Doc Samson

Re: [Character] Blackstar, The Human Black Hole! Tons of feedback here, nice! Visible - Actually yah, that's the kind of thing I was thinking of. I love BIG sfx and the Visible Limitation lets me talk more about what everyone sees, hears, and for many of the powers, feels when they are active. Kirby Dots for the win!. OIHID - In our group it is pretty standard that switching identities is easily preventable by bopping the character on the head or some such. It takes time, during which the character can't take other actions, and is easily interuptable. In other words, we usually don't allow switching forms as a combat action. It's harsh, but you save a ton of points. Mass - I agree and he didin't have Linked bought to this level in other write-ups. The only thing I can say is that to mitigate damage to the environment, he spends alot of time Flying (or hovering). CSL - Woops, oversight on my part. The Levels are for Strike, Grab, and Move Through. NCM - Hmm...I never looked at it that way. If I were forced to propose an opposing argument, I would say that in this case it's necessary to make the OIHID Limitation an actual limitation. If Banner had superhuman abilities while in human form, there wouldn't be as many situations that could keep him from changing into the Hulk. The Government - In our campaigns, the Government (especially the Military) is almost a constant antagonist to characters with this type of Disad. They monitor everything, and frequently interfere in the interest of "National Security". All in all, the main goal of this Disad is more roleplaying (the stuff that happens outside combat ). It differs from Subject to Orders, in our campaigns in that StO actually influences (or even dictates) the characters actions. StO implies a willingness to to follow said orders, which is not always the case with Watched. Subject to Orders - What happens if you don't follow orders? Court Martial! Change that Watched to a Hunted, Captain AWOL! This has happend before in our campaigns and the character either has to make good on the disobeyed order, or swap out the Disads for others of the same point value (such as Hunted and Reputation). Public ID vs. Fame - Yah, I do believe this does qualify as a double dip. I should probably switch one out. They do however reresent diffent social aspects, he's not just a famous suerhero, he's also a amous astronaut. One represents the inconvenience of being mobbed by fans and harassed by paprazzi, the other represents supervillains showing up at your home in the middle of the night. True Hero vs. Celebrity - This is a complicated question that is difficult to answer, and sometimes even harder to roleplay. He's a true hero at heart, but he still loves the fame and likes to ham it up for the public. I think a similar example might be Johnny Storm as portrayed in the Fantastic Four movies. He's a real hero, but it's hard to see it until the chips are down, but when they are his true colors shine through. Thx for the great input.

Re: [Character] Blackstar, The Human Black Hole! Your right. On the Cosmic write-up he a Naked Advantage, Explosion on his STR with the Limitation only to Grab and pull things towards him. I like that the effect got stronger the closer you were to to him. Alas, I had to cut many powers to shave him down to 350 pts. For now I'll have to make due with the "tugging sensation" being the SFX of the Visible/ Noisy Damage Shield.

Re: [Character] Blackstar, The Human Black Hole!

Re: [Character] Blackstar, The Human Black Hole! You are correct, but there is a method to my madness. The character's "schtick" is that he is as hard to get away from as a Black Hole, and in fact only a character that is much stronger or faster than him (but see below) has any chance of escaping his Grab. It's not obvious on paper but the effect plays well. To get away from him after a successful Grab (which triggers the Clinging DS), you must succeed in a STR roll against the Grab and then succeed in a STR roll against the Clinging, which as far as I can tell is two actions (so it can't be done in the same phase). Now, if he is Grabbed in return, he first gets a Casual STR Roll roll to shrug it off (at his full STR), and then his normal STR to roll to Escape. Essentially this means that it takes two rolls to Escape him, but he gets two rolls when Escaping. Clever eh?

Re: [Character] Glitterbunny So you can get past a CVK with a good enough EGO Roll right?

Re: [Character]Blackstar, The Human Black Hole! A few of the powers already have Visible SFX but I wasn't sure how to take the Noisy version of Visible using Hero Creator. I guess I could just use a Custom Modifier. Thx for the Input!

This is a work in progress as the original character write-up was created for a Cosmic Champions (600+ pts.) game and I am currently scaling him down for a 350 pt. game. I just wanted to throw him out there as I thought the Black Hole based concept was cool.

Re: [Character] Impact

Re: [Character] Impact The section under Side Effects (5ER pg. 308, No Defense Applies) would seem to indicate there is no defense against this type of damage. An average roll (10-11) will put an average person (~8 BODY) into negative BODY, which will result in death after a few turns. Unless the roll is low (<9), the bystanders are exceptionally tough (>8 BODY), or Paramedics are standing by, there will likely be fatalities. Based on how much environment the GM decides is affected, the effects could be devastating.

Re: [Character] Impact Good questions. Absorption is a Constant Power (and I did not buy the Power with Persistent or Always On). When the character is Stunned (such as after he explodes), the power shuts off preventing further Absorption. I am also considering adding the Limitation (or as part of the Physical Disadvantage) that when the power is shut off, all Absorbed points are immediately lost. This would prevent a player from shutting the power off to prevent exploding (if he did, all absorbed points would be lost). I would let the GM determine the radius of the blast (as Side Effects does not indicate how much of the environment must be effected) based on dramatic liscense.

