eepjr24

Dug out the book:
 
So it would get a bit more complicated today with resistant power and ego defense, but something similar to what Lucius built could emulate it pretty easily. 
 
- E

Yes. This is what the Ignite spell (FHG 133) does. It uses Area Of Effect (16m Radius Selective; +1) to set on fire any object the caster wants within the defined 16m Radius. Then it also has Area Of Effect (1m Accurate; +1/2) so that hitting each of those objects only requires the caster to hit DCV 3. Otherwise, hitting small targets like candle wicks, torches, a piece of parchment, or the like would become difficult if the GM rigidly applies the Target Size Combat Modifier.

roll20.net works great as well.

roll20.net works great as well.

Good Reads has a shelf for that.
 
https://www.goodreads.com/genres/non-magical-fantasy

Get Thee Hence:
EDM, Any Dimension, Physical Location corresponding to physical location in current dimension.
Usable As Attack (+1 1/4)
1 Charge per month (-3)
Others only (-1)
Costs Endurance (-1/2)
3x End Costs (-1)  [30 END]
Full Phase (-1/2)
Side Effect: Minor (5d6 Blast versus user, manifests as sickness, weakness, vertigo) (-1/4)
94 Active, 13 Real

Phil, I think we had some differing assumptions about the context of the question. I took it in the vein of science fiction settings, which are not always (or even generally) known for consistency with real world (or sometimes even internal) physics. I also was not restricting my replies to the battlefield or necessarily war time. With that in mind, see below.
 
1. Self Preservation. Swords are better than powered ranged weapons in instances where they will damage surroundings (starship, dome, orbital station, sensitive equipment, flammables or explosives nearby).
In many fictional settings this does not seem to be the case. See Star Wars, Dune, the Honorverse, Starship Troopers, etc.
 
2. Culture. Swords may be traditional or killing at range may only be acceptable during war, etc. A variety of cultures elevate swords or other hand to hand weapons to an art form.
Here I would disagree. If the culture exclusively adopted swords over guns, sure. They both have things they are better at, so exclusion is not needed or desired. And while the long term result is probably extinction if they do exclusively it might not be without significant cost to the other side (see the Anglo-Zulu wars for a non-fictional example, "On Basilisk Station" provides a nice fictional one).
 
4. Access / Cost. It is generally much easier and/or cheaper to obtain a blade of some kind than a powered ranged weapon.
It really does not matter if you don't have the money? And at a national level, that argument is reasonable, but for individuals who may be down on their luck, something is better than nothing.
 
Or the Starship Troopers for that matter. What is it with Troopers and poor aim?
 
6. No ammunition / charges. You don't have to worry about running out of charges or ammunition.
See my response to #4.
 
7. Cool / Intimidating. Blades are often seen as more intimidating because they provide the opportunity to cause pain for longer. It is hard to control how much damage you do when you shoot someone (especially with energy weapons) but not hard with a blade.
There is no 100 meters away in an alley, a bar or the tight quarters of the engine room of a ship. And you are assuming here that both sides are armed, not always the case at all.
 
8. Effectiveness. Tech may have made certain ranged weapons obsolete in some cases. Reflective armor defeats lasers, force fields stop energy beams, etc.
Arms races always exist. There will be corner cases and new tech that defeats old tech. If that is the case, then if the sword is a solution often enough and you are not sure if that gizmo will be... I know I would have both.
 
I am mixed here. I do believe there is bad writing out there and that is one reason. I also believe that we are talking about fiction and some "bad writing" to one person is a valid story concept to another. And even if the concepts are far fetched (which really is the nature and intent often in science fiction itself) time has proven that we are really poor predictors of what will become reality and what will not. Miracle drugs exist for some things, but we can't grab a flying car to work. Laser weapons do exist, but we don't have orbital farms yet. Etc.
 
- E
 
PS: I do agree with you on the lightsaber crossguard, but I don't know enough about the bat'leth to have an opinion, I always favored Gorns or Hydrans over Klingons.

So to summarize:
 
1. Self Preservation. Swords are better than powered ranged weapons in instances where they will damage surroundings (starship, dome, orbital station, sensitive equipment, flammables or explosives nearby).
2. Culture. Swords may be traditional or killing at range may only be acceptable during war, etc. A variety of cultures elevate swords or other hand to hand weapons to an art form.
3. Stealth. Blades (and to a lesser extent some blunt weapons) excel at removing a target in silence. They are often easier to conceal from modern electronics as well, since blades can easily be made of materials that don't set off detection devices (whether they detect energy signatures or explosive content).
4. Access / Cost. It is generally much easier and/or cheaper to obtain a blade of some kind than a powered ranged weapon.
5. Laws. Restrictions can range from only certain weapons to requiring permits to restrictions on travel with certain weapons, etc. 
6. No ammunition / charges. You don't have to worry about running out of charges or ammunition. 
7. Cool / Intimidating. Blades are often seen as more intimidating because they provide the opportunity to cause pain for longer. It is hard to control how much damage you do when you shoot someone (especially with energy weapons) but not hard with a blade.
8. Effectiveness. Tech may have made certain ranged weapons obsolete in some cases. Reflective armor defeats lasers, force fields stop energy beams, etc.
 
Feel free to add if you think of something else.
 
- E

Phil, I think we had some differing assumptions about the context of the question. I took it in the vein of science fiction settings, which are not always (or even generally) known for consistency with real world (or sometimes even internal) physics. I also was not restricting my replies to the battlefield or necessarily war time. With that in mind, see below.
 
1. Self Preservation. Swords are better than powered ranged weapons in instances where they will damage surroundings (starship, dome, orbital station, sensitive equipment, flammables or explosives nearby).
In many fictional settings this does not seem to be the case. See Star Wars, Dune, the Honorverse, Starship Troopers, etc.
 
2. Culture. Swords may be traditional or killing at range may only be acceptable during war, etc. A variety of cultures elevate swords or other hand to hand weapons to an art form.
Here I would disagree. If the culture exclusively adopted swords over guns, sure. They both have things they are better at, so exclusion is not needed or desired. And while the long term result is probably extinction if they do exclusively it might not be without significant cost to the other side (see the Anglo-Zulu wars for a non-fictional example, "On Basilisk Station" provides a nice fictional one).
 
4. Access / Cost. It is generally much easier and/or cheaper to obtain a blade of some kind than a powered ranged weapon.
It really does not matter if you don't have the money? And at a national level, that argument is reasonable, but for individuals who may be down on their luck, something is better than nothing.
 
Or the Starship Troopers for that matter. What is it with Troopers and poor aim?
 
6. No ammunition / charges. You don't have to worry about running out of charges or ammunition.
See my response to #4.
 
7. Cool / Intimidating. Blades are often seen as more intimidating because they provide the opportunity to cause pain for longer. It is hard to control how much damage you do when you shoot someone (especially with energy weapons) but not hard with a blade.
There is no 100 meters away in an alley, a bar or the tight quarters of the engine room of a ship. And you are assuming here that both sides are armed, not always the case at all.
 
8. Effectiveness. Tech may have made certain ranged weapons obsolete in some cases. Reflective armor defeats lasers, force fields stop energy beams, etc.
Arms races always exist. There will be corner cases and new tech that defeats old tech. If that is the case, then if the sword is a solution often enough and you are not sure if that gizmo will be... I know I would have both.
 
I am mixed here. I do believe there is bad writing out there and that is one reason. I also believe that we are talking about fiction and some "bad writing" to one person is a valid story concept to another. And even if the concepts are far fetched (which really is the nature and intent often in science fiction itself) time has proven that we are really poor predictors of what will become reality and what will not. Miracle drugs exist for some things, but we can't grab a flying car to work. Laser weapons do exist, but we don't have orbital farms yet. Etc.
 
