Demiurgos

Yep. That's something you want to keep hidden, because the knowledge getting out that you have illusion powers will undermine their effectiveness, as people would automatically assume it's an illusion.

Yeah, that's the tradeoff. It's one weapon that is capable of multiple functions. So if he's disarmed of it, he loses all of those functions at once. That's why Focus is a Limitation. Though usually people have them as separate Foci, that way if they're disarmed of one, they still have the others.

Interesting. I'd have to think about it that it wouldn't make him too overpowered in light of his other powers (which I haven't disclosed, so of course no one's aware of them). (Or there's the option of using it for another character as well.) Because the memory erasure isn't even his main power. Its purpose is for ensuring he remains unknown. (He takes great care to conceal the fact that he has abilities in the first place, which is one reason for the weapon, which is an Obvious Focus, that people can look at. Give them that to look at, and there's no reason to think he has powers of his own.) He isn't one for flashy displays of power, and he doesn't wish to provide the super scientist inventors running around and government agencies with information that would enable them to make countermeasures against his abilities. He's content to operate as the power behind the throne, and operated as such until the final campaign he appeared in, in which he acquired enough power that it was no longer necessary to stay concealed. When he was finally defeated, he was retired, to reward the heroes after all the losses they sustained that they beat him once and for all. He has four main groups of power. (Done that way so any one of them can just be removed wholesafe if needed to reduce his power.) Two offensive, one of which is the weapon that's already been posted about, one with the invisibility and memory erasure (That Which is Done in Secret Shall Remain Secret, because that's its purpose), and then I guess what would be categorized as defense. It's a power I haven't seen in comics, and looking at the Champions universe and how he'd fit in there, he'd have his own niche. Doctor Destroyer is the top armor/tech guy, Menton's the top psionic, Teleios is the top geneticist, Takofanes is the top magic user, etc. He'd have his own area that would make him a threat amongst all the other master villains.

I'll keep that in mind for 6e. The specific power levels for Killing Attacks is probably a good idea, since those are different. Differentiating between lethal and regular damage is something HERO does differently than what I'm accustomed to. I've been taking it one step at a time and began with character creation, since creating a character is the first thing you do, so I haven't taken an in-depth look at combat rules yet. The more durable superhumans would require higher levels of KAs, but I'll get to determining the what's appropriate when it's time to see how combat goes. Complicated doesn't bother me if that will accomplish the desired effect. I came into this fully aware HERO's reputation for complexity, and if it enables me to realize a unique character in concrete form, then that's fine.

I specifically addressed that in post #84. A PC wouldn't have the power to begin with, for that very reason. (I said in post #34, there were three issues in points-buy effects-based systems: 1) Can it be built?; 2) Will it be in a game?; 3) Will it be for a PC or NPC?) Players often can't be trusted, otherwise there wouldn't be any need for GM approval, or to flag certain powers in the book if they were able to make a reasonable character to interact in a team, to work with a team rather than outshining everyone else, by themselves. (Or didn't have to be reigned in because despite being alleged "heroes," they go around killing people, etc., which is a problem GMs have posted on roleplaying boards that they have. The fact is that if superpowers existed in reality, villains would outnumber heroes. In RPGs, people are doing what they'd actually do with powers, and a look at what people say they'd do in "What would you do if you had superpowers" threads is enough to make one thankful they exist solely in the realm of fiction. With all the stories of how people abuse the power to the degree that they have and is possible to attain in the real world as it is, adding superpowers to the mix would make it a nightmare.) I can't speak for anyone else, but when I create characters I start with the personality first, and stuff I've seen regarded as "fluff" and "useless." I make psychological profiles to specifically outline just who this character is, what their character is, and what is and isn't "in character" for them to act like (It is roleplaying, after all; you're supposed to be playing a character, not a collection of powers), to be updated as the character is being roleplayed, to reflect how their experiences shape them. I want to have a clear idea how that particular character will act in a given situation. (Comic book characters have existed for decades, with completely different writers, so they may not have consistent personalities, but are subject to fluctuation depending on who's writing them, unlike real life people. Since this is a complaint on comic book boards, one can establish a stable personality for an RPG character—people who create comic characters can't list a guide as to how a character is to be portrayed since they lose any say once they're no longer writing them, whereas such a guide is necessary for RPG characters since they don't have over a half-century of media portrayal [books, television shows, cartoons, movies] through which everyone knows who they are and what they're about.) With the personality established, powers may then suggest themselves (powers just happening to match a person's personality isn't infrequent—e.g., the hotheaded guy just so happened to get fire powers), and their personality will dictate how they use their powers, along with whatever Psychological Limitations they have (psych lims should make a character three-dimensional, not simply be a way of getting points back). From what I see, most start with powers first, then just slap together "fluff" afterwards (from what I've seen, anything without combat applications seems to be considered "useless." Which is a pet peeve of mine, how in roleplaying, anything outside of direct combat is frequently devalued or regarded as of lesser importance than how well your collection of effects can kick the butt of any other collection of effects it may come across). As aforementioned, this character doesn't use it offensively, he uses it to keep his actions and identity hidden. That's what the character uses the powers for, not what a player would do if they had those powers (which they shouldn't anyway. That falls into Category 3). That's why I went to the trouble of posting in-character uses of the power to break the default power gaming mindset. (For example, Superman could one day just say he's gotten tired of humans' inability to make much progress in the thousands of years of its existence, with their inhumanity to each other, abuse of the planet, etc., and just take matters into his own hands and rule, and there wouldn't be much resistance the people of Earth could put up against him, but that isn't what he'd do with his powers. Even though a player with the powers Superman has would likely try to take over the world since they wouldn't see anything anyone could do to stop them, and would fully exploit his speed in addition to the rest of his powers so that any opposition is taken care of before they've even realized anything happened [including disposing of the world's supply of that pesky Kryptonite faster than anyone can perceive. Kryptonite should mean nothing if you can't make use of it before Superman's stopped you from being able to in one of the many ways available to him before you know what's going on if we're just talking about powers.]—unlike the comics, where characters don't use their powers the way players would at the gaming table [or on "battleboards"/versus forums] because the writer's trying to tell a story. "Might makes right"; "Because I can.") And if, with the ability to create "anything you can think of," absolutely nothing comes to mind outside of what could be used in combat, that would seem to suggest a lack of imagination.

