As Thick as a Brick (brick fan thread)

[Doc Samson]

Its that time again! This thread is a follow up to the "Another Brick in the Wall" thread (http://www.herogames.com/forums/showthread.php?p=1377417).

 

Our multi-dimensional hopping Exiles homage game ended awhile ago and I wanted to share some of the more creative Brick ideas my players came up with. Please feel free to share anything about your favorite bricks. Stats are a plus!

 

Stratus - I personally love Growing Bricks but they never seem to work out in game as you are restricted in height (and often strength) when inddors. This was a solution we came up with. Cloud had a full 15 levels in Growth with Linked Desolidification. As the Desolidification was bought with Does Not Protect Against Damage, I allowed the player to buy Affects Physical World on his full strength. The character appeared like a huge humanoid cloud and could use his full Growth wherever he was.

 

Gogmagog - Gogmagog (via Duplication) could split into two identical characters, Gog and Magog. The problem was that they didn't like eachother very much (the player was crazy I think) and would not only argue but sometimes even start fighting! It was funny at times and created some entertaining roleplaying for the player.

 

Orphan - Orphan was the 10 year old boy we picked up in an alternate dimension full of monsters. He survived because he was being protected by his "Invisible Friend". His friend was a murderous full-time Invisible/ part-time Desolid Brick (the boy was bought as a low point duplicate). The character was super creepy to say the least.

[Nerdnumber1]

Re: As Thick as a Brick (brick fan thread)

 

In a D&D play-by-post game on the wizards of the coast boards, I played an inteligent iron golem (we ignored d20 rules in favor of role playing). The basic idea was to put a near-indestructable, inteligent item (a magic-hardened adamantium grain of rice) into an iron golem body (instructed to auto-fail the item's take-over attempts). It had a rust gauntlet (giving it immunity to rust attacks and an extra touch attack) and a gauntlet that shot fireballs (fire heals iron golems and fireballs explode) plus golems are immune to most magic. I've thought of statting it out, but having your main body bought as an automoton follower reaked of foul play (not to mention the thing was near-invulnerable, especially since the inteligent item could long range teleport away to get a new body).

[OddHat]

Re: As Thick as a Brick (brick fan thread)

 

SatinKitty is playing American Angel, a pretty entertaining Supergirl / Wonder Woman tribute in our WWII game. The character is the illegitimate daughter of Hugo Danner, one of the main characters that inspired the Golden Age Superman (and the only one to have the complete Action Comics #1 Superman's power set). American Angel started out with the basic Strength / Invulnerability / Leaping package, and has been adding with experience and minor re-writes the rest of the classic Superman package. She's only really missing the Vision powers right now.

 

Her previous character was a very interesting disguised Supergirl tribute, Dragon Jane. Winged Flight, Strength, Toughness, Enhanced Senses, Fire Breathing, all based around her draconic blood.

[Bloodstone]

Re: As Thick as a Brick (brick fan thread)

 

Her previous character was a very interesting disguised Supergirl tribute' date=' Dragon Jane. Winged Flight, Strength, Toughness, Enhanced Senses, Fire Breathing, all based around her draconic blood.[/quote']

 

Experience tell me you can sell a decent suite of psychic powers to most GM's as well

[Doc Samson]

Re: As Thick as a Brick (brick fan thread)

 

I think that the Rushmore Golem (http://www.herogames.com/forums/showthread.php?t=68418&page=7) may be the King of all Bricks.

 

Here are two more that made short appearances during the campaign (due to all the dimension hopping, we had quite a few character changes). I believe I have posted a few of these in other threads so don't be mad if you have seen them already.

 

Totenkopf - He was a German soldier from a dimension where the Allies were the bad guys during WWII. He had the ability to channel the spirits of fallen soldiers to fight for him. The power was bought as high STR and Stretching so that if the "spirits" were harmed he felt their pain.

 

Deus-X - A Gnome engineer from the future of a Medieveal Fantasy dimension. He was essentially a tiny Gnome in a large suit of powered armor.

[Vulcan]

Re: As Thick as a Brick (brick fan thread)

 

Orphan - Orphan was the 10 year old boy we picked up in an alternate dimension full of monsters. He survived because he was being protected by his "Invisible Friend". His friend was a murderous full-time Invisible/ part-time Desolid Brick (the boy was bought as a low point duplicate). The character was super creepy to say the least.

 

Ah, the "Forbidden Planet" build!

[Nerdnumber1]

Re: As Thick as a Brick (brick fan thread)

 

I think that the Rushmore Golem (http://www.herogames.com/forums/showthread.php?t=68418&page=7) may be the King of all Bricks.