- E
 
PS: I do agree with you on the lightsaber crossguard, but I don't know enough about the bat'leth to have an opinion, I always favored Gorns or Hydrans over Klingons.

This is a work in progress. Keep watching this space.
 
Finally got him to 360.
 
It would be nice when I'm done if someone converts it to Google Doc.
 
Lady Heart.
Real name: Robert Trueheart
 
Cost Char Value Roll Notes
  8.     Str.     -2.     11- Lift 75kg 1 and 1/2 d6 hand to hand damage, 12m throw
 14.    Dex.    8.     12-
 14.    Con.    4.     12-
 14.    Int.      4.      12-   Perception roll: 14-
  14.  Ego.     4.      12-
  14.  Pre.      4.      12-   Presence Attack 2 and 1/2 d6
 
   4.  OCV.     5
   4.  DCV.     5
   6.  OMCV. 6
   6.  DMCV.  6
   4.  SPD.    20.             PHASES: 3,6,9,12
 
   4. PD.        2
   4. ED.        2
  10 REC.     6
  40 END.     4
  10 BODY.  0.                Death Threshold: -10
  40. STUN. 10
Characteristic Total: 88 points
 
Cost Power/END Cost
 
  17   Magical Girl Change: Cosmetic Transformation 1d6 (standard effect: switch clothing to magical girl costume and back),, Limited Target (whatever the character is currently wearing:-1/2), Concentration (1/2 DCV: -1/4), Extra Time (delayed phase:-1/4), Gestures (-1/4), Incantation ("Change Of Heart": -1/4)
And  Magical Girl Change: Shape shift (sight, hearing, touch, mental, smell/taste), One Shape Only (+0),  Reduced Endurance (0 END: +1/2), Concentration (1/2 DCV: -1/4), Extra Time (delayed phase:-1/4), Gestures (-1/4), Incantation ("Change of Heart": -1/4), Unified Powers (-1/4): 1 END Cost
 
(If Rob was born a girl, he could get away with "Instant Change" Cosmetic Transformation. But he is not. So he Shape Shifts along with changing outfits.)
 
(Increased Stats When Transformed)
 
 13 +10 DEX (14- roll), Only In Alternative Identity (-1/4), Unified Powers (-1/4)
 
   7. +10 CON (14- roll), Only In Alternative Identity (-1/4), Unified Powers (-1/4)
 
   7. +10 PRE (14- roll. +2d6 PRE Attack), Only In Alternative Identity (-1/4), Unified Powers (-1/4)
 
   5. The Force Of Love: +10 PRE (+2d6 PRE Attack), Only In Alternative Identity (-1/4), Limited Power (Only For Love Based PRE Attacks, not for characteristic rolls: -1/2), Unified Powers (-1/4)
 
(When transformed, he is so aligned with love energy that he can subconsciously use it to increase his presence to convince people to give up hate and embrace piece and love.)
 
 13 +4 OCV, Only In Alternative Identity (-1/4), Unified Powers (-1/4)
 
  13 +4 DCV, Only In Alternative Identity (-1/4), Unified Powers (-1/4)
 
  13 +2 SPD (Phases: 2,4,6,8,10,12), Only In Alternative Identity (-1/4), Unified Powers (-1/4)
 
 47 Magical Girl Love Energy: 70 Point Multipower, Only In Alternative Identity (-1/4), Unified Powers (-1/4)
 
 3u Heart Attack: Physical Blast 12d6, Gestures (-1/4), Incantation ("Heart Attack": -1/4), Only In Alternative Identity (-1/4), Unified Powers (-1/4): 6 END Cost
 
(Standard magical girl attack. He traces a heart in the air and pushes it at the target.)
 
  3u Heart Strings: Entangle 6d6, 6PD, 6ED, Gestures (-1/4), Incantation ("Heart Strings": -1/4), Only In Alternative Identity (-1/4), Unified Powers (-1/4): 6 END Cost.
 
(He traces a heart into the air and flicks his fingers and it turns into various ribbons.) 
 
  1u Heart Shield: Deflection, Cost Endurance Only To Activate (+1/4), No Range (-1/2), Only In Alternative Identity (-1/4), Unified Powers (-1/4): 3 END Cost To Activate.
 
(If he wishes, a heart shaped shield will float around him.)
 
1u Magical Girl Flying: Flying 20m (40m Non Combat), Only In Alternative Identity (-1/4), Unified Powers (-1/4): 2 END Cost
 
(He can fly.)
 
 3u Heart Light: Flash 12d6 vs Sight Sense Group, Gestures (-1/4), Incantation ("Heart Light": -1/4), Only In Alternative Identity (-1/4), Unified Powers (-1/4): 6 END Cost.
 
(He traces a heart and then touches it with his pointer finger and it glows brightly but quickly)
 
  3u Healing Heart: Healing 6d6, Simplified, Gestures (-1/4), Incantation ("Healing Heart": -1/4), Only In Alternative Identity (-1/4), Unified Powers (-1/4): 6 END Cost
 
(He traces the heart into the air and then takes it and either pushes it to the target like Heart Attack or grabs it and pushes it into the target's body.)
 
15 Too Lovely To Harm: Resistant Protection 10 rPD, 10 rED, Only In Alternative Identity (-1/4), Limited Power (Not Against Attacks Based Upon Dark Emotions: -1/2), Unified Powers (-1/4)
 
(Anyone trying to attack him has to get over his transformed beauty to affect him. Attacks based on dark emotions ignore this protection.)
 
  3 A Beautiful Mind Is Too Lovely To Harm: Mental Defense 5, Only In Alternative Identity (-1/4), Limited Power (Not Against Attacks Based Upon Dark Emotions: -1/2), Unified Powers (-1/4)
 
(See Too Lovely To Harm)
 
  3 A Beautiful Soul Is Too Lovely To Harm: Power Defense 5,  Only In Alternative Identity (-1/4), Limited Power (Not Against Attacks Based Upon Dark Emotions: -1/2), Unified Powers (-1/4)
 
(See Too Lovely To Harm)
 
 23 The Magical Energy Of Love: Endurance Reserve 60 END, 20 REC, Only In Alternative Identity (-1/4), Unified Powers (-1/4)
 
(All her powers taps into the Godstone of Love upon the bracelet on his left wrist, including the energy to power them. Normally the stone can not be removed. It is normally only visible to others with magical powers of there own.)
 
Power Total: 193 points
 
Perks:
 
 3. Access: Justice Foundation Headquarters
 
 4. Link: Justice Foundation Computer Network
 
27 Contact: Justice Foundation super team and think tank
 
 1 Fringe: Police Trainee
 
 1 Money: 100k/year
 
 2 Fringe: Geek (Otaku) Clique
 
Perks Total: 38 points
 
Skills:
 
3 Expert (Japanese Pop Cult)
3  KS: Japanese Popular Culture: 13- (INT)
 3 KS: Japanese History: 13- (INT)
 3 KS: Japanese Popular Fashion: 13- (INT)
 3 KS: Anime And Manga: 13- (INT)
 1 Language: Japanese (Fluent Conversation w/American Accent)
 
 3 Charm: 12-/14-
 3 Conversation: 12-/14-
3 Persuasion: 12-/14-
 3 Power: Godstone Magic: 12-/14- (PRE)
 3 PS: Dancing: 12-/14-
 3 PS: Singing: 12-/14-
 3 PS: Student: 12- (INT based)
 3 KS: Geek Culture: 12- (INT based)
 
Skills total: 41 points
 
Grand Total: 360 points
 
Complications: 300+
 
DNPC: Mother and Father (Normal, Infrequent, Group) 15
 
(His parents don't know he is Lady Heart.)
 
