Dr. Anomaly

Re: Teen superteam I've never had the chance to get all of the character sheets put into electronic form and posted, but if you're looking for ideas of names and powers, check out the Ravenswood Academy Yearbook -- link in my sig.

Re: A Thread for Random Musings Spent yesterday evening and all day today helping a friend move... lots of stuff yet to move, but most of the big stuff (beds, sofa, bookcases, etc. etc.) moved. Coming along well. I'm dog tired. My bad joints are killing me. (And the thunderstorms we've been having yesterday and today don't help that any.) But I was expecting to be feeling like I am, except for one thing: For some reason... just beyond the edge of being able to make out what's being sung... I keep thinking that I hear bad country music from my living room. But when I go in there... nothing. It's kinda creepy. I assume it's something to do with my fatigue and pain... but I've never hallucinated country music before...

Re: Desintegrator Weapons I just never cared for the competing brand that used the rack-n-pinion molecule... polishing a yo-yo is NOT the same as polishing a disintegrator pistol, regardless of what the ad campaigns would have you believe...

Re: Desintegrator Weapons That's what you get when you forget to keep it properly buffed and polished with illudium phosdex.

Re: Desintegrator Weapons [snort] Yeah. And I had the bad luck to roll a 40% Luck score when creating my human character...

Re: Unofficial Handbook to the Champions Universe I have to say, I really like this idea, and at $5 I still think it'd be a bargain. Unfortunately, I am not an artist, and so can't contribute to that end of things. Characters? That I can do.

