unclevlad

That is it, in a nutshell, I expect. The basic senses cost 90 points...so what are you gonna do, give everyone 90 more? That are spent at the start? It kinda feels like saying every characteristic starts at 0...but requiring all of them to be bought to at least 1....and giving everyone that many more points. That would be a weird approach to me. And it feels like a way some people would try to game the system, trying to give back some of the senses for more, direct character points (rather than Complications). Maybe not all that many, but I think it is a legitimate system concern. Another aspect is that the base senses never cost END...and never should, IMO, as they're passive. (Maybe barring bizarre aliens or some automata, but those would be few and far between. And I'd need convincing that it made sense.) That makes advantages somewhat cheaper, arguably, than they should be, as they never carry the additional END cost. Also, there's a technical aspect. You'd have to buy any advantages on a sense, as naked advantages, most likely. Remember the rule: adders can be active or not at will, but advantages are always active when the power is in use. UGH! Not my preference.

There's only 2 reasons why I can't write off the Bucs after tonight. 1. The division they're in is terrible. TB was #18 at NFL.com, and that was the highest. NO/Atl are 21-22; Carolina is #30 with a bullet...hole. Or 6. After trading McCaffrey, ya gotta figure wins the rest of the way will be few and far between. 2. They only have 1 more game against a team with a winning record, and 3 division games. FiveThirtyEight still projects them going 8-9...and winning the division on tiebreakers. That's counting tonight. The problem, of course, is they've already lost to Carolina (#30) and Pittsburgh (#24), so they've shown they can lose to anyone. They're still grossly dysfunctional...just too many plays that can't happen this late into the season. The Ravens scored on their first 4 possessions in the second half...and the only other one was when they ran the clock out. First 3 drives, 33 plays, 250 yards, 3 TDs...so the defense is struggling to keep their heads above water.

At one time I worked in a group where 3 different people had bad motorcycle accidents...altho mostly off-road. In one case, the guy was out for multiple months, IIRC. The other two were before I joined that group...but one of them had a permanently mangled, only barely usable left hand. I agree that kids (and young adults) and motorcycles don't mix. Football...for multiple reasons, actually. Only some of them are safety related. I might throw mountain biking into that mix, as that's quite risky. I would at least insist on helmets.

Quite a few years ago now, I remember...I think he was an assistant manager at a local supermarket I went to enough, so got to know most of the regulars. Saw him in there, shopping, when I realized...I'd not seen him in quite a while. Turned out? He rode. With bike leathers and a helmet. He got hit by a truck that ran a light, or couldn't stop in time...I forget. But the truck's fault. Extensive injuries...but obviously, he lived, and it wasn't worse because he was wearing his helmet, and semi-protective clothing. OK, road rash might've been the least of his problems but it's no joke either. Infection is definitely a non-trivial risk, and that can complicate everything else that has to be done.

The fallout from Kanye's self-destructive comment continues. He ran a 'school'...a private, non-accredited academy, where parents had to sign NDAs. Little or nothing known about its internal workings...like what it might even be teaching. Huh...suspicious, much? https://www.theguardian.com/music/2022/oct/27/kanye-west-donda-academy-school-closes Points: --the school had invites to some basketball tournaments rescinded...these tend to be all-star type events, almost up there with Nike or Adidas summer camps for recruits. --another story says at least one faculty member resigned, on the basis of refusing to continue associating with West --he's bleeding sponsors and partners faster than Robert Sarver and the Suns The school itself has shut down for the year. They claim he's planning to reopen next year...but we'll see. Maybe this remark might become defused, but...it's inconceivable he won't make more.

The Giants can't play the Seahawks in the SB, no matter what. It'd have to be the Jets.

I agree with LL. McCarthy's a weasel, saying whatever it takes to satisfy his constituency of the moment...here, of course, it's the rest of the House Republican Caucus.