Ah, it's a HERO Designer feature. So I was looking in the wrong place, and wouldn't have seen it in an official source. Okay, I see it. Edit List Sorting Power Frameworks Hmm... looking at Mental Illusions again, "Because Mental Illusions work on a character's mind, they affect all of his Senses, even Senses he has which the character creating the Mental Illusions doesn't know about." So it seems that using Mental Illusions to make oneself Invisible would inherently "affect all of his Senses" (5ER 201), so he wouldn't be visible to him via any Sense that he may happen to have. Providing, of course, that he rolls high enough on the Effect Roll for a Major Change. As as he does have an AoE Mental Illusions with Illusions Do Appropriate Damage (+1/2) that he uses offensively, it fits, because then it'd be a case of using Illusions for various purposes. That was actually another question I had, to see how detailed it was possible to get with HERO, since more detail is always good for me, as the greater it can be personalized, the more unique it will be. This is a specific Illusion. First the victim hears a rumble, and the ground perceptibly vibrates. As the illusion progresses, perceptible vibration intensifies to violent shaking, and what was once solid ground undulates in waves beneath them, disorienting their sense of balance. The earth sinks in some places and cracks in others, and they try to avoid falling debris, collapsing buildings (if there are any nearby), etc. In its final stage, the earth completely falls away under them, a hole opening in the ground in a 9-10 meter radius around the character, who stands in the center of it on a pillar of earth, which is the only place the ground hasn't fallen away. Everyone not standing on the center pillar where he is falls into the chasm, and they appear to fall 76-77 meters and hit jagged rocks at the bottom, at which time they black out, taking psychosomatic damage. So it would have Illusions Do Appropriate Damage (+1/2) and I was looking into Unusual Effects. There's an earthquake build in USPD, and the ground opening up would be a Tunneling Attack Linked to damage. In the other system I built it so that the the effects of the illusion while the victim was in it were simulated, with the rolls being for whether or not they were able to keep their balance or move out of the way of falling debris, etc., but they would have to make the Breakout Roll in order to get out of it. It seems you can inherently do all that with HERO, but I was wondering how to do the blackout part on hitting the rocks (which marks the end of the illusion), then they regain consciousness however long later. But if it could all be done with an AoE Mental Illusions, then that would simplify matters, since as it's an ability he already has, it could simply be a matter of him using it for different things, which would make it nice and neat, since there wouldn't be a need to use another effect.

I make it a point not to talk about competitors on the official board of a particular system, where people who actually work for the company post, not just people who play the system. It would be one thing if this was a general forum like RPG.net, but to me that would be disrespectful when I'm a guest in someone else's home, so to speak. Just like I wouldn't go to a Subway to eat, and talk about Togo's while I'm there, or go to a Burger King and talk about McDonald's. And to say, "Well, x system does this this way" while naming the system could be taken as an indictment, again, on a place where people who work for the company post. It just doesn't seem right to me.