Re: Stargate Question Now, I know this next bit wasn't asked for, but I'm supplying it anyway. Below are the guidelines I gave to my players for creating PCs for my Stargate game. Yes, these ARE very high-point characters for a Heroic level game (especially considering how many points of "freebies" they get). The reason for this is that I wanted them to be very, very competant -- almost as competant as what we regularly see with SG-1. But by the same token, for writing up the SG-1 members, I'd start with this process... and add more. That way, SG-1 is still the premier team. But the PCs are still darn useful. ----- How to create your Stargate character: First, since these are heroic-level characters, everyone has Normal Characteristic Maxima as a 0-point Disadvantage. No characteristic may be bought above normal human max without GM permission. Characters are built on a base 100 points + 100 points in Disadvantages. (50 points of these will be detailed for you -- ones that every member of the SGC has in common -- leaving you to define 50 points' worth yourself.) Build your character as per the usual HERO System rules, except as follows: Everyman Skills: Use the "Modern" listing for Everyman Skills. These skills begin at 8- except the Professional Skill, which may be based on a characteristic (as if it were the 3 point version). These skills all cost 0 points each. SGC Basic Package: Every skill listed as part of the SGC basic package (or those you choose when asked to make a choice) cost you 0 points. Unless specifically stated otherwise, these skills begin at the full base level, not the 8- Familiarity of Everyman Skills. If a skill is included in both the Everyman and the SGC Basic skill lists, the SGC Basic listing overrides the Everyman listing. (Example: Deduction is a skill included on both lists. The Everyman would give you Deduction 8-; the SGC would give you [assuming a 10 INT] Deduction 11-. Use the SGC value.) Background Skills (Knowledges, Professions) are assumed to be the 3 point versions based on the appropriate characteristic unless the skill is specifically listed as being just an 8- Familiarity. You will also choose two skill packages (somewhat representing MOSes). All skills selected from these packages cost 0 points, and are added to your character exactly as the skills in the SGC Basic package were (replacing Everyman Skills if appropriate, Background Skills being the 3 point versions, and so on.) Familiarities represent what is, in essence, a free 1-point skill. If after choosing your Everyman Skills, SGC Basic package skills and your MOS package skills you have some 8- Familiarities you'd like to turn into the full 3-point versions of those skills, you may do so by paying points from the 200 points you are using to build your character, just as if you were buying a skill not on the list. The difference is that since you have already spent (in essence) 1 point to get the Familiarity (even though it cost you zero) you must only spend the difference -- 2 points -- to make it the "full" version of the skill. (Example: Shadowing is an Everyman Skill; you get it at 8- and it costs you 0 points. If you wish to turn that into the full version of the skill, based on a characteristic, you only pay 2 points since you already have 1 point's worth of the Shadowing skill [it doesn't matter that you didn't *pay* for that 1 point's worth.]) Rank: Every character begins with a military rank; the exact title of rank varies depending on their branch of service. The beginning rank is either 2nd Lieutenant (Army/Marines/Air Force) or Ensign (Navy, Coast Guard). This would normally be a 5-point Perk, but you pay 0 points for it. You may buy a higher rank if you wish by paying points from the 200 points you are using to build your character. Each step up in rank costs 5 points. You cannot buy a rank higher than Major (Army/Marines/Air Force) or Lt. Commander (Navy, Coast Guard) without GM permission. Security Clearance: Every character begins with Security Clearance Level 6. You may buy a higher Security Clearance Level if you wish by paying points from the 200 points you are using to build your character. Each step up in Security Clearance Level costs 1 point. You cannot buy a Security Clearance Level higher than 7 without GM permission. The Ancient Gene: If you wish your character to have the Ancient gene, this is a 5-point Perk you may buy using the 200 points you have to build your character. Basic SG Team Member Training AK: Colorado Springs AK: Stargate Command (Cheyanne Mountain Complex) AK: Choose one other planet where some of the character's field training took place Bureaucratics Climbing Concealment Deduction FAM: KS: Allies of Earth 8- KS: Enemies of Earth KS: Military Procedures and Protocols (specify service branch) KS: Stargate Command Procedures and Protocols Choose 1: KS: First Contact Procedures KS: Goa'uld System Lords KS: Terran Myths Martial Arts: Offensive (choose 2) Choke Hold Martial Strike Nerve Strike Martial Arts: Defensive (choose 2) Martial Block Martial Disarm Martial Dodge Martial Escape Martial Arts: Takedowns (choose 1) Legsweep Martial Grab Martial Throw Paramedics PS: Soldier PS: Stargate Operator Stealth Survival (Temperate/Subtropical) Teamwork Weapon Familiarity: Small Arms [includes assault rifles, light machine guns (like the P90), handguns, rifles, shotguns, submachine guns and thrown grenades] Weapon