DNPC: Girlfriend (Sharon Mariko Tanaka) and Girlfriend's Mother (Tanaka-san) (Normal, Infrequent, Group) 15
 
(His girlfriend, a Japanese native who moved to the states at a young age, and her mother do know Rob is Lady Heart. She is a skilled dancer, and has been taged for the Mickey Mouse Show to represent the aisan-american population on the show. Rob, on the other hand, is there new Teen Adviser, a position created by the Walt Disney Company and the Justice Foundation to hide the stripion he brings home as Lady Heart. Is it just a coincidence that his girlfriend is in the running for being a Mouseketter?)
 
Distinctive Features (Live Action Anime Magical Girl when transformed) (Concealable, Noticed And Recognizable) 10
 
Hunted by The Court Of Hate (As Powerful, Infrequently) 10
 
(The Court, and there queen Queen Nightmara, are her personal nemesis. Queen Nightmara killed the original Lady Heart in order to corrupt her Godgem, but she sent it to Earth with a servant before her untimely demise.)
 
Hunted by Lady Heart's Rouge Gallery (As Powerful, Infrequently) 10
 
(DEMON, Talisman, the Devil's Advocate, and the Dark Kingdom/Dark Agency goes here [The Dark Agency is from Coadname SailorV], along with VIPER and Mister Wicked [a man so enraptured by Lady Heart's beauty that he plots elaborate kidnapping of him, like out of some really bad melodrama play])
 
Psychological Complication: Code Of The Hero (Common, Total) (20)
 
(He will kill if needed, but like a good hero he would rather avoid it, thank you very much.)
 
Social Competition: Otaku Geek (Frequently, Minor) (10)
 
(He is an otaku. Nuff said.)
 
Watched by the Walk Disney Company ("Unka Walt") (More Powerful, NCI, Infrequently, Watching) (10)
 
(Walt Disney Company is one of the Junior Justice Foundation sponsors. But more importantly, his girlfriend is a candidate for a Mouseketter. And Unka Walt has a Purity Contract to all there underage stars. And Rob had to sign one also.
 
So, Unka Walt says you can have a boyfriend, but don't do anything but light kissing and hugging, OR ELSE!)
 
Social Competition: Beholden To Junior Justice Foundation Sponsors As Lady Heart (Frequently, Minor) (10)
 
(When Unka Walt says jump, Rob asks how high. Same with Unka Stan, Unka George, and whoever is CEO of Pixar today. And any other sponcer.)
 
Watched by the Sailor Scouts (As Powerful, Infrequent, Watching) (5)
 
(As said before, Moon thinks Lady Heart might be there princess. Luna wants more information on her. Mercury also wants more information.
 
We don't know if Tuxedo Mask exists yet. He has done some of his work [OSP*A attack, cram school attack, a few others.].
 
Note: Lady Heart is not Tuxedo Mask. He is not even close to being a prince of a guy. He is rather more a princess of a guy without being gay.)
 
 
 
 
 

Expendability of the gemstones is the relevant bit, I think. If the gemstones aren't expended, eventually he's going to wind up with the top quality one and use it all the time. This isn't worth a Limitation. He starts by buying the spell at the base level (quartz, for instance), and then spends XP on the full-power version when he gets a diamond. Yes, he could lose the diamond (and go back to the quartz version temporarily), but that shouldn't last more than a gaming session. (Playing out repeated attempted robberies would get boring for everyone.)
 
If the gemstone goes away permanently, things get more complicated. You buy the spell at the lowest level, with the lowest level of Expendable (-0). Don't worry about keeping track of it at this level, just assume that he has a decent supply of quartz chips or whatever bits the spell needs. Then, add additional points of effect that require a Difficult to replace focus (-1/4). The highest levels of effect require a Focus that is Very Difficult to replace. Here's how it might work:
 
Magic Blast:  (Total: 40 Active Cost, 24 Real Cost) Blast 4d6 (20 Active Points); OIF Expendable (Easy to obtain new Focus; quartz chips; -1/2) (Real Cost: 13) plus +Blast 2d6 (10 Active Points); OIF Expendable (Difficult to obtain new Focus; zircon crystals; -3/4) (Real Cost: 6) plus +Blast 2d6 (10 Active Points); OIF Expendable (Very Difficult to obtain new Focus; cut diamonds; -1) (Real Cost: 5)
 
If all the caster has are the quartz chips. the blast is 4d6. If he has zircon crystals, it's 6d6, and if he has cut diamonds available, it's 8d6.

1
Logan Major studied the regional papers at his dining room table. He owned an
interest in most of them. He leaned back in his chair.
 
The front pages covered a series of thefts in Wisconsin. No one had seen anything,
no one knew anything.
 
What could he do about it?
 
“I’m going now, Dad,” said Brady Major. “Will you need me after school?”
 
“I don’t know, Brady,” said Logan. He looked out the window of the dining room. “These thefts are something new. Someone with a power is out there. We’re going to  have to look into things but not until we know more.”
 
“All right, Dad,” said Brady. “Let me know when you’re ready.”
 
“Thanks,” said Logan. “Have a good day, son.”
 
Brady smiled as he walked to the front door. He vanished out the door to catch his
bus to school.
 
Logan stood. There had to be more information than what he saw in the articles. He
needed to talk to his investigators and find out if they knew anything more than what
was printed.
 
There had to be something there he could use.
 
He stacked the papers together and placed them on the table. He pulled his phone. He
checked the time on the face. His editors wouldn’t be in the office for another two
hours.
 
Logan put the phone away. He headed for his room. He needed to get his suit and
head into the office. He should get in at the same time as some of the staff.
 
Once he had a better picture of things, he could decide what to do about the thefts.
 
Logan dressed and went to the garage. He climbed into his old Datsun and pulled
down his driveway. He paused at the motorized gate so it could open for him to drive
out.
 
He turned and headed into the city. The paper sat in the middle of Walton Pond,
opposite the city hall and police center. That saved time for when the crime reporters
needed to follow up a story.
 
He pulled into a slot in the public parking lot that serviced several of the businesses
around the paper. He got out of the car and headed into the office.
 
He waved at some of the writers and editors as he went to his work space in the
middle of the staff area. He put his suit jacket over his chair as he sat down. He
checked the paperwork in his in box before he called over to the editor.
 
“Hey, Ken,” said Logan. “Who’s covering the Mercury Diamond theft?”
 
“Phillips,” said Ken Hanson, the city editor. “He’s covering all those strange
robberies.”
 
“I would like to talk to him,” said Logan. “I want to know more about these thefts.”
 
“I’ll tell him to come up and talk to you,” said Hanson. “What’s your interest?”
 
“I want to pressure the police into stopping these thefts,” said Logan. “Maybe we can
get mileage out of the scenes of the crimes.”
 
“They won’t like that,” said Hanson.
 
“We’re not here to make the police happy,” said Logan.
 
“I’ll tell Phillips to talk to you,” said Hanson.
 
“I’m going over financials at my desk,” said Logan. “I’ll be here for a while.”
 
“All right,” said Hanson. “Do you need anything else?”
 
“Not right now,” said Logan. “I may need more later.”
 
“See you later, Logan,” said Hanson.
 
Logan hung up. He leaned back in his chair. He checked his calender. He had
meetings with the board, financial advisors, and had to look into buying into another
radio station in Minnesota.
 
He could put some of that off if Phillips could give him some lead to the thief.
There had to be something everyone was missing that he could use.
 
He went through his paperwork, sat through his first meeting, and then went over how
much money he had flowing through his holdings with his advisors. Phillips arrived
while he was ushering his hedge fund manager out of the conference room.
 
“You wanted to see me?,” said Phillips.
 
