Digest Archive vol 1 Issue 306
From: owner-champ-l-digest@sysabend.org
Sent: Friday, April 30, 1999 11:15 PM
To: champ-l-digest@sysabend.org
Subject: champ-l-digest V1 #306
champ-l-digest Friday, April 30 1999 Volume 01 : Number 306
In this issue:
Re: Mana as a secondary characteristic
Re: Mana as a secondary characteristic
Re: Fwd: Darth Vader
TEST: Duplicate messages
Intelligence and Murphy
RE: Darth Vader
RE: Darth Vader
END reserves
Re: END reserves
Combat banter, part 2
Re: Intelligence and Murphy
Re: Combat banter, part 2
Re: Spock's Brain
Re: Darth Vader
Re: Combat banter, part 2
Re: Darth Vader
Re: END reserves
RE: VPP question ...
Re: CHAR: Darth Vader (rough)
Re: CHAR: Darth Vader (rough)
Re: CHAR: Darth Vader (rough)
Re: CHAR: Darth Vader (rough)
Re: CHAR: Darth Vader (rough)
Circuit Breaker "Fix-it" EC
Re: Combat banter, part 2
Re: Spock's Brain and Intuition
Confirmation for subscribe champ-l
Re: Spock's Brain and Intuition
TEST: Weird Message
Re: Combat banter, part 2
Re: Confirmation for subscribe champ-l
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Date: Fri, 30 Apr 1999 08:56:53 -0700
From: Max Callahan <mcallahan@home.com>
Subject: Re: Mana as a secondary characteristic
>While the group is on the subject of discussing secondary characteristics,
>I've got a question. The Fantasy Hero Companion II introduced the idea of
>Mana (EGO*2) and Mana Recovery or MRC (EGO/5 + INT/5) for the powering of
>magic spells rather than burning END. Has anyone ever experimented with
>using MANA and MRC in a superhero campaign for the powering of magic or
>psionic powers?
>
>Len Carpenter
>redlion@early.com
I'm running a game that uses MANA to power magic (but not psionics) in
general it doesn't make that much of a difference, only one of the pcs has
MANA (under my implementation only thoes beings that are inherently magical
get MANA and MRC), he's a weretiger (basicly a brick) and didn't raise his
MANA and MRC over their starting values (and his INT and EGO aren't hot) so
magical powers are far more limited in the amount he can use them than if
they were END baised. My first draft for this game called for all
characters it have a MANA and MRC and while building characters I noticed
that characters either had no MANA based powers and thus spent no points on
MANA and MRC, or had MANA based powers and spent no points on END and REC.
MANA baised characters gained a slight advantage in being able to push
their STR and running without worrying about running out of energy for
their powers, and a slight disadvantage in having to spent points on MRC to
get back energy for their powers and REC to get back stun instead of just
Buying REC and having it do both. Using the mana rules also serves to
differentiate magical energy from personal energy for the purposes of aids
drains and transfers
Max Callahan
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 30 Apr 1999 11:34:42 -0500 (CDT)
From: Curt Hicks <exucurt@exu.ericsson.se>
Subject: Re: Mana as a secondary characteristic
> From: Len Carpenter <redlion@early.com>
>
> >While the group is on the subject of discussing secondary characteristics,
> >I've got a question. The Fantasy Hero Companion II introduced the idea of
> >Mana (EGO*2) and Mana Recovery or MRC (EGO/5 + INT/5) for the powering of
> >magic spells rather than burning END. Has anyone ever experimented with
> >using MANA and MRC in a superhero campaign for the powering of magic or
> >psionic powers?
> >>
I was thinking about this just the other day. Basically, it seemed to me
that using a separate stat for 'magical energy' other than endurance was
more 'realistic' in the sense that physical condition shouldn't be a
major factor in whether one mage was better than another.
Unfortunately, I haven't actually played in a game that uses this.
But for a *superhero* game, why not just use an endurance reserve power ?
Actually for a fantasy game, you could do the same thing...
Curt
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 30 Apr 1999 11:01:45 -0700 (PDT)
From: Stormtide <stormtide@yahoo.com>
Subject: Re: Fwd: Darth Vader
My guess is based only on what I can remember from the
movies many years ago.
I agree that we don't get to see any good reasons for
wearing the armor in the films. Part of the reason is
that we don't get to see this from the trooper's
perspective on events (except for maybe Kevin Rubio's
"Troops" parody, go find it on the net if you haven't
seen it already.) Anyway, here would be my guesses
for the armor:
1. The obvious is protection. As mentioned below, it
need not deflect the blast entirely, but lessen a
potential fatal blaster shot to some recouperation
time in the infirmary.
2. Communications devices may also be present in the
headgear, giving hands-free operations for other
duties. If I recall correctly, the troopers were in
radio contact in this manner.
