austenandrews

These aren't the sorts of thing I would normally require a player to buy, since they're extremely situational, but: - extra Running, defined as sliding on a banister/shield/bar of soap/what-have-you, rolling on or in a barrel, etc. - Naked Ranged Advantage for HKA, for throwing rapiers and whatnot - TK, for tossing things at bad guys to conveniently knock them off ledges and such (possibly even AE: 1 Hex) - AE: 1 Hex EB+Entangle (both at fairly low levels), dropped table/doorway/curtain/chandelier/snow drift/etc. - certainly Swinging, plus extra vertical Swinging for riding up on a rope with a counterweight, or sliding down a sail/curtain/tapestry using a dagger to slow the descent - Flash v.s. Sight for fighting with a lantern or torch - Naked AE:1 Hex Advantage for HKA, for fighting many foes simultaneously without penalty - Naked Invisible Advantage for HKA, to slice candles and guards without the tops falling off -AA

I might allow the Enraged and Hunted together, if I wanted to have orc plots be that much a part of my game. No way would I allow the Hatred and Enraged together. Unless it's set up with some unusual backstory, Enraged should automatically imply Hatred. -AA

I'd probably build it as a Damage Shield TK or Entangle. I don't care for the notion of Clinging as an offensive power. -AA

If the GM allows it, you can Detect anything you can think of, abstract or not. It's one of those catch-all powers. -AA

I used to make all those distinctions, but in actual play I've found that "KS v.s. PS" is nothing more than an artifact of the character creation system. The differences are too minute to worry about, especially compared to the point costs involved. I wind up making virtually no distinction between the two. Rather I let backstory and personality dictate the "flavor" of a particular character's skill. -AA

I -really- don't care for turning every power into a "salad bar" (see 5E Life Support, Shape Change, et al.). However, I could get behind separating the "moving through stuff" aspect of Desol from the "can't be hurt" aspect. I think adding the 100% Damage Reduction option would cover the defense side well enough (maybe with some multiple-SFX Advantages, a la Adjustment powers, to make Vision/Kitty Pryde-style Desol easy to build?). Then you could fold in the "moving through stuff" aspect with Tunnelling. -AA

I'm of the opposite opinion. Walking away from a campaign is far preferable to a slow, lingering death. Life's too short for uncomfortable games. -AA

Of course there are useful applications of the technology, or no one would spend money on them. They're good for evidence after-the-fact, for instance. But you're generally talking about instances of clearly-identifable behavior. If Captain Mystery takes rudimentary precautions while changing into his costume, and doesn't act strangely except in costume, then his secret identity should be perfectly safe. -AA

I had a devil of a time with a telepathic PC last year. Serious pain, through no fault of the player; I just wasn't adequately prepared as a GM for the power. I won't disallow it in the future, but I will certainly obstruct its usefulness with lots of "color." -AA

I agree that these technologies aren't nearly as intrusive and sophisticated as the hype makes them out to be. In general a large city is such a mass of humanity that no surveillance system is going to be able to track a single guy, unless he's somehow electronically marked. The volume of raw data is more than any real-world analysis operation can handle. I somewhat addressed this in a Champs game I ran in the mid-90's, in which the government-affiliated PC team actually had a cutting-edge spy satellite at their disposal, in geosynchronous orbit over the city. They had centimeter-scale optical resolution, surface-penetrating multispectrum cameras; the works. It was great for tracking bad guys trying to escape through back alleys in the dark, and for marking the layout and inhabitants of a criminal's hideout (scenarios featured nicely in last season's 24); but it never helped much when they tried to find a random bad-guy-at-large. There's just too much raw data to make it very useful. What's fun, though, is to put such technology in the hands of a villain who actually can operate it with super-efficiency. That'd make the PCs work for their 15pts. -AA

*heh* Like the time I made a dark, brooding hero based on Charon, the spirit who ferries dead souls across the River Styx. I came up with a suitably dour character and costume, a nice origin, a power set that was fresh and dark ... and the only name I could think up was "The Ferryman." Not exactly something that would strike fear into the hearts of criminals. -AA

Synthesis Modulus The Ordainer The Rectifier Morphos/Morphosis/Morpheus Chimaerus -AA

Exactly. The whole scenario is patently impossible, which is why constructs that generate radiation or teleport planetary bodies are missing the point. It's all about style and high fantasy. -AA