“Come in,” said Logan. He gestured at the conference room. “You are just in the
knick of time.”
 
“I got held up,” said Phillips. He wore a jacket and tie with jeans. He settled at the
table and pulled out a small tablet from its carrying case. He set the tablet on the table
so he could reference it. “I was in court when Ken called.”
 
“I want to know how much you know about these unsolved thefts that are going on,”
said Logan. He sat down at his place at the table. He had paperwork to fill out. He put
that aside in a small stack.
 
“The police have some forensics details they aren’t sharing,” said Phillips. “The gist
is our guy can take locks and protective measures apart and then escape.”
 
“How is he getting in?,” asked Logan.
 
“I think the police think he can fly, or he has some kind of swing line he uses,” said
Phillips. “Some of those thefts took place in high rises with cut out windows.”
 
“Do you have pictures?,” asked Logan.
 
“Some,” said Phillips. He opened a file on his tablet. He showed Logan the illegal
entries he had taken pictures of with his phone. “I couldn’t get pictures of some of
them. The police had cordoned off the scenes and the victims fixed the damage as fast
as they could.”
 
“I want you to go around and take pictures of the scenes,” said Logan. “Leave them
on my desk.”
 
“What’s going on?,” asked Phillips.
 
“I’m interested in how these thefts are being done,” said Logan. “I can’t ask the
police to give me a tour of everything. You, on the other hand, can go in and look
around and ask more questions. Eventually the government will take an interest.
There will be problems, and conflicts of interest. If we can identify this thief, and how
he’s operating, maybe we can stop things from escalating.”
 
“The government will want to take over the investigation,” said Phillips.
 
“And they will tell us less than the police,” said Logan. “I don’t want to verify a press
release from some suit.”
 
“Do you want the pictures I already have?,” asked Phillips.
 
“Yes,” said Logan. “Print them out and put them on my desk. I’ll tell Ken that I want
you to examine the scenes of the crime before I have to get to this other meeting.”
 
“All right,” said Phillips. “I have some other stories that I am working on.”
 
“Are they life and death?,” asked Logan.
 
“I don’t know,” said Phillips. “I’m trying to verify that someone in city hall is
embezzling money for one. Then there is the Garret murder. I’m still trying to find
someone who will talk to me about it.”
 
“The kid on Thirteenth Street,” said Logan. “He took a stray bullet. No one wants to
come forward to say which gang fired the shot.”
 
“Exactly,” said Phillips.
 
“They’ll stonewall you too,” said Logan. “Go ahead and get those pictures for me.
It’ll give your embezzler time to steal more money, and Buddy Garret isn’t going
anywhere at the moment. If someone comes forward, go back to it and cover it.”
 
“You don’t think I can find anyone who will?,” asked Phillips.
 
“You aren’t threatening enough,” said Logan. “People fear the shooter more than they
fear you. If you haven’t dug up anything by now, you never will.”
 
“All right,” said Phillips. His expression said he didn’t agree, but he wasn’t going to
argue with his boss.
 
“Did you dig up anything about the shooting?,” asked Logan.
 
“Not much,” said Phillips. “The police think the Ardvarks and the Razorbacks started
squabbling for turf. Guns were pulled and fired, and one bullet hit Buddy Garret in
his chest. He died at the scene.”
 
“Do you know who the shot callers are in either gang?,” asked Logan.
 
“My source said they think a Deshawn Barden runs the Razorbacks,” said Phillips.
“The other name they gave me was a Buck Clinton for the Ardvarks.”
 
“Did they give you street addresses?,” asked Logan.
 
“Sure,” said Phillips. He wrote down the addresses and handed over the sheet from
his notebook.
 
“I’m going to give this to someone and hopefully he will be able to do something
about one of these gangs,” said Logan. “Don’t tell anyone I did this. I don’t want the
police thinking we’re interfering in their investigation.”
 
“I understand,” said Phillips. “Do you think he can get someone to talk?”
 
“I don’t know,” said Logan. “If he can’t, at least we tried to crack this.”
 
“All right,” said Phillips. “Is there anything else?”
 
“I might need to talk to you when you have the pictures to get your opinion on
things,” said Logan. “Let me know if you dig up enough to identify the embezzler.”
 
“I thought you just published the paper,” said Phillips.
 
“My grandfather and father helped build the city,” said Logan. “I try to help protect
it now that they are both gone.”
 
“I can see that,” said Phillips. “You thought about going into politics?”
 
“Politicians have to answer to someone else, generally a lot of someones depending
on where they got their money,” said Logan. “I only have to answer to myself and
whomever owns part of the papers. And since I publish the paper, I don’t really have
to answer to anyone else unless someone buys enough of the others’ holdings to
have me removed.”
 
“How likely is that to happen?,” said Phillips.
 
“I don’t know,” said Logan. “But I have some things that I am trying to get done and
this thief is stirring up trouble. So he has to go. Then I can try to get the money I need
for my projects.”
 
“What projects?,” asked Phillips.
 
“I’ll let you know when I have them in the bag,” said Logan. “Go get the pictures. I
have to make my meeting.”
 
“All right,” said Phillips. He packed up his tablet. “Why the concentration on the
entry points?”
 
“No one knows who this thief is,” said Logan. “We all suspect he is powered up. If
we can match the power to a known villain, we can identify the thief and help the
police with their manhunt.”
 
“And if we can’t,” said Phillips.
 
“Then he’s someone who’s never been caught, or totally new,” said Logan. “Let’s see
what we can find out before worry about that.”
 

2
Logan thought about the two gangs. He would not be able to pressure any information
out of them as himself. No one wanted to talk about a shooting to a newsman unless
they were stupid.
 
How did he crack them?
 
He decided the only thing to do was put on his other face and see if he could do
something to get some information. If he could get the name of the shooter, he could
call that in as a tip and let the police focus on that person. He would also give the
name to Phillips to follow up on after he was done checking out the burglary scenes.
 
The city didn’t need his other face all that often, but sometimes it was the only way
to deal with things that balked normal methods used by the law.
 
He doubted that becoming a vigilante would get his father’s approval, but it helped
protect the city.
 
The answers he got sometimes led to the exposure of rot in the system. Cutting that
rot away allowed the city to operate better.
 
He knew it was an ongoing process. Like any gardener, he knew that pests and weeds
had to be removed to let the flowers bloom.
 
Logan decided to leave his battered Datsun in the parking lot for the paper. He didn’t
want anyone to see it and connect it to his two lives. He had one more thing to do
before he started asking questions.
 
He pulled his phone from his holder and dialed his home. He had to let his wife know
what was going on.
 
Gloria and Brady was the only ones who knew what he did some nights. They needed
to know what he was doing so they could cover up his extracurricular activities from
his own papers and radio stations.
 
“Hey, Log,” said Gloria. “How are things at the paper?”
 
“I have to talk to some people before I come home,” said Logan. “Do you want me
to bring in anything?”
 
“You’re not taking Brady?,” said Gloria.
 
“I’m just swinging by to talk,” said Logan. “I will be glad to take him when I need
something blown up.”
 
“All right,” said Gloria. She laughed lightly. “He loves the sidekick life.”
 
“One day he will be protecting the city,” said Logan. “I hope that I have shown him
some basic skills and a good outlook on life.”
 
“I’m sure,” said Gloria. “Bring home some pizzas. That will make up for you not
being home on time.”
 
“Will do,” said Logan. “I love you.”
 
“I love you too,” said Gloria. “Don’t do anything reckless.”
 
“I’m just having a talk with a man about his friends,” said Logan. “You couldn’t get
more boring.”
 
“And how dangerous is this source?,” asked Gloria.
 
“Not as dangerous as me,” said Logan. “I will be home in a bit.” 
 
