Sociotard

!!!DARKSIDE POINTS!!!

Yes. That's the whole point behind blowing points on expensive detects. I hate having my characters face sense-affecting powers like invisible opponents, images, darkness, yadda yadda, so I almost always buy one of these powers to avoid them. Besides, this sense won't alway's save the mentalist. Oh sure, he can spot the marine hiding behind the smoke-screen, and he can manipulate his mind to his hearts content, but that ain't gonna stop the marines K-9 unit from ripping him to shreds (animal and robotic friends are great when facing mentalists)

Re: Oh great... *uses cell phone to call friend* "Dude, she says she's a vegan. What's a vegan?" "She got pointy ears?" -funniest commercial I've seen in a while Okay, I like the retrocognition as well, unless the plants have individual personalities (the last few posts were right on). you might also toss in an Area knowledge. "Uh, dude, where's the bathroom" "oh, pick a tree, any tree." "How about you?" "I'm more of a shrub, really."

It depends on what provides the friction. For normal atmospheres, I would bear teminal velocity in mind (30" per segment). A character falling at that speed gets pushed up by air resistance as hard as gravity yanks down. If someone moves at speed in excess of 30" per segment (133 mph, if I did the math correctly) the wind pushes him with a STR of 10 (assuming you have normal human air resistance). For every multiple of 30" per segment, it moves up another 10 str. just say it automatically hits, and treat the STR as dealing a normal PD attack, probably with reduced penetration. This just brings to mind a stunt gone wrong I saw on the tube a while back. these guys tried to shoot a car off a ramp and over a ravine with (IIRC) a rocket. the car disintigrated in midair. Also, running this fast is equivalent to experiancing 133 mph winds. Watch hurricane footage to see what that can do to a house. As for how fast you have to go to start taking damage from friction heat . . . I don't have my physics book with me. acording to howstuffworks.com "Because it is moving at about 17,000 mph (28,000 km/h), the orbiter will hit air molecules and build up heat from friction (approximately 3000 degrees F, or 1650 degrees C)." with regard to the re-entry of the space shuttle. now I just have to figure out what kind of energy blast would be associated with 1650 degrees C. I'll figure it out later. Really though, with a speedster, these are the things that I say "He's a superhero, he doesn't really worry about it" to. just assume that whatever points you paid to make him run this fast also protect him from air-speed related damage. I did however give my speedster a suit of PD to protect him from knockback damage. After all, he hit mach one noncombat (without any megascales, I might add ). Can you imagine tripping over something at mach 1? I don't want to.

Well, I know for a fact he couldn't read or write, but that was typical of the era. The main reason was because most descriptions paint him as being of a very ordinary intellect, and normal npc's have an 8 intellect. Here are a few: " . . . he was that most terrible insturment which can be handled by fanaticism; a powerful physical nature welded to a mind of very narrow perceptions, intense convictions, and a changeless tenacity. In his build he was a gladiator; in his humor, a Yankee luberman; in his memory, a Bourbon; in his vengence, an Indian. A strange Mixture, only to be found on the American Continent" --Ludlow, "Among the Mormons" the Atlantic Monthly Vol. XIII And Here is a balad sung by other travelers and cowboys that they really did sing: Old Port Rockwell looks like man, Witha beard on his face and his hair in a braid, But there's none in the West but Brigham who can Look in his eyes and not be afraid. For Port is a devil in a human shape, Though he calls himself "Angel," say vengence is sweet; But he's black, bitter death, and there's no escape, When he wails through the night his dread war cry, "Wheat!" "Wheat!" Somewhere a wife with her babes kneels to pray, For she knows she's a widow and orphans are they. Incidently, "Wheat" was an expression he used all the time, as in "That's wheat", meaning, thats good. I believe it was a reference to the parable of sorting wheat (good) from tares (bad). Which brings out his destroying angel image even more