You're still misreading the rules about a VPP. The baseline is any power, any special effect. The wording you cite does not change this; it says that it's commonly done, but it doesn't create a requirement to do so. It's commentary, not rules text. 1. 6E VPPs have the flexibility to replace elemental controls, and have, IMO, been constructed to do that, by decoupling pool size from control cost. ECs are designed for powers linked by a special effect. 2. It allows a significant cost savings, particularly when it's a combat-switchable pool (0 phase or half phase to switch). If the control cost is 60 and you're going the half phase to switch...that's 45 points. A -1/2 limit for the specific powers/SFX available, shaves 15 points off. You may have other limitations; I use the common modifier Requires a Skill Roll (because the Power skill used to manipulate the pool, can be used to activate the powers). That's another -1/2. Common mods also decrease the control cost...so 45 would --> 22. Still, the powers/SFX limitation is saving 8. 3. I organize powers into 7 categories in my build process: offense, defense, movement, senses, health (life support and regen), and special (invis, desolid, shape shift, and utility stuff like Create Object or Extra-Dimensional Storage from the APGs). The 7th category is broad-scale multipliers...big Summons, Multiform, and Duplication. Those dictate special handling. Of these, having multiple offensive or movement powers is somewhat, to largely, redundant...you only use 1 at a time. Having different classes of attack powers...a Flash and a Blast, say...is generally better than having 2 Blasts. The value of the VPP "class of powers" limitation starts here. Which of these are allowed? Which attack styles (hamper vs. damage) are allowed? It's far less about the flexibility you *lose*...it's the flexibility you retain. The most restrictive interpretation for Mental Powers Only would be the explicitly defined Mental Powers in RAW: Mental Blast and Illusions, Mind Control, Link, and Scan, and Telepathy. This is sharply limited. Mind Control, Mental Blast, and Mental Illusions are largely offensive powers. Mind Scan, Mind Link, and Telepathy are all special powers. No defense powers. No movement powers. Also, the powers share common weaknesses, such as the breakout roll that's common to most. Personally, I'd consider this to be a rather large limitation. -1/2 at least, and arguably even -3/4 because they so strongly overlap. The more you start adding...the less this would go. Telekinesis? It has some value for offense (it's extremely expensive for an attack power, tho, which limits things), and has utility applications. LOTS of powers can be given a "mental power makeover"...Entangle's explicit, and mental Entangles are nasty. Mental Flash...OMCV vs. DMCV, goes against Mental Def, not Flash Def, IPE...but still executes as a, say, sight and sound flash attack. Nice! Completely different style of hampering. No breakout roll. But they won't last as long because you can't buy as many dice, due to the advantages. These are common psionic powers in multiple genres, or have their mechanics strongly linked by explicit rules, to the notion of a mental power. The there's the power tricks. If TK is allowed...a TK power trick is the TK blast. It's a Blast; at most, it'll tend to have OMCV vs. DCV. Telekinetic Flight is opening up a whole new category: a movement power. (In fact, it's instructive, IMO, to consider a VPP where the powers limitation is Telekinetics...it allows offensive and defensive powers, and movement...the 3 big groups for a VPP. So while Telekinetics sounds like a tighter limit than the restrictive Mental Powers...in functionality, it probably is more relaxed.) Telepathy has a bonus to DCV based on reading the target's plan of attack from his surface thoughts. And so on. Then there's the loosely associated "psionic powers" like psionic teleport. How often does a mentalist do this in comics or literature? Forget D&D; things might be thrown in simply to avoid gimping the psion. Conversely, perhaps you feel that making short leaps...combat movements only...is fitting, but a 300 mile jump doesn't fit. Final point: always remember that a class-of-powers limitation on the VPP, only applies to the VPP. If you want a mental teleport, and you'll pay for it outside the VPP...fine. You can keep the VPP narrowly defined, and thus get a decently-sized limitation for it.

Heh. Of course, for any non-mentalist, OMCV is a near-universal dump stat. HD says BoECV (which is 5E only, it was completely reworked for 6E) can't be applied to Teleport. Stated reason is, it can't be applied to self-only abilities...which is derived from the basis (5E 253) that a non-ranged power doesn't become ranged. The max distance you can move, is not the same as the power range of, let's say, a Blast. In 6E, it'd be ACV, alternate combat value. OMCV vs. DCV is +0 for a non-mental power, but it does NOT grant LOS or negate the range mods. (6E1 p. 318) And....nahhh, you won't need LS. I'm sure the air on Mars is just fine to breathe!!! Go for it!!! NICE!!!! range on that Teleport too, man!!! HMMMmm...current distance, Earth to Mars, is shown as 60 million miles...convenient. That's 100,000,000 km. Note that's shorter than usual; the average distance is about 140M miles. But, ok...10m, all we need is MegaScale at + 2 3/4 (1m = 10,000,000 km). The Range Mod for 100,000,000 km is only -67. No Problem, you can do it!!!!

