Highly Trained Folks Powerset Idea

[Supplanter]

Been mulling over your Batman/Punisher types. In theory, we want to avoid Enhanced+ "attributes." In practice we don't want to nerf them in play. Also, where they rock is Specialties, so that should matter. I think the following template gets us pretty far down the road:

----------------------------
POWER SET: PEERLESS TRAINING
Peak Stamina (or whatever) D6
[other Peak-level "attributes" to suit] D6

SFX: Unleashed. Works like the book.
SFX: Focus.
[Optional "standard" SFXes that make sense to suit: e.g. Area Attack.]
SFX: Specialist. Any time you don't roll a PEERLESS TRAINING Power Trait, add a second Specialty to your roll for free.
Limit: Out Of Your Depth. Turn any PEERLESS TRAINING power trait into a complication for a PP. Recover by activating an opportunity or during transition.
----------------------------

The magic is in the Specialist SFX. It gets a non-enhanced hero up to the dice count of a metahuman, and makes her make max use of what are likely to be her best dice.

Has anyone suggested this before?


Jim

[clackey]

I've just given the Punisher 'Enhanced Stamina' and 'Enhanced Reflex' for our builds.

But that doesn't really seem right there is no D6 Strength and Stamina. Is this just for game balance? Would you just have to give everyone a D6? Seems like a choice, but why?

[salsa]

But that doesn't really seem right there is no D6 Strength and Stamina.

Yea, I'm a firm believer of the philosophy "D6s should come from push dice if they are displays of adrenaline surge". And considering you can stunt them into D8s, opportunity react them into d8s or even stunt react them into d10s; It all seems a little odd to allow for so many power traits at d6 (besides senses for obvious reasons, you don't surge your senses, but some people will find a way to describe that and include that stunt die, hehe). But hey, that's just me.

Although, allowing that "free extra push die" to highly trained watcher characters wouldn't seem odd if you just want to give them an edge over the heroes. It's also okay if you intend to disallow high levels of durability and attributes in your campaign.

[Supplanter]

I've just given the Punisher 'Enhanced Stamina' and 'Enhanced Reflex' for our builds.

But that doesn't really seem right there is no D6 Strength and Stamina. Is this just for game balance? Would you just have to give everyone a D6? Seems like a choice, but why?

Partly I felt funny having a power set with no power traits in it, so I wanted to throw in something. Partly, some people in the community are into D6s as an option. (Folks doing "superhero school" campaigns, some folks doing Silver Age campaigns, others maybe.) We can have a whole discussion on the Philosophy of D6s, but honestly, I view it almost a side issue here. The power set is really about a way to build "non-metahuman" heroes who hold their own because of their specialties. I could give this power-set to the Silver Age Black Widow, for instance, and put her at dice-pool parity with a superhero without invoking a Red-Room Conditioning retcon.


Jim

[Supplanter]

Although, allowing that "free extra push die" to highly trained watcher characters wouldn't seem odd if you just want to give them an edge over the heroes. It's also okay if you intend to disallow high levels of durability and attributes in your campaign.

Yeah, the problem with push dice in the RAW is they're not free. Meanwhile, in this power set, the D6s mostly don't even get rolled. They're there to:

• go unused as the player invokes the SFX to roll 2 Specialties for free
• occasionally get stepped up via Unleashed to a D8 (that's your adrenaline surge)
• get turned into a bearable complication in return for a PP
• actually, the D6 Stamina will come in handy during transition scenes for healing rolls

But as I say, the D6 is not the point.


Jim

[salsa]

I see, nicely done, Jim.

[Supplanter]

I see, nicely done, Jim.

I think it's a perfectly reasonable house rule to give everyone without another relevant power trait a free D6 "Stamina" push die for healing rolls, BTW. Healing rolls are hard!


Jim

[Supplanter]

I see, nicely done, Jim.

I think you could really power-game it by adding a BUNCH of D6 traits with the "Shutdown useless D6 trait for a PP" SFX.


Jim

[Grimmshade]

I'm not a fan of adding d6 "attributes."
In the end you would have to retcon a lot of other characters, plus new characters will have a string of them. Most superheroes are high human level in most abilities that they aren't specifically "super" in. It borders on the edge of having to give everyone some sort of base attribute.

If you really want someones training to shine through, give them "Enhanced." It just means they are at the very low end of the d8 range, but its important enough to have as a "power."

[Supplanter]

I'm not a fan of adding d6 "attributes."
In the end you would have to retcon a lot of other characters, plus new characters will have a string of them. Most superheroes are high human level in most abilities that they aren't specifically "super" in. It borders on the edge of having to give everyone some sort of base attribute.

If you really want someones training to shine through, give them "Enhanced." It just means they are at the very low end of the d8 range, but its important enough to have as a "power."

I think to the extent some of us want to incorporate D6s into power sets to be used (and again - this power set is not about rolling D6s), you only add the ones you want to call out as relevant. e.g. I think my Silver Age Cap has D6 Strength, while my Silver Age Daredevil does not. Because while Daredevil is stronger than your average non-bear, Daredevil fights aren't about being stronger than the other dude, while sometimes Captain America fights are.

To the extent some of us hate and fear the D6, the above doesn't matter.

Someone should start a separate thread about D6s: Threat or Menace, though.


Jim