3. Detection and/or targeting equipment. Okay, this
one is a bit of a stretch given their poor
marksmanship when it comes to targeting our heroes.
However, as stated in another note, someone does
reference the close shot patterns. It wouldn't be out
of line to build some enhanced vision or perhaps
auditory capabilities into the system as well.
Perhaps if the forces relied less on their equipment
and put more trust in the Force, they would be better
shots. It's been proven to have worked at least once.
:-)
4. Life support. Again, I don't believe this has
ever been shown, but the suits do appear to be
somewhat self-contained. At least, I would say they
might give some protection against the environment.
In game terms, it might even prevent against some
flash attacks.
5. The final reason would be for intimidation factor.
As far as I remember, all the Empire troops were
normal looking human types -- not that impressive in
the diverse alien population. Also, the
non-expressive stormtrooper armor would give them an
edge by allowing them to hide their reactions and give
away what they were thinking.
- --- Akirazeta@aol.com wrote:
> In a message dated 4/30/99 6:53:22 AM Eastern
> Daylight Time, Akira zeta
> writes:
>
> << In a message dated 4/30/99 3:55:03 AM Eastern
> Daylight Time,
> pchap@macquarie.matra.com.au writes:
>
> << The real point about Star Wars combat, though,
> is - why do Stormtroopers
> wear armour? It doesn't doing anything (as far as
> I can remember no-one
> evers deflects a blaster shot) except slow them
> down and limit their field
> of vision.>>>
>
> Maybe the armor changes the killing attack of a
> blaster into a strictly stun
> attack. I believe one storm trooper gets up, but I
> couldnt recall off hand if
> it was one in the movies or one of the novels.
>
> << And why are the crew on the Deathstar weapon
> wearing armour? Are they
> expecting to be attacked at any moment by rebel
> infiltrators?>>
>
> The storm troopers are an elite (lol) fighting
> force. The white armor is
> theyre uniform. Soldiers wear theyre uniform ALL of
> the time theyre on duty.
> Pretty simple.
>
> <<Suspension of disbelief is a wonderful thing!>>
> So if logic :)
> >>
>
>
> ATTACHMENT part 2 message/rfc822
> From: Akirazeta@aol.com
> Date: Fri, 30 Apr 1999 06:53:22 EDT
> Subject: Re: Darth Vader
> To: pchap@macquarie.matra.com.au
>
> In a message dated 4/30/99 3:55:03 AM Eastern
> Daylight Time,
> pchap@macquarie.matra.com.au writes:
>
> << The real point about Star Wars combat, though, is
> - why do Stormtroopers
> wear armour? It doesn't doing anything (as far as I
> can remember no-one
> evers deflects a blaster shot) except slow them
> down and limit their field
> of vision.>>>
>
> Maybe the armor changes the killing attack of a
> blaster into a strictly stun
> attack. I believe one storm trooper gets up, but I
> couldnt recall off hand if
> it was one in the movies or one of the novels.
>
> << And why are the crew on the Deathstar weapon
> wearing armour? Are they
> expecting to be attacked at any moment by rebel
> infiltrators?>>
>
> The storm troopers are an elite (lol) fighting
> force. The white armor is
> theyre uniform. Soldiers wear theyre uniform ALL of
> the time theyre on duty.
> Pretty simple.
>
> <<Suspension of disbelief is a wonderful thing!>>
> So if logic :)
>
_________________________________________________________
Do You Yahoo!?
Get your free @yahoo.com address at http://mail.yahoo.com
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 30 Apr 1999 14:17:07 -0400 (EDT)
From: Jason Sullivan <ravanos@NJCU.edu>
Subject: TEST: Duplicate messages
I am receiving duplicate messages. This is a test.
Please disregard, unless you are having the same problem.
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 30 Apr 1999 12:07:09 -0700 (PDT)
From: Ben Brown <benbrown@primenet.com>
Subject: Intelligence and Murphy
Hi all,
During all this discussion of what INT represents going back and forth,
someone mentioned INT-based skills, and how Knowledge Skills, in particular,
could be either INT-based or non-INT-based.
This, combined with a character I was working on last night, led me
to a rules glitch.
A character with an INT based skill will lose quite a bit of this skill
if he gets hit by an INT drain, whereas a character who takes the same
skill as a general skill stays at the same level. This seems to me to
be a little on the silly side.
To be honest, the INT draining's effect on skills seems to me to be one of
the better "proofs" for the written definition of what INT is.
Dunno. Just thought I'd throw this out to see if anyone could make anything
of it.
