What do you think would be the Absolutely Nastiest Attack Power?

[Michael Struck]

22 hours ago, Duke Bushido said:

It is considerably more expensive in the more modern rules that it was in 2e (where it was a movement power),but if you remember buying Desolid in inches/BODY, then you might enjoy this:

 

Desolidification, ZERO END, Ranged, Usable as Attack.

 

Absolutely no damage, but a nice fire-and-forget way to take one or more opponents out of combat instantly.

 

 

 

Interestingly, they kinda brought that back, as "Alternate Desolidification" on p25 of (5e) The Ultimate Metamorph. 5 points for every 1 BODY the character can move through per Phase, as well as halving the mass and adding 1 to PD and ED. Once you hit 40 points you have no mass, and are "fully" Desolid. Except---you can only go through 8 BODY/Phase. Unless you spend 3 points per +1 BODY.
Seems a bit of a kludge to me, but YMMV.

[Stanley Teriaca]

37 minutes ago, Michael Struck said:

Interestingly, they kinda brought that back, as "Alternate Desolidification" on p25 of (5e) The Ultimate Metamorph. 5 points for every 1 BODY the character can move through per Phase, as well as halving the mass and adding 1 to PD and ED. Once you hit 40 points you have no mass, and are "fully" Desolid. Except---you can only go through 8 BODY/Phase. Unless you spend 3 points per +1 BODY.
Seems a bit of a kludge to me, but YMMV.

Something like that is in the Advance Player's Guide also (I don't remember which book). It kinda ended with the same amount of points as Desolification.

 

I really wish they divorce the ability to be lighter from the ability to go through objects. Just because your lighter doesn't mean you can actually pass through solid objects.

 

What other benefits does Density Reduction have? Well, your lighter for one. Maybe more resistant to damage, and the ability to lessen Knockback Damage (but not Knockback Distance). Beyond that...I don't know.

[Michael Struck]

7 minutes ago, Stanley Teriaca said:

Something like that is in the Advance Player's Guide also (I don't remember which book). It kinda ended with the same amount of points as Desolification.

 

I really wish they divorce the ability to be lighter from the ability to go through objects. Just because your lighter doesn't mean you can actually pass through solid objects.

 

What other benefits does Density Reduction have? Well, your lighter for one. Maybe more resistant to damage, and the ability to lessen Knockback Damage (but not Knockback Distance). Beyond that...I don't know.

Oh yeah: Ult. Meta. Altern. Desolid gives +1 Knockback distance (w/o change in damage) for every 5 points.

I entirely agree a "Density Decrease" would be nice. Frankly, I'd just reverse Density Increase, except no reduction to PD or ED. IOW, each 5 points halves your mass, decreases you STR by 5, and increases your KB by 1 hex. Of course, then the question arises, "Why buy it?" To which I have no answer.

[Matt the Bruins]

5 hours ago, Hugh Neilson said:

EDM UAA

 

"Go to Hell"

 

Oh! That reminds me, I actually wrote a version of this up for a slot in the Diabolic Sorcery VPP of my character Young Scratch. More or less what Scorpion pulls against Johnny Cage in the Mortal Combat movie.

 

Through Me The Way Is To The City Dolent: Extra-Dimensional Movement (single location in the Netherworld), Area Of Effect (personal Surface—Damage Shield; +¼), Constant (+½), Usable As Attack (does not work on targets of good character or who have holy objects upon their person; +1¼) (60 Active Points); Gestures (both hands; -½), Incantations (-¼), No Range (-½). Total cost: 27 points.

 

 

 

[Michael Struck]

Well, when you say "nasty" I tend not to think in terms of damage per se, but in terms of messing with the victim target. For instance:

Relive the Ugly Past Spell: XDM, through time, to target's most embarrassing/humiliating/upsetting event they were responsible for (at least in part), target can get no more than 1 meter from "old self"; hard linked to Desolid and Invinsible (Sight, Hearing, Smell/Taste, Touch and Mental Groups) and Darkness to Hearing, Mental and Touch groups, only effects target. All with 0 END.

 

I think the Darkness is how to keep the target from making themself known.

If it's possible to have a power/spell with an auto-resetting Trigger that is "cast" once and then triggers, repeatedly, afterward, I would give the above Trigger, automatically resets, when the "scenario" ends. That way, the victim target goes through the scene over and over and over and over.

Edited September 14 by Michael Struck
spelling correction

[Stanley Teriaca]

Humm...how nasty is this...

 

Entangle linked to Invisability to sight and sound, Usable As An Attack, 0END Presistance (power ends when target is removed from entangle).

 

Imagine being tied up in public, yet nobody will stop to help you. Nobody notices. Nobody seems to care. People who are looking for you are missing finding you even if your right there in front of you.

 

To make it even worse, add Desolid to the mix.