Limited Range Value: -¼ This Limitation represents a Ranged power with less than normal Range. The GM sets the power’s exact Range based upon its special effects, but in any event the range cannot be greater than half of the power’s normal Range. Ah, it seems that you're correct, and that I actually misread it. It shouldn't have to come to that, should it? I mean, it isn't even a "munchkin" power build, or even a power intended for use in an offensive manner at all. It's just how the character remains a behind-the-scenes mastermind type, by ensuring there's nothing that points to his secret activities or exposes his identity. Other than the weapon, I haven't even gone into anything intended for combat use at all, as I wanted to start small.

If that be the case, then it seems that Lucius's suggestion of buying a Naked Advantage of Personal Immunity, applying Usable By Others, and picking people who could see through the invisibility would be the simplest, most straightforward way of achieving the effect. In the 6th ed. template in HERO Designer, it'd look like this: Only You Can See Me: Personal Immunity (+1/4) for up to 40 Active Points of Imperceivable, Usable Nearby (+1 1/4), Grantor can take back power at any time (22 Active Points) It has an Adder Grantor can take back power at any time (+1/2) that would reflect enabling someone to see him, then rendering himself invisible again. The logic is, if someone is cloaked, you have no choice whether you can see them or not. You either can (perhaps through some Unusual Sense), or you can't. If they uncloak themselves to you, you can't not see them again short of closing your eyes. Just like if you're facing a direction, you can't not see anything in your line of sight unless you close your eyes or look away. But if someone is cloaked standing in front of you, you can't see them, then they reveal themselves to you and you see them, then they re-cloak themselves again and you don't see them again, but there was no action taken on your part that had anything to do with any of it. It seems that in 5th ed., with no Usable Nearby option, it would be accomplished like this: Only You Can See Me: Personal Immunity (+1/4) for up to 40 Active Points of Imperceivable, Usable As Attack (+1) (20 Active Points). To make sure I have all the details clear, if he wanted to make others Imperceivable as well as himself, if he made Imperceivable Usable On Others and also gave them the Only You Can See Me Personal Immunity naked Advantage, that would mean that all of them would be Invisible to everyone except each other? Do I have that right? Say, the character in question is a celebrity often hounded by paparazzi, and just wants a quiet night out with his date. They're taking a walk, and he makes them invisible so no paparazzi can see them, but they can see/hear each other just fine. The above would accomplish this? (The example was provided to illustrate a typical use. Players might want it to, for instance, make their entire team invisible to give them the bonus for surprise attacking opponents who can't see them, which isn't what the character uses the power for, regardless how much of a combat edge it might give. And illustrates why a PC shouldn't have it.) Looking at Mind Link, you have to define the number of people you can appear to at once, and it seems Usable As Attack isn't an option. I'll just choose four as a number. Using the suggestions of Normal Range and Limited Range: Mind Link , Human class of minds, One Specific Mind, Number of Minds (x4) (15 Active Points); Normal Range (-1/4), Limited Range (-1/4) This is actually cheaper, though price isn't a concern. Limited Range can't be greater than half the power's normal range (5ER 302), so you can't buy it enough times to bring it to 2-3 meters. It says Mind Link is usually limited to a single planet, but this certainly isn't supposed to be planetary. The Normal Range Limitation puts it at 5" x Active Points, which would make it (5 x 15 =) 75". With Limited Range, it can't be any smaller than 37.5", which is still too great a range, requiring more work. So PI + UOO is simpler.

