How does this work?

[Gary Ciaramella]

I am not certain how to read this bit of rules from The Day After Ragnarok... I am about 70% sure, but I figured I would bring it up here so that I am certain.  If it seems super obvious to you guys, please don't tease me too badly, but a bit of eye rolling is ok.

 

Thermite - it does 2d6 RKA AP damage for 1 Turn per 0.1 kg charge before being consumed.

 

Is this saying that it does 2d6 armor piercing killing damage once after a turn has passed? Or is there some sort of assumed speed (a two speed or that of the person that sets it off?) I don't think it would be that, as it would have the weird effect of making thermite more potent for higher speed users. If it is the first, does the damage happen at the end, the beginning, or take place incrementally over the entire period of 12 seconds?

 

Just chalk this question up to me being pretty rusty with my Hero rules.

 

-- Gary Ciaramella

[Grailknight]

I don't have that book anymore but it sounds like some variant of Damage over Time.

[Mister E]

It sounds like it burns every segment for one turn. So once a second for 12 seconds?

[Gary Ciaramella]

I looked up damage over time and it says that if it were damage over time it would be described as "the target takes [amount and type of damage] every [increment of time] for [total length of time]."  The thermite description does not indicate any sort of time step within the total length of time. So I am feeling it likely that the Thermite is not going to be 2d6 RKA AP once per segment for a turn, that sounds less like thermite damage and more like Alien blood burning through 5 decks of platting.

Just talked to a friend on the phone and he suggested it would do the damage over time with a default speed of 3 which he extrapolated from the 5th edition uncontrolled continuous attacks. That sounds ok, 3 applications of the damage sounds more appropriate than 12. One application with the damage applied incrementally over the time span actually does not sound like enough damage... so unless I get something official sounding from someone on this thread, I think I will go with my friend's suggestion.

[Rockhoof]

I've used thermite, I'd go with 12 segments.

 

Plus, it avoids postulating a speed for it, neatly avoiding the cut of Occam's ever-sharp blade.

[Beast]

I'd go w/ Spd 4 if bought as equipment

If bought as a power then it goes at the character's spd

[WistfulD]

Overall, yes, continuous effects damage occur on the users actions. For an uncontrolled, equipment-derived power, I would work with the GM to determine an appropriate speed. 3 Sounds good. It is continuous, however, and if someone tries to pick up the thermite grenade while it is going off, it will damage them even though it isn't 'the grenade's turn'.

[Grailknight]

Damage over Time has steps for 1,3,4 and 6 segment intervals of firing(and a couple of others before defaulting to the Time Chart)  Pick one that seems appropriate to you.

[Gravitron]

Looking at Volume 2 of Hero 6e in the "Living in a Dangerous World" section (pg 147), you can see that Chemical damage is listed per segment and in the Electricity section it talks about per segment damage as well. I think its reasonable to assume that it is meant as per segment damage.

 

But.. like anything else.. if it seems excessive to you scale it back. :-)

[megaplayboy]

The other component implied there is that a larger quantity of thermite will burn longer.  .5kg, for example, would presumably do the same damage but over a full minute of time.  So, if you need to burn through a particularly thick obstacle like a vault door, you will know how much thermite to use.