- -Ben (who is too tired to be posting to a list, but who would be doing
something elese if he wasn't so tired)
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 30 Apr 1999 15:10:41 -0400
From: Sean Pavlish <pavlish@home.com>
Subject: RE: Darth Vader
From the game material, in regards to the armour, the armour offered =
wonderful protection against melee weapons and better than no protection =
against energy weapons. However, the main purpose was an intricate =
communications and visual package that is in the head piece. With =
those, they could react easier as a squad than without. The suits were =
also devised as a form of fear. They do make for an impressive display, =
even if they aren't all that much more protection against energy weapons =
than anything else.
Sean
- -----Original Message-----
From: Phil Chappell [SMTP:pchap@macquarie.matra.com.au]
Sent: Friday, April 30, 1999 3:54 AM
To: champ-l@sysabend.org
Subject: Darth Vader
The real point about Star Wars combat, though, is - why do Stormtroopers
wear armour? It doesn't doing anything (as far as I can remember no-one
evers deflects a blaster shot) except slow them down and limit their =
field
of vision.
And why are the crew on the Deathstar weapon wearing armour? Are they
expecting to be attacked at any moment by rebel infiltrators?
Suspension of disbelief is a wonderful thing!
Phil
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 30 Apr 1999 15:13:36 -0400
From: Sean Pavlish <pavlish@home.com>
Subject: RE: Darth Vader
And while we're at it, how TIE fighters, Bombers, and Interceptors are
unshielded? Does the Empire have cookie-cutter molds to produce these
things cheaply?
>=20
Actually that was one of the major points about the empire. They had =
tons of resources and money, as well as, personnel. They didn't need to =
put shielding on their ships. Without the shielding, they could put =
more energy into weapons and ion drives. That is why the rebel ships =
are slower and don't usually have as much punch. However, the rebels =
valued their pilots much more than the empire. For the empire to lose a =
few pilots, meant nothing.
Sean
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 30 Apr 1999 15:33:56 -0400
From: Brian Wawrow <bwawrow@fmco.com>
Subject: END reserves
Hi,
In my FH game, I use a dedicated END reserve for each sphere of magic. Due
to the low costs for END reserves, combined with my magic house rule that
prohibits the reduction of END costs for spells, this seems like a mage's
most vulnerable target to Drains and Transfers.
So here's my question. When you Drain an END reserve, are you Draining the
current level of the reserve or the maximum level of the reserve?
Here's an example...
Spurock the Crusader uses Life magic to juice his STR and give himself
Density Increase and Damage Reduction. He has a Life Magic Battery [END
reserve] of 40END [4pts.] with 8REC [8pts.]. He currently has 24END
remaining in his battery.
Petru Freuvenbach the Warlock uses a variety of spheres, but in this case,
he'll be using his Pattern magic, which specializes in affecting other
magic. Petru plans to empty Spurock's END battery so he can't power his
spells, thus undermining Spurock's usual domination of the close tactical
situation.
So while Spurock is charging some poor sap with intent to decapitate, Petru
hits him with Eather Drain, a 1D6 ranged Drain vs. magical END reserves that
recovers 5pts/minute. The Eather Drain successfully drains 4 active points
from Spurock's END reserve.
So, the question is this. Does Spurock now have 0/40 END or 0/0 END? On his
post-phase12, will he recover 8END in his battery or must he wait for a
minute until his END reserve recovers from the drain?
Brian Wawrow
Financial Models Company
bwawrow@fmco.com
(905) 212 - 3055
2*3*3*37 - The prime factorization of the beast
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 30 Apr 1999 16:06:28 EDT
From: AndMat3@aol.com
Subject: Re: END reserves
In a message dated 4/30/99 3:36:29 PM Eastern Daylight Time, bwawrow@fmco.com
writes:
> In my FH game, I use a dedicated END reserve for each sphere of magic. Due
> to the low costs for END reserves, combined with my magic house rule that
> prohibits the reduction of END costs for spells, this seems like a mage's
> most vulnerable target to Drains and Transfers.
>
> So here's my question. When you Drain an END reserve, are you Draining the
> current level of the reserve or the maximum level of the reserve?
>
> Here's an example...
>
> Spurock the Crusader uses Life magic to juice his STR and give himself
> Density Increase and Damage Reduction. He has a Life Magic Battery [END
> reserve] of 40END [4pts.] with 8REC [8pts.]. He currently has 24END
> remaining in his battery.
>
> Petru Freuvenbach the Warlock uses a variety of spheres, but in this case,
> he'll be using his Pattern magic, which specializes in affecting other
> magic. Petru plans to empty Spurock's END battery so he can't power his
> spells, thus undermining Spurock's usual domination of the close tactical
> situation.
>
> So while Spurock is charging some poor sap with intent to decapitate, Petru
> hits him with Eather Drain, a 1D6 ranged Drain vs. magical END reserves
that
> recovers 5pts/minute. The Eather Drain successfully drains 4 active points
> from Spurock's END reserve.