[Duke Bushido]

9 hours ago, Michael Struck said:

Interestingly, they kinda brought that back, as "Alternate Desolidification" on p25 of (5e) The Ultimate Metamorph. 5 points for every 1 BODY the character can move through per Phase, as well as halving the mass and adding 1 to PD and ED. Once you hit 40 points you have no mass, and are "fully" Desolid. Except---you can only go through 8 BODY/Phase. Unless you spend 3 points per +1 BODY.
Seems a bit of a kludge to me, but YMMV.

 

You are right; that is extremely kludgy.   There is abaolutely no reason to tack on all that extra baggage at the end.  It was bought originally in Body-inches (it's like foot-pounds, but for a different hobby).  This "alternate" xould do the same.  Adding on all that sillin3ss about shades of density, etc....  

 

When i but Shrinking, I am anywhere from where I am down to 'X' small.  When I buy DI, I mass anywhere from where I am down to X heavy.  I get to decide.  Growth-  I have no idea on 6e.  I started reading that Template stuff and rhoight 'screq that; I am too damned old to bother changing what I already know and enjoy."   But up to 6e, I bought growth and declared my aize, up to X.

 

Originally, you bought Desolid-even just a few Body-inches, you were Desolid, period.  Intangible, immune to normal damage, and unable to interact with the corporeal world without buying the priper Advantage.

 

Now here is the thing:  you decided how intangible you were.  You wanted to become a ghost?  Go for it.  You could be static electricity, or you xpuld be water vapor- something that can bw felt by other characters.  You could be rain, or you could be a golem made entirely of mud.

 

If you wanted to be less-than-totally-incoporeal in a way that affected the game mechanically, you took appropriate limitations: mandating openings of a certain size-- perhaps you were an amorphous ooze, but that ooze, while almost as malleable as water, still required a hole through which to pass;  I had a cursed fantasy monster that was completely intangible _except for its heart_.  It could pass through any barrier so long as there was an opening large enough for its heart.

 

If you wanted your character to still take damage, and Vulnerability or Sucesptibility werent quite what you wanted, you took a custome disadvantage such as "does not protect against damage."  Or "still takes half damage"or whatever.

 

 

You built what you wanted,cleanly,without that kludgy cobble shoved on to the end.

 

It was as if there was such a fear of a GM being too incompetent to see when this was being abused that we went ahead and pre-broke it for you, so no one would be tempted to use this....

 

 

 

8 hours ago, Stanley Teriaca said:

 

I really wish they divorce the ability to be lighter from the ability to go through objects.

 

Shrinking, only to reduce mass.

 

 

[unclevlad]

On the alternate desolid:  I agree, it's a mess.  I came up with Diffuse Body.  It's just that:  your body has the same volume, but there's less mass.  8 points per level, each level gives +1 physical and energy Damage Negation, and +2 to Contortionist;  your body can adjust around to dissipate the impact of a strike, and to work through small openings.  Right now, I have it that each level lowers your mass to 30%...so, if you're normally 200 pounds, one level drops you to 60, 2 levels to 18, 3 levels to 5.4, etc.  Note that, if you're using HD, you can build it so that 2 levels drops you to 1/10th of your normal mass...0.3 per level's pretty much the same.  Also, at 5 levels, Leaping and Flight gain No Gravity Penalty.  That'd be optional, but it makes sense to me.  Diffuse Body does cost END.

 

There's no notion of passing through solids...but with a major bonus to Contortionist, you can pass through most tiny openings.  At 5-6 levels, you're pretty much air, so if it's not air-tight...........  There's no additional KB;  your body has a degree of inherent give.

[Gauntlet]

I have found one power, while it isn't as nasty as others, it is extremely annoying. Continuous NND attacks when you don't have the defense. 

[megaplayboy]

Probably something like Flight UAA, radius, 4 continuing charges lasting 1 turn each.  Send a group of bystanders airborne for 12 seconds, with the PCs having to save them, while the villain makes their escape.

Gotta catch em all!

[Gauntlet]

I thought I saw that you can't use Flight Usable Against Others, you had to use Telekinesis instead. 

[Stanley Teriaca]

3 hours ago, Gauntlet said:

I thought I saw that you can't use Flight Usable Against Others, you had to use Telekinesis instead. 

Say it with me now... "game master option". It might be true with "RAW".

[Christopher R Taylor]

The main reason the rules are careful with usable as an attack on flight is that its super cheap.  It is cheaper to get someone to move around than telekinesis, and it ignores weight.

[Stanley Teriaca]

Humm...

 

Bailfire, I hear, is a really nasty attack. Not only can it kill you, but can erase you and the memory of you ever existing.

 

I don't know how it could be done in Hero.

[Gauntlet]

6 hours ago, Stanley Teriaca said:

Humm...

 

Bailfire, I hear, is a really nasty attack. Not only can it kill you, but can erase you and the memory of you ever existing.

 

I don't know how it could be done in Hero.

 

I would think that you would need a Killing Attack with a linked planet wise transformation to remove all evidence that you existed and any memories of you.