Zac

Re: Catalyst: A Champions campaign on Hero Central

Re: Catalyst: A Champions campaign on Hero Central Why go the easy route with being turned in and found not guilty? Say he was found guily and did time. If would actually using your powers over here, do something big you usual get away with overseas and get away with it once or twice. Then get cocky and get caught by the Ministry of Justice. Maybe your plans went so awry you were almost killed, but were saved by one of them (Plasma Core very likely). You did your time in PIT and are honestly reformed. Lets say you did 12 years making big rocks, much smaller rocks You get out and decide to go back to Thebes and set things right. You character would be probably be between 30 and 40 year old. You would have a unique prespective of the criminal underworld and how Primes are involved in it. I would let you buy some skills most players could not at the start of the game. I would also allow you to get some good contacts. You could go two routes: Keeping your OLD ID or forging a new one. OLD ID 1. Watched by Authorities 2. Watched by Guardsmen 3. Something for being on Parole. 4. Some sort of limitation to show you are a covicted Felon. 5. Reputation 8- (whatever) 6. It would have to be a no ID or a Public ID. 7. Psych Limitation - Reformed Criminal (Common, Strong), you try to prove to yourself and the world that you can make it on the outside without reverting to your criminal past NEW ID You can either skip out on parole and get a hunted by authorities looking for your OLD ID or you check in with them but play as a new hero, or something. 1. Local Authorities 2. Old ID is on Parole 3. Old ID is still a convicted Felon 4. Same Psych Lim as above 5. Reputation 8- (normal id. Arnt you Killjoy? Yeah, but I would still like fries with that!!!) If you are a Prime with inate powers, changing who you are would be really hard. I mean throwing plasma blasts is still throwing plasma blasts. However, if you were a suit... you could build another. Have different powers. It also means you old suit it locked away somewhere for someone to steal and parade around as you Just some ideas. Really the GO TO JAIL route has a lot more RP potential.

Re: Catalyst: A Champions campaign on Hero Central Some of the knowledge is passed down by oral tradition and some comes with the mantle itself. So, if you are the apprentice then you have had sufficient training beforehand to know what is knowing on. You will have to take scholar and about 4 skills. If you just take the mantle you get power without insight (Greatest American Hero anyone). However, the Mantle holds something of past Ravens, so you do get some insight. Warpath is a Native American villian organization. Raven worked with them AND the Ministry of Justice. See my post about Thebes, you get to know a bit about them. I will let you know more off the boards. The oracle ability is a ritual. You will not be using it on the spur of the moment, but it is pretty darn power divination (beyond campaign limits to be certain). However, there is a cost. The Mantle of Tears (the black feathered cloak and hood) is a mystical artifact. Wearing the mantle means becoming an instrument of the spirit world (much like Dr. Fate is an instrument). Psych Limitation: Cryptic (Common, Strong) - you can NEVER just give anyone a straight answer to a real problem. You must use double talk, innuendo, etc. Think of all those good lines "Like is a difference between knowing a path, and walking a path". It is common instead of very common because it is not with mundane matters, when needing to know something really counts... you cant give a straight answer. If you make the roll, you can give more of an answer... but you still can't give it all. Psych Limitation: Guide not Guardian (Common, Total) - you can't act on your knowledge, you can only inform. If true seers were able to act on everything they knew, they would be supreme in their power. That does not mean you can't be a guide for others and it does not mean you cannot assist them. It means you cannot directly act on mystical knowledge or mundane knowledge gathered mystically, you must find an instrument to act on it. However, as you are Cryptic you have a hell of a time telling people what to do Physical Limitation: Magical Being. Things that normally effect things from other planes, effect you. You live your life split between the spirit world and the real world. So magical triangle, someone knowing your true name, all of that... works for you and against you. Those are the biggies. You want to take more along those line, be my guest. You will be watched by the Local Native American Tribe (As pow, Non combat influ) and by Warpath (More Powerful). NOW, if you want to just be someone who the Mantle was passed onto during the Battle for Center City, then the real apprentice is going to come gunning for you (Hunted, As powerful), in hope to gain the Mantle. Unfortunately, like Dorthy's Ruby Slippers, the Mantle is not just something that can be taken off. The Raven's known powers are magic based, but you dont have to intone any gestures or whatnot, they are inate abilities. Flight and Sonic Attack powers to start. How you pick you defenses is open for interpretation. I recommend some sort of Elemental Control for Flight and Armor. Put all you other abilities in a multipower. The BIG divination is going to have a bunch of disad (Only usable a limited number of times an adventure, takes hours to complete, needs set environemnt, etc). If you are an apprentice you have access to a magic base, if you just find the mantle you dont have access to a magic base. You still in?