>
> So, the question is this. Does Spurock now have 0/40 END or 0/0 END? On his
> post-phase12, will he recover 8END in his battery or must he wait for a
> minute until his END reserve recovers from the drain?
As I understand Drains and END batteries. it would work like this: (i'm at
work,
i don't have my book with me... this could just be a long used house rule i'm
working with here.)
The END battery has 40END/8REC - it is currently at 24END.
The DRAIN (1d6 ranged w/ 5pts/MIN) rolls 4.
This would drain 8 points of END from the battery - not 40.
Those 8 points could not be recovered until the minute is up... so until that
time,
the END battery would (in essence) be a 32END/8REC battery.
if this is a house rule, and someone will let us know if it is not,
then ignore this.
andy
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 30 Apr 1999 16:22:35 -0400
From: David Stallard <DBStallard@compuserve.com>
Subject: Combat banter, part 2
The response to my first message was overwhelmingly in favor of having
unrestricted talking during combat. Thus, a PC should be able to spout o=
ff
multiple paragraphs in the time it takes to fire his energy blast or punc=
h
at the villain.
What about when PCs want to talk to each other? Do you let them banter
back and forth, discussing strategy and whatnot, while the game is
essentially frozen in time? If not, how do you handle this?
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 30 Apr 1999 13:18:02 -0700 (PDT)
From: shaw@caprica.com (Wayne Shaw)
Subject: Re: Intelligence and Murphy
>Hi all,
>
>During all this discussion of what INT represents going back and forth,
>someone mentioned INT-based skills, and how Knowledge Skills, in particular,
>could be either INT-based or non-INT-based.
>
>This, combined with a character I was working on last night, led me
>to a rules glitch.
>
>A character with an INT based skill will lose quite a bit of this skill
>if he gets hit by an INT drain, whereas a character who takes the same
>skill as a general skill stays at the same level. This seems to me to
>be a little on the silly side.
That's an intrinsic problem when you let a skill be general or stat based.
Personally, I think all skills should be stat based, but that's just me.
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 30 Apr 1999 17:03:07 -0400
From: Mathieu Roy <matroy@abacom.com>
Subject: Re: Combat banter, part 2
David Stallard wrote:
> What about when PCs want to talk to each other? Do you let them banter
> back and forth, discussing strategy and whatnot, while the game is
> essentially frozen in time? If not, how do you handle this?
If they discuss strategy in front of the villains, have the villains react to
the knowledge. =)
Seriously, it depends. If it isn't a problem for you, let it go. If it is, I
suggest you, as GM, limit it when you think they are going too far. I
personally would be lenient in superhero games, but harsher in more "realistic"
genres.
Mathieu
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 30 Apr 1999 14:01:42 PDT
From: "Jesse Thomas" <haerandir@hotmail.com>
Subject: Re: Spock's Brain
On Thu, 29 Apr 1999 Bill Svitavsky wrote:
>
>Spock is certainly a Lightning Calculator, and capable of
>extraordinary analysis even in high pressure situations. When
>there's an engineering crisis, it's Spock who goes into the
>Jeffries tube, not Scotty. So maybe he's got a high INT. And
>yet, in combat or any other situation where quick decision is
>called for, Spock's not exactly the man for the job - he'll
>weight all possibilities to the last decimal place before he
>takes action. So maybe he's got a low INT. Fascinating.
Perhaps Spock's Lightning Calculation and analytical abilities aren't a
function of INT at all. Perhaps it's a result of mental discipline. He has
used his amazing EGO to learn all sorts of efficient short cuts, but can't
use this ability to acheive results he hasn't practiced extensively. Hence,
no sudden leaps of intuition in combat situations, since he hasn't devoted
his life to studying the martial arts the way he has science. Plus there's
always the possibility that Leonard Nimoy is less of a ham than Shatner, and
didn't feel the need to present his character as an omni-competent action
hero...
Jesse Thomas
haerandir@hotmail.com
_______________________________________________________________
Get Free Email and Do More On The Web. Visit http://www.msn.com
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 30 Apr 1999 14:14:35 PDT
From: "Jesse Thomas" <haerandir@hotmail.com>
Subject: Re: Darth Vader
On Fri, 30 Apr 1999 Tracy L Birdine <hawk291@juno.com> wrote:
>
>And while we're at it, how TIE fighters, Bombers, and Interceptors are
>unshielded? Does the Empire have cookie-cutter molds to produce these
>things cheaply?
Well, in a word, yes. The theory, as I've heard it, is that A) the Empire
is HUGE. Thousands of worlds, each one with a population in the hundreds of
thousands, at least. No shortage of pilots. On the other hand, all those
worlds had to be garrisoned, even though most of them never saw combat.
