Steve Long

No need to apologize; my ability to answer esoteric questions is one way that my keepers here at the asylum monitor my mental state. Per the rules on 6E1 360, characters cannot buy Characteristics UOO; they should achieve that effect using Aid instead. If a GM wants to allow it anyway, he can decide what the rules implications are.

If a character doesn’t want another character to use Healing on him for some reason, he can apply his Power Defense to reduce (and possibly eliminate) the Healing effect. Against standard uses of Healing, the Power Defense reduces the total effect roll shown on the dice. Against Simplified Healing, the total Power Defense reduces both the STUN Healed and the BODY Healed.

If a character buys Area Of Effect for Telekinesis (or for his STR), he must affect all the targets in the Area the same way. For example, he must “punch” all of them, or Grab all of them, or Shove all of them; he can’t Grab some targets while “punching” others. This remains true even if the Area Of Effect is Selective or Nonselective.

No problem. Here's how Telescopic works. As you probably know from running combats, the HERO System rules have a Range Modifier (6E2 38) that makes it harder to hit a target that's far away from a character. The Range Modifier also applies to attempts to perceive things at Range (6E2 11). So, for example, a character trying to see something that's 17-32 meters away from him suffers a -4 penalty to his Sight PER Roll. If he has the Telescopic Sense Modifier, either for his Normal Sight specifically or all Sight Group Senses in general, the Telescopic reduces or eliminates the penalty imposed by the Range Modifier. So yes, Telescopic makes it easier to perceive things at Range. So let's suppose that your PC, Eagle-Eye, has spent 6 Character Points to buy Telescopic for his Sight Group Senses, thus providing himself with a +4 Sight Group PER Roll bonus to offset the Range Modifier. His teammate, the Scarlet Swashbuckler, hasn't bought any Telescopic for his Sight. They arrive at a bank robbery as the robbers are speeding away in their car -- they're currently 25m away. Neither character has enough movement to catch up to the car, so they both try to see and memorize the license plate number so they can track it down later. Each of them has INT 15, so they both have a Sight PER Roll of 12-. The Swashbuckler suffers the -4 Range Modifier, reducing his PER Roll to 8- (a mere 26% chance to succeed). But Eagle-Eye's Telescopic (+4) cancels out the Range Modifier (-4), so his PER Roll remains a 12- (a 74% chance of success). Predictably, the Swashbuckler fails his roll -- but Eagle-Eye does not, and saves the day!

That's up to the GM, per 6E1 98: "Unlike Skills, Perks are inherently transitory in nature. A character can gain Perks during the course of the campaign and later lose them just as easily. If a character loses a Perk he typically get the Character Points he spent on it back, unless the rules for a specific Perk note otherwise. However, the final decision is up to the GM, since it may depend on the situation, the special effects of the Perk, common sense, dramatic sense, and other factors."

1. That’s up to the GM. In many cases the +¼ level probably suffices, but there may be campaigns where the amount of Complications is more significant when compared to the target’s Total Cost. 2. In theory, Duplication UAA could be bought to create any number of Duplicates desired, but given the potential game balance problems this poses, I suspect most GMs will want to restrict the power to one Duplicate (or at most a small number of Duplicates). 3. It wouldn’t necessarily affect it at all, but it might affect the GM’s judgment regarding whether to allow a character to buy such a power.

No, that's not correct. For one thing, it's a legalistic interpretation that attempts to get around the rule, rather than actually following the rule in a way consistent with the rule's spirit. For another, even a -0 Limitation has to be in some trivial way a restriction or hindrance, and that's still not the case here. (As usual, GMs with different opinions about the restrictiveness are free to rule otherwise for their campaigns.)

As stated on 6E1127-28, the GM can permit a No Range, Area-affecting Constant Power to move with the character who creates it automatically. (That's now this is done in published material, such as the villains in Champions Villains or spells in The HERO System Grimoire.) If the GM doesn't want to allow that for free, then the Mobile Advantage would be the way to buy it.

That's up to the GM. But of course, one of the things he has to consider in making that determination is whether the Limitation is actually a hindrance. Personally, I can't think of how having Regeneration be Always On is in any way restrictive, so on that basis alone I wouldn't allow it. And even if it passed that test for me, it would probably fail the game balance test. But to each his own; your GM may think differently.

Yes.