Re: Catalyst: A Champions campaign on Hero Central The entire Ministry of Justice is dead. They died about 10 years ago and there are now statues of them as a memorial. So, playing one of them is pretty much out. There is a hero/villian known as "The Raven". She was a mystically based oracle of sorts. She did have flight and sonic'ish powers, and she is dead. However, she has been around for a LONG darn time, she has Serial Immortality. She was training an apprentice but no one else knew it. It was assumed she died in the Battle for Center City (and she did). However, you could take her place. She always seems to show back up and people take her for what she was. Kinda like mixing Dr. Fate with a Time Lord I was originally basing her like the Phantom, the next generation just fills her shoes... there has always been a Raven in these parts (even before there were Primes). I would let you make her up from scratch EXCEPT you need to take some oracle'ish powers. She wore a cape with a hood and no-one EVER saw her face. If she shows back up (as you playing her) everyone will assume automatically that she just came back, again. You would be watched by the local Native American Tribe and Watched by Warpath. You could either be an apprentice or she dies at your feet and passes a the mantle onto you. I have a hook for either, you choose.

Re: Catalyst: A Champions campaign on Hero Central I will let him post his character. He is playing a Energy Projector (of sorts).

Re: Catalyst: A Champions campaign on Hero Central I posted some dirt about Thebes earlier in the thread. Where Silverstone is a "new" hero city, Thebes is rife with past history. A large section of the city was actually destroyed (Battle of Center City) by Mechanix and the last super group that defended it (The Ministry of Justice) is dead. Take a gander back there in the thread. I am not giving it all away, but this city is going to have a lot of black and white contrasts between the haves and have nots, etc. Lots of history and existing villians for the characters to sink their teeth into.

Re: Catalyst: A Champions campaign on Hero Central Right now the Catalyst universe is hero/villian light. The only real areas of activity are the players cities with existing groups (just in the US... not going to even think about anywhere else). So, Guardian is going to have to be a solo player. From prior posts all I knew was Guardian got owned by Lord Havoc, no background, nada. Just hey, your dead. As far as getting tricked by others, it would not be like that. Just the regular people in his life (and anyone else who knows him) are going to come looking eventually. Trying to hide who you are from people who know you is almost impossible. Unless you know the history in detail, it just does not work. All someone has to do is get the old "Sense Motive" feeling and see what happens. Might not happen right away (Issue 1, but it would come up). I was using ID theft as an example, not really going toward criminal intent. I don't mind the bad guy, all heroes need a nemesis (or a lot of them). A bigger picture is evidently needed. Three of the top of my head: Trying to live up to prior hero Mystery hunteds (they are hunting the original hero, but since you have his suit) Dark Secret The disads do define the hero, and they could be a lot of fun. Just rememeber that about 1/2 your disads seem to come from that. So, it will come up all the time. I don't have a problem with him at all, it is just trying to fit the character into the game world. Fed and I had this discussion a few weeks ago. Lots of weight behind who you are trying to become, so it tends to tip the scales.