The shape-shifter question is explicitly covered here: https://www.amazon.com/Law-Superheroes-James-Daily/dp/1592407269 This is actually a tremendous book to show the underpinnings of the legal system. The writers are lawyers, and they're arguing from real case law. Granted, no, superpowers aren't directly equivalent, but they use analogous situations. When is telepathy...or for that matter, potentially, even just empathy...an illegal search? Would heroes be allowed to testify while wearing a mask, or would this violate due process? It's detailed, nit-picking, deep stuff...but I'm loving it. About 2/3 of the way through at this point.

Actually, if you don't have a targeting sense spotting the hex...can't be perceived, or it's obscured...you DO need to make an attack roll against DCV 3...with various penalties. But DCV 3 is 'hit the hex.' Nothing about Teleportation suggests there is a "mental teleportation" that is in any way distinct; I'm not sure what advantages you're considering, other than perhaps "uses OMCV vs DCV"? In itself that wouldn't change anything else...

Only 13 teams have winning records...and 2 are on a bye. 17 teams have losing records, and 2 teams are at .500. The Seahawks are currently the #3 seed. How scary is that? That, of course, makes it perfectly appropriate for Halloween weekend. This entire season has been a horrible masquerade.

It's not allowed. See The Cost of Standard Senses, 6E1 209. Last paragraph.

Mental Entangle doesn't have LOS range, nor does Telekinesis. Neither would a Blast, AVAD vs. Mental Defense, OMCV vs. DMCV, Does Body.

Hey!!! My favorite t-shirt is from Rogue Brewing. Tie-dye Dead Guy...in rainbow colors. Got another in blue-black. THAT one is...almost discreet. Sad part...they're not replaceable. Which holds true for a distressing number of my favorites.

Some interesting autoerror examples in there, Duke... D&D also did "psionic teleport" powers...Dim Door, and IIRC both standard and greater teleport. But I agree with Duke and Hugh...especially when it comes to powers like this. I've done "Teleport Powers" VPPs that include a Blast or HA vs. Power Def...using one's Teleport to just quickly shift/shift back in a disruptive manner...but if the target *has* Teleport themselves...it doesn't work, period. And, no, it's not worth a lesser advantage the way NNDs are. If you want an HA that's AVAD (Mental Def)...I'd be fine with that, as it's connecting the SFX to mechanical elements associated with mental powers. Mental Powers already covers a nice group. Explicitly there's Blast and Telepathy; there's mental Entangles and Transforms (these are expensive and rather specialized, I'll grant). And TK is NOT a Mental Power because it can have so many non-mental bases. Heck, 6E1 295 has the big Psychokinesis block. Note that if you want to buy Teleport *outside* the VPP, then slapping on a Psionic SFX...no one will object. It's when you're trying to use an SFX limitation to get a cost savings that it matters. Or, conversely, an open question on a VPP is "how much is this Limited Powers-class lmitation worth?" Mental Powers only feels like Limited Class of Powers, -1/2...if it's as noted above. If it's covering movement powers as well? That's at most Slightly Limited, and as Hugh noted, might not be worth anything if you try to stretch it too far. IIRC, I put -1 on Teleports Only, when it means only different builds of Teleport...for me, this means teleport and apport (teleport you to me), all potential flavors of UBO (rescue teleport...apport with UAA allows fetching an unconscious person trapped in rubble), and gates or not. Throw in Teleport-linked SFX for Blast, RKA, and HA, all of which must take an AVAD, and I dropped it to -3/4, I think. YMMV; this is art, not science.

