Range of this Detect

[mayapuppies]

What would you say was the effective range of this Detect?

 

Detect Spirits A Class Of Things 11- (Unusual Group), Increased Arc Of Perception (360 Degrees), Sense (12 Active Points); Extra Time (5 Minutes, Character May Take No Other Actions, -2 1/4), Costs Endurance (-1/2), Concentration, Must Concentrate throughout use of Constant Power (1/2 DCV; -1/2), Spell (-1/2)

 

I'm thinking it's effectively 'line of sight' and cannot detect through barriers, am I correct?

[Escafarc]

Re: Range of this Detect

 

Yes. But it is subject to Range Modifiers so it's effective range would depend on the Base PER roll minus the Range Modifier.

[mayapuppies]

Re: Range of this Detect

 

Cool, thank you.

[Christopher]

Re: Range of this Detect

 

Yes. But it is subject to Range Modifiers so it's effective range would depend on the Base PER roll minus the Range Modifier.

While there is no hard and fast rule, there is a guideline in 6E2 7 that the maximum Range of a sense is reached, when "the Range Modifer reduces the roll to 0 or less" (wich is only relevant if a natural 3 is rolled).

 

One thing I noticed:

This detect has both "Sense" and Extra Time wich are somewhat exclsuive. You could use "Extra time, only to activate" or delete the Sense but both seem at odds.

[mayapuppies]

Re: Range of this Detect

 

Good catch, I forgot the 'only to activate'.

[Armitage]

Re: Range of this Detect

 

Detect has no range unless you buy the Range Sense Modifier for another 5 points. The Unusual Group is an "everything else" catchall group, so the Simulated Sense Group Rule doesn't provide it with free Modifiers.

[Sean Waters]

Re: Range of this Detect

 

The answer to the first bit is 'no range' as you did not buy range for the sense, and I presume that you are not using the 'simulated senses' rule as you have bought 'sense'.

 

The interesting thing is the 'stopped by barriers' bit. What barriers? For example you can see through double glazing without it changing your roll but it stops sound (well, applies a big penalty to a hearing PER roll). Different barriers affect different senses differently.

 

The short answer is 'it depends'. Given that this is a 'built' sense rather than one using the simulated senses rule, you can define what you like as the thing that stops or attenuates it, i.e. what barriers will affect it and which it will ignore.

 

I would require you to define a set of common things that affect the sense unless you spend points on the adder 'penetrative' to reduce the number of things that affect it, or better yet us the simulated sense rule.

 

If you want a 'Detect Magic' spell (well, Detect X), you can do it by dropping the 'sense' modifier and using the SS rule. You can base your detect on sight, hearing or smell, if you want it ranged. Each has advantages.

 

Sight normally requires a light source but has excellent range and is targeting. Hearing has elements of indirect and you can detect through opaque barriers. Smell allows you to detect something even after it has gone, and track it, so if someone has stolen your magic pants, you can follow their scent and retrieve them. It is also really important when it comes to sense affecting powers: something invisible to sight is invisible to detect magic based on sight.

 

Least, that is how I play it. Have fun.

[Christopher]

Re: Range of this Detect

 

Sight normally requires a light source but has excellent range and is targeting.

That is not nessesarily true. When you build the detect as Active, it requires no Light/Sound/Smell source (Sonar and Radar are active sense). However, the sense becomes detectable (by some sense of your choosing) and it is still affected by sense affecting powers.

You can circumvent the detecability with Adders or an IPE Advantage.

[mayapuppies]

Re: Range of this Detect

 

Hm, time to look into the Simulated Sense rule.

[Sean Waters]

Re: Range of this Detect

 

That is not nessesarily true. When you build the detect as Active, it requires no Light/Sound/Smell source (Sonar and Radar are active sense). However, the sense becomes detectable (by some sense of your choosing) and it is still affected by sense affecting powers.

You can circumvent the detecability with Adders or an IPE Advantage.

 

Hence 'normally', but then I think the logical basis upon which detect works is flawed: normal human sight does not detect solid objects, it detects light, and if you set it up as a discriminatory detect light, then most of the problems we sometimes encounter with senses in Hero go away. I never did understand why the system insists that normal human sight is only partially discriminatory. Anyway, that is a gripe for elsewhere.

 

Of course an active sense is an emitter, as defined in the system. That has it's own problems. For example a sonar system can detect by pinging, but that does not mean it is useless if it is NOT pinging but something within its sense range is. Hero does not allow you to buy a sense that is active and passive, without buying the sense twice.

 

I'd probably take some convincing that it was ever appropriate to build an active sense that was not detectable, even if the build is technically possible, as it makes no sense.

[Christopher]

Re: Range of this Detect

 

I'd probably take some convincing that it was ever appropriate to build an active sense that was not detectable' date=' even if the build is technically possible, as it makes no sense.[/quote']

I think we could build an active sonar that would be undetectable by a WWII sonar system. Or perhaps the player simply has no idea what could detect his sense, and takes the IPE-Route rather than worry about it.

[Sean Waters]

Re: Range of this Detect

 

I think we could build an active sonar that would be undetectable by a WWII sonar system. Or perhaps the player simply has no idea what could detect his sense' date=' and takes the IPE-Route rather than worry about it.[/quote']

 

Maybe our active sonar is not detectable by WW2 sonar systems, but it would still be detectable by something using WW2 technology: we have not developed silent sound. I'm familiar with the ACC quote, but we have to assume that if a player can build it, so can an NPC. I appreciate the need for rubber science in superhero games. I regret the need, but appreciate it. Nonetheless, even rubber science can and should be internally consistent. I do not usually care how spurious the suppositions are that a superpower is based on, it still works within a logical frame, given those suppositions.