Re: Modeling a CoH/CoV character in the Hero System I think the feel for the environment is the key, mechanical conversion = yuck. BTW, Fedfensor and I still game together on CoH/CoV. Not as much recently are we are planning the Catalyst games for Champions. But, the twice a month TF is still a staple

Re: Modeling a CoH/CoV character in the Hero System Its a cute idea, but one I would do begin to undertake. Why? First... Lets assume you use the brawl index and get ALL the powers converted. Then, they pull an Issue 3 (Enhancement Diversification) on you OR they re-set the powerlevels (like every Issue), etc. You will have a TON of work to rework. Second... CoH/CoV has to take in standard Archtypes to balance group play in an MMO world. Champions has no such limitation. Get one empath healer and a standard group would be gold. Next, some of the points for powers goes WAY beyond normal campaign limits. Most of the AoE slows, AoE Knockdowns and AoE Debuffs are extremely nasty. Drop a 25% debuff to PD/ED and/or a 25% debuff to DCV and/or a 75% movement drain. Don't even go to entangles. Whats you strength? Does not matter, its all based on your point base vs my point base. Third... It gets worse when you get into Minion, LT, Boss, Elite Boss, Arch Villian/Hero, GM (Giant Monster, not Game Master - well... maybe some Game Masters:eg:). How would you like an opponent where you needed a specfic character to debuff the baddie OR you cant get past their recovery. I mean 75/75 damage reduction be damned, some of the GMs are gross. If I was to "play" a CoH/CoV based game, I would just use it for background and flavor. The intro zones would be great places for Heroic level street games (Skulls, Hellions, Clocks). Get into a Low Super Game then upper levels of the prior list still apply and more (more gang banger types, Circle of Thorns). The list goes on and on. The big issue is do you make CoH/CoV like the comic (lots of heroes but not as many as in the MMO) or do you make it like the MMO or do you make is so only the epics are aound and then a few extra heroes (like the PCs). However, I would not mind playing in such a game IF you ever get the kinks worked out GL to ya.

Re: A DC Animated-style HeroMachine You need to make Green Thumbs' nemesis Agent Orange

Re: Control Machines Nice way to do it. I like the NND stun option, very creative.

Re: Control Machines

Re: Catalyst: A Champions campaign on Hero Central OK, lets say to take the suit from the Guardsman, you can replace him... but I need ALL your hunted disads, and probably a few others. Here is what I mean... 1. If the bad guy (Lord Havoc) was able to kill a existing known super with a rep, what chance to do have as a green super. "Lord Havoc" is going to be a more powerful who wants to kill you. I mean, if he killed the last guy, why would he NOT want to kill you. If he figures out that you are NOT Guardsman, then it would probably be even worse. You did pay for Dark Secret, what if that more powerful found out. I mean, ouch. 2. The old Guardman did have a prior connections. He was all that, per your own words. So, when one of them comes looking they are probably going to figure you out. You may have the "mental" stats, but you dont have the history. Example "Rememeber that time you saved Rebecca Summers from Lord Havoc clutches?" You throw in a quick "Yeah, he is one tough nut." Then you find out her name was Claire Summers and it was Dr. D... bingo. Identity Theft is hard enough to maintain in the world, but with a big rep and being all that... I mean wow. I will make it easy: Make up the Old Guardsman as a 400 point super. Drop in say 65 points of contacts and skills (I am asking for 40 points for new characters). Submit him to me and we will see where we can take it. One of the hunteds is going to be "Lord Havoc" and as an as powerful, wants to kill. If you were a Tony Stark or Bruce Wayne of tech, what kinds of skills, perks, etc would you have. Chances are someone out there knew who his Secret ID was (very few heroes with Secret ID keep it completely secret, there are alwasys a few). Give him some DNPCS (butler, love interest, mom, whatever). From that point, honestly take a look at filling his shoes. If you don't make the old guardmans up... then I would have to as a GM. Putting in appropriate limitations, etc. Based on your current build almost 1/2 of your disad points (70 actually) come from stealing this others guys ID. 1/2!!! I can say with certainity it will come up in one fashion or another every adventure. I know Fed will drop the disad hammer on you just as much as I will. They are disads after all. Zac

