

Re: Ragdoll

 

And, it would be helpful to know exactly what the concept is. What I am getting now is 'ex-homeless kid who ran away from home and became a street preformer for cash is befriended by an old stage magician who use to be a golden age superhero and teaches him the ropes...then dies and the now adult kid assumes the goldenage idenity'. Am I corect?

This makes me think of the cancelled NBC show The Cape.

[steriaca]

Re: Ragdoll

 

I would lose the sythes, and rely on high-flying martial arts. Your charater CAN be 'dark' without being a killer. Dark but not killer charaters you can look at include The Creeper, Ghost Rider, and yes, The Cape.

 

Haven't thought of Cape till you mentioned him...yes...simular to Ragdoll, but difrent. And I defently do NOT think Ragdoll looks like a scaircrow. He looks like a demented Raggity Andy. And he can look like a demented Raggity Andy without sythes, thank you.

 

Besides, with martial arts skill, you need no leathal weapion besides yourself. Especaly if done right (getting your oponents to attack themselves by moveing out of the way of an attack, for instance).