Logan hung up the phone. He put it back on its holder. Night drifted outside the
window. He put the photos from Phillips in a folder as he looked around the nearly
empty room. He walked out of the room and headed for the roof.
 
He stepped through the rigged roof door. It only rang when someone else tried to go
out on the roof. He looked over the city with the file of pictures in hand. He
concentrated to call on his other face.
 
A wooden sheathe covered his body, masking his face with another appearance. A
cape of leaves dropped from his shoulders. He stood like a statue for a moment before
he walked to the edge of the roof.
 
Logan slid the folder inside his wooden body before he leaped from the roof of the
paper. He extended a pole to the ground and used that to land on the roof across the
street from the paper. He shrank the pole and ran across the roof and pole vaulted to
a building across that street.
 
The address for Clinton was just off Downtown in a neighborhood slated for
gentrification which would drive the residents out. Clinton might have enough money
flowing in from the Aardvarks not to have to move when richer people moved in.
 
The Aardvarks were prominent on the local scene, but he couldn’t recall any mention
of them in national reports. They might not have a longer reach than the city.
 
Logan dropped down to the street when he ran out of roofs. He used the shadows as
much as possible as he walked through the neighborhood. He paused when he
reached the address he wanted.
 
How should he do this? Should he knock on the door? Should he break in? Should
he wait outside until someone showed? He decided the direct approach was the best
approach.
 
Logan walked across the yard, stepping around a small tree. He climbed the three low
porch steps to stand at the front door. He knocked on the door with a wooden hand.
The door opened to reveal a sixty year old woman in a hairnet and bathrobe. She
frowned at the apparition knocking on her door.
 
“What do you want?,” she asked in a shaking voice. A tremor ran through her body.
 
“I’m looking for Buck Clinton,” said Logan. “Does he live here?”
 
“He’s not home right now,” said the woman. “He’s hanging out with his useless
friends.”
 
“Would you know where that would be, ma’am?,” asked Logan.
 
“No,” said the old lady. “Sometimes they hang around that burger place on Barlow.”
 
“Thank you very much, ma’am,” said Logan. “I’ll let you get back to your bed. I’m
sorry to have bothered you.”
 
“Night,” said the woman. Her shaking hand closed the door on Logan.
 
Logan turned and walked through the yards toward the end of the block. He turned
again and headed away from Downtown toward Caskill and Barlow. A huge amount
of strip malls, stand alone stores, and restaurants lined those two streets. One end of
the street went toward Downtown. The other vanished out in the county on the way
to the next county and the little towns between Walton Pond and the next city over.
 
He vaulted to the roof of a strip mall and worked his way down Barlow until he found
a Bowzer’s with a bunch of young men standing around in the parking lot. He
decided to ask which one was Clinton so he could ask his questions.
 
Logan dropped down in the parking lot. He looked at the group. Someone would do
something. They all had that look. It was easy to believe that one of them had shot a
little boy by accident because he didn’t have the proper training with a weapon.
 
“Who’re you supposed to be?,” said one of the gangsters. His totem animal, the
aardvark, was a tattoo on his hand.
 
“I’m looking for Buck Clinton,” said Logan. “I heard he was a coward and a
blowhard that needs to be put in his place.”
 
“I’m Clinton,” said one of the men. “What do you want?”
 
“I want to know which one of your gang shot the little boy last week,” said Logan.
 
“Why should I tell you, freak?,” said Clinton. He pulled his pistol in one move.
 
Logan extended his hand. A log leapt from it. The piece of wood spun in the air until
it crashed into Clinton’s face. The gang leader went down. He still kept a grip on his
pistol. 
 
The wooden hero swept his arm in a circle. A wooden stick beat on the gang members
within striking distance as he advanced on Clinton. The gang leader tried to raise his
pistol to shoot his nemesis. The end of the staff came down and disarmed him. It
reversed back and struck him in the face.
 
Logan picked up the pistol and absorbed it into his wooden shell to take with him.
 
Maybe the police could match the gun with other crimes in the area, even if it wasn’t
for the dead boy.
 
“Anybody want to talk to me?,” asked Logan. “One of you must know who shot the
little boy when you had your fight. Why don’t you say something?”
 
They all glared at him. Some of them had their hands close to their weapons. They
were ready to fight if pushed, but in close quarters, most knew they would probably
shoot themselves trying to shoot the wooden target in front of them.
 
“I want you to leave the city,” said Logan. “If I see you again, I will hurt you. You
want to live here, I want to know who killed the boy. Until I do, any of you I see, I
am going to hurt. That’s what’s going to happen. I’m giving you until sundown to
leave town and not come back.”
 
“You can’t do that,” said one of the gang.
 
“Either I get the shooter, or I make examples,” said Logan. “That’s the deal. Sundown
tomorrow is all the time I am giving you. After that, expect a stay in the hospital.”
 
Logan backed away from the mob. If they went for their guns, he would have start
throwing logs at them.
 
He had one trick that he didn’t use very much that could wreck a car. He had no doubt
it would put a man in the hospital, or the morgue.
 
Logan walked around the burger joint. He climbed up to the roof and sat down. He
listened as the gang got themselves together.
 
Most of them didn’t like his disrespect. Some didn’t like his reputation as a meddler.
And Clinton didn’t like the fact that he had lost his sidearm. He shouted for everyone
to load up so they could find him and shoot his tree butt.
 
Logan wondered if this was how the gunfight with the Razorbacks had started. Words
had been exchanged, then everybody had started shooting.
 
He had to look them up. He couldn’t put pressure on one gang, and let the other one
slide. Maybe the hogs would be more cooperative.
 
Someone had shot the boy. He wanted to know who. Once he knew, he could turn the
guy in and help settle the city. Clearing the gangs out had to be done on principle. He
should have had a talking with them before this.
 
He regretted not doing something about them sooner. He had spent too much time
chasing other bad guys the ones he hadn’t kept his eyes on had multiplied.
 
He called up the address for Deshawn Barden. It was across town, heading for the
North Point. He wondered how they would take his demands.
 
He supposed that they would say that no caped freak was running them out of town.
He might have to use a little more force on them.
 
They were going if they couldn’t tell him who had shot the boy. He had already made
up his mind about that. He couldn’t stop all crime in the city limits. He could make
two groups of lowlifes miserable.
 
He could even take time out of his schedule with the paper to keep making them
miserable until he had an answer.
 
Logan crossed the city using a bus passing his way, then an eighteen wheeler heading
north. He dropped down into the North Point and walked through to where his
suspect lived.
 
He was rewarded with a party with too much booze, too many people, and too loud
music. No one would call the police to shut this down. The Razorbacks would make
them miserable if they did.
 
He decided to walk in. You can’t make people afraid of you if you were afraid of
them.
 
Logan crossed the porch, saying excuse me as he pushed through the crowd. One guy
tried to punch him. He blocked, then jammed his staff into the guy’s gut, then he
pushed the guy over the railing. The onlookers never saw the staff appear and
disappear.
 
He asked for Barden. One of the women pointed to a shirtless man with five
necklaces and a bandana tied around his head. He thanked her and walked into the
house.
 
“What do you want?,” asked Barden. The music still played but all eyes were on the
two of them facing off.
 
“I would like to know who killed the Garret boy when you faced off with the
Aardvarks,” said Logan.
 
“I don’t have nothing to say to you,” said Barden.
 
“I have something to say to you,” said Logan. “It’s the same thing I said to the
Aardvarks. Either I get the name, or you all get out of town and don’t come back by
sundown.”
 
“You think you can make us,” said Barden. He grinned at the demand.
 
Logan pointed at the stereo. A cascade of wooden missiles flew across the room like
a stream of hammers. The thing fell to the floor with dents and broken parts
everywhere.
 