Barwickian said earlier that I was grokking HERO System quickly, but despite that, I'm still a novice, so I don't know the best way to do something in HERO System, hence my coming here. I'm familiar with how a points-buy, effects-based system works, but not fully familiar with HERO in particular, so I have to get acquainted with the particular building blocks HERO uses to create powers. That suite of powers built in the other system is, in HERO System terms, a Multipower with three slots. The Transform Memory Removal, Invisibility to Sight, Hearing, and Smell/Taste Groups, and Invisibility to Sight, Hearing, and Smell/Taste Groups Usable By Others. Now, for the build I'm trying to translate to HERO System, it has three powers. The Invisibility to Sight, Hearing, and Smell/Taste Groups is a Flexible slot that can be used selectively. He can make himself a ) only Invisible to Sight Groups, b ) Invisible to Sight and Hearing Groups, or c) Invisible to all three at will. So if he's using the power with another Flexible slot, then he can choose say, making himself only Invisible to Sight and Hearing Groups, which costs x amount of points instead of the full cost, which allows him to use another power at x level, which is the Psionic Surgery as aforementioned. He needs information from someone, appears only to them, then after getting what he needs, he removes the memory of it, so that absolutely no one in that place can recall ever seeing him that day. It's built to be able to use both simultaneously to a degree less than full power, and is sufficient for what it's used for. In HERO, it needs to be built differently, since you can't selectively make yourself Invisible (explicitly stated), you're either Invisible to all the Groups you're Invisible to, or you're not. You can't selectively make yourself Invisible to some people or not others, you're either Invisible to everyone (excepting of course, those with Unusual Senses), or you're not. Which means it has to be done differently. And some people here have provided suggestions. I didn't know what the power frameworks were for HERO, so I looked in the rulebook, which listed three: Elemental Control, Multipower, and Variable Power Pool. Multipower and Variable Power Pool I recognized after reading about them, as they were the HERO equivalent of certain power frameworks I was already accustomed to. Elemental Control didn't seem to have any equivalent, and was something it had that the other system different. But it didn't seem to be appropriate, as previously outlined, so I went with Multipower, which I already knew to be the equivalent of the framework it was already in. But as I'm not a HERO System veteran, those were the only options I saw that were available. If I'm new to a system, I look at the rule book, then I look at the published builds to see how characters are created (which is a different thing from expecting whatever type of powers published characters have to be usable for a PC). "List" is capitalized, so presumably it's referring to something in particular, but I don't see it in the index, so I'll have to remind you that I'm still new to HERO System (I've simply taken a systematic approach so that it isn't as difficult as it's purported to be, in addition to having books directly in front of me to refer to. The literature on the subject shows that people actually have more problems making a decision the more choices there are to choose from, so that might be what makes HERO "daunting" to newcomers, as I've read), so I don't know what "List" is referring to, and will have to ask you to explain what that is in HERO. (If it's from 6e, I don't have the rulebook.)

Actually, no, it was an option listed for Psionic Surgery. From the UNTIL Superpowers Database Revised, p. 158: PSIONIC SURGERY Effect: Major Transform 4d6 (change memories and Psychological Limitations), BOECV Copyright of course prevents me from posting the full thing, but that's the base effect. You're free to fact check it, what I posted was the fifth option for Psionic Surgery on page 158 in the Mental and Psionic Powers category. Transform was also the base effect in the other system, so HERO doesn't do anything differently in that regard. Memory erasure isn't a unique power, so I looked for a model for how to word the effect in HERO System language, found one, followed it, and made it for memories only rather than Psychological Limitations, since that's all the character's supposed to be able to do with it. Actually, I see I quoted the wrong option. It says for the Memory Theft option "Add to Amnesia Induction Telepathy 15d6," so that must be where the assumption the Limitation is for telepathy comes from. The telepathy is a power that's Linked to the previous option to put the memories in his own head rather than just removing them. Look above to the fourth option: 4) Amnesia Induction: The character cannot change a target’s personality and basic behavior patterns (Psychological Limitations), nor can he implant memories — all he can do is take existing memories away. Add Only To Remove Memories (-1). Total cost: 54 points. To only remove memories, add Only To Remove Memories Limitation (-1) to Psionic Surgery. The point cost doesn't matter to me aside from wanting it to be accurate for whatever it should be, but the point is that I didn't pull it out of thin air, and I didn't make a mistake. I went by what the book said. Because it was the HERO System equivalent of the power framework it was in the system it was built in. I translated everything that was translatable to what seemed to be the HERO System equivalent, and posted questions here for things that didn't seem to have one. Find the similarities to what you already know, do what you can yourself, then ask questions here for things that are unclear because it isn't covered by what you already know. By process of elimination, it isn't a Variable Power Pool, and the 5E rulebook said that Elemental Controls should have a power for Attack, Defense, Movement, and perhaps a Sensory power. Like a fire controller would have a blast, a shield that melts incoming projectiles, flight, and can see heat. Or, to take Firewing, who seems to be the fire guy in the Champions Universe, he has an Elemental Control with Fire Shield (Defense), Fiery Flight (Movement), Self-Immolation (Attack + Defense), and Wall Of Fire (Defense + Attack). The given example of an ice controller had Ice Darts (Attack), Ice Wall (Defense), Ice Armor (Defense), Ice Slides (Movement), Ice Bonds (Attack). A Sensory was "perhaps," but everything in the example followed that format. It said ECs should consist of a broad range of powers with some kind of theme, not a lot of powers with one function. (Which is why EC powers can be used simultaneously, so you can do things like fly [Movement] and shoot [Attack] at the same time. Two different functions at once.) Since ECs provide a price discount, people would just load them up with whatever powers they've deemed to be most effective in combat, which is why it's flagged as something GMs should look closely at and has guidelines, which is perfectly understandable. And that suite of powers for that character only have one function. Additionally, the published characters I looked at had those types of powers in Multipowers. So that's what I used.