Re: Catalyst: A Champions campaign on Hero Central Ok going to tackle this from the bottom of the sheet up. Do you want to get your suit from: 1. A hero who "dies" at your feet 2. A gift from ? 3. You found it in (location unknown). I ask because this is critical (really). You suit will come from National Defense, a protege of National Guard. National Guard is dead (he died defending Center City), the entire Ministry of Justice is dead for that matter. National Defense was a protege for about two years and left to do his own thing (he became a solo hero). Now, a new group has appeared in Center City, The Guardsmen. They are an "agent" level organization who claims to be benefactors of National Guards tech (they are led by the mysterious High Guard). If you want your suit to come from National Defense, that is cool. When you appear in Thebes, the Guardsmen will KNOW that the Guardian (which is a nice clicking name for them) is National Defense OR a protege of National Defense. Chances are they are gonna track you down. So, you will get a watched by the Guardsmen. If you want your suit to be a gift, it comes FROM High Guard. He is vetting young people to join his ranks and he will see something in you. So, you will get an older suit (one like National Defense has). This will also get you a watched by the Guardsmen and you could take them as a contact. You find the suit, then you stumble onto a suit cache from National Guard/National Defense. Once you go public either National Defense and/or the Guardsmen are gonna come looking. Let me know how you want to get into the suit, and we will line up the 45 points of hunted/watched and the social limitation. Reputation, Scientific Genius. If this is you in the Guardian suit, lose it. The characters will have NEVER done anything public before the game starts. If it is your secret id, then getting a rep is going to HAVE to have some merit. If you are "assuming" National Defense rep, well he did not have it. His rep was based on being VERY patrotic and being tough, tough, tough. Trying to live up to the Famous hero is good. Be prepared to take a hit on it. National Guard and National Defense were pretty much suit based bricks. They could really take the punishment. National Guard was basically a sheilded suit who mixed it up in hand to hand (4 speed, tough as nails), National Defense was a bit faster and had some ranged capabilities but reinforcing the suit key (5 speed, standard defense BUT had some reinforcement in his suit for protecting others). You better want the lime light... because the press is gonna flock to you BIG TIME (which you may like). The press will assume you are a protege of National Defense and he has been out of pocket for some months. Do you know where he is? So, if you take the suit from him and want to assume his identity... take the name National Defense. You don't want to take the name, but take the suit from him, be Guardian. Either way, people are gonna want to know. Lets iron this out first, then we will go into stats and powers.

Re: Catalyst: A Champions campaign on Hero Central Ah! I did not check the sheet, I just took what I was on the message board as gospel. I think an acid disad is fine. Seeking cover because of a bad shower in a 3rd world country would be kinda funny.

Re: Catalyst: A Champions campaign on Hero Central

Re: Catalyst: A Champions campaign on Hero Central Guardian fits Thebes really well. He would have to be worked over a bit, but not a whole lot. Animax looks good too and looks to fit Silverstone well. Promethus is Fed's villian group and I think Animax would be better hunted by him/them Now, I will give 1st dips to non-Silverstone players. So, don't assume if you get in one you will get in the other. BUT, anything is possible.

Re: Catalyst: A Champions campaign on Hero Central Its all legal and I have never used it in a prior Super level game. Kinda looked at two weapon fighting and off hand type abilities as more heroic level. I will let Fed be the "end all and be all" for this one.

Re: Catalyst: A Champions campaign on Hero Central Scientific Curosity - Common would make sense if it was not tech specific. Lab - I have glanced at the character, but have not dug deep. So, if you have a lab, then it makes it easy.

Re: Catalyst: A Champions campaign on Hero Central I was thinking a bit more about... The only maneuver you can perform with Autofire STR is Strike. I would not be able to Grab two opponets, Grab and Strike the same opponent, ect. If the true heart of the matter is impacting more than one opponent at a time, then you need to look toward advantages that do just that, i.e. area of effect. You want to attack two people in front of you at once, take the advange for Strenght, Cone and then limit it with only arms reach (-1/2 or -3/4). I could now strike the two guys in front of me. Want more, sounds like a advantage Can use Grab (+1/2) and a disad appropriate hand must be free (-1/4). Are you going to be at full strength for this power? Nope, but on your NEXT action I would let you do something that impacted one of them (see hammer and nail disclaimer above) and you would be at full strength. Its all about the points AND what the GM thinks is fair within that game. Zac