Basically, TIE fighters were the cheapest alternative for putting the most
interceptors to cover a large volume of space. Presumaby, it was cheaper to
build a new TIE fighter and train a new pilot than to maintain a cranky
X-wing. Mostly, they didn't need shields because they never fought anything
that could match their performance in terms of speed and firepower.
Besides, both the Emperor and his primary henchman were initiates of the
Dark Side, and thrived on death and destruction, and they were the ones who
ultimately determined the Empire's design philosophy. They were definitely
of the "Crunch all you want, we'll make more" school of thought.
Jesse Thomas
haerandir@hotmail.com
_______________________________________________________________
Get Free Email and Do More On The Web. Visit http://www.msn.com
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 30 Apr 1999 14:48:06 PDT
From: "Jesse Thomas" <haerandir@hotmail.com>
Subject: Re: Combat banter, part 2
On Fri, 30 Apr 1999 David Stallard <DBStallard@compuserve.com> wrote:
>
>What about when PCs want to talk to each other? Do you let them banter
>back and forth, discussing strategy and whatnot, while the game is
>essentially frozen in time? If not, how do you handle this?
>
Essentially, I handle it with communication. If the players are taking an
unrealistic amount of time to plan out what they're going to do in the next
3 seconds, tell them so. They'll quickly get a feel for what you're
comfortable with, and should start to police themselves after a while.
There's nothing wrong with them saying something along the lines of, "Hold
your action for a phase" to a fellow player, because you can assume that
experienced super heros (or epic fantasy heroes, or super spies, or whatnot)
are skilled enough to use strategy as a matter of course, especially if
they've worked together in the past. How many times have we read an X-men
comic where the party (the X-men) are initially being trashed by the
opposition, then suddenly, entirely out of the blue, they set the poor
bastard up and use all their powers to take him out in a stunning display of
teamwork? However, if it goes more than a couple of sentences, you're
probably getting beyond the realms of what experience and teamwork can do.
If you need a hard and fast rule, try this: Let your players talk. If
their planning session starts to take longer than it would take to resolve a
segment of combat, let them know they're running long. If they persist warn
them again, then tell them they've spent their action thinking (a la Spock,
in an earlier discussion).
Jesse Thomas
haerandir@hotmail.com
_______________________________________________________________
Get Free Email and Do More On The Web. Visit http://www.msn.com
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 30 Apr 1999 14:47:46 -0700
From: Tracy L Birdine <hawk291@juno.com>
Subject: Re: Darth Vader
On Fri, 30 Apr 1999 15:13:36 -0400 Sean Pavlish <pavlish@home.com>
writes:
>
>
> And while we're at it, how TIE fighters, Bombers, and Interceptors
> are
> unshielded? Does the Empire have cookie-cutter molds to produce
> these
> things cheaply?
> >
>
>
> Actually that was one of the major points about the empire. They
> had tons of resources and money, as well as, personnel. They didn't
> need to put shielding on their ships. Without the shielding, they
> could put more energy into weapons and ion drives. That is why the
> rebel ships are slower and don't usually have as much punch.
> However, the rebels valued their pilots much more than the empire.
> For the empire to lose a few pilots, meant nothing.
>
> Sean
>
Yeah, ain't that the truth.
And coming fromm a Star Wars: TIE Fighter veteran, you're all too aware
of not having shields flying those things...
But, a side issue: If (a BIG if) you managed to survive as a TIE fighter,
the Empire does start to care about you. The TIE Advanced is waiting for
you. It has shields and is faster than an A-wing. Also they needed
something that could hang against the Rebel B-wings. Enter the Starwing
Gunboat. It has shields and is as tough as a B-wing.
>
>
>
|- /\ \\/ |< [ ICQ: 32038562 ] ghostwalker@ifr-inc.org
CO/4th Batt., The Horsemen, Black Horse Regiment
*---===( )===---*
Black Horse Webpage: http://www.ifr-inc.org/staffpages/tb.html
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 30 Apr 1999 16:19:18 -0400 (EDT)
From: Jason Sullivan <ravanos@NJCU.edu>
Subject: Re: END reserves
On Fri, 30 Apr 1999, Brian Wawrow wrote:
When you're draining END, you're draining the current level,
decreasing from the maxium ammount.
Recovery still recovers the same ammount, however, the maxium
ammount in END may prevent you from recoving a significant ammount to do
what you need to do.
In other words, you can drain END past the current ammount that
you have up to the Maxium END you have, which will negate your END pool
and prevent recovery.
Alternately, you can have a REC Drain, which prevents a person
from recovering any END at all...
If it were up to me to have a counter-magic spell, it would be
able to drain REC first, then END. Negate the recovery, then deplete the
pool.
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 30 Apr 99 23:34:43
From: "qts" <qts@nildram.co.uk>
Subject: RE: VPP question ...