Familiarity (Choose 2): WF: Goa'uld Weapons WF: Common Martial Arts Weapons WF: Emplaced Weapons WF: Shoulder-Fired Weapons, Grenade Launchers WF: Flamethrowers, Early Firearms +1 to Perception Rolls with all senses +1 OCV with Small Arms Security Clearance: Level 6 (as a comparison, the scale only goes to 10 so the President would be a '10'. A filing clerk at the Pentagon might be a 1 because they'd have to handle some classified stuff. Each level of Security Clearance costs 1 point.) Rank: 2nd Lieutenant (Army/Marines/Air Force) or Ensign (Navy/Coast Guard) (game note: this would cost 5 points if you were paying for it) Higher Ranks (each additional level of rank cost 5 points more than the previous rank) Army/Marines/Air Force Navy/Coast Guard 1st Lieutenant Lieutenant JG Captain Lieutenant Major Lieutenant Commander Lieutenant Colonel Commander Colonel Captain Brigadier General ---------- (no equivalent naval or CG rank) Major General Rear Admiral Lieutenant General Vice Admiral General Admiral Character Disadvantages: 15 Social: Subject to orders, responsible for those under your command (Very Frequently-, minor) 20 Watched: US Government (14-, More Powerful, NCI) 15 Hunted: Enemies of the SGC (Alien and Domestic) (8-, More Powerful) If you want your character to have the Ancient gene, that's a 5-point Perk: 5 Bloodline of the Ancients (has the Ancients gene) Choosing package elements: Each package tells you to choose four elements from those listed. Some elements are listed as "counts as 2" or "counts as 3". If you chose something that "counts as 2", then you'll only choose 2 other elements (for a total of 3) instead of the usual 4. If something prompts you to choose from a list, and says to choose more than 1, then BOTH CHOICES TOGETHER count as one element. For example, check the "Advanced Surivival" package: Advanced Survival (Choose 4) Bump of Direction Lightsleep Navigation Riding plus TF: Equines Survival (Choose 2): Arctic/Subarctic Desert Marine Mountains Tropical Urban Tracking Weaponsmith: Muscle-Powered Ranged Weapons, Muscle-Powered Hand-to-Hand Weapons +2 with Survival Let's say you want Lightsleep, Weaponsmith, Survival, and Tracking. Lightsleep and Tracking are no problem; just take them, and that leaves 2 of your 4 choices left. Survival directs you to choose 2 environments off the list. Say you pick Mountains and Urban. That's "Survival (Mountains, Urban)" and it only counts as *1* choice, leaving you with one remaining. Weaponsmith lists multiple items, but doesn't direct you to make a choice. That means that *all* the listed items count as one choice! So after making your 4 choices from the "Advanced Survival" package, you'd add these to your character: Lightsleep Tracking Survival (Mountain, Urban) Weaponsmith: Muscle-Powered Ranged Weapons, Muscle-Powered Hand-to-Hand Weapons ---------- Choose 2 of the following packages: Advanced Survival (Choose 4) Bump of Direction Lightsleep Navigation Riding plus TF: Equines Survival (Choose 2): Arctic/Subarctic Desert Marine Mountains Tropical Urban Tracking Weaponsmith: Muscle-Powered Ranged Weapons, Muscle-Powered H-to-H Weapons +2 with Survival Combat Specialist: Hand-to-Hand (Choose 4) Analyze Style (Martial Arts) Breakfall Rapid Attack: Hand-to-Hand (counts as 2) WF: Common Melee Weapons, Staffs WS: Muscled-Powered Hand-to-Hand Weapons and +1 with Weaponsmith Any 2 additional 4- or 5-point Martial Arts manuevers (counts as 3) +1 with Hand-to-Hand Combat (counts as 2) +1 with (choose any 3 hand-to-hand weapons or martial arts maneuvers) Combat Specialist: Ranged (Choose 4) Autofire Skill (Choose 1, counts as 2) Accurate Sprayfire Concentrated Sprayfire Rapid Autofire Skipover Sprayfire Demolitions Fast Draw Rapid Attack: Ranged (counts as 2) WF: Common Missile Weapons, Grenade Launchers WF: Heavy Machine Guns, Shoulder-Fired Weapons, Flamethrowers Choose 2: Weaponsmith: Muscle-Powered Ranged Weapons Weaponsmith: Firearms Weaponsmith: Chemical Weapons Weaponsmith: Incendiary Weapons +1 with Ranged Combat (counts as 2) +1 with (choose 3 ranged weapons or a ranged weapon category i.e. Small Arms) Communications/First Contact (Choose 4) Acting Bribery Conversation Oratory Persuasion PS: Diplomat Seduction Trading Information Specialist (Choose 4) Computer Programming Cramming Cryptography Scholar Any 2 KS Any 2 KS Any 2 KS +2 with Deduction Linguist/Historian (Choose 4) Cramming Cryptography Linguist Scholar Traveler Any 2 KS Any 2 Languages at 3pt. level Literacy in any 3 obscure/extinct languages Scientist/Researcher (Choose 4) Computer Programming Cramming Jack of All Trades Scientist Scholar Any 2 KS Any 2 PS Any 2 SS Scout/Intelligence Gathering (Choose 4) Lipreading Lockpicking Navigation Security Systems Shadowing Sleight of Hand Streetwise Tracking Technical/Engineering (Choose 4) Computer Programming Demolitions Electronics Inventor Mechanics Security Systems Any SS +1 with Electronics, Inventor, Mechanics Transport Specialist (Choose 4) Combat Driving Combat Piloting Mechanics Navigation Riding and TF: Equines TF: Large Motorized Ground Vehicles, Tracked Military Vehicles, Wheeled Military Vehicles TF: Small Planes, Large Planes, Helicopters TF: Small Wind-Powered Boats, Small Motorized Boats, Snowmobiles Unit Command (Choose 4) Analyze (Combat Technique) Interrogation System Operations Tactics +2 with Bureaucratics +1 with Tactics, Teamwork, Analyze +3 PRE +2 EGO