One old west lawman who doesn't get much recognition nowadays is Utah's Orrin Porter Rockwell. Porter Rockwell has basically the same status in Utah as Wyatt Earp has in Arizona. Of course, his good guy/bad guy status depends greatly on who you talk to (Mormons love him, basically nobody else does.) He was an excellent rider (helped found and run one of the carrier lines that served as precurser to the poney express), a good shot, an unequaled tracker. His most distinctive feature was a prophesy made by Joseph Smith, December 25, 1843: “I prophesy, in the name of the Lord, that you Orrin Porter Rockwell – so long as ye shall remain loyal and true to thy faith, need fear no enemy. Cut not thy hair and no bullet or blade can harm thee!†As a result, porter never cut his hair. It hung clear down his back, giving him a sampson-like mythography. A few other notes about Rockwell: *More kills than Wyatt Earp, Doc Holiday, Bat Matterson and Tom Horn Combined. Estimates range from 40 to over 100. *In 1847 he led a team of 70 scouts on a mission of guerilla wasrfare against the United States Army, and was successful for the most part *His Ranch / Bar / stagecoach waystation / hotel / brewerey, the "Hot Springs Brewery Hotel", located between Lehi and Salt Lake was considered a delight to travelers (Porter was actually very personable) and was known to produce the best horses in Utah. *He was known to carry a small watchdog with him. The dog was trained to awaken porter to danger, not by barking, but by licking his face (no noise to alert the outlaws!) *He earned the nickname "Destroying Angel" after he purportedly shot the former governor of missouri, Lilburn Boggs. His guilt is still debated today. *He helped found the Brigham Young Express and Carrying Company, an important forerunner to the pony express. He also was one of the couriers. *many historians assert he had more gunfights than any other marshall in U.S. history. Really, the legends about this gunslinger are to numerous to list. I built him on 100 base points and 86 disadvantage points (a powerful hero). In a Western Campaign, Remember that most non-mormons dislike him. until they get to know him. Porter Rockwell Quote: (responding to the question as to whether or not he shot at governor Lilburn Boggs of Missouri) "If I had shot him, he'd be dead" Characteristics STR 13 (3 pts, +2= 9 pts) DEX 14 (12 pts.) CON 13 (6 pts.) BOD 15 (10 pts.) INT 8 (-2 pts.) EGO 13 (6 pts.) PRE 18 (8 pts.) COM 8 (-1 pts.) -Total: 48 pts. Skills Animal Handler (Equines, Canines) 12- 5 pts. Skill Level (Conversation, Interrogation, Persuasion) 12- 9pts . Riding 14- 5pts;. Tracking16- 11pts. Combat Skill Level (+2 with Firearms) 10 pts. City Knowledge (Lehi & Salt Lake City) 4 pts. Area Knowledge (Utah Territory) 2 pts. Area Knowledge (Mountains, Deserts, Temperate/Subtropical) 6 pts. Profession (Barkeep) (Horse Ranch Operator) 12- each 6 pts. Group Knowledge (Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints) 2 pts. People Knowledge (Outlaws) 2 pts. Fast Draw (Early Firearms) 2 pts. Survival (Mountains, Deserts, Temperate/Subtropical) 6 pts. Transport Familiarity (Equines, Carts & Carriages) 2 pts. Weapon Familiarity (Early Firearms, Common Melee Weapons) 4 pts. Weaponsmith (Muscle-Powered HTH, Firearms) 3 pts. -Total 79 pts. Perks Contact: Prophet (a.k.a. President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints) 11- Contact, Extremely useful recourses, Access to major institutions, Many contacts of his own: 7 pts. Fringe Benefits: United States Deputy Marshal 3 pts. “Best in the Westâ€:10 pts. (Best Tracker) Well Off 1pts. Reputation: Lawman 14- everyone in the Utah Territory +5/+5d6 10 pts. -Total 31 pts. Powers The Prophets Blessing: Desolidification 40 ₧. (-¾ only to protect against bullets and blades) (-¼ Contingent upon loyalty to the Church, cannot “tempt Godâ€) (-½ OIF Hair, and this is well known) 16 pts. Superior Tracking: Precognition 40 ₧. (-¼ Normal Sight only) (-1 Precognition only) (-½ RSR Tracking) (-½ Time Modifiers) 12 pts. -Total 28 pts. Disadvantages Distinctive Features: Steel Blue Eyes and Extremely Long Hair -10 Hunted: Outlaws, those seeking a name for themselves, many of them -10 Psychological Limitation: Alcoholic (likes Whiskey) Common Strong -15 Reputation: Avenging angel (anyone who isn’t a Mormon will think him a murderer) -20 Rivalry with Lot Smith, Bill Hickman, Robert T. Burton, George W. Bean, John D. Lee (all were scouts and ‘tough guys’, the rivalry was mostly with Lot Smith) -5 Social Limitation: Employed by Wells-Fargo (to retrieve stolen shipments) Occasionally, Risk of Death (they are armed outlaws) -10 DNPC 3 wives and 15 children -16