On Wed, 14 Apr 1999 17:08:57 -0700, David W. Salmon wrote:
>Interesting discussion of Trigger vs Delayed Effect. It clarified a couple
>things in my mind but ...
>
>my original question still stands ...
>
>If I use all of the points in my VPP to create, say, a triggered explosion
>on a door. The trigger being opening the door without saying "open-says-me".
>Are all of VPP points locked out
No.
> or can I go ahead and do other things with
>my VPP ?
Yes.
qts
Home: qts@nildram.co.uk.
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 30 Apr 99 23:41:16
From: "qts" <qts@nildram.co.uk>
Subject: Re: CHAR: Darth Vader (rough)
On Tue, 27 Apr 1999 15:38:12 -0400 (EDT), Michael Surbrook wrote:
>Note: My Darth will be taken from the films, *not* the Star Wars RPG or
>any of the novels. This menas that some of the powers he is "supposed" to
>have won't appear. That gotten out of the way, I'm looking for input on
>his stats. My rough layout is a follows:
>
>DARTH VADER
>Dark Lord of the Sith
>
>Val CHA Cost Roll Notes
>30 STR 20 15- 1600kg; 6d6
>18 DEX 24 13- OCV: 6 / DCV: 6
>23 CON 26 14-
>13 BODY 6 12-
>20 INT 10 13- PER Roll 13-
>20 EGO 20 13- ECV: 7
>30 PRE 20 15- PRE Attack: 6d6
>6 COM -2 10-
>8 PD 2 Total: PD / PDr
>7 ED 2 Total: ED / EDr
>4 SPD 12 Phases: 3, 6, 9, 12
>9 REC 0
>46 END 0
>40 STUN 0
>Total Characteristics Cost: 140
>
>I also have roughed out some Force Powers. They are:
> Telekinetic Choke: NND (note: didn't he do this to a guy on
>another Star Destroyer? Over a video link?)
Yes. And he turned away. Definitely Continuous Uncontrolled!
> Telekinesis: 50 STR (tossing the boxes around in ESB
> Missile Deflection: Up to Energy Attacks (seen in ESB)
> Superleap: (seen in ESB)
> Force Sensitive: Detect (Seen in SW)
How about just a plain old Cosmic Power Pool?
>And (here I go...) any suggestions for a lightsaber?
Well, since it's just a fancy sword, how about a HKA? 2 or 3 levels of
AP, I'd guess.
qts
Home: qts@nildram.co.uk.
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 30 Apr 99 23:46:56
From: "qts" <qts@nildram.co.uk>
Subject: Re: CHAR: Darth Vader (rough)
On Tue, 27 Apr 1999 16:10:25 -0400 (EDT), Michael Surbrook wrote:
>> You could make it an Ego Attack (Does Body) - use Mind Scan to get the
>> lock (i.e. figure out where the guy is) and then the Force to crush his
>> throat. This might require Concentration, since we never see Darth doing
>> it in combat.
>
>Wow... that works really well, too. Is this a go with most people?
Looks a good basis for me except I don't recall him doing it in the
films to anyone he couldn't see.
qts
Home: qts@nildram.co.uk.
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 30 Apr 99 23:52:12
From: "qts" <qts@nildram.co.uk>
Subject: Re: CHAR: Darth Vader (rough)
On Tue, 27 Apr 1999 16:13:37 -0400, Scott C. Nolan wrote:
>>> > Telekinetic Choke: NND (note: didn't he do this to a guy on
>>> >another Star Destroyer? Over a video link?)
>>>
>>> He did, but the link was merely present. He can do it at range
>>> and without LOS.
>>
>>Uhm... any suggestions for *that*?
>
>Clairsentience. This would also explain "He is here. I feel it!"
How about using Distinctive Features: Force user (easily detectable by
other Force users) or Side Effects: Noisy (as above) on all Force
powers?
qts
Home: qts@nildram.co.uk.
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 30 Apr 99 23:54:05
From: "qts" <qts@nildram.co.uk>
Subject: Re: CHAR: Darth Vader (rough)
On Tue, 27 Apr 1999 16:15:29 -0400, E David Miller wrote:
>> > >And (here I go...) any suggestions for a lightsaber?
>> >
>> > 2d6 HKA, Armor Piercing or possibly 2d6 RKA, Armor Piercing, No Range.
>> > But the lightsaber fights often show muscle as being a factor, so I'd go with
>> > the former.
>>
>> Only 2d6? I was thinking Penetrating (and 3d6) since Luke chops right
>> through the hatch on the AT-AT.
