Brrrrrr! It's a Cold Snap!

[BoloOfEarth]

I'm plotting a new adventure involving the members of Deathstroke using a device to boost a mutant's powers.  Specifically, they will use it to boost Chiller's powers to threaten to create city-wide deep freezes akin to that shown in The Day After Tomorrow.  (I'm also figuring the device would boost his other cold/ice powers, though I don't want it to be too ridiculous.)  When Deathstroke first uses it on a sparsely-populated area to prove they have the means before making their demands, I plan for the heroes to have enough forewarning to be there to rescue innocents, so I want to have a basic writeup of the Cold Snap, plus plans for handing various side effects to help create some dramatic tension.

 

As to the Cold Snap, I'm thinking something along the lines of:

 

Change Environment (-10 Temperature Levels [-150 degrees F]), AoE (4m Radius; +1/4), MegaArea (1m = 1km; +1);  No Range (- 1/2), OIF Bulky (Large Backpack; -1), Costs END (to maintain; -1/2), 1 Fuel Charge of 20 Minute Duration (-1/4), Extra Time (1 Minute, at initiation; -1/2)

 

I figure people flash-freezing to death is something like:

 

RKA 1d6, NND (LS: Cold or adequately insulated / heated; +1), Does BODY (+1), Constant (+1/2), AoE (4m Radius; +1/4), MegaArea (1m=1km; +1); No Range (- 1/2), OIF Bulky (Large Backpack; -1), 1 Fuel Charge of 20 Minute Duration (-1/4), Extra Time (1 Minute, at initiation; -1/2)

 

That seems to fit the timeframe for people in the movie becoming corpsicles (Chiller's 5 SPD means 5d6 total NND KA damage in 1 Turn), though the more I'm thinking about it the more I wonder whether I should drop that to 1/2d6 for dramatic and fairness sake.

 

I'm assuming that all modern buildings in temperate or colder climates have LS: Cold based on wall insulation and closed doors/windows.  I figure that people in exterior rooms and hallways with open doors or open / shattered windows, plus people in interior rooms and hallways with open-door or open-window access to the outside, would be subject to the CE and RKA. 

 

But how should I handle windows shattering at the initiation of the Cold Snap?  Damage to power lines?  Freezing helicopter / airplane / automobile fuel lines?  I'm inclined to just hand-wave those, maybe make a one-time only 3d6 roll (like 12-) for whether windows shatter to expose a particular room, and a per-Turn roll (10-) for a given vehicle's fuel lines to freeze or above-ground power lines to a particular building to snap.  (Would electrical transformers die in such intense cold?)

 

What are your thoughts? 

[Hermit]

I'm of the handwaving lazy types, but for power going out, maybe a dispel or drain on a non selective AOE to show outages? Put that sucker on an activation roll and so forth?

[BoloOfEarth]

I like that!  Thanks!

 

I almost forgot the most important thing -- what is Deathstroke going to call this killer frost (without running the risk of copyright infringement)?  I'm thinking something like a Chillicane, since it looks like a hurricane from orbit.  Though I could scale it down to a 1km radius, make it Mobile, and call it a Frostnado...

[Lord Liaden]

For something ominous (and because I've a weakness for puns), I'd suggest, "White Night."

[DShomshak]

I'd say the flash-freeze RKA covers the property damage. After all, do power lines have built-in heaters or insulation to give them LS: Cold? Not that I've heard. Even if you say the RKA has reduced effect against inanimate targets (a -0 Limitation, I'd say), that's enough to shut down the city. Lots of Foci breaking!

 

Has your version of Deathstroke succeeded at mass death of civilians before? In my admittedly somewhat Iron Age-ish campaign, this is the sort of plot that results in governments deciding they want a villain dead, not captured, and they'll use their full military and intelligence resources to do this. Even other villains draw back -- or start Hunting the villain because they don't want to be caught up in a lethal dragnet. (See the movie M for inspiration.)

 

Dean Shomshak

[BoloOfEarth]

31 minutes ago, DShomshak said:

Has your version of Deathstroke succeeded at mass death of civilians before? In my admittedly somewhat Iron Age-ish campaign, this is the sort of plot that results in governments deciding they want a villain dead, not captured, and they'll use their full military and intelligence resources to do this. Even other villains draw back -- or start Hunting the villain because they don't want to be caught up in a lethal dragnet. (See the movie M for inspiration.)

 

To be honest, Deathstroke hasn't succeeded in much of anything - they're the original bad-luck team.  They've threatened mass death several times, mainly to try and get the government to capitulate to their demands.  For example, in my game they once discovered a device made by Dr. Draconis that projected harmonic vibrations through the earth's mantle until they intersected at a point where they'd cause an earthquake.  They first demonstrated their "quake machine" on a deserted ghost town, then threatened to use it on a major metropolis.  Whether they would have actually done so when the government inevitably rejected their demands, we'll never know because the heroes shut Deathstroke down first.  (A very irritated Dr. Draconis leaked clues to the heroes to help them backtrack the vibrations to their point of origin, then sent them a bottle of champagne afterward.)