Well, you have movement powers, attack powers, adjustment powers, defense powers . . . I say round out your character with a nice sensory power. How about Touch group ranged detect Energy Patterns? I see her holding up her garish hand, sensing the subtle fluctuations in the space around her . . . Just a thought.

It's a good idea. I might add that PD defenses may apply if they aren't bought as mere "external covering" (Man, what kind of wiring did they put in this robot? it's like trying to yank out tree roots!) This also gives me an Idea of how to create a desolidified characters ability to reach in your chest and grip your heart.

Less "want it to be a weapon" and more "if I smuggle this to my players, I just know one of them will want it to be a weapon", but you get the idea. QUOTE]Originally posted by Lord Liaden Then how about adding to the construct I suggested above, "Usable As Attack?" Make it Ranged if you want a potion that you could throw at a target. Of course you'd have to define an appropriate set of Defenses against it: I'd suggest Power Defense, LS: Immunity, or successful Ego Roll by the target. If that still doesn't suit what you want, you're welcome to come back here and we'll keep trying 'til we get it right. *Finally remembers to bring book to computer lab* It looks like they defined "Simulate Death" as an invisiblity to detect life signs/ paramedics/ forensic science. We could make that usable as attack, but would it make someone go down? If so, this is a nearly guaranteed way to put any enemy out of commision! It's a good Idea, though. Maybe if I did the drain stun bit in addition to the invisibility and used resist with Con roll instead of an Ego roll . . . That actually sounds Like a good Idea. And it wouldn't matter how large the targets body was. *Bows to the Lord in gratitude*

Lets say I wanted to buy the Horse (Light Warhorse) on page 308 of FREd as a follower. It looks like it was built on 50 base points + 81 disadvantage points, so that means it would cost 10 character points to buy as a follower. But one of those "disadvantages" is the horse's "Animal Bonus", which, as near as I can tell, just means "All the Disadvantage points you would need so that the horse could still be built on 50 base points" . I just wondered if that disadvantage offset the horses cost in the same way, or if it should really be bought as 111 base points and 20 of disadvantages (22 points as a follower)

Because it's an object. In a heroic campaign, this would just be another potion the characters could buy in a specialty shop. "Simulate Death" would be perfect if they could only make themselves look dead, but what happens if they decide to use it offensively, like they'd use any other potion. Playing dead is exciting. Making someone else play dead for a day . . .

Here we have an old trick. The character takes a poison that "kills" him, only to let him come back a few days later. I was thinking about how to approach this. First of all, invisible power effects for body (10 points aught to do it). We'll couple that with a whopping Drain STUN ( 60 points, pluss a couple of extended time period advantages) just to keep the character down and out for a while. add all necessary limitations (OAF, Fragile, 1 charge, no range for the stun). As soon as the "dearly departed" regains enough stun to wake up, the invisible power effects wear off. Does that work? Sorry, I'm sure this has been discussed before, but I couldn't find it. Heh heh, Shakespearian Hero

I was going to post this seperately, but this is a luck related string, so I guess heres as good as anywhere. I just made an excell sheet showing HOW likely you are to roll HOW many sixes with HOW many dice. It's too bad I can't just leave it in Excel.