>
> I'd go with a 2.5d6HKA, NND Does Body (+2) - defense is a parry with another
>LightSaber. This would go up to a 3d6 HKA with a STR of 15, sufficient to kill
>a normal human with a high roll (solid hit) in a single stroke, and serious
>damage regardless. But that's just me, and I don't have a problem with
>terrifying players and other GMs, so....
I'd point out that the walkway barriers on the second Death Star
withstood strikes from Luke's lightsaber.
qts
Home: qts@nildram.co.uk.
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 30 Apr 1999 18:04:40 -0500
From: Donald Tsang <tsang@sedl.org>
Subject: Re: CHAR: Darth Vader (rough)
>>I'd go with a 2.5d6HKA, NND Does Body (+2) - defense is a parry with
>>another LightSaber. This would go up to a 3d6 HKA with a STR of 15,
>>sufficient to kill a normal human with a high roll (solid hit) in a
>>single stroke, and serious damage regardless. But that's just me,
>>and I don't have a problem with terrifying players and other GMs, so....
>
>I'd point out that the walkway barriers on the second Death Star
>withstood strikes from Luke's lightsaber.
It seems likely that Force Fields/Walls can block Lightsabers; otherwise,
there would be ship-to-ship weapons that were basically "bombs with
lightsabers in front". Also, does anyone else feel that "parry with
another lightsaber" isn't quite common enough to qualify as an NND's
defense? I'm not saying you wouldn't be able to buy the power; it'd
just be more than NND(+1). NRD (No Reasonable Defense) might be +2
(or just buy Penetrating six times and triple the attack size, hehe).
A better construct would be:
2d6 HKA, AVLD (non-physical SFX rED, e.g. force fields), does BODY.
Alternatively, since normal DEF doesn't matter, use HA, or a no-range
EB/RKA. Power Gamer tip: use of HA would get you around the nasty
"martial arts bonuses halved on KAs" rule.
- -----
Donald
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 30 Apr 1999 21:09:58 -0400 (EDT)
From: Jason Sullivan <ravanos@NJCU.edu>
Subject: Circuit Breaker "Fix-it" EC
Here's a proposed EC I'm working on.
9 EC: "Fix-It" Repair Powers; OAF Tool kit and appropiate parts; RSR
Gadgeteering (-1/2)
7a 6d6 Aid BODY, 0 END (+1/2); Healing Only (-1/2), Limited Group:
Machines (-1/2), OAF:Tool Kit and appropiate parts; RSR: Gadgeteering
(-1/2)
8b 4d6 Aid Powers with mechanical SFX, One Power at a time (+1/4), 0
END (+1/2) +3 points to maxium total; Healing Only (-1/2), OAF: Tool Kit
and appropiate parts (-1), RSR: Gadgeteering (-1/2)
5c 1 1/2d6 Transform: Broken Machine to Fixed Machine, Continous
(+1/2), 0 END (+1/2); OAF: Tool Kit and appropiate parts (-1), RSR:
Gadgeteering (-1/2), Extra Time: 5 minutes (-2), No Range (-1/2)
29 total
a) Represents the SFX of repairing mechanical damage (but not
Armor or DEF).
b) Represents the SFX of fixing individual systems. Note it
does not get the "Limited Group" Limitation, as slot "a" did, because the
Advantage can only fix a particular SFX.
c) Represents fixing a device and eliminating any of the
kinks out of the system, from asthetic damage to the various modifiers
Vechiles and Automatons suffer when they lose BODY. Note that each time
the power is used, it takes a minimum of five minutes. Smaller devices
(like pocket calculators) will take a shorter time than a nuclear-powered
Tank.
In addition to this, modifiers should be placed on the Required
Skill Roll for Gadgettering depending on the complexity of the technology
and the famaliarity with the object.
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 30 Apr 1999 17:10:55 -0700
From: Bob Greenwade <bob.greenwade@klock.com>
Subject: Re: Combat banter, part 2
At 08:15 PM 4/30/1999 GMT, <owner-champ-l@sysabend.org> wrote:
>From: David Stallard <DBStallard@compuserve.com>
>Subject: Combat banter, part 2
>
>The response to my first message was overwhelmingly in favor of having
>unrestricted talking during combat. Thus, a PC should be able to spout o=
>ff
>multiple paragraphs in the time it takes to fire his energy blast or punc=
>h
>at the villain.
>
>What about when PCs want to talk to each other? Do you let them banter
>back and forth, discussing strategy and whatnot, while the game is
>essentially frozen in time? If not, how do you handle this?
Again, it depends on the "feel" you want. A more realistic sense would
call for little more than "code-phrases" called out during combat, which
everyone in the group knows and call follow through on.
On the other hand, I've seen at least one or two scenes in animated TV
where a group of heroes discussed intricate details of strategy for the
upcoming fight while the villain was in the process of charging at them
(from a distance that suggested to me that it took no more than a Turn or
two for the villain to close the distance). Admittedly, these bits were
played for laughs, but the basic principle is there: these were taking
considerable license with realism, which the writers felt comfortable with.
