Vulcan

Re: "Guard, begin the unnecessarily slow-moving dipping mechanism..." I always liked The Sandblaster of the Gods myself.

Re: Can we define the archetypes? I kinda agree with you on a lot of these, but there are a couple distinct roles these archetypes play that their more generalized bretheren do not. First, the Speedster is a specific archetype all it's own. Your two examples (Rhino and Silver Surfer) are not actually speeders, they are respectively a brick and an energy projector with lots of movement. A true speedster derives his primary offensive and defensive capabilites from the special effect of being fast - not just movement, but usually reaction as well. Metamorph: Usually his powers fall into another category as well (Brick is the most common), but the effects are based on altering his form. This character may be very good at spying/infiltration based on his shapechanging. Not always (a werewolf is a metamorph type, after all), but sometimes. Power Armor: Yeah, usually this one combines either brick or EP with gadgeteer. Weaponmaster; Again, usually MA or EP combined with gadgeteer. Mystic: While usually a combo EP/mentalist, the Mystic provides a whole different world of skills a standard EP or mentalist wouldn't. This makes it just as distinct as a gadgeteer, who is after all, likely a brick, MA, or EP with a lot of science/technical skills.

Re: Modern Swordsmithing You don't play Champions much, do you? If you really want to bash 'rubber science', go for the gusto. Consider the average (or slightly larger than average, it always seems to work out that way) sized guy who can lift a couple hundred TONS...

Re: Bearing Witness Since Vigil is the character I've gotten to know best, I'll do this from his point of view. (His powers are healing, invisibility in darkness, and HA - along with some enhanced senses) "Well, I suppose I owe my powers my life. I assume that's what's kept the leukemia at bay since I was born. But as far as having them goes? It hasn't exactly been fun. Let's take when my powers first really manifested. Sure, I was about to get butt kicked by those bullies. But really, did my powers have to manifest so vigorously? I mean, I just wanted them to back off, and I wound up punching through his head! I may have managed not to get into legal trouble over it, but the whole town shunned me and my family from then on. And I can't tell you how mad I was when I found out I could have just vanished into the night and avoided the whole confrontation! Had I only known! And that leaves out how my father had the rest of my family killed, just so he could have me as his pet superpowered assassin... No. It generally hasn't been pleasant. Becase life always seemed so unfair. Noone cared about how the people in power abused it. Okay, I may have fought on the wrong side for a number of years, but that was because father dearest conned me into thinking the government was behind the murder of my mom and grandparents. The rat b*****d was smooth, I'll give him that. At least I got out of it. This other poor kid they had, they got him a lot younger. They brainwashed him into thinking he was cursed by 'God', so the only way he could earn his way into heaven was to kill other metahumans. Compared to him, I got off light. Assuming that my cancer hadn't killed me at a very young age? [misty-eyed] Probably still living on the farm with my family. If I didn't have powers, they'd still be alive. [/misty-eyed] Frequently. Even if I hadn't survived, at least my family would have. I wouldn't have become an outcast in junior high. I wouldn't have had to give up my identity just to stay out of jail. Yes. Stop giving out powers. For the sake of Mark Adams, that kid I killed when I was just thirteen. For the sake of my mother and her parents, who were killed because I had powers. For the sake of all the innocent government workers I killed because I was duped into thinking they were evil. For the sake of all those killed by those with powers who choose might over right. For the sake of all the people whose lives have been destroyed just by having powers, or loving someone who does. Let it stop. (Wow, that went a lot darker than I though it would. But then, Vigil lives in a dark world where lasting victories are pretty rare.)

Re: How do I build this power: Always face away from me

Re: Archetypes Well. I guess I'll actually be the one to lead this off. Here are Outreach and Redline

Re: Foxbat and... What do you mean, we're coming up on the end of his second term right now, aren't we? And I voted for him because the alternatives were even worse!

Re: Modern Swordsmithing Samurai aren't reall big on parrying, in my limited understanding. Most samurai duels (not the epic ones between two masters, but run-of-the-mill duels between typical samurai) lasted exactly one pass, with each samurai making one strike. One or both usually fell over dead or badly wounded afterwards. Any Kendo practicioners out there? Are straight-up blocks part of the technique, or is parrying more of a deflection techniqe? Now in fencing, the parry is a big thing, but the fencing weapons are in general primarily built for the thrust/stab. Parrys are usually done by forcing the other sword to slide along the side of your blade to the area you want it (i.e. not in you). A fencer trying to straight-up block a greatsword is going to get his rapier broken, just before he dies.

Re: Clever Future Weapons

Re: Clever Future Weapons Sounds a lot like the Klingon's disruptors. Virr'dakassi, literally translated as the 'shake it 'til it falls apart tool.' Of course, the Disruptor worked by alternately supressing and increasing the atomic forces that hold molecules together.

Re: Clever Future Weapons In the Hammer's Slammers series David Drake gives a pretty good explanation of why, barring the invention of a stoooopidly efficient power supply, lasers are not the best choice for personal weapons. The powerguns he writes about in the series may not be any more practical, but they are cool.

Re: Modern Swordsmithing In the Cross-Time Engineer series of books there is a normal (looking) sword with a micron-thick diamond sheet through the center, giving it superior cutting ability (the hero cuts the edge off of knives to give a demonstration). No idea if it would work in real life, but it's good enough for fiction!

Re: Quote of the Week from my gaming group... Reminds me of a quote from the GM of an old D&D game... "NO! Selling 'meditation incense' to the priests of peace and carpentry was bad enough, you're not selling crack to the war-priests! You're not becoming drug dealers in my D&D game!"