Re: Catalyst: A Champions campaign on Hero Central The few points for extra limbs is just that, a few points. You want to have a stinger attack and think a tail is in order (extra limbs). You want to be able to snack on four burgers at the same time (extra limbs). Now, you can grab an opponent. Next action you could A. strike the guy you grabbed, B.crush the guy you have, C. use guy as hammer, D. throw guy, etc. Normal two armed heroes would only be allowed to do A, B, C, or D with one opponent at a time. A four armed person would only be allowed to grab one additional opponent. Next turn you could only do something that hurt one of them (unless you use guy A as a hammer and guy B as a nail). Extra limbs does not give you the freedom to get more than one action set. If it did, people would buy extra feet for extra moves (Centiped Man takes 10 half moves and then attacks!), or extra limbs for extra attacks (Chuthu Spawn takes a 1/2 move and then attacks you 32 times!!!). You want more than that, take an advantage on an attack and work it out. Remember, if you can do it then the GM can do it too! Disads: 1. Science Nerd, you have it as very common but what technology level is that going to lock you in for the disad? Let me explain.. Very Common = 2005 Buick going to catch your eye? Last years Dell laptop? M1911 semiauto pistol? Same pistol with a laser sight? Same pistol with a laser sight pointed at YOU? Common = Would early adopter level technology catch your eye (new electric cars, the cool G phone, or the 192" Flat Screen TV)? Uncommon = cutting edge technology, military level hardware that the common man never gets to see (like the cool stuff they show on the Military channel), prime level gear. Very Common, Common and Uncommon are how often they appear in the game world as well as how common it comes up for you character. You want to be a Science Nerd, take it to Common/Moderate or Common/Strong. 2. Did you pay points for any of your powers that had a foci (like a utility belt or suit) or a base (lab anyone)? If the answer is yes, then the villains (or someone) can get a something of yours (and the disad comes to play). If not, then your inventions become something intangible and you need to work it out with the GM.

Re: Catalyst: A Champions campaign on Hero Central Acid Rain feels like a really weak disad by itself. Maybe a vulnerability to Acid based attacks (which is pretty rare). Acid Rain, as a environmental pollution meterological event, is pretty rare in the US. It happens more now in areas that use coal for heat or industrial areas that lack air pollution oversight. Ole Kryptonite was pretty darn rare but in Smallville Kent runs into the junk all the time. When he earned his tights and left home it came in less often, but it still came in (not talkin about the movies here). By putting down this kind of disad, you are asking the GM "can I have some acid rain please?" In my campaign I would say, "No, but you can have a similar disad vs industrial pollution in general" (something strong enough to call in an environmental clean up team to solve = your weakness). Zac

Re: Catalyst: A Champions campaign on Hero Central I think a few others are also out there that Fedfensor did not mention (Rhino Beatle), so just because your name is not on the list don't think you have been dropped. Once characters have been selected for Fedfensor's game, I am going to be jacking this thread Anyone that did not get accepted please resubmit your character's newest version to the boards. I will then pick five additional players for the Catalyst: Thebes campaign. Don't take a non-accpetance to equate to a subpar character, dislike of player or bad luck has to land on someone sort of rejection. It may be that Fed and I feel your character overlaps existing characters to much OR your character may be a better fit for Thebes. Or maybe we really DONT like you If you did get accepted into Silverstone and want to play in Thebes, you might get that chance. I am giving preferential treatment to people who are not playing in Silverstone first. Once that group has been exhaused, then I will move to the second string. For example, Animax/Feral gets accepted in Silverstone, Checkmate can submit Guardian to Thebes. I will stop accepting characters on Wednesday March 11, and announce my choices on Friday the 13th. Zac

Re: Catalyst: A Champions campaign on Hero Central

Re: Control Machines These all look pretty solid and I was thinking along some of these lines. I am still looking for any "unique/unusal" ways for control. Against a player, I was probably going to use a something like Telekinesis on the fly, with a transform to soldify the hold. Zac