Re: [Character] Impact Good question. I think my powers of description have fallen short. the explosion is the Side Effects limitation on Absorption. The Side Effect is four short term disadvantages (allowed for under side effects, 5ER pg. 308). The Side Effect is bought at the level that it effects both the character and the enviornment around the character. The damage from the explosion is the Susceptibility Disadvanatge (and this damage effects both the character and anything near him, per the limitation). Under Side Effects (5ER pg. 308, No Defense Applies), it is stated that there is no defense against the Side Effect. In summary, when the character explodes, he and everything near him takes 3d6 BODY and STUN of irresistable damage. The explosion is triggered by the Accidental Change Disadvantage, with the further effect of a Physical Limitation, which results in the character being automatically Stunned (shutting off all his powers). I didn't buy the explosion as a power because frankly, nothing good should come from it. I wanted it to be mostly a dramatic device, either forcing the character out of combat early or ending in disaster for everyone nearby. I like having it described almost purely in terms of Disadvantages, as then the results are left entirely in the hands of the GM (such as how big of a blast? who got caught in the radius? ect.). The only thing I am not sure about is whether I can claim points for both both the Limitation and the Disadvanatage. The reason I "think" I can is because of examples such the "Lame" Physical Limitation where you would get points for both the disadvantage and the points of Running you sold back. The character is inherently flawed. He is designed for long drawn out combats, but each Turn he keeps his Absorption power running, he risks blowing up himself and everyone around him. This is why I am not really sure what to do with him, other than maybe a tragic retired NPC. [EDIT] I think part of the problem may be that when you select the "affects character and envrionment" Side Effects option in Hero Creator, you only see "affects character and recipient of power". I took it for granted that everyone would know the side effect was bought to the "affects environment" level. I changed the build above to reflect this.

Not really sure what I want to do with this guy. He's kind of a homage to Captain Atom's and Nitro's explosions triggering major plot events. Am I double dipping with the Side Effects Limitation and the Disadvantages?

Re: Getting the heroes together (the first time) I like the cliche' tavern brawl, in our games it's usually a Bank Robbery. Here is an example of how I might set it up... Titan - XXX City First National Bank happens to be on the same block as Titan's comic book studio. Psych and Persona - are on a stakeout (jealous wife/ business man nooner type) accross the street from the bank Rush - is in the bank making a deposit for his successful practice. Vulcan - is at the bank getting the details of the stock split that is about to take place on the firm's stocks Rush, Psyche, and Persona - all happen to be on patrol in the area or hear about it over the police ban (or something else equally appropriate based on their professions). Scenario 1 - a team of minor villains arrive to knock over the bank. Thier reps let the players know that their individual characters cannot defeat them alone. Scenario 2 - a major villain arrives to knock over the bank, rep as above. Additional Circumnstances/ Reluctant Heroes - if any of the heroes, for whatever reason, aren't into stopping a robbery and saving people, take a look at their disads. Throw a DNPC or set off a Psych. Lim. if needed to get them to participate. I hope this at least gives you a few ideas.

Re: Exclusive: Collector Amasses Complete DC Collection I bet he gets all the chicks...

Re: [Character] Chatterbox The USPD supports that sonics is applied vs. ED (though I personally could see either). They have an NND RKA where the defense is an ED Force Field and their version of sonic immunity is ED Damage Reduction.

Re: Building a Puppeteer

Re: Building a Puppeteer Yah, the Costs END is too much. I would probaly bump it down to Costs END to Activate and add the RSR you had originally. Again, the problem with a Follower is that then you control the puppet, not the player. I didn't *think* that the Chakra Strings could pass through walls and such as they have been used to trip others. I tried to simulate this with the Physical Manifestation but I'm not sure. Your build is still very good and playable though, if you don't mind the puppet being an NPC. [edit] Nevermind this last part as I just read your last response. Other random thoughts. I tried to play a character similar to Kankuro in a Champs game. It was fun but had some frustrations. I used stealth and climbing frequently to minimize how often I was attacked directly but, when I was discovered or easily able to be gotten to it was usually a quick defeat. Making the puppet an automaton was tons of fun and he played alot like a brick. I bought his CON and REC down to zero and took the Healing power to similate the ability to repair him. My concept for the character was that he was a toymaker who created the marionette monstrosity to punish criminals who harm children. He had a bit of a dark edge and later in the game replaced a few of his own body parts with clockwork parts after a severe injury.

