GamePhil

I knew I was forgetting one... (OK, more than one, I'm sure)

Unfortunately, the creation of absurd examples is a logically flawed argument. I wish I could remember the Latin: reducio ad absurdum? But that's neither here nor there, the point is that if you take anything to an absurd extreme it will be, by definition, absurd. However, here Armor is the more valid construct, so Rule 6 doesn't apply because they are not equally valid. It fits exactly what you want without tweaking.

Re: Save or Die? Drat, little errors. A minor re-write, here... Absolutely, but if you really want the power, let's call it Death Effect, to work every time, you would need to design your world to work that way, not the power. For example, it could be designed in a world where every living thing has a Body of 3, and any extra must be purchased with the Limitation, Not Against Death Effect. Let's call that a -1/2, such attacks are common in the games they exist in. This gives everyone with 10 Body 5 points to play with. Death Effect is then a 2d6 RKA, Standard Effect (6 Body), NND (defense is a successful CON roll or not having a CON), Does Body, Must Instantly Kill Target Or Has No Effect (-1/2). 90 AP, 60 RP. That last isn't worth a Limitation, I hear you cry out. That would be true, but there are creatures in such games immune to such attacks, and these are allowed to buy off the Limitation on Body. A less extreme method is to simply constrain how much Body can be bought to an absolute limit, then design the Death Effect to kill that character. So, an absolute limit of 30 Body just means you need to do 60 Body to the target. That doesn't get you your less than 100 points, though. The simplest method is to just give anything that's not immune the Physical Limitation: Can Be Killed Instantly By Death Effect On Failing A CON Roll, Infrequently, Fully Impairing. Then just apply an appropriately high arbitrary cost to the Death Effect, and install whatever restrictions on its use that you want. This is in effect what the other game systems do, after all. No, really, I'm serious. I would never do this, but it is a good example of establishing an absolute power in Hero with no changes to the rules.

Re: On characteristics: This idea comes up often enough that disassociating the Figured Characteristics from the Primaries is actually mentioned in the book now, as one of the options. I don't think I'd like to see it as a rule, myself, but if it were to be used you'd pretty much have to reduce the cost of CON, or give it other uses: at that point its only contribution would be resistance to being Stunned and the occasional CON roll, both useful but 2 points per point? I don't see Bricks being penalized by losing Figured Stats with STR in a Multipower, though. It's really too powerful a slot and causes too many bookkeeping complications otherwise. However, Comeliness is something everyone has, and many objects, as well. That's why it's a Characteristic, not because it's necessarily useful, but because it's always there. I wouldn't mind more examples of its utility, though it should never be more useful than the 1/2 point cost. I also wouldn't mind some concept of "subjective attractiveness", but that's almost certainly beyond the scope of a core rulebook unless it can be condensed into a short paragraph. Actually, very, very few of my characters have the same PD as ED. A few Bricks do. Usually, it just makes more sense to have them different: big burly fellow is still not as well defended against Energy than his energy projecting friends, though he can take a pummeling all day long. I wouldn't especially like this change.

And that, or something like it, would probably be a better thing to put in later editions. I don't know how anyone would misconstrue this explanation. Must...not...pick...tangential...nits! Oh, who am I kidding? Isn't that already a function of the Stretching Advantage, Does Not Cross Intervening Space? The two dimensional portals thing is one of the examples for it.

1. Fix the weapon and armor rules so that they're at least sort of balanced. It's the same as in 4th Edition, but if you're referring to the Limitation values I kind of see your point. Still, since they are applied to Powers that are not generally intended to have points paid for them anyway, I don't see a severe balance issue. Even when they are purchased, they are in games where other people get almost the same thing for free (I buy a magic 3d6 sword, my buddy over there got the 2d6 one for no cost), I don't see a problem with them being cheap. Still, I do favor consistency. 2. Change some of the power costs to better facilitate heroic level games. Flight and force field are way, way, way too cheap. Drains and transfers are too expensive. I generally use, and wouldn't mind seeing, a Utility Advantage/Limitation: if it's really useful in this game, it gets an Advantage, if it's not so useful a Limitation. However, if it never exists officially I wouldn't be bothered. 3. Bite the bullet and change the characteristics costs to balance STR and DEX at the very least. Personally I'd like to see DEX broken up into at least two different stats, e.g. 'agility' and 'coordination'. Can't agree there. I especially like STR as it is, unless revisions were made system-wide (if they were to, for some reason, eliminate EC's altogether I could see increasing the cost of STR). Dexterity is also frequently argued to be broken, but I have yet to see an argument that applies universally. 4. Fix the skill system to allow finer grain at heroic levels. DEX is the only stat where each point really matters. Other stats (such as INT) have about four levels of granularity. What would you suggest? Using an OCV/DCV like system, like Fuzion did? Or something else? 5. Fix the bleeding rules. What's wrong with the Bleeding rules? Or were you just being terribly British?

