Hugh Neilson

When in doubt - Change Environment 😀
 
Could be an EGO or CON roll to avoid making an exit from the area.

I think it's important for everyone (maybe Steve Long most of all) to consider just how unusual that Q&A Forum is.  I don't believe that even the biggest players, like D&D or Pathfinder, make their top staff available to answer any and every rules question someone wants to post.  Those games have a lot more resources backing them than Hero does.
 
This is not "something Hero has to do to be in the game", it is a value-added which exceeds the norm - maybe someone else is aware of some other games that do this, but I doubt there are many, even if there are some.
 
It was only notable by its absence because we have been spoiled by its presence.

Wasn't this part of the Ultimate Metamorph?
 

Wasn't this part of the Ultimate Metamorph?
 

My recollection of the Geodesics is that they appeared designed as starting characters, like Crusader and Starburst, where the other villains seemed designed as more powerful adversaries, often as one villain to fight a team of PCs.  So 4 PCs with 8-10d6 attacks and 18-20 defenses facing off against a single villain with a 12d6 attack and 25-30 defenses. 
 
But the "solo villains" in 1e quickly became the standard players built their characters to, leaving a Starburst who could land and markedly lower his defenses to fire a 10d6 Blast and the Geodesics behind in favour of a 12d6 attack and 25-30 defenses becoming the standard.

My recollection of the Geodesics is that they appeared designed as starting characters, like Crusader and Starburst, where the other villains seemed designed as more powerful adversaries, often as one villain to fight a team of PCs.  So 4 PCs with 8-10d6 attacks and 18-20 defenses facing off against a single villain with a 12d6 attack and 25-30 defenses. 
 
But the "solo villains" in 1e quickly became the standard players built their characters to, leaving a Starburst who could land and markedly lower his defenses to fire a 10d6 Blast and the Geodesics behind in favour of a 12d6 attack and 25-30 defenses becoming the standard.

I find Linked easier to grasp if you think "Limited Power - must be used with other power".  The standard -1/2 on the smaller power means the greater power can be used on its own or with the Linked power, but the lesser power can only be used in tandem with the greater power.
 
The 1/4 is the same, but applied to the power with higher AP as the "lesser power".
 
The situation where the both must be used every time is judgemental.  To me, it would be more reasonable for the higher AP to get -1/4 and the lower AP to get -1/2.  We always have the "if it's not limiting, there's no point savings" rule to fall back on.

We get into what is "a power" for this purpose.  Some examples:
 
 - do you have "10d6 Blast", or "10d6 Energy Blast,  Mystic Flames" - that is, can you decide to switch from fire to cold, lightning, acid, sonic, a rain of dead fish, a glowing green boxing glove or any special effect that occurs to you on the spot?
 - can you choose only an 8d6 Blast because you want to keep a bit of Flight active?
 - I suspect the 30 and 25 point Force Fields may be an oversight, but do I have to write down every possible combination of PD and ED, from 1 PD or 1 ED right on up to 30 PD, 30 ED, or 15 PD/15 ED, making this a cut & paste exercise, or a Bart Simpson-esque writing of lines?
 
Let's take it a step further.  Can I decide I want that Desolid to be half END, or cost END only to activate, so it becomes 50 points that consumes my entire phase,?  Can I add a limitation, such as limiting the range on the Energy Blast or making it cost extra END, or must each possible advantage/limitation combination be pre-written and pre-reviewed?
 
I paid for the VPP to get flexibility.  I want that flexibility.  I accept it must be obtained within parameters that do not unbalance or bog down the game.
 
We had a novice player some years back and started a Cosmic game.  She played a fire and ice blaster.  We built a VPP, attacks only, a chart of the number of dice for a 5, 10 or 15 point per d6 attack with various levels of advantage, and a list of attacks and advantages that might be relevant.  This was when combined attacks could not use multiple powers in the same framework, so the VPP was one attack at a time, IIRC.  She had no difficulty making the Ice Shards Armor Piercing, Penetrating and/or reduced END and a KA or Blast as the need arose.
 