Re: Stargate Question Jaffa (Experienced) Val Char Cost 13 STR 3 13 DEX 9 12 CON 4 12 BODY 4 13 INT 3 14 EGO 8 15 PRE 5 12 COM 1 5 PD 2 5 ED 3 4 SPD 17 5 REC 0 30 END 3 35 STUN 10 7" RUN 2 2" SWIM 0 2 1/2" LEAP 0 Characteristics Cost: 74 OCV: 4 DCV: 4 ECV: 5 Phases: 3, 6, 9, 12 Cost Power 6 Regeneration: Healing 1d6, Can Heal Sense Organs (cure blindness, deafness, etc.), 0 END (+1/2), Persistent (+1/2); Extra Time (3 Hours, -3 1/2), Self Only (-1/2), IIF Symbiote (-1/4) 8 Symbiote: LS (Immunity: disease); IIF Symbiote (-1/4) Powers Cost: 14 Cost Martial Arts Maneuver 5 Defensive Block: 1/2 Phase, +1 OCV, +3 DCV, Block, Abort 3 Legsweep: 1/2 Phase, +2 OCV, -1 DCV, Weapon +1 DC Strike, Target Falls 5 Offensive Strike: 1/2 Phase, -2 OCV, +1 DCV, Weapon +4 DC Strike 4 Weapon Bind: 1/2 Phase, +1 OCV, +0 DCV, Bind, 23 STR 1 Weapon Element: Staff Weapon Martial Arts Cost: 18 Cost Skill 6 +2 with Goa'uld weapons 2 Penalty Skill Levels: +2 vs. Inaccuracy with a staff weapon 2 AK: Home world (Everyman) 12- 2 Climbing (Everyman) 12- 3 Combat Piloting 12- 2 Deduction (Everyman) 12- 4 KS: Enemies of his System Lord (Everyman) 14- 4 KS: Jaffa Procedures and Protocols (Everyman) 14- 4 KS: Religion based on his System Lord (Everyman) 14- 4 KS: The System Lords (Everyman) 14- 0 Language: Goa'uld (idiomatic) 3 Navigation (Hyperspace, Space) 12- 3 PS: Jaffa (Everyman) 14- 2 Paramedics (Everyman) 12- 3 Security Systems 12- 2 Stealth (Everyman) 12- 3 Systems Operation 12- 5 Tactics 13- 0 TF: Goa'uld Spacecraft 1 WF: Goa'uld Weapons 2 Weaponsmith (Goa'uld Weapons) 12- Skills Cost: 57 Cost Perk 3 Fringe Benefit: Low Justice: Character has the right to mete out justice. 4 Reputation: Jaffa! (A large group) 11-, +2/+2d6 Perks Cost: 7 Total Character Cost: 170 Pts. Disadvantage 5 Dependence: Must meditate in Kel No Reem trance for two hours out of every 24 or suffer Incompetence and Weakness 10 DF: Jaffa (forehead marking, stomach pouch, etc.) (Easily Concealed; Major Reaction) 5 Enraged: When his System Lord's divinity is questioned (Uncommon), go 8-, recover 14- 10 Hunted: Jaffa of a rival System Lord 8- (As Pow, Harsh) 10 Phys: Dependent on presence of symbiote (Infreq, Greatly) 15 Phys: Symbiote renders host unconcious if host takes approx. 50% or more of BODY in a single hit (Infreq, Fully) 5 Psych: Aware his System Lord is not perfect or all-powerful (Unc, M) 20 Psych: Devoted to his System Lord (VC, S) 15 Rep: Merciless enforcer of a System Lord's will, 11- (Extreme) 5 Rivalry: Professional (Other Jaffa in his System Lord's service; As Pow; Outdo) 20 Social Limitation: Subject to orders (Very Frequently, Major) Disadvantage Points: 100 Base Points: 50 Experience Required: 20 Total Experience Available: 20 Experience Unspent: 0 Notes: This Jaffa has been around a while (though not as long as Master Bretak) and has a bit more experience under his belt. His stats are a little higher, and he's got enough practice with his staff weapon to not only offset the "Inaccurate" penalty entirely, but to be at a net +2 OCV using it...a MUCH more dangerous foe! He's also slightly faster on foot (7" Run), his Skill Rolls are a bit higher, he's added another manuever to his martial arts, and he's picked up a couple of new skills like Tactics and Navigation: Hyperspace. He can also service and repair his own weapons. Though the amount of his Disad points have stayed the same, the Disads themselves have changed slightly. In particular, note that his "Devoted" Psych Lim has gone from "Total" down to "Strong" -- he's experienced enough now to be not quite the fanatic that a newly-minted Jaffa would be. He's also picked up a new small Psych Lim "Aware his System Lord is not perfect or all-powerful" to make up the difference. He's no less devoted to his god, but he's aware his god has feet of clay. This is overall a 170 point character as opposed to the 90 point cost of the "average" Jaffa. His abilities are considerably greater, and experienced Jaffa should be used with CAUTION by the GM, as they are FAR more likely to be a significant danger to the PCs.