As noted on 6E1 208-09, all Sense Groups except for Touch (and "Unusual") provide the Range Sense Modifier to any Sense assigned to them. Furthermore, as noted on 6E2 11, the Range Modifier applies to PER Rolls made to perceive things at a distance. Spatial Awareness doesn't automatically include the Range Sense Modifier because it typically gets that Modifier from the Sense Group it's assigned to. If a character doesn't want to assign it to any Sense Group, he can of course buy the Range Sense Modifier for it on its own (you can find several examples of this in, for example, Champions Villains).

6E1 384 notes that Linking powers of differing durations can change the duration of one of the powers (for example, "A Persistent Power Linked to an Instant or Constant Power becomes an Instant or Constant Power itself"). All I was doing in my answer was extending that logic to the issue at hand. But of course, a GM who doesn't agree with that logic can change the rule, or can simply forbid characters to Link to Inherent Powers. Does that clarify things? If not, please PM me and we can discuss it further.

1. A character may Link a power to an Inherent Power, but if he does so the Inherent Power becomes the same type of power (Persistent, Constant, or Instant) as the power it’s Linked to. 2. No. By definition an Inherent Power has to be Always On, and if a power only works (or does not work) in certain circumstances, then it’s not on all the time.

As a Constant Power, Absorption turns off at the end of the Segment in which the character is Knocked Out (6E2 106). It does not stop working immediately. Thus, assuming the character were attacked again in that Segment after being Knocked Out, but before the end of the Segment, it would be possible for him to Absorb enough Character Points to “heal himself awake.” If that happens, since he’s no longer Knocked Out neither his Absorption nor any other non-Persistent powers would stop working at the end of the Segment.

1. As stated on 6E1 165, “If a character has two forms of Absorption that apply to a particular attack, he must choose one. He cannot Absorb points from a single effect with two different Absorption powers simultaneously.” So in this case, Brawny has to pick one power or the other. 2. I’m not sure I understand this question. If a character uses Absorption, he gets the Absorbed Character Points immediately — there’s no delay between when the character is hit with an attack that does BODY and when he gets the Character Points from Absorption. He uses Absorption, gets some extra STUN as a result, and if he’s then attacked he loses the “added” STUN first as explained on 6E1 166. If a character has Limited his Absorption in a way that delays the adding of the received Character Points, his GM should answer any related rules questions. If I’ve missed something in your question, please PM me or post a follow-up. 3. See APG2 18, which discusses the standard rule (the recovery is not halved) and the option for changing that rule.

1. He can act in Phase 4, as indicated by the first paragraph of the example in the right-hand column on 6E2 17. To put it another way, a character who voluntarily changes SPD using the optional SPD changing rules on 6E2 17 cannot act until both his original SPD and his new SPD would each have had a Phase. (The two SPDs don’t have to have the Phase on the same Segment, as shown by the second half of the 6E2 17 example.) 2. Yes — in fact, as noted on 6E2 17, you must use the “optional” rules in situations where a character’s SPD changes due to an Adjstment Power. I think that covers everything you asked, but if not please post a follow-up or PM me. Thanx!

By the rules as written, there is not. But as usual, the GM can permit it if he thinks it’s justified.

This is covered on APG2 44. Typically you roll a separate Hit Location for each shot.

If a character has a power with the Dismissable Adder (APG 81), when he uses Dismissable he removes the entire power. He cannot choose to remove it for some targets but leave it intact to affect others (not even if it has the regular Area Of Effect Advantage). However, if the character has to make multiple Attack Rolls to hit multiple targets (as with a Nonselective or Selective Area Of Effect, an Autofire attack, or a Multiple Attack), then he can Dismiss the power with respect to some targets but not others. He can Dismiss it for however many targets he likes with a single Zero Phase Action.

Standard rules for repeated use of Healing (see 6E1 232) apply.

See pages 17-19 of The Ultimate Vehicle for an explanation of how that works. The short answer is you have to define which of the Vehicle's weapons the (X)SLs apply to, but you'll need to read the full rules to get all the specifics.

Shrinking does not reduce or diminish the effect of a character's powers or equipment. 6E1 281 specifically states, "Shrinking doesn’t affect a character’s STR, movement, or other abilities — they’re just as powerful when he’s Shrunk as when he’s normal height." However, the very next line of text provides a way for you to make a power or ability diminish in effect as a character Shrinks. If you think that's more "realistic," or more suited to your character or the campaign setting, that's the way to do it. The rules just don't impose that sort of hindrance automatically.