 

So in true Deathstroke fashion, they'll target someplace to show they're serious (I figure they'll tip off the heroes just beforehand to draw them into what Requiem hopes will be a deathtrap), then make their unrealistic demands.  There won't be a lot of people at the target, just enough to add some drama and force the heroes to scramble to save them.  Then the heroes will track Deathstroke to their lair and, once again, shut them down.

 

My campaign isn't completely death-free, but it's not dark-as-a-DC-movie either.  There are some groups (e.g. The Corrupted, DEMON, the Ravagers) who kill innocents without batting an eye, and some (e.g. the Aquans) who go after a specific foe and are willing to kill that foe's agents.  Mostly, though, supervillains and criminal agencies avoid blatant killings, especially mass deaths, for the reasons you cited. 

[Lord Liaden]

I always thought more could have been done with the concept from the original Deathstroke adventure module, of the group recruiting politically-motivated followers and presenting themselves as a revolutionary government-in-waiting, made up of "crooks who are at least honest about it." To tell you the truth, in today's political climate in America I could see a philosophy like that having more than a little appeal.

[BoloOfEarth]

4 minutes ago, Lord Liaden said:

I always thought more could have been done with the concept from the original Deathstroke adventure module, of the group recruiting politically-motivated followers and presenting themselves as a revolutionary government-in-waiting, made up of "crooks who are at least honest about it." To tell you the truth, in today's political climate in America I could see a philosophy like that having more than a little appeal.

 

Oh, absolutely.  But I've delved enough into political stuff this year with other groups (like my home-brewed Secession Squad) that I don't want to get too deep into politics with a group like Deathstroke.  Besides, Deathstroke has been a running gag with my players for years.  (They once dumped Death Commando on a deserted island in the South Pacific with only a Swiss army knife and a Boy Scout survival book.)  If Requiem and company suddenly become competent and reasonable, the shock might kill my players.

[steriaca]

Because of the rampant  unluck the group has, Deathstroke can be played as the "serious" comic relief group. The mean everything they say, but nothing goes there way. All the other supervillain groups, the GM has to plan a "what if they win" part they hope they never use. For Deathstroke, the "what if they win" section is filled with stuff which can (and do) go wrong if the heroes don't stop them (the doomsday machine explodes in a fireworks display, for example).

[Hermit]

9 hours ago, BoloOfEarth said:

I like that!  Thanks!

 

I almost forgot the most important thing -- what is Deathstroke going to call this killer frost (without running the risk of copyright infringement)?  I'm thinking something like a Chillicane, since it looks like a hurricane from orbit.  Though I could scale it down to a 1km radius, make it Mobile, and call it a Frostnado...

 

I would suggest "Frostpocalypse!" or  "Chillogedden!" 

[Duke Bushido]

Go with the tried and true (and slightly ominous "White Out." 

 

It's meaning is clear to most anyone who is at least familiar with cold weather, the implication is clear, and it's a more serious-sounding name, in keeping with Deathstroke's grandiose view of themselves. 

[Lord Liaden]

But it's also the commonly-used designation for print correction fluid. I know the stuff's not as common since word processors and computer printers became common, but people still use it to correct hand writing mistakes.

 

It was the first thing I thought of when I read your post, but of course I'm old.

[Lord Liaden]

You could also borrow the common name for an actual meteorological phenomenon, a Weather Bomb. What Deathstroke is creating is not exactly the same type of event, but it connects the concepts of widespread climatic aberration and intentional destruction in an intimidating-sounding package.

[csyphrett]

Is 1d6 enough to kill someone even if NND is used?

CES

[Badger]

How much damage does actually watching The Day After Tomorrow do?

[Lucius]

3 hours ago, Lord Liaden said:

But it's also the commonly-used designation for print correction fluid. I know the stuff's not as common since word processors and computer printers became common, but people still use it to correct hand writing mistakes.

 

It was the first thing I thought of when I read your post, but of course I'm old.

 

Which is another reason for Deathstroke to use the name: "Fear the power of White Out! We will ERASE your city!"

 

Lucius Alexander

 

The palindromedary reminds me that I still have to track down that Crone of Cold...

[Lord Liaden]

18 minutes ago, Badger said:

How much damage does actually watching The Day After Tomorrow do?

 

Mostly to brain cells.

[BoloOfEarth]

9 hours ago, csyphrett said:

Is 1d6 enough to kill someone even if NND is used?

CES

 

It's Constant, so it affects the target every one of Chiller's Phases that they're in the Chillogedden.  I watched a clip of TDAT where the helicopters freeze up and crash, and it took the one guy about 12 seconds to freeze solid after opening the helicopter door.  I have Chiller currently at SPD 6, so that means 6d6 worth of KA, NND, Does BODY in a Turn.  Average roll is 21 BODY.  Yeah, I think that would do the trick.

