DasBroot

As do vehicles but both come with restrictions of use (having to buy indirect on your attacks or one-way transparent on the Barrier, not always having access to the vehicle) so I wanted to leave them out of a 'baseline' comparison on build philosophy. Personally, I like Damage Reduction. A lot. I hate 'invulnerable' characters and find them dull - I want to bleed! At the same time a little PD/ED at least is required so that running out of Body (something most Champions characters rarely have to worry about) doesn't become a serious concern. So in a 12 DC game I might go with 12 rPD/rED (2 base + 10, all bought resistant) and 50% resistant DR to both. Higher than average hits will inflict body making any fight involving good rolls or villains of higher than average attack a threat to life. Which I like. Anyone else have favorite values or combinations? How much body and stun do you find acceptable to take per hit of a campaign average attack? Or if you're running the game how much do you prefer a character takes?

So... the current foreign policy, then?

That's what I thought. It didn't in previous editions, though? (We played 4th back in the late 80s and handled it that way back then, too). I'm not sure that's a good life lesson... if you're wrong about something long enough sometimes it becomes right?

Ah, I get what you were going for now. One form is a small multiform with duplication (not normally a fan of the dreaded 'nested 5s' - like multi-forms with duplication, summon, bases, vehicles, etc) while the bulk remains the superhero form. Rather than 'combining' the duplicates switch multi-forms and turn into the hero ('disappearing' because that multiform doesn't have Duplication.). That's pretty cool. I originally parsed that as the largest point form having duplication and multiform, for some reason.

Oh, I have no doubts there were problems in the math - I was doing it all in my head - but I actively decided to use the Standard Effect rules (page 44, Champions Complete) instead of the 'true' average (admittedly mostly because I was doing it in my head) and based the numbers around that (and still made a few mistakes). Thanks for clearing it up with real numbers. Using true average will invariably skew results towards further towards the DR and DN side of the equation - once the dice results get big enough to bypass the 42(40) or 62(0). Which will happen sooner with true average. A note on #6 - the intention was 17(15) with the 15 (resistant) coming from Resistant bought on +13 PD. I flat out messed up the resistant cost in my head, which should have been 22 instead of 20 and break my rules. It should have been been 15(15) for 20 AP like you caught. I'm curious about the 14 body, 28 stun result you applied to the pure normal PD result (originally 12/12 with standard effect). Regular PD doesn't apply to the body rolled on killing attacks but I've always understood that it applies to the stun rolled normally. So 14 - 0 body and 28-62 stun = 0 stun, but the rules state you automatically take 1 stun for every body you take - so back to 14. Is this not correct? Does regular PD not apply to KA stun? Also, as dmjalund noted Damage Negation does negate knockback by reducing the maximum number of body that can be rolled on an attack. 12d6 - 12 levels of DN = 0d6. 0 body -2d6 = 0 knockback. 10 levels = 2 body - 2d6 = Also 0 knockback. Damage reduction has a rule that states that knockback is calculated on the Body value rolled before reduction ("Wheeeeeee!") but DN doesn't, IIRC.

If they're both run by the same player then the lesser duplicate approach paid for by the strongest form approach that was mentioned is cleanest. IE: a 400 point hero (the super hero form) spends 25 points for two 100 point duplicates.... (and somehow ceases to exist when they're active. Hmm. Trickier than I thought.)

Wouldn't building a lightsaber or monofilament sword as RKA No Range instead of HKA no Str allow them to be Deflected or Reflected without the usual GM fiat for deciding to allow melee attacks to be Deflected/Reflected? They're still ranged powers... just with no range.