 

He isn't that tough. My GM attacked with a giant brick named Pound Cake. With rec 60, over 200 stun, 50 rPD, and a strength of 120 when growth was pushed, my 65 strength brick couldn't get out of his fist. Please note that pound cake was accompanied by a speedster, energy projector, and powered armored villian of similar power. We had about equal numbers in a 200+150disad+~30xp game. He wasn't quite as stong as the giant robo-dinosaur we fought earlier. I admit Rushmore Golem is tough, but king he ain't. He's just a big target that forgot to take no hit locations on his mountain sized head(s). Haymaker, pushed, full power super head shot. Volley 1 through 72 ready your weapons. Until might not even need heros.

[Doc Samson]

Re: As Thick as a Brick (brick fan thread)

 

Ah' date=' the "Forbidden Planet" build![/quote']

One of the great oldies! The character started off a bit different and was later "updated". I think he got the idea from Bioshock.

[Bloodstone]

Re: As Thick as a Brick (brick fan thread)

 

He isn't that tough... He's just a big target that forgot to take no hit locations on his mountain sized head(s). Haymaker' date=' pushed, full power super head shot. Volley 1 through 72 ready your weapons. Until might not even need heros.[/quote']

 

Superheroic games, by default, don't use Hit Locations...

[Nerdnumber1]

Re: As Thick as a Brick (brick fan thread)

 

Superheroic games' date=' by default, don't use Hit Locations...[/quote']

 

Size mods would still make any shot within a weapon's max range hit. Any military would blast Rushmore to rubble before it gets close. The flaw of with being the size of a mountain (actually much taller when standing up) is you attract a lot of attention and you're as easy to hit as a mountain. At least godzilla had the sense to only stand as tall as a building while fighting in a city filled with buildings. Bricks have to be tough enough to take all the hurt they attract by being such a large target, or they turn into big pinatas.

[Doc Samson]

Re: As Thick as a Brick (brick fan thread)

 

Size mods would still make any shot within a weapon's max range hit. Any military would blast Rushmore to rubble before it gets close. The flaw of with being the size of a mountain (actually much taller when standing up) is you attract a lot of attention and you're as easy to hit as a mountain. At least godzilla had the sense to only stand as tall as a building while fighting in a city filled with buildings. Bricks have to be tough enough to take all the hurt they attract by being such a large target' date=' or they turn into big pinatas.[/quote']

But he's so cool...

[Nerdnumber1]

Re: As Thick as a Brick (brick fan thread)

 

But he's so cool...

 

The job of a brick is to draw a lot of fire, take that hurt without slowing down too much, and smash things. If they draw more fire than they can take, the brick is a failure. If they take no hurt, they are a failure and a coward. A balance must be reached. Hulk has enough toughness and an escalating strength that makes him invinsible to practically any force likely to be placed against him. It doesn't hurt that he is too small for more than a half dozen big guns to hit him at once at reletively short range instead of an entire armored company at more than a mile.

 

If you're only bulletproof don't taunt the artilery!

[OddHat]

Re: As Thick as a Brick (brick fan thread)

 

But he's so cool...

 

It's an easily fixable dilemma.

 

The "problem", in as much as there is one, is in the damage scaling between Supers and Military Hardware in Champions. Rushmore is fantastic for a Superhero game where he's going against Champions Heroes or Villains; he's tough enough to be a serious threat, not too tough to beat. Against military hardware, under the official stats, he's toast. So, in a campaign where the GM feels like using military hardware, and chooses to have Rushmore be the King of Bricks, either the Hardware's damage has to be somehow nerfed (say Real Weapon means that Body must get through for Stun to get through, and apply Reduced Penetration against Super targets; or just lower the DCs) or Rushmore's defenses have to go up.

 

It's just a game; as GMs, we can always re-write in any way we'd like.

 

As to The Hulk vs Military Hardware, he has officially tumbled through Black Holes. He wouldn't notice anything Earth's hardware could do to him, unless the writer felt like it. It's only a story.

[OddHat]

Re: As Thick as a Brick (brick fan thread)

 

The job of a brick is to draw a lot of fire' date=' take that hurt without slowing down too much, and smash things. If they draw more fire than they can take, the brick is a failure. If they take no hurt, they are a failure and a coward.[/quote']

 

The brick who gets bloodied but doesn't actually lose combat prowess and is fine a few pages later is just as "Invulnerable" as the brick who bounces bullets from his skin, or deflects them with his hammer. Both took the shot, both were fine by the next issue. Making them cool comes down to the writing; a good storyteller can make almost any character interesting, a bad one can make any character dull.

 

Regenerator vs Bullet Bouncer is a matter of taste.