So would something like Limited Radius (x" Radius [whatever the desired radius is, rather than the one the points dictate]; -1/4) work for the 5th edition writeup? Using similar logic to the Limited Range Limitation, an Area Of Effect power with less than the normal radius its points would give it. Ah. That's fine, then. I'd gotten the number from USPD: Memory Theft: As Amnesia Induction, but the character doesn’t just remove memories, he steals them from the target to keep in his own mind. Add to Amnesia Induction Telepathy 15d6 (75 Active Points); Linked (-½), Must Achieve EGO +20 Result (-½), Only To Steal Memories (-1) (total cost: 25 points). 135 + 75 = 210 Active Points; total cost 54 + 25 = 79 points. So Only To Remove Memories Pertaining To Himself (-1). Ah, right. The reserve has to account for everything. I didn't set the reserve amount in advance because I didn't know how much the powers were going to cost. So if he wants to use Only You Can See Me and Privacy From Prying Ears, then 200 points need to be available in the reserve for that. If he wanted to erase the memory of their meeting, then it'd need another 100. Though I think in that case he can just make himself invisible and inaudible to everyone except the one person, then lead them to a more private place where it's just the two of them, so he can turn those off, then erase the memory of their meeting, and turn them back on so he leaves unseen as he came. Nothing in that particular Multipower is for direct combat, but I like to specifically delineate how a particular character uses his or her power, so they can be used in character rather than it being all about most effective combat applications.

So everyone's provided more than enough suggestions, and once again I thank everyone. You've all been tremendously helpful. I'm still looking more at some of the other suggestions (like Mind Link), but for the moment, this is a writeup of what I have enough of a handle on to writeup. I'll do one for 5th edition and one for 6th. I have the 5th ed. rules, but HERO Designer enables me to do both. For 5th edition: That Which is Done in Secret Will Remain Secret: Multipower, 150-point reserve 1) Privacy from Prying Ears: Darkness to Hearing Group 4” radius, Hole In The Middle (+1/2) (30 Active Points) 2) Only You Can See Me: Mental Illusions 13d6, Reduced Endurance (1/2 END; +1/4), MegaScale (1” = 1 km; +1/4), Area Of Effect (10” Radius; +1) Selective (+1/4) (179 Active Points); Limited Power Power loses about half of its effectiveness (Only to Make Self Invisible; -1), No Range (-1/2), Stops Working If Mentalist Is Stunned (-1/2), Does Not Provide Mental Awareness (-1/4) 2) Imperceivable: Invisibility to Sight, Hearing and Smell/Taste, No Fringe (40 Active Points); Limited Power Power loses about a third of its effectiveness (Only Works Against Sentient Beings; -1/2) 3) A Drink from the River Lethe: Major Transform 4d6 (removes memories, heals back normally), Invisible to Mental Group (+1/4), Works Against EGO, Not BODY (+1/4), Based On EGO Combat Value (Mental Defense applies; +1), (135 Active Points); Limited Power Power loses about half of its effectiveness (Only To Remove Memories; -1), No Range (-1/2), Limited Target ([Limited]; humans; -1/2) It still irks me a bit that the areas are automatically chosen. Is there nothing that can be done? The Darkness field came out right, but the MegaScaled Mental Illusions needs to be 4", not 10". The Mental Transform needs one more limit, that it can only be used to remove memories of the character or memories pertaining to the character rather than absolutely any memory. What would you all suggest would be a reasonable cost for this? For 6th edition: Power That Which is Done in Secret Will Remain Secret: Multipower, 180-point reserve 1) Privacy from Prying Ears: Darkness to Hearing Group 4m radius; Hole In The Middle (can be changed any time; +1/2) (18 Active Points) 2) Only You Can See Me: Mental Illusions 13d6, Reduced Endurance (1/2 END; +1/4), Area Of Effect (4m Radius; +1/4), Selective (+1/4), MegaScale (1m = 1 km; +1) (179 Active Points); Limited Power Power loses about half of its effectiveness (Only To Make Self Invisible; -1), No Range (-1/2), Stops Working If Mentalist Is Stunned (-1/2) 3) Imperceivable: Invisibility to Sight, Hearing and Smell/Taste Groups, No Fringe (40 Active Points); Limited Power Power loses about a third of its Effectiveness (Only Works Against Sentient Beings; -1/2) 4) A Drink from the River Lethe: Major Transform 4d6 (removes memories, heals back normally), Invisible Power Effects (Inobvious to [one Sense Group] Mental; + 1/4), Works Against EGO, Not BODY (+1/4), Based On EGO Combat Value (+1) (100 Active Points); Limited Power Power loses about half of its Effectiveness (Only To Remove Memories; -1), No Range (-1/2), Limited Target ([Limited]; humans; -1/2) I like that you can choose the area instead of them being chosen for you. I see that some powers cost the same and some are different between the two. I was wondering if it was okay to ask a couple more questions, to keep everything consolidated in here rather than make a new thread later. This has been the most responsive group thus far, but at the same time I don't want to wear out my welcome having just registered, and make everyone sick of my questions. If not, it's okay, since everyone's been welcoming and gone above and beyond as it is.