The game in question is published by dream pod 9, and uses their silhouette (sp?) system. I believe it comes with conversions for the all-dominating D20 system. I went to http://www.dp9.com (their website, in case you hadn't guessed.) and found a demo game of theirs. They have a PDF demo game for it up here:http://www.dreampod-ent.com/PDF/GKDEMOGAME.pdf. That should work. They not only give you the basics of their game system, they also give you a map, cutout counters, and stats for two WWII Mechs: the American M11A3 General Early and the German PzKpf V Ausf 'B' Valkurie. As far as converting it to hero? I really wouldn't know. I have ordered some of their games (the Jovian Chronicles line) just to slake my irrational thirst to learn new game systems, but I haven't recieved them yet. DP9's core concept there was "what if the Super Science promised in the pulp fiction of the 20's and 30's had come to pass". Ergo, you should just draw up a list of different types of weapons and units that fit the bill (by which I mean, make three or four kinds of supertanks, a dozen walkers, maybe a fixed position ray gun, a rocketeer or two . . .) and go from there. Meanwhile, Gear Krieg is supposed to be a wargame as well as rpg. If someone would post a few pointers on how to wargame in HERO, I for one would be interested.

That's just the thing. I thought of that ahead of time and decided to make a concession: The target may choose between power defense (which is what normally defends against Transforms) or Resistant Energy Defense (which is what normally defends against RKA's). Either one. So if I hit a VIPER agent with this and the dice said it was a transform, he could resist with whichever of the two stats was higher in his case. Of course I also gave the attack the penetrating advantage, so that wasn't much of a concession. In case anyone was wondering why I had coupled the two, it was to simulate transforms that were deadly. "Your heart changes into a lump of cheese." or "your gun turns into an adder and attacks you". You get the Idea. Remember when the missile turns into a whale? I love that part. With regard to the illegality of using Unluck as an attack, what if I just called it luck with a +1/2 advantage, "your luck manifests itself by making bad things happen to whoever you hit with your RKA", which is almost exactly the same thing. hmmmm. I would need to think up what would defend against it . . .

Just go backwards on the "Duration Advantages". If the senses aren't inherent, use -1/4. If they aren't persistent, an additional -1/2. The simplest answer is usually the best.

That makes sense. Here's the thing, they each (without the other modifiers) cost 45 points, so they'd sum up to 90. with a -1 modifier, you have 90/2 = 45. which is the same number I had in the first place, only with less paperwork. Let me figure out if there's a difference with the other modifiers. Okay, the former way it cost 25 points, the latter cost 45. Hmmmmm, 20 point difference is significant. I may just take the point increase.

I felt inspired by acounts of "improbability fields" in Douglas Adams's Hitchhiker novels. I wanted to come up with a weapon that worked on that principle, and had the consequently unpredictable effects. I just need you to answer a few questions about how legal it is. Orbital Improbability Cannon [3d6 RKA/Transform (+½ Line of Sight) (+½ Explosion) (+½ Penetrating) 5d6 Unluck (+1 Usable as attack) (+1 Ranged & Line of Sight) (+1 Area of Effect) (+½ Persistent) (+0 Uses same attack roll as above power)] 225 (-¼ Linked “Powers must always be used at the same timeâ€) (-1 Four Charges) (-1½ Bulky OAF) (-½ Extra Segment) (-¼ Costs END) 50 character points 1) By RKA/Transform, I meant that on a even attack roll, a 3d6 RKA happens. on an odd attack roll, some kind of transform happens (What kind of transform is random and left up to the GM's devilish imagination. anything so long as it affects something in the blast radius, and isn't pleasant. 9d6 cosmetic, 4d6 minor, and 3d6 major transforms are possible). The defender can choose between resistant ED and Power defense to resist either variation. Is that legal? 2) I recognize that Transforms should be defined ahead of time, but what happens when a character has absitively positlutely no control over what transforms into what? I figure +1 for anything into anything, -1 for no concious control = +0 3) Can I use Unluck as an attack? Will targets only experience unluck so long as they remain in the area of effect? (this was actually the big question) 4) The cannon sits on an orbital spy satelite with incredible senses, including N-ray vision. ergo, he can establish LOS with people behind walls. Since everything in this power is LOS, could he shoot them? Or would that require indirect?