[Nerdnumber1]

Re: As Thick as a Brick (brick fan thread)

 

The brick who gets bloodied but doesn't actually lose combat prowess and is fine a few pages later is just as "Invulnerable" as the brick who bounces bullets from his skin, or deflects them with his hammer. Both took the shot, both were fine by the next issue. Making them cool comes down to the writing; a good storyteller can make almost any character interesting, a bad one can make any character dull.

 

Regenerator vs Bullet Bouncer is a matter of taste.

 

I'm referring to a brick that doesn't draw fire away from teammates if in a group. Also, any Brick that doesn't draw the attention of one or more enemies, isn't much of a brick.

[Egyptoid]

Re: As Thick as a Brick (brick fan thread)

 

In my Marvel Children campaign, the brick was BLOCK-HOUSE

illegitimate son of Spiral and Wolverine.

 

What a hoot. went to truck driving school in case the hero thing never worked out.

[Eosin]

Re: As Thick as a Brick (brick fan thread)

 

Striker was a PRIMUS agent in line for the Cyberline treatment when he tangled with a cosmic entity. The exposure changed his DNA. The SX of his brickiness is TK/Cosmic Power that manifests as his natural opinion on offensive/defensive capability. In theory, his powers should be a Cosmic Pool like the Silver Surfer or another herald but for now he just doesn't think that way.

 

Striker is a Temporal Anchor and drawn to things that threaten the timestream but is exceptionally vulnerable against those who manipulate time itself. The entity compels him to protect the timeline and has shown him many others.

[Enforcer84]

Re: As Thick as a Brick (brick fan thread)

 

I'm referring to a brick that doesn't draw fire away from teammates if in a group. Also' date=' any Brick that doesn't draw the attention of one or more enemies, isn't much of a brick.[/quote']

Hmmm, what? Its an RPG not a video game. And I like Video Games.

[Nerdnumber1]

Re: As Thick as a Brick (brick fan thread)

 

Hmmm' date=' what? Its an RPG not a video game. And I like Video Games.[/quote']

 

Let's put it this way. You are part of a team. Your teammates tend to go crunch when hit. You don't tend to go crunch when hit. If you're a team player or just a good person (or at least someone who sees reason to keep your teammates alive for your evil master plan) the smart thing to do is take more fire than your teammates. I would generally taunt and annoy the most powerful master villians, not because I was over confident or a blow hard, but because I knew if anyone could take it, I could. And if you're just a rampaging brick without tactics, then nobody attacking you means that you really aren't that big of a threat or tough of a brick (this is the only thing that separates 3 year old temper tantrums with low int brick temper tantrums.)

[Doc Samson]

Re: As Thick as a Brick (brick fan thread)

 

Ive played a couple of what I would call "crowd control" Bricks. They do add a fun dynamic to protecting the team.

 

Behemoth - A Blob homage. I got alot of use out of his Clinging Damage Shield. I liked him so much he inspired my next character (below).

 

Sludge (later changed to Pitch) - Sludge (later Tar) based powers. Had a UAA Clinging. Was tons of fun.

[Nerdnumber1]

Re: As Thick as a Brick (brick fan thread)

 

Sludge (later changed to Pitch) - Sludge (later Tar) based powers. Had a UAA Clinging. Was tons of fun.

 

Was he flamable?

 

Pitch: *clings to lots of villians*

PC1: *throws match*

PC2: What are you doing!?

PC1: He's a brick, right? He can take it. *takes out bag of marshmellows and starts to cook them*

Pitch:

 

Wouldn't be the first time marshmellows were cooked on a flaming party member, won't be the last. (My group's blob actually cooked marshmellows on a fire/ice energy projector in response to a question during a public appearance.)

[Markdoc]

Re: As Thick as a Brick (brick fan thread)

 

The most fun I ever had with a brick was a very basic Captain Marvel homage*: He had instant change, and in Hero ID, he had oodles of STR, DEX, CON, BOD, SPD and PD/ED - his only real powers were damage resistance, running, superleap and a little bit of life support. His skills were fairly limited

 

He was in no way invincible - he had no mental DEF, a normal EGO and INT, pretty limited Power Def, a moderately high PRE and no special senses, so here were plenty of ways a villain could get round him. When it came to hand to hand combat, he could beat up pretty much anything he met. But when it came to flying villains, or invisible villains or villains who "wouldn't fight fair" then he had to get by on imagination and native cunning - or rely on his team-mates.

 

He was a blast to play and I'd play him again in an instant if I was joining a new Supers game.

 

cheers, Mark

 

* Despite the fact that he is supposed to have the wisdom of Solomon, the early Captain Marvel always seemed to me to be a wee bit thick.