Well, considering the Niner game...or the Seahawks game...or the Texans game...or the Colts game...or the Jets game... There's a VERY, VERY high bar for Worst Ever Look, just this season, to pick from Oh, you mean the uniforms..... I don't have ESPN+ either, and I am soooo glad I can't be tempted...doesn't help the fact that the over-under is set at 39.5, and my feeling is...the under is close to a bloody LOCK. BIG spreads this week. Eagles -10.5 over Steelers, Cowboys -9 over Bears, Bills -11 over the Packers (!!!!). Well, hey, the Bears were +8.5 against the Pats, so maybe they can double up. Hey, if they can pull it off, they might become my favorite team...for a week or two, anyway. Interesting points from NFL.com's power rankings:

While we like to blame The Donald as, at least, being the point man for encouraging divisiveness...there's this story: https://www.cbsnews.com/losangeles/news/holocaust-museum-of-la-flooded-with-antisemitic-messages-after-offering-kanye-west-a-private-tour/

It's already a STOP sign power, tho, so making it too expensive feels like double jeopardy. Then again, those warnings are downplayed/disregarded rather a lot anyway. Your statement there is circular... if Clairsent gets made cheaper, we go back to "how can we reasonably define reasonably simple counters to Clairsent, without gutting it?" One thought: recognize the needle-in-a-haystack issue of long-range Clairsentience. We're largely conceding something like, say, Clairsent (sight group + normal healing) with x4 range and 2 levels of Mobile...that's 24m per phase, IIRC. That's 45 points. You'll likely want 1/2 END, +11, so 56 points. I'm not worried about point limits on powers here, but trying to devise a decent, but not necessarily game-breaking, power. This is a power with 1 km range. If you're doing a random search? It'll take a while. Even if you can target, let's say, an unknown office in a 15-story office building...it'll take a while. Not, you say, if you buy Penetrative...or even Partially Penetrative, as interior walls are far less robust most of the time...on your Sight, then it's going to be a lot faster. So...one thing? Review ALL sense mods when Clairsent's in play. Also note that you may need to know the *time*...think of a "stakeout" via Clairsentience, if you don't know when the 'good stuff' is gonna happen. Clairsent is also a Standard Power...so it's got visible effects. We've built a few Clairsent-blockers. MANY of these can be made dirt cheap...Trigger with extensive setup limitations for setting up a room's blocking. So ok, the player's power works nicely a few times, no problem. Smart bad guys can start figuring things out...and higher-level meetings may be blocked. OTOH, if the Clairsent is principally used to do a tactical assessment...information says a gang of supers has gathered at a house on Sonata Street, said gang has multiple open arrest warrants, and the team is asked to apprehend them. They go to the area, then team member Third Eye checks who's there...there's one in particular they want to make sure is present. And this way, they can build a plan for ingress and neutralization...hopefully. That's good roleplaying, not mystery-cracking.

We do that, don't we? But I think we gave OP plenty of options and supporting rationale first.

From a defensive standpoint, if Darkness vs. Clairvoyance is an accepted and universal stopper, then why would you care that individual implementations have special blockers? It's pointless. Do the block you KNOW is gonna work. What you're suggesting may work when it's a straightforward, non-power-based means...like my Faraday cage. Copper mesh embedded in the walls, floor, and ceiling, properly installed, can do that, and it's a known, existing security measure now. (Rooms for handling Top Secret and higher documents are frequently set up this way.) But Clairsentience is closer to Telepathy than sight; it's a classic psionic power. Simple materials generally shouldn't block it; that just doesn't match the way clairsentience is used, as was noted. That's not something that should be ignored; when certain properties are overwhelmingly common for a particular power type, respect them. THE exemplar for N-Ray, and thus Penetrative, is blocked by lead...respecting the source. Penetrative really should be at least a Caution-level modifier. I think the bigger issue with Clairvoyance is simply that the adder costs are a mess...or, if you prefer, the baseline power doesn't include enough. How about baseline Mobile? How about cheaper Telescopic? Some of it is structural...MegaScale is a significant advantage in terms of cost, and Clairvoyance is so *heavily* dependent on its adders that trying to use it is HORRIBLY expensive...especially given that the adders don't improve the base range. It's the "one size fits all" approach to 6E that bites us. And you're not gonna fix that by tossing in a nearly-meaningless "can't be used through" restriction that's a pure plot device; it won't save enough. Plus, it'd lead to a separate problem: it would drop the power's base range. Clairsent has Standard Range...10m per point, applying ONLY to the base power. Not adders, not advantages. (This is a separate issue. SOME things, like extra senses, appear to apply to the base and therefore increase the base range. Mobile and Multiple Perception Point are listed as adders; they don't. The Sense Modifiers...do they apply or not? BIG hassle. In HD, NONE of them do, because of structural limitations in the code. Doesn't help that RAW isn't clear, either.) Oh...here's a factor. Penetrative gives you *a* sense group. That's typically limited value. It's *typically* for Sight. How often does someone buy Penetrative Hearing? The baseline, then, for intrusive sight and hearing ain't cheap. And Penetrative Sight...yeah, fine, we all get that. Penetrative Hearing? Ehhhhh.... Ultrasonic, sure. Good amount of Telescopic, OK. Penetrative....feels odd, to say the least. To be sure, this is potentially stylistic.