Re: Stargate Question Now the write-ups for the Jaffa. Keep in mind... this is for a Heroic game! So while the stats of the Jaffa may seem too low, remember that they're pretty impressive next to a "regular" or "man-on-the-street" human. So, first, for comparison, average humans: Average "Man on the Street" 8 STR 8 DEX 8 CON 8 BODY 8 INT 8 EGO 8 PRE 8 COM 2 PD 2 ED 2 SPD 4 REC 16 END 16 STUN Average "Fit and Toned" Human 10 STR 10 DEX 10 CON 10 BODY 10 INT 10 EGO 10 PRE 10 COM 2 PD 2 ED 2 SPD 4 REC 20 END 20 STUN Jaffa (Average) Val Char Cost 13 STR 3 12 DEX 6 11 CON 2 11 BODY 2 10 INT 0 12 EGO 4 12 PRE 2 10 COM 0 3 PD 0 3 ED 1 3 SPD 8 5 REC 0 25 END 2 25 STUN 1 6" RUN 0 2" SWIM 0 2 1/2" LEAP 0 Characteristics Cost: 31 OCV: 4 DCV: 4 ECV: 4 Phases: 4, 8, 12 Cost Power 6 Regeneration: Healing 1d6, Can Heal Sense Organs (cure blindness, deafness, etc.), 0 END (+1/2), Persistent (+1/2); Extra Time (3 Hours, -3 1/2), Self Only (-1/2), IIF Symbiote (-1/4) 8 Symbiote: LS (Immunity: disease); IIF Symbiote (-1/4) Powers Cost: 14 Cost Martial Arts Maneuver 5 Defensive Block: 1/2 Phase, +1 OCV, +3 DCV, Block, Abort 3 Legsweep: 1/2 Phase, +2 OCV, -1 DCV, Weapon +1 DC Strike, Target Falls 4 Weapon Bind: 1/2 Phase, +1 OCV, +0 DCV, Bind, 23 STR 1 Weapon Element: Staff Weapon Martial Arts Cost: 13 Cost Skill 3 +1 with Goa'uld weapons 1 Penalty Skill Levels: +1 vs. Inaccuracy with a staff weapon 2 AK: Home world (Everyman) 11- 2 Climbing (Everyman) 11- 3 Combat Piloting 11- 0 Deduction (Everyman) 8- 2 KS: Enemies of his System Lord (Everyman) 11- 2 KS: Jaffa Procedures and Protocols (Everyman) 11- 2 KS: Religion based on his System Lord (Everyman) 11- 2 KS: The System Lords (Everyman) 11- 0 Language: Goa'uld (idiomatic) 2 Navigation (Space) 11- 1 PS: Jaffa (Everyman) 11- 0 Paramedics (Everyman) 8- 1 Security Systems 8- 0 Stealth (Everyman) 8- 3 Systems Operation 11- 0 TF: Goa'uld Spacecraft 1 WF: Goa'uld Weapons Skills Cost: 27 Cost Perk 3 Fringe Benefit: Low Justice: Character has the right to mete out justice. 2 Reputation: Jaffa! (A large group) 11-, +1/+1d6 Perks Cost: 5 Total Character Cost: 90 Pts. Disadvantage 5 Dependence: Must meditate in Kel No Reem trance for two hours out of every 24 or suffer Incompetence and Weakness 10 DF: Jaffa (forehead marking, stomach pouch, etc.) (Easily Concealed; Major Reaction) 5 Enraged: When his System Lord's divinity is questioned (Uncommon), go 8-, recover 14- 10 Hunted: Jaffa of a rival System Lord 8- (As Pow, Harsh) 10 Phys: Dependent on presence of symbiote (Infreq, Greatly) 15 Phys: Symbiote renders host unconcious if host takes approx. 50% or more of BODY in a single hit (Infreq, Fully) 25 Psych: Devoted to his System Lord (VC, T) 15 Rep: Merciless enforcer of a System Lord's will, 11- (Extreme) 5 Rivalry: Professional (Other Jaffa in his System Lord's service; As Pow; Outdo) 20 Social Limitation: Subject to orders (Very Frequently, Major) Disadvantage Points: 100 Base Points: 0 Experience Required: 0 Total Experience Available: 0 Experience Unspent: 0 Notes: This is your average, run-of-the-mill Jaffa foot soldier -- willing to lay down his life in the service of his System Lord. He's quite effective against ordinary citizenry or populations, but one-on-one probably not that big a threat to a PC. Unfortunately for PCs, Jaffa tend to travel in groups. I guesstimated his Regen recovery time at 1 BODY every 3 hours...far faster than human, but not up to the level of Wolverine...after all, this isn't a comic book setting! If you think some other rate (like 1 per hour) would be more appropriate, it won't change his cost by more than about 2 points or so at most. One thing to notice is that the total character cost is 90 points but he has 100 points in Disads. This leaves a little room (10 pts. worth) for growth as he begins to gain experience. You may also want to spend them now, perhaps on some increased END or STUN. Also note that if you need more points... this Jaffa was built on 0 Base points + 100 Disadvantage points. So you could simply increase his Base points from 0 to, say, 25. Now, I want to draw your attention to one of the Disadvantages -- "Symbiote renders host unconcious if host takes approx. 50% or more of BODY in a single hit". This is ENTIRELY supposition on my part, and NOTHING in the show backs it up... so feel free to delete it. Here's my reasoning: Though the System Lords seem to have no hesitation in treating their Jaffa as expendable... getting a new Jaffa takes about 15 years. So they can't be quite as expendable as it seems. My thought was that if they suffer a catastrophic wound -- 50% or more of their BODY in a single hit -- their symbiote takes matters into its own, er, hands... and puts them into an unconcious state while it repairs the damage. This is to prevent them from doing something stupid (like continuing to fight) and getting themselves killed when they're already grieviously injured. And since one shot of a staff weapon generally seems to drop a Jaffa... this could also (in addition to the Increased Stun Mult. listed in the staff weapon write-up) help explain why they drop so "easily". (It also seems obvious that if this is the case, really experienced Jaffa, like Teal'c or Master Bretak, may be able to override this "off switch" -- perhaps replacing the Physical Limitation with an Accidental Change and adjusting the roll to suit.)