Well, that's the thing: which is simpler, a description of Armor and Force Field, and PD and ED as Characteristics with the possible added Damage Resistance, or simply PD, ED, and Damage Resistance? To me, the latter is simpler: there are fewer rules, the only problem being possibly with the application. Yes, it is simpler to have a list that includes Force Field, Armor, and so on, to just take and stick on the character sheet fully written. However, like in the case with Instant Change, once the new ability is constructed, you just pull it out of the list and use it. Only if you need added flexibility do you go to the core rules. So, if the theoretical 6th Edition were to be done this way, you would have some set of "Core Powers" and all the Advantages and Limitations you might need. Then put in the Power List, which builds all the Powers in Hero 5th with these new rules (except the ones in the Core Powers), describes in largely the same manner, shows how they are built (similarly to the much disputed Instant Change), and then summarizes the cost. The final result? Armor costs 3 points for 2 Resistant Defense, Force Field costs 1 point for 1 Resistant Defense and costs END. So you have the same rules, but you have a different foundation to work from, with any luck one that is even more flexible than the one we have now. But as I said before I edited for clarity, that's if it's done well. If it's done poorly, it would be the stuff of nightmares. Whew. Sorry about that.

Not as much of a minority as you might think, and I believe you are misunderstanding his point. The idea is to have fewer Powers that can all be expanded on to get all the ones currently in the book. For example, Instant Change was rolled into Transform (I know that a lot of people don't like this, but I rather do, and once it's built you just plunk down the 7 or 8 points and write Instant Change on your sheet). As another example, one not in the current rules (but one that has been touched on in this thread, if my memory of the three pages isn't failing me), instead of having Armor and Force Field and PD/ED/DR, you just have PD/ED/DR, and can define a new power Armor as the three together, and Force Field as the the new Armor power with Costs Endurance. In other words, all the rules would be in the core book: if that's all you're interested in, you never need to buy another book. Specific instances of how to use them would be in examples, both in the same core book and in other books. I'd like to see that.

This comes up a lot, but I tend to disagree on one aspect: I believe that Continuous very much should be a requirement for Damage Shield. However, I also think that in general Damage Shield is less useful than Continuous for Ranged Powers, and so should reduce its cost by -1/2

You'll get no argument from me

Perhaps you should check the Braced maneuver, and how you break out of Telekinesis. I'd say Strength pretty well can't be said to give you zero of the benefits of an anchor. Can Clinging do it too? Sure, given the proper set of assumptions. It depends to some extent on how you define current.

It is not in the realm of SFX, it is in the description of the Power itself: it speaks of sheer surfaces, walls, and other solid objects. Nowhere do I see where it speaks of clinging to liquids, any more than it would allow a flying character to maintain his position in midair. If it does, please bring it to my attention. Knockback Resistance the ship probably has in abundance. It doesn't really apply to the ocean moving it about, though, any more than it would stop someone with a high Strength TK from picking the object up and moving it about. In my opinion, all the attempts to do this, including STR, are attempts to fit round holes with square pegs. The one that fits the book rules most closely seems to be the Strength. If someone wants to modify the rules to better suit their perceptions, great! Then I think a modified Clinging would be very good. But in official publications, they go (by and large) by the book, and should.

If my memory is not playing tricks on me, an anchor can function without reaching a solid object. It has to do with the weight hanging down and physics that my brain refuses to cough up (and therefore is both difficult to explain and suspect). If that's the case, Clinging isn't technically the appropriate power, as there is nothing to cling to. However, if the anchor does need to hit bottom I suppose you could buy it with an Extra Limb and lots of Non-combat Stretching.

I just want to make sure: did he say Frameworks or EC's? By the book, that guideline (in a game where all rules should be considered guidelines, the section that includes this is specifically pointed out to be a guideline) only applies to EC's to the best of my knowledge. So you can put Aid in a Multipower or Variable Pool. Which is actually wonky, since they are harder to balance in those constructs than they are in an EC.

Yes, that's because Vehicles have a number of exceptions to the rules about them, including how Foci work. I admit I did forget about that. So it goes. Accessible only means that it doesn't get the Vehicle Defense, and it apparently can't be Grabbed. Otherwise you'd have people snatching away the guns for a number of Vehicles. I still wonder how the other Limitation is unfair at -2. It holds the ship in one place. It cannot use it to do damage. It cannot use it for cargo capacity. In fact, it really doesn't do all that much that it couldn't do with its own Strength already, and can't be bought any higher. Why is this not a -2?