Re: Trying to figure out a good villain name Here is some inspiration for your search. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Evil_clown

Re: Building a Puppeteer http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kankuro http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_ninjutsu_in_Naruto_%28H-R%29#Puppet_Technique Follwers is one way, but without special GM permission you can't take modifiers on Perks (5ER pg. 78). Your build is very good though. Summon works too but then you are limited by the numbers of Tasks the Summoning will perform and each Phase of combat equals 1 Task (5ER pg. 224). IMHO the way to go is Duplication. I recommend the following Adders: Altered Duplicates (+1) to build the puppet as an Automaton (5ER pgs. 155 and 457-458) Cannot Recombine (-0) Costs Endurance (-1/2) to represent the expenditure of Chakra IIF (-1/4) to represent the puppet, though the puppet cannot be disarmed from the character and the character may hide while controlling it Physical Manifestation (-1/4) to represent the Chakra Strings as they can be attacked seperately from the puppet Gestures, Both Hands, Constant (-1) to represent that the puppet cannot be controlled unless the character's handa are free Concentration, Constant (-1/2) to represent that controlling the puppet requires considerable effort Limited Power: Limited Range (-1/4) Limited Power: Character must maintain LoS with the Duplicate or the Duplicate is treated as Blinded (-1/4) I hope this helps.

Re: Bricks Get Hosed, Or Not I was thinking more along the lines of high STR related rules bonuses that don't necessarily require too much handwaving by the GM. #9 is cool but even though REC and PD are related to STR, it could theoretically apply to any AT. #10 is exactly the kind of stuff I was thinking of. It should be an easy ruling to estimate the length of a telephone pole, for instance, and it's DEF and BODY are listed in the book. #11 isn't really STR related as it could be done with many types of attacks, and would require alot of handwaving on the part of the GM. Great ideas. Anyone have any others?

Re: Bricks Get Hosed, Or Not Lets make a list of STR-related tricks and tactics. Lord Liaden has layed the brickwork...pun intended. 1) Grabs (pg. 388), as an option, if a Grabbers has 20 STR or more that the Grabee (common situation for a brick), then the standard Gran penalties are greatly lessened. 2) Throwing/ Leaping - As per the STR and Throwing charts (pg. 34-35), bricks start off with a decent base movement and ranged attack (potentially based on the environment). 3) Improvised AE attacks - Though 5ER does not have the example of this previously described in 4E, there are still rules available. Using Objects As Weapons (pg. 447) describes how much damage they cause. It is up to the GM to say exactly how big something is in game terms (and of coarse what items are available). 4) Lifting/ Pulling things - Casual STR (pg.34) can allow a brick to do things for free that cost other characters actions. 5) Reducing Falling damage - That extra leaping is good for more than just cheerleading (pg. 435). 6) Resisting Knockback (pg. 421) - Non-bricks without Knockback Resistance or Flight (or Breakfall) are gonna spend alot of partial actions getting up off the floor, not to mention the possibility of suffering extra damage from crashing into something. 7) Move-Bys and Move Throughs (pg.384) - STR is the base damage for these types of attack (modified by velocity), so they are usually only an option for bricks and speedsters. 8) Disarm and Grab-By (pg. 384) - Good luck getting your Focus back after it's been grabbed by a brick (unless you are a Martial Artist with levels in Martial Disarm). Please feel free to add your own. I'll think of more when I have time.

Re: Zounds! How do I build "Zeus' Wounds?" Absorption won't pay for the whole effect I think, if thats the way you choose to go. For example, you get hit by a 12 dice attack in a 60 AP game, on average you will absorb 12 pts. of effect. That will only create a 60 pt. Summon. You will need to have some base points in Summon for the Summoning to have enough points to be effective I think. My suggestion: To ease the flow of game play, I would use a Triggerered Summon instead of Absorption (less calculation). I would use a standard Summon and write it up with variable SFX, based on the the type of attack that triggered it. Here is a hasty example of how I might build the power in a 350 pt. game. Note, I didn't use a 0 Phase Action to activate or reset the Trigger because the power would then not function after you acted that Phase. I limited the summoned creatures to four 250 point characters for balance purposes assuming a 350 pt. game. 60 pts. "Zeus' Wounds" Summon [Four 250pt. "Zounds"], Trigger [One Condition (when struck in combat and taking at least 1 STUN worth of damage), Trigger Action Takes No Time, Character Does Not Control Trigger, Trigger Resets Automatically] (+3/4), Amicable [No EGO Roll Required to control Creature] (+1/4), Limited Power: Summoned Creatures Will only Attack the Foe that Triggered the Summon for EGO/ 4 Phases (Each Phase of Combat = 1 Task) (-1/2), Limited Power: Each Trigger only Summons one being at a time, to a maximum of four creatures. (-1/2) Limited Power: Summoned Creatures are banished automatically after their tasks are completed (0)

Re: Some issues with the Ultimate Series...

Re: Some issues with the Ultimate Series... Now this is truly brilliant and blows my construct out of the water. I realize you threw this out as just a suggestion, but it already has my mind whirling. One thing it doesn't allow is drama involving partial control or the victim breaking free but this can still be handled with side effects, disadvantages, or simple roleplaying. The biggest hurdle I see from a player's standpoint is that if the "possessed character" is knocked out or killed, then so is the player character.

Re: Problem with Missile Deflection