Re: Stargate Question Jaffa Body Armor: Armor (4 PD/6 ED); OIF (-1/2), Real Armor (-1/4) Active Cost: 15 Real Cost: 8 SG Tactical Vest: Armor (4 PD/2 ED); Standard Vest (Protects Locations 11-13; -1 1/2), OIF (-1/2), Real Armor (-1/4) Active Cost: 9 Real Cost: 3 Notes: Basic armor. Naturally the Jaffa body armor is better than that made on Earth, and is more heavily weighted towards repelling energy damage (since their own weapons are energy-based). The "Real Amor" limitation is functionally equivalent to the "Real Weapon" limitation. The "standard vest" limiation means that unlike the Jaffa, the SG teams don't wear full body armor. In most cases this won't make a difference, as most of us don't use "Hit Location" rolls...so if they get hit, it can be assumed the Tactical Vest will do its bit to help protect them. If someone *DOES* deliberately target an arm or a leg, though (with the associated OCV penalties) and hits, there are NO defenses from the Tactical vest on that location.

Re: Stargate Question FN-P90 Tactical SMG: RKA 1d6+1 Autofire (5 shots; +1/2) 4 clips of 50 Charges (+1/2) +2 Increased STUN Multiplier (+1/2) Limited Penetrating: Penetrating x3, not vs. vehicle armor, FF, FW, or Combat Luck (+3/4) OAF (-1) STR Minimum 10 (STR Min. Cannot Add/Subtract Damage; -1) Real Weapon (-1/4) Beam (-1/4) plus Reduced Recoil Impulse: +2 with Ranged Combat OAF (-1) Linked (Tactical SMG -3/4) Real Weapon (-1/4) plus Sights: Penalty Skill Levels: +1 vs. Range Modifier with All Attacks OAF (-1) Linked (Tactical SMG -3/4) Real Weapon (-1/4) Active Cost: 78 Real Cost: 22 Notes: The FN-P90 is a real-world submachinegun currently in use by select units of the U.S. armed forces. It is most notable for its incredible penetrating power; it can put its NATO-standard 5.7x28mm rounds through up to 48 layers of Kevlar at a range of 150 meters!! To reflect this, the write-up includes x3 Penetrating, which should go right through any body armor out there. But to keep this from being death-on-toast for vehicles or PCs, the Penetrating advantage doesn't work vs. vehicles, force fields, force walls (Goa'uld System Lord defenses) or Combat Luck (the PC's "edge"). To reflect the weapon's accuracy, the write-up includes a +2 OCV with Ranged Combat and a +1 to offset Range penalties (the "iron sights" on top of the weapon). Since submachine guns are designed for use at fairly close range anyway and tend to get very innacurate over about 20 to 30 meters, this should adequately reflect the "real-world" capabilties of the weapon.