Re: 25 points? Page 228 of FREd. Thus Saith the Good Book.

It doesn't have "targeting"? don't buy all that microscopic. you can add 1 more general class of things for 5 points. By this I mean, buy your normal electric field detection spanning 10 to 1000 volts, with an adder bioelectric field detection (10 to 1000 microvolts) for just 5 points more. Can I flash you with a defibrilator? Of course, your character sounds like the "lightning throwing" type, so he probably just flashes himself. I better go to bed now. I'm starting to sound insane.

Re: How to model senses replacing sight without using disadvantages Let me see if I understand correctly. You can summon a being of some kind. This being has no sight sense group. To replace it, you want to use some sort of advanced radar. That about right? Okay, for starters, summoned creatures, unlike followers, don't get any discount for disadvantages. (I don't like it, but then that's what house rules are for). That being said, you can just sell back your sight for (I believe) 25 points, and use that to buy your sense. The sick thing is, it costs more to buy a ranged 120 degree detect physical object with targeting and discriminitory than sight "costs". And you can't even see color. Of courst, radio group is already ranged, and you can specify only 120 degrees instead of 360 (more of a price break), so you should still come off okay.

Of all Hero's good points (and it has many) the one I find I am most likely to incorporate into other game systems is the use of hexagons over squares. Now, of all polygons, the equilateral hexagon is the closest you can come to a circle and still tessellate. For campaigns that use alot of 3D action (this is why I'm posting in Star Hero), wouldn't it make sense to use a space-filling polyhedron that was round (instead of a hexagonal extrusion)? If So, what would work best? I know Cubes and Tetrahedrons can, but they aren't especially round. The truncated octahedron can, but it is made of squares AND octagons. The rhombic dodecahedron might work, except for how screwy it looks. So I ask, what is the most spherical polyhedron whose faces are all Identical?

Oops. you're right. I used 6, forgeting that comliness is only a half point per shot. my bad

There are many uses for looking into the ultraviolet that can't be done with mere darksight. For example, Ultraviolet can punch through clouds quite easily (I think), so I bought it for one of my satelite followers so he could see the ground more often. Things get even more fun if you buy it as being active, meaning ultraviolet beams shoot out your eyes. Ever watch CSI? You see the strangest things under that purple glow. Come to think of it, I wonder if a GM would let me give my opponents melanoma this way. Glaring. Slowly. Okay, I don't really know what I'm talking about here, but Ultraviolet does have it's uses. The sun as seen in the far ultraviolet A desert hairy scorpion under a UV light. remember, making a sensory power active is free.

*Thinks* This is an interesting idea. I was trying to make a Cutest-little-girl-you-ever-did-see DNPC and I was frustrated because she had to have the under 10 age disadvantage (why they set 16 as the max for a childs COM is beyond me. I don't know if kids should have a lower limit. The way my kid sister flashes her dimples and makes me do whatever she wants? COM 30. Minimum) Looking up my DNPC's stats, STR 3 DEX 10 CON 8 BOD 5 INT 8 EGO 8 PRE 8 COM 16 Which would break into the individualized COM stats as follows BODY 10 FACE 20 GRA 14 HLT 20 ATT 20 MAG 10 STY 12 VOC 12 Divide by 2 and I get BODY 5 Face 10 GRA 7 HLT 10 ATT 10 MAG 5 STY 6 VOC 6 And overall 7.375. I guess I could live with that. So using this system, can COM still be a complementary seduction roll? (remember, Seduction doesn't have to be sexual in nature)