I think I've had to grab something occasionally on Thanksgiving, but ya gotta figure the stores are losing money staying open. They may well have done it just out of habit, or fear of pushback...but once the habit got broken these last couple years, yeah, it makes sense to just be closed. Unrelated story just below that? The Powerball jackpot is expected to be around $700M for tomorrow night's drawing, or about $335M if you elect the lump sum.

However, you have to build that Darkness in bizarre ways. A classic fantasy use of scry-blocking...a strategy meeting in a command tent on the eve of battle. YES, the enemy wants to know, YES, if they have scrying they'll use it. Maybe it takes multiple spells...one to locate the command tent, another then to spy on the meeting...but it's obviously hugely useful. So, the meeting will want to block Clairsent...but if they're required to use Darkness, it can't be to sight and hearing without strange mods...or the meeting can't take place. Personal Immunity that's also UBO? YUCKKK!!!!! Not my style at all. I'd buy "Clairsentience only"...but as an ADVANTAGE, because it would mean those in the meeting room are unaffected, and the meeting proceeds normally. Darkness is also pretty darn expensive in its own right. Darkness to Sight Group + Normal Hearing, 8m radius (large meeting tent)...that's 43 points already. No, actually, it would make things worse. If each scrying spell has its own way it can be blocked, then which one do you pick to block it? Magical barriers may be what blocks your Penetrative...but not Duke's, which is Faraday-cage construction. So which one(s) do I plan for in my construction? CAN I even build a "magical barrier" without paying significant points? The restriction on Penetrative is written because the focus is on the player using it...the GM never has to pay for the blocking effect, it's a plot device. For PCs looking at blocking scrying effects...has anyone who's run a game, where the PCs have a base, ever made them pay for it? Have the PCs ever worried about it? My gut feeling is...largely, no. EDIT: Barrier might work better. You can define a 0 PD, 0 ED Barrier that is opaque to normal hearing and normal sight; that's 10 points. The problem is a barrier is bought by length...you can shape it, but if you want an 8m x 8m room, you have to buy 32m of length...all 4 sides. With 3m height, that's 46 points, and it costs END too.

That's why I think more teams need to consider trading their Wilsons, when they need to fuel a rebuild. He's not that old, but he is getting up there, in age and hits taken. While this is a bit of a surprise so far, whether it'll really amount to much (exit in the WC round is OK but not great)...it's likely '24 before the rebuild can get into higher gear. And they'd shown they weren't going anywhere with Wilson. The conditions that make this a good move might not arise that often, but they happen more often than teams actually pulling the trigger when they do. There's a huge fear...fanbase response, QB anxiety, what have you...that trading the QB who's Done It in the past, is disastrous because who knows when you'll find another. Vet QBs with positive traits, but overall mixed success, are GROSSLY overvalued, IMO. "Rodgers will work it out." "Brady's the GOAT, he'll solve it all." "Ryan...oh, Matty Ice. All those game winning drives!!" Yeah...YEARS ago. And when the team around them is competent. There was a stat...IIRC, it was the Bucs' interior 3 linemen are beaten by their pass rushers at the highest rate in the league. Interior pressure is FAST pressure, it's QB looking up just in time to get PULVERISED. It forces shorter routes, faster bail-outs by the QB. And Brady's escapeability is down. IIRC, the assessment of the GB receivers is..."not very good!" Ryan, I believe...that's on Ryan. Holding the ball much too long. Not only is he tied for the lead in sacks, he's also tied for the lead in fumbles, and 2nd in fumbles lost...fortunately, 11 fumbles but only 3 lost. But that's 35 drop-backs leading to significant negative plays, since Ryan's not running much.

Plausible. They had the longest odds to win the title, and their start even drew a comment in the Pulse newsletter this morning....