Delthrien

Also... If it were to be done this way, I'd think that any system the computer would be able to use would require the character to tack on the "Usable by Others" advantage in order for the computer to access it...

Oooo, that's a good one... I would say that, to be "immune", you'd have to buy desolid to Mental powers... but then, you'd have to buy all your other attacks and abilities with the appropriate advantage to be able to use them while "desolid." Of course, if you've got a flexible GM, then you might be able to get around this. OTOH, if you wanted a character who's just damn difficult to lock onto with mental powers, I'd go with the Invisibility. The FX could be any number of things -- The character can mimic the minds of others, deflect/block/shunt "mind beams", or maybe he's just really good at "blending in," being able to totally clear his mind of thoughts. My two bits. Probably overpriced. Charlie

Hmmm... Likely the camel's second hump was a cleverly disguised incendiary device...

Not sure... ... where it came from, but it goes something like: "I know a hundred ways to make you regret that. Pick a number..."

I believe... ... someone already mentioned Earthdawn. After Ars Magica, I'd have to say it's my favorite magic system. The setting was quite spiffy as well though, I might be biased, having been one of the playtesters on the 1st edition...

Mentally Ambidextrous? Why not adapt the ambidextrous talent to mental tasks? seems a bit easier than going through the motions of duplication...

Okay... ... So, arguments regarding "legality" aside, would the maneuvers described above be usable under the same circumstances as a block? My initial thought would be no, which, I suspect, is as it should be. If I'm interpretting this correctly, it looks like this kind of maneuver would be useful (or used) as a Held, ½ Phase action. A sort of "It looks like Goon #2 is going to try to deck me, so I'll use my held half to punch his knuckles" kind of thing. My take on it would be that this kind of maneuver would be useful against a "normal" strike in general, but not vs. Killing strikes, grabs, throws, or other "special" maneuvers. The scene that keeps flashing through my head is from the first "X-men" flick where Logan is in the cage, fighting and he breaks his opponent's hand as the other guy is throwing the punch... BTW, thanks for the in-depth responses, it's helping me get a handle on the stuff in the UMA...

Yup, he's got it sussed... That's the kind of thing I'm looking for. I've got the UMA but I haven't played with the custome maneuvers yet. If you have the time, I'd actually like to see a step-by-step example of how one is built. Many thanks! Charlie

I'm going for something that is essentially a "damaging block." You see them all the time in the movies. An opponent throws a kick and the defender essentially attacks the limb (with either a punch or kick) instead of merely blocking it. The "joint break" maneuver from UMA comes pretty close but isn't quite it. Does anyone have a suggestion that doesn't involve creating some kind of Damage Shield? It seems that this should be doable without having to resort to a "power." Unfortunately, my brain isn't up to the challenge at the moment. Charlie

Not fallen, per se... Merely chucked... and with autofire chucking activated, chucked very, very quickly...

Unfortuantely... ... this is all academic. PETA would almost certainly become involved at some point. Those involved in an empirical study of the chucking capability of a woodchuck would almost certainly find both themselves and the cords of wood drenched in buckets of the blood of senselessly exploited woodchucks... Charlie

Pretty close I think I'd buy a "base" DEX and then purchase additional points of DEX the limitation suggested. The limitation isn't intended to make the target easier to damage or slower than normal, merely easier to hit. However, now that I think about it, a vulnerability to attacks from those with EGO scores above a certain level seems appropriate... Thanks! Charlie

I'm trying to simulate a creature of magical origin who can be struck by a clumsy non-combatant with a strong will as easily as a highly trained fighter. The intent is that, when fighting such a creature, a strong will (EGO) counts as much (if not more) as a quick and steady hand (DEX). Would this best be done as a physical disadvantage or a limitiation of some kind on DEX... or both? Charlie

HA! Gonna be using that one soon, I just know it! A couple more that I've used in the past: Fantasy HERO game magic item -- Amulet of Thundrous Entrance: a 10" Teleport with a linked electrical explosion (w/hole). The explosion went off upon arrival. In 5th ed., I'd add linked Sound images to boost the "Thundrous" aspect... Not originally my idea (but was still fun) - PRE (PRE attack does knockback): Possessed by the hen-pecked villain's wife. Modelled loosely after Harry Mudd's wife "Stella" from the original Trek series. Can you tell the game lacked a certain degree of seriousness?

