McCoy

p. 15

Re: Like a Rock

Originally posted by PerennialRook

I have a character I am trying to create (the gliding brick). He is a Gargoyle who is living flesh at night, but during the day is a statue. That in and of itself I have no idea how to pull off.

This part is easy enough. Buy all powers EXECPT ARMOR with the limitation "limited power, night only -1." Then buy the disadvantage "Physical Limitation, Turns to stone during daytime, Frequent, Total. 25 pts"

Originally posted by Agent X

Cool. Anybody up to writing Nemo?

Not yet, just Dorian and Mina. Working on Henry & Edward now, lot harder than I thought it would be. Skinner's next, then Quartermain.

I'm leaving Nemo for last, in the hopes that someone else will write him up. Are you offering to do that?

Is there anything in his non-wolf ID that says "wolf?" Is the change nder his control? If no and yes respectively, I would say the Distinctive features are concealable, and take the base 5 pts.

If he has accidental change, or sharp teeth and hairy pointed ears in both forms, I would say concealable with effort, 10 pts.

Presume he has a Secret ID?

Couple of questions.

Did Azure Paladin choose this team because of the Knights connection? If not, it becomes too coincidental, choose a team name with no connection to knights.

What medium are we talking about possible publication? Comic, or text only?

What brought these people together?

Since we are talking possible publication, Nova and Speed Demon are going to cause copyright problems, Titan is iffy, and Silver Knights sounds familiar but I can't place it.

Originally posted by The Mad GM

LIGHT SPOILERS HERE

 

The point of the book "Dracula" was to save Mina from vampirism, and they succeeded. Why did she leave John (they never mention this in the movie that I can recall)? If they wanted to use a female literary vampire, why not Lucy Westerna? Her surviving a beheading and a stake would be less a stretch, in my opinion. And Mina seemed unaffected by daylight which should have rendered her near catatonic, and they didn't even touch the religious issues inherent in Stoker's vision of vampirism.

LXG

Quartermain: Please tell me this is Harker's wife, bringing a note that he's out sick.

 

Mina: Somewhat of an understatement, I'm afraid. My husband is dead.

Re-read Dracula, especally chapter 18. "His power ceases, as does that of all evil things, at the coming of the day. Only at certain times can he have limited freedom. If Ire be not at the place whither he is bound, he can only change himself at noon or at exact sunrise or sunset." No damage from sunlight, no daytime coma, only reduced powers. Also note Mina used a mirror, while Van Helsing said that vampires had no reflection. (I was very sorry to lose that distinctive feature in Mina's writeup.)

My explanation? This is an alternate universe, where John died killing Dracula. Mina was neither killed or cured, but remained a living vampire, dhampir, simular to Marvel's Blade.

You're welcome. I'm hoping someone else does Nemo, lots of points into the Nautilus and crew.

OK, let's see if I've improved with Hero Designer. Based on the movie, the graphic novel, and Dracula , especally Chapter XVIII .

Wilhelmina Murray Harker

Player:

Total Character Cost: 350

Disadvantage Points: 150

Base Points: 200

Experience Required: 0

Total Experience Available: 0

Experience Unspent: 0

Originally posted by Worldmaker

Tom Swift would have been a better American character.

Two DQ's. First, the first Tom Swift novel was 1910. Second, Victor Appleton's grandchildren, or possibly by now great grandchildren, has maintained the copyright by continuing the Swift family adventures for four generations.

Correction to previous list, somehow left Horatio Alger, Jr, off of the list, but while I know the general plot of his books (one plot, 120 books), I can't nane a single one of his protagonist.

It was not a time for character driven literature on this side of the pond. Tom and Huck are the most memorable characters of 19th century American literature.

(Which brings up the question, wy special agent Sawyer? Think of special agent Finn, then reveil at a critical point of the movie that his given name is Huckleberry.)

Originally posted by Killer Shrike

Im not massively read up on the classics, but I cant really think of much going on for American literary figures around the late 1800's. Americans of that era apparantly werent too keen on literature

 

Of course, as I mention, Im certainly no expert on the subject....