Despite what I said earlier, I've been taking a look at it. There's what I initially say at the time, but I take a closer look at everything afterwards, and something different may be realized at that point. It says, "Once established, Mind Link does not require Line Of Sight, and is only broken when either party wants to 'hang up' " (5ER 204). Is there any way to make it so that only the character who initiates it can "hang up"? Since he's enabling them to see him, they don't have control to be able to not see him anymore, he has to withdraw it so that they're no longer able to perceive him.

Ah, okay. That's something to keep in mind then. I just wanted to give equal consideration to each suggestion and take a closer look. I was looking at power construction first (since it would simply be a matter of getting familiar with any new effects that don't have an equivalent from the system I'm used to), then acclimate myself to HERO System's rules for combat since those are completely different. But with Mental Illusions this character would translate to 13d6 in HERO System (I'm undecided as to whether to attempt to directly translate characters to what they would be in HERO System, or to readjust them to scale to the Champions universe). That would be an average roll of 45.5. "Noteworthy" and "Skilled Normals" are listed with 10 EGO, and "Competent Normals" have 11, so it seems using Illusions around the average Joe he isn't going to have any problem achieving the effect he wants.

Well, the explanation is simple if you look at it logically. In the case of propelled physical objects, you're blasting them (blast, v. force or throw something in a specified direction by impact or explosion, shoot with a gun, strike hard) with it from range, and kinetic energy is involved (in Marvel, vibranium absorbs kinetic energy, which is why it makes Black Panther bulletproof when he wears it). Hence why it encompasses both energy blasts as people commonly think of and physical ranged attacks. There's nothing wrong with the name, one just has to think past beams, rays, etc. of energy.

I was looking at Images vs. Mental Illusions for the option of not appearing to anyone except a certain number of people, and with the former anyone perceiving it makes a PER Roll, and if they fail they believe the Image (that no one's there, or the background behind him fills up the space he's standing in) is real, and with the latter, an Attack Roll is made, the illusion is defined (no one's there), the level of effect to achieve the desired illusion is looked up on the Mental Illusions Effects Table (I'm presuming this to be a Major Change, an important object not appearing to vision, EGO + 10 effect), then the Effect Roll is made. I was thinking about your suggestion and thinking about how an Image vs. Illusion would differ, and this is my line of thinking. It seems that using Images to model the Selective Invisibility would represent the character essentially Photoshopping the observers' vision, overlaying the image of the space he's occupying over himself, so that it looks like nothing's there. It seems noticing with a PER Roll that something's "off" might be more accurate. If he were to actually do something offensively, or hide something being done that that would be an Illusion, but just to make everyone see the background minus himself could be done with Images. And this is an example of the difference in systems, as in the system I built it in, Illusion would be the only way to do it. But in HERO, there's the option of using Illusion to make something that isn't happening appear to or something that is happening appear not to, or Images to make someone see (or not see) something, and could be used to differentiate a more precise, specialized usage for only one particular purpose, which I like. How does that sound?