General answer: there is no such thing as a “minimum END cost per Phase” in the HERO System. Specific answers: 1, 4, 5. Yes; see 6E2 54, 6E2 131. However, I think it’s safe to say that despite the rules stated on those pages (especially 6E2 54), most GMs do not charge a character 1 END for performing the universal Strike Combat Maneuver when the character is already paying END for using a power or his STR. Furthermore, if a character has bought his attack in such a way as to eliminate its standard END cost (e.g., by paying for Reduced Endurance (0 END), or taking Charges for a power), then the ordinary 1 END cost for using Strike does not apply unless the GM rules otherwise. 2. No; see 6E1 82, 6E2 54, 6E2 91, and 6E2 131. However, a character cannot use a Martial Maneuver such as Offensive Strike by itself, without using some STR — Martial Maneuvers defined as adding dice of damage to STR damage, or adding STR to STR to accomplish some effect, by definition require that STR be used. In this situation, at a minimum a character would have to use 3 STR (enough to get ½d6 of effect), and that would cost him 1 END. 3. The people who are saying that are correct. Standard Combat Maneuvers by definition cost 1 END to use (6E2 54), but Martial Maneuvers do not (6E1 82). Since Block-based Maneuvers don’t require any use of STR, neither Block nor Martial Block require spending any END for STR. 6. Skills do not cost END to use, unless some more specific rule notes otherwise. 7. By a strict, technical reading of the rules, a piece of equipment (such as an Automaton or Vehicle) that lacks END can’t perform a Strike or other Standard/Optional Combat Maneuver because they can’t afford the 1 END cost (and may not even have STUN to pay in place of END). But common and dramatic sense tell us how absurd that can be. Unless the GM rules otherwise, just ignore the rule about minimum END cost for Standard/Optional Combat Maneuvers when it comes to equipment.

The first problem I need to note here, before I get into your specific question, is that you can't apply Linked to a naked Advantage; by definition the naked Advantage only works with the base power(s) it's bought for, and can't be used without them. So the Real Cost of the naked Advantage should be 7 points, making the Lash Of Conscience version of the power cost 18 points, not 16. Other than that, I don't see that you're doing anything wrong. The fact that the two powers have a slightly different cost comes from the fact that the second power is more flexible than the first: the character doesn't have to use the naked Advantage if he doesn't want to. If the cost difference really bothers you, I'd suggest using the first version and just coming to an agreement with your GM that the AP Advantage will only affect living beings. Or take your cost argument to your GM and ask him to reduce the cost of the naked Advantage to 4 points so that both powers cost 15 points.

This is a sufficiently broad topic that I am leery of trying to cover it here in a brief answer — it probably deserves more time and consideration than I can give it right now (when I’m preparing to attend a con this weekend), and a section discussing it in APG3. Therefore I’m going to answer briefly here, but I reserve the right to change things going forward once I have the time to really dive into the subject. (And of course, the GM’s discretion is particularly important in this case, given the unusual and cool nature of Presence Attacks.) First, the order of Actions is important in these situations — in game terms things really can’t happen “at the same time” as your hypotheticals posit. You have to resolve the various attacks and whatnot in proper order. If the GM finds this unrealistic, unbalancing, or otherwise problematic, he should find another way to determine the overall effect of various Presence-affecting actions. For example, he might “combine” the two attacks in some way, determine an overall effect, and then apply that effect to the target’s PRE. (This is definitely something to cover in APG3.) Second, in the case of conflicting Presence Attacks (PAs), if PA 1 achieves Target’s PRE +10 or higher, then the Target’s PRE increases by 5 or 10 for purposes of resisting PA 2 (as noted on the Presence Attack Table on 6E2 136). If PA 1 achieves less than Target’s PRE +10, the target may get bonus PRE against conflicting attacks, or may not, as noted on the Table; if he doesn’t, then you can simply resolve PA 2 normally. Third, in the case of other situations that may affect the target’s PRE (typically an Aid or Drain), resolve PA 1 normally. When the second effect takes place, resolve it normally as well, but it does not change the result of PA 1 (any more than an Aid CON would make a Stunned character become un-Stunned). Again, the GM can alter this if he sees fit.