Louisa May Alcott

Ambrose Bierce

the Bronte sisters

James Fenimore Cooper

Stephen Crain

George Eliot

Joel Chandler Harris

Nathaniel Hawthorne

Washington Irving

Henry James

Jack London

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Herman Melville

Edgar Allan Poe

Harriet Beecher Stowe

Henry David Thoreau

Mark Twain

Lew Wallace

Walt Whitman

Laura Ingalls Wilder

Seems like what a lot of Americans were writing about in the 19th century was, the 18th & 17th centuries. Lots of poetry too. Poe invented the detective story, but failed to invent a memorable detective. Most memorable characters from the authors on this list is B’er Rabbit. No character from these authors can match the real life Ambrose Bierce or Jack London.

Originally posted by Crimson Arrow

The Desolidification needs to have something which can affect Dorian. Damage to the painting wouldn't be enough in my opinion, but the film hasn't been released over here, so perhaps there are changes from the story.

 

Bearing in mind the origin of the picture. Magic attacks seem most plausible. While I can't recall any overt magic in the LXG comics, there are references to mysticism in a lot of the related stories, for example, "She", featuring Allan Quatermain (Ayesha is immortal because of a sacred flame IIRC).

He's already vulnerable to anything based on ECV or with the affects desolid advantage. Magic was hinted at in the movie, but never overtly shown, so Dorian may well be vulnerable to magic. I will leave that for individual GM's to decide.

Originally posted by Publius

Stylistically, I would have done this a bit differently. Notice that this is not even a 'critique', just a different perspective; the way you did this was fine. I would have dropped the -1 "leave body behind" and given Grey's Desolidifcation an additional -1/2 modifer for "Cannot be used to squeeze through tiny spaces" (As I understand it, "Cannot pass through solid matter" still allows you to go through tiny spaces, like the Shoggoth-type creature in the Bestiary). Unfortunately, this would make the power a bit more expensive. Has anyone else seen something like this asa desolidifcation mod? My books are presently packed away, so I am working from memory here...

 

Then for disadvantages, I would have added something about the painting, perhaps even a custom classification such as: "Damage to Painting damages Character" along with "Looking at uncovered Painting causes ____" (rest of sentence removed for lack of spoilers). Written as a Vulnerability maybe?

Good point. I will probably add the -1/2 can't squeeze through tiny spaces limitation. The "leave real body behind" was from a discussion of astral projection in Mystic Masters. I chose to ignore the "'Looking at uncovered Painting causes ____' (rest of sentence removed for lack of spoilers)" in favor of the portrait as giant VooDoo doll. In the novel Dorian looked at it several times over the decades, and was fact to face with it when he made the fatal error of trying to destroy it.

(Would Dorian have given away his weakness like that? Or could it be that with the painting in tact, he'll get better?)

Originally posted by Publius

Re: Dorian Grey Character Very interesting McCoy, I like a lot of the things you do for the character. I do have some questions:

 

What is the -1 Custom Modifier for on Desolidifcation?

Must leave real body behind. Couldn't figure out how to put that in the midifier itself, that's why I put it in the notes.

Originally posted by Publius

The way that I read it, buying the STR with Affects normal World allows him to use HTH Attacks, that does I assume include HTH weapons (i.e. both barehanded and weapon attacks), but would it include ranged weapons as well? Perhaps that was why he did not use any firearms... simply put, he cannot and the character is simply played as if this were an affectation (although he does use a pistol once). Eventually, a Naked Power Modifier could be purchased for him I guess that would allow him to do so, but it might be a spot costly (notice the pistol he used was a small one)...

Don't see why not. In the novel a shooting accident left him with a dislike for guns.

And yes, that should have been Weapon Familiarity, swords and shotgun.

Gestures and incantation only needed to start power are 1/4 less than those needed to sustain a power, so I would say Obvious Accessable Focus, only to activate continuous power (-3/4).

Of more concern to me is taking powers with Charges out of a VPP. If I was GM'ing, useing a item with one charge will reduce your pool by the real cost of the item until that charge can be recovered. Simular to "Losing Powers," FREd, p 210. Is this pool "powers change/recharge only between adventures"? If so, *does best attemp at Emily Latella impression* Oh! That's different. Never mind.