Everything is "It Depends".  She was not going to wait a phase after appearing in an unknown parallel world, surrounded by an unknown group saying "Freeze and surrender", and pop in a Teleport Usable as an Attack, AoE, Selective, AoE, 1 Hex Accurate, Megascale after counting down DEX once.  But the Impetuous, Impatient, Impulsive character I was playing (think Johnny Thunder's Thunderbolt hopped up on caffiene...) would, and did.
 
We went 5 miles due north...stops...fishes out d8...OK, he thought it was north, but it was actually southwest.  We just got here, remember?
 
GHM hauls out a map.  We splash down into the harbour.  PC's and players are sputtering around...what just happened?  What do we do now?  Did we appear in a flashy, noisy blast of magical; energy that's easily traced?  Probably...  "I can translocate us again!"  group, in resounding unison ""NO!!!"
 
IOW, I am good with a "change on the fly" VPP provided the player can manage it, and it neither breaks nor bogs down the game.
 
 
Yes and no, I think.  We know the "pre-load the pool and that is all you get" model, like the classic Gadget Pool.  You leave with 25 points of Flight and 25 points of Force Field.  The VPP is full.  You cannot change the slots in any way until you meet the conditions to make the change, perhaps spending some time at the base, so you get a limitation which is largely unchanged since the prototype VPP Gadget Pool.  Today, the RAW 6e options are:
 
 - Only changes between scenes (takes hours) -1/4
 - Only changes between adventures (takes days) -1/2
 - Only changes under specific circumstances (eg. touch the target; full moon; must access and study bulky spellbook; only in a lab/arsenal) -1/2
 
It seems like being able to pre-load a dozen, or "your INT" of choices is a lot less limited than "only one load for the pool, locked until you study your spellbook".  Maybe that merits a -1/4 limitation, instead of the -1/2 for having no ability to substitute powers without that down time.  That backs up Duke's on-the-fly "maybe -1/4".  Funny how a guy playing for decades can toss out a gut feel number, and find it largely backed up by rules in a future edition, isn't it?
 
NEW QUESTION
 
So, in discussing a Multipower, if it takes Extra Time, or Concentration, or the like to change multipower slots (6e V1 p 405), that's a limitation on the Multipower reserve.  So, by default, it takes me a full phase and a skill roll to change the slots in a VPP.  If it took a minute to get the roll (Extra Time, 1 minute), it seems like I should get a -1 limitation (full phase being -1/2 and 1 minute being -1 1/2) on the control cost.  I'd get -1 1/2 on the Multipower pool, which is frankly ridiculous (see below).  If I had to Concentrate Throughout at half DCV, I'd get -1/2, and I'd get -1 if I make that 0 DCV.   Then I can roll every phase. 
 
But I get -1/4 for having to take hours to change the pool?  Sounds like I am getting ripped off on that limitation  value big-time.
 
Of course, the Multipower limitation is completely stupid.   Consider:
 
Blasting Betty has a 12d6 Blast which costs 60 points.
Dwayne Drain has a 6dd STUN Drain which costs 60 points.
Flexible Freida has a Multipower of 12d6 Blast and 6d6 STUN drain which costs 72 points.
Slow Steve has a Multipower of 12d6 Blast and 6d6 STUN drain, but it takes a full phase to change slots.  That costs 60/1.5 = 40 + 12 = 52 points.
 
Do we see why Betty and Dwayne might feel ripped off by this model?
 
Along comes Efficient Ernie and helps Betty re-draft to buy a Multipower of 12d6 Blast and 6d6 STUN drain, but it takes a full 25 years to change slots.  That costs 60/8 = 7.5 so 7 + 12 = 19 points.  Much better.  Then she buys a second identical Multipower for another 19 and spends 34 points on Skill Levels to use Combined attack and extra END and REC.  She can use both the Blast and the Drain as a combined attack, probably with better CV, and she paid the same points as Freida.
 
Sorry, Steve, I think that's a messed-up result.  It is easily fixed by applying limitations on the ability to reassign Multipower points to the slot costs rather than the pool cost, as the slot costs are the analogy to the VPP Control Cost.  Given the size and scope of the rules, one issue like this seems understandable, so what say we agree to errata it and fix it in 7e?  In the meantime, I think I will move it to the "power game" thread.
 
 
 

I agree with the first part.
 