Re: Stargate Question Staff Weapon Plasma Burst: RKA 3d6+1, Standard Effect for Stun Multiplier (= x2) (+0) +2 Increased STUN Multiplier, Only vs. those carrying a Goa'uld or who have naquadah in their system (+1/4) 0 END (+1/2) OAF (-1) STR Minimum 11 (STR Min. Cannot Add/Subtract Damage; -1) Requires Two Hands (-1/2) Inaccurate: -2 OCV (-1/2) Beam (-1/4) Real Weapon (-1/4) plus Staff Strike: HA +5d6 0 END (+1/2) OAF (-1) Hand-To-Hand Attack (-1/2) STR Minimum 13 (-1/2) Requires Two Hands (-1/2) Real Weapon (-1/4) Active Cost: 124 Real Cost: 29 Notes: The staff weapon has two possible methods of attack: the plasma burst (firing it at range) or using it like a club (the "staff strike", which is your normal STR damage + 5d6). The "Standard Effect" note on the Stun Multiplier means it's set at 2. So if you do 10 Body with the killing attack, you'll do 20 Stun. If you do 12 Body, you'll do 24 Stun. And so on. This eliminates the chance of "one bad die roll completely takes a PC out of the fight with the first shot." However, the increased Stun Multiple (+2) vs. those carrying a Goa'uld means that, for example, the Jaffa who get hit with a staff weapon plasma burst take x4 Stun...in other words, 10 Body means 40 Stun; 12 Body means 48 Stun, and so on. The "Inaccurate" Limitation is NOT the official version (which either cuts OCV in half, or takes OCV to zero) but a custom one I did for myself... I treat every -1 OCV as a -1/4 Limitation. The "Inaccurate" is there because the staff weapon isn't exactly a good design for a ranged weapon if you're looking for accuracy, and most Jaffa we've seen in the show fire lots of shots but seem to rarely hit their targets. Now... why the Increased Stun Multiplier vs. those carrying a Goa'uld or that have naquadah in their systems? Well, it seems the usual major threat to a System Lord and his troops is... another System Lord and his troops! So I reasoned that the staff weapons plasma bolt had was probably "tuned" to be at peak efficiency against other Jaffa. And since all current Goa'uld (and their larva) have the power mineral naquadah in their system, I thought that perhaps a proper frequency of pulse might cause a tiny, tiny, tiny burst of power liberation from that naquadah, resulting in a larger shock to the system than just the plasma burst on its own. (Plus, on the show, Jaffa tend to drop after a single hit, regardless of their wearing armor. An Increased Stun Mult. seemed like a good way to usually get them to go down in one hit... but also see my Jaffa write-up notes.)

Re: Stargate Question Okay... found my notes. I'm going to start with the weapons and equipment first, because that will help make sense of some of the notes in the character write-ups. Oh... I should also note that, though the PCs had a VERY high number of points, most of that was in lots and lots of skills, and I treated this as a Heroic-level game. That may help if some of the values in the write-ups seem a little... low. First, the zat. I went round and round and round with this thing... and part of the problem is that what we've seen in the show isn't exacty consistant. (1 shot stuns, 2 shots kill, 3 shots disintegrate... that seems consistant. Except they also use the "3 shots disintigrate" for inanimate objects, and the first two have no visible effect on an inanimate object. Except one 1 shot can cause control crystals to short and explode. That sort of thing.) I tried all kinds of combos of NND Does Body and so on... but eventually decided to go with some custom Limitations instead: Zat'nik'tel Electrical EB 18d6 (standard effect: 54 STUN, 18 BODY) 0 END (+1/2) Invisible Power Effects, Hide effects of Power, SFX Only (Fully Invisible; +1) OAF (-1) STR Minimum 5 (STR Min. Cannot Add/Subtract Damage; -3/4) Cannot Use Targeting (-1/2) Attack completely negated by any Force Field or Force Wall (-1/2) BODY damage done recovers at 1 BODY every post-12; no 'bleeding' occurs if victim is below 0 BODY (-1/2) Beam (-1/4) Real Weapon (-1/4) Reduced By Range (-1/4) BODY damage done to inanimate objects has no measurable effect until 3rd shot (-1/4) Active Cost: 225 Real Cost: 43 Notes: The zat has a *chance* to kill an unarmored "average human" on the first shot, since it does 18 BODY and the "average human" has a BODY of 8 and an ED of 2. (18 Body - 2 ED = 16 Body gets through; to kill someone in HERO you have to put them as far below 0 as they are above it...in other words, must do twice their BODY score to kill them. Since the "average human" has a BODY score of 8, twice that is 16 -- exactly what gets through the "average human" defenses.) However, this is only likely if the firer is at point-blank range to his target; the "Reduced by Range" Limitation means that even a couple of feet will drop the damage to 17 BODY...so the "average human" would be at -7 BODY after being shot this way. Since the BODY damage does recovers slowly -- and no "lose an extra BODY point due to bleeding" occurs even though the victim is below zero -- killing the average "man on the street" should be something that happens in only the most UNUSUAL circumstances. As-is, though, it SHOULD drop all but the most hardy (or heavily defended/insulated) PCs with one shot due to the STUN...just like we see on TV. Given that the Body damage does recover, this means that if long enough elapses between shots the "second shot" won't kill a target; in other words, due to the time lapse, things have "reset" and this "second shot" (say, an hour later) acts like a first shot all over again. It may be possible to build up a kind of tolerance or resistance to the effects of the zat, as there have been RARE occasions where we've seen one of the SG-1 team shot with a zat and, while they were more or less physically disabled, they were not out cold. The "Invisible Power Effects (SFX Only)" means that although Body damage is being done, there are no blast marks, burns, etc. -- no outward signs of damage -- until the "disintegrate" level of effect is reached. (It does NOT mean that the zat blasts themselves are invisible... as they obviously are not. )

