Weapons of chance

[GCMorris]

Got a character who wants to use crap lying around and items being in the right place at the right time. Like shoving the opponent in front of a bus that just happens to be driving by. Or a bare electric cable that just happens to be there. Help me out with this.

[Cantriped]

In Hero System, Attacks "of Opportunity" (not to be confused with D&D style attacks of opportunity) are typically represented by buying one or more Attack Powers with Focus (Appropriate Object of Opportunity; Obvious, Inaccessible; -1/2). Personally I've always thought it should be IAF instead of OIF, but the value is the same either way so it doesn't really matter that much...

 

For example, a Jackie Chan would have:

Prop Attack:  HA +2d6, Zero END (+1/2) (15 APs) ​plus +2 OCV (10 APs); All Slots; OIF (Prop of Opportunity; -1/2). Total Cost: 17 points.

To represent his cinematic ability to always find some random object nearby he can use in combat.

 

If you want a greater variety, build the ability as a Multipower of HAs and HKAs vs. both PD and ED, with some that have Range Based On Strength. It you want the ability to be unreliable (you can't "always" find something useable, or sometimes the object breaks, etc), give all slots an Activation Roll, or put an Activation Roll on changing the Multipower's Slots (you keep whatever you found last time, but can't always find something new).

[Surrealone]

In addition to what Cantriped wrote, you could also do a skill roll ('Scrounging' -- potentially INT-based ??) rather than an Activation roll .. with the idea being the skill roll determines if something is present to use; if it's in reach; if the character spots it; and/or if it's spotted in time.  i.e. A failed roll could indicate either nothing was present; the object was out of reach or unusable; the character didn't see it; or it wasn't spotted in time to make use of (e.g. the bus was already in the midst of passing).

 

I mention this as an alternative because an Activation roll tends to fail to account for range modifiers and the like, while a skill roll readily allows for such adjustments.  I also mention it as an alternative because I suspect Jackie Chan's characters had this sort of skill ... while Bruce Lee's characters ... didn't.

[massey]

xD6 Energy Blast

Indirect (+3/4)

Variable SFX, environmental effects (+1/4)

Requires object of opportunity (-1/2)

 

That's how I did it with a character I built.  He could basically hit you with any logical type of attack that the environment could provide.  He had a form of telekinesis.  Stuff could fall on you, a bus could hit you, he could make power lines snap and fall on you, a gas line could explode under the street and vent fire right up your butt.

[steriaca]

...an ambulance could crush your head after being punched durring a time stop.

 

 

 

 

What? To soon?

[GCMorris]

...an ambulance could crush your head after being punched durring a time stop

 

 

 

 

What? To soon?

That brings up another question... Area effect time stop but that's a different line of questioning for a different thread.

[steriaca]

That brings up another question... Area effect time stop but that's a different line of questioning for a different thread.

True. Page 38-40 of Advance Player's Guide 2.