I was looking in the rulebook, and came across this while looking at the Hole In the Middle Advantage: Example: Arkelos wants to be able to talk to his friends without anyone else hearing. He buys a Silence Field — Darkness that affects the Hearing Sense Group, with a 3" radius. He then buys the Power Advantage Hole In The Middle (+¼) for the Silence Field, defining it as the one hex in the center of the Silence Field. Now Arkelos and his friends can sit in the middle of the Field and converse without fear of being overheard. (5ER 259) So it seems that's the simplest, most straightforward way to do it since that's specifically what the example is constructing. For +½ you can alter the size of the hole with every use to make it as big as it needs to be to accommodate however many number of people (it wouldn't be many though, as the more people there are, the harder it is to keep secret). As you said though, one wouldn't be able to hear anything outside of it just as no one outside of it can hear into it. (On an aside, there was a wind controller character I was working on, and it's nice to see that HERO has a way of simulating the eye of a hurricane.)

Hmm... thank you for your input. It seems Physiology should cover STR, CON, STUN, BOD, etc., and the information you said discriminatory and analyze provide would be the kind of stuff this particular character would want to know. After looking at MegaScale after what you said earlier, how much would you advise, as MegaScale is an effect I haven't previously encountered. Would several blocks in every direction be sufficient? I suppose a PC could always come up with something, but there's no reason for anyone who happens to be present at the time to suspect anything.

Hence why it appealed to me, because to me it elicited a comparison to a invisible soundproofed room. And it doesn't matter how far away someone is from a soundproofed room, they can't hear the sound, whereas someone outside the area of effect of a sense-affecting power wouldn't be affected by it. I appreciate all the suggestions, as they gave me options to think about, and I'll take a closer look at them. Indeed playtesting once I get a grasp on the HERO System game rules could iron stuff out. I've built characters one way in other systems, but after actually playing with them, made some changes until they got to the point they were performing as I wanted.

I don't believe in characters that can "do everything," as I find it boring. What I do believe in, is, after defining what a character's powers are, exploring the full extent of those powers (allowing for some Disadvantages that may affect some uses), and how they can be used in various situations. In my design notes for characters, I put down favored tactics, and if something spontaneously comes up during the course of a role play, I'll make a note of it. As I said before, psionic powers can be generic (telepathy, mind reading, mental blasts, illusions, TK, mind scan, psionic surgery, basically every psionic ability it's possible to have, stay out of sight and snipe from a distance, blah, blah, blah, the exact same tactics), so I didn't give him the typical full gamut of psionic powers, and came up with specific uses unique to him so that he stands out as a unique character rather than being yet another expy. He's not someone given to drawing a lot of attention to himself, and that's how a character's personality can inform the type of powers they have. (e.g., the brash, hot-headed guy just so happens to get fire powers, etc.) He does have Invisibility to cloak just himself, but the thing was how he could mechanically simultaneously uncloak himself to some people while cloaking himself to everyone else, and cloak himself and some other people. He does already have AoE Mental Illusions regardless whether it came up as a suggestion in this thread or not, and it was the fact that he already had it, and posters happened to mention it as a possibility for Selectively being visible to some people and cloaked to everyone else (which the rules explicitly state can't be done with Invisibility) without knowing the character had it or even anything about the character at all (since I just asked about power constructions and never posted anything about the characters they were for), made it perfect. Since it was already a power he had, he could use it for that purpose as well. It isn't for stealth per se, as he doesn't have those skills (he's got people for stealth missions), but rather to be unnoticed and not draw attention to himself. Knowledge is power, and if no one knows anything about him he doesn't want them to know, then they can't develop countermeasures against him. There are too many super scientist inventors running around. So he isn't given to flashy displays of power. He has Invisibility and Mental Transform in a That Which is Done in Secret Will Remain Secret power grouping. He conceals the fact that he has powers, and his doings outside of his civilian identity. In The Usual Suspects, "Kobayashi" said Kaiser Soze couldn't be betrayed because he had no people, and people who worked for him didn't even know they were. This character uses Mental Illusions so that none of his minions have ever seen his true face or heard his true voice. Mental Transform to erase memory of anything he doesn't want other people to find out (they literally wouldn't know anything to tell). Then under another appearance give a Mind Control order for their next instructions. Have meetings in public places that no one sees or hears. He works primarily behind the scenes. No one sees him coming until he's already established himself. Correct. Those are the intended weaknesses they're supposed to have. It only affects sentient beings, so does nothing against security cameras. If he used an Illusionary Disguise, regardless what everyone saw, any cameras would record his actual image even if absolutely no one recalls every seeing that person and swears they never came in that day. He could be bugged, and his conversation recorded even if no one actually there at the time heard it. Resisting the illusion is a possibility, though that would require someone being able to do so just happening to be at the right place at the right time (or the wrong place at the wrong time, depending on whose perspective one is taking).