“The name or sundown,” said Logan. “Otherwise I will make you miserable until I
get what I want.”
 
Logan made a small salute like he was tipping a hat and walked out of the house.

3
Logan sipped his coffee as he sat at his kitchen table. He checked paperwork for his
holdings before he headed into the paper. He wondered how the Aardvarks and the
Razorbacks were taking his demand and warning.
 
They were probably not going to get out of town.
 
“Hey, Dad!,” said Brady. “I’m heading out.”
 
“I need you to be ready tonight,” said Logan. “We’re going to have to talk to
someone.”
 
“I’m always ready,” said Brady. “What’s going on?”
 
“I’ll have to talk to some malefactors,” said Logan. “I might need a backup.”
 
“I can do that,” said Brady. “What are we going to do?”
 
“I have asked some gangs to leave town,” said Logan. “I don’t think they will.”
 
“All right,” said Brady. “I’ll get ready as soon as I get home.”
 
“All right,” said Logan. “I’ll call your mother to let her know.”
 
“Thanks, Dad,” said Brady. He ran out of the house with his back pack slung over his
shoulder.
 
Logan finished his coffee. He put the paperwork in his bag. He could work on it later
at the office. He walked into the garage and got behind the wheel of his Datsun. He
triggered the door and backed out on the driveway.
 
He drove into town and parked in a slot at the paper. He went inside and settled at his
desk. He found an envelope on his desk. He put his bag on the floor. He opened the
envelope and dumped out photos on the wooden top.
 
Logan spread the photos out. He opened his desk and pulled out a magnifying glass.
He looked the photos over.
 
He scratched his eyebrow as he went over the pictures.
 
He sat back in his chair when he was done. He had seen this stuff before. He had
thought the user dead. Did he have the old guy getting back into business, or a new
guy with old equipment? How did he find out?
 
A relative taking on the family business seemed to be the best option in his opinion.
Logan decided to start with a search. Maybe putting in slick villain thief would
prompt a memory to bob to the surface. Then he could narrow down his search,
maybe use the electronic morgue to search for stories.
 
The first few answers gave him the name of Teflon Billy Burke. He leaned back in
his chair. Billy Burke was a name he hadn’t heard in a long time.
 
He looked up the number for Phillips. Maybe he could point his reporter at Burke. A
little digging might turn up something.
 
“Hello,” said Phillips.
 
“This is Major,” said Logan. “I think Teflon Billy is our thief from the pictures you
left me.”
 
“Teflon Billy?,” said Phillips. “I don’t know that name.”
 
“He’s a low level villain that can control friction,” Logan said. “See if you can get
some background on him. Maybe you can turn up something we can turn over to the
police.”
 
“What made you think of this guy?,” asked Phillips.
 
“The pictures you took,” said Logan. “I did a search for frictionless thieves.”
 
“Really?,” said Phillips. “I’ll look into this Teflon Billy. Maybe there is something
there.”
 
“Did you narrow the embezzler down?,” asked Logan.
 
“Not yet,” said Phillips. “I got a lot of public paperwork together and asked an
accountant to look things over for me.”
 
“Thanks, Phillips,” said Logan.
 
“I heard Log Man threatened the Razorbacks and Aardvarks,” said Phillips.
 
“Good,” said Logan. “Has anyone come forward to tell the cops what happened?”
 
“Not yet,” said the reporter. “They don’t think Log Man can run them off.”
 
“All right,” said Logan. “Let me know. I want to keep the pressure on so we have
something to report.”
 
“Clinton is reported as wanting to kill Log Man,” said Phillips.
 
“I wish him the best of luck as long as we can cover the story,” said Logan. “Let me
know what you find out.”
 
“Right,” said Phillips.
 
Logan cut the connection as he considered what he should do to bend the gangs to his
will. He wanted one of them to confess. If he had that, he could axe part of the gangs
and send them to prison.
 
Logan worked through the day, going over the finances and anything else that
required his attention. He felt that the newspaper would be able to ride out any
economic downturn at least for a while.
 
He checked the time. He had to get home to pick up Brady. They had to talk to the
gang members. Once he had a handle on that, he could try to force a confession.
He hoped Brady would be able to help him with that. He wanted to get them together
to force something out of them.
 
Logan reclaimed his Datsun. He took the expressway home. He wasn’t going to beat
his son’s bus.
 
He pulled up to his gate. He opened the gate and drove in. He parked his car and went
inside the garage.
 
He went into the house and put his case inside his office.
 
“Hey, Brady!,” he called. “Are you home?”
 
“I’m here, Dad,” called Brady. “I ready to go when you are.”
 
“We have some time before sundown,” said Logan.
 
“That’s cool,” said Brady.
 
“Let’s get a snack,” said Logan. “We don’t know how long we’ll be chasing these
guys tonight.”
 
“I have school tomorrow,” said Brady.
 
“We’ll try to get them all before ten,” said Logan. “If we can’t, we’ll work on it
tomorrow night.”
 
“Don’t forget you and Mom have to go to that event the day after,” said Brady.
 
“The Charity Ball,” said Logan. “I forgot.”
 
“Don’t tell Mom that,” said Brady. “She will skin you alive.”
 
The two had walked into the kitchen while they were talking. Logan got ingredients
out of the refrigerator so they could make sandwiches before they left on their rounds.
 
“How much effort do you think this will take?,” asked Brady. He chowed down on
his sandwiches after getting a can of Coke from the pantry.
 
“I don’t know,” said Logan. “I want to make them so miserable, they would rather
leave than conduct business here.”
 
“We might be following these guys around for months,” said Brady. “There’s no way
they are going to just let us interfere in their gangbanging.”
 
“Until I get a name, they will not work in my town,” said Logan. “And they might not
work in my town if they do give me a name.”
 
“We would have to stop doing our patrols to harass these guys,” said Brady. “We
wouldn’t be able to help other people if we did that.”
 
“Good point,” said Logan. “Let’s see what happens when we have our visit.”
 
They finished their meal, watching for the sun to go down. They didn’t want either
of the rival gangs seeing them when they moved in.
 
“Looks like it’s time for us to go,” said Logan. “Let’s get the Log Mobile and get to
work.”
 
“Right, Dad,” said Brady.
 
The Majors walked into the garage. Wood covered their bodies as they moved.
Leaves formed capes. Logan pressed a hidden lever. A wooden car dropped down on
a cradle from the ceiling.
 
Logan climbed behind the wooden wheel. He extended his will and the car rolled off
the cradle. He backed out of the garage and down the driveway to the gate. He pulled
out on the street and headed into town.
 
“Someone is going to see us doing that one day,” said Brady.
 
“I hope not,” said Logan. “It would be really embarrassing.”
 
He drove to the fast food place Clinton favored. He doubted the gang leader had
stayed home in the face of a threat. He would want to show that he wasn’t scared even
when he should be.
 
“There they are,” said Logan. He drove to the back of the fast food place. “You
ready?”
 
“Yep,” said Brady. “Pinecone, the boy exploder, is always ready.”
 
They got out of the Log Mobile and walked around the restaurant. Clinton’s gang saw
them coming. Some of them reached for weapons.
 
Pinecone exploded into a shower of thin disks that flew right at the gang. The
suspected criminals dove for cover as their vehicles captured the flying missiles.
Log Man darted forward. Logs flew in a shower of wooden pain at the cars. The
sounds of smashing glass and bending metal filled the parking lot.
 
Clinton looked at the destruction. He turned to glare at the Log Man. A fist put him
on his back.
 
“I told you to get out of town,” said Logan. “Why are you still here?”
 
“You don’t tell me what to do, you freak,” said Clinton. “I do what I want.”
 
“That’s fine,” said Log Man. “I can keep coming back until you have nothing left.”
 