[Egyptoid]

Re: As Thick as a Brick (brick fan thread)

 

In my old marvel game, all the PCs were legacies, and I ran a capture scenario, and they languished in the dungeons of the Mandarin. The cells were surrounded with heavy force fields. I think they were 36/36, proof vs. teleport, double hardened, well beyond the campaign build limits.

 

So I let the players run the DEFENDERS on a 1-shot adventure, to go rescue their PCs. It was Hulk, Doc Strange, Awesome Andy, Ice-Man, and Hank McCoy. Hulk goes berzerk after Mandarin Ego Attacks him, finally he catches Mandarin via SuperLeap and beats him to a bloody pulp. Wouldnt have been so bad except Doc Strange was suppressing Mandarin's defences. Ouch, Ugly.

China man stay out of Hulks Head !!!!

 

Anyways, the PCs are in the cages, cheering for the Defenders, when Hulk tries to super-leap onto a Chinese villain, and misses. Said villain was hiding amongst the force-fields. Big ole Hulk crashes down, and with the velocity modifiers, BREAKS the UNBREAKABLE force field.

 

I as the GM sat there doodling, refiguring the math, and it was enough body to break it, while the players raved off howls of derisive laughter. Anyways, for revenge I also ruled the PC in that cage was thoroughly concussed. Hank McCoy had to figure out the machinery to take down the resot of the force fields.

 

YEA HULK !

[Bloodstone]

Re: As Thick as a Brick (brick fan thread)

 

Let's put it this way. You are part of a team. Your teammates tend to go crunch when hit. You don't tend to go crunch when hit.

 

Depends on group dynamics and build philosophy.

 

In the Avengers, it's cool if Thor takes a few hits for Hawkeye or even Captain America. Thor's just that much tougher than the rest of his team mates. Same with Colossus when it comes to most of the X-man.

 

But in the Fantastic Four, all of them can take one hell of a hit. And the Brick isn't even the best defended member of the party...

 

If you're a team player or just a good person (or at least someone who sees reason to keep your teammates alive for your evil master plan) the smart thing to do is take more fire than your teammates.

 

I don't know if you intend it to, but this comes off as a bit presumptuous and condescending...

 

I would generally taunt and annoy the most powerful master villians, not because I was over confident or a blow hard, but because I knew if anyone could take it, I could.

 

Taunting foes works for some groups, but it's highly situational. Sometimes you can't taunt a foe due to factors beyond your control, like Psychological Disadvantages and such.

 

Poorly organized mooks might tend to shoot the biggest immediate threat, but the smart ones will tend to go for the weakest link first.

 

Egotistical master villians tend to be vulnerable to this tactic, though depending on the relative power levels involved the brick may not be able to take it anyhow. Most bricks can stand up to the Warlord for a while... Menton or Gravitar, not so much.

 

Ultimately, this tactic tends to break down in more evenly matched group vs group battles, especially if the GM loves pairing off similarly matched foes.

 

It's also kind of a classic comic trope that the really fast/agile heroes tend to be the ones that do the bulk of taunting...

 

And if you're just a rampaging brick without tactics, then nobody attacking you means that you really aren't that big of a threat or tough of a brick (this is the only thing that separates 3 year old temper tantrums with low int brick temper tantrums.)

 

Who said anything about playing a rampaging brick without tactics?

[Nerdnumber1]

Re: As Thick as a Brick (brick fan thread)

 

The most fun I ever had with a brick was a very basic Captain Marvel homage*: He had instant change, and in Hero ID, he had oodles of STR, DEX, CON, BOD, SPD and PD/ED - his only real powers were damage resistance, running, superleap and a little bit of life support. His skills were fairly limited

 

He was in no way invincible - he had no mental DEF, a normal EGO and INT, pretty limited Power Def, a moderately high PRE and no special senses, so here were plenty of ways a villain could get round him. When it came to hand to hand combat, he could beat up pretty much anything he met. But when it came to flying villains, or invisible villains or villains who "wouldn't fight fair" then he had to get by on imagination and native cunning - or rely on his team-mates.

 

He was a blast to play and I'd play him again in an instant if I was joining a new Supers game.

 

cheers, Mark

 

* Despite the fact that he is supposed to have the wisdom of Solomon, the early Captain Marvel always seemed to me to be a wee bit thick.

 

My starting brick had similar problems. I chose to make a brick because I was unfamiliar with the game system (I quickly memorized most rules once I found a copy of FRED). I ignored the giant enemy's attacks in my first fight, but in the second fight a mentalist sent me on an errand that removed me from the entire battle (turns out the GM misread the break out role rules). Next thing I bought was a point of mental defense (4 points with ego/5).