The Mind Link option wouldn't need to be physically heard. It breaks down to three separate effects to be created for this ability in HERO System: 1. Imperceivable: This is Invisibility to Sight, Hearing and Smell/Taste Groups, No Fringe, Only Works Against Sentient Beings (-1/2). No special build needed here. This is for when he wants to do something without being noticed. Usable for him alone, no one else. Since Invisibility is explicitly not Selective, it necessitates separate mechanics for the next two effects. 2. This is when he wants to be visible to a selected number of person(s), and Invisible to Sight, Hearing and Smell/Taste Groups to everyone except those people. And usually those people will also be visible to him and Invisible to Sight, Hearing and Smell/Taste Groups to everyone else. This aspect is Privacy From Prying Eyes and Ears, and enables clandestine meetings in the open, away from cameras (which are not sentient, and thus wouldn't be affected). The Mind Link suggestion would fit here, as would the Darkness suggestion, for the Privacy From Prying Ears part. If Force Wall isn't appropriate, then that puts Darkness back in the lead again to prevent unwanted listeners. For just making himself visible to certain people and Invisible to Sight, Hearing and Smell/Taste Groups for everyone else, in 6th ed., he'd have Personal Immunity as a naked Advantage and Usable By Nearby, and then use Imperceivable and grant Personal Immunity to the people he wants to appear to, then take it back when he's done. That seems the simplest way to achieve that effect in Sixth Edition. It would enable him to do the "he suddenly appears out of nowhere" thing, and the "suddenly disappears again" thing. (NOTE: HERO Designer actually lists it as an Unavailable Advantage for that, saying, "Personal Immunity cannot be applied to self-only Powers." So it doesn't seem like that's a possibility after all. Even though he actually doesn't need it for himself, it would solely be to bestow upon others) Selective Area of Effect Mental Illusions seems to be the leading candidate for making both him and another party/ies invisible to everyone else other than themselves. 3. This is when he and a selected number of people are visible to every spectrum and observable to any onlookers, but the contents of their conversation cannot be overheard. Say, he and some other people are in a fancy restaurant. The cameras recorded them entering, so their presence there would be on record. However, no one who happens to overhear their conversation will hear anything of importance rather than the real conversation that's taking place. Since Illusions can cover Sound and Smell as well as Sight, then this could actually be done to accomplish Privacy From Prying Eyes and Ears. Since the rules say you can use as many Powers as you want in HERO so long as you can afford the Endurance cost, he could simultaneously run Mental Illusions and Darkness/Sound Images/whichever mechanic is chosen for the sounds. This is for noncombat, and might not come up in a campaign unless PCs have suspicions about him (which shouldn't be for a long time) and decide to investigate and he, knowing he's being followed, gives them nothing but inconsequential stuff to throw them off his track, but it's necessary enough for his personality and combat to stat it out.

This point actually occurred to me when thinking about Darkness. An area of no sound at all would be odd, and clearly unnatural. There are characters with silence powers who are supposed to do that, and they're not trying to hide that, but if you're trying to go unnoticed, an abnormal absence of sound would attract notice. And if he isn't making them unseen, but preventing an eavesdropping, then sitting in silence or appearing to be talking but nothing actually being heard would also draw suspicion. I like Mental Illusions because it has a lot of applications outside of combat and fighting people. Since characters aren't going to be fighting 24/7, I like to think of how they could use their powers outside of a combat situation.

Ah. You have a point. A telescope and parabolic microphone would be doable. Anyone spying would be doing so at a distance anyway. I'll note that. Thank you.

Hmm... well, I'm a novice to HERO System, which I why I asked for advice. So if it would be awkward, I'm sure you'd know better than I. It just seemed the logic was sound, since it was essentially soundproofing. To clarify though, the effect isn't a cone of silence, but essentially Selective Invisibility to Hearing Groups. Since the rules explicitly state Selective can't be used with Invisibility (5ER 250), that requires it to be done differently. I had this power in what translates to a Multipower slot in HERO: 2) Imperceivable: Invisibility to Sight, Hearing and Smell/Taste, No Fringe (40 Active Points); Limited Power Power loses about a third of its effectiveness (Only Works Against Sentient Beings; -1/2) Now that works for when he wants to do things without being noticed. That can work as is. But he also had another version for when he wanted to conduct private meetings with someone. Like the example I gave earlier about meeting in a public park (away from cameras since it explicitly doesn't work on cameras), he and someone else could be sitting on a park bench discussing business, while no one around them can perceive them. They can both perceive each other, but no one else sees anything other than an empty park bench. So I was wondering how to build the multi-person version in HERO System. Darkness was a candidate for the Selective Invisible to Hearing Groups multiperson variant.