The damage negation thread got me thinking about how the defenses balance against or around each other. Is there a sweet spot? Is DN as frontloaded as it seems? Are multiple defenses best? Just felt like running some numbers and see what people think. Spinning off the damage negation discussion - conceptually I like Damage Negation ... in a vacuum. It's very binary. For example in a 12 DC game someone with 10 DN physical would take 2d6 from the average physical attack - basically attacks of that power level are 'normal' attacks against him so he better watch out. Lesser attacks mean nothing to him and greater ones are truly life threatening. If he had 12 DN then he's vulnerable only to above average attacks. It's up to the GM as to how often that occurs. It could still be viable/fun without being a snoozefest. Throw any PD beyond the base 2 in, though, and the character is basically invincible. And should be - that's a lot of base points spent on being immune to physical damage. It just feels disproportionately strong, though. Let's go with 60 base points on physical defenses (plus base 2 PD) I'm using spolier tags to break up the Wall of Text First up we're dealing with 12 DC - as a normal 12d6 attack and as a 4d6 KA 2, 3, 4, and 7 were immune to the attack. 2 couldn't even be knocked back by it. 3 has issues with killing damage, though, and always will. Let's jump the damage up to a super villain with a normal 16d6 attack (16 body, 48 stun) - not unreasonable in a 12 DC game for an enemy 'big boss'. 7, the 50/50 split between DN and RPD, remains the clear winner here. 2 takes no damage as well but that KA arrow is looking pretty tempting to the bad guys right now. 4 is a strong contender but 7 will remain the winner for quite some time. Next up: A brutal for campaign average 20d6 attack vs 4 and 7: 4 and 7 were close but 6 snuck in there at the end and stole the prize. This is the point where its layers are beginning to show. Let's fall from orbit for fun (30d6 normal = 30 body, 90 stun). Naked optional (Motley Crue - Kickstart My Heart) ... and 6 steals the crown for overall protection ... provisionally. It took 5 body and 32 stun though pure DR had a strong finish at 7 body and 22 stun and stands the best chance of punching something the next phase (least chance of being stunned due to besting con). The pure RPD took 48 stun. The 50/50 hybrid took 2 body and 50 stun, making it - the strongest starter - the biggest loser in asphalt belly flop from orbit contest. edit: Once again I took the non resistant builds out of contention... they have a common kryptonite hole (killing damage) so even though they does provide better protection in the belly flop they're not as balanced overall: If Mr Ha-Ha pushed a crash mat filled with upward pointing spiked in at the last minute they wouldn't fare well at all. Anyone else have a 'better' combination? Maybe the non-resistant 75% (30 points) and 20 RPD? How much is too much? Which combinations would you, as a GM, allow in a 12 DC game? Do the DN builds fall apart sooner if you start changing the DCs with advantages... or later?

They missed an opportunity with this premise: I'm ok with it as is but I hope they're planning something trickier or less clear cut...

No, definitely watch Titanic over Twilight if you 'want' tragic teen romance (you don't). It's better in every conceivable way, even on the angst-y teenage romance stuff. Though really... just do what I do and youtube the boat sinking part of the movie. It's the reason I agreed to go with my fiance at the time, after all, and worth seeing.

Comfortably Numb - David Gilmour (Live in Gdansk) Comfortably Numb is just one of those already excellent songs that only gets more enjoyable when the guitar soloist is allowed to go crazy.

Omni-droid - despite my personal fondness of 'big dumb bricks' it sounds like the team has had hard enough times without taking on an (obvious) liability like Ogress at this time. Phou is just too limited indoors - he should work at slotting Density Increase into a multi-power along side Growth ... so if he doesn't have room to get bigger he can at least get heavier. Bonus points if he makes the slots variable/not-fixed so he can mix and match based on his environment (25 points on Growth, 35 on density increase in a warehouse. 60 points in growth in a street fight. 60 points in DI in a hallway, if the floor can take it...) Cat's Eye is probably the most reasonable selection for the second - but I went Glitter Pony because psychic heroes are more common than heroes who can deal with truly weird attacks. Hopefully she is smart enough and reliable enough to release in a general distracting direction. For the third I went Haste because she is faster than Cheap Shot or Mad Monkey - which fills a stronger tactical niche. Also, Mad Monkey annoyed me. I actually play a near carbon copy of Cheap Shot, though (named Pulk - Pocket Hulk, which he took as a name first until getting a cease and desist letter from The Mouse Above All), and it is a lot of fun - so he nearly took the vote. Had he been a brick choice he would have been a shoe-in for me. I don't think Deathstroke is going to be happy long term with my choices though thanks to the spoiler sections. Better luck next time, guys.

They both have more nuts than a family sized jar of Skippy's Extra Crunchy Peanut Butter. They both have silky smooth milk chocolate made in a factory that doesn't use nuts in any of its products. The biggest problem appears to be that the peanut butter jars are the ones being vocal enough to appear to direct the narrative. I truly believe that's what needs to change - the silent majority needs to speak - but it's hard to do, politically, without descending into tribalism and risking falling into one of the peanut butter churning vats at the factory yourself.