What kind of unusual powers have people created, either to fit a concept or just to do something different? The powers don't have to be particularly useful in combat (or particularly useful, even). My favorite to date is an Entangle, Does Knockback... for no readily apparent reason... it just struck me as funny when I wrote it... Charlie

Excellent! Many thanks, everyone! AM has long been my favorite magic system, but I'd been struggling with the translation to HERO (which has long been my favorite game system...). My next project to tackle is adapting it to a modern setting... Charlie

So... before I make the attempt meself, has anyone attempted the task of simulating the Ars Magica-style magic system in HERO? If so, how has it worked for you and are you willing to share?

That almost does it... I may actually go with the transform after all. I'd originally constructed it with a 2d6 transform and a smaller megascale advantage (for a "faster" transform). I'd also added in a -0 limit to represent that it doesnt' take full effect until the elapsed time away from the character equals/exceeds the time spent with the character. As an added "feature" of the power, it doesn't affect non-living things. I think it would be necessary for him to be able to interact with the world via recordings and messages.

Ooo! Oooo!! I was just reading through Steve Long's "Time Stop" power description regarding the "Hey, What happened" aspect of that, ummm... very expensive ability... Toned down a bit, i think it might very well serve the purpose... HOWEVER... If anyone else has a more elegant way of doing this, please feel free to chime in. No Rush... Really... COB on the 12th ought to do it... Thanks to everyone thus far! Charlie

The effect: The character, in general, cannot be remembered. If he interacts with you, you can remember him, but only for an amount of time roughly equal to the duration of that interaction (i.e., if you chat with him for 10 minutes, you will promptly forget him 10 mintues after you part company...). He can't turn the power off... The mechanics: Well, this is the part where it falls down. The current version has a rather large, area effect transform (0 range, persistent, always on, etc...). Not in itself a terrible thing, but it seems like an awful lot of points to spend on something that is as much a hindrance (if not moreso) as it is a benefit. Any suggestions? Charlie

This just in... Just found this from the MadSci Network (© 1997, Washington University Medical School) Guess that pretty well sums it up, eh? I seem to remeber something from an episode of the X-files where someone tested as "XYZ" -- the Z chromosome apparently indicating extraterrestrial origin. Cool, in a geeky sort of way. On yet another tangent, has anyone used genetics (other than Mutant origins...) in their games?

A question for any budding geneticists (or fully fledged ones for that matter..). If I remember my rudimentary genetics info from High School biology (and that is much farther back in my history than I care to remember...) Females are XX and Males are XY. Does anyone know of the existence of a YY chromosome out there? I believe there may be a couple of genetic disorders in which the patient may have an extra chromosome (as in XYY) or some such, but I've no idea what that entails for the "fortunate" individual. The reason for the curiosity is that there is a character concept in which the character is dubbed "The First Man" who genetically is YY. I just wondered if this is firmly in the realm of comic book "pseudo-science" or if there might be a spark of reality in the mix... Inquiring minds and all that... Charlie

I'm not a super genius but I play one in a campaign... Unfortunately, I have no insights to offer. The character in question seems to waffle between a sleuth and a gadgeteer (leaning more heavily to the gadgeteer side). There are a couple of things that I've done with the character to try to simulate the "super-sleuth/super-scientist" is a VPP that's limited to scientific/sleuthing skills. I had also tried a limited form of retrocognition to allow him to deduce what had happened at a crime scene based on the available evidence. Mixed results on that one. Someone had mentioned a "John Doe" inspiration earlier and, if I remember correctly, there had been a question on the old incarnation of the HERO boards regarding simulating the near "bottomless pit" of knowledge that Doe possesses. The most creative response that I recall was to give the character a "Knowledge Skill: Everything, 30-" to allow him to come up with even the most esoteric bits of information easily. I've almost tried running that one past the GM... ;-)

There's also Titans of Tomorrow... This is a game in which I've recently assumed the role of GM. It's mostly an interactive fiction game with a rather large amount of material written. We've been using the HERO system as the framework for the game. Whenever the rules are a bit restrictive (or would flat out forbid a given action), the plot and or the "coolness" factor takes precedence. Even if you don't want to wade through the tremendous amount of written material (which would be a shame), there are a rather large number of character write-ups, artwork, (incl. a fair amount by the Tremendously Talented Storn Cook) and brief NPC descriptions. You can find the link in the "Hero Links" section or you can point your browser to: http://www.dangermutt.net/tot/ Questions, Comments and the occasional smart remarks are welcome... Charlie

Standard answer of "If the GM allows it..." aside, would something like this be legal in FREd? I've got a player whose character is largely in another dimension. The character's physical presence is, for all intent's, a sort of "waldo" that he uses to interact with "the real world." The, ummm, creative use of Desolid would be an easier way to build such a character than buying all of the abilities/stats as "usable across dimensions..." I'm not so much concerned with point costs... I'm just lazy. Any thoughts or suggestions are appreciated. Charlie