Re: Quote of the Week from my gaming group... Coming from someone who uses the avatar you do, this is just too funny!

Re: Campaign Limits: what's your formula? Thanks... glad to have been of help. And I hope one day to actually have the write-ups for the Non-Traditionals done...

Re: The Champion Protocols (ie how to take down your character)

Re: Stargate Question Google image search for "serpent guard". Also go to this fan art page and scroll down a bit: http://www.stargateworlds.com/?id=fanart And check out http://www.jaffalegions.com -- for costumes and weapon replicas. A few decent pics.

Re: Stargate Question

Re: Stargate Question I do have HERO write-ups for the Jaffa, if that's what you mean.

Re: Modeling Leverage

Re: Campaign Limits: what's your formula?

Re: Ok, this is a Stargate question? I just checked the first season episode with the Antarctica gate... "Solitudes". They do in fact explicitly say the point of origin symbol on the Antarctic gate is different from the Giza gate. (The point of origin symbol on the Antarctic gate is a large, solid circle with a small bar to one side.)

Re: Champions Assemble! For the Millennium Knights -- tight-linked, scrambled, untappable subvocal communicators that are well-enough hidden (they work via bone conduction) we can wear and use them even in civilian ID... though speaking into them while in civilian ID is something we need to be careful about (Mind Link, IIF, etc. etc.)

Re: Campaign Limits: what's your formula? I started my players out with 100 + 100 points and a 30 Active Point cap. That applied to things like Characteristics, too, though I had to make an exception for Dex. (For example, no STR above 30, but since the base 10 Dex is already worth 30 points, no more than 30 points could be SPENT in Dex). And for layered stuff... nothing can "stack" past the limit, and I generally say that defenses have an Active cap of 1/2 whatever the max is. (So with a 30 AP cap... that's 6d6 on an attack like an Energy Blast, and thus a 15 point AP on a defense, like Energy Defense. Thus, on average, 6d6 does 21 Stun and 6 BODY, so no BODY and 6 Stun get through the defense. That seems to keep things pretty well balanced.) I started them as freshmen, and I figured that by the end of the school year they should be up to about 230 points total and an AP cap of 40-45. From there, what I'm figuring (and how I built the upperclassmen NPCs) is roughly: Sophomores start their sophomore year with: 230 points total (100 base, 100 Disads, 30 xp), Active Point Cap of 40-45 on any one power, characteristic, framework pool, etc. Most Skills should probably be 11- or 12- at max, though one focus skill for that student might be as high as 14- or 15-. Juniors start their junior year with: 260 points total (100 Base, 110 Disads, 50 xp), Active Point Cap of 50-55 on any one power, characteristic, framework pool, etc. Most Skills should probably be 12- or 13- at max, though one focus skill for that student might be as high as 15-. Seniors start their senior year with: 300 points total (100 Base, 125 Disads, 75 xp), Active Point Cap of 60-70 on any one power, characteristic, framework pool, etc. Most Skills should probably be 13- at max, though one focus skill for that student might be as high as 15-. ...and that by the end of their senior year they should be 350 point characters with an AP cap of 75. Or, in another words... very much like most starting Champions superheroes, save they have fewer base points and a buttload of experience.

Re: Musings on Random Musings Don't give Foxbat ideas...