The second?  It is also a choice between allowing judgement to permit interesting concepts with a need to assess whether those concepts are appropriate to the specific game in question, or making a flat-out denial of those interesting concepts in the interest of enforcing play balance.
 
I'm not sure whether either is objectively superior game design.  I am much more confident which is better suited to deliver on a commitment to
 
 
I can think of Margarita Man.  I can design and create him.  And I can decide he would not be fun to play, not be a fun adversary for my players or otherwise be a poor fit for my game.  Or I can decide that there is a place for him in my game (maybe the Heros are the only, or among very few, people somehow immune to his powers, and that frames the game...not sold that I want to play or run that game, but someone might).

A "Boss Fight" is a videogame concept in my view.  There is no requirement that it transition neatly to an RPG.  If I were designing an opponent to take on the entire team, I would want it to be someone unique and memorable, so I would design that opponent specifically for the group in question.  Some abilities are very useful against a single target, others against multiple opponents. 
 
In a Supers game, as Sean notes, we are looking at a 3d6, 3 DEF mental entangle.  Any Master Vilain who is intended to take on a team which includes a mentalist should reasonably have some defenses against mental attacks, which may include a pretty high EGO and a decent mDCV.  I do like requiring "mDef reduced Mental Paralysis", whether it adds to EGO or reduces Entangle BOD by 1 per 5 mDef.
 
In a Fantasy game, I don't often see 12 - 13 DCs, so we should be looking at lower DCs, maybe 2d6, 2 DEF.  If we are up into high dice, how would that Dragon weather 13d6 of Mental Illusions that he has won the battle and can now go back to sleep (again, 0 DCV)?
 
 
I generally view Pushing as limited to truly heroic actions, but if you are frozen in place with six enemies bearing down on you, that seems like it would create the appropriate, desperate rush of adrenaline.
 
If, however, you want the ultimate litmus test of any power's acceptability in any campaign, use it against the players and then ask if they think that is a power which should be allowed in this game.

If I roll a 5- or a 16+, I have a pretty good idea about my odds of success.  I like the idea of the player rolling in a manner that they cannot see the results rather than the GM rolling, though.
 
I wonder whether any of the online gaming apps have a function where the player directs the roll so only the GM can see it.

hmmm...and for an added premium, you can "suggest" the answer of your choice 😈

Associated Press has called Pennsylvania, and the election, for Biden.
 
Let The Recounts and Challenges Commence!

“It's my estimation that every man ever got a statue made of him was one kind of sumbitch or another. -- Malcolm Reynolds”
 
Personally, I'm sure that Lincoln (along with every single other human what came cryin' into the world) had his accomplishments, his mistakes, his merits, and his flaws.  He was neither angel nor demon, just human.

And he signed the Emancipation Proclamation. Anyone want to propose a greater single impact on civil rights then ending the legal practice of slavery? Love to hear it.
 
 You can say “yeah but” or “if only he’d” but he arguably did more for that cause than any American before or since with that action.

Looking at each in turn, Summon is an Instant power.  Fire and forget.  The summoned creature can stick around or leave at its discretion (subject to the EGO roll contest).  The use of Summon only brings the creature to the character's location, so there is no ongoing maintenance required, the same as an Entangle or a Barrier.
 
Power durations are discussed at 6e Vol 1 p 127.  The discussion of Instant notes that these powers often have lingering effects after the power is used.  The damage inflicted by a blast, the entangle and, by extension, the Summoned entities don't vanish if the power itself vanishes.
 
Duplication is Persistent.  If you don't keep the points available, it stops working and the duplicates logically vanish.  That's an issue, though, as recombination normally requires a full phase and is done at no range. 
 
However, Duplication is a Special Power, which means that, by RAW, it cannot be placed in any power framework ("requires GM permission" to me is no different from "the GM can waive the rules").  The decision to allow a deviation from that rule comes with the need to assess how the power will work when included in a framework.  Maybe the points are "locked in" until the duplicates are recombined under the normal rules. 
 