“Isn’t this illegal?,” asked one of the other members of the gang. “You wrecked
our stuff.”
 
“I guess you’re right,” said Log Man. “Don’t be in town tomorrow, and I won’t wreck
your stuff.”
 
“You can’t do this,” said Clinton. “I’ll kill you first.”
 
“I will start putting people in the hospital until I hear something,” said Log Man.
“Your best bet is to sit down with the police and figure out who shot the little
boy. I won’t have a reason to come around then.”
 
“None of us did that,” said Clinton. “We were shooting at Bardem’s guys. They were
shooting at us. They must have shot him.”
 
“How do I prove that?,” asked Log Man. He smiled at a sudden idea. “I’ll see you
tomorrow.”
 
“You can’t keep coming back,” said Clinton.
 
“I’m going to talk to Barden,” said Log Man. “Then I have some things to do. I’ll be
back to talk to you this time tomorrow.”
 
“I hope he kills you,” said Clinton.
 
“I hope you get a little smarter,” said Log Man. “This is my city, not yours, not
Barden’s. I make the rules, I call the plays. If I don’t get what I want, there will be no
room for Aardvarks, or Razorbacks. And no one will miss you.”
 
“I’ll find a way to get rid of you,” declared Clinton.
 
“I already have a way to get rid of you,” said Log Man. “Let’s go, Pinecone.”
 
The wooden duo retreated to the Log Mobile. Log Man drove away from the burger
place with a wave for the gang as he went.
 
“So we’re going to talk to this Barden?,” asked Brady.
 
“I have to be an equal opportunity villain beater,” said Logan. “It’s in my contract.”
 
“You know how to prove what happened,” said Brady. “I could see it when you
paused.”
 
“It’s not definite proof,” said Logan. “It’s a possible thing that we can use to crack
the case.”
 
“Do we let them off the hook?,” asked Brady.
 
“No,” said Logan. “They’re not giving us anything. We’re taking it from them.”
 
“All right,” said Brady. “What are you going to do?”
 
“We’re going to check on our other suspects, then we’re going to do a patrol to see
if anyone needs us,” said Logan. “Then we’re headed home unless we have an
emergency to deal with first.”
 
“Sounds good to me,” said Brady. “What are you going to do to crack this?”
 
“I’m going to think about what I’ve read,” said Logan. “Then I am going to do some
research.”
 
The Log Mobile rolled into the night, lights made of plant chemicals glowing from
it.
 

4
Logan Major rolled into the paper’s parking area the next day. He had to do some
preliminary work and research before he turned his attention back to the Razorbacks
and Aardvarks. He felt he had a solution in their testimony.
 
Phillips waited by his desk as he made his way through the office. He seemed excited.
 
“What’s going on?,” asked Logan. He put his case on the desk.
 
“A lot,” said Phillips. “Things started popping last night.”
 
“About Teflon Billy?,” asked Logan.
 
“Some, but not just him,” said Phillips. “I talked with my accountant guy. We have
things narrowed down to three people stealing from City Hall. I need some way to
push things out in the open before I can say it’s one of them.”
 
“I know a guy,” said Logan. He grabbed a pad from the top of his desk. He wrote
down a name and phone number. “Take whatever evidence you have, and maybe your
accountant if you can get him to go, and talk to this guy. He works in financial crimes
for the Feds. He might be able to point you in the right direction.”
 
“There’s a chance that none of this will lead to anything,” said Phillips.
 
“If you can prove embezzlement, we can pull this guy out of his office,” said Logan.
“If we can pull this guy out, maybe we can get a more responsible person in.”
 
“I can see that,” said Phillips. “Your tip about Billy Burke has stirred the detectives
into looking for him from what I can tell. Even if he isn’t doing the burglaries, they
feel he knows who is.”
 
“He’s a pro,” said Logan. “He won’t make it easy on them. He probably has an alias
that covers any straight task he has to do between break-ins.”
 
“They said he wasn’t on their radar at all,” said Phillips. “He’s been inactive for a
while.”
 
“I guess get with Ken and see how he wants to handle that end of things,” said Logan.
“I’ll clear you to chase down the current investigation until we have something solid
to hook into.”
 
“This thing that you were asking about, the Garret shooting,” said Phillips.
 
“The gang shooting,” said Logan. “What about it?”
 
“Log Man has taken an interest,” said Phillips. “He’s leaning on both gangs from
what I hear.”
 
“Anyone willing to come forward?,” asked Logan.
 
“No way,” said Phillips. “They would rather do their time than turn in their own guys.
Snitches get more than stitches from these guys.”
 
“Stay on it,” said Logan. “If we can get a confession, or some solid evidence, we can
run one of the gangs out of town.”
 
“Maybe not the whole gang,” said Phillips.
 
“Anything is better than nothing,” said Logan. “And right now, we have nothing.”
 
“I’ll keep trying to dig something up,” said Phillips. “No one wants to talk.”
 
“Do what you can,” said Logan. “But don’t do anything dangerous. We don’t know
how dangerous this gang is, and I can’t afford the payout if one of my employees gets
killed in the line of duty.”
 
“Thanks,” said Phillips.
 
“Don’t worry,” Logan said. “I think I know how to solve the Garret killing. I just need
to talk to an expert about some things. There’s only one real problem with the
scheme.”
 
“What’s that?,” asked Phillips.
 
“I’ll need to get the two gangs in the same place while we hash this out,” said Logan.
“I don’t think they’ll like that.”
 
“So we are going to invite them to shoot at each other again?,” said Phillips.
 
“I don’t know,” said Logan. “That’s why I need to think about the plan before I try
to use it.”
 
“Let me know when you get the bugs worked out,” said Phillips.
 
“I’ll see what I can do,” said Logan. “Let me know if you find out anything else. I
have to talk to some of the editors, and some more money people.”
 
“Someone wanting to buy the paper?,” said Phillips.
 
“No, I’m looking at a deal for a paper south of us,” said Logan. “The outlook doesn’t
look good from my point of view. The others on the board want to at least see what
the demand is.”
 
“What is the demand?,” asked Phillips.
 
“Don’t know, but I’m sure it will be for more than the paper is actually worth,” said
Logan.
 
“I’ll let you get to that,” said Phillips. He turned to leave.
 
“If you have any trouble, let me know,” said Logan. “I’ll try to smooth the way for
you.”
 
“Thanks, boss,” said the reporter. He waved as he kept walking to the exit of the car
lot.
 
Logan made sure he had everything before heading upstairs to his desk. He had a long
day of financials ahead, with some research on the side. He would be ready to go back
out as Log Man when the sun went down.
 
He wondered if the police could track down Teflon Billy. They had more manpower
than he had, but that didn’t mean much. He could do things they couldn’t do.
 
The government could still move in now that a power had been identified as the thief.
He knew they had a sanctioned operation to take on powers when the local heroes
couldn’t get things done. The location of their head seemed to be in the Department
of Defense’s civilian administration but he didn’t know where.
 
And he didn’t expect them to make it easy for reporters to find them so they could be
asked how they dealt with things when heroes didn’t show up to do the job.
 
The rumors of secret prisons and an island full of monsters was already out there but
no one knew where they were, or how to find them. And he didn’t want to vanish
when he had so much to do in his own city.
 
Logan settled in his desk and started reading the comments captured by his reporters
about the Garret shooting. Billy could hold on until this case was closed. Catching a
killer outranked a thief any day.
 
He went over the pictures of the scene and the testimony for hours. He thought he had
a clear picture of what had happened. How did he get it all together to prove it? And
he would need the two gangs in the same place. He doubted he could do that without
some kind of police help.
 