OK, my first attempt with Hero Designer, lets see how this goes. Character is based partly on the movie, partly on the source material.

The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde

Dorian Gray

Player:

Total Character Cost: 336

Disadvantage Points: 150

Base Points: 200

Experience Required: 0

Total Experience Available: 0

Experience Unspent: 0

Note 14 points available for additional knowledge skills or contacts.

Originally posted by Enforcer84

I can't wait to see it. Do you guys think its required "Big Screen" viewing, or perhaps I can wait til the video release?

The fight scenes, and the baroque Victorian excesses of the sets, really need the big screne to do them justice. The ticket will be money well spent.

Re: LXG

Originally posted by MisterD

???Forgot the Name???: Invisible / Skilled normal

Skinner.

Line I wanted to hear but didn't: "Sawyer, Thomas Sawyer."

Originally posted by RadeFox

I am loving the Museum of Natural History idea McCoy. Too funny....

 

Tour guide, "An now you see here one of only three perfectly preserved Wooly Mammoths to have been excavated out of the deep ice in Siberia"

 

Player nearby, "Ahh........ahhhh....."

 

Tour Guide,"Please not the excellent condition of the hair and the tusks. This is a perfect specimen will allow the scientists here to learn much about how the mammoths lived and.."

 

Player, "KA-CHOOOOOO!!!!!"

 

Tour Guide, smoking and singed, peer around the now flaming and crackling Wooly Mammoths ruined corpse, eeks out, "Died...", and then passes out while the sprinkler system overhead goes off.

 

Too much fun. Good idea!

Hope the player isn't reading this. Mammoth fur is the first allergy trigger, she will sneeze when she walks into the museum, when she fights the monster with Mammoth DNA gene spliced into it, and when she meets the mad scientist who created said monster in his civilian ID.

Then I'll come up with a different sneeze trigger.

Originally posted by DigitalGolem

Yes, I think from this point forward I'll take anything I hear from Gonzalez with a grain of salt. I give him the benefit of the doubt, concerning his work on galactic habitable zones, because: 1) I haven't yet heard of any evidence against the idea, and 2) it seems plausible that heavy elements would be more common in some parts of the galaxy than others. When/if evidence to the contrary is found, and published, I look forward to reading about it.

Looks like we'll have to rethink the GHZ. Planet found, admittedly not type M, both older than Gonzalez says is possible and in a more crowded star cluster than he thought stable.

http://www.msnbc.com/news/937147.asp#BODY

Originally posted by RadeFox

Don't forget, McCoy, that you in your role as GM must make sure the Hinderance value of the disad is played to balance the savings in points the character enjoys. Simply going into combat a charge down doesn't seem to me to be a big disadvantage.

 

If it were me GM'ing, I'd make sure that every so often she flames a cop car, or another character, or their base computer when it gives her a file error!

Now were talking value for the disad, not too mention a lot of really good RP avenues opening up.

It's going to start out with her allergic to a certain substance, and leting off a flame sneeze when she walks into the Museum of Natural History.

Thanks everyone. Snarf, not exactly uncontrolled activation. Think of a gun without a safety. It operates normally when you want it to, just also occasionally when you don't want it to.

The character in question has Dragon Breath, RKA Area cone 6 charges. I said something about being careful when she sneezes, and the player liked it! Now trying to figure out what an approperate limitation would be worth. I'm thinking -1/2, she will occasionally go into combat with one charge already expended. Fortunately, no Secret ID.

Is there a limitation for a power which normally works well, but will occasionally "go off by itself"?

Something like Havok's power sometimes fireing without him wanting it to, or Don Knott's six gun firing as it's holstered. "No concious control" does not seem to fit, usually the power is under control, with just an occasional "oops!"

If there is not, should there be? I'm thinking of -1/4 to -1/2, depending on how long it would take to recover the END or charge the accidental discharge burns.

All feedback and opinions gratefuly considered.

Re: Libido and lobotomies

Originally posted by Kevin Scrivner

Re: lobotomies. Well, the novels don't specify that Savage actually removes parts of criminals' brains, just that he performs brain surgery on them to, uh, increase their sense of civic responsibility.

And remove their memories.

I'm the only one bothered by him lobotomizing his opponents?