Not necessarily a lot more dice, though, The Force can have a powerful effect on the weak minded, which could imply that most people have a Vulnerability to the power. Or not, as the case may be.

Well, first off, is the character you're building an insecure, uncharasmatic twit? If not, it doesn't matter, unless you're building a package that various people might take, including insecure, uncharasmatic twits However, if I'm understanding you he's an insecure, uncharismatic twit that makes everyone around him an insecure, uncharismatic twit, and so can influence them more easily. It's like if I have a 5 PRE and am used to it and everyone around me has a 5 PRE for the first time, I still come out on top. That could be bought as Mind Control or Presence Drain, or just Presence. But, like I said, I don't know the system, and the Mind Control certainly works.

One thing, JmOz, what type of magic system are you trying to devise? It might help with generating suggestions. Can you describe it in non-mechanical terms? On the other hand, game mechanics can make a good shorthand. Your system seems to indicate: Magic can be performed by an act of will but becomes easier with a short ritual or pre-prepared item (thus the Variable Limitation), that mages have the ability to know a great many spells (the Multipower), that they only have so much "juice" to apply to their spells at one time (the Multipower again), and that some form of mystic energy can be stored in certain items (the Endurance Reserve). Is that about right? Any other thoughts?

I'm not familiar with Rifts, but it looks to me like an increased Presence score combined with the DF already suggested, rather than the Mind Control power.

There are a number of ways to make Aid a perfectly reasonable, or even abusive, Power. However, I'll start with the most fundamental change: Aid now costs 0 Endurance. That makes up for half the cost difference right there. You can put Aid in a Multipower, use it to up your Characteristic, then switch to another slot (possibly boosting that Characteristic still more). You can buy up the Aid maximum as a 2:1 offer, allowing you to boost the Characteristic more than buying it straight, if you have the time. Without the Self Only Limtation, of course, you can just keep slapping it on your party. A 6d6 Strength or Dexterity Aid is quite powerful: give your buddy +20 STR, then give your other buddy a +20 STR, and so on. Of course, my cat is currently keeping me from accessing my book by sitting on my chest, so I could be wrong about some detail.

On the other hand, you might be able to have a Detect Evil where Evil is defined by a character's subjective criteria, even if it has no objective reality.

I'd be more than willing to entertain that Limited Coverage is possibly not the right Limitation. However, the idea that the Limitation is -2 makes perfect sense to me: it doesn't add to the vehicle's ability to carry things, exert force, or anything else other than grab ahold and keep the ship from moving. As for why it's an OIF, it's because it's attached to the ship. You'd have to break it or spend time detaching it to remove the power.

I tend to look at one more thing: who are you trying to put to sleep? The D&D Sleep spell, for example, is trying to put out what we might call "normal", so I just use an 8d6 Stun Only EB, no Advantages (except maybe Area), All or Nothing (-1), Target Recovers All Stun Immediately Upon Regaining Consciousness (-1/2) It's more complicated than the Transform, my other preference, but it does have the advantage of being cheap.

Well... Just a particularly bizarre suggestion, which requires an assumption of the world. If you were to consider Memory to be an Unusual Sense, you could buy Invisibility against it, and define the Invisibility as working pretty much the way you described. However, aside from that or a similar weird thing, your best bet is probably a Minor Transform vs. Mind, Target to Target with no memory (or records) of the character. One moment while I pull up Hero Designer to make this quicker... 38 Transform 1d6: Target Without Memory Of Character (Minor), Personal Immunity (+1/4), Area Of Effect (One Hex; +1/2), Affects Desolidified (Any form of Desolidification; +1/2), Reduced Endurance (0 END; +1/2), Persistent (+1/2), Based On EGO Combat Value (Mental Defense; +1), Continuous (+1), Invisible Power Effects (Fully Invisible; +1), Megascale (1" = 100000 km; +1 1/2) (77 Active Points); Always On (-1/2), No Range (-1/2) Say, it's only 38 points, that's not too bad.

Actually, I'd give the Physical Limitation more points: it may be Infrequent, depending on the game, or Frequent, but it's Greatly Impairing. However, I'd probably take it as a -1/4 Side Effect on up to 60 points of powers, the Side Effect going off when he loses the Hand and giving him the Disadvantage you describe until he recovers it or makes a new one. And you are not a Munchkin. A Munchkin is someone that does goofy things (I buy up my Con to 19 because I get 2 END and 1 Stun for free, ignoring that it is not in my conception and that I need those two points somewhere else) to get perceived power. You are a Power Gamer, one who uses the system to its full extent and continues to try to push the envelop, but in reasonable ways. Congratulations!