He could round up everyone himself, but that would take a lot of time. He didn’t want
to spend that much on getting them together. On the other hand, he didn’t see any way
he could get them to a central meeting place on their own.
 
If he had some way to trap them, that would make things go so much easier.
Logan thought about that as he picked up his phone. He needed to make a
presentation. He knew some people who could help him do that.
 
Maybe that would help clear up some of the things about the shooting.
 
“Hey, Hillary,” said Logan. “This is Logan Major. I was wondering if you could do
an animation for me.”
 
He listened quietly.
 
“I understand, but this is a rush job,” said Logan. “I have some testimony from a
shooting and I need to know what it looks like to a computer. Do you mind? I need
to get this done as soon as possible.”
 
He listened again.
 
“I’ll be at your office in a few minutes,” said Logan. “I’ll bring the paperwork and
pictures so you can look at everything first.”
 
Logan hung up the phone. He gathered the reports and pictures his people had got
from the police and put them in his case. He looked around. No one had an eye on
him. He stood, grabbing the case by the handle. He headed for the parking lot and his
car.
 
If Hillary’s animatic could explain what happened at the shooting, it would give him
someone specific to go after instead of pressuring both gangs. Then he could have the
police take the shooter and whomever else they could prove was there in for the
murder of the Garret boy.
 
Then he could concentrate on Teflon Billy and take him down before he committed
any more burglaries.
 
Then the city would be quieter so he could concentrate on improvements that didn’t
need his masked face.
 
Every garden needed constant weeding and other work. His garden just happened to
be the city.
 
Logan drove over to the Hillary Musgrove Animation and Digital Media School, and
parked in front of the low building. He grabbed his case out of the back and walked
inside.
 
A counter kept people from walking back into the school. An office for administrative
work had been set up behind a glass wall. Hillary Musgrove bent over paperwork on
his desk. His computer ran some cartoon that Logan didn’t recognize.
 
Logan knocked on the counter. Hillary looked up. He smiled as he stood. He came out
of the office with a hand out. They shook.
 
“You said you were having problems with some testimony,” said Hillary. His hair had
a red streak among the gray and silver.
 
“I need an exact showing of where the physical evidence went,” said Logan. “Then
I need to match up what I can to that. I’ll pay double the usual rate.”
 
“This won’t hold up in court,” said Hillary. “The animation can be manipulated too
much to be allowed as evidence.”
 
“I don’t need it to hold up in court, I just need it make some things clear in my mind
so I know who I can target better,” said Logan. “I have a bunch of uncooperative
witnesses with no leverage.”
 
“All right,” said Hillary. “Let me see what I can do.”
 
He led the way to the back of the building. They passed several rooms where teams
of students were working on various projects. They walked into a room set up with
several computers, and scanners. The illustrator sat at the desk and held his hand out
for the paperwork and pictures he would need.
 
Logan handed them over and drew up a chair.
 
“This might take a while,” said Hillary. “I’m going to have to build some models and
so forth of the scene before I can put in the animatics.”
 
“I’ll call Gloria and let her know I’ll be late,” said Logan. “I need something to give
my reporters. I can wait until you’re done.”
 
“This might take some days,” said Hillary. “I could maybe rope in some of my
students to help out, but I don’t see it going faster than the day after tomorrow.”
 
“All right,” said Logan. “I hadn’t realized it would take that long.”
 
“Don’t worry,” said Hillary. “It will be as accurate as I can make it if the reports are
accurate.”
 
“They’re copies,” said Logan. “I’ll leave them with you, but try not to let them leave
the building. The police will frown on this stuff getting out in the wild.”
 
“Don’t worry,” said Hillary. “I’ll call you when I get done.”
 
“I guess I have to go back to leaning on people to see if I can get one of them to
crack,” said Logan.
 
“If you can do that before I get done, I will still want to be paid,” said Hillary.
 
“It won’t be doubled then,” said Logan. He smiled as he waved and walked out of the
office.
 
Logan walked out to his Datsun. He had hoped that Hillary would get him answers
sooner, but he had to live with what he could get.
 
He decided to head back to the paper and check in before thinking about what he
could do after work. Dinner with Gloria and Brady would be nice for a change, maybe
a movie. He could go back to the grindstone tomorrow.
 
If everything remained quiet, he might be able to let things fester while Hillary put
his cartoon together. Once he had that, he could work out how to get the two gangs,
or at least their leaders, together.
 
He hoped Teflon Billy would take the next few days off while he tried to deal with
the other mess.
 
He had a feeling he was hoping for too much.
 
 

Correct.
 
Adjustment Powers, 6e1, 135
"Characters can use them to drain a target of his abilities, restore lost Characteristics (like healing BODY or recharging an Endurance Reserve), or temporarily raise a character’s abilities above their starting values."
 
So he could recharge the reserve, raise the amount of the reserve or do both. Probably he would want just to recharge the reserve so he would add "Only Restores to Starting Values (-1/2)". And likely Self Only (-1).
 
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A quick trip to google will get you some nice starts. 
 
Broad ideas:
Traps that force team mates apart. (teleportation, multiple paths required to open, illusory traps)
Traps that deceive. (replace team mate with illusion, add multiples of each player, mimics, etc)
Predicament / Kobayashi Maru type traps (all actions result in negative outcome, must choose which negative outcome occurs)
 
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Depends on your players, really. Generally I offer a set of guidelines (you should have between X and Y disadvantage points) and let them build to what they want. If someone wants a number not divisible by 5, I still allow the old "quirks", which are up to 4 points of 1 point quirks (When battle approaches, always says "Smoke 'em if you got 'em", Likes to use puns in battle, etc.). I have some players who always max out points, I have others who just take what they see as core to the character and fit their points to that. I have other guidelines as well (you should have at least N spent in skills that represent your job, interests, knowledge) and try to work with players to understand how things will come up in the game and why I have the guidelines.
 
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Depends on your players, really. Generally I offer a set of guidelines (you should have between X and Y disadvantage points) and let them build to what they want. If someone wants a number not divisible by 5, I still allow the old "quirks", which are up to 4 points of 1 point quirks (When battle approaches, always says "Smoke 'em if you got 'em", Likes to use puns in battle, etc.). I have some players who always max out points, I have others who just take what they see as core to the character and fit their points to that. I have other guidelines as well (you should have at least N spent in skills that represent your job, interests, knowledge) and try to work with players to understand how things will come up in the game and why I have the guidelines.
 
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Nope.
6e1, 320
 

True. But in 5e it was no additional cost to make it accurate and it could be dodged still (dodge added to the base hex DCV of 3).
 
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Nope.
6e1, 320
 

Nope.
6e1, 320
 

Hrm. It would depend on the campaign, but either +1/4 or +1/2 would be appropriate. If the only typical defense against magic in the campaign was "don't get hit by it", then I would go with +1/2, otherwise (players have access to some type of DEF that applies to magic effects) +1/4. You are essentially buying IPE for 2 sense groups (+1 advantage) and then limiting it to just hiding the Target Portion. See 6e1, 125 and 338 for all the deets, but it will be a bit subjective as exact discounts are not spelled out. I like the idea though.
 
Edit: This would not do as much good in a couple situations, like one on one duels, fights where your best target is obvious or fights where you have a faster opponent who can afford to dive for cover defensively and still hurt you in some other way.
 
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Accurate works great if they are in the AoE. Personally I would go with Accurate on 8 hex AoE if you want it effective against Dive For Cover. Almost everyone has 10" of running which equates to a 5" dive for cover, getting you out of the base 4" AoE.
 
As to make the Dex roll required in Dive For Cover more difficult, the only way I can think to do it is have a Change Environment that activates in some phase before the attack. You make it AoE and set the effect to being a -N DEX penalty. There are probably other ways but none come to mind immediately.
 
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