Straight STR damage (squeeze, bash, whatever; they're just FX) is automatic in my games. Fancy stuff may require a roll. -AA

I'm with Fireg0lem. You're really talking about two effects - defense against physical attacks & Absorption adding to STUN. Buying up your defenses takes care of gaining back STUN lost to a physical attack, for a lot cheaper than Absorption. I'd consider 75%rDR + Armor + KB Resistance (or maybe even the Desol route if the character's only attacks are via STR). Then you can use Absorption to add back additional STUN when the character is hit with a physical attack (though you'd have to check the FAQ and/or consult your GM to be sure that Absorption activates if you're using Desol - I don't see why not, but you never know). -AA Edit: Great minds, Farkling.

I agree, I'd do it with CE. (Actually I wouldn't even stat it out, but if I had to, I'd use CE.) What keeps that from being munchkinry is the fact that this is ultimately a plot device that will not be used on a regular basis. I sure as heck wouldn't let a player put it on his character sheet. Other methods, like teleporting the Earth or the moon, strike me as needlessly costly and complicated. (Besides, if you teleported the moon, it wouldn't even be there when the clouds parted!) Using a CE to trigger someone's paid-for Disads/Limitations is perfectly legal and ethical, no worse than building a flame-thrower to fight an ice monster (insert debate here). And I'd use a CE to actually change the moon, as opposed to simply altering the defenses of the werewolves, because such a powerful spell can and should have side-effects across the landscape. By the way, D, I think this is a cool idea. It would be an awesome trick for one of those big-time Vegas magicians to use as a centerpiece for a TV special. -AA

Absolutely. I use that construct in my fantasy game. -AA

Exactly. For another example, my inlaws used to have a St. Bernard. Once they chained him to a wooden column on the porch to keep him from chasing a cat. When the cat came by again, he pulled the whole column off its cement screws and dragged it down the street. This was not a dog that a 0 STR person could grab and hold onto as an equal. And he wasn't especially large for a St. Bernard, either (probably in the 120# range). -AA

I don't think you can rate an animal's STR just based on carrying capacity, though. Sure, a dog's legs aren't designed for hauling things. I think that's covered in the 15pt. Physical Disadvantage (if not, maybe another Disad is in order). Hero stats are centered around combat effectiveness. I'm inclined to think more in terms of STR v.s. STR contests. The giant breeds (Rotts, Mastiffs, St. Bernards) can easily overpower a normal man with simple muscle strength. Even the large breeds (German Shepherds, et al.) are more than many people can handle. 5E lists a small child at 0 STR. Do you really think a small child and a Rottweiler have equal STR? -AA

Sorry, I don't follow the logic. Why should Armor have any bearing on how an attack is calculated? -AA

Is it just me, or should the dog writeups in the Bestiary have 10-15 STR more than listed? I've never seen a German Shepherd try the bench-press, but I'm positive it rates more than a -5 STR. A full-grown Rottweiler is surely as strong as a normal man, yet the guard dog lists at 0 STR. Just wondering if anyone else has a similar gripe. -AA

Hmm, off the top of my head: VPP: 40 pt pool, 20 pt control reduced to, say, 5 pts. = 45 pts. for unlimited options MP: 40 pt pool reduced to, say, 10 pts. + 17 x 4 pt Ultras reduced to, say, 2 pts = 44 pts. for 17 options The VPP gives you a better spread of options, but 17 animal forms should cover most cases. And with the MP you can get in with one option for 12 pts, or five options for 20 pts, and work your way up. (Of course I'm not even sure Multiform is allowed in a MP, since it's not a power I've ever used. But I wouldn't have a problem with the construct in a game I ran.) -AA

Does the spellcaster/magic item in question already have a power framework? The Multiform might be cheaper if some framework points are already spent. -AA

For ease of play, in my games I let HtH levels apply to DCV for any incoming attacks. Ranged levels apply only to OCV. If pressed, I'd probably allow ranged levels to negate DCV penalties for ranged maneuvers, but it hasn't come up yet. (I haven't run my fantasy game since FH came out. I'm not going to use the archery=1/2 DCV ruling, except for longbows, so this may not come up at all.) -AA

I don't have a problem with buying great size without Growth. I do think the book needs to explain clearly exactly how to do that. At least make it a sidebar on the Growth page. -AA