Once, I wrote a scene where not only did the heroes discuss strategy at
length, but one of the villains (an intelligent but not particularly clever
sort) stepped in to give a few helpful suggestions.
And so, of course, the bottom line is to just go with what you feel
comfortable with.
- ---
Bob's Original Hero Stuff Page! [Circle of HEROS member]
http://www.klock.com/public/users/bob.greenwade/original.htm
Merry-Go-Round Webring -- wanna join?
http://www.klock.com/public/users/bob.greenwade/merrhome.htm
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 30 Apr 1999 21:39:26 -0400
From: "Len Carpenter" <redlion@early.com>
Subject: Re: Spock's Brain and Intuition
I like Bill Svitavsky's idea for an Intuition talent. I think the game
could benefit from a few more talents to represent those intangible or
difficult-to-measure aspects of characters not easily represented by gross
characteristics. (I previously mentioned my notion of eliminating
Comeliness as a stat and making a high Comeliness a talent instead.) Don't
want to overdo it, though, lest Hero start looking too much like GURPS.
Len Carpenter
redlion@early.com
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 30 Apr 1999 21:39:40 -0400 (EDT)
From: Majordomo@sysabend.org
Subject: Confirmation for subscribe champ-l
- --
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------------------------------
Date: Fri, 30 Apr 1999 18:41:43 -0700
From: Christopher Taylor <ctaylor@viser.net>
Subject: Re: Spock's Brain and Intuition
At 09:39 PM 4/30/99 -0400, Len Carpenter wrote:
>I like Bill Svitavsky's idea for an Intuition talent. I think the game
>could benefit from a few more talents to represent those intangible or
>difficult-to-measure aspects of characters not easily represented by gross
>characteristics. (I previously mentioned my notion of eliminating
>Comeliness as a stat and making a high Comeliness a talent instead.) Don't
>want to overdo it, though, lest Hero start looking too much like GURPS.
I guess I have never understood the desire to turn COM into a talent, what
exactly is the old 1-10 scale of rating looks if it is not a statistic of
appearance? COM costs so little its not like you are robbed when you buy
some, and it has virtually no effect on combat (thus the low cost for the
characteristic). I like seeing a character and going "24 COM, that guy's a
stud" or "2 COM, eeek shes a troll!!" The Talent idea either eliminates
any granularity ("wow, shes cute!" "How cute?" "I dunno they all look the
same") or has the same result if you make it a stepped talent (3 points, 5
points etc) as having a stat.
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sola Gracia Sola Scriptura Sola Fide
Soli Gloria Deo Solus Christus Corum Deo
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 30 Apr 1999 22:46:23 -0400 (EDT)
From: Jason Sullivan <ravanos@NJCU.edu>
Subject: TEST: Weird Message
I got a weird message asking me if I wanted to join the list from
Majordomo@sysabend.org.
This is another test.
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 30 Apr 99 16:30:17 PDT
From: "Richard O'Marro" <hbcraft@impulsedata.net>
Subject: Re: Combat banter, part 2
- ----------
> The response to my first message was overwhelmingly in favor of having
> unrestricted talking during combat. Thus, a PC should be able to spout=
off
> multiple paragraphs in the time it takes to fire his energy blast or =
punch
> at the villain.
>
> What about when PCs want to talk to each other? Do you let them banter
> back and forth, discussing strategy and whatnot, while the game is
> essentially frozen in time? If not, how do you handle this?
>
>
Personally, I allow this, but it's somewhat stupid for the characters =
to do. Such conversation CAN NOT be done quietly in the midst of combat, =
so unless they have some sort of code worked out, the villians are going =
to know exactly what they are planning.
Now of you look at the comics you see characters there doing it all the =
time, from Captain America organizing the Avengers to everyone's favorite=
X-man teamwork play, The fastball special, which is ALWAYS done with a =
loud call for it beforehand.
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 30 Apr 1999 23:17:35 -0400 (EDT)
From: "John Desmarais" <john.desmarais@ibm.net>
Subject: Re: Confirmation for subscribe champ-l
Ignore this message. Either someone was trying to be cute by subscribing the list to
itself or they misread the instruction for subscribing themselves.
On Fri, 30 Apr 1999 21:39:40 -0400 (EDT), Majordomo@sysabend.org wrote:
>--
>
>Someone (possibly you) has requested that your email address be added
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>
>If you really want this action to be taken, please send the following
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>
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>
>If you do not want this action to be taken, simply ignore this message
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>
>If your mailer will not allow you to send the entire command as a single
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>
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>
>
------------------------------
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Date: Tuesday, June 29, 1999 10:16 AM