Re: Bring Forth Sidekick? Sounds like something we tried to do to another PC. When the player who could be counted on to build a 350-point snotling made a mentalist for his new character (copying Psyke, the other mentalist in the group... badly. He didn't even give the character Mental Defense), the other player deicded that would be a good time to use his 'Psychic Surgery' mental transformation. We presented the GM with a total re-write of the character, done effectively and fairly (it was far more effective than the original), but with a few extra things the other player wasn't supposed to know about: A -1/4 limitation on all his powers, including his Mental Defense - "Doesn't work against Psyke":eek: Which neatly paid for a Mindlink "Persistent, Invisible to Mental Group, only to Psyke":nonp: The GM told us no, he wouldn't allow it. After all, any of us would be really P***ed if it was done to our characters. To which the only thing we could say was, "Fair enough."

Re: Stopping Natural Disasters in Champions? Some of the tactics against the tidal wave might work against the tidal surge, if the GM likes. (Sure, it's not realistic, but we're talking comic books after all.) The best option for stopping a hurricane with superpowers (aside from someone with Weather Control, that is ) is for someone with Change Environment (make the area cold) or heavy-duty cold attacks to get into the eye as early as possible and throw his powers around as much as he can. In real life (assuming someone could actually do it), it probably wouldn't make much difference. In a comic-book world? One never knows. It sure sounds plausible, though.

Re: Let's Do Lunch Yeah, for the early part of his career he kept playing the same one over and over again...

Re: Disads for Dana Scully This one should be good for both Mulder and Scully: Social Limitation: Weirdness Magnet Infrequent, Greatly: 10 Points

Re: Foxbat and... EEEK!

Re: WWYCD: framed I pick up my character and go find another GM at that point. If there's no way out but to become an outlaw, why did you have me make a hero? I generally don't like railroad plots, and this sounds like one.

Re: Archetypes Just to tide y'all over... With only two exceptions, these are al characters I've actually played in various games. The other two were 'backups' created when I thought an existing character was about to die... Brick: Outreach; Power armor guy without ranged attacks, just a really high STR and Streaching, FX based around a point singualrity built into the armor. Energy Projector: Redline; Pretty normal EP with a twist (you'll see when I post him;)). Gadgeteer: This one was hard, because I generally don't like the complicated builds this archetype seems to require. But I have this character who happens to have a lot of gear (not really gadgets, per se, but it's as close as I ever got). So I give you Chief Petty Officer Lou Crescent, USCG. Martial Artist: So many choices for this one, I've played so many. I chose Vigil less for his capabilites than for his background... Mentalist: Another category I don't play often. But Simoriah is a mentalist by strict definition, in that his powers are BOECV. Metamorph: Siberian Tiger got this spot, rather than Martial Artist, because the other candidate for the Metamorph spot got placed in the Patriot slot. He could also have gone into the Martial Artist spot, though. Mystic: The man known to the world as Dante (no relation) fights a demon for his powers - and his very soul. Patriot:The ultimate decoy, Living Targetworks for the Secret Service most of the time, taking the place of threatened politicians for public appearances. Power Armor: Almost a speedster, Harrier takes flight and blasts his foes with his Multi-Phase Particle Generators. (Or he would have, if I'd actually gotten to use him!) Speedster: Mad Dash - It's all in the shoes. (The other backup.) Weaponmaster: Mist Dragon is a secretive swordsman from the Igakure Ryu Ninja Clan. Cross swords with him at your peril!

Re: Foxbat and... CLOWN is the only group looney enough to want to work with Foxbat...

Re: Modern Swordsmithing Sounds good to me. Last time I did a ridiculously sharp sword (AP Pen) I just defaulted to 'magic.' Yours sounds a lot better.

Re: Let's Do Lunch Let's see.... Siberian Tiger: "What the heck. It could be fun. Outreach: Would decline, he has more important things to do, like destroying VIPER. Besides, Secret ID. Redline: Would probably be asked in conjunction with Sovereign, our game's Iron-Man type and Redline's employer. "If Sovereign is up for it, sure, why not?" It is worth noting that Redline does not have a secret ID, having been a cop and then (after his powers emerged) a member of the Paranormal Crime Division. Vigil: Assuming they found him to ask in the first place (Invisibility is fun for that) would turn it down vehemently. (If he lost his mind and did agree, his Dark Secret ever came to light they would sue him for breach of contract.) Simoriah: Has other things to do, charity work, preaching, saving the world from Evil.... Dante:In his secret ID is already a celebrity. But he would probably turn it down until he solves a particular problem (involving the Demon who gave him his powers on a lark... Dante doesn't have full control over them all the time...) Living Target: As a shapechanging member of the Secret Service, would demand to know who told the agent about his existance (when operating with a team he borrows other 'brick' personas) and arrest him. His mere existance is classified Secret or better. Mist Dragon: Would decline, assuming they found him to talk to (ninjas are sneaky that way). Depending on how much has been discovered, he might be forced to 'remove' some people to preserve the secrets of the clan... Pride: Would accept, as long as he could get the movie to address the harm done by genetic engineering on a macroscale. He is a genetically engineered lion moreau, and while he covers it well, he feels totally out of place in human society - and normal lions only tolerate him, to a point. But he has both species' social needs... (Yes, I've played a lot of different characters over the years...)

Re: Mental Paralysis..how do I keep this from being game breaking? Well, if Menton has it then it certainly is. On a PC power level, with PC point caps, probably not. The problem arises when a supervillian with lots of AP does it. Or possibly in a really high power game, where the PC's have lots of AP.

Re: Almost invisible There is also Images... Bright Fringe on invisibiltiy...