Of course, the character has to spend a half phase to Duplicate (more, or have an advantage, to get more than one duplicate).  The duplicate needs the rest of that segment to orient itself.  Next phase, it could move away, but avoiding being at half DCV and using a full phase to recombine is a big benefit if they can just switch the MP points out, over and above recombining at range.  Perhaps one condition on GM permission to have this Special Power  in a framework is spending 10 points on the Easy Recombination added, and paying for the +1/2 Ranged Recombination advantage.  So a 60 point MP could have a 150 point Duplicate (30 base points) +10 Adder (Easy Recombination) = 40 x 1.5 (Ranged Recombination) = 60 points.  Remember that the duplicates also have to have the full Duplication power of the original "unless the GM permits otherwise".
 
Duplicating a 400 point character on this basis would cost 80 + 10 = 90 x 1.5 = 135, which would need a pretty big Multipower!
 
 

Decades later, I recall the scenario where Firewing showed up (and served mainly as a distraction).  As the team gathered their thoughts, the "Overconfident" character bellowed out "Hey FlameBrain - you and me, one on one - or are you CHICKEN?"
 
Turn 1, Phase 12, Firewing's action - the player throws his dice and says "I made my EGO roll by 3 - can I overcome my Overconfidence enough to abort to Dodge?"  He dodged.  Firewing missed.  He lasted another half a turn after PS 12.  The rest of the team had caught up with the real villains of the session.
 
How many gamers would ASK whether they are allowed to abort to Dodge, much less make an Ego roll before even considering whether their Overconfidence would allow it?  The rest of the team accomplished the scenario's objectives (which no one recalls what they were now) just in time to see Firewing take out their teammate.  "He fought with honour and valour.  Unlike most on this world."  Firewing departed.

I had a lengthy response but will just say, I cannot accept the use of modern standards for behavior applied retroactively to Abraham Lincoln. That strikes me as a revisionist standard that no human being of any era would withstand the scrutiny of. Particularly any human being in a leadership role. But really anyone.
 
 Anyway, carry on. I will continue to consider him one of the few truly great Presidents and a champion of his time for human liberty. Errors and all.

I wouldn't allow Haymaker against a physical Entangle either.  I don't think an escape attempt is a type of Strike maneuver; I think it's an application of STR (or EGO, in the case of a mental Entangle).  Again, the right SFX might sway me, but in general, in my brain, I think most reasons someone might say they should be able to Haymaker are actually just rationales for why it makes sense for them to Push their STR/EGO.

A valid position.  However, if one can gather all of one's mental energy in order to strike harder with a mental blast - or a mental entangle - using a Haymaker, why can't one gather all of one's mental energy in order to break free from a mental entangle, on the same basis one can gather all one's physical might to Haymaker an escape attempt from a physical entangle?  What is the mental escape, if not a mental Strike maneuver against the Entangle?
 
Now, under RAW, a Haymaker cannot be made when the drawbacks of extra time and reduced DCV are not relevant.  It could be argued that, when entangled with 0 DCV, reduced DCV is irrelevant.  But that would suggest Haymaker cannot be used to escape any entangle.  Whether the "situational Haymaker" rule is appropriate or not is a completely separate question, and I suggest one not germane to this discussion, other than "if you can Haymaker to escape a -physical Entangle, why not the same for escaping a mental Entangle?"

I'd say Beast Boy is effective enough that he's not using standard animals as their defenses won't hold up in Supers games, but it would be easy to say "the standard animal plus these extra defenses (perhaps Combat Luck)" or any other modification you want.

I'd say Beast Boy is effective enough that he's not using standard animals as their defenses won't hold up in Supers games, but it would be easy to say "the standard animal plus these extra defenses (perhaps Combat Luck)" or any other modification you want.

I'd say Beast Boy is effective enough that he's not using standard animals as their defenses won't hold up in Supers games, but it would be easy to say "the standard animal plus these extra defenses (perhaps Combat Luck)" or any other modification you want.

Back in the "what should change for 6e" days, I suggested unbundling Charges so they would have a higher limitation but cost END by default.
 
"But that would be unrealistic - guns would cost END for their bullets without an extra advantage!" won that battle.
 
Well, it would sure work well for Wizards who can cast spells a certain number of times per day, and it is tiring to cast them.  Or for an archer who has a limited quiver, and has to draw the bow.  But intuitive firearms were more important.  I blame the Harbinger of Justice!
 
 

but...but...but...
 
MAGIC!