Gold Dust Woman - Fleetwood Mac

Can Maggot be targeted separately while inside a host if someone were in some way able to detect him and affect him ? (penetrating sense and indirect on an attack, for example) If the answer is 'yes' then neither shapeshift or multiform are truly appropriate - what you have is... a vehicle, basically (a 'meat suit', as it were). The vehicle looking different every few weeks is pretty minor but could be handled by a 'shapechange' on the vehicle. Making it a separate entity like this bypasses the messiness of 'what happened the original body' of Maggot using Shapechange alone (multiform is better for that, though it still takes a bit of hand waving to 'become' something separate from yourself, destroying the separate thing in the process. Their wealth and resources are just justification for his own Wealth value. I'd keep this sort of thing out of combat, though - the stunts you'd need to pull it off 'on camera' are exhaustive, as you listed. You *could* go with Desolid to enter a body and then a penetrating killing attack to kill the living host before converting it ... but just like Shrinker and her Transdimentional attack it's a death sentence unless you just happen to have just the right power set to counter it.

That nobody seriously disputes the title years *after* it was made and a lot of DC movies have been released says something about the state of DC's movie dreams. It's just sort of presumed that at least *one* of any of their upcoming movies will fail. My vote's on Aquaman. I like Aquaman. I like Jason Momoa. I didn't see JL yet so I can't say if I like JM as Aquaman, - or if he was Aquaman in name only. It won't matter much, though, if people still think of pop culture jokes when they think of Aquaman. Those who like DC comics will go. Those who liked him in JL will go. Those who were indifferent will give it a pass.

Renegade by Styx

That makes a little more sense (I didn't play 5th at all... 3/4 back int the late 80s and then CC in 2013). I kind of like it - very simple, especially if you have a character who swaps out special hand to hand attacks often. Still, ouch.

I think if advantages on hand attack weren't pro-rated (oof) I'd rather just go with (for 120 active points - NA adds to the HA for determining that) Str 110 (100) 1d6 armor piercing, aoe (1 hex accurate) (10) Multi-attack once (-2) 23d6 AP against DCV 3 so the multi attack probably hits (depending on OCV caps maybe multi 3 or even 4). Crunch. (And then expect to be asked to leave the table)

Guardians of the Galaxy vol 2 Pretty fun overall.

By RAW it damages anyone who 'comes into contact with it' - not 'hits it'. I'm pretty sure Damage shield doesn't work on ranged attacks that don't have a link of some sort back to the attacker (like an entangle or barrier that has feedback, for example) or some funky SFX a gm can rule on: Your fire shield damages the car that a brick throws at you because he doesn't want to get burned, not the brick himself. It's why Mental Damage Shield has its own write up and follows its own rules (including specifying that it works with Mental Powers): it's an exception. Damage shield vs ranged attacks is... well, Reflection, really.

It looks like you *could* slap NND on it, since you can apply NND to Mental Blast, but how would you make a killing attack a mental power? I'm not sure that even taking the +1/4 advantage Alternate Combat Value - OMCV vs DMCV - would transform a killing attack into a 'mental power' for that purpose.

What problems? Nothing has done anything more to him than make sure he stays on top of the news cycle every day as of yet.

Since many psychics also pack a healthy dose of mental defense and you're paying a massive cost for the damage shield already you might want to try and scrounge up so points for Penetrating or Armor Piercing (it's pretty hardcore to find someone who buys impenetrable and/or hardened on mental defense). The specifics of 'mental damage shield' might preclude the ability to apply 'NND' to it ... but if you were trying to set aside points for NND (what would be the defense, if not mental?) anyways then AP/Penetrating and extra dice might serve you well regardless.

Great. Now I just got flashbacks of a player when I was a teenager who used Multi-form, usable as an attack, to turn villains into 1 CP frogs. Because the GM was a doormat. (Multiform (1 Character Points in the most expensive form) (Instant Change), Ranged (+1/2), Usable As Attack (+1), Grantor can only grant the power to others, Grantor pays the END whenever the power is used, Grantor controls the power totally (15 Active Points)?)