[BoloOfEarth]

I really, really like Weather Bomb, though Stinger (being a scientist) would go with the more exotic-sounding Explosive Cyclogenesis (maybe call it Explosive Cryogenesis instead?), and Chiller (because of his name) and Shockwave (because of his intelligence level) would probably go with Chillogedden.

[BoloOfEarth]

By the way, I decided to change it to AoE (2m Radius Mobile; +3/4) and MegaArea (1m=1km; +1) so Chiller can create it in an open field, and then advance it ominously across some small town.  Moving at a max 12m a Phase (but probably less), that should give the heroes time to clear people out while still seeing the effects.  Have some crows fly through it, then drop the ground flash-frozen.  Maybe a news chopper cuts through it and the fuel lines freeze, so the heroes need to stop it from crashing and then Pops can teleport the people inside to safety. 

 

I'm also reducing the Extra Time to 1 Turn, otherwise the heroes will notice the clouds forming, then search out and pound Chiller unconscious before the first frost forms.

 

As to the power lines snapping / fuel lines freezing / general tech failures, I'm going with:

 

Dispel All Technology 3d6, Expanded (+4), Cumulative (72 max; +1), Constant (+1/2), Penetrating (+1/2), Personal Immunity (+1/4), AoE (2m Radius Mobile; +3/4), MegaArea (1m=1km; +1); OIF Bulky (-1), 1 Fuel Charge of 20 Minute Duration (-1/4), Extra Time (1 Turn, at start; -1/2), No Range (at start; -1/4), Linked (greater to lesser power; -1/4), Activation 12- (roll on an individual basis; -3/4). 

 

I wanted to have that written up in detail, because the team gadgeteer (Maker) likes to supply her teammates with personal protection belts (LS: Cold, among other effects, all OIF, Usable Simultaneously by up to 8 individuals) from her Gadget VPP.  A few have natural or magic-based LS: Cold, but for the others to have their belts start to frost over and life support fields flicker before eventually winking out adds a nice bit of drama and risk to the whole endeavor.  (To keep from dragging out the scene with a thousand dice rolls, I'm doing all that beforehand.)

[BoloOfEarth]

21 hours ago, DShomshak said:

I'd say the flash-freeze RKA covers the property damage. After all, do power lines have built-in heaters or insulation to give them LS: Cold? Not that I've heard. Even if you say the RKA has reduced effect against inanimate targets (a -0 Limitation, I'd say), that's enough to shut down the city. Lots of Foci breaking!

 

I thought about that, but vehicles often have LS: Cold, and they should be affected, albeit not as quickly.

 

And I like the -0 Limitation on the RKA but think I'm going to make it have no effect at all on inanimate objects.  I'll let the Dispel take care of vehicles and Foci (hand-waving and guesstimating the effects on non-PCs).

 

Amusing thing about the Dispel, by the way -- it will start to affect Death Commando's and Draconis' battlesuits, prompting Deathstroke to bug out early.  (Talk about a bad-luck team!)

[Lord Liaden]

1 hour ago, BoloOfEarth said:

I really, really like Weather Bomb, though Stinger (being a scientist) would go with the more exotic-sounding Explosive Cyclogenesis (maybe call it Explosive Cryogenesis instead?), and Chiller (because of his name) and Shockwave (because of his intelligence level) would probably go with Chillogedden.

 

Yeah, that sounds like Deathstroke.   But Requiem is team leader, and flamboyant but not dumb; so you ought to decide what he'd choose for public consumption. FWIW IMO out of that group, Weather Bomb is the clearest, most menacing sounding, and most likely to be taken seriously. Also probably favored by Death Commando.

[Tech]

Bolo, if you're only using this power for this episode, it's not necessary to buy it for the villain. If you intend for it to be a permanent power, which I kinda doubt, then build it. Plot devices for a game session are not really necessary to build.

[BoloOfEarth]

But... I'm CDO!  (That's OCD, in alphabetical order as it should be.) 

 

Seriously, though, I know it's not strictly necessary, but since I was also increasing his natural powers while powered up by the meta-enhancement pack, I wanted to make sure everything balanced out.  It also doesn't hurt to know how many AP the Weather Bomb powers are, in case the mage decides he's going to use his Magic VPP to create some sort of Cumulative Dispel or weather manipulation of his own. 

 

I basically designed the pack as a Multiform (having OIF Bulky on Multiform means that destroying or removing it automatically returns him to his base / original form).  Funny thing is, with his alternate form having most powers on the Bulky OIF, the boosted-power form is almost the same total points as his original form -- just 15 points higher.  And that includes the three Weather Bomb powers (Change Environment, RKA, and Dispel).

[dsatow]

My vote for name is "Ice Ice Deadly" sung to Vanilla Ice's song.